Bliss shook the last hands he could before it was time to start the auction. He went backstage for one last inventory check while the waiters cleared dirty plates and leftover food from the tables. Everyone took their seats and watched the stage in anticipation.

  Dr. Crux messaged him. “Agent Bliss, our special guest is here, right in the spot we set up for him. He either has no idea that this is a trap or he doesn’t care. If he attacks before you head to lounge, you need to lead him to a closed space so you can speak candidly. Entropi is near the building, send her a distress signal as soon as he strikes.”

  “Noted,” he responded.

  Bliss returned to the end of the runway, spotlights following him. The audience cheered for the most anticipated part of the night. Some guests tried to get closer to the runway, but the surrounding security escorted them back to their seats.

  “Alright everyone! I know you’ve been waiting for this auction all night, so I’ll be quick and get started with the first item on our list! Here we have a rare gemstone found by Surfrista from the center of an asteroid. We will start the bidding at 500 oracles, do I hear 500?”

  All the auctioned items went fast. Bliss made sure to breeze through the items as quickly as possible. They sold for decent prices, but no one was there for a few trinkets. When the last item was sold, several heroes in the audience made their way to the stage. They stood at the back of the stage in a single-file line.

  “Now don’t be shy, everyone. We all know this is what you really came for, the chance for a date with one of your favorite superheroes! Everyone here has agreed to go on a three-hour date with whoever wins their auction. The dates will happen in the upstairs lounge right after the auction. Now first on the list, can I get a warm welcome for the beautiful Queen Nebula!”

  The eight-foot figure of a woman approached the end of the runway. Brilliant splotches of pink and red danced around her body. She wasn’t one of the agency’s heavy hitters, but her looks and personality made her very popular. Lunai recognized every hero in the line as someone popular for mostly superficial reasons. She didn’t judge anyone like that, but they weren’t very useful for the most dangerous missions of the agency. Bliss was the only one with popularity from his image and his power. His training relationship with Entropi gave him a huge boost in the beginning as well.

  Bliss seemed rushed for this section of the auction. Everyone wanted to get through the items as soon as possible, but they were excited for all the heroes auctioning dates. Bliss was saving himself for last, but he wasn’t so popular as to overshadow the interest in everyone else. No dates sold for less than 10000 oracles, more than the average citizen of the GSA made in a year. When the last hero left the stage with the lucky winner, Bliss approached the center.

  “Last but not least, it’s my turn to find a date for the night. Now show me who is brave enough to stare into the void. Let’s start the bidding at 15000 oracles, do I hear 15000?”

  Hands went into the air and the price shot up in a matter of seconds. As the price increased, more harmless fans dropped out of the bidding. Soon enough, only the sketchiest members of the audience were still in the running. The cameras were posted at a safe distance, too far away for the galactic audience to see the bidders.

  Guests whispered to each other. “Isn’t that guy a dictator? I think that one’s been accused of some nasty things… I don’t think Bliss should go with any of these people!”

  Waves of cold and uncomfortable feelings flowed over the audience. They watched in horror as Bliss gleefully responded to the bidders. The giant spying on them shared in their discomfort, bouncing his foot up and down in anticipation. He wanted to rip all their throats out now, but it would need to wait. As the auction continued to drag on, even Bliss’s smile faltered.

  Hurry up, you fucking animals. I don’t need Onder slaughtering the entire audience right now.

  Mercy finally arrived with a 200000-oracle bid. The fortune was enough to build an entire planet. Bliss took a deep breath, exhausted from talking like an auctioneer for five minutes straight.

  “And we finally have our lucky winner, Admiral Atlas, congratulations!”

  The admiral stood up to the pitiful sound of a few confused guests clapping. Their table mates gently pushed their hands back to the table. Concerned whispers filled the room once again. Many expected Dr. Crux to step in before Bliss could go off with the man. The room was still as the hero left the stage and walked over to Admiral Atlas. The man stood tall over the small human, who linked arms with him and started heading towards the upstairs lounge. Onder watched closely, ready to pounce as soon as the pair left everyone’s sight. They climbed the stairs to the lounge area, where the other heroes sat with their dates.

  Bliss pulled Atlas towards a hallway next to Onder’s hiding place, “Come on, we’re going somewhere more private.”

  The admiral gave him a sickening grin and followed along. Onder peeked into the lounge and saw his opportunity. The heroes kept their dates distracted from the area as Dr. Crux instructed them to. He dashed into the hallway behind Bliss and Atlas.

  He was just in time to hear Atlas speak. “Honestly Mtsi, I’m not surprised you’re giving your date special treatment. You always were a little wh-“

  He didn’t get the word out. A massive hand suddenly covered his mouth. Hearing his muffled screams, Bliss smiled. He pressed a few buttons on his CellPulse, sending a distress call to Entropi and opening a communication line with Dr. Crux. He turned around to face his brother once again.

  “Hi Onder, we didn’t get to talk the last time we met. It’s been a long time.”

  Onder’s face softened. His brother’s sullen smile said a thousand words. Mtsi was hurting. Mtsi needed him. He put one hand up to his helmet, still holding the admiral with the other. He pressed a button that exposed his face.

