TOG/Part 1

***On that fateful night, there was not a single victor.***

An eye opens up, its veins protruding violently. Heavy breathing follows. The pupil begins to move around frantically, trying to observe the surroundings.

"Where...?" asked a mysterious voice, sounding desperate and confused.

A face is then seen, revealing to be Miguel Rivers. His hair was haphazard and singed in many areas. His other eye, which was just a socket, had blood running out of it and down his face. He had blood coming out of the sides of his mouth as well. Mig's surroundings were essentially nothing. Everything was a black mass.

The camera begins to move upside down, slowly. Mig's body is floating in nothingness, upside down. Mig begins to frantically turn around, trying to find something, but cannot.

"This is death, but..." panted Mig.

Mig looked down at his hands, which were both gone. He began to panic, but couldn't do anything. He saw multiple lashes and marks all over his body, and his torn clothing barely held in the blood.

A light begin to spiral out of the nothingness, catching his eye. Distracting him from his intense injuries, he quickly turned his head towards the light.

"...Hello!? What is that? Where am I!?" said Mig, hesitating and scared.

The light began to spiral towards him, making a corkscrew-like shape. It reached out to him, forming what appeared to be a hand. The hand started at his legs, wrapping around them tightly, and then working its way upwards.

Struggling to move, Mig gave in. His strength was entirely gone and he was not sure where he was. He let out a sigh and looked down, worriedly, but did nothing.

"Hm." came another voice.

The voice sounded like a combination of multiple different ones mixed together. The hand suddenly began to stop, nearly halfway up his chest. The hand then sparkled and began to "crack," disappearing off his body.

All the light then began to materialize in front of him, forming a humanoid shape, but no definitive features.

"Is this Heaven...or Hell? What is this?" asked Mig, not even sure he would receive an answer back.

"You died, oh yes," answered the figure, darkly.

Mig groaned slightly, looking down.

"Yes. You died. You..." the figure muttered, cutting off.

The figure also began to groan, and then stopped. It looked away for a few seconds and then looked back at Mig, moving towards him.

"Why am--" asked Mig, cutting off.

"The Energy. It's all scattered...scattered *everywhere,* and you did this," expressed the figure. It seemed to be rather displeased and angered.

"What are you saying?" asked Mig.

"That wildcard really did a number. *Both* of you did, in fact," said the figure.

Mig suddenly felt himself freezing up, and could no longer move. He attempted to say something, but his ches tightened. The hand materialized almost instantly, squeezing him entirely.

"Oh, heh, don't fight it. You're dead. This is merely your soul, whatever is left of you...and I must say, I'm disappointed. It found **you** of all things," said the figure.

The nothingness suddenly began to almost rip apart. Everything turned into a scarlet hue with an assortment of rotating, energy-like constructs spinning around. Mig's eye widened, and he tried to scream. The figure's appearance turned into a bright scarlet, as did the energy hand.

Mig's soul suddenly began to glow white from the bottom up, slowly phasing away.

"You've seen this place, as all like you have. You knew this would happen," said the figure. "Yet you *still* threw away my gift."

Mig stared at the figure and then looked around. His eye began to shake and he began to seize up, shaking all around. His body contorted and he stared upwards, releasing a stream of orange energy from his eye. As he did so, more of his soul began to vanish, until it reached his head.

The figure grabbed onto Mig's head with his hands, turning his ears toward its mouth.

"You're now bound with me, back in your *rightful* place, Miguel Rivers. Both of us will suffer," it said.

Mig's head then disappeared as a final scream was briefly heard. The figure then looked up at the orange energy swirling around like a gas. It raised its right palm towards it, sucking it in. The figure then glowed for a moment.

"I suppose this is my fault. I didn't intervene enough..." it pondered.

The figure turned itself around, raising its arms forward. It began to peel away at the space as if it were a wrapper, revealing a y-shaped hole. Inside of the hole was the mortal plane.

"This dimension is particularly busy. They're...finding out of my existence. Good," the figure said, wondering.

The scene cuts over to Earth. The city in view, Benton Park, is visible beneath an overcast sky. There are a large number of skyscrapers and advanced technology. Cars were lined on the streets going every whichway, and few people walked on the sidewalks, wearing suit jackets or winter coats due to the chilly air.

