Hyde
2013-08-01, 12:29 AM
~Prologue~
The Hydra's heads twisted in fury and agony, reducing nearby mountains to mere rubble, yet the Warrior remained undaunted, ready for any retaliation his nemesis my bring to bear. As the Hydra thrashed in its death throes, the Warrior took a moment to appreciate the scope and scale of his foe.
The Hydra, the great Wyrm, the One God- Progenitus held many titles, most recently posing as a mere mortal in the guise of "The Collector" in a bid to reclaim is usurped throne at the head of all creation. The Warrior had led a team which had been personally selected by the Thirteen- the greatest of the current pantheon- against the creature. He accepted his role, but not fate's hand in it- his leadership evolved out of a hatred of the Collector and a desire for revenge after his sword and partner, Miroku, the King of Blades, had been "collected" as part of the Hydra's plot.
He gripped Miroku tighter as the familiar form of the Collector, albeit battered and bloody, materialized in the air in front of the dying god.
"You think you have won," The collector said. "You think you have achieved some great thing. That somehow the world will be better for your victory."
"Yes." The Warrior said, barely a whisper.
The Hydra roared even as the Collector laughed. "You think it's over."
"Yes." The Warrior said again.
The Collector lunged forward, grabbing the Warrior by the throat, its fading strength still enough to lift the hero from his feet.
A massive head crashed to the ground near them, the Hydra's thrashing settling. A titanic eye fixed upon the Warrior and the Hydra's own aspect.
The Collector's grip weakened, and the Warrior struggled free. The Collector stared at his hand with an expression of frustration that quickly turned to one of relief.
"It's never over." The Collector sat down on a rock and stared at his own monstrous body taking its last shuddering breaths. The Hydra itself stared through the warrior at the great egg beyond him, which began to tremble with the first signs of life.
"Your friends will reach the egg of the World Phoenix instead of me, and then what?" He scoffed. "They'll remake the world as they see fit, no doubt influenced by the Thirteen."
"They're not as reasonable, honorable, or as fair as you and I. Some of them aren't even sane."
The Warrior considered this for a moment, he would likely not reach the egg himself, especially if this was all a ruse to allow the Hydra one last move. "It's better than the alternative."
The Collector smiled. "It must be, mustn't it," he said. "Or else, this would certainly all have been for naught. Surely maintaining the status quo- or perhaps even changing it in your favor- would be better than the careful and calculated machinations of the being that got this whole little mudball rolling."
The Warrior stiffened with sudden realization.
"You see it now, don't you?" The Collector's smile became a savage grin. "I've run this world before. I started it. I've had countless reigns, in fact. Sometimes as myself, other times, as aspects of a pantheon. countless times, I've been usurped, and countless times, I've been the usurper. Yet for as terrifying a thing as my return to power is supposed to be, Everything's still spinning nicely along now, isn't it?"
The Collector and the Warrior watched in solemn silence as the great Hydra shuddered its final breath, and collapsed into the chasm from whence it came.
The Warrior's adversary addressed him one last time even as he faded into nothingness. The Hydra's fall heralded by a nova of fire and a rolling explosion as the World Phoenix began to hatch, bringing with it the power to remake reality itself.
"No. It will never be over. Enjoy your victory, Hero."
The Hydra's heads twisted in fury and agony, reducing nearby mountains to mere rubble, yet the Warrior remained undaunted, ready for any retaliation his nemesis my bring to bear. As the Hydra thrashed in its death throes, the Warrior took a moment to appreciate the scope and scale of his foe.
The Hydra, the great Wyrm, the One God- Progenitus held many titles, most recently posing as a mere mortal in the guise of "The Collector" in a bid to reclaim is usurped throne at the head of all creation. The Warrior had led a team which had been personally selected by the Thirteen- the greatest of the current pantheon- against the creature. He accepted his role, but not fate's hand in it- his leadership evolved out of a hatred of the Collector and a desire for revenge after his sword and partner, Miroku, the King of Blades, had been "collected" as part of the Hydra's plot.
He gripped Miroku tighter as the familiar form of the Collector, albeit battered and bloody, materialized in the air in front of the dying god.
"You think you have won," The collector said. "You think you have achieved some great thing. That somehow the world will be better for your victory."
"Yes." The Warrior said, barely a whisper.
The Hydra roared even as the Collector laughed. "You think it's over."
"Yes." The Warrior said again.
The Collector lunged forward, grabbing the Warrior by the throat, its fading strength still enough to lift the hero from his feet.
A massive head crashed to the ground near them, the Hydra's thrashing settling. A titanic eye fixed upon the Warrior and the Hydra's own aspect.
The Collector's grip weakened, and the Warrior struggled free. The Collector stared at his hand with an expression of frustration that quickly turned to one of relief.
"It's never over." The Collector sat down on a rock and stared at his own monstrous body taking its last shuddering breaths. The Hydra itself stared through the warrior at the great egg beyond him, which began to tremble with the first signs of life.
"Your friends will reach the egg of the World Phoenix instead of me, and then what?" He scoffed. "They'll remake the world as they see fit, no doubt influenced by the Thirteen."
"They're not as reasonable, honorable, or as fair as you and I. Some of them aren't even sane."
The Warrior considered this for a moment, he would likely not reach the egg himself, especially if this was all a ruse to allow the Hydra one last move. "It's better than the alternative."
The Collector smiled. "It must be, mustn't it," he said. "Or else, this would certainly all have been for naught. Surely maintaining the status quo- or perhaps even changing it in your favor- would be better than the careful and calculated machinations of the being that got this whole little mudball rolling."
The Warrior stiffened with sudden realization.
"You see it now, don't you?" The Collector's smile became a savage grin. "I've run this world before. I started it. I've had countless reigns, in fact. Sometimes as myself, other times, as aspects of a pantheon. countless times, I've been usurped, and countless times, I've been the usurper. Yet for as terrifying a thing as my return to power is supposed to be, Everything's still spinning nicely along now, isn't it?"
The Collector and the Warrior watched in solemn silence as the great Hydra shuddered its final breath, and collapsed into the chasm from whence it came.
The Warrior's adversary addressed him one last time even as he faded into nothingness. The Hydra's fall heralded by a nova of fire and a rolling explosion as the World Phoenix began to hatch, bringing with it the power to remake reality itself.
"No. It will never be over. Enjoy your victory, Hero."