“Did you really think I would let you die so easily?”


    “Where am I?”


    Nier tried to open his eyes but found that he couldn’t. All around him, he saw nothing; he felt nothing. It was like being in the ocean suspended in water. He felt almost like he was floating. It was dark. No. It was pure darkness. A darkness that was looking back at him. A darkness that was holding onto him. A darkness that was going to save his life.


    “I didn’t say you could die yet. Rise, my Ruler. My Shadow. My Void. Wake up, Nier.”


    And so time would pass...


    The heat was intense, like a roaring sun on the verge of exploding. Despite that, the fire didn’t burn. It was something else—a gentle yet firm show of force. Even as the steam rose like newborn clouds and Lucifer’s flesh melted off his bones, everyone else was fine.


    Mr. Sini and Wano had stopped fighting. Their transformation was off, and they, along with all the other soldiers, both the Full Force and the Monarch Force, stared up at the mountain with wide eyes. Jackson was covered in so much fire it stopped anyone from seeing him. A bright blue it gushed out of his skin and formed a cloak around him. It wasn''t even a battle. He had wiped Lucifer out in only a single attack.


    Lucifer’s robes were burned away, and he had been reduced to a blackened skeleton—no muscle or organs left. The villain still somehow clung to life, though. His title of leader of the Immortals was very clear. He clutched his book, and despite not having muscles or anything else, he managed to stand up. If he had eyes, they’d be glaring at the blue man before him.


    "I am the Ruler of Death and Rebirth! I was handpicked by the Shadow! You are not the god here! I am!" Despite having no tongue, Lucifer somehow managed to run his mouth and scream. His skin regrew as shadows danced across his flesh and restored him to life. Full Monarch’s body didn’t even twitch or seem bothered as waves of Dead Virus smashed down into him, burning away instantly. The man wasn''t even paying attention to Lucifer. He looked almost like he was in a trance, staring off into the distance. Full Monarch stared down at his hands, watching the trillions of mini explosions that went off, each as tiny as a molecule. "What the hell are you looking at?" Lucifer roared. His flesh was regrowing, and he stomped forward, glaring at the God before him.


    "I am the Brightest Star."


    "What?" Lucifer stopped dead in his tracks as his body fully put itself back together.


    "I see it all." Full Monarch whispered. "Every molecule. The way this universe forms together. How it began and how it ended. This body isn''t mine. It''s a vessel. One that holds ''it''s true form. The Brightest Star. I am the Brightest Star. The light in the darkness. The warmth in the cold. The energy in a still world. I think I have a way of beating you for good now.”


    The Dead Virus twisted and rose like hundreds of snakes. Inky and black, it was as if Lucifer’s shadow had come to life. He let out a sound. It wasn''t some proud battle cry that a warrior would give. No. This was a screech, the last desperate cry of cattle. He flung himself at Full Monarch, bringing out everything he had. He never stood a chance. It was over before it even began.


    It started in the palm of Full Monarch’s hand, twisting and growing. It wasn’t fire, it wasn’t lightning, and it wasn’t anything found in this universe. Sparkling and bright, something brand new, smaller than a golf ball. It was a shard of golden metal.


    The hero simply flicked it forward, and in an instant, faster than he could even react, Lucifer felt it stab deep into his heart. Then he felt it. A burn unlike anything life should have been able to endure. His molecules were burning. Even smaller than that, a bright flash gushed out, and cracks expanded across his skin as the shard in his heart began to hum with divine energy. Then he was simply gone. Nothing left.


    Utter destruction.


    The total opposite of the Lord of Life. With but a single attack, untold energy had devoured him completely. For the first time in a long time, Lucifer had embodied death once again.


    Silence hung on the battlefield. The dead zombies began to break to dust and crumble away, and the Full force soldiers looked as if they were about to black out. An intense aura still wrapped its way around all of them.


    "What happened?"


    Sini jumped when he heard the voice. He, along with Wano, turned around and saw their companion. "Nier?" Nier was perfectly fine. The man was fully healed and walking toward them slowly. "You tell us! What the hell happened on that ship-"


    Nier stepped past his friends and stared at Full Monarch with wide horror field eyes. "Who are you?"


