“You have got to be kidding me,” Alec said, his voice heavy with exasperation.

“Nope, not kidding at all,” Dusty told him, taking a large bite of his cheeseburger. He raised his eyes from his meal and looked across the table at Alec, his prominent, pale blue eyes taking in his friend's expression of disbelief, and added, “Sorry, bro, but there is absolutely no way that Meta-Martian can beat Soul Cleaver; it's just not possible.”

“The hell it isn't!” Alec said angrily.

It was nighttime, and both youths were seated around a small wooden table draped in cloths embroidered with prominent comic book characters in Rumbanks’ Comic Store, having a heated debate about whether certain real-life superhumans would be able to defeat one another in combat, as they always did when the owners of the store announced that they had procured the latest issues of their favourite volumes.

Alec continued, “Are you forgetting that Meta-Martian can fly, become intangible, and shoot energy beams? Soul Cleaver’s only powers come from his enchanted sword, something he has to use at close range — if she just hovers out of his range and launches energy beams from the distance, he won't be able to do anything!”

Dusty did not answer at once; he stared at Alec, his jaws working furiously as he chewed. Then he gave an enormous swallow and said, “But it's not that simple, is it? Soul Cleaver can move at incredible speeds, he could corner her before she even tried to fly off, and she can't remain intangible forever! Besides, if that was all she had to do to seal the deal, she wouldn't have lost to Imperio!”

“You know that she was weakened from her fight with Holly Harpy before that!” Alec’s voice had risen to a shout; he was suddenly on his feet, glaring down at Dusty.

Dusty made to retort, just as furiously as Alec had, but at that moment, a tall, olive-skinned man with a long ponytail and a jagged scar running down his cheek appeared from around the comic-book-lined shelves behind them and came sweeping towards their table.

“Boys, boys,” he said, keeping his voice light and calm, though wagging a finger reprovingly at them nonetheless. “We all know how much you love your little debates, and I'll admit they're entertaining to me too, but we can't go screaming at each other to make the other see sense, no no! Not alone in the store, remember?” He gestured around the cluttered room; Dusty and Alec followed the line of his hands and saw nearly every face in view turned upon them, looking scandalized.

“Right, sorry, Richie,” Alec whispered, a little abashed, resuming his seat. Richie Rumbanks nodded, looking satisfied, but when everyone else had returned their attention to their own books, he gave them a hearty wink and bounced away, leaving Alec and Dusty to continue their argument in the form of a vehement, two-way hiss.

Shadow Shifter could hear the patter of rain on concrete above ground from his perch in the sewer. Covered in mud, blood, and gunk, he leaned against the dark wall, his breathing ragged, his hands pressing against his side to staunch the flow of blood, which had stained the left side of his elaborate, light grey suit scarlet.

He sat there for a few minutes, trying to catch his breath; then he plunged a shaking hand into the pocket of his suit and withdrew a vial of viscous green fluid. He held it up in the dim light and gazed at it for a few moments, then pulled off the stopper with fumbling fingers and held it to his mouth, ready to drain the contents — but just as he made to down the liquid, he heard a loud thud from somewhere in the distance and a deep voice boomed, “Shifter, that's enough! You've lost this battle! Come with me, quietly, and we can get you help!”

Shadow Shifter did not respond — he would not. He would not taint his reputation by surrendering to his enemy, accepting defeat, and subjecting himself to the condescension and unfair judgement of the Hero League, no matter how tempting the offer was.

He staggered to his feet, moving as quickly and as quietly as he could, bit his lips so as not to let out a gasp of pain that would surely betray his location, and began to lumber forward.

Things had gone so horribly wrong tonight; the plan had been simple, a quick, smooth heist, an easy payday, with the promise of taking out at least two up-and-coming heroes along the way — or so 0-Zone had assured him. It was only now, as he walked forward, blood blossoming from the gash in his side and spattering the ground at his feet, that he realized that 0-Zone may have been having him on. Using him, only to betray him at the very last second. They were rivals in the underground, after all.

It was for that very reason that Shadow Shifter had been wary when 0-Zone had called for a meeting the previous day. But after hearing him out, he had chosen to believe that he was sincere — at least in his desire to wipe out two of the League's brightest and split the huge cashout that they were escorting. But now it dawned on him what 0-Zone had been planning from the start: he had done everything that he had explained they would, incapacitating the two supes, and taking the money, but 0-Zone had had a third task on his list that he had failed to share with him — getting rid of his greatest contender in the same breath.

