Chapter 109: VS Annihilus |
Third Person P.O.V.
The quarantined Baxter Building is attracting attention.
It's an obvious development if you think about it for more than three seconds.
A spaceship floating on top of the building, a forcefield shining with red lights and warning words, a dozen androids patrolling the area, and Shadow with Rover acting as a guard.
The whole spectacle reached the intended objective of making the more rational stay away from the area, but the opposite effect is bound to happen too… It's inevitable that people with the survival instincts of moths and jellyfishes would instead get closer to take pictures and to see what is happening.
Luckily, the quarantine is dozens of meters high in the air, on the uppermost floor, so is still pretty safe for the general populace.
The main problem comes from outside the general populace.
It didn't even take a minute after Eidolon and the rest entered the portal that other inhabitants of the World of Superheroes arrived.
Iron Man is the first that reach the area, but it is commendable that the black cars of S.H.I.E.L.D. arrive just as quickly.
"Stay Back." The robotic voice echoes in the air while they put their hand forward in a warning.
"Oh geez, it's rare for me to be barred from a party." He stops, using his hand propulsors to stabilize himself. His HUD visor shows the many androids paying attention to him, but no route ahead that he can use.
He then decides to go down and land close to where he is seeing Natasha and Fury.
"So, do you guys have the invitations?" He asks after landing with a thud.
"My agents are telling me that the elevators are blocked after a certain floor… And the stairs too." Fury says with some annoyance slipping on his words
"We don't even know what happened, but we know that Eidolon went out before the whole place was locked." Natasha says "I don't think we can do much here…" She sighs
"You are even more pessimistic today." Tony notices
"Ugh, I have dealt with that guy more times than you… If he established a perimeter to keep people out, it will keep people out." She rolls her eyes "I'm seeing only one of his people, and that dog, but I bet if we try invading more will pop up. I fear that it will become a battle…"
She barely finished her words when Shadow herself dropped down, doing her own superhero landing in front of them.
"No." She says simply with a hand in the universal sign of "Stop".
"Now what?" Fury asks
"No."
"..."
"I don't think she is very talkative…" Tony says helpfully in a sarcastic tone.
"Where is Eidolon?" Fury also noticed that and decided to ask for the man with the answers.
"Other dimension." Shadow answers dryly
"What other dimension?" Tony is suddenly interested
"From the portal." She says
"Portal?" Their ears perk up at the word. New York and Portals do not go well together.
"To the other dimension…" Shadow continues in a calm tone.
"..."
"Is she doing that on purpose?" Tony asks them
"I kinda like her." Natasha smiles
"Okay…*Huff* Girl, what is Eidolon doing?" Fury decides to try again after recovering his calm with a deep breath.
"Rescuing."
"Rescuing who?"
"People."
"Where? From what?"
"Portal."
"...."
"Romanoff… you try." Fury says tightly.
"Okay~" Natasha steps forward "Hi~, we will need more details than that… Can you answer some questions?" She addresses Cassandra.
"..." The black-clad heroine nods
"What happnenned here?"
"Portal exploded." She answers
"I see… So he is rescuing people caught in the explosion… It is the Fantastic Four?"
Cassandra nods.
"What is on the other side of the portal? Do you know what dimension is?"
"Negative Zone."
"Okay, we are progressing…" Natasha nods to herself. "Can you explain to us what is this 'Negative Zone'?"
"No."
"No, like… You don't want to? Or 'no' like you don't know?"
Cassandra shrugs her shoulders and raises her palms in the universal sign of "Whatever, I have no idea about this"
"I see… Can you help in some way?" Natasha tries to be diplomatic.
"No."
"..."
"..."
"...you are his sidekick, alright." Black Widow rolls her eyes
After that and before she could try to say anything, Shadow removes a paper from her utility belt, gives it to her, and flies high in the air to go back to her position.
"What is this?" Fury and Tony approached to take a look at the paper.
Natasha reads "Don't try anything, Fury… or Stark. It can create an opening for people with ill intent. Just wait for my return. -Eidolon. P.S.: Shadow is allowed to use force… a lot of force." And then gives the paper to Fury.
"..."
"..."
Fury massages his temple for a moment before sighing "Just secure the perimeter." He commands. As much as he doesn't like it, he can't deny that the message makes sense.
In the worst-case scenario, things would escalate into a fight and some villain would use the opportunity.
"Good, last time I fought those people was a shot by that bitch. And those robots don't look friendly." Natasha says
...…..
