A world is ending, a world needs heroes, a world without selfless souls, a world without hope without you.

"That was the thought imposed in our minds when we arrived at the Spiritual Realm. A God met us and showed us Its world, devastated and corrupted due to Its continuous interference. It described every single aspect of Its creation, every detail of its inhabitants, everything about souls and magic in this universe and granted us the ability to see souls. I immediately knew why we were the chosen ones..."

"Great resume Roc, now explain: why are you a hybrid between a centaur and a fucking hippogriff?”

“God Itself let us choose the vessel for our soul. A Hero deemed to save the world should be something greater than anything we have ever seen. Why didn’t you take something different than a taller, stronger and prettier version of yourself, Aura?”

“Fair point, the Hero’s body and that. But I want to be remembered as a powerful woman, not as a monst…”

“Aura, Roc, please, do not fight, we are suppose to be a team. More difficult tasks will be ahead, both options are right. Look at me or at Yu, I am still human, and he is still he, just with horns and red skin. I am worried, have you seen Zaahir?”

“Fear not, we have known him for ages, he is a bit slower taking decisions. Maybe he is asking God for advice and doublechecking every little detail.”

“ROOC! YOU REALLY ARE IMPRESSIVE! How did you imagined a body so awesome and didn’t tell me?”

“Yu, stop screaming and look for Zaahir with us. Esther, we’ll find him.”

“Thanks, both of you. I thought time passed slower in the Spiritual Realm, so It should have already ended and…”

“I am here, sorry for the wait… I was truly disoriented.”

“AH, WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR FACE ZAAHIR? NOW I’M DISORIENTED TOO”

“Yu, relax, we can look at his soul. He still is himself as God promised us, just a bit different like ourselves. But could you explain your appearance please? It is truly ambiguous and difficult to understand.”

“Stop the bitching and the overexplaination, for God’s sake. Zaahir, why is your face so incredibly dull?”

“Boys, boys, let him space. We have been here a while, but he has just arrived from heaven and you are drowning him in questions. Whenever you are ready, we will be here to listen.”

.

.

.

“Thanks a lot Esther… It almost was too much for me, not you guys, but all the Godly things. I am not very religious myself you know that. And God has a face! And It has made mistakes! I was and still am truly perplexed. Also, you took a new body right after you hear all that monologue… damn, sorry I am late and slow for these things… I couldn’t stop thinking about the implications of my appearance. Did you think about all the details that your bodies…?”

“Damn you, you are derailing a lot. I’m sending you back to God to fix that awful look.”

“Nonono, no, please don’t. Aura, don’t you see the beauty of all our choices? You are a powerful woman, and your body shows it no doubt allowed, none will ever doubt the human’s indomitable spirit ever again. Roc took a monstruous and frightening body, but he is a gentleman and a scholar, he’ll make people think twice about prejudices. Yu there looks like a devil, but he is truly spontaneous and cannot tell a lie nor make an unfair contract, that alone could probably make people reimagine what they think about other races, you know, for all that devils making contracts and twisting them. Esther is compassion in soul and now in flesh…”

“HAHAHA! I haven’t read a full contract in my life, you know me.”

“Curse you! Shut up Yu, he was into something incredible.”

“Eh, yes, yes. As I was saying… Yes, did you remember why all the problems started?”

“YEAH, GOD SCREW IT ALL!”

“Yu, I am going to help Aura beat you to a red pulp if you don’t shut up and let him speak for once. Zaahir, please, continue.”

“No, he is right, God and Its continuous interventions made the world a mess. It chose us exactly to avoid more direct actions. And somehow, just by looking at our souls It knew all these appearances that we were going to make. Even mine, even without a single hint, we made as It wanted to save this unfortunate world. I truly want to save it, and I will do it as one of them.”

“What? You mad? You can’t change what you are. We'll be heroes of legend.”

“But we did change our looks. I will be remembered as a commoner, as an errant knight, as an orphan, as someone passing by that came to help you All-Mighty Heroes. That is my purpose here, remember them they are able to save the world. That they can and should be the heroes of their own world.”

“That is also a lie, we will have godly powers and no mere mortal will be able to imitate us.”

“Yes, Roc it is a lie, but Zaahir is also right. This world needs to believe, and then, it will save itself.”

The last man standing tells the war he caused to die and see his son in Valhalla.

A dense silence fell upon the reunion. The intruder was a child to my eyes, a courageous child, but a child nonetheless. My colleagues moved on their sits, a few seemed bored, most felt insulted and at least one was eager to drink the boy’s blood. But I was in charge that day, I call them and I was the one being shouted. This was my job and it will be done correctly by demolishing that little puny human. Am I being hard? If you take down the Union of Justice, you’ll develop some self-love too.

“Hmmm… Isn’t there an ultra-strong, fast and kind alien defending the city as always? I don’t remember anyone of us killing her in the last couple months. Did you kill her without calling me? How rude.” All the table roared with laughs. One jumped on the table and threw a plate to the boy. My telekinesis caught the plate, more roasts were coming.

“Her family is in charge of the attack” The child said, all laughs ended, the plate fell.

“Boy, explain” The laconic (and brute) Tulka spoke before anyone could even react.

