The streets of Jacksonville have long lost their former languid charm.
The siren sounded like the wail of a dying Beast, only to be abruptly cut off by the violent blast wave after just two notes.
The thin yellow tape surrounding the First National Bank was no match for the Grim Reaper's scythe.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
A young police officer's hands trembled as bullets poured from his 9mm Glock pistol.
The copper-core Negasonic Teenage Warhead struck a layer of grayish-brown keratinized skin, leaving not a single white mark except for a few stinging sparks.
The Shocker Combatant made a "ee-ee" sound as he charged toward the police officer; the Shadow of death was rapidly growing larger.
Just then--
"Get out of the way! Let the professionals handle this!"
A blinding neon laser beam swept across from the side.
Two flamboyant figures tumbled off a car in exaggerated poses. They weren't facing Shocker's bad guys, but rather enthusiastic fans waiting for autographs.
"I am the ' Neon Knight '! Wherever there is light, justice will prevail!"
The man speaking was covered in cheap-looking RGB light strips and held two beam pistols that looked more like toys than weapons.
Upon landing, he deliberately paused for a second, striking an opening pose that he thought was incredibly cool, but was actually full of flaws.
Beside him, a guy with a body that writhed like a noodle was frantically blinking at the camera in the corner. "I'm ' Elastic Ball '! Hey, you freak over there, let's see if your knife is harder or my ligaments are softer! This is called using softness to overcome hardness, understand?"
This is Vought International- based hero stationed in Florida.
His daily work consists of dealing with a few clueless convenience store robbers, wearing tight clothes to cut ribbons for large shopping malls, and sometimes even taking on side jobs like unclogging sewers for rich women.
But today, these two guys, eager to break into the list of front-line heroes, treated this as their chance to make a name for themselves.
"Take this! Photon Barrage!"
The Neon Knight pulled the trigger, and a dazzling beam of light shot out like a laser pointer in a disco.
"Babble--!!"
Without a word, the four Shocker Combatant launched their attack simultaneously.
"What?!"
The Neon Knight's carefully crafted pose was cut short as his smile froze on his face.
Two high-frequency vibrating daggers traced an "X" shape in the air.
"Sizzle--!"
The Neon Knight's LED light strip on his chest, his bodysuit, and his ribs were all broken.
"I don't..."
The Neon Knight didn't even finish his last words before he collapsed to the ground.
On the other side, the guy called " Elastic Ball " was trying to use his proud rubber body to entangle the enemy.
"Entangle and strangle!"
The two combatants didn't take it lying down; one grabbed his wrist, and the other stepped on his ankle.
"Babble!"
The two strange men exerted force in opposite directions simultaneously.
"Collapse--!"
It wasn't interrupted; the quality of Compound V that Vought released early on was quite good.
But the sound of muscle fibers being overstretched to their limit and tearing is incredibly distressing to hear.
"Aaaaaah! It's broken! My tendon is torn! Help! I quit! Mom--!"
The screams of a pig being slaughtered echoed through the neighborhood.
Just as these two third-line heroes were about to die in the line of duty, becoming the first cannon fodder in this brutal war.
"Thump--!!"
A large hole has been breached in the wall on the side of the bank.
Amidst the flying bricks and stones, a massive, dark gray steel beast charged out.
"Get out of the way! Don't block my way!"
Tony Stark's voice was irritable.
He didn't care at all whether the Shocker Combatant or those two Joker- like heroes like Vought.
In his eyes, everything was a roadblock.
The six-barreled Vulcan cannon on the shoulder of the Mark 3 began to spin wildly, spewing flames from its muzzle that were a full meter long.
"Da da da da da--!"
A metallic Stormfront covered the fan-shaped area in front.
Whether it was the Shocker Combatant or the rubble on the ground, everything was torn apart by the large-caliber bullets.
" Stark! Ceasefire! Those are friendly forces! You're killing your own allies!"
Closely following behind was a lithe figure in red and blue.
