The "Ultimate DC Universe" RPG: Season 2.0

[Eddie Brock]

I pull up to Wayne Manor in my car. The license plates read: ???. I make my way past the front gate to the house. When I get to the front door, I peer through a nearby window.

I don't see Bruce, but I see...a butler? This could work.

I pull out the cannister from my pocket and throw it through the window. Amidst the chaos, I let myself in.

"Who are you?" the butler asks in a thick English accent.

"I ask the questions here," I dictate. The canister erupts and the room starts to fill with gas. "Tell me, what is deceptively not funny...despite its name? Laughing gas."

He tries to hold his breath, but it's too late. The gas is beginning to have an effect.

As he begins to stumble, I ask, "One more question...how do I look?"

Once he's out, I drag his body to the window. I chuck him out onto the lawn. A place this swanky is bound to have silent alarms. I better get out quickly.

Before I leave, I pull out a note. It's the focal point of my plan. I will prove that Bruce Wayne is not so smart. How? I will stump him with a simple conundrum.

I can involve:
CARS
CARDS
or a CAPTAIN.

What am I?

???

I smile as I place the note down. Your move, Bruce Wayne.
​

 

[Green Lantern]

I smile as I dig back into my chicken chow main.

Five Minutes Later

Barry and I both sit back after literally cleaning out the whole resturant.

"That hit the spot, cuz. Well, we should be heading on out...."

I shift my eyes around and smile at Barry. I clear my throat and do some speed-taling.

"I frgt my mny, tke care of it. K? thnxz, bi!"

I dissapear out of the resturant while all eyes fall on Barry.

That little... bastard.

Barry leaves the bill and a generous tip on the table, and runs after the kid.

"Think I can't keep up with you kiddo?"

Barry smiles under his mask as Bart's eyes go wide.

"That dinner... and GENEROUS tip is coming out of your allowance."

 

[Byrd Man]

That little... bastard.

Barry leaves the bill and a generous tip on the table, and runs after the kid.

"Think I can't keep up with you kiddo?"

Barry smiles under his mask as Bart's eyes go wide.

"That dinner... and GENEROUS tip is coming out of your allowance."

Barry and I both come to a stop somewhere in Siberia. I shiver a bit as I look at him curiously.

"Allowance? Sweet, I hope it's as big as the one I had back home...Yep, it was hard, but I found a way to live on six hundred dollars a month."

 

[Eddie Brock]

"Look, McCaffery, I admire your imagination. . ."

He grabs me by my shoulders. "I'm not making this up!"

"Of course not," I respond sardonically. "Why would you be?"

"You have a lot of decisions to make, Orin. I pray that Atlantis will not fall because you have ran from your destiny," he states.

I shake my head. "Even if all this is true. . .and I can't believe I'm even considering the possibility. . .I'm too young to be King! I have a life to lead!"

"And what life is that exactly? What's going on with you that's more important?"

"I. . .I'm trying to figure things out for myself right now. I want to travel the world. . .maybe help people along the way," I confess. Truth be told, I don't have a plan. I just want to explore the world around me - and more specifically, the oceans.

"Your Atlantean physiology gives you great abilities, Orin," McCaffery states. "You already know about them. I hope that you are going to put them to good use."

I ponder on his words. It's true...I can do things that other people dream of. Maybe I should be helping the world. It certainly seems like no one else is worried about our lakes and oceans...

"I've got to figure myself out before I can face this."
​

 

[trustyside-kick]

OOC: Previously...

Spoiler

IC:

Aye. And I warn you...the consequences can be grave should you be deemed unworthy.

If one such as I am unworthy, than the Great Flame shall except none other. I will wash and bathe in its glory, and it will be mine and mine alone.

And you so strongly believe yourself to be worthy? You are not the measure, my fellow telepath. If you believe yourself to be so, then surely you will be engulfed by the Great Flame, and burn.

Despero chuckles in his cell, even though the telepath whom he has been speaking with cannot hear. A smile comes over his face, and he closes his eyes for a brief moment as he ponders for a moment. He opens his eyes and then responds back to the telepath.

You speak of it as if you are its crafter. How did you stumble upon this information?

Tales that travel faster than any shooting star all over the galaxy. The myths and versions of those same myths are endless. There have been many who have sought out its raw and celestial power. Each and every one has perished attempting to do so. It is a fool's errand. Not even one who was crafted to perfection could know himself to be competent of such an enigma until he was put its test. But of course, some say it is not of this plane of existence. Some argue it is not real.

You seem to be at war with yourself with your beliefs about it being legend or myth. You may think yourself as wise, but I see you now for being no wiser than the damned Guardians. I will continue to seek out the Great Flame, and I shall finally become whole. All the galaxies shall know my name.

Heh, there is really no way of talking you out of it, is there? Many have paid the ultimate price, and many have wandered endlessly until the end of their days, and you still believe yourself to be up to the task. And what is this name? Knowing ahead of time will allow me time to practice chanting your name like a sheep lost amongst the rest of the herd.

You mock me, my newfound friend...but I bare no weakness nor fear. The Great Flame has been around for eons...but that is only because it has been waiting for all those eons for one such as myself to discover it.

Despero expects a quick response, but he receives none. The other telepath doesn't continue to mock him, but he doesn't try to talk him out of it either. Impatiently Despero waits.

What have you to say to that?

Your adventure seems to be a big one, my fellow telepath. You will risk anything and everything, and you are very ambitious. If you really fear nothing as you say you do, than perhaps you could be deemed worthy to at least find the Flame. But that is not your problem, is it? The real problem is escaping this prison cell, and then on top of that, the more real problem is fleeing a planet full of stationed Green Lanterns fast enough to truly taste free air and keep it that way. Do you now see? Your plan is flawed.

You speak it as if impossible, but someday even the Guardians of the Universe and their precious planet of Oa will bow down to Despero.

With those words, Despero cuts off the telepathic link, wishing to discuss the matter no longer. Time he could've used to further construct his plans of escape were wasted hearing information he had already known. And specifically, certain information of Despero's must not go wasted. Is is true that the mighty Ganthlet was able to block out Despero's mind from his own, but that was only after Despero caught a glimpse of what was inside. And what he found inside, only makes his desires 100 fold more potent. He now knows where to find the Great Flame. Of course he has considered the challenges of escaping Oa. But it must be done.

IC:

​

Despero lies in his cell, doing nothing for there is nothing exactly to do. For a few days it has been the same thing. Unlike the other prisoners, he is not allowed to briefly taste fresh air or take a stroll around Oa for a short time while being heavily watched. He is in solitary confinement, but as he discovered earlier, not entirely alone.

To help pass the time, he would occasionally link his mind with the unknown telepath a few cells down. But as of yesterday, he has been unable to do so: the being is not there. He had not known much about the mysterious telepath, except that he let his ignorance blind him too much for Despero would never keep his eye of the goal of finding the Great Flame. But he also had no idea how long the being had stayed prisoner on Oa.

So Despero figures he had either paid his sentence, or he had received another. What he does know is that the being was responsible for wiping out his entire home planet. Whether fully conscious of it or not, surely he would become face to face with Justice, and witness Extreme Prejudice instead.

"Here, in the lowest part of the Central Battery, can you find the scum of the scum. These are the real dirtbags to look out for. In order to dine in such a suite, you gotta do some really nasty things."

Despero gets up from the floor of his cell, and walks over to the door, attempting to look out the small window reinforced with metal bars. He hears that same voice continue, but this time getting more and more audible; something not common while in solitary confinement.

"If you ever manage to bag a criminal this bad? Consider yourself a hero, rookie. The more we can put behind bars and against the balances of Justice, the better. You understand?"

"Yup."

The two lanterns, one obviously an experienced officer and the other a new recruit walk by Despero's cell. As they pass, he gazes upon them eagerly, but they do their best to note give him their attention. It isn't until Despero chuckles that the senior Lantern turns around and walks back in front of his cell.

"And what have you found so amusing now, Despero? Did you like my speech?"

"The speech was marvelous, Salakk. Although, I do believe you could've chosen more...poetic...words."

The rookie beside Salakk gains Despero's attention as he comes forth, looking up at the purple behemoth with nothing more than the tall standing door blocking the two.

"I've read your file. Senior Lantern Gardner made sure I did. Made sure we all did."

"I am blushing, the Guardians of the Universe have made it a mandatory protocol to know all about me. Oh, what a celebrity I've become on this planet."

"That is enough, Tomar."

Despero gives Tomar-Re a most odd and devilish look at the same time. He mouth seems to widen with glee all of a sudden, and his third eye glows. Salakk doesn't think too much of it, he merely scoffs at Despero and he and Tomar-Re walk away from the cell. But even as the two walk away, Despero's third eye forever continues to look at Tomar-Re until they are out of its sight. He quickly chuckles under his breath.

"He shall break easily."

 

[Spike_x1]

"I had hoped that this could be resolved without a violent altercation," Brainiac said, his voice heavy with resignation, "but if this is the only possible recourse, then so be it."

The Batman easily dispatched the drones who were attempting to restrain him; not surprising, considering that they were not programmed for combat protocols. However, Bruce Wayne would have to be subdued if he were to figure into the plan.

"You truly are an excellent combatant, Mister Wayne. Indeed, considering your comparable intellect and wider array of skills, I would venture to say that you are superior in several respects to the only other Ninth-Level intellect on this world, Lex Luthor. I should mention that he sent you here in the belief that I would kill the both of you. He betrayed you just as he plans to betray the rest of his species by turning them over to me.

"It hardly matters now, though; with your physical and mental capacities wired into the new Computer Tyrant program, humanity will be subconsciously persuaded to upgrade willingly."


With another command to his ship, a mass of mechanical tendrils sprung out from the walls, constricting around Wayne. In a moment, he would be secured, and dragged into the bowels of the ship for his upgrade to begin.

Kal-El, on the other hand, was moving quickly, nearly too quickly for his sensors to keep track. Nevertheless, he had planned on this. A blast of red energy burst forth from his right hand, catching Superman square in the chest and knocking him to the floor.

