Rory Regan moved swiftly through the winding corridors of the apartment building, his patchwork cloak billowing out behind him. Shadows moved along the walls after him, like lions hunting their prey. Ragman had been playing this game of cat and mouse for some time now, having noticed the might of Marcossa's magic chasing him a few floors prior. They had been slowly closing in as the vigilante made his ascent of the building, however, every time Ragman found himself losing his energy and needing to catch his breath, he simply focused, summoning one of the souls of his suit to take the burden for him. Nearing the roof though, he felt his powers waning, with his captured souls growing weak from being forced to work overtime. All he could do was hope that Magik was nearly done with whatever crazy scheme she had cooked up.
Sprinting up the last remaining steps of the stairwell, Ragman found himself emerging from the fire escape and entering the night's sky. Around him, the building's flames flickered against the Gotham skyline, casting a scarlet glow. It would be almost beautiful if it wasn't so deadly.
Finding himself standing in the centre of the roof, he turned to face the oncoming threat from the door, balling his hands into fists as he prepared for a fight. However, the shadows that had previously been chasing him were nowhere to be seen. What was even more worrying was that the door seemed to have been shut, locking him outside. Trapped.
A cold laugh rang out behind as an opulent male scent met his nose.
"
Shit."
Turning, he found Master Belaric Marcosa standing before him; his hulking figure towering above the rag covered man. He smiled gleefully like a cannibal about to feast, the red of his jeweled incisors flashing into view. Before Ragman could even move, a clawed hand reached towards his furiously, grabbing at his suit. Rory cried out in pain as the claws dug into his chest, tempting to pierce the rags of his suit. The suit held strong, however, he found himself hoisted into the air by Marcosa's supernatural strength, his legs dangling wildly below him.
"
I'm glad I finally caught up to you Regan." His voice was elegant and seductive, but inhuman in nature. Rory found himself wincing in pain as the man spoke his name, with Marcosa tightening his grip with his claws as he did so. "
I couldn't have you disrupting my plans like that."
Marcosa raised his spare hand up, wiggling his claws before Rory in an act of intimidation. He wanted his victim to fear him. To beg for mercy. But Rory wasn't going to do that. Moving his legs, Ragman planted them onto his attacker's chest, and with every last bit of energy he had, he willed the souls within his suit to give him their strength. Reinvigorated with energy, he pulled back as far as he could, propelling himself away from Marcosa with a push of his feet. The sound of bones cracking and flesh being torn apart was all that could be heard as Ragman found himself moving away, viciously tearing Marcosa's arm from its socket, as blood and sprayed around them. He tumbled to the floor, the severed arm in his grasp, as the being before him roared out in pain.
"
Holy shit... This is disgusting." Rory wheezed as he attempting to catch his breath, his eyes fixated on the gruesome mess before him.
Marcosa stumbled backwards in visible pain, giving Ragman the perfect chance to strike again. He jumped to his feet and charged forward, however a blast of energy knocked him back down, with Marcosa managing to regain his focus. Rory watched as, before his eyes, Marcosa's arm seemed to reappear back on his body, piece by piece.
Ragman moaned loudly in frustration.
"
Oh, come on!"
As Master Marcosa's arm seemed to finish its restoration, he began to smile.
"
Oh you'll have to do better than that to stop me Ragman. Thanks to the souls of every insolent whelp in this building, I'm unstoppable!"
"
I can't believe you actually said vhat!"
The two turned their gaze's to the sky, as a glowing disc of yellow exploded into view, cutting through the sky. Atop it stood Magik, her obsidian staff in hand, her blonde hair flowing madly in the wind behind her. A crafty smile was painted across her face as she looked down on the two fighting on the rooftop. She stood tall and firm, her eyes alive in a fire of determination. This was the endgame.
"
Because everything you've done here is about to come crashing down."
As the words left her mouth, she thrust her arms upwards violently, her eyes closing as she did so.
