Capítulo 42: The Mall
"What the actual hell is going on?" Snowdawn asked with wide eyes.
"You two should leave." Max Lightning's voice wasn't heroic. It was a drawl, barely any energy behind it; his shoulders slumped forward. He might have been in his costume now, which was clean and spotless, but the bags under his eyes remained, and his hair was still a mess. "The civilians will need someone to round them up and lead them out of here."
"What about you, though?" Snowdawn asked. "You think you can handle that guy?"
Max Lightning lazily shrugged. "I'm strong."
"Right."
"He'll be fine." Whisper grabbed onto Snowdawn's wrist and began to drag him away. "Trust me. My dad fought alongside the greats like Ruby Admiral and Full Monarch. He was the one who helped the Victorian get back on her feet after the death of her dad, and he has kept his city safe from any threat."
"And that man is actually your dad?" He shot a look back at the tired-looking Enforcer member.
"Trust me." Whisper frowned beneath her mask. "He hasn't been my dad in a while."
"What are you saying?" His eyes met those of the Enforcer member.
The homeless man looked back at him. "Mr. Moore." He nearly jumped when the hero used his real name. Max Lightning stared past him almost. "I don't think we'll ever talk again, so while I have you here, I just wanted to say this. In a few months, when you have to make a difficult choice, you're going to wonder if it was the right one. Trust your gut, okay?"
"What the hell does that mean!" Snowdawn asked in a panic.
"You'll know when the time comes-"
"I would like to know now! That's a serious death flag! I'm too cool to die! Get it? Cool? Oh, God, is that what does it! My puns?"
Max Lightning stared at him with a flat look. "Just trust your gut. Now go."
Snowdawn wanted to say more but shook his head and turned away. He had never been that smart, but he knew people were in trouble right now. He held his arms out, blasting a wave of snow and trying to block off any area with a villain. "Everyone! Follow us this way." He called out, trying to round up any civilian that hadn't made it out yet. "We'll keep you safe!"
Dozens of wasps flew through the air and began to take shape, forming into a young man. "He's right. Anyone that can stand, we have to get out of this place. This mall isn't going to be standing for much longer if this many powerhouses are here!" Wasp Nest shouted.
From above, BB flew through the air, bending the wind and air to help lift heavy things off of people and spot anyone who couldn't stand. Oxide walked calmly, her dress forming dozens of tendrils that casually picked people up. Metal Ronin raised his arm up, blasting out with a cannon that blew a hole in the wall leading to the outside.
"My God," Whisper muttered. As they left the mall, they could all see it. Fires swarmed the many towers and buildings, followed closely by the loud noise of a blast. "The entire city is under attack."
"No time to waste." Wasp Nest announced. "The Enforcers will be called in, but with how much destruction there is, they'll be spread thin. We're going to help as many people as we can. If you spot a villain, don't engage unless you have no choice. Snowdawn, you're with Metal Ronin. I think you two are our best bet for putting some of these fires out. Oxide, you're with me and BB. Her and I aren't able to lift anyone when we're in our transformed states, so we need you to follow after us while we scout for anyone who is in trouble. Whisper, we need you to set up communication if you can. Whatever these guys did, all our phones went down. We'll need someone to direct us."
Whisper nodded, staring down at the floor as she watched dozens of lines begin to spread out. "Yeah. I think I can manage."
"Okay, then. Let's save people!"
Back inside the mall, Max Lightning walked forward slowly. "I don't suppose you'll just give up, will you?" Though he already knew the answer, his eyes followed the Paths of fate, watching Red Panda's moves before the villain even thought to make them.
Red Panda roared at him and charged forward with a sucker punch, the blood turning into a set of brass knuckles on his hand. Max Lightning lazily deflected the strike, not even bothering to move. The wind around him bent and twisted, forming a barrier that kept him safe. Red Panda gritted his teeth and jumped into the air, raising his arm up above his head. His blood began to expand and grow, forming into a massive battleaxe, which he swung down.
Max Lightning lazily sidestepped the attack, sighing. His eyes traced the ground as he followed them. Billions, in terms of numbers, it was almost enough to drive him mad. The paths were a blessing and a curse. A skill all members of his bloodline had. His daughter had a lesser version. It wasn't exactly future sight. Something else. More like showing the path one would follow after. His, though. He saw it all. Every possible path, every choice, every moment, all woven together into trillions of lines coming out and connecting with others, sextillions of paths fused together, creating the road of destiny.
"I don't like fighting." Red Panda's axe shattered against a barrier of wind he created. With a flick of his finger, the wind rippled and slashed into the Zoo member's leg. "Fifteen years ago, ever since, I had to be fished out of the gut of the Emperor. I only survived because of the help of my mentor, Full Monarch. His sacrifice brought me back. Fighting lost all meaning after that, though. The truth is, I'd much rather just stay on the street, not doing anything all day. So, what do you say? Can you just give up?"
