Return to the City of Evil

I sighed as I unlocked the door to my apartment and threw my bag to the side, kicking the door shut as I did. I turned on the light and went straight to the kitchen, ignoring the person that was sat in the arm chair. I filled up the kettle and took out two mugs before switching it on and turning to my guest.

“Coffee, tea, hot chocolate or beer?” I asked, looking at them.

“Just a beer,” He replied.

“Alright,” I replied, making myself a coffee before handing a beer to him and sitting down, sipping mine. “So who are you and why are you in my house?”

“This is a good coffee,” He mumbled before looking at me. “You’re the legendary Synyster Gates right? Monster hunter, sorcerer, Guardian of the Gates of Between,”

“Yep, that’s me,” I replied, drinking my drink. “Now answer my question?”

“Oh right. My name is Matt Sanders and I’m here to hire your services,” He replied, sipping the drink. I rose an eyebrow.

“Ok, what kind of service will I be doing?” I asked, finding myself curious. Matt finished the beer.

“Well, I need you to help me find someone. He’s a very important person and I believe he will be able to help the cause,” He replied. “But once we find him, you’ll have to come back with us,”

“I see and where is it exactly we’ll be going?”

“Babylon the Great,”

“Whoa.. as in the city of evil?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Yeah… you know it?” He asked, rising an eyebrow.

“Been there a few times. Last time I was there all was well. Corrupted souls still hanging about but nothing the residents couldn’t handle. What’s happened? Why do you need to find this important person?”

“Well… it changed since you’ve been there…. Um…. I take it you’re familiar with the rules of the city,”

“Babylon, caught in a constant battle of dark and light. If good reigns over then the city is a place of peace and hope but if evil rules over it, it becomes a beacon of sin and corruption. Evil hasn’t taken over has it?”

“I’m afraid so. King Frank’s brother Markus murdered him and seized the throne. He has thrown Babylon into chaos,”

“I take it this important person you want me to find is someone who can reverse the damage,” I asked. Matt nodded.

“Yes, he can but moments before his death, King Frank sent him here to Earth to protect him from Markus,”

“He must be really important then… who is he exactly?”

“Prince Frank Iero II…. The only living member of the royal family left. Queen Maria and her children fell to corruption ,”

“So we’re finding the prince then what?”

“That’s why we need you to accompany us back to Babylon. Markus’ men will be trying to kill him or corrupt him so we must protect him til we can get to the west tower and relight the great flames. As soon as we do that, Frank will inherit his father’s magic and be able to claim the throne but first we have to find him,”

“Alright, any ideas where he might be?”

“No but I brought this,” He replied, holding out a brown teddy bear. “It was his. His grandmother gave it to him before she died,”

“Perfect,” I take it and begin to set up a tracking spell. Within seconds, I work the spell and have a location. Matt looks over my shoulder.

“New Jersey Music Academy? Where the hell is that?”

“I know the place well,” I state, getting my guns and loading them with special bullets that killed Corrupted. “Let’s go,”

“You work fast,” Shadows replied, impressed.

“Finding Frank is easy but that’s the problem. If I can find him so can his uncle,” I reply, grabbing my bag and opening my door. “So lets go,”

(***)

“Fuck!” I shouted as we killed more Corrupted. “Matt! Are you ok?”

“Fine!” He shouted back, hitting them with magic. I reloaded my guns and repeated shot all I could before running inside. The woman at the desk looked terrified as I stormed over. I didn’t blame her. I was covered in black goo, had twin guns in my hand and a dagger attached to my hip. She stared at me.

“Good evening. I’m looking for a Frank. Can you tell me-” I quickly turned round and shot a Corrupted before turning back to her. “Where he is please?”

“W-what the hell was that thing?!” She practically screamed. I rolled my eyes and put a gun away before summoning a green light. Her eyes widened before I threw it into her mind, making her more suggestable. She blinked and looked at me.

“Frank Iero. Do you have a student with that name?”

“Yes...”

“Is it only one?”

“Yes...”

“Where is he?”

