2,598Hunters of Justice (RWBY/DC)
Chapter 2: The Justice League
She was falling. The world around her was pure white light. No noise, no pain, no feeling. Ruby was just falling through the white void, struggling to stay awake, but everything just felt so…peaceful. Serene might be the better word for it.
Her vision began to blur as simply staying awake became a monumental struggle. Out of the corner of her eyes, she could see dark human-shaped blurs falling above her. She couldn't identify who was who, but she knew that they were her friends. That comforted her, somewhat, as that meant that they were still together.
Brainiac had taken everything else.
Her consciousness was fading now, but as she did, the white light that surrounded her grew even brighter, almost blinding. It soon disappeared, and the silence she was just beginning to grow accustomed to was replaced by sirens, horns, and other sounds straight out of a bustling city. Ruby could see blurry outlines of tall buildings shooting past her as she fell, and from the height of those buildings, Ruby could guess that she was very high up. Even if she had Aura, a fall from how high she thought she was would almost certainly be fatal. Yet, she somehow couldn't bring herself to care.
The last thing she felt before losing consciousness was soft yet strong arms gently catching her. She looked to see a man looking down on her in concern. Then, everything went black.
Five Minutes Earlier
"Lois, this is nuts!" Jimmy Olsen half-whispered, half-yelled to Lois as they continued to watch the Boom Tube pulse. By now, half of the Metropolis Police Department was getting into position around the portal, along with the US Army. After Darkseid, the White Martians, and the Thanarganians, they weren't taking any chances. Snipers were poking their rifles out of the nearby office buildings on nearly every floor, ready to pick off anything that might come out. A few tanks were lining up on the street, backed by missile trucks and a small army of uniformed police officers, SWAT, and soldiers. Sandbags were already being emplaced and fortified with rocket launchers and heavy machine guns. Apache gunships were hovering overhead, their weapons locked and ready to fire. Occasionally, a flight of A-10s could be seen flying overhead.
Yet, all of that paled to the man wearing red and blue spandex floating in front of all of them.
"Camera on the action, Jimmy," Lois immediately replied, her eyes never leaving the developing story in front of them. Already she was noting down every detail for the Daily Planet article she was going to write about this. The number of soldiers, police officers, tanks and everything in between. Still, she would be lying to herself if she said she wasn't at all nervous. Truth was, she was terrified. Boom Tubes were never a good sign, not by themselves but from what usually came out of them.
But, every time her gaze turned over to Superman, that fear lifted and was replaced with hope. He had that effect on people, her in particular. Whether he was wearing tights or a pair of glasses. If only he would simply tell her what she had already figured out.
"Lois, you're frowning again," Jimmy cut into her brooding. Shaking her head, Lois cleared her thoughts and focused on the action, pointedly ignoring the smirk Jimmy was giving her as he continued to take photos of everything in sight.
"J'onn, talk to me. What does the Watchtower say about the Boom Tube? Anything about what's coming through it?" Superman called out into his radio earpiece.
"Unknown," the ever-calm voice of J'onn J'onzz, the Martian Manhunter, replied over the radio. "All we can determine is that the Boom Tube's end point is not from Apokolips or any presently known location, and that the number of lifeforms inside is too small to get an accurate read for an estimate. A small group at most."
"Which means someone must have found a Mother Box and activated it, bringing them here. But why?" Superman mused, his eyes never leaving the growing pulsations high above the Metropolis skyline. Even after nearly half an hour of no signs of anything coming out, he was on guard and ready for whatever emerged.
"Flash, Batman, and Wonder Woman are already on their way and will be there soon, as are Hawkgirl and Green Lantern. I'll be down there momentarily as well."
"Negative, J'onn. We need you up there in mission control," the gravelly voice of Batman cut into the radio. Almost as soon as he did, a sleek black jet flew in from above and a black form ejected from it. Superman immediately recognized Batman's experienced dive and made no move to intercept. That decision turned to be accurate as Batman unfolded his cape and slowed his freefall into a graceful glide, landing next to Superman.
"And I'm already here," he finished speaking. If he didn't know any better, Superman would almost think Batman was amused in saying that, but this was Batman they were talking about.
"Aw, Bats beat me?" Barry Allen, the Flash, whined through the radio. "No fair! I got caught up stopping Boomerang and Captain Cold trying to rob the Central City Bank and Mirror Master trying to kill me. Again."
"How soon can you get here?" Batman ignored the whining, earning an amused chuckle from the Kryptonian.
"Be there in about five minutes. I'd be there sooner, but there was a wreck on I-76. Gotta drop them off at a hospital first."
"Keep us posted. Superman out." Clicking the radio off, Superman momentarily took his eyes off the Boom Tube to look at Batman, whose expression remained grim as he studied the phenomenon intensely. "So, any thoughts?"
"It's not Apokolips," Batman immediately replied, "otherwise we'd already have an army of Parademons coming through. Given how long the Boom Tube's been open, its likely that either the Boom Tube wasn't opened properly, or the distance is extremely far from Earth, possibly both."
"Agreed. Would explain why it's still forming." Superman turned his attention back to the Boom Tube. It's pulsing was growing faster by the second. That could only mean that whatever was inside would be through momentarily. "Who would have a Mother Box, though?"
"That's a question we'll have to ask whoever used it," Batman replied. Suddenly, the pulsations stopped as the Boom Tube fully materialized, a white circle hovering over the city. At once the sounds of safeties being flipped off and rockets moving into position sounded off around them. Batman tensed, his hand reaching for a batarang, but Superman stayed calm. He focused on the Boom Tube, trying to see whatever was coming through. He could faintly see some dark shapes coming through it.
"Rao," Superman muttered as the first shape fell through the portal. It wasn't a parademon, a robot, or some other alien menace.
It was a child. A broken, unconscious child falling through the air like a lead brick.
Without a second thought, Superman flew through the air as fast as he could towards the falling child. He could see it was a young girl, at most sixteen years of age, wearing a tattered skirt with leggings. Her hair was the darkest red he had ever laid his eyes on, appearing almost black before showing its true color at the tips. Clutched to her side was a dark metallic Mother Box, answering the question as to how she got here. His attention, however, was no longer on the Mother Box. Dark bruises marred her otherwise pale skin, some of which became painfully obvious as he gently caught her. For a moment, she looked at him as if she were surprised that she didn't die, revealing her silver eyes to him before finally falling unconscious.
"Get her down here, now!" Batman ordered, already directing medics to receive the girl. Just as Superman turned to gently fly down, seven more bodies fell out of the Boom Tube. Two boys and five girls. This time, they were accompanied by a rain of black globs and a large tube of a tar-like substance, along with several battered weapons, but Superman paid them no heed. He was already on the nearest child, a blond boy wearing shattered white armor over a rabbit-marked hoodie, then turned into a blur to catch the rest of the falling children. Like the silver-eyed girl, they too were unconscious and heavily injured. One girl's arm was completely shattered.
