Cosmic Boy's team arrived on Dormir and checked their surroundings. All around them were communication towers firing off random bursts of thick red plasma from one tower to the next. "Sun Boy, we're on Dormir. Can you read?" Rokk radioed. "Well...shit."
"Can we just double back?" Ayala asked as she floated around looking over the place.
"It's no use. We have absolutely no signal," Rokk told her. "This is the communications hub of the galaxy. There's a station somewhere here on Dormir that relays faster-than-light transmissions within the Galactic Federation and Dormir is on the verge of seceding. No transmissions mean no military strategy."
A red plasma ball suddenly went past them. "What the fuck was that?" Gim asked as he barely dodged it.
"Don't know but there's more coming," Ayala said.
"Take cover," Rokk ordered his team as more red plasma balls kept coming.
Thom suddenly got hit and turned red. "Bro, you hurt?" Rokk asked him. Thom replied back in alien gibberish that sounded like high-speed rapping.
"Did anyone catch that?" Ayala asked confused.
"It's me. Since when do I speak anything other than English?" Thom asked after several sentences of gibberish.
"And here I thought you were fluent in Ebonics," Ayala mocked.
"Racist as fuck, white girl," Thom said pissed off.
"We're both aliens so that makes it okay," Ayala excused.
"I wonder if...," Rokk said thoughtfully and then deliberately tried to get hit.
"Cos, what the fuck are you doing?" Gim asked worriedly.
"Testing out a theory," Rokk replied as he went up into the air. Rokk then got hit by a red plasma ball. "It worked."
"What worked? Being a humanoid target?" Ayala scoffed.
"I understand now," Rokk said, completely possessed by the red plasma ball.
"First for everything," Thom rolled his eyes.
Rokk ripped open one of the towers revealing them to be hollow. "The towers are hollow. How did you figure that out?" Gim wondered as he peered inside.
"They told me. This is all surface-level. The real tech is down below," Rokk explained. "Follow me."
The Vindicators went inside the gutted tower "We weren't under attack. Those were light bursts, sentient beings, native lifeforms. They bearers for information," Rokk said as they entered a control room.
Inside this orange-lit room was a giant humanoid figure that appeared to be made of atmospheric sky and clouds as if he was a portal to another dimension. "They're inklings," he corrected.
"Holy shit, what the fuck is that?" Thom asked immaturely.
"I am a firm concept," he replied. "I was once an inkling, young and uninformed to be sure but kinetic and enthusiastic. These inklings, confined to material form, their sole task is to route all information that is transmitted to and from Dormir to worlds afar. I recognize you, Vindicators."
"How about you try saying our name without snarling? If you're just a notion, what's all this tech for," Ayala questioned. "Those controls look like they were designed for solid hands."
"Light Lass, don't touch that shit," Rokk warned.
Ayala ignored him and went over to it only to get bitch-slapped by the firm concept. "Don't touch my shit," he told her off.
"Oxygen to Barium will catch her," Jan said as he turned the wall into goo.
"So much for negotiation. Let's kick ass," Thom said enthusiastically.
"Time to smash," Gim agreed.
"No! We can't risk damaging the machinery. This isn't some standard comm network system. It's the heart of the public service," Rokk told them.
"The fuck does that mean?" Ayala asked impatiently.
Ttrxl
The second team exited a portal to Ttrxl and quickly found themselves in the fifth dimension with no known surface, a neon-colored sky, and random shapes moving about while also appearing as a mirror room from the POV of all the Vindicators. "This is not what I expected," Garth said dryly.
"Whaaa thaaa fuuuuccckkkk?" Reep screamed as his body morphed into all sorts of weird-ass creature shapes to adapt to the environment he was in. He quickly went from being a snake-like thing to a bug to a rock thing as he struggled to keep his shape.
"Well, we have to assume there is a probability the enemy could have been here," Dirk considered.
"Well, terrific. Barney probably sent us here to fuck with us," Tasmia assumed.
"Can you sense any lifeforms, Saturn Girl?" Dirk asked. "Imra?"
Imra ignored him as she focused. "Even light isn't behaving as it should," Tasmia observed.
"I can't hold a shape. Don't judge me," Reep said in an inhumane voice.
"Get a grip, people. We're here to find someone to negotiate with," Dirk said, sticking to the plan.
