Fan Fei | The Iron Fist
Fan Fei gritted her teeth as she tried to push against the crushing pressure pinning her to the lunar surface. The weight was suffocating every breath drawn with effort, as if mountains pressed down upon her. She drew on her chi, forcing it to flow through her limbs, golden light radiating faintly around her. For a moment, she rose her knees trembling, her stance widening but the invisible hand of gravity doubled its push, and she was slammed back down.
To her left, En Sabah Nur fought as well. His body twisted unnaturally, skin stretching and contracting, bones audibly cracking as his physiology attempted to adapt to the force smothering them. He snarled, defiance burning in his young eyes, his warrior nature refusing to submit.
Azzuri was the weakest of them, so he took it the worst unable even to move, surviving only because of the protections Max and Agamotto had given them before the battle began.
Agamotto, though strained, remained the most composed. His hands traced sigils in the air, mandalas blooming before him. A shimmer rolled over the group, glyphs weaving around their bodies.
"Done," he announced, and suddenly the crushing weight lifted, the spell acting as a bulwark.
Fan rose to her feet, gasping in relief. Nur staggered upright, rolling his shoulders, still grinning despite the strain. "Took you long enough," he spat with a smirk.
Agamotto turned sharply, affront clear in his glowing eyes. "I just crafted a spell to withstand the very collapse of stars. Would you rather I—"
"Ohhh…Should I bow down and worship you now, then?" Nur interrupted, his tone cutting, half-mocking.
Agamotto's jaw tightened, a flicker of anger sparking.
But before their spat could grow, Azzuri stepped between them, raising a calming hand. "Now is not the time. En Sabah Nur, temper your tongue. Sorcerer, you did well we stand thanks to you."
Fan turned her gaze forward, where the true battle raged. Max, Firehair, Odin, and Ghost were locked against the Inhuman.
The Green Lantern hurled construct after construct massive hammers, spiked chains, energy blasts but each shattered like glass the moment they neared the armored figure.
Firehair unleashed the flames of the Phoenix, torrents of cosmic fire that could reduce even the strongest metal to ash, but the inferno curved unnaturally around the Inhuman; it did not touch him. Odin roared as lightning cascaded from Mjolnir, yet the arcs warped mid-flight, skirting away from the armored giant and dissipating harmlessly against the lunar dust.
Ghost was the only one to break through. His flaming bone chain snapped forward, searing and binding itself around the Inhuman's torso. For a moment, victory was in reach. Ghost yanked, and the giant staggered. But then the air screamed, and an overwhelming pulse of force erupted outward. The chain shattered, and Ghost was hurled back, tumbling across the gray landscape, fire trailing in his wake.
The Inhuman floated there, haloed by orbiting stones, even fragments of Firehair's fire and the Lantern's emerald constructs. His faceless helm tilted toward Max and the others, as if daring them to come closer.
"This guy is insane," Max said through the mind-link. "The gravity fields around his body they're approaching black hole levels. Fan, Agamotto, Azzuri, Nur how are you holding up?"
Azzuri was the first to answer, his tone steady despite the situation. "We are fine. We can move again thanks to Agamotto's ingenious spell."
Firehair's thoughts cut in. "I can strike at his mind. He won't stand a chance."
Nur growled his agreement, as did Agamotto, Azzuri, Odin, Ghost, and even Fan Fei herself.
But Max's voice snapped back, firmer this time. "No."
A collective ripple of protest passed through the link. "Why?" Fan Fei asked, her golden aura trembling as she readied her chi.
"Because we cannot risk it," Max answered. "Right now he's controlling his gravity wells targeting us with precision. If you pierce his mind and he loses control, the entire system is gone. Moon, Earth, the Sun everything. Do you want to gamble with that?"
Odin grunted. "You cannot be certain, Grænlaðr."
"No," Max admitted, "I cannot. But I won't take that chance. We need another way."
"I'm going to create a null-gravity engine. It'll counter his field, but it'll take time. While I build it, the seven of you must keep him occupied."
"I still believe my mind can break him," Firehair said.
"If all else fails, then yes," Max conceded. "But not until we've exhausted everything else."
Fan Fei exhaled, feeling his conviction settle into her own chest. "Very well. I'll trust your plan." One by one, the others agreed.
Max flew back, shaping the beginnings of his construct.
The others, including Fan Fei, charged.
