Chapter 4: Warbound
" Mhmm, what happened?" Markus asked. He slowly began to wake up. His body was heavy and felt like lead, his mind was numb, and he was starving.
" We have got to stop meeting like this, Markus. Seriously kid." Dregg spoke up. He was sitting next to Markus, with scrapes and scratches on his metal skin.
" Dregg? What happened to you?" Markus asked.
" I've been saving your ass, that's what." Dregg pointed to the other gladiators stuck in the pit with them, and Markus took note of how some of them were bleeding, some had black and blue bruises, and the one man made of rock was nursing a bloody lip.
" You've been keeping me safe... Thank you, Dregg. It would seem I owe you my life." Markus told the man. " How did we end up here?" Markus asked.
" You mean, you don't remember? Your little lightning show? You nearly killed Mongul, in a fit of rage, before that disk in your chest took you down." Dregg explained. " Do you think you could do it again?"
" I... I'm sorry. I don't remember any of that. I blacked out." Markus told the man.
" I see. Well, we'll figure it out. For now, get up and get ready kid, because we're about to enter the Maul." Dregg told the man. " And you got a whole lot of angry people ready to take your head."
Markus looked around the room and nearly everyone there with him were glaring at him.
" Alright slaves! FRONT AND CENTER NOW!" The warden of the maul shouted out loud.
A fierce surge of the nanobots entered the prisoners' chests, burning them, and forcing them to their feet's.
" Gah! By the gods that burns." Markus grunted as he got to his feet.
Every gladiator in the dark pit of a cave, walked out into the main yard, and suddenly a giant monster made of Lava exploded from the ground and started hurtling down lava rocks at the fighters.
" MOVE!" Markus moved quickly and pushed Dregg and the rock man out of the way, before smashing the giant lava rock with his bracers.
" Thanks." Dregg told Markus.
" You'll get no thanks from me. It's because of you we're stuck here." The rock man spoke.
" Well, it's a good thing I didn't do it for you then. Isn't it?" Markus said to the man.
" Hmp! Looks like you've still got your spirit. But it won't do you any good if you remain ignorant." The warden said to Markus.
" You know... You seem pretty comfortable trying to intimidate me from up there. What do you think that means?" Markus asked the man.
" Hmp! Kneel." The warden raised his staff, and a surge of nanobots forced their way into Markus' nerves, forcing him to his knees. " Give it up, you've been implanted with an obedience disk. Fight it too hard, and it'll fry your brains. You are a slave to the empire. Like you I too was a slave once, but after winning multiple seasons in the arena, I was freed and made a citizen of the empire. Do as I say, and you may be able to gain a taste of the glory that I have. But this is the Maul, the most lethal training school on Valdr. And the Maul must be fed. So, first a test. There are twenty two of you here. Only eight of you will be able to move on." The man spoke.
" This is crazy! Insanity! I'm not a slave! I'm a citizen of the empire and I demand to know what I am charged with! I demand a trial!" One of the prisoners yelled out.
The warden looked down at the man and smiled before raising his staff and burning the man to ash.
" Now then, it's time to fight or die." The warden stated.
The warden threw down a bunch of weapons into the crowd of fighters.
The fighters all quickly scrambled to get their hands on a weapon.
Markus got knocked around as the others quickly grabbed their weapons.
When Dregg returned he had two swords in his hands.
" Here." Dregg said to Markus. " You'll need this."
" Hold on now. We're not really going to fight each other until there's only seven of us left. Are we?" Markus asked.
" Yeah, something doesn't feel right." Sid spoke up.
But everyone else ignored Markus and Sid.
" Kid, remember what I said before. Every fight is to the death. You don't want to die? You want to get another crack at Mongul, this is how you do it." Dregg told the man.
" FIGHT!" The warden commanded.
The fighters all rushed one another, with the man made of rock making a straight charge for Markus.
The rock man swung his sword straight down at Markus, and he caught the man's arm with his hand with ease.
