The ocean tore and split as a massive wave of gold sliced out.


    The Victorian blasted forward with speed that defied physics, her sword trailing through the water below her, each strike kicking up a gigantic wave of water that could easily tear a small town off the face of the Earth.


    The world’s strongest woman had no choice but to unleash such devastating blows as the thing she fought was an actual Giant.


    Standing at over one hundred meters tall, forged from powerful blue energy, a winged entity flew through the air. It was forged from Battery’s blue energy, and somewhere deep inside of the heart of the construct, Battery resided. The Giant had massive dragon-like wings that came out of its back, allowing for flight, and despite its insane size, it was shocking fast, easily giving chase to the tiny golden woman. It swung its massive sword out, ripping more of the ocean around them to bits.


    The Victorian turned her flight off, dropping into the harsh water as the blade soared over her head. In the distance, a small island was torn in two by the force of Battery’s sword swing. Luckily they were far from any of the ten cities or any island that actually had life on it.


    The Victorian used the ocean to her advantage, moving through the rippling water that was still being spread out and split. She was used to fighting massive creatures, and Battery was, in the end, no different than any other. She laughed and launched herself up, using the Giant’s massive form to travel through his many blind spots. As she appeared behind him, she forged her biggest sword yet, creating a golden blade nearly as big as Battery’s new Giant form, which she sent ramming into the construct.


    The armor exploded and broke away as Battery came crashing out. He was back to his normal size as his creation crumbled to dust. He tried to raise his own sword up to block her massive blade, but he obviously stood no chance. With a single powerful swing, the Victorian rammed her sword into Battery as hard as she could and sent him blasting across the sky. He’d no doubt crash somewhere miles away.


    With a crazed laugh, the woman dropped her massive sword into the ocean, the blade slowly fading away as it began to crumble into dust. Battery meanwhile found himself ramming into a sand-covered field with so much force it caused the area around him to change into molten glass.


    The hero groaned a bit and sat up, spitting up some blood. Not even the Beast had hit him that hard. As he looked around, he took note of the area he was in. The sky above rained down harsh rays of radiation and fire, and millions of dead worm monsters scattered the field. It was the same place the Victorian had fought the Emperor. That was where she sent him crashing.


    “This some sort of joke?”


    “I have no idea what you’re talking about.” The Victorian said, letting out an innocent whistle as she suddenly appeared behind him and swung out with a car-sized sword.


    Blue clashed against gold, sending sparks of energy zapping through the air. The glass beneath them tore apart, creating more craters around them. Her golden eyes met his blue and black ones.


    The Victorian''s greatsword was a mighty weapon, one forged from compressed sunlight that was practically a slab of metal the size of a car on a stick. It didn''t so much as cut; instead, it tore whatever it slammed into bits with the pure strength that rested in her arms.


    Battery''s sword, by comparison, might as well have been a twig. It was jagged and wild, as if a lightning bolt had been stolen from the heavens above and fashioned into a claymore. Already, it was starting to fill with cracks and snap as the force of the greatsword bore down into it. He had lost count of how many times he had been forced to recreate his sword.


    The Victorian gritted her teeth, forcing more of her weight down on the blade. Slowly but surely, her mighty weapon was bending and twisting Battery''s. She possessed many skills that he did not; even with his new series of powerups and the new way he acted, he still couldn''t fly. Something that she had been forced to learn. Her feet rose off of the ground, going up just enough to leverage more of her weight down on him. Battery''s knees buckled, and he began to feel himself be shoved into the ground, but he held strong, holding his claymore up as his life depended on it.


    Despite the situation, a smirk came onto his face. Both his arms were busy holding his sword, so he took a new action—one he had seen the kid do many times when she had first unlocked her fire power. His mouth opened, crackling blue and black energy hissing out, and before the Victorian could react, the beam slammed into her face, blasting her back and sending her flying across the battlefield.


    The golden woman hit the ground hard, sending up a dust cloud as she rolled across it and crashed head-first into the lone tower in the Wastelands. The tower screamed as its body gave out and began to collapse in on itself, burying the number one hero beneath a sea of rubble.


