Two
Enter the Thunderer
A mysterious character stood in front of us as were in the main hall of Niflheim Mountain. I studied the markings and I recognised them. "Are you a Dark or Light God?" I asked.
"How is it you know of that?" He looks into my mind. "You three aren't from around here or any of the parallel Earths in this area. So the rumours are true. Someone has released the Elder Ones from their prison. It was a short-lived plan," he said.
"Who are you exactly?" Doc asked.
"My name is Rai the Thunderer and I'm a Dark God. One of the few selected by King Zale himself to make sure the multiverses stay safe. I guess that job became moot," he answered.
"Then you must know a way to get us back home," Blake said.
"Since the Elder Ones are free, they got control of the routes in and out of every multiverse," he said.
Drew then realises something. "Wait, you're not Thor, are you?" she asked.
"Yeah, the natives here mistake me for him every once in a while. It got annoying at first, but I got use to it," he said.
"I take it you were responsible for killing those SS soldiers back there?" Sylvia asked.
"They didn't give me much of a choice. They wanted my power and I said no. So I did what was right, given how evil their intentions were," he answered.
"Do you know why the Elder Ones are here?" Zak asked.
"My best guess, they're either looking for resources or defang any resistance. In this case, you lot," he answered.
"Define resources?" Doc asked.
"They're looking for material that is best suited to restoring Earth Prime. When the multiverses were created, some of the features that made Earth Prime unique went into different parallel Earths and multiverses. The Elder Ones, being a bunch of technological geniuses created the Sentry Drones to detect those parts. Once they scan them, the Elder Ones come in and start attacking everything in sight and they use their machines to extract the parts Earth Prime needs and go back to put them into place," he answered.
"Isn't there a side effect to this?" Zak asked.
"There is, once the parts are removed, that Earth becomes unstable and it'll trigger of series of unnatural phenomenon. As a result, that Earth becomes a burned husk. It isn't a pretty sight, trust me," he answered.
"I know, I've seen firsthand what its like," Zak said.
"We could use your help," I said.
Rai then senses something. "They're already here," he said.
We head back outside and noticed the Elders Ones were there waiting for us. "Keep your heads down," Doc whispered.
"I don't get it. Why are they here and what do they want?" Sylvia whispered.
"It's like the Thunderer said. They must be here to get rid of any resistance who can challenge them, mainly us," I whispered.
"I thought I would never see them again. Not after what happened during the war." Rai then notices one of them a red armband. "Ah crud, they got a general with them. The generals are powerful and dangerous," Rai whispered.
"Why are we doing here? The Sentry Drone has already scanned this multiverse and it's got the parts we needed," an Elder One said.
"I sense a huge power level and it's a blasphemer," the general answered.
"Years later and they still insult me and my kind," Rai whispered.
"Didn't Seth and the Empress beat up the last one onboard the Hyperion?" he asked.
"They did, but there are rumours flying around that more may've survived. Including the Sage Father, our orders are clear. Find the blasphemers; execute them and anyone who opposes us." An Elder One arrives through a portal and the general looks at him. "What is it, soldier?" the general asked.
"We found two blasphemers on a multiverse and there's been a problem. A human has managed to kill Riger and they're acquired the Duke's Run," the soldier said.
The general is outraged by this. "Having one of our own killed by either a Dark God, Light God or the other two races is one thing. But a human, preposterous, they must be making an attempt to return to their multiverse. Have a patrol intercept them," the general said.
Another Elder One spots us. "Up there, there's a blasphemer and a group of humans," he said.
The general recognises Rai. "Well now, if isn't Rai the Thunderer, I heard a lot about you. I am Hun, the general who decimated the forces at the Arcadia System and ordered the massacre of all those Light God children at Evermore Fields," Hun said.
"I've heard of you. Even to this day, you're still a barbarian. I will bring you to justice, even if it means giving up my life," Rai said.
"Pitiful, you live by a code that is long extinct. Deal with the humans, the Thunderer is mine," Hun said.
Hun and Rai began to fight each other, while the Saturdays take on the Elder Ones. We stood there and watched. "We got to do something," Sylvia said.
"Like what, throw a block of ice at them? We're powerless, remember. The laws of this world prevents us from using them." Blake then walks over to where the fight is. "Where are you going?" I asked.
"To help them," Blake answered.
"We haven't got any powers," I yelled.
