When humanity is threatened only the super powered might of the Toronto Maple Leafs can be counted on to save the day. But can the Maple Leafs be counted on? Time will answer all questions. But not yet, not for a long while.

In a small town far to the West of Toronto there is a colourful lollipop shop with the delightful name of Get Suckered. Mitch Marner stands outside the store front staring at the sign on the door. It states clearly that the shop ought to be open but the lights are out and the door is locked. Taking a deep breath, Mitch allows his frustration to make itself known and then he breathes again and lets his frustration go. There are many reasons why the store might be closed, just as there are many ways to achieve a goal.

Casually, the hero strolls around the block taking in the sleepy town. In the twenty odd minutes it takes Mitch to complete his circuit he has seen no people and no cars aside from the parked ones. Whistling, Mitch spits out a copy then leans against the door of shop while his copy darts around to the back. Behind the lollipop shop Mitch finds the cleanest dumpster in the history of garbage. Jumping onto the dumpster, he then splits into two more Mitches. One Mitch stands on his shoulders while the second Mitch scrambles up the makeshift ladder to the roof. Once all three Mitches are up they coalesce into a singularity and Mitch creeps close to the buildings large skylight. He peers into deep darkness, leaning close to the glass. A shape seems to shift slightly like a shadow getting darker, then an eye blinks.

It takes Mitch a moment to register what he has seen. The eye was the size of a frying pan and blacker than the surrounding shadows of the pitch black lollipop shop, but shiny. Whatever the eye belongs to, it’s big and Mitch quickly decides that it’s up to no good. The hero smashes through the skylight and rips off three copies as he drops.

“Mitch, Get the lights!” Mitch shouts as he lands. “Mitch, unlock the door. And Mitch, you’re with me.” The Mitches split up and for a tense and quiet moment nothing exciting happens. Then everything happens at once.

Mitch finds the light switch a the same time that Mitch throws open the door. The shop is flooded with light revealing a giant centipede rearing up to strike at Mitch. Before any of the Mitches can react Mitch is plucked up by the huge bugs revolting pincer jaws. Mitch hammers his fists into the centipede’s hard armoured head to no effect. The beast whips its long body around and as it does Mitch is sliced in two, the pieces flying across the shop.

Each Mitch feels the pincers as they slice through his flesh and crush his bones apart with ease. Each Mitch feels the heat leave his body and his legs disappear. The feeling is gone as soon it begins, the same way it happens every time one of his copies dies, but he hasn’t gotten used to it. The Mitches pull out their knives and pile onto the monstrous bug stabbing it and slashing at its legs. One Mitch jumps on its back and pries up an exoskeletal plate, shoving his blade deep into the meaty thorax beneath. Mitch takes a centipede foot through his eye and his impaled corpse dangles from the monsters writhing body. Mitch gets thrown across the room and shatters three vertebrae on the counter while his artery is sliced open on the glass, he bleeds out before any Mitch can get him resorbed. But the Mitches keep splitting into more Mitches and soon there are sixteen of them surrounding the giant centipede, stabbing it long after it stops writhing.

Reverting to a singularity, Mitch takes a few minutes to look through the few undamaged shelves left in Get Suckered. He eventually settles on a green apple and cherry swirl and gets to work on a lollipop larger around than his head. He leaves the door to the shop open and strolls along the road licking his lolli. It’s a delicious candy but Mitch knows it is not what he was looking for.

Mitch is searching for a sign, and he cannot return to his beloved Toronto Maple Leafs until he finds it. So he walks on down the road further from the man he’s known and closer to the fate he’s always known was his due. No one can tell Mitch what form the sign will take. No one can say if it will be one sign or several. Mitch tries not to think about it too much, focusing instead on being mindful of the present. As long as getting signed isn’t as painful as getting bitten in half by a giant centipede Mitch should be okay.