City 17 is a depressing place. Along the canals, citizens walk to work, all wearing the same blue jumpsuit. They kept their eyes to the ground, fearful of drawing the attention of the brutal Civil Protection officers. The uniform of the CP is indicative of their masters, the Combine: grey, but intricately designed and ridged, and well equipped to deal with any dissenters. Soulless lights stare out of their helmet's eyes, examining every passerby.

There was one they focused on in particular. A teenage girl, wearing blue clothing that wasn't the manufactured staple worn by those around her. It was a dress with a white trim, apparently made for climates far colder. She wore a blue pendant around her neck, and her brown hair was styled in two loops and a braid.

Two Civil Protection officers noticed her and shared tight nods. They strode briskly in front of the girl, blocking her path.

"Citizen," said one, his voice sounding inhumanly robotic. "Come with us."

Katara looked them both in the eyes – or at least, she tried to. "Why?" she asked defiantly. "Is walking a crime?"

"No," stated the other. He drew out a long taser-esque weapon. "But refusing to co-operate with Civil Protection personnel is."

Katara took a step back. The officers were about to take a step forward when someone tapped their shoulders.

"Hey!" They turned to see a woman with dreadlocks and dark skin. She wore a collection of bangles and necklaces, and she had sharp metal ornaments on the tips of the fingers on her left hand. Her clothes were dark and their cut left very little to the imagination. She gave the officers a toothy, malicious grin and continued speaking in her Cajun accent. "If my friend doesn't want to come with you, you'd better do what she says."

The officers knew immediately something was wrong. There was no way the woman could have come up behind them so quickly. The one with the stunstick activated his radio and began calling for backup in code. The other drew a pistol and aimed at the woman's head.

Nix's grin only grew wider. Two thick black tentacles shot out of the ground, encasing the officer's legs. Nix beat the two guards off of each other, then tossed their limp bodies into the canal. She turned her smile toward Katara. The girl returned it, albeit with a twinge of disapproval at her partner's enthusiasm for causing pain.

Another contingent of officers burst from a corner. They were numerous and armed with various large firearms.

Katara reacted quickly. She raised both arms and performed a motion as though pulling something up. A wall of water rose from the canal and placed itself in between the two and the Combine. The officers were surprised, but quickly realized that water wouldn't stop their bullets. Just before they opened fire, Katara tensed her arms and the wall of water became a wall of ice. A hail of bullets struck the wall, chipping through it.

"Damn," said Nix appreciatively, "you make Kuo look like a kid throwin' snowballs. Hold on a sec while I deal with these goons." Nix disappeared, replaced with curling black smoke. The ice blocked Katara's view, so what Nix did to the officers was a mystery. Judging from sound alone, it involved fire, breaking bones, and a lot of yelling.

A harsher sound cut above that, and Katara turned around. One of the Combine's gunships, a humongous cybernetic insect, was closing in. Katara dived into an alleyway for cover.

Nix teleported next to her in a burst of red and black. "You see that thing? What are we gonna do?"

Katara gingerly peeked out. She smiled at what she saw. "We wait," she said. "Here comes our friend."

Rocketing towards the gunship was a man with short brown hair. His costume was green with black, and a logo was emblazoned on his chest. He flew through the air thanks to a green ring on his right hand which bore the same logo as his chest. The ring was emitting solid light which surrounded him in a thin film. He glared at the monster from under a thin green domino mask.

The gunship levelled its frontal cannon at Green Lantern and opened fire with machine gun bullets of a huge calibre. Green Lantern produced a shield from his ring which deflected the first few rounds, then flew past the range of the gun. He came to a stop at the rear of the ship and continued to hover there, moving with the ship when it tried to turn. Just below him was the massive rotors which kept the gunship aloft. Green Lantern willed a cuboid shape the size of a train carriage into being, and stabbed it into the gunship's rotors.

Nix whistled. "Nice piece of bling, isn't it? My jewellery doesn't do that."

The gunship fell helplessly into the canal, Green Lantern descending with it to keep the cuboid in place. Katara ran forward, lifting the water on both sides of the gunship. She then covered the ship completely and froze it in solid ice.

