CHAPTER 55: CH 55: THE CHAIR.

His eye lasers subsided as he took a step forward. "Shame. I wanted him to die last."

The rest of Vanguard’s eyes moved down to see their fallen comrade before a screeching scream tore through their voices.

Catalyst fired first, taking several throwing knives from her vest, charging them before hurling them at Nightwalker.

Who didn’t move. He didn’t even dodge, he just stood there eyes locked onto hers as she delivered an onslaught of charged knives.

~BAM! BOOM! BAM!~

As soon as they made contact with his skin they detonated.

The room could finally breathe again as they waited for the smoke to clear and hopefully, the carcass of Nightwalker.

Just before the smoke could clear she saw the eyes through the smoke— those unnaturally golden hues that shine as bright as the sun.

She panicked, she flailed for more knives just before Nightwalker shot through the smoke and grabbed onto her wrists.

"You asked me to do something right?" He smiled at her before—

~CRACK!~

Her wrists bent unnaturally backwards, leaving jutted bone poking out and an obscene amount of blood.

"ARGHHH!"

Catalyst screamed as she curled into the floor in pain.

He clapped his hands once ~PAA!~ making everyone left shudder in fear. "So, who’s next?"

"GRRGH!"

Chimera roar was deafening as he transformed into a black bear and came at Nightwalker.

Just before Nightwalker’s lasers could go off chimera’s claws slashed him across the face.

His head involuntarily dipped down.

He brought it back up just as Extraordinary delivered a skull rattling punch straight to the jaw and sent him stumbling back.

Nightwalker stood finally regaining balance, his golden eyes burning through the haze like twin suns, unblinking, merciless.

Sonic remained frozen as she couldn’t peel her eyes away from her friends’ carcasses.

Either Catalyst had passed out from the pain or she’d died from blood loss, leaving only three Vanguards left.

Extraordinary moved first. His fists were already raw, knuckles split open from the last exchange, but he didn’t hesitate.

He surged forward, muscles coiled, veins bulging, every ounce of his enhanced strength thrown into a haymaker aimed at Nightwalker’s jaw.

The impact was thunderous — bone against bone, flesh against flesh — and for a moment Nightwalker’s head snapped sideways, teeth bared as blood sprayed from his lip.

Chimera followed, shifting mid-stride, his body rippling and tearing as fur erupted across his skin. He became the bear again, hulking and black, claws like hooked blades.

He lunged low, swiping across Nightwalker’s thigh, tearing through his uniform and muscle, and leaving a ragged wound that bled freely.

The scent of iron filled the air, sharp and nauseating.

Sonic blurred into existence a heartbeat later, a streak of silver cutting through the smoke.

She struck from every angle, fists and feet hammering into Nightwalker’s ribs, kidneys, and spine in a relentless rhythm.

Each blow was a drumbeat, a symphony of violence meant to overwhelm even a god.

For a moment, it worked. Nightwalker staggered under the combined assault, his body rocked by the sheer force of their coordination.

Extraordinary’s fists drove him backward, Chimera’s claws tore fresh wounds, and Sonic’s speed left him reeling, his golden eyes flickering with something dangerously close to surprise.

The Vanguard pressed harder. Extraordinary slammed a knee into Nightwalker’s gut, forcing him to double over.

Chimera clamped his jaws around Nightwalker’s shoulder, teeth sinking deep, blood spilling down his fur.

Sonic darted past, delivering a final strike to the temple that sent Nightwalker crashing into a wall at the end of the room.

The warehouse shook with the impact. Dust rained down. For the first time, Nightwalker looked mortal.

But gods don’t stay down.

Especially, not to fucking humans.

Nightwalker rose slowly, deliberately, his golden eyes glowing brighter, his lips curling into a smile that dripped with contempt.

He dusted himself off like it was training and flapped his cape to get rid of the harboured dust.

He spat blood onto the floor, the crimson stain steaming against the cold concrete. "That was really cute."

His chest heaved once, twice, and then he moved.

It was sudden, violent, unstoppable.

