The Liafador War Restricted RP

“Sir, your brother is here; shall I invite him in?” the loyal concierge asked sitting a refilled glass of red Colorino at his side. “Ah yes, yes see him in” He said, handing the timid woman the tip of his cigar for her to spark. Taking a swift pull from the sweet Gregorio Café, he gently pulled his hand down to the arm rest watching as his brother’s hulking frame cast a shadow in the doorway.

“Ahhh Kano…Come, come in” he insisted crudely flagging off his help. “You have spent time in the gym?” He asked facetiously, noting his brothers augmented appearance. “Something like that” Kane replied, taking a seat not too far from the Italian white Cardinal Patriarch.

“So I assume you heard the news? Ziccarra has made your daughter Zeon; the new head of the family.” Kane explained, tossing the Italian Liafador a newspaper. “Yes, Yes I am aware.” Marcos replied coolly flicking his ashes into the ashtray. “Nana was a powerful Matriarch.” Marcos started interrupted only by his intent on taking another pull from his cigar.

“But she is not the same woman that unified the Tibetans clans, nor is she the same woman that brought your Bravehearts to the verge of extinction. She is…The Goddess a woman entirely different than the younger sister we watched grow up.” He explained, taking a minor sip of his wine.

“We knew once she got married to that Knightfall that our family ethics were going to change; it only became a matter of when. It was that Red and Blue anomaly that changed everything, he made her soft. He showed me Nana’s weakness.”

“Look Marcos, I didn’t come to talk about Ziccarra; I came to talk about your daughter being in charge of family operations. Ziccarra is the President of Spain; and with Zeon running our family operations in Malaga, we’re being pushed out of the equation.” Kane hissed with a heavy since of frustration.

“Are you suggesting I help you get your title as Patriarch back? If so, this conversation is over brother.” Marcos’ eyes met with Kane’s only for a moment, in this brief glance the Italian Liafador could tell that wasn’t the case; Kane came for another reason.

“No, I want you to take the title of Patriarch…someone more stable.” Kane rebutted a notion that visibly took Marcos off guard…only for a moment.

Marcos shifted in his seat just a bit, providing him more room to cross his legs. “Did I ever tell you about my other daughter?”

“Marcos, I hardly think Lebreau is capable enough to tackle Zeon; and even if she was she’s not fit to lead.” Kane interrupted also shifting in his seat.

“HA! I forgot about that one” Marcos chuckled blowing on his cigar once more. “No, No I have another one have you ever been to Gothic City?”

“Honestly, no bad things happen to people in Gothic City…so I’ve heard. Why?”

Rising to full form with his hands positioned behind his back, Marcos picked up a slow saunter to a newspaper he retrieved not too long ago. “They call her the Darwinist Dictator; I’d say that’s fitting for the topic at hand. She’s been held up in a place called Bedlam Asylum for quite some time. I only just recently found out she’s a child of mine…she happens to be everything I want…in a son.”

Kane continued to sit staring at the back of Marcos’ head with a visage of confusion. “But she’ll have to do.” Marcos continued turning to face his brother once more.

“So you think she can lead the family?” Following Kane’s statement Marcos released a hearty chuckle, it’d become synonymous with anything he thought to be preposterous.

“No, Not at all, but I do believe it’s time Zeon met her sister. Wouldn’t you agree?” A demented smile crept along the edges of Marcos’ mouth. “How long will she be in prison?” Kane asked, trying to piece together the plan.

“Oh she is in there for life, but you can’t keep a person like that locked up for long so for now…we wait. I’ll explain the situation to her when the setting is right. Now then, what will we do about the Champion and his whore?”

This time Kane’s mouth cracked a slight smile, “You know all that time I’ve been spending in the gym? Let’s just say if they show up I got them covered.” Kane reassured.

“We shall blanket the streets of Malaga with White Cardinals; and force Zeon to submit” Kane said, rising to exit the compound.

“And if she doesn’t?” Marcos inquired not turning to greet his brother. “Then we will see which one of your daughter’s survival of the fittest favors more.” Kane said, finally exiting the room.

Watching as Kane was briskly past her, Estella; Marcos’ wife entered the threshold a bit worried at their clandestine engagement.

“Darling what’s going on?” She asked, not daring to enter Marcos’ sanctum. “My love, I must depart for America; I will return soon. Where is the help?” He asked, turning to face his gorgeous wife.

“She asked for a little time off so that she may handle a personal problem; she will return shortly. Anything you need my love I can do for you.”

Months Later

“And you’re sure Ziccarra and the Champion will not be present?” Kane asked, a bit nervous. Fighting Ziccarra was one thing; fighting the champion was one thing…but fighting them both?

“If I’m not mistaken, France has been threatened; Spain’s president’s focus is providing aid…they are not here.” Marcos reassured.

“Wait for my signal…” Kane commanded flying high into the Malagan air leaving his brother to tend to the small army of White Cardinals ready to turn on their former leader (Zeon). Speeding down in an almost intangible white and red blur; the renegade Liafador slammed into the seaside villa that once belong to Ziccarra (Which is the base of operations for the Liafador Family)

Instead of finding Zeon…he found the unharmed adorable babble chatter from Tassiana Liafador. “Wages of War” He whispered, with his eyes glowing a crimson red. Priming to fire his superheated ionized plasa at the infant.

Following his encounter with Trinity Blue in Hamburg, Germany, Leonel embarked on a return journey to Malaga, Spain. He needed to make certain that the seaside villa, a gift from his mother, Ziccarra, remained in a hospitable state. Informed that his relative, Mark would be residing there babysitting Tassiana given both his parents' attention on their respective obligations, Ziccarra's to the rumored takeover of France, and Alexis to whichever intergalactic threat required elimination, Leonel was confident that the teenage Knightfall would ensure that no harm would across Tassiana and that the villa's state would remain palatial. Yet as he soared through the open sky, a red cone of superheated plasma scorching the cold air as it enveloped him, he felt his cellphone vibrate in his pocket.

Decelerating as the rufescent aura of ionized particles around him dissipated, Leonel reached into his pocket, lowering his altitude before answering to be informed that someone, something of great power threatened his family's upscale home. Immediately, his mind and heart thought of Tassiana, his infant sister. "Tassi", he murmured, an expression of alarm overtaking his personable features as he burst into the distance, his equivalent of the human heart beating without pause as a trail of sonic shock-waves behind him tore the sky asunder. Having recently returned from a misadventure where Maya, the sister closest to him, had been in peril, Leonel was in no state of mind or soul to be tolerating yet another attack on one of his siblings, particularly one who had yet to even live past a single year in her life.

Entering Malagan airspace, his senses alerted him to an enormous power in the city. It was odd, similar in scope to both his and his father's. "Who the hell is this?", he wondered, speeding past everything in his path until his eyes caught sight of the villa in the distance. Rushing into the villa upon his ingress, Leonel's immediate reaction was to intercept the fired beams of plasma that targeted his youngest sibling. Absorbing the beams into a personal quantum dimensional state before redirecting them back at his apparent adversary, Leonel, unconcerned with whether or not the attack succeeded, lifted Tassiana from the nurturing confines of her crib, carrying her in his arms, offering her tender whispers of comfort so that she wouldn't be alarmed and stressed by the experience. "Let's go for a quick flight, Tassi".

There was only one location he thought of at the moment. The Royal Palace of Madrid. For a being of his speed, the peregrination spanned no longer than a second, and upon his arrival he was immediate in instructing one of the maids to watch over the president, his mother's daughter until his return. Waiting for no response from the flustered woman, Leonel made his quick return to Malaga, intent on confronting he who had seemingly come to lay waste to his sister. "Who are you?", there was a sternness, an earnest character to his voice as he spoke upon his arrival, fists clenched and eyes flaring with indignation.

With confident steps she strode down the venerable halls of Puglia. Above her head stone arches many times older than the modern incarnation of this country spread to form a breathtaking canopy. Beneath her feet exquisite marble tiles where lain in such an artful manner that their natural texture combined to a captivating history of the Cardinals. To her left and her right the stone walls were crafted into pure arts of work that displayed rows of rows of statues of well-deserved Cardinals with plaques that proclaimed their merits to whomever walked past.

She did not care. Her combat boots were contemptuously set on the history of the ancient organization with every step and she paid no attention to the lavish decorum. This had been a waste of manpower, not more. Energy that could have been used for conquering, dominating. The past was important since it lead up to this point but celebrating it in such a pompous manner only took away precious resources. The present and the future were everything that mattered.

Her cold blue eyes judged the recruits that walked past her. Strong. Trained. Capable. Like her they wore combat boots, camouflage pants and an indiscriminate grey T-shirt. Impressive muscles moved under partially scarred skin, soulless eyes told of their willingness to kill. Still they instinctively made room for the Apex Predator, took other hallways, stepped to the side to read a plaque or simply swerved around her commanded by an atavistic imprint in their subconscious.

She swam through the crowd like a shark through the ocean, ever aware but also confident that she could take on a big number of recruits if necessary.

Her way lead her through the venerable halls over the parade ground where a great number of cadets trained with naginatas in impressive unison past the urban combat tactics chamber and the darkness training room. She really had to admit without any jealousy her half-sister was doing an incredible job here. All pomp aside, Zeon’s new state-of-the-art training methods had turned the Cardinals in an even deadlier force than before. What she had to do was almost a waste.

Finally she had reached her destination. The sign on the door said “M.S. Gianvelli, Director” Without stopping for a moment she opened the richly adorned, heavy oak-wood door and entered the office. Everything in here, from the desk that matched the door over the red carpet to the classic paintings on the stone walls spoke of class. The man behind the desk was nothing less. In his mid 40s his hair had started to grey at the temples and he made sure to keep it in the same conservative fashion as his anachronistic uniform. A finely sculpted eyebrow worthy of a great thinker was raised in surprise.

He only saw a new recruit. A pretty girl in her early 20s with a fashionable blonde haircut that already showed black at the roots. Her outfit was the standard in this academy but it were her cruel blue eyes that startled him. He could not piece her together. As he spoke his voice was a bit higher than she had expected, still his tone spoke of someone who was used to give orders.