"I will rip your skull in two." Red Panda growled. The villain grinned from beneath his mask, all his wounds dripping an ocean of blood that began to bend and twist around him. "All you've done is make me stronger!" Crimson-red armor formed over his flesh, filled with dozens of spikes and claws.
"Why are villains like this?" Max Lightning rubbed at the back of his head, sighing again. "Look, I'm sorry if I kill you, okay? I'm a little rusty when it comes to fighting weaklings."
"Die!"
Max Lightning blasted out a thick beam of energy, blowing a hole through Red Panda's gut in one attack. "Whoops. My bad." The man said with a small wince as Panda collapsed face first into the floor. "I did warn you, though. I wonder how the others are doing."
Myth had come from a well-off family growing up. His grampa had been the one to first build a library in Oleander City. The very same library had survived everything the world had thrown at Oleander. Even when the Emperor had blown away most of Earth's land, that library somehow stayed standing.
As a kid, he used to never leave the place. Even as an adult, he loved staying indoors whenever he wasn't being a hero. This was all to say that Myth never considered himself to be a very athletic person. His workout consisted solely of his hero duties.
This was why he hated flying. Running around with super strength and speed made it hard for him to control himself. Flight just made him feel clunky and awkward.
He gritted his beak and let out a loud bird-like cry as his wings carried him through the air. Demonica was fast. Like all speedsters, she moved too fast for normal eyes to follow, being some sort of blur. With every step she took, fire trailed behind her. Despite that, though, he kept up with her in this form.
He had the head of an eagle, his eyes sharp enough to follow her. His body was like that of a lion, but instead of claws, he had massive talons. Bird-like wings stabbed out of his back, easily keeping his massive body in the air. He had become a monster from legends, made to be the perfect hunter.
He stayed in the air above her, ripping out chunks from the wall and throwing them at the villain, but she dodged each time thanks to her enhanced reflexes.
Every now and then, Demonica would point her hand towards a person, or a crowd, that hadn't yet managed to escape the mall, and she would blast a hellish bolt of purple fire their way, but the attacks never landed. Globs of water, or sharks made out of pure liquid, would always swallow the attack before anyone could get hurt. Even in the middle of her intense battle, Poseidon was able to keep everyone safe.
It was for that reason he was determined to take Demonica down and handle the threat so he could ease Poseidon's burden.
"I thought you were eager to fight, Demonica!" Myth screeched out. He swooped down and clawed at her with his talons, but she managed to sidestep the attack. She shot a blade of fire at him, the fire roaring from her elbow, but like his lion form, this form was durable, and the fire bounced off of him, only leaving a small cut across his side. "What happened to your warrior spirit?"
"I wanted to fight the red and gold one." Demonica hissed. "I still haven't paid him back for what he did to me!." It seemed that after the last battle, Polaron and Demonica had rebuilt their suits. She was back in her skintight leather, hiding her twisted form.
"You're here for Battery? I hate to break it to you, but my teammate isn't here."
"I figured as much. I'll give him a reason to fight me next time I see him. I'll just take you all out!" Demonica announced. She crouched down and jumped high into the air, landing on the balcony to another floor above. In the air, Black Crow flew after Money Tree, who stood on a literal wave of cash that carried him through the skies. Demonica tried to take aim at the hero covered in paper, but Myth reached her before she could.
"Oh no, you don't." His talons dug into her arm as he crashed down next to her, shaking the floor they were on. His form shifted as he transformed back into that of a bull, and with his new strength boost, he squeezed down, shattering the bones in her arm.
Demonica let out a monstrous wail of pain. Her free hand ignited with red-hot fire, and she slammed it into Myth's gut hard enough to cause him to throw him back and right off the balcony they had landed on. He was holding onto her shattered arm though, so as he flew back, he dragged her with him. Each of his forms had a small ability they could use. His lion form could send out sound wave attacks, his bull form was made to be sturdy and tough, allowing him to take several blows head-on. He used this strength to spin himself around midair and smash Demonica into the ground as they crashed down.
The villain didn't let up either. Being a monster, that meant she was no longer human, possessing a body that had long since mutated and evolved like all of the Emperor's creation. Demonica's fire flared up, scorching the area around them and melting through part of the stone. Myth howled in pain as the fire rammed over him and began to burn his body. Demonica pushed off the ground with her arms, the broken limb already snapping back into place, and she rammed her legs into Myth's stomach. Fire surged out of her feet, boosting her forward like a rocket, and sent Myth flying back from the blast.
