Cora stood up on shaking legs. Everywhere she looked, all she saw was utter destruction. The buildings were in ruins, the street was cracked open, the wall around the city had fallen, and even the sky was torn open. The dead rested across the street, and debris rained from above.
Mages were worshipped as gods. They helped create this very world. They could just as easily tear it all down, Cora realized...
Lightning Empress had placed her in a bubble of air, which had flown her all the way to the other side of the city, where it had then opened up and awkwardly dropped her off. Despite being free, Cora simply sat there. She felt sick to her stomach. She didn't live in the city; she had grown up in a small little village. Even so, seeing such destruction disgusted her. She had gone into the city expecting to see parts of it be torn down, but she had believed that the mages wouldn't destroy everything. Now, though, she was afraid that the very world itself would be destroyed. The mages didn't look like they'd be letting up in their fight any time soon.
"Cora!" The girl jumped when she heard a familiar voice.
"Nikos!" She stood up and turned just in time to feel a pair of strong arms wrap around her.
Nikos, her older brother, hugged her tightly and let out a weak cry. "Thank God you're okay. I- I woke up in this bunker and suddenly came to when Pied's music stopped, and I didn't see you anywhere. I thought that maybe you..." The boy trailed off and felt his breath hitch when he saw all the bodies scattered around the street. Most had been crushed from the tumbling buildings. There were others, some who were alive. The people of the city all looked numb or sick as everything shook and mages continued their battle. "W- We need to go." Nikos gripped his sister's hand and began to drag her through the street. "It's not safe here. This entire city is going to fall apart at this rate."
Cora nodded weakly and did her best to ignore the wet slapping sounds as her foot stepped into a puddle of red. "Right." She took a moment to look back at part of the city where the battle was raging on. Fire was gushing out. The fire of Cinder. "Let's go."
She wished it didn't end this way. That the mages, or heroes as they called themselves, could have swooped in and saved the day. They had spoken so highly of themselves and seemed so confident that no one would get hurt. Nothing about this was a small battle, though. It was a full-on war, one that Cora could tell was only going to claim more lives.
Her thoughts instantly shifted to what that fake Cinder had claimed. Wish had said that she, too, was a Super. That meant she was a mage as well. The knot in her gut was back, and Cora resisted the urge to puke. Like everyone else in her world, she had looked up to the mages, but now she dreaded the thought that she was one. Did that mean she'd destroy and tear down everything? Was that what it meant to be a mage?
Nikos stopped suddenly and let out a gasp. Cora looked over his shoulder and felt her eyes go wide at what she saw. One of the mages was face down on the ground. It wasn't any of the ones she recognized, though. It was a woman dressed in an outfit covered in various clocks. The woman was badly burned and barely seemed to be clinging to life. Most of her flesh had twisted into a nasty black, and part of her was still smoking.
Lady Time had survived her fight with Legend, though just barely.
Nikos's look darkened a bit, and he began to drag his sister past the downed woman. "We need to go."
"But she's hurt," Cora argued.
"Who cares?" Nikos hissed out. "Look at what they did to our city!"
Cora shook her head and pulled her arm out of her brother's grasp. "We have to be better than them. We can't just do nothing. Otherwise, we're just letting everything be destroyed." She walked over to the downed woman and ripped the woman's cape off. She used it to cover up most of the woman's wounds and was about to lift her but was interrupted by a loud crack.
A nearby building began to tumble over, falling right toward her!
"Cora!" Nikos screamed out in fear.
At the last moment, though, before the tower could crush Cora, a wave of metal rose up, forming into dozens of blades, slicing through the building. Nikos stared in shock, and Cora jumped when she felt a hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay?" A voice asked hollowly. Oxide looked like a mess. Her eyes were red and puffy, and she kept shaking, but she was still here. More of her metal kept flowing out as she did her best to support several of the buildings and wrap the people around her up in rows of armor to keep them safe.
Cora awkwardly nodded. "Y- Yeah."
