Mary arrived back home when the sun began to set. It was a small, cramped space on the edge of Widow Street. Mostly rundown and foul-smelling. Already she could hear her latest parents yelling. She always seemed to get stuck with couples that were on the verge of breaking to bits and thought getting a kid would be a good way to stay together.
She pushed the door open and didn't bother saying anything to them. Her eyes were fixed solely on her hand as she walked up stairs and headed to her room. Her parents didn't even bother to take note of her or ask why she was still covered in blood. She'd likely have to move again or something, as Amy would blab about her having powers.
"I always knew I was different, but I didn't think it was this much."
She had known for a while that she wasn't a normal human. Ever since she was a little girl, she knew she had powers. It was one of the reasons people would send her back to foster care. She kept them secret from all her parents, but they always seemed to pick up on the fact that something wasn't right. Today, though, was the first time she had used her powers in such a way. Her cells had obeyed her command. Now she could see them. Every bit of them twisted and listened to her. Waiting for her orders. She could see her skin shift and change, feel her bones and muscles snap, and her blood flow.
Slowly she lifted her shirt and stared at her stomach. It was littered with scars and burn marks. Wounds she had received from previous parents. Her skin almost seemed to bubble and shift as the marks faded away. Not just them though. The ones on her back, her arms, her legs, all of them hidden away by her clothing, faded from her body as she casually erased the proof of the hatred those people had dug into her. Even her eyes changed, and she no longer needed her glasses. The world came into full focus, and it looked so much cleaner than it ever had.
Everything was pretty. She was pretty.
She forced her tangled hair to grow out longer and fix itself. Got rid of any moles or marks, made herself a bit taller, whatever she wanted in that moment she could do it. She giggled, and with a flick of her fingers, long, jagged claws formed out. "So, I really am a Super." Her claws pulled themselves back into her body. It made her wonder who her real mom or dad were. They'd have to be a Super as well, right? "I guess I should decide what I do with my powers, right?"
She made her way over to the window and stared out at the city, looking at the many buildings that hung in the distance. This city did have an Enforcer, the hero known as Legend, but the man was almost never around, not bothering to protect this land, and instead focused on his son, a hero known as Fable, who was stationed in Oleander at the moment. It was small and didn't have too many Supers. What little villains it did have were all pretty much just low-tier villains who had fun getting away with all of their crime. Of course, if anything too big were to happen, then a big-shot hero would show up. Gladiolus City was right next door, which housed the mighty hero known as Max Lightning, the newest member of the Enforcers.
She rubbed her chin and hummed. "Which side should I be on? Good. Or evil. For humanity or against them." She couldn't really decide how she felt about humans or even other Supers. They existed and could harm others just as they harmed her, but in the end that was simply the way the world worked. Right? Finally, though, she made up her mind watching as thin bone plates grew over her flesh. "I just want to have some fun."
She slipped on a black jacket and zipped it up, as well as pulling her hoodie over her head. She made her way downstairs and moved past her current parents, who had taken to throwing the food they cooked at each other as their screaming match got worse. She closed the door and stepped back out into the city. The sun had already set a while ago, casting everything in moonlight. In the distance, she heard the sounds of hundreds of sirens, as by now the corpses of the three men were found. She covered her mouth with her hand and formed a large bone plate that went directly over it like a medical mask. The back of her jacket tore open as a pair of large wings unfolded, and she took to the air. She flew up, getting higher and higher, watching the city become smaller and smaller. The temperature dropped around her, but she used her power to increase her body's heat, allowing her to be fine.
Soon she found herself high in the air, overlooking her entire city. Black smog clouds constantly rose up from every direction, and even in the dead of night, the place was busy. Her city wasn't as big as others. It only had two sections. The nice part and the bad part. It was almost like two halves of a city had been built and jammed together. One half of the city had large towers that rose up, and the streets were filled with men in expensive-looking suits that were just getting off of work and heading home, or fancy sports cars that broke the speed limit ten times over. The bad part of the city was black and constantly swarmed with masses of fog clouds and acidic rain falling down onto the lands. Crime was everywhere. There were hundreds of Skull Boys, or people that pretended to be the Skull Boys that mugged or murdered people; dozens of cars were hijacked; and low-level Super's tore through old vaults, fishing up whatever loot hadn't been taken already.
