This is not only Part IV of the Labor Day Special, but the finale of The Dark Order. Last time, Dracia and company were sent to Riptide's base of operations, where after renewing the hope in the Gilded Resistance after General Goldix was revealed as the spy Mindflayer, the 11th tower protecting Darkblood's castle was destroyed, and Dark Gorge flooded via the will of the Source Wall that was used to create it, forging a nice path towards the final objective. So, how does this story wrap up? Read on to discover...
(Our story resumes with Dracia and the Resistance aboard Captain Cold's ice raft, preparing for their final confrontation with their enemy, when Dracia gets a look at the last major obstacle facing them)
Captain Cold: Crystal Wall, dead ahead.
Dracia: (Seeing the massive wall of Dark Gems) Okay, how exactly do we get through that?
Winter Soldier: We'll have to scale it and get into the Witherlands, and then into Darkblood's castle from there. Which is going to be much easier now.
Dracia: (Putting it together) So the towers were powering this Crystal Wall?
Nightwing: Pretty much, as well as keeping the castle itself afloat. We may only have 11 of the 12 towers down, but that should be more than enough to scale the wall and get to the castle.
Sulfur: That just begs the question, where's the last one?
Dracia: If I had to guess, Darkblood has the last one. Acting like a receiver for the signals from the rest.
Sulfur: (Thinking it over) Yeah, that makes sense.
Dracia: Alright then, here's the plan. If I had to take a guess, Darkblood probably already knows we've escaped and is setting up his defenses as we speak. (To Sulfur) Think you can handle leading the charge?
Sulfur: What?!
Dracia: We need someone to handle any forces Darkblood throws at us. We'll take a group up to the castle and face the enemy head on. So I'm asking if you can handle leading the rest of the Resistance against whatever forces he's got at the base. We know you can handle it.
Goldix: True. (To Dragnarok and Blaze) You should have seen Sulfur throwing down in the Asylum when I first found them.
Dracia: So once again, the question stands. You up to this?
Sulfur: (Thinking about it all, amidst whatever the dragon equivalent of a blush is, then with a sigh) I'll do what I can.
Dracia: (Placing a paw on his shoulder) That's all I'm asking for. (Addressing the group) Alright team, we've got more at stake in this battle now than we ever have. Once we go over that wall, we can't let anything stop us. Either Darkblood falls today, or we do. And we won't fall. We are going to liberate this world from 25 years of tyranny this day.
Goldix: We're with you all the way, sis.
Blaze: To the ends of the earth.
Dragnarok: And beyond.
Captain Cold: We're with you too, kid.
Dracia: Alright then. Let's do this. Time to end this madness.
(Just as Dracia makes her vow, the ice raft hits the border of the Crystal Wall, and from the other side, Dracia and the rest can hear a massive gathering of forces on the other side)
Sulfur: (Hearing this as well) I'm already starting to regret this.
Dracia: You've got this, Sulfur. I believe in you.
(Seeing Dracia is looking right into his eyes in this moment, Sulfur's dragon-equivalent blush returns and renews his determination)
Sulfur: Alright then. (Flares his wings) Let's do this!
Jasper: That's the spirit!
Dracia: If we don't make it out of this, it's been an honor fighting alongside all of you.
Captain Cold: (Preparing his Cold Gun) Ready when you are, boss.
Dracia: Alright then, move out!
(With that, Dracia, Sulfur, Goldix, Blaze, and Dragnarok take to the air, followed shortly by Gohan, Trunks, and Cyrax with their abilities, and then by Captain Cold and the rest on his ice raft, rising into the air via his Cold Gun. But as the group ascends over the Crystal Wall, they see the Dark Order arrive, followed by their forces which land underneath the castle, revealing Grublins, Red Lanterns, the robotic slaves of Vermillion/Necromancer, Toxica's mutants, Tempest's slaves from Flying Island, and the soldiers of the Dark Order from back in Darkfang, and leading them all is Foxtrot, drawing a point on the end of her mallet, revealing a sword blade)
Foxtrot: (Seeing the Resistance arriving) Now they will fall. (To the army behind her) FOR LORD DARKBLOOD!