“Second building to the east. Top floor, room 6661,”

“Thank you. Also… forget everything that just happened in the last half an hour….” I replied, walking away, leaving her to stare into space as her mind wiped everything that just happened. “Matt! Come on! I’ve got his location,”

“What happened?” She mumbled as we walked back out. We killed some more corrupted as we got into the building and then ran up to the top floor. There was hundreds of Corrupted here. I pulled Matt down, hiding against the corner and took out a special type of explosive I had created. I activated it and rolled into the middle then hid as it went off. We heard screeches then it was quiet. Matt nodded impressed as we came out of hiding and ran straight to room 6661. The door had already been broken in. I slammed it open. A corrupted came at me, knocking me over and tried to bite me but I placed my gun in its mouth and shot its head off before getting up and going back inside. Matt was leaning next to a boy on the floor, who appeared to be unconscious.

“Is he ok?” I asked.

“Yeah,” He replied, checking over his pulse. “Good job, Gates,”

“So that’s… the prince?” I asked, walking around. I noticed a few family photos. I picked one up and studied it.

“We need to take him back to the city now and free it from Markus’ hold,”

“Alright,” I replied, pocketing it. “Can you open a doorway? Inter-dimensional travel is one of the few magics I have not been able to master,”

“Sure,” Matt replied. “You have chalk?”

“Here,” I took some out of my pocket and handed it to him. He thanked me, took down some pictures and moved the furniture then began to draw odd looking symbols on the wall before talking in some weird language that has probably been dead for a few centuries. I leaned down and studied Frank as he did. He groaned and began to open his eyes. There was black in them and I frowned to myself. Something didn’t seem right so I quickly muttered a strong sleeping spell, knocking him out again before picking him up as the symbols glowed and created a doorway. “Nice job. Let’s go before more Corrupted turn up,”

“Alright,” Matt replied as we walked through the portal.

~Babylon The Great~

I blinked as we walked through the portal into the glistering world of Babylon. I stood for a moment, taking it all in. Like I had mentioned to Matt, I had been here for before but what I didn’t tell him was this was where I learnt my skills as a monster hunter and as a sorcerer here. Babylon is always where I earn the title Guardian of the Gates of Between but every time, I return here, it always takes my breath away. The city, no matter who’s in charge, is breath taking. It was once a city on Earth fell to sin and despair, hence it’s nature. However, that didn’t how beautiful the place was. The building themselves stood tall and were build from the finest materials one could find. Gold, silver and ivory. All which glistened in the light of a blood red sun that gave the city a mysterious feel. The pathways were paved with luxury stones that had the rarest gems set inside them. There was a river flowing throughout the city that shone an aqua color but none of this could beat the beauty of the gardens. They were even famous on earth back when it was on there. Mortals called them the hanging gardens of Babylon and they were considered one of the seven wonders of the ancient world but were lost to history. Or so the human race thought. Of course, when Babylon fell and became a haven for supernatural beings and a few humans, the gardens disappeared with it. They hung from every building in the city, all with exotic trees and flowers no one had seen in centuries and some were even unheard of. These flowers were all kinds of colors. Reds, blues, greens, yellows, pinks. Some even were a mixture of colors and the grass was so green and fresh, it seemed to glow. There were small water fountains that flowed throughout the gardens and into the river and finally there was staircases leading to each one of them. No fences to separate them either.

“You ok?” Matt asked, getting my attention.

“Hmm… oh yeah… sorry just taking it all in,” I reply. “Alright. Is the West side of the city still under the command of the wizard Plague?”

“Yeah, it is,”

“Ok. We’ll head there,” I replied, taking one look at the East side. “At least the city’s not on fire...”

“Hm?” Matt asked. I shook my head and began to head to the West. Matt followed behind as we walked there. “Do you want me to take the prince for a little while? You’ve carried him all this way,”

“Sure,” I replied, putting him in Matt’s arms.

“I’m surprise he hasn’t woken up yet,”

“I cast a sleeping spell on him,”

“What?! Why?”

“So he wouldn’t panic and be easier to transport,” I replied, taking a turn into a darker ally. Matt rose an eyebrow as we came to a house that looked really out of place in Babylon. Remember how I said everything was beautiful and made out of gold, silver and ivory. Well not this place. It was mismatched and build from bricks and wood and honestly, looked like it was about to fall down. The garden was still beautiful though… in a deadly way. The plants were toxic and the creatures that lived in them even more so. I opened the gate. “Um… you sure this is a safe place?”

