AN: Season finale Part 1 (If it was a TV show format anyway.)

Destined for Victory

"A child...touched by fire...delivered from heaven to become the greatest warrior, destined for victory."

-Lei Kung

They tracked Kuo to a skyscraper a few blocks away. Obaktu Enterprises was printed across the front of the building in big lettering. The import/export business never appeared to be anything other than what it claimed to be in the months following its inception. Today, the gray uniformed soldiers standing around in the lobby told them now it would be different.

Dr. Oberman was pacing in the lobby, apparently waiting for them to catch up. He carried his staff in one hand, twirling it about in preparation when he spotted them. While he was putting on his mask, Danny noticed his people were unfairly wielding guns.

From the building across the street, cartel members came through the doors carrying an assortment of weaponry, including guns. Feeling there couldn't be overkill against New York's Defenders, Heart members emerged from every direction, some in ninja garb, others in regular clothing. They intended to use their bodies as weapons, so no guns.

"At least we don't have the mob or anybody else joining in," Colleen said, trying for optimism.

Danny studied their dilemma, determined to beat every last one of them if they had to. The goal was a single man in particular, and he was weakened. Everybody else was just in the way.

"Find Kuo. He's the priority. We take care of him and the rest falls apart."

"Or so we hope," Jessica supplied unhelpfully, and asked, "Got ideas on how we don't wind up shot?"

Luke balled his hands into fists. "Cerberus is holding their ground inside Obaktu. Kuo's probably in there. Those guys are also gonna be our biggest issue."

"We can't go in straight," Matt advised, removing his stick for the battle ahead. "We'll get shot or cornered that way. So let's deal with these guys out here first."

He nodded in agreement. "Colleen and I will deal with Kuo's people. The rest of you work on the cartel. Get those guns out of play, and watch out for any who might have powers."

Jessica groaned. "This is gonna be a long-ass day."

Matt smiled lightly. "That's the spirit."

"Uh..guys?"

Everyone looked to Colleen before following her worried gaze. Oberman wasn't holding ground anymore. Well, he was, remaining inside by himself. But the two dozen soldiers with him were exiting the front doors and lining up. They were planning to spray bullets where they stood out in the open street. Not cool.

Uneasy, the private detective stared at the immediate threat. "Do we run?"

People were gathering on the street, numbers increasing rather quickly. He squinted in their direction, wondering what the heck they were thinking coming out here. Plenty of them were carrying pieces of wood, metal tools, baseball bats, and on and on the list of random things.

They started cheering, excited about something he couldn't figure.

"People listened to him," Colleen uttered in awe. "Danny, they heard Ward's call to fight."

He twisted around to see what she saw. Men and women in police uniforms were arriving by the carload. Some of the people with them wore military uniforms. A lot of them were older, some of them weren't. Possible retirees and veterans, or the lucky who were off-duty when the explosives detonated.

The people on the other end were ordinary citizens, wielding whatever weapons they could scrounge up. There were so many of them he couldn't count the number. He was beyond bewildered. How'd they know when to come here? Their timing was basically perfect.

"They've got radios," Matt relayed to them, head cocked to the side as he listened carefully. "People have been communicating with law enforcement and trained professionals that way. They've been meeting in churches to make the plan to join together here. It's where they presume the domestic terrorists are housed from the message over the police radio."

"Defenders!" Both groups were carrying megaphones, as both had a member leading the way, calling out using the instrument.

"This city shouldn't be yours alone to defend!" A man in a police uniform projected to them.

On the opposite side, the citizen holding a megaphone spoke into it. "We showed up at noon hoping to see these terrorists and nothing. Guess it's a good thing we decided to stick around a while!"

"We've got your back, Cage!" a citizen shouted loud enough to reach their ears.

"We're with you!" someone else screamed from amongst the crowd of people.

The cartel members were looking awfully conflicted being so overexposed, and the newest arrivals were beginning to take in the dangerous situation. As soon as the group with training saw the rifle carrying soldiers outside the skyscraper, the order went out to draw firearms. The soldiers switched their targets to the people aiming guns at them.

A handful of men in bulletproof vests and blue windbreakers spilled out of two vans parked along the side of the building. They had guns and took cover behind barriers near the Cerberus soldiers.

"FBI! Stand down! Put your goddamn guns down now!"

Jessica laughed. "Shit's crazy."

He didn't know which side fired first, but the minute a gun discharged, the area exploded into chaotic violence.

