The City of Rome was a wonder of the world with ancient Roman architecture replicas on virtually every street corner. The cathedrals, pantheons, pillared buildings, coliseums, fountains, bridges, and statues were all based on Brainiac 5's knowledge of three thousand years ago. Rome was the capital of Italy, the Roman Commonwealth that included Italy, Spain, Southern France, Northern France, Rhineland-Switzerland, and the Christian Church. This made Rome one of the ten most powerful cities on Earth.
While freedom of religion and speech were guaranteed, Brainiac 5 assigned human occupations in all of the nations. He intentionally made it so that only dedicated obedient Christians happened to be assigned to Rome and those who were not were shipped out. By carefully analyzing and assigning people in and out of Rome, the city was demographically one of the most fanatical adherents of the Christian Church voluntarily without much need for force. To reinforce this, all workers were given breaks so that they could pray five times a day and the intercom system constantly preached the Good News on the street corners. Workers were constantly given time off work and free trips to go on pilgrimages. Every year, Brainiac 5 would rotationally shut down the utility and food distribution systems in a section of the city during Lent which encouraged giving and support from workers in the other sections of the city not affected. Throughout the 40 days of Lent, Brainiac 5 would shut down sections of the city for a week and it had the desired effect of community building and charity. While confession booths were present in the churches, the lines became too long each Saturday. Therefore, Brainiac 5 installed confession booths around the city that could be accessed 24/7. All confession booths were linked to Brainiac 5, and it allowed him to hear confessions and give moral guidance.
In the Vatican, Pope Barney discussed the act of confession with his cardinals. "Therefore, confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective," Cardinal Lucio said quoting James 5:16.
"That passage is meant for a general service where we all vaguely confess our non-specific sins and promise to not do them again. It does not imply confession must only be to a priest one-on-one nor does it give the priest the power of absolution," Cardinal Marcus doubted.
"The passage allows for both a general confession of sin and a personal confession with a priest. It says the prayer of a righteous person, singular, is powerful and effective," Cardinal Lucio pointed out.
"Even if it may be both, where is the power of absolution guaranteed?" Cardinal Marcus asked.
"Christ empowered the apostles to forgive or retain sins. Those powers would naturally flow to the successors of the apostles," Cardinal Lucio argued.
"Perhaps...," Pope Barney allowed. "But since Apostolic Succession has been broken over these thousand years, we can safely assume the power of the Sacrament of Confession if it ever did exist, is now void."
"Then how can mortal sins be forgiven?" Cardinal Lucio asked shocked and appalled.
"The Church is the Pillar of Truth. We shall determine if a confession is sincere and then we shall prescribe the proper penance according to our wisdom and understanding. While we cannot guarantee to absolve sin, we can facilitate the hopeful likelihood that God, Himself, will absolve the sin," Pope Barney said.
"What if a Christian does not confess to us but to God in their own room?" Cardinal Marcus asked.
"God's sovereignty is absolute. He may forgive sin however He deems fit. Nothing is impossible with God, but the role of the Church is to advise the faithful on the probability that such a confession will be acceptable," Pope Barney said.
"Holy Father, may I dare say the probability of such a confession would then be low?" Cardinal Lucio smirked.
"You say so," Pope Barney agreed. "Even though we have no power to guarantee the absolving of sins, any clergy member that violates the secrecy of confession shall be terminated."
"Yes, Your Holiness!" the cardinals shouted.
Kon casually walked through the streets of Rome. The people quickly got out of his way as he walked among the crowd. "Remember, to be against the Church, is to be against God," the intercom system boomed randomly.
Every Christian crossed themselves in agreement and went about their business. Kon smirked amused at the devotion of the city. He found multiple lines to a confession booth. They were shaped similar to an old Porta John. The confession booths were soundproof for maximum protection. Kon curiously entered one of them and then moved the mic to his mouth.
"Forgive me...Father...for I have sinned?" Kon guessed.
