Sapphire locked her eyes on the tractor parts, and concentrated hard. To anyone walking by, it would look like she was staring at the tractor remains really hard. She suddenly felt a small pull in her stomach, and she knew she had succeeded. She stomped her foot into the ground. Blue wires sparking with electricity sprung forth from the depth of the tractor remains. A look of deep concentration cut across her face, as she tore into the fabrics of the universe. The tractor parts that had blue wires flew across the plain but the parts fell to the ground a moment later as the wires completely left the parts they were attached to. She clamped her hands almost together but her finger tips were at least an inch apart. Her blue energy swirled around her, and some of the energy formed a ball, in the middle of her little hand circle. She concentrated hard on the wires, which were laying on the ground. They suddenly sprung up, and clasped around the Blocks arms and legs, his neck and torso. Sapphire smiled again, she she started to attempt to make the Block kneel, and be vulnerable to anyone's attack. The wires might not hold, he is too strong..... She thought. Sapphire then flung a hand towards the SuperVan and started taking out the reinforced blue wires within and started wrapping them around the Block. She struggled, as she used her powers to continue making the Block kneel on the ground.
John gave up chasing after two ninjas very fast and instead figured he might as well find some high ground. A small hill rose up a few dozen yards from where he was, so he decided to sprint over there instead. He walked on top of the hill, drew his weapon and aimed. He was like a statue for a good minute, with only the soft breeze lifting up his longcoat every now and then. He was feeling the wind, calculating the distance, memorizing the attack patterns of both the Block and his allies, searching for an opening. Then he found one. The moment a bit of skin appeared through the rock and clay, he fired his first shot. The armour regenerated too fast for the shot to have its full effect, but now, John knew what he was aiming for. Making sure his beams would not hinder Nyr or Sophie he now fired controlled steady shots, every single one of them aimed at the exact same spot. While he fired only his arm would move while the rest of his body remained perfectly still. Except, maybe, for his eyes. Block or no Block, sooner or later he was gonna go down.
Danny swooped down and landed with a stumble, only just catching himself. Not doing much up there. He looked around and realised that he would just get in the way as everyone was getting on fine. Rescues and warnings, and there's no- Danny noticed the wriggling Steele slowly prizing himself out of the cocoon like thing he was in, and so he ran over, flicking his knife out ready. "Don't move, I'll end up chopping off something important." he joked, knowing fully well that Steele's suit would prevent that. Danny caught the knife under the sticky silk and pulled, the material thick and his knife getting blunt.
Too easy, Nyr thought as she dodged and weaved through the Block’s attacks. She avoided everything she could and, when she couldn’t, just cut through anything he threw at her. It was only stone. She could cut that in her sleep. Frankly, she could’ve cut him in half and ended this by now. He was flesh and bone under all that rock, and Nyr was confident that if she went in for the killing blow she would succeed. But where was Morgana? What role did that witch and this monster serve in Kwan Yin’s scheme? If Nyr simply killed him, these questions would remain unanswered. Since she and her allies seemed to have control of this situation, it might be best to get make the best of it. Wound him. Make him talk. Then kill him, once his usefulness has been exhausted, she thought. Nyr hopped over a web of blue wires, which swirled around and engulfed the rock man. Opportunity was knocking. She had been fluidly dodging Block’s attacks, but the moment Sapphire’s wires intervened, Nyr suddenly switched direction, to throw off the rhythm of the battle. She turned abruptly, then planted her feet and swung like she was swatting a homerun into the stands. She knew this sudden 180, combined with Sapphire’s bindings, would make the attack virtually impossible to avoid. She was certain the Block’s momentum would carry him right into the path of her blade, using his weight against him. She had memorized the spot where she’d seen flesh a moment ago and now aimed slightly south of that, hoping to chop off one of his legs… and also hoping Mack could stop him from bleeding out too quickly if the attack connected.
"Let me get closer," Maestro yelled. He'd had the same thought as Nyr. They needed one alive. If he could get in close, he could push Block down into a coma, and they could deal with him later.
