Chapter 612: Spectator


    "Are you sure?" Linda inquired with a worried expression as she was helping others set up the connection with Mary looking into the mirror, setting herself up for the show which Nik had messaged her for. "I have my sources," Mary said while adjusting her hair, simply more than annoyed. She, for one, was definitely against Nik trying to act as a superhero. At least, in ''her'' world, as he puts it. Sure, the 30k pack is an enticing and lucrative option of living but what about the taxes? Not to mention the taxes, what about her normalcy. Normal jobs, normal lives equal a vastly happier life. Puckering her lips unconsciously, she looked into her mirror onest time and turned back, witnessing bright purple portals appearing on the empty areas of the sidewalks before zapping upwards and revealing men and women of various ages, scared and confused.


    "Also call 911," Mary shouted. Instantly, the wee bit of indigence against Nik disappeared as she just made the quickest lead of her lifetime on what could be considered the most bizarre case. Of course, she would know of the details once she pull Nik onto the dinner table, slowly unwrap him and eat him whole, just the way he and she enjoyed together.


    ---


    "Oh my god, the floor smells too bad," Nik coughed as he eyed White Tiger jumping around, avoiding the deadly, more natural ws of a man covered and leopard-spotted hide and from what it smelled like, a brown fur dried after a deep scrubbing of vodka but the most unbearable stench was the one emanating from his crotch. "These are worse than Purple man''s!" Nikined while the dark-haired, muscr man stopped in his attacks and gazed at White Tiger carefully. "Greetings have passed, girl," his ent remarkably heavy, "I have never hunted an unknown beast. State your name. For my bestiary, of course. Your rarity will be determined by the difficulty of your hunt."


    "Bite me!" Ava screamed before lunging forward akin a tiger leaping for its prey while Nik took anotherzy pose with his head once again pushed up my his palm, "I would most definitely bite her," hemented softly, his body hidden with three runes etched over him. The words meant simple, really. Travel-Mirror-World. He needed to guide his spirit energy a little but his dimensional traveling had turned far more efficient than before. He didn''t need to open any form of portals that might have alerted any form of spiritual entity or leave an astounding signature of energy like thest attempt. His use of spirit energy was more like making the mirror of morgana his medium. A silent transfer.


    Onto Ava, however, the impulsive attack turned out to be a tricky one as she witnessed the mane titled Kraven the Hunter, in the files, move in a far more beastly manner, his teeth even baring, as he held Ava''s outstretched arms, his nails easily digging through her reinforced suit and drawing thin trails of blood while jerking her head forward, smashing it against Ava''s. "Ooh... that gotta hurt," sucking in a breath of cold air, the only kind present in the mirror dimension due to a severeck of global warming in the world, Nik conjured a bag of spicy fish jerkies, clearly intending on enjoying the show. After all, he knew better to not help them until there was a possibility of fatality or his act of kindness would easily be misunderstood as that of pity.


    "Gah!" Ava grunted in pain, her nasal region beneath the mask already reddening slightly;y but it wasn''t to the level she would snort in her own blood. With her arms still incapacitated, Ava kicked off and instantly locked on Kraven''s neck, pulling her body down and making growl softly, "It won''t work!" He practically growled, straightening his back and preparing to m Ava down. "Man, I can''t bear to watch this anymore. Let''s see someone else writhe in pain... too much for being superheroes I guess"


    "Then what about this?" Ava grunted in a whisper before two thin des slid from the back of the soles of her boots, stabbing Kraven in his shoulder des, letting a spurt of blood painting his vodka dried fur coat while loosening his grip on Ava''s hands before she shook his grip and dug her hands right into his chest, pulling another pained shout from Kraven while the man stepped back with his eyes barely holding a semnce of sanity. Like a furious bear, he threw Ava off just by the unbridled movements of his body, his fists smashing right against Ava''s head.


    Steadilynding on her feet, Ava coughed weakly before looking at Kraven, her cold stare hidden by the ale yellow fments of her mask, "Kraven the Hunter, a man who hunted one too many panthers. One of them was my uncle!" With another shout, reckless, Ava lunged forward with a somersault, letting the sole of her feet dig into Kraven''s shoulder once again before detaching them through a hidden mechanism and jumping back. "The hunter who ys with his prey! I know all about you! Did you add the kids you massacred into your bestiary. I''m sure those cubs fought better than you!" A punch went unblocked and knocked right against Kraven''s reinforced skull. "I''m a tiger! Like my father was! I. Don''t. y!" her kick knocking against Kraven''s neck with a sickening crunch as the man weakly fell on his knees. Still alive. Barely.


    "Well... she''s..." before Nik could praise, he felt a few unwanted presences entering into the mall and he instantly began sealing off the floors. The presence of cops wasn''t needed, at least, not now, "awesome!" whispering and understanding that Ava had no ns on actually finishing Kraven off, Nik sprung to the second floor where he found Danny aka Iron Fist having a standoff against a man of considerablyrge stature. The opponent seemed to have fused himself with a grayish hide, extremely tough to prate with only his face revealed and a rather andrge horn erected from the middle of his forehead.


