$Onward!


About 33% of the Iron Rose's systems had come back on line when she saw
Power Man land only a few meters in front of her.

"Oh dear." She looked at the display, focusing on one system in
particular.

	$Oh, dear.

Repulsors: 52% Efficiency

"I suppose that will have to do," she lamented as she manually targeted
him
and unleashed a double beam upon Power Man.

Unprepared for the attack, Power Man found himself blown off his feet
and
backward. Rather than striking just once, like a fist would, the
repulsors
were continuously focused on him, hammering him with unrelenting force.
He
was driven backward, hurting every meter of the way until a bank of
machines
prevented him from losing more ground. He was in the process of being
driven
into the machine itself, when the beams abruptly stopped. Catching his
breath, he saw the armored warrior doing something to her gauntlets.
Despite
the pain from the blasts, he forced himself to his feet and ran forward.

Iron Rose mentally cursed that sword-wielding buffoon again for shutting
down her system. It was his fault the power sent to the repulsor rays
was
more than the damaged wiring could bear. She had opened the emergency
panel
in her gauntlets and was about to switch the power coupling over to a
good
circuit when she noticed her opponent had withstood her assault and was
charging toward her. Maybe Power Man wasn't such a bad name for him. She
fought down the urge to panic as she rerouted the power cable to her
left
repulsor. She could feel the trembling of the earth through the bottom
of
her metal-shod feet as her large, powerful foe drew closer.

"Got it," she shouted, brought her left arm up, and fired.
Unfortunately,
Power Man was already upon her. His mighty fist struck her breastplate
with
devastating force, sending her shot to go wide.

	$sending her shot wide.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

Ryouga stuck his head out of the hole just in time to see a blast of
energy
hit the ceiling directly above him. His eyes widened as the repulsor
blast
proved too much for the tunnel's ceiling, and it collapsed on top of
him.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Power Man picked up his opponent and slammed her headfirst into the
ground
for the third time in a row. Unlike the previous attempts, her feet no
longer moved afterwards. Just to be certain, he kicked the arms a few
times,
but again there was still no response.

"I got one!" he shouted to the others. Things were looking good. Speed
Demon
was out, but so was the archer, and now the armored warrior. To improve
the
situation, Pantyhose had changed into the A-bra-mination, and had the
guy
with the shield clearly on  defensive. Only the red guy he had knocked
out

	$Extra space after on

in the airport was holding his own against the Swordsman. Elektra seemed
content to remain off to the side, waiting for a moment to enter a fight
when an opening would present itself. Only Thor was missing.

	$Thor, however, seemed to be missing.

Power Man was still mentally debating whether to knock the red guy out
again
or search for Thor, when a roar of anger --as deep as the one the
A-bra-mination bellowed when Speed Demon tried giving him the
'villainous'
name of Garters Jockstrap-- shook the air. On the far side of the cavern
a
fountain of boulders that had been pulverized into gravel shot upward.
What
emerged from the cloud of powdered stone reminded Power Man of the
A-bra-mination, mostly because what had leapt across and was sailing
through
the air was muscular, green, and very, very angry.

The Hulk landed in front of Power Man and raised his fists high above
his
head. "Who tried to bury Hulk? Was it you, Not-So-Little-Man? Did you
try to
bury Hulk?"

"I'll take care of their reinforcements!" Power Man shouted, and hit the
Hulk with a solid right to the jaw, snapping the green goliath's head
back.

The Hulk's head returned slowly to its original face-forward position.
He
glared at Power Man in anger. "You hit Hulk! Now Hulk hit back!"

Power Man was vaguely aware of something, perhaps an atomic bomb,
exploding
in his stomach. Then there was definitely the sensation of flying, only
to
be followed by an abrupt stop. His eyes were barely able to focus on the
crater of rock surrounding him, and at the people that now stood below,
staring in awe at where he had ended up.

"I think I'll stay put this time. Good night. " The eyes rolled into the

	$night."

	$Heh.  That's either a 'You play too rough, I'm leaving!' or a 'Screw
you guys, I'm going home.'  Either way, it's remarkably good sense.

back of his head and the world turned black.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The Hulk turned in fury to the remaining people. "Who else is going to
try
to hit Hulk?"

Captain Japan turned to the A-bra-mination. "How dare you call the Hulk
stupid and ugly!"

The A-bra-mination looked in surprise at his foe.

"Hulk is not stupid or ugly!" the giant protested.

