Under a moonless sky, Captain America, Black Widow, and Melinda May finalized their assault plan inside the mobile command truck.
The operation was straightforward.
Lead the strike team quietly into the abandoned factory.
Use the twelve Anti-Warlock Bracelets as protection against Evenson’s magic.
Catch him off guard before he could cast anything dangerous.
Subdue him.
Bring him back to S.H.I.E.L.D.
Simple.
It lasted exactly until...
"Awooooo!"
Woof!
A wolf-like howl shattered the night’s silence.
"Damn it."
Natasha froze mid-step, both pistols already drawn.
"Hobbes."
"Who?" Steve asked immediately.
"Evenson’s dog."
Melinda remained crouched beside him, her expression growing grim.
"Or... something close enough."
"He looks like a husky, but his tracking ability is extraordinary."
"When Tony Stark was kidnapped in Afghanistan, Hobbes was the one who found him by scent."
She frowned.
"That shouldn’t be possible."
"We reviewed every surveillance camera in the area."
"Hobbes wasn’t here."
"He and Evenson’s other four followers were supposed to be in Scotland."
Natasha considered it for a moment.
"He must have concealed their movements somehow."
"Or used some method to bring them here without anyone noticing."
"...Summoning."
Melinda suddenly remembered.
"I’ve seen Evenson use summoning scrolls to call creatures before."
"He probably recalled his subordinates the same way."
Natasha tapped both wrist guards.
Blue light flickered across the devices.
"This just became a lot more complicated."
"We don’t have much intelligence on those people."
"But if they’ve lived under the same roof as Evenson for this long..."
"They’re definitely not normal."
Steve slowly stood.
"There’s no point sneaking anymore."
"If they’ve already detected us, speed becomes our advantage."
"We can’t give him time to make his next move."
He looked over his shoulder.
"I’m going ahead."
"Catch up."
The words had barely left his mouth before he exploded forward.
He accelerated like a missile.
This was the man who had chased speeding cars on foot...
Who had pursued submarines through icy water...
Compared to Steve Rogers, Olympic sprint records looked almost leisurely.
Only moments later, his voice sounded through the communicator.
"I’m at the building."
Not a hint of heavy breathing.
"I’m going in."
Then...
His expression changed.
"...Damn."
He threw himself sideways.
The instant his boots left the ground...
The concrete wall he’d been standing beside exploded outward.
A massive figure burst through the dust cloud.
"Tyler..."
Melinda recognized him immediately.
"Move!"
"No more holding back!"
The rest of the strike team surged toward the factory.
The firefight had already begun.
Tyler looked past Captain America toward the approaching agents.
Instead of concern...
He grinned.
A broad, savage grin.
"What?"
He sneered at Steve.
"Can’t fight your own battles?"
Steve answered with nothing more than a dismissive smile.
His body relaxed.
Then, without warning...
His shield blurred through the air.
The throw looked casual.
It wasn’t.
Steve had faced countless powerful opponents before.
But very few of them could smash through reinforced concrete walls with their bodies.
He wasn’t underestimating this one.
The shield screamed toward Tyler.
The demon simply raised one hand.
Clang.
He caught it.
Effortlessly.
"Interesting."
Tyler chuckled as he weighed the vibranium shield in one hand.
Then he tossed it gently back.
"But I’m hoping for a real fight."
Steve caught the returning shield.
Before he could respond...
Tyler began to change.
His already massive frame expanded further.
Muscles swelled.
His clothing tore apart beneath rapidly growing limbs.
His skin darkened into the blue-green hue of a Felguard.
His eyes ignited crimson.
A massive horn thrust upward from his forehead.
Jagged bone spikes erupted along his back.
His feet twisted into cloven hooves.
The towering demon seized a colossal spiked siege hammer.
"The Legion conquers all!"
With a roar, Tyler charged.
His usual Arcanite Axe was nowhere to be seen.
That had been Evenson’s decision.
Hobbes’ senses covered an enormous area.
Unlike ordinary dogs, he rarely barked unless absolutely necessary.
By the time Steve and the others had begun discussing their plan outside the perimeter...
Evenson had already known they were there.
But what was he supposed to do?
Peggy Carter...
A ninety-year-old woman...
Former head of S.H.I.E.L.D...
Kneeling on a concrete floor...
Her wrists chained to pillars during the final stage of a magical ritual...
Try explaining that as harmless medical treatment.
No one would believe it.
So Evenson had stopped trying.
Once everything was finished, the results would speak louder than any explanation.
Until then...
His only option was to stall.
He’d ordered his subordinates to intercept the attackers.
Delay them if possible.
Avoid killing anyone.
Because the moment someone died...
There would be no repairing the situation.
For exactly that reason, Tyler’s beloved Arcanite Axe had been confiscated.
Evenson had specifically instructed him to choose something...
"...gentler."
Tyler had given the request considerable thought.
Boss says bladed weapons are too violent.
Fine.
I’ll use something without an edge.
So he’d selected a massive iron siege hammer covered in heavy spikes.
Much gentler.
At least...
By his standards.
BOOM!
BOOM!
BOOM!
The hammer crashed down again and again.
Steve met every strike with his shield.
The impacts echoed through the factory yard.
In terms of raw strength...
Captain America wasn’t even close to matching a Felguard in its true form.
As for combat experience...
It was probably kinder not to compare those either.
Steve could only brace behind his shield while Tyler hammered it relentlessly.
To Tyler’s credit...
He displayed remarkable sportsmanship.
Just like so many of Captain America’s previous opponents...
He kept obligingly aiming for the shield instead of Steve himself.
At last Natasha and the strike team arrived.
Everyone carried firearms.
No one fired.
At this range, bullets were just as likely to hit Captain America as the demon.
Even Natasha wasn’t willing to gamble with those odds.
"I’m going to help Cap..."
She took a single step.
Something thin wrapped tightly around her waist.
Before she could react...
An overwhelming force yanked her sideways.
"What...?"
She barely managed to gasp.
A soft, feminine voice whispered beside her ear.
"Careful, beautiful."
"If you go any closer..."
"You might get hurt."
The gentle tone somehow made Natasha’s skin crawl even more.
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