"Everyone, maintain visual contact. It's too easy to lose contact with one another in here," Tasmia said obviously.
"Reep, cut it out, alright. This is critical!" Dirk scolded him as he continued to form weird-ass creatures like a griffin. "Modern teleportation is all about manipulating the probability of where your molecules are at any given time. So, Ttrxl is the source of energy that powers every transmitter in the third dimension, and we can't fight Lemnos without them."
"That sounds like bullshit," Tasmia doubted.
"Bitch, get your ass out of my dimension," a dark-skinned slender man in black armor told him.
"Shadow Lass? She was just right here," Dirk said confused.
"And now I am," he said obviously.
"Did Shadow Lass turn into a dude?" Dirk wondered.
"No, moron, I am Agent Skelter, probability enforcement. You're under arrest for interdimensional trespassing," Skelter said.
"Yeah, bullshit. We're the Vindicator Corps. We will fuck you up," Dirk said confidently.
"Unlikely," Skelter said as he bitch-slapped Dirk into the air.
"Vindicators: Attack formation. I have him in my sights," Garth said and then fired lightning at Skelter. The lighting was simply redirected to Reep who cried out in pain as he was being shocked.
"Be careful, he can trade places with any of us within a blink of an eye," Tasmia said. She tried to form a shadow of darkness over Skelter only to suddenly flash herself with light. Skelter then kicked Garth to the back causing him to shock himself.
"You took your powers for granted. That's not wise here. All abilities are unpredictable," Skelter lectured them.
Sun Boy fired darkness powers at Tasmia to free her from the extreme light, figuring their powers had been reversed. He then fired on Skelter to distract him. "Let's move," Garth said to the others.
The Vindicators took flight in the fifth dimension and found themselves a decently sized floating platform. "There," Garth pointed out. As they landed, they soon realized Imra wasn't with them. "She was just with us. Imra!"
"This world is so bizarre that she could have flown the same turns and twist as we all did and still end up somewhere else," Tasmia said insightfully.
"Thank you, Captain Obvious," Garth snapped.
"Don't worry. She can reach us telepathically, probably, maybe," Tasmia shrugged.
"I wouldn't be so sure. She hasn't said anything since we got here, telepathically or otherwise," Dirk said concernedly.
"I don't sense her," Reep said as he extended out his antennas.
"Then listen for her. Surely, she'll call out," Tasmia told him.
"Wait, I thought Imra's race was telepathic and they're all mute," Dirk said ignorantly.
"I assure you, she's not mute in the bedroom," Garth said crossly.
Dormir
Rokk faced the firm concept as he tried out his negotiating skills. "We're here to convince Dormir to stay united with the Galactic Federation," he said to the thing.
"That's a terrible idea, ape-face," the firm concept replied.
"The fuck you say to me? You don't think you need the Galactic Federation's protection? Lemnos is coming and his sole purpose is to steal memory, and thoughts, to make ideas go away. He made the Coluans retarded. You'll have it worse because you're only but ideas," Rokk said persuasively.
"Very well. The fuck you want me to do?" the firm concept asked.
"No fucking clue. I didn't even think I'd get to this point," Rokk admitted. "We don't have communications to establish a plan of action."
"Maybe those red plasma ball things will believe in us and help reestablish communications," Thom suggested.
"Alright, start preaching the Good News to those red plasma balls," Rokk ordered.
Terror Firma
The third Vindicator team arrived on the Terror Firma home world and navigated the enemy base from the inside. "No sign of Lemnos or Terror Firma but this is a big place. We need intel on how big their army is. Triplicate Girl, split up and form search parties. Be careful though, we're outnumbered," Jo said telepathically to the group.
"You think?" Tinya said as she saw a large open space. The Vindicators saw a massive army with platoons of armed weird-ass aliens entering portals to cause trouble across the galaxy.
"Any luck on communications?" Luornu asked.
"No signal, no ride home," Tinya reported.
"I'll use my penetration vision," Jo volunteered.
"What the fuck?" Projecta wondered.
"It only sounds dirty because it is," Jo smirked.
"How long have you had that power?" Projecta asked concernedly.
"Ever since Saturn Girl started wearing lead panties," Jo joked.
