Fifteen years ago…

“It’s very pretty.” K muttered, staring out at the little blue planet. From all the way up on the moon, it looked so small. Like nothing more than a tiny dot cloaked in the light of the sun.

“It is, isn't it?” His father, Alien, let out a soft snort. Alien was tall and lanky, covered in hard red skin, with a pair of twisting horns that jutted out of his head. He was a monster. A monster that took good care of his son. “You used to live there once, you know.” Alien chuckled as he patted his son on the head. K still looked mostly like a human. The Emperor’s mutations hadn’t fully set in yet, so the only signs of the change were the tiny horns that were nearing their growth.

K looked up at his father with wide eyes. “Really? I used to live down there? Seriously?”

“That’s right.” Alien kneeled down in front of his son and placed a hand over the boy's heart. “Our kind didn’t use to live here.” The ‘here’ in question was the Emperor’s castle. The master had been cast out of Earth, the humans deeming him ‘evil’ and labeling him a ‘villain’ all because they couldn’t understand him. The castle was massive, formed out of pitch-black stone, and filled with millions of rooms for his army. That was where Alien and his son currently were. Their room was small, with only a pair of beds and a window that allowed them to see their former home world. “We lived on Earth with our master. When humanity kicked him out, though, we were forced to come with him.”

“Why don't humans like us, dad?” K asked, cocking his head to the side.

Alien frowned. “I don’t think it’s that they don’t like us. Instead, I think they don’t want to like us. After all, we used to be humans once as well.”

“We did?”

"Yeah, we did.” He smiled and poked his son in the forehead. “The Emperor wanted to make us better, make us stronger, so he used his powers to evolve us. Allowed our powers to take hold and build a body for us. It messed with our heads a little bit. Most of us can’t remember much about our past lives or even our names. I can’t even remember what your mother used to look like.” Alien chuckled sadly and shook his head. “It’s a small price to pay for a perfect world, though. A world without having to worry about the Beast from space.”

K stared out the window, looking back at Earth. He didn’t know why, but that voice in the back of his head, the one that constantly screamed at him to slaughter mankind, was growing.

“Mars King.”

“What!” K snapped his head back over to his father.

“Mars King.” His dad repeated. Alien pulled away and stood up, folding his arms. “The Princess of Life has seen fit to gift you a name. From now on, you are Mars King. You’ll be placed on the same attack force as your friend P.”

The Organization was made up of so many monsters, all created by the Emperor. Besides the four generals, those being Hell Hound, Golden God, Fairy Queen, and Princess of Life, there were many other attack forces, each with their own mission for when the invasion of Earth began.

Mars King’s eyes sparkled a bit, and he gave a grin. “Mars King… Yes. I’m going to be the strongest. Maybe even the next King.”

***

Present Day…

Mars King glared at Paragon; his arms tensed up at his side. He didn’t know why, but he felt an aura of power coming from the girl. She had removed her mask, and now that he could truly see her eyes, he was without a doubt certain that she saw no light.

A blind girl stood before him. Yet for some reason, he found himself thinking back to that hellish memory of when he saw the Devil slay God. It was a similar feeling, though he couldn’t tell if he was seeing the Devil or the God in her.

“You say you’re going to kill me.” Mars King gritted his teeth and chuckled slightly. Large red claws began to stab out of his hand as he twisted his shape. “I think I can handle a mere child like you.”

“Then why are you standing so far away from me?” Paragon asked slyly. He growled at her. “You said you came for a big threat, right? I’m right here. Come and get me. Or are you nothing more than some ball-less scrub-tier villain?”

Mars King whipped at the air, narrowly missing the girl, though she didn’t flinch as his attack soared past her. “You would do well to not make me mad, girl.”

“I was just asking a question. I’m just curious about it, that's all.” Paragon shrugged her shoulders. “You’re a monster. Just like the giant beasts that threaten cities. Most Supers that can change their form can always turn back to normal. Not your kind though. You had been created to be monsters. Maybe you were once human, but that day left a while ago. I feel bad for you in a way. You never really had a choice. You’re like a gun that was given life.”

Mars King roared, shaking the hallway. “I do not need your pity.” He jumped at her and pulled his arm back to throw a powerful strike toward her skull. He no longer cared about bringing her back alive. She had pissed him off, and she would serve as a good meal. “Die!” His fist met the blind girl head-on, only for him to fall right into her trap.