The bull smashed directly through the wall of the mall and went flying out into the parking lot. Myth kept tumbling, and soon he rolled directly off of the mall and began to fall into the massive crater the mall had been built on.
From above him, Demonica flew like a jet. The member of Bad Timers circled her body around and came toward him hard and fast, holding her clawed hands out in front of her. Myth gritted his teeth and slowly morphed his body again. He took on a more human-like shape, but his muscles and height expanded, causing him to become twelve feet long. His bull features vanished, and his human skin shifted into a gray color. His eyes morphed together into the center of his head, swirling around each other until they were one.
As Demonica came down fast, the woman saw a flash of green, and then that single eye Myth now had unleashed a massive wave of energy blasting up through the crater. The beam washed over Demonica, burning through some of her costume, and went all the way up to the sky, splitting the clouds. Demonica didn't stop though and instead gritted her teeth, trying to shove her way down through the beam.
The energy ate away at her burning through her black costume and spilling her blood. It was a force of pure kinetic energy boring into her and shoving her back into the air. The fire that poured from her feet and allowed her to turn her body into a jet wasn't enough. So instead, Demonica pushed her body even further beyond its limit. The woman's shoulders twitched and shattered as a new pair of arms stabbed out of her body. Now sporting four arms, she kept two out in front of her still and used the other two to shove herself further down by pointing them toward her feet and sending her fire through them. It was like adding a second set of thrusters to the jet.
Demonica shoved her way through the laser and reached Myth, ramming her hands down and stabbing them into the leader of Pantheon. Myth let out a hiss, and his eye beam instantly shut off. Demonica panted and screeched. Much of her costume was gone, melting off her body and revealing red flesh beneath. Black blood oozed down her body, and she went to ram Myth with a punch with her new arms while keeping her other two hands buried in his chest.
Myth switched his form at the last second, taking on his lion mode. His muscles flexed, trapping the hands inside of him and stopping the villain from yanking them out of him. His fur was heavily armored and so tough that the villain's hands simply bounced off of him. Myth rammed both his arms up and jammed them through Demonica's gut, lifting the woman off the ground. The lion's maws opened wide and howled, launching a point blank sonic attack directly into the villain's face.
Demonica was ripped out of him and went blasting sky high from the force of the attack, going out of the crater and landing somewhere on the roof of the mall. Myth breathed heavily, feeling his body struggle along. "How did Battery beat this girl?" He didn't give Demonica a moment to come back at him and instead transformed back into the same form he used earlier in the fight, his winged beast that was a mix between a lion and eagle.
When Myth reached the top, he reverted back into his human form, landing on the roof of the mall. Demonica was back up, glaring at him, her many arms holding orbs of fire. Like Mars King, or Intake, the woman was durable, able to take attacks that should have killed a normal Super.
"You'll pay the price for standing in my way with your life!" Demonica screeched. Scorch marks scarred the roof as she rocketed forward at inhuman speeds. Myth's body morphed rapidly as he quickly transformed into his lion form, roaring out at her and shooting off a sound wave attack. She dove under his attack, and four of her arms pulled back as far as they could. Fire screamed out of her elbow, and like a rocket, her arms were jutted forward, ramming into Myth's stomach.
The hero yelled in pain as he was shoved down. He stabbed his claws into the roof in order to prevent himself from sliding back too far. As soon as he gained his bearings, he brought his arms up and slammed them down, sending a shock wave through the roof and causing the floor to rise and crack. Demonica avoided the attack at the last second, growing large wings that carried her into the air. Fire blasted out of her feet, boosting her even further up as she turned into a makeshift jet.
She dropped back down like a bullet as soon as she gained enough height. Myth changed into his bull form and managed to raise his arms up just in time as her foot slammed into his guard. He gritted his teeth, feeling his bones begin to ache and his muscles strain as his hooves dug into the floor to stop himself from being pushed back.
"Is this all you have? With power like this, I see why you were passed up for being the leader of Sub Enforcers." Demonica taunted. She pulled herself back and landed on the ground, blasting him with fire.
Myth stumbled back, his fur igniting as he gasped. She had been nearly fully healed when she fully transformed, but he had only patched up his body at best. He shook his head and caught his breath. "I'll show you my best. There's a reason I brought you up here, you know. We're away from anyone I could hurt. That leaves just you to face this monster."
"Oh? A trump card?" The villain chuckled darkly. "You think you can beat me?"
"I do. Truly." He changed back into his human form for a moment. "I come from a clan that can trace their ties back to some of the first ever Supers. The blood of the Lord's flows through my veins. Many Supers can claim that their ancestors are Lords. Why, I bet you could trace your line back and find a Lord of the Sun or two. After all, the Lords have existed since the dawn of powers, and many have gone on to have kids. Just look at the Victorian, or Whisper."
