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It was eleven forty-five in the evening. Dye stood at the foot of the pillar staring up. He had less than fifteen minutes.
“Okay, now or never,” he said. He broke into a sprint and started running up the building. He spiraled up and when he came to top he leaped upwards and landed. When he stood up, there was Griflore commandeering Arayan’s body. Arayans face was ghastly with cat-like yellow eyes, sharp teeth, and pulsating, purple veins crawling up his face. In his hand he clutched the star.
“So you've finally figured out my plan,” said Griflore, “but it's too late, boy.” The moon was slowly reaching its apex. “You cannot stop me,” he said, gripping the star.
“I’m going to try!” Dye’s body blurred as he ran straight for Griflore. Everything around him slowed and as he approached his enemy, Dye stretched out his hand, reaching for the ruby rock. Then Dye saw it. Grilfore’s eyes shifted on him. He moved his hand away, removing the star from Dye’s reach and then struck the boy. Dye tumbled away. Griflore grabbed the medallion around Arayan’s neck with his other hand while tendrils of red light whipped towards Dye. Dye recovered and evaded the attacks sufficiently. He was standing on the edge when a tendril came his way and he jumped upwards to avoid it. Golden pieces of armor covered his feet and he blasted fire from them to give him thrust. He flipped over Griflore, turned and darted back towards him as Griflore turned and punched towards Dye. Dye evaded and as he did he attempted to take the star again. Griflore pulled the star out from Dye’s reach and leaped away, putting distance between him and the boy.
“That star is mine,” said Dye. “Give it to me!”
Griflore’s fangs protruded through with a smirk. “Come and get it!” He tossed it up and caught it. Taunting Dye.
In the distance, Dye saw the unarmored body of Sam flying in from behind Griflore. Dye ignited his hand and threw a fireball. Griflore dodged and Sam evaded, letting the ball of heat blow by him. Griflore spotted Sam and then turned back to Dye.
“Clever boy,” he said. “Trying to ambush me.”
“No, that star is mine! Any one who tries to take it is going to get burned.”
Griflore was taken aback. What was going on here?
Sam flew in again but Dye, his feet clad in metal, spun his leg around unleashing a wave of fire. Griflore and Sam moved out of the way and Dye charged for the star.
“What is he doing?” Sam said to himself.
Sam resumed trying to acquire the star when another fireball raced in front of him. Griflore saw Sam and using the medallion constricted him and threw him towards Dye. Dye leaped over him and blasted towards Griflore in another attempt to get the rock. Sam broke free and maneuvered through the air.
“Dye, what the hell are you doing?” He said.
Griflore laughed. “Pathetic! Arguing when your world is just minutes away from being mine.”
“What’s your problem?” Asked Sam, getting stressed.
“Nothing,” Dye replied, “I just finally understand what I have to do!”
He increased the flames on his body and a wave of fire rushed towards Sam, burning holes through his clothes. Dye took the remaining flames and threw them at Griflore, who effortlessly avoided the attack. He scurried up to him and tried his best to snatch the star again, but Griflore merely kept it from his reach. With his free hand, he pushed Dye away and the boy went a great distance. Sam was recovering and it was there he conjured up a powerful gale.
“I don’t know what has finally come to your attention, but I won’t let you completely destroy what we worked for!” he said.
The mighty wind surrounded his entire body as he sent gusts in Dye’s direction. Dye countered by waving his ignited hands in a circular formation. Dye blasted some more fireballs at Sam but Sam leaped into the air and threw gusts at Dye. Each fireball was extinguished by the mighty winds and Dye evaded the remainder of his brother's attack and hurled himself into the air. He unleashed a powerful flame attack that sent Sam away. He then turned his sights on Grilfore who had begun trying to activate the star.