"I should warn you, Kal-El: I have installed multiple energy-replicating devices both on my own frame and throughout the ship. I can generate virtually any known form of radiant energy...including that of a red star."

He let forth another blast at the Kryptonian. If Brainiac was going to add him to the collection, he would need to keep him grounded.

"Just as I suspected. Your cellular structure readily absorbs extra solar energy under the conditions of an alien world -namely Earth- but goes back to its more dormant form when subjected to a more familiar radiant source. In effect, red solar radiation drains you of your power."

Even with the blasts of red light, Kal-El continued to advance upon him.

"And still you resist. I do not intend to end your life, Kal-El, no matter what Luthor's own wishes may be. Still, if I am to add you to the collection, you must stay in one place long enough for the wormhole generator to lock onto you. Therefore, I will implement a more potent method of keeping you down."

Brainiac re-calibrated the frequencies, instead issuing forth a violet beam, to no visible effect.

"Not quite..."

He shot out a bolt of blue energy next, again with no effect.

"Closer, but not quite..."

Finally, he let out a blast of sickening green light which washed over Superman, causing the Kryptonian to double over in pain.

"Ah. There we are..."

Superman watched, almost forgetting about the pain for an instant, as Batman was dragged away by the tendrils. He couldn't believe it. They had lost. Batman's mind was going to become a slave to Brainiac as Clark's body would be no doubt put through any number of experiments and trial by this monster.

NO!

They weren't going to lose. Superman was going to get through this, Batman would find a way out, Wonder Woman would overcome the odds.

And they would all survive.

A last-ditch beam of heat vision, with more power behind it than Clark thought he had left in him, traveled up the energy blast that Brainiac was firing from an opening on his right hand, and shot straight down the barrel of the gun. Several moments passed before Brainiac's arm began sputtering its green radiation beam and finally exploded, its force pushing the rest of the android's bodyframe to the side.

I'm Superman...

With his shoulders smoking, a few flaming strips of alien fabric as all that remained of his cape, and with a number of scorches and tears all over his uniform, the Last Son of Krypton pushed himself back onto his feet and took a deep breath. "... and I haven't lost yet."

Trying to ignore Brainiac as a new arm was quickly and methodically reconfigured and replaced the destroyed one, Superman used what little time he had to look outside the ship. Wonder Woman was gaining allies, but also gaining new threats, apparently from Luthor; and Batman was being strapped into a series of machines in a sight that made Clark want to scream in rage. Stumbling and almost losing his balance as he made to recover from the onslaught from moments ago, Superman's feet left the floor and he rose to meet Brainiac again. Breathing hard, Superman's fists were balled tightly and his glowing eyes were set on Brainiac's visage. "We won't lose."

 

[Byrd Man]

Ultimate

​

Hampshire, England
Today


I walk through the pub's smokey atmosphere, it's the middle of the afternoon so only the real drunks are sitting at the bars and the booth.

I walk up to the bar and place smile at the toothless old man running the bar.

"Wintergreen in?"

The old man cackles as he turns back to the shelves behind him.

"He's always here..."

I walk to the far right of the bar and turn down a small hallway. At the end of the hallway, a solid steel door sits.

I bang on it and wait for about two seconds before a voice yells out.

"WHAT'S DE ****IN PASSWORD??"

I sigh as I shake my head.

"Manchester U. is the ****ing best football team on the face of the earth.."

It takes a few seconds, but the door swings open and I hear him again.

"****in yeah they are."

I walk through the door and come face to...top of the head with William Randolph. Former SAS member and all around bad ass, until he fell out of a helicopter mid-mission and crushed his spine. He's been in a wheelchair ever since. He still kills though, but now he kills computer codes as the hacker "Wintergreen".

"How are ya, Wintergreen?"

"Doing awright, Slade. C'mon in, wadda ya waiting on? A ****ing handjob? ****ing yanks.."

He rolls into his innersanctum and I follow close behind. Wintergreen is the only person I trust in this world. Even still, I trust him about as far as I can throw his cripple ass.

"What's going on, Greeny?"

"Don't ****ing call me that!"

He wheels himself to the computer and starts to bang away at the keys.

"The reason I called you 'ere is because of this."

In a matter of thirty seconds, he's hacked into Interpol's files and is browsing through them with ease. Finally, he comes to a stop at a pale, brown haired man with sunken in eyes.

"Who the hell is he?"

"That ****ing ******* is Evan McCulloch. Bloody Scotish prick is on Interpol's top ten deadliest killers list now. They say he's the best pro in all of the UK. Don't know 'ow 'e does it. I mean, 'e killed a guy who was about ta testify on his mates. ****er was in a cell, nuttin in there but him, 'is clothes, the Lou, and a ****ing mirror. They found 'im strangled to death. They had that cell shut down tighter than me ex-wife's ass."

I lean against the wall and sigh.

"Very interesting, Wintergreen. What does this have to do with me? He bump me off of Number one on the list or what?"

Wintergreen smiles as he reaches for a cigarette and lights it up.

"No, mate. I say all this because. Word is, he's got a new contract."

Wintergreen takes a long drag and exhales.

"You're his next target, lad. Someone's got it in on you in a bad way.."

I smile as I nod.

"I'm really gonna enjoy this..."​

 

[Green Lantern]

(IC: Arsenal)

"Interesting. He's running from the fight." A figure says as he watches from the roof of a nearby building. The figure slouches with his arms folded, as he leans against a smoke stack. "Merlyn is probably pissed. I mean, I was suppossed to be his lookout. But its not my fault. He should pay better attention to his surroundings. That's what he always told me. 'Oliver, pay attention.' Maybe he should take his own advice sometimes."

Ollie takes out his bow, and holds it in front of him. He pulls an arrow from his quiver, and places it on the wire, as he begins to pull back.

"Ah, Green Arrow...why are you so foolish? You can't run from any problems. No matter how small." He looks at the end the sharp pointed tip of the arrow, and smiles. "Or painful."

Ollie aims his arrow calmly and with ease. He focuses on his target, and releases the arrow. It flies through the air smoothly and swiftly. Like a sniper's bullet, the arrow goes through the air quickly, and hits its target just as fast. Roy drops to the ground as the arrow penetrates his shoulder. Ollie moves out from the shadows, and puts his leg on the ledge of the building. He laughs, and calls out to the fallen hero.

"Looks like there's more than one of us with precision tonight, huh?"

"SON OF A *****. MOTHER ******."

Roy fell to his knees in agony as the shaft pierces the tender flesh of his shoulder. He pulls off his wrist guard and bites down on the hard piece of leather, grimacing in pain as he pulls the arrow from the wound.

He turns to view his attacker, and sees an emotionless teenager.

"Rot in hell. **** Sucker."

He pulls a grenade arrow out and snaps the shell off triggering the timer.

"Hate to cut and run kid, but I don't feel like dancin' right now. Sides, don't want Chris Hansen on my case."

As the grenade exploded near Ollie's feet, Roy started running, using the ensuing smoke and dust as cover to lose his assailants.

 

[Andy C.]

Superman watched, almost forgetting about the pain for an instant, as Batman was dragged away by the tendrils. He couldn't believe it. They had lost. Batman's mind was going to become a slave to Brainiac as Clark's body would be no doubt put through any number of experiments and trial by this monster.

NO!

They weren't going to lose. Superman was going to get through this, Batman would find a way out, Wonder Woman would overcome the odds.

And they would all survive.

A last-ditch beam of heat vision, with more power behind it than Clark thought he had left in him, traveled up the energy blast that Brainiac was firing from an opening on his right hand, and shot straight down the barrel of the gun. Several moments passed before Brainiac's arm began sputtering its green radiation beam and finally exploded, its force pushing the rest of the android's bodyframe to the side.

I'm Superman...

With his shoulders smoking, a few flaming strips of alien fabric as all that remained of his cape, and with a number of scorches and tears all over his uniform, the Last Son of Krypton pushed himself back onto his feet and took a deep breath. "... and I haven't lost yet."

Trying to ignore Brainiac as a new arm was quickly and methodically reconfigured and replaced the destroyed one, Superman used what little time he had to look outside the ship. Wonder Woman was gaining allies, but also gaining new threats, apparently from Luthor; and Batman was being strapped into a series of machines in a sight that made Clark want to scream in rage. Stumbling and almost losing his balance as he made to recover from the onslaught from moments ago, Superman's feet left the floor and he rose to meet Brainiac again. Breathing hard, Superman's fists were balled tightly and his glowing eyes were set on Brainiac's visage. "We won't lose."

"You lost this fight the instant you started it, Kal-El," Brainiac said as he inspected his newly-constructed arm. At his command, the ship's defense systems went active, generating a powerful energy shield around the skeletal machine.

"We are not so different, when you think about it. We both come from dead worlds, and use what abilities we have to preserve the lives of those who lack our power. Would you begrudge me what you readily do yourself?"

The protective field around him crackled furiously, and his hands began to glow with the sickening green radiation that had brought Superman down before.

"Still, I cannot allow you to delay me any further. I will have you in my collection, or store what remains of your DNA if you force me to destroy you. Either way, Kal-El, this conflict ends here and now."

 

[Oh Snap!]

IC: Amazo​

Far above the city of New York, explosions light the sky, the moon has long been destryoed and the star's have long burnt out. Several figures fly through the sky, some with capes, others illuminating the area around them with a calming green light, they were at war; one that had caused one casualty too many for the proffesor whom far below them, was working on his final masterpiece. He pressed several buttons and a chamber opened, a large muscular figure with pink hair stepped out of it and it's voice boomed loudly at the man.

"How do I still live?"

"I saved you, just like I told you I would.."

"My voice.."

"Yes, it's changed, alot has changed since you last saw me.. for the better, I hope"

"What have you done?"

"I have granted you life"

The android looked in the mirror, his body had changed in a way he could have never imagined meer days ago; his muscles buldged, his once blonde locks were now pink and receded. He could feel the very cogs and metal inside him moving around him, he was more robot than man now, he was a monster.

"At what cost?"

