When humanity is threatened only the super powered might of the Toronto Maple Leafs can be counted on to save the day. The Leafs have undergone a major overhaul this year. Of all the changes, none has been more impactful than the addition of a squadron based tactical deployment that head coach Mike Babcock and GM Kyle Dubas designed to keep the peace on the mean Toronto streets. Today we follow Otter squad: the centers

Only the grittiest of patrons grind their night away at Danby’s Bar n Grill in Munster on the Eastern edge of Ottawa. Matt Duchene is one of those patrons, though in the red haze of the early Ottawa morning you would be forgiven if you didn’t recognize the hockey star. Doesn’t help that he’s sitting at the bar with his head in his hands, a half full glass of brown liquor in front of him. Matt is trying to hide but he can’t hide from his old national teammate John Tavares.

John strolls into Danby’s like he owns the place and approaches his old teammate slowly.

“Two neat Jacks please.” John calls to the bartender. Matt looks up.

“Eugene says I’m supposed to fight you.” The Senator does not appear prepared to fight much more than a headache.

“And does Mr. Melnyk own you?” John asks. Matt doesn’t answer. The bartender brings the drinks. John pushes them both towards Matt. “Drink up buddy.” Matt takes the two glasses down quick as John signals for two more.

For a while the two friends sit in a comfortable silence, their backs to the blazing Ottawa skyline. John makes sure there is always a drink in front of Matt. Matt makes sure John spends almost a grand in liquor. At last John turns around and looks out at Ottawa. The city is burning uncontrollably and has been for weeks. Auston Matthews, Nazem Kadri and the Goat (Freddy Gauthier) are fighting the blaze along with the Toronto Maple Leaf robot army under the control of technopath Morgan Rielly. John’s ability to freeze anything around him would be immensely useful getting the blaze under control but he had to try and rally his old friend. Matt is a superhero in his own right, swift and sure in the face of any danger. In Colorado he had made the world a safer place, but something sinister is happening in Ottawa. The city burns and burns and hero’s are being sent out of town.

“I watched Flight of the Navigator yesterday.” Matt says as he turns around. “It’s a brilliant movie. I wonder why it hasn’t been remade yet? If ever you needed proof that Hollywood is clueless there it is. They remade Baywatch for crying out loud.”

“I didn’t mind Baywatch.” John laughs.

“It wasn’t bad,” Matt agree’s “I’m just saying that Flight of the Navigator is a really good movie. There’s excitement and emotion and a tiny little alien pet, it’s perfect. But do we get to see an updated version? No. And I just don’t understand why not. You could probably just keep the exact script, all you would need to change is the dates to make it current. Seriously, I don’t even have kids and I was crying when David was finally reunited with his family.”

“I haven’t seen it in a long time,” John admits. “But if it’s as perfect as you say maybe it’s a good thing no one has tried to remake it.”

“Yeah, you’re probably right.” Matt sighs and spins back toward the bar.

“So…” Reluctantly John mentions the elephant in the firelit room. “Are you going out to fight the fire tonight?”

“No.” Matt admits. “Eugene won’t let us fight the fire until the city pays for a new arena.”

“That’s not right.” John was angry before, now he’s seething. “Come on, come out with me. Let’s make a difference.”

“I would but…” Matt searches for the right words but settles for the wrong ones. “I don’t know.”

“That’s disappointing.” John says.

John reaches up to his ear and activates his Toronto Maple Leafs communicator. He signals to the bartender for two more drinks and throws a wad of bills onto the bar. Without looking John walks out of Danby’s.

“He won’t come.” John says.

He gazes out at the red glow of the city in flames. The beauty of the disaster is not lost on the thoughtful Leaf. For all Matt’s power he seems helpless in the face of what’s happening in Ottawa.

“Are you surprised?” A voice says from behind John.

“No sensei.” John doesn’t need to turn to know that Hayley Wickenheiser is behind him.

“I’ve recalled Otter squad.” Hayley says. “There’s no fighting this fire, even if we put it out it will just get started again. For the time being we can only watch as Ottawa burns.”