"Who did this to you?" he asked, mostly to himself as he gently carried the eight children to the street. A stretcher was already waiting for him, with seven more being rolled out by Army medics. As his feet touched the ground, he turned into a blur once more to gently lay the children on the stretchers and watched as they were carried off to a nearby medical tent.
"They were only children," Superman breathed out, continuing to watch them being carried away. "What happened to them?"
"Whoever did this…" Batman clenched his fist in anger.
"Wait, hold up. What's this about children?" Flash called out over the radio, his voice sounding concerned.
"Eight teenagers, mostly women, fell out of the Boom Tube," Batman immediately responded. "All were beaten and unconscious. Wounds and bruising indicate blunt force trauma."
"Someone beat up children!?'" Flash was angry now. "What the hell?! I'm almost there!"
"Hurry," Batman replied as he turned back towards where the Boom Tube was just a moment ago. It was gone now, telling him that nothing else was coming through. For a moment, he allowed himself to think it might be over, only for him to remember the tar that fell through earlier. To his alarm, the substance was leaking out of the large tube, and the droplets from before were beginning to accumulate into a large pool. The army had begun to take notice and aimed their weapons at the black mass, a few nervously swaying as the pool began to bubble and churn.
"I'm beginning to think that wasn't tar," Superman announced as he floated next to Batman. His vision cycled through every wavelength, trying to see what it was. All he saw was a dark void. "What in the world…?"
Before Batman could ask what he saw, the pool began to move. A large body slowly rose out of the pool, black tar dripping off of its form to reveal a black mass of fur underneath. More tar fell away to reveal bone-white protrusions lining its body, including a skull-like mask over its snout. It looked vaguely like a wolf, if that wolf walked on two legs and looked like it used them to escape Hell. Hundreds of red dots marked the wolf-like creature, only for more to come out of the pool beside it, splitting everyone's attention. Other shapes then appeared, only these looked like large bears or a strange dinosaur-like creature that was mostly jaws.
The first wolf shifted its gaze around lazily as everyone tried to determine what to do. Several were beginning to grow fearful, which only increased once the creatures turned their attention towards them. Then, at once, they all roared and began to charge.
"Open fire!" At once, a rain of fire descended onto the black horde. A series of large explosions, both from missiles and tank shells, annihilated many, bullets carving through their thin hides like hot knives through butter. Yet, as a single creature went down, five more rose out of the pit to take its place. The army continued to cut them down, but as more rose up they began to notice how more armored creatures started appearing. These were more durable, bullets and missiles not affecting them as much but they still fell against the onslaught. Still, they began to charge towards the army, ignoring their fallen brethren as they snarled. Bullets and missiles tore into the creatures, several of them slain, but the rest continued their advance. As one neared a terrified Metropolis police officer, a red and blue blur slammed into the black wolf into a nearby building. The force cracked the concrete, forming a small crater as Superman held the creature in place, its jaws and forelimbs struggling to free itself yet doing nothing to the Kryptonian. Taking in a deep breath, Superman blew freezing air out of his pursed lips at the creature, forming crystals of ice that froze the beast solid. He couldn't rest, however, as screams rang out behind him. Turning around, Superman saw more creatures descending onto the army, their weapons proving mostly useless as the soldiers fired desperately into the swarming mass. At once, red beams of intense heat shot out of Superman's eyes, burning holes into the creatures and carving many into smoking husks.
"Captain, move your men back, now! Focus on keeping them contained!" Superman ordered as he blurred between several different creatures at once, delivering powerful punches to each one in his path. The supersonic blows created loud booms that shattered glass along with creating small divots in the road beneath him. Idly, he noted a few stray shots bouncing off of his skin, but he paid them no heed. They weren't hurting him, after all. He could hear the sounds of the soldiers falling back, several of them continuing to fire and covering their retreat. A few creatures made to go after them, but Superman quickly moved towards the attackers and destroyed them.
"What are these things?!" Superman yelled as he killed another creature. Thick black smoke was beginning to fill the air, and with wide eyes he realized they were being emitted from the creatures' corpses. "They're disintegrating!"
"I know!" Batman shouted as he dived away from one of the large bear-like creatures, its powerful claws breaking a concrete pillar in half. As he did, he threw a trio of batarangs towards it, only to note that the devices merely sank into the fur to no effect.
"Hmmph," he growled as he rolled to his feet. Again, the creature leapt towards him, forcing Batman to pull out his grappling gun and zip to a nearby balcony. Given how the massive creature created a large crater where he once stood, he was glad he did. To his side, one of the wolves reared up and leapt ten feet into the air, landing on the balcony with him. Taking a defensive posture, Batman ducked and weaved around the wolf's wild swings, occasionally throwing a few punches and kicks for good measure. Like the batarangs from before, they did nothing, and as the wolf swung its arms in downward swings, Batman backflipped away and spring boarded off his hands. As he flew through the air, he threw another trio of batarangs at the creature, only this time when they sank into fur, a red dot began rapidly blinking on each of them before violently exploding in a ball of concussive fire. That had an effect on the creature, disorienting it enough for the crimefighter to rain rapid punches on its skull. The earlier resistance came back and forced Batman to kick away from the wolf, leaving behind a spray of foam on its chest. Idly, the creature noted it and poked the substance with one of its claws, almost as if in curiosity. This was all the distraction Batman needed as he detonated the explosive foam, the force destroying the chest cavity and throwing the wolf off the balcony. Black smoke emitted from the street below, telling Batman it was dead.
Without pause, Batman grappled over to another balcony on the other side of the street, one that offered a higher vantage point on the chaos below. Superman was still handling most of the creatures on the ground, none of them standing a chance against the infinitely strong alien, but several kept attempting to attack the retreating army, forcing him to break off and kill the stragglers. This meant that the pool wasn't being taken care of, despite the fact that the gunships were firing everything they had into it.
More creatures were rising out of the pool, a few in particular looking like large birds. Many were immediately filled with holes and began disintegrating, but a few managed to surviving the onslaught. Then, as the birds spread their wings and cawed, they took off into the air and shot large feathers at the helicopters firing at them. The Apaches attempted to dodge, but it was too late. The large feathers pierced the armor and glass cockpits, showering the insides with red sprays as the gunships spun out of control and crashed onto the ground. Most of them exploded on contact, but one didn't and merely skidded across the ground. Through the shattered glass, Batman saw the copilot struggling to free herself as several of the creatures swarmed her, only for explosive batarangs to be thrown at the horde, detonating on impact. Now disoriented, Batman exploited the opening and grappled over to the downed helicopter, shattered the glass with a well-aimed punch, and pulled the pilot out of her seat. Just as the creatures began to reorient themselves, Batman clasped the pilot close to his side and grappled the two of them to safety, dropping her off next to one of the snipers in a nearby building.
