Haze knelt on the cracked concrete, his breath ragged, blood dripping from his split lip.
His once-pristine suit was torn, his dagger lying shattered a few feet away.
Above him, Arthur loomed, his mismatched eyes cold and unreadable.
"This is actually depressing," Arthur muttered, rolling his shoulders. "Are you really this useless without your powers?"
Haze coughed, wiping blood from his mouth, "Go to hell."
Arthur's left eye pulsed—and Haze's power returned in a rush of swirling smoke, "I feel bad honestly, so you can have it back."
Haze's lips curled into a sneer, "Big mistake."
In an instant, his body dissolved into a cloud of suffocating darkness, lunging at Arthur's exposed back—
*WHAM!*
Bruce's fist connected with Haze's jaw mid-lunge, sending him crashing face-first into the ground.
Bruce smirked as he cuffed the the unconscious Haze, "It was pretty obvious that you were going to attack from behind. Desperation makes a man do anything to win."
Arthur sighed, walking over to his trench coat, "The man clearly doesn't know how to fight properly. A couple of nights in prison will fix that."
Bruce loudly replied, "Shouldn't we not want him to become better at crime?"
"Relax it's a joke and why did you steal my win." Arthur shot back as he approached Bruce.
Bruce nervously wave his arms around, "I-I get that but you were being a bit too brutal and I thought it's best we go deal with Don as team you know."
Arthur playfully wrapped his right arm around Bruce's neck and roughly mess his hair, "Someone quite submissive, I will let it slide if you sneak me out whenever I ask."
Bruce sounding defeated as adjust his glasses, "Sure just be careful with the hair."
---
Diamondback staggered, his crystalline body flickering under Duke's relentless assault.
Cracks spiderwebbed across his diamond skin, his once-impenetrable defense crumbling.
"I'm impressed, you still standing even getting by fifteen hundred multiplier? You must be strengthened your diamond form over the years." Duke taunted, rolling his bruised knuckles.
Diamondback snarled—only to be suddenly lurch upward as an invisible force yanked him off his feet.
Annie floated above, her emerald aura flaring as she swung Diamondback like a wrecking ball before hurling him straight at Duke.
"HOME RUN!" Duke crowed, winding up—
*CRACK!*
His fist connected with Diamondback's jaw with the sound of shattering glass.
The crystalline villain sailed through the air, crashing through a brick wall before sliding to a stop.
Annie gracefully landed on Duke's shoulder, grinning, "Nice hit, make sure to reset your multiplier before you touch someone."
Duke perform a quick jab, "There, at least your hand is still working."
Bruce appeared beside them, shaking his head before walking over to cuffed the groaning Diamondback, "Show-offs." He mutters.
---
Don was panting, clutching his bleeding chest. His explosions had grown weaker, his movements sluggish. And now, Galahad had vanished—leaving him face-to-face with all four heroes.
Arthur crossed his arms, "Give it up, Don. You're done."
Don's remaining eye twitched, "YOU THINK YOU CAN DEFEAT THE ALL MIGHTY DON!!!"
With a roar, he charged his remaining energy into his palm—a miniature sun forming in his grip—before hurling it at them in a last-ditch explosion.
Bruce smirked, "Teleporting."
The world twisted—and suddenly, they were behind Don.
Annie's voice slithered into Don's mind: "Behind you."
Don whirled, arm raised to blast her face but he locked eyes with Arthur.
His left eye flared crimson.
Don's Trigger died, "Oh shi—"
Arthur came with a full force punch to gut before side stepping for Duke who delivered a full force knee to Don's face.
Annie used her psychic abilities to pull Don in for kick against his face which sent him spinning in the before Bruce teleport above him to deliver a right hook that drives his head to the hard ground.
Silence.
Don lay unconscious before the four heroes.
Arthur exhaled, rolling his neck, "Mission accomplished."
The team exchanged glances—then grinned.
Their first victory.