Marvel - The Blood God

"Damn Loki, and damn Coulson too!"

Rumlow, now "cured," cursed repeatedly. Thankfully, his identity remained a secret; otherwise, Hydra would be at serious risk. Taking to the air, he growled, "I'll head down and help!"

Damon chimed in, "I'm coming with you. The threat from hellspawn is way worse than these aliens!"

As the two descended, Wind Demon turned to the Absorber and said, "Carl Creel, you've got two choices: go back to S.H.I.E.L.D. as a prisoner or take an offer from my boss and work for him."

The Absorber raised an eyebrow. "Who's your boss?"

"The chairman of the Osborn Group and the Council of Blood—the richest man in America," Wind Demon replied. "This is your chance to get on the winning side. What'll it be?"

"The richest man in America?" The Absorber's interest was piqued. "Can he get me access to rare materials?"

"Of course," Wind Demon said confidently. "Vibranium? He's got it."

"That settles it. I'm in!" The Absorber nodded eagerly, then shot a glance at Tony with disdain. "Better to follow him than someone who can't even get vibranium!"

Tony almost choked. "Can't get vibranium? I could buy the whole damn stock if it existed to buy! This is ridiculous!"

Wind Demon smirked. "Save the whining, Stark." He summoned a gust of wind that carried both him and the Absorber toward the hell gate.

Below, the gate of hell loomed ominously, far larger than the vortex in the sky. Thanks to Mephisto's scheming, the hell gate spewed far more monsters than the Chitauri biomechanical forces.

Despite Hulk and the others holding their ground, their numbers were too few to contain the tide. Many demons broke through into Manhattan, tearing into the unlucky civilians who hadn't escaped in time. The monsters didn't just devour flesh—they consumed souls.

"Hulk!" The green giant roared as he slammed his fists into a massive minotaur's chest. The beast held its ground, meeting Hulk's punch with its own, the collision shattering the concrete beneath them.

"I like your style," the minotaur growled with a toothy grin. "You and me—we're a perfect match!"

The two locked into a brutal melee, neither giving an inch. This wasn't just a monster—it was one of Mephisto's commanders.

Nearby, Electro vaporized an eight-legged creature with a supercharged blast, panting as he muttered, "These things are way tougher than the aliens!"

Damon swung his flaming chain in a wide arc, incinerating a cluster of smaller demons. "We don't have a choice! Manhattan's counting on us!" he bellowed.

Natasha, piloting her Black Widow suit, moved efficiently through the chaos, taking down demon after demon. Over the comms, she yelled, "We've got to close that portal! Tony, what's the status?"

"Not great!" Tony snapped. "According to Dr. Shavig, we need the Mind Scepter to shut it down!"

"Where's the scepter?" Steve asked urgently.

"It disappeared with one of those damned monsters!" Tony growled. "No idea where it is now."

"Then we'll have to destroy the tower itself," Steve suggested.

Tony's tone sharpened. "Why does everyone want to blow up my building? What did the Stark Tower ever do to you?"

Ivan cut through the argument by firing a barrage of missiles at the rooftop platform. The structure groaned under the impact before collapsing—but the portal device floated, untouched, in midair.

Ivan frowned. "Guess that didn't work."

Tony groaned. "What did I just say? It won't work! Maybe try thinking next time before blowing something up!" He caught Dr. Shavig, who was teetering near the edge, and guided him to safety.

"Practice makes perfect," Ivan replied dryly. "I'll head up and help Thor. Maybe his hammer can do something about this."

Tony muttered under his breath as he followed. "By the way, what's with Osborn Group? Only ten drones? What happened to the rest?"

Ivan glared at him. "You still have the nerve to ask? Who blew up the base where we were building them?"

Tony hesitated. "Yeah, well, maybe don't have such lousy security next time."

Ivan snorted. "Keep talking, Stark. Once this is over, Maverick will definitely have a word with you—and don't forget, you killed military pilots earlier. The military's not going to let that slide."

Tony winced. "Not my fault! I was mind-controlled!"

"Good luck convincing them." Ivan didn't break stride as he launched himself into the fray. The two began fighting the Chitauri forces together, but their numbers only kept growing.

Meanwhile, in Wakanda, King T'Chaka and his advisors watched the chaos unfold via satellite.

"We should send help," Prince T'Challa said firmly. "Manhattan is in crisis."

One elder scoffed. "Help the United States? Have you forgotten they're preparing to invade us?"

Other elders murmured their agreement, casting T'Challa disapproving looks.

"Helping now could show the world our strength and win us allies," T'Challa argued. "It would put the moral high ground firmly on our side."

"Moral high ground?" an elder retorted. "Wakanda doesn't turn the other cheek when slapped. And we don't meddle in the affairs of outsiders."

"Let America's Fifth Fleet come," another added. "They'll learn our strength soon enough."

King T'Chaka raised a hand to silence the debate. "This is their battle, not ours. We will observe, nothing more."

T'Challa sighed, knowing the elders' resistance would make war inevitable.

Back in Manhattan, Mephisto stood in the mirror dimension, his face alight with malicious glee. "Time is on my side," he declared. "The Blood God is trapped, and without him, humanity is doomed. Manhattan will fall, and this is just the beginning."

The Ancient One met his gaze calmly. "You underestimate him. He'll break free, and when he does, your monsters will be nothing to him."

"Underestimate him?" Mephisto laughed coldly. "You think I'm a fool? I sent not one labyrinth demon, but ten. Even he can't handle that many."

The Ancient One didn't flinch. "Even ten won't be enough."

Mephisto sneered. "Then let me show you something else!"

Back in Manhattan, the ground near the hell gate erupted into a blazing inferno. From the flames emerged a massive fire crow with wings that seemed to span entire city blocks. Smaller fire crows poured from its feathers, scattering across the city and raining fireballs on buildings and streets.

"Stop those crows!" Damon shouted, taking to the sky—only to be yanked back by a chain-wielding demon. Damon hit the ground hard, narrowly avoiding a spiked chain aimed at his chest.

The fire crow crowed triumphantly, "Manhattan is mine now!"

Suddenly, a thunderous voice boomed across the city. "Yours? Did you ask me first?"

From the heavens, a colossal red dragon materialized. At first translucent, it solidified into a fearsome presence. With a deafening roar, the dragon flapped its wings, extinguishing fires and scattering the smaller fire crows.

The fire crow screeched in fury and charged at the dragon, only to be swatted aside with contemptuous ease.

The dragon's voice rumbled like an earthquake. "Manhattan is under my protection. Leave or face annihilation."

Watching from below, Tony gawked. "Is that... one of Maverick's? That dragon looks just like his emblem!"

Ivan smirked. "You wanted vibranium? Try topping that."

The dragon roared again, flames surging from its mouth to incinerate the demons near the hell gate. The tide of battle turned, but the hell gate itself stood firm.

High above, the dragon locked eyes with the hell gate and muttered, "Where is the labyrinth demon hiding? If it's not in this realm, this could get complicated."

The fire crow tried one last desperate attack, but the dragon simply opened its maw and swallowed it whole. "Crispy," it said with a faint grin.