    "Hah! Hah!" Danny had trouble breathing, ferocious ki energy flowing through his fists, turning them bright gold akin hottest magma, as testified by a few fist-shaped indents on the opponent''s body but it was far cry from Iron Fist''s extremely battered and bloodied body. The green-gold costume made out of, surprisingly, normal material now touched with his blood and the yellow-gold mask also working as a bandanna.


    "Gahahaha!" The manughed, "Is that it? Your punches tickle me!" Rhino roared, his back lowering while he charged, pointing the menacing horn towards Iron Fist.


    "Ticklish feeling is way worse than pain!" Iron Fist whispered while hooking onto the horn and propelling himself midair beforending on Rhino''s back, "And a punch to the face is even worse!" He shouted, raising both of his fists glowing brightly before thrashing his fists against Rhino''s upward tilting face. Rhino''s face instantly caved with his nose crushed and his teeth jutting into the sides of Danny''s fist, drawing further blood. "Finally, peace..." coughing weakly, Danny slid down from the gigantic back and sprawled on the floor. Tired and exhausted with his unclenched hands turning normal.


    "Aw, I think I missed everyone''s beat down while focusing on Ava!" Nik groaned and jumped onto the next floor with a winged man phasing through him instantly, throwing a scratched up Cindy.


    "Damn you!" Cindy shouted, her hands gloved by her own webbing as there were multiple tears on her costume around her calves. Looking at the opponent, Nik found a goggled man with his hands attached to mechanical wings, ded, even. That would exin the bloodied tears but Cindy somehow managed to get out with thin scratches. It was either her training or the fact that Vulture enjoyed ying with his prey.


    Getting on her feet, her ponytail already morphed into a haggard disy of hair with disarrayed strands sticking around and her body jumping in the air to fight an enemy that seemed far more inclined to fight mid-air from the starting, Nik realized Cindy''s fortunate state was really nothing due to her training. With Vulture''s feet attached to mechanical ws, which he used to catch Cindy''s webbed fists, the man cackled and threw her again. "Oh my god," Nik groaned with Pickle speaking up, "the others were definitely physically enhanced but this man is normal... couldn''t this spider just tear those machines away"


    "You''re here!" Spider-Gwen''s shout broke the flow of conversation as she red at Nik, "Don''t just leave me in the security room! Took so much time getting down!" Her gaze then fell on the battered Cindy and all her anger vanished, "Good for her!" She snorted. "Clearly, the Cindy of your world wasn''t on best terms," Nikmented.


    "No, we weren''t." Spider climbed up Nik''s leg, treading carefully near the hip region before reaching Nik''s shoulder, "She caused me too many problems out of petty differences, at first, she then spiraled further into stupidity."


    "Well, this one isn''t petty..." Nik muttered as Vulture picked her from her hair while Spider furrowed, "You''re not going to help?"


    "There''s help," Nik gestured towards Captain''s leap as he bagged Vulture into a chokehold from behind, "And I lost Captain''s fight," Nik raised his hand in frustration as he jumped down andnded on the ice cream stall once again, phasing back into the real world while waiting silently.


    ---


    "Vanish! He said his name was Vanish!" A young boy shouted in excitement as he snatched the mic from Mary''s hand, "He saved us! All of us! My mum was away with our uncle Bert. She said that she needed Uncle Bert''s help with her waist and left for the bathroom and then we were"


    Before the boy couldplete, a mature, dark-haired woman covered the boy''s mouth, probably her mother from the simrity in their eyes as she gazed towards an equally awkward Mary, "Er, this isn''t live, right?" The woman inquired as Mary''s cameraman, a freshman, turned his camera towards the ''uncle'' before Mary snapped her finger softly, signaling him to continue moving. Of course, it was live. But seeing theck of ''the'' ring in the woman''s hands, it could be theorized that she either hid it or simply lost her significant other. Mary was inclined to believe thetter.


    "Captain Kent," Mary moved quickly, "The officers still haven''t been able to open the entrance of the mall. Do you know why is that?"


    snorting, Captain moved away with an annoyed expression as his partner stopped Mary from pursuing him. With an equally frustrated expression, Mary turned towards the camera and addressed her viewers, "As you can see, Rick Enterprises is still supposed to be under the control of monsters calling themselves Jackal, Rhino, Vulture, Kraven, and Electro! There''s also the fact that the savior of the citizens, Vanish, may still be locked into a dreadful battle against these criminals. Stay tuned for more updates!"


    "... and cut!" the cameraman sighed before giving Mary a thumbs-up and then pulling the camera from his shoulder.


    "Do you think that there''s someone actually fighting against those criminals?" the youth inquired Mary as she shrugged, "Let''s wait. For all I know, there''s no one inside anymore."