“What do you want here? I did not summon you. If you have any paperwork or complaining to do go to the office. I don’t have time for this. Now get out!”

No answer came from her. She just stood there with an unflinching gaze. She did not even blink. Discomfort began to creep up his spine. Then she threw the letter. It was a casual throw but it landed perfectly right before him. And, to his terror, it showed the personal sign of Marcos Liafador. Eyes wide open he heard what she had to say. He felt her cold voice in more than just his ears, the grave message seemed to reverberate in his bones, his organs, perhaps even his soul.

“I am Jessica Liafador and I am the new leader of this facility under the authority of my father Marcos Liafador. My first order: Bring me my predecessor alive and kill everyone loyal to her!”

Several Months Ago: Sicily, Italy

Walking through her family winery Zeon could feel her heart begin to pound in her chest, it had been only a few hours since Ziccarra made Zeon Matriarch and just a few moments since she arrived back in Sicily when her father summoned her. Could it be that he already knew? Of course he would, why wouldn’t he? Walking up to his office she nod at the casually dressed Cardinal that guarded it who bowed his head in return and opened the door for her. Walking into the office, the powerful Liafador was suddenly beginning to feel much like a small child once again, being in the presents of her over demanding and critical father.

“Zeon, welcome home.” He spoke not looking up from his paperwork as he continued writing.

“Thank you father, it’s good to be back.” The Matriarch bowed her head at the one man she had always been most afraid of, the one person who could make her feel like a worthless being with just the glare of his eyes.

“You know, I heard something very interesting happened in Malaga recently.” The Liafador set his pen down and looked up at Zeon as he grabbed a glass of red wine, holding it up inches away from his lips that slowly began to curl into a sly grin. “That my sister has stepped down from Matriarch and gave you the title.” He chuckled in amusement, as if it was some sort of twisted joke.

The born White Cardinal lift her head up and stood tall as she took in a sharp breath. “Yes, it is true, I am the Matriarch now.”

He paused in the middle of his drink, his brows pushed against one another as his piercing eyes glared up at her. “What?” He set his glass down carefully. “You cannot be Matriarch, not only are you not pure but you are a woman.” He stood up from his desk. “It is written that if MY sister cannot hold the title then either her son must take the title of Patriarch or it must be given back to the next sibling in line and you know of this.” He hissed at his daughter. “You are lucky that I gave you title of White Cardinal leader and now you thank me by going behind my back and do this to me?”

The Matriarch stood silent as her father ranted, this was everything she knew he would say. She wasn’t of pure Spanish heritage, that was something he constantly reminded her more than the fact she was a woman. “I-I” She began fumbling with her words, feeling like the small child that was constantly being told by her father that she would never be good enough for the family.

“How are you to be Matriarch when you are nothing more than an Italian/Spanish mutt?” His face twisted in anger as his shouts could be heard throughout the winery.

“Abbastanza!” Zeon slammed her hands on her fathers desk, she had heard enough of him. “It has already been decided father, I am Matriarch.” Her eyes harden as she stared down the man who had made her feel so inadequate for so many years. “The need for change was seen by Ziccarra and I, and they have already been going into place. The reign of the Liafador men is no more, when I am ready to hand over leadership, it will be to another woman who’s visions are not restricted by the selfish ways of the Liafador men.”

Marcos held his breath for a moment as the redness from his face began to slowly ease. It seemed the daughter he once ruled over with fear was no longer afraid of him. “I see.” His voice much calmer but still having a sting. “Well then, my apology, Matriarch.” He sat back in his seat, grasping his glass of wine and holding it up to her. “Viva Matriarch Zeon.”

Present

Since that outburst, Zeon had not heard at all from her father and if she wasn’t so busy trying to transition into her title of Matriarch, she would have been very suspicious of his silence. She had been the sword of the family since she was a child, striking down opposing forces without question, and why would she? She was just the sword. But now she was one who wielded it. Every decision she made, every enemy made, every kill made was going to be because of her decision. But at the moment, she was back home, away from Spain for a couple of days to review the newest White Cardinal recruits. Yes, she could have just left the job to Gianvelli, he was more than capable to overlook the newest recruits, but this was the one thing she enjoyed doing the most when she was White Cardinal leader, looking over the newest members of the Cardinal family who will be acting as the Liafador sword, just as she had for years.

Standing besides her was Arturo, the White Cardinal in charge when Zeon was away. He had always been the most loyal to her and the most supportive when she became Matriarch. “Arturo, you’ve done will with this new group.” Zeon smiled as she walked through the training compound, dressed not in her elegant Matriarch attar but rather her Red Monarchy attar, it always left the newest recruits a bit intimidated.

“Thank you Matriarch,” Arturo bowed his head in respect. “Their files are placed in your office for your review, if you are able to look over them tonight, we can have them in as full White Cardinal’s by tomorrow.”

With a soft smile she nod her head. “In that case, I’ll begin to review them as soon as we’re done here.”

But before another word could be spoken screams could be heard off in the distance. “Arturo, get the recruits out of here,” She barked out as she stretched out her hand to one of the recruits who threw her his blade.

“Zeon, we need to get you to safety, we can’t risk you being harmed.” Arturo argued against her, even though he knew her mind was already made up.

“Do as I say Arturo, and send word out to the family that we are being attacked!”

“Yes Ma’am.” He spoke as he began to lead the recruits out of the area.

Light on her feet Zeon rushed through her facilities, who would dare attack the White Cardinal compound? Who would be crazy enough to take on the Liafador Matriarch on her own soil? Her question was quickly answered as she turned the corner, a group of White Cardinal’s standing before her, weapons in hand, dripping in the blood of her loyal warriors. Fear could be seen in their eyes as the laid them upon the Liafador Warrior. “Are you sure you wish to continue this?” She asked the group of men as she got into a defensive stance.

“We don’t have a choice Matriarch.” One spoke out, “Take her alive.”

An arrow went whistling towards her as she swung her blade, a spark created as the Liafador blocked the attack gracefully. “So be it.” With that she pushed herself forward as she collided blades with the rebellious Cardinals. She maneuvered elegantly through the battle, it almost seemed as if she was dancing around the attacks, she would then strike quick and true with her blade. Within seconds all were laid out upon the ground, either dead or bleeding out. Walking up to one of the breathing men she knelt down to him. “Who ordered this?”

The man pressed against his bleeding abdomen as his face began to grow pale. “T-tu sei padre.”

Without hesitation she rushed over to Gianvelli office, if anyone would have further answers, it would be him. On the way more Cardinal’s stood in her way, and without pause she strike them down, anger burning in her eyes. She knew her father wasn’t happy with her becoming Matriarch, but to go behind her back and attempt to rise against her?

Bursting through the office with blood stains of the Cardinal’s she had slayed she glared over at Gianvelli who was startled to see her. “Matriarch Zeon!” He quickly stood up from his desk.

“Gianvelli, what is going on?” Zeon’s voice was filled with anger, having to kill the men she once fought besides with and her father betraying her wasn’t exactly settling with her too well. But Gianvelli didn’t speak, instead his eyes shift over to someone else who was in the room with him that she hadn’t noticed until now. Her attention slowly turned towards a young blond woman, and while her physical appearance didn’t seem threatening, her eyes spoke of a different story and had a familiar coldness to them. She stood for a moment in silence, it made no sense, for years her father spoke about her not being worthy because she was a ‘mutt’ and a woman, and yet there was a woman standing in his place? But there had to be a reason why he chose this specific woman and she knew her father too well to just pick a random woman to represent him and the family. It then hit her, she set her blade down on Gianvelli’s desk and spoke in a softer tone. “You are the daughter of Marcos Liafador.” She spoke in more of a matter of fact tone, than a question. It was the only thing that made sense. Marcos couldn't control Zeon anymore, and he was too prideful to find someone out of the family to do is dirty work, so he sought out one of his illegitimate children, which funny enough, ended up being a woman. "I am Zeon Liafador, Matriarch of the Liafador family."

Chaos reigned.

Outside on the magnificent parade ground the blood of those loyal to the old regime mixed with the life fluids of those who welcomed the change in an orgiastic red spectacle. Impressive martial arts skills where finally put to use when the naginatas were turned around to be deeply embedded in the flesh of former training partners.

Steel met steel. Punches and kicks met blocks. The formerly perfectly organized rows of trainees had transformed into a single ball of slaughter. The screams of the wounded and dying hung eerily in the air accenting the heavy smell of copper with yet another nuance of bloodshed.

On top of a mountain of corpses a uniformed instructor defended his hide as costly as possible against a whole onslaught of recruits, his revolver and his sable ever whirling around to react to another attacker. The noon sun evoked dramatic highlights on his golden buttons while his formerly brown uniform got darker and darker from all the blood. Only a few feet away a standard bearer made his heroic last stand against his former team comrades utilizing the pole like a spear or staff. Masterfully he used the voluminous red flag to obscure the vision but against the majority of opponents he soon fell. Legends were written and lives were ended on this field at that day.

Jessica witnessed all of them. Standing behind the lead glass window and watching the slaughter unfold was hard for her. Her blood boiled in her veins and commanded her to step into action, to go on the prowl again and prove herself stronger than everyone on this battlefield. To seek out the most able combatants and challenge them, to either vanquish them or perish trying. To once more enforce the eternal law.

But hers was a different fight. She could feel Gianvelli’s conflict as well, how two different loyalties raged against each other in his chest. Since he had given the fateful order he had not said a single word and the Lethal Lost Liafador had not encouraged him. So they had stood together, waiting and fighting their own fights. When she heard him holding his breath she turned around.

A woman entered. Even if the Darwinist Dictator had never seen a photo of the brunette woman with the fiery brown eyes she would have been able sense the aura of subtle lethality that her half-sister exuded. Although her blade was almost completely covered in crimson not a single stain was visible on her garb, testament to her superior skill in death dealing. Slim but powerful muscles moved under smooth skin. Even her moves told of the justified self-confidence of a martial artist. Zeon Liafador, Matriarch of the Liafador family.

