Blue Nexus #32 - Heroes Reversed

            Brenda wiped the blood away from her mouth just in time for Kyle to clock her across the head again, sending her spiraling across the base. She slammed into the metal wall, denting it. Her red barrier that protected her impact faded when she dropped.

            Phoenix leapt into action, vaulting over the medical desk. Kyle stood up straight, holding up a shadow arm against Phoenix. He blasted Demon magic at him, blowing up the computers along the back. Phoenix paid no attention to it, instead flicking a small metal disk at Kyle’s hand. It sparked upon impact. Kyle flicked his wrist.

            The hero led with his legs, leaping up and kicking at his head, clearly going for the immediate knock out. Kyle blocked both with exceptional ease, then tripped up Phoenix and elbowed him away.

            Brenda cast a small red barrier at his legs, attempting to trip him up. Kyle blasted it away, and shot at Brenda faster than she anticipated. His shoulder dug into her chest. Brenda kneed him in the gut, throwing him away and trying to catch him in a containment barrier. At the last second, Kyle flipped away dodging the barrier and letting it catch nothing.

            Kyle pushed himself off the wall, moving toward Brenda. Phoenix swung a small metal wire at him. It wrapped around his arm. Phoenix yanked him to the ground.

            “Oof!” Kyle exclaimed, his voice deeper. Blood splattered from his lips. He lay on the ground for just a second before he swung his legs out, pulling Phoenix forward. Phoenix pulled up, allowing Kyle to catch him around the neck.

            Phoenix struggled as much as he could but Kyle’s grip tightened around his neck. A shadowy aura appeared around Phoenix.

            Brenda charged at him, punching Kyle straight in the back. He soared into the computers, covering himself as he smashed against him. Brenda began healing Kyle.

            “Alright, so, this isn’t looking good,” Phoenix said. “What the hell is wrong with him?”

            “He’s using Demon magic somehow,” Brenda said. “It must be corrupting him. We have to get it out of his system.”

            “Like wear him down completely?”
            “Basically. And if we can do that, I should be able to cleanse him of it with my Shield magic. Problem is going to be—”

            “The work,” Phoenix said.

            The barrier around Phoenix dropped. He got back up, shrugging his shoulders. He gripped his talons at his side then swung his arms out. His wings folded out and his mask droped in front of him. Brenda stepped up beside him.

            Kyle swayed, his right shadow arm constantly flexing. The shadows appeared like a claw mark on the right side of his face, but not stretching past his nose. He grunted, rolling his neck around, cracking it. He opened his palm, and struggled to close it.

            Brenda led the attack, blasting forth as she sprung from another barrier. Phoenix flew right after her.

            She ducked under a shadow blast then deflected another. She reached out, grabbing Kyle’s arm. He smiled wide as the shadows tried to leap out at Brenda. Her skin glowed red, bouncing the shadows off. His smile faded and his face instead morphed into confusion.

            Phoenix dropped in and delivered a swift kick to his head. His head cocked to the side and he shot against the wall. Brenda sprinted over, a barrier growing between her hands.

            It was just the right size to be obliterated by the large shadow claw that Kyle lashed out at them with. Brenda skidded back, protecting herself. Phoenix dropped down and charged in after him, both of his Eskrima out and electrically charged.

            Kyle was able to block the first three attacks, but couldn’t keep up with the sheer quickness that Phoenix dished out. Brenda sighed, nodding. Good, Phoenix had him now. He would knock him out with their electrical power and…

            Kyle dodged the attack, then gripped Phoenix’s neck and punched through Phoenix’s armor, piercing through his arm. Phoenix didn’t make a single sound, he just dropped straight to the ground.

            Brenda screamed. Kyle paid it not attention, instead leaping over Phoenix to tackle Brenda, pressing his elbow against her neck. Brenda, eyes flaring red, punched him across the face, slamming him against the wall with a barrier.

            She looked over nimbly to Phoenix, who a large pool of red forming around him. Brenda boxed him up and surged her magic into it. She saw the wound begin to close up, and the blood flow slow down.

            Kyle, again, took advantage of the distraction. He tackled her into the medical table, but slammed his face into it as well. Brenda pushed him away. Kyle rolled before standing up, flexing his shadow right arm again.

            “What’s wrong with you?” she shouted. “Phoenix is our friend!”

            Kyle shook his head. His claw returned, growing larger.

            “You’re really letting the Demon magic control you, then?” she asked. “You’re letting Alucard control you?”

            “This isn’t Alucard,” Kyle said. His voice was deeper, but unlike any of the beings Brenda faced that had Alucard taint them, there was nothing behind it.

