Chapter 105: The Magnum War Part 5: Essence of Gold

Cassandra's POV

After taking out Overdrive, I somehow managed to stick a proper landing on the ground, preventing any self-injury.

It was a good thing I chose to avoid the city; if I hadn't then that pillar of lightning would've surely caused massive collateral damage.

"That was pretty much the only thing I could come up with to overpower him, given the huge power gap between us." I thought out loud

Before I could even have a moment to breathe, my senses were warning me of another speedster approaching. Though I'd felt this speedster signature before, it was...

"Taylor?" I questioned, watching as the new speedster ran up to me

"Cas!" She cheered, "So it wasn't a dream after all. The world really is coming to an end."

"Well yeah but, why are you here, at this time?"

"Well I figured I could do more to help if I came sooner, so when I woke up I left Portland immediately and came here. But on my way to the lab I saw a giant bolt of lightning over here."

I didn't realize that my Lightning Beacon would've drawn that much attention; if it drew Taylor over here, then who knows who else might be drawn to it.

"So what are you doing here anyway?" She questioned

"We were ambushed by one of Black Zero's Hunters, Overdrive to be exact." I explained, "I chased him out here and finished him off with that beacon you saw."

"Don't count your chickens before they hatch, Princess." A dreary voice spoke from the nearby crater

Putting our guards up, Taylor and I watched as Overdrive rose from the remains of the area of impact.

"That shouldn't even be possible." I contemplated, "The lightning that struck him was 400 Million volts at least. How's he even able to move after that let alone live?"

"You're a smart girl Cassandra;" He taunted, "which means you should know that if you pump an engine with gas, it'll only go faster."

Even so, it's impossible for even a normal speedster to absorb so much lightning on contact. Just what the hell are we dealing with here? Black Zero's Hunters are clearly in a tier all of their own when it comes to X-Genists.

"I see you even brought a friend with you. Taylor Hart, was it?"

"That's Silver Stream to you!" Taylor corrected

"You have a hero name?" I questioned in surprise

"Yeah, don't you?"

"Heroic titles?" Overdrive mocked, "How childish."

Overdrive's eyes glowed red, emitting a faint red trail of lightning as he teleported in front of us.

"What the-" Taylor's reaction was cut short by Overdrive shooting his fists into our chests

In a couple milliseconds, Taylor and I were launched backwards fast enough to damage the wall of the lighthouse.

Feeling as the pressure spread from the point of impact in my back to the rest of my body, my limbs were left shaking; this was by far the most excruciating pain I've ever been through.

"Taylor, are you alright?" I inquired, trying to maintain the little composure I had left

"I'm hanging on." she coughed, "Though I don't think I can take any more of those."

The previously stationary Overdrive then teleported between us once again, only leaving behind a trail of red light in the path he had taken.

Without even giving us time to react, Overdrive fired his leg into Taylor's collar bone, shooting her away to the side.

"Taylor!" I instinctively screamed

Nonchalantly turning to me and grabbing me by the neck, Overdrive exercised his height by lifting me off the ground up to his eye level.

"This is what happens Princess, when someone with no experience think they can just put on a suit and play hero."

Tightening his grip on my neck, Overdrive began surging his electricity into my body.

"The real world has no place for immature kids like you. Next time stay in your dumb lab, maybe that way you could actually be useful."

Slamming me into the ground with full intent to kill, Overdrive had somehow managed to change every possibility of us winning, to me dying.

"Let this be the end, of Cassandra Bolt."

Everything faded to black, likely the result of me losing consciousness. I could feel as my mind transitioned out of my body, to some unknown plane.

All I could hear was the occasional drop of blood. Looking down, I realized I was in some sort of blood pool.

Though everything was too dark to see properly, the vaguely red shaded liquid I was standing in along with the pungent metallic smell all but confirmed it.

It was then that an equally dark silhouette formed a short distance away, though I was unable to tell who or what it was.

The silhouette spoke to me in a strange yet familiar voice.

"Do you remember me, Cas?" it questioned me

Its voice was so deep yet warming; I felt as if I'd spent my entire life around it.

"I...who are you..?" I questioned him

"I guess not. Well then, it must be for the best." Though he was chuckling, I could tell that there was a hint of pain and regret in his words

"I'm sorry, but I don't really understand what's happening."

"It's fine Angel. I'm just glad to see that you're ok. And I'm very proud to see that you've made it this far; though the fact that you're here, means that I've failed you. And I'm sorry for that Pumpkin."

"What exactly is this place?"

"A meeting point, between those that have passed, and those on the verge of death. I've only ever been here once before, but now ironically I'm on the other side."

"If I'm on the verge of death, then it means I lost. I couldn't do anything to help them. All I did in the end was get myself killed; I should've just stayed in the lab."

"Don't let the lies of that man get to you Cassie. Your friends are relying on you, don't let them down now. If you ever feel as if all hope is lost, just look within yourself. You carry the Essence of Gold inside you, never forget that."

Drawing me into his warm embrace, my mystery companion gave me the courage to go on.

Waking back up in my physical body, I found myself unable to breathe due to Overdrive still blocking my airway.

Without taking any time to think of a plan, I swiftly released all the electricity stored in my body, producing a miniature lightning bolt. Temporarily phased by the lightning, Overdrive released his grip on me and dashed backwards.

Rising to my feet and rubbing my neck, my body was quite visibly starved for air.

"You irritate me, Princess." He snarled, "What can you even do at this point? You can barely stand."

Choosing not to respond, I attempted to focus on using my foresight ability; though out of the many possible futures I saw so far, there wasn't a single one where I got out of this alive.

I'd hate to sound like Romaine at this point, but in that case I'll just have to make my own future.

Knowing full well that Taylor was severely injured, I decided that my best bet was to buy her some time to recover.

"Alright then." I whispered, getting into a sprinting position

Enabling my lightning cloak for protection and ecstacizing my electricity, I began running in a four-leafed clover pattern, focusing on Overdrive in the center, and getting quick hits in when possible.

"Nexus Blitz!"