Villains

The air was thick with smoke as houses collapsed one after another. Screams echoed throughout the city. It was a Villain attack. Flaming projectiles flew through the air, burning through decades of prosperity. 

A young girl slowly crawled out of a burning hut, face covered with debris. With traces of ash still on her body, she sobbed as tears streamed down her face. Pushing away her misheveled hair, the realization sunk in.

"M-mom… Dad… where are you..?"

Desperately pushing away the flaming wreckage, her fingers charred from the blackened coals. Unearthing a burnt piece of photography, her emotions intensified. 

An explosion rang out in the distance, sending pieces of rock flying through the town. A piece of burning debris shot towards the oblivious child.

"Ah! …ah?"

In the last second, an armored gauntlet caught the rock. Tossing it to the side, a deep voice rang out.

"Get out of here. The Villains are approaching…"

Determined, the girl ignored his warning. 

"I can't leave yet… I have to find my parents."

Another explosion erupted, this time, much larger. Screams of agony pierced through the air as another building fell. Large brick walls unfolded inwards , succumbing to the raging inferno. 

"GET OUT OF HERE!"

The man grabbed the girl by the arm and tossed her over to the side. Right after, an array of fire arrows descended on the knight.

A murmer could be heard as an invisible force covered the gauntlet. The knight swung his arm, deflecting the projectiles. 

He stared into the distance. Screams could no longer be heard. Something was coming.

A group of shadows propelled themselves out of the flames. Unearthly voices broke through the silence as the knight swung his gauntlet once again.

Black blood dyed the ground as two of the creatures were instantly cleaved in half. Still squirming on the ground, the knight stomped their heads, putting them out of their misery. Innards spilled out of their corrupted bodies.

Letting out a shriek, the girl covered her nose as she finally started to escape. The stench of blood and bodies filled the vacinity. 

The third shadow was faster, dodging the first strike. It bit down on the the gauntlet, aiming to crush the fist. A cracking noise was heard as bloodied teeth fell onto the floor. The man grabbed the head of the beast and slammed it into the floor, instantly killing it.

Tossing its headless body to the side, he examined the corpses.

Being 4-legged and resembling overgrown wolves, it was clear that they had no sense of reason. The one that had survived the first attack had significantly more muscle than the other two.

'A berserker.'

A 'Villain' was an Otherworlder that had perished inside one of the Challenges. They would be transformed into corrupted beasts and sent back to the normal world.

Villains were able to keep their human form and abilities if they were powerful enough… but for the weaker ones… they were turned into mindless beasts.

He kicked the corpses into the fire. The flames flickered and devoured the bodies, leaving no traces behind.

The knight fell to his knees, feeling electricity suddenly run through his body.

Pushing away a piece of rubble, a green-haired mage revealed themselves. Currents of lightning flashed in his palms as he leisurely walked towards the knight.

"If I knew dying would give me this type of strength, I would've done it way earlier!"

Luke giggled as he extended his arm, smashing the gauntlet into the ground.

"GAH!"

The knight groaned in pain as his hand was shattered. He slowly raised his head as he glared at the Villain.

"How… how can you do this to innocent people? They've done nothing to you-"

The man was unable to finish his sentence as he received a kick to the face, sending him tumbling into a flaming building. He tried to move, but felt the currents coursing through him numb his limbs.

"I'm wondering… should I kill you myself? Or… should I let you burn to the death, along with all the people you've wasted your time protecting.."

Luke stood over the exhausted knight as he scratched his chin.

Eventually, someone put their hand on his shoulder.

"Huh? Oh! What's wrong, captain?"

Clad in dark, tattered robes, a one-eyed Villain spoke.

"It's time to go."

Luke raised his hands in protest, "But I was just getting to the good part.."

However, he didn't hesitate to follow his orders. After all, he knew the outcome of those who didn't.

The green-haired villain shuddered, reminded of the grotesque scars that ran through his captain's face. Just his presence alone gave off an ominous feeling that deterred Villains and Heroes alike.

He followed him to the center of the city. There, a group of people were chatting and laughing.

"You should've seen that boy's face when I snapped his mother's neck!"

"Hey, that was supposed to be my kill…"

"Could you lend me a corpse? I'm trying to practice my necromancy."

Luke coughed. 'These guys have no situational awareness.'

The group of Villains looked over, and quickly stood up, saluting.

""Lord Shade!"" They all said in unison.

The one-eyed Villain nodded, and silently chanted a spell.

The air around them quivered as dark energy swirled. The world sat still as a pitch-black vortex was formed. Then, Shade stepped through.

After making sure he was gone, a Villain sighed.

"He's scary as always…"

The Villains slowly walked through the portal, leaving behind a destroyed city.

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A elegantly dressed man walked past the burning buildings, assessing the situation.

He stopped in front of a hut.

Snapping his hands, the burnt rubble evaporated into dust, revealing an injured Otherworlder.

A flash of purple lit up the sky as the knight snapped open his eyes. He stared at his gauntlet, which should've been crushed. However, along with his hand, it was fully repaired.

Nearby, a flock of birds fell from the sky, life drained from their feathery bodies.

"Sir!"

"Tell me what happened here."

The knight explained the attack, fidgeting uncomfortably. The man's purple eyes seemed to stare into his soul.

"That was when a one-eyed villain came through a portal and started massacuring the Civilians."

The man nodded as he looked towards the mountains in the distance. 

"You may go now."

The knight quickly bowed down before running out of the city. He was halfway through the exit when he suddenly froze, and fell onto the ground. His body slowly turned into dust.

That day, a Villain attack was reported in Darkstone City. Miraculously, no damage was done to the buildings. The announcer praised the Otherworlders for their quick defense that saved millions of civilian damage. 

However, a single survivor testified that they swore the town had been destroyed. When being tracked down for an interview, it was revealed that the suvivor had died in a construction accident, and can no longer be identified.