Kenji sat on the precarious edge of a jagged skyscraper, one leg dangling lazily over the abyss as his senses spread across the sprawling ruin of Blüdhaven like a fine, invisible net.
A combination of Zetsu and the inherent magical dampening of his porcelain mask erased his presence almost completely as he sat there watching the view. To any vampire or hero scanning the area, the rooftop was empty, unless they really focused, they would not really see him.
He waited, feeling the static of impending violence thick in the air. It was like the very air was charged with power and blood.
Van and Erza were close, he could feel their distinct magical signatures skirting the city's perimeter as they made their way to his location.
Sora had wanted to join them on the front lines, a request that had genuinely surprised Kenji. The kid wasn't a combatant, never had been. He was a thinker, a strategist who preferred the safety.
But ever since Kenji's temporary "death" in this world when they first arrived, something had shifted in the boy.
Sora had said that watching a pillar of strength fall had apparently ignited a deep-seated hatred for his own perceived uselessness. That he wasnt to do more, help more in any way he could, and if he had to fight, then so be it.
Sora had even talked with him about spending his hard-earned points on combat skills to help with the fight. Kenji had shut that down immediately.
"You already helped," Kenji had told him, his voice firm but not unkind. And it was true. Sora's logistical planning had helped the human resistance push back vampire territory in the closer territory, and his tactical dossiers had directly led to the permanent deaths of several of Nightwing's lesser vamps.
Kenji didn't need another warrior, another fighter. What they actually needed was a brain that could navigate the insanity of this world and the other worlds to come, and why not the smartest out of them all.
To ensure Sora's safety, Kenji had ordered the remaining of his forces to stay behind and fortify the boy's position.
Today was the final act, and if things went right, these months of nightmare would finally end. Kenji was sick of the ash-filled skies, the perpetual gloom, and the smell of copper and rot that permeated every corner of this world.
God, he missed Ren, he missed Ayaka, and Aoi. He missed his wife, damn it.
He sighed. 'Clam Kenji, it's almost all over'.
An explosion thundered through the city's district, vibrating through half the city.
His eyes snapped toward a building several blocks away. Fire blossomed in the dark, illuminating the swarms of leathery-winged vampires surging toward the heat like moths to a funeral pyre.
"Guess it's started," he muttered, standing up and adjusting the weight of the Yamato at his side.
Suddenly, a bright, piercing light tore through the thick layer of volcanic clouds.
A....Bat-signal?. Here in Bludhaven?.
Kenji blinked, his eyebrows shooting up behind his mask. "…Since when the hell did Blüdhaven have that?" He genuinely froze for a moment. He was a comic fan, sure, but he didn't recall Dick Grayson ever having a dedicated signal in this city. Did he miss something from the comics.
But the surprises were just beginning.
Another light ignited three blocks over. Then another. And another. Within moments, dozens of Bat-signals blazed across rooftops all over the city, their beams crisscrossing the sky in a chaotic, blinding web. It was somewhat beautiful as they shone in the dark skies like that.
"Well damn," Kenji whispered, a trace of respect in his voice. Seems Barbara hadn't just been brooding in the shadows for the last few months.
The vampires all seem to rush towards the lights. One particularly large vampire lunged atop a nearby water tower. It let out a harrowing shriek that ended abruptly.
The light wasn't just a beacon, it was a high-intensity ultraviolet trap, a concentrated artificial sun. The creature ignited mid-air, turning to ash before its remains could even hit the pavement.
"Impressive," Kenji noted, watching what he could only describe as the "distraction team" in action. Damian and Frankenstein burst out from the flaming building below.
They tore through the undead ranks, creating a path of ash as they ran toward the city center. Barbara and Harley were nowhere to be seen, likely moving towards another side.
As dozens of vampires closed in on Damian, a massive, searing blast slammed down from the heavens, vaporizing the front line in a burst of solar energy.
Batwoman landed heavily, her red cape snapping in the wind, with Starfire touching down moments later, her eyes glowing emerald with unadulterated fury.
They exchanged a few hurried words that Kenji couldn't quite catch from this distance, but before anything else could be done, the sky opened up.
Starfire was blasted out of the air by a bolt of pure atomic energy. A vampire Captain Atom descended, his metallic skin glowing with a sickly, radioactive blue light.
More vampires poured in from all sides, as if sensing the shift in power. But there weren't the only ones to come, Kenji watched as humans started crawling out of the woodworks to fight too.
The humans fought back with a desperation that bordered on madness. From hidden bunkers, from the ruins of apartments, and from the very shadows of the alleyways, the surviving citizens of Blüdhaven emerged. They wielded flamethrowers, silver-tipped bolts, and modified UV lanterns, fighting for a world they no longer recognized.
The streets became a bloodbath.