"Yes, my son?" Pope Barney asked on the video screen.
"I had a scary dream where I was killing vampires. I was in a hive, and I wasn't strong enough. I got my ass kicked," Kon admitted.
"Tell me more," Pope Barney requested.
"I have questions, doubts, like...what the fuck am I doing? Where am I? What is this place?" Kon asked, anxiously looking around and not liking the confined space.
"The best way to combat your doubts is through personal sacrifice and labor. Get a job," Pope Barney lectured.
"Yes, Father," Kon said lamely.
"Is that all?" Pope Barney asked knowingly.
"Like?" Kon wondered.
"Do you pray five times a day, give of your time and resources outside your duties, fast, or pilgrimage to holy sites?" Pope Barney asked.
"No...," Kon winced.
"To not confess mortal sins to me is another mortal sin," Pope Barney warned.
"Damn," Kon realized. "Okay, I confess all that shit and I'm sorry for doing that which is wrong and failing to do good."
"Whoever brings a sinner back from wandering will save that person from death and bring about the forgiveness of many of your sins," Pope Barney paraphrased James 5:20.
"Can't I say a...thousand Hail Marys or something?" Kon complained.
"No, do as I as have prescribed and there is a ninety percent probability your sins will be forgiven," Pope Barney ordered.
"Ninety percent? What can I do to get it to one hundred?" Kon asked.
"Now, go in peace, my son," Pope Barney ordered him out and opened the door.
That night, Kon wandered the alleyways and noticed he was being followed. He suddenly turned and slammed a man to the ground with a knife at his throat. "Who the fuck are you?" Kon demanded.
"Sheriff Hicks from Sagite," Hicks replied.
"What do you want?" Kon asked curiously.
"There was a vamp attack. They took Princess Mara, your sister," he reported. Kon released him and let him up. "You're Prince Kon-El, the killer of Count Vlad. Everyone says that when it comes to vampires, you're the best."
"They're not wrong," Kon allowed.
"Just thought you should know in case you want to bring her back," Hicks said.
"Go home and standby," Kon said to him and then left to go to the Vatican.
Inside the Vatican halls, Kon met with Pope Barney and his cardinals. "I know why you are here, Prince Kon-El. I am already aware of the situation. Your sister is in our prayers," Pope Barney said vaguely.
"I was hoping for a more detailed course of action," Kon said dryly.
"It would be ridiculous and futile for a prince to personally involve himself in this. We have lost Princess Mara. We will not lose you. We will evacuate the planet, starve out the vampires to force them out of hiding, and then exterminate them with drones. It's best left to me," Pope Barney said.
"Holy Father, this man has been of great service to the Church and our most lethal asset," Cardinal John said in Kon's defense.
"I am well aware of the prince's many accomplishments," Pope Barney said dismissively.
"I'm going to go find her with or without your help," Kon said resolved.
"You must understand something, prince. The authority of the Church must be absolute. The citizens of this city and all other cities have complete faith in the Church's ability to keep them safe. You will not shake that faith," Pope Barney lectured.
"Faith in a lie," Kon mocked.
"Your intervention in this matter will only lead to collateral damage. If you take any action in Sagite, it will be seen as disobedience to the Church. You will be stripped of your royal rank and titles and be excommunicated. Do I make myself clear?" Pope Barney asked.
"Crystal," Kon rolled his eyes.
"To go against the Church is to go against God," Pope Barney reminded him.
Sagite
Kon was unpersuaded and immediately took off in his Apollo-class fighter. He landed on Sagite and then drove around on his motorcycle at top speed. He came upon an outpost that had been thoroughly raided and trashed. "Well, I'll be damned," Hicks said surprised upon seeing him.
The two rode out on motorcycles to the main town. There, the mayor was trying to persuade the people to evacuate. "Defeating a vampire is a vicious lie. I have seen a vampire rip a man in half. Salvation is to evacuate the planet, authenticated by the Church, itself. It will keep your loved ones safe."
