Chapter 151: The Island
It was all dark, but she could hear splashing all around her, followed by heavy waves slamming down.
"H-"
She almost groaned. How many times has she blacked out and then woke up in some new location? This was starting to get ridiculous.
"H-"
She bet someone like the Victorian didn't have to worry about things like this happening. Neither would someone like Battery. Mr. Larison was way too cool to be constantly blacking out like she was.
"Hope!"
The voice of Kevin rumbled in Hope's ears. She mentally sighed as she felt her body start to wake back up and function again. Even without opening her eyes, she knew her body was still stuck in its tiny new form. She felt a little extra weight on her back, though, which confused her. She also felt sand and water splashing on her and a pair of lips on hers-
Her eyes snapped wide open, and she prayed with all her heart that Kevin wasn't giving her CPR. Thankfully for her, it wasn't Kevin above her. Unfortunately, it also wasn't anyone she knew personally. She didn't make a good first impression either, as moments later, she began to vomit up an entire bucket's worth of seawater.
The person giving her the CPR, whoever it was, thankfully removed their lips just in time. She coughed and gasped, her body shaking. "There, there. Let it all out." It was a young woman. One who was currently patting her on the back as her lungs became free of water. "You'll feel better once your lungs are clear."
She tried to nod her head but was unable to as more water and sand flowed out of her mouth. She was gasping by the end of it and couldn't help the shudders that went through her. Tears were streaming down her face, and she felt really embarrassed about the crying in front of another person, but she also couldn't really bring herself to care.
The woman who had seemingly saved her life kept rubbing her back, soothing her nerves. "T- Thank you." She managed to gasp out. "I almost drowned! Did you save me-" She stopped suddenly when she finally took notice of the person who saved her, and she instantly felt her face go red.
The woman was in her early twenties at the most and had tanned skin, showing a life spent out in the sun. She also had long, flowing black hair. Whoever the woman was, she didn't wear normal clothes, instead being dressed in what appeared to be leaves and grass woven together into a makeshift dress. It was similar in design to the ones from the memories Avalon had forced her to watch. The kind of outfit people in villages would wear.
On top of all of that, though, the woman was extremely beautiful. She had been given CPR from a very attractive lady.
Her face felt hot, and her world spun a bit as she tried to clear her thoughts. That was technically cheating on Sky, was it? Were she and Sky even dating? Did it matter? Who knows. She wasn't really able to think straight at the moment anyway.
The woman noticed her flushed face and cocked their head to the side. "Are you okay, little girl?" The woman questioned. Just like that, her embarrassment was replaced with a flash of annoyance at being called a kid.
Hope blinked a bit and tried to answer. She resisted the urge to explain the age thing and instead accepted the fact that this lady likely thought she was thirteen. It might mean the woman was more willing to help her out. "Yeah? I'm fine, I think?" She rubbed part of her head and coughed up the last of the water, feeling a bit dizzy but mostly fine other than that. "Where am I, exactly?"
She took a moment to judge her surroundings, and it only made her worry grow. She wasn't in any of the ten cities that existed. She was back on Earth, however. She could tell thanks to the blue sky above and the passing clouds. Just like Hell Land, though, she had surfaced up in some sort of beach-looking area. Or, more specifically, some sort of tropical island. The kind that had coconut trees and crabs walking around.
There weren't any big buildings, but she did spot several wooden huts. The island was pretty big just from what little she saw, but the spot she had surfaced on happened to be near what she assumed was a village. It was just past the tree line. Several of those small huts had been built into the trees, and just like the woman, there were people walking about, all dressed in hand-forged clothes. Some were large men carrying sharpened wooden spears or makeshift bows, and others were women washing the clothes or getting cooking supplies.
Most concerning of all, though, was that she didn't see Kevin anywhere near her.
"You're on Coral Island," the woman explained. "I was getting ready to go fishing when I happened upon you in the water." The woman nodded to a wooden boat that was barely tied down and still filled with supplies. "I took you back here as soon as I could. You're really okay, Miss?"
"Yeah." She tried to stand up but collapsed forward into the arms of the woman. "Maybe not." Curse her tiny, weak, pathetic legs.
"You need to rest." The woman slowly helped her back up onto her feet. "I'll take you inside and get you changed out of those wet clothes. You're from one of the big cities, right?"
"Yeah." The woman kept a hand on her shoulder, and they began to walk toward the village. "How did you know though?"
"Your clothes." The woman explained, letting off a soft giggle. "They're the kind city folk wear. I've seen a few of them before. Sometimes, when I'm out sailing, they'll come by on their big ships. Many of them take a kick out of gawking at us and are always shocked we're alive." The woman smirked a bit as she said that. "They think you need the help of Supers and the 'heroes' to make a living."
Coral Island wouldn't be part of the ten cities. As such, it didn't have any heroes other than the Victorian, who would keep it safe during one of her world patrols. Yet despite that, it was still thriving and holding itself together. In fact, it looked good. She couldn't help but stare at some of the workers as they wandered into the village. It was unlike any place she had seen before.
Even the village she had viewed through the memories, thanks to Avalon, was very different from this one. That village had more cabins and hunters. Like something you'd see in a fantasy novel. This one, though, had all the huts high up as makeshift tree houses, with ladders connecting them to the bottom and bridges allowing access to other huts. There were about twenty or so that she counted, and all around the woods, people worked, cutting down some trees to harvest or getting ready to hunt. Children ran around swinging wooden sticks, which they pretended were swords, and some people stopped to stare at her and the woman as they entered.
None of the looks were like the kind she had gotten from Hell Land. They weren't judging or sizing her up. They were more curious, seemingly studying her. Some even seemed concerned by her appearance. "Oh, I almost forgot. My name is Olivia." The woman spoke up. "Might I know your name, Miss?"
"I'm—" she stopped as she remembered Meta. She doubted this place had TVs or any connection to the outside world that would allow them to know who Cinder was, but she didn't want to be unsafe. "I'm Ruby." She once again lied and used a fake name.
"What city are you from, Ruby?"
"Oleander."
"Oleander? I haven't heard of that one."
"Which one have you heard of?"
Olivia hummed and seemed to try to think of the name. "Violet." The tanned woman finally said. "I think the people on the boats always called it that, at least."
She felt like someone punched her in the gut once more. "Violet, I see..." It was practically as far away from Oleander as you could get. However, it wasn't all bad. If she could get to the city at all, then she could call Myth or someone else and get them to come pick her up. "I'll need to head there, then."
"I'm afraid you're out of luck in that case." The woman looked down at her as they reached one of the trees. This one had a long tree trunk that formed a thin ramp, allowing them to walk up it instead of climbing the ladder. "It's still miles away. It'd take a few days to get there. It is possible, but not in the state you're in."
She hated being so weak. It made her blood boil. If only her powers were here. She'd simply have the strength to swim the distance, or even run on the water, or perhaps even fly. Like this, though, she couldn't save herself, much less anybody else.
