Fireworks exploded in the sky, as a large crowd had gathered around a newly constructed building that was located directly in the middle of Canterlot and Cosmic Town.

Said building was a large tower, which was even larger than most of the buildings around it. It started like a skyscraper, which helped it blend into the city around it. But on top of it was what appeared to be a large windmill, which had solar panels on the arms.

Down on the ground, the large crowd was standing at the foot of the tower and staring towards a large stage.

Said stage had the mayor of the town on it, along with several celebrities. A barrier had been put up around the stage, with police making sure nobody tried to get past them. And in that crowd, Shining, Trixie and the Rainbooms were there. Celestia, Luna, several teens from CHS and even Flash's parents had arrived to look. And there were just as many aliens, like Telsa and many others that lived in Cosmic Town.

The mayor stepped up to the podium and cleared her throat, as the microphones came online. "Welcome everybody." The crowd cheered. "I'm happy to see so many people, from both Earth and the other planets in our universe, here today to witness this historic event."

The crowd cheered again, the many different species happy to be there with one another.

The mayor waited for the crowd to calm down, then kept speaking. "This tower is not just a new way of supplying energy to both our towns. It is a symbol of the union that is slowly becoming unbreakable. Designed and built using Earth and alien technologies, it will stand as the bridge between our two cities. And hopefully, it will one day stand as the central point of a single unified city." The people all cheered again, as Rainbow turned to Twilight.

"Has something like that ever happened?"

Twilight nodded. "Lots of times. Although, most of the time it's because one city has financial issues. But I don't think that's gonna be why these cities merge." Everyone else nodded, as the mayor continued.

"Now. Allow me to introduce the man that will be opening the tower. The hero of both cities. FLASH SENTRY!" As she said that, something shot down from behind the tower.

It was Volt-Edge, the alien flying around the tower whilst surfing on his hoverboard.

He flew down and once he was over the stage, he did a back-flip off the board before landing on the stage with a hero pose. Everyone was amazed by this, as Volt-Edge stood up and struck a pose. "YEAH!" He cheered, the rest of the crowd applauding.

"Showoff," Trixie laughed as they watched the alien turn towards the red ribbon tied around the front of the build. He then slashed at the ribbon and cut it, officially opening the solar tower for everyone. As he did, the clouds happened to split and allow the light of the sun to hit the solar panels.

This began to power the entire thing, charging it up to one hundred percent before sending the excess out to the two cities.

The people cheered, as Volt-Edge turned back to human. Flash jumped down off stage and everyone kept applauding him, as he stepped from an opening made in the barrier. "Great work," Trail Blazer smiled. "You gave them quite a show."

"Thanks," Flash nodded. "The whole public appearances thing is kind of weird."

"You're a celebrity," Misty told him. "Even if you don't want to be. It's just something that comes with the territory. Besides, you were going to be here anyway. Might as well entertain everyone at the same time."

"I guess," Flash looked up at the tower and smiled. The place looked amazing and Flash hoped it would stand for a long time. There was already a bird flying around it, looking ready to roost.

But then, Flash realised that the bird wasn't a bird at all.

The creature flying around the tower, was much too humanoid to be a bird. And as it suddenly dived down, he realised what and who it was. "Everybody! GET DOWN!" Nobody argued with him and ducked, as the bird flew above their heads and narrowly avoided them. "Doddery!"

The old woman laughed, as she flew back into the air. She had somehow gotten her gear back, which means she could drain people of their life force.

The crowd began to scatter and as they did, Doddery dived down again and tried to grab someone who looked particularly young and vibrant. She found her target, who was a young girl of around sixteen or seventeen. She swooped down and before the girl could react, she grabbed her by the shoulders and lifted her into the air.

"NO!" The girl's father screamed, as Doddery flew her up to the roof of the tower's skyscraper part. As she did, Flash activated the Ultimatrix and cycled through his aliens whilst those with wings transformed.

Up on the tower, Doddery landed with the girl. "Don't struggle." She held up her arms, as they began to glow. "This will only hurt a little." With that, she grabbed her and began to drain her energy.

The girl screamed, as she felt her strength beginning to leave her. Doddery sighed, as she felt herself growing younger.

"HEY!" She looked around and saw Rainbow Dash, as she, Twilight, Trixie and Fluttershy flew up to the roof. "Get away from her!" She dived at them, but Doddery leapt off the building and pulled the girl off with her. The teen had fallen unconscious, so she hung limply from Doddery's talons.

"Let her go!" Twilight cried, as Doddery laughed.

"Poor choice of words!" She released the girl from her talons and the teen began to fall, terrifying the heroes as Doddery laughed. But at the next moment, a powerful gust of wind flew up and caught the girl.

Everyone looked down at the source and spotted Gyrotor, the mechanised alien flying up whilst keeping the girl aloft. And as the teen got higher, Twilight and Fluttershy flew down to catch her. Rainbow and Trixie were also attacking Doddery, keeping her from distracting Gyrotor or the girls.

Trixie swung her sword at the woman, aiming for her wings, whilst Rainbow tried to get behind her and try to hit her in the back.

But Doddery retracted her wings and let herself fall, the girl's attacks missing as she dove down towards the ground. Gyrotor followed, stopping his spinning lower half and falling with her. The pair grew closer to the ground and before either could start flying again, Gyrotor unleashed a tornado that slammed into the de-aged woman.

