Grin

         “Every time I run it through my mind, everything I’ve done was ruthlessly perfect. How could It have ended in such disaster.”
         Grin stood on a decaying balcony of one of the towers in the decrepit former capital of  Mathis. His voice carried through the barren wasteland stretching around him. Decaying buildings, memorials, and bones of long decayed bodies, filled the hills and valley’s. The great rebuilt utopia of Lyseria stood at the opposite edge of the barren waste, gleaming in the suns reddish evening glow. Grins distaste for the gleaming utopia grew every second making his blood boil, making every fiber of his being want to destroy the shining gem. Unfortunately his popularity kept him away almost indefinitely, and when he did visit the fare city it always ended the same way. Caught in an endless battle.
         “ How could I have foreseen this happening, everything was perfect.”
         Grin stood dangerously close the edge of the decaying balcony. Dust from years of decaying ruble swept off the ground as he landed two stories down, his enhanced body taking the blow with effortless ease. He walked slowly through the rubble, his black coat  trailing behind him stirring up debris as he passed.
         “All the work, the reluctant energy, the pain and suffering. For what? This forsaken utopia!”
         Debris crumbled at the boom of his voice, then all around him fell silent once more.
         “You created the most disgusting travesty against mankind. It must be destroyed! Sit on your thrown while you can Cyris your rain of control will come to an end!
         Grins anger raged inside him, his skin throbbed with energy, and his muscles twitched. He walked quickly and quietly through the wasteland until he came to the closest point he would go without fear of being traced or observed by the utopia’s expansive security. The close look at the city enticed anger for it and its creator in Grins bones.
         “What kind of swine would think this a great advancement of mankind! Everyone and everything here is programmed, its disturbing!
         Grin stood at the base of a fallen memorial of some great war long past, his clock swaying in the wind. The cool breeze and the familiar numbness of his masked face calmed his mind momentarily.
         “Look what you have created, you must see the mistake you’ve made my fallen hero.”
         Startled by a noise Grin looked around at his surroundings suspiciously. Shrugging it off he went back to his thoughts.
         “ The thought that I created you tears at my very being, How could you have created this Cyris.”
         The same noise caught Grins attention again. His thoughts carried off to the back of his mind as he stood poise to attack. He stood for a long moment, and at the first thought of lowering his defenses and dismissing the noise, he caught glimpse of something moving in the shadows. He waited still as stone until his muscles felt like exploding out of his body, Then the noise again. Grins arm swung around behind him and with the blade imbedded in his arm decapitated a city guard.
         “Am I a little to close for comfort Cyris? I’ll know better next time.”
         Releasing the city guards severed head, Grin moved with increasing speed toward the city, his rage pumping energy through his veins. He slowed briefly to catch another guard running from a crumbling wall near by, lifted him over his head and tossed the guard through the wall of a dilapidated building. The hole the guard had made exposed several armed guards that went white as Grin advanced on the party. As gunfire rang through the vast expanse of nothing, Grin proceeded effortlessly through the barrage of bullets, palmed the head of the closest guard and, without any effort at all, collapsed his skull. The remainder of the armed guards in the building disappeared into the darkness in the direction of the city.
         “Why must we play these games Cyris? I know you can see me, I know you can hear me! Quit this foolishness and fight me yourself you coward!”
         Grin didn’t move from his position within the decrepit building, and stood silent with the  crushed face of the guard still slipping through his fingers. Their was no sound from any direction and nothing moved exept for the slight twitching of the guard as Grin released him.
         “Why would you insult me with such trash? Cyris, I thought you knew me better than that, I am the way I stand now because of you and your shattered body bares the proof of my ruthless destruction.”
         Their was a long silent pause until Grin noticed a person like figure in the distance, and instantly started walking towards it with intense speed. The closer he got the figure appeared less and less human and more bulky and metallic. Grin slowed his pace and stopped fully about thirty paces from the figure.
         “Seeing you in Mathis almost brings it back to life Cyris.”
         Cyris’ metallic frame stood a little taller then Grin, a monstrous stature to a human, and had a shining symbol on his chest. His limbs, torso, and most of his face were robotic.
         “The rubble we stand in now is no longer my home Grin, the utopian city of Lyseria before you is were I dwell now.” 
         Cyris straitened his metallic arm in the city’s direction. Grins anger spilt through every pore, He could barely calm his voice.
         “Unfortunately for your foreskin city it was created and is ran by a corrupt soul, what happens to your great utopian society when their godlike leader is gone, Your body now may be able to withstand time but your remaining organs have a drawn out lifespan not even you can escape Deaths grasp.”
         Grins spiteful words didn’t seem to penetrate Cyris’ ego as he proceeded unfazed.
         “ Lyseria needs no leader it is perfectly self propelled, I stand as head for guidance and inspiration.”
         Grins rage grew with every word Cyris had said until he began to lose composure. His voice was so fierce the ground almost trembled under its weight.
         “ Has your robotic body destroyed all sense of humanity inside you? People do not want to be programmed like some household appliance. You will soon see your society is run by fear, people are born evil and when your gone no one will be their to stop them from polluting your utopia with the truth.”
         Grin was on fire inside but felt accomplished when he heard the anger in Cyris’ voice.
         “Enough of this! This vast expanse of dilapidated waste is a perfect match for your corrupt mind and body Grin, but I am here for a reason. I have decided to offer you a proposition that will forever end your suffering. I have grown old inside and have one last issue to attend to before I can leave Lyseria to prosper in my aftermath, and that issue is you my friend. You are the last remaining threat to this society and I have come to offer you the forgiveness you deserve and give you a new start in Lyseria, I can sense the good in you Grin you just need to release it.”
         Grin was disgusted by the offer of a truce and the fire raged inside him as he advanced on Cyris
         “Don’t you dare try to silence me, the people of your great imbursement will learn the truth Cyris!”
         “Then you will be destroyed”
         Cyris’ voice was as cold as ice as he said this, and before more could be said Grin attacked Cyris. Grin hit with incredible force but when the dust settled he found not the crumpled body of his robotic foe, but the rusty frame of a long demolished vehicle and a small silver, hologram communicator.
         “Decent trick friend, we will finish destroying each other at a later date.”
         Grin picked up the communicator and crushed it in his finger and briskly walked through the expanse of destruction.

