Villain Retirement

"I recognize Silvermoon's smell."

The two women looked average, too average. Soon, however, both of their faces started to contort; almost as if reflecting the waves of the ocean itself. And then, a few moments more, their faces turned into someone Riley was very familiar with.

"Katherine, it had been a while."

"...Is that you, Riley?"

Katherine stepped forward— her hair, soon turning silver as she looked Riley straight in the eyes, "That's not a clone?"

Katherine's eyes soon turned to look at Riley from head to toe; her hands, massaging her face as she stretched her jaw. She then looked at Paige, before a… very awkward smile crawled on her still numb face.

"..." As for Paige, she could really only raise her hand, before also letting out an awkward chuckle as she waved at Katherine.

"It's a clone, Katherine," Riley finally answered as he too stared at Katherine's face. Did Alice use telekinesis to change the shape of the muscles and flesh on their faces? Riley never really thought of using his abilities like that… he didn't need to, after all,

"But I am currently controlling it. It… is good to see you are alive."

"I… thought you were dead." This time, the awkward smile on Katherine's face slowly became true as she turned her eyes back to Riley, "If anything… I'm glad to see you too."

"Hm," Riley nodded, "But perhaps it would have been preferable if you introduced Karina fi—"

And before Riley could finish his words, he felt an embrace suddenly wrapping around him as Alice, without any warning, hugged him. Her face, red as it could be as she seemed to want to whisper something.

No— she wanted to wail and scream, but what sort of voice or words should escape her mouth?

She had always imagined what it would have been like to witness and watch her son grow up— something that shouldn't have been an imagination or a fantasy at all. But alas, her life was cut short.

It didn't really matter for her; it didn't matter what he looked like, what he had done. It didn't matter that he was taller than her. It didn't matter that he looked at her like a total stranger.

In her arms, she could only see her baby.

She will never let go of him… no matter how short her life could be this time.

"..."

And while Alice was being overwhelmed by emotions she could barely describe, Riley really only let out a breath; his head, slowly turning to look at Alice before his eyes started to squint.

"Please let go, Alice Lane," he whispered.

Alice, however, only shook her head as her embrace only got tighter.

"Did you know, Alice…" Riley then let out a sigh, "...the last time you hugged me was the first time I died?"

And as soon as Riley said that, the sand beneath them started to bounce and tremble; rippling almost as if they were boiling as they soon faintly reflected the sun above.

"Shit!" John, who was watching what was happening from afar, could not help but grit his teeth as he felt and saw what was happening. He then flicked his finger, immediately lifting Elliot, Ellie, and Paige into the air as he did so.

"..." Katherine also flew into the air, quickly trying to gain distance from whatever it was that was happening around the two telekinetic titans. And very soon, the only thing that Katherine could really hear were her own breaths.

The sea that was whispering its song, now completely frozen. The wind that harmonized with it, now without a whistle or even a breath… almost as if everything was just… dead.

The space surrounding Alice and Riley also started to distort. If one were to try and squint their eyes, one could see a sort of crack being made in the air— a void.

"Should… we let this continue?" Ellie could not help but take in a small gulp as she watched space and light itself starting to disappear; her eyes, also glancing at the Paige and Paragon building to see if it was still okay— after all, they live there now.

"You know a way to stop Boss and his biological mother?" John quickly replied as he floated closer to Ellie.

"..."

"Right…" John could really only sigh as Ellie once again glared at him, "Well… at the very least, I can do this."

And with those words, John's golden hair started to wave; his arms, very slowly stretching to the side. And as soon as he did so, the ocean that seemed frozen in time once again started to move.

"Can't let you destroy our new home, Boss…" John then let out a very long and deep sigh as he shook his head,

"... Hope he doesn't get angry at me."

***

Somewhere in the expanse of the solar system, several beams of light started raining down like comets— before also instantly disappearing and leaving with it 14 identical spacecraft.

"Why did you cancel the hyperdrive, Elder Zora?"

