Valorverse Gaiden: Heartache & Pain

[True Grave]

Chapter One

Standing on his dead planet, which he destroyed by his own hand, a man consumed by hatred cried tears of loathing. But he didn't loathe others. He loathed himself. From the time of his childhood, he had hated himself. He felt like he was worthless and not like others. That he was born without value, lesser to everyone.

This man, Rain Arcadia, was an Omega-class mutant. His kind were born once every million years and could live to be equally as old. They were the strongest mortals in existence and feared even by the New Gods. Rain didn't know that he was exceptional. His self-hatred was kept in check for as long as his bedridden mother lived. Caring for her made his life different from normal, and it was this gulf between how abnormal his life was compared to others that was the source of his self-hatred and self-loathing.

When his bedridden mother took her last breath, she joined Rain's father, who had committed suicide. No longer bound by a mother whose life he needed to preserve out of love and caring, Rain's self-hatred exploded into hatred of everyone he felt inferior to.

"Mother...You were everything to me. I love you. How will I go on without you...?"

He had no purpose anymore, and so instead, he would be guided only by his feelings, which called for the death of all he could see.

Rain's mutant power was fully unleashed. His purple Soul Energy reached levels far beyond imagining. His hatred grew just as rapidly. With an animalistic scream of pure negative emotion, Rain annihilated all that lived on his home planet. He had ceased to be Rain Arcadia, caregiver. Now he was Hate, the Omega-class mutant whose only desire was to destroy everything.

Hate's Theme

 

[True Grave]

Chapter Two

Omega, the most evil of the Old Gods, had much in common with Hate. He hated all that lived because he preferred the solitude of being alone in endless darkness. His genocidal desires were only held in check by the Divine Edicts, which forbade Gods from directly interfering in the lives of others. A genocidal Omega-class mutant was the perfect tool for Omega.

"A mortal who believed himself inferior since childhood due to not fitting in with others. Over time, the sadness felt from that transformed into an all-consuming hatred."

The Old God of endless darkness laughed in glee.

"Only his mother's love stopped him from unleashing hell on all of those he felt lesser then. He didn't want to hurt her in any way, after all. Now that she is gone, nothing will stop him. Oh, I love it! What a perfect little weapon."

Omega opened a black portal to Earth One. His mind linked to Hate's, the hatred and pain feeling like heaven to him.

"Go through that portal. Kill everyone and destroy everything! Go nuts!"

Hate rushed through it, needing no encouragement to kill that which lived.

 

[True Grave]

Chapter Three

The moment that Hate stepped foot on Earth One, the Divine Edicts were broken. Only one Omega-class mutant was supposed to exist in each dimension. The reason for this was because that clashes between these beings could easily destroy planets. The first to sense his presence was Lithuel.

"Holy shit! That's some serious hatred coming my way."

Even most demons didn't have that much hatred in them. Lithuel used his wings to cross the distance quickly. What he saw was surprising. A young Caucasian man of 5'8", 150 pounds, average build, with brown eyes and brown hair. His appearance was so ordinary, but the fierce purple aura that he was putting out was anything but.

"That power is definitely not normal."

Hate let out a scream that nearly deafened Lithuel and pierced his heart with sadness, of all feelings.

"What the--"

An explosive dome of purple energy rushed at him. It was pure death. Lithuel caught it and started pushing it back, but holy shit was it hard!

"What the fuck is this guy?!"

Lithuel flared up with his combined Angelic and Demonic Soul Aura. It took all of his Soul Energy to dissipate the purple Soul Energy.

"Hey, you fuck! Who are you?!"

Confusion creased his face as he got a better look at Hate's face. Tears were rolling down his cheeks without end, but those eyes were like nothing he had ever seen before, an unusual combination of heartache, emotional pain, and rage.

 

[True Grave]

Hate did not respond, letting out the beginnings of a scream. Lithuel rapidly moved forward and punched him in the solar plexus hard enough to lift him off of the ground. He then grabbed him by the throat with the other hand.

"Who the fuck are you?! What's your beef with Earth One?"

Hate struggled to speak, so Lithuel loosened up.

"Hate...You...Kill...You..."

"What'd I ever do to you? I don't even know you!"

Purple energy suddenly fired from his mouth, forcing Lithuel to move his head to the side just in time. He was then punched in the face with surprising force. Lithuel let go of Hate and was forced to raise his arms in defense as Hate blasted him from point blank range with both hands.