  “Mtsi, my little sunshine, I’m here to save you.”

  Bliss stepped forward and put his hand on the arm restraining Atlas. He pulled with a gentle force and Onder’s arm peeled away effortlessly. Atlas stumbled forward and Bliss pressed a finger into his forehead, creating a tiny void in his mind that knocked him out.

  “Save me from what, Onder?” He cocked his head in an exaggerated motion.

  “Do I even need to say it?” He gestured towards Atlas on the floor. “This! All of this! They force you to appease the most disgusting people in the galaxy, they sell you to them!”

  Bliss giggled like the child Onder was missing. “No, you have it all wrong. I sold myself; it was all my idea.”

  He sank to the ground to meet Bliss at eye-level. “W-what do you mean?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe I just wanted to see my brother. I wanted to see him so much that I sold myself to make sure he showed up.” He wrapped his arms around himself to appear smaller.

  “Mtsi… You could’ve just asked! You could’ve said it in a commercial, a radio show, anything! Anything, and I would be there.”

  Bliss sighed. “I couldn’t have. You have friends now. Friends that would tell you not to come, even if I asked.”

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  “Reu doesn’t control me, I would’ve been here!” He grabbed his shoulders.

  “Reu?”

  Onder groaned in frustration. “She’s not important. I just work for her to find… I work with her to find the people who hurt you. I was already doing that by myself until she found me. She has good intel; it’s been easier with her help.”

  Bliss put his hand on his chin. “She must be important enough to hold back your rage. You’ve been killing much less than before.” His tone was inquisitive, not accusatory.

  “I only want the names on the list. She makes that easier, so it’s worth the effort to hold back my power. If you want me to, I’ll hold back even more, I won’t go out again until I know that only my names will die.”

  Bliss shook his head like a disappointed mother. “I don’t want any of that, Onder. I want to leave the past in the past.”

  “It didn’t look like you were doing that just now.” Onder put his hand over his mouth. “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that.”

  Bliss didn’t look offended. “I told you, this was just to bring you here.”

  “I’m here. I’m here now, Mtsi. I’ll bring you somewhere safe, just come here.” Onder opened his arms.

  “I can’t do that. My work is here helping other humans escape from their captors.”

  Onder crawled forward. “You can do that where we’re going, but no one will take advantage of you there. You’ll have me by your side. I’ll help with whatever you’d like.” He lowered himself as if he was prostrating himself to his brother.

  He looked down at him, leaning in to the emotional power being offered by their positions. He looked like a god pitying his most loyal subject. “Why don’t you join me instead? If you’re so concerned with how the agency treats me, you can stay and make sure things change. I want that Onder, I really do.”

  Bliss cupped his hands around his brother’s face. His kind eyes and gentle smile spoke sweet words of comfort to the giant. For a moment he considered Bliss’s offer, but he eventually shook his head in defiance.

  “No. You staying here is not an option, not after tonight.”

  Bliss’s smile faded. “I’m sorry, Onder. It’s the only option. There’s still something I need to do here.”

  Onder sighed with grief. “I really, really didn’t want to have to do this. Forgive me, Reu.”

  He bolted down the hallway towards the party. Bliss followed closely behind, checking for a response from Entropi. There was nothing. The CellPulse indicated that she did not confirm receipt of the signal.

  Dr. Crux spoke through his mind. “I hear him coming towards us. What is Entropi’s status?”

  “I have no idea; she didn’t pick up my distress call!”

  They reached the lounge area before Crux could reply. Onder jumped from the top of the stairs and crashed into the floor of the main hall. Screams echoed through the building as everyone realized what was happening. The runway now belonged to Armageddon, each step down the catwalk folding beneath his feet. The heroes in attendance jumped into action, with Surfrista forming a crescent of starlight in the room. He hurled beams of light through the air that merely singed the coat of the monster.

  Queen Nebula formed a halo of crushing gravity around his waist that he simply walked through. Hollybrook and Platinum Promise charged in together, with Hollybrook using the decorative greenery to her advantage. Vines whipped around his arms while Platinum Promise went for the legs, using the metal runway as his bindings. Dr. Crux assisted them by turning what was left of the runway into a shrieking magnetic cage. With a fierce roar, the living apocalypse stretched all four limbs, breaking the vines and metal around him. More heroes moved to join the fight, but Dr. Crux put his hand up to stop them and ran to the wreckage of the stage.

  “Heroes, fall back and form a line around our guests! Do not engage! Bliss will handle this situation.”

  Onder’s eyes locked on Crux. “You… you’re the one doing all this.”

  He leaped up with heavy force, breaking free from Crux’s cage and landing right in front of him. The ground cracked beneath his weight. Crux looked up to see two massive fists coming at his head. The shards of rock and ice that made up his body were crushed on impact. His entire body turned to dust and Onder’s fists moved through him. Once he hit the floor, the force of the impact pushed the ash into the air. Only his tailored suit was left behind. Onder turned to the crowd, the heroes stood in front of them as Crux asked. He lurched forward and grabbed one of them at random. Lunai looked in horror as she saw Surfrista squeezed in his arms.