The A-bra-mination tried protesting, but all his vocal cords could
produce
were grunts and growls.

Captain Japan 'interpreted' the sounds for the Hulk. "He also says he
thinks
you're weak and have bad breath, but I disagree with him."

"Hulk is strong and brushes his teeth all the time!"

The A-bra-mination tried to hit the little man, bit Captain Japan proved
too
nimble as he leapt out of the way. The monstrosity was about to try
again
when he saw the Hulk run forward, shouting, "Hulk does not have
Hally-Toe-Sis!"

	$Strange he would react so strongly to accusations of bad breath.

Due to his own tremendous size and weight, and being within the close
confines of the cavern, the A-bra-mination elected to stand his ground
and
braced for the collision. Ever since his employer boosted his strength
and
endurance with a controlled gamma ray bombardment, he went from simply
being
a bad ass to being invincible in monster form. He could even take
multiple
blows from Power Man and remain standing. Though this newcomer was big,
he
didn't know who he was messing with. The A-bra-mination would take the
green
oaf's first shot, then return it with interest.

At least that was what he thought until the Hulk slammed into him full
force. Nearly half of the coolant system was destroyed as the
A-bra-mination's body was hurled through row after row of machinery
before
coming to rest against the rock of the cavern wall. Luckily, the impact
did
nothing to loosen the ceiling of the reinforced chamber.

The Hulk smiled in satisfaction at his handiwork. "Now Hulk showed who
is
strongest one of all." He took a sniff of the air. "Oh, Green Cow not
smell
so good himself."

"Yeah. Nothing a good bath in acid wouldn't take care of," Captain Japan
said.

The Hulk looked at the smaller youth, scratching his head in confusion.
"Hulk thinks he remembers you. Wasn't Hulk trying to smash you before?"

Remembering the results of their last encounter, Captain Japan thought
fast
and said, "Ah, no, no, no.  That was my evil twin brother."

"Evil twin brother?"

"Sure. Every hero has one. It makes life interesting for them when they
pop
up and besmirch their good name."

"Does that mean Hulk has evil twin brother?"

"Now that's a scary thought." Captain Japan considered what the world
would
be like with two Hulks after his blood.

	$Or a good one.  Hey, who's She-hulk?

Before their conversation could continue, there was another tremendous
roar
that came from the direction the A-bra-mination had landed. The Hulk
looked
up and saw his foe flying towards him. The green feathered wings
couldn't
make the A-bra-mination's flight graceful, but it mattered little, given
the
monster appeared as enraged as the Hulk had been upon discovering
himself
buried under a ton or so of rock.

 "Hulk doesn't like stupid Green Cows that have been smashed and don't
know
it." The Hulk snarled as the mightiest legs on the planet tensed up and
sprang forward, propelling him upwards to meet the A-bra-mination head
on.

For a moment, both green titans hung suspended in mid-air, motionless as
equal physical forces canceled each other out. But then the
A-bra-mination's
wings made the difference as they continued propelling him forward. He
smashed the Hulk into the ground, further pulverizing the machinery that
had
already been ruined by the A-bra-mination initial journey courtesy of
the
Hulk's fist.

The Hulk picked himself up off the ground. "Hulk doesn't like being hit
by
smelly Green Cow! Hulk will smash!"

The A-bra-mination mirrored the Hulk's sentiment as he landed and the
two
began to pound away in earnest upon one another's emerald hides.

Even Captain Japan backed away from the fight. The force from the blows
the
pair exchanged were producing winds that he could feel even twenty
meters
away. "I'm not getting involved in that unless big and stupid is really
getting his head handed to him," he muttered to himself.

	$Which one?

His attention was still riveted to the fight when heard something move
behind him. He spun around, his shield in front of him, just in time to
prevent a pair of sais from being buried in his back. "Don't you ever
give
up?"

Elektra said nothing as she picked up the fight against him once again.
Captain Japan's counterattack drove the fight to the bridge that spanned
the
raging torrent formed on the far side of the reservoir. It was there the
duo
entered their dance of violence in earnest.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Thor strode through the vast halls of the mountain fortress, becoming
further enraged with each step. The low ceiling prevented her from
flying,
forcing her to search on foot. Worse, the true master of the fortress
was
undoubtedly hiding from her wrath rather than confront her in combat. In
truth, there seemed to be no one else present. No more lackeys, no
internal
defenses, not even a pack of rabid guard dogs. Even Loki used to keep
rabid
guard dogs around his various hideouts. It was traditional.

