Part 13: Disaster Area

His howls quickly turned to psychotic laughter. His face was hooded by the shadow of his helmet. “Do you think you have defeated me? Do you think that just because you believe yourselves to be warriors of ‘good’ that you are assured victory over my ‘evil’? How naive! This world is governed by power, not by idiotic notions of right or wrong. The strong survive. The strongest rule. It doesn’t matter what your motives are if you have the power to force others to do your bidding. The one in charge decides what’s right and wrong.”

Anubis was taken aback. What did he say? Anubis was reminded of a conversation he’d had with Jack a few days ago. Jack was usually tight-lipped, but one time they’d actually had a philosophical talk about evil and power in general.

Astarte sneered at their enemy. “You are the fool! The gods believed as you did and look where it got them. Almost all of them are dead. Their amoral games of power destroyed them because those who seek power selfishly eventually fall prey to their own vices.”

Anubis almost dropped his scythe. The Lord of Storms had used the same, exact words Jack had used. The strong survive. The strongest rule. It doesn’t matter what your motives are if you have the power to force others to do your bidding. The one in charge decides what’s right and wrong. No! It couldn’t be!

The Lord of Storms stood up, looking strong as ever. But Mia could see much of it was bravado. Now that the priests weren’t casting their energies at him, she could see other things as well. He radiated a strange greyness—as if darkness and light struggled within him. He noticed her interest and turned to her. For a second Mia saw a look of helplessness and hopelessness in his eyes that she’d seen before—across the dining room table. That was the expression Jack often wore! But how could…? Suddenly the face changed.

He charged her with an animal growl, hammer ready to strike. His only thought was that she knew. He had to silence her. Without the priests to back him, though, he felt slightly disoriented. He swung wildly at her. She ducked effortlessly. What was wrong with him? He should’ve had her. He stepped back and threw the hammer at her. It struck Mia in the shoulder, knocking her off-balance. Instead of hitting her again and again, the hammer returned to his hand. The Lord of Storms stared at her, unable to decide what he wanted to do.

Astarte zapped him several times from behind. The impact landed him on the ground, his armor smoking where she got him. He looked back at her, clenching his teeth in pain. “Shooting me in the back? And here I thought you were the honorable heroes. How disappointing.”

Astarte snorted. “I am a warrior. I use whatever advantage circumstance gives me. Especially when the life of a comrade is in danger. There is a difference between being honorable and being foolish. There is no place on a battlefield for chivalrous nonsense. That is best left to the civilized world…and war is by no means civilized.” She zapped him again before he could get up. His anger seemed to give him strength as he rose despite her attacks.

Mia was on her feet again, wobbly but okay. She caught Anubis’s eye. They exchanged a look of understanding. Anubis was thinking the same thing. Jack was the Lord of Storms!

Someone was shouting, “Anubis, use the Chaos Fury while you have the chance!”

“No.” He watched as the Lord of Storms stood straight. Anubis met his gaze. “Jack, what’s happened to you?”

Everyone but Mia gaped open-mouthed.

Jack grimaced menacingly. “So, the truth-sayer isn’t the only one who sees hidden things.”

“Jack, you have to fight the evil that has you in its grip! Your brother has somehow taken control of you and the armor. Fight him!”

The Lord of Storms laughed, chilling Anubis to the bone. “And here I thought you were insightful. I gave you too much credit. There is no evil twin brother, you fool. There never was. I was the Lord of Storms all along. I just needed to be reminded.”

“But the attacks, the storms…”

“That was all my own power awakening. Years ago Badamon gave some of his apprentices the job of finishing the lost Sentinel armor. They wove dark magic into it, changing it so that whoever wore it would become the kind of person Talpa would use. But with all their magic, they could never ignite its power. It was dormant like the other armors. And when the fools completely finished it, it unexpectedly followed its original programming and sought out an owner. Talpa was…displeased that it had disappeared and exiled them here. Over time, they became a kind of cult, waiting for the day I would rise up and be their new master. I would have lived my whole life never knowing that the armor was there, hidden on my skin, until you brought your Sentinel armors back to life. Then mine became active as well. Once I had the hammer in my hand, the armor and I were complete.” He sneered. “I have you to thank for my new, enlightened path. Weak, anonymous Jack became the powerful, feared Lord of Storms. I was quite put out by your interference with my ninjas, however. They were just seeking me out to bring me home. Now I will have to find and train more. A pity.” He raised his hammer. “DEATHSTORM STRIKE!” A streak of black lightning screamed through the sky.

