All for One

Two beings, male and female, were above Velah City. “It doesn’t make sense,” he said, “it wasn’t his time to go.” “The boy fought four life-changing battles,” she said, “if he were to lose one, the outcome might have been different. But sacrifice was his way to go.” The male spoke, “What is going to become of the girl.” She stood in silence until she said, “She may not look like it, but she has a tough interior, she’ll live through the rest of her life until time will take her.” The male scoffed, “So the boy’s will was beaten. Do you think it has anything to do with that shadow?” “Every experiment has to have a variable,” she said, “Besides, only time will tell if what happened today will have any effect on the future.” The male chuckled, “There you go using that word again.”

He grasped his hands, “So, what is the next phase?”

Sparx rubbed his eyes after waking up. “Oh ow,” he rubbed his temples, “what happened?” He saw in the distance a tentacled figure electrifying six victims. “Wait,” Sparx peered closer, “Wing? Spirit? Frostbite, Spike, Rush?” He saw the last one and panicked, “Reyn?” He could barely make out her face. She had a pained, sad look on. Sparx could not bear to see her in this position. There was a horrible feeling in his heart, the feeling of loss. Sparx did not want to lose anybody, especially his family.

Something warm was beginning to overtake Sparx from the inside. He felt it coming, but did nothing to try and prevent it. Sparx felt a tremendous power coming into him. It was so big that it made him scream from where he stood. Sparx started to involuntarily discharge electricity from his body. He then blacked out.

Wing saw the tentacles being separated through the torture. At once everybody was released and fell to the ground. A bright light was standing before them. Wing shielded his eyes and saw a figure in he midst of the light, “Sparx?” The figure looked over it’s shoulder and stared at Wing and the rest. It then gave a thumbs up, just like Sparx did before he went unconscious. Wing laughed, “Ha ha Sparx you son of a bitch.” Reyn looked through the blinding light and saw Sparx had underwent a massive wardrobe change. He did not have his jacket on, instead he had a white shirt with the collar reaching down his chest to his esophagus. Embedded in his chest was a burnt “S” in the style of a lightning bolt. Sparx did not have his gloves on, and everything else was white, including his hair. But what was ethereal about him was that he did not have his mouth and that electric energy was flowing out of his eyes.

As fast as he came in, Sparx zipped off towards the shadow. The force of him speeding pushed everybody forward. “Holy crap,” Frostbite exclaimed, “what happened to him?”

Sparx took his fist and buried it in the shadow’s stomach. The force was too much for it to stay still. The shadow flew back towards the crater where the Equilibrium stemmed. Sparx sped after it with an electric bolt ready. The shadow got on it’s feet and readied one, too. What came next was too fast to see and explain.

Everybody stood away from the crater, as the electric shocks were destroying the cliffs. All that was heard were booms and massive thunder echoes. Bright flashes of light escaped the crater each time thunder was heard. There were also shocks of black electricity, but they did not come as often as the bright ones. “What’s going on,” Spirit asked frantically. She was tending to the wounded Reyn. Wing rubbed his arms where the shadow tentacles were constricting, “I don’t know,” he chuckled, “but it looks like Sparx is winning.” Reyn spoke up, “I wouldn’t be so sure.” Everyone looked at her with surprising looks on their faces. “Why so pessimistic? You should be the one saying that he’s going to make it back,” Wing said. Reyn looked down, “His soul. It’s slowly fading away..” “How can you tell,” Spirit asked. “When my race falls in love, we can feel the strength of the other person’s soul. His is draining away.” Spike spoke up, “So this is his drone at full power then.” Everyone looked at him now. “That’s impossible though,” Wing said, “he has never used his primary before.” “True,” Spike replied, “but what if he doesn’t have a primary? I knew there was something special about him, and it turns out he can only use the last stage of his drone. Only,” he looked down, “the last stage is his only stage.” Wing had trouble accepting this, “N-no you guys are wrong. He won’t let the shadow beat him, he’s tougher than that!” Spirit stood up and hugged his arm, “We aren’t worried about his shadow.” All they could do was wait and see if Reyn’s prediction would come true.

The pace of the fight slowed down so everyone could make out what was happening. It turns out Sparx’s light was having a massive effect on the darkness of the shadow. It attacked with a myriad of tentacles and bolts of electricity. Sparx just continued to walk towards it, dodging the strikes as they came. Everytime he dodged, Sparx retaliated with his own punches and bolts. The shadow grew tired of him and created a cannon made of shadow sticking out of its chest. Sparx acted quickly and dodged the electric blast from the cannon. He disappeared before its eyes and knocked the shadow to the ground. Sparx reappeared standing in front of the shadow with a massive electric bolt surrounding his right fist. It also seemed to the shadow that it was infused with the light energy Sparx had been emitting the whole time. He readied his arm and saw the look in the shadow’s face. Even though only its eyes were shone, Sparx could not help but feel it had no regrets in its eyes. With one fell swoop, Sparx slammed the shadow’s face in, which caused the Outskirts to become filled with light.

Wing saw the impact coming. He took both girls in his arms and turned around while protecting them with his wings. Frostbite fogged his goggles while Spike put a giant spike in front of him and Rush. The explosion caused a bright flash. The force of it reached everyone as they braced themselves. When it finished, Wing looked over his shoulder and saw smoke rising from the crater.

“Did he win?” Spike asked. Wing relaxed his wings, “We’ll see when the smoke clears.” They waited a while before they saw a figure walking out. Everyone got ready to fight. “Sparx,” Wing called out. When the smoke cleared, Sparx was shown trudging towards his friends while grasping his right arm. Everyone but Reyn cheered for him in awe as he struggled to walk. “You see! I told you he would beat this,” Wing told Reyn. Spirit jumped into Wing’s arms and screamed to Sparx. Wing raised his fist into the air in victory. Sparx saw this and grinned while letting go of his arm to raise his into the air.

The cheering immediately died when Sparx fell to his knees, then on his stomach.

“Sparx!” Wing yelled as everyone but Reyn again ran to his rescue. All she did was walk towards Sparx. Wing flipped him onto his back, “He’s ok, he’s ok. Just unconscious like last time, right?” Spirit placed her palm on his chest, then got up and turned away. “You probably weren’t doing it right,” Wing said in a false cheerful tone, “you gotta do it like this.” He put his talon on Sparx’s neck, hoping to find the slightest pump of blood. Wing dug deeper, hoping to find it somewhere in there when Spirit stopped him in a depressed tone, “Wing, you’re breaking the skin.” She and the rest had come to the realization, but Wing would not accept it. “No, no dammit,” he yelled, “Sparx, get up. Come on man quit playing around. You have your whole, damn life to die, just please don’t do it today.” His voice started to break, “Please Sparx, just get up and breathe. We’re all waiting for you, please don’t leave us alone, especially Reyn. That girl sees alot in you, man. She fucking loves you and adores you!” “Wing,” Spirit uttered. “We all do, so come on get up,” he continued. Spirit put her hand on his shoulder and called his name. Wing looked at her and looked behind him. He saw Reyn with a blank stare on her face staring at Sparx. Wing got up and crossed his arms, stifling his sobs while he turned away. Reyn crouched to have a better view of Sparx. Even in this state, he still had a grin on his face. She laid across his chest with her face buried in his shirt.

There was silence for a few moments, until it was broken by quiet, yet audible sobs coming from Reyn.

There the group would stay, until it was time to carry his body through the city. Some people mourned him, while others cheered. Meanwhile, in the V.E.S.P. HQ, something corrupt was being planned.

Wing darted towards the shadow. He stuck his legs out and drop-kicked it away from Sparx. The shadow flew back and regained it’s footing. Rush then came along and punched the shadow in it’s face, which made it fly farther. Spike placed his palm on the ground and morphed the environment behind the shadow into a spike pointing towards it’s back. The spike pierced the shadow as it went through at a fast rate. Rush raised his fist in victory as Wing gave Spike a high-five. The shadow proceeded to pull itself apart in order to free itself. All three of them looked in shock as the shadow split itself in half. A substance stuck itself between the split body and pulled them together. “Shit,” Wing cursed as the three of them retreated.

The shadow started walking towards Sparx. Ice started surrounding it’s legs, slowing it’s movement. Reyn then took the surrounding water and blasted the shadow with a high pressure blast. Then she grabbed it with a water-arm and threw it further away. Frostbite chucked an ice crystal towards it, and it hit with succession. Spirit raced after the shadow and bared her claws. in a flash, she swiped the shadow, which split it into a million pieces. She turned back to the the shadow and grinned. Just then, the pieces melted and joined back up to create the shadow in whole. “Fuck,” Spirit said.

The shadow stood still for a few moments. Everyone braced themselves for what would come. A tentacle came out of it’s back and speared after Wing. It wrapped around him and squeezed tightly before he could do anything. “Wing!,” they all yelled. He struggled to get free, “RUN!” Everybody started to move when the shadow made more tentacles come out of his back. They snatched them all and started pumping electricity into their bodies. Everybody screamed in pain as the shadow stood triumphantly. All Reyn, Wing, and Spirit could think about was Sparx. Reyn screamed his name throughout the torture she was enduring.

