"Daredevil" wouldn't be enough, this time. At least, not this version of him, anyway.

He'd fired his billy club's grappling cord at Halo Knight, snagging him around the ankle. Daredevil had one soldier in a headlock, and he'd wrapped his legs around another, using them to weigh him down. Halo Knight was pulling like crazy, trying to get free. He must have really been out of it-he was trying to shoot down at him, as opposed to just shooting the cord. Daredevil assumed that he was shooting at him, anyway; unfortunately, he no longer had a way to detect Halo Knight's attacks. The gravity-energy had never registered on his radar sense, and it had never produced any heat or cold, either. He'd been using his super-hearing to locate Halo Knight's attacks, but the noise from the machine was drowning everything else out. Daredevil was fighting blind.

Well, all I can do is avoid the 'line of sight' from his free hand, and just assume that he's constantly firing at me. This is great. I already feel like I've gone fifteen rounds with the Hulk, and we're on top of some crazy contraption that could blow up at any second. Might as well make things a little tougher.

Halo Knight pulled, Daredevil pulled back, Halo Knight pulled...and Daredevil flicked his wrist and shook the cord loose. A surprised Halo Knight crashed into the ceiling headfirst. He must have been too shell-shocked to create more energy and fly, because he fell straight to the floor.

Daredevil ran toward him. As he got closer, he could tell that Angel had more than held up his end: Halo Knight's suit had a scorched smell to it, and his radar sense told him that it was heavily damaged. He was moving stiffly, as well, even moreso than before. Angel had used him for target practice and punching practice.

Great job, kid. Now I just need to start pulling my weight.

Halo Knight was on his hands and knees, struggling to get back on his feet. He held one hand out, squeezing it into a fist, but nothing happened. Halo Knight must have been too disoriented to create more energy. In a boxing match, you waited for the other man to get back up. In a street fight, though, things were different...and they were underneath the streets, so it was close enough.

Daredevil kicked Halo Knight in the side, brought down his billy club on the back of his neck, and jammed his knee into the small of his back. He then stood on top of his wrists, pinning his arms to the floor. It wasn't how you'd normally pin someone. But, in this case, his hands were the danger, so he was ignoring Halo Knight's head and torso.

He was supposed to terrify him-break him-but he didn't think that it was going to happen. Not like this, at least. Halo Knight's suit was punctured, now, and Daredevil could smell his body. There still weren't any traces of fear. Unfortunately, with all the noise, Daredevil couldn't use either version of his plan. He had to settle for crouching down and hitting him with his billy club. Halo Knight currently had his face jammed into the floor, so it didn't feel particularly heroic.

This isn't good. There's something that we need him to do: Plan A is that I scare him into doing it, Plan B is that I talk him into doing it. But, either way, he has to be able to actually hear me.

Halo Knight was abruptly whisked away by an invisible (to Daredevil) force. As he shakily took to the air, Daredevil felt Angel come up behind him, and he started to point toward the soldiers, as he wanted him to keep them busy. But, before he even turned around, he noticed that the CIA man was giving the soldiers all they could handle.

This is the best opening you're likely to get-take it!

Daredevil clapped Angel on the shoulder, mouthing two phrases: "Great job!" and "Let's get him!"

Angel-who was flying with the cape that the old guy had given him, and not his wings-zoomed after Halo Knight. (Daredevil was surprised that the cape actually worked.) As the two of them engaged in a dogfight, Daredevil ran underneath them, occasionally jumping or tumbling. He was avoiding any potential attacks, but he was also looking for an opening. It was frustrating, though: he hated being stuck down on the floor. Since they were indoors, there wasn't anywhere for him to swing from.

Daredevil was almost literally tripping over stray blasters. He didn't want to get in the habit of using his enemies' guns against them, but these could be used in a non-lethal way, and the fate of the city was on the line...

For the first time in his life, Daredevil thought about picking up a gun. Stick had never taught him how to use them-not even in a "know your enemies' weapons" way. According to Stick, guns were symptomatic of the lazy, messy, Western approach to problem-solving. Stick preferred stealth and precision. But Daredevil was wearing a yellow suit, so that sort of low-key approach was already out the window.