"I.. I.. you must be sent back in time, for if you continued to exist in this time they would undoubtedly destroy you"

"I do not understand"

"You will with time.."

"I still draw breath, why? What is my purpose?"

The old man, better known as 'Proffesor Ivo' several centuries ago, put his hand on the large android's shoulder and said with the utmost ferocity, making it very clear to the being that there was nothing more important to him than this, this was his objective, his purpose for living; without it, he would be meaningless, his very existence futile.

"Your purpose is to kill those.. those whom the people of Earth call 'Superheroes'.. Promise me you will do this"

"I will.."

"You must not stop until they have been irradicated, it is of the highest importance"

"I understand.. I will not fail you, nor will I rest until I have killed every last one, I will not stop until my very last breath"

"You don't breath anymore, Amazo"

"Amazo?"

"Yes, that is your name"

Ivo saw high above through the window a large caped figure swoop round, he was accelerating at an insane speed, he was coming right for them, he couldn't allow his creation to be found, they would destroy him. The once dubbed 'heroes' had gone greedy with power, now they had become everything they once stood against, the world was ruled with an iron fist.. super-fascism.

"No.. My name is.."

"They come!.. You have to go, leave.. Quickly and God speed!"

He urged the large robotic man through the portal, which he jumped through reluctantly, once he was in Ivo picked up a large spanner and smashed the control panels.. the door to his lab torn off, infront of him stood a ruthless looking man whom once was the idol of millions, the large S shield on his chest covered in blood. As his creation flew through time, the last thing he could hear was the screams of his creator, Ivo had sacrificed his life for him, he wouldn't let him down.

 

[Batman]

When I was eight years old, both of my parents were gunned down infront of my eyes by a common street mugger. Being an orphan was a reality I could not truly cope with, and ever since, that solumn moment of my life has driven my future to where it has come to today. I made a silent vow that I would spend the rest of my life, if needed, enacting a war on the similar evil that plagued Gotham City. That was the moment The Batman was born. Not the years I spent in preparation, or the night I first donned the cowl... but the night, when I was a boy, that I looked upon two caskets containing the two people I loved most in life... and decided to become a man.

To say that seeing my parents here, and now, provokes skepticism is an understatement. But I can't deny that it isn't a shock, either. My father's strength lurks within his expression the very same as it did the night he died infront of me. My mother's warmth is still conveyed through the eyes that look upon me now. The silence that fills the air is defeaning, but the image speaks much louder than any words could. And suddenly, it doesn't become a question of whether or not my parents are alive... because they're not. They couldn't be. It's become a question of whether I've joined them in death.

"Bruce,", He speaks, in the very same voice that echoed through my head every night, when he would tuck me into bed for what was sure to be a good night's rest. "My son. My boy. You've come back to us."

I'm... unsure of how to react, much less respond. I've waited to hear those words for a majority of my life. Yet it all seems... too perfect. I even damn myself for the mere doubt of the situation, but I can't be fooled into thinking this is real until I'm sure. Regardless of how much I want it to be.

"And you've grown to be such a handsome man,", My... mother says, with tears of joy in her eyes.

My face conveys no happiness. No sadness. No anger, no confusion. It's simply blank. I could convey every one of those emotions, right now, but I don't even know where to begin. I keep telling myself this isn't real. But I'm beginning to realize that I don't want to listen.

"You're... not real,", I begin, trying not to look at them. "Neither of you can possibly be real. You're gone. You've been gone ever since... that night."

"We know, son,", My 'father' answers, stepping forward. "We know all about that. We have for some time, but... it doesn't matter anymore, Bruce. We're here, now. We're together again. And everything's going to be alright."

"Everything's going to be alright". The last thing my father ever said to me, and a common phrase he used every night to calm my worries of a wicked world. It provokes a reaction from me, finally, as my eyes widen a bit at it. He simply smiles, and grabs me by the shoulders, gently.

"You've made us proud. Both of us couldn't be more humbled to have a son like you."

I...

I don't want to believe it. Yet I want to more than anything in the world. My brain shouts countless contradictions into my head... half of them calling me a fool for believing the possibility for even a moment, the other half calling me a fool for not saying more... if, on the off chance, this is what I'm being made to believe it is.

"No...", I finally answer, pulling away from him. "You're not real. You can't be. How could you possibly be?!"

"If we're not real, Bruce,", My mother answers, joining my father's side. "Then you're as much of a figment as us, now."

My eyebrow arches, at the insinuiation.

"Then what you're saying is..."

"Yes, Bruce.", My father interjects. "Just as we left the living world that horrible night, you've left it to join us here, and now."

"Then...", I begin, my head hanging low. "I've failed? Brainiac really did win, and he's destroyed us all?"

"Nonsense,", He argues. "You may not have won the battle, Bruce, but you're no failure. Not after all the good you've done."

"You turned into a good man. A better man than either of us could've hoped for, when we were raising you."

I close my eyes. They're still there. But I don't want to acknowledge it. It's... it's just too much for me to bear. All of my life... waiting for this moment to become a reality. And now, of all times, it's granted to me? I can't believe that. I won't believe that. But it doesn't stop the solumn tear from running down my face.

"You're... I can't...", I breathe, as the tears come stronger. "How can I possibly be sure?"

"We don't have all of those answers, Bruce.", My father responds. "But just remember what I always told you. About finding the inner answers within yourself, and to never give up on them. It's done a hell of alot for you so far."

Every answer within me is saying exactly what I don't want to hear. And worse yet, every answer is probably the truth. Brainiac wants to delude me... cloud my judgement, and allow for his demented programming to take over, while my mind probably succumbs and is fooled into believing a life that isn't there. As much as I want them to be real... I can't let them be. It would be letting him win.

"I have, father."

I wipe the tears away. They're only replaced by my anger, as I look up at the two people infront of me... and sneer them down. "And I've realized that neither of you are who you claim to be."

My "mother" moves toward me. "Bruce, I know you're scared of the reality, but-"

"The reality is, you're not my parents. They're still dead, and I'm still alive.", I growl back. "Now get out of my way, before I have to do something I'll regret."

"Bruce, don't do this. You'll only be making a mistake. You haven't come this far to make mistakes."

"That's why you're not my father.", I answer back, pulling my cowl back over my head. "I've made countless mistakes in my life. Hundreds of nights, wishing I had taken the right decision when I had made the wrong. But if you were truly the Thomas and Martha Wayne I knew and loved, none of that would matter."

"Son, don't-"

"Don't call me that.", I angrily snap. "I am not your son. I am nothing like you. I am a man. I am alive."

I spread my cape, and it expands, turning me into a towering shadow over the figures that tried to portray my parents, and failed. They gasp in horror, as I turn into what I've truly become: A ghastly, fearsome creature of the night. And in the last moment, before the darkness comes to pass... they're revealed for what they truly are. Automations. Nothing more. My anger roars throughout the darkness, eveloping them... hurting them... making them suffer for ever thinking they could be my parents. And all the while, I simply stare, knowing what I've done needed to be so.

"I.

AM.

BATMAN!"

.
..
...
....

My eyes jolt open, as I stare out into Brainiac's ship again. I'm still strapped into the machine, with numerous OMACs bearing down on me. I can't dwell on what I've just imagined... have to figure out a way to escape, now. I turn my head, and manouver my wrist. There's an acid capsle in the cuff of my armor, beneath my glove. If I can break it...

The bond breaks, as I pull it loose. The acid didn't destroy it... simply weakened it. My remaining strength did the rest. An OMAC grabs my free arm, but it's too late. I've already reached the pocket in the side of my armlor. Pulling out one of the grapnels, I fire it out, and into the machine. It hums, loudly, spasming from the electrical output from it's armor. Have to remember... remember they're human. Can't kill them. But I can so much to come close enough... yet far enough...

With a scream of rage, I pull the cord, and yank the OMAC into the others. One of the bonds holding my foot snaps open, as one flies past it. I kick another one away, before tumbling up, and slipping my other hands and feet out. It worked, but if I don't do something fast, it won't take long for them to subdue me again. Brainiac controls them through a relayed signal. It's what brought me to Metropolis, and to the ship. If I can somehow jam it...

I press the side of my cowl, pulling it on in 'real time'.

"Alfred, you read me?"

No response. Dammit, I was afraid of that. The signal to our communication's link is probably blocked by the walls of the ship. Unless something's happened to him. But... no, I can't worry about that now. Failure here means enslavement for the entire human race, not just the ones I care about. I'll have to do it myself.

Leaping off of the slab they had strapped me to, I run over to one of Brainiac's machines. An OMAC starts to get up. I sneer, and kick it down. A payback, of sorts, for what they made me witness. Turning my attention back to the machine, I type in a series of commands, to see what it does. Nothing much I can use, from this encryptment. But with the Batcomputer, on the other hand... I may have a shot. If only I knew where my belt was. Then it hits me. The OMACs... they know everything Brainiac does. But better, because beneath their shell lies a human mind. Which means...

I walk over, and grab one of them tightly.

"Where's the utility belt?!", I yell into it's face.

"We Have No Reason To Listen To The Likes Of Your Species. We Are Loyal Only To Brainiac."

I pull it closer, and sneer. "But Brainiac doesn't have a family. You probably do. And they'll miss you, should anything happen, won't they?"

It seems to react. I hide the smirk on my lips. Now we're getting somewhere.

"What Are You... Saying?"

I throw a growl.

"Let me spell it out for you, you murdering slime..."

* * *

Five minutes later, and I enter one of the eastern hulls. The OMAC behind me is silent... but his fear is evident. The guilt of being forced to be Brainiac's aide must have worn him down, more than me. I simply exploited it. Looking past the darkness of the room infront of me, I notice a machine with an object remenicent of a conveyer belt that isn't moving. And there, among other things seized from the innocent people infected by this 'uprgade' lies the belt in question. Grabbing it, I throw it around my waist, clip it shut, and run back into the room.

Reaching one of the machines, I dig into a right side pocket and pull out a GPS cord. Specifically, the one that connects me back to the Batcomputer's automated ecryption programming code. In seconds, once I've stuck the cord into the machine, the screen displays what I need. Typing in a command, I wait for the box to load, and press the side of my cowl.

