Marvel Mayhem - Chapter Seventeen (w/ Commentary Notes from the Author, Sean Livingston)

Chapter Seventeen: The Battle of Hell’s Kitchen

            I swear, if I make it out of this alive, it will be a cold day in hell before I ever fight a green, pointy-eared dude again!

(Marvel Note: Comic book fans, particularly those of Spider-Man, know that this alludes to the greatest villain of Spidey's rogues gallery, The Green Goblin. He first made his debut in The Amazing Spider-Man #14 in 1963. Throughout his run in the series, the Goblin identity has been used by several characters like Norman Osborn, his son Harry Osborn, and Phil Urich, the nephew of Ben Urich of The Daily Bugle.)

            Only a year or so months into his masked heroics, Peter Parker never anticipated he would fight something as bizarre as this alien creature so early in his career – if he chose to call it that. The Chitauri invasion of 2012 was an event he missed out on, due to not having been bitten by a radioactive spider at the time, but he often wished he could have been there to assist the six heroes that would ultimately become “The Avengers” to become one himself.

(Authorial Note: Establishing an early point in Peter Parker's life as Spider-Man for Marvel Mayhem was cautiously done in mind of what plans Marvel Studios might have for the wall-crawler in Captain America: Civil War next year and the reboot in 2017. But, regardless of how the films handle his introduction, the timeline set by The Marvelous World: World of Disney 2 for this version of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is entirely its own.)

            Of course, if there would be any Avengers present in New York’s current sole alien menace, he would be forever in their debt!

            “C’mon, ugly! Show me whatcha got!”

            Smart move, Parker! Call the twenty-foot gargantuan alien “ugly” and expect to live to see tomorrow…if there will ever be a tomorrow!

            The moves of the alien beast took Spider-Man by surprise. It almost seemed like the monster was fighting off of magic. He was there in one place and then, just as Spidey unleashed his attack, he was in another.

            One displayed at that exact moment really stupefied him – the ability to breathe fire. Spider-Man was forced to take up a manhole cover as his only source of protection from the projected flames that shot his way. He felt like a knight defending against a dragon.

(Character Note: Most of the Super Skrull's arsenal of magic abilities taken from the Guardian's DNA are based on abilities that the reincarnations of Sean Thomas have used themselves, including fire-breathing. Most of them will be seen in Tales of the Guardians, the miniseries that centers on the lives of each reincarnation.)

            Luckily, Spidey had a plan while the alien fire-breathed into his makeshift shield. The second that it stopped, he would launch the manhole cover towards a nearby fire hydrant. Even though there was the slight chance water would not be this thing’s weakness, it would provide enough of a distraction for Spidey to unload a few kicks and punches its way with the hope of knocking it out long enough for S.H.I.E.L.D. to come and pick it up.

            Spider-Man put his plan into action, and it worked to perfection. The cover made a direct hit on the nozzle, popping it loose to shoot out a geyser of water on the alien. Momentarily blinded, his watered vision inhibited him from seeing the fierce right hook delivered to him by his red-and-blue masked opponent. Unfortunately, it was not enough to even stun him.

(Marvel Note: This isn't the first time in which Spider-Man has used a manhole cover for a weapon. In the final scene of The Amazing Spider-Man 2, he used one in his battle with Rhino, the last shot of the film being him swinging it against his foe. Also, his plan with the fire hydrant sounds very much like one he has used against another one of his classic enemies, Sandman, whose weakness is in fact water.)

            The creature let out a vicious howl of fury and, at an instant, the water springing from the hydrant evaporated…and the creature along with it.

            At first, Spider-Man entrusted the notion that he truly vanquished the monster, water actually being its weakness; yet, his “spider sense” said otherwise. He stood cautiously within the fog brought on by the sudden evaporation, searching for the alien hiding in it.

            He spotted a shift in the fog’s density – the familiar shape of a colossal-sized fist manifesting in the cloud. It shot at Spider-Man and struck him so hard that his body flew into a nearby parked vehicle. He was not able to identify the type of car it was, but – from the impact – it might as well have felt like a Hummer.

