The Calamity Stars found themselves utterly bewildered. After fifty years of infamy and presumed disappearance.
Their legendary reputation for causing widespread destruction and effortlessly batting aside any opposition was being shredded. By a tiny, talking weasel-thing.
"Enough of this nonsense!" The Rock Monster bellowed. Slamming a fist down. Sending tremors through the street. "Crush this vermin!"
"Vermin? Oh, I'm just getting started!" Jack zipped back towards the Rock Monster. A tiny, persistent irritant.
He moved so fast that he appeared to be in multiple places at once. A shimmering ring of grey around the stone giant.
"You know, for a bunch of old-timers, you really haven't learned any new tricks! Still the same smashy, burny, bitey, stabby, drippy routine! Get some new material, Gramps! It's been fifty years! The world has moved on!"
He aimed for the Rock Monster's eyes. Striking with the blunt edge of his blade. It felt like hitting solid rock. But the impact, combined with the extreme speed, caused the giant to flinch. Momentarily disoriented.
The Death Beast lunged again. His claws digging furrows in the pavement where Jack had been a fraction of a second before. "Stand still, you impudent speck!"
"But where's the fun in that, Gramp?" Jack countered. Now directly above the Death Beast. Kicking off his decaying wolf head. "Don't blame me for your slow, miserable old bones! You're overage. And still playing chase against me?"
The Flame Demon swooped down like a fiery cannonball. But Jack anticipated his trajectory. He zipped between his legs in mid-air. Slicing upwards at his underbelly. Then continued his upward trajectory to land on a clock tower. Momentarily out of reach.
"Hotheaded, aren't we?" Jack called down. His irritating voice could be heard clearly. "Ever tried yoga? Or counting to ten? Might help with that anger management problem!"
The Blade Devil was frustrated by Jack's elusiveness. He turned his attention to the recovering Enforcers. Intending to finish them off.
"Ah-ah-ah! No picking on the wounded!" Jack was instantly there. A defensive blur, deflecting the Blade Devil's strike with his own blades. The metallic clang echoed sharply.
He didn't have the strength to parry effectively in this form. But his speed allowed him to redirect the blow just enough. Sending the Devil's blade scraping harmlessly against the stone.
"You want to play rough? Play with me, Gramp! Pick someone your own size... Er... Wait! If you pick me, didn't it mean you are a dwarf? Tiny guy? Or is it that the tiny one is your little brother down there."
He engaged the Blade Devil in a flurry of parries and dodges. His blades were dancing around the Devil's much larger ones. Aiming for tendons. Joints. Sightlines. It was a dance of death. Precise and frantic.
The Blood Fiend, meanwhile, began to expand. Slowly but relentlessly. Towards another group of cowering civilians.
"Oh, for crying out loud! Can't you guys focus?" Jack whined. Momentarily breaking from the Blade Devil to zip towards the slime.
The proximity of the innocent lives stirred a deeper anger in him. "You want to make a mess? Against weaker people? Afraid facing me, Gramp? Men, you are truly cowardly old guys, aren't you?"
He zipped around the Blood Fiend. Creating mini-vortices in the air. The wind pressure didn't affect the slime much. But it disrupted his forward creep. He needed a different approach. He had to think fast. And he had to keep talking to do so.
"You know, for a bunch of supposed 'Calamity Stars', you're remarkably inept at crowd control!" Jack taunted. "Fifty years, guys, fifty years! And you come back for a bank robbery? Talk about a downgrade!"
Despite their raw power and fearsome reputations, the Calamity Stars were clearly unaccustomed to such overwhelming speed. And, more importantly, such relentless, irritating banter.
Their fifty-year hiatus had not prepared them for a hyperactive, high-pitched rodent. With the reflexes of a god.
They were powerful. But they were also slow to adapt. Stuck in their old ways. And Jack was exploiting that rigidity to its fullest. With his endless chatter and impossible speed.
Jack zipped around the Blood Fiend. He didn't cut the liquid man. He needed to disrupt him. He needed to move him. Or incapacitate him.
He had an idea. He concentrated. His innate blades began to vibrate at an incredible frequency. He wasn't aiming to slice this time. He was aiming to shake.
Jack charged and plunged one vibrating claw into the edge of the Blood Fiend. A sickening squelch sound echoed.
The slime recoiled. Bubbling violently where Jack's blade had entered. It wasn't cutting. But the rapid molecular agitation. It was causing localized destabilization.
"See? You're not so tough when someone shakes your insides!" Jack mocked. Pulling his blade free. He then repeated the action in another spot. And another.
