Spectacular World

Welcome Back Hope

Harsh black lightning spilled from the skies. It tore the street of an unknown city apart, ripping it to bits. A siren blared loudly, constantly roaring as a massive shape moved through the dark clouds above.

The roaring of a dragon shook the entire city as the massive, winged beast came down. It was long and serpent-like, stretching out for miles. The thing easily dwarfed the massive city, glaring down at all the people below. On top of it, a long figure stood. One dressed in shadowy black armor with glowing blue eyes. The Emperor held his white sword high above his head.

Down below in the city, only a single figure looked as if they were going to stand in his way. A young woman with long crimson red hair and Godlike strength that rivaled that of the other Lords.

Ruby Admiral cracked her knuckles and pulled her fist back as the serpent-like dragon let out a scratch loud enough to shatter the buildings. It struck forward, opening its mouth wide enough to swallow an entire street, but Ruby didn't back down. She put all her effort and all her strength directly into her fist. Every bit of strength she had was unleashed with a single powerful punch!

Then...

Suddenly the world faded and broke apart as Hope woke up from the dream she had been forced into.

The world and the thoughts that had been forced into her head, all of them, began to shatter and break. It faded to black, and the next thing Hope Lauren knew, her eyes were snapping open, and she gasped, taking several deep gulps of air.

It took her several seconds to remember who she was. She was Cinder, a member of Pantheon, a Lord of the Sun and Cosmos. Or at least she had been. She still couldn't feel the embers of her power anywhere within her, and she could tell instantly that her body hadn't changed that much. She remembered where she was and what had been happening as well.

The Emperor, or Nier, had taken her. She had seen him in those memories. Not only that, but she also heard people's thoughts and feelings. It was like she had been the Victorian, Max, Full Monarch, and even Avalon all at once. The emotions were swirling around inside of her, and it almost caused her to throw up, but she settled her beating heart and stared up at the roof above.

All those visions and memories. She was living through them all, seeing things she couldn't. Even the hidden thoughts the people wanted to keep to themselves. She could still feel it even in her own body. The muscle memories. Every strike Ruby Admiral unleashed played through her mind on loop. The Victorian, back then, had seemingly lacked any flashy powers and instead made up for it with total overwhelming strength. Strength that was so great, in fact, it made her wonder who was truly stronger. Ruby Admiral or the Victorian?

"Getting used to it?" The voice of Avalon teased her and ended the thoughts she had. "How is it Cinder? Getting to experience the life and feelings of another person. Their muscle memories and thought processes become yours. I'm sure once you get your powers back, you'll be a lot stronger just from watching the legendary Ruby Admiral in action."

She slowly sat up, shaking her head as the world stopped spinning. It was always so weird going from so many different views and thoughts to just her own. She was literally other people while she viewed the memories, so she'd have to get used to being Hope Lauren once more.

She was still in that weird monitor room. The one that had the bed and all the TVs hooked up, each playing a different image at max speed. Avalon stood near the entrance that led out to the golden hallway with a sly smirk on his face as he looked her up and down. She followed his gaze and studied her own form as she stepped out of the bed. She had gotten a bit taller by maybe an inch or two. If she had been twelve earlier, then she'd say she was thirteen or maybe in her early fourteens now. She was dressed in a pair of long black pants and had a black hoodie on over the outfit the Emperor had gifted her now. The clothes were seemingly formed from actual shadows and molded and twitched sometimes. Like a weird liquid-like substance that had been forced into a solid state.