LET'S GET READY TO RUMBLEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!
Red Army
VS
Green Rebellion
Today we start the beginning of ACT 2 of Always Gold and the frequent updates. Once every two weeks from now on there will be a brand new chapter of Always Gold. Special shoutout to the characters who contributed to this chapter:
Terrance by ianwoodsisadilf
Alexander by houndbytez
Adrian by fellow-queer-birdguy
Maya by leilaniethefirst
Blake Fjellkjede by artsyjaybird
Cindy by jekna-karma-lokert
Stella by depressedbat
Valery wu-sanchez by sunnyweatherz
Cedar by collector-of-tommys
Charlotte Hope by chessb0r3d
Aiden by tiredthings1
Daisy Whitfield by lost-sheep-wandering
Grazhdanskaya by versace-will-never-be-the-same
Bianca by salt-apple
Leela Warner by Fanimaniac4ever101
Helios Astor by local-sourboy
Harriet by xurviving
Wynter Loyrrox by sonjuponju
Kai by faefoundmoon
Amaya by psychicgoopsuitcasemonger
*FYI I am no longer around ff net these days - I have been updating this story solely over on ao3. So if you are interested in seeing the rest of this story, look up AlmightyLetu Always Gold on ao3 and follow me on Tumblr almighty-letu for fanart and bonus content
As always thank you for reading, I hope you guys enjoy it, don't forget to leave comments, and I'll talk to you guys later! ;)
On the night of 25th of June 2023, the Red Army marched South.
Divided into corps, they swept through the terrain - living off the land with speed as they headed farther in. Each corp had their own leader, infantry, artillery, and medic - and as a result, they were able to act more independently from each other. Red Leader was leading the charge, of course, but he trusted his soldiers to act on his behalf as they split up and began conquering more territory; with the intent of converging on the heart of the region for the final blow.
They moved exceptionally fast and efficiently through the countryside, traversing massive distances to outmaneuver the military, isolate them, and move in for the kill before the enemy even realized what was going on.
However, despite the nature of their takeover the Red Army soldiers knew not to target civilians. "Leave them be." Red Leader ordered, raising his voice. "Even if they resist, we do not kill innocents."
Strangely enough, as they made their way through the first cities after disposing of the enemy soldiers stationed to protect them, all towns were vacant. Streets were empty, buildings abandoned, and not a sign of life to be seen.
"Where… is everybody?" Matt's voice quivered as he looked around.
Red Leader narrowed his eye under his helmet. "They must have evacuated the cities before our arrival." He muttered. "No doubt Green Leader's doing."
"But where did they go?" Matt asked, anxiousness rising. He passed the body of a dead soldier, and winced in dismay at the horrid sight.
"They either fled the region to neighboring nations, or are being held by the Green Rebellion." Red Leader growled. "Either way, not good options."
They continued traveling inland at record breaking speed. Everywhere they went, the other corps reported the same state. Abandoned ghost towns with nothing to salvage.
At around 10PM, the Red Army encountered a military enemy unit waiting for them just outside one of the main cities. "Turn back, Red Leader! You are not welcome here." A man with a mustache stepped forward, adorning badges on his uniform fitting for a General.
Red Leader took a pace forward, red cape billowing in the wind. "The Red Army are here to stay. We've come to bring your people safety and stability. Stand down and we can avoid casualties."
The General curled his lip. "Safety and stability?" He snorted. "You kid yourself, Red. The only thing you bring wherever you go is death and tragedy. Leave now!"
"If only your president had agreed to my terms we could have avoided this whole unpleasantness." Red Leader went on. "But it doesn't have to be this way. My quarrel tonight is not with you. Look, your supposed leader opted to throw your lives away in exchange for maintaining control and power over you. Is it really fair to make you fight their battles for them? Shouldn't they have an obligation to keep you safe instead?" He leaned closer to the General. "You seem like a sensible man. Spare yourself and your men the trouble and stand down now. We're not here to harm anyone. We just want to help you."