Continue reading “Ether Squad” →

When humanity is threatened only the super powered might of the Toronto Maple Leafs can be counted on to save the day. The Leafs have undergone a major overhaul this year. Of all the changes, none has been more impactful than the addition of a squadron based tactical deployment that head coach Mike Babcock and GM Kyle Dubas designed to keep the peace on the mean Toronto streets. Today we follow Horse squadron: wingers.

Zach Hyman doesn’t feel like a super hero, but he acts like one. In fact his squad mates regard him as one of the bravest of all the Toronto Maple Leafs. Because unique amongst all of Horse squad, Zach does not have super powers. Instead he is forced to defend himself against the alien robots attacking Yorkedale Mall with nothing more than his wits and his battle axe. Wits being the sharper of the two. Given his mundane humanity the Leaf is doing very well. This latest robot has lost one arm and has several large gashes in its hollow torso.

“Any time now guys.” Zach says into his communicator.

“Yiipppeeeee!!!!” Mitch Marners swarm the robot from all sides and begin pummeling it with their bare hands. Mitch’s ability to duplicate himself makes the robots devastating counter attacks redundant. For every Mitch killed, two more replace him. Soon the robot is overwhelmed and Zach easily deactivates the murderous CPU housed in its head by smashing it to pieces. The Mitches stand up and revert to a smiling singularity.

“That was fun.” Mitch says. “Come on, we gotta get to the roof.”

The fact that he just experienced over a dozen deaths doesn’t seem to phase the Leaf. As always Zach is in awe of his team mate. They reach the roof and see Patrick Marleau brutalizing another alien robot. He is in full werewolf mode so the combat is not very fair, which the shattered remnants of several other robots makes plain.

In the sky The alien mothership sits, larger than the city. It is billowing smoke from several small puncture wounds. These were obviously caused by Wily Nylander who flies his Toronto Maple Leaf rocket horse against what remains of the alien armada. He hasn’t joined his team on the ice, but they couldn’t keep him from the real action. Laughing he swoops through the enemy, who cannot seem to locate the Leaf and so their return fire is more of a threat to themselves than to Wily. Having the power to mesmerize his enemies makes Wily a hard target, being a Scandanavian godling makes him unstoppable.

Suddenly the voice of Mike Babcock, rings through the Toronto Maple Leafs communications array.

“Horse squad, good job.” Mike says. “Now pull back, we’re going to take out the mothership.”

Patrick reverts to man shape and joins Zach and Mitch. Wily lands his horse on the roof beside them. Zach lets out a shrill whistle and three more rocket horses gallop swiftly from across the horizon. The Leafs are soon rocketing away from the shadow of the mall sized spacecraft in the sky.

“Cover your eye’s boys.” Mike says. “Here comes Wick!”

Hayley Wickeheiser flies fast, but throws the squad a little wave as she passes. She slams into the mothership with a single punch. The force of the blow causes the ships gravitational distortion engine to rupture and the resulting implosion turns the monstrous ship into a tiny dust mote.

Horse squad approach Haley, cheering as she lands softly back on the ground. She doesn’t care to notice their jubilation as she sadly walks back to Toronto Maple Leaf tower.

“What’s the matter sensei?” Zach asks.

“I never get to punch things twice.” Haley responds with a sad smile.

When humanity is threatened only the super powered might of the Toronto Maple Leafs can be counted on to save the day. The Leafs have undergone a major overhaul this year. Of all the changes, none has been more impactful than the addition of a squadron based tactical deployment that head coach Mike Babcock and GM Kyle Dubas designed to keep the peace on the mean Toronto streets. Today we follow Oyster Squadron: wingers

Tyler Ennis can’t help but gaze in wonder at the technological marvels hidden deep beneath Toronto Maple Leaf tower. Flying robots and energy manipulators and every kind of creature imaginable mingled together with a research staff larger than the population of Etobikoe. Tyler’s guide chuckles beside him.

“Don’t worry.” Josh Leivo says. “It never gets old.”

Tyler had been surprised that it was Josh who was sent to show him around. They were competing for the same roster spot. He had been even more surprised when he learned that Josh had requested the task.

“I’m part of the team” Josh had said. “I want you to feel welcome so you can get to work helping us win.”

