Pestilence (PART ONE)

The idea of time is a difficult concept to grasp. We all experience life at a unique pace. Some days feel endless but then you blink and it's been ten years. It's a concept that Phantom has spent years trying to conquer, despite his mortal limitations stopping him endlessly short. Despite his shortcomings, Phantom recognized at once that Astoria had just altered time itself and saved all of their lives. It wasn't supposed to go like this, Phantom never saw the possibility of living past this day, he just wanted to avenge his love. But now… could this girl possess the power to return her?

Phantom's thought process was cut short, as the sound of something heavy hitting the ground brought him back to reality. As he narrowed his eyes forward, he realized that the rocket launcher was on the ground, and Gladiator had Happy by the throat.

"Let her go!" Phantom exclaimed in desperation, pointing his pistol toward One.

"Not until I find out what coward lies beneath that mask." One replied, reaching to remove it.

"Wait! Stop!" One heard Astoria say from right next to him. For just a brief moment, he loosened his grip on Happy and in the moment it took for him to realize Phantom was playing mind games, Happy was free.

The shrill, inhuman laugh that was becoming uncomfortably familiar filled the air, and suddenly a barrage of nanobots was flying toward the group from her palms. One was fortunate enough to dodge, but his relief soon turned to panic as he remembered what her Nano is capable of. For roughly ten minutes, the target would be in a trance-like state as they relived their worst memories for what felt like an eternity. Before One even had a chance to draw his Sword of Justice to nullify the effect, Oni was swinging her sword at Happy from the air behind One.

Happy laughed once again in her unhinged tone before dodging the swing and kicking Oni in the gut, grounding her between One and Happy.

"Yo, look behind you, you damn brute," Oni said, prompting One to turn around and see a bunch of bodies on the ground. "Yeah. We're the only ones awake right now. I can hold off this crazy bitch but whenever her backup gets here I'm gonna need you. For now, just stand by them until they either wake up or Envoy sends another one of his tools after us."

It was a well known fact among the Masks that Happy possessed inhuman combat skills, even One would struggle to match her speed and martial arts in a prolonged fight. The best matchup for her was naturally Oni, the woman known to be the greatest swordsman in the world.

"Okay, good luck." One said, walking towards his unconscious allies and foes.

As One looked at everyone on the ground, he noticed a tear going down Matt's face. Happy's power must truly be quite brutal. At this moment, he noticed the sound of a propeller in the distance. He looked at Phantom to ensure that he was unconscious and not using his Nano again, before he spotted a helicopter coming into view with a rope hanging out of the door, a single man attached.

As the man was lowered to the ground, it became visible that he wore a gas mask. "The secret tenth mask, eh?" One asked aloud. "His Nano being kept secret must mean he's pretty damn powerful. Let's see if Westbrook's lapdog can stand against a real warrior." One said the last sentence loud enough so that the man who now stood on the ground could hear him.

"A man such as yourself would have no trouble with some lapdog. But a dragon? That may prove a battle too difficult for even you." Rainblazer said in his deep voice, as the ground surrounding the pair ignited into a circle of flames.

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PHANTOM

"Baby, Emily said breakfast is almost ready." Said an angelic voice as I opened my groggy eyes and looked around the room.

"Shit, what time is it?" I asked, still unsure of where I was.

"It's nine o'clock already, but you looked so peaceful that I couldn't help but leave you. Matt and Kordelle are already outside sparring, but I figured you must have needed the rest." said the angel.

No, that isn't an angel. I know this voice. Who does it belong to? I craned my neck to get a look at who was in my ear, and that's when I saw her. My Gloria.

"You know, for a second I doubted that an angel was talking to me." I said, grabbing her into a kiss. "Good morning, my love."

"Somebody woke up on the right side of the bed, huh?" Gloria said, her elbow nudging my side. "Come out when you're ready, today's the big day so if you need to rest I'm not gonna stop you!" she continued, walking to the door.

"Glo." I called her, turning her around. I wasn't even sure what I wanted to say, I just wasn't ready for our alone time to end. "Uh… I'll be there in a sec."

"Okay, weirdo" she said with her signature small laugh that made me feel a joy unlike any other.

After she left, I took a few minutes to gather myself and get dressed before following her out the door. As I stepped into the kitchen, I felt almost blinded by a ray of sunshine. I suppose I'm not used to waking up so late. The pressure of my palms against my eyelids made me see stars for a moment, but when my eyes reopened I was blinded once again, this time by perhaps the only thing brighter than the sun: Glo's beautiful smile. "Good morning sleepyhead!" she said sarcastically, inviting a laugh from Emily.

"Glad we can count on our almighty leader to let her boyfriend sleep in while the rest of us bust our asses," Emily said, giving me a playful smirk.

"You'll be glad I'm well rested when I'm saving your ass later, purple." I replied, glancing at her dyed hair. "Anyways, thanks for making breakfast. I'm gonna toss those two around a bit before I eat."

After shooting a wink at Gloria, I stepped outside to train with Matt and Kordelle. The two of them grew up together and were practically brothers, but I still never felt like a third wheel around them. "Yo 'Delle!" I shouted, prompting the pair to turn around and face me. "I saw you through the window, you still swing like a bitch!"

"Look who it is! We were just talking about how we're gonna beat your ass for being so damn lazy!" Kordelle said, getting into a combat stance.

Matt, on the other hand, looked at me with a much more serious glint in his eyes. "Zev, you good for tonight?" he asked, to which I scoffed in reply. "Seriously, man. I know we all have circumstances that'll make us hesitate, but this is probably our last chance to save Nexdria from the plague outside." The plague outside? I never took Matt as one to buy into Westbrook's propaganda. I guess we all have to justify what Pestilence has done somehow, but to refer to the hundreds of corpses they've left as a "plague" seemed unlike Matt.

"My head's in the game, Matt. Don't worry. We're gonna get rid of these rebels tonight and Pestilence will become known as the five heroes who saved Nexdria."" I replied, the words feeling empty the moment they left my mouth. Who exactly was I trying to convince that this would go well?

After a few hours of sparring, it was time to go over the plan. The five of us gathered in the living room. Our little cabin had become quite comfy this past year. Myself, Gloria, Matt, Emily, and Kordelle had truly become a family, but an eerie feeling stuck in each of our guts that told us this would all end tonight.

To be continued in chapter 11, coming NEXT WEEK, 11/5