When the Maestro played Dissonance, the Block's rocky armor cracked, but did not break. The blue wires that Sapphire conjured wrapped around the villain and he was forced to his knees, roaring like a wild beast. But when John shot at the Block's side, he also broke the wires and freed Block's left arm. The Block plunged his upper arm into the ground and the earth began to tremble. John continued to shoot Block in the side, but more and more rocks kept coming out of the ground and filling the space that he was shooting at. The Block was growing larger by the second. When Danny cut Steele free, he stood up and brushed the rest of the grass off of him. "Thanks," he growled at Pigeon Man. "Now, where's that stupid Mystic? I'm gonna punch him in the throat for what he did to me." Steele finally spotted Kiamo Ko far away, standing by a river with his hands held out over the rushing water. The river was behaving oddly, swelling to twice its size and flowing around Kiamo's feet. "What the...?" Steele muttered. Meanwhile, Nyr sliced Block's leg and it came completely off, the blade cutting through the thick layers of stone like a hot knife through butter. The Block let out an agonizing scream and the ground shook violently underneath all the heroes. Rocks quickly jumped from the ground and covered his exposed leg, sealing the gushing wound, and the Block stood up on a new leg that was made of stone. He was now ten feet tall and he glare at them with shiny black eyes. "I eat you," the Block growled, reaching down to grab Nyr. At that moment, a powerful wave hit the Block in the side, making him stumble. The water flowed between the legs of all the heroes, but it only touched Block, swirling around him in a powerful whirlpool. Kiamo Ko had convinced the river to attack the Block. As they watched, the water dragged the Block back toward the riverbed. He thrashed and kicked, but nothing he did could stop the water. Finally, it pulled him under the waves and he did not resurface. A swarm of colorful leaves landed next to Silhouette and materialized into Kiamo. "Good riddance," he said with a slight grin. "Is Morgana still here?" Silhouette asked, looking worried. She was sure that the evil sorceress would have teleported away after hearing all the fighting outside. Kiamo Ko cocked his head to the side as if he was listening to the wind. "Yes, she's still here, in the farmhouse," he told them. "But not above ground...she's under the farmhouse...in the basement. Yes, she's in the basement. She's meditating. I've heard that she always meditates before she does really big magic. This isn't a good sign." Silhouette turned to the others. "Okay, let's ambush her before she does whatever it is she's planning to do," she told everyone. "Mack, you stay out here! You'll just get in the way!" A flash of anger went across her face. It was obvious that she was still a little angry at her brother for sharing her secret. Mack, who was sitting in the ruined Supervan, just honked the horn to show that he had heard her.
Sapphire had watched the attack on the Block with a slightly amused expression. After all there attacks, only Kiamos actually hurt him. She had expected the wires to do absolutely nothing, but it was the best she could do. Hopefully the basement had more blue objects, if not then she would have to resort to using her other powers, and sometimes those didn't go over to well. She had also been impressed when Kiamo could sense Morgana in the basement so easily. Using her powers, she could sense Morgana if she concentrated. She was heavily protected with her charms and magic and whatnot. Smiling, she followed Silhouette into the barn.
If john had had an ego, it would have been hurt now. Sadly, he just realised he had. He really like leaf boy, but he also felt somewhat inferior to the kid in almost any way he could think of. He was good looking, John was not. He had awesome powers, John did not. He seemed to have Silhouette’s affection, John did not. And now he took down the major villain John could not. The worst part was that he wasn’t even cocky about it. If he’d been a jerk it would have been easy. He’d just dislike him and be done with it. But Kiamo was actually a really nice guy. Silhouette deserved someone like him. Heck, they deserved each other. And yet, John could not help liking Silhouette too. If he looked deep in his own heart, he knew he wanted to be with her instead of Kiamo. Was that selfish? He’d have to think about that. After they took down that old hag that killed Joey.
Danny followed the others, impressed with Kiamo. He can sense anything! This man is bloody amazing! He caught up with Emma and stroking her hand he whispered "We're finally going to get her," excitement rising in his voice. "She'll pay." he added more for himself. Probably not in blood, though I'd like it to be. Anger flew through his body making him scramble for Emma's hand. She killed an innocent bird. And many others. He squeezed Emma's hand tight and breathed deeply.
