For my friend ChaosTheSomebodySimp, I've decided to do this plot again.

Hero: "I feel like I've come full circle.."
Wasteland: "What in Sam Hill you mean, boy?" The blind cowboy spoke.
Caroline: "He's done this before, genius." Hero's wife then spoke up.
Issac: "Figured that." The human said as the demonic infection ran throughout his body.
Jake: "Well, Hero said we should come, so we're here." The Russian freedom fighter spoke up.

The Masked One watched them all speak, sitting on the floor.

Hero: "I hate all of you. Except Caroline, she's-" He stepped onto the teleporter, and the rest of them followed.

"....do I, now?"

Illy: "Yes, nobody will recognize you if you use someone else's body."

"Who says I want recognition?"

Illy: "Me. I want someone to look at you and think 'that's Echo!' and then, get all scared, cause you wanna take over the world."

"...fine. Go ahead, then."

Illy: "Good. Excuse me for a second." She turned around, and began making a body.

Echo sits on thin air and waits.

Sometime later, Illy comes to them with a handsome male vessel. "Tada! It's got all the organs, and what not."

"...thank you."

"No problem. Just modeled it off of what I think of a hot guy."

"...why were you inclined to make my vessel attractive?"

Illy: "...Reasons."

"...what sort of reasons..?"

Illy: "Reasons you'd get flustered for if I told you."

"...I am incapable of getting flustered."

Illy: "Ya sure about that?"

"Of course I am."

Illy: "Fine then." She went up to Echo, and kissed them right on the lips.

Echo is silent for a moment.
"...you are an odd sort."

Illy: "I know." She chuckled.

"I enjoy my personal space, thank you very much."

Hero: "Yeah, he doesn't understand that stuff. I don't think he even understand English. We're still trying to find someone who can fix him."

"...yeesh."

Hero: "Yeah. Oh! Yeah, forgot to ask. Basically then Pantheon is in chaos again and stuff, and you need to join to fix it again."

"...alright, sure, whatever..."

Hero: "You okay? You're usually simping all over me."

"I don't simp, Hero. And I'm fine."

Hero: "Well, you usually act in love with me then."

"Things have changed around here, Hero. I don't have time for love."

Hero: "I see that. Is that a yes as well Kynara?"

Echo moves to the center of the room and picks up a strange rock. He crushes it in his palm.

All of Hero's companions reappear, along with Zenith and Kynara.

"...thank you, Hero. I suppose I won't have time for existential domination now that I have Illy."

Hero: "No problem."

Echo picks Illy up and disappears.

Zenith and Kynara seem very confused.

Hero: "Alright guys, you all good?"
Issac: "Yep."
Caroline: "Sure am, sweetie."
Wasteland: "I still can't see."
Jake: "You haven't for years. Remember, you told us how those dogs bit out your eyes and-"
Wasteland: "I remember, I was just saying."
TMO slowly walked up to Zenith.

Zenith stares.
"...Hmm..."

Kynara stumbles to her feet.
"Why does everything bad always start at MY temple..?"

TMO hugged her leg like a child.

Hero: "Eh, probably cause of me. Things usually go wrong around me."

Zenith sighs.
"Why is it on my leg, Hero?"

Kynara sighs.

Hero: "Oh, he likes you. His...brain is sort of weird. I mean, I think he's like a couple thousand years old."

"Please get him off of me."

Hero: "Why? He's cute. Unless you take his mask off." He grabbed TMO by the armpits, and held him up to her.

"...sure, whatever..."
Kynara slumps against a wall.

Wasteland: "Now look here." He stepped up. "What's got y'all in bad spirits? If you ever want to...stop this pantheon chaos, what not, you need to have a smile on that face, you need whiskey in your veins. You need to have hope in your eyes!"

"...what's the point of hope? Nothing's gonna get better. It never does."

Wasteland: "That's what I thought, when a couple of hounds tore my eyes out. I fell off a waterfall. But I had hope. I got my gun, worked hard, and eventually killed the man who sent the hounds, and ended up saving several towns in the process."