“She said it herself. Our city is condemned due to something we did centuries ago and caused all the heroes appear. An experiment which affected this world and the others” The kid was scared, he did not know the full answer. I have changed my mind, not brave but suicidal. But he did come.

“Soooo... your ideal hero become delusional and genocide and you come here? There are plenty of other heroes and people that could help. Do not bother us with unexpected rivals.” More laughs

Tulka stood, his two and a half meter of pure, indestructible muscle was threating, but he spoke, not threated. His voice was deep, almost not recognizable from a roar and it was clear how difficult it was to him. He spoke more than he did in the last hundred reunions:

“Boy is right. No one defies She-allmighty except us. I like not her nor her ideas. City is only place I am good. I fight.”

And he left directly to the city. Through the roof. I was shocked, not for the roof: I would feel ashamed if the room survived the meeting, but for the meaning of those words. The remaining villians were uneasy. As he said, this city was the place were all of us gained our powers (or special abilities or whatever). The next speaker may move us to the city or far from it. And the boy was not prepared for that burden. But he did come.

“If our city is guilty, I do want to save it. Not for the people nor the money, I just want to make a hell for the heroes that hate me” Kald, the most brilliant and paranoid woman in this world, reached the same conclusion that Tulka. She had made great speeches before, but today she only said that. Then she went to the boy and exited the room while interrogated about the ‘enemy forces’.

More villains stood and went to war. Many did speeches too. Most of them were mad, they were going to destroy more than save and the child must have known that. But he did come.

At the end, there were only three of us in the room. Three of the twenty-one. The room was huge now filled with dust from the roof, broken glass on the floor, chairs thrown and broken… and three silent silhouettes. The demon took their original form when we were alone, when the weak minds left.

“Will you save your beloved city then?” said the demon, looking both at the same time. “The moment you save a single person, your souls will be mine, that was the deal.”

“We have powers beside from yours…” answered Jonah, the ancient man who found the way to make the contract. He was unsure and demoralized.

“Oh, yes, powers that did not help you to win against the Union. And even with those powers you are unable to beat her” the demon laughed at us. Or coughed. I cannot differentiate those “You, Herdra, when did you fight her for the last time? Tell us how you lose.”

“I could not damage her.”

“See? He is an experimental superhuman apart from the power I granted him and she is beyond your reach combined. An army of those beings? Not only you are doomed if you exit, but your souls will be doomed too.”

“Then I will sacrifice my body and my soul. I never was evil, curse you.” answered Jonah. He rose to face the demon, but he looked like a senile man. Even with devilish powers, he was too old to do anything but die out there.

“HAHAHAHA” the most evil laugh ever heard in this dimension crossed the room “You Jonah? The scholar? The one who is afraid of darkness and thunders? You will perish. Your centuries of unnatural studies will be lost.”

“Herdra…”

“He is more cunning, and crueler, he will save himself and gain your powers the moment you die. A soul and a more powerful ally, I only win as always” the demon aura filled my vision “How will you feel with your powers doubled? Not only the supernatural, I offer you to enhance your innate powers too. He is going to die and you will need time to prepare another ritual, and time to obtain the sacrifice. Not anymore, your soul IF you ever die and everything I give him will be yours. Knowledge, money, intelligence, power…”

“Deal.”

“wome… Wait what? Is that easy?“ the demon looked shocked for the first time since we summoned them. Maybe they was not that bad, or maybe I wanted to believe that.

“Yes, and if he dies I will get tripled everything as our previous contract said.”

“Eeh, not sure if it is possible for me or anyone to control that much pow…”

“I said DEAL. Are you a demon that does not want a soul-contract?” the temptation was huge, I did not get another shot like this ever.

“FINE. YOUR SOUL IS DOOMED IN EXCHANGE FOR UNFATHOMABLE HUMAN, SUPER-HUMAN AND MAGICAL POWER. I grant you that.”

For once, Jonah understood my intention. He knew me, he almost nurtured me, he had shown me many things and yet he did not understand my final move until now. He had been hearing the offering in silence, expecting my counter-offer. The only rule in this kind of negotiation was to not sell your soul at your death, everyone dies so another condition must be met. I was ignoring that rule for something and at the end he knew.

“So, is this the moment our paths diverge?” asked Jonah, almost tearing his voice and full of tears his eyes.

“Yes, I am truly sorry.” I said as the new powers flowed though me. Now only my innate enhanced powers could be enough to beat the Union, I cannot imagine what my magic is capable. The demon seems now weakened, but joyful, he will get soon really powerful soul to fest upon. Or that is what he is thinking.

Jonah closed his eyes and muttered “Good bye” just before I end him.

"WHAT? HE HASN’T SAVE ANYONE YET. YOU ARE RUINING THIS."

“Yes, I am denying you his soul” I truly smile for the first time in the whole meeting “Now I am leaving, these powers might need a test.”

“Nononono, you aren’t going there to save them… You can’t, you will not risk your soul…”

“Of course I am, my soul is doomed whatever I do. Am I right?”

And the most joyful laugh ever heard in this world could be heard in that room.

>!After, in Hell.

“WHY?” Asked the demon. “The boy did come”!<