He heard a voice.
"We're not leaving Jake behind!"
And another.
"We have to! Paulina's right! We'll die if we stay here."
Children.
"I don't care! I'd rather die than leave him, and I stand by that!"
They were arguing.
"I can't let you do that, Omniboy."
Another voice. Even more familiar.
"So what? You're gonna knock me out like Zack?"
Zack? Who was...
He thought for a moment as his eyes opened. He took in the scene before him. The blackish brown smoke, the rubble, the burnt up bodies, the smell of death...
Then he remembered.
Zack remembered...
The attack on Miltron Tower.
Bolt and his army.
Jake sacrificing himself to save them from him.
Zack refusing.
Paulina knocking him out.
And here he was.
He took a good look at the scene. Omniboy, Ted, and Rift...
"The kids!" he shouted as he ran over to hug them all. "Oh God, you're alive! I thought..."
"Rift saved us," Ted said, his voice soft despite his large robotic frame. "We were watching TV until she suddenly made some kind of force field with her tentacles. Four minutes later, Paulina came along carrying you. If it weren't for Rift, we'd be dead."
Rift gave Zack a concerned look and held his leg.
"Well, you're alive, and that's all that matters," Zack said, patting her on the head. "Jake is gonna be ecstatic when he... Jake..."
Paulina tried to tap him, but he glared at her.
"You... you knocked me out! I tried to stop him, and you knocked me out!"
"It was in the heat of the moment, Zack! I... I had to!" Paulina retorted, her voice quivering. "I couldn't let you die."
"Oh, but Jake was fair game, huh?"
"Jake made his decision, and I stood by it. I actually had faith he'd win, or at least buy us time."
"And me? I'd just be a liability, huh?"
"Yeah," she said bluntly. Omniboy was about to say something, but Ted stopped him. He scoffed in disgust instead.
"I wasn't gonna lose you just because you wanted to be reckless. You're too weak, Zack. We all are. That's why we need to get out of here, before Bolt catches up."
"No! I'm standing and fighting. This bastard thinks he can come to my... our city? Destroy our base, kill our friends and so many innocent people, and get away with it? That's insanity, and I refuse to run from that!"
"Yeah, you tell her!" Omniboy shouted, only to be met by a glare from Paulina.
"Fine then," Paulina said calmly, raising her arm. "If persuasion fails..."
"You're really gonna try that again?" a voice said from the smoke.
The group turned in horror at the realization of who it was.
Bolt and his men had arrived.
"N...no way! No way you defeated Jake so fast!" Zack shouted in disbelief.
"Not just him," Blaze said with a smile. "His girlfriend tried to save him, but we made quick work of her."
Zack took a step forward, grinding his teeth in frustration, only to be stopped by Paulina.
"Paulina... what are you...?"
"Let's make a deal, father," she said, confusing everyone but Bolt.
"A deal?" he asked, tilting his head a perfect 45 degrees. "Care to elaborate?"
"I'll go with you. I'll help with whatever you're planning. Just let everyone here go. No tricks, no backstabs, no nothing. Just let them live, and I'm yours."
"Hmm, interesting proposition. Now, what's stopping me from just killing them and taking you by force?" Bolt asked with a shrewd smile.
"Me doing this," Paulina answered by morphing her arm into a cannon and pointing it at her own head.
"Paulina?!" Zack shouted in horror, but Ted held him back. He looked at Ted with disgust, but the boy simply looked away. Omniboy tried to attack him, but Rift used one of her tentacles to hold him back as well.
"Hmm. Well, losing you would be troublesome to my plans, I'll have to admit," Bolt said calmly.
"What the hell are you planning anyway?!" Zack shouted. "This is insane! Your own daughter is about to blow her brains out and you're acting like it's no big deal! What is wrong with you? All of you! You're working for this psycho? He's a human supremacist! A monster, and you're..."
"Now, now. Human supremacist is a strong word. I just believe I'm looking out for what's best for my species," Bolt said with a chuckle. Blaze glared at him once he heard that.
"What's that supposed to mean? I didn't know you had... those kind of views..."
"Woah. I don't hate mumans or anything. In fact, I love them. They're a test from the gods, built to make humanity stronger. My plans are to finally pass that test with my own human ingenuity, and you're gonna help me do it."