(Seeing the threat they're under, the Resistance dives head on into the fray, Dracia and Dragnarok specifically dive bombing the forces with Aether as the rest of group slides into the battle behind Captain Cold as we transition up to the castle, where the Dark Order, including Westenra and Arielle, meets in Darkblood's throne room)
Darkblood: (Addressing his forces) I assume I do not have to tell you the threat we face right now. The girl has already managed to destroy all the towers cementing my position above this world save this one. And they must not destroy this one.
Everest: You needn't worry, my lord. We shall defend this place with our very lives.
Nosferatu: Especially as this fight has turned personal with the injuries to my Westenra.
Riptide: And of Arielle.
Darkblood: Their injuries will be compensated when all of this is concluded. For now your focus is to be on defending this place.
Nosferatu: I will show as much ferocity in this task as I did in slaughtering Anang Un Rama.
Necromancer: You know as well as I do that was me, right?
Nosferatu: We agreed never to talk about that!
Darkblood: We all knew, Nosferatu. But you brought back the head, so the conquest was yours.
Mindflayer: (Having thought about it for quite a bit) If I may, my Lord, I have a plan.
Darkblood: (As the Aether dive bombing Dracia and Dragnarok hit) Carry on with it, Mindflayer. Do whatever you must. (To the rest of the Dark Order) What are you standing around for?!
(With that, the Dark Order rallies to action, as Wildblaze looks to Mindflayer)
Wildblaze: So, what is your plan exactly?
Darkblood: Let's just say those fools won't get anywhere near us once I bring them all into the fray.
Wildblaze: (Picking up on where he's going) Ah, very clever.
Darkblood: (Having put it together earlier) Indeed it is. Enter the chamber, and get them ready.
Mindflayer: Of course, my lord.
(With the Dark Order in gear to defend the palace, we focus back in on the Resistance just as Dracia and Dragnarok hit the ground, and the rest of the Resistance is filing in behind them. And the forces of Darkblood are totally getting wrecked. Gohan has already hit Super Saiyan 3 and he's barely even started tearing through Grublins. Nite Owl and Harry Mason are shooting the armies of evil full of holes while Bentley the Yeti is clubbing every enemy that comes after him. Cyrax is throwing laser nets over ever enemy before Captain Cold freezes them all solid. Smoke suffocates the soldiers coming after him allowing Trunks to slash them with his sword. Peridot, Jasper, and Lapis use their Gem powers and weapons to fight off a series of soldiers while Deadshot and the Winter Soldier snipe others. Kid Flash and Miles Morales are dashing around the battlefield, grabbing up enemies as they go before throwing them to Abe Sapien for the knockout blows. Nightwing is breaking necks with his escrima sticks as Mysterio blinds them with illusions. The Fugitoid electrocutes the sense back into some Red Lanterns as Splinter knocks a few out with his staff. Kevin Levin uses his Osmosian shape-shifting abilities to knock out a few soldiers as Nico DaSilva shoots them full of holes. As all of this is happening, Dracia, Sulfur, Goldix, Blaze, and Dragnarok are facing the rest of the soldiers and Foxtrot. Five against one should seem like good odds, but Foxtrot is a warrior unlike many they've seen)
Foxtrot: (Panting from exhaustion) I will admit, you are good.
Dracia: Darkblood wouldn't be falling if we weren't.
Foxtrot: You have taken out the towers, not Lord Darkblood. And he's a whole different story, girl!
(With that, Foxtrot rushes at Dracia, cutting her face with her sword. Seeing this, Sulfur channels his rage from earlier and catches Foxtrot's blade as she goes in for the kill. His sheer strength completely catching the evil kitsune off-guard, Sulfur breaks her sword's blade and throws her back about a mile into a series of her troops)
Dragnarok: (Completely caught off guard by this) Whoa.
Blaze: Rokko and Sizzle will love to hear about THIS!
Sulfur: (Seeing Dracia's parents are both off guard) You guys go on ahead. We'll handle things down here.
(His confidence bolstered by all of the madness he's gone through, Sulfur's body language alone is enough assurance for Dracia to trust him, but being backed up by Captain Cold and Jasper certainly helps his case.)
Dracia: Follow us up when these guys are dealt with.
Sulfur: Will do.
(With Sulfur now tearing through enemies left and right, quite literally by infusing his blows with acidic poison, Dracia takes off towards Darkblood's castle, with Goldix, Blaze, and Dragnarok not far behind her. But as they fly up, we transition to Mindflayer's position, opening one of the more worn doors in the castle. Worn from a lot of use. And once the door is opened, we see why, this is the entrance to Darkblood's harem chambers. Any female character he found desirable from a Conquest ended up here)
Mindflayer: A granfalloon of the highest order. (As his tendrils snap to action) Time to make a legion out of you.