Some of Kuo's loyalists were being assaulted by the citizens near them and they were responding with unflinching brutality. A gunfight between Cerberus and the armed military, police, and FBI raged on their left. The cartel stood by, not yet attacking anybody, and he caught Matt focusing on the other scattered Heart members, rushing into a fight with a pair of them.

"I'm helping those people!" called out Colleen, and she ran to close the distance to the brave citizens.

Jessica ran after her and Luke turned his sights on the soldiers firing assault rifles. He used his bulletproof nature to his advantage and charged, intending to engage them head on. Danny scanned where he would jump into the fight and someone shouted his name above the deafening levels of the chaos, breaking away from the end of the street most congested by citizens and Heart soldiers.

He saw Misty emerge from the crowd. She slowed to a stop to take out a guy who got in her way, trying to cut her with a knife. Her assailant went down when her bionic arm bashed into his skull.

Starting her jog back up, she reached Danny, breathing heavily.

"Where's Kuo?"

"I don't know," he answered, distracted by the cartel's leader pointing at the building they'd come out of to his lieutenant.

It was far too noisy to hear any part of their discussion. He started edging closer to their spot, hoping to somehow hear what was being said. Sounded like he might have heard the word "profit", but then he halted in his tracks. The gang members were leaving. In threes and fours, they began slipping into a narrow alleyway to the right.

The leader, Manden, realized he was being watched and looked across the distance at him. He gave him a wave, the side of his mouth upturning in a small smile. His back to him now, he left the area with his lieutenant.

Misty was seeing what he was seeing, and suggested, "They can't see the benefit in their arrangement any longer is my guess. Cartels tend to operate like that. They do what makes them worthwhile money or they're all done tolerating. It's the kind of criminals they are."

He wasn't going to complain. They were taking the extra guns to consider with them. Their own Heart members determined it was the time to reveal their presence. Dressed as ninjas or covering their faces partially, they'd looked just like any other of their people. Kuo's faithful hadn't even seen it coming and were now under attack by someone a moment ago they believed to be an ally.

Danny could go searching for Kuo now. Although he'd have to deal with Oberman first.

Grabbing Misty's attention, he told her to follow him and ran for the front doors of the skyscraper. The rifle bearing soldiers had been shot or moved off somewhat to the side of the entrance. They were receiving constant fire from one side and were fully focused on the shooters. The distraction served well and he slipped into the lobby of the office building with her.

Dr. Oberman hefted himself up onto the front desk, standing on it. He spun the staff in his hands before extending his arms outward in mock welcome. His left arm tilted so he could examine his watch.

"You have approximately three minutes until the countermeasure wears off and I subdue your power."

He gave a disdainful look. "I could beat you with or without my power."

"A living weapon, mhm… Perhaps. But it would be foolhardy to weaken yourself before confronting your true enemy."

"He's weaker now because he underestimated his opponent. Will you do the same?"

"Hm… I like that," he said, sounding humored. "Give me your best."

Oberman dove straight off the desk like diving into water. When Danny moved out of his path, he twirled his body and the staff in hand skillfully. He avoided a hit but Misty had to use her bionic arm to block a swing.

Together they took him on, and he faced an inconvenient reminder the staff was unaffected by his power. His opponent was considerably good at lashing out and protecting himself with the weapon. He learned quick the new armor and mask were also of the kind of material his power didn't overcome. A minute ticked by and another, and they weren't getting anywhere.

They had to get the armor out of the way. If they could do that, he would be able to land an effective strike using the Iron Fist. He relayed his plan to his partner and they set it into motion.

Familiar with assault vests, the detective hung back while he raced ahead to continue fighting hand to hand. Once she figured out what she had to, she sprang forward and made a grab for his belt. She missed.

He ducked a swing of the long staff and latched onto it with his hands. Pushing him backward, the momentum drove Oberman into a wall. He kicked out and Danny pushed through the pain to shove him back to the wall.

Misty used the opportunity to get in close. She slid his own knife from his belt, more the length of a short sword, and cut through a shoulder strap. The move didn't go unnoticed and he grabbed the arm, the woman probably only saved a broken wrist because it was her artificial one.

His grip was lost when his enemy suddenly released hold of the staff, throwing him off kilter. Oberman punched him below the chin and kneed into his stomach, tugging his weapon back from Danny afterward. He swept the weapon outward, regaining space as they moved out of its radius.

The end of the staff changed into a sharp tip with the press of a switch, transforming it into a spear. There was a red stain on the end, the man's infected blood. And if his timing was accurate, the three minutes were just about up.

