"You stepping in? Where's the challenge for Frank in that? How will he grow if we don't let him struggle?" Robert gave Johnny Storm an exasperated look. "Haven't you ever won an easy fight, Johnny? Why rush in to snatch a few demons from Frank?"
While Johnny's fire abilities had been surpassed by Hulk's rage energy, he was still an elemental powerhouse in his own right, worthy of being a fire god back in the age of deities. True, he might struggle against a primordial terror like Parallax, even the pre-empowered version, but taking on the Seven Deadly Sins demons would still be well within his abilities.
Johnny scratched his head, glancing at the other Avengers. "Fine, I won't jump in, but who exactly would be strong enough to help Frank without overpowering the fight?"
"Obviously, Hulk." Robert looked over at Hulk with a smile.
"Hulk?!" The other Avengers turned to him in surprise. After all, Hulk was arguably Earth's second-strongest being. If he joined, the Seven Deadly Sins would be flattened by his fists before Frank could get another punch in.
"Hulk?" Hulk looked at Robert, pointing a massive green finger at himself, uncertain whether Robert meant him or the Banner version.
"Yes, you. Once all seven demons are assembled, that's your cue." Robert's eyes remained on the battlefield where Frank was holding his own against the six demons. "The Six Deadly Sins' combined flames are powerful, but incomplete. Their fire lacks the last demon's energy."
"So, when the Seven Deadly Sins are fully united, their fire will reach a new level, and that's when Frank will start to struggle."
"Hulk doesn't see what this has to do with Hulk!" Hulk's confusion was plain. Though he was now capable of reasoned conversation, Robert's plan was a bit beyond him.
"When their power reaches its peak, that's when you use your rage energy to control Wrath. That'll disrupt their fire and throw their power into chaos, giving Frank a chance to win." Seeing Hulk's eyes grow unfocused, Robert quickly simplified, "When I tell you to jump in, use your rage energy on the angriest demon and make him lose control. Got it?"
"Hulk gets it!" Hulk's eyes brightened as he finally understood. All he needed to do was wait for Robert's signal and disrupt Wrath's power.
As Hulk readied himself, Frank, sensing Envy's arrival, fought with increased determination. Wrath, seeing his ally nearing, called out gleefully, "It's over for you, Shazam! Today, the wizard's legacy dies with you!"
The accumulated grudge against Shazam and the frustration from Frank's defiance had made him the Seven Deadly Sins' primary target, even more so than their quest for control over Earth.
"Are all Seven Deadly Sins finally assembling?" Frank felt his mind racing, knowing that if he couldn't handle six, he certainly wouldn't stand a chance against all seven together. He thought about calling for the Avengers but quickly dismissed the idea. "This is my first real fight. How can I give up so easily?"
Frank's desire to gain supernatural power, and his successful acquisition of Shazam's strength, was driven by a refusal to sit by helplessly in the face of crisis. If he couldn't even overcome the demons connected to his powers, how would he confront future challenges? Determined, Frank resolved to unleash his full potential.
He reminded himself that if the wizard Shazam had managed it, then so could he as Shazam's heir.
"Maybe there's more power to tap into," Frank thought, and instantly his mind cleared. He felt his divine energy, especially the mighty thunderbolt of Zeus, King of the Olympian gods, filling him. If he could grasp a deeper mastery over Zeus's thunder, he'd wield a strength beyond what he'd shown.
Lightning surged within him, and the sky above turned dark and roiling with clouds, reflecting the power within him. Thunderstorms brewed in the heavens, his dominion as Shazam strengthened by his connection to Zeus, who commanded the skies.
Watching from the sidelines, Mary felt the energy shift above and glanced at Robert. "Want me to give him a boost?"
"Sure," Robert nodded. "It might help him sustain this surge longer."
Mary's eyes crackled with electric light as she amplified the storm clouds. In an instant, the entire sky darkened, lightning streaking across the thick clouds until Frank and the Seven Deadly Sins could see nothing but thunderbolts and shadows.
"What's happening?" Wrath backed away warily, eyeing the supercharged Frank, afraid of becoming his next target.
Meanwhile, Sivana, driven by envy, arrived with the demon of Envy inside him. Gazing up at the storm, his heart burned with jealousy. Though his Demon's Eye could generate lightning, it paled against Frank's divinely empowered storm. This only made Sivana's envy grow, for he believed this power should have been his all along.
"Why should he have this godlike power?" Sivana thought bitterly, watching Frank's transformation with longing.
Envy, residing within Sivana, sensed his thoughts and sneered inwardly, deeming Sivana's ambition absurd. While Sivana was clever enough to locate the Rock of Eternity and release the Seven Deadly Sins, his reach exceeded his grasp. He wasn't capable of wielding both godly and demonic power.
"Jealousy! Are you just going to stand there? Get over here already!" Wrath yelled at Envy, who lingered with Sivana.
"What's the rush? Six of you can't handle one opponent?" Sivana mocked, his tone haughty as if he were already a god commanding his underlings.
"There. He already thinks he's our master," Envy's voice echoed within Sivana, mocking him.
"What do you mean?! What's happening to me?!" Sivana's triumphant tone turned frantic as he felt his body moving toward the demons against his will.
Envy seized control of Sivana's body, and he became a mere observer within his own mind. His protests turned to silent screams as he realized his body was now Envy's puppet.
"Even if you hadn't freed us, we would have broken the seal soon enough," Envy jeered as he led Sivana's body toward the Six Deadly Sins. "And now, rather than binding us, the Demon's Eye will serve as a vessel to unite our power!"
"No! Take the Demon's Eye, but leave me! Give me back my body!" Sivana's terrified cries went unheard as he lost all control. Pride blocked Frank from intervening while the remaining five demons slipped into Sivana's Demon's Eye.
With a resounding crash, Sivana's possessed body lunged at Frank, its fist blazing with the combined fire of sin. Frank barely managed to deflect the attack as Pride merged into the Demon's Eye.
At last, all Seven Deadly Sins were fused within the Demon's Eye, not to be imprisoned, but to combine their powers perfectly. Their original plan had been to wait until they'd all ascended to Hell Lord status before merging. However, the urgency of the battle left them no choice but to accelerate their plan and attempt to defeat Frank here.
Once all seven demons were united within the Demon's Eye, Sivana's consciousness dissolved entirely as Pride's will took over his mind and body. His humanity was consumed, leaving only the pure evil of the Seven Deadly Sins.
"I am the Seven Deadly Sins incarnate. I will rule all sin and judge this world with fire and lightning!" the fused demon declared, gazing at Frank with a chilling resolve. "You, false god, who have stolen the power of thunder—I will reclaim it from you!"
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