In particular, a man wearing a white collared shirt with a black stripe on his left was seen. The man had a long, thick black beard with a smaller handlebar mustache. The beard that down to just below his neck, and he wore a black scarf that extended to his naval. He had salt and pepper hair that was combed upwards and back, and this was also notably long. He had black sunglasses on as well.

The man walked along the sidewalk. He had black pants with a silver belt, black dress shoes that shined, and seemingly a robotic left arm. He had both hands in his pants pockets.

He turned the corner nearby a coffee shop and an alleyway. As he walked towards the alleyway, he stopped.

"Daniel?" asked a voice. "To your left."

Daniel Rivers, startled, jerked his head towards the alleyway. In front of him stood a man sporting a black suit jacket, a red turtleneck, dark grey pants, and brown shoes. The man had grey hair with white mixed in, a white goatee, and an eyepatch on his left eye. He smiled.

"Oh! Jesus, I didn't expect you for another...ten-ish minutes?" asked Dan who checked his watch. "So, Ryan, it was great of you to stop by and all."

"I'm...so used to being called the *other* name I almost forgot," laughed Ryan, who looked at the ground. "Anyway, I wanted to see you and stuff."

Dan smiled and then walked further into the alleyway. He embraced Ryan, who uneasily responded back.

"You don't look 56, man. I sure do look 58, though!" said Ryan. "Time really likes you."

Ryan noticed Dan's left arm, which he tried to conceal. Dan spotted his gaze, looked around, and then sighed.

"What the hell is this...?" asked Ryan, angrily. "Is this why you wanted to see me? Really, Dan!?

"No, no, goodness, please just listen for a second," pleaded Dan. "It's merely for protective purposes. You *never* know who you'll run into these days."

Ryan sighed and then shook his head in disappointment. He brushed past Dan, and he grabbed his arm to prevent him from leaving.

"I'm being serious, Ryan," said Dan with a very brutal expression. "After Miranda--"

"I don't...care, Dan. Look, I've said it *many* times before; I am sorry you lost her. But here's the thing that you *never* seem to grasp," said Ryan, growing irritated. "That *thing,* and whatever the hell it brought upon us all, is a god damn curse."

The two of them stopped for a moment and then looked at each other.

"It killed me, it killed my wife, it killed my own *son,* Daniel. Why are you still using it?"

"Because..." said Dan, trailing off. He stopped for a moment as his lips quivered. "Because it's the *only* thing that keeps me in check, Ryan. That Celestialsapien back then; he was a fake. He did...nothing. It was a sham. This thing, however, this Energy, they keep me tied to *him*. To you. To Miranda. To *everyone.* Okay?"

"But I'm right here, Dan. You don't need that thing in your life anymore. I know how--"

Dan then slapped Ryan across the face with the arm. Ryan grabbed his cheek and, shocked, looked back at Dan. Tears began to form in his eyes.

"Don't you fucking say it again. I saw first hand what this Energy can do, and what our family went through. Don't try to tell me you know, or how I need to get over it. I **can't**," said Daniel, angrily.

He turned around and marched out of the alley, turning towards the left. He gritted his teeth and then shook his head, reaching a corner. He leaned against the corner of the wall, looking up. Tears began to roll down his cheeks.

"Hear my voice," said Dan, glancing at this robotic arm.

The arm, now in fill view, had the Gammatrix core on it, though scarlet in color. It had four separate cords connected to four bulbs surrounding the symbol, and went up to his elbow. The Gammatrix symbol was now y-shaped.

"Gamma."

The Gammatrix suddenly glowed alive, nearly blinding Dan. Everything around him begin to spiral around eratically, and he fell over, wincing in pain. All of his veins began to protrude and emit a glowing orange color. Dan then opened his eyes, which were glowing as well.

Twisting and rotating constructs surrounded Dan, followed by a giant, upside-down mass of land. There were a few buildings on it, but none visible.

The glowing scarlet figure, Gamma, began to manifest, but much smaller. A y-shaped opening appeared in front of Dan, followed by steps that manifested. Gamma walked down them.

