Rise of the Strong

By L.T. Emery, C. Marry Hultman and Callum Pearce

Earth is under attack.

With unknown motives, super villain Oblitorus, is orchestrating a worldwide invasion. Attacking cities with bizarre monsters and minions and taking on the worlds' established superheroes.

The mysterious organization SafeGuard enlists agent Brax to recruit a new group of heroes from the reaches of time and space

• Language: English
• Publisher: Nordic Press
• Release date: Oct 26, 2022
• ISBN: 9789189853195

L.T. Emery

Luke EmeryL. T. Emery is a British author, with a love for Horror, Sci-fi, and Fantasy genres. He is the proud father of one and husband to the love of his life. Outside of family life, he is an avid reader of novels, genre magazines, comics, manga, and just about anything else he can get his hands on. With a particular love of long-form fiction, he is currently working on a fantasy novel which he hopes to publish in the future.

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PROLOGUE

L. T. Emery

Outside of time and space, SafeGuard Headquarters

Oblitorus has returned, announced The Director of SafeGuard. 

Agent Brax stood next to his boss looking over a holo-model of London, their faces ashen. They watched the real time blue-opaque holo, as the capital of England was invaded by SafeGuard’s biggest threat; a figure known as Oblitorus, Destroyer of Worlds. 

The Director pinched his fingers and the holo zoomed in closer on Oblitorus. The mysterious, hulking figure of Oblitorus stood victorious atop the ashes of St Paul’s Cathedral, one handheld aloft, cupping the decapitated head of one of England’s premier superheroes. 

Is that The Lion? Brax asked. 

Who knows, said The Director. There are too many superheroes in this world to remember right now. 

Then Oblitorus’s probing white eyes shifted from beneath a black hood and seemed to stare directly at Brax and The Director as they watched. Inviting them to come. To challenge him. 

The world is under attack, The director finally announced. Swiping a hand over the holo-image, he revealed New York, swipes again, Prague, again, Rotterdam, Paris, Tokyo, Moscow. All aflame. All under attack. Hulking villains, blood-thirsty monsters and gangs of robots ran amok. It was just the beginning. Finally, the image settled back on London and Oblitorus. 

Oblitorus flung the bloody head to one side, swept his flowing black cape aside and raised his other arm out in front of him, and the world seemed to shimmer. He walked into and through the shimmer, a portal. 

Where is he headed? The Director demanded. 

Silence seemed to stretch for an eternity. 

Where? Raged The Director. 

Brax stood nonplussed by the outburst. There, he finally said. He’s appeared in Fringe City. 

The Director’s eyes widened as realisation hit. My god, he whispered. The Just? 

The Just are en route to meet him, but I fear... Brax trailed off. 

Brax narrowed his eyes and looked to The Director. He already knew what he must do. What would be asked. It was time for plan B. Brax felt the tingle of anticipation. His life had led to this moment. 

Brax, The Director said. Unite the Strong.

Voidshift: Just Deserts 

David Green 

Present Day. Fringe City, USA.

Consider this your audition, kid. Captain Perfect flashed his shining white smile, his unblemished blue eyes twinkling in the sunlight. Show me you deserve to stand beside us. Become one of The Just!" 

Chet Andrews, known in his hometown of Fringe City as Voidshift, glanced at the leader of the world’s most famous superhero team. Decked out in his gleaming red battle-armour—shaped with perfection to accentuate every muscle and sinew in his Adonis-like body—Captain Perfect laughed to himself; a sneer fixed on those perfect lips. Chet knew all too well the image The Just’s PR foot soldiers pumped out didn’t meet the reality. He’d met with The Just before, enjoyed their company for the most part, but the Captain’s perfection only went skin-deep. Beneath the surface of the team’s leader lurked the soul of a sociopathic bully. ‘Super Jock’ Chet called him. 

Well out of earshot, of course. 

What do you want me to do? Chet bristled, struggling to keep the heat from his voice. He hated it when Captain Perfect called him ‘kid.’ Sure, he’d just turned twenty, but he’d fought on the streets since his powers manifested on his thirteenth birthday. He’d seen plenty of shit normal folk wouldn’t believe but, for now, he could live with Super Jock’s pompous bull. 

Oblitorus had attacked Fringe City, and The Just arrived to challenge him. Without them, Chet stood no chance in defending his hometown. 

