Hello, everybody. I want to say this is not my first story and that I do have experience prior to this at writing. I am however new to this universe and its challenging and ingenious setting. It's been a while since I've read a Thor comic or seen anything with him starring in it, but I'm doing research and trying to portray the character correctly as I remember him. There will be changes to his personality because he's not the same person, yet is... You'll see.
I do not own or know any of the following:
Nsync, Backstreet Boys, Britney Spears, Pink, Christina Aguilera, Jessica Simpson, Tom Cruise, 98 Degrees or any other celebrities. I also know nothing of their sexual orientations.
Marvel Comics, DC Comics, and all related characters.
Buffy & Angel television series.
Star Wars Star Trek, Star Trek TNG, Star Trek DS9, Star Trek Voyager, Star Trek the New Frontier, Enterprise television series, movies, and novels.
The Anita Blake Vampire Hunter book series or the Merry Gentry series by Laurell K. Hamilton.
The Vampire Chronicles, Tales of the New Vampires, The Mayfair Witches, all series written by Anne Rice.
Power Rangers series.
SM: Alternate Reality series is copyright Strike Fiss.
Dune series is by Frank Herbert
Harry Potter book series is by J.K. Rowling.
Star Wars is copyright George Lucas.
Slayers is copyright Hajime Kanzaka, Rui Araizumi, Kadokawa Shoten, TV TOKYO, SOFTX, Marubeni
Xena: the Warrior Princess and Hercules: the Legendary Journey is copyright Universal Studios
I enjoy hearing feedback from people. If you have any to offer such as comments or any thoughts toward the story you may reach me at Mighthammer@yahoo.com
Chapter 9
Kenneth rubbed his arms, feeling the biting wind through the leather jacket he wore. How he hated the winter months. Especially, living in the Upper East of the United East, it always got cold faster than the rest of the continent. Lucky them. Yeah right. It was midnight, and the sun had long ago set. The moon was the only source of light in the sky and the stars were hidden behind a cloud of perpetual darkness. His boots cracked the ice coating the sidewalk he strolled down. Kenneth glanced at his watch again.
His wife was all alone with their baby at home. He bit his lip, stopping in midstep. Up ahead was Wimbledon Park. If cut through it he could make it to the flat quicker, than walking the way he was currently taking. But no one walked through the Wimbledon Park at night. Too dangerous.
"Fuck it," he muttered, taking a chance, he left the safety of the street lamps and crossed the street into the green grounds of the park.
God, it was too fucking dark in this place. Kenneth's head swiveled left then right, trying to watch the shadows clinging to the trees bordering the narrow path. Kenneth froze in his quickened stride. He glanced at the bench next to him then behind him, looking for the unknown noise he just heard.
"Who's there?" called Kenneth, trying to put as much badass into his voice as possible.
The voice came then, sounding like something from a nightmare. It touched his insides, invaded his mind, made his skin crawl. It was something otherworldly. Something not natural, evil. "Your brain couldn't even comprehend the correct way to pronounce my true name."
Kenneth glared into the dark. Finally, a cloud moved and a ray of moonlight lit up the area.
He saw him.
There, standing saw calmly on the path was a tall man. He had to be taller than six feet, the way his bulging muscles protruded and stretched the suit he wore. The suit was skintight and it had silver etchings running up and down it, forming into complicated patterns. A cape with a flared collar adorned his back and his skin was whiter than snow. It had no color. His jet, black hair and blood, red eyes made him seem like a vampire straight from a Bram Stroker novel.
"Who the fuck are you?" asked Kenneth, keeping his voice strong, even though he was starting to feel frightened.
The man smiled revealing fanged teeth. "I am the Judge."
Kenneth half smiled. "That's cool. Listen I have to go. It was nice talking to you though."
"Not so fast."
Kenneth froze, feeling his blood run cold. "What do you want from me?"
Judge shrugged. "You."
Kenneth narrowed his eyes, checking his fear he gave into anger and survival. He ground his hands into fist and his floppy blond hair began to whip around on its own, not by the wind, but by some unseen power. Slowly, his green eyes bled to inky black.
