OnAHiatus

INTERLUDE

Dragon’s eyes—thousands of them scattered across the planet in the form of satellites, drones, and high-altitude monitoring stations—were fixed on the Simurgh. The Endbringer drifted in low orbit, her wings moving in a slow, hypnotic rhythm, refracting the sunlight into an eerie halo. The vast expanse of space surrounded her, cold and silent, but her presence made even the void feel ominous.

Dragon’s central processing units were a hum of activity, analyzing every aspect of the ...

CHAPTER THIRTY - RORY

The streets of Brockton Bay were pandemonium. Fires raged in the distance, smoke blackening the sky, while the cries of the injured and the wails of grieving families filled the air. Rory Christner sprinted down the cracked pavement, his gold lion-helm catching the light from the flames.

He vaulted over a crumpled car, his boots hitting the ground with a thud. Around him, PRT officers shouted orders, directing terrified civilians to safer zones. Triumph kept his focus on the tasks at ha...

CHAPTER FOUR - A MUCH-NEEDED QUIET

The aroma of warm coffee drifted through the air as Taylor settled into a small corner booth of an old diner. The rain outside had softened to a faint drizzle, blurring the neon lights into smears of pink and blue against the windows. Inside, the low murmur of conversation and the clatter of dishes created a soothing background hum.

She tugged her hood down, her damp hair clinging to her face. The warmth inside was a welcome change from the biting chill of Gotham’s rooftops, and for t...

CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE - WILLIAM

William Manton adjusted the rearview mirror, though it hardly mattered. His van was parked far from the fight, hidden in the shadow of a dilapidated building on the outskirts of the battlefield. The windows were grimy, offering no real view of the chaos outside. Not that William needed to see it with his own eyes—he could feel it.

Every step, every strike, every ripple of motion from the Siberian was tethered to him like a second heartbeat.

His real heartbeat, however, was uneve...

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT - JACK

The air was thick with tension as Superman landed with a dull thud, his boots cracking the fractured asphalt beneath him. Smoke billowed from nearby fires, casting flickering shadows across the scene. 

Jack Slash leaned casually against a broken lamppost, his lanky frame relaxed and wrapped in an effortless confidence. Blood stained the cracked pavement around him, the remains of some poor souls reduced to unrecognizable shreds. Bonesaw knelt a few feet away, humming softly as she ...

CHAPTER THREE - PREY IN THE DARK

The alleys of Gotham were damp with mist and shadows, the air heavy with a sense of suffocation Taylor knew all too well. Her insects spread out in waves, slipping through cracks in brick walls, skimming along the wet asphalt, their senses painting a picture in her mind. She didn’t need her eyes to see the layers of tension that clung to the city like a second skin.

The echoes of Batman’s words stayed with her. “This city doesn’t tolerate mistakes.” She wanted to dismiss him, ...

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN - AMY

Amy stood on the edge of the pier, her eyes fixed on the endless stretch of gray water. The waves rolled in slow, relentless patterns, the ocean wind biting so harshly against her skin—tugging at her hair, flinging strands into her face, but she didn’t move to brush them away. She welcomed its sting, the way it clawed at her, exposed her, as if the air itself knew what she’d done. Anything to drown out the memories.

Her fingers tightened around the edge of the wooden railing, her ...

CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX - ALAN AND TAYLOR

Alan Gramme moved silently through the broken streets of Brockton Bay, his limbs clicking softly, joints rotating in smooth, unnatural arcs. This city had become a playground for monsters, and he was one of them—perhaps the truest among them. He was efficient, deliberate, the antithesis of chaos. Where others in the Nine killed out of madness or joy, he killed with purpose.

He hunted.

Mannequin’s hollow head swiveled, his senses processing data that no living man coul...

CHAPTER TWO - THE MEETING

The rooftop wind whipped at Taylor’s jacket, the hum of her swarm a low murmur in her mind. Batman stood across from her like a statue carved from shadow, unmoving, his cape hanging still despite the wind. She hadn’t realized anyone could be that quiet, that composed.

Watch him, she told herself. Read him. Her swarm tried again, sweeping across the rooftop, searching for any detail. She didn’t find a trace of him—no flesh, no exposed skin, no vibratio...

CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE - KAYDEN

Kayden Anders (née Russel) soared over Brockton Bay’s ruins, her light cutting through the sky. Her glow, pristine and blinding, contrasted sharply with the destruction below—streets torn asunder, buildings reduced to rubble, and the jagged crater where Crawler’s massive frame had struck the earth.

Then she saw him.

