Color Royale 2: Among Us Edition

Tonight on Deadliest Fiction, the Color Royale returns, bigger, bolder, and with even more fighters entering the fray! Will the crewmates overcome their suspicions and prevail, or will the impostors successfully slaughter all in their path! To find out, we will compare their weapons, skills, and abilities, all to answer the ultimate question...

WHO...IS...DEADLIEST???

Crewmates

• Red
• Orange
• Yellow
• Cyan
• Purple
• White
• Black
• Lime
• Pink
• Fortegreen

“

Why is it always Hawke to the rescue? — Hawke

”

Hawke is a promising young mage in the town of Lothering living alongside his mother and siblings, fellow mage Bethany and resentful Carver, and doing his best to be man of the family following the death of his father. When the Blight struck and King Cailan was left to die by Loghain at Ostagar, the Darkspawn swept into Lothering, razing the town and forcing Hawke's family to flee for safety. During this escape, they met Aveline and Wesley, a married couple also attempting to escape, and join forces, with Bethany and Wesley tragically dying before they can reach the safety of Kirkwall.

In Kirkwall, Hawke and Carver begin working as mercenaries while Aveline joins the city guard, and the group find themselves growing embroiled in the growing tensions between the Mages and Templars. This introduces them to a variety of strange characters, like Anders, a radical mage hoping to find a way to free his oppressed brethren, Varric, a wise-cracking, well-connected dwarf who recruits the brothers into his expedition into the Deep Roads, Merrill, a Dalish Blood mage, Isabella, a shipwrecked, promiscuous pirate, and Fenris, a lyrium-scarred elf with a deep hatred of mages. This group becomes more tight-knit, frequently adventuring and bonding together, though the Deep Roads expedition goes awry as Carver is infected with the Taint and Hawke is forced to allow him to join the Grey Wardens.

Returning to Kirkwall upset over the loss of his sibling, Hawke continues to work various odd jobs, protecting Kirkwall and living in relative obscurity until he is forced into the unrest between the city and the Qunari, a race of seemingly peaceful beings, and their leader, the Arishok, who grows a deep respect for Hawke as they repeatedly encounter each other. This respect pays off following the murder of several Qunari by Chantry extremists, which leads to the Arishok and his forces assaulting Kirkwall. Recognizing Hawke as the person in the city worth respecting, the Arishok challenges him to a duel, with Hawke winning, forcing out the Qunari and becoming Champion of Kirkwall.

As Champion, Hawke is thrust into the spotlight, becoming a major player as the tensions between mages and templars finally boil over as Anders magic-nukes the Chantry, killing Grand Cleric Elthina and everyone else inside it. The brazen act of terrorism gives Knight Commander Meredith the excuse to initiate the Right of Annulment, giving Templars free reign to exterminate all mages. Hawke sides with his fellow mages, even getting help from Carver and convincing Fenris to aid the cause, and fights his way through the chaos, where he has a confrontation with a now-insane Meredith, who battles him and his various allies. Defeating her, Hawke flees the city, with his friends (save Isabella, now his lover) all going in their own directions as Thedas is consumed in the Mage-Templar war.

Weapons:

“

You'd be surprised how people just tell me their darkest secrets. I must look trustworthy. — Hawke

”

• Staff of Parthalan: As a mage, Hawke channels his magic through his staff, with his iconic weapon being the Staff of Parthalan, a weapon once used by the legendary Tevinter magister Parthalan before he vanished outside of Kirkwall. The Staff of Parthalan slightly strengthens Hawke's magic, boosts his mana, and launches fireballs with each attack.
• Mantle of the Champion: Hawke's signature armor set that he acquired following him becoming Champion of Kirkwall, the Mantle of the Champion greatly increases Hawke's mana and attack strength while also boosting his defense and the speed at which his mana regenerates.

Powers and Abilities:

“

At least it can't get any worst. Today, anyway. It's pretty late. — Hawke

”

• Mage Spells: As a mage, Hawke has access to a wide variety of spells and abilities. As a team leader, Hawke's style of casting relied on both supporting his teammates with healing spells while also unleashing powerful spells to wipe out groups of enemies with ease. His spells include:
  • Elemental Spells: Full tree.
  • Primal Spells: Stonefist, Chain Lightning, Tempest.
  • Spirit Spells: Spirit Bolt, Dispel Magic.
  • Arcane Spells: Full tree.
  • Creation Spells: Heal, Heroic Aura.
  • Spirit Healer: Full tree.
• Skilled Combatant: Hawke, even without his spells, is a talented fighter, using his staff to fight enemies that somehow manage to close the distance on him. Using his spells and fighting abilities, he was able to defeat the Arishok, a towering and skilled Qunari warrior, in a duel, and he can fight off powerful enemies even without his party members backing him up, clearing through hordes on his own thanks to his expert usage of magic.
• Natural Leader: Hawke is an effective tactician and leader, naturally taking charge and leading his friends against powerful odds. He regularly goes against more numerous and dangerous enemies and emerges victorious by using their abilities at their most effective and knowing when/where to place them. With scant resources, he organized an effective defense against Meredith's forces during the Mage-Templar War and was able to bring down the fearsome Knight-Commander, and he commands enough respect that his party, who frequently bicker amongst themselves, are willing to put aside their differences to help him.

X-Factors:

• Experience: Hawke was active in Kirkwall for a decade of his life, spending nearly half of it as the city's Champion, going up against foes ranging from hired thugs to Darkspawn to Templars and even enormous beasts like the Harvester, demons, and a dragon. Not only does he has have varied experience, he's been at it for a while, and he tends to approach things with a confident, seen it all attitude, giving orders and dishing snark in the heat of chaotic battles.
• Training: As a mage, Hawke has very little in the way of training, having never gone to the Circle of Magi and instead learned from his father. He tended to learn more from experience and from his fellow mages like Anders or Merrill rather than having any one traditional teacher.
• Intelligence: Hawke is notably quite perceptive and intelligent on top of being an effective leader, with his skill for balancing the various strengths and weaknesses of his party members and assessing enemies to prevail against greater, often more powerful numbers being part of what made him such a legendary figure. He's also fairly well-read, keeping up with the political situation in Kirkwall while being a fairly talented investigator.
• Brutality: Hawke does not hesitate to kill in a fight, nor is he afraid to do it in incredibly creative, painful fashions using his magic. Even in more casual conversation or interrogation, he's not afraid of leaning into violence if it means getting what he wants.
• Stealth: As a mage, Hawke has very little use for stealth, and he often preferred to make an entrance in explosive fashion rather than attempt things like ambushes or traps.

“

My fist, my life! Both of them are my Symphogear! — Hibiki Tachibana

”

Hibki Tachibana was a gifted singer who enrolled in Lydian Music Academy alongside her close friend and roomate Miku Kohinata, with the two proving to be an inseparable duo. One day, the two decided to attend a concert held by idol duo Tsubasa Kazanari and Kanade Amou at Zwei Wing stadium, though Miku is unable to make it, leaving Hibiki alone in the chaos as the Noise attack the concert. Trapped, Hibiki is saved by the intervention of Kanade, who is injured and loses a piece of her Relic, Gugnir, in the process. This relic hits Hibiki in the chest and embeds itself near her heart, and Kanade sacrifices herself to eliminate the remaining Noise.

Two years later, Hibiki, now living with Miku and trying to move on from the trauma of her deadbeat father leaving her, is caught in the middle of another Noise attack, and the Gungnir fragment manifests itself, giving her the ability to defeat the creatures. Rescued by Tsubasa, Hibiki is introduced to S.O.N.G, an organization specializing in fighting the Noise thanks to Symphogear wielders like Tsubasa and Kanade. Initially reluctant, Hibiki decides to join S.O.N.G, training with them to better understand her newfound abilities while helping protect people from the threat of the Noise.

Equipment:

“

All I do is crush the things I care about. But Miku cheered me up. She said I saved her. I need to live up to her feelings. — Hibiki

”

• Gungnir Black: Forged from the Spear of Longinus, Gungmir is Hibiki's Relic, giving her the abilities of a Symphogear wielder and allowing her to fight the Noise. Following the purging of her Gungnir fragment, Hibiki began using one given to her by Maria Cadenza Eve, which allows her access to an Armed Gear and thus transform into things like drills, rockets, and pistons, though she largely continues to focus on her effective hand to hand combat style and superhuman strength. When activated by her singing, Gungnir forms an armor around Hibiki that tunes itself to the frequency of the Noise, giving her the ability to fight them.
• Rockets: Hibiki has rockets/automatic pistons attached to her legs, which enable her to leap great distances and maneuver herself through the air, effectively giving her a "controlled falling" style of flight, though she's able to use the thrusters on her back to move through the air fairly gracefully. She can also generate these onto her arms to greatly increase her attack strength.

Powers and Abilities:

“

Don't ever give up on living! — Hibiki Tachibana

”

• Superhuman Strength/Durability: Deemed a "knuckle-type" by Genjuro Kazanari, Hibiki compensated for her initial ability to access the Armed Gear form of Gungnir by focusing more on channeling her energy into the pistons on her arms and legs, greatly enhancing her strikes. She's strong enough to punch clean through a mountain, send herself flying through the air by kicking off the ground Golden Age Superman-style, and catch tank rounds out of the air. In terms of durability, she's one of the sturdiest Symphogear wielders, regularly surviving massive explosions, falling out of the sky, and being smashed through buildings and battleships and still being able to stand up and keep fighting.
• Superhuman Agility: On top of her considerable strength, Hibiki is also incredibly fast, once again using her thrusters and rockets to move at superhuman speeds, outpacing artillery rounds to the point where she can run across them and keep up with foes capable of dodging bullets. She often moves so fast her attacks come off as a barrage of punches and kicks that are nearly imperceptible.
• Skilled Hand-to-Hand Combatant: Thanks to her training under Genjuro and a regimen of kung fu action movies, Hibiki overcame her initial lack of Armed Gear by learning martial arts, effectively mixing brute force and finesse that enables her to keep up with armed, highly skilled foes. Even as she better understands her abilities, she still shows a preference for punches and kicks in fights.
• Ignite Modules: Initially, Hibiki was able to more powerfully manifest Gungnir by being overwhelmed with negative energy, sending her into a berserker rage state where she attacked everything around her with massively boosted strength and speed, though she is eventually able to better understand and learn to harness it into the Ignite Module. Ignite harnesses the power of the Berserk form while maintaining the user's sanity, though the user can still run the risk of giving into Berserk mode. Due to it's power, the Ignite module comes in three phases which must be released manually, and can only be maintained for 999 seconds, a timer that decreases faster as more power is used. In Ignite mode, Hibiki was able to keep up with and overpower a transformed Carol, literally beating her out of her form with her attacks.
• Swan Song: A Swan Song is a technique requiring the Symphogear user to unleash their true potential in an outburst of power so great it actively harms the user, potentially killing them depending on the level of compatibility between the user and their gear. Hibiki never uses hers on her own (and is actually able to absorb the damage from other users songs into herself), but it's still worth mentioning as a possible feat.
• X-Drive: Hibiki is able to access a fully boosted state known as the X-Drive, which gives her the ability to fly and access Gungnir's lance while also increasing her power levels to insane heights, enabling her to do things like wipe out an army of Noise and destroy a chunk of the moon as it fell to Earth. X-Drive is powerful, but it requires the release of all limits and an outside source of Psionic Gain.

X-Factors:

• Experience: Hibki is something of a rookie compared to Tsubasa or Chris, but she's still been through a lot of crazy shit in her time as a Symphogear wielder. On top of regular clashes with the Noise, she's fought godlike beings like Finé and Carol and clashed with the schemes of Adam and Dr. Ver, which brought her into conflict with both rival Symphogear wielders and other minions with a variety of creative powers and abilities.
• Training: Hibiki is well-trained by S.O.N.G to be an effective wielder and combatant in the field, training alongside the other wielders to encourage both team synergy and iron out any potential weaknesses. Even without Gungnir, Hibiki was trained by Genjuro in hand-to-hand combat and physical fitness, putting her in peak physicality even when not transformed, a deceptive fact considering her small, friendly demeanor.
• Intelligence: Hibiki is powerful, but she's not super bright. She often leaves the actual planning, research, and strategy to her superiors, and she's also shown to be fairly naive and overly trusting, a behavior that has sometimes worked in the past but has also blown up in her face. She's also bad at reading emotions, given her inability to recognize Miku's feelings for her for multiple seasons jesus christ Hibiki it was right in front of you goddamnit
• Brutality: Hibiki is gladly willing to destroy Noise, and in her Berserker state effectively no one is safe from her wrath, but she tries to avoid killing actual people, both out of an unwillingness to cross that line and a tendency to see the best in people. Only very rarely has she gone all out, and it's against truly despicable foes who have pissed her off enough.
• Stealth: Hibiki shows no talent for stealth, and her exact fighting style is incredibly flashy and loud, making it basically impossible.

“

I did not find my own sun, not in Anor Londo, nor in Twilight Blighttown. Where else might my sun be? Lost Izalith, or the Tomb of the Gravelord...? But I cannot give up. I became Undead to pursue this! But when I peer at the Sun up above, it occurs to me... What if I am seen as a laughing stock, as a blind fool without reason? Well, I suppose they wouldn't be far off! Hah hah hah! — Solaire of Astora

”

An unwavering and loyal Warrior of Sunlight, Solaire of Astora is a noble knight determined to find his very own sun. To this end, he willfully became Undead and set out on his quest, where he befriended the Chosen Undead at the Undead Parish, striking up a friendship with a fellow warrior and aiding them in several difficult battles. Solaire's journey takes him across much of the land, where he repeatedly runs into the Chosen Undead and fights alongside them, developing a deep respect for them as a comrade.

The Undead returns the favor in time, killing a Sunlight Maggot before it can drive Solaire insane, though his apparent failure to find his sun leaves him deeply depressed and questioning his purpose in life. Despite this, Solaire persists forward and ultimately comes to the aid of the Undead in their final battle with Gwyn, Lord of Cinder, and then links the First Flame, continuing the age of Fire and becoming the very sun he had been so eagerly seeking.

Weapons and Equipment:

“

There's no telling how much longer your world and mine will remain in contact. But, use this, to summon one another as spirits, cross the gaps between the worlds, and engage in jolly co-operation! — Solaire of Astora

”

• Sunlight Straight Sword: A standard longsword belonging to Solaire, it's a sturdy, dependable blade but lacks any special characteristics beyond it's name, functioning similarly to a standard longsword.
• Sunlight Shield: A medium shield decorated by Solaire himself, the Sunlight Shield offers improved protection against fire damage, alongside slightly decreasing the risk of poison, toxic, bleed, and curse damage.
• Sunlight Talisman: The Sunlight Talisman is a casting tool that allows the wielder, should their Faith be high enough, to cast Miracles, magical spells associated with specific Covenants.
• Armor of the Sun: A piece of chest armor similarly decorated by Solaire, the Armor of the Sun offers solid defenses all around, but specifically against Bleed damage. It is reinforced by an Iron set in the form of his helm, leggings, and bracelets, which offer similar resistances.
• Orange Charred Ring: A special ring enchanted by a witch, the Orange Charred Ring reduces damage specifically from lava by setting the wielder's soles on fire, making their kicks and falls on top of enemies do extra fire damage.

Powers and Abilities:

“

You really are fond of chatting with me, aren't you? If I didn't know better, I'd think you had feelings for me! Oh, no, dear me. Pretend you didn't hear that! Hah hah hah! — Solaire of Astora

”

• Lightning Spear: One of Solaire's two miracles, the Lightning Spear is a long-range attack in which Solaire hurls a large bolt of lightning directly at enemies, dealing lightning damage. It is highly effective against magical enemies, fire-wielders, and dragons, but can only be cast 10 times before it is empty. It can be replenished by resting at a bonfire.
• Great Heal: Solaire's other miracle, Great Heal restores a high amount of health to it's caster, though the casting process leaves them open to damage for several seconds, making using it in combat a risky proposition. It can be used 3 times before it is empty, but can similarly be replenished at a bonfire.
• Superhuman Physical Condition: Thanks to both his rigorous training and his nature as an Undead, Solaire is capable of feats far beyond that of a normal human, and can even easily surpass that of the Chosen Undead themselves. He can survive being hit point-blank with gargoyle fire breath, be chewed up and spit out by the Gaping Dragon, skewered by Dragon Slayer Ornstein, and crushed by Executioner Smough and still come out able to fight, while his one-handed sword strikes are as damaging as that of even the strongest Undead.
• Expert Combatant: Solaire is one of the greatest fighters in the world of Lordran, with his summon sign representing hope for the Chosen Undead whenever it's encountered and turning brutal fights into something far more manageable. On his own, he was able to progress through much of the world without anything beyond his standard gear, which lacks any form of magical enhancement. Alongside the Chosen Undead, he can hold his own against the legendary Smough and Ornstein, bring down the Bell Gargoyles, and even do battle with the Lord of Sunlight himself, Gywn, though he ultimately requires the his friend's aid to survive his journey.

X-Factors:

• Experience: Little is known about Solaire's life before he became Undead, but he stands out as one of the only Undead other than the Chosen to survive the perilous world around them. He's fought his way through a world of traps and dangerous enemies, and alongside the Chosen Undead he's battled enormous, vicious beasts, the legendary warriors Ornstein and Smough, and even a literal god in the form of Gwyn. With nothing but his standard gear, he's gone against impossible odds and prevailed.
• Training: Solaire is implied to be largely self-trained, spending a long time honing and finessing his skills as a warrior in preparation for his journey, and despite having no clear teacher, he managed to hone himself into a highly resilient, effective fighter.
• Intelligence: Despite his skills and his ability to survive much of what Lordran has to offer, Solaire isn't the brightest bulb. He's somewhat eccentric, focusing on his mission to find his Sun above all else and having a tendency to fixate upon it in conversation, and slightly bumbling, preferring to brute strength his way through combat rather than utilize strategy (a tactic that inexplicably works most of the time, thanks to his considerable strength) and his quest will ultimately end in tragedy unless the Chosen Undead thinks ahead and intervenes in his favor.
• Brutality: Solaire is a proper warrior, always enjoying the chance at a good fight alongside a friend, and he shows little hesitation in cutting down enemies, including the literal god of light. Even the prospect of fighting a friend doesn't daunt him, as he'll reluctantly fight the Chosen Undead, should they foolishly decide to attack him.
• Stealth: While he shows some skill, as he's able to somehow sneak around bosses and the Chosen Undead themselves to beat them to both Anor Londo and Lost Izalith, Solaire largely doesn't use stealth, instead attacking the problem head-on for a proper fight.

“

I make bad look so good! — Megamind

”

Megamind was born the son of a dying planet, sent away in a rocket by his parents as an infant with nothing but a binky, his genetically-engineered Minion, and a general sense of purpose. As the rocket left his planet, it was knocked off course by the rocket of Metro Man, another infant from a dying planet who quickly became his rival. The two landed on Earth, with Metro Man being adopted by a kindly, wealthy couple while Megamind's ship landed in Metro City prison. Raised by the criminals in the jail, Megamind grew into a criminal mastermind, frequently clashing with Metro Man and repeatedly failing, though he never stops trying.

Things changed when Megamind once again broke out of jail and kidnapped Roxanne Ritchi, a local reporter with connections to Metro Man, to use her to lure him to an abandoned observatory. Despite making the trap fairly easily escapable, Megamind is shocked to see his enemy collapse, claiming the copper of the observatory weakens him, and then reluctantly goes through with seemingly killing him with a sunlight-powered weapon. With his old foe dead, Megamind is free to embark on a reign of terror throughout Metro City, though he quickly grows bored of it without any competition. Deciding to blow up Metro Man's museum, Megamind, in disguise, instead befriends Roxanne and is inspired to create a new hero to fight. He subsequently harnesses Metro Man's DNA and injects it into Roxanne's camera man, Hal, then begins training him in disguise as the man's "Space Dad" whilst also starting a relationship with Roxanne.

As his relationship with Roxanne grows, he begins to sour on supervilliany, damaging his relationship with Minion, while Hal proves to be a poor successor to Metro Man, deciding to use his powers for his own gain instead. When Megamind accidentally reveals his true identity to her, Roxanne dumps him, and he attempts to get back into villainy with a fight with Hal, though he's quickly thrown through a loop when Hal, now going by "Titan", attempts to kill him and Roxanne. The two flee to Metro Man's old hideout and are shocked to discover that he is alive and well, and had simply faked his death after growing tired of being a superhero. Metro Man, recognizing the potential for good in his own foe, refuses to help, and a depressed Megamind turns himself in.

This does not sate Titan, who goes on a rampage and kidnaps Roxanne, and Megamind reunites with Minion to defeat their new foe. Their initial scheme to outwit him into fleeing fails, but Megamind quickly improvises a new one and manages to extract Metro Man's DNA from him, reverting him to a normal human. Victorious, Megamind gets back together with Roxanne and decides to give being a superhero a chance.

Powers and Abilities:

“

Oh, I'm shaking in my custom baby seal leather boots! — Megamind

”

• Genius-Level Intellect: Due to his alien physiology giving him a large brain, Megamind is a certified mad genius, regularly creating all manner of gadgets and inventions and crafting an elaborate supervillain lair largely by himself. He's shown to be highly skilled at robotics, engineering, genetics, and weapons manufacturing, on top of regularly concocting highly complex and detailed schemes during his battles with Metro Man, with the implication that he could've defeated Metro Man if he'd ever really applied himself. He's also an adept improviser, regularly coming up with back-up plans and preparing himself for all manner of circumstances interfering with his plans, though he has a tendency to underestimate human nature, not realizing Metro Man would get bored of their fights or that Hal would turn out to be utterly psychotic when given power.
• Master of Disguise: Using his equipment to disguise, Megamind is also talented at taking on the persona of the people he's impersonating, fooling both Roxanne and Hal into thinking he was someone else and even near-flawlessly impersonating Metro Man, though his poor pronunciation gave him away before he could fully pull it off.

Weapons and Equipment:

“

That's the benefit of losing, you get to learn from your mistakes. — Megamind

”

• De-Gun: Megamind's primary weapon, the De-Gun is a weapon with several functions, though it's primarily used for it's "Dehydrate" feature, which turns people and objects into small cubes that can be rehydrated later, restoring them to their original shape none the worse for wear. On top of Dehydration, it also has Decompress, Debilitate, Demoralize, Decoupage, Deregulate, Death Ray, and Destroy features, though we never see those in action.
• Holo-Watch: The Holo-Watch enables Megamind to take on the appearance of anyone scanned into it's database, completely altering the wearer to match their description, though it does not seem capable of changing eye color. It also shown to be usable as a communication device, though only with other watches.

X-Factors:

• Experience: Megamind has a long career as a supervillain/superhero, but he's only really faced two opponents in the form of Metro Man and Titan alongside a clash against an AI version of himself, frequently losing to the former while only briefly fighting against the latter two. Basically, he's got many years under his belt, just not a wide variety of foes to show for it.
• Training: While he does have his criminal upbringing, Megamind is very much a "learn on the job" kind of person, basically picking up his various tricks and skills thanks to his natural genius and his frequent clashes with Metroman rather than having any specific mentor to guide him.
• Intelligence: While he is bombastic, arrogant, and somewhat socially inept, Megamind is still a genius, mastering any subject he sets his mind to and regularly concocting numerous plans and schemes that involve an in-depth understanding of science and strategy. Even in split-second moments he's able to improvise plans to ensure victory, or at the very least, a quick escape for when things go bad. His only true shortcoming is his tendency to underestimate human nature, as he failed to account for Metroman having an existential crisis or Titan simply trying to kill him, though his time with Roxanne has made him somewhat more skilled at understanding people.
• Brutality: Despite being a (reformed) supervillain, Megamind had an aversion to anything that would truly put people's lives at risk. His various plans for Metroman regularly had an easy escape, he was notably fairly curious to Roxanne during his kidnappings of her, and he was genuinely shocked at the idea of killing someone. After becoming a hero, he's even more averse to any random acts of violence, actively striving to protect people in his unique ways.
• Stealth: Megamind has a flair for the dramatic, often choosing to go loud and showy when it's time to make an entrance, but he's also a noted master of disguise, able to impersonate people near-perfectly, and surprisingly skilled at sneaking into (and in case of prison, out of) places despite his appearance and over-the-top style of dress.

