Red-Havok/ERA of Challenge

Part One

PART I: DEATH MATCH

One Week Ago

Faultline, Paragon City

Red-Havok sat alone in his studio apartment. Downtime like this was so rare for the hero. That's why he settled in Faultline. For all the beauty the restoration had brought back it was still a dangerous place to live. Red figured that if he ever needed a place to relax and call home, this was it, and if the downtime was too much there was always something to do nearby. But today, his home was being used for its intended purpose. Rest. Much needed rest, the hero thought.

He and a group of his former allies had been tasked by Longbow to once again try to bring down the super villain Phanto. Havok genuinely hated Phanto. Such a nuisance of an enemy, but that nuisance slowly grew into a high-class threat pulling stunt after evil stunt, each more deadly than the last. Red wanted to bring Phanto down, perhaps more than any villain he had ever faced.

When he was approached by Longbow Agent Slate, Red was hesitant. He had effectively burnt his bridges with Longbow by working with Orthrus Inc., a fact cemented even more so when The Infiltrators were ordered to assault Strongwall Penitentiary. But Agent Slate’s intentions were not to take down The Infiltrators, but Phanto – and he brought proof of those intentions with Xanatos.

Xanatos was a well known hero to everyone. Red and his brother had personally served under his leadership while they were in The Defenders of Paragon, but that was years ago, and seemed more like a lifetime. Regardless, the bright yellow costume was an inspiring sight, even to a seasoned hero like Red-Havok.

Slate explained of a tournament held annually by the villain underground. Longbow usually turned a blind eye to it. “No harm in villains beating up villains.” they said. But this year was different. The prize offered to the winner would be a weapon. Not just any weapon, but a Dark Matter weapon, believed to be a piece of The Mass Eradicator, which The Infiltrators thought destroyed. Phanto was the man supplying this prize, no doubt, to purely cause chaos in Paragon - his usual modus operandi.

The heroes accepted the mission and entered the tournament disguised as villains to try and not only win the weapon, but also deal with Phanto – once and for all. Among those who qualified were many fearsome villains, all known to the heroes as very dangerous threats. This task would not be an easy one, as proven when Johnny Turbo was defeated in the first round by Baron Blitzman. Red couldn’t believe that Johnny had lost. It seemed very surreal, and almost untrue. He had known Johnny for years. Where he was once an arrogant and inexperienced hero, JT had evolved into an even more arrogant, but very competent hero of Paragon. Red couldn’t help but think of his own fight. Would he lose again to the villain he was paired with?

Red’s communicator started to beep, signaling an incoming call. It broke his concentration. He answered the call “Havok.”

“Red man… it’s me. JT.”

“Johnny?”

“I can’t believe I lost man. Especially to that geezer.”

“Turbo, you and Nimbus both had a prior run-in with Blitzman. Nimbus told me himself it wasn’t easy…” Red was interrupted.

“HE’S AN OLD MAN RED! AN OLD ****** MAN! HOW! HOW! HOW DID I LOSE?!”

“Calm down Johnny…” Red said in a reassuring voice.

“I suck.”

“Come on Turbo. You know that isn’t true.”

“Then why did I lose?”

Red signed. He needed JT to get it together. There was still a lot he could do as far as intelligence and recon went. “Only one of us can win. Sooner or later all of us will lose Johnny. There are still other things you can do. You’re personable. You can get information.”

“Can I come over?” Johnny asked

Red was hesitant to say yes, especially after the last time JT stopped by. Reluctantly, he agreed. “Fine. I suppose.”

“Okay, open up.”

Red was dumbfounded. “You’re here already?”

“Yeah man.”

“I know you’re fast JT, but that’s pretty fast.”

“I’ve been here since I lost man.”

“What?”

“Just been lying here in the hallway, waiting for you to come home. Obviously you don’t use your god damn front door.”

“You could have contacted me if you wanted to talk.” Red tried to reason

“That’s what I’m doing now…”

“Twelve hours of lying in the hallway later?”

“Open up man.”

“Right.”

Red opened the door to find Johnny. He looked bad. Tired, a ripped costume and what seemed to be dried ‘Chef Boyardee’ sauce on the corners of his mouth.