Sparx’s eyes fluttered opened slowly.

Wing laid Sparx’s body in front of everybody. “Sparx, get up,” he said distraughtly. He would not budge, even from a few nudges from Wing. Everyone at that moment thought the worst, until the teary-eyed Reyn put her ear to Sparx’s chest. “His heart is still beating,” she said happily. All three of them let out a sigh of relief. “He’s just unconscious,” Spirit said, “all he needs is rest.” Wing scoffed as he sat down next to Sparx, “No kidding. He fought and ran without breaks. That takes a toll on your body, no matter how built you are.”

Spike, Rush, and Frostbite walked up to the four of them. “Oh shit,” Wing complained, “can’t you guys leave us alone?” He was about to get up when Frostbite motioned him to stay in place. “We came to,” he hesitated, “explain our behavior now that Sparx beat Fiego.” He looked at Sparx’s body, “I’m not a fighter. I race, it’s what I do. Sure I may cheat sometimes, but all I wanted was a rival in speed. I honestly, deep down in my heart, never meant to hurt any of you. It’s just.. you know, fire melts ice.” Wing, Spirit, and Reyn seemed to accept it.

Wing to turned to Spike and Rush and said, “Now, what the fuck do you asswipes want?” Spike put his head down, “I see where that’s coming from, and if I was in your position, I would do the same. First, Fiego made us help him, because he could do away with us like that,” Spike snapped his fingers, “Second, I just thought I would clear up the air around us. Remember that night we first met?” Wing clenched his fist and gritted his teeth, “You better have something good for bringing that up.” Spike continued, “We were looking for you and Sparx because that shadow seemed to make us follow it. Just like Fiego,” he snapped his fingers again. “Anyway, it wanted us to test Sparx’s power for some reason. When we made it to your home, the place was being burnt down. We had nothing to do with it.” Rush nodded in agreement. Wing laughed angrily, “Bullshit, you said so yourself that you two burnt it down.” Spike shook his head, “Come on man, we were stupid kids. How else was I going to make you guys fight?” Wing struggled with the truth, “A-alright, let’s say I believe you. Who else would burn our home?” Spike and Rush looked at each other for a moment. Wing looked at both of them, “What? What is it?” Spike finally spoke, “Before we actually moved in, there were three armored vans parked outside your home. They all had a V in a circle.” Wing interrupted, “Whoa, whoa wait a minute. You’re telling me V.E.S.P. did it? Why do I not believe you? I mean, they are corrupt as shit, but I would never imagine them doing this.” Spike made his tone more intense, “How many other orphanages are in Velah City?” Wing thought for a moment, “Alot.” Spike continued, “That serve our kind?” Wing stayed silent. “Anyway, that’s not even the worst part,” Spike said, “About four troops toting sub-machine guns came out of each van. Let’s just say, they weren’t invited in, but they went in anyway. Rush and I were in the bushes outside of the scene.” Spike closed his eyes as if he was in pain, “All we heard then was gunshots being fired and screaming inside the building until the last scream was heard, then it was interrupted by the last gunshot. Eleven troops walked out, while one stayed behind. He then came out as the orphanage started catching fire. We went inside when it was done burning to see if there were any survivors. Then you two showed up behind us.”

Wing put his head on his palm. Spirit tried to comfort him by putting her hand on his arm. “Wing..” she said comfortingly. He wiped his face with his sleeve, “Now I feel like shit.” “Why,” Spirit asked. “Because all this time, I blamed you guys for that day,” he told them all. Spike shook his head again, “We’re the ones who should feel like assholes. We have been taunting you over that, and we’re both sorry.” Wing looked up, “Now what I don’t understand is why the government slaughtered all these freeqs.” Spirit touched his shoulder, “We’ll have time to think about that, but for now we need to get Sparx back home and treat his wounds.”

The shadow substance left over from the fight started to move.

Wing and Frostbite put Sparx’s arms around their shoulders and carried him to the city.

It started squirming towards the lifeless Fiego’s body. Once it reached him, the substance overtook the legs. They started to move and propped themselves up.

“Um.. guys,” Reyn sounded worried, “I don’t think we’re done here yet.” They all looked up to see what she was talking about and saw Fiego standing up. “Fuck,” Wing cursed. Spirit looked closer, “Wait. Something’s not right.” Fiego looked like he was not even trying to stand. It was as if something was making him stand, like if he was a marionette being controlled by a puppeteer. Wing saw a black substance was slowly crawling up to Fiego’s head. “Oh shit,” Reyn screamed, “That’s not Fiego!” Frostbite looked at her, “Then who is it?” Wing searched for any clues, “Fuck, the shadow is taking over his body.” Reyn looked down, shocked, “Fiego’s dead.” This made everyone look at the puppet. The shadow had overtaken everything but his face. Everyone stared in shock and anxiety as it finally covered Fiego’s face. His long lock of hair slowly receded as the hair changed to Sparx’s style. The shadow turned pitch black. Once it opened its eyes, everyone stepped back. Its eyes were the brightest white. All it did was peer at the group while standing completely still.

Wing thought over the whole process, and laid out the options in his head. All he could think about was Sparx. “Alright,” he finally said. Spirit and Reyn both knew what was coming. Wing turned to them, “Can you guys still fight?” Spirit bared her claws, “You don’t even have to ask me,” she said confidently. Reyn cracked her neck, “Of course.” Wing turned to Frostbite, Spike, and Rush, “What about you three?” “Yeah,” Frostbite and Spike said while Rush nodded. Wing faced the shadow, “Sparx has done so much for all of us. He’s given us reasons to live. So that’s why today, he rests while we do this for them.” Wing donned his wings, “And even if we don’t succeed, at least we died trying to protect him.”

At once, they all let Sparx rest while Wing flew, Spirit hovered, Reyn tread water, Spike held on to Rush while he ran, and Frostbite rode on towards the shadow. All for Sparx.

The shadow immediately charged towards Sparx. He braced himself for the attack, while Fiego shot the shadow with a fireball. “Thanks,” Sparx said. Fiego turned to him and raised his arm. Sparx quickly backflipped away before the ground below him turned to inferno. As he was regaining his footing, the shadow grabbed Sparx’s leg and threw him behind. It then grabbed Fiego’s neck and forced him to the ground. The shadow raised it’s fist and was about to strike Fiego’s neck when a flurry of electric bolts struck it’s side. The shadow looked like it was screaming, but no sound came from it. Fiego saw his chance and enveloped it in a cyclone of flame. The shadow staggered backwards as Sparx ran to attack it. Fiego tackled Sparx and punched him with his fists, which were on fire. Sparx kicked him off and electrified his fists. He felt something closing in on him fast. Sparx ducked and saw a purple bolt of electricity strike Fiego. He screamed as electricity was surrounding his body. Sparx ran towards the shadow and leaped into the air. It unleashed it’s own flurry into the air. Sparx tried his best to dodge, but a few hit him, which made him hit the ground before the shadow. It then proceeded to kick Sparx away from it. He flew back and skidded across the ground. Sparx got on his knee and wiped the blood from his mouth. The shadow was walking towards him when a blast of inferno knocked it further away from Sparx. Fiego put his arm down. It looked like he was on his last life, because he struggled while trying to get up. The shadow rose and electrified it’s fist. Sparx got off his knee and electrified his. Fiego set fire to his fist. At once all three ran towards each other and got their fists ready. Sparx and Fiego started screaming, as the shadow maintained a quiet determination. They all punched each others fists, which caused their elements to fight with each other until the force exploded between them all. They all flew away from each other. Fiego skidded away towards the city, the shadow landed with a splat, and Sparx slid back, his body unmoving. Fortunately Wing flew behind him and caught Sparx.

When Fiego stopped rolling, he laid on his back and stared into the sky. A single tear came out of his eye. “I-I failed,” he managed to say. His vision started to fade, so he closed his eyes and let the everlasting sleep come to him.

Wing and Spirit sped after Reyn. They did not see her struggling, so the anxiety in them made them speed up after Frostbite and Rush. “Rush, keep yourself steady,” Spike said. He bent down and put his thumb to the ground. Just then, giant spikes started rising from the ground very quickly. Wing and Spirit evaded each one as they rose up from the ground. Frostbite looked behind him and started shooting icicles towards them. Wing dodged them as well, but Spirit passed through them unfazed.

Frostbite looked ahead and saw they were reaching the edge of the city. Spike was worried, “We can’t fly, man! This is suicide!” Frostbit laughed, “I got you guys don’t worry.” At once, they all disappeared over the horizon. Wing and Spirit stopped at the edge. “Are you sure about this,” Wing asked her. “No,” Spirit said, “but we don’t really have a choice, do we?” She jumped down, followed by Wing.