Tyler was humbled by the Leafs attitude. He knew the Toronto Maple Leafs was a special sort of team, he was starting to understand how special. They walked through a curtain of rippling light and into a nearly silent room. The floor was soft, squishy underfoot. Of walls, Tyler could see no sign.

“Transdimensional gate.” Josh answered Tyler’s question before his brain could form the words. “This is where we spar. Come meet the rest of the squad.”

A little way ahead Tyler could see small shapes flailing about impossibly fast. As they approached he could see that three Leafs were locked in an intense combat. Closer and closer they came, Tyler mesmerized by the grace and deadly skill on display. Josh holds out an arm to stop him and points to a thick red line.

“If you cross that line you’re fair game.” Josh says.

Tyler nods in wordless thanks, glad he does not have to test himself against the ferocious skill on display. Not only are the Leafs using real blades, but they are also using their super powers. Tyler can only watched amazed.

Andreas Johnsson has long blades where his hands would normally be. He stabs and slashes furiously at his opponents. Flailing around wildly, Tyler might have said out of control, except the young Leaf always defends every attack and would have killed lesser opponents many times over. Connor Brown swings his spear in wide sweeping arcs. His face wears a look of supreme calm which belies the terrible effort required to create the web of steel that protects him from his opponents. Connor absorbs kinetic energy and uses it to fuel his strength and speed, knowing this his opponents aren’t trying very hard to hit him. Kasperi Kapenen uses his super speed to elude and harass his opponents. His short sword flicks, viper quick, but every time it is blocked or dodged. He zips around Andreas, then zooms behind Connor faster than eyes can follow. The Leafs spar with reckless and infectious enthusiasm. Josh can’t help himself.

“You’re cool right?” He asks Tyler.

Tyler nods, slightly jealous of the easy way that Josh slides in with his teammates. Taking a running leap Josh slams his fists into the ground scattering the rest. They recover instantly, attacking their unarmed foe with blade and spear. Josh is impervious to physical harm. He lashes out with foot and fist, and the sparring continues but Josh has thrown a new wrinkle into the fight. He wades into attacks that the others would avoid. Inevitably the other three start to gang up on him.

“Hardly seems fair does it?” A voice says from behind Tyler.

Startled, he turns and sees Hayley Wickenheiser standing there. Her approach had been silent. She stares hard at Tyler, eyebrow raised, expecting an answer to her question.

“No sensei.” Tyler says. “Hardly fair at all.”

“So join them.” Hayley says. It is not a suggestion.

Tyler hesitates for less then an instant before running into the fray, shrinking down to the size of a dime. Suddenly Kasperi trips head over heels and Connor is diverted from Josh to swing at the air.

From outside the red circle Hayley watches with a grin.

“Go Leafs.” She says. “Go.”

When humanity is threatened only the super powered might of the Toronto Maple Leafs can be counted on to save the day. The Leafs have undergone a major overhaul this year. Of all the changes, none has been more impactful than the addition of a squadron based tactical deployment that head coach Mike Babcock and GM Kyle Dubas designed to keep the peace on the mean Toronto streets. Today we follow Damasque squadron: the defense

On the top floor of Toronto Maple Leafs tower Mike Babcock watches a bank of  computer monitors. The Toronto Maple Leafs Head Coach wears his frustration openly as he watches. His city is under siege. A swarm of rats pours from the lake shore spreading East, North, and West in unceasing numbers. The Leafs Damasque squad is on the scene working containment. The screens show the battle from the many different viewpoints of a flock of aerial drones, controlled by Kyle Dubas.

The Toronto Maple Leafs GM is also frustrated by the assault on his city, though he shows nothing but calm concentration as he skillfully manipulates over a dozen drones to keep a comprehensive overview of the expanding disaster.

Morgan Rielly and Ron Hainsey have secured the Hockey Hall of Fame. Ron is the only Leafs defenceman who does not have super powers. He compensates for this lack with an overabundance of guns and explosives and artillery (including an actual antique cannon that he’d mounted on a Toronto Maple Leaf mag-lift hover platform). The rate of fire pouring out from Ron’s general direction is appalling. Morgan only has one gun which he uses well. Any of the rats that actually survive Rons barrage are cut down, but covering his partners flanks is the least that Morgan is doing. Morgan is a technopath, so while he’s focused on what’s in front of him what he’s really doing is wielding the Toronto Maple Leafs army of robots, hundreds of them, desperately working to stem the verminous tide. Morgan and Ron are keeping the North of the city from being overrun.

