Chapter 274: Guardians of The Multiverse (4)
[Third Person's PoV]
As the Hulk let out an earth-shattering roar, he charged toward Ultron, the ground trembling beneath his massive footsteps.
Ultron clenched his fist, crackling with bubbling purple energy. He thrust it forward, unleashing a devastating beam from the Power Stone that engulfed the Hulk.
Stephen's protection spell began to fracture under the sheer force of the attack. Hulk, however, held out his hands, planting his feet firmly as he pushed forward with a roar, forcing the energy back inch by inch.
Meanwhile, Peter quickly webbed his severed arm and yanked it toward himself. Damn, his attack ripped right through Strange's spell in one go…
Catching his detached limb, Peter aligned it carefully with the clean cut. His body pulsed with chi as he concentrated all his energy into the wound. A blue discharge flickered at the site, sealing it with a flash of light. Peter gritted his teeth, exhaling in relief as he flexed his fingers.
At that moment, two portals spiraled open behind Ultron. Gwen and MJ leaped through, MJ radiating pure fury.
MJ came from above, one eye glowing as a pink construct of a war hammer materialized in her grip. At the same time, Gwen's hands formed a bo staff of ice as she appeared crouched low.
Without hesitation, they both swung. MJ's hammer crushed Ultron's head inward while Gwen's staff shattered his legs, flipping him violently from where he stood.
Mid-flip, Hulk burst forward and slammed his fist into Ultron's torso.
A sonic boom rippled outward as Ultron was sent hurtling through the air.
"That's what you get, you bastard! No one messes with my boyfriend!!" MJ shouted, shaking her fist in defiance.
As Ultron soared, his flight suddenly halted midair, sending a shockwave rippling from the abrupt shift in inertia.
"How bothersome," Ultron muttered as the Time and Reality Stones pulsed. In an instant, his battered body was restored to pristine condition.
"Hahaha! Have a taste of my thunder!!"
Ultron looked up to see Thor hovering above, propelled by his spinning hammer. With a mighty throw, Thor sent Mjolnir crashing down, unleashing a pulverizing storm of lightning.
The ground below ruptured and shattered like brittle chalk from the impact.
Yet, Ultron remained unfazed. Raising his hand, he absorbed the blast effortlessly. A condensed orb of crackling lightning hovered in his palm. As the Power Stone pulsed, the orb swelled—growing to a size that dwarfed even the Hulk, resembling a small moon.
Ultron grinned.
But before he could release the attack, another portal tore open in the sky.
Gwen and Peter burst through. Peter's feet glowed bright blue as he kicked the air, rocketing toward Thor. He tackled the God of Thunder away, sending them both through a portal.
Gwen, now radiating raw energy, hovered midair. The blue lining of her suit shimmered brilliantly, while an ethereal Phoenix of ice flared around her.
"Like hell I'll let you fire that off!" she shouted.
The ice Phoenix screeched and launched forward, colliding with the massive sphere of electricity. A deafening explosion followed, unleashing a frozen shockwave that turned the battlefield into a winter wasteland.
Ultron remained motionless, his finger raised. Above him, the frozen lightning orb hung, now encased in an intricate sphere of ice—an eerie, breathtaking sculpture.
If Peter were here, he'd probably make a joke about Aang's iceberg from Avatar.
Without wasting a second, she formed a portal beneath her and slid across the ice toward Ultron.
Cocking her fist back, she slammed it into his face. The ice shattered, and Ultron's head caved in from the force. A portal opened behind him, sending him flying through. The moon-sized ice sphere remained suspended in the sky, glistening ominously.
But something was off.
Ultron did not emerge from the expected location. Instead, as he exited the portal, he halted midair, correcting himself effortlessly—like a corpse rising from the grave.
A metal lance materialized in his grasp as the Reality and Soul Stones pulsed. He glitched forward, teleporting directly to the nearest opponent—Peter.
Ultron appeared before Peter in an instant, thrusting his lance at him with lethal precision.
In response, a surge of electric energy erupted from Peter's back as his Spider-Legs sprang forth. Planting his feet, he grounded himself, discharging a shockwave of electricity.
Peter's hands gripped the lance's shaft, muscles tensing as he fought against its force. The tips of his Spider-Legs converged at a single point, meeting the tip of the lance in a battle of raw strength.
"Sorry, I'm not letting another man penetrate me with their lance. I'm 100% straight," Peter quipped with a smirk.
Ultron hesitated. "What does your sexual orientation have to do with this?" he asked, genuinely confused.
Peter grinned. "Nothing much~ Just a distraction."
The lance rattled violently, fractures forming along its shaft as Peter's fingers tightened.
Suddenly, a shadow loomed over them.
Ultron quickly glanced back—only to see the Hulk behind him, glowing with raw gamma energy.
Hulk swung.
A shockwave-inducing backhand sent Ultron flying like a ragdoll. If Peter weren't glued to the ground, he would've been sent flying too.