"Computer. Find an outputting signal unauthorised by host. Then jam it, if possible."

Request Acknowledged. Searching...

Signal Found.

Override Program To Begin In Three, Two, One...

The signal stops. I look around, as all of the glowing eyes of the OMAC armor fade blank. Typing in more commands into the computer, I access the signal's control panel, and import a program of my own. The signal flares again... but in a much different soundwave. I hit a button on my belt, and watch the result. OMACs around me simultaneously begin whurring... almost screaming, if not for the mechanical tone. They start flailing, widly, as the armor begins falling off of them, piece by piece.

I feel something fall off of my back, aswell, as I turn around, and lift my cape. A sheet of armor falls to the floor. To think... would their deception have worked against me, I would've ended up exactly like them. My fists clench. I've grown tired of this... No more. This madness ends here, and now.

Making my way out of the chamber, as the OMACs quiet, I kick down one of the doors blocking my way, and head out. If my jamming signal worked properly, The Amazonian should be noticing that her attackers are beginning to back down, and feel the same effects as the ones in the room behind me. Which, with any luck, means that I can count on her to aide in Superman's rescue.

As for me, I have something else in mind to contribute...

 

[Eddie Brock]

I sit with the butler in my headquarters. He's tied to the chair with his mouth gagged. In about an hour or so, I'll head out to the bridge. There, I'll check to see if Wayne has figured it out - yeah, right - and I'll set up survelliance equipment so I can monitor the bridge. Even if Bruce surprises me by solving the riddle, he'd still have to be a fool to believe that I'd actually tell him where his butler is. The bridge is merely one piece of the puzzle I'm crafting.

In the meantime...

"Can I get you anything to make your stay more comfortable?" I ask my "guest." He tries to respond, but is unable to make a clear noise. I do believe that he is trying to say some unkind words, however. "Well...if you need anything, just holler."

I go back to twidling my thumbs. This waiting business is quite pestersome.

Minutes later, I hear something...something...unexpected.

"Alfred, you read me?"

I pop up in my chair, taking my feet off my desk. I point to the spot on Alfred's waist where the communicator is.

"Now THERE's a riddle...why on Earth would a butler carry a high-tech comm-link?"

I walk over to Alfred and search him until I find the device.

"Bruce Wayne...what exactly IS it that you're hiding here?" I question aloud to myself. I continue to examine the comm-link. It's definitely not run of the mill.

I remove the gag and shove the device in Alfred's face.

"Explain. Now."

With a look of pure disgust in his eyes, Alfred explains, "Master Bruce is a very needy person. I must be in contact with him at all times...in case he so desperately needs something."

"Liar," I snarl as I force the gag back over his mouth. There's something going on here, and if anyone can figure it out...it'll be Edward Nigma.

I return to my desk with the comm-link. For a split-second, I wonder whether I should call back to Bruce and get some answers. But then I decide to save it for later. Besides, he'll just lie to me anyway. And if he and Alfred know what they're doing, they'll have coordinated stories.

Typical.
​

 

[Oh Snap!]

IC: Amazo​

"If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle."

These thoughts repeated through his head as he rocketed through time, he couldn't make anything out, his vision was blurred and he couldn't move, not for lack of trying though; as he slowly reached the end of the vortex, the worlds continued to repeat in his head, why couldn't he remember a thing? His memory was blank prior to being pushed into the portal, how was he quoting literature that he'd never even read? Sun Tzu - The Art of War. As he fought to his feet, the concrete below him cracked and broke; his strength was immense, he could feel the power running through his veins. As he looked down he noticed a large gash in his side, purple liquid poured out free, he dipped his fingers into it and smelt it slightly; it wasn't blood, nor were his insides flesh, they were metallic.. Before he could inspect any further the wound healed itself. He looked around, slightly bemused, the shining, metallic sky-line was beautiful; suddenly he felt like his eyes were on fire, a beam of thing red light streaked through one of the buildings and slowly.. the building collapsed. He shut his eyes tight and managed to stop it, he was like a child with in a toy store, so many new powers.. so many new sensations.

The greatest of them all being flight, it didn't take him very long until he realised that he could fly unaided, he swooped through the air and piroutted nimbly, he'd never felt like this before; never had so much power, even though he couldn't remember much of his prior life, he knew he'd never been able to do this.. He was a man before, now.. Now he was a God.

"Amazing.."

As he touched down on a roof, he crossed his arms tightly and looked over the city, these people were not like him, they were ants.. peons, not even worth his attention; if they posessed powers like his, they would not lock themselves up in buildings and drive around in metal prisons, they would set to the skies and see the wonders of the world first hand.. But no, they were not like him at all.. they were inferior to him, clearly.

He coughed slightly and looked startled, he could still do that? How did he even remember what had just happened to him was called a 'cough'? These were questions for another time, now he would find out just how powerful he really was.. He exhaled and a gust of cold wind blew from out of his mouth, the gases took a while to part and when they finally did, infront of him stood a large column of ice.

Perhaps he had been sent here to rule them? No, this wasn't to be, he scanned the area as far as he could and far above the city was a large billboard with a picture of a man whom Amazo seemed to recognize; he looked younger and cleaner, but that was definetly him.. he felt a cold hatred churn inside of him, but could not remember why, he hated him. He hated everything he stood for, everything he loved.. he wouldn't rest until this.. 'Superman' had died by his hands. All of them, every one of his kind would fall to his might, he would crush them off the face of the planet..

As he leapt down from the roof, the floor once again buckled around him, a worried policeman walked towards him and put his hand on his gun, he extended his arm and very nervously tried to converse with him.

"Uh.. I.. uh.. Are you a good guy?"

"There is no such thing as good or bad, they are only point of views"

The policeman took his hand of his gun and sighed, he reckoned if the big guy was going to do him any harm he would have already, he put his hand on Amazo's shoulder and spoke in a soft tone.

"I mean.. are you a superhero?"

"Superhero?!.. What do you know of them?"

"Erm.. Not much, but.. I mean.. I thought I saw Batman once"

Amazo grabbed the man by his crotch, his grip was like a vice, he brought the man closer to him and said to him in a firm, frightening voice.

"You will take me to them, now"

"I.. I can't.."

Amazo's face didn't change at all, but his grip got tighter, the man was wincing in pain but he didn't care, he grabbed even tighter and tore off everything that was in his hand. The police officer screamed at the top of his voice, now extremely high, and fell to the floor bleeding.. he sobbed quietly and tried to stop the rush of blood leaving his crotch.

"You tore off... get help.. balls.. bleeding, I.. I need help"

"Help? Why should I help one like you?"

"Mercy.."

"..Is for the weak.. You have been no use to me, why should I care if your insignificant little light exstinguishes?"

"Please.."

Amazo rolled the man over with his foot, looked him in the eye and smiled in an almost sickly way.

"No.."

Before he'd managed to get the last word out, he was gone, he ran as fast as he could, concrete tore out of the ground and flew around madly.. the things around him were unmoving, as if struck with rigimortis. He had never felt such a rush before, he felt unbeatable, no-one out there could stop him; he would humiliate these 'heroes' in battle, alone or leagued together, it mattered not to him.. they would fall to his hands, and only his.

 

[Andy C.]

(IC: Brainiac)

The Kryptonian let loose with another blast of his heat-vision, only for it to deflect harmlessly off of Brainiac's shield. The Coluan machine responded in kind with blasts of energy, both from his hands and from hidden devices throughout the ship. Enough firepower to level an entire city block was being focused on Kal-El...and still, he would not fall.

"You are truly a marvel of this universe, Kal-El. I truly believe that the Master Programmer has intended for the circumstances of your upbringing to figure critically into the grand design. This is why it is so important that you survive...after a fashion."

The wormhole generator was charged. With a thought to his ship, Brainiac activated it. Superman suddenly found himself suspended in the air, held in place by forces he could not resist.

"The aperture in time-space is ready to receive you now, Kal-El. You will play a crucial role in the experiments conducted in my collection from now on. Every atom of your physical form, every thought and memory in your mind, every bit of your being is being distorted and copied and stretched throughout the wormhole, and soon will collapse back into you as you are transported into Kandor.

"You may wish to prepare yourself. I am told that this procedure is quite painful."

*****
MEANWHILE
*****

"I may be able to turn away the men with my telepathy, if you can occupy the robots," J'onn suggested, driving back any doubts that he did not have the strength to accomplish such a major feat.

Oh no...

Those things....

They were human inside....


I killed them....

All this time I tried to save them and I unknowingly took their lives.

I had to make things right.

"The charm..."

"What?"

"I know a couple spells to bring the people back to life. Just give me a minute."

I had to stand in place. Very still. I had to focus or else It'll never work, and I could get hurt.

"Efil to kcab steppup daed eht GNIRB!!"

Then the defeated humanoid things returened to human form and came back to life. Wonder Woman and the blue-spandex green man looked at me in amazement, but I fell in exhaustion. Wonder Woman and the being came to my aid.

"Are you alright, sister?"

"Yeah. Just a little woosy. I'll be fine. I'll be a little more careful, but I'm nowhere near strong eneough to free them from the mind control after that..."

I looked at the red-eyed man.

"We might have to use your plan."


Then I got back up on my feet. Wonder Woman smirked and nodded. I turned to the swarm of "puppets".


"Let's do this."

(IC: )

I wonder for a moment at these two new allies. The green man seems to have even more powers than I do, if his claims of telepathy are true. The sorceress is indeed powerful, perhaps too much so. To wield control over life and death is not something to be taken so lightly, but that's neither here nor there. At the moment, I am only concerned with saving these people.

"It's time we act. If we can push through the OMAC swarm, we may be able to penetrate the ship's defenses and help Superman and Batman confront Brainiac directly. If you truly are a psychic, then maybe you can use your abilities to cut off Brainiac's mental link to the OMACs. From there, we take down the monster once and for all."

Only then, when I take to the skies, do I see that our aide might be too late.

