Storytime #3: X and SHIELD!
HeroBoltsy
Member Posts: 785 ★★★
You already know many stories of the Battlerealm. The tales of how one Summoner entered the Contest of Champions. How they overthrew the Maestro of the Contest, and stopped the Mad Titan Thanos. How they defeated both the Collector and the Grandmaster, in due time. And how, every step of the way, the Summoner was aided by their loyal, faithful Champions.
This is not one of those stories.
No, this is a tale of a band of heroes, wandering the edges of the Battlerealm. Who misguidedly sought the refuge of Magneto, Master of Magnetism, and who now find themselves in danger of losing the freedom which they have fought so hard to preserve...
* * *
"Why hide, skulking in the shadows, concealing who you really are? Don't think I haven't noticed you keeping your wings hidden in all your time here, Warren. Take my deal, and flourish as mutantkind was meant to do, or decline it, and choose certain death," Magneto stated, stretching out a hand towards Warren as Hank McCoy looked on and light flooded the room from behind them.
Warren looked around - there was a huge commotion in the halls of Asteroid M, as his group scattered about, preparing for battle. Glancing outside, he saw the three large Helicarriers, their powerful engines and rotors sending an artificial wind towards the base. Quentin Beck, Johnny Blaze, and Gwenpool all faced down each of the Helicarriers, with heroes and villains alike standing behind them, ready to fight for their freedom. But Warren knew that, for as many heroes his side had, the Helicarriers had dozens more Agents - sent by the Collector, no doubt, to return them to his collection.
This was a battle they could not win. Surely, perhaps, it might be worthwhile to surrender a great fraction of his men for the survival of the rest?
Warren stepped slowly towards Magneto, hand outstretched, and watched the villain's mouth slowly curl upward in a thin smile. Maybe... maybe it would be worth it, after all.
But no, Warren could not abandon his fellow champions. He would not. And so, with his outstretched hand, he shoved Magneto aside, and in one quick movement snatched the little square that Hank had called a Boost from his friend's hands. Before the Beast could even cry out in protest, Warren had already hurled the square towards the ground, shattering it instantly.
From the fragments of this compound came an almost divine, refreshing wind, and as it struck Warren he felt... stronger, more energetic than before. He looked outside once more, seeing the Mutants among his gang feel the same empowering wind, and step towards the Helicarriers, emboldened. He heard the same voice from the Helicarrier call, "This is your final warning - surrender at once, or we will open fire!"
"Warren!" Quentin called to him. "What do we do?"
"We fight," Warren replied calmly, without hesitation. "We fight for our freedom!"
And with that, the band of free Champions rushed off to attack those who would Collect them once more.
* * *
As soon as the heroes heard Warren's battle cry, they charged valiantly towards the Helicarriers. Doctor Strange, Dormammu, and Mordo cast levitation spells, letting the heroes fly off towards their enemies, while Quentin led Hyperion and Iron Man on an aerial assault towards the bridge of the central Helicarrier. As shots rang out, cannons rapidly firing at the attacking heroes, the three burst through the window of the main Helicarrier's bridge, landing and immediately attacking the SHIELD agents who rushed towards them. Quentin, firing beams of green light towards the attackers, advanced forward as quickly as he could, destroying several computers in the process to slow down the Helicarrier's offensive and help the champions outside.
Meanwhile, outside, Thaddeus Ross and Gwenpool led an assault on the guns of the Helicarrier, dashing up to them on magical platforms. They and the heroes behind them beat into the guns, slashing at them and tearing them out of their sockets, trying to disable the machines of destruction. But, try as they might, they still could not disable all of them, and each second the two generals watched as another hero fell, struck by gunfire or falling into the abyss of space beneath them.
Inside Asteroid M, Warren and Magneto squared off. The former threw a punch, which Magneto simply slid out of the way of effortlessly, like this was nothing but a game to him. Counterattacking, Magneto tore two steel beams from his wall, and hurled them at Warren, who only barely managed to duck underneath them. Now, Warren charged towards Magneto, leaping up, fist at the ready, only to be punched backwards onto the floor by his opponent.
Floating over Warren, Magneto spat, "You should have taken the deal when you had the chance. We could have made mutantkind shine! But you have chosen death. So be it."