*Twenty years earlier.

         Grin could feel the moisture seeping through his skull like mask as the rain started crashing down from the sky. A sense of pride welled in his chest as he watched the bloodstained water dance at his feet. He looked at the body next to him and felt accomplished.
         “The last of my sacrifices, the last part of Cyris I had to destroy.”
         The sound of metal against metal off in the distance halted Grins victory. As he looked around at the abandoned warehouse he could see nothing through the light produced from the caved in roof. Grins thoughts scattered as he reached for the blade at his side. He stood as still as the dead body beside him, but herd no sound. He lowered his defenses. As the cool rain soaked wind wiped around his body the room illuminated from lightning cracking through the sky. At that moment grins scowled, Cyris stood in the doorway. Cyris’ muscular body was soaked in rain and the look of overwhelming loathing crept upon Cyris’ face. He wore the same uniform as the other cops in the city of Mathis, but to Grins surprise, lacked the firearm and holster. The sight of him sent an inferno of rage through Grins being. Bewildered by the unexpected audience Grin took a step back from the body.
         “So I see you’ve come to join the rest of your family Cyris. Unfortunately you are a bit early as you can see” Grin motioned to the body on the floor next to him
         “I’ve still got some cleaning up to do. It took a bit more time to kill your brother then I thought, he fought bravely. But unfortunately I cannot say the same about the rest of your family.”
         The pride that Grin had felt previous to Cyris entering the warehouse was nothing compared to what he felt seeing Cyris crumble to his knees at his remark.
         “You fucking bastard! Why torment me? What the hell is your problem you psychotic asshole!.”
          Cyris’ voice creaked through the dilapidated building. Grin Watched him slowly get up and start towards his brother, but Grin stopped him is his tracks.
         “I guess you don’t need to cut the eye’s out of his head to figure out who killed your him then.”
         Cyris grimaced at the comment, and spoke again this time with much less voracity. “I had to do it or I would never have found her killer, I wold never have found you!.“
         His reaction thrilled Grin as he proceeded with his verbal abuse.
         “Now don’t tell me YOU cut your sisters eyes out, Man, I thought I was sadistic. Hay did you happen to see what I did to her face, what am I talking about of course you did.”
         This comment hit the cord Grin was hoping to pluck. Cyris jumped for Grin but he moved out of the way just in time for Cyris to tackle a pile of steel.
         “You mutilated her!”
         Cyris’ voice rang out of the debris he had fallen in. Grin Smiled as he remembered the two incisions he made on Cyris’ sisters face, from the corners of her mouth to her ears.
         “So you didn’t like it, well no account for taste. See I did it for aesthetic reasons I thought she was lacking something, but what a great smile she has now, from ear to ear.”
         Grin walked over to the wreckage Cyris landed in and started to examine it. Excitement ran through him as he found no sign of Cyris. Thinking quickly, he grabbed an explosive from his jacket and walked to Cyris’ brother.
         “I’ve no more time to play with you my friend…”
         Grins words were cut off by the ring of a steel poll agents concrete. He turned to see Cyris holding the poll behind him, and reached for his blade. Setting the explosive to the side Grin took fighting stance. He dropped his blade to the side and advanced on Cyris. The reverberation from the steel on steel made from the collision of his blade against Cyris’s pole made Grins hand almost numb. He ducked as Cyris swung the poll wildly over his head. With one quick upwards trust of grins blade the poll hit the ground with Cyris’ arm still attached. Grin stood above Cyris as he screamed in pain on the wet floor.