Daredevil jumped, somersaulted, snatched the nearest gun, and came up on one knee. He squeezed off a single shot. It hit Halo Knight in the shoulder, causing him to perform an involuntary half-barrel-roll. Halo Knight straightened out and kept going, but Daredevil launched into a sprint, running in an unpredictable pattern and lining up more shots. He hit him three out of four times. Angel was scoring hits, as well. Every strike made his suit a little more misshapen.

Lawyer, vigilante, boxer, martial artist, gymnast, tracker, break-in specialist...and the best blind marksman on the planet. Not a bad résumé for an Irish kid from Hell's Kitchen.

Angel was forcing Halo Knight lower, and Halo Knight abruptly broke off from him, turning toward Daredevil and hurtling down at him like a comet. Daredevil stopped firing (Angel was right behind Halo Knight, and he didn't want to hit him) and flipped around to avoid any attacks. He assumed that they were missing and hitting the floor. Normally, if Halo Knight's energy hit a large, fixed object, such as a floor or wall, Daredevil could hear the material "groaning." But the noise from the machine made it impossible. For all he knew, Halo Knight wasn't shooting at him at all, and he looked like a crazy person. Angel had also stopped firing, since any potential misses would hit Daredevil. His outstretched hand was mere inches from grabbing Halo Knight's heel.

Halo Knight kept one arm aimed at Daredevil, bearing down at a rapid speed, clearly intending to ram right into him. Daredevil avoided him at the last possible second. For a brief moment, Halo Knight pulled up to avoid hitting the floor, flying sideways rather than down, and he passed by Daredevil. Daredevil smacked him with his billy club and shot him point-blank. Halo Knight kept going forward, and both Daredevil and Angel opened fire on him from behind. They hit him a few times...but his free hand was just sort of trailing behind him, and he must have been shooting without looking, because one of his energy attacks hit Daredevil.

Angel quickly darted away-probably avoiding more attacks-and Daredevil could feel his knees weakening. He was still standing, so it hadn't been a direct hit. Halo Knight suddenly stopped, reversed course, and rocketed at him laterally. Daredevil fired, but the gun flew out of his hand. Judging by the angle of Halo Knight's free arm, and Angel's reaction, he then shot at Angel to keep him away.

Halo Knight landed less than two feet from Daredevil. He swung his billy club at him, but his arm was slow and heavy, and it took a lot of effort. Halo Knight avoided it by simply hovering backwards for a moment. (He wasn't standing at all, he was just using some energy to hold himself up.) After some more presumable shots at Angel, he placed a hand on Daredevil, and the heavy feeling tripled or quadrupled.

Matt Murdock had never played football, for obvious reasons. But he'd overheard a lot of advice from coaches. When they were talking to running backs, their advice was always "Fall forward." Daredevil did that now. His body was incredibly heavy, so he used it, collapsing on Halo Knight and trapping him against the floor. He felt the wind get knocked out of the little maniac. Halo Knight tried to fly free...but, this time, the weight was too much.

In the air, Angel hesitated-Daredevil seemed to have Halo Knight trapped, but he was also bodily shielding him. Just sit tight for a minute, buddy. I've got an idea.

When Halo Knight couldn't escape, he did the only thing he could: he shot Daredevil with the anti-gravity stuff, instead. Daredevil felt his weight lessen, and lessen, and suddenly break through to the other side. A strange tingling sensation enveloped his body. When he was jerked into the air like a puppet on strings, he made sure to hang onto Halo Knight, dragging him along for the ride. Daredevil twisted until Halo Knight was on top of him. Someone was going to crash into the ceiling first, and Daredevil made sure that it was his opponent. Less than fifteen seconds after Daredevil crushed him against the floor, Halo Knight's back cracked against the ceiling, and now he was pinned against it. Daredevil wanted to laugh.

You've only got two tools in your toolbox, huh? Up or down. Well, I'm ready for both.