"So what?" Demonica rolled her eyes. "You're also the descendent of a Lord. Big whoop."
"My situation is a little different." Myth flexed and felt his power start to flare up. For a moment, his eyes almost seemed to glow with a fiery red light. "You see, in my case, I can actually trace my line back to two different Lords."
His skin began to morph and change. His fur turned a nasty black, and his horns twisted more. His legs looked more like those of a wolf, and a long tail formed behind him. His head was replaced with that of a hideous, scarred dog, molten liquid dripping down its mouth. His hands twisted, each growing in size, and eyes started to appear on them. Soon, the hands vanished entirely, replaced by the same disgusting canine head that rested on his body.
All three dog heads glared at Demonica, who took a step back in shock. Fire started to drip from their lips, and Myth growled as he stepped forward.
"Let's see how you handle this!" His cry pierced the air as he charged towards her.
Meanwhile, down in the mall, Max Lighting rested himself down on the unconscious Red Panda, using the villain like a chair. He reached into his pocket, pulling out a pack of cigarettes as he stared up and out the window, looking towards the bright blue sky above. "I guess things are pretty much going the way you said they would."
He took a long drag on the cigarette and sighed.
He watched the billions of paths take shape, and he cocked his head down, watching the other heroes do their job. He always liked to watch rather than help. Hero work was so dull, after all. "Well, things are going the way you want. I guess that means it's about time for Jack Larison to die."
Down below the floor he was on, he watched the fight between the leader of the Sub Enforcers and a member of Zoo. Money Tree ducked down, a series of feathers stabbing at where he had been a second ago. He stood on a series of flowing cash and coins that allowed him to surf in the sky. Flying through the air just slightly ahead of him was Black Crow.
"It's been so long since I've had a good sky fight. Don't die too quickly." Crow taunted. The villain gripped his sword tightly and blasted down towards the hero. Hundreds of coins formed into a metal blade, which Money Tree brought up just in time, blocking Black Crow's edge.
"Yeah, I was about to tell you the same thing. Don't go dying on me, okay?" Money Tree smirked. He whipped his sword out, and the money lengthened into a whip, snapping out. Black Crow flew up to avoid it. His wings grew longer and wrapped around his body, forming a barrier as the whip came down and slammed into him.
Black gunk suddenly stuck to Money Tree's whip, and he watched as his weapon broke apart. Before he could reform it, Black Crow's feather spat out more feathers, which sailed through the air like bullets. Money Tree raised his arm up, and the paper on his costume was replaced with hundreds of metal coins, giving him armor, which caused the feathers to be stopped dead in their track.
Once again, though, he found more black gunk had infected his cash, the section of his armor breaking away from his body, and he had to quickly patch up the hole with dollar bills.
"Those feathers. They aren't actually something that belongs to a bird, are they?" Money Tree formed another whip and slashed it towards the Zoo member.
Black Crow blocked the attack with his wings once more, several sets growing out of his back. He almost looked like a fallen angel with six sets of long, twisted black wings. "Yeah, you got me." Black Crow giggled beneath his mask. Money Tree's whip broke apart as the black gunk spread through it. "I can control a form of powdered coal, so to speak. These wings of mine are entirely made out of sticky ash and coal. Just like how you control cash, I control this dust coal, making my wings, clothes, and any weapons I may need. In other words, I'm the worst matchup for you. Every time you attack me, I'll just have some of my ash stick to your cash or coins and break them apart. So, what do you say? Wanna just give up and let me cut your head off?"
Money Tree snorted and stood up straight on his board of flowing cash. "Sorry. We heroes don't give up. Besides, I have a few tricks up my sleeve. It's not just cash and coins I control. I'm all about any form of currency."
"As if it'll help you!" Black Crow soared through the air again, his six wings expanding and growing, almost turning into tendrils of ash that whipped through the air. They slashed out in all directions, but Money Tree blocked them with large hands formed out of green paper. That caused more of his cash to break away, but he ignored it, sailing towards the villain.
Their blades met once more, and with every strike, he had to reform his sword. "I've spent most of my life training with a sword, you know. Your form is all sloppy and filled with holes." Money Tree taunted. He deflected Black Crow's blade and sliced up with his sword, cutting into the man's armor and leaving a large cut across the villain's chest.
Black Crow screamed in pain and kicked off of Money Tree, flying high into the air. A tendril of cash grabbed him by his ankle, and he was yanked back down towards Money Tree, who held his sword up, intending to impale the Zoo member.
"Get away from me!" Black Crow yelled as loud as he could, and his coal exploded in a hail of black fire, burning through Money Tree's sword and the board of cash. Money Tree began to fall and tried to reform his board, but Black Crow's wings stabbed into the forming cash, covering it in gunk. "You'll pay for cutting me." The villain raised his hand up, and a massive hammer of ash formed into his palm. With a single motion, he slammed it down.