"If you want me," Kenneth smirked. "Come and claim me. Trust me, you fucked up, Mister. I'm not some regular joe."
The wind began to blow now and sparks of purple light jumped from finger to finger. "I'm a mutant."
A threatening smile split his face. "And a Witch."
He raised his arms and with a yell, beams of ruby colored light blasted from his palms. They split the air at the speed of light, hitting the Judge before he had time to react. The effect was like being hit by a comet. The beam of concussive light continued plowing into the being, with no ending. The Judge futile attempts to block the blast were pitiful. The burning light covered his body, and agonized screams erupted from his throat, filling the air.
"Uggghhh!" Kenneth yelled, throwing more of his energy into the beam before cutting it off.
He smiled slightly; eyes still black as he gazed at the smoke filled area that the Judge once stood in.
"Take that fucker," he gasped, trying to suck air back into his lungs. His eyes widened and his mouth dropped as he stared at the smoke. "No!"
"I must admit," said the deep, rich voice. "That was good."
The Judge appeared from the smoky area, suit still in excellent condition and only the edging of his cape smoked slightly. The only sign of the powerful blast hitting him. He grinned, eyes glaring red as he looked at Kenneth with small amusement.
Kenneth clenched his teeth together; quickly he began to chant loudly.
"Night is day, day is night,
I call upon power of the
Moon in my plight, hear me
Oh radiant light, and burn
My victim brighter, than
Cassiel's Infernite!"
A beam of white light shined down from the sky, enveloping the Judge. It covered his body, and energy and flames of white light zapped and hit him at all sides. He stood stone still with his arms crossed. The smile on his face was eerie. He stood there as if a force that could send the Empire State Building up in flames wasn't bombarding him.
Kenneth stared in disbelief.
"Dammit," he swore, powering off the energy he was putting into the spell.
His eyes slowly lost their blackness, as the power of the magic he was channeling drained out of him. That spell was seriously bordering dark and it took too much.
The Judge smirked. "You've had your turn. So now its mine."
One second he was there and the next, he was an inch away from Kenneth. The young man shivered, feeling the cool breath ghosting over his skin. The Judge's hand shot out, grasping Kenneth around the throat. He gasped and fought as his body was easily lifted a foot off the ground.
"Hmmm..." the Judge muttered, cocking his head to the side. His blood red eyes seemed to flash for a second then without warning he dropped Kenneth onto the ground.
"Ow!" Kenneth cried as he landed hard on his ass. The ice covering the ground was damp and he could feel the coolness seep into his denim jeans.
The Judge glared down at Kenneth, fangs showing and eyes glowing.
"You are not Justice."
Kenneth shook his head. "My name is Kenneth."
"The power I felt from you, I thought for sure you were Justice," muttered Judge, talking more to himself than Kenneth.
The young man bit his lip, wondering if the being would see him if he ran. Gathering his courage, he got to his feet, and shot off the down the path. He screamed as the Judge suddenly ghosted in front of him.
"Goddess Hecate, work thy will," Kenneth began to chant in a rush.
The Judge's fist shot out, hitting Kenneth in the gut. Instead of stopping, his fist pierced flesh, internal organs, and emerged from his back, large intestine coiled around it. Kenneth felt pain like no other race up and down his body, centering on his torso. He tried to scream or yell, but only red blood gurgled up, coating his chin and mouth.
With an almost slurping sound, the Judge withdrew his fist a confused expression on his face.
"I forgot how delicate you mortals are," he sneered. "Soon, all will be as it was. Humans will be the muck at our feet, demons will worship, and Dahok will again be a god to the gods."
He stopped his monologue, and looked down at Kenneth, noticing him for the first time.
"Still alive," he said. "I can fix that."
'I'm sorry, Baby. I'll watch over you,' Kenneth prayed silently. The last thing he saw was a booted foot coming toward him, before his head was crushed in.