Oxide stared down at Lady Time and formed a metal stretcher beneath the woman. "Sorry."
"Huh?" Cora looked back at the girl, and Oxide began to cry once more.
"I'm sorry that we came here. We're not heroes. We're just soldiers."
Cora didn't say anything. She quietly picked up one end of the stretcher, and Nikos grabbed the other. Together, the two of them lifted the unconscious hero up. Cora turned and looked back at the falling-apart city and felt a pang in her chest.
"Is there anything that can be done?"
Oxide wiped at her eyes. "I'm going to try and keep saving people. That's all I can do. I- I already failed to save Kevin, but..."
Cora nodded faintly, and the image of the red monster came to her mind. She felt a little guilty about not feeling as sad as she should have for his death, but in the moment she didn't really care. "I just want it all to end," Cora whispered out. "Not just this fight but all of them. I don't want the world to be so frail that it might end because of something like this..."
Cora made up her mind in that moment. She didn't know what her powers were or if she even truly was a mage or not. Even so, she decided that from that point on, she was going to do her best to keep her world held together. She wanted to make a world that was strong. One that wouldn't crumble or shatter because of a battle. One that could withstand war.
"What do we have here?" Cora jumped and looked up. So did Nikos and Oxide. Something floated above them. Cora felt a wave of fear wash over her when she saw it. It was the small Gabby doll. The one that had freaked the other mages out. It was looking right down at Lady Time. "Looks like I found a little hero in distress." Gabby giggled and twirled slightly. Oxide struck out with a metal whip, but it simply phased through Gabby. "Now that we're on the hunt, I think I'll start by gobbling her up." Gabby's face twisted into a wide, fang-filled grin, and her tiny body began to expand and grow, suddenly towering over them. The doll lifted its hand up and let out a crazed roar before it suddenly struck out.
Cora felt her body move on its own, and she jumped in front of Oxide and the downed Lady Time. "S- Stop!"
Gabby's hand stopped inches away from her face. Cora felt her face pale, and she suddenly found herself staring into the monster's eyes. Why was Gabby here? If the doll was attacking, did that mean the group Cinder had talked about had arrived? If so, what did that mean for the rest of the city?
Cora forced her heart to settle, and she took a single deep breath. "You shouldn't be doing something like this!" She stated. "T- The city is already on the verge of destruction. Instead of fighting, you should do what she is doing and help with the cleanup." Cora gestured at Oxide. "You mages helped build this world and this city! Don't destroy it! Help save us."
"That won't work." Oxide jumped in front of Cora and lifted a metal sword up. "She's a monster. One of the Immortals! She's as evil as they come-"
"Okay!" Gabby said, suddenly cheerful. "I'll help fix the city!"
"Huh?"
All of them suddenly froze when they heard the remark and watched with wide eyes as the monstrous doll began to pick up the scattered debris. Gabby's hands glowed, and she began to put the blocks back together. The Immortal member worked rapidly, going through an ocean of debris and even scooping up people who were buried under it, setting them off to the side.
Oxide looked the most shocked and even appeared dumbfounded. "Why is she helping? Is this some sort of trick?"
Cora looked down at her hand. Her body felt tingly now. She got a strange feeling... An idea formed in her head. "H- Hey." She called out. Gabby turned to look back at her. "D- Dance."
Nikos and Oxide looked even more confused as the giant, bloodthirsty doll began to dance. The street shook as its feet came down, and it moved awkwardly and jittered. "It obeys what it's told?" Nikos asked, raising an eyebrow. "Do hand stand-"
"I'll rip you in two, tiny dick," Gabby said cheerfully.
"So it only listens to the girl?" Oxide glanced back at Cora and raised an eyebrow. "Are you a Super?"
Cora felt her hand shake, and she felt the pit in her stomach start to return. "Help everyone in the city! Save everyone!" She shouted out.
***
Despair...
