Where the Heart Truly Lies [Pain and Paine only]

John watched his sister's resolve as if it were a physical entity, showing that she didn't care that John was better than she was, more than capable of killing her. It was clear now that Rebecca didn't care about her own life, her loved ones were in New York, their father had made the city his charge and was just as important to her as it was to Pain. It didn't matter who John was, a murderer, a monster, a brother, he was a threat to everything she loved and everything she believed in, and until she drew her last breath, she would never give up. John's eyes flashed his inner sadness as his sister stood defiantly at him with her arm wounded, her clothes drenched with her blood, looking at him with a drive that reminded him of his own. When Rebecca charged, John's face sunk, and he tossed his Tachyon Blade aside and braced himself with his staff ready.

When Rebecca's blade came down, her strength brought John to his knees from the force. It was foolish for him to actually try and absorbed the blow directly, but now was his chance, and if he wanted to finish this, he had to do it right. Using the other side of his staff, John moved the blade away from himself and returned with his own attack with his staff's wicked blade. Rebecca reacted with her own parry, and made her own in return. The two traded blows, and despite his greater experience, John didn't seem to be able to make his attacks connect. With a powerful slash of her blade, the force sent John flying. Direct confrontation was obviously suicide, Rebecca was stronger and the lack of range made it ill advised to use his devices.

When he finally made contact with the ground, John landed on his back, his body surrounded by broken up earth. Looking up at his sister, John's scarred face looked sad and happy at the same time. His happiness stemming from how powerful and amazing his sister was, his sadness for the fact of what her fate was to be. Despite the blood now popping from John's veins, dripping down his cheek, his expression showed no pain, no anger, only a lukewarm feeling.

"You got me there." John chuckled to himself, but soon his smiled turned into a remorseful sigh "I truly am sorry Rebecca..."

As John watched his sister look down at him as he looked up, he knew what was going to happen, he knew it would all come to this. The curse of having such an incredible mind, no matter how much he looked at the variables, the end result would always be the same to his calculations. With her sword in hand, Rebecca brought it down to skewer him, and his eyes closed as he shed a single tear for his sister. Moving his staff up to meet the blade, John parried Rebecca's blow one last time, and motioned the tip of his staff away from them both. With the motion, his Tacheyon blade activated, and motioned to point towards Rebecca's back. Looking at his struggling sister, John's eye was filled with sorrow, a look into his true self.

"I'm sorry Rebecca..." John cried, lifting his blade in the air, the metallic hilt beginning to crackle with energy as it began to charge for firing. With his free hand, John grabbed his sister's, looking into her eyes. With a deep breath, John pulled his staff away. "I'm so so sorry..."

With the energies of the blade and the staff combined, the Tachyon blade became charged with enough energy to become the most powerful known railgun projectile. With the speed of magnetic propulsion, the power of the kinetic force, and the piercing ability of the Tachyon blade, there wasn't a defense in the world that could stand up to it. In what seemed to be a slowed perception of time, John watched as the blade shot through the air like lighting, straight at his little sister....

John let out a small gasp of air as the blade shot straight through Rebecca, spraying blood all over him as she fell down, her limp and bloody body laying on top of him, bleeding profusely. As more tears rolled down his face, John shushed his little sister, trying to cease her from causing herself even more pain. Looking down at her wounds, John couldn't help but marvel his own work, a sole testament to his mechanical genius. The tachyon blade cleaved a hole through Rebecca that was so clean, it was as if you could see your reflection on the sides of the wound, along with the slight charring of the heat created from the railgun maneuver. Any normal doctor would be unable to heal such a wound, the severing was deep and clean, too much for anyone with regular medical experience to treat. John was no ordinary doctor though, in ideal circumstances, he could easily fix the wound. However, despite his ability to save her, John knew that he couldn't, her death was necessary for his plan to take fruit, and for Pain to do what is right. Picking her up and placing her on the ground, John looked into his sister's eyes and parted her hair from her face, his face filled with remorse and sorrow.

