SuperLuminal

“You could be the one who absorbs it, instead.” Black Angel winked.

 

As Gothschilde’s darkness bled out from her into the floor, the elevator started to rise and vaguely the sound of mechanisms screeched into motion.  The platform rose up the tube for a few minutes until they reached the next level.  Gothschilde moved quickly out, dragging the other two after.

 

The villain’s movements were purposeful. She led them around the curved corridor to a door.

 

“It’s here,” Black Angel and Gothschilde said in unison.

 

The door slid open with a whooshing noise to reveal a being that looked a bit like the Despoiler, but more massive than him with a dark flame burning at the top of its head.  Its eyes were light, not darkness and seemed to shift between primary colors, albeit darker tones of them. It regarded the three, its head resting on a fist and Aurora had a feeling of indolence from its body language.

 

“Welcome, I suppose,” it said with a dismissive gesture. “Show the proper deference so we can begin a conversation.”

 

“Ha!” Gothschilde scoffed with a petulant tone, “Do you imply that we should prostrate ourselves in front of you?”

 

Redline’s eyes widened when Gothschilde openly mocked this strange thing. She looked at Aurora and smiled but her eyes screamed obvious concern.

 

Aurora returned the smile with a shrug while she simply wondered where this creature had crawled from.

 

Black Angel mused thoughtfully, “It seems to be a manifestation of the beings of the Oubliette, but they aren’t supposed to be able to leave it.”

 

“You’re an arrogant little snot, aren’t you?” the being said while standing and since he was easily bigger than ‘Big’ Evil, maybe quite as possibly as big as Onslaught, this one was entirely composed of darkness.

 

He pointed at Gothschilde and his tone went from bored to imperious, “PROSTRATE YOURSELF BEFORE THE LORD OF THE VOID, CHILD!” as he spoke, a shape formed in the darkness that composed him, the same colors as its eyes.  “BOW BEFORE THE LORD OF THE VOID AND BARE YOURSELVES TO MY GLORY!”

 

Redline frowned. “He’s just as chatty as the Despoiler.”

 

“YOU COMPARE ME WITH THAT FOOLISH FOP? HE’S THE BAREST PSEUDOPOD OF OUR EXISTENCE!” the alien said, his voice resonating like a high-tuned bass in the room. “HIS POWER IS BARELY A SHADOW OF THE SHADOW I CAST!” The Void-creature grew every word he spoke. “NOW---- KNEEL!” he said, turning his hand to gesture to the floor before him.

 

Gothschilde let go of one of Aurora’s hands and took a step forward with a confident smile. “Listen here, Void-boy. I make people kneel for a living and I don’t need to be shouty about it like you.”

 

The eyes of the creature flared with power and he extended a hand to Gothschilde. “IF YOU WILL NOT SUBMIT, I SHALL FORCE YOU TO YOUR KNEES--- MORTAL!”

 

Meanwhile, Aurora was having an internal dialog with Black Angel, Where’s the shard? Do you sense where it’s located? Aurora was casually scanning the room with her eyes, trying to figure it out herself.  The thing had to be the doorway through which the creature was allowed to exist on Earth.

 

It was obvious from his boredom that he was locked into place.  The range that he could move from the shard was probably not far at all.  Assuming the singularities outside had anything to do with him, that marked the potential limits of his influence.  Close the doorway, and the void-man would return to where he belonged.

 

Black Angel nodded to Aurora, reading her mind. “I can’t get a read on the location of the shard beyond that it’s here.  Its presence is too powerful.  He masks it.”

 

“OF COURSE.” He hissed, looking directly at Black Angel’s apparition.  Both Aurora and Black Angel’s eyes widened in unison. “I AM BEYOND SUCH AS YOU, SHARD OF MORTAL!” he decried as he swung his arm around and his appendage stretched as he grasped and his fingers wrapped around Black Angel’s throat. She thrashed in his grasp.  

