The Psychogenesis

  SHIT!! Michaela thought with pursed lips, her body rolling across the floor, her eyes re-narrowing quickly as she suppressed her pain and surprise. DAMNIT!!! It just HAD to be him!! She cried out internally, placing her hands on the floor to stop herself from going any further, pushing against the ground in order to do a short frontflip in order to land back on her feet. Dreamstress turned around to confront Miguel as soon as she felt her soles hit solid ground, her eyes darting over the runway that had now become their arena, lamenting the fact that they were fighting over such a sparse area. No buildings, no trees, not even hills!! I have nothing I can take advantage of with my superior agility!! She tsk’d and got into fighting position, only to once again be awestruck as Destructor closed the distance between them in but a second, his fist slamming into Three’s stomach before his other arm suddenly shot upwards and grabbed her arm as soon as she was about to go flying, once again pulling her in a wide arc over his head to slam her against the ground with a thunderous boom.

  Psychogenesis had only two constraints, of which only one could truly be called a ‘weakness.’ The first, was that the more complex an order Dreamstress declared, the more energy it would cost her. This is rather obvious, and it merely meant that she had to play around with more simple instructions; and even then she found loopholes. “Obey me” could be used instead of “tell me where your secret hideout is and then help me take out your own organization” and it would have the same effect while costing her far less energy. The second constraint, the weakness, was that the MORE her target ‘was’, the more energy it cost to order them. An elephant or large monster was incomparably more arduous to control than a human being, and therefore commanding an insect could come as naturally as breathing. This was due to the fact that brain mass was directly tied to how much electricity she had to expend for the same action, and bodily mass was tied to how many hormones were required for the same intended effect. She had found a way to defeat even this mortal weakness in her powers, though. She used her complete control over the endocrine and nervous systems to enhance herself; making her faster, stronger, more durable, pain-resistant, and overall achieving the same result as if she had been born as an enhancer - effectively making her not just number Three of the Celestials in overall power, but also the third strongest at a physical level. She transformed her body into one tailor made to defeat those she struggled to destroy using her power alone, focusing on becoming a giant-killer. Yes, her power wasn’t just one of the few that could affect others, but it could also affect herself. And yet it was all of this, everything that was stated in this very paragraph, this was exactly why Destructor was the absolute worst person she could ever hope to face in the battlefield… as far as she was aware.

  “DO YOUR DAMN JOB!!!” she called out in desperation, gritting her teeth as her body impacted the ground once again, drops of blood shooting out of her mouth and staining her lips. Miguel prepared to rush in order to continue pummeling Michaela, only to suddenly hesitate, his scorching amber eyes quickly darting all around in confusion as he remained still. I’m not the one being meddled with?! He realised, suddenly taking a step back in fear as he placed his hands up, turning his head around for any signs of an enemy that wasn’t Michaela as she once more flipped herself around mid-air to land on her feet. That was absolutely, most definitely an order, but she wasn’t ordering me. And then suddenly he felt an intense pain in the back of his neck, making him stumble forwards in surprise and agony before he was subsequently impacted a second time, this time to the side of his head. Snipers. Normally weapons of that caliber would completely decapitate a man by blowing up their head, but for Destructor the impact merely made him fall to the ground on his side. The rebel grunted, trickles of blood beginning to fall from where the two bullets had hit, his teeth gritting as he turned around to look at the perpetrator, noticing a glassy-eyed individual in a tuxedo perched on the roof of the overwhelmingly opulent mansion that Michaela called home. “Your bodyguards?! They weren’t just for show?!” he asked in dumbfoundedness, his eyes darting over to the hero right as she kicked him as if he was a soccer ball, the tip of her shoe driving itself against the rebel’s stomach to send him flying a good distance away with a painful crunching sound. “No,” Dreamstress hissed venomously as she jumped into the air to chase after her opponent, catching up to him as he tumbled through the air, “You think I’d be so pompous as to keep humans around just for show?? You disappoint me, old friend!!” She then reared back a fist and slammed it into her enemy’s spine right as he was beginning to fall, smashing him against the ground, fully intent on snapping his back in half. She immediately jumped backwards as soon as the tips of her feet touched the earth, now fully aware of Destructor’s inhuman ability to almost instantly recuperate from hits that could easily rupture reinforced steel.