"Daniel Rivers!" Gamma happily exclaimed. "Nice to see you again."

"I want to request something," Dan said, nervously. He looked at his arm, shaking. "Please..."

"Oh? *Another* request? Someone's greedy," said Gamma, laughing a tad. "But we've already made a deal, have we not?"

"I just...need this done," pleaded Dan.

Gamma looked down at him without saying anything. Gamma then walked forward more, placing his hand on Dan's head. Dan's body then began to shake, and his eyes glowed immensely. An aura of energy surrounded him, and he began choking.

"You have Ryan Rivers back, and that *still* isn't enough? Where's *my* end of the bargain?" Gamma asked.

Gamma let go of Dan and he instantly returned to normal, panicking. Gamma turned around and began to glide up the steps again.

"I have been *KILLING* people for you! I've stored...all this Energy into this thing. It's already looking increasingly unstable...what *more* do you want from me!?" screamed Dan. He began to cry, looking down.

"I need it *all,* Daniel. Once I get it all back, all the power your damn family and Terox stole from me and scattered around, *then* I will happily return everyone for you," said Gamma, giving Dan a thumbs-up.

"I...refuse. I'm not doing this anymore," said Dan, uneasily. He sighed.

"Hm," said Gamma. "Okay. That's fine."

Gamma stepped into the hole, and everything abruptly disappeared. Dan opened his eyes back in Benton Park, with tears in his hands. He looked around paranoid, seeing no one notice him.

"Daniel..." said Ryan, who was behind him. Dan turned around, startled. "Are you...okay?"

"No. Nothing is "okay," Ryan. I'm sorry for snapping. I've been under a lot of stress lately, do you understand?" said Dan.

"...I do. Look, let's just get dinner and go see a movie, alright?" asked Ryan, smiling a tad. He helped up Dan.

On top of a building was an unrecognizable figure, who was wall cloaked. The figure leaned on the ledge of the roof, staring at Ryan and Dan. It then got up and leaped away.

The scene switches to the opposite side of town at an apartment complex. Inside of a room, a few noises are heard, followed by thumping.

A woman in a bed, alongside a man, is present. The man slowly begins to rise off of her, panting, as well as her. The man then rolled her onto his back, pulling up the covers. You can guess what happened.

"Well," said the woman, laughing and panting at the same time. "That was *much* needed."

The woman, Shiar Shreen, wiped her forehead. She turned over her side to a table next to the table, checking her phone; it was November 14th, 2030, 5:50 P.M.

"Y'know, we really should go out to dinner some time. I've been meaning to try that new Italian place and stuff," said the man. He turned over and rubbed her, kissing her arm.

"Reservations are at 6:30," said Shiar, smiling. "I already knew ahead of time."

"God damn I love you," said the man.

Shiar rose out of the bed and dressed herself quickly, with the man still lying there. Shiar grabbed her phone.

"Flint, hurry your ass!" Shiar said playfully. Flint rolled his eyes and got out of the bed, dressing himself. Shiar walked over to the mirror and put on some makeup.

"Going out?" said a voice. Shiar instantly dropped her stuff, looking at the mirror.

A figure appeared behind her in the mirror, resembling Sly Shreen, her father. Sly smiled, walking over to her. He slapped his arms on her shoulders.

"Yes, dad, I am. Why do you care?" asked Shiar, silently.

"Because I'm not letting that happen," said Sly, smirking. He squeezed Shiar's shoulders and she groaned in pain.

Flint turned around to see Shiar about to fall over. He ran over to her, lifting her up, as she began to gasp.

"Whoa there, hope I didn't hurt you," he said. "Cause that would, uh, be a bit--"

"You didn't, you didn't. It's fine, I just...slipped I guess. Not too used to these shoes," said Shiar, lying. She glanced at the mirror, seeing Sly backing away, and the looked down. "You almost done?"

"Uhhh, yeah," said Flint, confused.

Flint walked over to the restroom and fixed up his deep blue hair, and then buttoned up his light blue striped shirt. He then put on a dark blue jacket with white flakes on it, and walked over to Shiar.

