Stories by @underworld_stories

Ant-Man & Wasp 2

For the last two years Hank Pym has been working with Tony Stark on a global defense android—an adaptive peacekeeper meant to replace superheroes. Tony warns that A.I. can’t be fully trusted, but Hank is obsessed with ending risk forever. Janet worries he’s disappearing into the mission and ignoring present dangers. Those dangers wear a familiar face. Former student Justin Hammer unveils the “Hammer Particle,” a rival shrink-tech, and launches a New Ant-Man program using ex-con Eric O’Grady. Hank can’t sue—his patents don’t cover Hammer’s changes. To his frustration, the new Ant-Man becomes a sensation, even teaming with other heroes. Hank buries his guilt in his android project. The truth surfaces when Eric kidnaps Hammer and threatens to drop him from the Empire State Building unless he gains control of Hammer Tech. The world watches. Few heroes respond. Janet forces Hank to see this isn’t justice. He unlocks a sealed prototype: the Yellow Jacket armor. Yellow Jacket and Wasp confront Eric atop the tower. Janet rescues Hammer while Hank fights. Eric is quicker; Hank is older. Losing ground, Hank tackles him off the edge, destroying the wings. They fall—Janet saves them at the last second. Eric lunges again but Hammer remotely shuts the suit down. Arrest follows. Hammer is fined. Hank shelves Yellow Jacket, unsettled by how reckless it felt. He returns to the android.

Midnight Suns III: Fate of the Covenant

Doctor Doom leads a nine-member Cabal — Mephisto, Magneto, Emma Frost, Namor, Maximus, Blackheart, Attuma, and Grim Reaper — to corrupt the unborn child of Scarlet Witch. To complete the ritual, Doom and Magneto time-travel to retrieve Doom’s former lover, Morgan Le Fay. The moment she is pulled forward, reality screams — Wanda senses it, and the Sorcerer Supreme, Doctor Strange, foresees his blood being used. Wanda recruits Thor, who seeks justice for Loki, to rush her to K'un-Lun to purify the child at birth. Strange forms the Midnight Suns — Blade, Ghost Rider, Moon Knight, Werewolf by Night, Man-Thing — plus a mysterious Asgardian warrior. Battle erupts in Kun Lun as the Cabal attacks. Morgan and Doom overpower Strange while Emma duels Blade and Magneto clashes with Ghost Rider and Moon Knight. Iron Fist joins the defense, but the Cabal gains ground. Thor falls. Seeing both Thor and Wanda threatened, the Asgardian reveals himself as Billy Kaplan — Wanda’s surviving son from a destroyed reality. He defeats Morgan and blocks Doom. Mephisto arrives to claim victory — but Billy declares the prophecy was about him. He annihilates Mephisto in a storm of blue light, freeing everyone. The Cabal retreats. Wanda reaches for Billy; he gently refuses, saying destiny is fulfilled, and fades. Thor forces Doom to release Loki’s stolen essence. As it escapes, Doom warns: he already has a new plan. For now, the child, now known to be twins, are safe.

Swordsmoke: Cold War

Marc steps onto the conference stage, cameras flashing. He delivers his platform. Security, Hunter oversight, but the applause is thin. Citizens fear Wraith’s and the Hunters’ power. Marc’s promises are weak compared to Shepard’s harsh message. Polls already predict a landslide loss. Back at the Agency, Marc meets Clint. He again offers Clint a place on Ares Island with Ghost. Clint hesitates. He admits he and Bo ended badly—he thought Bo tried to cage him with ideology and always chose Alice first. He demanded distance from the family, never meeting Marc. When Alice died, he tried to call Bo but failed. Years later, he heard Bo was gone. Marc quietly asks if Clint blames him. Clint says he knew the risks of Bo’s life. Marc arranges a summit with Jack and Shepard over the Hunters’ brutality. Marc, James, and Strider travel to Wraith’s private island. Marc argues the Hunters are abusing state power. Marc tries once more to make peace over Grace’s death; Jack orders them out and announces more Hunter deployments to Ares. Marc and James depart, Strider stays behind, claiming he’ll negotiate. Instead, he approaches Shepard and says he wants to discuss the standing offer. On Ares, Marc briefs Norman. Election day is three weeks away and Marc’s numbers haven’t moved. Norman goes solo to scout the main Hunter base. He’s captured. Daryl beats him with his own bat, and releases him as a warning. While escaping, Norman glimpses secured records. The Hunters’ true backer is Mercenary.

