The war room was unusually quiet, the soft hum of machinery the only sound filling the air. Morty stood by the main console, his fingers idly tracing the edges of the maps and data that glowed faintly beneath his hands. The rebellion's base was a hive of activity, but Morty felt isolated, his mind focused on only one thing: Vaxon. His injuries had healed—at least enough to let him breathe without the constant terror of his body tearing itself apart—but his heart still carried the weight of unfinished business.
Morty was no longer living on borrowed time, but the burden of his powers was still there, always present, always reminding him of how close he'd come to the edge. The dimensional rift inside him had been stabilized, and the once searing pain had faded to a dull ache. The scar on his chest, where the wound had been sealed, pulsed with a faint energy, a reminder of the dangerous forces he had tapped into. He could feel it beneath his skin, a constant, almost electrical hum that surged through his veins whenever he focused too hard.
For weeks, Rick and Summer had insisted that Morty rest, that he take time to recover and regain his strength before thinking about their next move. But Morty couldn't stop thinking about Vaxon. Every night, as he lay awake, he saw Vaxon's face, felt the weight of his mocking voice echoing in his mind. The council was still out there, and as long as Vaxon was alive, Morty knew that he would never be free from the chaos the council represented.
He had to end it. He had to finish what they'd started.
Morty raised his hand in front of him, watching as the energy flickered to life in his palm. It was subtle, just a faint glow, but he could feel the raw power there—waiting, ready to be used. He had been cautious with his abilities since the wound had closed, afraid that tapping into them too much would reopen the rift, that the fragile balance Rick had helped him achieve would shatter. But now, standing here alone, Morty felt something different: control.
The energy obeyed him, bending to his will without the resistance he'd once feared. He closed his hand, the glow disappearing as if it had never been there. For the first time in weeks, Morty felt like he was in control—not just of his powers, but of his fate.
But Rick and Summer wouldn't understand that. They had been clear in their insistence that Morty stay out of danger, that they take a tactical approach to the council. Morty could see the fear in their eyes every time he even mentioned using his powers again. He knew they cared about him, that they didn't want to lose him after coming so close, but Morty also knew something they didn't: this fight wouldn't end until Vaxon was taken down.
He couldn't wait any longer.
Morty paced the room, his thoughts spinning, weighing his options. He had spent weeks gathering information, analyzing the patterns of Vaxon's movements, all while pretending to rest. Rick had been too absorbed in building new technology to notice how much Morty had been working on the side, and Summer was too preoccupied with keeping the rebellion running smoothly. Morty had been careful to keep his plans hidden, but now, it was time to act.
Vaxon had been tracking through the multiverse, slipping through dimensions like a ghost, but Morty had found him—or at least, where he would be. A singularity, a dead zone where the fabric of reality bent in on itself. It was the perfect hiding place, a void where even time seemed to lose its meaning. No life existed there, no traces of energy that could be easily followed, but Morty had found the faintest of signals, a ripple that had led him to the one place Vaxon would think himself safe.
Morty had no illusions about what he was planning. This wasn't a tactical strike or a carefully planned mission. This was a confrontation, a final showdown between him and the man who had nearly destroyed his family. He couldn't risk bringing Rick and Summer along; they would try to stop him, to talk him out of it, and Morty knew that hesitation would only give Vaxon the upper hand. This was something he had to do alone.
With his mind made up, Morty began gathering the supplies he would need. He slipped through the base quietly, avoiding the main halls where Rick and Summer might be. He grabbed a portal gun, a small energy shield generator, and a blaster from the armory. It wasn't much, but Morty knew that this fight wouldn't be won with weapons. It would be won with the power inside him—the power he had been too afraid to fully embrace until now.
As Morty prepared to leave, he paused for a moment, his hand hovering over the console that would open a portal to the singularity. Doubt crept in, the familiar fear of losing control, of failing not just himself, but Rick and Summer. They had saved his life, pulled him back from the brink when he thought all hope was lost. And now, he was about to walk into a battle that could tear everything apart again.
But then he remembered Vaxon's voice, the way he had taunted them, the way he had hurt Summer and nearly broken their family. Morty couldn't let that happen again. He couldn't let Vaxon walk free, plotting in the shadows while they waited for the perfect moment to strike. Morty had the power to end this, and for better or worse, he was going to use it.
With a deep breath, Morty activated the portal, the swirling green vortex opening in front of him. He looked back at the war room one last time, the faint glow of the screens casting long shadows across the floor. He imagined Rick and Summer walking in, finding the room empty, realizing what he had done. He knew they would be furious, terrified even, but he also knew that this was the only way to protect them.
"I'm sorry," Morty whispered, stepping through the portal and into the unknown.
The singularity was exactly as Morty had imagined: cold, empty, and silent. There were no stars, no planets, just the endless black void stretching out in every direction. The air was thick with a strange energy, a pressure that made it hard to breathe, like the very fabric of space was pressing in on him. Morty could feel the weight of the singularity pulling at him, tugging at the edges of reality itself.
He stood at the edge of the void, staring into the darkness, his senses on high alert. Vaxon was here. Morty could feel it—the faintest ripple of energy, a disturbance in the singularity that didn't belong. It was subtle, but now that Morty had trained himself to focus, to control the energy inside him, he could sense the shift in the air, the way reality seemed to bend ever so slightly around the source of the disturbance.
Morty tightened his grip on his blaster, though he knew it was more for comfort than actual use. His power would be his weapon now, and he could feel it thrumming beneath his skin, waiting to be unleashed. He had spent so long fearing his abilities, fearing what they would do to him, but now, standing on the edge of oblivion, Morty realized that he didn't have to be afraid anymore. He wasn't the scared kid who had barely survived the council's first attack. He was something more now—something stronger.
A figure appeared in the distance, stepping out of the shadows as if the void itself had given birth to him. Vaxon.
He looked just as Morty remembered: tall, elegant, his dark suit immaculate, his eyes glowing faintly with the same energy that pulsed in the air around them. There was no fear in his gaze, no surprise at seeing Morty standing there. If anything, Vaxon looked amused.
"So, you finally found me," Vaxon said, his voice echoing across the singularity, calm and dripping with condescension. "I must admit, I didn't expect you to come alone. But then again, perhaps I've underestimated you."
Morty didn't flinch, his eyes locked on Vaxon's as the energy inside him surged, ready to strike. "This ends now, Vaxon. You're not walking away from this."
Vaxon smiled, a cold, cruel smile that sent a chill down Morty's spine. "Oh, Morty. I think you'll find that I'm not so easy to defeat. But by all means, try."
Morty took a step forward, the energy in his chest flaring to life. "I'm not afraid of you anymore."
Vaxon's smile widened. "We'll see about that."
And then, the void around them exploded into chaos.
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