"My name is Nicholas Alma. I used to be a member of the Hero Branch, working alongside Doctor Blue. Now, though, I''m a total nobody who barely makes ends meet, living with a former monster." Nick rubbed the back of his neck and let out a sigh. "I was given a job by someone really important, but I''m having a tough time figuring out how I can make it work. My best friend seems content with getting himself killed, and I''m not sure what I should do. I''m not a Super. I''m just a human that was lucky enough to work alongside so many of them. I guess what I''m saying is, how do you explain to someone that they still have a reason to live after they''ve given up on everything?"


    The minimum wage worker behind the counter blinked a few times as Nick finished talking. "Uh... Sir. This is a Feast Shack."


    Nick shrugged. "Right. I''ll take a Feast mega-meal with a large cola."


    The moon had vanished behind the clouds. It was nearly four a.m. by now. He finished his shift at the bank and headed to the apartment he and Jack shared. Jack still hadn''t made it back, though. It was a little odd in a way. He had known the man for over fifteen years now. He had been there to pull Jack out of the destroyed city and helped restart the man''s heart, saving his life. In all that time, not once had the man shown a hint of drive. Jack had completely closed himself off and was content living out the rest of his days helping to fix the city that he had helped tear down once.


    After meeting with that girl, nothing had changed. Sure, he put on a costume and actually went out to do things, but Nick could tell. Jack was still sprinting for the finish line. Any day now, he was sure. Jack wouldn''t be returning.


    Nick stepped out of the burger joint with his food. The streets were empty, and there wasn''t a car in sight. It was like the entire city had fallen asleep. A low buzz came from his pocket, and he fished his phone out. "Hello?"


    "Doctor Alma." He was instantly on high alert when he heard his real name. Nicholas Alma was a long-forgotten name. Someone who worked alongside the famed Doctor Blue and specialized in healing Supers. Now, he was Nick Ale, a simple security guard.


    "Who is this?" He asked slowly.


    "Who do you think?"


    A small smile cracked its way onto his lips. "I was wondering if you''d ever call me back, Luna." Luna Laps, the current head of the Oleander Hero Branch and an old friend of his, "Jack told me that you got in contact with him."


    Ms. Laps didn''t sound very happy over his phone, but then again, she never did. She was always the quick-to-anger type. "I was forced to involve myself after you failed to keep the situation under control. Your job was simple. Per the request of Full Monarch, you and Mr. Larison were to remain in hiding and live out the rest of your days off the face of the map. Now, however, I find out that he''s been running around in costume."


    "Jack''s been running around in costume!"


    "You can cut the act. I know you are in on it."


    Nick let out a snort and took a seat on a bench. He took some of his food out and took a bite out of his burger as he stared up at the moon above. Most of it was covered by clouds, but he could still make out the giant cracks and edges that went all along it. "He seemed happy. I hadn''t seen him happy since I met him. I think he liked it."


    "That was still no reason to allow him to run around. If the Victorian figured out who he was, discovered what Alpha used to be, what he did in the war, and what was within him, then it would all be over for us. The moment that woman even thinks that the Hero Branch might not be on her side, we''re screwed."


    "The Victorian isn''t a bad person," Nick said, shaking his head. "She''d never hurt innocent people, even if they brought her harm."


    "She doesn''t have to turn against the Hero Branch. All she would have to do is simply not show up to a Calamity-level threat. As it stands, she is the only weapon we have left that can deal with them—at least until you can figure out how to save Alpha''s life and recreate the weapon that slayed Full Monarch."


    Nick sighed, and his shoulders slumped a bit. "He isn''t a weapon. He''s a human."


    "Only because Full Monarch saw fit to pity him and change him back."


    "Why did you really call? It wasn''t to check in on me, I’m guessing."


    Silence filled the air as he waited for the woman to respond. He could tell she was thinking of how best to use him. Laps had started at the bottom. Born into a world of gods as just a human, she did what people did best and survived, playing all sides and rising to the top. "I think it is best if Nicholas Alma reappears in the eyes of the public."