On Bathurst Street, under the expressway, Jake Gardiner and Nikita Zaitsev are making it look easy. Nikita is a Cyborg, plain and simple. He strolls through the rats even as they cover him, impervious to the teeth and claws. To small to weigh him down there is little the rats can do but get brushed off. With each sweep of his arms he kills dozens of the critters but he seems in little rush to do so The slow casual pace is necessary due to the more complicated nature of Jake’s power. Jake can turn himself into either one giant snake or thousands of smaller ones. He is currently thousands of bodies and fangs shredding through the rodents, feeling the street under his scales and the fur on his tongue. A few hundred pairs of eyes notice Nikita pointing left. Jake slithers to the right. A laser lances out from Nikita’s fingertip cutting thousands of rats in half in a second. The West flank is secure.

Connor Carrick and Travis Dermott are running rampant on Cherry street. Travis has grown to gigantic size and stomps happily through the swarm, sending hundreds of rats into the lake with a single kick and flattening hundreds more with a slap on the ground. Following in his wake Connor relishes the opportunity to unleash his full powers. A living flame thrower he struts, grinning as he pours fiery death out of his hands. With so few chances to really cut loose Connor can’t help but appreciate whoever sent these supernatural rodents into the city. Even though they’re having fun, Connor and Travis have the East flank under control.

Mike and Kyle can’t help but enjoy the show their Leafs are putting on. But the rats seem limitless. No matter how perfect the defense some of the horrible critters are starting to slip through. Mike chews his lip furiously, then suddenly stops.

“I see the pattern” Mike says. “There, the docks at Queens Quay, that’s where they are coming from.”

“I’ll get closer.” Kyle says, and one of the drones dips toward the docks. After a few passes there is no doubt that the docks are the epicenter of the disaster.

“We need to get closer.” Mike says. “I can’t tell what’s underneath them.”

“I know.” Kyle says. “Who do you want to send in?”

“I’ll go.” A voice says behind them.

The two men turn and see Hayley Wickenheiser watching the monitors.  

“It might be fun.” She says with an ironic grin before flying away.

Mike and Kyle watch the monitors as Hayley lands with an impact that meteors would envy. Instantly the swarm drops dead. On the monitor they see Hayley slowly weaving her way through the swarm, nudging rats out of her path with her toe.

“Any sign of where they came from?” Mike asks.

“No.” Hayley answers.

“You okay?” Kyle asks.

“Sure.” She says, then reaches up to her ear and deactivates her Toronto Maple Leafs communicator.

“Well, fun’s over boys.” Mike says to Damasque squad. “Get to work cleaning up all those rats.”

The squad gets the job done, and well.

When humanity is threatened only the super powered might of the Toronto Maple Leafs can be counted on to save the day. The  Leafs have undergone a major overhaul this year. Probably the most significant change is the squadron based tactics that head coach Mike Babcock and GM Kyle Dubas have decided to deploy on the mean Toronto streets. Today we follow Otter Squadron: the centers.

John Tavares attacks from the West, Auston Matthews from the East. Nazem Kadri attacks from everywhere there are shadows. Freddy “The Goat” Gauthier waits in reserve in case the rest of Otter squad needs any help. He is shopping for hats. There is zero chance that the rest of the squad will call for backup. They never do.

They are fighting off a small army of insectoid-alien-but from deep within the earth-monsters which erupted from the subway tunnels at Yonge and Eglington. Auston fights with pure bright light infusing his every movement. He wields a short sword, slicing through his foes with a terrifying effect. His strength and speed are astonishing. Suddenly two of the beasts surprise him and try to grapple him to the ground. A blinding flash explodes from the young Leaf and all the monsters within fifteen feet of him are nothing but ash. The monsters flee the Leaf.