For a moment they locked gazes. Gianvelli became a simple supernumerary, a pale bystander in a titanic measure up. He nearly ceased to exist. Instead the contrasting women of the same blood became the center of the world for an eternal second. Blonde and brunette, blue steel and brown fire. Gianvelli exhaled again as Zeon spoke the faithful words that confirmed her identity as well as her knowledge why the other woman was here.

“You are the daughter of Marcos Liafador. I am Zeon Liafador, Matriarch of the Liafador family."

That was the signal for the Lioness Of The Concrete Jungle to explode into action.

When she had strode to the window to watch the begin of the revolution her hand had casually caressed the director’s venerable work station. That had been all the info she needed. Out of a sudden she raised her left leg straight over her head and let it come down on the desk. The result was breathtaking. Hitting the wooden furniture right on the weakest spot in the middle it was destroyed in a cloud of ancient wood and splinters. For the fracture of a second paper, pens, rulers, pair of dividers and simple pieces of oakwood hung suspended in the air. The Apex Predator’s left foot had just reconnected with the floor when she started a brutal roundhouse kick with the right. Target of this action was not her opponent but one of the boards. The kick sent it right at the Mistress Of The Cardinals.

Knowing fully well that this was nothing but a nuisance to a fighter of her degree Jessica also grabbed Gianvelli’s stainless steel pen and a pair of dividers out of the air in the same motion. The same moment her opponent used either her sword to deflect it or dodged the makeshift projectile she would come at her like a vicious animal seeking the brutal infight to undermine the blade’s reach advantage and trying to stick the dividers into her right armpit.

The battle was on, the stakes were high and they even had a one-man-audience…

Kane’s enhanced reflexes alerted him to the mysterious parry of his own attack; allowing him to dodge with the same blur as Tassi’s apparent savior. “Heh…so the rumors are true” opting to hover instead of actually placing his boots on the ground, the Indoctrinated Liafador stood somewhat impressed at the sight of a younger Champion. “I’m your uncle Kane…gimme a hug boy” He said with a cocky overtone.

Kane stood confidentially studying the young champion, he stood firm in his beliefs and ready to defend his family; Kane admired that, but what was also a source of admiration was a weakness to be exploited.

“You’re his son huh” Kane started picking up a light saunter a pace circumventing the young Champion. “My family built this city from the ground up, a lot of good men died so that we’d have the advantages we enjoy now.” Kane continued, still pacing around the Leonel.

“But then that whore, yes, you’re mother; became the head of our family, and now we’re littered with freak shows like you. So I intend to destroy what we built one brick at a time; starting with this city.” Begin the attack” He commanded through an earpiece positioned on his right ear.

“As for you son…you need to learn how to stay out of grown-folks business” Throwing his piston like fist into the ground, a series of huge dark portals much-like the ones Catalina constructed; filtered through the long-established Spanish Villa, before violently exploding with an intoxicating destructive bright light.

Used as both a status and offensive maneuver, Kane cut effortlessly through the light in a blending white and crimson blur with his fist poised to send a thunderous series of punches toward Leo’s face with machine-like velocity.

As the two titans tangoed Kane’s series of dark portals continued to rip the infrastructure of the homely villa slowly begin to shatter around them. “Fight you son of a b!tch!” Kane screamed, harnessing his bio-electromagnetic energies in the process; throwing his hand forward he cast a violent expansive form of energy in Leonel’s direction in an attempt to deal unimaginable damage to the young Champion.

In the surrounding city of Malaga, the White Cardinals under the guidance of Kane lay waste to the city of Malaga; the screams of her loyal citizen’s silenced the mighty roar of the great city; casting an overpowering atmosphere of panic in the region.

Various stacks of smoke bellowed overtop the luxuriant city dowsing the Spanish colors in soot and ash—soot and ash that belonged to her loyal citizens.

His uncle? The purity of the Liafador family? They were all notions, bits of information that were new to the New God, yet none of his supposed uncle's words stung him with more venom than the man's verbal degradation of Ziccarra. Insults that were quick to ignite Leonel's fury, a white flame of quiet rage burned within the New God's spirit before he released it with a roar, "Don't you ever talk about my mother like that!". The ground quaked, trembled and split beneath their feet as Leonel voiced his anger, fissures tore through it's surface and the air grew still as electrical filaments surged all about, masses of ionized particles orbited all about him in the form of plasma, heating the air as Leonel's rage, his indignation continued to be roused.

"I do?", Leonel inquired, clearly rhetorically in response to Kane's taunt that he, a twenty-two year old had no business meddling in the affairs of his elders, "I'm going to light the sky up with your ionized remains". Quickly, his features grew earnest, austere as energy poured from his eyes and he recognized copies of his father's genetic patterns in his uncle's cellular composition. "I'm going to teach you the difference between a pretender and a god". Soon the battle began. Kane rushed forward and unleashed a pugilistic barrage of unmitigated fury. The speed, the power, it was not unlike fighting Reality M's counterpart of Thee Champion. They both held back no portion of their power. Leonel however, wasn't concerned, he's defeated his father before, he felt he could do the same with a perceived pretender.

Punch after punch rammed into his face, bruising his features, causing his the flesh under his left eye to swell and his chin to crack with pain. Kane was strong, enormously so. But then again, so was he. Following his adversary's sixth punch, Leonel's speed and instincts as a wrestler took hold and the New God sought to grab Kane's wrists with a thumbs-down grip. Their strength was comparable, meaning Kane, if caught, wouldn't be able to simply yank his arms free. The manner one escapes a wrist grip is by yanking the arms in the direction of the opponent's thumb. Leonel's thumbs however, would face the ground in order to force Kane to escape by yanking his arms downwards, leaving him wide open to elbows, knees, and uppercuts. Leonel however, would not wait for a reaction, he attacked with immediacy.

If his wrist grips were successful, he'd pull down hard on Kane's arms, bringing his opponent's head into the path of a thunderous right knee that would blast into his uncle's chin with the power to reduce mountains to rubble. Quickly it would be followed by a left knee intent on 'lighting him up' to snap his uncle's head upwards, further exposing his chin and leaving him open to what would be Leonel's tertiary attack as with a turn of the hips, he'd whip his shin across the air, intent on bombing the left side of Kane's temple with a kick accelerated to near-superluminal velocities, the sheer power and kinetic energy of the strikes were designed to cause superheating to the matter on the surface of Kane's flesh and knock him across the battlefield. He'd hope at least to have damaged Kane just as he had been damaged.

And just as Kane discharged a powerful wave of electromagnetic energy in Leonel's direction, the New God responded in kind and thrust both his palms forward, projecting a highly energetic burst of gamma rays in a focused, narrow jet of energy that collided with Kane's blast. The collision would result in an explosion, one that would possibly deal damage to both combatants, certainly it dealt damage to Leonel, his flesh was scorched and his bones experienced the burning touch of the explosion's heat flash, but he endured, this was part of his plan. He'd seek to absorb a large portion of the explosion's energy and store it in his personal quantum dimensional state for later use against his uncle. He couldn't expend himself too much, not this early. He was already wounded. To fight recklessly against an equal would be unwise.

Leonel was undoubtedly the strongest opponent Kane fought to date, his strength was unmatched; his speed had no rival; and his ability to mentally adapt cause the Liafador to marvel. He was a god in full, but that never once spurred the notion that he couldn’t be killed, as his fist plowed into the face of his “nephew” a sadistic smirk crept along his face; at least until Leonel managed to secure his wrist. “Get off boy!” Kane grunted, shortly before having a powerful knee deviate his seceptum. The jarring impact cause what appeared to be blue blood to gush from his nose.

The force of another strike cause the immediate area around them to quiver, his head involuntarily followed the momentum of the force and was intercepted by an adroitly executed kick. The sheer force of the timely kick knocked Kane’s hulking frame across what was left of the villa with a thick trail of blood leading towards his downed frame.

“Hnnh” he grunted, weakly rising to his feet, Leonel was impressive and a lot more deadly then he originally gave him credit for. Pushing the two colliding energy masses together the negative explosion sent a shockwave through the entire villa causing it to crumble where it stood.

Kane’s body had been jettisoned by the force and deposited on the nearby beach. He lay on the sandy Malagan beach surrounded by a plethora of Tassi’s toys, trying to will his body out of entropy, every now and then he shuddered. “Foolish...k-k-kid.” Coagulated strands of blood dangle between his now steel exposed lips.

Huge patches of his synthetic skin were removed revealing the sinister machine components given to him by the 3^rd Society. No longer fully human, Kane rose with a good portion of his face missing; ready to continue his bout with the Azure Son.

“L-look around you…” he gasps trying to recuperate in this brief moments reprieve. “We’ve nearly burned every inch of your prized city to the ground. Right now in Italy the White Cardinals are laying waste to your cousin and her forces. And I present to you my trump card.”

Motioning behind the both of them was a lithe frame woman wearing a pitch black hood. “Take care of this problem…I need to reenergize” Kane said, emitting a command signal that cause this new combatant to respond.

“Gladly.” She whispered, removing her hood to reveal the Cardinal Goddess of Mischief, Catalina Liafador. She’d gone missing sometime after visiting Columbia with Retrofire; she got captured and turned into a 3^rd Society pawn.

Cat’s power to emulate the powers of an enemy made her more than a formidable foe for Leonel. Fully extending her arm, Cat’s shadow rose from its slumber and stepped in between the brother and sister.

Both Cat and her shadow moved in perfect synchronization with one another shifting in and out of tangibility. Drawing near cat sent an energy enhanced strike towards her brother’s chest—a ruse. A ruse that would hopefully take his focus off the approaching shadow, should he take the bait; Cat’s shadow would come over the top with a devastating butterfly kick in an effort to knock him off-balance.

Following up with an attack of her own the Tenekentic Queen opened a portal underneath the feet of Leonel in an attempt to swallow him whole; and deposit him above her; this would cause the airborne allowing her to send a powerful burst of shadow energy into his body.