" I don't want to kill you." Markus told the man. " If we work together, we can-" Markus continued struggling with the rock creature, but as he was pushing against the man, he was punched in the face. " FINE!" Markus slammed his fist into the rock creature's mouth and then forced him into the ground.
" TWO ARMS!" Sid yelled over to Markus and pointed in terror.
Markus turned and watched as more giant creatures began crawling into the arena. They were shaped like fish but walked on two legs.
"We are the trench. And you are lunch." The monster spoke.
" Not likely." Markus exclaimed. Markus leaped at the creatures and started cutting through them with ease.
Not too long after the trench and the fighters began killing one another, the warden returned.
" Enough!" He yelled.
Those fighting immediately stopped and looked up at the man.
" Look around you, you eight have made the cut. You're a team now until the day you die. Sleep well. Tomorrow, it gets worse." The warden explained.
The gladiators returned to the cell and there they would wait until it was time for them to battle once more.
" Gah!" The silence in the room was quickly disrupted by Sid, the bug man. He was trying to pull the disk in his chest out, but recieved a strong shock for it.
" Stupid bug. If none of us can pull it out what makes you think you can?" The last of the trench asked.
" Mind your own business, fish." Sid told the monster.
" All alone, with no hive, no hivemates to protect you. So sad." The trench muttered.
" Never needed one before. But you, I can smell it. You're trying to call for your sisters, but you have no. No more. You are all alone too." Sid told the trench.
The trench lunged at Sid, with her mouth wide open, but she was quickly stopped by the rock creature.
" That's enough. I am Grog, I could crush the both of you right now, but then we'd be down two men for tomorrow, meaning we may all die. So, like it or not... We're gonna need to work together. So, let's talk. Names and skills." Grog asked.
" Sid the sneak, I can fight with four arms, I'm good at sneaking and thievery."
" I am Trench, from Atlantis. There's no more trench. Trench is alone."
" What about you?" Grog asked Dregg.
" I am Dregg the iron-body. Alone and unchained. I am stronger than you Grog. I could shatter you into tiny pieces. But you're right, we need to work together. So, for the time being you'll have my skills." Dregg spoke.
" I am, Silio baask. Formerly of the Governor's imperial army. My employer was a valdarian, a citizen of the empire and representative of the fifth regional community congress. The man the trainer killed."
" My father." The woman behind silio spoke up.
" Can you fight, little one?" Grog asked.
" My name is elara, and no. I don't know much about fighting. But I'll learn." Elara stated.
" And you?" Grog asked Markus.
" I am Markus, I have no surname. I am the son of Queen Hippolyta of Themyscira. I was blessed by the gods of Olympus and trained by the greatest Amazonian General to ever live, Antiope, my aunt and sister to the queen. I don't really like any of you, and that's not a personal thing, but I don't know any of you yet, and only one of you hasn't tried to kill me yet. But I do know one thing, I won't allow my life to be chained by another. Not again. I will do what I can, to try and keep us all alive. But at the end of the day, I want a rematch with Mongul." Markus explained.
" What about you?" Grog turned and asked the man sitting in the corner.
" Him? He's a shadow. An unbound shadow. Still in his desert gear, his days are full of prayer and silence. But he'll fight when the time comes." Silio explained.
" Fine then, we're all a team, until the time comes for us to fight each other." Grog explained.
Markus cut his eyes at Grog, knowing he was speaking to him directly. There'd be no friendship here. He was all alone.
............
The next day the fighters gathered in Maul, near the lava lake.
" Time for your test fighters. I hope you enjoy it." The warden exclaimed.
Slowly multiple beings began to rise out of the Lava lake.
" Whatever they are, they're big. Markus, Dregg, we'll tag team the first one. See what it's made of. Everybody else...." Grog then stopped. " No.... Margos, Brock? I thought you were both dead. I thought" Grog was suddenly punched by the first Rock creature, sending him flying. " BROTHERS!" Grog yelled out as he hit the ground.
Markus and Dregg, both attacked the rock creature, smashing it to pieces in front of Grog.