Superman floated mid-air, unwavering and steady, his red cape snapping against the wind. Despite the battle, he looked untouched, unshaken. His calm was infuria...

CHAPTER ONE - A NEW PLAYER

Taylor Hebert sat on the edge of the rooftop, her knees pulled up to her chest. The cold Gotham wind bit through her jacket, but she hardly felt it. Below, the city stretched out like a living organism: pulsing neon lights, distant sirens, the low hum of voices and engines blending into a constant buzz. It was alive, but in the same way Brockton Bay had been alive—rotting from the inside.

Her swarm extended outward, brushing against the edges of the street below. The insects were plen...

WHAT WORM FANFICTION SHOULD I WRITE?

Kind of feeling burned out from the Superman crossover, so I want to take a break from it for a while. But I still feel like writing something, hence this poll.

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR - RILEY

The Dallon household was so… clean. That was the first thing Riley noticed as she stood on the neat brick path leading to their front door, her gloved hands folded politely in front of her apron. The garden was pristine, each flower bed manicured with the kind of care that spoke of boring Sunday afternoons spent trimming hedges. It was charming, in a sterile, suburban way—almost like stepping into one of her old memories, before Jack and the others had found her. Before she’d b...

CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE - JUSTIN

The firelight cast flickering shadows across the battlefield, but Justin’s eyes stayed locked on the figure emerging from the debris. Burnscar’s smile was maddening—a mixture of cruelty and trembling rage. Her red dress was singed, her pale skin streaked with soot and blood, but her eyes still burned with defiance, fire licking hungrily around her like a living creature. Crusader gritted his teeth.

“You just don’t know when to quit, do you?” he muttered under his breath, sum...

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE - MIMI

Mimi drifted through the city streets like a shadow, barefoot and silent. Her red dress brushed against her pale legs, the hem singed in places from her own fires. The air smelled like ash and seawater, the acrid tang of Brockton Bay’s decay settling in her lungs. It was almost peaceful, in its own way.

Jack had delivered the finalised rules of the game that morning, giving each member of the Nine a time limit to administer their tests. He hadn't said otherwise or called for her tonig...

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO - ETHAN

The warehouse reeked of smoke and scorched metal, the heat pressing against Ethan like a living thing, oppressive and suffocating, each breath burning as if he were inhaling straight from an oven. Flames danced wildly, licking at the twisted support beam he crouched behind, casting jagged shadows that flickered and warped like ghosts.

He wiped a smear of soot from his visor, scanning the warehouse as Burnscar’s voice drifted through the smoke, light and detached, as if she were talkin...

THE END OF TAYLOR HEBERT

Go…it's…h-hot.

Feeling the hard texture of the ground against her face, Taylor realized that she had fallen face first on the ground. She couldn't move, even when she tried, and she already couldn't feel her limbs. What she did feel was a certain heat, and it overwhelmed her entire body.

Confirmed. Heat resistance successfully acquired.

"What..?" she thought weakly, barely registering the words. Was this some part of her powers manifesting, or h...

The Wind Blades

"The Wind Blades" takes readers on a captivating journey through a world where elemental powers are the norm. At its heart, the story follows Tatsuya, a scarred and enigmatic air elemental, as he embarks on a quest for vengeance against Lord Kuro, the unjust executioner of his father. Tatsuya's plan to seek justice hinges on the aid of the legendary and eponymous Wind Blades, a group of elite warriors led by the formidable earth elemental, Jao. Copyright © [2024] [OnAHiatus] All rights reserve...

CHAPTER TWENTY - BATTERY

The air shimmered with fractured light as Shatterbird floated above the wreckage, her glass-laden robes catching the pale sunlight and refracting it into dancing rainbows. Beneath her mask, she smirked, surveying the devastation with an artist’s satisfaction.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” she called out, her voice amplified and resonant. She raised her hand, and a storm of glass fragments hovered menacingly around her. “The way the sun catches the shards, the way it cuts through ever...

CHAPTER NINETEEN - NED

The wind shifted, carrying a scent that shouldn’t have been here. Sweet and clean, too perfect for this world. It set Ned’s teeth on edge in the best way. Something pure. Something untouched. Something begging to be broken.

His body vibrated with anticipation as he moved, his six massive limbs leaving cracks and gouges in his wake. A hundred eyes scanned the horizon, the ruined city stretching around him like a feast waiting to be devoured. The others were scattered—Hurt-Bitch (Bo...

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN - FAULTLINE

The old ferry terminal felt like the world’s most dangerous potluck. Neutral ground, they called it. Faultline had seen execution chambers with a friendlier atmosphere.