“

We are keepers of the peace, not soldiers. — Mace Windu

”

Mace Windu was a native child of the planet Haruun Kaal who was sent to the Jedi Order to hone his budding skill with the Force. While at times emotional and passionate, traits considered taboo among Jedi, Mace proved to be a skilled and dedicated member of the Order, assembling an amethyst lightsaber and quickly rising to the rank of Knight, then Master. Considered one of the Order's signature champions, Windu proved to also be a fierce traditionalist, hoping to keep the old traditions of the Jedi afloat as the galaxy grew more chaotic and the Republic sank into corruption.

When the Clone Wars broke out, Windu became a general to the Grand Army of the Republic, fighting in countless battles across the galaxy while also serving as a reluctant advisor/diplomat. He often found himself working alongside Chancellor Sheev Palpatine, who he grew increasingly suspicious of as the war winded down. His suspicions were proven correct when Anakin Skywalker, a Jedi Knight and the supposed "Chosen One" who would bring balance to the Force, revealed that Palpatine was the Sith Lord Dark Sidious, who had manipulated the entire war in a bid for power. Windu, alongside a team of highly skilled and respected Knights, attempted to arrest Palpatine, but the Sith Lord fought back, killing all of Mace's team and engaging him in a duel that the Jedi seemingly prevailed in.

Victorious and with Palpatine at his mercy, Windu's emotion got the better of him, leading him to conclude that Palpatine was too dangerous to be left alive and that he needed to be executed. Before he could carry it out, Windu was attacked by Skywalker, who had fallen to the temptation of the Dark Side in an effort to save his pregnant wife, and was subsequently electrocuted with Force Lightning by Palpatine, who tossed him out the window of his chambers to his death. Windu's failed arrest would subsequently be spun as a coup attempt, giving Palpatine the precedent to execute Order 66, annihilating the vast majority of the Jedi and initiating the end of the Republic in favor of the Galactic Empire in one fell swoop.

Weapons and Equipment:

“

We do what we have trained our whole lives to do. Trust in the Force. Believe in the path that is set out before us. Stand in defense of all peoples, not just of the Republic, but across the galaxy. We do what any Jedi would when staring into the face of evil. We fight. — Mace Windu

”

• Lightsaber: Mace's second lightsaber, designed with the highest craftsmanship and precision to reflect his level within the Jedi Order, the hilt is designed with a silver and gold hue, while the blade is a bright purple designed to strike fear into the hearts of enemies by signaling that the Order's greatest champion had arrived. It also has "Bad Motherfucker" inscribed onto the hilt, but the canonicity of that is...ambiguous.

Powers and Abilities:

“

This party's over. — Mace Windu

”

• Force Mastery: As a Master of the Jedi, Mace's skill and control over the Force was legendary, and while he tended to primarily use it to enhance his already considerable physicality, he was able to demonstrate tremendous power with a wide variety of abilities. These include:
  • Force Push/Pull: The Force's most recognizable ability, users could use it to push/pull objects or people great distances. Windu was able to use a Force Push to clear out an army of droids, effortlessly drop a steel door onto a tank, and even weaponize his deactivated lightsaber by hitting enemies with it at high speeds, knocking them out cold. He could even control velocity with it, slowing his and his allies fall before they could hit the ground hard enough to be killed instantly. He could also use this ability to push things inward, crushing them, like when he inflicted a crippling wound on General Grevious's duranium body, leaving the fearsome warrior with lifelong respiratory issues.
  • Force Suggestion: Windu was talented in the usage of Jedi mind control, the use of the Force in brainwashing weaker-willed beings into compliance, and was powerful enough that he could easily tame a pack of wild animals into helping him and convince a group of armed attackers to throw down their guns. While powerful, this ability only works on dumber or weak-willed people, with resilient enough thinkers able to resist it.
  • Force Perception: Windu's connection to the Force gave him an effective sixth sense, allowing him to sense potential danger well before it happens. His perception was so precise that he could detect a sniper attempting to kill him from a mile away, with time effectively freezing for him as he sensed the pending attack. This perceptiveness also allowed him to easily block and deflect blaster fire and harness the Shatterpoint technique, which allows Force users to sense the weaknesses in people, places, or things.
  • Force Strength: Windu regularly used the Force to greatly enhance his strength and speed, allowing him to move so fast that foes percieved him as invisible while his punches could pierce the armored shell of a battle droid.
• Superhuman Physicality: As a Jedi, Windu was physically beyond that of a normal person. He could survive falls from great heights with the aid of his powers, a young man once broke their fist on his forehead, and his tremendous physical strength often made him just as dangerous unarmed as he was with a lightsaber.
• Expert Duelist: Windu was the co-creator and expert of the Vapaad lightsaber style, a fighting style based around channeling the inner darkness and feeding off of the fury of one's opponent. Vapaad requires a constant usage of the Force, creating a natural flow that is seemingly chaotic and unfocused to an observer, which enables the practitioner to overwhelm their opponent. Mace was so talented with the style that he was able easily resist the potential falls to the Dark Side that are inherent in using it, and he was even able to defeat Darth Sidious, one of the most fearsome Sith Lords in history, and have the man entirely at his mercy.
• Skilled Hand-to-Hand Fighter: Windu was a talented unarmed fighter, defeating armed Gamorreans as a youth, knocking a fully grown Korun with a headbutt, and tearing apart an army of droids with his bare hands.
• Expert Tactician: Windu was an incredibly effective general and diplomat during the Clone Wars, regularly winning battles against overwhelming odds while managing to stick to honoring the ways of the Jedi.

X-Factors:

• Experience: Serving the Jedi since he was a infant, Mace was one of the senior-most figures within the Order and one of the most respected and accomplished generals of the Republic during the Clone Wars, regularly fighting at the frontlines of countless battles and campaigns over the course of the war. He's done battle with fallen Jedi, Sith, droids, intergalactic terrorists, and the fearsome General Grevious, even clashing blades with Darth Sidious and triumphing, though this final duel ended in his death.
• Training: Mace is a Jedi, trained since infancy under the likes of Master Yoda, learning and developing his both his very unique mastery of the Force and his own unique fighting style. He's frequently regarded as one of the finest Jedi ever produced by the Order, and his style was so uniquely disciplined that effectively only he could master it, with other practitioners going insane and falling to the Dark Side.
• Intelligence: Mace was quietly prideful and wary to trust others, but he was also incredibly intelligent, showcasing a talent for both strategy and diplomacy, capable of just easily as preventing a battle as he was winning one. His true flaw was his borderline-fanatical loyalty to the Republic and the "peace" it provided, which led to him being willing to break the Jedi code if it meant ensuring what he saw as the greater good, a belief that ultimately led to his demise.
• Brutality: Mace was uniquely vicious for a Jedi, utilizing a dueling style that harnessed the emotions associated with the Dark Side, and while he did his best to adhere to the Jedi way, he was willing to cut down those he saw as a greater threat, such as when he was fully prepared to execute Darth Sidious, as he recognized that the Sith Lord's political power made him too dangerous to arrest.
• Stealth: Jedi were naturally talented at stealth and infiltration, often using the Force to blend in and suppress their presence, and Mace was no exception, often easily slipping into highly-guarded areas and getting the drop on foes, to the point where he was able to lead a Jedi strike force directly into the heart of Geonosis and personally sneak up on Count Dooku, a former Jedi and powerful Sith Lord.

“

I still don't know why Master went alone to execute the Akudama, but I kept my life on the line for the justice I believe. — Pupil

”

A member of the dreaded Executioners, agents who specialize in hunting and killing Akudama, Pupil is a younger member of the division, working under the guidance of Master, with the two making a notably effective duo. The pair are assigned to hunt down a group of Akudama led by Black Cat, a mysterious Akudama who organized the team to attack the Shinkansen, and first catch up to them in their hotel room, defeating the various combat-capable members and narrowly losing them when Courier manages to engineer an escape. The two continue their assault, with Master taking special interest in the Akudama, and once again clash with them on the Shinkansen, again defeating them but ending up stranded in the Quarantine Zone when Courier severs the car they're in from the rest of the train.

Against all odds, they survive this ordeal, but are left hospitalized and taken off the case. While Pupil stays and recovers, Master sneaks off and hunts down the Akudama, soloing the entire team but putting strain on his injuries, and Pupil arrives moments after his fight with Brawler that leaves both men mortally wounded. He gives her both his jutte and some final words of encouragement before dying, and she is subsequently cut down by Brawler's friend Hoodlum, losing her eye to the ambush.

Master's death deeply affects Pupil, and she becomes colder and more cynical, developing a death wish that is kept in check by her new trainee, Junior. Despite her desire to work alone, Pupil becomes protective of Junior, leading her to give up a chance to catch the Akudama after he is held hostage by Doctor and injured in the chaos of a crowd entering the train station they're in. As the unrest grows into full-blown riots and Executioners begin killing citizens in the streets, Pupil grows increasingly skeptical of the system, and after Swindler is cut down in a live broadcast, she turns on the Executioners, helping Courier escape with Brother and Sister before confronting the Executioner's leader, Boss, and showing her how her "justice" has failed.

Weapons and Equipment:

“

In accordance with the law, you shall face death! — Pupil

”

• Jutte: The signature weapon of Executioners, the jutte is a two-pronged blade resembling a lightsaber that can effortlessly slice through organic material, lopping off limbs and cutting people apart without issue, but is stopped by non-organic objects like bullets, knives, or Courier's arms, at which point it better resembles a more standard blade.

Skills and Abilities

• Peak Physicality: Pupil is incredibly strong and resilient, capable of kicking Brawler hard enough to send him flying and even surviving the Quarantine Zone, an area deemed entirely hostile to human life, with minimal injuries. On top of her impressive strength and endurance, she has lightning fast reflexes, to the point where she could deflect a bullet out of the air and easily detect Doctor's attempt to ambush her before cutting her down with two clean strikes.
• Expert Combatant: While not quite to the level of Master, Pupil is a skilled fighter in her own right, capable of holding her against Brawler and Cutthroat and only needing assistance when the two ganged up on her. She can fight effectively with both her jutte and unarmed, as she could match Brawler blow for blow by using her agility and small size against him. She's notably one of the few Executioners who could fight against the Akudama, with the majority of the organization being easily slaughtered during later encounters.
• Skilled Tracker: Pupil is an effective tracker, endlessly pursuing and staying on the trail of the Akudama during her hunt for them, and it took being put through the Quarantine Zone to briefly stymie her and Master. Even after being injured, she was able to track down the site of Master's fight with Brawler, arriving quickly enough for him to still be alive when she got there.

X-Factors:

• Experience: Pupil is one of the younger Executioners and the clear subordinate to Master, with only two years of experience under her belt, but those two years had her regularly hunting down Akudama, to the point where she was trusted to take on Junior following Master's death. Over the course of the series, she regularly does battle with some of the most dangerous Akudama in the city and not just surviving, but outright winning in a few cases.
• Training: Pupil is an Executioner, Kansai's elite police force, and under the tutelage of Master, she quickly proves to be among the very best of the group, honing herself to the peak of physical condition and proving to be a master of both hand-to-hand and sword combat, with top-notch reflexes to match. This enables her to be the only Executioner to repeatedly run into the Akudama and walk away alive.
• Intelligence: Pupil is a highly competent and persistent tracker/investigator, with Master's death leading her to develop a more cautious personality, actively trying to avoid rushing into situations and risk the lives of both herself and her trainee, Pupil. While this does make her more hesitant at times, it also prevents her from making the same mistakes that led to her getting needlessly injured when under Master's guidance.
• Brutality: As an Executioner, Pupil is fully allowed and willing to use lethal force against criminals, and she regularly goes straight for the killing blow when in the heat of battle. However, she still has a stronger moral code than much of her organization, objecting to violence against children or civilians and ultimately turning on them when they begin attacking protestors.
• Stealth: As part of her talent with tracking Akudama, Pupil is talented at ambushing them as well, with her and Master catching them off-guard at both their hotel room and the Shinkansen.

“

I've realized now there are more important things in life than being a prim and proper honor student. — Makoto Niijima

”

Hailing from a family of law enforcement, with her sister a prosecutor and her father a police officer, the life of Makoto Niijima was changed forever when her father was killed in the line of duty. Now left under her sister Sae's care, Makoto devoted herself to her studies, becoming a highly intelligent and successful student and working her way to the position of Student Council President of her high school, Shujin Academy. Despite her success, the other students of Shujin Academy resented her, feeling she was turning a blind eye to the issues faced by students, specifically the abuses perpetrated by Suguru Kamoshia, the school's volleyball coach.

Staying largely aloof and distant, things changed for Makoto when Joker, a juvenile delinquent, transferred to Shujin, and Kamoshida became the first target of "The Phantom Thieves of Heart". With Kamoshida's change of heart and subsequent breakdown reflecting poorly on the school, Makoto was tasked with investigating the Thieves, and was able to prove they were mostly Shujin students, with Joker as the team's leader, though instead of outing them, she blackmails them into aiding her efforts to stop the criminal schemes of Junya Kaneshiro, a criminal who was selling drugs to students and extorting them for money. After a run-in with Kaneshiro where he takes her hostage and makes clear that she now "owes" him, she helps the Thieves infiltrate his Palace and subsequently awakens her first Persona, Johanna.

Now operating under the name "Queen", Makoto joins the Thieves, effectively becoming second-in-command to Joker, and vows to take on others who would exploit the weak in society. While the Thieves confront a criminal conspiracy to take over Japan, Makoto makes an effort to be more outgoing with the aid of Joker, and uncovers a scheme by a local host to force a friend of hers into working various illegal jobs. The two successfully scare the man off, and Makoto decides to become police commissioner so she can effectively reform the corrupt police force to better safeguard society. During this conversation, she realizes she has feelings for Joker, which he reciprocates, leading to a relationship between the two.

Weapons and Equipment:

“

Don't get all cocky because I normally behave myself! I am DONE playing nice! Let's go, Johanna! Full throttle! — Makoto Niijima

”

• Gorodias: A talented practitioner of akido, Makoto fights primarily with her fists, using a pair of brass knuckles created by itemizing Cybele. Gorodias has a high chance of scoring a critical hit on enemies in combat.
• Judge of Hell R: Obtained by itemizing Michael, Judge of Hell R is a single-action revolver with 10 rounds that also massively boosts all of Makoto's stats.

Powers and Abilities:

“

I just can't rest knowing there's such evil in the world! And I damn sure won't keep quiet while my friend has her life ruined! — Makoto Niijima

”

• Agnes: Agnes is Makoto's Third-tier Persona, created by fusing her previous Personas, Johanna and Anat, prior to the final battle with Maruki. It is named after an alternate name given to Pope Joan, a 13th-century woman who deceived her way into becoming the Pope for several years. Agnes's specialty is playing a mixture of offensive and support roles, clearing the field with powerful Nuclear attacks while also healing and buffing allies. It is unique for a Persona in that Makoto rides it like a normal vehicle, and she can attack not just with spells, but by straight-up running enemies over while weaving through chaotic battles. It outright blocks Nuclear attacks and is resistant to Curse attacks, but is weak to Psy attacks. It has a variety of abilities and attacks, such as:
  • Atomic Flare: Severe Nuke damage to 1 foe.
  • Mafreidyne: Heavy Nuke damage to all foes.
  • Flash Bomb: Medium Physical damage and inflict Dizzy (low odds) to all foes.
  • Marukaja: Increase Defense of party for 3 turns.
  • Checkmate: Decrease Attack/Defense/Agility of all foes for 3 turns.
  • Mediarahan: Fully restore HP of party.
  • Defense Master: Automatic Rakukaja (defense buff) at the start of battle.
  • Nuke Amp: Strengthen Nuclear attacks by 50%.
  • Gaia Blessing: Increase allies' chance of inflicting Burn/Freeze/Shock by 50%. Agnes' passive.
• Superhuman Physicality: When in the Metaverse as a Phantom Thief, Makoto's natural physical abilities are enhanced to levels beyond that of a normal human being. On top of becoming fast and agile enough to easily take part in parkour through Palaces and throw dozens of hits in a few seconds, she's strong enough to fight and kill Shadows with her bare-handed, and her strikes hit hard enough to crack stone walls and the ground beneath her. She can survive all manner of punishment, from brutal physical hits to magical attacks to outright being stabbed and shot, and get back up none the worse for wear.
• Skilled Hand-to-Hand Fighter: Makoto forgoes weapons in favor of using her martial arts skills in combat, fighting Shadows with a mixed-martial arts style that blends the aforementioned akido with the likes of karate, Muay Thai, and even wrestling. This style works closely with her speed and strength to make her an overwhelming fighter in battle.
• High-Intellect: Makoto is one of the Thieves most intelligent and resourceful members, often working alongside Joker and Morgana to craft plans and investigate targets and areas. Prior to Futaba joining the team, she served as the team's primary analyst in combat with Shadows, recognizing their strengths and weaknesses in a matter of moments, and she was able to deduce the Thieves identities with very little to go off beyond general suspicion. She often forms the logical, methodical elements of the team's plans, recognizing potential shortcomings and issues while keeping her chaotic teammates focused.
• Skilled Driver: Makoto is the Thieves primary driver both in the Metaverse and the real world, and she's shown incredible talent behind the wheel. She regularly drives Johanna and Agnes through pitched battles with Shadows, and can drive the Morganamobile through Mementos without alerting Shadows while also avoiding the debris and explosions of collapsing Palaces.

X-Factors:

• Experience: Makoto is one of the oldest members of the Phantom Thieves, being the first recruit after the group began to gain notoriety, and she's been at the forefront of each of the team's misadventures for well over a year, going up against all sorts of monsters, demons, rival Persona wielders, and multiple gods during her time as a Thief. Even her time outside of Palaces is chaotic, as she investigates suspicious circumstances and criminal activity alongside the Thieves taking on two separate criminal conspiracies.
• Training: Makoto doesn't have traditional training as a Persona user, learning through working with her teammates and doing battle with Shadows in the Metaverse, though she was trained in aikido by her father, a regimen she continued well after her death, while her studies play a large role in refining her intellect and investigative skill.
• Intelligence: Makoto, alongside Futaba, Morgana, and Joker, serves as the brains of the Phantom Thieves, operating as the team's primary tactician and investigator, with her more organized, focused style complimenting Joker's more dramatic, creative approaches and often covering up any possible logical flaws in the team's various plans. She does suffer in that her more serious mindset prevents her from often picking up on smaller details or thinking outside the box, but she has loosened up slightly thanks to her teammates.
• Brutality: An absolute terror when pissed off, Makoto will gladly tear apart any Shadow that gets in her way with her bare hands, using a fighting style that emphasizes getting up close and personal, but she balks at the idea of killing an actual person, reacting in horror at the murder of Kunikazu Okumura and even showing pity towards Goro Akechi, the team's sworn enemy, after his apparent death.
• Stealth: As a member of the Phantom Thieves, Makoto is talented at infiltration and operating under the radar, easily sneaking her way through Palaces and sticking to the shadows with her teammates, which is helped by her enhanced agility and mobility, which enables her to approach an area from multiple angles and avoid alarming foes.

“

There's something scary going on in my town. If Morioh City is in danger, that means my parents, my sister, and everyone else important to me will have to face that danger. So even if it's scary, I gotta do something! — Koichi Hirose

”

A meek, unassuming high schooler, the life of Koichi Hirose would change forever when he ran into Jotaro Kujo, a Stand user who was searching for his teenage uncle, Josuke Higashikata, in the town of Morioh. Koichi quickly formed a close friendship with Josuke, and the two's efforts to help Jotaro investigate a dangerous Stand user in Morioh culminated in them being attacked by the Nijimura brothers, with Koichi being shot with a Stand arrow and subsequently developing the seemingly weak Stand Echoes. Following the death of Keicho, the elder Nijimura brother, Koichi and Josuke befriended Okuyasu, who wanted to get revenge for his sibling's death, and the trio became inseparable.

Over the course of a crazy summer, Echoes grows more powerful and evolves, first after an encounter with a Stand-using con artist, then after Koichi is kidnapped by Yukako Yamagushi, a crazed classmate who eventually becomes his girlfriend. The summer takes a turn when Yoshikage Kira, a serial killer who preys on the women of Morioh, murders Josuke and Okuyasu's friend Shigechi, and the team dedicates their efforts to catching him before he can claim more victims. Koichi, working alongside Jotaro, manages to both unlock Echoes's final form and uncover Kira's identity by outwitting him and stealing his wallet, but is left badly injured and unable to stop Kira from escaping and stealing the identity of Kosaku Kawajiri. Eventually, and with the help of Kosaku's son, Hayato, Koichi and the rest of the team manage to corner Kira, with Echoes stopping him from using Bite the Dust to trap them in a time loop of death and leaving him open for Jotaro to finish him off.

Following the summer of '99, Koichi begins working for Jotaro and is sent to Italy to investigate rumors of Dio Brando's son, Giorno Giovanna, and determine if the youth was a threat to the level of his father or not. Koichi and Giorno team up to defeat the Stand Black Sabbath, and the encounter convinces him that Giorno can be trusted.

Powers and Abilities:

“

You are much more cowardly than a normal person and easily give in under pressure, but when push comes to shove you can be quite courageous. — Rohan Kishibe

”

• Echoes: Echoes is Koichi's Stand and is unique in that it evolves to match his evolution and growth as a person over his time wielding it. While he was initially stuck with only one form at a time, by the end of Part 4 Koichi is able to switch between the various forms at will. The three forms of Echoes are:
  • ACT 1: Act 1 is a larva-like, long-range Stand. It is the weakest form of Echoes, effectively useless in terms of physical power, but it makes up for it with it's ability to create sound by writing words on any surface or person. The sound can then repeat itself louder and louder, potentially overwhelming a person and breaking them into submission, though those with strong enough willpower can resist it. ACT 1 can also travel up to 50 meters away from Koichi.
  • ACT 2: ACT 2 is a more humanoid evolution from ACT 1, more suited to a direct confrontation and containing a new ability of causing specific physical effects based off of the word written. For instance, "Hyooo" creates a strong gust of wind, while "Jū" causes the object to radiate heat and burn upon contact. ACT 2 can only create one sound effect at a time and also lacks the same range as ACT 1.
  • ACT 3: The final form of Echoes, the fully humanoid ACT 3 is apparently sentient, outright talking to Koichi with a mixture of formal deference and slang/profanity. ACT 3 lacks the range or versatility of the previous forms, but it wields the powerful "3 Freeze" ability. With 3 Freeze, Echoes hits a target with a series of rapid punches, which then applies a massive weight to them, making it substantially harder for them to move. The closer ACT 3 is to the target, the heavier the weight, with Kira describing it as though he had a 50 kilogram weight on his hand.
• Skilled Improviser: A practically required trait of Stand users, Koichi is fairly quick-witted and creative in the usage of his Stand, swapping between the various forms of Echoes to suit his needs and coming up with plans to suit it's limited moveset on the fly. He was able to briefly outwit Sheer Heart Attack by playing off of it's heat-seeking, he saved Yukako's life by giving a rock rubbery properties before she would've landed on it, and his split-second usage of ACT 3 to pin Kira's hand ultimately ends up saving the day during the final confrontation.

X-Factors:

• Experience: Koichi was effectively Part 4's magnet for weird shit, spending his crazy summer regularly encountering rival Stand users with unique, dangerous abilities and defeating them using his wits and powerset, then continuing to work under the Speedwagon Foundation in the following years. While encounters with Stand users were a crucial element of his life, these were still relatively rare occurrences, and he saw direct combat less more than the rest of the team.
• Training: Koichi has no real training, learning and understanding his Stand's abilities through experimentation and experience over any real teachers.
• Intelligence: As a Stand user, Koichi does show a natural skill at improvisation and working with his Stand's limited powerset to get results, though he's undercut by his own meek personality, leading to him being afraid to take risks or capitalize on critical moments. Despite this, he has grown to be more assertive and bold, still showing fits of panic but instead fighting through it rather than freezing up.
• Brutality: Koichi is a kind, heroic person who actively seeks to help people and avoids hurting enemies, even saving the life of Yukako after she'd kidnapped and abused him, but a vile enough enemy, like Yoshikage Kira, can potentially piss him off enough that he's willing to get a lot more ruthless with his powers.
• Stealth: Koichi shows no specific stealth skills, though he does have some talent for misdirection and trickery, stealing Kira's wallet while he's gloating and covertly figuring the user of Highway Star by tricking the nurse of the hospital he's staying at.