A supervillain of legend. One who existed aeons ago, one who nobody really believed existed. But exist he did, and he’d picked Fringe City as the place to announce his return. 

Try to stay alive, kid. Captain Perfect thumbed the comm unit at his wrist, the signal for the rest of The Just to form up. "Something tells me this Oblitorus means business, you’ve read the stories? Time to see if they’re true. You not dying might impress me. Might." 

Chet’s eyebrows formed into a ‘V’, and he swallowed the sharp retort that slipped onto his lips. Instead, he studied Oblitorus, who stood unmoving in the crater his arrival created in the centre of Morley Park. Arms crossed across his barrelled chest, the legends spoke of him being the universe’s most dangerous supervillain, but he’d disappeared, defeated by an even more mythical opponent. In truth, Chet had never believed in him, thinking him nothing more than a boogieman made up to frighten young supes. Oblitorus stared upwards at Captain Perfect, a knowing smile fixed to his lantern-jaw. Behind him loomed a silvery-metallic container, almost coffin-like in shape but larger. It had wedged itself in the dirt when it landed, before the shock waves sunk the surrounding ground and turned the trees into shredded bark. Corpses of those caught in the impact littered the crater; mangle bodies with limbs pointing this way and that, unseeing eyes beseeching the heavens. Chet struggled to ignore the stench of death, though it didn’t appear to bother Super Jock. 

He’s not doing anything. It took Chet a moment to realise he’d spoken his thoughts aloud. With a shake of his head, he finished his thought, why’d he come here? 

The crunch of boots from behind made him spin. 

Probably because you’re the only supe in Fringe City, Voidshift, Nuke laughed, slapping Chet on the shoulder. He almost sank into the dirt. The man resembled a giant grey muscle with arms, legs, and a face. A joker, but a berserker in a fight. Old chrome-dome down there probably reckoned if he turned up here, we’d have to come meet him to stop him from... well, obliterating the entire town. No offence. 

Vigilante drew up alongside Nuke, looking like a child even though he topped six-foot-four. Skilled in several martial arts and possessing an almost inhuman threshold for pain matched by his drive, Vigilante’s brain remained his greatest strength. 

That begs the question, the black-clad hero whispered. He even spoke that way off-duty. Why does he want to draw us out? Oblitorus has been gone for centuries, and we have no quarrel with him, we do not know him. Have never faced him. Picking neutral ground works in his favour—away from our lairs, we don’t know the lay of the land—but still, this doesn’t make sense. He is alone. One man. Even with this place in his favour, how can he expect to defeat all of us? 

He can’t, Goddess replied, winking at Chet. He gave up, forcing the colour from his cheeks. A battle he’d lost too many times to count. Still, he flipped down his shades so the warrior couldn’t see his eyes move up her long legs, bare midriff, and above. He’d tried maintaining eye contact a long time ago, and discovered it rendered him mute. Other than fighting thugs, Chet didn’t get out much. Besides, he’d just turned twenty. No one can beat us. Though many have tried. 

The air popped, and dirt showered Chet. He didn’t mind; it pulled his attention away from Goddess.  

Sorry about that, Torque grinned, the speedster fidgeted as she spoke, a constant flurry of motion. Came in a little hot. We taking part in a staring contest with that fucker, or are we gonna fight? 

I am with Vigilante, a solemn voice came from above. LGM floated above them, an alien from the planet Exxo, his civilisation’s only survivor when Oblitorus came to visit. The supervillain, it turns out, hadn’t been dormant in his time away from Earth. LGM had warned them many times he would return and lay waste to their planet as he had to countless others. Super Jock had laughed. ‘If he exists, let him fucking try.’ Chet met LGM’s eyes then turned away focusing on anything else. The little green man put thoughts into people’s heads. Could get a sorry son of a bitch to do anything it willed. Captain Perfect. We do not know our foe’s motives, but I know he seeks to destroy. My planet’s combined might could not stop him. I would recommend caution until we do. Namely, we must discover what is inside that container. It is of great importance to Oblitorus, I sense. 

No offence, LGM, Captain Perfect smirked. Your mind tricks are a neat trick, but you’re a fucking pansy, and so were the rest of your planet. 

A booming laugh echoed up the crater’s slopes, washing over Chet and The Just. Oblitorus’ shoulders shook with mirth until he held out a straight arm, pointing at the assembled superheroes. 

Oh, my friends, wouldn’t you like to know? You’ll find out soon enough. 