As they met blow for blow, it grew increasingly evident that while the bout was a genuine clash of titans, Kane lacked two key components that seemed to grant Leonel a subtle advantage as they did battle; versatility and expertise in employing his own powers. Kane while powerful, lacked the dexterity it seemed to combine his array of abilities for maximum potency. Though as modern society has come to accept, all good things truly come to an end. And Leonel's brief moment of superiority came crashing down on his heart as their battle was transferred to the sandy Malagan beaches, infrastructural remnants of his villa and the burnt remains of Tassiana's plush toys were spread all about them.

Earnestly meeting Kane's gaze with one of focused indignation, the New God did his best to ignore his sustained wounds, aching bones, bits of lacerated and burnt flesh, bruised and swollen skin, he managed. These were incipient battle wounds, they wouldn't impair him so readily, the same however, couldn't be said for Kane it seemed. Until of course, Leonel's heart, as mentioned before, sank as his uncle's trump card was revealed. "Catalina", the Son of Tomorrow paused, eyes no longer glowing with the power of the divine, his body no longer lit by the god-like glow of his energy, the air no longer crackling with his power ready to be unleashed. Instead, an expression of disbelief, of confusion, of heartache overtook him as he gazed longingly upon his sister.

He hardly paid any mind to the revelation of his uncle's mechanical composition, his attention, his shock was focused only on Catalina. "Cat?", he called out to her, voice laced with concern as a lump formed in his throat. He couldn't bear it. Maya, his youngest sister might have been his closest sibling, his confidant, but Catalina, she held a special place in Leonel's heart. He'd long since been tasked by his parents to watch over her. They might not have been the dearest of friends, but more than he does with any of his other siblings, Leonel felt obligated to protect Catalina the most. She was the one that he felt needed him, a friend. To see this? Her seemingly turning against him. He simply couldn't process the sentiments. "Catalina?", again he called out to her, doing his best to fight back the emergence of tears. Soldiers didn't weep, not on the battlefield. But this was Catalina, his Catalina.

"What are you doing? What's happening? What did-", he paused, shifting his gaze towards Kane, anger boiling in his veins, "You...". His anger however, would not have release. Catalina struck. First an energy-enhanced strike drilled into his chest, exposing him to a following butterfly kick by the Cardinal Goddess' shadow. The energy-enhanced strike didn't do him much damage. His chest was a muscular shield. His chin however, was cracked by a kick of devastating force. Catalina had done well to cover the butterfly kick with a set-up strike. A butterfly is an unnecessarily cinematic strike that without a set-up, is suicide. "Gnaaah!", he cried out, nearly knocked down by the kick before finding himself swallowed into a portal beneath his feet that transported him several feet above the air and open to a follow up blast of energy that scorched him to the very bone.

Throughout the entire assault, Leonel made no attempt to counter. How could he? How could he fight his own sister? For a god, everything should be possible. But to lay hands on those he treasured, Leonel simply couldn't. Landing on his knees, palms braced against the sand as his fingers dug deep into it, blood dripping from cuts and open wounds as he grunted, he sought to reach out to Catalina again, this time however, telepathically. But as he tried and tried, he didn't feel her mind, he felt... nothing. Nothing but incoherent whispers. The whispers of Third Society indoctrination. "What... have you done to my sister?!", he barked, his widened gaze turning to Kane before his anger began to boil over. "... You'd.. better hope, uncle... heh... that my parents return to restrain me. Because I will F*CKEN DESTROY YOU FOR THIS!!!", he roared, shattering the sky and shaking the ground with a voice fueled by the rage of a New God awakened.

Though as powerful as he was, he knew that both Kane and Catalina were beyond his ability to fight, at least not without destroying the entire planet. And he knew in his heart that he could never fight Catalina. He needed Maya. He needed Maya to use her power to bend the forces of reality to her will to reverse whatever had been done to Catalina. Otherwise, he would fight a losing battle. One where he might very well lose his life in.

The rage in Cat’s eyes never faltered in the face of her concerned brother, it was well known that one could break society indoctrination by having a strong connection to the past life; Cat’s memories were wiped, she could only remember her destructive past as the Queen of Southern Venezuela. “Your problem Leo is you do everything fast…on impulse and filled with so much emotion” She said, slowly switching in his direction. “You like to flaunt your strength” She hissed, taking another calculated step in his direction.

“You flaunt your power” again taking another step this time joined by her shadow. “And you flaunt your light-speed” this time she came to a halt with her hands fixed on her narrow hip. “Heh…light speed” she chuckled at the thought of someone actually traveling at light speed.

“Light thinks it travels faster than anything but it is wrong. No matter how fast light travels, it finds the darkness has always got there first, and is waiting for it.” Cat joined now by Kane stood with two orbs of darkness swirling freely in the palms of her hands, “Do you think she will come to save you, after what happened on Earth-3?” Cat interrupted, feeding off his hope that their younger sister, Maya would come to aid him.

“We’ve beaten you on three different worlds now, it’s time you realize you cannot escape destiny. There is a realm of existence so far beyond your own you could never fathom it. Organic life is nothing but a genetic mutation, an accident. Your lives are measured in years and decades. You wither and die. We are eternal, the pinnacle of evolution and existence. Before us, you are nothing. Your extinction is inevitable. We are the end of everything. You exist because we allow it.”

At the end of Cat’s 3^rd society rant, she hit the ground hard with a thunderous fist; releasing the two darkness orbs into the earth. Ethereal darkness poured from her fist like an overflowing fountain, eating the very fabric of Malaga. Inch by inch the parasitic darkness ate away the boundaries of a city that once concealed them. Of course this was an illusion cast by Cat’s control of the darkness, but she wanted to show him what the results of an organic world were.

“Bits and fragments of nations remain…the very few struggling to survive…their champions failed them. You failed them. Done in by their own destruction.” She hissed again.

“We intend to stop it.” Following the conclusion of her rant, Cat again launched herself at her brother this time instead of attacking him up close; she opted to break down the very fiber of his DNA. Having connected with a series of strikes; she was able to decipher his genetic sequence. Thrusting her hands forward, she attempted to break down his physical restraints by altering his durability.

Should this work, she sought to impale him by sending four tendrils towards his chest.

For the moment he waited, he listened, his gaze met Catalina's and he remained still, at least physically. His mind however, began to weigh the benefits over the cost of making use of the energy absorbed from Kane's previous blast. He recalled that prior to his sister's emergence, his uncle claimed to need time, time to reenergize. Leonel understood this as a synonym for recover. Should Kane fully recover and abuse the additional power acquired from Catalina's assistance, Leonel in his present wounded state of body would stand no realistic chance against the duo. His path was clear. Quickly, his body flared with the energy absorbed from Kane's blast, lighting his frame with the flame of his uncle's power.

Not for an attack or even for a defensive response, instead it served as a means of preservation. Among Leonel's abilities with energy absorbed from outside sources was the ability to dramatically accelerate his body's healing processes. And so, as Catalina's monologue came, the New God healed. His wounds vanished, swollen features reverted to their previous glory, and his physical being was replenished. Rising to both feet, his earnest, denim blue gaze met Catalina's and he listened to the remainder of her words. Paying attention to one word in particular, 'organic', Leonel's suspicions had been confirmed. The whispers of indoctrination he heard coupled with this, it was evident that this was the Third Society's doing. "Aphasic. Zedora. Whichever one of you is perverting my sister's mind, you've made a crucial mistake in your observations".

"I don't need Maya to come save me", he paused, his heart racing as his nerves were roused, he wanted to lay waste to the Third Society, to Kane Liafador, but he knew he would never do so to Catalina. "I need her to come save Catalina", from him. He knew that Maya didn't harbor the same reservations he did when confronting Catalina with violence was concerned. For as much as his temper has been exaggerated, Maya was the family's true hothead. She was unfortunately, in no condition to be in battle. Their misadventure in Earth-3 was not something she was accustomed to. Though as Catalina spoke and made claims of the Third Society's superiority, Leonel's rage was roused and he roared, "ENOUGH!". The ground cried out in pain as it split and the sky was torn asunder by the authority of his power. "This ends now". He could never take Catalina's life, but he would certainly defend his own.

Immediately, Catalina, by virtue of her power over darkness, seemed to consume the very essence of what was Malaga. But it was an illusion. With the almost supernatural clarity granted to him by his eyesight, Leonel could see through nearly anything, even in the absence of light. Cosmic microwave background radiation was his vision's trump card. But even then, Catalina's illusion taunted him, a testament to her sheer dominion over the forces of darkness and the illusionary. But Leonel endured. "How sad", Leonel began, "The Catalina I knew would have never allowed herself to be made someone's slave". He understood how indoctrination worked. The mind of the victim more or less remained, but it was under control, by the whispers of the Third Society. The mind was warped, but he was certain that Catalina could still hear him, even if she didn't remember him, he knew that one core essence of her being remained.

Her pride. As his sister's hands were thrust forward, his physical durability vanished as was the will of her power, and he was rendered defenseless against her tendrils. Or was he? While incredibly durable due to his dense cellular structure, the true extent of Leonel's durability stemmed from something else. Hopping onto his back-foot and side-stepping to his left, the four tendrils grazed his chest, tearing away layers of flesh from one of his pectorals but leaving him alive. The wound wasn't too severe despite what his wincing expressed. Why Leonel managed to survive even with his durability stripped was because his true toughness was a property of his control over virtual particles. Around his body, there was a perpetual field comprised of continually replenishing twinned/virtual particles. When some object/energy interacts with it, the field of particles cannot be properly annulled in most cases. The natural durability of his body was simply a fail-safe in case the field were to ever disappear.

Hoping to appeal to Catalina's pride and drive her to resist the effects of indoctrination, Leonel continued despite his bleeding chest wound. "Where's your strength? I once told you that what I most admire about you, what I found most beautiful about you is how you're completely and unapologetically yourself. But this? This isn't you", he continued. "I don't see that Catalina. I just see the Third Society's bitch". He didn't know if it'd work. It'd either allow her to dig deep and resist the indoctrination, or it would do nothing, perhaps even anger her. In any case, Leonel would exhaust every alternative in his arsenal before resorting to combat against his own sister.