    Battery dropped to his knee, breathing heavily, and winced as he rubbed his smoking lips. He was covered in bruises and cuts, and his arms ached every time he gripped his sword. The blade in question gave one last whine as it finally snapped in two. He didn''t miss a beat and was already creating a new, identical one. He placed the sword over his shoulder and forced himself to stand back up. "I know that''s not all you have left to show me. Get back up, Ruby Admiral!"


    A golden light blasted through the rubble as the Victorian climbed out and pointed her sword at him. "I go by the Victorian now. Don''t use that false name."


    "Really? Well, I think that false name suits you better." Battery cracked the muscles in his shoulders, and he felt his joints pop and crack. "Being a hero doesn''t suit you at all, you know."


    "I could say the same to you." The woman snorted. She stabbed her sword into the ground next to her and folded her arms, looking around the battlefield. She lost count of how many hours they had traded blows back and forth. In her fight with the Beast, everything was on the line. It had been do-or-die. This was different, though. It was almost like a dance of sorts, going back and forth with her partner. Out here, they didn''t need to hold back. "You''re not really the type to have a plan that''s for the greater good. So, what exactly are you doing?"


    "The great good isn''t something I need to convince myself to follow." Battery spat out one of his bloodied teeth; he was losing a worrying amount, and he began to walk slowly towards the hero. He stuffed his free hand in the pocket of his black trench coat and pulled out one of the suckers Lois had replaced his cigarettes with. He tossed one to the golden woman, who frowned as she looked down at it. "Evil, good, none of that matters to me. Not really. I''m just getting sick and tired of the way things have been going. If there won''t be a change, I''ll make one myself." He announced before popping the strawberry-flavored sucker in his mouth.


    "You really don''t look or sound that badass with that in your mouth." The woman giggled before placing her sucker between her lips—a watermelon-flavored one. In a flash, she ripped her sword out of the ground and appeared in front of the hero, bringing her weapon down. Battery barely had time to react and attempted to block.


    Once more, a massive dust cloud was kicked up as the wind tore the field of sand around them apart, and their dance began once more. Off to the side, staying at a safe distance, two other figures stood on a large platform Boy Genius had made, which let them watch the fight. "I honestly can''t believe he was actually serious about fighting her." Boy Genius sighed and shook his head. His suit was a torn mess and covered in stains, and his eyes were filled with heavy bags. Despite looking like a thirteen-year-old, you''d have assumed he just went through the longest day of office work. None of the other drones could keep up with the fight; the force of it alone was enough to shatter or explode them, so he had to be the one to watch the match and make sure the correct winner came out on top.


    "It''s hard to believe he''s grown so strong." Standing next to the Enforcer member, a familiar face stood. Most of the world would have known her as the hero Poseidon, but that wasn''t who she was anymore. Not ever since Battery offered her a spot on his team and let her in on his grand plan. Just as Purrfect had done, she changed her outfit. She no longer had her helmet. Instead, her hair flowed down to her body and had taken on a deep blue color. Her eyes burned with a red glow that allowed her to see through the clouds of dust that swallowed the dueling heroes. Instead of her old hero costume, she had paid a bit of tribute to her one and only student, Snowdawn, by molding armor out of ice that clung to her flesh. Also, like Battery, she had dawned her own black coat, keeping it closed around her. Her trident was impaled into the ground of the platform she stood on, and she leaned against it lazily, using it to support herself.


    "I''m not too shocked by his level of power." The child muttered. "His energy was always wild and bounced around a lot, but from the beginning, he had the power of an Enforcer. The shard that was in his heart held him back. It ate away at his life and stopped him from using his true power. That is no longer something he has to worry about, though. This is the purest form of his power. A source of strength might be what we need. At least if it''s truly on our side..." Slowly, he eyed the blue-haired girl, taking note of her changes. "How are you feeling, Poseidon-"


    "Tallest Wave."


    "Huh?"