He seized Chimera first. The bear-man roared, claws slashing, but Nightwalker’s hand shot out like lightning, fingers closing around his throat.

Chimera panicked, he tried shifting into something else— something slimmer.

But his hand was so firm around his throat he wouldn’t let him change shape.

The sound was sickening — cartilage crushed, windpipe collapsing. Chimera’s roar turned into a strangled wheeze as Nightwalker lifted him effortlessly off the ground.

Chimera clawed at his grip, fur matted with blood, but Nightwalker only tightened his hold. Bones cracked under the pressure, ribs snapping like brittle twigs.

With a single motion, Nightwalker hurled him across the warehouse.

Chimera slammed into the opposite wall with a deafening crash, his body folding unnaturally, ribs puncturing lung.

He slumped to the floor, blood pooling beneath him, his transformation flickering as his body failed.

Extraordinary charged, rage burning in his eyes. He swung again, fists like sledgehammers, but Nightwalker caught the blow mid-air.

Fingers closed around his wrist, bones grinding together. With a twist, Nightwalker snapped the arm backward, the sound sharp and final.

Extraordinary screamed, but Nightwalker didn’t stop. He drove a fist into his chest, the force wasn’t a punch— but a rocket.

A sickening wet sound echoed throughout the building as Nightwalker’s hand carved in his chest and reached for his heart.

Extraordinary had already stopped moving, his eyes were just wide as blood spewed from his lips and onto his beard.

Nightwalker caught onto his still beating heart but didn’t rip— not yet. He pulled him close enough it was practically an embrace, and whispered into his ear.

"You were as pathetic and disgusting as I imagined you’d be." He pulled back slightly, "This is why humans aren’t gods."

"URGH!"

Extraordinary’s breath escaped him as Nightwalker finally ripped out his heart and let him fall to the side.

He observed the heart for a few seconds and opened his fingers and let it fall like discarded trash.

He crouched down, closed his eyes and listened in. He sighed as he began wiping his hand on Extraordinary’s body.

"I know you’re still here." He called for Sonic. "I can still hear your heartbeat..." He stood back up. "It’s like a Warhammer."

He turned and headed to an armchair in the corner.

"You didn’t leave already and that means there’s only one entrance in and out and I’m staring at it right now."

He rolled up his cape and tossed it across his body as he bent and slumped into the chair. "So how bout I make you a deal—

If you can get to that door faster than I can break those noodles you call legs, then you’re free, I won’t chase you or anything— Scout’s honour.

But if you can’t," He shrugged. "Well if you can’t you’re dead so I guess that’s fair enough."

"PS this is an amazing chair, so I’m taking this." He raised three fingers. "You ready?"

"Three."

He curled a finger.

"Two."

Another.

"One."

~CRRK!!~

"ARGHHHH!"

Sonic screamed as she stared at her legs bent the wrong way and her blood pooled underneath her.

"Arrgh!" She wailed before turning to Nightwalker who couldn’t look less bothered.

With tearing welling up in her eyes she begged. "Please, please just me. I swear I won’t say a thing. I just don’t want to die."

He crouched down to her but shifted slightly to avoid her blood.

"Shhh." He silenced her. "You know I honestly thought you’d be a lot faster than that, especially when your life depended on it but I guess I was wrong."

"I’m sorry" she continued. "I just don’t want to die."

"That’s the problem, you don’t want to die but you deserve to die. When humans go against gods then we have to show dominance and this—" he gestured at her legs.

"This is the only way to do that. But at least in all my benevolence, I can at least help you."

He stood straight and looked ahead. His boot hovered above Sonic’s head, pushing it into the side.

"No! No! No!"

She screamed as the pressure became unbearable. Her eyes shot blood red, she began bleeding from every orifice.

He started whistling to drown out her screams.

Deepening the pressure more and more until—

"Wait, tell my sister—"

~SPLT!~

Her skull finally gave in to the pressure with a wet splatter.

"Finally." He raised his boot off her head and wiped it off on her body. "So... the hell am I supposed to move this chair?"