Eleven fifty-two
Dye yelled as the flames along his arms grew larger. Griflore turned towards him and saw fire coming his way. He raised his hand and the flames collided with an invisible wall, Arayan’s medallion glowing. A tendril of water snaked up the skyscraper. It surged towards Griflore, who had not noticed the water was able to grab him. Jason’s unarmored torso materialized in front of Griflore as he tried for the star. Fire hit Jason, causing his water body to evaporate. His fully formed body fell to the ground and Grifore tried to stomp on him. He rolled over and as he looked up, Dye came around with blazing legs and tried to strike him. Jason moved just in time, the flames extinguishing around his legs to reveal gold armor. Jason looked up at him with bewilderment.
“Dude –” he said, moving himself away. Dye then swung his leg at Griflore and by a stroke of luck managed to hit the star. The rock went into the air and Dye caught it. Griflore became enraged, growling at the half armored boy.
“Give that back, boy,” he held out his hand.
“Come and get it,” Dye taunted. He looked at Jason who was beginning to try and take it. Dye moved his hand out of reach.
Sam returned to the fight and saw that Dye had managed to get the star. Sam dove for Griflore while Jason got to his feet and did the same. Both of them tackled the possessed body of Arayan.
Eleven Fifty-Six.
Griflore was unable to move.
“Dye, do what you’re going to do now!” cried Jason.
Dye held the rock up, his desires coming to the front of his mind. He thought of Corrine and wanted her to survive this ordeal.
“No! I’ve waited too long to have my plans ruined by some child!” Griflore snatched Sam from his body and threw him into Jason, the two slid over towards the edge, stopping themselves just in time. Griflore raised his hand and constricted Dye again, causing him to drop the rock. Griflore took the star, breathing hard. The fatigue of his body was beginning to weigh on him. Sam looked at him and saw this.
Jason picked his head up and saw it too. “Now?”
“Now!”
Sam and Jason got to their feet, their armor dressing their body. Sam threw wind while Jason ripped the moisture from the air and swung it at Griflore. He was too fatigued to try and dodge. He was hit and the star fell to the ground. Dye snatched it up but before he could do anything with it, the medallion shined again and now all three brothers were immediately immobile. They levitated, their bodies stuck in midair.
Eleven Fifty-Eight.
“I must say, you three are quite the impressive bunch,” Griflore said, retrieving the star. “But I have waited too long for this. Xenton or not, I will not let you stop me.” He held the star up in his hand.
Instantaneously, the star shot off a red pillar of energy. It hit the moon’s surface and the redness began to move across it like a disease.
“It's starting…” said Sam, “We’re too late.”
“Of course you are! Now watch, as everything you hold dear turns to nothing.”
The moon was becoming engulfed by the red, sending out a frightening, crimson glow all around the city. Jets of red light shot down from the moon and down below, Sam could see people getting struck. As soon as they were hit by the light, their bodies changed into gruesome, terrible monsters. From far above, the boys could hear the screams and cries of bystanders rising evermore as more jets of light were shot from the moon.
“And so, it begins.” Griflore smirked. Embracing the crimson moon as it began to form his army from the people of the city and quite possibly the world. “I have won and now your world belongs to me.”
“Hey — Buddy!” said Jason, struggling against the invisible force holding him. Griflore dragged his eyes over. “Remember that one time you asked me where our fourth was?” Griflore’s expression was blank. “Well, he’s done taking his nap!”
Mack fell from the air and punched Griflore in the face. Dye and his brothers fell and the glowing star dropped out of his hands. Mack picked it up.
“DYE, GO LONG!” Dye blurred his body and sped off down from the skyscraper and onto the street. Mack hurled the rock as hard as he could. Griflore got to his feet, his glowing yellow eyes frightening Mack.
“No….” he growled. “NOOO!”
He lunged at Mack and even though he was frightened at the gruesome face, instinctually he threw a one-two jab, striking Griflore hard. An armored Sam grabbed him.
“Great job!” he said. “Now let’s get this over with.” Sam flew off with Grifore in tow.
“Awesome job, bro!” said Jason. “We’ll take it from here!” Jason leaped from the top and turned into rain, leaving Mack alone atop the skyscraper. As he saw his brothers leave him, something was stirring inside of Mack. Something powerful.
