The door exploded open as Zayne and Damien came through, worry and fear written across their faces as plain as day. Before them in two seperate beds were Ver and Keith, their bodies broken and battered to a pulp as the heart monitors beeped slowly in the background. Nurses moved left and right to provide different comforts that they requested, trying to make this road to recovery as painless as possible. Zayne moved to Ver's side at her bed while Damien moved to Keith's. They were currently asleep, but the two cousins thought it necessary to come and see them anyway. Doctors occasionally came in and checked on them every ten minutes or so, just making sure they didn't need anything. They'd done all they could to fix their situation, and now they just relied on the natural healing abilities to work their magic. Despite being told, just like when Zayne was injured beyond what they could fix, that they would make a full recovery Zayne and Damien were still worried. Two of the best Mystic Agents. Speed Zone even, whose speed was ranked the highest in the facility, all three defeated and casted aside. The report was filed by Ver, who had explained the whole situation to Mag before being put under for recovery.

The three didn't actually find him. He found them. He ambushed them from the rooftop they were positioned on and almost immediately defeated them all, then began questioning them. Things like, 'How powerful is Zayne? How powerful are his friends? What is his schedule?' Everytime a question was failed to reach an answer Dragon Hunter would snap one of their bones. In the end none of them gave him an answer, and now they all suffered the price for it. He was a monster. A ruthless, merciless, self centered monster who would stop at nothing to get what he wanted. Zayne was reminded of Death Blade. That psychotic robot who would do anything he had to do in order to get what he wanted. It filled Zayne with anger, horror, and a mild depression that he couldn't do anything about any of it. His entire world revolved around the actions of others now. He tried, tried and tried again to do something for himself, and yet this entire year and a half of action had only been because of other's choices and other's decisions. Zayne's mind wandered back to Mag. To the history he'd laid before them.

Zayne sat down in one of the room's chairs and ended up falling to sleep on the thoughts and memories. His parents, Eli, Aleah, Arachnid, Damien, Aries and Austin, Death Blade, Tiberius, Mag, all of them here or gone. In some twisted sort of way he got his childhood wish and dream. He did get to become a hero. Someone that people looked to for safety and joy. But in its own twisted way, he got both sides of the coin. He thought he would become a hero that everyone loved. In the end though, he got to be a hero that not everyone loved, and that psychotic villains like Death Blade would gain no greater joy than killing. What was that saying? A popular one among wishful thinkers and dreamers of all sorts. Perhaps dreams did come true in this world. But they did so with a negative side, like all things did. Good news bad news. There it was. Zayne remembered it, moments before slipping off into sleep. Be careful what you wish for.

----------

It was lunch at school, and everyone was enjoying their own meals in their own areas with their own people. The jocks sat around with the jocks. The girls sat around with the girls. The intermingling groups enjoyed their freedom. It had been too long since Zayne remembered what it was like at school before all of this. The constant chatting with others, the unending waves of questions and answers every lunch period. The ability of sitting down and eating food with his friends was something Zayne had long forgotten since news of their abilities went public. This moment here however, with him, Aries, Austin, Aleah, Damien, and Eli sitting at the table together enjoying their meal as a group, was relaxing and enjoyable. The never ending moment of peace and joy washing over them all, worries and strife exiting the land of their minds for a brief section of time, just the six of them laughing, having fun, and relishing each other's company. This kind of time was precious now. Not much of it was available. What with the constant threat of Tiberius and Death Blade and the never ending waves of Mythic that were becoming more and more emboldened to take on Death Blade's mission for him.

Shortly after Ver and Keith were recovered and began their healing process Mag had ordered for a full data sweep to be done on the computers. He had a theory that he wanted to either prove or disprove. It ended up being that his theory was proven. Death Blade had somehow managed to break in to their secure files and copied down everything they had on the most dangerous Mythic, rogue Dragon, and Dino Force members. The sudden spike in activity, every single one of the villains wanting to achieve Death Blade's goal, was because of Death Blade contacting them and offering them rewards for Zayne's capture and the killing of any of his accomplices. If it had been anyone else Mag would have been worried. But after hearing about what happened in Training room four, he knew they were more than capable of handling themselves in fights together. Combined they could take on any foe that came their way, unless of course it was Death Blade.

The research teams were furiously working on a way to damage or even so much as dent the refined Mythanium. Recently as a required examination all five teens from the Ancient Forces were tested and checked up on. The doctors doing their examination came to a stunning conclusion that Aries and Austin were not full bred Mythic. They certainly had those genes, as was proven by their ability to create small amounts of unrefined Mythanium and then refine even smaller portions for scientific studies. But according to the research done and the conclusions they'd come to, Aries and Austin were also part Mystic, the reason why they didn't have monster forms like most common Mythic did. This diagnoses was proven true when they looked at Aries and Austin heritage line. Somewhere down the road their ancestors had intermixed with other Forces. In fact it wasn't just Mythic and Mystic, it was all four Forces. Their ancestors had all come from different Forces, different backgrounds and abilities that had been brought down in a funnel. They'd just gotten the genes for Mystic and Mythic.

