Boy Genius stared down at his monitor, slumped in his chair. "What''s the damage?" he asked quietly. His screen showed the state of Oleander. It was a mess. It would take God knows how long to fix it. Every building across the entire city had been torn down, and the roads had been pulled apart. “Can this even be fixed…”


    A low voice hummed around his office as his drone flew over the city. "Radiation levels are not being detected. Neither are toxin levels. The hero known as Battery has seemingly absorbed all dangerous energies into his constructs during his battle, shielding everyone from harm''s way. The Beast hasn''t made rebuilding impossible this time, unlike previous visits. The explosion it tried to use was also negated when the hero Cinder took it into space." Beta explained.


    "What''s her status?"


    "Over ninety-eight percent of her body was reduced to atoms. I am unable to detect brain function or a heartbeat. She has died." The image on his monitor shifted, showing what was left of the hero Cinder. It was half an arm. “The rest of her body was forced undone and blasted throughout the universe, so unlike with Full Monarch, we do not need to worry about hiding her corpse, as she was scattered so far and so far that not even the Emperor would be able to find her.”


    "So, we''ll have to look for a new Lord now." Boy Genius sighed and slumped further down, nearly falling out of his chair. He stared up at the roof above him. "A pity. I liked her. She was so much like Full Monarch. No… That’s not true, actually. She was different. She was still a hero though… What are the casualties? For the others."


    "Oleander was able to evacuate over seventy percent of its residents thanks to Battery holding off the Beast when he did. Furthermore, another ten percent were able to escape into a vault built by the late Mayor Grove. Heroes were also able to keep another five percent safe."


    "So, Oleander only lost fifteen percent of its residents- What am I saying?" Boy Genius grabbed at his head, wincing. "I make it sound like it''s a good thing. Thousands are dead. I''m the worst..." He pulled some of his hair out in frustration. "What are the casualties for heroes?"


    "Would you like to list them all?"


    "Yes. Someone needs to remember them all. I''ll take it all in and figure out where to go from there."


    "Max Lightning of the Enforcers, Ocean Empress of the Enforcers, Sword Swinger no team, Bad Wolf of Team Watch Dogs, Backup of team Watch Dogs, The Street Magician of Team Fairy Tales, Doctor Kraken of Team Reservoir, Hydro Cannon of Team Reservoir, Water-Gal of Team Reservoir, Fisherman of Team Reservoir, Sea Monkey of Team Reservoir, Slinger of Team Mercy, Shamrock of Team Mercy, Glamor of Team Time Keepers, Draco of Team Sun Eater, Earth Worm of Team Sun Eater, Red Robo of team T-Fin, Brobot of team T-Fin, The One Who Has No Name of Team Time Keepers Vampirica of team Sub Enforcers, Bolt of team Cloud, Thunder Shaker of team Cloud, Light Iron of team Sub Enforcers, Heavy Iron of team Sub Enforcers, Boss of team Sub Enforcers, Techcoat of team Sub Enforcers, Thiefer of team Sub Enforcers, BB of team Sub Enforcers, Arrow no team, Bat-Spider no team, Guy With Gun no team, Snowdawn of team Pantheon, Battery of team Pantheon, and the final one is Cinder of team Pantheon."


    "Is that it?"


    "There are many more, but I have only listed the casualties whose deaths will have a noticeable impact on the civilian population, according to my calculations. I have saved a copy of the full casualty report to the mainframe."


    Boy Genius just closed his eyes. "Thank you. Please send a blank check to Lillian''s Cleanup Squad, as well as whoever is now in charge of Oleander’s."


    "I believe it is Mister Arthur Moore."


    "Moore?"


    "Father of Snowdawn." Beta clarified.


    "You''re kidding me." Boy Genius gritted his teeth. "Do we at least have his son’s body?"


    "No, sir. I was unable to locate his body. His time of death is also strange. I monitored all life signs of the heroes, and when he died, it was when he was nowhere near the Beast."


    "That doesn''t sound good. Do a full sweep of-" A loud buzzing suddenly went through his base. "Beta, what just happened?"


    "I''ll need to change that list of names I gave you, sir."


    "What? Why?"


    "One of their life signatures just came back."