Eleven Fifty - Nine.
Dye ran through the streets of the city, following the star as it arched across the sky. From all sides he saw people turning into the monsters from his dream. Terrible looking creatures that shrieked and cried as they began terrorizing unturned civilians. The star began to descend and Dye caught the star with his golden, armored hand. The rest of his armor dressed up his torso and came to his neck. He held the star, looking upon it, trying his best to tell himself that even though they were about to succeed, he still failed as Corrine laid helplessly in a hospital bed.
“Sorry Sis,” he said. He tossed the rock onto the ground and summoned his sword.
“Dye, hurry!” Yelled Sam from above, holding Griflore by the leg.
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Griflore used the medallion to constrict Sam, causing them both to plummet. Sam let go of his leg and he fell. “No!” Shouted Griflore, his eyes enraged. “I’ll kill you.”
“Yeah, I know! But this time you’ll have to work for it.” Immediately he drilled through the lustrous ruby rock with his sword. The star broke into pieces and scattered across the asphalt. Before Griflore had the chance to grab Dye, a geyser of water pushed him into a nearby building.
The moon was returned to normal and instantaneous people who were infected by the star’s power were turned back to normal. Dye’s armor secured his face. Griflore came stumbling out of the rubble completely soaked with water. Arayan’s wet, bluish - black hair hung over his frightening yellow eyes.
“All that planning. All of it! RUINED!!” He looked upon the armored brothers, Sam coming down with a clank. You think you’ve beaten me?” Griflore said, panting, “Well guess again.”
He walked towards the three brothers who were patiently awaiting his next move.
“You may have foiled my plans,” he continued, “but this beast isn’t ready to croak just yet. You’ve stood in my way for the last time! Now, look into the face of your destroyer!”
Gigantic brown wings sprouted from Arayan’s back. The three boys watched in astonishment as Griflore finally took complete control over his new body. Arayan’s clothes were torn while each of his arms turned into talons. His legs transformed into the hind legs of a lion and he grew the torso of a great beast covered in hair. His head sprouted features of an eagle and a lion. His nose morphed into a pointy beak while the head and fur of a lion appeared. The beast grew to a massive height. As it neared the complete stages of its transformation, the creature opened its eyes, and a chilling yellow gaze stared down at the three brothers. The beast opened its mouth with a loud cry, and the distorted sounds of an eagle and lion destroyed windows and glass all throughout the area. Bystander’s who saw the beast started to run away in terror. The boys stood and stared at the towering, behemoth monster.
“Huh—Griflore? Griffin?” Dye said with a sensible tone. “That makes perfect sense.”
“Dye, stay focused!” Stressed Sam.
“Behold,” said Griflore, “my true form,” He flapped his enormous wings and the boys defended against the mighty gusts. Arayan’s naked body grew out at the top of the beast's forehead, with red, bodily tubes connecting the two.
“This has got to end tonight,” said Dye. “I won’t let you hurt any more people!” He shouted at the creature.
“Your mouth speaks louder than your actions, boy,” said Griflore, “Let's see you try and stop me.”
Dye balled up his golden fist and charged. He was joined by his two brothers and together they attacked the huge monster. They unleashed their elemental fury against their foe but Griflore stood there and showed no signs of having taken any damage. He retaliated by stomping the ground, causing the trio to lose their balance. He balled up his talon-like fist and slammed the ground, doing whatever he could to crush the three boys.
With each passing moment, the boys were growing more tired and exhausted, but Griflore wasn’t showing any signs of fatigue. He continued to thrash about, destroying buildings that stood around him.
“Tired?” Asked Griflore in a sarcastic tone.
The boys didn’t respond. They stood in front of the creature with their scratched armor, panting.
“Can’t you two do that Spirit Life-Force thing or something?” Dye asked, panting.
“I’ve been trying this whole time,” Jason replied, “and now the fatigue is too much for us to handle in trying to achieve that level of power.”