Matt watched the interaction from the back of his unit, waiting with bated breath. He was glad that Tord wasn't completely blinded by rage to fight anyone standing on his path, instead opting to settle matters with words to avoid more casualties. He really does care!
The General seemed to hesitate and lose his bravado, looking genuine as he considered the Red Leader's offer, and for a moment Matt allowed himself to breathe a sigh of relief.
He couldn't finish sighing.
"ATTACK!"
A shout split the night air followed by gunshots. Matt's breath caught in his throat as Green Rebellion members streamed past the enemy military and jumped into battle. The clearing exploded with the cries of battle, and terror shrilled through Matt's skin as, all around him, Red Army soldiers and the Green Rebellion members began to fight.
Red Leader reared back in shock when a child, no older than ten, jumped at him with a knife and tried to stab him. Quick as a flash, Red Leader pulled out one of the syringes in his belt and stabbed the child in the shoulder. The kid screamed and put up a struggle before their eyes rolled to the back of their head and they went limp, dropping the blade.
"We're outnumbered out here!" Charlotte hissed as she was swarmed with kids trying to climb her. She plucked one of them off of her by the back of their shirt, looking more like a kitten held by the scruff then a fearsome fighter as she plunged the needle into their neck.
"Not for long." Red Leader raised his voice. "RED ARMY, TO ME!"
All around them, the other corps rejoined the main group and jumped straight into the fight, evening the numbers.
Far up above them, two green lights streaked through the sky; falling into the battlefield like shooting stars. Eduardo crashed down in the middle of the fight, creating a sizable crater around him. "Red Leader is mine!" His eyes blazed green as he jumped into battle.
Edd landed on the outside ring, a little bit away from the main tangle of the fight. His face was obscured by the gas mask, black jacket drifting in the wind as he took in the scene before him. He drew in a deep breath, fear darkening his thoughts. Fear turned to energy fizzing in his hands.
A Red Army soldier took aim at him and Edd leaned out of the way at the last second, turning his full attention to fight them.
"I'm going to die!" A soldier cried as he lay bleeding on the ground.
"No, you're not!" Matt reassured urgently as he and Yanov stooped down to treat his injuries. "You're going to be fine, just hold my hand."
"I don't wanna die!"
"Matt, hold him still." Yanov told him as he pried into the wounded shoulder with tweezers and plucked the bullet out.
The soldier wailed louder and squeezed Matt's hand. "See? It's already over." Matt said kindly, leaning over the man to distract him from the awful battle raging on around them. "Look at me. You're going to be fine."
"Hurry up!" Sarah shouted, taking sentry duty as she made sure no one approached them while they performed their duties. "We're easy pickings out here!"
"Almost done!" Yanov wrapped gauze over and around the soldier's shoulder. As soon as he was finished he flagged one of the soldiers and had them escort their injured comrade away to safety. "Good. Now be like sharks and sniff out for blood! There is bound to be more people needing our help."
"We're on it!" Sarah dipped her head.
Despair pulsing through his veins, Matt scanned the battle. Leela and Wynter from the Green Rebellion teamed up against Alex. Collin struggled against Maya. Kim and Katya fought back to back, fending off against Valery, Cindy, and Adrian. He could see Edd sparring with Blake a few feet away, clearly pulling his punches - using enough strength to maintain his survival but not enough power to really hurt anyone. Blake tried to stab him with a needle, but Edd fought back; bowling him over with his own body weight.
As he drove Blake back, sending the hacker reeling away into none other than Hilarson, another Red Army soldier darted forward to block his path. His sharp green eyes flashed with hatred as he barged past Blake. He was tall and sturdy, almost as big as Edd himself. Clean-shaven olive skin and dark brown hair tied back. From this distance, Edd could see faint scarring near his neck.
Cedar plunged forward, needle in hand. Tired and irritated, Edd simply opened his coat and screamed. "Surprise furry attack!" Unleashing four vicious kittens on the poor soldier, attacking him with teeth and claws.
