The group of Superstars had all met at the agreed location after finding out that Cesaro had made his way into the city and might have gotten into trouble. After a moment, Naomi and Noam descended from the sky to meet with their comrades.

"We didn't see anything else out of the ordinary while we were up there." Noam told them. "Just that crowd in Central. I don't think we'll all be able to teleport into the city at the same time."

"We'll have to get as close as we can then." John said. "We're just waiting on Mercedes to get here so we can leave." The moment he finished, Mercedes appeared feet away from the group with Stephanie and Triple H. Stephanie looked over to Sami.

"Can you still feel Claudio, Rami?" She asked him. Sami nodded.

"Yes." He replied. "I don't know how long I'll be able to, so we have to hurry."

"The city's central area is crowded right now." Lana said. "We're certain that's where he is, but we won't all be able to teleport there at once because of the crowd."

"I remember seeing the west side being fairly empty." Naomi said. "Maybe we could teleport there. It's the closest area to Central we have." Triple H nodded.

"Sounds like a plan to me." He said. He then looked at Sasha.

"I'll link to Trinity's mind to see where she saw the opening." Stephanie said before turning her attention to Sasha. "Mercedes, I'll send the image to the front of your mind so you'll know exactly where to take us. Are you sure you're going to be okay to carry all of us?" Sasha nodded.

"I'll need a little bit of time to recharge myself afterwards." She replied. "…but I'll be fine. It's the quickest way to him." Everyone gathered close and joined hands. Simon, having not experienced Sasha's teleportation powers directly, closed his eyes and tried to ready himself. Sasha looked around at her friends. "Everyone ready?"

"Ready as we'll ever be." Seth said.

"Let's go save our friend." John said. Sasha then closed her eyes and focused on Stephanie, who proceeded to read Naomi's mind to find the part of the western side of the city she spoke of. The moment Sasha got a clear view, she gathered her energy and teleported the group out of the forest and into the city.

Back at the mansion, Shane was sitting in his car in the parking lot while his mind repeatedly recalled what Stephanie had said to him before Triple H and she left. She told him that he was the last person Cesaro wanted to see and they did not need his help in getting him back home to the mansion. After seeing what he saw inside Cesaro's mind, however, Shane knew the latter to be false. He wanted to help Cesaro overcome his powers, but he also knew that if Cesaro could not control them then neither could he or anyone else. He knew that regardless of what Stephanie thought was right, Cesaro needed not to be helped, but stopped. Shane turned the car on and drove out of the parking lot and off into the forest down the pathway.

To the north of Central, Ronda and Zodrick stealthily traversed the numerous streets on their way to the center of the city.

"We're almost there, Rousey." Zodrick said. "Ready yourself."

"I'm ready, Sir." Ronda replied before sighing. "I'm ready." Zodrick looked around the corner of the alleyway and motioned for Ronda to follow him as he continued to lead them carefully to their destination. As they made their way through the streets, Ronda could not help but to think about what could happen when they finally made it to Cesaro.

"Sir." She said to Zodrick. "What if Claudio uses his powers on us? We don't stand a chance against him if he does." The question caused Zodrick to hesitate a moment before answering.

"We don't have room for what-ifs in this mission, Rousey." He said. "The President wants him, so we're going to follow through. That's all that matters. Be ready to do what needs to be done. Understood?" Ronda blinked.

"Yes sir." She replied.

"Good. If that crowd is any indication, we're here. We'll have to make our way through. Keep close and stay tight." Ronda nodded, and the two made their way into the crowd of people.

To the west, the group of Superstars appeared from Sasha's magenta energy in the middle of an empty alleyway. While the others had gotten used to the feeling of teleportation, Simon grew dizzy afterwards. Big E, standing next to him, noticed him about to fall and caught his shoulders to stop him.

"It always gets you the first few times." He said to Simon as he helped him get himself together. John then looked to the crowded streets ahead of them.

"How are we gonna get through that without being noticed?" He asked.

"That's simple." Lana said. "I can throw a psychic barrier around us that will cause everyone near us to move aside and let us through. We'll have to stay close to each other, but it will work."

"What do we do when we get to Claudio?" Bayley asked.

