Heroes Uprising Part 5

Kiya listened to Scott speak. "You clearly believe ever word you say, and I don't doubt you've gone through many battles to get here. But don't take this world lightly. I don't want you getting in over your head. The mindset you got is very powerful, but if not watched carefully is also very dangerous. Hell, the redhead over their with Captain America. She processes the Phoenix Force, a power cosmic entity. She's one of the strongest telepathic minds in the universe, wields powerful cosmic energy, can control time and space, alter matter, etc. She could erase you from the existence of time with a thought, make it so you never existed Scott. And even she meets foes she has trouble with.

I'm not asking you doubt yourself or shy away from fights, I'm just asking you to be smart. There is more then one villain in this world that could very well exceed Valor's power.' Scott seemed like a nice guy, but Kiya has seen this hero type of mentality backfire and get people killed before. She just hoped that Scott understood that the world he had stumbled into through that portal, it was a very, very dangerous one.

A man suddenly found himself lying in a pile of rubble on war planet. Wearing a simple black T-shirt and blue jeans, what stood out most was the prestine doctoris coat, pure white as if it was the first time he'd worn it. His grey hair in dissaray, belie his youthful appearance of a man in his mid twenties " Now where exactly am I? " he jumped to his feet and started walking around.

Suddenly he found himself confronted by three large, muscular, four armed men. Each wearing nothing but a loin clothe and scraps of metal. The man in the white coat regarded them with mild curiousity " I dont suppose you gentlemen can tell me where I am "

Instead of answering, one to the left simply roared and charged. Bending his knee's, the man in the white coat launched himself into the air, avoiding the charge. As he landed back on the ground, another of the four armed men came at him, he side stepped him and stuck his foot out, tripping him. This dance went on for a few minutes, they would thrash about trying to catch him and he'd avoid them, often making them look like fools.

" You know, it would be nice to know the names of the people I'm making look inept, I'll start. William Spayde, call me Dr.Spayde if you wish, or Dr.Death, Dr.Sinister works too "

The four armed men growled but one of them stepped forward, clearly the leader based on the head ornament he wore " My name is Ulkor and these are my brothers at arms, Nikor, and Zikor. We are warriors of the still winds, an ancient race of warriors, we were on our way to a battle when we suddenly found ourselves here. Some mysterious voice told us we had to be victorious in combat to gain freedom. We spotted you and decided to test this out, so to that ends Dr.Spayde, you must die "

Dr.Spayde rubbed his chin,based on their heart rates, they were telling the truth. So the law of this " War Planet " was to win, simple enough in itself. Obviously there was more going on but he could ponder that later " I see, then if I slaughter all of you I'll be closer to leaving then, heh at that ends i'll ask you to lay down on my operating table "

Zikor snarled " Enough of this, your good on your feet, but you lack the strength we have and our combat expertise. Your good for nothing but running away, we've got your strategy down and now we ca-

Zikor's speach fell short as he felt an odd sensation, looking down he saw that their was a large hole in his chest. Not only that but that Dr.Spayde had suddenly appeared behind them, one hand in his coat pocket and another outstretched and holding Zikors large, still beating heart.

" What was that you said about knowing my strategy? Amusing to say the least and very unlikely given that you so favor brawn over brains. I on the other hand can balance between the two of them quite nicely " as he spoke, he broat the heart closer to his face, grinning, he showed off a row of razor sharp teeth. Dr.Spayde sank his teeth into the heart ripped off a large chunk of it. Zikor fell over, dead, Dr.Spayde chewed a few times and swallowed " I see, your biology is similar to humans, not quite as tasty though "

Ulkor and Nikor stood there shocked, but it quickly gave way to rage as they each gave a mighty battle cry and barreled towards Dr.Spayde. The demented doctor finished off the rest of the heart before turning his attention to the two warriors.He held his hands up, the bones beginning to elongate and sharpen, Nikor leaped into the air Ulkor circled around him, he took a breath, his rib cage burst and fired off spiked, bones as projectiles. Catching Nikor by suprise and piercing his eyes.

Dr.Spayde rushed forward at incredible speed to intercept Ulkor, his clawed hands raked across the warriors chest and rending his flesh. Ulkor roared in rage and pain, his fist moving in a rush of blurs but Dr.Spaydes eyes easily saw their movements and dodged, continuing his assault.

Nikor crashed to the ground, but quickly clamored to his feet and fought through the pain, he cocked his head to the side and followed the sounds of combat. Taking a gamble, he put all of his power into one of his fist and hurled it. Dr.Spayde, embroiled in combat with Ulkor, notice a moment to late and felt the warriors fist smash into his side, knocking him into a pile of rubble.

" Excellent workbrother, the fist of Absolute might is unbeatable, that little demon is surely dad and obliterated no-

" I dont know how I feel about being called a demon, I mean i've been called that a lot, along with monster, cannibal, sadist. But i'll have you know I'm a human, well mutant but not a creature of hell, in the literal sense "

Dr.Spayde stood up, his clothes a little worn, but otherwise completely unharmed. Suddenly Nikor fell to his knee's, the hand he'd just used a mangled mess, as if he'd tried to hit something riddiculously solid " H-how, that was a punch to destroy a mountain! "

Dr.Spayde just grinned and shrugged " What can I say, i'm thick skinned " as he spoke, another pair of arms bust out of his side " Four arms dont seem to be helping you, surely I can do better " he vanished, both warriors looked around rapidly, trying to see where the speedy foe had gotten too. Spayde appeared before Ulkor smashed him with all four of his suddenly enlarged fist, knocking him into the air. Nikor started moving, only to find Spayde in front of him now.

His his arms grapped with Nikors and rapidly overpowered him, capitalizing by the warriors already ruined hand. Nikor screamed as pain exploded in his mangled hand and spread through his entire body, growing worse and worse. Spaydes teeth sharped again, with a finish grin, he burried his face into Nikor's chest and began to feet. The warrior tried to fight back, but the pain was too much, his ears were filled with the sounds of his own screaming and horrible ripping, nashing, and gulping noises of Dr.Spayde devouring him.

As Spayde pushed deeper into him, Niko felt his innards begin to burn, his bones cracked and felt like they were growing. His pain reached a crescendo as his bones burst from his body and his organs melted away, the last pained fill moments of his life were ended by his brain liquifying in his skull.

Dr.SPayde let his fall and turned his attention to last warrior. He rushed forward and caught Ulkor with his enlarged arms, sprouting another pair of arms, regular sized. Ulkor was on his knee's, held firmly in place by Spayde four enlarged arms while his regular ones carressed Ulkors face in an almost loving manner.

" You were quite entertaining and whats more I've collected some interesting data and samples. Now let me offer you a special death, I dont know if this means anything but where I come from we have a saying about " opening old wounds " I like it, a lot " his hands pressed against Ulkors body, he could see the map of his combat experience, his entire body was litered with scars that told the tale of his battles " I've always found it to be very....literal "

Ulkors eyes began to bulg out as he felt a sudden sensation seize his body. He struggled feebly against Spaydes grasp as it grew worse " The bodie remember, the cells have " memory " of it, one that doesnt end, hmmm "

In the next instant, every scar or wound that had been inflicted on him over his extensive fighting career, every bump, stab wound, burst open. He let out a gurgled scream as his bodies old wound were all made fresh again. He bragged about his scars, saw them as prizes and badges of honor for surviving. His head hung back as his blood poured out of the reopened wounds, his flesh hanging loose off his body, more and more wounds continued to open.