Green Lantern touched down next to his team-mates. "Everything alright?"

"Just fine," smiled Katara.

"Great. Then let's keep looking for Scapegrace."


Dr McNinja put his stetoscope against Hype's chest and listened intently. "Nope," he announced. "Not much I can do."

"What's wrong with him?" asked Vitani dubiously.

"A curse," diagnosed McNinja confidently. "Of a very high magnitude. Cast by a wizard of almost godlike power. There's a lot of magic in this poor guy." The doctor wrapped his stethoscope around his neck and poked his head into the corridor. "Hey, Deadpool?"

Deadpool wandered in. "El doctorino?"

"Do me a favour and get this unfortunate hunk of geology out of my tiny practice."

Deadpool sagged. "Seriously?"

"Yeah. Put him somewhere out of the way."

Deadpool sighed. He hefted Hype again, muttering how he thought Dr McNinja was cool, and dragged the knight out.

"And now, I'd better get down to the hangar," declared McNinja. "Not much of an infiltration team without a ninja."

"You sure I'll be okay here by myself?" asked Vitani worriedly.

Dr McNinja's eyes conveyed his smile. "You'll be fine."

"Yeah, I guess," replied Vitani. "It's not the end of the world, right?"

McNinja's brow furrowed. "You had to say that, didn't you?"

"Sorry..."

"You will be."

##

In the hangar, the targets had been moved aside and the shuttles prepared for launch. A team had been selected, either for stealth, security, or simply because they could fly by themselves and hence wouldn't take up a seat on the shuttles. War Machine, Iron Man, and Thor and Skulduggery comprised the latter category, and the latter of the latter was bidding farewell to Valkyrie.

"Call me if you need me."

"I will," grinned Valkyrie. "I'll be spending your absence consoling Murray. He's annoyed that Sly's going somewhere without him."

Skulduggery nodded. "Understandable. I'm annoyed you and Ghastly can't come. But with luck, we'll be back soon."

Dr McNinja strode into the room and took the last available seat in a shuttle. He sat into the middle shuttle. Raiden and Washington nodded to him from the other seats, and O'Neill gave him a brisk wave from the pilot's chair.

"Doesn't look too complex a vessel, if you don't mind me saying," noted McNinja.

O'Neill nodded. "You wouldn't need much experience fly one of these. But I've been dying to fly something, so I'm glad to come."

In another shuttle, Revan counted himself, Jak, Snake, and Carth, their pilot. In the last, Sly sat chatting to Fox and She-Hulk while Dr Horrible sat in friendly silence. The bug, found embedded to the inside of his goggles, had been destroyed.

"I'm kinda worried about flying this thing," frowned Fox. "It's a little flimsy."

"That's why I de-hulked," said She-Hulk, who was indeed in her human form. "But hopefully we'll be there and back without too much trouble." Fox shrugged uncertainly.

Sly spoke into his binocucom. "We ready?"

"Just got our last," said Washington. "We're good to go."

"Myself and the others are prepped," announced War Machine.

"Let's go already," snapped Revan.

"Comm link active!" declared Rocket Raccoon. "We're here if you need us. Open her up, Meta Knight!"

"Our thoughts are with you," stated Meta Knight from the bridge. "We wish you success." He nodded to Clank, who pressed a few buttons.

In the hanger, the front wall opened. Thanks to Toph, where there was once sand, there was now a view of the clear blue sky.

The three shuttles lifted into the air, and behind them, four figures did likewise. And then, they were off.


Katara continued to traverse City 17, staying by the canal and other sources of water as much as possible. Green Lantern hovered above her, scanning the area. Nix, whose relatively short attention span was greatly amused by this city full of combustible, contemptible cops, would briefly explode into being beside Katara, but then disappear as quickly as she had came.

"We'd want to find Scapegrace soon," murmured Green Lantern, listening to the cacophony of sirens in the distance. "This isn't the friendliest place I've been. And I've been to a lot of unfriendly places."

"I'm confident we'll find him soon enough," said Katara. "Sometimes all you can do is hope."

GL smiled to himself. "When I get home, I'll send in an application for a Blue Ring on your behalf."