Red scattered onto the street, and the Victorian gasped as she stared down at the hand that was shoved through her chest. The Emperor casually lifted her up and twisted his arm, throwing her off of him, and she crashed to the floor, tumbling.
"Mom!" Lightning Empress let out a cry, and electricity buzzed off of her as she launched herself at the Emperor, screaming.
The Emperor lazily smashed his fist down, burying the Lord into the ground. Myth was the next to roar and twisted into his bull form. Before he could even take a step forward, though, Lucifer's tome opened, and a page tore out of it. A black void expanded on the ground and took the shape of a large gray bull-like monster wearing thick, heavy armor. Myth's eyes went wide when he saw the monster. The other bull struck out and smashed a fist into Myth's snout, nearly breaking his neck and launching the bull back.
"No one else move." The Emperor grunted out.
No one else moved an inch. Cinder felt the air leave her lungs, and she felt Sky's hand grip down on hers. Money Tree took a cautious step in front of Metal Ronin, whose suit was still destroyed, while Phoenix shook and took a step back out of fear. Fable's head kept snapping between the Victorian and his older brother, but he also dared not to move.
Fighting Legend had been hard enough. That was a single Calamity, yet it had taken everything they had. Now, though, everything truly seemed hopeless. Despair was devouring them all.
The Emperor and Lucifer were both just as strong as Legend was. They could all feel the sheer amount of power coming off of the two villains. That was already bad enough, but it was only made worse by the fact that they weren't alone. Golden God floated above the city, his many hands all scattered outward. Standing on a finger each were the other four members of the Immortals.
Gabriel let out a little giggle, and the wires along her dress lifted up and sparked with a white energy. Suddenly appearing all around her were dozens of her Gabby dolls. "Normally, we're stuck in just one city. This year is special, though. I get to slaughter an entire world! Go and kill to your hearts' content, Gabby!" The dolls began to glow and rapidly started to fly through the city. Some expanded into massive, horrifying-looking monsters, while others rammed into towers and exploded, blowing themselves to bits and bringing the buildings crashing down.
Michael twisted his hat and tossed it into the air. He caught it and placed it back on, his grin growing. "Just remember, guys. This game is my turn. This body's been all worn out, so I'll be taking over one of the players. I know just which one I want also."
Uriel let out a low chuckle, and the pretty man brushed some of his hair back while his other arm clutched tightly to a book similar to the one Lucifer held. "Now, now, you know the rules, Michael. We don't get to pick which body we end up in. Whatever player is left alive will be your new body. No cheating."
Metatron mainly remained silent. The girl quietly stared down at the ground, her dull eyes meeting Cinder's. The gray-haired girl finally turned away, almost out of shame. "I located four of the five players. They're all together," she said softly.
Cinder felt her blood run cold, and she felt a stab of betrayal. She and Meta weren't really friends, but she had helped the girl out, and in turn, Meta had helped her. She had almost forgotten about the fact that the other girl was a member of the Immortals. Now Meta was repaying her kindness and was going to hunt her father down. Despite the emotion she felt, though, she couldn't get her body to move. She felt a pair of eyes on her, and she looked over, finding Lucifer staring right at her. The image of the car crash came back to her mind, and her heart began to beat faster. This was so much worse than seeing him in the flashback; she was seeing him in person. He was here. The man who had ruined her life was standing right next to her.
Uriel clapped his hands together, tucking his book beneath his arm. "Okay then! How about this! While Lucy has fun playing with these guys, Metatron, you and Michael go hunt down the players. Gabriel and I will stay here and make sure that Devil doesn't try anything funny."
"Don't forget that you're standing within my palm." Golden God stated. "Try and harm the Master, and I'll crush you both."
"I'd like to see you try." Gabriel giggled. Her giggling stopped, however, when she felt a hand on her throat.
Fairy Queen stood behind Gabriel and kept her hand tightly on the Immortal's neck. "Careful, dear. One wrong step, and I might just pull your cute little head off."