She screamed, as she was thrown backwards and crashed into the side of the tower.

Gyrotor then started spinning his lower half, creating a tornado around his waist that kept him from hitting the ground. He remained hovering in the air, continuing to push Doddery into the side of the building.

As she was pinned, she groaned as she felt her energy beginning to drain out. "No. Not yet!" She had barely managed to drain that girl's power, which meant it wouldn't be long before she grew old again. "NO!" She forced her feet into the side of the building and pushed herself forward, into the very eye of the tornado.

Gyrotor saw this and stopped spinning his arm, getting ready to bat her away. But before he could, she extended her wings and flew around him. She managed to pick up enough speed to get behind the alien before diving, as Rainbow and Trixie flew down towards them.

"Flash!" Trixie cried, as Doddery caught him. "Don't let her touch you!" But it was too late.

"Give me your energy!" She tried to drain his life force, but it wasn't working. "What?"

"Why do you think I picked this alien?" Gyrotor laughed. "I'm biotechnology. Machine and flesh merged into one." The arm on his back grabbed her by the wing and bent the metal to an angle. "All my energy comes from a specialised fuel, so I don't have any life energy for you to steal." Before Doddery could do anything, Gyrotor flew down towards the ground before throwing her around.

She screamed, trying to fly but being unable with her damaged wing.

Instead, she found herself slamming into the ground. Parts of her suit broke off, as she bounced off the ground and rolled to a stop close to Shining. The man stared down at her before holding up a capture cube. "Here. This should let you stay young for a bit longer." He threw the cube down onto her and she was quickly captured, as Gyrotor and the girls landed. "Nice work."

"Yeah," Gyrotor hit the Ultimatrix, "but she still got someone. Are they okay?" Shining frowned and looked around, the others following his gaze to show the man from before was clutching his daughter with Twilight, Fluttershy and the rest of the Rainbooms.

"Is she gonna be okay?" Rainbow asked, but Shining wasn't sure.

A few hours later, Flash and Twilight were in the hospital together.

After Flash had given his report about what had happened, he had wanted to make sure the girl was okay. Luckily, the hospital was equipped with some of the latest technology. This included some alien doctors, as Flash found himself talking to a doctor that was the same species as Molestache.

"The girl is going to make a full recovery," he explained whilst carrying a clipboard in his moustache. "We have records about this Doddery character and her energy draining technology, so we were able to treat her rather quickly." Flash and Twilight smiled at this, as they arrived at the girl's room.

They stepped in and saw her in the bed, whilst her father sat beside her.

Said father was a rather bulky individual, with arm muscles bigger than Flash's head. He had creamish brown skin and white hair, who was wearing a black top and brown cargo pants with black boots. As he saw them enter, he frowned at Flash and the teen gulped.

Flash had a feeling he was going to get an 'all your fault' rant thrown in his direction. But at the moment, he didn't care. He just wanted to see how the man's daughter was doing.

"So," the mole doctor announced. "All your vitals seem good. A little lower due to what happened to you, but you'll recover to full health in no time."

"That's good," she sighed.

Twilight smiled. "I knew it wouldn't be anything serious." They all turned to her. "I've had my energy drained by her before. It was tiring, but nothing I couldn't walk off with a little rest."

"I'm afraid it's not as easy as you think," the doctor stated as he flipped his clipboard chart. "According to the info we got from her previous victims, this girl's case is slightly different." Everyone frowned, wondering what he meant. "Best guess, the equipment she was using wasn't exactly the same as the one she used on you and the others."

"That makes sense," Flash nodded. "I'm pretty sure I destroyed it during our last battle. And with Shadow in lock up, he couldn't have made it for her. I wonder how she was able to rebuild it?"

The doctor frowned. "Whatever she used to rebuild it, the energy drain process was changed because of it. As far as we can tell, it hasn't had any negative effects on her body. But we'd like to keep her in for a few days to be safe."

"A few days?" The girl asked, looking horrified. "No. I can't be here for a few days."

"We have to make sure nothing's wrong with you," the mole explained. The girl turned to her father, who had stood up to explain.

"Doctor. She has a cheerleading competition in a few days. They were supposed to leave for it the day after tomorrow. If she doesn't compete, her team won't stand a chance."

"I understand," the doctor nodded. "We'll try and get her out of here as soon as possible. But if she had any serious problems, she needs to be here where we can act as soon as we discover it. I know this competition is important to you, but your health is important to me. If I let you leave and something happens to you, it could affect the entire rest of your life. None of us want that."

The girl looked ready to argue, but stopped and laid back in her bed. She looked ready to start crying, as the doctor apologised and left the room.

The father looked just as upset as his daughter. But that sorrow quickly changed to anger, as he turned to Flash. "Oh geez." Flash backed up, as the man rushed forward.

"This is all your fault!" He was clearly trying to control his voice, but having trouble with it.

"With all due respect, Mr..."

"Cane."

"Cane. I'm sorry about what happened to your daughter, but I did everything in my power to save her. We managed to get her away from Doddery as quickly as possible. If there had been a faster way to save her, we would have done it."

"There was a faster way of doing it!" Cane stated, surprising Flash at the statement. "If you had dealt with that woman properly, my daughter never would have been put in danger."

"I don't follow."

"You fought that woman before, didn't you?" Flash nodded, as Cane glared at him. "You captured her and threw her into prison. But that wasn't good enough. You should have taken her down, permanently."