"Thank you, Batman!" she cried out as one of the spotters began tending to her. With a silent nod, Batman went back out to another vantage point, and with a grimace he watched as creatures continued to appear from the pool.
"We need to destroy that pool!" Batman yelled over the radio as surface-to-air missiles shot down the avian creatures, only for more birds to appear and fire feathers at the launchers, destroying them. He pressed a few buttons on his gauntlet before diving away from a number of feathers being fired towards him. As he fell, he grappled to another ledge away from the leaping jaws, dropping down freeze grenades as he did. Filled with the same compound used in Victor Fries' freeze gun, the creatures became sealed in blocks of ice, but a few quickly began cracking as the creatures struggled to free themselves.
"Working on it!" Superman shouted as he flew up to one of the birds at supersonic speeds. The force of the impact crumpled the large avian, the ensuing shockwave shattering many glass panels. He then blew hurricane-force winds at another bird, sending it crashing into the ground and crushing many creatures under its massive body. While it struggled to get up, two beams of heat burned into its skull, boiling the brain and killing it instantly. Like the others, its body began to turn into smoke. The two remaining birds cried out and turned away.
"They're getting away!" Superman yelled out as he prepared to fly after them.
"No, stay here! I'll take care of them!" Batman countered as the Batwing flew back in, firing machine guns and missiles into the horde below. It paused to hover overhead, allowing Batman to grapple into the underside. He pushed another button on his gauntlet, and the underside of the plane opened and descended, allowing him to climb inside and strap himself to the pilot seat. With another roar of the engines, the Batwing flew off after the large birds.
"Be careful!" Superman called out over the radio as the Batwing disappeared behind a building while he flew back down to the street below. His landing created a powerful shockwave, lifting the ground beneath him and launching several of the creatures into the air with broken, mangled bodies. By now almost all of their attention was on him, completely ignoring the fire from the army, now a respectable distance away. A few times tank shells and missiles exploded across the horde, but they paid them no heed as they focused entirely on Superman. He could only guess that they recognized him as the bigger threat.
They were right, but that didn't mean they could do anything about it as Superman grabbed one of the dinosaur-like creatures and ripped it in half. He threw one smoking chunk at a large bear and another at one of the wolves, only for a spikier bear to crash into him. It raised its arms and swung downward, only for the claws to shatter against his body. Smirking, Superman delivered a supersonic headbutt onto the creature, shattering its skull and causing it to fall backwards. Black smoke wisped off of it as Superman prepared to attack another one, only for a red blur to zoom through several at once.
"Sorry I'm late," Flash smiled as he vibrated in place. A nearby wolf moved to attack him, only for Flash to turn into a blur as he punched it into a heaping black mass. As it keeled over, it began to turn into smoke and the other creatures paused and looked at the two warily. "What are these things?"
"No idea, but they aren't alive," Superman revealed as the creatures stirred among themselves. "They keep coming out of that nearby pool, but I can't get to it and risk the creatures going after anyone."
"Well then, we need to buy you that opening," Flash stated as he faced the creatures. At once, the horde charged them yet again, only this time a few of them ran off in separate directions.
"I got 'em!" Flash yelled as he ran after the creatures. The world slowed as the fastest man alive ran through the horde, delivering punches to each creature he passed. The force shattered whatever part of the body he struck, whether it be arm, chest, or head until he finally arrived at his targets. He grabbed one and threw it into another, the bony spikes impaling the thrown creature while he shattered the skull of the other. By now, the other creatures were slowly beginning to realize what was happening, but their attempts to counter were like moving through molasses to the Flash. In an instant, he delivered a hurricane of punches and jabs to one of the creatures' chest, shattering its ribs and what he could only assume to be its internal organs. Black blood dripped from its jaws as it slowly began to keel over, and Flash moved onto another target to deliver a supersonic spin kick. The kick decapitated the wolf, rocketing its head into the chest of one of the bears, caving it in and causing half of it to explode. The last one had begun to swing its claws at where Flash was just a few seconds ago, and with a smirk he vibrated his arms and stabbed it through its back then pulled out a dark red and still beating heart.
"Ew, ew!" he whined as he threw the heart away. The world suddenly turned to normal as the group he had dealt with began to turn into smoke. Another creature attempted to swipe at him, only for its head to explode from the concentrated fire of several snipers.
"Thanks, guys!" Flash gave a thumbs up before running back into the horde. He could see Superman was continuing to draw the creatures' attention, and as he raced to help his comrade, he stopped as a large glob began to emerge from the pool. It dwarfed all the others and drew Superman's attention as the tar began to fall away, revealing white tusks and a large hairless body.
"It's…an elephant…" Flash numbly noted before being struck by one of the bears. He hurtled through the air and struck a metal trash can, caving it in while breaking his impromptu flight. As the bear advanced, a green rocket struck the bear and disintegrated it. More green lights appeared, taking the shape of several different weapons, including swords and axes, which began to carve the horde apart.
"Thanks, GL," Flash noted as he rose to his feet, "but I had it handled."
"Dammit, Flash, take this seriously!" John Stewart, a Green Lantern, chastised Flash as he created a green minigun and began firing it into the horde. At the same time, Hawkgirl flew in from above and, using her nth metal mace, descended onto the creatures and began swinging.
"Huagh!" she yelled as she crushed the skull of a bear under her swing. "They just keep coming!" Another wolf attempted to attack her from behind, only for her to extend out one of her wings and strike it back. Green Lantern prepared to fire upon it, only for an armored woman to fall out of the sky and crush it underfoot.
"Diana," Green Lantern greeted the Wonder Woman, who smiled warmly even as more of the black creatures descended upon her. She unsheathed her sword and began to cleave her way through them, using her shield to block a downward swipe from a bear. The force buckled the ground beneath her, but rather than seem worried, she seemed amused. She swiped upward, cleaving the bear in half from hip to shoulder, and as the smoking body fell away, she leapt back from more of the creatures.
"What are these things?" she asked as another attacked her. She kicked it away, her Amazonian strength caving in the chest while hitting yet another creature's neck with her shield, breaking it with a loud crack.
"Was kind of hoping you knew!" Green Lantern shouted as he grabbed hold of several of the creatures in a green stasis field. They struggled to break free, only for the former marine to crush them inside the sphere. He then threw the shattered remains at the largest elephant he had ever seen, which was currently wrestling with Superman.
"We need to keep them contained! Flash, maintain the perimeter!" Diana ordered as she unfurled her lasso and hurled the loop towards one of the wolves. She then twisted it around her leg while blocking another claw with her shield and stabbing a wolf through the underside of the jaw then pulled her leg back. The lassoed creature swung through the air, knocking over anything in its path, whether it be cars, concrete pillars, or one of its own. As it skidded to the ground, she pulled the lasso towards her and then met the wolf with the tip of her sword, stabbing it through the open maw. It stirred slightly before going still.