         “As I was saying, because of your early arrival, our first meeting is ruined.”
         Grin walked to the deceased body of Cyris’ brother and attached the explosive to the limp torso. Then Stepping over Cyris, he walked for the door
         “I’ll leave a gift for you, a little memento of my feelings.”
         As he exited the building into the torrential rain outside he stopped and turn to Cyris, who was holding his bleeding nub.
         “Our first meeting, and you lose an arm, I usually avoid dismemberment on the first date.”
         Grin continued walking through the rain waiting for the sounds of destruction, he got about ten yards away from the building containing Cyris and his brother, when Cyris’ voice protruded the walls of rain.
         “I’ll kill you, you maniac! I will take my revenge.”
         Grin, laughing, turned in time to see the explosive Cyris sent hurtling towards him. Grin managed to jump in between two dumpsters as the explosion ripped through the compound.

*Present time. 

         Grin, consumed by his thoughts of destruction, drifted into the outer skirts of Lyseria with inhuman speed. As he drew closer to the city, the sounds of thousands of people roared in his ears. Despite his speed before Grin could reach the city. a battalion of guards rushed towards him. At sight of them wave’s of hate rippled down his spine and as loud as he could screamed.
         “The first of my final sacrifices!”
         At his anger filled words three of the guards from the battalion broke away and ran the other direction. Grin and the remaining guards came together and in a split second of nameless screams, lightning fast incisions, and a blanket of blood, he was standing in a mass circle of bodies and severed parts, his muscles surging with energy. Grin again set course for the glittering utopia, his assent this time was unopposed and he reached the gates in moments. He stopped for a moment just outside waiting for Cyris or more guards, but none came forward. Grins anger exploded again.
         “You coward, you know you can’t win. I will destroy you once an…..”
         His words caught in his throat as his attention drifted to the top of one of the outer lying buildings.
         “Can it be? Can their really be hope for humanity? A free thinking soul, and its trying to destroy itself.”
         At the top of the building Grin could barely see the man standing at the edge. Without thinking Grin ran to the wall, jumped to the top with the grace of a cat, flung himself into the building, and started to scale its walls. When he reached the top he found that his suspicions were confirmed. There, at the other side of the roof stood a sobbing man ready to fling himself to his death. With impossible stealth, Grin slipped behind the distraught man as he began to fall to his demise. Grin reached out and grabbed the mans arm, dangling him over the sidewalk far below. Disoriented, the man looked up at Grin and asked.
         “Are you god?”
         The mans tear filled eyes seemed distant as he uttered his words. Grin Droped the man at his feet and responded.
         “I am not god.”
         The man started sobbing again.
         “Then you are Death, here to reap my soul. I am your servant.”
         The mans response had no motion behind it. He was a broken shell of a man, just as grin had hoped. Smooth and cold, Grins words slipped past his teeth.
         “I am not god, nor am I Death, I am the unholy messiah. The destroyer of this oppressive civilization.”
         At this comment the mans eyes returned to the fabric of time, his eyes widened as he took in Grins disturbing form. Grin stared the man in the face and continued.
         “You my friend will play the most important part in our oncoming battle …”
         As his words captured the mans ears, Grins thoughts turned to the past.