"I'm tired of hearing your bullshit, mayor. The show is over, it's time for you to go," Hicks told him.
"I'm the democratically elected mayor of this town. Give me one good reason why I should," the mayor told him off. Hicks pointed his gun at the mayor's head. "Alright, alright!" he said and then fled the scene.
Hicks turned to the crowd. "Listen up, evacuation is good for nothing. The vampires will wait us out in hibernation. We will never be allowed to come back home, not in anyone's lifetime. We will be exiles forever. Now, we have a prince on our side. He will rid this world of the vampires."
"You don't know that. He's just a kid," one man doubted. "We gotta do something to keep us safe."
"I don't blame any of you for being scared as fuck, but I promise you the vampires will be gone, and they won't ever come back," Hicks told them all.
At Hick's house, Kon was going to sleep the night and begin the hunt the next day. He couldn't help but notice the crowds staring at him through the window. "You'll have to excuse the attention. Strangers are not here often. Is it true what they say about Super Insane princes? To be the hand of God?" Hicks asked.
"Well, the left hand of God anyway," Kon smirked.
"Most people out here think the Church thinks of us as godless people because we are, and that's how we like it. It means that they'll keep their noses out of our business," Hicks said conversationally.
"I find your naivety amusing," Kon scoffed. "The pope can't be reasoned with. It doesn't feel pity, remorse, or fear. And it absolutely will not stop, ever, until you are converted or dead."
"Problem is, Princess Mara is likely dead or worse, infected. And if she's infected, she's as powerful as you," Hicks said concernedly. "With all due respect, I'm joining you. This is my world, my duty."
"You're wasting your time. I work alone. You won't be able to keep up and you'll die horribly. You should fortify this town and protect these people from a vampire attack," Kon refused.
"You're not cutting me out of this. I'm the one that came and got you!" Hicks said passionately.
"What makes you think you'll do any good with me out there?" Kon asked.
"You're going to need a guide if you want to be efficient with your killing spree," Hicks said calmly.
"We leave at dawn," Kon relented.
Rome
Pope Barney emptied the capsule of fluid that was holding Soara and turned off the red light in the room. Upon examining her, he took away the Kryptonite necklace. "Where is Kon?" she asked as she awoke.
"He went to Sagite to find and bring back Mara. His actions could result in collateral damage and a planetwide war. You must find him and bring him back to Earth," Pope Barney ordered.
Soara put on her black skin-tight Kryptonian uniform. "You cured me. I will not fail you," she said to him. Soara then took off in her own fighter to Sagite.
Sagite
Kon and Hicks went back to the outpost. Kon scanned the ground with his eyes noticing footprints. He also used his super sense of smell. "She was here, and she wasn't alone," he determined. "The tracks head north."
"That's toward the reservation," Hicks said.
"Then, that's where we start," Kon said unconcernedly.
The two rode to the reservation, a place where vampire familiars were held. "We don't have much time to get in and out if I'm to keep you alive," Kon said as he scanned the complex.
Kon and Hicks rode right up to the door. Kon raised his hand and blasted the door open. The two went inside and found it largely abandoned with no guards in the towers. Kon then noticed sickly-looking people, the familiars. "These familiars are technically illegal, but no one is here to enforce it. They're drifters wanting to get infected. They want to be a vampire and live among them. They have a bunch of queer ideas in their heads," Hicks explained.
Kon came up to a familiar who was busy chopping off the heads of chickens and pouring their blood in a pot. "You're not welcome here, prince. We have protection," the familiar said to Kon.
"Your protection just expired," Kon informed him.
"Let me handle this," Hicks said to Kon. "Look, we're looking for a young woman kidnapped four days ago by vampires. They came through this way."
"No one comes through here. That's how we like it. Nice and quiet," he said.
"Good, then we won't have any trouble searching around," Hicks said.
The two went to an underground bunker door and entered. Now, they were out of the sunlight. Kon eyed the white goo on the railings. "What the actual fuck?" he asked Hicks.
