Doorstep to Hell Pt. 3

On one side, Hela stood with her arms crossed, and on the other side, three members of the infamous Calypso squad. Lightning flashed in the skies, as if the gods themselves were fidgeting with great anticipation.

"Loki, Minerva," Zephyr called out. "The Captain's not with us this time, so we're going with the tertiary formation. Minerva keep your distance. Loki and I will cover you."

"Understood," Minerva said.

"Rules of engagement?" Loki asked.

Zephyr held her blade up in a swordsman's stance. "Go for the kill."

"Hehe, you all look so cute," Hela giggled. "So? Are we ready to tango, darlings?"

An eerie silence filled the depot, thick and oppressive. Outside, the storm raged on, hammering the building’s exterior with relentless sheets of rain. The distant thunder and the sharp tapping of droplets against the metal roof only heightened the tension, as if the storm itself was holding its breath, waiting for something to break the stillness.

Suddenly, Minerva reached into her pocket and threw a small spherical object into the air.

"Code: Trojan Horse!" she shouted.

The sphere popped, releasing a swarm of tiny drones that flew under Minerva's control. A hailstorm of bullets and plasma rounds rained down toward Hela, who made subtle movements to dodge only when it was necessary.

"Code: Eleventh Hour," Zephyr said.

She fazed out of sight, freezing time momentarily as she moved into position behind her target. In sync, Loki charged head-on, her sword raised, each footstep thunderous with the force of her enhanced strength.

Their movements were perfectly coordinated; while Loki attacked from the front, Zephyr aimed for Hela's blind spot, and Minerva’s drones cut off any route of escape.

"Code: Berserk!" Loki roared.

As she swung at her with earth-shattering force, Hela ducked and pivoted, letting the strike whiff past her. Simultaneously, Zephyr reappeared, her blade slicing toward Hela's back, but the moment she phased back into time, Hela sidestepped with uncanny timing, dodging the attack effortlessly.

"Updating patterns and trajectories..." Minerva said, the diamonds in her eyes flickering.

Having already calculated the failed strikes, she quickly recalibrated the drones to lock onto Hela again, unleashing another barrage of plasma. She then pulled out her own hand cannon and fired as many accurate shots as possible.

"What a breathtaking display of teamwork," Hela chuckled. "I can see why Calypso is so feared, even among the upper Athenian division."

"Move in, Zeph!" Loki shouted as she dashed in from the side. "Cover at your seven, Minnie!"

"Already looking!" Minerva replied.

Zephyr rushed back into position, freezing time again to reposition herself in front of Hela, a blade aiming straight for her throat. The moment time resumed, Hela tilted her head, the blade missing by a hair.

"Loki!" Zephyr shouted.

At her word, Loki charged forward, using Zephyr’s brief attack as a distraction. Her fist slammed into the floor where Hela had just been, creating a crater, but Hela was already behind her. Zephyr followed through with a sweeping kick, and Loki swung an elbow in perfect coordination, but both strikes failed to land as Hela ducked beneath the kick and sidestepped the elbow in one seamless motion.

"Oh, come on, darlings," she giggled. "I'm sure you can do better than that!"

In an instant, she punched Loki in the stomach and kicked Zephyr across the face, sending them both flying back. Minerva forced her drones to stand by, as any shots made now would be pointless.

"I admit, you're good," Hela said. "Nemesis certainly pulled no punches training you girls, but the fact is clear. None of you are Nemesis, so your attempts to put your training into practice unfortunately fall flat."

Zephyr and Loki collected themselves, holding their blades firm. Minerva kept her drones overhead, ready to launch at any given moment. And standing in between all three was Hela herself.

Outnumbered but not outmatched, she laughed again. "Shall we try that again?"

Right as they were about to charge again, a tremor shook the ground. It began as a light shaking but quickly spiraled into a violent earthquake. Just as suddenly, an ear-piercing shriek came from seemingly nowhere, followed by an explosion.

They all turned around to stare at an opening in the ceiling. A spiraling pillar of black and white took to the skies, stopping at nothing. The rain came to a halt. All around them, color faded, from the yellow markers on the ground to the symmetrical blue paint on the wall. Everything became monochrome.

Hela's expression fell as she raised a brow. "Oh...?"

"Captain...?" Zephyr muttered. "Captain! Are you there?!"

But she was met with static.

"Fuck...! Zeph!" Loki shouted. "We need to—"

Before she could say anything else, Hela appeared right in front of her. She landed a powerful punch on Loki's stomach and chopped her in the neck. In just those two seconds, Loki was down. Before she could fall over, Hela grabbed onto the back of her collar, holding her in place.

"Alright, darlings," she said, the smile wiped clean off her face. "Playtime's over."

Minerva was next, activating her power with a flick of her wrist. Every piece of machinery in the depot whirred to life under her control, even those that had been destroyed. A barrage of bullets and plasma bolts rained down.

Hela's form shimmered as she darted through the onslaught, moving too fast to be touched. In an instant, she was upon Minerva, her hand locking onto her wrist. With a quick twist, she forced Minerva to the ground, knocking her out with a sharp jab to the spine.

Zephyr tried to take advantage of the distraction, halting time as she sprinted closer. However, the closer she got, the more Hela was able to sense her. Before Zephyr could land a blow, Hela's eyes flashed, and she turned with a speed that defied even frozen time. Grabbing Zephyr by the neck, she hurled her across the depot, slamming her against the wall.

Just like that, the Calypso squad had been dispatched. Hela stood amidst the wreckage of her defeated opponents, her breath steady, her gaze cold. She tilted back up to see the pillar left by Holiday's code fading beyond the stormy night. With her next blink, the rain fell once more as color returned to everything.

"Hm... Overdriving here, of all places?" she scoffed. "What could've possibly forced you to do such a thing, darling? God, I could use some alcohol right about now."

Her eyes curled down to look at the unconscious Loki lying still at her feet. She sat on the ground and pulled Loki's head up, resting it on her lap. Gently, she brushed her fingers through Loki's hair.

"What a beautiful face you have," Hela giggled. "Makes sense, though. You are my sister, after all. I expected nothing less. And you've grown so~ strong too. I can tell you haven't been sitting on your ass doing nothing for the past seven years. If only your sword was pointed elsewhere. Does it really have to be me, dear sister?"

Of course, Loki didn't respond, but Hela wasn't expecting her to anyway. She rested her hand on Loki's cheek, carefully caressing it.

"It's been so long since I've held you like this. Stay unconscious for a bit longer for me, will you? I want to savor this feeling, because who knows how long I'll be able to feel it again."