	$And that irked her most of all.

Thor's fists were itching to smite an opponent, and she was beginning to
think abandoning the fight below was a mistake. For the fourth time in
as
many minutes, she yelled, "I will not dally around with thy lackeys,
villain! Show yourself that we may do battle and decide who is the
mightiest
of all!"

Silence was the only response.

"Very well! You leave me but one course of action!" She brought her
hammer
back and threw it. Mjolnir easily transformed the closest stone wall
into
rubble. A resounding boom from the impact echoed throughout the
fortress.

*This way.*

Thor looked wildly around. The voice was soft, like a serpent's, though
it
dripped honey more than venom. Also it had seemed to come from within
her
head. "What sorcery is this?"

*Over here.*

Thor turned to the left. Yes. Somehow she knew that was the direction
the
voice was telling her to go. It was about time the villain who ruled
this
place found the courage to confront her. Soon she would dispatch her foe
and
end this farce. Besides, she had to get home soon or her family might
grow
concerned with her absence.

*You're almost there.*

Upwards Thor traveled, following a large ramp until she came to a wall
made
of metal rather than stone. There appeared to be no door. Instead there
was
an opening wide enough to allow her godly form to enter without being
hindered. Eager for battle, she strode through the opening, ready to
confront her opponent.

The room was vast and circular, metal lining the entire chamber. It
appeared
unadorned and uninteresting. Smoke filled the room, coming down from
vents
overhead. It was thick enough to shroud the far side of the chamber like
a
fog. A dull whine came from overhead, filling the room so it was nearly
impossible to hear herself think.

She was about to shout when she saw him appear through the smoke on the
far
side of the room. He was slightly tall and slender of build. His hair
was
long and white, traveling down his back and ending only slightly below
his
waist. His age indicated he was only a few years older than her mortal
form.
His face was passingly handsome, strong, and full of character. He
possessed
a certain haughtiness that implied this was the sort of man who was used
to
being obeyed by others, similar to the All-Father.

His trappings were colorful, almost gaudy. His outfit was close and
form-fitting, showing a lithe but powerful body. He wore what appeared
to be
a shirt made of some kind of scale armor. A long purple cape flowed
behind
him, as though it possessed a life of its own. But the most noticeable
thing
about his appearance were his hands. On each finger and thumb there were
rings. They were not filled with various gems of wealth, but with odd
projections that seemed to cover every color of the spectrum. They were
large enough to be easily noticed even with the distance between the two
of
them. The stranger looked down upon Thor, as though a king might look
upon a
lowly dog.

"At last thou shows thyself, cowardly villain. Art thou prepared to do
battle?"

The man's disdainful look remained as unmoving as his lips. Thor heard
in
her head, *You will address me by the title that I have chosen until I
conquer the world. I am the Mandarin.*

"I shall refer to you as the Vanquished!" Thor rushed forward, intent on
wiping the smirk from his face with a powerful left hand. He remained
motionless, smirking the entire time. Almost as enraged as the Hulk was
dozens of levels below, Thor snarled as she unleashed a punch that would
have taken a normal man's head clean off.

Her blow went through the man as though he were no more substantial than
a
ghost. Off balance by the unexpected lack of matter, the Goddess of
Thunder
lost her footing and went crashing to the ground. She slowly rose to her
feet, more enraged than before. "What foul sorcery is this?"

The image laughed at her. Again she heard in her mind, *Thanks to my
Mento-Intensifier ring, you see what I want you to see.*

"Tricks," she spat out. She had little tolerance for tricksters; her
half-brother had seen to that centuries ago. Now that she was warned,
she
countered this trick as she had Loki's by concentrating on shutting out
the
intruder in her mind. Sure enough, the image wavered before disappearing
altogether.

The sound of metal striking metal hard caught Thor's attention. She
turned
to see that the entryway she had used was now covered by a large door.
It
merged perfectly with the walls of the chamber. Had she not known
better,
she would have sworn there had never been an exit to the room.

The sound of gears grinding above her head caught her attention. She
looked
above, wondering if the ceiling was going to come down in an attempt to
crush her, when she saw that instead of dropping, it was retracting.
Once
fully in its housing, Thor saw the cause of all the smoke: three
colossal
engines poised directly above her. She had seen their like before on
television, during the telecast's of rocket launches: the type that went
into space. The engines were currently spitting out tremendous amounts
of
smoke, making it difficult for even her godly lungs to function. The
acrid
smell of some kind of fuel filled the air. Already she could hear the
build-up hit its highest pitch yet and felt the temperature rise enough
to
make her body sweat. Orange flames began forming in all three engines,
threatening to spit out a fiery death as powerful as Surter the Fire
Giant
could deal with his mighty sword of flame.