Swordsmoke: Prodigal Son

James and Norman shove through the crowd, fighting to reach Daryl, but a man blocks them. He says his name is Mitch. “The bat’s gone. Walk away before this gets worse.” "Daryl is in power with The Hunters now." James insists when Marc wins the election, he’ll defund the Hunters. Mitch shakes his head. This Hunter regime is government-backed, and the government itself answers to something unseen and powerful. They bring Mitch to Marc and explain. Marc urges—once elected, he’ll end it legally. Strider storms in with worse news: the same shadow organization funding the Hunters is now openly endorsing Eugene Shepard and the Dark Agency’s rebrand—Wraith. With money, weapons, and influence, Shepard may be guaranteed victory. Marc argues elections can’t be rigged. James and Strider warn him the rules only work when everyone follows them. That night Marc sorts old Ghost belongings. He reaches Bo’s rifle and sealed letters marked “C. Hunter.” Reading them, he learns Bo had a son—estranged. Marc decides to find him. He takes James and Norman while Strider stays with Red and Mitch to investigate the backers. They land in a fishing town on Zephyrus Island. The address leads nowhere, but a dockside bar points them to a worker starting later. They wait for hours. Norman drinks and mouths off; James throws darts. Near sundown, Norman starts a fight with a waiter—and gets dropped with one punch. Marc apologizes and asks the waiter’s name. “Clint,” he says. Marc freezes. He’s found Bo’s son.

Swordsmoke: The Return

Opening on a small island base off the coast of Hermes Island, eight months after his setback against Ghost, Jack Grayson meets with Eugene Shepard inside a guarded command hall. Jack’s face still bears the burn-scar from Marc’s shotgun blast. Their Dark Agency has grown into a full military force. With Oscar Minerva dead and Mercenary gone, the United Islands now prepares to elect its first President. Shepard is officially nominated. Jack isn’t—his past ties to Ghost would destroy the campaign—while the Dark Agency remains classified. On Ares Island, Ghost has also grown. Marc runs a hardened militant network. Ellie has left. Strider and James Rain distrust each other, though Marc still believes in James. Most think war is over—Marc doesn’t. Norman uncovers Shepard’s candidacy. Marc and Strider fly to confront Jack and Shepard at the island base. Marc warns them Ghost is sparing them. Jack laughs, claiming Dark Agency now holds the advantage. When Strider steps forward, Shepard strikes him and guards force them out. Back at the jet, Marc decides: he’s running for President. Days later on Ares, strange outposts appear. During a supply run, Norman and James hit a crowded checkpoint—an execution site marked with Hunter banners. A tall man in a black suit emerges: Daryl Manson, Head Hunter. Funded and government-backed, the Hunters are reborn. He takes Norman’s bat, thanks him, and executes a prisoner. Daryl turns his back and on his jacket is the letter "M".