" Margos!" Grog cried. " Brock, Please!"
" They can't hear you, Grog. They've fought against the Obedience disk for too long. They're brains are gone." Dregg told the man.
The rock creatures began to swarm Dregg and Markus, one of them even sent Markus flying with a punch that drew blood from his mouth.
" UgH! Damnit, Grog. I know this might be hard. But these are your brothers. Whatever is left of them is pain and suffering. We need your help. They need your help. Your help to put an end to the suffering." Markus told the man.
" Lord forgive me and protect me." Grog said a quick prayer to his god and then got up to help Markus and the others deal with the remaining rock creatures.
Together Dregg, Markus, and Grog worked their way through the rock creatures, smashing them with their fists and ending their lives of pain as quickly as they could.
When the fight was over, Grog hung his head in shame.
" I am sorry for your loss, Grog. But it needed to be done. Wherever they've gone, they're free now." Markus told the man.
" Rockling to stone, stone to sand. Find them and keep them O'lord." Grog spoke. He said one last prayer and then released the ashes of the two men into the wind. " Thank you, Markus of Themyscira. You have my gratitude for freeing my brothers. But that does not make us friends."
Markus nodded and walked away from Grog, leaving him to grieve.
" Two arms." Sid called out to Markus.
" Hm?"
" Two arms, are all people from your planet strong?" Sid asked.
" I don't know. I've only ever known the Amazons and the gods. But the Amazons are strong themselves. Other than them, I cannot say." Markus told the creature.
" I know. The people on our planet our strong, especially the heroes. Many have killed trench but trench always comes back stronger." Trench explained.
" I see. You're from the same planet, Gaea?" Markus asked the trench.
" Trench is from earth." Trench corrected the man.
" Earth. I've never heard of it before. But now that you mention it, I think you're right." Markus stated.
" Hey!" Elara called out. " It's an imperial pleasure cruiser. Come to see our blood."
" Or theirs." Silio responded.
" No! They're just farmers. We are not killing those people." Elara told the man.
" We'll do what we have to do. But it seems we have bigger problems than your farmers." Grog told the woman, having finally gotten over his stupor.
" Last week, the fierce gladiator Vulcan, earned his first wound from the emperor himself." The warden spoke.
" Who the blazes is Vulcan?" Markus asked.
" You are, I guess." Dregg told the man. " Happens sometimes. You do something cool; you get a nickname from the people. Guess, they're calling you Vulcan." Dregg explained.
" I don't like it." Markus replied.
" Why not?" Dregg asked.
" I don't know." Markus replied.
" Now, after a stint in the Maul, let's see how he does against the monsters from beyond. The MANHUNTERS!"
Multiple giant flying machines began landing in the plains in front of Markus and his group of fighters. They raised their hands and quickly opened a barrage of laser blasts.
Markus raised his arms and as quickly as they could, Markus started deflecting the energy bolts flying at them with his bracers.
" Whoa, look at him go!"
" Vulcan! Vulcan! Vulcan!"
Markus grew tired of the chanting of from the crowd behind him. When the energy blasts stop coming, Markus and the others jumped off the platform carrying them and charged the manhunters.
" Markus, throw me." Dregg told the man.
Markus stopped and grabbed hold of Dregg, spinning him around and launching him at the Manhunters.
" HAAAAGH!" Dregg tore through four of the Manhunters, using the momentum to bounce off each of them, before Dregg landed on his feet.
" Heh! I like that idea. Your turn." Grog spoke. He grabbed Markus, when he wasn't looking and threw him at the manhunters as well.
" HAHAHAHA!" Markus laughed at Grog. Markus crashed through three Manhunters before landing on his feet. He jumped into the air and used his sword to cut the head of one of the machines off.
Markus, Dregg, and Grog took to dismantling the Manhunters, despite their weird technology. And while it was dangerous, Markus felt his heartbeat rushing rapidly. Thrill and excitement filled every part of his being. He smiled as he had fun.
...............................
After the fight, the pleasure cruise landed and Markus and his team were welcomed aboard, where the speaker for the cruise announced to those watching, both in person and at home.