    He sat up straight and dropped his food as his eyes widened. "What do you mean? You''re the one that told me to go into hiding. To pretend that I died alongside Blue in the attack. If the Hero Branch discovered you were keeping me or Jack hidden, then—"


    "I''ll handle it."


    "Why now? What the hell could have happened that would cause you to make this stupid plan?"


    "Harrison Avalon has turned on us."


    "A—Avalon?" The man was trained by Mr. Sini and is one of the smartest people in the world. He inherited Sini Corp and created Avalon Industries. The only other person who hated the Emperor more than the Victorian and Jack. "What do you mean he''s turned on us?"


    "I don''t have all the information yet, but what I can tell you is that this opens a hell of a lot of issues. The reason we let him stay on the sidelines for so long was because he ran his company right. Avalon Industries has supplied heroes with their tech for years and worked to benefit the public. With him gone, there is a good chance that the Enforcers would like to request the transfer of its resources to the hero, Boy Genius. He already has his own group, which rivals, maybe even surpasses, Avalon Industries on his own. If he were to gain control of Avalon Industries, then the power dynamic between the Branch and the Enforcers would become thinner. That''s why I''ve decided to step in and stop this from happening. I think someone on the side of the Branch should be running the company."


    "In other words, you want me to be your puppet."


    "You were personally trained by Mr. Sini and worked alongside Avalon, Blue, and Old Dog. On top of that, you even saved the life of Full Monarch once. I wonder if some of your skills have grown rusty. Maybe you could find a cure easier with the backing of the Industries and actually save his life."


    "I''ll think about it..."


    "I''ll keep in touch, in that case."


    The line went dead, and he slowly pocketed his phone. The moon still hung high above. Soon, the sun would rise, and a new day would begin.


    "What do you suggest I do, Jack?"


    ***


    "It''s pretty obvious, isn''t it?" Fire swirled around Cinder''s fist, and she smashed it toward the Emperor''s helmet. "I''m picking both! I''ll find a way to save my dad and Mr. Larison without you!" She unleashed her fire out of her palm, but the Emperor dodged back.


    Her attack soared high into the air, splitting past the clouds and blasting into space.


    "You missed."


    "Or maybe I was just signaling for help!" She was back on her feet and threw out a punch with her good arm, but he raised the mace and blocked it. The recoil went back into her arm, and she felt the bones in her hand snap and break. She fought through the pain, though, and blasted fire out of her mouth.


    The Emperor kicked her away with his foot, sending her smashing back. She tried to stand back up, but he lazily threw the mace, smashing it directly into her face and knocking her over again. "Both your arms are broken. Just stop." Her teeth gripped down onto the mace, and she stood back, upholding it with her mouth. She said something, but it came out as muffled due to the mace she held. The Emperor''s eyes traced over her. "You remind me of Jackson."


    She charged forward but was stopped when gravity slammed down into her, pinning her to the ground. Poseidon dropped down in front of her, mostly healed, and had used her power to fly. "Cinder, you''re in no condition. Go get healed. I can handle this."


    The fear hadn''t faded. The gap in skill was massive. In terms of sheer power alone, the Emperor was just as strong as the Victorian. That said, something was wrong with the situation. Not once had he tried to kill them. It was almost like he was playing. That small fact was enough to give Poseidon some hope. They hadn''t entirely lost—not yet.


    Hope still remained!


    Poseidon lowered her gravity and bounced forward with as much speed as she could muster. It was still nothing compared to the sheer force of the Emperor. He didn''t even need to use any abilities. He caught her trident with one hand and lifted her up. She increased her body''s gravity, bringing herself down, and twisted a massive amount of water around her body, trying to drown him, but he easily slapped it away, sending her flying.


    Poseidon rolled across the ground, twisting back onto her feet and swinging her weapon through the air, sending massive shards of ice out, but they shattered on his helmet. He stepped forward and charged like a bull, using his horns and stabbing her just like he did her mother. She gasped but fought through the pain and rammed her weapon down. So much gravity swirled around them, and space began to twist, but even that wasn''t enough.


    The Emperor broke past the gravity and bucked his head, throwing her off of him. He grabbed her by the hair as she was sent flying and tugged her back down, ramming his fist directly into her face. Poseidon''s eyes rolled back, and she spat out a glob of black blood. It stained the devil''s hand and soaked into his dark armor.