This was what it was like in a place that didn't have the Enforcers. So long as the rich were left alone, the villains would be too. If one even thought about stepping foot in a nice street, though, Max Lightning or Legend would be on them in an instant.
She wondered if her latest parents finally noticed she still wasn't home. She doubted it. She didn't even care, to be honest. Her eyes were trained on something else. She had been using her powers to enhance her sight. She wasn't here to stop any of the crime or save the day. Something else was on her mind. She dropped from the sky at fast speeds, her wings folding up as she came in for a crash landing and smashed into the roof of a car, caving it in. It thankfully didn't have anyone inside. In front of her, an old stone building crumbled and broke away as someone smashed their way through the wall holding bags of money.
"The hell?" It was a large, bald-headed man. A Super that had just discovered a drug den and decided to raid it and claim it for himself. He was baldheaded and muscular, standing at nearly eight feet tall, and thick stone covered his flesh. "Who the hell are you?"
Mary cocked her head to the side and gave a grin. "It really isn't important. You're pretty strong. I watched you rip your way through that building."
"So?" The man's eyes narrowed.
Mary stepped off of the car, and her sleeves tore as bones jutted out of her flesh and formed into large gauntlets. She held her arms up and grinned, though it was unseen due to the mask she wore over her mouth. "So, I just figured out how my powers work, and I'd like to know just how strong I am."
The villain snorted and placed his bags down. He reached out with his hand and placed it on a nearby car. Slowly the stone in his skin was replaced with jagged iron. "The name's Intake. I'm not some small fry of a villain!" He grew taller and buffer, flexing his body, and took a step forward, shaking the ground. He let out a loud battle roar and rammed his fist forward as hard as he could down at her. His hand slammed directly into her neck and hit her so hard that her neck spun and snapped. Mary dropped to the floor dead instantly. "Oh shit? Damn, I didn't think she was that weak. Cocky little bitch. Maybe in the next life, she'll—" He heard a horrible snapping sound, and he jumped away, staring in horror as Mary snapped her head back on right. "What?"
"I guess I can regenerate." The girl hummed, flexing her fingers. "Come to think of it, I did that when I was stabbed earlier. I wonder if there is a limit." She could feel her bones grow and expand out of her skin, and her blood twisted out like tendrils coming out of her fingertips. They swirled around her hand, forming a large drill that began to spin. "Sweet!" She moved forward so hard she destroyed part of the street and slammed her hand forward. Intake roared out as the drill broke a massive hole in his body and went all the way through him and out his back. Mary ripped her arm out, and he collapsed to his knees, gasping. Her other hand slapped him against the side of his face and sent him flying down the street, and he smacked headfirst into a building and didn't get up.
Intake was flat on his back, his eyes dull, and not twitching. Completely dead-
"I know you're faking." Mary giggled. "I can see your cells putting you back together. You can heal as well, can't you? Though it looks like yours isn't near as good as mine. I never knew how different powers could be! This is kind of cool. Thanks for showing some stuff off. I guess I should kill you quick or something? I'm not really sure how it works. Sorry, I'm new."
Intake growled once more and slowly stood up. The hole in his stomach sealed shut, and he gritted his teeth. "Screw you. Screw this city. This is the last time I do a job here. I'm moving to Oleander, or Lillian, or something. Maybe I'll even take over the Bad Timers!" He charged forward and swung out with his fist. He slammed Mary into the ground and began to pound into her body, hitting her over and over again, twisting and snapping her limbs, and ripping up her clothes, but her body just put itself back together.
