32ND FINALS: LUKE CAGE VS. MOLTEN MAN

The place of combat this time was that of the city of Pamplona, the capital city of Navarre, Spain, where moments later, both Luke Cage and Molten Man appear in front of Town Hall and are soon greeted by cheering Spanish fans behind the glowing laser ropes. Also in the area was that of a large crate, large enough to hold a battleship. A sight in which shocked and confused both Luke and Molten Man, as they both wondered what could be inside. As the energized crowd continued to cheer, the Ref Bot floated in, and right on cue, it's screen popped up and showed the announcer's face. "Gentlemen, welcome to Spain!"

Luke looked around the city with just his eyes and appeared to be pleased with seeing the city first hand. "Pretty nice."

Molten Man, on the other hand, still kept his narrowed eyes at the Hero for Hire, and thus began popping his knuckles. "Enjoy it while you can," he growled. "Because you're gonna be in a coma when I'm done with you!"

Luke, on the other hand, was not the least bit intimidated by Molten Man's threat, nor was he impressed. "Kid, if I had a dollar for every time I've heard every villain punk tell me that, I'd be rich enough to buy my own island. And aside from being some kind of lava man, you're no different."

This retort only made the Molten Man smirk a little. "Really? You wanna bet?"

At that moment, the Ref Bot floated in between the two heroes to keep them from fighting before the match even started. "Now now, gentlemen, let's not get ahead of ourselves here."

No truer words were said for Molten Man, for he was still in Norman Osborn's employ, and while he didn't show it, he was worried about what Norman would do should he 'step out of line,' and thus stopped himself before doing anything rash. "Fine, whatever," uttered Molten Man as he crossed his arms in annoyance and waited for the announcer to hurry up and start the match.

Meanwhile, back in New York, and inside a local coffee shop, Flash Thompson, along with his girlfriend Sha Shan, as well as the rest of the 'cool kids' in Midtown High are all hanging out and watching the tournament on the coffee shop's newly installed big screen TV. And while most of Flash's entourage looked on with excitement, it is the beautiful blonde haired girl Sally Avril who looked completely worried once she saw Molten Man's image and thus turned to the rest of her friends. "You guys," she whispered in urgency. "There is no way we can let Liz see this!"

Unfortunately, just as Sally said this and all the kids agreed with her, the stunning Liz Allen herself, who by this time was seen carrying a cup of cappuccino, looked confused as to what she heard Sally whispered to everyone. "Can't let me see what?" she asked Sally and the others, startling them, but then looked up at the TV to see for herself and her eyes grew huge with shock when she saw the Molten Man...who at one time she knew as her brother. "MARK?!"

Meanwhile, back in the office of Heroes for Hire, Jenny Royce is seen comforting the sobbing Cassie Lang after she witnessed her father, Ant-Man, getting beaten by the Scarlet Spider. Through the corner of her eye, she glanced over at the TV and saw Luke Cage on the screen. "Boss," she thought to herself, looking worried. "Please be careful."

Back in Spain, Molten Man, as well as the rest of the cheering Spanish fans, is eager to get the match started. "All right," he said pounding his fiery fist together. "Let's hurry up and get this party started!"

The announcer, however, had the Ref Bot turned to the anxious Molten Man so he could address him. "Now, now, easy there, sport!" he told the young Thunderbolt, earning him a glare. "We will in no time, but first, by order of Mr. Osborn himself, we gotta go through a small...stipulation."

This answer left both combatants confused, and it's Luke who is the most vocal about it. "What stipulation?"

"Well, one based on the old tradition known as the 'Running of the Bulls,'" the announcer replied. "Now, I assume that like the fine people here, you two are familiar with said tradition running away from a stampede of running bulls?"

The one to answer this question is the still dumbfounded Molten Man. "Yeah, so?"