"I'm so sorry Rebecca, if we were to have met in different circumstances, maybe we'd have been a happy family. Perhaps if our mothers were with Father he'd have been able to integrate us together and we could have lived relatively normal lives. Maybe I'd be the brother you'd be proud of and you'd be the little sister I adore. In the end, it was not meant to be, all the "maybes" and "what ifs" can't change the fact of what has happened, and why you're dying. I know you hate me, but please understand I am doing this for the one I love too, and I'm making sure that evil will not rise and her world will be safe" John said sitting beside his sister, watching her as her chest heaved with pain and blood poured into a puddle around her. Even with her superhuman powers, she wouldn't live much longer, it was only a matter of time. "My mother, Illya Vanko, was the only person I ever loved in my entire life. She was kind, sweet, innocent. No matter how bad the world got, she would always be there to tell me that there is good somewhere, that Love, Faith, and Hope were the greatest powers that anyone could ever achieve. But she was taken away from me, and our Father never turned back to look for her, he just abandoned her like she was used merchandise. But I do not blame Father, I blame myself, if only I'd have been faster, if only I hadn't done what I did. But now I make things right. With a small sacrifice, my mother can walk the Earth once again and the evil that wishes to take it shall be held off. It is only a short term solution, but with Hope, Faith, and my Love, my mother will be able to tip the scales in our favor"

Unable to face his little sister anymore, John tore his gaze from her dying body and looked onward towards the destroyed New York City. It was in ruins, buildings were collapsing, explosions occurring left and right, streets flooded with water and corpses. The carnage would soon reach its zenith, and once it did, John would have to be ready. All of his calculations, all of his waiting, all of his pain was focused into this one moment. As the Sun hang high in the sky, John closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. Throwing aside his staff, John planted himself on the edge of the Statue of Liberty area, leaving himself in plain sight for the single person he wanted there. With his heart heavy but his spirit strong, John once again adopted his cold visage, putting up his ruse till the final instant. It was here that he would make his final stand, not as Agent Dakota or Doctor Necrodium, but as John Vanko, Son of Pain.

"The Final Moment has come..."

The mighty hero stood tall, covered from head to toe in blood, sweat, grime and debris. In the midst of the chaos that besieged his city, he stopped dead, frozen in place as his icy eyes wandered the smoke and carnage. It felt as if the world stopped moving for just a few brief moments. New York City had become a warzone, and if they didn’t stop the Doctor and his forces here, all would eventually be lost. This suffering was all too familiar to Pain, but it also strengthened his resolve. He knew they had the strength to survive this. As he looked down to his bloody knuckles, only one question came to mind; where were the ones he cared for? He feared for their safety, anyone could see it in his eyes.

No matter how hard he fought, repelling the vast amount of forces that stormed throughout his beloved New York City was an impossible task alone; even for a man of his incredible power. Any foe that stood in the mighty hero’s way fell, but his victories seemed meaningless compared to the losses endured. His allies were spread too thin, though powerful and resilient, even their combined strengths were not enough to prevent this destruction. They saved as many as they could, but they were not prepared to defend against this assault. Pain had failed as a leader, as a protector to these people, but he swore to make things right. He had to confront and destroy their leader, his son, Doctor Necrodium. Without a leader, armies fall; everything wagered on this one fight. It would be a bittersweet victory, but a victory nonetheless.

Putting off the confrontation was no longer an option, he knew he had to abandon this hopeless quest to save every last one. After inhaling one deep breath through his nose in an attempt to clear his head, he bent his knees for a powerful leap. The hero blasted into the sky and soared across the smoldering city, his destination Staten Island, just as Necrodium instructed.

