[author's note: I hope no one minds me giving The Fuser a male pronoun... it was getting awkward to write.]
"SEIZE HIM!"
The Fuser nearly leapt out of his skin as the newly-minted Iron Mask shouted a command to her robotic minions and gestured at him. He had no idea that Madam Masque's dramatic entrance had disrupted his cloaking device, nor had he realized that his creation had the genius of Tony Stark, the ruthlessness of Whitney Frost, and the quick thinking of both. The dreadnoughts immediately wrestled the Fuser into the ruined office, clamping him against the floor with their steely hands. Even the jaded Black Widow was shocked at the sudden turn of events. She whipped out her pistol, aiming at the Fuser, then Iron Mask.
"Don't move," she snapped.
"Oh, put it away, Natasha, I have this imbecile secured," the armoured brunette said dismissively.
"I said don't move!" Widow repeated. "I don't know what you did to Iron Man, but--" she was cut off mid sentence as an electrical shock coursed through her body, stunning her. Mask sighed and released her taser as Widow collapsed to the floor. The shapely, armored woman turned back to the Fuser.
"Now, what to do with you..." she wondered idly, stroking her golden mask.
"How about I leave you guessing?" the Fuser replied, touching a control on his wrist. He disappeared in a flash of light.
***
The Fuser blinked in surprise as he appeared in an unfamiliar chamber full of arcane devices that hummed and clicked, analyzing unknown data and displaying mysterious information.
"Ah, you've arrived," a voice from the shadows rumbled. "I was hoping you would try to use a teleport device. It saves me the trouble of tracking you down." Thanos of Titan stepped into the light, hands folded behind his back. His stygian eyes glittered with cold alien curiosity and his lips curled in a mirthless smile. "Amusing toy you have there. Exotic energy devices are an interest of mine. Give yours to me and I shall make your end swift and painless."
"I think I'd rather not!" the Fuser dodged as Thanos unleashed an energy bolt at him. The Mad Titan snarled as the faceless figure danced and weaved, ducking every shot. "Going to have to do better than that, grape-face!"
With a roar, Thanos charged, intent on crushing the Fuser to pulp. The Fuser counted on this, and activated his teleporter again...
***
A cheer went up in Starlin's, the best (and only) bar in Knowhere, the science-facility built inside the head of a dead Celestial. The Guardians of the Galaxy surrounded a table, seated at which was Drax the Destroyer at one end and Groot at the other. Each of them had a collection of empty bottles around them on the table. Drax popped open a fresh one and tilted it back, chugging the brew down.
"Can't believe I'm... *uuUUUuurp* losing to a tree," he gasped, slamming the empty down and wiping his mouth.
"Come on, dad, you can do it," Moondragon encouraged, her hand on Drax's shoulder.
"I AM (hic) GROOT," his opponent remarked. Groot had stuck four finger-branches into four bottles and was sucking the beverages up, slowly but surely.
"That's it, Groot, ol' buddy!" Rocket Raccoon cheered. The other Guardians, Star-Lord and Gamora, watched and laughed as their teammates drank the bar dry.
A crackle of energy appeared over the table, and two figures dropped out of it; one androgynous and unknown, the other bulky and terrifyingly familiar. The Fuser landed on his feet, scattering bottles everywhere. Thanos flew out headfirst, toppling Drax and tangling with Moondragon. The Fuser took aim and fired.
Thanos and Moondragon both cried out as they merged together, warping and melding into a gestalt being: a hairless, statuesque beauty with lustrous purple skin and a bodysuit of dark leather that clung to the new entity's curves.
***
Iron Mask frowned and went to Tony's desk, opening up the computer and bringing up a diagram of the Fuser's device. She ignored the unconscious Natasha Romanoff for the moment, still curious about her newfound synthesized form and all its capabilities. What interested her more, though, was how she became as such. She was glad Stark's security measures in the building automatically scanned any devices or weapons more advanced than a crossbow to detect dangerous technology.
"Fascinating," she murmured, adjusting the holographic image to show an exploded view of the fusion weapon. The scan didn't provide a complete picture, but Whitney Stark's genius intellect was already filling in the blanks...