Aeon: Prime

Aeon: Prime

Part I: Phoenix

QUIN’S NOTES

[Asian] Jin has the power to manipulate metal. (Ivory)

[Black] Thomas psychically controls water. (Emerald)

[White] Sarah can generate copies of herself, as well as summon lethal light energy. (Silver)

{Alien: brown skin} Cassidy generates devastating blue-malleable mist. (Sapphire)

[Inuit] Joseph can bend fire at will. (Scarlet)

These five are known throughout the galaxies as The Protectors; after synchronizing with the mystic force that granted them their superpowers, diamond-shaped, different-colored gemstones manifested on each of their foreheads. The heroes teamed up with the Tenth Division of Earth, which is a private military, aimed to bring peace to all worlds.

The Protectors’ mysterious abilities allow them to morph into white light in order to merge into a doppelganger of the source of all magic; in this form, they appear as a giant swordsman, which contains all of their powers.

Chapter 1: The Protectors

Year: 2988

The Protectors, in the form of a titanic warrior, are currently levitating hundreds of feet above the brown sand; in this conjoined mode, their skin is pale and incandescent, their eyes radiate gold, its head is bald, and the figure’s clothed in a black kimono and sandals. In their hands are two steel swords, covered in fire. The sandstorm below is blinding the four different, titanically-built opponents, who’re dripping with dark slime that oozes from their mouths and eyes. One of them is a gorilla with the tail of a scorpion; it has four arms, massive and extremely sharp teeth, and sable fur.

Another is a two-headed rhino with an incredible amount of strength and speed; its horns are sharp, and it’s standing on two robust legs. It also has exceptionally-strong anthropoid arms, and proportional-human hands. The last two are both lion hybrids, that have the arms and legs of a man, and ferocious paws. One is covered in ebony hair, and the other, in white. The maned beasts are capable of flying with the use of their feathered wings, and have exceedingly sharp claws, as well as dragon-like-spiked tails.

Suddenly, the lions break out of the storm, and pursue The Protectors. The colossus turns to face its opponents.

Simultaneously as the heroes focus an energy blast (which expels out of their fanged-filled mouth) at the ivory one, who attempts to block the attack with its crossed forearms, they fire frost from their flaring eyes, at the other. This beam of ice freezes its target, and after falling to the ground, it shatters into thousands of shards. The lion’s guard fails. Once the laser catches his face, its lifeless body is flung onto the sand. The intense weather begins to dissipate.

Right before the remaining ogres, who’re nervously scanning their whereabouts, are able to spot them, the mountainous blade wielder breaks apart into the individual team members (they’re wearing matching-black compression suits; excluding Joseph, whose lower half is covered with metallic armor, on their feet, are dark, futuristic, jika-tabi boots); they roll upon touching down behind their enemies. Jin creates two-ginormous swords that levitate over each of his shoulders, and Joe aims his gun-blast technique at the gorilla. In sync, they propel their projectiles into the same foe; Jin’s blades penetrate into the back of its head, while Joe’s beam connects with its upper back, instantly causing it to fall over onto its face.

His body hitting the sand generates a brief quake. To defeat the last enemy, Cassidy summons six-prodigious-open hands, and sends them at the monstrosity; they grab onto each of the mutant rhino’s arms and legs, as well as its two horns, and apply pressure, which effectively slows down the hulk, who’s charging at the team. While this occurs, Sarah creates ten of her copies, and bolts up to its position. She and her clones expel bursts of silver energy into its face, through their eyes; this completely obliterates one of the heads, causing its red blood to squirt out, and cover the surrounding area. Thomas finally ends this fight by landing on the beast’s constrained head, and thrusting two spears into its remaining eyes.

“No!” screams a strange, distant, voice.

The heroes form into the flying swordsman, and advance in the voice’s direction. It’s Mr. Ladva, a mad scientist who specializes in turning regular animals, into ghouls and freaks. He’s wearing a special helmet, that allows him to control the mind of his creations. He lowers his binoculars, and hops atop his steed’s neck. He hugs on tight, as the enormous crow lifts off with great haste. After a brief chase, they move away from the desert, and are now flying over tree-filled forests. The glimmering-red ray from their mouth-cannon connects with the bird, causing it to crash land into the plant life, below. The Protectors dive to the impact zone, and split apart. They instantly spot both the mutant animal, who’s disintegrating into inky ooze, and Ladva, whose body lies still in the dirt.

“That’s ten million more, in the bank,” says Jin. Cassidy retrieves Ladva’s body, and places him over her right shoulder.

TWO WEEKS LATER:

Sebastien, the male Tenth Division member, who’s wearing his military attire, is sitting at his desk. His communicator is attached to his ear, and by holding its center button down, he continues the conversation with the client. “I hear you, Mr. Quin, I understand why you’re so up in arms, but the guys are on vacation right now. The best I can offer you with what you’re bargaining with, is Squad 11. Now if you don’t like that option, then you’re going to have to find somebody else.”

Tom, who’s now sporting a blue flannel, a gray tank top, and advanced compression pants, along with Joe, who’s clothed in a (flame-resilient) black-Adidas tracksuit, make their way into the small office. The officer’s attention is captured by the men.

“One moment please, sir-” the receptionist says. He releases his finger from the device on his ear, and acknowledges them. “What’s up, guys?”

Tom asks, “Who are you on the phone with?”

“Someone that’s offering ten mill for a job that involves undead parasites, and a desolate moon within the Garbu Galaxy.”

“Sounds like fun, to me,” responds Joseph.

“I told him you’re on vacation.”

Thomas approaches his desk, and says, “Let me talk to him.” Sebastien removes the communicator, and hands it to him. He equips it. “Hello sir, this is Thomas. I’m one of the members of The Protectors; you mind explaining to me the details of this operation?”

Many hours have passed, and The Protectors are positioned near the railing that borders the ocean; Jin is wearing a white tank top, and dark compression shorts. Sarah is dressed in a black hoodie and jeans, and Cassidy is fitted in her Tenth Division uniform. They’re standing beside each other, and are facing the sea and sunset, ahead. “So, you’re sure about going through with this?” asks Jin.

“Yeah. In fact, this job came at the perfect time,” answers Thomas.

“Why’s that?” Sarah asks.

“Well, the same date that my wife passed away, is in just two weeks. I wanted to head out to Earth and visit her grave, as well as take the opportunity while I’m there, to contribute some money to the charity where I’m from. There was a bad storm that hit recently, and things aren’t looking good. I think with this check, I can do a lot for them. I got my man Joe backing me up on the mission, too, so there’s nothing to worry about.”

“Yeah there is, we’ve never dealt with this type of opposition before; plus you said they’re parasites? What if they get in your brain, and make you go crazy. Before you know it we’ll have to come and-”

“Jin, shut up. Nothing like that is going to happen. This will be a walk in the park,” states Joe.

“All right, fine. By the way, if anything seems sketchy, don’t hesitate to call.”

“Jin, we won’t be needing your help,” interjects Tom.

Chapter 2: Quin’s Map

Quin, now suited in a highly-advanced spacesuit with a see-through helmet, is piloting his all-black gunship; The Protectors accompany him within the cockpit. The heroes’ outfits haven’t changed. A screen that’s crafted into the wall on the right, is displaying a commercial. Jin is the narrator. While Jin’s words are spoken, an image of him appears; his skin is covered within a metal shell. He’s standing fifteen feet away from the camera. “My name is Jin, and my team has been honored to combine our forces with the Tenth Division of this galaxy. Together, we have set out to eliminate anything that threatens the peace and longevity of the universe.”

The image then switches to a recording of Sarah, who, along with the rest of The Protectors, are standing the same distance away from the recorder. She, now in a compression suit, engages her power form (this mode makes her appear shrouded in white energy). She hovers in space, and releases an incredible ray of light from her eyes, which she aims, upward. Jin, while still off camera, states, “We are the greatest warriors of this realm, and have vowed to never use our powers to harm anyone other than the enemies of the innocent.” After Sarah, it’s Joe’s turn to advertise. Joe, now completely covered in fire, points his index finger at the device, and releases a shot into the lens, blowing it up, instantly. A new camera then cuts to Cassidy, who’s hovering with the use of her blue wings; the energy that she both manipulates, and is covered in, morphs into ten rapidly spinning swords that revolve around her body. “Our services are not free, however, I assure you that we’re worth every penny.”

Thomas appears last. To demonstrate, he first changes his hands, into blades, then into axes. He then kneels to touch the ground with both of his palms. He first creates an ice replica of himself that stands five feet ahead of him, and then conjures a pillar, that in three seconds, extends him fifty feet into the air. From the top, he launches a Fuuma shuriken at his statue, smashing it to bits. The commercial cuts to a recording of the team standing together, and facing the camera. Cassidy is standing first in line, to her right is Joseph, then there’s Sarah, then Jin, and last in line, is Thomas. Jin says, “We live to serve, not to incite fear. Peace be with you all.” The recording ends.

“That’s my first time seeing that,” says Tom.

“Me too,” replies Joe. “I think that I looked like the weakest one.”

“Yeah, I agree.” They simultaneously chuckle.

“Shut up,” he returns.

“We made it,” states Quin. Quin’s spaceship jumps out of hyperspace; the metal shield that’s covering the exterior of the windshield, disengages and folds back. From beyond the window, the red surface of the tremendous moon, is revealed. The Protectors’ attention turns to the spectacle.

“Wow, this place is huge,” Joseph says.

“All right gentlemen, remember, you’re looking for the hidden entrance to the underground laboratory; the watch I gave you will lead you to its location. Once inside, your job is to locate the black briefcase that’s containing my map. You will see horrific life forms down there. Some may look human, but don’t be fooled. Those who resemble us, are the result of the alien parasites having complete control over them. Now, they’re nothing but brainless-monstrous beasts, and must be taken out of their misery. There’s no cure, so don’t think that bringing one back to base, is a good idea. They’ll only succeed in turning everyone that’s not like you, into one of them.”

“If you don’t mind me asking, where does this map lead to?” inquires Tom.

“It contains the coordinates to an abandoned planet, where many priceless items reside; I won’t go into anymore details, however, I will tell you that I only wish to sell the treasure.” They suspiciously look into Quin’s eyes. “To customers with integrity, of course.”

“You don’t have any other option,” says Joe.

“I see; well since you question me, can I ask you something?”

“Go for it,” answers Thomas.

“Why don’t you need a suit?”

“Our bodies have been merged with a power that allows us to function optimally under any condition within this universe.”

“Fascinating.”

Quin’s ship halts one hundred feet above the surface of the moon. The two exit out of the cargo bay’s doors; they jump, and land gracefully against the rocky surface. The heroes begin their trek; Quin ascends, and escapes into hyperspace.

“How far is this place again?” asks Joseph.

“It says an hour; but it’s underground, so if we don’t find the hidden entrance, it could take us a lot longer.”

Joe suddenly sees a set of two different pair of tracks. “Hey, over here.” They make their way to the location of the prints.

“I think we should see where they lead to,” says Tom. They follow the indentations.

“You know what I always wanted to know?” asks Joseph.

“What?”

“What was your most memorable mission as a Pegasus agent, like?”

“That one’s a long story.”

“Well, lucky for us, we have time to kill.”

Chapter 3: Agent Glass

Almost Four Hundred Years Ago:

Thomas, now dressed in a brown-leather jacket, and jet slim-fitting jeans, approaches his motorcycle that’s parked outside of an abandoned apartment building. A street light shines bright over his customized, futuristic matte-black bike. He mounts it, and puts the key in the ignition; the bright-red rims light up as it turns on. He disengages the lock that connects his wine-colored helmet to the seat of his bike, using his fingerprint, which he places on the lock’s screen. He puts the helmet on his head, and in the corner of the visor, is a built-in screen that displays the map of the Neo Sector. He kicks up the kickstand, and accelerates down the lonely street.

As he drives, Thomas replays his mission briefing; he recorded it with the use of a feature on his special contact lenses, which allow him to project the recording across the visor. Paul Simmons, his boss, is sitting in the chair at the edge of the briefing table as he explains the objective to the Nimrod Task Force. This squad consists of Agent Thomas Glass, Agent Ariel Garcia, a young Hispanic woman, clothed in a brown dress, Agent Gabriel White, a dark-skinned man, wearing a sable suit, Agent Chad Smith, who appears to be of Asian descent, and is dressed in a gray ensemble, and Agent Bruce Jones, who’s an older-white man, sporting a blue business outfit; all of them are sitting in their designated seats around the oval table. “Last night, I got word that Vincent Cecil has escaped from prison; he’s also Incognito, which makes him our priority,” Paul says.

Tom is now speeding through an encapsulated freeway, passing by and weaving through many cargo trucks and buses.

“He escaped, again?” asks White.

“I know. We’re still unsure how he pulled it off. We tried hacking his Seeker chip to track him down, but Overwatch soon realized that his file has been completely erased from our A.I.’s system.”

“Do we have any idea on who the surgeon could be?” asks Garcia.

“His chip wasn’t removed surgically; Vincent hired a hacker for the job,” replies the chief.

Thomas continues to skillfully maneuver through traffic as he speeds down the highway that’s bordering ruined infrastructure and wasteland on each side.

Paul pulls up a projected image of Simon Ryder (who’s Tom’s old boss, and Pegasus’ target) on his holographic projector that’s resting on the table. He slowly skips through the five obscure close up images of the target. “This man’s name is Simon Ryder. For the past ten years, he’s been in charge of running a criminal hangout spot; we’ve been able to confirm that his base of operations is some sort of nightclub in the Zero Sector. Apparently, for some time now, he’s found a way to get his hands on stolen Guardian gear, and has redesigned their flight devices, to fit onto people he calls The Bozos. He records these criminals, in a type of betting-game show, to see which one can capture the most amount of flags that he’s got hidden. Little did we know, this event is a fan favorite amongst the Underworld.”

“How do you know they’re criminals?” asks Thomas. Paul presses a button on the projector. The display switches to the images of the racers. It automatically alternates, every five seconds.

“Agent Garcia has successfully infiltrated Simon’s establishment. We’ve since discovered that they too, have somehow attained Incognito status; and, like Vincent, these other guys didn’t use surgery to remove their chips. If Simon isn’t responsible for this, then he knows who is,” says Paul. Thomas’ expression indicates how deep in thought he is as he gazes down at the table. “Garcia has also informed me that in three days, Simon plans to air the final event. Normally, there’s nothing you can do to make Simon come out of hiding, however he promised his fans to make an appearance on the night of the finale.” Paul looks over at Tom. “Something wrong, agent?”

“No sir,” he says, as he readjusts his composure, and sits attentively.

“Then keep your head up, and listen to what I’m about to tell you; I want you and Garcia to make the arrest on Simon. He’s the first step to putting Vincent and the others, behind bars.”

The footage ends just as he arrives at Simon’s nightclub; sand and ruins fill this abandoned area. Tom parks his bike on the street opposite of the building. He locks up his helmet, and approaches the wooden-front door. He knocks three times. Sam, the security guard, opens the speak-easy panel, and peers through. “Who are you?” he asks.

“It’s Glass; James’ replacement.” Sam’s eyes scan Tom’s body up and down.

“You’re late.”

He slides the panel close, and proceeds to unlock and open the door. Tom enters, and is immediately bombarded with loud and aggressive techno music. Prostitutes and criminals fill this top secret place. Motorcyclists ride around in circles within the tall spherical cage at the center of the club. A voice is heard through the small-hidden radio inside of his right ear.

“I’m to your left,” says Garcia.

He turns his attention to the bar, and spots Agent Garcia, who’s now working undercover as a bartender, and wearing black lingerie. The coworker standing beside her, begins making an alcoholic beverage; Garcia grabs her jacket that’s resting on the counter, and puts it on.

“Hey, can you take over for a few minutes? I have to make a quick call.”

“Just don’t leave me here for too long,” she replies.

Garcia continues toward the hallway that leads to the exit. Tom follows her through the club; he passes by many drunk clubbers. The door that leads to the outside, slowly closes, as Tom enters the corridor; he catches it right before it’s closed, and proceeds through. Garcia runs into Rich and the Camerabot, on her way; Richard is the host of the Bozo Games, and the Camerabot is a re-engineered Guardian, which they use as their cameraman. As she makes her way to the benches overlooking the packed parking lot, Rich grabs her by her arm, and says, “Whatever you’re doing out here, make it quick; we’re heading out in fifteen.” He lets go, and continues toward the back entrance. The host notices Glass standing near the door. “You don’t happen to be James’ replacement, do you?”

“I am.”

Annoyed, Richard asks, “Then why aren’t you suited up, yet?”

“I was just going to-”

“I don’t want to hear any excuses, just know, if you’re not on the bus in time, I’m the one who’ll get chewed out for it, so do me a favor, and get a move on.”

“I will.” Rich shakes his head in disappointment, and advances into the club. He proceeds to take a seat beside Garcia, who’s now seated on the bench. “First off, Ariel, I want to thank you for meeting me like this.”

“I hope you’re not about to make me regret it.”

“I’m going to need you to hold off on Simon’s arrest.” Garcia turns to him; her face indicates her confusion and astonishment.

“You must be out of your mind? Why are you sticking your neck so far out for this guy, anyway?”

“Because I owe it to him.”

“What do you mean?”

“Both of my adopted parents passed when I was only fourteen. My real father died while my mom was pregnant, of a heart attack. My mother died almost right after I was born, due to complications during the delivery. My adopted father died of a heart attack as well, and my adopted mother was killed by a mugger three days later. Their names were Adam and Sandra, Saber. The day Sandra was murdered, was the same day I ran away from home; I knew that if I stayed, I’d be taken back to the orphanage where I grew up, and that wasn’t an option for me. I was homeless for two years before Simon found me on the street, and took me in. I doubt I would be alive today if it wasn’t for him.”

“Have you told the chief about your relationship with the target?”

“No. If he found out that I kept all this a secret, he wouldn’t hesitate to have me discharged.”

“Look, I’m sorry, but I don’t think I can go through with this, Glass. It’s just too risky.”

“What if I made you an offer?”

“Are you trying to bribe me?”

“I’ll give you one hundred grand for your cooperation.”

“Where are you getting one hundred grand from?”

“Tonight’s prize money. If I lose, you can proceed with our orders, and take him in like we planned; but if I win, you’ll take the money, and not report any of this to the chief.” A pause occurs; he looks into her eyes and says, “I know about Crystal’s condition.”

“How dare you bring my daughter into this!” she quietly exclaims.

“You know just as well as I do that this money could mean life or death for her.”

Garcia folds her arms, and looks down at the ground. “And what do you suppose we tell Paul about Simon?”

“We tell him that there was no race tonight; Simon never showed up, and this night never happened.” Garcia’s expression reveals her contemplation. “Don’t worry, everything will be fine.” He retrieves both a small business card, and a pen, from inside his jacket pocket. “Write your information on here. I’ll be sending you the money directly into your account; and don’t worry, it won’t be traced.”

He hands the card and pen to Garcia; she begins writing. “What makes you so sure that you’re going to win?”

“Before I started working with Pegasus, I raced here for a living. Believe it or not, but I never lost.”

“Impressive.” She finishes jotting her personal bank details, and hands the card back to him, “You think you still got it?” He places it into his right pant pocket.

“I certainly hope so.”

“I have to know, how does letting a target walk, work in our favor?”

“In exchange for my participation tonight, Simon’s agreed to give me the location of Vincent’s hideout.”

“Are you serious? He knows where-”

Ariel’s fellow bartender interjects, “Savannah!” she shouts; this name is Garcia’s alias. She turns around to see her coworker standing in the doorway of the back exit. “Rich needs you inside!”

“I’ll be right there!” Agent Garcia returns her attention to Thomas. “I have to go.”

“Right. Thank you Ariel.” She stands to her feet, and makes her way toward the entrance. He recovers his electric cigarette from his jacket pocket, and takes a drag.

ONE DAY EARLIER:

Simon, an older-husky Italian man, wearing a Hawaiian T-shirt and white shorts, drives his old-school truck down the nearly empty freeway. He turns up his radio, and softly sings along with the smooth jazz. He then looks up at his rear-view mirror, and notices a motorcyclist gaining on him.

Thomas, now suited in the Nimrod Task Force attire, which consists of sleek-metal-pale armor that covers his entire body, is chasing Simon. His headpiece is smooth and round, and a tinted-diamond-shaped visor appears over his face; small notches extend out from its side; with his index finger, he presses one of the switches. This causes the headlights on the motorcycle to emit a deep-red-flashing light. This both indicates that Tom’s a Pegasus Hunter, and that the driver ahead, needs to pull over.

The target steps on the gas. “How did they find me?!” he screams to himself. He speeds up, and attempts to flee. He enters into an encapsulated freeway. Glass effortlessly keeps up with his reckless driving. Thousands of aircraft zip about overhead, while light traffic occurs on the roads. Simon accelerates through the freeway exit that’s blocked off by cones and signs. He speeds down the ramp, and is met by a tall gate that’s connected to two concrete barriers on each side. The square-shaped signs mounted on the gate, read ROAD CLOSED and CONSTRUCTION AHEAD. Ryder bashes through it, and continues down the restricted side street. He continues chasing, but maneuvers to the sidewalk to avoid the wet cement. Simon’s vehicle suddenly gets caught in a sinkhole. He abandons his truck, and rushes toward the alleyway ahead. Tom’s visor causes the target’s body to appear red. He watches him struggle to scale over the gate that’s blocking access to the alley. The agent abandons his motorcycle when he reaches the fence, and easily scales over it. He bolts for the criminal, who’s now reached the side entrance to a Japanese market.

“Stop Running!” Thomas shouts. He punches the glass on the door that leads into the basement. He looks up to see the Pegasus Hunter closing the distance. He quickly sticks his arm through the broken glass, and unlocks it from the outside, cutting himself in the process.

By the time he arrives at the slightly-opened entryway, he’s broken into the building. He opens it the rest of the way, and follows the trail of blood, upstairs. Once he climbs the flight, he’s met by another doorway. He cautiously proceeds with the pistol that he grabbed from the holster that’s on his right side, pointed ahead.

An angry, Japanese, fish-store manager, wearing an apron and a server hat, holds a shotgun to the bleeding intruder, who’s standing with his hands raised, and leaking from his forearm; the manager is protecting his screaming wife, who’s crouching behind him.

“Get out of here!” the man screams.

“Don’t shoot!” Simon shouts back.

The Hunter enters, and yells, “Police!” Thomas flashes the angry Japanese man his Pegasus badge, while aiming his laser pistol at him. “Put the gun down.” The man lowers his weapon, and returns his attention to his weeping mate. He disengages his visor’s tint by pressing another button on the side of his helmet. Tom then aims his pistol at Ryder.

“Glass?” he grips the injured target by his collar, shoves him against a wall, and handcuffs him. He then escorts him out of the shop, and back into the alley.

He pushes him up against the side of the store. “Sit down.” He sits against the exterior.

“Please Tom, you can’t take me in like this; not after everything I’ve done for you.”

“Pegasus is onto you. They know you were the one who erased Vincent’s file from our system. How could you help someone like him?”

“It’s not what you think, I promise.”

“Explain yourself.”

“When the government started using the Sentinels, five years ago, I thought I had no other choice but to shutdown the club. That was, until a very rich man, offered me a deal-”

“Who?”

“He told me his name is Cambridge. He claimed that he was a fan of our program, and offered me ten volunteers for the Bozo Games, as well as whatever money I needed to keep the show going. I used some of the funds to help develop the virus that erased the racers’ identification from Pegasus’ system; that was the only way I could get the guys to fly, without alerting the Sentinels. In exchange for his resources, I not only offered to give up the nightclub when I felt ready, but I also promised to erase the I.D. of anyone Cambridge asked me to. It was last week when he demanded that I erase Vincent’s. I had no clue they were associates. I initially refused, and told him that he was too high profile for his name to be erased without Pegasus realizing it, but he wouldn’t listen. He put a gun to my head, and forced me to do it. I didn’t have a choice.”

“Who is this Cambridge person?”

“He’s Vincent’s new business partner. When I finished erasing his I.D., Cambridge decided to spare me, but promised that he would have my family killed if Pegasus ever found out what I’d done. When he left me, I followed him with one of my drones. He ended up at an old-abandoned port in the Zero Sector; that’s where he went to meet Vincent.”

“And you’re sure about this?”

“I’m absolutely positive. Once they finished talking, Vincent boarded a ship that looked like it was guarded by some sort of military. I was able to capture images of both the craft, and the surrounding guards.”

“Where are they?”

“They’re saved on my computer.”

“Here’s the deal, you give me those pictures, and I’ll let you walk.”

“That’s easier said than done. Ever since I started working with Cambridge, I’ve been followed practically everywhere I go.”

“You can find a way.”

“Fine, I’ll try my best to help you, but I have two conditions myself.”

“You’re not in the position to be asking for anything.”

“Just hear me out. I actually planned for tomorrow night to be the final airing of the Bozo Games, but one of my most marketable guys has been injured, and won’t be able to participate. Without him, we are going to be forced to postpone the last one, however, if we found a substitute, say you for example, then we can proceed as planned.”

“I can’t race anymore, my chip is still active.”

“Temporarily hiding just you from the system, shouldn’t be a problem.”

“And what about the prize money?”

“One-hundred thousand credits, paid in full, and up front.”

“What’s the other condition?” asks Tom.

“In three days I plan to move my family to the Far-East Sector.”

Vincent’s assassin, Seymour, is manipulating a miniature-spherical blue and white drone. It is equipped with a turret and a cannon, that have both been mounted to either sides of its exterior. The turret is attached to the right side. An oval-shaped lens makes up its face. It flies with the use of the helicopter-like propeller that’s connected to its top hemisphere. It’s spying on the conversation from behind the edge of a nearby skyscraper.

“If you can ensure my safe departure, then I will give you the access codes needed to reveal the files I’ll have prepared for you on a flash drive,” says Simon. Seymour scans the agent’s body for basic information; he discovers his name, division, and rank.

ONE DAY LATER:

The Camerabot pans over the twelve Bozos standing in their positions within the sand. They are now all equipped with their flight gear and jumpsuits. The racers all have different-colored jersey’s, and are equipped with high-tech-visor glasses that match them. Black bandannas cover their noses and mouths. Tom is in a baby-blue outfit, with a pale number “7” on the front and back of his shirt. The men are equipped with velcroed vests, which the flags they’ll collect, will stick onto. Thrusters are attached to the palm portions of their gloved hands. These are responsible for both slowing down, and directing movement, while the ones on their feet, engage their turbo boost.

“Get ready!” shouts Rich. They input the codes needed to engage their thrusters. Glass inputs 0007 into the keyboard that’s made into the back of his left gauntlet. They simultaneously ascend, vertically. They reach fifty feet, and float in place. He stares into the dark ocean, ahead.

“I’m starting the countdown!” Rich yells. His glasses display the location of the flags. They appear as scattered-yellow-translucent bubbles, which become denser and more profound the closer you get to them. The countdown initiates. “Five, four, three-”

Agent Garcia and the remaining clubbers, watch the television monitor that’s mounted on the wall behind the bar. The television shows the Camerabot’s perspective. The T.V. reveals that one second remains on the countdown. The word GO appears across the screen. The racers zoom off into the darkness, leaving a shimmering-different-colored-light trail behind them. The color of the fire expelling from the jets correlates with the racers’ jerseys.

The goal of the race is to collect the most flags within the five minute time limit. There are a total of 500. The flags are attached to poles lit with orange lights, which extend out from Simon’s floating drones. They’re scattered both in the sky at different altitudes, and at different points atop the surface of the ocean. The volunteers are allowed to fight midair for ownership of a flag. They zip off into every direction, painting the heavens with their gleaming streaks, in the process. Tom advances to the first flag. Upon arriving, Number Four, who’s wearing a red jersey, makes it to the location at the same time. He accelerates into Thomas, and attempts to strike him with a right haymaker. He blocks the hit with his right elbow, and with his hand, he grabs the back of Number Four’s head, and brings it down on his left knee. This devastating blow, knocks his opponent out, and he splashes down into the dark abyss. Within the first two minutes, as a result of skirmishes, more than half of the men have been thrown into the black expanse. In the end, Tom collects one more flag than Walter, who’s the man in the custom-purple suit. He’s Number Thirteen, and known as the top prospect.

The game finishes, and one by one, the men retreat back to shore. The rambunctious fans from the club, who chose to cruise along with the Bozos on the bus, gather around them; Rich and the Camerabot push their way through. “Get in a line people, single file, facing me!” he announces. The racers form a horizontal line that faces the audience. Richard examines their vests, and discovers the winner. “Holy- you actually won?” He turns to the bot who’s standing behind him. “Start recording.” It engages its camera. The host, who’s now standing directly in front of the champion, and blocking him from the lens, lifts the mic up to his lips.

“Welcome back, folks! I hope you enjoyed tonight’s game. If you’ve been keeping up with us so far, you know what time it is--that’s right people, it’s time we announce the champion. The victor of the one-hundred-thousand-dollar grand prize, goes to-!” Rich steps to the side, revealing James’ replacement. “A man we like to call Mister Moves; everybody give it up, for Number Seven!” Rich raises up his hand, and the crowd loudly applauds.

Chapter 4: Quin’s Map Part II

“Hey, what’s that?” asks Joe, as he points to the object that resembles a gun, which is resting on the ground twenty feet away. They hurry over to the item, however, right before reaching it, thirty strange flying aliens, emerge out of the trap door that resides a few feet away from the weapon; the door’s iron exterior is broken apart by what seems like an explosive, which has left a hole in its middle section. Joseph unsheathes his iron broadsword, and psychically covers the blade in fire. Thomas has morphed his hands into blades. They destroy the threat by slicing through the insectoids, who spit acid at them, and attempt to choke them with their extendable-tentacle-like tongues, which have razor-sharp hooks at their ends. Once they defeat the parasite-infested beings with ease, The Protectors examine the strange door.

“Well, I figure this is the way in,” says Thomas.

“That’s what it looks like.”

Tom jumps down first, and Joe follows behind. They land against the cement floor of the dark hangar; the yellow ladder that leads to the trap door, is now exposed. An old-ruined spaceship still sits idle within the left hemisphere of the room. By using their index fingers to touch the stones on their foreheads, they engage the light feature, which causes the objects to emit a white glow that paves the way. They proceed to the elevator that’s fifty feet opposite of their direction. They reach it, and press the indicator that’s mounted on the wall; this successfully calls the lift. After a brief period of waiting, it opens, and they enter.

Tom briefly examines the buttons. “There’re four floors beneath this one, and one above us. Which level should we check out, first?”

“Hmm; let’s try-” before he can make a decision, the elevator swiftly free falls, and crashes to level one.

On his third punch, Joseph is able to break through the doors. At the other end, they find themselves within a room that’s shaped like an inordinate-hollow cylinder. Hundreds of cells are stacked beside and on top of each other, around the inside of the shadowy structure. The Protectors, now powered down, step onto the grated walkway ahead; as Joe examines one of the abandoned cells, Thomas leans over the railing, and peers down at the bottom floor; there are fifty levels below, and twenty above them. “It’s a long way down,” Thomas says.

Tom turns to Joseph; once they make eye contact, Joe instantly notices something strange behind his comrade. The monster resembles a being with an elongated and mutated-human face. It has twisted and mangled arms, razor-sharp nails on its two hands, two pincers that extend out from either side of its stomach, ablaze-yellow eyes, and a lower half that resembles a slimy snake’s. The atrocity has his torso raised above Tom’s head, and his tail wrapped around the rail. As Thomas turns around to look at the infected mutant, he’s grabbed by its tongue, and lifted up, high. This monstrous being shares the same type of tongue as the flying bug-like mutants from earlier. Thomas is released from its oozing grip, once Joe, with an immense amount of force, speed, and power, slices its neck with the steel blade he retrieves from the holster on his back. Glass falls over the railing, and morphs into his alternate form before landing on his backside. In this mode, his skin appears completely black and metallic, and his eyes shine white; flowing blue energy also shimmers throughout his exterior. The head of the parasite-possessed corpse, plops down right beside him.

“Hold on!” Joseph shouts, before jumping down in his upgraded form, which includes a completely ablaze head and torso. The fiends that once laid dormant behind the protection of the glass-covered compartments, are awakened. They burst out of their confinement, and jump onto the bottom platform. A mixture of 500 beasts, which includes the bugs from earlier, and the snake-legged mutants, flood the area. “I got something special for these creeps; get to cover!”

Thomas kneels, presses both of his hands against the floor, and summons a cylinder-shaped platform, that ascends, and takes him back up. Just as the enemies swarm the space, Joseph tucks his closed fists in, and lowers his head. His body violently starts to shake as fire forms in a vast twister, around him. The flaming tornado dissolves the oncoming monstrosities, almost instantly. He pats down the flames that cover his suit, and leaps up to regroup with his partner. “I-hate-parasites.”

“I guess now we should search the area for the map. As boring as this sounds, I’m thinking that we should check out each cell.”

“I’ll follow your lead, man. While we’re doing this, how about getting back to your story?”

Chapter 5: Agent Glass Part II

Sam unlocks Simon’s office door with a keycard; they enter. Ryder tampers with his tablet as he sits at his desk. He lowers the screen and looks over at the two. “Mr. Glass! Please, take a seat.” Tom approaches him, and pulls out the chair that’s tucked into the opposite end of the table. As he sits down, Sam exits. “What’s it been, seven years since you’ve been with us? Yet somehow you still manage to fly the best, out of everyone. Have you found anything you’re not good at, yet?”

“I upheld my end of the deal; now it’s your turn.”

“Of course.”

Simon re-opens the tablet, and prepares the transaction screen. “Thank you for filling in for James tonight on such short notice; everything would have been a disaster if you hadn’t stepped up like you did.” He hands him the device. “You remember the routine don’t you? Just input your-”

“I remember.” Thomas subtly retrieves the business card that’s containing Garcia’s information, from his jacket sleeve; he inputs her data into the touch screen, then hands the tablet back.

“Excellent,” Ryder utters. He kneels down to retrieve its case, which was resting on the floor, beside his left foot. As Simon lifts his head to place this item on the table, he slides the card into his sleeve. “You know the fans weren’t expecting a win from Number Seven, tonight; you really caused quite an upset.” Thomas impatiently stares at him.

“Where’s the-?”

“Oh, right. It must have slipped my mind.” He rolls back in his chair to retrieve a book from inside the first drawer. It’s within the dresser that’s resting against the wall behind him. He returns, and offers it to Glass. “Thank you again; it was truly a great read.” Tom, confused, stares at his old boss, then down at the book. He opens it up to the front page. Within it, lies the USB drive containing the images of Vincent’s hideout. The pages are carved so that the memory stick fits within it. On the inside of the cover, a message reads “They’re watching us” in black marker. “Are you satisfied with its condition?”

“It’s perfect.” He closes it, and they both stand to their feet.

“It was a pleasure, Thomas.”

They shake hands. Glass says, “I’ll see you around.” He turns to exit the office. He slams the door shut. Simon nervously glances over at the fish tank that sits up along the wall on the right side of the room. A small-circular camera hides within it, and is attached to the glass. It emits a bright red light from its center.

As Vincent sits at his desk within the shadowy room at his lair, he watches the camera feed from the aquarium, on his computer. He dials Seymour’s number. “Are you in position?”

Thomas exits the club, and mounts his motorcycle. Seymour’s drone scans him with its special lenses; the assassin’s objective appears as a golden silhouette. The high-tech drone senses that the agent is carrying a flash drive. As he accelerates down the empty highway, the drone flies behind.

Seymour’s cloaked aircraft is parked on the roof of a skyscraper. He’s positioned in the pilot seat, and wearing a black-leather jacket, which stretches across his massive torso. Dark slacks cover his bottom half, and cap toe shoes are on his humongous feet. He’s bald, without any facial hair, and wearing advanced goggles over his eyes. These allow him to view whatever his drone sees. “I’m downloading the files from the USB, now.”

Seymour lifts up his goggles, and retrieves a tablet from the passenger seat. He removes his jacket. Beneath it, he’s shirtless. The being is without a naval, nipples, and hair; a shining-red circle manifests on his chest. He presses a small-dusky button on his left forearm. This causes a panel to raise from the skin on the backside of his arm. It opens, and many notches, ports, and different-colored buttons, are now exposed. While holding the tablet with his left hand, using his other one, he pulls the tip of the extendable chord, which slightly hangs out of the panel, and plugs it into a port that’s manufactured along the side of the item being held. A download bar appears across the device’s screen. The message “NEED CODE TO ACCESS FILES” suddenly pops up in red letters. “These files require an access code, should I attempt to decrypt them?” asks the android.

“Of course,” Vincent’s voice demands through the speaker. He proceeds to try and open the files by inputting a code into the touchpad.

“This isn’t good.”

Vincent is seated in his throne within the almost pitch-black room; the dim light emitting from the computer monitor that’s mounted on the wall across from him, illuminates the area. He converses with Seymour through his phone-like device. “What did you find?”

“I think you should see for yourself.” Vincent presses a button on the remote that rests in his lap. The monitor lights up, and the footage’s download bar fully loads; it begins. Simon, who’s standing in what appears to be a cellar, stares into the camera that’s ten feet ahead of him.

“If you are seeing this video, it means that very shortly I will be notified of your attempt to decrypt these files. A deal is a deal; you don’t get access to this until I get what I want. You try this again, and you can say goodbye to finding Vincent with my help. This is your one and only warning, Glass; I mean it.” The video ends.

“Make sure that agent never sees the light of day, again.”

CHAPTER 5: PART II

Tom unlocks and enters his apartment. He places his keys in the basket beside the entrance. He then gently calls out to his wife, “Sasha?” There’s no response. He continues into his bedroom. He quietly watches her lie asleep under the covers from the doorway. He hangs up his jacket, and proceeds toward the bathroom. He enters it, and places the book containing the USB, on the top of the counter. He turns on the faucet, and starts to wash his hands.

Seymour’s attack drone is now twenty feet away from Thomas’ apartment as it faces his balcony, which is connected to his bedroom. “Engage the turret,” Seymour commands. The weapon begins to rapidly spin. “Fire.”

It fires off a barrage of bullets. They rip through the glass doors. This wakes Sasha from her slumber; she immediately starts screaming in terror at the noise. As a result of the rounds ripping through the doorway, their apartment is completely exposed; the firing suddenly stops, but Sasha continues to scream.

Tom swings open the bathroom door; he’s now only wearing a white undershirt and the same black bottoms. A strong wind breezes through the bullet-made opening. He is enraptured in the radiant light that’s emitted from the headlights of the robot. In awe, Tom watches as another projectile is shot into his home; a small, mine-shaped explosive, sticks onto the bedpost over Sasha’s head. Before he can react, the mine explodes, blasting him backward into the wall.

A fire instantly starts to spread within their bedroom. Thomas struggles to breathe, as his paralyzed body lies upright. He slowly opens his eyes. His left arm has been mutilated by the explosion. He gains the strength to lift his head, and when he does, he sees Sasha’s burning body, falling off of the bed. A loud crackling sound is heard within the home. Just as he extends his right arm to reach for his wife, the ceiling collapses.

“The agent is dead,” says Seymour.

“Good work.”

“He was with a woman in the apartment.”

“Well?”

“I killed them both.”

“You made the right choice. Now, it’s Simon’s turn.”

Sam and Rich, who’re now sitting together at the benches bordering the lot to Simon’s club, are smoking cigars together. They watch as Seymour lands his aircraft within the closed-private space. The assassin, now wearing his fully-zipped leather jacket, exits the craft, and approaches the men; they stand to their feet.

“We’re closed,” says Sam.

“I need to speak with Mr. Ryder, immediately. Which one of you will take me to him?” the metal man responds.

“Look, like he said, we’re closed. I suggest you get going before you make things hard on yourself,” says Rich.

“Is that a threat?” Seymour inquires.

Rich lifts his shirt to show the revolver that’s resting in his pocket holster. “No, it’s a promise, now get lost.”

The robot passes both men a glance. “So be it.” It aims his open hand at Rich’s abdomen. His palm emits a bright-orange light. Seconds later, a blast releases from his limb, shooting a hole through his stomach; he instantly collapses. The assassin then aims his weapon at the doorman’s head. “Do you still wish to test my patience?”

Sam raises his arms to surrender. He glances at the host’s dead body lying on the ground, then back up at the android. “What in the world, are you?”

Seymour kicks open the door leading into Simon’s office; it’s empty. He uses his thermal vision to scan the room. He instantly notices an anomaly moving within the air ducts. His eyes return to normal, and as he looks in the direction of his escaping target, he notices an open vent. He turns, and rushes out of the space. He makes a right down the hallway, and continues through a door that takes him to a set of stairs. He ascends the spiral staircase, and eventually reaches the roof of the nightclub. The blades of Simon’s helicopter begin picking up speed. The android races over to the pilot seat of the craft with incredible swiftness, and pries open the door. He slams his face against the dashboard, then grabs his arm, and throws him onto the ground.

“Please, I beg of you!” shouts Simon.

Seymour slowly approaches Ryder with his open palm aimed at his head; once he closes the distance, he executes him with a hand blast, eradicating his skull.

“You monster!”

The bot turns to face the source of the voice. Sam is now standing on the roof, with an AK-47 pointed at his boss’ murderer; a grenade launcher is attached to the weapon. He launches an explosive. It hits the target, instantly causing an unwarranted explosion to occur. The eruption sets the chopper on fire, and within seconds, a vast smoke cloud is created. Sam advances to the thick wall of fumes and flames, as he watches for any sign of the enemy. Suddenly, Seymour’s burning body escapes from the conflagration; his naked-genitalia-less figure, falls to his knees, and collapses, face first. He rushes over to him, and uses his foot to flip the injured behemoth on his back. Half of the creature’s face is now gone, and his cybernetic skull is revealed. He rests his boot on its chest, and spits on what remains of his cheek.

“Robot, scum.” Just as he places the clip inside of the assault rifle, the assassin grabs Sam’s leg with his right hand. Frightened, Sam struggles to get loose from his incredible grip. “Let go of me!” A bright-orange light emits from the center of Seymour’s palm. “I said let go!” As he shoots three rounds into his head, chipping away chunks of metal, it blasts his leg to pieces.

Chapter 6: Quin’s Map Part III

The Protectors have just finished ascending the elevator shaft via the steel ladder formed into its interior. The team arrive at the second floor. “I’ll tell you the rest when we finish up,” says Thomas.

“Right,” Joe responds, just before kicking down the iron door, which was blocking them from continuing on their route. They make their way into the dark tunnel-like space, which appears to have four doors on each side, and one at the end. “I say we split up.”

“All right,” says Glass. They check each room, but still can’t locate the case. Each area is filled with different types of alien weapons and armor. Once they explore every compartment, excluding the one at the very edge, the two regroup to search it, together. Joe pries the steel entryway open with his bare hands. They’re welcomed to an astonishingly spacious sector, which has a single-complex machine at its center; connected to it, is a dome-shaped capsule which is built into the floor, five feet away from the device (it extends fifteen feet high). Lying down against the wall to their left, are nine unconscious cyborgs. Cannons have replaced their right arms; they’re also fitted with sleek, broken-down, cybernetic armor. Their faces have been partially eaten, and each of them have both slight mutations, as well as bullet holes in their foreheads. A pistol rests in the lap of the man to the farthest right.

“That ain’t right,” Joe says. “These guys are cyborgs.” He starts to examine the blaster attached to the one in the middle. He accidentally presses a button that engages a holographic projection, which displays from the projector that’s engineered into the weapon; a strange man in a white robe, who’s sitting atop a stool, recites a message.

“The code to open the briefcase, is five, nine, six, one, one, three, eight, seven, six, four, four, one, two.” The hologram ends.

“Wasn’t that Quin?” asks Joseph.

“It sure looked like him.”

“I don’t understand, why didn’t he mention these guys?”

“He must have wanted to keep his failure a secret,” responds Thomas.

“Doesn’t that bother you?”

“Now that you mention it; he also told the cyborgs the code, and not us.”

“He must not want us to see the map,” replies Joe. A pause occurs as they contemplate. “What do you think?”

“I say we head up to the surface, and give him a call.”

“Me too.” They turn around, and head back. While returning, Joe says, “I’m so sorry to hear about what those guys did to you back there, man. Your life was so bizarre, even before the powers.”

“I know, right. It’s been a long time since all that happened, though. I hardly even think about it, now.”

“Do you mind continuing?”

“Not at all; let’s see, where was I?”

Chapter 7: Agent Glass Part III

Paul, who’s now in his kitchen, is pouring a cup of water from the tank. His communicator is resting beside a picture of his family. In the image, he’s lovingly holding his arm around his wife, Cheryl, who’s the president of Pegasus, as they sit on a bench in a park; Jessica, his daughter, is only seven, and is grinning as she sits on her mother’s lap. The communicator starts to emit a multitude of bright-flashing colors as it loudly vibrates. Both the picture and the device, are sitting on a small-oval-glass table that’s resting in the living room. Once he finishes pouring, he proceeds to answer the call. He retrieves the phone-shaped device, and swipes across the screen. “What’s going on?”

“Something’s happened to one of your agents.” He places the cup of water on the table.

“Who?”

“Glass. An explosion went off in his apartment. You need to come down here and check it out.”

“I’m on my way.” He grabs his coat and keys from the arm of the couch, and rushes out.

He uses his lights and sirens to hastily move through air traffic. He arrives on the scene, and parks his car across the street from Tom’s residence; he exits, and approaches the building that’s now surrounded by both robotic firefighters and a crowd of frightened residents. He pushes his way through, and ducks under the caution tape that’s separating the people from the crime scene. The chief continues toward Shelby, who’s the coroner who called him earlier. “Shelby!” he shouts; the man has just finished conversing with one of the bots. “What happened?”

“Some sort of bomb went off in his apartment. The agent survived; but there was a girl in there too. She didn’t make it. As it turns out, she was pregnant.” Paul covers his face with both of his hands, and takes a very-deep breath.

He crosses his arms and asks, “Could you save the child?”

“There was nothing they could do.”

“And how’s Glass, doing?”

“The paramedics couldn’t seem to get him to wake up.” The chief agitatedly rubs his forehead with his left hand, and contemplates his next move.

“Pronounce him dead; I don’t want the enemy to know that they failed tonight.”

“You mind explaining?”

“If I’m right about who I think is responsible for this, he won’t stop coming for him if he knows he’s still alive.”

“Who do you think did it?”

“Vincent Cecil.”

CHAPTER 7: PART II

The Pegasus doctor tending to Thomas, Dr. Tushimi, stands over his motionless body as he adjusts his oxygen tank. A metal headband has been placed around the top of his head; at its center, is a shining-blue button.

“Doctor,” says Simmons, who’s now standing in the doorway.

He turns to face him. “Chief; come in.”

“What’s the diagnosis?”

“He’s stable; he took quite a blow to the head, however. He’ll be in a coma for some time.”

“When can we expect him to wake up?”

“Unfortunately, in his current state, there’s no way of telling. The nanomachines will work at their own pace, slowly, yet completely repairing this man’s damaged brain. He was very close to death, we’ve seen patients who’ve endured similar head injuries, take up to ten years to fully regain consciousness.”

“Ten years? I thought nanomachines were supposed to speed this sorta thing up.”

“In any other case, they do, however with brain injuries, we use a different method; one that calls for extreme precision, and lots of caution. Rushing the brain awake could cause him more damage than what’s already been done.” Paul glances down at Tom. “Once the reparations are complete, the light on this device will turn from blue, to green; that’s when we know it can be removed, and that’s when we can expect him to wake up.”

“I see.”

“There’s one more thing, we’ve went ahead and fitted Mr. Glass with a cybernetic-left arm; the explosion damaged his original one, beyond repair. He’s quite lucky our bots found him when they did, if we waited any longer, he would have bled to death.”

“We couldn’t make it organic?”

“If he wants an organic one, he’ll have to go to a real hospital in the Sector; we don’t have the proper tools for that, here.”

“All right, then. I’ll see you later, I have to get back to the office.”

“Right.”

Many hours have passed. Paul, isolated and despondent, sits at his desk with his eyes closed, and fingers clamped together; his hands are resting under his chin. He suddenly hears two knocks against his office door. “Come in.” Antonia, Paul’s assistant, approaches him with a small-plastic baggy in her hands.

“I got you something.”

“What’s this?”

“The Scarabs found this within a damaged book in Agent Glass’ apartment. The pages were carved so that, what’s in this bag, could fit inside. It looks like some sort of flash drive.” The chief retrieves the drive, and closely examines it.

“Bring me Agent Garcia.” He exits, and advances into the elevator at the end of the hall. He reaches the bottom level, and is now on the Overwatch section of the facility. This is where the Pegasus Overwatch team, which consists of programmers and engineers, operate. He passes many rows of stations to the right and left of his path, as he heads toward Dr. Russell Times’ office; Times is the head of the Overwatch. He arrives at the door, and knocks twice.

“Come in!” he shouts from the other end. He enters. He’s sitting at his desk as he tampers with his computer; above him, are giant monitors crafted into the wall. A window with the view of the city, is to his left. Russell turns to face Paul, who’s now approaching him with the flash drive held out in his left hand.

“I need you to show me what’s on this USB.” He takes it.

“Not a problem,” he replies. He plugs it into his computer. A pop-up appears on the screen. “It seems like I need some sort of password to see these files.”

“Can you hack them?”

“I can try.”

He plugs his black-hat device into a port manufactured into his computer. Just as he finishes typing, Simon’s message appears on the screen.

“If you are seeing this video, it means that very shortly I will be notified of your attempt to decrypt these files-”

“Simon,” Paul utters.

“A deal is a deal; you don’t get access to this until I get what I want. You try this again, and you can say goodbye to finding Vincent with my help. This is your one and only warning, Glass; I mean it.” Simon’s footage ends.

“What is he talking about?” asks Times.

“Vincent must have wanted Glass dead, because he knew he had this flash drive.”

“You mean Vincent Cecil? He has something to do with this?”

“It’s the only explanation.”

“Well should I continue to try and hack the encryption?”

“No, I don’t want to risk losing the data.”

Antonia buzzes the chief’s communicator. He touches the center button on the futuristic Bluetooth device that’s attached to his ear. “Hello?”

“Agent Garcia’s waiting for you in your office.” Simmons storms out.

CHAPTER 7: PART III

Vincent’s craft is docked at an abandoned port within the Zero Sector; he and Philip Cambridge, who’s a fat-dark-skinned man, that only wears white suits, converse within the fugitive’s room. The kingpin is seated in his throne-like chair as his comrade, who’s smoking a cigar, sits on a couch across from him. “Remember when I told you there’ll be a time when Pegasus will no longer be a problem? Well that time is now. Spencer has finally made it into the Overwatch. From here on out, there will never be a time where we’re not one step ahead of our enemy,” Cecil states. “All that’s left now, is to seal the deal with the Gray Society.” Cambridge takes a toke.

“Now that their old boss is dead, who’ll we be doing business with?”

“Bishop Gray left his two sons in charge. The older brother denied the deal I offered him, but the younger one agreed,” answers Vincent.

“How much did you offer them?”

“Nine-hundred mill, each. The older brother, Tank, wouldn’t budge, so Tyson offered me a solution.”

“What kind of solution?”

“He suggested we kill his brother.” A pause takes place while Phil inhales more smoke.

“So what’s our next move?”

“I’ve already sent Seymour to handle it.”

“And how’s the Zeta looking?”

“It’s in perfect condition. This batch is sure to make us a fortune in no time at all.”

Henchmen, drug dealers, prostitutes, and drug manufacturers, fill the brightly-lit warehouse that’s located in the desolate, desert-region of the Zero Sector; the chefs are busy making cocaine, while both the dealers and armed men, rest and mingle on the couches, and around the facility. Tank is sitting on a red sofa. He’s holding a lit cigarette in his left hand as a drugged out groupie sits on his lap. They briefly make out before heading upstairs.

Seymour has just finished mounting his sniper to the railing that separates the bluff walkway, from the wilderness and hillside, below. The base resides 200 yards ahead. Seymour’s drone rests on the ground to his right. He lowers the goggles that allow him to manipulate his ally, over his eyes. He operates it with the help of the holographic control system that projects from the device on the palm part of his left glove. With his right hand, he steers it. The drone slowly descends to the structure; it finally reaches the many glass windows. The assassin inputs a code into the hologram. This commands his weapon to use its explosives; with the press of a button, it launches two through the building.

The android watches as the grenades cause an epic explosion. The members of the Gray Society scurry out of every exit. He raises his goggles to his forehead, and leans over to look through the sniper scope. He zooms into the crowd of frantic crooks. Once he realizes his target isn’t present, he notices Tank, who appears as a golden silhouette, climbing down from the ladder that’s connected to the second level. He aims at his head, and shoots. Tank, while hastily descending, is stopped by Seymour’s sniper bullet. His lifeless body falls to the ground, twenty feet below.

One hour later, Cambridge’s aircraft descends to the street, and parks along the curb outside of the extravagantly-decorated and highly-packed, nightclub. He, and two guards dressed in black suits, exit the craft, and proceed inside.

Tyson, now sitting alone at the bar, takes a swig from his alcoholic beverage. He’s dressed in civilian attire; a baseball cap hangs low over his forehead. He looks to his right, and instantly notices Cambridge and the two henchmen, approaching.

“You must be my contact,” says the untrustworthy brother. Vincent’s right hand takes a seat next to Tyson on the stool beside him, while his team remain standing.

Cambridge retrieves a syringe from within his jacket pocket; once injected, the nanomachines inside the tube, will hack Tyson’s current tracking device, and alter the information that’s streamed to Pegasus’ database. This process will provide him with a new identity.

“I’m guessing my passport is included in this thing, too?”

“Everything’s there,” Cambridge reassures. He sticks his neck with the object. After five seconds, he removes it.

“Good, then our deal stands. The Gray Society will know who their new employer is by tomorrow morning.”

ONE YEAR LATER:

The light on the device placed on Tom’s head, shines green. His eyelids begin to flutter.

Before coming to, Tom becomes lost in a memory. He, now thirteen years old, observes the galloping horses from atop the white-wooden fence. He’s sitting beside a thirteen year old, Sasha, who he holds his arm around.

“Thomas.” He turns to face her. “Do you really think we’ll still be able to see each other when you move in with the Saber family?”

“Of course we will.”

“But what if they won’t let you come back?”

“Then I’ll just have to run away.” She lays her head against his shoulder. “Just wait, in a few years I’ll be able to afford my own place; pretty soon, we won’t have to rely on anyone for anything.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too,” he replies.

Chapter 8: Quin’s Map Part IV

Joe is sitting on the ground to the right of the trap door, while his partner is using the communicator that’s strapped to his wrist. After the second ring, Quin answers.

“Hello?”

“We came across something strange, and I felt the need to call you, to ask about it.”

“What’s that?” His voice expels from the speaker.

“We found your cyborgs; what are you hiding from us?”

“Okay; I’ll tell you the truth. I’m not only an item collector, but I’m also a scientist. Sometimes, when the things I want, are in places I can’t go, I hire people for the job, and upgrade their bodies with exoskeletons and weapons of my own design, however, their transformations are only temporary, at least, that’s how it’s supposed to be. I lost connection with my last employees while they were on their mission. That’s who you must have ran into. I’m sorry for not telling you, I didn’t know it was relevant.”

“I believe you,” says Thomas.

“Have you found it, yet?” Quin asks.

“Not yet.”

“Okay; call me back when you do, then.”

“Right.” The call ends. He turns, and makes his way to the hidden entrance.

Joseph stands to his feet, and asks, “What’s the story?”

“Those guys were his employees.” The distance between the men has now closed. “Their transformations were only supposed to last as long as the job did. He did all that handiwork on them, himself.”

“Wow, he’s good. I’m still doubting the contents of the case, though.”

“Me too. When we find it, let’s be sure to remember to take a look inside.”

“Sounds good to me; I was thinking, how about I search the third floor, and you handle the fourth? We can regroup to check out the sixth one, together.”

“That works,” agrees Glass. He jumps down into the base, and Joe follows behind.

Meanwhile, within Quin’s laboratory, are ten cylinder-shaped tubes. They’re filled with greenish liquid, and floating upright within them, are ten-new-male specimens. Eight of them are human, and the last two, are reptile-human hybrids. Sections of their bodies have been fitted with metallic parts. Quin is silently observing them.

Back at the underground base, Thomas has morphed his arms into hooks, and pushes them into the crease where the iron doors connect. He props them apart, and is met by another hallway; he proceeds down. At the end of it, is another passageway. He advances through; within his view, is a hollow, octagon-shaped, grated platform. Its center is filled with water. He looks down and sees the tip of a ladder, which leads into a flooded hangar. He morphs into his power form.

He dives into the murky liquid. Almost immediately upon entering, he is greeted by a mutant squid. It’s ten times bigger than he is, and has hundreds of oozing tentacles extending out from it, along with razor-sharp teeth, and vibrant-serpent-like eyes. He’s grabbed by it, however, Thomas is able to completely dematerialize, and merge together with his liquid surroundings. After disappearing, and reemerging behind the monster, he builds two spiked walls of ice on either side of it, and psychically smashes them together. This crushes it to bits. From the depths below, two more sets of intense eyes approach him. He summons two whirlpools, and captures each one, within them. He then conjures fifty weapons, consisting of swords, spears, and daggers, and launches them into the spinning enemies. As they drown to the bottom, he disengages his alternate form, and explores the rest of the floor, but to no avail. He returns outside to regroup with Joe, who was waiting for him beyond the entrance.