Five minutes later, and I enter one of the eastern hulls. The OMAC behind me is silent... but his fear is evident. The guilt of being forced to be Brainiac's aide must have worn him down, more than me. I simply exploited it. Looking past the darkness of the room infront of me, I notice a machine with an object remenicent of a conveyer belt that isn't moving. And there, among other things seized from the innocent people infected by this 'uprgade' lies the belt in question. Grabbing it, I throw it around my waist, clip it shut, and run back into the room.

Reaching one of the machines, I dig into a right side pocket and pull out a GPS cord. Specifically, the one that connects me back to the Batcomputer's automated ecryption programming code. In seconds, once I've stuck the cord into the machine, the screen displays what I need. Typing in a command, I wait for the box to load, and press the side of my cowl.

"Computer. Find an outputting signal unauthorised by host. Then jam it, if possible."

Request Acknowledged. Searching...

Signal Found.

Override Program To Begin In Three, Two, One...

The signal stops. I look around, as all of the glowing eyes of the OMAC armor fade blank. Typing in more commands into the computer, I access the signal's control panel, and import a program of my own. The signal flares again... but in a much different soundwave. I hit a button on my belt, and watch the result. OMACs around me simultaneously begin whurring... almost screaming, if not for the mechanical tone. They start flailing, widly, as the armor begins falling off of them, piece by piece.

I feel something fall off of my back, aswell, as I turn around, and lift my cape. A sheet of armor falls to the floor. To think... would their deception have worked against me, I would've ended up exactly like them. My fists clench. I've grown tired of this... No more. This madness ends here, and now.

Making my way out of the chamber, as the OMACs quiet, I kick down one of the doors blocking my way, and head out. If my jamming signal worked properly, The Amazonian should be noticing that her attackers are beginning to back down, and feel the same effects as the ones in the room behind me. Which, with any luck, means that I can count on her to aide in Superman's rescue.

As for me, I have something else in mind to contribute...

(IC: Lex Luthor)

Luthor watched in amazement as the OMAC swarm did something he never would have expected: they fell apart. The million-plus cybernetic creatures suddenly fell to Earth, impacting on the streets and rooftops.

"Mr. Luthor!" came Dr. Ivo's voice through Lex's earpiece, "The energy signals we'd been detecting from Brainiac's ship have ceased! The alien's shield is down!"

"Understood, Ivo. Get your team into the shelters; your part in this is over," Lex said before switching frequencies on the earpiece.

"Attention all LexCorp security forces: stand down, stand down. The fight is over, and we've won. Fall back to the LexCorp Tower immediately."

With another switch of the channels, Lex contacted Dr. Quintum down below.

"It's time, Quintum! Fire the Binary Fusion Cannon, now!"

"Sir, the metahumans in the air will-"

"NOW, Quintum! It has to be NOW!"

"...understood, Mr. Luthor."

Seconds later, a blinding beam of white light erupted from underneath the LexCorp Tower. Through goggles to protect his vision, Luthor watched as the beam lanced through Brainiac's ship, punching into the bottom and going straight out of the top. No matter what Superman or the others had done, there was now no doubt that it was Lex Luthor who killed Brainiac.

Lex went to the small ice-box in the back of his office, and opened a bottle of champagne before sitting down at his desk.

"Congratulations, Dr. Quintum. You've just saved the world."

*****

(IC: )

The OMACs are falling all around us, kicking up dirt and debris as they slam into the pavement. The sorceress slows down the descent of as many as she can, but as far as I can tell, the armor is still enough to protect most of the innocents inside as they hit. Thank Hera that the demented Brainiac is still somewhat concerned with preserving those he enslaves.

Suddenly, I'm nearly blinded by a ray of light. I can't be sure, but it looked as if it had come from the Tower where...

...Luthor.

The man had said that he intended to end this fight. If he's killed my allies in the process...

"Hurry! We have to get to the ship!"

*****

All throughout Brainiac's ship, alarms sounded. Somehow, the computer grid had been hacked, shorting out the connection to the OMAC force, and bringing down the shields. And in that moment, the ship was attacked from without, suffering critical damage.

The containment field holding Kal-El suddenly burst, releasing him from his bondage. As the Kryptonian fell to the floor, the half-opened wormhole began to contort, lashing out in arcs of horrible energy.

"No," Brainiac said to himself, "the plan was flawless! How could it--"

One of the arcs of light hit Brainiac, tearing his frame in half.

As the machine's optic sensors cut in and out, it lost track of time for a moment.

When its senses fully restored, the Amazon was standing in front of him, with the Batman and their newfound allies helping Superman to his feet.

"You have much to answer for, Brainiac. What happened here?"

"The ship has been incapacitated...the Batman somehow managed to sabotage the ship...simultaneously, Luthor took advantage of this and fired a Binary Fusion Cannon, striking the ship's generators."

The wormhole began to flare up again, swirling savagely in the center of the chamber. Suddenly, all of the beings in the room lifted from the floor, experiencing weightlessness.

"There is not much time left. Luthor's damage to the ship has just cut out the anti-gravity fields. We are now currently in a state of free-fall. The impact from this altitude will likely render Metropolis uninhabitable. However, such damage will be insignificant as the time-space aperture tears the planet apart and swallows the remains. At our current rate of acceleration, this will occur in approximately one minute and forty-five seconds."

The machine's electronic eyes flickered for a moment.

"I cannot stop this...but you can. Save...the experiment..."

Then Brainiac's eyes went dark for good, and the robot went limp.

 

[Batman]

"I cannot stop this...but you can. Save...the experiment..."

Then Brainiac's eyes went dark for good, and the robot went limp.

Blood rushes to my head, as Superman and the rest... people of which I don't recognise, but entered through with Wonder Woman, fall upwards infront of me. I soon join them, as some of us hit the ceiling, with Wonder Woman and Superman suspended mid-air, able to control their ascension. What Brainiac told us may be true... but what he doesn't know is what else I had in store for his 'invasion'. I leap down, trying my best to fight the gravity, and grab onto Wonder Woman's wrist, to get her attention.

"Get them out of here! I rigged the ship's hulls with a pattern of C-4 explosives... it'll desenigrate the ship and possibly prevent Metropolis' destruction... but I can't activate them until we're clear!", I yell out. "Superman will need to take me! I may need him to get the ship higher in the air, to prevent any casualties!"

Damn the machine. Even in defeat, he may be responsible for the destruction millions of lives...

 

[Spike_x1]

Blood rushes to my head, as Superman and the rest... people of which I don't recognise, but entered through with Wonder Woman, fall upwards infront of me. I soon join them, as some of us hit the ceiling, with Wonder Woman and Superman suspended mid-air, able to control their ascension. What Brainiac told us may be true... but what he doesn't know is what else I had in store for his 'invasion'. I leap down, trying my best to fight the gravity, and grab onto Wonder Woman's wrist, to get her attention.

"Get them out of here! I rigged the ship's hulls with a pattern of C-4 explosives... it'll desenigrate the ship and possibly prevent Metropolis' destruction... but I can't activate them until we're clear!", I yell out. "Superman will need to take me! I may need him to get the ship higher in the air, to prevent any casualties!"

Damn the machine. Even in defeat, he may be responsible for the destruction millions of lives...

Superman stood straight and tried to shake away the sick feeling that had washed over him from whatever Brainiac was blasting at him with before. "The wormhole," he said, slightly groggily. "Batman, do you know if the ship's destruction will stop the wormhole?"

 

[Batman]

Superman stood straight and tried to shake away the sick feeling that had washed over him from whatever Brainiac was blasting at him with before. "The wormhole," he said, slightly groggily. "Batman, do you know if the ship's destruction will stop the wormhole?"

Something's wrong. Superman's demenor... his body language... it's as if he's physically ill. Hard to believe, given his strength and endurance already displayed. Brainiac must have figured out a physical weakness of his and exploited it, admittedly... not unlike what I did to disband the OMAC sentients. But there's no time for second guesses. His question is... hard to deciepher. I've never encountered something like this, even confronted with the most advanced technology the world has to offer, through Wayne Enterprises. It's practically beyond my comprehension, much less an on-the-spot theory.

"I'm... I'm not sure,", I begin, stressing the importance of the situation. "This technology is too advanced for me to make a certain guess. But at this point, we might aswell try it. Any outcome is going to end the same, if we stall too much longer. If the wormhole still exists... we'll find another way. But right now, the ship is our more immediate problem."

I sneer at him, trying my best to... in my own way... push him to the end of his rather extraordinary limitations. It may be our only hope. I look up, seeing that our fall is increasing, as the rising sun beads down on us, through the hole in the ship's ceiling.

"Metropolis is your city, Superman...", I yell out. "Save it!"

 

[Oh Snap!]

IC: Amazo​

Once again Amazo flew through the air at an amazing speed, windows shattered as he rocketted past buildings and people watched in amazement, who was this new wonder? Had the Earth found itself another protector? The same naive thoughts ran through their minds as Amazo scanned them easily, he vibrated his atoms so he could easily phase through the buildings and appear on the other side. It was all too easy for him, these powers were wonderful, he could conquer these people like ants and remake them in his own image; look at what they had achieved by themselves already, with his rule they could become the most advanced civilization in the universe. Yet, for some reason, he seemed set against doing that.. especially not now. The super-heroes were away at war, fighting the OMAC's.. perhaps now would be the greatest time to strike, whilst they were weak.. but no.

Amazo wanted them at their strongest, at their best when they faced him, then they could have no excuses; the world's greatest superheroes could not stop him, one man tore them apart where dozens other had tried and failed. But alas, this was not to be, not yet. He came to a rest atop the roof of the Daily Planet, sitting himself high up upon the globe.. people on the sidewalk far below looked up curiously and Amazo grimaced, he did not have time for tourists; he vibrates his atoms in a way that the light particles in the air could not collide with him, therefore rendering him practically invisible. The voices in his head grew louder and louder by the second, his head had begun to ache slightly and he couldn't turn them off.. He saw a little girl far below accidently let go of her blue baloon, which flew high into the air; suddenly, the android blacked out.