    Full Monarch didn''t look at Nier. Gradually, his eyes shifted over to the small drone that hovered in the air above. Without even raising a finger, the drone''s atoms came undone, and it broke away into nothingness. "I am the Brightest Star. I am-" The fire quietly faded out and revealed the young boy beneath, which collapsed into the arms of Nier, who ran forward, catching him at the last second.


    "Jackson!"


    And so time would pass...


    Ocean Empress could feel her mind slowly coming back to her. She wasn''t the only one. Paragon and Poseidon were starting to come to consciousness as well. The memories that weren''t their own had been forced into them by Avalon. Forced to bear witness to what he had gone through. The things that he had seen. There was one final thing he wanted to show them. After witnessing the birth of Full Monarch, it was only fitting. The day the Emperor was born.


    The memory and images shifted, and soon they found themselves in a city. She had seen something like this once before. Two years ago, ''it'' had come down to the planet. This was the first time it arrived. The first time the Beast from outer space stepped foot on Earth. The first time a new Calamity was born since the war with Lucifer came to an end.


    She didn''t know what city this was, but it lay in utter ruins. Lightning crackled and smashed down into the ground, ripping it apart. Giant blades of ice miles long reached out, cutting through buildings, and hundreds of tornadoes twisted to life. Lava gushed out of cracks in the ground, and a heavy fog of smoke and mist blocked the way for most people. Wano was on the ground clutching at his left side, which was gushing blood due to the loss of his arm. Hundreds were dead all around him. His eyes stared up in the air filled with dread and horror.


    "What the hell is this thing? It''s even stronger than Lucifer!"


    Sini stood next to his old friend. He was covered in burn marks, and his armor had been torn to bits. He had a stern look on his face as he watched the battle before him play out. "A mad Beast. This thing can''t be a person. It''s an animal. A monster. One that knows only how to kill."


    Up in the sky above the city, a grand battle was taking place. Beams of golden energy blasted out wildly, ripping through the air or buildings, and lightning constantly poured from the clouds like raindrops. The Beast was too high up to see, covered with too many clouds, but every attack it threw shook the country and met the blue flames that belonged to Full Monarch head on. The two were giving it everything they had.


    A scream broke through the battlefield. Not one of anger but instead of sorrow. He was on his knees, his arms wrapped around someone. Nier let out a single guttural cry as he clutched two badly burned bodies in his arms. The day everything was taken from him.


    Above him, the drone that watched everything jittered as a stray bolt of energy hit it, and the thing broke to bits.


    Shortly after this event, Nier would become the villain known as the Emperor and begin to create his monstrous army. Lucifer would somehow return and have most of his power reduced, dropping him from a Calamity Level Threat to a lesser threat. He would then create the group known as the Immortals. Full Monarch would become the world''s strongest hero for sending the Beast into outer space and would create the group known as the Enforcers. A year later, his daughter would be born...


    ***This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    "Well. What did you think-"


    Ocean Empress rammed her fist into the face of Harrison Avalon, breaking his nose. She breathed heavily as all the monitors shut off, and her daughters collapsed to their knees, regaining their ability to think. The memory was over. They had broken out of it. Or maybe Avalon didn''t have anything to show them anymore. "Why the hell would you do that?"


    Avalon still rested on the ground, clutching at his gut wound from where she had rammed her sword through him. He rubbed at his face, which now had a black eye, and he gave a sly grin. "What? You didn''t like my memories? Most people would have killed to get to see Full Monarch slaughter Lucifer. Would you rather me show you the time I met Battery and became his teammate for when we both worked for the Emperor? Or maybe you''d have liked to see the battle between Full Monarch and the Emperor?"


    "The Brightest Star..." Paragon finally spoke up and shook her head as the images faded. "What does that mean?"


    "Who cares." Poseidon hissed, standing back up. "That had nothing to do with Wish and just stalled time for him!"


    "I never said it would have anything to do with Wish." Avalon chuckled. "This place is just where I stored her Pod before it was stolen away by Doctor Blue. You saw it, though. The threat of the Lords."


    "You''re talking about the form Full Monarch turned into." Paragon questioned. Before she had gone blind, she had seen a picture of Full Monarch. Most people described him in two ways. Either he was a blonde-haired man with fiery red eyes, as he always stayed in his Lord mode, or he was cloaked in thick blue flames that didn''t burn anyone he didn''t want them to. "I never heard anyone call him the Brightest Star or anything like that. What was that?"


