MARVEL : Starts From Zombie universe

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The group continued walking through the dark passageway, their footsteps echoing faintly. It was eerily quiet. No Hydra soldiers ambushed them, and Baron Zemo's usual mocking commentary was absent.

Clint breathed a sigh of relief, grateful for the reprieve. The last thing he wanted was for Zemo to dig up more skeletons from his past.

Emergency lights flickered along the walls, casting an uneven glow that only added to the unsettling atmosphere.

After what felt like an eternity, the oppressive darkness broke as lights above abruptly snapped on, flooding the passageway with brightness. The sudden glare forced Wanda and Clint to tense up instinctively, bracing for a fight.

"Look ahead," Adrian murmured, his voice low but sharp.

At the end of the corridor, a series of red indicator lights lit up, forming a line of blinking arrows pointing forward. They exchanged wary glances but followed the trail cautiously.

---

The Door

As they rounded a corner, the metallic grinding of a lock echoed. Slowly, a heavy steel door began to open.

Through the widening gap, Adrian glimpsed a vast space beyond, resembling an arena. But before the door fully opened, blood began to gush from the crack, spilling out in waves and spreading across the floor. The coppery stench of iron filled the air, making the suffocating corridor even more oppressive.

Wanda's unease grew. She instinctively raised her hand, using her telekinesis to push the blood away, collecting it in a crimson pool behind them. What remained on the ground hardened, creating a grotesque, sticky film.

As the door creaked open fully, a hulking figure emerged from the other side.

Adrian's eyes narrowed as he studied the man. He was nearly three meters tall, clad in black tights, with two green vials strapped to his back. His rippling muscles stretched his skin taut, and his presence exuded raw power.

"Is that… Bane?" Adrian asked dryly, the corner of his mouth twitching.

But the man let out an indignant roar, his deep voice reverberating through the arena. "Hail Hydra! I am Captain Hydra!"

To emphasize his declaration, the man raised a shield emblazoned with Hydra's sigil.

Adrian tilted his head, unimpressed. "I take it back—Bane is smarter than you."

---

The Arena

The group stepped cautiously into the room. Part laboratory, part battleground, the space was enormous. At the corners, machines hummed and flickered. Above them, observers in lab coats peered down from elevated platforms.

The floor, however, was a macabre sight. Piles of bodies lay scattered across the arena, most of them mutilated beyond recognition. Some had grotesque tumors bursting from their heads, while others appeared to have melted, their torsos intact but their lower halves liquefied into a bloody mess.

Adrian's lips pressed into a thin line. Judging by the state of the corpses, he guessed these poor souls had been subjected to hasty, cruel experiments in the Weapon X Facility. None had lasted more than half an hour.

A flicker of blue light drew their attention. In the center of the arena, a holographic projection materialized, revealing Baron Zemo clad in a luxurious fur coat and his signature purple mask.

---

Zemo's Taunts

Clint's hand shot up, his bow drawn and ready. His face darkened as Zemo's image smirked at them.

Zemo's gaze flicked over Adrian first. "I've never met you before. Another would-be hero, I assume? At least you have better taste in suits than most."

Then he turned to Clint, his tone dripping with disdain. "And you, Barton. Still the same sad clown from your circus days, I see."

Clint's jaw clenched, but he said nothing. The barb about his past cut deeper than he wanted to admit.

Finally, Zemo's masked face tilted toward Wanda. His tone shifted slightly, curiosity creeping in. "Maximoff? A descendant, perhaps? My apologies—I can't seem to recall what your ancestor looked like."

Before Wanda could respond, the hologram flickered out. Zemo's voice boomed from unseen speakers, cold and commanding.

"Enough pleasantries. Captain, kill them."

---

The Fight

With a feral roar, the Hydra Captain charged. His massive frame hurtled toward Adrian, who sidestepped nimbly, causing the brute to crash into the ground with a deafening thud.

"Buzz—"

An arrow from Clint's bow struck the Captain, but it barely grazed his thick skin, leaving only a faint streak of blood. The Captain turned his fiery red gaze toward Clint, his lips curling in rage.

"Is that all you've got?" the Captain bellowed, his voice thick with mockery. "Do you think a few arrows can defeat me?!"

The veins on his neck bulged, his anger fueling a terrifying transformation. His eyes glowed brighter, and his body radiated a searing heat that distorted the air around him.

"There's something wrong," Adrian muttered, pulling Clint back. "Wanda, shield!"

Wanda hesitated but quickly conjured a shimmering crimson barrier around the three of them just as the Captain unleashed a blast of fiery red energy from his eyes. The beams struck the shield with a loud crackle, sending shockwaves rippling through the air.

Wanda's brow furrowed. The impact wasn't the issue—something about the Captain's powers felt… familiar.

"That energy," she murmured, glancing at Adrian. "It's similar to Cyclops. But…"

Her voice trailed off as a drop of blood trickled from the Captain's shoulder where Clint's arrow had struck earlier.

The droplet hovered briefly in the air before exploding into a tiny magical sigil. Wanda's eyes widened in realization.

"He's a mutant," she said, her voice tinged with shock.

Adrian's gaze hardened as he prepared for the next attack. "Then we'll have to finish this fast—before Zemo's pet turns this arena into a graveyard."

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