    "A monster. Why don''t you show your true form?" He tossed her into the air and flicked his hand, causing the air around her to explode just like Fairy Queen would.


    She began to fall back down to the planet, gasping. She tried to move, but her body didn''t want to respond. She couldn''t even transform even if she wanted to. She was about to hit the ground head-first when she heard it. The faintest sound of a buzz.


    Hundreds of them appeared all around her. A cloud of wasps washed over and formed together into a body. Arms wrapped around Poseidon, stopping her fall just in time. She stared up in a daze at the face of Wasp Nest, who gave her a sly smile. "K-Kenny?"


    "It''s okay. I''m here now."


    "How-"


    "I don''t know." He placed her down softly on the ground and stood up, looking directly at the Emperor. "I woke up in my bed and was suddenly able to transform and heal back up." Every time he reformed, he was always fully healed. After being hit by Wish, though, the villain had caused him to fall into a coma, and he hadn''t been able to use his power. Now that Wish was gone, however, the hero known as Wasp Nest found himself on the worst possible first mission. "So. You''re the Emperor?"


    "D- Don''t fight him." Poseidon gasped out.


    "I won''t." Wasp Nest shook his head. He gave a sly smirk as he stared back at the man. "See, I always keep a spare wasp on my friends in case I need to go save them. As soon as I found out they were in Wasteland I rushed over. At least that''s what I''d like to say. I''m kind of a coward sometimes, so I made sure to call for help. It turns out I didn''t even have to, though. Earlier, a big blast of fire went off, and someone noticed and is on their way-"


    The clouds broke as it came down. Bigger than a skyscraper and gushing out a wave of golden light. The Emperor looked up just in time as the golden greatsword rammed into him hard enough to shatter the ground.


    Wasp Nest turned and grabbed Poseidon, throwing her over his shoulder. Then he took off running like his life depended on it. It did now. The ground began to crack and break as the massive sword was driven deep into it. "Go, go, go! We have to get the hell out of here! Those two are going to tear this entire place apart!"


    Poseidon stared up with wide eyes as the golden woman came down. It wasn''t just her, either. Cinder still held the mace between her lips, and instantly, all the fear and worry disappeared. The Victorian landed on the ground, her arms folded. The woman''s golden eyes met Cinder''s fiery red. She had a sly smile on her lips.


    "Nice work, kid. I saw your attack and came flying over as soon as I could. Why don''t you leave it to me? I''ll take it from here!" A smaller greatsword, only the size of a large car, appeared over the Victorian''s shoulder, and she turned to face the Emperor.


    Playtime was over. He wasn''t holding back anymore.


    The sword that buried him in the ground began to crack and break. Wisps of shadow crawled up, and slowly, he raised it off of him with one arm. The darkness had come to life. It was his to command. It flowed like hands grasping at the ground and digging into the golden metal above him.


    The dance of heroes and villains was about to begin once more.


    No words were exchanged. Just looks of disgust. The Victorian gripped her weapon, and she went to charge him, but he struck first. The Emperor raised his foot and stomped it onto the ground as hard as he could. Instantly the ground exploded, and cracks began to seep out in all directions. A roar broke through the air, and magma blasted up as dozens of massive worms started to rise. Each one was as big as the one that Myth fought.


    Waves of sand were blasted out in all directions, and the large tower began to scream and crash down, the metal cracking. Cinder watched in horror as many of the heroes were unconscious or too injured to move and began to fall into the massive cracks that formed in the ground.


    Tendrils of water blasted out, wrapping around everyone. Ocean Empress surfed up on a massive wave of water with everyone. One of the tendrils wrapped around Cinder''s waist, and she was yanked in the direction of the Enforcer member. Ocean Empress took the mace out of her mouth as they surfed away from the crater that was still forming and got out of the way of the Victorian.


    Once they were safely away, the water slowly went out, and everyone was placed on the ground. "Are you okay?" Ocean Empress asked.


    "My arms are broken." She shrugged. "Other than that, I''m fine."