Negative Zone
A second after Eidolon declared his intent to fight Annihilus, their battlefield became chaotic. Right here, in the middle of this open world, Annihilus rains down destruction without a care about this base, which should be his territory.
Now that he has the Cosmic Control Rod he doesn't care about a planet or two, he cares even less about his no-name soldiers.
*Whoosh* *Swish* *Whoosh*
Eidolon weaves around in the sky while avoiding the countless attacks, this reminds him of those boss fights in 2D games where you have to dodge barrage after barrage of attacks by moving at the right time and staying within that one pixel where you are safe.
But different from a game, real life is not fair…
With the power of the Cosmic Control Rod, Annihilus does not give any opening or opportunity to the hero to breathe. The attacks cover the sky in the most varied forms: small blasts, big spheres, discs, and even constant lasers thicker than cars.
A look at this torrential horror of negative energy would make someone feel helpless and panic, but Eidolon is calm. His tranquility comes from two beliefs… His profound confidence in himself, and he knows that he can dodge and even deflect some attacks.
With his Hax, he has one ability to counter every possible attack… He divides his body into thousands of small parts, becomes mist, liquid, twists himself, gets thinner, becomes a thread, and even shrinks. He really is the hardest target to hit in the universe. He is only not risking getting intangible, he doesn't know how this strange energy reacts with his intangible molecules.
His trained powers at least make sure that he will not be at a disadvantage so early.
The second belief is the knowledge that at some point, he will find an opening.
This is real life, maybe there will be no opening, many would think like that too… This thought would create a seed of doubt in the mind of the combatant and make him hesitate, move sluggishly, and eventually make him fail.
Eidolon knows better than that. You have to keep your eyes on the Victory, even if it is obscured by a wall of obstacles.
'This strange world has strange laws… I need to wait for the right moment…' Eidolon thinks while keeping some strong cards to use in the opportunity that will assure victory. In the worst-case scenario, he would fail to make a move and give an opening to Annihilus instead.
While dodging a particularly nasty wall of crisscrossed lasers, Eidolon sighs a little by having his methods of teleport sealed.
The Cosmic Control Rod can, as the name indicates, control the whole Negative Zone, it's easy for Annihilus to lock the space. In fact, the reason that he is not trying to end Eidolon with a strong attack is that he is slowly closing the Hero in a tight space while keeping him busy.
The very careful and meticulous Insectoid Conqueror is not lowering his guard even though he is high on the newfound power. Annihillus is a surprisingly self-aware villain who knows his shortcomings, fits of rage took the best of him in the past, so he controls his emotions well.
It's almost commendable if were not annoying for the hero.
Eidolon tried to get under his skin before with some reliable trash talk but the Alien Conqueror was unabashed. Maybe it's futile to try to anger a man who is riding high the waves of his success.
He will need something more… Something that can knock Annihilus from his pedestal…
'Here!' Suddenly Eidolon shifts his stance, he is finally able to stop in the air for a moment and use some leverage to deliver a punch!
His arms unnaturally extend like it's made of rubber and travel through the minefield-like battlefield, zig-zagging through the attacks, going through a great distant till…
*POW*
Punching Annihilus in the back of his head!
It was not a casual punch either, the air cracks, and a huge shockwave is generated. Annihilus is pushed forward while the circular shockwaves force everything away.
The myriads of attacks finally stop, while Annihilus is pushed forward… Straight to Eidolon…
Like a demon ghost, the hero immediately launches himself at his opponent, eyes shining with power and fist cocked to another attack. He cuts the sky like a bullet and in an instant is in front of Annihilus.
*POW* *BOOOM*
A knuckle sandwich is delivered directly to Annihilus' green open mouth. The power of the attack from the front and the attack from the back of his head, combining and almost made his head a pancake.
It is what should have happened… But Annihilus is not a character spoken at the same level as Thanos for nothing.
The obsessed with immortality insect dons a very sturdy armor that protects him even from a punch from Eidolon. His helmet only dents slightly at the attack.
*Bzzt* *Swish*
When a light orange field envelops the villain, Eidolon quickly moves away, he also notices how there's something strange going on around Annihilus.
It's like the space around him is… heavier, denser… There's resistance the closer he gets to the villain, like he is underwater like he is approaching a reverse black hole, pushing him away.
'Yep, I'm taking that artifact from him.' Eidolon concludes, understanding how the Cosmic Control Rod protects Annihilus here, in the Negative Zone.