A low bang on the table snapped Zayne from his mind as he followed the noise to Eli, "So what's the plan tonight? Training rooms or workout rooms?"

"I say we just take a break. I mean, come on, we've gone at this for a month now. We can treat ourselves a little bit right?" Damien asked slyly.

"Out of the question. For me at least. I need to keep up on my schedule or else it'll all come crashing down around me," Eli replied as he took another huge bite of his pizza.

"I for one think a break would be great," Austin laughed.

"I concur with this statement and raise you an idea. Movie night?" Aries suggested.

"I'd be down for that if Zayne comes," Aleah chimed in.

Everyone turned to Zayne for his response.

"Nah. I just got confirmation from Mag that I can head out in the evenings for patrol with one of you guys and an alarm button on stand by just in case. I'll be doing some rounds if Eli feels like coming," Zayne replied, looking to Eli for an answer.

"You gimme the time and I'll be ready," Eli smiled as he took the final bite of his pizza.

"Alright, well, tell us how that evening of boring events goes for you," Damien chuckled as he finished his burrito and took a huge gulp of his milk.

"You know I just realized that all of this is probably setting us all back by about a week's worth of working out. No wonder we weren't able to go farther with the training. It was because of this garbage they're feeding us," Zayne poked his half eaten burger with a fork.

Everyone put their fingers to their mouths and shushed him, silently returning to their food with no regret in their eyes. Zayne chuckled to himself as Aleah scooted in closer to him.

"Going out tonight is probably not a smart idea wouldn't you say?" she said it as a question, but implied it more as a statement.

"I'm itching to get out there again. It's been too long, and the city needs its Guardian of the skies," Zayne responded unwavering.

"Come on. You know for a fact that other Mystic can handle them while you're gone. They already have been the past month and a half or so. Why bother starting back up? Why not keep yourself safe while everyone else figures out how to fix this situation?" Aleah was dropping hints left and right, and Zayne was having to hold up every single one of them.

"Aleah, I already told you this. I can't just shrink back from responsibilities because I'm afraid or because someone is threatening me. That's the exact opposite of what a hero is. If Death Blade and Dragon Hunter want to fight me, then bring it on. I'll either take them out, or go down in history with the biggest fight yet. Maybe even both," Zayne countered, his stance on the situation unchanged.

"Fine. Ignore my suggestions. Forget all about me and leave me in the dust why don't you! Focus on yourself and your own goals instead of listening to the better judgement of others and dying because of your choice!" Aleah shouted back as she jumped from the table and stormed off with her tray and things.

Everyone sat in silence for a moment, the discussions of other tables filling in their vacant space until they all gathered themselves once more.

"What was that about?" Damien asked.

"I think all of this is making Aleah fidgety. She's scared, worried sick about me constantly. She wants me to just sit back and not do anything at all. I keep telling her that I can't, and I guess now those emotions from not being able to stop me are erupting. She's on the edge now," Zayne responded with a sigh.

"Should we go talk to her?" Aries asked as he watched her storm off down the hall to her next class.

"No. Give her space. She just needs time to think things over, collect her thoughts. All of this is making her very tunnel visioned because she can't do anything to help. I've noticed it over the last few times we talked," Zayne answered as he took a final bite of his burger and the last gulp of his milk.

"So what time are we going out tonight?" Eli asked.

"Seven. We'll stop at ten and give the rest of the evening to some other group," Zayne replied as they got up and began dumping their trash.

"We'll go see our movie at five. Just in case you have to use that emergency button we'll be ready," Damien said.

"That's really early. What about six?" Austin suggested.

"If you wanna go watch a movie at six go right ahead. I'm watching mine at five," Damien set his foot down on the decision.

"What movies are on at six?" Aries asked Austin as they both started looking for options.

"Wait you guys are seriously doing that?" Damien questioned with a confused look.

Both Aries and Austin looked to Damien with expressions that read, 'duh,' "You told us if we wanted to we could."

"I- I didn't- That's not- You know what? Fine. Whatever. Go do your thing," Damien stammered around until he finally said goodbye to the group and made off for his next class.

"See you all later I guess since you'll be at the movies or on your way there," Zayne said to Aries and Austin.

"See ya," they both replied.

"I'll see you at the northern exit at seven alright?" Zayne turned to Eli for the statement.

"Got it. See you there."