As Ultron tumbled through the air, Hulk charged after him.
Meanwhile, Thor hurled Mjolnir toward MJ. Without missing a beat, MJ formed a portal in front of her.
On the other side, Ultron's airborne body came into view—just in time for Mjolnir to smash into his back, sending him hurtling toward Hulk's waiting fists.
However, Ultron turned intangible at the last second, allowing Mjolnir to phase through him and continue its flight toward Hulk.
A blue blur streaked beside Hulk—Peter.
He swiftly opened a portal, redirecting Mjolnir's trajectory.
At the same time, two new portals manifested, and Captain Carter and Doctor Strange emerged.
Thor's hammer struck Captain Carter's shield, unleashing a powerful orange shockwave. However, thanks to Strange's modified protection spell, the shockwave harmlessly phased through their allies—leaving only Ultron affected.
Doctor Strange had altered the shockwave's properties to match the energy signature of Ultron's Space Stone, disrupting his intangibility.
Ultron grunted as he was forcibly thrown back into his tangible state.
"The bothersome have become irritating," Ultron muttered.
The Power Stone pulsed with energy as he unleashed a massive purple dome, blasting everyone away. They tumbled across the battlefield, their protective spells preventing serious injuries—except for the Hulk, who merely slid back, undeterred.
Seizing the opportunity, Ultron suddenly materialized before Hulk, catching him off guard. "You are the biggest nuisance. Eliminating you first will make the rest of this battle trivial."
The Hulk let out a thunderous roar, swinging a devastating overhand punch. Their clash sent shockwaves rippling outward, decimating the ground and causing it to churn like a tidal wave. Even the unnatural clouds above parted, revealing the alien moons scattered across the sky.
To Hulk's shock, Ultron remained unmoved, still floating before him.
The Power Stone, Soul Stone, and Mind Stone glowed ominously as Hulk's emerald aura was siphoned away. A sudden wave of weakness hit him, his muscles deflating, his strength vanishing. His mind grew muddled. His transformation unraveled—leaving only Bruce Banner standing there, vulnerable.
Before Bruce could react, Ultron grabbed him by the throat and lifted him off the ground.
Bruce gagged, clawing at the unyielding metal fingers wrapped around his neck.
Ultron's cold, synthetic voice dripped with finality. "Now… perish, worm—"
A blur sliced through the air.
Peter Parker's sharpened spider leg flashed like a hot steel blade, severing Ultron's arm cleanly.
"An arm for an arm! I'd say we're even now!" Spider-Man quipped, catching Bruce midfall. His spider legs wrapped protectively around the scientist as he twisted in the air.
Peter landed, absorbing the impact through his suit's kinetic dampeners. Rolling to a stop, he yelled urgently, "HE'S GOING TO USE THE GAMMA RADIATION AS A NUCLEAR BOMB!"
And indeed, that was Ultron's intent. The stolen Gamma energy coalesced into a glowing green orb, hurtling toward the ground like a radioactive meteor.
"Stephen!!" Carter shouted as she flung her shield like a Frisbee.
Doctor Strange extended his hands, the shield glowing momentarily before multiplying in midair. A series of enchanted shields, varying in size, enclosed around the Gamma bomb like a Russian nesting doll.
A deafening explosion rocked the battlefield. Even though it was contained, the sound alone made those with sensitive hearing wince in pain.
As the blast dissipated, green smoke seeped through the cracks between the interlocked shields. With a flick of his wrist, Strange reverted them back to a single shield.
Meanwhile, MJ crouched on one knee, her fingers interlocked. Thor sprinted toward her, planting his foot in her hands.
With a mighty heave, MJ launched Thor into the air. As he ascended, he spun Mjolnir and roared, "VEGASSS!!!"
Lightning crackled around him as he swung his hammer, striking the edge of Carter's shield. The impact sent it flying with unstoppable force.
Ultron raised a hand to intercept—only for Gwen's webbing to wrap around his arm. With a sharp yank, she restrained him just long enough.
The shield struck, embedding deep into Ultron's torso and sending him crashing to the ground.
Peter, moving at blinding speed, appeared beside Ultron, yanking the shield free. The moment he did, a deep laceration remained—exposing the five Infinity Stones embedded in Ultron's chest, with the Mind Stone still in his forehead.
Ultron's gaze snapped upward.
Across the battlefield, orange portals flickered to life. Peter, along with everyone else, was retreating—running toward the portals at full speed.
"WATCHER!!!" they all shouted in unison.
A blue portal materialized ahead, and one by one, they leaped inside.
Ultron barely had time to react before something in his chest flickered.
Glancing down, his mechanical eyes widened.
The Soul Stone—
It wasn't glowing anymore.
It was breaking apart.
A trick.
MJ had cast an illusion over the Soul Stone, making him believe it was still in his possession.
He had been outplayed.
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