Steel Titan's Arc

Chapter 6 of 5

The last robot fell as scrap. Steel Titan turned to the sky. Thanos dropped through the clouds and landed on the field. The ground cracked under his boots. He wore gold armor over purple skin, and his fists were the size of boulders. Steel Titan felt the difference at once. This was no machine to crush. Behind him, the tower held hundreds of people. If he lost here, they died. "You built a tower on a rock," Thanos said. "I've knocked down bigger." He walked forward, slow and sure. Steel Titan met him. He swung a fist into Thanos's jaw. The blow rang like a hammer on stone. Thanos didn't move. He caught Steel Titan's arm and threw him into the tower wall. Steel dented. Dust fell on the people inside. "He's too strong!" Stark shouted, hovering close. His suit's lights flickered from the fight before. "You can't trade punches with him. You'll lose." Steel Titan pushed off the wall. He knew Stark was right. Alone, he had no counter. But he was not alone. "Then we don't trade," Steel Titan said. "We swarm." Hulk roared and charged. He hit Thanos low, driving him back a step. Spider-Man dropped from the beams and shot webbing across Thanos's eyes. Doctor Strange raised his hands. Golden bands wrapped Thanos's arms and held them still. For one breath, the giant was pinned. "Now, big guy!" Spider-Man yelled. Steel Titan sprinted. He drove both fists into Thanos's chest with everything he had. The armor buckled. Thanos slid back and dropped to one knee. The bands strained. Strange's arms shook. "I can't hold him long!" the sorcerer said through his teeth. Steel Titan did not stop. He grabbed Thanos by the shoulders and swung him away from the tower, out across the open field. Thanos hit the ground hard, far from the people. That was the goal. Not to beat him. To move the fight away from the civilians. Thanos tore through the golden bands. They snapped like thread. He stood and wiped webbing from his face. But he was far from the tower now, and the people were safe behind Steel Titan's line. "Clever," Thanos said. "You moved the board." He looked at the four heroes spread before him. Then he did something none of them expected. He turned and looked at the far ridge. A figure walked from the rocks. Ten feet tall, gray, cracked like a cliff. His eyes glowed orange. Thanos smiled. "I don't fight alone either." The rock giant cracked his fists and stepped to Thanos's side. Steel Titan stood between them and his tower, breathing hard. He had saved the civilians. But now he faced two titans instead of one, and Strange was spent.