(With that, Mindflayer's tendrils snake across the room, and any person they come in contact with immediately falls into his control, as all the slaves in Darkblood's harem rise once connected to Mindflayer's will, each taking on his devilish smirk once connected)
Mindflayer: (Through everyone in the room at once) Now then, let's show this girl what I can do.
(Meanwhile, Dracia, Goldix, Blaze, and Dragnarok have forced open the door to the palace and are battling through a few soldiers who stayed back inside to guard their masters and mistresses. Thankfully the guards are relatively ineffective and fall quickly)
Goldix: So, where do we go from here?
Dracia: (As the quartet start moving) Honestly, I have no clue. From what I saw from below though, it looks like the tower is in the center of the structure.
Dragnarok: Knowing how arrogant Darkblood is, he probably has it in his throne room then.
Dracia: Makes sense.
(As the group progresses through the palace, a rumbling sound echoes through the place, before one of the doors bursts open, revealing Darkblood's entire harem under control of Mindflayer)
Mindflayer: (Through all of his thralls at once) Did you really think getting to Lord Darkblood would be that easy?
Dragnarok: (Seeing everyone here, including the Injustice variants of Raven, Enchantress, and Killer Frost leading the bunch) Why am I not surprised Darkblood has a freaking harem?
Blaze: Because he mentioned it. Quite a lot. Telling just about every single female warrior he came across that they'd "make a fine addition". Including me, several times.
Dragnarok: (Shuddering at the memory) Thanks for reminding me.
Mindflayer: (Through all of his thralls at once) Now then, who's ready to die?
(Seeing this, Goldix steps forward)
Goldix: You guys go ahead. I'll handle my evil twin.
Dracia: Goldix, are you crazy?
Goldix: No. This monster may have my genes, but he's defied everything it means to be me. Besides, Darkblood's been after you longer than he has been me. Go kick his tail, sis.
(Realizing there's no talking him out of this, Dracia, Blaze, and Dragnarok advance through a side door as Goldix cracks his neck for the confrontation)
Goldix: Well then. General, would you care to step outside?
Mindflayer: (Through all his thralls at once) I'll be keeping this fight right here.
Goldix: Just what I'd hoped for.
(While Goldix starts battling Mindflayer, we transition to the throne room, where the door immediately flies open, revealing Dracia, Blaze, and Dragnarok finally entering the place of their adversary. Dracia immediately sees the throne is the last of the towers, but she, as well as her parents are caught off guard by the sight of the trophy heads, including those of her own grandparents)
Dracia: (Seeing Spyro and Cynder's permanently terrified stares) Grandma...? Grandpa...? It can't be...
Blaze: By the Ancestors... he actually did it...
Dragnarok: This can't be right. Darkblood always wanted to recruit Mom and Dad, not kill them!
(And just like that, the door to the throne room slams shut, revealing Darkblood behind it.)
Darkblood: If you want someone to answer for their deaths, that was Mindflayer. But I had no objections to it. They had proven a dead end. (To Blaze) As had your family, my little dreamsicle.
Blaze: You don't get to call me that, you monster! (Getting close to Dragnarok) You lost all rights to that when you killed your world's Dragnarok.
(Just as suddenly as her master entered, we see Wildblaze enter from behind the group, catching everyone off guard with a fireball.)
Wildblaze: Last I checked, your preferences stopped applying when you entered this world.
Blaze: (Seeing her evil doppelganger) So this is what that monster wanted to make of me?
Wildblze: It's amazing, I know.
Blaze: I was more thinking as vile and disgusting as I expected.
Wildblaze: Be aware, dearie, I'm not someone you want to piss off.
Dragnarok: (To Darkblood) I never thought it possible, that there was a world where you had won.
Darkblood: There are infinite possibilities. For every world where you came back, there are millions where you were extinguished.
Dragnarok: Any world where you exist must be hell. This place proves it.
Darkblood: Believe me, your friends seem to disagree.
(With that, Darkblood snaps his fingers, and the rest of the Dark Order enter the room, including Westenra and Arielle, surrounding Dracia and company)
Dragnarok: (Seeing this corrupted version of the Element Guard) This is what you've done to the Element Guard?!
