(340/400 Power stones) For extra chapter!
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A shadow consumed the skies above the southern most peaks of Switzerland, dragging darkness over the snow-covered mountains. Wild life that had been chattering moments ago quickly silenced themselves, seeking safety from a threat they all vaguely felt. Aircraft from many European countries roared through the skies and melted away into slag as Ice-Wings boomed past them, turning instantly and shunting in a completely different direction in moments. A second shadow followed behind the first, arraying itself over the top of a specific mountain that looked to be the tallest of all the surrounding peaks.
Inside the mountain an enormous amount of alarms were blaring as several divisions of Doom robots attempted to evacuate the base. Unfortunately for the mechanical constructs, they were too late.
"Destroy it." Apollo spoke coldly through the AI network.
Within seconds a large plasma weapon that had layed dormant on the bottom of the Typhon-class carrier glowed in power, the large rectangular barrel rotating downwards until it was pointing directly down from the carrier, towards the mountain's zenith.
Purple-blue energy crackled in arching blasts of lightning, spreading through and across all of the metal components of the weapon. Steam softly whistled from one of the nearby heat-sinks before all of the energy was pulled into the barrel of the turret.
What followed could only be mistaken for a lightning strike of epic proportions. Superheated plasma arched down like lightning towards the mountain and grounded itself into the nearest conductive material it could fine, the secret base below. A rumble of pure energy cracked into the mountain range as the entire peak was cleaved in half, the plasma turning sedimentary rock and stone into magma flows that flowed downhill as if it were water.
The base was instantly, totally and irrevocably annihilated... Every robot was now part of an unnatural magma flow that seeped into the crevices and cracks within the mountain caused by the creation of the base itself. All of the gold and jewels inside were turned useless in moments as they joined this flow as well.
"Next." Apollo directed.
Both carriers split off in a moment's notice as Apollo grinned maliciously.
"Mommy dearest is in hiding is she? Heh." He muttered coldly before adjusting the flight path of his command vessel, named Helios. The next destination was Poland.
~~~
Latveria was a peaceful country that seemed almost idyllic at first glance. The capital city was a prosperous metropolitan with hundreds of thousands of people living within its borders. Cars cruised along pristine roads whilst planes navigated through the sky with the grace of a swan swimming in water. Neon signs glimmered gently as the setting sun slowly drifted lower on the horizon, the purple-orange light of the star draping the landscape in beautiful hues and patterns.
A soft rain of snow drifted from the sky to settle harmlessly against the heated sidewalks and roads, melting and slipping into the perfectly clean sewer systems of Latveria. Inside this city Doom watched as all of his current foes swooped towards him and his people, abandoning their former campaigns in hopes of eradicating him.
The squad that had saved Italy from his grasp and had just finished Austria were rocketing towards the borders of his kingdom. The Asgardians had already conquered Asia and most of the Middle East, all of them disregarding their new territory and gunning for him. Finally there was the party who he had struck at... They were too busy helping their 'queen' with his powerlessness to bother him.
The only foe that he could not understand or comprehend was the blonde-haired man in London who had abandoned the liberation of England in preference for Buckingham Palace. The man seemed vaguely familiar to him but the answer would not come to his mind, no matter how much he abused the powers of the mind stone.
Finally there were the forces of the 'Queen' he had taken off the board... The pawns if you will... They were systematically carving a bloody path through every single country that they encountered. The USA had been freed from his rule, South America and Canada. Now there were two more armies soaring through Europe. It was unclear the objective of these forces but he knew that the ultimate goal of his adversary was to defeat him, just as it was his goal to destroy them.
"Pawn takes pawn, Bishop takes bishop... You have checked me. Now it is time for me to castle and unleash the finishing move." Doom's voice gained a whimsical tone from behind his mask as he switched the screens off and summoned a portal using the space stone. It was time to face his foes head on. Perhaps it was a simpler solution but it would work far more effectively than any other plan he could conjure.
Doom was just content in knowing his mother was safely secured under the capital city of Poland. His foes would not dare wipe out an entire city, they were far too heroic for such an act... His calculations were never wrong and thus he was comfortable in the precautions he had taken.