Danny concentrated power into his fist. His partner was on his other side now, rushing forward. She ducked under his arm as he pulled back the glowing fist to gain momentum. The strike was delivered successfully to his chest when Misty risked being up very close, pulling the loosened armor to expose his center mass.

The direct hit propelled him across the room and smashing into the wall, crumpling to the floor behind the desk. Misty drew her firearm and cautiously moved around the corner of the desk. He stayed to the right so they would be coming at him on two sides.

Their opponent was on one knee, a hand clutching his chest. His breathing ragged and uneven, Danny saw he continued to grasp his staff in his hand a moment too late. The weapon cut through the air and pierced Misty in the ribcage.

Oberman fell onto his side, curling up a little, and stopped moving. Turning away from him, he ran to his fallen friend. She was pulling the sharp point out of her side before he could tell her it might not be a good idea to.

"Why do I always get the guys with the anachronistic crap?" she breathed, breath hitching in pain.

Her hands pressed to her bleeding wound and she scooted to sit against the counter.

"I'm going to get the guy who cut off your arm if it helps."

She made a weak smile. "It does."

The door opened and he found himself looking into the faces of Colleen and the Heart defector, Owen. When she saw Misty's state, the woman hurried to kneel by her to see if she was okay. Standing up again, she informed them that Claire was on the way and had medical supplies. Then she asked where Bakuto was.

On the final insistence by Misty that she was okay and would soon have a fantastic nurse, the three of them proceeded to the elevator. They assumed the top floor because it was usually the top floor. If it wasn't, they'd have to painstakingly go floor by floor hunting the bastard.

The doors opened to Kuo standing a few yards from them, patiently awaiting the arrival.

His eyes lingered on Owen, but settled on Colleen.

"Have you come to cut off my head again?" he asked, amusement in his voice.

She met his gaze. "You going to make it that way?"

As an answer, he brought forth his sword and held it steady before him. "You could have protected this city, Danny. Saved it from the crime and mayhem it has had to endure for five days now."

They walked out of the elevator, Danny and Colleen coming closer while Owen hung back. She unsheathed her sword, prepared to fight her former beloved sensei yet again. He knew she must be tired of it and wished it didn't have to be done.

"Prioritizing the sick people of this city cost you, as prioritizing me will cost you."

He frowned, not understanding his meaning at all. And it didn't matter, because he went on to speak of something else.

"People who think themselves heroes are the ones who open the way for people like him."

Him who?

"I mistimed, missed my opportunity to sustain this effort. I should have known he would sit in antipathy, waiting for others to do his work this long. When he does finally come, nothing will be the same."

The sudden sight of the gun and subsequent burning pain in his leg was shocking. He lowered his vision to the bullet wound in his thigh, such an attack completely unexpected. Kuo was treacherous. Why was he surprised after everything?

Colleen was looking at him, wide-eyed and afraid. "Are you okay?"

He didn't reply. Kuo was talking again, seemingly taking Colleen's question for his own to answer. His arms were trembling, sweat glistening on his forehead.

"I feel exhausted in my bones. The serum makes me have to force myself to do the simplest task, like standing upright," he revealed. "My beliefs remain the same. I'll keep them always."

Kuo attacked his former student. She was expecting it and parried his strikes, straining to hold him at bay. Despite his waning strength, he was bringing enough muscle into his blows that her smaller frame had to use significant effort in response.

He joined into the fight at the next available opportunity, throwing relentless fists. Against the two of them he was clearly struggling, and Danny figured it was just a matter of knocking him unconscious. Colleen wanted him locked up once. He assumed she still wanted that. They weren't taking this as far as killing, were they?

Probably something they should have discussed beforehand.

"What do you have without us, Colleen?" Kuo asked, taunting. "You have no family."

He brought the gun out, firing a near miss at her. Danny immediately grabbed her arm and pulled her back, the both of them warily watching the weapon. A gun in a close quarters fight was a little uneven.

"You were a great teacher, Bakuto," said Colleen. "I'm this strong and confident of myself because of you."

Was she trying to convince him to stand down and surrender? He worried on that. Should the man give up and allow himself to be arrested, wouldn't someone like him have people who could get him out at a moment's notice? It might not be over if they ended this without killing.

Owen seemed cautious of her rising emotion. "He expects blind loyalty. When we eventually learn to see from perceptions other than our own, we become untrustworthy in his eyes."

"You were one of my best, Owen. We had a bond not easily broken." Kuo said. "And you betray me for a businessman."