"Do you..." she began, and then stopped. "Do you ever think about your parents?"

"Oh, well, sometimes I suppose. Why do you ask, honey?" Flint questioned. He was concerned for her current, obviously deteriorating state, but had no idea how to show it properly.

"My dad died a long time ago; I've been reminiscing is all," she said, smiling. "Well, let's go then."

The scene switches to later that evening. It's pouring virtually everywhere, and the busy streets are practically vacant, save for one particular person.

A man wearing a coat over his head was sitting on a bench just beneath a store sign. The figure looked up at the sky, watching the rain stream down angrily. Lightning flashed by.

Working up the courage, he slowly raised his arm outwards to feel the rain. His arm was red and scarred, and could barely move. Rain began to hit it heavily, so he retreated his arm.

"Agh..." he groaned, with a very gruff tone.

Footsteps were heard to the left. This caught the man's attention, though he didn't seem to care too much. He continued to look at the rain as a very fierce breeze blew by.

Another man holding an umbrella arrived beside the figure, staring down at him.

"Look at you," said the man. "Jesus..."

The man instantly got up, squeezing the other by the throat. The other man grabbed his arm and yanked it off, and he fell over. His deep blue overcoat, which covered his head, blew off.

"You gain *nothing* from hurting me," said Ryan. "It only hurts you."

The figure had dark grey-blue hair, with a thick grey-blue beard and mustache. He had glasses on and blue, clouded eyes. He wore a tattered dark blue vest with white stripes, a worn white dress shirt, and black pants.

"Well, I don't--" the man began to cough violently, and then press on his chest. "I don't want to take risk."

"Dirty, what the hell happened to you? You look like absolute shit," said Ryan.

"Yeah, thanks," said Dirty, rubbing his hands together.

Ryan held his umbrella over him and pulled him up.

"What have you been up to you? I suppose I may as well ask," said Ryan, walking him over to a store for shelther. "Hm?"

"Well, I have a cold," said Dirty, smirking. "That's about it."

The two stepped inside a computer store, wiping off the water from their bodies. The owner of the store welcomed them and sat at his desk, twiddling his thumbs.

"A cold, eh? How fascinating," joked Ryan. "I haven't seen you in a little while, that's what I meant."

"Neither have I. Last I checked, you were kind of--" Dirty paused to cough. "Kind of, well..."

"I know," said Ryan, stopping the conversation.

"Anyway, Dan told me a while ago how you were back and all. *Still* have no idea how, but, hey," said Dan, smiling.

A loud boom rocked the store, causing the lights to flicker. The lights then instantly went out, following another thunder clap. The owner of the store sighed.

"Oh, eh, fuck the power anyway," said Dirty. "Where the hell is Dan, by the way?"

Ryan stared at the ground, almost frozen. His eyes were losing their color. Dirty snapped to get his attention, though this clearly failed.

The world flashed and everything turned red. Ryan stood there, looking around. A liquid completely surrounded him; he walked forward, noticing someone standing in the distance.

"Hello?" he asked.

The figure turned its head all the way around, revealing itself to be Kurss, his alternate identity. Ryan instantly fell down in shock, with the water splashing all over him.

Kurss lifted off the ground and floated towards Ryan, turning his entire body towards him. He reached Ryan and stayed still, suspended in the air.

"Ryan," Kurss said. "How have you been? Hm?"

Ryan began to panick, trying to get up. The water then disappeared, as did Kurss. Ryan began to fall into nothingness, screaming. He struggled to move his body.

"Sorry about that," came a booming voice. "This should help."

A loud snap was heard, and everything turned a scarlet hue. Ryan hit the surface of something, and then got up, very puzzled. Gamma floated in front of him.

"What the hell!?" shouted Ryan. "Why do you seem--"

"Familiar? Oh, that's because I'm Kurss. Er--well, Kurss was *made* of me, I suppose. It's a bit confusing," said Gamma, laughing. "I'm truthfully Gamma."

In disbelief and confusion, Ryan shook his head, confused.

"Gamma? What the fuck are you--" asked Ryan, before being interrupted.