They finally reached the hut. It wasn't very big. There was only one room, which looked as if it served as the bedroom and kitchen. There was a rack, which the woman gestured to. "It isn't safe to stay in those wet clothes. It gets cold this time of year. Go ahead and change into those, and I'll take you somewhere you can get warmed up while we figure out what to do with you."
"What to do with me?"
"We do have a few ways of getting in contact with a city," Olivia explained. "In case there is a great disaster like a monster attack or a deadly virus that requires their help. In my time, we only had to use it once to stop a giant sea lizard from destroying our island. The one they called the Victorian came in and killed it. We ate that monster for the next year and a half. We'll explain that we have a lost city member, and they need to come pick you up."
That made some of the tension fade. She'd be able to get off the island sooner than later. "Thank you."
Olivia only smiled at her and closed the door. She was alone in the hut now. There were no windows or anything, so she didn't have to worry about anyone seeing her. She walked over to the rack and looked down. It was pretty much the same thing Oliva was wearing, but a little longer. Due to her small size, it'd cover most of her form. She really missed her hero costume. It was annoying having to change clothes so often.
She grabbed the bottom of her shirt and was about to pull it off. Her jacket was gone, so she didn't need to worry about that. She stopped, though, when she heard a voice. "Psst. Don't do that. I don't want to see you naked."
She nearly screamed when the voice of Kevin came out of nowhere. It made her jump and look around with wild eyes, but she didn't see anything. "Kevin?"
"Right here." The voice rumbled and almost seemed to be directly behind her. That was when she noticed it.
She didn't remember losing her jacket, but something had seemingly replaced it. She was so focused on her surroundings that she hadn't even bothered to look at herself. She was in the pants the Emperor had created for her as well as the Hell Land T-shirt. They were both dripping wet, but what was really odd was that she had a backpack. A red one that was strapped around her shoulder.
Her hand shook, but she firmly reached for it and took it off. She looked down at it, studying the thing. It was pure red, even the zippers. It was closed and didn't have any design or anything on it. As she stared back at it, it stared back at her. A pair of eyes, followed by a mouth, appeared on it.
"Hey." The backpack said in Kevin's voice.
She blinked slowly, processing what she was seeing. "Hey?"
Kevin had turned himself into a backpack.
A few moments earlier…
"It isn't safe to stay in those wet clothes. It gets cold this time of year. Go ahead and change into those, and I'll take you somewhere you can get warmed up while we figure out what to do with you."
"Thank you."
Olivia smiled at the young girl and closed the door. The woman stood outside of her hut and waited until she heard the child walk to the other side. There were no windows, and despite being made out of wood, it was surprisingly hard to hear through the thick walls. The woman looked around slowly and took in her surroundings.
The other members of the village were down below in the forest, many heading out. None would notice her, nor would they hear any sound she made.
She brought her hands up to her mouth and began to cough. Violent and harsh, she kept coughing into her hand as a bluish liquid splashed out of her throat, dripping down her chin as she vomited up a small metal cube that was roughly the size of a dice. She breathed heavily as the coughing died down and wiped the liquid away from her mouth. The metal cube glowed and began to hum for a moment, letting out a faint blue light. It clicked and unfolded, turning into a small earpiece. It wasn't a normal one, though. This one was special.
"This is Parasite, reporting back to you." Olivia leaned against the wall, placing the earpiece up to her head. Her lips didn't move, as she didn't actually say any of this out loud. Instead, she thought of saying it. The device connected to her, and she felt her mind connect to another.
"It's about time, Parasite." A feminine voice came from the other line, sounding almost amused. No sound was made as it instead went directly into Olivia's head. It was a form of telepathy, a way for them to radio each other all without having to make a sound. "What's your status?"
"I managed to sneak into the village you were telling me about. The people here have no idea I'm hiding amongst them. I've hijacked the body of one of their sailors." Olivia's lips twisted slightly into a smirk, and she glanced down at her body, amused. "I waited at the entrance to Hell Land as you suggested, but that gray-haired girl never showed up."
The voice on the other line let out a loud curse. "Some of our men spotted her in Hell Land. I was sure she'd use the backdoor exit when they saw her heading that way."
"It isn't all lost, my lady." Olivia's smirk grew. "I found something else instead."
"Oh?"
"The report said that the gray-haired girl wasn't alone, right? There was a young child with her. I believe I've run into that person. She called herself Ruby. She's a Super."
"I see. What have you done to her?"
"Nothing yet."
"Oh? That's unlike you? I would have thought you'd have body swapped into the child's form to figure out who she was and her connection to that gray-haired bitch."
"I tried." Parasite bit down on Olivia's lip. It was not hard enough to draw blood, but it was enough to let them feel the sensations the body was going through. "She had nearly drowned, and I pulled her out of the water. My ability failed on her, though. It didn't work. I've never seen a Super able to resist my switch before. She doesn't seem to have physical enhancements, so I'd guess she's some sort of mental-based user. Luckily she thought I was performing CPR on her, so I brought her back to the village and decided it was best to radio in with you first and see what you'd like for me to do before I try anything else."
She heard a chuckle from her boss over the shared device. "This could work, then. That girl clearly is connected to our enemy somehow. Keep a close eye on her. Once we understand the connection she and the gray-haired girl have, we can use it to get our revenge."
"That girl will pay for wiping out one of our ships." Parasite agreed. "The Anti-Matter gang won't simply sit by and do nothing."
Quiet footsteps came from behind her. She hadn't spoken a single word during her conversation with her boss, having used the earpiece to have a psychic conversation. Once she heard Ruby approaching, she opened her mouth wide, forcing Olivia's jaws to snap open, and she forcefully swallowed the earpiece. Blue liquid squirmed inside Olivia's throat and wrapped around the machine, pulling itself down into the woman's guts. Then, she simply closed her mouth right as the door to the hut opened.
"Have you finished changing, Ms. Ruby?" she asked slowly, turning around. She stopped when she saw the girl. "Where did you get that?"
Ruby sheepishly rubbed the back of her head. "So, it turns out my backpack had some clothes that didn't get all wet, so I just changed into them." The young girl still had that red backpack on her and had changed out of the black shirt and pants, replacing them with a pair of red shorts and a red hoodie. There was no other color to the outfit, just a sea of red.
"I see where you got your name Ruby from." Olivia said, amused.
The kid just smiled and shrugged. "So, what now, Ms. Olivia?"
The woman turned and pointed out across the island. Past the forest stretching out in the distance was a large hill. Even from where they were, it was easy enough to see that parts of the hill had been hollowed out and more huts had been built on the side of it. "Ideally, I'd like for you to get drier, but if you're ready, we can start heading out that way." The woman explained. "It's about a mile and a half away, so it's a bit of a walk."
"What's over that way?" The young girl asked.
Parasite took a moment to connect with the body's mind, gaining more of Olivia's memories. "The one who runs this village lives there." She finally said. "We don't normally keep things we can't make from hand, but our leader has a little device he was gifted by a hero. It allows him to get in contact with the nearby city in case there is a serious emergency, and we can't stop ourselves. As I mentioned earlier, we can use that to get in contact with someone who can come pick you up."
