Infinite Justice: Beyond (Marvel,DC,DBZ X/Over, IC, Open)

[Charmera]

Jacelyn Grim

Crimson raindrops fell upon the girl, staining her face, filling her nostrils with a pungent smell. Legs tucked beneath her, hands covering her whimpering mouth. Eyes locked ahead, tears shimmering. Shaking uncontrollably, she unconciously bit down on her hands, drawing blood.

Daddy was coming back. In this other world, he was here. He would come, and do very bad things to her. And Jacelyn was scared.

A warm light burst into existence, chasing away the shadows. The crimson rain stopped, and Jacelyn was dried. She didn't know what happened. But...She wasn't so scared anymore.

And into that broken nightmare of hers came the soft voice of her lost friend.

"Jace...? It's me... Lula...?

At the sound, Jace's head slowly turned. Standing so near was her friend. Afraid that Lula would disappear, Jace shot up and ran over to the tiny girl. Tripping and falling, she latched onto the girl's waist, sobbing. The words wouldn't come, she was so sad, and happy, and confused, and hurt. All of these emotions slammed into her, and she didn't know what to do but cry.

Tears staining Lula's dress, the tortured girl finally managed, "Lu.la! Don't leave me again! I'll...I'll be a good girl now! I'm sorry!" Her sobbing melted into short gasps and hiccups, even her soul being spent. "I don't want to be alone! Daddy...Brothers...the bad men...They did bad things! I lost baby! She was in my tummy, and.and.and..." She started sobbing again. "Th.they took her away from me! I was alone, and you weren't there! Please don't leave me again! Momma left me, but please don't leave me! I don't want to be alone anymore!"

Tightening her grasp so Lula wouldn't go again, she buried her head in the girl's dress folds. She couldn't do it anymore. It was bad. Everything was bad. And she didn't want it.

Lula's eyes too began running with tears. She softly put her hands under her arms and pulled the other girl up a bit, her dress and hair greyed a bit with sadness. The light she had brought waned a bit and a dull grey surrounded her. "Jace... Jace... What did they do to you?" She embraced her tighter. "I should have stopped them. I could have... I wish I had. I was suppose to protect you. I had promised..." She muttered. "I'm sorry I left Jace. So sorry I left. I should have stayed..."

She smiled then, a weak smile, her dress becoming light once more. She carefully maneuvered Jace so she could see the other girls eyes. "You've grown Jace... You've grown so much... I remember when you were my size. You're even prettier now. I'm so jealous." She giggled slightly as she her the girls hands and stepped back a bit. "...It's going to be okay. You're in a dream. No one will hurt you in here while I'm around. Your brothers and father won't be able to hurt you. And I'll make sure you're happy here at least... it is the least I can do to make up for my absence." As she spoke, she dried both their tears. "No more nightmares for a while. I'll be in here with you whenever you want me..."

The darkness began to break to a bright light, Lula now consciously altering the dream. They were now in a field. Balloons were floating in the air, a few birds and bunny rabbits were nearby. The dream was now lucid, so Jace could now alter elements of it as she wished too. Still... Lula needed to keep and eye out for malicious constructs from Jace's mind... or her own.

[Charmera]

Hector Blake/The Blue Lantern-28 Yrs-Undisclosed Location

I listened to Ju'lee's advice I found myself agreeing with her. As we continued down the facility, I once more found the lack of multiple minions of some sort uneasy. And the nagging thought on why they would collect so many metas in one place, I could not seem to figure out. I pushed it from my mind at the moment, as it would be revealed in time, and we were both interrupted as we happened upon a large room. The room was a large circle in shape, with white walls and white well, everything. I took a breath.

"Why is it always White?" I asked to no one in particular.

It was then that two rooms opened up ahead of us. One door to the left and right, and from each one, an alien appeared. From the right door on Ju'lee's side, the woman was dressed in a red and black uniform complete with a cape and a mask. Blonde hair and a ravenous scowl were etched on to her features. Upon her chest, was a insignia which resembled the same type of writing which was used in my Blue Lantern and Ju'lee's green. In fact, she glowed with a red aura around her, and seemed to be a Kryptonian.

The one on my side, was some blue alien being, with a yellow uniform. The being held two melee type weapons in his hands and I could not tell if he was male or female. But, it was clear that whoever it is is a Yellow Lantern.

But what are Lanterns doing here?

As if to answer my question, the blue alien began to speak in a masculine voice.

"Well, you look surprised...you should not be. You world is home to a large ratio of super powered beings. It is a raw untapped pool of potential power for those looking for recruits. You must have many questions, such as why I am working with a Red Lantern, when I should be pulling her spine out. But, those will have to wait until just before I kill you."

The Red Lantern did not seem very talkative, instead unleashing a primal roar and blitzing toward Ju'lee using Kyrptonian speed.

I turned to my own fight, as the Sinestro Corpman used the power of fear to empower his weapons. I then formed my own Hope Energy and crafted my own blades. Knowing I was about to get my first real test.

Julie frowned at her opponent. Words would be wasted on this primal beast wearing the skin of a lantern. Red Lanterns were either mindless or little more than slaves to rage. They powered their constructs with hatred and anger. They were strong. Plus, this one seemed to be a Kryptonian. Which meant there was extra strength with which could be used to smite the Martian. Their rage made them dangerous, their red lantern beams could break through her constructs due to the rage impurity and this one was the same species as the man who what known for being powerful. In short. This was going to be tough.

Thankfully, Red Lanterns were not known for their tactical thinking. Julie allowed her opponent to phase through her, the red Lantern letting out a confused grunt as her target was not breaking in her hands. Then the Martian spun around to lift her above her head and slam the Kryptonian into the ground face first. She followed this up with a forceful kick to her side. The punishing sound of the kick impacting her target was what she expected to hear, but instead the martian was flung into a wall and through a few more. She made sure to quickly recover, only for a double handed upwards punch to the face, sending her flying through the ceiling.

The Green lantern grunted, then went invisible. Her oppenent looked up in rage. "Coward..." She growed out through her teeth, only to feel a green beam propelling her back in the direction she had just came from. She grunted as she was sent flying back. She then proceeded to stop, now pushing forward despite the beam. To which Julie sped towards the Red Lantern and punched her in the face with a sickening and loud crack that sounded more light lightning. Her opponent fell back. Then came another punch. Then another. Then another. Then a flurry of punches. Julie getting frustrated.

"Why. Won't, You. Just. Go. Down!" She spoke. About to unleash a final and devastating punch before her left hand was grabbed and she was forced down by considerable strength. She could feel it almost snap off. She bit her lip to prevent herself from crying out in pain.

"You little green idiot." Spoke the Red Lantern, rage in her eyes. Julie saw the ring pointing at her face and realized she was going to have to do something drastic. Suddenly with a flash she formed a blade with her ring and used it to cut off her own arm. Her ring hand then came down upon her opponent in a punch, no doubt surprised, as she blasted down with green energy and used the force of her punch. The Red Lantern got up, staggered by the force, about to mount a counterattack when she found the Martian had telekinetically hurled her own blood into the eyes of her enemy.

Next she went for her opponents ears while she was blinded. She pressed her ring against her foes ears and made in produce a small yet powerful explosion. The Red Lanterns eyes were suddenly ringing, her super hearing now rendered null as she was both blind and deaf, though neither were permanent. And then Julie just whaled on her. Punch after punch after punch. Kicks and blasts from her ring.

Her opponent did not have the time to clean her eyes of blood. Had no idea what was going on apart from the constant pain all over her body as Julie delivered blows that would have obliterated steel like a nuke would play dough.

Finally, the last blow to the broken Lantern was a punch to the stomach, causing her opponent to fall limp from it. Julie exhaled, letting her opponent fall. She felt slight guilt at having to use such brutal methods, but she had hardened slightly over time. I could have killed her. Lethal force is authorized against Red Lanterns after all...

She turned back to her partner, wondering how he fared. Her arm was healing back, now pretty much fully healed.

[Charmera]

-snip-

Valancy Stirling

She grinned widely as Katie cried out in delight. Stepping in, she said, "Thanks, Katie!" handing the plate to Katie so that she could begin consuming the cookies, seeing the delight in her friend's eyes.

"Hello Cora! Nice to meet you too. " Val said, offering a warm smile. Would you like some?" she asked, swiping a few cookies and holding them out to the girl.

"And of course, we need the milk too!" Valancy said, remembering. Rushing back, she grabbed the rest of the cookies and a gallon of milk, along with a few glasses, stepping back in moments later. Pouring herself a glass of milk, she sipped it and then bit into the warm, soft cookies, closing her eyes shortly in bliss. They never got old.

Katie began munching on the cookies with incredible speed, replacing the energy lost from transporting Cora. "Thank you so much!" She spoke in between cookies. Soon she stopped herself, slowing down from her glutinous consumption. She eventually stopped, leaving a few cookies over and pacing herself. Her raging metabolism telling her to eat more, but she did not.

"So Val, how's work been?" asked Katie.

Cora relaxed a bit when she heard Valancy's kind words and tone. Her warm smile helped as well. Cora was amazed that she had met two nice people. She had never really had friends and the world had always been hostile to her. She smiled grateful and reached out tentatively for the cookies. "Thank you" She said, taking a bite of one of them slowly. Despite not really needing to eat, being an android, Cora was amazed at how good the cookie tasted. It was warm and gave her a comforted feeling she wasn't used to. "These are very good." Cora said to Valancy. She wasn't sure how Katie's neighborhood would react if she discovered she was an android. She was worried she would hate her or be scared like the others had.

Katie looked back to Cora, wondering if she really needed to eat at all or if she just liked the taste of the cookies. She shrugged. She supposed it didn't matter too much. There were plenty of cookies to go around after all.

[Charmera]

Jacelyn Grim

Held in the tiny goddess' arms, the girl was torn apart with sadness. For an eternity, she'd spent every single second of it in the darkest of hells, all alone. Nobody was there to hold her hand, comfort her, carry her, tell her that everything was going to be okay. All she'd known was the most excruciating pain, the most debilitating fear, the most harrowing of torture. And since Lula had left her, she'd forgotten what love, kindness, and happiness was like.

Would you blame her for not being able to be happy, even now that her only friend had come back?

The dream had become wonderful, full of life, happiness, and the nicest of things. You may have thought that this would change her, make her happy. But it didn't. She still was afraid that Lula, the only support she had in those twelve years of hell, was going to leave her again.

Her eyes betrayed a deep madness, formed through years of inhuman torture and abject dread. Clinging to Lula as if it were her life at stake, she just stood at her side, whimpering like a wounded animal.