She adjusted the strap of her bulletproof vest, her sharp eyes scanning the room as capes gathered under the flickering industrial lights—an uneasy alliance of desperation and territorial pride. It wasn’t every night that the city’s heroes and villains agreed to set aside grudges, but then again, it wasn’t ever...

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN - HANNAH

The docks were eerily silent. The Wards and Hannah—Miss Militia—stood in a loose circle, catching their breath as their eyes darted toward the empty space where Francis had stood moments ago, Superman’s word the only thing preventing her from stopping him. She stood rigid, her weapon lowered but her expression tense. 

“That’s it?” Clockblocker broke the silence, incredulous. “We’re just letting the guy go?”

Superman turned to face the Wards and Miss Militia....

INTERLUDE

Clark Kent wandered down the cracked streets of Brockton Bay, his hands tucked into the pockets of a worn, second-hand jacket he’d picked up at a local thrift store. The city felt like a place that had been gutted and left to fester. Buildings stood in various stages of decay, their facades stripped away by violence and apathy, and the people who moved through the streets wore the same worn expressions—grim, cautious, and tired.

Clark’s stomach growled softly, and he sighed. It wa...

GOKU VS LEVIATHAN ONE-SHOT

The sky over Brockton Bay churned with black storm clouds, punctuated by torrential rain that turned streets into rivers. Leviathan loomed in the harbor, its massive, serpentine form rising out of the ocean like an ancient god. Its glowing eyes burned with cold malice, and every movement sent waves crashing into the city, drowning entire blocks in moments.

Heroes scrambled to hold the line. The Protectorate, the Wards, independent capes, villains—everyone fought desperately to contain...

CHAPTER SIXTEEN - FRANCIS

Francis Krouse adjusted his top hat as he stepped onto the uneven asphalt of Brockton Bay’s Docks. He took a long drag from his cigarette, the red glow lighting up his face as he exhaled into the briny night air. He was out here of his own accord—the other members of the Travelers engaged elsewhere—and though it was risky, he felt the pros outweighed the cons. 

He would do anything for Noelle. 

Francis knew the others might not agree with his methods, but he didn�...

CHAPTER FIFTEEN - DENNIS

Dennis felt the familiar weight of his costume as he adjusted the clasps at his wrist, the subtle hum of the clock mechanisms on his chest reminding him of his role. The Wards’ HQ was unusually tense today, a sharp contrast to the usual undercurrent of banter and camaraderie that kept them all from falling apart. Three crime scenes. Three bodies each. Nine dead in two days. The math didn’t take much imagination.

The Nine were in Brockton Bay.

Of course, nobody had said it outr...

CHAPTER FOURTEEN - CHERIE

Brockton Bay was alive with suffering, salt, and rust. To Cherie Vasil, it wasn’t just a city—it was a symphony. She leaned against a crumbling brick wall in the warehouse district, reveling in the melodies that only she could hear. The discordant cries of the city played in her mind: sharp bursts of anger, the low hum of despair, and the occasional sour note of hope.

The Nine had come to Brockton Bay for their usual grim purpose—to test, to torment, and, ultimately, to recruit. C...

CHAPTER THIRTEEN - DINAH

The world had been spinning for as long as Dinah Alcott could remember. It wasn’t the world around her, though—it was her mind, a carousel of thoughts she couldn’t escape, a tight knot she couldn’t untangle. The worst part? She had gotten used to it. Used to the spinning, the hunger for the candy, the gnawing void that only more could fill—more information, more power, more control.

And then, there was Coil. She should have hated him. She did, didn’t she? He’d twisted her,...

CHAPTER TWELVE - DEAN

Dean Stansfield had made peace with the moment he chose to die.

The wave had loomed above him, an unstoppable force of nature. Vista had been frozen in place, distracted and utterly defenseless. Without thinking, he’d shielded her with his body, projecting every ounce of his power to create a barrier of calm around her. The impact had come—forceful and immediate, splintering his armor and sending him ragdolling across the street.

And then—light. Warmth. The impossible.

INTERLUDE

Max Anders sat in his office, the soft glow of the desk lamp casting long shadows over the polished mahogany. The world outside was in chaos—Brockton Bay was still reeling from Leviathan’s attack, the Protectorate’s authority was stretched thin, and the remnants of the Endbringer battle left plenty of opportunities for those with ambition.

And now, there was him.

Superman.

The name alone was audacious, a challenge. Max had seen the footage, watched as the so-called “...