The Ref Bot floated over to the top of the crate. "So, in honor of Pamplona and its people we and its people, we decided to have the same thing. Only this time..." The Ref Bot had a flashing light on its base, which turned, opened the crate and revealed what was inside. And what Luke, Molten Man, and the people in the audience saw caused them all to gasp in disbelief.

Molten Man stood motionless and speechless for a few seconds until he muttered. "Oh..."

Seconds later, an equally shocked Luke finished his opponent's surprised answer. "...Sweet Christmas!"

What was inside the crate was that of what looked like a large number of mechanical bulls, all with glowing red eyes and looking like mini-tanks. And once they had the crowd's attention, the announcer went on to explain what they were exactly. "Except for this match, we have mechanical bulls, courtesy of the lab boys from S.H.I.E.L.D.! And here to help give our super-powered friends a run for their money for this match up!"

At this point, a skeptic looking Luke raised only one index finger to ask this. "Excuse me, my man, but isn't the idea of these matches is to have two people, you know, fight each other?"

"Oh yes, but this will definitely help spice things up!" The Ref Bot's lights flashed again, and this time, caused strange glowing arrows to appear and create a route. "And speaking of fighting, follow these arrows to the platform to have your match! So, without further delay, on your mark." As the Ref Bot flashed its lights again, it caused the mechanical bulls to stand erect. "...get set..." their eyes all glow bright red and set their sights on their intended targets: Luke and Molten Man. And, to finally get things started, the Ref Bot floated up into the air, and the announcer shouted this in Spanish. "GO!" With that very word be their activation code, the bulls all ran towards Luke and Molten Man at full speed.

Something in which made Luke groaned. "The hell did I sign up for?" he said to himself, then he, along with Molten Man, turned and ran for their lives, following the glowing arrows with the bulls not far behind.

Back in the coffee shop in New York, Liz now has her hands over her mouth in fear for her brother's safety, with her friends trying to provide her with comfort and support. Moments later, another student of Midtown High was that of the lovely, red-head, Mary-Jane Watson, who walked into the shop but looked a little baffled when she saw the gathering of people around the big screen TV. She later approached the clerk to order a latte. "Uh yeah, I'll have a..."In the middle of ordering, she soon caught a glimpse of the Molten Man running, and like Liz, couldn't believe what she just saw. "MARK?!"

Back in Spain, Luke and Molten Mark continued to run for their lives as they followed the arrows to their objective, with the bulls quickly gaining up on them. For Molten Man, he would typically toss lava at the bulls to test out the 'fire-proof' theory, but being as how he knew that Osborn was behind this, he did not want to take that chance. In the midst of their running, the two super-powered men looked straight ahead and see that arrows all lead to that of a small floating platform with two sets of stairs at the bottom. Not wanting to waste another second, Luke and Molten Man high-tail it, each stepping on the first step on each of the stairways, and instead of walking up, they use the steps as a boost to jump up high and both land on the floating platform. As if it was activated by feeling the weight of both men, the platform then floated up into the air and allowed the robot bulls to destroy the stairway in their stampede, running right underneath the floating platform like that of water under a bridge.

Both Luke and Molten Man were exhausted from the running, and as they slowly sat up, the Ref Bot hovered over to them, the announcer's face ever-present. "Wow, you made it in record time, gentlemen!" he said with enthusiasm. "But sadly, you can't rest yet! After all, you still have...!"

Neither Molten Man or Luke were clearly in no mood for the announcer's pleasantries after such a long run, and as such, they both got up and leaned into the Ref Bot's screen as they irritably said this in unison. "Just start the damn match!"

Even though he was miles away in New York, the announcer was still nevertheless intimidated by the two men 'getting in his face' via the Ref Bot. "Message received," he replied nervously, then mentally commanded the Ref Bot to fly up high once again and hover above the two fighters. "BEGIN!"

Molten Man wasted no time in getting the real fight underway as he surprised Luke with a stiff left hook to his jaw.

