Showdown! The Best of the Best

Chapter Twelve

"Okay, we're not getting anywhere."

Starfire and Deku both stopped, mid-flight and mid-step, respectively. Danny lowered himself to the ground to stand before them, crossing his arms. They had been trekking through the jungle since early morning, and it was now nearing midday. Their battle with the Kriegbots felt like it had taken place in another lifetime. Danny's eyes glowed with a defiance and ferocity, the desire to find and dispatch the person who had sent these robots after them apparent.

"What do you mean, Danny?" Deku asked.

"Look, we agreed we should be looking for this guy, Kringle, right?" He demanded. "But we didn't even stop to think about how we're going to find him. We don't have any kind of lead, so we're just flying blind basically. How long is it gonna be before more of his robo-freaks find us?"

Deku wasn't sure he had the answers Danny was looking for. He sighed deeply, wishing All Might were here to give him counsel. Japan's number one hero had always been by his side, it seemed. But now that he required his assistance the most, he was far away. Deku turned to Starfire, wondering if she had any other recourse for the ghost boy.

"Unfortunately," Starfire mused, "our options are limited. There is so little we know about this 'Kringle.' We do not even know how we arrived here."

"Or if there are others like us here," Deku added. "Maybe there are other warriors stuck in this same jungle. Maybe instead of going after whoever created these robots, we should be focusing on forming an alliance."

Danny furrowed his brow, reflecting on what Deku was saying. 

"Maybe you're right," he conceded. "Hell, even with the three of us, we could barely defeat three of those robot things. More help might be exactly what we need."

"Admitting your weaknesses is something I so rarely see you doing, Daniel."

The three heroes snapped their heads around to see who had spoken, even though Danny recognized the voice immediately. Two figures blocked their way forward. One of them, Danny recognized instantly, even though the other was unfamiliar to him:  a woman, wearing feudal, black and red armor, with her ebony hair in a topknot. The man with her, however, Danny knew all too well. His arch-nemesis, and the man that had tried to rip his family apart and kill him on numerous occasions in the past.

Vlad Plasmius.

"Vlad!" Danny spat. "What are you doing here?"

"You know him?" Deku demanded.

"Unfortunately," he replied bitterly.

"No warm welcome for me, old chum?" Vlad cackled. "I was so happy when I was informed I would get the chance to see you again. Granted, I've been ordered to capture you and take you back to Kringle---"

"Vlad," the sinister-looking woman snapped. "Watch your mouth."

"Do you know her, as well?" Starfire asked, addressing Danny.

"No, I don't recognize her," Danny replied. "But they both obviously know Kringle."

"See what you've done, you chattering buffoon?" The armored woman hissed. "This is what your posturing gets us."

"Oh, be silent!" Vlad growled. "I didn't come all this way to be lectured by a child!"

"Who are you?" Deku asked, the sapphire energy beginning to crackle to life around him already. "What do you want?"

"Since we're introducing ourselves, I am Azula, Princess of the Fire Nation," she snarled evilly. "I guess it's pointless to hide our motives from you, since my eloquent companion here has already spoiled our intentions."