The World's Finest 🦸🦇

Superman intercepts a falling blimp over Metropolis Trust Bank as Batman disables explosives inside—revealing the Joker behind it. The clown escapes, but the disaster is prevented through perfect aerial-ground coordination. Mayor Lex Luthor publicly praises Superman, positioning himself as Metropolis’s strategic protector. Batman tells Superman he's been picking up an extra-terrestrial disturbance in the atmosphere. Superman could sense it already. A skull-shaped alien vessel arrives: Brainiac. He announces Earth will be archived. Cities vanish in bottled stasis fields. Superman and Supergirl confront him and is nearly digitized before Batman and Batgirl disrupt Brainiac’s signal grid. Catwoman steals a drone core that lets Batman trace the mothership. Martha and Pa Kent ground Clark emotionally, reminding him Earth is more than territory — it’s people. Luthor provides alien tech access codes. Batman distrusts him but uses the data. The heroes board Brainiac’s ship: Superman battles androids while Batman and Batgirl free cities. Brainiac calculates Superman as the prime specimen and tries to bottle him; Batman overloads the collector using Catwoman’s stolen core. Superman resists, shattering the stasis engine. Brainiac is defeated and contained in a null-field prison built by Luthor and WayneTech. The cities are restored. Luthor takes public credit, Batman vanishes, and Superman thanks him anyway. On a rooftop, the two heroes agree that someone that powerful, isn't gone for good.

The Mighty Thor

Lightning splits the cosmos as Thor is torn from Earth by Heimdall’s final warning—Ragnarok approaches. In Asgard, King Baldur the Brave gathers Thor, Lady Sif, Beta Ray Bill, the Warriors Three, and Valkyrie. Their only hope: find Eternity across the Nine Realms. Their quest becomes a psychedelic warpath through shattered worlds, demon suns, and living storms as Ulik and Kurse clash with them in explosive set pieces that bend reality itself. A shadow follows—Gorr the God Butcher, wielding the All-Black blade. He ambushes Olympus in a brutal massacre, killing Zeus while Hercules is forced to watch. Gorr declares Thor his final trophy. Unseen, Loki—escaped after Odin’s murder—tracks everything, recording their path to Eternity. He plans to claim its power and rule all realms. Thor’s team reaches the cosmic gate, but Gorr intercepts. In a battle, Bill and Sif hold the line while Thor duels Gorr across collapsing space. Sif evacuates Asgard as Surtur rises. Thor makes the choice: abandon Asgard to save Olympus from extinction. He kills Gorr—but arrives too late. Ragnarok begins. At Eternity’s edge, Loki witnesses Thor’s last stand and, shaken, chooses sacrifice over power. He begs Eternity to restore Asgard. Green light floods creation. Thor sees a serpent-shaped aurora and understands. Eternity grants Loki passage. He goes to Doom, rejects the Cabal—only for Doom to murder him and steal his power. Thor returns home. Baldur asks him to stay. Thor smiles. He’s going back to Jane.

Nightwing 🐦

Dick Grayson has left the Titans behind, operating solo while tracking a shadow network called HIVE. His surveillance uncovers a partnership between Brother Blood, Roman Sionis, and Oswald Cobblepot: a human-trafficking pipeline feeding recruits to HIVE for psychological conditioning. Blood realizes Robin is watching and hires Slade Wilson to eliminate the threat. Before Slade reaches him, Dick is intercepted by SPIRAL, led by Stephanie Brown. She offers protection in exchange for infiltration. Dick accepts, going undercover as the mercenary Red X. Inside HIVE’s island compound, he meets Karen Beecher, a disillusioned operative who secretly helps him gather encrypted ledgers and transport records tying Blood to the trafficking ring. As alarms trigger, Red X and Karen attempt escape with the final data shard. Slade ambushes them. Karen is shot protecting Dick. Slade reveals he knows the truth—only Robin fights like that. They clash in a savage duel across the burning docks, trading blades, batons, and history. Dick finally overpowers Slade and forces him to reveal Blood’s true base location. HIVE troops swarm in with Sionis. Slade triggers a hidden charge, blowing the platform apart and dropping Dick into the inferno below. No body is found. Asked who the spy was, Slade answers only: “Robin.” Sionis places a $100,000,000 bounty on the name. Cut to Gotham: Jason Todd receives a package from Deathstroke — a mask shard and a note: Prepare.

