Proud, confident, pitiless and heartless. No regrets, cold cruelty and no care for the past, mercenaries with boundless power and a burning rage to spare.
Such was the behavior the Lords of Despair adopted. They always thought it looked ridiculous with the Fire Gormitis doing it (mostly because they always broke character to do their lame supervillain gimmicks in the middle), but it honestly fit them like a glove.
Their parents took it with mixed reactions when they came for breakfast.
Jessica had the most trouble getting out of table, not wanting to destroy the kitchen no matter how much she wanted to. Her parents showered her with questions she had disregarded before leaving.
Lucas on the other hand had it pretty easy, his parents only slightly concerned by the way he looked. They heard it'd happen sooner or later for kids his age, they simply never expected Lucas to do the same with how usually kind and respectful he was.
Which also concerned Nick's parents, as while Toby did it a while ago, they never thought Nick would be one to try and look "rough". Their children practically transformed overnight, behaving much differently from the usual.
If it wasn't enough, last night, an explosion took place in the middle of town. One of the malls had been destroyed through unknown means, but from what witnesses said on TV, they had seen a full-blown storm rise inside the building.
People feared arson attacks, as no one knew how the incident came to be. Some chalked it up to the place's bad plumbing, others suspected someone was behind the problem. The young Lords almost felt guilty not to tell them they were responsible.
Well, it was mostly Jessica's idea. She had insisted on a makeover after their latest turnaround and they wanted to test out their new powers at the same time. Doing it for clothes was dumb, but they didn't really complain.
For measure's sake, they even left some rubble inside the shops as to not make their "purchases" look suspicious. If a pair of clothes suddenly disappeared without a trace and word got out, people would know who to accuse once they'd step foot outside. There was no footage of their deed, it was kinda fun to forget about the rules for an instant.
With some luck, it'd stay that way. They'd have to look out for themselves and deal with unnecessary natter people would give them, but it was worth it in the end, they didn't need others' opinions anyway.
As far as they were concerned at the moment, only Magor's word mattered, and it only went in their direction. They weren't surprised Obscurio and Magmion never tried talking it through with them, they were pretty dense in comparison to their master.
Wouldn't matter now, they had more allies to order around than enemies to fight, no one else to play the boss.
"What is this, Lord Magmion?!" exclaimed Armageddon. "Why aren't the Lords of Nature our enemies anymore?"
"It means what it means. Master Magor gave them a better purpose after our last encounter." explained the Lava Gormiti. "Now I know we've had our differences in the past, but we're expected to show them our camaraderie until Master Obscurio says otherwise, so you better all be on your best behavior."
"Is this some kind of joke?" asked Cyclops. "The Lords of Nature never showed an ounce of concern for the Lava Tribe, now we're supposed to believe they've turned over a new leaf? Where are they anyway, we haven't seen them in a year!"
"Right behind ya, Mesmero."
The fierce soldiers turned to witness the four children enter the cave, not even transformed as if they were entering a playground rather than a battlefield. If what they heard was true, then their orbs were with Magor and they wouldn't be able to transform with those anymore.
But, if what Lord Magmion also told them was also true, then not only could the Lords fight without those orbs now, but they'd be helping them instead of fighting them. Could that really be true?
Though while they heard humans changed clothes when they felt like it rather than requiring evolution like Gormitis, they certainly didn't remember them being so… gloomy. Not that they didn't like it.
Nick was wearing a black and dirty yellow shirt with torn sleeves, a pair of shirts with stitches here and there, overall looking like he came out of a fight if it wasn't for his glasses being intact.
Lucas' dreads were messy, he wore a dark green shirt exposing his neck with grey spiked pants, resembling thorns, and with a spike collar to match.
Jessica now wore a black jacket, clashing with the usual white that came with her Gormiti forms and the outfit she wore over a year ago. She still wore her earrings, but her hair was down and she now had a halter top and similarly torn out jean shorts and maroon-colored boots.
Toby was the one whose style changed the least. While he did wear a black jacket and some cool boots and leather jeans to match, his hair and face still looked the same. He himself didn't think he'd wear these again, he was the only one to already own what he wore.
With some retrospective, Obscurio had a sense of style, even if Toby didn't necessarily want to give off an impression of "terror" and "daredevilry" at first. Most soldiers looked at them all cross-eyed (well, those who had more than one eye did), remembering them looking brighter.
"Hope you didn't miss us too much." teased Lucas. "'cause we sure did. Been wanting to see your freaky faces for a while."
His joke did not go through all that well, only his friends enjoyed it. Firespitter seemed ready to roast him on the spot.
"Don't think you're so clever, Lord of the Forest!" he shouted back. "Lord Magor may have forgiven your deeds, but we haven't forgotten the thorns you were in our side."
"You're doing puns now?" said Nick, equaling his friend's attitude. They were usually the calmest and most mature ones in the group, this was also new.
"Enough chit-chat." said Magmion.
His four former enemies walked up to him, his soldiers still wary of their presence. They'd have to reaffirm themselves as "heroes" to these guys too if they wanted to get things done, for now they were awaiting orders.
"Does Magor have anything for us?" asked Jessica.
"That's what you came here for?" asked Magmion, talking to them as if they were old companions. "Master Obscurio told me you'd be alerted if your help was needed, but should you arrive, he instructed me to give you these."