----------

There was a sleek, metal plate resting in the darkness as Dragon Hunter approached. The illumination of a red beam in the darkness reminded Tiberius who he was dealing with. Here in this alley, this ruin of Death Blade's previous base, they met for what Tiberius would hope to be the next to last time. There was a sound of metal against metal, and sparks flew from some unseen space in front of Death Blade, his back turned to Tiberius as he approached. When Death Blade finally turned to face his approaching friend he revealed just where the sparks were coming from, and where the sound of metal against metal was. Death Blade was sharpening his crimson blade, the stains of red slowly growing bigger across the tips as days progressed and more and more people became victims of his unquenched need for death. Tiberius had heard stories of Death Blade's first worldwide appearance and his move on Zayne's life then. The very tip of his blade was smeared in the dried stain of Zayne's blood, Tiberius reminded himself. This villain, this thing, was not to be messed with even on its worst day.

"I'm patient, but I don't know how much longer I can cull this viciously growing need to stab that child in the chest. I don't know. Should I perhaps think about filling in that empty void with starting up that taxidermy collection?" Death Blade childishly asked the much larger Dragon Hunter before him.

"It's a slow process, ensuring the successful capture and containment of someone using the Dragon's Heart no matter what level of power they have. When threatened they always go for the strongest attack they have. I can handle it perfectly fine, but if used too much the damage to the specimen might be too much. You do want him here in a living condition, correct?" Tiberius replied.

"Yes, I do. I would recommend using bait. Someone else to bring him in. I know from Arachnid that he has a girlfriend. An option?" Death Blade suggested.

"No. Bringing others into this who aren't able to fight for themselves is not only unhonorable, but is also a foolish hunting tactic. When a mate or possible mate is in danger a Dragon specimen will stop at nothing, even such a powerful hunter like myself, to save them. That is where Arachnid failed. Allowing Zayne to see his girlfriend in trouble was his downfall. This needs to be between me and Zayne, and anyone else who thinks they stand a chance," Tiberius explained.

"Then perhaps this will help?" Death Blade reached into a bag resting next to him and pulled out a long, nearly four foot sword, if it could be called such.

It was long, sharp, possibly even sharper than Death Blade's sword that he had now. But it had an odd design. It was blood red, although it was just a dye and not really stained blood. There was a black pattern on either side of the metal, a black lightning pattern flowing down its sides. The strangest marking of the blade however was the fact that it curved, from the four foot mark, backwards by another two feet or so to form a massive hook. Death Blade handed it to Dragon Hunter, who took the blade and immediately felt a jolt of lightning. The blade changed colors suddenly, from a blood red to a bright, sunlight yellow with a straight black lightning stripe on either side. The electrical energy flowing within this blade was immense, almost too much for even Tiberius to handle. He looked to Death Blade questioningly.

"It's a special blade. Made from a mixture of Mythanium, and several other strange metals I'm not fully aware of just yet. It adjusts to the needs of the user, and allows one who already has lightning abilities to channel them with ease through the blade. If you use it properly, you can use it to stun an enemy or completely overload their nervous system. Under these circumstances you may bring Zayne to me. Whatever it takes, within reason."

"Where did you get this blade?" Tiberius asked.

Death Blade paused, looking up to the sky for a moment, then looked back to Dragon Hunter and replied, "From a 'friend.'"

Tiberius turned around and aimed the sword at a dumpster nearby, then channeled his energy through the handle and into the metal, a yellow thunderbolt jumping from the curved point of the blade and exploding the trash disposal in an instant. He spun the blade several times, trying to get a good feel for it. It was too lightweight for his taste, but it was powerful nevertheless. He nodded to Death Blade gratefully.

"Once we get to know each other I'm not that bad of a guy am I?" Death Blade asked with that same childish voice again.

"No. No you are not," Dragon Hunter responded kindly as he began walking away, "By the end of the week you will have Zayne in your grasp."

"A bold claim!" Death Blade joyfully cried out, "I love it!"

As Dragon Hunter took off into the skies again Death Blade stopped sharpening his sword and slipped it away into its sheath. He chuckled slightly once he knew for a fact that Dragon Hunter was out of ear shot. It wouldn't matter either way if he heard Death Blade or not, he was simply a pawn in this whole game of chess.

"Pathetic," he spoke to himself, laughing after saying so.

In the end Tiberius was no different than the rest. A greedy, self centered beast who wanted nothing but all of the power to himself. One might argue, if one were so inclined to be on Tiberius' side which no doubt there were, that he was simply trying to save the human race from destruction. But if his actions of enslaving the weaker normal humans involved him bringing up the Dragon Force, which he deemed as the perfect race above all others, was called saving the human race then why did they struggle against Death Blade's plans and ideals? Kill the one who gives them hope, then enslave them all and force them to follow orders, reject their right to thinking and free will. Shatter their opinions and their ideals, then raise them up on a platform of obedience. From there they have a choice. Obey and survive, living peacefully in the clouds, or reject the better authority and jump off, plummeting to their own demise in the wasteland below. Tiberius was no different than any of them. War, violence, greed, it was all foremost in his heart. And for what? A better human race? No. The total rulership by the Dragon Force, to which he viewed as the ultimate race that should by decree of the universe enslave all others. It was sickening.

