Chapter 4

Clark vs The Chancellor

Alex’s body was burning hot. It was fortunate that he could react just in time to avoid being crushed by the superhero’s fall.

But how was he supposed to avoid this… monster?

He was sure that the demon was going to crush the superhero’s body to pieces, any second now. But something distracted the demon just as he was about to go through with it.

The demon had somehow detected Alex’s presence. He turned his giant face to look directly into Alex’s eyes.

Alex’s entire body went numb.

What happens now?

ZAP!

It felt like a second red lightning had erupted dead ahead, straight out of the superhero’s helm. It hit the demon in the face at point blank range, and he growled in pain. The sudden red flash blinded Alex.

The superhero had used his foe’s momentary lapse in focus as a perfect window to counterattack and free himself from the choke hold.

The impact of the hit had pushed the demon back, making him stumble on his giant legs for a couple seconds. Both his giant palms were clasped on the wound above his right eye caused by the laser strike.

The smoke cloud had now cleared. Alex could see a tall black tower at the center of the circular park, which stood where the council building once was. The red lightning emerged out the its summit.

So this was the source.

Alex shifted focus to the giant demon, still struggling in pain. He noticed that this demon’s armor was much higher quality than the scale armor on the reptilian demon he’d encountered before. It even had intricate embossing and a strange sigil on the breastplate, coupled with a dark maroon cape. Was he some kind of demon royalty?

Now that Alex had had a good look at him, he could tell that this demon was actually noticeably smaller in both height and size than the reptilian demon. Perhaps because he had first seen this second demon from such close proximity, it had skewered his perception of the demon’s size, making him feel way bigger than he actually was. Alex now reckoned that he might be ten feet tall, and almost half as wide as the reptilian demon.

But Alex was right about one thing, the first time around: This demon was far more threatening than the previous one.

His sophisticated black armor also made him look quite authoritative. Was he the leader? The final boss?

Did that mean that the superhero had defeated all other demons inside the smoke cloud?

Alex was impressed. A glimmer of hope ignited within him. Maybe this would all be over soon.

The armored superhero is super strong!

But the newfound hope was soon extinguished as Alex realized that it had taken the superhero less than a second to finish off the reptilian demon.

Why then was he struggling with this one? Was this boss demon really that tough?

Alex examined him more closely. His skin was magma red, with undertones of pink here and there, and a strange, very faint glow coming from under his thick, hide-like skin. He wasn’t reptilian like the last one. Instead, he could’ve passed for a buffed human male, if not for his glowing red skin, bright orange eyes, and muscles the size of a small car.

His black armor was clearly meant for a king or leader. He had no horns or anything of the sort, as far as Alex could tell. But who knew what he looked like underneath his black helm, which covered his entire skull, and seemed oddly similar to a Viking’s, minus the horns.

His skull might be covered but his face was laid bare. He had a square jaw, and his features reminded Alex of some ancient Norse god that he must have encountered in a video game. Only that there was no beard. And that this was no god.

His royal armor or his godlike-aura wasn’t fooling anyone. This was a demon. And he was here for total annihilation.

He must be brought down as quickly as possible!

The superhero found his footing in the air, just above ground. He hovered to the left of Alex, preparing himself for his next attack. On his right was the boss demon, slowly recovering from the hit he’d taken. His face now covered in his own red blood.

“Cheeky little bastard, aren’t you?” the demon growled at the superhero.

Given everything that he’d deduced so far, it shouldn’t be a shock to Alex that the demon could talk. But he was still taken aback.

“Don’t worry, it’s just a scratch,” said the superhero smugly, in his static, robotic voice. “Soon, it won’t hurt anymore. I promise.”

“Oh, please. Do not gloat,” said the boss demon. “I should have finished you when I had you. This—” he pointed at the wound above his eye— “is simply punishment for my own mistake.”

The boss demon presumed an attack stance. The vertical red lightning shone bright behind him. “I will not make the same mistake again.”

The superhero appeared stoic, prepared for whatever came next.

The giant demon charged at the superhero with a surprising burst of speed. How could something so big move so fast?