Finally Spayde dropped the mass of torn flesh and blood, Ulkors form having given way to all his wounds. Spayde retracked all of the extra arms and dusted himself off, all the blood and gore on his body. His coat prestine again, he looked around again, sensing all of the biological signatures on the planet or a good many at least " Time to see who else is here "

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Minerva had watched the bout between Scott and Nono, feeling more then a little small based on the sheer power they were giving off. She applauded Scott for doing such a good job and enjoyed the musical number that Sandra Fuller and her friends had put on, Sandra certainly made hanging around the Code:Breakers sound fun. She was very happy to be an avenger of course, but maybe she could get to live out another dream of hers, getting to sing a duet with Emmet, that would be so amazing.

Scott listened as Kiya spoke to him. It reminded him of how Alan and Chiang had spoken to him during his training, and he respectfully listened to every word. It disappointed him that she still didn't see him as an equal, but in time, he would earn her trust and respect. It seemed that Sandra was just like Godric in terms of power, and the thought that she could erase him without effort was kind of scary. However, if it came down to a fight with her, he would do his best to win, and trust in himself and Valor to get it done. Being the Protector of Earth meant that there was no surrender and no retreat, and if death in glorious battle was his fate, then he accepted that gladly, knowing that that would be his destiny.

Scott dissipated his helmet so that he could look her in the eyes with his own.
"Your words of caution and wisdom are much appreciated. This world is very different from my own, especially with the cosmic beings running around. I see this place as a world that is meant to prepare me for the crisis threatening my own world, and I am reminded of a piece of wisdom that the Fire God Solaris passed on to me during my training. He said, 'The mightiest warriors are the ones that continuously test their own limits.' Those warriors initially stronger than my Crusader form would not be the first to doubt my power and then lose, and no matter what, if they are evil, it is my inviolable sacred duty to bring them to justice."

Scott dissipated his armor so that he was back in his street clothes. He bowed respectfully to each Avenger individually, silently thanking them for their time and compassion.
"It was fun training with you guys, but I have pressing business that I must take care of."
Turning on his heel in a seamless motion, he walked back to the control room where Aaron had last been seen.
"Hey, Aaron. Could you give me directions to that spare bedroom that I can use?"

"Aaron is pouring over a book on asgardian mythology when he looks up"

Aaron: Oh? Living quarters on the tower are between the 5th and 10th floor. I think most of them are in the 6th. Some of us don't sleep in the tower

"Aaron closes his book. It appears to be a topic called "Concepts of limbo in Norse mythology"

Aaron: So, was the training area any useful? Honestly it's due an upgrade. Christopher's written quite a few theories on mystical energy lately, I can probably use it to make a few updates to the hardware. Speaking of, shouldn't you be going home? We defeated Godric, I thought you were here to develop some new technique against him to help with an invasion back in your dimension.

"Aaron sips on a drink he has with him as he asks"

---

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"Back on War Planet, Anna is still fighting Backheart. It's been a minute, but the announcer has not said the match is over"

Anna: Where are you.

"Anna feels a shadow above her. As she turns, Blackheart is above her with a huge blast of darkforce energy, enough to blot out the sun and has begin to drive it into Anna. She grabs mjolnir two handed and meets him head him, creating a huge lightshow of kinetic blue energy and darkforce energy meeting, enough to destroy several cities several times over. But suddenly, a darker shadow moves through and as Anna tries to react, Blackheart grabs her wrists and drives tendrils into her body. She screams out in pain as he assaults her with painful telepathic torture"

Blackheart: Poor little girl. You seemed to have lost so much haven't you? Your brother, your little Bernand, your precious Alisa. Why don't you just calm down and lay down
Anna: Sorry...that ain' happening!

"Anna notices that he's pushing her down with immense telekinetic force, enough to move even the wielder of mjolnir, right towards a portal. Anna remembers Kano's warning about the darkforce. But she can't move. Suddenly, she grins, and laxes one hand on the hammer. Her other arm rips itself apart, leaving behind glowing strands of her kinetic energy form, and just as the portal's about to swallow them both, she slams the hammer down hard onto it. The hammer combines with the runes and the anti-force powers of the hammer. Suddenly, Blackheart's pushed back by the energies he was using to power the portal, the tendrils vanishing as he looks at Anna in shock"

Anna: No time for rest yet!

"Anna moves like a comet through the skies and punches Blackheart before delivering another blow with the hammer. She then begins a physical beatdown on the dark god, the only thing visible is a streak of black and a streak of blue as she brings down the full might of the god of thunder on him. Blackheart falls down onto the ground, Anna a few feet away"

Blackheart: That blasted Kano. To have made me do this...

"The dark force energy begins to seep into him from cracks in reality. Soon he has taken on his true demonic form.
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"As Anna readies herself, she's suddenly struck by a ridiculous amount of gravity. As she struggles to hold herself up, manipulating her kinetic energy to counterattack the limitless weight, Blackheart moves at speeds surpassing even light and blasts her with electromagnetic energy. He then begins to manipulate matter at a subatomic level around her, he begins to attempt to unravel her energy form. William and Filipe look shocked at the "screen" above the battle as Anna struggles to hold herself together, weighed down by endless gravity"

William: How is he doing that...
Filipe: He's manipulating the four forces of reality...harnessing hyperspace. I think he can do that. Fuck! Come on Anna, you've barely taped into a fraction of what those Asgardian runes are capable of.

"Anna begins crackling a bit. Blackheart increases the pressure. But before he can finish disintegrating Anna's energy form at a particle level, Anna slams the hammer down into the ground. Norse runes appear on the tears in reality feeding Blackheart's full power form. She yells in pain from the gravity as she focus everything on sealing the portals"

BH: You useless girl! I am the master of the Darkforce dimension! You think you can overpower my connection to the dimension where I am god!

"The demon begins assaulting her with telepathic torture again. Anna's forced to relive Alisa's death over and over again. The demon begins laughing as Anna's energy form dissipates, leaving only the enhanced but physical Anna"

Blackheart: Now, kindly expire you pitfull hu...no

"Anna's lifts her head, her eyes still red. Tears on them, but more determined than ever. The runes glow with heavenly energy and Blackheart's demonic nature proves his undoing as she focuses everything and closes the portals. Blackheart attempts to open new ones but Anna's already on him, the hammer slamming him so hard into the ground he very nearly hits the limit of the crust of the planet. The inside of the earth begins rumbling as Blackheart's suddenly overwhelmed by magma from the Earth as Anna uses the mjolnir's weather powers to bring forth a volcano. But it is then he realizes that this is no normal upsurge of magma"

Blackheart: The substances in this magma...the atomic mass. No!

