I talked to my dad one last time to make sure we both knew where the other would be and what not. He and Imp were both on a rescue team for any injured. I didn't get a chance to talk with Imp because she was busy arguing with one of the Wards, Grue I think it was. I found Cheshire talking with one of Dragon's many suits, apparently discussing some observations her power had made. I gave Will a dozen shield gems and hoped he would be okay in our house, as he would probably be arrested if sent to a bunker. One of the more empty Endbringer bunkers had been turned into a medical station where bioTinkers and Panacea we now at. Supesu set off his… supesu I guess, reinforcing the Crystal Heart with his own barrier. I gathered what potions I was able to, stamina, magic, strength, healing, perception, and durability all disappeared into my saddlebags. Normally, we over-focused on the healing and magic potions as my magic and Cheshire's faux Brute powers didn't necessarily need the other ones, but that wasn't the case today.

And with all that done, I drank a magic increasing potion and I flew to the tallest building in Brockton Bay where all the other flyers were gathering as we waited for the arrival of Behemoth. Everyone was silent when I got there, and all there was to do was wait. Standing there, completely silent, I began noticing that all my friends felt very far away. Every last one at some other part of the city.

But, then I realized that wasn't completely true. Glory Girl was here, giving me a reassuring smile. And Purity, with a slightly different costume than from before standing far off to the side. And while she wasn't close enough to quite be a friend, Whiplash from Team Vigil was here too. A wide grin spread across her face.

Legend walked up to me and silently held out an armband. I saw he was wearing one too and grabbed it with my hoof. After examining it for a moment, I figured out how it was supposed to go on. I had to put it on tightly though otherwise, it would probably fall off my leg. Oddly enough, it seemed to already have my name entered into it.

I looked up at the Simurgh, still miles above the city, and watched her continued to float around in small circles. The massive wings of hers reflecting the thin beams of sunlight still poking over the horizon as night crept closer. It looked like it was going to be a full moon.

Then the ground began to rumble. A light shake that only picked up in intensity. Looking towards the mountains I saw the land begin to deform. Then the Simurgh stopped circling and the bulge of water in the ocean moved forward. It was finally here.

Legend and Purity raised their hands, preparing a light beam as others with similar powers began to do the same. Including Lady Photon and Laserdream. I took the hint and bought a concussive beam to the tip of my horn, ready to cast at any moment.

Then Behemoth broke through the surface and the world was bathed in fire.

Flames, a mirage of blue, white, and red slammed into the barrier with an almost audible sound as The Heart protected the city. The flames swept around the massive bubble, blocking the Simurgh from sight as a burning smell overtook the setting. From one end of the city to another all there was to see was flames as the Behemoth attempt to scorch the city from the Earth.

The rush of flames barely lasted thirty seconds before it began to clear up. I resisted the urge to looked in that direction in case the Simurgh moved a moment later. But before it cleared up completely a mass of water crashed into the barrier from the other side, once again covering our line of sight as the Levithan's built up wave attempted to crush the city. Something only The Crystal Heart and maybe Supesu's barrier spared it from.

When the water finally cleared and the Simurgh was visible again we saw something that definitely hadn't been there before. A massive clouds hanging over our heads. The Simurgh moved forward with a flick of her wings, the cloud shooting ahead of her and crashing into the barrier with a decisive thud before quickly spreading out as a massively thick fog.

Instinctively, I shot magic toward my wings and chugged a potion while doing so. I forced the ethereal wings to get larger than I've ever made them before and gave them strongest thrust I could muster.

Fresh air shot through the fog like a bullet, clearing an open hole the size of a basketball court and letting us see the Endbringer rapidly approaching. And then a rainbow of multicolored energy beams lanced out into the sky at the approaching creature. Following that, every last person on and around the roof shot forward as fast as we possibly could, with me following half a second later.

Taking into the air with dozens of capes around me felt incredible in the few seconds it lasted before capes like Legend began to rapidly outpace me. I was still pretty fast though, keeping up with Glory Girl as we approached.

I thought Legend and a handful of others getting there first would have given me the advantage of being able to look for an opening in the fighting. But no, as Ziz began to twist in the air to dodge one a beam of light she locked eyes with me. Then she righted herself and flew directly towards me, quickly closing a thirty-foot gap between us.

I flew higher to get out of her path just as she twisted in the air to avoid some Brute flyer attempting to tackle her. The tips of her wings flared out and caught a couple beams before they hit her body before suddenly changing direction in midair and following me.

Wait, following me? Oh-

I was forced to teleport before one of her wings nearly slammed right into me, but I wasted no time retaliating. I was just behind her and her back was turned to me. I pooled my magic in my horn and let out a concussive beam. Strangely, she made no attempt to dodge as the beam slammed into her with all the power I put behind it.

She reacted as if slapped just before Glory Girl suddenly flew by and grabbed onto one of her wings, snapping it backward for a moment before the Simurgh threw her off. She turned back towards me, her wing flaring outward spectacularly. She dodged the next few attacks the people shot at her as she continued forward. Then my legband began to speak.