    "That''s not good!" Paragon yelled.


    All of Team Pantheon, Sub Enforcers, and Watch Dogs were away from the danger zone for the most part. The tower had fully collapsed and a giant crater nearly one mile wide stretched out. The huge worms roared and thrashed around, ripping more of the ground to bits. The Victorian floated above them unbothered, as did the Emperor. It seemed he also had the ability to fly.


    "That mace you have," Cinder jumped a bit and turned to look at Ocean Empress, who was gripping the weapon and staring down at it. "Where did you get it?"


    "Mr. Larison gave it to me." Speaking of which, the man was still stuck in ice, his sword raised. He was knocked out, and she''d need to break him out of it later, preferably once the Emperor was gone. She didn''t want him trying to blow himself up or anything.


    Ocean Empress tossed the mace back over, and she tried to catch it, but her arms were still broken, so it instead just smacked her directly in the face. "Whoops. That mace belonged to Hell Hound." Ocean Empress explained. "She had the ability to shut down or weaken powers, and her weapon has the same ability. It can be used to block nearly any attack and cancel it out. You should keep it. It''s pretty good."Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    She nodded and let out a sigh when she felt her arms fix up as Paragon healed her. She looked into the girl''s eyes, which traced over her. "So, you can really see again."


    Paragon smiled and nodded. "Yeah."


    "Good. Then you get to watch as the Victorian kicks the Emperor''s ass!"


    "Sorry, but we''re not staying." Myth stood up slowly, wobbling a bit.


    "What! Why-"


    A massive force exploded out as the two top-tier Supers clashed. They moved faster than any of them could see, and every exchange sent wind currents flying wildly in all directions. Sonic booms roared out, and tornadoes wildly started blowing through the area as the sky itself began to shake and shatter.


    "We got to get the hell out of here!" Wasp Nest yelled out.


    Ocean Empress grabbed Battery''s frozen body and formed tendrils of water around everyone else, lifting them up. "Sorry, Cinder. I know you want to see this, but trust me. She isn''t going to hold back. We need to get back to Oleander ASAP."


    She nodded her head slowly, still feeling a little bummed out. She turned to look back at the battle one last time. “Beat him!” She shouted as loud as she could.


    The worms roared and forced themselves up toward the golden woman in an effort to eat her, but she wasn''t having any of it. The Victorian swung her sword out, and it expanded in size, more light twisting around it, and with a single swing, she split dozens of the worms in half and tore the ground to bits. As soon as the corpses hit the edge of the crater, the Emperor came blasting forward, flying through the air. The darkness flowed off of him, and a large, shadowy hand drifted out of his back and smashed directly into the face of the Victorian.


    The woman was hit hard and sent flying into the crater. She broke through several corpses of the worms and hit the ground, but she was still being shoved down by the force of the attack, breaking past it. The ground beneath her split apart, and she found herself crashing down into a hidden cavern buried beneath the Wasteland.


    The world had moved on long ago. Remnants of the old world still sometimes popped up, and that was the case here. Deep beneath the ground, she found herself crashing into an underground city long since abandoned and covered up by the rest of the world. Light beamed off of her body, lighting the place up. Buildings as big as towers rose to the top of the ceiling, holding most of the ground up. Most of the city was in ruins, and all around it, thousands more of those massive worm-like beasts twisted around and screamed. It was their nest.


    She ignored them and instead wiped at her lip, which had a small trail of blood. "Weird. I remember you hitting a lot harder. Did you grow soft? Also, what’s with the new power? You’re a Lord of Life, yet you’re using shadows? You never had this ability before. This is more like what Lucifer does.”


    From the hole in the crater he created, the Emperor landed down in front of her. He cocked his head to the side, and the darkness around them came to life, taking shape. The worms all roared and felt their minds be taken over by a command. Following the order, they charged at the Victorian, but she swung her sword once more. The air filled with dozens of other greatswords and fired out like bullets, blowing through more of the monsters.


