Peace is the Best Weapon for War

He threw the rubble from his body but with such visible weakness.

The Finch was already standing above him. 'Once I'm done with you, I will tear that mask from your face and hang you by your ankle by the entrance of a bar so that people can see how much of a drunkard their hero really was, thinking he could defeat the Finch.' She kicked him in the face and he went screeching and rolling on the gravel road for at least five seconds.

He was slowly drifting into unconsciousness.

She was now standing above him again. She wrung her hands in disappointment and protest. 'We could be ruling this world together as husband and wife!' she moaned. 'Our kids would continue our legacy. I know that Pernicious is a lot stronger than me but together we could force him into submission. Can't you understand..?' Her eyes had become twinkled with specks of tears, 'I love you. You and I were meant to be!'

Brendan's costume was covered in dust. The right arm of his leather jacket had been badly grazed because of the screeching he did on the road.

'Now as your lover..,' she continued, 'I'm giving you one last chance,' she put up her right forefinger in stern seriousness. 'Let us kiss, and make up, and take over the universe.' She waited for an answer from him.

He sat up straight and wrapped his arms around his knees. He looked up at her. 'Listen, grandma…'

She winced.

'I hate, despise and resent you. You talk about love but you're actually old enough to be my ancestor's ancestor. You betrayed my grandfather and had him killed, you got Howard to take his life and you have killed more people than anyone or any disease I have ever heard of. Innocent people are too scared to leave their homes because of you. You have terrorized and murdered too many people but you want me to just leave and make babies with you? I was going to say grow up but in your case…Get hip, old lady!'

She grabbed him by his throat and lifted him up to eyelevel. 'All those people I killed, I killed for you…For us, the Versatiles. What foolishness blinds you? I too used to think that I was human until I found out who I am. Why can't you see that too?!'

'Maybe it's because you and I are not as alike as you fantasize us to be. A word of advice: go find the devil…he'll make the perfect husband for you.'

She frowned even more. She threw him high up into the air and as he descended to the ground, she kicked him hard in the ribs and the force sent his already broken body through the wall of a grocery store.

The whole building collapsed on top of him. He was beginning to fall unconscious again. He moved his way through the rubble; barely. When he had managed to get free from the rubble, he stood on top of it with fatigue as one who had conquered the tallest mountain there is. He stood slightly bent over, breathing heavily from behind the mask. Luckily for him, the mask was completely intact but how long could it withstand a force such as the Finch?

She used her heightened speed and got to him.

He dragged his feet through the rubble.

'No one will remember your deeds, Anonymous. No one will even remember your name. They'll only remember you as Brendan; an orphan with unaccomplished ambitions and dreams.'

His knees trembled with exhaustion and he dropped down on them.

She raised her right hand, a black fiery ball developing in her palm, 'And now to break prophecy…Again!!!' She swung her hand towards him.

He closed his eyes. 'I guess this is it,' he thought to himself as he bowed his head low. His mind went blank. He found himself in an abyss without his costume on but only the clothes he had been wearing underneath it.

'I see you followed my advice.'

He began dashing his glances sideways. The voice had come from the farther part of the dim dimension. It was Marauder, his Versatile gene!

Brendan ran towards him as he took his shape like in their previous encounters. 'What advice?' Brendan asked him looking astonished.

'The one I gave you in our last meeting: "Peace is the best weapon for war".'

'How did I follow it?'

'You welcomed death.'

'Wait a minute…are you saying that I'm dead?!'

'No, we are not dead! I'm saying that the Finch found out the way to summon the Versatile gene.'

'The way?'

'Yes; peace. The Finch has always been brewing potions nonstop but obviously, the Grenobe was her last. When she stopped, her mind became at peace just like you when you accepted reality right now; choosing not to fight anymore.'

'It's not like I had a choice,' he said shrugging hopelessly. 'So…how is this happening?' he spread his arms referring to the abyss they were in.

'We Versatiles believe in fair matches. If one soon-to-be Versatile hasn't accepted his or her gene, that gene cannot allow their host to be murdered by another fellow Versatile, so we use what is called, "Unconscious Time Movement".'

' "Unconscious Time Movement"?' Brendan asked, fully amazed, 'How does it work?'

'Simple. We can fast-forward or slowdown time for as long as possible, only if our host is unconscious, that is.'

Brendan remembered the times he had slept in the afternoon and woke up in the evening. 'So that's what you're doing now?'

Marauder nodded.

'But why did you fast-forward time in our other encounters?'

'Sometimes this technique can collide with our hosts' thoughts and push up the time to an event you are looking forward to; like dinner at Samantha's house.'

'It's that efficient? Well… anyway..,' he looked around, '…here we are, so what now?'

'I cannot keep the time still forever. This is where we unite or both of us die.'