It took them all a few minutes to reach the Outskirts. Before they reached the ground, Frostbite made a slide out of ice so Rush and Spike would slide to the ground. Once they reached it, Spike sharpened the spikes protruding out of his wrists, Rush started spinning in place, and Frostbite dismounted and sighed a frosty breath while still carrying Reyn. She was still barely conscious enough to listen to her own heartbeat. Behind them, Wing flapped until he set foot to the ground, and Spirit’s lower body reappeared. Frostbite turned around and dropped Reyn in a puddle. “So you guys want to finish this,” he asked. “No,” Spirit replied, “we just want our friend back.” Rush stopped spinning and was glowing orange. “Well,” Frostbite started, “winners take the trophy.” He pointed at Reyn. Wing and Spirit were now pissed. Wing got into position, while Spirit bared her claws and got ready to dig them into her arms. “You know I’ve never seen you fight,” Wing told her. “There is a first for everything,” she replied.

Water started surrounding Frostbite, Rush, and Spike’s feet, hindering their movement. “What the hell,” Spike yelled. They all turned behind them and saw Reyn out of her binds and her arms raised. “Rush,” Frostbite thought quickly and exclaimed, “start running and get out of this!” He tried to freeze the water as it was flowing upwards, but the speed of the water surrounding his body was too fast for him. He saw Spike being suspended in a small body of water, which prevented him from shooting spikes and touching the ground to change the surroundings. Rush, however, managed to escape the grasp by his speed and his heat, which was quickly turning the water to steam. Reyn saw him and immediately suspended water droplets around the area. She looked closely and saw the tiny particles being moved and split in a certain sequence. “Gotcha,” she said to herself. Just then, an arm made entirely of water extended out from her arm and caught Rush by the neck. She then lifted him off the ground so he would not run anywhere. Reyn threw Rush at Frostbite, which then both hit Spike. The impact of this knocked them all unconscious. Reyn took the surrounding water and absorbed it into her body. She then turned to the dumbfounded Wing and Spirit and smiled. “Reyn,” Wing hesitated, “how come you..” “You never asked,” she said confidently. Spirit shook her head, “You mean to tell us that you could’ve escaped all this time?” “No,” Reyn said, “When Fiego took me, his heat had taken the moisture from my body, which made me severely dehydrated and losing consciousness. Then when he passed me to Frostbite, his cold temperature made me want to fall into a deep sleep until he threw me in the puddle. That is when I regained consciousness.” “Wow,” Wing said, “wait till Sparx hears this.” Spirit looked up, “Speak of the devil..” All three looked up and saw a figure falling from the city. Before he hit the ground, he charged his fist and punched to divert his momentum, which caused smoke and dust to fly through the air. When it cleared, Sparx was brushing off the dust from his burnt clothes. He then looked up and waved and said “Hi” in a cheerful tone.

Wing walked up to him and patted his arm, “Looks like he did a number on you.” Sparx laughed, “You should’ve seen what I did to him.” Spirit joined Wing, “Good to see you came back in one piece.” Sparx smiled and turned to Reyn. She was standing there staring back at him. He immediately walked up to her and embraced her. “I’m sorry,” he whispered, “I shouldn’t have never left you. It will never happen again, I’ll see to it.” Reyn was confused. She had the urge to say something, but instead just hugged Sparx back and closed her eyes, wishing that moment would never end.

“Kiss her already!” Sparx opened his eyes and turned to Wing. “Do you know how long we’ve been waiting for you guys to come close to this,” Spirit asked, “Kiss the damn girl already, make her yours!” He blushed and Reyn was turning red, too. “Maybe later,” she said. Sparx looked at her and grinned, which made Reyn turn away and smile. “Let’s go home, guys,” Sparx finally said. They all started walking back to the city and talking about each of their days. While Wing bragged about his fight, Sparx made the leap and took Reyn’s hand into his. Reyn gladly accepted his gesture and closed her fingers around his hand. Both of their hearts raced faster than usual.

Sparx then suddenly stopped walking and let go of Reyn’s hand. His eyes widened as his spine started shivering. Wing and Spirit noticed the cease in movement. Reyn looked at him, “Sparx,” she called out his name. They all looked behind him and saw Sparx’s shadow tapping its foot with its arms crossed. Sparx started walking towards him. Wing took his arm, “Sparx, another day.” Sparx stopped walking, “Don’t you see? Another day means more deaths on my conscience. I need my shadow gone as soon as possible.” Spirit walked up to him, “Sparx,” she said in a worried tone. Sparx turned to them, “You guys swear like I’m going to die,” he chuckled, “Don’t worry about me, I’ll be back alive.” He gave a thumbs up to assure them. Wing let go, and Sparx was about to walk, when he suddenly stopped and turned to Reyn. He walked up to her, tilted her head upwards by her chin, and kissed her on her lips. The complete shock of this made her eyes flutter and stand on her tip-toes. Sparx released and told her under his breath, “I’ll be back soon.” She put her forehead on his chest, “Goodluck.” He embraced her one last time and let go. Sparx then walked to his shadow and stood in front of it.

“We’re gonna finish this,” Sparx told his shadow. Just then, a burst of flame appeared before them. Fiego walked out of it, still badly maimed and scarred. “Oh Fiego,” Sparx greeted him, “what are you doing here?” “Shut the fuck up,” he muttered, “If I can’t beat you, I might as well kill your shadow.” Sparx thought for a moment and laughed, “Well! It looks like we’re in a predicament. I want to kill my shadow, it wants to kill me, and you want to kill my shadow, too. I propose a plan.” Fiego interrupted him, “Up yours.” Sparx became serious, “Fine. A good-old-fashioned free-for-all brawl it is then.”

Sparx charged towards the running Fiego and threw his fist forward. Fiego did the same and met his fist. The clashing elements began to swirl around them both as Sparx knocked Fiego back. He ran towards him while charging a bolt in his right fist. Fiego back-sprung in his hand and kicked Sparx’s arm away from hitting him. When he got back on his feet, Fiego lit his fist on fire and punched Sparx in his stomach, then gave him an uppercut. He then kicked Sparx’s jaw, then his stomach. Sparx flew back as Fiego ran after him and grabbed his neck. He forced Sparx to the ground and dragged him to the wall while he ran. Sparx felt the concrete breaking as he was getting pulled. Fiego pinned Sparx to the wall and said, “Just like old times, eh?” Sparx smiled as he struggled, “Speaking of old, your grip is still loose.” Sparx started prying Fiego’s fingers away from his neck and charged his leg with electricity. Then he kicked Fiego on his right side, which made him skid away from Sparx. He grabbed his side and winced, “I can’t feel pain.” Sparx rubbed his neck, “Your nerves are shot, thanks to my kick.”

Sparx ran after him and leaped into the air while readying his fist. Fiego unleashed a cyclone of fire towards Sparx. Thinking quickly, he spun while diving into the fire and discharged 5,000,000 amps and 1,000,000 volts in order to protect himself. The electric bolts disrupted the flow of the flame until it disappeared. Sparx then punched Fiego with the momentum he gained from spinning. His body skidded as he flew back, then propped up on his feet. But Fiego discovered that Sparx had disappeared. “Boo,” a voice said from behind. Fiego was about to turn around, but Sparx kneed his back and kicked him into the next room. Fiego smashed into the window of the supervisor’s room. Sparx chased after him and was about to jump into the room when suddenly he heard Fiego scream in fury. The room was lit on fire as Sparx jumped in.

The room was a mess. There was a dusty desk left over, although now it was melting through the immense heat. Whatever papers were left over have been immediately burnt up due to Fiego’s anger. He charged towards Sparx and punched him in his stomach. His fist was lit on fire as he was burning a hole in Sparx’s stomach. Sparx yelled in pain as he shoved Fiego’s arm out of the way. He looked at him and saw that Fiego was completely on fire. Fiego took that moment of hesitation and charged towards Sparx again. He sweep-kicked his legs, which made Sparx fall. He tried to stop by putting his hand on the ground, but Fiego hammered his leg down on Sparx’s head. The impact of his head to the ground made a dent in the concrete. Fiego laughed when he saw Sparx had blood dripping out of his nose and mouth. He wiped his nose and mouth with his sleeve and saw that he was bleeding. “It’s been a while since I last saw myself bleed,” Sparx laughed. He got up, only to be punched down by Fiego. Sparx tried again, only to get knocked down again. “There is your place,” Fiego said darkly. Sparx was not giving in though. He was struggling, but seemed to stay off of his knees, no matter how hard Fiego was beating him down.

When the blows stopped landing, Sparx slowly got up. “I will never get on my knees,” he said confidently, “for those who don’t respect family.” Fiego was about to punch him, when Sparx backflipped out of the room. Fiego burnt through the wall and walked out casually. Sparx proceeded to take off his jacket. He threw it close to the doors. Fiego scoffed, “That wasn’t your all back there?” Sparx didn’t answer. He looked at Fiego. He saw liquid electricity coming out of his eyes. Fiego looked confused, but he would not let it faze him. He charged towards Sparx and threw a punch. Sparx grabbed his arm and pulled so he was behind Fiego. He was struggling until Sparx kneed the point where Fiego’s arm and shoulder met. He screamed in pain as Sparx let his arm dangle. He then charged a massive amount of electricity into his right fist and slammed Fiego’s head to the ground.