“You don’t look well Turbo…” Red said, trying to be as nice as possible.

“Let’s play some games buddy.” JT quipped with some excitement

“That’s why you’re here? Games?”

“Yeah man. This is my home away from home.”

“No it isn’t.”

“Yeah it is man. Now where is it?” JT asked, eagerly

Red buried his face in the palm of his hand and said “Over there, in the closet.”

Johnny dance-walked to the closet and opened it. “What the hell man. It’s still in the box!”

“I told you, while I appreciated the gesture, getting me an xbox for Christmas wasn’t practical. I’ll never use it.”

“Bull**** dude. You using it now.”

“If this is going to make you happy, I guess…”

“It will man. Let’s go, Gears of War.”

Using his superspeed, Johnny hooked the console up in mere seconds. “You got a ******** TV Red.”

“…”

They began to play the game. It started off as a co-op campaign play through. The played solid, for hours and finished the game’s story in a single sitting. “Death match?” JT asked with a smile.

“Sure.”

They started a death match. JT got the drop on Red, killing him. “HA! Mister military can’t use a gun properly.”

Red focused, and played hard. He took the next kill, and the next, and the next. JT was getting upset. “**** you! Using your military ****!”

Red thought back to Johnny when he was defeated by Blitzman. Back to when he opened his door to find Turbo in his defeated state. This game wasn’t about Red. It was about JT. No matter how ridiculous it was, it could be a tool to instill confidence back into his friend. Red took a dive and let JT kill him, convincingly. JT swore. Red let the match go back and fourth, allowing Johnny to really focus and play smart. Red decided to sink to JT’s level with his next plan.

“Okay Turbo. Next kill is it.”

“What do you mean?” Johnny asked.

“Next kill decides the champion. The number one hero. The ultimate Gears master. Next kill separates the men from the boys.”

“You’re on!”

Johnny had bought it, hook line and sinker. Red didn’t make it easy on him. He made JT work for his victory. Finally after an epic hard fought 10 minutes, JT had done it. He was the champion.

“OHHHHHHH! WHAT NOW! WHAAAT NOW MAN! AHAHAHAHAHAHAH! I AM THE MOTHA****** MAN! DA CHAMP!”

“Nice match Johnny. You’re right, you’re the man. But you always were. This match didn’t change anything.”

“You mean that?”

“I’ve known you for a long time Johnny. You’ve never pulled the sad sack routine in the past. Why do it now? You’re better than that.”

Johnny tried to hide his smile. “I should go Red.”

“Where are you off to?”

“Back to the island. Maybe I can try and dig up some info on Phanto, like you said.”

“That’s a great idea. Let me know how it goes.”

“I will. You fight tomorrow?”

“Yeah.”

“I’ll be cheering for you Red.”

“Thanks Johnny. Hopefully I won’t need it.”

Johnny left Red’s apartment. After all that, Red’s thoughts rushed back to him. The tournament. Tomorrow Red would face Ripjaw. A creature who, during their first encounter, nearly killed Red. Did he have a chance at winning this time? He had to do whatever it took, but Ripjaw would not be an easy defeat. Red figured he should get some rest before the undoubtedly tough fight. As he began to finally drift off, his communicator once again sounded. He saw the call was from Johnny.

“What?”

“I beat you at Gears.”

Red hung up and went back to sleep. <b>

Part Two

PART II: THE HARD TRUTH

Six Days Ago

Striga Isle

The tournament had so far been a success for the heroes involved. Even with the defeat of Johnny Turbo early on, it had proven to be a blessing in disguise. Red was proud of his teammates, and rightly so. They had been risking their lives in order to see this mission a success. They always risked their lives, their line of work demanded it, but it wasn't common for them to masquerade as villains and be surrounded by thousands of dangerous criminals. Everyone was on edge, but still, able to compete.

There were two battles Red and his allies were involved in today. The first, was Rave Spider (as "Funk Tiger") versus Xanatos (as "Mr. Ice Guy"). That would undoubtedly make for an impressive match, even though Red was sure the winner would have been predetermined between the two heroes. The second battle involved Red-Havok himself, against the super villain Ripjaw.