The superhero dodged an attack that Alex could barely see. The boss demon was almost too fast for Alex to keep up with. He attacked the superhero with quick yet powerful strikes, each delivered with the intention to kill. He was not holding back.

But it was nothing that the superhero couldn’t handle. He was in control of the fight, dodging every single strike fluidly, even though a few cut in too close.

The armored superhero moved his body in inhuman ways. He could twist and turn and bend in a manner no normal human could.

What was he?

Whatever he was, he was holding his ground against a terrifying, other-worldly, demon boss. Alex was thankful that he was on their side.

There was no one else on Earth who would be capable of this.

Suddenly, the rhythm of the battle changed. The boss demon’s strikes became progressively more aggressive. And the superhero seemed to be struggling with his dodges now. He clearly couldn’t keep this up forever.

The demon went for a quick overhead punch that the superhero was forced to block. But it was a bluff. He quickly switched stance to grab the superhero’s hand, and shove his gigantic knee into the hero’s metal torso. This froze the superhero in place long enough for the demon to pivot mid-air and land a spinning back kick in the exact spot where he had kneed him.

The superhero went flying back once again and crashed into a building, smashing glass and concrete.

The boss demon gloated. From his body language, Alex could tell he wanted to rush in and finish the job. But the superhero was now out of sight. So the demon held his position.

Based on his observations thus far, Alex could now tell what the flow of battle should be like for both opponents. The demon had an edge in close ranged hand to hand combat. The superhero will have to leverage his speed and size to land several hits before he can even think about damaging the giant demon’s tough posture. For the demon, however, the plan was simple: Tank as much as he could while waiting for that critical moment to land a deadly strike.

How will the superhero deal with this?

The superhero blasted through the roof of the building, spreading chunks of rubble in the air that fell down like concrete rain. He extended his arm, pointing it at the boss demon as if it were a gun.

Alex noticed a small laser dot on the boss demon’s chest. The next second, he was hit by a quick blast of blue energy.

The boss demon stumbled for a much shorter duration this time, quickly regaining his balance. The blast had clearly made an impact, but not a significant one. “So we switching to long range now, are we?” growled the demon. “No problem. I can do long range.”

From under his cape, he revealed a giant crossbow; it was the same black, metallic color as his armor. How was he carrying something so big under his cape, and still moving this fast? It too had thick, intricate embossing all over it, a sophisticated piece of weaponry.

The boss demon held the long crossbow in one hand and pointed it at the superhero. He fired a barrage of shining red bolts from the crossbow at the superhero high up in the sky, who rhythmically dodged every single one of them.

Alex wasn’t sure whether the projectiles qualified as crossbow bolts. They glowed burning red against the darkened sky, similar to anti-artillery fire. The constant stream of bolts owing to the high rate of fire made them seem like red laser beams.

The demon could have taken down several hundred F-16 fighter jets with that thing.

Alex gulped. What kind of a monster was this? Why was he here? How quickly could he have taken over the planet if the superhero weren’t here?

Alex shrunk behind the concrete slab even deeper. There was no space behind him if he wanted to run. And if he tried bolting out the sides, there was a good chance the demon would spot him.

He obviously knew that Alex was here somewhere; he had gazed straight into his eyes just a few minutes ago. But right now, the superhero was keeping him occupied.

Still… he couldn’t risk running out. Who knows how quickly would the demon react once he felt Alex’s presence again. The demon might think that Alex was trying to ambush him with a sneak attack, and eviscerate him in an instant with his massive laser-firing crossbow.

Alex shuddered. The fear glued him in place.

The superhero continued dodging the barrage of hand-held anti-artillery fire, before it suddenly stopped. The demon must be reloading, thought Alex. During this brief pause in fire, the superhero bent into a downward curve and glided toward the demon in a straight path.

The crossbow was now fully loaded, and the demon resumed fire. The superhero evaded the incoming barrage through a spiral maneuver, but did not change course. He was still headed straight for the demon.

Something long and sharp gleamed bright in the superhero’s hand in the backdrop of all the red light from the crossbow bolts and the orange glow from the surrounding city fires. A shining steel blade. Was it a sword? Or simply an extension of the superhero’s arm?