“Any luck?”

“There was nothing down there besides giant-mutated squids,” replies Thomas.

“Whoa, really? Like giant, giant?”

“Giant, giant; and slimy, and disgusting. Now can we move on? I’d rather not ponder on what just happened.”

They proceed toward the elevator shaft. They climb the ladder that connects the floors, and ascend. The team don’t stop until they reach the sixth floor. They advance onto a platform that connects them to the level, and continue to the next entrance; this one’s automatic, and slides open as they close in. They find themselves within a brightly-lit library, where a plethora of stacked bookshelves are still neatly lined up across the room. They continue through. Seven-hidden turrets mounted on the high ceiling, suddenly engage, shooting high-powered-plasma blasts at The Protectors. Joseph steps in front of his partner, and absorbs the hits. By holding up his right hand, and pointing his index finger in a gun-like position, he aims the burning collection of energy that gathers at the tip of it, at the turrets. Seven-short-red-rays burst out of the bubble, and destroy the weapons.

Inside of a brightly-lit study room that’s thirty feet away, stands an elderly man, who’s within a robotic suit; a turret is attached to both of his shoulders, and blades are crafted to his two forearms. There are also blasters manufactured into each of his palms. He stands nine feet tall, and is staring at the heroes in disbelief. Hundreds of both closed and open containers of canned food, empty water bottles, and syringes, reside within the small cubicle; a black briefcase rests on the floor, in the corner, and is chained to the wall. Once the coast is clear, they approach him.

“Who are you!?” shouts the scientist.

“We’re your ticket out of here,” says Thomas.

“How did you find out about this place?”

“That’s not important, what’s important is that we get you to safety.”

“Tell me the truth, what is it that you want?” A pause occurs as they hesitate to give up this information. “It’s the briefcase isn’t it?”

“You’re right, we were sent for the case, but that doesn’t mean we won’t help you,” responds Joseph, as they walk over to him.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t allow you to have it.”

The man aims his two palms at both men, and blasts them with an immense beam of green energy. The shots break through the glass barrier, and hit the wall of ice that Thomas creates at the last moment. Joseph bursts through Tom’s creation, and rushes him. He manages to tackle him to the ground. While on top of him, he uses his powerful grip to squeeze the suit’s robotic hands, which he’s pinned down to the floor. He continues squeezing, until they’re smashed to bits. “All right! I give up!” shouts the old man. Joe stands to his feet. He rolls on his side, and separates himself from the suit, by expelling out from the opening on its back. The elder gets up; along with his spacesuit now fully being revealed, so are the series of stitches across his forehead, which indicate an amateur attempt to patch up a serious injury. “You’re making a mistake,” he says as he gathers his breath.

“How? Where does the map lead to?” sternly asks Joseph.

“The sou--the source of the pa--parasite.”

“I should have known Quin was lying,” Thomas says.

“Quin!?” the disoriented fellow shouts.

“You know him?” asks Tom.

“He’s the cause of this mess!” the man abruptly loses his ability to stand, and collapses.

“What happened?” asks Glass.

“Don’t know.” Joe picks him up, and flings him over his shoulder. Thomas collects the briefcase; he uses his ice breath on the metal chain, then smashes it to pieces with his fist. Together, they proceed out, and back down the lift’s shaft. They reach the fifth floor, and climb the ladder that leads them out of the facility (through the trap door). Once Tom fully exits, he grabs the elderly man off of Joseph’s shoulder, and gently places him on the ground as his ally completes his ascent. The Protectors are now standing upright in the sand.

“So, how should we go about this?” asks Thomas.

“He’s going to try something, I can already feel it.”

“I was thinking the same thing.”

“Should we just wait for it?”

“I don’t see why not; it’s not like we can’t beat whatever he throws at us, right?” replies Glass.

“You’ve got a point, there.”

“I say we take a breather; how about it?”

“Sure,” replies Joe. Both men take a seat on the dirt. “Do you remember where you were in your story?”

Chapter 9: Agent Glass Part IV

Tom, now flustered, opens his eyes wide. Dazed and confused, he rips out the I.V. that has been placed in his right arm. He places his feet on the floor, and sits upright at the edge of the bed. The lights in the room automatically flash on. The disengaged heartbeat monitor sounds the alarm. He’s shocked to see that his left forelimb is now completely metallic; he continues to examine the wires hanging out from the back of his prosthetic replacement. He then moves his attention to his metal hand; he slowly closes and re-opens it, twice. A female nurse by the name of Susan, suddenly rushes into the room. “You’re awake! I’ll go get the doctor.” She hurries out, and runs down the hallway as he continues to observe both himself, and his surroundings. The nurse follows Doctor Tushimi with a tray of food, which she places in front of the patient; on the table, sits a glass of water, and two donuts.

“Welcome back,” says Tushimi. Susan, after briefly and proudly scanning Thomas with a smile, exits the room. The doctor approaches him, and sits in the chair beside the bed.

“What happened to my arm?”

“We were forced to replace it. It was barely attached to your body when we found you. Mr. Glass you’ve been in a coma for the last year now.”

“The explosion-”

“Right; so you remember.”

“Were you able to save Sasha?”

“If anyone else was included in the event responsible for your injuries, they weren’t brought here; this facility is strictly for Pegasus clientele.”

Paul enters into the room. “There he is,” he says. He approaches him, and stops before his bed. “Welcome back, Glass.” He looks over at the doctor. “Can you excuse us for a moment?”

“Of course. I’ll be back with your paperwork, sir.” Thomas nods at Tushimi, and he proceeds out.

“How do you feel?” asks Paul.

“I feel fine.”

“Great. I’m glad to hear that.”

“Were they able to save my wife?” Paul hesitates to answer.

“No. They couldn’t; I’m sorry, Thomas.” Glass rests his elbows on the tray; his interlocked hands cover his face as both of his thumbs rest at the end of each of his brows. He shakes his head back and forth as tears drip onto the table.

“And what about- what about the baby?” The chief glances at the floor.

“There was nothing they could do.” He continues to sob.

“Why couldn’t it have been me?!” Simultaneously as these words are shouted, he angrily bashes the aluminum surface with both of his hands, leaving an indentation where his left fist connects; the items spill onto the floor. He wipes the tears with the side of his right hand, then holds both of his hands together, beneath the tray. He looks up at Paul, and asks, “Is Simon the one responsible for this?”

“No; Vincent is the one to blame. He doesn’t know you survived, however; I had the coroner pronounce you dead in case he wanted to finish the job.”

“And you still haven’t found him?”

“We’re doing everything we can. I promise you, he’ll be brought to justice; we’re getting closer everyday.”

“But, I don’t understand, why would Vincent want me dead?”

“Because he knew about the deal you made with Simon. He ordered his assassin to kill him too, that night.” A pause occurs as Thomas, now indicating signs of guilt, shifts his gaze. “I was informed about your past with the target; Agent Garcia told me everything.”

“I can explain-”

“Your actions have completely violated what it means to be a Pegasus agent; I don’t have to tell you what you’ve lost because of it. I was forced to bring this up to the president. I wish it didn’t have to come to this, but she’s decided that she no longer wants you working for the task force. Your Nimrod status has been permanently, revoked.”

“Can you at least give me the chance to plead my case to the council?”

“I’m afraid not. She’s uncompromising when it comes to agents breaking protocol. I’m sorry.”

“I was only doing what I thought was right.”

“The fact of the matter is, you had your orders, and you chose to ignore them.” Paul reaches into his jacket pocket, and pulls out a small debit card; he places it on the table. “This card holds the remainder of your pay check. I recommend you use it wisely.” He reaches into his other pant pocket, and grabs a futuristic watch-like communicator; he offers it to Tom. “This also belongs to you. We recovered it from your apartment.” He grabs it, and turns it on.

Doctor Tushimi knocks twice on the door. “Is now a good time?” he asks.

“Come on in,” replies Simmons. He advances inside. “I should get going. I wish you the best of luck, Glass, I really do.” He continues out. Tushimi approaches him with a multitude of paper documents attached to a clipboard.

“All I need is your signature, and you can be on your way.”

After leaving the hospital, as he’s waiting in the front of the facility, Glass requests a cab. His ride pulls into the parking lot of the building, which is titled THE PINK SABLE. He exits, and enters through the automatic-glass doors; he’s carrying a dark backpack on his back, and is dressed in an army jacket, gray cargo pants, and military boots.

He reaches his room, and sits at the edge of the bed within his hotel; he skims through his contacts, which are projected by the projector that’s fabricated into the face of his communicator. He finds the number of Cho Hewitt. Cho is both an old friend, and a black market dealer, who Tom buys his custom bikes from; once he finds his contact information, using his right-index finger, he presses the face of the watch. This calls him, and on the third ring, Hewitt answers. “Hello?”

“Hey, is this Cho?”

“Yeah, who’s this?”

“It’s Thomas, we met through Simon, a couple years ago.”

“Oh yeah, I remember you, man. What’s going on?”

“I’m calling because I was wondering about what you have in stock.”

“Say no more. I’m not home yet, but I should be back in town by tomorrow night, about around ten or so. Can you come by then?”

“I’ll be there.”

“All right; I’ll see you tomorrow.” Cho ends the call; Glass lowers the communicator away from his mouth. He then stands to his feet, and begins doing push ups on the floor, at the foot of the bed.

It’s now the next day. Thomas enters into the backseat of a futuristic taxi that’s driven by a robot. “Good evening,” it says. He places his thumbprint within the box on the screen that’s manufactured into the window separating the driver from the passengers. “Please choose a destination.” Thomas inputs the address into the display screen. His text reads 6707 Tenor Ave. “Destination found, a total of thirty two dollars will be deducted from your account. Enjoy the ride.” The taxi takes off, and Tom sits back in his seat. Soft-electronic music plays in the background. The cab comes to a halt at a red light. During this time, Thomas rests his right elbow on the window seal; his closed right hand covers both his mouth and nose as he observes the road through the glass.

“Why’d it have to be you,” he says in his mind. He closes his eyes, and is taken to a distant memory. He and Sasha are holding each other on the beach; their feet are submerged within the sandy shore. The orange sun is setting in the background. “It seems like just yesterday I was holding you in my arms.” They kiss. He releases her, and she slowly and gracefully approaches the oncoming tide.

He wakes up from his daydream before the water reaches her. He continues to gaze out of the moving cab. Tears have begun rolling down his face. Ten minutes pass.

“We’ve arrived at your destination.” The taxi’s suicide door, raises, and he makes his way out. A clothing store with a yellow banner that horizontally rests over the entrance, has a golden-3D “Q” placed on its center. “Have a blessed and wonderful day.” Once the door automatically closes, the robot takes off down the street. Tom enters the shop, which many customers are constantly walking in and out of.

Paul, who’s now dressed in a black suit, and Tyson, now in an orange jumpsuit, are sitting across from each other within the interrogation room at the Pegasus base. The chief is examining a pile of floating-holographic files containing information on the members of the Gray Society. They’re being projected from the device that rests at the center of the table. “Help me out here, Tyson, what exactly am I looking at?”

“Those men used to work for me; now they’re Vincent’s pawns. They’re each responsible for distributing Zeta in various zones within the Sectors.”

“I’m going to need you to be a little more specific than that.”

“I don’t know who works where, if that’s what you’re asking.”

“Fair enough. I appreciate you making my job a little easier; if these names happen to check out, you’re looking at, at least a fifteen year reduction on your sentence.”

“You know Vincent’s bound to find out that I’ve helped you, right?”

“You have nothing to worry about; he has no influence where you’ll be going.”

“Did you get all the information you needed from me?”

“Not quite; the remainder of our sessions will be held over the phone.”

Tom, now wearing his new brown-hooded-leather jacket, dusky jeans, and matching gloves, sits on the bench at the bus stop, as he awaits transportation. A mysterious homeless man that’s posted against the outside of a store across the street from him, catches his eye. He watches as two junkies, one male and one female, approach the man from his left side. They speak briefly, then enter the dark alleyway. The orange bus arrives. He stands to his feet, and enters.

He makes his way to the back, and takes a seat nearest to the window; he stares out of it, keeping a close eye on the alley. Moments before the bus takes off, he sees the dealer and couple, exit out from the shadowy pathway.

The vehicle drops him off at a main street. He enters into the quiet neighborhood that borders the busy part of town, and walks the rest of the way to Cho’s home. After five minutes of walking, he arrives. He knocks three times on his front door. The camera that’s mounted right above the entrance, suddenly adjusts itself, and faces Glass.

“That you Tommy?!”

“It’s me!” The dealer remotely opens the entryway. He advances inside.

Tom follows Hewitt, who’s now holding a bottle of beer, out of the house, and into the backyard.

“I’ve done a little remodeling since the last time you’ve been here.”

“I see; this is nice.”

“Thanks.”

They proceed on a path toward the shack. Cho uses his thumbprint on the panel attached to the exterior of the structure, to open it; they continue inside. The dealer then inputs a code into the touchpad which is on the wall crafted within the interior. This causes the entire floor to descend into the underground hangar.

“So, I’m guessing you heard about what happened to Simon?” asks Hewitt.

“Yeah, it was terrible news. You know anything about the guys who killed him?”

“Nah. The spooky thing is, no one knows for sure exactly who did it, not even Pegasus from what I hear.”

“He didn’t deserve what happened to him.”

“You’re right, he was a good man. He won’t be forgotten.” Cho takes a sip from his beer. The lift halts as they arrive at the entrance. Hewitt uses his golden key to open the wooden-double doors. They enter, and proceed into the spacious, brightly-lit, and very-well-organized, garage. “All the bikes ready to be sold, are in the back.” Tom makes his way over to the motorcycles. They’re organized in rows, and resting on an elevated-circular platform. It’s hanging from the ceiling, and positioned toward the corner of the room. The dealer continues into his small office.

He enters, and retrieves his tablet from a desk. He then opens a drawer, and grabs the key chain containing the keys to the motorcycles. Cho looks through the office window at his customer, who’s observing the merchandise; he presses a button on his portable computer, which causes the hovering surface to descend to the floor. Thomas is immediately gravitated toward a black, red, and teal, Zion 16. As Hewitt exits the office, he continues to closely examine the uniquely-customized exterior.

“How much for this one?”

“Let’s see; with the customized thrusters and brake system I’ve installed, I’ll say--thirty thou’.”

“Thirty? That’s a little steep; can you do twenty five?”

“I can do twenty seven.”

“Twenty seven it is, then.”

Cho prepares the money transaction screen on the device. “It’s always a pleasure doing business with you.”

“Likewise, friend.”

“You’re gonna like that one, there. It packs quite the punch, but she’s a smooth ride, once you get used to her.”

“Perfect.” The dealer offers him the tablet. He takes it, and inputs his information. Tom seals the deal with his fingerprint, which he places in the space that’s shaped as a thumb, located on the bottom corner of the screen, and gives it back.

“I’ll go get you your helmet.” While he heads back to his office, Glass uses this opportunity to scan the space. He notices a huge object covered with a blue drape, sitting against the back wall. Multiple boxes, and a pile of Guardian jet packs, cover the ground around it. He continues to examine the illegal merchandise, until he hears Hewitt approaching; he turns around. Once the gap between the two men, closes, he obtains his protective gear.

CHAPTER 9: PART II

Back in Neo Sector, Jessica and her father, Paul, are waiting for the waiter to bring them their breakfast; they’re sitting together at a table within an old-school restaurant, designed to replicate the early 2,000′s. A T.V. hangs from the ceiling.

“You think you could survive in a time when waiters still existed, and you couldn’t instantly pick your meals from the screens on the tables?” asks the chief. Jess snickers.

“I actually like this sorta thing. Have you ever been here before?”

“Your mother and I actually used to come pretty often. How’s she doing by the way? I haven’t had a chance to catch up with her for a few weeks, now.”

“Just busy as usual.”

Paul becomes engrossed by the television that’s showing the silent-news channel.

“So dad, how’s the case against Vincent going?”

“Hold on, honey.” He looks over at the waitress, who’s standing behind the bar area of the restaurant. “Excuse me; can you turn this T.V. up, please?” She increases the volume with her remote. The two observe the monitor. The news is showing the faces of both Grim, and Ceazar; these men are somewhat infamous traffickers who now work for Vincent, but previously worked for the Gray Society.

“Two nights ago, the Nimrod Task Force made an arrest on these men, known by their street names Grim, who’s on the left, and Ceazar. Pegasus has confirmed that what they were selling, is in fact Zeta; that’s right folks, you heard me right. The substance responsible for the deaths of the many men and women who fell victim to the drug’s highly addictive and destructive properties, during the Zeta epidemic, which took place only five years ago, is back. For some time now, we’ve experienced no sign of the atrocious hallucinogen; Pegasus even went far enough to declare that it’s been completely wiped clean from Neo Sector. There’s no denying that Zeta has once again made its presence known, the real question is, can we rely on Pegasus to stop its spread before another epidemic takes place? Should you be worried? Find out more, when we come back,” says the invisible anchor. The T.V. cuts to another breaking-news broadcast. A female broadcaster wearing a red suit, appears on the television.

“This just in! Pegasus has yet again taken down the person who many describe as being the most brilliant and evil man in science.”

The T.V. camera cuts to an image of a stupendous-fleshy humanoid, that’s attempting to smash the Guardians, who’re easily able to dodge its attacks. The robots retaliate using the miniguns (which expel blue-laser beams) held in their two hands. They collectively aim their firepower at the head of the mutated freak, causing him to stumble back as he holds his palms in front of his face to defend himself. This continues for thirty seconds, until finally, the battle is ended when one of the Guardians uses a lethal bomb, shot from its grenade launcher; the explosion destroys the creature’s right hand and eye. The camera cuts back to the announcer.

“This--mutation, was once known as Dr. Avatie; he was thrown in jail for gathering illegal ingredients in an attempt to make a strange serum that he believed could grant him not only immortality, but also the strength of, and I quote, a god among men. Last night, the guards realized a little too late, that Avatie was able to sneak those very ingredients, into the prison. He created the potion that turned him into that monster you just saw, however, only ten minutes following his transformation, he was bested by our Guardians. I’ll have more for you on this most peculiar incident, after these messages.”

“What in the-?” remarks Jessica.

“Watch your mouth, Jess.”

“Sorry; but how could he do that?”

“I wish I had an answer for you; we’re figuring that out now. Pretty crazy though, right?”

“Ugh--yeah dad, that’s an understatement.”

“Well, at least you see that not even that thing, could match our defenses; that make you feel any better?” Their conversation is interrupted by the waitress, who approaches the table with their food.

“Here you are.” She places Paul’s meal in front of him, and Jessica’s in front of her.

Cambridge is seated on the couch within Vincent’s fancy office. The lights attached to the two fans (which hang from the plafond), illuminate the room. The area is decorated with abstract paintings along the walls, and the ceiling is painted red. Vincent is sitting in his throne. He picks at his chin hairs with the fingers on his right hand as both of his elbows rest on the arms of the seat. Philip states, “They’re already transporting him to Kurushimu.”

“How did this happen?” calmly asks Vincent.

“Pegasus security caught him trying to leave the country using the counterfeit passport we gave him; they’re getting smarter.”

“This could be dangerous for us. Someone like Tyson wouldn’t hesitate to talk if the right opportunity presented itself. We have no choice but to put him down.”

“And how do you suppose we do that? We don’t know anyone on the moon,” Phil says.

“We’ll just have to give the president an offer she can’t refuse.”

“What do you have in mind?”

CHAPTER 9: PART III

Paul lands his flying craft in Grandma Sydney’s driveway; Sydney is Paul’s mother. Jessica unbuckles her seat belt. “When’s mom coming back from her trip?”

“Grandma said she’ll be back in a couple of weeks. She sent some pictures from the mountain, it seems like she really loves it up there.”

“That’s good to hear. You sure you’re gonna be okay in the house all by yourself?” She chuckles as she lifts the suicide door, and exits.

“Dad, I’m nineteen, I’ll be fine.”

“All right hun, I’ll see you same time, next week.”

“Looking forward to it; thanks again.”

“Don’t mention it.”

Jessica closes the car door, and proceeds to the entrance of the home. She retrieves her keys from her purse, and waves her father goodbye. Paul waves bye back as he ascends. She watches as he disappears over her house. She proceeds to unlock the front door; just as it opens, she begins to call out to her boyfriend, who has been secretly spending the night while her grandmother is away.

“Mark?!” She continues for her bedroom. “Babe, you still here?” She opens the door to her room, and immediately notices her mate lying still in the bed beneath the covers; his face is covered with blood. “Mark?!”

Jessica rushes toward him; she removes the blanket. Dark blood drips from his neck. Seymour, who was hiding behind the door, grabs her as she begins to scream. He covers her face with a chloroform cloth, which instantly knocks her out.

A cargo van has backed into Grandma Sydney’s driveway. The trunk side faces the front door. Seymour exits the home, holding Jessica over his shoulder; he drags the boyfriend’s dead body by his leg. He opens the trunk, and loads both of them inside; he closes it, and enters the passenger side. It speeds out of the driveway, and continues onto the street.

Meanwhile, Thomas is visiting his wife’s tomb at the graveyard. He’s currently standing over Sasha’s tombstone, and holding a bouquet of flowers. He wipes the tears falling from each of his eyes with his right hand, and places the flowers down by the grave.

Three hours pass, and Tom, now shirtless, is sitting on the edge of his bed within his room. He watches the morning news as he drinks from a bottle of whiskey; an empty bowl rests beside him.

“More than fifteen accounts of Zeta-related crimes have been recorded, just this week.” He takes a swig. “Despite Zeta’s negative impact on society in the past, some citizens remain in favor of this very controversial drug. Many now even claim that the reformed substance no longer is deadly, and can benefit humanity greatly with its quote, psychedelic healing properties. Stay tuned in, to find out what Chief Simmons of the Nimrod Task Force, has to say about the rebirth of Zeta.” He turns off the T.V. using the remote that’s resting in his lap. He stands to his feet. Bringing the alcohol along, he walks over to the window that’s overlooking the beach. He takes another sip, while staring at the view.

CHAPTER 9: PART IV

Agent Garcia, who’s now disguised as a bartender, scans over the bar with her futuristic contact lenses; they have the ability to reveal the names and information of everyone, according to the Pegasus database. Through her inner-ear radio that’s covered by her hair, she hears Agent White ask, “We got a visual yet?”

“I still have no eyes on the target.”

“Are you sure about this?”

“He’s gonna be here, just be patient.” David Cowan, a Pegasus target that’s linked to Vincent’s drug circle, along with two-young women, take a seat at the bar.

“Hey!” he shouts. The agent approaches the party of three.

“What can I get you?” She, standing beyond the bar, is now in front of David and his friends.

“I need nine shot glasses, and a bottle of the strongest liquor you got,” he demands.

“Comin’ right up.” While she turns to retrieve the items from inside the fancy, futuristic, luminescent-glass shelves, she says under her breath, “He’s here.”

The mysterious dealer that Thomas noticed earlier, is in the same spot. Glass, now dressed in a black coat, a low hanging hat, dark pants and shoes, and the same gloves, watches him from behind the corner of a shop that’s at the very end of the block. The dealer is leaning against the cement exterior of a building; he’s now wearing a red backpack. The man takes a puff from his electric cigarette. Tom advances up the street. After fifteen seconds of walking, the trafficker looks to his left and notices him approaching. He slows down to a halt before reaching him.

“You need something?” the runner asks.

“What can I get for two hundred?”

He hesitates to answer. “You a narc?”

“I’m not, I promise; I’m just looking to get high.” The supplier briefly scans his surroundings.

“Follow me.” He takes him into the alleyway, behind them. They continue through the darkness, and stop as they reach a spot that’s lit by an old-dim light, crafted above the side door of a shop. “We should be good here.” Thomas, pretending to be an addict, nervously surveys the space around him.

“Let’s just hurry this up,” he replies.

“So for two hundred, I can get you up to twelve grams of Zeta. That sound good to you?”

“Can I see it first?” The pusher removes his backpack, and places it on the ground. Just as he reaches into it, Tom grabs him by his collar, and pins him up against the cement. He instantly grabs for his gun that’s attached to his right hip, but he brakes the criminal’s fingers by squeezing them with his cybernetic hand. He screams in agony from the pain. Glass pins his throat tightly, with his right forearm. Now nothing but strange noises escape from his mouth.

“Who do you work for?” aggressively asks Thomas. He lessens the pressure so that he can answer.

“I ain’t telling you jack!” He removes his grasp on the broken hand, and quickly extracts his gun; he points the trafficker’s pistol at the side of his victim’s head.

“I’m not going to ask twice.”

He starts hyperventilating. “They call him D.C.!”

“Where can I find him?”

“In that new club on Western Ave; please, don’t shoot me!”

“Take me there.”

Agent Garcia is wiping the bar countertop with a rag. As she scans the area with her special contact lenses, she notices a potential criminal. It’s Hewitt, whose information is replaced with a fuzzy-gray box, indicating his Incognito status; this enigmatic fuzziness also happens when the device’s feed scans visitors from other countries, who’re without implanted technology. “Chief, I got eyes on another one,” she quietly says.

“We’re running him through the facial scanners, now.” Cho and his female friend (who’s a young, dark-skinned woman, in a blouse and blue jeans) struggle to make their way to the bar as they pass through the rambunctious people. Garcia continues to wipe down the surface. “That man looks a lot like Cho Hewitt.”

“Isn’t that one of the names Tyson gave us?” asks Ariel.

“That’s right; according to him, he’s Vincent’s engineer. The scanners aren’t showing a one hundred percent match, but my gut is telling me it’s our guy, so don’t let him out of your sight.”

Hewitt and the girl finally seat themselves at the bar.

Tom and the dealer are continuing up the street, and toward the Nightingale. Glass is holding a gun to his head as he drives the car. “It’s right up there; it’s the place with all the lights.” Thomas notices a silent, Pegasus airship, landing on the street in front of the club.

“Park,” demands Glass.

He pulls over, and parks the old-school land vehicle, along the curb; he, still holding the gun, rushes out, and continues up the street. He stops, and watches as Agent White, who’s now equipped with his Hunter attire, and two Guardians, exit the craft. White enters the club through the front entrance. The sudden sound of burning rubber distracts Tom from the spectacle; he turns around to see the street trafficker, zooming away in the opposite direction. The two robots stand guard outside, and make sure that the citizens are at a safe distance away from the entry.

The Hunter pushes his way through the dancing men and women, and proceeds toward his target’s position. He stands behind David, and shouts, “Cowan!”

He turns around in his seat with a scowl on his face; as soon as he flinches at the sight of Pegasus, White lifts him up by his collar, and throws him onto the floor behind him. He rolls, and comes to a halt on his back. As he walks toward him, the target nervously looks up at the second floor, then back down at the officer.

“There’s only one of them; kill him!” A henchman from the upper level, drops a smoke grenade. Just as the agent notices it rolling past the criminal’s leg, he looks up to see four-masked men, wearing thermal goggles. Their heads peek out from behind several pillars.

White quickly rolls over the counter, and uses the bar for cover; the bullets nearly penetrate the agent, but instead leave a trail of holes at his feet. The music stops, and the screaming drunks scramble to the multiple exits. David stands to his feet; an explosion causes the roof of the second floor to collapse.

The Guardians’ electric rounds subdue the four armed henchmen. Agent White peeks over the counter once the gunfire from his allies, ceases. Through the smoke, thanks to the special lenses assembled into his visor, his target remains a bright-red silhouette. He watches as D.C., who’s coughing, struggles to the exit.

As he makes his way through the screaming sea, David looks up, and sees one of his bodyguards; he’s leaning over the balcony. The soldier’s machine gun drops out of his unconscious hand, and onto the first floor; it lands right beside him. The gun releases a stray round as it bounces against the surface. The bullet scrapes David’s leg, causing him to fall. He shouts, and attempts to get up. White has snuck to a position behind him.

Tom, still standing down the street from the nightclub, watches as the suited agent drags the limping-cuffed Zeta seller out of the club, and into the Pegasus airship; after entering the craft, they ascend, and take off. The Guardians engage their jet packs, and return to the Sentinels above the clouds.

Thomas then sees Cho, who’s holding the hand of his mate, while rushing through the crowd of frantic clubbers. He hurriedly crosses the street, and nervously enters his tricked-out car. Once his girlfriend hops in the passenger seat, he bolts away. Glass turns his attention back toward the massive-disoriented collection; he spots Agent Garcia, who’s now wearing a black-trench coat, and standing at the edge of the sidewalk. She’s taking photographs of Hewitt’s license plate with her high-tech lenses. She snaps the pictures by pressing a button on her communicator, which is worn on her left wrist. As the engineer disappears down the street, she returns inside the club. Tom follows her.

Garcia enters into the restroom stall, and radios Simmons. Glass, without being noticed, enters the bathroom to eavesdrop on her conversation. “How did the images turn out?”

“Excellent work. That should save us a lot of time. I got Overwatch tracking those plates, as we speak.”

“I got a visual!” a distant voice screams from Paul’s line.

“We got him. The hard part is over; I have a feeling he’ll be leading us to where he keeps his merchandise, in no time.”

“I hope it’ll be that easy.”

“Me too; come on back for debriefing.”

The agent ends the call by removing the small-radio device from inside her ear. She places it in her left-jacket pocket, and exits; she stops in her tracks as soon as she notices Thomas, who’s now standing with his arms crossed.

“What are you doing here?”

“It’s nice to see you again. I believe we have a few things to discuss.” Ariel passes him, and makes her way to the sink; she starts to wash her hands.

“Look, I don’t know what you want, but now is not a good time.”

“I gave you one-hundred grand to keep your mouth shut, and you still told the chief everything I told you not to. You cost me my job; I bet you still haven’t told Paul about the money, have you?”

She turns to face him as she dries her hands with the paper towel that she retrieved from the dispenser that’s mounted into the wall, to her left. “I’m sorry, but I don’t have time for this right now.” She throws the crumpled towel in the trash, and makes her way toward the exit.

“Hold on,” he sternly says. She halts, and turns around.

“What?”

“I saw you chasing Hewitt.” She approaches him.

“So you know yet another target, why am I not surprised?”

“I can tell you where to find him.”

“We’ve already found him, if you don’t know where he keeps his merchandise, then you’re wasting my time.”

“I can help you.”

“Tell me what you know, then.”

“You scratch my back, I scratch yours.”

“I can take you in right now, for withholding information on a target.”

“And I could still get you discharged for accepting a bribe, remember? You owe me a fair trade.” She hesitates to answer.

“Meet me at Highlander Park in two hours; I’ll be waiting for you near the pond.”

CHAPTER 9: PART V

The mechanical assassin is sitting in his craft across the street from the Pegasus headquarters. He looks out through his window at the shining-green lights that emit from the two armed cameras mounted above the entrance. He looks down at his brightly-lit watch; it reads 1:59 a.m.; three seconds later, it’s two o’clock.

“Security systems are offline. Now’s your chance,” says Spencer; his voice projects from Seymour’s inner-ear radio. The lights on the cameras shut off, and the recorders limply hang. Seymour exits his vehicle, and proceeds toward the steps leading up to the front entry of the building. He reaches the top, and enters through the glass-double doors. He advances through another door, and finds himself at a staircase. He descends three flights, and reaches an opening. The Overwatch level resides ahead. He hastily approaches Dr. Times’ office; once he arrives, he turns the knob, and enters. He sits down at Times’ desk, and logs onto his computer; this device is connected to the Guardians’ brains. By pressing the button on the panel that’s crafted into his left forearm, a compartment opens, and the wire he uses to hack devices, hangs out of it. He connects it into one of the computer’s ports.

“I’m inside.”

“Good. Don’t leave until you’ve downloaded every bit of information,” answers Vincent.

Simultaneously as this occurs, Thomas’ meeting with Garcia, takes place. He parks his motorcycle across the street from the park, removes his helmet, locks it to the seat of his bike, and makes his way to Ariel. He passes through the expansive field before reaching her location. Glass takes a seat on the bench beside the agent. The pond ahead is sparkling; the several, tall, light posts (extending out of the dirt), stand twenty feet high, shine bright, and expose the collection of the various types of swimming fish, in the water.

“I never got to thank you for saving my daughter’s life.”

“Why’d you go back on your word?”

“When Paul found out about the files that Simon gave you, he knew that you made contact with him, somehow. He also knew I was at Simon’s club the night you were pronounced dead. He questioned me under the Monitor; I had no choice.” A pause occurs. “I’m truly sorry, I didn’t know things would turn out like they did.”

“I suppose there’s really no use in talking about what happened in the past. I overheard your conversation with Paul; the Sentinels won’t have any luck finding the stash.”

“How do you know?”

“For the last ten years, Cho’s sold me my bikes. I’m curious, how did he make the cut?”

“We have reasons to believe that he’s working as Vincent’s primary engineer. Our sources claim that he distributes merchandise from a hidden hangar within the Sector. If we find it, then we’ll have enough evidence to bring him in.”

“If I tell you where it is, will you promise to help me?” Thomas inquires.

“You still haven’t even told me what you want.”

“I want to know everything Pegasus has on Vincent.”

“You’re not one of us anymore, I can’t let you get involved with this.”

“You know I’m just as qualified as any other agent.”

“You’re lucky to even be alive. This is your chance to find a new beginning, don’t waste it.”

“Do you remember me telling you about my time living at an orphanage?”

“I do.”

“I met my wife there.”

“She was an orphan, too?”

“She was; her parents passed away in a car accident. We happened to be the youngest kids there, so we naturally gravitated towards each other. It was only a week after we met, that I promised to marry her. Throughout my entire life, she remained my closest friend. I can’t live with myself, knowing that the man responsible for the lives of my wife and unborn child, is still out there somewhere, and I’m doing nothing to bring him to justice.” Tears roll down her cheeks. Using a napkin she retrieved from her jacket pocket, she wipes them.

She takes one, long-deep breath, and says, “Vincent’s been flooding the streets with Zeta, and faster than we anticipated. The only way to get on the inside of his organization, is through a man named Philip Cambridge; he’s Vince’s closest associate, and is responsible for recruiting men for his militia. The chief believes us agents are too valuable to try and infiltrate his establishment.”

“That’s exactly why I’m perfect for the job. Where do I find Cambridge?” Garcia reaches into the purse that’s resting on the bench, and retrieves her communicator.

“Where are you staying, now?”

“The Pink Sable Hotel; room, Seventy-two B.” With the use of the holographic keyboard that projects from her device, she writes his address in her notes.

“I’ll have a file containing everything you need to know about Cecil’s organization, at your doorstep in two days.”

“How will I get in contact with Cambridge?”

“The owner of the nightclub I was working undercover in, happens to work for him; Mr. Dempsey is his name. He passes out Cambridge’s business card to the convicts that happen to frequent the club. I was able to steal one of them. We discovered that the number on the card, is some sort of hotline for volunteers that want to work for Vincent; that’s the only number I can give you.”

“Won’t I need an alias?”

“That won’t be necessary. Once you were let go, all of your records were deleted from our system. The only thing they may find, is your involvement with the military. Now, tell me about Hewitt.”

“He keeps his merchandise in a hangar that’s underneath his home; there’s a shack in his backyard that doubles as a lift, it’ll take you right down into it.”

“And you’re sure about this?”

“I’m sure.” He gazes into the body of water ahead.

“There’s one more thing; when you contact Phil, make sure you claim that Mr. Dempsey recommended you.”

“Thank you.”

“Now, we’re even.”

Chapter 10: Quin’s Map Part V

Suddenly, the senior citizen is jolted awake. He takes a deep-gasping breath, and nervously scans his surroundings before jumping to his feet.

Joseph says, “Don’t panic, we’re not going to hurt you.” The Protectors stand up from their relaxed positions (on either side of the elder).

“Please listen to me; Quin is a madman. He’s the one-”

“You told us already. What does he want?”

“He developed the parasite in order to try and find a way to become immortal, but he has failed. His experiments turned on him, and chased him out of this base; he escaped using the only ship available, leaving all of his crew to die at the hands of his monsters. I was the only exception. Within the briefcase you came here for, are the coordinates to a planet we called Delta-2, as well as the instructions on how to recreate the parasite. On Delta-2, there’s a laboratory holding the key ingredients responsible for its configuration. If he somehow-” they’re distracted by a combat airship approaching from the distance.

The craft, now 100 feet high, comes to a halt before reaching the group, who stand fifty feet ahead of it. From out of the cargo bay, jumps down a sleek, fifteen-foot robot, that’s equipped with an energy-beam rifle holstered on its back; it has two shock fists emanating bright-yellow electricity, and an all-black exterior. Quin’s face is displayed on the screen that’s created into its head. Ten, ten-foot tall, silver, cyborgs, equipped with hand blasters and miniature turrets on their shoulders, follow his lead. As the opposition sprints over to The Protectors’ location, the mysterious figures’ vehicle, turns invisible. The heroes cautiously watch, and prepare their stances for battle. The space between the two, finally closes.

“Gentlemen, nice to see you all, again,” says Quin.

“What exactly are you up to?” asks Thomas.

“That’s none of your concern anymore. I want him, and the briefcase; also, our deal has changed; I’m only going to give you half of what I promised. And I’m still being generous, so you should be grateful.”

Joseph says, “You made the wrong choice; protect him, I’ll take care of this.” Tom builds an ice igloo that forms a barrier around he and the man in need. Joe, by clamping together both of his open hands, summons a magnificent amount of fire that surrounds he and the enemy, in a tornado formation. He extends his arms out, and launches a fire ball at Quin’s bot. This throws it back hundreds of yards. Simultaneously as this happens, three of the cyborgs have leaped into the air, and are heading toward him. Just as they reach his position, he jumps high into the sky. Before they can react, a stream of fire is shot down from above, through his hands.

The energy from this blast pushes Joseph, higher. While his targets’ suits melt, the remaining seven use their jet packs to chase him. Joe engages the thrusters built into the armor covering his feet, and zooms toward the enemies. As he passes them, he grabs two by their helmets, one in each hand, and continues onward. While holding the opposition, he psychically sets their suits ablaze, and drops them. Four missiles expel from the cannons constructed into the cyborgs’ abdomens, and speedily propel at the man of fire. In attempt to dodge them, he speeds up by expelling flaming energy from his palms. The missiles match his speed.

He free falls right before they fully catch up to him. He lands, crouched, with his right hand planted on the ground, while the exploded missile bits, crash. Moments later, two more bombs reach him. They explode on contact. His heels dig into the dirt, leaving deep indentations in the cracked ground. The armor that’s covering his lower half, has disintegrated. With his black compression pants now exposed, Joseph sprints toward the cyborgs who’re now hovering in space in a horizontal formation, fifty yards away, and fifty feet high.

While running, he retrieves his blade, and throws it into the chest of the one to the farthest right. Once the sword penetrates the suit, the enemy is thrown to the ground. Two more projectiles zip toward him. He turns, and bolts in the opposite direction. He leaps, and while midair, manipulates flames to expel out from the lower portion of his body. This action burns his pants, but projects him at an immaculate speed. He darts to a position high above the enemies. While hovering over them, he sends an enormous storm of fire down, which expels from his legs and feet. This scorches the cyborgs, and they’re hurled to the dirt. Once they hit the ground, they’re continuously burned by this downpour for another five seconds.

Simultaneously as Joe lands, Thomas dissolves the barrier. From afar, they spot Quin’s personal robot limping as it struggles to make an escape. Joseph, whose lower half remains covered in fire, by using his gun-finger, strikes his target. The bot bursts into an abundance of scrap metal, upon contact with the blast; he regroups with his team.

“If you help me destroy what’s left of the parasite, I’ll give you everything we’ve saved in the vault that’s in the lab on Delta-2,” the elder says.

“How much is that?” Thomas asks.

“Ten million credits.” He looks over at Joe, he approves the deal by giving him a nod.

“We’ll do it,” Glass replies.

“Thank you.”

Joseph raises the communicator on his wrist, up to his lips, and holds down a button. This allows him to call the base. “Guys, we need a ship at our location, ASAP.”

The Tenth Division soldier responds, “Got it. E.T.A. is four hours; can you hang tight?”

“Guess we’re gonna have to.” He hangs up by releasing the button. “Say, while we wait, how about finishing your story?”

Chapter 11: Agent Glass Part V

A long line of criminals, including Cho, D.C., the street dealer that Thomas ran into (who goes by the name of Sergio), Grim, and Ceazar, are escorted into a bus that’s outside of Pegasus’ headquarters.

Meanwhile, a far distance away, a loud and sudden siren expels from a Sentinel, which appears as a gigantic-floating sphere; all of the Sentinels use twelve jets attached to their lower hemispheres to float 2,000 feet above the ground. They both record the streets below, and hold hundreds of Guardians. The flat, square-shaped hatch, which resides on top of the sphere, slowly opens; once it expands to its maximum potential, five Guardians dart out and fly toward their destination in a group.

The criminals are being transported to the Pegasus airfield. From there, they’ll be sent to the prison on the moon, called Kurushimu. The bus is currently passing through a vacant desert. Seemingly from out of nowhere, the Guardians land in front of the vehicle, causing the driver to jam on the brakes. They shoot through the windshield, instantly killing both the man behind the wheel, and the passenger. Moments later, the trunk doors of the bus are violently ripped off. An advanced aircraft parks behind it. Two of the metallic guards await Cambridge’s exit near the craft’s door; after exiting, he, along with the bots, proceed toward the transporter.

He points at David, “You,” then at Cho, “you,” then at Sergio, “you,” and finally at Grim and Caezar, “and you two in the back; come with me.” Cambridge and the fugitives are escorted into the ship he arrived in. They enter, and as they zip off into space, the robotic officers fly alongside them.

“Where are you taking us?” asks David.

“A safe location,” Phil replies.

“Don’t you think it’s a little risky flying around in this thing?” asks Sergio.

“The Sentinels won’t be able to see us; I know, because I programmed this thing, myself,” says Cho.

Cambridge reassures, “You have nothing to worry about.” His rectangular phone-like communicator, abruptly starts loudly vibrating in his jacket pocket; he answers it. “Who is this?”

“My name’s Tom; I’m calling to speak to Phil.”

“How did you get this number?”

“Mr. Dempsey recommended me to you, he said you’re looking for volunteers. I’m very interested in what you have to offer.” He hangs up the phone, and starts to dial in a text.

Tom, now sitting at his kitchen table, is confused at the strange ending to the conversation. “Hello,” he says again.

As he lowers his communicator to check if the call was disconnected, it vibrates; he receives a text. The projected words read, “8892 Belmont Ave. Meet me tomorrow at 9:45 p.m..”

Philip dials Vincent. His boss promptly answers. “Good news, the men are safe; we’re on our way to you, now.”

The next evening, Glass has parked his motorcycle across the street from the pizzeria that Cambridge requested to meet at. He locks his helmet to the seat, and continues onward. He walks up the staircase, and is met by the door that’s leading into the restaurant; the sign on the glass window reads, CLOSED. Just as he raises his fist to knock, a man dressed in a black suit, answers the door. He steps to the side, welcoming Tom in, without exchanging any words. He enters, and the brute closes the entryway behind him. Philip finishes taking a sip of his beverage, which is within a wine glass, and places it on the table. “Check him, please,” Phil demands. The henchman pats him down. “Are you Tom?”

“Yes.” The guard checks the inside of both of Glass’ ears, to ensure that he’s not an agent.

“I’m going to need to see some I.D..”

“Where’s your wallet?” the guard sternly asks.

“My jacket.”

The man with the dark glasses retrieves his wallet from his right pocket, and tosses it to his boss; Phil catches it, and briefly looks through. He examines both his license, and the other cards within it. Cambridge finally stands to his feet, and approaches the volunteer, who’s still standing near the doorway.

“You said you got my number from Mr. Dempsey, correct?”

“That’s right,” he replies.

“Why are you here, exactly?”

“It’s not too easy finding work in this part of town for an ex-military man, like myself, and I hear a lot of money can be made with you guys. I’m eager to see if I can be a part of it.” He hands him back his notecase.

“I’ve placed another one of my business cards inside of your wallet. I’ve written the address of the facility where we hold our initiations, on the back of it; be there by seven o’clock, tomorrow night, and don’t be late. I hope you’re in fighting shape; we don’t just let anyone in.”

“Thank you for this opportunity.”

“I don’t think you should be thanking me, just yet.” The same guard reopens the entrance for Glass; he exits the restaurant, and descends the stairs. The boss watches as he crosses the street. “Follow him.”

Paul is looking over files within an open manila folder, as he sits at his desk within his office. The work phone begins to ring, it’s his assistant Antonia; he answer it by pressing a green button that’s located on the machine. Her voice expels through the speaker.

“Hey, Mr. Barkley wants to speak with you, he’s saying that the criminals we sent out yesterday, never made it to the airbase.”

“What? Is he on the line now?”

“Yeah, I’ll patch you over.”

“Chief,” Barkley says.

“Commander.”

“That Transporter bus never showed up; did you happen to change the schedule without letting us know?”

“No.”

“Then I’m afraid that may mean we have thirty-stray fugitives to worry about.” Paul’s reaction indicates his deep contemplation.

“I’ll handle this. Thank you for letting me know; if that Transporter bus happens to show up, call me immediately.”

“Yes, sir.” Simmons hangs up the call; he dials Dr. Times’ line.

“Hey, what’s up?” asks Russel.

“Yesterday, we sent a bus full of crooks to the airbase, it’s since gone missing. I want you to get every Overwatcher down there, searching for it. Start examining the footage from when they clocked out of here.”

“Got it.”

“Call me as soon as you find something.” Just as Paul hangs up his office phone, his personal communicator starts to vibrate against the desk. He answers it; it’s his daughter Jessica. “Hey sweetie, I’m kind of in the middle of something right now; what’s going on?”

“Dad?” Jessica sobbingly utters.

“Baby, what’s wrong? Can you hear me? Jess?”

A henchman holds the phone to Jessica’s ear with one hand, as he points a gun to her temple using the other. She’s strapped down to a chair within a dark room. “Dad, Mark put his hands on me. I need you to come by the house.”

“Is he there now?!” he yells. A dial tone indicates the end of the call. Enraged, he rushes out.

He speeds through the air traffic; his police sirens are engaged, allowing him to pass, with ease. He reaches his mother’s home, and parks his vehicle across the street. He exits, and sprints for the front door. He tries opening it. It doesn’t budge, so he bangs three loud times. “Jessica! Jessica are you there!” He hears no reply. He then retrieves his set of keys from his pant pocket. While fiddling with them, he’s ambushed from behind by a man in a silver jumpsuit and a black-ski mask; the attacker paralyzes Paul with the powerful sting from his right electric-powered glove, which he manages to plant over his face, sending volts of electricity into his skull. He shrieks, and his paralyzed body, plummets.

CHAPTER 11: PART II

Two henchmen have followed Tom back to his hotel; they’ve parked directly across the street. The criminal in the passenger seat, Dom, is holding a small, dome-shaped, glass container; inside of it is a remote control, mosquito-drone. Beside him sits the driver.

“You sure you know how to work that thing?” asks the pilot. Dom puts a pair of high-tech goggles on. These allow connectivity to the machine.

“Yeah. This shouldn’t be too difficult, right?” He removes the lid, and begins piloting the robotic mosquito. It flies out of the window of the car, crosses the street, and continues into the hotel lobby. It lands on the ceiling, and waits for Thomas to enter through the door leading into the garage. It watches as he makes his way inside. He proceeds into the elevator, and it follows behind without being detected. He reaches the desired floor. He exits the lift, and continues down the hallway; the mosquito is now attached to the back of his jacket. He enters his room. The drone dismounts him, and takes flight. It scans the area, searching for any evidence against him.

“I’m inside,” says the criminal.

“How’s it looking?”

“So far, he’s checking out.”

“Don’t forget to check his computer.” The insect lands on Tom’s laptop. Its cybernetic-proboscis extends from its head, and splits into four-different tubes. They connect into the computer’s power source; this action allows the man that’s controlling the bot, to see the stored data.

“Jackpot,” the criminal exclaims.

“What?”

“He’s basically got everything on us; names, numbers, addresses. This guy’s gotta be an agent.”

“I knew it,” the driver declares. “We’ve seen enough.”

The next night, Thomas has found himself within the initiation location. It’s in an immense warehouse; a boxing ring is at the center of it. A holographic version of Cambridge, who’s standing in the middle of the arena, presents a short speech to the crowd of Vincent’s volunteers.

“If you’re here today, that means you wish to join Vincent’s organization. Now, not all will have that privilege, in fact, only half of you will even be considered. Those who’re able to defeat your opponent in the ring tonight, will be passed on to Vincent, who’ll personally judge each winner. The rules are simple; no striking to the groin, and no fighting on the ground. You’ll fight one another for three, two minute rounds. If you’re both left standing by the end of the third, then I’ll decide who the victor is.” He reads from a list of names on a piece of paper. “Gavin, Spike, please step up.” Glass watches as a tall-bald man, standing first in line, and an overweight African-American man with locked hair, who’s second to last in line, enter the ring. They’re given boxing mittens by a guard. They stare each other down as they stand on both sides of the holographic projection. “Touch gloves.” The white male fakes the gesture, and headbutts his opponent. This instantly knocks the man down. “Wow; cheap, but not against the rules. Next up, we have Ace, and Varavi.” Two guards drag the downed man out. Before Thomas can see who the next fighters are, he’s tapped on his right shoulder.

“Your name’s Glass, right?” asks the guard in the tank top and sweats.

“Who wants to know?”

“Follow us,” says the fellow henchman, who’s wearing a dusky suit, and standing to the right.

“What’s the problem?”

“The boss wants to speak with you in private,” responds the one in the sleeveless shirt. He skeptically scans the two.

“Fine.” He follows them through the nightclub, and toward the elevator. The doors open; within it, are two more black-suited guards. Thomas, and the men escorting him, enter, and turn to face the exit. The man standing directly behind Glass, raises a pistol to the back of his head.

“Put your hands up,” says the armed man. He slowly lifts his arms.

“What’s going on?” He interlocks his fingers as they rest on his dome.

“You make any sudden moves, and I’ll put a bullet in you.”

“Look, I don’t know who you think I am, but you’ve got the wrong idea.” The doors open once again; the one holding the pistol, grabs Tom by his collar, and forcibly escorts him out. They proceed down the hall.

Meanwhile, at Vincent’s base, Vincent and two of his soldiers, continue down a dimly-lit hallway within his ship; they reach a door at the end of it. It leads into the interrogation room. Vince knocks, and immediately a soldier opens it from the other side; they proceed in. The one who was previously in the room before the kingpin’s group arrived, has just finished tying the chief’s hands behind the chair that he’s restrained to; his legs are tied together, and his eyes are covered with a red blindfold. His mouth is also sealed with black-scotch tape. Cecil rips the seal from Paul’s mouth. “Where am I!?” Where is my daughter!?”

“Your daughter is safe,” the boss answers.

Simmons demands, “Where is she!?”

“Bring her,” Cecil says as he addresses the man that’s standing to his right. He exits the room to retrieve Jessica. “I have a very important job for you.” Two guards roughly push her along.

“Dad!” she screams.

“Jessica!” Paul turns his attention to the drug lord. “What do you want from me?!”

CHAPTER 11: PART III

The monumental Pegasus base, which is fabricated into a mountain that stretches 6,000 feet high, is the location that President Simmons and the Cabinet, reside. She, and the nine members of her team, sit around a wooden-oval table; they observe a live video that’s being streamed to the monitor that’s mounted on the wall across the room. The president’s husband is strapped to a chair, with his hands tied behind his back. He has multiple-bleeding wounds on his face. The video displays him reciting the following message, “Cheryl; these men have taken me hostage. They’re demanding that you execute the prisoner by the name of Tyson Gray. If they don’t receive evidence of his death in the next five hours, then they’ll kill me, and our daughter.” The video ends.

The female Cabinet member in the blue-business suit, turns to face the president, who’s sitting at the head of the table. “What do you suggest we do?” she says.

The president’s closed-right fist, rests in her open palm; both of her hands cover her mouth as she deeply contemplates her next move.

As one of Vincent’s crew members holds a rag tight over Tom’s face, another man pours a bucket of water directly into his air passages. Cambridge enters the office; he witnesses the suspected agent, struggling to both breathe, and free himself from the long bench that he’s been strapped to. “That’s enough,” he says. They let up. The henchman removes the cloth from over his face; he violently coughs, and desperately gasps for air. Three knocks are suddenly heard against the office door; they look to Philip for instruction. “Answer it.” One of them opens the entrance. Spencer, now dressed in red-basketball shorts and a white-short-sleeved shirt, is standing at the other end; he enters. “Good, you made it.”

Spencer asks, “Who’s he?”

“I was hoping you could tell me.” Spence approaches Glass, who’s still trying to catch his breath. “We found information on his computer that would suggest he’s with Pegasus. Does he look familiar to you?” The double agent moves in to take a closer look at his face; their eyes interlock.

“What’s his name?”

“His license says Thomas Glass, but that could just be an alias.” He continues to examine him.

“He’s not with Pegasus,” Spencer declares.

“How can you be so sure?” asks Philip.

“I’ve never seen this man in my life. I know what those guys look like.”

“I told you that already, now let me go!” Tom screams.

Phil turns to him, and says, “That doesn’t change the fact that you had very-classified information on your computer. Until you tell me where you got that from, you’ll be spending your time, with us.” Cambridge’s communicator starts ringing; he retrieves it from inside of his pant pocket. He examines it to see who’s calling. A projector at its center, projects a holographic message, which reads, Call from Vincent. “It’s the boss.”

“We’ve got the chief. It’s only a matter of time before President Simmons sends her drones to scour the sectors. It’s not safe for you there, I need you back on the ship. I’ve sent a helicopter, it should be arriving shortly.”

Thomas is secretly eavesdropping on their conversation. “I’ll see you soon,” he hangs up.

“What did he want?” asks Spencer.

“He’s got the chief of the task force in custody; he’s afraid that the president will be upping security soon, so he sent a helicopter for me. You should probably get going.”

“Right,” he responds.

“You two,” Phil says, addressing the henchmen, “take him to the cellar.”

Glass, who’s been stripped of his jacket, is tossed onto the cellar’s floor. His hands are bound together with a cable tie, and his feet are hogtied with rope; his mouth is also covered with tape. He rolls over on his back, and watches as the men continue up the stairs. They slam the doors behind them. A dim light emits from the small lamp in the corner. Tom scans the dark room in search of tools to free himself. He notices a single match resting on the floor to his right.

He briefly stares at it; he then turns his attention to the old, half-empty case of alcohol, standing against the wall across from him. He lies down on his side, and tucks his hands under the back of his legs, and over the bottom of his feet. His arms are now in front of him. He proceeds to pick up the match. While holding it in his right hand, by leaning against the wooden beam that’s beside him, he lifts himself up. He hops over to the case, and pushes it over, causing the remaining bottles of wine, to fall onto the floor; the glass shatters, and a puddle is created.

He ignites the match with his thumb, and drops it into the collection of liquor, instantly causing a fire to start. He leans over the flames, and melts the cable tie; as the hard plastic liquefies, he uses his strength to break apart the withered material; by this point, both his leather gloves, and his long-sleeved shirt’s sleeves, have been noticeably burnt. Now that his hands are free, he rips the tape from his mouth. He then picks up a broken shard of glass, and begins cutting at the rope.

Once he’s free, he blasts his metallic hand through the wooden door that leads to the outside; he feels around for the lock, and twists it counter-clockwise, unlocking it from the other side. He lifts open the entryway, and exits. He looks ahead, and sees his motorcycle that’s parked in the lot across the short patch of grass; he notices that two armed men are curiously hovering around it. One of them is wearing a familiar coat. They’re both facing the opposite direction. The faint sound of a helicopter is heard in the distance. The guard tries to remove the helmet from the lock, but realizes that he can’t.

“Dang, this thing’s locked in,” the man says.

“What are we gonna do with this anyway; isn’t it the prisoner’s?”

“Yeah; I say we keep it.”

“Why, so you can bust yourself up; you couldn’t ride that thing if you tried.”

“Shut up. You act like I can’t learn how.” The men look up to see the helicopter approaching from north of their location. The spinning blades hide the noise of Tom’s swift footsteps as he approaches them. The curious fellow sits down on the bike, and pretends to ride; the other one remains standing. He closes the distance with the upright villain, and gets the man in a choke hold using his prosthetic limb. He attempts to squeal, but the metal arm crushes his windpipe.

Tom then grabs the revolver from his enemy’s pocket holster; the other criminal turns to his left, and finally catches him choking his comrade. While staggered, he reaches for his sidearm; before he can retrieve it, Glass puts a round into his chest, blowing him off of the motorcycle. The chopper overhead conceals the sound of the shot. Thomas continues to strangle him until he faints; his head goes limp, and he’s released. He then steals back his jacket from his unconscious prey. He looks up at the roof of the club, and sees the landed vehicle.

Its blades are still engaged. By using his thumbprint to open the seat compartment on his motorcycle, he retrieves both the emergency communicator (which is shaped like a small phone) and the spare key. He detaches his helmet from its lock, puts it on, and engages his ride. He removes the SIM card from out of the back of the communicator, and places it into the slot on the rear side of his helmet. The helmet’s guiding system launches.