"And how do you expect me to do that?" Flash asked, as Cane glared at him. Slowly, Flash was putting the pieces together. "Are you nuts!? You want me to kill her?" Twilight and Cane's daughter looked shocked.

"Not kill. Execute. Put her down so she couldn't do something like this. You had her captured. Any of your aliens could have finished her off."

Flash frowned. "I think you have my job title mixed up with something else. I'm a Plumber. I don't kill people if I can help it. We capture the criminals we stop. We don't try and kill them."

"And that's the problem. You're too weak. You think you're keeping criminals from hurting people, just by locking them up. Well this is what happened because you didn't do what was needed."

"Killing people isn't what's needed!" Flash argued.

"Isn't it?" Cane asked. "My daughter got hurt and will miss her competition, because Doddery escaped from your prison. And she was able to escape, because you left her alive instead of finishing her. How many criminals have you actually put away for good?"

"What are you talking about?" Flash asked. "I've put plenty of people away and they've stayed locked up."

"But a lot of them just keep coming back." He started counting them off on his fingers. "Animac, Dragstar, The Hypnotist, Dynamo. And let's not forget..." He pointed at his daughter, "Doddery!"

"Those were special cases," Twilight tried to push them apart. "Each of them managed to escape because of outside factors Flash and the Plumbers couldn't account for."

"Exactly," Cane stated. "You caught Doddery today, but who's to say she won't escape again. And next time, her victim might not be so lucky." He glared at Flash. "You have one of the most powerful devices in the universe. But you're too afraid to use it at full power." Flash frowned. "How easy would it be to use...that lightning lizard to stop your opponent's heart, or cut something vital."

"Very," Flash told him. "Which is why I am extra careful, not to do something like that."

"And that's the problem. You're too much of a coward to use that thing the way it needs to be used. If I had that device, I wouldn't let myself be held back. I'd let everyone know that if they want to endanger people's lives, they should be ready to lose their own."

Flash glared right into his eyes, "then it's a good thing you don't have this thing." Cane growled before turning to leave, walking out of the hospital room and leaving his daughter with the pair.

His daughter, who looked terrified her father would do something he regretted, sighed in relief before turning to Flash. "I'm sorry about him. He's a good person. He just has a very strong sense of justice."

"Killing people to stop them isn't justice," Flash stated.

"Maybe," she nodded. "But...he was in the army. He saw a lot of bad things overseas. Lost a lot of friends. He doesn't talk about it much, but I know he had to kill people. It was the only way to stop them from hurting more of his comrades and innocents."

"That must have been tough for him," Twilight nodded. "I'm sure he had to do stuff like that. But that doesn't mean you should always go to that kind of extreme." She sat besides her bed. "Maybe killing his enemies would have made things easier for Flash." The teen frowned, "but taking a life isn't easy. Even if it's necessary, it can have a devastating effect on a person's psyche."

Flash nodded, as he thought about all the times he could have easily killed an opponent.

His mind then flashed back to when he had defeated Vilgax the second time. Back then, he had thrown the alien into space with a bomb strapped to him. He hadn't really thought about it back then, too focused in getting rid of Vilgax and the bomb. But if that had been anyone else, he might have likely killed a person.

"I'm a hero," Flash told the girls. "And heroes defend life." He moved over to the window and looked out at the city. "If I have to kill someone to stop them from doing something evil, I'd be a failure as a hero. Stopping them and making sure everyone's alive. That's what a hero is supposed to aim for."

The daughter nodded. "I'm sure my dad will cool off in time and apologise for what he said. I'm certain he didn't mean it."

As Cane walked out of the hospital, his anger continued to grow stronger and stronger.

As he remembered seeing his daughter be lifted into the air and brought down, limp and unresponsive, he felt his rage at Doddery intensify. "If she was here right now, I'd snap her in two and make sure she'd never hurt someone ever again." He thought the same about all the villains that had been appearing in recent months.

All those evil people, who had somehow acquired abilities and technology that made them impossible for a normal person to defeat. "I wish I had an alien super weapon. Something that would let me bring real justice to this city."

"That can be arranged." He leapt back and looked around, spotting someone hidden in the shadows of an alleyway. "If you want to keep this city safe, I might be able to help you."

"Who are you?" Cane demanded, "show yourself." The figure stepped out of the shadows, revealing themselves to be a humanoid alien with a robotic arm.

His body looked like it was made of a hard blue shell-like substance, similar to a bug's exoskeleton. Their head had a V-shaped visor instead of eyes and their right arm was a robotic prosthetic, being black in nature and appearing to have some kind of transformation ability.

"Who are you?" Cane asked, as the alien stepped forward.

"Name's Adoyk," the figure replied. "And I might be able to help you do what needs to be done in order to keep this city safe." Cane gave him a curious look.

"Really? Why would you help me?"

"Because you and I are birds of a feather." He placed his robotic arm on his chest. "I lost my home, because it had weak people in charge. People who weren't willing to do what needed to be done, to protect our home and the people who lived there. All they cared about was doing what was seen as right and virtuous. But the fact is, this universe is a dark place. It'll chew you up and spit you out, unless you're willing to fight back with everything you have."

Cane nodded, "you're right. When I was in the army, you were constantly in danger. Even back at the base, we were under threat from enemy bombers. It was either kill or be killed. And when I got home, everyone told me I had to stop thinking like that. But the truth is, it's just the same here as anywhere."