John walks casually through the monsters, utterly destroying any that come within reach. He emits a zone of cold so deeply chilling that any monster that gets near is completely frozen solid. He idly swings a quarterstaff tipped with iron in wide sweeping arcs, leaving a trail of thawing shattered carapace behind him. The monsters flee the Leaf.

The dark of the subway tunnels creates endless opportunities for Nazem. His ability to pass in between the shadows almost makes the fight too easy. He watches his teammates battling and picks off any of the monsters that make for the surface with his twin Toronto Maple Leaf fully automatic Desert Eagle 4.0’s. A pile of monster corpses covers the platform near the escalators. The monsters have nowhere to run, They flee the darkness.

A stream of hideous monstrosities flows back down through the tunnels from whence it came. Auston and John meet at the tunnel openings. They stare at each other, two apex predators eying the same shade wondering if it’s worth fighting over. They have spared before. Auston’s light counters John’s cold, John is strong and fast, Auston fast and strong. There has not been a winner yet.

Before their contest can ensue Naz steps out of the shadows and stands between them.

“Guys, let’s see what’s down that hole yeah?” Naz’ broad smile is infectious.

He looks at the two and they both smile back and agree. As they take a step down into the tunnels the shadows begins to take human shape. Hayley Wickenheiser walks calmly up from the depths. Her hair gleams golden in the glow of Auston’s light, her Toronto Maple Leafs tracksuit is immaculate, except that her right fist is black with monster blood. She walks as one burdened by some deep sadness but forces a smile as she sees Otter squad.

“Good work guys.” She says, walking past the squad without a second glance. “They won’t be coming back. I’d like you to seal those holes please.”

“Yes, sensei.” The three respond in unison.

The battle is fierce and it is over. For all their super powered might the Toronto Maple Leafs could not find the strength to push passed the grotesque guardians of Dracula’s Castlevania. The gates that were shattered open slam back shut. Castlevania retreats from the mortal plane for another hundred years.

The Leafs were almost a threat to the undead lord of terror. Almost.

Go Leafs Go

The Toronto Maple Leafs are still alive despite everything Dracula has thrown at them. Demons have been conjured and slain. The Leafs are stronger now, confident they can handle whatever is ahead. They are also keenly aware that things are only getting started. The longer they stay alive the more deadly Dracula’s Castlevania becomes.

The defense corps has just been ambushed by a bone demon, a giant conglomeration of millions of skeletal animals with a serious hatred for flesh. The defense is holding, and the forwards are racing back to help, but things are not looking good.

Travis Dermott and Roman Polak are both engulfed in the demons left leg. They are fighting savagely but the forests surrounding Dracula’s castle are old and the bones beneath them are nearly endless. Jake Gardiner and Nikita Zaitsev are trying to scale the demons arm to attack it’s head but but are finding the task easier said than done. Nikita is a Soviet era cyborg and even his nuclear powered strength cannot find purchase in the seething mass of bones and claws. Jake has been forced to change from a giant snake into thousands of little snakes and still the tiny skeletons of the bone demon are finding ways past his scales into the meat underneath. Ron Hainsey and Morgan Rielly have fired nearly half of their Toronto Maple Leaf siege ordnance into the demon to little effect.

“This is fun but we’re running out of ammo!” Ron yells at Morgan over the rocket fire.

“It’s okay.” Morgan smiles and points over his shoulder.

Auston Matthews leads the Leafs out through the broken gate. The young phenom shoots a devastating blast of energy out of his body which blows a hole in the bone demon. The hole closes quickly but the demon takes notice of the new arrivals.

“Take this bitch down!” Auston yells and the Leafs open fire.

Most of the super powered Leafs prefer close combat and so are armed with swords, spears, hammers, axes, and various other melee weapons. Regardless of their preferences each member of the team also has a custom fit Toronto Maple Leafs assault rifle. A wall of bullets slams into the bone demon and finally the beast begins to look hurt.

Nazem Kadri and Wily Nylander are the only Leafs who do not join in the barrage. Naz leads Wily through the shadow realm to emerge under the demons nose.