(Marvel Note: The Super Skrull used invisibility for this sneak attack. In the comics, one of the powers stolen from the Fantastic Four that make up the abilities of the Super-Skrull came from the Invisible Woman.)

            This is gonna be a long night!

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            From the rooftop of a nearby twenty-story complex, Yve Ette observed the Super Skrull’s battle with the inexperienced Spider-Man in much exuberance, like a proud mother watching her son in a talent show. In retrospect, Yve Ette was a mother to this creation of Skrull science. It was her future reincarnation’s remains that brought it to life, gifting it with unlimited power that the realm in which it was born into would never be able to overcome. And, with her and the rest of the Skrull Empire at its side, conquering the entire Marvel Universe was a certified guarantee – and Spider-Man would be the first casualty.

            She looked away from the battle below and into empty space, sensing an arrival there upon the rooftop. She turned and, sure enough, there were five women standing across from her in a perfect line, all facing her with determined glares. She only sensed apprehensiveness in one of them – undoubtedly the smart one in this group of fools.

            “Sheryl, Jacqueline, Mindy, Natalie, and Yamila.” Yve Ette recognized. “So it’s gonna be three Guardians, the mistake, and the leftovers to try and put me down?” She snickered and snidely added, “This’ll be fun.”

            “Call off the Super Skrull, Yve Ette, and leave this realm forever…before things get even messier.” Mindy warned.

            Yve Ette grinned at her warning. “I’m gonna take that as a challenge. It’ll be real simple to make things even messier.”

            Jacqueline’s body tensed, sweat developed upon her forehead, and her stomach turned, begging her to vomit right there and then. “We shouldn’t be here,” she whispered to Sheryl, who stood to her left, shadowing the other four women with her towering stature. “This…it’s exactly what we’ve been avoiding for you.”

            Sheryl’s teeth clenched. “I’m not running anymore from her.”

            The tall blonde migrated from the line, charging at Yve Ette, who simply waited in patience for her to come. Sheryl heard Jacqueline crying out for her to stop; unfortunately, in her moment of defiance, the world around her deafened. Her focus was solely on Yve Ette and her overconfident face smirking right at her. Sheryl knew she physically stood a chance against her, brandishing height and muscle to her reincarnated form.

(Narrative Note: Sheryl and Jacqueline previously fought Yve Ette in her original form as "Dawn" in Tales of the Disneyverse, though both reincarnations barely survived the ordeal, if not for the interference of the other Guardians, merged into the form of Sean Thomas.)

            Yve Ette remained stoic as soon as Sheryl reached her and delivered a powerful cuff across the face of the corrupted reincarnation. Yve Ette’s head swiveled but was otherwise unfazed. In the breath of a second, she retaliated with a roundhouse kick to Sheryl’s abdomen that sent her tall combatant reeling back.

            Meanwhile, the other four women flew into attack all at once – the initial plan before Sheryl’s hasty divergence from it.

            Yamila, the only one in the fight not to possess the otherworldly abilities that her allies and their adversary had, almost could not keep up with all that happened in front of her. It was as if she were fighting alongside wizards with one of them teleporting in and out between spaces, creating a laser light show from their fingers, and even soaring through the air during a lengthy duration.

            All Yamila could really do to contribute to the battle was land as many acrobatic strikes as possible while Yve Ette was grounded, hoping at least one of them could do a bit of damage to the unpredictable Englishwoman.

(Character Note: This is the only instance in the story where Yve Ette is referred as "Englishwoman." The moniker is normally reserved in description of Victoria, the first reincarnation of Sean Thomas. In fact, out of the 17 reincarnations, three of them are notably English - Victoria, Yvette, and Buohler. Only one is Scottish - Anne-Marie - though she has sometimes been incorrectly identified as "English.")