Sparx’s eyes turned back to normal. “It’s over,” he said. He started to walk to the door when Fiego grabbed his leg. “W-wait,” he struggled to pull himself up, “I-I’m not d-done with you…” Sparx discharged a small bolt of electricity into the back of Fiego’s neck. He went limp and fell back to the floor. “What did you do,” he asked as he struggled to move. Sparx picked up his jacket and threw it over his shoulder, “I short-circuited your nervous system. Don’t worry though, it’ll be back online in a few minutes, which is enough time for me to find my friends.” After a few moments of struggling, Fiego gave in, “Finish me.” Sparx staggered and chuckled, “I’m sorry?” Fiego sounded like he was crying, “If I can’t beat you and my destiny, I would rather die by your hands.” Sparx crouched to Fiego’s level. “Listen Fiego,” Sparx began, “you might not believe it, but I like you. I hate that you tried to kill your sister, but I love that fighter’s spirit in you. That’s why I wanted you to stay. I know you want power, and I want to get stronger. I need a new challenge. So I want you to live, because I want us not to be enemies, but rivals.” He got up and headed for the door. He stopped, “There is something you should know about me, Fiego. I don’t kill people. It’s not my thing.” With that, he put in his jacket and stormed off into the city to find any trail of where his friends could have gone. Behind him, he heard Fiego screaming in distress. Sparx glanced behind him and saw that his tantrum had made the building catch on fire.

Sparx followed the blazing trail left by Fiego. Surprisingly, the trail didn’t look like he was trying to lose Sparx. After a few pointless turns, the trail led him to a warehouse. The same warehouse Fiego and Sparx were about to fight last time.

Sparx packed electricity into his fist and blew the doors wide open. This time I won’t hesitate, he thought. “Fiego,” Sparx yelled into the dark. Fiego walked out of the shadows and said, “You don’t have to yell, I’m here.” He jumped off of the catwalk and landed a few feet away from Sparx. “You trust your friends with Reyn?” he asked. Sparx looked back at the way he came and said, “Why not? They never gave me reason not to.”

“You know, Fiego,” Sparx said, “I’ve been doing alot of thinking since the last time we met.” Fiego scoffed, “About what?” “Why you kept running all this time,” Sparx said. Fiego retaliated with “I wasn’t running, merely planning”, but Sparx interrupted, “Call it what you want, you still ditched at the last second, and I figured out why”, he paused when Fiego started to grin, “You’re afraid.” Fiego’s grin faded. Sparx went on, “You’re afraid that that book your people follow on your world might be true, which would be good or bad. The good would be you defeating me. The bad would be me defeating you, and I think you and I both know it’s bad for you.” Fiego saw where this was going, “What makes you so sure you can beat me?” Sparx touched his neck, “That day when we first met, remember when you gripped my neck? You had such a weak grip. That and all the times you ran away. So I can safely assume that you’re weak.” Fiego started to get furious. “Well,” he was gritting his teeth, “you’re about to see how wrong you are.”

“Wait,” Sparx held up his hand, “I’m not done yet. I know you’ve seen it, too.” Fiego looked confused. “That thing that looks like me. What is it?” Fiego laughed, “Sparx, you already know what it is. It’s your shadow.” Sparx’s eyes widened. “But your shadow is different from the rest,” Fiego said, “When other shadows find their owner, they would usually stop at nothing to kill them, but yours is different. It doesn’t attack you when it spots you. It seems like it’s planning something else, something more sinister. I know shadows don’t have souls, but it seems as though when you two were split, it took a fragment of yours. Sparx, your shadow is a pretty fascinating creature. If it wanted to, it could take control of all the shadows and make it’s own army.” Sparx was thinking that he should have finished it off when he had it’s chance. “But,” Fiego said, “it won’t matter. Supposedly if I kill you, the shadow will cease to exist, which would mean that I have cleared my destiny twice, since you two are both equally matched. Now, are we going to continue talking,” Fiego lit his fists on fire, “or is this going to be the beatdown you have craved for a while?” Sparx laughed and charged electricity in his fists, “I don’t know,” he said, “are you gonna run?” Fiego responded with ” I’m done running” and charged towards Sparx.

The trio dove towards the city. Sparx slowed down his momentum by forcing his feet on the wall. The skid marks he caused were discharging small bits of electricity. He yelled a cry of joy as they all fell. Wing looked at Sparx, “So what’s the plan, boss?” Sparx looked at both of them and said, “I’m going after Reyn, you guys back me up if others come.” They both nodded.

Wing was about to take Spirit and carry her when she pushed him away lightly. “Are you sure,” Wing exclaimed, “we’re reaching the ground pretty fast.” “Trust me, I wanna try something,” she replied. Spirit closed her eyes and called to Roth. “Make me soar like these guys,” she demanded. Spirit’s body began to break down from her legs up. Sparx and Wing looked in amazement as she was turning into a crimson-black smoke. All that was left of her was her torso, which was slowly fading in and out of the smoke. When she opened her eyes, they were the same pitch black, but instead of red(berserk) or yellow(controlled), her pupils became a light teal color, which showed that Roth was assisting her in some way. Sparx and Wing both stared in amazement. “H-how,” Wing stuttered. Spirit smiled through the smog, “Long story, I’ll tell you guys later.” They all hit ground level and sped after Reyn’s captor.

Fiego glanced behind him and saw the trio gaining speed. “Well sister,” he told Reyn, who was tied and losing conciousness, “looks like you finally did find a home. They’re even risking their lives for you. So astounding is the freeq’s life, don’t you think?” All Reyn could muster was a muffled curse. “Oh and sorry about your fatigue,” he added, “You know what happens when extreme heat comes in contact with moisture.” He looked back again and saw them coming closer. This could be a problem, he thought to himself. Fiego shot fire into the sky. Then Frostbite came out and caught up to him, while Spike, who was gripped to Rush, came speeding along to Fiego’s side. Fiego handed the unconscious Reyn to Frostbite and said, “Take her to the relay point.” Frostbite slung her over his shoulder while riding, “What are you going to do?” Fiego’s fire grew brighter, “I’m gonna finish this.” With that, he blasted fire out his fists and feet into the south part of the city, while Frostbite, Spike, and Rush continued going straight.

Sparx, Wing, and Spirit saw the sudden role change. Sparx was aiming forward until Wing yelled, “Sparx! Go take care of Fiego!” Sparx turned to Spirit, “We’ll get Reyn,” she said, “don’t worry about her.” Sparx didn’t think twice to follow Fiego into the city, while Wing and Spirit followed Reyn.

Sparx immediately sprinted back to his home. Wing found the strength in him to ignore the pain in his wing to pick up Spirit and take to the air with one great flap of his wings. Instead of taking the conventional route home, they both zig-zagged through the alleys of the city to get there faster. Once they would make it to the V.E.S.P. government building, it would be a straight shot to their home. Sparx unknowingly met up with Wing once they arrived in the city’s center. They glanced at each other while running and sped up.

Sparx did not stop at the foot of the building. He shifted his momentum and sprinted up the side. Wing darted upwards to the roof. Sparx overshot his speed and flew a ways upwards. He landed on the roof with a bang. Wing slowly stopped his wings and descended while letting go of Spirit. Immediately they all started screaming Reyn’s name while searching the rooms of the building. Sparx even searched the bowels of the abandoned building. But there was no sign of her anywhere.

Sparx stormed up to the den with his hands on his head. “Fuck, fuck, fuck,” he cursed himself, “I knew I should have stayed behind, but I had to go on or Wing could have stayed behind, or Spirit, but fuck she’s gone and it’s all my fault.” Spirit grabbed Sparx, “Sparx! Calm the fuck down!” He kept chastising himself. Spirit had no choice but to slap him. “Listen to me,” she demanded, “we have leads already, so we know she didn’t go out by herself.” Wing spoke from outside, “Spike and Frostbite both said they were stalling for something, so we know they both had a hand in this.” Spirit continued for him, “And it’ll do us and her no good just to pace back and forth cussing ourselves out.” Sparx stopped chastising, but still looked anxious. “Wing is searching where they could have gone,” Spirit said. She called out to him, “Did you find anything?” Wing was outside surveying the streets with his eyesight. “No not ye…,” he saw streaks of fire. At the head of it was a figure flying away from their home. “Wait! Got em,” he exclaimed, “if we hurry, we can catch them.”

Spirit turned to Sparx. “There, you see Sparx?” She tried to calm him down. But it did not work, since Sparx was storming outside. Wing turned around and stuck out his arm so his talons were preventing Sparx from going alone. “Wait man,” he said. Sparx pushed his arm away and started for the edge. When he is silent is when his rage is at its maximum. Sparx doesn’t have an angry face, but when he is at his limit, a vein always pops up on his right temple. “Sparx!” Wing punched him on his stomach. Sparx doubled over and tried to catch his breath. “You can’t go it alone,” Wing said, “you don’t know if he has backup, and we can assume he does. I’m tired of you doing this kind of shit alone. I don’t want you to die just yet.” “Me neither,” Spirit added, “and I don’t think Reyn does either.” Sparx got up and discharged lightly. “Don’t fucking strike me again man.” “Well, it’s the only way your stubborn-ass would listen,” Wing said, “now you’re waisting time here. We won’t help unless you ask us for help.” Sparx still looked anxious, but relaxed after a few moments. He spoke, “I’m not going to ask you guys for help….” Wing and Spirit looked discouraged. Sparx continued, “because I dont have to. Remember what we agreed to: When one of us is in trouble, all of us help. We’re family, we don’t need to be asked to do anything.” Sparx raised his hand to welcome Wing and Spirit’s hands together. Wing grinned, “That’s what I wanted to hear,” he met Sparx’s hand with his claw. Spirit joined in, “There is the man I missed.” She put her hand on top.

