“I want every pig at the front walls!” the dark boar, Lugi, said within his soldier’s uniform.

On their boots the boars armed themselves in a straight line across the beach, trucks kept loading; and when loaded, drove away. Choppers roamed the dark sky with snipers on the lookout. Lugi went back and forth without patience.

Phoenix made her way to Manhattan, emerging from the clouds with the amazon army. She led boot feminists with her white bow.

“Urgh! They did not have the guts to face us head on!” looking back to his city being terrorised, he grabbed a gun from a nearby soldier then began shooting at the sky as he was making a run for it.

The vehicle turned their wheels to defend Manhattan, choppers battled to keep up with the agile birds drifting by fast.

Herald, with his tight spaceship uniform, was the first man to show up at Manhattan, leading hundreds of spaceship vehicles across the oceans.

“Shoot only the targets and avoid distraction! I’m not in a mood for a mad woman” he said looking through his windscreen.

The bombs launched forth and burst the boars from the beach, the pigs managed to hold the front line unloading their own machines, but most of them could not survive the blast. Alex, with her heavy axe, sliced through helicopters and singled out every chopper with her strong arm. Lugi got the attention of the king. Phoenix was exchanging shots between the tall buildings. She floated abroad her target releasing several arrows without a hit. Lugi hid in one of the demolished houses. Phoenix saw the reflexion of the pig’s image against the glassy walls from the next door building. She took out her special gold arrow from her back pack and sized the stable vision of Lugi. From her wing, she released the surest arrow from her bow which pierced the house’s structure to shove a hole in the boar’s head. Lugi sat against the wall where the arrow made its way through and behind him. He looked at the golden arrow, dripping blood at his forehead and then dropped dead.

Ken the king was the second to arrive at Manhattan, leading his troops without Cobos.

Phoenix secured her bow to head back, seeing Ken and his army shooting at the remaining defence force. The spaceship vehicles settled on the ground and King Herald was welcomed by Ken at his doorstep.

“It all went well!” Ken said.

“Indeed, not a bad start, my friend!” replied Herald smugly, and they both laughed.

Herald’s men flew out to finish the job and then shortly, Phoenix joined the crowns. As she landed, she said “If you come late to my turf, don’t expect I’ll be around to finish the fight, Ken!”

Herald muttered: “She’s right. The next city is mine and it seems everybody wants to arrive just before they take over their city.” They both waited for Ken’s response.

It came. “My battle is thought to be the heaviest of them all. I guess I need to motivate everyone on my list!” he said, looking back at both of them scathingly.

Later in the afternoon, every king made his way from all walks of life. Igors smoked the dead boars’ with burning tires and cleaned their bones. Pig’s prisoners were moved to steel cages, waiting to be shifted by truck. Phoenix stood alone on the tallest building, breathing in the new Doon of Manhattan under her control.

*****

Tom and Lorden chose a dead planet to continue their training. Tom had acquired so many skills and powers. The atmosphere was electric with bolts of thunder colliding. Lorden held himself in a twisting of fire in defence while the rocks broke in the air. The two exchanged kicks, pound for pound, it was like fighting inside a nuclear bomb explosion.

Orkold, back at Dormend, looked at the two remaining syringes which sustain Tom’s existence as a Darden. “We don’t have much time” he said, looking at the lab screen together with his team to anticipate the on-going war on earth.

Niane and Dandy viewed the battle from their army truck. “I’m batting for Phoenix because she is hot as hell!” said Dandy, laughing.

“No,” said Niane, “I’m batting for Monica. Did you see those eyes?” tagging his brother’s shoulder.

“She’s a spoilt brat!” said Dandy. “I mean Phoenix is everything a man needs!” making a clear gesture.

Niane laughed louder and said: “You can forget about her. The only woman for you is Poli the traffic cop that always gives you tickets! Give the chick a chance already!” he said to the big upset guy.

Tom and Lorden re-emerged from the long grass all sweaty. Dandy asked: “How is he doing?” looking at the approaching warriors.

Lorden sneered. “He can take on Godevo at any time of the day!”

Tom almost blushed. “Lorden is a natural, I mean I’m always two steps away from him!” he said, catching his breath.