Jagged claws grew out of her fingers, and she swung out with them, ripping into his chest and tearing it away. He gasped and groaned as she forced him down to his knees once more. A jagged bone blade stabbed out of her elbow, and she placed it at his throat, about to decapitate him and end the villain known as Intake. She had never really cared for heroes or villains. As far as she was concerned, most people were villains, and heroes never bothered to come save her. She didn't really know the limit on powers or the man that was in front of her. One thing she knew for sure though was that she was strong. Really strong. The blade dug into Intake's neck, and he gasped and groaned, trying to throw her off of him, but blood tendrils grew out of her back and held him down. Far, far, away, beneath the waves, her Pod glowed and shimmered with a blue light.
Blood began to trickle down Intake's neck, and he stared up at her with pleading eyes.
No one ever bothered to help her out when she gave the same look, though, so she really didn't care too much.
"Wait." A voice caused her to jump. It didn't come from Intake. Slowly she pulled her arm away and turned around, finding someone had wandered onto the street. Intake took that as his chance and took off running, but that was okay. She didn't bother with him anymore. Someone else had caught her eye. "Hello." The man smiled as he looked at her. He had a pencil-thin mustache and combed hair. Like the rich people, he wore a suit and held an aura of importance about him. "My name is Landon Grove. It's been a while, Wish."
***
Mary stared out the window as the car drove down the street. It was a plain-looking black one, and Mr. Grove was as boring as they came, refusing to break the speed limit. She was seated in the passenger seat while he drove and, in the back, a cloaked figure rested so tall they had to stay slouched so they didn't touch the roof of the car. "So, are you going to tell me who Wish is? Or actually better question, who are you?" She huffed out.
Most kids knew better when it came to strangers, but she decided that if he pulled any stunts, she'd just kill him. Grove gave a small smile as he turned the car down a new street heading for the rich part of the city. "Your city really isn't what I was expecting, you know. I live in Oleander. I never imagined that your Pod would take you to this place. Blue really screwed up."
"Huh?"
"Oh. I guess I should give an explanation, shouldn't I?" The man hummed.
"I would like that, yes." She sighed. She was definitely going to kill him for sure.
"Let's cut to the chase. I'm the reason you're alive."
"What?" She frowned and raised an eyebrow. "Nice try, buddy. I can see DNA. We don't match. Not at all."
"Oh, that's because I'm not your parent." He changed lanes once more, and she realized he was driving in a circle, taking them down the same block over and over again. "I said I'm the reason you're alive, not that I was your father. I guess if you wanted to call anyone father, it would be Blue."
"Okay? So, then who the hell is this Blue guy?" Mary asked. "Is it the guy in the back?" The cloaked man hadn't spoken once and simply stared out the window in constant silence.
"No. That is my bodyguard. He's here to help keep me safe."
"So, then who is my dad, then?"
"Dozens of years ago, before you were born, there was something that came from space and threatened mankind. We call it the Beast. This creature has made it his life mission to destroy us. I don't know why, and I don't care. I made it my mission to stop it. I've never seen it myself, thank God, but I've seen what it can do. Only one man ever came close to truly stopping it, though. His name was the Emperor. He had discovered something. He figured out that the Beast targeted normal humans above all else. So, he made it his mission to get rid of all humans. He had discovered he had the ability to control life. With this power, he wanted to change all of mankind into Supers. Create a world the Beast wouldn't want to destroy. The humans betrayed him, however. They turned their backs on their former hero and even killed him. I saw the truth in what he said, though. I saw what he could do. I used my vast wealth and hunted down the one Super I thought could help me. The only Super who worked for the Hero Branch but turned traitor. He was Doctor Blue. A Super blessed with Mental powers that seemed made to work alongside those of the Emperor. With his help, I wanted to recreate the Emperor. Sadly, that isn't possible. So instead, we did the next best thing. We took the Emperor's DNA, as well as the DNA of one of his soldiers, and mixed them together with the help of a device created by the Lords. The Emperor himself had tried to do something similar in the past. I had been afraid that most of his power would go to his creation, but as luck would have it, his title didn't pass down on his death. That title now rests on you."
She blinked a bit as he rambled off his life story. She watched the road in silence. There were still a lot of cars. "That's a lot to dump on me. Let's say I believe you. How'd you even find me?"
