The true culprit behind this sprawling chaos now stood like the very embodiment of catastrophe beside the massive steel foundation of the Brooklyn Bridge's main tower.
ROAR!!!
Black Dwarf's rocky, giant-like body let out an earth-shaking bellow. Over three meters tall, his entire frame was wrapped in dark gray, granite-rough skin, every knotted muscle bulging with explosive power. His arms were encased in massive, vicious metal gauntlets, and in his hands he gripped a colossal chain hammer that looked like it had been rebuilt out of a car engine, its whole body glowing with a searing heat—his weapon, "Ruin." Every swing of that gigantic hammer carried scorching shockwaves and annihilating kinetic force.
BOOM!!
He had just slammed Ruin into the rebar of the bridge's main tower base. The violent tremor made the entire bridge groan with a teeth-aching screech. Broken concrete burst outward like buckshot, sweeping in all directions. A police cruiser that had come to help with rescue operations took a barrage of debris across its side door, metal screeching as it twisted and spun away, skidding sideways until it smashed into another pile of wreckage. Firefighters who had been putting out the blaze were thrown to the ground by the sudden quake.
"Hahahaha! Pathetic little bugs!"
Black Dwarf laughed wildly, hefting Ruin once more. Crimson light from the weapon reflected off his brutal, dim-witted face. The heavy chain hammer howled through the air with a low, tearing whine as it crashed down toward the more fragile traffic ramp structure on the far side of the bridge.
He was making chaos, drawing as much attention as possible—covering for Corvus Glaive and Proxima Midnight as they went deep underground to search for the scepter.
"Stop him!"
Steve's eyes were bloodshot. If the main bridge structure went down, the hundreds of evacuees and rescuers on the bridge would be facing total annihilation. He threw his weight forward and hurled his vibranium shield. It spun away in a bright silver arc, cutting through the air with a sharp whistle as it slammed straight toward the joint of Black Dwarf's hammer-swinging arm.
CLANG!!!
The impact was so heavy it made everyone's chests feel tight.
The vibranium shield—tough enough to rebound the force of Thor's hammer—smashed hard into Black Dwarf's arm armor. Sparks exploded outward. The incredible impact made Black Dwarf's swing hitch noticeably, the huge arm veering just slightly off its original line.
BOOOOM!
The hammer came down off target, slamming into the approach deck beside the main tower foundation instead. The hardened asphalt and reinforced concrete of the roadway shattered on impact, a crater several meters wide bursting open. That section of bridge deck dropped downward with a sickening lurch as a web of cracks raced outward at terrifying speed. Screams erupted in waves.
"Huh?"
Black Dwarf shook his thick arm, irritated by the spot where the shield had hit, then lowered his head to glare at the fallen shield and the charging Steve.
"Another annoying little bug... courting death!"
His enormous foot crashed down onto the bridge.
BOOM!
The already fractured bridge deck convulsed again, the concrete under Steve's boots shattering into rubble. He rolled instinctively, barely getting clear of the collapsing zone in time.
"Try this on for size, big guy!"
Clint's shout came from above. An armor-piercing explosive arrow shrieked through the air, aimed precisely at the connection between Black Dwarf's helmet and shoulder. The instant the arrowhead touched the armor, it detonated.
BOOM!
A jet of superheated metal and a brutal shockwave erupted outward. But when the smoke cleared, Black Dwarf's thick neck only sported a few shallow scratches. He shook his head and let out a contemptuous snort. The armor Ebony Maw had prepared for them was more than enough to shrug off human portable heavy weapons.
He swept Ruin in a wide arc, forcing Captain America into a desperate dance at the edge of disaster. Every time the chain hammer scythed past Steve's side, the wind it kicked up stung like knives against exposed skin.
Clint's arrows might as well have been bug bites—at best, they could only slightly disrupt the monster's rhythm.
(End of Chapter)
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