    The Emperor didn''t bother using his arms. The darkness formed into hands and blocked for him. One of them slapped down in the direction of the Victorian, but she dodged past it. The force of the attack blew forward and ripped hundreds of the buildings out of the destroyed ground, breaking the ruined city even more. The Victorian took a deep breath and breathed out as hard as she could. She blew so hard that everything around her froze, and a wave of ice sprung up around the Emperor. As soon as he was caught, she flew toward him and swung her sword into his side.


    The Emperor grunted a bit as the force of the attack sent him flying back, shattering the ice around him. He smashed through dozens of the towers and spun through the air. Blades of darkness fired out in all directions, turning into thin slashes that cut several of the towers down and sent them falling onto the woman. She ignored them, her body shattering them as they fell on her, and she rose up after the Emperor, swinging her sword once more—more of his shadows formed into arms and wrapped around his shoulder, catching the blade. The two of them struggled for several moments, trying to overpower each other.


    “How are you alive! That white-haired girl was the Lord? I thought my father killed you!”


    “He did.”


    “What?”


    “I am no longer the Lord of the Land and Life.” The Emperor announced. “I died that day, and thus my title passed on. Something, however, saw fit to bring me back. A great evil. One that granted me a new title. I am now the Ruler of the Dark and the Void!” The shadows grew stronger, and he began to win the struggle of power, yanking the woman’s sword out of her hand.


    The Victorian simply let go of her sword and dodged past his punch, ramming her own fist into his gut. His armor cracked and dented, and he was sent through the rest of the building. A golden chain wrapped around his waist and stopped his fall. The number one hero held the other end, and she raised her arm up so hard he was forcefully bounced back to her. His shadowy arms still held her golden sword, and she raised her foot as he came at her and rammed it into the handle of her sword, pushing it past the hands and his armor and ripping off his left arm.


    The Emperor used his other arm and rammed it into the side of her face, sending her crashing into the cave ceiling above. Red energy crackled out of his eyes, and he blasted out a stream of lasers, smashing them into the gut of the woman and sending her flying through the roof and back out of the crater. She was sent up for miles, reaching the clouds as he lazily tore into her gut. The Emperor’s arm regrew, and the armor mended itself with the darkness as he flew back up after her still shooting his laser eyes out.


    The heroes down below sped up, Myth turning into his massive one-hundred-armed form as he scooped everyone up. The entire Wasteland shook, and the ground was ripping away even more. The last time he had seen the Victorian this worked up had been during the Beast attack two years ago. The entire planet felt like it was shaking. Across the world, other islands were being affected, and every person that lived in any of the ten great cities stopped and stared at the sky above, which twisted and changed.


    The Victorian was sent flying into the air. Her stomach was a bit burned, but she brushed it off and recreated her sword. She swung it out right as the Emperor reached her, and he blocked the strike with a blade forged from darkness. Their clash caused all the clouds around them to break apart, and the sky was split open. She turned off her flight and dropped down below him, her sword extending and ramming into his back as she shoved him out of the planet.


    The Emperor was sent flying into space, and he turned his body, blocking another strike as she came at him. He shattered her sword and cut her across the stomach, but she ignored it and wrapped her arms around him. The golden light around them grew stronger as she flew them up even higher. Then, all at once, they began to drop. He tried to escape out of her grip, but she held onto them as they caught fire from reentry into the planet. She rammed them down at max speeds, breaking past the crater, the underground ruined city, and even deeper, as lava gushed out and they crashed through it, nearing the core of the planet.


    Everything around them exploded, and fire ate away at the walls and ceiling as they were both submerged in molten lava. Pressure shoved them down further, and everything around them was collapsing. The Victorian rammed a fist through the Emperor''s stomach, and he sliced out with his claws, cutting her belly open. Her costume was beginning to melt away, and his armor was glowing white hot, fusing with the flesh hidden beneath. They fought in pure lava as the planet''s core tried to eat away at them.


    Massive golden hands shattered the area around them and dove into the lava, wrapping around them both. The Golden God lifted the two out and flew back up to the surface. He didn''t get too far, though, as seconds later, the two hands he used to cup them both exploded as shadows and light clashed. The two Supers hit the ground hard enough to shatter it and kick up a hundred-meter-wide dust cloud.