"No," Thor gasped and brought her hammer back, intent on throwing it
before
she was roasted alive.

*It won't save you, fool!* the voice spat in her head. *You'll just
cause it
to blow up. The explosion will destroy my rocket, its true, but it will
still kill you, and all of your friends below as well.*

It was true. Given the size of the rocket, it could very likely blow the
entire fortress off the map. Thor sought an alternative way out.

*Go ahead and try the doors. They're composed of a special
osmium-titanium
alloy that you'll never breach. This is your end, intruder!*

	$Nah.  She's a main character, and even if she dies she's entitled to
come back to life dozens of times.  The Dragonball crew weren't the only
ones to have a ressurect-o-matic.

With the last word, the engines roared fully to life.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Down below, din of battle drowned out the roar of the rocket's launch.

	$Impressive.  But what about Daredevil?

Despite the conflicts between Daredevil and Swordsman, as well as
Captain
Japan and Elektra, it was the clash between the Hulk and the
A-bra-mination
that filled the cavern with deafening noise. Again and again fists flew.
There was no style or skill to the fight; all such trapping had
disappeared
within the first handful of blows. In its simplest terms, it was nothing
more than a matter of two immovable objects trying to employ
irresistible
force against one another, neither yielding an inch.

For his part, the A-bra-mination began to grow worried. Not the type of
all-out fit of panic worried, his control over his emotions was too good
for
that, but rather it was the seeds of doubt that led to making an
alternative
set of plans when victory might not be imminent, or even if it was
coming at
all. Never before had he faced such naked strength or savage ferocity.
This
Hulk was more akin to an unrelenting force of nature than a humanoid
being.
He showed no signs of weariness, no signs of weakening or even
acknowledging
he was being beaten upon. If anything, he seemed to be getting stronger
as
the fight progressed, and the A-bra-mination knew that even with his
gamma
enhanced strength, he had upper limits. If things remained as they did,
the
odds were he was going to lose.

The A-bra-mination decided to try something that he hoped would gain him
a
breather and a chance to come up with a more effective strategy against
the
green juggernaut. Rather than remaining standing still, he used his
wings to
take off.

The unexpected move caused the Hulk's next blow to miss. The
A-bra-mination
didn't as he lashed out with his hoof-like feet from above, connecting
solidly with the Hulk's head. The force of the blow shot the Hulk across
the
cavern like a rocket, his body firmly striking the bridge spanning the
river, destroying it in the process, before continuing on to the water
below. His massive form created a huge fountain of displaced water in
the
process, kicking it up high into the air, like a geyser.

Captain Japan was facing the battle of the titans as he prevented
Elektra
from running him through. He saw the Hulk's headlong flight and
understood
what was about to happen. He leapt backward as over a ton of pure muscle
collided with the bridge like the force of a dozen sticks of dynamite.
The
mortar and rock were no match for the humanoid rocket, and shattered
under
the force of the impact.

Elektra was caught completely by surprise, and with the destruction of
the
bridge, her footing was taken from beneath her. A piece of debris from
the
Hulk's impact was sent upward and struck her in the head, rendering her
instantly unconscious even as she began her decent into the waters
below.

Captain Japan managed to grab onto the remains of the far side of what
had
once been the bridge. He had caught the fate of his foe even in the
middle
of his leap. He watched as her limp form went headfirst into the water
below.

"She tried to kill me and the others," he told himself. It wasn't even
good
enough to be called a weak excuse. Sighing, he released his hold and
dove
into the water where he had seen the ninja vanish.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxx

Above, the A-bra-mination landed. He knew the water would not fend off
his
opponent for long, and he prepared himself for the next round fighting.

His wait was not long as a green figure shot out of the water at an even
greater speed than the A-bra-mination had imagined. He wasn't prepared
for
his opponent's velocity, and only had a split-second to catch sight of
what
emerged from the spray of water. Any attempt at a defense was lost as
the
A-bra-mination stared at what was coming for his head.

Where the Hell had a green, muscle-bound piglet come from?