Lithuel's arms were smoking and sore. He lowered them and narrowed his eyes at Hate.

"Guess we're done talking."

Shooting forward, he began unloading on Hate with combinations of rapid punching and kicking. Damage was being done but he wouldn't drop. Lithuel had to dodge attacks as the guy attacked back while still being attacked.

Hate's power was increasing. The beating was drawing blood and bruising him. But his consciousness did not flag. Concussions did not affect him the same way. Hate took the beating like it was nothing. Lithuel let his guard down in frustration, and that was right when he ate a monster uppercut.

 

[True Grave]

Lithuel felt his teeth rattle and saw his vision blur. He grinned, having to give him credit for catching him. His wings spread to halt his ascent into the air before he dropped a vertical elbow strike onto Hate's head. He then grabbed Hate by the back of his head and rammed his knee into his nose. Scott had taught him Muay Thai and it usually proved very effective in a fight. This time, unfortunately, it was not doing much.

Hate put both hands to Lithuel's chest and fired energy blasts from point-blank range. Only his supernatural durability protected him from getting gaping holes blown through his chest. The force of the blasts threw him backwards and caused him to bounce multiple times and then barrel roll along the ground before getting to his feet. Summoning his Transforming Sword, he gripped the hilt in both hands. Rushing forward, he swung the sword. Using purple energy emanating from his hands, Hate held back the sword.

Lithuel held steady, not pushing forward.

"Why do you hate me and want to kill me?!"

Hate just looked at him with those unsettling eyes.

"Tell me!"

Slowly, Hate began to speak.

"My name is...Rain Arcadia..."

Lithuel nodded for him to go on.

"I...was born without value..."

The hybrid was confused.

"What do you mean?"

But the emotional pain that came from speaking these feelings ignited Hate's self-loathing and hatred of others all over again. He screamed and his power became overwhelming, breaking new limits.

"DIE!!!"

A massive purple blast beam was fired from his hands. Lithuel screamed in pain as he was engulfed. When the beam dissipated, Lithuel was gone. Having disintegrated Lithuel, he was now able to unleash a dome of destruction. An entire city in England was wiped out of existence, leading to massive loss of life.

 

[True Grave]

Chapter Four

Firestar creased his brow from his throne in the Realm of Firestar. Lithuel's death, while only temporary, was concerning. For someone to be able to kill Lithuel, they had to be extremely powerful. The massive loss of life in England was unacceptable. It was time for emergency measures. With a telepathic call, he explained Lithuel's temporary death and called the rest of Team Firestar into a meeting at headquarters.

 

[True Grave]

Chapter Five

Scott entered Team Firestar headquarters and proceeded immediately to their first floor meeting room. He had been having lunch at Dino's Deli when the emergency call went out. It was shocking and saddening to him that Lithuel had been temporarily killed. Not just anyone could do that. No further details had been given on the latest planetary threat. He figured that Firestar would wait until they were all gathered together to give them all the details.

Eric walked in, his usual cool exterior failing to hide the sadness in his eyes. Even if he was only dead temporarily, Team Firestar was very close-knit. Nick, ever the hothead, was not taking this well.

"I'll kill the son of a bitch that did that to Lithuel!"

They both took their seats. Lone Wolf appeared soon after, his stoicism not giving away his internal pain.

Marcus was the last to arrive and he had been crying. Out of all of them, he had the deepest reverence for life due to his age and life experience. He was the most devastated next to Scott, who had been crying since he got the news. Scott and Lithuel were best friends and usually fought together against evil. He felt survivor's guilt for not being there to prevent Lithuel's death. While he wasn't going to kill anyone, he was absolutely going to serve justice.

Everyone sat down and Marcus used his reality bending power to allow Firestar to speak with them across dimensions.

"Thank you for gathering so quickly. As you all know, Lithuel has been killed and won't return until tomorrow. His killer was an Omega-class mutant, which likely resulted from further interference from Omega. The Rise Incident of last month showed that he will break the Divine Edicts whenever he can."

"Is he as powerful as Rise?" Lone Wolf asked.

"I do not believe so. I don't think he is as powerful as our own Marcus, either. But we are clearly still dealing with an extremely powerful and dangerous enemy. An entire city in England was destroyed right after Lithuel died. I felt the influx of hundreds of thousands of souls enter the Universe of Gods all at once."

Shocked silence spread over Team Firestar.