He extended his left arm's claw, releasing yellow orbs from it that materialized into the Lords' hands. Four red stones, each with a symbol of the Lords' respective tribes, appeared.
"What's this?" she asked.
"Relics we previously took from your Nations, they hold a small figment of your elements should you need them to transform. You don't need your orbs anymore, right?"
"Yeah, thanks!"
They took the stones in question and held them tight as they formed a circle, extending their hands as they readied themselves.
"For the power of darkness!"
"Erupting Power of Stone!"
"Unremitting Power of the Forest!"
"Strenuous Energy of Water!"
"Interminable Energy of Wind!"
Golden energy surrounded them, reminding them for a brief instant of previous times, when Luminos was still lending them his strength. As much as they did feel bad for the guy, they wouldn't forgive him for using them yet.
Their elements came out of the stones, covering their bodies with black, yellow and red armors, resembling their new allies' colors. It was the same as they normally did, except a pleasant warmth came along with it.
As the light faded, they proudly stood in their new bodies, earning several admirative "Ooooh!"'s from Lava Gormitis nearby. New looks weren't enough, they wanted to show their powers off.
At least, it made the rest of them ease up. They were oh so very wrong to do so.
"Since we got nothing better to do, I suggest we train a bit around here. What do you think?" said Toby.
"Sounds like a plan." agreed Jessica. "Where do you think we should start?"
"By getting some training dummies." he answered, sending a sadistic smile to most soldiers that were looking at him.
"Great idea!"
It took the volcano's inhabitants exactly five seconds before reacting to Toby's decision, but before they got near him, Magmion raised a clawed hand in his soldiers' direction.
"May I remind you that Lord Obscurio himself requested that should the Lords of Despair demand assistance, you'd provide it?"
"But…"
"We thought…"
A common gulp was shared around the Fire Nation that evening. Human children could indeed be so cruel when given the power to be, making them wonder if the Lords of Nature were previously going easy on them.
One thing was for sure, they truly were no different from their usual bosses when it came to tossing them around like ragdolls. The Lords of Despair would fit right in.
They were in for trouble after spending the entire day out, though they didn't care. Their parents would probably give them the lecture of the decade once they were home, they'd deal with their teachers first.
Surprisingly, the first one to greet them once they entered the school building and the first one to actually address them wasn't their teacher, but Ike.
"You weirdos out of a costume party?" he mocked, looking at their outfits.
"Yeah, we wanted a clown costume but you already took it with you this morning." retorted Nick.
"Watch it, Tripp. I don't know what's up with you all going emo, but that won't make you look tougher or be tougher." he warned.
Aware that the blonde bully would not back down from pestering his brother, Toby stepped forward, sending Ike a death glare as his hand shook. One little wave, and he'd be gone in an instant.
Surprisingly, Jessica grabbed his arm.
"Don't waste your energy on him, Toby. We got better to do than hanging around this idiot."
"But Jess! I was just-"
She gave him an understanding look, making him sigh as he put his hand down. No need to blow their secret off to a loser like Ike, they'd get him another day.
"You are really weirder than the usual, maybe Paula was right about you being aliens…"
Out of impatience, the Lords of Air and Water sent him another glare, except their eyes had turned orange and their pupils shrunk into a narrower shape. For a second, they weren't humans anymore.
For a second, Magor's might showed itself in their faces. For a second, Ike felt the cold touch of death from behind. In a second, any other snide remarks he had faded off.
Both Lords pushed him aside, followed by Nick and Lucas. Ike shook his head, realizing he wasn't done.
"Hey, where do you think you-"
He had grabbed Lucas' exposed back, and his arm suddenly burned. He made a surprised sound as he shook his hand off, looking at his palm. It's as if he touched poison ivy instead of Lucas, who seemed fine and even smirked at his failure.
Before he could add anything else, Nick, of all people, grabbed him by the shirt.
"One advice, Pickney. If talking big and intimidating others is all you can do, drop it." he warned, cold eyes glaring from behind glasses. "The Archaeology Club could do without you if you're still looking for trouble, anyone can do what you do. You're not special."
Ike was confused at Nick's words, but was already too creeped out by what he went through in the last few seconds to actually care. As he tried to push the brunette away, rather than flesh, it felt like he had punched a rock.
Moreover, Nick didn't even blink when he was hit. Just what was wrong with these guys?!
He was thrown back onto the ground, left to hold his injured arm in pain. He looked up, seeing his classmates leave without even sending him a glance. Other students helped him up as a fuss started in the school halls.
Never before had those four kids ever stood up to anyone this way, or acted this way at all. They were usually more discreet, they had changed overnight. Weird weather and stuff happening in town had stopped over a year ago.
Now that it was back, their schoolmates were the newest ones affected. And far from minding it, the Lords basked in the feeling of terror they'd soon spread over the town.
Omake:
Obscurio stared down at the kids. They either got a new haircut or they wore new things. Or a bit of both.
"Why do you look like that?"
"If we're gonna be evil Lords of Nature, we gotta look the part." explained Nick.
"Understandable. Looking good."
"Thanks!"
"By the way," he stopped, looking at Toby's outfit, "who won that school raffle for the new hockey team's outfits last time I went on Earth?"
"Me." said Lucas, raising his hand.
"...I see." said Obscurio. "If you ever betray us, the Lord of the Forest will be the first one to die."
"Hey what?!"