Anna: Boom

"The nuclear blast is felt form hundreds of miles as a massive mushroom cloud the size of the tallest mountain overwhelms Blackheart, Anna setting off the atoms of the magma which were all uranium and other heavy atoms. Despite this, the Demon emerges, bleeding and missing an arm and a leg, but alive. He pants for breath"

Blackheart: YOU BLASTED HUMAN! I AM GOING T-

"Anna appears above him and hits him so hard with the hammer and into the ground the cloud is dissipated instantly with the force of the shockwave. Blackheart spits out blood as Anna dives down and hits him with a knee into chest, causing it collapse before hitting him on the side of the face and sending skirting along the floor. Anna's eyes shine red with a madness as she chases after. And continues the beatdown. Each blow the force of a nuke, the blessings of the host, the powers of the runes. Blackheart can't stop to heal or pull forth any energy from the darkforce to increase himself as Anna moves at speeds past even light, delivering the beatdown of his life. After a while, the demon is pushed back into the floor, Anna lands beside him and holds by the throat, eyes still shining red with rage"

Blackheart: W...warrior's madness...how are
Anna: Calm? I keep telling you people. Over and over and over. I am not a precious broken doll. I am hero.

"She chokes and closes her fist. She disintegrates him completely. A single black rune "B" forms into the air and she slams the hammer on it, engraving it on it"

WINNER! ANNA ANGELUS!

"Anna returns to the others, handing Kano back the hammer by the handle. She gives him a knowing look, letting him see the runic B. Kano identifies Blackheart's soul trapped in the rune"

Anna: Here. And thank you.

Scott listened as Aaron explained to him that the living quarters were on the sixth floor.
"Ah, I see."
He asked him if the training area was useful.
"Yeah, but I was hoping to fight some holograms and polish up my skills. Nono and Kiya were very strong and informative, but I wanted to be able to go all-out without seriously hurting anybody. Maybe I can put it to the test and help you improve on it later."

Scott found it interesting that Christopher had written theories on mysticism.
"That's great. I actually wanted to learn more about magic myself, since it's not much of a thing where I come from. No thousand-year-old wizards trying to turn New York City into a sea of lava or anything like that."
Aaron asked him if he would be going home now that Godric was defeated. Scott had doubts about that assertion, however.

"I don't feel like Godric or the Godslayers are really defeated. The battle ended way too abruptly for it to feel like it was decisive. I don't think this is the last your world has seen of them, and not just because the Goblin Force is eternal."
He looked at his arm.
"I also haven't learned any new techniques, and maybe it was because I didn't actually fight Godric. My goal is to achieve the strongest form of Valor, the very height of the Voltari Armor Weapons System (VAWS), and that's a riddle I haven't unraveled yet."

Scott stretched out a bit.
"Besides, I don't even know what kind of threat I am facing. There weren't any pressing matters to attend to back home. Shadow Force can handle minor threats around the globe and stave off the angry rhetoric of the Mutant-Free Movement for now. If my presence was urgently needed back home, someone would have let me know by now. I will return home when it is time."

Scott looked around.
"Aside from that, I'd like to help you guys out and fight evil. This is a whole new world for me, and I'd be a fool not to take advantage of the knowledge and challenges that it offers. You Avengers were kind and supportive of me, and Valor and I don't forget our friends. If there's anything I can do to help out The Avengers, please don't hesitate to let me know."
Scott looked out the window at the setting sun, and it helped him feel like Alan was keeping watch over him from above, his omnipresent friend and mentor.

"See ya later, Aaron," Scott said, giving him a respectful bow with his head down.
He then turned and walked down the hallway, having spotted the elevator when they had showed him the training room earlier. When he reached the sixth floor, he found a bedroom that was unlocked and bare of any personal belongings, just a bed, a desk, and an empty closet.
"Safe to say that none of The Avengers are using this one."
He shut the door and sat on the bed, leaving the lights off to provide a peaceful interior. Scott then waited patiently for Empress Enjela to appear and fill him in on the latest threat to his Earth from the vile Grymwar.

Sandra finished up talking to Tyler and rejoined Tanesha, Roberta, and Cass. "I don't like how long this is taking" Sandra said. "What if Katy and the other SXM are gone forever?" Sandra was beginning to wonder if her friends was merely missing or was dead, if Amber's magic couldn't find them then hope was slim to none.

Tyler: Don't worry Sandra. I've seen Dale's sister handle a lot of crazy. And Christopher's with her. We just have to wait and see what happens.

"Just then, James sends Sandra a telepathic message"

James: Sandra, I need your help. I have a lead on the disappearences

----

"Back at the mansion's underground levels, in the infirmary, James, Raina and Collin are discussing matters. Michael is recovering nearby bed"

James: So that's all he told you then? That the Nova Force was defeated by a mysterious fighter? How many members did he defeat?
Collin: I couldn't tell you. I'm lucky I wasn't sucked out into space when the damn space station walls were burst through.

---

"Meanwhile, Ilyrana and Abby are now leaving the city, the shining white marble behind them as the elf leads her back to the mountain pass into the snow. Abby's been given a comfy and warm elven cape to protect from the cold"

Ilyrana: Once we walk a few miles from the city I can teleport us again. Where will we be heading then? Where is your comrade that needs this aid?

"Ilyrana is looking through Abby's phone awkwardly"

Ilyrana: It was quite easy to mark the pages I needed with this built in photography tool. Still, you are to erase these when we are done understood?

The prospect of a lead was exciting news to come especially just as doubt was starting to set in.    Sandra thanked Tyler for his reassuring words then replied to James.   "A lead, yea I'll help.   What do you need me to do?"

-----

"Understood" Abby replied.   "Collin is at the SXM space station, if you can't get there directly then we just need to go to Genosha and we'll make our way from there."   Abby still wasn't aware of the missed texts from Collin while she was in the elf city.   The messages would likely trigger once they was off the mountain.    While they walk Abby asks "so why go through all this cold and snow?   Can you not just teleport to or from the city?"

-----

Meanwhile we see Shawkun with all the villagers slaughtered. His lack of powers due to his targets abilities had made the battle long and bloody, Shawkun had taken numerous death blows but his curse of immortality had kept him alive. Now he approached the kid, the young boy looked upon Shawkun with understanding, knowing his fate. Shawkun locked his arm around the child's throat and one quick tug later, had snapped his neck. His powers turned to him just in time to grab the kids soul before it ascended out of his reach.

Carrie Hill, a powerful necromancer was staring down a 10 ft tall cybernetic werewolf. She questioned the stupidity of her situation before her surroundings were replaced with an extremely graphic scene. Flesh and bone was strewn about everywhere. Carrie immediately summoned her staff and immediately called forth a field that could detect living beings within 100 meters. “Ok looks like that wolf and whoever left this mess was gone.”

She carefully stepped past each of the pieces in an attempt to avoid getting her boots filthy. One misstep later and someone’s liquefied kidney graced the soles of her boots. “Fine then, assemble.” With a wave of her hand the flesh and bone began to reform itself. Carrie looked around as the pieces of this new puzzle began to put itself back together. When it was done three humanoid but clearly non-human creatures were lying on the ground before her. The construction wasn’t perfect as they were basically a Frankenstein monster of body parts, but it showed her enough.

“Huh non of these are recognizable.” Carrie was tempted to at least take a sample with her to identify what these things were later. Their souls were gone, but there were still strong traces of the powerful energy on their bodies. Whatever really happened it was clear that it was only a short while ago. The bodies were missing vital parts showing that they were clearly being eaten. However, whatever did this didn’t finish their food.  

“Um hello!

“Who’s there?” Carrie whirled around prepared for anything. She saw the figure immediately run behind a tree. “Come out before I set the tree on fire!”