He didn't have a chance to wonder for long as a hundred pounds of
porcine
might shouted out "BWEEE!" then hit him right between the eyes. The
A-bra-mination staggered back, momentarily stunned. The Incredible Bweee
continued his assault by leaping into the A-bra-mination's stomach with
his
head, momentarily winding him.

	$I do not like green ham and eggs.  Wait, that's not right...
*scratches head*

Angry as he was, Bweee made the mistake of not using his superior
agility
and attempted to engage the A-bra-mination in hoof-to-hand combat. He
leaped
up onto the scaly miss-matched monster and tried batting his face with
his
hooves. The stubby legs were no more than an annoyance to someone of the
A-bra-mination's durability. He grabbed Bweee and punched the piglet as
hard
as he could. The Hulk's cursed form had nowhere near the ability to
absorb
the punishment his humanoid body did. The blow rendered him unconscious
even
as he flew through the air as fast as when he had leaped out of the
water.

To complicate matters, or to simplify them in the case of the Lethal
Legion,
the piglet's flight path was directly in line with that of Daredevil.
The
blind adventurer sensed the hurtling form at the last moment and ducked.
The
move kept his head from being taken off, but the speeding porcine
lightly
creased Daredevil's skull. The move was enough to knock the blind youth
to
the ground, senseless. A hilt brought into the top of his head, courtesy
of
the Swordsman, finished the job, and he embraced peaceful oblivion.

"Tis done," Swordsman announced. He looked around, viewing the results
of
the fight on both his comrades and foes. "Where is that knave, Captain
Japan, and the beauteous Elektra?"

The A-bra-mination grabbed one of his fallen gourds and pushed a button
on
the bottom of it, heating the contents up. He poured the water over his
head
and returned to his human form. "They fell into the river when the
bridge
got smashed up."

Swordsman looked to the river, his eyes searching it for bodies and
coming
up with none. "Then we must rescue her."

Tarou walked over and began to undo Speed Demon's bonds. "We'll search
down
river in a bit. First we do like the boss instructed and bring these
guys to
him. Finding that loser with the shield and that hot little piece of ass
can
wait. I don't want the hassle of kicking these guys' butts again."

The Swordsman's eyes continued scanning the river. "But we should not
leave
her in that fool's clutches. There is no telling what an amorous dog
like
that will do to such a gentle flower."

Tarou snorted at the implication. "She's so gentle she'd probably sink a
knife in your gut if you laid a hand on her, and she was 'deflowered' a
long
time ago."

	$With the backstory, yes.

Swordsman scowled at the implication. "Nay. I can could clearly tell she
is
chaste and pure."

"Pure slut, maybe, though a hell of a lot more professional than you.
And
don't get your tights in an uproar. I hate to break this to you, well
actually I'll enjoy it, but even if she is still alive, I'm the one
that's
going to get into her pants.

	$There's that fetish for womens clothing again.

	Swordsman: Like you have already gotten into her pantyhose?

 I've known women like her and how to deal with
them. And even if I wasn't around, you wouldn't stand a chance. You'd be
completely outclassed."

"How dare you imply that your vile ways with women are more effective
than
mine." Swordsman leveled his katana at Tarou.

Speed Demon shouted, "Hey, guys. I think Hawkeye's starting to wake up!"

The tension between the pair dissipated as Tarou walked over to
Hawkeye's
fallen form. A low moan was issuing from the archer's lips. "I do
believe
you're right," he said, then proceeded to kick the prone form in the
gut.
After the first two times, Hawkeye stopped moaning. Tarou added two more
for
good measure. "That takes care of that." He turned to Speed Demon. "Pry
your
buddy out of the wall and have him help out. Swordy, either pick up a
body
or throw yourself on your sword. And if you keep staring at me like
that,
your body will be joining theirs."

Barely able to restrain a snarl, Swordsman did as he was instructed
reluctantly, taking great care in carrying Hawkeye's unconscious form up
to

	$Swordsman reluctantly did

the fortress.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The Mandarin raised the glass of wine to his lips as he watched the
results
of his years long handiwork reach fruition from his monitor room. The
rocket's liftoff had been a complete success, despite the goddess'
attempt
at stopping him. In twenty minutes it would reach its proper place in
orbit,
and its payload would be released high above the atmosphere. Another
hour
for it to activate and move into its proper position after that, and it
would all be over but the bargaining. Within the next forty-eight hours,
the
Gods above willing, he would be master of the entire planet.

	$I guess Giant Man and Wasp will take care of the actual rocket.