While this sucker punch did stun him for a bit, Luke manages to quickly shake off the effects, and thanks to a little bit of training he did with his partner Iron Fist, he felt the platform shake due to the footsteps coming from Molten Man moving closer to him, and was secretly grateful that he actually listened to his old friend in this regard. As such, Luke merely acted like he was still dazed from the last punch in order to make the Molten Man think he had the upper hand, that is until he felt his young opponent's footsteps stop on the left side, which prompted Luke to look through the corner of his left eye to see Molten Man throwing a right hook, prompting the 'Power Man' to use his right hand to catch the young Thunderbolt's fiery fist and stop the attack.

Though his skin was tough enough to withstand the Molten Man's touch, Luke could still feel his hand burning, and thus made his move by throwing a left uppercut, one that was strong enough to knock his young opponent off of his feet, and give him the time to shake his now smoking hand in a attempt to relieve the burning.

Back in the Garden, the Avengers are watching Luke gain the upper hand in the match and are both relieved as well as impressed. Especially Wolverine, who was amazed that a man of Luke's size could move so quickly. "Hmm, Cage is faster than he looks," said the X-Man, still watching the match intently.

This caused a smiling Iron Fist to speak on his partner's behalf. "Yes, Luke is full of surprises," said Fist in a light-hearted tone, but then turned serious as he continued to watch his friend block and three punch combination from Molten Man. "But, he's also been known to lose his temper at times, so I'm hoping he'll keep it in check to win this fight."

Another Avenger worried about these proceedings was that of Spidey, who was far more worried about the safety of Molten Man, Liz's brother, if anything else. "No argument here," thought the Web-Head, for while he was rooting for Luke, he also hoped that he didn't do so by seriously injuring fiery, as well as a misguided young man.

Back in Spain, both Luke and Molten Man are now trading blows on the hovering platform above the stampede of mechanical bulls. After leaning back to avoid a right uppercut form the young Thunderbolt, Luke went for a left jab, only to have it blocked. Fortunately though, Luke was still fast enough to land a swift right hook to Molten Man's jaw, causing him to stagger to the edge of the platform, and in danger of falling into the stampede and getting trampled to death. Knowing that killing his opponent was not allowed, as well as not wanting to kill the young man at all, Luke reached his right hand out to try and pull him to safety.

However, Molten Man saw this act of kindness as another attack, and quickly passed underneath Luke's extending, which caused the Hero for Hire to nearly go over the edge of the platform and into the stampeding mechanical bulls below.

As Luke struggled to find his balance, he managed to turn around and see Molten making a lava-ball with his hands and throw it at him. Acting fast, Luke held his arms in an 'X' fashion and miraculously, he blocked the ball. Even in stopping the ball, Luke still felt the burning sensation of the lava on his arms, and thus shook it off before managed to burn into the skin. Afterward, Luke turned his attention to Molten Man, and seeing that he is a young man in over his head, he felt that he had to try at least to talk some sense into him. "Look kid, I don't know what Osborn promised you, but believe me when I say, it isn't worth it! Because I've been down that road before. Hell, that's the reason I got my powers because I trusted the wrong guy. Point is, you can still do the right thing and forfeit this match!"

Deep in his heart, Molten Man wanted to believe him. After all the mistakes he's made, from his gambling to becoming what he is now, and in the process, lost the love and trust of his friends and family, nothing would've made him happier than to leave Osborn and be awarded one final chance of redemption. Something that he is further reminded of when he looks into the crowd and saw two children, with one being an eight-year-old boy, and the other being a five-year-old girl. The sight of those children together reminded him of the times he spent with his sister, Liz, and was also sadly reminded of Norman telling him that something 'unfortunate' would happen to her should he lose his match. All in which caused Molten Man to let out a sad sigh as he turned back to Luke. "Sorry, wish it was that simple." He told the part-time Avenger, then ran over and threw a right hook at him.