"Exactly," Adoyk nodded. "That's why I want to help you."

I didn't have the means to protect my world. I want to give you a way to keep everything you love safe." Cane smiled and nodded. "Good. But I warn you, there will be those that oppose you. Weaklings, who can't accept that sometimes you need to take things to the extreme in order to keep everything you love safe. For a good while, you'll be labelled a villain. At least until they see all the good you've done."

"That's fine," Cane nodded. "If being called a villain is what it takes to keep this city safe, I'll have that moniker until they realise the truth of this world."

"Alright then." Adoyk began to walk back into the alleyway, "let's get to work." Cane smiled and nodded, excited to finally have the power needed to do what was right. And if Flash Sentry tried to get in his way, Cane would make him regret it.

Several days later.

Flash was in his new Omni-Cruiser, Chip letting him take the wheel as they raced down the street. The reason they were racing, was because a crook had just stolen a bunch of money from a nearby convenience store. He was on a motorbike, attempting to escape but having little luck thanks to Flash's alien tech car.

"Wanna go XLR8?" Chip asked, suggesting it since they had been chasing him for several minutes.

Flash thought about it, but didn't want to overdo it. But since they were about to enter an area of heavy traffic, which would give the bike more freedom, he agreed.

But before he could grab the leaver and pull it down, something suddenly happened that took them all by surprise. A laser, which flew down and struck the ground in front of the bike. The impact caused the rider to lose control for a second and almost fall off, forcing him to brake and stop.

"What the heck?" Flash looked at where the laser had come from. When he did, he saw something flying down and landed with a heavy crash.

It was a tall buff humanoid, wearing what appeared to be a robotic suit. It was made out of multiple gunmetal grey pieces, which all looked like they combined together. And the gaps between the multiple pieces, all glowed with a yellowish orange light.

The head of the figure was completely covered. The bottom part of their head, was covered by the same gunmetal gray metal. Though the section where the mouth and nose should be, was covered by a square black box with vents in it that they breathed through. The mask went from the black box, around the head to a pair of round sections that were covering their ears, then around the back. Meanwhile, the top of the figure's head was surrounded by a dome of tinted glass.

The figure appeared to have jets on their legs, just above their feet, along with two more sticking out of their back.

"What the?" Flash looked him over and realised this wasn't a Plumber suit. He watches him turn towards the crook, who looked terrified by the imposing figure. And as the suited individual moved forward, the crook gulped before trying to escape on his bike.

But the figure rushed forward, as his right arm suddenly transformed. The gauntlet around his wrist extended and transformed, covering his hand before an orange blade of energy extended.

He swung it around and before the crook could do anything, the back wheel of his bike was cut in half.

The crook screamed, as he leapt off his bike and tried to run. But the figure reached out and grabbed him by the collar before spinning around, throwing the criminal across the street until he crashed into the side of the building.

"Oow," Flash and Chip flinched. "That had to hurt." Flash got out of his car and was about to talk to the guy, but the suited figure raised his blade arm and pointed it at the crook. "What's he doing?" Flash's eyes then went wide, as he saw the figured charging. "NO!" He ran and activated the Ultimatrix, slapping it down on the first alien that came up.

In a flash of green light, he transformed and managed to get between the two.

"NRG!" The suit of armor crossed his arm, as the blade slammed into it and bounced off the energy repelling weapon. The figure staggered back, as NRG lowered his arm.

"What are you doing?" The figure asked, his voice muffled by his suit.

"That's what I was gonna ask you." NRG stated. "You would have killed this guy. What were you thinking?"

"I was thinking of getting rid of a criminal." NRG tilted his head in confusion. "What, are you just gonna let him go scot-free?"

"I was going to lock him in jail until he could be given the proper sentencing."

"Please. That's ridiculous. This man is a criminal and the only way to deal with criminals, is to snuff them out." His other arm transformed, this one into some kind of laser cannon. "Today, he's stealing money. Tomorrow, he's holding someone up for ransom. I won't let that happen." He fired and NRG quickly reacted, firing a laser out of his face grill.

The two blasts collided and cancelled each other out, as the figure ran forward and swung his sword towards the alien. But NRG managed to catch it. "Stop this! You can't kill someone!"

"It's the only way to make sure scum like this, doesn't hurt people in the future." NRG threw him back and his boots ignited, propelling him into the air. "I'm bringing true Justice to the streets of Canterlot. I'm going to make it a safer place."

"The only going you'll be doing, is going to the Plumber Base for questioning." NRG fired several more beams, which Justice cancelled out with his own lasers. Justice then dove down at him and tried to slash at the alien, but NRG managed to jump to the side.

The blade flew past him, as he made his fist red hot and threw it forward. The punch collided with the suit and knocked the guy back, as he used his jets to push himself into the air. NRG then fired his energy ray, which the figure blocked by transforming both arms into blasters and firing.

The two beams pushed against one another for several seconds before exploding, the shockwave blowing several windows out. It also pushed Justice back and forced him towards the ground, as Chip decided to get in on the action.

He revved his engines and flew forward, trying to knock the guy over. But Justice saw this and leapt up, forcing Chip to miss as the Omni-Cruiser skidded to a stop. But this distraction allowed NRG to fire his laser, which slammed into Justice and knocked him into the side of a building.