“I’m sure,” I replied, walking up to the door and knocking. Within seconds, the door was opened by a small guy with a black and yellow Mohawk. “Hi Johnny!”

“Oh god, it’s you. I suppose you should come in. Wait here,” He gasped before heading down the hall. He opened a door and shouted inside. “Rev!!”

“Huh? Oh shit!” An explosion shook the house before a tall guy in skinny jeans and a suit jacket walked out of the door and shut it. “Johnny, don’t go in there for at least a week...”

“Alright,” He replied.

“Anyway, why did you disturb me, gnome?” He frowned.

“You have guests,” He replied, nodding to me. Rev looked from Johnny to me and broke out in the biggest grin I’ve ever seen.

“Holy fucking ducks! Syn!” He practically screamed, jumping on me. “Shit! it’s been too fucking long! Oh man! I missed you. You have to meet Stallion!”

“Whoa, easy there, Rev,” I chuckled, hugging him back. “Wait who’s Stallion?”

“This way!” He grabbed my hand and dragged me outside, where there was a giant duck with fangs outside. “That’s Stallion,”

“… you made a giant duck?” I shook my head before laughing. “It’s good to see you again,”

“Likewise… but didn’t you say you were never coming back… you know… after…. The incident?”

“I’m on a case,”

“Ooh nice. Your cases hardly bring you to Babylon. Well your old room is ready if you want to stay. Who’s the pets?” He asked as we came back in.

“Oh this is Matthew. The guy who hired me and that in his arms is the reason why I got hired. His name is Frank,”

“Whoa… that’s the missing prince!” Johnny gasped.

“You got a room for him and Matt?” I asked. Rev nodded before telling him where he can stay. Matt nodded and went to put Frank in his room and then headed back out.

“Hey, thanks for putting us up,” He smiled tiredly. “Anyway, I’m tired from that inter-dimensional magic I used so I’m gonna rest,”

He then disappeared into his room.

“Syn… why didn’t you just open a gateway?” Rev muttered.

“Something isn’t right. The prince was attacked by several corrupted and I think they got to him. When he came round in the human realm, his eyes were black so I cast a spell and I don’t trust Matt. He’s making out that he’s doing this for the cause but something doesn’t add up. He told me that the king’s brother Markus overthrew the King… but I don’t remember his majesty even mentioning that he had a brother and I found this in Frank’s room,” I took out the picture of Frank and his family and handed it to the Rev. “I’m not sure if I’m corrected but I sense magic from that,”

“Definitely magic,” Rev muttered, taking it to the kitchen before going through the cupboard and sprinkling some dust on it. The picture hissed then the image of the uncle completely disappeared. “Glamour magic… but the king’s dead alright. Queen Maria, Prince Matthew and Princess Zina are all in mourning… and worried about Prince Frank. He went missing on the day his father died,”

“Matthew said that the queen and his step-siblings had been corrupted…. And that the city had fallen but I’ve seen no signs of corruption...”

“That’s because there hasn’t been any. This Matthew is lying to you,” Rev replied. “But either way, we have the prince now so we can return him, claim the reward and split it. Sound good?”

“Sounds good,” I replied.

“You’re gonna betray the prince?!” Matt suddenly growled. I turned round.

“You lied to me. I don’t work with liars, Matt. Assuming that’s your real name,” I replied, hitting him with a spell that pinned him to the wall. He struggled as I walked over. “Now, if you don’t tell me what I want to know, I will kill you,”

“Like I’ll tell you anything!” My name is Captain Matthew Shadows. I’m in charge of the royal guard at the palace. I’ll tell you everything but in private... He whispered in my mind, nodding towards the room that Frankie is in. I rose an eyebrow and clicked on to what he meant.

Rev, do you have a sound proof room? I think we need to talk to Captain Shadows in private… I thought in my head.

Yeah, I do… 

“Well if that’s the case, I better kill you,” I snarled, letting him down and dragging him to the room. “Rev, this one was the room with your weapons right?”

“Yep, that one,” He replied, nodding. I shoved Matthew in and locked the door.