Steve Rogers leaped out of the hole, curling up in mid-air to use his Vibranium Shield to withstand a barrage of stray bullets. Upon landing, he rolled on the ground to dissipate the impact.
He stood up, his deep blue eyes filled with rage.
"Ally?"
"Those two Joker from a circus? Or you, this old relic who should be lying in a museum, admired by elementary school students?"
Tony raised his right hand; the palm pulse cannon was charging.
But his sights were set on the dark green figure in the distance.
"That bastard killed my parents. Today, I'll kill anyone who stands in my way."
Tony's voice was filled with an almost manic obsession.
That was hatred that had been suppressed for many years.
Steve looked at the menacing mech, then glanced at his expressionless best friend in the distance, and felt immense pain in his heart.
On one side is the brotherhood of the past, and on the other is an undeniable blood feud.
"Excellent, nobody's saying anything, huh?" Tony sneered. " JARVIS, give this WWII veteran a lesson in modern warfare. Tell him what saturation warfare is."
"Call out--!"
The Mark 3's back bomb bay suddenly opened, and four micro-missiles, trailing pale flames, headed straight for Bucky.
There were no fancy opening moves, and no unnecessary words.
Shocker Rider No. 1 slightly slumped his shoulders as two deep potholes appeared on the asphalt beneath his feet.
"Beep beep beep! Warning! High-speed object approaching! Unable to lock on! Unable to lock on!"
JARVIS's red alert boxes kept popping up.
Tony's vision blurred for a second.
The terrifying Locust compound-eyed mask and the red scarf fluttering in the wind were now pressed against his face mask.
"What..."
Rider No. 1's left arm—the bare, unarmored arm—made a series of "crackling" sounds.
The human-shaped arm swells, blood vessels bulge under the skin, and muscle fibers proliferate wildly.
In the blink of an eye, that arm transformed into a gigantic, alien fist, thicker than Mark 3's thigh.
"Snap--!"
Tony felt dizzy; his prized titanium alloy armor was no different from a soda can in front of this punch.
The Mark 3 flew more than ten meters sideways and crashed into a 7-Eleven convenience store that was still open.
The shelves, the Fridge, and the snacks scattered all over the floor were crushed into powder.
" Bucky!!!"
Steve's eyes were bloodshot.
Even though he and Tony Stark disagreed on ideals, he couldn't bear to see Howard's only son die at Bucky's hands.
"Stop! Look at me! I'm Steve!"
He raised his shield and charged forward.
Rider No. 1 moved so fast that even a super soldier's dynamic vision couldn't keep up.
Before Steve could even get into a defensive stance, he too was sent flying in an arc, crashing into the now-ruined convenience store.
Dust filled the air.
Amidst the pile of scrap metal and rubble, Tony staggered to his feet.
The Mark 3 is in a terrible state.
The reactor armor on his chest was completely dented, and half of his faceplate was broken, revealing Tony's blood-stained left cheek and his bloodshot but still fierce eye.
There was no intention of begging for mercy.
Even in death, the Stark Family will die like bastards.
"Is this... all you've got?"
Tony coughed up a mouthful of blood, his voice trembling but still cutting.
"That strength... did you skip breakfast? You freak."
He raised his still-functioning left hand, attempting to charge the palm cannon.
"Sizzle--Sizzle--"
The energy system was damaged, and only a few weak Spark weakly emerged.
Rider No. 1 stepped over the broken glass and walked step by step to the two people.
His left arm writhed, Five Fingers came together, transforming into a bone blade that gleamed with a cold light.
No villain has ever died from hesitant, talkative behavior.
As Shocker's most perfect masterpiece, as a weapon that has been thoroughly brainwashed, his killing logic has only one thing: clear obstacles and complete the mission.
JARVIS...
Tony lay on his back amidst the rubble, watching the Grim Reaper's blade fall, and gave his final command in his mind.
"Ejection procedure... even if it's just one tooth, knock a piece of flesh off him."
"System error, ejection failed, sir. It's an honor to serve you."