    “Which one!” Boy Genius stood up so fast his chair tumbled over. All of his drones were gone, so the only live footage he was able to view was the one Alice Ward had going. The woman still had over a billion people on her blog watching the stream as the entire planet took in the state of Oleander.


    “The hero that has become the talk of so many people.” Beta explained. “He has seemingly become popular after the whole world watched him protect his city to the very end. He’s back. He’s still alive. I guess his story isn’t over just yet.”


    ***


    ''Well, partner... Looks like this is the end. That''s what I''d like to say, at least. You know it would never be that easy to escape from me, though, right?''


    “Where am I?” Jack muttered quietly. “W- Why do I still hear you speaking…”


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


    Jack tried to open his eyes but found that he couldn’t. All around him, he saw nothing, and 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, holding onto him, and had been gripping him since long before this moment.


    “I didn’t say you could die yet." He felt the darkness grow tighter, and it began to pull something out of him. He was falling deeper into the ocean of black. It was dragging him, forcing him down, and taking something from him.


    "No... It''s over. My story has..."


    "Rise." His emotions cracked and began to shatter. He could feel it. The core. The thing that made him, him.


    "No-"


    "Rise." He was breaking. It wasn''t him. Something else was forcing its way in.


    "No!"


    "Rise, my Ruler. My creation. My destruction. My little Alpha. Wake up. My Giant."


    And so Alpha woke up.


    The sky above was blue. He stared up at it in silence as his eyes opened. Then he heard someone speaking.


    "Boy Genius is still checking out the last of the damage." Wyvern sighed. "Looks like we made it out alive, though."


    "I''m glad." Her brother Drake let out a sigh and bowed his head. "Sissy... Did... Did we really win?"


    Wyvern didn''t answer her brother. Most of the heroes had run off as soon as they got word the Beast was gone. Many of them had gotten right to work, checking out rubble for signs of civilians, while a few just went back to their home city to make sure it was okay. Besides her, the only Enforcer member left in Oleander was the Victorian. The woman floated in the air, staring into space, not blinking. There was an uneasiness amongst all of them. The Beast was never the issue. They always beat it in the end after much loss. Then, every time, something else would come. Something much worse. A new Calamity.


    And they had just lost the Lord of the Sun and Cosmos.


    "Do you know where Poseidon is?" Wyvern questioned her brother.


    Her brother nodded his head slowly. "I heard she went toward the bridge. Myth was taking her over there. That''s where Whisper and Paragon were both spotted last, so it makes sense those two want to see them again."


    "Poor Myth... Most of his team is gone." Wyvern bit her lip and looked around the destroyed street she was on. "Think he''d like to join our team-" She jumped back suddenly, dragging her brother with her as her eyes went wide. Her hair stood up, and her heart felt like it was going to explode.


    "Sissy? What''s wrong?!" Drake asked, staring up at his sister''s face. Her eyes were bloodshot and wide and filled with more fear than he had ever seen. Not even the Beast had brought on this much of a reaction.


    "H—H—He''s back."


    "Who?"


    "T—The Emperor."


    "What? Of course he is. We were told-"


    "No! You don''t understand. This is him. He''s here! He''s back! He''s really-"


    Then they both heard it. A tiny crack echoed out across the field. The ground in front of them dented and snapped, and Drake readied himself for combat. Then, a hand slowly broke its way out of the dirt—one dressed in a red costume. Dust rained down as someone began to pull themselves out of the ground. Drake felt his eyes go wide as he took the figure in. Their costume was in ruins, and the right side was missing, with several large holes through the stomach and chest area. They also didn''t have a mask on. Despite that, he knew who this hero was right away.


    "Battery?" The hero quietly turned to look at him. The man''s reddish-brown hair was a mess and filled with dirt, and his eyes kept changing from a piercing blue to a deep black. Over and over, they flickered back and forth, not settling. Energy danced between his fingertips, first blue, then black, then blue, then black, then- "You are Battery, right? A member of Pantheon? I... I thought that you... Who are you?" Drake''s tail stabbed out, and claws jutted out of his fingertips. Battery turned away from him and stood up on wobbling legs. The man muttered something. "What the hell did you just say?" Drake demanded.