"Alrighty then! Lead the way, Ms. Olivia."
The woman nodded, and together, the two of them walked back down the ramp of her hut. They reached the forest floor where the other villagers were. Some waved or called out to them, but she ignored them for the most part and instead guided the child toward the forest, heading in the direction of that hill.
Parasite found it funny in a twisted way. The people here hated Supers and refused to live in the ten great cities, so they had closed themselves off. From an outsider's perspective, it looked as if they were thriving and doing just fine, yet everyday sickness and diseases were claiming their kind. They didn't even know that a Super had managed to live amongst them. And even with all that pride, they had been forced to tuck their tail in between their legs and call for help from the heroes a few times.
They made it deeper into the forest after walking for several minutes in total silence. The leader of the village liked to live alone, keeping to himself for the most part. He was only considered the leader due to the power he held, being able to call the closest city for aid. Many of the people in the village tended to just leave him alone and hunt in other parts of the forest. Because of that, they reached a point where nobody was around. A person wouldn't be able to hear anything that happened.
Parasite walked in front of the young girl, keeping her back to her target. "So, Ms. Ruby, being from one of the ten great cities, you must have seen a Super or two in your life, right? What was that like?"
"I guess I've seen a few," Ruby responded casually.
"I see." Parasite felt their real body bubbling up inside of Olivia, ready to jump out. She had tried invading the girl's body when the child was unconscious but had failed at the time. It hadn't been a full invasion, and before she could try again, the child had woken up. The girl's power was the only thing that concerned her, but if she could jump quick enough, she'd be able to take the body over no matter what. She just needed to get the girl talking about something and be distracted. "We see Supers every now and then." She said suddenly. "They're villains, though. Supers that have decided to live out here and attack places like mine. Recently, my group was attacked by a powerful villain. One that almost wiped us all out."
"Really?" The child asked in shock. "You guys seemed fine to me! I didn't notice much destruction."
"Oh, it wasn't these people. It was 'my' real people. See, it all started when a girl with gray hair decided that for no reason at all, she'd attack us."
"A girl with gray hair-"
Parasite chose that moment to strike. While the child was taken aback by what she said, she spun around at full speed, ready to fire out of Olivia's mouth. She expected to see the girl in shock, mouth wide, about to say something. What she didn't expect was the large tree branch that was swinging at her face. "Huh?" Was all Olivia managed to get out before, moments later, the branch slammed into her face like a bat, breaking her nose and nearly knocking her out as she crashed to the ground.
Hope had put all the strength she could into that, which wasn't a lot, but she had been ready for it, having grabbed the largest branch she could hold while she followed after the woman. As soon as the Super turned to look back at her, she didn't hesitate and swung her makeshift weapon directly into the woman's face.
Olivia crashed onto her back, clutching at her broken nose, and howled. A weird blue liquid squirmed in her mouth, twitching and bubbling. Hope pulled her foot back and kicked at the woman's stomach one last time before she took off running at full speed deep into the forest, trying to get out of sight. "You were right, Kevin! She was a Super!"
The red hoodie she wore twitched a bit as the right shoulder rose up, forming a small tendril with a mouth. "I told you." Kevin's voice came out as a thin hiss. "While you were busy drowning, I was the one that pulled you back up to the surface. I managed to change and morph into this bag form just in time to stop that woman from seeing me. I watched as she pulled you back onto her boat and took you to this place. At first, I thought she was just giving you CPR or something, but then I looked closer and saw she was trying to spit this weird blue liquid into your mouth. Either way, I'm pretty good at spotting dirty liars, and she reeked of lies."
Hope made a slight face and rubbed her throat. "What the hell was she trying to make me drink?"
"I have no clue how their powers work, but it didn't have an effect on you, I think." Kevin hummed. "I don't know if the others in this village are Supers either or if it's just her. We also don't know if she was telling the truth when she told us about that device that can radio the cities."
"We don't have much of an option, though, do we?" she winced. She had been running in the direction of the hill as fast as her small legs could carry her. She missed having super speed. "It could be the only way out of here, right? Besides, if worse comes to worse, you can fight them all off!"
"I'm not nearly as strong as you, though. Why aren't you using the power of a Lord?" Kevin questioned.
"About that-"
She didn't get to finish what she was saying as seconds later, the tree next to her suddenly exploded as a fast-moving blue tendril of liquid slashed into it. The tree came down directly in front of her, nearly falling on her, but Kevin's own tendrils dragged her back just in time. She spun around and saw that Olivia had managed to catch up to them. The woman's body didn't seem to be in good condition either.
Olivia's legs had grown larger and longer, as if something in her body was forcing them to expand so she could run faster. Her skin was being stretched out of them, and the muscles inside of her limbs almost seemed to scream at every step she took. Her arms dangled at her side, not bothering to use them, and something was coming out of her mouth. Her eyes rolled back in her head as if she were unconscious, and it was whatever was inside of her that was truly calling the shots. It looked almost like jell-o. A mass of deep blue liquid formed itself into three tendrils, each six feet in length, which squirmed and flowed out of her mouth.
"Ah, I think I get it now." Olivia's mouth didn't move, and it wasn't her voice that floated through the air. It was still a female voice, but it came out as a series of slurps and slaps as the tendrils bubbled and squirmed. There weren't eyes on them, but Hope was sure they were looking at her. "You're a Mental-Based Super with a power involving biology or something, right?" The tendrils asked her.
"What?" She asked, taken aback.
"There's no need to hide it." The tendrils hissed and squirmed faster. One of them seemed to point at the spot of her hoodie that Kevin's mouth was forming out of. "That suit you're wearing. You made that, right! In a way, it's similar to my own form. Quite clever, creating clothes that can respond to your will."
"Hey, screw you, lady!" Kevin's voice came out as a loud, booming yell. "I do what I want when I want! Got that! I don't belong to anyone!"
"Whatever! It doesn't matter." Parasite growled, and her tendrils started to twitch and stab out in Hope's direction. "I'll make you pay for what your teammate did to my people!"
Her hoodie twitched as Kevin formed more tendrils, which shot out and wrapped around the blue ones, stopping them from reaching her. "My teammate? Lady, I don't even know who you are!" She yelled back.
"Don't lie to me!" Olivia's body crouched down and fired forward like a rocket, trying to headbutt them. She jumped out of the way just in time, causing Olivia to slam head-first into another tree and leave a large dent in it. Blood flowed down the woman's face, soaking her hair, and her arms grew larger and longer, forcefully stretching out toward her. "I will have your body!" Parasite screamed.
Kevin dragged her back just in time, using more of his tendrils to cause her body to duck down and dodge the large arm. She didn't have super speed anymore, but Kevin still had his, and he was doing a hell of a job of keeping her safe. Or at least he was, but then Olivia's arm twisted itself, literally snapping the bones. It almost made her throw up from the sound. The arm had grown way longer than it should have been and was turned into a makeshift lasso, catching her and Kevin off guard. It wrapped around her waist, holding her down.
