Of Heroes and Villains

The Gathering Storm

As Don, Jordan and Dean entered the basement, they got ready for a fight. The Destroyer was still there, stuck in the concrete. As soon as he saw them, his eye started glowing, and he rose back to the surface.

"You really fucked me up with that one, kitties. Time for some payback."

Don took a deep breath, then yelled, "He can't cancel your vapors if he's not looking directly at you! Just hit him while he's focusing on us!"

The large man released a guttural laugh. "Kid, you really don't have a clue, do you?"

Don took a closer look at the cells, and realized no one was moving.

Jordan stepped through the cell, now taking her clothes with her, and checked the pulse of the nearest woman. Then the nearest man. Then another esper. Then another. "All dead," she said in horror.

Don glared at the Destroyer. "What the fuck did you do?"

A feeling of dread overcame Don, and the room started to fade. He found himself unable to move, as though he were locked in a giant spider web. A nearly-transparent arm of darkness appeared in front of him, then slapped him across the basement. He tried to land on his feet, but his body wasn't obeying him.

His senses returned to normal, but he still couldn't move.

"Pathetic," said a woman's voice as someone moved behind the Destroyer. "She had such a powerful vapor, and she's been sitting on its power all this time."

"Lan?" Dean's shock was obvious. The girl smiled at him, and then he found himself caught in the coils of a giant cobra. The shadowy snake opened its mouth, and all fight left Dean as he fell to his knees. "Y-You're not-"

"Bingo!" answered the person using Lan's body. "I thought I could use a wardrobe change. What do you think, lover?" She turned around as though showing off a new dress. "I know you prefer blondes, but this one's got its charms, too."

Dean's eyes widened. "Erin?"

The possessed Lan smirked. "The one and only."

"But how?"

"I've already explained it to Sean," she said, sounding both bored and mildly annoyed. "Just before he tore my head off."

Jordan stayed quiet, looking for an opening.

Dean grit his teeth as he tried to move, but the snake wouldn't let him. "What did you do to him?"

"Oh, he won our little game earlier. Save those tears for after I'm done with you."

"What the fuck did you do to these people?"

Erin rolled her eyes. "Is it not obvious? You guys discovered what the Destroyer can do, which meant it was only a matter of time before one of them did. Detaining them was no longer an option, so I pulled the plug on all their experiments." The snake's hold on Dean tightened. "I hope you know just how much you've cost me. Billions of dollars went into this, as did decades of hard work. Now it's all gone down the drain, just because you had to play the hero!" The snake bit into Dean's shoulder, but he didn't scream.

Instead, he fought. He took a deep breath, gathered as much power as he could, then yelled, "KNOCK HER OUT!"

Erin was slow to react. She didn't even get to turn around to try and stop it. The Destroyer fell under Dean's complete control, then punched the girl in the back of the neck, rendering her unconscious. An electric current fled the girl's body, escaping into the ceiling, and Lan made her move. The look in the Destroyer's eye was dazed. He wasn't using his vapor, which meant he must've still been under Dean's control.