Left with no other choice, the congressional officials could only turn to the Sword Bureau for help.
The superheroes who had been stuck in place were finally able to keep advancing.
Inside the Sword Bureau, a special task force clad in War Machine armor was deployed.
Zod openly used the funding that various nations provided to the Sword Bureau to purchase War Machine and Iron Monger suits from his own companies.
"We are the sharp blade in the darkness! Control, protect, until death takes us!"
"Behind us stands all of humanity. We have no retreat to speak of!"
"Forward, only forward! You are humanity's final line of defense!"
"Lift your lanterns and march on. Even if the shadows cling to every step, they can only ever follow behind us!"
"When the weak face a mighty foe, the most effective resistance is sacrifice! Countless sacrifices!"
The pre battle speech sent the task force's blood boiling.
"We stand ready to step into hell, sir!"
Every member of the task force roared in response.
"Good. To those who court death, we salute!"
The task force leaped from the aircraft. Protected by their War Machine armor, they landed without a scratch.
"The target this time is an ice cream monster. Threat level: Demon!"
The task force received the update from command.
A Demon level monster, huh...
"Sir, I don't quite understand. Why go through all this trouble?"
The Black Queen stood beside Zod Heath and watched the scene unfold before asking the question.
"To forge a new breed of humanity."
Zod Heath toyed with a coin as he spoke.
He hadn't come to this world just to drift along with the plot and accomplish nothing of note. He wanted to pursue a life of grandeur, of swift vengeance and bold satisfaction.
With foreknowledge of the story, failing to make changes would be the greatest waste of all.
And the change Zod Heath aimed for was to use terror as a crucible to shape a generation of "heroes."
"Some people play dead when faced with fear. But others become so consumed by terror that they turn manic. If you can strike the right balance, you can mold a great many genuine heroes."
Zod explained.
He had no desire to see humanity rely on a reclusive isolationist nation like Wakanda to fight off Thanos's Black Order.
If Wakanda wanted to shut its borders and hide from the world, then let it stay hidden forever. But from now on, they'd get no share of humanity's finest gifts.
"When the world stands on the brink of destruction because of a thousand different horrors, I want to see more than just superheroes rise to the occasion..."
Zod had no shortage of weapons or equipment. He could easily arm every single person on the planet if he wanted. But the number of people willing to stand up and fight? That was pitifully small.
Think about it. Every time danger struck, it was always the superheroes who went out and fought to the death. Zod Heath found that approach far too unreliable.
Putting all your hope in a handful of superheroes was a recipe for disaster.
"This task force shall be named Hell's Frontline."
Zod mulled it over. Maybe he should bring out some containment objects or monsters straight out of horror films to train the psychological fortitude of Hell's Frontline.
Anyone who could survive being tormented by fear and terror hundreds of times would be the elite of the elite. They'd be the veterans who could then train the new recruits.
The weapons he'd equipped the War Machine units with were called Pulse Rifles.
Each bullet was as thin as a needle. When fired, the muzzle flash burned a deep blue. This was no gunpowder weapon. It was pure, authentic future tech. The glow came from the radiance of a pulse wave discharge. As the rifle fired, it also vented a pale blue stream of gas downward. Anyone from Hell's Frontline standing within that gas stream looked absolutely spectacular.
The Pulse Rifle used a completely different technology from conventional firearms. It accelerated solid projectiles using pulse propulsion, resulting in firepower several times greater than any gunpowder weapon.
Hell's Frontline soon spotted the ice cream monster. Without a word, they opened fire.
Needle thin bullets, accelerated by pulse energy, achieved devastating power. They punched fist sized holes clean through the ice cream monster's body with ease.
Keep in mind, this was the same creature that had previously shrugged off a direct hit from a 105mm howitzer without a scratch!
The sight sent morale soaring. But the wounds on the ice cream monster's body healed almost instantly.
Then it retaliated. A snowball slammed into several members of Hell's Frontline at the front. Even inside their War Machine armor, the sheer force sent them flying. Fortunately, as Sword Bureau operatives, their suits featured a secondary kryptonian coating. That saved them from being instantly obliterated by the monster.
Next, one member of Hell's Frontline stepped forward with a Fusion Rifle.
The Fusion Rifle had an effective range of only fifty meters. It fired a basketball sized orb of superheated energy. Upon contact, it could generate temperatures of several thousand degrees or more, capable of instantly melting or even vaporizing nearly any enemy.
The weapon was so advanced that Zod Heath rarely handed it out for field use.
The destructive power was immense. Friendly fire was a serious risk.
The moment the shot was fired, the ice cream monster seemed to sense the danger and dodged. The deep blue energy sphere struck where it had just been standing.
In an instant, the ground within a ten meter radius of the impact point visibly vaporized. What little soil remained melted into a pool of slowly flowing magma.
"Damn it, it's learned to dodge!"
"Open fire! Deny it any room to maneuver!"
"Where's the Gravity Bomb?!"
Hell's Frontline quickly adapted their tactics against the ice cream monster. They had the invaluable combat experience gained from the Monster Association's worldwide attacks to thank for that.
The rest of the squad opened fire. The devastating power of the Pulse Rifles tore the surrounding terrain to shreds. Combined with the instantaneous tearing force, the damage rivaled an artillery barrage. Yet the ice cream monster chose to tank the hits rather than risk getting caught by the Fusion Rifle.
That thing will kill me!
If that gun hits me, I'm dead for sure!
"Get down!"
A member of Hell's Frontline pulled a Gravity Bomb from their gear and hurled it toward the ice cream monster.
The others immediately hit the deck. They knew exactly how terrifying the Gravity Bomb was. It was no exaggeration to say Zod Heath was a genius. The weapons he invented weren't just cutting edge, their power was beyond imagination.
The ice cream monster couldn't care less about a tossed grenade. It had seen plenty of those. But the moment the Gravity Bomb came within a hundred meters, it sensed something was terribly wrong. Its body suddenly grew unbearably heavy. Then the bomb detonated violently. The ground around the epicenter twisted and curled upward as if crushed and rolled into a ball by some colossal force. The spiraling effect spread rapidly outward. The sheer gravitational pull was so immense that even a Demon level monster like the ice cream creature could barely move. Its face twisted in raw terror.
It felt the grip of death!
Right there, breathing down its neck!
/-\
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