“Okay Okay!” He jumped out hands in the air. A young Caucasian man with black hair. His clothes were cargo shorts, sandals and a green shirt. Carrie wondered if they just snatched him out of bed or something. “Please I don’t know how I got here!”

“Oh good me neither. Come over here what’s your name?”

“Its Mike, are you a witch or something?”

Carrie almost smirked but suppressed the urge. “Why would you say that? If you saw what I just did don’t worry.” She tossed her staff on the ground and it melted into the earth. “I won’t turn you into a frog. Maybe a cat since everyone loves them.”

Mike nervously smiled and walked closer. “Yeah I hope mine isn’t missing me too much. I just saw those bodies pull themselves together around you. Also that creepy black staff and thought witch, mutant or both. Never know these days.”

“Hah yeah can’t be too careful.” She walked right up to him and reached out her hand.

“I’m Carrie nice to meet you.” He grinned but at the last moment his smile widened like the chester cat. His body faded and a massive creature appeared before Carrie. It’s legs were like a spider’s and the torso was like a worm. Dozens of tentacles sprouted from its back in a instant encompassing Carrie in its shadow. Mike’s face was just a grotesque enlarged and scarred version of the illusion he created. Even his arms and hand were large, elongated, armor like limbs that reached out to crush its prey.

“Likewise.” He responded, but even as this trap was sprung perfectly there was something else. His entire body jolted almost on its own away from Carrie. He moved so fast a small sonic boom could be heard. In the space he once occupied a large black serpent’s jaws snapped onto it. Its eyes crimson, scales black as night but emitted a strong energy. Most of it’s body was still buried beneath the earth and yet it was larger than the 10 ft tall monstrosity that was Mike. Carrie was protected by a barrier of wind and magical energy preventing her from being blown back. “Mikey I knew something was off about you.”

He was still traveling through the air still wondering what just happened. “I guess you have a few tricks magus.” His tentacles shot through the air and extended down towards serpent. Before they could reach another serpent rose from the ground and snapped onto Mike’s body. His scream was almost deafening as he felt teeth dig into his chest. The black blood began gushing out nonstop. The monster thrashed constantly in pain and even encompassed itself in a green fire in order to burn its way out. It merely annoyed the beast as it slowly its prey down towards Carrie who was now flanked by two hungry serpents. Their bodies coiled around this entire area acted as a barrier.

“The fact that I only detected you when you said something was unusual sweetie. Also I have pretty good instincts when it comes to half dead idiots. So what happened, made the wrong deal with the wrong devil and this is what happens.”

“Something like that.” Mike coughed up blood, but stopped struggling. At this point he knew she probably didn’t even need these things to kill him. All he wanted to know is what her plan was now. “Shit, don't you think this was overkill?"

"Have you looked at yourself recently?"

"Point, I thought I’d get a decent soul after being brought here. An appetizer to the main course from before I was snatched away.”

“So this isn’t your doing. Do you know anything.”

“I was told to kill in order to escape. The last being placed here was too dangerous to attack without risking serious injury. You well….I’m not so good at judging strength I guess. So, what will you do with me?”

Carrie snapped her fingers and the three serpents formed themselves back into her staff. “May your soul be unshackled!”

Mike knew what was happening and used all his remaining energy to move. His elongated arms and clawed hand rushed towards Carrie, but were encompassed by an inferno.

“In FLAME!” His entire body erupted as not only his flesh burned but also his soul. It’s corruption was being cleansed and for a moment he felt something once lost. The monster in front of Carrie slowly dissolved to ash and the remains of an corrupted soul revealed itself. Carrie could almost feel as if some other force tugged on it. She absorbed it into her staff to keep it safe. That brief fight felt almost pointless but she took solace in the fact that she may spared others a terrible fate.

"Whoever left that mess earlier. They might have some answers."

Ilyrana: Nay. There are very power enchantments around the city, so as to make it near impossible to locate by foot, much less by other tracking methods. Even human technology would find it next to impossible.

---

James: Michael, Milo's friend and Nova Prime. He crash landed into the station severely injured. Raina is saying that the one who did it is some fellow named Taimus from another universe, and he might also be behind these kidnappings. If anyone has enough telepathic power to scour farther than a single planet, it's you.

----

"Meanwhile, at the Hellfire Club meeting, Rachel and Gally stick close as they explore, communicating using Gally's telepathic powers"

Rachel: All these people. I recognize some of them from the news, others from secret X-Men files
Gally: CEOs, political and military elite. A good few of them are mutants...Mother

"Gally's face changes expressions, which is rare, to a concerned look, and she discreetly motions. Wearing a purple dress with fur lined cape, long raven air, is Iliria Gallio. She's seemingly chatting nicely with a group of men"

Gally: That right there is a former senator Arthur Kelly. And the other one is named Phillipe Cagliostro. He's a mutant of noble birth.

"As she talks, Iliria suddenly looks their way. They both feel an oppressive presence as Gally is quick to shield them from her, but it is too late. Her wine red lips move into a smirk, she excuses herself, and with all the grace and sensual seduction you'd expect for a living conduit of a goddess of mad lust, she walks over"

Iliria: Oh, I'm so glad a member of the Ventro family could make it. It has been a while. I believe you are Rachel Ventro right?

"Rachel steels herself, and puts on the nicest, most graceful smile she's ever given, as if she's attended high society parties all her life, calling forth all her memory of her high life in Paris"

Rachel: Oh I wouldn't miss it for the world. I believe you're lady Gallio correct?
Iliria: Oh I'm flattered one of the richest family's in America knows my humble name
Rachel: Oh no, not at all~. Yours is a very old and noble line, I'd be remiss if I didn't know at least that.

"The two exchange a kiss. One can cut the tension with a knife. Iliria turns to Gally"

Iliria: And who is this beautiful young thing
Rachel: My Daughter. Galadriel Ventro
Iliria: Oh what a fancy name

"Gally tries her best to bury her hatred of everything demonic or evil and puts on her best fake smile, judging it prudent by the way Rachel is acting. A few more people pass by and Iliria politely says hello"

Gally: What now mother?
Rachel: Hell if I know! Does she...even recognize me from the X-Men? Or you...she
Iliria: Don't be daft darling, of course I do.

"The two girls's eyes widen as Iliria smiles"

Iliria: Oh get off it Rachel dear, you think this little angel's less than stellar telepathy is enough to protect you. Still, I suppose this means neither Sandra nor James are helping, doesn't it

"Rachel gulps, but keeps her smile"

Rachel: I didn't want to tell them and have them ruin my fun. After all it isn't every day you get invited to the Hellfire Club is it?
Iliria: Not at all~

"Iliria leans and presses Rachel to the wall with her body. When Gally tries to intervene, Iliria shoots her a look of pure evil and carrying enough of a killer intense the archangel nearly manifests her wings in subconscious self defense. Rachel looks at her and shakes her head, and looks up confidently at Iliria"

Rachel: Bit inappropriate isn't it?
Iliria: Come now. If I wanted I could turn this place into the lewdest orgy you'll ever set your eyes upon. A little bit of skinship between sister's in law is no harm no foul right~
Rachel: You're no sister of mine
Iliria: I beg to differ~. Sweet Milo never DID officially break up with me~. Now then, onto business. Where is he?
Rachel: Don't know, wouldn't tell.