“Cyras.” Thomas’ voice activates the A.I..

“Yes, Glass?”

“Get Ariel on the line.” He looks up to see that the helicopter has ascended. He kicks up the kickstand on his bike, and accelerates out of the parking lot. He follows behind the bird, and bolts down the vacant streets. The dial tone continues to ring. “Come on, answer the phone.”

“You have reached the voice mail box of-”

Thomas ends the call by saying, “Hang up.”

He’s now been following the helicopter for ten minutes. He reaches the entrance to the port. It’s blocked off by a chain-linked gate; beyond the fence is a bridge leading into it. He parks his bike on the side of the road. He then ejects the SIM card, and places it back into the communicator. He opens the seat compartment with his fingerprint, and retrieves the silent pistol that was given to him by Ariel; he tucks it into his pants, locks his helmet to his seat, covers the bike with his jacket, and scales the fence. Once he makes it over, he jogs down the bridge, and disappears into the darkness.

Two militia men, dressed in bomber jackets, are drinking from bottles of beers as they lean against the abandoned, empty-stacked, multi-colored crates. They watch as the helicopter that’s containing Cambridge, lands fifty feet in front of them.

“I’ll be back,” one says. He throws his empty can of beer into the trashcan that sits on the ground, between them.

“Where are you going?”

“I gotta take a leak.” He continues east of their position, and toward the body of water at the edge of the dock.

“Don’t get left!” The drunk man waves him off, and proceeds along; he vanishes into the blackness of the night.

Moments later, Vincent’s voice expels from the radio that’s attached to their jackets. “Everybody that’s leaving with us, needs to come on board now; we’re departing in five minutes.”

Tom hides behind the corner of a crate. The drunkard is approaching his position. He advances in the same direction that Glass is facing. After passing the hidden warrior, he halts, and urinates into the ocean. Tom stealthily approaches. Just as he finishes, he turns to face the ninja. He instantly strikes him across the face with his metal fist, knocking the man unconscious. Thomas drags the lifeless body to his hiding spot. He strips him of his jacket and hat, puts the items on, and pursues Vincent’s ship. Many of the remaining members of the faction, are also heading to the entrance.

“Hey you!” a soldier shouts. Glass turns around. He sees a group of three henchmen wearing similar outfits, struggling to carry a weapons crate. “Can you give us a hand?” Without saying a word, he hustles over. He grabs the right side of the back end of the rectangular crate; they lift it off the ground and continue. Thomas watches as the helicopter that brought Cambridge, ascends, and flies off. The group makes their way into the cargo hold, and place the object on the floor. Vincent’s voice expels through the radios, once again.

“Everyone, report to the main room,” he demands. Thomas, who’s now tying his shoes, subtly watches as the crew follow their leader’s instruction, and venture further into the vessel. His communicator begins vibrating in his pocket. He sneaks over to one of the tall crates standing vertically upright, and hides behind it; he answers the call.

“Garcia.”

Ariel is piloting her aircraft as she makes her way through traffic, and toward home. Thomas’ voice ejects via speakerphone. “Hey, I’m sorry I missed your call.”

“Listen, I don’t have a lot of time to explain-”

“What’s going on?”

“Vincent’s captured Paul; I’m on board his ship now. I need you to get Overwatch to trace this call.”

“How did you-?”

“I’ll explain everything later.”

“Okay; okay, it’s going to take me about fifteen minutes to get back to H.Q., can you stay on the line? Thomas?”

Glass hears someone enter through the automatic door; the man scans over the room, then proceeds to switch off the lights on the wall beside the entrance. Tom’s breathing becomes obviously heavier; he refrains from replying as he holds his muted communicator down by his left leg. The room is now almost completely dark, however a bright light emits from a small-television monitor in the corner. He slowly raises his communication device.

“I don’t know if you can hear me, but I’m on my way, now. Whatever you do, don’t-hang-up,” declares Garcia.

He calmly replies, “I won’t.” Straight ahead of him, is a grate that’s crafted into the wall; he approaches it, and using both of his hands, forces it open. He crouches down, and advances through the air-duct passageway. He makes his way down the long, narrow path; a light emits from beyond the opening at the opposite end.

He reaches it, and peers through; he immediately sees Paul, who’s now locked in an animal cage. Simmons despondently sits on the floor against the back end. Thomas kicks three hard times; the third strike causes the cover to swing open. It loosely hangs from its hinges. He gracefully escapes the vent. Paul, alarmed, stands up. “Who’s there!?” he weakly inquires.

Tom approaches the cage. “It’s me,” he responds. He removes his cap, and throws it to the floor.

“Glass? How did you-?”

“It’s a long story.”

“We’ll discuss it later; since you’re here, help me get out of this thing.”

“You may want to stay put, Pegasus is on the way.”

“That’s good news, but these punks took my daughter; she’s somewhere on this ship, and I gotta make sure she’s okay. The lock’s right there; you got something to break it with?”

He walks over to it, and shoots it once with his silenced pistol. He opens the cage, and Paul exits. “Follow me.” He follows the chief to the door at the far end of the room. Simmons peeks through the glass, and sees a guard approaching. “Someone’s coming.”

Both men crouch behind each side of the automatic-iron door. Moments later, it vertically splits apart down the middle, and the man makes his way into the room. Paul immediately grabs him, and throws him to the ground. He mounts him, and viciously begins squeezing his throat with both of his hands. The guard frantically grabs at Simmons’ grip, but his movements are eventually ceased; he passes out. As he stops moving, Paul lets up. He grabs both the soldier’s submachine gun, and the tear-gas grenades that were attached to the holsters on his vest. “Let’s go, I think I know where they’re keeping her.”

They continue through the base. They arrive at the end of the next hall, and proceed through another automatic door, leading to a staircase. They descend the stairs, and eventually arrive at the entrance to the second level of the ship. Paul peers through the glass window on the door, and sees three people standing at the end of the corridor. “I’m going to take them out. Stay behind me.” He readies the tear-gas grenades. He throws two. The automatic doors close, and the devices engage. They relentlessly cough before passing out.

They wait for the smoke to dissipate, then proceed down. They reach a door on the right side, and halt. “She should be in there; it looks like we need some sort of key, though. Help me search these guys.”

They pat-down the downed soldiers’ pockets. Thomas finds something that looks like a keycard within a pocket on one of their jackets. “I think I found it.”

“Let’s see.”

Tom hands it to him; he inserts it into the door. It opens, and they sneak through. The room at first appears completely empty. A sudden scream is heard from beyond the bathroom entrance.

“Let go of me!” shouts Jessica.

They rush over to the source of the noise. Paul kicks down the door, and throws the man into the bathtub. Just as he tries to regain composure, he jumps on top of him, and strikes him across the face with the butt of his gun. The guard falls asleep. He turns to his daughter; her shirt is ripped, and her skin underneath is now exposed. “Are you okay?” Jessica hugs her father tightly.

“I’ll be all right.”

Garcia holds her communicator in her right hand, as she waits for the elevator doors to open. They do, and she hastily proceeds through the Overwatch level. She passes the dozens of Overwatchers sitting at their cubicles, and proceeds on the pathway towards Dr. Times’ office. She knocks twice on his door; he answers. “What can I do for you?”

“I need your help with something; it’s urgent.”

“Come in.”

A soldier enters the hallway through the staircase entrance. As soon as he notices the three downed men, he rushes over to them. After briefly examining his comrades, he proceeds to use the radio that’s attached to his bomber jacket. “Somebody get down here!” The door to the entertainment room, which is where Glass, Simmons, and his daughter, are in, opens; just as he looks up, Thomas strikes him across the face with his metal fist. This knocks him out, cold.

“This way,” says Paul. They take a right down the corridor. Eventually, they arrive at a lift near the end of the hall; they enter. Simmons presses the level five indicator on the panel; as soon as he pushes the button, the power within the space shuts off.

Vincent’s pilot frantically presses different notches and buttons on the ship’s control panel as he struggles to regain altitude; the kingpin is standing directly behind him. Cambridge, who’s sitting in the co-pilot seat, has an expression that reveals his concern. “What just happened!? Why aren’t we moving?” asks Cecil.

“Something hit us!” shouts the pilot. “Our systems are down boss; there’s nothing I can do.” Phil looks over to his right, and notices a Pegasus aircraft flying alongside them.

“Look!” he shouts, as he points out of the window; they’re all stunned at the sight of the craft.

Thomas opens the elevator hatch on the ceiling, and lifts himself out. He grabs Paul’s hand, and aids his ascent. They each hold onto one of Jessica’s arms, and pull her, next. A tall ladder is connected to the wall that’s along the elevator shaft. “Let’s see where this takes us,” says Glass. Paul and his daughter follow him up. As they reach the top, they climb upon the platform. This leads them down another dark-narrow corridor, with an automatic-iron door at the end of it. They pass through, and advance down a hallway that’s decorated with fancy paintings along the wall to their left. The many windows fabricated into the enclosure to their right, reveal the outside space; as they look out, they simultaneously see the military craft.

“Is that Pegasus?” excitingly asks Jessica.

Two airships have aligned with Vincent’s vessel, on both sides. “That was a direct hit; their systems are offline. Let’s bring her down,” says the pilot on the right side. The two ships shoot a grappling device, which hook onto Vincent’s aircraft. “Initiate magnetic pulse.” The hooks send a translucent-bluish current through the vehicle, which allows Pegasus full control.

The frantic criminals continue to panic as they descend to the ocean. Vincent’s face reveals both his confusion and fear. He breaks for the automatic door; both the pilot and Cambridge, scurry out of their seats, and follow him. Upon exiting, they’re met by their prisoner, who’s pointing his firearm, at them.

Simmons orders, “Put your hands up, all of you.” The crooks abide Paul’s command. “It’s over for you, Vincent. There’s nowhere left to run.” Glass’ appearance reveals his flustered and enraged state. It’s triggered by the sight of his nemesis. He’s thrown into a flashback. He remembers watching Sasha’s burning body rolling on the floor in front of him. He grabs his pistol that’s tucked into the back of his pants, and aims it at Cecil. He shoots him through his chest, and blood splatters onto both the pilot and Cambridge, who’re standing behind him. Vince falls to his knees, then flat on his face. Tom’s actions infuriate the chief; he immediately lowers his weapon, and turns around to scold the shooter. “Put the gun down!” He drops his pistol; tears start to roll down his face. “What do you think you’re doing!?”

The Pegasus ships have now lowered Vincent onto the surface of the sea. The naval forces gather around the perimeter of the spaceship. Guardians shoot out of the vessels. Cambridge looks down at Vincent’s twitching body; he notices the gun that’s attached to his hip. He ducks to retrieve the weapon, then stands back up, and aligns the scope with Glass. Jessica catches Phil’s movement in her peripheral, as Thomas and Paul remain distracted.

“Dad!” she shouts. He looks over at his daughter, then at the man with the gun. He pulls the trigger, and shoots a round through Tom’s torso. Paul witnesses Glass’ body get blown back by the powerful blast. Simmons takes aim, however Philip pulls the trigger again, this time shooting the chief in his shoulder. He’s blasted to the floor, and begins groaning in agony.

“No!” shouts Jessica. Paul turns over to face his screaming daughter.

Under his breath, he utters, “Run.” The sound of breaking glass interrupts the scene. Five Guardians burst through the windows. The first two that enter, shoot electrical rounds into both Phil and the pilot, instantly paralyzing them. Another Guardian hurries over to Simmons; as the robot examines his condition, he keeps his eyes on his daughter. He watches as the bot picks Jessica up over its shoulder; it then approaches the window, flies out, and heads back toward the naval ships awaiting them. His attention shifts to his ally, who’s still closely examining his body; his vision becomes blurry.

“Commander Simmons, you’re badly injured.” Using both arms, the robot carefully picks him up off of the floor. “I’m getting you to safety,” it states. As it turns to approach the broken window, Paul sees Glass’ lifeless body lying on the floor behind him; a metallic officer is checking his vitals with his high-tech vision. Before he can hear whether or not it pronounces him dead, the Guardian escorting him, begins his ascent through the sky.

Chapter 12: Delta 2

A seemingly-infinite ocean borders the yellow grassland and blue forests, which engulf exactly half of the planet. The Tenth Division’s ship lands within the plain. The Protectors, the pilot, and the elderly scientist, are situated within the cockpit. Joseph has once again equipped himself with combat armor (which covers his lower half). The elderly man is sitting in the copilot seat with the briefcase in his lap, while Joe and Tom remain standing. “This planet is full of life, however a majority of it’s harmless,” states the elder.

“What’s the chance of anything being infected?” asks Thomas.

“Slim to none; the serum is contained within the vault located on the second floor of the lab. You’ll likely only be greeted with an empty facility, or perhaps a robot that’s in charge of mopping the floors.” He opens the case, and within it, rests a black, phone-shaped item, that’s responsible for locating the hidden lab.

“I thought that was supposed to be a map,” says Joseph.

“Technically it is.” The old man turns the device on with the press of a button, and from the projector that’s made into its square center, a projected holographic keyboard, emits; he inputs a code that consists of four digits. Inputting the combination causes the projection to display an arrow that’s pointing east. “This will guide you.” He hands the map to Joe. “I’ll be waiting for you, here.”

The Protectors exit the jungle, and proceed toward the camp. The base is shaped like a two-story, upright, cylinder building. They enter inside through the double-glass doors. After entering through a wooden door that’s directly to their right, they climb a flight of stairs, and make their way into the shady-lounge room. It’s filled with various cushioned furniture, as well as two pool tables, and a racquetball station. Ten chairs, and a game system, rest on the floor in front of the ginormous television, and a rectangular window reveals both the wilderness outside, as well as a cylinder-shaped object that’s covered in a metal shell. It extends fifty feet high, and is 100 yards away.

Ahead, is a door with a glow-in-the-dark sign, which reads, “Vault” across the top of it. They advance toward the passageway. Joe immediately kicks it open. A square, and completely-white room, with an aquarium built into both of its sides, stores a titanic-silver vault, which rests in the center. Joseph melts the metal door by touching its exterior with both of his hands. A minuscule-metallic-tan pyramid, is on the middle shelf, beside a sable duffel bag. Thomas retrieves the item; he withdraws his Credit Transaction Gauntlet from his right-pant pocket. He places it on his left hand; the extendable chord that’s built into the backside of the glove, is extracted; its end is placed within the USB port that’s located at the center of the pyramid.

Joe remarks, “We finally got to the good part.” A holographic image is displayed via the projector that’s built into the back of the device covering his hand; it indicates at what percent the process of downloading the money from the bank, has been completed. While this continues, Joseph unzips the bag, and begins examining what’s inside. “I think this is the serum.” He reaches in, and grabs a handful of the liquid-filled test tubes. He begins to read the labels, “It looks like we got the antidote here as well.” Once the download bar reaches 100 percent, the hologram ends.

Just as this happens, the sound of a passing ship is heard, overhead. They rush out of the room, and toward the window. They halt as they reach the aperture, and observe an object that’s hovering over the cylinder capsule, outside; it’s Quin’s vessel. Suddenly, the metallic armor that protects the towering structure, folds down into the base of the erection, revealing the glass it’s manufactured with; within it, is a titanic, coiled, dragon-like parasite, with four dragonfly-like wings, flaring-yellow-snake-like eyes, razor-sharp teeth, ooze dripping from its mouth, and a fleshy pouch-like organ on its stomach. Thomas notices a tiny-round chip, that’s been planted on the back of Joe’s tricep. He removes it, and holds it up to show his partner.

“He tracked us with this. The cyborgs must have placed it on you.” A green-energy blast is shot at the window that The Protectors are observing through, instantly shattering it; simultaneously, the Tenth Division pilot shoots a scarlet light-beam at Quin’s ship, causing it to free fall to the jungle. They look through the broken window, and can see the parasite bashing its head through the top of the tube; it exits, and expands its wings. It takes off, upward.

The team jump out of the opening, and accelerate through the air. They chase the gliding creature. While closing the distance, Joseph unsheathes his sword, covers it in flames, and hurls it into the creature’s forehead. It screams, and begins to hover in place. Hundreds of tentacles, with sharp stingers attached to the end of them, extract from the seal on its abdomen, and bolt at the heroes. Tom draws the creature’s attention by creating an ever-ascending pillar. The extendable limbs continue to stretch, and follow him, as Joe summons the energy needed for his double-hand blast technique. An abundant stream of fire expels from both of his hands, and connects against the monster’s body. It falls to the ground. Thomas jumps from the top of his creation, and lands on the mutant’s head, impaling it with an ice-spear upon contact. Its movements cease.

They defeat it. A radio message from the pilot, emits from their communicators, “I just picked up Quin; stay put, I’m heading back to you, now.”

“This was pretty fun,” says Joseph.

“A walk in the park, just like we said.”

“So, back to your story; what happened after you got shot?”

“It turns out I didn’t kill Vincent, like I wanted to. I left him seriously wounded though. He was actually paralyzed, and bound to a wheelchair for the rest of his miserable life, in prison. I escaped from the hospital that I woke up in, and became a hired gun for the government on Mars; from there, you know the rest.”

“And let me guess, when you got your powers, your arm grew back, didn’t it?”

“Exactly.”

The Tenth Division member makes his way toward the two. The pilot slows the spaceship down to a crawl as it approaches, and parks directly over the men. A ladder drops from the open hatch beneath the ship’s exterior.

Chapter 1: Ether’s Whisper

Part II: Savior

Year: 3011

“So, have you ever experienced anything paranormal?” says the sweet voice coming from the girl who’s atop the bed, and beneath the covers; she’s beside her companion within the dark bedroom.

“I was three when I saw my first ghost. It was early in the morning, and the sun hadn’t even rose, yet; just as I woke up, a translucent figure was smiling down at me. I could barely make out what he looked like; all I could see were antlers on what appeared as a man,” says Patrick, the protagonist, to his girlfriend, Gabby.

“That’s actually terrifying; honestly, I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep, now.”

“You have nothing to worry about,” he says as he giggles. “This was so long ago.”

“Was that the only time you saw something?”

“Can we just go to sleep?”

“No, I want to know; were there more times?”

“If you really want to know, there was another time that I remember seeing that thing; my mother and I were about to get robbed when I was nine, and when the man broke into our house, my mom jumped out in front of me, and started screaming at the top of her lungs. He pointed the gun to her head, forced her to shut up, and demanded us to get to our knees.

“When I found the courage to look up at the robber, I noticed the tip of his gun melting apart. In that same moment, I saw that to the left of the thief, was that same ghost; all he did was touch his finger to the tip of the weapon, and before we knew it, the criminal dropped it, and was booking out the door. When I asked my mom if she saw him, she denied it. When the cops showed up, I sounded like a lunatic trying to describe what happened.” A pause occurs. “Growing up, because of how I was looked at when I told them what I saw, I was always too ashamed to ever bring those instances up to anyone else; tonight was one of the first nights in a while that I even thought about any of that.”

Chapter 1 Part 2: Debts due

Patrick Keaton (an African-American male who just turned nineteen) is wearing a green-hooded jacket and blue jeans, as he sits atop the closed toilet within the lavish bathroom; throughout the rest of the prestigious restaurant, are customers suited in different-colored suits and fine clothing. While sitting in the lonely stall, he’s peering down at the screen of the cellular device that he’s holding, which is displaying a map of the immediate vicinity; a golden circle indicates that the car he’s after, the M.V.III, is near.

Two men suddenly enter. Using the x-ray lens that’s crafted into the camera on his phone, he holds it up to scan the gentlemen. If they were Patrick’s target, his phone would vibrate, indicating that the desired car key is attached to the scanned individuals, however this did not occur. He repositions his phone downward, and continues to stare in silence. The two finally leave, and another man enters. Patrick scans, and is able to identify that this individual is his target; his name is Aaron Avel, and he’s both the chief of the New Fair Police Force, and the most crooked cop in the entire state.

Patrick’s boss is Mr. G.; people with criminal ties either go to him for the best haircut in town, or an illegal pair of wheels, but most likely it’s both. As it turns out, Aaron only paid half of the amount he owes Giovanni for the car, with the promise that in two weeks he’d have the rest. Those two weeks passed two months ago, and Gio has decided to send his most reliable employee, Patrick, to retrieve what’s rightfully his. Just as Aaron takes his stance before the urinal, Pat stands to his feet.

The automatic toilet flushes. He exits the stall, and casually walks over to the exit.

“Your mother ever teach you to wash your hands, son?!” says Aaron, as he continues to face forward. His tone and expression indicate his intoxication.

Patrick waves his hand over the blue laser attached to the locking system. This action locks the door, without a sound. He then retrieves the tranquilizer pistol that was hidden in his pants, and releases a round into the man, who has just finished zipping up his bottoms. The dart enters his back, and Pat catches his falling body from behind. While dragging him into the open stall, he steals the (small, white, squarely-shaped) key, from his blazer. He places him on the toilet, and positions the chief so that he doesn’t topple over. He closes the stall, washes and dries his hands, and proceeds out of the unlocked-automatic door.

He pushes a button on the key device, and the sleek-yellow, reddish and orange, sports car, which is parked across the street, flashes its bright-green head and tail lights, revealing to the holder of the key that it’s now unlocked. Keaton enters the completely tinted car, and maneuvers onto the busy street within the incandescent city. He takes a right at the end of the block, continues downward, and makes a left at the next light.

He’s halted by a red indicator, which he abides. From the right side, an all-black police officer’s car pulls up, and stops beside him. He breaks a sweat. “Chief! It’s Rodge, roll down the window!” says a voice that expels from the radio that’s built into the middle compartment. Prior to this moment, Patrick hadn’t seen this object. He remains motionless. “Hey! You in there?!”

Just as these words are spoken, he aims his tranquilizer at the man whose eager head sticks out of his car. Pat lowers the passenger window with his left index finger on the indicator, as his right hand holds the pistol at the cop. As the line of sight with the cop’s crown is revealed, he lets off a round, which lands in his neck, instantly causing him to fall asleep; the man’s head hangs out of the craft. He uses this opportunity to escape, and zooms into the horizontally moving traffic; Keaton slips through the gap of two speeding vehicles.

“Twenty, twenty-five, thirty, thirty-five, forty grand; here you go, P.,” says Giovanni, as he places Patrick’s payment (which appears as orange paper dollars) on the wooden-rectangular table; they’re within Gio’s hotel room, and seated in chairs that match the dining surface. The boss is wearing a colorless shirt, and ebony-basketball shorts. His hair is gray and slicked back, and his skin is slightly tan. Two suited members of the Hax mob, which is an organization ran by top-notch launderers, who’ve managed to spread their influence and business across the entire planet, are standing at the entrance.

“Thank you, sir,” says Pat. He stands to his feet, opens the door for himself, and exits the room. The chime of the oven indicates that his food is finished cooking. Mr. G. proceeds into the kitchen, and places the oven mittens on both of his hands; he removes the two paper plates, and brings them to the table. They’re holding lasagna.

“So how much longer until he arrives?” asks Giovanni.

“He should be here shortly,” responds one of the men. Just then, two knocks sound against the exterior of the entrance. The mobster opens the door, and at the other end, is Layon, who’s a young, suited-black male. He’s the son of Tony Hax, who’s the man that’s actually in charge of the mob, however is now seventy-eight, and expecting to pass away from health issues sooner than later. He has entrusted Layon with the job of overseeing future operations, which is a known fact to anyone that’s involved with this infamous family.

“Mr. Gio, it’s nice to see you. You look well.” As these words are spoken, Giovanni is approaching his guest.

“Don’t take a step closer,” sternly says the guard.

“This food is for me?” Layon asks.

“Sure is, I made it myself. It’s delicious, I promise. Please, take a seat.” The two seat themselves across each other. The son continues to scan the food.

“It’s safe sir, we watched him make it,” says the other bodyguard.

Mr. G. places a napkin in his lap, and the future leader follows suit. They both briefly bow their heads, and whisper prayers over their food. With the silver utensils that have been neatly placed by Giovanni beforehand, they begin eating. Gio asks, “So, what do I owe this occasion?” and takes another bite.

Once he swallows his food, Layon says, “My father has sent me. As you know, he has lots of love for you, however, as of recently, we’ve entered quite the predicament. It turns out that he trusted the wrong people in one of his business dealings, and long story short, he lost money, lots of it; so much so, that he has asked me to personally express to all of his associates, that if he doesn’t collect double the amount that you pay for his services and protection, then he’ll have no choice but to cut you off.”

“How does he expect me to collect an extra million every other month?”

“Are you telling me it’s impossible?”

“It’s not impossible, I just feel like-”

“Good, then you have exactly one month before I swing through again.” Layon places his utensils down at the right side of his plate. “Do you mind if I take this with me? I’m in quite the rush.”

“Not at all,” Gio replies, as he cleans his fingers on the paper towel; he stands to his feet, and fetches the aluminum that’s in one of the drawers within the kitchen. He returns with a sheet, and hands it to the new boss.

“You weren’t lying when you said this was delicious,” he says, while wiping his hands. He proceeds to wrap up his plate.

“Thank you, I made the recipe myself.” While holding the food in his left hand, Layon extends his right one, to shake. Their hands briefly and firmly interlock. He then heads for the door, which has been opened by one of his men.

“By the way, would it be too much to ask if I could get a cut the next time I make my visit?”

“Of course not; I’ll hook you up, anytime.”

“Much appreciated.” He exits along with his crew. Gio, using the black, rectangular-cellular device, which he removes from his right-pant pocket, types into the screen.

The person whom he dialed on his phone, picks up, and Mr. G. shouts, “Terra, I need you to come by the hotel, pronto. Make sure that she’s charged up enough to reach the hangar.” From out of the bedroom, which was accessed once Patrick climbed up to the roof, and down to the open banister that’s connected to Gio’s room (on the highest floor), exits the young criminal, with a semi-automatic weapon strapped across his shoulder.

“Is everything all right?” he asks.

“I’ll be fine, kid; thanks for the help.”

“No problem.” Keaton tosses the gun onto Gio’s couch, and proceeds out.

Chapter 2: The Rolling Wolves

Mr. G., now in a purple suit, is standing on one of two helipads that have been built into the roof of the hotel, which doubles as a lot, and is packed with hovercars. His red helicopter, piloted by his young assistant, Terra, who’s wearing a blue jumpsuit, is descending onto the building. She lands, and he enters the passenger seat. The automatic door closes behind him. They lift off, and continue to the hidden hangar in the desert.

“You mind me asking why we’re going back?” asks Terra.

“It’s not a huge deal, but Hax is expecting me to double the amount I give him. We have a good enough system to where we can keep this up for the next year or two, but it’s going to require me to take out everything I have, which is why we’re going where we’re going.”

“How do you expect to move three-hundred vehicles at one time?”

“The only way possible, I’m going to program them to find different routes to the warehouse; I’ll have them park around the facility.”

“You think they’ll make it all the way there?”

“Yeah, I checked everything out, last week.” An hour passes before they reach their location. Upon reaching a position above the hideout, they recognize that the trapezoidal prism-shaped-concrete structure, which is usually hidden beneath the sand, has been left engaged, and raised above the surface; this, as well as the tire marks, indicate that his belongings have been stolen. “Are you kidding me!?” screams Gio. “Hurry up and get us down!” They land, and the two rush into the empty space. “This can’t be real,” Mr. G. solemnly says.

“What now?” asks the assistant.

“Did you tell anyone about this place?”

“Of course not, sir.” A blue sports car rushes into the scene; it belongs to his daughter. She, along with her boyfriend Patrick, who’s sitting in the passenger seat, are speedily approaching. By the time they’ve parked in the sand, Terra and Giovanni have exited.

“Dad!”

“Why are you here, Gabby?”

“I tried calling you, what’s wrong with your phone?”

“I’ve been busy.”

“Well while you were busy, some guys riding motorcycles, broke into your house!”

“When?!”

“Three hours ago!”

“Why’d you bring him?”

“I picked him up from the meeting you two had; he was the one who told me where you were headed.”

“I told you to never bring anyone here.”

“Dad; I’m sorry, it’s just-”

“Enough; did you get a good look at who broke in?”

“Yes; they looked like a biker gang wearing burgundy, and black colors.”

“I told her I think it’s The Rolling Wolves,” says Keaton.

“Never heard of them,” Gio replies. He quickly retrieves the gun that’s tucked into the front of his pants, and steps to Patrick with it drawn and aimed at his head. “Look me in the eyes, and tell me you don’t know anything about this.”

“Dad!”

“Stay out of this. Mr. G., I swear to you that I don’t,” he says without flinching. “I feel terrible, and I realize how this situation affects us both, so I’ll return the money you gave me today, and also promise that I can get what has been stolen from you, back.”

“How can you make that sort of promise?” he says, while still aiming the gun.

“By Gabby’s description, I’m positive that who I think is responsible, is to blame. In the past, The Rolling Wolves tried recruiting me; I know where they scout, and tonight, I’ll convince them to let me join. Give me two days to locate your merchandise, that’s all I need.” Gio removes his pistol.

“I’m sorry for jumping the gun like that; but if what you say is true, and you can come through for me like this, as my name becomes more known as far as the Hax family is concerned, then so will yours. Not to mention the millions I will reward you throughout the years.”

“Consider it done.”

Five hours have passed, and it’s now twelve in the morning. Patrick has just arrived at his cousin’s house, and has parked his silver hoverboard (which remains hovering) atop the dirt road beneath his feet; his name is Shannon, and for the past twelve years, he has distributed the most top-notch bootlegged movies, on Earth.

Tonight, according to Shannon, three members of The Rolling Wolves will be making a purchase; earlier, Pat gained permission to join him during the exchange. He walks through a lush field of grass that makes up his front yard, and ascends the short flight of steps. He knocks twice on the door to the lonely-white, pentagonal prism-shaped home, which is surrounded by a green field that has a dozen oak trees scattered around; a pond is behind the vicinity. “It’s unlocked!” yells Shannon, as Keaton notices the bicycles belonging to the gang, resting in the driveway to his right. Patrick proceeds inside.

“You keep your door unlocked?” he asks. Shannon, who’s wearing a gray sweatsuit, is sitting on his couch within the living room, and watching a boxing match on a monitor that’s mounted into the wall across from him. He ignores the question, and his cousin’s presence; the television is above a fireplace, and beside a smaller T.V., which is displaying an infrared camera feed.

Shannon, intrigued by the spectacle of brutal blows being exchanged by the two fighters, points over to the small one, and says, “I always know who’s coming.” By pressing the button on the center of an almost flat, black and square device that’s within his lap, he closes and seals his door, which is indicated by loud clicking, and the clamping down of locks.

“Where are the guys?”

“Testing out their purchase, upstairs.”

“Did somebody named Jay, show up?”

“Why?”

“I want to see if I could get put on the team.”

“No kidding?”

“I mean it.”

“Yeah, he did; how do you know him?”

“He invited me to join his clique when he witnessed me wipe the floor with some guy I got into a bar fight with. When you told me the head of the gang was coming, I assumed he’d be here.” Footsteps abruptly descend the staircase; two robust figures, who’re wearing dark pants and boots, and burgundy tops with designs that resemble a simple-black outline of a snarling wolf on the backs of them, follow Jay, who’s carrying a dusky-plastic bag, and is dressed similarly, as they enter the front of the house. “So how does one go about joining the squad?” The three men laugh in unison as they continue down the steps.

“Are you asking for yourself?” asks the leader, as his group closes the distance with the front door, which Shannon unlocks with another press of a button.

“I am; we actually met a few months ago. You were a witness to a beating I laid down on someone at Marty’s Bar. That’s when you said I could join you; I denied at first, but now I’m thinking of taking you up on your offer.” Jay takes his time to scan Patrick’s profile.

“I remember everything, kid, but I don’t remember you; so that means if I said what you said I said, I was probably drunk, and I’m easily impressed when I’m under the influence. But if I saw something in you for what you can do with your hands, then I’ll need you to show me again, if you really want to join that is.”

“Fine by me.”

“What’s your name?”

“Pat Keaton.”

“Patrick, meet Sean, he’s our new blood. Sean, show him what you got.” The recruit violently pushes him without warning; he stumbles onto the floor, and lands on his back.

“Not in here, please,” Shannon sternly demands. Pat angrily bounces to his feet, and Jay leads the men to the field.

“Line up five feet apart, and start when I say. Try not to kill each other if you can help it,” says the leader. They position themselves across one another, raise their fists to cover their faces, and ready their stances. “Go!” Simultaneously as this is shouted, Sean ducks his head, and attempts to tackle his opponent; just as he latches onto his abdomen, Pat grips his neck with his right forearm as his feet slip back a few inches in the dirt. He continues to choke him as he tries everything to slip out of the breathtakingly powerful hold. “Let him go! New rule, no choking, only striking; it’s too boring any other way.”

Keaton raises his hands, and steps back a few feet, as Sean, whose previously pale face is now red, recomposes. They assume their fighting stances once again. The gang member steps forward and throws a right hand, but he leans back just in time to dodge it. He follows with a left jab, however by ducking, Patrick dodges it; he retaliates with a right punch aimed at the criminal’s ribs; this causes him to lower his guard, and cover his broken bones.

He takes advantage of this moment by hooking his left arm under Sean’s right shoulder, and locking it behind his head. He uses his left foot to sweep the fighter’s legs; with his weight and leverage, Patrick throws him to the ground. The moment he slams, he’s put to sleep. “Impressive! Now I see why I said what I said.” These words are spoken while Jay and his comrade approach their sleeping friend. They help him to his feet, and hold him steady. The leader, who’s now standing across from Keaton, reaches into his pocket, and hands him a card. “Meet us there.” By their third step, the unconscious fellow wakes up.

“What the heck happened?” Sean asks.

“You got beat down, bud; it was incredible.”

“Oh; oh, yeah. Thanks guys, but I got it from here.” They stop in their tracks, separate themselves, and continue to their bikes; the recruit rubs the back of his head as he walks. They mount their rides, engage them, and zoom north, toward the road.

Chapter 3: The Ranks

The gang has chosen a ginormous yacht as a hideout; this vessel has two helipads, is completely white, and is currently floating a few dozen yards away from the shore of the deserted beach. A hangar that’s identical to Gio’s, is behind the ten men, who’re positioned on the sand; Jay, after exiting the bike-filled space, presses in a code on the digital security system that’s mounted on the exterior. The iron doors vertically fall shut, and the structure descends into the ground. “Now that’s, amazing,” says Patrick. Two jet boats have dropped down from the yacht (by the use of propellers, which recede upon reaching the top layer of the sea).

“Pretty awesome, right? A good friend of mine made that for me; he’s actually the one responsible for our most recent score.”

“How so?”

“He told us about a client who never paid him full price for his handiwork. He said that this guy he did a project for, was some barber slash illegal car dealer, who deals with the mob; of course that sparked our interests, so I gave him some cash, and he gave me the whereabouts of our mystery hairdresser; as it turns out, what you’ll be seeing in that yacht, is everything we found from his stash.” The escort boats have reached land. The crew enter into them; Jay, Patrick, and three others enter one, and the last five enter the other. They return to the ship.

“Patrick, I trust you; I know you don’t know this about me, but I’m a huge fan of hand to hand combat. Growing up, that’s all I practiced, and that’s all I was really entertained by. I can tell a lot about a person from how well they fight, and right away, I can tell that you have discipline, patience, strength, and courage; to me, to have those qualities makes you an ideal comrade. I say that to say this, if you decide to betray my trust, I’ll see to it that I personally torture you, and it will last until your last breath.

“We follow a strict code: you respect me, and I respect you; if you feel the need to fight someone in the crew, you come to me, and we’ll get you, and your temporary opponent, in the ring, however afterward, you’ll make up, and we’ll continue this operation, smoothly. If you want to be one of us, I hope you’re prepared to stay with us, because I’m telling you now, you’ll see way too much dirt for us to trust you with just up and leaving. Can you make that commitment?” Jay asks. Patrick offers him his open right hand, to shake.

“You have my word.”

“Around here, we don’t shake hands.” The leader offers his right-closed fist. Their fists collide. “Welcome to The Rolling Wolves; today, we’re going on a mission. We’ve found a buyer who’s willing to pay a little over ninety million for those cars we came up on. You’re going to provide security for this operation. You’ll be carrying an assault rifle, but you most likely won’t be shooting anything; we’re on good terms with these guys, but we just need to show them we don’t mess around.

“They’ll most likely be armed too, so do keep your eyes peeled. We’re meeting them on their turf, and should be arriving within the next thirty-six hours.” Their boats have finally arrived at the yacht; metallic poles shoot out from the center of the small crafts, and at their tips, unfold eight blades, which spin at an immaculate rate; they levitate over the giant vessel, and land in the vast pool, which is meant for storing seacraft. They park near the edge, and step out onto the upper deck.

“Welcome to Aeon, my father created this, and passed it down to his only son. As a part of our team, this will not only be your second home, but it will also be your job to keep it together. I’ll assign you your duties once this operation is over; for now, I’m going to my room,” says Jay, as he begins for the staircase.

“Where will I sleep?” Patrick shouts out to him, before he fully descends.

“There’re thirty-seven of us in total, and fifty rooms; figure it out. If you need anything, tell my girl, you can find her in the bar. She’ll get you some new clothes, too. If I were you, I’d get acquainted with everyone.”

Chapter 4: The Storm of Destiny

It has been seven hours since the previous events, and as the heaping storm occurs outside of the soundproof interior, Patrick, while in his new gang attire, lies asleep in his dorm. Jay, now holding a coat, abruptly swings open his bedroom door, and yells, “Hey!” Pat jolts his body up, and stands to his feet.

“What’s going on?” he asks.

“Aeon has been hit by lighting; the strike caused us to lose control, we’re heading right toward an uncharted island. Here,” Jay throws him the orange-bomber jacket; he puts it on. “Follow me.” Together, they rush to the upper deck, and meet the other members, who’re both escaping with the use of the six jet boats, and the nine hovercrafts parked on one of the helipads (they appear as simple, jet-powered cars, which seat three people). By the time they reach the pool, only one boat remains. They head inside the last one, and follow The Rolling Wolves, who’re making their way to the nearby island that’s now 200 meters, north.

After the propellers carry them into the air, and down toward the surface of the sea, the incredibly strong current pushes them the entire way. After a brief trip over the water, they crash onto the tan sand. Almost as soon as the clan regroups, they simultaneously watch Aeon collide with the land; the front end is badly damaged. Jay announces to the men, “This thing was made out of material that can fix itself; it may take a few hours, but we should be all good, soon.”

“Get on the ground!” a mysterious voice screams; the source of it is cloaked in the darkness of the night, as well as the jungle which borders the beach. They turn around to see the silhouettes of a line of forty-armed soldiers, dressed in all-black military attire; they have pale skin, long-dark hair, slanted eyes, and muscular figures. The clan yields to this command, and the militia, who’ve turned on the flashlights attached to their weapons, rush in to bind their hands.

Chapter 5: Predator Becomes Prey

Two armed soldiers, wearing navy-blue jumpsuits, make their way into the prison that’s just outside of their base, through the unlocked-iron entryway. The high-ranking leader is wearing a silver cap, and the sergeant’s bald head is exposed; the structure is designed like a giant igloo, with box-shaped cells aligned within its perimeter.

The walls are made with see-through, impenetrable glass, which expose the dim jungle, beyond; the cells are protected with the use of multiple-red-horizontal, intense-light beams. Their hands are bound above their heads by metal restrainers mounted into the interior of the chambers.

The bald one is carrying with him a device that resembles a metallic frisbee with a handle at its center (which he holds it from); earphones extend out from its top end, and are connected into both of his ears. “Which one of you is in charge?” the capped man calmly asks.

“I am.” The men head over to the cubicle from which the source of this voice, expelled. By typing a password into the back of his advanced-left glove, the captain disables the cell’s beam protection. He, along with his partner, enter.

“What’s your name?”

“Jay, we’re a biker gang that happens to sometimes travel by yacht; my ship was struck by lightning. We lost control of her, and crash landed here. We don’t mean you any harm, I can assure you we didn’t even know you were here.” As these words are spoken, the hairless gentlemen is holding the strange tool up to Jay’s forehead.

“He’s telling the truth,” the sergeant says.

“These are the conditions: in the morning, we’ll let you go; I’ll provide you with a plane, however I’ll be keeping that ship of yours, and everything on it,” says the leader.

“I understand.”

“Good; for your cooperation, once we leave here, we’ll remove the binds from all of your hands.”

“Thank you.” They head toward the exit, and the beams re-engage. “Hey, there’s one more thing.” The group turns to face Jay. “There’s something I’d like to retrieve from my ship; it’s a picture of my father, and it’s locked in my briefcase. That’s the only photo I have left of him, and you won’t have any luck finding it on your own. It would mean a lot to me if I were able to have it.”

“Cuff him and bring him upstairs,” says the man with the hat, as he disables the leader’s barrier; simultaneously, the metal binds holding the crew, disengage for everyone except Jay. The bald one hands his boss the lie detector, and as the commander exits the prison, the soldier heads toward the criminal.

“No sudden movements; when these things retract, you either keep your arms up, or get shot,” he says, as he types into the keyboard that appears on the surface of the back wall. As he finishes typing, the restrainers disengage. “Step forward, and slowly lower your arms,” he says, while pointing his rifle at him. Just as the officer positions himself directly behind Jay, he bashes his elbow into his nose, instantly knocking him out.

He takes the silenced-automatic weapon that’s strapped across his back, as well a grenade that rests in his vest. He leaves the cell, and uses the gun to shoot through the control panel that’s responsible for the cells’ beam-shield system, which is mounted beside the sealed opening.

After the tenth round, the beams concurrently vanish. They regroup near Jay’s position. The leader pulls the pin out of the grenade, and tosses it into an open cell. The explosion destroys the glass barrier, and they scurry out, and into the dark jungle. They continue for a short trek, before spotting ten, glowing-orange orbs, hovering east. They hide.

“If we get separated here, make your way to the yacht; we can’t be too far away,” quietly says Jay.

“I think I just picked up a signature,” a voice from one of the orbs, states. The objects zoom toward the guys with the turrets that have descended from their lower hemispheres, now aimed out in front of them. They close in on the group, who have hidden themselves within the bug infested bushes, tall grass, and behind the trees. “There!”

The gang split in different directions as one of the hyperventilating members is penetrated by a flurry of bullets. Patrick, along with four others, dart down a dangerous slope that’s composed of only mud. By the time they reach the bottom, they’ve once again separated. Keaton relentlessly presses forward, and hears a trail of ammunition at his feet.

Abruptly, the ground beneath him gives, and he finds himself falling for fifteen feet. He lands in a vast pool, within a cave. He dives under the water, and swims deeper into the space to avoid detection. He reaches the end, and crawls onto the dirt-covered land; a golden chest rests against the stone wall ahead. He walks over, and closely examines it. He opens the box, and discovers a steel-black bow. Without hesitating, he grabs the weapon. His eyes begin to shine, and he vanishes from sight.

“So we finally get to meet our hero,” a male voice calmly announces. When Patrick regains consciousness, he finds himself within an all-white dojo, sitting with his legs crossed. Three Asian men wearing colorless-monk robes, who’re positioned similarly, are accompanying him.

“Where am I?” Keaton asks.

“A world outside of your own. We call it the Astral Realm,” says the elder to the right of the man in the middle.

“Is this the land of the dead?”

“Not quite. We’re here because we’ve made a deal with The Master of Spirits; he has allowed our souls to exist in this place, where interaction with the physical world is accessible through meditation, until the time that we can witness our dying wish, come true. Patrick, completing your mission will grant us the peace necessary to achieve a life in the Upper Realm,” says the man in the center.

“My mission?”

“Before we died, The Master told us that the bow we would forge, would be found by a man carrying his grandson’s soul. Naturally, in your current body, you wouldn’t have any recollection of this relation, however, it has been prophesied that you’ll be the one to save our people. You were being chased by the Gonu tribe; they are our descendants, as well as the reason behind why we created the bow.

“We were warned that if we didn’t sacrifice ourselves on the island, then the most dangerous threat our people will ever face, would eradicate our lineage. The object you stumbled upon contains our magic essence, and was created for the individual who shall, by himself, remove the cannibalistic devils.

“There are a village of practitioners that call themselves the Vama; they’ve succumbed to wicked ways, only studied and practiced by those who either manipulate the Spirit Princess’ teachings, or who’ve fallen to Vasu, the evil sorcerer who escaped the Upper Realm. The Vama are guilty of both, and their unspeakable rituals have transformed these people into blood-sucking minions of pure evil.

“By sacrificing their own people to the mysterious Vasu, without even knowing why he wants them, he has granted them supernatural forms, and terrifying abilities. The Vama wish to overthrow one nation at a time, starting with their neighbors, the Gonu. Once they gain control of your planet, they wish to make everyone food. This action will allow them to gain enough strength to transform their spirits into monstrosities; with the abundance of power they’ll obtain through eating the innocent souls, they plan on transporting their minds into the world of spirits, in order to consume The Master. If they’re successful, every-single lifeform in each realm, would be enslaved by them.

“Their attack on the Gonu began three hours ago; they decided to strike when the king, who’s responsible for protecting the land with the use of our other blessed weapon, was captured by the mainland soldiers. The princess has been able to lock the remaining people within the castle, however now, you must save them. By touching the bow, which the Gonu soldiers came here in search of in hopes of cultivating its power, you’re now merged with our mana; that means that our knowledge is now yours, as well as our magic and skills,” says the middle-elderly man.

“Do you accept our power, which only you can wield, and which will bring an ending to our struggle?”

“So this is my destiny?”

“Part of it, there’s still much more.”

“How can I be sure that all of this is true?”

“It’s been revealed to us that your special spirit has already made itself known to you.”

“Could you possibly mean-?” A pause ensues. “So the one with the horns-”

“So you do remember. My brothers and I were chosen to create the gift The Master of Spirits needs you to wield. This power is in fact your destiny; you were always meant to be this world’s immortal hero.”

“Immortal?”

“It’s true. That doesn’t mean that you’ll be hearing from us forever however, we only require seeing our home cleansed of the Vama.

“Once that happens, and we ascend, our gifts and knowledge will remain yours. That’s not to say your troubles will be ending. Sooner or later, you’re bound to run into Vasu, or at least his minions; The Master however, has told us to make sure you know that by taking the bow, you’ll always have the means to overcome any obstacle you come across.

“If you wish to deny, he’s given you that option as well, however by denying, the overnight destruction of an entire race, and potentially the downfall of the world, will be on you. Now that you’re aware of all of this, what do you wish to do?” A brief pause occurs as Patrick contemplates.

“I’ll help.”

“Glad to hear you make the right choice. Let’s get to it, then,” says the monk on the left side.

Chapter 6: The Heron

A silver, blue, and white, heron, flies high over the uncharted island, and heads east. The huge bird, at a phenomenal rate, continues for one hour in this direction, until finally, after soaring over the ocean below, he reaches another island. It’s snowing there, and piles of the flakes have spread over the entire land. A mountainous castle extends past the trees, and ruined infrastructure plagues the area. A translucent-green, pyramid-shaped shield, protects the castle’s exterior.

The heron lands twenty yards behind the line of creatures, who’re naked, have the tails of devils, and faces and bodies that look as if saber-toothed cats merged with humans. Their hands and feet have sharp claws that extend out of the tips of their fingers and toes, and ebony wings cover their backs. The heron morphs into an orb of pale light, which reshapes into Patrick. He’s now suited in an ivory-shimmering ninja outfit; he’s equipped with a hood, a short-sleeve shirt, sandals, and a mask.

Keaton, without alerting the creatures, who’re attempting to break the shield by striking it, draws his bow, which he holds with his left hand, and aims his arrow, which manifests in place (out of thin air). “The longer you pull back, the more power your soul arrows will generate,” an invisible voice states. Pat maintains his posture. Ten seconds pass, and the incandescent-snowy arrow, turns from its original color, to orange.

“Hey! Over here!” Patrick screams at the enemies. They turn their attention to him, and by using their wings, flock over. He releases his arrow, and upon connecting with the monster at the center of the group, an explosion takes out thirty of them, out of the one hundred and twenty that continue to pursue him. Their severed limbs hit the snow, and morph into strange-black smoke, that evaporates. He breaks for the barrier, sprinting beneath and past his oncoming opponents; he leaps spectacularly high into the sky, and lands on it.

He releases quick shots, which take down ten more of the foes, who’re now ascending to the top of the shield. He turns his bow vertical, with his left fist facing the sky, and releases three arrows at a time; each one kills an enemy, simultaneously. He repeats this twice, and doesn’t miss a mark. Before they’re able to reach his position, he vertically leaps, again.

Now 250 yards away from them, he levitates in space, and charges his arrow. This time he waits for fifteen seconds; by the time it’s fully charged, the projectile has turned red, and the enemies are only twenty feet away. He releases the dart at the center of the collection, this time destroying fifty of them in a grand-burning explosion.

The fifty-one remaining Vama, flee, and scatter off into the same direction. Patrick transforms into an orb of light, which shifts into the heron. With stunning speed, he chases them. The sorcerers swirl together in a tornado, and shift into a pile of green gas.

In a flash, the legion combines into one entity that stands 150 feet tall. It looks like a titanic, bull-horned ape, with red fur, four-luminous-yellow eyes, reptilian wings, four-long and robust arms, and two powerful legs; fire is brewing within its mouth, which is also filled with pointed teeth. Keaton, who has once again reshaped himself into the ninja, is stunned at the sight of this transformation. His frozen body is knocked upward by the beast’s lower set of hands, which are held together, and rise up to strike their prey from underneath.

He’s launched, and plummets to the ground. Immediately after hitting the snow, the monster’s gargantuan foot is raised, and ready to collapse on the protagonist. Pat quickly rolls to his left, and away from the falling limb. He hops to his feet, and darts in the opposite direction. While sprinting away, he charges his weapon. He’s abruptly grabbed by the extendable tongue of the beast, and rapidly reeled into its mouth; he continues to charge up while being taken away. The archer releases a point blank, fully-powered shot, directly into its face. The lifeform instantly glows red; it then shrinks into a ball of fire, which briefly radiates.

The only thing that’s left of the being, is the collection of dark salt that has fallen from the strange sphere. Patrick is thrown hundreds of feet, back. He slams into the snow, and his body remains motionless; his outfit, although it’s regenerating, has been destroyed.

Chapter 7: The Queen’s Request

By the time Patrick wakes up, there are two people in the elegant-white room, which he finds himself within. One of them is Queen Erina; both her turban and dress, are black, and her sandals are brown. The other individual is a seven foot tall, female guard named Bafa, who’s wearing golden-gladiator armor, a bronze helmet, and silver boots; in her right hand is a steel sword, which she grips with caution and aggression. Tan-colored furniture has been organized neatly around. He slowly raises his torso. “Where am I?”

“In my castle. My name is Queen Erina, I, along with my husband, rule over the Gonu people. Who are you?”

“You can call me Patrick.”

“You saved us from the Vama clan; we watched you from here. You were absolutely outstanding. How can we repay you?” A pause occurs before the next words are spoken.

“Do you happen to have any gold?”

“Tons of it, how much would you like?”

“Four million credits worth, if that’s possible?”

“Not a problem.” Keaton stands to his feet.

“Thank you, Queen Erina; pardon my rudeness, but do you mind if I collect it now? I’ve got to get back home.” She hesitates to answer.

“Long ago, there were three men who founded this land. They were born slaves of war, and by mastering their captors’ magic, they were able to best their oppressors, and free their people. Their names were Exy, Kine, and Arlo. Through a mysterious ritual, those men transformed into the bow you carry.”

“So I’ve been told.”

“You’ve made contact?” Pat nods. “You’re obviously special, and I believe you’re the only one who can save the king. I beg of you, will you please help me?”

“I remember now, the elders, they told me that he’s been captured. What did his captors want with him?”

“Our ancient teachers planted a special herb on this island, called Tala, which was only meant for our king’s consumption; it allows him to hear the voices from the astral land. Not only is this realm home to our teachers, but it’s also the first place fugitives from The Wrath, choose to hide out in.”

“The Wrath?”

“It’s a place where souls who’ve chosen a life of vile and disgusting behavior, reside as slaves for one of The Spirit Master’s grandsons. Without an evolved soul, the possibility of becoming possessed by the evil spirits that lurk in the shadows of the other world, from using the Tala, are likely. Somehow, word has spread to the mainland about it.

“They sent their private militia to steal both the Tala, and my husband. The Vama attempted to use the time our defenses were lowered, to attack us. If you’ll be so kind to retrieve the king, and the stolen medicine, however much gold you want, it’s yours!” Another pause occurs.

“I’ll do it. But first, I’ll need a share of the gold sent to a specific address, as soon as possible.”

“That’s perfectly fine; thank you so much!” She tightly embraces him.

Chapter 8: King Les and the Tala

Patrick, in the form of the heron, flies over the ocean once more, and heads in the direction of a base, which appears as a gigantic-black-military ship. He finally reaches his destination; he perches his feet atop the antenna that extends hundreds of feet into the blue sky, and is crafted into the monumental radio tower. Below, using his enhanced vision, he’s witnessing King Les being interrogated by a man that appears as a general, whose outfit consists of burgundy-military fatigues and golden boots; a plethora of gold stars are pinned to his long-sleeve shirt’s collar, and the king is wearing a dark-sleeveless shirt, and slim-fitting, matching trousers and boots; he’s now on his knees and facing the ground, with his arms behind his back, and his hands bound by a metal cuff.

Twenty of the general’s soldiers, who’re also wearing similar outfits, are standing in a horizontal line, behind him. Within his right hand, is a stun rod; by the look of the king, it’s obvious this weapon has been used on him, plenty of times. Soldiers moving cargo, casually walking together, and who’re either driving vehicles or standing idle, can also be seen, along with parked planes and tanks, and ginormous-multicolored crates. Below, there are a total of three-large buildings that stand beside each other. They all appear as silver pyramids, and are constructed into the floor of the vessel; the two between the largest one, are the same size.

“For many years, your pursuit of liberty has been supported by the mainland. Your inability to provide the information that I request, is threatening that support. If you don’t want us going back to that precious island of yours, and picking up another one of your kind, for questioning, I suggest you-”

“That’s pointless, I’m the only one who knows how to use it, and I’m the only one it’s meant for,” tiredly responds the king.

“Those sound like the words of a man attempting to save his people. This is my last time asking politely; how is the Tala properly prepared?” Les remains still and silent. “Take him to the cells. And prepare a ship for Gonu Island.” Two guards scurry to follow through with this order; they grab him by his arms, and drag him along, as they proceed into the building to the right of the middle one.

“Wait!” he yells. The soldiers carrying him, halt. “I’ll tell you everything.” They stand him to his feet.

“Smart man,” pompously says the general. The two men, now following their commander, forcibly escort Les into the middle pyramid. Keaton scans his surroundings; a few hundred yards away from his position, he spots a security guard within a prone motorboat. Patrick flies over to it, and once he’s above the man, he transforms back into the ninja. He lands quietly behind the soldier, and by using the inside of his right forearm, he strangles him until his movements, cease.

He lets him go, and his body thuds against the floor. Pat powers down, and replaces his Rolling Wolves attire, with the guard’s outfit. Before the soldier is able to wake up, he uses the cuffs that were attached to his new-utility belt, to bind up his hands to the craft, and uses the rope that rests on the passenger seat, to wrap the sleeping man’s legs. He changes back into the heron, and flies over to the base. He takes cover behind a crate, shifts, and now disguised as a soldier, makes his way into the facility he witnessed Les being taken into.

“They’re on the highest level,” says one of the invisible spirits. “The door leading to the stairs, is the second one on your left.” Patrick continues past the soldiers, and enters the staircase while maintaining his incognito status. He hurriedly speeds up the many flights of steps, and finally reaches his destination, which appears as a steel, featureless door. “The key is in your right-pant pocket.”

With the use of the stolen item (which is shaped like an almost flat rectangle, with a black lens at its center, and white circuits running across its blue surface), he opens the door by placing the key, much like a puzzle piece, into the indentation that’s carved into the wall to his left; a small-orange-triangular light, blinks beside the slot.

The blinking turns solid green, and the entry opens. On this floor, the opposite end is ten feet away from the entrance, and two-long pathways exist in either direction. Pat slowly makes his way down the left corridor, until suddenly, after his fifth step, the hostage bolts out of the room, that from within, different monstrous screams, which seem to indicate both pain, ferociousness, thrill, and fear, escape.

“Unbind me! I’m your only chance at survival!” exclaims King Les. Keaton grabs his right shoulder, and the two vanish. They reappear in the astral world, and within the elders’ dojo; they’re sitting in the same fashion. Patrick is now in his ninja attire, and Les’ hands are unbound. The king’s signature sword is now within his right hand; it appears completely golden, and the face of a violet-eyed dragon is crafted into its hilt. “What is this place?”

“You’re safe here. Mr. Keaton there, is a Royal Soul, who’s going to aid you in besting those monstrosities. You two must listen carefully to my instructions,” says the one in the middle.

“You--you’re Arlo,” mumbles Les.

“What happened?” asks Patrick.