"We'll talk to him and get him home safely." Stephanie responded. Seth then furrowed his brow.

"And if he doesn't wanna come with us?" He asked.

"Something tells me that's not an option." Brie responded. Stephanie sighed.

"Sadly, it's not. He isn't safe here. We'll have to convince him to come with us." Stephanie then looked around at the group. "Everyone, together now." They all followed their instructions and Stephanie then looked to Lana. "Do your thing, Catherine." Lana nodded and then used her powers to mask the group in her psychic energy with a deep breath.

"Alright." She said. "It's done. Let's go."

The center of the city was full of people filming the spectacle that had taken place moments ago involving Cesaro and the city police. Cesaro held the fallen body of the man named Trevor that kept him company during his time in the city after one of the policemen shot on reflex and killed him for defending Cesaro. The squad of policemen held their weapons pointed towards their target after demanding his compliance, but Cesaro had not moved. He had been petrified by his own emotions, the feeling of guilt and pain taking him over.

"Do not resist, Mister Castagnoli." One of the policemen said. Cesaro was paying them no attention as he tried to rationalize with himself what happened.

"This is my fault." He thought. "If I hadn't come here, they wouldn't have come looking for me and he'd still be alive. Why didn't I just stay in the mansion? Why…" His thoughts then returned to why he left the mansion in the first place. He had almost forgotten until that moment. "Shane… why was he… What was he doing? Why can't I remember?" Something then pulled him out of his thoughts. Cesaro looked around at all the people looking at him and recording him on their phones. "They're looking at me like I'm a… monster. A monster. I'm a monster. I know, I know I am, so stop…" He then felt his power swell within him. "Stop looking at me…" That moment, many people began to complain about their phones no longer working or being able to record the happenings in front of them. Cesaro then saw everyone to the left move aside and clear a path and on that path, he saw his friends walking with Lana in front of them. He could feel her energy hovering over them and he somehow knew that she was responsible for everyone making way. The police force then pointed their attention towards the group of Superstars.

"The lot of you, please step back and away from the scene." The lead official said through the megaphone. "This is official police business." Lana dropped her field and Stephanie stepped out front to speak to the policemen. She then used her psychic power to halt the policemen's actions and enter their minds.

"Please let us speak to him." She calmly commanded. "We can bring him back home and he will be of no danger to any of you." Stephanie then released their minds and they all proceeded to lower their weapons. The people around them tried to record what was going on in front of them, but their phones were still not functioning properly. Nikki was the first of them all to notice that Cesaro was holding a man in his arms and that the man was not breathing. She held her hand to her mouth and gasped. It was not long until all of them noticed as well. It did not shake Stephanie as she knew that every moment was critical.

"Claudio." Stephanie said. "Look at me. Please." Cesaro slowly looked into her eyes. "I don't know what happened here, but it's gonna be alright. It's gonna be alright." Cesaro shut his eyes and looked away.

"I…" Cesaro stuttered. "I… I killed him, Stephanie. I shouldn't have come here. It's my fault he's dead."

"No, Claudio. It's not your fault."

"You don't know that!" Cesaro shouted. "You weren't here! These men came looking for me, not him! They shot him because he stood up for me! He died trying to protect me!" He then pulled Trevor's body close to him. "If I weren't here, he would have still been alive. I…" Triple H shook his head at Cesaro.

"No, Claudio." He said. "You didn't kill him. They did."

While Stephanie and Triple H spoke to Cesaro trying to calm him down, Zodrick and Ronda navigated through the crowd and found a spot close enough to see them all standing in the middle of Central without being seen themselves. Zodrick cursed to himself, but then saw the group of policemen and got an idea. He left his position without a word, leaving Ronda to quickly follow behind him as he stealthily made his way around the crowd and closer to the group of policemen. In the street, Triple H reached out his hand to Cesaro.

"Come on, Claudio." He said to him. "Let's go back home." Cesaro narrowed his eyes Triple H before looking down at Trevor. He shut his eyes as the word 'home' lingered in his mind.

"Home." Cesaro repeated before carefully standing to his feet, Trevor's body still in his arms. Among the stillness of the police force, Seth noticed someone quickly moving closer towards them. The man known as Zodrick jumped from behind the group of policemen with his pistol drawn and pointed at Cesaro. Stephanie noticed the gun and immediately panicked.