This was it, thought Alex. The superhero plans to gather as much speed as possible in spite of the barrage trying to slow him down, and use the momentum to slice the demon in half.

If he could just reach him…

The firing intensified as the superhero spiraled closer and closer. At the last moment, the demon suddenly stopped the fire and pivoted on one foot, twisting his entire body to one side to narrowly avoid the superhero’s slash.

The attack had missed. Alex caught the demon smirking.

But the smirk quickly disappeared.

The demon noticed two small, spherical balls under his feet that beeped red.

The next second, BOOM! An explosion right under him blasted the giant off his feet and into the air. He hovered a few meters above ground for a split second, when—

A thin and barely visible metallic wire wrapped around the demon’s body. Alex craned his head up to see that the superhero was already directly above the demon’s body as it was suspended in air. It was him who had wrapped the wire lasso around the demon.

The superhero boosted himself upward with small rocket bursts emerging from the soles of his feet and his back, yanking the demon farther off the ground and straight up in the air. As they both gained altitude, the demon twisted and turned so that he could face the superhero, which ended up tightening the metal lasso’s grip.

“Cheap fucking tricks!” the demon growled. “Face me head on like a true warrior!”

Suddenly, he was eerily still. A visible electric bolt had shot through the steel wire, paralyzing the demon’s body.

Then, the superhero stopped his ascent and turned to face the demon directly below him; both suspended high above ground, connected via the electrifying wire.

“You talk too much,” said the superhero, pointing his metal arm down at the demon.

All five of his fingers spread outward to reveal a metallic grey cavity in the superhero’s palm, which looked like the boosters at the end of a rocket ship.

Blue energy gathered at this cavity, forming a small orb which increased in size with each passing second. It was the same blue blast that the superhero had used earlier, but now he was charging it. At the same time, the hexagonal sigil on his chest also shone bright. Within a couple seconds, the ball of energy glowed bright like a star; a shade of purple now added into the mix. It looked like… plasma.

The plasma blast fired downward from the superhero’s arm and hit the demon dead in the chest. The energy beam shoved the demon’s body through the air, in a collision course with the ground.

The demon smashed into the concrete below, back first. The impact created a wide crater around him, sending shockwaves in all directions which blew Alex off balance.

But the superhero was not done yet. He added more power to the beam to push the demon deeper into the crater.

Alex took cover as the intense heat from the blast almost scorched his skin. The beam lasted a full seven seconds before finally dying out.

What a fantastic combo, thought Alex. There is no way the demon survived that!

The superhero slowly descended upon the crater, examining the devastation that he himself had caused.

A sound of a few crumbling rocks came from deep inside the crater. Then came the sound of a much heavier rock being shoved aside.

Alex peeked out to look closer.

The demon emerged slowly through the crater, limping and stumbling.

But still alive.

How the hell did he survive that?

The demon’s firing hand held the now destroyed crossbow glued to his chest. A circular film of metal, severely damaged, seemed to have emerged from the top of the crossbow, that looked an awful lot like a…

A shield?

Alex clenched his jaw as he looked closer.

The crossbow shield seemed to have tanked most of the damage, but was obliterated in the process. Moreover, the demon’s intricate armor now had a giant circular gap on almost the entire torso region, which is where the plasma blast had hit him. His now bare skin was charred. Burning flakes dropped on the ground as he limped out of the crater.

“A little hypocritical, don’t you think?” said the demon, struggling to speak. “You trash-talked my minions the entire time.”

Apparently, banter mattered way more to him than the near-death experience he’d just had. He was already over it, shaking it off like it was nothing.

But the current state of his body spoke otherwise. The damage was real.

“That was before I fought them,” the superhero explained. “I was silent during the battle, when I took them out one by one. I’ll be silent when I take you out too. Or I can sing you a lullaby as you head toward the darkness, if you want.”

The demon grunted, but remained in place. He probably would have immediately charged the superhero for that sneer, if he could.

Perfect, thought Alex. He’s weakened now, and completely exposed. Move in and finish him off!

What was the superhero waiting for?

Alex smiled as he saw the superhero gearing up to rush in. Maybe he just needed a moment of respite after delivering such a devastating attack.