“You didn’t see them? As we’ve been meditating here, we’ve recently noticed a spike in demonic energy. There’s no doubt that this force is from The Wrath. It seems as though whatever it is, has the ability to manifest within this area, as well as within the souls of its new hosts. When those men absorbed the Tala you gave them, they allowed their spirits to become susceptible to this evil influence.

“So far, from what I’ve been able to decipher, there were nine brothers who fought in a war versus a tribe of peaceful witches, over allegations of lethal spells being cast on their leader. The witches cursed the siblings, and gave them spirits of monsters, capable of turning their own tribesmen, into similar ghouls. Eventually, the women decided to spare the people by curing them, but sent the nine assassins directly into The Wrath.

“Somehow, they escaped; there’s no telling how long they’ve been hiding away here, just waiting on someone weak enough, to possess. Now that they’ve found their way back into the physical realm, they remain without their natural senses, and will blindly infect everyone they come across. Attempting to stop them in the real world, will only result in their regeneration. You must first destroy the forms located here; when the spirits of the brothers are disabled, only then can we cure those who’ve been afflicted by them,” says the one to the left.

“Cure?” asks Patrick.

“By soaking your bow in their blood, we’ll use our souls to purify the curse; once this is complete, we’ll have enough of their essence, to contrive an arrow capable of deleting the disease. Follow me,” says Arlo. They head toward the exit. He opens the wooden door. The ground below is composed of black space; distant stars seem to ignite the abyss. Very far north of their location, are nine-red, smoke-like swirls, that ascend high into the green-burning sky.

“Those smoky formations are emitting from the top of the heads of the nine corrupted brothers, let them be your guide. What they’re doing, is providing a beacon for the cursed mainland soldiers. It’s going to take the two of you to finish this.”

Patrick and King Les exchange a nod, and sprint across the magic surface, leaving a glowing-smoke cloud that briefly resonates against the bottom of their feet, with every step. In two minutes, they’ve ran two miles. While running, and maintaining a close distance apart, Les suggests, “How about we both take care of four, and join forces for the last one? We can collect their blood, afterward.” They’re a mile away from the first target.

“I don’t think so, I rather make sure you’re safe.”

“Are you trying to insult me!? You must not know the power of my blade. Don’t assume that since you may have witnessed me bound by the hands, that I’m not gifted with incredible power. It just so happens that I made a vow not to use my powers on humans, however if you wish to test me like you’ve indicated by your words, then-”

“King Les, I wasn’t trying to-”

“No! Since you’ve seen me in my lowest state, I’ll ensure that you see me in my most high! Behold!” With an enormous leap, he swiftly races through the sky, and directly at his enemy ahead; his sword is pointed out in front of him.

As Les closes in on his target, whose appearance resembles a magnificently sized, black-furred creature, with the face of a rooster that has a terrifically-sharp beak, the body and legs of a sharply-clawed Tyrannosaurus, as well as chicken-like wings (disabling him from flying), a long neck, and spikes running down its back and tail, Patrick catches up.

It notices the swordsman before he reaches it, and prepares his spiked tail to swing. The king grabs his sword with both hands, and flips; his momentum causes him to spin forward with incredible speed, and upon reaching the monster, whose tail has swiped in attempt to knock him, he’s able to cut cleanly through it, and lands on its back. A thunderous scream that reveals hints of both human and chicken origins, expels. While Pat continues in the direction of the fight, he watches as the hybrid attempts to use its beak, to stab Les. Using his sword, he blocks the flurry. He then jumps onto its head, and uses his tool to stab through both of its eyes, triggering even louder screams.

Just prior to reaching the battle, from out of the sky, descend twelve, lizard-men-like beings, with blue hair on their heads, green scales, tan abdomens, red eyes, giant figures, elongated arms and necks, two hind legs, sharp talons and claws, and two tentacle-like tongues, which hang out of their mouths; these deadly and slimy limbs come to a lethally-sharp point, and have the ability to stretch far distances.

The twenty-four projectiles attack Patrick, simultaneously. To dodge their lightning fast speed, he backflips while pulling back on an arrow. Almost immediately after missing, they retract their tentacles, and relaunch them. He leaps 100 yards into the air, and levitates; his arrow has now turned orange. He releases it. Four of them are able to dive out of the way, however eight have been dissolved into blue smoke.

The remaining enemies, with incredible power, jump to meet Keaton in the air. While falling past them, he slowly rotates in a circle. As he spins, he takes out each of them with a single arrow through their necks, instantly causing them to disappear in the same fashion as their brothers. Patrick lands gracefully. By the time he looks up, the ginormous head of the hybrid, is severed from its body.

“I was expecting that thing to put up more of a fight,” states Pat.

“I’m not going to lie, it was formidable, even without eyes. It seemed as though the moment it caught wind of you killing its offspring, it became distracted; that’s when I delivered the finishing blow.” The archer makes his way over to the downed enemy. “I doubt I’ll get that lucky, again.” He sets his bow down in the pool of glowing-green blood. Moments later, the fluid, as well as the weapon, glow white, and the liquid is seemingly absorbed into it. By the time the process is finished, the object is without a stain. Just as he retrieves the item, in the distance, thirty more reptilians pour down.

“I have a new plan; since I’m the one who has to collect the blood, how about you keep these creeps off my back, while I take down the chickens?”

“Fine, but if I run out of things to kill, don’t be surprised to see me taking your glory.” In a flash, Les appears in front of the bunch, and is hacking away with extraordinary swiftness. From the beginning of his assault, limbs are tossed in every direction.

Patrick darts for the next target. Once he reaches a point in which the details of the monster are distinguishable, he jumps. While midair, he charges an arrow. The similar-looking cursed brother abruptly turns to face the oncoming assassin. As he spots the ninja, a fully-powered arrow is released. Using its wing, the varmint takes cover.

The power from the attack, blasts flesh, bone, and feathers, in every direction. Keaton lands before the foe. The savage swings its tail at his head, but by leaning back, he maneuvers out of the way. It then stabs downward; Patrick grabs the limb. Due to his upgraded avatar, only a small amount of blood leaks from the puncture points.

He struggles with its immense strength for five seconds, which is pushing him downward, until he finally throws the tail into the air by thrusting his arms, up. He then vertically lunges upward. Now thirty feet above the entity, Patrick releases three arrows into the tip of the appendage; they pin the back end to the ground. He lands in front of the adversary, and aims two projectiles at a time, at its face. Once released, they find their home inside the eye sockets of the vile animal. Two more shafts are shot immediately after this, and land in the same exact spots; they impale the previous darts, driving them deeper into the eyes.

This attack collapses the anomaly, and blood spills from its mouth. While briefly soaking his weapon, he scans the distant battlefield. Les appears as a twister, and is blending the many devils, to shreds. Reassured by this sight, once his bow is ready, Patrick breaks for the next signaler.

He charges toward his prey. As the organism turns to face him, his arrow penetrates between its eyes; this briefly stuns it, and he continues past. This action draws its attention, and the being follows behind, while snarling and making ghoulish noises.

A short while later, he closes the distance with another corrupted chimera; his brother’s heavy footsteps forewarn it of Patrick’s approach. By bolting in a diagonal angle, he passes it, and heads toward the next target. The two fiends let out a high-pitch shriek as they chase him. This sound alerts the other five of their predator’s presence.

The remaining prone daemons turn their attention toward the source of the signal, and with wonderful speed, they advance in its direction. Keaton, and the enemies north of his location, rush at one another. While this occurs, he applies tension to the magical string. Just before the two groups collide, he once again leaps upward. From the peak of his ascension, he shoots the fully-powered shot at the center of the group; this eradicates most of each of their bodies. He lands on the head of one of the three creatures that remain standing. From the moment he lands, it attempts swiping him off with its tail; it thrusts downward, however, by side flipping out of the way at the last moment, Patrick avoids the attack, and forces the monster to best itself.

From out of nowhere, Les has submerged himself, sword first, within the side of the face of the monster standing northwest of Patrick’s position. A moment later, the brother, still unaware of the king’s presence, lunges its beak at Pat. Just as he dodges this attack by hopping backward, the king finishes it off by landing on the back of its head; his thrown sword hits the mark first, and the swordsman follows right behind it. He lands with his feet planted on his weapon’s crossguard, which further pushes in the point of the saber.

“You weren’t kidding, I had absolutely nothing to worry about,” admits Patrick.

“I’ll give you a break since this is your first time witnessing such magnificence. But never doubt me again, young hero.”

“How did you learn how to do all of that?”

“My sword was created by the same beings that made your bow. Our elders used a metal that can only be summoned through magic, to make my blade. While wielding this weapon, all of my skills and abilities are second nature.”

Chapter 9: The Young Hero

Patrick finishes collecting the cursed blood. The elder spirits create a cure, and manifest it within the fabric of the spirit arrow; this causes its color to shine, gold. The elders transport the two back to the military ship; they appear atop the highest platform on the radio tower. Below, are the hundreds of mutant soldiers, which resemble the lizard-like creatures from the astral world. By this time, the entire base has been enclosed by a violet-holographic, bubble-like barrier. Keaton pulls back the projectile, and after holding it for ten full seconds, a transparent-purple sphere encapsulates the arrow’s tip, and swirling dark mana has begun to twist around its exterior.

He releases it, and upon making contact with the floor, ebony electricity, starting from the point of contact, spreads throughout the entire ship, in the shape of an expanding circle. The roaming beasts change back into a sleeping and nude version of their previous forms.

They notice nine-gargantuan humanoids, who’re also without clothing. They’re on their knees, and aligned in a horizontal line; their hands are closed together, and their heads are bowed. “Those can’t be who I think they are,” says Les. They jump down, and head toward the anomalies, who’re seemingly praying. Patrick readies his bow, and the king keeps his right hand on his sheath, which is down at his right side. The figures stand to their feet. They’re identical, eleven feet tall, have long-white hair, pitch-black eyes, fangs for teeth, and burly shapes.

“Thank you for curing us; words cannot express our gratitude. Instead, allow me to share with you the location of an abundance of gold, that throughout thousands of years, we’ve collected,” says the brother who’s standing in the middle. Suddenly, both Les’ and Patrick’s eyes are forced shut. The coordinates to a planet, as well as an image of it, and the exact whereabouts of the hidden stash, are engraved into their memories. By the time they come to, the siblings have disappeared.

“I suppose it’s time we get going, too,” suggests Les. Keaton uses one of his red arrows to blast a hole into the barrier, directly north of his position. This shatters the shield, and a mega-regenerating opening, is made. They jump through, and with their incredible speed, they sprint atop the ocean, and back to Gonu Island.

Fifteen minutes of running occurs, and the two arrive at the island. Pat continues to trail him through the woods until they reach the set of three-hundred steps, formed into a hillside. As the heron, he flies to the top. Patrick reaches the bridge, which allows travelers to cross the canyon and reach the kingdom that’s erected on the highland, a short time before Les; sitting on the dirt near the bridge, are Erina and Bafa. Upon seeing her husband and the mysterious hero seemingly appear from out of thin air, she bursts to her feet, and tightly hugs the king. She plants a kiss on his lips; he holds her close, and lovingly kisses her, back. They finally let up.

“I couldn’t save the Tala, they forced me to prepare it for them.”

“And?”

“It was a nightmare, but thanks to him, we were able to solve the problem.”

“What happened?”

“I’ll tell you everything, after my nap; I’m beat.”

“Of course you are.”

“Strange man, bring it in,” says Les, as he extends his open right arm, while still holding his left one around his wife’s waist. Patrick snickers, and embraces the two in a brief, three-way hug.

“Bafa, bring the chest, please,” says Erina. The guard makes her way over, and drops the treasure at Patrick’s feet. The cube-like box is made out of silver, and has two handles shaped into both of its sides. “Would you like for us to prepare for you a way back to your home? It would be my treat, and I can assure you that our ships are trustworthy, and exceptionally swift.”

“I would appreciate that.”

“Bafa, please prepare our finest vessel for Patrick’s trek.”

“Hold on.” Les says. “You’re going to need a way to get to that treasure those guys showed us back there, so instead, Ba, see to it that this man has the highest caliber ship we have in stock. I’ll show you how to operate everything, once you’re ready.”

Chapter 10: Home

A black, upright, octahedron-shaped craft, silently descends from beyond the clouds, and gently lands its end, in the tan sand, below; four jets, which release purple flames, are assembled into its sides. It powers down, and an automatic door that’s at the center of the ship, separates apart. While carrying the silver box on his right shoulder, Patrick escapes the craft in his ninja suit, and heads toward the entrance to his isolated trailer that’s parked in the middle of a vast desert.

He proceeds to his front door. He opens it, and sees his girlfriend watching television on his bed. She jolts at the sight of him; baffled at his suit, glowing eyes, and the chest, Gabby asks, “Am I hallucinating?” Keaton sets the object down at his feet, and psychically dissolves the suit. Three oval-shaped tattoos, manifest on the front of his right wrist; they’re horizontally aligned, and are all the same size.

The one on the farthest left is green, the center one is golden, and the last shape is blue; these marks are the monks’ insignia. Once his ninja attire fully dissipates, his stolen-military fatigues are revealed, as well as his face. She plants her feet on the floor, and while sitting upright, begins hyperventilating; she covers her heart with both of her hands.

“Baby, it’s really me,” he says as he plants his right hand on her shoulder. “I can explain everything, but before I start, did your dad get his money?” She looks up at him, remains silent and afraid, and nods her head. He slowly sits down on his bed, beside her.

An hour passes, and the entire tale has finished being explained; Pat, in attempt to calm his girlfriend down, keeps her hands within his. Gabby, still noticeably uncomfortable, is finally calmed by Keaton’s words, when he asks, at the conclusion of the story, “Do you really love me?”

“Yes, Patrick.”

“Then let’s get out of here, and never come back. We have enough gold to live a happy life anywhere we want to, between here and Mars; and don’t worry about your belongings, I’ll buy you everything you need, once we touch down.”

“But wait, what about my dad? Don’t you think he needs you?”

“I’ve given him my fee for bowing out; he should be fine with an extra billion dollars worth of gold, to his name. I doubt he’ll have any trouble finding another thief in that city.” Gabby’s expression is still unsure, as is indicated by her concerned eyebrows, and inability to maintain eye contact.

“But how do you know that those dead magicians won’t need you for something else? Like what if that village is attacked again? Or what if some undead monsters or aliens threaten the world? Will you always have to risk your life for as long as you live? When you were stealing cars, I always knew you weren’t in any real danger, but now-”

“I’m still not in any danger. I was being modest in the story, but if you were there to see what I was capable of doing, you would know that there’s nothing to fear. You can trust me; besides, the Gonu are safe now.” A pause occurs. “I can’t promise you that I won’t be called on because of my gifts, I also can’t promise you that I’ll deny the invitation to save the world. All I can promise you is complete truthfulness and loyalty, and that I’ll never let anything stop me from coming home to you.” These words soften her face, and the two lovingly kiss.

“We can really go anywhere?”

“No kidding.”

“When can we leave?”

“Tonight, if you’d like. Where’s your ride, by the way?”

“It’s out there, it’s just cloaked.”

“Perfect; where would you like to go?”

“The mountains in the north.”

“Sounds good to me; you ready?” After a brief pause, she nods her head.

The two, still holding hands, proceed outside. She disengages the invisibility cloak on her motorbike, and they load it into Patrick’s new vehicle; they then enter, themselves. The spacecraft rises, and zips off, south.

At this period of time, homes can be bought off of the internet. The two decide on settling down in a mansion that overlooks the ocean, on a massif within a neighboring location that’s called, Central Sector. Only one-million people live in this country of mostly farmers, that’s known for its beauty, vast-green lands, wild animals, and kind neighbors, who keep love and hospitality at the forefront of their interactions.

One night, while sitting on his new-velvet couch, along with his sleeping girlfriend, whose legs are sprawled out over his lap, Patrick, while observing his sixty-inch television that’s mounted into the wall above his extravagant, gold-plated fireplace, decides to, by gently kissing her nose, wake her up.

“What are you doing?” she sweetly asks, as her eyes flutter open.

“Do you want to be with me, forever?”

“I already told you, yes.”

“Then that settles it, we’re husband and wife.” They passionately kiss; afterward, their eyes interlock. “What type of ring would you like?” Another pause ensues.

“Who says I want a ring? I rather us just have matching tattoos.”

“What would you like to get?”

She kisses his right wrist. “This. By me wearing your mark, I’ll prove to you that I’ll always accept who you are; beneath it, I want the words--wait what kind of bird did you say you can change into?”

With a smile, he says, “A heron.”

“Oh, yeah; I want it to say, Mrs. Heron,” she says, before bursting into a short bout of laughter. “What do you think?”

“I love it,” he says, while continuing to smile.

She yawns, “I’m going to bed.”

She places her feet on the floor. “There’s something I didn’t mention.”

“What?”

“I’m not going to die; I’m not even sure if I’ll keep aging. But with that being said, for as long as you’re alive, despite how old you become, I’ll never leave your side.” A long pause takes place; Gabby’s gaze faces the floor as she contemplates what to say.

She looks up, and says, “That means the world to me. You’ve really made me the luckiest girl, ever. I won’t torture you though; when the time comes when I’m just too old, I’ll understand you wanting to do your own thing. Just know you won’t have an excuse to, until I’m at least seventy; until then, I’m doing everything possible to remain as young and beautiful as I am now.”

“I love you.”

“I love you too, Mr. Heron.” They exchange another affectionate kiss. “By the way, I think that should be your hero name.”

“Mr. Heron?” Gabby giggles at the notion.

“No, that’s corny; just, Heron.”

Chapter 1: Kalga’s Kingdom

Part III: Kaos

Four individuals lie asleep in the woods, on a planet called Oru, during a time when the sun is lowering; like all members of their tribe, they have tan skin and straight-dark hair. The color of the Earth-like leaves, which gently and constantly fall from the thousands of towering trees, and are currently covering the Oru natives, are red, and the grass-like organisms that cover the ground, are colorless, and shimmer when it’s sunny. The multiple-enormous trees scattered throughout the forest, have sable bark, and the sound of chirping from the bird-like animals, which resemble orange-feathered lizards, with glowing-golden eyes, medium-sized wings, scarlet faces, tan stomachs, and long tails, can be heard.

The reptiles are roaming about on the ground; they’re using their quick-shooting heads to gather the edible leaves in their razor-sharp, teeth-filled mouths. They are also parked atop the magic bark, and are feeding on it; after each bite they take, it regenerates almost immediately. Within the wilderness, there are six feet in every direction between each of the overgrown roots that extend out from the black soil.

The four-naked citizens include three women, and King Kalga’s brother, Kave. They’re snoring, and their all-white clothes rest at their feet; the women within Kalga’s kingdom, wear blouses and loosely fitting pants, and the men wear long-sleeved shirts and similar bottoms. Suddenly, a giant-golden light in the shape of a ball, slowly descends from above the tops of the trees. This wakes them.

“What the heck is that!?” asks Kave.

The girls scream in unison. They dress themselves in a dash, and dart north of their position. As they start to run, the light halts in place; a sparking-pale arm extends out of it, and chases the group. The limb’s remarkable swiftness easily catches up to Kave. It grabs his shirt, and he’s instantly transported away. The arm breaks apart into a glitter-like material that falls to the ground, and vanishes. The girls advance to the castle. Due to many trees being cut down from around the exterior of the building, and its massive size, the dusky (Middle-Eastern-like) kingdom can be seen from hundreds of yards away. It’s made out of a sparkling metal, and there are hundreds of diamond-shaped windows scattered over the magnificent creation.

They exit out of the woods, and begin to cross the garden, which is composed of blue, pink, yellow, and ivory flowers, growing out of the many unique bushes, organized in rows at various locations within the vast-circular, man-made space; the castle resides within the middle of it. A total of fifteen trees have been planted, and two fountains have been assembled at either side of the facility; on the east end, the waterspout ejects liquid from the top of the statue of Queen Bailey, as she holds up a sword with her right hand. The other sculpture is similar, only it’s of Kalga; Bailey is suited in her knight armor, and her husband is wearing his casual clothing. A small pond is behind the centerfold. Royal Guards, who’ve chosen the garden as their practice area, are also currently present.

The runners make their way toward King Kalga and his wife, who’re chasing their three-year old daughter in circles, near Bailey’s statue (both of them are dressed in their cultural clothes). “It took your brother!” Just as they close the distance with each other, from above, they witness the same anomaly descend over their location.

“That?” the king eagerly asks.

“Yes!” they simultaneously say, before shrieking.

“Go into the city and seal every entrance, don’t come out until I say so!” declares Kalga. Everyone rushes inside; they lock the entrance behind them. “Give me back my brother!” After descending until it’s hovering twenty feet above him, the arm reaches out and grabs him, causing him to vanish along with the strange substance.

Chapter 2: Bon

“My apologies for retrieving you in such a way. I don’t have a lot of time, and unfortunately, you’re the only help available,” says a fit-shirtless man with golden-metallic skin, dark pants, glowing-blue eyes, and long, brown and wavy, hair; he’s shoeless, and sitting in a black chair. Various different-colored wires are plugged into the back side of his right hand, and are connected into a medium-sized and spherical, metal object that’s resting within the lit, cylinder-shaped room. The orb is emitting an intense-red glow from its center, in a circular-spiral design; ebony cords connect the several computers that surround the device, into its many ports.

In his left hand, is a double-edged spear; its handle is made of a shimmering-sable metal, with a swirling, golden-glowing trim, and the two daggers at either end, are long, broad, and forged with a type of blue metal, which has a deep-bluish gleam that’s constantly pulsating.

“Where am I?”

“You’re on my ship; what you see there, is the device responsible for my ability to capture you. I must remain attached to it, so that I can keep an eye on my enemy; an enemy that only you, can defeat.”

“How do you even know who I am?”

“My name’s Bon. I’m the son of the creator of this realm. I’ve been tasked with creating weapons for this world’s people. For the past ten years, I’ve chosen the planet we’re currently stationed on, as my home. It’s here where I completed my life’s work; I call them, Soul Arms. There are only ten individuals, which were picked by my father’s father, who are meant to wield my creations; you are one of them. In the hands of anyone besides my grandfather’s chosen ones, or myself, the power of the Soul Arms will render one unstable, or possessed.

“All but one of my special creations, along with the rest of my stock, have been stolen by the ones who inhabit the world beneath the ground. These creatures are ferocious, and have abruptly decided to go on a rampage. In just one day, they’ve destroyed every structure the humans who live here, have created. I’ve managed to rescue the natives, and they’re currently asleep within this vessel.”

“Where exactly are we?”

“One hundred miles beneath an ocean on Faloe; that’s the name of this planet. You’re currently standing within the largest spaceship in the universe. Before you ask another question, please allow me to finish. My Soul Arms are not only constructed from the sharpest, and most durable substance, ever, but they also allow their wielders to both transform into their soul’s mightiest incarnation, as well as into a combination of their current, and previous forms; as amazing as this sounds, in the hands of ruthless, barbaric, cyclopes, who know nothing other than savagery, and feasting on lava rocks, as you can imagine, this is a problem. There are a total of nine of them, which means there are also nine magically infused, prehistoric-evil atrocities, roaming about.

“Lucky for us, with my machine, I can project my essence outward, and spy on the fiendish thieves, from here. I’ve currently placed beacons on the tops of the highest hills. These signals are made from my mana, and project the same magical waves as my weapons; all they want is more power, and based on their senses, they believe the projections will grant them that. This is false, but my diversions are currently working, so long as I remain attached to this. I can use my wormholes to retrieve my stock once you’ve handled the threat; I would do this myself, but I can’t fight, collect all my weapons, and keep the beacons in place, at the same time.

“However, that’s not to say that this isn’t your shining hour. My grandfather wanted you to have your gift, now; all of this, is your destiny, so try and see it as just a job that will help you get used to your new abilities. What I’m going to offer you, is the first Soul weapon I was able to complete.

“As luck would have it, this was the only one that I kept here, instead of in my workshop. It’s only one week old. Here it is in my left hand; my grandfather has personally blessed this spear, which is specifically meant for the one that’s going to lead the chosen ones.” Bon tosses it to Kalga; he catches it, and carefully examines its exterior. “I’ll activate its power once you leave here. When that happens, the merging process will be automatic, and you two will be fully synchronized. Your job is to hunt down the varmint. The ones who’ve merged with the Soul Arms, will be the largest among the group, and the most dangerous, too.”

“I must be dreaming.”

“This is no dream. All of my words are true. Including the fact that I desperately need your help with this, you’re also indeed the one who has been tasked with gathering the mightiest souls of this realm, and leading them into victory over evil. After locating the five who’ve called themselves The Protectors, the remaining four will be easy to find. The Protectors are mutant mercenaries that reside in a galaxy not too far away from here; they have a jump start on the one who you’ll soon discover, is the most malignant force of darkness in this realm. I’m referring to a man named, Vasu; as long as he’s alive, your whole world is threatened.”

“Vasu? I know him! He’s the one my eldest brother has been possessed by!”

“Very soon, you’ll be granted the opportunity to free him; but this comes first.”

“I can see the importance of this mission, however, that doesn’t explain the reasoning behind you taking my younger sibling.”

“That was a mistake; I assumed it was you. I dropped him back off in the forest; he’s just asleep. My device causes that to happen to organisms who travel great distances in a short period of time.”

“All right, then; I’m ready when you are.” A similar wormhole abruptly manifests above Kalga’s head. An arm bursts out and grabs him, causing the same effect as before. Suddenly, he ends up standing within the snow, during a ferocious snowstorm; he’s surrounded by a frozen wasteland that was once home to the citizens of Faloe.

A gargantuan-black, fifty-foot wolf, appears behind him; it halts by his right side. “Don’t be alarmed; you and I are the same. If you wish to quickly find all of the targets, you’ll need a body that can move faster. You have two options, you can take my form, or we can unite. In my current state, I’m only a spirit that can be seen by you alone, so riding on my back isn’t an option.”

“I’d like to know what joining forces, feels like.” The animal lies down, and closes his eyes. Just as the colossus disappears into mist, Kalga’s figure grows an entire foot, and becomes both massive, and blanketed in sable fur (excluding on his human face, palms, and beneath his feet); he now has whiskers, a widows peak, long-mutated ears, glowing-yellow eyes, pointed teeth, and bushy eyebrows. The nails on his hands and feet have become formidable claws. His limbs have been both mutated and elongated, and appear as a menacingly powerful combination of wolf, and man. Kalga is now wrapped in a dark-hooded tunic. His posture and legs are slightly bent as he remains standing; the Soul Arm is now in his right hand.

“This cloth is a gift from The Master; it’ll allow you to leap high into the sky, and fall without hurting yourself. If you ever wish to take my shape, just say my name; it’s Kaos.” A small-golden orb descends in front of Kalga.

“It’s me, Bon. I’m going to lead you to the parasites. There’s one more thing I forgot to add. Once this is all over, and when you locate the other heroes, it will be your duty to provide the arms to them, but only at the appointed time.” Moments later, the radiant entity zooms off north of his location, at nearly 150 miles per hour. Kalga’s posture remains upright, as he keeps up with the racing object.

“Why did these beings attack you?”

“Because they sensed the immense power that my weapons emit.”

“So why can’t you just move?”

“Trust me, these aren’t things the natives want around, either, especially now that they’re armed with my stock. Don’t think for a second that you can reason with these guys, they don’t even have a language. Their minds work as a hive, and all they want is more food. Although they may resemble humans somewhat, they’re not even close to holding the same brain capacity.”

“Tell me more about them.”

“I don’t know much, but the natives spoke of a mysterious species that existed on Faloe, before the first colony arrived. If these things are what I’ve been led to believe, then they evolved from blind dragons, millions of years ago. They were amphibian, and their diet consisted of ocean water, and whatever rocks they could find. Somewhere down the line, they became gargantuan, two-legged beings. Their next evolutionary step is unknown; for thousands of years, the only hints they left behind of their presence, were the abundance of holes in the ground throughout the woods, which extend hundreds of miles down, and apparently lead into a multitude of tunnels and caves.

“Nobody actually was certain, that they just officially made the land below, their new home. The natives have done plenty of research on the brains of the past embodiments of these beasts, thanks to their remains, and throughout time, they’ve been as intelligent as their diet; they’re nothing but complex parasites. If you’re hesitant to destroy them, then be my guest, try talking to them; see what happens.”

“I think I just might do that.”

They arrive fifty yards behind the first set of 100-nude enemies, who’re struggling through the snow, and carrying the stolen items; Kalga slows to a crawl as he sneaks up on them. All but one of the beings, appear as seven feet tall, pale, male, individuals, without any hair; they have four, grandly-sized wings, which resemble those of moths. One glowing-white eye is on the center of their foreheads. The one leading them is an armed, green, twenty-five foot tall, reptile-like being, with two arms and legs. Its armor is made of bone, and covers its torso; pale-bony spikes are along its spine, tail, and shoulders. The spiked objects run up its skull, and cease above the monster’s purple eye, which is in the middle of its face. Its legs, back, and feet, are cloaked in red fur. Its scaled-covered, human-shaped face, is without a nose, and fangs fill its mouth. Wrapped in his long tail, is a broadsword with similar features as the spear that the king’s currently wielding; in each of its hands, are lances.

“Hey!” The group simultaneously halt. They turn to face the source of the voice, and immediately bolt in his direction. “I’ll be forced to kill you if you continue!” They return roars and snarls. Just before they close the distance, Kalga leaps upward. From high above the clouds, he uses his other-worldly sight and strength, to launch his spear down through an opponent, at an incredible rate. This weapon is granted the power to recede into its owner’s hands, in a flash. He impales two more enemies as he’s falling; upon receiving the lethal blows, the oppositions’ flesh dissolves into puddles of red slime, leaving only their skeletons behind.

Thirty of the monsters have ascended to meet their prey. He splits his spear into two swords, which engage the hilts, causing them to emerge. While holding his weapons outward, he swiftly spins; as he gains momentum, the outstretched hands and arms of the strange beings, are chopped at an impressive pace.

Their bones free fall along with Kalga’s swirling figure, and they’ve metamorphisized into the slimy material by the time they’ve landed. A small crater is formed beneath his feet upon touching down. He leaps out of the indentation, and reconnects the two ends of his spear. He lunges, and lands on one’s shoulders. From his position, he uses his uncanny agility and balance, to stab through the heads of twenty more enemies within the pile ahead of him; with each strike, streaks of lighting expel out of the front tip of the weapon. All the while, the frightened fiend struggles to use the three talons on both of his hands, to pry out the wolf-man’s claws, which have dug into his skin.

He hops off the waling animal, and lands behind them. With a quick step forward, he swings the tip of the Soul Arm, right, obliterating the heads of fifteen more unsuspecting enemies. Kalga plants his attention on the titanic leader that’s standing behind his dying militia; he front flips, and as his head faces the ground, his spear is positioned above it. With stupendous speed, he spins his weapon 360 degrees, three times. This decapitates twenty-two more. Once his flip is complete, and his body is upright, he plants his left foot on the head of one of the ten remaining bad guys, and by pushing off, his velocity allows him to powerfully thrust his spear into the eye of the reptile. This kills it, and the leader melts apart in the similar fashion as his comrades. By the time the king lands, the nine others have dropped their swords, and have began sprinting, east. He psychically retrieves his weapon from the ground.

“Behold! The strength of the mightiest soul in the universe!” exclaims Kalga. Bon’s projection reappears.

“Correction, one of the mightiest.”

“Ah, I remember now. Say, when will I get to meet the others?”

“If you must know, you’ll be meeting six of them, in only a few more days. That’s not to say that they’ll be granted their Soul Arms just yet, however. According to my father, there’re still necessary evolutions that must occur within them, before they’re granted my weapons. It’s not like they need them, anyway; they’ve got their own powers. Father has decided that you should be the first and only carrier, now. With that being said, when you do meet them, try and keep the origins of your gift, a secret; they have no business knowing about the arms, until it’s time.”

“You have my word.”

“Thank you for understanding; I see why my grandfather wants you to lead. Within only a few years, I’ve been informed that the events responsible for their evolution, will take place, and when that time comes, you, and the other future wielders of the Soul Arms, will make this universe, a utopia.”

“Incredible.” The light changes, and shines blue. The size of the bubble slightly increases, and suddenly, the weapons lying scattered in the snow, float into it. The glimmering orb absorbs the items, and they’re transported to Bon’s location.

“Behind you!” Kalga turns around, and notices the alien army, which is composed of almost one-thousand beings, hurriedly advancing to his position, from 200 yards away. They’re led by the eight, titanic, merged monsters.

“Kaos!” The spirit, in the form of mist, appears beside him. The king begins to fade; just as he fully vanishes, Kaos’ physical features return. As he stands ahead of the oncoming pursuit, red electricity covers his entire exterior. He bursts in the direction of the opponents. The smaller ones are crushed and electrocuted as they’re trampled by his paws, which run back and forth over them.

One of the leaders appears as a massive serpent with a supremely-long tongue; its wings are bat-like, and its body is shielded in pale fur. It has pointed teeth, deer-like antlers, no eyes, and holds a sword in its tail.

Another two, resemble gigantic, human-shaped figures, with gray fur, mammoth-like tusks, as well as three glowing-red dots, on the center of their oval-shaped heads; they are husky, have human-like mouths (filled with fangs), are thirty feet tall, and have gigantic hands with razor-like nails growing out of the tips of their fingers.

The next one appears as a gigantic, one-eyed worm, with skin that consists of both pink flesh on its belly, and brown scales on its back; a glowing-blue eye manifests deep within the center of its circular mouth, which constantly remains open, and is filled with fifteen rows of sharp teeth; on his back, are a pair of white-bird-like wings.

The next two are one-eyed dragons; they have tan stomachs, and thick-scaly skin. Their eyes glow green. They have two legs and arms, claws on their fingers and toes, and long tails.

The final two appear as twins; they’re the same type of being that Kalga first defeated, and are wielding a sword in each of their hands.

Kaos advances to the flying opponents; after a few chomps, and a bit of chewing, the winged varmint are destroyed. The rest are burned by Kaos’ electric barrier, while attempting to attack him. The king engages in a brief rampage, leaving a mess out of the hundreds of lifeforms at his feet.

Chapter 3: The Dragon Clan

One Hour After Kalga’s Departure:

On the roof of the castle, Bailey and her brother, who’re both suited in metal-plate armor, are scanning the spot that her husband was taken from, as well as up at the sky, for any sign of the strange light. Their royal weapon, which is an advanced-black assault rifle with an infinite amount of ammo, is strapped to their backs. Behind them, hundreds of dry leaves are piled together. The queen bursts into tears. Her brother holds her tightly, and caresses her hair.

“He’ll be back,” says Ceo. Suddenly, Kave can be seen breaking into the garden, from the forest.

“Help me!” he screams repeatedly, while bolting for the entrance. Four creatures that stand ten feet tall, with the heads of bears, and the bodies of hulk-like men with tan fur, are racing after him. A gap of fifteen yards separates the king’s brother from the bear-men, who appear ravenous, and are gaining on him. From the roof, they shoot holes into the heads of the predators, instantly causing them to fall, and shift into their unconscious-nude-human forms; upon regaining their humanoid figures, their bodies, starting from their toes, become masked in fire. The four briefly burn with intensity, before vanishing.

“Stay here,” says the brother. He jumps down to meet Kave, who’s now fifteen feet away from the entrance. Just as this occurs, the doors to the castle are unlocked, and the citizens of Oru, pour out. Holding the doors open for them, and escorting the civilians, are the rest of the guardians, which consists of Bailey’s other siblings: there are three brothers, which include Ja, Ceo, and Bo, and two sisters, whose names are Cydney, and Fe; Bo and Fe are twins.

Bo looks up at his sister atop the tower, and shouts, “Start the fire!” Kalga’s wife takes the lit torch that’s planted within the mounted holder on the wall beside the entrance to the interior of the castle, and tosses it into the bundle. The signal’s now activated. She then leaps down to regroup with her family, who’re making their way into the forest.

“What happened!?” asks the queen, as she catches up to one of her sisters.

“Ky’s clan,” responds Cydney. “There were at least thirty of them. We have them trapped behind one of the walls within the tunnel. Their wounds regenerated each time we took them down.”

“There were traitors amongst us, I saw one of our own officers change right in front of me,” says Bo.

“They claimed all they wanted was you, Bailey,” says Ja.

“Me? For what?”

“They said you were to be their master’s new bride,” responds Bo.

“Only it’s not the same master who you think we’re talking about; these guys called their new king, Vasu,” states Cydney.

“Our plan is to take Joshua all the way to Heulo, and request help. I’m sure those ugly freaks can’t regrow their limbs back, after being blown apart by one of their rockets,” says Ja.

“They’re likely to destroy the whole city by the time we get back,” states Bailey.

“That’s better than the alternative,” Ja responds. The 1,000 citizens, finally reach the beach. Sleeping on the shore, is a sea-turtle-like creature, with orange skin, and a green shell that has a diameter of 100 yards; its name is Joshua. A white, cube-shaped device has been placed at the center of his exterior, which has buttons on it, responsible for navigating the organism.

The Oru natives board the creature, and sit themselves down in the open spaces atop the hard surface. Bailey shouts a mysterious phrase. These words summon an orange, cube-shaped, transparent shield, which encapsulates the beast. Joshua makes its way to the sea. He dives beneath the blue liquid, and swims underwater at an awesome pace.

Ceo advances ahead of the front row of citizens, and says, with an incredibly-loud voice, “Because of the events that occurred today, I think it’s time you all were informed of what we, the Royal Guards, have been dealing with, ever since one-hundred years following King Ky’s departure. As you all know, for the past one-thousand years, Kalga has defended and ruled our people, however, over the last nine-hundred years, almost every year, we’ve gotten at least twenty attacks from similar beasts we faced today, only, they’ve never been able to penetrate our city, nor were they granted the ability to regenerate.

“They only breached us this time, because there were traitors among our ranks. In the past, we’ve continued to knock them down as they came, and even captured a few; during our interrogations, we’ve discovered that the creatures are in fact members of Ky’s clan, which were transformed through Ky’s will, and magic.

“Kalga has informed us that his brother was introduced to a sorcerer who claimed to have the key to infinite power; that mage’s name is Vasu. As far as we know, he has turned Ky into a slave; he, along with the three-hundred loyal soldiers that left the city to follow their king, are forced to remove any and every one of Vasu’s threats.

“He has corrupted Ky, absolutely, turning him into something so vile, he resembles a creature unlike anything ever seen before. One day, while in his altered embodiment, he came to the castle, claiming that he wanted the city and throne, back; seeing the corruption in his brother’s eyes, Kalga refused this demand. Ky chose to attack us; from that very moment, he has been our enemy.

“Once we drop you all off, we’ll be going back to deal with those intruders. With the help of the Huelos, we’ll be permanently taking care of the old king’s army, as well as Ky; even if we have to search the entire universe, to find them!” The citizens simultaneously begin to applaud and cheer.

“As for the whereabouts of Kalga, ever since that strange light took him away, there has been no sign of him, anywhere. But never fear! He’s strong enough to triumph over all evil!” he shouts. They applaud even louder. After an hour of rapid swimming, Joshua rises out of the sea.

The animal resurfaces, and the orange shield automatically disengages into thin air. Bailey says, “Josh has gotten tired; by the looks of it, at his current pace, we’ll make it there in twenty-more minutes.” Suddenly, Ky’s invisible dragon incarnation shoots out from beneath the ocean, and swiftly ascends. The frightened and confused crowd, briefly listen to the sound of giant wings flapping, seemingly right above them. Bailey is yanked from her position, and taken, at an extreme velocity, high into the sky. What’s left of her figure, shoots south.

“What was that!?” screams Cydney, as the citizens holler out for their queen. Four Huelo ships descend from the clouds; they appear as golden, three-dimensional-flat triangles, with advanced jets that emit green flames out from underneath all three of its points, as well as its rear.

The dome-like cockpits are protected by steel; two oval-shaped cameras provide an advanced feed to the four pilots situated in each vessel (one is positioned at the top of the cockpit, and the other is attached to the bottom of the ship). They hover right above the ocean, and beside Joshua, who has halted. The hatches crafted to their cockpits, open, and the wingmen (which appear as humans in oxygen masks and white jumpsuits), exit.

“What are you doing!? Why aren’t you chasing it!?” scream Bo and Fe.

“Chasing what!?”

“We didn’t see anything.”

Chapter 4: Kalga’s Return

A strange, all-white vehicle hovers above the clouds. Its shape resembles a horizontally hovering bullet; this vessel is a gift from Bon, who has also informed Kalga of his kingdom’s current troubling situation. Within its open-circular end, which is aligned with spikes, a jet that’s radiating a thick, light-blue, electric, web-like plasma substance, is situated; its front end is shaped as a dome. On either of its sides, as well as the spot beneath the nose of the object, are advanced-adjustable thrusters. Suddenly, the king drops from the bottom portion of the craft, which has a hatch that opens, then closes automatically.

He lands within the desert region of his home planet, as his merged avatar; it’s night. The sand is pale, and ahead, are both men in dark robes, and bear-men, riding massive-black spiders; these organisms make venturing into the desert, a nightmare. The creatures are controlled with the use of advanced technology, however without this influence, they’re the most vicious predators on Oru. Surrounding the area as well, are sparring clansmen, and individuals who’re either reading magic books, mingling with nude women, or eating around the various campfires.

Kalga, without being seen, continues to observe this group, until he hears his wife’s screams. He looks up, and notices an enormous-ebony dragon, with glowing-green eyes, descending on the trapezoidal prism-shaped building, which ascends 200 feet high. He leaps all the way to the top. Upon landing on the rectangular space, a hooded man in a jet robe, turns to face him.

“And you are?” asks Vasu; his hands are protected with intricate gauntlets, and barely any of his face is revealed. Behind him, Ky has descended low enough to drop his prisoner to the ground at a safe distance. She falls, and struggles to get up. In a flash, the corrupted brother transforms back into a human; he has brown skin, a bald head, glowing-red pants, and tribal tattoos covering his entire torso. He lands gracefully, and proceeds to scrape the unbalanced-distressed wife, off her feet. He carries her along to the mystic figure, while being punched in the back. The mage continues to stare at the strange sight, ahead of him. The old king notices the werewolf.

“A visitor?” Ky says, without a hint of fear, as he tosses Kalga’s love to the ground. The king powers down, and his cultural attire is once again revealed. “Brother? What have you gone and done to yourself?”

“Kalga? What happened to you?” fearfully asks Bailey.

“I’ve been given a gift from the creator.” A purple fire fills Ky’s eyes.

“Kill him!” demands Vasu. The pawn remains still; the ferocity in his expression indicates his influenced state, however, while staring at his brother, his appearance softens. He then turns to his superior, and his rage resumes. With a snap, the sorcerer collapses his slave; he then extends both of his arms, outward. From out of his open palms, two all-black swords manifest. Kalga rushes his opponent.

He lunges at him; midair, he thrusts the spear into Vasu’s torso. By crossing his blades, he blocks the attack. As he lands, he mutates into his alternate avatar. Simultaneously as this occurs, the queen situates herself behind Vasu, and pins his arms, up. Kalga uses this chance to close the distance; he grabs him by the neck, and squeezes the life out of the wizard, as he holds him up in the air with his right hand. Vasu’s face reveals his fear as he drops his weapons, and grabs for the giant limb that’s restraining his breath.

Concurrently as he loses consciousness, and his eyes begin to shut, a woman, similarly dressed, appears within a manifestation that resembles a flaming-round-purple sphere, which expands behind the antagonist; simply by looking at Bailey, she’s able to telepathically throw her a few feet back. The strange woman then reaches out her left hand, and sends a violet ball of fire at Kalga’s head. This causes him to lose his grip, and fly backward; the woman touches the chest of the unconscious being, and the two vanish. The hero regains his composure. Once he realizes his enemy has disappeared, he disengages his mutations, and helps up his wife. They embrace each other, and passionately kiss.

“You met the creator?” she asks.

“Not quite.” Ky abruptly springs to life, and stands to his feet. The king, in an instant, resumes his wolfman figure. He positions himself in front of his wife, and points the spear out at his brother’s throat, who’s now only ten feet away. He raises his hands to surrender.

“He has taken all of my powers from me. My soldiers and I are completely powerless, now.” Kalga returns to normal.

“There was a woman who appeared out of wine-colored flames; who was she, and where did she take Vasu?”

“Woman? I’ve never seen Vasu with a girl; I don’t know what you’re talking about.” A pause occurs as Kalga attempts to decipher his brother’s integrity. “Vasu has many different clans, it easily could have been another one of his pawns, who’ve probably transported him to another one of his many hideouts. Brother, please understand, under Vasu, I was simply a reflection of him, with very little of myself intact.” Tears fall from Ky’s eyes. “I’m sorry.”

“So what now?” the king asks, as Ky wipes his tears with his forearm.

“Kalga, his evil essence influenced my thoughts to want to do evil. I wasn’t in charge of my spirit, but I remember it all. There were times when I wasn’t completely under his enchantment, however every action and emotion of mine was altered by the rage and overwhelming darkness attributed to the curse that allowed me to draw from Vasu’s power.”

“You swear none of it was you?”

“I do. My soldiers were controlled as well.” A pause occurs. “If you’d be so kind to spare us, I promise to keep my clan away from you, forever.”

“I’ll let you live, but not outside of the city. By the looks of it, that man isn’t dead, which means he could come back. To make sure you don’t get influenced again, I’ll have to keep a close eye on you. Your soldiers will have to return as well. The citizens will hate you, but I’ll situate you all in a separate section away from everyone.”

“You have my word that nobody will try anything.” The brother extends his open hand. Kalga hesitates; after shaking hands, he swiftly pulls Ky toward him, and uses the same arm he embraced him with, to knock him down. He flings onto the ground, and thuds hard against the rocky surface. He points his spear at his eye. “Why?!” He briefly holds his position, then removes his edge, and helps his brother back to his feet.

“I needed to see if your powers were truly gone.” Suddenly, a mountainous, human-shaped figure that appears cloaked in fire, which paints the area a deep red, descends from the clouds, 300 yards behind the temple.

“Stay put!” Kalga demands. “Kaos!” The wolf’s spirit form appears in the distance. He kisses Bailey as he starts to dissolve. Simultaneously as this happens, the anomaly also changes; it shifts into a helmetless-knight, with sleek-spiked-steel armor. It has the face of a man, however, metal fangs fill his mouth, and his eyes have been replaced with fire. Black scales cover both the top of his head, and his neck. Mysterious clouds fill the sky. Kalga charges at the knight, and successfully sinks his fangs into his left shin. He attempts to yank him backward, however his balance proves resilient, even while screaming in pain from the electricity that continues to flow through him, from the ancient creature’s barrier; it clenches his magnificently-sized fists together, and attempts to strike Kaos’ back. He struggles to keep his hands closed due to the powerful currents constantly burning him; he finally fails, and lowers his guard.

He loses control of his balance, and falls. The wolf uses this opportunity to grab him by his torso. He picks him up in his mouth, tosses him upward, and with a thunderous howl, he summons a ginormous cluster of red lightning down from the clouds. The king is impervious to the flurry of strikes that shower him and the disintegrating adversary. As the fight ends, four Huelo ships land on the roof of the temple; Ky’s army is also dispersing in every direction, away from the supernatural ruler.

Chapter 5: Khalil

Bailey, Ky, and the guards, who all hitched rides with the Huelo pilots, are dropped off at the castle; Kalga followed behind. The birdmen, before heading home, inform their base to return the Oru natives, along with Joshua, in the morning. The king and his bodyguards, venture into the castle.

They unblock the barrier, and immediately see the surrendering traders lying face down on the ground with their hands behind their heads. They place binds on their wrists, and escort them into the dungeon. The city is destroyed, however in one night, Ky is able to use his original-mystical techniques, to restore the kingdom, entirely.

The next morning, the king and his older brother are standing on the roof of the structure, and watching as his people are escorted into town. Kalga’s weapon is in its alternate embodiment, and resembles sable gauntlets; in this state, he can project fiery-blue beams from the center portion of his palms (his metallic, knife-like nails are golden, and at his elbows, curved blades, manifest).

“Kalga, I remembered something just now; my next mission was to collect someone who Vasu planned to force into slavery. Vasu claimed that this boy wields two swords that he created. They supposedly hold remnants of the King of Magic’s, soul. Apparently, some time ago, Vasu trapped the king, and was able to draw from his power, granting him the ability to create anything he imagined.

“Ever since the first time Vasu died and was reborn, he has struggled to regain his full strength, disabling him from being able to retrieve his lost creations. Beings have been able to possess the wielder of his blades; they’re planning to use him to destroy every powerful army between here, and the next galaxy. Vasu claimed that today, these aliens are set to attack their first empire; their target is Earth. We were to overpower them, and steal the boy away. If you use your powers to save the people of Earth, and somehow find a way to free the blinded one’s affliction, you would have one heck of a sidekick.”

“Although we haven’t been allies in hundreds of years, with that knowledge, I can’t just let them all die. I might need your help in healing the boy’s mind, when I get back. Tell Bailey I’ll be returning in the morning.” His spacecraft descends from above the clouds, and hovers fifteen feet over the roof.

“Where did you get that?”

“It was a gift from a man named Bon, who happens to be the son of the creator, and grandson of The Spirit Master.”

“Amazing!” Ky returns, astonished. Kalga leaps into the opened-top portion of his ride. The lid closes, and in an instant, he zips away into space. At the speed of light, his pod briefly speeds to his destination. He slows down as he comes within visible contact of Earth.

From his position, ahead, he can see a fleet of twenty, pyramid-shaped starships; four of them have aligned in a large square, and are holding a monumental-metal-egg-like capsule, between them. A green-electric net connects the ships and the item, together. Kalga sneaks behind the group, and follows them down to Earth.

They end up parking high above a vast, octagon-shaped structure that’s formed into the ocean, and occupied by a human military faction. Immediately upon arriving, a fiery-red, cube-shaped barrier, forms around the facility, and ten, faceless-titanic soldiers, with glowing-purple eyes, rise up from the water. They’re made from gold, shaped like humans with four arms, and have gargantuan turrets mounted to either sides of their heads. Each of them are wielding laser cannons, which must be held with two hands.

The egg is separated, and out jumps a ninety-foot humanoid being, with thick-black scales for skin, and glowing-red eyes. It has both metal fangs within its open mouth, as well as a fire brewing. Once this being flops into the water, he sinks, only to escape the sea in a cyclone that allows him to float above his prey.

While the twisting barrier of ice and water deflects the guards’ attacks, with a finger point, from out of the void, this creature sends down a barrage that’s composed of thousands of shadow daggers, arrows, spears, and lightning bolts; this attack rains down over the ten protectors, and they’re quickly disposed of.

From behind the agitator, a mountainous-glowing figure, with bright-golden eyes, approaches. Its body is fifty-feet long; it’s clothed in what appears as a kimono. As it opens its mouth, its razor sharp fangs are exposed. From out of his esophagus, he shoots a sparkling-red beam, at the unsuspecting invader. The awesome stream penetrates the cyclone. The shot connects with the back of the attacker’s head.

This causes the beast to fall. The fleet escapes at the sight of the strange figure. The being, upon hitting the top layer of the liquid, shifts into what resembles a young man, in a dark jumpsuit; his extra mass has morphed into dense smoke, which lingers in the air, and slowly fades.

The hero hovers down toward the water, and gently removes the floating human with the use of his palm. It then ascends, and zips off, east; Kalga follows behind in his invisibly cloaked ship. It continues to fly over the sea at a wondrous velocity for fifteen more miles. The creature finally reaches a navy-blue naval ship, with the number ten printed on its right side, in snowy writing. It lands aboard the craft; the king advances in its direction.

It sets the unconscious body down near the edge of the deck, and bursts into colorless light. Suddenly, five individuals are standing in its place; there are two females, and three males. They’re dressed in casual clothing, and one of them is wearing what appear as robotic legs. On each of their foreheads, are different-colored, diamond-like items.

Ten militia members, dressed in olive jumpsuits, rush over to the six. Two of them are pushing a gurney, and in one of their hands, is a simply made, steel, crown-like object; the soldier places this device on the unconscious young man’s head, and the others place him on the bed, and strap him in.

The group then hustle into the interior of the ship, leaving the five, alone. Almost as soon as the iron-automatic doors close behind them, a flaming entity breaks through the ceiling, and vertically zooms into space at nearly the speed of light. Baffled, they watch as it quickly disappears from sight. Kalga leaps from his parked craft, and lands in front of the group, distracting them from the trail of fire, above.

“My name is Kalga. I mean none of you any harm. I arrived here to deal with the one who just escaped; my only intent, is to help.” Before they can react, a heron that was perched atop the railing near the edge of the boat, flies down to the floor. It changes into a ninja in white, with glowing eyes.

“I’d like to help out, too; you can call me, Heron,” says Patrick, as he stands upright.

The mutant with the darkest complexion, says, “We’re The Protectors, it’s a pleasure to meet you, both.”

Chapter 1: The Power of the Energy Stones

Part IV: Jazu

Time Frame: Years prior to all previous events

An airship lands in the empty, circular, and dirt-filled designated space within the wilderness. The jungle is Earth-like; it’s morning, as is indicated from the blue heavens. From out of the ship, exits an alien scientist who’s wearing an ivory-lab coat and tan pants. He’s being escorted by three guards dressed in black suits; they’re equipped with specialized sun-glasses that allow them to track the invisible facility, and appear the same race as the one in the pale jacket. They’re bald with gray skin, and have tall-muscular figures. They proceed through the woods, as their ship descends into the ground by the use of the hidden lift, which they parked on.

They reach their destination, which is camouflaged to blend in with the surrounding area. The optical illusion reflects the jungle, and provides a mirror image of it; its actual shape, resembles a sizable and flat, rectangular prism. They locate the entrance, and using the keycard he retrieves from his right-pant pocket, the technologist opens the steel-automatic door, and the four enter inside.

The crew have met with a man in a lab coat, who’s within an all-white room. He’s of the same race. Various tubes, computers, and machines, fill this space. Besides one other person, the five currently in the laboratory, are the only staff members present within the base. The group turn their attention to two Life Preservation Tanks, which are resting on the floor in the right corner. These cylinder-shaped objects are standing upright; they’re made with see-through glass, and the two individuals inside, are floating within a purple liquid. Breathing apparatuses are attached to their faces. These humanoid beings are completely bald, appear healthy, and have gray skin, indicating their relation; one is male, and the other, female.

The researcher wearing the black pants, says, “Dr. Ben, these are the Urians. It seems as though whoever is responsible for destroying their planet, has infected them with a biochemical device, capable of completely shutting down their bodies. The two you see there, were the only survivors we found out of the whole city of Greza,” from left to right, he names them. “Their data chips were still active when we found them. This one’s Evan, she’s Ivon.”

“Sels told me there were three. Where’s the other one, Gyle?”

“He’s referring to Project One; he’s dealing with him as we speak. We call him that because his data chips are missing. We know nothing of his origin, however, his skin is a different tone, which tells us that he must be from another region on Uri. He arrived here a week before they did.”

“Where do you think he’s from?” asks Ben.

“We’re thinking the Lazes District. Lazes was the first city that was attacked; everyone from there has gone missing.”

“Where is he now?”

“Being tested; he was in a much more critical state. We had no choice but to use the serum on him. Based on his results, I believe we’ve contrived a cure; not only to what’s poisoning the Urians, but also, death.”

“This doesn’t happen to involve the power of the Energy Stones, does it?” frustratingly asks Ben. A pause occurs as Gyle silently glares into Ben’s eyes.

“It does.”

“Didn’t I tell you, that was out of the question until you can find out more information on them!?”

“That’s another reason why I had Sels get in contact with you, Ben; I’ve done just that.” An additional pause occurs as Ben’s frustrated disposition, calms down; his gaze returns to the pods ahead of him.

“I want to see Project One, first.”

Chapter 2: Death’s Cure

The two, middle-aged scientists, are standing eighty feet away from the tide, and facing its direction. The sun has just set. Gyle removes a syringe from within his jacket pocket, and holds it up with his right hand to show his comrade, who’s now standing to his right. “With the Amplifier, we finally found a way to force the stones into their highest states of matter. This syringe contains its mutated form, and once injected, it will provide us with powers. We will become other-worldly; are you ready?”

“Explain the process.”

“There are two versions. This is how it works; the serum first mutates our DNA, allowing for us to merge with the stones’ mysterious essence. Each and every transformation is different. With Prototype One, the user’s powers will last for two hours, tops; once it wears off, the individual returns to normal, and gets to live their lives happily, without any side effects. The second version is similar, the only difference is, our DNA remains mutated, and our powers remain engaged, unless we use our minds to shut them down.”

“This sounds incredible,” utters Ben.

“The next step for us, is mass production.”

Ben asks, “We can’t trust just anybody with this; who do you wish to sell to?”

“We still have to figure that part out. The first step however, is using this to strengthen our army,” Gyle implies. “All we’ll need to become the most powerful military this universe has ever seen, is access to more of the stones.”

“How many?” Ben, now slightly annoyed, asks.

“All of them.”

“You know I can’t give you an answer, without seeing results, first.”

“Of course,” Gyle replies. He removes his coat, and throws it on the brown sand. His short-sleeved shirt, is now revealed. He injects the syringe that he’s holding, into his left arm. He lowers his head, drops the needle, and raises both of his hands to cover his face as he starts to hyperventilate. He finally begins to calm down, and takes one very deep breath. He removes his hands; his eyes are now glowing white. He, now speaking with a demonic tone, announces, “It’s complete.”