"They secrete it to build the hives," Hicks explained.
"Yeah, but from where?" Kon asked disgustedly and then tried and failed to block out the image of hundreds, thousands of vampires jerking off to create a beehive.
Kon took point as they looked around a dark corridor filled with feeding rooms. They eventually came upon a familiar in one of the rooms. Kon kicked the door open and advanced on him. "Where's the girl?" Kon demanded.
"I don't know what you're talking about," he said.
"Where is she?" Kon pressed.
Three familiars ambushed them in the corridors. Hicks shot one to the head killing him. "Prince, prince!" he shouted. When Kon didn't answer, Hicks retreated to the surface. There he was chased down by the two in the corridors and the one that had been chopping off chicken heads.
Hicks was about to fire on them when Kon suddenly appeared. "Save your bullets," he said as he unsheathed his sword. As the familiars attacked, Kon slit the throat of one and broke the leg of another with a kick. Kon evaded the third, broke his arm, and forced him to the ground. Kon then sliced through his back and into his heart. Only one was left alive, the one with the broken leg. Kon slowly hunted him down as he crawled away.
"We can do this the easy way or the hard way," Kon said to him. The familiar merely spat at him. "Damn, I hate doing it the hard way. It's kind of queer," Kon said as took his knife, stabbed him, and then twisted.
"Haven't you done enough, prince?" the familiar asked painfully.
"Oh, I just got started," Kon smirked.
"The vampires ruled this land. They were warriors, they were gods," the familiar said.
"And their leader died like a bitch at my hands," Kon told him off.
"They were only doing what nature made them to be," the familiar argued.
"Nature made me crazy as fuck. Now, you got ten seconds, asshole," Kon threatened.
"Ten seconds is all I need, prince," the familiar said as the sun was about to set. "This is their time now."
The sun nearly instantly set and a half-dozen vampires erupted from the ground. "Don't imagine that I came to bring peace. I came not to bring peace, but a sword," Kon quoted Matthew 10:34. He fired off several energy discs at the vampires slicing up two of them. Kon sliced through the chest of one vampire with his sword and got tackled by another. Hicks was also thrown to the ground. Kon snapped the vampire's neck and fired a beam through another vampire's chest, dropping it. The remaining vampire cried out for reinforcements and took off.
"Focus," Kon scolded Hicks who had performed poorly. He then went back to the familiar. "No more masters, you're fucked now. It's just you and me. Wait...that came out wrong. Where did they take the girl?"
"West, they took her west," he said.
"Why?" Kon demanded.
"You have no idea what's coming," the familiar smiled. The surviving vampire dropped down killing the familiar and engaged Kon and Hicks.
"Holy, jump scare," Kon said and then wrestled the vampire into the bunker. Hicks waited as he heard all sorts of punching and shouting. The ground under his feet began to shake. Suddenly, the vampire was punched through the bunker and into the air in pieces. Kon then flew out of the bunker.
Kon took out a hologram map of the planet. "He said west. What is this town?" he asked Hicks.
"Solar Wall, it's a large vampire hive," Hicks said.
"Then that is where we're going," Kon said nonchalantly.
"I may not know war, but I know the look a man gets when he enjoys killing. It comes easy to you," Hicks determined.
"Yeah," Kon nodded.
There was a long awkward silence between them. "I recommend you aim where the vampire is moving toward, not where they are," Kon said condescendingly.
"I know how to shoot," Hicks said annoyed.
"Then, actually kill one," Kon scolded.
The two got on their motorcycles and took off.
The next morning, Kon and Hicks went through an abandoned city filled with ruined skyscrapers. The streets were covered in sand, the buildings were gutted, and all the water was gone. It was as if the city had been nuked. "I came here when I was little. Stared at all this stuff. Wondered what it used to be. After a while, it just made my eyes ache," Hicks said reflectively.
"You going to cry on me?" Kon mocked.
