Chapter Text
Prologue
The plasma bolt just barely misses Kang's head, blasting off a chunk of concrete behind him instead.
In an uncharacteristic burst of frustration, he let loose a string of expletives, begrudgingly ducking behind his only remaining and meager protection: a large piece of rubble. Grateful for the reprieve it offered he knows this hiding spot wouldn't last much longer.
"Kang variant TL-771, self titled, Scarlet Centurion, this is your final warning. Surrender now or be dealt with with extreme prejudice" bellowed out an irritated voice some distance away. The speaker was currently obscured from Kang's view due to the swirling cloud of dust and smoke their earlier fighting had kicked up.
In response to the threat, Kang merely gave an exaggerated chuckle. Feigning unfazed bravado in the face of his very real and swiftly approaching demise. Internally though he felt anything but confident. He knew on an objective level it was over for him. His hidden base of operation, a place usually a veritable impregnable stronghold was currently in shambles and ransacked. His elite fighting force and honor guard, his Squadron, had been quickly and completely annihilated with rather embarrassing levels of ease. And his last measure of defense, his cybernetic implants had began to inexplicably go on the fritz and become nonfunctioning sometime during the opening volley's of attack during the raid on his hideout.
Right now, in this moment, Kang was the weakest he had ever been in his entire life. He was no more a physical threat to his enemies than an ant was to a mountain. Thoroughly lacking in any other real bit of leverage. But he was determined to get out of this somehow. Even if it meant bluffing his way through it all.
"Since when did the TVA start taking prisoner's?" Kang asked in an obvious attempt at a delay tactic.
"I thought you lot's whole schtick was to prune anything that didn't fit your 'sacred' timeline" Kang continued, all the while still fiddling desperately away with his nanotech amor. Trying in vain to activate any of it's suddenly non-responsive defensive features.
For whatever reason, the TVA hunter who had issued the initial ultimatum decided to take Kang's obvious bait. Rightfully figuring he held the clear advantage here, so humoring his cornered prey was only slightly prolonging the inevitable.
"Are you telling me you haven't figured it out already? I thought you Kang types where all supposed to be clever." He begun mockingly
"The TVA's under new management you see. We don't prune timelines unless we have to. These days, most of what we do now is to make sure scum like you don't mess with the multiverse and start an all out war" the hunter continued haughtily.
Only half listening, Kang merely gave a disinterested "uh huh" in response, still keenly obsessing with his suit's holographic interface, trying to get any kind of response out from it.
"Give it up will ya. I know you are back there tinkering away with your fancy little suit, trying to maybe time slip out of here. But it's not going to work. We are jamming all your tech here. The only way you are getting out of here is in cuffs, pruned or in a body bag. Either three works for me regardless"
The brash minute man said, secure in his apparent victory. Frowning, Kang ceased his futile tapping and began to try and think of another way out of here.
Desperate for more time to scheme, Kang decided to goad the rather chatty TVA hunter into talking some more.
"You guy's have thought of everything, haven't you?"
Still falling for the obvious bait for some reason the TVA hunter replied "Pretty much. You Kang's aren't nearly as hard to deal with as you think. Without your fancy gadgets and mighty armies, you are all just regular mortals at the end of the day. Maybe a bit smarter than most. But that's about it" the cocky hunter mocked.
Kang felt a brief flash of anger coil through him at the belittling words, but he managed to tamp it down just as quickly. He wouldn't allow himself to lose his cool now. That would only serve to make thing's even easier for the TVA. He needed to remain calm and collected.
Figure out a way out of this mess. By his estimation there was at least twenty or so heavily armed minute men against his lone defenseless self. There used to be dozens more but most had been taken down during the earlier skirmish. But that still meant they held the glaring numbers and weapon advantage over him. His only remaining advantage was that they thought they had him cornered. But often times a Kang is at their dangerous when they've been pushed to the brink.
"You are right" he suddenly admitted. Shocking the TVA hunter into stunned silence by his abrupt concession.
"My variants and I are mere mortals. Nothing without our toy's for the most part. However..."
His once dejected and submissive tone shifting dramatically to that off a more confident and self assured individual.
"It's because we are mere mortals that we are able to do what we do. We weren't handed power on a silver platter like the gods and other empowered entities. We worked for it. Fought for it. Clawed for it. That's what makes a Kang a Kang. Our drive. Our passion. Our zeal. Try all you like but you fools aren't stopping the upcoming war. It's already here. You just don't know it. And when it's all said and done I'll be the one standing atop it all " Kang intoned sagely and with great conviction. Like a man stating absolute facts, not hypotheticals.
Sensing something was off, Brad silently signaled to the rest of his remaining minute men squad to quickly converge on the dangerous Kang variant. No longer wishing to entertain the man.
All the agents quickly rushed over to the fallen slab of concrete and flanked it. Slowly rounding the edges to find the Crimson Centurion, casually propped up in a seated position behind the large piece of debris. Seemingly serene and at peace despite his current predicament.
Wary but ultimately pleased to see the man looked as good as finished, Brad couldn't help but mockingly opine "So you think you'll be the last Kang standing huh? Please pray tell how you'll achieve that considering I'm about to arrest your ass and have you thrown in jail for who knows how long"
Grinning knowingly, Kang levelled an unsettlingly sinister look at Brad. "It's quite simple really. I'll just beat them all to the finish line."
With that the Scarlet Centurion lunged forward with a sudden and great burst of speed to grab on to Brad's prune stick. For a split second, it looked like he planned to wrestle it free and use it as a weapon against them all. But that wasn't the case. To the shock of everyone present, instead of turning the prune stick upon his foes, Centurion instead proceeded to willingly impale himself upon it.
Stunned, all the minute men could do was watch in awe as the Scarlet Centurion began to dissolve and flake into colored sparks. All the while maintaining a happy and smug look of self satisfaction across his face. As if he had ultimately gotten exactly what he wanted. He soon disappeared completely. Leaving behind the carnage off his last stand off, and a group of deeply unsettled Minute men, undoubtedly beginning to suspect they had played right into his plans somehow. And they would be right