Firehair soared ahead first, her body wreathed in Phoenix flame, taking the brunt of the Inhuman's gravitational crush. Odin hurled Mjolnir again and again, each throw sparking storms across the lunar sky. Ghost's chain of bone, wrapped in hellfire, lashed out, striking sparks against the armor.
Behind them, Nur raised his hands. Energy surged through his arms, crackling in hues of red and yellow before he blasted it forward in a furious storm. The beams slammed into the Inhuman, who staggered only slightly, his gravity attacks flickering.
Agamotto layered spell upon spell, mandalas blooming in rapid succession. Bolts of mystic energy hammered at the gravity-wielder, carving glowing scars across the swirling field around him.
Then came Azzuri. He glanced at Fan Fei. "Use your chi on me," he said.
Fan Fei's eyes widened. "On you?"
"Yes. Let us see if he can withstand the might of Wakanda and K'un-Lun together."
She placed her glowing palms against his panther suit. Golden chi flowed into the vibranium weave, threads of energy racing through its lattice like veins of living fire. The suit pulsed, humming with unnatural resonance.
Azzuri roared and unleashed it.
A violet shockwave burst from him, crashing forward like a tidal wave. The Inhuman raised a hand to shield himself, but for the first time his field cracked fractures appeared in the armor, glowing fissures racing across its surface.
Fan Fei gasped. "It's working!"
For the first time, the Inhuman faltered.
They pressed their attack, but the Inhuman refused to simply stand and endure it. With a sudden motion, he turned toward Odin and unleashed a crushing wave of gravity. The prince was hurled into space like a ragdoll, spinning helplessly before he righted himself with Mjolnir.
He came back with fury, hurling his hammer, but the weapon struck the Inhuman and bounced away as if it were nothing.
The monster moved on, turning his crushing power against Firehair. She gritted her teeth and dug in, flames blazing brighter as she resisted the wave that had swept Odin aside. For a moment she held it back, the surface of the Moon cracking under her feet.
But the Inhuman roared, and his field expanded in a shattering burst. The explosion of force sent Firehair flying, her fiery aura dimming as she tumbled across the lunar surface straight into Max, who was still shaping his great construct. Both of them crashed down in a tangle.
Ghost and Nur tried to flank him, Nur warping lunar stone around the Inhuman while Ghost's flaming bone-chain lashed out, searing against the armor. But the Inhuman screamed again, the gravity blast so intense that both were torn away and scattered like dust.
Fan, Azzuri, and Agamotto were thrown flat, pinned once more by the overwhelming pressure.
Even Max was crushed down, Firehair sprawled across him as his half-formed null-gravity engine spun feebly in the distance.
Fan Fei struggled, her voice ragged through the mental link. "I think… it's time to use Firehair's plan."
"I agree," Firehair said, her voice burning with frustration.
One by one, the others chimed in. "Yes."
"Lantern, you've been quiet. Do you object?" Azzuri asked.
Max's reply came: "I just need… a few more seconds."
The pressure grew heavier still. Fan could feel her bones ache, her lungs tighten. Even with Max's constructs and Agamotto's wards, they were near their limit. One more surge and they'd all be finished.
"We don't have seconds," Fan cried.
Then Max's voice cut across the link, sharp and commanding. "Agamotto wake up the Starbrand."
Shock rippled through them all. "What?!" they shouted in unison.
"DO IT!"
Fan Fei's heart raced, but she knew he was right. "He's right. Agamotto, it's our only chance. Do it!"
Agamotto's eyes burned with reluctance, but he raised his hands. "So be it."
Even with his arms pinned, the sorcerer traced sigils.
The ground shuddered.
The base groaned and shook as alarms blared from within. Then came the roar.
"RAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHRRRRRGHHHHHHHH!"
The roar shook the Moon itself.
The walls of the Kree citadel cracked and burst apart as the Starbrand erupted outward. The Inhuman faltered, his focus shattered, his crushing field stuttering. The unbearable weight pressing down on them eased at last.
Fan watched with wide eyes as the Inhuman turned from them and raised his hands against the blazing giant. The Starbrand unleashed a blinding crimson blast, the energy ripping forward, concentrated into a spear.
The Inhuman staggered, caught off guard. His armor cracked under the sheer force, then shattered completely.
She thought that was it that the Starbrand had done what they all couldn't but then something emerged from the suit, something unexpected.