"OH GOD MY BUTTHOLE! I'm in so much pain! MY BUTTHOLE!" Grazhdanskaya, but better known in the Rebellion as Dan, writhed on the ground in pain. "Please someone help me!"
A Red Army soldier stood over him, watching the display in blatant confusion and concern; momentarily so distracted they forgot they were on opposite sides of the war.
"Call an ambulance…" Dan shouted as the soldier stepped closer. He stopped suddenly and pulled out his pistol. "... BUT NOT FOR ME!" He shot the soldier between the eyes. The body dropped dead on the ground and Dan resumed with his charade. "HELP ME!"
"Incredible…" Bianca looked on, mildly impressed.
Aiden nodded. "Aye. That damned maverick killed 18 soldiers so far like this…"
Beyond them, Laurel single handedly dealt with two soldiers, fighting one, then the other as they drove her backward, separating her from the other rebels to the edge of the clearing.
Matt's mind whirled. How could this end? He needed to get out of here soon and meet Tom. Only he knows how to stop this now.
As he tried to make his way out of the battlefield, a scream from the far side of the clearing jerked his attention away. He spotted Stella clutching her bleeding arm close as Kai drew nearer. Before he could do anything however, Admiral Wolfgang charged into him, knocking the rebel away with such force that Kai lost his balance.
"Over here!" Matt called Sarah and Yanov as they approached Stella's position.
"I think I broke something…" Stella hissed as Yanov inspected the wound.
"Not broken. But you did dislocate your shoulder and you have shrapnel on your arm." Yanov murmured. "Hold her down for me. I'll set her arm back straight."
While Sarah held Stella down, Matt soothed the hacker. "It's okay. Squeeze my hand - it will be over soon."
Eduardo flew overhead, blasting straight into the earth with his powers. He laughed as vast amounts of Red Army soldiers were obliterated; bodies spiraling into the air along with dirt and grit before collapsing back down dead. He noticed tanks rolling in on the far side of the clearing, blasting at his rebels. He crashed down, crushing one tank with a single well-aimed stomp. He picked up another tank and swung it over his head to destroy a different tank.
Destroying tanks was all well and good, and made it for an excellent anger management outlet. But there was one figure of interest he was searching for.
Stella screeched as her arm stretched and popped back into her shoulder socket. "All done! See?" Matt comforted. "You're going to be fine-"
With no warning, Matt was roughly shoved aside and he had to brace himself last minute to stop his fall. He glanced back in confusion and his mismatched eyes widened.
Sarah was struggling in Eduardo's grip as he held her by the throat. The Green Leader stared intensely at her for a few seconds, eyes blazing green before his hands started to glow. Before Matt's eyes, he watched in horrified silence as Sarah's screams reached a crescendo before falling silent as her body shriveled up and died, the life literally sucked out of her.
Staggering to the side, Matt threw up. He couldn't believe Eduardo would be cruel enough to do this to anyone. He never really liked Sarah all that much, but nobody deserves this kind of fate. And she pushed him out of the way. Was this attack meant for him? Was Eduardo so driven by revenge he couldn't even recognize his own friend in the chaos?
Eduardo didn't even notice Matt's presence as he turned his attention back to the battle, his eyes zeroing in on the figure clad in red armor. With the Red Leader's death, he knew the battle would be practically over. He held them together, and without him the rest of the army would be nothing.
Tord fought alone like the whole of the Red Army. Kids kept trying to attack him on all sides, and he had little choice but to use his sedatives on them. He stopped as a tattered looking boy staggered up to him, swiping the blood off his nose.
"I'm gonna bust you up, red plum!" Collin snarled. "And then I'm gonna wear your clothes!"
Tord stabbed him with one of the needles in his fingers, and watched him crumble unconscious. "That was weird."
As he recovered from the strange encounter, he noticed a green flash from the corner of his eye.