Luke saw this coming, however, and thus used his left hand to catch the punch. The Hero for Hire later spotted Molten Man throwing a left hook, and thus used his right hand to capture that fist as well, and thus he and his teenage opponent being wrestling for position. "Nobody said it was simple, kid," Luke said looking right dead in Molten Men's eyes. "But that don't mean you can't have help. I noticed you getting a look at those two kids down there. They your brother and sister?"

"No!" Molten Man snapped back. "They...they just reminded me of someone..."

"Someone close to you," Luke deduced then went further. "Someone that's a girl? And if that's the case, is Osborn holding her hostage?"

"Shut up!" yelled the angry Molten Man, then leaned back and gave Luke a hard head-butt, which dazed the Power Man long enough to release the Thunderbolt's hands. He then used both arms to wrap around Luke's waist, which began to burn the Hero for Hire's shirt, but not so much his upper body. Nonetheless, Molten Man later made his move by performing a belly to belly suplex, throwing Luke over his head.

Luke landed hard on the edge of the platform and was inches away from being thrown off the platform, and into the stampede below. As he laid there on his Luke looked up and saw Molten Man standing over him, looking angry to mask his sadness. Finally, Molten Man went to finish the match by winding the right fist back and punched downward, with the intent of destroying Luke's belt buckle.

However, Luke avoided it by rolling to the left side, causing the young Thunderbolt to punch his fist through the platform instead and getting himself stuck. Once he was on his stomach, Luke popped back up on his feet then ran up behind Molten Man and put the young man in a sleeper hold. "Kid, if you doing this because someone you know is in danger, I can help you!" he whispered into the struggling Molten Man's ear. "Stark is on the Osborn game, and we got friends on the outside who can help. Now what's the girl's name, and where is she?"

Molten Man knew that giving Luke any information would be suicide, but there was something in Luke's voice that made him want to believe him, and surprisingly, but at the same time, knew what was at stake. However, he did humor Luke and telling him who he was fighting for. "Liz...Liz Allen. My sister," he whispered back in Luke's ear. "And for all, I know she could be hanging out at...a coffee shop near Queens. I don't know the name, but she said it's where all the kids hang out...and Osborn is having S.H.I.E.L.D agents watching her like a hawk. So while I appreciate the effort, I still don't see how you can help!" With that reply, the Molten Man gave Luke a right elbow strike to his abdomen, forcing him to let go. Once free, Molten Man turned to face the winded Luke and clinched his fists. "So yeah, I've got way too much at stake to back out now! And for my sister, I'm playing for keeps. With his intent made clear, the Molten Man charged forward and went to give Luke a fierce right uppercut.

However, Luke leaned back to avoid the blow, then watched his young opponent throw a left hook, he held up his left arm to block the punch, then fought back by throwing a right jab to the Thunderbolt's face, then a left legged knee strike to his abdomen. Afterward, Luke walked up behind Molten Man, then pulled and held the fiery teen's right arm between his legs, then hooked his left arm with Molten Man's free arm. Now with a tight grip on his bending opponent, Luke used his strength to lift Molten Man up and placed him over his right shoulder. Although his shirt was now burning off of his person, as well as feeling it in his steel skin, Luke nonetheless went through with his attack by falling forward and slamming the young man back first onto the platform. Luke later sat up and thus decided that this match had gone on long enough. As such, he used his left hand to pin Molten Man down, then after turning his right hand into a fist, raised it over his head and drove it downward, successfully hitting and shattering Molten Man's belt-buckle and encasing him in yellow energy.

As Luke got back on his feet, the Ref Bot floated over to the Hero for Hire and addressed the audience watching around the world. "Here is your winner...LUKE CAGE!"

Even though he won, Luke did not look too pleased. In fact, all he could do was look down at the frozen Molten Man with pity. "Sorry kid, I still have a job to do by trying to win Osborn's sick game," thought the Power Man. "But that doesn't mean I won't help your sister."

WINNER: LUKE CAGE