  Miguel grunted and reared back a leg, kicking the dirt underneath himself to use the momentum to get back into an upright position, his irises glowing with incandescent amber light. “As a matter of fact, Three,” the rebel slowly breathed out, a bit of vapor slowly coming out the sides of his mouth, his muscles bulging disgustingly underneath his skin while he turned his head to the side to catch a glimpse of the bodyguard currently prepared to fire a third bullet into his head, “I did think that way. I apologize for underestimating you, and I will not be committing that same mistake again.” Destructor then immediately rushed towards Michaela, digging his feet into asphalt and pushing himself off it with such strength that he kicked up large chunks of cement with every step, forming holes wherever he landed as he made short work of catching up to Michaela. The hero’s eyes widened and she quickly ducked, evading the incoming hit to her head, only to suddenly feel as the rebel’s knee dug into her nose. “Agh!!” Three exclaimed, one of her hands shooting up to cover her face while the other flailed wildly in front of her, hoping to hit Destructor by sheer coincidence. Miguel merely sidestepped the haphazard blow, reaching from underneath and gripping the collar on Dreamstress’ outfit, pulling on it while his other hand twisted into a punch and slammed against her stomach with so much force it caused her to cough up blood. Her bodyguards can’t shoot at me if there’s any risk at all of them accidentally hitting their master. All I have to do to incapacitate their usage is to stick close to her. Miguel had reasoned. And he had reasoned correctly, of course, seeing as Michaela had also figured out the very same thing as soon as she saw the rebel pushing towards her rather than running away after the first two shots to the head.

  “Release me!!!” Three exclaimed, her eyes bloodshot yet still glowing violently in pulsing light purple and pink as she stared up at her enemy’s face and slashed at his chest with her claws, a small amount of blood and drool running down from her lips as she supposedly cleaved into her enemy’s ribcage. She no longer cared if her hands or clothes were stained by blood, as she had become intensely aware of the fact that she could no longer afford such luxuries. “Kill yourself!!” she growled as soon as she felt her opponent’s grip on her collar loosen, twisting her body around to deliver a brutal kick right to where she had just previously cleaved a wound on Destructor’s chest, sending him backwards with tremendous force. Miguel’s hand suddenly shot up towards his neck as soon as he made landfall, wrapping around it and beginning to squeeze with so much force that for a moment it looked like he genuinely might end himself then and there, only for his eyes to once more pulsate with amber light and for his hand to drop to his side, coughing slightly and leaving a red handprint around his esophagus, his muscles once more wriggling erratically all throughout his body. Michaela’s eyes narrowed, jumping backwards as her bodyguards quickly began to assemble around the runway that had become their makeshift arena, each of them sporting both a rifle in their hands and a dagger on their hips. Miguel- he seems almost immune to my ability to control his endocrine systems. No matter what I order or what I do he seems to be able to shake off any sort of emotional control I could have over him. And any physical commands only work half-heartedly as well. Most of her guards then opened fire, the hail of bullets descending on Destructor, smashing into him from almost every angle. The rebel grit his teeth and placed his hands in a guard in front of his face. This is not good. He thought with an internal hiss, his eyes darting over to the bodyguards and then back to Michaela, realising that if he just kept pursuing her she’d just repeatedly shake him off and then get her small army to pincushion Miguel. I have to protect my face, since a bullet to my eyes could leave me blind. More than that, I can already feel my body becoming exceedingly sore - I can’t let Michaela keep using her guards with impunity.

  The former Celestial suddenly turned around, his back facing Dreamstress much to her shock. He then kicked himself off the ground and rushed towards the nearest guard, grabbing him by the head with a neutral expression that betrayed none of his inner feelings, throwing the man like a frisbee towards the second nearest enemy and causing them both to split in half upon impact, their guns shooting into the air for a few more moments before they went silent. The other ten soldiers surrounding Destructor continued to pummel him with their rifles, their expressions as emotionless as before, completely unaffected by how Miguel had brutalised two of their comrades. Michaela grit her teeth when she saw the rebel’s eyes dart towards the next closest soldier, his bloodstained clothes beginning to get stuck to his skin thanks to his sweat and blood, highlighting how his normally extremely well toned body was currently bulging out in strange and unnatural ways. Three pouted and charged towards the rebel, taking advantage of the fact that he had shifted his focus towards her guards, ignoring the various sores all over her body and the blood running down her nose. Miguel lunged towards the guard he had been eyeing, his hand wrapping around the woman’s arm before pulling on it, his head turning towards Dreamstress in an instant before using the guard he had gotten a handle of as a weapon. Destructor swung the woman around like a whip towards the incoming hero, every single bone on the soldier’s body snapping at awkward angles in order to try and reach the Celestial.