Darkblood: It's perfect, isn't it?
Dracia: It's a perversion!
Darkblood: (Angered) BE SILENT! You have cost me so much over the last few days. So much that took me YEARS to build. And now, I will have your head on impaled on my throne, you meddling...!
Dragnarok: (Cutting him off) Don't you DARE address my daughter like that!
Darkblood: Just as insolent as ever, aren't you, Dragnarok. (Cracks his knuckles) Let's see if we can beat that out of you.
(As the Dark Order is about to charge, we transition back down to the Witherlands where Sulfur and the Resistance are continuing to battle the Dark Order's forces, and things are strangely at a stalemate. Sulfur is taking out soldiers left and right, while by this point Mysterio, Peridot, and the Fugitoid are all dead. As the forces of the Dark Order turn the stalemate into a win, with shots ringing out and hit Cyrax and Lapis, killing them.)
Harry Mason: (Realizing he's out of bullets) Why did I let you guys talk me into this?!
Deadshot: (Handing Harry Mason a new gun) Get over it and start shooting, Mason!
Nico DaSilva: (To Sulfur) There's too many of them!
Harry Mason: (Panicked) WE'RE GOING TO DIE!
Jasper: Pull it together Mason!
Sulfur: We can't give up now, Dracia and the others are depending on us! We've come this far!
Captain Cold: Give up? Not in the Rogues' vocabulary!
Winter Soldier: Not in mine either!
(With this, the battle gets hectic as the Resistance starts fighting back. The group is able to start taking down the forces of the Dark Order with ease, mowing down the Red Lanterns, soldiers, Grublins and everything else. But then the Winter Soldier and Deadshot get shot, the bullet passing clean through the Winter Soldier before striking the nano-bomb in Deadshot's head from his days on the Suicide Squad, falling over nearly dead. In their near death moments, the Winter Soldier slings a grenade belt onto Deadshot, both realizing what's happening, with Deadshot being just about able to give Bentley and company a warning)
Bentley: (Realizing Deadshot's going to blow) Everybody get down!
Winter Soldier: (As he lay dying) Give them hell for us, Floyd. (Seeing something in his misty eyes) Steve?
(As the Winter Soldier falls dead, Deadshot slowly and despite the brain damage from the bleeding wound in his head, staggers into the enemy forces, allowing them to claw him to shreds as the bomb is about to go off)
Deadshot: (As the light fades from his eyes behind his helmet) Zoe... Daddy's coming home...
(And like that, Deadshot's nano-bomb explodes, actually somehow detonating the ammunition and grenades the Winter Soldier placed on his person, taking out the forces surrounding him. Despite everyone else having taken cover, Sulfur was able to see the explosion, realizing Deadshot finally got his death-wish. But he didn't know this part of his personality and just recoils in horror, despite having barely met the guy, but had heard of the man from his service in the Injustice Wars in his world.)
Sulfur: DEADSHOT!
(Now seeing the rest of Darkblood's forces still standing, Sulfur has had enough. He knows Deadshot was an honorable fighter once he joined the Legion, and even though he never knew this version of the character, he still holds a grudge against anyone who would murder someone like that, the same going for the Winter Soldier. And with his rage, his elemental energy starts flowing through him, revealing his true power in an Earth and Poison Combo Fury, with his Poison heritage specifically calling upon the toxic plant-based chemicals in the Dark Order soldiers' veins to power him up, and with that the righteous fury of the Earth element itself, the shockwave pulsing across the Witherlands, killing the last of the Dark Orders' soldiers, with the majority of the chemicals turning acidic upon hitting Foxtrot and dissolving her instantaneously, ending this battle with Sulfur almost collapsing to the ground from the exertion.)
Bentley: That's the last of them...
Sulfur: (Struggling to stay upright) That are down here anyways. Our battle isn't over yet. We've got to help Dracia and the others.
(Realizing what needs to be done, Captain Cold forms an ice staircase with his Cold Gun, allowing most of the group up, with Miles Morales choosing to web swing and Gohan to fly instead, while Bentley picks up Sulfur and the group charges up towards Darkblood's palace. While this is going on, we transition back to Goldix, still battling Mindflayer and his thralls of Darkblood's harem, with Goldix trying his hardest to not harm the innocents that Mindflayer is controlling.)