Over and over, she muttered, "Don't leave. Don't leave. Don't leave." It was like a scratched record, looping mechanically and lifelessly. The world began losing its color, balloons fell from the sky, animals moved sluggishly. Wind howled, blowing the grass flat to the ground.

The world began to warp and shift. Space started to contract, assuming a cube-like shape. And everything began to morph into the world wherein Jacelyn had spent her undying days.

Nothing. No emotion. No life. Nothing but an ear-piercing scream ripped through the death-world.

"No no no no no." Spoke Lula as she saw the dream contract she grabbed the other girls face. She looked strait into her eyes, forcing the other girl to look into hers. "It's fine. I'm here. You're dreaming. You're dreaming. Your not here." She spoke desperately. She couldn't loose Jace as much as Jace couldn't loose her. Much of her surprisingly fragile sanity was tied to the poor girl. She had to convince her to break this herself, otherwise she might become too dependent on Lula and this dream state. Also, if she forced her own mind too hard upon the girl there could be dire consequences. With a mind as fragile as a humans one had to be careful not to break anything. Lula would have to put her on psychic life support for the rest of her life, which was no way to live for the poor girl. "Please Jace. You're fine. I'm here and I'm not going away."

Another time

---

"Oh, you're free to stay for as long as you'd like, Lula. You're welcome to stop by my mind whenever, in fact. I would normally not extend such an invitation under any circumstances, but I like you, so I will make an exception. You are quite pleasant to speak to, after all." Hadrimmelis spoke, still leading the girl through the hallways of the Great Temple. Hearing the dreamer's next few questions, the World-Dragon simply nodded.

"Yes and no. There are other minds nearby because they are on the surface of the same planet, yes, but I am not within a world. I am the world." She explained, smiling once again. By now, the two women had already reached an open area of the Great Temple, a terrace or balcony of sorts, and so, looking towards the empty azure sky, the blonde avatar waved her hand and suddenly, an image almost like a hologram appeared in front of them, displaying her in her dormant form, not a very welcoming landscape by any means, though even then it was full of life. "That is what I look like while I sleep. No sleeping beauty, for sure, but it fills me with energy for when I am needed awake once more." The World-Dragon stated.

Lula's next question, however, took a bit longer to answer. "Well, Lula, I do know what it is like to be mortal, in a way. Through my people. I observe them constantly, see everything they see, feel everything they feel, hear everything they think. I live their lives alongside them, so I would say I know quite a bit about what it is like to be mortal. However, you woud be right in saying that I have never truly experienced any of that in my own flesh, in my own soul. I cannot say I would like to, either. I am content to fulfill my role, and I am still able to experience the many joys of life, such as this little conversation of ours." The World-Dragon concluded, smiling at the girl. "I do hope that answers your questions."

Lula's smile grew as she suddenly hugged the other woman, only managing to hug her legs however. "Thank you!" She spoke. "No one has ever really offered that to me. Well one person... and I kinda brought it up but still, thank you so much!"

"It indeed does." Spoke Lula, responding to the bit about her questions being answered. Smiling. She was rather impressed by the world thing. "Wow... Your presence in the physical world is... impressive. The most I am outside of peoples minds is a little girl. Though I suppose it's what's in here that really matters." She pointed to the dragons head, giggling. "Still. It'd be nice to have a physical body as powerful as that. I bet you could lift entire worlds! That must be so cooool!" She was having a lot of fun with her new friend. "Also, don't be afraid to ask any questions of your own. I may seem like a childish little girl but I actually know a lot." Then her smile widened. "Oooh! If you want I could even show you one of my dreams. Change the scenery perhaps? Only if you want to though. I'd understand if you don't want me messing with your dream or you feel comfortable here.

[Charmera]

"Right.." Magnus said. "Who the hell is the leader again? Who the hell came up with the idea to make our little group?" He asked Odysseus. "Exactly. Me, kiddo. I know you don't like to get bossed around but, if you don't cover MY ass, all three of us will end in the blender, capische?"

"What blender?" Odysseus asked, taking position by some rocks. "And who is she? Girlfriend of yours?" Odysseus guessed, leaning in and snapping an ACOG scope onto his rifle.

"Somewhat." Magnus answered, sighing. "She's an old friend, her name is Tina, she helped us out a lot... I'll tell you about her later.."

After he spoke the ground suddenly shook with a big tremor in response to the seimic pulse. A very large one in fact. Large enough to make superman spill his coffee if he was on the ground, perhaps even drop it if he wasn't careful. The earth shook mightily as if displeased, as if disturbed, and then returned to normal, as if it had only been minorly disturbed.

This was Tina rolling over in her earthen bed. Still blissfully asleep as she unconsciously caused tremors with the slightest movements. it was why she slept deep underground. After all she didn't want any people disturbing her. Though sometimes her movements were too much to control and shit happened. Sometimes villages, towns or cities suffered ill effects for having the misfortune of sharing the area with the archon of earth.

[Charmera]

The Fault of Fate
Max the Wanderer

The clothes looked and smelled like something that crawled out of a sewer on the lower east side of Gotham on a bad day, but it was all that could be found in the hustle and bustle of Valentine City, except, that wasn't really it's name. No, no, it's real name was Morningstar City, but it seemed like the residents either didn't care or didn't know, the raggedly clothed man made no insight on which was the appropriate case. The bum walked with an intense pace and a firm look, throwing a glance behind his shoulder now and again, before finally ducking into a public restroom in the middle of a smog-ridden park.

He flipped on the tap and found the murky water running smoothly, and even though it's cleanliness was questionable, the water washed away the dirt and grime on the bum's hands as well as any five star bath would. He went as far as to splash it back in his own face, rubbing it relentlessly as he tried his best to look somewhat presentable. He stopped for a moment, though, as he looked deep into the mirror for a moment, his pupils wildly dilating. He took in all of his facial features, though, a firm look, dirty blonde hair, cold blue eyes, a square jaw, among others, but the reflection he saw in his own eyes troubled him to end...

"You there yet?"

The voice almost startled him, but the bum whipped around and took a look around his area, only to find no one. That was strange, as he was positive he heard someone else talk just a second ago, clear as day. "Oh, it doesn't look like you're all the way there yet." The crusty man realized that the voice was coming from inside of his own mind, and a subtle panic set in as he grabbed onto his temples and dropped to his knees. "No, no, no, calm down, I'm fixing it. Little by little, you should start feeling a little...tingle sensation." Just as the voice described, muscle spasms overtook the bum's body as he entered into what appeared to be a seizure of some sort. His lungs seized up as well, but suddenly, his violent shaking stopped, and he took a massive intake of air like someone who was underwater for way too long.

He breathed in and out rapidly, clutching his chest with one hand as he stared at the floor. "There...Now you should remember." The voice in his head stated, "What all do you remember?" It further asked, the bum unleashing a devastating smirk as it appeared like his entire character shifted radically from one down-on-his-luck hood rat to a nobleman playing dress up. Piece by piece, the madman began to remove articles of soggy, moldy clothing from his body, the voice awaiting her answer.

"Simply put," The man said, reaching his worn and past due undergarments, "I remember my life as this man, and the life I lived before it." Slowly, he slid off the undershirt and threw it into the pile of rotten clothes he was formerly wearing. "My life was rather plain and dry, fairly hard, but riddled with moments designed to return me back to this state. Certain protocols, what have you, but it seems like the only failsafe that worked was you, Ash." He continued, rolling down his last piece of underwear and revealing his nude body to the public restroom's mirror. A man reborn - he held out his palms to the mirror and observed his entire muscle-clad body.

"In one life, I was a street urchin, in another, a King. A God. I'll say this right now, though, I will choose my former life any day of the week compared to this false existence. One that was created to eliminate me from an equation, to inhibit my growth. Fools, the lot of them, the Secret Wars ended only a few days ago and they want to convince me that I'm just a blabbering, street-walking hooligan? They will get what's coming to them." The man saud as he narrowed his eyes and barely focused, his skin melting away as plates of armor rose to the surface. The same armor he wore as the Mad God, the same that would fix this grave mistake in the reshaping of reality. "Because..."

"...Mad Max is back."

The voice in Max's head mentally grinned. She had not been without interesting things to observe during her time within Max. Amusement one might say. "You are indeed. The Mad God has returned..." Spoke the voice. Ash. It was as good a nickname as any, and the one she had told Max to call her now. In fact that was all she was at the moment. Ash. No direction, little control. All her hopes, faith and her very mind lay in the hands of one man. Her fate was intertwined with his, as was any hope of getting a new body. Being so reliant made her feel... excited for some reason. "No one would suspect I was in your mind. Or that I could restore your memory."

"So. What now?" She asked. "I'm sure you have quite the comeback planned." She grinned again mentally.

[Charmera]

-snip-

-snip-

Valancy Stirling

"Thanks Cora, it's an old family recipe that's been passed down the family for nearly 100 years." Val said, munching another cookie after dipping it into her glass of milk. "So, what do you do, Cora? And how did you and Katie meet up," she asked, having no idea that the true answer would be very different from what she expected.

Finishing another cookie and promising herself that this last one would be her last, she started chewing, hearing Katie's question. She opened her mouth to answer, but, remembering that it was full, abruptly closed it and finished chewing before answering. "Work is going pretty good, Katie. I feel like we're effecting real and tangible change in the world, to make people realize that their pollution and wastefulness will hurt the Earth, and that that is a bad thing. However, there are still some who are only interested in monetary gain. How about you, how's college going?" she asked, finishing her last cookie.

Katie smiled, "That sounds like hard work... though I guess it's rewarding at the end." She commented. "Oh college is good. You gets some decently interesting things to work on, though the lectures can be a tad boring... Katie replied. She had learnt a good deal of this stuff herself, but still college was usefull, as there were often things she never considered, and learning was something she really truly enjoyed. Plus there was her boyfriend... "Although Eric goes there so it's never too boring. Though,I'm glad you didn't ask about my job..." She sighed. "Getting yelled at by customers for minimum wage is not exactly my dream job... though I suppose it pays the bills... if barely."

Cora
Cora looked nervous when Valancy asked where she was from and what she did for a living. Cora glanced at Katie neevously. She didn't know what to say. Valancy seemed nice and she didn't want to lie, but how could she tell her the truth? She didn't want Valancy to think she was she was a freak. "Well... Katie and I met at a salon recently." She told Valancy. It wasn't a lie, but it wasn't really the truth either. "I just moved her recently, from West City very far away. I don't have a job here right now, but... I used to work in a robotics lab." She fought back the terrible memories from her past to try to keep a straight face. It was the best lie that Cora could come up with in the moment.