“

If I wanted to take it easy, I'd go live with my grandma. I'm not about to let anyone down. — Gwen Tennyson

”

Gwen Tennyson is the intelligent, headstrong cousin of Ben Tennyson. When she and Ben were young, the often squabbling duo was sent on a summer vacation with Ben's grandfather, Max, during which Ben obtained the Omnitrix, a watch-like device that gave him the ability to transform into a variety of alien species. Often serving as a voice of reason to the more reckless Ben, Gwen embarked on a series of adventures with her cousin, battling a variety of threats of both the human and alien variety, learning more about her uncle's mysterious past and her own apparent budding magical abilities over the summer.

A few years later, Gwen, now an academic genius and highly talented with her abilities, reunited with Ben and a now reformed Kevin Levin, a former enemy of the duo, to try and find Max, who had seemingly vanished. On top of developing feelings for Kevin, Gwen also discovers that her magical ability is an inherited trait from her grandmother, a powerful energy being known as an Anodite. She is given a chance to hone these abilities on the Anodite homeworld, but chooses to instead stay and help Ben and Kevin with protecting the Earth while reforming the Plumbers, the secretive organization that protects the planet from alien threats.

After the team's victory over the likes of Vilgax and Dagon, Gwen chooses to attend college, with Kevin accompanying her so they can stay together, leading to the end of the team, though she still makes an effort to keep tabs on Ben.

Powers and Abilities:

“

Maturity. Isn't that a novel approach? — Gwen Tennyson

”

• Anodite Powers: Gwen's magical powers are inherited from her grandmother, Verdona, a member of the Anodite race. These abilities allow Gwen to manipulate "mana", the life force that powers magic and flows through all things. Tapping into the mana of the world around her, Gwen can wield it for a variety of purposes and feats. These include:
  • Energy Blasts: Gwen can unleash blasts of magical energy from her hands strong enough to knock a person out with one hit, blast through stone walls, and destroy towering robots. She can also choose to focus these blasts into either more rapid-fire bolts, concentrated streams of energy, or throwing discs that can easily cut through stone and meal. When her hands are disabled, Gwen is able to shoot the beams from her eyes.
  • Construct Creation: Gwen's other preferred style of magic is using it to create constructs. She has created an enormous variety of constructs for both offensive and defensive purposes, including energy whips, shields, blades, platforms for her and her allies to use for traversal, battering rams, and giant fists.
  • Bubbles: Gwen can create magical bubbles and encase either people or herself within them. She can control the size of the bubbles, making them large enough to contain an alien as large as Galapagus or small enough to wrap around someone's head and suffocate them. Similarly to her shields, they are highly resistant to damage, with the super-strong Rath unable to break them and easily protecting Gwen through large explosions.
  • Binding: Gwen can create tentacle-like bindings that can pick up and move objects as a form of telekinesis. Gwen can create several of these bindings at once, and they're strong enough to pick up the Rust Bucket or lift Kevin in his metal form. She can also use them offensively, grabbing and slamming/tossing enemies like ragdolls or simply holding them in place.
  • Tracking/Aura Detection: Gwen can use mana to track down a living being by following it's energy trail, with her able to hone this to the point of tracking people off of their specific traces of mana and see through illusions/cloaking. While she usually needs an object related to the person to track them, Gwen can find someone without if she knows them well enough. This tracking is honed to the point where she can recognize people and the specific uses of magic by their auras alone.
  • Telekinesis: Gwen also has the more traditional form of telekinesis, with which she can grab and levitate several people or objects at once.
  • Mana Absorption: Gwen draws power from the people around her for her abilities, and she can choose to absorb more of their life energy to strengthen herself. As the ability causes harm to others, she tends to avoid doing so unless it's against the likes of a strong enough foe like Charmcaster or Morningstar.
  • Anodite Form: When things get dire or when she's angered enough, Gwen can transform into her Anodite form, which greatly enhances her abilities, making her strong enough to effortlessly toss Humungasaur aside, while also giving her the power to fly, astral project, and change her size at will. While the Anodite form is powerful, Gwen is hesitant to tap into it as the ensuing surge of power is difficult to control and could potentially cause her to lose any semblance of herself to it.
• Magical Abilities: On top of her Anodite powers, Gwen is also an immensely skilled practitioner of traditional magic thanks to both her inherited potential and her stealing Charmcaster's book as a child. By her teenage years, Gwen was talented enough with magic that she could perform it by memory and combine it with her Anodite abilities to make them stronger. These spells do not require mana to cast. Her spells include:
  • Elemental Spells: Gwen could manipulate wind, water, and even lightning to do her bidding, such as creating water spouts to trap escaped prisoners and creating vortexes of wind or tornadoes to knock back or disorient foes.
  • Telekinesis: Gwen can cast spells that allow her to move things with her mind, which can she use to do things like dismantling robots or altering the gravity around someone to hold them in place.
  • Telepathy: Gwen can communicate telepathically and probe the minds of others, projecting it for others so that can she see things as she sees them.
  • Teleportation: Gwen can teleport herself and others across great distances in a pink flash. As long as she can track the person involved, she can even teleport someone she can't see, using this to summon Ben to her location during a fight, and can even bypass seals and shields designed to keep others out with some focus. She can also create portals that can suck people into them, forcibly sending them away.
  • Runes: Gwen can create and place runes upon other people. The exact runes are unknown, but the ones we see her using are able to disable someone's powers and shrink someone upon them touching the rune.
• Peak Physical Condition: Gwen, on top of being a student, is also an enormously talented athlete and acrobate, keeping herself in top shape so she can stay at the top of her game at all times. She's noted as taking part in softball, martial arts, horseback riding, cross-country, and skiing, and her acrobatics training enables her to pull off impressive feats in tandem with her magical abilities, capable of leaping and flipping over crowds of people and avoiding fast attacks during heated fights.
• Skilled Martial Artist: Gwen is a practicioner of martial arts, and has trained herself to the point where she's highly effective in a fight even without the use of magic. As a child she could flip a fully grown man over her head, while teenage Gwen could defeat a pack of DNAliens with just her martial arts. She often uses her martial arts in tandem with her magic in up-close fights, combining the two to overwhelm enemies and engage with crowds in combat.
• High Intellect: Gwen is an incredibly smart and resourceful girl, being a top student and the primary researcher of the team. She is an expert on a variety of topics, from magic to history to computers, and easily solves equations and algorithms presented to her. Her intelligence makes her incredibly crafty, coming up with creative uses of her powers on the fly and regularly outwitting and tricking more powerful foes.

X-Factors:

• Experience: Gwen has been going on adventures since she was 10 years old, encountering all sorts of extra-terrestrial and mystical weirdness, and as she's grown up, she's found herself more on the frontline thanks to her abilities enabling her to keep up with her teammates. She's helped foil multiple alien invasions, clashed with all manner of super-powered beings, and been one of the most crucial figures in the defeat of both Vilgax and Dagon, two intergalactic, extra-dimensional conquerors.
• Training: A lot of Gwen's skill with magic is self-taught, with her actively declining further training from her grandmother, and much of her time when not in the field or studying is spent experimenting and practicing to ensure she can be as effective as possible in the field. Outside of magic, she does have years of training in martial arts and athletics, putting her at the peak of physical fitness for a girl her age.
• Intelligence: Gwen is incredibly smart, working as the brains of Team Tennyson by being it's expert on technology, magic, and research/investigation. Much of what the team learns about new foes and concepts comes from her actively seeking out information on them, while her skill with magic comes from her creative, perceptive mindset being willing to push it to it's limits.
• Brutality: Gwen is willing to dish out pain to the various aliens and monsters she encounters, but she tends to hold back when facing more sentient beings, and she's actively afraid of going too far out of fear of hurting someone, which has enabled more powerful foes to get the upper-hand on her in the past.
• Stealth: While Gwen is capable of stealth, at times sneaking around heavily guarded areas alongside Ben and Kevin, the group tends to have a preference for going in loud, favoring up-front confrontation over subterfuge, and she's usually fighting right alongside them.

“

One of the good things about being blind is that I don't have to waste my time worrying about appearances. I don't care what I look like. I'm not looking for anyone's approval. I know who I am. — Toph Beifong

”

One of the greatest Earthbenders in the history of the world, Toph Beifong was born blind, leading to the girl initially struggling to live with both her disability and her overprotective parents. This changed during a chance encounter with badgermoles, who taught her how to harness her other senses to make up for her lack of sight. In doing this, she also learned she could earthbend and proved to be a prodigy, honing her skills behind her parent's backs and eventually entering (and winning) tournaments as the infamous "Blind Bandit". Toph's prayers for freedom and a chance to find herself were answered when she met Team Avatar, who were searching for a teacher in Earthbending for Avatar Aang. Toph, despite initial friction after Aang accidentally defeated her as Earth Rumble champion, agreed, and joined the group on their journey.

Proving to be a tough, but effective, teacher, Toph initially butted heads with the rest of the team due to her abrasive and headstrong personality, but she in time grew to see them as true family. Her adventures with them led to her witnessing major moments in the Hundred Year War, including the Fall of Ba Sing Se, the Day of the Black Sun, and the defection of Prince Zuko, whom she supported and vouched for when the rest of the team refused to trust him. She also began to hone her skills even further, learning the arts of both sand and metal bending. During the coming of Sozin's Combat, Toph joins Sokka and Suki in stopping the Fire Nation's fleet of airships, using her metalbending abilities to disable them, before joining in the celebration following Aang's victory over Fire Lord Ozai.

Following the war, Toph became the first Chief of Police in Republic City, forming a metalbending police force and having two children: Lin, who would eventually take her place as Chief, and Suyin, creator of the metal city Zaofu. Following her retirement, Toph wandered the world in hopes of finding enlightenment.

Powers and Abilities:

“

I love fighting. I love being an earthbender, and I'm really, really good at it. — Toph Beifong

”

• Earthbending: Toph is frequently regarded as the best Earthbender of her time, owing to a mixture of sheer determination, skill, and aid from her enhanced senses, which allow her to feel the smallest vibrations of the ground beneath her. Toph's specific style of Earthbending relies on a seeming unpredictability and willingness to experiment, putting it ahead of the more disciplined styles of other benders, with her feeling a proper connection to the earth rather than just using it. For more examples of the specific abilities used by Earthbenders, go here.
  • Sandbending: After spending months in the desert, Toph, who initially struggled due to the constantly shifting nature of sand, Toph eventually learned how to control sand to the same degree with which she could earth, to the point where she could create a detailed recreation of an entire city out of it. Sandbending functions closer in practice to air and water bending, being more free-flowing and loose in it's execution.
  • Metalbending: A style of bending created entirely by Toph, metalbending is earthbenders exploiting the elements of condensed earth within metal to control it. Using her senses, Toph was able to discover this ability when she was imprisoned by the Fire Nation within a metal cage. After breaking out, Toph began refining and practicing with the technique, reaching the point where she could create metal armor for herself and manipulate structures like rooms and airships even when not in contact with them.
• Enhanced Senses: Despite her blindness, Toph's senses of touch and hearing are well beyond that of a normal person, incorporating these senses into her bending to detect the small shifts in the earth. She can detect people just by their footsteps, hear whispering from a fair distance away, and could hear people screaming from the top of a mountain when she was at the foot. Her hearing enables her to pick up on the small details of people's voices, which helps her easily memorize the voices of people she's had even fleeting encounters and recognize when they're feeling a certain emotion or lying to her. Meanwhile, her sense of touch is so precise she can feel ants moving across the Earth and detect the refined ores contained within metal. While Toph's senses are powerful, they do have logical weaknesses, namely taking her away from a solid surface that she can't sense the vibrations of renders her effectively blind, and that she can't sense people who are airborne.
• Skilled Acrobat: Toph is surprisingly agile for someone of her demeanor and disability, frequently incorporating leaps and flips into her fighting style to keep enemies from getting an exact lock on her during fights, which plays into her creative, unpredictable style of bending.

X-Factors:

• Experience: As a member of Team Avatar, Toph was a part of almost every major conflict of the war with the Fire Nation, and she's helped her friends in their battles against bounty hunters, benders, soldiers, and the powerful war machine of the Fire Nation. Even before meeting them, she fought her way to the championship of the Earth Rumble, defeating some of the most talented earthbenders in the world as a mere child.
• Training: While she was trained by Master Yu as a child, Toph's traditional training was kneecaped by Yu refusing to teach her anything beyond the basics, with all of her talent instead coming from her time on her own with the badgermoles, where she secretly mastered the art of Earthbending with no one the wiser. In her time with Team Avatar, she further refined and expanded on her abilities, growing stronger and learning new tricks as the situation called for it.
• Intelligence: Despite her uncouth and brash demeanor, Toph is surprisingly clever, utilizing her Earthbending in creative, unexpected ways and also working as the street smart member of Team Avatar thanks to her noble upbringing enabling her to perform well in social situations, even if she does resent having to do it. In combat, she does tend to act aggressively and excitedly, but those that write her off as just muscle do so at great risk.
• Brutality: Toph is an Earthbender, an inherently brutal style of bending, and she'll happily disable foes with maximum force in a fight, though we never technically see her kill someone intentionally.
• Stealth: Toph, like the rest of Team Avatar, spent much of her adventures on the run, having to disguise and hide themselves to avoid detection from the Fire Nation, with her senses playing a crucial part in helping the group know when a potential threat was approaching. Personally, she preferred a good fight over hiding, but reluctantly recognized when it was important to hide.

Impostors

• Green
• Blue
• Brown

“

It hurts, doesn’t it? Being lied to. Being told you’re one thing and then learning it’s all a fiction. — Loki

”

Loki Laufeyson is the Norse God of Mischief and Lies, and the biological son of Laufey, King of the Frost Giants. Following a war between the Giants and the Asgardians, Loki was left to die by Laufey and was saved only due to the intervention of Odin, who took the child as his own and raised him alongside his son, Thor. The brothers proved to be both polar opposites and fast friends, getting up to a variety of misadventures, though the more ambitious Loki grew to resent Thor, Odin's clear favorite. When Thor was to be crowned King of Asgard, Loki hatched a scheme to sabotage his reign, sneaking Frost Giants into Asgard and manipulating Thor into launching an assault on Jotunheim, leading to an enraged Odin banishing him.

Loki's plan went awry as he discovered his true heritage, and the ensuing confrontation forced Odin into the Odinsleep, leaving Loki to take the throne and plot to destroy Jotunheim in a new war. His plans are ultimately foiled when Thor, having learned his lesson, returns to Asgard and defeats him in a duel on the Bifrost Bridge. Having alienated himself from his family, Loki threw himself from the ruins of the bridge, landing in a portal that brought him before the warlord Thanos, who placed him under his command and ordered him to conquer the Earth. Leading an army of Chitauri, Loki once again battles Thor, alongside Thor's new allies the Avengers, and is defeated once more, returning to Asgard where he is sentenced to the dungeons for eternity as punishment.

While initially content with the punishment, Loki agrees to aid Thor in his war against Malekith and the Dark Elves after Malekith murders Frigga, his adoptive mother and the one he was closest to, helping Thor escape Asgard and protect his girlfriend Jane Foster. Using his shifty nature to his advantage, Loki seemingly betrays Thor as a plan to lure Malekith into a trap, then fakes his death so he can safely return to Asgard and depose Odin, stripping him of his godly power and sending him to Earth.

Loki's rule was largely incompetent, allowing Asgard's status as a power to fall by the wayside until Thor sees through the ruse and forces him to take him to Odin, who warns the two of the return of Hela, their older sister, before dying. As warned, Hela returns and effortlessly seizes control of Asgard, with Loki and Thor ending up banished to Sakaar in the ensuing fight. Loki initially takes well to Sakaar, becoming a close advisor to the Grandmaster and witnessing Thor's fight to the Hulk, though he ultimately agrees to save Asgard after a conversation with Thor leads him to realize he's become predictable. Loki provides vital support during the battle with Hela and is the one to ultimately cause Ragnarok by summoning Surtur, who kills Hela before destroying Asgard while the survivors fled.

Unfortunately, Loki, in a moment of weakness, stole the Tesseract from Asgard's vault shortly before it's destruction, leading Thanos to attack the Asgardians ship, slaughtering half the population and easily defeating Thor and Hulk. Realizing that Thanos would likely kill Thor, Loki attempted to trick the Titan and kill him, only for Thanos to easily see through it and kill him, seemingly once and for all.

Weapons and Equipment:

“

You could at least furnish me with a weapon. My dagger, something. — Loki

”

• Daggers: Loki's signature weapons of choice were a pair of duel daggers, owing largely to their small size and lethality making them an ideal weapon for well-timed, stealthy kills. He's shown to be a talented fighter with them, killing numerous undead soldiers during the battle of Ragnarok and nearly fighting Valkryie to a standstill, though she ultimately overpowers him.
• Asgardian Armor: Loki wears a distinct set of Asgardian armor consisting of a green tunic overlaid with golden metal, usually overlaid with a cape. As he often avoided direct confrontation, we never saw exactly how durable or effective the armor was, but it's still worth noting.

Powers and Abilities:

“

Dear brother, you're becoming predictable. I trust you, you betray me. Round and round in circles we go. See, Loki, life is about... it's about growth. It's about change. But you seem to just want to stay the same. I guess what I'm trying to say is that you'll always be the God of Mischief... but you could be more. — Thor

”

• Superhuman Physiology: Loki is biologically a Frost Giant and as such has the physical capabilities and traits of one, though he is enchanted to resemble an Asgardian, a form he clearly prefers.
  • Superhuman Strength: While not quite as strong as Asgardians like Thor or Valkyrie, Loki's still exceptionally powerful, overpowering Captain America in hand-to-hand combat and tossing Tony Stark aside with one hand.
  • Superhuman Durability: In terms of durability, Loki was able to survive a merciless beating at the hands of the Hulk and merely flinched at several gunshots to the face, alongside inheriting the Frost Giant's natural immunity to cold.
  • Superhuman Reflexes: Loki's reflexes are noted to be far faster than any mere mortal, as he caught one of Hawkeye's arrows out of the air and frequently incorporated speed into his fighting style, allowing him to outmove the likes of Captain America and Thor.
  • Healing Factor: Loki was able to recover from and survive wounds that would easily kill a lesser being, to the point where he was up and walking mere minutes after being savagely beaten by Hulk.
• Master Sorcerer: Trained by Frigga in the art of magic, Loki is one of Asgard's most talented and crafty practitioners, to the point where he even left Odin impressed. While he knew a wide variety of spells, he often favored ones focused around deception and manipulation, tricking foes into traps with his schemes.
  • Illusions: Loki could create extremely lifelike and realistic holograms with a simple gesture. While they are deceptively realistic, the illusions can't actually interact with the world around them, giving off a green glow when touched and any objects that touch them simply passing through, though they can be made tangible with some effort, as he was able to fake dying in Thor's arms after the battle with Kurse. Loki could also extend the illusions across entire rooms, as he hid his disheveled appearance and destroyed cell following Frigga's funeral. He could also use a mixture of this and mental manipulation to hide his presence, enabling him to effectively move as though he were invisible.
  • Shapeshifting: Loki can alter his entire appearance to resemble any person or animal nearly instantly, with the only sign of transformation being a green or yellow light over the transformation. The transformations are dead-on, perfectly imitating the likes of Captain America or Odin and recreating items such as armor of weapons out of thin air. He could also change the appearance of others, like turning Thor into a frog or making it appear as though he had lost his hand.
  • Mental Manipulation: Loki could influence the minds both of lesser beings, brainwashing the genius Erik Selvig into repeating exactly as he said, and fellow gods, as he brainwashed Odin into giving up the throne and forced Valkyrie to relive the slaughter of her fellow warriors at the hands of Hela. This mastery of the ability makes it so that he cannot be enchanted or mind controlled.
  • Conjuration: Loki can make objects, like his daggers or the Tesseract, appear and disappear out of thin air. It's not clear exactly where these objects are being stored, but it enables him to pull last minute surprises on enemies.
  • Telekinesis: Loki is able to move objects with his mind, often generating immense concussive force to leave more damage behind his attacks. During his fight with the Frost Giants, Loki augmented his knives to shatter the shields and armor of the various Giants, and a grieving Loki trashed his entire prison cell by merely clenching his fists in the aftermath of Frigga's death. With enough focus and strain, he was even capable of catching a falling building and forcing it back into place.
  • Energy Blasts: Loki can conjure green blasts of magical energy that are strong enough to send a human flying, which allow him to force back any enemies that get too close for comfort.
• Genius Tactician: As the God of Mischief, Loki is a brilliant manipulator and thinker, easily and regularly playing people against one another to suit his own schemes. He has successfully seized the throne of Asgard twice, nearly destroyed the Avengers by playing off of their own flaws long enough for his reinforcements to arrive, deceived and killed the nearly invincible Kurse by using his own weapon against him, and worked his way into the inner circle of the Grandmaster in a short amount of time. Loki's only real flaw of a tactician is his betrayal-happy nature makes him predictable after a while, as both Thor and Thanos saw through his attempts to turn on them, with the latter leading to his death.
• Skilled Knife Fighter: While he sees himself as a thinker rather than a fighter, Loki is incredibly dangerous in a fight, wounding Thor (who was admittedly holding back out of love) during the Battle of New York and holding his own in a duel with Valkyrie. Against more standard foes, he effortlessly kills dozens of the likes of Frost Giants, SHIELD Agents, Dark Elves, and Berserkers with just his daggers. He's also a talented knife thrower, killing several agents offhandedly with throwing knives.
• Skilled Hand-to-Hand Fighter: Though not exactly his forte, Loki uses a mixture of his strength and reflexes to hold his own in fights. He once overpowered Captain America, one of the MCU's most talented fighters, without a significant amount of effort, and likely would've killed him had Iron Man not arrived in time.

X-Factors:

• Experience: One of the most renowned Asgardians, Loki is thousands of years old and has gone on countless misadventures alongside his brother that have brought him all across the Nine Realms, including fighting in legendary battles and pulling off infamous pranks and tricks, and in more recent years, he's done battle with the Frost Giants, the Avengers, and the Dark Elves. This reflects in his often collected (if bombastic) demeanor, with very little surprising him due to him having truly seen it all.
• Training: Loki's primary teacher was his mother, Frigga, who taught him much of his magical ability and how to properly harness it, while his constant practice and experimentation over countless years led to him becoming one of the most renowned and talented sorcerers and illusionists in the universe, with only other masters of the mystic arts like Doctor Strange being able to contend with him.
• Intelligence: As the God of Mischief, Loki is incredibly intelligent, cunning, and deceptive, with his signature wit being renowned and infamous across worlds. Even without his powers, he's a massive threat to others, playing off of weaknesses and tensions to leave his foes completely disoriented and caught off-guard for when he strikes, using tactics of manipulation and deception that nearly destroyed the Avengers and almost enabled him to slay Thanos. He regularly and easily crafted plans that benefitted him no matter how they played out, and he could casually improvise on the fly when things inevitably blew up in his face, with his only downfall being his arrogance, which causes him to underestimate those he sees as inferior, like Thor, who grew to anticipate his brother's betrayals.
• Brutality: Loki's superiority complex and ruthless ambition leads to him being very willing to murder, torture, or betray anyone in the way of his goals, including his loved ones and countless innocents whose only crime was being beneficial to his plans. That being said, he does, very rarely, have moments of genuine heroism and kindness, often towards his brother or his fellow Asgardians, though he generally tries to avoid being seen as overly empathetic towards others.
• Stealth: Loki is a master of disguise and infiltration, using a mixture of illusions, shapeshifting, and brainwashing to easily go wherever he wants, making it so that if he doesn't want you to see him, you simply can't.

“

There are only four rules you need to remember: make the plan, execute the plan, expect the plan to go off the rails, throw away the plan. Follow my lead and you'll be fine. — Captain Cold

”

Leonard Snart was the son of Lewis Snart, a corrupt cop, petty criminal, and abusive parent who took much of his frustration out on Leonard and his younger sister, Lisa. Leonard soon followed his father into a life of crime, going in and out of juvie, where he befriended the hotheaded Mick Rory, who quickly became the brawn to his brains. Together, the duo proved to be an accomplished team, becoming Central City's Most Wanted after a series of successful heists.