At once, all three of them walked to the edge of the building. They all saw a glimpse of Fiego fleeing into the city. Sparx looked to Wing and Spirit, “All for one?” Wing and Spirit both said simultaneously, “Fuck the rest.” All three fell forward and started after Reyn, which would ensue the start of the great race heard all over Velah City.

Sparx stared at his home. He wondered why it pointed at it. Or what it knows…

Wing was trudging through the snow to the city center. How does Sparx do it, he thought as he walked. “Wing!” He turned and saw Spirit staggering his way. He looked at her legs and saw three large incisions on each thigh. “Emily!!” She tried to run his way, but fell in the snow. Wing ran over to her and helped her up. “What happened”, he asked concerned. “I’ll tell you later,” she smiled. Wing picked her up off her feet. “My nerves are shot to hell,” Spirit said as she rubbed her scratches, “all I need is time to rest and I’m good.” She looked up and saw Wing’s makeshift bandage. “What happened,” she asked. “I had a scuffle with Frostbite,” he grinned, “the bastard got me with an icicle. Who knew it would work if I listened to you?” She punched him playfully. “But the thing that bugged me,” he spoke seriously, “he said that he was stalling for something.” Spirit looked shocked, “I was fighting with Spike and Rush,” Wing scowled at the names, “and Spike said the same thing!” “Whatever it is,” Wing began, “we know they are working together.”

Wing carried Spirit and began walking. Something made him look up to their home. Spirit instinctively looked after.

All three of them realized that they have made it far into the world. They were happy with their lives, because they all has a family. Sparx, Wing, Spirit, and Reyn.

And Reyn.

And Reyn.

Reyn, the shy girl from another world, came into their world in a pod, because she was being hunted by her brother Fiego.

Her brother Fiego.

Her brother Fiego.

Reyn’s brother Fiego, who not one of the trio have fought today.

Even though they were all separate, Sparx, Wing, and Spirit had formed the same scared, shocked look. At the same time, they all screamed the same thing, “RRRREEEEYYYYYNNN!!!!!!!!!”

The shadow immediately lunged for Sparx before he could say one of his witty remarks. What was strange about it’s movement was that it’s legs seemed to have melted into a pool of darkness, then slithers quickly wherever there is no light. It struck Sparx across his face, then punched him in the stomach. Sparx bent over to catch his breath, but the shadow kneed him in his stomach once again and swept his legs, which made Sparx fall forward. He took a moment to breathe, then slammed his fist on the ground out of frustration. I can’t read its moves, he thought to himself, it’s too fast. “No more screwing around,” Sparx said. The shadow appeared before him and was about to kick Sparx’s head, but he saw him coming and raised his hand to block the kick. The impact of it made Sparx’s hand shoot with pain, but he wouldn’t give in. Sparx made a bolt where the shadow’s foot was and was about to discharge, but the shadow backflipped and disappeared in the absence of light.

Sparx got up. He tried to feel where the shadow went. A sharp, crackling noise shot through the dark silence. Sparx looked ahead and saw the shadow making an electric bolt, only the crackling sounded more vicious and the color was a dark purple instead of Sparx’s yellow. It raised it’s arm and the bolt sped through the darkness towards Sparx. He smiled. Dumbass doesnt know that can’t hurt me, he thought. He raised his hand, hoping he would absorb it. The bolt came flying, hit Sparx’s hand, and disappeared into his palm on impact. Sparx’s eyes went wide and his pupils shrunk. He felt the most excruciating pain in his arm. He felt like the bolt was moving around and destroying the inside, scraping each bone, short-circuiting the nerves and pulling them apart, ripping apart the muscle fibers. Sparx grabbed his arm and started screaming. Once the pain faded, he found that his arm wouldn’t move, only his fingers were reacting.

The shadow lunged for Sparx again. This time, he dodged it’s swing. The shadow swiped for Sparx’s face again, only this time he bent backwards to have it miss. What was strange about the way the shadow was fighting was that it was fighting just as Sparx would. If I miss the first punch, he thought, next I would aim… Sparx scoot backwards, making the shadow miss his stomach. Sparx followed the moves he already knew in his head, and was successfully dodging everything it was throwing at him. I can’t fight like this, Sparx thought to himself. He discharged to make the shadow move away. He suddenly felt the feeling back in his arm. “Whoa,” Sparx said with surprise, “that must have done it.” He looked at the shadow who was staring back at him. “I’m back”, Sparx said in a sing-song voice.

He surrounded his fists with electricity and beat them together. The electricity crackled lightly as it came in contact. Sparx ran to the shadow and started swinging. Each time the shadow would dodge, it would come back with it’s own flurry of punches. When Sparx was hit, he would strike the shadow in the same place. This kept going for a few moments. It’s like fighting a mirror, Sparx thought. He was about to deliver a blow to the shadow’s head, but the shadow caught the fist and discharged, causing pain to Sparx. The shadow was about to do the same, but Sparx caught the fist and discharged, too. They were both surrounded by an electrical field. It made the lights in the warehouse lights flicker, and some blew up by the sheer intensity. Fuck, Sparx panicked, this is getting nowhere. I gotta do something it won’t expect, he thought. He came up with an idea, but he didn’t like it because it seemed too barbaric. “Oh well”, he said out loud. Sparx spread out their arms so that they would be closer. Sparx brought his head back and forced it towards the shadows head. The shadow lost it’s grip and fell backwards. Sparx staggered backwards and rubbed his forehead. “Ow, damn”, he exclaimed.

The shadow stood back up. Sparx got ready for what was going to happen. It walked towards him. He flinched and discharged. The shadow stopped right in front of him and pointed up behind Sparx. He hesitated, then lit a bolt in his fist for protection. Sparx realized the shadow was pointing at his home, which only the top was visible. He couldn’t let it know that he lived there, though. “A building”, Sparx spoke, “what about it?” The shadow lowered it’s arm and started walking back towards the darkness. “Wait,” Sparx called, “Wait!!” It kept going and started fading into the shadows. “WAIT,” he yelled. Sparx shot a bolt towards him, only to have it miss because the shadow had faded away. Fortunately, the bolt had hit the generator, which powered the entire warehouse. All the lights came on, which showed Sparx that he was alone. He looked sad, “Why does everybody run?”

Wing sped towards the ice-cold south part of Velah City. What he saw shocked him. The streets were paved with ice, the buildings were covered in snow, and it seemed as though civilians and the parked vehicles were frozen solid. But what was weird were the civilians. They looked like they were trying to run from something. Or someone.

Wing saw a person standing in the middle of the street. He had his hood on and was holding a snowboard. Wing landed in a pile of snow. The person heard this and turned around. “I was hoping for Sparx,” he said, “but it looks like you’ll have to do.” Wing ruffled his feathers to get rid of the snow. “So I take it your Frostbite,” Wing said. “And you must be Wing,” he smiled, “I’ve seen you fly around, you’re pretty fast.” “Why thank you,” Wing took it with pride. “So that’s why if I can’t be number one with speed, I guess I’ll have to be number two,” Frostbite took out his board and threw it on the ground, “no matter what it takes.”

They both stared at each other for a few moments. Then, without warning or hesitation, Frostbite sped off into the blizzard, while Wing gave chase. He caught up with Frostbite. He smile and said, “Since we’re more comfortable in the air, this is how we’ll fight.” Wing grinned and nodded in agreement. Frostbite started throwing snowballs at him. The first round hit Wing, and he thought they hurt more than they would. He looked at his arm and saw dozens of tiny ice shards embedded. Bastard, he thought to himself. Next, Frostbite made an icicle and launched it at Wing. This time he was fast enough to dodge and go in a different lane. He looked ahead with his vision and saw his chance. “Take the bait,” Wing said to himself. He glanced behind him and saw Frostbite catching up quickly. Gotcha, Wing thought. The street they were on forked, and on the corner he saw a building with the windows aligning. Wing started flying faster and tucked his wings tightly around his body. He then started spinning, creating a speeding bullet effect. Wing smashed through the first window, and came out the second. He spread his wings and continued flying. He looked behind him and all he saw was the building with smashed windows. “Lost him,” he said to himself.

An icicle speared Wing, clipping his left wing. He flinched at the pain, but continued flapping. He looked all around him, searching for Frostbite. Another spear was flying towards him from above. Wing barrel-rolled to the side and saw Frostbite above him snowboarding on a trail of snow. “You must have big balls to keep flying like that,” he yelled from above. “I’ve felt worse,” Wing replied. The pain in his wing was slowly going away. Frostbite laughed, “For a bird, you’re not that smart. Open wound plus extremely low temperature equals?” Wing realized where he was getting at. He had to cover his wound up with something. So Wing sped to a rooftop and held his wing close. He ripped off his hood and his long-sleeve shirt sleeves. He folded his hood so it would be long enough to cover the entire opening. Wing winced as he placed the hood on his wound and added pressure. Then, he used the sleeves to keep the hood in place by tying them around his wing. Frostbite landed across from him with a backflip to dismount. “That’s pretty clever,” he said. Wing stretched his wing out to test his makeshift bandage. “I picked it up from my girlfriend,” he explained, “the hood acts as warm padding, and the sleeves tie it all together. It’s not much, but it’ll have to do.”