Red Dead Redemption

In 1899, the outlaw era is dying. Arthur Morgan, senior enforcer of the Van der Linde gang, rides with Dutch van der Linde, a charismatic leader clinging to freedom as the modern world closes in. After a botched ferry robbery, the gang flees across America, hunted by the law and torn apart by paranoia, greed, and betrayal. Arthur carries out Dutch’s plans—robberies, debt collections, gunfights—but begins to question the cost. While collecting money from sick farmers and broken families, Arthur is diagnosed with tuberculosis, a death sentence. Facing his mortality, he begins helping others instead of taking from them, guiding the young and protecting the innocent where he can. Dutch grows unhinged, manipulated by the ruthless Micah Bell, who pushes the gang toward violence and betrayal. Longtime loyalties fracture. Arthur helps John Marston escape with his family, believing John still has a chance at a better life. As Pinkertons close in, Arthur turns against Micah and finally confronts Dutch’s failures. In the mountains, battered and dying, Arthur fights Micah one last time, buying John precious time to flee. The sunrise breaks over the valley as Arthur collapses, his strength gone but his conscience clear. He watches the world he never fit into move on without him. Arthur Morgan dies not as an outlaw, but as a man seeking redemption—his final act ensuring another can live free.

The Hunters: From the World of Swordsmoke

The Hunters opens on Ares Island as Norman Ryder jolts awake in an attic. A teenage girl enters, asking how long he’s been conscious. She introduces herself as Mindy Maron, explaining she found him unconscious on the shore and disarmed him. Norman demands his weapons and directions back to Hermes Island. She offers a ride instead, warning him ferries are scarce because the Hunters have been extorting the docks. Norman insists that’s impossible, he created the Hunters. Mindy explains they now control Ares under Rick Arthur. Norman decides he needs to see Rick. With no cell service, shut down by the Hunters—they head out. At a Hunter toll, Norman kills a guard before alarms sound. A chase ends in a crash. They are captured. They are brought to the harbor to meet Rick, who knows exactly who Norman is. Rick brings Mindy out before shooting her, then releasing Norman. Norman drifts into a bar, where a woman named Emma approaches. She offers him a chance at revenge—introducing him to Ashton Knight and Red Carraway. With a hit planned for the docks, Norman agrees to help. At an outpost, Ashton dies, but Norman takes control, executing a Hunter, warning the others. At the docks, Norman confronts Rick, disarms him, and kills him. Holding Rick’s body, Norman declares himself the leader. The men kneel. The film ends with Norman on a fishing boat beside Emma, warning that power never comes without challengers. He sends a message to Ellie Smith with his coordinates: The Hunters are back.

The Official Underworld Productions DC Cinematic Universe Phase 6 Slate

Hi, we have one more film to go in phase 5, that being DC's World's Finest following Batman and Superman taking on Brainiac. World's Finest will feature the first ever appearance of this universe's Joker. Thank you if you read any of these and here are the films expected to be seen in phase 6

Blue & Gold 🥇

In the year 2426, Michael Jon Carter is a nobody who dreams of being remembered. Unbeknownst to him, those dreams are shaped by Dr. Destiny, a prophet who has foreseen that Michael is to destroy him. Destiny manipulates Michael’s sleep, guiding him to the Hall of Destiny, where a trap awaits. To get away, Michael steals a Skeets-brand time machine and escapes into the past—410 years earlier, to 2016. Free from obscurity, Michael reinvents himself. He builds a suit, creates gadgets, and becomes Booster Gold. Fame explodes: brand deals, movies, even a charity fun run with Beast Boy and Cyborg. But Ted Kord, the original Blue Beetle, is suspicious. With encouragement from Jaime Reyes, Ted investigates. Confronted, Michael breaks down. He admits he’s a fraud, terrified to sleep because Dr. Destiny now hunts him through dreams. Destiny can manipulate prophecy—except one: Michael being his end. With the Skeets machine broken, Ted agrees to help. Their search leads to Rose Walker, a Dreamwalker, who guides them into the dream world. There, they beg Dream— the Sandman—for help. Though he once banished Destiny, Dream intervenes. In 2426, Dream and Destiny clash while Ted and Michael secure a new time machine. Destiny strikes, killing Michael in the dream realm—but Dream reignites his mind. Given one last chance, Michael faces Destiny not as a fraud, but as a hero—and wins. Offered a choice, Michael chooses 2016, walking forward beside Ted Kord, finally earning the name Booster Gold.