As this was going on, the crook had regained consciousness.

He picked himself up and looked around, spotting the pair fighting and noticing the bag of money he still had on him. He smiled, seeing the two were distracted. So he pushed himself up and ignored the headache he had, as he ran into one of the alleyways.

The pair didn't notice his disappearance until a minute later, as they looked around and saw the criminal was gone.

"Now look what you've done!" Justice roared, as he fired another blast towards NRG. The energy aliens braced himself, as the blast slammed into him and knocked him staggering back. Justice then charged forward and started throwing energy punches into the suit, causing the alien inside to be rattled around. "I'm trying to keep this city safe!" Suddenly, NRG managed to grab his wrists.

"How? Da'h last time a'h checked, having a flying psychopath zooming around killing people, doesn't make a city safer."

"Don't you understand? This city is infested with maggots. Worms that go around, taking whatever they want. Hurting whoever they please. I won't let that continue anymore. You had your chance to protect this city and you failed. Now, it's my turn." With that, his jets suddenly ignited and pushed them both into the air.

NRG cried out, as he was lifted several feet before Justice started spinning

"WHOA!" The alien lost his grip on Justice and was sent flying, eventually crashing into the side of a building before falling to the ground. He hit the floor, the Omni-Cruiser racing over to him.

"Are you okay?" NRG moaned in response, as Justice flew down.

But before he could attack again, they heard an engine and looked around to see Shining on his hard-light cycle. "Freeze!" Shining yelled, taking out his Multi-Striker. But before he could fire, Justice flew up into the air.

"This isn't the end, Sentry. I won't stop until this entire city has been purified of the filth that makes it up." With that, he flew off and Shining came to a stop next to NRG.

"You okay?" He got up and helped the suit to his feet.

"Yes," NRG groaned, "but that guy's suit can pack a wallop." He hit the Ultimatrix and transformed back to human, Flash having trouble keeping his balance until Chip rolled over and let him lean against his side.

"Let's get you back to the base," Shining suggested. "Then maybe we can figure out who that guy was and where the heck he got that thing." Flash nodded, as they climbed into the Omni-Cruiser and headed back.

Once they were both back at the base, Flash gave his report as the medi-scanner made sure he hadn't gotten a concussion.

Once he was given the all clear, he headed into the main control room and found Shining, Clawcer and several Plumbers monitoring the city. "Find anything?" Flash asked, as the pair turned to him.

"You fit for duty?" Clawcer asked, with Flash giving him his all clear notice. "Right. And no, we haven't found anything. Whoever this guy is, he's disappeared off CCTV."

Shining nodded. "All he has to do is take his suit off and he becomes just another guy. There's gotta be a way to find him."

Clawcer's tablet then beeped, as he started pressing at it and suddenly looked very worried. "Not good." The others turned to him. "I've just connected to the Ultimatrix's systems. I was hoping it recorded the energy signature for the suit, so we could track it."

"Did it?" Flash asked, fearing he wouldn't like the answer.

"Yes. And it's not good news. That suit is being powered by kesium." Many Plumbers looked shocked by this, whilst Flash frowned.

"Okay. What's kesium? I'm guessing it's bad."

"Only to humans. To many other species, it's perfectly harmless so long as you're careful. But when a human is exposed to it, the energy can have a terrible effect on their mental state. If this man uses it for too long, their mind will become more and more unhinged."

Flash frowned, "maybe that's why he was hellbent on killing that guy. Maybe he put on the suit to just save people, but the kesium made him think that killing criminals was the best way to save people?"

"It's possible," Shining nodded in agreement. "But right now, that doesn't matter. What matters is finding this guy and stopping him before he causes any more harm. He could be attacking someone right now and we wouldn't know."

"Violet," Clawcer stated. "Scan the city for kesium. If he's using it, the energy surge should be picked up by our sensors." They nodded, as Clawcer snapped his claws. "At least we have a good idea how he got that suit of his."

"We do?" Flash asked, as Shining nodded.

"Whoever gave him that kesium, must not have wanted us to find them with it. They must have given him it and the suit, to draw our focus away from them. Hopefully, whoever this Justice guy is, he'll know where we can find the guy who gave him the suit." Flash nodded, as they waited for Justice to show up on their sensors. Hopefully, they could get there before he did anything terrible.

In another part of Canterlot, a bunch of kids were racing down the streets on motorcycles.

They were all in their late teens, possibly early twenties, and zipped through the street whilst ignoring all the traffic lights and oncoming vehicles. They laughed, loving the rush as one barely avoided hitting an oncoming car.

"Wow!" He pulled around and avoided the vehicle, then laughed as he kept going. They all knew they could probably get in trouble, but what was life without a little risk.

But up on one of the nearby buildings, Justice was standing there and saw what they were doing. "Stupid punks!" His suit began to power up, as he stepped off the building and fell. The jets ignited and he flew forward, his power surging as he chased after the kids.

"Sir!" Violet cried, "kesium detected."

Clawcer, Flash and Shining ran forward, as the map appeared and showed the signature that was moving around the city. "Where's he going?" Flash asked, as they tried to figure out where to teleport to.

"He must be chasing after someone in a vehicle," Shining stated. "Not good. We'll have to wait for him to stop before we can try and get him." They watched and waited, but the signal continued to move around and there was no telling what he might do.