Inside the suit was a broken husk of a man thin, almost skeletal, his brown skin stretched tightly over bone, long unkempt hair spilling down, a ragged beard clinging to his gaunt face. His sunken eyes darted wildly, filled not with rage but with confusion and despair.
For a moment, Fan felt a stab of pity.
"What have they done to that poor soul…," Agamotto said through their link, his voice filled with sorrow.
"This is monstrous," said Azzuri.
The Starbrand roared again and surged forward, but the Inhuman raised his hands and caught him. To Fan's shock, the skeletal figure held the blazing titan in place. The Starbrand strained, muscles burning red with power, but could not advance an inch.
Yet the struggle had bought them time.
"It's done," announced Max.
Suddenly, the crushing weight that had pinned them before was gone. Fan blinked as her body lifted from the ground she was floating. All of them were. Max's device had worked; it had nulled the gravity.
Then, just as abruptly, gravity slammed back only for the Inhuman as the device focused its effect on him. He stopped flaring and collapsed onto the ground, trembling.
Fan felt him in that instant; she used her chi to sense what the man was feeling confusion, fear, a sliver of humanity that had somehow endured the Kree's torment. A broken man forced into a weapon.
Max's voice cut sharp through the silence. "Now. Attack. Now!"
The Avengers struck as one.
Firehair ignited, hurling streams of Phoenix fire that wrapped the Inhuman in a cage of cosmic flame. Odin raised Mjolnir, bolts of lightning crashing down in blinding fury as he hurled the hammer like a comet. Ghost charged, his flaming bone-chain whipping around the man's limbs, holding him long enough for Nur to unleash colossal blasts of raw energy from his arms. Agamotto's spells flared from mandalas around him, each strike hammering the Inhuman. Azzuri, his suit infused with energy from Fan's chi, fired a focused burst of violet power that tore through the man's chest. Fan herself gathered her strength, channeling every drop of chi she had into a single blast. And the Starbrand burning like a newborn star brought his fists down in a cataclysmic strike that shook the lunar surface.
The combined assault incinerated the Inhuman utterly, his body erased in light.
The Moon itself quaked. Craters split. Dust and stone rose in plumes. The fragile vegetation of the Blue Zone was annihilated, torn away as if it had never been.
When the blaze cleared, nothing remained of the Kree's monstrous creation but ashes scattered across the void.
"Good job, team," Max said through the link, his voice carrying satisfaction.
Odin laughed. "Now that was a battle."
The others added their voices in celebration. But Fan's eyes were fixed not on victory, but on the Starbrand. The blazing figure had turned, and its burning gaze fell squarely on Max.
"Max…" she warned. "The Starbrand."
Max blinked, then grimaced. "Oh shit. I think he remembers the beating I gave him."
Odin hefted Mjolnir, eager. "Another fight, then."
"So it would seem," Ghost said, flames dripping from his skeletal visage.
Nur's grin widened, his body still giant. "Then come. Let us defeat this beast as well."
"No," Azzuri said firmly. "He did us no harm. We should try to calm him first."
"I agree," Firehair's voice echoed through the link.
Agamotto lifted his hands, mandalas shimmering around his fingers. "Then I shall put him to sleep once more."
Max held up his hand. "Yes, do that. Before he—"
But Fan Fei cut him off, stepping forward. "No. Let me try something."
Max turned to her, frowning. "Are you sure?"
"Yes," she said without hesitation. She broke into a run, sprinting across the lunar rock toward the Starbrand. Her chi flared golden as she pushed her mind outward, trying to rebuild the fragile connection she had formed before.
She planted herself in his path, raising both hands. "Stop!"
The Starbrand didn't stop. Its massive, glowing body loomed closer, its power flickering erratically, waves of heat and light rippling from it like a dying sun.
Fan closed her eyes. She pushed deeper, forcing the connection open, her chi flowing through the bond. And then she felt it. A name. A fragment of humanity buried beneath the cosmic power.
Vnn.
Her breath caught. "Your name is Vnn," she whispered, louder now, pouring her voice into the link.
The blazing titan hesitated, power stuttering like a fire about to go out.
"Vnn, please. We are not your enemies," Fan Fei whispered through the connection.
The Starbrand froze.