Scott was the first to recover.

"Did he use a mutant power to do this?"

"I see no evidence of that. I only sensed extraordinarily high levels of Soul Energy."

Scott was perplexed.

"Hard to believe that Lithuel would lose to Soul Energy alone."

"His Soul Energy may not be what we are accustomed to," Marcus replied.

"You think his Soul Energy is his power?" Nick asked.

"Possibly."

Scott clenched his fists.

"I want to confront this guy alone first. Can you guys watch from a distance and back me up?"

The other members looked at each other and nodded, then at Scott and nodded. They knew where Scott was coming from.

"Just know that I won't let him kill anyone else," Marcus replied.

Firestar opened a portal and everyone stood up. They walked through the portal, which would take them to the English countryside. The portal closed behind them, leaving only sadness and resolve lingering in the air.

 

[True Grave]

Chapter Six

When Team Firestar exited the portal, they were shocked by what they saw. In addition to the destroyed city, the countryside itself was gone. No grass, trees, or stones remained. While the others surveyed the damage, Marcus was receiving residual psychic energy from the air.

"This is no ordinary Soul Energy. It's filled with emotional pain."

Scott's face softened in sympathy.

"What kind of emotional pain?"

"Hard to tell just from these fragments in the air. Emotions aren't normally present within Soul Energy. The fact that I can feel such strong emotions emanating from his Soul Energy indicates that they are one and the same. He turned his pain into a weapon."

Eric surveyed the utter destruction around him.

"To do this much damage this quickly..."

Lone Wolf crossed his arms.

"Power from emotion. Only strong negative emotions could produce this kind of destruction."

"I'd be happy to show that asshole some negative emotions," Nick growled.

"I understand how you feel, Nick," Scott said, "But I want to talk to him first and foremost."

Everyone could sense how powerful Hate was in their own way. Eric could sense disturbances in the air as it flowed. That nasty energy that Hate was putting out felt awful. It was possibly even poisonous. That negative emotions could do that was deeply unnerving to Eric.

Nick couldn't feel it in the air, but he felt it in the energy vibrations that Hate was putting out. Nick's power was Soul Energy, but not like this. He was born with the ability to manipulate his own Soul Energy and could do so completely without emotion. On the other hand, Hate's Soul Energy was tied directly to his emotions. He could feel his Soul Energy rising without limit. Nick was still angry and willing to kick ass, but that power instilled a small dose of apprehension into him.

Lone Wolf wasn't able to sense these things. He wasn't a mutant and so didn't understand Hate's power from a fellow mutant's perspective. His understanding came from surveying the incalculable damage before him. Such wanton destruction came from an unstable mind. There was no balance or equilibrium in this person. Lone Wolf didn't betray the cold tickle of fear that traveled up his spine.

Marcus could sense the emotions coming from hate.

Heartache and pain. Self-loathing that becomes a hatred of others. A desire for genocide born of misanthropy.

Hate was one of the most terrifying entities that Marcus had ever encountered. If they couldn't stop him here, all life would be erased from Earth One.

Valor could sense both Hate's tremendous power and his dark emotions.

His dark emotions are indeed tied directly to his Soul Energy. As one increases, so does the other. Fighting him will be extremely dangerous. Be careful, Scott.

Scott nodded and signaled his team to wait while he went off to confront Hate.

 

[True Grave]

Chapter Seven

Scott walked closely enough to Hate that he could see him clearly. His appearance was surprisingly ordinary. What was extraordinary was the purple aura that flickered rapidly as if it were alive. It was spotted with black as if it were infected. When Hate turned his unsettling gaze upon Scott, the threat in them was so clear that he armored up on the spot. It was involuntary survival instinct kicking in after locking eyes with death.

Crusader mentally dissipated the fear that tried to creep in. It was more important now than ever that he be his best self.

"My name is Scott Young, also known as Crusader. What's your name?"

Hate let out a deafening scream that filled the hearts of everyone nearby with sadness. At the same time, a destructive dome of purple energy expanded out of him and rushed toward Crusader.

Crusader calmly reached out and resisted the dome with a single hand. The Soul Energy contained within was so high, however, that it almost knocked him back. Flaring up with his own Soul Aura, Scott's unwavering confidence allowed him to halt the dome's expansion until it ran out of Soul Energy and dissipated. When Hate went to scream again, Crusader rapidly closed the distance and gave him a merciless body uppercut to the solar plexus in order to cut it off. He then grabbed Hate by the throat and body slammed him hard onto his back. Holding him down by the throat, Crusader sought to prevent more screams while not completely cutting off Hate's breathing.