Ripoff would have joined the group much sooner, but when Silhouette sent those mails out he was stuck as Peter Griffin, dammit. He missed the meeting League's base of operations, so he decided to return home and switch on the TV. Surely something will happen. These idiots had no idea how to keep a low profile, unlike Batman. He liked being Batman. So when finally something came up on the news, he knew what to do. He would have like to become a Sherlock Holmes, or something, but instead he got Nightcrawler. So he spent several hour teleporting from place to place, looking for that stupid van, when he finally saw it, crashed outside a barn out of the city. The old gang was there, fighting a huge rock monster. The Block. Just like the old days. His Nightcrawler powers just died out. Oh well, time to take a new persona. His powers passed the barrier between the dimention, drawing another identity. He felt stronger, better, suited for battle. Pride filled his body, a sense of superiority, fearlessness. He welcomed death, as long as it came in battle. He drew his sword, he wasn't eveb carrying one before, and charged. "This. Is. Sparta!" But before he could reach the battlefield the river itself swallowed his old enemy up and drowned him. He wanted to shout, furious at them for taking his kill, and for kicking him out of the League, but that was in the past. Then he saw Sillouette enter the barn. Well, at least we will fight in the shade, he thought. And followed inside, shutting out the sounds of Leonideas telling him to kill everyone, inside his head
Silhouette led the way inside, Kiamo Ko close behind. Steele shoved through the heroes to stand on the other side of Silhouette, as if he was trying to prove that he was just as important. Silhouette gave him a withering look before refocusing on the task at hand. The inside of the farmhouse was dusty and dark, covered in cobwebs. Furniture was turned over and, even though the window shutters were broken and hanging off, the grimy windows did not let in any light. Kiamo Ko pointed down a long, dark hallway and whispered, "That way." Silhouette nodded and tiptoed ahead of them, keeping close to the walls. Her ninja training told her that the creaky floorboards were usually in the middle of the hall, and the ones close to the walls were the sturdier ones. Finally, they reached a door that led down to the basement. It was halfway open and Silhouette slowly pushed it all the way back. At the bottom of the stairs, they could clearly see Morgana sitting on the hard stone ground in a circle of tall black candles. The flames of the candles were purple and there were symbols drawn on the ground in purple chalk. The hood of Morgana's cloak was pulled up so far that her face was completely hidden in shadow. There were four skulls in front of her, each one with a purple star drawn on the brow. "Let me blast her," Steele whispered darkly. He raised one of his silver-covered hands and a glowing green circle appeared on his palm. "It would be so easy. She wouldn't even see it coming." "No, we have to get information out of her first," Kiamo Ko snapped, pointing a finger in Steele's face. Steele slapped Kiamo's finger away and snarled, "Oh yeah? And who put you in charge?" "Boys," Silhouette hissed angrily. "This is not the time or place for arguing." "Well, well, well...if it isn't Silhouette and her raggedy band of misfits," Morgana said in a voice that was deeper and huskier than it had been the last time they met. She pulled back her hood and looked up at them, her eyes flashing with purple light. Half of her face was burned horribly from when Vesuvia threw a fireball at her: the skin was dark red and sagging like melted wax. Her voice was clearly damaged because her neck was also burned and slightly melted. "Go ahead. Take a good, long look. It will be the last thing you ever see."
Sapphire smiled sadly at Danny. "We will get her, and I hope she does pay." Then they walked down the stairs in silence, Sapphire occasionally flinching when he squeezed her hand to hard. But she could stand the pain. She was happily sneaking along like Mellisa McCarthy in Spy when they suddenly entered the room Morgana was in. She shuddered as she looked at the burnt face. Was she feeling.....pity? Morgana probably didn't deserve this, but in some ways she did.
Ripoff folowed Silouette when his Leonideas suddenly timed out. Well this was premature. He saw the young woman, who for the record was not one of the people to vote him out of the League, open a door. Morgana was there, another familiar face. Or half of one for any rate. "Hey guys I made it," he called. Suddenly remembering that this was the exact thing you don't do when sneaking in. Idiot.
Danny was shocked at the state of Morgana, that must be bloody painful, I don't know how she can... he hopped down the steps and then he walked around her, being careful not to smudge the symbols. "I've had a good look now," he said when reached the front again and bobbed down in front of her, about two metres away, "I'm sorry." Kind of sorry. Because she is suffering. Because she deserves more, frankly. Death preferably. He turned to the others, "Are we going to question her or what?" Danny didn't mind being this close. If she was going to try anything, he wanted to be the first to act.
Maestro was dumbfounded. What was happening? First, Steele and Kiamo had their stupid pissing contest, and now, they'd killed yet another villain. Jacob didn't like this one bit. Electric Man had basically been self-defense, and he was pretty sure Vesuvia had made her own choice. But Block could have been rendered unconscious and locked away in a metal and plastic prison. The way he talked--how aware of his actions and their consequences was he? As the others trekked into the farmhouse--what had happened to the owners?--joined by some shapeshifter didn't recognize, Maestro hung back. If they were headed into the cellar... He circled around the building and spotted the storm cellar door, and hunkered down to cover the other exit.