Leonel wasn’t born into this family, he was adopted; he’d never truly understand the internal feud between the Liafador Women and the Liafador Men. The men had the upper hand until Ziccarra’s ascension to Matriarch; in the short time afterwards it still seemed as if the men were able to influence them.

Cat stood composed reflecting the serene nature of their mother, much-like Ziccarra she too understood the importance of keeping the mind clear on the battlefield. He continually roared and manifests his powers in the most explosive of manners—showing her had too much emotion invested in this fight. She however; did not. “3^rd society bitch huh?” She questioned, noting his healing process taking effect. “Do you know why the Liafador women are in charge?” She asked, there were puddles of darkness laced with each of her small steps, peering from this darkness were small beady yellow eyes watching as their queen once again monologue.

“Because the men of this family are weak.” She said, pointing back in Kane’s direction. “We are bred for our genetics; everything down to our beauty is for a reason.” She continued stopping a short distance from a fully healed Leonel with a matter of fact expression on her face.

“So our enemies; usually men, until they realize how invaluable we are left immobilized, Infatuated by emotion they have for us.” Unbeknownst to any keen eyesight; cat’s molecular structure was augmenting to match the exact genetic code of Leonel. “Isn’t that what you’re experiencing?” A cocky smirk crept along the corners of her face. “It would be wise to…” Cat started, but her speech was hindered by Kane, who had just risen to his feet. “Stop this talking...Kill him!” he barked, once again internally emitting a command signal.

In compliance with her ‘commanders’ wishes; Catalina turned swiftly back in Leo’s direction with ill-intent. Casting her arms out in Leo’s direction, “I’m glad you healed..You’re going to need it” She teased, attempting to use her adept skills over darkness to turn Leonel’s own shadow against him.

“Attack” she commanded sending his own shadow blitzing across the terrain intent on matching him blow for blow with Leo. Meanwhile Cat, now augmented by Leo’s DNA; sped across the terrain in a noir blur.

Manifesting herself in the form five of darkness entities around him, Cat threw a dozen shadow orbs in his direction. These shadow orbs acted as miniature black holes, in an attempt to contort his body placing extra strain on his physique, while the shadow gained the upperhand.

The blood feud that existed between the men and women of the Liafador family was unheard of to the New God. He was not a Liafador, therefore he lacked any profound understanding of the strenuous familial dilemma. He did however, recognize himself as a member of the Liafador-Pettis family. By extension, all dilemmas that either family experienced were his dilemmas to deal with, as was this. Before him stood Catalina, his sister, with no recollection of him and under the influence of the Third Society. Though she was not alone. She was in the company of their uncle, Kane Liafador. Leonel didn't consider himself outgunned, he truly believed he possessed the power to do battle with both of them. He believed himself more powerful than his father, and perhaps due to the sheer versatility of his power-set, he may well be.

But he was at an enormous disadvantage in that he simply could not bring himself to harm Catalina. As much as the situation infuriated him, as much it frustrated him that he failed to protect her, there was nothing he could do. Nothing short of somehow disrupting the Third Society's control over her. He did not possess the means to challenge the effects of indoctrination in his sister's mind. Instead, he hoped for a miracle. "Heh, funny...", he thought, "A god hoping for a miracle. Truly anything in this world can happen". Though it was not amusement that his visage expressed, it was austerity, earnestness and indignation. "No. What I'm experiencing now, for you?", Leonel paused, always on alert, "Is pity. Things, they don't get much sadder than this", he frowned, disgusted at what he perceived to be Catalina's lack of internal fortitude to overcome the will of others. "Your mother would be ashamed. Where's your steel? Where's your will?", he questioned, his patience growing thin as his teeth were gritted and he roared. "Are you just a puppet!?!".

"I know I can't bring myself to hurt you. But there's one thing I can most certainly do", Leonel paused, shifting his indignant, flaring gaze towards a recovering Kane, "I can kill him". That was it. That was the plan, to unleash his frustrations and rage on his uncle. It was, at this point, his only release. Kane was powerful, and with his genes, so was Catalina. But they lacked a crucial element. Experience with their new-found powers. Leonel understood the depths of his power-set, how to use it, and how to counter it. But he was no longer cool-headed. All his eyes saw was red. And red was what the sandy beaches would be when covered with Kane's blood. Instructing his shadow to do battle with him, Catalina's assault commenced. Doing his best to dodge and evade the shadow's strikes, Leonel unfortunately, found himself on the receiving end of a gravitational shift that strained his body. Having resisted the gravity of entire stars, miniature black holes were no immediate concern, until they rendered him sluggish enough for the shadow's strikes to land.

Battered and bruised but still refusing to cut loose on his sister, Leonel, back on the sandy terrain, struggled as he rose to both feet. Vibrantly, his eyes glowed with power as the New God dug deep and harnessed his most powerful ability. The ability to manipulate virtual particles. Able to manipulate the strong nuclear force between quarks by causing virtual gluons to interact, Leonel could, by virtue of the residual of this force outside of neutrons and protons holding them together in atomic nuclei being virtual mesons, disintegrate anything. It was with this ability that he sought, with all his might to reduce Kane to nothingness, erase him and every bit of his physical information from existence. While if successful, Leonel will have reduced his opposition's numbers by one, he would be rendered completely powerless for days. So while he may succeed in killing Kane, he would essentially render himself utterly defenseless against Catalina and at that point he could only hope that she would remember him or that Maya, Ziccarra, someone would come to his aid, otherwise, he would be killed.

The young woman didn’t verbalize a single word, instead, she allowed her body to do the talking for her. Without warning the bombshell Liafador went on the attack, a precise kick completely shattering the oakwood desk of Gianvelli’s desk without any effort. The loyal Liafador servant quickly made his way to the opposite side of the room, getting out of the way of the battle that had quickly unfolded. Her blade was sent into the air from the force of the attack and in one swift motion the Liafador Matriarch snatched the blade in mid-air, holding the blade in a reverse grip as the dull side of the blade pressed against the red fabric of the side of her forearm, swinging her arm upward as the training blade sliced the wooden board in half. Her years of training with the Cardinals since she was a child honed her skills as a warrior and while she didn’t have immures strength, she made it up with speed and precision.

Only it was soon to be found out, her sister could be much faster than herself. As soon as her block was completed, the Feral Liafador was already in Zeon’s face, completely catching the Cardinal leader off guard. She took a step back to try and keep a distance but was greeted with a sharp pain to her right axillary. With a greet of her teeth she quickly jerked her body away, she looked only to see two, dividers lodged into her arm! Seemingly harmless objects turned into weapons. Switching her blade into her left hand she then sliced the dividers down as close to her body as she could in one swift swing, not wanting to pull them out and cause more unnecessary bleeding, but there it was, the draw of first blood by her blood. “You fight like an animal.” She couldn’t help but smile, this was her sister and even though they had never met each other, pride began to swell in her chest to see that the Liafador was a powerful warrior. It was a pity her father got to her first, if Zeon had known about her, she may have sought her out on her own.

She knew talking didn’t seem to interest her sister, as she had yet spoke a single word, but there was another way to communicate with her…

She sprung on the attack, switching her blade to her right hand again in a reverse hold as she extended her left hand outward and pushed herself forward into a single hand cartwheel kick towards the right side of the fellow Liafador, curving her legs as she did so to try and hook the Liafador’s shoulder and possibly knock her down, while at the same time using her right hand that held the blade to attempt to sink the weapon’s teeth into Jessica’s right knee. But instead of pushing herself away from the Lethal Liafador upon coming back up she gave herself an extra push to give the two a bit of a distance. “May I at least know the name of my sister?” She spoke as she began to feel the pain radiating from her axillary to her shoulder, this was going to start causing limitation her movements soon. She then got into a partial tiger defensive stance. The fingers of her left hand were pulled back towards her palms, imitating a claw, her hand flexing from the tension it was generating as it rest in front of her as the rest of her body began to relax while her right hand was held close to her chest, still holding into her blade in a reverse hold.

Catalina Amia Liafador, scientifically bred to house the personalities of both Ziccarra and Kane—an inbred in short. Known for being as tactical as her mother, yet annoyingly cunning like her “father” had zeroed in on her own brother and marked him for death. Up to this point she was able to exploit Leo’s loyalty and employ a deadly barrage of attacks to force the hand of the Azure Son.

The situation grew increasingly dire—at least as far as Leo was concerned, Cat’s augmented abilities provided enough cover to shield her from massive amounts of damage; damage Leonel refused to dish out. His inability to strike allowed the Dark Queen to delve further into her own power set; using skills and abilities a rational Cat didn’t know she had. “Weak.” She muttered, watching him once again be reduced to a quivering knee. “Liafador women are warriors in every sense of the word!” She hissed moving forward, darkness teeming underneath her every calculated step. By now she built up a wall to his banter, his speeches in her eyes were heavily contradicting; on one hand he spoke of how weak her mind was—susceptible to the manipulation of others; and yet here he was blinded by his own rage and naivety.

Her sultry saunter came to a halt, something changed. She could feel the energy around Leo mounting to near critical levels, he was amassing something powerful. Opting not to warn the unsuspecting Kane, Cat retreated into a dark portal; allowing the catastrophic energy to completely eclipse “Thee Champion” doppelganger.

“NOOOOOoooaraaaah!” the piercing screams released from Kane were silenced by the exploding energies. The ash from his once porcelain skin dressed the sand like an abstract painting, underneath his charred metallic frame sat a massive depression laced with flute particles from the sheer heat of Leo’s eruption.

Kane Eduardo Liafador was the first born child of Sabella and Ramon Liafador; the scientific mind behind Catalina Liafador and a proficient practitioner of occult methods. The modifications made by the 3^rd society didn’t protect him from the rage of an angry new god. His singed metallic frame suggest no life left to be lived, but his legacy continued—continued through his greatest creation; Catalina.