            This was Kyle.

            “How did you get this magic?” she asked. “Why would you use it, why would you attack us?”

            “That’s not important right now,” Kyle said. “He’s going to die out here, and so are you. So will everyone. I will destroy everyone.”

            “You’re supposed to save everyone,” Brenda said, her voice low.

            Kyle roared, and slashed forward with his shadow claw. Brenda leapt back. The claw cleaved straight through the metal with ease. Brenda slid on a red platform, then cast two right at Kyle’s hand.

            They locked onto his wrists, and Brenda tightened them. As Kyle lurched forward, she pushed them back, pinning him against the wall. She launched two more at his feet, locking him against the wall.

            The shadows running up his arm flared out like little flames, trying to break free. Brenda’s arms trembled as she held him back. Her muscles screamed for her to stop. She’d been out fighting all day. While her body was in perfect condition, her muscles had worn down over the long day. And Kyle’s Demon magic powers were incredible. Had this been there all along and the Nexus bracelet simply repressed it? Even then, there was no way he could control it that much.

            Brenda gazed back up to Kyle. Was he even in control? He should be keeping his powers in check but he was physically, not magically, struggling. He could fight but that claw attack was random and he had random bursts of magic power. He might not have even meat to put his fist through Phoenix, but instead just deliver a solid blow to the shoulder, send him away.

            She nodded. That was her advantage. Beginner’s luck could not win out today, she decided. She pressed on with her magic, keeping Kyle against the wall while his face reddened and his muscles bulged.

            “Please, just calm down, let me help you, Kyle,” Brenda said. “I’m your friend.”

            “You were,” Kyle said.

            The magic flared one more time, then exploded around him, shattering the restraints. Brenda shot her hands up, conjuring all four restraints again, but Kyle was too quick. He leapt across the room, breaking through two before kicking away the others and shoving Brenda away.

            Kyle hounded after her, pulling back his fist. Brenda rolled away as Kyle punched into the metal flooring, denting it. Brenda’s gaze flicked over to Phoenix, whose shoulder was all patched up. She lowered the healing barrier. Something clicked inside her.

            Focus.

            She got to her feet, blocking one of Kyle’s punches and pushing him away with a barrier. He jutted his legs out, pushing back. Demon magic flowed and then encircled his hands. He moved forward. Brenda growled and pushed forward, locking her arms. Kyle lost his footing, tripping back. He dove against the computers, pushing away before the barrier could collapse on him.

            He sprinted straight for her. Brenda put up a hand with ease, placing a barrier before him to block his path. Kyle smirked. He slid down, grabbing a shard of the table, and flicked it at Brenda, stabbing into her leg. Brenda howled.

            Kyle punched Brenda across the face, sending her into the stairwell. She slammed against it, jarring her head and her vision. It blurred before she shook her head and took out the metal shard.

            Demon magic blasted her in the side. She screamed as it hit her again. And again. And again. And Kyle walked toward her, blasting magic into her, just quick enough for her body to not be able to heal.

            Brenda slouched back, letting her arms fall to her side. Kyle lifted her up with a single hand, then threw her into the wall. Her vision blurred again. Kyle kicked her in the ribs. Brenda swore she heard a crack but wasn’t too sure. The pain was all over.

            A small spark of red appeared in her hand. She glared up to Kyle, and shot it at him. He deflected it, and knelt down, grabbing her face. His other hand became the shadow claw.

            “You’re no mage,” Kyle said. “You’re just a weakling.”

            “Yeah? But at least I’m not stupid,” Brenda said.

            Kyle tilted his head when his head cocked back. The small red cube stuck to his back, pumping out the Demon magic. Brenda stood up, grabbing Kyle’s arm. Her eyes lit up red. She punched him in the chest, then opened up her palm.

            Shocked, Kyle looked down to his chest as a red shield started to form on his chest. He shook his head, bowing his head. Brenda struggled, trying to pour out magic while simultaneously reaching deep into her reserves to heal.

            Kyle suddenly laughed, head-butting Brenda and kicking her away. She bounced off the computers, giving her enough time to roll away and stay on one knee. As her magic circuits and overall body began to repair themselves, she slowly got up. Kyle turned to face her, swiping the red cub off his back and stomping on it.

            “You don’t ever run out of magic, do you?” they asked at the same time.

            “Oh, that was nice,” Brenda said. She straightened up, rolling her shoulders back. “But how’s about we play a game? First one to use magic loses?”

            Kyle smiled, putting up fisticuffs.