Gamma sped towards him, placing his index finger on his forehead. Suddenly, Ryan's pupils dilated and disappeared almost entirely. Memories began to flash through him as Gamma spoke.

"You remember that night, yes? The night our dear old friend Terox decided to fuck everything up. You see, Ryan, you were his first "experiment," if you will. Terox, he...he's an Impure Aqasian. He wanted me to purify himself, yadda yadda, so he tried it with *you.* You poor, poor unfortunate soul," said Gamma, echoing in his mind.

An image of Terox approaching him entered his mind. Terox kneeled down, smiling, and then patted Ryan on the head. Terox's entirely body glowed a scarlet color as he slapped his hand onto Ryan's forehead. Ryan screamed out in sheer pain as he was filled with Gamma Energy.

"Terox created a *tiny* little vessel for me to partially fill. He manipulated your genetic structure to allow me to briefly leak into your plane of existence without literally killing you from the inside out. How generous of him! Anyway..." said Gamma, letting go of Ryan.

Ryan fell to the ground, gasping and shaking everywhere.

"It obviously didn't go as planned. My energy and your soul converged, canceling out my control, *and* your control. Thus created what you deem 'Kurss.' Fortunately for *me,* I never got harmed," laughed Gamma. "You, however...you died. But, hey! Your bro sought me out and brought you back! Isn't he such a good brother?"

"I...I don't..." said Ryan, in sheer disbelief. He struggled to even form words.

"It's a lot, I know," said Gamma. "I completely understand your perspective."

"Why...tell me...all of this? I have no role in this," said Ryan. "You're just--"

"Because, Ryan, you need to understand *why* I'm about to do what I'm about to do! It's only logical and fair of me," said Gamma, putting his hands together. "I need you to become Kurss again."

Gamma put his hand forward, creating the shape of the Transmundane symbol with his hand.

Ryan quickly got up and began to run away, knowing there was no way out. Two, large energy hands came out of the ground and smacked him down, then shrunk and wrapped around him to keep him still. The platform he was on moved upwards to face Gamma.

"WHY ARE YOU DOING!? STOP!" screamed Ryan, with tears streaming from his eyes. "I SUFFERED FOR SO LONG!"

"You're my little plaything. Daniel is no longer cooperating with me, so, I need to *make* him," said Gamma, coldly. "Now, let's have a little reunion!"

The Transmundane symbol floated in the air, spinning rapidly and growing more intense. The symbol then flashed abruptly, forming the shape of Kurss.

"Kurss was entirely made out of my energy, so this should be a *much* easier process," Gamma said.

Gamma lunged Kurss's energy projection into Ryan, who screamed at the top of his lungs. Ryan suddenly quieted down, facing upwards. His eyes briefly flashed and he looked down, smiling deviously.

"Mmmm...thank you," said Kurss.

Ryan's soul lifted out of his body, now controlled by Kurss. He floated aboat unconsciously, glowing with energy.

"Without *that* holding you down, you can do whatever you want," remarked Gamma.

Everything reverted back to reality, except for Kurss now returned to control. Dirty stood there, looking at Ryan. Ryan, now Kurss, shook his head, and then looked at the store owner.

"Hey guys, you might wanna head back home now. With no power, well, you know..." said the owner, laughing. "Kinda gotta leave in case it gets dangerous."

"Well, alright," said Dirty, patting Kurss on the back. "Let's go catch up with Dan."

The owner began to levitate off of the ground, slamming into the ceiling. Blood splattered everywhere, splashing down. The owner's body moved towards the doorway, ripping apart the roof, before falling flat in front of Dirty.

"HOLY SHIT!" Dirty screamed, instantly turning around.

Kurss walked over to the man and kneeled down, licking the blood off of his corpse.

"He was useless," said Kurss, licking his lips. He then turned to Dirty and nodded his head, hurling Dirty against the wall and pinning him there. "Your turn, pal."

The scene switches over to Dan who is leaning against a car with an umbrella. He stood outside of a restaurant.

Dan sighed, looking at the puddles forming on the ground. He rolled up his left sleeve, exposing the Gammatrix. He peered over into the restaurant, spotting Shiar and Flint eating.

"It's you," he said to himself. "I wonder..."