Reemerging in the air behind the powerless Leo, Cat only shook her head. “He tried to harness the powers of the gods, but in the end they harnessed him” She hissed seemingly apathetic to the death of her creator.

“Now, I have something to reveal to you.” She said landing back on the beach; the immense heat from Leo’s attack scorching the sole of her opaque boots. “I’m not indoctrinated. I simply asked to be returned to the way I was, back when I was a cold heartless bitch! The cocaine, the orgies. The death…I LOVED THAT SHIT!” she screamed knowing he was powerless to stop her.

“That fool thought he could control me, but I’m completely resistant to rudimentary mental intrusions. Heh” She paused to release a sick chuckle. “And you believed it…he believed it. I could’ve won an academy award with that performance” She continued highlighting her career as an actress.

“I told you. You’d fail the people. I’m going to show you why!” She said, blatantly dismissing the powerless Azure Son vanishing within a darkness portal.

High above the Malagan Skies

Leo’s inability to attack left her a full power; not even the slightest bruise hindered her ability to charge his energies. The incandescent glow in her eyes suggest annihilation, the ionized particles building in her eyes ducts reached critical mass and readied for release. Dive bombing into the city of Malaga Catalina’s attack could be felt throughout the entire province. Her wrath tore buildings asunder, reduced people to ash piles; but more importantly reminded Leo of his inability to stop this atrocity.

On the beach.

Left unchecked Leo’s shadow readied to attack him once more at the moment of death; its presence was relieved by the appearance of the Reality Warping power Princess, Maya Liafador. “LEO!!!!” She screamed rushing to his side with a hand on his shoulder. “W-what happened?” She questioned her attention on the charred remains on Kane. She'd just missed Cat's assault on Malaga, but somehow she just knew. "She did this...didn't she" She asked giving Leo a tearful gaze before looking in the suspected direction of Cat. "Goddess...forgive me for my sins" She said, levitating in the air with Leo in her sphere.

The revelation was shocking to say the least. It stopped Leonel's heart for a moment as he listened in complete and utter disbelief. Around him the beach's white sand had been turned to glass by the scorching temperatures of his most recent attack, and the echoes of his unfathomable power hung in the air like a force of nature. But it was merely an echo. He was powerless now. A fact that Catalina seemed to revel in as she unveiled her deepest desire, to be returned to the way she was before. Leonel couldn't understand. She had a family that cared deeply for her and did all they could to help her succeed. "This isn't what you've become. It's what you've always been", he began, struggling with his injuries to remain even on a single knee.

"I would have died for you. That's how much I love you". She was his sibling, biological or not, good or evil, she was his sibling. "Or so I thought. But now I see. There is no love. Only pity. I feel sorry for you", he resumed, and indeed he was, the tears he fought back, the lump that forced it's way into his throat were all products of his pity for her. "I won't kill you. I never will. I hope that as I look the other way on that, you'll one day find your place in the world. But until then, I want you to know one thing, 'sister'", the word almost disgusted him at this point. How could Catalina allow herself to come to this? "I'll look the other way when it comes to killing you. But I won't go blind". That was a promise. Though as the Cardinal Goddess of Darkness departed, the New God could feel it in his very essence as his blood painted the sand that wasn't scorched or turned to glass, that he was going to die.

Without intervention he certainly would. His wounds were to severe for an entity without the might of a god. And it seemed that his shadow had returned to finish what it had started. Though as fate would have it, his shadow failed by virtue of Maya's timely intervention. "Maya..", he began as she rushed to his side. "I killed Kane. He had dad's powers. I had to. But I expended myself too much. I'm powerless now. And Catalina, she-", he winced, "She's truly fallen. She did this, willingly. She wanted this. She wanted that", Leonel paused, directing his gaze towards the Malagan city, lit by the flames of their sister's destructive will. "To hurt me. I've never given up on someone before but Catalina, she's a lost cause", he now saw why Ziccarra had been so reluctant to fully embrace her most twisted daughter. As Maya encased them both in a sphere and rose into the air, Leonel resumed. "You have to stop her".

"I can't. I'm powerless right now. Unless you can restore my powers, there's nothing I can do. She won't listen to me. But the two of you were closer. She'll listen to you.. maybe. And if not, there's only one thing you can. And I know you can", he was certain she could, her reality warping was limited only by her imagination. "You have to strip her of her powers".

Maya Alexis Liafador-Pettis was the first born child of the New God Alexis Pettis; and his wife the Cardinal Goddess, Ziccarra Liafador. Maya was blessed with the powerful ability to warp reality as she saw fit, known for having one of the purest hearts; she toyed with the idea of killing the Cardinal Goddess of Darkness, but only for a moment.

“This was done out of fear Leo.” Maya said, descending on Main Street with her brother in tow. “That man…Bishop? Cat lost him, and instead of embracing those painful emotions; she chose to forget them all together” Maya explained somewhat choking on the smell of human remains littering the air.

“We’re some of the most powerful beings on Earth, yet the destruction we create come with heavy wages” Her heartache, how could someone in the family; HER family be capable of such destruction. “W-we failed Leo” she didn’t harbor the same battle ethics as her Leo, instead of holding back the inevitable tears she allowed them to free fall from her face.

“I-I knew something was wrong…I knew it” she said, referring to a feeling she had just before they’re misadventure on Earth 3. “She’s done…” Maya said with a snivel, extending her hand out to touch Leo’s she reconfirmed her declaration.

“She’s done, I’m done! I’m so tired of all this fcking death!” her pores screamed a vibrant crimson hue; filled with a balanced mixture of sorrow and anger, she placed her teary eyed face into the chest of her brother.

The 5’11 teen model stood with no designer labels, no extravagant jewelry and very little make-up; instead she was adorned in her retro Earth-3 get up complete with a cowl and headdress—in short she was fully prepared to battle with Catalina.

She lacked the endurance of her father and was without the stamina of her mother; she didn’t have Leo’s wit, nor was she well versed in her powers like Catalina, but the lithe framed power princess undoubtedly had the strongest heart. With the necessity of stopping Catalina weighing heavy on her mind, she was confident she could do it; but at what cost? Her sister?

“Here…” She said touching the “M” in the palms of his hand; she returned him to a fraction of his former strength, negating any wounds he’d felt before. “You won’t be able to operate at full power, but at least you’re not hurting anymore” She wasn’t at 100 percent herself and it showed; not with an outward appearance, but mentally. “We’re not at full strength; Cat knows that…she’ll exploit it. Leo” as if the situation were not dire enough Maya issued a warning to Leonel; “If Catalina is able to touch me…she’ll gain my power of Reality… right now it’s do or die”

Cat’s attack left the sky above them grey with the ash of Malaga’s loyal citizens, what was disheartening knew this was only one of the calculated attacks against “Liafador Establishments”. Zeon’s compound was currently under-attack which suggests a plan bigger than this had been hatched before-hand.

“I had half a mind to completely erase you and recreate you with a better image.” Maya spoke, she knew Cat was around she’d sensed her presence the moment the sooth became thick. “but you wouldn’t be my sister…So I’ll have to settle for kicking your ass!” Maya screamed, tossing a rudimentary light magic blast in Catalina’s proposed location. The love filled light energy slammed into Cat causing the darkness it ‘self to push away from her body.

“Leo keep her busy…I’m going to take her powers!” Maya commanded thrusting her arms out once again channeling her mystic energies.

Catalina was a conundrum. A puzzle that Leonel simply could not solve. When they were family, he made every attempt to grow close to her and was initially spurned. Gradually however, she came to accept him and during her self-imposed exile from the Liafador-Pettis family, the two grew closer than the New God could have ever imagined. He was the one who protected her (and failed), he was the one who visited her on behalf of the rest of the family, he was the one who ensured that she took her medication, and he was the one to meet Bishop, it wasn't Alexis or Ziccarra, it was him. It was why, despite his steely determination to fight back his tears and put forth a disposition of fortitude, it hurt him and broke his heart beyond nearly anything he'd ever felt that Catalina would do this.

Though as he listened to Maya's words, her reasoning behind Catalina's actions and the pain their sister experienced from the loss of Bishop, Leonel came to a stark realization. "She didn't kill me", he paused, his eyes widening somewhat as the sensation of surprise and shocking realization overtook him. "She could have after I presumably killed Kane. I was powerless and completely defenseless. With her power, all she'd have needed was a flick of her wrist and I'd be dead. But she didn't do it", and he believed he knew why. "She wants to forget painful emotions altogether. Because of what happened to Bishop. Then I think I understand". Embracing Maya with his arms, affectionately holding her head close to his heart, he continued. "She doesn't want to relive the pain of losing someone dear to her".

"That's why she didn't kill me. And that's why she won't try to kill you either. And it's why she's doing this. To push us away, forever. So that she'll have no ties, ties that can one day be broken. But we can't let this continue. We're going to stop this. Now". Fortunately, Maya had restored a certain amount of his power. It wasn't anything close to his full might but it was enough. "Thanks Maya, I don't need to be at full power. Just a little is all I need". Catalina's power had grown exponentially. But Leonel didn't have to defeat her in battle. He couldn't match her power at the moment, not when he was at anything less than 100. But he could distract her. And he could distract her with something he knew he could do better than anyone. Grapple. A freestyle wrestling and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu savant, Leonel believed in his skill.

Allowing Maya to seize Catalina's attention with a bombarding barrage of magic-based energy blasts, Leonel capitalized and struck like an opportunistic serpent. Approaching from behind, he sought to hook his hands together around Catalina's hips to obtain control of her movement with a restricting body-lock. It was from here that he would attempt to trip his sister, belly-first onto the ground by slipping his leg in between hers and hook it around the front of one of her ankles, disrupting her balance as he sought to take the fight to the ground. If successful, he would hope to secure the back-mount position and place one of his legs across Catalina's stomach before placing the other leg over his own shin to limit his sister's movement with a figure-four body-lock. It was from here that he would attempt to secure a rear naked choke, if only to distract his sister from Maya long enough for her the Goddess of Darkness to be rendered mortal.