 

“YOUR UNTETHERED PERSONALITY PLEASES ME.  ANSWER ME, CHILD OF DARKNESS.  I SHALL AFFORD YOU A BODY ONCE MORE IF YOU PROSTRATE YOURSELF BEFORE ME AND SWEAR ALLEGIANCE TO ME ABOVE ALL.”

 

Black Angel gulped and looked at Aurora and then back at him. “You clearly can see me as I am, Voidwolf.  You probably know that the Empyrean before you is my true body.  Hah… even without your ‘kind assistance,’ I will eventually claim it on my own.”

 

The Void Lord laughed heartily. “HA HA HA HA HA! THEN I SHALL USE A FRACTION OF MY MIGHT TO FORCE YOU TO PROSTRATE YOURSELF.”

 

As he spoke those words, Gothschilde’s arms stretched to the Void Wolf and she grinned despite a heavy sweat soaking her bangs. “Good, use your powers. I’ve been in need of a boost!” her tone was sarcastic.

 

The void lord took a step back from the advancing loli who slid across the floor with a certain menacing.

 

“YOU WILL BE FIRST, GIRL-CHILD! I HAVE CHOSEN!” He reached with his free arm to reave Gothschilde with shadowy claws.  Springing into action on impulse, Redline Racer leapt and grabbed the villain to run from the room with her.  Her legs blurred, but his grasp dipped for her legs to bind her.  

 

“I won’t let you have her!” Redline struggled against the force of his being with Gothschilde under arm, but Gothschilde reached to the speedster’s face and her head was obscured in pitch darkness.  Redline’s legs stopped moving and she slouched.  Gothschilde smiled squirmed around to get her hands around the void-man’s arm.

 

The Voidwolf hissed as the two were locked into battle.

 

Aurora looked at Black Angel who was still firmly in the creature’s grasp.  While the two were occupied, she slipped around to the side.  Her race was vulnerable to the power of these creatures.  However, it was a double-edged blade if her fight with Gothschilde had told her nothing else.  He paid Aurora no mind.

 

Aurora smiled and saw Black Angel look in her direction to give her the first genuine smile she’d ever seen on the villain’s face.  Aurora flapped her wings and in a blink she crossed the remaining distance between herself and the void creature. While she closed with him, she formed a gauntlet of pure light around her hand and with an impish grin, she crouched in front of him. He finally acknowledged Aurora’s presence when her light powers surrounded her fist as she focused much of what she had left into a single point as she leapt up, propelling herself with her wings to spin. “DRAGON PUNCH, ANGEL STYLE!”

 

Her punch caught the Voidwolf under his chin.  Gothschilde jumped forward as the creature finally let go of Black Angel to free an arm. “THE VOIDWOLF SHALL NOT BE DENIED IN HIS THRONE ROOM!”

 

Black Angel, find it.

 

Black Angel crumpled against a wall when she was thrown away but she quickly rose, nodding as she darted for the door leading out.

 

“A FEEBLE ATTEMPT AT A RUSE.” The Voidwolf lashed at Gothschilde with an arm while sweeping his other arm towards the fleeing Black Angel, still ignoring Aurora to summon a net of pure darkness that spread and enveloped her, contracting her body into a fetal curl.  She struggled as the Void Lord laughed.

 

He finally turned eyes on Aurora. “THAT WAS A MERE DISPLAY OF SHALLOW EMPYREAN POWER! I WILL MAKE YOU MY DOG AND SET YOU TO THE TASK OF CONQUERING THIS WORLD! YOU WILL BECOME THE PROPERTY OF THE STAR-SHADOWING VOID WOLF! “

 

Aurora stepped between the Void Wolf to summon the full armor she’d called before with the sword. She and Gothschilde were the only ones left who could fight the Void Wolf.

 

“THE GREATER SPIRIT, THE GREATER THE JOY WILL BELONG TO ME WHEN HE BREAKS AGAINST HIS DARK WILL!”

 

With a smile, Aurora loosened all bonds on her luminescence as she turned and quickly sliced through the net enveloping Black Angel.  She hissed as the light energy passed close to her, but the net evaporated. “GO!”