by Jonah'sWhale, Happy Noodle Boy, KidBucket, Nuriko and Gooz
"It was awful, I tell you!" said Jonah's Whale. "I arrived at the scene just as the eel attacked the MBL. I had no idea what was happening, but during the initial attack, the MBL scattered, having been taken completely by surprise.
"The eel took out member after member, passing right through Beer-Drinking Lad, Agent F7, and even Hardy New-Born, rupturing all neural energy and leaving them momentarily comatose. The eel grew bigger after passing through each Leaguer, sucking their energy and power as it passed. It all happened so quickly, almost with blinding speed.
"All MBLers had fallen comatose. I witnessed Hero jump on the eel before it could enter Ritchie and steal the Incursion Force within him. The eel immediately began consuming Hero's powers, draining him nearly dry. Hero began to fight back the only way he knew... having known the creature during the time Hero was its host. Hero touched signatures with the eel, tapping into the inner energy, its life-force, and began consuming it.
"They each fed off of each other, struggling against the pull of the opposing leech. Nothing seemed to be happening until they both imploded into nothingness, releasing all MBLers drained by Hero's and the eel's powers. With the release of your energy, all of you Leaguers regained consciousness. Now I have to tell you that Hero is dead, for real.
"His power and the eel's resides in me, in addition to my own power, which allows me to teleport anywhere in the universe via Heaven or Hell. If you'll have me, I would like very much to carry on the League tradition, doing my best to replace Hero. But I'm sorry, Hero's dead, and the cloning chamber was destroyed as the eel came to be."
Hardy New-Born: "But, it's Christmas morning."
The MBLers stood at the battlefield, reveling in their victory for a moment before they made their way back to the headquarters to relax and wait for the next case.
Hardy New-Born went back to his quarters to rest for a while. There, his face obscured by the shadow of a wide-brimmed black hat, was Prometheus X.
Hardy New-Born: "Pro X? Kind of a surprise..."
Prometheus X: "I have a favor to ask of you."
Hardy New-Born: "Ask away..."
Prometheus X: "I need you to raise Ritchie RIGHT. Make sure he doesn't fall in with the wrong crowd, or end up doing anything bad. I foresee terrible consequences if he does."
Hardy New-Born thought he seemed incredibly passionate about this issue. "Of course. I'll treat him like he was my own."
Prometheus X looked up and said, "Thank you," then disappeared. As he looked up, New-Born had got a glimpse of his face. It seemed eerily familiar.
Several MBL members approached Hardy New-Born.
Kid Bucket: "Sorry I took so long to respond, Rhymer. I'd like to formally declare my return to active duty, my friends. This is Kid Bucket activating full telepathic link. Counteroffensive has begun, whatever that means."
Natsuko: "I'm still here, though I'm still looking for the Lady. Time is running out."
Other MBLers made similar assertions of their dedication to the team. The Rhymer replied, "Good to have you all here. And Merry Christmas, everyone." The sadness in his voice belied his smile.
In a void outside of time, a place where everything happened at once, but nothing was happening. Standing face down in the shadows was Prometheus X. His eyes glowed with red light, and now he appeared in a new place.
It appeared to be Thunder City, where walking down the street was a father with his son. Dressed in normal street clothes were Gooz and little Ritchie, from the time he took a leave of absence from the MBL. Little did he know that he wouldn't return.
In a bright red flash of light, Prometheus X fell to one knee, and his eyes glowed with red again. Gooz and Ritchie again appeared, but this time, people were running away from a burning building. There was no sound, but Gooz went down on one knee and said something to Ritchie. Gooz then ran toward the building, where a young girl was at the top window. Gooz burst through the entrance and put a force field around him, flying through each level until he reached the top floor. Fire was on all sides of him, and sweat dripped off his head.
His force field was getting weaker, and he saw the little girl in a short distance. He reached his arm out to grab her, but she was eaten by the flames. He was too late. The flames opened around him just as his force field died out. They led a path to the other side of the room, where there was a shadowy appearance. He walked forward, revealing himself to be the Hypertime Entity.
Prometheus X was struggling to get back to his feet, when he had another violent flashback. Gooz, with fire in his eyes, attacked the Hypertime Entity. Both traded massive blows, and Gooz gave everything he had, but in the end the building started getting weaker and began to shake. Gooz struck the Hypertime Entity again with full power, and the building collapsed, pulling Gooz into the burning wreckage. He tried to escape the rubble, but he couldn't. In Gooz's last moments, he mouths the words, "Ritchie... I'm sorry."
The stranger known as Prometheus X was on both knees, tears now coming out of his eyes. His eyes glowed with red for the last time. Now little Ritchie was on the street with firemen and police all around him. He was sitting on the ground and had a tear in his eye. He said the words, "Bye, Daddy."
Prometheus X regained his footing, and he lifted his arms in the air and was gone. He knew that Ritchie would be safe in the arms of the MBL. But only Prometheus X could save Ritchie from the inside, against the threat of himself. Prometheus X knew that it was HIS job to stop the Incursion.
The End