" Ladies and Gentlemen, it is my honor to present this evening's conquering heroes.... Vulcan and his mighty Gladiators!"
Markus and his team were welcomed to a grand feast in their honor.
Markus and Dregg consumed the food in front of them like gluttons. For Markus, he hadn't eaten in over 3000 years, so it was understandable.
" Can I uh, Get some slate or coal please?" Grog asked.
" I'll look into that." The Valdaraian server responded.
" I can't believe this! Manhunters are supposed to be the responsibility of the king and his army. Not Gladiators!" Elara exclaimed.
" Less talking! More eating!" Sid shouted.
" Silio, you've been chosen." One of the guards told the man.
" For what?" Silio asked.
The guard stepped aside and pointed to the three women waving at Silio from beyond the veil.
" Oh!" Silio exclaimed. " Uh?" He looked to Elara and tried making an excuse, but the woman shook her head and told him to go.
Meanwhile as he ate, Markus spotted a woman watching him as Silio walked out. Her eyes were glowing red. Their eyes locked together for a moment, before the woman vanished into the shadows.
...........
The woman, returned to her post and made a call directly to the Governor.
" My lord." The woman spoke.
" Ah Cir-El. It's so good to see you again my dear. What word do you have?" The Governor asked.
" The one known as Vulcan is still alive, my lord. He and his team had triumphed against the Manhunters." Cir'el explained.
" Oh, dear. He's the one who-"
" Who cares?" The Governor asked, cutting off his advisor. " That's how the system is supposed to work. You fight in the maul and you have a chance to earn glory. Now everyone knows I am fair. This is proof." The Governor explained.
" But it is not you, who makes those decisions." Cir'el told the man.
" The King has put me in charge of the situation, while he heals. So, yes... it is." The Governor replied.
" But sir. The people are talking." Cir'el spoke.
" You're starting to annoy me, my dear. What difference can one slave make?" The Governor asked.
" It's just that-"
* BOOM!
The wall behind Cir'El exploded and in came a group calling themselves the insurgency.
" Vulcan, we fight for the people, for the outcasts, the slaves, and discarded. We fight for you. Now, will you fight for us?" The insurgents asked.
" Yes, Finally! Come on Markus! This is where we really fight!" Elara yelled out happily.
Markus, wanted to stand up to help, but Dregg's solid hand stopped him.
Markus looked to the man and Dregg shook his head.
" We can't do anything here. Especially not with these disks on." Dregg told the man.
" What do you mean, this is -"
Suddenly the wall next to the Insurgents burst open and from the hole in the wall, came the King's elite forces. A squad known as the death's heads, dressed in yellow skintight suits, with glowing yellow rings. They quickly began to take down, the insurgents, pinning them to the ground with their yellow light.
" What's the matter with you all? The Insurgents're the only ones trying to make the empire a better place." Elara shouted.
" You don't get it, Elara. We can't fight here. Not as we are. Even if we wanted to. If we did, we'd only get ourselves killed." Dregg explained to the girl. " And then nothing we've done would matter."
" Enemy secured." One of the men grabbed Elara by her shoulder.
" She's one of us." Markus spoke up.
Elara scoffed and turned with the man.
" No. I'm not." Elara stated.
She was taken away with the death's heads, just as Silio came running back into the room.
.....................
" Damnit! I should have stayed with her." Silio cursed himself. " I was supposed to protect her."
" There was nothing you could have done, Silio. She chose her path." Grog told the man.
" Yes. And she's the only one who chose correctly." Silio spoke.
" Silio." Markus started to speak. He wanted to try and comfort the man. But Silio cut him off.
" You're an offlander, so maybe you don't care. But 30,000 citizens have vanished since the King took over the planet, since he put the Governor in charge. At least that's as many as they've counted so far. And that doesn't include the hundreds of thousands of slaves and foreign soldiers that have died fighting his wars. I was with the imperial guard. Those rebels would have killed me on sight. But if I thought it would help, I'd cut off my own right arm." SIlio exclaimed.