Damn right we will, Torque spat, moving into a runner’s starting position. 

Wait! Vigilante hissed, too late. 

A blur of motion, Torque shot off, leaving a trail of colour and dirt in her wake, heading for Oblitorus and the container. The fastest person alive. She could reach and open it before anyone else moved a muscle. 

Oblitorus swooped and unfurled a haymaker. A crack followed by a sonic boom brought gasps from The Just. From the blur of movement, Torque came flying out. Blood gushing from her ruined nose as she crashed into the dirt by the supervillain’s feet. 

Voidshift, Captain Perfect yelled, a wild look in those baby-blues. Teleport down there. Bring her back. Now! 

A small voice in Chet’s head reminded him that Super Jock could move with almost as much speed as Torque, and he possessed as much strength as Nuke to defend himself. But he quashed it, readying to shift. Chet summoned pockets of black holes, travelling through them to anywhere he wanted in an instant. He could trap foes in his wake and had practised until he made his skill—his weapon—safe for those around him. 

Chet closed his eyes and felt the energies inside him swirl; his heart thudding like a jackhammer, blood rushing in his ears before it all slowed to a crawl, right before that moment he...shif— 

Wait! Goddess cried, grabbing Chet’s shoulders. 

Time returned to normal as his eyes flew open.  

Oblitorus held Torque by the neck, her dangling legs kicking at the massive humanoid’s stomach with little effect, her fingers moving faster than Chet’s eyes could keep up with as she worked to pry open the supervillain’s grip. 

Long have I sought to uncover The Just’s secret. Yes, I have heard of you all. I do not come unprepared, Oblitorus growled, holding Torque up at the group like a rag doll. How I, the universe’s mightiest being, could still be defeated by a ragtag group of ‘heroes’ like I was on this planet before, so long ago. Defeated by charlatans, more like, just like you are. A cosmic conspiracy, with Earth at is centre. I discovered the Elders. Why do they favour you, I wonder? 

No, Captain Perfect whispered. Chet’s blood ran cold at the naked fear painted on Super Jock’s face. He lies. 

What if he doesn’t? Vigilante growled. 

We’re fucked. Nuke’s voice came out weak, strangled. 

We should leave, LGM intoned, descending to the ground, appearing smaller than his meagre four-feet height. 

Agreed, Goddess replied with a shake of her head. 

Anger almost made Chet shift. Just like that? You’ll run away, leave Torque in his clutches because of words? Cowards! 

Heroes know when to pick their battles, Vigilante whispered. 

Chet spat. And you, Captain. You’ll run with your tail between your fucking legs? 

He flinched when Captain Perfect spun, hands balled into fists. Another rumble from Oblitorus stopped him in his tracks. 

Look at you, fighting amongst yourselves when faced with the truth. Chet felt the supervillain’s crimson stare boring into him. Though you, I do not recognise. You they do not write about. Never mind, by being here you have ensured your position as a footnote in the history books. The day The Just met their end. 

Vigilante pushed by Captain Perfect, who stared at his boots, shamefaced, like he wanted the ground to swallow him whole. Chet felt his lip curl. 

Please... Torque gasped, her kicks and frantic fingers slowing. Let me go... I’ll run; I’ll leave you alone. 

Let the girl go and we’ll talk, Oblitorus. Vigilante’s whisper carried through the crater. "The Elders mean nothing to us. If you have researched us, you know me well enough to know I do not boast, so listen well when I say this. You talk of secrets, but this is a fact: we have never been defeated. What makes today any different?" 

Oblitorus grinned and right then, Chet knew The Just were fucked. 

I thought you’d never ask. It’s at this time, with you all confronting me, I would falter, change my mind, let my captive escape... but change is in the air. Do you feel it? 

Goddess screamed, LGM shrank smaller still, Vigilante sank to his knees, Nuke raged, and Captain Perfect continued to stand there, listless. Torque’s neck bones crunched, the sound filling the air as Oblitorus squeezed. Her head lolled, tongue hanging from her mouth, eyes blank like the corpses surrounding them. And he continued to crush. Satisfied, he stared into her face and nodded, then tossed her at The Just’s feet. 

As you can see, the playing field is even. I can kill you, defeat you, and I do not fear your retribution. 

Captain. Vigilante knelt beside Torque’s broken body, reaching out with gentle fingers to close her eyes. You know what this means? He knows, he isn’t lying. 