"True, but that won't stop me from making a difference. Besides, with the locks coming undone, what's to say the laws aren't?" he said.
All of the sudden, Blake was able to transform into the Gauntlet. I was surprised. Sylvia's hand begins to glow. "I'm going to give them a hand. Are you coming or not?" Sylvia asked.
She joins in the fight. I concentrated and I was able to summon the Helm of Nexus. I put the helm on and I became Dr. Nexus. "Well now, all it took was some laws to fall apart," I said.
I joined in the fight and we defeated the Elder Ones. Hun is stunned by what he saw. "How is this possible?" Hun wondered.
"I guess things got a bit interesting," Rai said.
He punches Hun in the face and it sends flying into the mountain. "No matter, this isn't over," Hun said.
He and the other Elder Ones vanished. Drew is impressed by what we look like in costume. "So, is this how you lot normally look?" Drew asked.
I take off the helm. "More or less," I answered.
The Gauntlet then transforms back into Blake. "Have you lot got a shirt I can borrow?" he asked.
"This isn't over. Hun and the other Elder Ones are still out there. We need a strategy to deal with them," I said.
"First, we need a way to get home," Sylvia said.
"When I first arrived, I got rid of the portal technology I used to get myself here to make sure no one was following me," Rai said.
"There goes one option," he said.
I put the helm back on as I sensed something. A cell phone rang and Drew answers it. "Where have you lot been? I've been trying to get through to you," Doyle said.
"It's okay Doyle. What's happening," she asked.
"You might want to head back to New York. Something big is happening there," Doyle answered.
She puts her cell phone. "Go, we'll catch up," I said.
The Saturday's got back onto their ship as I teleported both myself, Sylvia, Blake and Rai over to New York. We arrived to find a ship in the sky and Rai recognises it. "That's not good," Rai said.
"You know what it is, don't you?" Sylvia asked.
"It's an Extractor. It's a piece of tech the Elder Ones use to extract the exact part that is required to restore Earth Prime, but it's the aftermath we should be worried about," Rai answered.
"We need to destroy it," he said.
"Every race has tried to destroy an Extractor, but no one hasn't got close to destroying one. There's a shield that prevents anyone from getting near it," Rai said.
"A lot has change. Who's to say the Elder Ones haven't got sloppy?" Sylvia wondered.
"Besides, it's our job to safeguard everything, that includes every multiverse. There's got to be a weakness," I said.
Sylvia then notices an opening at the side of the Extractor. "There, there's an opening. If we can get to that, then there's a chance we can get inside and blow it up from within," Sylvia said.
"To do that, we need a distraction. I'll volunteer; you three get onboard and blow it from the inside. We better move fast, it's powering up," he said.
Blake transforms back into the Gauntlet and jumps to the Extractor to smash it. "You don't get it. There's a shield, what hope can you lot have against an Extractor?" Rai asked.
Sylvia grabs Rai by the costume and holds him high. "Listen, we don't give up on a whimper. We're superheroes and our job is to save lives. Somewhere out there, Legion is doing his best to recover and get back in the fight. If you want to stay and whimper, that's fine with me. But I'm not about to give up when the world ends. You waged your war when we lived in caves. We've come a long way since then. Now it's our turn to pick up where you lot left off. We better get ready," Sylvia said.
"Right behind you." We flew up to the Extractor as we saw the Gauntlet giving everything he's got. "Rai is right, there's a shield and the Gauntlet isn't making a dent," I said.
Sylvia thinks for a moment. "We need a new tactic," Sylvia said.
The ship arrives and fires an electrical blast at the shield, causing it to go offline. "That'll work," I said.
"Now's our chance, let's go," Sylvia said. We flew into the Extractor and fight our way to the bridge. Rai sees what's happening and joins in the fight. He jumps up to the Extractor and makes a dent.
"I thought you lot could use a hand. If you want to end a fight, this is how," Rai said.
Rai summons a thunderstorm and he uses to the lightning to hit the ship. Inside, the Elder One captain is angry that someone is taking damage to the Extractor.
"What's the status to our shields and how long can we get it back online?" he asked.
"We can't, that thunderstorm did permanent damage to our systems and outer hull," an ensign said.
We burst in. "Land this ship or we'll do it for you," I said.
"You are no position to order me around. Get them!" the captain yelled. The other Elder Ones go after them, but we defeat them and the captain.
"The good news is they're dealt with. The bad news, we need to figure out how this thing works," Sylvia said.
