[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/7ieqwfU.png[/img][/center] Icon had wanted to get a better look at exactly what it was they were facing, so he took to the sky and circled above the advancing horde of alien invaders. Aside from the massive war machine that led the way, Icon saw thousands of the teal skinned marauders that flanked it on either side. Looking down at the massive tank and the dozens of armaments that adorned it, Icon knew that stopping that thing was priority number one. However, it would be impossible to take it out without first thinning out the ranks of the army of aliens that marched along side it. Icon began to circle around the invaders again, but did an immediate quarter turn in the sky and accelerated toward the ground. He impacted the ground with a thunderous crash, knocking dozens of the invaders from their feet. Without hesitation, Icon again left his feet, lifting only a few feet off the ground. He lowered his shoulder and rammed into the nearest alien warrior, sending him flying into the next. Then he hit the next, and then another after that, picking up speed as he flew through the alien ranks, knocking them out of his way as he cut a swath through the alien army. “On your left, Flyboy.” Radiance’s voice called to him over the Guardians' communication channel. Following Radiance's warning, Icon looked to his left, toward the massive battle tank. He saw that several small, single pilot speeders, which looked something like flying motorcycles were racing toward him. [b] “I got it.” [/b] Icon said as his eyes began to take on a reddish glow. In an instant, he fired an optic blast which struck the lead speeder, causing it to erupt into a fireball, which engulfed the second speeder, which was traveling just behind it. Without missing a beat, Icon reached down and grabbed one of the alien invaders. He held the murderous thug in midair for a moment, almost as if contemplating what to do with him. Then, Icon ripped the black armored helmet off the alien's head, and in on fluid motion, flung the alien back to the ground while spinning in midair, hurling the alien's helmet as if he were a Major League pitcher, sending it on a collision course with the third speeder. The impact of the helmet caused the speeder to rock hard to the left, then it listed to the right, just before the pilot lost complete control, and the speeder crashed down; rolling end over end through a crowd of invaders until it finally came to a stop. Several beats passed, and the speeder exploded- sending the surrounding invaders, and pieces of invaders, scattering for dozens of yards in every direction. [color=c0c0c0]"Keep your head in the game, Icon. You can play for the Red Sox when we're done here."[/color] Iron Knight's voice came through over the comlink. [b] “More of a Dodger's guy myself.” [/b] Icon replied as he dove headlong back into the ranks of the invading forces. [b][center]***[/center][/b] From high atop the Arlaaekan war machine, the being known as The Outsider watched as Earth's heroes fought valiantly to fend off the mighty Arlaaekan invasion force. However, he knew that no matter how bravely they fought, the Earthlings were doomed. It was a scene that The Outsider had seen played out time after time all across the cosmos. The Autocrat's armada would descend upon a world. Then the forces of Arlaaek's Grand Army would decimate any resistance, and then the planet would be stripped of its natural resources in order to fuel the Arlaaekan war machine. This was something that The Outsider had seen and participated in more times than he could count. However, this assault was different. To The Outsider, this siege was personal. Earth after all, had once been his home. As he stood atop the war machine and watched the battle unfold below him, he couldn't help but to wonder, if there had been heroes on Earth when he had last been there, so many years ago, would they have saved him before he was lost to the stars? Would his life been different? Could it be possible that instead of the state of constant warfare that he had found himself in since he was rescued by the Autocrat, could he have found peace at home on Earth? As soon as the invasive thought had penetrated his psyche, The Outsider pushed it from his mind. It was too late to play a game of “What if?” The truth was, there hadn't been heroes to save him from his fate, and now he had returned to the planet that he had once called home, not as a returning hero, a man who had seen the horrors of the galaxy and returned home to prepare his people for what may come. He returned AS one of those horrors, and he would personally see that every man, woman, and child on the planet would be burned from the face of the Earth, and that the whole of humanity would be forgotten by the rest of the galaxy, just as the Earthlings had forgotten him. And he would finally have his revenge... [b][center]***[/center][/b] Icon cut through the ranks of invaders. He met them with a combination of fists, elbows, shoulders and optic blasts, until there was barely an alien standing within 50 yards of him. Just up ahead, he saw Lyger going toe to toe with what could only be described as some sort of alien brute. This teal skinned monstrosity was much larger than the others, standing at what Icon figured was about eight feet tall and as his father would say, “was built like a brick shit house.” Lyger used his superior speed to stay just out of the behemoth's reach. Flipping and diving out of the way, avoiding the alien's wild attacks. In fact, the black clad feline hero was using the massive alien against its allies, getting close enough that when it missed him with one of its wild swings, instead striking the aliens who were unfortunate enough to be within arms length. Lyger moved in on his larger foe, bounding and striking with quick punches and kicks, before dodging out of the way before the alien brute could muster up a counter attack. Lyger dodged a wild swing from the massive alien, then connected with a jumping wheel kick to the invader's jaw, which staggered it, knocking it right back into Icon, who connected with an uppercut the the midsection, which doubled the alien enforcer over. Icon then joined his hands together in an upwards motion, he hit the alien with a double ax handle to the chin, which sent the invader several stories in the air, before crashing down in a heap on the pavement. “Show off.” Lyger said over his shoulder before striking out at the alien soldiers within reach. Icon was about to respond to his friend, but something else had caught his attention. At the edge of the battlefield was a lone figure riding what as far as he could tell was a giant alien cat, nearly as tall as he was. [i]Now what?[/i] Icon thought to himself as he noticed the green haired woman and the dozens of petrified alien invaders that she had left standing in her wake. [color=8dc73f]“We made it!”[/color] He heard her proclaim through the chaos of battle. Icon looked toward her and made eye contact, then gave a nod welcoming her to the fray before finally turning his attention to the giant tank, and the man standing atop of it.