    Avalon chuckled and tried to sit up but quickly gave up and instead slumped back down. "Lord''s at the end of the day are still humans. They''re strong, very powerful, even among the best Super''s, but they can be killed just like any other person. That is, until they force their power to reach its peak. Battle Mode. A form of power that allows them to tap into a portion of the power that belonged to the first Four Lords. That''s just the thing, though. It''s just a portion."


    "So then..."


    "That state that he was in. I believe that was the full power of a Lord. In other words, an actual God. The Brightest Star. The full energy of the first Lord of the Sun and Cosmos." Avalon explained. "Tell me. Do any of you think you could beat Lucifer? No. I didn''t think so. Full Monarch was able to do it with a single attack. He burned Lucifer so badly the man never stood a chance. Even today Lucifer hasn''t recovered to full power and is still healing. I believe the Emperor reached a power close to this. As far as I know, only those two have ever been able to reach that state. It requires the right mindset. Now imagine. What would happen if Wish got that power?" That caused all of their faces to pale a bit. "See. You can tell it''d be bad, right? So what do you say, Paragon? Want to die for the greater good so that we can kill Wish for real this time and make sure she never gets the chance?"


    "I''m good."


    "That sucks."


    "Why did you show that to us?" Ocean Empress cut in. "Surely it wasn''t just for that. You knew we wouldn''t change our minds. What was the point of all of this? Why are you playing this game, Avalon?"


    Avalon eyed her up slowly and cocked his head to the side, a sly smile coming back onto his face. The kind that screamed ‘I win’ all over it. “Simple. I needed to buy time for Fairy Queen to finish fixing up Golden God.”


    “Oh crap-”


    The entire roof exploded in a hail of debris. Poseidon blocked it all with a ring of water, while Ocean Empress managed to create a shield of ice. As for Paragon, the girl jumped behind Avalon and wrapped her arms around him, using the man as a shield and placing her hand under his chin, ready to use her power and put him down or absorb him if it really came to it.


    Before anyone else could react, Ocean Empress felt something slam into her, breaking through her shield and sending her flying through the wall and out of the building. “Mom!” Poseidon yelled with wide eyes. Standing in the room now was Fairy Queen. The woman’s wings stretched out in all directions, and she was dressed in her old outfit, that being a few vines that barely covered her modesty. “Seriously?” Poseidon hissed, twirling her weapon. “I thought Myth’s group was dealing with you!”


    The Organization was the name of the group the Emperor ran. Each villain was remarkably powerful, but four main threats stood at the top. Fairy Queen was said to be evenly matched with the members of the Immortals. In other words, even multiple Enforcers teaming up on her would have a hard time.


    The woman easily dodged the strike from Poseidon’s trident. “I’ll deal with you later, Lord.” The monster smirked. “Right now, I think I’m in the mood for some fun. I’ll skin your mother alive.” The villain blasted out of the hole, heading for Ocean Empress, who was still falling.


    Poseidon froze, glancing at the hole and then looking back at Paragon, who still held Avalon. “I’ll be fine. I got this guy. Go help, Mom!” Paragon yelled.


    Poseidon nodded. “Okay. Don’t do anything dumb.” The girl had bitten her lip, and once more, black blood dripped down it. “If it comes to it, just kill the bastard.” She jumped out of the hole, heading towards the battle below, ready to give aid to her mom.


    The roof above further tore apart, and Destiny looked up, allowing Paragon to see. Above the building, Golden God floated his massive head, staring down at them. She shivered a bit and gripped Avalon tighter. “Try anything, and this guy dies. I don’t know why, but you need him, right? Otherwise, you’d have just nuked this building.” She’d just have to let her power run out of control. Cause his cells to burst. It’d be just like how Wish would use her power to melt people. A thought that made Paragon’s stomach flop.


    Golden God’s head cocked to the side, and one of his many arms came down, reaching for them. “I wouldn’t do that, big guy.” Avalon called out, causing the machine to stop. “I’m pretty sure she’s telling the truth. You try anything, and I’ll be soup.”


    Paragon winced as she heard the fighting outside. The building shook more, and shards of ice and whips of water shot into the air. “If you’re smart, you and Fairy Queen will just leave. Showing up like this for even a second will cause the Victorian or Boy Genius to drop everything they’re doing and come over here. Those two really hate you, servants of the Emperor. Can’t say I blame them, though.”