He was moving too fast for the Blood Fiend to properly react. Each plunge caused a small, localized burst of corrosive energy. Dissipating some of the slime's mass.
The Blood Fiend shrieked. A wet, gurgling sound without a mouth. He thrashed. Trying to whip out its tiny tormentor.
Meanwhile, the other Calamity Stars were not idle. Flame Demon, a blazing gargoyle, swooped down again. Spitting gouts of fire to his direction.
Blade Devil, the lizardman, lunged with his jagged blades. Jack easily evaded him. And even slashed him several times. Although the wounds he created weren't deep enough.
Death Beast, the zombie werewolf, howled. Attempting to flank Jack. At the same time, Rock Monster stomped his foot. Causing tremors that cracked the damaged street.
Jack, however, was in his element. He was Racer Jack. Speed was his domain. He left a trail of afterimages as he dodged the Rock Monster's stomp.
He jumped. Using the lizardman and the gargoyle as a springboard. Launching himself over Death Beast's ambush. A quick, precise slash to the knee quickly sent the werewolf stumbling.
He was a whirlwind. Irritatingly fast. Constantly shifting targets. He was never in one place long enough for a coordinated attack.
He returned to the Blood Fiend. The shapeshifting man was slowly patching himself. But the vibrating attacks had a cumulative effect.
Parts of his surface were becoming less viscous. Almost solidifying into brittle, crystalline structures. Before dissolving again.
"Having trouble holding yourself together, are we?" Jack taunted. "Maybe you should try a healthier diet. Less human blood, more… well, anything else."
He focused his next attack. He channeled a significant amount of spiritual energy into his vibrating hands. He plunged both claws into the slime.
This time, the effect was far more pronounced. A localized implosion occurred within the slime. The corrosive mass recoiled violently. Leaving behind a small, smoking puddle of highly concentrated acid. One that quickly evaporated.
The Blood Fiend was now noticeably smaller. And sputtering. He managed to survive. But he was visibly weakened. And severely injured. His crimson color faded to a dull, rusty brown.
"One down, sort of..." Jack declared. The Enforcer was now clear from danger. He could focus on the others.
He shifted. The fight was a blur of motion. Racer Jack darted. Weaved. And slashed. He wasn't just fast. He was relentless. His blades were organic and sharp.
They bypassed the supernatural toughness of his foes with surprising ease. Especially when he layered it with his [Mysterious Anomaly] power. His current form couldn't make full use of that power. But he could still use some.
He targeted the Death Beast next. The zombie werewolf was powerful. But clumsy. Jack feigned a retreat. Drawing the beast into a full-out charge.
Just as the Death Beast lunged, Jack vanished. Reappearing behind him. A single, powerful, spiraling slash from his blades tore through the werewolf's spine.
The Death Beast collapsed. Into a twitching pile of necrotic flesh and bone. His roars fading into gurgles. His transformation dissipated. Revealing a gaunt, human figure. Still and lifeless.
"Two down." Jack chirped. "Who's next for the express lane to defeat?"
Flame Demon roared in fury. Unleashing a volley of fireballs. Jack danced through them. Seemingly untouched.
He closed the distance in a blink. Appearing directly in front of the gargoyle. Before Flame Demon could react, Jack delivered a series of rapid, precise slashes. To his wings.
The organic blades cut through the fiery membranes and bone-like structures.
The gargoyle shrieked. His flames were sputtering as he plummeted clumsily down. Unable to maintain flight.
He crashed into a parked steam vehicle. Leaving a crater on it. His transformation also faltered. Revealing a singed, unconscious man.
"Three!" Jack announced. A hint of satisfaction in his voice. "This is going quicker than I thought. Maybe you guys weren't so 'calamitous' after all."
Only Blade Devil and Rock Monster remained. The lizardman was quick. But Jack was quicker.
Blade Devil hissed. His dual jagged blades turned into a blur as he tried to anticipate Jack's movements. But predicting a speedster was difficult.
Jack feinted left. Then right. Then he was above Blade Devil. Descending with a whirlwind of slashes. The lizardman tried to block. But Jack's blades were too numerous. Too fast.
They carved through the tough scales. Leaving deep gashes. Blade Devil roared. Attempting to counter.
But Jack was already gone. Reappearing a moment later to deliver another flurry. Finally, with a decisive move, Jack aimed for the joints.
A series of rapid slashes severed the lizardman's tendons. Crippling Blade Devil's arms and legs.
The lizardman stumbled. Falling to his knees. His blades dropped down with a clatter. His transformation shimmered. Then receded. Leaving a groaning, severely injured man in his place.
"And then there was one." Jack said. His voice was now quieter. He turned to face the Rock Monster. The last opponent...