Money Tree barely put his defense up when he felt the force of the attack. He could feel his bones rattle and his brain shook. He was shot towards the floor and rammed into it hard enough to shake the mall. He gasped and nearly vomited up his blood. His suit was falling apart, that black gunk ripping into the paper and coins, and started to burn at his skin.
Black Crow floated down to the ground and softly came to a landing. The villain laughed when he saw the state the hero was in. "This is seriously the best Oleander has? Hey, who knows, money man, maybe Old Dog will swoop in and save you. I swear you've all become useless the moment an Enforcer Member leaves you. I have no idea why Green Wolf respects you guys so much. I'm starting to think White Spider was wrong."
Money Tree groaned and shakily managed to stand. What was left of his armor rose up, blocking the black spikes that Crow fired at him. His armor fell away fully, leaving him standing there, breathing heavily. He wore just a white buttoned-up shirt, some black pants, and a simple face mask.
"Where did all your money go now? Why don't you use your power and get some more?" Black Crow raised his blade and started to slowly walk towards the hero.
"Currency."
"Huh?"
"I told you." Money Tree's eyes locked back onto the villain, and he raised his hand up. "I control currency. Anything valuable by a society's standards. Wanna see why they made me the leader of the Sub Enforcers?"
The air sparkled around the man, and what looked almost like dust started to swarm Money Tree. It was hard to look at, the light constantly bouncing off of it, and it began to wrap around the hero's body, forming back into his armor. It was made entirely of a white and blue powder, and he rested his new diamond sword on his shoulder.
"Diamond armor. Diamond sword. Pretty cool, right?" Money Tree grinned. "I broke it all down into a powder like you're doing."
"So, you just copied me?" Black Crow questioned as he soared forward, swinging his sword out. Their blades clashed, and he tried to spread the ash through Money Tree's sword, but instead, his blade was the one that was infected. "What!" He stared in shock as the sword he held stopped being made out of his powdered coal, converting into a solid diamond blade. "What did you do?!"
Money Tree rammed his fist into the Zoo member's face, throwing Black Crow back. "So, whose power countered whose, exactly? Get ready, villain. You're fighting the leader of the Sub Enforcers! I'm going to protect this city, no matter what."
Black Crow growled and threw his sword away, making a new, longer one from his coal. "I'll slice your body to ribbons."
On the other side of the mall, metal rose high into the air, forming large spikes that rained down on the battlefield. Tendrils of water flowed around Poseidon's body as she easily blocked Polaron's attack.
"Now that everyone has managed to get out of the mall, I don't have to hold back," Poseidon announced, water rising and falling and forming out around her. Slowly, a trident rose from the water, seemingly coming out of the floor. She gripped it and pointed it towards the villain. Her hair shifted into a blue color, and her eyes ignited with a red glow as she tapped into the power of a Lord. "Today is the day you go to Nightshade, Polaron!"
The villain scoffed as he floated above her. "You might be strong, but you are still a mere child in the end. I can easily handle anything you can throw at me."
"We'll put that to the test." She smirked. She brought her arm back and threw her trident at the man as hard as she could. Polaron raised his arm and tried to control the object, but it ignored his commands, much like Cinder's helmet had. He changed tactics and casually moved to the side in the air. As it flew past him, he grabbed onto it, stopping it from going forward. "Hey, that's mine! That was a gift from Mister Avalon! Give it back."
Polaron ignored her, floating higher into the air and avoiding the bullets of water she fired. He stared down at the metal trident. "Ahh. So, it's the same metal that girl had. The metal is connected to you. Alive almost. It serves only its master. Created from 'that' object Avalon told me about."
Polaron tossed the weapon back to her, and she caught it, a heavy frown on her face. "Why'd you do that?"
"I did not come here to fight you. I came looking for the Wandering Coin leader. They are here somewhere. Or at least they were. Now, though, you've caused them to run away."
"The Wandering Coin leader was here? Seriously. Who was it?"
"I do not know."
"Well, I don't really trust you then."
"Either way." Polaron gave a lazy shrug. "We have no reason to keep this fight up. If the Wandering Coin has escaped, then so shall I. I will take my men and leave."
"You think I'll let you escape." Her eyes glowed for a moment, and the water grew larger and wild, cracking the air like a whip.
"You cannot stop me. Warp us ho-'' Polaron suddenly stopped. He went dead silent. Slowly, his head craned to the side, staring at a wall. Or rather, he stared in the direction where a certain hospital was. "K..." His eyes were wide, and he could feel his body shaking for the first time in a while.