Unfortunately, while the person behind the silver helmet wasn't a natural fighter, or flier, he must have been pretty smart. The ceiling was already weakened from errant blaster shots (Daredevil's radar could feel how pockmarked it was), and the part that Halo Knight was trapped against started to crumple upwards. Halo Knight must have been shooting it with anti-gravity. Daredevil tried to hit him with his billy club, but his movements weren't right. Instead of being too heavy, he was now too light, and his arm was moving more quickly than normal. There didn't seem to be as much "resistance;" it was the difference between hitting a baseball and hitting a tennis ball. Daredevil was having trouble with his coordination.

(Now that he was pressed up against Halo Knight, he noticed something. As much as he relied on his senses, there were some minute details that he didn't usually notice, or didn't usually need to notice...)

By the time that he figured out how to compensate, Halo Knight broke through the ceiling and escaped. In the process, he shot Daredevil with his other hand, pumping him full of heavy-gravity energy. Not just enough to cancel out the anti-gravity, but enough to make him fall like a rock.

Daredevil prepared to splatter against the floor and die. So, when he hit something relatively solid, he tensed up...but it wasn't the floor. Whatever it was, it wrapped around him and slowed his descent. When he touched down, he did it lightly, just like Stick had always taught him. Some huge piece of fabric was clinging to Daredevil-it had grabbed him around the neck, and he should have felt like he was being lynched, but the fabric was somehow supporting his entire body while only touching his neck. If he hadn't known better, he would have sworn that it was magic.

The original Angel's cape-

He could feel how heavy he was, but the cape was holding him up. In fact, it was acting like it wanted to lift him off his feet, but he fought it. This wasn't the best time to learn to fly. Besides, he had no idea how to fight or do acrobatics while dragging a huge piece of fabric around. Seemingly in response, the cape wrapped itself around his body, practically mummifying him. The cape had somehow changed its shape...he should have been rolled up and immobilized like a corpse in a rug, but his arms and legs were covered-yet-free. It clung to everything below his neck, and formed a snug hood over his head. The cape wasn't blocking his senses; his radar told him that Angel and Halo Knight were in another dogfight.

Angel must have seen me falling and thrown it at me. Well, let's see what this thing can do.

Daredevil took a running start and jumped at Halo Knight. The cape practically launched him, and he shot right past Halo Knight, traveling at an incredible speed. Daredevil was used to ricocheting off of surfaces, and he did just that when he hit the ceiling. He pushed off the metal and slammed into Halo Knight. Daredevil wrapped his arms around his torso, swung his legs up, and kicked him in the front of his helmet. Halo Knight shook himself loose, and Daredevil fell as gently as a spider. Naturally, Halo Knight fired some energy at him...but he could "see" it, now, so it was easy for him to tuck into a ball and avoid it.

When Daredevil had first fought Halo Knight, he'd discovered that gravity wasn't hot or cold. He'd been forced to detect his attacks via sound. But, now that he'd been right up against him for more than a few seconds, he'd realized that his energy gave off a miniscule amount of warmth. Daredevil could feel the warmth that light produced; Halo Knight's energy must have had a cold glow to it. From a distance, it looked like a random temperature variation. The air was always full of minor warm patches and cold patches. Compared to the heat of the blasters' beams, it was incredibly weak. But, now that he knew exactly what he was dealing with, he could spot Halo Knight's attacks.

It looks like you're 'the light' after all, Halo Knight. Thank you-that'll make this a lot easier.

Halo Knight remained up in the air, turning to fire at Angel. Daredevil was back on the floor, now, and he jumped at him, once again tucking into a ball and spinning. He came out of the spin in a flying-kick posture. The jump carried him all the way up to Halo Knight, and he arrived in a matter of seconds. Daredevil's kick hit Halo Knight right in the lower back. Then, with blindingly-fast reflexes, Daredevil grabbed Halo Knight's shoulder, pushing off of his torso feet-first. He landed on the ceiling and stood there like Spider-Man. Daredevil wasn't ready to fly, but he could jump, and if he wanted to stand on a ceiling or wall, the cape would keep gravity off his back.

While Halo Knight reacted to the kick and tried to shoot at Daredevil, Angel shot him in the back. Then, he wing-swatted him, and Daredevil jumped at him again. This time, Daredevil grabbed Halo Knight around the neck and used his legs to pin his arms to his side. Once his arms were neutralized, Daredevil focused on falling, and the cape tried to drag both of them to the floor. It wasn't easy; it felt like a car in the wrong gear. Halo Knight's energy fought it the whole way. But the cape eventually yanked them down there, with Angel trailing.