“Alright, this room is sound proof. Now tell me exactly what the hell is going on? If you’re the captain of the royal guard, why the hell are you running after the prince and not protecting the queen and the others?” I asked, sitting down at the chair that just appeared. Matt ran his fingers through his hair.

“He threatened to kill my wife and child if I didn’t help him,”

“Who?”

“The prince… Frank...”

“Whoa, back up. The prince threatened you? Why? What did he need help with?”

“Covering up his father’s death and escaping to the human world,”

“Covering up his father’s death? Did he kill him?”

“Yes,”

“Why?”

“I don’t know. The prince hasn’t been acting like himself. Despite been that I was a solider and he was a prince, we were good friends and he was going to make a great king then suddenly, he just changed. I think he was corrupted somehow but like you said, the corrupted are barely around. The city is in a good place but he somehow… changed...”

I frowned deeply.

“Changed… like…. In personality?”

“Yeah. He use to be really outgoing, caring and sweet. He was strong and kind then out of the blue, he became really quiet and reclusive then... he became angry. Really angry. Especially toward King Frank,”

“How did he kill him?”

“He stabbed him 50 times and torn out his heart,” Matt sighed. “He came to me and threatened to kill my wife Valery and our unborn child if I didn’t help him cover up the death. I still don’t know how he knew about our child. She had only told me an hour beforehand,”

I frowned deeply.

“You said he cut out his heart after stabbing him 50 times?”

“Yeah… is that important?” He asked.

“Maybe… I’m not sure yet. One last thing, why hire me? Your idea or his?” I asked.

“His… he didn’t say why,”

“Ok...” I replied, drawing on the walls with chalk. He rose an eyebrow as I opened a gateway. “Go to your wife. I’ll find out what happened to Frankie,”

“Thank you,” He gasped before going through it. I closed it before opening the door.

“Rev, can you help me with this body?!” I shouted. He came over and walked inside.

“Damn, Syn. You really fucked him up. Jay, we’re gonna need your help too,” He shouted. Johnny came in and locked the door behind us. “Alright. What the hell is going on?”

“Shadows is gone. I let him go,” I replied, explaining that the prince killed his father and blackmailed Shadows into helping him.

“Oh fuck… this is bigger then we thought. Is he corrupted?”

“I’m not sure… Shadows said that one day, he just… changed. Corruption usually takes a few days to fully turn a person and also… why isn’t he like the rest of them? They use that black goo to corrupt people… so why isn’t he dripping in it and why is he still capable of speech and thought?”

“Hmm… so not corrupted…. But definitely… something...”

“There’s another thing… he stabbed his father 50 times and cut out his heart..” I mumbled. Rev and Johnny both looked shocked.

"That's awful,"

“I think it’s time I talked to the prince,” I replied, getting up and unlocking the door before walking out, followed by Johnny and Rev. I walked into the living room where a fire was roaring and four chairs had been set out. One of them was already occupied by Frank. He looked up and smiled. “The spell shouldn’t have worn off yet…”

“But you know it didn’t work. Let’s not play stupid, Gates. I know you’re smarter then that,” He replied. “Please have a seat,”

I walked over and sat down as the Rev and Johnny joined us.

“Let’s talk as to why you killed your father,”

"I'd rather to about you..." I sighed and looked at him.

“Why did you kill him, Frank? He was your father,"

“He isn’t my father and I'm not Frank," He replied, looking right into my eyes. I frowned deeply. I knew Frank since he was little. I'd been hired by the royal family for many things. I knew the queen's previous husband James and I knew that Frank's eye color was hazel. Not emerald green. I closed my eyes and focused on him. The image of Frank slowly melted away and slowly I saw a beautiful boy in his place. His skin was as fair as snow, his hair as black as night and his eyes as green as emerald. Tears filled my eyes as I opened them.

"No.. This... it can't be," I got up. "This is just an illusion!"

"Syn?" Both Jimmy and Johnny looked confused.

"You... you ran away!" I screamed at him. "You left me, you quitted your apprenticeship and ran away so you're not here right now!"

"Syn.. I am..."

"No, you ran away and you married that whore from that other country!" I shouted, tears rolling down my eyes. Jimmy and Johnny looked really confused at them. "So you can't be here because you're... there... with her... alive..."

"I didn't marry her..."