“THUNDER BOLT CUT!” Sage countered his attack, several smaller bolts of energy meeting Jack’s in a tremendous explosion in the air.

Jack raised his hammer again when Rowen, who had been fighting the ninjas, turned to shoot at him. “ARROW SHOCK WAVE!” The arrow went through Jack’s arm, causing him to drop the hammer. The blast itself knocked him back into the rubble.

Trace called vines up out of the ground. They twined around the hammer just as Jack crawled towards it, pulling it underground.

Jack tried to call it back to him, but he was too weak. Physically and emotionally drained. Was this the end? Would they kill him now? Yes…that was the only attainable goal he had left. His vision blurred slightly as tears pricked his eyes. He pushed himself up with all the strength he had left. He would force their hand—one way or another.

He completely surprised Anubis by lunging at him weaponless. Jack was like a wild animal. He punched at Anubis, seemingly oblivious to the pain Rowen’s arrow had caused. He battered at him with hands clasped into one fist. He kicked at him with wide swings. At first Anubis didn’t retaliate, but then he swung his scythe, hitting Jack in the stomach with the staff part. Jack was staggered, but recovered quickly. He charged Anubis again, smashing his armored fist into his face. Fury lit in Anubis’s eyes, a fury Mia didn’t like. The Armor of Chaos tended to make him act more irrational sometimes. Once when they’d all joined armors so Anubis could use the “Chaos Maelstrom”, he temporarily lost himself in its wild power and the strong feelings it evoked in him.

Jack leaped at Anubis and clipped him with a flying kick. Anubis swung his scythe again and again in the throes of battle-fury, cutting deep gashes into the Storm Armor. Jack fell to the ground, blood oozing from his wounds. He was so weak he couldn’t even keep up his armor. With a crackle of electricity, it disappeared. He smiled, a thankful, tired gesture of surrender, and closed his eyes. Finish it, Anubis. Finish it.

“NOOOO!” Mia and Ryo ran to Jack’s side. Anubis was horrified. His hand went slack, the scythe slipping from his fingers to clang against the rocks. He stumbled over to Jack in a daze and dropped to the ground.

Jack was enraged. “Why did you stop? You have to fight me. I’m going to kill you—kill you all!” He tried to get up, grabbing at Anubis. “Fight me, damn you! FIGHT ME! KILL ME!” He was so weak he fell back, coughing up blood. His voice became a raspy whisper. “You have to kill me…please. It was me all along, subconsciously controlling the storms with the priests’ help. I know that now. I couldn’t stop it. When I touched the hammer, all the darkness in me welled up and I couldn’t stop it. I…I killed my…parents. Hurt so many others. Couldn’t stop...” He didn’t know how he could hurt so much—outside and inside—and still be alive. He half-heartedly swung at Mia with a pathetic punch that had no force behind it. It didn’t even make contact. “Please.”

Astarte knelt beside him. “We’re not going to kill you Jack. We’re going to help you.” Since he wasn’t actively wearing his armor, Astarte could now use her powers on him. She held his head, looking deep into his eyes. Hers glowed unearthly green. “You will rest now. You will sleep and dream of being healthy in mind and body and spirit. Nothing will trouble your unconscious thoughts.”

She turned to Sage and Trace. They nodded and came forward. Jack’s wounds were severe—he would need strong healing. Sage had a healing touch. And Trace was attuned to the life force of the very Earth. When he combined that with Astarte’s powers as a goddess of life, they could heal people. Trace and Astarte once brought Gilgamesh back from the brink of death, but Astarte had sacrificed her immortality to do it. Although she still had super-human abilities, she would never have that level of power again. The three of them laid their hands one on top of the other on Jack’s chest. They all began to glow a strange green. Then the Jewel of Life flared up around Astarte’s neck. Jack’s ragged breathing evened out as the cuts on his chest slowly healed. Trace, Sage, and Astarte slumped over in exhaustion.

Astarte would need to rest for several hours before attempting to teleport them all home. Mia looked around at the compound. At least they’d gotten rid of all the priests and ninjas. They would have peace and quiet to rest…and to think.