She breathed deeply, focussing.
And then, just like magic, the Gotham skyline found itself lighting up in an aurora of lights and energies. Yellow stepping discs, much like the one she was standing on, erupted into existence all around them, hovering over the rooves of the neighboring buildings, a meter or two off the ground. For a second, things remained silent, until the cries and shouting of people met their ears, as hoards of people began appearing from the discs. By the dozens, they fell from the portals to the rooftops below them, groaning in pain and shouting in bewilderment. There were all kinds of people here; men and women of all ages and ethnicities. One man found himself stark naked, crying out in disappointment as if he had just lost out on the opportunity of a lifetime. Another was a young boy, wearing an impromptu Supergirl costume, who upon seeing that he wasn't flying above the sky, began to cry his eyes out.
All of them had a different story. All of them from the very same apartment building. All of them victims of Master Belaric Marcosa.
Former victims anyway. And Marcosa was feeling the loss.
The monstrous man fell to his knees in pain, as the blood vessels across his face seemed to grow and pulsate.
"
You... You fuckingbitch!" The flamboyant and seductive flair to his voice was gone now, replaced only with that of hatred.
He swiped his hand towards her in anger, a ball of flaming hellfire bursting from his palm as he did so. It rocketed towards Magik, prompting her to propel herself down to the side in order to avoid it. She fell through the air, her arm colliding abruptly against the bricks of the roof. Her body tumbled around as she landed, rolling down next to Ragman, who immediately made an effort to reach down in order to help her up.
"
You may... may have stopped me from draining their souls, but i've still got enough power to obliverate the two of you fools."
He moved slowly towards the two as he spoke. He was different now; more enraged. His mane of hair a mess atop his head, his eyes two balls of glowing fire. He looked dangerous; like a caged animal that had just been set free. This was certainly not going to go well. The fall had hurt Illyana greatly. The cracking sound she had heard when she had landed told her that something was broken, which meant she wouldn't be great right now in a fight. And given the look of Ragman next to her, who seemed to be staggering in exhaustion, she could see that he wasn't in the best shape either.
And just to make matters worse, Marcosa rocketed another fireball in her direction. This time she was ready for it, however. She swung her Soul Staff in front of her, and as she did so, a shield of glowing astral energy appeared before her, shielding the two heroes from the blast.
"
How are ve supposed to stop vhis guy?" Magik asked, trying her hardest to keep her shield up, as Marcosa swiped against it once more with another ball of hellfire.
"
I... I have something." Rory coughed painfully as he clutched his chest. "
And it seemed to work well when I used it on you. I just need an opening."
Realizing what he was referring to, she nodded. Gripping her staff, she took a deep breath, before dropping the shield. At once another fireball soared in their direction, but Magik didn't stop. She darted to the side, moving around the rim of the rooftop, drawing Marcosa's attention. And then, just as she reached the edge of the roof, she turned and waved her staff.
"
CRIMSON BANDS OF CYTTORAK"
Her voice roared over the sound of fire, as thick bands of red energies shot out the end of her staff towards Marcosa. The attack took him by surprise, with the crimson bands entangling his arms and legs. They overwhelmed him immediately despite his strength, forcing his arms and legs apart like a Vitruvian Man. He growled in pain, shouting obscenities into the night's sky. The bands kept him still, however, allowing the green figure of the Ragman to approach his prey.
"
I wish I had had something humorous to say, but this part is never funny."
Rory Regan stood before the demonic soul stealer, his frail ragged body dwarfed by him. But no different in size and strength was going to help Belaric Marcosa today. Outstretching his hand, Rory placed it firming against the man's chest. Belaric screamed in pain and agony, as he felt his soul being ripped from his body. The crimson bands vanished, leaving Belaric Marcosa's body to fall to the ground, an empty husk.
The Ragman looked down at his palm, as a brand new rag of fabric appeared, weaving itself into his suit.
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