“Tell me something,” Frostbite spoke seriously, “you could be all on your own with your speed and endurance and attitude. Why do you hang with a kid like Sparx?” Wing laughed to himself. “I’ve been asking myself that same question all these years,” he said, “and I realized that it’s not only because he needs somebody to help him whenever he falls on his ass. I mean seriously, this kid is going to get himself killed one day.” Frostbite laughed. Wing’s grin faded, “It’s also because I really never had a friend. All my life I’ve been judged for something I may or may not be. I’ve been called a lot of things; obnoxious, jerk, asshole. But with Sparx, he never once judged me before knowing me. In fact, I don’t think he ever judged anyone in his life. He once told me that he liked Spirit, because she went through a lot of shit in her life that no other person would be able to live through. He told me that she had an soul made of steel. That’s what I like about Sparx, he doesn’t just look with his eyes, he feels with his heart. He is my best friend.” Wing beat his chest with his fist, “Every guys gotta have a bro, and Sparx is my bro.”

Frostbite yawned, “Is that it? I almost cried, congratulations.” He stretched, “So was that all you had back there?” Behind his hair, Wing raised an eyebrow, which meant that he was annoyed. He grinned, “You haven’t seen me serious yet.” Wing disappeared before Frostbite’s eyes. Frostbite looked ahead and saw Wing’s figure flying ahead, then shoot straight up. Frostbite followed him.

Wing was quickly getting colder. As his altitude increased, his oxygen intake was getting lower, which meant that he was slowly losing his strength. But he trained up in the stratosphere, so if he was slowly losing his strength, then that meant Frostbite was losing it two times faster. He glanced behind him and saw Frostbite chasing him. Now, he thought. Wing immediately stopped flapping his wings and dove straight for him. The impact of the collision caused Frostbite to lose his grip and his board.

The high-speed wind was slapping Wing’s wound. He was in a tremendous amount of pain, but he held his grip on his opponent. “What are you doing?!” Frostbite yelled through the wind. Wing just held his composure, but dug his talons into Frostbite’s arms. The ground was nearing faster. Wing was timing his fall. “It’s over,” he said to Frostbite. He let go of him and used his body to kick away and land on solid ground. Frostbite crashed in a pile of snow head first. His board came after and landed in the snow. “If the snow wasn’t there,” Wing said, “you would have died.” Frostbite pulled his head out from the snow and ferociously coughed. He started vomiting blood. “Not bad,” he said after he regained his composure, “I think we’re done here. I’ve stalled long enough.” “Stalled?” Wing asked. Frostbite just took his bored and rode off into the city. Wing was about to give chase, but his wound stopped him from flying. Whatever he’s stalling for, Wing thought as he held his wing, it can’t be good. “I gotta tell Sparx,” he said out loud.

Spike and Rush both turned to the voice. Spirit walked out from behind the bins with claws bared. “I think I recall telling both of you that if I saw you guys again,” she closed her eyes for a moment, then opened them, revealing her eyes that are now pitch black with yellow pupils, “I would kill you both.” Spike laughed, “A familiar face! Haha I’ve been meaning to give you payback for embarrassing me and my brother that night.” While he was talking, Spike kept popping out and retracting a spike from his wrist. “You haven’t seen us practice,” he said with a smug look, “we grew up. I learned how to completely master my surroundings, and Rush has a few tricks up his sleeve, too.” Spirit was getting impatient. Her blood was pumping faster than usual, “Come on already!! I’m fucking thirsty.”

Rush disappeared, which made Spirit stagger. Before she knew it, he reappeared in front of her and punched her in the stomach. Spirit didn’t even flinch. Rush looked confused, he was sure that high-speed punch would cause a significant amount of damage. “You forget who you’re fighting here,” Spirit said. Rush ran a few feet back, getting ready for what was going to come. Spirit slammed her stomach for intimidation and smiled. Then she started fading away before Rush’s eyes. Rush sped toward her and punched, but she had already disappeared, leaving an after-image of herself. She then appeared behind Rush and swiped, only to have it miss by him running ahead. Just then, a spike shot up from the ground and nearly gored Spirit’s foot. Luckily, it was an inch away from her eye. She looked to the side and saw Spike with his palm flat on the ground. He was grinning at Spirit. “Two versus one huh,” she wiped the sweat from her head, “this is fun.” She charged towards Spike and was going to swipe at him, but Rush blocked her and pushed her back. Spike then shot her in the stomach with a spike. Spirit flinched a little, but then regained her composure and broke the spike, leaving the tip still lodged inside her. Spike looked impressed, and Spirit wiped the blood that was oozing out from her mouth with a smile.

“Not bad,” Spike said, “You’ve been practicing, I can tell.” Spirit scoffed, “How? Back then you didn’t hit me once.” Spike shot another at her, but this time she caught it snapped it by flexing her grip. She smiled and lunged towards him, only to be knocked back by Rush again, but this time he ran circles around Spirit. “You see,” Spike sounded cocky. Spirit almost vomited, “we learned some new tricks over the years.” Spirit saw his blurred figure on the other side of Rush. She tried to reach out, but she felt a strong burning sensation on her claw. She pulled it back with pain and saw that it was smoking. “He’s learned how to create mass friction between him and the air around him,” Spike went on, “right now, he is super-heating his entire body. And as you saw with me, I can manipulate my surroundings to make it devastating for my target.” Rush finally stopped and stood next to Spike. He was literally glowing orange and sizzling. “Now he’s three times stronger than before,” Spike explained, “and each time he moves, he gets brighter and hotter.” Rush disappeared again. Spirit felt a burning impact across her stomach. She bent over and tried to catch her breath, but she felt another impact on her neck. Spirit got on her hands and knees from the force. Then all she felt were impacts on both sides of her. She guessed that he was kicking her.

“Get up.”

Spirit’s blood started pumping alot faster. That voice sounded way too mature to be either Spike’s or Rush’s. “Who said that,” she said out loud. Rush stopped and stood next to Spike. They both looked confused. “What are you talking about,” Spike demanded. Spirit ignored him and stood. “Who are you,” she asked.

“My name is Roth, prince of hell. As for my whereabouts, I’m inside your blood.”

“Great, another deal,” Spirit complained.

“There is no deal, just help. I’ve been watching you fight, and I have to say, you have spunk. Allow me to be at your aid. I can promise you a seat in the Hierarchy as my queen when I inherit my world.”

What have I got to lose, Spirit thought. Spike and Rush still looked confused. “Okay,” she said out loud, “what do I have to do?”

“I’m in your blood. You can figure it out from there.”

“Oh dammit,” Spirit said. She hesitated for a moment. “Well, here goes everything.” She dug her claws into her thighs and ripped apart the flesh. “What the fuck are you doing!” Spike exclaimed. Spirit looked down in pain and realized that the blood was flowing upwards instead of towards the ground. She was scared and too weak to look, but she felt something huge forming behind her. Spike and Rush stared in awe as the being known as Roth formed. He was a torso with three claws on each arm. Behind him sprouted two pairs of wings that were spreading outwards. Roth had two jaws and four eyes, who were the same color as Spirit’s in her current form. Roth was completely made from Spirit’s blood. Spirit herself was morphing, too. She had become much paler, but was becoming more active. Horns were slowly coming out of her forehead. Blood was flowing down her arms and hardened when they reached her claws.

Roth stretched. “Its been a while since I came out here,” he said in a dark, guttural voice, “I forgot how roomy it is out here. Hell is way too cramped.” Spirit started to feel dizzy. “What is this feeling?” Her vision started to fade. “Fight it,” Roth demanded, “In all my lifetime, there hasn’t been a single human that can hold back berserk. Fight it, or I’ll lose all respect for you.” Spirit started grinning and laughing maniacally, “It’s okay, haha I like this feeling. I feel… hyper, jumpy… hungry.” She then remembered Spike and Rush, who were just standing and staring at Roth. Spirit pointed at them, “Now,” she sounded evil, “which fucker wants to die first?”

Spike stood still, then burst out laughing. Rush started smiling. “Hey Rush,” Spike began, “I think we’ve stalled enough.” Spirit was confused, “Stalled? For what?” Spike grabbed onto Rush’s sleeve, “You’ll see. Let’s go, Rush.” With that, they sped off into the city.

Spirit started panting. “Why me,” she asked Roth. “I saw the way you took down Necro,” he said, “it’s about time somebody knocked him down a few pegs.” He went on, “I see big things for you in hell. You know how to summon me. Now, you should figure out what they were stalling for.” Roth started breaking down and re-entered Spirit. Her wound was still there, but stopped bleeding. She lost her horns and was slowly regaining her color. She regained her full consciousness. “Well,” Spirit started, “I’ll have to find the guys first.”