"What?"

"Nevermind."

"Hey!" yelled Nix, teleporting behind the two. "I think I found him!"

"You sure?" asked GL.

Nix scoffed disdainfully. "Saw a guy in a fancy suit. You think anyone else around here has the money for that?"

"Sounds like it then," nodded Katara.

"Lead on, Nix," said GL.

Nix guided them through a series of streets which might have been pleasant two decades ago. They eventually came to a courtyard. The man standing by the pillar in the centre was indeed wearing a suit, as Nix reported. He looked nervous, like a small rabbit. When he saw the three advance on him, he whirled around, a gleeful smirk on his face.

"Ah-ha!" he all but screamed. "There you are! Ready to face your doom?!"

Green Lantern, Katara and Nix stared blankly at him. Then, as one, they burst out laughing.

Scapegrace's face clouded. "W-what?"

"Look at you, man!" guffawed Nix. "You're just a pansy in a tie! What can you do?"

"What can I do? What can I do?!" Scapegrace was doing his best to regain composure. He began to stride towards them threateningly. "I am the Killer Supreme! I can unleash upon you a fate so horrible, you willUH!" He tripped over his own shoelace and landed, face first, on to the cobblestones. The impact shook his teeth and made him begin to cry.

"Oh, I feel bad laughing at him," giggled Katara.

"Don't be!" said Green Lantern. "I could use some comic relief."

"Shut up!" yelled Scapegrace, tears streaming down his face. "I am the Killer Supreme!"

"Sure you are, pal. Sure you are."

"That's it," Scapegrace growled to himself. "Now I'm angry."

Green Lantern, Katara and Nix nodded to themselves. It was going to be a quick fight.


The three shuttles and four heroes made good progress through the desert. Dr Horrible had pointed them in the right direction, and occasionally modified Fox's course, the others following suit. After a time, he announced that they were definitely on the right track, and would soon arrive.

"I cannot wait to do battle with these scoundrels!" cried Thor enthusiastically.

"Relax," chided Skulduggery. "This is a stealth job, remember?"

War Machine chuckled. "Try telling that to Tony. He's just as eager for a fight. Isn't that right?"

Iron Man said nothing.

"Tony?" asked War Machine, concern obvious in his tone.

Iron Man didn't respond, or if he did, Rhodes didn't hear him. Although he was maintaining his speed and altitude, he appeared to be losing control of his armour. The frame shook as though Tony was pushing at from the inside. The blue eyes of the suit dimmed to grey, and then abruptly turned back on - but instead of their usual hue, they were a soulless gold which clashed with the slightly different shade of gold already on the armour. The eyes centred on the centre shuttle, and blasted forward. It arced up towards the bottom of the fuselage, shrieking one word.

"COOPER!"

Before anyone could react, the shuttle was replaced with an explosion, and then the explosion was replaced with five bodies and some wreckage floating in mid-air, gravity having not yet caught up with them. The Iron Man suit twitched, the eyes once again off, before the gold fired up once more. It grabbed Sly roughly and shot off.

"By Odin! Stark has lost reason!" exclaimed Thor. He realigned Mjolnir and shot after him.

"That's not Tony," said War Machine gravely, close behind.

"Uh, guys, are we going to catch the falling people?" said Skulduggery. "No? Just me? Fine."

The skeleton swooped down and grabbed Horrible by the scruff of the neck in one hand and Fox by the coat-tails in the other. He tried to slow Jennifer's descent by moving the air, but he found it immensely difficult with his arms full. He swore loudly.

Fox appeared to be the only person still conscious after the crash. Seeing the de-powered hero fall towards earth, he grabbed his reflector and threw it at her. The device activated upon hitting her, startling her awake. By the time she hit the ground she was once again She-Hulk, and soon she was following Iron Man.

"Sharp thinking," complimented Skulduggery, who was focusing on landing the pilot and Scientist slowly. "But I don't think you're getting that thing back."

"Somehow…" said Fox, touching his temple and finding blood, "I think that might not… be my biggest problem."