  Michaela’s eyes narrowed and she extended her arms forward with no intention of dodging, instead slashing the body of the human weapon like a paper shredder as soon as they came into range, continuing to push towards her enemy with impunity. Miguel’s eyes widened in surprise, lifting up his other hand in preparation to land a punch as Dreamstress seemingly rushed straight at him. “Jump!!! Cave in your leg!!!” Three growled out, spitting out blood yet not pausing for even a moment, Destructor’s body obeying her will the moment he heard her. He grit his teeth as he tensed his legs and jumped into the air, Michaela diving in between his legs before popping out from behind him, a maniacal grin spread across her face as her opponent slammed both of his fists onto his left leg and shattered his own femur. Dreamstress jumped up as well and twisted her body around mid-air while shouting, “THIS is how a human whip is supposed to look, old friend~!!” her legs whistling through the air with lethal force before smashing against her opponent with a resounding cracking sound, causing Miguel to tumble through the asphalt rather painfully. Three landed back down unto the floor, sweat drenching her entire body as she panted, raising an arm to wipe the blood overflowing out of her mouth. She looked down at her own body and turned her ability to feel pain and fatigue back on, slowly flexing her fingers, grunting and whining at the pulsing internal damage all throughout her being, her entire body hunching over nearly instantly. Damnit, I hadn’t realised just how draining this fight really was. The cumulative inner damage from Destructor’s attacks as well as repeatedly using my ability like that over and over really has taken a toll on me… Fucking hell, Miguel!! Why can’t you just mind your own business?!

  She grit her teeth and spat out some more blood before straightening her back to stare over at where Destructor had been sent flying, her lava-lamp-esque eyes continuing to glow menacingly as she once more turned off her pain and fatigue. Ah, who am I kidding. I know exactly wh~y he can’t mind his own business… Oh Kronos my beloved~ Won’t you leave SOME free will for the rest of u~s?? An innocent smile crept up on her face, her cheeks flushing red for a moment as she got lost in her own thoughts before being forcibly snapped out of it when one of her guards got smashed against the side of her head brutally, his spine shattering upon contact with her skull, sending them both flying backwards. The Celestial groaned and grabbed the body currently blocking her vision, pushing it out of her way mid-air before quickly focusing on the man who had thrown her own guard at her with pure venom in her stare. Miguel’s left leg had been thoroughly mangled, and yet he was still standing straight as if nothing had happened, his amber eyes solemnly refusing to meet the hero’s stare. He instead jumped using his one good leg towards the nearest guard, his hands digging into the ground underneath himself like it was made of mud and pushing himself off it to generate momentum, moving on all fours like some sort of beast. The soldiers kept shooting him, causing more and more tiny trickles of blood to come out of the rebel’s already overwhelmingly bloodied body. To any third party watching the battle unfold it would seem like Destructor still being alive and fighting was some sort of inconceivable miracle, but the reality was that he looked far worse than he actually was faring. I’m not doing too hot. Miguel thought to himself as he ripped a guard apart, pulling off his arm before throwing it like a javelin towards the next nearest one, thinning their numbers at an incredibly rapid pace. I’m bleeding too much and I can feel my skin beginning to rip apart at the seams. I’m nearing the absolute limit of how much I can grow before I need to expand my volume, which would give Michaela the advantage. The bullets aren’t too big of a deal, but my old friend’s claws can really dig dangerously deep… That’s fine, though. A sniper bullet whistled through the air and slammed into the rebel’s shoulder, digging into his skin painfully, causing Destructor to wince and turn to look up at the guard still perched on the ceiling of the mansion.