The man raised his hand up and held out a finger. A small fly that had been buzzing around the car landed on it. "This is a drone that was created by Avalon. With the help of dozens of Super's, I managed to hack into it. I've had several people looking for you for years now, but I finally seemed to have lucked out. Luck seems to have a way of staying on my side. It is my destiny, after all."
"You're crazy."
"Maybe I am. You were built for me, though. Created to fulfill my wish."
The girl snorted and brushed some of her brown hair back behind her head. "I hate to tell you this, but I don't really have any plans of working for anyone."
"Is that so?" Grove hummed and unclicked his seat belt. "Maybe the next you will think differently."
"What-"
Much to her shock, he popped the door open and threw himself out of the car. By pure chance, it just so happened a mattress had been thrown out of an old home the day before, and he landed back first onto the mattress, breaking his fall. Mary stared with wide eyes as the car went out of control and smashed into the side of a building. Metal and glass exploded around her, but she was left mostly fine. Or at least she would have been, but a second later the car filled with intense smoke as the guy in the back seat lit up. Purple fire exploded out of him, burning through his cloak and blowing the car up. Mary felt the flames wash over her, and for the first time since she discovered she was a Super, she screamed out in pain as she was blasted through the metal and stone wall of the building they had crashed into.
Screams filled the air, and she realized she had crashed into a bank. The fire still ate away at her body, and her power struggled to heal as she tried to push herself up. She groaned and watched as the hole in the wall expanded and someone stepped toward her. Daemon had changed a lot. His red flesh was a nasty gray color and filled with cracks. He was missing an arm and had become skin and bones. Most shockingly of all, though, was what covered his face. Grove hadn't just stolen the drones from Avalon. A metal hand had its fingers jammed into Daemon's flesh, the once proud warrior of the Emperor reduced to a puppet under Grove's control. A similar fate that would await her, Mary guessed, if she didn't put an end to this threat now.
Daemon lifted his hand, and the purple fire blasted out as an intense wave. She threw her arm out, and the limb stretched, getting longer and wrapped around the back of someone's shirt. She threw them in front of her just in time. They screamed as the fire blasted them to bits and gave Mary enough time to roll out of the way. The parts of her that were still on fire tore away, and she began to slowly heal, breathing heavily. Daemon charged forward and swung out with his remaining arm. He was tall and lanky, yet his body packed a serious force of strength behind it, even in this destroyed state. She tried to block his strike, but it destroyed both of her arms, snapping the bones and making her howl in pain. His leg kicked up, smashing into her stomach, and she slammed back, smashing through a person and blowing them to bits.
Her body tried to heal itself, but Daemon didn't give her any time. He grabbed a desk and ripped it out of the ground, swinging it at her. She managed to form wings out of her back and tried to fly up, but he smashed the desk over her body and slammed her back down into the ground. With another wave of his hand, purple fire sprayed out, mowing down more of the people and causing the building to shake as the fire spread throughout it. Sirens wailed in the distance, but they weren't police sirens. Instead, they were something else. Something far worse. It caused Daemon to pause for a second, but the hand that was over his face dug its fingers deeper into him, and he shook his head, walking forward once more and raising his foot up. He brought it down onto her face, and she screamed as she felt her skull start to crack and break. He used all of his might and forced it down as hard as he could, shattering the floor, and Mary felt her face cave in and give out as his foot broke past it and he stepped on her brain.
Everything went dark.
Death.
That's what this was.
No...
Not death.
Because she wasn't alone. There was more of her.
A light.
It began to eat away at the darkness, and for a moment she saw her life. It flashed before her eyes. Every scumbag parent. All the words they'd call her, all the harm they'd leave on her. All those failed friends she made just like Amy. All of it swirled through her head. It wasn't alone either. There was another. A set of memories that weren't her. Someone that looked like her but was just off. A young girl. One with reddish brown hair and bright blue eyes. She watched this girl. No. She was this girl. For a moment, the memories went through her—every moment of this girl's life. It went alongside her own. The good and the bad. She watched this girl, this thing, the one known as Sky.
But whereas hers was mostly bad, this one was mostly good.
She watched Mary get sent back into foster care.