It took a few minutes for Sparx to get up. Wing and Spirit were outside on the roof staring out into the city. “Get up”, Wing yelled. He threw a rock at Sparx and it landed on his head. He tumbled off the couch and staggered to where they were standing. Once he saw the city, he straightened up.

The city was under terror. To the north, the rich side, there was something zooming all around the neighborhoods, causing destruction and panic. To the south, the downtown district, there were streams of ice and blankets of snow on the buildings. To the east. To the east, the trading centers, there was a massive concentration of shadow activity in the ruins of an old packaging warehouse.

“Where is Reyn”, Sparx asked. “She is still asleep, I told her to stay put”, Spirit said, “Century’s of not sleeping knocked her out cold I guess.” Sparx was worried. This was the first time she would be alone. But it couldn’t be helped. The city needed them, and they couldn’t turn their back on it.

Sparx turned to Wing and nodded. Spirit jumped on the of the roof, and Sparx and Wing joined after. They all jumped off simultaneously and dove towards the ground. While falling, Wing looked to Sparx, “So what’s the plan?” Sparx looked ahead and studied the three locations. “You take the South”, he told Wing, “and Spirit,” she looked at Sparx, “take the North. I got the East.” “Right”, Wing and Spirit said simultaneously. Wing wrapped his arm around Spirit’s waist and held tight. He sped towards the North to drop her off. Sparx slammed the ground in front of him and sped off towards the East.

Wing landed in an alley. He let go of Spirit and hugged her. “Be careful”, he warned. He gave her a peck on the cheek and flew off towards his destination. Spirit walked out on the road and searched for anything weird. She heard a voice coming from the alley across from her. She crept towards the voice and hid behind a couple of trash bins when she could make out two figures. The voice spoke, “I told you to go! I can take care of them here, go to the East!” He sounded mad. A tall figure just stood there, staring down at the short person. “Oh shit”, Spirit complained out loud when she recognized them.

Wing sped towards the snow. Ahead, he saw cars and people frozen in place. In the middle of the street, he saw a person with a blue hoodie and a snowboard. Wing flapped his wings to a slow halt and landed in a pile of snow. The person heard this and turned around. “I was hoping for Sparx,” he said, “but it looks like you’ll have to do.” Wing ruffled his feathers to get rid of the snow. “So I take it your Frostbite,” Wing said. “And you must be Wing,” he smiled, “I’ve seen you fly around, you’re pretty fast.” “Why thank you,” Wing took it with pride. “So that’s why if I can’t be number one with speed, I guess I’ll have to be number two,” Frostbite took out his board and threw it on the ground, “no matter what it takes.”

Sparx came to a screeching halt in front of the warehouse. There were V.E.S.P. vehicles parked outside. “In there,” an official said disdainfully. Sparx walked up to the doors. They opened to let a few units out. The one that was being helped out lost his helmet and was as pale as the moon. He turned to Sparx and started screaming, “Like him! The nightmare looked like him!! Kill him!” The other units tried to contain him as they moved away. Sparx had an idea of what he was going to be dealing with. He went inside and instantly got the chills. “Hello,” he called out, although he wished he hadnt. It was pitch black inside except for one flickering lightbulb ahead of him. Under the light, Sparx made out the look-alike just standing there staring at him.

“I just talked with Fiego”, Sparx told Wing. “What!”, he said almost too loudly. Luckily, Reyn and Spirit were out again. Wing put down his soda, “Why didn’t you tell me? I could have helped you out”, he asked. “I had to do it myself. And wouldn’t have helped if you came either, he ran at the last second”, Sparx sounded a little down. Wing gave him a disappointed look, “You could have at least told me. If you had said you wanted to go alone, I would have respected that.” The bell rang, letting them know the girls were home. Wing looked at Sparx, “At least think about what I told you.” He went to let the girls in.

A week passed. The city was quiet since the almost-battle. The only crimes were just a few robberies. There were no demons, thanks to Spirit, and no shadow attacks. This could either be a blessing, or an omen.

The crew were getting ready to go to bed. Wing and Spirit retreated to their room, Reyn took over Sparx’s room, and Sparx laid on the couch in the den. “It’s amazing”, he thought to himself, “she learned how to sleep just by being around us.” This was the last thing he thought before passing out from sleep. But not even a few hours later, he was awakened by the sound of a piercing siren throughout the silent night.

Sparx blasted his usual current before touching ground. He did his forward flip and started walking to Market in East. He always has the same route in his head: keep heading east while passing through Capital Center. Sparx loves to pass through the uptight center of Velah City. He listens to the corporate and politician’s critiques and judgements while Sparx laughs his soul away.

“Hey! Are you Sparx?” A voice was calling him. He turned around and saw a trail of ice melting away. A kid, about his size, was running toward him. He was wearing a blue sweater, winter pants, and regular shoes. He donned a bandana tied around his blond hair and wore goggles. Strapped to his back was a snowboard.

“Yeah, do I know you?” Sparx asked. “You don’t know me, but I know you. Hell, the whole city has heard of you and your crew at least once,” the stranger said, “My name is Frostbite, and I challenge you to a race.” Sparx’s eyes lit up at the thought of a challenge. “I heard you were the fastest living being in all the Factions, and I use the word ‘were’ literally.” Sparx couldn’t help but feel a little offended, but it was nothing smoking this amateur at his game couldn’t help. He figured since he was headed toward Market anyway, that would be the route. “First to the East wins,” he said. Frostbite unstrapped his snowboard and placed it underneath his feet. It stuck to him like glue. He caught Sparx looking and said, “It’s essentially the same as licking a frosty metal pole.” He then shot snow out of his palms and made a path in mid-air. “Don’t fall behind,” he said with a smirk.

Within the blink of an eye, they both sped off and raced toward Market. Sparx was amazed at how Frostbite kept up so gracefully. He would make hills and valleys for him to speed up, and on occasion he would ride on the sides of the passing buildings. And to show off even more, Frostbite would stop his snow stream to do an aerial trick and continue riding.

Sparx was hit with a snowball and tumbled forward before getting back in his feet. “Oh it’s like that, is it,” Sparx asked while wiping the ice off his cheek. Frostbite threw two more snowballs, then created an ice lance and threw it to Sparx’s feet. He jumped toward a building and bounced off the wall. Sparx ditched the road they were both on and ran in the next block. He saw Frostbite between the passing buildings and try to get to his side. “Now is my time,” Sparx grinned. He charged a bolt to his right fist and got ready to throw it. He saw Frostbite slow down. The trail he was leaving behind was melting faster. Sparx started to sweat. “Next time. It’s getting too hot for me.” Frostbite turned around and headed back East. Sparx slowed down and made his bolt disappear. Frostbite was right, it started to get really hot. Sparx’s jacket was already stained with sweat. It must be the smog, he thought. But he felt the factory-produced smog weather before, and it had never before made him sweat. Whatever, he thought. He was already at Market. Sparx went in and was greeted with a smiling face from the owner. Sparx went and looked for everything Spirit told him to look for. When he took out his money, the owner pushed the money back and said, “No, no. Your money is no good here. You and your friend saved the only thing I have left in this world.” Behind him, a little girl who seemed all too familiar peeked out at Sparx from behind the owner. It was the girl who was almost eaten by the giant worm yesterday. “So from now on,” he said, “everything in this shop is available to you and your friends. Thanks for helping this city out.” No problem,” Sparx said with a smile.

The time for Sparx’s decision had come. He decided it would be best for everyone that they wouldn’t know about the talk he had with Fiego. So on the fifth month, he ran to the east warehouse Fiego told him to be at.

Once he arrived, Sparx started to hesitate. His heart started to beat faster than usual. He was scared, though he never liked to admit it. So he did what he does best, suck it up and take what was coming to him. He opened the doors with such force they slammed to each side, which almost made the building shake. It was a three room warehouse with catwalks surrounding the main room. It was filled with old crates, cobwebs, and dust. The smell of rotted meat drifted through the air. It was an old slaughter house used when meat was at an abundance. Now it’s nothing but ruins, just like most other buildings in the city.

In the middle of the room, Fiego was sitting cross-legged with his back facing the front door. He sensed that Sparx came alone. Fiego got up, turned around, and said, “Is it safe to say that you saw through my lie?” While grinning, Sparx replied, ” You can say I guessed.” “There was something that was true though”, Fiego said, “we were best friends. The only way I’ll get back home is to kill her. But now I realized I just want her gone. And now that I met you, you’re gonna be the first to go.” Sparx got into position, “So what are we standing here talking for? Let’s do this.” Fiego lit his fists on fire, then slowly let them fade away. Sparx was confused, “What are you doing?” Fiego thought for a while and finally said, “You know what Sparx? I have a better idea.” Before he could finish, Sparx interrupted him, “Oh no, don’t you fucking back down now! We had a deal!” “I know we had a deal, but now isn’t the time to settle it. This fight will come soon, don’t worry about it,” Fiego said calmly. Sparx ran up to him and swung his fist, but only to have graze the flame where Fiego once stood. The fire dissipated into the air.