Uriel let out a mock sigh and placed a hand to his forehead. "I hate working with you savages. Metatron, Michael, go."
Metatron nodded her head, and a pair of spectacle wings began to grow out of her back. She gripped her brother's arm tightly, and she lifted the two of them up and blasted off. "No!" Cinder screamed, and she took a step forward.
"I said no moving." The Emperor struck out, moving lightning fast. Cinder watched as the fist flew at her face, and everything seemed to crawl in slow motion. At the last second before the strike could land, the Victorian crashed into the back of the Emperor and wrapped her arms around his waist. She picked the man up and slammed him back, smashing him down into the ground.
"Go, Cinder!" The number one hero screamed out, and that was all it took for all hell to break loose.
Cinder jumped into the air, being carried by fiery wings. She flew past Golden God, who didn't bother to attack her. Lucifer pointed toward her, about to lob and attack, but just as fast, the Victorian grabbed his wrist and forced his hand into the air. The Dead Virus exploded out of the tip of his finger and flew into the sky. Before the Victorian could let go, though, she was sucker punched by the Emperor, who rammed his fist into her face hard enough to nearly crack her skull open. The Victorian dropped to her knees, taking a gasping breath, and tried to recover, but Lucifer rammed his foot into her gut wound, opening it up more and throwing her back.
Myth came crashing out of the ground and threw a punch at Lucifer, but the gray bull from earlier tackled him to the ground. Fable let out a roar and aimed his bow, blasting the arrow at Lucifer, but without even looking, Lucifer lazily held his palm out. The Dead Virus flowed out, screeching like a demented bat, and twisted the arrow, reducing it to ash. Fable aimed another arrow, but before he could fire, he felt a sharp pain in his side, and his blood spilled as wires cut into it. Gabriel appeared behind the man, giggling. Fable gritted his teeth, and his bow twisted into a massive spear, and he twisted around, smashing it into the side of Gabriel's head, but it barely made the girl budge.
Paragon went to jump in, but before she could, a hand grabbed her by her face, and she was lifted off the ground. Fairy Queen's grin grew, and her wings expanded out. "Don't worry. You're the Master's precious baby, so I'll take real good care of you." Fairy Queen blasted off before anyone could even do anything, taking Sky with her.
Phoenix and Money Tree both launched themselves at the Emperor. The villain simply pointed, and in an instant, Phoenix felt a wave of pain as he was split in half as if an invisible blade had gone through him. His upper body fell one way, and his lower body dropped the other. Money Tree, meanwhile, screamed in pain as his remaining hand was sliced clean off along with his entire arm. Metal Ronin screamed out for his former leader and wrapped his arms around Money Tree, attempting to stop the bleeding. The Emperor kicked out to blow the boy's head clean off, but the Victorian came ramming into him again.
Fire flowed out of Phoenix, and he forced his body back together and also launched himself at the Emperor. The Emperor punched the Victorian off of him and didn't even react to Phoenix's strikes.
While the battle raged on down below, Uriel lazily took a seat on Golden God's hand. "Such savages they are. Still, I can't believe they managed to take out a few of my zombies. Maybe if Father weren't here, they'd stand a chance, but the good guys lost the instant he joined up with the Emperor."
"Agreed." Golden God hummed. "This is a force that will wipe out the world. Though don't get cocky, Immortal."
"Why not?" Uriel raised an eyebrow.
"There is still one person that is a threat."
Uriel let out a soft snort. "Let me guess, the Emperor's son. Don't tell me you actually fear that guy." Golden God remained silent. "Seriously? Is he that strong?"
"Is the man that killed Full Monarch strong? Ask yourself that question again."
Uriel rolled his eyes. "Well, he hasn't shown up to the party yet." The man's smirk grew. "His loss. By the time we get here, this precious team of his will be long gone."
