Chapter Three: The Salvation of Paradise

[The Mighty Thor]

Purposefully, the Watch made their way down the cobblestone paths. All the while the townsfolk peered at the newfound strangers, wondering who they were and what they were doing in their village. Of coarse the natives were not alone in their curiosity. The reality hopping heroes were intent on finding their charge and getting their task done and finished as soon as possible, and as was often the case, Victoria Essex led the charge with Abbey, Iron Fist and Alex Elder at her side. Slowly, the pale skinned telepath reached out to the minds around her and began to listen for anything useful. Some of the people that moved past the heroes looked at them with concern, but Victoria knew the truth. It was more than just concern that plagued their minds; it was downright fear. But not all of the villagers had fear on their minds. Most disregarded the Watch’s presence completely, ambivalent to their arrival in the antiquated village. The majority of the people simply went about their business with nothing more on their minds than the day’s mundane tasks. Victoria did her best to skim over as many minds as she could, hoping to pick up as much as possible. Not one of the townsfolk had the name Kya on their mind and as far as she could tell they were somewhere in what used to be the United States on Earth, somewhere in what to Victoria would be the near future. But before she could get much further, an amazingly painful surge raced through her brain. Without a choice, she cut the ties to the minds around her and fell to her knees in blinding pain. And in the back of her mind, behind the protective psychic walls, the Phoenix cackled with a most ominous intent.

Keeping to form, the kid flash Barry West accelerated to near top speed and took a survey of the town, completing his task in the blink of an eye. It took the young speedster no time to find that the town comprised about three thousand people, the natives seemed to want for nothing, they used a barter system with no evidence of money to be found and that not one of them appeared to hold a regular job. It was like no place that Barry had ever seen.

Unsure of how to proceed, Franki, Husk and Logan remained behind to do some of their own investigating. Nearby, the cloak stood ever quietly, hoping to gain some information on its present situation. Being a disembodied shroud incapable of external communication definitely had its disadvantages. With no where else to turn, it folded in on itself, looking to the Earth’s dark dimension for answers. With the slightest touch, the cloak confirmed that it was on earth once again. It was not far from where it once called home. The shadows that clung to each and every member of the town’s population sung out to it, telling its own tale, letting it know how many of them there were. But as it hesitated for a mere moment, the cloak could see something in the inky blackness that enveloped it. In the shadows of this nether realm, there was something . . . someone, looking back.