    "I changed my hero name." The girl shrugged and casually flipped her hair. "The Branch wants to screw the hero Poseidon over and not let her do anything, so I''ll just be a different hero until I get that settled."


    "I see... And the reason you selected that as your name?"


    "A reminder." Her fist clenched slightly, and her eyes followed the battle between the Victorian and Battery.


    Boy Genius turned away and also watched the fight. "Do you really think that it''s wise to follow that man?"


    "I don''t really have much of a choice, do I?" Tallest Wave asked bitterly.


    "You do." Boy Genius shook his head. "I didn''t know what the Branch was doing to you before it was too late. Look, Battery has the wrong idea with this plan of his. After the battle with the Beast, I forced him to have a checkup. I wanted to make sure he was still stable and not the next Calamity, but I wasn''t able to find anything that pointed at him changing too much other than the lack of the Victorian''s shard. It was here that he talked to the Victorian, and they came up with a plan. Or at least he came up with a plan. One that would basically throw the Branch off course. The Victorian only follows the Branch out of a sense of justice. If she can be bested, if she can be dethroned, then that''s it for her. We could lose her on our side. Something like that can''t happen. I know that the Hero Branch hasn''t made the best series of choices when it comes to you and your sister, but the process works."


    "Does it?"


    "Yes! You''ve worked with it for years and never had an issue."


    "That''s because, for years, I didn''t have someone like Ward hounding my family." She retorted.


    "We can get him thrown out."


    "And what happens when someone just as bad or worse as him appears? It didn''t seem like it was very hard for someone like him to be put in charge." The girl sighed and closed her eyes. "I don''t know if this is right. Maybe we are jumping the gun. Maybe your system can work. But maybe Battery''s can too." She looked down at the young hero. "I am the Lord of the Sea and Depths. I am also the daughter of Ocean Empress. My mother saw something in him. I''m going to believe in my mother''s ideals and believe in Battery as well. Because..." For a moment, she thought back to her time in Oleander. The way the man in red stood alongside Myth. The way Wasp Nest and Metal Ronin gushed about him after they worked with him once. The way he saved Money Tree and BB. The way he fought the Beast. The way he held her mother and comforted the woman as she passed away... "Because I think he''s still a good person. Even if he might have stepped onto a narrower path."


    Boy Genius clenched his hand into a fist. "Then I hope that he loses to the Victorian. She would never willingly let herself be defeated. She''ll fight with everything she has and defeat him! It''s her power versus his ideals!"


    Blue and black spilled out of the dust cloud as Battery jumped away from the Victorian. His energy crackled around him, forming a mixed-colored aura of his different lights. His blue eye glowed with a raging fire, while his black one sparked and hissed at the world around him. Creation and Destruction. Those powers danced together within him. The blue held the power of the mightiest beings and channeled it within him—the beings that called themselves Giants, monsters that stood against those that called themselves kings. The energy gave his body more strength than it should have been able to hold, his muscles bulking up a bit and allowing him to match the Victorian''s godlike power. The black, on the other hand, had the ability to create and shape. Instead of channeling the destructive force of the Giants through his own flesh, the black energy allowed him to create his army and order them as he wished.


    In the past, these two abilities were at war with each other and needed to swap in and out. Two Egos that fought tooth and nail to stand at the front. A battle of Creation and Destruction. Now, though, they worked together in harmony, directed by their master, who channeled both at the same time. The purest form of Inversion. To be both changed and unchanged. He had become one with his powers.


    Battery swung his blade out with everything he had. Destructive energy spilled out of the edge of it, launching out as a twisted, hellish cut that was a mix of fire and lightning. The Victorian brought her own sword up, channeling more of her power into it and causing the blade to grow larger, allowing her to use it as a makeshift shield. At the last second, before the attack could hit her weapon, though, the air in front of it shimmered as Battery snapped his fingers and a blue portal opened. A second portal opened up right behind her, and before she could even process what was about to happen, the attack went through the first portal and smashed directly into her back as it exited the second one.