            Good, Brenda thought. This was a style of fighting Kyle dropped in favor of Earth’s martial arts. She wasn’t too keen on those yet, but had learned quite a bit how to survive in Ytu’s prisons without her magic. It was all a matter of will at this point.

            Brenda scooted closer to Kyle, who broke stance and charged her. To Brenda’s astonishment, Kyle actually kept true to his word, throwing a clean, free-of-Demon magic fist at her. Brenda let the blow fall, getting knocked to her side in the process.

            “Maybe this wasn’t the best idea,” she muttered.

            Kyle stomped down at her. She caught his leg, then stood up, and slammed him to the ground. She slammed her hand onto his chest and punched down at his face. He caught it, seething and struggling to keep it there. Brenda elbowed him in the gut and followed through with the attack.

            He didn’t even react with pain, instead pushed her away. She leapt back as he rolled to his feet. Their fight reignited, exchanging blows. Brenda refused to lose any ground. If she lost a second to this guy, he would overwhelm her. Besides, she couldn’t trust that he wouldn’t use his magic if she gave him the chance.

            Brenda caught his arm, contorted it, then rammed her wrist into the bottom of his jaw. Stunned, Kyle took a step back. Brenda tried to kick him in the side, but he ducked under it, pressing on with his attack. Brenda grunted, then continued to swing her body around and caught Kyle between her legs, bringing him to the ground. He pushed forward, trying to flip Brenda over.

            Instead, Brenda punched him in the face, loosening his grip enough for her to escape and roll away, then rocket at him and shoulder him back some. He slid on the ground, punching the ground to stop. The metal tile dented again.

            “Give up,” Brenda said. “You’re not going to win. My body just keeps healing.”

            “I thought there was supposed to be no magic involved?” asked Kyle.

            “Well that’s just something I can’t really help,” Brenda said.

            Kyle gestured at something behind Brenda. “And I can’t help but kill people who get in the way.”

            Brenda whirled around. Phoenix stood up at the computers, reaching for a green button.

            “You’re outta here,” he muttered, and slammed the button.

            Kyle blasted Demon magic at him before vanishing. Brenda deflected it across the base, destroying two machines.

            “What’d you do?” she shrieked.

            “I got him out of here,” Phoenix said, still incredibly weak. “Now it’s your turn. Stop him, Shindari. You’re the only one who can.”

            He pressed the button again.

            Brenda started to nod, then finished her nod back down on Earth. She whirled around, with no sign of Kyle. Her barrier was up just in time to block his attack as his fist rammed into it. Brenda forced the barrier out, shoving him away.

            “Wait, we’re…oh no,” she muttered.

            They were just outside Adelita, on the opposite side of Kyle’s hill, where his house was. A car drove by. Kyle eyed it dangerously.

            This can’t be good, not one bit. They’d see him, and think him a danger. But where could Brenda move the fight that would be…

            Kyle dove at Brenda, forcing her thought away. She moved to the side, kneeing him in the gut and slapping him far away. She burst after him, gliding on one of her barriers. She caught him by the head and threw him even further, into a pasture. The grass stood up to her hips.

            She heard the ground crunch as Kyle landed, forming a rut. He rose slow, his shadow claw back. Brenda heled out both arms, letting her eyes glow red again and her aura cover her. She felt her magic flowing freely through her body again, as if it were never gone. Her second wind, finally.

            “This is where you die, mage,” Kyle said. The magic on his body quivered, then he charged at Brenda again.

            Brenda ran at Kyle as well, but stopped short, and clapped her hands together. Two red barriers crushed Kyle. He cried out in pain. Faster than before, Brenda zipped at Kyle, punching him straight in the temple. His eyes rolled back and he crumpled limp to the ground.

            Immediately she placed a red barrier over him, digging it into the ground, and almost pressing it against Kyle’s body. She pumped magic through her hands into it, the barrier thickening by the second from her hands.

            She leaned back, tiredly. A pair of hands held her up. Brenda leapt forward, and spun around.

            Kip and Luke, Kyle’s best friends she hadn’t seen in ages, were standing there, looking worried. Their gaze was locked onto Brenda.

            “What happened to Kyle?” asked Luke. “Why’s he like that?”

            Luke pointed to his friend in the barrier. The shadow tattoo was still stamped on his arm and the claw tattoo still on his face, despite the fact that he was out cold. Brenda sighed.

            “I’m not entirely sure,” Brenda said. “I found him unconscious in East City, brought him to the Zanderia base, and he suddenly attacked Phoenix and I. We were teleported, and, here we are. But I have no idea where all of this magic came from.”

            Kip stooped down, placing his hand onto the barrier.