He can’t, LGM whined, his luminous eyes darting this way and that. We tied off any loose ends. The Elders wouldn’t betray us. 

He knows, and they have. Goddess grated, drawing her sword. And we’ve nowhere to run. 

Nuke grabbed Captain Perfect’s shoulder, spinning him around. A flicker of annoyance crossed his chiselled, all-American features, but he said nothing. What are we gonna do, Cap? You’re our leader, and you’re just fucking st— 

Hissing from the container cut Nuke off. Steam pumped from the metallic casings, but Oblitorus ignored it. He watched The Just instead. Smiling. Chet was no Empath, but as he glanced around, the overriding emotion oozing from the world’s foremost team of heroes oozed over him. He licked his lips, a nervous tick he could never shake, and could taste the feeling in the air. 

Fear. 

The Just had a secret, and Oblitorus had discovered it. The dread seeping from the team unsettled him, but Captain Perfect’s reaction made him want to void out of there right away; America’s Soldier, Super Jock, the impossible specimen of absolution and justice had given up without a fight. 

But Chet couldn’t leave. He believed in doing the right thing. In protecting innocents. In standing up to tyranny. The Just had their issues, Captain Perfect’s rotten core first and foremost, but they fought against supervillains, kept them all in check. Chet would stand by their sides until the bitter end. 

The container door fell to the ground with a clatter, steam obscuring what it hid inside. 

Long I sought your secret having heard of your unrivalled achievements, Oblitorus’ voice boomed. "How you remained undefeated, when I washed my hands in the blood of so many other superheroes, on countless worlds. For centuries, I remained unopposed, but prudence told me I could not face you. Even Vigilante, a mere human, and LGM, an insect whose planet I turned to glass! Why?" 

The smoke cleared. Chet squinted, the shadow of a figure forming. But Captain Perfect saw it first. He would. The Just’s leader dropped to his knees. 

No, he whispered. 

Goddess stuck her sword’s point into the dirt, leaned on it. They didn’t betray, but this is worse. We’re done. We’re fucking done. 

Oblitorus grinned. The fear turning Chet’s stomach, urging him to void the hell out of there, no doubt tasted sweet to the supervillain. "I’d discounted the Elders. They remained aloof, watchful. Or so I thought. They told me everything. The Universe’s Mightiest Heroes. Pah!" 

We can do this, Vigilante snarled. We’ve beaten everyone in our path. Everyone. If we work together... 

Oblitorus reached through the dissipating steam and pulled out a robed, lizard-like figure. Its panic-stricken orange eyes caught the sunlight as it gibbered in a language alien to Chet. Its clawed feet hung limp, as if it understood that whatever it did, its fate was signed, sealed and almost delivered. 

Last one left. Oblitorus boomed, holding the Elder out in front of him as he grasped its arms, like he held an old Stretch Armstrong toy. A wonder you didn’t sense your powers ebbing with each of the Elder’s deaths? As I proved with Torque, the spell of immortality they granted you, when they moved in secret against me, has grown thin. I fancy I could overpower you and make this cretin watch. But better safe, as the saying goes. 

The ancient alien’s screams reached a crescendo as Oblitorus ripped him apart. Crimson blood and gore showered the laughing super villain as he pulled, tearing the Elder apart, the cries of pain cutting off into sudden silence. 

Holding the two pieces of the lizard in his hands, Oblitorus tossed them to the ground, then leapt right into the midst of The Just. 

He caught them unawares, landing with a thump. Dirt sprayed everywhere, the sonic wave of his landing knocking Chet off his feet. 

It saved him. 

Oblitorus’ mighty fist slammed down where he’d stood a second before, but the super villain kept moving, a wrecking ball, sewing chaos and destruction with wild swings and kicks. Spinning away from the attack on Chet, he slammed a palm into Vigilante’s chest; Chet heard the sickening crunch when Oblitorus’ collapsed his body armour and broke the superhero’s breastbone.  

He kept up the flurry, kicking out at Goddess and catching her on the jaw, snapping it. Her blood coloured the grey dirt at her feet as she crashed to the ground.  

Work together! LGM screamed, flying up into the air.  

Oblitorus snatched at him, grabbing an ankle. Not so fast, little bug. 

No! Captain, Nuke... anyone. Hel— 

Oblitorus pulled him closer, like a rock crusher waiting at the end of a conveyor belt. He grabbed LGM waist, then his midriff, his neck. Holding the alien’s cranium that housed its brilliant mind, Oblitorus squeezed and popped it like a water balloon. Brain matter covered him, mixing with the blood and gore. He smiled through it and turned to Chet. 