    The energy swirled together and screeched before exploding in a mighty blast that converted all the sand around them into pure glass. It cut into the number one hero''s back, splitting it open and badly burning her. Her cape was torn off her outfit, and she flew off into the air, being carried away by the wind.


    She panted a bit and flexed her shoulders. A golden light seeped from her wound as it began to force itself shut. "What the hell was that? Since when do you have portals?"


    "I did something similar after the Beast fight. Or were you not paying attention?" Another portal opened up next to her as Battery stepped out and swung his weapon out as hard as he could. She lifted her sword up to block it, but his energy spilled out and took shape around the left side of his body. It formed into a massive, armored limb made out of solid blue energy wielding a claymore the size of a bus, which easily split her sword in two and blew her back. The energy vanished as Battery''s arm returned to normal, and he pointed his sword out at the hero as she landed on her feet. This time, the black energy spilled out, and it formed into a one-hundred-foot-tall knight who swung his sword down onto the Victorian''s head.


    She took the blow head-on, gritting her teeth as the sword smashed into her skull and shook the ground, sending a shock wave out. Thanks to her power, she forced herself up, floating, and shattered the blade. Her fist flung out as hard as she could, smashing through the knight''s chest and shattering it to bits.


    "Why do you even use a sword?" Battery called out to her. "You seem way better with your fists. You didn''t even use weapons back then when you were at your strongest."


    "Strongest?" She scoffed and wiped some of the blood away from her forehead as her golden light sealed her wounds shut. "You''re wrong. I''m the strongest as I am now. The old me was just a silly little girl holding onto a false goal. The world didn''t need another villain; it needed someone they could look up to. That''s why I stepped up."


    "You act like it was your choice." He shook his head and swung his weapon out, sending another slash her way. She went to dodge it, but another series of portals opened up. She flew into the air to avoid them, but the air around her kept shimmering and changing, bouncing the attack back and forth. "You''re not really the one who stepped onto this path, are you? The truth is, it''s your father''s dying will. I wondered why the kid''s power never reached the same level as Full Monarch''s even after she awakened her power, and now I think I have an idea. The change in your powers and attitude from when you were a kid. That strength doesn''t serve your purpose. The way you cling to Full Monarch''s dying rules. It''s within you, isn''t it? You mocked and belittled her because you knew that the piece of the Lord she had would never come close to yours. Because you''re holding onto the embers of what remains of the Lord of the Cosmos, refusing to let it die out!"This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.


    "Did anyone tell you that you talk too much!" The Victorian reached the top of the sky, her voice booming. Golden chains sprung from her back, whipping at the air around her and cutting through the blades and portals, splitting them to bits. Rapidly, the chains began to wrap around herself, squeezing down tightly, and all the light around her began to be pulled in.


    It was sunlight itself that she controlled while in this state. It was a force of energy that flowed through the universe; it was the power that came from stars. With it, she could form mighty barriers and weapons or even use them to heal. She could also use it to boost her body up as much as she could, allowing her to reach a power close to the strength she once held as Ruby Admiral. That said, the truth about this power was that it was nothing more than her ability inverted. The real power came not from the light of a star but rather from the rest of the cosmos that light illuminated.


    It had taken a while to charge. For hours in their little dance, she had steadily drawn in the energy of the universe itself so she could reach her true power—the power that allowed her to go toe-to-toe with the Beast—the power that, if not for the interference of the Tallest Wave, would have killed the Beast. The chains snapped and shattered around her as she entered into her full power—the Galaxy Dress.


    Every part of her body was covered in a thick layer of black. It wasn''t like shadows, though, not like the Emperor. This was like looking up at the night sky. All across her form, hundreds of tiny golden lights sparkled off the inky black void that made up her body. The Victorian wasn''t holding back anymore. The need for her sword was something she was no longer concerned with.