    “You speak so terribly of your father.” Avalon chuckled. “Tell me. Did you know about Jack? Of course not. You didn’t know about Wish, either. I’m guessing you have no idea just how many kids the Emperor created to replace the one he lost to the Beast.”


    “Shut up.”


    “What did you think of the story I showed you?”


    “Shut up.” She said louder. “I will kill you!”


    Avalon''s smirk only grew larger. He was clearly enjoying this twisted game. "Do you know why Pantheon isn''t dealing with Fairy Queen or Golden God? It''s because they''re busy. They''re tied up dealing with the Wandering Coin." She remained silent, her lips thinning out into a line. Avalon took that as his cue to go on. "You''re a smart girl, Sky. Who do you think is going to be with the Wandering Coin? Do you think that Cinder will be as lucky a second time? That she''ll come out of that fight just fine? Especially when Battery doesn''t have his sword. That was the thing that let him beat her last time, you know."


    “If you think I won’t kill you, you’re mistaken.” She hissed. "I''ll do it. I believe in Cinder. I''m not going to kill myself. That''s just stupid."


    "Sure, sure. Don''t kill yourself. You''re smart after all." Avalon chuckled. "But wouldn''t you like to be there to make sure?"


    "What?"


    "Let''s be real. Cinder is going to run into Wish. Wish is likely even stronger. She grows constantly. Adapts. On top of that, she''ll have three mini-hers running around since they can make man-made Supers. Could Cinder beat all of that? You saw the state they all ended up in after an encounter with Wish. Why play it safe? In fact, if you were there, then you might even be able to stop Wish for good without dying."


    "You''re lying. If that was an option, you would have tried it."


    "Maybe. Or maybe I just hate anything to do with the Emperor and was just looking for an excuse for you to die." He stared up at her with a dark look and gave a sinister smirk. "Either way. I think it''ll be more fun this way. Why don''t you pick? Oh, and you better do it fast."


    His body lit up with a blue light. She placed her hand on him and activated her power faster than he could react. She wanted to make his legs give out, turn the muscles off, or something. To her horror, though, it didn''t work. It failed. It wasn''t able to read him or give her a view of how his body worked at all. The only thing she could tell for sure was that he wasn''t a human. Not anymore. She had made a mistake. They all did. She thought her sister was special. Her sister was turned into a monster by her own hands yet was able to shift back into a human form. On top of that, there were people like Myth who could also transform into monsters. Avalon was the same. He had been in the Emperor''s army, meaning he would have had to have been changed at one point. That blue flickering light was him activating his transformation.


    It shimmered over him, and she jumped back, letting out a yell, but it was already too late. In an instant he changed into the form he had been given by the Emperor.


    Once upon a time, there was a young boy. One said to have been found by a great Devil. This Devil took the boy in and raised him as his own. But the Devil didn''t want a son. He wanted a weapon. One that would obey him always and help him slaughter his enemies. He wanted something that could devour the Sun.


    So he raised this boy up. He forged him powerful armor and gifted him a weapon that was alive so long as the child trusted it—a partner for this young boy, and he drilled into him the image of what true power should be. Slowly this child grew and eventually surpassed that of his mortal shell as the Devil fed him more and more. Bigger and bigger, this child became until soon only one word could truly describe him.


    Giant. The Devil had created a Giant that was so strong it could devour the Sun itself. At last, it had its perfect weapon.


    The two of them would declare war on the Sun. The Devil and the Giant would fight it together. The Sun, however, would see the humanity in the boy and reach out to it. Just like that, the Devil''s plans came undone, and he soon found himself being devoured by that Young Giant that he had created, and the Devil would be split in two by the very weapon he gave the Giant.


    Avalon''s form grew slimmer, and he dropped to the ground. His arms folded in on themselves and his legs twisted together as he changed into a pure white metal covered in various runes. Earlier, her mom had asked him where the sword that belonged to the Emperor was—the blade that Battery used. She just found it. Avalon was the sword.


    "Oh, what the actual fuck!"


    A roar shook the building, and she looked up, seeing the massive arm of Golden God come down toward her rapidly. She had no choice. She grabbed the blade right as his palm reached her, about to flatten her into a pancake.


    “Take me to Cinder!” Paragon vanished in a quiet ‘popping’ sound.