I wrote this part!!!
After pulling his sword from Xero's body, Valor jumped
from the rooftop to land on the streets of Dark
Astoria. The rain was still falling heavily and Valor
splashed through puddles as he made his way back to
the Forever Men Headquarters. The Forever Men were
wrong, Valor's mind was fine and he had never been
stronger. The only person who still trusted him was
Majik, and as Valor stopped in front of his room, he
contemplated the request he was about to make of his
longtime friend. He knew how protective Majik was of
the weapons he had hidden, but desperate times call
for desperate measures.
Valor knocked a couple of times and waited for a gruff
"come in" from Majik before he pushed open the door to
face his friend.
"Majik, I need you to take me to the weapons you have
hidden."
Valor stated eye to eye with the one person who still didn't think he has fallen.
"Why are your clothes tattered Valor?"
"I..... was hit with.... an energy blast.."
Majik thought it over....
"We’ve been through this already… The weapons are in
the hands of people I trust.”
“ And I’m not one of those people?”
Valor’s gaze hardened as he waited for an answer, but
no response was forthcoming.
"It will help me focus my newfound power, it will help
us bring the fight of good vs. evil to a new level."
“I told you… four of the weapons are in the hands of
others!”
Majik’s tone increased as he became fed up with
Valor’s incessant questioning.
“There’s a fifth one… you told me about it… I know you
did.”
“That blade is not for use by another… it corrupts all
it touches.”
Majik switched to the defensive as the conversation
progressed.
“I must have it! You‘re afraid I’ll match you in
power… that’s why you’re keeping it from me!"
Valor erupted with anger. It was as if the face was
the same but the soul was different, an inner fire
burned in his eyes as they bored into Majik.
“Now would be a good time to leave.”
Majik returned the stare in kind, peering through
Valor to the door, denoting an exit for Valor. Saying
nothing, Valor regained his composure and walked out
of the room. As Valor walked down the hallway, he
heard the sound of an extra dimensional rift. Valor
knew that Majik’s fear of the weapon being used would
force him to check up on it. Barely thinking about his
actions, Valor ran back to the door and kicked it
open. He saw the rift closing, and with no certainty
of what was waiting on the other side, he dove at it,
tucking in his legs so he was sure he got his entire body through.
On the other side, the rift opened up into a dank
tunnel. Valor came out of it in a roll, stopping just
short of the coarse stone wall. He stood up and since
his only option was to go deeper in the cave, he moved
forward to find Majik.
The walk took longer than expected, but Valor would
not tire. He made a pact with himself that he was not
leaving without the weapon, and he repeated that
mantra over and over as he trudged along. The tunnel
eventually opened up into a large chamber, the only
things visible within were a pedestal ornately
decorated, and Majik holding a covered weapon. As
Majik held the weapon, steam began to emit from both
his body and his axe. Valor could only stare, the
reason Majik didn’t want him to have the weapon, was
because Majik wanted the weapon for himself! The rage
came forth again… Valor broke into a dead run towards
Majik.
“NO! That is rightfully mine!”
Valor yelled as he tackled Majik, grabbing on to the
hilt of the weapon as the covering slipped off. It was
a standstill, both Majik and Valor with a hand on the
hilt. A hilt carved with a symbol of a bat. Valor
looked down at the rune covered blade and smirked with
satisfaction, this sword was a perfect fit.
“What are you doing! You can’t control it!”
Majik screamed as he got a tighter grip on the hilt,
but Valor wasn’t listening, he couldn’t listen, the
sword crept into his mind after those first few
moments and was killing him, throwing him into spasms,
even though his fist was still fastened to the hilt.
Valor focused his psyche on the inner struggle he was
facing…
“Mortal, even though you think you are strong, you are
weak. You cannot hope to control my power by yourself.
You need to let me in, you need to give in to me. Let
go of your old ethics and usher in a new age. You wish
to take the war of good and evil to a new level, and I
can help you do it. Just let me in now, or you will
soon be dead.”
“Valor no! I know what it’s saying and it’s a lie!
Don’t give in! It will corrupt you! Fight it!”
Majik yelled all the louder, but to no avail. With a
crack that sent both heroes to opposite ends of the
chamber, Majik knew that his friend Valor was lost.
Valor was the first to his feet, turning his new blade
in his hands. His hair was wild and his eyes were
crazy, as was his mind.