"Save the jokes and focus. Feel the power flow through you," Val advised. "What's in sight?"
"You mean literally or metaphysically?" Jo asked as he scanned the area. "Alright, I see Lemnos about to make a big speech to a gathering and I see Brin alive in a jail cell."
"Is he hurt?" Projecta asked excitedly.
"His dick is intact," Jo reported.
"Obviously, this is a trap," Luornu said obviously.
"He's no doubt under surveillance and being used as bait to reveal our presence," Val said thoughtfully.
"We're not leaving him," Projecta said stubbornly.
"Princess, without a means of retreat...holy shit, what the fuck is that?" Val shouted as a red plasma ball impacted them all.
Rokk then suddenly appeared to them. "I have visual. The Dormirans can carry transmissions in a weird inconsistent manner. Now, brief me," he ordered.
"Lemnos is planning a blitzkrieg with hundreds of transmitter portals and tens of thousands of soldiers," Val reported.
"What the fuck is a blitzkrieg?" Rokk frowned.
"It's German for lightning war," Val replied.
"What the fuck is German?" Rokk wondered. "Anyway, this changes everything. Our communications have been cut somehow. Lightning Lad's team was supposed to keep up communications and they obviously fucked up. So, you're going to have to fight them on your own."
"I don't think you're comprehending the size of Lemno's army," Projecta said wide-eyed.
"You got 2500 to one odds or something. So, stop your bitching," Rokk scolded.
"I do like those odds," Val smiled.
"Dude, you'll be lucky to take down ten before they swarm you and kill your ass," Jo rolled his eyes.
"But it shouldn't be a problem for the Ultra Boy, right?" Val questioned.
"Well, not at all," Jo said arrogantly.
"Do it," Rokk ordered and then phased away.
Ttrxl
Skelter leaped from one platform to another until he reached Imra. "Trespassers are not welcome, especially those from the third dimension," he scolded. "With you as my captive, your companions will soon surrender. You are no threat to me. You have no powers."
"Unlikely," Imra said as she shocked the fuck out of him. Imra's skin and clothes fell off her revealing them to be Reep in liquid form. Underneath Reep's liquid body was actually Garth.
"That was a good play. I looked sexy as fuck. I'll need to remember this maneuver," Garth said, pleased with himself.
"Easy for you to say. You didn't have a bazillion volts go through you," Reep said as he became a liquid pile of goo. The real Imra appeared and began probing Skelter's mind for information. At the same time, a red plasma ball hit them.
"Do you have the status on Earth?" Rokk asked them.
"Nope," Garth replied.
"Well...shit," Rokk muttered.
Earth-Metropolis
Kara and Elysian met face-to-face in the air where the Vindicator HQ used to be. Before Elysian could make a move or offer a smart-ass remark, Kara backhanded him away from the city and into the wilderness. Realizing he was at a disadvantage, Elysian landed on the ground and began to sink below the surface.
"To get to me, you'll have to go all the way to the mantle, creating earthquakes and volcanic eruptions across the entire continent," Elysian smirked as he sank below the surface.
Kara hesitated to go after him knowing he was correct. Mon then instantly teleported to her position. "Would you be a dear and handle this one?" Kara requested.
"I suppose it would be a decent warm-up," Mon said as he sensed for Elysian. He then teleported away and reappeared deep in the ground next to Elysian's position.
"What the...?" Elysian wondered as Mon grabbed him and teleported him back to the surface. Mon then teleported back to Kara.
"Don't vaporize him," Kara ordered.
"Fine," Mon rolled his eyes and then created a few dozen clones of himself. The clones then attacked Elysian all at once from all directions. Elysian uprooted boulders from the ground and used them to smack into these clones turning them to smoke. At the same time, Elysian fired small rocks at a fast speed toward the Mon clones causing more of them to turn to smoke.
As more clones reached closer to Elysian, he put up a shield of thin dirt around him to block the attacks. Elysian struggled to shield himself and fight back against the clones on the ground, so he took to the air. The clones followed him into the air and tried to get through his defenses with punches and kicks. Elysian dispatched several more clones and then landed on a mountain ridge. Mon's clones followed him there and tried to penetrate his shield. Several boulders slammed into Elysian's position destroying the clones surrounding him.
