The Silence.

1.

Blurb.

All that filled the brief seconds from the moment the antihero left to the screams of commands was silence. To the press, it was known as 'The Silence', the seconds of contemplation on what horror they had just laid their eyes on... That monster would later be known under many names, however, the name that stuck instantly was 'Void'. 

Can the Heroes push aside their hatred of one another to work in solidarity to find this Villain killer, or will their hatred force them to work in disharmony?

This chapter.

The team of heroes had the villain surrounded, each of them bloodied and battered from the brutal fight. All of them were exhausted, ready for the end of their battle with the super-powered tyrant, waiting to hear him admit defeat, to finally surrender after years of tormenting the world. Many of the heroes are more than eager to avenge all those that had fallen, to wipe that insufferable smirk off of the evil bastard's face, but even after the fight that levelled almost half of the city and left so many of the heroes on the verge of death, the smirk is still there, plastered on his smug face. 

He lowered his head and chuckled, however, the quiet noise seemed to echo through the barren city. "That is it... I am spent... You win..." The heroes take a split second to register what the villain just said. Some cheer wildly, and some attempt to reach the villain and get in a few hits before the head hero, Rónán, hands the villain over to authorities, and the rest are too tired to do anything but let the relief wash over them. However this feeling would be short-lived, the hero's celebrations are abruptly ended by the villain's maniacal laughter. The heroes closing in on the villains halt their advancements and look at one another. All are confused by the uncharacteristically unhinged laughter now pouring out of the villain's mouth.

The villain suddenly halts and gazes down at the sizable gathering of heroes beneath them.

"How cute thinking you have saved the day and all..." The villain slowly rises from their knees, their words no longer pained or weary. The broken leg that was deformed seemed to not affect the villain as painfully anymore, and no longer a hindrance as they rose to their eloquence, taking on a much more bestial sound, a guttural quality that makes many of the heroes uneasy.

"Unfortunately for all of you..." The villain takes a small yet sharp dagger out of his pocket and slices his palm in one quick motion. He outstretched his palm and let the blood drip from the wound, as it left his skin the once crimson liquid turned a dark obsidian black. "You are not who I was talking to..." 

The blood drops to the floor, and the dagger follows shortly, the clatter of the blade almost causes an uncharacteristic outburst of joy from the drowsy heroes. The twisted scene made many relieved and almost all thought the villain had attempted to surrender in a ritualistic format, however, one hero instantly shot up from his sat-down position and raised his hand hastily. A dome of transparent hexagonal shields shot up from the ground and encased the enormous group. Many looked on in awe and thought for brief moments that this was just a dramatic show of someone's power, yet, those thoughts were quickly cast aside as a large opening formed out of the air, dragging most of the surrounding light into the dark void.

A dark humanoid figure stepped into the sunlight, their figure, however, was not lit by the sunny day. Silence deafened the crowd. They all waited in agonizing pain as they looked on in horror, even the medics were briefly drawn away from their jobs. Nothing happened though. Not even a single movement for what seemed like minutes. Unexpectedly the villain weekly stood and turned to the dark figure, he took a deep and apologetic bow, a brief conversation could be seen but not heard. "Valor! Lower the barrier!" Someone yelled out and a few others joined in. The yelling was nothing one person alone could protest against.