"Let us settle this match before what I have seen comes to be..." Doom calmly spoke out towards the empty room around him, his tone hollow and pained.
~~~
Asgard's forces emerged like a pack of wolves from the skies, the various barges and ships circling the capital city of their adversary. Rainbow light flickered dramatically through the white fluffy clouds above the urban landscape as golden light gleamed radiantly off of the hulls of troop carriers.
Metallic spear glistened gloriously as thousands of Asgardian troops arrayed themselves in parade formation near to the off-ramp of their barges. Smaller two-man vessels zipped ahead of the main force, securing the perimeter of the landing zones and the future beachhead of their invasion force.
At the same time, on the opposite side of the city, a large hoard of the dead coalesced from the Seidr of Hela. Green, blue and orange glows filled the hillside and the highway with an eldritch radiance. A massive wolf with stark white teeth growled from beside the armoured goddess of death, whilst an enormous snake looped slowly around the borders of the country; its size constantly shifting as it slithered.
It was at this moment that Loki stepped up to the side of his balcony and watched as a bright blue portal materialised outside the city. A figure cloaked in green and iron stepped through, a band of six distinct gems wrapped around his forehead and a mask of steel obscuring his face from all who would want to see it.
`GROOOOOOOOOOOOOOARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR`
The dragon that Loki had obtained for Aegon roared out from above Asgard's forces, its hurricane-like wings and spear-like talons whistling the wind as it passed and dove towards the luscious green plain that Doom had stepped out onto.
A shudder followed in the dragon's wake as it's passengers all dropped onto the softly shifting grasses that moved back and forth along the plains' expanse. Gandalf stood stoically, his staff alight with his signature flame and the brightness of the stars. Ciri scooped her sword off of her back, resting the tip of her sword into the soft dirt to her side as she watched the mastermind carefully. Mara had ignited her lightsaber, her force powers screeching within her mind, telling her of the power the man held over it. Finally the dragon, Vermithor, slowly started to prowl off to the side, backwards and forwards.
Rainbow patterns filled the air before Hela stepped out, her own mount stalking behind her with great green eyes that oozed hunger and desire to devour. Loki chose this moment to simply phase through the balcony he was stood behind and drop several hundred feet to land next to his sister, who looked positively ravenous at the prospect of so much death.
"I am glad you have all come at once. I had foreseen complications and you have fulfilled your roles perfectly. Now, if you would allow me a question before we start fighting..." Doom paused and then continued onwards, "What is your purpose in stopping me?"
Loki growled, stepping forwards as his sister arched her neck up and to the side in revulsion and disgust.
"To return all of those who you had erased. To bring my father back, to bring my brother back and to restore the Valkyries to what they once were." The king of Asgard proclaimed forcefully, his dark blue eyes piercing into the mask of Doom.
"Intriguing... And If I were to tell you that having them exist would bring the downfall of this entire universe?" Doom queried with an oddly tired voice.
"I would say you are a madman!" Hela roared in anger, her luscious hair slipping beneath her spiked helm as black sword slid into her hands.
Doom shook his head sadly, his shadowy irises dulling ever so slightly in frustration.
"And this is why it is better to do what must be done and seek forgiveness after the fact." The man stated calmly, his hands clasped behind his back.
"What do you mean they would be a danger to the universe?" Gandalf questioned curiously, his posture guarded and ready.
"Enough. I will not monologue with those who will never understand the larger picture. Let us commence our battle and soon you shall all understand my intentions." Doom hissed out as his hands slid upwards until they were in a common boxing pose, his body slipping into a well practiced and balanced stance.
~~~
I awoke to the sensation of reality bending around me. The ground dipped and slid beneath me, dragging me deeper into the darkness of my subconscious. Looking around I witnessed fragmented shards of light glitter like stars in the distance. I could feel that they were the remnants of the chains I had shattered on Korriban, the left over ruins of my former weaker self.
My body, or form, spun swiftly then ceased moving before repeating the process again and again, unendingly. My nose twitched at the scent of blueberry cupcakes whilst my skin tingled with the feeling of Rogue's fingers lingering across my own. Sight betrayed me as all I could see were the motes of my being float endlessly through the darkened sky around me.
