Chapter 46: Dark Millenium

"We… are the Dark Millenium!"

"..."

"...A cult?"

"Blasphemy! Our leader is Darkday, the one who will save this world from being destroyed! No, Nuclear Baby, we…

...are the shadows. Those who are willing to dirty our hands and bathe ourselves in blood so that the world will be saved!"

Hannah and the others all looked at each other as the Darkday copycat with the number 19 etched on his suit once again began another monologue. Hannah could probably blast him away now, but it just didn't seem right to disrupt him since he hasn't really done anything to them yet.

...Wait. Is this why superheroes don't attack the villains while they talk? She had been frustrated so many times about this before whenever she watches a scenario like this, but now that she was in it, she was curious as to how his speech would end.

"...Save the world?" Hannah then muttered, "Save the world from what?"

"Not what, child-- who," No. 19 muttered, "Mega Woman."

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"What?"

"Or more specifically, Mega Woman's race."

Once again, Hannah and the others could only look at each other in confusion. Riley was the only one whose eyes were still on the man, his eyebrows slightly raised as he looked at the man from head to toe.

"The government does not want us to know. But Darkday… Darkday approached us one day and told us a secret-- No, a prophecy. Mega Woman is just the beginning, there would be others like her who would descend from the stars; bearing only one goal in mind-- genocide." No. 19 then stretched his arms to the sides,

"Look around you, if one Mega Woman is capable of doing all of this; if one Mega Woman is capable of killing millions of us in a single day, what more thousands of them?"

"Mega Woman… did not do this," Silvie then stepped forward, her breaths heavy as she looked the man straight in the eyes, "It was your leader who did!"

"Lies," No. 19's muffled chuckles then seeped from his helmet, "A lie told to you by the government. All of you are brainwashed, that is why we will only choose those who are more grounded to the truth. You, Dragon Monarch, you belong with us!"

"I think we've heard enough," Scarlet Mage then finally made a move as she stepped in front of the others. She initially thought that Riley was lying to her and that he had something to do with this. But after hearing the man's words, she knew that this so-called Dark Millenium could have never been created by Riley.

Riley was the epitome of evil; human lives meant only one thing to him-- a thing meant to be snuffed out. This Dark Millenium… are probably just a gathering of fools and insane people wanting to use Riley's name…

...Unforgivable, she thought. Save the world? Riley was probably laughing on the inside right about now.

"Dragon Monarch, don't listen to him!" Silvie then blocked Gary from the man's view. Gary, however, placed his hand on Silvie's shoulder and lightly pushed her to the side.

"...Dragon Monarch?"

"This group…" Gary then muttered, "Would… it really have people the same as me?"

"Dragon Monarch!?"

"Yes, child," No. 19 then stretched his arms towards Gary, his voice containing an eerie warmth, "The Academy has listed almost a thousand of you, Dark Millenium is recruiting your brothers and sisters as we speak."

"What are you doing, Dragon Monarch!?" The flames on Hannah's arms withered as she grabbed Gary by the shoulders as soon as she passed by her. However, Gary was able to swat her hand easily as he continued to walk towards No. 19.

"What I should have done earlier," Gary then whispered as he shook No. 19's hand.

"This is good, Dragon Monarch," No. 19 chuckled, "Welcome to the Dark Mil--"

"8th Dragon Killer Move..."

And before No. 19 could finish his words, a light snap cracked in the air as Gary suddenly knelt on the ground, breaking No. 19's arm due to the sheer force of being pulled closer towards him. And before the dust could ripple around Gary's feet, he placed No. 19's body over his shoulders and quickly stood up."

"...Thunder Slam of the Dragon Monarch!!" And with that roar, Gary's body twisted, blowing off all the dust gathered around him as he slammed No. 19's body to the ground.

Hannah and the others could only watch in disbelief as the sound of bones cracking whispered in the air. Although they have already witnessed it during the simulations, seeing someone's mangled body in real life hit differently.

The bone on No. 19's arm tore through his suit, leaving a bit of his flesh hanging from it. His torso was all twisted up and caved in; there was a sort of blue light popping out from his other hand, and whatever that was, it was probably his abilities.

Unfortunately, he was slammed to the ground before he could use it.

"Who do you think you're trying to recruit, you motherfucker!?" Gary then yelled as his eyes started to glow in red, "Do you also think I'm that easy to manipulate, you little bitch!?"

"Dragon Monarch, enough!"

Gary lightly stepped a couple of steps back as a strong gust of wind blew him away, his eyes continued to glow; but as soon as he saw Scarlet Mage approaching him, he slowly started to calm down.

"Step away, Dragon Monarch. You don't want to accidentally kill him," Scarlet Mage then said after letting out a long and deep sigh, "We still need to ask him some questions."

"You got us there, DM," the flames on Hannah's body all started to wither away, "I thought you were really thinking of joining this fucking cult."

"Pft, I am the Dragon Monarch," Gary then said as he half his face with his hand, but leaving an opening between his fingers for his eyes to be shown, "Solitary is my sanctuary; I shall not be bound by organizations."

"Good work, Dragon Monarch," Silvie also let out a sigh of her own as she approached the scene, "You should have at least told us what you were planning so we could have formulated a better plan."

