Evening — Avengers Tower
The team gathered in the conference room, the air heavy with fatigue and tension.
Tony Stark sat at the table, donut in hand.
"There's definitely a bigger conspiracy here. You all saw it—those people who ran into crowds and self-detonated. From yesterday afternoon till now, we've had more than a dozen incidents. Thousands dead."
He leaned forward, eyes sharp behind the shades.
"One or two maniacs not fearing death? Fine. But all of them? That's no coincidence. Unless someone dosed them with a compound that shuts down fear."
Tony turned to Steve. "You fought them, Cap. Thoughts?"
Steve Rogers exhaled slowly. "Barton was right. They're… similar to Vampires. Eyes glowing red, claws like knives, fangs. Even after death, they explode. It's possible they were genetically modified."
Bruce Banner entered with a thick stack of folders and distributed them.
"These are all the confirmed self-detonation cases. No shared histories, no common jobs or contacts. But there is one link—they all changed about three years ago."
He flipped through his report.
"Some went from broke to rich overnight. Some who'd lost limbs reappeared fully healed. Others on deathbeds miraculously recovered. If there was experimentation, it began three years ago."
"Can we trace where they went back then?" Steve asked. "If we track families or neighbors, we might get closer to whoever's behind this."
Tony rubbed his temples. "Steve, that's a ton of legwork, and we're out of time. We don't even know if more bombs are coming. Those lunatics don't value life."
He glanced across the table. "Kai, what's your take?"
Kai—better known in the media as Flash—didn't look up from his laptop. "I'm reading the news. Politicians are already blaming us. The Secretary of State basically said the Avengers 'did their best.' Classic."
Tony groaned. "Ignore the suits."
Kai shrugged. "I don't care about politics. I just want to know when my bomb bounty's getting wired."
The others exchanged tired smiles. That was just Kai being Kai.
Then Natasha spoke, eyes fixed on the monitor. "Everyone—signal from Barton!"
Instantly, Tony and Steve were at her side.
"He sent encrypted coordinates," Natasha explained, decrypting rapidly. "He says these people are planning some kind of 'Devil's Descent Ritual' at six tonight. And… he knows they're letting the signal through to bait us."
Tony frowned. "A trap?"
"Maybe," Steve said firmly. "But we can't leave him. If they're gathering for this ritual, it's our best chance to stop them."
Outside the Tower, Manhattan looked like a ghost city.
Police sirens echoed through deserted streets. Fear still ruled the skyline.
Tony stood. "It's almost six. Everyone suit up. We end this tonight."
Manhattan Hotel
"The time has come, my Lord Murtos," Wilson Jones said, gazing out at the dying sunset.
He turned, eyes gleaming crimson. "I've waited years for this day."
Lifting his glass of blood, he smiled. "Let us welcome our Lord."
Outside the Hotel
Tony's armor scanners hummed. "Jarvis, report."
"Sir, all guest rooms are empty. However, imaging shows three hundred and twenty hostages confined on sub-level three—twenty-seven mutated guards present. Mr. Barton is not among them."
A wave of red-eyed mutants suddenly poured into the street.
Tony turned to Kai. "Kai, Natasha's going for Clint. You handle the hostages. Save them all, and your bonus doubles. But careful—those freaks have mini-bombs inside. Kill them wrong, and everyone dies."
Kai cracked his neck. "Troublesome… but worth the bonus."
He tossed his orange peel into a bin and walked through the hotel doors.
Inside the Hotel
Following Jarvis's scan data, Kai moved swiftly down the dim halls.
The guards snarled, fangs bared.
"Oh dear—Vampires? How terrifying," Kai said flatly.
Bang. A flash of golden light pierced through skulls before they even reached him.
He raised his hand, and Reality Stone energy turned their collapsing bodies into pale plaster statues. The embedded bombs blinked red—he vaporized them with a thought and continued down.
Underground — Hostages
A middle-aged man held his crying daughter.
"Don't be scared, sweetheart. Flash will come. He always does."
The black-clad guards stepped forward, placing their broken fangs in a bloody circle. Then they raised their guns.
Despair filled the room.
"Da-da-da!"
But as the bullets fired—
They dissolved mid-air into floating petals.
"Nah," a voice drawled, "these people can't die. They're worth a few million bucks."
Kai descended the stairs in his yellow-striped suit, smiling lazily.
The hostages burst into tears of relief.
The guards charged.
"Oh my, so scary." Bang. "Trying to run?" Bang. "Self-detonation? Not today."
Each Finger Flash punched through heads with surgical precision, followed by the Reality Stone's shimmer—corpses unraveling into paper ribbons.
Cheers erupted from the hostages.
"See, sweetheart? I told you Flash would save us!" the father sobbed.
Kai surveyed the ruined chamber. "Alright, people. Cry later. Follow me."
He contacted Jarvis. "Map me a safe route. The main exit's a war zone."
Sewer Chamber — The Ritual
Wilson Jones stood in a blood-filled circle, the horned skull glowing bright crimson.
His cultists poured jar after jar of blood over him as he chanted.
Barton, imprisoned nearby, clenched his fists.
If he still had his bow, he'd end this freak.
The blood swirled upward, funneled into the skull. Its eye sockets blazed.
Thunder split the sky above Manhattan.
The black-suited lieutenant smirked. "You'll witness the new era, Mr. Barton. Ah—your partner has arrived."
He blurred forward, claws aimed for Natasha's throat.