A loud boom resounded nearby. He placed his glass down on a nearby
monitor,
and stared in the direction that it had emanated. Tarou had just radioed
that the Legion had captured all of the intruders.

He called out, "Pantyhose, is that you? Quit horsing around,
A-bra-mination,
or I won't change the name I gave you. You'll be stuck with two stupid
names
instead of just the one you were born with."

A hole erupted from one of the far walls as a hammer flew through it.
Mjolnir flew back, and a singe-covered Goddess of Thunder strode in.

The Mandarin maintained his composure. He lowly rose to his feet,
staring at
her. It seemed every inch of her body had some burns on it. Her hair was
singed, her cape was in ruins, and her costume had holes in it in some
very
near revealing places. He shifted his attention uncomfortably away from
the
flesh showing near the chest area and reminded himself what was at
stake. "I
know it's clich�, but exactly how did you survive that little fire-trap
of
mine?"

Closer to a snarl rather than an answer, Thor said, "I did smash mine
way
out through the walls of thy inept trap."

"They were two feet thick."

"Indeed. It did take me two blows to set mineself free. T'was a near
thing,
to be certain, just as thy well earned beating is going to be a near
thing
to death as well."

The Mandarin smiled. "I applaud your resilience. I shall enjoy
discovering
the source of your power and subverting it to my cause." He undid the
catch
on his purple satin cape, allowing it to pool behind him on the floor.
Unencumbered, he stood before his opponent. "I deem you a worthy
opponent to
do combat with."

"A pity I cannot say the same. However I have no choice but to sully
mine
hands with thou." She stalked forward.

"Have no fears, then. I have no intention of allowing you to lay a
single
finger upon me." He raised both hands and pointed them at Thor.

Sensing something amiss, Thor ducked as stream of fire emitted from one
of
the rings on his left hand. Having been burned quite enough for one day,
she
ducked, and heard the flames roar as they came into contact with the
rock of
the wall.

However by ducking instead of throwing her body aside, she was unable to
evade the white beam that emitted from a different ring on the same
hand.
She felt something congeal around her legs, and found her legs and lower
torso encased in ice. Rendered temporarily immobile, a red beam emitted
from
a ring on his other hand and struck her high in the chest. The impact
was
tremendous, hurting her as it knocked her over. The ice prevented her
from
sprawling but left her as immobile as a turtle turned over on it shell.

The Mandarin made a clucking noise with his tongue. "I expected a much
greater challenge from you."

Anger gathered Thor's focus and with a burst of muscle she shattered her
icy
shackles. It took a much greater effort than it should have, and it was
only
then she realized the toll her body had taken. She had avoided most of
the
rocket's flames, but not all of them, and it would take even her godly
form
time to heal. Time, the one commodity she did not have.

Thor grit her teeth, firming her resolve. This was no time for doubt.
The
key to victory for her forces was before her. This mere mortal sought to
defeat the most powerful of goddesses. Thor had not known defeat since
her
rebirth, and she had no desire to taste it now. Certainly not in the
face of
this pompous fool who fancied himself a leader of men when he was only
fit
to command dogs like those of his so-called Lethal Legion.

She hurled Mjolnir at him, but he twisted out of its way. He displayed
surprising agility for one whose power she had assumed resided in his
rings.
He rushed at her almost as quickly as her hammer was returning to her.
The
fool was rushing towards defeat if he sought to engage her in physical
combat. He might have postponed the inevitable by staying out of reach
with
his rings, but now he was finished. It would take but one, two blows at
the
most for her godly might to dispatch him.

Just as the hammer returned to her grasp, the Mandarin brought his foot
up
to kick her. At the last moment she thought she saw it glow with a
nimbus of
energy. The kick hit with far more force than any normal man could bear,
staggering her for a moment.

Rather than press the advantage, the Mandarin stood in what was clearly
a
martial arts stance. "Surprised? My power resides not solely in my
rings.
They are but a tool. The true source of power is the blood of dragons
that
runs through my veins. You have spirit. I offer you a chance to save
yourself a beating and pledge your life and abilities to me. You'll find
I
can be a generous master."

"I have no master, and thy blood will run in rivers before I ever submit
to
the likes of you!"

	$Actually, 'my blood will run in rivers before' would be more accurate,
not that Thor would admit it.