The whole universe is siding with his opponent.
"Human…" Annihilus growls at the hero, losing a little of that calmness that he was keeping through the whole battle, his huge yellow eyes filled with promises of pain, but this makes Hector happy instead.
"Insect…" Eidolon says back in a mocking tone. Now the villain is on his level, and he can try to get into his mind "Why don't you put your toy aside and we fight for real? Man to… insect?"
"Raaah!" The Alien Conqueror will not fall for a cheap provocation and partake in Eidolon's idea of a fair fight, but he was obviously irked by these human words.
Thrusting the Cosmic Control Rod forward, he releases an ample cone-shaped attack that gives the hero no space to avoid… Except moving forward in Annihilus space, and that is exactly what Eidolon does. He was always someone with great battle IQ, so he obviously quickly saw the window to avoid an attack and took it, even though it was a very small and brief window.
The space close to Annihilus is still hostile to Eidolon, but he pushes forward… A little crouched down beneath Annihilus's extended arm, he makes a double attack… A good punch in the guts, that made even Annihilus double over. The attack passed his armor's durability and attacked his insides.
The second attack comes in the form of a silver dagger in his left hand that shoots upward while Annihilus bends forward. Eidolon mercilessly stabs the villain with an adamantium dagger, aiming under his chin to pierce his brain.
*Bzz* *Slash*
Unfortunately, things are rarely easy for the hero. The adamantium blade doesn't go through the head because Annihilus's instincts kicked in and he quickly pulls his body back.
But the villain still has his face slashed… Well, his helmet.
'Like, for real… When does the armor end and the guy start? There's no blood…' Eidolon ponders while watching the big gash appear on the green insectoid helmet.
In the meantime, Eidolon once again tried to take the Cosmic Control Rod from Annihilus's hands, but he quickly confirmed that it was not possible to do so this way. As his hands approach, his fingers start being rejected and burning by the negative energy, anti-matter tries to erode his body.
It seems that he will need to unequip the item from Annihilus' hands in a similar way he did with Thor and Mjolnir.
The problem? Annihilus is not the type to throw his greatest weapon around…
The solution? Hector does not care about Annihilus's well-being like he cares about Thor.
The hero is about to follow up with more strikes, but suddenly a wave of energy is emitted from the Rod and Annihilus' body.
It all happened in an instant. His precognition powers, like Danger and Spider senses, warned him of the incoming attack, alerting him that staying where he is is not the best approach, to say it lightly.
He quickly moved away, just in time to see an omnidirectional blast of anti-matter explode from Annihilus. The attack is so devastating that it finally destroys the open planet that is the battlefield.
If before the planet looked like an apple that someone took a bite of, now it looks like a bigger animal, like a horse, bit off more than half of the apple, leaving only a small part behind.
'He is getting familiar with Cosmic Control Rod… I will end this quickly.' Eidolon thinks before looking in a certain direction 'Luckily the rest moved away fast enough.'
........
On the other side of the planet, some minutes earlier, Reed and the rest finally arrived where Ben and Alicia were. It was not hard to pinpoint their location with the help of Eidolon's clone.
Hovering above a very medieval-like building, Eidolon stops the spaceship and says "This clone can't resist when I use too much power, the recoil would destroy me instantly, so go there rescue the two, and bring them here so that I can heal them. It will be easy…" He added the last part after taking a good look at the building.
The first that moved was the Human Torch, He and Ben are at odds most of the time but Johnny would easily forget about it if the situation needed.
Dive in, impassioned by his flames, the Human Torch makes a swipe while blasting all insectoid enemies, cleaning the place.
The rest follow after him. She-Hulk and the Invisible Woman glide in one of Susan's shields while Reed and Eidolon wait on the ship.
"Next time that you think about opening a portal… Don't do it in the middle of New York." Eidolon's clone comments dryly to Reed after they are alone.
"..."
He doesn't even wait for an answer, looking away with his arms crossed, body language screaming that he doesn't want to talk with the guy.
Reed knows he messed up, albeit being mostly Annihilus's fault, so he will not argue. But it was his job to consider the implications and possible dangers of the experiment… In the middle of New York? One of the most heavily populated cities in the world? Really low wisdom moment…
He is lucky no one was hurt… Because maybe… When the rest come back from rescuing Ben, they would find Mr. Fantastic's lifeless elastic body on the ground, and Eidolon saying something like: "He was so brave, he took an attack meant from me because he wanted me to help Ben and Alicia…" While hiding the lack of empathy in his eyes by covering them with his hand, fake crying.