Things became complicated when the Flash appeared in Central City and began foiling his plans, and Snart, recognizing that he needed to up his game, acquired a "cold gun" stolen from S.T.A.R Labs. Deemed "Captain Cold" by Cisco Ramon, Snart would clash with the Flash several times, using the gun and his own intellect to regularly defeat the speedster and even learn his secret identity of Barry Allen. He would even recruit Mick back into his plans, giving him a "heat gun", only to end up reaching a truce with Barry, where he would conduct heists non-lethally in return for the Flash not stopping them, with Barry recognizing the good that Snart was capable of.

Sometime later, Snart and Rory were recruited into the Legends of Tomorrow, a time-travelling team formed to stop the immortal madman Vandal Savage. Despite initially planning to commit crimes throughout history, Snart formed a friendship with Ray Palmer and Sara Lance, the latter of which grew into mutual attraction, and began to grow something of a conscience. This led to a split with Mick, who betrayed the team and was subsequently abandoned by his old friend, though they came back together after the Time Masters turned him into the bounty hunter Chronos. As the Legends faced off with the Savage-allied Time Masters, Snart discovered the Oculus, the device used by the Masters to manipulate all of time, and sacrificed himself to destroy it, ensuring his teammates could break free of "destiny" and defeat Savage.

Weapons and Equipment:

“

I love this game. And I'm very good at it. — Captain Cold

”

• Cold Gun: Designed by Cisco Ramon of S.T.A.R Labs, the cold gun is a gun that fires a beam of absolute-zero temperature, freezing whatever it touches. The beam is so powerful that it even brought down the Flash, a speedster, greatly reducing his speed and healing factor and leaving him nearly helpless. Snart has also modified the gun so that if he were to take his hand off the handle, the gun's core would go critical and explode, a feature only he can disable.
• Goggles/Parka: To protect against the freezing temperatures and bright lights given off by the gun, Snart wears a blue parka and a pair of wraparound goggles.

Powers and Abilities:

“

There are no strings on me. — Captain Cold

”

• Master Thief/Tactician: Snart was an incredibly cunning and ruthless criminal, with his most dangerous tools being his high-intellect and easygoing charisma. He regularly planned elaborate heists that went off without a hitch thanks to his wit and eye for detail, often studying every small detail from security to police response times intensely, and he used this wit to regularly defeat metahumans like the Flash. His tactical expertise made him an invaluable member of the Legends, often giving a second opinion on much of the team's plans. Despite being a high-school dropout, he showed a natural talent for engineering and chemistry, repairing and tinkering with his gun to the point where he had it's inner workings memorized. His eye for detail often allowed him to easily seduce or convince others into his plans, as he was able to play off of their weaknesses and insecurities to break them down.
• Skilled Infiltrator: As part of his thief's skillset, Snart was fairly talented at stealth and subterfuge. He could fairly regularly escape from jails and prisons alongside Rory, easily slip out of handcuffs, and casually pickpocket people in broad daylight with them none the wiser.
• Expert Marksman: Snart was highly skilled in the usage of guns, outdrawing skilled gunmen and landing clean shots from several yards away, and he was regularly able to hit speedsters, people regularly moving at hundreds, if not thousands, of miles per hour, with his cold gun.
• Skilled Brawler: While preferring to stay at a distance, Snart could hold his own in a fight, killing numerous mobsters with his bare hands alongside Mick and regularly keeping up with the likes of Sara Lance during chaotic fights against groups of enemies while he was with the Legends.
• High Pain Tolerance: Snart was noted for his ability to withstand all manner of punishment, refusing to break under torture and displaying zero hesitation when it came to freezing his own hand and shattering it to escape confinement. His regular usage of the cold gun gave him a similar tolerance for extreme temperatures, as he was able to walk around Russia in the middle of winter in nothing but street clothes, with the parka being largely for show.

X-Factors:

• Experience: A long-time criminal since he was a teenager, Snart already had an impressive track record of heists and clashes with gangsters and law enforcement under his belt even before he was thrust into the world of metahumans and superheroes, a world he quickly adapted to. He stands as one of the very few criminals to not only repeatedly battle the Flash, but outright defeat the Speedster and his allies on several occasions, and his time with the Legends pitted him against the likes of the immortal Vandal Savage and his various minions throughout history.
• Training: Everything Snart knows about the criminal lifestyle he taught himself, learning through years of work and preparation, with this experience turning him into a cool, collected professional who always has a plan for every situation.
• Intelligence: Snart's most dangerous weapon, far more than his cold gun, is his wit and incredibly thorough approach to plans. He's notably meticulous, often scouting out potential scores for extended periods of time and following up on every possible lead before making his move, but still recognizes the importance of improvisation, being gladly willing to throw a plan aside if things start to go awry. He's also very analytical, quickly developing an understanding of complex subjects and concepts in short time and changing his own plans on the fly to keep up with new information and obstacles.
• Brutality: Snart is a unabashed crook, but he's an honest one, avoiding unnecessary bloodshed for both the ethical (not seeing the point in killing people who don't need to die) and pragmatic (not wanting a trail of bodies to lead to him) reasons. He's a man of his word with a hidden heart of gold, but this doesn't mean he isn't afraid to capitalize on an opportunity should it arise, nor is he unwilling to kill someone who stands in his way when the chips are down.
• Stealth: An accomplished thief, Snart was a master of all forms of stealth, from disguise to infiltration to escapes, often easily slipping away at opportune moments and walking away with his targets none the wiser, though he wasn't afraid to make a more dynamic entrance when the situation called for it.

“

I know everything about you. You are an open book written for very dumb children. — Lila Pitts

”

Lila Pitts was one of forty-three children born at the exact same time on the exact same date of October 1st, 1989, with her gift being the ability to copy the powersets of other similarly unique people. Taking interest in her powers, the Handler arranged for the murder of her parents at the hands of Number Five, then took the orphan in and raised her to be the perfect operative and assassin of the Commission.

Working at a young age, Lila killed numerous targets until she reached young adulthood, where the Handler assigned her to a mental hospital in 1963. Her ultimate objective was to Befriend Diego Hargreeves, Five's adopted brother, who had been admitted to the hospital after attempting to find Lee Harvey Oswald before he can kill JFK. The two would grow close, with Diego enlisting her in his plan to escape the hospital and reluctantly bringing her to meet with Number Five, who the Handler ordered Lila to protect so that she could use him to take control of the Commission. Despite her increasing attraction to Diego, Lila was unable to escape the suspicion of Five, and she is left behind by a heartbroken Diego despite her attempts to assure him that she truly does love him.

Out of options, Lila kidnaps Diego, drugging him and forcing him into service to the Commission in an attempt to save his life, though he quickly allies himself with the resistance to the Handler and returns to the 60s, working with his siblings to successfully avert the apocalypse.

An annoyed Handler revealed the truth of Lila's parents death's to her, leading the girl to lead an assault against the combined Hargreeves siblings, using her powers to easily defeat the entire family before Diego is able to talk her down while Five reveals who exactly ordered the hit. Lila attempted to turn on the Handler, but was subsequently shot and killed, though Five uses his powers to go back in time and save her, overpowering the Handler and leaving her at the mercy of the Swede, the last member of a sibling trio who had been similarly manipulated by her. Despite turning over a new leaf, Lila ultimately declines to go to 2019 with Diego and instead travels out on her own, hoping to determine what kind of person she really is.

Powers and Abilities:

“

Most things I don't understand. Like yogurt. How did it know how to stop being milk? — Lila Pitts

”

• Power Mimicry: Lila's ability as one of the forty-three children is the power to mimic of other superpowered individuals so long as they are within close proximity of her. Using these abilities, Lila was able to handily defeat the Academy, completely overpowering and trouncing the team and would have killed them had Diego and Five not talked her down. Despite the potential of the powerset, it is noted she can only use one power at once, as the group got brief hits in by ganging up on her, overwhelming the ability.
• Stealth Expert: Trained since she was a little girl, Lila is talented in the arts of infiltration and deception, often using her natural charm to lure targets into a false sense of security and earning their trust before subsequently betraying them. Diego, an otherwise cynical and mistrusting individual, fell in love with her after knowing her for a few days, and only Five, himself an operative of the Commission, was able to see through her tricks and out her. In terms of traditional stealth, she was able to easily work alongside Five to sneak into a well-guarded facility and infiltrate a party attended by Reginald Hargreeves, alongside getting the drop of Diego, who is himself immensely talented at stealth.
• Skilled Hand-to-Hand Combatant: Personally trained by the Handler, Lila is a chaotic, dangerous foe in close-quarters, capable of fighting the Swedes up-close and winning and was able to match Five blow-for-blow in a hectic battle, though he was ultimately able to win by outmaneuvering her. When using Luther's power of super-strength, she casually tossed him aside, disabling him in a few hits.
• Talented Acrobat: Lila is incredibly agile and quick on her feet, incorporating flips, leaping, and other acrobatic moves into her fighting style and enabling her to keep up with the likes of Five. Even in training, she was able to backflip through a hail of gunfire, effortlessly dodging it without taking a single hit.

X-Factors:

• Experience: Lila was conscripted into the Commission as a child, personally training under the Handler in the ways of assassination and becoming one of the organization's best from an extremely young age, where she became well-known for pulling off impressive jobs as a teenager. She's her adopted mother's most trusted agent, and has worked several jobs, some of which required weeks, if not months, of undercover work before she met Diego, with their time together pitting them against elite hitmen, an elaborate national conspiracy, and culminated when Lila did battle against the entire Academy.
• Training: Starting when she was a child, the Handler's training of Lila was both elaborate and rigorous, teaching her acrobatics, martial arts, stealth and infiltration, pushing her to the peak of physical strength and making her an expert assassin in all possible fronts.
• Intelligence: While Lila gives off the energy of someone crazy and eccentric, she's far more intelligent and crafty than initial appearances suggest, deliberately putting up the persona as a front to lure people into trusting her. In reality, she's cold and calculating, capable of easily reading targets and using her observations to win their trust. She is, however, something of a hot-head when a mission gets personal for her, making her much more willing to charge into a fight or make a risky decision, like kidnapping Diego or attacking the entire Academy on her own.
• Brutality: Lila was raised to be completely cold and ruthless, never hesitating in her kills and completing her mission no matter what. For the most part, she succeeds in this effort, but her time with Diego leads to her becoming somewhat softer, sparing him when she intended to kill the rest of the Academy and ultimately defying the Handler when the truth of her parents deaths were revealed.
• Stealth: Lila is immensely talented at both traditional stealth, capable of ambushing the likes of both Diego and Five with ease, and the art of disguise and misdirection, blending into a false identity and convincingly fooling others into believing that she's simply harmless rather than a dangerous killer.

Notes

• Setting
• Tasks
• Victory Conditions
• Canons
• Misc.

An abandoned laboratory with a wide outside campus and three stories, alongside an underground passageway. Crewmates will awaken in individual rooms that lead into a cafeteria where they can all meet together before splitting up in the directions of the various tasks.

The campus is split into four (five if you include the underground passageway) distinct areas: the main building, the courtyard leading to the exit, the greenhouse, and the radio area. The underground passageway beneath the main building leads to a small sewer zone. At the exit is a large, seemingly deactivated gate that cannot be scaled, with competitors being made aware at the start that it will only turn on upon the completion of all tasks.

The campus areas are:

• Main Building: The main building is where the crew members will initially awaken, emerging from color-coordinated rooms into a cafeteria with one large table at the center. Also in this cafeteria is a card swipe machine by the exit, a door leading to a small kitchen/dishwashing area, where a small exit leading to the underground area is located, and a door to a stairwell leading to the second floor, also known as the research area.
  • The research area is a series of cubicles with desks and computers and testing areas leading to a larger lab at the end of the area, where crew members will be able to run data analysis and run tests on samples. Away from the labs is the comms room, where the loudspeaker system is located. There are two separate staircases leading up to the third floor, the dormitory.
  • The dormitory is a standard college dorm area, a series of interconnected hallways with various bedrooms and two bathrooms, one for men and one for women, with an exit that leads to the rooftop.
  • The rooftop is a wide open area containing the satellite and solar panel systems.
• Sewer Zone: Accessed by climbing down a ladder located in the kitchen area, the sewer zone is a mazelike area that runs underneath the entire campus. It is a mixture of walkways and bridges that go over the rushing water underneath, with the means to re-calibrate and clean out the pipes located near the center and far left edges, respectively. Near the southernmost point of the sewers is an exit that leads to the recreational field of the campus.
• Courtyard: A wide-open space, the campus is easily connected by a series of paved paths, though crewmates can just easily walk on the grass if it get them to their destination faster. At the center is the school's bell tower, with four paths leading to the various areas. In the southeast area is a hidden exit leading out from the sewers. Crewmates will not initially be aware of this exit until someone either finds it or uses it to leave the sewers. South of the radio station is the pool, a large in-ground pool surrounded by a chain-link fence, with the only entrance being through a lifeguard shack in the front. The shack contains two changing areas on either side, with the pool drainer located on the opposite end of the pool. At the southernmost point is the gate, a towering metal fence that stretches around the entire campus. If a crewmate attempts to find a way over the gate before turning it's power back on, they are instantly killed.
• Greenhouse: A large gardening area, the greenhouse is covered by a transparent, if blurred, glass, with door on the front leading to a small workstation with the tools needed for collecting samples and repairing the sprinkler system. Stretching for several yards is rows upon rows of various plants, including fruits, vegetables, and various larger bushes and flowerbeds that one could theoretically hide themselves (or even a body) in. At the other end of the greenhouse is the sprinkler system.
• Radio Station: A smaller building, the radio station consists of (upon entering) a waiting area with a bathroom, with a computer lab straight ahead while a set of stairs on the right leads to the recording studio. Heading further up the stairs leads to the roof, where the satellite dish of the station is located.

For visual reference of the campus, see below.

Each crewmate will be randomly assigned three tasks that they must complete in order to get the gate open. These tasks will be written down on a piece of paper supplied to the crewmates at the start of the game. So as not to blow their cover, each impostor will also be given a list of tasks, though they (obviously) will not have to actually do them. For less tech-savvy warriors (Hawke/Solaire, for instance), tasks will have an instruction manual explaining how to do them.

The lists of tasks is:

• Main Building
  • Swipe data card.
  • Collect data sample from science lab.
  • Empty out cafeteria trash cans.
  • Align rooftop solar panels and clean out debris.
  • Reactivate science lab computers.
  • Fix dormitory showers.
  • Turn on loudspeaker communications.
  • Run tests on lab sample.
  • Run cafeteria dishwashers.
  • Submit stray paperwork for analysis.
  • Re-align rooftop satellite.
• Greenhouse
  • Collect greenhouse sample.
  • Activate automatic watering/feed system.
• Radio Station
  • Clean out debris on top of radio tower.
  • Recalibrate radio signal.
• Underground Passageway
  • Clear out sewer filtration systems.
  • Re-align sewage filtration pipes.
• Courtyard
  • Ring courtyard bell.
  • Drain and refill pool.

Crewmates:

• Successfully return power to the gate by completing all tasks and cross the finish line.
• Find and kill all impostors.

Impostors:

• Kill all crewmembers.

Stealing from Leo and Cfp, but I feel it's somewhat important here.

• Hawke: After the events of Dragon Age II.
• Hibiki Tachibana: In between Symphogear GX and Symphogear AXZ.
• Solaire of Astora: Dark Souls, prior to the final battle with Gwyn.
• Megamind: After both Megamind and Megamind: The Button of Doom.
• Mace Windu: Legends continuity, during the events of Star Wars: Clone Wars.
• Pupil: After the events of Akudama Drive.
• Makoto Niijima: After Persona 5 Royal.
• Koichi Hirose: After both Diamond is Unbreakable and his guest arc in Golden Wind.
• Gwen Tennyson: In between Ultimate Alien and Omniverse.
• Toph Bei-Fong: After Avatar: The Last Airbender.
• Loki: In between Thor: The Dark World and Thor: Ragnarok.
• Captain Cold: During Season 2 of The Flash, before Snart joins the Legends.
• Lila Pitts: After Umbrella Academy Season 2.

Voting ends November 15th.

Impostors will be aware of other Impostors, but won't know exactly who unless it is either revealed or discovered.

If a crewmate is slain before completing their task, another can do it.

While crewmembers will be given things that enable them to communicate, a crewmate finding a corpse will not trigger a meeting that sends them back to the central area.

Voting works as follows. Assess the crewmates and impostors and determine who will succeed, then rank accordingly by what order you think deaths will occur. For instance, if Makoto and Pupil are the last two standing after killing Loki, the ranking would appear as:

1. Makoto and Pupil
2. Loki
3. Everyone else in the order they died.

• The deaths of all Impostors are not required for a victory, as the crewmates must simply complete their tasks and then escape the facility by crossing the finish line in order to win.

The Battle

Part 1: The Game is Afoot

Shrouded in darkness, the Simulation Control room of the DFederal Battledome sat silent, it’s computer screens blank, it’s consoles dull and colorless while it's television screens project nothing but the reflection of the room itself. At least, until a young man in an immediately recognizable green hoodie, accompanied by a taller, older, well-dressed and gray-haired man and a short, energetic tan-skinned girl brandishing a katana, stepped inside and flicked the lights on, a small, nervous smile crossing his lips as he listened to the room roar to life.

With a confident sigh, he sat down in a familiar rolling chair and scooted along the room, turning various knobs and setting various dials while the older man sat at a main console and began entering data helpfully listed off the tablet he’d been carrying. For her part, the girl leaned back and rested her legs on the desk in front of her, calmly watching her brother and her boss work. A few more moments of quiet typing passed by before Cary Loudermilk adjusted his glasses and asked quietly, “Is there a reason why I am assisting you with this rather than your actual assistant?”

Beast didn’t look up from his work as he replied, “Yeah, sorry to pull you away from Planetary’s science stuff but I needed someone a little more tech savvy than Kerry and the Ramonas are in couples therapy at the moment.”

Cary stopped typing and tilted his head quizzically.

“Ramonas…as in plural?”

“Yeah, you can thank Appel not keeping his damn mouth shut for that one.”

Taking a moment to assess the information that his sister’s employer had two assistants that were technically the same person, Cary then shrugged and went back to work. He knew better than to question the strangeness of the city at this point. After a few more moments, he finished his final calibrations, then looked to Beast, who sat back in his chair and ran a nervous hand through his hair. A holographic map of the arena, a run-down college campus, appeared before him, and he silently dragged each of the colored figures into a specific starting point. Noticing his anxiety, Kerry smirked and asked, “Nervous?”

Beast nodded grimly.

“Not everyday you gotta make a sequel to your magnum opus. Sequelitis is always a killer. For a while there I contemplated loading up the Mojave in here and going on a peyote trip just to figure out the theme.”

“What happened to that plan?”

“I was reminded of the existence of cazadores.”

Finally, his finger dragged a bright green figure over to the starting area, then set it down gently. With his work complete, he exhaled quietly and sat back, taking a moment to admire the map before looking to Cary and asking, “Are we ready to take it live?”

Cary nodded, and Beast grinned excitedly.

“Alright, let’s do this. Send it up!”

Cary hits a small red button on his desk, and across DFederal, TV stations all tuned into one specific channel suddenly flickered out, then were replaced with a booming countdown, each number synchronized to a silhouette appearing on-screen, and Users and warriors alike, informed in advance of the combatants and scenario, all tune in, anxious and excited.

Shinji Ogawa, after a plaful nudge from Maria, takes a brief moment to look away from his paperwork, adjusts his glasses, and smiles, thinking a silent prayer of good luck for Hibiki.

Alone in his office, King Wass, wearing a shirt that read “Number One Sun Bro”, took a sip of his drink and turned his television up.

The Phantom Thieves, all crowded together and jostling each other for space on the same couch, cheer with pride as a black silhouette, taking a defiant fighting stance, appears, and Joker, quietly putting the finishing touches on a pot full of curry, smiles to himself.

Walking and discussing plans with Carol inside DSFB’s headquarters, Leo grows a third eye to briefly glance in the direction of the television as Jordi and Echo, relaxing in-between assignments, lounge in front of it. Satisfied, he retracts the eye back into the side of his head, not stopping for a moment.

The Chosen Undead, straining to hear over the crowd in Ash’s Tavern, raises an Estus Flask filled with rum and coke to the television as a distinct yellow silhouette, arms raised to the sky above, appears.

In the head office of Ice-T Puppy Incorporated, amidst a throng of conversing employees gathered under their boss's orders, Cfp, in the middle of a conversation with Skully, glances over to the TV, then quickly nudges him to get his attention, whistling and pointing to the TV.

“Hey, hey, Royale’s on!”

When the countdown hits zero, an enormous logo reading COLOR BATTLE ROYALE 2 splashed across the screen, followed by a distinct tune and a smaller, but no less dynamic AMONG US EDITION.

As the titles faded out, Beast rolled over to another console, covered with dozens of buttons, each assigned to a camera, and contemplated which to push. After a moment’s hesitation, he brought his thumb down onto a specific button, causing a camera in the cafeteria to cue up.

Watching a still sleeping Loki, he nodded confidently. Why not follow an Impostor as a starter? Always fun to root for the bad guys, after all.

---

Crewmates:

Impostors:

With a startled gasp, Loki awake, clutching his daggers tightly as he quickly surveyed his new surroundings. Just a moment ago, he’d been on the throne of Asgard, all challenges to his reign either eliminated or completely unaware of his replacement of his foolish father, and now he was in a small square room with dull green walls surrounding it. He could, through the steel door blocking off the room, hear the faint murmur of conversation from outside, but for the moment, he’d stay here and try to get his bearings.

As he stood up from the bed he’d been lying on, he noticed the small slip of paper lying on it, a map of what he presumed was the area he’d been taken to attached to it, and he cautiously picked it up to give it a scan. In offensively upbeat font, it read:

“Congratulations Loki, you have been selected as one of three impostors!

While this would normally be your task sheet, instead your objective is simple: you must use your wits, skills, and powers to eliminate each crewmate without getting caught until all have been eliminated!

Good luck!”

Loki scoffed, crumpling the paper up and tossing it aside, then paced his cell, stroking his chin and contemplating the note to himself. Clearly, he’d been kidnapped and forced to participate in this death game by someone utterly foolish enough to think they could coerce a god, no less the god of mischief, into playing their foolish nonsense. Of course, he’d have to punish them accordingly for this, he would just have to figure out a way to get close enough to them to exact his vengeance.

He stopped his pacing as a devilish grin spread across his face. If he wanted to track down this game master, the way was obvious: he’d have to win. Taking a moment to collect himself (and reluctantly scoop up the crumpled instruction sheet), he stepped outside to survey these supposed crewmates. He quickly found himself amongst a crew of deeply odd characters, including an armored knight, a garishly bright blue-skinned man, and a teenage girl clad head to toe in black armor, who had quickly taken to trying to organize everyone around the table at the center of the room. It appears he had been the last one to wake up.

As they circled around the table, one figure, a bearded gentleman in black armor, chuckled and said, “Well, now that the gang’s all here,” he gestured to Loki, who meekly raised a hand in response, “I suppose we can all attempt to answer the major question: what in Andraste’s name is going on?”

Another man, clad in light brown robes, replied, “I believe we should get the name of our new arrival, seeing as how everyone else has already introduced themselves.”

There was a murmur of agreement, and all eyes were on Loki as he cleared his throat and said, “Yes, my name is-“

He paused for a brief second, recognizing that identifying yourself as the God of Trickery may be counter-productive to the task of hand, then continued, “-Low-key Lyesmith. I’m pleased to make all of your acquaintance in…whatever this is.”

Satisfied, everyone turned back to look at the bearded man, but before he could speak, a small patch at the center of the table opened up and projected a holograph of a large green B above them all.

“Greetings!” exclaimed the B, who paused as it was suddenly greeted with a flurry of activity as the table’s various inhabitants each drew weapons and glared at it. After a tense second, it let out a distorted chuckle, then continued.

“My name is Beast, and I’m here to say congratulations on being chosen for participation in the second Color Royale!”

One crewmate, a red-haired girl, crossed her arms, eying the B skeptically, then said, “Is it really participating if you kidnapped all of us?”