She watched Sky officially become a part of a family and be adopted by a woman named River.
She watched Mary be forced to move to a different school in a different city, leaving the few friends she had behind.
She watched Sky gain an older sister, one that would protect her always.
She watched Mary have her skull caved in by a monster, and no hero showed up to help her.
She watched Sky be nearly kidnapped by a villain, and every Enforcer member came to her rescue.
She saw her life.
She saw the life she wanted.
Under the waves of an ocean, a small metal Pod hummed with a blue light. 'Authorization accepted.'
The darkness broke away. Daemon stepped back and grunted as a wave of power crackled out in all directions. Mary's head reformed, putting itself back together, and her hair grew out, changing into a pure white. She felt her power grow. Double, triple, quadruple, but it wasn't enough. She wanted more! She didn't know how long she had been out for, but the sun was rising up above and the bank building was destroyed. Something was going on in her city. Smoke rose into the air, and screams were around every corner. She didn't care though. This surge of power was so strong that the metal around Daemon's face lit up and shattered, the hand falling off. His eyes gained their light back once more, and he stared at the girl as if he were gazing upon a goddess.
"By the light of the Emperor, it's true." He muttered. "You really are the next one. My leader-"
Mary's fist went through his face, blowing his head to bits and killing him in one shot. Daemon was finally put to rest. She swiped her hand, shooting off the blood, and stepped off of the wreckage of the building. She stared out at her city, calmly taking it in. She felt powerful. Godlike even. Yet no one was around to see it. Bodies littered the streets, and in the distance, she watched as buildings fell. Clouds swarmed the sky above, raining down constant bolts of lightning, and the siren's warning never stopped—a constant ringing that was being drowned out by the screams of the damned. By now, that Grove guy had likely gotten away. He might have even been the cause for all of this, though she had no real way of knowing.
She walked forward slowly, watching as buildings came crashing down around her and the screams grew louder. Everywhere she looked were melted bodies. An intense heat came from up ahead, and then she heard it. "M- Mary." She turned and stared down an alleyway. Amy stood shivering despite the heat, her eyes bloodshot and wide. The girl ran at her and grabbed her. "You have to save me! You're a Super, right? You need to get me out of here, please! I don't want to die." The girl sobbed. "It came out of nowhere. It destroyed my house! My mom is already-"
"What's going on?" She cut the girl off and looked around.
"It's horrible!" Amy sobbed out. "It's-"
She felt an intense heat smash into her, and it tore her off of her feet and threw her down the alleyway. Amy was gone. Reduced to less than ash in a single instance. It was a beam of golden energy, and thanks to her eyes, she could see the massive amount of intense radiation that was being funneled into her body. It was breaking her cells down bit by bit. She gasped and tried to fight against it, but it was no use. She was going to die again. Be forced to relive that life of the other her. She was melting. Crumbling to dust, her regeneration unable to keep up. She saw it though. The thing that was killing her. It was large and powerful, and she finally put it together. What was happening?
Chrysanthemum, the city she lived in, had just been visited by the Beast.
In a blinding flash, Mary's body truly broke away into nothingness as she once again died. But it wasn't the end for her... Not at the moment. Not while the link still existed.
Memories flashed, and for a moment she was that girl. Or at least watching the events play out through the girl's eyes.
Far, far away in Lillian, Sky rested on a swing set, going back and forth slowly. Her head was bowed, and she sighed. This was before she was Paragon. Before she had her powers, and before she had been blinded by her sister Lily. "Is something wrong?" A voice asked.
Sky turned a bit and realized that she wasn't alone. Someone else was on the other set of swings. A grown man. One who wore a simple suit. He had messy blonde hair and a bit of a beard, and heavy bags under his eyes. "Who are you?" The fourteen-year-old girl asked, narrowing her eyes.
The blonde man chuckled and held his hands up. "You can relax. I'm a friend of your grandfathers."
"Grampa Adam?"
"That's right. I used to be on his team." The man nodded. "I was told it's your birthday today. You just turned fourteen? I saw you weren't very happy though, so I thought I'd pay you a visit."
