Unfortunately, Peter would one day find out that the owner of the company, business mogul Edgar Lockhart, was actually a mastermind hyper-villain; and that Edgar was working with a cabal of other hyper-villains, and in conjunction with the powerful intergalactic warlord Emperor Kako. They were not excavating a valuable mineral at the Hollow Earth Site; they were actually drilling for the third piece of the triplos asteri. This star, if combined with the other two, would give its holder a portion of the essence of the goddess of the universe Armonia, making him or her a supreme god as well. Emperor Kako, leader of the Tromokratesian warrior race, had already obtained the first two, and thanks to the work of Peter and hundreds of other dedicated construction workers, mechanics, engineers and scientists, along with an assist from Edgar’s supremely powerful psionic sister, London Omega, the star had been retrieved from the Earth’s core.

Not long after the excavation, Emperor Kako and a massive armada of warships arrived, and the Tromokratesians launch a full-scale invasion of Earth in an effort to secure the planet and snuff out the numerous militaries, hyper-beings and superheroes who could possibly stand in the way of obtaining the star. Several preparations were made ahead of the invasion. General Tixus Trexion led the intergalactic military known as the Galaxias Kyklos Forceto Earth, and assembled his most elite troops to personally confront Kako. Tixus also visited with Secretary General Nnemeka Achike of the United Nations, which led to almost every country in the world coordinating their efforts toward defending against the alien invaders. Additionally, worldwide media alerts were sent out to warn citizens to get to designated safezones, and to stay as far away from the fighting as possible.

As the attack ensued, the global chaos almost immediately reached a monumental scale unlike anything the world had ever seen. Even GKF members who were experienced warriors and had been in numerous intergalactic battles, some against Tromokratesians, were shocked at the level of ferocity and the scale of which Emperor Kako was attacking Earth. Then again, with the final triplos asteri at stake, it made sense that Kako would take no chances. The Tromokratesians would not cease their onslaught until he had the third star in his grasp. All over the world, superheroes such as Virtuosa, Mictlan, Hyper Guy, and Terrabyte, as well as teams of heroes like the Sista Clique and the Infinity Force, fought the enemy and protected citizens from the destruction. Additionally, supreme warriors like Seishin Danzo and his Iga Clan took the fight to the alien invaders. And even average everyday hyper-human citizens – like Insight, Wong Loa Pi, Lady Resurrection, Silverback, Mehmood Ali, and Le Donnuer – who’d had little or no experience against super-powered troops, joined the fight. And if that wasn’t enough, the Earth itself fought back when the physical embodiments of the Brazilianrainforest, Pai and Mãe rose from the ground. The fight for the fate of the world was at hand!

Meanwhile, at the Hollow Earth site the super-villain cabal, led by international arms dealer Ramses “The Pharaoh” Hondo, along with Ligselzus, Kako’s Tromokratesian ambassador to Earth, were locked in battle with Devorah Chance and the heroic Sacred Asylum. Thanks to the insight of their guide, Messiah, the Asylum had been some of the first earthly heroes to be alerted of the triplos asteri’s presence and retrieval. In the course of the battle, several of the excavation site workers had been herded by the villains into holding cells. Among them was Peter Coughlin.

Peter could only watch as The Sacred Asylum attempted to take the star away from Ramses, Ligselzus, and the Omega Twins. The arrival of Edgar’s personal team of sharpshooting hyper-villains, The Lockhart Force (Dezzie, Doc, Chopper, Brandi Berretta, Caliber, Tumbleweed and Rosko), as well as Ramses’s elite team of hyper-powered mercenaries (Fahim Nuru, Askari Badru, Shefali Chisisi, Jamad Musa, Qadira Azizi and Shafaf Ottah), heavily tilted the battle in the favor of the villains. The Asylum was all but doomed. Luckily for them, Major Delilah Fray had arrived just in time, along with the entire Alpha Initiative. Lt. Rashard Bonds, Captain Noble, Interface, Musashi, Black Jag, Liberty Star, Orenda Bearfoot, and Encore all jumped into action to help the Sacred Asylum against the squad of mega-villains. The fight had now turned into an insane battle royale!

It was difficult for Peter and the other captive workers to know exactly what was happening, but they knew they did not want to be there anymore. Suddenly they heard a whooshing sound, as Encore had noticed the hostages and subsequently teleported over to their location. She quickly took the guards down and released the captives. Among them were a number of pilots who had previously been responsible for transporting the workers and equipment in and out of the site. Encore accompanied the released hostages, as the pilots led them to air docks where a dozen cargo planes were stationed. They began loading the planes and taking off for safety. One person, though, refused to board – Peter Coughlin.

Encore insisted he retreat with the rest of the hostages, but Peter said he could never live with himself if he fled and did not use his powers to help. Encore asked him what abilities he had, and he answered he had worked on the drills as a mechanic but his real talent was his ability to temporarily immobilize people by touching them. It was a power that could come in handy, but Encore was not sure she should allow a civilian to fight. She ultimately decided Peter needed to leave, but he insisted on staying, saying he would somehow work his way over to the fight anyway. Frustrated, Encore grabbed Peter and teleported them back to the action.

Once in the mix, Peter proved himself competent. He was not a soldier or trained warrior, but he knew how to take care of himself. Plus, with all the famous and elite warriors present, Peter was able to move about unnoticed. He used his powers to freeze the villains in their spots, allowing the heroes to land massive blows. The momentum suddenly began shifting heavily in favor of the good guys. With Peter on their side, it seemed it would only be a matter of time before the heroes overwhelmed the villains and retrieved the star. Ligselzus looked to Edgar and London, who had fallen back and were using their powers to create a protective psionic field around the triplos. He commanded them to retreat from the battle, as the heroes were all but sure to break through their defenses.

Peter was the first to notice Edgar and London floating away with the star. He screamed and pointed toward them, causing the heroes to see what was happening. Delilah Fray commanded the Alpha Initiative and the Sacred Asylum to focus their efforts on stopping the Omega Twins. Without a second thought, Captain Noble and Devorah Chance blasted off to give chase, but suddenly something appeared in the sky that made all the heroes and all the villains totally freeze in their tracks. It was an insanely massive warcaft – in fact, it was the flagship of the Tromokratesian armada.

Nobody moved a muscle… except Peter Coughlin, who slowly walked forward as what looked like a giant cargo door slid open, revealing one of the greatest and most powerful warriors in all of the multiverse.

Emperor Kako had arrived!

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