“Do your thing!” Naz yells. “I’m going for Jake and Zait’s!” Without waiting for a response Naz slips back into a shadow and Wily is alone. The young Leaf climbs up to settle himself directly between the demons eyes and stretches out with his powers. Wily has amazing speed and strength but his true talent is his ability create a haze of peace and friendship in the minds of his enemies. He’s never tried against anything so big before or anything so angry.

Back on the ground Naz steps out of the shadows behind Auston. Nikita steps out behind him and immediately joins his comrades in the firing line. Thousands of little snakes merge into one giant snake which then becomes Jake. He is bleeding from hundreds of tiny cuts but he shakes off his pain and opens fire as well. Naz puts his hand on Auston’s shoulder.

“He’s up there. He’s on his own.” Naz says.

“No he isn’t.” Auston answers. His body glows bright and a blast of pure energy tears into the demons chest. As the hole fills in the demon shrinks slights.

“Pour it on Leafs! Auston yells. The demon lashes out and Leafs dive for cover. It raises a fist for another swing but hesitates. The demon shakes his head and sways drunkenly.

“Hold your fire!” The Leafs stop shooting at Auston’s command.

Bones begin to fall off the demon. Slowly at first, then faster and faster until the towering monster crumbles. Where certain death had been rampaging is now only a mound of bones, all still.

“Wily!” Mitch Marner races toward the mound separating into multiple Mitches with each stride. Over fifty Mitches dive into the bone mound and the rest of the Leafs wait, holding their breath. A single Mitch soon emerges pulling another Mitch behind him. Each Mitch pulls out another Mitch before veering into the first Mitch until eventually the last Mitch in the chain becomes the only Mitch leading an exhausted Wily behind him.

“Go Leafs! Go!” Wily yells.

“Go Leafs! Go!” The Leafs answer, proud of their teammate.

“Great job guy, really.” Curtis McElhinney says. The back up goaltender is a powerful sorcerer who never panics. “Now lets do it again.” Curtis points back towards Castlevania where once again a great undead dire bear guards the shattered gate. An army of zombies, skeletons, and lesser deamons pours out from behind the beast which roars in stubborn defiance of it’s certain demise.

Once again the Leafs charge into battle.

Go Leafs Go.

The Toronto Maple Leafs assault further into Dracula’s Castlevania. After their initial rush through the broken gate the Leafs separated to strike from every angle against Dracula’s strength.

Auston Matthews, Zach Hyman, and Connor Brown make a straight push directly at the main tower. The resistance is fierce. A walking siege engine, Auston blasts whole columns of enemy into powder. Connor and Zach dive into the gap wreaking their own brand of devastation. Connor gets stronger every time he gets hit but his incredible spear skill keeps that from happening often. As one of the few non-super Leafs Zach is still a terror with his battle ax. The trio scatter an army of skeletons and reach the tower steps.

Suddenly flames erupt beneath the Leafs feet. A towering demon shimmers onto the material plane and smashes Auston beneath a fiery fist. The demons arm is obliterated by Auston’s energy blast. As it roars in pain Zach and Connor attack the demons legs, dropping it to its knees. Auston sends another blast into the demons face. The fiend opens its toothy maw, readying a blast of it’s own, when suddenly ice begins to form on its snout. The ice spreads quickly over the demons body, freezing it solid before it can even scream.

“Don’t worry.” Freddy Andersen says from behind his teammates “I got your back.” The goalie strolls past the demon, punching it, on his way up the tower stairs. As Auston, Zach and Connor follow, the ice shatters, leaving the demon in tiny insignificant pieces.

****************

Mitch Marner, Patrick Marleau, and Tomas Plekanec are attacking the west wing of the castle, through the grand ballroom. Mitch makes dozens of copies of himself, seeming to be everywhere at once. Patrick is once again in control of his werewolf side making him even more dangerous, if slightly less terrifying. Tomas, finally comfortable with his new teammates, uses his ability to warp time around himself to always stay one step ahead of his enemies. The trio make sort work of the zombies packed into the ballroom. In the silence that follows Mitch sneezes loudly. Patrick and Tomas glare at Mitch who just shrugs. Before the young Leaf can make a smart comment the air around them explodes with hurricane force.