Batgirl, Black Canary, and Harley crashed into the fray, as they seemed to dance through the crowd of vampires, bringing permanent death to the undead.
For a moment, it looked like they were being pushed back by the sheer weight of numbers, until a series of horns blared, cutting through the screams of the dying and the undead.
Motorbikes roared through the debris-strewn streets, the high-pitched whine of engines echoing off the buildings. Red Arrow, Signal, Orphan, and Spoiler swept into the square on their bikes.
They each grabbed an individual before they made a beeline for Nightwing's building.
Kenji moved now, leaping from rooftop to rooftop with effortless grace. He stayed above the chaos, his presence still masked, occasionally flicking a finger to trigger a gravity spike to help with a vampire that got too close to a hero.
Then Captain Atom fired a sustained beam of atomic radiation.
The energy ripped through the street, melting the asphalt into glass and sending the bikes tumbling into the ruins. Starfire rocketed back in with a war cry that shook the windows for miles, spearing Atom mid-air. The two of them shot upward, clashing like twin meteors.
On the ground, the temperature plummeted in a heartbeat.
Ice exploded outward from a side street, instantly freezing a dozen human rebels into grotesque, translucent statues.
A vampire, Mister Freeze, stepped forward, his suit modified with dark symbols that pulsed with a cold, necrotic light.
Black Canary didn't hesitate. She took a deep, lung-bursting breath and let out a Canary Cry of such frequency that it shattered the ice and blasted Freeze through three brick buildings, burying him in a mountain of rubble. But the vampires were already closing in again, sensing the heroes' growing exhaustion.
Before the claws could reach them, swords rained from the sky.
Dozens of gleaming blades impaled the lead vampires, pinning them to the earth as they were turned ot ash. Kenji looked up to see Erza hovering in her Heaven's Wheel armor, her silver wings reflecting the stuttering Bat-signals like a goddess of war.
Beside her, Vandalieu descended, a swirling vortex of spirits and ghostly flames incinerating anything that dared to stand against them. His presence brought a different kind of dread to the vampires, that they didn't seem to understand themselves.
Still, that was only thinning the fodder. The real monsters finally stepped into the light. Wonder Girl, KGBeast, Victor Zsasz, and a hulking Bane.
Kenji clenched his jaw. He wanted to jump in and end it, but....Not yet. The board wasn't fully set. It would be too stupid to act now.
Still, he used his spatial awareness to keep an eye on the entire thing so as to make sure that he was able to reduce the casualties on their side.
His senses locked on the Signal, who was currently pinned beneath the combined weight of Wonder Girl and KGBeast. Kenji flicked his fingers toward them.
He flexed, and Gravity spiked.
The two vampires were crushed and pulled back away from their prey. Signal didn't stop to ask questions, he rolled out, grabbed his stakes, and finished them both for good.
The city was pure, unadulterated chaos. And then, as if the universe decided the stakes weren't high enough, a portal of jagged, sickly green light tore open in the middle of the street.
A ghostly, transparent John Constantine stumbled through, looking like he'd been chewed up by a nightmare dimension and spat out. Mary Marvel burst out next, her costume shredded and her power flickering, carrying a limp, unconscious Supergirl in her arms. Captain Cold followed them, gasping for air and clutching his chest, until a green, phased hand erupted through his sternum.
Martian Manhunter stepped through the portal, hissing, his eyes glowing. He tossed Cold's corpse aside like trash and lunged at Mary Marvel. Constantine screamed, blood dripping from his eyes as he tried to weave a closing spell, but he was too slow.
Two more figures crashed out of the portal before it closed, locked in a brutal, bone-breaking wrestling match, Lobo and Miss Martian.
They hit the ground with enough force to create a minor earthquake, immediately continuing their brawl in the middle of the battlefield.
Kenji stared, his jaw nearly dropping behind his mask. "…What the hell is going on right now?" This was an absolute wreck.
"Can it get any worse—" He cut himself off, his eyes widening in the realization of his own hubris. 'Why the hell did I just say that?'
The universe seemed to take his statement and replied with a 'YOU BET'.
Something slammed into the ground with the force of an orbital strike. The impact shook Blüdhaven to its foundations, shattering glass for ten blocks. When the dust finally cleared, Frankenstein lay broken, his limbs twisted at impossible angles and his head separated from his torso in the center of the crater.
Dead. Truly, finally dead this time.
Two figures stood where the monster had fallen, which made the hair on Kenji's neck stand up. Golden lightning crackled around one, dancing across his body.
Kenji's breath slowed as he stared at the two.
Shazam and Superman.
"…Round two, it seems," he said quietly, the Yamato appearing in his hand with a soft, metallic shring that cut through the noise of the battle.
———————————————————
If you want to read ahead and access 40 advanced chapters, check the patreon. $4 Dollars
Link:patreon/Phantomking785