" You know something, Silio. I do understand. And you're right, I am an offlander, but you know what else? I believe in freedom. I was locked away all my life, never allowed to see the outside world. Until that is, the day I managed to escape. I was allowed maybe a few short minutes to experience the lush green lands of my home world, before I was trapped in prison once more. And now, here I sit, escaped from one prison to only end up in another. Never in my life have I known freedom. But I know this, I will fight for it. And I will bring Mongul down. That much I guarantee. " Markus told the man.
" Alright, alright. That's enough crazy talk you all. your fight with the Manhunters made the premier viewbox feed. The imperial league has taken notice. So, get some sleep. Tomorrow, you hit the big leagues." The warden told the crew.
The Warden led the fighters back into the pleasure cruiser, bringing them to their rooms. But along the way, he stopped to have a talk with Markus.
" You seem to have a good head on your shoulders, but after having seen what the King can do to you, it shocks me you still talk of defying him. If I were you, I'd keep my head on my shoulders and stay focused on the goal. You may be able to go all the way." The warden told Markus; he then left the man alone as he prepared to enter his room.
But when Markus opened the curtains to his room aside, the Woman from before, the Governor's shadow lunged at him at speeds, Markus had never seen before.
If not for his training and reflexes, he would have lost his head. Thankfully, Markus managed to catch the woman's hand with his own, before she could hit him. The force of the punch staggered Markus, even though he caught it.
" Hm! You're strong." Markus grunted.
" You're fast." Cir-El responded.
Markus and Cir-El locked hands together and started pushing against one another. Cir-El was shocked. Never before had anyone been able to stop her attack, let alone match her strength.
" I remember you.... Vaguley. You were at the arena when I fought Mongul." Markus stated.
" Yes." Cir-El replied.
" Why are you here?" Markus asked.
" I need to know my lord's enemies." Cir-El explained. " You're fast, and very strong. But I could still kill you with a glance."
" Now, that I'd like to see." Markus was not going to back down, even with the woman being as strong as she is. But he did have to admit one thing, he certainly did find her amusing. Attractive even.
" Maybe, another time." Cir-El stated. She backed away from Markus and lowered her fist.
" So, what are you here for?" Markus asked the woman.
" You're a problem for my king as long as you are out in the publics view. I'm here to buy you." Cir-El explained." I'll take you to the steppes. A place of peace. You'll never have to fight again."
Markus was taken by surprise. The woman's offer certainly seemed like a good one. And the few days he's been on this planet have been nothing but hellish fighting.
" I'd like that. I would." Markus spoke.
Cir-El nodded and was prepared to leave. But then Markus grabbed her arm and stopped her.
" But I can't accept that. Your king is a tyrant. A monster who has enslaved his people and kills those that disagree with him. And your governor is no better. I've seen what his promises are made of first hand. This planet will not thrive so long as men like them are in charge. So, I will smash their doors down, and rip them from their thrones with my bare hands if I have to." Markus told the woman. " And no one is going to stop me from saving these people. Not even you."
" You should think again, Vulcan. You'll always be an outsider to them. You'll never belong." Cir-El told the man.
" Maybe so. But at least, I'll keep my own pride." Markus told the woman.
" Very well." Cir-El nodded and left. There was nothing more left to say between the two of them.
Markus watched as Cir-El disappeared beyond the veil and turned back to his own bed. When he pulled back the curtains, two women were laying bed waiting for him.
" Uh, hi?" Markus greeted the two of them nervously.
...............
The next day at the great imperial arena, the team began to gather in the arena for their third fight.
" Heh!" Markus was still laughing nervously and fiddling with his pants.
" Calm down kid. Have you never had sex before?" Dregg asked the man.
" No.... That was. That was a first." Markus laughed.
" Oh dear, lord we've lost him." Dregg sighed.
" Quiet you, two. We're up. If we win this one then we're finally free." Grog spoke up.
" You really believe that?" Silio asked the man.