"You did! You left me and married her!"

"Brian!" He shouted suddenly. I stopped and looked at him. "I didn't marry her. I wasn't going to leave you and I didn't quit my apprenticeship with the Rev,"

"... Zacky?..." Rev asked, confused. I nodded. "But you did quit..."

"No, I didn't. King James wanted me to, just like he wanted me to marry Gena and not be with Brian.... but I called off the engagement and went to find you but you had gone to the human world so I return to the palace to find a way to get there. That's where I died. Someone hit me over the head and while I was dazed, they stabbed me 50 times and cut out my heart... I was buried in an unmarked grave in Bat Country... I wondered there... well I don't know how long and then a band of travellers stopped to camp near my grave. I overheard them and found out there were going to the castle so I took over one of their bodies and found my way back. I slipped away from them and found my way to the library but Frank found me. He didn't even react though. just stood there with a blank look in his eyes. That's when I realised. He had no soul. The body of Prince Frank was walking around empty so I jumped into his body. The traveller was trying so hard to break from my hold so it made sense. I got to see all of his memories... Did you know he was in love with a boy named Gerard? His father had Gerard sentenced to death... even had his friends and brother killed so they would tell no one that the two were lovers. They were called Ray, Bob and Mikey. All of them executed because Frankie and Gerard were in love. The worst thing is Frank killed himself to be with him and the king had his body reanimated so no one would know. Can you believe that?!"

The fire suddenly lashed out, making me, Jimmy and Johnny jump back.

"That's not even the tip of the iceberg. Did you know he killed my father so he could marry my mother and get the throne? He arranged my engagement to Gena and went I called it off, guess what he did then? That's right. He had me killed. He had plans to marry my sister off to a barbaric king to the north and to have my brother sent to the south to become a true 'killer'. He has caused so much pain to everyone around him! All this so called peace that the city has had is a liar. No one notices because he casted a powerful spell on the whole place but there is Corruption everywhere! The city is crawling and oozing with it! He deserved to die,"

"Is that why you killed him?" Jimmy asked, calmly.

"I wanted to but he realised that someone had possessed Frank's empty shell and when I went to kill him, I only killed an impostor. I realised my mistake and I blackmailed Captain Shadows into helping me... he didn't know but I had overheard his conversation with his wife... I knew if I said I'd kill her, he'd say yes.... but like I would,"

"Wait... so the king isn't dead?"

"No..."

"Alright but Why get me involved?"

"You can save Babylon," He replied, frowning. I looked at him and noticed his flesh was beginning to turn rotten.

"Zack? What's happening?" I asked.

"The spell that keeps Frank's body alive has worn off... I guess this is good bye..." He sniffed. Jimmy suddenly ran out the room and ran back in with a jar. He quickly opened it and suddenly a bright light came from Frank's body and was sucked into the jar. I looked at him as he sealed it. Frank's body turned into a skeleton then crumbled away.

"It's a soul jar," Jimmy replied, putting it down and grabbing his coat. He pulled it on before picking up the jar as Johnny got up and grabbed his as I got up. "I think we need to take a trip to Bat Country,"

"Agreed but if Zack is telling the truth then we gonna need some help," I replied, opening a gateway to Matt's home. We walked in. "Captain Shadows you in?"

"Synyster," He gasped, coming in from the kitchen,followed by a blonde pregnant woman. "Where's the prince?"

I heard a little wisp noise and looked at the jar that Jimmy was carrying.

"He said sorry," He smiled at me. I nodded.

"I'm sorry to break it to you but Frank... he's dead, Shadows... he's been dead for the better part of a year..."

"What? But... I don't understand... how?"

"He killed himself to be with his lover... he was called Gerard... he was-"

"Sentence to death. Yeah, I remember... he was a good kid... but he was Frank's lover?"

"Yeah..." I replied. "King James had his corpse reanimated so no one would know... um... his body was then possessed... by... his step brother, Zachary..."

"I thought he married a princess called Gena?"

"So did I," I replied sadly but then the spirit jar glowed red and Jimmy swore at it. I rose an eyebrow.

"Is that a spirit jar?" Valary, Matt's wife, asked. Jimmy nodded. "Whose soul is in it?"