Down below, Fable smashed his spear through Gabriel, but the girl just giggled and kept fighting. Wires and stuffing flowed out of her flesh as she was torn up, and it forced itself back into place. She smashed her fist out and slammed it into Fable's face, and as she pulled her arm back, a Gabby clone appeared and suddenly clung onto Fable. It glowed and then exploded with a massive blast, shaking the street.
Myth rammed his horns up into the gray bull, and he bucked his head back, lifting the zombie up and ripping him in two. "If I didn't already have countless Thaddeus clan members in my novel, I might have thought of adding you to it," Lucifer spoke dryly. The man opened his book again, and more pages flowed out. Some took on the form of a lion on two legs, others were more bulls, and some were three-headed hounds. All were variants of Myth's form. "Your kind was always so annoying to fight. Imbuing the stories of old."
Myth growled, and his body began to expand. Where his legs were, hundreds of snakes began to flow out, gushing out with lava, and his skin became rock-like. Massive wings jutted out of his back, and he towered over the battlefield. In an instant, he was in his strongest form. The one he had attempted to battle the beast with.
"As I said." Lucifer opened his book again, and two more pages came out, each taking on the same form Myth was already in. Myth now stared down at two rocky lava monsters, each bigger than him. "I already have countless Thaddeus members in my book. You're nothing special." The monsters both struck out and rammed into Myth, knocking him through several buildings, and began to beat on him violently. They grabbed him from either side and began to pull, and Myth's body started to crack and snap as he began to get torn in half.
A wave of gray light blasted up and rammed into one of the monsters, rendering them to dust in a second. Lucifer's face twisted with annoyance, and he looked down at the fleshy, baby-like form that was Legend. The Ruler let out a meek cry and began to crawl and shuffle away, digging itself into the ground and pulling a pile of rubble over its form. He hadn't done it for Myth; he had simply wanted to screw another Ruler over.
Now that he wasn't in a two-on-one, Myth wrapped his massive hand around a building and ripped it off and rammed it into the head of the Thaddeus zombie. The two of them both shrunk down and entered a new form, twisting into lions, and they snarled at each other, clawing and biting.
Over with the Emperor, he grabbed Phoenix by the leg and swung the boy so hard he exploded into a shower of gore when he rammed into the Victorian. The Victorian formed her golden greatsword and swung it out. Phoenix's body pulled itself back together just in time for him to be used as a makeshift shield as the Emperor lifted him up and used him to block the sword swing. The Victorian cleaved through the boy, slicing him in two, and rammed her sword into the Emperor's shoulder. His arm bucked, and he dropped Phoenix's body, which repaired itself again. Phoenix charged up a wave of fire and rammed it into the Emperor's gut, unleashing a beam of it, but the Emperor kicked through him, kicking Phoenix's head away.
The ground beneath the Emperor suddenly exploded with lightning as Lightning Empress flew through it. The Emperor ignored the energy that smashed down onto him and pointed, unleashing an unseen slash that tore through the Victorian's side, splitting it open more. While the number one hero fell back, he swung his elbow out and slammed it into Lightning Empress's face, shattering her nose and most of her teeth. Before he could strike again, though, Phoenix rammed into him from behind and tried to choke him out. The Emperor just grunted and wrapped his fingers through Phoenix's hair and pulled the boy so hard the hero's arms were ripped clean off. The Emperor tossed the boy across the street.
Phoenix rolled across the ground and gasped and winced as his body began to put itself back together. "No matter what you do, it won't be enough." He declared. "I won't die-"
Lucifer grabbed Phoenix by the back of the head, catching the boy off guard, and lifted him up. His hand glowed black, and dozens of cracks began to appear along Phoenix's body, rapidly growing and expanding. "The only one allowed to be Immortal is me." In an instant, Phoenix crumbled and shattered, falling apart, and from his body, a single page fluttered to the ground.
"No!" The Victorian yelled out when she watched the hero die. She flew toward the Immortal leader, about to punch him, but the Emperor grabbed her by her cape, halting her. She gasped as she was pulled back and the Calamity began to swing her around, ramming her through rows of buildings.