  The hero thrashed and kicked against his chest. “Hey, put me down! You think you’ll get away with this? Entropi’s gonna kick your ass!”

  Bliss finally flew down in front of them. He saw Surfrista being held hostage by his unstable brother. Onder managed to shuffle his hands around while holding Surfrista, pulling out a human-sized cage. He dropped it in front of Bliss.

  Bliss put his hands up in surrender. “Ok, let’s calm down now, Onder. You don’t have to hurt anyone here, I’ll go with you, ok? Put him down and we can fly out of here together. There’s no need for that cage.”

  Onder laughed sadly. “Mtsi, I know it won’t be that easy. You’ll just fly away once we get far enough. That’s why I brought this here.” He gestured towards the cage. “Step in here and then we’ll leave.”

  Bliss cautiously stretched a hand towards the contraption. When his hand grazed a bar, he felt a shock throughout his entire body. It was nothing he hadn’t handled before, but it was still quite a strong current.

  “I’m sorry, I know it’ll hurt. I wasn't able to get reality glue in time, you forced my hand early with this auction. The cage gives an electric shock. I’ve been briefed by my associates on your powers, I understand now that your body regenerates itself, but your stamina is still limited. It’ll keep going until your body can’t keep up with the damage and you’ll finally go to sleep. It’ll stop after that and I can safely take you home.”

  Bliss was shaken. His plan was already in shambles, thanks to Entropi ignoring him. He figured now was a good time to use his last resort ability, though the crowd surrounding him made it difficult. He would need to be as quiet as possible to reach only his intended target. He slowly flew up to Onder’s face and put his hands on his cheeks once again. He opened his mouth and the soft tune of a lullaby came out.

  “The sky may grow empty when mother must roam, her tail leaves the heavens, the sun drifts from home. Still light will be a promise, deep in my skin, I’ll hold it for you while the winter grows thin. If the cold dared to name you or ask for its dues, the universe would end before I let it come through.”

  Onder smiled throughout the entire song, even when blood started gushing from his ears. Bloody tears fell from his eyes, but his focus remained locked on Bliss. The siren song was not powerful enough to down the beast.

  “You remembered my song.” He coughed up some blood. “It sounds so beautiful in your voice, Mtsi.”

  Bliss had to switch tactics, he said what he knew would hurt Onder the most. “Of course I remembered. I remembered because it was a lie. When the cold called for me, you weren’t there. I waited for years, I called for you to save me, but I gave up when you never came. In the end, you didn’t save me, this agency did.”

  Just as intended, Bliss’s words hit harder than any other attack thus far. Onder’s knees began to falter and his grip on Surfrista loosened. Tears streamed down his face as his mouth desperately tried to form words.

  Bliss spoke for the both of them. “I can forgive you, but only if you stay. No more dwelling on the past. We can build a better future here, together.”

  Onder thought it over once more. He wondered if his acts of revenge were only hurting Mtsi by dredging up old wounds from the past. Then he remembered the smile on Atlas’s face. His disgusting smirk as he followed Mtsi down a dark and empty hall. His mouth moving to form words that should never be spoken to his little brother. He was not safe until every last one of them was erased from existence. Onder’s face went blank and he stood up tall. His hands tightened around Surfrista’s head, pulling closer together until his head popped. An unsettling crushing noise filled the room as blood splattered on Bliss’s face. Everyone was silent, staring in horror at the body of their colleague.

  Onder dropped Surfrista’s corpse. “You’re not in your right mind, Mtsi. Please believe me when I say this is all for the best, you’re not safe here. I wanted to avoid bloodshed, but I will kill everyone in this room if that’s what it takes.” He scanned the room to find his next victim and his eyes locked on Lunai. “You. I recognize you from before.”

  Bliss watched as he lurched forward and grabbed his intern. When his hands touched her bark, she extended her roots in an effort to penetrate his skin and access his nervous system. She didn’t recognize his species, but she still had to try. The roots sharpened and dug through his suit, reaching the scales underneath. They settled on the skin but had difficulty breaking through. They could potentially break in with sufficient time, but Lunai did not have that right now.

  Bliss stepped towards the cage. “Don’t hurt her, she’s my intern, her safety is my responsibility. I’m gonna get in the cage, ok? Just put her down and I’ll get in.”

  Lunai thrashed in place. “No! Don’t do it, Bliss! You’re a survivor of human trafficking; he’s going to take you back. I would rather die than let that happen!”

  “He’s going to take me even if you die. I’ve survived it all before, I can do it again.”

  She stated breaking into tears. “It’s not just about you! You’re a ray of hope for humans across the galaxy. You escaped and became a hero! If you get taken back, that hope will die. If we don’t give it our all to stop it, the humans won’t trust us. I can’t let that happen, not because of me!”

  He was silent for a minute before giving her a sad chuckle. “Lunai, if he kills you and takes me, who will care for our cats?”

  The words grounded her and she stopped struggling. Bliss was looking at her with certainty in his eyes. She decided that she would trust him this time. She didn’t protest as he opened the door to the cage.

  He turned back one last time. “I’ll be back. Take care of Sorebel while I’m gone, ok?”