"Which reminds me. You're going to need a job soon too. After all we could use the extra money..." Katie said to Cora, raising an eyebrow. She wasn't too sure why Cora was lying, but it wasn't her job to make sure she wasn't she supposed. "Especially if we're going to go through with... um... what we discussed earlier." She spoke. Then winked to Cora.

[Charmera]

-snip-

Valancy Stirling

Valancy listened intently, nodding Katie's thoughts about college. "I thought much of the same when I was in college, it has its uses and annoyances. Oh, and Eric!" she smiled with a glint in her eye. "I'm glad to know that's going well. Frowning at Katie's comments about money, she said, not offering for the first time, "If you ever need a loan, Katie, just say the word."

Looking in between the two of them, she then asked, "Am I missing something?", having a sense that what she had just asked was true.

Katie smiled when Val mentioned Eric too. "It indeed is. It's going quite well indeed." She spoke, very pleased with herself and her boyfriend. She almost felt like spinning and humming she felt so good. She then frowned when she was asked about a loan. But then smiled slightly. "It's cool Val. I can balance the books. I'm good with math and money." She explained. "Besides, I wouldn't want to mooch off your hard earned money after all." She frowned slightly. "I have to do this myself."

She then giggled at Val's confusion. "Oh. Nothing important. Just a little thing." She replied. She then smiled wider. "Oh. Are you doing anything today? We could go out and get some coffee, all three of us, together."

[Charmera]

Jacelyn Grim

Those eyes of hers were empty. Words would not reach her.

Arms dropped at her sides, and her body went limp, back hunching over. Slowly, she stood straighter, hair obscuring her face. Mad chuckling dripped from her lips. Wind blew, revealing the monstrosity behind the veil, smiling at the dream goddess.

Dark energy blasted the tiny girl backwards, the black scene unfolding.

Little Jacelyn was tied to the chair, wires snaking to her head, arms, legs. Lights of many colors flashed, blinding the little one. Daddy entered, needle lifted. Swiftly it was plunged into her side, the girl screaming in pain. "Daddy!!! No!!!"

Engorged on its victim, out the needle was pulled. Blood dripped from the tip, marking the floor.

Glitching, the scene faded. Demon-girl Grim walked towards Lula, head cocked unnaturally to the side as if with a broken neck. Louder grew the laughter, the smile only madder.

Two naked boys entered, smirks on their face. Jacelyn saw them, tried to reach towards them.

Brothers, they will save me!

Tear-stained eyes, she cried to them.

Grabbing hold, they ripped off her clothes, exposing her body. Touching, groping, biting, they marked her as their own. Her screams cut through the darkness. Womb was filled.

Head twitching rapidly from side to side, the demon came ever closer. A trail of crimson streaked down her lips, dripping from her chin. The laughter turned to a pained gurgle.

Her belly had grown, a baby knit within. Straining against the bonds, her body ached. She was a momma, and her baby must be protected. Sobbing, tearing, the girl could not break free. Everything was falling apart. The time was coming.

It had been so long, and baby hadn't moved in her. Silent, she listened for it. Nothing. Baby in her tummy was stopped. "Baby? Baby, it's alright. Momma is here." She cried. "Please Baby. Its okay. Momma... Baby?! Ba...Baby?!" Holding her belly, she tried to feel it. Nothing moved. "BABY!!!"

In they came, Daddy and the bad women. A hand reached in her. "No! Wha...What are you doing?!" They held her still, legs spread. It was in her, pulling. And she knew. "DON'T TAKE MY BABY AWAY!!!"

Blood poured from her eyes, the demon-girl coughing and crying. The mad smile did not fade.

All alone. Baby had been taken. Daddy left. Brothers left. The flashy lights blinding her. Tied to the chair, she sobbed. There was nothing for her. Why couldn't she die?

"I want my Momma," she whimpered. "Take me home to Momma."

Hand stretched to Lula, long claws extended. A small flash of life entered the demon-girl's eyes, and Jacelyn, lost and twisted demon-Jacelyn, whimpered out, "Help me."

Lula slowly backed away, a look of sadness on her face. "Please Jace." She spoke. "You can do this. You can fight them! You're stronger than these visions. You don't..." She saw it again, guilty welling in her as she saw what they did to her. What they did to her. The horrible things they... hurt her...

Stay.... calm... Just a dream. Not real. Not real.

A parade of her sins. Her ultimate guilt. In truth, she could have stopped this. She could have. She could have put them all to sleep and taken Jace far from there. She should have. She had been with her since the begining, even if she didn't know. But she didn't. She didn't get involved. She had just watched.

It's not real! They're gone! They're not here!

She had done much worse things to much kinder people. She could have trapped them in eternal loops of the most horrifying dreams. Broken them to her will with but a single memory... such weak minds humans had. it would have been so easy... She hated them so much too. For what they did to Jace. Special Jace. Wonderfuil Jace. They didn't deserve to exist. They...

Jace stepped closer.

Please let this stop. I... I did a bad thing. But... I'm trying to be good now.

Trying to be... good...

Trying to be good...

"Help me."

A pause. The entire dream seemed to stay still for a moment.

"Okay Jace." Lula lifted her head, her face, her eyes, her hair had changed. "I'll help." A smile was on her face. Not the same one as before. But the one of someone who had cracked.

Next was blood. So much blood.

---

Before Jace could turn around, the bodies of her father and her brother were now gone. What was left was a floor full of blood. Lula was back to her normal self. But she was shaking, trembling, shivering. Her white dress now soaked with blood. Though she willed it to be clean and so it was.

"They're gone." She spoke. "They may come back. But I will deal with them." She explained. She had to cover her mouth to stop herself from laughing crazily. She cleaned the blood from the floor. And also the eyeball she was holding by the nerve. She turned back around to face Jace.

She was crying. Eyes full of tears. "I... I think I should go..." She spoke. "We... I... wanted to have... some fun... with... an old friend... but I ruined it... like I always do." She sniffed. Obviously very upset. She had given Jace a glimpse of her ugliest side. The one she kept hidden and bottled up under the cute dresses, the happy smile and the kindness. Trillions of years of life breeds such hate, such anger such.... horror that it was best she kept it within. In her experience, it was only a matter of time before you discovered that side of yourself. She just wished she had died before she discovered hers.

She frowned. She doubted Jace would want her around now. She waved her hand, brightening up the dream world, making it pretty and happy again. The same field. She turned to leave, but didn't. She was having trouble bringing herself to do it.

[Charmera]

Cora was worried for a second when Valancy asked if she missed something, but was relieved when Katie convinced her to drop the issue. She wasn't sure how long she'd be able to hide the fact that she was an android. She then noticed Katie when she spoke about this Eric person again. Katie seemed very happy just thinking about him. Cora recognized that he must be important to her. She also noticed that she seemed off put at the concept of a loan. Cora didn't really understand financial circumstance so she was bit confused about that part.

When Katie suggested they go out for coffee she got a bit nervous. She had heard about coffee shops and seem them in her travels but never gone inside before. Still, the idea of going outside with friends was very appealing to Cora. It was what she always dreamed about doing. Cora managed a smile and nodded, "That sounds nice." She said at Katie's suggestion, trying to contain her excitement the best she could. It would probably seem strange to Katie and Valancy, how excited she was about getting a cup of coffee.

Meanwhile Hunter was making his way toward the city, and the police had already arrived at the destroyed bunker. The news media was reporting it as a lab accident as that's what the Defense department had said about it. The Pentagon had already sent agents to New York City. They needed to prepare the police for what was likely about to happen, but most importantly they needed to find Android 21.

"It should be. I know a rather nice coffee shop nearby. I go there all the time." She explained with a smile. She smiled at the two of them, half tempted to turn the two into electricity so they could ride the currents with her just to show off, but it would take too much out of her, reveal her identity to Val and be completely pointless. She inwardly sighed, reasoning they would have to do this the boring way.

"Well..." She said. Opening the door for the two of them. "What are we waiting for? The coffee shop isn't going to come to us!" She spoke, chuckling slightly.

[Charmera]

After he spoke the ground suddenly shook with a big tremor in response to the seimic pulse. A very large one in fact. Large enough to make superman spill his coffee if he was on the ground, perhaps even drop it if he wasn't careful. The earth shook mightily as if displeased, as if disturbed, and then returned to normal, as if it had only been minorly disturbed.

This was Tina rolling over in her earthen bed. Still blissfully asleep as she unconsciously caused tremors with the slightest movements. it was why she slept deep underground. After all she didn't want any people disturbing her. Though sometimes her movements were too much to control and shit happened. Sometimes villages, towns or cities suffered ill effects for having the misfortune of sharing the area with the archon of earth.

Odysseus happened to fall over while this was happening, onto the sands, then let out a grunt of frustration aimed at Magnus. "Whatever you're doing, Rocky, make sure not to shake me up in the process!"

"That wasn't me who let out those tremors." Magnus said. The two locked eyes and Magnus mouthed "Her".

"It's her! OH FUCK ITS HER!"

"Who is Her again?" Odysseus scratched his head.

"Just help me dig- I think we found her!"

"I'm sorry, I'm not a lava golem who can pick up entire asteroids, I can't pick up those sized rocks even with my strength buff."

Magnus grumbled something, then tossed a boulder the size of a tank at the incoming chopper, downing it. "Fine then, I'll do it myself." He said, his hands morphing into drill-shaped tools as the Lava golem dove into the ground, basically "swimming" through the rock at his pace. To odysseus, it looked as if the golem had 'noclipped' or something, sinking into the ground as if it were water or something.

"And I gotta defend you.. tch.." He scoffed, pulling up his balaclava as he sprinted over to his cover.

---

The insurgents that they were engaging were experimenting with various different wacky weapons to counter Odysseus's skills and abilities, as well as Magnus's extreme durability, regeneration, and earth abilities. One such device was a freak mix between a drill, a missile, and a laser-guided bomb.

The lead get had painted Magnus up on the laser, and had managed to keep the lock from underground by using seismic pulses from the ground vehicles, just like the golem used to map out their tunnels.

Flipping the casing up from over the joystick, the pilot squeezed the trigger down, firing a burst of its minigun at Odysseus, as well as firing two of the "Drill-Missiles" at Magnus's position.

Odysseus, on the ground, rolled out of the way as the helicopter began peppering him with rounds. Pulling up his XM8 and firing off its Grenade Launcher, he hit the helicopter on it's side, but the heavily armored Helix was too strong to be downed by a single grenade.

It swerved to the side, dropping off gliding troops, which Odysseus had no trouble taking down. The dirt bikes were his next problem, able to weave through his attacks and quickly close in on him.