##

One moment, Revan had been sitting calmly in his shuttle, formulating possible strategies; the next, the silence was ripped in half by an explosion which rocked their vessel. Carth swore and corrected their flight path.

"What was that?" said Snake, head shooting up.

"One of the other shuttles exploded!" said Jak.

"What?!" yelled Revan. He looked out the window just in time to see Iron Man shoot away, followed by his colleagues, as Skulduggery scooped up the passengers.

"What should we do?" asked Carth, gripping the controls tightly.

Revan didn't answer. Instead he activated his radio and barked "Come in, Halberd. This is Revan. We have a situation."

"This is Halberd. What's the problem?" came Rocket Raccoon's voice.

"Stark's gone AWOL. He's destroyed one of the shuttles. Casualties to be confirmed."

"Bloody hell! Where's Stark now?"

"Fleeing. Two of our flyers are in pursuit," said Revan, coldly eyeing the superheroes leave.

Another voice patched into the line. "Come in, Halberd. This is Agent Washington. Be advised, we -"

"Yeah, we know," snapped RR. "Save your breath."

"Please advise our course of action," said Snake into his codec.

There was a pause, presumably as those in the boardroom discussed it. Revan could imagine all too clearly L speaking at his usual slow pace despite the severity of the situation. Eventually, RR came back on the line and said "Don't pursue Stark. Let the supers fight amongst themselves. Trust me, it happens once every month. Your priority is still the Death Thing. Yes, Death Note. Whatever."

"Roger, but there's a problem," replied Revan. "Horrible was on the shuttle that exploded."

"It'll be a lot harder to infiltrate the castle without our informant," noted Snake.

"Any word on Horrible surviving?" asked RR.

Before Revan could respond to the negative, Wash cut in again. "Raiden informs me that he can see Detective Pleasant on the ground with two figures. Try asking him."

##

Skulduggery carefully lay his two charges on the sand. His phone buzzed and he flicked it open.

"Yes." It wasn't a question, merely an acknowledgement.

"Report in, Pleasant. What's Horrible's status?"

"Unconscious. He'll survive." Skulduggery's tone was terse, something Rocket Raccoon didn't seem to pick up on.

"Well, slap him awake and get going! We need him to get into Maleficent's castle."

"If I move him, he could die. I need a medic down here now."

"Negative. McNinja's priority is the Death Note. Unless you want me to send the lion walking out to you."

"Looks like we're just going to stay here then."

"Listen, Detective. You get Horrible up and going in the next five seconds, and that's an order."

"Guess that makes this an act of insubordination," said Skulduggery. He turned off his phone.

He looked down at Horrible. The Scientist was still out cold, and had a few lacerations over his body. For the most part, though, he was unharmed, and his breathing was steady.

Skulduggery turned his head to Fox. The same could not be said of him. In his line of work as a soldier, Skulduggery had come to recognize the signs of a fatal wound. It was clear to his seasoned eye that Fox had minutes, if that long.

The one thing which had vexed him the most with his conversation with Rocket Raccoon, moreso than the latter's insistence on getting Horrible to the castle, was his failure to ask about Fox's status as well. Maybe it was a simple mistake, or perhaps it was symptomatic of a managerial style Skulduggery didn't appreciate. Either way, the detective was unimpressed.

It was obvious that nothing could be done for Fox, and perhaps Skulduggery was needed in a fight elsewhere. But at the moment, there was one death he could potentially prevent, and he decided to do what was in his power to prevent it.

##

Wash listened to the report he was receiving on his radio. When it finished, he brought his hand to his face.

"Good news, then?" asked O'Neill, glancing over his shoulder.

"Pleasant says Horrible's injured and refuses to move him," recounted Washington. "So we're doing this without an insider."

"That could be a problem," said Raiden.

"Maybe not," replied Wash. "I've seen a lot of plans go wrong in my time. What was Horrible supposed to give us?"

"The hope was he'd show us an entrance," said McNinja.

"Well, I can think of an alternative way in. Let's get a little reckless." Washington leaned closer to O'Neill. "Say, Colonel. You've got a lot of flight hours, right?"

"I've been flying since 'Nam."