"You should have never been born." The Emperor grunted and let go, tossing the Victorian away. "You're worthless. Nothing but a failed experiment. You're not even worthy of being the offspring of Jackson."
"Leave my mom alone!" Lightning Empress sliced down and sent a wave of wind out, but the Emperor punched through it and grabbed her by the throat. He launched off of the ground and rammed her headfirst into Fable, who was still fighting Gabriel.
"Hey!" Gabriel pouted. "I was fighting him!"
"Destroy the city." The Emperor hummed.
"What?"
"Destroy the city." The Emperor said again," "All of it. Leave nothing but a crater. I'm tired of hearing all the humans around us cry out."
Gabriel giggled, and the air around her shimmered as dozens of Gabby dolls began to blast out, smashing all throughout the city. "You know your daughter is in here, right?"
The Emperor shook his head. "I had Fairy Queen take her out. She will be safe. Now destroy this land."
Meanwhile, on the other side of the city, Claymore let out a sigh and kept his head low. He could hear the sounds of fighting all over, but he didn't move. He was in a vault, and with him were the five people he was sworn to protect. Kyle, Irene, Evan, and Alexander Lauren, as well as the unconscious Pied, all flinched as they heard yet another blast.
"Geez," Claymore spoke up, attempting to lighten the mood. "I didn't think they'd all take this long fighting that Legend guy. I thought for sure the Victorian would be done."
"They're going to win, right?" Kyle asked quietly.
"Of course they are." Alexander nodded and gave a small grin. "Have faith in them."
"Evan," Irene spoke up suddenly. The little girl looked at the older boy. "What's wrong?"
Everyone turned to look at Evan. The normally cheerful boy had gone silent, tears streaming down his face. "I- I don't know." Evan let out a shaky laugh and tried to rub them away. "I- I just suddenly got this feeling that something bad happened." He let out another weak chuckle. "Sorry."
Claymore reached out and placed a hand on the boy's shoulder. "It's okay." The swordsman gave a thumbs-up. "I'm sure everything is going to be fine. Phoenix is strong. I haven't known him for long, but I'm honored to call him a friend. Besides, he's basically unkillable! So no need to worry."
Evan gave a weak nod and managed to dry his tears. "Yeah. You're right. I shouldn't worry for him. If anything, it's everyone else who is in danger." The boy snorted. "I'm sure Phoenix will be okay."
Alexander brushed some of Pied's hair back and checked on the unconscious Super, making sure he was still breathing and steady. "Have faith. My daughter is strong. We're all going to make it out of this alive-"
Just then, there was a horrible grinding noise, and the entire bunker shook as the door was ripped clean off. Claymore stood up and drew his sword and felt his breath hitch at who he saw. Michael and Metatron stood in the entrance. "The Immortals? Oh God! Then that means-"
"Red Light." A red light appeared above Claymore, and the boy froze mid-horror, unable to move or speak. Michael strolled into the room casually, looking around the bunker and letting out a whistle. Metatron followed and didn't say anything. "Well, well, well. Looks like we found four of the survivors." The man chuckled. "That means if I kill all four of you, the last guy wins, and this is all over!"
"Oh God, oh God, oh God." Tears began to flow down Kyle's face, and he began to have a panic attack, letting out a yell.
"Kids, stay behind me!" Alexander stood in front of the others, holding his arms out. "I won't let them get to you!"
Michael made a bit of a face. "Aw, you're here? But I wanted your body. Great, that means I'm gonna be stuck with the guy missing a limb? Just my luck!"
"G- Get away!" Alexander felt his voice crack, and his body shook. "You don't have to do this!"
"Of course I do. I have to live." Michael snorted. "Just like how you have to eat. If I don't, I'd die, and I can't have that." Michael pointed toward Alexander. "But tell you what. I'll let you die first."
Alexander felt tears prickle in his eyes, but he didn't back down and stayed in front of the kids. His eyes met Meta's, and the girl looked away from him. "Please."