    His sister was barely holding herself together and had collapsed back, staring up at the man in front of her in terror. He had heard something like this happened two years ago. Legend, a member of the Enforcers, had come back from the dead. Only, Legend had changed. Legend hadn''t been human anymore. It seemed history was repeating itself. Yet something was off. Battery looked almost normal, save for the flickering eyes. His body had healed. All the damage done to it vanished, as if some magical force had thought to give him a second chance.


    Battery kept muttering to himself, barely above a whisper. Drake frowned and leaned forward just a bit. Then he heard it.


    “Which one am I?”


    "What the hell does that mean?"


    "Am I Battery?" Battery''s eyes suddenly jerked over to him.


    "Huh?"


    “Am I Battery?” The man said again. "Am I me?" He looked down at his hand, watching as the blue and black energy flickered across back and forth over and over again. “Or did something else take me over?” His eyes roamed over the city. "Where is Hope?"


    "Hope?"


    “The Lord of the Sun and Cosmos.” Battery moved away but stopped when Drake''s tail suddenly appeared at his throat.


    Drake let out a low growl and gritted his teeth. "Sorry, but I won''t be letting you walk off so easily. I don''t know what''s going on, but I saw Battery die, myself. How the hell are you alive? Are you even Battery? If you are, then I don''t want to hurt you, but if you''re not, then I won''t hesitate to blow your head clean off your body imposter!"


    "My head..." The lightning finally settled on a blue color, and Battery grabbed at his head, wincing. "That''s right... My head was..." He reached toward his chest and felt his heart. His heart. One that held no shard. One that could withstand his power. His full power. The same level of energy that helped slay Full Monarch. "Oh. I know who I am. I''m the bad one, aren''t I?"You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.


    Drake felt a wave of pain course through him as blue energy zapped off of Battery, and the boy was brought to his knees. Battery turned away and slapped at the air with his hand. When he first fought Green Wolf, he did something similar. His energy spilled out, forming cracks in the very space he walked in. Cracks that began to expand and twist, forming a perfect circle. A portal, a gateway—the same sort of travel the Emperor had used. The same sort of power Rulers commanded. Drake tried to struggle to his feet, but it was too late. Battery stepped through the portal, and it sealed shut behind him.


    Off to the side, Alice Ward stood, her phone having just caught the entire thing. Live on camera, the entire world saw it. The one they had been cheering on, the one they had their eyes on, Battery was back. The hero that took the Beast on had stood back up. Not only that, he was seemingly a lot stronger.


    The hero Battery was quickly becoming the most famous hero of the modern era.


    Meanwhile…


    On the other side of the beach, Paragon stared up at the sky above, feeling numb. She had picked the name Sky because it was something she hadn''t gotten to see before. She had always heard about it, but as a kid, she had grown up in one of the Emperor''s labs before being transferred into a Hero Branch. It wasn''t until River adopted her that she finally got to see it for the first time. She used to think they were pretty, but now she had a nasty feeling in her gut. She kept waiting for it to happen. The moment Hope would fly back down, she would have that goofy smile on her face and announce that she had saved the day like she always had.


    It wasn''t happening, though.


    A crack echoed in the space around her, and she turned away as a blue portal snapped its way into existence, shattering the air around it. A foot slowly stepped out, and she felt her heart nearly stop when Battery stepped out. "Ba- Jack?" She felt a faint flicker of hope appear in her. If he was back, then that must mean Hope was as well. Hope had saved her when Wish devoured her. With the power of the Sun, Hope had put her back together. That hope then shattered when the man spoke.


    "Where''s the kid?" Battery asked. Sky felt her throat close up, and her body shook. Her eyes watered, and she looked away from him. "Oh. So that''s how it is?"


    "I''m sorry." She croaked out.


    "So, you failed again." She felt as if she just got punched in the gut. She turned to look back at him, meeting cold blue eyes that barely glanced her way. "Why am I not surprised? That''s all you ever do, right? You failed to save Ocean Empress, and you failed to save the Lord of the Sun." The man reached up, and before she could move, he grabbed her by the hair, glaring down at her.


