POV: Third Person.
Copacabana Beach, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
At the Same Moment.
The fourth herald landed on a beach, causing fewer damages to the city compared to the other two, but there were still casualties. As he stepped onto the shore, prior to the arrival of the Avengers, he mercilessly ended the lives of over a hundred beachgoers, strolling calmly along its stretch.
"I am Morg, the executioner. Bow your heads, and it will all end swiftly!" declared the alien with brown skin and gray hair to his adversaries who confronted him. Unlike the other harbingers, he appeared older, bald, with only the remnants of hair at the back of his head. Despite his age, his physique was imposing, with spiky protrusions jutting from his arms and torso. He was shirtless, clad only in a pair of boots and silver gloves, wielding a short-handled silver axe.
Before him stood three individuals, two men and a woman, more accurately described as a man, a woman, and a green ogre.
Dr. Banner had already transformed into the Hulk; he understood the caliber of his enemies from conversations with Reed and Baldur. There was no need to hold back. Natasha accompanied him in case he lost control, and to complete the team, Jonathan "Johnny" Storm, the Human Torch, joined them.
"Seriously, old man? You're really asking us to bow our heads so you can use that lovely axe?" Johnny expressed surprise at his enemy's request.
"It is the gift of a painless death that I kindly offer you," Morg continued.
"Can Hulk smash old man now?" the giant green figure asked Natasha.
"Go ahead, we have to start anyway," she replied, drawing her daggers from her thighs.
Hulk then began to approach Morg slowly, who also gazed back at the green giant. They stood facing each other, Hulk slightly taller than Morg, looking down at him. But it was Morg who made the first move.
Morg swung his axe, attempting to cleave Hulk's chest, but the Hulk grabbed his wrist and delivered a powerful punch to Morg's face.
Morg seemed surprised by the strength of the giant, but it didn't immobilize him. He attacked again, this time aiming a kick at Hulk's leg, causing him to involuntarily drop to his knees. At that moment, he released Morg's wrist, who then aimed his axe at Hulk's neck.
Before the blow could land, Morg was struck by a blast of flames raining down from above, engulfing his body. He had no choice but to leap away from his adversary. Looking up, he saw a man covered in flames soaring through the air.
"Your insignificant flames cannot burn me!" he shouted at the Human Torch.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
He screamed in pain as a dagger pierced the area where a human heart would be.
"It seems my daggers can," Natasha said, appearing behind him.
Morg was wounded, but he spun around, attacking with his axe. Natasha evaded the blow by somersaulting backward, but even as she dodged, she was hit by the wave of energy the axe discharged, sending her flying across the beach to the side of the street, shattering the window of a store.
POV: Third Person.
Streets of Tokyo, Japan.
Some Time After the Start of the Battle Against Tyros.
"RUMBLE!"
The entire city trembled as an earthquake shook its foundations, originating right at the surface. The clash between Thor and the Thing against Tyros had spilled out of the crater where he had landed. As they reached the city streets, Tyros realized his disadvantage against the two foes. Utilizing his cosmic powers, he initiated an earthquake. While this couldn't obliterate Thor and the Thing, it was enough to throw them off balance. The true victims of this seismic upheaval were the Japanese populace.
Despite all efforts to evacuate the city after the meteorite's impact, they were helpless against an earthquake. It wouldn't be long before the entire city would lay in ruins.
"BOOOOOM!"
Thor unleashed his full strength against Tyros, but Tyros countered with his golden axe, commanding the earth to heed his call. Thor found himself met with a wave of earth exploding in his face, burying him. Meanwhile, the Thing leaped from a collapsed building towering twenty meters high.
Tyros paid no attention to his foe; he simply struck the ground with the handle of his golden axe, causing an explosion below the Thing. It was a volcano of earth that, upon engulfing the Thing's orange stone body, trapped and dragged him downward, attempting to bury him alive.
"BOOOM!"
A bolt of lightning shot up from the ground where Thor had been buried, and Mjolnir came flying, crackling with electricity, aimed at Tyros, who deflected it with his weapon. However, Mjolnir, diverted, halted mid-air and returned to Thor's hand, who had already charged towards Tyros.
Tyros swung his axe, attempting to strike Thor, but Thor evaded and, gripping Mjolnir, which had returned to his hand, landed a blow on Tyros's gray stone body.
"BOOM!"
Tyros staggered on the ground, then turned to counterattack. A lightning bolt descended from the sky, enveloping him. Thor refrained from attacking again; instead, he unleashed a bolt of lightning from his hammer at the spot where the Thing was buried.
"BOOOM!"
The Thing, using his gigantic hands, now dug himself out of the hole.
"Thanks for the assist, Blondie," he said, rising from the ground.
"You're welcome, buddy..."