"No!" She shouted, but it was too late. Before she could motion to move Cesaro out of the way, Zodrick pulled the trigger. Seth, however, witnessed what happened in front of him in a different perspective. Using his Alpha Human speed, he carefully maneuvered around his friends and towards Cesaro to push him out of harm's way. Seth managed to catch Cesaro and move him, but he misjudged the bullet speeding towards them and the bullet caught him in the calf. Seth tumbled with Cesaro and Trevor, landing in front of terrified bystanders and screaming in agony as he gripped his bleeding leg. Zodrick looked over to see that he missed Cesaro and hit Seth with his shot. Ronda ran up to Zodrick and reached for his gun, knowing that his emotions had compromised their mission.

"General!" Ronda shouted at him as she fought to wrest the gun from his hand. "Calm down!" The policemen all aimed their weapons towards Cesaro and Seth.

"Colby!" Becky shouted as she made her way to him.

"Becky, no!" Stephanie shouted at her as John and Big E went to grab Becky before she could break away from them only to miss her. Ronda managed to pull the gun from Zodrick's hand.

"Fire at will!" Zodrick shouted at the policemen. "Now!" Everyone around the three Alpha Humans began to run away in fear of getting shot and, in a panic and with no regard for the bystanders, the policemen fired their weapons towards the trio. Becky and Seth shut their eyes and ducked instinctively after hearing the gun shots and shouting. The two of them suddenly felt a strange heat and saw a glow from behind their eyelids. They opened their eyes to see Cesaro standing in front of them encased in a golden, fiery aura. They then heard what sounded like metal shards hitting the asphalt and saw that the metal was the collection of bullets fired at them. Cesaro reached his hand behind him towards Seth and used his power to heal the bullet wound almost instantly before turning his attention to Zodrick and the policemen around him, his fiery gaze fixed on the older man like a sniper scope. Cesaro began walking towards them, every step he made leaving behind a footprint filled with what appeared to be melted asphalt.

"Claudio!" Stephanie shouted as if she knew what his intentions were. "Don't!" Her plea fell upon deaf ears, however, as Cesaro continued his march.

"Fire at will!" Zodrick commanded the team of officials as they all lined up next to each other in a straight line pointing their guns towards Cesaro.

"Don't shoot him!" Triple H shouted. The group of Superstars then watched as Cesaro dashed in front of the men and women the moment before they fired their weapons, leaving behind fiery afterimages of himself before stopping right in front of Zodrick's gun. Zodrick flinched as the man's sudden appearance in front of him petrified him motionless. Cesaro then used his power to push all the others several feet away, leaving only Zodrick standing. He then grabbed Zodrick's gun and proceeded to melt it while it was still in the man's hands. Zodrick screamed as the melted metal burned into the flesh of his hands.

"Claudio, stop!" John shouted, only to be ignored by his comrade. Cesaro then grabbed Zodrick by the neck and effortlessly lifted the man into the air, Zodrick gagging and gasping for air as his windpipe became more and more restricted. Ronda, having recollected herself after being thrown backwards, looked on in horror at Zodrick being held by Cesaro. Cesaro had become encased in flames of red and golden hues as he bore his golden gaze into Zodrick's fading yet pleading eyes.

"P-please…" Zodrick squeezed out. "…Don't.. I'm j-just …" The glowing veins in Cesaro's face pulsed deeply as he absorbed Zodrick's broken words. Zodrick then felt an intense heat course through his body and he screamed as loud as he could.

"Your life…" Cesaro responded in a distorted voice. "…is of no consequence to me. You wish never to see me… I will grant you your wish." The heat Zodrick felt grew hotter still, the pain of his melted hands and burning body becoming too much for him to bare.

"No!" Ronda shouted in a painfully pleading tone. "Stop it!" She pointed her pistol directly at Cesaro and began to fire, only for the bullets to melt upon impact with the flames surrounding their bodies. Cesaro then felt energy hit him in his back. He dropped Zodrick onto the ground and averted his attention to the source of the energy: Becky Lynch. She used her power to generate a shield made of energy and threw it at Cesaro to get him to stop his attack on Zodrick. The look Cesaro gave Becky, however, was not a look of disdain, but sadness. Becky looked into Cesaro's golden glowing eyes as the glow of his veins and the fire coming from his body slowly faded.