Claude Jackson was a modern day pirate before he found a rare Coralax artifact, the Ripjaw Bone. When worn, this bone transformed Claude into the grotesque and hulking super villain Ripjaw. Red could never forget Ripjaw, or his crushing defeat at the monster’s hands, but that was some time ago. Nearly half a year since their first encounter, Red had since honed his skills. He had learned to overcome the difficulties of not fighting with his brother, and he had become overall, a much more efficient combatant as a result.

As it turned out, Red had nothing to worry about. He defeated Ripjaw, some would say with great ease. The match was extremely one-sided and Red used his smaller size and greater speed to his advantage. Ripjaw was defeated, and Red moved on to the next bracket. Following his match, Red was met by Foxy Ferret, who was undercover as The Malicious Mongoose. She brought to him some serious news.

“Red...” Foxy said softly

“What is it? Something wrong?”

Foxy looked at him, almost confused. “Didn’t you hear what happened to Grant?”

“I heard he defeated Ice. Why? Something else?”

“Athena has taken him prisoner. She’s torturing him. Teaching him a lesson she says.”

“What... why?” Red asked

“Because he refused to kill Xanatos.” Replied Foxy

“That isn’t even part of the rules. What right does she have to change them so suddenly?”

“I don’t know... it’s her tournament.”

“Was his identity compromised?”

“What?”

“Did he blow our cover?”

“That’s all you can think about? Our friend is being tortured, and that’s all you can say?”

“That’s not what I meant. I just mean... Phanto. We have to stop him.”

“Phanto. That’s all it’s been for the past few months Red. Phanto. Phanto. You’re obsessed with this Phanto! Why?!” Foxy cried “Our friend... his life...”

“Foxy. I didn’t mean it like that. Grant's life is important, but so is the mission.”

“Yes. But they’re not equally important Cade. Not even close.”

“...”

“This team is falling apart Red. Ever since we left Shade. Hell, ever since we joined Shade... we’ve been falling apart. This tournament Red. This tournament will destroy us.”

“...”

“You need to put this team back together!” Foxy yelled, hitting Red’s chest.

“This was never my team Foxy. We were just pawns used by Shade. And now? We’re just pawns used by Longbow.”

“You need to change that Red. You’re the only one who can.”

“That’s not important right now...” Red tried to say

“You know what? Before you left on that suicide mission... you were a leader! Ever since you returned, you’ve just been a follower. You’ve just been a pawn.”

Red was silent. Thinking hard about the words Foxy ferret had just said. They were true, and he knew it. Foxy started to walk away, then turned around and said “Oh and by the way. Your next match? It’s going to be against Rave Spider. If he lives.”

<b>

Part Three

PART III: REBIRTH

Four Days Ago

Striga Isle

Just as Foxy said, Red-Havok met Rave Spider in battle.

Prior to this encounter, Rave Spider had been taken captive by Athena, the tournament’s founder. Athena had with her at all times two gargantuan body guards aptly named Bia and Kratos. These two hulking men were once not so large. They were brothers, and hopeful members of the Warriors Gang. Unfortunately for them, they were refused membership, multiple times and even met with threats of death. This didn’t stop the brothers. Through illegal means, they obtained the drug known as Superadine. Using the drug transformed the brothers into the giants they are today. They gained fearsome strength and joined the Warriors through sheer force. Not long after, Athena selected them as her personal guard.

Bia and Kratos were both defeated in the tournament. Bia by Mr. Ice Guy (Xanatos) and Kratos met his defeat at the hands of Overcast (Nimbus). Despite this, the brothers were still needed to watch Athena’s person, and tend to any other tasks she demanded. Today, that task was torture. Rave Spider was captured, and tortured, in order to test his ‘warrior’s spirit’. The brothers were all too pleased to do so. They hated Rave Spider, known to them only as Funk Tiger. A ridiculous combatant, unworthy, they thought, of the title. His next match was to be against Ginzu, aka Red-Havok. They saw the combat prowess of Ginzu, and Funk Tiger alike. They surmised that a fair match between the two could literally go either way. So they saw fit to cripple Funk Tiger to the point where a victory would be out of the question.