"I… I also thought you were joining them."

"...Who are you?" Gary could not help but blink a couple of times as another unfamiliar student approached him.

"...Carlos? I've been here with you since earlier," the male student then said as he slightly lowered his eyebrows.

"...Right, I remember now," Gary chuckled awkwardly. Most of the students ran away when the Darkday copycat showed himself, leaving only him and the others. Scouring his memories, there truly was another one with them.

"A… anyway," Gary then waved his hand, "Plans are restrictions, I shall not be bound by--"

"Who is your leader, No. 19?"

"Gah!"

"Riley!"

And as the group was having a conversation, a shrilling scream thundered through their ears. They all quickly turned their heads towards the noise, only to see Riley's hand on No. 19's protruding bones.

"Who is your leader, No. 19?" Riley once again repeated his question, his voice completely calm.

"Riley, stop this now!" Scarlet Mage grabbed Riley's shoulder and tried to pull him away, but found that he was not even able to budge him.

"It can't be Darkday," Riley then whispered, "Darkday is in retirement, No. 19. He promised the world he wouldn't come out until Mega Woman is back."

"L… long live the Dark Millenium."

"Is your group trying to say that Darkday is a liar, No. 19?"

"Kh!"

No. 19 once again groaned in pain as Riley slightly pulled on his exposed bone. However, after a few seconds, he raised one of his hands and smiled.

"L… long live Darkday!"

"Hm?"

Riley then looked at the man's hand, only to see some sort of mechanism on it as well as No. 19's thumb on a red button.

"Suicide bomber!" Scarlet Mage then roared as she quickly rushed towards No. 19, "Everyone, find cover!"

"No… brother!" Hannah tried to reach her hand towards Riley, but halfway through it, she found her hand stuck in the air… as if an invisible wall was blocking her path.

"This is…" Scarlet Mage was in the same situation. She was about to shield everyone from whatever was coming but found something invisible blocking her path. And it wasn't only them, Silvie also had her arms stretched, her palms slightly pressed even though there was nothing in front of her; same with Gary and the unnamed schoolmate.

"B… brother…" Hannah's chest started to move erratically as she looked at Riley, her fettered breaths almost filling the entire air around her, "What… What are you--"

And before she could even finish her words, her view was filled with nothing but white.

"No!" Her wailing screams, almost overpowering the loud thunder that erupted next.

"No… no… no!" And as the blinding light slowly faded from her vision, what replaced it was a cloud of dust, once again drowning them like an ocean. Hannah then slightly stumbled forward, probably indicating that the invisible wall blocking her path was gone.

"Brother!?" She then screamed.

"Is everyone okay!?" The dust around them started to spin as Scarlet Mage once again compressed them in a ball. And as soon as everything was once again clear, the sight of blood and guts welcomed them.

"F… fuck," Gary muttered, "Riley, bro? Where are you!?"

Silvie covered her mouth, trying her best not to let the raging gasp that wanted to burst out from it.

"No…" Hannah then kneeled on the ground as she looked at the blood. The explosion was strong enough to make a crater and even paint whatever was left of No. 19 in it. If Riley wasn't able to shield himself then he… he was probably…

"Calm down, Nuclear… Baby."

And before she could finish her terrifying thoughts, she felt Scarlet Mage's hand on her shoulder.

"That… wouldn't be enough to kill your brother," Scarlet Mage then said before leaping towards the crater, "He was probably just blown away somewhere due to the force of the explosion, but he should be fine."

"W… what? What are you…"

"I… I believe Miss Scarlet Mage, Nuclear Baby," Silvie sat behind Hannah, holding her hand to comfort her, "Riley… is strong. Please… you have to believe he's alive."

"T… that's…" Hannah was going to say something, but when she felt the trembling of Silvie's hand, the only thing she could do was nod.

Scarlet Mage, on the other hand, could only let out a sigh. Of course, Riley is fine, she thought. If he wanted to, he could have stopped the explosion from even happening. He was probably just out there planning something.

But why… why didn't he tell her anything? Wasn't she something of a right-hand man? He should have told her that he was going so that she could--

Scarlet Mage quickly shook her head of the thoughts she was having. Right-hand man? Her? No… no, she should never acknowledge something like that. Never!

***

"...Interesting."

Riley found himself staring at the dark sky, his arms completely stretched to the sides as his whole body was planted on the ground. Right at the moment of the explosion, he used his abilities to increase the momentum and blast himself away even further.

What he did not expect, however, was that the initial blast was already too strong, causing him to fly further than he planned to. For a small bomb to have that kind of magnitude, it would seem this Dark Millenium group was not as simple as he initially thought.

"Are… you alive?"

"Hm?"

"You are, aren't you? Then please stand up, you are going to reveal my hiding spot."

Riley then blinked a couple of times as he turned his head towards the feminine voice that suddenly whispered to his left, only to find another Darkday copycat seemingly hiding beneath a collapsed building.

"Are you also part of the Dark Millenium?" Riley then calmly said as he floated himself up from the ground, "What number are you?"

"What?" The Darkday copycat once again whispered loudly, "No, who wants to be in that fake group? It's me...

...Dark Frost."