Her palm had been held out, and it touched him before he touched her.

Mars King struck air, stumbling forward as he felt a weird sensation course through his body. He was no longer in the hospital’s hallway. Instead, he stood in a field of flowers. Flowers he had never seen before. Massive twisting trees hung in the distance, covered in strange plant life, and the sky glowed a pretty green color, casting green sunlight down upon them all. The smell was unlike anything he had ever experienced.

“Where am I? What is this?”

“Welcome to my world.” Paragon’s voice came from behind him. He basked in the sunlight for a moment, feeling the flowers brush against his legs and the wind on his skin. “This world is created by my other power. Think of it almost as a pocket realm of sorts. Similar to the things Avalon can create. This is my strongest use of my power, though it can be a bit of a pain to pull off. Most of you guys move faster than I can react to, and I have to touch you with my palm to use it. When fighting someone like Red Raptor or Green Wolf, I’d be killed in an instant. With you though… Well, welcome to my false world.”

Mars King spun around and glared at his enemy but stopped when he saw her. “What dark power is this?” The monster rumbled.

“So, ready to continue our fight now that we’re on an even playing field?” Sky had a lopsided grin on her face. Her costume was gone. Now, she was dressed in a white gown. The kind of dress a princess might wear. Her red hair flowed in the wind, and her eyes held a light to them now. She was no longer blind.

Within her false world, she was her perfect self. Here there were no humans or anything that could get in her way. A place that was empty. A place made just for her. She didn’t need to heal people or be told what a good or bad job she was doing.

Mars King gritted his teeth. “This changes nothing. Trying to confuse me with these sights won’t work.” He screamed and charged at her again, throwing out a powerful punch.

Sky lazily caught it with a hand, easily stopping his full power. “In here, I’m stronger than even my sister. You lost the moment you let me forge this false reality.” Her fist smashed into his stomach, and Mars King felt his eyes go wide as he was blasted back, vomiting up black blood.

The villain had never been hit that hard before, and he had taken a blow from Poseidon once. He gasped, clutching at his stomach. He glared at her with pure hatred. “How the hell are you this strong!”

“Oh, that’s an easy answer. I’m not.” She grinned. “See, I’m not real.” She twirled around playfully and flipped her hair. “I’m more like a construct. As fake as this world we’re in. The moment you came in contact with the real me, you were infected by my full power and absorbed instantly. As it stands currently, we’re standing within my mind. My mind just so happens to create this realm as the dueling grounds, so to speak.”

Mars King gritted his teeth, sharp red claws sprouting from his fingers. “Impossible! Such power cannot exist!” He charged at her and sliced out with his claws. She dodged his strikes with ease, circling around and almost seeming to dance with him, the smile never leaving her lips. “Sit still!” He screamed.

This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.

“If you insist.” She stopped moving, and he swung his hand towards her. It stopped inches away from her face, the ground beneath her opening up and wrapping hundreds of vines around his wrist, holding him back. He grunted and struggled with the plants, unable to move. She giggled and raised her hand, copying what she had seen her sister do. She flicked him.

Mars King felt himself be blasted out of the vines by an ungodly force, his eyes rolling to the back of his head as he nearly blacked out from the strike. His red flesh armor shattered, and blood flowed down his face as he smashed into the ground, rolling. Eventually, his back hit a tree, and he slumped down, groaning.

Sky walked towards him, slowly folding her arms. “Had enough?”

“I will kill you.” The villain glared at the hero with pure hatred. His back erupted in blood as wings jutted out, and he took flight.

“You’ll have to try if you want out of this realm,” Sky called up to him. “See, once you are absorbed by me, the only way out of here is to beat me. Do that, and the real me will be unable to absorb you and spit you out. Lose to me in here, though, and well... Anyway, my power does have a limit. Someone like the Victorian would be able to bust out of here with ease. The reason I’m telling you this, though, is because you have no chance. Someone as weak as you can never hope to escape. So, please. Just peacefully drift off to slumber here. You’re safe in this realm-”

“Shut up!” Mars King threw his arms out, hundreds of red spikes erupting out and firing out like bullets. They filled the air and rained down towards the girl in the dress. “Die! Die! Die!!!” Vines rose out of the ground, wrapping around Sky and forming a protective shield around her that blocked all his attacks. He brought his hands together, raising them above his head and transforming them into a great sword; he crashed down, slicing through the plant barrier. “Found you!” His arms separated and grew massive in size as he grabbed Sky faster than she could react. “I win!” He held onto her upper half and lower half, and with inhuman strength, he pulled. His laughter filled the air as he felt her body shatter as she was torn in two.