At the last possible second, Tord narrowly avoided a nuclear blast aimed straight at him, decimating everything on its path. He staggered, gasping in shock. Green Leader. He narrowed his eye as the man prowled closer, baring his teeth under the helmet.
Eduardo sped off toward him; barreling into Tord as they crashed to the ground. Kicking up his legs, Tord flipped them over smoothly and pinned Eduardo down. "Time to end this!" He growled, unsheathing his needle like claws from his robotic hand.
However, to his mounting horror Tord realized he used all his sedatives on the child soldiers attacking him previously. His blood ran cold. Did Green Leader do this on purpose?
"What's the matter? Ran out of tricks, murderer?" Eduardo thrust forward and tried to grab Red Leader.
Tord ducked away in the nick of time, and rolled to the side before quickly jumping to his feet. He powered up the repulsor in his robotic arm, keeping it raised and ready to strike.
Hands glowing green, Eduardo blasted another nuclear ray straight at Red Leader.
Lifting his arm like a shield, palm out, Tord deflected the ray and absorbed the energy into his arm. "Power capacity at 400%" he read the status of his arm, chuckling in surprise. "How about that?" He grinned. "My turn!"
Doubling the power, he shot back at Green Leader with a blast from his repulsor. Not expecting this, Eduardo took the hit and fell back several feet away. He grit his teeth and stood crouched over the earth as he tried to recover. Several soldiers tried to jump in and sedate him, but Eduardo was quick to push them all aside like measly flies.
"BRING ME, RED LEADER!" He shouted commandingly, making no room for argument. He did not have time for puny underlings. He had bigger fish to fry to a burning crisp!
As Green Leader drew closer, Red Leader unleashed an arsenal of missiles from his arm targeted at the Rebellion Leader. Eduardo took the hit, but hardly flinched. As the dust settled, he spotted a glimpse of cyan blue lights flashing closer and Red Leader dove into the smoke to deliver a fly kick straight into his gut. Eduardo doubled over, gasping for air. Red Leader continued his assault by punching him square in the jaw. Eduardo growled, and retaliated by swiftly punching him back with a left hook so powerful Red Leader toppled to the ground.
Eduardo licked his lips, swiping the blood from his bruised lip. "Not bad. But this ends here." He towered over Tord, and grasped him tightly by the throat, lifting him off the ground as his eyes blazed. "This is for you, Jon!"
Tord's eye widened, waiting for death to take him when Eduardo suddenly stopped.
He unceremoniously dropped Tord, staggering back. Tord watched him in confusion. He had him right where he wanted, so why was he hesitating? Then Eduardo turned, showing a needle plunged into the side of his neck. He turned around slowly, pulling the needle incredulously out of him with a small hiss. Matt stood behind him, panting and eyes wide.
"Doofus?" Eduardo's words slurred with exhaustion, his expression softening as he reached out for Matt. "You're… safe!" His eyes rolled to the back of his head and he collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
Matt's mouth felt as dry as a desert. He felt like he inhaled ash and couldn't breathe. He couldn't let Edu kill Tord, but seeing the relief and glee in his friend's eyes as he turned to face him was more than he could bear.
He stood back and watched Tord scramble to his feet. First the Red Leader gazed at Matt with an appreciative nod and a sigh of relief. Then his expression hardened, and he glared down at Eduardo. "Take him!"
Red Army soldiers swarmed over the fallen Green Leader.
"No! Stop it, please!" Matt pleaded, circling over the commotion and trying to stop them from harming his friend. "We don't have to do this. Leave him alone!"
Terrance rounded on him. "What's gotten into you? We're at war, in case you've forgotten. And Green Leader killed hundreds of us. He nearly killed Paul!" He reminded sharply, narrowing his eyes. "Just whose side are you on anyway?"
Matt stepped back, appalled. He did not reply. Words were lodged in his throat, unable to answer. Matt blinked. Let him go! None of this made sense. Did they need to kill each other? For what?
"NO!"