"Claudio." Becky said to him. "You've got to stop." Cesaro looked almost as if he were on the verge of tears.

"Why would you attack me?" Cesaro said, his voice still slightly distorted. "I thought you were my friend…"

"We are, Claudio." Nikki Bella said to him. "But we can't let you hurt yourself or anyone else." While she spoke to him, she tried to use her powers to reach out and control the flames that surrounded Cesaro, but she was unable to for some reason. "Please just come home so we can help you work through this." Cesaro looked around him at the people running around the streets trying to get out of the area, at Ronda who was tending to Zodrick and calling the standing policemen for help getting him out, then down at his hands and the fire flowing around them. He felt his emotions fill his head and he shut his eyes. Nikki then felt herself being lifted into the air as her friends looked on.

"Nikki!" John shouted as he reached out to grab her but was unsuccessful. Cesaro then looked up at her and his fires intensified once again as he approached her.

"You…" Cesaro said with anger in his voice and his expression as he looked Nikki right in the eyes. "You took… everything from me… my happiness, my joy…" Nikki struggled under Cesaro's telekinetic grip on her.

"Claudio." She called out. "I don't know what…" Nikki then watched as Cesaro's body returned to its blazing splendor.

"You want my fire?" He said to her before reaching out his hand to her. "…I'll give it to you." Cesaro then felt electricity prickle and flow over his skin, and his focus went from Nikki to where the electricity came from. The shift in focus caused Nikki to fall from her place in the air, with John and Big E able to catch her before she hit the ground. Cesaro looked over to see Simon Miller levitating in the air with him, his body emitting small bolts of electricity. Cesaro eyed the man, but his face wore what looked like a smirk.

"You." Cesaro said to Simon. Though intimidated by Cesaro's visage, Simon did not yield.

"That's enough, Claudio." Simon said to his comrade. "Stop." Cesaro then flew towards Simon until they were mere centimeters apart. He gave Simon a smirk and then pushed him several feet away, the man almost crashing into one of the buildings behind him but was able to stop himself thanks to his ability to levitate. Simon recollected himself and looked at Cesaro to see him smirking at him, the flaming energy around his body swirling. Simon then saw Becky form a golden lasso wrap around Cesaro and forcefully pull him out of the air with a slam strong enough to shatter the asphalt underneath him. The break in the road allowed Triple H to conjure up the earth beneath Cesaro and bind him with it.

"Now, Ashley!" He shouted at Charlotte. Charlotte then used her power to summon a crystal dome over where Cesaro was bound. Their efforts were in vain, however, as Cesaro easily broke free of his restraints, causing Charlotte to fall backwards by shattering the crystal. He looked at the Superstars and then took flight. Sasha ran forward then teleported up to where Cesaro was and latched onto him. Her intention was to teleport back down to the ground, but Cesaro briefly corrupted her thoughts and cleared her vision, causing her to teleport only a few feet away from where they initially were. She tried to teleport again, only to have the momentum of the fall get shifted so that they slammed through an apartment building nearby. Sasha and Cesaro rolled through several walls before eventually stopping inside the living room of one of the apartments where a family watched the news. The people screamed in horror as the two Superstars stood up in the middle of the room. Cesaro then telekinetically pushed Sasha away from him, reached his powers out to two bookcases, and pulled into the spot where Sasha stood. Sasha was quick enough to teleport away from the spot then back.