Finally, Mon intervened personally with an energy orb in his hand. He blasted through Elysian's defense shield. Elysian stared wide-eyed as Mon was about to blast his head off and then suddenly Mon turned to smoke revealing himself to be a mere clone. The real Mon sped toward Elysian's position and punched him hard to the face. The dirt shield around Elysian's face cracked from the impact in a devastating blow.
Stunned, Elysian took to the air and gathered a large mass of dust and dirt from the ground to create cloud pillars all around him. Mon fired off a few energy blasts at him only for them to explode harmlessly in the dust pillars surrounding him. Mon fired two more directly at Elysian. As the orbs exploded, Elysian survived inside a protective dirt shield that appeared as a floating orb.
At the same time, more dust and dirt surrounded Mon and formed an orb around him. Elysian then tried to crush Mon from inside the orb. Mon blasted a hole out of the orb freeing himself and went straight for Elysian. Using his dirt tentacles, Elysian grabbed Mon by the boot and tossed him back toward the orb he had made. Mon freed himself before he could impact the rock-hard orb. Kara watched passively as Mon flew around avoiding Elysian's dust tentacles. Finally, Elysian got a good grip on Mon's left arm. Mon blasted off the tentacle with his right arm but then Elysian remotely crushed Mon's left arm with the dirt that still clung onto him.
Kara eyed Mon with concern as his left arm imploded. The bones in Mon's arm were crushed and his muscles were shredded with his skin ruptured and bleeding profusely. Elysian smiled in victory and then suddenly something burst from his left shoulder. Salu emerged from the wound and restored herself to full size.
"Wow, I've been in Barney's micro-verse for way too long. What month is this? What the fuck is going on?" she wondered.
Elysian screamed in pain as his left shoulder and chest were blasted apart. "My arm!"
"That does look painful," Salu observed and then kicked Elysian in the face dropping him. As Elysian continued to cry out, Salu took out a cauterizing pistol and closed up his wounds.
Mon then instantly teleported to Salu's position. "Took you long enough," he winced.
"Time is different in the micro-verse," Salu apologized.
"Whatever," Mon said and then ate a bean to repair the wounds to his arm.
"An arm for an arm," Salu smirked.
Terror Firma
Lemnos eyed the video feed of Brin expecting a rescue any moment now. "Odd, I was sure they would have attempted a rescue by now. Maybe, they truly don't give a shit about him."
"Praetor Lemnos, the Earthbound awaits dispatch. A word of inspiration to them before they depart?" a random alien asked him.
"Of course," Lemnos agreed. "Friends, as I have said before, we are on the verge of a new universal order, a golden age or progress that will catapult this galaxy from its torpid complacency into thrilling and challenging tomorrow. No more are you lost and lonely. No more are you forgotten. Conflict is the engine of change, and you are those agents. History will remember you as heroes. History will remember us all."
"Any other vague-ass platitudes?" Lemnos asked the random alien.
"That should do it, Sir," the random alien nodded.
In the complex, Projecta, Tinya, and Luornu arrived at the jail. "No guards. I got a bad feeling about this," Luornu said as she looked around.
"Leave it to me," Tinya said as she phased them all through the wall and into the jail cell.
"Phantom Girl, it's a trap," Brin warned as they phased through.
"Well...no shit," Tinya rolled her eyes.
"What's the plan?" Brin asked anxiously.
"We fight our way out," Luornu proposed.
"That won't be necessary," Projecta said as she created an illusion of Brin remaining in his cell with the rest of them disappearing. As far as the video feed was concerned, Brin was still in his cell.
"We're free to leave, no one will bother us," Projecta said to Brin and then spent precious moments to make out with him.
Meanwhile, Jo and Val were kicking ass and taking names on a huge crowd of weird-ass aliens. "Don't give them a chance to zero in on you. Change your powers," Val advised.
"I'm going to just cut loose," Jo said as he beat on the crowd. "Well, fuck it," he said after a while and took to the air. As he did, a giant dragon appeared out of nowhere. "Holy shit," he realized.
"It's just a hallucination," Brin said as he landed next to Jo.
"What about the other girls?" Jo asked.
"They're fine, just punch anything that moves," Brin said to him. Brin morphed into a wolf-like monster with sharp claws and teeth while bulking up.