The B paused for a moment, then replied, “Relax, you’ll all be free to go once you complete your tasks and open the gate as outlined in your task sheets.”

The black-armored girl spoke up next, quizzically asking, “So, you’re making us do basic maintenance? Surely that’s not that difficult for a group as large as this.”

“You’d think that, Miss Niijima, but I suspect it will be more challenging when three Impostors actively seek to eliminate all of you.”

Loki felt the tension wash over the entire assembled group, who quickly gave one another wary glances. He smirked to himself, then quickly hid the expression as the B continued with a calm, “The objective is clear: complete your tasks and cross over the finish line, or find and eliminate all three Impostors, and you win. If you die, your tasks shall be randomly distributed to other crewmates upon the discovery of your corpse. Upon the discovery of a body, all deaths that occurred in between discoveries will also be announced. Should you all die before completing the objective, well, you lose, obviously.”

As he said that, the table opened up, dispensing a small black communicator in front of each crewmate. Some reacted with surprise, others suspicion, while the knight and the bearded man both took a step back and rested their hands on their weapons, glaring at the strange objects before them.

“These are your communicators. If you need help, identify an Impostor, or find a body, simply press the button on those and it will alert the crew as a whole. If you’re feeling persuasive, you can even try and call a meeting back here.”

The crew members each inspected their communicators, then reluctantly kept them.

“Well, that’s the rules, everybody, so, best of luck!”

And on that ominous final word, the B flickered away, leaving the crew to anxiously look amongst themselves in suspicious silence.

---

Taking off the headphones and setting them on his desk, Beast breathed a sigh of relief and gave a grateful thumbs up to Cary.

“Good idea with using the distortion. Would’ve had a lot less gravitas if they’d heard me eating chips.”

Cary sighed and responded, “Surely the chips could’ve waited until after you did your message.”

“Yeah, but I thought if I ate em quick it’d be fine.”

Cary sighed, taking a moment to rub his temples, while Beast returned to eating a bowl of Doritos he’d summoned from thin air and watching the crewmates debate.

---

Mace Windu looked around the table, trying to get a proper reading of the so-called “Impostors” and feeling, with some frustration, the mix of emotions and energies combining to drown out his senses. He sighed, then turned to look at Megamind, who shouted, “Trust me, as a reformed supervillain turned proud do-gooder, I happen to have an eye for villainy, and I definitely have a “vibe” for some of the people in this room being not quite trustworthy!”

Captain Cold, leaning against the wall and known to the crowd around him simply as Leonard Snart, replied, “And how do we know you’re a “former” supervillain? Scout’s honor?”

“Why would I admit to villainy at all if I were a true villain? Would it not make more sense to keep my brilliant thoughts to myself???”

“Oh good, he’s humble too.”

Megamind pointed an accusing finger at him, but was silenced by Hawke pounding his fist on the table.

“Enough of this! Bickering is going to accomplish nothing but giving me a splitting head-ache, so I say we focus just long enough so that we can all kill each other once we cross the finish line. Now, I believe we should focus primarily on solving these tasks while also keeping an eye out for any suspicious activity among us. Fair enough?”

Pupil stepped forward and replied, “If I may, Hawke, it would make more sense to hunt down and eliminate the Impostors as our top priority. It’s a more accomplishable task than completing all of our various jobs, and we should strike while we still have numbers.”

Stroking his chin, Mace nodded in agreement, and added, “Personally, I will putting my energy into a solo investigation for the time being, though we should travel in numbers once we can determine who is trustworthy.”

There were murmured agreements, and Hawke reluctantly conceded.

“Alright, you two can play detective, then. Now, does anyone know how to turn a computer on? Or, what a “computer” is, exactly?”

On that final note, the crew broke apart, anxiously heading in separate directions, while Loki hung back, taking stock of the crowd. Several had proven to be fairly headstrong, with “Hawke” in particular proving himself as a natural leader. They would prove troublesome, but for now, he needed to thin the herd, and as he watched some do the immediate close-by tasks, his eyes landed on the perfect target.

Koichi Hirose groaned in frustration as the machine rejected his card for the fourth time in a row. Gritting his teeth, he whined, “C’mon, you took everyone’s else’s cards, so why not mine?”

As he prepared to try again, a shadow fell over him, and he whipped around to see “Low-Key” standing behind him with a disarming smile. Low-Key offered his hand and asked, quietly, “May I try?”

Anxiously, Koichi handed the card over, then grinned as Low-Key easily slid it through the reader with a gentle beep, then did the same with his own card. He handed it back to Koichi, who tucked it into his uniform pocket with a grateful smile, then explained, “Sometimes things require a gentler touch.”

“Gee, thanks Mr. Lyesmith!”

Low-Key nodded gracefully, then paused, a mildly confused expression on his face before asking, “It occurs to me I never caught your name.”

“Oh, I’m Koichi Hirose!”

“A pleasure to meet you, Mr. Koichi.”

Apparently satisfied, Low-Key turned to walk away, then paused, seemingly overtaken by an idea, then pivoted back to Koichi and asked, “Say, how about you and I team up for the moment? I think I could use a nice young man such as yourself watching my back.”

Koichi hesitated, thinking the offer over as he noticed the other crewmates already leaving the room. He should know by this point not to trust strangers, but Mr. Lyesmith seemed friendly enough. He supposed it wouldn’t hurt, and he did have Echoes to protect him if things went bad. He nodded, and Low-Key grinned and exclaimed, “Excellent, I suspect you and I shall make an unstoppable duo! Now, if you’d like to accompany me while I finish my tasks in the sewers, I’d be quite grateful.”

“Hey, I have stuff to do in the sewers, too.”

“Well, what a happy accident.”

A deal struck, Loki led Koichi towards the sewer entrance, doing his best not to show his absolute glee at effortlessly guiding the idiot into his trap.

---

Re-reading her task list, Makoto paused on the stairwell, contemplating the most efficient order with which to complete her tasks. She’d gotten lucky, as only one of them required leaving the building, but the science lab felt like it’d be time-consuming and potentially very open to an ambush. Frankly, it made her wish she had Oracle watching her back, or the Thieves as a whole, but for now she was on her own. She froze as she heard the door to the stair well open, only to see the red-haired girl from earlier, who waved warmly, a gesture Makoto returned after a moment’s pause.

“Makoto, right? I’m Gwen.”

“Can I help you, Gwen?”

Gwen took another step forward, and Makoto tensed slightly, only to loosen up as she saw two other girls, both short but one a brunette while the other had black hair and seemed to stare into the distance, standing behind her. Gwen gestured to the girls and explained, “That’s Hibiki and Toph, we’ve all decided to stick together and try and tackle this as a team. Girls gotta stick together, and all that?”

Toph beamed and pointed a thumb at herself, adding, “Trust me, nobody is gonna get a drop on you so long as you guys got me around. I can pick up an elephant-rat from a mile away!”

Makoto tilted her head quizzically.

“Elephant…rats?”

“Do you not have those wherever you guys are from?”

Perking up at the mention of animals, Hibiki excitedly replied, “We just have regular rats, but an elephant rat sounds adorable! I should try and find one for Miku so I can give her a "I'm sorry for vanishing" present!”

Smiling, Gwen turned back to Makoto expectantly.

“So, whaddya say? Wanna join up?”

Makoto paused, contemplating the offer. Safety in numbers was the logical decision, and Joker did always urge her to see the best in people, in spite of everything, so she supposed she could give it a chance. She offered a hand to Gwen, who happily shook it, then replied, “Great, welcome to the gang. Now, I was thinking we could head to the rooftop and work our way down?”

“That works for me.”

With that, the group of four worked their way up the stairs, where Lila Pitts quietly let the door shut behind her. So, the crew were already forming a buddy system. It would certainly make killing them much more challenging, but she suspected she could manage. She’d just have to find a way to break up this little fellowship first.

---

The crewmates all dispersed in various directions, leaving Megamind to contemplate his tasks, all of which he suspected he’d accomplish quite easily. With the exception of gathering paperwork, they were largely electronic-based tasks, a fitting set of objectives for a technological genius such as himself. That left the more crucial task of uncovering these so-called “Impostors”. He had his suspicions already, namely the rude gentlemen named “Snart”, but it would be better to work within the team to maintain safety in numbers. Roxanne had heavily emphasized how important socialization was to success, so to this end, he would socialize.

The new question was: who seemed like an effective ally? A cursory scan of the crewmates remaining left one clear choice. With a confident smile, Megamind sidled up to Mace, who was sitting on the table, reading his tasks to himself, and offered a hand, which the Jedi simply glanced at warily.

Megamind ignored the glance and said, “I noticed you had the right idea of investigating for these Impostors. Well, as a certified genius with the degrees to prove it, I suspect your investigation will go a lot smoother with me by your side.”

Mace sighed and stood up from the table, actively taking a step away from Megamind before replying, “I believe my investigations will go just fine on their own. I would advise you keep your distance.”

Hoping to prevent further conversation, Mace curtly turned on his heel and walked off, leaving Megamind to slowly, awkwardly lower his hand back to his side. Well, if he had no interest in working together, then perhaps it was best that he did investigate things on his own. He didn’t need any help, he was Megamind! Granted, he could’ve used Minion by his side, but he was perfectly capable of handling himself.

As he contemplated his next step, he saw, from the corner of his eye, the boy, Koichi, accompanied by the so-called “Low-Key”. Something about the name gave him a truly uneasy feeling, so the choice was clear: he’d watch from a distance and determine whether or not the late arrival was trustworthy. Pretending to find the contents of a trash can interesting, he waited until the duo disappeared into the kitchen, then followed after them.

Unbeknownst to him, he had a watcher of his own, and Leonard Snart gave a curious smirk as he watched the so-called “hero” creep away.

---

Koichi crinkled his nose as he gingerly stepped over a puddle in the middle of the walkway within the sewers. The Speedwagon Foundation had sent him to some truly bizarre places, but he’d been lucky enough to avoid anything truly gross until now. Glancing behind him to see Mr. Lyesmith inspecting the sewers around him, he smiled and asked, “So, uh, what kind of stuff did you do back where you’re from? I bet it was pretty crazy, judging by your armor.”

Low-Key glanced down to his armor and shrugged.

“Oh, this? I was an…actor, back in my world. I was quite beloved by crowds from all over. My mother told me once I was the crown jewel of my family. I had the misfortune of being taken in the midst of filming my latest medieval epic.”

Koichi’s eyes widened in surprise.

“Wow, a real-life movie star? I’ve met a pretty famous mangaka before, but you sound even more popular than Rohan-sensei!”

Loki chuckled, enjoying the praise.

“Oh, no need to flatter me, it’s just a day’s work for me.”

After a few moments of walking, Koichi squinted as he recognized the vague outline of some form of machinery. He grinned and pointed, calling out, “Look, Mr. Lyesmith, I think that’s the filter system we need!”

As he turned back, he barely had time to cry out as a dagger, thrown with superhuman force, pierced his eye and embedded itself in his skull. Blood trickling down his cheek, he fell to the floor, twitching for a few moments before going still.

Whistling to himself, Loki stooped down and firmly pulled the blade from the boy’s skull, offering a smirk and insincere, “Apologies,” before standing up and kicking the corpse into the stream of sewage. He watched it float away, smiling contentedly. The only real challenge there had been luring the boy far enough away from the rest of the group that they’d never find the body.

Frankly, he hoped they were all that easy.

His celebration was short-lived as he heard the heavy, fast clomping of boots behind him, and he turned just in time for Megamind to fire the De-gun directly into his chest, reducing the God of Trickery into a small, easily portable cube, his knife clattering harmlessly to the floor. Picking the cube up, Megamind beamed to himself, then tucked it into his suit pocket. He gave brief, sad glance towards Koichi’s corpse, quietly cursing himself for not improving the range on the De-gun when he had the chance, but now he could avenge the boy by bringing his killer in for a proper trial amongst the others.

Perhaps now they’d trust him.

He’d never get the chance to find out, as he felt a piercing sensation tear through his chest, then glanced down to see a massive icicle protruding from it. He placed a shaky hand upon it, then collapsed, the cube falling from his hand.

Nudging his corpse to make sure he was dead, Snart rested the cold gun on his shoulder, then gave a curious glance over to the glowing cube by his kill’s hand. He crouched down to inspect it, impressed that a weapon was able to reduce someone to something that compact, then reached over and picked up the De-gun. After all, it’s not like Megamind needed it. As he went to tuck it into his coat pocket, he paused as he saw it set to a mode deemed “Dehydrate”, then looked over to the cube again. With a knowing smirk, he picked up the cube and tossed it into the sewer water.

Finding himself submerged in positively rank water, a spluttering Loki surfaced, thrashing and fumbling for a grip on the walkway, only to freeze as he found himself looking down the barrel of the cold gun. He groaned as he glanced over it to see Snart standing over him, his face betraying no emotion.

“Did you seriously uncube me just to kill me?”

Snart gestured for him to climb out of the water, which the Asgardian gladly did, and took a step back as the waterlogged Loki staggered to his knees, then replied, “Figured I’d size you up, see if I could trust a fellow Impostor to watch my back without putting a knife in it.”

Loki nodded, impressed.

“And how do you figure I’m an Impostor, exactly?”

“Well, besides the comically fake name, Loki, I watched you put a knife through the kid’s skull. Hard to find a good spin on that.”

Loki sighed.

“Well, I thought it was a clever name.”

“It would be if it weren’t for the prison library having plenty of Gaiman to pass the time. Now, I have a suggestion, if you’d be kind enough to hear it out.”

Pointing to the gun, Loki replied, “I don’t have much choice on the matter, do I?”

Snart smiled, then explained, “Not really. Now, what I’m proposing is we put our heads together on this one. We team up, pick off the crew, walk off into the sunset as champions of this little “royale”. If not, I’ll just leave you down here as a nice little icicle. Sound like fair terms?”

Loki smirked. This fool genuinely believed that an ice gun could stop a Jotunheim? He almost admired the comical overconfidence, but he did, reluctantly, concede that he had a point that teamwork would make it easier to wipe out the crew quickly. Plus, if that gun truly was his only edge, he’d be able to dispose of him easily enough. He nodded, forcing a smile, then answered, “I’d say that’s quite a deal.”

Staring him down, Snart stood, deathly silent, for several seconds, then finally nodded, pointed the gun away from Loki, and offered him a hand. Loki took it, letting the thief pull him to his feet, then grimaced as he ran a hand through his now grimy hair.

“Two questions, if I may: one, did you really have to throw me into that? Two, how do we explain the two dead crewmates left down here?”

Snart smirked, then said, “In that order, I didn’t feel like lugging you around in my pocket, and it all seems like self-defense to me.”

Loki stroked his chin, impressed.

“Yes, that does make sense. Not the pocket part, but I think he-” he nodded towards Megamind’s corpse, “-will make a fairly easy target to frame. He followed poor Koichi and I down here-“

“-turned you into a cube-”

“-stole my knife, used it to kill Koichi when he came to my aid, and would’ve pinned the whole thing on me-“

“-had I not been there to oh so heroically put him down and uncube you. Seems simple enough.”

Enjoying how easily the lie had come together, Loki smiled, walking side by side with Snart as they headed back to the ladder.

“You know, I think this partnership just might work.”

---

“So, why are we trudging all the way to the rooftop again?” Toph grumbled as the group turned the corner to the final flight of stairs. Leading the way, Gwen rolled her eyes and replied, “Because, like I said earlier, Hibiki has to clear off solar panel debris and I have to re-align satellites, so we’ll just start from there. Make sense?”

Toph reluctantly nodded, wishing she’d just gone with Pupil and Mace so she could clobber these Impostors, and continued to hang back and keep an ear out. Walking in front of her, Hibiki smiled warmly, “I sure am glad I got to trash pick-up instead of computer stuff. That kind of thing was always more Ogawa-san’s kind of work. He tried to show me how once, but it just gave me a headache.”

Gwen looked over her shoulder and replied, “Well, if you have to do any “computer stuff”, just ask me or Makoto.”

“You would? Great! And can you help Toph too, right?”

Toph laughed.

“Well, they’ll have to, since I can’t, y’know,” she waved her hand in front of her eyes, causing Hibiki to frown and hang her head shamefully.

“Oh, right. I’m so sorry, Toph, I didn’t mean to-“

Toph cut off her apology with a hearty slap on the back, nearly sending the girl tumbling over, and proclaimed, “Nah, don’t worry about it. Frankly, the stuff I can do is cooler than using my lame old eyes any day.”

Listening to the group banter amongst themselves, Makoto couldn’t help but let a small smile out. Turns out all she needed was to be working in a group again to lift her spirits. When she got out of here, she and the Thieves would have to try and track them all down so she could introduce them. Assuming they all survived, anyway. The smile vanished, and she forced the negative thought from her head as she saw the door to the roof approaching. Just as she began to reach for the doorknob, Toph froze and hissed, “Stop.”

The group froze with her, and Makoto cautiously reached for Judge of Hell and asked, “What is it?”

Tilting her head slightly, Toph answered, “Footsteps on the roof. Sounds like one person, and they just got done…dragging something?”

They all exchanged uncertain glances until Toph proclaimed, “Screw it, we can take ‘em,” then pushed past the others. Before Gwen or Makoto could stop her, she kicked the door open, then strolled out on the roof. The others followed close behind, Makoto drawing her gun, Gwen generating two energy spheres, and Hibiki preparing to activate Gungnir. The initial excitement faded away as they realized the source of the sound was the armored knight from before, who made no response to their entry and simply sighed as he stared upwards at the sun.

Gwen and Makoto both exchanged confused expressions, then relaxed slightly. Hibiki waved to the knight and called out, “Excuse me, mister, but did you make all those noises?”

The knight perked up and turned to look at the new arrivals.

“Ah! I take it you must be fellow crewmates come to do your tasks. My apologies, I was sent up to realign the panels, and I grew distracted by the sun, shining above me in it’s glorious light, so I stopped to ponder it for a few moments. I am Solaire of Astora, pleased to meet you.”

“Y-you were able to work the computer? How?” Makoto stammered, to which Solaire sheepishly rubbed the back of his helmet and replied, “Yes, er, I assume the “computer” is the strange mechanical beast that guarded the panels. It made a strange chant when I opened it, so I slew the mimic before it could attack anyone else.”

Gwen glanced over to the computer, now sliced cleanly in half, and pinched the bridge of her nose.

“So, how exactly did you move the panels without the computer?”

“Well, by hand, of course. I must admit, it was quite challenging, but with my strength, I simply turned them to face the sun. After all, I assume they must draw strength from it, like I do. Well, not literally, in my case.”

Gwen looked to see Hibiki diligently cleaning trash off of the panels while Toph sat back, taking the opportunity to relax, and said, somewhat uncertainly, “Well, in that case, thanks, I guess? I’m going to go realign the satellite. Keep an eye out, Makoto.”

Makoto nodded, turning back to Solaire to see him staring at the sun. She contemplated warning him about the dangers of eye strain, but he seemed content for the moment.

“Why are you so fascinated in the sun?”

Solaire, not looking away, sighed again, his shoulders slumping, and he replied, “Before I came here, I was on a quest to uncover my very own sun. I simply feel soothed by its presence, it’s…gross incandescence. It’s like a watchful eye.”

“And what happened with your quest?”

Solaire hung his head, then explained, “I could not find my sun. I searched high and low, from the heights of Anor Londo to the depths of Lost Izalith, but time and again it failed to appear to me. It left me bitter, my purpose unfulfilled, and I simply knew not where to go. I began to feel as though I had wasted my life for a fool’s errand.”

Makoto paused, trying to process Solaire’s story. He realized he couldn’t physically be near a sun without immediately dying, correct? It made her think of the time she and Joker had agreed to tutor Ryuji, an experience that could best be defined as “aggravating”.

As the satellite, given the proper coordinates, clicked into place, causing her computer screen to flash a green checkmark, Gwen looked towards Solaire and asked, “Did you ever think your sun might be metaphorical? Y’know, like maybe you’re searching for something else in life?”

This gave Solaire pause, and he thoughtfully said, “Something…else? Like what? My life is simple enough to satisfy. I aid others and I seek out the sun.”

Makoto, also thinking about Gwen’s point, responded, “Yes, well, maybe helping others is your sun? If you can spend your life helping people, then it’s not a waste, right?”

Peeking her head around the considerable pile of trash she’d accumulated, Hibiki chimed in with an excited, “Yeah! I never intended to end up with the power of the Symphogear, but now I use it to help people! That’s what good people do, isn’t it?”

Toph, now lying down with her eyes closed, simply nodded, not feeling the particular desire to chime in, while Solaire looked down, letting the others advice process. He thought of his friend, the warrior who he had fought alongside so many times, who he had aided on their quest and been aided in return, and he thought of the teachings of the Warriors of Sunlight. After a long silence, he spoke, quietly at first, but then more confidently.

“Yes, I…I suppose I’d never considered it. My own sun…a greater purpose, it was with me all along. I…thank you, I’d never considered that. I shall take a little while longer to ponder it, then I’ll set out to complete my tasks. I will not forget the lesson you have taught me today.”

He turned back to face the sun, his posture more confident now, and Makoto walked away to help Hibiki dispose of the last of the trash. With their tasks complete, the assembled group prepared to leave, with Gwen asking, “You want to stick with us, Solaire? We’re working together so we can all get out of here okay.”

The knight chuckled and shook his head, “Perhaps, but I’ll stay here for the moment, to gaze at the sun for a few more moments. Though, miss Gwenevere, if I may speak with you for another moment?”

Gwen glanced back to the rest of the group, then said, “You guys wait for me by the stairs, I’ll be with you in a sec.”

Makoto nodded and led the others down the stairs, and Gwen took a step closer to Solaire, who reached into his armor and pulled out a golden medal with the symbol of the sun emblazoned on it. He offered it to her with a sincere, “A token of my thanks, for imparting such sage wisdom unto me,” and she, after hesitating, took it with an awkward, “Oh, uh, thanks. It really wasn’t that big of a-“

“No, it was quite helpful to me. I suspect your friends and I could do a lot to aid each other in this quest of ours. That is why I offer you not just the medallion, but my summon symbol as well. Should you or any of your allies ever need my aid, simply find it by its brilliant aura and I will be there in a moment’s notice!”

Gwen tucked the coin into her pocket, unsure of how to respond to this, before simply saying, “Thanks, Solaire. I guess I’ll keep an eye out and see you around?”

Solaire laughed merrily and replied, “Indeed,” before turning back to the sun. Gwen, confident that she could actually leave now, did so, and Lila, who had been hiding behind the bulkhead, finally exhaled. She’d hoped to take out the knight before the little girl gang had found it’s way to the roof, but the damned blind girl came charging in. Fortunately, the idiot turning the panels by hand had made enough noise for her own footsteps to be muffled, but she’d gone lucky. She waited a few more moments to make sure the group was clear, then slipped out from behind the bulkhead to see Solaire still staring ahead.

All of her kills weren’t going to be this easy, were they?

She strode forward, then lunged and landed a firm drop kick to Solaire’s back. The weight of his armor pushed him forward, and he wasn’t able to make a single sound before he tumbled off the roof, arms flailing. Rolling to her feet, then peeking over the roof, Lila smirked as she watched the knight splatter against the ground, then turned to head back inside. She’d known he’d be too tough to brawl with head-on, so an ambush was a safer bet.

Plus, since Gwen was the last one to see him alive, it could be a useful bit of questioning for later.

---

Staring at the science lab computer, Hawke let out a frustrated groan as he reached out and tapped the screen, trying to get the icon labelled “Sampletesting.exe” to respond to him. When it did not, he glanced down to the “keyboard” and the metallic mouse attached to it and stroked his beard in contemplation. Perhaps he needed to use them somehow?

“Of all the damned tasks, I get the one with this contraption.”

His attempting to work out a computer was interrupted by a blur of motion out of the corner of his eye, and he turned to see that it came from the window. Tightening his grip on his staff, he cautiously crept to the window, then glanced out, eyes widening with surprise as he saw the gruesome sight of the remains of Solaire splattered against the ground.

Fumbling with his communicator, he finally manages to hit the button and call out, “Yes, hello. If this is on, and Andraste knows if it actually is, I believe we may need to call everyone back for a meeting.”

Part 2: Who Broke It?