That's what devils do. We drag you down...to our level...

Daredevil once again introduced his billy club to Halo Knight's helmet, though he felt the impact all the way to his shoulder. That helmet was hard. Halo Knight created energy in both hands, using it to jerk his arms free and hover to a standing position, and Daredevil planted both hands on the floor and gave him a double-footed kick in the chest. Angel must have been on the same wavelength, because he swooped down and gave him a double-footed kick in the back. Halo Knight's entire body spasmed. Daredevil shot to his feet, hitting him with the billy club version of an uppercut. Halo Knight's head snapped back, and Angel jammed both guns into Halo Knight's back, firing point-blank.

Come on...go down...

Halo Knight did indeed fall down, but it was only because he'd started spraying energy at them with both hands. Daredevil and Angel jumped/flew backwards. Halo Knight kept shooting wildly, not even seeming to aim, and his body was shaking with what were presumably screams. Daredevil and Angel continued to avoid his attacks. Once he had some breathing room, Halo Knight formed energy in one hand, didn't shoot it, and allowed it to carry him upwards.

Angel pursued him, firing as he went. Daredevil pursued him, as well, taking another giant leap. But he noticed something. For the first time, he felt the cape brush the lower, exposed part of his face. Daredevil could actually differentiate between colors via touch, and he discovered that the cape was red. He was wrapped head-to-toe in red.

(Not words in his mind, but a feeling in his gut: something is missing.)

The battle became a blur. Energy blasts, midair collisions, bouncing off of metal surfaces, using Halo Knight as a glorified pommel horse. Further away, the CIA man was unleashing havoc on the General's soldiers; fewer and fewer of them were left standing every minute.

We can beat Halo Knight and the goons, but it won't matter. This machine will still blow up. It's the only thing I can hear, right now, and it sounds like it's shaking itself apart. Two things have to happen for this plan to work, but only one of them is in my control. First, the machine has to stop making noise, even if it's only for a minute, so I can talk to Halo Knight. I can't do anything about that. But, whether that happens or not, I can hope for the best and have him ready. He needs to be contained and willing to listen. We can beat him, I'm sure of it, but I think he'll still be defiant. Just putting him on the canvas won't be enough. If there's one thing that I learned from my father, it's that you can win the fight and still lose your life.

One of Angel's blasters ran out; instead of just dropping it, he bashed it against Halo Knight's helmet until the blaster broke apart. Halo Knight didn't know which way to turn. Whenever he went to attack one of them, the other would step up to the plate. It was Daredevil's turn. Halo Knight liked flying, so Daredevil did another midair leaping-grab, and this time, he yanked him up, body-slamming him into the ceiling. His anti-gravity energy was already pulling him up, so there wasn't any resistance. And it was a short trip to the ceiling. Daredevil turned him so that he was pressed against the ceiling face-first, hitting him in the shoulders with his billy club.

You can't scare him into anything...deep down, he's suicidal, and he probably doesn't feel like he has anything left to lose. Halo Knight is completely serious about ending the world. As Matt Murdock, you're good at making speeches in a courtroom, but you aren't Captain America. You can't inspire him to want to live. Use what you know: he's suicidal, he's serious-

Something was missing. Something was missing...from "Daredevil"...

As the fight raged on, seemingly-random memories popped into his head. He thought about the paintings he'd seen before he lost his sight. Many of them were religious in nature, of course, and they'd often had demons in them. The devil, too. Demonic beings looked scary, without a doubt, but they were usually portrayed as smiling. They enjoyed what they did. And he thought about Milton's Paradise Lost, and how Lucifer was portrayed in that. A cocky, swashbuckling rogue; a cosmic underdog that had his anger hidden and under control.

Halo Knight takes this so seriously. And you do, too. But, at the same time, you enjoy it. You know it's wrong, but you do. Scramble his thinking. An earnest, vengeful urban vigilante makes sense, and lines up with reality. But what about a smiling man who looks like the devil? It'd be even creepier, because it'd go against reason. Give in, have fun, and use it to get under his skin. If he thinks you aren't taking him seriously, he might go absolutely crazy.