Kevin cursed, and her outfit twitched, forming barbed tendrils that covered her, but Parasite was faster. The blue tendrils stabbed out, impaling their way through Kevin and causing the boy to hiss. They weren't aiming for him, though, and squirmed their way up. She tried to keep her mouth shut, but they forced it open. The liquid surged forward at fast speeds, dragging itself out of Olivia's mouth and forcing its way into hers. The last of the liquid left Olivia and fully entered her. Kevin tried to stop it, but the slime-like entity caused its form to be more liquid in nature, so his grabs just went through it.
"Hope!" Kevin called out in panic.
Hope began to choke for the second time that day. She could feel the liquid forcing its way down her throat. There was a lot of it, and it squirmed its way through her body, spreading out. She collapsed to the ground, shaking, and could feel it moving in her veins. The burning sensation in her throat got worse as it began to move further up, going for her brain.
Earlier, Parasite had tried to invade the body with only a strand of her liquid but had failed. Now, she was using everything she had. She rose up through the girl's insides and reached the stem of the brain. She crawled her way up it, her liquid flooding it as she wrapped herself around it, and then-
Suddenly, Parasite felt herself standing on her own two feet. Not her liquid forms feet, and not the feet of the child she was trying to take over. They were her feet. The ones she used to have. Back when she had been human. She had been one of the people turned into a Monster by the Emperor back during the war. After his fall, she had found a new group in the form of the Anti-Matter gang—a group of Wasteland Pirates. For nearly sixteen years, she had lived out her life as some sort of slime creature with the ability to take over other people's bodies. Doing so was the only way she could still have human sensation.
Yet now she felt her own two feet touching the floor. "What the hell?" She muttered. "Where am I?"
Everything was on fire. That was where she found herself. The floor, the roof, the walls—all of it was a harsh crackling flame that formed the room she was in—directly in front of her stood a large glass-looking screen, like a TV, though it was black now, almost like it had been turned off. Besides that, the only other thing in the weird fire room was an empty throne that had been split in two.
"How foolish of you." She could hear a voice all around her. It held a mocking tone. It was deep and impossible to fully understand, sounding both male and female at the same time. Part of it even sounded like the girl she had just tried to take over. "I already kicked a piece of you out of my home earlier. I allowed you to carry on living, yet you repay that act of kindness by kicking down my door and forcing your way back in."
Her eyes went wide, and she spun around, looking all around her. The fire in the room hadn't been burning her despite standing on it, but it almost seemed to start to crawl up her form. Heat began to course through her, and she tried to cancel her power, but it didn't work. "So, this is your power, huh? You're like me! Someone who takes over other people's minds!" She screamed.
"Don't mistake your flimsy control over muscles for what I truly am." The voice said, almost amused. "The soul burns the brightest you know, and when it comes to Hope Lauren, her soul truly shines."
"Hope Lauren's? Wait." Parasite's eyes went wide, and the fire started to take the shape of hands grabbing at her. "What do you mean, Hope Lauren? Her hair and her eyes were the same, but she looked so young. Was that Cinder? No, that can't be possible. That would mean you're-"
"After the battle with the Beast, much of my form was destroyed and shattered, repairing her body. How kind of you to offer yourself up to the Lord of the Sun. Don't worry. I'll be sure to savor this meal."
The hands began to grab and tear at her now. Pain surged through her form, and the villain screamed out in pain. They began to break off parts of her, shattering her to pieces. The fire was eating her, absorbing her, and using her to repair itself. Replacing its damaged and cracked body with her. "Stop, please!" She begged. "I didn't know! I'll leave you alone-"
"How many times have you heard that?" The Brightest Star wondered. Their voice still boomed around the room, though their body was nowhere to be seen. The hands kept clawing and ripping, forcing their way into Parasite's body, who screamed even louder as the fire swallowed her up. Her power was being absorbed and broken down. Her very Ego, her soul, was consumed and devoured. "I bet you've heard people say those same things to you. Did you stop when they asked you to? When you pushed their bodies to the limit, broke their limbs, twisted their muscles, or shattered their minds? Don't worry. All I'm doing is giving you the same treatment."
The broken throne gradually mended, a few cracks fading away.
Parasite gave one last scream as more of her broke away, and she was pulled down into the fire. It surged up, and then instantly, she was swallowed whole. Gone in a single moment, Parasite ceased to be.
"I have a lot of work to do..." The voice of the Brightest Star hummed. "We don't have much time, Hope… Neither of us are-"
Inside Hope's body, the blue slime suddenly grew still, then slowly began to bubble and steam. Smoke poured out of Hope's mouth as the vapors of Parasite flowed out of her. She coughed up more smoke and rubbed at her chin, sitting up. "Are you okay?" Kevin asked.
"I think so?" She rubbed her head and looked down at herself. Nothing had changed. At least nothing she could tell. Maybe she had gotten an inch taller? She was sure she had heard it though, even if it had only been for a moment. The Brightest Star's voice. She closed her eyes and tried to reach for that power but felt nothing. Her fire was still gone, and the Brightest Star didn't respond when she called out their name. They were there, though. She was sure of it. They had just saved her life from that villain. It had to have been the Brightest Star. "Damn it." She cursed.
"What is it?" Kevin asked.
"Nothing." She looked over at the body of Olivia and felt panic rise up in her. "Oh crap!" The woman was unconscious. Both her legs and arms were broken, and her head was cracked. She moved over to the woman and grabbed onto her. "We need to get her serious help now!"
"If we move her, it could cause more issues due to the state her body is in, and I doubt she'll make it much longer, so even if we ran and got help, she'd still die." Kevin shrugged, which was weird since he was still currently her clothes.
She shook her head and gritted her teeth. "We have to help her!"
"We can't-"
"We can! And by we, I mean you." She announced.
"What do you want me to do?" Kevin asked in a confused tone.
She crouched down and slowly placed Olivia's head in her lap. The woman's body creaked and groaned, nearly snapping, and more blood flowed out. Olivia wouldn't have much more time… "Kevin, go inside of her!"
"What?" Kevin's tendril grew eyes and blinked as it stared at her.
"You heard me! Parasite mentioned you were similar to her! You might be able to do something like that as well, right? Your own body has a healing factor, and you can clearly split off your cells and make copies since you've made clones before! If you go inside of her, maybe you can reshape part of your body into other pieces and repair her damaged body!"
"You don't know if that will work or not, and if it doesn't, it'll kill her." Kevin hissed. "I can't just shove pieces of myself down her throat."
"She'll die if we don't try, though!"
"She could die if we do try."
"Maybe, but it's better than nothing." Slowly she reached up and placed her hand on the tendril that came out of her hoodie's shoulder. "You're not a weapon, Kevin. You can do more than kill. Wish used you to regrow herself, and you can use that power to help other people. You can use your power to save a life. You don't have to be the monster she left you as."
The tendril had a small mouth on it, which bit its lip. Finally, Kevin grunted. "Whatever. If she dies, it's on your hands."