...…..
Inside the prison building, She-Hulk and Invisible Woman discover that the interior is befitting of the exterior. The whole place really looks antique, but very robust, it seems it was designed to isolate the people from the outside world.
Fearing that someone would be able to bypass the prison security system or use their technology against them, the prison is designed in a very simple way. There's no easy way to escape beyond using brute force… And that would make you face an army of countless insectoids.
Not only on this prison but on the planet, the solar system, the galaxy… You would be surrounded by your enemy, a whole army as your prison guards.
Luckily, at this exact moment, the Eidolon and Annihilus battle is taking more of the attention from here.
Not that they cannot help much, but the army of insectoids still swarm around the two combatants, trying to help their liege, only to become green past by the attacks of the two fighters.
While the Human Torch deals with the outside, the She-Hulk starts opening the way through the thick walls of the prison, remembering the direction where Eidolon pointed.
What she is doing is reckless, but that is why Susan is with her. With her shields she can keep the integrity of the place around them, allowing She-Hulk to do what Hulks does… Smash.
*Boom* *Pow*
"Did you hear that?" She-Hulk suddenly stops after destroying a wall, the pieces of rock flying and hitting many insectoids
"What?" Susan, that was keeping a shield above them, stop too.
From a distance, they can hear some sounds similar to what She-Hulk was making while destroying the walls… Crashes and screams.
"Ben…" Susan understands immediately.
The Thing is not one to stay still, he probably noticed the confusion and decided to make a run for it, but there is a problem…
"He needs to protect Alicia. He will not be able to go all out!" Invisible Woman exclaims.
"Then we need to get them faster." She-Hulk is already breaking walls in the direction of the sounds.
Above, Eidolon's clone observes everything with calm eyes. This is one of those moments where he can't coddle them, he needs to let them fully experience the situations and challenges that will make them superheroes.
He is not entirely heartless, after he arrived he checked and discovered that neither Ben nor Alicia is dying, but Alicia is very weak on account of being malnourished.
'Good decision making…' He thinks, praising both Ben and the duo of Susan and Jen. But he would deduct some points of Ben for putting in risk his girlfriend without having a clear picture. But Ben would gain some points for avoiding fighting while carrying his girl even though his personality says otherwise.
Self-control is important to a hero.
"Two rooms to the right…" He decides to help, sending a telepathic message to Susan and then one to Ben "Stay where you are, Ben. We are here to help."
As expected, after his help things go smoothly, once again confirming that seeking a great collection of powers over ultimate power is the right choice for Hector. He has a tool for every job and has no risk or danger.
If he wanted he could skip a lot of levels and acquire Ultimate Power, this is Marvel, filled with power-ups, and he has access to other worlds too. In the end, constant and steady growth is his style.
That is the difference between him and Annihilus, even if the two are similar in so many ways.
He watches Susan and Jen meeting the couple, hugging tightly before going back to reality, Susan helping by making a platform and floating them to the ship. Human Torch, seeing the rescue mission being accomplished, does a final round of destruction to open the path before returning.
When everyone returns to the ship, Eidolon says quickly and without giving them a chance to them settle.
"Pay attention… I'm a clone. I'm gonna heal Alicia. Go back to where we come from and forget about my real body. And we have trouble." He says everything in 3 seconds while healing Alicia. He stops their thanks and even acts rudely, but he has a reason for all that…
*Boom*
Someone suddenly crashed against their ship… Blastaar.
The archnemesis of Annihilus is not in good shape after being attacked by both Annihilus and Eidolon, but as the rival of one of Marvel's great villains, he is nothing to scoff at either.
His physical prowess is astounding, capable of fighting the heavy hitters of the universe, like Hulk.
"This is the trouble, by the way." Clone Hector says totally calmly "I only have one attack on me, so I would not be able to protect you guys, sooo… Kick him away." He points.
True to be told, he can think of some ways to deal with Blastaar in one move… not killing, but taking him away while sacrificing this clone.
But he is still teaching those novice heroes that things aren't that easy.
Reed immediately starts flying away from the planet, doing his best to make crazy maneuvers to shake off Blastaar, who is clinging to the hull of the ship.
But Blastaar sinks his fingers on the ship, not letting go. Those guys can be his last chance of turning the tables on Annihilus, he still doesn't know how to use them, but he can find out about that later.