By that point, Halo Knight had escaped Daredevil's grasp, flying closer to the floor. Daredevil and Angel descended after him. Halo Knight suddenly turned and fired, and Angel was hit. With no hesitation whatsoever, Daredevil pulled the cape off (his body was back to normal by now), threw it to him, and plummeted toward Halo Knight. He crashed into him and knocked him onto the floor. Daredevil backflipped away, landed right in Halo Knight's line of sight, and gave him an inhuman smile.

For a moment, Halo Knight was hypnotized. He froze. Angel shot him, and that spurred him back to action, but something had changed. Daredevil could tell.

Angel veered down, firing, and Daredevil rushed toward Halo Knight, getting there a moment after the blasts had hit. The smile had finally escaped, and it refused to be locked back up. A grinning Daredevil kicked him in the throat, ducked some energy, punched him in the stomach, and smashed his billy club into his visor. Angel joined him, wing-swatting Halo Knight, and Daredevil flipped into the air to avoid the wing's path. When he came back down, he grabbed Halo Knight's wrist and yanked his arm. Daredevil couldn't hear his heartbeat, but he could feel it, even through the padding (and only touching his wrist). Halo Knight's heartbeat was noticeably different. It was faster, and still speeding up.

It might have only meant the obvious: that the painkillers were wearing off, and making it harder for him to exert himself. But, at the same time, he seemed angrier, even infuriated. When he attacked them, he was almost frantic.

Daredevil found himself smiling even more.

As Daredevil tumbled to the side, avoiding energy attacks, he felt complete. His new persona had always been a work in progress. He initially hadn't carried a weapon, and then he'd carried a standard billy club, and then the fancier billy club. He'd started out wearing a black bandanna and black civilian clothes, later switching to the yellow suit. This was of a piece with that. Rage-fueled vigilantism could be found everywhere in the world; a bright, chaotic, grinning devil-man, on the other hand? That sort of creature belonged to a much more frightening place.

The generator suddenly "skipped" and switched to a different, quieter pitch. It still sounded uneven, and there was now a banging noise to go along with it, but it was the chance he'd been hoping for. Since it had happened only minutes after he'd decided to try using a new weapon-a swashbuckling attitude-Daredevil chose to take it as a sign.

As Halo Knight continued shooting at him, he only backed up that decision. "STOP SMILING! STOP SMILING!" He was completely focused on Daredevil, now, allowing Angel to get some shots in. Halo Knight's suit had become so deformed that it made him look like a gnarled monster. In a hand-to-hand fight, it would have been way too stiff to function, but all he had to do was fly around and use his arms.

Halo Knight zoomed after him, firing energy. Daredevil suddenly stopped, ducked, and kicked him in the chest as he flew over. Angel was right behind him, zapping him in the back. When Halo Knight swung around and made a low run at Daredevil, he spun and flipped over his attacks, eventually flipping over Halo Knight himself. He hit him with an elbow-drop in the lower back. Halo Knight crashed and skidded, and Angel kept him from getting back in the air, shooting him and hitting him with his wings. (Angel was now using the cape to fly, so he was even faster than normal.) Daredevil joined him a moment later. Halo Knight used energy to pull himself to a standing position, but he kept wasting time trying to shoot Daredevil, opening himself up to attacks from Angel. One of the blasts hit him in the neck, and he screamed.

There was still some noise-energy blasts from Angel, the CIA man, and the shrinking number of ambulatory soldiers-but it wasn't that bad. A laughing Daredevil was able to shout over it. "Your plan has a hole in it, Halo Knight! You forgot something important!"

He might have been the devil, but he wasn't lying. This was Plan B. Plan A had been to physically and mentally break him, and then force him to do something. Daredevil was pretty sure that Halo Knight would die before he ever gave in. Plan B was to talk him into it...but it still required him to be physically defeated, because, otherwise, he'd never listen. Daredevil needed Matt Murdock's ability to reason with people. He didn't know if anyone else had tried to talk down Halo Knight...but, if they had, they'd clearly failed. They'd most likely been normal people, using normal arguments. It was time for something different.

