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Manhattan streets.
The smoke had yet to clear, but cheers already shook the sky.
"We won!!"
"Homelander punched that alien boss into orbit!!"
The cadets slumped on the rubble, hugging one another in celebration.
Pietro gasped for air; his flashy silver suit was riddled with holes, face streaked with dust and blood.
"Hey, bro." He nudged Deadpool, who was stitching his own leg beside him.
"That leg of yours... already fine?"
"Of course! This leg's been with me for a solid twenty-eight weeks—I'm sentimental!" Wade grimaced, stapling thigh-meat back with a stapler.
"As long as it's not mincemeat, I won't abandon it. Ouch! These staples look rusty."
Not far away, Tony Stark had Jarvis scanning the surrounding structures to assess the damage.
"After this brawl, my Damage Control division will be pulling overtime into the next century," Tony groused.
Steve Rogers was bandaging a wounded civilian.
Everything seemed over.
Until… "BOOM—!!!"
A thunderous blast; the ground lurched.
Everyone looked up in horror.
A black monstrosity plummeted from the sky, slamming into the heart of Times Square ahead of them!
The shockwave flipped every nearby car, the asphalt cracking like biscuits.
Smoke cleared.
Algrim straightened slowly, eyes of cursed fire sweeping the crowd.
"W-what the hell is that thing?!" a cadet stammered, stepping back.
"Looks like an encore." Wade Wilson hopped on his half-healed leg, katana waving.
"Hey, big guy! Show's over—no encores! Your alien mama's calling you home for dinner!"
The Cursed Warrior said nothing, snatching a fire truck beside him and hurling it at Wade!
"Watch out!!"
Steve Rogers roared, rushing in with shield raised.
But someone was faster.
"Check this out!!"
Speedball Robbie tried to shine, rocketing forward and curling into a ball mid-air, using his kinetic field to knock the fire truck aside.
"Bang!"
Wade seized the moment and charged.
"Let me give you a pedicure!" He slashed at the Cursed Warrior's ankle.
"Clang!"
Sparks flew.
The last katana snapped!
"Uh… awkward." Wade stared at the broken blade.
The Cursed Warrior glanced down at the red clown hopping around his feet.
He reached out, left and right, gripping Wade's shoulder and waist.
"Hey, big dude, let's talk… don't start a life of crime…" Wade sensed trouble.
"RRRIP—!!!"
On live nationwide television, the Cursed Warrior tore Wade Wilson clean in half.
Blood and entrails splattered the ground.
"Oh—my-gosh! My lower half! Little Wade!! Is this an R-rated set?"
Wade's upper half hit the dirt, shrieking and crawling.
Silence fell.
Nearly everyone stood frozen by the gore.
"Run!!"
Steve Rogers was first to react, yelling as he rushed forward, shield high.
"This monster isn't something you can handle! Everyone fall back!!"
But the Cursed Warrior gave them no time to retreat.
Like a runaway heavy tank, he plowed into the heroes' ranks.
"Bang!"
Fire-Lady Angela had barely spat a flame when a fist swatted her into a clothing store.
"Thud!"
Speedball tried absorbing kinetic energy—only to be stomped into the ground, stuck fast.
"Stop it!!"
Pietro couldn't watch anymore.
Silver light flashed.
He hit top speed, darting behind the Cursed Warrior to strike at his joints.
But the monster's reflexes were insane; a backhanded swing sent Pietro flying on sheer wind pressure alone.
Pietro slammed to the ground; before he could rise, the Cursed Warrior loomed over him, hoisting a massive concrete slab.
"Die, insect."
Pietro shut his eyes in despair.
"BOOM—!!!"
No pain came.
Pietro opened his eyes to a gold-and-red back.
Tony Stark.
At the last second he'd rushed in, using his Mark 42 armor to bear the concrete slab!
"Run… kid…" Tony gritted, face red beneath the mask.
"Jarvis… full power!"
"Sir, armor heavily damaged—support systems failing!"
"Hold!!"
"Crack!"
Mark 42's arm plates shattered, hydraulic fluid spraying.
The Cursed Warrior sneered and pressed harder.
"Bang!"
The slab pressed down.
Tony dropped to one knee yet kept the slab up, buying Pietro breathing room.
"Go!!" Tony roared.
Pietro stared at the man he'd called an arms-dealer enemy.
In that instant Tony Stark wasn't some lofty billionaire.
He was merely… a mortal fighting to save a life.
"Why…" Pietro whispered.
"No need for whys! I'm Iron Man!"
Tony's chest-beam blasted the slab to pieces, draining his last ounce of power.
The Cursed Warrior staggered back two steps—unscathed.
Furious, he lunged and punched Tony in the chest.
"Thud!"
The armor disintegrated; Tony rag-dolled through the air and crashed down, unconscious.
"Stark!!"
Steve Rogers' eyes nearly split.
He charged, Vibranium shield smashing the Cursed Warrior's knee.
"Clang!"
The monster's knee buckled slightly.
"Not bad, Midgardian."
The Cursed Warrior turned to face Captain America.
The two clashed.
Steve lacked raw strength but wielded elite skill and that physics-defying shield.
He rolled, leapt, bashed, blocked.
For a moment he held his own against the ancient beast.
But the power gap was absolute.
Thirty moves later.
The Cursed Warrior seized the shield's rim.
"Give it… to me!!"
With a roar he tore the shield from Steve's grip!
Then swung it back.
"Bang!"
The shield struck Steve, sending the Super-Soldier flying.
Steve hit the ground, blood at his lips, unable to rise.
The Cursed Warrior stepped over him, massive hand reaching for his head.
"Resistance is meaningless; this is fate."
…"Hulk—!! SMASH!!"
A thunderous roar descended from the sky.