It was despicable, and yet, a brilliant plan, he had to admit grudgingly. One that he should have seen coming. Still, he hadn't, and now he was in a dump because of 0-Zone. No matter how much he respected the other's intuition and cunning, he was going to kill him once he found a way out of this.

“Shifter!”

Shadow Shifter started; the voice sounded much closer at hand now. Gritting his teeth, he hurried onwards, the blood flowing more freely now. The pain in his side reached such a mount that he had to stop, leaning once more against the dark, damp stone. But he couldn't stay there for long.

He closed his eyes and took a deep, painful breath, and his whole being suddenly dissolved into a cloud of black smoke, which drifted down the passage, rounded a corner, and stopped underneath a pool of light streaming into the passage from overhead. The shadows began to coil and undulate, taking shape, and next moment Shadow Shifter stood there once more, wheezing, but gazing with satisfaction up at where the light was coming from: a sewer lamp, and beside it — a manhole.

Above ground, the clocks had struck midnight, Rumbanks Comic Store had closed for the night, and Alec and Dusty, their heat burnt out from their earlier discussion, were now making their way along the dark street with everyone else, talking cheerily.

“So, is your mom gonna be angry that you're going home so late?” Alec asked.

“Probably,” Dusty said carelessly, his hands deep in his pockets. “But it'll be fine; she doesn't have much drive nowadays. She'll just ramble on for about ten minutes and then stop because she can't bother anymore. And you? How's Marsha going to react when her precious wittle Wexy doesn't show up until after midnight?” he said in an awful mock baby voice. Alec, however, did not respond, which was answer enough for Dusty, “Ah well,” he said, clapping him on the back. “I'm sure you can manage whatever walloping you're about to get.” He grinned.

“Ha ha.”

They turned a corner, breaking away from the crowd, and started down a narrower street, lined with street lamps. In truth, Alec certainly was worried about what his mother would say when he turned up at the door at this time of night. His parents had been strangely strict on his curfew recently, and though he had abided by their rules as best as he could these past few days, tonight was different.

He could not resist checking out the latest issues, especially with Dusty at his side, but while this reasoning was solid enough for Alec, he had a shrewd suspicion that it would not fly with his parents.

Before he could devote any more thought to the matter, however, Dusty gave a sudden gasp and gripped his arm rather harshly.

“Hey! What are you —”

But Dusty dove sideways, pulling Alec with him. They ducked behind a thick oak tree, and Dusty motioned for Alec to remain quiet. Then he jabbed a finger towards the road with a look of urgency; Alec peered round the oak’s trunk and let out a barely stifled gasp.

A great plume of black smoke was rising from a large hole in the ground, sending the metallic manhole cover flying. It landed heavily, clattering loudly against the pavement as the smoke began to ripple, taking form, and Alec and Dusty stared, aghast, as a man suddenly appeared above ground, coated in blood, grime, and a thick, green sludge. He fell to his knees a short distance away, panting, under a pool of moonlight. The silver-white rays illuminated his tall, stocky figure, clad in a tightly fitted grey suit, streaked with black. Alec recognized the man at once, and from Dusty’s gasp, so had he.

“It's Shadow Shifter!” he hissed, and Alec saw that he looked strangely excited rather than frightened.

“What happened to him?” Alec whispered back, disregarding Dusty’s curious enthusiasm, and watching the villain’s hands fumble over the great blotch of crimson staining his side.

But his question was answered almost as soon as it had left his mouth. There was a flare of orange light and another figure emerged from the manhole. It hovered for a moment in midair, then drifted serenely to the ground, where it stood at a lower height than Shadow Shifter, but with a much bulkier build. He was dressed in a gold and crimson suit, his strong-jawed face was bare, and his long, magnificent cape flowed behind him on the chilly night wind; it was a remarkably impressive sight, Alec thought, as he watched the newcomer, illuminated by the bright, pale rays.

“There you are,” said the second man, whom Alec recognized as the superhero Wildfire. “I really don't think I should have to say this to one as experienced as yourself, Shifter, but next time you try to hide from your enemies, you may want to consider” — he suddenly dropped his voice to a whisper — “making a little less noise.”