Mindflayer: (Through all his thralls at once) Just give it up, foolish drake. You stand no chance against the combined abilities of my thralls, or the mental prowess that brought them all into one mind!
(As a mind-controlled Gwen Tennyson throws energy bolts into the field, accompanied by Enchantress and Captain Marvel, Goldix ponders Mindflayer's words, before ultimately coming to a revelation)
Goldix: (In his mind) He's right. Even if I wasn't trying to keep everyone in his thrall alive, the sheer power differential between us is ridiculous. He's 25 years older than me, and has been able to tune his Sight Jacking to the point where he's able to literally control people. Even if that is purely due to Dark Aether's influence, that's still a lot more than I've got in all my 20 something years of experience. What am I supposed to do here?
(At this point, Goldix just closes his eyes and starts humming something, the tune is unrecognizable, but in that moment, he realizes something about this situation. And once he realizes what he's seeing, Goldix opens his eyes, and starts smirking as the concentrating Mindflayer notices this through his thralls)
Mindflayer: (Through all his thralls at once) What the hell are you smirking about?
Goldix: Let's take this to a whole different level.
(With that, Goldix starts Sight Jacking himself, finally facing the real Mindflayer in a black void, where the two are locked neck and neck for the upper hand. It all seems tied up, but then Mindflayer manages a flash of mental power, forcing Goldix to the ground as Mindflayer grabs him with a tendril.)
Mindflayer: Come now, fool. You must have realized by this point that I'm always going to be stronger than you. Fighting me on my own turf wasn't the smartest move. You're in my brain, where I'm at my strongest! What could have possibly made you think this would result in your victory?
Goldix: (Still smirking) Let me answer your question with a question. How can you split your focus in 10,000 different directions, but still maintain the concentration necessary to keep this little charade up? Answer: YOU CAN'T!
(Just as that thought sinks in to Mindflayer's mind, the black void he and Goldix are in starts to crack as Mindflayer realizes he doesn't have the mental fortitude to keep up his own plan, panic sinking in as his plan crumbles around him, emphasized by his thralls literally collapsing dead around him, which in turn only worsens his panic)
Mindflayer: THIS CAN'T BE HAPPENING! THIS ISN'T HAPPENING!
Goldix: Believe it. (Leaving the void and returning to his real body) You just got Sight Jacked.
(And with one last cry of anguish, Mindflayer's mental fortitude shatters, as does the rest of his mind, leaving him brain dead in the middle of the floor, blood pour out of his nostrils)
Goldix: Okay, that's just gross. (Looking around at the room of corpses) And this is just disturbing. Time to catch up with Dracia.
(And so catch up we do, where we see Dracia and her parents are still staring down the Dark Order in it's entirety. The family trio staring down 13 vile dragons, a lava creature, and an Anubite with a scythe.)
Darkblood: The odds stand against you, girl. 15 of the most powerful beings in this world, against the three of you.
Dracia: I like those odds.
Dragnarok: So do I.
Blaze: That makes three of us.
Darkblood: Was I seriously this naïve? It doesn't matter. DESTROY THEM!
(And with that, the battle begins, the entire Dark Order against Dracia, Dragnarok, and Blaze. Within minutes, we see why the group liked the odds they had, as the group is already taking them down, with Westenra and Arielle falling pretty quickly into the fight. But the other 13 prove much harder to defeat, though not so hard that it's impossible. More like we're at a stalemate right now. But sadly the stalemate ends quickly, and in favor of the Dark Order as Everest holds Blaze in a choke-hold, and as Dragnarok reacts to this, Toxica and Phobos trip and tackle him to the ground. And before anything can happen, the rest of the Dark Order blocks Dracia off from her family with Darkblood himself slapping her around a bit, cutting her lip open and knocking out a tooth or two.)
Darkblood: You really are you're father's daughter if you think this could have worked out in your favor. Because if you were mine, even if your ferocity in this mission of yours is something I'd be proud of, you would have given up by now. But, I will give you one last chance. (Snaps his fingers as Everest, Toxica, and Phobos hold up Dragnarok and Blaze, ready to kill them) Surrender and your parents will be spared. Continue this insolence, and all three of you will die.
Dracia: (With blood trickling down her face) Like hell that's happening.
Blaze: As much as I don't condone the language, she's right.
Dragnarok: We will never yield to you, Darkblood.
