Chapter 1

End of the World

All hell was breaking loose in L.A., building were getting destroyed, people were running for their lives as another planet was about to crash into them. Inside the Leapfrog 2.0, the Runaways were in grief. They knew the world is going to end some time outside. They all made their possible goodbyes, Molly holding onto Klara's hands, Chase strokes a down hearted Old Lace's head. Victor puts the Leapfrog in auto-pilot to speak with the group.

"Well," Nico exclaimed, "the world's ending in God knows how long."

"Can't we stop this like we always do?" asked Molly.

"Oh, Molly. I don't know if we can sort this out this time." sighed Nico.

They all start to form a circle on the floor, in which they decided to reminisce on the life they lead.

"I still remember the first time running away together, when we found out our parents were-" Karolina took a big sigh, "y'know, evil."

"Yeah, the people we trusted before were leading double lives." Nico agreed.

"From then on, we hid in the Hostel, the Tar Pits, the Malibu house and now here in the Leapfrog." Nico continued, "we battled people like our parents, the gods they worked for, the Gibborim, Topher, Ultron, Val Rhymin, who, by the way, was, technically, a jerk and then there was Mother or whatever that guy's name was. We met people like the X-Men, Cloak and Dagger, kept bumping into the Avengers and then there was Hunter, Chase's-"

Chase gave Nico a nasty look.

"Never mind." replied Nico.

"We never knew who to trust," Karolina took over, "as we learned from Alex."

Nico gave a blank stare at Karolina.

"Yeah, Alex." Nico said, worryingly."

"But, we don't need him now," continued Karolina, "for all we know, he might still be dead."

Nico stared at the floor with stress and said nothing. Since she and Chase returned from Murderworld, she never told any of the Runaways that Baron Zemo ordered that Alex should be resurrected from the dead in Hell to train Nico to use the Dark Arts of Magic. She felt like they wanted Alex to stay dead.

"I guess we always assumed that we'd die at the hands of our parents," Chase added, "Not by a giant friggin' planet above us!"

"So, is that it," asked Molly.

"No more us?"

Suddenly, an idea occurred to Nico.

"Hang on," she said.

"I think I know what to do!"

All the Runaways looked at Nico in attention.

"I'll use the Staff of One to send us to a pocket dimension to avoid being killed." Nico continued, "Then, when everything that's going on out there stops, we'll hopefully see and live in a resurrected Earth."

"But, Nico, I thought you already used a teleportation spell." Karolina said.

"Yeah," replied Nico, "but, not if I rephrase what I'm gonna say."

Nico begins to cut herself.

"When blood is shed, let the Staff of One emerge!"

Chase raises his hand.

"How do you even know that there's gonna be another Earth?" he asked

Nico firmly responds, "I don't. But no one's gonna know, except maybe us."

Victor wanted Nico to reconsider, "Are you sure the spell's gonna work? 'Cause out of all the spells you've cast lately, y'know, scatter, zombie not, and oily, would this work he right way? I mean, since you got tortured by your great-grandmother in 1907 New York, that new staff is pretty unreliable, no matter what spell's you cast."

Nico starts to get irritated, "Victor, I'll have to take a chance at it!"

The Runaways stood in silence until Nico banged her staff 3 times for attention.

"OK, without anymore distractions, let's get the spell working." Nico ordered "Maybe if you all, uh, grab onto Old Lace, that'll probably have a stronger impact."

Everyone held onto Old Lace except Nico who needed to get the spell working.

Karolina started to get worried, "Uh, Nico? I think we really need that spell right about now! Don't forget that the end of the world is happening right outside!"

"I know," Nico reassured Karolina, "I'm trying to think of a word to make the spell work."

Nico kept thinking until...

"I got it!"

She finally found the appropriate words to cast the spell.

Nico begins to talk. "Now, this might work or not, but just know if it does, we'll be safe. If it doesn't, we've all had good lives and would have had better ones. But no matter what happens, we'll always be together and we'll always think of Gert and of Xavin, if he...SHE, I mean, is still alive, we will never forget what they meant to and did for all of us!"

Everyone smiled at Nico's heart warming speech.

Nico began to prepare for the spell.

"Alright, here we go."

As she prepares to say the words needed for the spell, the Leapfrog shook as the Marvel Universe nearly starts to crash into the Ultimate Universe.

Molly loses her grip on Old Lace and falls to the floor.

"MOLLY!" Karolina screamed, "GRAB ONTO OLD LACE, C'MON!"

As Molly tries to get up, the Leapfrog still shakes.

Nico, as she nearly falls to the floor, says the spell.

"OUTER DIMENSIONS!"

As she says the words of the spell, a purple haze of magic appears from the staff affecting the Runaways grabbing onto Old Lace.

As Nico and Molly try to reach the deinonychus in time...

KA-KROOOOOM!

The Marvel Universe and the Ultimate Universe have crashed into each other and all of existence fades away...

TO BE CONTINUED...