Crewmates:

Impostors:

“So-”

Hawke’s terse, but jovial, voice broke the silence as the crewmates, gathered back together, all glanced at one another mistrustfully.

“Anyone want to make this easy for all of us and confess? You know, just throw your hands up and call it a day? That’s what I’d do, at this point.”

No one seemed to respond to his joke, and his shoulders drooped slightly as he sighed.

“Fine. Alright, I’ll go first: I didn’t kill Solaire because I watched him fall, and well…hit the ground. Now, did anyone by any chance see anything suspicious from wherever Solaire fell from?”

Contemplatively scanning the room, Mace added, “On top of this, I should ask as to the whereabouts of Megamind and Koichi. They were the only ones who didn’t respond to Hawke’s signal, and I believe Low-Key was the last one seen with the boy. Care to explain?”

As all eyes focused on him, Loki hung his head shamefully and mumbled, voice deep with regret, “I couldn’t save the boy. Megamind, he…he ambushed us in the sewers. Before I could react, he knocked me out, shoved me into the water, and then used my own knife to kill Koichi. If it had not been for Snart here-”

He gestured towards Snart, who was quietly glad his goggles enabled him to hide his eyes rolling at his partner’s theatrics, “I fear he would’ve pinned the killing upon me.”

Mace, skeptical, looked to Snart, who stared back calmly, stoic expression hiding all emotion.

“And you can attest to this?”

“Saw it clear as day. Damn cold gun’s range meant I couldn’t tag the bastard ‘til I was practically on top of him. Best I could do was save this one from drowning in filth. Not much I can do about the smell though.”

Loki, still feeling the squelch of water in his boots, subtly glared at Snart, who ignored him as Mace, seemingly content, turned back to the rest of the group. Tapping her foot compulsively, Makoto, hesitantly, then a bit more confidently, asked, “How did Megamind manage to ambush you two? He wasn’t exactly quiet in his presentation style.”

Before Loki could reply, Snart quipped, “I think we’re starting to learn that people’s appearances are very deceiving.”

Makoto attempted to press the issue, but was cut off by Lila raising her hand and saying, “Yes, hi, excuse me. Hate to be rude but I feel we’re distracting from the point of who exactly tossed Solaire off the roof? That feels worth circling back to.”

Makoto’s group looked amongst themselves sheepishly before Gwen admitted, “Well, we did, but he was alive when we talked to him. He was right behind us, he even said he’d follow right after I talked to him.”

Lila raised an intrigued eyebrow at this response, and Gwen, noticing the gesture, narrowed her eyes suspiciously.

“You got something to say?”

Lila shrugged and explained, “Oh, not really, I’m just saying it’s a little interesting that you were the last one to talk to him before he swan-dived off the roof.”

Toph practically snarled, balling her fists as she took a few steps towards the older woman.

“Gwen didn’t do it, she was with us!”

“Oh, so you saw her talk with him?”

“Well, no, she was alone, but, but I would’ve heard her kick him off! So, back off before I make you back off.”

Seemingly bemused, Lila stepped towards Toph, staring down at her with a bemused smirk, and replied, “Try me.”

As the group devolved into bickering, Hawke sighed, then repeatedly tapped his staff against the floor, catching everyone’s attention. They settled down slightly, and he firmly instructed, “Enough fighting. Now, unless anyone else wants to point any fingers, I would advise we try and stick together. It’s becoming clear that the Impostors are attempting to pick us off when we’re isolated, so we need to-“

“-Escalate our efforts to hunt them down first,” exclaimed Mace, cutting off Hawke, who grumbled a prayer to the Maker under his breath as the Jedi took another step towards Gwen’s group, who all glanced at him curiously. He pointed to Hibiki, who seemed taken aback as Gwen and Makoto reflexively stepped in front of her, then continued speaking.

“The energies of the assembled crew had been overwhelming at first, but now that we’ve lost three of our number, I can finally sense the overwhelming darkness coming off of her. While I do not believe that you are the one who slew Solaire, I fully suspect you’re hiding something from us.”

Loki and Cold exchanged curious glances, but stayed silent, while Hibiki looked at Mace as though he had slapped her. Could he sense Gungnir’s energy just by looking at her? Surely, he wasn’t that powerful, was he?

“For the good of this crew, I fully believe she should be isolated until it is safely determine that-“

He scowled as Gwen, eyes glowing pink, raised a hand towards him, energy crackling from her fingertips, while Makoto and Toph both took defensive stances on either side of her.

“If you want Hibiki, you’ll have to deal with us. Trust me, you’re after the wrong girl.”

He fully believed that he’d be able to handle this group if it came to conflict, but that left the issue of the rest of the crew, and whether they would back him or the girls in this scenario. Before he could contemplate further, Pupil, surprising everyone, stepped in his way and put a firm hand on his chest, stopping him in his tracks. He glared at her, and she responded by glaring right back, resting her hand on her jutte.

“Giving into paranoia and hunches will do nothing but aid the criminals we’re hunting. If the girl’s friends say she is innocent, then I believe they are correct.”

Changing her posture and lowering her voice, she then leaned in closer and added, “And I believe that there are others who would benefit from this in-fighting.”

Her eye, quickly and subtly, flitted towards Loki and Snart, then back to Mace, who nodded subtly, and took a step back. The tension faded slightly from the room, and he replied, “Very well. I will keep my distance for now, but make no mistake, my suspicions have not faded.”

As Mace returned to his spot, Hawke gave a sigh of relief.

“Well, good, now that there’s not going to be a brawl in cafeteria, let’s say we get back to our tasks. I would advise sticking together, but it seems that we’re all already doing that or we’re just not going to listen to my advice. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to finally figure out that blasted “computer”.”

As he headed back towards the stairs, the rest of the crew similarly broke apart, going in different directions to their various tasks. Watching as Snart and Loki also headed towards the exit, idly chatting, Pupil waited a few moments, then followed after them, while Mace gave one last wary glance towards Hibiki’s group before heading back towards the sewers. The girl’s quiet suspicion of the duo had merit, but he wanted to investigate further before he made a move.

---

The quartet of girls walked through the kitchen, hoping to finish a quick task there when Hibiki paused, biting her lip anxiously. Sensing some anxiety from her ally, Gwen stopped and turned, a worried expression on her face.

“You okay, Hibiki? Don’t let that guy get to you. We know you’d never hurt any of us.”

Hibiki smiled graciously and shakily replied, “I…thank you. We’ve all known each other for only a little while, and I already feel like I could trust all of you with anything. You all stood by me, and…and you never had to. I just want you all to know that I’ll never forget that.”

Rubbing the back of her head, Toph grinned, shrugging and happily explaining, “Well, duh. We’re a team. Just cuz some bald jerk said he’s got a “bad aura” off of ya doesn’t mean we’re gonna believe him over you. I don’t even think you could hurt a fly if it came down to it.”

Makoto rested a reassuring hand on Hibiki’s shoulder, adding, “We have to stick together, or we’re never going to win this.”

Nodding happily, Hibiki pulled Makoto into an unexpected hug, and the older girl awkwardly stood there for a moment before patting her teammate reassuringly on the head and eventually reciprocating the hug. Both Gwen and Toph chuckled, watching quietly, before the two broke apart and Makoto, stammering, said, “Yes, well, let us return to our tasks. There is the issue of separation that I think we need to address. I understand Gwen and Hibiki still have tasks in the building, while Toph and I have things to be done outside.”

“We could definitely cover more ground if we split up,” Gwen replied, stopping to play with her hair while she contemplated a course of action.

“-But that does run the risk of running into an Impostor. Maybe we stick together and-”

Toph laughed boisterously.

“C’mon, you really think an Impostor is gonna be able to take us on? Let’s just go in groups of two, and we’ll meet up back by the entrance. Quicker we get through this, quicker we can win this whole thing.”

Makoto and Gwen both nodded at their headstrong ally’s argument, and Gwen replied, “Alright, well, in that case, once we’re done here, Hibiki and I will wrap things up in the dormitory, while Makoto and Toph can go do their various tasks around the campus. Like Toph said, we can just meet back by the entrance.

With that, the quartet went back to work, Toph with a notably satisfied and proud pep in her step.

---

As the others went their separate ways, Lila took a moment to wait, pretending to read her instructions to herself while she internally celebrated walking away from killing the knight entirely unaccused. Frankly, given that he’d seemingly dedicated himself to staring head-on into the sun, a quick trip off the roof was likely a mercy killing. She tucked the paper, neatly folded, back into her pocket, then also made a move for the stairwell. She’d spent much of the meeting sizing up her remaining targets, and for the moment, avoiding targeting any alliances seemed like a safe bet on her part. The little girl gang seemed impenetrable at the moment, but she did notice the hint of indecision when she brought Gwen’s time on the roof, suggesting she’d something to capitalize on later, while the duo of Snart and Loki struck her as worth investigating, seeing as how they walked away from a fight that Megamind, the supposed Impostor, and Koichi did not.

That left Pupil, Mace, and Hawke, and she certainly noticed the latter’s attempt to play team leader. Admittedly unsuccessfully, but still something that could pose an issue if she was going to push this ragtag group into eating each other alive. So, the target was clear to her: eliminate Hawke, then let the dominos fall. Hopefully, the other Impostors were putting in work into thinning the herd as well.

The stairwell door swung shut, then clicked shut, and after a few moments of silence, a quiet sigh of relief echoed through the room, followed by a green shimmer dispelling itself, with Loki and Snart seemingly reappearing out of thin air.

“Goodness, I thought she’d never leave.”

Snart gave an impressed nod.

“Neat party trick.”

“Yes, well, you don’t become the god of trickery without learning a basic illusion spell or two. Or two dozen, for that matter. Now, let’s focus on our issue at hand: I say we eliminate Mace and Pupil before they create any more trouble for us.”

Snart paced the room, seemingly weighing options in his head, then asked, “Any reason you want those two down first?”

“Well, the way I see it, those two are clearly law enforcement of some kind back on whatever worlds they derived from. I’ve seen it a thousand times. Stoic, constantly investigating, convinced they know all the answer when they’re usually the last to arrive on the scene. Windu certainly enjoyed pointing fingers, so let’s kill him before he ends pointing one at us. Plus, with him dead, it would certainly look mighty suspicious of dear Hibiki, the girl he was accusing, now wouldn’t it?”

Snart smirked, resting his gun on the table and having a seat as he listened to Loki’s monologue. The Asgardian was a bit of a blowhard, but he certainly had an eye for schemes.

“Certainly not a bad plan of attack. And what about Pupil? You just feel like getting an extra kill in there?”

Loki scoffed.

“Of course not. If we kill her, that removes the only two people more interested in finding us than completing tasks. Once they’re gone, we pin the blame on the girls, then get Hawke and Lila on side to wipe them out. Either the third Impostor helps us win, or we kill another Impostor by accident. Win-win.”

Snart hesitated, contemplating the identity of the third Impostor. He was pretty confident that it was Lila, who tended to hang back and speak to cause trouble, while the others were either too naïve or too paranoid to be it, but he had bigger fish to fry.

“Alright, this plan works for me. So, how do you propose we eliminate the cops? Divide and conquer?”

Loki beamed confidently.

“Exactly, Mace has already bumbled his way into the sewers, so all we’ll need to do is lure the girl somewhere quiet and away from this place. I’ve got just the location in mind, so just wait there, and she’ll come right to you.”

Sitting up, Snart raised an eyebrow, skeptically sizing up the skinny, still covered in sewage Asgardian and asking, “You wanna take Mace by yourself? Little overconfident, don’t you think?”

“Oh, please. I’ve had a few run-ins with do-gooders like him before, I can handle myself just fine.”

“Did you win these run-ins?”

“That’s none of your business, frankly.”

---

Exiting the radio station, Pupil scratched her head, confused. She’d followed the duo of Snart and Low-key all the way there, but they’d vanished once she’d gotten inside. They must’ve snuck through some form of back exit, but a quick investigation didn’t show any obvious places. There was no way they had managed to slip away that easy. She was an Executioners, and Executioners didn’t simply lose a tail. It was moments like this where she truly missed Master, with all his stoic wisdom. He would’ve known exactly how to track them down, and bring everyone together to bring these Impostors to justice. At this point, she would’ve even settled for Junior, who was at the very least someone she could trust to watch her back.

As she was contemplating her next move, she was interrupted from her thoughts by her communicator buzzing.

“Pupil, can you hear me? This is Mace. I repeat, this is Mace Windu attempting to get into contact wit-“

Fumbling with her communicator, she pressed it and replied, “Yes, Mace, I’m here.”

“Excellent. Firstly, I would like to apologize for my behavior during the meeting. It was…unbecoming of both myself and the Order I represent. In the interest of winning this game, I believe we should work together further. What do you say?”

Pupil hesitated, finger on the button of her communicator, then answered, “Yes, I think that would be our best move.”

“Alright, then in that case, meet me in the greenhouse. I’d like to discuss my findings with you away from any possible spies.”

“I’ll meet you there.”

With that, she clipped her communicator onto her collar, then began walking towards the greenhouse, which lay on top of a hill near the school. She had her suspicions of Windu, but she trusted that she’d be able to handle him if worst came to worst.

---

With the confirmation, Loki nodded, humming to himself with pride, as he stood up from the table and walked towards the sewer entrance in the kitchen.

“It really is too easy sometimes.”

---

Hawke threw his hands up in celebration as the computer chimed with an affirmative message informing him that he had successfully managed to collect and send all the lab samples. Had it taken him a painfully long time? Yes, but now he could move on to other much more doable tasks that didn’t have to involve working with these blasted contraptions. He stood up from the desk, stretching as he did so, then grabbed his staff, his hand tensing on it as he heard the door to the research area creak shut behind him.

Gently lifting the staff, he walked through the various cubicles, hearing footsteps drawing closer, then drew his knife and quickly turned a corner to put it to the throat of Lila, who froze, eyes wide with fear.

“Oh, it’s you. Erm, my apologies. You can never be too careful, you know.”

Sheepishly, Hawke put the knife away as Lila breathed a sigh of relief, then hit him in the shoulder.

“Damn near slit my throat, you lunatic! How about next time you check the corner?”

“Well, excuse me if I’m a little on edge, what with having watched a man plummet to his doom in front of me and all.”

Hiding her pride in the kill, Lila nodded, taking a step back and calming herself slightly. The knife had been a surprise, to be sure, but she couldn’t agitate him when her entire plan was stabbing him in the back. She would just have to turn on the charm just a tad.

“That’s fair, I suppose. Apologies for not announcing my presence. Now, if you’ll excuse me, would you mind showing me how to log onto the computer? I figure you’re an expert by now.”

Hawke gazed reluctantly back at the computer, it’s glowing screen taunting him from the other side of the cubicles, and he very hesitantly replied, “Well, it’s not that difficult. I’m certain you’ll figure it out.”

She frowned, anxiously twirling her hair with her finger as she pleaded, “Please? I’m utterly hopeless with computers, and I really think that it would just be easier if you gave me a little help. I’m just trying to finish this so I can go home.”

Fighting the urge to tell her that he hadn’t the faintest idea what a computer was until a few hours ago, Hawke softened slightly, sensing her frustration with the situation, and very reluctantly responded, “Well, I suppose I can help, if it means getting done slightly faster. Lila, was it?”

She nodded, offering her hand with a gracious smile, and Hawke shook it.

“You’re a real lifesaver, Hawke. Both with this and how well you’ve been trying to keep everyone focused. If we get out of here, it’ll because of you.”

Sitting down at the computer, Hawke replied, “Yes, well, I’m used to getting bickering hot heads into doing what I need them to. Now, what exactly are you doing on here?”

Lila quietly reached over to one of the desks and grabbed a letter opener, hiding it behind her back as she explained, “Oh, just basic stuff. Something about sample collection.”

Hawke stopped, his hand wavering over the mouse, as he mumbled, “That’s strange. My task was sample collection.”

Realization hit for him just as Lila went to stab him, and he leapt up from the desk just as she brought the letter opener down, stabbing it into the desk. She turned and dived towards him again, but he quickly cast Mind Blast, sending her and the various cubicles around him flying backwards. Dazed from the attack, Lila stumbled to her feet and leapt out of the way as he then tossed a Fireball at her. Rolling for cover behind a desk, she smiled and playfully called out, “And here I thought we were just starting to like each other!”

A Stonefist hurtles through the air and smashes through the cubicle she’s hiding in, and Hawke yells, “Yes, you almost fooled me with your doe-eyed innocent act, Impostor!”

Lila stayed on the move, doing her best to avoid the spells being thrown her way while also trying to remember each one. Copying the Hargreeves’s abilities from observation and study alone were fairly simple, but her new target appeared to have a far more complex, varied powerset. It would almost be fascinating, were it not for him trying to kill her. She rolled out from a cubicle and threw another letter opener, which Hawke easily deflected, then cast Cone of Cold.

As the cone of jagged icicles jutted forward, Lila leapt upon it, quickly jumping across the larger ones to close the distance and drive her knee into Hawke’s nose with a leap, drawing blood. He staggered backwards, sweeping at her with the blade of his staff, but she pressed a finger to her temple and managed to cast Mind Blast, this time sending him skidding backwards.

“Another mage, are you?”

She looked at her hands, smiling as she felt power surge through them, then responded, “Not quite, I’m just very good at copying.”

He cast Barrier, smirking as her attempt at a Fireball bounced off of it.

“Well, then, let’s see how well you can imitate me.”

---

Hibiki and Gwen walked side by side down the stairs, heading towards the research lab after finishing their tasks in the dorms. It had taken them a minute to figure out how to restart the dorm showers, but fortunately, they were pretty good at following instructions. After a bit of silence, Hibiki spoke up.

“Gwen, can I ask you a question?”

“Of course, Hibiki. What’s up?”

“Did you work in a team back where you’re from? Because you came up with this whole team-up idea really fast. Back where I’m from, I’m part of a whole organization called SONG, there’s even people with their own Symphogears! I think you and Maria would get along really well! Tsubasa too, but I think she takes a little to warm up to strangers. Oh, and I can’t wait to introduce you to-“

Her excitement faded, a smile becoming a frown, as she continued.

“-to, to Miku-chan. If we ever get out of here, that is.”

Gwen stopped to give Hibiki a reassuring smile.

“Hibiki, we’re getting out of here, no problem. We’ve each only got a few tasks left, and then we’ll all head back to where we came from. And to answer your question, I am part of a team! It’s super-secret, but we try and help people just like you guys do. Although, I don’t think you’ve fought any aliens, have you?”

“No, I don’t think I have! I bet Genjuro would know if I asked him. He’s the one in charge, so he tends to know a lotta stuff.”

“Well,” Gwen smiled again. “I’ll just have to look you up and pay Japan a visit when I get back. I just know Ben would be all for it.”

Hibiki’s excited reply was cut off as they, through the stairwell, heard the sound of explosions and activity in the science lab. Giving each other a worried look, they ran towards the sound of it, Gwen doing her best to stay in front of the younger girl.

As the duo approached, Hawke and Lila, standing amidst the ruins of the research lab, glared at one another. Hawke tightened his grip on his staff, while Lila gripped a scalpel in one hand and let lightning crackle from her fingertips with the other. He had to admit, she was a quick learner with these spells, but she was very clearly having to adjust her fighting style on the fly as he brought out new spells. It was time to finish this. Casting Heal on himself, he lashed out with another Fireball, only for her to throw one of her own, with the two balls of flame colliding in mid-air.

Gwen and Hibiki came to a stop by the door to the lab, with Gwen putting her hand on the handle and turning back to look at Hibiki.

“Stay behind me, Hibiki. I don’t want you getting hurt.”

Hibiki balled her fists and responded confidently, “Don’t worry, Gwen, I’ll be okay! Besides, now I can show you Gungnir!”

Just as she began to sing, a massive explosion ripped through the door, knocking them both backwards. Creating a shield just in time, Gwen averted her eyes from the bright flash of the flame, then ran forward into the smoke, not realizing a dazed Hibiki lay on the ground.

Ears ringing, Hibiki stood to her feet, feeling blood trickle down from a cut on her forehead. Groaning, she shakes her head through the pain, then activates Gungnir, her clothes quickly replacing themselves with the all-too familiar armor.

“Gwen! Can you hear me? Where are you?”

The girl’s voice called out over the fire and smoke, and Lila, standing on shaky legs after the blast knocked the wind out of her, perked her head at the sound. Initially going towards it, she ducked behind a cubicle as she saw Gwen, recognizable thanks to the pink glow from her hands illuminating her, walk past, calling out similarly for Hibiki. So, at least two of the girls were here, and she had yet to finish off Hawke. This was, to put it lightly, an incredibly bad escalation of what was supposed to be an easy kill, and she needed to leave quickly.

Stumbling through the smoke, she nearly yelped as she tripped over Hawke’s unconscious form by the ruins of a cubicle, with the blood on the desk suggesting he’d had a rougher landing than her. Once again blessing her luck, she decided to see what dear Gwen could do.

Squinting through the smoke, Hibiki perked up as she saw a slim form seemingly standing over another, only to watch in shock as the person in shadow raised a hand and fired a pink energy blast, much like Gwen’s, the body below them jerking as it destroys their head, then ran off. Hibiki quickly clapped her hands together, the burst of wind clearing out some of the smoke, and she ran over to gasp in shock as she saw Hawke, his head cleanly split open, lying dead on the floor.

She stumbled back, hands shaking, then yelped as she felt a hand on her shoulder, only for it to be Gwen.

“Hibiki, are you okay?”

“I-I…it’s Hawke!”

Gwen looked to see where her friend had pointed, and took a startled step back.

“Oh my god. Hibiki, did you see what happened?”

Hibiki’s mind raced back to the color of the blast, and she very hesitantly replied, “I think so, but…I’m not sure. We need to make sure Makoto and Toph are okay!”

The two quickly ran out of the research lab, and Lila, hiding behind an overturned desk, smiled in relief.

---

As Pupil entered the greenhouse, she was immediately wary of her surroundings, letting her hand gently rest on her jutte as it hung by her side. It was both too quiet and too dark, the rows upon rows of plants shrouded in shadow. It was likely a task to power the greenhouse back on, but it still struck her the wrong way. And on top of that, Mace, who had wanted to meet here, was nowhere to be found. She took a few cautious steps into the warehouse, contemplating calling out his name before deciding against it, and scanned her surroundings.

She paused as she saw rustling behind a flower bush, her eye narrowing in interest, then widening in surprise as a beam of blue light exploded from it. She leapt to the side, feeling the temperature drop around her as the beam just missed her, freezing the tomato plant where she’d been standing, then rolled and drew her jutte in one quick motion. With it’s beam illuminating the area around her, she lunged towards her attacker, stabbing forward and gritting her teeth as the blade clashed with steel.

Snart mentally cursed as he used the cold gun to block the strike, caught off guard by his target’s strength as he firmly stood his ground. Pushing against him, she hissed, “You’re not Windu!” to which he mockingly replied, through gritted teeth, “How perceptive of you.”

She pushed against him, the force making them both stumble backwards, and managed to use the blade of her jutte to redirect Snart’s next blast into the roof before striking him in the gut. As he reeled, she spun on her heel and connected with a firm roundhouse kick to the jaw, sending him flying. She leapt forward, bringing her jutte down with a roar, only for him to roll to the side as the blade pierced the ground, his attempt at a counterattack foiled by her lashing out and kicking the gun out of his hands.

As she swung and stabs at him, Snart scrambled forward, diving to grab the cold gun and then firing a beam at the ground, freezing it beneath Pupil’s feet. She slid forward, awkwardly trying to keep her balance, only to fall when Snart sweeps her leg. He moved to freeze her as she falls, but she quickly recovered with a kip up and lands a chop to his throat. As Snart chokes and stumbles backwards, she follows up with a slash from her jutte, knocking the cold gun from his hands, then chains it into a kick to the chest, knocking him to the ground.

Snart drags himself backwards, fumbling for something in his pockets, only for Pupil to plant a foot on his chest and grimly command, “Stop this. You’re out of tricks.”

Smirking, Snart countered with, “Not quite,” then quickdraws the De-Gun and fires, with Pupil giving out a shocked cry as she’s reduced to a small glowing cube. Snart stood shakily, taking a moment to catch his breath, then brings his boot down and crushes the cube into a puddle.

