Five Months.
Five months since Tony Stark vanished into his Infinity Chamber.
Since Earth's greatest defender disappeared in a flash, leaving behind nothing but advanced technology and desperate hope.
Now, that hope was running out.
Captain Marvel's fists blazed with photon energy as she slammed into another Horseman-corrupted sentinel.
As some point she had to return after being inform by Nick Fury about Earth's crisis even though this was not the best time for her.
The metal screamed under the impact, but three more machines rose to take its place. She wiped blood from her lip and looked across the battlefield.
'We can't keep this up much longer.'
Around her, Earth's remaining heroes fought with everything they had.
Thor's lightning carved through the sky, striking down waves of Hydra soldiers. Even he had arrived to led a hand.
Hulk roared, tearing apart corrupted machinery with his bare hands.
Spider-Man and Miles swung between buildings, pulling civilians to safety while dodging energy blasts that could vaporize them instantly.
Captain America didn't want them Young Avengers to join this battle but he had no choice.
They were losing.
"Carol, we need to fall back!" Captain America's voice crackled through her comm unit.
Besides him Black Panther blocked a hit from an enemy nearby, his Vibranium suit was scorched and dented.
"The western flank is collapsing!"
"Negative," Captain Marvel said. She threw another punch, destroying a drone that got too close. "If we retreat now, Cairo falls. Then the world."
For Five Months, they'd survived on scraps. Tony Stark's secret bases, hidden across the globe, had kept them alive.
If not for this crisis no one would have known that stark was prepared for a potential doomsday.
Advanced weapons. Nano shields. Medical facilities that could heal wounds that should have been fatal.
The genius billionaire had prepared for this scenario, even if he hadn't been there to walk through it with them.
But preparation could only go so far.
Professor X's mental voice echoed in the minds of every hero on the battlefield:
*Apocalypse is moving. He's coming to the front lines.*
Captain Marvel's heart sank. They'd been fighting for hours against the two Horsemen - One of which is the corrupted Magneto, and the other the previous Storm who is now Famine.
It didn't help too that they had to deal with annoying Hydra forces. Every hero on Earth was here—Avengers, X-Men, even the Young Avengers who should never have been thrown into a war like this.
And now Apocalypse himself was joining the fight.
Captain Cartel landed beside her as she threw her shield to take out a minor hydra soldier.
"We need a miracle, Carol. Even with everything Tony left us, we're not enough."
"Then we make our own miracle," she said.
But even as the words left her mouth, she knew they sounded hollow.
---
Across the battlefield, Jean Grey fought alongside Cyclops.
Her telekinetic powers held back a wave of corrupted drones while Scott's optic blasts carved through enemy ranks. They moved in perfect sync, years of training and love making them an unstoppable team.
Until Apocalypse arrived.
He descended from the sky like a god of destruction. His armor gleamed with Celestial energy, each piece a testament to power beyond human comprehension. Where he walked, reality itself seemed to bend and twist.
"You struggle against destiny," his voice boomed across Cairo, "but evolution waits for no one."
Jean tried to throw everything she had at him. Telekinetic force that could crush tanks slammed into his shields and dissipated like rain against a window. Scott's optic blast, powerful enough to level buildings, didn't even make Apocalypse flinch.
With a single gesture, the ancient mutant warped the battlefield.
Buildings twisted into impossible shapes. The ground beneath their feet became liquid, then solid, then something in between. Reality screamed as Apocalypse reshaped it to his will, turning Cairo into a nightmarish warzone where physics meant nothing.
"Fall back!" Professor X's mental command was tinged with desperation. "All units, retreat now!"
But it was too late.
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