I bet that the truth was presented to him in a direct, sincere way, and he ignored it. Let's see if Daredevil can get his attention, instead. A laughing, mocking demon that's tempting him to use his brain-a being that reason says shouldn't exist, but is daring him to be logical and think.

"Think about your plan, Halo Knight! Think about everything you've said you believe in!"

They had him trapped, now. He was down on the floor, and whenever he tried to fly, Angel would force him back down. Daredevil mostly played the decoy. But, from time to time, he'd dance in close, delivering a solid shot.

Angel blasted him, and blasted him, and Halo Knight seemed to be moments away from collapsing...so, naturally, the entire room went crazy.

Tendrils of electricity suddenly leapt out of the floor. Daredevil obviously couldn't see them, but he heard them crackling, felt their heat, and even smelled them burning. The electricity hit Angel's blaster, and he yelped and dropped it. It hit all the other blasters, as well: the soldiers', the CIA man's. Halo Knight's helmet was even hit. Daredevil initially thought that it was striking anything metal, and he got ready to drop his billy club, but the electricity ignored it.

It's hitting electrical devices. Those things have circuitry in them, and my billy club doesn't. Daredevil was suddenly glad that he hadn't added that modification that he'd been thinking about. He was toying with the idea of squeezing a miniature tape recorder and microphone into his billy club, so he could tape confessions.

The machine below them was quieter, now, but he could hear its electricity raging out of control. There was more banging, as well-some of its parts were starting to come loose.

Only seconds had passed since the electrical tendrils had leapt up. Angel was shaking his hands, which were clearly in pain, as were all of the soldiers and the CIA man. Halo Knight had one hand on his helmet, and he was hunched over a bit. Daredevil did a backflip and kicked him in the "face" with both feet. His boots were steel-toed, but it still hurt. Halo Knight snapped up and back, and Angel shoved him with his wings, setting him up for Daredevil.

Using his radar sense and hearing to detect the weakest part of the padding, Daredevil jabbed his billy club with enough force to shatter a concrete block. It ended up being the part that covered Halo Knight's chest. When the billy club struck, the misshapen material shattered and broke away. Daredevil immediately kicked his exposed stomach. Halo Knight fell flat on his back, sprawling out awkwardly. He didn't get back up.

"Yeah, got him!" Angel was pumping his fist.

Without their guns, the soldiers were hesitating. Some of them had tried to pick them up and use them, but they were fried, now. Daredevil could smell it from dozens of feet away. Most of the soldiers were struggling to stand, and all of them had seen Halo Knight go down. They looked at Daredevil and Angel, and then at the CIA man, who was still in good fighting shape.

"Wait! Wait, look, he's bleeding!" One of the soldiers said that. He was pointing at Daredevil, who had a bloody nose. "The darkness doesn't bleed! Whoever he is, he isn't the V...the, uh...you know..."

The soldiers started glancing at each other, and Daredevil thought that he sensed confusion. It was as if they were having trouble remembering a name. He had no idea what all that was about, and right now, he didn't particularly care.

The General's men started shouting at Halo Knight. Things like "YOU LIED TO US!", "WHY DID YOU MAKE US DO THIS?!", and "YOU'VE KILLED US ALL!" Then, they started running.

Angel started to follow them, but Daredevil held up a hand, stopping him. They were in rough shape, and they didn't have their fancy beam guns. The cops would grab them as soon as they got outside.

Apparently, the CIA man thought the same thing, because he also ignored them. He reached into his jacket, pulling out a standard ballistic piece. Then, he started marching toward Halo Knight, holding the gun in front of him.

Daredevil looked at him, dropping his smile for just a moment: "If you kill him, you're killing everyone in New York."

That froze him in his tracks.

"...doesn't...matter...if you're that darkness or not..."

Halo Knight was still down on the floor, trying to speak through his no-longer-functioning helmet. His voice was muffled.

"You're still close enough, and I am, too. People really...are terrified of you. You're dressed up like the devil, and you rule Hell's Kitchen. I have gravity powers...and gravity is connected to light. I'm the only one that remembers the true light. I'm the light, you're the darkness, and I've...already won. I pushed the button, so I'll be the one that destroys you. All the stupid religions and mythologies...some of them have to be real, and at least one will be vague enough to be triggered by this. When I kill you, the world will end, and we'll all go to a better place. I still believe it."