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            Hovering miles directly above the chaotic scene taking place in Hell’s Kitchen was the Quinjet, piloted by Ciciley and Elendriel, the former maintaining composure through the entire mission. Ciciley was trained to under any dire circumstance, but the sudden disappearance of her son and mother took its toll. Prior to their engagement in the excursion on Hell’s Kitchen, Mindy informed her on the possibility of Yve Ette teaming herself up with John Saccheri to kidnap Sean and Chrissy. As much as she wanted to deter herself from the conflict at hand, she had a responsibility to her teammates, two of whom stood at the rear of the Quinjet near the bomb bay doors.

            “Veronika is already inbound for the city,” Stark noted from within the structure of his newly-minted “Mark XLIII” armor. “I’m gonna need enough time for the transport to catch up before I can tag in.”

(Marvel Note: Though in the continuity of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the first time we see the "Mark XLIII" armor is in the attack of the HYDRA research base in Sokovia from the opening of Avengers: Age of Ultron, this instance would be the first for those following the continuity of the Marvel Universe Trilogy. This armor is the first to be created after the Iron Legion was destroyed in Iron Man 3. It serves as the core unit for the Mark XLIV "Hulkbuster" suit to assemble upon.)

            Bruce smiled. “Leave everything to the big guy.” He turned to the cockpit and directed, “Open the doors.”

            “What cargo are we launching?” A quizzical Elendriel questioned.

            “Me.” Bruce replied.

            Elendriel looked to her mother, who also looked back at her. Both of them shared a glance that appeared to have asked the same bemused question: “Is he serious?”

            Not wanting to deny the man what would possibly be his last request, Elendriel switched open the bomb bay doors. They separated between Banner and Stark. Stark grinned beneath his helmet, knowing just what Bruce had in mind.

            The huge gust of wind from outside breezed through the jet’s interior, brushing locks of Ciciley’s long black hair from her right. She half-turned to look and see what Banner was attempting. What she managed to make out at the corner of her eye was the scientist leaping right out through the opened doors.

            “Whoa!” Ciciley cried in her moment of disbelief. “What the hell’s he thinkin’?”

            “Don’t worry.” Stark reassured. “He’s done this plenty of times before.”

(Marvel Note: This method of Banner's to transform into the Hulk was first done as a last resort in 2008's The Incredible Hulk. At first, it did not seem as if Banner would transform, on account of being "cured" of his transformations previously by Samuel Sterns, but - after cratering into the ground - he emerged as the Hulk.)

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            The freefall was the only way Bruce could build up enough adrenaline to change. It worked years ago during the onslaught of Emil Blonsky’s abomination amid Harlem, only shortly after suppressing the transformation. Of course, this time was different, since nothing held the Hulk back from breaking out. Through the long intense drop, the metamorphosis was triggered. Banner’s clothes shredded, all except for the trousers special-made with a flexible microfiber fabric capable of stretching to “Hulk Size.”

(Marvel Note: These special-made trousers can be seen worn by the Hulk in Age of Ultron. They appear to have a lighter shade of purple to them in homage to the type of slacks normally worn by Banner and his alter-ego in the early days of his comic series.)

            In seconds, Banner was no longer freefalling to the earth below, but his alter ego instead. The eight-foot-tall green behemoth touched down on the ravaged street corner of Hell’s Kitchen, his enormous bare feet hitting the concrete to the effect of a brief, massive tremor that resonated through the earth, setting off numerous car alarms. The concrete cracked deep and splintered beneath his monstrous weight.

            He roared to the heavens, reverberating more of the area and drawing the attention of the Super Skrull just a block away. Locking eyes with his new physical equivalent, the Super Skrull did not waste time in charging. The Hulk followed suit, hitting the creature low and tackling him to the ground, his huge overly-muscled arms wrapped around the Super Skrull’s large, wide abdomen.

(Marvel Note: The only instances that the Hulk and the Super-Skrull have ever fought were in the video game Marvel Super Hero Squad: The Infinity Gauntlet and on television in Disney XD's Hulk and the Agents of S.M.A.S.H.)

            Once he had the Skrull pinned, the Hulk raised his bulbous fist into the air and brought it down fast and hard with the intention of caving the supped-up alien’s face in. He quickly found himself robbed of that opportunity when the punch connected with nothing else but concrete. There was barely any time to process what just happened as the Super Skrull unexpectedly moved in from his left, kneeing him across the face.