“Well, old friend, looks like you were wrong, I do
have the power to control it.”
Valor watched Majik struggle to his feet and brandish
his axe.
“No Valor, it’s controlling you, not the other way
around, and now I have to stop you.”
Majik set his feet and readied his weapon.
“You’re welcome to try!”
Valor challenged as he charged at Majik. He brought
the sword down in an overhead slash, but Majik’s axe
jumped in front of it. The resulting force of both
weapons touching each other for the first time brought
a rip through time that both combatants were thrown
through. They reappeared in Atlas Park, Paragon City.
"Funny how the weapons want us to fight here.”
Valor said as he strode around Majik.
“Yes, hilarious.”
Majik thought, but little did Valor know that Majik
had a little influence over where the weapons took
them, and he figured everyone should know what a
monster Valor has become. Majik made the first move
this time, sweeping at Valor’s legs. It passed
harmlessly under him as Valor jumped over it.
“You’ll have to do better than that, give me some
credit.”
Valor taunted as he smiled at Majik and got closer to
take away the advantage of the reach of the axe.
“This better?”
Majik answered back as he slammed the hilt of the axe
into Valor’s face, knocking him back a few steps.
“A bit, now it’s my turn”
Valor got in close feinting high with his sword while
simultaneously kicking out with his foot, knocking
Majik to the ground. He stood over him to trust the
sword in his heart, but Majik flipped him over and
jumped back to his feet. It became a staring contest
once more, both fighters too evenly matched to gain
the upper hand.
Having seen the rip in time, a Paragon City news crew
stopped to watch the spectacle, the news cameras
trained on a hero turned bad, and a valiant god trying
to stop him. The TV station sent out this footage live
for all the world to see. Majik, seeing that civilians
might get harmed, snapped his fingers and with a
thought brought into existance a dimensional rift that
formed a force field around the two fighters and the
surrounding area.
“It’s just you and me ‘friend’, I’m waiting for you.”
Majik steeled himself as Valor started to laugh.
“Ahahah! I just got the most delightful idea. Why
fight with one sword, if you can fight with two?”
Valor reached behind him and unsheathed his old sword.
Then he adjusted his balance and charged.
“One sword or two, it makes no difference, you will
fall!”
Majik ran right at him, getting ready for the
two-pronged attack. Valor slashed at Majik’s head and
legs, trying to keep him off balance, but Majik’s axe
was there every time. The two legends kept parrying
and counter parrying, every once in a while someone
got lucky and scored a minor hit, but it was only
enough to rip the cloth off their costumes, no blade
touched flesh. Then Majik thought of something, a move
that there was no counter for, but first he had to set
Valor up for it. Waiting for an opening in Valor’s
double blade style, Majik backhanded Valor in the
face. Staggering back, Valor found himself staring at
a low thrust of an axe. Valor crossed his blades into
an X pattern and stopped the blade cold.
“There is no counter for that Valor, you are stuck.”
Majik taunted at Valor.
“My friend, this isn't a game!! There are no stalemates!! This just proves that you aren’t nearly as good of a fighter as you think you are. Either that, or you’re just not as imaginative as I am.”
Seeing the confused look on Majik’s face, Valor fell
backward and kicked out with both feet, hitting the
weapons and scattering them about. Weaponless , the
two squared off again. They locked hands and both
fought to break the other’s arms. As strong as Valor
was, he was no match for Majik in terms of brute
strength. The pressure Majik was inflicting on Valor
was actually making him tremble! Majik was winning!
“ *pant* You’re… no match…… for me Valor…”
Majik applied more pressure to Valor's arms.
“I… forgot to mention something… Majik… I… don’t just
have swords anymore…”
Valor’s eyes glazed over as he looked into himself for
the power he needed. The atmosphere around the fight
got dark and cold as a ghostly aura enshrouded Valor.
A dark blast shot through Majik‘s body and up his spine stunning
him, and sending him sprawling to the floor.
Valor picked up his evil blade and was ready to drive
it down into Majik’s heart.
"Thats not a very nice thing to do son." Came a stern
voice from behind him. "Why don't you put that Blade
down and stand down before I have to kick your ass."
Valors dark rimmed eyes turned upon the intruder and a
vicious smile crossed his face.