"What's your name?" Scott asked again in a calm tone.

Hate slowly responded in a strangled voice.

"Rain...Arcadia..."

"Okay, Rain Arcadia. Why did you come to Earth One?"

Hate charged up Soul Energy in his mouth, but Crusader choked him harder and negated the impending attack.

"No! Answer me!"

"Hate...Kill..."

"You hate Earth One and want to kill its people? Why?"

"...Born without...value..."

Crusader was confused.

"Who was born without value?"

Hate's internal rage erupted and his Soul Energy rose wildly as a result. The purple Soul Aura took on mass and began pushing Crusader back. He resisted as best he could, but Hate was too strong. Crusader was forced to let go of his throat and was immediately hit point-blank with a mouth blast.

Crusader was able to harden his Soul Aura in order to blunt the attack. However, the blast was so powerful that he carved trails in the earth with his feet while he skidded backwards. Hate let out another scream, unleashing an even bigger dome of Soul Energy than before. Crusader used both hands to try and hold it back. Digging his heels in only slowed its expansion slightly more. Hate's power was unbelievable!

Damn! If only I could get some breathing room...

Just then, Crusader felt the dome stop widening. Looking over his right shoulder, he saw that Marcus had come to his aid. His purple aura was pulsing rapidly, causing his hair to stand up on end. His right hand was extended palm out toward the dome as he used his reality bending to hold the dome in place.

I've bought you a little time! Hurry!

Crusader nodded in confirmation before taking a deep breath. His arms shone brilliantly with golden white energy. The power gathered and pulsated before solidifying.

Million Punches of Valor!!!

Crusader pushed the purple Soul Aura back with voluminous punches. Each step he gained was a step toward victory. The way forward was slowed as resistance grew stronger by the second. At last, however, Crusader was able to land his millionth punch on Hate's nose. Hate went flying back as if he had been shot out of a cannon. Crusader watched as his opponent bounced and rolled around on the ground before coming to a stop face down.

Crusader approached and guardedly watched him. Hate was indeed out cold. Turning to Marcus, he sent a telepathic message to him.

Let's get this guy over to Shadowgreen while we still can. We could talk to him easier there.

I'll let them know to expect us.

 

[True Grave]

Chapter Eight

Team Firestar emerged from a Fire Path inside of the Shadowgreen Institute. Scott was carrying Rain over his shoulder as they headed for the penitentiary wing. As they passed down the corridor, Team Firestar could look over and see the general population cell block. The assorted criminals of the mutant world were found here, ranging from petty thieves to serial killers. The room beyond this one contained special pods which could be filled with a specific green liquid. This kept a prisoner comatose while also keeping them alive with oxygen, vitamins, and nutrients.

While the room currently contained six pods, only one was in use. This particular criminal was in here because he was too dangerous to control while he was conscious. Rain was a similar situation. After placing him inside of the tank, Scott closed it and hit a button to fill it with green liquid. Once it was filled to the top, Rain floated in it while in a coma. Scott cut his eyes over to Marcus.

"I want you to connect me to him mentally. Maybe now we can have a conversation."

Marcus nodded in confirmation before extending both his right palm toward Scott and his left palm toward Rain. His purple Soul Aura shown faintly and Scott mentally entered a dark room. Within that dark room was also Rain, looking much less threatening than before. He seemed more like a sad, scared child now.

"Who are you?! Where am I?!"

Scott kept his tone of voice soothing and even.

"My name is Scott. You're in a safe place. No one's going to hurt you here."

"You promise?" Rain asked as his eyes filled with tears.

"I promise."

Rain nodded and curled into a ball while sitting up. Scott sat down Indian style.

"You said your name was Rain Arcadia, right?"

He nodded slowly in confirmation.

"Where are you from?"

"Noholeim."

"I'm not familiar with it. Is that your hometown?"

Rain nodded.

"What's your planet called?"

"Cresta."

"Do you have family there?"

"My mom and dad, but they died."

A few more questions revealed the circumstances behind their deaths and his challenging upbringing. Rain had felt isolated and been bullied for not fitting in. It was a sadly common story, though the fact that he had cared for his ailing mother was an uncommon wrinkle.

