A Careless Tease

Apocalypse clenched both fists and slammed them into the ground.

Boom...

The earth cracked!

The fissures seemed to come alive, racing straight toward Sif and the others.

The three of them lost their footing and swiftly leaped into the air.

Now!

A sonic boom erupted where Apocalypse stood, blasting a huge crater into the ground.

Hogun and Volstagg saw only a blur. Their weapons flew from their hands, and they themselves crashed heavily to the ground before Thor.

As the dust settled, the figures of Apocalypse and Sif slowly emerged.

Sif's longsword pressed against Apocalypse's heart, but could not advance an inch. Apocalypse had seized the hand holding her sword.

With his other hand, Apocalypse gripped Sif's neck and lifted her off the ground.

Sif's face immediately flushed red.

This time, Apocalypse had learned his lesson. Since he could not grip a sword enhanced by divine power, he would grab her hand and neck instead. Those parts could not possibly be slippery too, right?

Hmm... they were indeed quite smooth.

Apocalypse unconsciously brushed a finger along Sif's jawline. How did a woman who spent every day fighting and killing outside keep her skin so well?

Sif's face turned even redder.

"You rogue... bastard... put me down already."

"Ahem... that was an accident..."

Apocalypse released both hands. Sif no longer attacked him, but like an ordinary woman, she kicked him before hurriedly running back to Thor's side.

"Tang, no wonder you said that even if I reclaimed Thor's Hammer, I might not be your match. You truly have the strength to back up your arrogance. How could an Earthling possibly be this strong?"

Thor approached with the four Asgardian warriors.

Sif, Fandral, Hogun, and Volstagg slightly lowered their heads toward Apocalypse, struck their right fists against their chests, and offered a salute.

This was the Asgardian warrior's salute. They always gave the strong sufficient respect.

Apocalypse glanced at Sif. The blush had yet to fade from her face, and he had no idea whether it was from being choked or from anger.

When Sif noticed Apocalypse looking at her—and specifically at the chest she had just struck in salute—she glared fiercely, as if saying: Pervert!

Apocalypse smiled helplessly. He really had not meant to tease her. Battles changed in an instant; how could he have had such thoughts at the time?

As for that final brush of his finger... ahem, he could only blame a man's damned instincts.

Thor stepped forward and gave Apocalypse a bear hug. "My father invited you to Asgard as a guest. Looks like he had better judgment than I did. Once I lift Thor's Hammer, come back to Asgard with me for a visit. Though my father may not be able to receive you."

Sif and the others were shocked.

The man before them had actually been personally invited by the Allfather? Just who was he?

No wonder he was so powerful. It seemed their defeat this time had not been undeserved.

The little bit of unwillingness they had felt completely vanished.

"Thor, don't worry. You'll reclaim your hammer very soon."

Thor sighed. "I hope so, but I have no idea how."

As they spoke, a fierce energy fluctuation came from afar.

Everyone present was a top-tier powerhouse, so naturally, they all sensed it.

In the distance, dark clouds gathered and the heavens split apart. A black tornado descended from the sky, sending sand and stones flying across the ground.

"The Rainbow Bridge!"

Thor asked, "Sif, besides you, who else came?"

The four Asgardian warriors shook their heads. "We don't know. We didn't tell anyone."

Soon, they had their answer.

As the seven-colored light faded, a humanoid machine several stories tall appeared within the teleportation runes.

The Destroyer!

The Destroyer looked like countless metal rings stacked together into a humanoid form. Its body gleamed with a dark metallic luster, and its face bore two huge hollows where eyes should have been, empty pits filled with darkness.

If it stood still, it looked more like a work of art!

But now, that work of art opened its face, releasing a blast of scorching flame.

It killed anyone it saw and destroyed every building in its path.

Wherever it passed, houses exploded, cars were hurled through the air, and flames soared into the sky.

In the original story, when Coulson saw the Destroyer descend, he still foolishly held up a lousy loudspeaker and shouted, "You are using an unauthorized weapon. Identify yourself..."

The Destroyer ignored him completely and directly fired several blasts of destructive flames.

Countless vehicles were destroyed on the spot, explosions erupted everywhere, and no one knew how many agents died.

Coulson survived only because he had fled quickly enough.

But with Apocalypse's warning, the moment he saw the humanoid machine appear, he had already ordered his men to run far away, avoiding this catastrophe!

Apocalypse knew that on Asgard, far across the universe, Loki had finally made his move against Heimdall, guardian of the Rainbow Bridge.

He had used the Frost Giants' source of power to freeze Heimdall, seized control of the Rainbow Bridge, and sent the Destroyer to Earth.

With Loki's personality, there had never been any concept of avoiding innocent casualties.

For a time, screams rang throughout the town as everyone fled in panic.

"This is bad. Jane and the others are still in town. Everyone, hurry back!" Thor said urgently.

Sif asked, "Who is Jane?"

Apocalypse said, "His girlfriend."

Hearing that, Sif could not help looking a little disappointed.

Sif had always secretly harbored feelings for Thor, much like Pepper Potts did for Iron Man. For all these years, she had hoped Thor would respond to her.

Even in Thor 2, Odin could no longer stand watching. On the eve of Thor's coronation, he personally told Thor, "Human lives pass in an instant. They are not worth dwelling on. You should cherish the one before you."

Then he gazed from afar toward Sif.

But Thor still gave no response, leaving Sif deeply disappointed.

In the later story, Sif never appeared in Asgard again. No one knew where she had gone.

To love and not be loved in return was the greatest pain in the world!

With the situation urgent, Sif had no choice but to set aside her feelings and rush toward the Destroyer with the others.

Upon entering the town, Thor assigned tasks to the four-person team. "I am a mortal now and cannot fight alongside you. Go hold off the Destroyer. I will help the mortals evacuate."

Then he said to Tang Tianqi, "Tang, I am truly sorry. We Asgardians have brought disaster to Earth."

Apocalypse said, "This isn't your fault. I know Loki is the one behind this. I'll settle the score with him."

The five split into two groups. Thor went to find Jane, while Apocalypse and Sif's group charged straight at the Destroyer.

Sif ran to the side and said, "Draw its fire from the front."

Fandral, Hogun, and Volstagg rushed forward, shouting, "For Asgard!"

Unfortunately, their voices were loud, but they were no match for it. A blast of flame from the Destroyer sent them flying back.

But it gave Sif an opening.

Using a building for leverage, she leaped high into the air and drove a spear into the back of the Destroyer's neck.

The Destroyer, once filled with red flames, slowly went dark. Sif stood on its back and smiled confidently.

Apocalypse sensed that something was wrong.

The metal rings across the Destroyer's body slowly rotated. In the blink of an eye, its back became its front, and a powerful blast of flame was ready to erupt.

Boom!

With a sonic boom, Apocalypse vanished from where he stood.

At the instant the Destroyer fired, he wrapped his arms around its enormous head and violently twisted it. A massive pillar of flame grazed past Sif's side.

Sif broke out in a cold sweat. After saying, "Thank you," she hurriedly leaped down from the Destroyer.

The Destroyer's rings rotated again. The head Apocalypse held down became its feet, while its original feet slowly rose and formed a head.

Its towering body looked down upon Apocalypse.

Boom...

Apocalypse curled his body into a ball, leaped high into the air, and slammed directly into the Destroyer's chest. The tremendous impact threw it off balance, sending it crashing hard to the ground.

"After all these days, I can finally fight with my full strength!" Apocalypse gave a wicked smile.

Roar...

As if an ancient monster had awakened, Apocalypse, no larger than an ant before the towering Destroyer, let out a furious roar!