“I can see that your eyes are sparkling, but surely that can’t be all, right?”

“Look behind you.” A titanic, blue and almost transparent, masculine and robust, faceless figure, standing fifty feet tall, has his two-humanoid behemoth feet planted in the sand.

“That, is under my control,” the mutant announces, before levitating into the anomaly’s torso; once this occurs, he disappears. It grows both his face, and sapphire-like skin; a silver diamond materializes on its chest, as well. After merging with the entity, his voice sounds as if he’s a giant, and is incredibly loud and deep.

Ben exclaims, “Incredible!”

“So, are you ready?”

“Are you kidding? This is fantastic!” Gyle floats out through the diamond, which causes it, and the being’s face, to disappear; it stands in place as he hovers down. Once he closes the distance, he retrieves the serum within his right-pant pocket, and offers it to him. He takes it, and with his right hand, he injects the glimmering liquid into his left wrist.

The strong blast of mana forces him to kneel over on his knee. As his head hangs limp, currents of yellow electricity, which start at the top of his head, travel swiftly to his toes. He’s fully merged with his new powers. His eyes now shine with blue electricity. He stands to his feet. “This feels fantastic!” Ben raises his spread hands; dark-heavy clouds are created above his head. From out of them, a flurry of lightning strikes connect with his body. The entire sky darkens, and it starts to rain.

“I knew you’d like it,” Gyle happily says. “Looks like you’ve gone and changed the weather!” They both begin to sinisterly laugh. An expanding fiery portal hovers one hundred feet above the ocean. This immediately catches Gyle’s attention. “What in the-?” From out of the wormhole, head first, materializes a titanically-sized humanoid. It’s crouched, clawed, composed of black-metallic skin, and has pulsating, almost-translucent horns, on the top of its head.

Caliginous energy emits off of its exterior. It has four eyes; the upper two set shine purple, and the lower ones, ivory. The monster clears the manifestation, and is now standing upright. It’s ten feet taller than Gyle’s giant. The anomaly slowly glides over to them as they remain in shock.

Ben inquires, “What do you think it is?”

“Let’s find out once we take it down.” The scientist binds together with his mammoth alter ego, and the two mutants battle the intruder, who’s hovering over the waves. Gyle’s titan, after closing his fists together, gathers a mass amount of fire-like mana that floats around his hands and arms; with a violent-pushing motion, he projects two swirling-orange beams, which hit the target that’s now fifty yards away.

While the streams continue, the enemy uses its left palm to absorb them; as this occurs, Ben, with the use of a psychic gateway summoned with his mind, teleports behind the enemy. While in its blind spot, he conjures a lightning storm. It strikes against the top of its head. This causes the demon’s body to flicker white, as he shrieks, and appears stunned. It vanishes. Ben’s able to only briefly scan his surroundings, before a red laser jets out from beneath the ocean, and flings him upward; he free falls back down to shore.

The monster, in the blink of an eye, transports himself once again, and this time appears behind Gyle. With awesome speed, it uses a double-handed strike to attack him. He quickly turns, and by using both of his palms, he captures the creature’s weapons. As he struggles to hold the invader’s hands, the attacker zaps him to the ground with another blast that exits from his upper set of eyes; a crater forms around him upon crashing.

A growing fire now gathers in the space between the foe’s horns, which are becoming denser, and more prominent. Before the inferno has a chance to grow to its full potential, Ben focuses a heavy stream of electricity at the target’s back, which he sends out from the tips of his extended fingers. While continuing to hover, the alien struggles to free himself from his stunned state, but fails, and collapses to the ground. He lands on his knee. Gyle, with both of his hands, grabs the figure by the sides of its head, and viciously headbutts it.

The opposition’s magnificently-sized body collapses onto its back. Ben leaps up, and reaches a position that’s eye level with his ally. He hovers with the use of the collection of yellow electricity that flows out of his feet. A barrage of lightning, and Gyle’s lethal orange streams, concurrently strike their downed opponent. The shadowy glow that resonates over the colossus, as well as its skin, shifts into a gleaming orange. While still horizontally flattened, he starts to hover. As he rises, his body assumes an upright fetal position.

He reaches 100 feet high. The pale mana between his horns, shines, and releases a blinding light. This flash somehow transports the men away. Once the coast is clear, the being assumes his previous embodiment, and flies over the jungles of the island.

He halts when he arrives at the invisible base. He hovers over the camouflaged structure, and prepares to destroy it, by powering up both the portal that he uses to summon fireballs, as well as his eyes. He unleashes his assault, destroying the building, and disabling its camouflage in the process. Once it’s totaled and up in smoke, the devilish enigma, disappears.

Chapter 3: The Protectors

Toward the very edge of the platform that’s on the first level of the multistory base, which is composed of many separated facilities and units, are The Protectors. Sarah, who’s sporting a ponytail, is wearing a dark hoodie, blue jeans, and split-toe ninja shoes. She’s standing against the white railing, and facing Jin, who’s approaching the group, and has exited out of the interior of the base. He’s dressed in a sable, long-sleeve shirt, and tan-cargo shorts. The skin on his feet and ankles appears metallic. Cassidy’s in her alien bodysuit, which consists of an ebony, gray, and blue spandex-like material; her purple hair is worn down, and matching, slender-military boots cover her feet.

She’s beside Thomas; his long-sleeve compression suit is olive and gray. He’s also wearing black tactical boots and matching gloves. They’re seated on the rail, and facing the base.

Joseph’s within a flame-resilient, advanced compression suit, and the same armor as before, is equipped over his lower half. He’s seated on the ground, and is leaning back with the support of his arms, which rest behind him. His legs are dangling off of the platform, which extends fifty feet out of the ocean, as he faces the abundance of water, ahead.

Jin finally closes the distance with his group, and says, “I just got the last of the details regarding Cytri’s competition. There are going to be a total of twenty-one teams; each will be containing three super-powered individuals. There will be six rounds, and the finalist must compete against the reigning champions.”

“The Dark Brotherhood, right?” responds Joe, without shifting his attention.

“That’s right. These guys haven’t lost the tournament in ten years; and apparently, like us, they don’t age. I don’t know anything about the others, but I do know that whoever wins, gets their hands on a Monolith.”

Cassidy asks, “Seriously? Can’t those guys hit the speed of light?”

Thomas answers, “Sure can.”

“So since, like I said, there can only be three contestants, who wants to join me?” inquires Jin.

“I’ll go.”

“Me too,” Cassidy and Sarah say.

“You guys do realize that the winner only wins, when his opponent can’t stop moving, right? I hear a lot of the time, cats die out there in the ring,” says Thomas.

“I was getting to that part; it’s true, everyone will literally be trying to take each others heads off, but he brings his contestants back to life with that machine he uses. We’ve got the same one here, that’s how I know it works. You guys still in?”

“I suppose,” answers Cassidy.

“Yeah, as long as we’re dealing with folks that can hold their own, out there. Putting little punks to sleep won’t be any fun,” Sarah declares.

Joe states, “I guess that means Thomas and I will be watching.”

“All right then ladies, we’re leaving in the morning.”

“Okay.”

“Got it,” the two say, almost concurrently.

Chapter 4: The Urians

The ruined laboratory has been left in shambles after the attack. What’s left of the lights within the room where the Urians’ floating bodies are situated, flicker on and off, and some items are still ablaze; smoke has filled the entire place. Suddenly, the doors to the elevator, open. From out of it, exits a scientist in a filthy, short-sleeve shirt, who’s holding a briefcase, and sipping on the liquid that’s held within a tube; he’s heavily bleeding from wounds on his head, and several others on his torso.

He takes his last sip, and drops to the floor. “It’s not working!” he cries. The man violently has a bout of coughing, and crawls toward the preservation tank that’s containing Project One’s body. Project One is a tall, pale, naked, hairless, muscular-humanoid male; his real name is X. By holding onto the capsule’s control panel, he lifts himself up, and presses the green button; this completely drains the liquid, inside. It opens, and X exits.

He falls to his knee, and attempts to catch his breath. He finally notices the scientist, who’s now lying on his back, and coughing up blood. X walks over toward him, and kneels so that his head is hovering above the man’s torso. The dying man opens the briefcase without looking by using his right thumbprint, which he holds down across a small screen that’s made into the case. The three tubes inside, are now exposed. “Drink this; there’s one for each of you. Your mutations will wear off soon if you don’t, and you’ll die, along with the others.”

“What is it?”

The injured man coughs. “Not only will this cure you, but you’ll gain extraordinary abilities. Your bodies will--(cough)--they’ll morph; you’ll be granted immortality.” He has another round of violent coughing.

“Who caused this?” X inquires. The man’s eyes slowly blink twice, as he struggles to breathe; his attempt to speak ceases as they close, indicating his unconscious state. The Urian searches him, and discovers an oval-shaped key device in his jacket pocket; a screen is featured on this item. A yellow-blinking blimp reveals to the holder of the object, where exactly the vehicle it belongs to, is.

He approaches the two other preservation tanks, and presses the green buttons on both of them. He watches as the fluid within, flushes; the glass doors then open. Their naked bodies flop to the floor, and begin to have seizures.

X forces the entire serum into their mouths as they tremble; he feeds Ivon, first. He finally drinks the remaining cure. A moment later, he grows long-black hair, eyebrows, and burning-red, electric-like eyes; a translucent and indigo aura, resembling fire, also now surrounds him. While their bodies calm down, he, at the speed of light, moves to the locker that rests in the corner of the room.

He opens it; within it, are three shelves. Six, navy-blue uniforms are folded and resting on the first one, and a tablet-like device lies atop the bottom shelf. These outfits are compression suits, made of regenerating nano-tech fibers; he removes three.

Chapter 5: Death’s Cure Part II

A metallic-circular hatch is hidden within the muddy ground of the jungle. It suddenly opens, and slowly ascending out of it, is the ship that’s containing the Urians. It appears as a highly-advanced, red, mechanical dragonfly. The vehicle fully exits; it reaches 300 feet above the ground, and speeds off into space.

Meanwhile, within the room that the Urians just escaped from, is the unconscious scientist. His skin abruptly turns sooty; moments later, he morphs into ash, and a twister that’s composed of a strange, thick, dark, smoke-like substance, arises in the spot where he disappeared from. It rises through the ceiling by slipping through the cracks and debris.

Ben and Gyle have been thrown into the ocean by the beast’s strange light, and have plummeted deep within the blue abyss. They recalibrate their bodies, and make their way back to land.

They finally reach what’s left of their workplace; their sprinting comes to a halt upon approaching it. “No! This can’t be!” Ben shouts.

“All of that work, gone; and we still don’t know who’s responsible,” replies Gyle.

The smoke that the scientist has shifted into, appears hovering on top of what’s left of the laboratory. It flies behind the two men, and changes, once again. The formation of the twisting particles begins to slow down, and a towering-monstrous lifeform appears in its place.

It has completely black, snake-like skin, and its face is lion-like. On his forehead, are ram-like horns. Both its mane, and its eyes, are made of fire. Its body is composed of a combination of human and dinosaur traits, and its arms and legs are dragon-like; razor-like talons extend out of its toes, and blade-like claws replace Sel’s human nails. It has multiple spikes scattered over its back; the smaller ones are on its shoulder blades, the bigger ones are near the center, and the smallest pair are at the very top and bottom of its spine. It has the tail of a scorpion, and is without genitalia. The chimera’s outer cells dissolve into ash, leaving only the nude man, standing before them. “Sels?! That thing, was-?” Ben utters.

“I was going to die if I didn’t take the serum. It turned me into that,” says Sels, in a neutral tone of voice.

“Fascinating,” rejoins Gyle.

“In order to save the Urians, I gave them the extra capsules containing the prototypes; they survived, and escaped this planet in my vessel.”

“We must find them,” declares Ben.

Gyle responds, “If they’ve mutated, then that means they’re most likely fine; our priority isn’t finding them. Our first line of duty is gathering more stones, and taking them to the collection we have, on Yoaxu. We have just as many resources there, as we had here, and I can rebuild the Amplifier, myself. Then, we must find and destroy the one responsible for this mess.”

“How do you expect to do that?” asks Ben.

“Right when we mutated, there he was; it seems to me that somehow, our spectacular evolutions triggered its senses.”

“So shouldn’t he have felt me, and the Urians transform, too?” asks Sels.

“My guess is he did, however, I think we damaged him to a point where he can’t retaliate. We’ll have to replicate the effect of the transformation once again, and trap him when he arrives.”

“Calling what we’ve managed to create a fortune, would be an understatement; this will make us the richest men in the universe! The only question is, how do we locate the other stones?” asks Ben.

“My team has managed to create a device capable of locating where they emit the highest concentrated frequencies. The only problem is, it’s locked in a locker within the incubation room,” says Gyle.

“That’s where I just came from; I believe the locker you’re describing has been untouched,” replies Sels. Ben closes his eyes, and with his thoughts, he opens another quickly expanding psychic gateway. In a flash, he enters into it. Ten seconds pass, and he returns with three of the same jumpsuits that were collected by the Urian mutants, as well as the tablet-like device. He throws Sels one of the uniforms, and he begins to dress.

“Is this it?” he asks, as he holds up the tool.

“Perfect,” says Gyle; he takes it from his hands. “Follow me, I know exactly where we can find a decent spacecraft.” He leads the group south of their position.

Chapter 6: Regroup

The mutants from Uri, which are now dressed in the compression suits, and are within a vessel that’s traveling at hyper speed, are seated on the benches constructed into the inner walls of the cargo hold. Evan is in between X, who’s on his left, and his sister. X’s eyes still shine red, and his black hair remains. Ivon is both closest to the inner wall, and the exit that’s to her right. The siblings’ features have changed. They now have long white hair and eyebrows, and bright-green eyes. “Where are we headed?” asks the sister.

“The closest planet that’s emitting a radio frequency,” answers Evan.

“How did you get this thing to do that?” she replies.

“It was a preset option; I just pushed a button, and here we are.” He shifts his attention to X. “I never got your name.”

“My family and friends called me, X.”

“Nice to meet you, I’m Evan.”

“And I’m Ivon, his sister.”

“I wish we could have met under better circumstances, but I presume we have no choice but to make do, now. The way I see it, if we stick together, we’ll have a better chance in this wicked world,” X says.

“I was thinking the same thing. I remember everything they did to our home. There’s basically nothing to return to; as of now, we’re all we have left,” Evan declares. Ivon, overwhelmed by emotion, begins to cry; she covers her face with her hands. Her brother rubs her back, to comfort her.

“I know Ivon, this is really terrible; but with these new powers, we’re sure to get the last laugh,” states X.

Evan asks, “Are you suggesting that we take the fight, to them?”

“I don’t see why not. Someone has to bring justice to our oppressors.”

“I agree with you,” the brother retorts.

Ivon straightens up, and says, “And how do you expect to take down that type of army?”

X counters, “By making sure they don’t know what hit them.”

“First thing’s first; we have to learn how to master our new abilities,” says Evan.

“Speaking of abilities, can we take another look at yours?” asks X. Evan closes his eyes, and with his mind, engages his power mode; this causes his pupils and hair to glow gold, and for a golden cube of light, to hover over his right shoulder.

He declares, “I can merge this light, into anything I’d like.” The radiant substance transforms into a six-foot katana, with a dark handle and blade.

“Those are like the ones we have at home,” says X.

“Yeah, but a lot stronger; you’ll recognize this too.” In a flash, the blade shifts into a levitating-sable crossbow, with three sparkling-gold arrows made of condensed light, locked inside it. He grabs the hovering weapon, and plants his right index finger on the trigger, while holding the grip with his other hand. He aims it at the opposite wall.

“Amazing!” exclaims his sister. The object then morphs back into light, and returns to its original position. Evan steps forward, and turns to face his team. He grabs the cube with his right hand. This instantly causes another blinding flash, to occur. The mutants use their forearms to cover their eyes.

Once they remove their protection, standing before them, is a seven foot tall, completely blue, reptilian-like warrior. His face, hands, green eyes, legs, and feet, share both human and lizard traits.

He also has two, mighty and pale, bird-like wings, and a completely white, luminous left forearm, which is shaped like an oval tri-pointed shield; a clawed hand is at the end of the organic deflector. His other arm is totally black, and has electricity pulsating through it; a golden, arrow-like design, with a sharp tip that forms into a point that ends on the back of his hand, emerges on this appendage as well. Poking out from his spine, are small-bony spikes.

With an alien voice, Evan says, “As far as this avatar is concerned, I had no choice in its design.” The mutants continue to observe in awe. “All right, now it’s your guys’ turn.” Ivon, while sitting, effortlessly shifts her skin into an emerald-colored, diamond-like, embodiment. Her eyes bloom green, and the edges of the crystals that cover her, are jagged; her hair remains colorless. Evan rubs across her forehead with the tips of the fingers on his left hand. “This is incredible.” X stands to his feet, and closes his eyes. By the time he opens them, his indigo aura returns.

X says, “In this state, I don’t think there’s a limit to how fast I can move.”

“Show us,” she demands. In the blink of an eye, X plucks a feather from Evan’s right wing, and returns to his position, without being seen; while grinning, he waves it at them, in a taunting way.

Chapter 7: Cytri’s Palace

Jin, Cassidy, and Sarah, have made their way to Viper, in their dusky gunship. The sky is clear and violet. This planet is completely composed of a pink ocean, with abandoned islands scattered about. Their craft is landing atop Cytri’s Palace, which is a tremendous, hexagonal prism-shaped yacht, with a hollow center; hundreds of unique space vehicles are parked and aligned in various rows within the lot, which is constructed into the left side of the roof. Very few spaces are available.

Cytri’s vessel is teal, and has many different levels and units within it. The watercraft extends 500 feet high, and floats in a seemingly infinite sea. The Protectors’ ship finally lands within an open slot. They exit out from the ship’s side hatch, and a drone that’s propelled by a spinning blade, which extends out of its head, zooms over to them; it asks, “Are you on the guest list?”

“No, we actually wish to participate in the tournament,” responds Jin.

“You’re just in time, there are only a few more open slots, available; right this way!” They follow the drone to a lift, which takes them down into the lobby. This room is epic, and has a fountain with a statue of the craft’s owner, assembled into the middle of it. He’s holding two, devil-tailed, naked, human-like women, and both of his arms rest around the middle section of their backs, as they face the entrance; the girls seductively hug him back, while water spurts out from all of their mouths.

As can be seen from the art piece, Cytri is a purple-faced, cat-monkey hybrid, who wears raven suits; his tail pokes out from his outfit, and is wrapped around his right leg. He’s also wearing a black top hat, and dress shoes.

A luxurious bar exists within the right hemisphere of the room, and a beautifully decorated restaurant has been situated in the left side. The thousands of masquerade-masked-human audience members, both male and female, are dressed in all-white elegant clothing, and are gathered together within this space; their masks are ivory and gold, and cover their entire faces.

Standing in front of the fountain, is a silver pedestal; a book that’s responsible for recording the names of the volunteers who wish to participate in S.O.T.F. (this stands for Survival of the Fittest, and is Cytri’s game show), lies atop it. As a team, they approach it. The line to sign, consists of a squad of lizard-men, dressed in thick-medieval armor; in front of them, are aliens wearing colorless robes and head-scarves, and first, are a team of ninjas, clothed in navy-blue attire; they’re all facing forward. Just as they enter, one of the serpents turns to them, and psychically implants a message into their minds. “Humans? This must be a joke.”

“Did he just do what I think he did?” Sarah asks.

He replies, “Don’t speak to soon,” before briefly transforming his exterior into metal.

Aloud, it says, “Interesting.” It turns to face forward once again. The three ninjas exit the line, and the next team approaches the book to sign their names; they finish, leave, and the reptiles follow suit. Finally it’s The Protectors’ turn. Right as the last name is signed, the team notices both the guards, and the frantic audience members, charging for the multiple exits.

“Look!” shouts someone.

Someone else asks, “Who’s that?!”

A third voice exclaims, “Are we under attack!?”

“Let’s find out why they’re running,” says Cassidy. The team races out to one of the balconies.

From twenty yards away, the Urians’ alien vehicle is seen making its descent; fifty of Cytri’s bald, pale-skinned, android guards, which are dressed in blue suits and sunglasses, are aiming the cannons manufactured into their hands and mouths, at the strange-floating object. From out of the cargo bay, exit the Urians. They’re in their super-powered modes, and are standing on the platform that extended out from the floor at the back end of the craft.

Their hands are raised as if to surrender. X’s hair is now in a ponytail; Ivon’s is worn in two-white braids, and Evan’s is cornrowed. This was done by his sister, on the way. Cytri’s words are spoken through a megaphone as he faces the mutants; he resides at the edge of his palace, and is standing right behind the railing. “Why are you here?”

“On accident; this craft led us to the nearest planet!” answers X.

“Who are you?” asks Cytri.

“My name is X; this is Ivon, and Evan!”

“Our planet, Uri, has been invaded, and our people, slaughtered; we need help!” exclaims Ivon.

“Umm; sorry, folks. I’m afraid you came to the wrong place for that. The only thing I can offer you, is a job.”

Evan asks, “What’s your name?!”

“My name is Cytri; I’m the owner of this vessel. If you’re up for it, I’ll hire you as janitors; you can start today.”

“Cytri? As in the creator of Survival of the Fittest?!” asks Evan.

“That’s the one.”

Ivon asks, “What’s Survival of the Fittest?”

“It’s a show that even people from across the universe, watch. Cytri pays individuals with special abilities, to fight in what are basically gladiator battles; the winner of the competition is always rewarded something hefty,” X states.

“I think it’ll be worth it if we signed ourselves up.” Evan’s attention turns toward Cytri’s ship. “On second thought, we’d like to join in on your competition!”

“Don’t be ridiculous. How do you even expect to compete?”

X shouts, “That part is a surprise! What’s the prize this time?!”

“A Monolith, Model: A.L.X. Four Thousand; it’s a spaceship capable of reaching the speed of light.”

“Perfect!” X exclaims; he seemingly appears from out of thin air, and stands within the observing audience.

“Whoa!” exclaims the crowd, almost instantaneously. Evan merges with the golden light that’s hovering over him. He mutates into his blue avatar, and uses his wings to fly aboard. Ivon’s crystalline exterior jumps from the spaceship, and latches onto the railing bordering the outdoor corridor. As she pulls herself up with ease, her, along with her team, power down. The crowd begins to cheer and applaud at the exhibition.

“All right folks, that’s enough!” Cytri says. The Protectors, along with everyone else, head in; they decide to sit at the bar. Once they situate themselves, they see the Urians approach the bartender, and order drinks.

“Hey, there they go,” Jin says. The aliens take seats five chairs down from them. “You know what I’m thinking?”

Cassidy answers, “What?”

“I think they should join us,” Jin states.

“Why, because you think they look cool?” sarcastically asks Sarah.

“Yeah Jin, I don’t know; we can’t just trust anybody with powers to do our job.”

“I know what you mean; but I have a good feeling about those guys.”

“Whether they join us or not, when this is over, we have to help them,” states Cassidy.

“I’m going to go see if they’ll be interested. Is that okay with you guys?”

“Hold up; we still don’t even know the source of their powers. What if it’s evil?” replies Sarah.

“Then we’ll act accordingly.”

“Fine.” He stands to his feet, and approaches the group, while Cassidy and Sarah watch. He introduces himself, and points out his teammates. The girls joyfully wave, but their expressions remain cold and uninterested. “They don’t really look too into the idea.”

Jin returns. “So?” Sarah asks.

“They said they’d think about it.”

Chapter 8: Va

The gigantic T.V. that’s mounted into the wall across from the sizable-tan couch that both Tom and Joe are seated on, is displaying a basketball video game; both of The Protectors are deeply focused on the monitor. By the use of their controllers, which appear as advanced-black gloves, they simulate playing basketball, in this one on one, match. A glass table rests in front of the men, and Tom’s earpiece has been placed on top of it. Thomas asks, “So, when do they start?”

“Not for another six hours.” The Protectors’ earpieces start to vibrate; Tom pauses the game with a snap. Joe, due to him still wearing his, answers the call by pushing the button on the center of it. “Sebastien, what’s up?”

“We have visitors; some guys are offering us twelve million for our help,” replies the receptionist. Without hesitation, The Protectors remove their gloves, place them on the table, and exit the room.

Their super forms are now engaged as they traverse through space. Thomas’ skin has morphed into a smooth, twinkling, sable, marble-like regenerateable armor, and the only features on his face, are his fiery-white eyes. He’s also shooting frost from out of his palms and feet, to accelerate. Excluding Joe’s lower half, he’s covered in fire; he’s expelling flames from both the rockets made into the armor that covers his feet, and from his hands, to fly through the void. The two are flying at the same rate as they propel through the darkness, and are heading for the vast, gray, alien, floating ship in the distance. While this occurs, Thomas, in his mind, plays back the intel he received from the client.

Red, the customer, is a junkyard salesman. “Gentlemen, this job involves procuring an item known as a Va Stone. According to the ones who found me, this thing was created by an alien warlock; this mage originated from a dimension much, much older than our own. His name is Jazu, and he’s the leader of the Caera people. Jazu left behind the stones, so that at the right time, a.k.a. next week, a ceremony can take place, where a group of monks will sing a song that supposedly holds the miraculous power to impregnate their queen; the words to this song are on the missing object. Once this birth occurs, they’ll be given their new-prophesied king, who’ll somehow be merged with their old leader’s consciousness.

“If this doesn’t happen, apparently Jazu will die, and the Caera people will all be killed by a horde of soldiers from a place called The Wrath. The good news is, they’re offering us actual gold for this job, and a lot of it; the other good news is, I have one out of two of the missing stones, already.”

“How did you find it?” asks Thomas.

“Well, it found me; a few days ago, some guy sold me a ship that had it lying on the floor within the storage area. Just as I picked it up to take a closer look, one of the mages appeared from out of thin air. I knew I was going to need help for what these guys were asking out of me, and since you guys are all over the air, you were my first choice. So that we can track down the remaining stone, we’re going to have to rescue their friends.

“They were caught while looking for it during an invasion of a planet called Uri; unless someone has their hands on the thing, they can only fully sense the Va Stone’s essence, if they’re together. Luckily, they’re constantly in psychic connection with each other, so we know they’re on a ship somewhere in the Ev cluster. However, to avoid getting shot out of space, I’m only going to take Brenda as close as I can without alerting anyone. You may have to fly a few-dozen miles, but I’m guessing you won’t mind that part.”

They finally reach the ship, and head to the tail end of it. Joe expels fire from his open-extended hands, and begins burning a hole into the cargo hold’s steel doors.

Chapter 9: S.O.T.F.

Team One are the Urians. To battle, Ivon fights with her hands, knees, and elbows, as well as her sonic scream, which can dissolve matter, and the projectable spikes, which can manifest out of each point of her mutated exterior. Evan uses both his conjured sword and crossbow, as well as his alternate embodiment, and X wields the weapons provided to him by Cytri, which include two laser pistols that resemble advanced revolvers, an advanced machete that’s strapped to his right side, and throwing knives, which are holstered around his left thigh. He also uses a light-blue chi blast that he cultivates by vibrating in place, and holding his hands in a ball.

Team Two is Squad 11; their names are Zero One, who’s an Asian woman with short-inky hair, and a skin-tight spandex suit, Zero X, who appears as a black woman with locks, and a matching dusky outfit, and Zero, who’s a white woman with a silver Mohawk; her uniform matches her hair. These beings are a team of futuristic cyborgs, who’re well-known bounty hunters. During combat, they use their laser pistols, the light-beam claws worn on their wrists, and devastating kick and knee strikes; One’s weapons expel a green shine, X’s sparkle orange, and Zero’s, blue. On their hands, and connected to the suits, are special gloves, which provide an electrical charge with every strike; on the center of both their hands and feet, are jets, that when engaged, allow them to fly.

Team Three is Master Sav’s clan. Sav, V, and Wu, make up the squad; these three are the ninjas from earlier. They use karate-like martial arts to fight, and have also mastered magic. A pale aura that allows their bodies to regenerate and swiftly move, appears around them; while dueling, as well as using their hands and feet, they also use their animal forms, which are made from psychic mana. V transforms into an indigo tiger, capable of lunging at, and biting opponents with impeccable power and speed, as well as blasting raven-energy balls from its mouth. Wu shifts into an orange-spirit lion; as the magic animal, he can summon fire from his body, and shoot it out of his mouth in a stream. Sav changes into a red bull, capable of rushing foes with devastating swiftness and strength. He impales and throws with his long horns, and tramples with his massive-hind legs.

Team Four is Suru’s crew; the two beside the leader, are named Seva and Awavi, and they’re the white-clothed beings, who were in the line to sign up for the tournament. These aliens are a team of sorcerers, who have infused science with their craft, and have used their methods to alter their bodies into ghoulish-like beings, with fangs, sharpened nails, and the features of silver, winged, dragon-human hybrids. While in combat, they strike with the weapons extending out of the tips of their fingers; through telekinesis, they slash foes with the blades that float over their bodies. By using a spell, while within a swirling-pale mist that starts at their feet, and spins around their entirety, they can transform into elephantine beasts, to inflict even more damage. Suru can transform into a phoenix, capable of releasing fire from its eyes, Seva transforms into a gigantic-orange gorilla, and Awavi changes into a rhino-headed brute that wields an axe.

Team Five are a group of pale-skinned warriors, named Da, Su, and Li; their gladiator-like, insectoid-influenced armor is completely dark (besides Su’s). The armor variations depend on the critter that their individual souls are tied to. Da, a male, has armor that’s influenced by the scorpion, and he wields two daggers, as well as the poison-infused, regenerating dart, on his tail. The sharp stinger can be launched, and used to stab opponents. Su, a female, is influenced by the wasp. She has a yellow and ebony wasp pattern on her armor, and is equipped with outstanding power and speed, as well as taser fists. She has the ability to launch six stingers at a time, which are released from a wormhole, created by her brainwaves. Li, the other male, has armor based on the characteristics of a spider. He’s tall and robust, and the areas covering his chest, legs, and arms, have brown tarantula-like fur on them; he wields a snowy katana, and like his teammates, has the ability to move with outstanding swiftness. When he extends his hands out in front of him, a web that zips out from the tips of his fingers, can wrap around, throw, and squeeze, enemies.

Team Six are androids. They appear as completely bald humans, however, their insides are entirely made of metal. Their names are Blood, who’s a black male, Rain who’s an Asian female, and Snow, who’s an elderly Indian man. Both Blood and Rain are dressed in jet suits and cap toe shoes, however, while Snow matches the lower half of his attire with his team, he’s shirtless, and wears a metal device on his back, which holds the four tentacles that he controls with his mind. These androids convert sunlight to power their weapons, and each have extraordinary strength, speed, and combat skills; Blood wields brass knuckles that have the power to expel blasts upon contact with an enemy, and eyes that can shoot beams of fiery-yellow rays. Rain, as well as using her hands and legs to fight, has a left arm that can turn into a turret that shoots twenty laser rounds at a time, before having to morph back to normal and recharge, and Snow uses his two Sai swords, which are blades made of dense-orange light. At the end of each of Snow’s tentacles, are spinning-throwable knives, which are held by the appendages’ talons.

Team Seven are a group of naked-metallic hybrids; they stand upright, have human-like limbs, and can move at the speed of light. Manuel, the elephant chimera, wields an axe, Samuel, the panther, two sickles, and Danielle, the tiger, a lance.

Team Eight are a team of alien wizards. Their names are Maal, Waal, and Saal. They’re wearing traditional, indigo-colored outfits, and have the faces of fish men. The warlocks have mastered the elements, and manipulate them to both tamper with the environment, and create swords, staffs, and armor.

Team Nine are exceptionally swift and agile, angel-like lifeforms, with pale skin, long-silver hair, and whopping-ivory bird wings. They’re wearing red togas, and are carrying both magic-infused crossbows, and morning stars; their weapons have golden and white light pulsating within them.

Team Ten are mercenaries who’re equipped with green-metallic armor that covers them completely; their helmets have tinted visors, and snowy plumes extending out of the backs of them. They travel on hoverboards, and attack using the blasters created into their palms; from out of their hands, they can send outstanding blue-lethal beams. Their turrets are crafted to each of their shoulders, and they have purple-light blades holstered to their backs. They’re also equipped with a net launcher that’s able to capture and stun opponents.

Team Eleven are five-foot tall, humanoids, with blue skin; they’re wearing colorless, spandex-like bodysuits, which covers everything excluding their faces. At will, these guys have the ability to merge into a titan that resembles an enormous-upright Triceratops-human hybrid, with claws on its four fingers, and talons on its three toes; it can destroy objects with its roar, and deliver devastating strikes with its head, feet, and hands.

Team Twelve are one-eyed androids; their bodies are herculean, and they’re wearing inky-military tactical outfits. They’re equipped with metal wings, as well as katanas, and have bows strapped to their backs. Steel masks cover their faces. A snake-like tentacle, when engaged, shoots out from the part of the protection covering their mouths, and can throw, grab, and choke individuals. They’re also equipped with laser rifles, have an astonishing amount of agility and combat skills, and carry with them into battle, potions able to restore their health.

Team Thirteen are robotic shapshifters; in their original forms, they’re faceless, featureless, nameless, metal-humanoid figures, with turrets crafted into their mouths. They have the power to transform into a high-tech drone, with a beam blaster mounted to the bottom side of its exterior; in this mode, multiple turrets and laser-blaster rifles extend out from its upper shell. They also have the option to become metal versions of raptors, with tails that double as blasters, and eyes capable of shooting ruby beams; if they choose to merge, they can become a six-armed titan, which can generate various firearms.

Team Fourteen are the serpent knights; to defend themselves, they use their spiked tails, two daggers, and ability to shoot fire from their mouths. While fighting, their postures remain low, and they can easily switch from running on two legs, to on all fours.

Team Fifteen are bald and humanoid, hulks, and are all dressed in silver, wrestling-like leotards. Their names are Ak, who has purple skin, Er, whose skin is pale, and Ol, who’s the red one; they are twenty feet tall, beyond brawny, and have the strength of 1,000 men. They can jump hundreds of yards at a time, and can regenerate their wounds, in seconds.

Team Sixteen are a team of robots that resemble humans almost exactly, however, their eyes are blue and robotic; they’re astonishingly agile and powerful. Their names are VX1, VX2, and VX3. VX1 appears as a young-black male with a short haircut. He’s wearing a bleached short-sleeved shirt, cargo shorts, a gold chain, biker gloves, and on his feet, ankle socks and tennis shoes; in action, he headbutts, knees, and punches. VX2, who’s a shirtless, shoeless, Asian-looking, male martial artist, with spiked hair, and pink wrestling shorts, wields steel nun chucks, which he, as well as with his hand strikes and kicks, uses to attack. VX3 resembles a small female, Caucasian child, wearing cornrows, a puffy-purple bomber jacket, a headband, and on her legs, dark leggings and a white ballerina skirt. On her feet, are pink tennis shoes, and during battle, her speed is so mind-boggling, her movements are barely identifiable. Her hands change into blades at will.

Team Seventeen are a group of men that operate monumental, human-shaped robots, from within them; their names are Tyler, Mason, and Grave. These bots can fly using the jets on their backs, the back of their legs, and their palms; their colors are divided by a thick line that runs, starting on their heads, down their centers, on both ends. Tyler operates a snowy and hot-pink colored robot, equipped with two laser blasters holstered to its sides, and a two-handed sword that’s strapped to its back. Mason operates an indigo and scarlet bot, which has two arms that double as plasma turrets, and a laser cannon mounted to its head, and Grave operates an ebony and silver creation, that has two shock fists, a grappling device that extends out from its right wrist, and a laser-beam rifle attached to its back. Their jumpsuits are chalky, and their steel helmets have special display systems engineered into them, as well as oxygen masks.

Team Eighteen are a team of water benders; their names are Ter, Mazer, and Ki. They use the snake-like vapor that hovers around each of their arms, to defend themselves; the liquid changes into ice weapons, on command. Their appearance resembles bald shark-men. They’re shirtless, and wear black, spandex-like bottoms.

Team Nineteen are hefty, helmetless-alien vikings. They possess immaculate strength, and can move with immense speed. They’re human-like creatures, wearing silver-plate armor; they have pale skin, long-frosty hair, the teeth of vampires, and orange-glimmering eyes. Their names are Elzin, who bears a two-handed sword, Alol, who attacks with a lance, and Vetzy, whose weapon of choice is a giant axe.

Team Twenty are The Protectors; while fighting, Jin battles using punches, elbows, kicks, chops, knee strikes, and telekinesis. His powers allow him to create swords, arrows, bullets, and jumbo boulders, out of the metal within the environment; he can also teleport, and turn his skin into a solid material, which is the form he takes in each round. Sarah delivers astoundingly powerful hand and knee strikes. She can fly near the speed of light, create up to ten copies of herself, and shoot hoary rays of devastating light out of her eyes. During combat, Cassidy manipulates the blue mist that surrounds her, to create either wings, a version of the weapons she’s previously encountered, or a multitude of hands.

A montage of the final moments of each round ensues, in order, on the substantial, silent, television, that’s mounted on the back wall within the cafeteria, as Commander Jesse, and thirty other of the standing members of the Tenth Division, observe. It’s day time, and the exhibition is recorded from numerous invisible drones on the scene, which catch the battles from different angles. A brief-dark screen separates each fight, and all of the rounds take place on one of Viper’s many beaches.

Team One beats Team Two. Evan, in his devilish mode, chases and catches the last survivor, Zero, as she attempts to fly away from the fight; he throws the mohawked hunter to the ground, and with a combination of both Evan’s electricity strike from above, and Ivon’s scream, she joins her team in being unconscious.

Team Three loses to Team Four. Wu and Awavi are the only two left standing; Wu, as a spirit lion, prepares to launch fire from his mouth as he stands fifteen yards away from the rhino-headed adversary, who’s recovering while struggling to his feet. Just as the stream of flames launch out of Wu’s mouth, the brute vertically leaps an astounding distance; before the animal realizes that his foe dodged the attack, with astonishing force, Awavi brings his axe down on the lion’s head as he lands in front of him.

Team Five loses to Team Six. The insectoid warriors are simultaneously beaten. Da is against Blood. He finishes Da by grabbing his scorpion tail while it’s striking, and delivering a tremendous headbutt. Rain dodges Li’s web attack by rolling to her right; she then unloads a barrage of turret rounds from her hand, into him. This knocks him out. Su throws a storm of fists at Snow, who’s able to dodge most of them. He uses his tentacles to grab her hands and feet, and impales her with his Sai blades.

Team Seven beats Team Eight; Manuel and Saal are the two remaining fighters in the final moments. While Saal’s throat is being squeezed by Manuel’s right hand, the wizard creates a dagger made of ice. It appears out of thin air, and levitates behind the elephant-like contestant. He psychically manipulates it to shoot into Manuel’s upper back, causing his grip to loosen. Saal falls to his knees, and struggles to regain his breath. Manuel staggers backward, and uses his trunk to extract the dagger; he places it in his hand, and throws it through the strangled warlock.

Team Nine loses to Team Ten. While the mercenaries confidently traverse over the sand, they scan their surroundings for signs of their winged foes. Suddenly, the angelic creatures zip in from each angle; with a combination of turret rounds and hand blasts, the green-armored squad shoot them down, like it’s target practice.

Team Eleven beats Team Twelve. The dino hybrid embodiment has all of its opponents in its hand. He brings them up to his face, and aims his roar point blank at their exposed heads, causing their metal exteriors to break apart.

Team Thirteen beats Team Fourteen. As the metal raptor, the remaining robot chases the last member of the opposing team. The injured serpent attempts retreating by sprinting across the sand; the bot catches up, and bites his opponent on the neck after lunging, and successfully landing on his back, causing the knight to fall to the ground.

Team Fifteen beats Team Sixteen. Ax and Ol are versus VX1, who’s currently hiding away; from high above, drops the cyborg wearing the gold chain, who attempts to land an elbow strike that’s aimed at Ak. He grabs him mid pursuit, and throws him to the ground, and onto his stomach. He then grabs his arms, and Ol grabs his legs; the hulks pull until VX1 is separated in half, causing bolts and bits of his interior pieces, to fling in every direction.

Team Seventeen loses to Team Eighteen. Ter, now prone, uses his circular ice shield, which is worn on his left arm, to block Tyler’s laser blasts. Simultaneously as he deflects, he summons an ice blade that emerges from out of his right-webbed palm. He grabs it, and throws it through the head portion of the bot, delivering a lethal blow to the pilot.

Team Nineteen loses to Team Twenty. While The Protectors are cautiously advancing down the shore, they’re continuously searching for the vikings. They finally come to a halt, and just as they begin to chat amongst themselves, two of the enemies rush at them from the sea, while another closes in from the woods, to their east. Sarah makes three copies of herself; from their eyes, they, concurrently with her, shoot rays at the single opponent, instantly knocking him out. Cassidy has caught the remaining two within a levitating bubble; Jin teleports within it, and appears behind them. He slams their heads together, and they pass out. The Tenth Division audience members clap and applaud at the spectacle. “All right, back to work!” demands Jesse.

Chapter 10: Va Part II

An alien dressed in an advanced suit of red armor, makes his way to the urinal. He finishes urinating, and is violently strangled from behind, by Joe (both the urinal, and the position that the being stands in, resembles modern humanity’s protocol); both Protectors are now powered down.

As the many gears to the steel-automatic door disengage and recede so that the two halves that meet at the center, vertically separate apart, exposing the prison, the creature becomes unconscious. Joseph releases him from his grasp, and he thuds against the floor. He then picks him up over his shoulder, and they approach the iron, cage-like cells, which are assembled into the wall at the end of the space; inside of them, are the two unresponsive and drugged, mages.

They’re still dressed in their hooded-burgundy robes, and are lying against the back end of their confinement. Thomas morphs his left hand into an axe, and bashes the lock. The doors swing open. Joe places the knocked-out lifeform within the cell, and extracts the two prisoners; he holds one tucked under his left arm, and the other over his right shoulder. They leave the prison, and must pass through the lab to reach the exit.

Simultaneously as they step out, the bright room that’s fitted with blinding-white lights, turns to blood red; an eerie and repetitive alarm pierces the air. Moments later, hoards of silver crab-like bots, flood the room from both the opened-circular hatch that’s constructed into the ceiling, and the one that’s made into the floor; these bots are fitted with laser blasters attached to their spherical torsos, as well as pincers that release electric shock blasts upon contact. There are 100 of them. “Keep them warm,” Thomas says, while kneeling down on his knee, and planting his hand on the ground. As this is done, the entire room becomes frozen, including the bots. Upon defeating the ambush, the fifty members of the militia, who’re dressed in vermilion high-tech space suits, with a plethora of weapons attached to them, drop down into the room from the ceiling hatch. They attempt to land gracefully, but slip, slide, and trip over each other, due to the icy floor. Joseph uses a continuous beam that shoots out of the tip of his index finger, to blast back the unbalanced pursuers.

They glance over their subdued enemies. “I’m going to set up a beacon; I figure we can use a ship like this,” says Thomas.

“That’s a good idea. While you do that, I’ll let Red know that the coast is clear to park.”

“Right.”

Chapter 11: S.O.T.F. Round II

Another montage occurs across the screen within the cafeteria. This time, the volume is turned on, and it’s night on Viper. The same group has returned to view the results of the second round, which is also occurring on the beach.

Team One beats Team Four. Ivon defends against the phoenix’s fire stream with her raised forearms, which are protecting her face; meanwhile, X, using his super speed, has mounted Awavi’s head in the process of getting charged by him. While holding onto his rhino horn, he shoots a round into his forehead. Once the laser penetrates him, a cloud of smoke covers the downed brute, and he’s instantly reverted back to his original appearance.

Evan is fighting Seva, who rapidly strikes with his psychic blade to slash from various angles; while slashing, he also swipes with his lethal nails, at every opening. Evan’s extreme agility allows him to deflect most of the attacks with his katana, however due to his opponent’s quickness, he’s unable to retaliate.

Suru finally gives up attempting to burn Ivon, and, as a phoenix, dives to pick Evan up by his shoulders. He successfully does so, and while ascending over the ocean, the brother grabs onto the formation of light, and shifts. This causes the titanic bird to lose his grip. Evan, now hovering with the use of his wings, aims his electrical blast at Suru; he’s able to dodge it by diving low. As this occurs, X successfully shoots a beam through the head of the flaming anomaly, causing Suru’s original embodiment to manifest in the same fashion as Awavi’s did. He falls into the sea, and Seva is all that remains. “That’s two!” shouts X. Just as the strange mist begins to swirl around Seva, Ivon aims her open left palm at the remaining foe, and shoots out a pointed-emerald, diamond-like spike, which impales him.

Team Six loses to Team Seven. The suited androids decide to stealthily advance through the jungle that borders the beach, while walking twenty yards apart from each other, and in a horizontal line. Growls and different animal noises from the enemy team, can be heard approaching. Suddenly, each of the chimeras appear in front of them, simultaneously; before they can react, they’re savagely torn apart.

Team Ten beats Team Eleven. While the hybrid titan struggles to free itself from the net that they’ve launched over its head, two of the mercenaries are speeding on their boards, at the same rate, and right toward its knees. Using their blades, they slash each leg, causing it to collapse. They then aim their hand blasts at its horned dome, and unleash a concurrent attack that instantly causes the monster to shift into a bright-white light; moments following the immense flash, the three, miniature-lifeless aliens, are sprawled out on the sand.

Team Thirteen loses to Team fifteen. While merged, the robots shoot a storm of rounds from the turrets assembled on the back of their two lowest set of hands, at the swiftly moving giants, who’re closing in from north of their position, 300 yards away. Ak and Ol leap into the air, while Er, who’s between the two, remains sprinting. The bot has the swords in their two upper hands, held ready. The titan begins shooting blasts at Er, from its middle palms, while continuous rounds expel from the turrets. Most shots miss, and many are absorbed as Er continues on his path. The two descend, and are able to tackle the robot to the ground, by aiming their momentum on the left and right hemispheres of the steel behemoth. The hulks fall as well, but roll out of it. Er jumps up exceedingly high, and lands directly atop of his fallen foe, elbow first, causing it to burst into an abundance of scrap parts, on contact.

Team Eighteen loses to Team Twenty. While advancing across the shore in a triangle arrangement, The Protectors, now in their power forms, are ambushed by the water benders, who vertically dive out of the sea in a horizontal alignment. The team are airborne with the use of individual-mystic cyclones; while floating, they’re shooting hundreds of ice spikes, which manifest and zip out from what appears as a twinkling circular-spinning array of liquid, above their heads. Sarah and Cassidy are taken out by the flurry, but Jin’s armor repels the daggers. He teleports onto Mazer’s back, and has his right arm squeezing around his neck. At the same time, Jin, with the use of his telekinesis, by altering the compounds and elements that make up his surroundings, makes two harpoons; they appear from out of thin air, and accelerate into the backs of the two other shark-like beings. This causes them to lose control over their formations, and they fall into the sea. Mazer manipulates his swirling collection to launch him onto the shore, ahead. Jin is flung off his back once they hit the sand. The hybrid rolls onto his feet. He then forms an ice katana, which he holds with both of his hands. He awaits for Jin to stand. He finally does, and creates a sword that he holds out in front of him, in a similar fashion as his contender. He’s now in a ready position, and fifteen feet ahead of Mazer. He dashes at him, and attempts to slash, but just before he’s able to strike Jin, he teleports a foot back; in the moment his guard was lowered, the steel warrior stabs through the dumbfounded shark-like alien.

The television cuts to a scene of Cytri’s yacht as he announces, “Since the ones who call themselves The Urians, have defeated their opponents the fastest this round, they’ll be skipping through to the fifth round, where they’ll be facing off against the finalist. Stay tuned, folks!”

Commander Jesse exclaims, “Still in the game, baby!” while clapping along with the other soldiers. He finally turns to them, and angrily shouts, “What are you all still doing here?!” The crew promptly disperse.

Chapter 12: Va Part III

Suddenly, The Protectors, along with the four-alien practitioners, each which are still dressed in their robes, emerge from nothing, and manifest one foot above the surface of a frozen desert. They roughly land in the snow, but speedily recompose. “It’s close; I can feel it,” says one of the monks.

“As can I,” says another.

“How close are we talking?” asks Thomas.

“It’s hard to tell. The stone seems to be stuck inside of something; the only thing is, I’m sensing that, that something it’s inside, is emitting waves of life, itself.” They stand in place, and observe their immediate surroundings; it’s heavily snowing, which disables them from properly seeing. From fifty yards ahead of their position, they can see a gargantuan figure’s upper half, breaking through the snow on the ground.

“What’s that, over there?” asks Joseph. The intensely loud buzzing sound of a bee-like animal’s fluttering wings, can now be heard. The monster fully rises up from the ground. The insect is 100 feet tall, cloaked in black hair, and has the features of a bumblebee; it’s tattooed with a flickering-blue design that creates unique formations over its entire body.

It roars while flying at the crew; the monks protect themselves within translucent-golden psychic pyramids, which allow them to levitate off of the ground as the battle between The Protectors and the critter, commences. With his right hand, Joseph conjures and hurls a gargantuan ball of fire. It hits its target, and while ablaze, a devilish shriek sounds from its mouth. It dives back down into the snow.

“This isn’t good,” says Thomas. It zooms out of the same hole it entered, now extinguished, and rises high into the sky. The monster shoots its stinger at The Protectors; it plants into the snow, and expels a high-pitch sound, which forces them to the ground. The stinger regrows as the team covers their ears, and struggles up to their feet. Thomas, now wielding a spear, gets up, and wobbles over to the projectile, while shielding his right ear with his shoulder, and his left one, with his free palm. He closes the distance with the object, and using both of his hands, thrusts the weapon into it. This immediately causes an explosion to occur, blasting The Protectors fifty yards back, and thousands of bone shards, everywhere. They roll for a short bit before recalibrating.

“Its stinger explodes?!” shouts Joseph.

“This one’s pretty cool, if it doesn’t bang us up too bad, let’s try and get it home.”

“Not a chance,” responds Joseph; he leaps. As fire resonates around his hands, and expels from the special armor that’s covering his feet, he darts at the insect. He grabs hold of it, and instantaneously covers its exterior, in flames. With a thunderous holler, Joseph increases the amount of heat that encapsulates the two entities, and the mutation finally crashes into the snow. Joe, with incredible power, leaps back to Tom’s location, as the beast burns in the background. He lands on his knee, and plants his hand in the snow, before hastily standing upright. “There’re better pets; besides, I don’t like bugs.” The burning being bursts into a collection of flesh and purple blood.

It splatters everywhere, painting the snow in the process; the Va Stone shoots out from its body, and lands fifteen feet in front of one of the monks. He retrieves the oval-shaped item, and shouts, “Here it is!” The clients huddle together, and carefully observe the object.

Joe says, “I wonder how that thing ended up with the stone.” The robed men shift their attention to The Protectors.

One of them declares, “I read its mind while you were fighting; that monster, was an experiment gone bad. For fifteen years, it suffered here, alone, and exiled from its kind due to its mutations.”

Another rejoins, “It has been three weeks since the Va Stones were stolen. We knew that due to the power of the stones’ curses, the thieves wouldn’t last long. There were two thieves, and two ships; one of them crashed landed here in this desert, the other, as we know, ended up in Red’s hands. When this beast found the robber’s ship, it ate both the corpse, and the craft. It seems as though the stone is the only thing he couldn’t fully digest.”

“The reason we were so violently attacked, is because of the pain it endured from being unable to break down the magic item, within its digestive system; lots of fear and anxiety was built up into it because of this, causing the creature to feel far more hostile than normal. It’s a shame that something so unique, had to face such a harsh fate.”

“At least now, it’s out of its misery,” says the monk who has been quiet until this point. “Thank you, gentlemen; your help today means more than you may ever know.”

Chapter 13: S.O.T.F. Round III

The footage from the end of the third round is now going to start, and Commander Jesse’s team is back; this time, they’ve moved the seats that were once positioned beneath the tables, to make rows in front of the television. The fighters have been moved to the inside of Cytri’s Palace. They battle within a roofless stadium that’s crafted thirty feet below the highest row of seats; it’s a bumper-square arena, composed of only grass, and has 200 yards of space, both across, and long. Starting from five feet above the battlefield, the audience are seated within seats situated around the ring; five rows, each elevated five more feet above the last, seat 2,000 people. An invisible energy shield separates the civilians from the fight. The loud acclaim from the present observers, can be heard as the fighting continues.

Team Seven beats Team Ten. The chimeras, in a horizontal line, slowly advance toward their enemies. The green mercenaries are horizontally aligned as well, and fire both turret rounds and hand blasts, at the monsters. With their uncanny agility, Team Seven dodge all of their firepower; this continues for ten seconds, until finally, while Manuel and Samuel continue to draw their attention, Danielle appears behind the attackers, and stabs her lance to impale the one in the middle. After realizing that their ally is down, they cease their attack on the two, and turn their attention to Danielle. In that split second, both teammates have closed the distance with the remaining individuals; Manuel uses the head of his axe to jab his target’s abdomen, instantly knocking him out. Samuel headbutts the last foe, throwing him into the ground.

Team Fifteen loses to The Protectors. While Sarah and five of her copies maintain a constant stream on Ak’s body, forcing him to use his palms to absorb the blasts as he struggles to maintain his standing position, Cassidy is hitting Ol with a flurry of punches from the five-huge fists she has created; Ol continues to both stumble back, and block the shots with his forearms. Meanwhile, Jin, while his balled hands are held within Er’s grasp, struggles to keep his footing as the two wrestle. Suddenly, Jin teleports very high up, and morphs the metal in the environment, into a boulder that covers his exterior. The ball falls directly on top of Er. This incapacitates him. The creation then breaks apart, revealing the man inside. Jin uses the remaining boulder parts to create an arm, which he psychically commands to grab Ol, who now stands fifty yards ahead. Cassidy uses this opportunity to position her psychic-blue limbs on either side of Ol’s head, and smashes them together, crushing the bound opponent in the process. Ak finally gives up his guard, and is flung back by Sarah’s blast. She, with immaculate speed, zooms toward Ak’s airborne body, grabs him, ascends into the air and out of the stadium, makes five more copies of herself, lets him go, and in sync along with her clones, blasts him down.

Chapter 14: Va Part IV

The client pilots his craft to slowly descend on the red sand that covers the shore; he’s wearing a navy-blue jumpsuit, and matching advanced boots. Sunglasses hang from his shirt’s collar. He’s waved down by a Middle-Eastern looking man, by the name of Bravo. He has a bald head, a full-white beard, black shorts, and a matching, short-sleeved shirt; below his feet is a hoverboard, which he uses to float in place. Red lands the vehicle; a metal barrier that descends from the top of the windshield, covers the glass, completely. “What is this place?” asks Tom.

“It’s Bravo’s island,” says Red.

“Bravo?” inquires Joe.

“Yup; that’s the name of the man who’s going to help us.”

“How long has he been here for?” asks Thomas.

“Ever since he escaped prison, five years ago.”

“So we’re dealing with a fugitive, great,” Joseph sarcastically says.

Bravo leads the crew through the wooded area. Only one of the monks joins them, the others remain within Red’s vehicle. They finally reach his lonely brick mansion; he opens the door for his guests, and they proceed into the living room. Due to his hood being off for the first time, the monk’s face is now revealed. All males and females from their home on Caera, look identical. Their features include short-gray hair, tall and sharp ears, no facial hair, pale faces, incandescent-purple eyes, and four, ape-like, fingers and toes. “You guys thirsty? I have water and orange juice in the fridge,” states Bravo.

“I’m good, thanks,” responds Joseph.

“No thank you,” says Tom.

The monk answers, ”I’ll have some water, please.”

“Orange juice sounds good,” rejoins Red.

Bravo replies, “You got it. Take a seat anywhere you’d like.”

The host enters the kitchen. It’s the next room over; simultaneously as this occurs, the alien and Red take a seat on the grizzled couch that’s against the back wall of the room. A small-circular glass table rests in front of it. Joe sits in one of the cushioned chairs in the corner, and Tom, who remains standing, inconspicuously scans around the room, slowly, while leaning against a wall.

The man returns into the room with the two cups, and places them on the table. “All right, folks, so here’s what’s going down; I still have to put some finishing touches on your passports. It’s going to take me until the morning, so to accommodate you guys, I’ll let you stay in the guest bedrooms; there’re four, upstairs. I also have some stuff to eat, in case you’re hungry; I’m sorry again for the wait, I thought I’d be done by now, but it’s taking longer than I expected.”

“So how much longer, exactly?” asks Joseph.

“About, seven more hours, at most.” The Protectors sigh.

Thomas declares, “All right then, we’ll be staying.”

“Yeah, I think that’s what’s best, too,” says Red.

“Everything on the bottom three shelves in the fridge, is for y’all. There are washcloths and towels on your beds if you need them, too. I’ll be downstairs, working; knock on my door if you have any questions.”

Thomas replies, “Understood.”

“Good; I’ll let you know when I finish.” He heads down. The door to his office slams shut.

“So, what exactly is he doing down there?” asks Joe.