Dan walked towards the restaurant door, hiding the Gammatrix once more. He stepped inside, approaching their table.

"Yeah, so, I used to always call myself 'Gadget Man' as a kid; it was extremely stupid, I know," laughed Flint, wiping his mouth.

"You were a huge dork, holy--" said Shiar, pausing. She looked up and saw Dan approaching; her happiness instantly faded.

Flint turned around, seeing Dan.

"Oh! Sir, can you give us some more bread?" asked Flint, mistaking him for a waiter.

"Flint, dear, I'll be *right* back. I have to handle something," said Shiar, eyeing him. She got up, placing her napkin on her chair. "Order more wine."

Dan sighed, motioning her towards the front entrance. She reluctantly followed in her heels, then angrily smacked him.

"What the fuck are you doing here?" she angrily asked.

"I deserve that..." said Dan, rubbing his cheek. "I saw you in the window, and--"

"So you were spying on me? And my husband? Jesus, Dan, I know you're a fucked up guy, but now you're a stalker. Okay. Great!" she said.

"I stopped doing that. I stopped it," said Dan, his hands shaking. "And you *know* why I was...doing it."

"That doesn't condone your actions, that doesn't fix everything, that doesn't bring all the people you fucking killed back! Need I scream any louder!?" yelled Shiar. The people in the lobby stared.

"You...killed Miranda. You killed a lot of people, Dan. Even if you try to justify this with this 'some higher being told me' bullshit, you still did it. I can't forgive that," she said in absolute certainty.

Flint approached them, with Shiar retreating. She walked back to the seat and waved Flint back.

"You trying anything?" he asked, angry. "You're an older guy."

Dan sighed and walked out of the restaurant, marching down the steps. Shiar stared out at him, seeing him angrily kick a bush and yell. She sighed.

"Who's Gramps?" he asked.

"Some guy I once knew, I guess. It doesn't really matter. He's not a good person," said Shiar, disappointedly. She looked at her plate and smiled. "Anyway let's enjoy our dinner."
Dan strolled on the sidewalk depressively. A vision came into his mind.

Miranda was sitting in a chair as Dan glanced at the Gammatrix, activating it.

"This only strengthens the Gamma Energy. Do it if you want to see everyone," said a voice in his mind.

Dan clenched his fists, closed his eyes, and hit the Gammatrix. He transformed into Magtallic, and stood behind Miranda. She turned, startled by the flash.

"Oh, is something wrong?" she pondered.

Magtallic raised his hands at her, and they sparked. She began to float in the air, struggling to move.

"Dan! What are you doing!?" she yelled out, worried. She tried to move her arms, which began to crack and move unnaturally. She screamed.

"Snap her neck," the voice compelled him.

He closed his eye and heard a loud snap, and then dropped her body to the floor.

Dan's vision ended. He stopped suddenly and glanced at the tip of the umbrella, which was sharp. He then ripped off the hood of the umbrella, pointing the tip at his neck.

"Ending your life? How quaint of a way to go out," said a voice.

Kurss appeared behind Dan, leaping off a light pole. He brushed blood off of his suit jacket, and shoved his hands into his pockets. Dan turned.

"Ryan, honestly, I *can't* do this anymore. I've killed too many, I've lost too many. And..." he said, stopping. "...there's this being whose name is Gamma."

"Oh?" intrigued Kurss, smirking. "Do tell me more."

"Back during the Gamma File, well, as you know I was tapped to be apart of the project. I've always loved...science and stuff. So I was elated, of course. Obviously, I didn't *know* what I was getting into, exactly. It turns out this powerful thing, it was like it was alive, was this, um, this 'energy' so to speak. It moved on its own. Tekk told me that it was organic energy, or whatever. Anyway, he began messing with it, trying to *study* it and why it was like it was. We began to...mix it with alien DNA. It was like a perfect combination. It essentially superpowered the DNA's properties, it was honestly *amazing.* Y and 1nput, well...I can only theorize Gamma *himself* got to them. He urged them to retain the Gamma Energy so he could reacquire it for himself. Then..."

Dan stopped briefly, beginning to choke back tears. He sniffled.