In the chaos of the battle, Lemnos was visibly frustrated. "I want to be ankle-deep in Vindicator blood! That's your job!" he said to his minions. In the confusion, Lemnos' army fought with the Vindicators rather than their planetary destinations through the portals.
Projecta created a hallucination in the army that the portals were all gone except for one. The army attempted to bottleneck the one that was supposedly open only to be hit by Vindicators coming through. "Vindicators, go!" Garth ordered as he blasted all those in front of him with lightning.
Gim became a giant in size and tossed floating platforms sliding off anyone unfortunate enough to be on them while Ayala sent a platform into space by making it light as hydrogen. Thom, on the other hand, increased the weight of another platform dropping it and crushing anyone underneath it. The army then froze up and began to cry out in terror as Imra took hold of their minds.
On Dormir, Rokk and Jan coordinated with the Galactic Federation planets to counter anyone who managed to get through the quick order, Lemnos' troops were defeated as soon as they exited their portals.
Despite this success, the battle was far from over as the Vindicators were being swarmed on Terror Firma. Lemnos' angry chosen then entered the fray with their own powers that appeared to mirror and neutralize that of the Vindicators. Reep was blasted by a water wave and Gim was given an uppercut by a villain that could stretch himself to skyscraper height. Gim fell over and nearly crushed all those underneath him.
"Shrink down. I got you, Micro-Lad," Brin said to him.
"Fuck you, that's not my name," Gim protested as he fell over and crashed onto the ground giving himself another concussion.
Garth and Kynda fired on each other with electricity getting mixed with fire. Thom floated over the masses and increased the weight of the air. The enemy army immediately found it hard to breathe and fell to the ground crushed by the air in their own lungs. "I recommend blackening out," Thom said to them.
"I am the true blackening out," Tasmia said as she created a large black tent over a section of the army so they couldn't see or hear. A water alien grabbed a hold of Ayala. "Surrender or I'll break your neck," he threatened. Ayala flew him up into space where her attacker quickly suffocated.
Inside the HQ building, Lemnos was trying to figure out what to do. "No longer going according to your fine-tuned strategy, is it?" Rokk mocked via hologram.
"What do you want?" Lemnos scoffed.
"Call off your hounds or I'll make you beg for mercy," Rokk threatened.
"Not impressed," Lemnos said and then got punched in the face by Dirk who had been hiding in a corner.
"Figured you could have taken a punch," Dirk mocked.
"Nice," Rokk approved via hologram.
"What's the difference between you and me, Cosmic Boy? You started interplanetary wars of conquest to form your Galactic Federation. The only difference between me and you is that I have the integrity to admit that I'm an asshole," Lemnos said bitterly.
"The dying snark of a pathetic loser who'll go to the ground forgotten. Your flunky, Elysian, is out. I'm in charge now," Rokk said victoriously and then his signal went in and out.
"You're cutting out," Dirk said to him.
Gim then slammed through the HQ building ending the transmission. "Oh, God damn it," Rokk said displeased as he was disconnected. Dirk was suddenly frozen in place by one of Lemnos' angry chosen.
Outside, Jo blasted Gron, the rock monster, with his heat vision. Brin then slammed Gron to the ground with a punch to the back of the head. "Now, we must leave, praetor," Kynda said to him.
"I'm not leaving anywhere. This was all a trap to capture the bulk of the Vindicator Corps. together," Lemnos said to her. Lemnos then activated his ability to change the memories of all those around him, allies and enemies alike. Only Imra was capable of resisting his power. Suddenly, the Vindicators on the field, with new memories, turned against her.
"Oh, fuck no," Imra said as she was surrounded.
As they closed in, Imra created a telekinetic field to keep them back and then started throwing random people in all directions as she took hold of them. Garth fired on her with lightning, Jo fired heat vision, and Tasmia placed darkness over her. Gim slammed his fist down on her from above. Imra, still blinded, sensed his presence and stopped his fist from getting through her shield. Dirk blasted the area around Imra with fire causing a rise in temperature around her. In response, Imra powered up her shield and expanded its scope. As she held off her own Vindicators, Imra invaded Lemnos' mind.
In Lemnos' mind, Imra punched Lemnos to the face several times. Lemnos caught Imra's last punch and crushed her hand. "Do you really think you can beat me and take on your Vindicators at the same time? I have wiped and manipulated the memories of countless galactic leaders. You lack the strength to take me on."