The tendril stretched out and suddenly stabbed its way past Olivia's lips. She had forced the woman's mouth open the best she could, and she looked away as the red tentacle expanded and grew. Kevin's tendril kept expanding, getting longer and longer, and the body began to make several snapping sounds as the tendril snapped bones and muscles back into place and forced organs back to where they needed to be. As it did this, small bits of Kevin's flesh dripped off of his tendril, which began to squirm their way inside of Olivia, fusing into the woman's flesh and muscles, mending them and anything else he found that was damaged.
It took some time, but slowly Kevin's tendril finally pulled its way out of Olivia's body. Hope reached down and pressed her fingers to the woman's neck, feeling a pulse. She let out a sigh of relief and gave a small grin. "See. That wasn't so hard."
"Whatever…"
Olivia was still unconscious, but her legs and arms had been shrunk back down, and all her damaged flesh was mended. Some things would have to heal naturally on their own; Kevin wasn't anywhere near as great as Paragon was, but at least the woman wouldn't be at any risk of dying.
"What now, hero?" Kevin asked with a sigh.
She stood up and hesitantly grabbed the woman, placing Olivia on her back. "I'll carry her back to the village and figure out what to do from there."
"What if the others are villains also?"
"I don't think they are." She frowned a bit, staring in the direction of where the village was. She had a weird feeling in her gut. Or actually, it was in the back of her head. Some strange new sensation as she stared in the direction of the village. It was a weird bubbling feeling. Then suddenly it changed, and she felt something else. White hot, a feeling of intense rage. Only, it wasn't hers. "S- Something happening." She said in a panic.
"What do you mean?" Kevin questioned, suddenly on guard once more. "What's happening-"
Both of them suddenly stopped when they heard a loud mechanical noise above them. A shadow began to form, stretching out across the island, causing the other people on the island to all stop and look up.
Above the island, a massive metal ship floated in the air, one that looked like an old military boat. Its cannons pointed down at them, and it sported the flag of a Wasteland villain group. The rest of the Anti-Matter gang had arrived.
Chapter 152: Suiting Up
Hope felt it as she stared up at the large warship. It was a strange sensation that remained in the back of her head. A bubbling emotion that wasn't her own. It confused her, but she didn't have time to process it as Kevin began to speak once more.
"Any plan to deal with that?" The red monster hissed in her ear. He was still wrapped around her body, working as her costume. She'd have felt embarrassed about the fact she was literally wearing him, but with everything going on, she didn't care as much.
"Nope." Was her blunt response. Even if she had all her powers back, she was unsure if she could fight off an entire warship. "I'll just wing it or something."
"You can't seriously think you're going to fight that thing!" Kevin growled. "Are you stupid?"
She stared up at the ship, trying to keep a cool head. "Well, I can't just sit by and not do anything."
The boat was massive and old-looking. It didn't seem to be enhanced by any tech. In fact, it looked very ancient and likely wouldn't be able to sail on the sea anymore. It was most likely being lifted by a power rather than being a functional ship with Mental tech. The cannons on board of it slowly came down to point at the village, and she barely had time to turn her back as it opened fire on the island.
She was thankful she didn't have her enhanced senses because the noise was already so loud it caused her ears to nearly pop. The cannons were loud and booming, sending out massive slugs that erupted like chaotic fireworks. She took off running, but the entire island rumbled, and all the trees began to shake and crash down around her, falling to the forest floor. Red tendrils stabbed out of her backpack, slashing at all the branches that came down around her as Kevin kept her small form safe, as well as the unconscious body of Oliva, which she still carried.
She could smell smoke and spotted a massive fire forming near the village, one that was quickly starting to spread out. The ship didn't just stop with one round of cannon fire, either. They kept blasting down, tearing chunks of the ground away as they bombed the island.
"We need to get the hell out of here," Kevin suggested. She stopped dead in her tracks and looked back, balling her hand into a fist. "Why the hell are you stopping, Lauren!"
"I can't just leave them."
"Yes, you can! Don't do anything stupid!"
"The people in that village are in trouble because of me! That ship is looking for me; I'm sure of that! The villagers don't have anyone to protect them. This isn't like the cities, Kevin. The only hero out in this part of the world is the Victorian, and if she's too busy or distracted, then she won't show up in time."
"What can we do?" Kevin yelled into her ear, forming dozens of mouths along her clothes. "I might be able to take a few rounds, but a direct hit with the state you're in would reduce you to ash in seconds even if I kept you safe. We can't save them. Most are probably dead already."
"I have to try, though!"
"You'll die!"
Hope shook her head and began to remove the bag. The coat and pants she wore pulled away along with it, sliding off of her flesh. She still wore some clothes beneath it, so she wasn't naked, but she was way more exposed than before, dressed only in a T-shirt and shorts. "When you were in danger, my team came to your aid. Polaron could have killed us all then and there, but we still tried. And if I knew what Wish did to you, you can bet I'd have also shown up to help. I don't care if I don't have a chance. Those guys are after me. Maybe I can get them to talk or pretend to be controlled by their teammate or something. Anything that can get them to stop firing would help. I don't expect you to follow me. You can keep heading through the forest and find a way off this island if you want, Kevin." She placed Olivia down on the ground while Kevin just stared at her as if she were insane.
Kevin's body formed into a small red blob, barely bigger than a large cat. A pair of eyes and a mouth formed on his surface as he looked up at the hero before him. "Why do you care so much? You don't even know these people. In fact, they hate Supers. They don't want your help. They made their bed, so this is what they get. If they wanted to be saved so badly, they should have never lived out here."
She reached out and grabbed onto one of the trees that hadn't fallen over and began to try and climb up it. "It doesn't matter. I care because someone should. Now go. With any luck, I'll be able to buy you enough time to get in contact with someone."
"I really hate you."
Kevin's words caused her to pause for a moment, but she got back to trying to climb. "Do you?"
"I'm not kidding either." Kevin continued. "Seriously, what the hell are you? It makes me so mad, you know. Do you know the things I did? What I was forced to do- No. What I chose to do. All of that was for this power!" His slime-like form jiggled. "I did everything just for an attempt to reach the top. But it was never enough. Not when I was just a normal human and Supers like you existed. You pretended to be a normal girl. Did I ever even stand a chance? Hell, even after I became a Super, it didn't matter. I was just a lackey. That was all I was good for. No matter how hard I train or try to crawl to the top, I'll never be able to come close to even reaching the power your Lords have. It pisses me off so much! Why is it fair that you have to be so strong and still be so good? And now, even without powers, you're still trying to do something! What the hell! What does that make me?"
"It makes you, you." She reached the top of the tree, her hands aching a bit. "I'm me, and you're you. It doesn't need to be complicated. It has nothing to do with powers or not. Even if I didn't have powers, I think I still would have found a way to be a hero. Because that's what I want to do." She looked back down at Kevin and smiled. "So just do what you want to do!"
