POV: Baldur
Near the HYDRA Research Base, Sokovia, Border of Slovakia and the Czech Republic
Shortly After Thor and Hulk Destroy the Protective Barrier
"Give me a status report, Alice," I request from my AI while flying towards the research base.
"All Avengers are moving to the possible escape routes for HYDRA's leaders. Meanwhile, Thor and Hulk are fighting inside the enemy base," Alice reports.
"And what about Wanda and her brother?"
"Since the barrier was destroyed, I have gained control of the base's cameras. The siblings are currently fleeing from a Sentinel. The Master Mold is also making movements; the energy it's accumulating is surpassing critical levels."
(Great.)
"Do we have the location of the kidnapped civilians?"
"Yes, sir. They are all secure on the lowest subterranean floor."
"Deploy a team of soldiers to evacuate them immediately using the teleporter."
It's new technology and consumes a lot of energy, but its versatility is invaluable.
"Yes, sir."
"Also, deploy our soldiers on the ground now. I don't want a single HYDRA soldier to escape, regardless of their rank."
With the Avengers having moved, HYDRA's ground troops have lost their primary targets and are scattered around the base. Their leaders have already fled, and with the command center destroyed, they're left directionless. It won't be long before they start attempting to escape.
I hover above their base, which is undoubtedly the liveliest place in this country right now. Dark clouds above crackle with thunder and randomly strike the castle with lightning.
In the middle of it all, Hulk and Thor are demolishing everything and everyone in their path. They haven't yet descended into the subterranean levels, facing a significant number of soldiers and vehicles here, which will take them some time to handle—time enough for me to deal with the Master Mold before they start tearing everything down.
The damn Sentinel is deep in the heart of the facility, several floors below. I envelop myself in energy and dive, tearing through the subterranean levels effortlessly. Before reaching the floor where the Sentinel is, I find Pietro carrying Wanda in his arms, running slowly from a Sentinel.
Wanda is unconscious, her head covered in blood. Pietro appears fine but too exhausted to use his powers. They may be powerful, but they haven't yet fully developed their abilities.
My entry wasn't subtle—I literally opened a hole in the ceiling. Pietro, startled, stumbles and falls with his sister. The Sentinel halts its advance, trying to comprehend the situation.
"A half-finished product," I mutter, looking at the incomplete Sentinel.
The Master Mold can move despite its size but cannot move while creating Sentinels. Instead of pursuing the siblings, it decided to stay put and send this unfinished Sentinel after them.
"Watch out!" Pietro shouts behind me.
An unnecessary warning—the Sentinel attacks with its blade-like arm. I dodge by ducking and, with my fingers extended like a blade, slice it in half as if cutting butter. Split in two, the Sentinel collapses. Normally, dealing with one is a bit more challenging, but this one lacked its full armor and had its components exposed.
After dealing with it, I turn my attention to the siblings.
"Let me help you," I say calmly.
"You're one of the Avengers, the Viking," Pietro remarks, more paranoid of me than his sister. Hence, I approach carefully.
"I always found that name rather dull. You can call me Baldur. Your sister has already told me about our conversation, so relax a bit. I'm here to help."
Reluctantly, Pietro lets me place my hand on Wanda's head. Activating my rune, I heal her wounds. It doesn't take long; her injuries aren't severe. Wanda then wakes up, looking around in confusion. It takes her a moment to calm down as her brother explains what happened.
"You two need to get out of here now. This place won't last much longer," I tell them.
"We still need to save the people left behind," Wanda insists, heading towards the stairs leading down to them.
"I've already sent my men to rescue them, so go now," I say, creating a golden barrier in front of her to stop her.
"Just because I joined you to destroy this place doesn't mean I trust you with my friends' lives," Wanda retorts, firing a blast of red energy at my barrier, shattering it easily.
(This is a surprise.)
"My constructs of light aren't as fragile as they used to be. Even though I didn't put much effort into the one I just created, it was destroyed far too easily. There was no resistance, almost as if her powers held a significant advantage over mine."
(This needs further study later.)
"Alice, display the images of the soldiers responsible for the rescue," I command my AI, just as Wanda is about to descend the stairs.
From my wrist, a hologram projects in front of the siblings, showing footage from the perspective of a soldier calmly leading several people dressed in patient garb similar to the siblings.
"See? Even if you went down there now, they would have already been evacuated. Head upstairs, there's a jet waiting for you with a familiar face on board."
The images finally convince them to listen to me. Without exchanging another word, they begin their ascent to the surface, where they will meet their true father, Magneto. The new mutant nation is considered an ally of Genosha as well as Wakanda, so I contacted Magneto shortly after my encounter with Wanda. The only reason he hasn't come sooner and torn this castle from the ground is that he's been dealing with an important matter in his country and only received my message a few days ago. With patience and perseverance, I managed to persuade him not to interfere with the Avengers' plan, as long as he could oversee the situation to ensure his children's safety.
I haven't decided if reuniting the three is the best idea, but it certainly is the right thing to do.
With everything settled, I turn my attention back to the main issue. This time, I choose to descend the stairs calmly. The bulk of HYDRA's forces are outside the base, either fighting or trying to flee, leaving it almost deserted. It seems the scientists have fled with the leaders.
