Luke loomed large among the debris, his Justice Mark glowing brightly as a symbol of hope. The energy radiating from him created elongated shadows of the Skull Soldiers nearby, causing them to waver for the first time.

  “Cease the lies,” Luke snarled, his tone possessing a raw power that hushed even the tumultuous clamour of war.

  His keen gaze shot upward to the floating drones that had been disseminating Amir’s propaganda. With a flurry of lightning-fast actions, he fired a storm of energy blasts from his Skull Pistols.

  The drones detonated in coordinated explosions, showering down flaming remnants. The large screens showing Amir’s message blinked, then turned off.

  Amir, observing from a secure distance, grinned as though unaffected. Yet his self-satisfaction wavered as Luke advanced swiftly, narrowing the gap between them.

  Unstoppable movement, Luke grabbed Amir by the face. The Justice Mark on Luke’s arm shone with a brightness that caused Amir to squirm in pain as its scorching power seared into his flesh.

  “Now that’s out of the way, it’s time that I get my time with you Amir Podolski. I hope you haven’t forgotten about me… your runaway soldier now Detective Luke Pierce.

  The flames of Luke immersed as his blue flames licked at his armour. Lifting Amir into the air with a grip like an iron vice.

  The peers froze as friends and foes turned to watch the spectacle.

  “You think you can scare me? You’re no different than the rest Luke… righteous fools, blind to the bigger picture.!” Amir said as his calmness shatters

  “The only picture I see is your manipulation and greed of being top using the sense of justice to allow to do what you’ve done to a lot of people that did not deserve to die… YOU OLD FUCK!”

  “You’re old yourself you hypocrite.” Amir

  From afar, Darris as he battles with sees Amir being strangled by Luke. Kicking Lee away he makes a desperate attempt to save him.

  “YOU BASTARD LET GO OF HIM!”

  Lee flew and locked his hand with Darris smiling at him as if he was a clown that feeds on the emotion of a helpless child. “You’re staying where you are and witnessing the death of your leader.” Said Lee

  “DAMMIT!”

  “It’s over for you… Amir Podolski”

  Amir's head in an instant became nothing but a lifeless skeleton that incinerated like paper in a bonfire.

  The sight of Amir's deteriorating remains caused Darris to freeze like a mannequin, his eyes bulging. As he saw Amir's body and spirit disintegrate into nothing, his eyesight became blurry. In desperation, he said, "The master is gone..."

  Lee's laughing, however, broke the brief silence. Not just any chuckle, though. Like thunder, the deep, guttural sound reverberated over the battlefield. Like a volcano, his skull mask pulsated with ominous red flames, each snapping surge augmenting the terrible tenor of his laughs.

  "Darris, did you hear that? With a tone full of bitter delight, Lee mockingly said, "Your great leader is gone." "You're all alone now."

  Darris clinched his hands, his rage radiating from the Skull Fist, which glowed with silver energy. He yelled, "Shut up!" and hurled himself explosively at Lee.

  "Funny, it seems you actually possess emotion you twisted shit!" Lee persisted in disparaging Darris.

  With each hit, a whirlwind of silver flames carved the air as Darris's rage exploded in a barrage of unrelenting blows. His Skull Fist crackled like a tempest imprisoned in his palm, and his moves were a furious ballet. His anguish weighed heavily on every stride, and his rage and need for revenge screamed through his strikes.

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  With his deft and purposeful movement, Lee confronted him head-on, resembling a predator slicing through debris as it fell. He dissected rather than only dodging or blocking. Every movement was a counterattack to Darris's fury, and every blow was a response. As fast as a sword flick, his hands ripped across the gap between them.

  The ocean was depicted as destroyed by the collision of their energies. A cacophony of groans, cracking knuckles, and the metallic ring of energy meeting flesh, the sound was insurmountable.

  "DIE!" Darris begged.

  Darris swung low, making a frantic arc with his leg. His subsequent Skull Fist, which was aiming directly for Lee's chest, was obscured by the power that kicked up mud and debris.

  "I GOT YOU WHERE I NEED YOU!"

  "You're getting too angry."

  The energy exploded behind him, scattering shards of incandescent debris over the pitch, and Lee turned barely in time, the blow missing him by a breath.