"K? Who the heck is that?" Poseidon asked, frowning.
For a second, Polaron swore he was no longer standing in the mall. Rather, he seemed to have found himself somewhere else. A place not of this world. He could see him. Mars King. The man's shoulders were slumped, and his monstrous form was mostly gone. "Sorry, P. I won't be joining you for your big plan." Then it was gone. Polaron just floated there, in the mall quietly.
He didn't even have a second to regain his bearings as Poseidon attacked him while his guard was down. The water was like a cannon blasting her up into the air. The gravity seemed to bend and twist around her foot as she slammed it down into his helmet, cracking it. The gravity grabbed Polaron, and he was smashed into the ground, cracking the floor as a mountain of water crashed down on him.
"Sorry, but you should have had your guard up." Poseidon floated in the air, looking down on him, the gravity lifting her up as he was shoved further down. Ice began to seep from her hand, and she snapped her fingers. "Now, you stay put while I deal with the others. Don't go anywhere."
The wave began to freeze, turning ice-cold and leaving him stuck in place. In only a few seconds, a prison made to hold a massive monster was created.
Poseidon softly landed on the ground a few meters away from the frozen Polaron. She clicked her teeth, slumping her shoulders. "He seemed really distracted towards the end. A boss for a team this big should have had way more tricks up his sleeve-"
Steam began to rise from the ice, the chains snapping as the water began to boil. Electricity began to seep out, and any loose metal was suddenly ripped away. Part of the building shook, the walls cracking and breaking as several of the cars from outside were dragged in. It was a miracle the building was left standing. She could see his form beginning to move, his armor breaking apart and reforging. She went to blast him with a wave of gravity, but a massive truck suddenly rammed into her from above.
She tore the thing in two with ease, but it was already too late. The ice shattered, sending shards everywhere, as Polaron walked out.
Steam rose off his armor, and sparks of lightning danced off the tips of his fingers. Metal swirled around him, breaking down into a fine powder and forming blades or shields as he commanded. He unsheathed his sword, and a blast of electromagnetic energy erupted from it, slamming into Poseidon, who did her best to block it with her trident. It split the entire mall in two, and from behind the villain, large railguns began to form and float after him.
"Rest assured, K." Polaron's voice boomed out of his armor. "You won't be arriving in hell alone today."
"Sorry, big guy, but it's over already." Poseidon said, giving a smirk.
"Hmm?"
"My teammates already beat your group."
Up on the roof of the mall, Demonica screamed in pain as two of her arms were torn off her body. Her wings spread out, and she attempted to take flight, but one of Myth's heads sunk its fangs into her stomach, smashing her into the ground as hard as he could. His other arm bit into one of her wings and pulled at it, ripping it from her back.
He raised his head up, howling to the sun above, as his foot smashed into the back of her skull.
Over with Money Tree, he dodged a last-ditch strike from Black Crow and sliced up with his diamond blade. "Let's end this fight here." Money Tree stated in a blunt and cold tone. "My buddy gets a little crazy when he goes full beast mode, so now I have to be the one to stop him before he goes and kills someone. And he wonders why I was picked instead of him."
"I'll kill you-" Black Crow was cut off as he was slammed down to his knees, a massive weight forming on him. He gasped and shuddered as his suit, his weapon, and his wings began to slowly convert into solid diamonds, the powder grinding his skin as he tried to move. "How could you do this!"
"You used your coal to infect my money. You broke the paper down or weighed down the metal of the coins to the point I couldn't fully control it. So, I thought I'd do the same to you. See, there's an old tale about coal turning into diamonds under the right pressure. There's a little more to it than that, even I know, but I went off of that and infected your coal powder. On an atomic level, it was bonded and twisted by my own powder. And now you might be one of the richest villains in the world."
"Let me out of here!" Black Crow screamed as the diamonds began to infect his mask and steadily go over the rest of his form. "I'll kill you!" The diamond formed over him, leaving him stuck on his knees, encased in the world's most expensive statue.
"Now to deal with Myth. This is going to suck." Money Tree sighed.
Polaron stood as the very last villain in the mall. "So be it." Metal attached to his body, growing him in size and attaching a series of wings to his back. He took flight, blasting through the air and heading for the roof. "You aren't the one I wish to fight, though!" He blew the roof apart and began to fly out of the mall.
"Whoa! Hey, you can't just run away!" She yelled. She pulled her arm back and was about to throw her weapon, but all the metal around her began to smash into her body, throwing her around. She flexed her body, shattering or freezing the metal with ease, and formed a wave of water that was about to pick her up. "I won't let you get away-"
"Stop." She felt a hand on her shoulder, and her eyes went wide when she saw who stood behind her. Max Lightning, a member of the Enforcers, shook his head. "Don't go."