Nyr followed closely behind Silhouette and her two suitors. Or was it three? Kiamo and Steele were obvious enough, but John… well, Nyr didn’t have to be from Earth to understand human emotions and mating rituals. She could read the writing on the wall. We don’t have time for such distractions, she thought as they descended into the dark cellar. Nyr lifted the black headband covering her forehead. It also served as a blindfold, concealing her second pair of eyes, the pair suited for lowlight situations. Her four red pupils zeroed in on Morgana. The witch had been busy. Nyr knew enough about the League’s enemies to know this didn’t bode well. The birdman had the right idea, choosing diplomacy over instantly charging at the woman. Nyr tapped John on the shoulder and whispered into his ear, “Your aim has been impressive, John Wilson. If she attempts to summon, I trust you can destroy those skulls, yes? But first…” She turned to Sophie and, still whispering, added, “I suggest we bargain with her. The syringes you used to heal your allies… would it repair her face?” She didn’t plan on giving it to Morgana. That stuff might just make the old hag stronger and that’s the last thing they needed right now. But if there was any way to use her vanity against her, they should take it.
John’s skin started to crawl the moment they entered that basement. This was an evil place. He did not like it one bit. He stayed strong, though he would have preferred to just run back out and drop a bomb on the building. He uttered a few prayers before Nyr asked him about the skulls. “With pleasure.” He murmured in a voice matching hers.She wouldn't be able to utter two of the wrong words before his draw.
Morgana scowled at Danny. "Get back or I will slit your throat and bathe in your blood," she threatened in a low, dangerous tone. "That's a good idea, but we're fresh out of syringes," Silhouette whispered back to Nyr. "There were only four of them. We used one on Sapphire, one on Steele, one on Danny, and one on me. Do you think we should lie?" "Stop whispering!" Morgana screamed, her damaged voice cracking painfully. She lurched to her feet and glared at all of them with her one good eye and her one bad eye. "Why are you working for Kwan Yin?" Silhouette demanded. Morgana looked surprised, but then a slow, creepy smile curved her mouth. "So, you figured it out," she said. "I should have known the great Silhouette would eventually find out who we were working for. We were working for Kwan Yin for different reasons. Vesuvia joined us because Kwan Yin broke her out of a maximum security jail. Electric Man was helping us because Kwan Yin gave him a million dollars, all he cared about was money. The Block was helping us because Kwan Yin promised that she would find his wife, Nancy, who the police put in hiding after he almost beat her to death. And me...well...I joined her because I wanted to destroy the League of Heroes and help her get revenge on you, Silhouette." Silhouette narrowed her eyes, but didn't speak. A bead of sweat rolled down the side of her face as she glared at Morgana.
John’s eye twitched, but only slightly, and only once. “So that’s it. You’re just pure evil then?” He’d met people like that before, so it wasn’t surprise that filled his voice. He was standing somewhat at the back of the room, but while as he spoke he passed through the rest of the group until he was right beside Silhouette. He just never could fathom how people ended up being like that. Usually it was cowardice in one way or another, but that didn’t seem to be the case here. “Are you after power? Or revenge maybe? You think you’re original? Please. I’ve met dozens of people like you. Heck, I’ve met people who are worse. More powerful. More selfish. Even more broken. I could try to tell you what that path leads to, but it wouldn’t do any good, would it? If the scars on your body can’t convince you, I certainly don’t stand a chance.” He wasn’t mocking her. He wasn’t pitying her either. He was merely stating his mind. His hand was resting calmly on the grip of his pistol. He knew how this was going to end. And he was ready.
Sapphire distangled herself from the small crowd in the doorway, and stepped towards Morgana. "Morgana, we don't want to hurt you. We will if we have too." She eyed Morgana suspiciously as she said this. She didn't want to hurt the injured witch, but she would if she had to. She was subtly reading her hand out towards Morgana, preparing for her attack.
Danny stood up with Morgana, the idea of moving not even crossing his mind. "Ah, revenge. Was your's sweet? I hope it is as sweet as they say." he said, low enough only him and Morgana could hear. He felt around in his pockets, feathers swirling around his fingers. There's not much more information she can give us. Just where Kwan Yin is. After that she's... Danny flicked open the knife in the safety of the pocket, waiting for her to act. He played with it as Emma approached, wincing as he cut himself. "Look, just tell us where Kwan Yin is hiding."
Ripoff just stood there, being completely ignored. He would have expected nothing more from this wannabe band of heroes, thinking they can just relive the glory days. It was this band of jokes that kicked him out of the League of Heroes to begin with. So what if he hulked out and nearly killed Hatman. Unpredictable, they said, well at least my thing is not a hat! But Morgana. After all these years of being mortal enemies, and she doesn't even acknowlege him. Forget being evil, that is just rude. He will show her. Drawing on his powers three times in a row is dangerous, he knew, but what's life without risk. As his skin glowed he wondered what he will be this time. Superman could be nice, or Gandalf, maybe even Chuck Norris. Excitement filled his body, as it always did when he brought a new personality into his old, dull one.