"Claudio, please!" Sasha pleaded. "Stop!" Cesaro ignored her plea and reached to the ceiling, dragging it down on top of where she stood. Sasha was able to teleport again, however the debris ended up striking down the couple living inside the home. Sasha teleported back outside and fell to her knees in front of her friends. They all then saw Cesaro burst out of the building, the debris falling from the building as it were blown up by a grenade. Seth saw the brief transition as an opportunity. He slowed time down for himself and surveyed the area. Simon motioned to throw a stream of electricity at Cesaro, but John leapt to stop him as he did not want him to hurt Cesaro, Naomi, Noam and Big E fired their energy blasts at him, and Brie had summoned a pillar of ice moving towards where he was. Moving at the speed of sound, he carefully ran up the pillar of ice and across some of the debris to make his way to Cesaro and try to bring him down. Then, much to Seth's shock, Cesaro motioned at the same speed as he did and used his powers to move the debris away from underneath him, leaving Seth nothing else to stand on. Seth lost his footing and slammed into the building in front of him, the momentum throwing through its walls and through the lobby all the way out of the back of the building. Cesaro then deflected Naomi and Big E's blasts away from him and into one of the neighboring buildings, shattering the walls on impact and sending debris out into the still crowded streets. Charlotte built a crystal shelf over the area where the debris fell to keep it from falling on the fleeing people.

"We can't stop him!" Sami shouted. "He's too strong!" Stephanie looked at Cesaro and could not help but remember what her brother Shane said before they all left. Was it truly Cesaro they all faced or was Shane right about corruption tearing at his conscious? She tore herself from her ruminations to see Simon aiming a torrent of electricity at Cesaro, Becky once again binding him with her lasso, and Triple H binding his legs with earth while Brie froze the earth for added stability.

"Claudio!" Brie shouted at Cesaro as she fought to hold the man in place. "You have to stop before you hurt someone! Please!" Her cry fell on deaf ears as Cesaro unleashed an electromagnetic pulse, destroying what remained of the building behind him as well as everything that bound him. The pulse was so strong that it managed to knock down everyone it touched and even affect the structures it touched, shifting the buildings at their foundations and shattering all the glass. Cesaro looked at the destruction around him and then he felt his mind shift from anger to confusion and confusion to sadness. He saw the fire from the buildings, the people screaming for help, and his friends laying in the streets. The sight of all made his head throb as if it were filled with puss. Cesaro grabbed his head in pain and screamed to the top of his lungs as the fire surrounding his body grew. With a loud burst, Cesaro flew into the sky and away from the city, a trail of fire following behind him like the tail of a comet.

The President of the United States was standing in his office staring out of the window as he waited for an update on the mission he tasked Zodrick and Ronda with. He was beginning to grow impatient as he walked himself through the scenarios that might have come to pass when he heard a knock on his office door.

"Come in." He said without turning around. He heard the door open and turned to see that one of his guards had opened it. He then blinked at the person they opened the door: Shane McMahon.

"You have a guest, Sir." The guard said in an empty tone as he allowed Shane to enter.

"Stop him at once!" The President said to the guard only to be ignored. "Jones! I said-"

"He can't hear you." Shane responded to the President. "Not while I'm in control of his mind." The President furrowed his brow.

"What do you want?" Shane then motioned behind him and the guard closed the door, leaving the two men in the room by themselves.

"I came here to give you a warning." Shane answered.

"A warning? About what?"

"Claudio Castagnoli. The man you're seeking to bring in." The President then sat down in his chair.

"If you know where he is, Shane…" He started. "You had best tell me. That is, of course, unless you wish to go to prison for protecting a terrorist."

"Claudio is not a terrorist. That would assume he's trying to bring down the government. What he is, truly, is a danger to all of us… and your men won't be able to stop him."

"You came here to tell me that I will fail, McMahon?" The President was beginning to anger the longer Shane remained in the room.

"I cam here… to offer you my help." The President blinked as Shane continued. "My sister believes that she can talk him back to his senses, but I know that there's something more. Something that talking won't fix. Something happened to him while my team was out in that shuttle and it's slowly driving Claudio insane. He… needs to be stopped, by any means necessary. Stephanie wouldn't listen to me and disowned me because of what I know. I want Claudio stopped, Sir. If they won't do it, then I know you will." Shane then reached out his hand to the Commander in Chief. "I wish to offer a truce between us. I will help you find a way to stop Claudio if you promise to stop him before it's too late." The President sat staring at Shane's offer. He shut his eyes before standing to his feet, adjusting his blazer, and shaking Shane's hand.

"By any means necessary." He remarked. "…Even if that means his death." Shane took a deep breath as he absorbed the response.

"…By any means necessary…"