    "S- Stop! What are you doing- You''re hurting me-"


    "This whole family has always been worthless now that I think about it. Our dad could never do anything right, either. I don''t know why I ever expected anything out of his sloppy second. You can''t even control your power or my power, right? That Lord''s ability would better serve me. I have half a mind to take it. You know how the powers are passed down, right-" Her hair shifted back to its white color, and she tried to strike out, but Battery was faster, striking her across the face and shoving her to the ground. She felt tears in her eyes, and her face stung as she glared up at the man. Battery wasn''t looking at her though. He had grabbed at his head once more, his nails digging into it. "What was I thinking? Why was I so stupid? Oh, that''s right. Full Monarch." He let out a laugh, one that caused a shiver to go down her spine. "He tried to ''save'' me, didn''t he? I remember now. That worthless heart he gave me." He could feel his heart beating faster. Now that the shard wasn''t in him, he felt like he did the day of the war. Even better, actually. "Looks like I don''t need it to survive anymore. I''m back. Alpha has returned. I almost forgot how strong I was. It''s a shame the Beast isn''t here. It''d be easy to fight a mindless creature like that now. Hey, here''s an idea. How about you let the Prettiest Flower take over?"


    She scooted back as his eyes glanced back at her. They flickered again, going from blue to black, and the energy kept switching across him. Inverting should never be used this way, but it was like he didn''t care. Like he wasn''t afraid of letting a second Ego take over. And why would he be?


    Alpha had nothing to fear.


    "Who are you?" She glared up at the man, her red eyes staring into his rapidly flickering ones as he grinned. "You''re not Battery! Jack would never suggest something like that! What have you done to him? You''re not even reacting to the fact that Hope is dead!" She screamed.


    That caused his smile to fade, and for a moment, she saw the flicker of recognition appear in his eyes. The color finally stopped swapping, and his light went out fully, leaving his eyes as a dull brown. The color they settled on when his power wasn''t on. He grabbed at his head once more, wincing. "Damn it. What the hell?" The blue came back, then black, then blue- "Whatever. I don''t have time to deal with this." He turned away from her, waving his hand out. "See you later, little Lord."


    "Where are you going!" She yelled back in anger.


    "I have things to take care of." He looked back up at the sky. "Guess I''ll need a new weapon if the Sun is dead. Whatever. I can wait." He snickered. "Stay on your toes. If you aren''t careful, I might use you to kill the Emperor instead of the newest Lord of the Sun-"


    "Mr. Larison!" A familiar voice called out. One that caused both Jack and Sky to freeze. The blue in Jack''s eyes went out, replaced with his brown, and he quickly turned a smile appearing on his face. A smile that then instantly faded when he saw Jane Lauren and not Hope Lauren. The woman had ended up in Oleander. She wasn''t alone either. Standing next to her was a man he had seen once. The kid''s father. Alexander Lauren. "Oh, wait, do I call you Battery?" The woman winced as she saw the hero''s dead-eyed stare, his blue eyes roaming over her.


    "What are you doing here?" Battery asked coldly. His eyes started to flicker between his colors once more. "You should be in Lillian."


    "You''re telling me. Oleander''s a mess." Alexander said, looking around at the destruction.


    "And why are you here? You should still be in bed."


    Jane nodded her head slightly. "We came looking for Paragon, actually. Some heroes said we could find her here. See, something happened."


    Paragon stood up and moved her way in between the Laurens and Battery, blocking the hero from them. She glared back at him for a moment before looking back at her friend''s parents. "What happened?"


    Jane took a deep breath and began to explain. "We were in our room when someone came to see us. He had blonde hair and called himself Nier, I think? It''s all a little fuzzy, but he said he was here to help. He placed his hand on Alexander''s head, and there was this weird light show. Then suddenly, he said he cured my husband of the Dead Virus and that he was paying back the Lord of the Sun for beating the Beast at Oleander. He asked if we wanted to see our daughter, and when we said yes, the next thing both of us knew, we were here in the middle of the city."


    Sky stared at the two in shock. She reached out, placing a hand on Alexander''s wrist. She had planned to try and destroy the Dead Virus inside of him once again now that she unlocked her Lord''s Battle Mode, but it seemed the Emperor had beaten her to it. It was gone. Utterly. "You''re cured!" She said in shock. "Besides some mild malnutrition, your body is healthy."