The attack had lasted seconds. Vigilante lay in a heap, his broken chest rattling. Goddess tried getting to her knees but dropped to the ground. LGM gone. Captain Perfect knelt still, gazing at the metallic container as if nothing else in the world mattered. 

A small voice told Chet he had it right. To Super Jock, nothing did. He lived for that secret, that power the Elders gave them. Without it, he amounted to nothing.

The ground trembled. A guttural roar split Chet’s ears. Nuke, disorientated from the initial assault, entered the fray.  

The berserker charged, kicking up dirt and dust and slammed into Oblitorus, who met his stampede without shirking. The impact sounded like a concussion grenade’s explosion, the sound wave hitting Chet and sending him sprawling. Without thinking, he called on the Void and shifted out of harm’s way, appearing fifty yards away in the blink of an eye. 

I could do something. I should. Oblitorus and Nuke grappled with each other, staggering this way and that, skittering close to the fallen superheroes. Goddess shook her head as she forced herself up. She can move. That leaves the Captain and Vigilante. Super Jock can help himself. 

Chet shifted, reappearing next to Vigilante. A roar from Nuke snatched his attention. The berserker continued to cry as he lifted Oblitorus from the ground, every muscle taught and threw him... right on top of Goddess. 

Her muffled screams didn’t last long as the super villain’s body crushed the air from her lungs. 

Kid... Chet met Vigilante’s eyes. Tears leaked from them, ran under his mask. Blood oozed from his mouth. Through his ruined chest, he saw the man’s laboured heart pump. Get out of here. We...can’t...sto— 

Another blast interrupted Vigilante’s dying words. Oblitorus had slammed into Nuke once more, forcing the berserker to his knees. Their fingers gripped each other. A battle of pure brute strength, one that Nuke lost. The super villain forced him lower. 

You know, I have other powers, other abilities. Oblitorus drove his forehead into Nuke’s, smashing his nose. Did it a second time for good measure. But I wanted to prove it to myself. For decades, hearing of your tales in each corner of the galaxy, I thought myself inferior. No. Your strength is a parlour trick, nothing more. You and the Elders stacked the odds against me in a game I didn’t know I played. I do not need my powers to defeat the likes of The Just. My bare hands will do just fine. 

Nuke’s arms snapped at the elbows as Oblitorus pulled on even more strength. The hero snarled, cried, whimpered as another headbutt crashed into his face. His moans of pain turned into sputters as Oblitorus choked the life out of him. 

Chet turned to Captain Perfect, and so did Oblitorus. 

Lasting man standing, the hulking super villain laughed, letting Nuke fall to the ground. Or kneeling. As it should be. 

Captain Perfect, back to them, still fixed on the container, rolled his shoulders, and hope stirred in Chet’s soul. If anyone could still defeat Oblitorus, The Just’s leader could. He had to. 

America’s Soldier climbed to his feet and turned, a stray whisper of wind catching his cloak and setting it to flutter as the sun set behind him.  

The hope bloomed. You can do this, Cap. You must! 

Captain Perfect lifted an arm, a finger pointed, and aimed it at Chet. What about him? 

His instincts told him to shift, and Chet followed them. Two hundred yards away, he reappeared, heart in his mouth, limbs trembling, his brain spinning. Captain Perfect aimed Oblitorus at Chet? 

Fuck you, Super Jock. I’ll see you in Hell. 

But Oblitorus didn’t follow. He strode up to Captain Perfect, who blinked as the super villain said... something. Just two words. Chet couldn’t hear them, not from that distance, but a short, disbelieving laugh followed Captain Perfect’s blinking. 

Oblitorus raised a fist, then slammed it into his chest, pulling out The Just’s leader’s still beating, rotten heart. 

Captain Perfect swayed on his feet before he joined his comrades in the dirt. 

Oblitorus turned, holding the heart out to Chet, then crushed it as he strode forward to meet him. 

Shift all you want, boy. You won’t run for long. 

A blast of wind buffered Chet from behind. Then hands grabbed at him, pulled him backward through a shimmering doorway. Through it, back in Morley Park, Oblitorus snarled and broke into a run, but the doorway blinked out of existence, leaving Chet in a darkened space. The hands left him, and he dropped to the ground, tears stinging his eyes as sobs wracked his body. 

