Villain Retirement

"I only asked about you having grandchildren, Ju– Mr. Alistair. You didn't need to tell me about your life."

"So smug, little child. But for how long?"

Julius's eyes slowly started to glow in red as Riley's steps grew nearer and nearer to him. But seeing as he still had no intention of doing anything, Julius's eyes started to calm down as a small smile crawled onto his face.

"With your strength, you are so used to getting everything that you want," he then said.

"That is debatable, Mr. Alistair," Riley quickly replied, "I used to want to be human, but I know I will never get to be one."

"..." Julius looked Riley straight in the eyes for a few seconds, before letting out a small scoff, "I guess it doesn't matter now, child. Because from now on, you will never get what you want– not from your friends, not from your family, not even from your sister."

"Hm?"

"People are watching you right now, Riley Ross."

"..." And as he heard Julius's words, Riley quickly looked up above the skies, trying to see if there were any helicopters currently recording them right now– but seeing as there weren't even birds to see, Riley returned his gaze back to the ground with a confused look in his eyes.

"I am not talking about now, child," Julius let out a small chuckle, "Your moments as Darkday, all your past antics– the very first time you left the house as Darkday; wearing daddy's little helmet. People are watching Riley Ross turn into Darkday… and Darkday into Riley Ross. They are watching all the crimes you've committed, and where you went after."

"..."

"That is right… billions of people are probably watching all of it right now. Billions of people know who you are as of this very moment," Julius smiled, "And we even have a recording of your father admitting that you're Darkday… and that he has been helping hide your identity from everyone."

"...I suppose it makes sense for my father to know who I am," Riley then placed his hand on his chin, "I already had my speculation when I didn't get caught in my earliest adventures."

"Typical Riley Ross. Seemingly unfazed about everything," Julius once again chuckled, "One of us will probably die today. And it would most probably be me, but I already expect that. Just using a power that's not mine in the first place is already taking a toll on this old, frail body of mine. But it doesn't matter… The world knows who you are now, Riley Ross. I will die today…

…but so will the life led by Riley Ross. You are done."

"...So my sister knows I am Darkday now," Riley Ross blinked a couple of times as his hand remained on his chin.

"The whole world knows!"

"...I suppose the both of us have hurt my sister now."

"Y–"

"And I suppose I just have to kill everyone now."

"..."

And as soon as Julius heard Riley's ominous words, the only response he did was to close his eyes; letting out a small but very deep sigh as he did so.

"You really are just a child. A child with no idea what he is doing," Julius then whispered, "My brother was right in the end– Society killed our family… because society created someone like you."

"I think you would find I know about a lot of things, Mr. Alistair."

"I wonder what it would have been like if Whiteking was not the one to adopt you?" Julius ignored Riley's words as his sighs of discontentment continued, "That boy had something wrong within him from the start– I saw his potential when he joined one of my companies. He was too big to be contained, however."

"..."

"He had an infinite possibility to improve the world with his brain– yet he chose to play dress up and make weapons. And when he discovered that his son was capable of snuffing out human lives as if they were nothing; instead of trying to punish you, he even helped in hiding you from the world. If a madman like that was not the one to adopt you…

…would you have used your power for good?"

"...I do not believe so, Mr. Alistair," Riley then looked at both his hands, letting out a small sigh as he started checking them, "What I am now is what I am always meant to be. A–"

"A monster that should not have been born in this world?"

"..." Riley could not help but look at Julius as he disrupted his words.

"A monster that should not have been born in this world," Julius repeated, "That is exactly the same words your mother said while her hands were wrapped on your neck."

"..."

"You know nothing, don't you, Riley Ross?"

"I already know Ms. Phoenix is my biological mother, Mr. Alistair. I also know that she killed me."

"And?"

"..." Riley could only blink from Julius's expectant tone.

"Hm. Then you really do know nothing."

And with those words, Julius's eyes once again shone in a fiery red. A skirt of wind then suddenly surrounded his silhouette vertically; before his entire body disappeared, leaving only the dust that still formed his shape.

"You know nothing, child!" Julius then suddenly appeared in front of Riley, instantly grabbing his face and causing a colossal crate on the ground as he violently slammed him to the ashen ground.

A storm of sand started to ravage the air, leaving nothing to be seen but the remains of London floating in the air. Julius did not wait for this ashen fog to clear, however, as he stomped his foot several times on Riley's head, before finally letting out the harshest beam he could from his already flaming eyes.

A beam strong enough to scorch the outlines of his eyes. This beam, however, almost avoided Riley entirely– like a dominant stone in a river, splitting and parting anything that dared come it's way.

But still, Julius did not stop this raging laser… and it eventually paid off.

Riley Ross could not help but squint his eyes as he felt a slight warm suddenly trail on his face as a very minute part of the beam was able to pass through his invisible armor– causing a small scratch to decorate his face. This scratch, of course, healed quickly.

That was all that Julius needed, however, for him to put everything in his heat vision. Concentrating all the strength he had in releasing the strongest beam he could– a beam strong enough to take off his own face almost instantly.

The beam was bright enough to drown the now desert city in red; even creating magma beneath as it melted anything within its path– opening a tiny, but unfathomable deep hole on the map.

But even with the boiling crevice beneath them, Julius and Riley remained floating in the air; with Julius not even screaming as the beam gushing out from his eyes was shaving parts of his head, and Riley almost letting out a rain of blood from his face as multiple deep gashes appear on it.

"..."

But alas, the barrage of cuts did not last long as the raging laser faded soon after; Julius's body, slowly dropped on top of Riley; his arms, swinging lifelessly in the air. Half of his head, completely gone without even a drop of blood dripping from it.

"..."

Riley could only blink a couple of times as his face started to itch from his cuts healing. The last time he had ever shed blood was when he fought Megawoman; and it was truly uncomfortable, in a way.

Riley then let out a small smile as he slowly floated to the side. He was about to push away Julius's body but then felt a strong pressure hugging him as Julius's arms suddenly wrapped his arms around him.

"I am burying you with me, child. I wonder if you would also survive the Earth's core?"

"...I've wondered about that too, Mr. Alistair."

And with that brief exchange of words, another skirt of wind surrounded the two; the dust of cloud drowning the air, instantly dispersing as Julius dragged Riley straight down towards the deep hole he created.

"I really apologize that you had to grow up like this, Riley Ross!" Julius then let out a scream; strong enough to drown the sound of the ground around them being drilled away, "A mother that wanted you dead, and a grandmother that wants to do nothing with you because she killed her own daughter to save you… and then you ended up getting adopted by a lunatic who trained his daughter almost to death when she was only 5 years old!"

"..."

"I can't blame Bernard on that, of course. Your sister did kill 20 infants when she was just days old!"

"..."

"I told you I know everything about you, Riley Ross!" Julius continued to scream in Riley's ears, "Both you and your sisters are just products of an insane man!"

"I know that already, Mr. Alistair," Riley whispered, "But what I do not know is the identity of my biological grandmother. May I ask who she is?" Riley then said very calmly as the back of his head shaved off and drilled through the compressed rocks and earth.

"Of course, you've seen her already many times!" Julius let out a small cough as blood started to spurt out from his mouth, "I sometimes even wonder how she was able to resist the urge of just watching you and doing nothing."

"..."

"Ms. Phoenix, born as Alice Lane," Julius muttered, "Her mother was already a prominent member of the Hope Guild– who then later became the leader of the team."

"...Oh." Riley's eyes slightly turned wide.

"Charmaine Elliot Lane, the Shadow Mimic…

…you know her as Charlotte."