He raised his arms, drawing metal beams from everywhere around him, shaping them into sharp, pointed spears, then sending them shooting towards Warren. But before they struck, they were blocked - turned aside by beautifully terrifying metal wings that had appeared suddenly.
As the Archangel got to his feet, Magneto could not help but smile.
* * *
On the main Helicarrier's bridge, all was silent. Quentin, Hyperion, and Iron Man had taken out all the SHIELD agents around them, and now the bridge was theirs. As his helmet receded back into his nanotechnology armor, Iron Man ran over to the controls, trying to take control of the Helicarrier. "Give me some time here. I can probably get hold of this carrier and all its weapons, but I'm going to need time. Hype, why don't you go out and tell our forces not to attack this immensely powerful weapon I'm trying to take over?" he stated, and Hyperion nodded, flying out the broken window in front of them.
He didn't get far, though, before a beam of yellow light struck him, and he fell for what seemed to be minutes, before striking the ground beneath him, and becoming still. Quentin turned around and fired his own beam of green light at the attacker, knocking a large gun out of the attacker's hand and throwing it against the wall. It was only then that he realized who had attacked them.
"I know you," Quentin said, holding out his hands threateningly at the suit-wearing man who faced him. "You're..."
"Agent Coulson. Commander of this Helicarrier. I'd ask you to get off my ship, but, well, I don't seem to be in a place to make those kinds of demands," came the reply. "I know what you're trying to do. It won't work. The Collector will find you eventually. You have nowhere to go."
"And where do you think the Collector's going to put you after you bring us back?" Quentin asked pointedly. "He's going to put you back into your crystal, isn't he?"
Agent Coulson was silent, and that told Quentin all he needed to know. "Come with us. You don't have to serve the Collector or anyone. Why should you? Help us free ourselves, and we can free you, too," Quentin stated, and slowly Coulson nodded.
"Alright. I'll help you-" Coulson began, before Quentin threw a punch at him, knocking him out. He couldn't risk Coulson perhaps betraying them immediately, not so close to the battle's end.
"Sorry about that," Quentin said to the unconscious Agent, before asking, "How are we looking?"
"Uh, there are a... couple of problems," Iron Man stated as shots rang out from the left side of the Helicarrier. "The engines on this thing are badly damaged. And to make matters worse, I've only been able to take down the Helicarrier to our left. All the guns on the right side are disabled. This thing isn't going anywhere."
"I've got an idea. But you're not going to like it," Quentin suggested.
* * *
Warren slashed at Magneto with his wings, tearing open his armor and making him bleed. "You fight like who you truly are now. I can respect that, even as I kill you," Magneto shouted, raising his hands and sending Warren flying back. But as he did, Warren let a few talons loose, and though Magneto tried to turn them all aside, a few struck him, and he cried out in pain. Taking advantage of this momentary weakness, Warren charged up and bashed him with the side of his wing, before spinning around and slashing Magneto again.
Suddenly, Magneto was gasping for air, falling to the ground, crumbling over. "It's over, Magneto," Warren stated, as he glanced outside and saw one Helicarrier veer towards the ground, falling towards Asteroid M. "I'm sorry it had to end this way."
He began to dash out the door, knowing that Asteroid M was not long for the earth, but a coughing Magneto called out, "Wait!" and Warren stopped. "This path you are on... it will bring you nothing but despair. I have seen it from afar. You are being hunted, and nothing will save you from... the one-armed treachery you will face," Magneto warned, before exhaling and collapsing.
Warren noted these words, then dashed out the door just as a Helicarrier came down on top of Asteroid M. With a burst of speed from his wings, he flew out into the open, and stood at the edge of the Asteroid, seeing his men around him. As he retracted his wings, he surveyed the area around him - guns firing into the night, champions fighting valiantly and falling, but fighting for something they truly believed in. There were far, far less heroes than he'd seen before, but such was the way of battle. They'd mourn for those lost later.
He watched as, from the middle Helicarrier, a burst of green light came, and Quentin Beck approached, carrying Agent Coulson with him. "Who is this? Where's Tony and Hyperion?" Warren asked, seeing his lieutenant land.
"This is Agent Coulson. He's going to help us find our way to the Farm. Hyperion's down. And Stark's, well..." Quentin began, before simply stating, "We have to go."
