Alright, kiddies, this is where the fun begins! Let's get started!
Inversion Chapter 11 – Who is "Him?"
"Where the heck is everyone?" Kane asked.
The Resistance had rallied all of its forces to come to Manhattan. Throngs of their allies filled the streets, with A.I.M., HYDRA, and the Hand making up most of those numbers. Everyone was headed for one place – Avengers Mansion.
Right away, something was off. As Kane said, the streets were nearly empty. In New York City, empty streets and buildings were near unheard of. Yet here it was, as painful a reality as a punch to the gut. The only sounds to be heard were the thousands of feet shuffling in rough formations. The leaders of the Resistance, the Collective, the Black Knight, Kane, Quantum, and Concussion were leading them all.
"It wasn't magic, that's for sure," Black Knight replied. "Teleporting massive amounts of people would give off massive waves of magical energy like a small sun. And there isn't even a hint of a rookie mage trying to light a campfire."
"The same goes for any tech registered in our databases," Osborn interjected. "We're not even picking up errant electricity."
As they were talking, Quantum and Carnage were having their own conversation.
"Remind me again why we didn't bring the Infinity Gems again?" Quantum asked.
"Too risky," Carnage replied. "In the past, one Infinity Gem could pull in the other Gems if they were in proximity. We can't chance the Inverted getting the one trump card we have."
"That. Sounds. Really. Stupid."
"I'm not the ones who made the rules, kid."
"Anybody else feel like we're auditioning for a role in The Twilight Zone?" Mysterio asked.
This was one of those rare times when someone other than himself agreed with him.
Because of this, the walk to Central Park was relatively uneventful. The soldiers were starting to relax, joking with each other and having a good time. These Avengers, they said, they weren't so tough. Mystique had her hands full trying to enforce proper military conduct.
Walking through Avengers Graveyard instilled more discipline than Mystique could ever hope to manage.
Everyone was silent as they walked past the headstones of various heroes. Some were well know, some weren't. Quantum took time to look at three headstones in particular – the Hulk, Namor, and Quicksilver. Kane noticed that one headstone was blank, but he brushed off the cause as weathering. The Resistance continued walking as such for about an hour before coming upon Avengers Mansion.
Unfortunately, they also came upon the assembled forces of S.H.I.E.L.D.
There were so many agents of the intelligence agency; the Resistance couldn't get within a mile of the Mansion due to sheer numbers. Doom turned to Ultron and said, "I thought you and Osborn took care of the Helicarrier!"
"We did!" Ultron defended. "They must have used one of their spares!"
"Wait a minute – they have spares?" Concussion interrupted.
"If you had a vehicle that was shot down every Tuesday and Thursday, wouldn't you have a couple spares on hand?" Ultron countered.
"Point taken," Concussion admitted. "That doesn't change the fact that we have a freaking ARMY to deal with on top of the Inverted!"
Osborn said nothing, only raised his right hand in the air. When he brought it down in one swift motion, the Resistance's own army rushed toward S.H.I.E.L.D.
The Resistance found out the reason for New York's vacancy, even supporting it. None of the residents would have survived this fight. Buildings were shot down or sliced to inch-thick ribbons, streets were reduced to rubble, and still the Resistance continued to fight on. The super heroes fought the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents with everything they had, but it seemed that for every agent they incapacitated, a hundred more took their place. "Fighting an uphill battle" crossed the minds of everyone in the Resistance.
As Kane sliced through three LMD's, he felt a tap on his shoulder. Whirling around, he saw that it was Black Knight. "Tell as many people as you can that I'm going to open a path to the Mansion!" He yelled above all the gun and energy fire. "Who you pick is up to you!"
Kane didn't need to be told twice. As he ran, everything started blurring around him. Everything, except for one thing. Oh, God… he shouldn't be here! All this blood… the smell nearly made his knees wobble in hunger…
Feed, a voice in his head whispered. Feed, and make yourself stronger! Show these termites who really is a superhuman!
No! Kane mentally shouted. I am not going to treat this place like a buffet! If I don't hurry, everyone I care about will die!
Kane started running even faster as he searched out people who could help him. He managed to find his friends, Mysterio, and the Scorpion. He didn't have time to find the others as the Black Knight made his move. Blue and purple energy started flying around him as he spun his sword in his hands. Just as he was starting to generate some wind, he stopped, thrusting his sword forward. The energy that swirled around him followed the thrust, forming something eerily like the skull of a snake. Everything in its path went flying – S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, ground, everything.
Kane and the others with him didn't have time to spectate. They rushed forward to the entrance of the Mansion, barely noticing Black Knight joining them. As they neared the entrance, though, Black Knight was suddenly and unexpectedly thrown to the side.
"What are you doing here?" A strong male voice demanded. Looking up, they saw that it was Doctor Strange. Red cape billowing behind him, the practitioner of black magic levitated down to be on top of Black Knight. "You were supposed to be destroyed."
"Happy to disappoint, good doctor," Black Knight quipped. Gripping the edge of his shield in one hand, he threw it straight at Strange's nose, shattering it and sending blood everywhere. Getting up on shaky legs, Black Knight shouted, "Get going! I'll take care of this old geezer!"
As Kane and the others stepped into the mansion, he asked, "Is it me, or is he starting talk more like us?"
"I've been noticing that too," Concussion added. "What's up with that?"
"No idea," Quantum shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe it's some effect of being near the Soul Gem?"
"Quit blogging, kiddies," Mysterio demanded. It wasn't the words that stopped them so much as the tone. For once, he was… serious. "You three stay here and guard the entrance. Scorpion and I will go in and finish this."
Before the three teens could argue, the two heroes dashed off down one of the hallways. Kane almost went after them, but Concussion stopped him, grabbing him by the shoulder and saying, "Dude, we don't even know our way around here. What'll happen if we get lost? Best thing we can do is do as they say."
So they proceeded to do so for twenty-four minutes. Just as things started looking up – the ranks of S.H.I.E.L.D. were thinning, Doctor Strange lay unmoving on the ground, and the other superhumans of the Resistance approached the house – things started to go terribly wrong. A metal plate slid over the doorway, sealing the three teens inside. Despite their best blows, the doorway didn't even vibrate, let alone move. "Must be some sort of vibranium-adamantium alloy," Quantum noted.
No sooner had she said that then they heard screaming. They turned to see Mysterio running towards them, shouting, "Run for it, he's going to kill us! It's – "
He didn't finish, instead falling to the ground. As Quantum gasped and the others' mouths gaped open, they saw the one figure who caused so much fear in Mysterio. Blood dripped from his hands as he marched menacingly towards them. There wasn't a man, woman, and child alive who didn't know this man. This man killed the Red Skull, Doctor Octopus, the Abomination, and countless other villains. He was the one man who everyone in the Resistance was told to run away from.
It was Spider-Man.
Sorry for the extremely long update. The reason for it is pretty stupid – I got lazy. Enjoying summer break will do that to you. Anyways, be sure to review! Expect an update before the end of the month!