Morgana laughed at John, long and hard. "Yes, I want power, that's what everyone wants!" she cackled. "With the League gone, there's no one to stop me from doing whatever I want! Kwan Yin has already promised me that she will give me my own queendom when she takes over this foul, stinking world! And don't you worry about my scars, I will find a way to fix it. I always find a way. I am Morgana." "So, Kwan Yin wants world domination?" Silhouette asked, trying to steer Morgana back to the original conversation. Morgana laughed again, mockingly. "Isn't it obvious?" she said. "Kwan Yin wants you, Silhouette. She wants you and all your skills and powers. You are the reincarnation of Kachina. She wants to control you, to make you her slave. Whoever controls Kachina, controls the entire world." "I'm not Kachina," Silhouette hissed through gritted teeth. She took a step forward, but Kiamo Ko grabbed her arm to hold her back. "How can Kwan Yin control Silhouette if she wants her dead?" Kiamo asked Morgana. "All you and your cohorts have been trying to do so far is kill Silhouette. You can't control her if she's dead." Morgana did not say anything. She just smiled her creepy smile and waited patiently. Suddenly Kiamo's eyes widened with comprehension. "They want you dead so Morgana can bring you back to life and control you," Kiamo said in a soft, horrified tone. "That was their plan all along." "I will never be anyone's slave," Silhouette snapped. "You don't have a choice," Morgana said simply. "When I kill you, I will bring you back and bind your soul to Kwan Yin and you will never be able to break from her control. I would make you my own personal slave and take over the world myself, but I have seen what Kwan Yin and her little ninja army can do. If I betray her, she would kill me in some horrible, unspeakable way. Oh, well. At least I get to kill the great Silhouette." She smiled wider than ever. "Enough of this," Steele growled. He raised his hand and fired a beam of green energy directly at Morgana, but the attack was blocked by a wave of purple energy that jumped up from the circle of candles and symbols on the ground and exploded outward, knocking all the heroes on their backs. Morgana was laughing evilly as the skulls on the ground levitated into the air and started to grow muscles, organs, skin, and clothes. In a few seconds, the skulls had completely grown into four people: Hat Man, Arianrhod, Sharpshooter, and Strong-Arm. Each of them had a glowing purple star on their foreheads and they glared at Silhouette and the rest of the heroes with pure hatred. This was what Morgana had been meditating for, to build up her power to bring back the League of Heroes and make them fight for her. "Do you recognize your old friends?" Morgana asked Silhouette, smiling hugely. The evil sorceress looked exhausted, she leaned on the wall to keep from falling over and her face was covered in sweat, but that didn't stop her from looking smug and triumphant. Silhouette was still laying on her back, a look of abject horror on her face. It was like she was in a nightmare and nothing could wake her up. "This...this is wrong!" she screamed hysterically. "You dug up their bodies! You took their bones! This is wrong! They should be resting in peace! How dare you!" "I'm incorrigible," Morgana replied with a little shrug. Then she turned to her new zombie warriors. "Attack!" Her eyes glowed purple and the resurrected League of Heroes charged forward with murder in their eyes.
Danny fell backwards into Emma, as the zombies came forward. They are already dead he reminded himself, it doesn't matter what I to do them. It was horrible though seeing allies as enemies now. To his right was the rest of the team, to his left was Morgana. She's not going to tell us where Kwan Yin is, and really its best if we stay away from her if she has murder in mind. Danny lept for Morgana, dragging the blade down her body as he fell back to earth. It has only just cut her skin after going through her clothes but blood spots appeared on the material anyway. That'll do little more than make her angry, I was hoping for more than that. He fell to his knees as he hit the ground, waiting for Morgana to act.
Maestro had been listening at the storm door, and felt the stirring of Morgana's ugly power. He swore and shattered the lock with Dissonance and leapt inside. Seeing the reanimated heroes, Maestro blanched, feeling sick. Were they the genuine article, or constructs crafted in their likeness?Either way, it was wrong. Sadly, he could only think of one thing to help, another perversion. After all, there was only one way to handle a group of zombies... He quickly tapped the mp3 player strapped to his side and summoned his power as the music played. "It's close to midnight and something evil's lurking In the dark Under the moonlight you see a sight that almost stops Your heart...."