"It is... Zack..." I mumbled, rubbing my neck. "That's why we want your help, Matt,"

I explained everything to them as best as I could. They were shocked by the end of it.

"So we need to go to Bat Country and locate his body to see if he's actually him and telling the truth and if he is, then King Frank has been lying to us all and the city is in more danger then we realized?"

"Yeah. You in?"

"Anything to protect my city," Matt said proudly.

"Matt... be careful," Valary whispered, hugging him before turning to me. "I hope you know what you're doing,"

"Not really. I'm just kind of going with it," I replied before opening up a portal and walking through. Matt, Rev and Johnny followed me as I did. I stepped out and looked round. Bat Country was mostly desert and sand. I sighed before turning to Jimmy, who held out the spirit jar. I took it opened it, letting Zack float out. His spirit hovered then began to move forward. We followed him til he stopped.

"Here... this is where I'm buried..." He said in a ghostly voice. I nodded and opened the jar again. It sucked his soul back in and I handed it to Jimmy before turning to Johnny.

"Jay... if you don't mind..." I smiled weakly. He nodded and closed his eyes before his hands glowed and he lifted the earth til we found a skeleton. He stopped as I crawled into the grave and studied the skeleton. I reached out and took a ring off it's finger before closing my eyes as tears filled them.

"Syn?" Rev questioned.

"It's him..." I muttered. "It's Zack..."

The spirit jar glowed blue as everyone frowned deeply.

"God.. Syn... I'm sorry..." Rev replied as I climbed out of the grave and put the ring on my index finger.

"Johnny can you rebury him please?" I asked, walking over to one of the few trees and using my magic to make a makeshift cross. Matt walked over to me and helped me lift it.

"Who was he to you?" He asked quietly.

"My lover... back when I use to live here... I left because I thought he had married Princess Gena.... They were engaged for political reasons... I only just found out he was murdered," I replied as we placed the cross over his grave.

"I'm so sorry," Matt replied. "This means... he's telling the truth though?"

"Yeah... which means King Frank is still alive and there's a massive spell on the city we have to break..." I stated.

"Hey... you know when we entered the city... why did you say 'at least, the city's not on fire'?"

"Reoccurring nightmare I've always had,"

"Oh..." Matt replied before getting up. I sighed and got up myself before walking over to everyone. "We need to find a way to break whatever spell King Frank has done so we can see the full damage of the city... now there are five main points in the city that create a pentagram. If we all cast a spell to reveal the natural of the city at those five points, we should be able to break the spell and see what the city really looks like,"

"Syn... there's only 4 of us living," Johnny pointed out.

"I know. It's why we need a 5th person..."

"No way are you asking him!" Rev growled. I sighed.

"Like we have a choice," I stated, opening a new portal. "Go back to the city and prepare the spell... I'll collect Brooks,"

"Fine but I still don't like him! I'm the greatest wizard!" Rev stuck out his tongue and walked through the portal. Matt rose an eyebrow.

"Um..."

"Rev is the wizard Plague. He looks after the West of the city while the wizard Brooks looks after the East side of the city," I explained. "Now go,"

"Come on, Matt. It's best not to get involved in the rivalries of wizards," Johnny explained, walking through with Matt. I closed the portal and opened a new one before stepping through but without looking back at Zack's grave. I looked away and stepped through into the house of the Wizard Brooks.

(***)

"Hurry up, Syn," Rev muttered as I walked through a portal with Brooks behind me. Rev glared at him. "Brooks.."

"Plague," He replied. "Let's get this spell over with, Gates. I don't like to leave Arin alone for very long,"

"At least, I trust my apprentice," Rev muttered.

"Enough. Brooks, here's a copy of the spell. You'll take the east side gate as your position. Rev, take the west gate. Jay, you need to be south west of the southern gate. Matt, south east of the southern gate. I'll take north. We can all see the clock from those positions and as soon as it hits midnight, all say the chant," I stated. Everyone nodded and headed to their position. I headed to the north gate and stood facing the clock as it ticked away. After what seemed like an eternity, it hit midnight. "Power of Midnight, let us see what truly hides beneath. Reveal to us what has lies have been told, let us see the true city of gold,"

I waited for a few minutes then from the clock tower, the image of the once beautiful city began to melt away and I saw it had basically fallen. People who looked normal and human were revealed to be just Corrupted and the buildings were ruins. The gardens had long since been abandoned and had overgrown and the once beautiful water was now polluted and greyish in color. I frowned and returned to the centre of the city where Rev, Johnny, Brooks and Matt had gathered.