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  “Awww~ Forgot about me already~?? I feel troubled, y’know!!” Michaela called out, her bloodied yet shadowy visage coming into view in front of Miguel, causing his eyes to dart from the gunman on the roof to her - his expression only changing ever so slightly in surprise. A kick landed on his ribs, the rebel’s body contorting because of the blow while gritting his teeth, quickly taking advantage of the situation to extend an arm and grabbing Dreamstress’ leg before she could retract it. The Celestial scrunched up her face in distaste, “Let go!” she hissed, bringing down an arm with the intent of scratching Destructor’s face and gouging out his eyes. Miguel released her on command, only for his mangled leg to come from underneath and slam into Three’s stomach like a flail, having used the act of grabbing onto her as a distraction for his actual intent. Michaela’s eyes bulged from the pain, the whites within them becoming reddish as her slashing attempt missed entirely. Without missing a beat the rebel punched the hero’s side with all the strength he could muster while she was still mid-air from the kick, a booming sound exploding all throughout the runway as number Three of the Celestials was sent flying towards her own mansion. I don’t understand?! Michaela cried out internally, her face twisting into a corrupt toothy grin, her normally pearly white teeth stained pink from all the internal bleeding bubbling up to her mouth. I keep using more and more energy to puppeteer his body, but the results stay the same. It doesn’t make any fuckin’ sense; if my earlier commands using little energy were already halfway to working, how come my commands using over quadruple the power still have the very same half-potency?? Either my earlier commands shouldn’t have worked at all or my current commands should be overriding him completely. Dreamstress’ body cut through the air like a throwing dagger, only stopping after her feet finally landed on the roof of her very own mansion, the force of the impact causing the tiles under her to fly off where her talons dug into the solid surface, her body facing towards her enemy. An aching along her legs as well as the feeling of a warm and sickening liquid flowing down Three’s back also clued her into realising that Destructor had just used her as a projectile to kill her very own personal elite sniper.

  To claim that Michaela was going mad would be an understatement. She was incredibly intelligent, even particularly across the roster of the Celestial Ten. She certainly didn’t have the analytical skills of Maquineer, who was an actual cyborg, nor was she comparable to Horde who had the computational power of a million people; but when it came to wisdom she was only thoroughly bested by Empress. All of that to convey that Dreamstress was fully, completely, without a shadow of a doubt aware that Destructor not only had an actual shot at defeating her, but that it could be argued that he was in the process of absolutely beating her to a pulp. “DESTRUCTOR!!!” Three called out from on top of her roof, the torn apart body of her bodyguard staining her immediate vicinity as well as her clothes. Miguel had never before seen her eyes glow with so much fervor and genuine passion, since normally the hero was extremely thorough with concealing her own feelings and even straight up suppressing them using her own power if need be. However, right now it was more than obvious to the rebel that the Celestial was allowing for her true emotions to shine like an incandescent hellish light for all to see, even if for just one ephemeral moment. I’ve been waiting for this day, Michaela. Miguel thought, a slow smirk creeping into his face. He wasn’t smirking out of sadistic pleasure in causing his old comrade pain, nor because he found some sort of satisfaction in forcing her to exert herself to this level. It is really a shame, you were the most fun and interesting of the Celestials I had the pleasure of working with. Oh, what a joy to see you face to face again, though!! Destructor was happy because he was having fun, and was doing so while fighting his dear friend, even if he knew all too well that his opponent didn’t quite see him eye to eye in that regard. Three slowly raised an arm, pointing a finger directly at her opponent, her face twisted into a snarl, “I won’t ask why you’re here. I won’t ask how you managed to hide as one of my bodyguards. I won’t ask where you’ve been all this time. But I will ask you one thing; what did Kronos do to put you in my way?! How?!” She was stalling for time, her mind racing as she tried to figure out what was happening.

  The rebel tilted his head and crossed his arms, his eyes narrowing in on the Celestial on the roof above. He remained standing at a perfect upright angle, despite the fact that one of his legs was mauled and bent at an odd angle - effectively standing on one leg. How strange, to have a conversation when the fight’s not even over yet. Well, the more time passes the worse off she’ll be compared to me, so I’ve got nothing to lose really. “I don’t have the answer to that question, you know. I don’t doubt that he most likely knows about everything happening, but I really don’t think your level of paranoia is warranted,” Miguel answered with a shrug, his eyes remaining unwaveringly focused on his enemy. Michaela in turn had her growl twist into an unsatisfied scowl, her face getting covered by shadows as she turned away in thought. I think I understand now. He started as only slightly more dense than a normal human, but he’s been consistently increasing his mass with every time I’ve used my power against him in order to keep throwing me off. Perhaps holding that much matter within such a constricted volume is also extremely taxing? Either way, I’ve got you all figured ouu~t Miguel!!~ The Celestial slowly lifted her head back up, the shadows around it dispelling while her scowl was deliberately replaced by a broad smile that seemed stitched onto her lips. Plus, perhaps even more importantly than that… “Why do you lie~ to me, Destructor?? You know I can tell!! Or what, did you think you’d be the one to finally fool me~? So you DO know how Number One manipulated you into this!!” Dreamstress answered, placing a hand over her lips as she smirked, the fleeting moment of genuine unfiltered emotion going away as quickly as it had originally arrived. The former Celestial sighed and shrugged a second time, the tiniest of smiles spreading on his face, “Ahh ya got me. I don’t plan on answering your question, though… And YOU don’t have the energy to spare on forcing me to tell ya’, or am I wrong?” he answered nonchalantly, twisting it into a question at the very end to aggravate the hero, a mischievous twinkle in his eyes. Three’s smirk vanished and she slowly licked her lips, lapping up the blood that had been overflowing from them, the two colors within her irises flowing into each other with renewed intensity. Did he figure out my plan just now?? The hero thought to herself, half frustrated and half impressed. Or maybe he knew all along that I would come to this conclusion eventually? Sooo~ annoying!!