"Alright. Everyone, let's go!" Warren shouted, seeing an asteroid approach to their right. As his heroes leapt up onto that giant rock, the sorcerers casting spells to send it hurtling away from Magneto's base, gunfire from the third Helicarrier still rang out towards them, until the central Helicarrier nosedived towards it, pushing it aside and sending them both crashing down onto Asteroid M.
"Tony was on that Helicarrier, wasn't he?" Warren asked, and Quentin only nodded.
"I have no idea how to pilot one of those. I was scared if we let Coulson here take the wheel, he'd send out a distress call to the Collector or something. Tony was the only one who could do it," Quentin replied as the couple dozen heroes beat a hasty retreat, fleeing to parts unknown of the Battlerealm's edges. "He might still be alive, but... somehow, I doubt it."
* * *
The rubble, smoking and heavy, lay atop the Beast, Hank McCoy. He'd fled as soon as Warren and Magneto had started fighting, tried to find a way out of the base, but a Helicarrier had came down on top of him. He was lucky to still be alive, but he figured that wouldn't be for much longer. He tried lifting the steel beam atop him, but found it difficult in the hazy, smoky air. So he sighed, and just lay there, all but giving up.
Then, there was a high pitched blast, and the beam above him was blasted off his chest. He gasped for air, taking in a deep breath, and then turned around, facing his savior. There, in a brutally scratched but still distinctly red and gold suit of armor, stood Tony Stark, the Iron Man. He stretched out a hand to Hank, helping him up, and said, "No thank you?"
Hank nodded, saying, "Thanks," and then suggesting, "We should find a way out of here."
They looked up, at the ceiling of mangled metal all around them. They were trapped. But perhaps not for long.
* * *
Thank you for reading, once again! Man, is it just me or do these feel like they keep getting longer and longer? Well, that wraps up the first story beat that I wanted to hit for Storytime, long-term. I'm thinking I might spend a couple weeks on more character-focused bits, idk if y'all are up for that but it feels like that's what I'm going to do. Apologies for the wait, I spent way longer than I needed to on this, but I really do hope you enjoyed it!
This is not one of those stories.
No, this is a tale of a band of heroes, wandering the edges of the Battlerealm. Who misguidedly sought the refuge of Magneto, Master of Magnetism, and who now find themselves in danger of losing the freedom which they have fought so hard to preserve...
* * *
"Why hide, skulking in the shadows, concealing who you really are? Don't think I haven't noticed you keeping your wings hidden in all your time here, Warren. Take my deal, and flourish as mutantkind was meant to do, or decline it, and choose certain death," Magneto stated, stretching out a hand towards Warren as Hank McCoy looked on and light flooded the room from behind them.
Warren looked around - there was a huge commotion in the halls of Asteroid M, as his group scattered about, preparing for battle. Glancing outside, he saw the three large Helicarriers, their powerful engines and rotors sending an artificial wind towards the base. Quentin Beck, Johnny Blaze, and Gwenpool all faced down each of the Helicarriers, with heroes and villains alike standing behind them, ready to fight for their freedom. But Warren knew that, for as many heroes his side had, the Helicarriers had dozens more Agents - sent by the Collector, no doubt, to return them to his collection.
This was a battle they could not win. Surely, perhaps, it might be worthwhile to surrender a great fraction of his men for the survival of the rest?
Warren stepped slowly towards Magneto, hand outstretched, and watched the villain's mouth slowly curl upward in a thin smile. Maybe... maybe it would be worth it, after all.
But no, Warren could not abandon his fellow champions. He would not. And so, with his outstretched hand, he shoved Magneto aside, and in one quick movement snatched the little square that Hank had called a Boost from his friend's hands. Before the Beast could even cry out in protest, Warren had already hurled the square towards the ground, shattering it instantly.
From the fragments of this compound came an almost divine, refreshing wind, and as it struck Warren he felt... stronger, more energetic than before. He looked outside once more, seeing the Mutants among his gang feel the same empowering wind, and step towards the Helicarriers, emboldened. He heard the same voice from the Helicarrier call, "This is your final warning - surrender at once, or we will open fire!"
"Warren!" Quentin called to him. "What do we do?"
"We fight," Warren replied calmly, without hesitation. "We fight for our freedom!"