"This is awful..." Johnny frowned deeply. Rev looked distraught.

"How... could I not have noticed?" He gasped. Brooks looked just as upset.

"I should have noticed... why... why didn't we notice?" He gasped. I walked over and sighed.

"King James is here somewhere..." I replied, looking around before we all heard a woman's laughter. I turned round and stood dressed in red was none of other then Gena, Zack's ex fiancee. I frowned deeply. "Princess Gena,"

"Synyster... it's been a long time..." She stated. "And I'm not princess anymore... I'm the Queen now,"

"More like Whore!" Rev shouted. She merely laughed.

"Well, that is one of my titles... Whore of Babylon but you know... it could be worst... at least, I'm now Queen,"

"Where's King Frank?" I asked but again, she giggled and turned to the river flowing through the city.

"Frank, darling. You have some guests," She stated to the waters before they began to boil and slowly a huge red beast with seven heads rose from it. We all stepped back as Zacky's spirit jar turned yellow.

"He's afraid," Jimmy whispered.

"Don't blame him," I replied as the beast snarled before I stepped forward. "King Frank?"

"Synyster Gates!" It snarled. "Didn't you leave this city?"

"I'm back to talk to you. What have you done to yourself?"

"I'm the king of Babylon and no one can stop me! Not even you," He snarled before one of his heads spat fire out towards me. I rolled out the way but it hit Brooks.

"No!" I shouted but it was too late. His charred corpse fell down as he whispered Arin's name for the last time. Rev stared before shoving Zacky's jar into Johnny's hand as it turned a yellow brown color, revealing he was worried and scared.

"Brooks was a good wizard asshole!" He shouted, summoning his giant stallion duck that he created. He jumped on it's back and charged at the beast but it backhanded him and there was a horrible crack as he hit one of the walls. I looked over in shock as he laid there lifeless.

"No! Jimmy!" Johnny screamed, dropping Zacky's jar and running over to him. It smashed and Zacky's soul reformed.

"Brian! Behind you!" He gasped. Suddenly I was pushed out the way by Matt.

"Finish this, Gates!" He gasped before flames engulfed him too. I stared in horror as the beast began to breathe fire everywhere. Zacky ran over and tried to help me up but his hand went through mine.

"Brian... remember... I love you..." He gasped as he began to fade away.

"Zack! Don't leave me!" I shouted but he was gone. Brooks, Rev and Matt were gone too. Johnny was crying as he cradled Rev's body in his arms and then fire engulfed them both. Both people and Corrupted screamed as the city burnt. I slowly got up and walked over to the beast and the harlot.

"You're next," Gena laughed but I screwed up my fists.

"Gerard, Mikey, Ray, Bob, Frankie," I stated, glaring up at them. "Maria, Zina, Matthew, James..."

"What are you trying to do?" Gena laughed.

"Zacky, Johnny, Jimmy, Brooks, Arin, Matthew, Valary and their child. These are just some of the names of the people you have killed in your quest to become a monster so congratulations, Frank. You did it but guess what, asshole?!" I shouted, taking out my guns. All 14 eyes looked at me and I stared back as I pointed them at him. "I'm Synyster fucking Gates and I kill Monsters for a living!"

He snarled and when to shoot fire at me but I used my magic to put up a shield then as soon as he stopped, I repeatedly shot at him and Gena, using my magic to keep the guns loaded as the bullets cut through them until there was nothing of them left. I lowered my guns as their blood flowed through the street and the city burnt. I looked around and sighed. Babylon was falling again and nothing was going to save it this time. Exactly like in my nightmare. I sighed and opened a new portal before walking through back to earth. 

~Several Decades Later~

I sipped my wine as I waited on a client. There was supposed a rare artifact they wanted me to look at so I arranged to meet them in this little club called Johnny's Bar. I liked the place. It was in a quiet little seaside town called Huntington Beach which was near a big city called Los Angeles. Huntington was my main home and Los Angeles reminded me of Babylon. Lots of sin and monsters roamed there. The door swung opened as I sipped my wine again. The man walked up to the bar.