" Thousands of people are watching. Even the emperor would hesitate before breaking his word.
" Welcome to the great games, citizens and Oligarchs. Featuring the world's finest Gladiators, vying for the planet's greatest prize. Any slave who survives these rounds becomes a citizen of the empire, with all the rights and responsibilities that entails. And probably, I might add, a lucrative endorsement contract with one of the better sword and shield manufacturers. So, let the games begin." The announcer shouted over the megaphone.
And as Markus and the others walked into the arena, Markus looked up and spotted both the Governor and Mongul watching. Mongul of course, was sporting bandages, but other than that he seemed fine.
Suddenly a loud engine roared to life, making Markus and the others look up.
" What was that you said?" Silio asked the man.
" Lord forgive us our cracks." Grog muttered.
" What's this? That's the imperial dreadnought. If I remember correctly, this ship just saw action in the emperor's war. Bombing the fillian infidels... What is it doing here?
The announcer asked.
Mongul grinned and then pressed a button on his chair.
" By the sweet Prophet....." The announcer exclaimed.
The dreadnought dropped a bomb directly down towards the arena.
" GROG! Shield the others! Markus throw me at it!" Dregg yelled.
" Even you can't stop that bomb, Dregg." Grog told th eman.
" No! But I can keep it as far away from the rest of you as Possible, now go!" Dregg yelled.
Markus grabbed Dregg and launched him towards the Bomb. The moment, Dregg made contact the bomb went off, though farther away than intended.
Markus and Grog, used their sturdy bodies to cover Sid, Silio, the shadow, and trench from the blast. but even with their strong bodies, they couldn't keep the explosion from engulfing Silio.
When the dust cleared, Grog looked down at Silion on the ground. The man had lost his arm.
" Enemy detected."
" Death head, warguards. This is the end." Silio groaned.
" Hush, now. I am a priest. You'll want a prayer." The silent one spoke.
" No.... I want my sword." Silio told the man.
The priest handed Silio his sword, placing it firmly in his one good hand and turned.
" heh! You're all dead." One of the men spoke. The guards began firing on Grog and the others, noting of how they were taking them down one at a time. " Enemy down."
" No! Enemy mad!" Markus emerged from the smoke, his skin slightly singed from the blast, but fine otherwise, in an anger.
One of the deaths head guards raised their fist and made a shield of yellow light, but the moment Markus touched the shield it exploded.
" What the?" The guard's head was punched off by Markus, with ease. He dropped to the floor and the ring on his finger flew off.
" Ring status report: Yellow lantern of Sector 518 deceased. Finding new replacement."
" I didn't think it was possible. Not so easily anyway." Mongul grumbled. He had shelled out quite a sum to have the deaths head guards working for him. And to see one of them being killed so effortlessly, surely put a sour taste in his mouth.
" LIGHT'EM UP!" The deaths head yelled out.
They all fired beams of yellow light at Markus.
Markus, raised his arms and quite effortlessly deflected each of the blasts with his Bracers, even managing to send of a few of the beams back at their masters, and killing them.
" Ring Status Report!"
" Ring Status Report!"
" Ring Status Report!"
Markus made quick work of the Yellow lanterns, tearing through them like paper. And when he was finished, he let out a loud bellow of rage and glared up at Mongul.
And he pointed.
" You."
" I'm game for round two. But not today. I'll leave you to bury the trash." Mongul told the man.
When the dust cleared fully, Silio was dead on the ground and Dregg, unconscious.
Markus lifted Dregg and Silio up off the ground and carried them back inside the gladiator pit.
.........................
Later.
" With but one arm left, he raised your sword. We commend him to you o prophet. Forgive him and embrace him." The silent one spoke.
" I Forgive him and Embrace him." Sid stated. " Tomorrow, we die to, don't we?" Sid asked.
" If it is our time." Grog responded.