A wind demon swirls above the Leafs cackling with malicious glee. Tomas and Patrick are thrown into the walls, Mitch splits into three copies of himself and the demon only manages to catch one. The Mitches split into more Mitches and the demon lashes out in vain. For every Mitch it catches another escapes, soon the demon loses track of its captives and loosens its grip on Patrick. The wolf takes over and Patrick leaps onto the demon biting and clawing at its face and throat. The demon loses its grip entirely and Tomas and the multiple Mitches break free. Tomas spears the demon in the belly and pulls it down out of the air. The Mitches hack at it with their long knives and Patrick rips into its putrid demonic flesh. The wind whipping through the ballroom slowly dies down. Mitch reverts to a singular Mitch and Patrick pushes the wolf back down, doing his best to ignore the horrid taste trickling down his throat.

****************

The east wing of Castlevania is quiet. Kasperi Kapanen is desperate for some action while his veteran teammates, Tyler Bozak and James van Riemsdyk, are more than happy to enjoy the calm while it lasts. The Leafs make their way through a dreary corridor and into an atrium. The plants are all dead and decayed, rot is the only thing growing in Dracula’s garden. The stench of death is thick, pushing back against the Leafs as they make their way further through the garden.

There is a wet groan behind Kasperi and he turns just in time to avoid the clumsy attack of a rotten demon slug. More slugs manifest into existence surrounding the Leafs who spring into action. James smashes the closest slug into paste with his warhammer and uses his momentum to begin spinning. Faster and faster he spins until he is a tornado of destruction, smashing the demons as quickly as they arrive. Tyler turns himself into liquid mercury, he jumps at a slug and flows into a lance to skewer it. Then another and another and soon there is a trail of demon corpses marking his path. Slightly amazed but not to be outdone Kasperi draws his sword and races into the fray. His super speed makes it easy for Kasperi to cut down the slow moving demons and soon the Leafs are ankle deep in greasy grimy demon guts.

****************

In the deepest dungeon of Castlevania Wily Nylander and Andreas Johnsson sneak through the blackness. They are the only Leafs who are not attacking Dracula’s forces directly, they are on a different mission. They approach a cell bathed in the blinding brilliance of a bright demon. Nazem Kadri is chained to the floor of the cell. As a shadow walker Naz is exceptionally difficult to keep contained but with his powers nullified he has been trapped for days, unable to help his team. Now it is all he can do to hide his excitement as his teammates sneak into his cell.

Andreas turns his left hand into a sword and slices open the cell door. Wily casts a glamour over the demon who shakes it head, confused and delighted to meet new friends. The blinding light flickers, for a split second the cell is pitch black, Naz is gone. The demon roars its anger at the lose of its charge. It lashes out at Wily who easily blocks the demons swipe and punches back three times quickly hitting the demon in the face. The demon staggers back and Andreas slides in low and slices off its legs at the knee. Naz steps out of Wily’s shadow fully armed and armoured. The Leaf unloads two 9mm pistols into his tormentor and the light is extinguished.

****************

The Toronto Maple Leaf Defense Corps has the dubious honour of holding the gate against Dracula’s dread host and maintaining the Leafs exit strategy. Dracula has sent an undead swarm to cleanse his kingdom of intruders, fell bats, skeletal wolves and bears, and all manner of rotted rodents pour out of the wilderness. Apparently the idea is to overwhelm the Leafs with vast numbers.

Ron Hainsey giggles as he fires an endless stream of explosives into the horde with his Toronto Maple Leaf fully automatic rocket powered grenade launcher. Even without super powers Ron is one of the scariest Leafs. Nikita Zaitsev uses his cyborg strength and invulnerability to smash through the endless host. Beside him Jake Gardiner has transformed into a giant snake and each lash of his massive body sends skeletal beasts flying. Roman Polak has the power to speak to any form of plant life. This in no way helps him in battle which is why he relies on his massive strength and his eight foot long greatsword which he calls Samantha. Travis Dermott has a simple power, he grows big and stomps or smashes everything. The defense hold strong against the attack even though one of their number hasn’t fired a single shot from his Toronto Maple Leaf assault rifle.