And with that, the band of free Champions rushed off to attack those who would Collect them once more.
* * *
As soon as the heroes heard Warren's battle cry, they charged valiantly towards the Helicarriers. Doctor Strange, Dormammu, and Mordo cast levitation spells, letting the heroes fly off towards their enemies, while Quentin led Hyperion and Iron Man on an aerial assault towards the bridge of the central Helicarrier. As shots rang out, cannons rapidly firing at the attacking heroes, the three burst through the window of the main Helicarrier's bridge, landing and immediately attacking the SHIELD agents who rushed towards them. Quentin, firing beams of green light towards the attackers, advanced forward as quickly as he could, destroying several computers in the process to slow down the Helicarrier's offensive and help the champions outside.
Meanwhile, outside, Thaddeus Ross and Gwenpool led an assault on the guns of the Helicarrier, dashing up to them on magical platforms. They and the heroes behind them beat into the guns, slashing at them and tearing them out of their sockets, trying to disable the machines of destruction. But, try as they might, they still could not disable all of them, and each second the two generals watched as another hero fell, struck by gunfire or falling into the abyss of space beneath them.
Inside Asteroid M, Warren and Magneto squared off. The former threw a punch, which Magneto simply slid out of the way of effortlessly, like this was nothing but a game to him. Counterattacking, Magneto tore two steel beams from his wall, and hurled them at Warren, who only barely managed to duck underneath them. Now, Warren charged towards Magneto, leaping up, fist at the ready, only to be punched backwards onto the floor by his opponent.
Floating over Warren, Magneto spat, "You should have taken the deal when you had the chance. We could have made mutantkind shine! But you have chosen death. So be it."
He raised his arms, drawing metal beams from everywhere around him, shaping them into sharp, pointed spears, then sending them shooting towards Warren. But before they struck, they were blocked - turned aside by beautifully terrifying metal wings that had appeared suddenly.
As the Archangel got to his feet, Magneto could not help but smile.
* * *
On the main Helicarrier's bridge, all was silent. Quentin, Hyperion, and Iron Man had taken out all the SHIELD agents around them, and now the bridge was theirs. As his helmet receded back into his nanotechnology armor, Iron Man ran over to the controls, trying to take control of the Helicarrier. "Give me some time here. I can probably get hold of this carrier and all its weapons, but I'm going to need time. Hype, why don't you go out and tell our forces not to attack this immensely powerful weapon I'm trying to take over?" he stated, and Hyperion nodded, flying out the broken window in front of them.
He didn't get far, though, before a beam of yellow light struck him, and he fell for what seemed to be minutes, before striking the ground beneath him, and becoming still. Quentin turned around and fired his own beam of green light at the attacker, knocking a large gun out of the attacker's hand and throwing it against the wall. It was only then that he realized who had attacked them.
"I know you," Quentin said, holding out his hands threateningly at the suit-wearing man who faced him. "You're..."
"Agent Coulson. Commander of this Helicarrier. I'd ask you to get off my ship, but, well, I don't seem to be in a place to make those kinds of demands," came the reply. "I know what you're trying to do. It won't work. The Collector will find you eventually. You have nowhere to go."
"And where do you think the Collector's going to put you after you bring us back?" Quentin asked pointedly. "He's going to put you back into your crystal, isn't he?"
Agent Coulson was silent, and that told Quentin all he needed to know. "Come with us. You don't have to serve the Collector or anyone. Why should you? Help us free ourselves, and we can free you, too," Quentin stated, and slowly Coulson nodded.
"Alright. I'll help you-" Coulson began, before Quentin threw a punch at him, knocking him out. He couldn't risk Coulson perhaps betraying them immediately, not so close to the battle's end.
"Sorry about that," Quentin said to the unconscious Agent, before asking, "How are we looking?"
"Uh, there are a... couple of problems," Iron Man stated as shots rang out from the left side of the Helicarrier. "The engines on this thing are badly damaged. And to make matters worse, I've only been able to take down the Helicarrier to our left. All the guns on the right side are disabled. This thing isn't going anywhere."
"I've got an idea. But you're not going to like it," Quentin suggested.