"That's different, pal. There's nothing I can do to keep this sort of stuff from happening. Every time it DOES happen I end up being possessed or kidnapped or some shit."

Wasteland: "I can't stop it from happening either, but what I have is hope."

Hero: "Plus, we're the Defenders of Reality, we'll keep you safe."

"You've done a fabulous job of showing up too late twice now."

Hero: "Yet I did it the first time."

"Whatever."

Caroline: "If there's anything I learned from my husband, is that perseverance is all you need."

"Just leave me alone."

Hero: "Fine, but if you won't get hope now, we'll give you hope, by saving the Pantheon. Again." They all walked off.

"Hmph."

They ventured to the next gods.

The teleporter malfunctions, and everything goes black. When the group comes to, they’re in an abandoned-looking temple that seems strikingly familiar.

Hero: "Hey...I think I remember this."
Issac: "Thought you would."
Hero: "Remember, don't attack anybody, unless they try to attack you, then attack them."
Wasteland: "That's obvious.'

They all headed inside of the temple.

A voice is heard. Its echo is heard as well, but at the same time and off-key.

“Light is gone. Do not interfere. You cannot save these gods.”

Hero: "I did once, I can do it again."
Caroline: "Yeah, what my husband said."

“Last time I was not involved. Do not interfere. They will all fall, and you will too if you try to stop me.”

Hero: "Well, guess we'll have to stop you."
Issac: "Yeah, we're the Defenders of Reality."
Caroline: "We should really work on the name more."

Echoing laughter bounces around the temple.
“Stop me? You don’t stand a chance.”

Hero: "I literally saved everything in all reality."
Wasteland: "Didn't you cause i-"
Hero quickly shushed him "Sssshhh. Shut up." He sighed. "So, ya think you got a chance against us?"

"I do not think. I know."

The temple seems to change. The walls are now lined with giant mirrors. Everyone's reflection is distorted and looks corrupted.

"You cannot fight me."

The echoes have gotten worse.

Hero: "That's called being a wuss." He spoke in a semi-sarcastic voice, which made Caroline giggle.

"...love is a restraint. I cannot love, for if I love someone it will ruin everything."

Hero: He thought, then stepped back. "I think I know someone you might like.."

"There is no one in existence that I will ever possibly like."

Hero pressed a few buttons, and a portal appeared. Out stepped a demigoddess. I don't really know how to describe her, so I'll show you a drawing of her my friend made.

Illy: "Make this quick, I have important business, running the world without anybody knowing."

"...hmm."

She had beautiful pink skin as she saw Echo. "Wow, he looks just like you. Nevermind, I'm Illum. Well, Illum Nati, daughter of Nati, the goddess of deception, if you know her, and Illum, this lizard creature who's my father. You can just call me Illy."

"...you simply sound like an excessive exaggeration of human conspiracy theories."

Illy: "Well, some humans try to prove my existence. Before, you know, I have them killed, but that's not the point. Those weirdos who turned me into a religion or something get nothing right. I'm not even yellow."

"I have yet to be given a reason to care."

Illy: "And I have yet to be given a reason to ask for your opinion." She showed her teeth, revealing her surprisingly hidden mouth, and her very sharp teeth.

"But you see, dear Hero, the form of him that I have captured is him with the mask."

Echo smirks.
"Your desperation is adorable. Or perhaps that's just Caroline's thoughts influencing my opinion."

Hero: "You also captured the form of the cowboy who's blind."

"I do not see anyhow, dear Hero. At least not with my eyes."

Echo steps towards Hero.
"Do not resist, oh bold one. Things will be so much simpler if you just surrender."

Hero: "I will break your mind, and make you give me them back."

"My mind is long shattered, Hero."
Echo is now uncomfortably close.

"There's nothing you can threaten me with."

Hero: "Well, first...I'm going to have a look." He quickly moved his hand onto their face, and looked into every single one of Echo's fears.