She dodged and fired. Bullets tore through his suit—but he didn't even flinch.
"Please," he hissed, "don't interrupt the Blood Ancestor's descent. I mean no harm."
"I don't consider this an invitation," Natasha shot back, launching her Widow's Bite.
Above Ground — Manhattan Streets
Chaos reigned.
Thor's hammer crackled as lightning tore through ranks of mutants.
Tony strafed the sky, repulsors blazing.
Hulk smashed through burning cars, roaring with glee.
Reporters hovered above in helicopters, broadcasting every second.
"…The Avengers are fighting the group responsible for New York's devastation! Those fangs—are they Vampires?"
Thunder rolled again.
A massive blood-red sigil erupted across the street. The ground caved in.
Then—it rose.
A towering creature, fifteen meters tall, fanged, horned, winged, dripping molten blood.
The Blood Ancestor, Murtos, had arrived.
Elsewhere — Sokovia Base
"Wanda, what the hell is that thing?" Pietro stared at the news.
Wanda's magic flickered around her fingers. "I… don't know. But Flash isn't in that fight."
Pietro raised an eyebrow. "You've mentioned him thirteen times since the Iceman incident. You're obsessed."
"Shut up, Pietro," Wanda snapped. "If we ever want revenge on Stark, Flash is the obstacle. That's why I'm watching him."
Pietro sighed. "Well, guess what—he just joined the fight."
Battlefield — Manhattan
The Blood Ancestor roared, slamming its claws into skyscrapers and spewing lava.
Tony dodged in mid-air. "Seriously? It breathes fire now?!"
"Sir," Jarvis warned, "that magma is thirty times hotter than normal."
Streets melted. Buildings collapsed.
The beast spread a crimson mist—mutants around it slit their own throats, feeding the blood cloud.
"Hulk smash!"
Hulk leapt onto the creature, cracking its shoulder before being grabbed mid-air.
Before it could bite him—
A blinding golden beam sliced through its arm.
Kai appeared, dragging Hulk clear. "So this is what Barton meant by a summoning?"
Tony descended beside him. "I thought the 'Devil from Hell' line was just drama. Guess not."
"Natasha and Clint?" he asked quickly.
"They're safe," Kai said. "The guy they fought? Not so immortal after I chopped his head off."
Tony snorted. "Good. Now kill this thing."
"Fine," Kai said, smirking. "But this looks like a raise-worthy job."
He raised his hands, light blazing.
"Yata no Kagami!"
Golden beams burst forth, colliding with Thor's lightning and Tony's repulsors.
The combined blast staggered Murtos, cracks splitting across its body.
It roared, tearing free a skyscraper and hurling it at Tony.
Kai waved his ring—Reality Stone energy flared. The collapsing tower dissolved into drifting petals.
Tony blinked. "Petals. Romantic. Your raise is approved."
He launched a missile volley into the cracks. Boom—boom—boom!
The monster's heart pulsed through its chest cavity.
Then—it ripped its own heart out.
Blood condensed into a massive blade dripping crimson light.
Thor gasped. "In fifteen hundred years, I've never seen someone forge a weapon from their own heart!"
The Blood Blade swept across the battlefield. The air itself screamed.
Blood mist transformed into countless needles raining from the sky.
Steve raised his shield; the impact corroded buildings around him.
Hulk roared, sprinting up the blade to punch the creature's head.
New York Sanctum
"Master, shouldn't we intervene?" Mordo asked anxiously. "That's Murtos—the Blood Ancestor of Hell!"
The Ancient One smiled serenely. "You see only the darkness, Mordo. Power itself isn't good or evil—it's the hand that wields it. Observe."
She gazed through her mirror portal toward Kai. "Light and shadow balance themselves."
Final Clash
Tony hovered overhead. "Physical attacks aren't working. It regenerates instantly!"
Kai landed on its head, Armament Haki coating his fists. One punch shattered both horns.
A Finger Flash bored straight through its skull; Thor's lightning followed, surging down the hole.
Steve slammed his shield into the energy junction—
BOOM!
The explosion ripped Murtos apart. Fragments the size of cars rained across Manhattan.
Tony touched down, panting. "We did it. Again. New York saved—"
A voice echoed from the debris.
Wilson Jones floated upward, bare-chested, symbols carved across his skin, holding the red horned skull.
His eyes glowed like twin suns of blood.
"Damn it," Tony muttered. "Not another boss phase."
Thor raised his hammer. "That's not Jones anymore—the Blood Ancestor's soul has possessed him."
Red energy spread from Wilson's body across the entire city.
Steve staggered, eyes glazing. In his mind, Peggy reached out to dance.
Hulk clutched his head, roaring, his sanity fracturing.
"Jarvis!" Tony shouted.
"Sir—citizens across multiple districts are in trance-like states. Behavioral analysis predicts imminent self-harm."
Tony rocketed upward, pounding the invisible barrier around Wilson. Every blast failed.
Below, Kai steadied his pulse through Life Return, forcing control over his own blood.
"I'm fine," he said evenly.
He fired Finger Flashes—each one dissipated against the shield.
"Sir," Jarvis warned, "New York's population is being mentally enslaved!"
Kai sighed, floating beside Tony. "Tony, if you still can't give me that raise—and maybe a hundred pounds of Vibranium—then this really won't do."
He raised his hand.
The Reality Stone flared.
Crimson light surged across the sky—warping, rewriting, reshaping reality itself.