"Iliria grabs Rachel's chin and looks into her eyes. Rachel suddenly feels a heat in her mind that spreads, barely contains her body's involuntary reactions as Iliria begins focusing her evil presence right on her"

Iliria: I can hurt you in ways you've never even imagined. I can please you in ways that'll RUIN YOU for life. Tell me where he is.
Rachel: I already said, I don't know. He left after we stopped you messing with his mind and brought him back to sanity. We haven't seen him since.
Iliria: He was kicked out. I would have thought you would know
Rachel: Sorry do disappoint.
Iliria; Well then your use to me is limited isn't it? You're at most a good torture pet to get into little Ice-Hand's head
Rachel: Pff

"Rachel has to block her mouth when a pained moan tries to escape. She feels as if her mind is being raped. Gally tries to grab Iliria, but she's suddenly held up telekinetically. Everyone else seems to otherwise ignore this entire event, as if Iliria is willing them to ignore it"

Iliria: Move to touch me again little angel and I'll rip you out of that container and cause you to go boom.
Rachel: S-stop! She doesn't know anything either
Iliria: Oh I know. Still, you DID walk into the lion's den~ I can't let you leave without a bit of corrective torture to teach you important lessons~

"Iliria's legs slides between Rachel's as she holds back the mad lust being fed into her, her eyes begin to water as her mind is slowly warped, until she finds enough strength to slap Iliria as hard as possible. Iliria pulls back. She doesn't have even a red cheek, and just smiles, fixing her hair"

Iliria: Oh fine~. You're no fun to mess with, you can't hit hard enough. Still, if you and Icy ever want to just be reduced to little pets do call~ Both of you are so cute, it's a shame to just kill you.

"Iliria waves and walks away. Gally instantly grabs Rachel and they both teleport to Genosha. Rachel is panting and falls to the ground, holding back tears"

Rachel: Fuck now I know why Marie hated that bitch so much.
Gally: What did she...
Rachel: Nothing...she...it doesn't matter what she showed me. We need to warn Yama and the others
Gally: Warn them of what?
Rachel: She is planning something. I saw it...a pile of corpses...a sigil of a noble house I didn't recognize. She's going to attack whatever house that was and kill them all but I couldn't get enough info before she...damn these visions are never as useful as I want them to be.

Dr.Spayde had moved from the spot he'd arrived and further into the rotting city. Leaping onto the tallest building, he surveyed the landscape.He could feel various bio signatures all around him, appearing and dissapearing in rapid succession. Going over what he knew so far, people were picking plucked from various locations and dropped here to fight to the death, it made him think of a film he watched recently, battle royale, he wondered if he would have to slaughter everyone to earn the right to leave. The notion didnt bother him, just depending on who was here.

" Perhaps I should find someone better informed or a location "

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tanesha squeezed Sandra's hand and wished her good luck on looking into the lead. Turning to Roberta and Cassandra " Alright girls, what should we do in the meantime? "

Roberta just stared at nothing completely zoned out almost as if she wasn’t even present. Tanesha’s words were deafened by the sound of swords clashing, the roar of monsters, screams of the fallen and calamities only beings of great power could withstand. The noise and the feelings from it was almost too much to bear.

“Hey,”

Tanesha touched Roberta’s hand. It was enough to distract her briefly from these visions. “What’s wrong?”

That was the one question she didn’t want to hear right now. She didn’t even want to acknowledge that anything else was a problem. So, she smiled and just said “I might just be getting tired of spontaneous singing and dancing.” She tried to chuckle but was unintentionally squeezing Tanesha’s hand a little tighter than normal. Even she wasn't able to hide what was really going on well.

"Sure for stopping strangers that sounds fine. But why can't you guys just come or go as you please?" Abby was referring to the elves.

-----

Sandra thanked Tanesha on her best wishes and responded to James. "So Taimus is it. Well I'll see what I can find of him, hopefully he isn't hidden away in some form." Sandra started the task of projecting her telepathy beyond the boundaries of Earth and out into space, looking to any sign of Taimus.

Tanesha raised an eyebrow " Ok whats really the problem? " she noted the way Roberta was squeezing her hand, they'd been together long enough to know when something was bothering her and something was really wrong now " You can tell me, you know? " she smiled reassuringly at her girlfriend.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Back at the Code:Breakers mansion, everyone was doing various activities now, most watching a movie or playing video games. Jericho returned to his room in the basement. Taking a seat at his work table, he cleared some space and pulled out a vial, containing Eclipses blood.

" Now my brother, what secrets shall this yield. I cant wait to see, later anyway " he set the vial aside and returned to the book he'd been looking at for the last few weeks " Sorcery "

-----------------------------------------------------

Riku was playing super smash bros with Garfield, Adrian, and Noah. Well more accurately trying to teach Noah how to play video games.

Cassandra decided to give Tanesha and Roberta some personal space seeing what was going on. She teleported to the roof to be alone for a few minutes and think things over. Tanesha and Roberta seemed like nice people and the Code:Breakers life was... interesting. She stood on the roof, letting the wind blow through her hair as she contemplated if she wanted to follow her mothers lead or if she'd rather stay with SXM. She was still young enough to be in school, she was sure Sandra would want her getting a full education as would Dave, so there was that to factor into things.

Scott looked up as a bright light suddenly appeared in the room. On the wall, a circular orange portal opened, one of Alan's Fire Paths. Within moments, Empress Enjela stepped through, a sweet smile on her face.
"Scott, Valor, it is so good to see you both again."
Scott stood up and dropped to one knee before the Empress, paying her the rightful respect. Enjela loved Scott like a son, and though she had told him more than once that such formality was unnecessary between them, he did it anyway out of respect.

"You may rise, young prince," she said with a slight giggle.
Scott stood up, and when Enjela spread her arms, he gave her a hug. The Kashan race was very attuned to people's emotions, so even the simplest of kind gestures from them seemed to mean the world. Hugging Enjela made Scott feel like a young boy hugging grandma, very emotionally satisfied. When the hug had ended, he smiled at Enjela.
"You look well, Enjela."

She appreciated the compliment, but her face became slightly grim.
"Scott, Valor, the new threat that you face is like none you have ever faced before."
"Is it the Grymwar? Have they appointed a new chieftain to take revenge on us for Dulzak's failure?"
"It's not just the Grymwar this time. We also face a threat from one that was born on Planet Kasha."

"A Kashan?" Scott asked, not believing what he was hearing.
The Kasha were a peace-loving people that detested war, and he could not imagine one of them turning to violence on a scale wide enough for him to need to get involved.
Enjela shook her head and turned her eyes to Valor, who she could see within Scott.
"Valor, an old enemy of yours has returned to strike us. Jukei has a host."
Scott felt a shudder from within that could only have come from Valor, and he could feel several emotions coming from his friend, the most powerful being anger.
"That bastard!"
Scott was stunned once more by Valor displaying any kind of anger.

Valor was one of the most emotionally-controlled beings he had ever known, so for him to give in to anger must have meant that this Jukei creature was truly despicable.
"Is Jukei also a Voltari?" he asked.
"I'm ashamed to say that we are indeed of the same race. Once, we were even friends."
"So, what happened?"
Valor sighed.