Cat struggled to free herself from Leonel’s grip, as she struggled to break free; Leo’s skillful sweep brought her down to the ground rather unceremoniously. “Get off me!” she screamed, watching as Maya charged from not too far off. “Heh…nice” she whispered realizing she was tasked with defeating both her siblings.

“I got her Leo!” Maya screamed releasing a flash of potent essokentic energy, the massive blast streamlined toward Catalina; only to have the Darkness Queen switch into an intangible state before remerging a couple feet away.

“Fck” Maya screamed realizing they missed their opportunity to end this senseless fight. “Aren’t you tired Catalina!” Maya screamed, her voice breaking across the distance. Cat’s gaze shifted slightly behind Maya and Leo at the impending presence of the Spanish Army.

Catalina’s attack caught the attention of the Spanish President—their mother, Cat wasn’t too sure what Ziccarra was doing at this point and time; but she needed to finish off Maya and Leo before the numbers game took its toll.

Across the small amount of distance Maya reflected similar sentiments. “Leo we have to deal with this situation before mom does…permanently.” Ziccarra’s suspicions about Catalina’s eventual decline into darkness were true, though her mother never said it; she implied she’d kill Catalina if necessary. Maya sought to provide some sort of alternative, but time wasn’t on their side.

“Ok new plan…” Maya started, but her attention was immediately conquered by Catalina’s new assault on the approaching armored tanks. “Get them” Cat whispered, sending her own shadow into the tank; in returned to the dark queen with the driver in hand.

“I am tired Maya…”Cat started her eyes focused on the distraught man dangling helplessly in the arms. “Tired of this façade our family was built upon” two thick darkness tendrils flared from Cat’s back, but before they could make contact with the flailing soldier, Maya’s blast hit Cat again; causing the Dark Queen and the soldier to fall from the skies.

Safeguarding them from a death drop, Maya tucked them both between a pocket of docile energy and deposited them on the ground.

“I didn’t charge it...She’ll regain her powers within a few hours we have to hurry” Casting her warping powers, she created a pair of handcuffs to subdue the dark queen. “Leo…let them know we have this under control…” She said really wanting a moment alone with her sister.

Cat didn’t struggle nor did she even try to speak; she’d been defeated, the will to fight was gone long before she allowed the society to awaken her former self. “Y-you wanted to die…” Maya said, tucking her hands inside her cowl. “Catalina…I’m sorry for your pain…” She expected Cat to say something, but the dark queen hadn’t the courage to even try.

The complete destruction of Malaga would not be overlooked, Ziccarra would have to bring down the hammer on Catalina; and she would…if Catalina was still alive.

“Leo…she can’t live here anymore” The power princess warned as he strolled up. “T-this breaks my heart to say this but…we have to send her away.”

With Catalina's rampage finally brought to a halt, Leonel's denim blue gaze shifted from his two siblings and towards the scorched remains of Malaga. It was not unlike staring back at the destruction and despair of Reality M, despair he believed he would never have to face again. The sight of the city burning and the memories it roused, it nearly made the New God's heart stop from the sheer grief. With Catalina restrained and no major threat remaining for the time being, Leonel finally allowed himself to break down. Dropping on both knees, his hands braced against the cracked pavement before his fingers dug deep into the concrete ground, the tears of a sobbing New God staining the settled dust from Catalina's destruction of the city's infrastructure.

This was a reminder of his failure. He failed to save those in Reality M, his biological siblings, Addison, as well as others. He failed to prevent the destructive perversion of his own world. And here with a new beginning it seemed that he was again falling into the habit of failing. He failed to fulfill his promise to his father, that he would protect the world, he failed to save Catalina because he couldn't see that she needed saving not from the Third Society but from herself. And because of this, Tassiana had nearly paid the price in the beginning, and Malaga certainly did. "I failed... again". It was almost too much to bear. But somehow, through sheer force of will and the heart of the soldier that grew up in the hostile environment of Reality M, Leonel gathered himself and rose to his face, albeit sluggishly.

At this point he couldn't even meet Catalina's gaze. It was simply too much. And he wasn't certain if after this he could ever forgive her. He's made his attempts at remaining as idealistic as Thee Champion, but the world seems intent on forcing him to become a cynic. It was during times like this that he wondered, "How does father do it? How can see the good in the worst of the worse if I can't even see the good in my own sister?". Abandoning his thoughts for now, Leonel made use of a communicator given to him by Madison as a means to contact her whenever he required her assistance. "Madison. I need a favor from you. Come to Malaga as quick as you can. I'll explain when you arrive". Catalina needed imprisonment in a place Ziccarra would never find her. Because he knew. He knew that if The Goddess ever located her, Catalina would be killed.

Turning to face Maya as he approached, Leonel did his best to avoid the sight of the Cardinal Goddess of Darkness. His features were earnest, almost painfully so. He was forcing himself to present his visage in this manner. "You're right. She can't live here anymore. Mom will never let her get away with this with her life. I've already called Madison. She'll be here soon. I'm sure she'll find a prison that'll tend to Catalina but prevent her from escaping all the same. She's simply too dangerous. Too unpredictable".

“You fight like an animal.”

The accurate statement as her sister stood there with a pair of dividers in her arm brought a cruel smirk to the lips of the Lethal Lost Liafador. She had studied the Mistress Of The Cardinals and knew her to be a supreme master of the martial arts so the best way to beat her was forsaking any style and fighting with all ferociousness she could bring up. For years the Gothic City Horror had not enjoyed a physical confrontation that much. Only after a second did she notice that her own smile was mirrored in the face of her blood-related opponent. A perfect symmetry of violence.

She did not hate Zeon. In fact she respected her. She was a strong woman who had brought a new bloom to the Cardinals and lead this organization with a strength rarely equaled in its venerable history. But still she was weak in one aspect. In everything she did this impressive woman sought the recognition of her father reminding the Propagator Of The Eternal Law of the mythical Electra. She did not rely on herself. Instead she was dependent on the man who had sired her. She needed to be tested, to be bettered, to be galvanized so to speak and if that galvanization meant death to further evolution, so be it. Honor Avenger would gladly supply the heat.

The retribution to her attack came swiftly and with an almost aesthetic violence. In a blurring motion the young Liafador exploded into action almost too fast for the Martial Arts Mistress to follow with her own eyes. Suddenly her half-sister’s legs came towards her in a cartwheel kick that threatened to crack her skull like an egg shell.

The wind swooshed in her ears as she ducked but with a masterful combatant that the Perfect Wudang Practitioner this could not have been the only attack. Honor Avenger’s aquamarine eyes widened as she saw the sparkling blade coming towards her. With perception as sharp as this sword she deduced her knee to be the target. Only fractures of a second remained to react.

Her makeshift weapon in the form of a stainless steel pen hit the sword right on the edge. Sparks sprung into all directions as the two metals met when Jessica thrust hers down like a dagger with all the power she could muster. It deranged the thrust but not the way she intended to. Instead of going through her knee the blade pierced her seine instead. In a repetition of her hard-boiled opponent the Lioness Of The Concrete Jungle bit her lip not to scream as the weapon slid out of her flesh again and Zeon gained distance again.

For a moment they stood there. Both heavily panting they eyed each other another time. Zeon frequently switched the sword from one hand to the other, proof of how effectively the Apex Predator had hit the nerve node in her armpit. Jessica tried not to put too much weight on her left leg and shifted to a crane Kung Fu stance while her blood pooled on the floor beneath her, a direct result from her pierced seine.

Their fight had evolved into a series of short, intense clashes in a long battle interrupted by breaks of measuring each other. This time the measurement was broken by Zeon. She posed a fateful question.

“May I at least know the name of my sister?”

Jessica lowered her head. Her answer came out as a barely audible whisper. Still she knew the sharp senses of the trained woman would be able to pick it up. She deserved this answer at least.

“Jessica…”

After this sign of respect time for measurement was over. Pain shot up through her leg as Honor Avenger hurled herself at her sister once more and feinted an attack to her long legs. Her mind had already devised a devious plan. Instead of actually trying to stab her pencil into Zeon’s legs she would exploit her blade being in height of her calf and grab her shoulders and attempt to hurl both of them out of Gianvelli’s highly prized lead glass window onto the battlefield below while trying to land on her.

Madison sat at her designated seat surrounded by the various representatives of the Omega Alliance, in the weeks following the Earth-3 fiasco the emerald queen found herself attending these meetings on a daily basis.

“We’ve been threatened twice now by an unknown space pirate, our systems in the edge are in danger of being attacked, but sending an entire squadron to those regions will leave Xiox heavily undermanned.”

The Ninjan armies represent a great portion of the O.S.S defense teams with undoubtedly the best military force in the Alliance; should the Ninjans fall In battle the Alliance would follow. Madison sought to unite the Omega Fleets equipping the force with a diverse amount of experience to patrol and defend the outer system.

“The outer systems belong to the Ninjans, why should I send my men to help?” A Crattian councilman barked clearly against the idea.

“Because councilmen the Crattians have not won a war, and my women make up the majority of this military force, if I’m to supply my own troops to the outer systems; then I will pull them from the space station too easy”. An act that would leave the space station defenseless; they knew it and she knew it.

“Fine, each race will give the CSA 5,000 soldiers to patrol the outer edges. All in favor say aye” a series of hands went up around the table, except those of the Aquarian Representative. Madison never expected their hand to rise, there was a blood filled history between the Ninjans and their Aquarian sisters; but neither side wanted to bury the hatchet.

Rising from her seat Madison sought out the general of the CSA, just before receiving a message from Leonel. The Liafador-Pettis son and the Queen of Xiox maintained an amicable relationship in the months after he rescued her from captivity on Earth; that bond grew with his aid in the Earth-3 crisis, which brought Addison Hopewell to the ‘her’ Xiox.

“Addison we have business to tend to on Gaia, prepare for FTL transition” She commanded, moving into her specialized space-pod.

Later, Gaia (Earth)

“Such destruction…” Madison whispered, watching as Leo’s home was reduced to debris. Moving to the location of the injured Leonel and the seemingly rattled Maya, Madison bowed before them before making her own assessment of the situation.