Paul Countryman emerged from a glowing portal onto the
field of battle.
from the rooftop to land on the streets of Dark
Astoria. The rain was still falling heavily and Valor
splashed through puddles as he made his way back to
the Forever Men Headquarters. The Forever Men were
wrong, Valor's mind was fine and he had never been
stronger. The only person who still trusted him was
Majik, and as Valor stopped in front of his room, he
contemplated the request he was about to make of his
longtime friend. He knew how protective Majik was of
the weapons he had hidden, but desperate times call
for desperate measures.
Valor knocked a couple of times and waited for a gruff
"come in" from Majik before he pushed open the door to
face his friend.
"Majik, I need you to take me to the weapons you have
hidden."
Valor stated eye to eye with the one person who still didn't think he has fallen.
"Why are your clothes tattered Valor?"
"I..... was hit with.... an energy blast.."
Majik thought it over....
"We’ve been through this already… The weapons are in
the hands of people I trust.”
“ And I’m not one of those people?”
Valor’s gaze hardened as he waited for an answer, but
no response was forthcoming.
"It will help me focus my newfound power, it will help
us bring the fight of good vs. evil to a new level."
“I told you… four of the weapons are in the hands of
others!”
Majik’s tone increased as he became fed up with
Valor’s incessant questioning.
“There’s a fifth one… you told me about it… I know you
did.”
“That blade is not for use by another… it corrupts all
it touches.”
Majik switched to the defensive as the conversation
progressed.
“I must have it! You‘re afraid I’ll match you in
power… that’s why you’re keeping it from me!"
Valor erupted with anger. It was as if the face was
the same but the soul was different, an inner fire
burned in his eyes as they bored into Majik.
“Now would be a good time to leave.”
Majik returned the stare in kind, peering through
Valor to the door, denoting an exit for Valor. Saying
nothing, Valor regained his composure and walked out
of the room. As Valor walked down the hallway, he
heard the sound of an extra dimensional rift. Valor
knew that Majik’s fear of the weapon being used would
force him to check up on it. Barely thinking about his
actions, Valor ran back to the door and kicked it
open. He saw the rift closing, and with no certainty
of what was waiting on the other side, he dove at it,
tucking in his legs so he was sure he got his entire body through.
On the other side, the rift opened up into a dank
tunnel. Valor came out of it in a roll, stopping just
short of the coarse stone wall. He stood up and since
his only option was to go deeper in the cave, he moved
forward to find Majik.
The walk took longer than expected, but Valor would
not tire. He made a pact with himself that he was not
leaving without the weapon, and he repeated that
mantra over and over as he trudged along. The tunnel
eventually opened up into a large chamber, the only
things visible within were a pedestal ornately
decorated, and Majik holding a covered weapon. As
Majik held the weapon, steam began to emit from both
his body and his axe. Valor could only stare, the
reason Majik didn’t want him to have the weapon, was
because Majik wanted the weapon for himself! The rage
came forth again… Valor broke into a dead run towards
Majik.
“NO! That is rightfully mine!”
Valor yelled as he tackled Majik, grabbing on to the
hilt of the weapon as the covering slipped off. It was
a standstill, both Majik and Valor with a hand on the
hilt. A hilt carved with a symbol of a bat. Valor
looked down at the rune covered blade and smirked with
satisfaction, this sword was a perfect fit.
“What are you doing! You can’t control it!”
Majik screamed as he got a tighter grip on the hilt,
but Valor wasn’t listening, he couldn’t listen, the
sword crept into his mind after those first few
moments and was killing him, throwing him into spasms,
even though his fist was still fastened to the hilt.
Valor focused his psyche on the inner struggle he was
facing…
“Mortal, even though you think you are strong, you are
weak. You cannot hope to control my power by yourself.
You need to let me in, you need to give in to me. Let
go of your old ethics and usher in a new age. You wish
to take the war of good and evil to a new level, and I
can help you do it. Just let me in now, or you will
soon be dead.”
“Valor no! I know what it’s saying and it’s a lie!
Don’t give in! It will corrupt you! Fight it!”
Majik yelled all the louder, but to no avail. With a
crack that sent both heroes to opposite ends of the
chamber, Majik knew that his friend Valor was lost.
Valor was the first to his feet, turning his new blade
in his hands. His hair was wild and his eyes were
crazy, as was his mind.