"You going to cry when we have to kill your infected sister?" Hicks shot back.
"I'm not going to kill her and neither will you. I'm just going to kick her ass, drag her back home to be cured, and get her some therapy just like last time," Kon said confidently.
The two rode off past a deep crack in the ground and finally came upon the hive, a large mountainous object full of holes. As it happened, the slope was gradual enough that even Hicks could climb up it without needing equipment. They arrived at the first tunnel and went in. The hive was full of humanoid bones and skulls that made everything creepy. Inside the hive was a bottomless pit.
Kon formed an energy sphere on his hand and then dropped it into the pit to see what was down there. "This is a waste of time. Nothing's down here," Hicks said.
"You just had to jinx us," Kon scolded. He dropped down into the pit and navigated the tunnels. There, he suddenly got ambushed by a familar presence. Kon slammed Soara up against the tunnel wall and began to make out with her.
"Don't you...want to...know...why...they sent me?" Soara asked in between kisses.
"No," Kon said as he felt her up and began to undress her.
"Is this really the time for this?" Soara asked as she tensed up from his touch.
"Surrounded by enemies, it's the perfect time," Kon said as he began to make love to her against the tunnel wall. As Kon was about to finish, he heard gunshots from Hicks.
"Who is that?" Soara wondered.
"Son of a bitch," Kon muttered and then withdrew from her to rescue Hicks again.
Kon found Hicks shooting at a vampire guard a few levels up. "That is one fat motherfucker," Kon remarked. "How could you miss?" he scolded Hicks.
"It's fucking dark," Hicks complained.
Kon shook his head dismayed as he could see everything. "It's too fat to get to you. It's the only reason you're still alive." He then turned to Soara. "Are you ready?"
Soara nodded and fired heat vision beams at the vampire guard. He scrambled away through the tunnels. Kon took out his sword and went out into the open. When the vampire guard attacked, he sliced it open several times to the torso gutting it. "Not bad," Soara smiled approvingly of the kill.
The vampire guard suddenly raised its head and screamed. Hicks shot it through the head finally killing it. "Now, who's jinxing who?" he asked rhetorically.
"No more jinxing, period," Kon ordered.
"The hive looks abandoned for years. Why would anyone need to protect it?" Soara asked. Kon shrugged having no answer. "You know what will happen if Mara is infected? He'll try to kill her," she said referring to Hicks.
"Let him try," Kon scoffed.
"Getting infected was a bitch. When I dreamed, I dreamt of this place. I'm sweating, clenching, ready for something," Soara said reflectively.
"Thanks for the visual," Kon gagged.
"I didn't come here to bring you back. I came here to help you till the end," Soara assured him.
Kon, Soara, and Hicks walked the tunnels and found a newly created one with damp walls. Upon exiting, they found a large internal hive with thousands of holes used as rooms. "Where are they all?" Hicks asked concernedly.
"Only one way to find out. We're clearing every tunnel," Kon said.
The two continued their search. "So...what are you two to each other?" Hicks asked Soara conversationally.
"I'm his wife," Soara smirked amused.
"Oh, but he was born in 3017 so he's not even ten years old," Hicks pointed out.
"He lived several months in the 21st century," Soara added.
"That...doesn't make it better," Hicks frowned. "How old are you?"
"With time being relative and all, I don't really know," Soara shrugged. "Why? You, trying to talk shit? With his accelerated growth, he has the mental and physical development of an adult."
"Yeah, but he lacks life experience," Hicks pointed out.
"I give him life experience," Soara smiled.
Kon came back to the two. "The air is different here," he pointed out. The three found the exit to the hive and noticed a nearby town. "They're probably not here because they're attacking that town."
"Well...shit," Hicks muttered.
In the morning, Kon was proven correct. The town was ghosted with everyone dead or gone. "There's nobody left, not a soul," Hicks reported. "I mean, how can they clean out an entire town and vanish?"
"She was here," Kon sensed. "Where does this railroad go?"