Scott felt his own anger rising up in his chest, and he knew it was not just residual anger from Valor. His bonding with Valor over the course of many battles and life events had been the defining journey of his life, and the fact that this Voltari could treasure power over that joint experience revolted him. It was clear that Valor not only despised Jukei for his horrible personality, but also felt sad that he had horribly misjudged the character of someone he had once thought was a friend.
"Stage Two of the project, a Plan B, if you will," began Enjela, "was that we would find wielders of worthy character and gift the Voltari to them. That was what began our association. Jukei, however, was expelled from the program so that his lust for power could not hurt anyone else."

"I'd imagine that didn't sit well with him."
"No, it did not. He began speaking treasonous words against me and so I was left with no choice but to lock him up. Unfortunately, I failed to foresee that a Kashan scientist named Dalweh working within the VAWS program could also be subject to dark temptation. He sought to overthrow me and was willing to risk his life by using a Voltari to do so. He was a perfect candidate for Jukei's manipulation and ended up serving his ends."

Scott nodded.
"So, this Kashan scientist Dalweh used VAWS to place Jukei inside of him. How much power was he able to draw out?"
"Not much, thankfully," Enjela replied, "The ego clash between them prevented much of a bond. In the end, Dalweh was barely able to manifest Jukei and lacked any kind of combat skill. If it had not been such an egregious and potentially dangerous breach of protocol, it would have been...funny."

Scott smiled, imagining the beating the two richly deserved.
"So, what happened after they were defeated?"
"They fled the planet and I thought that would be the end of them. Dalweh is certainly dead by now, and I had hoped that Jukei would join him in death. Unfortunately, Jukei has learned how to place himself in different hosts without the use of VAWS. The worst case scenario has now happened."

Scott felt his heart sink into his stomach.
"You don't mean that Jukei has-"
"Yes," Enjela answered solemnly, "He has been taken in by the Grymwar, and their new chieftain, Vizharr, is his host."
Scott was speechless, and Valor was saddened by the news.
"It seems that there is no low that Jukei won't sink to in order to get the power he craves. I can hardly believe that the two would have a strong bond, though."

Enjela shook her head sadly.
"Actually, it is the worst bond of all. Both are motivated by a need to get revenge on Kasha, and to this end, they have actually achieved great power. Just like you can cover your entire body in the Armor of Valor, Vizharr can cover his entire body in the Armor of Jukei. It seemed that this was a secret weapon that they had as a backup in case you two repelled Dulzak's invasion. As terrible as the attack on New York was, it was only the appetizer in the destructive meal of the Grymwar."

Scott shook his head.
"It seems like this time I might be facing an enemy that is every bit as powerful as I am. The Forbidden Tenth Fist puts me a bit ahead of Vizharr, but I can't rely on just that to beat him."
"That's why I want you to come with me back to Planet Kasha. The VAWS program will help you complete the Forbidden Tenth Armor to destroy them and save our planets."
Scott looked toward the floor.

"I'm afraid that I can't leave The Avengers right now. There is a training room at headquarters that can be used for the purposes of helping me train, though. Your visualization abilities will be quite useful there."
"And you're sure these...Avengers, you said? You're sure they won't mind us using it."
"They'd understand if I explained it to them."

Enjela nodded.
"Very well, Scott. Take me to this training room."
Scott gestured for her to follow him and took the elevator back to the training room floor. Once they were inside the training room, Enjela looked around.
"It's more plain than what we have on Kasha, but it should be more than sufficient for my purposes."

Enjela turned back to Scott, hovering a couple inches above the floor.
"Scott, I have told you much about VAWS, and you have learned much about Voltari and Kashan culture. However, one secret that I have never told you must now be revealed in order for you to reach the full potential of your bond with Valor. You must learn about the Kashaxi, which means in our language 'the sacrifice of the Kasha'. He was the first Kashan to undergo the procedure to have a Voltari Soul placed inside of his body."
Scott sat down on a lotus position on the floor, listening closely to what Enjela had to tell him about the man that had blazed the trail that he had walked for almost a decade.

"Up on the roof, Cassandra realizes she's not alone. Pol-Aris appears to be sitting on the edge, or rather, levitating at the edge, eyes closed, every so often a spark of electromagnetic energy flows around her. She doesn't seem to acknowledge Cassandra"

---

James: You should come here before you do that. Get the memories from Michael. Besides, we've got no healers here and you've got your Phoenix methods of healing

----

Ilyrana: This city is hidden even from other elves. And those who dwell here are sworn to secrecy on it's location, usually never even leaving it's immediate area in their lives. If it were otherwise I would have not earned a banishing.

----

"Before Scott can get very ahead with his training, he's interrupted. Tyler was still there in the training room, and after completing a few choice exercises to improve his shield throws, he finally notices Scott...and his guest. His instincts kick in and he's already looking for any opening in case things go massively south"

Tyler: Scott. You're back here...and you have company.

"He turns to the woman, wary but forever polite and courteous"

Tyler: Tyler Arndson. It's a pleasure ma'am...who are you exactly and how did you get into this tower?

Sandra realizes James is right, she's just so set on tracking down her lost friends that she jumped the gun a little so to say. She stood and spoke to Tanesha and Roberta. "Babes I'll be back soon, I've got something to look into on Genosha." Sandra gave the girls a wave and in the next moment appeared alongside James. She walked up to Micheal placing a hand on his forehead, the energy of the Phoenix goes to work as Micheal's injuries quickly starts healing and Sandra digs into his thoughts.

"Alright now, what happened to the Nova Corps?" Sandra went into Micheal's mind to see what had done this to them.

-----

It looked to Cass like Pol-Aris was in some type of medication. She wasn't sure if she should bother the other girl, Cass didn't want to upset a Avenger after all.

-----

"Wait so most them never leave? Don't get me wrong, the place is the most I think I've ever seen. But after so long you would want to explore the world outside, wouldn't you? I can't imagine living in only one place my entire life." Abby almost wanted to feel a little sorry for those who never got to view the world.

Scott's attention was suddenly directed to a voice coming from the side. He was relieved that it was Tyler, having not been aware that he was still in the room.
"Oh, hey Tyler."
Empress Enjela turned to Scott.
"This is one of The Avengers you were speaking of?"
"Yeah, this is Captain America, one of the leaders of The Avengers."

Enjela turned to the rather handsome and well-built man, pleased with his polite manner as he introduced himself. She took both ends of her long dress and curtsied in mid-air.
"It is nice to meet you, Tyler Arndson. I am Enjela, Empress of the Planet Kasha. I arrived at this tower using a portal created by Solaris, Scott's mentor and a good personal friend of mine. I came here to inform Scott of a crisis threatening both of our worlds, and to train him in how best to defend them."

Scott stood up.
"There's no reason to be afraid, Cap. The Kasha are a peaceful, scientific people that are seldom violent. You might think of them as a whole race of Christophers."
Enjela looked a bit confused.
"Christophers?"

Scott turned to her.
"The top scientific mind of The Avengers is a guy named Christopher. I don't know him that well, but he's actually got a tech set-up similar to Kasha. If you could get in a word edgewise, you'd probably enjoy conversing with him."
Enjela cocked her head to the side, curious about this new dimension she had traveled to. Scott turned back to Tyler, a serious expression on his face.