The humanoid albino lion uses his super strength to open a hole in the ship and enter.
"Deploying artificial atmosphere shield." The V.I. of the ship says while a light forcefield appears around it.
"Don't seal the hull just yet…" Clone Eidolon orders while staying aside.
A small but highly concentrated battle happens.
Human Torch throws a constant stream of fire to push the Alien Warlord away, but Blastaar holds on the edge of the broken hull for stability.
"Alright, pal… I was holding this for long, so it's time for some clobberin' and ya is the happy winner of this opportunity!" *Crack* The Thing cracks his knuckles once before going for a punch straight at the chin of Blastaar.
The lion man stumbles but still holds strong, going to punch Ben, but She-Hulk steps forward and punches him too *Wham*
He doesn't even have the time to recover his footing or leverage any weight, he can only serve as a sandbag to those Brute heroes. Reed also made sure the ship shook the maximum possible to keep Blastaar on the back foot.
From Eidolon's perspective is even a little comical… The guy arrived here full of himself and he is being whacked by The Thing and She-Hulk. The green woman is even kicking him to shove him off. That is not the big battle that either Eidolon or Blastaar are expecting…
It is enough to make a tear appear in the hero's eye. *Sniff* 'They grow so fast… They don't need me anymore…'
The ruthless assault is too much for Blastaar, if he was in top shape he would be able to even suppress the two, but today is not his day.
The brutal beatdown lasts for a long time, till Blastaar's fingers start slipping and in the end, Invisible Woman steps in.
Holding her two hands together above her shoulder, the air shimmers between her hands while she concentrates her powers.
*Boom*
'Oh, a Force Blast… Neat…' Clone Eidolon thinks while the ship shakes heavily one last time, Blastaar is finally thrown off when Susan opens an even bigger hole in the ship. Many things are ejected too before the ship stabilizes and shuts down the hole.
Everyone, but Eidolon, released a collective sigh.
"Clingy guys are the worst!" But Jennifer still had the mood to crack some jokes.
"Well, my time has come." Amidst the laughs, Eidolon stands up
"Your time?"
"Well, now that he is vulnerable, it's the best chance to keep him away for good." Killing him down for good, it's what he means.
Beyond allowing those heroes to solve the problem, Eidolon is also saving his only move for the moment where he has the most chances to kill Blastaar.
"Bye, people. Keep going to the coordinates and open the portal there, don't wait for Eidolon!" He repeats his previous instructions before phasing through the ship and shooting to where Blastaar is floating.
The lion man is already recovering his bearings, his armor has some gravity contingencies to stabilize him in space, but that is not enough…
Clone Eidolon pushes his arm forward while flying the fastest he can go without becoming smoke, he then starts spinning on himself while his body changes,
In the vacuum, there's no sound, and Eidolon didn't make any grandiose gesture either.
His body starts to accelerate while getting thinner and spinning faster… Till he was like a knitting needle… going straight through Blastaar's brain.
"..." The wide eyes of surprise as Blastaar floats away is the one indicator that he noticed his death. That and the hole in the middle of his forehead is the confirmation that he is dead.
Now he floats away, he didn't die in a grand battle, it's not even a battle…
A small death, like the picture he is creating by being a small body floating alone in the vastness of space, getting smaller and smaller… Til he disappears without any notice… Exactly like his death…. Unremarkable.
Back on the ship, Susan is palming her body with a look of panic
"Oh shit!" It's rare for Susan to curse so this act attracts the attention of She-Hulk
"What now?"
"I… I think… I think I lost Eidolon's gift." She says with her eyes wide, still checking herself. The fanny pack that she is wearing is open and some things fall at some point. "The time where the vacuum sucked the air in the ship…" She murmurs in realization
"Damn, girl~ You fumbled hard now." Jen shakes her head "Let's hope Eidolon will understand."
......….
Eidolon has bigger things to worry about now.
'Ugh… so annoying…' The hero is groaning in his mind while he is being squeezed by the weight of the universe. Or at least this part of the galaxy…
Annihilus got better with the Cosmic Control Rod, his control over the fundamental forces of the Negative Zone increased and now he is using all of them to try to squeeze Eidolon into a pulp.
The forces are so strong that even Eidolon is reduced to a ball of struggle while the space tries to squeeze him. Curled into a ball, despite being eerily calm, because he knows from now on Annihililus will need to do better than that if he wants to crush his sturdy body, Eidolon found his enemy's limits and a strange balance.