"Then I *injected* it into your *son,* Mig. I injected that Energy into him. God damn...the pain he faced. I'm so, so sorry, Ryan. I had no idea what I was getting into. Gamma...he began to *corrupt* Mig, basically kill him. This was *all* planned by him. He knew. Gamma knew. He knew that combining it with human DNA would maximize its power and its potential. I don't know...his goal. I don't know. But now he wants it all back. After Terox and Mig fought, it was released *everywhere,* and I mean *everywhere.* It wound up in multiple random people...it was a mess. It still *is* a mess. Now he wants me to recollect it into this vessel," Dan said, pointing at the Gammatrix.

He rubbed tears away. Kurss nodded, glancing over right behind Dan. He manifested two large swords, which were moving towards him.

"So, why wouldn't I want to end it? End what I've caused? I can *never* atone for what I've done, nor can I ask for forgiveness. I cannot be a pawn to Gamma any longer...I already told him no, and he let me live. Probably to let me suffer even more, I suppose," Dan nervously laughed, sniffling again. He looked at Kurss, who was smiling. Kurss then frowned.

"Daniel," he began. "I forgive you. You didn't know, how could it be your fault? You were only trying to get rid of it, and you did so in the heat of the moment. And, hey, Mig turned out to be a good kid, right?"

"Ryan...since when do you call him Mig?" Dan asked, suspicious. Kurss sighed.

"Enough of this bullshit already. You want to die? Good. This shouldn't hurt!" he said, smiling.

Dan turned around, seeing the two swords zoom at him. They struck him in the back of his legs, causing him to fall over. Dan groaned in pain, turning to his side.

Kurss winked, igniting both of his hands in blue fire. He sped to Dan, shooting waves of fire at his direction. Dan rolled to the side, barely dodging it. His jacket caught on fire.

"What the fuck, Kurss!?" Dan asked, confused. "Since when?"

Dan threw his jacket off and crawled onto the street. Kurss levitated a car across the road, slamming it into a building. The force of the car caused the building to instantly collapse.

"Just *me* this time, actually. Gamma's a *great* guy. Fuck you for shitting on him."

The Gammatrix glowed, followed by Dan's eyes. His body sparked as he transformed with the Gamma Greek symbol appearing in front of him. His body morphed into the shape of Gargoyell, who laid on the ground.

Gargoyell's forehead emitted a sonic wave that began to cover his body, surrounding his legs. His legs began to flash and spin around, healing themselves. The sonic wave then retreated back inside of him as he stood up.

"I know a *little* more than Mig did," he said, smiling.

Kurss sighed, propelling himself towards Gargoyell. Gargoyell emitted a piercing sound, though Kurss leaped over him. He landed behind Gargoyell, grabbing him by the neck.

"Are you forgetting something?" Kurss asked, laughing.

Kurss's hand glowed purple as he began to rip Gargoyell's skin off. As he did so, he pulled out the soul of the alien, separating Dan from him. Dan fell back, gasping for air. Kurss held Gargoyell's soul, ripping it apart.

"And with that, he's gone," Kurss said harshly. "Anyone else?"

Dan transformed into Living Laser, catching Kurss offguard. He blasted him in the back, then proceeded to lift him into the air with an energy construct. He lunged Kurss directly through a building, destroying it. Kurss teleported out of his grip, reappearing behind him.

Living Laser turned around, though Kurss ripped his soul out with one touch. Dan flipped back again.

"Since when could..." Dan said, stopping due to lack of energy.

"Split souls apart? One of the perks of being my own self," said Kurss, smiling greatly. "Now, I obviously can't kill you, but no one ever said I couldn't..."

Kurss snapped his fingers and teleported away briefly. He then returned, holding Shiar. He smiled.

"Her!" he said, laughing. "I don't even *know* who this is, but I saw you speaking to her so she *must* be important to you, yeah?"

Shiar's skin turned very pale, and her eyes began to roll around. Kurss sighed and then yanked her soul out with ease. She gasped one last time before her body hit the floor.

"NO! SHIAR! DON'T DO THIS!" yelled Dan, running towards them. "SHE ISN'T INVOLVED!"