But the demon simply scoffed. Perhaps he was blissfully unaware of his own current vulnerability.

Or did he still have something up his sleeve?

The superhero was just about to launch forward, but then—

“I finally remember where I know you from,” said the demon, bumping his fist on the palm of his other hand.

This seemed to have frozen the superhero in place.

Was he hesitating?

Why? Why now?

“It was bugging me this entire time!” continued the demon. “You’re from the children’s stories. We learned all about you when we were young; how you and your kind were the scourge of the Old Empire.”

The superhero’s cold and casual demeanor suddenly disappeared. He was now visibly uncomfortable.

And the boss demon noticed.

“Oh…” he said. His tone was different now, as if he was the one in control. “Is it possible…? Nah… Or is it?”

The superhero still did not move.

Stolen story; please report.

The demon finally laughed. “Oh shit!” he said, cackling. “You have no idea who you really are, do you?”

The superhero remained silent.

“Funny,” continued the demon. “Frankly, I have no idea why you are here defending this pathetic little planet. But I’m grateful for the opportunity to destroy you and push your kind one step closer to extinction!”

The demon now opened his arms, his fists clenched, as he took a deep breath in. Hot steam poured out of the wounds on his torso and above his eye. It seemed like the wounds were… healing.

Regeneration?

Shit, thought Alex. This could only mean one thing—

If we don’t finish him off in one go, he might just keep regenerating!

Things just got way more complicated.

Come on, hero, Alex pleaded. Don’t fall for it. He’s clearly buying time!

After a long pause, the superhero finally spoke. “As I said, you talk too much.”

The demon smirked, sure of himself that he’d touched a nerve. “Bring it on then,” he said in a whispered growl. “I’ll show you why they call me The Chancellor.”

The one they called The Chancellor was now ready to fight again. White hot steam continued to pour out of his wounds.

The superhero lunged forward at breathtaking speed. His steel blade was back out, which Alex could now confirm was indeed a part of his arm.

So his body could transform into different shapes and tools, Alex thought. Including a massive plasma cannon!

The Chancellor chuckled as he watched the superhero approach. “Don’t think I’m weak just because I’m healing.”

The superhero slashed with his arm-blade as soon as he was close, but The Chancellor managed to dodge. The superhero then unleashed a quick flurry of swings, but The Chancellor evaded each of them successfully, although not without struggle.

He had been significantly weakened by the plasma blast for sure, Alex deduced from his movements. But it hadn’t slowed him down.

Perhaps the regeneration had already reversed most of his injuries and stamina loss.

Alex was running out of ideas. Was this demon simply invincible?

The Chancellor’s movements seemed odd. His body moved and reacted to each of the superhero’s attacks in a weird, unnatural fashion. As though his movements were simply reflexes, rather than deliberate reactions.

It must be a cost of the regeneration!

Alex was sure that the superhero must have noticed it too. Perhaps he could find a way to exploit this?

The superhero, however, also seemed different than before. His attacks were no longer swift and confident. His movements were sloppy. And he seemed wholly incapable of reading The Chancellor’s reflexes.

What happened? Was he hesitating?

In a swift whoosh, the demon’s body accelerated to the point that Alex completely lost track of him. He reappeared only a split second later, holding something long and slender in his hand.

Alex shifted focus at the superhero, and a cold chill ran down his spine.

The hero was missing an arm. The same arm that he had used earlier to fire the plasma cannon.

How can he continue fighting with one arm?

The demon was now behind the superhero, and it seemed like he was about to use his super speed once again, to strike the hero from a blind spot!

Fortunately, the superhero understood this and turned around to hit him with a quick blast from his head laser just in time, while simultaneously launching backwards, putting some much-needed distance between him and the demon.

The Chancellor let out a loud, cackling laugh, as he waved the superhero’s severed arm around. It was completely robotic. Electric sparks flew out of its torn end. No sign of any muscle, or blood.

The Chancellor continued to laugh, mocking the now one-handed hero. “Holy Hellfire, you’re a fake! A copy. A damned robot clone! Why then are you protecting this blasted planet?!”

The superhero was frozen in place once again. But something felt different this time.