Kevin's teeth clenched together before his form twisted around and began to slide across the forest floor, heading for the forest. "Whatever! Get yourself killed if you want, Lauren!"
"Wait!" Kevin slowly looked back at her as she gave a sheepish grin. "Can you take Ms. Olivia with you, too?"
Kevin looked down at the unconscious woman, and quietly, his tendril wrapped around Olivia's waist. He began to drag the woman behind him as he escaped into the forest. "Seriously," Kevin said as he reached the woods. "I utterly despise your kind."
She watched him leave as he vanished, getting further and further into the woods. "Good luck!" She called out. "See if you can get a strong hero or something! I'm counting on you to save me, Kevin!" She turned back to look at the floating ship, which was still causing the island to shake from its gunfire. "Now, what am I going to do about that?" She didn't have to wonder for very long, as the barrage of fire stopped and the cannons began to turn toward her. "Uh oh."
On board the ship, sitting in the captain's chair, a woman in a long coat kept her head slumped down. She was the only one on board the ship. Thanks to her powers, she didn't need to worry about crewmates or machines. Most of the ship's inside was falling apart, and the helm of the ship was no different. This boat was old—something used in the war with Lucifer for when Sini's crew needed to engage in sea battles. Her gang had stolen one from a museum, and it was being held together with the help of her powers.
Her eyes lazily stared out the window, watching the village below, which was now in ruins. The trees collapsed, crushing all the huts the people had built, and the humans below ran around like ants scrambling as the fire ate away at the area around them. She twisted her finger and caused the cannons on the ship to take aim again but stopped when something caught her eye. With another flick of her finger, a telescope floated into the air and hovered over her eye, allowing her to see.
"Well, well, well. What do we have here?" In the distance, someone stood on one of the palm trees, having managed to climb it. It was a young girl. Only about thirteen, maybe fourteen at the most. She snapped her fingers and had the cannons take aim. She was about to fire but stopped. "Wait. Didn't Parasite tell me she found someone? This must be them. Parasite is surely in control of their body." She reached up to her forehead, where a purple gem was buried beneath the flesh. It glowed a bit as she tried to connect with Parasite, but nobody was there to pick up the signal. "Or not..."
The large ship floated through the air, carried by telekinetic powers as it neared the young girl. It began to drop to the ground, crushing and shattering all the trees nearby, and it lazily landed in the middle of the island. It was away from the village now, and the cannons were no longer firing, so the humans were able to catch their breath and stare in shock at the boat as it came down.
Hope stood on the tree but began to slowly climb down it. She dropped to the ground when a large metal ramp slid out of the boat. The ship took up most of the forest floor, and its shadow was cast across the field, blocking out most of the sun above. She tried to keep her nerves calm as someone appeared at the top of the ramp and began to walk down it.
It was an older woman in her late forties or early fifties. She wore the uniform of what you'd see a pirate wear in cheesy novels: a long red cloak and a hat with the symbol of a skull on it. A scimitar-looking sword was placed at her side, and she had a belt that was filled with old-looking revolvers. Hope was instantly reminded of the time she had spent in those visions Avalon had forced her to see. This woman was dressed similarly to how Water Prince had modeled himself. The woman's eyes glowed with purple energy, and her hair was dyed a deep purple as well. All of the glowing around the woman came from a gem implanted in the center of her forehead, which hummed with psychic energy.
The woman reached the bottom of her ramp and stepped onto the forest floor. By now, the fire had spread from the forest and was rapidly closing in on the village, but neither of them paid it much attention, keeping their gaze focused on one another. The boat blocked the view of the village, so neither of them could see what the humans were doing either.
Hope just prayed that they had rafts or something and could escape if they needed to. Things were about to get ugly.
"Who are you?"
Her thoughts came to a crawl as the woman spoke to her. She could feel those purple eyes drilling into her. She didn't know who this woman was, but she was willing to bet they were working with the slime girl who had tried to take her body over.
She folded her arms and did her best to make herself look a lot more confident than she actually was. "What are you talking about?" She let out a fake snort and rolled her eyes. "It's me. I know I got a new body, but-"
"Nice try."
She cursed herself but didn't have time to act as the woman twitched a finger. The ground exploded, seemingly coming to life as it shaped and twisted to the woman's will, wrapping her legs before she could move. She was stuck, unable to budge.
"W- What gives! I- It's me, you know. I took this body over." Her voice shook as the dirt began to crawl up her body, moving to the woman's will.
"I know you're not a Parasite." The woman hummed out and squeezed her hand into a tight fist. The dirt molded itself into a large hand that began to copy the woman's movement, squeezing down around Hope and causing the girl to wince. "I don't sense her anywhere, so I'm guessing you killed her, right?" the woman asked, clicking her tongue. "I should have expected as much. After all, you're on the same team as that gray-haired girl."
Hope gritted her teeth and tried to wiggle herself free, but it was no use. The ground was bound together as hard as a boulder and wasn't letting her go. If she had her powers or even a bit of super strength, she'd be able to get herself free in no time, but like this, she was helpless. "Can't we just talk about this? Like, who even are you, lady?"
"Talk?" The woman tilted her head to the side before giving a sly smile. "Okay. Let's talk." The villain snapped her arm out, and the hand hurled Hope across the field, letting go of the girl and sending her crashing back first into a tree. The young girl let out a loud yell as her back nearly snapped, and she collapsed onto the ground. "My name is Psycap." The woman marched over and kicked out with her foot, slamming it into the girl's face when she raised her head. "I'm the captain of the Anti-Matter gang, which is a group you've really ticked off, little girl."
"I- I'm not a kid." She managed to spit out. She clutched at her broken nose but then felt the air leave her as her clothes twitched and began to grow heavier, pressing down into her. She was lifted off the ground by an invisible force, and her arms began to fold back, not caring how arms weren't meant to bend that way. Psycap, whoever she was, seemed to have some telekinesis-based power. One she was getting to experience firsthand. "S- Stop it." She gasped.
Psycap let out a slight giggle. "Stop it? You killed one of my crewmates. Actually, you guys have killed all of my crew mates." The villain twitched her finger and dropped the girl out of the air and down to her feet. She didn't give Hope a moment to catch her breath, though, as a second later, Psycap reached down and grabbed the girl by the hair, roughly yanking it and staring down into her eyes. "You're with that grey-haired girl, aren't you? Who the hell are you guys? What gives you the right to assume you can screw with my crew?"
Hope felt her feet dangle off the ground as she was suspended by her hair. It wasn't as long as it used to be, and the pain was digging into her scalp. She grabbed onto the woman's wrist, squirming, but there wasn't anything she could really do. "Are you talking about Meta?" She finally managed to ask.
"Meta? Is that the name of that girl? There's no reason to hide it. Some of my men were in Hell Land trying to recover and get new parts after that girl tore my best ship apart. They spotted you with her. At first, I sent Parasite here to try to get to her, but you were the only one who showed up. Who are you? How did you kill Parasite-"
She did the only thing she could think of. She felt blood in her mouth from when she had been hit, and she swirled it around and then spat it out as hard as she could directly into the eye of Psycap. The villain screamed and dropped her to the ground, and she ducked down just in time as Psycap took a blind swing with her hand, sending out a wave of psychic energy that exploded through the trees, causing several of them to collapse. She grabbed a jagged branch and rammed it up with everything she had, trying to stab the woman.