Death Blade had been thinking as of recently, he'd promised he wouldn't but he did, about why he wanted to kill. Why he'd wanted to kill Zayne, everyone else too. Perhaps it was the high of fighting Zayne that had worn off in his circuits, but Death Blade was beginning to even question his own motives. Just killing? That was pointless. Nothing was to be gained from it. Yet it was so much fun to him, so satisfying to erase yet another imperfect being from the universe. Ah, there it was. Imperfection. A plague that rotted away at the human race and every other race for eons of time. All races except robots. Androids. Death Blade. He would remain while everything burned. He would laugh at it all. He would smirk in his mind as people ran to him for safety, and would be met only by his sword glistened in the crimson red that everything had within them. So why bother with Zayne specifically? Then Death Blade remembered the small few memories he'd been given by his creator.

The Dragon's Heart was the only original Super Heart in this universe, and its creator, the oldest Dragon in existence, was one who Death Blade remembered well. It was a warning sign, a power stopper. It was the culmination of everything Death Blade was told to kill as he now theorized. Greed, self preservation, total power and control, fueling hatred and violence, it was all in there. A power hungry man like Tiberius would never understand the truth behind it, and therefore was to be killed as soon as he made his move. Unless Death Blade's predictions came true. Seeing the work Zayne and his team had done over the last few weeks, he wondered if even Tiberius could handle them. Would their sheer determination and teamwork drive them to success, or would defeat utterly flatten them? Death Blade laughed, for he did not know the answer but anticipated it immensely. Watching this battle would be the final key he needed to learning everything he needed to know about Zayne and his friends. Once he watched this battle, there was nothing in the world Zayne could throw at him that he couldn't defeat. So promised the words of the Indestructible Death Blade, the Physical Embodiment of Terror.

----------

"Go."

Zayne shot awake in a street, screams erupting from all around him.

"Go."

He was in a cave, a single scream of anger coming from behind him.

"GO."

He was in the middle of the city, a cold wind whipping up around him.

"GO!"

He was at the warehouse, the single red eye seemingly teleporting everywhere around him.

"NO!"

He was in the city again, explosions and screams coming from every direction. He didn't know what was happening. He didn't understand.

"GO ZAYNE!" Eli screamed.

"ZAYNE! ZAYNE! ZAYNE!" Aries and Austin cheered.

"YOU CAN DO IT ZAYNE! GO!" Damien.

"NO ZAYNE! DON'T DO IT!" Ver pleaded.

"GO ZAYNE!" a chorus of people, some he recognized while others he didn't.

"STOP! NO ZAYNE DON'T DO IT!" Keith, and was it... Mag?

"You were never going to be strong enough for me Zayne!" A taunt from Death Blade.

Then as if from a third person perspective Zayne lived every single event he'd had from the very second he'd touched the Dragon's Heart. Every single emotion, every single thought, every single word all replayed as if he were watching them on a TV screen. It led up to every single waking breath he had, until it finally came resting upon him in the now, jolting him awake from his sleep in the medical room. A blanket laid on his aching body, which had been resting in a most uncomfortable position on the chair he rested in. He stretched his legs and arms out, his body popping and cracking in several spots as he did. He moved his neck from side to side trying to get rid of the unending pain he felt in his bones. He looked over as he stretched towards the clock and saw the time. Three thirty in the morning. He sighed and coughed for some reason, then got up and folded the blanket away. As Zayne left he glimpsed Ver and Keith in their beds, Damien sleeping in a chair between both of them with a blanket of his own. Zayne smiled as he left and started walking towards his room, yawning the whole way.

But the whole way back to his room Zayne felt odd. For starters he had an overwhelming sense of deja vu. Seeing Damien and Keith, remembering Eli, it all fueled this driving action in his heart that this was all familiar to him. But beyond even that, some other things were off. He was coughing weakly for some reason, nothing too serious. His chest felt cold and weak for some reason, still nothing too big since he was feeling a little under the weather after tonight's round with Eli. But the last part made Zayne think. It made him wonder. It made him a little worried. His right arm, the one free of a Mythanium glove, hurt beyond compare, the bones in screaming pain. His skin on the arm felt like it was being burnt off. Internally screaming pain in the arm dictated Zayne report it immediately. But it was something that the Dragon's Heart was doing, since his arm was glowing the whole time. Whatever it was, it was something he was being warned of. Considering it was just an add on to previous warnings, Zayne could only come to one conclusion. As time went on around him, the future changed. He would just have to hope that they could change the future for the better.