Odysseus's rifle Dissolved into it's Tacitite nanite form, which Agent Poseidon immediately re-formed into his sword.

The first dirt bike which dove over him was slashed in half, driver as well. Then, Odysseus switched his sight to the two "Drill Missiles" that were coming in fast.

The first one soared over him and planted itself in the pool of rocks Magnus created, followed by the second one, which bored into the ground by Odysseus and began digging extremely fast.

The blast radius on those things had to be immense. He couldn't disarm them in time, nor could he shoot them. Magnus would have to wing it being chased by two missiles that were homing through the ground right towards him.

Then came an earthquake. It made the earlier Tremor look measly by comparison, being about of a magnitude of 6. It shook the earth like a mass possessed shaking another human being. Earth crumbled as the missiles exploded prematurely, detonating before they could reach their mark. The earth shook widely.

Suddenly, it stopped, part of the earth parting suddenly to reveal the rocky form of a woman lying on the ground. She looked like she was just awakening. A fist she slammed into the ground while trying to get up shook it in a tremor. Next, a yawn which rolled out across the distance, shaking the earth slightly too. She stumbled to her feet. Evidently adrenalin had not kicked in and she was still half asleep.

"Oh hey...." Another yawn and a stretch "Magnus... why are there sounds of explosions? Humans giving you trouble?"

[Charmera]

-The Voice

Mad Max Morningstar
Beginning of the Crusade

The Mad King took a moment to relax his body and feel the ambient energy as it swirled around him, engulfing him, passing through himself and everything within the universe as an unseen yet powerful force beyond measure, beyond nature itself. He could see things his eyes wouldn't allow him to see, past and future events, occurrences that happened light years away in the present. He was re-aquainting himself with the universe after the Secret Wars, almost surprised that his mind survived the restart relatively intact, and that he kept his prized Cosmic Cube absorbed within him as well. "I have plans within plans." He thought in response to his voice, "But I feel that some of my old allies have taken up new positions in my absence. They may be vital to my immediate course of action."

He began to walk out of the restroom and took a deep breath of the air outside. Fresh, vibrant, full of life. He narrowed his eyes behind his mask quickly, thinking to Ash in his head. "This is a ghetto...it should be naesauting - the odor..." Max took another deep inhale, filling his lungs with the sweet, young air. "Ahh..." He said as he exhaled, but went back to his mind to speak. "That Archon has followed me back. Zephy. How long has she been surrounding me? Regardless, I've noticed that my right eye is restored to it's original flesh. Odin's eye stayed with his body...wherever that is...and that I still have your own eye at the Ark."

As he thought for a moment, finding exactly where the Ark was on Madworld, he was there in a flash. The damn thing survived one collapsing Multiverse, it could survive it's rebirth, Max reckoned. It's massive door was dirty and full of grit, but a gentle touch by the Mad God awoke the internal machines that ripped the door open with a deafening squeaking noise. Max didn't flinch, but whatever was inside the Ark sure as hell did. It caught the Mad God by surprise, but that was the least of his worries, a black blur sped right at his form almost too quickly to react. He felt his throat become trapped in a human-sized hand, and came face to helmet with the Son of Daxam: Czar Mir.

The Daxamite narrowed his eyes at the faceless helm. He'd been in there for days, and wasn't sure what world he was coming into. Days on end, the loss of socialization must have been incredibly detrimental, even to a superhuman like Mir. But Max had to establish the pecking order, even while being choked. He spoke clearly, as if Mir's hands weren't around his throat, "Tell me, Mir, do you feel powerful? Or do you simply feel lucky?" Mir relaxed a bit, lowering his guard against Max, "Because you must be stupid to att-"

His insult was interrupted by a headbutt that cracked Max's helmet from Mir, who had brought Max's neck into his own forehead. A hit that would knock out any man, even a superhuman, it only served to piss off Mad Max, who grabbed Mir's face and delivered a massive, surging red energy blast. Mir recoiled back and released Max at once, the Mad God giving him no quarter as he grabbed onto Mir's upper arm and threw him over Max's own shoulder, slamming Mir on the ground. In that same motion, Max removed his power source - the Yellow Sun Ring he had previously given Mir - right from his hand. Depowered and quaking from the throw, Mir lay helpless as Max stood over him. Slowly, the Mad God removed his helmet in a hsss.

Mir's eyes were barely open, but he saw all he needed to see, smirking a bit as he did so. Max raised his chin slightly, but the small smile evident on his face as well. The Mad God dropped the Sun Ring on Mir's chest with a tiny thud, offer out his hand to help up the Daxamite up to his feet. Mir grabbed the power device and slipped it onto his right middle finger, taking Max's outstretched hand and being pulled up. "You almost had me." Max said, patting him on the shoulder. "You need to store up your energy, though. Don't keep it in the ring. Your cells can hold vast amounts of them, don't be limited." He lectured, Mir nodding along.

"Yeah, I suppose you're right. Where have you been?" Mir asked, dusting himself off.

"Just as lost as you were. Doom restarted the Multiverse, but it looks like our side managed to get screwed up in the process. Warworld is orbiting Madworld, and Madworld's people are just as real as you and I." Max explained, "But before you ask, I do have a plan to get everything back to normal." He continued, walking past Mir to the Ark. The place where Max had kept the Mobius Chair was still intact, surprising him a bit. No matter, though, he was after something below the seat. "Sadly Mir, I didn't know you were in here. I'm glad I found you, though. I'm after this." Max said, producing a medium sized cylinder full of fluid...and a detached eye ball. Max reached over and pressed another button on the Mobius Chair, a spiral staircase collapsing all around the Chair and leading to a compartment below.

Motioning to follow, Max lead Mir down the stairs some ways, but the circular hall gave way to an open room with walls lined with little windows, and at the room's center, some large stasis pods. Mir curiously peered into one of the windows, though, seeing more vials with them. "What is all of this, Max?" He asked, the Mad God instead approaching one of the stasis chambers and placing a hand on it - clearing away the fogginess that developed onto of it. Mir looked over and reaffirmed his question with a "Hm?"

"Those are stores of DNA." Max said flatly. "The Ark was designed to carry over the potential to start new alien, both human and alien, on where it ended up. My systems could have adapted the stores to whatever environment it could thrive in." He looked Mir right in the eyes and told him the truth. "This the real Ark. The rest was only a secondary objective - saving anyone at all was not my highest priority. These were." He said, gesturing to all of the windows. Mir had his mouth opened wide in shock, but he shook his head, understanding the situation at the time. "It's a harsh reality, but we all made it. That's what matters."

"And what about that?" Mir spat, gesturing toward the stasis pod Max was touching. "That your highest priority, too?"

"C'mon, Mir, you have to see that I was doing what was best for our descendants. I didn't want to just abandoned all of us, so I made it work anyways, you know? The End was so...so bleak. I saw it with my own eyes, Mir, I was scared." Max admitted freely, but turned back to the stasis pod. The pod itself contained a beautiful, feminine form - long brown hair. He wondered how Ashy was handling seeing this sight, yet continued his explanation to Mir. "But this...this is something just as important. That eye you saw up there was the depleted genetic material for this body. This is one of the oldest beings in our universe reborn - the source of my All-Seeing Eyes, the eyes were actually the last physical remains of that long extinct race..."

"...The Vokornians."

The voice noted Mir. She decided to reach out to him with what was left of her. Inform herself on the individual. Though she did not yet speak to him.

The end... Spoke the voice within Maxes head. We saw it coming, though we did nothing to stop it. We resigned ourselves to it, though still worked to restore ourselves... I wonder what the others did before the end... She rambled. I don't imagine they would have remembered it was coming. We often forget things like that.

Though, when she saw the figure in the stasis pod, she went silent. A pause. A ghostly figure, her old armour. A technological marvel rendered telepathically as a hologram only max could see walked out of him. She was still bound to the human, but even then her mind was open enough to explore the area. She walked over to it, placing a hand on the pod as she caressed the glass. It's... my body... She spoke. Her mind seemed, almost blank for the first time while within max. A silent tranquil longing and joy. She was so close. She could have it back soon. So very soon it would be hers.

Is... is it ready? She wasn't sure herself.

[Charmera]

Cora
Cora followed Valancy through the streets when she said she knew a coffee shop that they could go to. As they walked through the streets Valancy stopped by a TV outside a store. She saw Valancy frowned and then saw what she was looking at. A man was causing havoc in in a city street, and suddenly the TV showed him using a ki blast to destroy a police car. Cora'a eyes widened and her heart filled with panic. Who was this person? It couldn't have been a coiendence that soon after she arrived in the City another fighter using ki would arrive? Had Capsule Corp found her? Cora looked very frightened and took a step back. She didn't even notice that she was almost in the street at this point.

She then suddenly bent her knees and shot up into the air. She was so focused that she didn't even think that Katie and Valancy were right near her. She turned and speed away into the air, moving very quickly as she headed toward the street signs that she had seen on the screen of the television. Soon she had finally reached the area and saw the attacker walking through the middle of the street as people ran away from him. Cora was standing on nearby roof and began trying to sense his ki energy to figure out who he was and how powerful he was. Suddenly she froze, her eyes wide in shock. She couldn't sense anything from him, it was almost like he wasn't there. There was only one other person on the planet that Cora knew of that had undetectable ki energy like that, it was herself.

She almost felt dizzy as thoughts began to race through her mind, there was another android? Where did he come from? Who had created him? All these thoughts and more ran through her mind. She didn't know what to do, she stood there frozen in fear and shock.

Katie frowned as she looked at the screen. Then her eyes widened as she looked at Cora. "Cora?" She asked, before she jumped into the air. "Cora!" She shouted. Then cursed. She turned to Valancy. She quickly got out her superhero costume and put it over her regular clothes. "Stay here! I'll go after her!" She paused, "Oh... shes an android... and... I'm a mutant by the way. Please don't tell anyone." After all the cat was out of the bag. She had to make sure Valancy was safe. She was just about to leave, though she had to find an electrical wire.

[Charmera]

---

Gilbert left the room they were in before Batgirl had even finished speaking to him, rubbing his hands together and mumbling something about food.