Wonder Woman: Mortal 🔮

Diana Prince mourns. Donna Troy—her sister —lies dead. Wracked by guilt and fury, Diana isolates herself, even from her Amazon kin. But peace shatters when Barbara Minerva—Cheetah, now permanently cursed in feline form—crashes onto the island shores. Desperate, she reveals she freed Circe seeking a cure and instead unleashed hell. Circe has returned, vowing to claim Themyscira as her own. Reluctantly, Diana agrees to help. Steve Trevor joins them as navigator, alongside Queen Hippolyta. Their journey to Aeaea is perilous: they battle the Lernaean Hydra and the Nemean Lion, and cross seas haunted by ancient wrath. At Circe’s fortress, tragedy strikes. As Circe unleashes killing magic on Diana, Hippolyta shoves her aside and takes the blow—dying in Diana’s arms. Grief fuels resolve. While Steve and Barbara regroup, Diana storms the citadel alone. She nearly defeats Circe, but magic twists fate. Just as hope fades, Cheetah and Steve return. Together, they turn Circe’s illusions against her—Barbara’s cunning, Steve’s guidance, Diana’s fury. Overwhelmed by her own power, Circe falls. Aeaea is free. Themyscira is safe. Home again, Diana is crowned Queen beside a pyre honoring both Hippolyta and Donna. Steve kneels, offering a ring. She accepts—not just his love, but her destiny. Barbara, finally human, swears Amazonhood, leaving the Cheetah behind. In a dusty auto shop. A young blonde girl polishes a wrench, her necklace glinting—the crest of Zeus. The gods are watching.

Swordsmoke: The Trench

Marc and Strider try Norman’s radio—nothing. Marc orders Phillip to track him using the signal in his jacket. “Today’s the day,” Marc says as Phillip heads out. Marc, Strider, Ellie, and James arm up for Jack, Shepard, and Gunn. Jack admits doubt. He killed Bo, and Marc may be next. Shepard reminds him Marc let Grace die. Gunn radios: Marc’s scouts were seen. They prepare the trap. Marc’s team arrives. Strider stays with Ellie. Marc goes with James, watching him carefully. Deeper inside, James admits he hates what he’s done but wants this over. Elsewhere Strider warns Ellie James won’t stay loyal. Ellie snaps—she once liked Strider, but the more he talks, the less he impresses her. Gunn appears, pinning them down. Marc and James advance until James is shot in the leg. Jack emerges as Shepard ties James. Marc tells Jack he’s fallen far. Jack fires back—Marc hated him after learning he loved Alice, Marc's wife, and when she died Marc abandoned him. Marc pleads for peace, but Jack opens fire. Marc tackles him, they fight until Marc grabs Jack’s shotgun and blasts Jack’s face, leaving him disfigured. Shepard flees. Marc frees James. They rush to Ellie and Strider—Gunn has Ellie cornered and Strider down. James fires a clean shot into Gunn’s neck. They escape back to camp. Marc declares it’s over. Jack and Shepard won’t take this island. It’s theirs now—time to rebuild the Agency. Ghost lives again. Marc’s radio buzzes. A message—from Norman. Coordinates. The screen cuts to black.