*Fifteen years earlier.
   
         “Each on of us needs to play a part in the survival of mankind, we need to work together”
         Cyris’ voice rang out through the cool night. Grin and Cyris stood atop a building in the downtown area of Mathis. Cyris stood over Grin wearing a red cloth raped around his head, so only his eyes shown through. The rest of him was in black except for his right arm which was now robotic. Grin lay, almost motionless, in front of Cyris.
         “After all that fighting all you want to do is preach. Be a man Cyris, end it all and kill me, or are you intent on saving me.”
         Grins weak voice was no more than a whisper.
         “I cannot change I have devoted my life to my beliefs. You must see that through my mutation’s.”
         Grin motioned to his left arm which was now three times bigger than its normal size and bulged with muscle. Imbedded in his forearm was his blade. Cyris’ anger exploded and he swung his robotic arm, catching Grin in his temple. Grin fell back to the ground and chuckled. Cyris’ voice rang out again.
         “You are destroying peoples lives for your own enjoyment. You believe in nothing but destruction and hate.”

*Present

         “This is the root of your misery.”
         Grin waved his hand toward the inner city of Lyseria. The man he had captured lay curled in a ball crying harder then ever.
         “Man must create, thrive for excellence, survive, not live an empty existence. That’s what your hero created, a vast society of people who live for no reason.
         The mans crying suddenly subsided and he rose to his feet.
         “I cannot stop this, why save me.
         The mans eyes were red, and his voice cracked as he tried to hold back emotion.
         “ My friend, you are the one who will rescue mankind, at the edge of destruction you will save them all, …”
         Grins words seemed to hypnotize the man. He absorbed every word and soon became calm.

*Fifteen years earlier.

         “Cyris you are a coward.”
         Grins muscles ached and could barely breath because of the blows Cyris had afflicted on his ribs.
         “Just give up Grin, you have lost, just end this madness.”
Cyris bent down over grin but before he could speak another word Grin swung his arm around and with the end of his blade caught the corner of Cyris’ left eye socket. Cyris let out a bone breaking scream as part of his skull broke away from his face exposing brain. Grin slowly stood as Cyris lay on the ground flailing about in an increasing amount of blood.
         “Now I leave you for dead, but somehow I know I’ll be seeing you again.”
         Grin walked toward the edge of the building and watched the cop cars arrive far below him.
         “Fools.”
         Then he was gone.

*Present

         “Do as I have told you and you will become mankind’s true hero.”
         Both the man and grin stood at the edge of the building watching the security guards pull up to the buildings front entry way.
         “I will do as you said, and thank you.”
         The mans voice was more confident and it showed in his face. Grin turned to him and lay his massive hand on the mans shoulder.
         “Do not thank me I am the one who helped create this horror. You are a god amongst the ignorant, now teach them all.”
         At that the man ran to the fire escape and disappeared down the stairs. Grin scaled down the front of the building and about three stories away from the ground jumped onto a truck full of guards. Atop the destruction Grin yelled out to the other guards around him.
         “Fools, you have already lost.”
To be continued shortly...