" Don't listen to him, little bug. You saw much today, but I've seen far worse. And lived to tell the tale. Long ago, before trench was swept away to Valdr, trench was a part of a collective trench. My brothers and sisters and I were the greatest warriors in our seas, but one day, the faker king himself, and his friends attacked the trenches, together their swords, and their men of green light, and men of magic attacked us. They rained down their assault on us relentlessly, and very nearly wiped out all of trench's people. But we survived. We escaped from the tyranny of the fake sea king. If we trench could survive them, then this king does not scare us." Trench spoke.
" I can top that. My brothers and I had flown to a small world of red rock, almost similar to our world. I was a young brick, strong and wild. Ready to conquer, when we met our first native. My brother Margus shouted: "Do not slay him! He must be captured, to be studied!" But the creature had other ideas. He shattered the very stone from our flesh with nothing but his bare hands. Tore through bars of the strongest cage. And smashed our mechano warbot. He was green, and changed shape like it was second nature. he was too powerful. So, we fled. Like fresh cut rocklings. How could we conquer a planet of creatures like him? We were young, if we'd stayed just a bit longer, we'd have learned the truth. He was the only one of his kind. He was the Martian Manhunter." Grog spoke his story to the others, and they listened intently.
" I guess it's my turn then. There was once a time, when I was younger, that I believed myself to be the strongest in the universe. And I had good reason to believe so. Out of all my people, I alone was the strongest. I could change my skin to a metal unlike any they had ever seen, a special metal, called Nth Metal. I was the only one who could do, I was the only one brave enough to try and merge with it. A common misconception is that I am a man made entirely of metal, when in fact..." Dregg spoke. His skin slowly began to change to pink flesh, like that of a human's only slightly lighter. " We are born no different than you, Markus. But my people are a war like race, we prided ourselves on conquering other planets with one ability we alone possessed. The ability to meld ourselves with a single metal. When I became of age, I went out in search of a metal to bond with, and when I returned with the smallest shard of Nth Metal, my people were not happy. Because it was believed to be impossible to merge with it. But I did it. I alone succeeded. And I became the unstoppable Colossus. I was on top of the world, but one day, while trying to conquer a planet, I encountered a man of such strength and power that I was helpless to even try and fight him. His fists were as heavy as a planet, and his speed, he was far faster than any ship we had. He was marked by a red S. And called himself the Superman." Dregg explained. " That day, he humbled me, and showed me that I have a long way to go before I am the strongest."
" That is something. I don't have any stories like that. The only thing that I have is... Well, I guess I can tell you guys. When I escaped from my first prison, I was struck by a bolt of lightning, where I was trapped for at least sixty years. In all that time, I spent my years, dreaming. Not the sweetest of dreams, but a constant nightmare. Where I battled a shadow. A shadow that looked like me. I battled that creature for what felt like thousands of years. And in all that time, I died. That's right, I felt myself die thousands of times. Each time worse than the last, simply because each time, I felt like I was getting better and stronger. And yet despite that I still lost. This cycle of fighting and death continued until one day, I finally touched down on this planet. And well, you all know the rest." Markus explained.
" Me next me next." Sid exclaimed. " I was all alone, hiding in alleys, creeping and sneaking, and stealing. Nobody helped me, nobody wanted to. Until one day I met all of you. Markus saved me from the King. Grog saved me from the stone men, Trench saved me from killer bomb. You're all always helping me. Now it's time I help you. I want to help all of you, like Silio, did. Fighting for my friends." Sid exclaimed.
It was at that point that the Shadow stood up.
" I've heard enough. Let us be Warbound." He spoke. He walked over to Silio's body and placed his hand over his chest. " In life and death, the oath that cannot be broken. He was Silio baask, protector Elara Kai and hero of our second trial. We who honor him speak our true names and be bound to each other forever. I am Virlal-Ur the shamed, Shadow warrior and Shaka priest.
" Sideros, The unhived. Last of his kind."
" Trench, the last of her sisters."
" Grog, son of Dramen, and Flora."
" Dregg, son of adisa, and Neurock."
" Markus, Son of Antiope and Hippolyta. The first son of Themyscira."
" Now and forever, we are Warbound!"
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone