VOLUME FINALE - Chapter 25 - Out of Options
“B-brother?!”
Before him stands Kane, growling menacingly as he maintains his position between Diva and Sereb.
“Hello again… Sereb!”
Frank gasps. “What?! Hero, those beasts can…!”
Without another word Arc Blinks behind Diva and takes a mighty swing at her with his gauntlet. She wordlessly ducks, grabs his gauntlet, and hefts him over her head all in one swift movement. Before Arc can react he finds himself hurtling toward Frank, who deftly Blinks to one side as the armored warrior screeches across the pavement. Mio calls out as a green light shines on her panel.
“Ready, ma’am!”
“Then do it!”
Mio smacks a button and the device comes to life. Ember cries out.
“NO!”
Flying toward Diva she makes a final attempt to stop Mio. Diva steps forward and uppercuts the brave dragon in the face. As Ember flies up from the blow Diva Blinks above her, charges up a powerful Telekinesis Spell and blasts Ember toward Arc. She slams into him as the pair roll across the ground.
“Too easy.”
A few seconds later the barrier begins expanding again. Arc’s squad rushes out of the Shard Base as a large group of thugs give chase. The gang members look around confused as they spot the barrier around the building. Arc’s squad dives under it just before the barrier touches down. Frank hurries toward his gang as they approach the barrier. He attempts to Blink through it, but finds himself hurled in the opposite direction. Sereb rushes over to catch him before he hits the ground. As they both scramble to their feet Frank turns his attention back to Diva.
“What have you done, witch?!”
Diva grins wickedly. “Nothing yet.”
Sereb approaches, his teeth bared. Kane moves to flank Diva.
“You’ll not lay a paw on my mistress, Sereb!”
Arc frowns. “Mistress? It… it can’t be…”
“Brother, stop this!”
Frank turns to his former lieutenant. “Mio, turn off that device! Haven’t you done enough?!”
“I… I can’t!”
Diva touches her earpiece and speaks.
“Activate secondary shields!”
Stingray and Hammer’s voice comes over the radio. “Yes ma’am!”
A moment later an eerie glow comes from the other devices. Stingray and Hammer run over to join their comrades as Arc and Ember slowly get up. Diva turns to Mio, angrily.
“What are you WAITING FOR?!”
“I… y-yes, ma’am!”
Pressing a button ,the machine begins to glow like the others. Mio steps back as Diva turns to Frank.
“Now then… I want you to watch this.”
“Watch what?!”
“Me cleaning up one last mess!”
Arc and Ember slowly hobble over to Frank’s side.
“What… did we miss, Fontaine?”
Frank grits his teeth. “I’m not fully sure. But I believe she intends to do away with my boys!”
Ember brandishes her claws. “Well, that’s not going to happen!”
Diva looks confused. “But… why?”
Arc glares at her. “Why what?!”
“You and your dragon friend have done nothing but try to halt the advance of the Shards since coming to this place. Why would you now try to save those whom are utterly worthless?”
Ember points a claw. “Because… um… just because, okay!”
Arc nods. “We’re heroes, not killers! I won’t stand idly by while you wantonly slaughter them!”
Frank clenches his fist. “Release my boys, Diva! It’s me you want, isn’t it?!”
Diva laughs. “Perhaps that was true in the past, Fontaine. But The Organization has found those more… worthy of our attention.”
Stingray appears confused. “We have?”
Hammer turns to Diva. “Who?”
Diva points a finger at Arc. “This one is more powerful now than Frank will EVER be!”
She looks straight at Arc.
“Join us, and together we can bring peace and order to this world, Equestria, and all the nations in between!”
Frank gasps. “Wait! Equestria? Another world?!”
Arc frowns. “Peace?”
“Yes. And any other yet to be discovered realms! We’ll bring order to ALL that exists!”
Diva extends a hand to him.
“What could be more righteous a cause than that… Hero?!”
Arc is silent for a time before answering.
“How about not imprisoning the Shards?”
“They’re worthless pawns! All of them!”
Frank glares at her. “No! They’re human beings that have been forgotten by this world! Not something to be used and thrown away!”
Diva rolls her eyes. “What other purpose could the weak have but to serve their betters? Their sacrifice will not be in vain, however. After all, I’m sure The Organization can… repurpose them into something at least halfway useful.”
Ember frowns. “Repurpose?!”
Sereb bares his teeth. “You speak of brainwashing, monster?!”
“Hardly, mongrel. I’m talking about full transformation! Mind… body… and if our leader desires… soul.”
Arc grits his teeth as he points to Hammer. “Like what she did to The Riders?!”
Hammer shrugs. “I just made them better!”
Stingray grins. “Yes. Like us.”
Ember points an accusatory claw. “You turned them into mindless monsters!”
Diva chuckles. “That formula was… untested. Next time will be different.”
Arc grits his teeth. “You mean…?”
Mio nods. “We seek a way to make the changes correctly… and permanent.”
Frank seethes. “That’s not improvement! It’s slavery!”
Diva grins. “Fine with me.”
Sereb looks again to Kane. “Brother! How can you side with this harpy?! What of your Life Pact with the mare from Light’s Hope?!”
Kane snarls. “I have kept my word in that regard! Even now I defend her!”
Arc looks Diva up and down. “You mean…? But… that’s not possible!”
Diva puts a hand on her hip and laughs as she gestures to Arc’s squad. They move to stand by their commander’s side.
“Is it now? These four appear to be human. However, both you and I know that isn’t true, Hero.”
Frank looks at Diva, confused. “What are you…?”
“They are actually beings from another world entirely, you dolt!”
Arc points a finger at Diva. “Like you?”
Diva grins. “So you finally figured it out?”
“Yeah, I did…”
He clenches his fists.
“Sunset Shimmer.”
Diva grins approvingly. “Very good. You do indeed have potential, Hero. But you’ll need a LOT more training before you can stand by my side in The Organization.”
She turns back to Frank.
“Sadly, you never understood the big picture.”
“Which is what?!”
Diva smirks. “That not everything is as it seems.”
“To what end?!”
“You didn’t see that those you were surrounding yourself with were more than mere humans.”
Diva gestures to Stingray, Hammer, and Mio.
“You thought they were yours to command? Fool! These three serve The Organization, not the Shards!”
Stingray nods. “Yes.”
Hammer grins. “Absolutely!”
Mio forces a smile. “That’s true.”
Frank grimaces. “But… but I thought you three thought as I do! Wanting to make the world a better place!”
Stingray sighs. “We still do.”
Hammer laughs. “Yeah! But The Organization has a much better chance of actually achieving that lofty goal!”
Mio sighs. “It’s true. Mathematically, you and the Shards would not have been able to bring about lasting change with your current resources.”
Diva nods. “Correct. But we will succeed where you and your worms failed.”
Hammer pulls out her gun and aims it at Arc and his group. “Right!”
Stingray draws her whip. “Together, we’re an unstoppable team!”
Mio holds out her staff. “That’s correct.”
Diva grins as she turns to Arc. “You see, Hero? You’re not the only one capable of building a team of loyal followers.”
“Loyal or not. We’ll never join you or your so-called Organization.”
Diva shrugs. “You will change your mind in due time.”
She looks toward the barrier and snickers.
“Now then, all that’s left to do it to take care of these… loose ends.”
Ember narrows her eyes. “What do you plan to…?”
Diva touches her ear. “We’re ready on this end, Storm King.”
Arc grits his teeth. “Ready for what?!”
“This.”
Diva points inside the dome as a strange looking devices materialize. A moment later several jets pop out of the metal housings and begin spewing a strange gas in all directions. Arc points to the shield generator behind Diva and her followers.
“Take that thing down!”
Rose calls out. “Hero, wait…!”
“We don’t have time to…!”
“The barrier protecting the machines are far too strong for you to break through!”
“In that case, Diva must have some kind of manual override on her! Everyone, ATTACK!!!”
Arc and his companions in addition to Frank rush forward. Diva shakes her head and holds up a hand. She covers her allies with a Magic Barrier as Arc and company beat against it. Sereb snarls at Diva.
“Come out and fight, witch!”
Diva grins as she maintains her spell. “I’ve no need to fight those whom are so far beneath me.”
Frank looks through the generated barrier as his gang backs away from the encroaching gas. In a few moments their backs are against the wall.
“We’ll get you out of there! Hero, we have to do something!”
“I know! But what?!”
Ember points at the dome itself. “Let’s hit it really hard!”
Max nods. “Worth a shot, sir!”
Xenos rushes toward it. “Yeah!”
Hugh grips his spear as he follows Xenos. “Let’s give it a try!”
Viktor turns to Sereb. “Lend us a paw?!”
“Indeed.”
Arc and company beat on the shield with all their might. Even Frank lends his cane to their cause as the gas slowly envelopes those inside. They begin to cough uncontrollably. Frank calls out.
“It isn’t working!”
Ember grits her teeth as she slashes at the barrier with her claws. “Keep at it! We can’t give up now!”
Arc nods as he blasts the barrier with his Hand Cannons. “Right! Don’t hold back!”
Frank cries out as his cane breaks. “It’s… just not enough!”
Diva laughs. “Try all you want, Fontaine. You and your newfound allies here are still no match for us and our science.”
One by one the Shards fall. Snake, Jackal, and Wolf approach Frank.
“Boss, you… you have to get out of here!”
“Yeah! We’ll… be okay!”
Frank gasps. “But what about…?!”
Jackal puts a massive hand on the barrier. “Keep… dream… alive…!”
The trio falls to their knees as Frank’s fingers dig unsuccessfully into the shield.
“I’ll find a way to help all of you!”
Snake chuckles as he coughs. “You… already have, sir.”
Wolf forces a weak smile. “We weren’t nothing… before we joined the Shards.”
Jackal nods as he clutches his throat. “Family… sticks together… right?”
Frank nods as a tear courses down his cheek. “Y-yes, Jackal. Family… family sticks together. Always.”
The trio falls to the ground. Frank clenches his fists as he turns back to Diva, clearly enraged.
“Diva… one day I’ll see this heinous act paid for in full. With your life!”
Diva looks down her nose at him. “Good luck with that!”
She turns to her allies and opens a portal.
“Let’s go.”
Hammer looks to her, confused. “Ma’am?”
Stingray points to Arc and his friends. “We’re not taking any prisoners?”
Diva shakes her head. “I got what I wanted. All of you head through now.”
Stingray and Hammer do so as Kane looks to Sereb.
“We will meet again, brother.”
Sereb snarls at him. “I’m counting on it!”
As Kane steps through the swirling energies Mio falls into step behind him. She momentarily looks to Arc sadly before stepping through. Diva turns to follow them as Arc calls out to her.
“Diva!”
She looks back. “What?”
“I just have to know one thing!”
“Oh?”
“Why did you do this?! As it stands, they weren’t a threat to you! Your so-called Organization could have just moved on!”
Diva grins. “The weak serve the strong, Hero. That’s the natural order of things.”
Frank clenches his fists angrily. “SERVE?! How can anyone’s death serve your purpose?!”
Diva shakes her head. “It’s more complicated than you realize, Fontaine.”
She turns to Arc.
“I’m looking forward to squaring off against you again sometime, Hero. Fontaine… I’ll come for you when I’m ready. All of you try to stay alive until then, won’t you kindly?”
Without another word Diva steps through her portal. It closes behind her as the devices begin to hum louder. Ember looks to them warily.
“Uh… what’s going on?”
Rose screams out. “It’s some kind of overload! Get clear everyone!”
Arc gestures to the forest. “Everyone, MOVE!”
The squad along with Ember and Sereb run for the tree line. Frank falls to his knees in front of the barrier.
“I’ll… I’ll see you boys soon.”
Arc runs over to Frank and grabs his arm.
“Come on! We have to move!”
Frank shakes his head. “No, Hero. Family sticks together, after all.”
“But…!”
“Avenge them for me! Make Diva pay for…!”
Arc drags him away. Frank thrashes violently.
“What are you doing?!”
“Saving your life!”
“Fool! Leave me to my fate!”
“No!”
As the pair join the others behind a large rock the device’s screeching becomes ear splitting. A moment later all the devices explode, showering the area with debris. The shockwave from the explosion echoes across the land as Arc turns to Frank.
“Are you okay?”
Frank pulls his arm roughly from Arc’s gauntlet. “Yes! No thanks to you!”
Ember frowns. “What are you…?!”
“I should have died with them! Why did you save me?!”
Arc shakes his head. “You think throwing your life away will make them happy?!”
Max nods. “Didn’t you hear a word your men said?”
Xenos clenches a fist. “Yeah. You need to go on for their sake.”
Viktor stands. “And so do we.”
Hugh looks toward his commanding officer. “Diva and the others won’t get away with this.”
Sereb growls in affirmation as Ember peeks out from behind the rock.
“What the…?”
Arc looks to her. “Dragon?”
Ember points. “Take a look.”
They step out from their hiding place and look out over the grounds. Frank frowns.
“I don’t see anything.”
Arc grimaces. “I do.”
“What?! How?!”
“My helmet lets me see in the dark.”
Frank sounds hopeful. “Do you… do you see my boys?”
Arc sighs. “No.”
Frank nods sadly. “I hope it wasn’t too painful for them.”
Ember shakes her head. “He means they’re gone.”
Rose’s voice come over Arc’s earring weakly.
“Hero…? Can you hear me?”
“Barely. The signal’s weak. What happened?”
“That explosion disrupted sensors and communications.”
“Can you tell me what happened to the Shards?”
“I can only theorize.”
Frank appears hopeful. “Please do.”
“The blast appears to have been the catalyst for a mass teleportation.”
Ember raises an eyebrow. “Um… what?”
Rose sighs. “Diva apparently wanted to transport the Shards all at once.”
Frank clenches his fists. “Transport?! It wasn’t enough to kill them?! She wanted their bodies too?!”
Rose calls out. “Begging your pardon, but according to my sensors, no one was killed.”
“But we saw them…?”
Arc interrupts Frank. “We saw them fall. From what Diva said earlier I believe that gas may have been meant to transform them into her pawns.”
Max gasps. “Like at the abandoned hospital!”
Arc nods. “Precisely.”
Frank appears hopeful. “The Riders recovered from what I heard. Perhaps if my men can be found soon…”
Rose calls out over Arc’s earring. “I don’t believe that to be so simple a matter. Preliminary scans of that substance show it to have been a much more advanced version.”
Xenos winces. “Uh oh.”
Viktor sounds apprehensive. “Does that mean we were exposed?”
Rose sighs. “It would not appear so. Somehow the gas was consumed in the explosion. Almost as if our enemies wanted it to be effective locally.”
Hugh looks out over the horizon. “Any danger to the populace?”
“No. What’s left of the gas in the local atmosphere now lacks sufficient potency to be of any threat to human or beast.”
Ember frowns. “That’s a relief.”
Frank is on his knees looking at what’s left of the Shard Base. The only illumination comes from the flames dancing over the wreckage of the shield generators.
“The boys… our dream… gone in an instant.”
Arc puts a gauntlet on his friend’s shoulder.
“We’ll make this right.”
Rose gasps. “Warning! Hero, your friend’s magical energies are in flux again!”
Ember calls out to Arc as the others retreat. “Get back!”
Arc shakes his head. “No!”
He looks down at Frank who is visibly in pain.
“You have to control your powers! They’ll tear you apart otherwise!”
Frank grimaces in pain. “I… I don’t know… if I can!”
“Trust me when I say you of all people know about determination!”
Frank nods as he falls forward. His hands hit the dirt and claw at it for a moment as he struggles to contain himself. A few moments later he sits back and composes himself.
“I… I think I’m okay now.”
Rose breathes a sigh of relief. “Magical energies normalizing.”
Max walks over to Arc. “Sir. What do we do now?”
Ember turns to him. “We should probably head home.”
Arc nods. “Yeah.”
Xenos looks to the others. “What about… you know…?”
He gestures to Frank. Arc turns to look at his friend before looking at the ruins of the building.
“We… we’re not leaving him here.”
Viktor furrows his brow. “Sir?”
Arc reaches out a gauntlet. A portal opens as he turns to the others.
“You heard me. We’re taking him with us.”
The squad looks to him and nods before entering the swirling energies. Ember walks over to Arc with Sereb.
“You sure about this?”
Arc nods. “Yeah.”
Ember sighs. “Fine. I trust your judgement. But I sure hope you know what you’re doing.”
Arc nods as she steps past him and into the portal. Sereb turns to Arc and grunts soberly before entering the swirling energies himself. Turning to his friend Arc walks over to him and looks down.
“Time to go.”
“Go? But…?”
“We can talk and… maybe get you some help in controlling your power.”
Frank looks up to him, confused. “Where?”
“Do you trust me?”
Frank shakes his head. “Not particularly. We ARE still enemies, after all.”
“That may be. But you don’t have anywhere else to go.”
“I…”
“That and who knows when Diva with make good on her word to come for you.”
Frank sighs and nods. Arc reaches out, helps him up, and leads him to the portal.
“Where… does this lead?”
“My base of operations.”
“A stronghold?”
“Something like that. But we need to talk.”
The pair walk through the portal and find themselves in Arc’s basement. Frank steps forward and looks around, clearly confused. Rose wordlessly stands and walks over to them.
“I… I know this place.”
Arc nods as the others step off the sigil. “You should. After all, you spent a fair amount of time here in the past.”
“Arc’s house. Is this where he did research for you?”