I was encompassed in what felt like water and yet i could feel an odious trickle of water slap against my cheek, as if I were sitting beneath a leaking drainpipe or perhaps someone who was crying. My insides were afire in agony and relief in equal measure, my powers flickering between on and off as I struggled to even sense what was happening around me. Finally, after what felt like eons, the void changed and every single star-like speck blinked out. I knew I was coming back to consciousness, somehow, and just knew that when I did wake I would be a changed man...
In what way... I couldn't yet know...
~~~
Hela was the first to attack as a sword blasted from her hands, splitting the air as it stabbed towards Doom.
The man reacted in an instant however and quickly raised his arm as if to guard against a punch, a red glow wafting from him in but an instant as the sword turned into butterflies that softly fluttered away on the wind.
Doom didn't sit still however and a green glow smothered him in but a nano-second before he suddenly appeared next to Aegon and struck him across the face whilst holding onto the side of Vermithor. A purple burst of energy sparked into the atmosphere as the last Valyrian was throttled across the plain, kicking up dirt in his wake.
"FUCKER!" Ciri shouted and teleported next to the stone-wielder, his head whipping around in her direction before another spurt of green flared and he disappeared, reappearing behind her with his hand glowing and ominous purple.
"Too simple..." He murmured as he punched downwards.
Unfortunately for Doom his surprise attack failed as Gandalf intercepted him with his stave, the glowing white artefact absorbing the energy and redirecting it straight at his face within an instant.
Fortunately for Doom, this was within his calculations since he had surmised that the old man's staff was magical in origin from the first time he witnessed it upon his surveillance network.
Doom was blasted into the sky before a blue glow surrounded him and he froze in mid-air, upside down. He started walking whilst upside down, a blue glow attaching to his feet.
"I wonder how you would fare without your weapons?" Doom asked rhetorically before vanishing inside a portal and emerging next to Vermithor who whipped his head around and tried to bite down onto the snack-sized man.
The dragon breathed in as it struck down, filling its lungs with enough fuel to power a full blast of Draconic fire... And blast it did, as the flames curled around the sharp broadsword-like teeth and blasted into a perfectly formed dome of pure power.
Loki used this small period of time to conjure his clones and have them all throw daggers at the man whilst he channelled the Odinforce into Gungnir, which was vibrating at the raw power he was draining into it.
Doom, watching all of this occur in a bubble of slowed time shook his head and simply walked away from every single attack, running his hand along the scales of the dragon whilst the red glow of the reality stone seeped inside of the wonderous creature.
"I am sorry great beast, that this is to be your end." He softly spoke to Vermithor, not that he could hear it.
Each of Loki's daggers clattered into the grass in the distance whilst the dragon roared in agony, its scaled falling off as necrosis slithered up every single vein in its body. A desperate growl escaped is throat as its neck tightened and its eyes bulged. Within seconds Vermithor slumped to the plain, dead.
Doom stood to the side looking down upon the dragon as Hela sent every single sword she could towards him. Fenrir leapt through the sky down towards him just as the swords were about to land. Still, the man just raised his right hand and halted the movement of every single sword, re-directing them towards the wolf of Ragnarok which was quickly impaled by the thousands of swords and thrown across the sky to land in one of the flying barges, knocking it down into the ground.
Ciri teleported once more, her sword arching downwards with her magic vibrating dangerously alongside it. Her eyes were a pitch yellow-red as an aura of brambles exploded around her and a crown made of skulls hovered above her head.
Mara pulled upon the force and directed as much energy as she could from their environment to chain Doom down, to hold him place despite his control over time. Aegon slowly got to his knees, his face bloody and bruised as blood leaked from his ears and eyes. Loki unleashed the concentrated beam of Odinforce directly at Doom, his magic screaming at him to unleash everything at the man.
Doom responded in what would seem an instant to others but was more akin to a minute or two for him.
Ciri's sword was changed into bubbles as her magic was syphoned away into a blackhole using the Space Stone. A flick of his finger later and she was destined to be flung away into the old wizard who was raising his staff to no doubt unleash a very powerful spell.
The woman with the saber of light was placed within a mind prison of her own creation, the mind-stone and soul-stone working in tandem to keep her shackled to her own horrors. He could tell she had seen much in her life.