Lemnos slammed Imra to the floor and held her there. "It's over, Imra, it's finished. You'll soon be dead, and all of your Vindicators will be mine."
"You will never win," Imra spat.
"And why is that?" Lemnos mocked.
"Because there's one stronger than even me coming for you," Imra sensed.
"What?" Lemnos wondered as he returned to the real world. A portal to Earth suddenly opened. Lemnos smirked believing this was his opportunity to strike at Earth.
A woman exited the portal and looked around curiously at the still very large army of thousands. Lemnos stared at the ordinary human not understanding and then tried to use her power on her. As he did, he felt flames roar through his mind stunning him. Alex, with reddish eyes, slowly approached Lemnos' position. His angry chosen moved against her and turned to dust as they approached her. Upon seeing her power, the army tried to get out of the way as they turned to dust even as they fled from her. Fire, water, and frost beams dissipated as they came close to her. Those attacking her from the air became dust and floated away in the wind.
Lemnos' HQ building then tore apart leaving him undefended. The last of his angry chosen turned to dust around him. As Alex continued her approach, Lemnos furious tried to invade her mind only to get blasted back with flames each time. He put his metal right arm up to defend himself against her. The robotic arm disassembled and disintegrated as Alex came closer.
"You still need me. My power could help you unite the galaxy. I can make any planet fall to the Galactic Federation without a fight. Don't be a fool," Lemnos said to her as his clothes and flesh began ripping away from being so close to Alex.
"You speak of order, but I am the chaos-bringer," Alex said to him.
"If you value life, you'll spare mine," Lemnos said to her as he was being burned alive in front of her.
"The righteous experience my fire as love while the wicked burn," Alex said to him. Lemnos gave a scream of pain and terror as he was consumed in fire and burned to ash. Immediately, the telepathic hold Lemnos had on the Vindicators, the army, and the galaxy at large was gone. The last remnant of the Phoenix then departed from Alex. She awoke and looked around confused.
The Vindicators recovered and grouped up. Reep threw up a massive amount in front of Ayala. "What the fuck, dude?" she asked dismayed. Reep responded with a loud burp.
"Is that everyone? Who are we missing?" Tinya asked around.
"Hey, you hurt?" Jo asked Gim.
"I think I have another concussion," Gim said dizzily.
"Any prisoners?" Val asked. "No, well, okay then."
A portal then opened with Brainiac 5 emerging. "Single file, don't dawdle," he ordered them.
"Where's Lemnos?" Rokk asked via hologram.
"He's no longer a threat," Brainiac 5 said vaguely.
"Could you clarify that?" Rokk asked annoyed.
"Probably," Brainiac 5 said and then deactivated the hologram. He then turned to the group. "Leave Lemnos' army here. My drones will clean them up."
"I'm staying here. I quit," Dirk said suddenly.
"He's been brainwashed. We'll get him some help. Ultra-Boy, get your boy," Tinya said dismissively.
"Back off, I've been wanting to quit for two weeks now but Cos threatened and bribed me to stay on. Well, times up," Dirk insisted.
"Saturn Girl, scan him," Garth requested of her.
"You're not getting it. I respect you, you're my friends, but I never wanted to be a Vindicator. I want to be my own person," Dirk said offended.
Imra walked over to him. "It's his decision, he's not being manipulated. He really is a dumbass," she sensed.
"Looks like he's going to need the treatment again," Garth sighed.
"The treatment?" Dirk wondered.
"This isn't the first time you've tried to quit on us," Imra said and then forced him to go to sleep. Dirk's body was then carried through the portal. Brainiac 5 then approached a bewildered Alex.
"You, okay?" he asked sincerely.
"It felt like I was dreaming," she said dismayed at all the carnage.
Brainiac 5 scanned her body for any unusual energy signatures. "That should be the last of the Phoenix Force, but it will take time to see if it grows back."
"Don't tell Kelly," Alex requested.
"Of course," Brainiac 5 assured her. "I have a vacation planned for the two of you."
"Since I've come to this time, it's felt like one long vacation," Alex mused.
"Kara said the same thing," Brainiac 5 said as they walked together toward the portal.