    The Emperor''s armor slowly dripped down his body, and his shadows struggled to repair it. The Victorian, meanwhile, had turned slightly red, and most of her costume had been burned away, leaving only a few parts of it that covered up her modesty. She recreated her sword and threw it at the man so hard it shattered the sound barrier. The Emperor dodged the attack, and that was when she struck. Faster than even her sword moved, the Victorian appeared before the Emperor and rammed her fist forward, putting everything she had into the strike. For a moment, her body shimmered, and black surrounded her as if a galaxy had come to life and formed over her very form.


    The power of the Cosmos placed itself directly into her fist, and in a single punch, she tore the Emperor''s head clean off of his body! The head exploded off of the body, and the Emperor collapsed to his knees, blood gushing out of the wound.


    "Master!" Golden God screamed in horror, showing more emotion than he ever had.


    The Victorian panted, smoke rising off of her fist. "If you aren''t the Lord of Life anymore, then I doubt you can survive without a head." Quietly, the Emperor''s corpse crashed forward in a heap. "You''re done. I win!" She declared.


    She had done it.


    She was able to once again prove why the title of number one hero belonged to her.


    It didn''t matter how the Emperor had seemingly come back; she didn''t need to care about something like that. She had finally done the thing not even her father could. The warrior known as Nier was truly dead-


    "You didn''t think it would be so easy, did you?"


    The Victorian sighed as she heard the voice. "Seriously? I was sure you died."


    "I did..." From the Emperor''s corpse, a wave of shadowy fire exploded out, blowing Golden God back. Victorian stood her ground and frowned as the fire began to cloak around the Emperor''s body. She had seen something like this before. There was another person who would come back from the dead in a similar manner. The villain that called himself Lucifer. "I''m. Not. Done."


    Then, from the shadows, something began to bubble and rise up—a hand that clutched where the Emperor''s head should have been. The Emperor had been talking before, but a new voice seeped out. A low rumble that caused a shiver to go down the number one hero''s back.


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


    Then suddenly, it was gone. The hand vanished, and the fire extinguished. The Emperor stood there, his head back on his shoulder, perfectly okay. It was as if he hadn''t even been damaged yet.


    "Round two?"


    The Victorian gritted her teeth and created another sword. "Oh, what the hell is this bull shit! Why do bad guys always get the overpowered abilities!" She launched forward and swung her sword out as hard as she could.


    The Emperor ducked under it and placed his hands on the ground. "Your Emperor needs you for a mission. Come to me, Polaron!" The shadows took shape and rose up, forming black armor in the shape of a knight. He was ghostly and see-through, and he kneeled before his master, drawing his sword. Polaron, or at least the image of Polaron, was back.


    Instantly, the ground exploded, and all the metal from the city below crashed up. The Victorian scoffed and easily dodged past it. "Copying Lucifer, now?"


    Polaron charged her with his sword, not saying a word as he willed all the metal to turn into thin dust, allowing him to create whatever he wanted. All of the metal twisted into massive swords like the Victorian used and rammed forward, but it didn''t get past the thin barrier of light the woman had formed.


    The Emperor watched her as she easily broke past it and split Polaron in two. Instantly, he forced the shadows to fix Polaron''s body and created another one of his long-dead soldiers. Mars King rose out of the ground, pitch-black, and swung out hard enough to shatter the sound barrier, but his arm exploded as it hit the Victorian, unable to harm her. Next up, the image of Demonica was created, blasting out black fire, followed by Ears, who shot out acid, and Ghost, who was pure black and formed into hundreds of copies. The Bad Timers were his to command.


    None of them stood a chance, of course. The Victorian easily tore them to bits, even without her sword. Each graze she dealt exploded that part of their body. She formed one massive sword the size of a skyscraper and swung it out, ripping all the Bad Timer members in half. Then she began to rapidly spin her sword, forcing a massive tornado that was over a mile wide to appear, which tore the corpses up even more.


    The Emperor remained standing, ignoring the wave of wind that tried to tug him away. "Very well. Maybe I''ll bring out a stronger shadow and make you fight-"


    A bullet dinked off his helmet as a gunshot rang out. Slowly, he turned, and his gaze met the shaking form of Mr. Brenner. The father of Kyle and the police chief. He was missing a hand and could barely keep his gun steady. Somehow, he had seemingly made it out of everything, barely alive.