Dracia: You've been beaten before, and we will beat you this time!
Darkblood: (With a growl) ENOUGH OF THIS INSOLENCE! I WILL FINISH YOU MYSELF!
(With the fury building in his eyes, Darkblood charges up a stream of Dark Aether, about to atomize Dracia for her defiance, just as the throne room blows open revealing Sulfur, Goldix, Bentley, Nico DaSilva, Miles Morales, Captain Cold, Gohan, Nite Owl, Harry Mason, Smoke, Splinter, Abe Sapien, Nightwing, Kevin Levin, and Jasper, fresh from defeating their foes)
Sulfur: Not a chance!
Goldix: This time, you'll fall for good!
(Seeing the entire group is here, and that his forces are falling, Darkblood just lets out a growl of pure rage, essentially summoning the Dark Order to attack. And attack they do, with each pairing up against the final defender from each of the worlds they conquered Umbra against Nite Owl, Psycho Burner against Nightwing, Everest against Gohan, Tempest against Captain Cold, Frigidus against Kevin Levin, Phobos against Harry Mason, Necromancer facing Nico DaSilva, Toxica at last dueling Splinter, Nosferatu against Abe Sapien, Synapse against Smoke, Riptide against Miles Morales, and strangely Westenra and Arielle against Jasper, as Wildblaze and Dragnarok have teamed up against Dracia, Dragnarok, Blaze, Goldix, and Sulfur. Now and only now is the battle going well at all, as each representative of the 13 worlds has their chance at revenge. Nite Owl garroting Umbra with his grappling gun, Nightwing shocks Psycho Burner into defeat, Gohan goes Super Saiyan God and flicks Everest into a wall, Captain Cold freezes Tempest solid and shatters her leg as she breaks out, Kevin Levin breaks Frigidus' back, Harry Mason, shoots out Phobos' eyes and newly functioning testes, Nico DaSilva shoots holes into Necromancer, Splinter knocks out Toxica using pressure points, Abe Sapien getting Nosferatu into a choke hold, Smoke suffocating Synapse with his powers, Miles Morales directing bio-electric blasts into Riptide's circulatory system, and Jasper straight up crushing Westenra and Arielle's heads, leaving only Dragnarok and Wildblaze still standing. Seeing his forces falling around him, Darkblood is just filled to the brim with rage, to the point where he unleashes the most powerful bolt of Dark Aether ever seen as a reflex, with the Resistance dodging it as Darkblood destroys his severed head collection and his own throne, that being the obelisk keeping this place up at all. and as he realizes what he's done, the entire palace falls from the sky and crashes into the battlefield of corpses below in the Witherlands. As the dust settles, the rest of the Dark Order has almost succumbed to their injuries, only Darkblood and Wildblaze really left standing as they emerge from the rubble, followed shortly by Dracia and the Resistance.)
Darkblood: (Seeing his empire is crumbling around him, then turning angrily to Dracia) You will not take this from me. THIS IS MY WORLD!
Dracia: (Feeling the fury of Aether surging through her) Not. Any. More.
(With that, Dracia releases a true Aether Fury, the same style of which Spyro used at the end of A New Beginning, energy projections of her own head swirling around Darkblood and the newly re-arisen Wildblaze. As the attack swirls around, Dracia sees the world hopping machine in the rubble, the shard that brought her and Sulfur here glowing within it, and just as Darkblood attempts to fight back, she grabs the controls and hits Darkblood with the beam, the control panel showing coordinates composed entirely of zeroes, turning him into a portal to whatever dimension she locked in on. But the portal he became almost acts like a black hole, sucking in the entirety of the Dark Order, including the brain dead Mindflayer, as Darkblood starts to collapse into his own portal)
Darkblood: (As he fades out of this realm of existence) THIS WON'T BE THE LAST YOU SEE OF ME! I SHALL RETURN! I WILL HAVE MY REVENGE!
(And with one last cry of anguish, Darkblood and the Dark Order vanish from this world, hopefully to never be seen again.)
Dracia: (As she stops the beam) It's... over...