"He's getting away though?"
"It's fine. It isn't his destiny to lose to you. His Path hasn't yet run out."
"Huh?"
"Besides." Max Lightning floated into the air a bit, folding his arms. "You're needed here. Myth has lost control and is in rampage mode now."
As if on cue, a blast of fire erupted from the roof of the mall, and Money Tree crashed back, trying to block it with an ocean of cash, which burned away to ash as the cerberus howled. "A little help!" He screamed.
Poseidon stepped forward and gripped her hand around the trident she always fought with. "Fine then. I'll stay here and deal with this. Can you give him chase?"
"I shall." Max Lightning nodded. "I'm curious to see more of these Paths." Slowly, he floated up higher into the air. "Enjoy your humanity while you have it, young girl. You're quickly reaching your worst days."
She didn't bother to answer him and instead easily blocked a wave of fire with her water. "Just stop Polaron. And if you can, keep my sister safe while you're at it."
But Max Lightning was already gone.
Max Lightning lifted up off of the ground, flying after Polaron. He watched the billions of different paths form. It was hard sometimes, knowing he was willingly taking humanity down such a dark timeline.
Unknown to even him, something dark lurked in the area. A great evil. A young girl with snow-white hair rested on the roof of a nearby building, kicking her feet back and forth as she hummed. A sly smile was on her lips as she tilted her head back.
"Hmm. So both Zoo and Bad Timers came after me, huh. I guess that means Avalon figured out I exist." She stood up and stretched her arms above her head, allowing the muscles in her body to crack. "A pity. I was having fun playing in the shadows. Guess it'll be time I make myself known to the world." She connected her pointer finger and thumb together and looked through them, staring out at the city. "Of course I'll start with Oleander first. There are so many fun people I want to play with."
"Wish!" A voice came crackling over a radio she had in the pocket of her coat. She had dressed lightly, having wanted to see the heroes before the attack at the mall had started. A real pity as well, as she had been just about to approach the cute fire-based one before it all started.
"Yes Sunshine?" She asked, rolling her eyes when she heard the voice of the Wandering Coin's leader.
"I want you to return back to the base ASAP!"
"Yeah whatever. I was getting bored here anyway." She turned away and looked back out toward the hospital. "Until next time… Cinder."
The threat that could rival the Emperor was about to move.
***
"I don't really have one, but pretend like I just said a super funny ice pun!" Snowdawn announced. Ice blasted out of his hands, flowing over the many buildings that were on fire and putting them out. He ran through the city, tagging each one he saw.
"Put as much snow as you can right there," Whisper shouted. She ran alongside him, constantly giving out orders for him and the others to follow.
"Right." She had pointed at the base of another building that was on fire. His first instinct was to put it out, but he trusted her, so instead, he sent waves of snow out to form a cushion. He was glad he did, as a second later, someone from the building seemed to take their chance with gravity instead of the fire and leaped out of a window to crash down into the pile of snow. They screamed when they broke a leg, but without the cushion, they'd be dead. "How'd you know someone would jump-"
"Oxide, start making some ramps over there!" Whisper yelled.
"Got it." Oxide held her hand out, liquid metal flowing out and forming a slide from the roof of a building, where several people were huddled, the terrified civilians using it to get down seconds before the entire building came crashing down. "Whoa. It's like she can see the future."
"Whisper's cool. Ha, that counts as an ice pun." Snowdawn pumped his fist through the air and got back to work, putting the fires out.
They had formed into simple teams. He was running around putting the infernos out while Wasp Nest and BB constantly flew in and out of small places to check for survivors. If they found any, it was Metal Ronin's or Oxide's job to get those people out.
Metal Ronin used his mechanical suit to rip the door off of a car that had crashed into a nearby building and pulled a shaking child out of the back seat. "Someone else take the kid; I'm not good with them."
"I got it." BB landed on the ground, growing to her normal size. She winced when she saw the state the drivers were in and made sure the child wouldn't see the bodies. "Let's go over here." She said, leading the child away and over to a group where they were putting the injured.
Dozens of wasps flew from the sky, forming together into the form of a young man. "Heads up!" Wasp Nest screamed out. "We have trouble-"
A blast echoed down an alleyway, shaking a nearby building. Snowdawn threw a barrier of cold up, shielding the survivors and any hero with low durability. A man dressed entirely in a white bodysuit came sprinting out.
"That's Ghost." Metal Ronin yelled. "He's a member of the Bad Timers!" Oxide flew forward, forming a sword, and sliced out towards the man. "No, Oxide, don't! He'll just-" Her weapon stabbed through the man, and her eyes went wide. She had been expecting him to dodge or block, but he literally impaled himself on her sword. Purple blood dripped down his body, and he gripped her sword to pull himself further on the blade as he held something up. Her eyes went wide when she saw it, and she tried to pull away, but it was too late. Ghost held up a grenade and pulled the pin on it. "Hit the deck!"