    "You were... You were the weapon Grove told me of?" Brenner gasped out and dropped to his knees. "Grove said... Said you were the one—the one who could beat Lucifer. Do what the Enforcers could never do. The one who could save my son!"


    "Save your son-" The Victorian flew out of the dust cloud, swinging another sword out. The Emperor held his hand out. "I''m calling a timeout."


    "What-"


    Darkness rose up, swallowing the Victorian. She blasted out of it instantly, but the Emperor was already gone. One arm around Brenner; he landed softly near where the heroes were. Myth came to a sliding stop panicking when he saw the monster, but the Emperor wasn’t looking at him. Someone else had managed to get this far through sheer luck. Mr. Grove stood up ahead, beaten and bloodied but alive. “Did you make a promise without asking me?” The Emperor’s voice shook the land, and Myth and the other heroes fell back.


    Somehow Grove remained standing though. "I told him you could help defeat Lucifer. I needed his help to make the Wandering Coin run smoothly. We didn''t have a lot of Supers, so I was using normal people and needed him." The Emperor stared into Grove''s eyes, and the mayor gulped but didn''t back down. "We have the same goal. It was why you gave me Wish, right? The Beast comes after us because we have humans. You wanted to make a world of only Supers, the same as me. When I found the tower, you gifted me Wish and told me you would return for her one day. That it was my destiny and my fate! We are going to create your ideal world now that Full Monarch is dead, and you''re back at full power! A world of only Supers!"


    “I never gave you Wish. I simply gave you the means to bring her back when you screwed up and got her killed.” The Emperor stepped forward, and the ground shook once more. “The old me, the me that was a Lord of Life, wanted to make this world. I see now what a mistake it was. The real way to take down the Beast is something else. I am a Ruler of the Dark and the Void, and I see what I must do.”


    “What!” Grove stared at the man in shock. “But what about our deal?”


    “I don’t need it anymore. I just needed you to keep Wish safe until I could recover my power fully and transfer the title to its rightful owner.” The shadows danced across his hands. “I have no more use for you, Grove!”


    “Grove!” Despite everything that had happened, Myth found himself calling out to his old friend. It was too late though. The hand was inches away from Grove’s face.


    In that moment, the mayor found himself thinking back to a time when it all began.


    Fourteen years ago, he had hired Doctor Blue, also known as Doc, to help him create a new Lord of the Land and Life after the Emperor died. He had done this because his family had perished at the hands of the Beast just as the Emperor’s had. By pure luck, he had gotten sick and wasn’t able to go on the vacation that claimed the rest of his family. He wasn’t a Super. At least not one you could label, yet luck always seemed to be on his side.


    He got lucky and figured out how to hack Avalon’s drone. He got lucky and figured out how to hack one of Avalon’s floating hands. He got lucky and happened to discover which city the Lord was in. And he got lucky and happened to be saved by the hero Myth when that city was under attack from the Beast.


    It was shortly after the battle that his luck finally ran out, though…


    Chrysanthemum was in ruins. The entire city was basically gone. Scorched and flooded beyond belief. Grove walked behind Myth and Poseidon as the battle with the Beast finally ended.


    “Dad!” Myth called out.


    “S- Son.”


    Myth ran forward when he heard the voice. His eyes were wide and filled with shock. His dad had gone toe to toe with the Beast and lived-


    Myth stared in horror when he saw his dad. Black cracks were all along the man’s skin. He was laid up on a pile of rubble, his guts hanging out, both his legs were gone, and his flesh was badly burned. His eyes were filled with utter pain, and there was so much blood.


    “D- Dad.”


    Legend looked up at his son and reached out for him. “K- Kill me.” He begged quietly. “Please.”


    Myth’s arms shook, and tears streamed down his face as he let out a hellish scream to the heavens. Poseidon stood there, rooted to the spot, unable to move. As for Grove, he found himself looking away. He had seen enough. He walked off, not able to bear the sight of a son putting his father out of their misery. It was when he was away from the heroes that he heard it. “So many dead. It’s the same as always. The Beast still hasn’t changed.”