A shriek jerked him from his thoughts.
Like an uncontrollable freight strain, Edd barged through the clearing and barreled straight into Tord. The two of them grappled with each other in the middle of the battlefield.
"Is this worth it, Edd?" Tord hissed. "Are you prepared to die just to stop me?"
"We can't let you get away with this!" Edd growled. "This isn't right and you know it!"
The whole clearing seemed to fall silent around Matt. All he could hear was his heart pounding in his ears. Eyes welling up with tears, he whipped around and headed North; fleeing the battle as he plunged into the undergrowth. He barely heard the sounds of the battle over his chaotic thoughts. This battle must end!
Edd attempted to pin Tord down with his weight, but Tord wriggled away. What he lacked in size, he made up for it in smarts and speed. The repulsor on his robotic hand flashed bright blue as he punched Edd straight in the face. The gas mask cracked under pressure, taking most of the blunt, but Edd's eyes still watered as he felt the pressure increase around his nose.
Lashing out a hard kick, he caught Tord in the gut and sent the Red Leader reeling backwards. Briefly the Norsk was stunned, and Edd managed to seize the opportunity for another strike. "Stop! I don't want to fight you." He growled, grabbing Tord by the front of his uniform.
Pain like wildfire seared through his chest as Tord mercilessly blasted him with his repulsor, and in the shock of it Edd lost his grip on Tord, knocking him back several feet.
"Too bad." Red Leader snarled, standing over Edd. His eye glinting maliciously under the helmet.
Matt raced on, not stopping for a second. He knew every moment counted. Even when his sides started to hurt from the pressure, he did not relent to rest. Matt kept on running past the fields and over the slope, hoping - paying to find Tom out here somewhere.
Even several yards away from the source of the main conflict, Matt could still faintly hear the gunshots and tank blasts and screams all the way out here. He could not escape the war no matter how much he ran.
"Tom!" Matt called out as he climbed the slope, panting. "Tom! Where are you?"
He stopped and listened. Trembling, he heard the sound of bushes rustling close by underneath the sounds of war raging on down in the clearing. Matt's thoughts began to race. Please let it be Tom! Above, the clouds had cleared and the moon shone, full and bright. The hillside was dappled with heather, gorse, and grass.
A cool breeze ruffled his hair and he took a deep, wavering breath.
"Matt?" A soft voice called out.
Relief washed over Matt as Tom stepped out of the undergrowth, his green eyes glowing in the dark.
"Tom! Thank God I found you." Matt rasped with a rush of excitement. Then despair took over. "You have to come with me. They are killing each other!"
"You have to talk with them, Matt." Tom said decisively. "They will listen to you."
"Me?" Matt echoed, eyes wide. "Why me? Edd and Tord respect you far more than they do me. They will listen to whatever you have to say if you show up down there. Why not you?"
Tom shook his head. "No, Matt. It will mean nothing coming from me, and you know it. Only you can make them see reason now."
"How?" Matt cried out. "How can I make them listen? I'm just… me."
"You will not go alone."
Before Matt could ask what he meant, Tom groaned and doubled over. Concerned, Matt stepped closer and gasped. Horns sprouted from the top of his friend's head, and a long tail lashed behind him. His hands turned into sharp claws. The visor in his eye shifted to accommodate his new appearance, his green eyes turning neon purple.
"Let's go." Tom growled, picking up Matt and throwing him over his back as he tore across the hillside toward the sounds of battle.
Matt squeaked and held on tightly to Tom. He wasn't prepared for the spontaneous piggyback ride, but he wasn't complaining. As they hared down the slope, Tom changed further. He gradually grew in size, his clothes traded for soft fur, and his snarls were replaced with soft pants and roars. Matt grabbed fistfuls of the tufts of dark fur as he towered over the clearing, his face set with determination.
"Hold on, guys!" Matt whispered, sitting atop the gargantuan monster. "We're coming!"