The human army battled with the thirty-foot-tall hippos; barbarians threw spears to injure a herd on a run before climbing up for a kill. Ken and Kevin hid behind dead bodies as primates exchanged shots with them. Killer, the Gorilla who runs the state of Rayote, was contested by King Kevin Mayhew. He made a tough stand off with his sophisticated monkeys throwing everything back. Tanks crossed streets to launch bombs. Igors rolled fire stones during a flight then tossed them through buildings. Killer was lost in the middle of the street, unleashing his giant machine with a mad face “Bring it on!!!”

Phoenix, floating six blocks away, seized her bow and released a golden arrow which passed through Killer’s chest with great momentum. The Gorilla lost touch with who he was before he fell.

Ken and Kevin competed with the number of kills each made as they flow. Ken: “787-788-790!” and stroked two with one bullet.

Kevin Mayhew positioned his diamond pistols from both hands “694-695!” they rolled across the vault of the heavens, shooting vultures.

Humans burnt every village across their path. King Igor broke the jaws of hyenas with his heavy stick. The dispute took place in rural settlements where the spotted hyenas ran away from their huts with the young ones, strong males stayed longer to bury their families before abandoning the villages. Dre the giant ripped open the jaws of a canine with his bare hands.

“Come on everybody, keep up the pace!” the female monarch said, waiting for them all to escape. Her jaws were the largest and she kept their backs safe, breaking human wings in her path. Phoenix stayed behind near the vanquished villagers. Joined by Alex in her flight, she soon released her gold arrow which travelled miles before piercing the heart of the sick monarch from the back of her neck. The masses below battled to leave the great leader where she landed. Phoenix was satisfied and finally left their land, trailing the kings’ armies with her amazons.

Tom was making his way back to earth to help defeat the great enemy of Dormend, John Ferguson.

Tom got his last injection seated in his bedroom from Orkold, who helped him with the dose. “I would advise you to encounter him before you lose the dosage inside your system” advised Orkold, putting aside his medical tools.

Tom said, “You mean I should leave as soon as possible? It’s not going to be easy to let go of the experience I felt being part of the Dardens!”

Everybody had gathered outside the University of Holens to say their goodbyes. When Tom arrived, the Dardens turned their attention to him and praised him. He walked towards the Darden heroes waiting in the middle of the crowd with their own round of applause.

Lorden said, “Today you’re going to learn your last lesson, and that is time control!” he said. “Your brain can measure the speed of matter, which is actually part of your weakness because time does not exist in Dormend. It’s we who choose how to see things!” Lorden presented Tom with an ancient clock.

Lorden said: “Look at the ticking seconds,” Tom stared carefully. “Pick up the momentum.” Tom saw the seconds were getting too slow along with other objects until he maintained everything absolutely still. “But you can’t control me yet!” warned Lorden. Nothing was moving except the Dardens.

“Remember you’re now a Darden, so no amount of power is out of reach!” Lorden said. “Although Dardens are not affected by your great powers! Maybe it’s time you go back home and explore your latest victory with a victory!!!” The three Dardens were impressed with the student.

“I guess this is goodbye,” said Tom. “I can’t wait to go back and take down the great scientist!”

“I know you can do this Tom. We’re counting on you!” Giving Tom a firm hand shake, Niane and Dandy greeted him too.

Smiling at everyone far and near, Tom agreed to complete his mission. He turned towards Orkold to assure him too as the wind was blowing a Wild West from the side and he was ready to depart.

Tom flew past the jungle to say goodbye to his T-rex friend as he jumped over rocks trying to keep up the pace of the exciting journey. Later Tom ran fast across the long sunny desert to race with the army truck of Dardens drifting its way behind him. Not long after, he took his wings above the ground, drifting in the wild grey sky with great pride; he flew away with super speed losing the Dardens from his sight.

Tom passed through the galaxy like a shooting star. When he crossed the ozone layer, he was a hot rock about to hit the ground before he made a crash. The new dragons flew from the land when the smoke came out after an earthquake. Tom flew up to go stand tall from the near mountain cliff. In the middle of nowhere, he looked at the disaster the men had left behind with the dead bodies lying everywhere. When he’d had enough, he vanished.

***