Spoiler

"How do I still live?"​

"I saved you, just like I told you I would.."​

That voice, so familiar.. he knew he knew it, yet he couldn't remember how, it calmed him slightly.. made him feel an inner peace he had not felt since arriving here. As he opened his eyes, he realised he was on the ground, handing the little girl her baloon back. She smiled and thanked him, whilst everyone around burst into applause.. The voice haunted him still, he grew angry, where had it gone? Who was it? The young girl's mother threw her arm round his neck and hugged him tightly, any humanity that had been restored to him via that voice had long gone; he grabbed the woman's spine and tore it out, she fell to the floor limpy and the crowd screamed, he ripped through the crowd at an amazing speed, punching his way through people's skulls and tearing them in half like rag dolls.

These were not his people, he did not feel any sympathy for them, they ran in terror and he laughed maniacally whilst roasting an elderly man with his newly discovered heat vision; time for a new trick, he vibrated his hand through another man, whom exploded in a cloud of blood.

"Do not fear death, humans.. It comes to us all, an inevitability all of us face, embrace it.. Embrace my awesome power"

He'd yet to set loose like this before, he killed without discrimination, all that were before him died. Almost fifty people had fell to his hand before he stopped, the only survivor the little girl with the baloon, who sobbed as she tugged on her mother's jacket.

"Momma, wake up.. Wake up, momma"

"Child.."

"Can you help my momma up, Super-dude?"

"No, I cannot.. you, on the other hand.."

He broke her neck swiftly and walked away, she must not have been much older than 6 years old, but he felt no guilt.. or any shame. He flew away, the clouds parted quickly as Amazo darted away towards the sun.. As he disappeared off into the horizon, the blue baloon, which was now splattered with blood appeared, rising as if it had a mind of it's own; floating to the heavens, as if to be with it's former owner.

What a beautiful place Earth was.

 

[SenseiofCheese]

ULTIMATE

As much as he hated admitting it to himself, Katar had begun to like...this.
As Hawkman buried his fist in the face of a mugger who had just come very close to murdering an elderly woman, he felt a thrill come over him. Stopping crime, preventing evil from being done, made him for the first time in a VERY long time, happy.
The mugger whimpered and fell over, hitting the ground hard.

"I admit, that did hurt you more than it hurt me." Katar quipped, as he picked up the purse. He walked over to the elderly woman, who had risen to her feet after being knocked down by the criminal scum.
He slowly handed her the purse and put his hand on her shoulder.

"Here you go ma'am. Here, let me take you to the hospital."

The woman's eyes lit up as she took in the glorious sight of the winged man in front of her.

"My...My God above...A guardian angel! Oh sweet Mary, thank you lord for sending your angel to watch over me."

The woman threw herself at Katar, and he held her in his arms. Slowly, his wings began to move back and forth, and before the woman knew it, he set her down in front of Gotham Hospital.

"There you go ma'am. Take care, now." Katar smiled, and as he lifted off he could still hear her praying.

Alright. This isn't so bad.

-----

Katar kept himself busy for the days leading up to his trip to Scotland. Whether he was rescuing small girls from apartment fires, preventing car-jackings, or beating kidnappers to a pulp, he never seemed to have a spare moment.
And that's the way he liked it.

Reports of a Hawk-Man performing heroic acts all over town filled the papers, and soon his cult status as Truth or Myth rivaled that of the Bat-Man.
Blurry photos and feathers found at would-be crime-scenes were all that seemed to ever be found, and even though the people he saved got good looks at him most of the time, they either denied comments or sounded insane.

Katar shot through the air. Building shot past him at amazing speeds and he had to strain to keep his vision from blurring. He had never really put his powers to the test, but he could now see that he was more powerful than he had thought.
In what seemed like a blink of an eye, he had come to a stop outside Carter Hall's apartment, effectively making it across the city in less than 10 minutes.

Impressive, if I do say so myself.

Katar reached down and pulled open the window, sliding inside. It had been several days since he had last been here. He had rested little over the last few days, and when he did he let abandoned houses and churches do.
He walked through Carter's apartment, going room from room. Dust had begun to cover most things, and when he reached the kitchen he saw the blinking light of Carter's answering machine.

*75 New Messages*

As he stared at the machine, he felt a small tug in his chest. Almost as if something inside him wanted to burst forth and listen to those messages. To tell everyone he's okay. To meet all of his friends....
CARTER's friends...

But no. Katar stifled the voice inside him. Carter Hall was no more. Katar Hol had been reborn, taking Carter's place.
In fact, Katar couldn't help but feel he was trespassing by stumbling through the apartment. Even though, at the same time, he also felt as he was home.

".....stormed into Gotham Bank earlier today and has been holding hostages for the last hour. The man, who seems to be working alone, entered the Bank earlier today and has since been holding several people at gun-point. The man, whose identity has been confirmed as Mark Richards, former U.S Marine who had been presumed dead after a helicopter crash, has not put forth any demands at this time, and police officials say --"

Katar hadn't noticed the television being on, but he listened attentively at the newscaster's words.

I better hurry, before someone gets hurt.

Katar rushed over to an old oak closet and pulled open the doors.

In no time at all, Katar was flying high above Gotham on his way to the city's bank, pushing that tugging feeling deep down into his core. He could not let some "spooky feeling" prevent him from doing his job.
He caught himself in his last thought.

My job. This is my job. I have to do this.

Katar set himself down on a rooftop of a building directly across from the bank. The dust and gravel flew in every direction as his large wings came bearing down.
He crouched and looked over the edge. Police cars and news vans littered the streets below. Cameras and pistols were aimed at the bank entrance in unison, and the commanding screams of officers and chiefs floated up to Katar.

"So all we know is that he's alone in there..."

"Why don't we just go in, I mean it's not ..."

"...idea what the hell kind of heat he's packing.."

"...swear I though I saw a frigging lion or something...."

Katar let the men's words inform him of everything he needed to know. There was only one man in there, Mark Richards, and one man would be no challenge for Katar Hol.
Katar spread his wings majestically and threw himself off the ledge. The ground came rushing up to meet him. At the last moment before impact, he thrust his wings down and swooped past the police cars, heading directly towards the bank.

"WHAT THE--"

"SON OF A B--"

With a manic crash, Hawkman burst through the front door. Glass and stone shattered to the floor and the people inside screamed.
His enhanced vision let him spot Richards the second he had come crashing in. Katar wasted no time or speed, and barreled into the man. Mark Richards flew into the wall, dropping his pistol, leaving a small crack in the concrete wall.

"EVERYONE GET OUT!" Katar's deep, commanding voice echoed through the lobby. People screamed and rushed to their feet, almost stampeding outside.
Katar kept his eye on the bank-robber. The man seemed to be unconscious. He lay against the wall, blood trickling down from his lip. He was shirtless, and his whole upper body was covered in tattoos. A dragon, a scythe, two lions and many others almost too many to count.

Katar turned his back, looking towards to entrance to see the last hostage get to safety.
When Katar turned his eyes back towards where the man had sat on the floor, he was gone.
Mark Richards, the Tattooed Man, now stood directly in front of Katar Hol.
Katar simply smiled.

"You really want more? I would've thought you'd had enough." he laughed.

The Tattoed Man's face was one of pure hate. His eyes burroed into Katar's, his voice cold as ice.

"Mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God-- having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them." the man shouted.

"People in glass houses, killer."

Katar roared and rushed at the man. He swung raised his arms in mid-air, and brought the axe down towards the man's legs.
A loud clang, as two metals collided.
The scythe that was tattoed on the man's bicep, had reached out of it's place on his arm, catching Katar's axe.
The shock sent Katar crashing into a a set of chairs.

"Uuggh..What the.."

Katar got to his feet, only to see the man pull the tattooed scythe completely out of his arm.
The Tattooed Man wielded the weapon with animalistic anger.

"Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall."he screamed out, righteousness in his voice.
With a manic scream, he sprinted towards Katar. Katar attempted to rise to his feet, but his leg had been sprained. The man was now on top of him, his scythe bearing down on Katar.
He raised his axe and met the blow, the two weapons creating sparks.

"GAah" Katar screamed out the man's surprising strength. "I am so glad I won't have to take it easy on you!"

Emotionless, the man responded. "The Lord is with me; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me? "

As the man spoke, his eyes almost red with fury, Katar's hand formed a fist and flew up at his nose. The man's nose shattered and crimson poured down his face.

"RAAAAaaAARrrrgghhh!!! The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon become as blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord!!!"

The Tattooed Man swung his arms up towards the ceiling. The scythe became one with his body, returning to it's place in his arm. In it's stead, a roaring lion jumped from his chest.
With a loud growl, the lion sprang at Katar. He felt it's massive weight crash onto him, it's claws penetrate his shoulders.
With a scream, he fell on his back, the lion's teeth mere inches from his head.

"Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord!" Katar could barely hear the man from the screams of the beast.
Suddenly, the pain began to morph into something else, and Katar could feel a rage he hadn't felt since his rebirth without his love.

"ENOUGH!" he roared, rivaling the lion's growls. He jerked his knee upwards into the belly of the animal. It howled in pain, and Katar's hand was freed.
It shot outwards and soon he could feel the cold steel in his hands. With a sickening crunch, the lion's head was impaled on his axe.
As the lion's body went limp and fell onto the floor, the Tattooed Man fell to his knees and bellowed out in pain.

"NOOOOAOAAAaaAARGGHHH!!!"

Katar growled in anger, his pain fading. He rose to his feet, and walked towards the man, who was covered in sweat.

The Lord will......rescue me from ....every evil attack and will bring .....me safely to his heavenly kingdom.." he could barely speak.

"Tell him I said hello." Katar growled, sending the handle of his axe flying down into the man's face.







​

 

[Saved]

"SON OF A *****. MOTHER ******."

Roy fell to his knees in agony as the shaft pierces the tender flesh of his shoulder. He pulls off his wrist guard and bites down on the hard piece of leather, grimacing in pain as he pulls the arrow from the wound.

He turns to view his attacker, and sees an emotionless teenager.

"Rot in hell. **** Sucker."

