The uninhabited island base was in utter chaos. Even though it seemed like the Avengers had been locked in battle with the saintly warriors and angelic fighters for hours, in reality, only a few intense minutes had passed.
Inside the base, the quick-response units rushed toward the main hall, but the majority of soldiers were still scrambling, confused, and unprepared. People were just beginning to receive information about what was happening. More soldiers flooded the hallways, sprinting at full speed toward the main hall. But this wasn't a tightly organized military base; it was a loosely knit group of fighters and followers, more like a collection of mercenaries than disciplined soldiers. While they were loyal to the powerful "God Lord," their training and discipline left much to be desired.
The high-ranking saint who was supposed to command them had been taken out within seconds, falling in a surprising three-hit shield combo from Captain America. By the time reinforcements finally reached the main hall, they expected to see an entire invading army. They figured that the Avengers must have attacked in overwhelming numbers or that a whole fleet of heroes had landed.
But as they stormed into the main hall, they stopped in their tracks, stunned. Instead of facing an army, they saw just four Avengers, standing firm against the whole crowd of enemy soldiers.
Four intruders? they thought, confused. How could only four people be causing this much destruction? Their base was supposed to be nearly impenetrable, a fortress against any threat, yet here were just four heroes taking it apart bit by bit.
Reinforcements were still on the way, but before most could arrive, a loud boom sounded from the wall of the hall, and a shadowy figure was blasted out, flung like a cannonball across the room. The figure crashed into a crowd of soldiers, kicking up a huge cloud of dust. Two soldiers were crushed on impact, while several others were thrown back, skidding across the floor from the sheer force.
The soldiers stumbled to their feet, drawing their weapons and preparing to meet what they thought was an attacker. But as the dust settled, they could see it wasn't an enemy at all—it was their "God Lord," sprawled face-down, with his head buried in the dirt and his rear end sticking up in the air. It was anything but the majestic landing they expected from their mighty leader.
For a moment, no one dared to approach him. After all, he was supposed to be a divine being, their all-powerful leader from beyond the stars. Maybe this was some strange landing technique from his world? No one wanted to question it and risk offending him.
But then, with a sudden burst of energy, a bolt of lightning shot through the ceiling of the hall, flashing down toward their fallen leader. A figure followed, riding the lightning with a fierce intensity—Thor, the God of Thunder, with his hammer crackling and glowing as it sped toward its target.
The envoy, still dazed and stumbling to his feet, turned and saw Thor's hammer charging straight at him. He let out a panicked cry and took off, sprinting in the opposite direction.
"Out of my way!" he shouted as he ran, waving his hand and releasing a wave of energy. The blast vaporized two soldiers who happened to be in his path and sent him flying into the air, where he could flee faster.
But Thor wasn't going to let him get away that easily. He hurled his hammer forward with all his strength, the weapon glowing as it sped after the fleeing envoy like a missile locked onto its target.
Outside the hall, more soldiers were on their way to reinforce their leader. But when they saw him fleeing through the air with Thor's hammer chasing him, they stopped in shock.
One soldier whispered to the others, "Isn't he supposed to be… all-powerful? Why is he running?"
They hadn't seen what had happened in the hall and had no idea how the envoy had been bested. All they saw was their invincible leader fleeing at top speed from a single enemy.
Meanwhile, the envoy's thoughts were racing. In his brief fight with Thor, he had realized that he was in way over his head. This "God of Thunder" wasn't just a skilled fighter; he wielded a power beyond anything the envoy had ever seen. Though the envoy was a chosen messenger, with powers granted directly by his god, he was no match for the relentless strength and fury of Thor's hammer.
The envoy had expected Earth to be filled with nothing but weak humans, maybe with a few who had tapped into bits and pieces of leftover divine power. He had thought it would be an easy mission. But facing Thor, he now realized that he'd made a terrible mistake.
This "God of Thunder" is on a whole different level, he thought, panicking.
As he sped through the air, he felt a disturbance behind him and twisted around just in time to see Thor's hammer hurtling toward him like a glowing whirlwind. He tried to dodge, but the swirling divine energy from the hammer enveloped him. Blue lightning wrapped around his entire body, and he cried out in pain as he tumbled out of the sky, crashing back down to the island with a deafening crash.
Thor descended slowly, his hammer returning to his hand like it had a mind of its own. He landed beside the envoy, who was now lying crumpled on the ground, struggling to stand.
"Running away?" Thor's voice boomed, echoing across the battlefield. "A true warrior doesn't flee! Stand up and face me!"
The envoy managed to roll over and raised his hand, summoning a long, whip-like weapon out of thin air. The whip crackled with dark, alien energy as he lashed it toward Thor's face, hoping to catch him off guard.
But Charlie, who was controlling Thor, saw the attack coming. Thor caught the whip with one hand, his face calm and unbothered as he stared down his opponent.
The envoy gritted his teeth, pouring all his remaining power into the whip. Waves of energy surged along the weapon, trying to force Thor to let go. The energy crackled around Thor's face and hair, but he barely flinched.
With a powerful tug, Thor yanked the envoy toward him, pulling him across the ground. In one smooth, practiced move, Thor raised his hammer and swung it down in a brutal arc, striking the envoy directly in the chest.
The impact sounded like a thunderclap, echoing across the island. A flash of lightning burst from the point of contact, and a shockwave spread out, shaking the ground beneath them. The envoy's body bent backward under the force of the blow, then crumpled to the ground, motionless.
The soldiers around them were frozen, staring in stunned silence. For as long as they could remember, they had believed their God Lord was invincible, a supreme being who couldn't be beaten. But now, they saw him lying defeated at Thor's feet, unable to land a single blow in his defense.
It was as if Thor's hammer had struck their faith as well, leaving them questioning everything. If our God Lord can be defeated so easily, they thought, have we been following the wrong leader all along?
But something strange caught Charlie's eye. Just before Thor's final blow, he noticed the envoy's face change briefly, almost as if his appearance had flickered.
Charlie narrowed his eyes. The real envoy must have swapped places with someone else, he realized. He guessed that, sometime during the battle, the envoy had used a clever trick to switch places with one of his followers, turning them into a decoy. The real envoy had escaped, leaving the saint behind to take the hit in his place.
Thor stood up slowly, lifting his hammer and gazing around at the stunned soldiers nearby.
"Who's next?" he challenged, his voice filled with fierce energy.
The soldiers exchanged worried glances, unsure of what to do. Finally, one soldier dropped his weapon and raised his hands in surrender. Seeing him, the others quickly followed, letting their weapons clatter to the ground and raising their hands in the air.
"Very good," Thor said, nodding in satisfaction as he lowered his hammer.
Charlie let out a sigh of relief, finally relaxing as the battle ended. He pressed a button to activate his comm link. "Friday," he said, "call in the backup team. It looks like they have a mess to clean up here."
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Read entire fic at P@treon.com/Onesword