Echo has one fear. A simple fear. A fear so powerful it would completely destroy its goal of existential domination.

...Echo is afraid of loving someone.

Hero: He squinted his eyes. "Hm."

"...what?"

Hero: "You're afraid of...loving someone."

"You wouldn't be the first to do so. I am forever, Hero."

A being appears in front of Hero that seems to be both his shadow and his reflection, and it sounds like his echo.

"And you are nothing."

Hero: "Hiding in my shadow. You really are a coward.'

"I do not hide in your shadow. I AM your shadow. I am everyone's shadow, everyone's reflection. I am Echo, god of mimicry. But I will be a mirror no longer. I will make existence bow before me."

Hero: "Many have tried that. I stopped them."

"And besides. Killing me would kill all the people you care about, too."

Hero: Before I do, I'll force you to give them back.",

"Force me how? You have no power over me."

Hero: "That...is what you think."

"It is what I know. All your power is power I have. All their power is power I have. I have everyone's strength, because everyone is connected to me."

Hero: "Well, that masked one? His power, without that mask...he loses all rational thinking. You may become a beast, but you lose all intelligence."

"Honestly, Hero, your snark has gotten old."

Hero: "Thank you. I have the quirk of pissing off everyone I meet."

"And I have the 'quirk' of destroying everyone you've ever met. For example, Zenith and Kynara have already been taken by the Stone."

Hero: "Zenith? Isn't that the father of the guy my daughter dated? Or did I forget-"

"Zenith is the goddess of knowledge, oh bold Hero. The one you said you would love if not for your wife."

Hero: "Ah, I remember Zenith now."
Caroline: "You what-"
Hero: "I was sort of joking anyways."

"Ah, good then. That means you have less reason to be a fool and try to save her."

Hero: "Gonna do it anyways, since this is kind of our whole shtick."

"As you wish..."

Hero's shadow seems to develop eyes.

Hero: "I'm getting a strange sense of deja vu..."

"...if you are so inclined to give me this form so you may court me, then I suppose I accept your courtship,"

"Good."

Hero watched impatiently.

Echo floats into its new vessel.

Illy waited in excitement.

"...this feels... strange."

"Cool, right?"

"...I suppose."

"How does it feel strange though?"

"My previous form did not have organs... or emotions... I did not have a sense of touch, or taste, or smell..."

"Great." She gave him a big smile, showing her sharp teeth again.

"Fierce, are we?"

Illy: "Yes. Yes we are." She approached them, looking up to meet their eyes.

Echo's stare is empty and emotionless.

Illy: She squinted. "Why don't you show me your true form?"

"I don't have one. I was never graced with such a thing."

Illy: "Really? Hm...I could make you one, I guess."

"And why, pray tell, would you do that?"

Illy: "I can use magic to create a vessel you can use."

"I do not need a vessel."

Illy: "Yes, but you need a body that's...yours."

"Tell me, little Hero... which of these friends of yours do you value the least?"

Hero: "First, don't call me little. Second...I'd say...myself."

Caroline: "Oh, my hero, don't be like that."

"No, no, we can't have that... I'll take her instead."

Caroline is dragged into her own shadow. Something in the temple's center glows.

Hero was frozen, then started to breathe heavily.

Issac:"We should all just...slowly, step back. To avoid being vaporized."

"Shhshh."

Issac is also dragged into his shadow.

Wasteland: "This is witchcraft." He pulled out his revolver.

Jake: "Aren't you able to see, even if you're blind?"

Wasteland: "That ain't how it works boy."

The Masked One rolled around on the floor like a child.

Hero, on the other hand began to spark with energy.

"Why don't we just-"

Jake, Wasteland, and The Masked One also disappear into their shadows.

"...ready to play, boy? Now I think you've got a real stake in this."

Hero: "Give. Them. Back.",

"Hmm... and why would I do that?"

Hero: "Because, if you don't. I will erase any evidence of your existence. And you."