"Why were you working with the Broker then?" Long asked, grabbing him by the collar of his lab coat.
"I wanted to study mumans. Understand them better. Another piece of my puzzle. Once they died in the Super Society raid, I already had all the info I needed."
"And are we part of your plan?" Blaze asked, ordering Long to let him go with a gesture.
"Depends, do you want to be?"
"What's the plan?"
"I can't reveal that yet, but know that my daughter is a massive part of it and killing her would ruin it entirely. If you think I don't trust you, that's fine, but I promise to reveal them in due time. Right now, though, I need her alive."
Suddenly, there was silence.
The only sounds that could be heard were the burning of rubble and the billowing of smoke.
And after a few long seconds, Blaze cleared his throat.
"Well, let's get this over with," Blaze said, patting Bolt on the back. "Robot girl!"
Paulina flinched at his call.
"Well, we have a deal. We'll let your friends go, and you come with us."
"But brother! What about Bolt?! He's..."
"Still our ally. I want to hear out his 'plans.' If that means getting his daughter back, then sure. If I'm not a fan of them, then we part ways. That's okay with you, Bolt?"
Bolt nodded in agreement.
"Then it's settled. Come on, girl, we don't have all day here," Blaze said. Bolt stepped forward and showed her his hand.
Paulina looked back at Zack as Ted held him back. She walked over to him and shed a tear.
"I know he won't be able to stop you for long. I know once I go with them, you're gonna follow me. I know you love me. And I'm sorry."
"What are you..."
She kissed him. It was short and bittersweet. She pulled away from the kiss, and before he could say another word, she punched him again, this time with even more force than before. Zack fell to the floor soon after.
"Take him to safety, kids. Please," she said as she walked over to Bolt and the others. Omniboy spat at her but missed due to Rift holding him down.
Once she got to Bolt, she reached out to touch him. As their hands touched, Bolt pulled her in for a hug.
"I missed you."
She didn't respond.
He then tapped a small spot on her neck.
Suddenly, her vision blurred, and she collapsed in his arms.
He lifted her by her legs and carried her like a newborn.
"Alright then. Let's go."
"Are you sure about this? Wouldn't it be smarter to tie up loose ends?" Long said, facing Zack and the kids.
"I'm a man of my word. If you try anything, I promise it won't end well for you," Bolt said, glaring at her.
"Blaze?"
"Let's at least try to keep whatever honour we have, Long," he said, and turned in the opposite direction. The others followed soon after, leaving Long to stand there and watch them.
Ted reached out to pick Zack up, but hesitated.
"What's wrong, coward? Having second thoughts?"
"N...no. He's moving," Ted said nervously, pointing to Zack's body. He was right, it was moving.
Shaking, even.
"Uh... guys?" Long said, grabbing everyone's attention.
Zack let out a monstrous scream right after. Right when everyone turned to look at him, he was on his feet.
"Wasn't he knocked out?"
"No!" he shouted, his voice more beastly than man.
"Z...Zack?" Ted said, and tried to reach for him. Zack turned with a look that nearly made him run in fear.
"Run. All of you."
"No! Not you! We're not running! We couldn't be there for Jake, but you..." Omniboy shouted, tears running down his eyes. Rift still held him down. "We aren't gonna leave you here to die!"
"I'm not dying here," Zack said, raising his fist towards Bolt and his men.
"Let's go," Ted said to Rift, and the two set off. Omniboy, still in the clutches of her tentacles, screamed and turned himself into gas. Rift just made more tentacles and covered him up, preventing his escape.
In a matter of seconds, they were gone...
And Zack was alone.
Bolt scoffed.
"Seems he's not in the mood to honour the deal. Take care of him, Blaze," Bolt said, and turned his arm into another gun. He then shot out a large portal to his base somewhere far from Empire City.
As he walked towards it, Zack ran towards them.
"Are you really gonna fight him, Blaze?" Long asked.
"Him? The fool got knocked out from just one attack from his girl. He's not worth my time," Blaze said condescendingly.
"Men!" he shouted, getting them all to immediately assume battle stances. "Kill him."
To be continued.