Wiping his boot off on a mat, he picked up the cold gun, surveying it’s damage with an impressed whistle. She’d come closer than anyone since Barry to actually taking him down, and he’d have been a dead man if he hadn’t swiped that gun.

Now, with her dealt with, it was time to see if his partner was done. He pulled his communicator from his pocket and called.

“Loki, it’s Snart. Pupils dealt with. How are things looking on your end?”

After a few moments of uncomfortable silence, Loki finally answered, similarly out of breath and much of his bombastic tone gone.

“He’s finished, but I’m afraid I’ve run into a…complication.”

“What? Did you go and get caught?”

“Mmmm, not quite. Look, just meet me in the sewers. We’ll explain there.”

“Whose “we”?”

Instead of a response, Loki disconnected, and Snart sighed as he began trudging back to the university. If he’d screwed up and gotten busted, it would makes things much trickier.

---

Several minutes earlier…

Mace crouched by the bodies of both Megamind and Koichi, a troubled expression on his face as he inspected the two of them. The corpses certainly matched the story Snart and Low-Key had described, but he could sense that there was more at play. Had they really been so unnerved by the boy’s death that they’d just left him down here? As he looked them over, he noticed that Megamind’s equipment holster appeared to be missing something. But what exactly was it, and who stole it? Unless someone else had come down here, there was only two possible thieves.

A disturbance, quiet, practically unnoticed if not for the Force, made him stop, stiffening slightly. He sensed another presence, close and attempting to hide themselves. For a few moments, he continued looking at the bodies, then calmly called out, “If you are attempting an ambush, I assure you it’s failed.”

His would-be attacker gave no reply beyond throwing a knife, and Mace quickly raised his hand, stopping the blade in mid-air, then sent it back. The knife soared back towards Loki, who chuckled coldly as it passed through him and clattered harmlessly against a wall. The illusion vanished, shimmering away as his foe’s mocking laugh echoed through the passageways of the sewer, and Mace took a tense step back, slowly unclipping his lightsaber from his belt and igniting it.

As the laugh faded, Loki quipped, “Well, it appears that neither of us are going to make this easy,” then lunged from the shadows, knives drawn. Sensing his attacksa moment before it begins, Mace leans to the side, dodging the initial stab, then brings the lightsaber down, nearly severing Loki’s arm before he manages to pull it back. Each taking cautious steps backwards, Loki and Mace size one another up, the god conjuring another dagger from thin air while the jedi takes a proper fighting stance.

“So,” says Mace, raising his lightsaber above his head as he crouches slightly, “I take it you murdered the boy, then worked with Snart to pin it on Megamind.”

Loki gave a small bow, then replied, “You are quite clever. I’m glad my decision to kill you early was a correct one.”

He charged forward, creating two more illusory versions of himself on either side, then leapt to the side, switching places with his duplicates as they converged on Mace. Taking a deep breath, Mace let the Force guide him, driving his blade through one illusion and slashing through another, then stabbing forward, missing Loki as he fell to his knees, using his momentum to slide forward and slash the back of his foe’s leg. Mace hissed, earning a small smile from Loki as he quickly leapt to back his feet and tossed the knife at the back of his head.

Mace caught the knife with his bare hand, then turned and tossed it back to Loki, whose gloating grin turned to a look of shock as he telekinetically stopped it inches from his face. With a huff, he threw the knife back, with Mace this time redirecting it into the water before reassuming his fighting stance.

“I did not anticipate encountering a Sith here, of all places, but I will strike you down nonetheless.”

Loki let his guard down slightly, confused, and responded, “Sith? I’m an Asgardian, you fool. Or do your people not have gods in whatever backwater they grabbed you from?”

Mace ignored the question as he pressed the assault, striking with a flurry of blows that Loki desperately attempted to avoid, the Asgardian stumbling and ducking backwards as the blade ominously hummed closer and closer towards him. As Mace stabbed forward, Loki sidestepped and brought his hand to the Jedi’s temple, attempting to simply shut him down or use his memories against him before he ended up in multiple pieces, only for nothing to happen.

“I believe you’ll find my mind to be much harder to control than your usual thralls.”

Before Loki could try and force it, Mace drove his elbow into his gut, enhancing the blow with the Force to embed him into the wall. Loki groaned, falling to the floor, then tried to stand, only for Mace to reach out and suspend him in the air.

“Your fighting style was admirable, if overly reliant on deception. Now, you’re going to tell me who the other Impostors are.”

Loki, trying his best to maintain his dignity as he floated several inches off the ground with his arms sticking out, laughed.

“I don’t know who the other one is, and frankly, I’d rather die than tell you.”

“Very well.”

Mace raised the lightsaber to strike his foe down, only to feel it fly from his grip. Loki, who had squeezed his eyes hut, cautiously reopened them and look over Mace’s shoulder to see Lila grinning excitedly as the lightsaber flew into her hand.

“So, telekinesis and a laser sword? Not too hard of a powerset to mimic.”

Before Mace could try and get it back, she leapt forward, striking at him with an unexpected level of grace and skill. He mentally cursed his carelessness as she attacked him, forcing him to drop Loki as he dodged his own weapon. The Asgardian’s attempt at mind control had drawn his focus, and now he was disarmed and facing two enemies at once. Lila swiped at him with the lightsaber, and he ducked under it and pushed her backwards, sending her tumbling back across the sewer floor. Having waited for the ideal moment, Loki leapt to his feet, knife drawn, but Mace, without even looking, simply elbowed him in the throat, and the Asgardian stumbled back clutching his throat.

Lila, playfulness gone, stood to her feet and glared at Mace, who cautiously walked towards her. As he prepared to attack, Loki rasped, “The blade, toss it to me!”

Lila saw Loki, partially recovered, waving to her, and she reluctantly did so. As the lightsaber flew through the air, Mace reached out to catch it, only to watch as his fingers passed through it. Realizing he’d been fooled, he looked back down just as Lila plunged the blade deep into his gut, then drove it up through his shoulder, slicing him clean in two.

As the pieces fell to the ground, still sizzling, Loki dispelled his illusion to reveal himself, still winded and rubbing his throat, sitting on the ground.

“So, you can copy my abilities of illusion as well? My, now I wish I’d befriended you first.”

She inspected the lightsaber for a moment, then tossed it aside, letting it clatter to the floor by Mace’s corpse.

“So, what is this, the second time you’ve been saved down here? I’m beginning to think the sewers are a bad luck charm for you. What was your plan with the blade, exactly?”

Loki pulled himself to his feet, ignoring Lila’s quip and look of amusement.

“Firstly, I would’ve done the little illusion trick you came up with, and secondly, I had it well under control before you showed up.”

“Really? Because it looked like he was gonna cut your head off if I hadn’t decided to hide out down here for a minute.”

“Yes, well, I would’ve figured something out before the blade connected.”

Before they could bicker further, Loki’s communicator buzzed out with, “Loki, it’s Snart. Pupils dealt with. How are things looking on your end?”

He went to respond, then glanced at Lila, who crossed her arms and gestured for him to reply.

“Well, I take it he’s the third member of this little trio, so go and answer it.”

Loki eyed her skeptically.

“Why should I trust you?”

“Because I could’ve just stood by and watched you get your head chopped off, and I think it’s time we pooled our resources if we want to finish off who is left. Now, answer it before he thinks you’re dead.”

Rolling his eyes and grumbling something about a “foolish women telling him what to do”, Loki responded, “He’s finished, but I’m afraid I’ve run into a…”

He glanced over at Lila.

“…Complication.”

“What? Did you go and get caught?”

“Mmmm, not quite. Look, just meet me in the sewers. We’ll explain there.”

“Whose “we”?”

Instead of replying, Loki hung up and looked back to Lila.

“I think I’ll let you explain that one.”

Part 3: With Friends Like These...

Crewmates:

Impostors:

As the two Impostors discussed their plans, Beast, riveted by the display, jolted slightly, shocked out of his viewing by the buzzing of his phone. He gave it a quick glance, grinning quietly as he recognizes the caller ID.

“M. Murdock”

Standing up, he holds up the phone and gestures to Cary, who nods as he continues to survey the simulation and adjust accordingly. Beast moves at a quick pace, gently closing the door to the server room behind him, then answers the phone.

“So? Give me the good news.”

“The eviction freeze is ready. I’ve gone through it thoroughly with, well, the other versions of myself, and it’s airtight. The forced evictions, the raids by Cfp’s jackboots, punishment for housing homeless warriors, it’s all accounted for and ready for your approval.”

Beast beamed excitedly and punched the air, then composed himself and replied, “Fantastic, send it to me as soon as the royale is over and I’ll make sure it goes through the proper channels. You’ve done this city a great service today, Mister Murdock.”

“Yes, I have, and now there’s your end of the deal to consider.”

He nodded quietly, his initial excitement fading into a more contemplative silence, then said, “Yes, the creation of a DFederal prison, to, how did you put it?”

“To put an end to the ceaseless violent executions of the city’s people at the hands of the police department, to create an alternative to the Illegal District, to give criminals a chance to reform their ways. A way to make things better for people who live here, if even a little bit.”

“You sure criminals really would repent if we gave them the chance?”

“You certainly seem to enjoy stocking your office with Thanos’s fruits.”

“Yeah, you got me there.”

The conversation was interrupted by Cary, who knocked on the glass door and gestured for Beast to step back inside. He nodded and held up a finger, then continued speaking.

“Alright, I gotta get back in. Send me your proposal and I’ll take a peek at it before I pitch it to the other Users.”

“You think they’ll go for it?”

“Eh, probably. Most of em don’t really care about the administrative shit, and I can probably get Cfp on-side by letting Ice-T Puppy Incorporated run the place, so it should be fine.”

“You’re going to let him run the prison?”

“Look, do you want the prison built or not? Now, I gotta go, we’ll discuss this further.”

With a beleaguered sigh, Murdock hung up on Beast, who returned to the server room and asked excitedly, “What I miss?”

From his desk, Cary adjusted his glasses and replied, “Not a tremendous amount. The three Impostors are talking, so I assumed that you didn’t want to miss it.”

Beast chuckled, “You assumed correctly,” as he sat down, reaching for his bowl of chips, which had gone missing. Confused, he glanced behind him to see Kerry happily helping herself. He shot her a glare, to which she responded by shrugging and popping another Dorito into her mouth. He threw his hands up with an exasperated sigh, then faced back towards the screen, watching as Snart paced between Loki and Lila.

---

“You know, I think we need to keep you out of the sewers. Maybe try staying aboveground for the rest of the game?”

Snart’s comment earned a laugh from Lila and a frown from Loki, who crossed his arms and tapped his foot irritably.

“Yes, ha ha, this foul place tends to get the best of me. Can we move on and focus on eliminating the crew now?”

“I suppose we can focus on them. With the wannabe detectives out of the way, this leaves, what, five?”

Lila raised her hand and chimed in with a proud, “Four, actually. I took care of Hawke before I came down and saved Loki.”

Snart looked at her, raising an impressed eyebrow and whistling.

“You iced the boy scout by yourself? Way I saw it, he would’ve required a little teamwork on our part, but frankly getting him out of the way makes things easier. In that case, all that’s left is the girl quartet. Bad numbers game, but we might be able to take em if we can split them up.”

This time, Loki raised his hand, too caught up in scheming to mock himself for doing something so childish, and added, “Better yet, why not let them kill each other? A well-placed word here, a good illusion or two there, and they’ll be ripping themselves apart in no time at all. As I once said, a house divided cannot stand.”

Both Lila and Snart looked at him skeptically.

“Pretty sure Lincoln said that one.”

“Yes, well, who do you think helped write the speech?”

Lila rolled her eyes, ignoring her boasting ally as she said, “Anyway, I believe I may have helped with that. When I took care of Hawke, two of the girls walked in on me during our little brawl, and I may have used one’s powers to off him.”

“Were you spotted?”

“The smaller one, Hibiki, got a glimpse, but there was too much going on. And, frankly, I think that works in our favor. Poor thing is probably wracking her brain trying to put it together.”

Snart gave her another impressed nod. He was beginning to wonder if he’d teamed up with the wrong Impostor, but he supposed Loki had his uses. For now, anyway. The bigger question fell upon how they could exploit this newfound opportunity. As though he could sense his thoughts, Loki asked, “So, are we going to stay down here and let the horrific scent continue to infest our nostrils, or are we going to track this meddling four down before they catch wind of us?”

Before either of the other Impostors could reply, Makoto’s tone, stern but slightly anxious, rang out through their communicators.

“This is Makoto, calling all remaining crew members for another meeting. This is urgent, so everyone please attend.”

The call cut out, and Loki gave a proud grin to the others.

“Well, looks like we won’t have to track them down after all.”

With that, the trio worked their way back to the meeting hall, Lila hanging back to quietly scoop up Mace’s lightsaber and clip it to her pants. Quickly catching up with the others, she did her best to hide her glee. Just a few more minutes, and her own plan would be going very swimmingly.

---

“Okay, let’s just get caught up on what’s happened,” said Makoto, who appraised her two somewhat rattled teammates. She and Toph had just gotten done with their tasks at the radio station, with Makoto doing the actual work while Toph provided encouragement on account of being blind. Things had been going well, right up until Gwen and Hibiki called and informed that they had found Hawke, one of the few trustworthy crew members, dead. Hoping to put things together, Makoto called for a meeting, and urged the duo to meet them by the bell tower.

Giving Hibiki a moment to collect her thoughts, Gwen spoke first.

“So, Hibiki and I were on our way to the research lab to finish a task there. We heard fighting, we got there just in time for everything to explode, and then we found Hawke’s body.”

Toph frowned, grumbling about missing out on an explosion to herself, but let the others speak. She was more focused on playing lie detector, and she could feel that Gwen was being honest with her. This left Hibiki, who spoke with much less certainty, shakily adding, “Yes, Gwen is right about all of that. But…there is something I saw.”

Gwen looked to Hibiki, interested, while Toph and Makoto both gestured for her to keep speaking, Toph noting both the anxiousness in her voice and the sense of stress from her rising heartbeat.

“I saw someone kill Hawke…with magic. Pink magic.”

Both Gwen and Makoto looked to her, startled, while Toph tilted her head slightly as she heard, for a moment, Gwen’s heartbeat rise. She balled her fists tensely, but stayed silent while Makoto took a step closer and asked, voice full of genuine concern, “Did you see who did it?”

Not looking at Gwen, Hibiki shook her head and mumbled, “I couldn’t see, so I wasn’t sure. But, I don’t think Gwen did it. It has to be someone else.”

“Well,” Toph crossed her arms, a frown across her face, and looked to Gwen, who seemed taken aback, “Who could’ve done it then, besides the one person we know who uses pink magic?”

Gwen scowled.

“Are you serious? You think I killed Hawke? You can hear my heartbeat, you’d know if I was lying about this, Toph.”

“A heartbeat doesn’t prove anything, it just lets me know that you’re not nervous about whatever it is you did. And since you were the last one with Solaire too, I’m gonna be a little suspicious.”

As Gwen and Toph bickered, stepping closer and closer as an anxious Hibki glances between the two of them, Makoto hesitated. From what Sae had always told her about polygraphs being inadmissible, Toph was right, but Gwen seemed very confident in her own innocence. After a few more moments of contemplation, she stepped in between the two, taking a defensive stance as she looked between them.

“Enough, both of you. Wait until we’re with the other crewmates before we decide to have this argument. We still don’t know if we can trust them, after all, and I’m certain there’s a logical answer somewhere.”

Her anger mildly subsided, Gwen nodded.

“Yeah, you’re right. I’m sorry, we should be focusing on this instead of tearing each other apart.”

For her part, Toph offered no apology, simply shrugging and taking a cautious step towards Hibiki, then said, “Fine then, let’s get back to the cafeteria so we can work this out”. Keeping an eye on all of her teammates, Makoto led them back to the cafeteria to meet with the other crewmates. Something about the circumstances wasn’t sitting right with her, but she couldn’t quite place it.

---

Loki drummed his fingers on the table as he and the other Impostors awaited the arrival of the remaining crew. The plan, at least to him, was clear. Plant the seeds of doubt amongst the remaining crewmates, split them apart, then pick them off once they have a numbers advantage. There were issues, of course, namely that even Lila, who had been watching from afar, couldn’t quite suss out Tachibana’s power set, but they’d get their chance. They just needed to eliminate Gwen and Makoto, the clear brains of the group, and it would be easy.

“So,” said Snart, setting his cold gun on the table, “How do you two feel like playing this? Way I see it, best path forward would be to play dumb, say we haven’t seen the others or what happened, and just let them do the talking.”

“Yes,” Loki nodded affirmatively, the drumming stopping as he played his accusatory speech over in his head, “It would be best to simply stir in a little tension and let it simmer.”

Lila smirked.

“I agree, this will be a very good idea for when you two are gone.”

Loki paused, glancing at her quizzically, then squinted slightly as he noticed the slight shimmering around her. Just as it clicked that she had used his own illusions against him, he gave a shocked cry as a purple blade of light pierced his chest. Letting him squirm on the blade, Lila leaned in and whispered, “Sorry for this, really. But my best plan is one without you two.”

Snart lunged for his gun, raising it only for Lila to toss Loki’s corpse at him, forcing him to duck out of the way. Staying beneath the table, he yelled, “What’s the game here? Thought we had a decent plan, personally.”

Vaulting over the table and narrowly missing with a spin kick, Lila replied, “It was solid, but I prefer to work by myself if that’s alright with you.”

He raised the gun, firing a cold beam that she rolled to avoid, and Lila lunged forward with the lightsaber, making a clumsy swipe at him that sliced off a piece of the table. Apparently, the lightsaber was less effective when she didn’t have “the Force” with her. Good to know. As she tried to land a follow-up, he ducked under the blade, then smashed the butt of the gun into her jaw, sending her sprawling to the floor. Before she could leap to her feet, he trained the gun on her, smiling coldly.

“If you’d just stuck to the plan, we could’ve avoided all this.”

Lila simply smiled back and responded, “Oh, trust me, this is all part of the plan.”

As if on cue, the door to the cafeteria opened, revealing the team of crew members, who all froze in shock as Lila, voice frantic, yelled, “Help! Please, he killed Low-Key! He’s an impostor!”

Cursing, Snart raised the cold gun, only for a rock, pink energy disc, and small nuclear blast to smash into his chest at once, sending him flying backwards. As the cold gun clattered out of reach, he groaned, trying to stand and fumbling for the De-Gun in his coat pocket, but was stopped in his tracks as a series of pink bindings wrapped around him, holding him in place. Trapped, all he could do was glare at Lila, who shakily stood on two feet with the help of Hibiki, doing her best to hide her glee.

She wasn’t sure if Gwen would be the one to hold him in place, but that worked for her. Gwen and Makoto both advanced on the trapped Snart, with Toph not far behind, and Gwen, eyes narrowed, asked, “So, you’re the Impostor?”

He nodded, explaining calmly, “I suppose the jig is up by this point. May as well make it far and tell you who my accomplice i-“

With a subtle clench of her fist, a pink bubble enlarged itself inside Snart’s head, bursting it from the inside. Both Makoto and Gwen leapt back with a startled cry, letting the body fall.

“Gwen, what did you do?!?”

“I…I….that wasn’t-“

Fully scowling, Toph turned and encased Gwen’s legs in stone, to the surprise of her teammates. Gwen looked down at the trap, then looked to Toph, eyes full of betrayal and anger.

“Toph, let me go. Now.”

Both Makoto and Hibiki stood in her way, trying to talk sense into their teammates before things grew out of hand, but Toph ignored them, letting the stone travel up the rest of Gwen’s body save for her head. As Makoto grabbed her by the shoulder and forcefully pulled her back, Lila, seemingly resting against the table, rewarded herself with a tiny smirk.

“Toph, Gwen isn’t an Impostor! Something else is going on here, and we just need to wait a second until we can all figure this out.”

Toph shook her head.

“I’m not risking it. If you want her to watch your back, fine, but whatever it is you want to “figure out”, you can do it with her as a statue.”

At that, Gwen gritted her teeth and unleashed a burst of energy, shattering the stone. Eyes glowing a neon pink, she raised a hand and tossed an energy burst at Toph, who shoved Makoto aside and stomped her foot, bringing up a stone pillar that blocked the blast, then kicked forward, sending the pillar straight at her. Gwen swiped down, unleashing a thin line of energy that sliced the pillar in two, then reached out with a tentacle, grabbing Toph and tossing her through the wall. As Gwen followed after her former ally, Lila stepped closer to the shocked Makoto and Hibiki and cautiously, sadly said, “You have to stop them before they kill each other! I don’t know if Gwen is the Impostor, but it’d be exactly what they want.”

Their uncertainty turning to confidence, Hibiki and Makoto both nodded, then followed after their feuding allies. As Makoto summons Agnes and rides out, Hibiki begins to sing, her body enveloped in light as Gungnir activates. Fully armored, Hibiki launches herself through the hole, created by Gwen, tackling her as she floated through the air and trying to blast Toph. Fully grinning now, Lila had a seat by the rubble and watched the fireworks.

Watching them turn on each other was easier than she thought.

Gwen grunted as she and Hibiki slammed into the ground hard enough to leave an impact. She unleashed another blast of energy, knocking the smaller girl off of her, then staggered to her feet, glaring at Hibiki as she took a much less certain fighting stance.

“What are you doing, Hibiki?”

“Friends don’t let friends kill each other. Please, Gwen, just stop.”

Just as Gwen starts to soften, another stone pillar smashes into her, Lila smirking as she shifts her foot slightly to control it, and she turns turns to glare at Toph, who is forced by Makoto drifting in between of them. Before Toph can attack, Makoto casts Flash Bomb, sending her staggering back as she clutches her head.

“Makoto…wh-what? Gwen’s an Impostor, we have to-“

“We have to calm down and think this through, and if I have to beat some sense into you so we can do it, I will.”

As Makoto held off Toph, Gwen lashed out with an energy disc, but Hibiki leapt over her, landing just in time to block the attack with her arms. Hoping to get her out of the way without hurting her, Gwen reaches out with a tendril, but Hibiki punches it aside, then dashes forward, hurtling towards her with enough speed that she can barely put a shield up. Hibiki shatters the shield, the force of the hit sending Gwen skidding across the ground, and she follows up with a swift stomp, the rocket on her ankle giving her an extra boost as she brings her foot down, sending up a massive wall of rock. Gwen creates an energy blade, cutting clean through the rocks, then simply teleports away, leaving Hibiki standing by herself.

Toph sidesteps a punch from Makoto, who tries to land a kick that she similarly dodges, then feels an increase of heat to the right of her as Gwen teleports beside her. Before she can raise a defense, Gwen claps her hands together, creating a massive burst of energy that sends Toph flying. Hitting the ground, Toph rolls back to her feet, then stomps downward, sending a boulder upwards, then kicks at Gwen, who flinches as Makoto steps in-between them, shattering it with a single blow. Grimacing, she turns to Gwen, concern evident on her face.

“Gwen, we don’t have to fight about this! We can ju-“

Another stone pillar launches her into the air, Lila breathing a sigh of relief that she was able to stop another attempt to mediate the fight, while Toph doesn’t have time to ponder who else is Earthbending as Gwen presses her attack. She didn’t want to do it, but she knew she needed to take her down if there was any chance of getting everyone together. As Gwen spams a series of energy discs, Toph stomps her foot, encasing her in a stone bubble that cracked and shook with each hit inflicted on the inside of it. Catching her breath, she smirked as Gwen struggled.

“Give it up, Impostor! There’s no breaking through that!”

Her boasting is almost immediately proven wrong as enormous explosion smashes the bubble to pieces, and Gwen, in full Anodite form, floats free of the rubble. Toph tries to attack, but Gwen simply swats her aside, while Makoto, having finally hit the ground, watches in a mixture of horror and awe. She quickly steels herself, then summons Agnes, racing forward and unleashing an Atomic Flare. The burst of nuclear energy gets Gwen’s attention, and she frowns as she turns and unleashes a barrage of energy that Makoto sped to avoid, grimacing as she felt the explosions rattle the ground. Toph launches a series of boulders, hoping to draw her fire, but Gwen simply deflects them with a shield without looking.