His gaze was drawn to the elevator, noticing the numbers were lighting up in ascending order. Someone or multiple someones were heading up to the top. He prayed they were friendly and not a bunch of gray soldiers.

"It would be easy to follow and think nothing else," Owen admitted. "When you're in a room, it's just a room and fine that way. But expand what's outside that room and you see it's not black and white like the Hand claimed it was, like Heart does now. There's a whole world outside the room. Failure to see beyond your own mind. This is where you failed us."

"I gave you everything. I've known you most of your life," he said. "Why would you hurt me, Owen?"

"Because we were supposed to benefit humanity. We were supposed to be the greater good, not make excuses for evil acts and call it in service of a greater good. And because you didn't have to listen to the screams at night."

The man's eyes darkened, something unreadable to him flickering in them. Tired as he seemed, his brain seemed to be working on overdrive. Danny followed his sweeping gaze to a certain point, stopping when he saw the explosives. They were wired to the ceiling, throughout the hallway with the elevators, and potentially there were a whole lot more unseen.

Kuo fired the gun at Colleen when he noticed her trying to get an angle on him out of his line of sight. She stilled where she was, sword lowering slightly. Unable to attack physically, she used her words instead.

"For all your talk, you don't have real faith in anything, Bakuto. Except maybe your own perceived superiority."

Danny tried to communicate with her their situation, but she was distracted on speaking her mind.

"Your lack of faith has doomed you to repeatedly lose, when facing an opponent who believes in something real."

He caught her eye and nodded to their multiple issues surrounding them. Her eyes widened and scanned the room again before scanning Kuo's person. She was searching for what would set them off.

Still determined to prove a point, prove she'd learned not to need him or family or anyone to live, she stared until he was looking her in the eye.

"In the end, you couldn't even beat a businessman."

His gaze zeroed in on the man's jacket. It hadn't been closed during the battle between him and Ward. He had it zipped to the collar now and Danny considered it was to conceal something.

"You underestimate people," he told the Heart leader, hoping to be a distraction for Colleen. "You don't really know anyone. That's your weakness."

The elevator doors slid open. In the ensuing moment of a more effective distraction, Colleen lunged for Kuo's gun. He pulled the trigger multiple times at everybody present, and Danny charged.

Pain in his side stopped him and he fell to the ground, a bullet having blasted through his stomach. Kind of an obvious result when charging a guy with a gun. From where he was on his side, he saw Colleen managed to avoid being shot and had actually stabbed the man in the stomach.

He was skewered on her blade and yanked himself off of it as a voice filled the sudden quiet.

"Holy shit…" Ward said, stepping into the empty area beside the elevators. "Get his gun!"

Lowering her sword by her side, Colleen turned back to Kuo pointing the gun at her face. He pulled the trigger and the slide drew back, empty. Danny breathed out his relief but it didn't last. Kuo was laughing quietly to himself.

Marcus and Claire came into view on either side of Ward. The nurse carried a bag readily in hand and bandages wrapped tight across his chest and around his shoulder could be seen a little from beneath the bloody shirt. He was going to need her help too, if he didn't have enough in him to heal himself.

Matt came into view walking past them, Owen hesitantly following his lead to confront Kuo. He was ignoring his bleeding wound and continued to clutch the empty gun, his sword held fast in the other grip.

"What's so funny?" he asked, fixing those eerie Daredevil eyes onto the man.

The gun slipped out of his hand. He patted his chest, pressing down to make the outline of something square visible. His eyes searched the room at the gathered.

Matt's expression was flattening into abject horror. Kuo smiled slightly and revealed how it worked.

"Ten second delay to ensure absence of heart rate, and boom."

"What are you talking about?" Danny demanded, dragging himself up onto his knees.

"Two, three, five, seven," he counted, contented. "At least I get most of you."

Marcus put his hand on Ward's shoulder, taking hold of Claire's arm as well.

"Dead man's switch," he realized out loud, putting the two civilians behind him and pushing them in the direction of the elevator. "If his heart stops, this floor will blow."

Well, they wouldn't kill him then. Problem solved. Why did it not feel solved?

Kuo's eyes stared hard into Ward's uncertainty.

"Ward," he uttered. "I regret our efforts…"

He broke off, drawing his gaze to the large window behind him. "To come to nothing."

Kuo jumped up and grabbed Danny by the sweatshirt, flinging him into the clear glass. Surprised and confused, he powered his fist as his enemy tried to bring the sword down on him. A bullet hole appeared in the center of his forehead, blood spraying out the back of his skull.