Morgan Rielly is a technopath, which means he can telepathically link to any technological system he comes in contact with. Dracula uses magic which makes his castle immune to Morgans powers but he can still follow his team through their armour. He knows when Freddy freezes the fire demon. He knows when multiple Mitches trip up the air demon. Morgan feels a pattern forming as Kasperi wades through demon guts. He understands the danger as Naz comes back online. As the ground beneath his feet begins to shake Morgan wonders if they’ve cut it too close then he pushes all thoughts of fear from his mind.

“Leafs!” Morgans speaks to the whole team through the communications array built into his armour. “Fall back to our position, repeat fall back.”

The forward attack teams all send in their acceptance of the order. Morgan can feel the unspoken reluctance in each reply.

“Holy Fuck!” Ron Hainsey shouts.

Morgan turns and sees the undead beasts combine to form a massive bone demon, big enough to tower over Travis. Ron fires a rocket into it and the demon laughs as it absorbs the explosion. The demon smashes down a fist onto the defense corps and Morgan is suddenly fighting for his life in a sea of scratching and biting. The sea recedes as the demon raises its fist. Morgan can see Nikita and Jake racing up the demons arm.

“Move fast.” Morgan says to the Leafs. “There are demons left to slay.”

Every man on the team knows that the challenges will only get harder the longer they survive. Total defeat lingers behind every mistake, no matter how slight, but glory waits ahead for the faithful, for the strong.

Go Leafs Go

No more games to play, only wars to win. This is the only time there has ever been and if our beloved Toronto Maple Leafs do not seize this moment then it will disappear forever. Dracula’s castle only appears in the living world every hundred years and the year is almost over. The last few months had blurred into something of a routine for the Toronto Maple Leafs but suddenly and predictably the intensity of the undead assault on Toronto increased with springs bitterly cold arrival. The Maple Leafs thought they were prepared, they were not.

For the first time Dracula unleashed the full power of his nightmare host. In the initial chaos Nazem Kadri had been lost, his fate uncertain. The team had been sent reeling back to Toronto Maple Leaf Tower. Things were looking bleak but the tide had started to turn. Patrick Marleau had a hidden power of his own to unleash. As a werewolf he had torn through Dracula’s skeletal horde, indeed even the most ancient of terrors had run from Partick once his Lycan form had taken over. Slowly the Leafs won back the city streets, the undead now wait for them. Destiny is calling.

The Maple Leafs stand arrayed for battle before the silent gates of Dracula’s Castlevania. Even the moon is tense, it is a pale and an eerie light that shines down on the team. Auston Matthews and Morgan Rielly stand a few paces ahead of the group. After seventy-five seconds pass without a slobbering horde of zombies attacking Auston looks back at his team and shrugs.

“I guess we could try knocking?” Auston suggests.

“I’ll knock.” Ron Hainsey says.

The veteran defenseman steps forward with a Toronto Maple Leaf fully automatic rocket powered grenade launcher on his shoulder. As one of only two non super-powered Maple Leafs Ron relies on his love of gunpowder to get him through most situations. With no better plan, Morgan and Auston step aside and let him do his thing. Ron unloads a full magazine (a dozen rocket powered grenades) at the castle gate. The dust clears revealing shattered remnants.

Before the Leafs can cheer a tremendous roar pummels the night and an enormous dire bear steps over the wreckage. The monster doesn’t hesitate but charges directly at the Leafs.

“Mine!” Shouts Freddy Andersen. “Mine, mine, mine.” The goalie is grinning wildly as he runs towards the ursine behemoth. When they are thirty feet apart Freddy starts to weave his fingers. At twenty feet  magic is spilling out of Freddy and reaching out for the bear. At ten feet Freddy strolls casually towards the completely ensnared monster and with a snap of his fingers the beast is torn to shreds. The way is clear before the Leafs.

Auston turns towards his team. “Alright boys, It’s time to get serious.”

“It’s way past that time.” Mitch Marner whispers but every Leaf hears him. Ever Leaf nods. With grim purpose and unshakable faith they move torward their fate. It will only get harder with every step, which only makes the glory sweeter.

Go Leafs Go. Go Leafs Go. Go Leafs Go.