Spotting the fighting from a distance, Hibiki freezes with indecision. Her friends were killing one another, and it was her fault. She should’ve stayed silent, kept what she saw quiet, but she knew she couldn’t focus on it now. She had to help Makoto and Toph. Taking a deep breath, she braced herself, then pushed off of the ground, rocketing towards Gwen. The Anodite turned, preparing a shield, but the Symphogear wielder was both stronger and faster, easily smashing through it and using her rockets to accelerate her punch.

With a quiet, somber, “I’m sorry, Gwen,”, she punched forward, the blow knocking Gwen out cold and sending her smashing into the ground. Panting, Hibiki landed, then deactivated Gungir as Makoto and Toph both cautiously stepped towards where the crater was, glancing in to see Gwen’s unconscious form.

“So, that’s it, right?” asked Toph. “Impostors are all out, so we win, right?”

“Yes,” replied Makoto, much more unsure and cautious. “If all the Impostors are out, then the game should end, but the gate isn’t opening.”

She paused, confused, then her eyes widened as realization hit.

“Then that means Gwen wasn’t-“

An enormous boulder soars through the air and smashes into Makoto, knocking her across the campus, as Lila calmly walks forward. Toph moves to attack her, but Lila staggers her again with Flash Bomb, then follows up with Mafreidyne, knocking her away and bringing Hibiki to her knees. Hibiki starts to sing again, only to gasp for breath as Lila grabs her by the throat and lifts her into the air with a pleased grin.

“The Impostor?”

She taps her foot, sending a stone spike through Gwen’s chest.

“No, she wasn’t. Took you lot long enough to put that together.”

Part 4: The End Is The Beginning Is The End

Crewmates:

Impostors:

As Hibiki squirmed in her grasp, her hands fumbling and trying to pry her iron grip on her throat, Lila smiled.

“Honestly, I thought I made a damned good run of it without having to give up the game. Having to fight the full roster would’ve been a nightmare, but 3? That I can handle.”

Standing back up, Toph launched a boulder at Lila, who tossed Hibiki aside to shatter it with a kick before replying in turn by rapid-firing the rubble back at Toph. She thinks fast, creating a pillar to block the shots, then leapt to the side as an enormous stone fist burst from the ground. Lila smiled confidently, imitating and tinkering with her target’s powers on the fly, then winced as she saw a burst of bright light from the corner of her eye. Before she could react, a fully transformed Hibiki, singing as though she hadn’t had the life choked out of her, slammed into her side, rocketing forward with enough force to easily smash through the bell tower. The two slam into the ground, Hibiki tossing Lila aside, with the assassin hitting the ground and bouncing off of it.

Lila rolls to a stop and curses, trying to get the ground around her to do anything beyond shake. The damned girl had knocked her out of range of the earth bender. As Hibiki took a fighting stance, Lila smirks, preparing to imitate her powers. She waited to be enveloped in some sort of glow, to feel the power flowing through her vein, but in it’s place she felt nothing. She has no time to be confused as Hibiki charges, throwing a punch that Lila manages to dodge by mere inches, the power behind the punch sending out a gust of wind that made her eyes water. As Hibiki throws punch after punch, Lila backpedals, looking her over to determine why exactly she hadn’t taken the girl’s powerset.

As the bright, futuristic orange gauntlet flies past her head, it clicks for her. They aren’t her powers at all! It had to have been some sort of suit activated by her admittedly quite pleasant singing, meaning that she’d have to get closer to the others to stand a chance. She braces herself, crying out as she lets one of Hibiki’s punches connect with jaw, breaking it as she goes flying. Crash landing by a still slightly dazed Makoto, Lila grins, quickly casting Mediarahan and feeling her jaw click back into place. Scowling, Makoto balls her hand into a fist and charges, powering through a Flash Bomb, only for Lila to block the strike and counter with a strong elbow to the jaw. The two trade blows, moving back and forth in a flurry of hits, until Makoto infuses a punch with atomic energy and catches Lila in the gut, sending her skidding backwards. Breathing tersely, Lila reaches down to see that the attack hadn’t left a mark, grinning mockingly.

“Sorry luv, but if I have your powers, it means they’re probably not going to be too effective on me.”

She casts Checkmate, then lunges forward, swiftly overwhelming the now-slower Makoto, who tries to protect herself as a flurry of strikes land, culminating in a fierce kick to the chest. Before Lila can follow-up with another Flash Bomb, Hibiki lands in the way, blocking it with her gauntlets, while Toph, shifting the ground beneath herself to move quickly, comes to a stop by her side, stopping to offer a helping hand to Makoto. As her three opponents, finally together, advanced towards her, Lila tensed, taking cautious steps back as she felt her powers flicker in and out.

“Three on one, Lila,” said Makoto, “It’s over.”

Lila hated to admit it, but she might have had a point. But the Handler never did raise a quitter, did she?

“No,” she replies with a cocky smirk.

“Now it’s actually entertaining.”

They all charged at once, Makoto leading the way on Agnes, and Lila stomped her foot, sending a series of stone fists into the air that forced them to take evasive action, though Hibiki simply punched through them. She leapt forward, throwing a punch that Lila blocked with a pair of stone gauntlets, then cried out in surprise as a rock hand grabbed her and threw her through the main building. Makoto skids to a stop, casting Atomic Flare, but Lila quickly encases herself in stone, her makeshift armor absorbing most of the hit, then leapt forward and headbutted her, staggering her long enough for Lila to grab her by the hair and drive her face into her knee. Letting her collapse, Lila stomps on the back of her head until Toph, exploiting her stone armor, freezes her in place, slowly letting it crush her from within.

Struggling, Lila switches powers, then smashes out of the back of the armor as it collapses on itself. Before Toph could attack, she snaps her fingers, and a cruder, less detailed Agnes appears beside her and casts Flash Bomb, with Toph gritting her teeth in pain as the explosion overwhelms her hearing. Still dazed, she can’t move fast enough to block Lila leaping upon Agnes and accelerating forward, slamming its front wheel into her. Makoto manages to recover, knocking Lila from the crass parody of her own Persona with a strong uppercut, but she simply leaps to her feet, ducking and weaving past the follow-up punches until she switches powers and raises her hands.

Two parallel stone spikes shoot from the ground, nearly impaling Makoto’s feet, and she leaps to avoid them, only for Lila to encase her leg in rock and roundhouse kick her in the temple, sending her sprawling. Her momentary triumph gives way to annoyance as Makoto and Toph both shakily stand on two legs, doing their best to keep fighting.

“Fine, I can beat the tar out of you both all day.”

---

Elsewhere, Hibiki groans, sitting up and shaking rocks out of her hair as she tries to get a bearing on her surroundings. From the vantage point and the wreckage of numerous solar panels, she could tell she’d landed on the school roof, and she squinted as she witnessed the fight occurring on the school grounds. Makoto and Toph were hitting as hard as they got hit, but Lila was just too fast, separating and fighting them one on one while they tried to recover. Steeling herself, she stood to her feet and prepared to leap from the roof, only to stop, confused, as she saw a strange, bright orange symbol etched into the roof, glowing and quietly humming. She could feel the odd warmth and sense of safety irradiating from it, and almost against her better judgement, she tapped her foot on it, then watched it blink several times before vanishing.

She shook off the confusion and prepared to jump, then covered her eyes as a grossly incandescent light overwhelmed her, leaving her only able to see the vague outline of someone rising from the ground, arms raised to the sun…

---

Toph cried out in pain as Lila caught her with a nuclear-infused kick, shattering through her stone armor and knocking her against the ruins of the bell tower. Makoto, still trying to catch her breath, tried to stand back up, then groaned as stone shackles sprung from the ground and forced her back down. Confidently, despite being covered in cuts and bruises, Lila strode forward and planted her foot on the back of Makoto’s head, pushing it into the dirt as she gloated.

“I’d say this has been fun, but to be honest it’s just been an enormous pain in my arse. Now, if you would both be nice enough to just give up and die, that would be terrific.”

She raises her foot, preparing to crush Makoto’s head, only to yelp as a bolt of lightning shrieked through the air and crashed into her chest. Sizzling, she stood to her feet, glaring in the direction of the attack, then paused, baffled, as two glowing-orange figures beared down on her. One, who she fully expected, was Hibiki, a determined glare in her eyes. The other, which she did not expect in the slightest, was the completely orange phantom of none other than Solaire of Astora.

Before she could react, Hibiki struck first, hitting her with a blow that sends her staggering back, followed by Solaire driving his shield into her face. She tries to fight back, but the duo hit from completely separate angles, leaving her unable to get her bearings as the assault forces her backwards.

As her captor stumbles out of range, Makoto feels the shackles loosen, then breaks free, immediately casting Mediarahan. Feeling her wounds knit close, Toph leaps to her feet and back into the fray, compressing a piece of the bell tower until it’s a perfectly smooth stone and shooting it at Lila, who feels it crack two ribs on impact. Balling her hand into a fist, Lila manages to create a lightning spear, stabbing forward into Hibiki’s chest and knocking the girl back, only for Solaire to continue forcing her back with a thrust of his sword.

Seeing that the knight and Toph, who moved closer to and continued hurling projectiles at Lila, had it under control, Makoto crouched by Hibiki, checking the younger girl for any wounds, then asked, “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine! We’re going to win, Makoto, we just need to keep fighting!”

“Yes, we do, but…”

She glances warily at the glowing phantom as he swipes at Lila with his sword, then staggers back as she kicks him in the head, then forces him backwards with a boulder to the chest. The knight recovers with a simple shake of his head, then keeps fighting, stabbing forward confidently.

“Where did Solaire come from, exactly? As I recall, he’s dead, correct?”

“I don’t know, but he’s helping us, just like he said he would!”

With a small smile, Makoto nodded, remembering Gwen’s words to the sullen knight about his quest for a sun. Maybe, in the end, she’d been right. Pushing the pang of guilt from her mind, she helped Hibiki to her feet, then looked to her, determined and ready.

“She’s almost done for, so let’s wipe her out! Toph, Hibiki, let’s get payback for Gwen.”

She took a deep breath as both girls paused to listen to her.

“It’s time for an All-Out Attack!”

In unison, the three attacked, Makoto and Hibiki quickly closing the distance to assault Lila with a flurry of blows while Toph kept her from getting breathing room with a series of well-timed pillars. As Lila tried to counter, she was knocked into the air by a final pillar, then blasted out of the sky with a lightning spear.

Sizzling, body broken and completely exhausted, Lila simply lies there, cursing to herself as the four surround her. As Solaire raises his sword, Lila smirks spitefully and manages to mumble, “Almost had you,” before the blade pierces her chest, killing her.

Pulling his sword from her body, Solaire turns to the trio of girls, each bruised and weary, but victorious, and gives a single nod before raising his arms to the sun a final time, then vanishing. In his place came an eerie silence, which hung over the damage and destruction inflicted during the fight, and Makoto glanced wearily towards the gate as it began to open.

“So,” said Toph, awkwardly scratching the back of her head as they began to walk to the exit. “This is it? Game’s over, we all go home?”

Frowning, Hibiki hesitated.

“Wait, if we all go home, does this mean we’ll never see each other again? But…you’re both my friends, and so was Gwen, and even Solaire, even if we didn’t know each other that long.”

Doing her best to ignore the truth of the statement, Makoto stopped and put a reassuring hand on Hibiki’s shoulder.

“I just know we’ll find each other again, Hibiki. No matter what happens, we’re a team, and teams stick together.”

All three were startled as a loud voice boomed, “That you will!” and the same B from the start of the game appeared in the sky, hanging over all of them. They each prepared to attack it, but the voice kept talking, seemingly ignorant to them.

“Congratulations to you three, the winners of the second ever Color Royale! By working together and fighting admirably, you managed to triumph over the Impostors and seize your reward!”

Perking up at the mention of a reward, Toph cupped her hands together and shouted back, “What kinda prize we talking?”

“Well, that’s an easy one. You each get a nice new home in DFederal, and you’ll get to stick together and see all your various friends again.”

The three exchanged confused looks, and Makoto asked, hesitantly, “DFederal? But, I live in Tokyo.”

“Look, it’ll make sense once you cross that finish line, trust me.”

With that, the B went silent, and the three exchanged wary, uncertain looks. Makoto glanced at the gate again, the sense of relief turning into one of suspicion, and contemplated their next move. The game’s host hardly seemed trustworthy, but there appeared to be no other way of escape. Hibiki looked to Toph, asking curiously, “You can sense if someone’s lying, right? Can we trust him?”

Toph facepalmed, then replied, “I can sense a heartbeat, and whatever the sky voice is, it doesn’t exactly have a heart.”

After a long silence, Makoto spoke.

“I say we cross the gate. If he’s serious about us winning, then it should be safe.”

Toph seemed uncertain, asking, “Are you sure it’s a good choice?”

“It’s the only one we have.”

As the other two hesitated, Hibiki strode forward confidently, coming to a stop right before the gate, then looked back to them, giving a big, confident smile.

“If anything bad happens, I want you both to know that I’m glad I met you, and that we formed this team. You’re right, Makoto, no matter happens, we’ll all see each other again.”

She stepped through, vanishing in a burst of light, shocking both Toph and Makoto. As the light faded, they both took a deep breath, then ran after her, vanishing as well, leaving nothing but the ruins of the campus, which began to break apart into stray bits of code. In a matter of moments, the entire campus was gone, replaced with the cold, gray interior of the battledome.

---

Witnessing the simulation dissolve, Beast leaned back and punched the air in triumph.

“Fuck yeah, another Color Royale in the books! We crushed that shit!”

He offered a high five to Kerry, who hesitantly reciprocated, then Cary, who was too focused on his computer to play along. Adjusting his glasses, he asked, “Is there a particular reason you didn’t congratulate them personally?”

Beast sheepishly dug his hands into pockets and replied, “The last time I did that, the winner almost murdered me, so I decided I’ll probably just stick with the whole “ominous voice” schtick in the future.”

Kerry chuckled.

“Sheesh, you really do need bodyguards.”

Finishing his work, Cary finally looked up from the computer and inquired, “Well, with the simulation complete, is there anything else you need from us?”

Beast shrugged.

“Nah, not really. Just hang around while I finish the expert’s opinion, then we can head out. Honestly, great work, man. Once Ramona gets back, you can take a few days off, you’ve earned it.”

Surprised by the compliment, Cary gave an appreciative nod, then exited the office with Kerry, who was already asking where they’d go for dinner. Watching them leave, Beast sighed, sitting back in his chair and cueing up the expert’s opinion, with the quiet clicking of his typing becoming the only sound in the room.

Epilogue

“So, what, you don’t trust her now?”

Toph, having stepped away from the chaotic hustle and bustle of Hibiki’s housewarming party, which had gone from a quiet affair to a full on bash with her, Makoto, and Toph’s various friend groups, lifted a small rock with her bending, flicking it towards a soda can sitting on the fence surrounding the fairly lavish property and smirking as it hit it’s target dead-on. For his part, Zuko, sitting on a rock, nodded, impressed, then shrugged.

“It’s tough, I do like Lun Lun, and I don’t think she’d ever lead me astray. It’s just…she killed me.”

“So? You tried to kill me, Aang, and the rest of the team how many times?”

“Trying and actually doing it are very different things. Besides, I never wanted to kill Aang, I just wanted to capture him and bring him back to earn my father’s pride.”

Toph chuckled, then knocked another bottle off the fence with a pebble.

“Sure, man, whatever you wanna call it.”

Zuko, a conflicted expression still across his face, took out the thumb drive given to him by his estranged school friend and turned it over in his hands. Tucking it back into his tunic, he looked to Toph, who was focusing intently on one of the rocks on the ground, and asked, “You really think I should trust this?”

She shrugged, then flicked the rock into the air, where it ricocheted between each remaining can, knocking them off the fence, then back into her hand, causing her to beam with pride.

“I’m just saying, we took a chance on you, and I think it paid off.”

Zuko smiled slightly, then replied, “Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

With that, he stood up from his perch, mumbling something about having to pass something along to Akechi, while Toph focused on lifting up the bottles on pillars to try and beat her record. As Zuko vanished back into the mansion, she gave a small, proud smile.

---

Sitting at his desk, resting his chin on his good hand, Artorius Collbrande surveyed his strange guest with curiosity. For his part, Solaire of Astora sat up straight, doing his best to not knock over his shield as it sat by his chair.

“So, Mr. Solaire, would you care to explain what draws you to this organization?”

Solaire perked up at the question, his voice slightly muffled by his helmet but his enthusiasm still immensely evident.

“Yes, all this time, I’d searched in vain for my own precious sun, one that I could admire and guide me through life and the dangerous world that surrounds me. But, time and again, I failed to find it, falling deep into a despair from which I thought I’d never recover. That is, until one day, when a kindly group of strangers helped me reach a revelation: I could be the sun that I desired! I could guide and aid others, protect them with my strength, serve as an inspiration, and I believe that the Abbey is the way to do it! If you’ll allow it, I shall lend my blade to your cause!”

Artorius stroked his chin. The knight could have his uses, given his apparently considerable strength and his clear devotion to any cause willing to take him, but he, ironically, didn’t strike him as the brightest. And, of course, the question of whether the knight would agree with the Order’s true purpose remained to be seen. But, regardless, when conflict arose, he could always use the aid.

“Very well, Solaire. My guard force could use someone with your skillset when it comes to aiding those in need. Consider yourself inducted.”

Solaire shot up from his chair and excitedly offered his hand to Artorius, who hesitantly shook it.

“You’re a true saint, Artorius. I can see why so many spoke so kindly of you, and I assure you that I will not let you down. I shall help a new sun rise upon this city.”

He paused, shifting footing awkwardly, seemingly lost in thought, then added, “Although, there may be one complication.”

Artorius gestured for him to explain further, and he continued.

“You see, King Wass, he…he would like to me to join his “King’s Guard”. To pledge myself in service of a king is great honor indeed, but I still would like to lend aid to those who need it. Tis the pledge of a Warrior of Sunlight. I am…conflicted.”

It was a complicated dilemma, Artorius conceded. On one hand, the knight doing both jobs represented the risk of infiltration, of the city’s masters uncovering his plot before it was ready, but on the other, it was King Wass, largely apathetic to the various goings-on and more focused on his specific niches, and it did represent a chance to have one of his agents close to leadership. Perhaps, just maybe, it could represent opportunity. He took a step towards Solaire and put his hand on the knight’s shoulder, a calming smile crossing his face, then answered, “Do not fret, Solaire. I’m certain we can find a way to make it fit into your schedule. Now, before you go, may I ask you a simple question?”

Solaire nodded.

“Why is it, you think, that birds fly?”

The knight seemed confused by the question, glancing downwards as he pondered it to himself with a quiet “hmmm”. He’d never pondered the purpose of birds before. After all, they never pondered him, so why should he do the same when they were simply going about their own quests? After a few moments, the answer seemed to come to him, and he happily replied with, “So that they may be closer to the sun, to feel it’s glorious, nurturing warmth upon their wings, letting it carry and guide them to a new day!”

Artorius chuckled and shook his head.

“An interesting line of thinking. You’re dismissed, Solaire.”

The knight saluted, picked up his shield, then headed for the door, still pondering the strange question, but excited for his new opportunities. He’d finally found it, a true purpose.

His precious sun.

---

Deep within the sewers of DFederal, a flickering television, one of several stacked atop one another that were playing the various channels available to the city’s inhabitants, focused on Beast, standing at a podium, giving a surprisingly competent speech as Bayonetta spoke over him.

“Chairman Beast congratulated the hard work of the DFPD and the contractors hired to begin the opening stages of development for DFederal’s first official prison, citing it’s construction, alongside his recently issued executive order designed to crack down on the recent violence against the city’s homeless population and their advocates, as the beginning of a new, quote, “kinder, gentler” era in the city’s history. At the time, polling on the construction is mixed, with homeless advocates calling the move long overdue, while skeptics argue that an alternative to the DFPD’s execution policy will simply reduce the risks for criminals. As of now, construction is slated to finish by-“

The television flicked off, and both Jim Raynor and Zero turned to look at their leader, Doctor Doom, as he tossed the remote aside, letting it land on his desk, mask betraying no emotion.

“So, he seeks to finally fulfill his broken promises of fixing the city? How curious.”

Zero spoke first.

“Yes, his speech reminded me of how he spoke back during his meetings with us, although the fact that he has failed to respond to our coded messages is…troubling. He’s not been the same since last spring.”

Doom nodded coldly, and Raynor stepped forward, clearing his throat.

“You think he’s gonna be a problem?”

At this, Doom laughed, a booming, menacing laugh that echoed through the sewers, and both of his lieutenants gave each other wary glances as the laughter ceased as it abruptly as it had begun.

“Of course not. He’s a bumbling do-gooder, convinced he can save this city without tearing out the very rot that he’s part of. No, there are other threats to us that I’m far more concerned about.”

He nods towards one of the televisions, depicting Artorius Collbrande handing out food at a local Abbey-funded soup kitchen.

“For now, let us focus our efforts on this Artorius. I suspect he plays a much larger game than he lets on. If our cause is to succeed, he must be eliminated.”

Expert’s Opinion

13^th: Koichi Hirose. Despite the versatility of his Stand, Koichi’s overly trusting nature and tendency to draw shadier characters to him made him an easy target for the Impostors, and with no friends to bail him out, he was the first to go.

12^th: Megamind. Many of the assets that made Megamind such an effective supervillain worked against him as a crewmember, with his bombastic personality and general appearance quickly isolating him from any possible allies, allowing for a fairly easy frame-up.

11^th: Solaire of Astora. The people’s champion, Solaire wasn’t able to compete effectively in a situational royale like this. He’s too kind-hearted and simplistic for the subterfuge and detective work required for the scenario, while the Impostor’s skill sets each gave them options to get around his considerable skill in combat and eliminate him without the need for a fight.

10^th: Hawke. Hawke is confident, a skilled leader, and a dangerous mage, but all those traits simply made him a target for the Impostors once the more obvious eliminations had died. His lack of understanding of modern tech also slowed him down considerably, making it much easier for him to be isolated and taken out. Eliminating him simply became too important for him to stick around too long.

8^th: Mace Windu and Pupil. The two obvious detectives of the game, Pupil and Mace both were taken out to prevent them from putting the identities of the Impostors together too soon. Both were formidable combatants, but both were brought down in ways specific to their own shortcomings, with Mace’s headstrong and cold personality making it hard to work with others while Pupil’s more limited set of abilities meant she ultimately couldn’t hold her own against the more crafty Impostors.

7^th: Loki. While his shapeshifting and skill at trickery enabled him to get far, Loki was screwed over by his enormous arrogance and overly suspicious behavior. He could only stay ahead of the crew for so long, and eventually, a craftier killer was able to outwit him.

6^th: Captain Cold. Snart fell into a similar boat as Loki thanks to his Cold Gun, which limited his methods of stealthily eliminating crew members without raising suspicion, and without it, he’s a normal (if very clever and skilled) man, making him no match for the more powerful members of the crew.

5^th: Gwen Tennyson. Gwen fell less through any failure on her part and more because she was simply the easiest to frame of the remaining crew members. She’s intelligent, friendly, and good at both leading and working within a greater team, but her magic is also incredibly distinctive, enabling the Impostors to sew mistrust among her allies. Despite her considerable magical talent, she just isn’t strong enough to hold her own when she’s isolated.

4^th: Lila Pitts. Lila had all the makings of an excellent Impostor: a unique ability that made it easy to deflect blame, a natural talent for deception, and combat skill that made her incredibly dangerous even without any stolen abilities. Like Gwen, she lost less through any fault of her own, and more simply because she just couldn’t overcome the sheer power and teamwork of her three final targets. Despite her confidence in her abilities, she simply picked a fight she couldn’t win.

1^st: Makoto Niijima, Hibiki Tachibana, and Toph Beifong. Each of the surviving crew members brought something that enabled them to walk away the winners. Makoto functioned as both an effective support and a cool head to effectively lead the team, while her Persona gave her a variety of combat options that enabled to both lay down the hurt and boost her teammates, Hibiki was far and away the physically strongest player, with Gungnir’s status as an artifact making her impossible to copy, overcoming her somewhat naïve demeanor, while Toph acted as both an effective tank and lie detector, making it impossible for someone to effectively deceive or get the drop on the group. Working together, the three were an unstoppable trio, covering up their various flaws with each other’s strengths, allowing them to prevail in the 2^nd ever Color Royale.