Back in the battlefield, Edd launched himself at Tord with a roar. Red Leader ducked, rolling sideways, but Edd was ready, as though he'd expected his former friend to make such a move. He turned as he stopped abruptly and lashed out at Tord, hitting him hard in the shoulder. Tord hissed and staggered sideways, losing his balance. Ducking his head he lunged forward for a counter attack.
Edd tried to dodge, but Tord grabbed him and threw him over his shoulder and slammed him into the ground. Winded, the breath forcibly driven out of his lungs, Edd lay stunned for a couple of seconds. Tord kicked him repeatedly in the gut as Edd curled up to protect himself.
"THIS. IS. THE. LAST. TIME. YOU. TRY. TO. INTERVENE. WITH. MY. PLANS!" Tord hissed every word with each kick given, releasing his pent up frustrations out on his supposed friend.
Without warning, Edd suddenly grabbed Tord's foot and flipped him over with all his strength.
Tord landed on his back with a hiss but quickly scrambled to his feet to face his pesky opponent. He narrowed his eye. He and Edd often play fought as children. Rough housing even when Edd's mother and their teachers scolded them not to. They knew each other's moves better than anyone else. But this wasn't a game anymore. Now they were out for blood.
Charging the repulsor of his robotic arm, Tord sprang forward. Edd's fists glowed green as he jumped in to attack.
Tord ducked, narrowly avoiding a strike to his head. He blasted the repulsor and sent Edd staggering back. Edd kicked out at him as Tord tried to move closer, hitting him in the stomach. Tord flinched, and Edd delivered a hefty left hook to the side of his face; denting his helmet. Snarling, Tord reached out and grabbed Edd's mask, pulling back before releasing it to smack him in the face. Edd hissed and reared back, startled. Tord threw his cape at him to blind him and jumped with his repulsor, blasting him as many times as possible.
"Get him!" He barked at his soldiers. With Edd properly distracted, this was the perfect opportunity to sedate him and end the fight.
The soldiers moved in, needles in hand as they jumped the lump beneath the red cape. Before they could reach him, Edd blasted them aside with his powers; burning the cape to a crisp.
"Why do you always have to challenge me?" Tord snarled, grabbing Edd by the throat and throwing him to the ground. He pinned him under his boot. "You should have just stayed out of my business! Instead, you bring me war." He pressed harder.
"You've betrayed your friends." Edd grunted, his voice muffled. "The very same people who grew up with you and stood by your side when you had no one else. Is that what you wanted?" His words turned into a low groan as Tord pressed harder, but Edd went on. "And for what? Ambition? To rule the world?" Gasping with effort, he pushed Tord away. Red Leader stumbled, unbalanced, and Edd scrambled to his feet.
"Now!" Edd opened his coat and held out a gray tabby in his hands. "Ringo, ATTACK!"
The elderly gray tabby mrrowed, looking not the least bit threatening whatsoever. Her fur flat, she jumped away from Edd.
"Ringo? What are you doing? ATTACK!"
She padded closer to Tord, sniffing him. She suddenly lifted her tail and started purring loudly, pressing herself against the Red Leader's legs.
"Seriously?" Edd sagged in disappointment. "Now is not the time for friendly reunions! We're at war here - get with the program, Ringo!"
Awkwardly, Red Leader lifted one leg and carefully stepped over the feline. "Now that's out of the way…" He drawled. "PREPARE TO DIE!"
Both of them launched forward and struck each other at the same time. Edd punched Tord so hard it sent his helmet flying. And Tord blasted Edd back, his gas mask finally breaking and falling apart revealing his face.
They stood facing one another, panting. Tord had a bruised lip and a cut above his eyebrow. Edd was not faring any better. He clutched his abdomen in pain, and his nose was broken.
"You know, you should be glad Tom is dead." Edd hissed with a bitter smile. "If he were here he would've kicked your ass already."