"It's like they have no minds of their own," Diana observed as she chopped off a dinosaur-like creature's head. "They should have retreated by now!"
"I noticed!" Superman grunted as he continued to wrestle with the elephant.
Suddenly, a massive scorpion-like creature emerged from the pool and crashed into Superman, knocking him through a wall. The two giants then turned towards the still firing army and began to charge. Wonder Woman lassoed one of the elephant's tusks and attempted to hold it in place, but it merely turned its head and swung her into a nearby building then continued its charge. By now the entirety of the army's firepower was focused on the charging creatures. Bullets burrowed into them while rockets exploded across the thick hide and bony armor, but they still continued their stampede. Green Lantern attempted to erect green brick walls to stop the charge, but the elephant and scorpion merely broke through them. Then the tanks began firing both the gunner's machine gun and the main cannons at them, the blasts staggering them. Yet, they continued to advance, forcing the tanks to back up while firing. The scorpion finally went down and began to smoke, while the elephant made it to the nearest tank and crushed it underfoot. Soldiers began to scream and fire wildly at the creature, but their weapons didn't faze it as it stabbed another tank with its tusks then hurled it towards a group of soldiers. With a final scream, they ducked down and covered their heads in a futile attempt at shielding themselves, only for the crushing weight to never come. Looking up, they saw Superman holding the wrecked tank in place while firing his heat vision at the elephant, halting its advance and throwing it to the ground.
"Don't worry, I got this handled," he said as he gently laid the tank on the ground. Flying to the top of the turret, he pried open the tank and gently helped the shaken survivors out. He then grabbed hold of the barrel and, like a baseball bat, swung the tank into the side of the creature's head, caving part of it in and breaking one of the tusks in half. Dazed, the creature attempted to fight on, only for Superman to grab hold of it and wrestle it to the ground. It continued to struggle, even as Superman threw powerful punches at the creature, each blow creating a shockwave and crushing part of its skull. Finally, he grabbed the remaining tusk, ripped it off, and stabbed the elephant through the eye, killing it instantly.
The soldiers watched amazed as Superman flew back into the fray, with a few of them beginning to cheer, even as they continued to fire at any creature that attempted to flee. They heard a roar of jets overhead as the Batwing returned, flanked by two A-10s, chasing the final bird before firing upon it with their machine guns. The high caliber rounds tore into the avian, sending it plummeting into the horde below which was joined by the A-10s strafing run, eliminating most of the remaining creatures. It was then that an underside compartment opened underneath the Batwing, revealing a single bomb that dropped towards the pool. It exploded on contact, releasing a cloud of freezing gas that froze everything it touched completely solid, including the pool.
"What was that?" Flash asked, returning from taking out a few stragglers while Batman ejected from the Batwing.
"Fermionic gas, supercooled to a few degrees above absolute zero," Batman revealed as he glided to a stop. "Had to freeze the Gotham River once, long story."
"I would very much like to hear that story."
"No."
"Aw, man."
"What if I want to hear the story?" Diana gently asked as she walked over to them, an amused smile on her face. Batman said nothing as he walked over to the frozen tar pool. Taking out a small hammer from his utility belt, he broke up a frozen chunk and held it to his face, closely examining it.
"Hmm, no traces of any organic material," he noted as his cowl scanned the substance in front of him. He then turned to the Flash and tossed him the frozen piece, who clumsily bounced it between his hands before finally catching it.
"We need more samples of this. Find out exactly what these things are," Batman revealed as he continued to take samples. "We can use the equipment on the Watchtower to better analyze the substance."
"I'm on it," Flash nodded before turning into a blur. He began taking more and more samples off of the frozen pool as well as a few off of the creatures themselves. Those he ended up discarding immediately as they simply turned to dust in his hand.
"That's weird," Flash noted as he continued to collect samples. Finally, when he had gathered an armful of samples, he returned to Batman as he motioned to Superman, who was hovering overhead.
"You all set?" the Kryptonian asked, to which Batman silently nodded. He nodded back then stared at the pool. His eyes burned red before twin beams of heat shot out from them, striking the center of the frozen pool. The ice turned red and boiled hot, and the black tar underneath began to burn away as did the frozen corpses. After a few minutes of concentration, he stopped, and nothing was left.
At once, cheers echoed around them as police, soldiers, and citizens of both Metropolis and the world celebrated their heroes' victory. All except for one, who watched with contempt down from his tower.
"So they won again," the bald man muttered, his arms crossed behind his back. As soon as the Boom Tube opened, he had retreated to his tower. No doubt existed in his mind that, with the alien already present, whatever came through would be repulsed. That wasn't to say that he didn't hope that the alien would fall, but he had to acknowledge the inevitable. Very few beings could hope to stand against the Man of Steel and hope to emerge victorious.
He was one of them.
"Mr. Luthor," an Asian woman announced as she walked into the penthouse, wearing a dark brown suit and holding a clipboard in her hand. "We were able to contain one of the creatures and a few samples of the tar-like substance. The tar is being transported back to one of LexCorp's offshore labs, but the creature…committed suicide and disintegrated upon being contained."
"Is that so?" Lex Luthor asked as he continued to watch the so-called heroes below. The woman nodded, and Lex shook his head. "Unfortunate, but at least it wasn't a total loss. How many of the mercenaries survived?"
"Out of twenty, five were killed and ten were crippled."
"Tragic," Lex's voice was insincere, "Ensure they can't be traced back to LexCorp."
"I already sent in the order," she responded with a smirk. "As far as the world is concerned, twenty police officers heroically lost their lives trying to bring the creatures down."
"Schedule a press conference to commemorate their loss and their families, along with the other lives lost today," Lex said as he turned to face the woman. "Oh, and Mercy? Find out everything you can about the aliens that came through before the creatures."
"Of course, sir."
"They're all so young," Diana muttered as she watched over the unconscious teenagers. IV's connected them to saline bags while monitors displayed their heartbeats and blood pressures. Medics tended to them, already applying a cast to a red-haired girl wearing armor that looked like it came straight out of ancient Greece. If Diana didn't know any better, she'd think the girl was an Amazon like her.
"Do you think the creatures did this?" Superman asked as he looked into their bodies with his x-ray vision. "They have some bruising and broken bones, but luckily no internal bleeding or ruptures."
"No, none of their wounds indicate an animal attack," Batman observed. "We'd see bite marks, gashes, or similar wounds. All we have are bruises and broken bones."
"And burns. A lot of burns," Green Lantern noted. "From what I can see, plasma bolts. Low intensity, but that's usually combined with a lot of 'em."
"You mean someone was shooting at them, too?" Flash asked with wide-eyes. "Darkseid?"