"...My ship's detecting an anomaly coming directly from the planet."

Perhaps the only one that wasn't identical to the rest of the ships was the one that belonged to Elder Zora. Unlike the rest which were pyramid in shape, Zora's ship was spherical.

"The energy is almost similar to that of a black hole," Elder Zora's eyes reflected a hologram that was being shown inside his small spherical ship.

"I see it too," the evaniel Guardian's voice echoed through Zora's ship, "What do you want to do, Elder?"

"...I'll check it myself," Elder Zora squinted his eyes as his ship started to move, "Let me borrow half of your people. The rest of you meet with Princess Vera."

"Very well."

And without even as much as an exchange of precaution, the evaniel guardian's ship flew away— followed by 6 other Guardian ships.

Elder Zora's ship also soon flew away, followed by the remaining guardians. Their speed may seem slow, but they were going at a speed that none of the Earth's spacecrafts are capable of yet.

And very soon, the view of the big blue painted the reflective surfaces of their ships.

"This planet… is fairly young," Elder Zora's nose started to move as he stared at Earth, "I can smell nothing but death— to be expected since their people have just come from war…

…Let's go."

An incessant and almost visceral rumble started to surround Zora's ship as he entered the Earth's atmosphere. It did not last long, however, as the view from his holographic screens shifted almost in a blur.

A green forest.

A desert.

An ocean.

And soon, a shore as they arrived at their destination.

Elder Zora quickly got off of his ship— or perhaps it was better to say he was spewed out of it like a piece of gum.

"...Are those the Earth's inhabitants?" And the very first thing he noticed was John and the others, casually floating far above the ground and not minding them any heed even as the Guardians' ships arrived one by one.

Their kind… was capable of flight? Zora didn't really bother reading all of the information about the humans and just focused on Riley Ross's profile. And now, seeing this… perhaps he should have actually taken the time to learn.

"..." It didn't really matter right now, however, as Elder Zora soon turned his attention to the anomaly— only to see two humans right in the very center of it. The space itself was cracking, letting out sharp but quiet thunders as some sort of dark lightning started to whip and snap through the surrounding air.

"Just what— Is that Riley Ross?" Elder Zora's eyes then started to widen as he quickly recognized one of the two humans that seemed to be causing the anomaly,

"Why… is he here? Shouldn't he be on— !!!"

And before Zora could contemplate on whatever it was that was happening, several loud beeping noises started to emit from his ship— warning him that the energy was turning to critical levels.

"..." Zora looked back and forth between his ship and Riley before his whiskers started to tremble. Princess Vera is right— he thought. Riley Ross was an entity that needed to be examined.

"Guardians!" Zora raised his hand. And as soon as he did so, all of the Guardians floated out of their ship. Most of them were humanoid, with half wearing some sort of mask to cover their noses and mouths.

There was one, however, that seemed more akin to an octopus.

"Restrain Riley Ross at all costs," Elder Zora then said, "And if your judgment calls for it…

…then you have my permission to terminate him."

The uniforms of the Guardians lit up— the red patterns on them, now dancing like the surface of the sun.

"Guardians!" The octopus-like Guardian raised three of its limbs— how it was able to speak, one could really only wonder. But seeing as the 5 other guardians all perked up, the octopus guardian seemed to be the leader of their unit.

"This Riley Ross has killed one of us! Be very careful, but at the same time… show him the wrath of the Guardians! One does not simply kill one of us and hope to get away with it!"

"Rah!" The uniforms of the guardians lit up even brighter as they all let out a roar in unison.

"Guardians, assem—"

And before the octopus guardian could finish his words, he noticed… a small red stone suddenly casually floating in front of his unusually large eyes.

"...Huh? That looks like… a Guardian Force?"

It wasn't only him, the other guardians also squinted their eyes as they also had a red stone floating in front of them. The only thing they could really do was stare at it for a few seconds, before turning their heads to where their stomach should be…

…only for all of them to be greeted by the gaping holes that now decorated their stomach.