The Day That Broke Him
Chaos descended upon the world like a blanket of white snow. Sundeep's traitors and Cessair's forces began marching for Greater Ottawa. The Northeast and Appalachia fell faster than they had before. Liam and his people were evacuated to the West Coast as the Midwest became the scorched battleground. As a billionaire, Sundeep wasn't about to surrender his wealth to the new American Government.
However, despite damaging Great Ottawa's infrastructure, he and Delzigade made a massive mistake. They underestimated the rage of the Ghost and the will of the Midwesterners. Under Dr. Sue's command, the Ottawans engaged the combined forces.
"WE JUST HAVE TO HOLD THEM TILL THE GHOST ARRIVES!"
Madie Sue knew society was collapsing quickly, but she had a wife and country to defend. She kept the soldiers and citizens on their feet, pressing their attack and desperate defense, but facing the sheer overwhelming odds, Greater Ottawa was facing collapse.
"Where are you... Ghost, we need you now more than ever..."
Meanwhile, the Ghost had pulled himself onto the shoreline of Florida. His body was exhausted and beaten black-blue from the sheer force he'd unleashed. John Henry and Amelia attempted to speak to him but he forced himself into the air and fired himself toward Greater Ottawa.
As the vestiges opened their eyes, he muttered something under his breath that left only John and Amelia speechless. "If... If not me... then who..."
The Ghost fired himself at the city knowing he was burning the energy of his body into nothing. As he rapidly approached the city, he wrapped the voodoo chains around his body to keep himself moving, pulled the last embers of strength into his soul, and shot himself to the city at war below. As he landed in between the two armies, he unleashed a volley of moves that devastated his foes and his own body. Cessair managed to sock him in the mask, breaking it away from his face.
The Ghost laughed, blood running down his body and face. "GOD THAT'S THE STUFF! SHOW ME WHAT YOU'VE GOT! KILDOZER'S ARMOR!"
The Ghost punched Cessair in the chest and sent him crashing through several buildings. "C'MERE SUNDEEP! LET'S SEE THAT RESOLVE NOW!" Yelled the Ghost, on the brink of full psychosis. However, Sundeep had laid a special trap for his former friend. From behind the Ghost, mixed in the crowd was the Ghost's mother. She made her way over to her son and... stabbed him in the back, shouting for all to hear.
"WHY WON'T YOU DIE!? YOU'RE AS SOFT AS THE WEAKLINGS YOU PROTECT! YOU WERE A BABY WHEN I SMILED AT YOU! YOU DESERVE EVERYTHING COMING TO YOU! NOW JUST LAY DOWN AND DIE!"
With a swift kick, the Ghost tumbled and rolled over onto his stomach, forcing his body into overdrive. As he stood up, his friends and father watched as he shook with a violent cocktail of pain and rage. He chuckled as he coughed up blood.
As he laughed, Dr. Sue quickly scanned him to get a measurement of his body's well-being. Her hands trembled as the tablet screen flashed a deep crimson red. His body was entering the critical zone. Scott, the Ghost's sister, and Mother all stood by Sundeep.
"See Ghost. No matter how much you try, you always break those around you..."
Sundeep paused as soft laughter came from the hunched-over Ghost of Ottawa. It slowly grew louder and louder until the Ghost was upright, in full crash-out laughter.
"You forget something, Sundeep." Laughed the Ghost.
"And what pray-tell, is that?" Said the Tech-Tycoon
"I play "to the pain", not for keeps. Thank you for agreeing to my terms and conditions... you prick." A wild grin plastered itself across the Ghost's face. His eyes were fully bloodshot with not a single bit of white left in them.
"MARVIN! GIVE ME YOUR RAGE! VESTIGES GIVE ME YOUR POWER! LET'S FINISH THIS CRAP ONCE AND FOR ALL! NO MATTER THE COST TO ME!"
His family looked at him, eyes full of fear. He trudged toward them, laughing in a manner similarly heard in that of an insane asylum. "YOU BROUGHT THIS UPON YOURSELVES! DON'T COWARE NOW! ACCEPT THOSE CONSEQUENCES... RIGHT DAD?!" His fist socked the older man in the jaw, far harder than he'd punched anyone ever before. The Ghost was bloody, mask shattered, coveralls tattered, and arm outstretched, pointing at them.
"You all... You all should've realized something about me! MY WHOLE LIFE! I FOUGHT TO PROTECT THOSE AROUND ME! WITHOUT A FUCKING CARE IN THE WORLD AS TO WHAT HAPPENS TO ME OR WHAT I HAVE TO SACRIFICE! NOW! I'M TAKING EVERYTHING I LOST BACK!"
The Ghost planted his steel-toed boot on his father's chest. "COME ONE! JUST TRY AND STOP ME YOU PATHETIC WASTES OF AIR! COME ON!"
Blood from his son fell upon Scott's face as watched his son charge the legion of soldiers facing him. The Ghost of Ottawa was a force of nature. His willpower may have been running on empty, but he kept fighting, crushing skulls and bones underfoot as he marched ever onward to his destined fate.
As the Ghost reached his mother, the inner rage he'd been holding was unleashed tenfold. "Vestiges... Rip here apart." The Vestiges watched as he picked up a broken piece of rebar and marched past her. "I may be your scapegoat, but I'll never be you or Dad." As he walked past her, Cessair was standing before him, just to have that rebar drive through his head.
The Ghost of Ottawa... Dr. Sue thought as she chased after him. "GHOST! STOP! YOU'LL DIE IF YOU KEEP THIS UP!"
The Ghost stopped and looked over his shoulder coldly. "I'm already dead, Madie Sue. My body just hasn't given..." His eyes widened in horror as the dagger that once was through his back, was now sticking through Madie Sue's chest.
"Dr.... Sue?" Said the Ghost brokenly as he watched his friends being beaten down and broken. "NO! STOP THIS! LEAVE THEM ALL ALONE!" He yelled as he caught Madie Sue. His breaths became shallow and quick as Barbara, Roland and their reinforcements arrived. Nolan and Archie rushed over as the USS Wisconsin docked at the port. The Ghost handed Dr. Sue off to Barbara and released the rage that he'd been holding in for over a decade.
Cheryl turned to see her son standing on the mound of corpses, tears of blood running down his cheeks. His veins began to illuminate red light as he yelled at the top of his lungs. The Vestiges, friends, family, and supporters watched as their former hero was overtaken by a primal kind of rage, one strong enough to override his mind...