"If it was Darkseid, they'd be dead already," Superman grimly pointed out. "No, this was someone else."
"Someone who had a Mother Box," Hawkgirl pointed out and shook her head. "This entire thing is just turning into one big mess. What are we going to do?"
"We take them to the Watchtower," Batman noted, drawing everyone's attention.
"You can't be serious," Diana protested.
"I am." The others moved to protest further, but Batman silenced them by holding up his hand. "Just in case you haven't fully realized, they had a Mother Box with them. One of the most powerful supercomputers in the universe, capable of things we can barely comprehend, and they had one. That can only mean trouble, and the Justice League is the most equipped to handle it."
"Are you saying they're a threat?" Green Lantern accused, to which Batman merely stared him down.
"No. They aren't a threat. Whatever did this," he pointed to them in emphasis, "is. We don't know where they came from or who had the Mother Box before they got it. I can only assume that its previous owner is responsible for their injuries."
"And it's highly likely that they'll come here, next," Superman finished Batman's thought.
"Yes." Batman nodded. "There's another reason why we need to take them to the Watchtower."
"Waller and Luthor," Diana realized with a grimace.
"Exactly. Eight unconscious aliens just fell out of the sky and were followed by hostile creatures, the likes of which we had never seen before. They and others like them are going to want to know exactly what they are."
"No matter what happens to them," Superman nodded. "I'm with Batman. We take them up to the Watchtower."
"When you put it like that, so am I," Flash agreed. Diana and the others nodded as well.
"I'll go talk to General Swanwick, get him to release them into our custody. J'onn, prepare the teleporter," Superman spoke into the radio.
"Already prepped and ready. Green Arrow and Black Canary are on standby to take them to the medical bay," J'onn's voice rang out.
"Thanks. Oh, and Lois," Superman suddenly turned around to face the entrance to the tent. At first, no one was there, only for a young brunette to step out, followed by a young man with freckles and red hair. "If you could make sure no pictures of them make it into the Daily Planet tomorrow…?"
"Don't worry, Superman," Lois smiled and shook her head. "But, I will expect an interview later."
"Always itching for that story, aren't you?" Superman smiled. "I'll be sure to let you know."
"Of course." Lois nodded. With a nod of his own to both the reporter and his fellow superheroes, Superman walked out of the tent and straight to General Swanwick. A tall, dark man, it wasn't hard to spot him next to Colonel Hardy and Major Farris.
"Superman," the general nodded to him. "I imagine this isn't a simple hello. What is it you need?"
Orbiting above the Earth, inside the largest space station in human history, a man and a woman watched several tv monitors at the same time. All of them were tuned to different news stations from different countries around the world, from the United States to China. All were reporting the same thing.
Attack in Metropolis: Precursor to Invasion?
Justice League Defends Metropolis from Alien Creatures.
Battle in Metropolis between Justice League and Alien Creatures Creates Devastation and Chaos.
It was easy to see which news outlets were favorable to their actions and which ones were not.
"It never ends, does it?" the woman asked. She was wearing a black-and-yellow leather suit and pants, with the pants cut along the side to reveal the fishnets and white skin underneath. Her shoulder length blonde hair draped behind her, and the man beside her couldn't help but stare. He was wearing a green ranger outfit, slightly armored while wearing a green cap. His combed blond hair was completed by an equally blond beard, carefully shaved while his eyes were covered by a green domino mask.
"Ollie, you're staring again," Dinah Lance, the Black Canary, said with a confident smirk.
"Oh, sorry," Oliver Queen, the Green Arrow, said while turning back to the monitor. "This is turning out to be quite the mess."
"That it is," Black Canary nodded. "At the very least, no major news organizations have picked up on the children yet."
"But they know eight people fell through before the creatures did," Green Arrow pointed out. "If we aren't careful, those kids will have their faces plastered all over the eight o'clock news. We can't let that happen."
"Amen to that." The two superheroes lapsed back to contemplative silence, continuing to watch the TV monitors in front of them. By now, several news outlets were shifting focus to a press conference held by Lex Luthor, who was offering praise and condolences to the brave men and women who gave their lives defending Metropolis from the creatures. He was even setting up a fund to support their grieving families, starting with a substantial donation from LexCorp.
All of the stations were owned by him of course, and while some of the money would go towards the families, most would undoubtedly be funneled back into LexCorp as a tax write off, allowing him to use the money for illegal weapons development and research. It sickened them both, but so far nothing they've done to him has managed to stick. He was just too rich and powerful for anyone to nail.
"Green Arrow, Black Canary," J'onn's voice suddenly rang out over the intercom, "I just received word from Superman. The General has released the children into our custody, and they will be in the teleporting bay momentarily."
"On our way," Green Arrow immediately answered as he and Black Canary moved off the railing. Moving at a brisk pace, they walked through the corridors of the Watchtower towards the central teleporter. Soon they found themselves at the automatic doors to the circular room. A large terminal stood in front of a central pad, with a single man working at the instruments diligently.
"Mister Terrific," Green Arrow greeted as the world's third smartest man waved at them from behind his back. Covering his face was a painted black T, easily visible against his dark skin. Clad in red and white, three metal orbs with red T's on them hovered around his shoulders, helping to monitor the complex Apokolips-derived technology before them.
"Queen, Lance," he said from over his shoulder. "Teleporter's looking good. Fluctuations normal, and everything is green. Bringing them over now."
"Do you really have to do this every time?" Dinah asked with an amused smile.
"Yes, otherwise your atoms would get shot apart from one another. You'd get arms where legs were supposed to be, bodies molded into steel, entire organs missing, or even two organisms merging with one another. And those are the good options."
"Point taken," Dinah conceded with her hands raised up. With an amused shake of his head, Mister Terrific pressed the final activation key and watched as the teleporter shone with a column of shimmering light. Slowly at first, the bodies of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and the other on-site League Members appeared, along with the eight unconscious bodies of the alien children.
"Goddamn," Oliver whispered as he took in their condition. Laying in gurneys, their injuries were plain to see. "They look like they just got out of a warzone. What the hell happened?"
"We don't know," Superman replied as the patients were wheeled to the medical bay. "They were like this before the creatures…spawned, and Batman doesn't think those things caused this."
"Any leads?"
Superman shook his head. "Right now, your guess is as good as mine."
"I'll be in the lab, working on the samples," Batman stated as he took some samples from Flash's hands. "With any luck, they might shed some light on what those things are."
"I can tell you one thing," Flash said as he walked towards the entry door. "those things were not natural. I'll meet you at the lab, Bats." With a parting nod, Barry ran off towards the lab, leaving a small gust of wind in his wake.
"I'll go with John, see what I can do to help them heal," Superman declared. Batman silently nodded at the alien, who walked away with Diana, Oliver, and Dinah in tow. He then gave an acknowledging look at Mister Terrific, who nodded back before Batman silently left the teleporter bay.