* * *
Warren slashed at Magneto with his wings, tearing open his armor and making him bleed. "You fight like who you truly are now. I can respect that, even as I kill you," Magneto shouted, raising his hands and sending Warren flying back. But as he did, Warren let a few talons loose, and though Magneto tried to turn them all aside, a few struck him, and he cried out in pain. Taking advantage of this momentary weakness, Warren charged up and bashed him with the side of his wing, before spinning around and slashing Magneto again.
Suddenly, Magneto was gasping for air, falling to the ground, crumbling over. "It's over, Magneto," Warren stated, as he glanced outside and saw one Helicarrier veer towards the ground, falling towards Asteroid M. "I'm sorry it had to end this way."
He began to dash out the door, knowing that Asteroid M was not long for the earth, but a coughing Magneto called out, "Wait!" and Warren stopped. "This path you are on... it will bring you nothing but despair. I have seen it from afar. You are being hunted, and nothing will save you from... the one-armed treachery you will face," Magneto warned, before exhaling and collapsing.
Warren noted these words, then dashed out the door just as a Helicarrier came down on top of Asteroid M. With a burst of speed from his wings, he flew out into the open, and stood at the edge of the Asteroid, seeing his men around him. As he retracted his wings, he surveyed the area around him - guns firing into the night, champions fighting valiantly and falling, but fighting for something they truly believed in. There were far, far less heroes than he'd seen before, but such was the way of battle. They'd mourn for those lost later.
He watched as, from the middle Helicarrier, a burst of green light came, and Quentin Beck approached, carrying Agent Coulson with him. "Who is this? Where's Tony and Hyperion?" Warren asked, seeing his lieutenant land.
"This is Agent Coulson. He's going to help us find our way to the Farm. Hyperion's down. And Stark's, well..." Quentin began, before simply stating, "We have to go."
"Alright. Everyone, let's go!" Warren shouted, seeing an asteroid approach to their right. As his heroes leapt up onto that giant rock, the sorcerers casting spells to send it hurtling away from Magneto's base, gunfire from the third Helicarrier still rang out towards them, until the central Helicarrier nosedived towards it, pushing it aside and sending them both crashing down onto Asteroid M.
"Tony was on that Helicarrier, wasn't he?" Warren asked, and Quentin only nodded.
"I have no idea how to pilot one of those. I was scared if we let Coulson here take the wheel, he'd send out a distress call to the Collector or something. Tony was the only one who could do it," Quentin replied as the couple dozen heroes beat a hasty retreat, fleeing to parts unknown of the Battlerealm's edges. "He might still be alive, but... somehow, I doubt it."
* * *
The rubble, smoking and heavy, lay atop the Beast, Hank McCoy. He'd fled as soon as Warren and Magneto had started fighting, tried to find a way out of the base, but a Helicarrier had came down on top of him. He was lucky to still be alive, but he figured that wouldn't be for much longer. He tried lifting the steel beam atop him, but found it difficult in the hazy, smoky air. So he sighed, and just lay there, all but giving up.
Then, there was a high pitched blast, and the beam above him was blasted off his chest. He gasped for air, taking in a deep breath, and then turned around, facing his savior. There, in a brutally scratched but still distinctly red and gold suit of armor, stood Tony Stark, the Iron Man. He stretched out a hand to Hank, helping him up, and said, "No thank you?"
Hank nodded, saying, "Thanks," and then suggesting, "We should find a way out of here."
They looked up, at the ceiling of mangled metal all around them. They were trapped. But perhaps not for long.
* * *
Thank you for reading, once again! Man, is it just me or do these feel like they keep getting longer and longer? Well, that wraps up the first story beat that I wanted to hit for Storytime, long-term. I'm thinking I might spend a couple weeks on more character-focused bits, idk if y'all are up for that but it feels like that's what I'm going to do. Apologies for the wait, I spent way longer than I needed to on this, but I really do hope you enjoyed it!
5
Comments
Though your stories are different from his, so I don't think they have a problem with you posting a new story on dif threads. However you wanna structure it is up to you. Great work! I'm enjoying reading.
Also, is it just me, or are Groots haunting me? There will be consequences for this. (And humor!)
Storytime 3: X and Shield!
Insert story here
Also, the Groots are haunting you because they want Groot to be in the story.
And I've got a Groot appearance planned. Next week. I guarantee it.