"Dan, I'm not a fucking pussy," Kurss said. He blew away Shiar's soul as she screamed once more, raising her arm towards the restaurant where Flint was.

Dan yelled out in anger, transformating into Bedrock. His body buffed up even more, with armor plating forming all around him. He formed a knight mask as well as a shield.

"NEITHER AM I!" he yelled.

Bedrock whacked Kurss with his shield, continuing to run after him.

"I don't give HALF of a fuck if you erase all of these aliens! As long as you fucking *die*," Dan yelled. "I will fucking KILL YOU, and then Gamma *myself.*"

Kurss let out a hardy laugh, practically crying from it. He had marks on his forehead that bled, and he licked the blood as it came down to his mouth. He laughed again, walking forward.

"You're *hilarious.* Don't pretend you stand a damn chance, Dan. Come on now," Kurss said, beginning to resume laughing.

Bedrock leaped at Kurss, forming a sword in his free hand. He slashed at him endlessly, not realizing he had teleported away. Bedrock turned around.

"COME OUT!" he demanded. "You're one to talk about calling me a pussy!"

Bedrock looked forward, seeing Miranda walking towards him. She looked concerned.

"Dan...? Is everything alright with you? You seem very stressed," she said, very concerned. She smiled and then raised her hand to him. "Come on."

Bedrock calmed down, deforming his armor, shield, and sword. He reached forwards.

"Come on, Dan, just a little more so we can kiss. I love you *so* much, Daniel," Miranda said, smiling brightly.

"I love you too," said Dan. He grabbed her hand, and then felt himself being pulled out of his body. "Miranda...?"

Miranda dissolved into Kurss, who began laughing again. He threw Bedrock's soul into the air, seeing Dan leaning against a wall, bleeding from the stomach.

"Oh my god! You fell for *that?* I was so sure that was at least 50/50. Good lord..." Kurss said.

Dan spat blood, struggling to even more. Kurss walked over to him, swallowing the blood dripping from his forehead.

"I'm going to go raise hell" he said, nonchalantly. Kurss then walked away, duplicating himself numerous times.

An orange flash occurred behind Kurss. He scoffed, ignoring it. Suddenly, an hourglass appeared in front of Kurss, and he felt himself slowly stopping.

"Oh? You've resorted to using him?" Kurss asked, turning around.

Stopwatch stood behind him, with gears and clocks appearing all around him. The clocks and gears vastly duplicated, filling up everything. Kurss and him were now completely surrounded with ticking heard in the background.

"You're done. *This* bullshit is all done," said Stopwatch, confidently. He raised his arms into the air, and a large shockwave emitted from his chest. Kurss backed up.

"Ohhh Dan, you're so damn naive," Kurss said, smiling one last time.

The shockwave hit him, erasing everything in its path. The clocks and gears disappeared, followed by the damage done and his duplicates. Kurss waved and then disappeared from time.

Dan, falling to his knees, transformed back. The Gammatrix glowed and swirled around as it sucked in the Gamma Energy.

"Damn it..." Dan said, coughing.

The Gammatrix sparked and began to pulsate. Dan glanced over at it, realizing what he had done. He closed his eyes and felt his body burn and burst.

The scene cuts to Gamma's plane of existence, with more rotating constructs floating around in nothingness. Ryan's essence was trapped inside of these, which continuously moved around in a diamond shape.

Gamma floated there, suddenly glowing and pulsating as well. He glanced at himself, immediately ripping a hole into the mortal plane.

"It's done," he said. "He did it."

**TO BE CONTINUED**

## Major Events

* Miguel's essence is absorbed into Gamma.
* Gamma makes his debut.
* Ryan Rivers returns to life, followed by Kurss taking control.
* Flint Maxis debuts.

## Characters

* Miguel Rivers (essence)
* Daniel Rivers
* Ryan Rivers (revived)
* Shiar Shreen
* Flint Maxis
* Dirty Sanchez
* Miranda Albright (flashback)

### Villains

* Gamma
* Sly Shreen (mentally)
* Terox
* Kurss

## Aliens Used

* Magtallic (flashback)
* Gargoyell
* Living Laser
* Bedrock
* Stopwatch