Everything was warm now. It was strange. She expected the ground to be hard and foreboding, not soft and welcoming. It was a good strange, though. Familiar, even. It was nice.
Vision slowly came to her, albeit heavily blurred. White sheets covered her body, which was itself wearing a white hospital gown. Was she in a hospital? How long was she out? Were her friends with her? She hoped they were.
She could see a tube extending out of her arm now. It was thin and transparent, with a clear liquid running through it and into her arm. The name escaped her, but she knew the substance was helping her heal, so she left it in. Besides, she was just too tired to try and move.
Now she could see a figure on the far end of the room. It looked to be a man working at a terminal that kept beeping. Frankly, it was annoying, but then the man turned towards her. Somehow, he had noticed that she was stirring and was now coming to check on her. She felt relief.
That relief disappeared as soon as she saw his green skin. At once, uncontrollable fear rippled through her body, and the incessant beeping became alarmingly fast. Her vision, once steadily improving, was now getting darker and blurrier by the second. The man seemed alarmed and was rushing over to her, and her fear increased.
"Brainiac…" she whispered in panic before finally losing consciousness once more.
"Jesus, what is this stuff?" Barry muttered as he stared at the frozen sample through a microscope. His mask was down, revealing his short brown hair. His face was scrunched in confusion as he tried to wrap his brain around the material before him. They had spent the last several hours poking and prodding at their dwindling supply of samples, and so far it defied explanation. "I'm not seeing any organic structures in here. Just black goo."
"Spectrograph doesn't match any known element on the periodic table," Batman added, his voice slightly betraying his confusion. "No trace of organic compounds in its composition. It's all one uniform substance."
"One that doesn't react to any external stimuli. Intense heat burns it away and ice can contain it, sure, but it doesn't conduct electricity, doesn't have a boiling point, and it doesn't actually freeze. It's just in a…permanent liquid state. The creepiest part, though, is that things go in and just don't come out. I prodded it with a rod and it ate it." Flash held up the metal rod, bite marks clearly seen.
"Except for the black creatures." Batman was now looking at recordings of the battle, taken from security cameras, body cameras, and risk-taking reporters. "They seem to react acutely to emotions. Specifically fear, which seems to increase agitation. Possible extreme predatory instinct that overrides survival instinct."
"You seem unsure."
"Nature of decomposition indicates that the creatures are not biological." Batman typed away on a monitor, documenting their findings. "No trace of any body, and despite the number of creatures that emerged from the tar, the level never decreased. I can only assume the vaporization is connected. You were right, Flash. These things are not natural."
"Magic?"
"Probably. I'll get in touch with John Constantine. He might be able to figure out what this stuff is. Either him or Zatanna."
"Doctor Fate might be able to help as well," Flash added. "Maybe we—"
"Flash, Batman, you are needed in the medical bay immediately!" J'onn suddenly declared over the intercom.
"J'onn, what's wrong?" Batman asked as he rose to his feet and walked to the door.
"One of the children woke up."
By the time the two arrived in the medical bay, all of the League Founders were standing in the room, watching the children for any signs of activity. So far, all were silent.
"So, run it by me again?" Flash asked, his eyes darting between the Martian Manhunter and the eight patients.
"It is as I said. I was monitoring their vitals and running blood tests when the silver-eyed girl woke up. When I went to check on her, she suffered a panic attack upon seeing me and promptly passed out. Whether it was due to fear or fatigue, I do not know. Before she did, she mentioned the name Brainiac."
"Brainiac," Superman muttered. "That name sounds familiar. I might have seen it before in my father's memories. I should check the Fortress to be sure."
"Tell us what you find," Batman responded before turning towards J'onn. "Have the blood tests finished?"
"They did just before the girl awoke," he revealed. "The results are…interesting."
"In what regards?" Shayera asked, her helmet placed on a nearby metal table.
"For starters, they are almost identical to humans. Same internal organ structure, cellular composition, DNA structure, number of chromosomes and neural pathways. The blonde girl is the half-sister of the silver-eyed girl from a paternal lineage, the others share no relations among them. No evidence of genetic tampering or modifications, as well. There are, however, a few key distinctions." J'onn turned towards a nearby screen and activated it. Pictures of their DNA appeared, with several sections highlighted and emphasized while X-Rays appeared next to their strands.
"Their muscular and skeletal structures are denser than a baseline human being's. One of the girls in particular has a unique genetic makeup that contains trace amounts of feline DNA, along with a higher number of photosensitive rod cells and a functional dual auditory system."
"You mean those cat ears aren't only real and natural, but they work, too?" Flash asked, slightly skeptical. "GL, you ever come across something like that?"
"Once or twice. It's rare, but not unprecedented," John shook his head. "The others don't have the extra DNA?"
"No. There is one more key detail. All of them have an active meta gene"
"All of them?" Diana asked, slightly surprised. On Earth and most other planets, the meta gene was quite rare. To have all eight have them, active at that, was highly peculiar.
"Yes. I discovered it when I was trying to take their blood. Their bodies seem to emit some kind of barrier field along their skin and clothes. The field further increases their muscle density, electrical impulse speed, and from what I can tell, increases their bodies' natural healing." He zoomed in on one of the x-rays, focusing on a heavily fractured arm. "The red-haired girl's broken arm is healing quite rapidly, and should be fully recovered in a few days."
"Fascinating." Superman looked at the arm in question with his X-Ray Vision and saw that J'onn's statement was correct. The last time he saw the arm, it was clearly broken in several different places along the radius and ulna, almost in two. Those breaks were significantly tighter now, and he could see the bones continuing to mend. "How long do you think they'll be out?"
"Hard to say. Could be hours, even days. At the very least their brains show no signs of any long term damage. It appears that the field naturally healed it first before moving on."
"Good to hear," Superman nodded. "In the meantime, I'll head down to the Fortress. See what I can find on Brainiac. I'll relay to you all whatever I can find."
"Please do," Batman said. "I'll be back in the lab. There's a few more tests I want to run on the remaining samples before disposal, along with their equipment."
"Sounds good to me. I'll be in the cafeteria. Didn't have time to eat lunch before I ran over, and I'm starving." Flash's statement was met with a loud growl from his stomach, causing Diana to lightly smile and John to groan.
"What, I can't help it! My powers make my metabolism insane," Flash defended himself with a pout, causing Shayera to laugh.
"Don't worry, Barry. He's just in a grumpy mood today. Come on, I'll join you."
"I will as well," J'onn added. "Based off the events from earlier, it may not be best for me to be with them."
"The more the merrier!"
"I'll have Green Arrow and Black Canary watch over them for any signs of activity," Batman declared as he walked out the door. "Call me once they wake up."
With that, the informal meeting was adjourned and they all went their separate ways. For a moment, Diana considered going towards the cafeteria before deciding instead to walk with Batman towards the lab.
