142 Trust Me.

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(General P.O.V)

Lobo spat out the broken teeth and grinned with bloodlust. 

"I felt that. 8 broken bones, one lung punctured 3 times, my spleen and intestines raptured from a single punch and my jaw dislocated with 5 teeth missing. Who woulda thought you had it in you." He pressed his foot harder on the Kryptonian's chest while laughing. Superman groaned. One of his eyes was completely shut. His thigh bone was exposed through the flesh of his leg, cutting through the Kryptonian suit that was made from very durable material. His left arm was bent the wrong way at the elbow and blood was pooling at his back, dying the rock his body was lying on red. The surroundings had undergone a drastic change. Craters dotted the area, some blackened with soot from the Space hog's energy beams and Superman's heat vision. A dust cloud that could be seen from afar hang overhead as well. This was a battlefield. And finally, a victor had been decided.

Clark couldn't feel his legs. His spine had been broken on the other alien's knee. He faded in and out of consciousness. He had never been in such a fight like this before. The pain he was feeling had evolved to agony. All he wanted to do was give up…Give up and just…sleep. To forget the agony and just relax his exhausted body. Yet, he couldn't let go. He couldn't leave them alone. He wondered what Lois would do without him. They had so many plans…and Ma and Pa would be devastated. That's why Superman didn't lose hope. If only he could move…or just hold on. He wasn't sure but he could hear the tell tale sounds of something coming closer.

The worst part was that they had been evenly matched. Up until…

Lobo sniffed in disdain while staring at the small box in his hands. Opening it revealed a green glowing rock. 

"This feels like cheating. But what the heck…I need the credits and time is running out."

He turned his attention to Superman and smiled in bloodlust. "Sorry little Kryptonian but the Main man always collects his bounty. It's a matter of good business ethics."

After that, he reached out behind him and unsheathed the sword strapped to his back. Without wasting a single second, Lobo lifted the sword and plunged it towards Superman's chest. 

(Aden's P.O.V)

The boom tube disappeared behind me. I hovered in the skyline of Metropolis looking around for any green monster vines. I didn't find any, which reinforced the fact that all this was target The Man of Steel. People stopped and started to point at me. I could easily turn invisible but…I didn't see the point in it. Infact, this was better. A way to prepare them for me.  I closed my eyes and delved deep into my unique perception. The world instantly opened up.

The first thing I noted through my senses was the crazy power signatures coming some ways off in the outskirts of the city. I immediately started flying towards them. Getting closer, I could read the energy signatures more clearly.  One felt like oil, ash and the musk of blood similar to Galiel's underground fighting rings and the other felt like warm summer heat, morning pancakes and sunshine. The latter signature was however precariously dancing on the edge of death. I increased my flight speed, a sonic boom erupting behind me due to the crazy speeds I was going. But I wasn't going to make it. Which is why I tried something I hadn't done before. I used my energy sense to scan the area and then opened a Boom tube near the pair. I plunged into the portal, which was layered on top of another, granting me a small glimpse of Sanctuary before I immediately flew through the other end to find myself in a close enough position to intervene.

Lobo stood with a foot placed on Superman's chest. The man of Steel's cape was torn up to shreds like the rest of his uniform and his…body. Oh fuck. His body was broken. Blood ran down the rock he was lying on in a macabre fashion. Like the floor on a butchery. My eyes widened as I caught sight of what was about to happen. Lobo had a sword raised up in a two handed grip. The pointy end was aimed at The Man of Steel's chest. Then he plunged it down. 

I didn't think, my body merely reacted on its own. Lightning surged from deep within me, heightening my senses to ridiculous levels. My energy signature shot through the roof, steam escaping my mouth as my clothes crinkled up due to the heat of the electric shroud covering me. Then I disappeared. 

A clang rang out. The resonating sound pulsed out in a wave of chaotic sonic distortion that sent me and Lobo careening away from each other. Superman's leg was turned into paste before a part of me, seized control of the sonic wave and covered his form with a bulwark-like air shield. Splitting my attention like that and also taking into account the suddenness of what had transpired, caused me to hit the side of a crater painfully before I could protect myself. Fun fact, no matter how super durable you are, slamming onto the ground always knocks your breath out.

I unsteadily got up, before an energy signature was tagged through my senses, falling down at me. I rolled out of the way, Lobo smacking onto the ground feet first, resulting in a mini crater as I fell back to create some space. The dust died down to reveal the Czarnian levelling a wrathful stare at me. 

"No one comes between me and my contract welp!" 

He snarled before bringing his fingers to his mouth and whistling.

The boom tube I had left open, disappeared just as a dome of wind covered my position. A split second later and death rained from above. I widened my eyes in shock as I felt my wind dome struggle to maintain its form from the onslaught of energy beams. The source of which seemed to come from a sort of space bike that hovered in the air above me. I couldn't stay pinned down like this. Lobo chuckled, seeing me suppressed under the heavy fire and turned to finish what I had timely stopped him from doing. 

"STOP!"

The world slammed onto his mind like a freight train off it's rails. Lobo stiffened in place, body and mind straining under the telepathic order I'd given him. It only took a second for him to break through my control. But a second was a long time in a fast paced battle such as this. The wind dome protecting me compressed and then changed form to a sphere of elemental air which turned out slightly yellow. I swiped out with Equity and the sphere sailed towards the space bike. Slamming onto it and releasing all the compressed air slashes in one go. The space bike flew away out of control. 