But even so, he decides to draw out some anger from being in this little embarrassing situation, and decides to use the Force against those forces crushing him.
With a roar, he released an Omnidirectional Force Blast that pushed back Annihilus's trap, freeing himself.
"This will never stop being cool." He allows himself to enjoy the moment a little before attacking again.
Despite pushing back the forces of the Negative Zone, Eidolon is still surrounded, only that is a larger area now.
As he advances to Annihilus, aware that his path is blocked by a thick layer of anti-matter and negative energy, Eidolon does a rare action and calls his stand.
Mr. Blue Sky separates from Hector seamlessly, his body covered in black and white, floating behind him, his blue eyes staring ahead calmly. Eidolon finally reaches the hostile areas that separate him from Annihilus.
No words are needed to command his stand, Hector advances fearlessly while the stand raises his two fists, his face impassive… And does the trademark attack of humanoid stands… A Stand Rush.
Mr. Blue Sky's fists become a blur of afterimages while he punches ahead, opening a path in the middle of the stormy area.
Hector noticed that his stand didn't have a Stand Cry, making him sad.
"Am I so boring like that?' He thinks.
Mr. Blue Sky is really a silent protector, it doesn't have a smidgen of personality, almost like an AI with his powers. It rarely acts on its own, unless Hector is in danger, and this rarely happens.
This comes from the fact Hector is a pretty self-sufficient guy, with a controlling and egoistic nature.
Mr. Blue Sky's punches are devastating, and not only that, to open a path in this area… He is using the powers of the Tremor Fruit to increase the destruction, punching the space per se instead of only the air.
Cracks appear with each punch, and he punches hundreds of times for seconds. The destruction is obviously off the charts, a single punch with Tremor powers from Whitebeard is enough to destroy an island, now countless from Eidolon…
At this point, the whole planet is a bunch of separated rocks, a little close together at this point, like giant floating islands.
*Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack* *Clack*
The Cosmic Control Rod that allows Annihilus to command the Negative Zone is very impressive, instantly sealing the cracks generated by Eidolon's punches, but Annihilus can't keep up with such speed.
Each punch creates small cracks, that fuse with a big one, which generates an even bigger one. Insectoid inhabitants of the Negative Zone are turned into mist even though they are dozens and dozens of kilometers away.
The power that Eidolon is showing is something that would leave anyone on Earth shell-shocked. Fighting in the Negative Zone gives an obvious advantage to Annihilus but ironically it allows Eidolon to stop holding back.
He couldn't care less about this place.
After a lot of punching and flying, he finally reaches Annihilus again. Less than three feet away from each other, the two combatants finally engage in a respectable closed-range fight.
A flurry of attacks is exchanged between the two, they dodge and defend while trying to hurt the other. Eidolon pulls some adamantium knives and aims for the vital points, but Annihilus always makes sure to never be hit by them. He ends up like a porcupine though.
But is obvious, even for the untrained eye, that the Insectoid Conqueror is at a disadvantage.
Eidolon is one of the best fighters in the universe after all.
Annoyed, at some point, Annihilus loses his patience and thrusts his arm at the Hero, Cosmic Control Rod in hand, and releases a huge attack, but the hero twists his body unnaturally while making a swipe with an adamantium knife at the joints of Annihilus' arm.
The arm that is holding the Cosmic Control Rod!
Annihilus regrets his fit of rage instantly, quickly retracting his arm, but the blade cuts a little his elbow, decreasing his mobility.
Now the conqueror tries to fall back but Eidolon doesn't allow him the chance to breathe. Overwhelming his opponent, Eidolon hits Annihilus time after time, each attack is an opportunity for Annihilus to use the blow to fall back.
But each time Eidoloon follows.
The two fly around the sky at incredible speeds, each crash generating shockwaves, and each crash increasing Eidolon's advantage. Slow and steady the hero from Earth is winning, and the two know that.
Annihilus needs to do something to turn the tables, maybe even retreat…
"RAAARGH!" The Insectoid Conqueror decides to once again release an omnidirectional blast of energy to gain room. He tries to crush the whole space around him while protecting himself in a shield cocoon.
This time, Eidolon is ready, and he is already retreating… But not before leaving something to Annihilus.
Bombs! At the exact distance between Annihilus's hand and his chest, Eidolon dropped miniaturized proton bombs.
Annihilus only saw them when it was too late.