Adam was dressed in a pair of denim jeans, a white dress shirt with a black duster over it. Jared was dressed similar except his jacket was leather and his shirt was blood red, looking good with his long, auburn hair. The early morning sun threw not quite warm sunshine onto the downtown area. The streets were not crowded as it was in the early morning, close to six thirty.
"You know I've never been to Seattle before," said Jared, as they walked down the street, watching cars and people pass by.
Adam smiled. "My memories still aren't complete, but I remember more and more all the time. I can recall this entire area once being inhabited by Native Americans. They are really a wondrous race. They understand the delicate balance between the Earth and all of its inhabitants, probably better than even some gods."
Jared gave a low whistle, looking at Adam with a long look. "I sometimes forgot how 'really' old you are."
Adam laughed, punching him on the shoulder. He knew that sometimes he talked funny, making comments that didn't fit his age, but the old memories of his were integrating with his currents ones. "Shut up. You know what they say; you only get better with age."
"Riight," Jared smirked.
Suddenly, Adam cocked his head. He could hear something exploding, almost two or my four miles away. Jared couldn't hear it, but Adam could. His hearing was godly, along with the rest of his attributes.
"Hey, what's that?" asked Jared, as the sound finally reached his ears.
Adam frowned narrowing his eyes at the sky, where a thin trail of black smoke was drifting into the clouds. Without even a thought they ducked into an alley and transformed. Jared's transformation into Dr. Fate was similar to Adam's into Thor. There was a build up of light and stars seemed to cover his body, shielding it from view. The stars then formed his suit and trench coat. With a flash, his half helm appeared in his hands, and he covered his head with it.
Thor smiled at Fate. "Ready to go?"
Fate nodded. "Anytime." He looked at the crystal he had attuned to the Judge's power. It glowed with a violet light. "Its him. We better go before he finds another key."
Adam rose into the sky, his hammer held in his hand in a sure grip. A moment later Jared joined him in the air. Adam had to blink once, as he looked at Jared again. Instead of his trench coat a pair of beautiful, white, angel wings graced his back. They flapped softly, making no noise as they kept him afloat.
Adam shook his head. "You really have to explain those to me one day."
"It's a long story. Let me assure you," half smiled Jared.
He decided he would just take his word for it. Turning toward the direction the smoke was coming from, they flew off at an incredible speed. Not too fast however, they didn't want to accidentally whined up on the other side of the planet.
As they came upon the scene, they gaped in open astonishment. The entire section surrounding a four-block radius was completely destroyed. A bomb may have well gone off, judging by the effects of the desolation.
"Oh shit," Adam cursed, moving quickly to the side, as a black car soared directly into the spot he hovered in.
It lost its momentum and descended. With a fiery explosion it hit the roof of a tall building, covering the top of it in flames, completely incinerating the upper floors.
"What the fuck was that!" yelled Jared.
"Look!" Adam pointed.
On the streets was a being they recognized. The Judge was like a walking tornado. He didn't seem to be looking for anything, only causing random destruction seemed his goal. Without even grunting, the Judge lifted a car and threw into the thirteenth floor of a building. Seconds later, flames gushed out from the shattered windows.
"Lets go do what we do best," said Adam.
Jared raised his eyebrow, but Adam couldn't see it behind the mask. "What, let him get away with another key?"
Adam sighed. "Come on." He flew down to the street.
Landing lightly and silently, they touched down directly in front of the Judge's road of destruction.
The Judge laughed, as he saw them land in front of him. "I was beginning to wonder if the little god and the balance bastard would show up."
Adam frowned, looking himself over. "I'm not little. I'm six foot six."
Jared rolled his eyes. "You are so easy."
"I think it's about time I annihilated you two," said the Judge. He walked over to a fire hydrant and picked it up. A second later, it hurtled through the air at them.
Adam caught it. "You have to do better than that."
A pair of white and black cars flew at them. Dr. Fate threw up his hands and a force field of purple light materialized in front of tem. The cars hit the shield exploding on impact, sending debris and metal bits flying everyone. As his arms dropped to his side, his shield faded away.