"It's an old mining line. This is the last stop before hitting the major cities," Hicks said concernedly.
"Sounds like a massacre, total war," Soara said.
"Train carrying thousands of vampires? What chance do we have?" Hicks asked dumbfounded.
"We simply stop the train before it reaches the cities," Kon said simply.
As Kon mentally prepared himself for the battle to come, Hicks had a casual conversation with Soara. "He's going to kill her, right? I mean, she is infected, right?"
"I was infected," Soara revealed. "It's super easy, barely an inconvenience to fix it but if not, Kon knows what he has to do."
"I doubt it. What kind of man would kill his own sister?" Hicks shook his head.
"That's why I am here. He'll weaken her down and I'll make the kill," Soara assured him.
The three rode out to intercept the train on their motorcycles. The three then climbed a hill overlooking the rail. "If you two can fly, why are we riding bikes?" Hicks asked confused.
"This is your planet, you're going to be involved," Kon told him off. With his falcon vision, he saw the train in the distance moving toward the major cities.
"Tell me you'll kill Mara if it comes to it," Hicks demanded.
"Sure," Kon lied.
"You're lying. This is my world, my people. If you fail, we're all fucked," Hicks said passionately.
"What do you want, Hicks? A pinky-swear? A blood-oath? You know it's the Insane way to lie and break promises," Kon told him.
"I was hoping for greater assurance," Hicks said honestly.
"Not going to happen. I make split decisions in battle. You'll just have to trust me to do the right thing," Kon said simply. "As a half-Insane, I have no idea what I am doing half the time."
"But what about the other half, the Kryptonian side? Where is your Kryptonian logic?" Hicks asked.
"My Kryptonian logic is that your world means nothing in the scheme of the galaxy. My Kryptonian logic tells me to kill her but if not, join her," Kon told him. "It's the Insane in me that will fight her forever across your world and across the stars in a never-ending battle. So, which side would you prefer?"
Kon walked up to Hicks to intimidate him. "Without me, you can't stop that train, but I'm not going to do all the work for you. You're going to be this world's hero, you, understand?"
The three rode ahead of the train. "Take out the tracks ahead of here," Kon ordered Hicks. He then turned to Soara. "I don't want any distractions. Flirt with them." Hicks sped ahead while Soara rode next to the train to harass the cars. As predicted, several familiars departed from the train on motorcycles and pursued her. Kon flew off his motorcycle and landed on the train to lure Mara out.
Soara got some distance and got off her bike. As the familiars came closer, she leaped up and gave one a kick breaking all his ribs. She then outstretched her arm breaking the ribs of another, flinging him off his motorcycle. Soara leaped up and landed on the front wheel of one motorcycle rider flipping it. The flipped motorcycle slammed into another motorcycle rider. For the last remaining rider, Soara fired heat vision at the front wheel flipping the rider into the air. Soara then fired multiple heat vision shots slicing the rider to pieces on the ground.
Kon and Mara faced off with each other on the roof of the train. "Hello, brother," Mara greeted with an Insane expression. Her teeth were longer and sharper, and her eyes were yellowish.
"I thought you were cured," Kon said.
"But I didn't, I couldn't. I came back here for more...vampire blood," Mara said. "In the depths of the hives, I touched the threshold of life and death. And do you know what I became? I became their queen. I have become something that has never existed in the universe, an Insane Kryptonian vampire. Join me, accept my blood, brother. Together, we can rule the universe forever. I await your decision."
"What about all that religious crap about eternal life?" Kon asked.
"Even vampires die one day but before that happens, I'll have converted the entire universe. These godless heathens wouldn't accept God's salvation when offered," Mara said.
"So, you're God's vampire or something?" Kon scoffed.
Mara and Kon changed each other on the roof of the train. Mara went into a mid-air spin and kicked Kon into a vent. "You can't win, Kon. This isn't like before. My vampire abilities neutralize your powers while mine remain the same."