“I suppose this is what you called me for” She said making a not so subtle gesture in Catalina’s direction. She didn’t want to ask to many questions, the Spanish army watched from not too far off, her presence was not welcomed.

As he waited, impatiently, though ironically, silently for Madison's arrival, Leonel stared at the ground. He couldn't bring himself to shift his gaze from anything else. His tears had dried and left their transparent stain on his gentle, sorrowful features. Fists that were once clenched tight enough to draw blood were now open palms. Leonel had never wished to assume the identity of others but it was during these times of overwhelming despair that he wished to possess his father's ability to see the good in everyone, and his friend, Kieran's ability to somehow remain as bright, self-assured and flippant no matter how grim the situation grows. But he couldn't, he simply couldn't. He'd seen too much. Experienced too much pain.

Betrayal from his biological parents. Witnessing the death of his friends and comrades by the hands of his mother and father. The tangible hopelessness of an orphaned family that had seen the eradication of their parental figures. The death of his biological siblings by virtue of their parents' tyranny. The death of his biological parents. The destruction of his universe. Maya's near-death due to the events of Earth 3, and now this. The second ultimate betrayal in his lifetime, but this time not by his parents, but by his stepsister. A girl he had so intimately sworn to protect. It was too much, and it blew a hole through his heart. He'd lost so much in his lifetime. Barely an adult, Leonel had experienced tragedies that could last several lifetimes.

It was a testament then, to his will and strength of character that he did not break, at least not entirely. That he remained hopeful for better tomorrows, and even more so, that he did not lay a finger on Catalina. But enough was enough. It was then and there that he swore to himself and made the same promise that his mother, Ziccarra had. That if Catalina and he cross paths once again, he too would take it upon himself to deal with her, permanently, though not necessarily by death. "Madison", Leone's voice lit up, his widened gaze meeting the Ninjan Queen's as he turned to face her. "Yeah. This is it. The Spanish army won't attack. But we need you to transport my sister", he paused, pointing towards Catalina.

"Take her away from this planet. She's too great a danger. Imprison her somewhere far. On a prison planet somewhere. It's the most we can do short of taking her life".

The blood of the Liafador siblings stained the flooring of the room, both injured and both craving to spill more. As her sister shift her weight where she stood the Matriarch lips curled again, the two injured to the point it was going to slightly limit some movements and attacks, both where handicapped in their own way. This battle was going to push the two to their limits, exactly how much pain and blood could be brought forth before the other Liafador fell?

“Jessica”

There it was, the name of the sister she wished she had in her life. It was softer than a whisper but strong enough to be carried through the iron stench air. If the two young women would have been together at birth, the Wildcard Liafador knew her life would have turned out much differently.

Like a savage beast the Feral Liafador threw herself once more but this time at a lower angle, the way she moved was so erratic and brutal even with her over dozen years of training it was almost impossible for her to read her movements, it was as if she knew how the Cardinal Warrior was trained, how she fought and thought. Exactly what did father tell Jessica about herself? Zeon shift her leg, thinking she was being attacked at her calf with what seemed to be a pen, but knowing how deadly Jessica could make simple dividers, she didn’t want to take the chance. But it seemed that her sisters movements were read wrong and instead, the pen was slammed into her blade that shockingly shattered as if it was glass, what was this ability that her sister had? How could she make a blade that could slice through bone, crumble?

Then everything seemed to move in slow motion, Jessica’s firm grip on her shoulders, her fingers digging into her joints as she maneuvered both of them effortlessly and the Matriarch wasn’t prepared for the sheer force that was used to propel the two out the window. Her neck was propelled forward from the force of Jessica’s push as it then snapped back, her skull smashing into the glass at the same time with her back as it suddenly caved in on the Liafadors. The two began free falling from the two story office and onto the training grounds that Gianvell’s office overlooked which was currently littered with dead and wounded White Cardinals. The shattered glass moved around them in sync like jagged rain. As much as she tried, she couldn’t break the hold her sister had on her as they fell it felt as if the more she struggled the more her grip became. Then like a sledgehammer Zeon slammed into the ground, her back making first impact as her head once more rammed into the ground, her vision going black for a few seconds as the force of the landing and a ‘SNAP’ could be audibly heard from her ribs as the jolt of her fall gave her the momentum she needed to maneuver herself away from Jessica. She threw her body backward in a roll and using the momentum used her hands to push herself upward in a stance, but the sudden movement didn’t come without a price, her vision blurred as she became dizzy, the sudden forceful impact that just occurred to her head had done more damage than she would have liked to admitted.

But what she did managed to do as she rolled back, was to grasp two crimson soaked shuriken. She shook her head for a moment, her eyes closed for a second as she tried to focus them, her entire body throbbing from the impact, her right shoulder now screaming in pain as some of her ribs now felt like they were digging into her lungs with every breath she took. “It’s a shame you have allowed father to manipulate you as he did me for so many years, Jessica.” She hissed through her teeth as her jaw was clenched from the pain her eyes shift away for a moment as they landed on a bow that was just a foot away from her with arrows scattered across the dead Cardinal that was once wielding it. With a swift movement she threw the first shuriken and even with her dizziness, she was confident in her skills to at least generalized the aim at her body. As soon as the blade left her finger tips she shoulder rolled forward, her ribs crunching and left shoulder almost giving away as she did so while she grasped the bow in her left hand and an arrow in the other. Upon coming up in a kneeling stance she held the bow firmly with her left hand and as the Liafador Matriarch quickly drew the bow back, she could feel a sharp stabbing pain to her right shoulder, causing her to dramatically lower the pull behind the attack as it aimed at her sisters sciatic nerve of the left hip. She then pulled up another arrow, and pulled back, her right arm visibility shaky from her shoulder as she took careful aim at Jessica, as soon as she would make any signs of a attack, her arrow would fly toward the center of her chest.

Previously.

Since the Rise of the Liafador Family in the 15^{th century, the Male members of the prestigious family have ruled uncontested by their Female counter-parts until an event known as "The Great Schism" saw the Liafador Family split into Braveheart and Red Cardinal factions.}

The schism ended with Ziccarra Liafador, the youngest child of Ramon and Sabella Liafador assuming power over the entire family; as its first female Matriarch. Unified under the banner of the Red Cardinals, the Malagan Marchioness rose to the position of President of Spain.

With Ziccarra’s ascension to political power, she named Zeon Liafador the new Family Matriarch; little did she know her actions would reopen an age old struggle between the men and women of the Liafador Family.

Recently, thanks to the goading from Kane Liafador, Marcos Liafador enlisted the help of his estranged daughter Jessica Liafador (Honor Avenger) to lead an assault on Zeon Liafador in Italy in a coup attempt. While the two sisters fought; Kane Liafador led Catalina into Malaga to take on The Azure Son (Leonel Pettis).

The resulting battle from brother and sister saw the destruction of the city of Malaga, and the death of hundreds. Facing pressure from the Spanish Crown; Ziccarra Liafador must enact a law that will change the Iberian Peninsula for years to come.

Now- Prelude to Decimation

"Diamonds Shatter, and Queens Conquer"

I could never imagine being the person I am today, a mother to five beautiful children and a source of comfort for my darling niece Selene, A warrior goddess; a deity bearing the hopes and prayers of the faithful on my shoulders. A figurehead in both the Liafador-Pettis Family, A wife to one of the most powerful creatures ever created, but last and certainly not least; a political icon in a world where women aspire to be nothing of the sort.

To this day I have failed in each of my roles, yesterday I received news that my own daughter, Catalina; destroyed the seaside city of Malaga. Despite the reports her actions were not her own, for the last couples of months my family has been involved in vicious combat across the cosmos with a race of machines known simply as "The Third Society". It was in this aspect that I also failed as "The Goddess", my plans for launching an attack on the 9 realms of Asgard, hindered my ability to see that this….machines were more of a threat than I imagined.

While I remained occupied by the stress of my political position, my enemies strategically moved into position to hurt what I’ve established. Darkchild, my most recent adversary has moved his party to Spain Northern border of France; making a future confrontation between us inevitable. Amora, the immortal goddess in Asgard rest patiently waiting for a moment to strike at my household. Zedora and Aphasic, my silent foes have already planted sinister seeds in my daughter’s head, and Intel believe they have begun to integrate their machines into our society.

Failure across the board, failures I will not allow to continue. Darkchild’s move to France will be watched with vigilance, I can only pray that his ambitions have been satisfied. Amora, Aphasic and Zedora; as well as anyone else meddling in the affairs of myself, my family or my country will be met with immediate retaliation on my part.

It is at this moment, I am moving to push what will be known as "The Matriarch Act" an act that will arm the everyday human citizens of Spain; and a charter that will rechristen a new City of Malaga, one I am dubbing "A mutant zone". All mutants living in the southern half of mainland Spain will be relocated until further notice. Further details will be put out by the civil authorities…that is all"

Rising from the comfort of her leather chair Ziccarra’s pacific eyes scanned the innards of her office before they rest on two of her beloved family members; her daughter teen model Maya, and her niece teen model/socialite Selene. Their eyes told two entirely different stories, she saw understanding in the eyes of her niece; Selene could see that there was a necessity in her aunt’s actions. Fear laced the russet eyes of Maya, she believed in a better way; she believed in Thee Champion and Leonel.

Despite their conflicting viewpoints Ziccarra’s "hands-on" approach to dealing with her enemies (and problems) were going to be met with widespread criticism—she prepared for it. She failed to stopped the 3rd Society, she failed to stop Darkchild, she failed to stop Amora; she failed to prevent the destruction of Malaga. In doing so, the spirit of aggression begin to stir within the bosom of the cherished Cardinal Queen; one not seen since her initial push into Venezuela years ago.

"I am the Authority…I pray your father can understand that…" She said, exiting office with a folder labeled in big black bold letters. "Decimation Initiative"

Valerie Huntington once spoke to her about how Rafael would never interfere with her ambitions; for the longest time Ziccarra allowed Alexis’ perception of her to do just that, now?—No more.