"You didn't fit in with your peers, so you turned the sadness inward and hated yourself for being different. You saw yourself as being born without value. In time, that internal rage became external hate. Once you had nothing left to lose..."

Scott saw a mental image of the barren Cresta. It was terribly somber and depressing.

Scott felt empathy for Rain's situation. He had been born into tough circumstances and forced to navigate it as best he could. The norms of human interaction and opportunism of bullies further isolated and excluded him. Rain was so filled with self-loathing and embarrassment that he never sought help or spoke of his situation. Years of this ultimately created an angry and alienated young man who also happened to be extremely powerful. Though Rain was wrong to kill, especially on such a large scale, the outcome had been inevitable.

"Rain...I'm so sorry. Although I don't condone what you have done, I still sympathize with what you have gone through. Those circumstances wouldn't have been easy for anyone. I wish that you would have reached out for help or that someone had cared enough to try and help you. So many lives could have been saved."

Tears appeared in both of their eyes.

Rain nodded.

"You're right. What I have done can never be undone. The proper justice is for you to kill me."

Scott vehemently shook his head.

"It is against my personal code to kill anyone who dies permanently."

Rain stared at him for a long moment.

"Then...I suppose..."

His negative feelings began building up, increasing his power. He then let out a mental scream that forced Scott out of his head. Marcus saw the Soul Energy expanding within the tank as Rain struggled to break free. Using his reality bending powers, Marcus began desperately trying to keep Rain from escaping the tank.

 

[True Grave]

Marcus flared up with his Soul Aura in order to channel more power into keeping the glass in Rain's tank from breaking. Scott shook his head to recover from Rain forcibly ejecting him from his mind.

"Marcus! Shield the other tank!"

After a moment, Marcus nodded in confirmation. The other prisoner was much more dangerous than Rain and had to be kept in at all costs.

Marcus turned around and focused his reality bending power on the other tank.

"Nick! Throw up a force field around us!"

"You got it!"

Shell Shock flared up with his white Soul Aura and covered them all in a dome of Soul Energy. When Rain broke free from the pod, his purple dome collided with Shell Shock's.

The whole room shook and Team Firestar struggled to maintain their balance. Shell Shock gritted his teeth as he resisted Rain's power. All of a sudden, everything stopped. When Shell Shock dropped his force field, everyone saw the massive hole in the wall. Rain was outside and escaping into the Shadowgreen countryside. If he ran far enough, he would soon cross into France.

Scott armored up and shot after him with flight. The rest of Team Firestar immediately followed behind except for Marcus, who fixed the damage done by Rain. The foreign Omega-class mutant hadn't made it far but his retreat into the woods slowed the pursuit. When they broke into open space, Rain turned and began firing off a series of energy blasts at Team Firestar. Crusader dodged around them and threw a Fist of Valor aimed at his face. Rain resisted the attack with his Soul Aura.

"It doesn't have to be like this, Rain! You can't change what you've done, but you can change who you are moving forward!"

Rain's remorse caused his power to surge even more. The softest smile turned up the corners of his mouth as tears silently ran down his cheeks.

"I have wanted the peace of death for a long time. It is not only what I deserve, but what I want."

Crusader sadly regarded Rain.

"Please, Scott! Please use your fist of justice to avenge the innocent souls that I murdered!"

Crusader silently weighed his words. After a long moment, he nodded in confirmation.

"I will give you peace."

Taking a deep breath, Crusader charged up and unleashed his Million Punches of Valor. With sadness and resolve, Rain stared down encroaching death. On the millionth strike, Crusader charged up significant power. Instead of a punch, however, he landed an open hand slap to Rain's left temple. The concussion was severe and Rain collapsed to the ground. Crusader caught him in his arms and held him.

The other members of Team Firestar caught up at this point. Every one of them was solemn.

"Is he...?" Nick asked.

Rain began coming around. When his eyes opened, he seemed not to recognize anyone or anything around him.

"Where...am I...?"

 

[True Grave]

Chapter Nine

Scott dissipated his armor and looked into Rain's eyes.

"Do you recognize me?"

Rain slowly shook his head.

"No. Should I?"

"Do you remember who you are?"

Rain tried to think but winced in pain.

"No, I...I don't remember..."

Scott smiled softly.

"Your name is Rain Arcadia. You are the last survivor of the planet Cresta. Your parents sent you here to Earth One just before your planet was destroyed. You were beloved and cherished by your people. It was their dearest wish that you live a long and happy life."