During the battle, Funk Tiger and Ginzu fought, hard. Despite his injuries, Funk Tiger pressed forward, fighting through the pain. Red-Havok found it hard to battle his friend, especially after what Rave had been through, and what Foxy had confronted Red with days earlier. “Listen to me!” Spider said, beneath his feline mask “You can’t do this! You can’t hold back!”

Were those the words that triggered the incident?

Red sat alone in a room with Athena. He had won the battle, but seconds before he landed the finishing blow, something happened. Red-Havok lost control. This had happened once before, while on a mission with The Infiltrators. When faced with the prospect of killing, or sparing the life of the villain Cyborg Sinister, Red chose to kill him. “No...” Red thought “I didn’t choose.”

“So. Ginzu. That was an impressive display of power back there.”

Red was silent, still deep in thought.

“Would you mind explaining to me what happened?”

Red’s mind flashed again to the battle. Rave Spider pleaded with Red “You have to! We both have to! Do you think I want to do this? I don't. I didn't want to fight Ice Guy.” The images once blurred, started to become clear.

“Well?” Athena grew impatient. “I am waiting. What happened?”

Still, Red-Havok remained silent. Remembering the horrible reality of what transpired not long ago. “Finish it, we're both hurt. Finish it.” Rave Spider spoke, unrelenting “This is something that you have to do. You know? You have to win this.” The images were so clear “You have to win this, and find Phanto.”

Athena smashed her sword into the ground, it emanated with Dark Matter. Red snapped back to reality. “For the LAST TIME! WHAT HAPPENED!” Athena had enough. She wanted her answer.

The images, they wouldn’t stop overwhelming Red’s mind. Once again he saw Rave Spider, just before it happened. “YOU.” Spider called out “You were meant to lead this team. Challengers, we're the Challengers.” That was it. That is when it was triggered. Rave Spider yelled “Red, Red you're the reason I started doing this. You're the reason I became a hero.” This was it. The moment. “I'll follow you to the ends of the Earth!” Boom. “...Red?”

“I lost control Athena.”

“What do you mean? Explain!”

“I cannot. What happened during that fight was….” Shade Red thought “Was not my doing.”

“Then by whose hand?”

Red had to cover for himself. He couldn’t tell her the truth. The mission depended on it. He thought quickly “Funk Tiger.”

“You are telling me Funk Tiger did this to you? How is that even…”

Athena was interrupted. “He wields Dark Matter, not unlike yourself. This caused me to temporarily lose sanity.” Red’s mind once again flashed. He saw himself entering a berserker state, and stabbing Rave Spider repeatedly, over and over. Screaming wildly. “Red…” Rave muttered softly.

“I suppose that makes some sense Ginzu. Very well. I merely wanted to understand your sudden outburst of violence. In the previous rounds you managed to not use those deadly blades you carry. I was surprised to see you use them in such a manner, that is all.”

“I see. I apologize.”

“No need. You gave the crowd a show they will never forget. That is excellent. You’re the favorite to win this tournament you know? I hope this is true, because I would love to have you return next year.”

With that, Athena left the room, leaving Red-Havok alone with his memories. “You were meant to lead this team.” Red couldn’t stop thinking about the words his friend told him. Two days earlier, Foxy said something similar. “You know what? Before you left on that suicide mission... you were a leader! Ever since you returned, you’ve just been a follower. You’ve just been a pawn.”

Red left the tournament grounds, and sat on top a hill near a Grave Yard. He didn’t know why, but he was drawn to the place. He thought of the events over the past few days. Johnny, Foxy, Grant… everyone. What had they accomplished over the last six months? There were some victories, but also heavy losses. Some of which were brought by Red’s own hand.

The death of a villain.

The attempted murder of Phanto.

Mortally injuring his close ally.

This is not the man Red-Havok once was. As the sun set, Red looked toward the gravestones. So silent, and symbolic. He removed his Razor Scythes, sharp, claws that he had used as weapons for the entirety of his hero career. As he threw the weapons to the ground, Red spoke, aloud, to no one but himself. “I will no longer be a sword of justice. I refuse." He proclaimed "Instead, I will become a shield.”

Red watched the shadows move amongst the headstones. “Rave Spider. He called us The Challengers.” Red clenched his fists hard. “Shade, Slate, Athena, Phanto, Sebastian Kain... We WILL challenge them all.”