“I guess you are pretty strong. I wasn’t expecting you to kill one of me so easily.” Mars King’s eyes went wide, and he stared down at his hands. He held a twisting, shattered branch in the shape of a person. Behind him, several meters away, Sky stood perfectly fine.

“How! I was sure I got you!” The villain charged at her and sliced out with his sword, impaling it through her chest. A second later, though, and his eyes widened when he saw it was another strange branch, twisted into her shape.

“Oh, you did get me.” Sky was behind him again, perfectly fine. “I told you, I’m not real. Killing me does nothing. You have to beat me. The real me. She’s somewhere in this world. Somewhere asleep, absorbed into her own mind once she uses this power. See, this is a tricky ability to use. It only works on single targets; groups of enemies it’s useless against because I can only absorb one person at a time. If you had just attacked me as a team like you were told to do, you would have won. Until you die, or you find the real sleeping me in here, this dream will go on forever.”

Mars King balled his hands into a fist and yelled. He charged her and smashed his hand through her head. A branch. He didn’t wait for her to speak, spikes impaling her as they stabbed from his back. Another branch. He twisted his body, grabbing her by the head; he ripped it clean off and crushed the wood that formed in his hand seconds later. A tail formed out of his body and slashed through the air, ripping her in two and soaring to the next version, slicing into that one as well. He jumped at another and bit down onto her, spitting out the wood seconds later.

He had no idea how long he did this for. He killed, and he killed and he killed, and soon he stood on a pile of wooden corpses, breathing heavily. Sky stood next to him, trying to balance on all of the wooden figures with one leg, not even bothering to fight him any longer.

“Face me, you coward!” He screamed. “Let me fight the real you! I’ll kill you!”

“Maybe.” Sky shrugged. “You are strong enough to kill most Supers. It’s just too bad you fought me.”

Her fist smashed into his face hard enough to rip his jaw off, and he slammed into the ground. The vines began to rise up and wrap around him, bending and snapping his limbs as if they were twigs, causing him to howl in pain. He glared back at her, his body starting to heal already. It was put back together slowly, and his words slurred until he could finally speak. “I will rip you to shreds!” Mars King screamed, almost fully pulling himself out of the vines. “There is no way I can accept that you have power on the level of the Emperor.”

She cocked her head at him and turned away. “Do you know why the Victorian is so strong?” She asked. “It’s because of who her dad is. She’s the child of Full Monarch, the Lord of the Sun and Cosmos. You also have someone like Whisper, who is the daughter of Max Lightning and the Victorian. She might have gotten the short end of the stick, but she’s still strong in terms of ability.”

“So what!”

Her eye twitched a little. “A little over seventeen years ago, the Emperor declared war on Earth and created you monsters.”

“Why do you insist on telling me what I already know?”

“Why do you think I brought up Victorian and Whisper? You know, sixteen years ago, the Emperor declared one of his warriors to be his bride. The Princess of Life. I’m sixteen years old. Do the math.”

Mars King stared at her in horror. “Are you trying to claim your father is the- You lie! You will die for your sins!” Mars King pulled himself from the vines and charged.

“I will not! I am Sky, sister of Poseidon! Raised by Ocean Empress and trained by Old Dog. I will kill any villain that gets in the way of the peaceful world Full Monarch died protecting.”

“The only one who dies will be you!” Mars King grabbed her by the head, slamming her down hard enough to shatter her skull. He crushed the wood that was in his grasp now. “Come out and face me!”

“Very well. I no longer care about giving you a good death, after all.” Mars King whipped around and glared at the girl as she rested on the branch of a tree. “Goodbye, K.”

Mars King felt his eyes go wide, and suddenly the world began to shake. The trees started to crack, and something began to rise out of the world. Massive and forged from plants and trees, it was a goliath. Bigger than a mountain. It was a girl. A giant. Made out of the planet itself, he suddenly realized where the real Sky had been. She was the planet itself.