"I apologize for appropriating your Tower a little bit, but the training room was the most convenient place to train. I could have gone to a few different places, but I want to stay close to The Avengers in case you guys need my help. Enjela's ability to create a temporary realm of space-time independent from this one will ensure no damage to your training room. If you wish to speak with me further about this, please do so after my training session is complete, for my world is in peril, and I have precious little time to waste."
Scott turned away and sat back down in the lotus position, still wanting to hear about the Kashaxi and how they were related. Empress Enjela gave Tyler a friendly smile.

"It has always fallen within the best interests of the Kashans to befriend those of noble intentions. I live in a different dimension from Scott, and the connecting point that allows us to converse are the portals created by Alan and Chiang, who were instrumental in helping to save my world and Scott's. If it would please you, I would be happy to talk with the leaders of The Avengers and explain the situation to them. I assure you that we are allies, for I don't believe that Scott or Valor would trust you if you were not good people."
Enjela turned her attention back to Scott, hoping that they would be free to resume their training session. The fate of her world and her people also depended on Scott and Valor bringing out the full potential of their Crusader bond.

"Sandra sees it as if she's watching it third person. Michael arrives with a platoon of Centurions against a single man, of hispanic or perhaps african heritage (or at least looking like it), covered in an advanced suit of armor. The fight with the others is brief as they are defeated by an unseen force, held to the ground as if they are suddenly too heavy to move before being crushed by the weight of their own mass. Michael lasts longer, but his powers, the power of the nova force, are seemingly negated before he engages in a duel with Taimus. Despite his best efforts Taimus utterly defeats him even in a "fair fight" of energy sword dueling, before blasting him with the same power that seemed to weigh the other centurions down. Michael's last sight before the speed with which he is hurled knocks him out is Taimus vanishing in a portal. He manages to summon his nova suit and protect himself from the harshness of space and set himself on a crash course for Earth, barely conscious. Sandra's own cosmic awareness kicks in and she's able to track down where the fight occurred by watching the path through the stars, traveling at light speed, that Michael takes. Somewhere on the edges of the Andromeda galaxy, on the borders of the Shi'ar empire"

James: Go anything?

----

"Ilyrana doesn't answer"

Ilyrana: When you remember the world before the skies were blocked by the lights of your cities, when you remember a time where green stretched from the edges of the northern snows to the far reaches of the sea Romans called the Mare Nostrum. The world as it is, it suddenly becomes a very ugly place.

"Ilyrana turns and holds out her hand"

Ilyrana: Come, this is far enough.

----

"Tyler sighs in relief. Looks like this wasn't going to be one of those days after all"

Tyler: No, perfectly fine your majesty. He's probably already noticed

"Tyler points up to the cameras"

Tyler: And we're used to people coming and going through teleportation. We just usually know who they are.

----

"Pol-Aris eventually opens her eyes and notices Cassandra"

Pol-Aris: You' are the younger Fuller. The one with the Goblin Entity. Is there anything you need of me?

"Pol speaks with every bit the regal manner you'd expect of the princess of the Inhumans and Kree"

---

Sandra describes Taimus appearance to James as well as the events of the battle that had occurred. "Micheal lasted the longest, but that's not saying much as he stood no chance. I'm able to track this battle back to where it occurred, in the Andromeda galaxy, right on the borders of the Shi'ar empire." Sandra turned back to James. "Whoever this is clearly is no joke. Maybe I should go investigate the scene, to see if there is anything Micheal may have missed."

-----

Abby didn't think the world was all bad, it was true cites had covered up much of nature. But the world now was also much more social because of so many living so close. The modern world had it's fair share of assholes, but it still had good people well. Abby took Ilyrana hand, not commenting any further on the current topic feeling it may have gone far enough. "Alright then, lets close the final chapter of this book, and go save Collin."

-----

Cass had momentarily returned to her thoughts when Pol had spoken up. "Oh hey, umm yea, I'm the younger one. Names Cassandra." Cass had to think about the question Pol asked, it's not like she was family or even a close friend, Cass only really had Pol's Avenger's rep to go on. "Hmm, I wouldn't necessarily say so. Just, everything has changed in my life so suddenly with Dave and Sandra separating. I just came up here to think"

Cass looked out over the view of the city. "I just wonder if I should continue my SXM career or go for the Code:Breakers instead. The Code:Breakers look to have such a care free, ease of mind way of living, but even more so mother is with them, and due to her relation with Phoenix I suspect she could teach me better then anyone how to access the deeper reaches of the Goblin. Yes they are different entities, I just assume mother will be able to point me on the right path.

But then Genosha is also teaching me a lot including practical life skills. But what happens to David and Chloe then if I leave, that puts all the weight on Abby to keep Dave in check and look after the young one. I'd feel a bit guilty about doing that to her, but I do miss being around Sandra. So I just came up here to ponder over things. I'm sorry if I had disturbed you Pol-Aris."

"I know I can but this is very confusing to me right now." Roberta took a deep breath and softened her grip, but still held on. She was still trying to make sense of everything and even hoped that she was wrong.

"Well lets start with the bad. My ability to feel a major conflict is going all over the place. I can sense a lot of destruction and death, but its on the level of something we should've noticed by now." she felt this all day but only now couldn't just suppress it. Godric was gone temporarily and this didn't feel as needlessly chaotic as the Goblin force. "That's not even the worse part. The self proclaimed King of Hell and Asgardian Kano is involved. I don't know why but he's back."

There was no fear in Roberta's voice when she spoke of Kano only a sense of frustration. She felt some strange connection to him the first time they met and even fought together. However, this connection was only built on a love for battle and at this point she began to despise the smell of the battlefield. At least she wish she could. "Don't worry I didn't plan on ignoring this forever, but this felt like something I needed to handle on my own."

Empress Enjela smiled and looked at the security camera.
"Oh, I see. Well, it was nice meeting you, Tyler Arndson, or Captain America, if you prefer."
She curtsied politely in farewell, and Scott gave him a nod.
"Now, then, Empress, please tell me about the Kashaxi."
A somber look crossed over her face.

"To sum up, he was the greatest hero that the Kasha ever produced. While you and Valor will no doubt go down in history as the hero who did the most for the Planet Kasha, the Kashaxi was our culture hero. He was a man of great intellect, who possessed perhaps one of the greatest scientific minds that ever existed. He was also a man that prized physical strength, and in his spare time, he could often be seen training his body almost as rigorously as he trained his mind. The given name of the man was Juno, the former Emperor of Kasha and my deceased husband."
The revelation hit Scott like a body blow, and he was more than a little humbled to learn that the path he was walking had been paved by a man who would have been a second father to him.

After a few moments to let that sink in, Enjela continued the story as the room began to change to the images in Enjela's own head. Some of the Kasha were skilled at visualization, great masters of the art like Enjela being able to make their surroundings into what they envision. She had effectively created a separate reality within the Avengers training room as an anchor point, and Scott recognized his surroundings as the eastern mountains bordering the capital city of Juno, named after the late emperor, and Scott now understood better than ever why he was deserving of this honor. On the outskirts of the city, Scott saw a tall, dignified man wearing a purple robe and sporting the spotted skin and tail that were defining characteristics of the Kashans. He looked into the man's eyes, and saw that they burned with the same uncommon intensity that he had seen in Alan's eyes, Chiang's eyes, and had even burned in his own eyes during the battle with Dulzak. Juno may have had the mind of a scientist and intellectual, but one look into those determined eyes showed that he had the soul of a warrior and a hero.