Vigilante. Goddess. Nuke. Torque. LGM. Even Captain Perfect. He’d looked up to The Just since before his powers manifested. He’d wanted to emulate. Now they lay battered and broken, and it had all been a lie. 

"No one stands in Oblitorus’ way. We’re fucked. We’re all fucked." 

The buzz of electricity filled his ears. Chet lay in a room surrounded by computer banks and screens showing helicopter footage of The Just’s defeat. A live feed zoomed in on Oblitorus’ face. He smiled, then blinked out of existence as he teleported away. 

Not yet, kid. The name’s Brax, and I need your help. 

Chet spun. Behind him, eyes on the screens, stood a man dressed all in black with two handguns strapped to his thighs and a tanto short sword on his hip. 

My help? Chet spat. You saw the fight. I did nothing except watch those poor fuckers die. 

You survived, Voidshift, and that’s something. You heard what Oblitorus said to them all before they fought? Chet nodded. Good. You’re gonna tell me all about it. 

He said something at the end, to Captain Perfect. Made him laugh, but I couldn’t hear. 

Brax’s weary eyes narrowed. Then he shrugged. Guess we’ll have to find that out. Might be important. Grieve, kid, and get your shit together. Fast. This fight ain’t over. Not by a long shot. So long as you and I draw breath, it ain’t over. 

Brax held out a hand. Chet shook his head and pointed at the screens, replaying the massacre. 

What can two of us do against that?  

Brax grinned. Who said there’s only two?

Declan:

Of Beasts and Men 

Patrick Winters 

A time long before the fall of The Just, Eon Gallery. 

It was a wonderful burden, having the universe at his fingertips—a great and terrible thing which offered so many great and terrible opportunities, for a conqueror such as him. 

The whole, wide cosmos was his to play with and use to his advantage. With but a thought and a portal, he could go anywhere he wanted. So many options lay before him. But options brought decisions, and Oblitorus was now struggling to make a considerable one. He had to find the right place for his little weapon’s test. A particular cranny of existence with a proper, sizable population. But not so sizable as to attract prying eyes—at least, not quite yet. 

He pondered the matter further as he entered his Eon Gallery. It was a grand and cavernous space within his citadel, destined to house the many items and creatures he would attain through his great ventures; a museum to his many triumphs and travels, storing weapons and gains that could be of use in the future. 

There was a small offering already on display—but oh, so much room to grow. He possessed a Zandurian blaster. The religious texts of a Phraxian monk. A slumbering, green ape from the Proxima Rift. All safe upon their pedestals or within their cages. 

Oblitorus observed the items, his considerations fleeting, until a particular pedestal caught his eye. It displayed a simple billy club, taken from a police officer he’d eliminated on Earth, in Chicago of 1871. The officer—and two of his comrades—had happened upon him during an innocent bit of recon. They’d insisted on a tussle, and he’d obliged them. A fire started up in the whole ordeal, which spread far and wide across the city. An unintended occurrence on his part, but not a regrettable one; the flames burned away the remains of the interlopers and he’d revelled in the great blaze that followed. 

The club, and the memory associated with it, provided an answer to his current concerns. 

A city. One on Earth. That would be the best environment for his experiment. Humanity was developed enough to provide a potential fight. But the where remained to be decided. Which place on that loathsome marble would receive the honour of hosting his machinations? 

A shrill screech sounded out from over Oblitorus’ shoulder. The subject of his intended experiment was testing the cage he’d made, raking its claws and throwing its bulk against the confining plasma shield. He turned and faced it, grinning at its show of ferocity. It snarled back at him. 

There were a couple thousand more like it at his disposal, a rare species he’d found in a dark corner of the universe. They were a rambunctious sort, attacking him the moment he portaled onto their little rock of a home world. It had been a promising introduction—but he needed more. He needed to know what they could accomplish when they were let loose against his enemies. And if a single specimen could give him his desired mayhem, then it would stand to reason that the rest of its kind would make for a suitable addition to his armies. And if not, perhaps he’d cast them aside, like other beings and toys he’d thrown away in his conquests thus far. 

The creature let out another enraged cry, and Oblitorus chuckled. 

Now, now, he said through his laughter. I’ll let you out soon enough... 

1898 - County Tipperary, Ireland. 

His body was weary from the miles, and his soul was weary from what the miles had brought. Still, Declan