    "Finally," Battery smirked, looking up at her. She floated up there, practically in space, slowly feeling her body tense and adjusting to the new power that was settling in her. "I was wondering when-"


    She appeared in front of him, throwing out a punch that bathed everything in gold as all the stars along her form ignited and blasted out. Battery was barely able to block it, creating a torso around his body forged from his blue energy. Her punch caused it to heavily crack, and this time it was his turn to be sent flying back. He flipped through the air and created a portal behind him, which he flew into. He appeared next to the woman and spun around with his sword, but she ducked under it and clapped her hands together so hard that she directed a massive shock wave into his gut, causing him to grunt as it blew a hole straight through him.


    She threw a punch at him, but another portal, this one the size of a basketball, appeared in front of him, which her hand sank into. The other end appeared directly in front of her face, and her fist smashed into herself head-on. As she stumbled back, Battery kicked out with his right leg, a massive blue armored limb appearing on it, which he smashed into her side, but it didn’t even cause the woman to budge. He swung his blade again, shooting off his energy beam, but she literally punched through it, shattering the clouds above them.


    She lifted off of the ground, flew forward, flying past it, and began to circle the battlefield, picking up speed. She got faster and faster until she was just a black blur that not even Battery could follow anymore. His head darted from left to right as he tried to follow it. He created several of his Giants, the black-armored warriors appearing on every side of him holding massive greatshields to defend their master. While he did that, he opened another portal connected to the middle of the ocean.


    The Victorian rammed into his Giants, her force shaking and cracking their shields as she began to break through them one by one, rapidly making her way toward Battery. Right as she was about to reach him through and deliver a punch, he opened his portal, making it the size of a small golf ball, and rammed out a beam of water directly into her as the force of the ocean came spilling out. She blocked it with her palm, holding it against the horde of water, but it flooded the entire wasteland around them, quickly falling into the massive craters and cracks within the ground they created, forming several mini lakes. The water came up to her waist, and she breathed out as hard as she could, sending out a gust of air so cold it froze the entire area around them and changed the setting from a harsh desert to an arctic wasteland.


    She easily broke her own way out of her ice, simply flying up, but Battery had been forced to jump up onto the shoulders of one of his Giants to escape the force of the attack.


    “No more games.” The Victorian came down hard and rammed her fist right through the Giant and easily snapped Battery’s neck. The hero in red crashed to the ground, gurgling on his own blood. His eyes were wide, filled with shock, and his head was twisted all the way to the other side. Then slowly he grinned. “Why are you smiling-” Battery’s body ignited with a bright glow as the energy inside of him reached a breaking point. “Are you about to-”


    Battery exploded.


    Literally.


    Without Full Monarch’s guidance, because he was a Ruler once more, his old trick was back and better than ever. The mixed colors fused together into a mighty blow that actually caused the Victorian to scream as the force of the explosion ripped through part of her cosmic form, cracking it. Boy Genius and the Tallest Wave had to work together, creating a barrier to avoid the blast as it filled the entire Wasteland up.


    Battery’s eyes slowly opened, and he found himself sinking into a pit of nothingness. It was black all around him. Something was gripping on him, trying to shove him further down. He could feel something slipping away from him. Some sense of emotion and memory, but it didn’t matter. He needed to win.


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


    “Yeah, yeah. Shut up and bring me back.” Battery said, rolling his eyes.


    “...”


    "Well, what are you waiting for?" Battery gave a smirk. “I’m your Ruler, right? Well, if that’s the case, then I order you to bring your Ruler back.”


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


    Darkness swirled together, and Battery blinked. The next thing he knew, he was back in one piece, standing in a gigantic crater caused by his self-explosion. All the damage he had taken was gone. His costume was fully healed, and his body had never felt better. His aura was even stronger, the power of a Ruler growing as he gave a smirk.


    “Much better.” He cracked his knuckles, and from the dust cloud he found the Victorian glaring at him. “Round two?”


    “Why the hell did you do that!” The woman screamed.


    “Don’t get mad at me. Your attack is what killed me.” Battery rolled his eyes. “You snapped my neck. I’d have come back no matter what. If I die, I might as well blow myself up, right? After all, it’s quite the effective way to hurt whoever I’m fighting, and I get a full heal from it.”