Meta clenched her hand into a fist. A black light began to form at the tip of Michael's finger, about to fire. "Wait." She spoke up right before Michael could launch his attack.
Michael turned to look back at the girl and raised an eyebrow. "What? What is it?"
"The other player, he was claimed by the Emperor," Metatron explained, going back to having no emotion in her voice. "He wouldn't be happy if you took that body."
"Well, that's too damn bad!" Michael huffed. "I need a new body!"
Meta nodded. "You'll get it; just wait a little longer. When the Emperor is done with that man, he'll surely be dead and rotting. That means that these four players are all that is left. If you wait for him to die, you can kill three of them here and then claim the last one as your body."
Michael cocked his head to the side. "Wow! You always were smarter than me, Meta; that's a great idea!"
Meta let out a sigh of relief. "So you'll leave these four alive?"
"No." Black energy blasted out past Michael's finger. Alexander felt a chill as the beam separated past him. He remained unhurt, but he heard the sound of bodies collapsing behind him and felt his stomach churn and twist. Michael's smile grew. "I wanted him, so now when the Emperor is done, he'll be the last one left standing, and I win!"
Meta felt the air be knocked out of her, and she almost gasped, but her features cooled, and she went back to looking blank and emotionless. Alexander slowly dropped to his knees and turned around.
Three attacks. Three beams of energy right through the head. Irene's, Kyle's, and Evan's features were all the same, and none of them even had time to process that they were dead. Kyle's face was still twisted in fear, a child begging not to die. Alexander threw up.
The roof above suddenly exploded, a wave of fire crashing down as Cinder dropped from above. "Dad-" Her yell was cut off when she saw the other bodies. Her gaze focused on Kyle. He was...
Kyle had been there with her from the start. She had awakened her powers with him at her side; he had been the one to give her the idea of becoming a superhero. He had been the one to encourage her, her first fan and first friend after Armin. She had promised he wouldn't have to be afraid of the Murder Games. Promised that he wouldn't die. That he'd make it out alive. Not just him but the others. He had always been scared of being forced into these games. Scared he would meet the same fate as his mother. Cracks appeared along his flesh as the Dead Virus began to eat away at Kyle's corpse along with Irene's and Evan's. Dust filled the air, and Hope felt something inside of her break and snap.
"Oh, hey, so that guy's your dad?" Michael let out a laugh. "What a coincidence. Hey, let's play a game. Red l-"
Her hand tore through most of his neck as she grabbed ahold of it and yanked, ripping most of it out. Michael's eyes flashed in shock, and he gurgled. Her hair exploded in a blaze of gold, red fire pouring out of her eyes, and she grabbed the man before he could jump back. Energy erupted from her eyes, red-hot lasers that tore through Michael's own eyes and burned a hole straight through his head. He was an Immortal, though, and she knew that wouldn't be enough, so before he could even start to put himself back together, she twisted her arm up and let go. There was a loud boom as he was blasted into the air and launched past the clouds, being flung into space.
Not skipping a beat, she brought her arm up and blocked Meta's sword. The blade shattered on her arm, and she struck out with her fist toward Meta. She punched so hard the air caught on fire, and Meta's body ignited in a green light, forming silver armor at the last second. It didn't matter, though, because her fist shattered the girl's helmet, and Meta blasted through the building and rolled across the street. Before the Immortal could even think about standing back up, she came down hard, ramming her knees into Meta's stomach and burying the girl into the ground.
"Why!" She cried out, and more lasers blasted from her eyes as she struck out with her fist, ramming it across Meta's face. "Why did you do that! Why did you pretend to be nice if this is who you really were!" She punched again, cracking Meta's skull open and spilling the girl's blood. "Why! Answer me! Why couldn't I save him! Why can't I save anyone? Why am I never enough? Why does it keep happening? Why can I never save the people I care about?" Her fists became stained in red, and the glow in her eyes finally began to die down. She didn't stop because she was tired, though. Instead, she stopped because she heard laughter.