"Princess."
"Bruce."
The exchange was curt and to the point, but Diana recognized the thankful tone in his voice. It was subtle, but it was there all the same.
Flying was always liberating to Clark. The feeling of weightlessness, soaring through the air like a bird, feeling the wind brush past his face and the warmth of the sun's rays beaming down on him. He could honestly say it was his favorite ability. It was liberating.
Flying high in the atmosphere also came with another benefit. Everything was quiet. On the ground, he had to constantly focus to block out what he didn't want to hear. If he wanted, he could hear a person's conversation in China from his cubicle in the Daily Planet. But in the highest reaches of the atmosphere, sounds were muted by the thin air. He could still hear things, but he didn't have to focus as hard to drown them out.
The silence also allowed him to think. Usually it was about a myriad of things, from Luthor's latest schemes, how to use Kryptonian technology to better mankind, or even where he was going to take Lois on their next date. Right now, he was focused entirely on the children now under their care. Their physical conditions, how they managed to get a Mother Box, the creatures that came with them, everything. Most importantly, who or what caused their injuries. At least now he had a name.
Clark slowed as he neared the deepest region of the Antarctic. Far from the observing eyes of any human being stood a towering crystalline fortress, vaguely shaped like a pyramid. The light's rays refracted off of its surface, making it shine brilliantly across the desolate ice and snow. A single entrance laid within a small crevice at its base, a golden metal door emblazoned with the insignia of the House of El at the top. The sight made him smile. It was here, inside his Fortress of Solitude, where he was truly able to retreat from the world.
The doors opened automatically as he neared them. As they did, warm air briefly escaped from the interior before the doors closed behind him. At once, the noise from the outside world ceased, and he could only hear the faint and subtle movements of air within the crystalline walls and floors. Never once touching the ground, he passed by his trophy room and zoological preserve without pause. His eyes were set on a massive statue sitting atop a sunstone base, one he made himself that depicted his parents, Jor-El and Lara-El, holding the doomed world of Krypton atop their hands. He had spent weeks designing it, and several days carving it from a single block of steel with his heat vision.
"Greetings, Kal-El," a robotic voice greeted him as a conical drone floated to him. "Do you require assistance?"
"I'll be fine. Thank you." He nodded to the robot, which left without saying a word. He turned back to the statue then walked in between the feet of his parents. As he did, a section of the floor beneath him descended into a large cavern filled with crystals. A singular crystal towered over all the others, it shining faintly despite having no access to the sun. Once the platform stopped moving, he walked to a distinct section of the mineral array that looked similar to a control board. His hands quickly moved between the gems, gently touching the tips of select crystals that slid down at his touch. As the last prism slid down, the crystal tower shone brilliantly and emitted a ray of light into another formation. The beam refracted and split, each beam hitting another clear gem and repeating the process until finally the beams converged in the center of the cavern. From the convergence, a form began to appear of a bearded middle-aged Kryptonian wearing a robes, and Clark smiled.
"Father."
"Kal-El," the holographic memory of his father smiled. It might only be an artificial projection made from Jor-El's downloaded memories, but he treated it as his father nonetheless. "Something has happened, hasn't it?"
"Yes," Clark replied with a sigh. "Does the name "Brainiac" mean anything to you?" Jor-El's alarmed expression answered his question immediately, and his worry grew.
"These weapons are fascinating," Diana muttered as she held the boxy sniper-rifle in her hand. With a quick exertion, the weapon unfolded and shifted into a massive scythe, and she gave a few swings as a test. "Perfectly balanced as well. Whoever made this was quite skilled. Honestly, the thought of combining a sniper rifle with a scythe would have never occurred to me."
"Likewise," Batman curtly replied as he disassembled the rapier. A few dull crystalline particles were inside glass cylinders attached to the hilt like a revolver. For some reason, they appeared…inert, to his eyes. Lifeless. If the crystals did anything, he suspected they were useless now.
"You sound disapproving." Diana's statement earned a scoff from the dark knight, making her smile.
"Still," she continued as she folded the weapon and placed it down onto the workbench, "the fact that they were all armed contributes to the idea they were in a fight. All of them sport heavy damage to their structural integrity. A few more hits and they'd be falling apart."
"I'm more curious as to what they used as ammunition," he said as he ran some of the crystal dust between his fingertips. "Most of them seem to fire some kind of bullet. Judging by the remaining casings in the chambers, they appeared to be a mixture of shotgun shells, pistol and rifle ammunition, but no traces of gunpowder or similar propellants."
"Do you think those weapons used the dust?" Diana asked as she leaned over Bruce's shoulder to get a closer look.
"Perhaps. It is possible that, whatever this substance is, it used to hold special properties that made it useful as a propellant. Now, however, it doesn't do anything. It's…perplexing." He sounded annoyed, and Diana patted his shoulder.
"If anyone can figure it out, it would be you." Diana then took some of the dust and rubbed it with her fingers. "It's some kind of crystal, but nothing like I've ever seen. Did the spectrograph say anything about it?"
He shook his head. "The readings proved inconclusive. These crystals aren't made up of anything on the periodic table. Which is odd, because the rest of the weapons are identifiable."
"Let me guess: steel?"
"Mostly. They're made of high grade steel or bronze alloys with titanium frames. There's a few traces of carbon and tin for reinforcement. Interestingly enough, there are trace amounts of that crystalline substance mixed within most of the alloys, as if it was involved in the smelting or forging process somehow." He turned to face the Amazon princess, holding the rapier aloft. "That's not the most important element I've gathered from these weapons. With the exception of the sword and shield, these weapons are too customized to be standard issue weaponry. All of those moving parts would require far too much maintenance to be practical for armies or police, which tells me that they were a specialized fighting unit. Perhaps akin to special forces or, given their ages, trainees. It's possible that they were training to combat the creatures we fought in Metropolis. Might explain why they would even consider the shifting mechanic. Melee combat might have become inevitable against them."
"Not to mention their outfits. Far too colorful." Diana paused as a thought came to mind. "Perhaps they're similar to us?"
"Maybe. The thought has come to mind." Bruce sighed, placed the rapier down, and stood up. "This is as far as we can go with what we have. I've already sent a sample down to Constantine, Doctor Fate, and Zatanna. They'll be able to help determine what the tar exactly is. In the meantime, all we can do now is wait for Clark to come back and—"
A loud, dull thud sounded off across the Watchtower, stopping Bruce in his tracks. He and Diana turned to the door, wondering just what it was, when another thud was heard. Then another, and another yet again.
"All League members to the medical bay! All League members to the medical bay!" Green Arrow's voice frantically yelled over the intercom, the sounds of arrows flinging from bowstrings and piercing screams behind him. "The kids woke up, and they're pissed!"
Batman was already out the door before the red alarm lights blared throughout the Watchtower, Wonder Woman hot on his heels.