    “What about what you told me?" The woman wiped her mouth and hissed out. “I could have healed you with my golden light. Why would you throw your life away-”


    “Because it’s all I have left to give!” Battery yelled back at her. “Cinder is gone! She’s dead! There won’t be another Full Monarch! If I’m still alive, then this world will just have to deal with it. I don’t care what happens to me, what path I walk, or who I hurt or kill. All I can truly say is that I am going to make the bad guys suffer. I’m going to truly put an end to it all!”


    The energy around Battery grew sharper and gushed out of the man, covering him up. It formed blue armor that began to grow, getting bigger. In a single heartbeat, Battery towered over the Victorian, now in his one hundred-meter Giant form once more. His power was at its peak, energy flowing out of him with so much force that the air was having a hard time keeping it contained, and cracks began to appear in the space around them.


    Battery swung his sword once, its power shattering everything around them and blowing the ground up. In the distance, mountains trembled and shattered, all caused by this single swing that could easily wipe out even a city. The Victorian felt the ground beneath her vanish as part of the planet was cleaved open, and they began to fall into the same underground cavern where she had fought the Emperor. One that held a long-dead city from a forgotten age. She went to fly, but Battery''s hand smashed down, slamming a massive fist into her. He hit way harder than any of his other Giants. This was indeed the full power of the Ruler of Giants. The true strength he held. Creation and Destruction flowed forth into his suit.


    The force of the attack rammed into her and sent her flying through the ground, smashing through dozens of the buildings below and opening up more of the cavern from the shock wave. She felt several of her ribs crack, but she didn''t have time to consider it as Battery''s massive form dropped down and shook the cave. He gripped his claymore with both hands and swung it as hard as he could, firing out a massive yet thin energy beam that was hotter than the sun. It began to melt through the stone around them, blowing the cavern up even more. The Victorian rammed her fist into the ground, shattering it and creating a crater, which she dropped down into just in time as the massive energy beam tore at the world around it, splitting through everything that got in its way in an instant.


    She focused her breathing and rocketed forward, flying through the ground, resurfacing, and appearing in front of him. He swung his sword down, this time smashing the blade directly into the hero, which rammed her into the ground and blew the place up once again. Every force was simply explosive and powerful.


    The Victorian took the full force of it, though, and did the exact same thing she did to the Beast. She forced herself to stand back up and grit her teeth. All across her form, billions of tiny golden stars suddenly erupted and went supernova. They swam across her entire flesh and changed into a bright ruby-red color as the full force of a dwarf star found its way into her fist—Ruby Admiral''s full-powered punch.


    The Giant stumbled a bit but stood its ground and raised its sword high. Blue fire and black lightning screamed out of the blade as its size began to grow and its eyes shifted into the same set Battery had, one blue and the other black. It swung its weapon down on her as hard as it could as she brought her fist up. She stopped at the very last second, though, halting her punch right as a portal appeared where she would have struck, redirecting an attack her way.


    "I knew you''d try that, asshole!" She had stopped him from pulling the same stunt he did earlier. His sword came down, cleaving his own portal in two, and she sidestepped his strike, though the force of the attack still caused dozens of cracks to ripple across her dress. Before he could even think of closing his portals or opening new ones, she flew up as fast as she could, going around his portal, and this time, she didn''t stop her punch. All of her energy was unleashed, and she struck out with an attack, completely blowing the roof of the cavern off and exploding any of the clouds that were left in the sky as her fist hit his construct directly where she knew he was hiding. "I win!" She roared.


    Her strike smashed through the Giant, breaking his sword and his armor. Hundreds of cracks began to rapidly expand over his form, snapping open, allowing her to see the hero that was at the center of it-


    It was empty.


    From the portal that had been created earlier, Battery stumbled out, appearing behind her. He ditched his Giant armor right before her punch could land. She spun around to meet him head-on, throwing out another haymaker as he stabbed out with a sword. Her fist smashed into his chin and snapped his head back, nearly breaking his neck, but his new blade pierced past her armor through one of the cracks and found its way into her gut, causing her to gasp and stumble back. He forced himself to step forward and twisted the sword as hard as he could, spilling her blood as he ripped it out.