Teller down CD-9, Phsafil down CD-9, Acoustic deceased CD-1, Cloister deceased CD-8, Strav deceased CD-9, Geomancer down CD-1, Rockalanch down CD-2…

The names continued to pour in, one after another as the distant sounds of explosions and fighting went on. Comparatively, the Simurgh hadn't yet even hurt one of us as her attention seem too focused on me. For a moment I couldn't decide if that was a good thing or not, but then quickly decided if that was how it was going to be then it was less time she was hurting others.

I grit my teeth and flew backward as I levitated another potion out of my bags to keep me going. I didn't want to take them all at once and get wasteful with my power, but it might get annoying if every time I had to perform a spell I needed to take a potion out.

The Simurgh chased after me, darting through dozens of capes that all attempted to strike her. Most missed, but not even she could dodge this many attacks coming from so many directions. For all others, she defended herself with her wings.

Suddenly, I stopped flying and brought up a spell I had learned when figuring out enchanting. Fire.

I blasted a large stream of it directly into her face as she closed in on me. She attempted to pull out of the way, but the flames scorched a trail across her chest and one of her wings. Not even half a second after that a double helix of light exploded past, striking the Endbringer right in her stomach, sending her twisting through the air from the force.

There it was a second time. She doesn't even come close to avoiding my attacks and then she gets hit by someone else. But why would she… unless-

I was cut off by that line of thought as the Simurgh barreled towards me again. This time, I flew towards her, blasting a concussive beam as I flew. She twisted out of the way, managing to get her main body out of the way. But my beam caught her in her wings and I quickly started to correct its aim. Instantly, everyone's attacks began landing on her, tearing out chunks of feathers and what might be considered flesh from her. I grinned and doubled down on the beam drilling her.

"Nova!" Someone shouted. I don't know who, but they saw a wing I hadn't. But they didn't call my name soon enough, because a moment later the wing slammed into my lower body.

I was launched through the air, spinning out of control. I flared out my wings as I attempted right myself. Throwing up a shield and grabbing another magic potion as I did so. I wasn't even close to running low yet, but I was putting a lot of power into every single spell.

The moment I managed to right myself, I realized my mistake. I had stayed still.

The Simurgh's human-ish hand suddenly appeared, slamming into the side of my shield so hard it shattered on impact and launching me back faster than I normally fly. But instead of flying through the air, I slammed right into her wings.

I saw her other wings coming around to either crush or trap me when Legend appeared in between us in a burst of light. Beams shot out of both hands and struck the Simurgh. It seemed to distract her enough for me to start moving away, but half a second after I start flying the other way, a massive wing came through and smashed into both me and Legend with the same force that shattered my shield. I didn't even have a moment to hear my legband call out my name before my vision faded out.

---

Oh no, no, no. It can't end there! The fun just started. Besides, we're cartoons! You might as well act like it.

---

I came back to my senses lying on top of a... Fog cloud?

Shakily, I climbed to my hooves, the fog bank beneath me yielding slightly like I was walking on memory foam. Since when could I walk on clouds? Then again, when was the last time I touch a cloud?

I shook my head, there would be a time to think about that and now wasn't it.

Looking up, I saw the sky alight with beams of all colours and powers. Brutes like Glory Girl attempted to get close desperately like they had managed just a minute ago. While she was dodging almost every attack, they seemed to slow her downward progress to a crawl. Which, in the end, was exactly what we needed to do.

I saw massive black stones rising through the air from the direction Behemoth had come from and started floating towards the fighting. The Simrigh's telekinesis, probably. At least I knew she wasn't able to pull anything from the city. But things would get a lot harder once she had dozens of rocks in the air with her.

I consider things for a moment. Every time one of my attacks hit her, other were able too. When I was in contact with her wing Legend was able to appear and attack her. Just like how Cheshire can't use her power on me, like how Ergo had trouble understanding my magic, like how Armsmaster couldn't get an energy reading on it initially, like how Ragnarok's true name didn't affect me like the others.

I play out of a different rule book, and every time I touch the Simurgh it makes her vulnerable.

That's why the Endbringers where here, I realized, I'm a threat to them. That's why the Simurgh is focusing on me, she's afraid of what I might do.

It was almost enough to make me laugh. Instead, with renewed energy, I took out my remaining three magic potions and drank them all down before looking up at the Endbringer as she viciously killed two flyers with one of her wings. I threw up a shield around me and started flying as hard as I could.

An air cone began to form around my bubble shield as I flew faster and faster upwards, all the while my legband stating people's names in my ear. I let the names become static white noise, focusing only on the target in front of me. I announced my presence with a concussive beam fired through the swarm of capes, marking one of the few and first times I cast two spells at once. It caught the Endbringer in her chest and made her pause for just a moment. The other capes cleared out of my way as I shot upwards directly at her, keeping the beam focused on her. I only cut the beam off a second before I and my shield slammed right into her body at full force, and I only continued to fly forward.