Mara and Kon engaged each other in close combat with punches and kicks. Mara disarmed Kon of his knife and punched him a car length back. Mara calmly walked over to Kon for another round. Kon quickly got up and the two engaged once more until Kon fell to the train roof with an elbow to the face. As Mara went for a kick, Kon caught her and spun them both. Mara landed on her back as Kon leaped into the air and went down for a strike. Mara evaded Kon's stomp and punched him in the gut where he fell on his back. As Mara approached, Kon gave her a quick succession kick to the chin that knocked her down. Annoyed, Mara got back to her feet and flung Kon off the train. Kon grabbed the edge of the train and tried to get back onto the roof with Mara constantly trying to kick him off. Kon eventually got back onto the roof only to be punched to the face. Kon skidded across the roof of the train beaten.
"Well...shit," he muttered.
Mara approached to end the fight. Kon got back up and sliced her in the face with his sword. Mara stepped back and felt the blood on her cheek. Kon smirked victoriously and whirled his sword in front of her. Mara's cheek wound healed instantly. Mara evaded Kon's swings several times and then kicked the blade out of his hands. The blade fell to the ground below. Mara then punched Kon a car length down.
Mara went Super Insane to indicate how serious she was. "I'm done playing around with you."
Kon created a long chain of his clones from himself to the rear of the train numbering several dozen back-to-back. He then powered up. The clone closest to Mara wasn't able to power up nor could several more clones. The farther back the clones were the more they could emit an aura of some kind. Finally, several trains back, a clone was able to go Super Insane.
"It would appear your ability has a range," Kon smirked.
"This is your last chance, Kon. I will not be denied. Mankind will either convert or be given no quarter. Join me and your life of hedonistic debauchery will be over."
"Never," Kon told her off.
Kon went Super Insane, took the air, and fired down on Mara. She kept her feet planted on the roof of the train and blocked the beam with her own. Kon then quickly appeared behind Mara and punched her off the train where she skidded onto the desert plain. Kon and Mara traded energy orbs at each other from a long distance and powered up to Super Insane 2.
Kon punched Mara into a rock formation and fired on her creating an explosion of rock and dust. So long as Kon didn't spend too much time within her orbit, he could control the fight. Kon fired on Mara with a beam that dragged her across the mountain range creating a large ditch in the ground. "What's wrong? Only going to play defense?" Kon taunted.
Frustrated, Mara went for an attack. She took Kon by his leg and slammed him to the ground creating a crater. She then raised her arm up and brought down a pillar of energy onto the crater for effect. "I don't want to kill you especially since I know what death feels like," Mara said to him.
Kon and Mara took to the air and fired beams at each other. The beams exploded in the middle forcing them both back. "You're not even close to killing me," Kon mocked and then created multiple clones of himself.
"That technique is a symbol of your weakness," Mara lectured.
Mara fended off the clones as they came at her. She backhanded a clone to the ground destroying it. One clone punched her in the face only for its fist to obliterate on impact. Mara slammed two clones together shattering them. She sliced off the arm of another clone with her knife hand and kicked it to the ground. Mara then fired a beam through the clone's mouth brutally killing it.
Kon kept sending clones after Mara with energy and physical attacks. Three clones fired on Mara from long distance. She fired her own three beams overwhelming the clones and destroying them. The real Kon waited for the right moment and then fired two energy shots at Mara. She noticed in time and fired her own beam that intercepted both shots creating a midair explosion.
Kon and Mara dropped down slightly ruffled between them. An explosion on the track derailed the train and tore the car trains open. Mara eyed the destroyed train with dismay. The vampires inside were scorched by the sun and burned away. "No," she said softly as she lost her vampire army all at once.
While Mara was distracted, Kon charged her and took hold of her. Immediately, he felt his strength weaken due to Mara's vampire ability. "Now!" he shouted as he lost his Super Insane.