Griflore took his fist and slammed it into the ground. Dye created an enormous round of flames that surrounded his body, continuing to conjure his power until his flames turned gold. Dye then unleashed his flames and Griflore’s body was scorched as it came tumbling down. Dye put everything he had into the golden flames but it wasn’t enough. The creature waved its oversized hand, and the fire was brought to a halt.
Griflore lifted his gargantuan body from the ground and stood on his hind legs. He extended his wings and flapped them vigorously. The wind blew Dye’s golden fire right back at him. It blew Dye through hard walls and debris and he fell to the ground like a puppet with no strings. He tumbled to a stop. His head was down, and his limbs were lifeless.
Griflore stomped his way over to the fallen hero, gathering a purple energy in his opened mouth. Dye opened his eyes to see Griflore preparing for a devastating attack. The power grew until it became unstable. Griflore tilted his head back, ready to unleash its fury.
Missiles flew from the sky and struck the titan beast, causing the energy to dissipate. Griflore fell to the ground shrieking in pain. Dye and the other boys looked to the skies and saw a dozen military helicopters coming to aid them; the sound of cutting air from the propellers swooped above them. The smoke cleared, and Griflore sprang up, swinging his huge arms. He let out another unnatural cry and began swatting the choppers. The military crafts opened fire once again and used evasive maneuvers to avoid getting hit.
Despite massive explosions, the assault had no effect on the creature’s body. The armada continued to fire as Griflore thrashed about. One by one the heavy aircrafts fell victim to Griflore’s massive talons. He swatted the choppers from the sky causing them to fly into buildings, crash into the ground, and some even exploded on contact. The boys watched as the group of aircrafts were reduced one by one until only a single one remained. Griflore gathered the purple energy in his mouth once again and fired it at the lone craft. The attack tore right through the chopper causing it to explode. The beam stretched out into the ocean and crashed into the water, causing a tower of seawater to shoot up into the air.
“How pathetic these humans are,” said Griflore as he stopped his attack, “It's time for this futile resistance to come to an end.”
“That’s it!” Said Dye, slamming his golden fist into the ground.
Sam grabbed his younger brother by the arm, and the two rocketed into the sky. Sam threw Dye into the air and after reaching enough altitude, Dye came falling down just above Griflore. Dye ignited both of his fists and delivered a powerful attack that drilled Griflore into the ground. The magnitude of the impact caused a discharge of flames. Dye continued his assault on him, punching as hard as he could. With each powerful blow, Griflore was pushed deeper into the ground.
“Dye!” Yelled Sam from above.
Dye delivered one last punch before leaping out of the way. Griflore’s yellow eyes looked upon the angel-like Xenton in the sky gathering storm clouds. He then looked over and saw the blue armored Xenton. With the wave of his hand, Jason caused a tidal wave to arise from the ocean. The water fell upon Griflore and soaked his entire body which attracted a gigantic bolt of lightning down from the clouds. With no time to move, Griflore was struck by the massive bolt. His body contorted in every way as the lightning flowed through his body.
The clouds faded, showing the full moon and all was silent. Griflore’s body gave off a thick plume of smoke that covered half of the sky. Exhausted, the boys could barely stand up. The eye sockets of the beast flew open and the ghastly sound of Griflore’s cries emerged.
“You’ve got to be kidding me,” Dye said as the creature picked itself up from the ground.
“This is impossible,” said an outraged Sam, “he’s taken everything we’ve given to him. I don’t know what to do!”
The creature took an earth quaking step forward and gathered more energy into its mouth. The purple light gazed over their shiny armor as it got bigger. When the energy grew unstable, Griflore threw his head forward, unleashing another devastating attack that blew the three boys away. Sam was sent flying through the windows of a nearby building. Jason was blown away through rubble and debris. Dye was thrown far away. His golden body crashed into the hard ground like a meteor, rolling through the rubble. The creature laughed joyously, his earthshaking footsteps thundering in the distance.