Fan broadened the link. The flood of his memories struck her his life, his sorrow. She saw Vnn cast out from his tribe for his sexuality. She saw how he had found happiness afterward with another a kind soul named Brrkk. From friendship had blossomed love, and for a time they had been happy.
Then came the lizard-beasts. She felt his anguish as Brrkk fell, his last breath leaving in Vnn's arms. The Starbrand had chosen him then. But since that moment, all Vnn had felt was shame. "Not me. Not strong Vnn. Weak Vnn. Should have been Brrkk."
The words echoed through the connection: "Vnn weak."
Fan's heart clenched. "You are not weak, Vnn. You are like us—you are a protector, a hero. You helped defeat great evil. You saved our world."
"Vnn… protect?"
"Yes," Fan said gently.
"Vnn kill green man. Green man hurt Vnn."
Fan's lips twitched. She glanced back at Max, who was watching tensely in the distance with Firehair. "I'm sure the green man will apologize," she said quickly. "Please, Vnn. Calm yourself. You don't have to be alone anymore. You can join us. We can be your tribe."
The energy around him flickered. "Vnn… new tribe?"
"Yes," Fan affirmed, her voice warm.
Max's voice crackled in the link, uncertain. "What's happening, Fan?"
"Shut up, Max," Fan snapped. "I almost have him."
She could feel the energy around Vnn subsiding, his towering form shrinking slightly. He wasn't in human form again but he wasn't a raging force of destruction, either.
"Grrr… grrr…" he growled. To the others, it was nothing but a guttural noise, but Fan heard the truth through their bond.
"Vnn will join new tribe."
Fan's lips curved into a soft smile. "Welcome, friend."
.
.
.
Max | The Green Lantern
Max walked side by side with Firehair, the two of them moving toward where Fan Fei stood with the Starbrand. The others were converging there as well.
He turned to Firehair. Her presence had carried them through the battle. The Inhuman had unleashed most of his gravitational might against her, and she had taken it all. Jade's readings, before he told her to stop, had been staggering: Firehair had been tanking pressure equivalent to what two black holes colliding could generate.
Yes, Max and Odin might have survived it too maybe. But Firehair had proven she could take a lot more.
"You did well, Firehair the Phoenix power is unmatched," Max said, his voice filled with respect.
Firehair glanced at him. "You are no slouch either, Lantern. It was your tactic that won us the day."
Max chuckled faintly. "Your plan would've worked too. But…"
"Yes," Firehair interrupted softly, "it was dangerous. Perhaps too dangerous. But as the leader, you made the choice. And it worked. That is all that matters."
Max tilted his head, studying her. "Do you have any issue with me as the leader, then?"
Firehair shook her head, the faintest smile touching her lips. "When I first thought of gathering powerful beings to protect this world, I imagined myself as the leader. But… you make a better one than I. You hold us together. That's a rarer gift than all the gifts we possess."
"Thank you," Max said sincerely.
She gave him a sly glance. "Did I hurt you when I slammed into you earlier?"
Max smirked. "Hurt? Not at all. I wouldn't mind if it happened again."
"Oh?" Firehair arched a brow, her tone teasing. "You don't mind at all…?"
"Not at all, Pretty Bird. Not at all."
"Pretty Bird?" she asked, her eyes narrowing.
"An apt name for you, don't you think?" he replied with a grin.
Her lips curved again, but she gave no answer.
They reached the Starbrand. The towering red giant glared at Max, heat still rolling off his frame.
"So… he's okay now?" Max asked cautiously.
Fan nodded. "Yes. His name is Vnn. And he will join us."
"Vnn," Max repeated, testing the name.
"His name," Fan confirmed.
Odin strode forward, nodding with approval. "A strong name. A warrior's name."
They all gathered together now, forming a loose circle on the lunar surface. Fan stepped forward, gently introducing Vnn to the others. The Starbrand's eyes were fixed solely on Max.
"Grrrr… grrrr…" Vnn rumbled, his tone low and hostile.
Jade's voice echoed in Max's mind: Translation: Vnn wants to fight.
"No, Vnn," Fan said firmly, stepping between them.
"Yes, listen to her, Vnn," Max added.
Fan turned her head, surprised. "You can understand him?"
"Yes," Max answered simply.
Odin frowned. "Even with the Allspeak, I cannot."
"Nor I," Firehair added, her eyes glowing faintly as if trying to pierce the language barrier.