Swordsmoke: The Agent

Sgt. Rain wakes in a small hut. Ellie sits nearby, having nursed him back to life. Rain tells her he won’t work for the Dark Agency anymore; with Ren dead, his mind is finally his own. Ellie says she refuses to follow Jack or Shepard—they’re too much like Marc. Rain warns they must choose a side before the war swallows them both. Ellie agrees and contacts Strider, arranging a meeting. Ellie asks Rain his real name. He tells her: James Rain. After falling in with the wrong people, his girlfriend was killed and he was taken by Mercenary, reshaped into a weapon. Ellie admits she spent years leading resistance groups, always running, and joining Ren gave her stability. They reach Strider, who wants Ellie back but refuses Rain. Ellie says it’s both or none. Strider agrees. At camp, Marc calls a meeting with Phillip Hart, Marc’s friend from Ceaser’s trials. The six agree to attack a nearby outpost, but Norman warns it’s guarded by someone even Shepard fears. Norman, Strider, and Phillip move out. The guard is gone, they slip inside and find the base blueprints—until the trap springs. The guard arrives: Agent Gunn, rebuilt with cybernetics after a shot to the skull. Ren ensured his survival. A brutal fight erupts. They escape with the blueprints but are surrounded outside. Norman shoves the plans to Strider and tackles Gunn, drawing the army to him. Strider and Phillip get away. Marc, furious, searches the outpost, but Norman is gone, they need to end this, now.

Green Lantern 💍

In his final year as a Green Lantern, Hal Jordan is ready to hang up the ring. But before he can retire, the Guardians send him to a distant sector where a series of gruesome murders have shaken the Green Lantern Corps. Paired with rookie Lantern Kyle Rayner, Hal is thrown into a grim, intergalactic noir—filled with shadowed worlds, whispered betrayals, and cosmic corruption. As they investigate, the trail twists inward, pointing not to an outside enemy—but to someone within the Corps itself. The deeper they dig, the clearer it becomes: the Red Lanterns have found an ally among them. Hal’s instincts lead him to a painful truth—Sinestro, once his mentor and friend, has returned, forging an alliance with Atrocitus to destroy the Lanterns from within. When the Corps falls into chaos, Hal makes the ultimate choice. Sacrificing his life, he channels every ounce of his willpower to give Kyle the strength to defeat Sinestro—now reborn as the first Yellow Lantern—and drive back Atrocitus’ rage. In the quiet after the battle, Kyle buries Hal’s ring, understanding the burden and honor of the green light. As the stars fade to dawn, a shadow approaches—John Stewart—who tells Kyle, “You’ve done good, kid. Now, let’s talk about the League."

🇹he 🇹itans

After her sister Komand’r seizes control of Tamaran and becomes queen, Koriand’r is sentenced to death. Escaping execution, she’s hunted across the galaxy until her ship crashes on Earth. There, in Jump City, she encounters the Titans—Dick Grayson, Jason Todd, Donna Troy, Garth, Jaime Reyes, Victor Stone, and Garfield Logan. Kori warns them: Blackfire is coming, and she won’t stop until she kills Kori and takes Earth as her own. As the Titans prepare for war, Dick struggles to teach Jason how to be a hero without becoming Batman’s shadow, while growing close to Kori, who fears her sister’s power and her own. Flashbacks reveal Gar’s tragic transformation and Victor’s resurrection through his father’s desperate use of a Mother Box during the Parademon invasion of 2010. These memories haunt the team, binding them through shared loss and rebirth. When Blackfire arrives with her fleet, Jump City becomes a battlefield. The Titans fight valiantly, but Donna is killed protecting Kori. Consumed by rage, Kori kills her sister and ends the invasion—but at a devastating cost. In the aftermath, she returns to Tamaran to rebuild her world. At Donna’s funeral, Dick breaks down, telling Jason that the Titans need him now—they need a leader. When Jason asks where he’ll go, Dick replies quietly: “To find out who I need to be.”