    She pushed through the pain though and glared right back at him as her Galaxy Dress began to shatter and break away. Her hair went back to its brilliant golden color, and in an instant, she created her greatsword. Battery breathed heavily, also having taken quite the beating from that single punch. Despite that though he still raised his claymore up at her. Her golden light struggled to heal the damage caused to her gut, but she didn''t have very long as Battery swung his sword at her.


    Their fight had begun with an exchange of swords, and it would end with one as well. Blue clashed against gold as they began to dance, going back and forth and hitting each other as hard as they could. It lost all meaning: blade grinding against blade, greatsword and claymore, man and woman. It was almost beautiful in a strange, twisted way.


    "You asked why I use the sword." She brought her weapon down again, shattering through his blade and ramming the blunt part of her weapon into the top of Battery''s head, nearly cracking his skull open. "Because ''he'' used one! The Emperor''s sword was the weapon he always carried into battle! Though I''d guess you would know that wouldn''t you!"


    Battery gritted his teeth and created another portal, one much smaller near his hand. "How long have you known?" He struggled to push his head up as the handle of her blade jammed down into it.


    "When I saw you summoning those Giants in the fight with the Beast, I knew. I always thought you were familiar, but I''m bad with faces. I can hardly even remember what my own daughter looks like." The woman admitted. "I instead recognize people for the amount of power they give off. It wasn''t until now that you began to give off the old energy you once held."


    "Well, I''ve gotten a lot weaker since then." Battery smirked as his hand sank into the portal, grabbing something. "I was on so many enhancement drugs and had the Princess of Life boosting my powers with her ability that I could do almost anything. Even create portals to space if I needed to. Now the range of my portals has greatly shrunk, but I can still use them to grab just the tool I need!" He forced his head up, shoving her weapon off of him as he pulled out a new sword. It wasn''t one made of energy, though. This was an actual blade. One he had recently created.


    The Victorian gripped her sword as tightly as she could and slammed it down as hard as she could muster as Battery stabbed out with his weapon. Instantly, as soon as the metals met, his black blade tore its way past her sword, snapping it in two. Her greatsword shattered to bits crumbling in her hands as he stabbed back into her previous gut wound.


    She tried to focus on her power and up her defense, but it didn''t work. In fact, she couldn''t feel her power at all. She felt shock hit her as she tried to use her light, but that didn''t work either. She rammed her fist into his face, but it lacked much of her strength and barely caused him to blink. Before he could shove the blade in any deeper, she jumped back and fought through the pain, pulling herself off of the blade. As soon as she was off it, she felt her power instantly come back, but it was already too late. It would take her a while to build up the Galaxy Dress once more to counter this new weapon he had. Time that Battery wouldn''t give her. He had waited until her power had grown weaker than the blade''s so it could cancel her ability out.


    She clutched her stomach, feeling her stomach spill her blood, and forced the golden light to ease the wound close. It was slower, though. She was starting to run low on energy after hours of fighting and using her dress. Battery, on the other hand, had gotten a free heal and now held a new weapon proudly.


    It could hardly be called a sword. It was more like a longer knife. Despite that, though, she recognized it instantly. It was what remained of Hell Hound''s mace. After the battle with the Beast, he must have reforged it into the weapon he now held—one that could negate powers.


    "Where''d you get that?" She asked breathlessly.


    "It belonged to my wife."


    "Neat." She collapsed forward, clutching her stomach, before landing face-first on the ground as her damaged body gave out. "Just so you know, using that weapon is cheating..." She breathed out.


    Battery scoffed before he felt his own legs give out, and he dropped to a sitting position next to her. He brought the weapon up, looking at it. "This was my only real win condition against that armor of yours."


    "So, you admit I''m stronger?"