"Ahhh!" Flash cried, "I can't just sit back and wait for him to stop. It might be too late then." He saw Justice move onto a straight bit of road, where he didn't seem to be turning. "There. Send me there and I'll XLR8 after him." Violet nodded and as fast as she could, locked onto that area. Flash and Shining nodded at one another as she hit the button.

In a flash, the pair disappeared.

In the middle of the street, a flash of light stopped any car around it. And from it, Flash and Shining appeared.

The pair began to look around and moments later, a bunch of bikes raced past. "Wow!" Flash cried, as he was almost run over by one. "I think I know what Justice is after."

Sure enough, as Justice chased after the teens, he transformed his arm into a laser cannon and fired. He hit one of the bike's back wheels, causing it to blow out and sending the kid flying off his bike. He screamed, as he fell towards the ground and was about to go splat.

But at the last moment, a blue blur shot past justice and grabbed the teen out of the air. It then raced off, whilst the teens all came to a stop. They didn't want to risk getting blown up either.

Justice flew forward and once he was close enough to the teens, he stopped whilst keeping his blaster trained on them. "Do you have any idea how much danger you put people in?" He landed and looked ready to fire, as the teens fell to their knees.

"We're sorry!" One cried, the bunch begging for forgiveness. "We won't ever do it again."

"No," the weapon charged, "you won't." But before he could fire, a rope of some kind wrapped around his arm from behind. it then pulled his arm upwards, causing his blast to shoot straight up and explode in the air.

"Enough!" Justice looked around and saw Shining, his Multi-Strike morphed into some kind of whip. "Take that suit off and stand down."

"Why are you getting in my way!?" He pulled on his arm and the whip came off. "I'm trying to help you. I'm keeping these streets safe."

"All you're doing, is enacting your own form of justice on these teens. I admit, they did something wrong. But you do not have the right to be judge, jury and executioner."

"Someone has to do what needs to be done!" He spun around and pointed his blaster at the teens, only to find most of them were gone. And the two that remind, quickly vanished in a blue blur. "No!" He looked around, but couldn't find them. "What have you done?" But before he could try and chase after them, he was suddenly shot in the back by Shining.

The Plumber pointed his rifle at the armored man. "Stand down and take off that power suit. It's powered by a substance that'll make you really sick if it's used too much."

"I won't stop!" Justice spun around and changed both hands to create laser blades, as his jets propelled him forwards. "Not until this city is crime free!"

Shining fired at him, but the lasers just bounced off his armor. Justice then swung a blade towards him, but Shining jumped out of the way. As he did, he changed his weapon to a shield and held it up. Moments later, Justice slashed at him and the blade bounced off his shield.

Though he wasn't hurt, the impact almost felt like getting hit by a truck. "Augh!" He staggered backwards, as Justice changed his arms to a pair of cannons. He then fired them both towards Shining, who enlarged his shield to protect his whole body. But he quickly found himself pinned down, unable to move without being hit by the laser.

Justice increased the intensity of his attacks, trying to overpower Shining's shield. But just as the Multi-Striker was beginning to strain, a blue blur shot towards Justice. "Stop right there!" He picked up as much speed as possible and slammed into Justice, creating a small shockwave and kicking up some dust.

The lasers stopped and Shining lowered his shield, as the smoke began to die down and reveal Justice still standing there.

XLR8 staggered back, moaning as he tried to keep himself from falling over. "Ouch. That suit can really pack a punch." He finally fell over and groaned, as Justice laughed.

"This is your own fault, Sentry." Justice pointed his weapon at him. "If you had done your job properly, I wouldn't have had to do this."

XLR8 glared at him. "I have been doing my job properly. There were people who killed and maimed without mercy a long time ago. Villains who thought their way of keeping the world safe, was to make everyone live in fear. But they were wrong. You can't punish people by going all out. It isn't right."

Justice frowned. "It's not like I intend to do it with every person that litters or steals a handbag. Just those who deserve it. Those that threaten the lives of people. Without remorse or mercy. They don't deserve to keep on living. They need to be put down, like the sick dogs that they are."

"And how long will that last?" XLR8 stood up. "How long until you decide more people don't deserve to live? What if a guy gets distracted whilst driving and almost hits someone? Do they deserve to have their lives taken away? What about if someone drops something by accident and it accidentally hurts someone? Will they have to beg for forgiveness or lose their lives?" Justice said nothing. "That's the problem with capital punishment. If you do it and regret your decision, you can't take it back."

"I'll never regret this decision," Justice growled. "You take them to jail then what? So they're off the streets for a little while. But think of all those resources, squandered on needing to keep them locked up. The food, the space, the manpower. Think of how much safer the world would be, if you didn't have to waste that stuff on these scum."

XLR8 sighed. "The kesium's already affecting you. You're not gonna listen to reason." His visor lowered, "so you leave me no choice!" He spun the dial on his chest and slapped it, causing the Ultimatrix to transform him into his hyper evolved state. "ULTIMATE XLR8!"

Justice stared at the new alien and just laughed. "Is that supposed to scare me?" XLR8 said nothing and shot forward, Justice firing his lasers at the super speed alien. But the speedster dodged his blasts as he got up close to Justice, then swung his tail around.

The anchor-like attachment on the end slammed into Justice's chest, the impact knocking him backwards a few steps as Ultimate XLR8 jumped back. Justice let out a slight grunt, as he looked down and saw the damage done to his chest. It wasn't much, but it was more than what had been done before.