It was not long before Pain slammed down onto the Earth before Doctor Necrodium, a good fifty yards from where he rested. Cracks spider webbed across the concrete beneath his feet, but the cracking of his neck and knuckle bones still rang louder. From a kneel, he rose to his feet with a savage look in his eyes, his killer instinct ready and willing to end this. “Necrodium!” His brows furrowed as he barked out to his foe. For a moment, he only saw his enemy, only felt rage and determination, only wanted to make things right and save the few he could. It was all sapped away in an instant when he realized the bloodied body that lay in between father and son. Rebecca..

“No..” It was all he could manage to say, it appalled him to witness such a sight. He’d seen loved ones die before, but never his own offspring. Pain did not know how to process it, he couldn’t even see straight right now. ”You…” He took one mighty step forward, a savage scowl clinging to his scarred face. ”You goddamn spineless coward…“ He growled lowly as he slowly trudged towards Necrodium, the earth shattering beneath his every step. “You couldn’t just face me!” Pain roared at the top of his lungs as he slammed his forearm into one of his daughter’s ice constructs, utterly shattering it into thousands of pieces.

There was only one thing he could do now, and his icy eyes were viciously set on it. Doctor Necrodium had to be destroyed, he deserved no mercy. Pain failed to save his only daughter, and now he had to destroy his only son. The hero continued on his savage path despite how he felt, but was thrown off when he heard his daughter attempt to call his name. Though her words were barely croaked, Pain snapped out of his rage and dropped to his knees at her side. With the little strength she had left, his daughter made an attempt to grasp her father’s bloodied shirt. Hiding his despair, he leaned down to hear her final words. Pain lifted her shoulders from the ground, holding her close in his arms as he stroked her hair; the only comfort he could provide now. “It’s alright kid…” Brock rested his chin on top of her head, holding her tight as he felt the life slowly leave her. “I’m sorry..” It took every ounce of strength he had to hold back his tears. “I’m sorry..”

John turned to see his father land, just as he predicted, and allowed him to see the still dying body of his sister, enough to give him time to have one final exchange before she died. Though a sad alternative to what he would have wished, John was not one to take chances, and this was the only way to ensure that his father would act according to how he planned. Now it was finally the final part to John's plan. Years of planning, training and operation have brought father and son to the true final grounds of the New York Assault. It was the final time that John would use his facade, and it was time he give his best performance yet. Putting on a smile of twisted enjoyment, John looked at his father with his scarred, twisted visage, the face of a man who saw no light through the darkness of his soul.

"It was the only way I knew to get you riled up enough to go all out Father. If I didn't, your inner hero might come to save me at the last minute. We can't have that now, can we? Rebecca was already in the way, she thought she could beat me with such weakness and inexperience. It was quite pathetic to be honest, good riddance to bad rubbish" John began, explaining parts of his plan and his false wicked nature. It was important that he act as if he was devoid of emotion, it was absolutely crucial. So John began to pace, recollecting the pieces of his staff and sword, letting the pieces fit together in the back of his hand. "Now you're here, to see the ultimate failure that a father could ever commit: the inability to save his children, to bare witness the death of the favored child, by the hands of the other child. I guess such a reference really does make you worthy of the high horse you ride upon, the seat of a failure. How poetic"

Finally finished with his preparations, John revealed his newly created weapon, one that was above that which he originally used on Rebecca, a weapon that fused the powers of Magnetism and Tachyon Energy, a weapon designed to kill superhumans of the highest caliber, including Pain. It was sleek, yet ancient looking in design, longer than that of the original Tachyon Blade. The blade was also longer, and crackled with the ancient energies of Doctor Necrodium's staff, as opposed to the original blue hue. Holding out the new blade before his father, John pointed it in a calm manner, showing that he had no fear of his father, and was prepared to bring the matter to a close.

"Have your last talk, it won't be long before she dies, she has suffered from a severe puncture. It is a simple procedure, but unfortunately the only medical expert in miles is the one who made the wound. So have your final moments, give Rebecca at least that much. I'll wait"