  Dreamstress then sighed exaggeratedly, placing her hands behind the back of her head, her gaze lazily drifting over the rebel’s figure, her eyes dimming as she stepped off the roof and landed on the ground below effortlessly. “You think s~o low of me, even nowadays! It’s really infuriating, Destructor. How come?” she asked politely, swishing her long hair over her shoulder, a renewed trickle of blood flowing down from her lips. Miguel raised an eyebrow in surprise, “You’re saying I think low of you? If what I think of you is ‘low,’ then I doubt you’ll find even a single human being alive who would reach ‘medium,’” he argued, his mauled leg slowly pressing against the floor in an act that would make nearly anyone vomit from the pain in an instant. Michaela scratched the tip of her nose, another trickle of blood beginning to sprout from her left nostril, although she didn’t seem to mind, “Reaaaa~lly?? You’ve been toying with me ever since we began our heartfelt reunion, haven’t you? That sort of behavior isn’t gonna make a girl feel like their partner thinks highly of em’, ya know~ Hmhmhm~” she chuckled softly, hiding the overflowing and undeniable murderous intent within her gaze almost perfectly. Almost. Miguel sighed and shrugged, unfurling his arms, “Toying with you, you say? Come, now, I’ve been trying my hardest here! Had to think up whole new strategies to fight you specifically and everything. I wouldn’t call that toying… But everything is toying in your almighty Celestial eyes, so why even bother. Come on, Three, you knew from the very start that I never thought low of you - you can literally tell if I am lying or not automatically,” he called her out, the tension in the air growing thicker and thicker with every passing moment, Michaela’s gaze hidden partially by darkness as the rebel continued unimpeded, “Ah, and for the record,” Miguel raised an arm and pointed it directly at Dreamstress, his gaze never changing from the neutral one he always wore, “Your mask is slipping. I can tell just how much you want to kill me right now. You stopped using your power on yourself in order to focus on me, haven’t you?”

  Indeed, that was exactly what the Celestial had done. As of the moment she had made landfall on the ground from the roof, she had turned off the way she would automatically use her power in order to suppress her emotions and unpleasant senses to save energy. In other words, she was in what could only be described as sheer, unadulterated, true agony. Her insides had been turned into proper mush thanks to the prolonged battle she had found herself in, and her reserves of stamina were running dangerously low. She was both in horrifying pain, as well as on the verge of passing out from exhaustion. And yet, to the untrained eye it would seem as if all she had was a mild case of bleeding from her nose and gums. Michaela’s eyes flared at her opponent’s words, her lips trembling psychotically as they slowly formed what could only be described as the snarl of a feral animal combined with a toothy grin of excitement, the very air around her seemingly shifting, a single drop of blood dripping from her chin unto the floor. Her entire attitude seemed to have flipped on a dime, her normally perfectly composed attitude vanishing into the wind, “HAH!!! You really saw right through me!!” she exclaimed, lifting up a bloodied finger up to her bloodied lips as she chuckled softly, “You really are just as fun as when you left, Destructor!!! Haven’t lost your edge even one tiny bit!!” she exclaimed truthfully, her cheeks turning slightly reddish for but a moment before she suddenly lunged towards her enemy at full speed, claws out like razors. Miguel cracked a grin at finally getting Michaela to admit that which she would never allow to escape her lips under any other circumstances, his arms raising up into a fighting stance, “Indeed I haven’t.”

