MI-13 - Part I

And there came a day unlike any other, when Earth’s mightiest heroes found themselves united against a common threat. On that day, The Avengers were born… this is not that day.

“London calling to the faraway towns! Now war is declared and battle come down! London is under attack by extra-terrestrial forces. Unconfirmed reports of an Avenger on scene. Portals in the skies. Running battles in the street. Requesting all emergency services to render assistance!”

Whilst gods battle in the skies above, London burns. Gangs of Dark Elves shake off the cobwebs of their thousand-years slumber by slaughtering every living creature of the light that they can find. Military, Police and every available member of the emergency services have been mobilised to defend the city. It won’t be enough. 

At the 'Nightcap' bar in a dingy alley in the west of London, Gardner Fox is wearily polishing glasses and dreaming of better days when an explosion rocks the street and a strange, armoured creature crashes through the window. When the monster raises some kind of weapon and threatens the midday patrons, Fox leaps into action once again, beating the alien down with an old nightstick kept behind the bar. As news starts to come through the BBC that London is under attack, Fox thinks of the place his costume hangs, unused for years, and has an idea... 

Inside the London Sanctum of magic, the aged and revered sorcerer, William Albertson spends yet another day in study of the mystic arts. Having grown too frail and blind to battle the supernatural threats under the guidance of The Ancient One, William has dedicated himself to achieving the heights of arcane power. When the mystic alarm on the Sanctum chimes, indicating an attack, William pushes his awareness into the aether, out into the London streets. Seeing the carnage of the Dark Elf attack, William wraps a warm coat around his shoulders and goes into battle one more time. 

MI-6 Headquarters is in a panic as London is under attack. Despite a drastic change in national security policy after the alien attack on New York in 2012, portals to other planets opening over Greenwich and monsters of mythology spilling out is beyond what the emergency services can cope with. Every available agent is scrambled into the field with whatever equipment can be found to help battle the invaders. One of the youngest, Charlotte Jane Ashwood, Codename: Purple Shadow, is bundled into a helicopter alongside living legends like Union Jack, Captain Midlands and The Thin Man, but before she can adjust to the august company, Charlotte is dropped off on the roof of a West London Pub where Dark Elves are causing havoc and ordered to do what she can to turn the tide of the battle. 

By some kind of cosmic coincidence, or perhaps fate, the three heroes find themselves in the same place, confronting Dark Elves combing the streets for more victims. Gardner Fox, once again in the guise of "The Sandman", sticks to the shadows, cautiously approaching the invaders and wondering just how effective his gas gun and nightstick will be against ray guns. William Alberston, AKA, "The Arcanist" wastes no time, weaving spells of protection around himself and lifting up into the air to better view the situation. Purple Shadow leaps into the fray, trying her best 'superhero landing', but messing it up and taking a tumble. Thankfully, no one sees this fall and she makes up for it by charging headlong into the ranks of Dark Elves and downing the first one with a precise kick. 

Now aware of the heroes in their midst, the Dark Elves make use of the instability of the Convergence to 'skip' between worlds and immediately attack both Purple Shadow and Arcanist. Surrounded, Arcanist decides to unleash his ultimate spell. Raising his hands to the sky, Arcanist chants "Mighty Cyttorak, grant me strength!" A glowing arc of magical energy builds until the entire street is filled with blinding light. Sadly, being creatures of antediluvian darkness, the Dark Elves are unaffected. The second band of Dark Elves surround Purple Shadow and manage to injure her, but several fall when she manifests her enigmatic aura. Whispering a short prayer that his equipment hasn't corroded in storage, the Sandman unleashes a squirt of sleeping gas, knocking down several Dark elves around Wizlord. 

Surrounded on all sides, Arcanist unleashes bolts of mental images at the Dark Elves, who seem unaffected. In retaliation, the blast of fire from the Dark Elves penetrates Arcanist's mystical shield, wounding him. Unsure of surviving the next few minutes, Sandman makes use of his ability to shift his body into a sand-like substance for better protection. Hope begins to dwindle in the heroes as Sandman finds his nightstick no match for the thick alien armour and another wave appears at the end of the street, ray guns blazing. At last finding his focus, Arcanist fells the Dark Elves surrounding him; emboldened, Purple Shadow and Sandman charge into the alien ranks, combining her deadly aura with his sleeping gas, the invaders finally thin out. 

As the din of battle fades, the heroes catch their breath, Arcanist introducing himself in a formal manner, but Purple Shadow being more taciturn to guard her Secret Agent status. So involved are these two in their discussion that neither notices Sandman wander off into a nearby alley to retch into the gutter or the mysterious figure watching them from a nearby roof. MI-6 Agent, Elizabeth "Betsy" Braddock has been sent into the field to do what she can to combat the crisis as best she can. Having seen the tail end of the fight, Betsy, aka Psyloke, knows that the people below are fellow heroes, so she descends to the street and introduces herself. Arcanist, Sandman and Purple Shadow are initially put-off by the elfin, teenage superhero, but they soon learn that they'll need all the help that they can get. 

The pause in the fighting is brief, with an almighty crash, a flexibus rolls down the street. With a steady, rhythmic stomping, a hulking, horned brute rounds a nearby corner, flanked by more Dark Elves. From the burning wreckage of the flexibus, screams can be heard; people are still alive in there. 

Leaping into action, Arcanist shouts "Ruffians, face in this direction", and unleashes another destructive wave of scouring light, this time several Dark Elves are overcome. Sensing that the innocents trapped in the bus will be easier prey, some Dark Elf warriors begin prying away twisted metal whilst the hulking brute know as one of the Kursed charges towards the heroes. Attempting to help, Psyloke telekineticly lifts a nearby lorry and hurls it towards the Dark Elves around the bus; some aliens fall, but Arcanist abuses the young hero for her reckless behavior. To better demonstrate the fine art of battling evil, Arcanist mystically raises the lorry once more and smashes it into the encroaching Kursed. 

Enraged, the Kursed charges at the nearest hero, clipping Psyloke with its bulk and knocking her cold in one blow. Things are faring better for the heroes closer to the civilians, as Sandman slinks closer in his sand form and Purple Shadow is wading through the alien warriors quickly and efficiently, though not without cost, as her number of wounds increases. Ensorcelling Psyloke for her own protection, Arcanist keeps the Kursed at bay with spells that do little more than seem to annoy it, but that and Purple Shadow's continued fighting buy enough time for Sandman to slip into the bus and pull the civilians to safety. Injured and worried for the welfare of innocents, the heroes slip away in the confusion to regroup. Viewing the destruction as they go, our heroes wonder just how they can possibly save London and what will remain if they do? 

Who will suvive and what will remain of them? Tune in next time, when  the Sensational Sandman, Pugnacious Purple Shadow, Awesome Arcanist and Phenomenal Psyloke return to battle the Dark Elf menace in the Mighty Marvel Manner! See you all next ish!