“He makes fraudulent passports in order for his customers to ride on certain, high-profile, highly-advanced, government ships, that only those who’ve been permitted by whatever leader of the specific nation that the ship takes off from, can enter. The guards can tell whether or not we’ve been accepted, by the marks on our passports; Bravo can replicate those marks perfectly, allowing us to bypass security with no problem at all. With his help, we’ll be able to board the X-J-Seven.”

“What’s that?” Joseph asks.

“It’s something like a mothership that’s capable of entering hyperspace. One of two of its destinations is the Baru Galaxy. That’s where the monks live, as well as our last stop,” responds Red.

“That’s pretty impressive.” Joe turns to face the monk. “What are the others still doing in the ship?”

“Meditating; as well as keeping an eye out for any trouble.”

Hours have passed, and the clients are resting within Bravo’s home. The robed man, while snoring in his bed within the almost pitch-black room that’s only lit from the light of the full moon that pierces through the square window, is suddenly awoken. He jolts up, and rushes out of the bedroom.

Tom and Joe, who along with the other mutant Protectors, don’t sleep, are drinking canned beers together as they stand against the front of Bravo’s home. The monk abruptly rushes past them. “Come with me; my brothers are in trouble!” he exclaims. He breaks off into the woods at an incredible velocity. The Protectors place the cans on the ground, and follow behind him.

The group make it out of the wild, and have nearly made their way back to the shore that’s thirty yards ahead. They quietly and cautiously approach Red’s ship as they advance onto the sand.

A squad of 100 jetpack-propelled Guardians, which are the fifteen-feet tall, dark, advanced-robotic police force on Earth, armed with miniguns that shoot electrical rounds, are descending from beyond the clouds. Ten of them have landed on the craft, and are attempting to smash their way in, by repeatedly punching the metal barrier that’s over the windshield. The rest of them have formed a horizontal line, and are aiming their weapons at the vehicle. The Protectors engage their power modes as the alien hides behind a tree. They break toward the bots. Tom shouts, “Hey, you!”

The Guardians shift their focus to them; they simultaneously go airborne. Glass, just before the opposition prepares to unleash a barrage of rounds from their guns, hastily drops to his knee, and smashes his right palm against the ground. Moments later, he forms a wall of ice that bursts out from the ground ahead of him. It completely blocks the onslaught. While in cover, Thomas creates a war hammer, which grows out of his right palm. He grips it, and conjures a diamond-shaped shield, which manifests on his left forearm.

“I’ll draw their fire,” declares Joseph. He takes a step back, leaps high into the air and over the wall, and launches himself toward the airborne opponents. While midair, Joe closes his palms together. This motion causes a mass amount of fire to cover his hands; he opens them, and projects a stream of flames, taking down half of the robots, instantly. Thomas’ wall dissipates, allowing him to sprint directly at the attackers. Half of the remaining robots are now zooming right toward his position. He proceeds at them with incredible nimbleness, and with the use of his hammer, bashes through each one, destroying them with one blow at a time. Joe, upon landing, is followed by the other half of the Guardians; using his marvelous strength, and his fists, which are cloaked in fire, he pummels, rips apart, and hurls, his robotic targets. They eradicate the threat, and take very little damage.

It’s now dawn. Bravo, flustered and nervous, exits from out of the wilderness riding his hoverboard; he continues until he reaches five feet in front of Tom, who has turned to face him. The Protectors power down. He, while on his levitating board, asks, “What happened?!”

“The Guardians have made this place,” replies Tom.

“Are you freaking serious!?”

“If you don’t get lost soon, more will come to arrest you; you’ve ran out of time,” states Joseph. Bravo, shaking, extends his right hand. It holds the manila folder that’s containing their passports.

“Here; take these,” he says in a trembling tone. Thomas takes the folder from his unstable hands. He briefly examines the pile of scraps before bolting back to his home.

“Let’s get going,” says Thomas.

Chapter 15: S.O.T.F. Round IV

Commander Jesse’s squad has moved their viewing area to the dark theater room. It’s filled with rows of cushioned seats, and has surround sound crafted into the interior. Hundreds of members of the Tenth Division, are observing the screen in silence. Some, including Jesse, are snacking on popcorn.

Team Seven and The Protectors begin their fight within an abandoned city during the day. This location is located on the “Big Island” east of Cytri’s vessel; it’s composed of a multitude of formerly-advanced and elegant buildings, which are now, for the most part, terribly damaged. Hundreds of broken-down vehicles have been left lying on the sides of the many debris-filled roads.

This city was designed to resemble a metropolitan area, in the twenty-first century. It’s a considerable space, however, a holographic barrier forms an orange-upright cylinder around the arena, disabling the teams from venturing too far out. Jin, while sitting on the edge of the rectangular-shaped roof of an abandoned skyscraper that remained mostly intact, keeps his eyes scanning the streets below through his scope, for signs of Team Seven; he’s equipped with a sniper that Cassidy was able to forge. Within it, are metal bullets that he created. Sarah, who’s now holding Cassidy in her arms, appears atop the skyscraper from out of thin air. Cassidy’s hands are clinched to the same type of weapon Jin is holding; she’s let go, and stands in place. Sarah proceeds toward her teammate. “We found them,” she quietly says.

“Where?” he whispers.

“This way.” He stealthily follows her to the opposite edge of the tower; as they pass Cassidy, she rejoins the group. Once they reach the sniping point, he and Cass take a seat beside each other, while Sarah remains crouched. He peers through his scope, and spots the armed, animal-like beings, sniffing about, and advancing up a street in a line.

“Just like we planned,” he says. He tracks the chimera. “I got the one in the middle.”

“Then I’ll take the one to the right,” replies Cassidy. A few moments pass while the two snipers gain a proper fix on their enemy. Cass counts down, “Three, two-” on one, concurrent shots pierce through Manuel and Danielle. Their lifeless bodies collapse, and the bullet holes that penetrated their heads, break apart their cybernetic skulls, and expose the robotic technology that has mended them together. Sarah flies down to Samuel’s position, and grabs him in a head lock. Jin, once he grabs onto his partner’s right hand, teleports Cassidy to the ground. Cass immediately traps him in a snake-like bind that wraps around his entire body, and launches out from both of her open hands. Sarah flies away to regroup with her team, but commands three of her copies to continue holding onto Samuel’s arms and neck. She concentrates a beam that connects over his sturdily modeled face, while Jin summons three of his signature harpoons, and psychically projects them into his torso; this combination ends the battle.

Chapter 16: Va Part V

Red, now piloting his craft, heads toward the mountainous mothership that’s in the distance; the X-J-Seven is parked, and is hovering with the use of its powerful jets. It’s shaped like a massive flying saucer, and the upper hemisphere resembles a dome that’s made of a special type of see-through glass; on the other end of it, is a mega park. The passengers are allowed to observe and enjoy this area during their travels. Red comes within 100 yards of the craft, and slows his ship down to a crawl.

A voice ejects from out of the intercom that’s made into the ceiling of the cockpit; a medium-sized screen that’s fashioned into the left wall, displays live footage from the X-J-Seven. A female worker, with short-blond hair, and who’s wearing high-tech goggles, which allow her to closely view the passports of the boarding passengers, appears on the monitor. She’s wearing a ruby suit, and is sitting behind a black desk. “Greetings; how many of you are boarding?” she asks.

“There are seven of us,” responds Red. He retrieves the passports resting on the passenger seat, and displays each one to the camera that’s slightly above the screen, making sure to focus on the special marks.

“Please have them ready upon entering the facility, we’ll scan them again, immediately. As for your craft, our computers will do the honors of parking it aboard our vessel.”

“All right, then.” Red sits back in his seat, and rests his hands behind his head.

The Protectors, along with the clients, pass through a rectangular-shaped steel automatic door, and enter into the area that has been designed to resemble a park. Bright-white lights at the top of the dome, illuminate the entire place. This section is composed of dozens of holographic trees that appear as solid matter, as well as a plethora of different species of both flying, prone, and walking, holographic birds of Earth; these include crows, hawks, eagles, hummingbirds, and seagulls. A magnificent field of grass, along with a variety of both colossal and small, holographic aliens, also inhabit the park. There are two types of both the bigger, and smaller organisms.

One type of the larger beings, is blanketed in orange fur, has one eye on its dog-like face, a metallic horn, and walks on all fours. Its arms and legs are wolf-like, and its top and bottom teeth are flat, excluding its razor-like canines. It also has clawed paws, and a short tail.

The other type of giant, is shrouded in red scales, has the skin of an armadillo, a face that resembles a beaked lizard, bright-orange eyes, and the tail of a dinosaur. It has the physique of a gorilla, walks on two, vigorous, lizard-like legs, and has four, powerful, ape-like arms; one hand holds a wooden club, the other a stone, another holds a spear, and the last limb, is free. Three fingers are on each of their hands.

One type of the tinier entities, looks like a blue-furred, six-eyed, squirrel-like soul; it has two-small horns, an extendable tongue, bat-like wings, hind legs, short arms, the tail of a cat, and hands with opposable thumbs. The other type is a tiny, chimp-like being, with colorless fur, one eye in the middle of its head, and two arms and legs; it jogs around on its hoofed feet. These beings casually play, rest, and wander about, for the passengers’ amusement.

Hundreds of civilians join the crew on the X-J-Seven’s route; these include reptilian-like people, in dark robes, five-foot tall Greys, dressed in skin-tight, matching-golden compression suits, towering-slim humanoids, who’re all wearing snowy-relaxed clothing, humans in different-colored business suits, completely naked fish-human hybrids, as well as winged beings, in blue togas.

They’re either sitting at the scattered tables, on the bleachers, or situated atop the soft grass. The monks linger near the entrance, while Red and The Protectors continue to the farthest edge of the dome, and toward the beast with the orange fur, who’s lying down on his side, and taking a nap; they close the distance, and are now standing five feet away from it. Tom asks, “Anyone know what this thing’s called?”

Suddenly, the peoples’ screams catch their attention. The three turn to the cause of their distress, and see a man, clothed in a brown-hooded robe; he’s at the center of the dome, and holding a book up in the air, while quietly reciting spells. Simultaneously as this occurs, a strange formation of swirling-black smoke, expands over his head. From out of the mist, exits a pack of nine, monstrous, lion-like animals. Their skin is the texture of molten rock, their manes are made of fire, and both their long tails and razor-like teeth, are metallic. Their claws are the only feature on them that appear organic.

The crowd attempts to flee, however, a translucent-orange barrier forms around the circumference of the interior, and is disabling them from passing through the exit; because of this, the sea of defenseless people, are screaming and huddled together near the entryway. With his other hand, the magician holds up a silver cube-shaped device that’s capable of collecting credits. The devil-like lions make a horizontal line in front of the magician, and face the helpless men and women; their tails’ movements resemble slithering snakes. Two of the creatures slowly walk over to the frightened civilians, and project demonic roars, further increasing the volume of their screams.

“That’s enough!” They halt their successful intimidation technique at the robber’s command. “Hand over your credits; if anyone tries anything, I’ll order them to kill you all!” In the blink of an eye, The Protectors assume their upgraded forms. Tom creates a throwing dagger that flings out from his right palm; it lands in the invader’s back, who’s standing fifty yards ahead of him. He falls to his left knee. The man throws his right arm behind him, and yanks out the projectile.

“Protect them, I’ll handle this,” says Tom to his partner.

“Kill them!” demands the sorcerer, who has turned around to face the heroes, and is angrily pointing in their direction; his body levitates as it’s enraptured in an almost translucent-purple sphere, and his bleeding wound briskly heals. The two lions that were previously near the passengers, have moved to stand beside the mage; they’re now completely protected within their own similar shields.

Joe throws Red over his right shoulder, and quickly leaps past the threat, and to a location where he’s able to stand between the fight, and the civilians; Red takes cover behind him, once they land. While holding up his right hand in a gun-like fashion, using his other hand, he grips his wrist. Joseph’s hands begin to radiate, and a white bubble gathers at the tip of his pointed-index finger; he shoots the fiery-red beam, which bolts out of the galvanized light, at the warlock, however his shield absorbs the attack. He tries again on the two guards, and the same result occurs.

Thomas morphs his hands into axes; as he stands in his ready position, the sprinting enemies close the distance. One of them, at full speed, lunges at him, while the others circle around their prey; to retaliate, he strikes back with a downward cut, instantly impaling its chest.

The edges sink into the animal, and it becomes stuck on Tom’s hands. He hurls it off, and directly at another one; this causes them both to fly backward. Two more beasts lunge at him from both of his sides as the remaining monsters’ mouths fill with fire. Before allowing their attacks to land, Tom claps his hands together, which creates a large cloud of frost that shoots out of each end of his body; this causes the animals to freeze in place. Their incredibly hot exteriors swiftly melts away the ice. He then stomps down with his right foot; this action summons a multitude of spikes to shoot up from the ground, and penetrate completely through each of the fiends, just as they’ve broken free from his trap. The fire in their eyes, dies, and they crumble apart.

The two beasts, which have been released from their shields, are zooming toward him; while within their protection, they quickly grew to triple the size of what they were. Joseph, with a single shot of his beam blast, eradicates one of his partner’s threats.

Tom summons two-grand Fuuma Shurikens. One is within each hand. He projects them through the attacker. It falls, and The Protectors are once again victorious. As his creations are destroyed, both of the criminal’s shields instantaneously shatter, and he falls to the ground.

By this time, four of the X-J-Seven’s guards, which appear as eight foot tall robots, with yellow and green, samurai-like armor, have made their way inside. They’re equipped with stun staffs, which they’re holding in their hands, as well as laser pistols attached to their right hips.

Three of the guards hurriedly surround the criminal, who’s now unconscious and lying on his back, and force him on his stomach. One of them uses futuristic cuffs to bind his hands; once he’s restrained, it places him over his right shoulder. The one who’s not making the arrest, approaches The Protectors, who’ve rejoined together.

“Thank you, gentlemen. I’m not sure how you did it, but you saved the day. Commander S. would like to speak with you; please, follow me.”

Chapter 17: S.O.T.F. Round V

Even more of the Tenth Division members are now within the theater, and have taken seats both on the steps, and the floor; they’ve brought drinks and cameras, this time. On the movie screen, they observe their leaders participate in the round which determines who’ll face the champs. They’re now on Battle Island. This is a 1,000 yard long and wide, squarely-shaped, grass-filled platform, that extends fifteen feet out of the ocean; Cytri’s ship is 100 yards away. Both teams are standing in horizontal lines, and approaching each other. The Urians’ hands are held up as they advance. When they’re fifty yards away from one another, The Protectors stop, and the Urians follow suit. “What’s this about?!” asks Jin.

“We want to make things a little more interesting! How about we go about this duel, two at a time?!” responds X. Jin looks over at his crew for confirmation; they nod their heads.

“Fine with us!” replies Sarah.

“I’ll go first,” says Jin. Ivon steps up, and aggressively punches her open palm. At the speed of light, Sarah transports Cassidy and herself, 400 yards back; X does the same for Evan and himself. “Let’s go!” Ivon accelerates at him. He creates an arm of metal, with three talons, and sends the open hand at her at an extreme velocity. It grabs the emerald girl, and stops her mid pursuit.

Almost immediately, she’s able to break loose; she leaps at her opponent. Right before she reaches him, he teleports behind her. She instantaneously senses him, and shoots out four-diamond spikes, which grow out of her spine, in a vertical formation. These cause him to fly twenty yards back. He lands hard against the ground. She sprints at him, and while passing, grabs him by his arm. She continues to run at an immaculate pace, and finally hurls him up. She then jumps incredibly high into the air, and uses her closed fists to bash his torso, flinging him back down. Prior to hitting the bottom, he teleports, and is now standing on the surface. Jin, now rubbing the sore spot on his head, summons twenty, metal, sniper-like bullets, that hover above him.

Ivon lands forty yards away. She slightly stumbles. Once she regains her balance, she vamooses at Jin, once again. He releases the bullets one at a time at her, at nearly the speed of light. Each one is able to both stagger, and push her back. He stops rubbing his head, and casually advances toward Ivon as he continues to psychically shoot. As the last bullet is released, he teleports in front of her, and uppercuts her stomach. She falls to the ground; her power mode disengages. Jin teleports back to where they began their duel, with Ivon in his arms. He places her on the ground. The remaining contenders regroup near Jin’s location.

“Now it’s my turn,” Cassidy says. Jin and Sarah return to a distance far away from the battlefield; X collects Ivon, and withdraws from the fight.

“You guys are strong; we may actually consider taking you up on that offer. That is, after I kill you,” says Evan, as he morphs his light into a katana. He grabs it from out of the air, and dashes toward Cassidy. She forms blades. One is within each hand. She readies her stance as she prepares for his attack. He attempts to slash downward, however she uses her weapons to stop the strike. Due to his momentum, her planted feet slide backward in the dirt.

He attempts to headbutt her, but she forms a Venetian salade-type helmet that covers her head in the last moment; just as his forehead bashes against her protection, he becomes dazed. He holds his bleeding wound as he regains his balance. His katana bursts into the golden cube. He grabs it, and changes into his alternate ego.

He immediately expels a burst of electricity from his hand, however, she dodges it by creating tremendous-bird wings, which allow her to gain altitude just in time. He follows her up. She creates a longsword, and darts down at Evan. She attempts to slash him, however he blocks it with his shield. Using the same arm that he blocked her with, he pushes her back, and successfully hits her with his electrical blast.

This briefly stuns her; she comes to, and uses a rope-like stream to wrap around Evan’s neck, which ejects out of her left palm. This strangles him. He desperately grabs at what’s wrapped around his throat, while struggling to breathe. From out of her other hand, she creates an additional bind, and continues to choke him with both of them. This disables his power mode.

Cassidy, now holding him within the psychic grasp of her conjured fist, flies back over to her group; upon touching down, she places him on the grass. X, without hesitation, picks Evan up, and transports him to the safe zone where Ivon’s unresponsive body, is located. He instantly returns.

“Guess that leaves us, sweetheart,” says the Urian. His lightning speed allows him to draw his gun without Sarah noticing; as the first round is released, she, at the speed of light, dodges it by moving 100 yards, east. Suddenly, he’s surrounded by ten of her copies. They concurrently release beams from their eyes.

X is able to dodge them, by transporting himself fifty yards back. Sarah flies over to him, tackles him to the ground, and begins to strangle him with her elbow pressing against his throat. She zaps his face with another blast of paralyzing-sonic light; this causes both his face to fall asleep, and him to groan in agony. She picks him up, and holds him in a full nelson; she creates two copies of herself, and manipulates the clones to unleash blasts into him. Moments later, his magic aura, disappears, signaling her to end the assault. She allows his limp body to fall.

“Game over,” she says, as her clones vanish. The camera cuts away from the fight. Again, a wide shot captures Cytri’s vessel, as well as the violet atmosphere, and odd birds in the background.

Cytri exclaims, “Well, it looks like the dream team pulled it off. And quite easily, too. They may have survived this far, but that doesn’t mean that they’ll stand a chance against The Dark Brotherhood. We’ll take another five hour break before the final round, begins; will The Protectors be ready for what’s coming to them?! They better be!”

Chapter 18: Va Part VI

The X-J-Seven has landed to refuel, and the passengers have been allowed to roam Krow city, during the sunset. The Protectors and the clients have decided to join the other people in exploring; two of the monks are holding a stone, each. They’re currently heading down a street that appears the darkest in the district, and is filled with various, abandoned-cement facilities; dozens of the natives, who resemble upright-standing beetles, with two arms and legs, and are dressed in tan robes, are also present.

The strange vehicles currently being operated by the native creatures, are fitted with two-long legs; they connect into their black, grandly-sized, oval-shaped heads, which have both a cannon and an automatic weapon mounted to either sides of them; they have the ability to fold together and recede their bottom halves, when the propellers, which are crafted into the tops of them, are engaged.

Ten of these objects are currently visible, and are making their way both by the cement road, and the air; there are four vehicles currently flying, and six walking on the street. The natives are headed toward the opposite direction of them. “So what did the commander want with you guys?” asks Red.

“He wanted to thank us,” replies Tom.

“He recognized who we were from the ads. In exchange for our good deed today, he gave us a lifetime pass to board the X-J-Seven, whenever we’d like,” responds Joe.

“Not bad,” returns Red.

“Hold up; you guys hear that?” asks Joseph. A pause occurs as they listen. “It sounds like a waterfall. I’m pretty sure it’s coming from further down this way.”

“Let’s go check it out,” Thomas says, as he leads the group in its direction.

They come upon the jungle. The wilderness borders the abandoned section of the city; upon arriving, an oval sign that has been mounted to a tall pole that extends out from the last bit of concrete before the dirt, is displaying alien text. Without hesitation, the group continues deeper; the sound of the waterfall becomes louder and more intense. They pass by many odd trees, with golden bark and blue leaves, and finally come upon the edge of the cliff. A canyon resides below, which is composed of a beautiful grassland. From their position, they can see the waterfall that’s twenty yards, west. It flows into a lake. The monks sit on the dirt, and assume meditative positions; Red and The Protectors hang their feet off the edge, beside each other. Thomas says, “This was worth it.”

“Too bad we have to get back to the ship, pretty soon,” replies Red.

“How much time do we have?” asks Joseph.

The sound of something colossal breaking through the forest can be heard drawing near. The group stand to their feet, and turn to observe the anomaly. Suddenly, their legs are tangled together with vines and branches. A head peeks out from above the tall trees, and stares down the men; it’s cloaked in an almost translucent-green, fiery manifestation, and resembles a bald female, with bark for skin and shining-green eyes. It levitates the Va Stones out of the hands of the aliens; she grabs them with her clawed-left hand, and summons a wormhole that’s made of a mystical-violet light. It expands over her head, and opens to a width that allows her to jump through. She does so, and the gateway slowly closes behind her. “After it!” scream the clients, simultaneously.

The Protectors, shift. Joe burns the vines, and Tom morphs his right hand into a sword, and cuts through the trap. They sprint toward the manifestation, and leap; upon touching it, they’re transported. The two find themselves atop a mountain. The fifty foot tall, feminine-humanoid being’s side profile, is now fully exposed. Her breasts are large, her hips are wide, her legs are long and powerful, and her bottom side is chiseled. The forest spirit is standing alone, fifty feet away, while closely observing the Va Stones, which are being held in both of her hands. “Those don’t belong to you!” shouts Thomas. “Give them back!”

The entity places the items down by her sides, and faces The Protectors; its full figure is finally revealed. Its butterfly-designed wings are made of translucent-green mana. She spreads them, and they expand forty feet, outward. They begin to flap. The lifeform levitates into the air, and lets out a terrifying scream. Moments later, four, spinning-purple swords, appear in front of the beast, and are projected at them. They both dodge its attack by rolling out of the way in opposite directions. Three more identical individuals race in from the east. They shoot purple lightning from their fingertips, at The Protectors; this stuns them. “Ahh!” they concurrently shout in agony. They fall to their knees. Thomas uses this chance to slam his hands against the ground. He creates an igloo around he and his teammate.

“That one hurt,” says Joseph.

“You ready?” asks Glass. He nods, and closes his palms together. Tom psychically dissolves the barrier, and Joe immediately propels a magnificent-fire stream into one of the organisms, as the line of sight is clear; it releases an agonizing cry, and plunges to the ground, hundreds of feet below. Suddenly, from out of the void, surface three of the wizards. They’re standing in a horizontal line, with their arms, raised. Above their opened hands, a spherical formation of red gas, appears. From out of the smoke, a ginormous snake exits. It’s completely red, with the yellow eyes of a frog.

It accelerates at one of the anomalies, and shoots a green acid-like substance, which propels out of its mouth, at it; the ooze eradicates its tree-like exterior upon contact. The damaged soul attempts to flee, but falls in the process. The snake then bashes its head through the torso of another one, and wraps its body around the neck of the remaining foe. It tightly squeezes until the last threat is dealt with; all the while, it’s keeping the end of its body, hidden within the smoke.

The being’s wings finally disappear, and its eyes cease to shine; the snake releases its grip, and as the creature plunges to the surface of the highland, the serpent changes its exterior into white-rising smoke. Meanwhile, The Protectors have collected the Va Stones. The mages rejoin them.

“So, you guys had all that power this whole time, and chose to conceal it; why?” asks Tom.

“It hasn’t been appropriate, until now. The rules are that we’re only to use our powers against things from other realms. The ones you just faced, were from another world. They were sisters; their home was desecrated, so they chose the wilderness on this planet, as their new one. The thief wished to absorb the magic attached to the Va Stones, and transform it into the remedy for the injury causing her infertility,” replies a monk.

“I can sense their offspring in the atmosphere; we haven’t completely eliminated their future chances at further existence.” Due to the wizards only being able to teleport things that they’re touching, two of them grab onto the shoulders of the mercenaries, and together, the group vanishes.

Chapter 19: Vasu

Ben, Gyle, and Sels, in their power modes, are facing off against a horde of 200 mutants, which appear as demonic spider-knight hybrids; their upper halves are human, and they have four, ample, dragonfly-like wings, as well as two arms and hands, and six-gargantuan spider legs, which all have lethal points at the end of each foot. Spiked, organic-looking, black plate armor, covers their torsos. Some are wielding magic bows that shoot magical-shadow arrows, while others are attacking with tridents. They’re fighting on the snowy ground in the middle of nowhere, and during a massive blizzard.

Sels is shooting a stream of fire at the surrounding opposition from his mouth, while ripping their limbs and wings off of their bodies, using his extremely powerful hands; he’s getting blasted by arrows, simultaneously.

Just as Sels kills his fifteenth enemy, he’s overcome by a mass number of ghouls, which impale him with their tridents, and legs; they continue to stab their feet through his body as he struggles to defend himself on the ground. Meanwhile, Ben is shooting blasts of lightning from his hands at the foes who’re charging in from every angle. He continues to blast apart the opposition, until he’s finally stabbed through the back by a flying trident; he falls to the ground, and is immediately surrounded.

Dozens of demons are focusing their arrows on Gyle’s head, forcing him to use his open palms to block the onslaught. Concurrently, the others are focusing their firepower on the diamond. The jewel shatters; the scientist is flung from out of his robust guardian’s figure, and onto the ground.

See-through glass protects the cube-shaped cell that now contains the three scientists. They’re currently strapped to each wall, excluding the one that includes the entrance. Five, advanced-metal straps, wrap around their waists, hands, and ankles. The memory of a previous conversation is played over in Ben’s head. “According to our device, there’s a planet not too far from here, that’s harboring more stones in a single location, than almost any other source we’ve come across. It’d take us at least seven days to get there,” says Sels.

“Then prepare the ship for the trek,” says Ben.

“And what if this planet we’re visiting, has a resistance protecting its resources?” asks Gyle.

“Then we take them down,” he replies. His eyes flutter open. “How could this be!?”

This outburst wakes his two comrades, up. A strange man’s words are spoken through an intercom. “You men are strong; tell me, what has given you such strength?” They refuse to answer. “Tell me now, or I’ll kill you.”

“A concoction; we produced it ourselves,” says Gyle.

“And what did it include?”

“Something we call, Energy Stones. They’re small, silver, round, and glowing objects, that were sold to us hundreds of years ago,” says Sels.

“You must mean the Asix Gems; who gave them to you?”

Gyle declares, “A pirate named Mayci. He did business with our predecessors. If he has somehow managed to survive for the past four-hundred years, we have no clue where he is, so don’t ask. And he never told anyone where he got them from, either.” A pause occurs before the next words are said.

“I was the one who destroyed your facility. My name is Vasu, and the Asix in this world belongs to me, and me alone. I’m going to give you two options; the punishment I give to those who wish to steal from me, is death, however I’m impressed by your accomplishments, so I’ll be lenient. You can either work for me, and allow me to make you into a true reflection of the Asix Gems’ power-”

Ben interjects, “And let me guess, the other option is death?”

“Exactly.”

Gyle asks, “Will we ever be free?”

“As soon as I feel as though you’ve done enough, I’ll extract your powers from you, and send you on your way.”

“Fine, I’ll do it,” says Gyle.

Ben says, “Me too.”

“I guess we don’t really have a choice. What do we have to do?” asks Sels.

“Kill; your first targets will be the ones that call themselves The Protectors. After I’m finished with you, they won’t stand a chance.”

Ben inquires, “What for?”

Sels shouts, “The Protectors are good people!”

Vasu responds, “Because they’re a threat to my plan; that was your last question.” A thick-green gas seeps out from the ceiling vents. This substance briskly spreads, and causes the men to fall asleep.

Chapter 20: Va Part VII

The Protectors and the clients have finally arrived at Caera, and land their vessel on the black sand that covers the shore. Eighty percent of this planet is covered in water, and wine-colored liquid fills the sea; the sky is red.

Tom, Joe, and the clients, are making their way through the jungle. Odd trees, with ruby and silver leaves, and green bark, fill the area; the homes are made of orange clay, reddish bricks, and wood, and are positioned awkwardly within the minimal free space that the forest allows.

Almost as soon as they enter into the town, they halt, and instantly notice that the homes and villages are completely empty of people. The aliens sprint to the castle; this building is made of stone, resembles the medieval style of architecture, ascends high past all of the trees, and is the only modern structure within this society. The Protectors follow behind the sprinting wizards, while Red, trying his best to keep up, seriously lags behind.

Both the heroes, and the clients, have now come within twenty feet of the structure. Three-bipedal warriors, with skin that resembles smooth armor, excluding on their human-shaped heads, have appeared from out of nowhere, and are standing between the team, and the masonry; their faces are composed of scales, and a single-solid color covers them. One of them is completely red, the other is blue, and the last being is dusky.

They each have differently-shaped horns; the blood-colored one has two-sharp horns on his forehead, the indigo individual has two-curved horns that grow out the side of his head, and the last adversary has two-small horns on his chin. Bat-like wings appear on each of their backs. They all share intense eyes, which correlate with the color of their skin, sharpened nails and talons, lengthy and powerful figures, and Tyrannosaurus-like mouths; three fingers and toes are attached to their hands and feet, and they’re each equipped with unique weapons.

The vermilion individual wields a curved blade, the ebony one has dark malleable-projectable mist resonating over both of his hands, and the sapphire soldier has a menacing scythe. The crimson one states, “We’ve been waiting for you.”

A monk shouts, “What have you done with our people!?”

The blue devil responds, “They’re trapped inside. We’ll release them once you hand over the stones.” The mages that aren’t holding the magic items, aim their extended hands at the scarlet monster. Mystical-shimmering ruby light zaps out of their fingertips. The being blocks the blasts with its wing, and while this occurs, the black being hurls two-shadow discs at the attacking men, blowing them twenty yards back, and into two different trees. The aliens holding the stones, surround themselves in their psychic pyramids. The Protectors move to a position in front of their customers.

The red one slowly and menacingly advances toward them as his wounds heal. “I’ll handle this,” he declares. While continuing toward the group, it morphs; green flames briefly consume him, then suddenly, he, as well as his blade, grow four feet. His head changes into what resembles a two-horned dinosaur.

His armor becomes jagged and metallic, and his body grows outstandingly more muscular; its arms shift into dragon-like limbs, and his legs keep most of the same shape, despite their increased size. He also grows the tail of a dragon. Joseph positions himself to prepare his beam blast technique. As he charges it, Thomas has formed an ice spear. He holds it with his right hand as he dashes at the foe.

Just as Tom reaches the enemy, it, with the support of his tail, leans back, and kicks him with both of his feet, launching him into a tree. Joseph shoots, but misses, due to the enemy jumping in front of him at the last moment. Joe stumbles back, and right before the opponent attempts to grab him with his fangs, Thomas tackles the monster to the ground; he mounts him, punches it across the face with a right hook, and leaps into the air.

From above, he throws down two swords, which penetrate through its neck and right shoulder; he then shoots a frost beam from his eyes. This attack appears as a short, intense-blue ray of light, which ice particles have combined together with. Frozen water covers the being’s torso, and the opposition is now pinned to the ground. It yells in agony, and struggles to free himself, as Glass, now armed with an elemental katana, lands beside it.

“Get up, you weakling!” shouts the blue one.

“Let’s save him!”

“No! If he’s this weak, he deserves to go.”

“Save me!” yells the victim.

In a flash, Tom delivers the final blow to the competitor, by impaling his weapon through its head. Green blood oozes from the wound. Emerald flames encapsulates the downed fighter; once it mysteriously fades, there’s no longer any trace of it.

“Prepare to die,” says the black one. “Brother, don’t intervene, just make sure they don’t pass me.” It puts his hands together as if to pray; suddenly, he’s shrouded in a dark bubble. In an instant, it disintegrates, and his new incarnation is revealed. It has transformed into a giant baboon-like hybrid, with ebony-eagle wings, sable fur, and awesomely sharpened nails and fangs.

Its arms hang low, its posture is slightly bent over, it stands on two legs, and the shadowy mana that covers its hands, remains, only is now larger and more radiant. To start the fight, it goes airborne, and launches himself into Joseph; he successfully tackles him to the ground. The beast snaps his devastating jaws at his face, however, he’s able to throw a flurry of punches at its head, allowing him to avoid its menacing teeth. Joe smashes its snout close, and twists it, throwing the being off in the process.

Thomas jumps in its direction; once he’s airborne, he thrusts the lance that’s held in both of his hands, at its head. The monster rolls out of the way of this attack, and with extreme agility, jumps to his feet, and ascends. While flying in circles above, he blasts short streams of mystic light from his hands, down at the two heroes; he continues to fire, forcing The Protectors to scramble about. His missed shots leave deep and terrifying marks into either the ground, or a tree.

Joseph is finally able to take cover behind a husky trunk, and prepares his two-handed burst attack. He hops out, and projects a ginormous ray of fire. He connects, hurling the enemy to the ground. It thuds hard against the dirt, and transforms into a bundle of sooty flames, before evaporating.

“In the name and honor of Laiem, the son of King Azer, I will best you.”

“Why are you attacking us!” Joe screams.

“Don’t be foolish, anyone that’s willing to kill for that coward, Jazu, is an enemy to both the Upper Realm, and The Wrath. Prepare yourselves!” The remaining enemy grows five more feet; he raises his scythe, and by doing so, two more versions of him spontaneously manifest. One is on his right side, and the other is on his left. “I’ll make you pay for what you’ve done!”

White lightning abruptly blows past The Protectors, and strikes the targets. This attack continues for ten seconds, and the three stunned enemies release thunderous, beast-like roars. The overwhelming power of this attack, changes them all into ash, which blows away with the breeze. Joseph turns to look at the wizards who were attacked; they’re still kneeling, and recuperating from the heavy damage that they sustained.

Joe says, “Thanks for the help; how are you guys doing?”

One of them answers, “We’ll be fine.”

Just as the two other men disengage their shields, and plant their feet on the ground, the villagers happily make their way out of the castle; they’re loudly cheering and clapping for The Protectors, as they form a circle around them. Hundreds of men and women, wearing colorless togas, continue to applaud the victory, as The Protectors smile and wave back. All ten of the mages in the village, break through the crowd, and advance toward the victors; their praises come to an abrupt end. “You’ve saved us all, and for that, we will forever be indebted to you,” says one of them.

“Don’t even mention it, sir,” replies Joseph.

“Please, you must stay for tonight’s feast.” The teammates give each other a reassuring nod.

“That doesn’t sound like a bad idea, to us,” says Thomas.

“Fantastic!” The citizens resume their loud acclaim as The Protectors are led by their customers, into the castle. Everyone follows behind.

Chapter 21: The Final Round

The Protectors are standing on the same platform from the previous round; the sun is now rising. Suddenly, three crows, north of The Protectors’ position, are diving right toward them. They land, and in the blink of an eye, they’re changed into The Dark Brotherhood.

They’re dressed in black ancient Asian monk-styled robes, with ivory Oni masks that cover their faces; each of the men has pale skin, and appear as elderly individuals. “You guys don’t look so tough,” says Cassidy.

The brothers raise their hands up, and instantly summon a tornado. This causes The Protectors to cover their faces with their arms. The twister swoops up the opposition, and they’re carried toward the ocean; the swirling gust ceases as it hovers over the expanse, and the men can be seen plunging into the fluid, feet first. Upon landing, a giant splash is created. Moments later, the water shines a ruddy indigo.

Suddenly, a gigantic lifeform breaks through the surface of the liquid; it resembles a silver and maroon, fish-toad hybrid, with snowy hair running down its back. It has metal teeth, florid-red eyes, and twelve tentacles that extend out from its mouth. There are two rows of deadly fangs at the end of each one. Its two robust arms are planted against the edge of the square. This allows it to prop itself up. This entity manipulates the multitude of its stretchable-serpentine arms, to dart at the three. Cassidy protects the crew in a psychic-spherical barrier. “What’s the move?” she asks.

“Sarah, I need you to distract him so that Cass can have an open shot.”

“Shot?” she replies.

“Throw me; and aim for its head.”

The shield morphs into a thirty foot tall wall, and Sarah flies above and over it. Her, along with ten of her copies that she created in an instant, shoot rays at its face, while being chased by the many grapplers. This wounds it, causing azure blood to spill out from its dome. Meanwhile, Cassidy has formed a shell in the form of a hand, around Jin’s crouched body; her creation is levitating by her right side as she prepares to launch him.

She lifts her clinched-right fists into the air. She then moves her arm back, and Jin’s capsule follows this movement. With a forceful pushing motion, she opens her hands, and throws him at the target. While curled in a metal ball, he pierces through the creature’s lowered forehead at nearly the speed of light, and expels out through its back. The mutation, while groaning, foaming from the mouth, and bleeding, dives into the ocean.

Another cerulean flash occurs, and the three soaking-wet fighters jump out of the ocean, and pursue the contenders with outstanding speed and agility. The brothers make it so each of them has their own target. The one who challenges Jin, assumes his kickboxing fighting position. He attempts to superman punch him, however he teleports to the right, and ends up at his foe’s left side; the brother evasively rolls, and springs into Jin’s torso with both of his fists, extended.

This knocks him back, and before he’s able to regain his balance, the monk rushes him. An invisible blast, which is summoned by a punching motion from his right hand that’s now aimed at Jin’s legs, trips him, causing him to land on his stomach. Since the brother’s psychic powers are commanded by his movements, he lifts him up fifteen-feet high with a grabbing motion from the same limb, and proceeds to slam him to the ground.

His metal armor absorbs the attack. He teleports fifteen yards away from his opponent, in a standing position, with his hands held out to his sides. He generates two harpoons; one levitates over each of his palms. Without touching them, he psychically fires the weapons at his target, however, the monk’s quick movements have allowed him to somehow grab the projectiles. The warrior launches them back; he teleports out of the way, and in front of his enemy. He attempts to throw a right haymaker, but the man, now covering his head with his raised elbows, thrusts his shell into the swooping arm. He then grabs Jin from around the back of his neck, and delivers a devastating-right knee strike to his abdomen. This slightly cracks his exterior.

The Protector tackles him to the ground, and strikes him across the face with his fists; the monk blocks the strikes with his elbows. He teleports 100 yards up, and after shooting ten sniper bullets into the brother, pinning him down, he transports himself 100 yards higher, and creates a sword that he positions so that the edge of it is between his crouched legs. He drops onto the mystic being, crushing and stabbing him, simultaneously.

Cassidy’s and Sarah’s battles are taking place, concurrently. Cass is fighting within a suit of advanced-cobalt mystic armor. Blades are mounted to both of her forearms. She blocks the barrage of kicks, knees, punches, and headbutts; at every open opportunity, she stabs and slashes him. Once she connects her fifth hit against him, she produces four snake-like cords, which remain connected to her outstretched hand; they’re manipulated to wrap around his legs and arms. She fully extends his limbs, causing him to hover as he struggles. She then creates a psychic fist that floats in front of the brother, and with an uppercut motion from her left hand, which the energy hand follows, she devastates his abdomen. His head hangs limp once the powerful blow, connects. She drops him, and he lies lifeless before her.

Sarah and ten of her clones, are attempting to jump the last brother, however, his master-level combat skills allow him to easily dodge, throw, and counterstrike. She and a copy fly upward, and focus a conjoined stream, down at the monk. He’s finally hit, and the blast forces him to his left knee. In this brief moment, the ten copies all charge up their eye beams, and release them into him; he falls.

Chapter 22: New Recruits

Thomas and Joe are observing the Monolith as it slowly descends onto the base. It lands in front of the hangar, and once it touches down, it slowly rolls into it. The ship finishes its automatic parking maneuvers, and the two head toward the entrance of the space to meet with their team. From out of the craft, exits Jin, Sarah, Cassidy, and the three Urians; the two groups close the distance with each other. “The champs have arrived!” exclaims Joseph.

“Tom, Joe, meet the new members of The Protectors,” says Jin. Ivon extends her right hand.

“It’s nice to meet you. I’m Ivon. This is my brother, Evan.”

“What’s up,” says the brother.

“And our comrade, X.”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you,” he says. The new acquaintances all shake hands.

“Same here,” Joe responds.

“Likewise,” states Tom.

“So, how much of the tournament did you guys see?” asks Cassidy.

“None actually, we had to handle some business of our own,” replies Thomas.

“What happened?” inquires Jin.

“It’s a long story; how about we share it over some drinks? I’ve already got the guys preparing the bar for us,” says Joe.

Cassidy states, “Sounds good to me.”

“All right, then,” says Jin.

“Great; they’re waiting for us downstairs, so we should get going,” rejoins Joe; he turns to face the Urians. “You guys joining us? You’re welcome to.”

“I’m in,” says Evan.

“I could use a few drinks,” replies Ivon.

“Sure, thanks,” answers X.

“Perfect,” declares Joseph. “We’ll have somebody hook you up with whatever clothes you guys want.”

“Thank you,” replies Evan.

Ivon responds, “Thanks.”

“I appreciate it,” says X.

“No problem; I’m sure you must be getting a little hot in those things, by now.”

Five hours have passed, and at this point, the crew have already spent lots of time drinking, and are currently wasted; the bar is lit with a dim-orange light, and scattered around the area, are couches, chairs, and tables. Joe is passed out on the floor, and snoring.

Sarah is cuddled up with her boyfriend, Zeke, who’s a human soldier that’s currently dressed in his Tenth Division outfit. This is an olive jumpsuit, with the number ten on the back of it, in white; they’re asleep on the couch in the corner of the room. Cassidy and Tom stand up from the bar’s stools, holding hands, and exit out of the automatic-steel door; this briefly wakes Joe, but he falls back asleep. Jin, who’s still drinking along with two female members of the militia, which are giggling due to his lack of balance, takes one last shot, and falls onto the floor; he lands on his back.

The Urians, now dressed in clothes that were stolen from the Tenth Division, are standing within the dimly lit hangar; their compression suits are held within their hands. X, now wearing a hood, is dressed in a red and black checkered flannel; a gray hoodie is underneath it, and on his legs, are dark slim-fitting jeans. Tan-spurred cowboy boots cover his feet; he’s also equipped with a stolen-military vest, containing a revolver. A bandolier is strapped across his torso. There’s a sheathed machete attached to his back; another knife is holstered to his right leg.

Evan is wearing a sable-leather jacket, a chalky tank top, dusky gloves, blue jeans, and futuristic orange, silver, and blue tennis shoes. Ivon is wearing an indigo dress, and flip flops. They’re making their way toward the back end of the Monolith. X holds up the stolen keycard to the sensor that’s made into the door; the cargo hatch opens, and the mutants proceed inside.

Meanwhile, back at the bar, the female militia members continue laughing as they stumble out; it’s now dawn. The slam from the iron door, shutting, wakes Joe from his slumber, once again. He stands to his feet, and observes the room. “Where did they go?” he asks, realizing that the Urians are missing. He leaves, and begins his search.

He ends up outside of the base, and witnesses the silent Monolith, ascending. He stands motionless and dumbfounded, before running back inside; as he returns, the craft zips into space at the speed of light.

Upon reentering the bar, Joseph, who stands at the entrance, claps his hands three-loud times; this immediately livens the crew, who all swiftly recuperate. “We got a problem; those new friends of ours just made off with the Monolith,” he says, obviously annoyed.

“They made a big mistake,” returns Jin.

“Where do you think they went?” asks Zeke.

“I think I know; remember when they first arrived at Cytri’s place? They told him they needed help, and that their planet had been invaded. They must have returned home,” says Sarah.

“I do remember that. And they said that they’re from Uri, too; what galaxy is that in?” inquires Jin.

Zeke replies, “Dihnwa; I’ve been there. I’ll go and set up the ship, now.”

Chapter 23: The Immortals

The invisibly cloaked Monolith slowly descends into the indigo sea; on this planet, which is composed of seventy-five percent desert, the sky is consistently purple, and the sand is completely white. The ship penetrates the ocean, and continues its descent.

The cloak is now disengaged, and the vehicle is parked at the sea’s floor, 300 yards down. The Urians, now dressed in their regenerating battle outfits, are swimming to the surface (excluding X, who has already made it to shore due to his super speed); on their way up, they pass by a school of 200, peaceful, eel-like animals, which are blanketed in colorless fur, and have the faces of snakes. Translucent fins are at the end of their tails.

The crew finally regroup. The beach, which was once elaborately decorated with advanced infrastructure that’s now destroyed, is currently only a ghost of what it used to be. A towering hotel, that extends 200 feet up, is the most well-kept structure for hundreds of miles. Three-silent drones, shaped like small-black discs, with cameras that emit intense-red lights at their centers, are flying overhead. As they look up at the bots, they shift into their upgraded modes. X retrieves his pistol, and shoots three bullets; one penetrates through each of them. Just as they plummet, an eerie alarm pierces the air.

A medium-sized silver flying saucer, closes the distance with the mutants from south of their position, and floats 100 feet above them. From out of a hatch that’s formed at the bottom of the spaceship, 100, seven foot tall, humanoid robots, with orange armor, and four arms, descend to their location. Their hands have turrets made into each wrist, and they’re holding flaring-orange swords made of light.

From the west, 100 more alien enemies close in on them; they’re wearing red and advanced metallic armor, and are holding plasma rifles. Stun rods powered by electricity are attached to their backs, and they’re riding jumbo, ebony-horned beetles. The bugs have metallic headpieces, a saddle, and are steered by the ropes connected to their bridles, which are attached to their three horns. X exclaims, “I’ll take care of the creeps on the bugs.”

The two forces concurrently release rounds at the intruders. Ivon is standing in front of her brother, who’s currently crouched in his demonic incarnation, and using his shield to block the oncoming ammunition that’s coming from the aliens. While absorbing their firepower, she fires back a multitude of spikes from her outstretched palms, at the bots, ahead.

She instantly takes out twenty of them, causing them to explode on contact. In ten seconds, X has placed all of the soldiers that were riding the beetles, on the roof of the hotel, leaving the brainless-harmless bugs, to freely roam. Evan ascends, and projects a constant stream of electricity at the remaining militia. Upon speedily finishing off the ambush, they head deeper into the ruined city.

The Protectors’ craft finally exits hyperspace; Uri is some distance away, however its exterior is visible from their location in space. They advance toward it without noticing the small fleet of six gunships behind them, which unload green-plasma blasts at the Tenth Division’s vessel.

The Protectors engage the ship’s extra set of jets. They propel at an incredible velocity toward their destination, ahead; the enemies increase their speed to match theirs. While flying in the direction of the planet, the aliens continue to shoot, damaging the exterior of the ship more with every hit. They crash land on the sand. A cluster of white light gathers above the totaled-space vehicle; the substance rapidly becomes denser.

In a flash, the light transforms into the kimono-wearing warrior. Midair, with a quick use of its mouth-cannon, it unloads a fiery stream at the enemies. From right to left, it blows the targets to shreds with its continuous ray.

South of their position, is the location where the alien military made their base. A plain, gray, dome-shaped, facility, accompanied by a ginormous, mothership-like spacecraft, lies behind them. The aircraft is hovering 300 feet above the structure, and has ten jets on its lower hemisphere, which are emitting blue flames. Hundreds of drones are hovering near the building, as well; they appear as miniature helicopters. Flashes of light from the laser weapons being shot by the army, fill the sky. The swordsman turns to face the battlefield, and heads in its direction.

The Urians have taken the battle to the base; hundreds of attack drones, as well as more of the enemy forces riding the beetle-like insects, have followed behind. Suddenly, The Protectors arrive; the drones turn their attention to the beast. With its stream attack, the swordsman eradicates the flying attackers, as the Urians easily dispose of the enemies attacking on the ground.

The horde is defeated almost instantly. As the last of the army is finished, twenty, humanly-shaped, enormous creatures, free fall from out of the bottom of the mothership. There are ten males, and ten females. Each of them are 100 foot tall beings, and equipped with white-robotic armor, excluding Commander Fisher, their leader, who’s the only one in red. The warriors are holding humongous guns in both of their hands, and have see-through glass visors on their helmets. “It’s the immortals!” shouts X.

“We’ll see about that,” The Protectors say, in a demonic tone.

Without hesitation, these giants attack both the warrior, and the Urians, who’re able to dodge the blasts from the flamethrowers that they’re equipped with. While maneuvering in a way to avoid damage from the fire, the titan expels a continuous cluster of frost from its eyes. Upon contact with this attack, the foes are ceased. Once all twenty of the upright Immortals have been frozen solid, The Protectors land, and break apart.

Evan, still in his devil mode, flies with extreme speed, up to the face of the commander. He breaks the ice with a powerful left-handed punch. He then shoots electricity into Fisher’s visor, shattering it. Another blast of lighting hits his bare face. Fisher screams in agony. “Why did you do it!? Why did you kill the people of this planet?! This was my home!”

“It’s simple really.” His face shivers and trembles while replying, due to the cold. “More power.”

“What power!?”

“Vasu strengthened us with the magic of the Asix. How did you become so strong, anyway?”

“Who’s Vasu!?”

“For nine thousand souls, he promised that he’d share even more of his supernatural abilities, with us.”

“What does he need souls for?!”

“For the sacrifice; the entity that he harbors and draws from, uses souls to increase its strength. By force feeding it, Vasu is able to exponentially grow his might.”

“What entity?”

“He calls it The Spirit Snake; in a few hours, it will devour what’s left of your people.”

“You mean they’re still alive?!”

“Not for long.”

“Where is he!?”

“Where he always is; Sia, that’s his home. It’s located in the Alexander galaxy; the map is in my ship.” Evan, furious, continues to stare into the eyes of his enemy. “Go to him; face your demise. At least our spirits will get to rejoice, knowing that he’s killed you all, you lucky-worthless heathens.”

“You said you only needed nine thousand souls, so why did you slaughter so many thousands, more?”

“I thought if I spared anyone, one of you would just try and get in the way, later on. I was right; I guess I didn’t do a good enough job, exterminating.” Evan’s arm starts to gleam with an intensity not yet seen before. With a swift arm-pushing motion, he maintains his lightning strike on Fisher’s face, until his anger is satisfied; by this time, there’s nothing that remains of the commander’s identity.

Chapter 24: The Spirit Snake

Vasu’s sailboat floats within the expansive ocean. Light snow is falling. He, now wearing a hood, is dressed in a golden robe, and is standing on the poop deck. He raises his finger to his forehead, and lifts his open-left hand, all the way up. His palm is facing the gray clouds. A white portal opens 100 feet overhead; the captured Urians swiftly levitate out of it, and organize in nine rows, containing 1,000 individuals in each one.

During this time, his eyes remain closed, and his hands, raised. The Protectors’ silent gunship zooms in from behind his craft. Without being noticed, the heroes zap Vasu with plasma blasts that shoot out from the two cannons built on either side of the Monolith’s head; they connect with him, throwing the mage into the sea. Due to him losing concentration, the innocent Urians, now in tattered robes, splash into the water as well. The Protectors jump out of the cargo hold, and midair, transform back into the titanic swordsman.

The mutants have jumped from the same space, and are carried by Evan’s reptilian embodiment; they each grab onto one of his hands as he flies them over to Vasu’s boat. The Monolith descends, and floats atop the surface of the ocean. Evan lets go of his comrades’ hands as he passes over his destination; once they land aboard, he flies down, stands beside his team, and changes back into a human. Vasu levitates himself out of the liquid; his body is encapsulated within a silver aura as he hovers back onto the deck.

He shouts a spell. As the foreign words are spoken, another manifestation is created near the first one; this one is dark, round, and from out of it, 200 of Vasu’s spider-devils from before, exit, only this time, they’re three-times larger, and equipped in advanced jet armor that covers their entirety. The warlock sits down, and assumes a meditative position; his bleeding wounds begin patching themselves. Evan and Ivon focus their projectiles at the evil doer, however they pass right through him. X dashes into the expanse to rescue his drowning people. He rushes them to a distant part of the icy land that’s north of their current location. This takes him only twenty seconds to complete. Once X rescues the last person, he regroups with his comrades. “They’re all safe, now.”

Vasu’s army finally clears out of the circular manifestation in the sky; an even larger monster follows behind the ghouls. It’s a completely black robust humanoid, with bone-like spikes on its four arms, human-shaped face, shoulders, and back; it has flushed-orange eyes, the teeth of a lion, two-dragon horns, an ivory mane, knife-like nails on both his feet and hands, a snowy aura that gives him the power to levitate, and projectable fire brewing within its mouth.

He’s holding blue-regenerating lightning bolts in each of his hands as he heads toward Vasu’s threat. The heroes’ merged giant hovers between the oncoming army, and the Urians.

“We’ll handle the small guys,” it says, in a voice that sounds as if each of The Protectors are speaking, simultaneously.

“Got it!” Evan replies.

“Okay!” responds Ivon, concurrently with her brother. The titan’s two swords break apart into hundreds of daggers, which float around its exterior. It psychically fires the blades at the minions, and they pierce through them at various parts of their bodies. The poisonous knives melt their skin. Seventy of them fall at the start of the battle. As they’re being chased by the remaining soldiers, the colossus skillfully escapes their grasp, while blasting back with a continuous-cannon stream; The Protectors continue this style of combat, but also incorporate freezing their foes, and chomping through them with their fangs, while moving at a brisk speed.

X begins the battle with the monstrous anomaly, by wielding his two revolvers, and blasting off its hands; he reloads many times, and doesn’t stop shooting until his ammunition, which once consisted of hundreds of bullets, completely depletes. Evan maintains a flow of lightning on the head of the titanic monster, causing it to use its forearms for cover. Ivon uses this opportunity to jump at the individual’s abdomen; due to her momentum, the force of her punch is multiplied. She finds herself exiting its back, and grabs her knees while flipping to the ground. White blood drips from the horrific hole in its stomach, as well as what’s left of its limbs; its aura disappears, its eyes close, and it free falls into the water. Vasu’s forces are totaled; as the behemoth drowns, the magician stands to his feet, and starts to clap.

“Congratulations. I must admit, you’re stronger than I thought, but you’re lucky you didn’t fight against the finished version of my creation. As for the bugs, they were expendable. You fools shouldn’t have interrupted me,” says the strange man. He suddenly disappears. “Die!” He reanimates above them, jumps out of an orange wormhole, and flops into the liquid, below. Both The Protectors’ conjoined form, and the mutants, battle against the evolved version of Vasu, which appears before them in the same incarnation as when he fought the scientists.

The mutants aim for its face; Evan releases his lightning, Ivon sends out a multitude of spikes, and X has hurled an exceedingly grand chi ball, at Vasu, which bursts into an explosion of fire upon hitting him. While X charges up another round, and Vasu covers his head from the assault with his hands, the sword-wielding anomaly has flown 300 yards above the enemy. As it drops, The Protectors expel a devastating ray from its mouth, and focus it on the top of the antagonist’s head. It lands its feet on Vasu’s shoulders, and penetrates its two swords into his eye sockets. Once The Protectors successfully stab him, in an instant, a magnificent-blinding light, emits from the figure’s skin; Vasu has shifted back to normal. Evan flies over to catch his descending body, and carries him to the Monolith.

Chapter 25: Prince Osi

Five months have passed since Vasu was brought to justice. A hooded monk wearing a brown robe is holding an open book as he sits at the edge of the young boy’s bed; Osi, the prophesied prince, is now comfortably tucked in. He appears ten-years old, and has grown to this size in less than half a year. His hands are closed together, and resting atop his covers, which are folded back against his torso; the ring on his right-index finger is a silver band with the face of what resembles a skull with glowing-green eyes, and two horns. A brightly lit candle that’s resting on the chest at the other side of the bed, illuminates the room. “Remember, tell me when you start to feel sleepy, okay?” Osi closes his eyes. “Page one. The legend of our king, goes as follows. Jazu was a being who was born in a realm completely different than our own. In his world, creatures resembled what we would consider both majestic lifeforms, as well as devilish varmint, with demonic features and menacing ways; it was called Ecawu to the natives. In our language, that means the Upper Realm.

“Ten-thousand years following Ecawu’s construction, the rest of the worlds were created; the first world made, was called The Wrath, and it’s a location where the king of the Upper Realm, Azer, whose father constructed the Spirit Realm, which all souls originate from, sentences those who’ve disobeyed his rule. Azer’s son, the man with the name which should never be spoken among our people, has his kingdom established in The Wrath, and his guards collect those worthy of eternal slavery.

“Vasu, Jazu’s father, was the strongest magician in Ecawu, but was labeled a criminal for his attempt to assassinate King Azer. For this reason, once he escaped the king’s soldiers, Vasu and his son broke away from society, and lived in the wilderness for years. While there, they continued their traditional practices, which included sacrificing extradimensional animals, as well as conjuring the most vile and eerie spirits that exist.

