The forest grew quiet again—but not for long.
It didn't take more than a few minutes before a new sound broke through the fading hisses of the defeated snake tide.
Hiiiiisssssssssssssss!
A loud, rumbling hiss echoed through the trees ahead. It wasn't the high-pitched sound of a regular snake. This was deep—like the growl of a beast too large to belong in this forest.
John stopped mid-step, his brows furrowing.
"You hear that?" he asked, voice low.
Tony raised an eyebrow, already pulling up his drone feed. "Oh yeah. That one doesn't sound friendly at all."
The ground trembled slightly beneath their feet, like something massive was approaching.
Branches snapped in the distance. Trees creaked.
Then they saw it.
Two massive heads slithered out from the mist ahead. Each one was the size of a small car, with jaws large enough to bite a man in half. Their scales shimmered with dark emerald green and patches of black, blending into the forest shadows. Thick, coiled bodies followed behind, stretching dozens of meters, winding around trees like giant serpents of death.
The two snakes raised their heads high, hissing again—forked tongues flickering, eyes glowing with a dim yellow light.
"You see that?" Tony whispered. "That's not a snake… that's a freaking final boss."
John narrowed his eyes. "Tier 2. Mid-level. Stronger than the swarm… and intelligent."
The snakes didn't attack immediately. Instead, they circled, bodies weaving through the thick forest, studying their prey.
"They're planning something," John muttered. "Be careful."
Tony let out a low whistle. "Well, time to suit up."
With a swift tap on his wristband, nanotech armor flowed over Tony's body like liquid metal. It started at his shoulders and surged across his chest, arms, and legs in a flash of red, gold, and shining silver lines. The silver glowed like neon, pulsing gently with magical energy.
The armor was sleek and muscular, reminiscent of the iconic Avengers: Endgame suit—but infused with lots of inscription. The glowing silver traced along the limbs and chest like circuit paths, pulsating with energy from both technology and magic.
His helmet locked into place with a mechanical snap.
Tony grinned from behind the faceplate. "Okay, snakes. Daddy's home."
John rolled his eyes. "Try not to get eaten."
"Please. I'm crunchy and full of tech. Not delicious."
The snakes hissed again—and struck.
One lunged at Tony, jaws wide, while the other coiled and launched its massive tail toward John like a whip.
John ducked to the side, earth rising under his feet to block the blow. The snake's tail smashed through the wall of stone like it was paper.
"Strong," John muttered. "Definitely not normal."
Tony flew backward, boosters flaring from his boots, dodging the snapping jaws just in time. "Geez! That mouth smelled like ten-year-old garbage!"
Then, from the snake's mouth, a green mist sprayed forward—sharp, acrid, and sizzling as it hit the tree trunk beside Tony.
"Poison spit?!"
The tree melted halfway down, bark bubbling and breaking apart.
"Yup. Noted. Don't let that hit you," Tony muttered, switching to metal manipulation mode. He raised both arms, summoning two metal spears from his back compartment and hurled them forward.
The spears spun like drills, glowing with silver inscription, and pierced the nearest snake's side. It let out a deafening screech and slammed into the ground, its coils thrashing wildly.
Meanwhile, the second snake summoned poisonous vines from the ground. They slithered toward John like snakes of their own, trying to wrap around his legs and arms.
"Wood manipulation, huh? Alright. Let's see who's better."
John stomped the ground. "Earth Rise!"
Stone pillars shot up, tearing through the vines and lifting him above the forest floor.
Then, he raised his right hand. "Fireball."
A massive ball of flame ignited in his palm. He hurled it toward the incoming snake, hitting its underbelly. The flames exploded, sending scorched leaves and scales flying.
The snake roared in pain—but didn't fall.
"Still not enough…" John whispered. "Time to push harder."
He didn't want to reveal his full strength, not yet. So he stayed at 50%, channeling fire, earth, and wood manipulation in sync. Vines under his control lashed out, grabbing the snake's tail just as it tried to swing again.
"Earth Bind!" he shouted, causing massive rocks to form around the snake's lower half, pinning it in place.
"Tony! Now!"
Tony didn't waste a second. He launched upward, twisting in the air as glowing metal shards formed around him like a halo.
"Say hello to my shiny friends!"
The shards rained down like bullets—each one carrying enough energy to pierce armor. They struck the pinned snake, leaving deep gouges and rupturing its scales.
But the second snake wasn't idle.
It struck Tony from the side, tail-first, knocking him mid-air into a tree with a loud crack. But thanks to defense rune inscriptions on his armor, Tony was safe.
"Okay… that's gonna bruise," Tony groaned, crawling up. "Didn't even buy me dinner first…"
John growled, eyes narrowing.
No more games.
He raised his hand, palm glowing with white-gold light.
"Judgment."
A holy spear of pure light formed above his head, humming softly. It pulsed with otherworldly energy—John's signature killing blow.
"Goodbye."
The spear launched downward like lightning, hitting the already-wounded snake's head.
Boom!
The head exploded in a flash of white light, the body convulsing and then falling limp.
One snake down.
The remaining one let out a furious hiss and lunged toward John in a wild rage.
But John didn't move.
"Tony. Your turn."
Tony grinned, cracked his knuckles, and activated his gauntlet's core module.
"Neon blade mode: Engaged."
His arms glowed brighter—silver light turning into jagged, spinning blades. He boosted forward, slicing through the air with a roar.
With one clean motion, he stabbed into the snake's open mouth, forcing a metal spike down its throat. He then activated the built-in detonation rune.
"Choke on this!"
Boom!
The snake's head erupted, its body crashing into the ground with a massive thud.
Silence followed.
Only the crackling of distant fire and the whispering wind remained.
John stepped forward, looking at the two massive corpses.
"Two mid-tier beasts. Coordinated. Smart. Something sent them."
Tony pulled off his helmet, panting. "Yeah, well… whatever."
They looked at each other.
No words were needed.
Both turned toward the path from where the snakes had come.
A thick trail led deeper into the forest.
Tony adjusted his gear. "So… walk into the creepy fog where monster snakes came from?"
John smirked. "That's the plan."
Tony sighed. "Of course it is."
And with that, the two of them stepped forward—into the unknown.