"Let me try something," Agamotto offered, raising his hands to weave a spell.
But before he could begin, Vnn stiffened. "Grrr! Grrr!" His energy flared dangerously.
Max and Fan spoke in unison. "He doesn't want it, Agamotto."
The sorcerer lowered his hands reluctantly. "Very well."
"This isn't over yet. The Kree still have the artifact," said Max.
At the mention, Vnn growled louder. "Grrr… grrrr… grrrrr!" You took it from home!
"Yes, Vnn," Max admitted carefully. "We did. But it was for a greater purpose."
Agamotto cut in sharply. "Then let us not tarry. We need to retrieve it before—"
A sudden explosion ripped through the silence, a plume of blue flame and shattered rock bursting from the base.
Azzuri shielded his eyes. "What now?"
Ghost stepped forward. "I see your artifact." He pointed toward the breach. Out of the smoke, a tall armored figure strode forth a woman wielding a colossal hammer. Embedded in its head was a glowing orb, pulsing with unstable energy.
Agamotto's face drained of color. "You fools… what have you done?"
Jade's voice rang in Max's head: That is Accuser Zeydra. According to Kree databases, she's the leader of the Genesis Faction.
"Quickly!" Agamotto snapped. "We must take it from her before—"
"None of you will leave here alive—" Zeydra began, but her words twisted into a choked scream. She convulsed violently, the orb blazing brighter and brighter, arcs of destructive power sparking from her hammer into the ground.
"What is happening?" Firehair demanded, flames rising instinctively around her.
"The artifact!" Agamotto cried. "It's too much for her! It has awakened it will unleash its purpose: destruction!"
"Shit," Max muttered, his ring flaring. "Then let me handle it."
He shot into the air toward Zeydra. Beams of raw energy burst from her hammer, scything through the void, but Max weaved between them.
"Clear me a path!" Max barked through the mental link.
And they did. Firehair and Odin soared ahead, unleashing firestorms and lightning to intercept the blasts. Ghost attacked, flames spewing from his skull. Nur roared, slamming his massive fists into the ground to tear up lunar rock and block the energy waves. Agamotto deflected the stray arcs away from Max.Starbrand tanked a few bursts with his own body as did Azzuri.
As he flew, he created a Jaeger construct above him. The giant construct bent low as they neared, and its hand closed around Zeydra before she lost complete control.
"Got you," Max muttered.
With a thought, the construct shifted, folding in on itself and morphing around Zeydra into a containment unit made of the prisms Max had used to subdue the Starbrand. The artifact screamed against its prison, blasts of unstable energy rattling the cage.
Max shot into the void, dragging the containment device behind him as he accelerated away from the Moon. He pushed harder, faster, the construct vibrating as the artifact's instability spiked.
The energy built with every passing second, tearing at the edges of the emerald shell. Max strained, sweat slicking his forehead. "Hold together… just a little longer…"
Then the Sun loomed before him, an ocean of fire filling his vision. With a final heave, Max hurled the containment unit forward. Zeydra screamed inside as the artifact erupted, and both tumbled into the star's raging heart.
For a moment, there was silence.
Then the Sun rippled an impossible flare of power burst outward, a gigantic explosion blooming on its surface. The shockwave hammered into Max, forcing him to throw up a layered shield.
He exhaled hard, chest heaving. Well… that's that, he thought grimly.
He began his flight back, and by the time he returned, the others had regrouped near the now-destroyed base. Max landed lightly.
"Well done my friend" Odin bellowed as he landed.
"Now… we must find another power source for my barrier," said Agamotto, a bit irritated.
"The cosmos is vast, my friend. We will find one," said Odin.
Firehair nodded. "He's right. Somewhere out there, another exists. Perhaps even one of the same kind."
Max shrugged, still catching his breath. "We'll hunt for it. One way or another, 'Motto we'll find what you need."
Ghost tilted his head, his skull still aglow. "What next?"
Azzuri's claws slid free with a metallic hiss. "We drive the Kree from our world. Every abomination they've unleashed must be destroyed."
Max's expression hardened. "Yes. I agree. First, we talk to whoever's left in this base. Then we strike their outposts on Earth."
They all nodded, turning toward the half destroyed Kree citadel carved into the lunar stone.
Max glanced at the jagged silhouette as they advanced. Maybe this time… the Inhumans won't exist at all.