“By the time Jazu was twenty, his father had left the forest without a trace. He remained alone in the wild for hundreds of years, and continued to become stronger on his own. Then one day, a ritual went wrong, and a monster that he wished to conjure and control, broke free. It attacked Azer’s kingdom, killing many civilians in the process. Jazu chased it down, and using his magic, killed it. After this event, our king was labeled a criminal, as well. The guards, at first, captured our leader, and gave him a proposal that he had no choice but to deny; he was to find and kill his infamous father, or else he would serve a life sentence in The Wrath. Jazu, who was indebted to his teacher, and the only parent he knew, decided against this proposal, and ran from his captors. He was chased back into the jungles that raised him, however-” Osi’s snore interrupts the reading. The monk smiles. “And I was just getting to the good part.”

He looks over at the flame, and in doing so, psychically causes it to die. He stands to his feet, and exits the room, quietly closing the door behind him.

Suddenly, from out of Osi’s ring, emerges a human-like, red-translucent anomaly; it has two arms and legs, five fingers and toes, two horns, and a face that lacks any detail. The being touches the boy’s head with his index finger. Osi gasps, and is unable to regain his breath as his eyes burst open; they’ve turned completely black.

Jazu’s original incarnation is now revealed. He has red humanoid skin, and long ivory hair. The upper half of his face is serpent-like, while the bottom appears humanly; he also has a muscular build, two, small, pale and bone-like horns on his forehead, shining-yellow eyes, the feet, legs, and hands of a human, a pointed nose, hollow ears, sharpened nails, and vampire fangs in his mouth; the extremities on his lower half are hidden by a formation of green fire. He stands before a translucent version of Osi, who’s still in his pajamas, in this world that’s composed of colorless space, and only exists within Jazu’s mind. “I’ve seen you; in my dreams,” says the prince.

“My name is Jazu; our souls are connected.”

“You’re our king, aren’t you?”

“That’s right; and you’re my successor.”

“I have so many questions-”

“I’m sorry, but I can’t allow you to ask any of them right now; once we finish here, nothing will be left unknown. Take my hand. I’m going to pick up from where the old man left off.” Osi approaches him. Upon grabbing his palm, he’s instantly transported to another world.

In this area, the trees, grass, and wilderness, resembles Earth’s flora, however the color of the bark is silver, and the branches and twinkling leaves, are chalky. Jazu, now wearing his dark-hooded robe, is sprinting at an amazing rate through the forest, and reciting a spell aloud, but whispering; caliginous magic blasts are being shot by the pursuing Wrath soldiers. The shots miss, and hit the surrounding trees, heavily damaging them with each connection. His destination is the plateau that’s 100 yards ahead. While jumping over stumps, and maneuvering through and under vines and branches with magnificent swiftness, the mumbling finally finishes, and he teleports away from sight.

Jazu lands atop the hill; the ground is covered in scarlet grass. He instantly falls to his knees. Inky blood squirts out of his mouth as he coughs, and his face starts to morph into what resembles a plain mask that’s made of bone; its features include intense-red eyes, and a hollow nose. This transformation also causes his horns to grow in size; once they do, they begin to resemble the horns of a Greater Kudu, and turn black. His skin turns orange, and his hair turns into hundreds of radiating-golden locks.

The headless officers have now closed in on him. They have the bodies of robust humans with silver-knight armor, and the feet and wings of a dragon. They’re equipped with steel-spiked clubs, as well as swords. A single, purple, diamond-shaped jewel, appears on the upper portion of their backs.

Jazu uses the power that his hair holds, to defeat the opposition; by telepathically commanding his locks, he wraps them around the 230 undead soldiers. In doing so, he’s able to absorb every ounce of their essence, allowing his power to grow, exponentially. He eradicates the armed force. While his hair returns to its original length, he walks over to a sword that belonged to one of the fallen; he picks it up, and closes his eyes.

At first, what appears as a spinning formation of orange light, circles around Jazu’s torso. It becomes both denser and brighter; suddenly, it grows into a sun-like anomaly, which covers him completely. Three seconds pass, and the light changes into a radiant-white color. The fire-like substance that encapsulated him, breaks apart, and trickles to the ground. The sword has transformed into a magic hammer, which he holds in his hands; Jazu has also changed. His robe disappears, and a glimmering-pale, short-sleeved tunic, and matching shorts, materializes on his body. Golden-burning sandals appear on his feet; his skin is now blue, his muscles have become robust, and his eyes flare red. A swirling pale tattoo, that wraps around his entire arm, starting from his shoulder, and ending on his left palm in a circular-hollow shape, appears on him.

The hammer’s handle is completely dark, and on the back of its head, is a shining-green spike. The face is forged with a jagged, mystic-black metal. On both of its cheeks, are single faces of skulls with open mouths, and eyes that gleam, green. “The embodiment that you see before you, is the result of an advanced spell, that only someone like myself, could cast,” says Jazu; he and Osi are invisible, and viewing this memory through the same inner eye.

“How did you accomplish it?”

“Within the three-hundred different dimensions, are monsters that hold such powerful energy, that by besting them, and absorbing their essence, they can grant you unbelievable strength. The formidable beast that massacred the people of Ecawu, and is responsible for my label as criminal, was the last sacrifice; it made number twenty-thousand, and was all I needed to transform into what allowed me to overcome Laiem’s soldiers.” Jazu summons ivory fire to expel out of the mouths of the skulls.

“Why did you want so much power?”

“The only way to escape the Upper Realm, is to gather enough magic to create a portal. Once I absorbed the souls of The Wrath’s soldiers, I had plenty. So that I wasn’t permanently altered, I transferred half of the magic that I collected, into the blade, and in doing so, I created my unbreakable Spirit Weapon.”

With a snap, the hammer morphs into a silver-band ring, with many skulls aligned around its outer circumference. It manifests on his right index finger. He then extends his hand outward, and closes his eyes. A blue, oval-shaped wormhole, starts to expand midair, and four feet away from his extended limb.

Jazu abruptly transports them to a different memory. He’s now lying within the lap of a female Caera native beneath a tree, who’s feeding him grape-like fruit. His feet are in the lap of another woman, who’s currently massaging them; she’s sitting on the ground with her legs crossed. Together, they’re watching the men, women, and children, enjoy their day at the beach; the citizens are dressed in colorless togas, excluding the shirtless individuals, who’re either splashing about within the green ocean, body surfing, or building structures with the black sand. The natives are also playing tag, and using wooden swords to spar.

“Once I was transported into this dimension, I found myself within the dark depths of space. As I looked beneath me, I saw a beautiful rock in the distance, that I instantly knew I wanted as my new home.

“Upon arriving, I was greeted by the friendliest creatures I’ve ever come across. I called them, and the planet, Caera, which is a word they use in the Upper Realm to describe something pleasing to the senses. I taught them how to speak, play games, craft weapons, and even how to use magic; because of this, they regarded me as their leader, and I served as their benefactor for a thousand years. Then one day, while sleeping within the temple, that, with the use of magic, we created together, I saw a vision of an oracle telling me that The Wrath’s forces were going to find me, and I would barely escape with my life.”

They are teleported away once again. Jazu is jolted awake by his nightmare; his torso violently raises up and out of his covers as he lies on his bed within his room. He exits the temple, and makes his way through the forest, until he gets to the river. He takes a seat on the dirt; while facing the stream, he grabs two, medium-sized oval stones, which were resting in front of him. By using his nail on his right-index finger, he carves a spell into each one. They’re written in strange shapes and lines, and once he finishes carving, he exhales onto them for two seconds. His breath is infused with magic, resembles smoke, and causes the signs to luminesce. When he blows on the first one, his exhalation appears to have a pink-sparkling hue, which causes the lines to shine the same color. For the second one, the mist is orange.

Another jump occurs. Jazu is now standing on the shore, and facing the tide; he’s holding his hammer ready in his hands. Suddenly, a swarm of 300 of The Wrath’s soldiers fly in from north of his position, and over the ocean. Jazu darts at them, and with super speed, bashes through dozens in seconds. Once he has easily destroyed over two thirds of the force, the knights grab hold of him, force him to the ground, and pile on top of each other.

Once the cluster is complete, they self destruct, bursting into orange flames. Jazu is blown into the ocean. Eventually, he’s able to use his remaining strength to swim back to shore. He lies in the sand on his back, and is bleeding green blood from all over his body. His hammer has morphed back into a ring.

The version of Jazu within the memory, says, “You can come out of hiding now.” Three mages escape from behind the tall trees that border the wild; they have blond bark and purple leaves. They move to surround their downed leader, and kneel upon closing the distance. “In twenty years, my powers will be completely restored. Your job is to find me a queen in that time. Until then, I’ll be sharing my powers with you all, so that you may continue to thrive here.” Jazu struggles to raise his right hand; he opens his palm, and from one foot above it, a white portal manifests.

The two stones that Jazu previously merged with magic, exit the manifestation, and levitate in space. “Take these.” One of the men grabs them from out of the air. “Guard them with your life. One stone contains the spell that you’ll need to draw from my spirit; the other is the spell that will allow my soul back into this realm.

“You must go about the sacrificial ceremonies without me, so that the energy from The Master’s creations, may continue to repair my strength. I require one spirit, every year. Once you believe my future queen is ready to conceive the child that will carry my soul, recite the spell that’s written on the stone with the orange text. Be sure to give him my ring, as well. I know you won’t fail me.” Jazu’s exterior morphs into a smoking-red mass; it forms into a swirl, and races into his hovering band. This action causes the item to shift; it grows a single skull, with two-small horns, and brilliant-green eyes. It’s the same one that Osi wears in the current time. It finally drops to the ground as the last of his spirit enters into it.

They once again stand before one another in the land of whiteness; this time Jazu is the gas-like substance, and Osi is the solid figure. “Like the old man said, Azer offered me freedom in exchange for taking my father’s life. At the time, like myself, my father would only sacrifice the souls of beasts, however, while in my slumber, I projected my spirit outward, and began my search to find Vasu; once I located him, I read his mind, and began to have visions of the many innocent-civilized lifeforms, whose lives he has taken. From that point on, my purpose changed. Instead of granting you powers for free, you’ll earn them by helping me ensure his death.

“It’s a rule amongst mages to never take the lives of the pure bipedals; the punishment for such an action, is always death, and should be carried out by whatever mage is made aware. To both avenge the people of the Upper Realm, and the many innocent lives that have been unrighteously sacrificed, I have decided to make it my duty to put a stop to Vasu’s madness. By agreeing to allow me to use your soul to carry out my final mission, I will grant you all of my power, for an eternity. Once we win, your people will be forever safe in your hands; you’ll be a king that’s capable of galvanizing such an empire, that it may eventually rival the most elite, both in this realm, and the many others.”

“How likely are we to win?”

“The purity of your soul, once fully merged with my own, will amplify my magic, by five-hundred percent. We should have enough power to destroy him, with ease.”

“Then I’m in.”

“Thank you for understanding.” Jazu disintegrates into smoke, and lunges into Osi’s torso. The prince falls to his left knee, and hunches over. His aura becomes visible, and shines hoary. Suddenly, he’s transformed into an older version of himself; his clothes burn off, and are replaced with snowy armor, which resembles gladiator attire; a blue cape is attached, and golden sandals appear on his feet. The same tattoo that appeared on Jazu, appears on his left arm, only now it’s dark. His ivory eyes burn, and his hair is long and blond. He finishes his transformation, and stands to his feet. He’s now seven-feet tall, and a black ring, resembling a tungsten design, forms around his left-middle finger. He briefly observes both of his hands; his previous skull-faced ring, has downgraded, decreased in size, and is now made up of many skulls that form around the hollow-circular object.

Osi, now in his new armor, awakes from his dream; his blanket has fallen onto the floor. He rushes to his feet. While standing in place, he scans himself; in a mature voice, he says, “It was all real.”

“I’ve unlocked your powers,” responds Jazu, who’s currently invisible, and only existing within Osi’s soul. The prince lowers his hands to his sides, stands up straight, and closes his eyes; the two rings shine white, and in a flash, alter into his spirit weapons. In his right hand, is the hammer, and attached to his left arm, is his shield. The deflector appears as an ebony circular object, with a golden rim, and a medium-sized spherical collection of fire at its center. “For the remainder of my time with you, I’ll be in the shape of this aegis.” Osi observes his new weapons. “They’ve found us.”

The prince disappears from sight, and reemerges on the shore. A flock of 200 soldiers from The Wrath are approaching from the north. They’re flying over the water, and heading right toward his position. Prince Osi uses the constant fiery-red beam from his shield to take down fifty of them before they reach him; his attack causes them to splash into the liquid body, below. Just as the remaining ones come within thirty yards of him, he teleports to a position above them. Using the power of his tattoo, which allows an expandable, translucent, indigo-colored arm, to grow out of his palm, he grabs hold of the 150 soldiers, and teleports them, and himself, 1,000 feet over the sand. While they remain within his mystical grip, with an aggressive downward-throwing motion, he launches the hand to the ground, causing them to burst into an abundance of purple flames upon making contact with it. Once the fight is complete, he vanishes.

Chapter 26: Housekeeping

The Protectors are sitting around a long, rectangular-dining table; Joseph is seated at the head, Sarah is at the other end, Tom is beside Jin on the left side, and Cassidy is situated across from them. “So, last night, the indicator on the Preservation Tank that’s holding Vasu, showed us that his brain finally turned back on. Since then, we’ve tripled the amount of the substance keeping him paralyzed. Yesterday was also the first day Cass was able to read his mind,” states Joe.

Cassidy declares, “What I discovered, is that Vasu is an entity that originated from a realm that’s separate from our own; it’s actually a land that could be the first dimension ever created. When he attempted to kill the king of his world, which is a man by the name of Azer, he was labeled a criminal, and forced to hide away in the jungles of what he calls, Ecawu.”

“Can you tell us more about the king?” inquires Jin.

“Azer isn’t only the king of Vasu’s original realm, but also the creator of all dimensions that came after it; that fact was a vivid imprint in his mind.”

“This just got a lot deeper than I thought it would get,” says Joseph.

“There’s more. When Vasu ran away to the wilderness, he took his son, Jazu, with him. He raised him there, and taught him everything he had learned about magic. One day, while hunting, Vasu was ambushed. He was overpowered, and forced to use a spell that teleported him to this realm.

“When he got here, he continued growing his power. At this point, he’s stronger than all of his ancestors, combined. He eventually found himself living on the planet we know as Sia. It’s there where he contrived the means to trap one of Azer’s brothers; this brother’s name is Siano, and within his essence, he holds more magic than anyone throughout all of the realms.

“Although Vasu is unable to completely drain his power, through evil rituals, he’s able to forcefully extract the elder’s magic. Each time this is done, he risks Azer’s retaliation; and an attack from a being like him, or any of his guards, would most likely destroy this entire planet. Vasu wishes to take over his original realm, as well as this one, and by force.”

Jin asks, “So what do we do now? Return him to Ecawu?”

“I would think so, but how would we even get there?” responds Sarah. A soldier rushes into the room through the open door.

He frantically states, “Someone’s here to see you.”

“Who?” asks Jin.

“Don’t know; but the guys said that he appeared from out of thin air, asking to speak with our leader.”

The Protectors exit the facility, and immediately notice the group of thirty militia members; they’ve made a circle around Osi, and have their weapons drawn, and pointed at him. The prince is now standing with his hands in the air. The team make their way to the strange man. Upon reaching the formation, five of the soldiers positioned at the bottom of the alignment, back out with their guns still aimed at the entity, and are replaced by the heroes. “What do you want?” asks Joseph.

“You’re harboring the life of a man named Vasu; I can sense him here. I need you to hand him over to me, now,” replies Osi. Suddenly, a portal opens up fifty yards above the facility; it expels a yellow light as it expands.

“Look!” Sarah shouts. Their attention shifts to the anomaly; Vasu, who appears shrouded in white light, swiftly levitates out of the base, and into the wormhole. Cassidy immediately sends out a snake-like tentacle at the sorcerer. It stretches out of her left palm, and latches onto his head, before he reaches his destination; she hacks into his consciousness. Osi teleports to Vasu, and attempts to grab him, however his hands pass right through the mage. The evil warlock finally makes contact with the mystical gateway; he, as well as it, vanish. The prince briefly levitates, and teleports away.

“Was that Vasu?!” shouts Jin.

“What did you find out, C.?” Sarah asks.

“That was him; he’s headed back to Sia.”

It’s snowing on Vasu’s home planet; the wizard reanimates atop the frozen-over sea. The dark sorcerer, who now appears in a humanoid form that’s stronger than his previous one, has huge-bat wings, and is covered with black fur, excluding on his human face. His skin is gray, and his eyes radiate, red. He’s kneeling on his right knee, and has his left palm planted on the icy surface. Osi appears from out of thin air, and stands ten feet behind him. Jazu, as the red and transparent figure seen in Osi’s dream, projects from the tungsten ring, and approaches him.

“Father!” he shouts. Vasu turns, and is now standing upright.

“Is that really you, son?”

“What has happened to you?”

“Evolution; are you here to kill me?”

“I’ve had visions of your innocent victims, dying; I know that you’ve broken the rules. I would have no honor at all if I don’t follow through with this!”

“I see; before you make your move however, just know that I planned on bringing every one of those souls, back. I just need more time.”

“Thousands of years isn’t enough for you? I think if anything, all of this time has rotted your mind. What have you been doing?”

“Cultivating. Many, many, years ago, I perfected the summoning technique; in doing so, I was able to capture one of the elder souls. Its name is Siano; it’s one of The Spirit Master’s offspring, and Azer’s brother. He reigned over the Dragon Realm as a peaceful, and powerful king. With his mind alone, he’s capable of producing Asix Gems; of course he’s not compliant, but by force feeding him, he can’t help but create an abundance of them. Soon enough, with the help of the Asix, I’ll be so strong, that the guardian of the Spirit Realm won’t even stand a chance; once I reach that point, I plan to venture there, defeat Malzae in battle, and bring everyone that has ever died because of me, back to life, starting with our tribe.”

“They don’t call Malzae immortal, for no reason!”

“Who’s Malzae?” Osi asks.

“He’s another son of The Spirit Master; he has been assigned to kill anyone who steps foot in his sleeping father’s home, without permission. Only by defeating him, will I be able to complete the reanimation spell. If I’m successful, once the spell is cast, hundreds of millions will be reborn,” answers Vasu.

“What happened to your people?” asks Jazu’s vessel.

“Many of us were poisoned by a monster, that as a unit, we summoned; it was titanic in size, and one-hundred times grander than anything we ever came across. We wished to absorb its power, however, unbeknownst to us, it had developed a mutation that allowed it to excrete a toxic, and lethal fume; it did so as we battled, and before it transported itself into a dimension that I’ve still been unable to locate, it infected and killed over half of my village, including Jazu’s mother. Jazu was only two at the time. Shortly following this incident, Azer made the practice of magic illegal amongst the Upper Realm.

“This left us without the means of finding a cure for what my wife, and six-thousand others of my kind, were dying of; if we were going to find the antidote, we needed to contrive a spell, which called for resources we usually relied on the kingdom for. The survivors grew to resent Azer for this. Those of us who continued to practice in secret, decided to plan an assassination. Killing Azer, and becoming rulers, meant that what was left of our people and our ceremonies, would be restored. But we mages failed, and were slaughtered by the king’s soldiers; I was one out of seven survivors. For many years, Jazu and I hid in the forests away from the kingdom. I was continuously ambushed and assaulted by The Wrath’s hunters.”

“Then, you abandoned me.”

“I was attacked while hunting. There were too many of them. If I didn’t leave when I left, they would have followed me all the way to our hideout. I had no choice. I’m sorry, son.”

“Whatever; regardless of any of that, you still haven’t given me a good enough reason to let you live. Even if you’re granted more time, it’s pointless fighting Malzae. You’ve gone too far.”

“Aren’t you the one to judge? It seems hypocritical for you to say such things, when you yourself are involving the life of an innocent, in your own personal vendetta.” He turns to Osi. “Young one, I’m sorry that my son has dragged you into this; if your life is unfortunately taken, I promise that you’ll be one I bring back, as well.”

“I’m nothing like you! He’s been chosen to carry my power, and to serve as king of his people, for an eternity.”

“How nice; and let me guess, you won’t allow him to fully possess your mana, until I’m dead?”

“Exactly.”

“You don’t have to make this mistake. Soon, my collection will be complete, and together, we can be both the leaders and resurrectors, of our people. All I need is just one-hundred thousand more lives, then all of this destruction will be reversed.”

“I won’t let you do this any longer; it’s time to give up the dream.”

“I’ve come to close.”

Vasu turns his gaze to Osi. With his thoughts alone, he levitates a huge chunk of the icy surface into the air, and tosses it at him; before it connects, Jazu morphs back into a shield, which the prince uses to block the attack. Vasu manipulates both the snow, and the ice that’s covering the frozen fluid, to morph himself into a 100 foot tall, fanged, humanoid skeleton, with four gleaming-red eyes, and spiked fists; blades extend out of his forearms, and a violet, diamond-shaped jewel, has manifested on his forehead.

To avoid falling into the exposed ocean, below, Osi levitates high into the air. Vasu attacks him by smashing down with both of his balled hands. By extending outward his mystical arm, both of Vasu’s limbs get stuck in the iron grip. He, still holding onto the icy appendages, flies up to his face, and delivers a powerful blow to the gem, with his hammer. This causes it to crack. The evil mage screams, and shoots Jazu’s vessel with four red blasts, released from his eyes.

This throws him into the ocean, and he sinks many feet. By the time he comes to, another beam is headed right for him; with extreme agility, Osi uses his shield to block the attack. He then teleports into the air, and hovers 100 feet in place; he swiftly retaliates by blasting out his own stream of fire, which propels out of his shield, and hits the gemstone again. This time, green blood pours from the spot. This causes him to kneel over on his left knee; as his head is hunched over, his armor is breaking apart and falling into the liquid.

Moments later, the Monolith appears behind Osi. Simultaneously as the prince turns to investigate, Vasu morphs his essence into a monumental-light figure; a white flash expels from his body, and as a multi-colored serpent made of blazing energy, the warlock, at an extreme velocity, dives into Osi’s head. Midair, a grand, spherical formation of black smoke, now surrounds him. Flashes of lightning occur within the dark sphere. The Protectors, just as they begin their descent from the cargo bay section of their vessel, merge. The sword-wielding giant flies over to the collection of mist, and hovers 200 feet above it. Suddenly, the gas dissipates. A nine foot tall being hovers in the place of the prince; it has ivory-plate armor and a shining-two-handed sword. A magical-golden plume hangs out from his helmet.

A red, circular-shaped gem, is on each of the knight’s shoulders, as well as his chest, the center of his back, on each knee, and on his forehead; the two on his arms are small, and are equivalent in size to the ones on his legs. The largest stone is on his helmet; the others are exactly similar.

The knight teleports to their position, and delivers a single headbutt. They’re stunned, and descend toward the sea; Osi grabs them with both an arm made of caliginous chi, which extends out infinitely from his left gauntlet, and his plume, which now appears as if it’s a golden-cosmic arm; these two telekinetic limbs hold The Protectors by the face and neck. With his right hand, he holds his weapon into the air. A mass amount of fiery-red light forms into a fireball at the tip of his edge; he looks down at his opponent, and right when it seems like he’s going to end it all, he pauses, drops his prey, and dematerializes.

Chapter 27: The Spirit World

Osi, who’s still in his cursed armor, is sitting motionless on the dead grass, with his palms open, and his legs, crossed. He has his back against a leafless tree; surrounding him, are an abundance of similar trees, as well as old-sooty leaves, which cover the ground throughout the shady forest.

The armor starts to dissolve into mist. His mutated features are revealed. He has a bald head, a childlike appearance, and a new tattoo. It appears as two strangely-patterned snakes, which starts with their intertwined tails at the base of his spine, and ends by merging each of their heads into his two, yellow, incandescent, serpent-like eyes; one of the serpents is green, the other is gold. He’s shirtless, has a muscular build, and a small violet-triangular gem, is now on the center of his pecks.

Two twinkling-jet ophidians, which appear as shadows emitting sable mist, are wrapped around each of his arms; the serpents’ eyes glow white. Wide-legged, shining ivory pants, are now covering his lower half; a violet aura engulfs his body, and his hands and feet are shrouded in purple fire. “If we’re going to do this, it has to be right,” Osi says, before vanishing, leaving his surroundings perfectly still.

Osi, who’s now equipped with the armor of the cursed knight, from out of the void, appears within the Spirit Realm; his sword however, is missing. This place is an infinite desert with millions of mysterious figures flying at different altitudes, and gliding close to the dark-blue sand.

The sky is dim, and there are both beings that resemble different-colored bodies of light, as well as medium-sized undead birds, present; the colors of the spirits include ivory, red, pink, purple, indigo, yellow, green, lime, black, and gray. The desert is absent of any amount of wind breezing through. A hymn, that’s sung by two women and one male, is the only sound that’s heard. The voices are swiftly approaching Osi’s position. He continues to stand, unconcerned.

The source finally closes the distance; three humanoid figures, which are composed of golden lights, start to spin at an incredible rate. In a blinding flash, the entities have become a massive, two-antlered, deer-like animal.

Its body is composed of burning-maroon fur, and the monster’s two eyes are made of pale flames. With unbelievable power, the animal sucks him into his body by breathing in. Moments after the knight is swallowed, Malzae’s torso bursts into an explosion of cobalt fire; Osi has escaped.

The guardian changes back into the three original light figures, and instead of singing, they’re now whimpering. Following their transformation, they teleport away. The prince raises the sword that’s now in his right hand, into the air, and recites a spell in a demonic tone. An ebony ball of light opens right above the tip of his edge. Rain clouds are generated, and flashes of sapphire lightning eject out of them.

Chapter 28: Legacies, Strategies, and Travesties

Joe enters the lounge room through the automatic door. By this time, the other members of The Protectors are standing up from the dining table; he approaches them while holding up a small and tan burlap-like bag. It’s tied by a string. “Somebody said they found this outside.” The distance between them has now closed. He unties it; both a folded piece of paper, and a strange-orange oval stone, has been placed inside. Joseph removes the note, and places the rest down on the table. “It’s a letter.”

“From?” asks Jin.

“King Osi, it says.”

Jin asks, “Who’s that?”

“Let’s find out.” He continues, “Dear team, I’m sorry about causing such a scene. When I attacked you, I wasn’t myself. Vasu possessed me, and forced my hand. This will never be a problem again. Vasu is no more. I agreed to help him with his goal, which included reviving millions of souls; after defeating the immortal guardian of the Spirit Realm, Vasu sacrificed every ounce of himself, to resurrect both his people, and those who he has hurt on his quest. They’ve all either returned home, or have joined my kingdom. On behalf of the people of Caera, I want to say thank you, not only for helping my elders ensure my safe birth, but also for having such righteous goals. If I’m ever needed, just think of my name while holding onto this stone--that’s the end.”

“Caera; that sounds familiar,” Thomas replies.

“That’s the place we helped escort those weird monks back to.”

“That’s right; so King Osi must be the chosen one they were talking about. They must age fast where he’s from.”

“But can we trust him?” asks Sarah.

“It seems like it; only time will tell, though,” declares Jin.

CHAPTER 28: PART II

Vasu’s base is a submarine that floats beneath the sea; seven members of his clan, which are all wearing dark-hooded robes, are sitting around an oval table within a pitch-black room. Their names are Veronica, who was previously Vasu’s mate, Gala, who’s Vasu’s eldest friend, Pi, an elderly female master, Gee, a young and eager protegee, Elb, a male alien follower, Lapo, another humanoid male, and Cavu, a female alien. Their eyes are shining orange, and they each remain motionless. Veronica’s womanly voice says, “I requested we meet in person today, to discuss who’ll be in charge of leading the ceremonies, until Vasu’s return.”

Gala, in his middle-aged male voice, responds, “Since I was the first to join Vasu, I believe that I should have the role.”

Gee utters, “That means nothing if you’re not as strong as one of us, Gala. I know for a fact that my strength and knowledge of magic, dominates yours.”

Pi says, “Now is not the time for bickering and boasting; if we want to get anywhere, we have to discuss what matters most, and that is, who’s the most capable of completing a successful summoning spell. I believe that’s Veronica.”

“I agree; I’ve practically memorized Vasu’s entire spell book.”

“I don’t contest this suggestion,” says Elb.

“Neither do I,” says Lapo’s tremendously deep voice.

“Veronica will make an excellent leader,” Cavu says.

“Then we all agree; I’ll gladly do it. There’s something else I wish to speak about. It has to do with the curse on The Spirit Snake. As I’m sure you’ve sensed, it has been weakening since Vasu’s death, earlier today.”

“Right, I too have felt Siano’s power, growing,” responds Gala.

“What do you suggest we do?” asks Cavu.

Veronica declares, “We’ll have to sacrifice triple the amount of souls, if not, then I’m afraid-”

Lapo exclaims, “Is that-?” Suddenly, a titanic, twinkling-silver snake, propels through the water, and passes by the vessel at an extreme rate; it can be seen out of the many, medium-sized, and oval-shaped windows, formed into the wall on the left hemisphere of the room. The crew rush over to observe the anomaly; they watch as it continues upward, and finally exits the gigantic body of water.

“Let’s go,” Veronica utters. The crew simultaneously vanish.

The seven members of Vasu’s council are now in their upgraded forms. This includes them having six arms made of white light; there are three on each side of their bodies. The extra hands are holding black-incandescent discs. They’re levitating beside each other, ninety feet above the ocean, and before a massive, bald and facial featureless, human-shaped being, with luminous-silver skin; it’s lacking both genitalia, and nipples. Siano is standing 100 feet tall. He has flaming angel wings, and radiant-jet eyes. Its head and limbs hang limp, while its wings continue to keep it afloat.

The seven unleash their projectiles at the opponent. A blinding light consumes Siano, and multiple-glowing chains abruptly manifest. They wrap entirely around the organism; both Azer’s brother, and the seven clansmen, disappear.

MANY YEARS AGO

Vasu, now standing atop the frozen sea of Sia, and wearing a golden robe, has his arms and hands, raised; a circular gateway, emanating a purple light, residing 200 feet above his head, expands to a ginormous size. From out of it, exit two, astronomical, eagle-like creatures; one is red, and the other is blue. After flying out of the manifestation by flapping their enormous wings, they hover in place on either side of him, as he faces them; the vermilion one is on his left. Once the portal closes, he lowers his arms.

A day later, while sitting in his golden throne that’s levitating 500 feet up, Vasu observes his destroyed city, ahead; his two bird-like creations are hovering behind him. The red one is to his right. Hundreds of 200 feet tall, naked-humanly figures, with glimmering-sable skin, lie motionless in the rubble and ruined infrastructure, which fills the war zone. Smoke and flames expel from what’s left of the buildings. Vasu snaps his fingers, and he and his monsters, dematerialize.

As Vasu lies in his giant bed, along with his female counterparts, he’s without clothing, and in his original incarnation. His features include pale skin, florid-red eyes, and the facial features of a forty year old human. His dreadlocks, eyebrows, and fur, which covers his entire body, excluding his face, abdomen, and the bottom of his feet and hands, are dark. He has sharp ears, fangs, and knife-like nails at the end of his five fingers, which rest under the pillow below his head.

The two women who’re resting beside him beneath the covers at both of his sides, have two ram-like horns on their heads, the physiques of humans, and the tails of lions. Queen Veronica, a normal human, who’s also naked, is standing on the bed; Vasu’s stomach is between her feet as she looks down at him. The space is dim, and lit from three-small floating candles. “Is everyone inside now?” asks Vasu.

“Yes, all six-thousand and twelve of us,” responds Veronica.

“I knew there would be enough space.”

“Vasu, I don’t see how you can promise to make this better by tomorrow.”

“Don’t I always come through on my promises?”

“Honey, your creations trashed the entire city.”

“You don’t think that I know that?”

“It seems like you don’t. I mean, of course I’m happy that the resistance was so easily dealt with, but every single thing that we’ve created, besides this castle, is completely ruined.”

“Listen, I told you that I’d surprise you, but since you keep pestering me, I’ll tell you what I’m planning; two years ago, I found out about an almost identical planet, not too far from here. You’ll like it even better.”

“Why’s that?”

“It’s not as hot, and the temperature never changes where we’ll be. By tomorrow morning, I planned on transporting the entire castle there, with everyone inside.”

Veronica motions her head to signal one of the aliens to make room; she does, and the queen lies down beside him. She kisses his lips. “I’m sorry for doubting you; but what are you going to do about those birds? Don’t you think they’re a bit too destructive?”

“I’ll handle it.”

The next morning, Vasu, now dressed in his signature robe, exits out of a gold wormhole, and manifests atop the icy surface of the frozen-over ocean. He brings his son, Prince John, along, who’s dressed in an ivory robe, appears twelve, and is holding onto his father’s hand. Vasu closes his eyes, and raises his head and both of his hands.

A portal forms 300 feet in the air, and from out of it, expels Vasu’s two winged creations. “Vasu!” he shouts. The birds are changed into floating balls of golden fire; the anomalies shrink as they make their descent. Once they reach fifty feet above them, their forms have once again, mutated; both entities have become swords, and are slowly gliding toward the warlock’s hands.

The one that previously resembled a blue eagle, has morphed into a broadsword that’s made with a sapphire-like material; its simply-designed handle, is white. The other monster, while within the fire, metamorphisized into a Shamshir-like blade; it’s made with a ruby-like substance, and contains a black grip. Both of the weapons are indestructible.

He finally grabs them out of the air by their hilts, and holds them up to show his son. They carefully observe the weapons, together. “These are yours. By touching these blades, you’ll be connected to The Spirit Snake; with this connection, will come the knowledge and the power you’ll need to rule our people. When we get back to the castle, I’m taking all of us to our new home. There, you and your mother will be in charge; I’m going to have to stay here, with your Uncle Gala.”

“But, why?”

“So that the source of our power stays strong; it’s the only way I can ensure all of our safety.”

“Why can’t The Spirit Snake just be left here, alone?”

“That’s not how this works. Don’t worry son, I’ll visit you whenever I can.”

“All right,” John despondently replies.

“Now, let’s practice.”

PRESENT TIME

John, who now appears thirty, is jolted awake from his slumber. His eyes burst open as his torso flings upright. He observes his right hand. On it, is a leather glove, with a dark circle on the back side of it; the shape starts to resonate a bright-pale light. Suddenly, his mother, Veronica, now dressed in a black robe, appears within his bedroom, and in front of the door. “Son.” He stands to his feet. He’s dressed in a white T-shirt, and loose-fitting pants; the swords given to him by his father, are strapped to his back.

“Mother; what’s going on?”

“Your father has unexpectedly died.”

“How?”

“We aren’t sure. All we know is-” a silent bullet pierces through his wooden door, and penetrates into Veronica’s shoulder, instantly throwing her to the floor; the entryway is then violently kicked down, and at the other end, is an assassin, who appears human. He’s dressed in a dusky-ninja outfit, and is holding a dagger in each of his hands; a gun-like device is worn around his wrists, and he’s wearing a pair of goggles that allows heat-signature vision. A bow is also holstered to his back.

He immediately aims the weapon on his right wrist, at the dumbfounded son, and launches a bullet; it penetrates through him. The powerful impact launches him into the wall, behind him; he falls with his back upright against it, and passes out. The assassin grabs John’s left arm, and forces him to his stomach; he then retrieves both of the blades, which are holstered in a cross. He holds one in each hand, and stands up completely straight.

“Now, Siano!” he exclaims. The ninja vanishes.

The guards’ footsteps rapidly climb the flight of steps, however they’re too late. Once they reach the room, all they witness is their dead-bleeding leader, and Veronica’s disappearing body; as the purple fire rises up from her feet, it, along with her flesh, evaporate.

The mysterious killer, now in a tattered poncho, is struggling through the deep-brown sand. The wind is gently breezing through as he continues his conversation with the invisible entity. “Siano, I understand your caution, and I also know that due to me submitting my spirit to you, you automatically believe that I’m unfit to wield these blades, but I assure you that I am. To prove it, I want you to test me. Choose a trial for me to overcome; it can be anything!” he shouts.

“This is not for you,” Siano’s voice replies.

“What does this Khalil have, that I don’t!?” a brief pause occurs before the spirit answers.

“No more questions.” He suddenly comes to a halt.

“I’m sorry Master Siano, but I must know what it’s like.”

“Don’t do this.”

He removes his gloves and throws them to the sand. He retrieves the blades from the holsters on his sides, grips them tightly, and closes his eyes. Nothing happens. He begins to thoroughly scan the sword in his right hand. “Where’s the power?” A strike of lightning hits him on the top of his head, instantly causing his cells to disintegrate; the weapons fall to the ground, unscathed.

Chapter 1: Reed

Part V: Promise

Time frame: After Part IV, But Before Part III

Khalil Reed is posted atop his cabin. It’s night. His skin is tan, and his hair is short and red. He’s wearing a dark shirt, gray sweatpants, and his signature brown and dusky, suede and leather boots; he’s sitting upright with his back against his chimney, which is, like the roof, composed of red bricks.

The high-tech, mostly black, with pinches of gold on the crown, case, and buckle, watch, which is latched to his left wrist, can perform many factors, including exploring the internet, calling, projecting holographic images, and hacking into other devices.

With it, he also is controlling the camera that’s mounted on the drone that’s hovering in front of him. By tampering with the holographic keyboard that projects from the face of his device, he adjusts the lens so that it faces him, and says, “I’ve been on Earth for as long as I can remember. I was born on Erin. My family was forced to flee due to terrorist attacks that threatened everyone alive. These criminals were filthy rich, and wished to conquer not only my home, but the entire planet system, altogether. They used their advanced technology to abduct us, and killed those who resisted their commands; my grandfather, who by some miracle came across two cursed blades, disabled the opposition long enough for many of us to escape. He was granted both extraordinary powers, and an early death; this was due to the immense magic that the swords contained.

“My dad used to keep in contact with some of the others that escaped; according to him, many of our neighbors have been hunted down, and killed. And it’s all because of the High Council enforcing the tracking devices. The terrorists hacked them, and discovered where their loose ends were located. Lucky for us, my dad created a device that’s capable of blocking the signals the trackers emit.” He holds up the watch to show the camera. “This is it.”

A brief pause occurs. “My grandfather’s name was Saki; he and his wife died when I was just a baby. My mother is currently enslaved on Erin. The only family I have here on Earth, is my dad and his two brothers; they pretty much spend their lives working, and searching for the blades that Saki’s brother, Irax, hid. Although my dad insisted that we keep the weapons, and find a way to control them, Irax feared that by keeping them, if our family were to somehow get caught, then it would be as if we were handing the enemy their most dangerous tools of destruction; he also knew that the swords were far too powerful for any one of us to wield.

“One day, for some reason, my watch malfunctioned; a short time after my dad fixed it, we were found. My uncle died defending us from the hunters, without letting a soul know where the swords were.

“It has been twenty-two years since my dad and uncles started their search. At this point, I almost can’t help but to give up hope that we’ll ever have a solid trace of the whereabouts of the blades; and even if we do, who’s to say we won’t share Saki’s fate?” Another pause occurs.

“I made a promise to my father, that if anything should happen to him and his brothers during their hunt for the swords, that I would resume the mission, alone; he believes it’s my duty as an Erin native, to do everything I can for my people. I agree with him.” Khalil suddenly hears someone climbing up the ladder that rests against the back end of his home. He turns his gaze to where the approaching person, will arrive. It’s his dad.

“You busy?” Alan asks.

“Not really.”

“Walk with me for a minute.”

Khalil and his father, who’s wearing a leather jacket, blue jeans, and boots, make their way through the woods, which is covered in an abundance of green trees and plants; they finally reach a lake, and halt before it. “Your uncles and I will be leaving tomorrow night. I’ll be recording the entire trip, just in case.”

“You sure about this one?”

“We’ve come upon a lead unlike any other.”

“And you’ve prepared for its power?” Alan removes a pair of all-black leather gloves from within his right-pant pocket. The finger tips are metallic, and a single, glowing, red circle of light, is at the center of the palm portions of the accessories.

“These should do the trick.”

“What makes you think that?”

“Well, if it’s powered by the Asix, like we believe it is, then these can manipulate the power at which that mineral can emit its frequency.” Alan hesitates. “About our promise; it still stands, correct?”

“Without a doubt.”

Chapter 2: Star Crossed

Khalil, now wearing a white short-sleeved shirt, sweatpants, and the same boots, is isolated, and seated at a table that’s a part of an abandoned campsite within the woods, as he reads from a blue hard-covered book; his drone rests on the table in front of him, and the earphones plugged into his ears, are connected into the device on his wrist. It’s day. A young woman, with peach skin and dark hair, sneakily approaches from behind.

The girl is carrying two, brown-paper bags; she’s dressed in a colorless undershirt, and blue overalls. She closes the distance, and bends over to smooch his left cheek. Khalil doesn’t flinch. Once he maneuvers his eyes to see that the lips belong to his girlfriend, Christine, he removes the objects in his ears, and turns to face her. She sits down beside him, and they lovingly exchange a long kiss.

“I couldn’t resist trying to scare you,” she says with a smile.

“You should know by now that nothing scares me.” She tells Khalil about her day, while they listen to the chirping birds, observe the incredible greenery that surrounds them, and eat the burritos that she brought. Ten minutes pass, and something said by his girlfriend, triggers him to begin daydreaming. He suddenly stops chewing, and places his food down on the bag.

“What, you don’t like it?”

“No, it’s not that; I just started thinking about something.”

“What?”

“It’s something that has to do with my family; I don’t really want to get into it.”

“Why not?” A pause occurs while Khalil contemplates.

“Because I rather use this time taking pictures of you,” he says with a grin.

“Fine,” she replies, while blushing. “Let’s talk about it when we finish the movie.” She moves into a position beneath the largest tree as he prepares the drone with his watch.

It’s now three hours later. The couple are bundled together on Khalil’s couch, underneath a burgundy blanket. They’re asleep, and the television mounted on the wall across the room, is displaying the title screen of a movie they recently viewed. His father and two uncles proceed down the staircase, without waking the two. They’re dressed in black jumpsuits.

Alan retrieves the drone from the kitchen table, and continues out. He opens the front door for his brothers, who remain quiet and considerate of the resting couple; before he closes it, he sticks a note onto its exterior. They enter the carport, seat themselves within their silent gunship, exit the compartment, and take off.

Thirty minutes pass, and the sleeping lovers, wake. It’s now night. Christine’s eyes flutter open. Upon coming to, she stretches her arms by raising them. This wakes Khalil.

“What did you think?” he asks, while waking himself up by rubbing his eyes.

“That was exactly the type of laugh that I needed.”

“I’m glad you liked it.” Christine sits up, removes the blanket, and stands to her feet.

“Well, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“You’re leaving already?”

“I told you, I have to get up early for school.”

He sighs, “Oh, yeah.” She grabs her keys from the arm of the couch, slides into her red sandals, and continues toward the exit. Khalil follows behind. They simultaneously notice the note on the door, which states that Khalil’s family will be returning in two days. “I guess they already left.”

He opens the door for Christine, and they continue outside. They walk over to the baby-blue, old-school hovercar, that’s parked in the dirt-filled driveway. He opens the driver’s seat for her, and their lips passionately interlock, once again.

“Bye love,” she says.

“I’ll see you tomorrow.” He closes her door, and she starts up her vehicle. He then continues back toward the entrance to the cabin. They exchange goodbye waves as her craft ascends into the sky, and flies over his home. After returning inside, he leaves the door open, and procures both his notebook, which is on the kitchen table, and the black hooded jacket that hangs over the back of the cushioned chair in his living room. He also grabs the silenced tranquilizer rifle that hangs on the wall beside the door, and continues outside, concealing his home this time, on the way out.

Khalil, now in the hoodie, continues through the woods. He follows the river as he makes his way toward the waterfall, which can be heard in the distance. He finally reaches the edge of the cliff. Beside him to his left, is the heavy flow that runs down into a lake; he takes a seat on the rocky surface, places the gun down, and dangles his feet over the hill. He engages the antenna-like light that’s attached to his pad, by lifting it, and begins to draw.

Suddenly, he hears screaming and rapid footsteps approaching. He shuts off the light, and turns his skin invisible. He wields the rifle in his hands, and slowly stands to his feet. He quietly proceeds toward the source of the disturbance. Khalil spots a middle-aged looking man, who’s wearing a brown leather jacket, a white T-shirt, and sweatpants, chasing a teenage girl, who’s dressed in jeans, and a reddish blouse.

He tackles her to the ground, and flips her on her back; she flails a barrage of punches at the man’s face, however, he’s able to block most of the blows. He briefly struggles, but is able to grab onto her hands. Just as she screams, “Help!” the man is shot in the neck by a tranquilizer. His body becomes motionless, and he falls atop of the girl. She screams again as she quickly wriggles out from beneath him.

She stands to her feet, and scans the surrounding area. She sees nothing, and sprints away. A silent helicopter appears over the tall trees. Khalil, now behind a trunk, stands motionless as it passes. Three mobsters, wearing advanced heat-seeking goggles and black suits, jump down from the craft. They’re all equipped with a pair of robotic legs that cover their real ones, which allows them increased speed, and the ability to jump to extreme heights and distances; assault rifles are attached to their backs.

They land a few feet away from the downed man, and approach him; with each step, a deep imprint is made in the dirt. The vehicle overhead, hovers right above the group. One of them kicks the unconscious body, over.

“I found him,” he says, as he takes a closer look. He spots what’s responsible for his comrade’s state, and yanks the dart out of his neck. “Michelle must have had a tranquilizer gun, on her.”

Another one of them states, “She’s probably still close.”

“I’ll take care of Crawford, you guys go find her.” As the man picks up the body, the others speedily advance through the woods, in search of a heat signature.

“This way!” Khalil hears one of them say from a short distance away.

The criminal holding the sleeping predator, jumps down the waterfall, and the helicopter follows behind him. Reed, still invisible, chases the group.

The henchmen eventually make their way to his home; they suspect that the girl is hiding inside. He watches from afar as one of them kicks open the door; they proceed in. The mobster that’s cautiously ascending the large staircase, is suddenly shot by a dart. His head falls limp, however his robotic legs allow him to remain standing. Reed disengages his camouflage, and enters the house through the open front door. He pursues the remaining intruder.

The criminal opens Khalil’s bedroom, which is positioned near the back end of the structure; he enters, and searches the room for Michelle. He finally finds her within the closed closet. She’s aggressively dragged out, while screaming at the top of her lungs. He throws her onto his bed, and grabs the assault rifle from the holster with his right arm, while pinning her down, with his left one.

As he aims his weapon, he’s shot in the back, causing him to assume the same lifeless position as his sleeping partner. Khalil enters the bedroom, and continues holding the rifle in both of his hands. “Who are you?” he asks. A pause occurs as she stares into the eyes of her savior.

“Do you live here?”

“Yeah.” She stands to her feet, and advances toward Reed, who has halted near the door.

She embraces him tightly, and says, “Thank you, so much!”

“Can you answer my question now?” he pulls back.

“My name’s Michelle, I’m the daughter of a very important man; these creeps wanted to kill me. How long do we have before they get up?”

“A while.”

“Good.” She spits on the sleeping man’s face.

“Relax; who are these guys? And why did they want to kill you?”

“They’ve convinced themselves that my dad owes them money, but they’re dead wrong, and too stupid to see it. So to get back at him, they came for me. They work for the Persi family. My dad has been doing business with them for a long time; but not anymore!”

“Your dad?”

“He’s known by the name, Viper, you probably heard of him.”

“Yeah, he’s one of the most dangerous men on this planet. I think it’s time I call the cops, now-”

“Don’t do that, trust me, he’s going to make you a rich man for saving me; he’ll even buy you a much, much better place to stay. If you get me out of here, consider yourself a millionaire, with a brand new house in the hills.”

“Millionaire?”

“No kidding.”

“Follow me.” They rush into the garage. Michelle seats herself behind him, on his hoverbike. He claps twice, and the steel doors briskly rise. They exit, ascend high into the sky, and zoom north at an astounding velocity. The shed automatically closes.

Chapter 3: The Viper

Two members of the Viper family, dressed in casual clothing, are sitting on the stools at the bar within the dark hotel room. An older man, with slicked-back black hair, is sitting in a wooden chair with his arms crossed; the seat matches the dining table that his legs are currently under. He’s shirtless, and wearing sweats. At the opposite end of the room, are an array of diamond-shaped windows, which provide a view of the extravagantly-lit city, below.

“Try her phone again, please,” the older man impatiently says. One of the men dials on his communicator, which is worn on his wrist, and connected to the earpiece on his right ear. Just before the call begins, Michelle, holding Khalil’s hand, happily enters through the office door, which has been opened by a guard on the other side. Viper jumps to his feet.

“Baby!”

“Dad!” She lets go of him, and the two swiftly close the distance with one another. He grabs her, gives her a ginormous hug, and kisses her forehead.

“What happened!?”

“They almost got a hold of me while I was coming back from the mall. They were going to off me in the jungle, but that man saved me!” Viper hugs Reed in a similar fashion as his daughter.

“What’s your name, son?” he asks, while still holding onto his arms.

“It’s Khalil.”

“Thank you, Khalil.”

“He’s going to need a place to stay; I tried to hide in his house, but those jerks followed me, so he used his sleep gun to knock them out, and left them there.”

“Where’s your family?” the man asks.

“I live with my dad and two uncles, they won’t be back in town for a couple days.”

“You ever hear of the Bentley Hotel?”

“Who hasn’t? That’s the prettiest building in town.”

“Well I own it. You can stay in any room you’d like, free of charge, and for as long as you need; your dad and uncles, included.”

“Thank you, sir,” he says, while grinning.

“Don’t even mention it. And a matter of fact-” Viper retrieves his wallet from his right-pant pocket; he removes a card from within it, and hands it to him. “Here.” He takes it, and observes its exterior. “Show them that when you get there; it’ll get you free access to everything we have to offer.”

Back at the forest, the mobster who extracted his fallen teammate, continues to search for his unresponsive team; he also ends up at Khalil’s cabin. He grabs his weapon, and cautiously proceeds toward the front. He immediately sees his unconscious partner, and approaches his standing body; he briefly scans him before discovering another dart.

He removes it; simultaneously as this occurs, loud and heavy footsteps are heard advancing from a distance. He runs over to the open window at the opposite end of the home, and watches as three, black, human-sized robotic police officers, make their way toward his location. They’re holding weapons that resemble machine guns.

Just as they jump into the air, the mobster attempts to bolt for the exit. He’s met at the door by the robots, and one of them shoots him with a blueish-electrical bolt, which instantly throws his body into an unconscious state.

The bots disperse into the house; one of them discovers multiple strands of hair on the pillow atop the queen-sized bed within Khalil’s bedroom, and collects them, while another retrieves a boot, which was found in a closet, and belonged to Irax. They take the evidence, and the sleeping criminals, and return to their base.

Five, high-ranking detectives, all in dark suits, have met to discuss the incident involving the items that were recovered by their scouts; they’re within a briefing room that’s lit by a white light on the ceiling, and are sitting around a rectangular glass table. The chief and one of the officers, engage in a conversation.

“We ran the DNA samples collected from the cabin those mobsters were found in,” says the officer.

“And?”

“To be honest, the results are odd; the prints we scanned from the boots, didn’t seem to have Earthly origins. All of the criminals we captured however, were humans.”

“So we’ve got squatters; if it’s true that they’ve just made this an interstellar affair, we’re going to need more evidence, and I mean by as early as within the next hour.”

“There’s more. We found hair strands belonging to two natives; their names are Michelle Lee Smith and Christine Hannah Vaughn.”

“Michelle Smith? That’s Viper’s daughter!”

Currently, Khalil, now wearing an inky T-shirt and black and silver-track pants, is washing his face in the bathroom within his extravagant, Bentley Hotel room; as he turns the faucet off, three knocks bang against the front door. He proceeds out, and answers the call. Christine is at the other end; she’s wearing dusky jeans, ivory boots, and a brown leather jacket. They welcome each other with a big hug, and a long kiss.

“You actually weren’t lying about all of that?!” Reed steps aside so she can enter; she does, and he closes the door behind her.

“Nope.” She takes a seat on the hoary couch across from the T.V. that’s built into the cement wall. The daylight shines gently into the room through a tall-rectangular window. He makes his way toward the kitchen, and grabs his hoodie that hangs over the back end of the chair that’s beneath the head of the wooden dinner table.

“All right babe, I’ll be right back.”

“Don’t be long; I’m coming for you, if you take longer than an hour.”

With his hand on the doorknob, he says, “I won’t be. There’s a card on the table over there; it’ll get you anything you want.” He opens the entryway, and once he takes his first step out, he withdraws back inside, and closes the door behind him. “I forgot that my bike ran out of fuel.”

“Do you need to use my car?”

“To be honest, I never actually learned how to drive one of those.”

“Seriously?”

”For as long as I’ve had a license, I’ve used my bike.”

“Fine then; I’ll just take you.”

After a short while of maneuvering through air traffic, Christine has parked her craft at the end of an abandoned street, at the top of a hill; there are many vacant homes on both sides of the cement road. Ahead of their current position, is the dirt path that leads to the entrance of the forest; it’s blocked off by an iron fence. “Remember, no matter what, if I’m not back in an hour, go back to the hotel.” She hesitates to answer. “Can you promise me?”

“What do you think could happen?”

“To be honest, I think the cops might be there; there’s no way their radars didn’t pick up the mobsters’ chopper, earlier. I’ll only be taking a long time if I have to spy on them. If you don’t hear back from me within the next three hours, that means I got caught up, and in that case, I’ll be calling you from prison.”

“Just be safe.” They exchange another smooch; he exits the car, and approaches the entrance to the jungle. He hops over the fence, and continues down the dirt path. For five minutes, he sprints through the woods; once he clears the line of sight between he and his girl, he turns himself invisible. Upon closing the distance with his previous residence, he watches from behind a tree, as four detectives carry items out of his house, and into the trunk of their police aircraft, which is parked in the driveway. He continues watching as they finish loading up the last of the desired property. They enter the craft, start it up, ascend, and zoom off, east. Reed heads inside.

Meanwhile, as Christine awaits his return, she constantly shifts her gaze from the digital clock on her radio, back up to the forest’s entryway.

A medium-sized, silent, orange and gray police quadcopter, which has a circular-camera lens attached to its tentacle-like neck that extends out from the center of its body, is quickly making its descent from the sky at a diagonal angle, and is heading right for Christine’s car. Unbeknownst to her, the drone begins hovering directly over the vehicle. It quickly ejects its robotic, serpentine-like arm, which is beneath its body; it has three-metal fingers attached to its end. The limb attaches itself to her door. With stupendous speed, it rips it clean off. She shrieks.

The drone then reaches in to spray sleeping gas, which emits out of the center of its hand. This immediately causes her to fall asleep; the arm unbuckles her seat belt, wraps around her torso, and grabs her out of the car.

As Khalil, no longer invisible, jogs back to Christine’s location, he’s briefly halted by the sound of her yelling; he then sprints in her direction at an incredible speed. He finally makes it to the fence; he hops over it, and continues toward where she parked. Once he closes the distance with the vehicle, he realizes that she’s no longer present. “Christine!” he shouts, while searching around.

There’s no response. He walks over to the driver’s seat of the car, and instantly notices that the door has been yanked off; it’s ten yards to his right.

Suddenly, he notices two of the same drones that captured Christine, approaching him from his left; they have ascended from behind two abandoned homes, and are hastily moving. He hurries back into the jungle, and attempts to lose his pursuers, by skillfully weaving through the condensed greenery.

A brief period of running from the creations that were easily able to keep up, ensues, before Khalil turns invisible; concurrently as he does, he dives to the ground. He quietly tampers with his watch as the drones recon the immediate vicinity; one of them holds its eye over the edge of the waterfall, while the other is slowly making its way towards him. It’s advancing from his right side. The holographic keyboard emits from his watch, and his invisible hand types in a password; he finishes typing, and the bots spontaneously combust. Shrapnel flies a great distance in each direction. He kicks the burning bits into the river, and proceeds to return to the city, on foot.

An hour passes. It’s night, and Christine is now sitting atop a stool as her legs are crossed beneath the metal table, which she’s sitting at. She’s within a small-square room, and a male interrogator in a black suit, is seated across from her. Her right arm rests on the steel surface, which doubles as a lie detector; her palm is within a red circle, which is formed from a collection of lasers.

Her other arm rests in her lap. The detective is holding a tablet, which will show him both the results from the machine’s diagnostic, as well as the questions he has been assigned to ask her. A bright-white light ignites the room, and beyond the one-way glass mirror, several more operatives are observing the test.

“Is your name Christine Vaughn?” the detective asks.

“Yes.” The tablet expels a green hue from its center, indicating that the truth has been told. This occurs each time she answers a question.

“Are you hiding an alien lifeform?”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Who does the cabin belong to?”

“My boyfriend’s dad.”

“What’s your boyfriend’s name?”

“Khalil; I’m confused, why are you asking me all of this?”

“I’m the only one who gets to ask questions; what’s Khalil’s last name?”

“Reed.”