Wash smiled deviously under his helmet. "That must have added up to a lot of crashes."


By the time the Combine squads closed in on Scapegrace's position to provide him backup, the fight was long over. It had been completely, hopelessly one-sided.

"There you are!" yelled Scapegrace. His eyes were wide and his breath ragged from sheer excitement. "Look! I did it! I killed three whole people! At once!"

The Combine soldiers stared at him worriedly.

"Uh," Scapegrace said, regaining his composure. "I mean. Good, you're here. I need someone to... deal with the bodies. Of the people I killed. Because I'm beyond such things now. Yes. Get to it!"

The soldiers obediently approached what was left of the three heroes. Scapegrace was ecstatically happy, but couldn't help but wonder what he was supposed to do now. He pried Green Lantern's ring from his cold, dead hand, and began idly playing with it.


"Castle's in sight," announced Carth.

"Good," said Revan. "Snake, you join up with Raiden and McNinja upon landing. I don't know if you'll have to adjust your plans to account for Cooper's absence -"

"We didn't have a plan."

"Then adjusting will be easy. I don't care how you do it – just secure the Death Note. Now, we-"

Revan was interrupted by the sight of the other shuttle ramming itself at speed into the castle, tearing a hole in the stone wall. He swore loudly and fumbled for his radio. "Now what?!"

"Oh, nothing to worry about," chirped Wash. "Just making an entrance... literally. We're fine. O'Neill even thinks the shuttle could fly again."

Revan gave a throaty sigh, turning off his radio. "I'm surrounded by idiots... Carth, land this shuttle like a real pilot, please."

They touched down at the base of the tower. All four exited the vehicle. Jak went to take point, but Revan stopped him. "You stay here."

"What?" said Jak.

"Carth's a good soldier, but we have to be prepared for anything," replied Revan. "I want this shuttle guarded well. Understand?"

Jak glared at him. "...Fine. Have fun in there."

"Oh, I will."

Revan and Snake walked towards the castle, leaving Carth with a seething Jak. Raiden threw down a rope for them.

They ascended to find the others standing around the crashed shuttle.

"You sure you want to come with us?" McNinja was asking. "You look a little shook from the 'landing'."

Jack waved him away. "I'll be fine. Hey, what's the worst that can happen?" Dr McNinja's eye twitched, but he said nothing.

Revan shot Wash a meaningful look, but then took point. They explored the tower in a tight formation.

"Why's it so quiet?" asked Wash almost in a whisper.

"It seems like no-one is here," said Snake, gun raised high. "The question is, where are they?"

They eventually did find someone; Azula, lying motionless on the ground next to an open doorway. Dr McNinja crouched over her. "She's dead, Jim."

"By what means?" snapped Revan.

"Hard to say," murmured McNinja, checking her lack of a pulse. "Give me a moment."

"I thought you had a talent for this kind of thing," growled Revan.

"Oh, do go easy on him," said a voice. It was unfamiliar. As one, the six turned, weapons raised.

Maleficent was smirking at them. In one hand, she held her staff, and the Death Note floated ominously over the other. Both were wreathed in twisting green flames.

"After all," she smiled, "this is very much a new development on my part. Please, allow me to demonstrate."

She raised her staff and fired a burst of green flame at the group. They executed a series of twists, rolls and superhuman jumps to evade it. The only person without the sufficient acrobatics to avoid it was O'Neill. The blast struck him in the torso, and threw him backwards. By the time he hit the ground, he was dead.

"Well," said Dr McNinja from his position on the ceiling. "There's your answer."

##

Sly slammed into the ground, thrown roughly by Iron Man. He landed on his left arm at an awkward angle, and gasped in pain as he heard the bone crack. He rolled slightly upon impact, his cane bouncing away from him.

Iron Man landed after, standing stiffly and glowering down at Sly.

"Augh… what's wrong with you!?" yelled Sly, cradling his injured arm. "Just what are you…" Sly looked into the suit's golden eyes and trailed off.

"Behold," boomed the one in the suit. "Ironwerk is born."


I'm going to be so annoyed if the world actually ends today. We've only just gotten to the good bit! Review your predictions!