Rain smiled softly.

"I...see..."

He passed out and Scott closed his eyes as tears silently ran down his cheeks. Marcus approached him and gently placed a hand on his shoulder.

"What will you do with him now?"

Scott opened his eyes and nodded in confirmation to his own resolution for Rain.

 

[True Grave]

Chapter Ten

Scott let Rain spend the night at Team Firestar headquarters. Twenty-four hours after being killed, Lithuel reincarnated on the spot where he died. Scott was outside headquarters and intercepted a returning Lithuel before explaining the situation to him. The halfling regarded Scott for a long moment as he simmered down before blowing out a sigh.

"I guess the guy who killed me is 'dead', in a sense."

Scott nodded in confirmation before they both went inside.

After breakfast, Scott telepathically asked Firestar to open a portal to Kash-Volt. In light of the circumstances, Zenefo agreed to bend the rules on the Divine Edicts and allow Rain to live there. Scott believed that Rain would never use his powers again. The very emotionally intelligent Kasha would teach Rain to control his negative emotions in a healthy way. It would be a completely fresh start and a brighter tomorrow for him. Scott went upstairs to get him while the rest of Team Firestar lounged around the table.

"Guess I'll help Scott get Rain settled on Kash-Volt," Lithuel said, "You coming, Marcus?"

"As much as I would like to, I have important business in England. I must restore the destroyed city."

As Marcus's partner in the buddy system, Lone Wolf would be going with him.

"Wild & Free will naturally be hitting the road again," Nick said.

Eric nodded in confirmation before taking a sip of coffee.

 

[True Grave]

After Nick and Eric departed in Nick's Ferrari in search of adventure, Marcus opened a purple portal using his reality bending power. He and Lone Wolf stepped through to the English countryside before it closed behind them. Marcus flared up with his purple aura and began returning the city to how it previously looked. Unfortunately, bringing back the dead was beyond the scope of even his incredible power. Raising mortals from the dead was the sole jurisdiction of the gods, and this situation was unfortunately even beyond their power. Without a body to return to, a mortal could not live again.

Once the city was restored, Marcus and Lone Wolf stared sadly at the empty streets. English citizens and immigrants would populate it again in time, but for now, it was a metaphorical ghost town. This city's history would never forget its utter obliteration. But the horrific being that had caused such devastation was gone and those slain by him were able to find peace in the Universe of Gods. Bittersweet acceptance filled the hearts and minds of the two men. They would have to be satisfied that they had done all they could.

 

[True Grave]

Chapter Eleven

Scott walked downstairs with Rain.

"This planet, Kash-Volt, is it nice?"

"It is very nice. You'll feel right at home there, Rain."

The two entered the dining room, where Lithuel was lounging at the table.

"Rain, this is my best friend Lithuel."

Lithuel stood up and Rain smiled before extending his hand.

"My name is Rain Arcadia. It's nice to meet you, Lithuel."

Lithuel smiled back and firmly shook his hand.

"You, too."

Scott asked Firestar for a Fire Path to Kash-Volt and it opened.

Rain was startled by that.

"Whoa. That's not something that you see everyday. Is it safe?"

"Yeah, you can just walk right through."

Scott and Lithuel did so and Rain, after some hesitation, followed behind them.

Rain was amazed by the extremely technological city that he saw before him. Scott and Lithuel had to prod him along as his head was on a swivel. They took him to the palace and bypassed the guards due to being well-known in Kasha City. When they reached the throne room, both Scott and Lithuel put their fists to their hearts and bowed their heads in deference to the rank of Queen Enjela. Rain followed their example and did the same. After appropriate respect had been given, Scott gestured to Rain.

"This is Rain Arcadia."

Scott gave her a quick telepathic rundown on Rain's past and what the plans were. Queen Enjela nodded in understanding before standing up.

"On behalf of my people, we welcome you, Rain Arcadia."

She extended her hand toward him.

"Let me show you around."

Rain seemed shy at first, but an encouraging smile and nod from Scott made him go forward. As Enjela took his hand and led him away, Scott and Lithuel turned and walked away. A Fire Path opened up a short distance ahead of them.

"As a reward for saving the world," Lithuel began, "We should enjoy the company of some sexy ladies at the club tonight."

"Sounds good, man," Scott replied.

They bumped knuckles and stepped through the Fire Path before it closed behind them.


The End