---

---

Still occupied with swatting away the blobs of ectoplasmic goo that were flying towards him from every direction, the Ashbringer was ill prepared to counter the Asgardian's next attack, and so, when a molten mass of metal latched onto his back, and then another, and another, Asra howled in agony. Though this was not actually damaging for him, it was still quite painful, and as he turned around, his eyes ablaze with bright green light, he was no longer muttering, no longer singing that strange song with his monotone voice, his face perpetually locked in an enraged scowl. A stream of absolute fire burst out from his back, consuming the molten uru, replacing it with nothingness. Then, as the Goddess approached, the Blazeborn hefted up his black blade, the corrupted metal still enshrouded by a swirling inferno of all-consuming flame. Asra and Valka met in single combat at last, with the astray Rainborn moving his sword with unnatural swiftness to counter most of the Asgardian's attacks. Not all of them, but of those attacks that managed to reach their marks and slash at his body, none drew blood, for there was none to be drawn in his body, the body of a Rainborn. And for every attack that he did block, the flames surrounding his blade licked at the weapons of the Goddess, threatening to turn them into less than ashes.

If something was clear from the manner in which Asra fought, though, it was that rage had taken a hold of his actions now, his movements less calculated, more reckless, focusing more on attacking instead of defending himself against Valka's onslaught. But his power was greatly enhanced by this madness, and the fury of the flames surrounding the black sword grew stronger and stronger with each passing moment.

---

---

The wind carried those words, indeed, all across the vast expanses of the Far Fields and to the ears of the woman who was meant to receive the message, Garnet, who halted her newly acquired mount in its tracks as soon as she heard the first sound. Begrudgingly, Shadow stopped, and the blonde woman was able to receive the message in full, the expression shown in her eyes going from curiosity to concern, and then, finally, to despair. Spurring Shadow on, she rode through the grassy plains until finally, she reached the place where the portal had first taken them, but there was nothing there. Nothing, except the things lying on the ground. Agony and Misery, the gauntlet and the pistol, and, lying near them, the same bewitched sword Blake had shown her before, now whole once again, no longer a mere fragment of its former self, restored through some unknown means.

Blake, himself, was nowhere to be seen, and she soon understood that she would not see him again. Losing someone again, so soon after the last time, was needless to say quite a blow for the young woman, who was very distraught, sinking to her knees as she looked at the sky. She could not help seeing herself as the source of all this. Everyone who was drawn into her pursuit of her demons ended up paying a steep price sooner or later, and she felt that it was all her fault, that it was only because they were involved with her in the first place that they had to suffer so. She had not grown very close to the demon hunter, all things considered, but even so, the thought that she would never see him again was quite appalling.

Reaching out for the blade, she grasped its hilt and hefted it into the air, not without some disgust, but what happened afterwards left her breathless. The blade's form seemed to shimmer and warp for a moment, and then, in a bright flash of light, transformed into something else entirely. No longer was it the grotesque sword-shaped organic construct from before, now it was a crystalline weapon, slender and long instead of thick and bulky, shining with the purity of a soul's whisper. No longer 'cursed' like the rest of Garnet's armament, the sword was her nonetheless, to use as she saw fit.

Yet, even though a miracle had happened right in front of her eyes, Garnet's own soul was still in turmoil. And it wasn't just the pain of loss now. Anger. She felt anger towards all of this, boiling inside of her, about to burst out. She gripped the sword's hilt tightly, feeling as though she was about to murder anything that approached her.

But the voice from before boomed across the air, stalling Garnet's fury. "You will not harm this realm, woman. You have that which you came here for, now begone!" It exclaimed imperiously, and then, just like that, a portal opened in front of Garnet, leading back to Earth. She was still very angry, her rage towards the monsters that plagued her life so growing with every passing second, but she tempered it for now, retrieving Agony and Misery and then climbing back onto Shadow's back, one of her hands gripping her newfound weapon.

"Let's go, Shadow." She said, casting one final glance at the lush landscape, the last place she would ever see Blake, before turning back.

"We have monsters to hunt."

And with that, they were gone.

Chapter 1: If It Is Monsters She Wants...

Where Garnet ended up, was a Shinto temple from the looks of things. Though strangely void of the same reverence and air that such a place would have. Instead, though physically no different, one could tell it was sick, even if it didn't seem possible for a place to be ill, especially a place this picturesque as this. Cherry blossom trees swaying with the wind, the sound of a steam trickling away nearby. Greenery and the trappings of nature were everywhere to be found. But still it would be hard to shake the feeling that this place was not well. That there was something wrong with it. A lack of people would confirm this. No one was here, and it didn't look like it had been recently visited by human life. Although...

One could likely notice a surprising amount of feathers...

---

Intruder...

The entity less thought these thoughts and more hissed them. It took minimal effort to transmit them to its servants.

"<Intruder...>" It 'spoke' in the tongue of Japan, though used old words and an old accent. It caused many eyes to turn to the courtyard outside the main gates. Red eyes. Corrupted eyes. Mere puppets now. <Kill...>"

---

Suddenly, there was a squawk. One might mistake this for a mere crows cry, but it truth it was a warriors battlecry. More came. Each of them dissonant and out of turn. Dark, shadowy figures mounted the walls and towers of the temple on the hill. Some on ridges or stairs. All watching. All red eyes on the figure. They all appeared to have wings, and birdlike qualities. Each had red faces, either birdlike or human. Each carried two blades sheathed, though some wielded bows, which they now unslung and pointed at their new adversary.

A single figure, likely the leader, was also present. Taller than the rest, bigger too, one had to wonder how he got that way. He seemed to be looking strait at Garnet. Weighing, assessing, considering...

Suddenly one of the bird things flew towards Garnet. Obviously overeager to start the fighting. Bloodlust must have consumed him as he nearly got to his target.

Then, with a slick slice, his head was removed from it's shoulders. It likely plopped in front of Garnet, likely before the rest of it's corpse tumbled towards her. Another swift movement and the blood from the blade was gone. The owner of the blade now in plain sight. A taller woman who oddly enough seemed to have the ears and tail of a fox. She nodded to the other warrior in recognition, her blade now in both her hands as she looked towards the groups of Tengu, now slightly cowed by this new arrival, though likely not for long.

"Apologies for sneaking up on you, I should have made my present known as soon as you arrived and helped you leave." Spoke the Kitsune. "It is best that you do so now. Unless..." She was suddenly interrupted.

"<Two intruders, a Gaijin woman and a fox.>" Squawked out the lead bird. "What brings you both to our temple? Do you wish death? For we can provide it." The Tengu spoke good enough English, not nearly as good as the fox lady however. "I would advise you to turn away now."

"This is not your temple, wretch." She turned to Garnet, now whispering. "Fighting may be best. Escape would be harder. Especially with those archers..."

"What say you? Will you help me fight them or do you wish to leave?"

[Charmera]

"Sure. That's in New York. Though it's a little different than the picture..." She explained. She cradled the girl comfortably in her arms, the already small child dwarfed even more by the Titan Red Claudia. She inhaled, and exhaled. "Alright, you may want to hold on tight. Also whatever you do don't freak out alright. I'll protect you." She spoke. She frowned, realising she didn't know what direction New York was in. She shrugged. We're bound to get there eventually. With that, she moved back and had a running start for this jump. Her Long red legs propelling her in the air as she used a some fire to give herself a boost. As they reached a the high arc of their jump Claudia laughed slightly and let out a exclamation of joy. When they landed, her red body absorbed the incredibly impact like it was nothing, keeping Tomia safe from the force of it. She looked around, noticing she was probably going in the right direction.

A few more jumps and they landed in the metropolitan city through pure luck. Of course she nearly overshot it a few times and three jumps was an exaggeration, but she still didn't have to jump too much to get there. She jumped on a few buildings rooftops, careful not to use too much force that would completely demolish them.

She paused. "So you're a Saiyan like your father right?" She asked. "That means you have powers too right?"

Tomia:

" What! Mommy said I'm not a Saiyan. She said Saiyans are evil and d-de-str-ctive." Shaking her head, a grin covered Tomia's face as he grabbed Claudia's hand, she began to pull at her, trying to drag her towards the stop sign. Humuorsly, the child seemed to have inherited a large amount of Hiroshi's strength, and managed to pull Claudia a few feet towards the road.

" What was that golden thingy Daddy did? He did it for a long time while he was fighting that mean blue man. He seemed really grumpy too, why was he so mean to us?" She asked innocently. Occasionally, a man or women would walk by them, sparing only a few glances at the dirty child and large crimson titan standing there. They'd landed near the center of the city, rather than in the suburbs. They were surrounded by shopping centers, restaurants, office buildings and an ungodly plethora of noise. The sound of the city was familiar, reminding Tomia of her time of Aether, her Moms home planet.

Skipping down the street, dragging Claudia by the hand, the winter chill seemingly doing nothing to hinder the child, Tomia stopped every other second to point at something new.

" Oh! Whats that?"

" Can we go in there?"

"I want one of those!"

"Whose that?"


The last question was pointed at a man standing at the street corner. His black hair poured off his head and rested against his shoulders. His muscled chest was exposed, and his boots clacked loudly against the sidewalk as he strode across, as though he was searching for someone.

Broly:

They were all so.. pitiful.

The Mark on his forehead was a symbol of his own weakness, his own shortcomings. It infused him with a power far weaker then his own, but a power which could be controlled. It was as if his entire life up to this point had been a repeat of his failings. The destruction his home planet, something he still remembered as vividly as the day it had happened. Memories which included the blade descending on him, his father watching on in helplessness as it pierced his throat. The planet disappearing into flames and smoke, that was the day what he was was truly awakened. The days that followed were a blur, a blur of him tumbling though space.

But inside of all of that, there was the screaming and crying. Inside all of that, there was a name he heard more than his own. Okarot.

Now for the first time in his existence, for the first tie since his birth, he could feel a power, a power like his own, another warrior to destroy at his feet. Something stirred in his chest, an unmistakable rumble of energy from within, yearning to break free and annihilate this warrior. Turning his head, he stared into the eyes of his soon to be kill. It was a child, but she was unmistakably Saiyan, the tail, her hair, and the way she walked all told him she was a Saiyan. Behind her, she dragged a red women, rather muscled and not entirely unattractive he supposed, perhaps he could have fun with her when he was done here.

A field of green energy burst from Broly, crumpling the buildings around him like tin foil, and sending the child sprawling as the entire planet shook with his barely restrained fury. Broly grit his teeth in exertion, barely holding back the power yearning to break free.

'Kid." He seethed, reaching a massive hand out, a film of green shining brightly around him. " You'll be my first victim."

Claudia tried her best to answer the childs questions. She was actually enjoying herself, Tomia's joy was infectious and she couldn't help but find this kid utterly and completely adorable.

Then some asshole came in. And Claudia was mad again.

---

Claudia's frown could have sent grown men scrambling for their mothers at that moment. Her own momma bear instincts kicked in as she pushed Tomia behind her, putting herself between the two of them. Her frown quickly turning into a scowl of barely contained rage which would have given even the Hulk pause. She could feel his power. And you know what? She didn't give a fuck. No one. No one threatened that girl while she was around.