The bombs and the wave of Negative Energy expanded at the same time and were too close to each other, the fields colliding and mixing, expanding beyond what should have happened… Stronger than what Annihilus predicted!
*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM*
Eidolon needs to retreat countless kilometers till he is safe, watching the energy expand and consume the planet.
"..." But he didn't relax, his eyes were like those of a bird of prey, looking at the explosion with great attention.
Protected by the Cosmic Control Rod, it would be naivety to think that Annihilus would die, but that is not his objective either.
The energy starts dispersing, the visibility improves, ignoring all the cosmic dust and remains of the dead living beings, Eidolon searches for his targets.
"!!!" When he sees them from the corner of his eyes he moves immediately, entering the aftermath of the explosion without hesitation.
Annihilus and the Cosmic Control Rod are separated!
The rod floats harmlessly on the vacuum of space while shining an orange light, like a beacon… The Insectoid Overlord is already flying to grab it again.
The two combatants have the same objective, but Annihilus is much closer… At this rate, he will get it…He was sure of that…
"The World…" Till it happens.
He waited for this moment because he was unsure of how Time Stop would work here, true to his fears, the frozen world of stopped time is unstable and chaotic, it has not expanded in a great radius and it will not last long…
But it was more than enough.
From Annihilus's point of view, he was almost reaching the Cosmic Control Rod, his hand already feeling the power emanating from it, when Eidolon suddenly appeared in front of him, grabbed the rod, and made it disappear by some unknown means.
"YOU–!!!!!!!" The insectoid exclaims with rage capable of powering ten Hulks.
"I'm sorry~ Do you want your Cosmic Dildo back?" Eidolon mocks in a sarcastic tone "Do you need this to please your wife?"
Now his trash talk works wonders.
"I'M GONNA TEAR YOUR LIMBS AND SHOVE THEM ON THIS UNCOUTH MOUTH!!!!!!" Annihilus shrills
*WHAM*
But he was the one being stepped away from with great strength.
"Oh, a mental attack? So you still have tricks under your sleeve…" Eidolon comments after kicking the villain away "Too bad you will not have the chance to show them…"
He instantly appears at the flying Annihilus and grabs the insect-like helmet with his left hand.
"I'm a little annoyed with you, soooo…" Mr. Blue Sky appears over Eidolon's shoulder "Help me beat him to a pulp." The hero raises his right fist and the stands raise his two fists…
*Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam**Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam**Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam**Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam**Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam**Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam**Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam**Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam**Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam**Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam**Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam**Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam**Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam**Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam**Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam**Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam**Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam* *Bam**Bam* *Bam*
The three fists punch Annihilus's head while Eidolon holds it in place thousands of times. The helmet is carved in like an empty bowl.
But true to his insect theme, Annihilus is like a cockroach or an ant that can survive even these incredible grave injuries.
Anyway, the important thing is that it is cathartic and therapeutic to Eidolon…
Releasing the villain and letting him float without moving, Eidolon creates a huge platform with his powers beneath them, to leverage, and retrieve a certain weapon.
The Mjolnir from Record of Ragnarok.
He holds the oversized hammer with his two hands and pulls back…
"When an insect buzzes too much, he gets crushed…"
*BLAM*
He mercilessly swings the hammer and turns Annihilus into a green pancake.
He does it some more times just to make sure.
And a little more.
And one more… for good luck.
Only after the villain remains is no different from a green past, that Eidolon stops.
"You shouldn't rely too much on items, you know? Just saying…" With his job done here, Eidolon starts flying back to the coordinates where he can open a portal.
He guesses that it is not healthy that the thought of causing a genocide along the way to decrease the danger of this place crossed his mind… But the fact that he reigned on this impulse proved that he was an upright guy.
Satisfied with his control over his genocidal tendencies, Hector speeds up to go back home.
.......
Back in Eidolon's universe, the portal in the Baxter Building is reactivated and people start jumping out of it.
Reed, Susan, Johnny, Ben, Alicia, and Jennifer appear.
"*Huff* It's good to be home." Ben comments, carrying Alicia
"Is it okay to leave Eidolon's ship behind?" Susan frowns
"It's what the ship itself instructed us to do… It's not like it can pass the portal." Reed answers
"Eidolon will probably retrieve it with his super convenient powers." Jennifer adds.
"Guys…" Johnny calls hesitantly "We are surrounded." He says with a smile "I always wanted to say that."
They are indeed surrounded, looking through the window they can see the many cars and agents on the streets. And obviously, the forcefield and androids floating around too.