Soara tossed a belt of silver grenades right next to them. Mara had a quick second to realize what they were. She gave Kon a wide-eyed look and noticed his smirk. The silver grenades exploded blasting them both. Mara fell to the ground in a bloody heap with silver shrapnel all over her. Kon was unharmed as his power level had not fallen far enough to be affected. He dusted the silver debris off of his clothes.
"Lose a weakness, gain another," Kon mocked.
Hicks rode over to Kon and Soara. "I took care of the train."
"Good work, sheriff. I knew you had it in you. The kill count is yours," Kon complimented.
"What are you going to do with her?" Hicks asked aggressively.
Mara crawled on the ground growling and hissing in pain. "Billions, trillions of souls will be damned because of you, Kon! I was going to convert the entire universe! You fucked it up, Kon! God damn you!" she shouted painfully.
"In my estimation, one eternal damnation is the same as trillions eternally damned. In the end, it's all eternity," Kon said dismissively.
Mara began to cry as she started to slowly regain her senses. Kon placed Mara in a sitting position up against a rock formation. "You came to stop me because of that?"
"Yeah, I did," Kon admitted.
"I love you, Kon. I always have," Mara said tearfully.
"I know," Kon smiled warmly. "Let's get you fixed up."
"You're going to let her leave after everything she's done?" Hicks asked incredulously.
"Dude, stop while you're ahead. You're the hero now. I promise you, we'll finish the job here," Kon assured him.
Several battleships and support ships converged on Sagite. On the flagship, Kon and Soara waited for the battleships to get into position. "Your Grace, we're in position and ready to fire," the admiral informed Kon.
"Hold fire," Kon ordered.
Mara then entered the bridge; her eyes had returned to her normal dark brown. She was now cured and healed of the silver. Mara eyed Kon and Soara waiting to get the order. Closing her eyes in grief and shame, she finally nodded. "Fire at will," she ordered the admiral.
The battleships fired on all the vampire hives all across the planet at the same time. The hive mounds were now deep craters. The planet was now smoking from the nuclear-sized explosions across its surface. "Inform the Church that Sagite is ready to be harvested," Mara said softly to the admiral and then exited the bridge.
In her chambers, Mara went to her knees and prayed. "What is thy bidding, my master? The harvest is great, but the workers are few," she asked her angel.
The angel, Michael, then appeared before her. "Why are you troubled by the damned when your own soul is in shallow soil?" he rebuked.
"For pity comes from charity, should I pity the damned in this life and the next?" Mara asked.
"To have pity is to partake in unhappiness and there is no unhappiness in the Kingdom of Heaven. The blessed in the Kingdom of Heaven will see the punishments of the damned, in order that their bliss be more delightful for them," Michael assured her. "Do not defile the temple that is your body and do not fear anyone. God will destroy anyone who destroys this temple. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple."
"I will make my heart pure so I may see God," Mara pledged.
"Do not preach with any deceit or impure motives or trickery. For you speak as a messenger approved by God to be entrusted with the Good News. Your purpose is to please God, not people. He alone examines the motives of your heart," Michael ordered.
"Amen," Mara bowed her head.
Author's Notes: While Bram Stroker's Dracula is the best vampire movie, Priest has to be the worst. Paul Bettany, a passionate atheist, went on a tear to mock religion in Da Vinci Code, Legion, Charles Darwin, and Priest before settling down into the warm embrace of the MCU. Karl Urban, on the other hand, simply joined any film that made him a badass.
Mara represents the logical conclusion of failing to engage in constant crusades: the damnation of countless souls who never heard the Gospel, were prevented from hearing the Gospel, or were raised in a society where they likely would reject it even if presented with it. Does a crusader lay down his sword to keep himself pure knowing it will result in millions of lost souls? Should one simply trust in God's plan but what if God's plan requires the cooperation of the faithful to crusade? Or, should the faithful not even care how many are sent to hell and take pleasure in God's divine judgment? In these last two episodes, Mara comes to discover her right and left limits to how far she should go.