The armored figure growled and glared at Ultimate XLR8, as he once again raised his blaster arms and prepared to fire.

But before he could, the alien suddenly shot off down one street and completely disappeared. This sudden retreat caught Justice off guard, with Shining even wondering what he was doing.

"Where's he going?" Violet asked, as she and Clawcer watched the Ultimatrix symbol on the map.

The symbol that showed Flash's location, flew down a street before making a sudden turn and heading down another street. It then turned again, heading back in the direction he had originally come from. Every second he did, he seemed to be going faster and faster.

"He's picking up speed," Clawcer realised.

Back with Justice, he was about to turn his attention back to Shining.

But before he could, he heard movement in the distance and turned towards it. But when he did, he was greeted with the sight of an orange blur running towards him and super speed. Even his suit's sensors, he could react in time and he was suddenly slammed by something moving hard and fast.

That something knocked him sailing backwards, damaging part of his suit.

The orange blur that dove into another street and disappeared, only to return from another direction seconds later. And as Justice pushed himself up, he suddenly found himself getting slammed again and knocked off his feet.

He roared, as he crashed into the ground and the blur disappeared before reappearing and crashing into him again. His suit's metal parts began to crack, as Justice tried to prepare his blaster.

Shining used his Multi-Striker's grappling hook to pull himself up, as Ultimate XLR8 shot towards Justice again. And as the suited individual tried to blast him, the orange blur flew past and his suit's arm shattered. "AUGH!" He spun around, as the blur struck again and broke part of his shoulder armor.

Shining watched from above, as Ultimate XLR8 picked up more and more speed. Eventually, Justice found himself getting struck every few seconds. No matter what he tried, he couldn't react in time to counter the onslaught of attack. And from Shining's point of view, it was like Justice was getting hit by several orange blurs at once.

Eventually, every piece of Justice's armor was cracked and broken. This was when Ultimate XLR8 stopped his onslaught, the alien sliding to a stop a hundred feet away from Justice. And as the armored individual staggered around, the alien got into a runners stance before exploding forward at high speed.

Justice saw him coming, but his suit had gone completely dead. It refused to move for him. All he could do, was brace himself as Ultimate XLR8 reached him and slammed a foot into his chest.

"RAAAAAAAAAAH!" He was thrown backwards, as the metal suit broke into a million tiny pieces. The only parts of the suit that remained were the boots, as the rest of it split apart. Even the helmet broke apart, as he crashed into the ground and rolled along it until he finally came to a stop.

He moaned, as Shining swung down and Ultimate XLR8 reverted back to human form. Flash and Shining moved over to him, Shining's badge picking up the kesium and finding it in a piece of metal on the ground. As he contacted the base to teleport it away, Flash moved over to Justice.

And as the man picked himself up, Flash was shocked to see who it was. "Cane?" The man looked up and glared at him. "It was you?"

Cane looked over his destroyed suit and realised all he had left, were the rocket boots. "No!" He glared up at Flash, "you ruined everything! Now this city will never be safe."

"Oh, it'll be safe." Shining moved over to him. "Now that you can't hurt anybody." Cane glared at him, then seemed to notice something behind them.

The pair raised an eyebrow and glanced around, following his sight-line and seeing a teen had run onto the street. And not just any teen, but one of the ones who had been street racing. "You got him!" The teen cheered, as Flash suddenly got a very bad feeling.

"What are you doing?" He cried, "get out of here!" But then they heard an ignition sound and as Flash glanced back towards Cane, the man shot forward using his rocket boots.

He flew past at high speed and before the teen could escape, he was grabbed and lifted into the air. "HELP!" He screamed, as Cane flew off with him.

"NO!" Flash activated the Ultimatrix and quickly found a flyer, slamming the dial down and transforming. "FIREFLY!" He shot into the air and used his flames to propel himself forward. He chased after Cane and the teen, the teen doing everything he could to escape. But Cane's hold on him was too strong.

"Let me go!"

"CANE!" Firefly yelled, as the man suddenly swerved down another street. "Stop!" Be used his flames to keep him from losing control, as he flew around the building himself. He was catching up towards Cane, but the man seemed to have spotted something and flew up towards an apartment building that was empty.

Before Firefly could reach him, he slammed into a window and smashed through it.

Firefly followed a few moments later and as he flew inside, he saw Cane holding an arm around the teen's neck whilst pointing his gun at him. But before he fired, Firefly hit the Omnitrix and transformed. As the gun's bang filled the air, the green light blinded him and he heard his bullet hit something hard.

The light faded and Diamondhead was standing there, the bullets not even scratching him.

Cane glared, as her held the teen harder. "It's over," Diamondhead stated. "Let the kid go." Cane glared at him, but didn't loosen his grip. "You can't hurt me with that thing?"

"No," Cane smiled before moving the gun to the kid's head. "But I can hurt him." The teen started panicking, whilst Diamondhead glared at him. "The way I see it, this can only go a few ways. One, you let me kill this kid. He'll probably be dead within a week with how reckless he was, so at least this way he won't take anyone with him."

"I won't let you do that," Diamondhead told him.

"Then you're going to have to kill me," Cane stated. "Because that's the only way this is going to end. You can try and injure me, but I promise I won't stop until this kid's dead." Said kid was currently crying. "Then there's the third option. Kill this kid yourself."