He didn't finish his sentence; Tyros attacked, unleashing a shockwave of pure cosmic energy at Thor with his weapon. The blow was so powerful that the Thunder God was sent spinning uncontrollably through the air for several kilometers, crashing through several buildings fortunate enough to still be standing.
"HAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
The Thing roared his battle cry and leaped towards his foe, both hands raised above his head. Tyros defended himself with the long handle of his axe against the Thing's blow. The force of the impact drove Tyros to his knees. The Thing then seized the axe's shaft and pulled it towards him, delivering a powerful headbutt to Tyros's face, who refused to release the golden axe.
Seeing that the headbutt didn't work, the Thing released one hand from the axe and delivered a solid punch to Tyros's face. This time, Tyros also retaliated. He pulled the Thing back, using his body like a catapult, tossing the Thing over his head. The Thing released the axe's handle and fell backward onto the ground. Soon, the ground came alive, ensnaring all four limbs of the Fantastic Four member.
"You are an intriguing being. I would like to conduct experiments on you to discover why I cannot control your pure stone body," Tyros said to his fallen enemy.
"My bad, buddy, nothing personal, but I don't swing that way," the Thing replied, laughing and attempting to free himself.
"I guess I'll have to settle for just your body!" Tyros then lowered his axe, attempting to plunge it into the Thing's chest.
However, his senses screamed danger coming from his back. He swiftly turned to see a golden flash narrowly missing his chest; Tyros countered the golden light flash with a burst of golden sparks. At that moment, four more flashes of golden light targeted various parts of his body. Tyros swiftly dodged to the side, but as the flashes reached his previous position, they changed trajectory, no longer aiming for Tyros but hitting the four members buried in the ground, freeing the Thing.
"An insect lurking!" Tyros snarled in fury at the surprise attack. Utilizing his cosmic senses, he located the attacker and raised his axe, slamming it forcefully into the ground. The ongoing earthquake in the city intensified.
The attack struck precisely where the shots had originated, nearly five kilometers away from the battle scene where Hawkeye was perched atop a two-story building. Since the battle's onset, he had been waiting for the opportune moment to end it with just one shot, but circumstances demanded his intervention.
With his enhanced vision, spotting his enemy five kilometers away was an easy task. As he saw Tyros striking the ground with his weapon, he had a sinking feeling. He drew the string of his bow and fired at the building in front of him; the golden arrow stretched from the bow to the building, allowing Hawkeye to leap from one building to another. A smart move. A few seconds later, a gigantic spike, over three stories tall, emerged from the ground beneath the building where Hawkeye had been, piercing it.
"ENOUGH!"
Back at the battlefield, a voice shook the sky. Above the clouds, Thor reappeared, surrounded by pure energy, his eyes cold with fury and sparking with electricity.
"My brother advised me to reserve my strength for the final battle, but this has tested my patience enough!" Thor spun Mjolnir above his head, creating a vortex of clouds from which a massive lightning bolt struck Tyros directly, decimating a significant portion of their battleground.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
For the first time, Tyros screamed in agony. When the lightning vanished, Tyros's body bore severe damage, his stone-gray form smoking and bleeding.
"Don't forget about me!" Still recovering, Tyros attempted to rise to defend himself against the Thing's attack. However, he failed and was struck by a right hook followed by a left squarely on the nose. With his enemy dazed, the Thing seized the handle of Tyros's axe and wrenched it from his grip. Now armed, he thrust the weapon deep into Tyros's chest, impaling him.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAH!"
Tyros screamed once more; the axe pierced his body and stuck into the ground, forcing him to stand.
Thinking the battle was over, Thor and the Thing stood back, observing Tyros.
"I don't care anymore!" he shouted, blue blood dripping from his mouth.
"TRUUMMM!" Suddenly, the tremors intensified.
"I don't care if he wants this world; I will destroy him!" Tyros declared, initiating a suicide attack.
Understanding Tyros's intent, Thor and the Thing attacked simultaneously, ready to thwart his intentions. However, Hawkeye was quicker. A golden arrow flew past Thor's ear and struck Tyros's right eye. As the golden arrow hit him, Tyros exploded from within, obliterating his head and ending the tremors.
"Jesus Christ!" the Thing exclaimed, covered in blue blood.
"Nice shot, Hawkeye," Thor commended, using his communicator, unconcerned about being covered in blood.
"One of the most important rules, gentlemen, always make sure your dying enemy isn't holding something that can harm you," Barton relayed through the communicator to the two.
"Now that we're done here, we should go help the others," Thor said, already spinning Mjolnir.
"No, Thor, I received a report from Mr. Fantastic a short while ago. So far, all the heralds are contained. We should focus on aiding the wounded until the final boss shows up," Hawkeye suggested.
"I agree," the Thing said, surveying their surroundings.
While this battle involved only four individuals, the damage inflicted upon the city surpassed that of the battle against Loki. The trio then joined forces to assist the wounded.
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