The CIA man practically did a double-take. That was news to him, apparently. "Are you kidding me? Oh my god, you're insane. That's what all of this has been about?"

Angel nodded toward the machine below them, his fear-level raising a bit. "So, uh, what's the plan?"

Looking at both Angel and the CIA man: "Let me do the talking."

Daredevil did his part-now, it's Matt Murdock's turn. It's up to the lawyer to save the day. People would laugh at that, but this 'lawyers being bad' thing is a Western idea. In my faith, the messiah is a counselor...an intermediary, an advocate for humanity...

Making sure that Halo Knight could see him smiling: "You've got more faith in humanity than anybody I've ever met."

Halo Knight shook his head, warmth flickering by his hands. He wasn't strong enough to fully create (or control) his energy right now. "Whoever you are, whatever you are, I don't have to talk to you."

Daredevil put his foot on his chest. "Actually, you kind of do."

"No...I've talked, and explained, and nobody's listened. I'm done."

"I listened, and now you're going to listen to me. It's like I said: there's a hole in your big plan. You think that humanity is doomed, right? That we can't save ourselves?"

Halo Knight laughed, coughing. "I'm just a sheltered kid...spent half my life in hospitals and labs...and even I know that. Human beings are only good at one thing, and that's screwing everything up."

"Well, you're a human being," Daredevil said casually. "What if you screwed this up?"

Halo Knight went quiet, but only for a moment. "No, I already told you, I pushed the button. You're dead."

"That's not what I'm talking about, Halo Knight. What if you kill me, trigger the end of the world, and the afterlife is even worse? I mean, which god or gods are we going to get? What if they're glorified tyrants?"

Halo Knight's confidence and good humor immediately vanished, and he started thrashing. "STOP SMILING! THIS ISN'T A JOKE!"

Angel stepped toward Halo Knight, as did the CIA man, but Daredevil motioned for them to stop.

"If humanity is poison, and you're the one that came up with this plan, then it's poisoned too, right?"

"SHUT UP!"

"You want to solve all of our problems, don't you? Well, there are two kinds of solutions," Daredevil said. "Creative solutions and destructive solutions. Sometimes we solve problems by building things, or coming up with new ideas. Sort of like that 'Silver Age' you talked about. And you know what, Halo Knight? If it doesn't work, well, we can just try again. And again and again and again. Destructive solutions are different, though. If you don't like something, you destroy it, and you hope that whatever replaces it will be better. But a destructive solution only has one chance. If you're wrong, and it doesn't work, you won't get another shot. Everything will just be over."

Halo Knight was speechless, now.

"Do you know why superheroes don't kill? I think it's because, as much as we believe in people, we know that people can make mistakes. Ourselves included. So we avoid permanent, destructive solutions. That way, if we're wrong, there's still a way to fix things. But you aren't doing that. If you're wrong about any tiny part of this, mankind is doomed forever."

"I...I..."

"That's why I said what I did, Halo Knight. You must have more faith in humanity than anyone else. You're willing to risk this entire planet, and it all depends on a person being one hundred percent mistake-free. That's a lot of faith."

Halo Knight was mumbling to himself, now. "...all that shaking I've been feeling...it isn't the universe tearing itself apart...it's Earth turning, and orbiting. It's like a gravitational heartbeat. Whether I'm alive or not, the world will keep going."

He formed some energy in one of his hands, and Angel and the CIA man both reacted, but Daredevil could tell that he wasn't gearing up to attack. He let Halo Knight pull himself up, holding his arms out to keep the others from attacking.

"I'm...oh my god, I'm just like all of them," Halo Knight said, disgusted. His voice was still muffled. "I came up with this plan to fix everything, and I was sure it couldn't fail. Oh my god. It's the same, it's the exact same..."

Now.

"You were right about one thing, though. You can be the light. You have the chance to save millions of people, and you're the only one who can."

Halo Knight slowly nodded. In the end, it took a blind man to make him see.