He pulls a grenade arrow out and snaps the shell off triggering the timer.

"Hate to cut and run kid, but I don't feel like dancin' right now. Sides, don't want Chris Hansen on my case."

As the grenade exploded near Ollie's feet, Roy started running, using the ensuing smoke and dust as cover to lose his assailants.

(IC: Arsenal)

Ollie falls to the ground as the arrow explodes beneath his feet. He slips through the rubble, holding his head to protect him from the falling slabs of concrete. He lands inside a dumpster, the soft bags of trash cushioning his fall. Ollie quickly recovers, and gets his bearings.

"Alright, now I'm mad." He says with a sneer.

He jumps from the dumpster, and grabs his bow lying on the ground. He runs as fast as he can, trying to trail his target. The smoke becomes thicker and thicker, making his view more distorted the farther he goes.

"How am I suppossed to see through this?" He quietly asks himself. He looks around, and the answer quickly comes to him. "Man, why didn't I think of this before?" Ollie pulls five arrows from his quiver, and lines them on his bow. He aims his arrows in the air, and fires. Ollie stands still, watching the arrows flying high into the air as he smiles.

"Hey, Jolly Green *******! I hope the smoke isn't thick above your head!"

The arrows arch high in the air, and begin their decent back to the ground. As they fall faster and faster, they reach the cloud of dust and smoke, piercing the exterior with ease and form.

 

[Spike_x1]

Something's wrong. Superman's demenor... his body language... it's as if he's physically ill. Hard to believe, given his strength and endurance already displayed. Brainiac must have figured out a physical weakness of his and exploited it, admittedly... not unlike what I did to disband the OMAC sentients. But there's no time for second guesses. His question is... hard to deciepher. I've never encountered something like this, even confronted with the most advanced technology the world has to offer, through Wayne Enterprises. It's practically beyond my comprehension, much less an on-the-spot theory.

"I'm... I'm not sure,", I begin, stressing the importance of the situation. "This technology is too advanced for me to make a certain guess. But at this point, we might aswell try it. Any outcome is going to end the same, if we stall too much longer. If the wormhole still exists... we'll find another way. But right now, the ship is our more immediate problem."

I sneer at him, trying my best to... in my own way... push him to the end of his rather extraordinary limitations. It may be our only hope. I look up, seeing that our fall is increasing, as the rising sun beads down on us, through the hole in the ship's ceiling.

"Metropolis is your city, Superman...", I yell out. "Save it!"

Superman listened to Batman's words and looked at the wreckage around them. After a very brief moment of silence, he looked at Wonder Woman. "Get everyone out of here." His gaze then met Batman's, "Once the ship is high enough above Metropolis, detonate your explosives. We'll just have to pray that the destruction of the ship will also close the growing wormhole." His fellow heroes, even Batman, seemed to have a concerned look in their eyes. This was no time for hesitation. "Don't worry about me." He smiled and put a hand on Batman's shoulder, trading looks with both the Dark Knight and the Amazon Beauty.

With a loud Whoosh, Superman's feet left the floor as he flew out the large hole that was torn through the ceiling by Luthor's blast. When the sun's warmth and life-giving light struck him, it was like being born; his entire body felt like it was coming alive again after what Brainiac had done to him. There were simply no words to fully describe it.

**********​

Meanwhile, inside the ship, as everyone was preparing to depart, a loud creaking sound exploded from everywhere around them, from the very structure and framework of the ship; as above them, with his bare and bloody hands buried deep into the outer hull of the vessel, The Man of Tomorrow was literally pulling the great ship of the former tyrant, Brainiac, higher and higher into the sky. It was just a matter of bringing it high enough and destroying it before the wormhole reached too large a size where it wouldn't be containable inside the ship...

 

[Andy C.]

Superman listened to Batman's words and looked at the wreckage around them. After a very brief moment of silence, he looked at Wonder Woman. "Get everyone out of here." His gaze then met Batman's, "Once the ship is high enough above Metropolis, detonate your explosives. We'll just have to pray that the destruction of the ship will also close the growing wormhole." His fellow heroes, even Batman, seemed to have a concerned look in their eyes. This was no time for hesitation. "Don't worry about me." He smiled and put a hand on Batman's shoulder, trading looks with both the Dark Knight and the Amazon Beauty.

With a loud Whoosh, Superman's feet left the floor as he flew out the large hole that was torn through the ceiling by Luthor's blast. When the sun's warmth and life-giving light struck him, it was like being born; his entire body felt like it was coming alive again after what Brainiac had done to him. There were simply no words to fully describe it.

**********​

Meanwhile, inside the ship, as everyone was preparing to depart, a loud creaking sound exploded from everywhere around them, from the very structure and framework of the ship; as above them, with his bare and bloody hands buried deep into the outer hull of the vessel, The Man of Tomorrow was literally pulling the great ship of the former tyrant, Brainiac, higher and higher into the sky. It was just a matter of bringing it high enough and destroying it before the wormhole reached too large a size where it wouldn't be containable inside the ship...

( IC: )

Again, I'm in awe by the two men with whom I'd sided. As soon as this new problem had arisen, Batman was there to offer a possible solution. And with hardly a thought as to his own safety, Superman was willing to push himself to the seemingly impossible task of preventing this disaster.

I knew that there were things worth saving about the Patriarch's World. These two exemplify that better than anyone I've met.

Then the ship lurches and groans as Superman pulls on its frame, and I'm brought back to reality.

"It's time to go," I say, taking Batman and the sorceress by the hand and nodding to the green-skinned man, "There's nothing more we can do from in here."

A second later, and we're wheeling through the air, trying to put as much distance as we can between ourselves and the ship. If I can get the others to the ground in time, I may be able to head back up and help Superman. But from what Brainiac said before his demise, it might be just a question of getting rid of the worm-hole before it ruptures.

The fate of the world now lies in Superman's hands.

 

[Catman_prb]

Catman
​

The hand's of the clock continued moving, as Tom Blake sat in his drawing room, listening to a dictaphone recording over and over again.

" "When is the deal going down?"

"What deal....w-w-w-what are you talking about man?"

"Don't play dum with me. I know that a major drugs deal is going down in Gotham Docks sometime this week. I want to know when,"

"OH MY GOD! NOOOOOOOOO! I'll tell you. It's one o'clock at pier 5...just put the claws away man...AAAAARGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" "

And then the recording cut out. Tom looked at the clock. !2 midnight. He rang the bell near his hand, and a young black man came in, dressed in a suit.

"Yes Mr.Blake?"

"Evening Jarvis. I think i will have the...suit...tonight after all,"

"Yes Mr. Blake," he said, turning and walking upstairs. He shortly came back down with an orange and yellow suit, complete with cape and cowl.

"Thank you Jarvis," he said.

1pm Gotham Docks

Tom sat on the roof watching them. He'd been there for half an hour, just sitting and waiting. Of course they'd been here first, setting some things up, but the dealers had just arrived. One of them had brought a huge crate over. A huge black man with a shotgun, was standing guard over the crate. The other dealers had Uzi's. This was going to end in violence. It always did.

"We've been sent by Black Mask man. You're menna give us the stuff, and he'll negotiate later,"

"Mr Thorne told us specificaly, not to let this stuff go without the money in cash,"

"Well Black Mask told us to get it anyway possible," said the leader of Black Mask's thugs. Tom prepared to jump. The first gun rose. He jumped.

He landed on the leader of Black Masks men first. He'd been about to fire, Tom could tell, and once an Uzi started firing, it was hard to stop it. Tom knocked the gun out of his hands, and sent it spinning across the cobbled floor. Then he turned and knocked the pistol out of the hands of Thorne's man. They each had another three men with them, not including the black man near the crate.

He jumped in the air again, and landed on the head of one of them, bundling him over. Once he saw the gun had been dropped, he leapt into the man next to him, knocking him to the ground. One man had a rifle, which he hadn't seem before. He grabbed it, and threw it into the water. Again and again he disarmed them, and knocked them to the ground.

Eventually all the weapons had been disposed of. Except the black man. He hadn't moved yet. Tom was surrounded by eight angry thugs, who'd lost their weapons. Now was the easy part. He threw a strong upper-cut at Black Masks man, knocking him out cold, and breaking his jaw. From under his cape, he grabbed his set of claws, and slipped them on his fists, as he ducked and dived.

He made a flying kick at the man nearest him, followed by a spinning kick, laying the men around him low. Then he put the plastic cuffs on a couple of hands, before the men stood up again. He raised his hands, showing the claws.

"Either go down quietly, or i'll stab you. Got it?" he said, looking at each man in the eye. Two knelt down with their hands on their heads. The other five, all of them Thornes men, stayed their ground.

"Fine then," he said, grabbing the first one, and throwing him into a crate. He slid slowly down it, out cold at best. One was behind him with a knife, and Tom span, sticking his claws into his leg, he collapsed. He picked one up by the shirt, and threw him into another, bundling them both over. The last man looked at him with worried eyes. Tom leapt suddenly and picked him up by the throat, holding him out over the water.

"Got it?" he said, looking at him with cold eyes.

"Who are you?" he mumbled, choking. Tom raised his fist. He hit the man in the face.

"I'm - " he said then hit him again.

"THE GODDAM-" he shouted hitting him again.

"CATMAN!" he screamed, throwing him into the water. He turned, and the black man was standing right behind him, with the shotgun raised.

"Oh shi-"he began. The a huge black figure with wings came booming out of the sky, and grabbed the man and picked him up into the air. He came back down again with a sickening crack. The figure landed on the pier and a patch of moon-light shed some light on him.

"Crap. Out of the frying pan," he said, slipping his claws back on as the creature began to run towards him.

"Into the fire," he shouted as his fist connected with the creatures chin.
​

 

[Blacklight]

(IC: Brainiac)

The Kryptonian let loose with another blast of his heat-vision, only for it to deflect harmlessly off of Brainiac's shield. The Coluan machine responded in kind with blasts of energy, both from his hands and from hidden devices throughout the ship. Enough firepower to level an entire city block was being focused on Kal-El...and still, he would not fall.