Thor swung at him with her fist, but he dodged the blow. The nimbus of
power
surrounded his arms and legs as he lashed out with a chop to her neck
and
then one to her elbow. Despite her own godly durability, she felt pain
from
the blows. Almost out of reflex she lashed out with a backhand.

Expecting his strikes to incapacitate rather than merely cause pain, the
Mandarin was only partially able to evade the blow. A part of the side
of
her hand caught him in the chest, and he was hurled across the room.
Even
rolling with the blow, he still suffered more pain than he had in years.

"Die now!"

	$Funny, I didn't think Mandarin knew Power Word: Kill.

 He raised his right hand up and employed his deadliest ring of
all: the disintegrator.

Thor ducked the beam as it arched in a short line right where her head
had
been. The beam winked out, and she spun around to see the results of the
silent blast. There was a foot long trail the height of a nickel cutting
a

	$the width of a nickel
	Height sounds more like it's that high off the floor.

groove clear through the wall. And the wall beyond it, and the wall
beyond
that one as well. It was then she realized that the back of her neck
felt
revealed. She placed her hand behind it, only to discover something was
missing.

"Thou didst destroy mine hair!" she raged.

	$Heh.  The Ranma 1/2 content had been being kinda low.

"I was aiming for thine neck!" the Mandarin mocked. And he would have
aimed
at it again, save that the disintegrator only had enough power to be
used
once an hour. Still, he had nine other means of destruction at his
fingertips. It was only a question of which one would spell the
goddess's
doom.

Before the Mandarin could decide, Thor spun her hammer around in a
circle
above her head. Having seen what the weapon had done to his wall and how
fast it was, he was cautious as he kept his eyes transfixed on the
hammer,
trying to time a leap to avoid it once it was thrown.

Only Thor didn't throw it, instead choosing to continue swinging it in a
circle. By the fourth swing it seemed to have taken on a life of its
own,
and the winds it produced were unnatural.

A wall of air, invisible to the Mandarin's naked eye, struck him,
pinning
him to the wall. He felt the air washing over him time and time again,
and
saw several objects flying in fast circles. It felt like tendrils of air
reached down his throat and into his lungs, sucking the air out. Within
seconds the Mandarin felt on the verge of passing out thanks to the
goddess'
vortex. He was pinned so effectively that he couldn't even bring his
rings
to bear.

No! He would not lose. Not when he was so close to victory. Thor had
been
weakened by the rocket's engines and his own rings. She could barely
stand.
He was the master of the world. He would not lose to a mere woman. There
was
one ring that he could use, its abilities tied to the so-called
'Darkforce
dimension' and not directed in a beam as so many of the others were. He
activated it.

The world went dark around Thor. Surprised by the absolute darkness
surrounding her, she lost concentration and the vortex responded by
lessening its ferocity.

With the gale relenting slightly, the Mandarin acted. Being granted the
ability to see through the darkness created by his ring, he brought his
left
hand up and released a short blast of compressed air from his Vortex
ring.
While it lacked the raw power of the maelstrom the goddess had summoned,
it
was still an effective offensive weapon. Struck by the blast, Thor lost
her
footing and stopped spinning the hammer around, sprawling to the ground.
Her
body ached from the effort of producing the whirlwind as it did from the
beam she had been hit with.

She returned to her feet, having to feel the floor to get a sense of
where
things were. The darkness was absolute, sucking out every hint of light.
It
was worse than the time she had visited Hela in the icy domain of death,
at
least from a visual standpoint.

"Where art thUrk!" A strike found its way to Thor's throat. To one of
more
mortal qualities, the blow would have broken their windpipe. For the
goddess, it served to choke her and prevent her from gaining air.

A stone-shattering kick met the base of her spine. She fell to her
knees,
legs rendered temporarily paralyzed. "Where art thou?!" she gasped out.

"Would you like to see?" Darkness was replaced with light. Not a soft
gentle
glow, but the glare of a thousand flashbulbs being set off at once
directly
in front of her eyes. She recoiled, visual senses overloaded. She
covered
her eyes, and still it seemed as though the whiteness was permanently
burned
into her retinas.

She felt the air crackle with power behind her. Despite the pain,
exhaustion, and blindness, she turned in the direction that the power
was
emanating from, standing proudly.

The blindness prevented her from seeing the huge blue glow that had
formed
around the Mandarin. It crackled, and filled the air with power, dancing
along the floor and ceiling above him. "This farce ends now. Musk
Dynasty
Final Attack: Roaring Dragon Bite!"

