SuperSoldier (SI-OC/MCU) ENG

42: Sorcery

42: Sorcery

"Tch, it seems the information about you was wrong; you're stronger than I expected," the demon growled, as he stood up and rose back into the sky. The shadows covered his face for a moment before retreating, revealing that the fist mark on his cheek had disappeared along with the other wounds the sudden attack had inflicted on him.

"But a mortal will always be a mortal! Surrender now, and maybe I can grant you some mer—"

Once again, his words were abruptly interrupted, but this time by a crushing pressure that suddenly covered his entire body from head to toe.

With his hand stretched toward him, John clenched his fist, making the bones crack and the skin tear, spilling streams of blood. Then, as if gravity had suddenly increased a thousandfold, the demon began to plummet.

In a matter of seconds, he was buried several kilometers into the ground. Of course, John did not think this would be enough to finish off something that was clearly neither human nor monster.

He just needed to send it away for a moment.

Trying to calm his inner fury, John took a deep breath and let the aura surrounding him recede until it was almost imperceptible. Then, he began to observe all the destruction in the area, his green eyes mainly analyzing the Sword base beneath his feet.

"John!" The booming voice interrupted his thoughts and made him turn in the direction it came from. For a moment, he even forgot how angry he was, surprised to see an enormous woman, dozens of meters tall, running toward him.

"Janet?" Seeing her still alive, he couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief, but he quickly became alarmed when he saw how, midway, she lost her balance and her body began to shrink in midair.

In a blur of movement, he shortened the distance between them and caught her, cradling her in his arms before she could hit the ground.

"Are you okay?" Although she didn't seem too injured, she had clearly been in quite a few battles—if all the blood covering her was any indication.

"I-It looks like I'm out of energy," Janet said wearily, while at the same time feeling her entire body tremble, forcing her to cling to him due to the sudden dizziness. The sensation of being 'empty' for the first time almost made her faint.

She had been pushing herself to the limit, using even the smallest reserve of energy within her, but when she noticed John's arrival, it seemed that her body finally decided that it was enough.

"You did well. Rest now and leave the rest to me," he said confidently, and upon hearing him, she nodded and gave him a soft smile. Then, her eyes rolled to the back of her head, and she lost consciousness.

"Colonel."

"Isaac." John looked at the android, who approached flying in his direction, engulfed in flames.

He had too many questions, but for now, there was only one thing he needed to know.

"How many people have we lost?"

The android remained silent for a moment before responding, giving a quick and well-summarized rundown of everything he knew.

Hearing that Hank was missing was a hard blow, but knowing that Peggy and Howard were safe and with the Commandos, using the secret passage in the main office to evacuate those still alive, was enough to bring him some calm—though, of course, he was still boiling with rage inside.

Noticing how the ground began to shake, John knew that the time for talking was running out.

"Can you carry her?" he asked Isaac, and the android looked at Janet before nodding, making the flames covering him begin to recede until they were only present on the lower part of his body, using them to stay in the air.