"Buddy. Or, better yet, Asshole." She started. "I'm going to say this once, because I feel in a surprisingly good mood despite how shitty today has been." She explained. "I'm going to give you the chance to walk away, right now. Because if you don't. And you touch so much as a hair on her head."

"I will tear your apart limb from limb, and then break your spine for good measure. And if you actually hurt her." He power shot up just thinking about how much this guy pissed her off. An Aura of blue fire circled her. "I'll burn you alive while I do it."

"So what's it going to be? You walking away and going back to whatever the fuck you were doing before, or I see how much you can piss me off. Your choice."

[Charmera]

-snip-

Valancy laughing, replied. "Now that is something. We've all been hiding something all along. I have powers too, Katie. Daughter of Gaia and demi-primordial, at your service. So don't worry about me telling anyone. Nice costume, by the way. Now, how are we going to follow her? I could turn into a tree, and you could climb it to the rooftops. That is, unless you have another mode of quick transportation." she said. She figured that it was high time she told someone about her powers, until now, it had been a secret she had told no one.

"Huh..." Replied Katie. Suddenly not about to go off. She quickly detected an electrical control system on the outside of a building. "I'm... actually not all that surprised to be honest. You've always been into nature after all..." she replied, quickly running towards it with Val in tow. "I have a much quicker way... though this may cause you to hurl or feel nausous, the main thing is to keep calm." As she spoke, she reached out to it. A moment later they were running with the other electrons, coursing. changing and flowing. Val might miss if if she isn't paying attention. A moment later they arrived on an antenna on the roof next to Cora.

"Cora! There you are!" She sighed, pausing to catch her breath. "I should really learn how to do that more efficently... damn..." She sighed. "Don't run off like that, please?"

[Charmera]

Cora
Cora was still standing in shock on the roof top when Katie and Val suddenly arrived. She was finally snapped out of it when Katie spoke to her. Cora never took her eyes off the male android but spoke, "I'm sorry, but I had to come and see it for myself. I can't sense his energy Katie, he's an android just like me." She told her, he'd voice soft in disbelief.

Android 22 heard electricity sparking and this drew his eyes to the root top where Cora and the others were. He locked his eyes on Cora, finally he had found her. He raised his hand up toward the building and a ball of energy began to glow from his hand.

Cora's eyes widened as she saw the Android was about to attack, "No!" She shouted grabbing Val and Katie and pull them into the air with her as the roof of the building they were just on exploded from the attack. She quickly landed on another roof and let go of both of them once they were safely on the ground. "I'm sorry I put you in danger. He's here to kill me, I don't know how or why, I just know. Stay here, I won't let you two be hurt because of me." She said before flying off again and landing in front of Android 22.

Android 22 smiled when Cora landed in front of him. His prey had come to him, this was too easy. "What do you want? Who sent you?" Cora demanded. "I want you to die!" 22 shouted and charged Cora with a punch. Cora was barely able to block it in time as 22 sent a furry of punches her way. He was faster than she was and eventually on of the punches got through and knocked her to the ground.

"You're too easy." 22 taunted, "Maybe I should deal with those friends of yours next." Cora's eyes filled with anger and she got up and charged at him. "Leave them alone!" She shouted as they began exchanging blows again in a flurry of punches and kicks at hyper speed.

Val looked at Katie, and then back to Cora, seeing that the two of them were agreed in this. "No chance we're just going to watch you fight this person." As Cora returned to the fight, Val leaped off the building, brown coat fluttering. Creating a tree below her, she grabbed one branch and then landed in a roll, before dusting herself off nonchalantly. She would've have entrapped Cora's opponent using branches, but they were moving too fast for her to safely engage without getting Cora too. Turning her body into wood, she waved for Katie to jump onto the tree and come down, Valancy extending the branch of the tree to make it easier.

Katie passed through the tree electrically, using it's organic molecules to transport herself down in electron form. Her physical body reformed and arcs of electrical current poured from it. She frowned. "Yeah! No way we're going to let you fight this asshole on your own!" She said. Her mind whired quickly, tempted to blast this android guy but the electricity might arc into Cora... She frowned. "I... may have an idea that could hel="

The roof of the building they were just on exploded from the attack.

Kylie, sill waiting in Katie's apartment, got concerned when the cartoons she was watching turned to a APB for Manhattan. "This just in, a group of metas were spotted somewhere downtown, fighting on top of an abandoned apartment building. One of the buildings has had its top floors destroyed, and residents have been evacuated from nearby homes. Citizens are advised to—"

Kylie shut off the TV. "Yay! Something to do while waiting that's actually fun!" She stepped out onto Katie's fire escape, remembering to close the window behind her, and activated her power ring. Kylie was enveloped in green light, emerging as a Green Lantern (mask included)! "Alright New York, I'm on the way!" She bolted off the fire escape towards the trouble, leaving a few wide-eyed onlookers who saw her after her transformation.

Kylie appeared above the rooftop battle, watching a guy and a girl trade furious blows, one woman bonded to a tree, and another in a green hoodie on another roof. The problem was: she didn't know who the good and bad guys were. It'd be bad if she hit the people who were on her side. So instead of swinging away, Kylie flew down to the wooden woman and other green girl, yelling across the gap between buildings so both could here her.

"Hey, I'm here to help. Who's the bad guy?" Kylie yelled, plain as day.

She was then interupted by a newcomer. She charged up her electrical energy, feeling a little on edge and quick to the trigger. She sighed, letting it disipate. "For all intents and purposes, all the girls here are the good guys and that one guy our friend is fighting is a baddie." She explained. She then frowned, cocking her head slightly. This Green Lantern looked familiar. "Do... Do I know you?"

[Charmera]

---

The woman with the fox tail and ears received her response soon enough as Garnet thrust her free hand forward, the purple gemstone on her bracelet glowing faintly until suddenly, in a burst of violet light, an enormous skeletal hand of spectral energy burst out of the gemstone, linked to it by a trail of light, and shot forward towards one of the many Tengu gathered around her and the Kitsune, holding onto it with unnatural strength and yanking it form its place in the ground, tossing it back towards the one wielding the power of the skeletal hand, Garnet.

When the Tengu eventually settled on the ground far behind where Garnet sat atop Shadow, it was neatly cleaved in two halves, and the entirety of the crystalline sword she wielded, along with half of her arm and a good portion of her blonde hair, were covered in blood, though strangely enough, any blood that would have logically fallen upon Shadow's mane were instead either diverted away from it or simply phased to the ground.

"I am in a terrible mood." She said in a weary, annoyed tone that belied her inner fury, as Shadow casually took a few steps in the leader's direction.

"My arrival here was an accident. I did not mean to be here, I did not come here looking for anything." She explained, her voice cold. "Now, if your friend there hadn't decided to try to attack me," Here she pointed at the headless corpse on the ground in front of her. "then I would have left this place without a trace, without a problem." She said, her expression steadily growing angrier as the voices in her head took hold.

"But you were the ones to make the first move, you were the ones who decided to show your ugly faces." The bloodied woman growled. "I have fought and killed things far worse than the lot of you. Whatever happens to you now is your responsibility."

And with that, she took out Misery with her free hand, leveling it at the head of the Tengu leader... and fired.

The Tengu leader reacted before she fired, despite his size his reactions were swift enough to react to her movement. The leader then glared at his assailant, drawing a blade. His bird eyes almost bulged. Something about him gave the impression "I think not Gaijin human! I think your a spy! I think you're here to hurt our mistress!"

"Mistress..." Masami said to herself.

"<Release the Basan and attack them you wingless pigeons! The Tengu who get's me that Foxes head will get a promotion! Same goes for the Gaijin!>" A squawk in unison was heard, and arrows were sent towards the two warriors. Masami held her ground until the last moment, where she rushed from her position and climbed one of the walls the Kitsune were perched on. She would normally be reluctant to spill blood on hallowed ground, but this was no longer a temple. She could feel it. It had been defiled.

She slashed through Tengu after Tengu, able to fight them off with some ease, using her skills in swordplay to cut through bone and saw through feathered meat like a butcher cutting up chicken. It was akin to a razor through wet tissue paper. They seemed weaker than she remembered the bird Yokai usually were, and less cowardly. Likely it had something to do with the thing she sought.

---

Meanwhile, the Tengu leader returned his baleful gaze to Garnet, who had the impudence to fire at him. He noticed already several of his men were engaging her. Though he did not care enough to evaluate their success. Considering the last one she killed, likely poorly. He quickly ascended into the air, flapping his wings before landing in front of her, red tengu eyes squarely on her.

"So, intruder, you speak of deadlier foes." He asked, slicing at the woman with his blade. His attack erratic and maddened, but with considerable strength behind it. "Let's see how much more deadly..."

---

The Kitsune watched as her foe leaped off after Garnet, frowing slightly. She absentmindedly decapitated a Tengu while in thought, the head rolling off while the body rann around comically before flopping to the ground. Why abandon his position and give ground to the enemy like that? Could he not see how easily Masami had dealt with his troops.

<Release the Basan and attack them you wingless pigeons!>

Basan! Wait! The fox remembered her training. Then looked to the east wall. A couple of Tengu were removing a bar from a gate nearby. She called out to Garnet. "Wait! Ignore him! He's only distracting!" She was suddenly assailed by something. She dodged a massive ball of ghostfire, seeing a large figure in the next section of the temple. A large avian figure... though... flightless...

A massive chicken. It's beak brimming with fire. Masami might have laughed had she not remembered the story her aunt Kiyoko told her of the three one tails who all died to a Basan.

Masami only hoped Garnet would be able to deal with the other one. Or at least that it wouldn't come out of that gate just yet.

[Charmera]

Claudia tried her best to answer the childs questions. She was actually enjoying herself, Tomia's joy was infectious and she couldn't help but find this kid utterly and completely adorable.

Then some asshole came in. And Claudia was mad again.

---

Claudia's frown could have sent grown men scrambling for their mothers at that moment. Her own momma bear instincts kicked in as she pushed Tomia behind her, putting herself between the two of them. Her frown quickly turning into a scowl of barely contained rage which would have given even the Hulk pause. She could feel his power. And you know what? She didn't give a fuck. No one. No one threatened that girl while she was around.

"Buddy. Or, better yet, Asshole." She started. "I'm going to say this once, because I feel in a surprisingly good mood despite how shitty today has been." She explained. "I'm going to give you the chance to walk away, right now. Because if you don't. And you touch so much as a hair on her head."