“I wasn’t going to just take it and burn it down to ash and dust, but WHAT IF I DO?” The Chancellor continued to mock. “What is it to you? You’re not even the real thing! You are NOTHING!”

The superhero gazed at the ground below him, motionless.

It felt like the demon had finally crossed a line.

The bright blue light emanating from the black glass on his helmet and the hexagonal sigil on his chest glowed the brightest that it had until now. All that light made it look like a strange blue aura now surrounded the hero.

He seemed to be gathering himself.

The Chancellor did not care, nor take notice. “I’ll let you in on a little secret, robot,” he said in his continued tone of mockery, pointing the severed arm at him. “Perhaps one more plasma blast would have done the trick. But too bad.” He smashed the robotic arm on the ground and crushed it with his giant foot. “No more cannon fire.”

A moment of unexpected silence fell between them.

Then, the superhero raised his head, looking straight into The Chancellor’s eyes. He was now ready.

The Chancellor’s expression now turned serious. “Come at me you little robot shit!”

The superhero launched himself once again; but this time, with a loud crack, as though he’d broken the sound barrier. He zoomed past Alex at such incredible speed that he was almost invisible. Only a blue streak of light left in his wake.

There was a flash of steel the moment he connected with The Chancellor. The demon’s reflexes kicked in; but this time, they weren’t fast enough. The superhero slashed wide, inflicting a huge gash into The Chancellor’s bare chest.

And he wasn’t done yet.

The superhero swiftly followed up with a devastating chain of attacks using his remaining arm and both his legs. His body moved even more unnaturally than before, making full use of his inhuman flexibility.

The Chancellor’s body still dodged most of the swipes with nervous reflexes. But several smaller cuts now began to show. Hot steam poured out of the new wounds.

Both the reflexes and the regeneration couldn’t keep up with the superhero’s newfound speed and determination.

The Chancellor grew visibly annoyed; frustrated, probably because he couldn’t accept that the superhero, despite losing an arm, was still such an immense threat to him.

Rage built up on The Chancellor’s face. He was done with defense.

Alex was surprised to see the superhero present an easy opening, which the demon immediately took advantage of by shoving his giant fist into the superhero’s slender torso.

The hero was stunned in place, such was the impact from the demon’s attack.

Alex was confused. The superhero should have been able to dodge that hit with ease! Especially with his new speed.

Was he growing weaker? Had the buff already worn off?

The Chancellor grinned, proud of the fact that he had finally bested the superhero. He raised both his arms over his head and joined his hands together, interlocking his fingers, preparing to hammer down the unmoving superhero with all his might.

Alex held his breath. He should be able to dodge this!

He needs to dodge this!

The Chancellor swung his arms downward. The hero did not dodge.

Instead, he blocked the hammerfist attack with his only arm, extended horizontally in front of him. A blade extended outward from his forearm, with a visible bolt of electricity quivering along its edge.

Alex smiled, letting out a huge sigh of relief. He was baiting The Chancellor to attack him all along!

The Chancellor screamed in pain. The electrified blade had cut deep into his giant hands, inflicting serious damage!

“Cheap fucking tricks, yet again!” The Chancellor barked. He looked down at the blood spurring out of both his palms and wailed in pain. He raised his head back at the superhero and said, “You’re a disgra—”

But before he could finish, The Chancellor was hit with a barrage of miniature rockets fired from the superhero’s extended arm and back. The rockets attached themselves deep into The Chancellor’s skin, quickly covering his entire body.

In a coordinated move, the rockets spread The Chancellor’s arms and legs apart. The small fire blasts coming out the tail end of each of the rockets intensified in unison and swept the demon off his feet, propelling his giant body backward with incredible force. The rockets pinned him to a large concrete slab at the end of the street, just on the edge of the circular central park.

The superhero zoomed forward and positioned himself directly in front of The Chancellor, now subdued. He then pointed his only remaining arm at the gigantic demon at point blank range.

A blue ball of energy began gathering at the tip of the superhero’s extended arm one more time.

“What?!” The Chancellor spat in shock. “This cannot be!”

The plasma blast continued to charge. It’s bright blue and purple glow illuminated the demon’s terrified face.