Tord's gaze darkened. "You dare use him against me?" Then a thought popped into his mind. A horrible, devious, but also brilliant thought. Tord smiled. "Perhaps I haven't been fully committed to peace in our meeting as I thought. There's one offer I neglected to make you."
"Forget it." Edd spat. "Nothing you can do will make me get out of your way. I already gave you my terms, Tord. Stop the war, disband the Red Army, and come home. That's the only offer I'll take. Unless you're about to promise me exactly that, you can shove your offer up your ass!"
"Oh? But what if I gave you the thing you desire most?"
"I want my friends back!" Edd cried out."I want things to go back to the way they were."
"Here's my new offer, Edward." Tord drawled. "Stand down… and I'll bring Tom back for you."
Screaming in rage, Edd hurtled himself at Tord. He grabbed him by the shoulders and tossed him to the ground away from him. Tord quickly rolled over and recovered, standing crouched over the earth, poised to attack.
"You're bluffing!" Edd snarled. He staggered as grief sliced through him. "No one, not even you have that kind of power!"
"On the contrary, Edward. I have my ways." Tord hissed. "Now you can stop this silly little warfare and I give you both Matt and Tom safe and sound. You join my army and we can live the rest of our lives as members of the glorious Red Army… or you can keep resisting me, and this only ends with one of us dying. What's it gonna be?"
Edd balled his hands into fists as they trembled at his sides. "They wouldn't want this. The world will continue to suffer if I let you do this. Don't you see?" His eyes glistened. "I'm sorry, Tord. But it's the only way."
There goes his final gambit. "So be it."
He blasted his repulsor from his arm, and Edd met the ray with a blast of nuclear energy of his own. The two beams met halfway and exploded. A cloud of ash and dust settled over the battlefield, enveloping the arena as both sides were obscured. Tord and Edd staggered back, and stood facing each other as the dust settled.
"Red Leader! Don't!" Harriet's panicked shout alerted Edd something was wrong. He barely had time to brace himself before Tord charged through the cloud of smoke and barreled into him.
Red Leader stood over Edd. "Just give in already!" He backhanded him with his robotic hand. "Submit!"
Edd lay on the ground, gasping for breath. His chest heaved desperately as he stared up at his friend. "Never." He aimed a weak blow at Tord's face, but it missed clumsily.
"Give in!" Tord growled threateningly. He lifted his robotic hand, repulsor glowing in the palm of his hand.
"Go ahead. Kill me. There's nothing left for me here." Edd rasped, closing his eyes. "I can't live in a world without my friends. Nothing matters to me anymore. So go ahead. Kill me! You won, Tord. I wasn't able to help you or anyone else for that matter. I failed you and everyone else. Now do us both a favor and end this already."
Tord held his gaze, shocked to the depths of his bones hearing his optimistic friend sound so defeated. "Don't make me do this." His voice quivered. "All I want is a better world for all of us. For people to be safe and happy. It doesn't have to end like this."
Edd picked himself up. "Do you really? Or do you just want power over everyone else?" He wheezed. "Don't you see? If your intentions were as pure as you say, would you be here prepared to kill your own friend to get what you want?"
Tord dropped his hand and turned away. "No. I- I- I can't…" His gaze flitted over the bodies littering the clearing as battle raged on around them. Soldiers and rebels alike fought weakly, staggering more unsteadily with every blow as the battle dragged on. "What have we done?"
"STOP!"
On the far side of the clearing, facing North, trees toppled over as heavy thumps thrummed the earth. A purplish-black monster came roaring out of the treeline. All soldiers stopped fighting at once, beholding the gargantuan beast standing before them as it pinned them down under its single purple neon void as a digital mask covered the top half of its face. The monster's roar deafened all, rattling rib cages as it commanded them to cease the battle. The monster flared up, jaws wide open as it breathed out a plume of fire.
Edd and Tord jumped back several feet away from each other as the fire kept them apart.
The monster stopped, shaking its pelt and huffing.
A figure stood up on top of the monster. "This battle is over!" Matt raised his voice.