Ghost exploded in a blazing inferno, his body being blown to bits. Oxide screamed as she wasn't fast enough to block all of the blast, and she slammed into the floor. "Oxide!" Snowdawn ran forward and crouched down next to her. Her entire side had become a bloody mess. "Damn it, none of us have any healing powers." He placed his hand over the wound, applying pressure, which caused her to yell in pain. He did his best to ignore it and used some of his power to try to freeze the wound close and slow the bleeding. It wasn't a good plan, but it was all he had.
"Heads up, we're not done yet." Wasp Nest screamed.
From the alleyway, Ghost ran out again, pulling the pin on a grenade once more. Snowdawn blasted the man with cold air, knocking the villain over and burying him in a wave of snow before he could harm anyone. The snow erupted in an inferno as the man blew himself to bits once more. Already, a third one was running out towards the crowd of people they had.
Metal Ronin pulled out an electrical bow and fired a shot into the head of the villain. "They're clones." He yelled towards the other heroes. "Ghost can make copies of himself! He uses these clones to literally bomb rush people! Until we can find the real one, he won't stop coming. Can you do anything about this, Whisper?"
He waited for an answer but didn't get one. Looking around, he didn't see the girl anywhere.
"We'll just have to hold out and trust that Whisper is handling this." Wasp Nest yelled out. "BB, don't let him hurt anyone!"
"Right." BB shrunk down, her wings lifting her into the air. She raised her arms up, forming a barrier of mini tornadoes around the crowd, which would hopefully block some of the explosions and stop the madman from getting to them.
In a nearby alleyway, hidden away from sight, Ghost crouched down. The villain was focusing on a phone screen while, up in the air, dozens of drones flew, giving him a bird's-eye view of all the streets and allowing his clones to plan around the heroes.
"Not bad." He nearly jumped when he heard the voice. He looked around but saw no one. He pulled a grenade out and was about to pull the pin out but felt a sudden pain as his fingers were sliced off by an unseen force. His grenade dropped with the pin still in it. "You're not the only one using drones to get a better view." Whisper appeared in front of him, holding a knife in one hand and a taser in the other. "But your tech is so last year."
She held the taser up to his neck, and it roared to life. Ghost's body twitched, and then he collapsed back unconscious.
"Also, if I had your power, I would have a decoy out to work as a trap, considering you just tried to blow yourself up." She whipped around, throwing her knife just in time, as the lid to a trash can blasted open, and another Ghost leaped out. The knife stabbed into the man's stomach, and she ran forward, ripping it out of him. She ducked down just in time as a bullet hit the wall next to her. Her eyes locked onto the roof of a nearby building, where the real Ghost stood holding his sniper. "Found you." Her eyes followed the many paths she could see as she became unseen once more.
The real Ghost cursed, setting his gun down. He grunted, and his back began to tear apart as a second Ghost started to rip its way out of him. It dropped down to the floor and quickly stood up with a nod. More began to pull out of his body, all pulling the pins on their grenades and tossing them down towards the alleyway where Whisper was. Invisible or not, she wouldn't be fast enough to escape.
As it turns out, she didn't need to. She had already called in backup, after all. The many grenades all stopped in the air, water forming around them, capturing them in bubbles. Flying through the air on a wave of ice and water, Ocean Empress snapped, and the bubbles blasted back towards Ghost to land on the roof next to him.
"The real one is going to try and block the blast with his clones; he'll then attempt to jump off, capture him then." The voice of Whisper said in the earpiece Ocean Empress wore.
"Got it." The roof exploded in a massive blaze, with dozens of Ghosts attempting to pile onto the blasts. All but one which ran for the roof as the smoke offered him the perfect cover. Or at least it would have. He jumped off of the roof, and his face smashed directly into Ocean Empress's fist. Ghost smashed into the roof unconscious, and down below, all the clones froze and then suddenly vanished, even the dead ones. "Got him."
"Nice work!" Whisper smirked as she became visible again. She liked Ocean Empress. The woman was the best friend of her mom and, in a way, had to be the one to raise Whisper since her mom was way too busy saving the world.
"What now?" Ocean Empress asked.
"Now, you need to head over to the hospital. My powers get fuzzy the stronger the Supers are, and I can't make out any paths leading that way, so that means the strongest Supers are all gathered there. You'll be better off there than helping us."
"Okay then. I'll head that way."
"Oh, and if you see a man smoking, put it out."
"What?"
"Nothing. Just trust me." Whisper smiled. "I know things I shouldn't."
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