    Grove stared up at the man with wide eyes. He stood on top of a piece of debris that was piled up like a tower. He had golden hair and wore a simple black suit. Sunlight rained down as the clouds parted, and for a moment Grove thought he was looking up at Full Monarch.


    “Are you the one that found the Lord of Life?”


    Grove blinked as the man asked him a question. “Y- Yeah- Wait! How do you know about that? Actually, I guess it really isn’t that important now that I think about it.” His shoulders slumped, and he sighed. “She’s dead.”


    “She is not.”


    “What?”


    The golden man jumped off of the tower of debris and landed in front of Grove. “The Lord still lives. If you really want to bring her back and use her, you can. All you have to do is go to my tower.”


    “Your tower? Wait, who the hell are you?”


    The man turned away, and the darkness rose, twisting around him. “I’m the one that will one day kill the Beast. If you ever find yourself defeated and out of options, I’ll be there, but be warned. That day could be your last.”


    Back in the present, that memory played out before him. Grove couldn’t help but smile as he watched Myth rush toward him in an effort to save him. “You idiot. I’m still your enemy. You should be focused on saving yourself.” And with that, the Emperor’s hand tore through Grove’s face, killing the man instantly.


    “No!” Both Myth and Brenner roared out. Myth charged forward but was blown back as the Victorian came crashing down, throwing everyone but the Emperor back.


    "I''m afraid we''ll need to have a raincheck on this fight," The Emperor called out. "I didn''t expect things to go this way and am underprepared for my invasion."


    "Your invasion?" The golden woman asked, frowning. "Explain."


    "No."


    "What about me?" Brenner asked, shooting a look at the Emperor. "You just murdered my boss. The man who promised me you would help me! I need to know! All that I did! All my sins! My evil! The path that will lead me into hell! Tell me it wasn''t all for nothing-"


    The Emperor grabbed him by his coat and threw him at the Victorian. She quickly grabbed Brenner and dodged out of the way just in time as the Emperor waved his hand and sent a massive black pillar of fire in her direction. She dodged past it, and the attack flew high into the air, breaking past the clouds and going into space.


    "You missed."


    "Or maybe I was signaling for help."


    The Victorian''s eyes narrowed, and she held onto Brenner with one arm and created a sword in her other. "What''s your game?!"


    "I don''t play games. I write stories." He vanished once more in a whirlwind of shadows appearing back at the hand of Golden God, which also held the body of Fairy Queen, as well as Casey, Hannah, and Kevin. It was a small start but it was something. The Emperor placed his arms behind his back and stared out at the world. The Victorian rose up, glaring at him. “To me.” He spoke.


    Back over with Battery, the sword he held in his frozen state glowed. The heroes all jumped and watched as it vanished and appeared all the way over where the Emperor was. The blade’s shimmering grew, and slowly it expanded and grew, forming back into Harrison Avalon. Avalon stared out at the Victorian, who was shocked to see him.


    “Yo!” Avalon waved his hand. “How’s it going?”


    “Avalon?” The Victorian said in shock.


    “Yeah, long story short, I’m evil!” The man said casually. “Sorry.”


    The devil turned, and his cape flowed in the wind. "Take me home, Golden God."


    "As you command, my master."


    The Victorian flew forward at her maximum speed and swung her sword out, but it was already too late. In a flicker of gray, Golden God was gone, along with one of the biggest threats to the planet.


    "Damn it!"


    The air around her shimmered, and something flew down. A large metal ship that looked like something you''d see in a sci-fi movie appeared. "Victorian!" Boy Genius''s voice filled the air. "I brought the Enforcers! We''ve come to help!"


    "You are so late!"


    Meanwhile, far, far away, outside of this world, a little red planet rested. In its center resided a large metal structure. One that twitched and shifted as a ball of black fire rammed into it.


    A moment passed as rubble settled.


    Then, the red dirt started to rumble...


    The ground of Mars began to crack and break as something woke up.


    The Beast was coming.