Arc points to his squad.
“No. They did the research.”
“And Arc?”
Sighing, Arc removes his helmet and pulls back his cowl. Wordlessly he lets both fall to the floor on either side of him. No one says a word for several moments as Frank gasps.
“You… you’re…?!”
Arc nods soberly. “Yes, Frank. I’m the Hero of Light.”
“H-how?! Why did you…?”
“Why did I what?”
“All this time it was you who was fighting against me?!”
Arc shakes his head. “No. I fought against the Shards. Not my friend.”
“But… but you and I… we… together… the Shards…”
Arc steps forward and puts a hand on his friend’s shoulder. “What you and the Shards were doing was wrong. I had to end it.”
Frank looks around at the others. “And them?”
Arc turns to the others. “Everyone… remove your cloaks.”
The squad obeys. They slowly remove their magic robes and toss them aside to reveal their armor. Ember pulls off her own armaments as Frank looks them over.
“Who… what ARE you?! A lizard?!”
Ember bares her teeth. “Hey!”
Arc chuckles. “Frank, I believe you and my friend here have already met.”
“Really? I don’t believe I’d forget someone like her.”
Ember narrows her eyes angrily. “Again, hey!”
Arc chuckles. “Sereb, would you please?”
Sereb nods as Xenos tosses Ember a magic robe. Putting it on, Sereb casts the familiar spell on his friend. Ember returns to her human form and looks to Frank.
“Remember me now?”
Frank gasps. “Ember?!”
“That’s me.”
“How did…?! Arc turned you into a dragon?!”
Ember rolls her eyes. “No! I was BORN that way!”
Arc nods. “Yes. The form you see before you now was used to help her blend in with the rest of humanity.”
He gestures to his squad.
“Frank, I’d like you to meet Max, Xenos, Hugh, and Viktor.”
They nod soberly as Arc motions for Rose to approach.
“And this is the voice you heard advising me earlier. Her name is Rose.”
“I… um… hello.”
Rose smiles at him. “Good evening, sir.”
Frank looks to Arc.
“Are they… dragons too?”
“No. But truthfully, these aren’t my guy’s true forms.”
“And Rose?”
Rose sighs. “I am not quite what I appear to be either. In truth, I’m actually an android.”
Frank shakes his head. “Somehow I believe you.”
Arc nods. “She’s right. Rose may look like an adult human, but in truth she’s a machine that’s less than a year old.”
“I use my scanners to help keep Arc safe and advise him on the matters at hand.”
“That she does. And last, but not least, we have my friend Sereb.”
Frank nods at the large, armored wolf before him.
Arc clears his throat. “Why don’t you say something?”
“Hello, Mister Fontaine.”
Frank gasps. “I really didn’t imagine him talking back there?!”
“You did not.”
Sereb turns to Arc. “My apologies for speaking back there. Seeing Kane made me forget all about my instructions.”
Frank appears confused. “Instructions?”
“I’m not supposed to talk in this form.”
Arc sighs. “He can turn into a dog. I didn’t want everyone to think he was anything else.”
Ember sighs. “Yeah, well… now that introductions are out of the way, what are we supposed to do now?!”
Max turns to Arc. “Ember’s right, sir.”
Xenos nods. “What are your orders?”
“We need to get Frank to someone who can help him with those magical imbalances.”
Viktor sighs. “Agreed, sir. But whom?”
Rose turns to Arc. “I do not believe there is anyone on Earth who could help him with such a task.”
“That’s right.”
Frank turns to his friend. “I don’t believe I follow your logic, Arc. You want to find me some help, but agree that no one can do so.”
Arc shakes his head. “Not quite. Remember, Rose said no one on EARTH can help you.”
“What are you driving at?”
He walks over to a shelf. Picking up the portable recall unit Arc carefully sets it down in the middle of the floor.
“I’m going to take you to… a very special place to get help.”
Rose gasps. “Arc, you don’t mean…?”
Arc nods as he presses the button and a portal forms.
“Yes, Rose. Equestria.”
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And so our opponent finally reveals her true identity. Things are certainly going to get a lot more heated for Arc and company as more secrets are revealed.
Sunset Shimmer plus high quality Magitech, is what CyberPunk was truely meant to be.
i wonder if the earth organisation with sunset and the one in equestria are one and the same
10704952
Indeed. Especial when they make their way to their enemy's stronghold.
10705588
Arc will need to stop underestimating her if he hopes to stand a chance against.
10706212
Spoiler, but No they are not.