"I will tear your apart limb from limb, and then break your spine for good measure. And if you actually hurt her." He power shot up just thinking about how much this guy pissed her off. An Aura of blue fire circled her. "I'll burn you alive while I do it."

"So what's it going to be? You walking away and going back to whatever the fuck you were doing before, or I see how much you can piss me off. Your choice."

You are the chosen one, the Super Saiyan.

Only one part of that phrase was true, he was the Chosen One, but he was so much more than a Super Saiyan.

The shackles placed on his mind by Babadi since he was a child snapped one by one, nothing in comparison to the raging beast within him. A wicked smile filled his features.

The smile growing wider, Broly began to chuckle.. a chuckle which turned into something as dark and depraved as the power within him. This weakling before him thought she could hurt him? Even gods would recoil in fear of his power, the heavens themselves would shake with the power he had within him, and this was nothing to all he had, this was but a drop in an endless ocean.

Another burst of green energy burst from him, the ground around them fissuring, buildings rumbling and falling before a tiny fraction of his might. Turning his head to Claudia, his cackle became louder.

With the crimson women approaching him, Broly felt a natural response overtake him. Opening the vent of power dwelling within him, a geyser of green power exploded from him in a great gust of force, the planet quaking with his power.

To Broly, it was empowering. For the first time since he was a child, he could feel the power within him, unhindered by any limits or control. He could finally let the monster within him free. The dark power within him that had propelled him across the stars, which made him a Super Saiyan.. was a power which has been growing within him for decades now. It fed and it grew, and now it was finally being released. What it was, was so much then it had ever been before.

Ignoring the crimson girl, he strode forward, standing before the child.

" I chose my victims, Bitch," He cackled

Claudia grunted as she recovered from the blast. She got up, cracking her knuckles. She frowned. He is strong. Her first priority should be to secure Tomia. Fighting got her hurt the last time. She was going to make sure she didn't get hurt again. She had been entrusted the girl by Hiroshi after all. She quickly leaped forward again, sliding in to where she once was.

Once again between the giant and Tomia, she sent a gout of blue hot flame right into the monsters face with an outstretched palm. She then leaped back, Tomia in her arms as she frowned, her eyes searching for a place to hide the little girl. For now she kept her body wrapped around the child, ready to use her own body to defend Tomia if need be. She could heal herself. Tomia could not.

[Charmera]

Cora
Cora and 22 continued to trade heavy blows. He's fast, too fast. I won't be able to keep this up forever. She said to herself. She wasn't even able to listen to her friends speaking to her because she was focusing. Soon 22 disappeared from in front of Cora. Cora punched the air and stumbled forward. "Where did he go?" She said softly in shock. "Right behind you," 22 said smugly from behind, slamming his elbow hard in to her neck. Cora grunted in pain and fell to her knees. He was just too fast for her. 22 smiled and grabbed her by the neck and lifted her in the air. "This was too easy." He said, a ki blast growing in his hand as he prepared to deliver the finishing blow.

Suddenly a completely different blast came from somewhere else aimed at the arm of the android. A ball of pure plasma, glowing purple as it speed into his arm. Likely not doing too much damage but at least forcing him to drop her. Now all Katie had to do was play distraction for a bit while Core got back onto her feet and the Green lantern (Who still looked odly familiar), Val and her worked out a plan. Or at least thats what she hoped they'd do. She probably should have thought of a plan B.

Behind 22 came a voice. "You know, ripping out someone elses heart is not the best way to find your own Tin man." She spoke, as she suddenly rapidly shot a large amout of electricity through him. "Though, you look like you need more brains than heart big guy. Don't you know how little they pay robot villains these days? Honestly I think you'd be a better coffee machine anyway..."

[Charmera]

Android 22 raised his hand to close to Cora's face, the kids energy radiating brightly. Cora was sure she was about to die, when suddenly 22's arm began to spark as it was hit with plasma. This forced him to drop Cora. Cora feel to the ground and before the other Android could respond Cora brought her elbow hard into 22's stomach. He grunted and bent over in pain, giving Cora a chance to roll away and quickly get to her feet.

She would have insisted on fighting alone, but now Katie had gotten herself involved. Cora may have been able to beat him on her own(even that was a maybe), but she couldn't fight him and protect Katie at the same time, she needed help if she was going to save her best friend. She ran over to Valancy and the new girl standing with her. She didn't bother introducing herself or explaining the situation, there was no time. "We need to slow him down. He's too fast for me. I can't keep up with him. If we can demobilize him, maybe we can stop him." She said to them, nervously keeping an eye on Katie. She would never forgive herself if something happened to her.

Android 22 was pulling himself to his feet when he felt a surge of electricity through his body. It slowed his movements a bit, as it messed with his programming, but didn't do any serious damage. He saw Katie and heard her insults, smirking at her. "Nice tricks, do you do children's parties? I find it so adorable when humans think they can stop me. You never seem to see yourself for the ants that you really are. Now it's my turn." He said to her, pushing forward the ki blast that he had been charging forward with powerful speed. It was a bright yellow, and was all around the size of a large watermelon.

Katie reacted before he even fired the attack, or even charged it up. Moving at the speed of electricity, she sped around her opponent, allowing him to waste his attack. She had successfully got his attention though this wasn't going to be easy. If she was hit once, she was done for. If she was lucky she might be able to turn into electricity at the last moment. "Parties... now that is an idea... I wonder how much I'd make doing that." She wondered aloud. She send a fiery ball of purple plasma his way. "Also, why the hate for ants? They're pretty cool. Loyal, strong, good senses. Give them a brain and human size and you've got a race of killers." She spoke. "Sorry. Am I rambling? I ramble when I'm bored. Like now. You're so slow and dumb you're putting me to sleep here." She kept poking at the bear with a stick, hoping he wouldn't notice the three super-powered people plotting his downfall. Or the giant Baseball bat.

[Charmera]

Android 22 was getting tired of Katie's tricks and diversions. She was too fast to be hit by th more power ki blasts, and the other one seemed to be absorbing his energy somehow. 'Stop running and face me you cowardice bitch!" He snapped at Katie, sending smaller fa at er blasts her way. Suddenly a the girl with the ring made a huge baseball bat out of her energy and slammed it into him. 22 went flying from the attack, going across numerous city blocks until he smashed into a large office building. The building was full of workers and slowly began to collapse as its structure was taken out from beneath it.

Cora had followed his path and saw that civilians were in danger. She quickly flew back to her friends. "The android's impact has put civilians in danger. We need to help them now!" She called to her friends. She turned to Lady Lantern, "Can you give my friend a lift?" She said motioning to Valancy, before grabbing Katie in her arms herself and flying towards the crash site. It might have been a little rude, but there was no time to ask for permission.

"Someone sounds mad." Katie remarked in a condescending voice, "Are the mean women making you upset?" Giggling as she weaved in and out of the projectiles. Though several came dangerously close. Then he was hit with a baseball bat. Then she was picked up by Cora. "Hey! What the hell!" She shouted. "I can follow the power lines myself!" She shouted. Then she sighed. "Well, while you're doing this. I might as well try something." Suddenly, Katie went inside of Cora. She was now electricity flowing through the android. Empowering her, making her faster and giving her greatly accelerated and pretty much predictive reflexes.

Never tried that before... Katie also felt empowered, having the Androids Generator to feed off gave her so much energy to work with. Her only limit being the amount she could tap into. But that could be bypassed with time. You have... a lot of energy... Remarked Katie, inhaling and exhaling.

[Charmera]

Lula slowly backed away, a look of sadness on her face. "Please Jace." She spoke. "You can do this. You can fight them! You're stronger than these visions. You don't..." She saw it again, guilty welling in her as she saw what they did to her. What they did to her. The horrible things they... hurt her...

Stay.... calm... Just a dream. Not real. Not real.

A parade of her sins. Her ultimate guilt. In truth, she could have stopped this. She could have. She could have put them all to sleep and taken Jace far from there. She should have. She had been with her since the begining, even if she didn't know. But she didn't. She didn't get involved. She had just watched.

It's not real! They're gone! They're not here!

She had done much worse things to much kinder people. She could have trapped them in eternal loops of the most horrifying dreams. Broken them to her will with but a single memory... such weak minds humans had. it would have been so easy... She hated them so much too. For what they did to Jace. Special Jace. Wonderfuil Jace. They didn't deserve to exist. They...

Jace stepped closer.

Please let this stop. I... I did a bad thing. But... I'm trying to be good now.

Trying to be... good...

Trying to be good...

"Help me."

A pause. The entire dream seemed to stay still for a moment.

"Okay Jace." Lula lifted her head, her face, her eyes, her hair had changed. "I'll help." A smile was on her face. Not the same one as before. But the one of someone who had cracked.

Next was blood. So much blood.

---

Before Jace could turn around, the bodies of her father and her brother were now gone. What was left was a floor full of blood. Lula was back to her normal self. But she was shaking, trembling, shivering. Her white dress now soaked with blood. Though she willed it to be clean and so it was.

"They're gone." She spoke. "They may come back. But I will deal with them." She explained. She had to cover her mouth to stop herself from laughing crazily. She cleaned the blood from the floor. And also the eyeball she was holding by the nerve. She turned back around to face Jace.

She was crying. Eyes full of tears. "I... I think I should go..." She spoke. "We... I... wanted to have... some fun... with... an old friend... but I ruined it... like I always do." She sniffed. Obviously very upset. She had given Jace a glimpse of her ugliest side. The one she kept hidden and bottled up under the cute dresses, the happy smile and the kindness. Trillions of years of life breeds such hate, such anger such.... horror that it was best she kept it within. In her experience, it was only a matter of time before you discovered that side of yourself. She just wished she had died before she discovered hers.

She frowned. She doubted Jace would want her around now. She waved her hand, brightening up the dream world, making it pretty and happy again. The same field. She turned to leave, but didn't. She was having trouble bringing herself to do it.

Jacelyn Grim

Pale arms wrapped gently around Lula's neck, a tall but thin body cuddling her. The whisper of a tired woman brushed through the goddess' ears. "Thank you, Lula."

Turning her around, Lula was shown the form of Jacelyn's ego, "Sharp-Teeth" as she was known to Jacelyn. A sorrowful smile marred her otherwise pretty face. "These nightmares have haunted her for so long. I tried to help her, to shield her from these horrors. Her mind is so broken and weak, she lost her grip on reality long ago. It was only possible for me to save a small portion of her sanity, and that through much pain and effort. My protection was beginning to falter, and...now you see what happens when I lose power over her."

She pulled the girl into a warm embrace, a tear streaking down her cheek. "You came just when she needed you the most. You've saved her from breaking completely. Thank you."