  Lee launched a vicious response. With a hook that smashed into Darris's ribs, he sprang forward and slipped past his guard. Although Darris's body was shaken by the hit, Lee wasn't finished. Darris was forced to stagger back after another punch, this one a straight that was machine-like in its accuracy and targeted his jaw.

  Darris surged once more, this time feigning a high kick before striking Lee viciously in the middle. Lee was momentarily crumpled by the contact, his feet slipping on the floor, but his smile remained unflinching.

  "I'M NOT THROUGH WITH YOU YET LEE BECKTON"

  "More!" Lee's voice, distorted and accentuated by the uncanny resonance of his skull mask, broke through the confusion. "Is that the extent of your 'justice'?"

  Lee managed to get slip past Darris's defence once again, his fists drumming into his opponent's ribs and shoulders. Darris, however, would not give up. He snatched Lee's wrist in the middle of a punch, twisting it with a horrible snap before slamming his knee into Lee's stomach with a guttural growl.

  Although Lee's lungs were forced empty by the intensity of the hit, his laughing simply grew stronger seemingly fuelled by the agony. In response, he delivered a vicious uppercut, which caused Darris's head to jerk back and drew blood from his lips as his skull mask started to break gradually.

  Lee's mask was smeared with blood, but his expression remained unchanged. The strain of combat caused his limbs to shake, and the blows from his opponents caused fissures in his body.

  A laugh that refused to die.

  Darris stumbled, his Skull Fist quivering beneath the weight of his might, his chest heaving with effort. Unflinching, he tightened his jaw. He screamed, "You won't break me!" and swung forward with a blow that would have broken the earth.

  Lee moved as fluidly as fire as he sidestepped. "Are you broken? Darris, oh no. With a steel-hard grasp, his palm sprang forward and caught Darris by the throat. "I will destroy from the existence of life."

  Darris was launched into the air by Lee. The throw's extreme force caused the earth beneath the fighters to tremble and debris to be scattered, sending wind gusts around the ocean. Darris's body turned into a silver comet that shot skyward through the clouds and into the boundless sky.

  Luke, Taz, and Maya saw the sky light up like gamma rays as they paused in the middle of the combat, their breath frozen in their throats.

  Lee showed up before Darris as a scorching avenger far above the earth, where the clouds open like gates to reveal the sky. Keeping both hands on Darris's chest, Lee said in a calm but frighteningly sinister intonation.

  "Darris Mahony... Your existence is no longer needed in this planet."

  Between Lee's hands, a core of flaming red-green fire started to whirl and grew quickly as it fed off the never-ending flames coming from his body.

  Darris's efforts were in vain. His Skull mask dimmed as fatigue and despair set in, and his limbs flailed feebly. His words could hardly be heard above the thunder of Lee's increasing strength as he moaned, "No… you can't…."

  Lee's entire body was suddenly engulfed in flames as his skull mask became brighter. "Pay close attention, Darris. The supreme skull mask of this universe is what is in front. He released the energy in a deadly beam of fire with a guttural yell, the red flames penetrating Darris's chest. Darris fell like a meteor, the air around him sparking as the blast's energy sent him hurtling downward.

  The beam continued. The clouds ruptured apart and ignited into arcs of fire as it sliced through the atmosphere. The impact of Darris's corpse hitting the seas below was devastating. A huge plume of steam and flames exploded from the ocean obliterated everything the IPC stands for.

  “DAMN YOU… LEE BECKTON!” In his last words, Darris shattered like brittle glass, turning into nothing that could be seen.

  The epicentre was a blazing ball on the horizon that lit up the night like a second sun. Waves rushed in all directions, engulfing ships and smashing onto beaches. Lee's hometown of Havel City saw the scene, with its citizens gaping in disbelief.

  The Skull Soldiers stumbled and broke up into smaller pieces.

  Taz, Luke, Maya, and Luke gathered after the combat was over.

  In a moment, the world was different. The day Lee Beckton unleashed hellfire on the world and unquestionably demonstrated that justice and revenge could both be wielded like a sword will be remembered by the nations, armies, and remaining citizens of Earth

  Lee remarked, "I'm sick of this shit."