    "As long as you accept the fact that I''m smarter." He spun the blade around before creating another portal, which swallowed it up. "This fight is over, though, Jill. I won."


    The Victorian closed her eyes. "Sure. We can have a rematch another time. You only did so well because of your cheap tricks."


    "It''s the power that belongs to me for being a Ruler. Just as you get your flight and healing from the shards of the Lord power you''ve clung to," He collapsed onto his back next to her and lifted his arm up weakly, holding up three fingers. She spun around onto her back, struggling to heal the damage his blade had caused. "There are three powers Rulers share. The Lords seem to get a bunch of different stuff, but we Rulers all have these three things in common. The first is that we can come back from the dead. Each time we die, our power revives us and rebuilds us stronger. However, there''s a price to this. It steals some of our memories and numbs our emotions. In turn, though, not only does it bring us back, the Ego within us merges with us more and more, giving us stronger powers. That''s why both Creation and Destruction can exist within me at the same time. I''ve died twice now since my power was reset by Full Monarch. The second thing we have in common is our armies. All of us have some form of soldier we can summon and use in combat. For me, it''s my Giants. Lucifer has his undead army, and Legend has something else. I''m not sure what the Emperor has. The final power we all share is a means of fast travel. For me, I can use the strength of Giants to punch holes into reality, creating portals. Lucifer gets his wings, and the Emperor seems like he can teleport through shadows."


    "That''s pretty busted."


    "It better be. It''s a hell of a price to pay for our curse."


    The Victorian stared up through the hole in the roof above them, finding that it had become night in the middle of their battle. The broken moon hung in the sky above. "So, what will you do now?"


    "I''ll do what I promised I would." Battery slowly stumbled up to his feet. "Now that I''ve beaten you, the Hero Branch will either have to accept me and my laws or become my enemy. No one can stand in my way now."


    "I wouldn''t be so sure of that!" From up above, Boy Genius glared down into the hole, activating some of his gear. The air shimmered around him as dozens of large drones decloaked. Each one was the size of a human and shaped like a cube, humming with energy. They all aimed at Battery, about to fire on the injured hero. "I''m going to stop you-"


    "That''s enough, Boy Genius." The child froze when he heard the Victorian''s voice. The golden woman struggled to her feet, nearly collapsing. "He beat me fair and square."


    "So, it''s fair and square now, huh?" Battery snorted.


    Boy Genius stood above them, gritting his teeth. Despite how much he glared at Battery, he didn''t attack, though. Not because of the Victorian''s words, however; instead, it was because Tallest Wave stood next to him, training her weapon at his throat, ready to strike if he even debated attacking Battery. Slowly, the number two hero''s arm dropped, and he turned away, his drones vanishing. "I hope you know what you''re doing."


    "I do-" Battery began, but he was cut off when Boy Genius shook his head.


    "Not you." He glared back down at the golden woman. "Your father would be so ashamed."


    And with that, he left. Battery stared up at the spot where the hero had been before he shook his head and turned away. Tallest Wave dropped down from the sky and landed next to him, folding her arms. She shot a nod toward the Victorian as Battery used his power to create a portal.


    "Where are you going?" The Victorian asked hesitantly.


    "To Rose." Battery responded casually. "It''s the city of the number one hero, right? So, it''s my city now. It''s where everything will begin. Where ''my Hero Branch'' will start." He stepped into the portal along with Tallest Wave and turned to look back at the former number-one hero. "I''ll try to keep in touch. Expect big changes, though. I know just where I''m going to start."


    The portal closed, leaving the golden woman alone. She floated up unsteadily. Her body ached. Everything hurt. She hadn''t been pushed that far since the Beast. Slowly, though, she made her way to her destination. Above the clouds and outside of the planet, she soon arrived on the moon and collapsed next to a familiar glass coffin.


    "I did it, Dad." She rolled over and looked at the coffin of her father. The one that held the body of the greatest hero on Earth. "I finally found someone who could cast a shadow as big as you did. I just hope I didn''t make the wrong choice. I just hope that my days of being a hero weren''t just wasted."