Lobo almost immediately jumped towards the downed Superman. I stepped forward and disappeared into a layered boom tube, coming out on the other side with Equity in it's lance form. A pillar of fire slammed onto the Czarnian who widened his eyes and covered his face with a cross guard. He fell to the ground, managing to land on his feet rather skillfully. He didn't say a word. Merely dropped his sword to the ground, revealing an attached chain that he gripped and swiped out at me. 

The weapon cut through the air at crazy speeds, only for me to slap it aside by its flat side and pull in closer to him. Jet flames appeared below my feet, propelling me towards the bounty hunter. Lobo flipped out of the way but I managed to skate through the ground in lightning fast speed and extend Equity out. He evaded by leaning back only for a leg sweep to send out an arc of flame that flipped his body to the side. My fist found itself buried in his gut at full strength. Spit escaped out of his mouth while his body folded in on itself. 

Lobo smiled conspiratorily and grabbed on the rappels of my trench coat before he could fly away due to my attack. I found myself seized as the world spun around me. Then I hit the ground and the breath was knocked out of me again. I landed with his knee on my chest and I felt my ribs crack.

"You're good, kid. Now stay down."

The fist came in hard and fast. My nose broke and my head went fuzzy. My body dug in deeper to the ground, the earth caving in under my form. I could hear the tremors through the ground as Lobo left. 

'get up. He needs you!' a huge part of me screamed out as I wheexed in pain. 'Why?' I shouted back. 'Why should I? Superman and I are enemies. You don't save your enemy. Why the fuck am I even doing this?' It took only a second for the answer to come in. 'Because it's the right thing to do. You promised yourself that you would become the greatest hero the world has ever seen. That you would do whatever it takes not to give in or give up without achieving that dream. This is the moment to prove your conviction to yourself. The world needs Superman but it also needs the Avatar. So Get. Up!'

I sucked in a deep breath, sending waved of pain through my body and stumbled to my feet. My fingers touched my tender nose and I winced. Well, that is most certainly broken. I can't beat him. Half of the fight is hitting someone hard enough that they stay down. Unfortunately I didn't possess the physical strength to do that to Lobo. I hit him with my full strength backed with Lightning bending enhancing my parameters but he shrugged it off. My flames hadn't done any damage and while I knew I could probably whittle him down with lightning and slice him apart with Equity…he would just come back due to his regeneration. 

Even if I managed to escape with Superman and get him healed by Saisei, Lobo could get bitter and decide to take it out on innocent people for someone stopping him from completing his contract. No…I needed him out of the planet. 

(General P.O.V)

"Stop! Please!" Lobo looked back and saw the boy. He was on his knees trying to get up. He cradled his ribs painfully and his eyes were bloodshot as he begged for mercy. Lobo liked it.

"And why should I? His life was forfeit the minute I received a bounty order. And I always complete my kills."

The space mercenary turned away while laughing. His left hand grabbed Superman by the neck and lifted him up.

"No! Don't do it!! The world needs Superman! You can't kill him."

Lobo shifted his stance to let the boy see. A bloodthirsty smile spread out across his face.

"Watch me."

His sword shot out and speared through the Kryptonian's chest, coming out on the other side in a spray of blood. Disbelief hit the kid's face. Disbelief and despair. Both of which turned to anger.

Slashes of wind and fire shot out of his body and hit Lobo. He chuckled as the attack did nothing. They were too weak. Too… unfocused. The space mercenary dropped the Kryptonian's body on the ground and whistled. The Space hog flew in, looking scuffed up but still functional. Normally he would cut off the head of his bounty to take it to the one who hired him. But the human had told him not to. They needed the body intact for something.

Lobo had done his part, gotten his credits and the other half would be sent over to him. All in all a good payday. This planet was interesting. Backwater and poorly developed it might have been but it had some strong opponents. Maybe Lobo would be back some day. 

(Aden's P.O.V)

My head felt like it was going to burst. That…that hadn't been fun. It was the same trick I had played on Black Adam. Using my wind construct to form a foundation to anchor the illusion, I messed with what Lobo's mind was perceiving to deceive him that he had killed Superman. But, his brain was a feedback loop of hard metal, blood and carnage. It hadn't been easy. Fortunately, it had worked and he was off planet.  

I got up and ran towards Superman in urgency. His condition did not look good, though his skin was slightly less pale than before. I heard and sensed through the air, a craft that was similar in design to The Batwing land close to me and two people jump out. Two very familiar people. Batman ran towards Superman and I, shoving me out of the way as he looked down at his best friend. His mouth was open in shock and disbelief. 

My surprise came back when I felt Iroh's hand on my shoulder. What was he doing with Batman? No, that wasn't on the agenda for now.

"The light put out a bounty on his head. When I arrived he was fighting a pale skinned alien called Lobo."

I explained when Batman levelled an intense stare at me.

Iroh squeezed my shoulder and I nodded at him, sighing. I hope Batman is reasonable enough to put our issues to the side this once.

"I can heal him Bruce. But you will have to trust me."