//------------------------------// // Orange You Glad... // Story: The Technological Technicolor Technomare // by Tatsurou //------------------------------// It was a rather ordinary day in New York City. The citizens went about their day, going from place to place between buildings, whether to jobs or school or vacation time. The sun shone brightly through the special skyway built for Zuki, the Asgardians, and other law enforcement agencies to get about the city readily without interfering with civilian traffic. There was even a giant green lizard rampaging atop it. All perfectly normal for the city of New York these past few years. It took a full hour of said rampage before anyone realized that the lizard in question had wings. It was another hour before anyone came to the conclusion that this wasn't just another stage of Zuki's growth, and law enforcement agencies - including the Avengers - were called in. Needless to say, Fin Fang Foom was unamused. "Two hours?" he snarled. "I attack the city with all my might for two full hours before anyone does anything about it? Do they not know the power of Fin Fang Foom?" He glanced at the skyway he'd been attacking. "Not that I have much damage to show for the investment of my time...how is it that this city can be so prepared for a dragon attack?" Turning, he saw police vehicles gathered nearby above the skyway, forming a perimeter but not attacking. "So, at least you respect the might of a dragon-" The mighty dragon's rant was cut off as a massive form, a darker green than his, slammed bodily into him, sending him careening over the skyway. "What?" Fin Fang Foom demanded angrily. "Why would a dragon side with these mortals over one of his own kind?" Getting a clearer look at his opponent, he snarled. "You are no dragon!" he spat. "You are just some mutated beast! You dare defile me with your touch?" Zuki roared in defiance, although in reptilian speak the roar carried overtones suggesting what Zuki had once done to Fin Fang Foom's mother, which showed he'd been spending too much time around Hawkeye.(1) "You take that back!" Fin Fang Foom roared, lunging at the lizard with fury in his eyes and murder in his heart. Zuki grinned as he lowered his head for the clash. Some distance away, a well muscled, green skinned man with pointy ears dressed in gold, green, and purple, stared at the conflict in stupefaction. "What the hell is that?" he demanded. "That's Zuki," Rainbow said happily as she hovered in her armor, the other Avengers gathered nearby. "He's my puppy!" Mandarin stared at Rainbow in confusion. "Your...puppy?" "Yup!" Rainbow said happily. "He's my good little puppy! Sic him, Zuki!" Rainbow shouted to Zuki. Zuki roared in response before catching his draconic opponent off guard with a blast of radiation breath to the crotch. "You will pay for that!" Fin Fang Foom roared in response, though his voice was much higher pitched. Mandarin stared at the battle of giant lizards in confusion and frustration. It had been his intent to have Fin Fang Foom's rampage cause a great deal of damage to New York, distracting most of the Avengers and give himself time to discover, isolate, and capture the source of the magic that was so like the power of his rings and had generated the power that had protected the planet from the destruction of the Skrull...oh, and had destroyed the Skrull. He had not anticipated that Fin Fang Foom would land on a transparent shell around the city that protected it completely from all the force the dragon could bring against it. He also had not anticipated the Avengers having their own tame giant lizard to fight Fin Fang Foom. He really should have looked into more current events than 'the nature of the massive magical burst that made his rings flare and awoke him from his magical slumber'. Still, he wasn't going to let things not quite going his way stop him from claiming what he had come for. "You utter fools!" he proclaimed, pointing dramatically with his left hand. "Do you think your power is anything to match the might of the rings of the Mandarin?" "Wait, Mandarin?" Rainbow interrupted. "So this is the guy you were worried about hunting me down because the magic of my Sonic Rainboom is similar to the wavelength shared by his rings?" Tony facepalmed. "Yes, Rainbow, he's the villain we didn't want to know that you generated that sort of magic." Rainbow blinked, then rubbed the back of her head in embarrassment. "He he, oops." Mandarin grinned widely. "So, you are the source of power! Well, no matter!" He raised his hand dramatically again. "In the past I have defeated you all soundly all on my own! This shall be no different! You haven't attacked yet, and I know why! You fear my power-" "Yoink!" Rainbow called suddenly, zipping past Mandarin. Mandarin blinked. Seeing nothing changed, he raised his other hand. "And wise you are to fear me! For with the power of the ten rings at my command, I am invincible-" "Yoink!" Rainbow called again, zipping back to her original position. Mandarin scowled. "And despite these distractions, you shall all now feel my wrath!" He raised his hands dramatically over his head, intending to obliterate them by unleashing the full power of all ten rings at once. But nothing happened. "My wrath! Where is my wrath?" He looked up at his hands. "Where are my rings?" "Looking for these?" Rainbow teased. The ten rings were suspended in her forehoof repulsors. Mandarin gaped. "What?" "Geeze, you're slow," she teased. "I swiped these when I 'yoinked' past you. So these are the magic rings that have the same wavelength as my Sonic Rainboom?" She looked them over. "How do I use them?" "You put them on your fingers," Tony groaned as Hulk and Thor laughed and Mandarin continued to gape in disbelief. "Oh," Rainbow replied. "But I don't have fingers...maybe I can draw out the power with a Rainboom!" Without waiting to think it through, she shot into the sky. "Rainbow, wait!" Tony called out, shooting after her. By the time he caught up to her, however, she was already on the way back down, the mach cone already formed. He dove after her. Off in the distance, he spied Zuki tearing Fin Fang Foom's stomach open, devouring his flesh, and raising his head in a triumphant roar over the dead dragon. The mach cone shattered explosively as the Rainboom formed. The Rings - held in front of Rainbow at the focal point of the mach cone - also shattered explosively. And the sky beneath them tore open. To be continued... (1) Some people have questioned why Hawkeye gets so much hate in this. It has nothing to do with Hawkeye's character. It's simple process of elimination based on rolls of how Rainbow interacted with everyone. Tony was Father. Pepper was Mother. Hulk was Nanny. Ultron was funny robot. Captain America was idol. Thor was funny Uncle who got what she was going through. Nick Fury was the gruff uncle who secretly likes you but won't admit it. Natasha was the other female role model Rainbow wasn't sure she wanted to be. That left Clint as the not-so-nice Uncle who's a bad influence and gets blamed for everything. So, basically, he's written the way he is because he's the one I know the least about as a character.