    "I feel good!" Alexander announced, giving a large smirk and flexing his muscles. "Every part of me feels like I can give a hundred and ten percent! I guess that Nier guy really did cure me!" He was still bald, and his body lacked color and muscle, but he was no longer on death''s door. The fact he could walk around at all proved that.


    "If you don''t mind me asking, where is Hope?" Jane asked, causing Sky''s look to change. "Or do I call her Cinder now? Is she somewhere else in the city? I saw you two here, so I figured she''d be nearby. Have you seen her Paragon, or is she still being healed-"


    "She''s dead."


    It was so cold. No emotion was behind his voice as Battery spoke. He stepped past both of the parents and walked on as if he hadn''t just given the worst news in the world. Sky''s look was all either Jane or Alexander needed to confirm it. The girl was unable to hold herself back as tears began to fall, and she couldn''t look either of them in the eyes. "I''m sorry." Her voice quivered. "I- I tried. Your daughter- Hope saved Oleander. She- She-”


    Battery walked away, not bothering to pay them any mind as a hellish scream broke out of Jane, and Alexander barely had time to catch his wife. He left Sky there to deal with it. It was her problem anyway. It annoyed him a bit. The way the woman broke out into a loud sob. Her husband didn''t even have time to cry himself, as he had to do everything he could to keep his wife sane after the news hit them. "Would it be better if all of them just died?" He felt that pain in his head again, and he grabbed at his skull, wincing. "No... It''s my body. I''m Battery." He got to the end of the block and managed to get out of the worst of the noise. He stood there, still flickering between his colors as the pounding in his head ached. “Aren’t you going to tell me to stop? To tell me I’m doing things wrong or that I can be so much better? You kept nagging me constantly! Say something.”


    Silence.


    He kept waiting for it, but it never came. It had constantly been there with him. He constantly felt the eyes of Full Monarch on him. He would hear the man’s voice almost always. Constantly urging him on.


    Now though it was total silence. He didn’t feel the eyes, nor did he see the man out of the corner of his vision. He was alone. Truly.


    Battery stood there a moment and grunted. He suddenly felt like he was being watched, but it wasn’t the one he wanted. Someone else had taken notice of him. "You can come out now. I know you''re up there, watching."


    There was a golden glow from above as the Victorian softly came to land in front of him. Her golden eyes glared into his blue, then black, eyes, and he gave the largest smirk he could.


    "You''re wondering if you have to battle with me, right? You can tell my body has fully healed. I''m stronger than I ever was. You''re still damaged, though." Blue and black energy crackled around him, forming an aura. "Sorry to break it to you, sweetheart, but you won''t be able to beat me. Even if you brought your A game."


    "Are you going to be a problem?" The Victorian asked, letting out a hiss.


    Battery snickered, and his aura gradually faded away. "Nah. I think I''m done for the day. Oh. But I do have an answer for you."


    "An answer?"


    He walked past her, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Sure. I''ll join the Enforcers. You guys need new members, right? You asked me to join earlier."


    The Victorian''s eyes narrowed. "What about Pantheon?"


    "What about it? It''s a trash team. Besides, it only has garbage Supers now that the Lord''s dead. If I''m going to reach my goal, I''ll need real power. Your power."


    "And what exactly is your goal?"


    "The same one as you little Ruby. We''re going to kill the Emperor. We''re going to kill Lucifer. We''re going to kill Legend. We''re going to kill the Beast. Then, I''ll kill the Shadow once and for all and finally allow myself the much-needed sleep that I deserve. We''ll create a world for humans, by humans. That’s what you wanted, right? There’s only one difference. You wanted to use me, right? That’s why you offered me the position. You wanted me as a weapon? Well, that won’t be happening. I’m not going to be a weapon anymore. I’m going to be the one he wields the weapon. If the Lord of the Sun is dead, I’ll just settle for you. You’ll be my new sword. I’ll aim you, sharpen you, and use you to end this stupid story.”


    The Victorian closed her eyes. "My father. You knew him well, did you not? He fought to save people like you. He saw something in you. I don''t know what happened to you. I don''t know if this is some big trick or an act you''re putting on because you''re hurting inside. What I do know is that if you keep going down this path, you won''t be able to stop-"


    "Oleander city."