  The next exchange lasted less than five seconds. My only choice is to use all of my remaining energy to completely override Miguel. I have no way of knowing how much mass he’ll have within himself, but I know there has to be a limit~!! Michaela thought to herself, pursing her lips as blood spurted out from all the orifices of her face like a torrent, her eyes refusing to lose even a little of their luster in spite of this. Miguel extended a fist towards the incoming hero, which Three dodged by moving slightly to the left before continuing forward, the lights coming out of both beings’ irises seemingly dancing with each other for a split moment. Michaela lowered one of her arms close to the ground while Destructor swung both of his arms towards Dreamstress’ shoulders. “KILL YOURSELF!!!” yowled out the hero, doing an upwards swing with her lowered arm with the intent of cutting Destructor’s torso open vertically. She had used up nearly all of her energy in that command, and she could physically feel as her entire body was hit by a wave of nausea and exhaustion so powerful that she nearly passed out then and there, but she refused to give up. Just… a bit… MORE!!! The Celestial grit her teeth and followed through on her attack, her enemy’s eyes glazing over completely and utterly - no half measures this time. Michaela’s claws dug deep into the rebel’s stomach, blood overflowing from the wound in moments and splattering her figure - although one could barely tell from how bloodied she had been since even before her attack connected.

  Suddenly, before Michaela could react, Miguel’s hands had wrapped around one of her arms and legs respectively. The hero’s eyes widened and shot towards her enemy’s face in sheer panic, only to notice that the rebel’s gaze remained as vacant and suppressed as before. My order worked. What the hell is the meaning of this, then?! She struggled against his grip as hard as she could, but her weakened body made her completely incapable of escaping while the rebel raised her over his shoulder line. “I will kill myself,” Destructor muttered out robotically, falling down on one knee with a thump, leaning his entire weight on his already crushed leg while his healthy one remained raised, his grip around the Celestial tightening. Shit. Michaela realised, her eyes closing. He knew I was going to order him off himself, so he was aiming to grab me even before I gave him the order. I lost. The rebel then brought her down with his full force, using her body like a spear in order to stab himself in the heart. “S…St-op…” Dreamstress called out weakly, blood pouring out from her mouth and onto the floor, although she knew full well that her command had too little power within it to sway someone with as much mass within their body as Miguel during their last bout. But then, surprisingly, he actually stopped. Or rather, to most people it would be surprising, but all Three could do was faintly giggle in amusement. “You…” she muttered with barely a whisper, opening her eyes as she watched the light return to the rebel’s eyes, “You didn’t bother trying to expand your mass to combat my power there at the very end. You returned to normal density, knowing I would exhaust myself because I couldn’t risk it~ And then- then you gambled that I would realise all of this in such a short notice?! Hah…!! Haha~” she giggled again.

  Destructor smiled as well, his gaze radiant despite the extremely beaten up state his body was in. “Yeah,” he called out with a smirk, letting the hero down on the floor as he slowly stood up, placing a hand over his stomach in order for his guts to not literally spill out, his breathing deep and erratic, “I took quite the gamble, didn’t I?” His eyes then darted over to the emotionless bodyguard standing right behind him, the barrel of a .50 caliber sniper aimed point blank directly for the back of the rebel’s head. Three sighed as she lay on the floor, staring up at the sky, “You’re lucky I also like to gamble, old frie~nd…” she murmured. Miguel shrugged, turning around as he stumbled towards the hero’s private jet, leaving Michaela on the ground, walking past the unmoving bodyguard, “True,” was all he answered with. They had both gambled in this battle, and in the end the rebel had won, while the hero was left with only her life as a consolation prize. Destructor knew about the last bodyguard he had yet to kill, and he knew that Michaela would use him as a last trump card. And so, Miguel had gambled that Michaela would rather use her very last weakened command to ensure her survival, instead of ordering the guard to fire in the hopes that it would kill the rebel before he could kill her. I’m sure of it, I would have managed to kill her in time. Destructor reflected with a weakened smile. The former Celestial reached the jet and slammed his fist into its engine, putting it squarely out of commission before stumbling towards the hero’s garage. “I’ll be taking one of your cars,” he called out to Michaela despite also being fully aware that she had already passed out. And in turn she gambled that if she let me live, I would spare her life. Miguel’s smile spread a bit more widely, blood still pouring incessantly from his gut.