Meta's face was stained red, and the girl's gray hair had been dyed the same color, a massive pool of her blood oozing out. Like all Immortals, Meta's body was slowly trying to mend and heal, and despite the pain, the villain was laughing.
"You're finally back, Brightest Star. Welcome back."
Cinder let out another scream and smashed her fist down into Meta's head, splattering it. She was about to launch the corpse up into space before it could heal but was stopped when suddenly Gabby slammed into her. The little doll had dropped from the ground and wrapped around her. It was followed by dozens more. In an instant, she was covered head to toe in them. She began to yank them off, but more kept coming, and they all began to glow, getting ready to self-destruct.
"Hope..."
She felt her heart stop as her father stepped out of the bunker. She'd be able to survive the blast, but he wouldn't. "No!" The Gabby's all glowed brighter. "Dad, run!"
They began to detonate. Their forms crumbled, and they unleashed a fiery blast. Everything was moving at a snail's pace for her. She watched as more and more of them began to go, and the blast started to grow in size. At the last moment, though, before the blast could expand any further, there was a flicker of blue, and then it all stopped. She gasped and dropped to the ground, no longer surrounded by the exploding Gabby's. She was still in a puddle of Meta's blood, but the exploding dolls were nowhere to be found. As if they had all just vanished. They weren't the only ones either. All over the city, every Gabby had simply disappeared, all being snatched by a blue light...
Back over with the Emperor, he was just about to step toward the Victorian and finish her off, but he stopped when he felt something. "Here." A new voice suddenly responded. In a blue flash, hundreds of the exploding Gabby dolls suddenly appeared all around Gabriel. "You can have these back." Every doll throughout the entire city all detonated, centered on Gabriel and blowing her to bits.
Still on Golden God's hand, Uriel pinched the bridge of his nose. "Well, Golden God, it looks like you were right. He's annoying."
Shadows cloaked around the Emperor and Lucifer as the blast expanded out, and before it could hit any of the heroes, a blue barrier of energy morphed around them. The Victorian let out a choked laugh, and she looked up. "About time," she hissed out.
Jack Larison placed his hands on his hips, his cape flowing behind him. "Smile, you're on TV." The Victorian rolled her eyes and forced herself to stand. As the blast faded, Battery lowered his barrier. His mixed-colored eyes met red and gold as the Emperor and Lucifer glared at him in disgust.
"Where did you get that costume?" The Emperor hissed.
"Finally speaking to me, huh?" Battery closed his eyes and let out a snort before pointing his thumb at himself. "I am Full Monarch! I am the number one hero! I am the one who will defeat you! Here and now, the reign of terror ends!"
"Nier, your son is here," Lucifer said in disgust.
"He's not my son." The Emperor pointed at Battery and unleashed a slash, but a wall of blue energy sprung up, blocking it. "He's a traitor. One whom we will tear apart slowly."
"Agreed." Lucifer's wings expanded out, and the Dead Virus flowed from his hand. "It's finally time. All four Lords and Rulers are finally present. For the first time in history, the stars have aligned. The beginning of the end is here."
The Emperor held his hand up, and the darkness formed into a long, shadowy scythe, which he gripped. "My plan can finally begin."
Battery let out a chuckle. "You're both foolish if you think either of you are making it out of here alive."
The Emperor scoffed. "Do you think you can kill a Ruler?"
"Let's find out." Battery vanished, and then in an instant he reappeared next to the Emperor and Lucifer, stepping out of a portal. Before either villain could respond, he wrapped his arms around both of them. His skin began to light up, and his grin grew. "Let's start it off with a bang!"
Neither of the Rulers were able to form a barrier in time, as all the energy within Battery reached a boiling point, and he simply exploded, self-destructing and taking everything with him... In one big blast, the entire city was wiped off the face of the universe.
The battle between the Rulers was about to begin.