Sparx was mad, and it was the first time somebody got to him fully. He beat his fists into the ground and discharged electricity until he was close to passing out. Then he screamed into the air until his voice gave out. All he wanted now what to beat his fists into Fiego’s face until he was deformed. He knew it wasn’t good to feel this way, but he didn’t care at the moment. Three times Fiego delayed the fight, which made Sparx more and more impatient. After he cooled down, Sparx started making the trip home. The only thing that kept him sane was that he knew he could defeat Fiego, which brought him to thinking something that was entirely true. It almost made Sparx laugh. So he decided that he would tell Fiego the next time he saw him.

———————-

A flash fire lit the room. He walked out of the flames and took his seat before the three people. “What did you call us in for,” one of them said. He was wearing blue and had a snowboard strapped to his back. The other two were short and tall. The one sitting down replied, “I have a proposition for all of you.” The short one yelled out, “How the fuck did you think we would help you?” The one sitting pointed to the blue one, “Me and him clicked somehow, but you,” he surrounded him with fire, “are pissing me off, and I can kill you like that,” he snapped his fingers and the fire dissipated, “but I won’t, because I find you and your brother a worthwhile fight.” The short one scoffed. “Alright, alright,” the blue one said, “what is this plan you’ve told me about?” The one sitting smiled and laughed maliciously.

The trio decided to teach Reyn the basics of their life for the next month. Wing would tell her whether to fight or run, depending on the situation. Sparx would teach her how to fight. Spirit would tell her the facts that run Velah City’s hypocritical society. They also decided that, for her own safety, Reyn would not be allowed to venture by herself unless someone were to go with her.

A month has passed, and it was time to restock the fridge again. Spirit decided that this would be a good opportunity to give Reyn her own sense of style. The boys went to Market, while the girls headed downtown. They would meet in the City Center.

After saying see you later, Sparx and Wing started walking east to the usual trading center. People stared in awe as they saw the two saviors walking casually. Some clapped for them, while others boo’ed. Most humans didn’t like freeqs because they thought they were a nuisance. Other people didn’t like them because they thought they could handle everything by themselves. Either way, the city’s hate seemed to rise every year that passes.

Sparx and Wing passed by an electronics store. Don’t stop, don’t stop, Sparx thought as he spedwalked passed the store. “Hey wait Sparx”, Wing said while he stared into the window. Sparx sighed deeply and turned around to walk back to Wing. “Why do you continue to torture yourself when we walk by? You know we can never afford it”, he told Wing. He was staring at a pair of portable speakers. He had always wanted to fly while playing music. “Shut up. Let a guy dream”, Wing said. Sparx could tell he was already gone just by the sound of his voice. “Right. Well I’ll just be circling the block then”, Sparx said. Wing mumbled something that sounded like approval. With that, he was off.

Sparx started walking. He passed by different kinds of stores, including restaurants, furniture stores, and banks. A few feet away he saw an open-air cafe. Just this place and turn the corner, he thought to himself. Sparx was about to turn the corner when somebody called to him. “Hey Sparky”, they called out. Sparx looked around to see whos familiar voice it was. He couldn’t identify the disgusted faces around him. Just then he felt a flash of heat. Sparx followed where the blast came from. He looked down to the person sitting casually in the cafe. He wore sneakers, shorts with a chain hanging, and a tanktop with some sort of writing. Pitch-black eyes stared back through a long strip of hair. Sparx immediately was shocked, then curled his hand into a fist and was about to discharge when the boy raised his hand. “I wouldn’t do that”, he warned, “with all the people around, you wouldnt want them to get hurt.” Sparx relaxed but not so much that he wouldnt release his fist. “What are you doing here Fiego”, he demanded. He smiled and replied, “Oh you know, just sitting here drinking hot water while looking at the clouds.” He went on, “You know we don’t have clouds in my world? All we have is a sun that shines light on us non-stop,” Fiego drank, “but here, the clouds hide the light.” Sparx couldn’t help but feel dark intentions. Fiego kicked the chair across from him and motioned Sparx to sit. He took the offer. “You’re probably wondering about the clothes,” Fiego said, “alot can happen in a month. I took a handful of odd jobs around this city. Stealing is for the lifeless.” “What happened to your voice, “Sparx asked. “Oh, well just by being around different species, my race can learn the different pronunciations and slang. It’s not perfect, but give me a few days, I’ll master it.”

Sparx finally gave in. “What do you want, Fiego?” He put his cup down and leaned toward Sparx. Fiego had a serious look about him. “I can see you’re a man of little time, so I’ll just come out and say it.” He moved back to his original position. “Obviously, my sister has told you about me and her life. What she was saying was true, we were best friends. Reyn was able to trust me with her life, and I with her. But what she hasn’t told you was my side of the story, what happened with me and my dad.” Sparx thought this would be a sob story, but it was in his nature to listen.

“My dad called me in. I figured it would be a while, since we rarely talked. I said bye to Reyn and followed my dad’s voice. And then, everything was sort of a blur. All I remember were fists and something about not returning home if I haven’t killed her. Of course I refused, but he beat me senseless until it stuck in my head. From then on, I hunted her. We traveled from world to world, and in six months, I would destroy it. Then I would see her pod leaving, so I would give chase. Lucky for me, there is nowhere else to run.” Sparx looked confused, “What do you mean?” Fiego laughed lightly, “She doesn’t know this, but our pods have a set limit of worlds it can travel. This is the last stop.” Fiego put his hands behind his head and his feet on the table, “I like it here anyways.” “So, I don’t get it, why don’t you two live here together, ” Sparx asked. He wanted them to go back to how it was before Fiego started hunting. Nothing hurt Sparx more than watching family being separated. Fiego relaxed his position. “There is another reason why she leaves every six months. Something inside her tells her to leave, something she doesn’t know about,” Fiego said. There was a much darker tone now. “Sparx, she is a ticking time bomb. On the sixth month, her entire being melds with the world’s core, destroying it from the inside.” Sparx’s eyes went wide. “Now,” he went on, “you and your friends are the ‘protectors’ of this city. That leaves you with two choices. Kill one to save millions. Give her to me, save your precious civilians. But if you choose to protect her, then you, me, and this entire world will fall.” Fiego drank. “Meet me in the abandoned warehouse in the East on the fifth month. Your answer will depend on who you bring.” He got up and started to walk away. Sparx stopped him, “Hey.” Fiego stopped and turned his head. “When we last met, what did you mean when you called me ‘The One’?” Fiego took a moment to remember, then laughed. “Sparx, I’m not much of a religious man, but there was this book we followed on my world. I couldn’t help but pay attention to this one phrase: ‘Every being in this universe has their equal’. When you pushed me with such force the last time we met, that made me sure you were my equal. So the next time we meet, we will fight, Sparx.” With that said, he walked away and disappeared into the crowd of people.

Sparx’s mind was racing a million miles a minute. He was thinking about who to save. His head started hurting so much, he almost had wished he had never been born with his powers.

“Sparx”

He could almost imagine all the lives he would lose if he decided to protect.

“Sparx!”

He snapped out of his trance. He looked up and saw Wing standing over him. “Are you alright man?” Sparx looked around and saw everything as it was before he had the talk. “Y-yeah, I’m alright,” Sparx hesitated, “let’s go get our food.”

“First thing….” Sparx turned to Wing, “what’s first?” “In order for her to not get caught,” Spirit started, “she has to blend in with the crowd. First thing is clothes. She’ll have to borrow some of mine until we buy some more, since we have enough money now.” She left the room with Reyn to get some old clothes.

“So,” Wing began with a grin, “what do you think of her?” Sparx sighed and said, “I dont know man, she’s a girl?” Wing punched him in the arm. “How come Spirit isn’t talking to her about me then,” Sparx asked while rubbing his arm. “Who said she isn’t? The walls muffle it, but I can still hear them.”

“What do you think of Sparx,” Spirit asked while looking through her drawers. Reyn was sitting on her bed. “Is there a certain way I’m supposed to think?” “Well, how do you feel towards him? Is he nice? Mean? Cute? Fugly?” Reyn was about to speak when Spirit interrupted her. “Wait, hold on a sec..” She took out a small whistle from her drawer and blew into it. It made a barely audible sound. A loud thud came from upstairs, followed by wailing and pleas to stop.

Sparx was roaring with laughter. Even though he couldn’t see Wing’s eyes, he could tell he was in pain by the tear streaks running down his face. “She knows you too well, man,” Sparx said while wiping a tear from his eye. Wing was shaking as he stood up. It looked like he was trying to dig something out of his ear. “She hasn’t used that in a long time. I forgot she had it,” he groaned.

Spirit came out an exclaimed, “Behold! Reyn’s temporary outfit.” Reyn walked out from behind her and gave a shy smile. She was wearing the same clothes as Spirit, except the outfit was a little too tight. “Uhh.. Spirit,” Sparx began, “don’t you think that it’s a little too… revealing?” “We gotta work with what we can,” she said, “Besides, it was this or another that showed too much belly.” Sparx sighed. “Alright then. We’ll get clothes the next time we go out.” Reyn gave another shy smile.