After descending two more floors, I finally encounter a massive metal door. One side remains intact, while the other has been ripped from the wall. Stepping through, I come face to face with the largest robot I've seen since the Celestial.
{Warning, Omega-Level Threat detected, initiating countermeasures, distracting the target.}
The Master Mold is vastly different from the other Sentinels. The first obvious difference is its enormous size. The second is its design, resembling the old Sentinels from the comics, complete with blue and red detailing.
It sits on what looks like a crude stone throne, its chest open. What catches my attention is the immense energy it's harnessing. After uttering a few words, several silver tentacles shoot out from its chest toward me.
"Alice, any idea what it's doing with all that energy?" I ask while dodging its attack.
{Sir, by my calculations, there's a high probability it's preparing for a suicide attack,} Alice replies through the communicator.
"What would the damage be if that happens?" I ask, creating a golden shield in front of me to block an unavoidable attack.
{If it continues to accumulate energy at this rate, the explosion will not only obliterate this entire facility but also trigger a tremor that will devastate a significant portion of the nearby city.}
"Great," I say sarcastically.
We are a few kilometers away from the capital of Sokovia. This distance initially assured me that the already beleaguered city would remain unharmed, but now this...
"Any way to shut this thing down without causing an explosion?"
{No sir, any damage inflicted will trigger the Master Mold's detonation.}
"What about cutting off its power source?" I suggest.
{The power source is integrated into its throne. The chances of destroying it without damaging the Master Mold are minimal. Any slight damage will...}
"Trigger the Master Mold's detonation. Yes, I understand."
If I could pull it into my dimension, this problem would be easily solved, but the damn thing is too large.
"I suppose I can't simply ask you to initiate a self-destruct, can I?" I inquire of the Master Mold.
{Suggestion ignored. According to protocols, in the event of imminent destruction, the Master Mold must initiate self-destruction,} the robot responds.
I begin to consider various options to get out of this precarious situation.
None of my constructs made of light would be enough to contain the explosion. I've never been particularly skilled in defense; destruction is more my style.
After contemplating several plans while dodging the Molde-Master's attacks, a rather crazy idea finally comes to mind.
Dodging another barrage of his silver tentacles, I plant Sigel firmly into the ground and raise my hand skyward.
"Brother? What are you doing?" Thor's voice crackles over the communicator almost immediately.
"I need your hammer for a few seconds, Thor."
Without further explanation, I grab hold of Mjolnir as it bursts through the walls of the installation, carving its own path.
"Alice, prepare the tractor beam. Target the Molde-Master."
"Understood, sir. Calculations will be completed shortly."
As Alice prepares, I smash the tentacles with Mjolnir, dismantling them. I continue this until the Molde-Master switches tactics, firing a beam of energy from his hand. This time, I don't dodge. I shield myself with Mjolnir and absorb the blast.
The result makes me laugh. My plan, it seems, has a higher chance of success than I initially thought.
"Calculations complete, sir. We're ready."
"Do it!" I shout.
The entire installation trembles. It doesn't take long for a field of energy to envelop the Molde-Master and his throne. The white energy that seemed to bathe his body starts to levitate him towards the hole created by the beam.
A tractor beam manipulates gravitational forces to push or pull objects. This explanation is the simplest; it can be used to save or capture a target. I never expected the Níðhöggr to debut this function here.
The beam's strength increases, lifting the robot higher. As long as the tractor beam surrounds him, the Molde-Master cannot detonate, making his removal possible.
I follow the tractor beam to the surface. The large hole created by the beam serves perfectly to extract the Molde-Master without issues. Once outside the installation, he ascends ever higher.
"Baldur? What in the Nine Realms is that?" Thor's voice questions.
"A problem that I need to solve," I reply calmly.
The Níðhöggr hovers thousands of meters above, with the Molde-Master being pulled towards it. When I judge the distance between the ground and the Níðhöggr to be sufficient, I give the next order.
"Release him now, Alice."
The tractor beam disengages, and for a millisecond, the robot hovers in the air before beginning to fall. Before he can plummet far, I surge towards him, propelled by Mjolnir. As I reach him, I unleash a bolt of lightning, striking precisely and causing him to explode.
Even at this altitude, the explosion could devastate the installation below and cause significant environmental damage. This is where Mjolnir's seldom-used but immensely powerful ability comes into play: its capacity to absorb energy. I wasn't sure if this version of Mjolnir could do it, so I tested it earlier.
Holding Mjolnir in front of me, it acts as an energy vacuum, absorbing the explosion's energy before it can do any harm. When the dust settles, all that remains of the Molde-Master are a few blackened pieces falling to the ground.
Releasing Mjolnir, it flies back to Thor.
"Brother, please stop using my Mjolnir for things I didn't know it could do. It hurts, you know," Thor's voice is tinged with sadness over the communicator.
"You'd know if you tried to understand your powers more. Now, let's stop playing around and finish this pointless battle," I respond, unfazed by Thor's feelings.
Sigel returns to me, and I dive back into the remnants of the installation to finish off the remaining HYDRA forces.
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