Aegon, he ignored, as the man was simply that... A man and was liable to die with any expenditure of power. Whilst he wasn't afraid of killing, needless slaughter was unneeded and disgusting in his eyes.
Finally the King of Asgard was next... Is what he would have said if a truck load of rainbow light ploughed through time and space to slice into his mask and sheer half of it off, along with the last of his undamaged face.
Time blurred back into the normal rate of time as Doom rolled across the plain, his fingers dragging across the dirt as he slowed himself down and whipped his face upwards in rage.
"Annoying..." He ground out before vanishing from sight.
In an instant Loki felt something dull and hard strike his spinal cord, a dull sensation of force spreading through his body before he was knocked ass over tea-kettle straight into his sister who was halfway through turning towards him. The effect was horrid as the two Asgardians were slammed into one another and tossed like a basketball through the sky back into several barges, those particular barges crumpling in on themselves alongside all of the soldiers they once held.
"We can't defeat you huh?" Ciri muttered as Doom waved his left hand over his mask and repaired the damage of the strike using the time stone and the power stone to amplify his regeneration.
"Indeed. I am glad you have realised this. Perhaps you will surrender now?" Doom said calmly, gazing at the demonic visage of Ciri.
"Well, how about we do something you aren't expecting?" Doom tilted his head slightly as a sword of black whipped past and embedded itself in the dirt behind him.
"What would that be?" He asked as he backhanded another sword away, the reality stone turning it into dirt in seconds.
"Oh, you'll see."
Doom narrowed his eyes at the woman and disappeared, his fist embedding itself into her stomach as he warped her into the Arctic ocean.
Gandalf, seeing this attack, whispered into his staff with an alacrity that most wouldn't believe he could achieve at his physical age. "Hours wax and wane, time itself becomes thy thane, restore what is meant to be... Return to the decree of destiny!"
Doom snapped his gaze onto the wizard and attempted to slip into slowed time but was instead held in place, his body twitching as the time stone almost revved in effort. The wizard was fighting against an infinity stone and holding his own... To such an extent that he would need to use another stone to bolster his efforts.
"irksome." Doom stated plainly before a flash of purple enveloped a thirty foot sphere around himself and crushed everything with it into the dirt, Gandalf included.
Doom walked up to the wizards staff, which had been knocked away with his fall and grasped the stave. The reaction was immediate as the focus bloomed with brilliant light, shining with the brightness of Varda herself and burned the stone-wielders gauntlets into metal slag.
"Arghhh! ENOUGH!" He focussed all of the stones' powers onto the stave, the multicoloured beam of energy bombarding the staff as if it were a city and the beam was napalm.
"NO!" Gandalf shouted in agony and rage, his presence booming across the plain as hundreds of voices whispered beside his own. "Dawn light scourges all, everyone must march unto the dawn, batter and beat my foe until he his quartered and drawn, curse him and all of his spawn!!!"
Sunlight leaked from the Wizards fingertips like water from a sieve as solar flames exploded in wave away from the White Wizard and washed over Doom. At the same time he rushed over to his stave and delicately plucked it back into his hands. The artefact was sizzling with power and small cracks as the remnant energy of the infinity stones dissipated against the wood of the Evening Star.
Suddenly his relief was switched with mild panic as Doom reappeared beside Mara who was on her knees sobbing into her hands as a golden glow suffused her irises.
"You are all annoying... You get in the way of my plans, in the way of saving the universe and still claim the moral high ground..." Doom ranted as a green glow attempted to attach to his melted gauntlets but failed to find purchase on the tainted material.
"Fine. You want to wage war? I will give you war." He reached his hand out towards Mara as she rocked back and forth on her knees, openly weeping at the memories she was forced to relive.
His hand was slapped away however as Ciri emerged from a spatial tear and punched him in the face. This was followed by a robed figure, the blonde man from London, stepping out beside the saber woman. Doom immediately felt on edge, as if he were near to someone who could use the stones far more effectively than he could... And he didn't like that.
Luke glared at the masked man with a book clasped under his arm, a book that felt utterly tainted by malice and evil. "Doom, I presume?" The Jedi Grandmaster asked rhetorically.
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