Psycap had some level of durability, though, so the wood wasn't able to pierce her flesh. Instead, she changed her tactic and pushed out with everything she had, using the branch as a makeshift battering ram. Psycap was still rubbing at her eyes and was caught off guard, stumbling back and tripping over her own two feet, falling back and landing right as one of the trees came crashing down, smashing into her upper body.
Psycap screamed and howled, her powers stabbing into the tree as it began to lift off the ground. But by the time the woman got it off of her and stood back up, Hope was long gone.
Hope ran as fast as she could, heading in a random direction in the woods. Her instincts screamed at her to dodge, and she did it just in time, as a massive tree blasted out in the direction she was standing. Smoke was starting to fill her view, and she jumped into it in an effort to hide from the villain's sight. She had to cover her face with her hands, and her eyes stung, but she pushed through it. All the trees around her were on fire, and there was so much smoke that she had no idea which direction she was walking in.
Her plan seemed to work as she heard Psycap cursing and blasting out waves of psychic energy blindly, which swept across the field as an unseen force slamming through the smoke.
She stumbled out of the smoke cloud and found herself back in the village. The ground was littered with mini craters, and the fire was the biggest around this part of the island. Hundreds of trees had collapsed, and all the various huts and homes she had admired earlier had been destroyed and collapsed in on themselves. She saw many of the villagers running around in panic, trying to find a way out of the village, but most of their routes were blocked by collapsed trees or roaring fires. Even the ocean wasn't safe as the fire had spread out across the sand, blocking it off.
She dove behind one of the destroyed huts, using it to hide herself, just in time for Psycap to come blasting out of the forest. The woman stood on a hunk of iron that she had torn off of her ship and was using her power to float on it. Psycap glared around the village but didn't see the kid anywhere. She did, however, see the arrow that came at her. It stopped midair inches away from her face, and she let out a low growl. Several of the men in the village trained their bows at the villain and began to fire.
With a twitch of Psycap's finger, all their bows snapped, and the arrows that had been launched at spun around and stabbed back out toward the men, knocking several of them over. A child let out a scream and ran to his dad's side, who sported an arrow in his thigh. Psycap lifted her hand up, ripping a massive boulder out of the ground and causing it to float toward the child, about to drop it. Right before she could, though, a rock hit her upside the head while she had her back turned, causing her to slip once more and fall off of her board, crashing down to the beach below.
Hope ran out from her cover, dropping the rest of her rocks she had thrown at the villain, and jumped out, tackling the child out of the way just in time as the boulder dropped. The man with the arrow in his thigh barely had time to roll himself out of the way, avoiding it. He looked up at her for a moment as she held onto his kid, but neither of them had very long to process what was going on as, a second later, she was lifted off of the ground, dropping the kid as she floated up. She got higher and higher, and she struggled but was unable to properly move. It felt like hundreds of hands had wrapped themselves around her.
Psycap was back on her feet, her eyes filled with pure hate as she rubbed at the side of her head, which was badly bleeding. "You're dead," Psycap growled out.
"W- What if we just play a game of twenty questions-"
She didn't get to finish any cheeky remarks she might have made as her arms and legs began to snap back once more, causing her to yell. She was lifted higher up, going past the trees until she was nearly four stories up. Psycap gave a smirk and twitched, causing her to spin around midair until she was dangling upside down. The woman was going to drop her on her head. If the fall didn't kill her, the fire below her would as it raged on.
"Seriously, I think maybe we should just talk about this! We might be able to clear this whole thing up! I'm not even friends with Meta-"
"Is that so?"
"Yeah! She just helped me out because of how cute I am, I swear!"
"Then I guess I'll just mail your cute little head to her when I next find her." Psycap sneered. "Die."
The unseen hands began to rapidly close in around her, causing her face to turn purple as she began to get choked. The power was crushing her body, keeping her shoved in the air. Waves of pressure were slamming into her on all sides, and she screamed out, feeling her bones and muscles start to pop.
"I'm going to make it rain red!" The villain announced in a cheerful tone. "Pop, little girl! I want to watch you burst-"
A thin arrow flew forward and stabbed its way directly into one of Psycap's eyes. The woman had enhanced durability but not good enough to keep her eyeballs safe. The arrow dug past it, and Psycap let out a scream, losing focus for a moment as she clutched at her face.
One of the villagers, the one who had been the father of the kid Hope saved, notched a second arrow and went to aim but had to roll as Psycap unleashed another wave of psychic force, blowing most of the ground apart. Her focus faded from the pain, however, and her powers began to flick in and out. That also meant that Hope no longer found herself being crushed. The bad news, however, was that it also meant nothing was keeping her held up in the air anymore.
Hope felt herself begin to fall, and she squeezed her eyes shut. She began to drop rapidly and felt the smoke and heat rise up to meet her. Right before she hit it, though, something else came from the sky, ramming into the waters like a cruise missile. A large wave was kicked up, which came crashing down onto part of the village, putting out the fire she was about to drop into. It also caused a shower to rain down, putting out more of the smaller fires that were scattered around and allowing several of the villagers to escape to the woods.
She still dropped out of the sky, but whatever hit the water came flying out just as fast. It flowed like a liquid, bubbling up right as she dropped and caught her right before she hit the ground. The red unfolded and opened, swallowing her whole, and came to a sudden standstill.
Psycap still screamed in pain and ripped the arrow out of her eye. Her good eye glared at the thing that suddenly appeared, and she lifted her hands up defensively. A Super had shown up—one she didn't recognize. It was a giant red blob that seemed to mold itself over the body of the girl it caught.
"Kevin?" Hope asked in shock. She floated inside a strange pool of red liquid that didn't stop her from speaking or breathing. "I thought you were leaving?"
"Well, I was. It turns out the old guy that Olivia girl was telling us about had already called for help by the time I reached him. Someone should be on their way. In the meantime..." Kevin trailed off.
"Aw, you came back to save me." She teased.
"Shut up. I'm not doing this for you." He groaned. "I just think our chances of winning aren't impossible after I saw you kick that girl's ass without powers. She's not that strong. Just a low-tier bad guy. Besides... Something Ashley said to me once suddenly came to my mind."
"And what's that?"
"Like I'd tell you." Kevin snorted. "My girlfriend loves to gossip, and it's my job as her boyfriend to keep her secrets."
Outside of the blob Kevin had become, Psycap clutched half of her face, which was gushing with blood, and with her other hand, she tore a gigantic chunk of the ground up. "I'll bring this entire island down!" The older woman roared.
"Hope... Or maybe it's Cinder right now. Do your thing."
"What do you mean?" She asked confusedly. She was still floating in that red liquid trapped inside of Kevin's body. "What's my thing?"