Flash

One year after saving Eddie and ending Thawne, Barry Allen finally has peace. Retired from heroics, he devotes himself to Iris and their baby daughter, proud to let a new generation of heroes safeguard Central City. Yet the joy is tinged with unease—Wally West’s vanishing in the Crisis, just three months earlier, still weighs on him. Barry clings to the hope that somehow, someday, he’ll see his brother-in-law again. That hope shatters when the Speed Force trembles. From its depths rises Eobard Thawne—reborn as the Black Flash, his speed restored at the cost of his humanity. Hungry for one last victory, Thawne strikes at Barry’s heart, murdering Iris before his eyes. Grief threatens to consume him, but Barry knows the fight isn’t his alone. Cisco Ramon, returning as Vibe, answers the call, and together with Cobalt Blue Prime, they form a desperate alliance. Without Team Flash’s safety net, their battle is brutal, spanning timelines and bleeding through the Speed Force itself. Thawne pushes Barry to the brink, forcing him to confront both his rage and his responsibility. At last, Barry ends the rivalry, destroying Thawne forever. But victory comes at a price. With Iris gone, Barry must raise his daughter alone, carrying the unbearable weight of grief. Cisco, before leaving, hands him a card—just a star and an address. “Someone’s been looking for you,” he says. Barry stares at it, the future once again uncertain.

The Knightwing

After the Dark Knight’s sacrifice 13 years ago, John Blake embraces his calling as Gotham’s protector as he recalls a Kryptonian tale once shared with him by Superman—of Nightwing, a winged champion who brought light to the darkest places. Inspired, he takes the name Knightwing, forging a symbol of hope rooted in both Earth and the stars. Blake’s mission collides with that of Officer Richard Grayson, still scarred by the unsolved murder of his parents, the Flying Graysons. Their pursuit of justice uncovers Tony Zucco’s return, working under the ruthless Penguin and funding Jonathan Crane, the Scarecrow. Together, this unholy trinity plots to unleash Crane’s perfected toxin and claim Gotham’s sister city, Blüdhaven. Through battle and sacrifice, Blake and Grayson dismantle the alliance and finally end Scarecrow’s reign of terror. Yet Blake realizes Gotham’s future belongs to a new generation. He steps down, entrusting the mantle of Knightwing to Richard who wants to use his grief to fuel his dedication and make sure no kid goes through what he did. In a final credits scene, a letter is delivered to a quiet estate in Hawaii. A man retrieves it, weathered but alive. Its seal: a lone star, its paper bearing only an address. He unfolds it, and for the first time in years, Bruce Wayne reads in silence—his return all but certain.

Swordsmoke: Power Break

Marc and Strider sit in a dim house, silence broken by footsteps outside. Strider warns there’s no way out—Ren’s men surround them. Marc tries Norman on his comms but nothing connects. Strider urges staying low, but waiting means death. The door blasts open. Eugene Shepard enters, rifle raised: Ren is ready to settle things. Marc growls there’s no room for Ren’s Agency—he’ll kill them before he bows. Shepard aims, but Ellie stops him, saying Ren wants Marc alive. Marc pleads with her, but Ellie spits venom—she’d rather die than follow him. At camp, Norman checks Marc’s tracker. With recruits Erik Reign and Bunny White, he sets out through Hermes Island’s wilds. They fight beasts, slip past guards, but Erik and Bunny are captured. Norman battles until Sgt. Rain intercepts. Norman fights his hardest but Rain dismantles him and knocks him out. Soon Marc, Strider, Norman, Erik, and Bunny kneel in Ren’s stronghold. Shepard declares punishment: three must die. Rain shoots Bunny. Shepard slashes Erik. Ellie raises her pistol at Marc—until Marc asks where Jack Grayson is. “Behind you,” Jack mutters, staggering in blood-soaked. “Ren is dead.” Shepard protests, claiming command. Chaos erupts—Marc strikes Ellie aside, Strider and Norman clash with Shepard and Rain. Jack only watches. Marc and Norman escape. Strider stabs Rain, sending him crashing through glass. Ellie dives after him. When Jack and Shepard move to finish Strider, he’s already gone.