            “So this is magic?” he asked. “And so are the markings on Kyle. How come you don’t have any?”

            Brenda pointed to her red hair. “And Demon mages don’t usually have the markings like Kyle does. Kyle isn’t a Demon mage, that might be why he has them. It’s like it’s…”
            “Branding him,” Luke finished.

            Brenda nodded. She rolled her shoulders back. Her body was sowing itself together slowly. She would heal, sure, but after so many hits from Demon magic it would be slower than normal. Not to mention the amount of magic she cast into the barrier.

            “If—when—he wakes up, will he still try to attack you, er, us?” asked Luke.

            “Maybe,” Brenda said. “I can’t tell for sure. My magic heals people, and, hopefully, the magic will recede from him. However, I don’t think that’ll happen. The markings aren’t fading or moving at all. He might be cursed.”

            Kip punched the barrier. “Damn it, Kyle. We don’t see you for a couple days and this happens. Right when everything’s gone to hell.”

            “I presume the situation in East City is simply growing grimmer?” asked Brenda.

            “Yeah, and if gets any worse those monsters will start showing up around here,” Kip said. “How are we supposed to fight them when all of our cops are busy fixing whatever mess there is by the college. And, Kyle’s like this, and you had to refocus from that to him. It’s like nobody can just get to the point.”

            “Which is exactly the point,” Luke said. “Whoever is behind all of this has made sure everything that happened today happened in a precise way.”

            “His name is Alucard,” Brenda said. “From what I can tell he uses Demon magic too, but, it’s nothing like I’ve ever seen before. Not power-wise, but, just…different.”

            “Alucard, really?” asked Luke.

            “What, does he suck people’s life away?” asked Kip.

            “The reverse, he transfers his power into them and turns them into his own monsters,” Brenda said. “He’s hiding in East City—right where we can easily get to him—but he’s the most fortified being I’ve ever fought. And mind you, I escaped one of the greatest strongholds on this side of the known universe.”

            “So, what you’re saying is that we’re basically doomed?” asked Luke.

            “Not entirely,” Brenda said. “I’ve got an idea.”

            She stepped away from the barrier, touching the communicator still in her ear.

            “Phoenix, are you still there?” she asked.

            Brenda froze as she waited for a response. Her whole bod was tense, muscles unable to move. She gritted her teeth.

            “Shindari, I hope this means you took him down,” Phoenix said. He was clearly weak.

            “Oh, yes, I did,” she said, sighing. “Can you transport the Nexus bracelet down to me? I think if we place that back on Blue Nexus we’ll be able to revert him back to normal.”

            “That’s the best plan I’ve heard so far,” Phoenix said.

            A small light flashed behind all of them. Brenda spun around and sprinted for it, sifting through the grass until she came across it. She stepped in between the two boys, who appeared completely lost.

            “So, that’s supposed to help him?” asked Kip.

            “That or make him impossibly strong, yes,” Brenda said. “Either way, we have to try it, and try it now.”

            Her hand melded through the barrier. She slipped the Nexus bracelet onto Kyle’s left arm. She waited until a blue light flashed on it, spinning around the bracelet. Brenda smiled as Luke and Kip shouted when Kyle vanished in a blue light.

            Kyle’s head rung when his feet touched down. The room was perfectly temperate and the atmosphere very familiar. He reached down and touched the dark blue floor. He smiled.         

            “You fool!” shouted Aequitas, leaping down from his seat. He landed in front of Kyle, standing up straight. Kyle took a step back.

            “No, look, I wasn’t in control, but it was totally worth it, because—”

            Aequitas smacked Kyle in the head, sending him spiraling into the wall. He crashed against it, but left not mark against it. He slumped to the ground, looking down to his hands. He was in his Nexus form. Aequitas must have forced him into it.

            “You placed the planet in jeopardy,” Aequitas said, striding toward Kyle. His fists were clenched, glowing blue. “That is not what the Nexus do. We are saviors, not destroyers.”

            “I told you I wasn’t in control, but look, I retained that magical power and when I’m like this I don’t have access to it!”

            Aequitas stopped. Kyle put his hands up in defense. It was slowly sinking in that he was standing against a Nexus Sentient, some of the most powerful beings the universe ever knew, and would ever know. Who was he to stand against them? If Aequitas started swinging, Kyle had no chance of being able to swing back.

            “You’re a Demon mage, Raiden-son,” Aequitas said. He slashed at Kyle’s arm.

            Besides the normal blue line running up his arm up to his shoulder, a small black marking was stamped onto his shoulder, in an odd jagged form. Aequitas tilted his head at the sight of it.

            “Recognize it or something?” asked Kyle.