"This was my husband after he found out that the Grymwar were planning on invading Kasha. He retreated into the mountains to think, pondering on what he could do to save not only the lives of his own people, but the lives of the Voltari, who also call our planet home. Juno thought about going underground into the vast cities of the Voltari, but was loathe to leave our horde of scientific knowledge behind on the vast immovable machines within the laboratories. Fearing what the warmongering Grymwar would do with such scientific knowledge, he realized that for the first time in their history, the Kashan race had to turn their scientific knowledge from bettering the lives of their people to making a weapon. Emperor Juno traveled to the underground city of Volt'sha and met with the Elder of the Voltari, who we shall call Honor, and together they developed a way for both of their races to fight back."
"That's how VAWS was born," Scott filled in.

"Yes, and it required much preparation before the first test was done. Emperor Juno decreed that he would be the first test subject, not willing to endanger his people on an untested idea. The Voltari Elder felt the same way, and offered his own soul to go into Juno's father."
That brave Voltari was my father, Scott.
Scott felt tears starting to form in his eyes, hearing about such brave heroes and understanding his best friend like never before. The tears were also of sadness, because in spite of the sacrifices of these great men, this part of the plan had ended in failure.

"The experiment was a success, and Juno was able to successfully summon Honor upon his arm."
The image of Emperor Juno in his royal robe was replaced with an image of him shirtless with a muscular chest sporting the red and gold armor of Voltari Armor upon his right arm. Recognizing the color pattern, Scott pointed at the arm.
"That looks just like the Forbidden Tenth form of Valor. Did he--?"
"It is not a Forbidden Tenth form, and I attribute the identical colors as being a result of Honor and Valor being related."

Scott nodded in understanding, knowing that the dark part of the story was now coming.
"As you know, a Voltari Soul cannot inhabit every body in existence. The exact reason is unknown, but a Voltari Soul acts as an unwilling parasite when placed within the body of a Kashan. It drains away the vitality of the Kashan in a similar manner to what cancer does to your race."
The image of Juno was replaced once again, and his body, once strong and healthy, was now tired and wasted. However, the burning intensity of his eyes had never changed, his mind and soul defying the weakness of his body in order to achieve his goals.

"To his dying day, Juno never stopped trying to unravel the mysteries of how a Voltari Soul interacts with a host. He became a strong fighter, learning how to tap into Voltari Energy and perform the technique that you call the Fist of Valor. I'll never forget how my body quivered when I saw my husband destroy a mountain with just one punch, the Fist of Honor proving that our kind would indeed be a formidable threat to the Grymwar. My husband died two days later, and the Voltari suffered an even more tragic loss as their Elders' soul was wiped from existence. We now had the weapon that would save our planet, but at a terrible cost. The knowledge that a Kashan host could not wield a Voltari Soul effectively led to the need to search for a host that could, and that's where you came into the picture, Scott."

Scott looked at the image of Emperor Juno, standing with great pride despite the overwhelming pain and fatigue.
"I think I understand the lesson that is to be gained from his death. If circumstances had been different, it would have been Juno and Honor that would have defeated Dulzak and would be preparing for Jukei and Vizharr right now. As their successors, we must honor their memories by doing what they would do."
"Your first step in doing that is to face your predecessors in combat."
Scott gave her a questioning look, wondering how the Empress would make that possible.

"Pol-Aris listens to Cassandra before looking back out"

Pol: How do I put this. To me, Sandra Fuller is an irresponsible fool. Not even a year ago she nearly plunged us into an all out war between your mutant kind and the humans on this planet, and not all of that was Jet's influence on her. And her response to being held to that was to leave the ones that defended her against the world, including my comrades the Avengers, to go live some carefree life with no responsibilities. As an avatar for the Phoenix Force can claim such a thing, with her duties to our universe being what they are.

"Pol-Aris turns to Cassandra, every bit the regal noble she speaks as"

Pol: You wish to learn to control your powers, there are other ways. But there are things you must learn that Sandra can not teach you. And one of those things is an understanding of your duty. We all have duties, great or small. And you carry within you the power of an entity as old as the universe itself. Nobody can teach you what it means to carry that power, and the duty that power entails. Just as nobody can teach a king how to lead, he must learn it by himself.

"Pol sighs and looks back up at the sky"

Pol: You wish for my opinion, Cassandra Fuller? Whatever you choose to do, do not skirt what is expected of you. And remember, do not bend, do not break.

----

"James thinks it over"

James: You sure that's a good idea? Going out there alone?

---

"Ilyrana teleports the both of them to the mansion at Genosha, right outside the grounds"

Ilyrana: This will be it then. You lead then, I believe this is your abode.

---

"Tyler was quietly listening to the entire thing, too curious to just leave. When it was mentioned Scott was inheriting a mission, he couldn't help but empathize with the young man from a dimension so very different"

Tyler: I'll be heading out. I think you might need privacy for this next part.

"Tyler walks off after that and heads to Aaron's office/control room. Aaron was still watching, but he was seeing nothing"

Aaron: What are they doing...
Tyler: The empress is some kind of empath or telepath. Cameras wont pick up what she's showing...he's a good kid you know
Aaron: Not saying otherwise. This soul bonding procedure is fascinating though. Whatever that armor is, it's purely organic and seems to radiate some form of natural energy energy. And to think it's strong enough to get just a few cracks from Nono's punch
Tyler: How hard did she punch?
Aaron: She'd have shattered and iron drone. It's much denser than titanium alloys even with the reinforcing I give it. And he says that he wasn't focusing on defense. I wonder if this 10th Fist business is even more resistant.
Tyler: We have other problems

"Tyler leans against the controls as he presses a button, showing Christopher and Amber at the labs"

Tyler: Amber's been at it for a while now. No news.
Aaron: Christopher and I are using his magical crystals and venting them through my Bifrost machine and using that to power my satellites to find any dimensional portals and rends in space. There's a lot of them, but we can't track anything through it. We tried to send the signal outward into space but there's nothing all though the Milky Way. It's bouncing off other tech devices now as a hidden signal but scouring the observable universe takes time.
Tyler: Tesla's out there. And the X-Men members that were taken too.

Pol brought up some good points, it was difficult to hear but Cassandra could at least appreciate the honesty. She still had a lot to consider all said, even if Sandra was irresponsible, Cass had grown to love her as a parent. "Thank you for your honesty Pol-Aris. You do bring up many strong points I hadn't considered."

-----

"Well we don't know what we're up against power wise. I could bring a number of people with me. Cass, Emmet, Amber, the list goes on. I'm just thinking we shouldn't weaken our forces here to much. At least if I go alone and end up disappearing like the rest, you guys have an idea of what type of power this Taimus processes."

Sandra knew going along had risks, but in her mind possibly losing just 1 was better then losing 2-4 or more.

-----

"Right, this way." Abby lead Ilyrana onto the grounds and was initially headed to the transporter that would take them to the space station. Sandra however took notice that Abby was back and instead directed her towards their location, seeing as Collin was with then. "Huh, just got a telepathic call from Sandra, seems Collin isn't at the space station any more. This way then."

Abby and Ilyrana had a few minutes walking before they got to Sandra and James.