“Well, old friend, looks like you were wrong, I do
have the power to control it.”
Valor watched Majik struggle to his feet and brandish
his axe.
“No Valor, it’s controlling you, not the other way
around, and now I have to stop you.”
Majik set his feet and readied his weapon.
“You’re welcome to try!”
Valor challenged as he charged at Majik. He brought
the sword down in an overhead slash, but Majik’s axe
jumped in front of it. The resulting force of both
weapons touching each other for the first time brought
a rip through time that both combatants were thrown
through. They reappeared in Atlas Park, Paragon City.
"Funny how the weapons want us to fight here.”
Valor said as he strode around Majik.
“Yes, hilarious.”
Majik thought, but little did Valor know that Majik
had a little influence over where the weapons took
them, and he figured everyone should know what a
monster Valor has become. Majik made the first move
this time, sweeping at Valor’s legs. It passed
harmlessly under him as Valor jumped over it.
“You’ll have to do better than that, give me some
credit.”
Valor taunted as he smiled at Majik and got closer to
take away the advantage of the reach of the axe.
“This better?”
Majik answered back as he slammed the hilt of the axe
into Valor’s face, knocking him back a few steps.
“A bit, now it’s my turn”
Valor got in close feinting high with his sword while
simultaneously kicking out with his foot, knocking
Majik to the ground. He stood over him to trust the
sword in his heart, but Majik flipped him over and
jumped back to his feet. It became a staring contest
once more, both fighters too evenly matched to gain
the upper hand.
Having seen the rip in time, a Paragon City news crew
stopped to watch the spectacle, the news cameras
trained on a hero turned bad, and a valiant god trying
to stop him. The TV station sent out this footage live
for all the world to see. Majik, seeing that civilians
might get harmed, snapped his fingers and with a
thought brought into existance a dimensional rift that
formed a force field around the two fighters and the
surrounding area.
“It’s just you and me ‘friend’, I’m waiting for you.”
Majik steeled himself as Valor started to laugh.
“Ahahah! I just got the most delightful idea. Why
fight with one sword, if you can fight with two?”
Valor reached behind him and unsheathed his old sword.
Then he adjusted his balance and charged.
“One sword or two, it makes no difference, you will
fall!”
Majik ran right at him, getting ready for the
two-pronged attack. Valor slashed at Majik’s head and
legs, trying to keep him off balance, but Majik’s axe
was there every time. The two legends kept parrying
and counter parrying, every once in a while someone
got lucky and scored a minor hit, but it was only
enough to rip the cloth off their costumes, no blade
touched flesh. Then Majik thought of something, a move
that there was no counter for, but first he had to set
Valor up for it. Waiting for an opening in Valor’s
double blade style, Majik backhanded Valor in the
face. Staggering back, Valor found himself staring at
a low thrust of an axe. Valor crossed his blades into
an X pattern and stopped the blade cold.
“There is no counter for that Valor, you are stuck.”
Majik taunted at Valor.
“My friend, this isn't a game!! There are no stalemates!! This just proves that you aren’t nearly as good of a fighter as you think you are. Either that, or you’re just not as imaginative as I am.”
Seeing the confused look on Majik’s face, Valor fell
backward and kicked out with both feet, hitting the
weapons and scattering them about. Weaponless , the
two squared off again. They locked hands and both
fought to break the other’s arms. As strong as Valor
was, he was no match for Majik in terms of brute
strength. The pressure Majik was inflicting on Valor
was actually making him tremble! Majik was winning!
“ *pant* You’re… no match…… for me Valor…”
Majik applied more pressure to Valor's arms.
“I… forgot to mention something… Majik… I… don’t just
have swords anymore…”
Valor’s eyes glazed over as he looked into himself for
the power he needed. The atmosphere around the fight
got dark and cold as a ghostly aura enshrouded Valor.
A dark blast shot through Majik‘s body and up his spine stunning
him, and sending him sprawling to the floor.
Valor picked up his evil blade and was ready to drive
it down into Majik’s heart.
"Thats not a very nice thing to do son." Came a stern
voice from behind him. "Why don't you put that Blade
down and stand down before I have to kick your ass."
Valors dark rimmed eyes turned upon the intruder and a
vicious smile crossed his face.
Paul Countryman emerged from a glowing portal onto the
field of battle.