“And his father’s name?”

“Alan.”

“How many people live in the cabin?”

“Just Khalil, his dad, and his dad’s brothers.”

“Where are Alan, and his brothers?”

“I don’t know.”

“Where can I find Khalil?” The lights within the facility completely shut off. For two minutes, the police station is pitch black, and the anxious staff members scramble around for a solution. By the time the power finally returns, the officers realize that Christine, with the help of Khalil, has escaped during the heap of the commotion.

She mysteriously wakes up aboard a moving train. It’s now dawn, and beyond the window to her left, lush farmland is visible. A tablet, which her scarlet earphones are plugged into, rests in her lap, and on her neck is a band aid that seals the puncture point left by the tranquilizer dart that Reed used to put her to sleep; stuck to the screen, is a note, which indicates for her to press the play button. After doing so, the video that was recorded by Khalil at the start of Part V, plays.

At the end of the recording, Reed’s voice, which is accompanied by a dark screen, states, “There are one-million credits on the USB in your right-pant pocket; if you can accept who I am, then meet me in our dream town, in two years. If I’m not there, then I’m dead. A family friend named Jessica is going to pick you up from the station; she can either take you straight home, where you’ll end up meeting the officers who’ll be waiting there, ready to harass you about matters you can’t even help them with, or you can go with her; she’ll help you get a new name, and a safe place to stay, away from society. I’m sorry about all of this, I love you.” An abundance of tears fall from her eyes.

Khalil finally reaches his room. Due to exhaustion, once he enters his bedroom, he flops onto his mattress, and remains motionless. Three hours pass. The alarm that he set on his way back, buzzes from his watch, and wakes him from his slumber.

He jolts up in bed, and tampers with the holographic keyboard. He examines an alien message; his expression indicates his surprise.

“Already?” He rushes out, and heads toward the roof of the hotel. He exits out of the elevator, proceeds toward the end of the spacious and squarely-shaped area, and sits down before the edge. It’s night; the view includes a magnificently decorated town, illuminated with a plethora of radiant-beautiful lights, which are attached to the intricate masonry, as well as advanced-flying vehicles, and levitating light poles. He inputs a password into his watch, and moments later, the small, golden, jet-propelled drone, descends from beyond the clouds. As it closes in, a propeller ascends out from its top end, and the jets disengage; it slows down until it reaches a position that’s right above his left palm. He grabs it, and places it down between his outstretched legs as the propellers recede.

Beyond a hatch that’s built into the bottom of the drone, a snake-like cord is coiled; he opens it by pressing the green button that’s assembled beside it, and connects the cord’s end, into the port on the object that’s worn around his wrist.

He inputs another code. A holographic video recorded by the drone, initiates from the device’s projector; it’s recorded with heat-signature vision. The footage reveals his father and two uncles, who’re riding hoverboards and floating near the tip of a snow-covered mountain; they’re shoveling snow that hides a cave, which is carved into the side of the peak. It’s currently snowing, and the drone captures the scene from behind the group. Suddenly, a lightning strike, strikes the tip of the summit. The powerful hit causes an avalanche to occur. An abundance of snow rapidly falls down the towering landform, trapping the brothers beneath it, with ease.

As they’re smothered to death, their heat signatures fade, and the word “DECEASED” appears over each of their bodies. Khalil shuts off the projection by ripping out the cord with aggression. His face falls into his hands, and tears pour from his eyes as he begins to whimper. The elevator doors abruptly open, and out walks Michelle, who’s also crying. She walks in his direction without noticing him. Reed quickly straightens up as soon as he sees her; his face remains red as he presses a button on his watch, which causes the drone to be cloaked with invisibility.

“What’s wrong?” She stops in her tracks, and jumps at the sight of Khalil when she finally looks up to see him.

“Oh!” She starts to turn around, but does a double take, and recognizes that the person sitting down, is the man who saved her life. “Hey, it’s you,” she, trying to sound happier, says. He stands to his feet as she approaches.

“Hey, are you all right?”

“Not really, but it’s good to see my hero again.” They both smile. “What are you doing up here?”

“Just enjoying the view.”

“It’s amazing, isn’t it? As a kid, this was my favorite spot to come to if I had to cheer up.” A pause occurs. “I just had to break up with my boyfriend because I found out he was cheating on me.”

“What kind of idiot would do that to such a jaw-dropping girl, like yourself?”

“Right? He’s a loser, and I deserve better,” she says, as her expression begins to soften.

“I don’t even have to know him, to know that’s a fact.” Michelle giggles as she wipes the last of her tears with the sides of her hands.

She folds her arms, and says, “You know now that I think about it, I suppose I owe you something for saving my life. I know that my dad gave you a gift, but now it’s my turn. You name it, and it’s yours.”

“There is one thing I think you could help me with.”

“What’s that?”

“Growing up, I was always intrigued by psychics and mediums. In my studies, I discovered rumors that suggest some mobs have access to legitimate fortune tellers. Do you know anything about this?”

“That’s like the one thing I was told never to talk about.”

“So it’s true.”

“I know someone who can help you. Her name is Joy; her place is on Jean Street, right next to the liquor store.”

“How can I be sure she won’t be lying?” Michelle grabs her wallet from out of her back pocket; she removes a one-hundred dollar bill, and offers it to him.

“Here, take this; she’s not cheap, but you can trust her. If you find out she’s lying, at least it won’t be coming out of your pockets; and by the way, please never mention that I told you about her to anyone.”

Chapter 4: Ether’s Message

Two scientists, which are both wearing lab coats, are within a mostly empty room, which is lit by a bright light mounted to the ceiling. They’re standing before a cylinder-shaped glass tank, that’s filled with blue liquid, and positioned at the center of the area; the floating man inside, is James Diamond. He once belonged to a gang of space pirates; after getting locked up, he volunteered to participate in a sketchy program as a test subject, in exchange for a shorter prison sentence.

“His name is James; he has been a part of the Guinea Pig Project for nearly four-hundred years, now.”

“So we finally found a use for him. What was he in for?”

“Theft, and a few manslaughter cases as well.”

“Just the type of guy we want with an alien weapon.”

“Relax; if he tries anything, we’ll just shut off the suit.”

“Have we learned anything else about what’s powering the item?”

“Not really; however, as of recently, we found something that was resonating at nearly the same frequency. It’s so similar in fact, we believe that it may be the same type of object.”

“Where?”

“We’re not exactly sure yet; but we’re working on it.”

Meanwhile, Khalil enters Joy’s open room, which is situated within the back of a small building, on a busy street within the city. She’s a middle-aged woman that’s dressed in a blue and white plaid shirt; her brown hair is in a single braid. She’s also wearing a pair of black shades and pants, and has a light-brown complexion, which is similar to Khalil’s skin tone. Her palms face the ceiling as they rest atop the round table. He goes to sit across from the woman, and slowly places his hands, into hers.

“Last night, I had a dream that I was visited by a young man named Khalil. Believe it or not, I believe my dream was about you.”

“Please, continue.”

“In my dream, you came to me as a very lonely and heartbroken individual; your spirit was full of mourning, yet extreme determination. Is it true that your family has recently passed?” Khalil starts to cry, and holds his face in his hands. Joy stands to her feet, and opens her arms, to embrace him. “Bring it in, honey. I too know what it’s like to lose the ones you love.” He stands, and cries into her arms. They spend a brief time interlocked together, before he straightens up, and wipes his eyes with his right forearm. Joy grabs him by his shoulders, looks him in the eyes, and says, “Believe it or not, but you and I have more in common than you know.”

“What do you mean?”

“Let’s take a walk.” They make their way out of the building, and advance a short distance down the cement sidewalk, as they head toward the nearby park during the sunset. They pass through the empty field, and take seats beside each other, at a table that’s facing three oak trees.

“It’s beautiful today,” she says.

“I agree.”

“There was more to the dream I had last night. You told me you weren’t from this planet, and that you were searching for cursed weapons.”

“How did you-?”

“Don’t be alarmed; the reason I told you we’re so much alike, is because I too am from Erin. I was a part of the military. Prior to the terrorist attacks, I volunteered to have my mind altered in a procedure that granted me psychic abilities. Without my knowledge, they used a strange magic on me, which was introduced to them by an alien named Vasu. After the experiment, my new job included being forced to sleep for many hours of the day, so that I could gain intel from my dreams. We were attacked because the terrorists caught wind of our government’s hidden devices; they planned to take it for themselves.

“During my fifth sleep session, I met a shadow man, in a world that was composed of pale light. He called himself Siano; he said that my new powers will help guide a young man named Khalil, to two swords that will grant him the power over the elements. When I asked him why, he just told me that you would be the one to destroy his captor.

“When I awoke from that dream, the terrorists were attacking our home, and I was rushed onto a ship, which eventually landed here. My group split up upon arriving; I haven’t heard from anyone, since.”

“How have you avoided the hunters?”

“My data chips are government issued; they’re advanced, and uncrackable. Khalil, if we’re going to find the weapons, I’ll need something that belonged to the one who hid them. There’s a ring that’s hidden beneath your home, within a vault. Bring it here.”

An hour later, Khalil, now invisible, quietly approaches his old-vacant cabin; he posts up against a trunk, and examines the surrounding area. He looks up at the tall-rising branches, and notices green lights emitting from cameras that both point toward his home, and the wilderness; he can immediately tell that they belong to the government. He tampers with his holographic keyboard; Reed enters in a password, and the camera lights shut off, indicating that they’re now offline.

He carefully opens the front door. Once he makes sure that the coast is clear, Khalil disengages his invisibility, and continues into the living room. He briefly types into his watch again; another code is inputted, and a portion of the wooden floor raises up, revealing the staircase underneath. He makes his way down. A dim light illuminates the basement, and a tall vault stands up against the back wall.

Khalil proceeds toward it, and inputs an additional code. It opens, and within it are four shelves. The top shelf contains Irax’s ring, as well as a laser pistol, and the second one holds a briefcase; two books are placed atop the third one, and on the fourth shelf, a sphere-shaped golden device, with a black screen and different ports on its face, is located.

This machine is a portable bank, which holds the remainder of his father’s savings; he inserts the USB that he removed from his right-pant pocket, into it, and retrieves the last bit of money. He tucks the laser pistol into the back of his pants; he then takes his uncle’s ring, and places it on his finger. He removes the briefcase, opens it, and discovers the deed to the home; he closes it, and places it back. Reed disregards the books, seals the vault, and proceeds upstairs.

Chapter 5: The Sacred Swords

An advanced helicopter hovers high above a smoking volcano; two-floating robots, are levitating beside the vehicle with the use of the jetpacks on their backs. James is now within a specialized-metallic suit, and is slowly descending from the helicopter’s open hatch; the copilot controls his descent by manipulating the steel-extendable cord that’s connected into the floor of the vessel, and attached to his back. He finally reaches his designated height as his legs dangle ten feet over the bubbling pit. The two men in the cockpit are examining a screen, which is displaying the camera footage that’s being recorded from the lens that’s crafted into James’ mask.

“Engage the grappler,” the pilot demands. James presses the blue button that’s formed at the center of his right palm. The suit’s hand spins into a grappling device; the head of the projectile is composed of three-sharp talons. He aims his gauntlet down, and the device zips out; it remains connected to the suit by a cord.

The copilot is now examining another screen, which is revealing where the claw’s position is, relative to the mystery frequency. The grappler closes in on the object, and while examining the code that’s sent from the sensors on the device’s fingers, the copilot can see that the strange item is lodged into the inner walls of the volcano.

“Got it.”

“Already!?”

“Yeah, it worked like a charm; but it looks like the target’s stuck in the main vent.”

“Can we get it out?”

“It’s trying to, now.” The grappling device abruptly ascends, and reattaches itself; as it makes its way out, a red Shamshir sword is held within its grasp.

“This is pretty sweet,” says the criminal. As he’s pulled back up, he examines the blade; its handle is pure black. A strange writing is engraved on the sword’s face; when James notices this, he brings it closer to his helmet. As he attempts to read the encryption, the weapon radiates a reddish hue. His eyes glow gold, and his body becomes covered in flames.

The magma below suddenly starts to rise at an incredible rate. A huge eruption occurs, and the helicopter is engulfed. While melting, it attempts to make an effort to flee, but breaks apart and crashes. Before this happens, the two humans are extracted by the flying robots, and are flown a safe distance away. From afar, they witness a strange object shooting higher than the smoke clouds; it flies east.

Khalil reenters Joy’s office, and takes a seat in the same spot. This time her glasses are removed, and her completely pale eyes are revealed. “Place it on the table.” He lays the ring down. Joy offers him her left hand. “For as long as you hold onto me, I’ll be able to show you every image that I’ll receive; just make sure to keep your eyes, shut.” The fingers on his right hand interlock with hers. She takes the item off of the table, and holds it in her closed fist. She closes her eyes, and takes a deep breath.

They’re transported to a time during Saki’s fight against the terrorists, which takes place on a beach that borders a ruined city. Saki, standing 250 feet tall, has an ebony exoskeleton, glowing-red eyes, a bald head, and a green-chi ball collecting in his mouth. Dark clouds have covered the sky, and are producing the glowing-mystic-ebony spears that he’s psychically shooting at his foes, which are the titanic, silver, human-shaped, self-operated robots, equipped with grandly-sized cannons, as well as laser weapons.

The memory travelers are watching from the uncle’s perspective, who’s currently wearing the wedding ring that’s being used by Joy; he’s positioned in the sky, a safe distance away, and spectating from within the cockpit of his craft. This vision remains silent.

Saki’s weapons shatter the blue, diamond-shaped energy shields, which encase the stuck opponents ahead of him, as they’re struggling to walk through the storm of spears.

The green formation within Reed’s face, finally charges to its full potential; he takes a deep breath, and lets out a menacing thunderous roar, which causes the galvanized magic to change into an intense beam, which rips the enemies to shreds.

Reed then turns around, and uses the continuous ray to take out the flying-incoming threats, approaching him from behind; the bots become scrap metal simultaneously as his attack connects. After the battle is over, the being morphs back into Saki, and the clouds disappear.

Irax races to his downed brother’s position. He lands on the sand, and scurries out to bring the unconscious Saki, on board; a drone that resembles Khalil’s, uses its tentacle-like extension, to retrieve the two cursed weapons, which lie beside the injured grandfather, and heads back inside the ship. He’s helped by his nephews, who’re all wearing their green, cultural attire, which consists of loosely fitting shirts and pants, and black sandals. They place Saki’s lifeless body within a regeneration tank that’s filled with orange liquid; steps are made into the side of the cylinder capsule, which allow them to place him in, from the top of it. It’s located in the corner of the cargo hold.

Irax returns to pilot the craft. His family remains within this room; they’re seated on the benches assembled into the interior. Just as he’s granted time alone, on a`sheet of paper, Joy and Khalil witness Saki’s brother write down, with a pen, two different sets of coordinates.

Alan is holding the one year old Khalil; beside him, sits his two older brothers, Michael and Jacob, as well as their sleeping-ill mother, Mary, who’s bundled in multiple blankets. Her head rests on Jacob’s left shoulder. Suddenly, Irax walks back through the automatic door. He adjusts the knobs and buttons on the healing tank.

Khalil’s father, with the child still in his arms, walks over to him. “So that’s it? We just run away?” he whispers loudly. The conversation continues in a pitch that doesn’t wake Mary.

“We aren’t fighting a battle we can win.”

“How can you say that?”

“Allowing my brother to turn himself into a monster is no way to continue fighting.”

“I’ll do it then.”

“Don’t be foolish.”

“Look Uncle Irax, my wife is still down there. You think I’m going to just sit back and wait, when we have the ability to-”

“You think I don’t have people I love down there, too? Alan, if you want your son to have a father, I suggest you start thinking with your head. We have no choice but to adapt to these circumstances, and that means using this window of an opportunity that Saki has provided us, to escape, and find help.

“As of now, my brother is dead, he’s only in there in hopes that I could bring him back. We’d kill ourselves attempting to wield that sort of magic. The terrorists just want us as hostages; they only started killing us because we resisted. I don’t like running either, but if we act fast, our people should be safe until we return.”

Alan sighs, and returns to his seat on the bench. The entire world becomes fuzzy, and colors are blotched and swirled together. Everything turns black. This blackness lasts only briefly, before being replaced with fuzziness that promptly clears away; they’ve traveled to a different memory, where this time, Irax is alone, and within a location filled with snow.

It’s daytime, and he’s now dressed appropriately for the snowstorm. A few hundred yards ahead of him, is a gargantuan peak; a robot, which is shaped like a tall spider, with six steel legs, and a bronze spherical torso, stands beside him. Beneath the four hatches crafted into its head, are four adjustable turrets that extend out when in attack mode. He, now holding one of the sheathed cursed edges on his back, removes the holster, and places it on the back of the robot. Using his advanced watch, he programs it to maneuver to the designated location. It briskly sprints in the direction of the mountain.

The mysterious distortions resume, and again, promptly clear away. A new memory takes place. It’s night, and Irax, now holding a remote controller in his hands, manipulates the drone that’s hovering above him. He’s standing a distance away from the smoking alp, ahead. He engages the drone’s tentacle-like arm, which extends out from a panel underneath its body; it wraps around the magic blade that rests beside his feet. He causes the drone to fly high into the sky, and toward the volcano in the distance. Another memory jump happens.

Within a familiar-looking cabin, Alan, Jacob, and Michael, who’s sleeping, are sitting on the tan couch within the living room. They’re all dressed in casual, Earthling-like clothing. Alan is feeding Khalil scrambled eggs with a fork, from a small plate, as the child sits on his knee. Jacob is observing Irax’s ring, which he has picked up from the glass table that’s in front of them. Irax, who’s wearing lumberjack attire, bursts through the front door; he’s holding Mary in his arms as her blood, which covers her purple dress, runs down his arms and legs, and onto the floor.

He makes his way into the living room; at this point, the brothers have all jolted to their feet. Jacob puts the ring back down on the table, and Khalil is placed gently on the couch.

“Somebody give me a hand!” They all rush over to his aid. “Take her downstairs.” Michael grabs her, and hurries toward the exposed hidden hatch.

“What happened?!” Alan screams.

“They found us. We have to hide; everyone go to the cellar.” Alan grabs his baby, and the family makes their way down. Irax runs upstairs to grab his black-alien, shotgun-like weapon from behind his bedroom door, turns himself invisible, and rushes outside. He moves to hide behind a nearby tree. Suddenly, he hears the sound of an incoming alien aircraft.

He peeks out, and sees three hunters in silver suits of advanced armor, jumping down from the red airship; they land a few hundred feet away from Irax’s position. In unison, they jog toward the home. Their advanced goggles allow them to see through the Erin natives’ inherent cloaking mechanism. In seconds, they close in on his location; he jumps out from behind cover, and shoots two spherical-golden shells at a time, through the leader’s skull.

Irax sprints to another trunk. The aliens’ turrets, which are attached to their shoulders, simultaneously send out a barrage of bullets, which rip through his cover. This causes him to fall to the ground, onto his stomach. They approach his incredibly bloody body. One of the two remaining aliens, kicks him over on his back. His camouflage disengages; he’s holding a grenade in his right hand, and just as he’s kicked, he uses the last of his strength to remove the pin. A moment later, an explosion kills them all.

Joy and Khalil have been taken to another vision. Silhouettes of their figures are floating in front of the family, who’re standing over the graves belonging to Saki, Mary, and Irax. Jacob is wearing his uncle’s ring, and Alan is holding the hand of the two year old Khalil, who’s now able to stand on his own. Michael sets flowers down beside their mother’s tomb. A pause occurs as they continue to observe in silence, and wipe the tears that fall from their eyes. The shadowy figures vanish.

Both Joy’s and Khalil’s noses are bleeding as their still bodies remain unconscious. Her face is planted on the table as blood runs off of it; his head is laid back in his seat. Two knocks bang against the door. Due to nobody answering, her assistant, who’s in a blue dress, enters the room.

“Joy!” she exclaims. She lifts her head to check if she’s breathing, and realizes that she’s struggling to.

An hour passes. Khalil’s eyes pop open. He examines himself, and realizes that his clothes have been stripped, and replaced with a patient gown. He’s currently resting on a hospital bed, within a small-shady room that’s divided by a long drape; an I.V. is attached to his left arm. He stands to his feet, and approaches the sheet, bringing the I.V. along. He moves it aside, and on the other end, is Joy, who’s dressed similarly, and asleep.

“Joy!” She remains silent. He approaches her, and shakes her arm. “Joy; Joy, wake up.” There’s still no response. He briefly looks around; he notices the two dome-shaped cameras mounted into the corners of the ceiling. Their activation is indicated by a blue light that expels from the bulbs within them.

He then heads toward his bed; at the foot of it, is a drawer that holds the items he entered the hospital with. He scans through it, and finds his pants. Within his right-pant pocket, is his watch. He places it on his wrist, turns his back to the lenses, and briefly types into the keyboard.

By inputting a text, he’s able to disengage the recorders; this is indicated by their lights, shutting off. He removes the cords from his body. He types away once more, then, once he retrieves his clothes, he proceeds to the rectangular window that’s crafted into the wall; he opens it, removes the screen, and gives the drone, which is hovering, and parked outside of the opening, his articles of clothing. By the look of the sky, it appears dawn.

After the last of his belongings are wrapped within its steel tentacle, it flies away. He turns himself invisible, removes his gown, and proceeds out. He advances to the staircase, which exists through a door at the end of the hall, on the right side.

He climbs three flights, and reaches the roof of the hospital; hundreds of high-class flying cars are parked in the many rows atop the flat circular-shaped structure. He approaches an advanced, sable and burgundy car, which is fifteen feet away, and diagonal from his position.

He uses his hacker to disengage the car’s lock system; he enters the driver’s seat, and uses his watch again to both start up the vehicle, and control it, from a projected display that provides an alternate steering system. This hovercraft is hackable due to its newness. He ascends into the air, and takes off, south.

Chapter 6: The Cursed Blades

Three men and two women are seated in cushioned dark-leather chairs, which are situated around a wooden-oval table within a small room; the lights in the space are dim, and the atmosphere is still, and serious. They’re all middle-aged, and are government agents, dressed in different-colored advanced suits.

The woman wearing orange, asks, “Now that we’ve all seen the footage, what do you think?”

“I think we should have been smarter than to send our men to an active volcano,” responds the male agent, in black.

“We did thorough measurements; that thing wasn’t due to erupt for another several years,” the man in blue, responds.

“I guess your calculations were wrong,” the lady in red, interjects.

The first one to speak, suggests, “You know what I’m thinking? What if the volcano was triggered because the prisoner made contact with the sword?”

“Impossible, he never even touched it with his own hands,” says the one in the sky-colored ensemble.

“Maybe he didn’t need to; maybe it had a-”

“What, mind of its own?” sarcastically asks the skeptic.

“Perhaps,” she replies.

“Do we have a lead on its current location?”

“No, it somehow vanished,” says the other female officer. A speaker device, which is crafted into the center of the table, abruptly emits a repetitive high-pitch ring. One of the men presses the blue arrow-shaped button that’s made into the touch-screen surface; this action answers the call. The device displays a projected-holographic image of a scientist, who’s wearing glasses and a lab suit.

“We’ve just discovered a third signature; this one’s greater than both of the previous foreign frequencies, combined. We still haven’t managed to track down the one that disappeared, however.”

Khalil’s new stolen craft continues to make its way toward its destination as it flies over the ocean. The sun is now setting; he’s dressed in a white short-sleeved shirt, and black jeans. The floating drone holds its position over the passenger seat. “How much longer until we get there?” Reed asks.

“Four more hours; should I take over?” the A.I. replies.

“Please.” The device releases a steel tentacle; it shoots out from underneath it. A small-square hatch is built at the tip of the metal limb; it disengages, and three, smaller multi-colored cords, are revealed. They connect into the tiny port that’s built into his watch. He closes his eyes, folds his arms, and sits back in his seat, while his comrade operates the vehicle.

Four hours pass; Khalil, now dressed in the snow gear he picked up on the way, and his drone, are 300 yards away from the mount he saw in the vision, which he was able to find due to his companion’s memory. His vehicle has been parked a distance behind their current position. He manipulates his flying friend, and causes it to ascend into the sky.

From above, it recons the area. Through the drone’s camera lens, Khalil spots ten police robots using advanced shovels to uncover the hidden cave that’s within the side of the summit; their jetpacks allow them to float in place.

Suddenly, the bots are attacked by a flaming entity, wielding a blade; it stops before the group, and holds out his sword ahead of him. A beam of intense fire expels out of the tip end of the sword, and completely melts the robots’ metallic bodies. As Reed witnesses this through the holographic projection, his expression turns to one of astonishment. He puts down his device, turns himself invisible, and sprints in the direction of the pinnacle.

The drone continues to examine James as he uses his boiling breath to eradicate the snow. The entrance to the opening is finally exposed, however, a multitude of rocks have covered it; Diamond uses another beam to destroy the barrier, and proceeds inside.

The possessed criminal is tackled out of the cave, and onto the ledge, by Irax’s spider bot; as this occurs, Khalil’s drone zooms over to its owner.

While climbing up the side of the alp with unnatural ease, Khalil, still invisible, looks up to see his comrade, approaching; he disengages his invisibility, and holds up his left arm. It hovers directly above him; its tentacle-like extension wraps around his extended limb, and he’s flown toward the fight.

Midair, Reed watches the battle between the molten-rock covered monster, and the robotic spider, which is occurring near the cave’s entrance. James’ sword is levitating above the metal creature; its six legs have wrapped around the downed criminal, and from its position on top of him, the robot is sending a flurry of ammunition into its target. He sinisterly laughs as his molten armor absorbs the bullets. Just as the heat from Diamond’s exterior begins to melt the spider, it lunges itself off of him; the bot lands above the fugitive, and atop the side of the height.

It concentrates another barrage into the criminal. While absorbing the blasts, he psychically points his edge at the spider, and releases a fiery beam back at it; the machine is able to dodge it by using its thrusters to lunge itself further up the peak. After dodging the attack, it zooms directly at its enemy. This causes both James, and Irax’s pet, to free fall off of the ledge. Khalil uses this opportunity to finally go into the cave.

With the help of the light from his partner’s camera, he immediately spots the cursed sheathed object resting near the end of the twenty-five foot deep space, which has a ceiling that’s seven feet high; the walls are spread a wide distance apart. He hurries over to it; once he closes in on the object, his breath becomes obviously shorter, and panic starts to settle in. He kneels down to take a closer look. He orders his propelled ally to carefully remove it from the holster. The blade is blue and made from a diamond-like material; the handle is white.

“That’s mine!” the ablaze anomaly screams, while standing at the entrance. Reed quickly turns to face the burning entity, who’s preparing his sword, which is now held out in his right hand, to expel another blast; Khalil hastily grabs the weapon.

Automatically as this occurs, both he and his comrade are protected by a thick wall of ice, which starts six feet from his body, takes the shape of the interior of the cave, and extends all the way out of the space. By the time Reed stands to his feet, his body has metamorphisized. His skin is completely blue and shimmers, and his legs are made of ice; his hair is snowy, and his eyes have turned gray and metallic. With every breath, frost expels from his mouth.

Although James was pushed out, midair, he catches himself, and with the use of the flames that burst from his feet, he flies up to the ice barrier; he combines his beam blast, which is released from the sword that’s levitating above him, his breath of fire, and the two streams of lava emitting from his outstretched hands, to destroy the collection.

Khalil then points his edge out ahead. This action swiftly throws the remainder of his creation, into his foe, forcing James to cross his forearms, which he covers with his molten armor, to deflect the assault. Reed dissolves what’s left of the oddly shaped shield, and before Diamond can recompose himself, he, while sprinting in his direction, summons a tornado, causing both swordsmen to ascend.

Within the swirling formation of wind, the two battle, exchanging strikes at superhuman rates, while heading east. This fast tempo exchange lasts for an entire minute; James, still shrouded in fire, is finally able to pin Khalil’s tool down against him. With all of their might, they push their weapons into each other, and just when it seems as though Reed’s blade is going to enter his own throat, he briefly covers his head and neck with a layer of ice, and headbutts him. The fugitive falls, and loses consciousness; simultaneously as this happens, Khalil disengages the swirling cluster, and summons a tower, which shoots down from under his feet, and connects to the ocean’s floor.

Diamond recuperates, and launches himself headfirst into the pillar; his armor engages at the last moment. Just prior to losing balance, Khalil jumps from the crumbling-circular platform, and manipulates the wind to carry him west. James follows behind, and swiftly catches up. As he closes the distance, Reed drops, and creates another massive-cylinder structure; this time, his legs are merged with it.

He stands with his sword ready to cut the oncoming enemy. Khalil psychically generates hundreds of daggers, which levitate above his head. One after another, he speedily launches them into the anomaly; two of them penetrate James, causing him to stop in his tracks. While floating in place, he uses lightning fast swipes to break each of the remaining ones. “Give me that sword, or prepare to die!” he screams, while cutting.

“Come and get it.” He raises his left hand at his enemy, and from out of thin air, two spiked walls are formed above and below James’ head and feet; the deadly points are aimed at him. He closes his fist, and the spikes follow this motion. Once again, Diamond’s exterior shifts from being covered in fire, to being shielded by molten rock. The shards continue to bounce off of him as he uses his hands and feet to keep the sharp creations from smashing him; his sword hovers, to his right.

While struggling, he psychically propels his tool at Khalil; at the last moment, he turns his weapon so that its face deflects the speeding sword’s point. The power of the impact pushes him off of the tower, which collapses along with him. Before reaching the water, Reed shifts a giant portion of the sea, into ice, and covers it with an abundance of snow. He roughly lands within the pile of fluff. The man of flames follows behind.

“It’s over, there’s nowhere left to run!” James announces.

“Who said I was running?” Khalil captures him; all but his head and chest are left unfrozen, once nine-ice arms shoot out from the surface, and grab onto him, halting him in place. Reed raises his sword as if to throw it into his target; a strong gust of wind blows in the direction which he faces. The abrupt sound of a helicopter interrupts the ending to the battle.

Just as he turns to examine the source of the noise, a missile is shot down from the craft, and is zooming right for their position. To avoid it, Khalil creates another pillar, that takes him 300 feet high; Diamond however, is hit, and tossed into the ocean from the explosion.

Ten black humanoid-combat robots, expel from the chopper; they’re equipped with gun-shaped weapons, and jetpacks. Five of them chase Reed, who’s traveling east inside of a tornado, and the others dive into the ocean to retrieve the unconscious body.

A bluish hue expels from the lights, which are attached to the tips of each of their fingers; from out of the glowing objects, ropes composed of blue-condensed-light particles, extend outward, on command. Three of them use the grappling devices built into both of their hands, to wrap completely around James’ upright possessed body, disabling all of his movements. As a group, they fly him out of the water, and into the prone vehicle.

Khalil continues to manipulate the tornado; the five robots can barely keep up with his immense speed. While flying forward, and levitating high up within the twister, he turns around to face his opponents. In the blink of an eye, an enormous wall of ice, which springs up from below, is created between him and the approaching assault; unable to slow down fast enough, the five bash into it, and free fall, creating ginormous splashes upon landing. Free at last, he continues onward. After a brief bout of peaceful flight, suddenly, a loud voice booms inside of his head.

“Go back!” it demands. This disorients him, and causes him to lose control over the wind. He plunges, splashing upon entering the abyss; his lifeless body continues to sink.

Khalil, now wearing the clothes he showed up to the mountain with, somehow ends up on the ground within a space of pure blackness. A radiant-sapphire light emits from 200 yards away. He stands to his feet, and observes his surroundings. “Where have you taken me!?” The giant sphere slowly creeps toward him. “Who are you?!”

“I’m the spirit of your sword, and the son of Siano; together, my brother and I wield the perfect reflection of our father’s abilities. Soon, this power will be yours, and you’ll use it to free our father from our creator’s trap. But first, you must complete this trial.”

“What are you talking about!?”

“It has been predestined that you would be the one to own us. I know about your suffering people, Khalil. If you want us to help you save your planet immediately, then eliminate the criminal that my brother has possessed. He won’t let him end your life, but if he bests you, we’ll be in charge of your senses until your destined mission is fulfilled.

“If you win, you can go along with your plan, and save Erin, today. You must prove your worthiness; if your might is lacking, we won’t help you, until you’ve helped us.” A pause occurs.

“Why did you murder my grandfather!?”

“Saki was a fool. Father warned him that he’d be overwhelmed; he didn’t listen.”

“Liar!”

“It’s true. I’m sorry to tell you this, but he cared more about being a hero, than following divine orders.”

“Divine? What are you, anyway?”

“My creator’s name is Vasu; by using some sort of spell, and a strange machine, he, and his clan of sorcerers, drains my true father’s essence.

“As of recently, the strength of the curse that previously influenced us, and is currently controlling Siano, has been severely lessened.” The distance between the ball of light, and Khalil, has now closed; he bravely stares into it. “My father is the son of The Master of Spirits.

“He once was a king, and ruler of the Dragon Realm, however Vasu abducted him from his home, and decided to use his power to fuel his tyranny; using father’s energy, he attempted to create two clones of Siano.

“My brother and I are those experiments. We were born agents of destruction. Our first target was Vasu’s own colony. They used the magic he allowed them to have, to form a resistance against his clan. We destroyed their militia overnight, as well as most of the planet.

“We were too catastrophic in our original incarnations, so Vasu decided to make us into blades. He then gave us to his son, John, who became the leader of his own planet. Each time balance needed restoration, the prince relied on us. For almost one-thousand years, our creator’s offspring reigned over his kingdom; he was recently murdered by one of my father’s servants.

“This servant was told to take our blade forms to a planet called Erin, your home. Once we landed, he attempted to control us, and shared the fate of your grandfather. Saki, who as you may not know, was also father’s follower, found us a few years later. That’s enough history for now.”

His eyes open, and he straightens his posture. By summoning another pillar, he’s pushed out from beneath the deep-blue substance, and raised 500 feet high.

“Where is he?” The wind violently blows east. He jumps in the direction of the gust, and it zips him through the sky. As he begins his trek, he notices that a missile is headed right for him.

He redirects his wind so that he vertically rises. Reed summons a giant spike, which ascends out of the ocean; it penetrates through the speeding projectile. After the explosion, he turns around, and notices three more rockets closing in. He creates a cyclone, and levitates within it.

“Where are these things coming from!?” He generates a wall, which rises out of the liquid, and is high enough to block the oncoming bombs. As the objects explode against the crumbling barrier, a dart is suddenly shot into his neck from an unknown location.

He’s instantly thrown into a seizure-like state, and falls out of his twisting creation. A grappling hook that’s released from an invisible alien drone, catches him by wrapping around his legs. The small craft then zooms him into the stationary ship, which has now disengaged its invisibility cloak, and is levitating in the distance; it appears as an olive-green gunship.

Chapter 7: Seven

The laboratory is pitch white, and many large machines and gadgets surround the area. James’ red skin and molten-covered legs are revealed as he’s being restrained within a green liquid-filled tank, which rests against the back end of the space. His body and mind are completely immobilized, thanks to the mechanism, which the wires connected to him, are attached to. Two scientists, in ivory lab suits, and a high-ranking agent, in a dusky suit, are observing the strange mutation. The suited fellow briefly turns his attention to the sword, which floats in its own pod, to the left of his position; he touches it, but immediately pulls away due to its extreme heat.

“You expect me to believe that the man in there, is the criminal from before?” a scientist asks.

“It’s true,” says the fellow researcher.

The officer returns his attention to James. “This doesn’t make any sense.”

“The reason he didn’t die in the eruption, is because somehow, by making contact with the weapon, his DNA has been completely changed; this may be even deeper than alien science.”

“Let’s try and not get carried away,” the man in black says while scoffing, and condescendingly looking back and forth at the two.

“I’m not saying this for no reason; he has traces of particles that have absolutely no relation to this realm, whatsoever.”

“And what about the blade?”

“Those results aren’t in yet. However, from what we could see during the fight, James somehow had the power to fly with the use of fire that emitted from his feet; as for the other swordsman, he was able to manipulate ice, and the wind as well. We still have no clue as to why they were fighting.”

“I’m thinking this has something to do with the DNA we found in that cabin,” states the detective.

“That’s what I was thinking too, however, those mobsters didn’t know anything about any aliens. On top of that, there has been absolutely no sign of anybody going into that place, and the girl who escaped the station during the interrogation, still hasn’t been found,” says the other technologist. Suddenly, the capsule holding the weapon starts to crack. Just as the breaking glass catches their attention, it bursts out of the pod, and levitates in the air.

It points its edge at the men, and releases a fiery beam that zips across their torsos, throwing them into the back wall, and leaving them unconscious. It then shoots into the tank; the green liquid rushes out of the cracked exterior. After penetrating the glass, it removes itself, and hovers. An excruciatingly loud alarm, sounds off. James’ eyes open; he punches the container, completely shattering what remains of it. He rips all of the hanging wires off of his body, and continues out. He grasps the sword, equips his molten-rock armor, and jumps through the ceiling.

Khalil’s abductor has shackled his limbs with chains, to a gurney. A laser-beam weapon is mounted to the ceiling; it hangs over his feet, and is pointed at his head. He finally comes to. He scans his surroundings, which consists of a wall of tools, and numerous strange machines scattered around the room. “What do you think you’re doing?!” He looks up, and notices that the magical item has been chained above him, and is hanging over his torso.

“Relax; my name’s Seven. I’m going to unbind your soul from the grasp of that cursed artifact,” the strange man says, from an unknown location. “Try and stay calm. You’ve been possessed; I’m here to help you.” The laser engages, and a red dot appears on the center of Reed’s forehead. He powers on the beam, and it shoots an intense ray into the young man. He shrieks a monstrous roar. “This should only take a few minutes!” The screams continue. His eyes switch color, and begin emitting a radiant bluish glow.

His skin becomes covered in a thin layer of ice; the frost that resonates off of his exterior, freezes the chains that hold both him, and the blade. Seven rushes into the room through an automatic door. Khalil breaks the binds with a powerful flex, and once he’s freed, he takes the sword in his right hand, stands to his feet, and points it at Seven, who’s wearing a gas mask and a silver jumpsuit; instantaneously as Reed makes contact with the weapon, the head of a blue-translucent eagle, forms over his face.

The sword’s tip touches Seven’s forehead, causing the masked alien’s green eyes, to turn completely black. Now disabled, he falls; within his mind, he’s transported to a land of complete blackness. “Where have you taken me!?” The blue ball of light from before, returns; it manifests twenty-five yards away, and slowly approaches.

“I know who you are; I’ve read your mind and your memories. Your teacher was a filthy slave, who betrayed father.”

“You’re filth!” Seven spits toward the anomaly, “You abomination! You’re nothing but a murderous soul!”

“You’re wrong; if you further wish to intervene with my master’s plans, we’ll be forced to kill you.” Seven wakes up standing over the gurney; both Khalil and the mystic weapon, are missing.

Reed is currently flying through the clear sky at an incredible rate; a vast desert is beneath him. Suddenly, the faint outline of a giant, jet-propelled robot, appears ahead. Khalil covers himself in ice, and falls to the ground.

As he makes contact with the brown sand, his armor breaks apart, and his possessed mode is once again revealed; he rolls out of the fall, and regains his composure. The bot closes in on him; the details of his humanly-shaped exterior become clearer. A thick white line runs down the middle of its figure. The left hemisphere is orange, and the opposite side is dark. Its right arm is an automatic weapon, and a dagger has replaced its other hand. Within its abdomen is a missile launcher, and on its back, are two jets that eject red flames.

A projectile is shot at him; Reed starts to sprint in the direction of the oncoming colossal figure. Due to his mind-blowing speed, the bomb lands dozens of yards behind him. The robot releases a barrage of turret rounds; to avoid them, he changes his direction diagonal, instead of vertical. Just as they close in on each other, and the robot’s vertically flying body is directly overhead, Khalil stops running, and creates two mountainous hands of ice, which reach up from the ground, and grab both of its legs.

He leaps, and lands on the head of the halted beast. By touching its exterior, starting with its upper half, the mechanical monster becomes completely frozen. “Well, that was easy.”

Two more of the same type of creations fly in from behind his position; both of them shoot their rockets at him, simultaneously. He turns around, throws his sword in the air, and as it spins above him, he holds out his hands. He catches them, and they freeze upon contact with his touch. He chucks the ice-covered objects back at the enemies; they crumble against their armor. They then release an onslaught of turret rounds; Khalil psychically commands his spinning tool to slightly descend, which causes it to slice apart the oncoming bullets.

He finally jumps from the top of the head of the metal-military soldier, and as he’s midair, two more bombs are projected at him. To deflect this unexpected attack, at the last moment, he covers his exterior in a boulder of ice that gets blasted to the ground. The shield completely breaks apart by the time he lands, and once he looks up, he immediately notices that one of their feet, has aligned with his head.

He extends his left arm up, and in an instant, a stupendous amount of wind causes the foot to cease its descent; he rolls out of the way, stands up, and launches himself in the air with the use of another one of his pillars. From atop it, 500 feet high, he sees the two military agents bashing his creation with their swords, from the ground.

He dives off of the ledge; while falling, he turns his momentum so that he front flips, and holds his weapon out in his hands. He speedily turns faster, and by the time he reaches the target, his blade is able to cut completely down the middle of its body. The explosion causes the remaining adversary to burst into an abundance of scrap parts.

Once the smoke from the downed foes clears, The Protectors manifest ten yards away from Khalil’s position, holding hands. He points his edge at the group; his stance indicates his readiness to battle. Their hands disengage.

“That was impressive,” says Jin.

“I don’t have time to talk, if you came here to fight, then let’s hurry this up.”

“Slow down, there; what’s your name?” asks Thomas.

Khalil holds his sword down by his side. “Don’t follow me.” He disappears, leaving only a powerful windstorm in his place.

Behind the crew, abruptly manifests an entity, in the shape of a towering man wearing a silver Oni mask, and a black toga. “Listen to me closely,” it says. The crew jump as they simultaneously turn to face the mystical person. He appears tired, pale, and slightly shriveled; his breathing is slow, and deep. “My name is Siano, I mean you no harm. I’m here to pass on a message. I don’t have a lot of time, so please don’t interrupt me.

“The one who just escaped, will one day help you free me from Vasu. Don’t pursue him now.” He takes two-deep breaths. “Soon, his mind will be taken from him, causing him to act as an agent of destruction. When this happens, you must spare his life; if you’re able to free him, then you’ll have all you’ll need to end the oncoming war.”

“What war are you talking about?” concernedly asks Jin.

“Vasu has planted seeds of evil almost everywhere. It’s only a matter of time before his minions and descendants, become the catalysts to the end of this world.” The Protectors look up, and notice that their airship is quickly making its descent. During the brief moment that they’re distracted, Siano disappears.

Chapter 8: Escape

Four government soldiers, suited in gray advanced-military armor, are sitting within a quickly moving helicopter’s cargo hold; they each are equipped with two laser pistols holstered within their high-tech vests, and tinted visors are built into their helmets. They’re seated on the benches built into the interior. The conversation that takes place, includes only two of the men.

“So let me get this straight, we’re going after a creature that has the ability to manipulate fire?”

“And magma; not to mention he wields a magic sword.”

“This is a first.”

“There’s nothing to fear, we’re strapped with the best our military has to offer.”

The pilot says, “We’re coming up on the facility now. They’re claiming that they’ve got him locked in. You’re ordered to dive down, and breach the base from a hatch near its center; they say the target has been concentrating his fire on the interior of the shell, however there’s no way that thing is giving out anytime soon.

“He could have figured that out by now, so there’s no telling exactly where he is at this point. You’re going to have to stay on your toes, men. Get ready to dive!” The doors open, and the men stand to their feet. They advance to the opening, jump, and land into the body of water, below.

The four swiftly propel toward the base using the jets mounted to the back of their armor. As they continue underwater, the rest of the infrastructure is revealed. Its shape resembles a black-enormous sphere, with five sturdy beams connected to its lower hemisphere, which seal it to the ocean’s floor.

They finally arrive at the exterior. The leading soldier uses the USB-like key, to unlock the opening. The square-shaped entrance opens, and the crew swim through.

They end up in a thirty foot deep pool; docked within it, is a submarine. The soldiers, now standing at the bottom, use the grapple devices built into their right wrists, to latch onto the red ceiling. They concurrently rise out of their blue surroundings, and while hanging from their lines, they each propel themselves with the use of their jetpacks, and head toward the marble floor, ahead; with perfect timing, they retract their hooks, and land gracefully and quietly.

The room is gigantic, and there are tons of boxes, which are both stacked, and placed in rows, everywhere. There are also vehicles covered in dark drapes, scattered around; the walls are completely composed of weapons. The lights attached to their helmets pave the way as they proceed to the two elevators, which are built into the back wall; just as they reach the end of the room, an additional crew lands on the floor, in a similar fashion; they also consist of four members. They close the distance. The leader of the first group says, “Our priority is escorting the staff; once we get them out of here, we’ll be back to help you take down flame boy.”

“As far as we know, he’s no longer on the top floor; we’ve been ordered to start our search on the bottom level,” says the commander of the other squadron.

“All right, we’ll be sure to make this quick. We don’t know exactly where the crew is, but we have a good idea.”

“Got it; see you soon.”

The one in charge of the rescue mission presses the indicator, as the others head for the staircase, which exists beyond the door east of their position. The squad exits the elevator, and continues down a long, shady hallway; their guns are drawn as they proceed. They eventually reach a point in the corridor that grants them access to the pathway forward, as well as one to their west and east. “Let’s split up.” They do so, in two different teams.

The first hall to the left contains six doors; there are three on each side. Each passageway on this level is spread fifteen feet apart. The opposite hall contains seven doors; three are on the right side, and four are on the other.

The captain, along with one of his comrades, heads westward, opens the first door, and proceeds inside the mega theater. They head toward the stage, flashing their flashlights down each row and beneath the seats, along the way.

Meanwhile, the other members of the team are searching within a room that contains a gun range. Ahead, are six-different practice lanes. They thoroughly examine each slot; still nothing.

The chief and the soldier that followed him, are currently checking two different rooms. The higher ranking officer finds himself within an interrogation room. He turns on the light that’s beside the door, and scans around. He makes his way toward the solitary rectangular-shaped table, and sits on the stool that’s tucked beneath it. While scanning the blank wall to his left, he says to himself, “Where are these guys?”

He then looks over at the one-way mirror, to his right. Suddenly, two knocks, knock against the other end of the glass. The soldier rushes over to the wooden door within the room; it slowly creeps open from the other side. The seventy-frightened staff members are packed within this small area; some are dressed in lab coats, while others are in suits and business attire. He uses his index finger to press a button that’s located on the right side of his helmet, which allows him to communicate with his comrades. “I found them.”

The crew searching for James, regroups within the lot at the top floor of the base; it’s shaped like a massive square. The employees’ destroyed-parked vehicles are still smoking, and scorch marks cover the cement floor. “We’ve checked every level now, so he must be hiding. Think about it guys, we’ve been here so many times, where could someone hide, where we haven’t looked yet?” asks the superior trooper.

“We still haven’t checked the submarine,” a soldier responds.

The staff members are now resting inside the many rooms within the watercraft. Two scientists accompany the servicemen within the cockpit. One of the men in the white coats is examining the control system. “So far, so good,” he says.

James’ burning figure makes his way through the automatic door leading into the hangar. He immediately notices that the seacraft is now descending into the pool; all that’s revealed of it, is its bridge. He jumps onto it. Once attached, he shifts into his molten mode, and digs his sharp claws into its exterior. The magnetic floor attaches the vessel, to it.

A mechanism causes a revving noise to occur; moments later, the same hatch that the soldiers entered through to access the facility, begins to open; simultaneously as this occurs, a green-glowing hue collects atop the entirety of the pool’s floor. The opening finally extends to its maximum potential; as the sound ceases, the green force field, powered by manipulating magnetic energy, swiftly propels the vehicle, out. It briefly sinks before using its propellers to swim up to the surface.

They fully ascend, and James removes his grip. It’s day, and the sky is cloudless. He stands to his feet, morphs back into his flaming mode, and prepares his limbs to make a giant jump, by slightly kneeling, and adjusting his arms. He flings himself upward, and uses his flames to boost him, west. The commander exits out from a door that’s built into the top of the ship. He looks up, and witnesses the fugitive swiftly getting away. He steps off of the ladder, and stands atop the floating object.

“Get up here! I found him!” The crew rise out; once they’re each positioned outside, they engage their jetpacks, and bolt after Diamond. The criminal picks up the pace. A rocket that’s shot out of the launcher that’s built into the leader’s robotic wrist, advances right at him; as he attempts to slice it, the missile explodes, and releases an electric-shock wave into his body. This stuns him, causing him to plummet onto the sandy shore of the small island, below; he’s molten-covered by the time he touches down.

The fall causes him to leave a deep indentation within the sand. He stands to his feet, and points his sword’s edge up at the descending soldiers; a fiery collection expels out of the tip of his blade, and heads straight for the pack. Their suits absorb the heat as they land on the beach; they horizontally align themselves across from their target, with their weapons drawn and pointed at him. James slowly walks toward them with confidence and an evil grin, as the cursed tool is held tightly in his right hand.

“Stand down!” the criminal demands.

“Turn yourself in! You’re outnumbered, and there are more of us coming,” demands a soldier.

“My fight isn’t with you. The longer you choose to waste my time, the less valuable your lives become. This is your only warning. Back down, or be beat down.” The men holster their pistols, and engage their electrically-powered blades. They all have two daggers built into the top and bottom portions of their arms, which extend outward when triggered. They creep in. Diamond, with his left foot, stomps the ground with miraculous strength, causing a tremble to occur.

During the time of their imbalance, he steps to one of them; James penetrates his sword through the soldier’s metallic suit, and into the man’s torso. The entity swiftly and forcibly removes his weapon, and as the officer falls, he uses the end of his blade’s handle, to break the visor of his next prey, forcing him to kneel over as he attempts to remove his helmet; just as he does, he receives a devastating knee strike from his rock-hard right leg. He releases his grip on the edge, and it floats above him. He then uses his hands to grab both of the heads of the two remaining men, who’ve just regained their balance; he melts their helmets with ease. With a single blow from his boiling breath, the criminal scorches their exposed faces. They flop to the ground while shrieking in agony, and join their team in defeat. James turns, and notices that the second squadron has just ascended out of the sea.

With his right hand, he grabs the person he stabbed, and screams out, “If you follow me, I’ll kill this man!” He leaps into the sky with his helm in his palm, as the group, which has now yielded, only watches. Diamond reaches 300 feet high, and after producing a mass amount of fire that bursts from his legs, he speeds south over the ocean. As the men help up their injured allies, they’re distracted by the sound of distant screaming; they turn their gaze toward it, and witness James’ victim, whose jetpack has been smashed to bits, falling into the sea.

Chapter 9: The end

Seven, who’s wearing the same outfit, is seated in a black-cushioned chair within a dark room, and facing a one-way mirror; The Protectors are behind it. He resembles a human without any hair on his face; he’s bald, and has the nose of a gorilla. He’s six-feet tall, with silver skin, and a muscular build.

“What’s your name?” a deepened and altered voice asks through an intercom.

“You can call me, Seven.”

“What brings you here?”

“Before I begin, let me give you a brief history of who I am. I’m an inventor, and I’ve been doing my job for hundreds of years. Long ago, a mysterious man by the name of Vasu, created two swords, from the very essence of my master’s master. My teacher’s teacher is known throughout the realms as the King of Magic, Siano, and the King of Dragons, and as we speak, he’s being held captive by Vasu.

“The one who taught me everything, was born into Siano’s cult; as well as being raised an assassin, he mastered the art of architecture on his free time. Recently, he was sent on a mission by the deity, to kill Vasu’s son.

“The wizard’s offspring was known as Prince John; he was the original wielder of the swords forged with Siano’s essence. My mentor’s job was to steal them from John, and make sure that the magic weapons were in his overlord’s appointed hands, however his curiosity got the best of him, and Siano showed him no mercy.

“Little does Vasu know, his prisoner has been able to regain his consciousness in the recent years, and has actively made plans against the evil sorcerer; I know this because I too have joined his cult, and have been tasked by the king himself, with retrieving the sacred blades. If you would lend me your helping hand, I’ll reward you with more gold you’ve ever seen in your life.”

As The Protectors are sitting around and atop the rectangular table within the unlit-small room, they’re all facing him. “He’s lying,” says the voice of Siano. Again, the crew concurrently jump at the sound of the Oni-masked entity, who appears behind them. “He’s not a member of my clan, and he only wants the swords for himself.” After this is said, he vanishes.

“We won’t help you.”

“Seriously?”

“Seven, please dismiss yourself from our vicinity.” A pause occurs as he continues to sit still; his expression reveals his shock.

“I can’t believe this; fine, if you won’t help, I’ll take care of this myself.”

“I wouldn’t recommend that.”

“I don’t care!” He throws himself out of his seat, and rushes through the automatic-iron door.

Khalil is standing in the middle of a street which is bordering ruined infrastructure on either side; both the road, and what’s left of the buildings, are covered with dirt. Suddenly, James drops from the sky, and appears fifteen feet ahead of him; he lands with one knee on the ground. His body is covered in his molten armor. He stands, and points his blade, which is within his right hand, at Reed’s head.

“What took you so long?”

“I won’t hold back.” Without warning, Diamond shoots a beam at him through the tip of his sword. Reed dodges it by creating a pillar of ice that launches him up. From above his enemy, he produces a trident, and chucks it down at James’ head. The ablaze anomaly steps back just in time to dodge it, then leaps to the top of the platform. As James is midair, Khalil manipulates the elements so that a boulder of ice covers his exterior.

He falls over the edge, and lands on his rising body, forcing him back down. He’s crushed beneath it as they land; Reed shoots out of the top of his creation, and while rising, he dissolves the ball, and freezes his entirety, solid. He plunges back down toward his opponent with his sword’s tip pointed between his crouched feet. His molten form rolls out of the way of the downward strike. Upon landing, his broadsword gets stuck in the ground. As he tries to retrieve it, he’s tackled. While he struggles to remain on his feet, he summons a tornado.

As they levitate into the air, they continue to grapple each other, and exchange punches on the way up. The two devils psychically summon the blades that they were separated from, and engage in another rapid-sword battle. Khalil somehow ends up with his face within the molten grip of his foe’s left hand. He’s thrown to the ground with such force, when he lands, a crater is formed; while falling, he covers himself in a thick shield.

“Is this all you got?!” screams the possessed criminal. Diamond lands within the depression, and grabs him by the leg. “Stand up!” he hollers, as he flings Reed to the surface. After rolling on the ground, Khalil, now without his armor, stumbles as he attempts to stand; just as he regains his balance, he looks up to see that his opponent is directly in front of him. James grabs him by his throat, and lifts him. “How could father choose someone so inept? You’re just like your grandfather.” He’s then hurled into the dilapidated building that resides thirty yards to his right.

His body crashes through a feeble window, and lands on the floor within an abandoned office. Moments later, the entire facility violently starts to shake as it collapses. He quickly gets to his feet and sprints toward the aperture; he dives out. As he starts to fall, he’s tackled by the flaming criminal from below, and flown upward, through the structure, and high into the sky. Reed struggles with the incredible grip of the adversary, until they finally reach the outside of the stratosphere; James’ arm follows him up, and flies along his right side.

Khalil psychically generates extreme winds to blow down on them. This effectively slows their ascent. Diamond separates himself from his foe; he tightly grips his blade’s handle, and thrusts. Reed grabs the weapon before it’s able to penetrate him; his touch cools the metal, and both steam and water driblets form at the edge’s tip. He creates a twister while holding on, which throws James off balance; in an instant, two pillars shoot up from the ground. The one below Khalil, slowly connects with the bottom of his feet, as the other creation, at a bullet-like speed, violently hits Diamond, throwing him hundreds of feet, up.

He halts the storm, destroys the second tower, extends his blade outward, elongates and sharpens it with a sleek formation of ice, and by the time James’ falling body reaches a point when it’s directly in front of him, he stabs through his flailing rival.

Reed holds his weapon in place for ten seconds. He then dissolves the sword’s customization; afterward, Diamond, along with the artifact, plunge to the ground. Khalil manipulates the platform to hastily shrink until he reaches the surface. James’ possessed form thuds against the cement. His original self begins to return; the mutations evaporate in a plethora of smoke. He, now without a wound, lies unconscious and asleep. He proceeds toward the other cursed object as the criminal snores.

He kneels down to examine it; just as he grabs the black handle, he’s shot by three-strange darts, which enter the back of his head and neck. He frantically scans his surroundings, however no one can be seen. His vision becomes blurry, and his movements, wobbly; he starts to stagger. While holding onto each sword, he falls to the ground, onto his stomach. He begins a violent bout of jolting and twitching.

From behind a beaten down and abandoned land vehicle that’s parked on the sidewalk, fifty feet behind his position, jumps out Seven, with his advanced pistol in his right hand. He jogs to his targets. Once he reaches them, he kicks Reed over on his back; his body is still uncontrollably jerking. He points the strange gun down at his head.

“Tough luck, kid.” Before he pulls the trigger again, a blinding beam of yellow light suddenly shoots down through the clouds from an unknown entity, and surrounds the three. In an instant, both Khalil and the swords, disappear.