“Bring it on you little robot shit!” screamed The Chancellor. “I always face my enemies head on!”

When the hero spoke next, the intense aura emanating from his voice could only be described as menacing calm.

“My name… is Clark!” said the hero. “And this is my home.” The ball of energy increased in size. “I will gladly give my life protecting it!”

Alex felt goosebumps all over his body.

So this was his reason to fight. An unflinching, supernatural resolve to protect humankind. And he was willing to lay down his life for it.

What was he?

If things had gone differently, would Alex have arrived at a similar conviction himself? Could the need to protect others have become his reason to fight too?

Alex closed his eyes. Things were different for him, after all.

“You have no life to give!” The Chancellor spat back at Clark.

The ball of energy continued growing bigger and bigger.

“There is no saving this planet!” yelled The Chancellor as the intense light blinded him. “The Legion is almost upon us!”

The energy ball finally reached its breaking point.

“Who the fuck carries two plasma cannons?!”

BOOM!

The hero named Clark unleashed a devastating blast of pure energy.

The exposed part of the concrete slab behind The Chancellor was instantly eviscerated.

With no shield to tank part of the damage this time around, The Chancellor received the full brunt of the plasma cannon’s charged blast.

His quality armor melted off his body, along with his thick outer skin and tissues. The bare bones around his shoulders and thighs were now exposed.

The Chancellor seemed to have dug his feet into the ground below him. He wasn’t blown away by the beam like last time, when he was suspended in air. This time, he held his ground, fighting against the tidal wave that was the plasma blast.

Also, Alex noticed, a few rockets had attached themselves at the demon’s back, pushing him toward Clark. This effectively held the demon in place as the plasma blast chipped his body away.

Brutal, thought Alex. Clark really wanted to finish him off with this ultimate attack.

The heat emanating from the beam was unbearable. Even from this distance, Alex could feel the scorching waves burn his skin.

He couldn’t even imagine what it must be like for the demon.

Damn, thought Alex. What a formidable opponent.

Whatever his intentions—which probably included annihilating all life on Earth and taking the planet for himself—Alex acknowledged his prowess as a battle-hardened warrior. Amassing such great strength, skill, and resilience would’ve taken years of hard work and discipline.

And Alex respected that.

Maybe he could have learned a thing or two from him, if only he were not a planet-devouring extra-terrestrial monster.

The charged plasma blast finally waned and died away.

The gigantic demon lost his balance and crashed onto his knees. The concrete below him cracked against his weight.

He was about to fall flat on the ground face first, but he supported himself just in time with his hands; most of the flesh and muscle now missing from them. He was panting profusely, barely able to hold himself up.

But he was still alive!

The hot steam around him was now in overdrive.

Alex gasped. Was this not enough?!

Was he really going to heal through this?

The demon raised his head to look at Clark. The faint orange glow of his eyes had now turned bright gold, like two miniature suns. The hot steam around him blew out of his body with the intensity of a thousand steam engines blowing off steam at once.

The demon wailed. His pain must be unbearable, thought Alex.

And he clearly could not move.

Now was the time, thought Alex. One swift attack that puts a definitive end to his crusade, that’s what was needed.

He turned to look at Clark. What was he doing? He needed to move in right now!

The bright blue glow coming through his chest and helmet was gone, replaced by a dim and flickering red hue.

He was spent, thought Alex. That last attack took everything he had!

Both Clark and The Chancellor were barely a few meters apart, glaring at each other with terribly weakened bodies, unable to move.

The first one to manage just one more attack would win.

Suddenly, The Chancellor spoke. The hot steam blowing out of his body had turned even more intense.

“Why?” he said in a coarse growl, struggling to get any sound out. “Just why did I have to run into you?”

He managed to erect his spine and pull his hands off the ground, barely able to balance himself on his knees. When suddenly—

“Stupid little brother!!” the demon screamed looking up at the sky with clenched fists.

Alex was stumped. Was he losing his mind?

The Chancellor began laughing maniacally. He was completely out of it. His regeneration was even more intense than before. It was like he was running on fumes.

