CHAPTER 2
2 hours and 24 minutes…
The hero known as Panacea was ushered through security on her way to the her car by the capes known as Assault and Battery.
"Panacea, you are urgently needed at Brockton General."
Panacea almost stumbled as she was ushered through checkpoints and out the airport doors, but was picked up and carried, her feet brushing the ground as they made their way to a convoy of armored vehicles.
As she was practically dragged along, she managed to get out a strangled.
"Why?"
Assault looked at Battery.
Battery looked at Assault.
Assault shrugged, Battery sighed and turned her head to Panacea.
"A super villian has threatened to kill everyone and everything in the PRT building before burning down a school with everyone in it if his daughter isn't healed by you in less then 3 hours."
"Who's the super villain?"
Panacea's eyes widened at the terse reply as she was bundled into the vehicle.
"Endbringer."
Emily Piggot's office, PRT building
2 hours…
It was utter chaos as telephones rang and PRT officers screamed and shouted at each other from across the room. Director Piggot herself was doing her utmost to smooth the evacuation of areas around Winslow and the PRT building. She was also trying to find Shadow Stalker and failing.
The Cape had disappeared as soon as her school had let out and hadn't been since despite the rest of the Wards, the New Wave, and the Protectorate searching for her.
Piggot might detest Shadow Stalker to her very core, even more so now that she knew that the idiot girl had been tormenting Nidhog's daughter of all people, but she had to give the teen credit, she definitely knew how too run and hide like hell.
Her personal phone rang, not looking at the caller I.D. as she yelled at her officers to 'find that damn vigilante!' She answered her phone with a terse.
"This better be important. Speak."
And then flinched minutely as the hard tones of the Chief director Costa came in over the line.
"I believe it is. Now why am I only now hearing about Nidhog, a villain on par with the Triad, End-bringers and the slaughterhouse 9?"
Piggot rubbed her brow in frustration.
"Ive been a little busy trying to fulfill his conditions Chief Director."
There was a pregnant pause on the line before Costa spoke again.
"Very well. I will have Alexandria dispatched to your location. She should be able to at least buy some more time. Whatever you do, make sure what he wanted gets done."
Piggot resisted the urge to role her eyes. She had read the reports on Nidhog. She would rather sacrifice every cape in this city then let Nidhog go on a rampage.
"Yes Director."
1 hour and 46 minutes…
Brockton General
1 hour and 32 minutes…
Peter Jackson sat in Taylor Herbert's hospital room. He had promised the boss that he would sit and watch over his daughter.
He shivered to think of the fat that would befall who ever had put Taylor in this state when the boss got threw with them. He was supposed to call him as soon as Panacea got here, but she hadn't arrived yet.
God, he hoped she got her in time, otherwise the boss would burn and salt the land in revenge. Jackson shivered, he had been the bosses lieutenant during the last time he had done that.
He still had nightmares almost twenty years later.
1 hour and 26 minutes…
ABB headquarters
1 hour and 12 minutes…
Lung stared out from his penthouse suit and considered. A source in the PRT had put out the warning and possible advance notice that Nidhog would be coming to scorch the earth of Brockton Bay.
Lung felt the cold grasp of fear in his chest as he remembered the first time he had ever seen Nidhog. It had been the last time the Corpse Eater ever showed his face in public, the dragon had walked into the middle of Washington D.C. and announced he would be retreating from the public eye, and if anyone wanted to take one last go around, then it would be the last time they would be able too.
He had trounced almost 100 capes both heroes and villains in a twenty four hour time period before disappearing forever.
Lung had considered himself a dragon, immortal and invincible, until he saw that, it had forced him to realize just how insignificant he really was.
Nevertheless, the dragon of the end times would do what he did best and destroy, but Lung would do his best to protect his territory and his people. Even if it meant standing between them and Nidhog.
1 hour…
Highway halfway between Brockton airport and Brockton general hospital
45 minutes…
Panacea groaned as she came to her senses, laying against the door of a flipped car, and stared into the face of a gigantic mutant dog.
The dogs face was soon obscured by a smiling blond, who took one look at Panacea before frowning.
"Who were you going to go heal?"
Panacea shook her head, she most likely had a concussion, and with her ears ringing she couldn't understand what the heck she was saying.
The blond frowned in frustration, before carefully projecting,
"Who. Were. You. Going. To. Go. Heal?"
Panacea shrugged.
"The kid of some old villain named Nidhog."
The blond paled in horror.
'ooh shit'
20 minutes…
Herbert Family House
30 seconds…
The figure, still in its chair, sat immobile, staring at the clock in front of it. Gazing enraptured as the time ran down.
5 seconds…
4…
3…
2…
1…
Nidhog, corpse eater, dragon of the apocalypse, stood up, casting off the guise of Danny Herbert and roared, roared a warning and declaration of war.
"TIMES UP!"