"Everyone, return to your designated defensive positions!" After several large-scale battles, Wanda had taken to regularly training the students of the Mutant Academy in combat simulations, preparing them for potential enemy invasions of Naxxramas.
Floating into the air, she and Pietro swiftly returned to the control room, while the other mutants took their assigned positions. At that moment, the floating fortress transformed into a veritable war bastion in the sky. Numerous hatches opened around Naxxramas, revealing infernal cannons that emerged and locked onto their targets. The stone gargoyle statues awoke from their petrified state, soaring into the air and patrolling the perimeter.
"Fire!"
Fel crystals flared with a sickly green glow, launching fel fireballs like meteors into the oncoming swarm. Each explosion sent emerald flames cascading over the insectoid creatures, burning them relentlessly.
"Mantis flyers, charge! Psionic drones, unleash energy attacks!"
Despite their limited intelligence, the swarm creatures possessed an acute sense of danger—more refined even than that of their general. Fear gripped them, causing hesitation. Enraged by their cowardice, the general executed a few on the spot, finally spurring the rest into action.
The mantis-like creatures formed a battle formation, expelling bursts of gas from their tails to propel themselves forward at high speeds. Meanwhile, massive blue-hued insects with bulbous tails radiated a soft glow. Pale blue energy spheres coalesced at their tails before being hurled across the darkness, streaking toward Garus and his allies.
"Can we hold them off?" The overwhelming assault made some uneasy.
Garus reassured them confidently. "Relax, we've got this. Remember the Stardust entity from last time? I captured it and repurposed it as an energy source for the city. Plus, with the Space Stone providing unlimited power, they'll never breach our defenses."
True to his words, the incoming blue energy spheres were intercepted by a shimmering white shield before they could make contact.
Seeing this, the defenders exhaled in relief.
However, Tony remained intrigued by the psionic drones. Their energy projection capabilities fascinated him—perhaps they could inspire improvements to his Bleeding Edge armor. But he wasn't reckless enough to study them up close alone. "We need a different battlefield. Fighting in space puts most of us at a disadvantage."
Only a select few, including Tony in his armor and Garus, could function effectively in the vacuum of space.
The swarm's numbers were not endless. After a relentless bombardment, only a battered and terrified insectoid general remained, frantically retreating.
...
"Pathetic! Why are you the only one who returned?" Annihilus had been closely observing the ever-expanding spatial rift. As the general hastily fled back, a rare expression of fury twisted Annihilus' otherwise composed face.
"Where are the others? Why have you returned alone?"
The insectoid general, far larger than Annihilus himself, trembled as he spoke. "Leader, they had a massive warship! We couldn't stop them! The others… they were all annihilated."
"Useless. A general should perish on the battlefield!" Just as Annihilus was about to execute his cowardly subordinate, a thunderous boom echoed overhead.
Breaking through the clouds, the sky fortress loomed above, its sheer bulk obliterating any insect swarms in its path, sending countless creatures plummeting to their deaths.
"That many?!" The sheer scale of the swarm, displayed in holographic projection, sent shivers down everyone's spines.
Even Garus was momentarily stunned. He hadn't encountered such a vast swarm before. No wonder Asgard and Vanaheim had been unable to repel them, and even the mighty Hela's fate remained uncertain.
He couldn't afford to be careless.
"They're here." Spotting the familiar airborne city, Thor finally exhaled in relief. He had feared some disaster might occur before its arrival. Asgard's remaining forces were entirely reliant on it now.
Seeing Garus' fortress, both the Elven King and Njord were visibly shocked. "A human warship? Since when did they become this powerful?!"
Across the Nine Realms, different races specialized in their own crafts—gnomes in technology, dwarves in magical forging, elves in life sciences, and Asgardians in photonic energy engineering.
Yet, this immense floating fortress defied their expectations. The Elven King recognized the seamless fusion of magic and technology within its design.
Then, without warning—
A piercing beam of light tore through Naxxramas, carving a massive hole into its structure. The fortress's defensive measures failed to react in time.
Njord's face paled in horror. "Damn it! That's the same ray! That's what shattered our defenses before! We thought they couldn't use that weapon again!"
BOOM!
A violent tremor rocked Naxxramas, nearly toppling everyone inside. Only Tony, less agile than the others, found himself sprawled embarrassingly on the floor.
"What the hell just happened? Are we under attack?"
Garus activated a projection of Naxxramas. A colossal hole had been cleanly pierced through the entire city. Not even the fortress's formidable obsidian structure had withstood the attack—everything in the beam's path had been utterly disintegrated.
"Wanda, any casualties?"
"None so far."
Hearing that, Garus let out a relieved sigh.
"I'm heading out to investigate." Before anyone could protest, he took flight, shielding the city as it descended toward a barren wasteland. Any incoming insects were instantly frozen in midair and shattered into icy fragments.
A deafening crash sent dust and sand swirling into the sky.
"Wasn't the Elven Realm supposed to be covered in lush forests? Why does it look so desolate?" Pietro was the first to step out, visibly perplexed by the sight.
"Those are the remnants of war." Garus closed his eyes, attuning himself to the echoes of countless wailing souls—elves, insects, and other beings alike.
This was land ravaged by the swarm. Soon, it would crumble entirely and be lost to the Void.
"Now's not the time for history lessons. The swarm is coming."
Even as Garus spoke, Tony's suit registered multiple incoming lifeforms.
"Here they come!"
A dense tide of insectoids surged forward, shaking the earth with their numbers.
Facing the monstrous horde, Rhodey's nerves tensed. "Tony, I'll be honest—I'm not exactly ready for an intergalactic war, especially not against these freakish bugs. This reminds me too much of Starship Troopers."
"Hey, don't worry. Your upgraded armor will keep you safe. Besides, Garus is here—what's there to be afraid of?"
It was rare to see such a gathering—nearly a hundred mutants and over a dozen superheroes, all standing together in formation.
"Stay sharp! If that same disintegration attack strikes again, I can't guarantee anyone's survival. I don't want to lose anyone here today!"
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TN: This fanfic has been fully translated and is available on my Patreon —— PATREON.COM / PRIMALDEMON