"You are truly a marvel of this universe, Kal-El. I truly believe that the Master Programmer has intended for the circumstances of your upbringing to figure critically into the grand design. This is why it is so important that you survive...after a fashion."

The wormhole generator was charged. With a thought to his ship, Brainiac activated it. Superman suddenly found himself suspended in the air, held in place by forces he could not resist.

"The aperture in time-space is ready to receive you now, Kal-El. You will play a crucial role in the experiments conducted in my collection from now on. Every atom of your physical form, every thought and memory in your mind, every bit of your being is being distorted and copied and stretched throughout the wormhole, and soon will collapse back into you as you are transported into Kandor.

"You may wish to prepare yourself. I am told that this procedure is quite painful."

*****
MEANWHILE
*****





(IC: )

I wonder for a moment at these two new allies. The green man seems to have even more powers than I do, if his claims of telepathy are true. The sorceress is indeed powerful, perhaps too much so. To wield control over life and death is not something to be taken so lightly, but that's neither here nor there. At the moment, I am only concerned with saving these people.

"It's time we act. If we can push through the OMAC swarm, we may be able to penetrate the ship's defenses and help Superman and Batman confront Brainiac directly. If you truly are a psychic, then maybe you can use your abilities to cut off Brainiac's mental link to the OMACs. From there, we take down the monster once and for all."

Only then, when I take to the skies, do I see that our aide might be too late.






(IC: )

The OMACs are falling all around us, kicking up dirt and debris as they slam into the pavement. The sorceress slows down the descent of as many as she can, but as far as I can tell, the armor is still enough to protect most of the innocents inside as they hit. Thank Hera that the demented Brainiac is still somewhat concerned with preserving those he enslaves.

Suddenly, I'm nearly blinded by a ray of light. I can't be sure, but it looked as if it had come from the Tower where...

...Luthor.

The man had said that he intended to end this fight. If he's killed my allies in the process...

"Hurry! We have to get to the ship!"

*****

All throughout Brainiac's ship, alarms sounded. Somehow, the computer grid had been hacked, shorting out the connection to the OMAC force, and bringing down the shields. And in that moment, the ship was attacked from without, suffering critical damage.

The containment field holding Kal-El suddenly burst, releasing him from his bondage. As the Kryptonian fell to the floor, the half-opened wormhole began to contort, lashing out in arcs of horrible energy.

"No," Brainiac said to himself, "the plan was flawless! How could it--"

One of the arcs of light hit Brainiac, tearing his frame in half.

As the machine's optic sensors cut in and out, it lost track of time for a moment.

When its senses fully restored, the Amazon was standing in front of him, with the Batman and their newfound allies helping Superman to his feet.

"You have much to answer for, Brainiac. What happened here?"

"The ship has been incapacitated...the Batman somehow managed to sabotage the ship...simultaneously, Luthor took advantage of this and fired a Binary Fusion Cannon, striking the ship's generators."

The wormhole began to flare up again, swirling savagely in the center of the chamber. Suddenly, all of the beings in the room lifted from the floor, experiencing weightlessness.

"There is not much time left. Luthor's damage to the ship has just cut out the anti-gravity fields. We are now currently in a state of free-fall. The impact from this altitude will likely render Metropolis uninhabitable. However, such damage will be insignificant as the time-space aperture tears the planet apart and swallows the remains. At our current rate of acceleration, this will occur in approximately one minute and forty-five seconds."

The machine's electronic eyes flickered for a moment.

"I cannot stop this...but you can. Save...the experiment..."

Then Brainiac's eyes went dark for good, and the robot went limp.

Wow. That robot has some serious OCD issues.

Blood rushes to my head, as Superman and the rest... people of which I don't recognise, but entered through with Wonder Woman, fall upwards infront of me. I soon join them, as some of us hit the ceiling, with Wonder Woman and Superman suspended mid-air, able to control their ascension. What Brainiac told us may be true... but what he doesn't know is what else I had in store for his 'invasion'. I leap down, trying my best to fight the gravity, and grab onto Wonder Woman's wrist, to get her attention.

"Get them out of here! I rigged the ship's hulls with a pattern of C-4 explosives... it'll desenigrate the ship and possibly prevent Metropolis' destruction... but I can't activate them until we're clear!", I yell out. "Superman will need to take me! I may need him to get the ship higher in the air, to prevent any casualties!"

Damn the machine. Even in defeat, he may be responsible for the destruction millions of lives...

That vice sounds vaguely familiar...

Can it be...

I'll have to have a discussion with him later if he's who I think he is......

Superman stood straight and tried to shake away the sick feeling that had washed over him from whatever Brainiac was blasting at him with before. "The wormhole," he said, slightly groggily. "Batman, do you know if the ship's destruction will stop the wormhole?"

Something's wrong. Superman's demenor... his body language... it's as if he's physically ill. Hard to believe, given his strength and endurance already displayed. Brainiac must have figured out a physical weakness of his and exploited it, admittedly... not unlike what I did to disband the OMAC sentients. But there's no time for second guesses. His question is... hard to deciepher. I've never encountered something like this, even confronted with the most advanced technology the world has to offer, through Wayne Enterprises. It's practically beyond my comprehension, much less an on-the-spot theory.

"I'm... I'm not sure,", I begin, stressing the importance of the situation. "This technology is too advanced for me to make a certain guess. But at this point, we might aswell try it. Any outcome is going to end the same, if we stall too much longer. If the wormhole still exists... we'll find another way. But right now, the ship is our more immediate problem."

I sneer at him, trying my best to... in my own way... push him to the end of his rather extraordinary limitations. It may be our only hope. I look up, seeing that our fall is increasing, as the rising sun beads down on us, through the hole in the ship's ceiling.

"Metropolis is your city, Superman...", I yell out. "Save it!"

Superman listened to Batman's words and looked at the wreckage around them. After a very brief moment of silence, he looked at Wonder Woman. "Get everyone out of here." His gaze then met Batman's, "Once the ship is high enough above Metropolis, detonate your explosives. We'll just have to pray that the destruction of the ship will also close the growing wormhole." His fellow heroes, even Batman, seemed to have a concerned look in their eyes. This was no time for hesitation. "Don't worry about me." He smiled and put a hand on Batman's shoulder, trading looks with both the Dark Knight and the Amazon Beauty.

With a loud Whoosh, Superman's feet left the floor as he flew out the large hole that was torn through the ceiling by Luthor's blast. When the sun's warmth and life-giving light struck him, it was like being born; his entire body felt like it was coming alive again after what Brainiac had done to him. There were simply no words to fully describe it.

**********​

Meanwhile, inside the ship, as everyone was preparing to depart, a loud creaking sound exploded from everywhere around them, from the very structure and framework of the ship; as above them, with his bare and bloody hands buried deep into the outer hull of the vessel, The Man of Tomorrow was literally pulling the great ship of the former tyrant, Brainiac, higher and higher into the sky. It was just a matter of bringing it high enough and destroying it before the wormhole reached too large a size where it wouldn't be containable inside the ship...

( IC: )

Again, I'm in awe by the two men with whom I'd sided. As soon as this new problem had arisen, Batman was there to offer a possible solution. And with hardly a thought as to his own safety, Superman was willing to push himself to the seemingly impossible task of preventing this disaster.

I knew that there were things worth saving about the Patriarch's World. These two exemplify that better than anyone I've met.

Then the ship lurches and groans as Superman pulls on its frame, and I'm brought back to reality.

"It's time to go," I say, taking Batman and the sorceress by the hand and nodding to the green-skinned man, "There's nothing more we can do from in here."

A second later, and we're wheeling through the air, trying to put as much distance as we can between ourselves and the ship. If I can get the others to the ground in time, I may be able to head back up and help Superman. But from what Brainiac said before his demise, it might be just a question of getting rid of the worm-hole before it ruptures.

The fate of the world now lies in Superman's hands.

"I can teleport us away from here and may be able to stop the wormhole after Superman pushes the ship away enough. Unless you two think he can handle it?"

Wonder Woman and Batman looked focused as if they didn't hear me.

"Wonder Woman? Batman?"

I awaited an answer...

 

[trustyside-kick]

IC:

His goal was simple, but the means of achieving that said goal were not. The Church of Blood had already began to lose followers: non-believers. However, this Brother Blood did not wish to merely let the non-believers go un-punished. Sure, he too would relish the idea of the Church of Blood regaining its glory and its followers...but at the same time he had this boiling vengeance to slaughter all those who refused said membership.

Sitting on his throne in a completely empty tomb, Brother Blood began his plotting. He ponders about why people lost faith, and then he in general grows angry just thinking about the fact that the Church of Blood is on the brink of extinction.

"It isn't fair! My time should've brought the Golden Age to our Faith! Damn the fools! There is no greater Faith than the Church of Blood!"

He steps down from his throne in the forsaken tomb and walks around back and forth. And suddenly, it hits him. He believes he had found his flaw. It was Zandia itself. He smiles as his new plan comes to mind; one that shall restore the glory of the Church of Blood. Zandia's time had already passed and has been overdue. If the people of Zandia no longer wish to be saved by the Church of Blood, than so be it. He shall travel across the globe, and bring his glorious Faith to all of its corners.

"I shall indeed make this the Church of Blood's Golden Age! Yes. The entire world shall know Brother Blood. I shall rebuild the Church's infrastructure! Appoint new positions for higher members; members who have no lack of Faith! The seas of the Earth will be running with Blood."

And then another idea comes to his mind. A most devilish idea. An idea most devilish, he cannot help but smile wide and head out of the empty tomb. He never takes a look back at that pitiful excuse of a throne and exits to the entrance of the tomb.

"But before I depart, I must bid farewell to Zandia. I shall do well to pay a visit to its people. Genocide shall be my gift to those non-believers. Then, as I bathe in their blood, all will scream in agony as they give this most sacred offering to the Church of Blood!"

Laughing hysterically, Brother Blood begins to levitate and starts flying into the heart of Zandia: it's capital city. It is as he had proclaimed. All shall know the name Brother Blood, and all shall either embrace the Church of Blood or die for their lack of faith.