“You’re going to make me resort to… cheap tricks!” The Chancellor said softly, directed mostly at himself rather than Clark. “Well, I guess… tricks are a part of battle, after all, huh? Heheh.”

“See how low you are forcing me to go?” he suddenly bellowed, this time clearly directed at Clark. “Do you see?”

Alex held his breath.

The Chancellor wasn’t done yet. He clearly still had something up his sleeve!

Perhaps a final, suicide attack?

The demon forced his body into the air. The jump was nowhere near as powerful as it had been previously. Now, it looked like he was carrying a heavy husk through the air, completely out of stubbornness.

The Chancellor landed directly behind the black tower, the source of the red lightning.

The red lightning had grown thicker, and now glowed brighter than it ever had before, growing more intense every second.

The demon was clearly up to something!

“Five seconds!” The Chancellor yelled from the distance, raising five bony fingers at Clark; the meat around them largely disintegrated. “You got five seconds until the Legion gets here! What will you do?”

It was an obvious bait, thought Alex. He wanted Clark to rush him, in desperation. And then ambush him somehow.

Clark should not fall for it!

Alex turned to look at Clark, but he was already gone. This time, a faint red streak left in his wake.

Why was he taking the bait? The Chancellor was obviously bluffing!

Or maybe… he was not. Maybe Clark knew something that Alex didn’t. Maybe he had taken one look at the bulging lightning and realized that he was indeed out of time.

Severely weakened, to the point that he could barely stand, Clark charged straight at the dark tower. A last-ditch effort to destroy what was probably a gateway from hell.

Alex gulped as he realized that this was probably also… a sacrifice play.

Clark’s arm-blade was out. His body glowed blue once again, but only faintly. Inches away from the dark tower, Clark readied his final slash.

The Chancellor, positioned behind the tower, suddenly disappeared. He had somehow managed to activate his superspeed one last time.

In the next instant, The Chancellor reappeared directly above Clark.

Clark swung his arm-blade, but it never managed to reach the tower.

The Chancellor crashed onto Clark from above in a full body slam. He elbowed Clark’s spine and shoved him down to the ground, barely meters away from the tower.

The Chancellor rolled off of Clark’s body and grabbed him by his leg. He swung Clark’s body over him, dragging him away from the dark tower, and smashing him into the ground from an overhead angle.

He towered over a downed Clark, barely able to hold himself steady. The dark tower glowed bright directly behind him.

A faint grin spread across his battered face.

He had won.

But suddenly, a sharp sound from behind him wiped his grin away.

He turned around to spot two large metal balls at the edge of the black tower, beeping red.

BOOM!

A huge explosion erupted from the base of the black tower, destroying its very foundation. Multiple chain reactions followed, piercing upward through the height of the tower.

The dark tower crumbled, and the bulging red lightning swiftly died out.

“NOOO!” screamed The Chancellor, with the last bit of energy left within him, as the tower crashed into the ground.

The Chancellor, enraged out of his mind, now turned at Clark, who lay motionless before him. He spoke in a heavy, broken voice.

“You made me compromise… on everything I believe in… as a warrior. And I still didn’t get what I wanted!

“I had to trick you in order to get you; something I swore I’d never do. But blast it!” He coughed. “I have you now. And I told you before, didn’t I?”

He grabbed Clark’s body with both his hands and lifted him over his head. “I never make the same mistakes again!”

With Clark’s torso in one hand and his hips and legs in another, The Chancellor pulled on the robotic body from opposite ends.

Cracks appeared throughout Clark’s white metal body, progressively getting longer and wider. The blue light within him, which perhaps represented his life force, poured out of the cracks.

The Chancellor struggled to pull it apart. It wasn’t easy for him. Clark’s robot body was indeed tough.

The Chancellor let out a deafening roar and finally succeeded in severing the superhero’s body in two. The hexagonal sigil on Clark’s chest was crushed in the process, and its light died out.

But then—

CRACK!

A second explosion erupted from Clark’s body the moment it was severed. Chaotic electric sparks burst out from the break point, and quickly morphed into what looked like a disheveled sphere. The force pushed The Chancellor down on the ground, cowering on his back trying to slide away from the rapidly-expanding electric ball.