Sky frowned and shrugged. "I'm just a little bummed, is all. Mom and my sister had to leave." The Beast from space had arrived. Ocean Empress hadn't wanted to go, but apparently Lily was eager to try out her powers now that she had unlocked her Lord transformation and ran out, despite the danger. Mom went to get her back. After all, the Beast was something most people don't come back from. "I know it's important. The reason they aren't here. But it still kind of ticks me off." Sky sighed. She swung back and forth on the swing for a moment, feeling the wind in her red hair.
The blonde man nodded his head. He reached down to something that had rested on the ground next to him. "Well, since it's your birthday and I'm in the area, I thought I'd give you something special. After all, I've missed a lot of your previous birthdays due to being a bit busy with something." He handed something over to her, and she stopped and stared at it. It was covered by cloth, but already she had a good idea of what it was. It was shaped like a bird cage. "Go on."
She gripped the cloth and slowly pulled it down. It was in fact a bird cage. Inside was a type of bird she had never seen before. It caused her to gasp as she stared at it. It was young. Not a newborn, but not an adult either. It looked almost like a hawk or an eagle, but covered in crimson red fur. Its feathers looked sharp and jagged, and there was an intelligent light hidden behind its eyes. It stared up at her and cocked its head to the side.
The blonde man chuckled when he saw the star-struck look in her eyes. "His name is Destiny." The man's smile faded for a moment, and he grew serious. "He's the last of his kind. There isn't another of his species out there. His parents died a few years ago, and sadly, I can't take care of him. You can, though, Sky. I'd like for you to raise him."
"Really? Wait... Where did you even get something like this? Who are you? And why would you give me something as important as this? We've never met?"
The blonde man reached out and placed his hand on top of her head. "You're right. We haven't met. But I would move the world for you. That's what a father should do."
Sky felt her eyes go wide, but suddenly her mind stopped working. Her thoughts ceased, and her eyes rolled to the back of her head. The blonde man's hand glowed with a faint black energy, and she slumped to the ground, unconscious. Sky wouldn't remember this conversation, nor would she know just where she got this bird from. She would have a strange urge to keep it though and decided to name it Destiny.
The blonde man would vanish from her memories. This wasn't the first time he had come to her after all, not that she could recall.
Nier, the man that should be dead, the monster that became the Emperor, turned away once he was sure Sky was fine. He placed his hands in his pockets and stared out at the world around him. He could feel it. The Beast. It had arrived on Earth. Just two years. Two years from now, he will be able to start his plan. He would stop the Beast for good. Until then, though, the world would think he was truly gone. The shadows rose up, swirling around him, and then he was gone.
And so, time would pass...
Mary slowly opened her eyes. She found herself suspended in a strange box. One that held a liquid that she floated in. "Her consciousness survived." A voice caught her attention, and she felt herself shake when her eyes finally came into focus. "Normally, when a Lord dies, the power passes on. However, in her case, while her body might have been reduced to ash, her soul stayed within this world thanks to the connection she held. As such, she's still alive." They were in a strange metal room. Out in the Wastelands, a tower that was long forgotten. Grove stood directly in front of her, and behind him a blind man with a cane explained everything. Doctor Blue cleared his throat. "Though I would suggest we not let her die too much. The connection she has with the entity known as Sky could cause some... Issues."
"Of course." Grove placed his hand on the glass and stared into the Lord of Life's eyes, a smirk on his lips. "Welcome back to the world of the living, my Wish. You've been dead for nearly one year now. But I've brought you back." Behind him a metal Pod rested, one that glowed with a blue light. "I won't let my Wish die so easily. You saw it right. I was there. I witnessed it finally firsthand. Destiny led me on this path. How lucky I was that you glimpsed it. You see why I did what I did now, right? The power it holds."
She did. The Beast. A monster. More than any creature the Emperor had created. It was a true threat. It killed her so easily. Even with her enhanced power.
"I can help you become stronger." Grove announced. "And if you help me, then once and for all, we can slay the Beast."
That day Mary died.
That day, Wish was born.