    "Huh?"


    "All Enforcers get a city that they own and look after." Battery stepped away, finally letting go of her shoulder. "I''ll be protecting this city. That means you''ll have to do everything you can to build it back up for its people."


    "That answer is... That''s one I''d expect from you..." Her eyes turned to study his back as he walked away. "You... You are Jack Larison, right?"


    For a moment, Battery stopped. "Yeah. Of course, I am." He looked back up at the sky above. The Ruler of Creation and Destruction, the Giant, had returned. So why exactly did he feel even more broken than he had when he had been pretending to be a hero?


    Oleander City had just faced its biggest threat. Would it ever be able to claw its way back from something like this? Well, that remained to be seen. The Beast wasn''t the only thing the city had to worry about, though. There were other threats, new and old. Where there were heroes, there were villains. In a situation like this, villains thrive and grow.


    "You''re sure this is the place?" Drill Man hissed out.


    "Yeah." Chainsaw Hand nodded. "This is where Green Wolf used to keep all his stuff."


    While the heroes were busy saving people or finally slowing down after the heavy battle with the Beast, two young and up-and-coming villains decided this was the best time to grow their power. They stood in front of a destroyed warehouse. One that had been owned by Zoo. Drill Man wore yellow metal-looking armor with large drills coming out of his head and hands. Chainsaw Hand was just sort of a guy with a chainsaw on his hand. Groovy...


    "Hurry up and use your drills to destroy some of this rubble." Chainsaw Hand hissed.


    "Yeah, yeah." Drill Man raised his arms, and the drills on him began to spin, getting faster and faster.


    These two villains, though they may seem goofy, could actually turn out to be a grave threat. For you see, they held potential unlike any other. One that, if given the time to grow, would cause them both to become threats on the same level as the Emperor-


    Blood spilled out as Drill Man''s head was sliced clean off his body. Chainsaw Hand let out a scream and turned, but an unseen slash cut him down as well, severing his upper body from his lower one. Sadly, for both villains, they would never live long enough to reach the same potential as the Emperor. Chainsaw Hand landed on his back, vomiting up blood as his eyes stared in shock at the figure walking down the street.


    "I know times like these are always the best moment to go loot stealing, but you never go after a top dog, silly." A young girl stalked forward. She was no older than sixteen and had long black hair and stunning blue eyes that glanced down at him. She wore a typical business suit, though she clutched a katana between her hands. One that had sliced down the two men in front of her despite the fact she had been meters away. Slowly, the girl sat down on Drill Man''s corpse and cocked her head as she stared down at the dying Chainsaw Man. Her eyes caught her reflection in his as he stared at her in horror. "Oh. So, this is how Cinder looked without her mask?" The girl said, looking down at her body. "I''ll have to remember to praise Red Ape later. He finally did something useful, creating this new body for me. Who would have thought his plan to create a Cinder clone would actually work?"


    "W—Who are you?" Chainsaw Man asked, spitting up more blood as his vision began to blur.


    "Who am I?" That was when he noticed something else the girl was holding in her other hand. She jauntily stood up and placed a cartoon wolf mask over her head. One that clutched a cigar in between its lips. "I''m Green Wolf." Faster than he could even blink, she drew her sword, and in an instant, he was split in two once more, cutting his head in two. "The new and improved build that will take Battery down for good." The girl curiously looked up at the sky as the sun was setting once more. "I wonder when that ''thing'' will be back."


    All across the solar system, on a little red planet, the ground shook as white swirled around a small orb. The Beast began to rebuild its body, for just as in the days of Full Monarch, humanity had still failed to put it down for good. They had lost so many, and for the Beast, it would simply try again once its body was rebuilt in the coming years—a never-ending process.


    The Beast always won.


    New and old threats alike, Oleander still had many stories left to tell...


    But the most important story wasn''t playing out in Oleander. Halfway across the world, in an underground lab, someone very, very important was waking up after her battle with the Beast.


    Slowly, Hope''s eyes opened.


    The Lord of the Sun, the Hero who called herself Cinder, still had so much story left to tell.


    It truly was a Spectacular World…