            “I’ve seen it once, and it was an unforgettable sight,” Aequitas said. “You were in the Nether when you were taught Demon magic, correct?”
            “Well I don’t really remember it right now, but, yes,” Kyle said. “A man named Jericho taught me.”

            Aequitas nodded. “Good. But, that’s no excuse. While I’m glad the bracelet was strong enough to snap the Nether’s hold over you, there’s still the matter that you attacked an alley and still put the planet in danger in the midst of a crisis. Not to mention you let yourself be trapped in the Nether.”

            “But like you said, the Nether’s got no control over me anymore,” Kyle said. “And I’m so much stronger! Aequitas, I can take Alucard by myself now, I know it! I need to get back to Earth, there’s so much that I missed.”

            “The planet is in grave danger, and, as much as it pains me to say it—”

            “You don’t have to, I know already. But it’ll also be partly your fault if you don’t send me back now. Aequitas, please, trust me.”

            Aequitas nodded, placing his hand on Kyle’s head. Kyle nodded, and felt the pressure of his transfer back to Earth building up until it exploded around him and he heard the grass whistling around him.

            He looked around, opening and closing his hands. There was his house, right on the hill. And oh, wow, some battle must have gone down. His eyes widened at the sight of his friends.

            “Oh, um, hello,” he said. “It’s me, guys. Not the demon version. I promise.”

            Kyle stole a look down to his arm. The cloth healed. Good. Nobody needed to see that.

            Luke and Kip rushed up to him first, embracing him. He returned the embraces, a funny feeling in his ribs sprouting. Where’d that come from? Mostly, he was just glad to see his friends again.

            His smile was bigger than ever before when he stepped away and saw their faces. Man, what a welcome change from the Nether.

            Brenda stepped up behind them, slowly. Kyle’s smile remained as he rushed at her, embracing her tightly.

            “Thank you,” he said, and stepped away.

            Brenda’s smile was slow to appear, but she brushed her hair back and laughed anyway.

            “Put up a good fight for someone that’s never really used magic before,” she said.

            Kyle shrugged. “Must’ve been beginner’s luck.” He turned to face Kip and Luke. “So, what’s up?”

            Luke shrugged. “Just on the imminent total destruction of East City.”

            Kyle pursed his lips and nodded. “We should look into that, shouldn’t we?”

            The two boys nodded. Kyle ran ahead of them, and the three followed behind as he raced up the hill toward his house. He had to get the TV. A sense of urgency swelled up inside of him. Night was setting to fall, and Luna’s warning grew evermore present on his mind.

            They reached the peak of the hill and Kyle burst through the door, calling out for his grandparents. He sighed as everyone else filed in behind him. Nobody home. Great, well, hopefully he could find them before he had to go off. Kyle shivered. Not a pleasant thought.

            Kyle walked over to the counter, swiping the remote away and turning the TV on. He looked over to Brenda, who wouldn’t meet his gaze. He raised an eyebrow, but when he heard the reporter’s voice on TV, ignored it.

            “We’re finally live in East City,” he said. He was walking forward as people ran past him. “People have abandoned their vehicles and are instead running from their lives onto the highways and bridges away from the city.”

            “Guess there’s a pretty solid evacuation message being sent,” Luke said.

            “Do we know if any of the good guys are in the city yet?” Kyle asked. Everyone shrugged. “Oh, good,” Kyle said.

            The reporter stopped as he turned a corner. He froze. Kyle tensed up. The cameraman refused to move

            “Oh—oh God. It’s true, the rumors are true. It’s them, run, man, run!”

            The cameraman turned to run. The reporter screamed at the top of his lungs. The camera lurched forward, then rolled around, the feed partly cutting out. An explosion occurred in the background.

            Kyle’s whole body was tense, energy completely still in his body.

            The camera levitated up, then slowly turned around. Kyle’s heart plummeted and he felt like throwing up. Luke and Kip both stepped back, away from the couch.

            “It’s a nightmare,” Brenda whispered.

            “Stay away from East City if you wish to live,” Lalay said. A dark blue aura surrounded her, while the winds whipped around her.

            “And for any remaining heroes out there, we dare you to come challenge us,” Riko said, who also had a black aura and black eyes.

            Kyle punched through the sofa. “Damn you Alucard.” He looked up to the TV, the feed cutting away to static. “Damn you!”

Next time: Kyle, Brenda, and Hood Nexus are all that remains in the fight against Alucard. They storm the city, and the fate of East City hangs in the balance. Yet there still remains one wildcard. Find out next time in "Blue Nexus #33 - Reborn Villains"!