"Never," Diamondhead stated. "I'm not going to kill you or that kid."

"You don't have a choice!" Cane yelled. "It's either me or him. No matter what happens, someone is going to be dead by your hand." Diamondhead glared at him. "Either way, I'll win. You're gonna let me kill this kid and the remorse will make you give up your heroic ways, hopefully to let someone take over who has the strength needed to do what needs to be done. Or you're gonna kill me. And once you've crossed that line, you can't un-cross it."

Diamondhead just stared at him, as he tried to figure out what to do. But Cane wasn't letting him have the time to think.

"Him or me," Cane stated sternly. "Ten seconds. Nine...eight...seven..." Diamondhead didn't move an inch, as the countdown continued. "Six...five..." Then, Diamondhead did something unexpected. He turned away. "No. Look at us. See what's about to happen." But he didn't. "Four...three...LOOK!" Diamondhead kept his back to them. "I SAID LOOK!" He pointed his gun at Diamondhead and looked ready to fire.

But before he could, Diamondhead suddenly spun around. And as he did, he launched a single gem shard right at the gun.

The projectile slammed into the barrel of the weapon, right as Cane fired. This caused the gun to explode in the man's hand, making him scream in pain and lose his grip upon the teen. And as the kid quickly pulled himself free, Diamondhead ran forward and threw a punch right at him.

The pain in his hand, was equal to the pain in his face when the fist struck and Cane saw stars. Then, all he saw was black.

Cane's face was killing him, as he felt himself beginning to wake up.

His eyes flickered open, as he found himself in a Plumber Cell. "Ow," he reached up and touched his nose to find it was agony and covered in a bandage. His hand was also covered in a bandage, the pain helping him clear the confusion away.

"The doctors said you'll make a full recovery." Cane looked around and saw Flash, sitting on a chair in front of the cell. "And hopefully, the kesium's effect on your mental state will fade in time."

"There's nothing wrong with my mental state," Cane got off the bed. "I was just doing what needed to be done. What you should have been doing from the start."

"No," Flash shook his head, "I shouldn't." He held up his Ultimatrix. "I got this by accident, but I earned the right to keep it because I used it the right way." He pointed at him. "I don't know where you got that suit, but you abused it to dole out your own brand of justice."

"And you've never wanted to do that?" Cane asked, as Flash stood up.

"Every time one of my old enemies causes trouble. When Doddery came back, don't you think I wanted to end her threat once and for all? To go Way Big and throw her into space?"

"So why didn't you?"

"Because I'm better than that!" Flash yelled. "I know killing the bad guys would stop them from returning. But that's the easy way. Because if I let them live then maybe, just maybe, they'll see the error of their ways and turn away from their life of crime."

"You really think something like that will ever happen?" Cane asked. "What, are you an idiot?"

"Maybe," flash frowned. "But I'd rather be an idiot than a killer."

"Don't think you've escaped," Cane told him. "I might not have been able to turn you, but one day you'll be forced to make that choice. Kill one person, or let them kill another. It will come. What will you do then?" Flash said nothing, as he had no idea how to respond.

Instead, he turned to walk towards the transporter. And as he did, he heard Cane call out to him.

"What will you do then!? WHAT WILL YOU DO!?" Flash teleported away and was back in the main control room, a frown on his face as he walked towards Clawcer and Shining.

The pair were watching footage from the camera in Cane's cell, both having clearly watched it. "Hey," Shining told him. "You okay?" Flash nodded, as Shining placed a hand on his shoulder. "Don't let him get to you. He made his choice."

"And now his daughter has to live without a father," Flash stated. The others frowned, knowing it was going to be hard on the girl. "What if he's right?" Shining and Clawcer shared a confused look. "What if, one day I have to make that decision? Kill one person to save someone else. Possibly more."

They both sighed. "I'm not sure," Clawcer stated. "Nobody wants to make that decision. But if that situation ever arises, we'll work through it together." Flash clearly didn't like that answer. "Nobody knows what the future holds. Maybe we will have to make that choice one day. Maybe not. For now, we need to focus on the kesium he had."

Shining nodded. "We need to find out where he got it and if there's more of it on Earth. If there is, we have to get it all before it falls into the wrong hands." Flash nodded, as he stared up at Cane. He couldn't help but wonder who gave it to him and why.

Adoyk had returned to his ship and was making his way to the main bridge.

When he arrived, Zaaton was there alone. He stepped over to his captain and stood besides his chair. "Were you able to dispose of the kesium?" Zaaton asked, with Adoyk nodding. "Good. If the Plumbers discovered we had it, they might have started asking questions." He turned to Adoyk, "what did you end up doing with it?"

"I gave it to someone," Adoyk replied. "And helped them build something that would let him do what he needed to do, even if it labelled him a villain." Zaaton nodded, knowing that was all the information he was going to get out of the alien. He understood what he was saying. Somethings needed to happen, even if those they happened to considered it evil.

In the end, all that mattered was the result. No matter how many suffered, it was alright so long as even more individuals were helped by it. That was just a simple fact. As far as Zaaton saw it.

Author's Note

Happy Boxing Day, everybody. Hope you enjoyed your Christmas. And I hope you enjoyed this chapter. It had its dark moments, but I think it's an interesting story. Someone who wants Flash to end the threats of his villains once and for all. But if he did that, he wouldn't be the hero we all know and love.

Anyway, let me know what you think of this chapter.