            The Skrull acted rapidly, not allowing his green combatant any time to recover, and delivered a fierce elbow jab right in between his shoulder blades. The powerful blow sent the Hulk reeling headfirst into a nearby pawn shop. Several antiques smashed to pieces on impact.

            These surprise attacks from the Super Skrull infuriated the Hulk more than ever. Charging out from the demolished pawn shop, he lunged at the Super Skrull again, only to be left breaking into a laundromat across the street. The Skrull was there one second, only to turn himself invisible and teleport away in the next. It was almost as if the alien baited his opponent into destroying himself until the right time to unleash another assault. And he did so subsequent to the Hulk’s collision with the laundromat, materializing within the area and using a method of levitation to hurl the Hulk back out onto the street.

            Dazed, the Hulk was sprawled out onto the concrete – the perfect position for the Super Skrull to have him for his next offensive. Leaping out from the laundromat, the Skrull landed atop him, pinning him down with his superior mass and proceeding to deliver left and right hooks from fists manifested in rock and fire over the face of his adversary.

(Marvel Note: Once again going back to his comic book roots, the Super Skrull's rock and fire fists are based on the powers of two other members of the Fantastic Four, The Human Torch and The Thing.)

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            Stark could not bear to watch his friend, colleague, and fellow Avenger being pummeled into a crater at the hands of the Super Skrull. There was still time needed for the tracking platform – codenamed “Veronika” by Banner and Stark themselves – to arrive before he could join in. The Mark XLIV armor was designed for the sole purpose of subduing the Hulk if he lost control and became a threat to everyone around him. It remained on standby, connected to a satellite and in constant orbit to be deployed at any time. Stark, however, felt the suit was necessary in their current situation with the Super Skrull, who physically equaled in size and power to the Hulk – though that theory was pushed to its limit by the massacre happening below.

(Pop Culture Note: Veronika's name is a reference to a character from Archie Comics named Veronica Lodge who is the "opposite" of Betty Cooper, a character who shares her name with Betty Ross, the former love interest of Bruce Banner.)

            “Liberty Base to Quinjet! Ciciley! You there, kiddo?”

            Stan’s voice radioed over the jet’s communications.

            Ciciley switched on the comm and answered her old friend: “I’m here, Stan. What’s up?”

            “Just got some info on Saccheri’s whereabouts.” The elder S.H.I.E.L.D. agent disclosed. “Spotted him with his team of scientists headin’ into a warehouse on 12th Avenue.”

            Elendriel’s eyes grew wide in familiarity. “That’s in the Hell’s Kitchen docks!”

            Ciciley’s heart started to race with this new information. Becoming unsettled, she looked to Stark and aggressively queried, “How long ‘til Veronika gets her big butt on up here, Tony?”

            “She’s only a couple of minutes from the scene. Just go on. I’ll try and do what I can before then.” Immediately, he leapt out through the opened bomb bay doors and activated the repulsors of his suit to engage him in flight mode, descending to street level.

            Meanwhile, the hovering Quinjet turned in the direction of the Hudson River and rocketed to the edge of the city.

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            Yve Ette relished in the physical damages she inflicted on her four challengers. Their conflict turned unpleasant sooner than expected. She bruised Sheryl’s face so much that she was barely recognizable, had Mindy spitting up blood, and punched Jacqueline in the head so hard that her teeth rattled and she received a mild concussion. She heavily put their immortalities to the test, going as far as snapping Jacqueline’s neck, only for her to be resurrected from the damage in a matter of minutes.

(Character Note: Guardians can suffer maximal, life-threatening damage much like any average human being, yet they can recover from it as if it never happened, thanks to their regenerative ability. The only true way a Guardian can be killed is through magic equivalent to their own or any form of alien technology mirroring that of the Sphere, which is believed to be one of the origins to their godlike power.)