Reed sighs tiredly "I will need to deal with them. How do I lower this shield."
"Probably only Eidolon can do that." Susan says "We can try asking his sidekick."
"I will do that." Reed says and starts moving to the elevator
"Oh, Black Widow…" Johnny also leaves through the widow, probably to flirt with Natasha
"I will get some rest…" While Ben was saying that, the portal buzzed again and Eidolon walked out of it completely calm.
No injuries or even dirt can be seen on his tall, muscled body. But the view is blocked quickly after his mantle floats to cover him.
"Oh, Ben and Alicia. I'm happy that you two are okay." The hero approaches them smoothly
"Thanks for the help again, buddy. Ya saved my ass back there." Ben offers a fist bum while going back to his human.
"Thanks, Eidolon." Alicia also thanks him
"Just doing my job." Eidolon says humbly while giving Ben a fistbump.
"We saw some explosions a little before we entered the portal, are you okay?" Susan approaches and asks while checking the hero
"Really big explosions." She-Hulk adds with surprise in her voice
"Ah, I'm fine. Light work. Just the final of my battle with Annihilus. It's all good now." He hides the details "Gave him some good punches for you, Ben." He says to change the subject, he succeeds because the Thing laughs loudly and thanks him again.
"Eidolon, I need to tell you something…" Susan speaks hesitantly
"Wait, before that, look what I found." The hero raises his hand from below his mantle, between his fingers the necklace he gave her before and she lost. "I found floating in space.
"Oh my god! This is exactly what I was about to tell you! I lost your gift!" Susan exclaims full of surprise "I'm sorry, Eidolon." She adds regretfully
"No worries, I can understand… And I wouldn't mind you losing it while doing hero work."
Even so, I feel horrible… I shouldn't have taken with me to the Negative Zone." Susan is still feeling bad
"Relax, you are worried about Reed and the others. Here, again, Happy Birthday." He offers the gift one more time
She smiles sweetly "Okay… And again. Thank you." She accepts
Ben, Alicia, and Jen look at each other with knowing grins.
Eidolon noticed, obviously, that he can understand how it looks from an outside perspective, he is not that dense. Susan Storm was indeed a fictional crush, but he will take his famous "wait and see" approach… He still believes that she is not one to accept his special love life circumstances… But who knows?
Maybe he will be the father of Meta Baby Jesus here in this world.
"We don't we go hang out? Without portal shenanigans?" Jennifer offers with a smile, putting her arm around Eidolon's shoulder. She is probably trying to help her friend.
"Sorry, but I have things to do…" Eidolon polluted declines the offer "And believe in me, I wish I could stay away from portal shenanigans"
......…..
Days later
"Seriously, am I cursed or something?!" Hector exclaims with his hands on his hips while staring at the familiar, but different, New York.
He ended up in another universe…
Now he is on the top of a building, donning his Spider-Man suit while staring at some billboards showing the death of Peter Parker.
He sighs heavily "I know exactly where I am… Isn't it too soon? Shouldn't have been Peter here?" He facepalm.
Suddenly, an orange wormhole appears at his side and without him having time to dodge, someone hits him at full force.
He and this unknown person roll on the rooftop for some time, confusion of limbs all over the place in an unstoppable ball. He can only notice that it is a woman and she is wearing black and white, in a suit a little similar to his… He can guess who it is pretty accurately.
When they finally stop, they are in a very compromising state… He lies on the ground, with her above him in a sixty-nine position. Her face touches his crotch while her legs straddle his head.
'Welcome back, Yuki Rito's Luck… It has been a long time since your last appearance.' Hector deadpans in his mind
The woman quickly notices the strange state they are in and instantly moves her head away from his crotch, but this made her butt move closer instead…
"..." Being smothered by buttcheeks, Eidolon thinks that there are worse ways to start the Arc than having Spider-Gwen sitting on his face.
........
Extra
In some places in the Negative Zone, a big insectoid denizen struggles while on a bed. She looks fat and bloated, with many smaller insectoids around them and helping her.
She is Annihilus' wife.
Eventually, after a lot of effort from her, she finally gives birth, laying down an egg in the hands of a maid.
The female insectoid respectfully holds the transparent green egg in her hands and raises high in the air, inside is possible to see a very distinctive insect-shaped head.
"LORD ANNIHILUS LIVES!!" She screeches
.....
A.N.:Hello there.
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