(As the Resistance realizes what has happened and starts cheering that Darkblood is gone at last, but before she can celebrate, Dracia passes out from the exertion. Fast forward to what feels like a few days later, as the light of the sun finally dawns upon this dark world, and dragons of all sorts finally start to emerge and see the world is liberated from Darkblood's command. The remaining 13 members of the Resistance have set up a transitional government, to try and bring order to a world now free from darkness. Thanks to Sulfur's Fury, the Witherlands are starting to become fertile again, but the bodies have not been removed, and they aren't decaying as one would expect either. Rather, nature is growing over the battle that was, with the entire place seemingly covered in wild dragon fruit plants. As this scene focuses in on the deceased Resistance members, in the field, we hear Dracia and company speaking with the Resistance)
Dracia: So where did they end up?
Captain Cold: The last coordinates in the machine were all zeroes. That sent the Dark Order to either the Phantom Zone, somewhere between dimensions, or literally destroyed them. Point being, we won't have to worry about them for a long time.
Goldix: So, what happens next? Your transitional government seems overwhelmed. We're willing to stay and help out.
Miles Morales: No. The people need to know they're the ones in charge now, not the literal spitting images of the people we just overthrew.
(Now we finally transition to where Dracia and company are, back in the very field where Dracia and Sulfur entered this world to begin with, with Captain Cold, Miles Morales, and Nightwing working on the world hopping machine.)
Sulfur: Either way, I suggest you keep that gem shard in case you need us again.
Nightwing: Yeah, that isn't happening. We're destroying this thing the minute we send you guys home. Can't risk Darkblood popping back into existence.
Dragnarok: A good call regardless.
Nightwing: (As he tunes the machine to the gem's vibrational frequency) That should do it. There should be just enough power left in this thing to send you five back home.
Captain Cold: (Looking back at Blaze and Dragnarok) It was good seeing you two again, the real you.
Blaze: The feeling's mutual, Lenny.
Captain Cold: (Looking to Dracia) You know, it's pretty fitting this is where you guys entered this world.
Dracia: Why's that?
Captain Cold: What this place used to be called. The Hopeless Battlefield. How fitting is it our last hope would show up where it once died?
Blaze: Got to love it when the multiverse is poetic.
(With that, Miles Morales activates the machine, generating a portal back to Dracia's world.)
Dragnarok: Well, I guess this is goodbye.
Captain Cold: Between these versions of us anyways.
Dragnarok: (With a hint of something unknown that Blaze subtly picks up on) Yeah, I guess.
(And with his final comments made, Dragnarok is uncharacteristically first to step through the portal, Blaze following shortly afterwards, with Goldix going through third, followed immediately by Sulfur. Dracia however lingers a minute.)
Captain Cold: Portal's not going to stay open forever, kid.
Dracia: Just... taking it in.
Captain Cold: You've got a lot to be proud of here, kid. You brought this peace. We'll never be able to repay you.
Dracia: Just keep this peace going. That's all the repayment I need.
Captain Cold: (Remembering the Blaze he knew) I expect nothing less from a Legionnaire's kid.
(And with that, a smile on her face, Dracia runs back through the portal, just as it closes, leaving this world in peace at last. Meanwhile, we arrive back in the main world, in Dragonbreath Village, where that night, Dracia and Sulfur celebrate their first big mission, however unofficial it may be, surrounded by the real Element Guard, the family they knew. But as the night wears on, a tear falls down Dragnarok's face, as his form starts to reveal a glitching purple nature, before the scene changes, revealing Dragnarok is no longer glitching, he's clad in black and gold armor and wearing a gold necklace with a violet gem around his neck, clutching it as he cries onto the necklace, revealing we're in the Watchtower, where Dragnarok looks out upon a massive group of heroes from multiple worlds, the same worlds the Dark Order conquered. As we see the Watchtower in full, our tale ends for today)
And there we have it, the end of this year's Labor Day Special, and of The Dark Order. I know this chapter was pretty long, but this was the finale of a project I have been really excited to work on, and on one of the few specials I do per year none-the-less. I wanted this to be an epic conclusion for an epic story. In case the whole necklace and Watchtower thing is confusing, go read A Dragon's Quest on Yami's page and Dragon's Quest: Age of Miracles on mine, that'll explain everything. I really hope you all enjoyed this story, even if it did get a little jam packed in a lot of places. Maybe one day I'll write up a standalone that sets the origins in better detail. Not in the cards at the moment, but some time down the line, plausibly. But enough prolonging the inevitable. Now, as the final shard of the Eye of Gaul is lost to it's own universe, this is Dragon of Mystery, singing out.