He screamed up towards the heavens as half the planet broke away, taking the shape of a girl. Its finger came down slowly. He didn’t know why, but for just a moment, a memory came to him. One he had almost forgotten. It was nearly ten years ago that they created the Bad Timers.

It had happened in a field of flowers just like this.

Mars King was on his knees, breathing heavily. His body struggled to heal itself. “Y- You beat me fair and square. I am not fit to be the king. I thought after the Emperor died, I could take over, that I could be the next king, but it seems that I was wrong.” He bowed his head. His father was long gone, as were most of the monsters created by their master. Gone in the fight with the heroes. “Kill me.”

“No.”

Mars King looked up and found a hand held out to him. Polaron’s armor was covered in dents and cracks, black blood leaking out of the man. “You’ve beaten me! I tried to take over as the next king! No way you would offer me your hand, P! You know more than anyone that our kind don’t forgive!”

“Who said I’d forgive you?” Polaron snorted. “Mars King. I’d like your help. Please. Make me the next king.”

Mars King stared at the outstretched hand and, hesitantly, he reached for it.

“Sorry P.” The memory came crashing away. He found himself back in Paragon’s false world, staring up at the hand as it reached him. “Looks like I won’t be able to make you the new king.” And in a single instant, K, worshiper of the Emperor, member of the Bad Timers, ceased to be.

Paragon sighed as the halls of the hospital faded back into view. She slipped her mask on and patted her white lab coat down. She was alone now.

“Looks like Cinder made a mess.” She could tell the entire hospital had taken a beating, the entire building shaking constantly. “I guess I better go help her out. Hmm. Why is Destiny in her clothes? Wait, what the hell is that stone thing- Is that the Victorian?”

***

Green Wolf dropped down to a sitting position as everything suddenly came back to him. Slowly, the man looked down at his hands. “I’m alive?”

"Oh, thank God! We’re alive!” Green Wolf’s head snapped up, and he found himself looking in the direction of three members of his team. Red Ape, White Spider, and White Lamb had all crashed to the floor in front of him. “I’ll never complain about fighting Myth ever again!” Red Ape said with tears in his eyes as he clutched the floor. “That girl was scary!”

Green Wolf looked around the room they had appeared in. It was Avalon’s lab. The man in question rested in a chair with a sly smirk on his lips. “You guys look like you’ve been through hell.” Avalon noted.

“What happened?” Green Wolf asked, standing up on wobbling legs. The last thing the man could remember was that flash of blue as Battery’s fist came at his face. That attack had been so strong and filled with so much force he’d have no way of absorbing all of it. An attack made to outright kill him. Yet here he stood, still alive. “I didn’t have time to teleport back?”

“Do you remember who you get your teleportation from?” Avalon said with a bit of amusement. “Me. I’m the one who moved you. White Spider here called out for me to save you all, so I shifted your location to this place.”

“You’re welcome.” White Spider said flatly. The woman still seemed shaken up by whatever it was that they saw. White Lamb had practically shut down and was grabbing her legs, rocking back and forth. “What the hell was up with that girl? What did she do at the end!”

Red Ape shrugged. “I don’t know, but she’s lucky I didn’t have some of my animals with me. I’d have messed her up for good.”

“You’re insane.”

“I’m serious!” The man announced, pointing a thumb back at himself. “You know I fought her first out of anyone here! In that regard, I’m basically her rival!”

Green Wolf reached into his pocket, trying to grab his cigarettes, but his hand went through a hole that had been cut out in his jacket. “How are the others doing?” He finally asked.

Avalon shrugged and slowly stood up. “They used Ears to get around, so I don’t have a connection to them.” The man moved over to the door of his office and grabbed his coat.

“Where are you going?” Green Wolf demanded.

“Out.” The man said, letting out a soft hum. “The heroes still have no idea I’m working with you guys, and since the four of you failed to do your mission, I’ll have to turn to someone who can. I was wanting to save him to battle the Lord of Life when we found them, but my hand has thus been forced.” The man said sheepishly.

Green Wolf gritted his teeth but didn’t say anything as the door shut behind Avalon. If Avalon was leaving, then it meant ‘that’ villain was about to join the battle. Green Wolf stared down at his shaking hand as the image of Battery came back to his mind. “I’ll get that bastard. I’ll conquer that level. Somehow. It isn’t game over. Not yet.”