            Regardless of this factor, the Guardians – as well as Natalie – found themselves surprisingly exerted from the intense brawl. It was like Yve Ette purposely drained the energy from them, which she very well may have been with the amplification of her power by the spirit that corrupted it. The mortal wounds they sustained were slower to regenerate, leaving them further along the point of incapacitation.

            Yamila remained the only one of them to stand her ground for most of the fight, fueled by the Super Soldier serum that ran through her veins. The much younger warrior showed a widespread of skills in her combat, displaying excellent acrobatics that would bring a tear to Captain America’s eye. Alas, it still proved to be mismatched against Yve Ette’s bravura power, which – combined with her physical strength – overwhelmed Yamila.

            Yve Ette threw punches to Yamila’s face and abdomen that were faster than light and harder than stone, nearly shattering her skull and ribs. She brought Yamila to her knees, battered and bloodied. All the young woman could do was watch through blurred vision as Yve Ette reached to a cylindrical metal object hooked to her hip and activate its unusual blade made of fire and lightning.

            “I’ve seen your future,” she told Yamila. “So much promise. Shame for it to be all wasted by a twist of fate never meant to be.”

            Yamila barely caught on to her meaning. All she knew was that she intended to kill her with that bizarre weapon, rearing the fiery blade back to jab it directly through her skull, right in between her eyes. She did not want to die so young, especially not when she just got to have a family – a real family – in Ciciley, Sean, Elendriel, and Karter. Each of their happy faces flashing before her.

            But she refused to let fear overcome her in this. Valiantly, she shut her eyes and accepted her end.

            “NO!” She heard someone scream.

            There came the sickening sound of flesh and bone being ripped, and she felt something wet spray over her face. Opening her eyes, she gasped at the sight in front of her: the tip of the blade from Yve Ette’s weapon stopped at just an inch from her face. The subject that stopped it was the one that received the stabbing. Regrettably, that subject was Sheryl.

(Narrative Note: This is the second instance in the World of Disney series that we see the end of a reincarnation's life cycle and the cause of it. The first was in Gigi, the first reincarnation of Joanie Navarro-Thomas, at the hands of Doctor Facilier in The Marvelous World, though - at the time - it was uncertain whether or not she could reincarnate into a new form. With Sheryl, we know that she eventually reincarnates into Jacqueline.)

            The blade was impaled through her torso. The blood seeped out instantly, staining her gray sleeveless military crop top from the inside out. Her breathing began to waver, transitioning into nothing more than wheezing. She saved Yamila’s life, teleporting herself right in between the two women at the second Yve Ette released her hold. It was a selfless act that she knew Jacqueline would not approve of. Although the world around her muffled in her final moments, she could still hear her friend and successor crying out in horror. This was the fate she so desperately wanted her to avoid, yet it was the one she accepted for herself.

            Yve Ette laughed in Sheryl’s face, relishing in her misdeed. “Only you would be foolish enough to sacrifice yourself to save a woman so unimportant to this world or any other!”

            Sheryl scowled, her face twitching from the unsurmountable pain coursing between her severed spine and gouged stomach. “She’s important to me…and that’s all that matters.”

            “Doubtfully.”

            Yve Ette crudely yanked the blade out of Sheryl, allowing her devastated body to collapse and bleed out onto the rooftop.

            Jacqueline rushed to her straightaway, lifting her upper body to rest upon her lap and cradling her head. Tears fell from her eyes and tapped sections of Sheryl’s cold, lifeless face. “I’ll kill you,” she whispered before directing her penetratingly glowing eyes to Yve Ette. “I swear I will kill you for this.”

            Yve Ette sneered at her threatening words. “I’ll be waiting.”

            Before she knew it, Jacqueline vanished from the spot along with Sheryl, leaving behind a puddle of blood that her sinister mug reflected off of. She shifted her focus to the remaining participants – Mindy, Natalie, and Yamila – each of whom either severely drained or savagely beaten.

(Narrative Note: To where Jacqueline disappeared to with Sheryl's body will be explained in the miniseries Tales of the Guardians.)

            “And then there were three.”

(UP NEXT: A Mighty Avenger Makes His Thunderous Debut!)