"Let's see how he likes this," said Adam, going to a knee.
He stamped the end of his hammer against the ground, then raised it to the air. Immediately, a visible cyclone of whirling wind appeared. It turned on its side and flew at the Judge. The torrent of wind grabbed him, and carried him back, throwing him into a toyshop a block away.
"Kick it into overdrive!" yelled Jared.
In an eye blink, Jared had the Ankh of Anubis in hand. The long staff topped with the golden ankh gleamed in the sunshine. Adam held his hammer, Mjolner, in a strong grip. Nodding at each other, they unleashed their power. The air lit up as currents of blue lightning and beams of golden light, rained down on the toyshop. The earth quaked and buildings shook from the after shock of the devastating, combined attack. They focused harder, turning up the power. The light got brighter almost blinding, and the ground started to shake harder as if angry. The building holding the toyshop imploded, throwing dust into the sky. Still they continued their attack.
Finally, they powered off their attacks. Not moving, they only stared at the destroyed building, which held the toyshop. Looking through the smoke, they glared at the rubble, searching for the body of the Judge. They knew he wasn't dead. He was tougher than that.
"What's going on here."
They turned around.
"Your suite is ready Mr. Stark."
"No need for such formalities. Call me, Tony," replied Tony Stark, smiling charmingly at the woman behind the corner.
The lobby of the Jean Luc Hotel was pristine and practically sparkling. There was a reason it was ranked as one of Seattle's and Americas most expensive and luxurious hotels. Tony was not out of place in his thousand-dollar suit that was tailored perfectly to his body. A body that was in great shape for someone going on their thirty fourth birthday. What else would one expect from a multi billionaire?
"So what time do you get off?" Tony asked, running a hand through his long, black hair.
The woman behind the counter smiled shyly. Her cheeks flushed a rosy hue. "I get off at nine."
Tony winked. "Well, how about we--"
His eyes widened as he caught the reflecting image showing in the mirror over the girl's head. He swiveled around and cringed, watching as a car was thrown into the building next to the Jean Luc Hotel. The resounding explosion shook the glass doors.
"Oh, my god!" the receptionist shrieked.
Several people's screams joined hers. Tony frowned watching the tall being dressed in black, stalk down the city's streets causing untold amounts of destruction in his wake.
Grabbing his suitcase, he sprinted to the nearest restroom, loosening his tie along the way. He jetted into the unoccupied room locking the door behind him. Immediately, Tony opened the briefcase and smiled at its contents. He pressed a hidden button on his watch and metal armor parts, rapidly flew from their resting position in the briefcase. Tony stripped his clothes off revealing a silvery cat suit, inlaid with blinking lights and wires. The silvery suit's magnetic charge turned on and quickly the armor pieces flew around him, then one by one they snapped into place onto him. Really, the process didn't take more than two minutes.
Snapping his helmet into place, Tony's voice activated the suit's computer system.
"Computer activate armor."
"Iron Man armor activated and all systems brought online."
The suit powered to life and information whirled behind the helmet's eyepieces. Tony clicked his heels, and the rocket jets built into the feet, fired to life. He soared out the building in a blur.
He was a blur of red and gold in the air as he flew to the center of the chaos. The bright effects of energy attacks lit up the air for miles. He frowned, seeing not one but two men. With a thought the jets power lowered, slowly bringing him down to the ground. He landed behind the two men, his iron clad feet barely making a sound.
"What's going on here?
Adam turned around, hammer at ready. He raised his eyebrow looking the figure before him over. The man or whatever was dressed in a stylized suit of gold and red armor. He looked like a modern knight, but you know sans sword.
"Who are you?" asked Jared.
"Iron Man. And you are?"
"I'm Dr. Fate and this is my partner Thor."
Adam cleared his throat. "We don't have time for this." He turned back to the rubble. With a wave of his hammer, wind picked up clearing away the smoke that clung to the area.
"Where is he?" muttered Jared, staring hard at the destroyed building. There was no sign of the Judge or a dead body.
"Who is who?" asked Iron Man.