The blue coalesced into the head of a dragon, then shot forward and
engulfed
Thor's form as a blast of pure chi slammed into her. To make matters
worse,
traveling in the energy dragon's wake, beams of fire, electricity, air,
ice,
and kinetic force slammed into Thor.

	$That last sentance was a little awkward.  Suggest you switch it around
a little.

 All hit squarely. The goddess of
Thunder was blown through the five walls before the laws of gravity
fully

	$through five walls

claimed her body and it came to a stop.

The blue left his form, and the Mandarin stood as proudly as when the
goddess had first burst into his control chamber. He walked easily,
almost
lazily, as he approached Thor's fallen form. Standing directly above
her, he
gazed downward at this bruised, burned, defeated, yet ultimately proud
mountain of a woman.

By all rights he should kill her. She was incredibly dangerous. Even if
he
bound her in steel and technology, should she fight her way free she
could
cause him problems, potentially kill him with the awesome power she
wielded.
The fight had gone his way, but he held no illusions. She had been
softened
up in his trap, and still the fight had not been easy. He would not have
looked forward to clashing with her on more even terms.

The safest course of action would be to remove the potential threat by
killing her now, yet he resisted the urge to place his impact ring next
to
her temple and pulverize her brain into pulp. Looking upon her with a
more
dispassionate eye, when she was not trying to smash him into a fleshy
pile
of jelly, he found her physically attractive, despite her rather brutish
demeanor. There was a sort of fire and spirit about her that seemed to
entice his senses and tantalize his desires. His contact with members of
the
opposite sex was limited, but instinctively he knew there was something
about this woman that made her more desirable than most he would meet.

There were other factors to consider as well. Now that he was finally on
the
verge of achieving his decade long ambition of ruling the world, there
was a
future to plan for, specifically, the important matter of progeny. The
one
problem with the bloodline of the Dragon Clan of the Musk was that the
women
chosen as mates, unless they were also of the Dragon Clan, rarely
survived
childbirth. Even the few times they dared breed with other powerful Musk
bloodlines, like those of the Tiger, the women rarely survived the
experience. Had the men of the Dragon Clan been like normal humans, or
even
other members of the Musk, the answer would be to merely acquire another
woman, but something in the Dragon blood made acquiring a second mate
repellent, even if it was only for the purpose of bearing more
offspring.
Less than a handful of the Mandarin's ancestors had overcome the
instinct
and mated with another woman, and even then they did not do it a third
time.
That was one of the reasons there had been so few members of the Dragon
Clan, and why he was the last.

However, Thor represented all sorts of new possibilities that the
Mandarin
had never considered. If this being before him truly was a goddess --and
since there was such things as dragons, why not gods?-- then a woman of
such
a divine nature might not suffer the limitations other women did.
Judging by
her tremendous strength, surely she would prove durable enough to
produce
more than one heir. And not only was there the possibility of multiple
offspring, but there was the added bonus of imbuing the dragon bloodline
with that of divinity itself. The Dragon Clan would become celestial
beings
in every sense of the word

The Mandarin steepled his hands before his eyes, keeping his stare
riveted
on the goddess. This was a matter that required some consideration. Yes
it
did. Thor would remain alive as long as he could manage. If his schemes
played out as he thought they should, he would rule the world and ensure
his
clan's control of it forever. This Thor was a gift from the gods in
every
sense of the word.

	$She's gonna be pissed.

A laugh erupted from Herb's mouth and echoed throughout the halls of the
Musk Fortress. The world would be his to rule as he pleased, and it
would
remain so from now until the end of time.

	$Or not, as the case will be.

xxxxxxxxxxxx

Special thanks to Gary Kleppe for punning for me the 'A-bra-mination's
name.

	$Figures.  Everybody subcontracts now.

	Well, as usual, that was fun.  I look forward to seeing the return of
the Wasp and Giant Man.  I guess you're going to finish this arc before
you do anything else?  I was rather looking forward to the Dual! lemon.
Just saw the prologue to The Things We Wish For, which looks rather
interesting.  I'm hoping for a
mostly-lighthearted-comedy-with-serious-bits along the lines of Vacation
Days or Old Acquaintance, which is by far my favorite kind of story.
You mentioned something to that effect, but I know it could still turn
out kinda dark.  Looks interesting though, especially how you're going
to deal with the paradox.  After reading both it and Larry F's comments,
I've decided that there's little of use I can actually say, so...

	Anyway.  Look forward to more.

-Ragun











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