Stunned, he spun about regardless of the pain his stomach wound caused with motion. Once looking at the window, he instantly centered on what Kuo observed long before this. During his one-sided shootout, somebody had taken a shot at him from the outside. While it didn't hit him, he took notice of the attempt.

There were two separate bullet holes in the glass.

"Lobby, lobby, lobby," Ward murmured to himself.

Danny looked up at him approaching, Marcus and Claire oddly holding onto his arms. Ten second delay he said? There was no way they'd be able to make it off the floor before the explosives triggered. Less than ten seconds to live.

He blinked upward at the man sadly, intending to express a final sentiment or apology.

Pain erupted in his stomach when Matt yanked him roughly off the floor, shouting at Colleen and Owen to touch Ward. What?

Colleen latched a hand onto his ankle and he was thrown into Ward bodily, eyes shutting from the pain it caused to jar his wound. His stomach twisted like his insides wanted to be everywhere and nowhere, and a pounding headache made his head feel like it was splitting apart. He was thrown again, he thought, Ward falling with him.

There was a roaring noise buzzing in his ears and then it was suddenly much quieter. His eyes opened and he fell off of Ward's front, plopping to his rear. He placed his hand over the hole in his stomach, puzzled as to why they were in the lobby amid the hazy vision caused by his pain.

Ward looked ready to pass out, legs giving out. He was grateful Marcus and Claire had a tight enough hold that they were able to lower him carefully to sit on the floor. The latter stepped sideways and wobbled.

"Sweet Christmas that was an unsettling experience."

He turned to Claire stooped over, hands on her knees. Beyond her shoulder was Misty Knight, sitting in a chair by the front desk. She was gawking open mouthed at the abrupt appearance of seven people in a previously empty room.

No, not empty. Luke and Jessica were standing just inside the doors. Gesturing upward, Jessica examined their recuperating selves, not a one of them at a hundred percent.

"What happened up there? Sounded like a giant shit dynamite or something."

Colleen chuckled. "Or something."

Catching her breath, she looked at him. "Bakuto better not have any more twin brothers."

The Cerberus leader came into view from behind the desk. Danny had forgotten they left him back there.

"I was born with this ability," said Dr. Oberman. "Special abilities run in the family. It's our own secret inheritance."

He waved an empty needled syringe in plain view and tapped his neck with two fingers, signifying he'd recently injected himself with whatever counteragent he used to avoid affecting others by his very nature. The mask hung on his belt, and he'd tied the vest's shoulder strap back into place, where it held well enough for now.

"My mother had the ability to heal. I had yet to learn what power was gifted to me. When I was twenty years old, my mother became sick. A common cold. It was strange, because she never got sick and grew sicker by the day. I stayed at her bedside, took care of her, prayed for her. I'm sure you can guess what was the end result of my love."

"She died," Luke said.

The doctor smiled, an insincere thing, looking at his empty eyes.

"She died. I killed her. Whatever choice you make, there is consequence. The Black Order would undo everything the world's Avengers fight to preserve, everything you stand for. I do not know if they will ever come to Earth, but he seeks to balance worlds."

"Who is 'he'?" asked Danny, wondering if he would get an answer this time.

"We will go. Wachhund has no duty here anymore. You've all proven the world doesn't require reordering to save it. Let's hope when it does, it isn't in my lifetime."

He didn't answer his question. It was like everyone he met went out of their way to confuse.

Oh great, and he was leaving.

Danny pursued, walking after him. Outside the battle had ended, people were scattered throughout the area. He peered toward the rooftops, searching for where the shooter might be hiding. Matt stepped up beside him.

"Frank is supposed to be on bed rest. Stubborn jackass."

Surprise coated his features. "Frank's the shooter?"

"Damn that's a tough son of a bitch," Jessica remarked, walking up with Luke at her heels.

Smoke filled the street surrounding them. Coughing and sputtering, he tried to see through the artificial fog. There was movement but he couldn't distinguish who or what was going on.

When it began to clear, Oberman was nowhere to be seen. Searching the length of the street, he realized there were no gray uniformed soldiers, fallen or otherwise. An impressive vanishing act.

The longer he spent thinking on everything that was happening, what happened moments earlier, and where they were presently, the more his curiosity increased. How did Kuo's followers learn of his death? They wouldn't abandon him unless they knew he was permanently gone. These people were trained to recover his body to prevent it falling into the hands of the enemy.

"We got weird lives," said Luke, shaking his head as he was surveying the aftermath of the battle for the city waged on a random street.