"Calm down!" Green Arrow yelled as he dodged yet another haymaker from the blonde girl in front of him, her eyes glowing red in rage even as he spun her around and threw her to the floor. He was able to make that distinction as they were definitely not red when she first woke up. In fact, they were lilac originally.
It had happened so fast. One minute, he and Dinah were checking on the monitors when the cat girl suddenly woke up and started freaking out. An obvious panic attack from PTSD if he ever saw one, and the two of them tried to calm her down. That's when she ripped a metal pole off the bed and began swinging it clumsily like a sword, still disoriented from her ordeal yet making sizable dents whenever she struck metal. He then tried to grab her, although each time he did she somehow made a copy of herself that disappeared upon contact. Admittedly, it was annoying, but Dinah was eventually able to hold her down. Then the blonde girl woke up, saw Dinah holding onto the struggling cat girl, then her eyes turned red and her hair caught fire.
That's when he took the cue to duck as the girl got off the bed and hurled the whole thing at him through the window. Dinah had to let go of the cat girl as the blonde then tried to punch her, the blow shattering a nearby station. For a solid minute, the two League members tried to calm the two panicking and angry girls down, but they weren't having it. When the blonde crumpled a steel door with another fist, continuing to try and to attack them out of an out of control fight or flight instinct, the Green Arrow and Black Canary realized talking wasn't going to cut it. Reluctantly, Oliver shot a net arrow at the girls to restrain them, lest they hurt themselves or the superheroes, only for a few more problems to show themselves. One, they didn't speak the same language, which made communication rather difficult between the two parties. Second, the others woke up shortly after he trapped them in the net, and upon seeing their states, they got mad and rushed him and Dinah.
"Get away from her!" the silver-eyed girl yelled out incomprehensibly as she ran towards the archer, rose petals trailing behind her as she clumsily attempted to attack him. It was clear that, even beside her disorientation, she wasn't the most skilled at hand-to-hand, having left far too many openings for Oliver to exploit, and exploit them he did. He twisted his body around her outstretched arm and wrapped his bow around her chest, bringing her struggling body to his.
"We are not your enemy! Please, stop!" he pleaded once more, but the others either didn't understand him or didn't care. Probably a little of both, if he was being honest. Still, he had to deliberately hold himself back or else he would run the risk of hurting them, something he definitely did not want to do, even as the blond boy rushed him.
Green Arrow immediately reacted by throwing the girl into him, sending them sprawling against the floor while he pulled a boxing glove arrow from his quiver, drew it, and shot the Asian-looking boy in the face. He fell to his knees in surprise and clutched his face in pain while orange-haired girl cried out what he could only guess was his name. She then looked at the archer in absolute fury before noticing a light above them. Realization seemed to flash across her face as she suddenly punched a hole into the wall and pulled out a cord. She then ripped it in half, causing the light to go out and forcing the electricity to flow into her.
"What are you…?!" Oliver shouted in alarm as electricity coursed through her. Rather than collapsing in pain, the girl's face erupted into a wicked grin. At once he understood exactly what had occurred, and he could only groan. "Great, you get stronger from electricity. Perfect."
The girl responded by springing towards him to try and deliver a punch. Green Arrow kicked off the wall adjacent to him and dodged while her fist impacted the metal. It dented and warped from the impact. The girl pulled back to try and throw another punch, only for Black Canary to shriek loudly at her, the concentrated soundwaves slamming her back against another wall.
"Kids, calm down. You're safe here," she pleaded with her hands raised up. This gesture didn't work as the white-haired girl formed some kind of glowing symbol that looked vaguely like a snowflake under the glass shards and launched them towards the Black Canary. She responded by shrieking at the glass shards, the vibrations shattering the glass into harmless particles and throwing the children back down the hall.
As they picked themselves up, Oliver idly wondered just where the hell the others were. His thoughts were answered as a red blur raced towards them, and the archer recognized the Flash immediately. The children now stared at the Scarlet Speedster in both apprehension and confusion, taking defensive stances as the Flash held his hands.
"Easy, easy," he spoke soothingly. "You're among friends here. Just calm down, and we can figure everything out."
"What are they saying?" the girl with the broken-arm asked, the blond boy placing himself in front of her protectively, likely due to her injury. Judging by her face, she didn't know how to feel about that.
"I don't know," he responded, his voice tense. "Guys, I… I think we should stop. I don't think they're trying to hurt us."
"No chance in Hell," the blonde girl shouted back, her eyes still red, "not until we figure out just what is going on! How are we supposed to know they aren't with Brainiac?!"
'Please, listen to him,' J'onn's voice suddenly rang out telepathically, startling the children. That turned into fear as the Martian Manhunter emerged from the ground in front of them, which was showcased by their tentative steps back. They might have tried to run, only for Batman, Diana, Green Lantern and Shayera to cut them off. Seeing how they were staying put, J'onn continued. 'We mean you no harm. You were injured, and we took you in for treatment. We are not your enemy.'
"How are we supposed to believe that?" the cat-girl asked, still holding the metal pole like a sword. J'onn responded by waving his hands at everyone and taking a few steps back. Taking the cue, the others stepped back and lowered their arms and weapons as well.
'Please, trust us. We only want to help.'
"I… I don't…" the silver-eyed girl stammered, looking between all of them as she and the others struggled to decide on what to do. Realization that they weren't in danger was beginning to flow across their faces, as well hints of regret and shame for lashing out in fear. It was then that they heard the sound of another door opening, and they turned to see a solemn Superman walking towards them, his face ashen white.
"J'onn, I need you to link us," he said, his voice struggling to contain itself. The other League members all looked at each other in worry. J'onn merely nodded and did as requested. As he did, he saw what Clark had learned, and he recoiled.
"No…" he gasped as an all too familiar painful memory suddenly resurfaced. The others grew more alarmed, with Batman's eyes widening in horrified realization, yet were silent as Superman calmly walked towards them, stopping to kneel before the silver-eyed girl. She looked at him in a mixture of confusion, fear, and wonder as did the others. When he placed his hand on her shoulder, the blonde girl moved to stop him, only to be silenced as Superman pulled the young girl into a gentle hug.
"I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry." For a moment, the girl was still and unmoving before she slowly slid her hands against his back to return the hug. She then buried her head in his shoulder, and began to weep.
[~][~]
Hey, everyone! Due to the positive reception my story received when I posted it a few weeks ago, I have decided to continue this into a full fledged story! Special thanks to JessessanMan, or Jesse K on , and NaanContributor for helping to edit this and plan out the story.
This chapter was a Justice League focused chapter, with RWBY and JNPR reduced to unconscious states. And heavily traumatized as well, as they would since their entire planet just got destroyed. But, luckily for them they are surrounded by the people most able to help them recover.
Please let us know what you think and we hope you enjoy!