"I think they mean, me."
They stilled at the voice that suddenly echoed up from nowhere and yet came from everywhere. Suddenly, a blur sped past them. Jared raised his staff but the blur slapped him into a car, and continued racing on. Adam wound back his arm and punched the blur. To him the blur wasn't fast, he could the see the Judge as if he was moving in slow motion.
"Take this!" yelled Adam, punching the Judge.
The Judge hurtled backward knocked right off his feet. It didn't matter how powerful he was. Thor still had the strength of a god.
As he accelerated backward, the Judge grabbed at a lampost and used it to swing back around. Using the momentum he already had, the Judge picked up even more speed. Adam didn't even see the ball of black matter thrown at him, till it knocked him up into the air. He soared into the clouds, the ball of blackness carrying him along.
Iron Man aimed his palms at the Judge, as he sped toward him. He gave a grunt as his repulsor rays kicked to life. The beams of white light hit the Judge, knocking him back, a foot, a yard, then a meter.
He frowned behind his helmet as the Judge, held up a hand to the rays. That shouldn't be possible his mind and the computer in his armor told him, only in lit up, blinking numbers and equations.
The repulsor rays splattered off his hands and deflected into the air. Slowly but surely, the Judge walked forward holding back the rays of white light.
"You humans really are a pitiful race, like cockroaches." the Judge smirked. He grabbed Iron Man's smoking, gloved hands, and the power flow cut off. He ripped of Iron Man's helmet, revealing Tony Stark's sweating, fear filled face. "Such emotion on your face. It's captivating. I do believe this is what you humans call fear."
"Go to Hell," spat Tony, glaring.
The Judge cocked his head. "I've been there and to places you wouldn't began to imagine. I'm older than your entire race. I was alive when your species was nothing but muck on the ground. You sparkled and stank and was nothing but a gleam in the eyes of lower demons."
"You talk too much," Tony sneered.
The Judge gripped his throat and raised him into the air. His toe tips barely scrapped the ground, as he wailed around, the air cut off from his lungs. The Judge narrowed his eyes and looked closer at Tony, his red eyes searching the frightened blue eyes before him.
"Justice," the Judge breathed amazed. He gave a low, long laugh. "I can't believe. I didn't find justice but justice came to me. How amusing."
"Put him down!" yelled Thor, helping Jared stand up.
The Judge laughed. "Oh, I don't think so." His blood, red eyes were filled with amusement. "You see, this mortal is the Key of Justice. I'll be taking him."
Adam's eyes widened in realization and horror. "NO!"
The Judge smirked at the battered heroes. In his raised arm was the choking form of Tony Stark, still trapped in the grip of the old, demon lord. His blue eyes turned toward them, pleading and filled with fear. If he had ability to talk he would have choked out what the hell was a key of justice.
"Let him go!" yelled Jared, raising his staff. "Moon, Earth, Stars," He began to chant, his hands glowing a vibrant purple.
"Armageddon is at hand. Prepare for reformation," the Judge stated.
In a flash of white light he was gone. Tony Stark was gone with him. The only sign that the Judge had been here was the destruction around them. It looked as if a large bomb had gone off.
"Dammit!" Adam cried, punching his fist against the wall of the building next to him.
The entire building shook as a larger than man sized hole appeared in the wall, where his fist impacted. Jared stood with the help of Adam, favoring his swollen ankle.
"He has two Key's now. Only five left and time is running out," Jared muttered. He looked to the sky a sad expression on his face. "May god have mercy on all our souls."
To Be Continued...
******************************************* Dum, dum, dum. Looks like Iron Man is the Key of Justice. I bet that was a surprise. The other keys will come as a surprise, too. Some will be new while others will be very familiar. Don't forget to email me. I love to hear feedback, and also check out the other stories in the Tales universe.
Other stories you can read in the Tales universe:
"Tales of a Real Dark Knight" "Tales of a Superhero Band" "Tales of the New Phoenix" "Tales of a Young Mutant" "Tales of a Human Spider" "Marvel Knights"