Matt tensed. "Watch your backs."

They turned around in response, facing the building opposite Obaktu Enterprises. Mikka Marks was pushing through the door, a row of Heart members close behind. He gritted his teeth, shifting into a fighting stance.

So they weren't quitting just yet.

"It's over," Danny snapped. "Kuo is dead, permanently."

Her expression turned ugly, loathing and furious. "Die in the dark!"

Open in the street like this, they might as well have been in a firing line for execution. Their enemies raised guns and opened fire with her screamed anger as the signal. Too many bullets to dodge.

He crumpled, bloodied and rapidly numbing from the massive pain and shock. Matt was already on the ground, face planted into the concrete. The man wasn't moving.

His energy faded and he slid flat on his back. It was difficult to do anything. His hand came away from one of the holes in him and he frowned, staring at the fluid practically glowing.

Danny laid his cheek to the ground and he was eye level with a few stray bullets. They were leaking the shiny fluid. He'd saw a similar but darker color in the laboratory, when Sandi and the other scientists worked on creating a cure from the stuff that was making people sick. He saw it when Kuo wanted to inject them with the serum to take their power away.

"No!"

He let his eyes close.

/

Colleen ran into the street, completely uncaring of the danger. He continued sitting where he was, incapable of processing the massacre he witnessed. It just wasn't possible. They didn't go down like that.

Claire was screaming and crying, curling into herself. She rocked slowly, wrapping her hands around her arms, utterly broken. Ward barely saw her, gaze frozen on the four motionless bodies.

How? What did they use? How?

Owen and Marcus brushed past him, running to engage the murderers. They started shooting at them and some of them started shooting back. Mikka gave them a single glance before turning on her heel and fleeing, disappearing down a side alley.

He was climbing to his feet, mind feeling disconnected from his body. Ward couldn't feel the exhaustion caused by transporting six people. The throbbing shoulder wound, perpetually on the edge of his consciousness even with the pain killers, faded. He was losing it.

This couldn't. He couldn't accept... It couldn't. It wasn't.

Stop. Stop. Stop. Stop. Stop.

Ward stared around him in shock. There was an absence of sound. Nothing was moving. Everything was still. He turned, studying the woman on his left, arm frozen where she was raising it to wipe her tear streaked face. On his right over by the desk, Misty's stunned form was stuck in place too.

What..the..hell?

He opened the door and walked outside. Silence. The air itself trapped in place.

No, time was. Everything was stopped. He did this? He could..change time somehow?

Ward stared at his hands. First he found his body metabolized the effects of his proximity to the suppressant really fast. He figured it out when a large bruise acquired in early morning training mandated by Owen was notably growing smaller. Then he discovered by necessity that he could travel to another location with six other people. The task made him feel like he'd been run over by a semi.

He put his all into concentrating on visualizing the time before the shooting started. His heart rate picked up, sweat saturating his forehead, expanding to the rest of him. His body started shaking and he felt awful, faint, weaker.

Everything was reversing in front of his eyes. He tracked Marcus and Owen walking backwards past him, returning to where they'd been standing inside the lobby. Colleen soon after did the same.

His intention was to go as far back as everybody safe and sound inside but he couldn't keep doing this. He was drenched in sweat now, the extreme exertion making his vision spotty. Ward staggered, struggling to maintain his balance and focus.

On the verge of collapse, hunched with his hand to his chest, he let his control go.

"It's over," Danny was saying angrily. "Kuo is dead, permanently."

Mikka's expression was pure hurtful rage. He forced himself to remember there was one final thing he had to do.

"Hit the ground!" he screamed, his back falling against the wall next to the doors. "Danny! The fist!"

"Die in the dark!"

Danny automatically listened to his urgent request, drawing his body back and surging the glowing fist into the ground below.

The entire street and sidewalk before him broke to pieces, heaving everything into partial levitation surrounding him. Seconds later, it all came crashing back down.

Ward fought to stay upright, to be sure they were okay. He wavered, ground threatening to tilt up to meet him. The other three covered the distance between their ambushers and a battle was underway.

Owen and Marcus passed by, firing guns at Mikka and the others. Marcus shot the woman in the chest and she dropped. The three Defenders defeated the remaining enemies and Danny was rising to his feet.

He wasn't riddled with bullets. He was okay. The overwhelming desire to cease any effort won out.

Someone was speaking in his ear.

"Are you okay? What's wrong?"

Claire?

His eyes shut and he was aware of falling but never felt the impact.