"I'm looking for a Synyster Gates,"

"Right there, man," The bartender nodded to me. I looked over as the guy walked over.

"I assume you're David?" I asked. He nodded and took out the item. I looked at it and saw it was a chunk of gold. There was nothing magical about it at all.

"This is supposedly from the city of evil itself," He whispered. I sighed and finished my drink.

"No, it's just a chunk of gold. Hate to disappoint you," I replied, getting up and walking out. I got on my bike and rode off. I decided to go to LA and parked my bike up at my favorite bar there. I walked inside and headed straight for the bar.

"The usual, Syn?" The bartender asked. I nodded. "Hey, just to let you know. A guy came in looking for you,"

"And I care why?" I asked. He shrugged and handed me a note.

"Said to give you this," He said. I opened the note and looked at it.

The Pier in Huntington Beach at Midnight

I frowned and looked at the time. It was nearly quarter to midnight. No way I'd drive there in time. I got up and when out back before opening a portal and walking out onto the pier. Sat on the edge was a group of people. I frowned as I felt a feeling of familiarity. I decided to approach them.

"Hey, did you guys-" I stopped half way through my sentence from shock.

"Hey, Syn," Matt smiled as he got up, followed by his wife. Jimmy and Johnny were making out by the water and Brooks and Arin were playing poker by the looks of it. I blinked and stared at them.

"You... all died..." I whispered.

"Yeah... sorry about that..." Matt replied.

"How...are you here?"

"We got reborn," Jimmy explained as he pulled away from Johnny. "Took a few years but all the souls from the city were reborn into this world. Frankie and Gerard would be here too but they're on their honeymoon,"

"So... you're all back... do you have magic? Are you human?"

"Nope... we're still us... I'm still the best damn wizard ever!" Jimmy grinned. Brooks just shook his head before getting up and shaking my hand.

"Good job, Gates. If you ever need me, just call," He replied, handing me his card. "Come on, Arin. We have a world to protect,"

"Right, boss,"

"Right... bye..." I muttered, putting the card in my wallet. Jimmy got up and hugged me.

"Call me, Syn. We need to get wasted,"

"Are you leaving?"

"Yeah. Got a duck to create!" He grinned insanely. "Johnny let's go!"

"Alright. Don't be a stranger, Gates," Johnny waved and left with Jimmy. I waved back, smiling.

"We better go," Matt said. "Like Johnny said don't be a stranger,"

"You're always welcome in our house, Syn," Valary smiled, hugging me. I hugged back before they walked off.

"Bye.. wait who sent me the note?" I asked suddenly. Matt stopped and shrugged.

"Wasn't any of us. We all got notes too," He replied before getting into a black car with Valary and driving off. I sighed and sat down on the pier. Everyone was back... apart from him. I looked down at my ring. It was the ring I gave him when I told him I loved him.

"I miss you, Zack," I whispered.

"I miss you too, Brian," His voice suddenly answered. I quickly stood up and turned round. There he was, stood in biker gear with his helmet in his hands and his bike behind him. "Hi,"

"Zack..." I gasped.

"I got a note saying to come to the pier at Huntington Beach at midnight..." He muttered. "I think I'm late... sorry... I would have used inter-dimensional magic but I was never good at that,"

I walked over and pulled him close to me, pressing my lips onto his. He dropped his helmet and wrapped his arms round me as he kissed back. I deepened the kiss as he ran his fingers through my hair before gently pulling away.

"Wow..." He whispered.

"Don't ever die on me again, Vengeance," I whispered, using his code name. He grinned and kissed me again.

"Promise. Let's go home," He replied, gently pulling away from me and picking up his helmet. I checked out his bike as he pulled it back on and got on. I chucked at the number plate. "What?"

"6661... you always liked that number..."

"Yeah.... I find it funny... it's like the beast won..."

"Only we both know that he didn't," I replied, opening up a portal back to my own bike. He rode through and I followed before grabbing my own helmet and putting it on. I got on my bike and revved it up. "Where to, Vengeance?"

"Home?" He asked. I grinned and opened up a new portal before we both drove through.