Taking Lula's hands, Sharp-Teeth looked deep into her eyes. "Please do not leave her now. She still needs you, for I cannot help any further. You can be the friend she needs, the support. I know you blame yourself for what has happened to her and that guilt hurts. But you must let this guilt go. What has happened cannot be changed, no matter how much you desire to do so. All that can be done is to help her now, and not leave her. It will be difficult, for I am the last of her sanity. But she is such a weak and scared girl, and if you will love her, protect her, and show her the comfort she needs, perhaps she will not be lost forever.

"Now go to her, help her through this night."

The woman's form shimmered then disappeared. But a few feet away lie Jacelyn, curled in a tight ball, softly sobbing tears of blood.

"Easy for you to say..." Lula replied with a weak smile. She knew Sharp-Teeth, though always called her "You were there for her... Like I should have been... You have nothing to feel guilty for."

She frowned. She had changed. Where was the endless sense of fun she had? The one which put a smile on even the most grim souls. The one that could make even Batman crack a smile. Where was the girl who loved smiles? Who lived for cheering people up and recording their happiness? What right did she have to be gloomy when it was her job to bring smiles to the dreamers of the world? She smiled sightly, with the guilt came the good memories, the times she had helped... This time there was hope. There had to be. For both of them.

"Jace! Jace! Jace! Jace! Jace! Jace!" She repeated as she rushed towards her, her little hands prying the other girls arms and head so that she could face her. The widest grin in the world was on her face. She waved her arms and jumped up and down comically. "Jace! I just realized what we should do tonight! I was just about to leave, but then I was like "What are you doing Lula! You can't leave Jace without doing that one thing you always do..."" She trailed off, as if waiting for Jace to finish. "Balloon Riding! You use to love that!"

She grabbed the other womans hand. "I am not leaving until you laugh and smile. And even then I'll have to stay to see your face when you see what adventures I have in store! We're going to have so much fun Jace!" She giggled, dragging Jace along even if she resisted. "Did I mention how much I missed you?"

---

Yet, Asra did not avoid the barrage of molten metal that Valka launched towards him. The attack took him completely by surprise, as he was ill prepared to fight against such tactics, his already malfunctioning mind now clouded by rage. Thus, he was covered in a layer of molten metal which burned against his skin. A bloodcurdling scream emerged from his lungs, so loud it reached far past the barrier of metal, reverberating even through the black void of space, causing the earth to quiver and the moon to rumble. Far below, in the grounds of Aiuar, the army of fire elementals screamed in unison with their master, their flames destabilizing and turning to the same absolute searing fire that the Blazeborn commanded. They screamed in pain with their creator for several moments, until suddenly, their cries of agony died out.

And then, every single one of them burst, their power combined forming the equivalent of a nuclear explosion.

However, far above them, the Ashbringer did not stop. His pain continued echoing far and wide, the all-consuming fire around his blade going completely wild and savage despite the fact that it was still stuck on Valka's shoulder. Then, from within the shell of tungsten and uru, a shockwave of flames was sent out, incinerating everything in its path, starting with his molten prison.

If Valka were to look at him then, she would notice that his skin had burned away, though his eyes remained, bursting with green light, as did his fiery hair. And, of course, she would also see what it was that lay beneath the skin of the Rainborn: black, reflective stone which partially blended in with the dark surroundings and gave him a sinister air. He had stopped screaming now, but only for a moment.

The next moment, he willed his blade back to his hand, though the flames had undoubtedly done quite a number on Valka's body. And then, with a scream that displayed not pain, but sheer, mad fury, he pointed the sword at the shield surrounding Aiuar once more, and a stream of absolute flames burst forth from the tip of the blade, just like when Valka had first engaged him in combat. Yet, this stream was several times stronger, likely capable of punching through the shield with just a few minutes of continued exposure, if even that. Clearly, his strength had grown exponentially since the beginning of the fight, and in fact, the Corrupted Core which granted him his power was now in overdrive, vastly enhancing his power for a limited time.

Whatever Valka and Aeshandra meant to do to cast him away from there, it would have to be done quickly, or Aiuar would suffer.

Aeshandra frowned, they needed more time to shake this. They were the only ones, the forces on the ground's minds were in dissaray, unable to link with Aeshandra. The lines of fate were becoming clearer, now lay ahead of her two paths. One which lead to ruin for Aiuar, and another that led to... uncertainty. She did not know what it would bring in the long term, but it was sure to at least quell the current threat. She quickly teleported Valka to her side. She wished she didn't have to resort to this. As indebted to Valka she was, she was still an outsider. And if she were to do what she was about to do...

Insanity. Would she even survive? Even if she did she would forever be connected to us. Our voices would be heard by her... She would be almost one of us.

"Valka of Asgard. A choice lays before us. She paused, channeling the spirit of the collective. She could not yet manifest it. "The collective has the power to beat and seal this monster and send him away from here. It is the combined minds and might of all of us. In order to manifest it. I need your mind to be... host to it. To join us."

"It will be with you forever. We will be linked together by bond of mind." She explained. "To some extent... you will be one of us. You will still be yourself, but forever you will have a piece of us inside. Be privy to our secrets. Be privy to our history. Our... pain you may feel too at times..."

She paused, she could not explain everything. She sighed. She placed a hand on Valka's chest. Her eyes glowed. "Speak now Asgardian and I will not put this burden upon you. But know time is short and we must stop this monster together. Or death will consume this world."

[Charmera]

-snip-

"Very well, Aeshandra of the Vokornians. Let us do it, for there is no other option. Hardy of mind am I, so do not fear. And even if I succumb to madness, it will be done for good. Do it, Aeshandra, and I trust that this is not our final farewell." Valka said. For she was already in great pain, and what was a little more added to it. This Asra was master of fire, and while she could best him in combat, among other things, the flames were his, and her immunity to fire had protected her from little. But she did not cry aloud, for Asgardians were indeed of a hardy breed. Pain was simply a means to an end, that end being victory, and she would be willing, as the individual, to take on a burden so that many more could survive. Placing Aeshandra behind her so that her bonding would not be interrupted, she raised a burnt hand and clenched it, watching small rivers of blood run down her arm. It had been a long time since she had bled. But she focused now on Asra's sword, attempting to break it, being of metal, she assumed.

Aeshandra nodded. She then began to feed her essence into Valka's mind like a mother would feed a chick it's food, forcing it in past natural barriers like a wave before rocks it would sweep in, leaving her touch and a link. A link to ever living soul on Auiar and more besides. Their experiences, hopes, dreams, fears, passions, secrets, loves, desires, hates and joys. All swirling in one mass. Aeshandra grunted as she vented off the excess information into her own mind. Even if she could handle it, the Vokornian did not want her distracted.

Then, Aeshandra stopped thinking, Valka too would have trouble thinking. The link to Valka, the newly forged link was strong enough to link her to the souls of Auiar too. it gave her power in floods as the consenting souls lent their power and minds to the two of them. As one, united, they turned their minds to the dark beast attacking their home. By instinct, the being was bound by chains. Metal due to Valka's influence... but of a metal different from any other. Forged from pure mental energy. It was a symbol of their unity of purpose. Next, a portal opened up behind the beast.

Aehsandra blinked. Then Smiled at Valka. "How about you do the honours, and send him through." She spoke. "You are the guest after all..." She joked.

[Charmera]

-snip

The Mad God sighed within his mind, rubbing his hand across the pod sensually. "She is almost ready, Ashy. Just a few more small things, and you will be home again." He smiled a bit, but continued, "Looks like you're stuck with me for just a little bit longer. I have some things I need to take care of here at Madworld, but after that, our next location is somewhere close...but in reality, very far away. We'll be back for your body, and hopefully, everything will be how it should be." He continued in his mind, Mir giving him a strange look as Max made facial expressions while just looking at the girl's body.

"You're creeping me out..." Mir said, the Mad God not paying attention, so continuing on a different topic. "...So, about these Vokornians?" Mir said with upward inflection, catching Max's attention.

"Oh, I suppose I'll have Ash explain when she awakens." Max said flatly, "They are an incredibly old race, though, and suffered a catastrophe were all of them lost their bodies and were forced to take on energy forms instead. They had many powers, mental in nature, one of which was precognition. The same power granted by the All-Seeing Eyes. See, I put two and two together and found out that those eyes are the very last remnants of a Vokornian's physical body." Max replied, leaving out the specific part where he had one trapped within his mind at the moment. "But, that's enough studying. We have to go fix our Madworld."

"Right." Mir answered. "Any idea on what the current state of affairs is?"

"Hmm." Max thought, recalling the energy he felt, reading it like a blind man would braille. "I know you haven't particularly met, but Val is in command of Madworld. Their Mad Goddess, Mad Queen, whichever she has adopted for herself, and the citizens are real instead of being robotic in nature. Val's noble steward and lawgiver is Otto, unsurprisingly. That bastard is up on Warworld and commands it like a mobile battle station in orbit like a moon. Godblessed is a lawgiver and a warlord here, by the looks of it. But, my question is, how did you end up back on the Ark? You were in the room when Doom restarted the Multiverse."

"Not a damn clue." Mir said, pointing to his golden ring. "Maybe this thing teleported me back to it? Only thing I can think of."

"Entirely possible - but I never intended for it to have some homing teleportation device. Good to know, though." Max replied, "Let's get going. We need to go see Otto and then Val. Maybe we can job some memories."

Indeed... It will be nice to feel again... Say,., what does it feel like to... She stopped herself, shaking her head mentally. The voice was suddenly excited. Happy. For the first time she was filled with actual joy rather than amusement.No no! Don't tell me! Don't tell me anything! I want to find out myself! It'll just spoil it if I know beforehand... I've forgotten so much.

Then she tore her attention away from her body. She then had a mischievous smile. She let herself be heard by Mir. "No need to wait. You're explanation should suffice. Though I should also add our legendary reputation as lovers into the mix for our dear Mir here." She spoke, giving the Telepathic wink to the other man, obviously hitting on him. Ash had the reputation for being a massive flirt before the cataclysm. Still was, though it was now activated into overdrive now that she had her own body."Oh, I am Ash. Voice in Max's mind and ex researcher for the Vorkonian collective. I would have introduced myself were I not so busy admiring you within Max's head..." She spoke. She was curious how the Daxamite would react, likely would be amused either way. She would desist if he seemed too uncomfortable. She wasn't lying about admiring him either...

"As for jogging memories, that shouldn't be too much trouble. Memories are rarely gone forever. We merely need the right stimuli..." She spoke. "Also, bring some calming tea. In my experience regaining one's memories can be a... shock, to say the least."