"Professional ass kicker."
She gasped a bit as Kevin opened up, allowing her head to poke out of him; just like how he had turned into her clothes before, he began to take shape into an outfit. This one was different, though. It was familiar. Kevin was morphing into the shape of her Cinder-Suit!
The red fibers stretched out, forming an armored bodysuit that covered her body from the neck down. Kevin wasn't able to change his color much, so it was almost pure red, but he compressed and darkened parts of the suit, making it appear black. The symbol of a black butterfly formed across the chest, and inside of the suit it started to wrap around her arms and legs, allowing her to move and control him. A domino mask wrapped around her upper face, and instead of a helmet, he created a jacket hood that pulled itself over her head. The entire suit itself looked more stylish, being a mix of a hero costume and a jacket, and she took a moment to move her arms and legs back and forth, feeling the power that was in them. It was like she had gotten her strength back in a way.
She took a moment to look at herself, admiring the costume. She was still a lot shorter than she'd have liked, but it was nice to be in a hero suit once again. It made her a bit happy. "Is it really a good idea to be my costume, though? Can't you just fight her on your own?" She questioned Kevin.
"I have literally never won a single fight since becoming a Super," Kevin muttered. "I'm not risking it."
Psycap breathed heavily, the battle clearly having its toll on the other woman. Kevin had been right about Psycap's not being a big threat. Compared to someone like Green Wolf, Red Raptor, or Demonica, Psycap was kind of a joke. That didn't mean the woman wasn't going to go down easy, though.
Psycap let out a scream, sounding almost like a wounded animal. Trees tore out of the ground and sharpened into spears, which were launched forward with the woman's telekinesis.
Hope closed her eyes and took a deep breath before snapping them open and giving a sly grin. She crouched down and then bounced off of the ground, flying forward and dodging all the trees that stabbed into the ground around her. She could feel the suit twist and change, copying her movements. Kevin's legs almost compressed like a spring, allowing her to mimic her fire jump. She came at Psycap fast and swung out with her fist fast and hard. It caught the villain off guard, who panicked and activated her power. Hope came to a sudden stop, unable to move as a telekinetic hold gripped down around her, and Kevin stopped her only a foot away from the Anti-Matter gang leader.
"As if I would really allow you to get so close!" Psycap roared. The woman used her power to twist her, but the Kevin-suit held strong, resisting the effects, and didn't budge. Hope gritted her teeth, trying to march forward, but Kevin wasn't strong enough to resist both the hold and the twisting energy that was trying to shatter him at the same time.
So instead, she tried something else. She could feel part of the costume running along her spine. Kevin had quite literally given control of his nervous system to her. She didn't trust herself to experiment too much with his powers for fear of crushing herself, but she did have a simple idea. A tendril stabbed out of her back, using her body as cover and stopping Psycap from seeing it. It whipped out at lightning speed and smashed into the ground just as she closed her eyes. A wave of sand was kicked up and flowed out, smashing into Psycap's good eye, who screamed and blinked rapidly, stumbling back. Hope felt the suit suddenly not be held by anything, and she rammed herself forward.
Psycap tried to clear her eye, but the woman wasn't fast enough. The hero's fist slammed directly into the woman's face, causing the psychic leader to stumble and nearly fall. It wasn't just one punch, either. Hope struck out with her other arm, smashing it into the other side of the villain's head. Again and again, Psycap was bounced around from fist to fist, Kevin's arms compressing and pulling back like a piston system, allowing the force and recoil of the blows to not stop. Hope used all the hand-to-hand skills she had picked up to keep up the onslaught of punches before finally winding up the last strike. She jumped and spun around the red tendril, whipping out like a tail and slamming itself across Psycap's face, smashing the older woman to the floor with a hard thud.
Hope landed back on her feet and breathed heavily as the tendril pulled itself back into the costume. "Geez," Kevin whistled. "You're a lot more brutal than I remember—actually, scratch that—you and your team once threw me into a pool of superheated radiation. You're definitely a psychopath in the making."
She ignored his remarks and looked back at the destroyed village. Dozens of people all stood around, staring at her in shock. "Are you guys all okay-"
"I'll kill you." She froze when she heard Psycap's gasp. The villain was somehow still conscious and had her head twisted back to stare at something deep in the forest. "You're dead!"
She pulled her fist back and swung it at the downed enemy, but it wasn't fast enough. Kevin closed around her just in time as something massive rammed into the two of them and then exploded. She was blasted back, crashing at the edge of the beach, and the screams of the villagers restarted. She felt fire eat away at the suit, and Kevin hissed and howled. She managed to roll over into the water, and the hood opened back up, allowing her to see.
"Damn it! I was really hoping she forgot about that!" She winced.
The massive warship was floating in the air once more. Psycap's eye didn't leave it as the villain used her power to pick it up and take control of the thing. The cannons twisted and swirled, pointing back at the village as it got ready to fire once more. Psycap picked herself up, rubbing at her mouth, which was dripping with blood from all her broken teeth. "I'm going to kill you!" She roared. "Do you hear me? You're so dead!"
Hope clenched her fist, causing the suit to change a bit, forming a circular shield on her arm, which she raised up. "Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Kevin yelled inside the suit. "You know that I'm that shield, right? I don't think I can take that much cannon fire!"
"Well, we need to think of something!"
"Die!" Psycap roared. "Die, die, die, die!"
The barrels took aim and were about to fire. Hope steeled her resolve and crouched down, ready to at least attempt to dodge. Luckily for her, though, Lady Luck finally seemed to smile down on her. Right before the ship could fire, something smashed down into it from high above. Metal screamed and tore as the ship was suddenly ripped in two and exploded. Psycap yelled in anger and fear as the thing kept going through the ship and rammed down next to her. The villain stared in shock at the massive arrow that was as big as she was.
Hope felt her own eyes go wide. There was only one person she knew who had arrows that big.
"Mind if I join in?" A voice asked from high above. A man floated in the air, carried by wings made of feathers and wax that stretched out across his back. He held a mighty bow as big as a normal human, and already he had another arrow notched and ready to go. "This fight looks like it could be interesting."
Fable, a member of the Enforcers, had arrived.
CREATORS' THOUGHTS
RainLiquid
RainLiquid
Hey everyone before this chapter starts you might have noticed that there has been a change in order. Basically, to sum it up I had a lot of issues with work and haven't been able to write as much as I normally would have liked and so decided to use the drafts and set up, I had to add a bit more to the previous Ruby arc. I also used some time to rearrange it and make it look a little nice on the timeline with it being how we start part two off now. So, with that said, if you want to read the new content but are unsure, then chapters 101, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, and 114 are all new chapters. Chapters 102, 103, 108 115, and 116 are chapters that have had a few scenes tweaked and expanded as well as a bit more added but are overall mostly the same.
Again this is if you want to read the rest of the Ruby arc, I know a lot of people weren't really a fan of it, and so if you're not feel free to just keep reading from this point on and you'll likely be fine as most stuff will be explained.
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