Dr. Nexus uses his powers to learn more about the Extractor. "This ship is a billion years old. It was constructed during the time they were imprisoned. How was this possible?" I wondered.
"We...sacrificed a lot to make sure we get back home. Even if it meant some of us sacrificing their lives for the Elder One cause," the captain said.
"You're not just organic, you lot are techno-organic. It explains a lot. After everything that has happened, why are you carrying on doing this?" I asked.
"We consider Earth Prime a holy site. When we saw it for the first time, it was a desolate wasteland. We made it our goal to restore at any cost to ensure balance," the captain answered.
"That's enough out of him. Let's blow this thing up and get the heck out of here," Sylvia said. She fires a energy blast into the console and it sends the ship flying into the ocean. We got out before it made ocean side.
We regrouped near the pier. "I got to admit, it's impressive. We did the impossible," Rai said.
"We sure did. We just bought this Earth more time," I said.
"For how long? They won't take this one lightly. Our next priority is to get you three back home," Rai said.
A wormhole opens up in the sky. "Oh boy, as soon as one Elder One goes down, another comes through. We better get ready," Blake said.
The Duke's Run comes and lands in the ocean. "Well I'll be. The Sage Father did get the ship operational after all. It's about time he sent reinforcements," Rai said.
We saw Ben and Legion come out of the ship and onto the pier. We were relieved to see them. "What, what did we miss?" Ben asked.
"It's good to see a friendly face," I said.
"And it looks like you're recovering well, Legion," Blake said.
Rai notices the Redeemer. "So, Dark Sai did bore a heir. I hope you're right kid for the job. Your granddaddy didn't care about the consequences," Rai said.
"I'm better than him, Thunderer," Legion said.
"And it looks like you got some explaining to do," Ben said.
Sometime later, we were in a diner having lunch and explaining things to Ben and Legion about what's happened. "You're saying that a Light God split us up and sent us across multiverses to get help?" Sylvia asked.
"It seems like it," Legion answered.
"Why are they targeting us? We didn't do anything to them," Doc asked.
"They see us and you as bugs and they're willing to get rid of selected parallel Earths in order to restore Earth Prime," Legion answered.
"That reminds us. It's time for us to go and get the others," Ben said.
"With your permission, I like to take some of Alonso's journals with me. They may provide a clue to defeat the Elder Ones once and for all," Blake said.
"You have our blessing," Drew said.
Blake picks a selection of the journals and puts them into a rucksack. "I know it may sound like a tall request. But I would I like to come with you," Zak said.
Doc isn't happy with this. "Zak, this isn't your fight," Doc said.
"It became our fight the moment they kidnapped Alonso and attempted to destroy our Earth. They won't stop, they may make another attempt," Zak said.
"The kid is right, they're persistent," Rai said.
"There's no guarantee we can bring you back home, Zak. It'll wise if you stay here where you can defend your home," Legion said.
Ben then realises something. "Wait a minute. Before we got split up, Aeon mentioned something about getting help. Right now, we're staring at our first recruit," Ben said.
"I don't know, Ben," I said.
"Also, it's not this multiverse that's being attacked. Out there, there are heroes just like us and them holding the line. We're not going to say now, we going to say yes. Plus, if what Blake told me is true, there's a chance that Alonso can get Zak or anyone else we find along the way back to their homes," Ben said.
"When you put it that way. Welcome to the team, Zak," Sylvia said.
"I need to get some things first and then I'll join you on the Duke's Run," Zak said.
Later at the pier, Ben, Zak and the others got onboard the ship as Blake and I stood on the pier, saying our goodbyes to Drew, Doc and Rai.
"We'll promise to bring your boy home," Blake said.
"And thank you for helping us in our darkest hour," Drew said.
"The fight is not over yet. We'll end this threat once and for all," I said.
"Make sure our boy stays safe and good luck," Doc said.
We got onboard the ship; it left the pier and flew up into sky. A wormhole opens up and we go through. On the bridge, Legion observes Zak having a conversation with Blake. Ben walks up to Legion.
"Having doubts about our guest?" Ben asked.
"I would never thought we would recruit someone from another multiverse. I'm glad we did, we're going to need every advantage to defeat the Elder Ones," Legion answered.
Ben notices something on the radar. "Well now, we just pick up two life signatures. Hang on, this turning will be sharp," Ben said.
The End?