But Shadow Shifter was smirking. “Oh, I know,” he said.

His hand flew to his pocket, and as he withdrew it, they saw several pitch-black objects, glinting in the moonlight, clutched in his hand. He flung; the black throwing-star-like objects whistled through the air as they flew, spiraling towards Wildfire, who waved his arm almost lazily as they advanced; a streak of flame burst from his palm and lashed out like a whip, knocking the projectiles aside.

“Really?” he said, the faintest note of derision in his deep voice. “That's the best you can do?”

Alec and Dusty quickly turned to look at the villain and saw, to their surprise, that the villain was still smirking. He made a sudden movement with his arms as though to pull something towards him, and the black stars rose from the ground, spun through the air as though caught in a heavy breeze, and before Wildfire knew what was happening, had sunk, one after the other, into his back. Blood sputtered from his mouth and he collapsed onto his knees, looking up at Shadow Shifter, whose hand had disappeared into his pocket once again, but when it resurfaced this time he was holding, not more black stars, but a vial of completely clear liquid.

“That's —” Wildfire gasped, looking horrified.

“A gift from Ryu,” said Shadow Shifter, smirking. "Arrogance always was your greatest weakness, Wildfire. And here you've displayed it once again."

Wildfire’s eyelids began to flutter, his arms and legs shaking convulsively; he looked suddenly weak. Shadow Shifter laughed, a loud, callous laugh that rang through the night, making the hairs on the back of Alec’s neck stand on end.

“And now, Wildfire, a bit of payback.”

His hand vanished into his pocket again and he withdrew a second vial, this one of a thick, green fluid. He splashed the contents into his mouth and, a moment later, straightened up, no longer wincing, but looking perfectly at ease. “Got these little pick-me-ups for the job I was going to do tonight. Won’t actually heal me, but it'll numb the pain for a little while. And speaking of the job, I imagine 0-Zone was the one who tipped you off?”

Wildfire did not respond. It seemed as though he couldn't.

“Oh, don't worry. I diluted Ryu’s venom earlier. I was going to use it on those two capes we met tonight, but this is a much better deal. It won't kill you just yet, but it'll certainly keep you down long enough to witness this —”

He burst into a shower of darkness, and to Alec’s horror, he suddenly came streaming around their tree trunk; he rematerialized before they could even think to move and seized Dusty roughly by his hair. As Alec yelled out, Shadow Shifter backhanded him, knocking him to the ground. “I'll deal with you next!” he spat, and he began to wade back to Wildfire, struggling with the wrestling Dusty.

“No!” choked Wildfire, who was still struggling to remain upright. “Shifter — don't — would you really sink so low?”

Shadow Shifter shrugged. “What can I say? I am a villain.”

And he waved his hand through the air; wisps of darkness streamed from his fingertips and solidified into a long, black knife, hanging before him, unsupported in midair. He snatched it from the air and made to thrust it into Dusty’s chest —

“NO!”

Alec had sprung to his feet, watching in horror as the blade veered towards Dusty’s chest — but everything seemed to slow down as the guttural cry burst from his mouth, as though time itself had frozen. The entire ground suddenly shifted, rocking backwards and forwards as what seemed to be a tremendous earthquake suddenly rolled through the area; the ground was torn apart; trees were uprooted whole; building walls were shattering under the force. Shadow Shifter, Dusty, and the still-shaking Wildfire were thrown off balance by the force, launched every which way across the devastated landscape, as the colossal crash ground the earth.

A huge pillar of earth erupted from the ground underneath Shadow Shifter, who lay sprawled on the ground a few feet from Alec, who was miraculously — inexplicably — unaffected by the sudden disturbance. The pillar sent him soaring upwards, screaming, and he landed directly at Alec’s feet, colliding with the pavement with a sickening crunch! where he lay motionless.

The earthquake ceased abruptly, and everything fell still, the only sounds that of the crumbling structures pouring dust and pebbles upon the ground, and Dusty and Wildfire’s weak moans of pain and shock as they stared at him from their perches on the ground, their eyes wide.

Alec looked down at his hands, horrorstruck. He glanced up and saw shocked and apprehensive faces appearing suddenly out of the dark, peering over at them. Alec looked around again and his eyes met Wildfire's; there was another flare of orange light, and the next moment, all three were gone.