Alex couldn’t believe what happened next.

It was as though a crack had appeared in the fabric of reality. Hints of an alien world unfolded before him through the slowly-widening crack.

And then, a creature appeared out of it. Thin, slender, with lean muscles. He appeared humanoid; with a bald head, long slender arms, and bright golden eyes.

His body, too, was magma red, with multiple bright cracks spread all over it, like lava upon land. If not for the lava-like cracks, he appeared to be a normal human male, except that he was all muscle and no skin.

What in the world was this creature?

Another demon?

Only his nude torso emerged from the crack in reality, his lower body presumably still on the other side. It was difficult to tell with all the crackling white electricity obscuring vision around the crack.

He gazed around the landscape for five seconds; and then, he vanished. Just as abruptly as he’d appeared.

His vanishing led to another, minor explosion, which was more like a rapid release of energy. The Chancellor raised his hands to protect his face.

A golden beam shot through the crackling ball of violent electricity upward. It reached a summit, then split into several beams that spread out in all directions in the darkened sky like fireworks.

An eerie silence ensued.

The Chancellor struggled back on his feet to check on Clark. The blue light was completely gone.

Alex felt numb. He struggled with the idea that…

…that the superhero was dead.

The Chancellor let go a huge sigh of relief. He looked at the crumbled remains of the black tower, and back again at Clark’s severed body. He then let out a soft, maniacal chuckle.

“Well, congratulations,” he growled at Clark’s body. “You laid down your life for these filthy insects. And they don’t even know your name.”

The Chancellor coughed, struggling to speak. His legs began to shake.

“You die, and yet you fulfill your mission,” The Chancellor continued. “I live, and yet, I failed mine. I can respect that.” He struggled to get the words out.

“You were a valiant warrior,” he said to Clark. “I wish we could have met under different circumstances.”

The Chancellor turned to leave. “Keep your stupid planet,” he said. “I have no interest in conquering it…” he coughed again, “…anymore.”

“And besides,” he continued. “This pitiful planet was just claimed… by the Cyber-demon!”

The Chancellor coughed harder as he struggled to laugh. “Ohoho! These insects would’ve fared far better under me, believe me!

He continued with a grim smirk. “You have no idea of the evil that is coming your way. I only wish you could’ve lived to see it, as revenge for what you did to my body.”

He coughed again. A small alien spacecraft slowly descended beside him. This was the first time that Alex noticed it. It was probably hidden until now, perhaps using some sort of cloaking device.

A strange, worm-like alien emerged out of it and walked up to the demon.

“Chancellor,” he said. “You’re talking to a dead body.”

The Chancellor scoffed and spit out blood. “Talking to you is only marginally better, you stupid worm. Now get me out of here… before I succumb to my injuries.”

The worm supported the limping Chancellor with long, slimy tendrils that extended out of his body. The Chancellor collapsed into the ship, and the worm-like creature followed him inside. Soon there was lift-off, and the ship disappeared into space.

Alex could hardly believe any of what had just happened.

The Chancellor was gone. He had lived through it all.

And Clark, the superhero who had single-handedly defended Earth against a terrifying demon invasion, now lay dead on the ground.

Alex was surprised to see that he was already inside the perimeter of the circular park, close to the now decrepit concrete slab where The Chancellor was trapped, before being hit by the second plasma blast.

He had no memory of walking here; he’d been completely engrossed in the events of this magnificent battle between the two godlike beings.

Alex slowly walked up to Clark’s remains. Several wires of varying lengths and thicknesses sprawled out of both pieces of his body, no spark coming out of any of their severed ends.

The hexagonal sigil, which was enclosed within the black glass on his torso, was now gone.

Alex peeked closer. His insides were completely mechanical.

So he was only a robot… after all.

A robot with such an immense, other-worldly conviction to protect human lives.

Alex was surprised to find himself shedding tears for someone he barely knew.

Suddenly, a faint blue light flickered from behind the black glass on the white metal helmet, once again.

“You still didn’t run away, huh?” said the robotic voice that strangely sounded so human. “Well, call me a hypocrite all you want, but… Boy am I glad to see you still here.”