Dye’s golden head opened up, his eyes fixated on the towering beast. The city was slowly falling apart. The beast unleashed its devastating attack on the citizens of Beach Shores City and Dye could hear the screaming cries of people nearby. He rolled over to get up and saw a pair of shoes belonging to somebody he knew.
“Mack?” asked Dye, looking up at him “You shouldn’t be here…”
Mack smiled.
“Where are Sam and Jason?” he asked
“I don’t know,” Dye replied, trying to pick his beaten body up from off the ground. “That thing’s last attack threw us all in different directions.”
Mack looked at him.
“What…” Dye said
“I’ve never seen you in your armor before.” Dye gave his brother a sly smile and then looked towards Griflore.
“What do we do?” asked Mack.
“I – I don’t know,”
Dye turned his head a fraction and looked at Mack. He was convinced his brother wanted to say something.
“What is it?”
“I want to help!” Mack said. “I’m tired of sitting on the sidelines watching you guys get beat down. I know I have my powers here somewhere, I just don’t know how to use them!”
Dye looked at Mack. He gave him a quick smile, placing his hands on his shoulder. “Trust your instincts!” he said.
“Trust my –” he trailed off. He looked ahead at the towering behemoth beast trashing the city. He felt nothing more than helpless. He couldn’t figure out what he could do to help.
“Mack!! You better get your ass out there and show me what you got!” Coach Connelly’s voice rang out in his head. He was remembering what it was like the first time he triggered his powers. “I don’t need weak players on my team. I need men! Not weak ass sissys! You hear me?!
Frustrated.
Angry.
Humiliated.
“YES COACH!” Mack’s voice yelled.
“WHAT WAS THAT??”
“YES COACH!”
Before Dye’s eyes, Mack’s arms tore through his sleeves. His arms grew to nearly three times their original size. His chest exploded through his shirt with his core rock solid. His legs tore through his pants revealing tight, bulging, muscular legs; his entire body grew to three times his original size. Dye was immensely surprised. Mack jumped into the air and soared towards the beast. He leaped from building to building, crumbling the walls as he got closer to Griflore, his powerful legs throwing him into the air above the creature.
“Hey!” He yelled, getting the beast’s attention.
Griflore turned around and looked up at the sight of the oversized human falling towards him.
Mack delivered a punch to the creature’s head, forcing its humongous body to the ground and causing a tower of rubble to shoot into the sky.
“Whoa!” Said Dye, admiring his brother's display of power.
Dye’s armor covered his head while Mack’s pounding hits caused earthquakes throughout the city. With each hit, the creature cried. Mack paused his beating and picked the beast up by its tail and swung it into a crumbling building.
“I haven’t felt this good in months!” Mack exclaimed. “I feel great!”
Dye saw his brother leap from the ground and violently land on the creature’s stomach, causing it to cry out with pain. The beast swung its talons, but Mack caught it and flipped the creature onto its back and began wrestling with it. He jumped back a little bit while the creature got to its feet. Dye stood at the side of his brother staring in amazement. Mack took his rock hard fist and struck the ground, causing a crack to rupture towards the feet of the creature, allowing it to fall on its back.
“That’s right,” said Mack with a vengeance.
“Wow! Where did you learn to do that?” Asked Dye.
“My instincts!” Mack smiled.
At that moment, a yellow swirling energy made its way around Mack’s enlarged body. The light grew and soon his whole body was encased in the strange aura. The yellow light attracted the fallen beast while the bright aura nearly filled downtown. As it faded, Mack’s body was covered in black, polished armor. On his face was the Quailocian symbol for earth. He clapped his black metal knuckles together and prepared himself for battle in his new prized armor. Sam landed with Jason staring at their new ally.
“Mack?” Asked Sam.
“Is that you under there?” Asked Jason.
“Yeah baby!” he said.
“Yeah! Alright! Big brother is ready to throw down!” Said Jason. “Now he really has…the muscles!” he tried to flex.
“Let's do this,” Mack tightened his fist. The four brothers were together at last. The battle for the fate of the world was about to begin.