Chapter 55: The Final Game 5

"talking"

'thinking'

"Ghost Rider Voice"

----------

Chernobyl, in the fight

Martian Manhunter finished looking at the last memory Ultra-Humanite saw before he became a vegetable. Such a beautiful memory of his former home that also brought glimpses of a darker truth. The animal cruelty that the white ape had suffered was something that the Martian frankly terrified him.

The animal experiments that the great white ape suffered, was something frankly inhumane, and reminded the Martian that, just as people can come to show a good heart, they can also show a sadistic side like the worst of monsters.

But also, such a dream brought the answer to Martian Manhunter that The Light did not necessarily have to be categorized as evil. It brought the answer that The Light was an organization with a goal.

Everyone in that group had goals. They were all looking for something. A greater ideal. This war was to see which ideal would endure into the future. That was what the Martian understood now.

But now, thanks to this, Martian Manhunter now had the answer to end this war and without any more unfortunate casualties. None other than the soldiers' mind control activation/deactivation code.

Wiping away the tears, which were running down his green face. He mentally connected to Cyborg, who had been tasked with reaching the central system, and said to him.

<Cyborg, this is Martian Manhunter. Do you read me>

<I have a mission for you. I need you to connect the main systems, and say with total clarity these words. <em>Rail, Three, Clover, Light, Power, Five, Punishment. I repeat them to you. Railroad, Three, Clover, Light, Power, Five, Punishment. In that order, and at that time. Speak clearly and don't rush, or it won't work>

<Emm, Martian, I don't quite understand your request, what do those words mean>

<...I see. Emmm, I'm a bit busy. But I'll get to it. Just give me little time>

With that, Cyborg cut off the mental communication.

If Martian could see what Cyborg was seeing, he would be surprised at the accumulation of destroyed robots he has had to dismantle on his way to central command.

There were so many of them that he had to divert and dismantle the robot production line so that they would not be sending him so many. But, finally after a hard fight, he had managed to destroy all those that attacked him. He felt tired, but he needed to get to the central command. It was imperative that he did so.

Cyborg kept walking all over the place and finally reached the central command, located on the fourth subway floor. Hacking the door, he finally entered and was greeted by an amazing sight.

It was a room full of monitors, all connected to one giant monitor. There was low lighting, mostly neon colored, which gave it a very futuristic look, and the command had so many buttons that even the young hero was surprised at the intricate mechanisms in that place.

Now he understood why The Thinker was a formidable opponent. Practically, with this, he could connect to every radio, television and internet wave in the world. But the weirdest thing was the central chair that was there. It was a flying chair, fully equipped and futuristic. However, just sitting there was The Thinker, but his eyes were closed and his skin... was pale.

<PIP, PIP. NO VITAL SIGNS OR BRAINWAVES DETECTED IN ENEMY>

'What the fuck' thought Victor. If what the Motherbox said was true, then...

Thinker was dead.

But how?, If no one had gotten there before him. Cyborg couldn't understand it. Just then, however, a robotic voice came over the room's central speakers.

"Hello, Mr. Stone"

The voice, though robotic and devoid of emotion, still carried The Thinker's human tone. This frankly surprised Victor, who didn't understand what was going on. The body lay there dead, but the voice sounded very much alive.

"From your cardiac and pressure parameters that I can measure, I can tell that you are surprised to see my formerly dead body"

"Thinker... How?"

"You see, Mr. Stone. Or I can call you Victor, I think that would be more appropriate. You see, Victor. No matter what analysis I do, or what odds I draw, I just came to a sad and forlorn conclusion. I can't beat you. At least, not by being human.... "

At that, a platform came down from the ceiling that showed a chained robot. It was a 6-foot robot. With a muscular body in shades of gold, black and red. The body was a special alloy made of Promethium with Titanium, gold plated. Very elegant if he could say so. Just at that moment, it was being finished welding, while the limbs were being jousting with the main body.

While that was going on, The Thinker's voice continued to speak.

"Recently, Vandal did something that quite surprised me. He risked his life for the cause of The Light. Something that no probabilistic estimate of mine could have calculated. So I thought, if I had to fight you, then I should take my chances too. The truth is, all those robots I sent to stop you were just to stall for time. My plan was this. Meet my greatest creation, and my greatest pride... Amazo Gold"

Already being armed. The chains that bound him simply opened, releasing the robot. The robot dropped to one knee with his head down. But suddenly, it raised its head and its eyes glowed red. And, to Victor's surprise, the robot 'smiled', and spoke to him.

"Hello, Victor" it was the same voice as The Thinker.

"Thinker... What did you do?"

"I did what I should have done a long, long time ago. Let go of my limitations. Let go of my humanity. I figured out how to modify the brain synapse and turn it into a computer consciousness. I AM NOW A MACHINE. And one with the power, not just of the Justice League, but of the original The Light. And you know something Victor. Now, I finally feel free. Now I AM POWERFUL. No strings are binding me now"

With that the robot launched a heat vision ray that Cyborg had to dodge by summoning a shield. However, when the attack was over, Amazo launched himself at The Flash's speed and sent Cyborg away.

"Unfortunately, I'm still missing something to gain absolute power. The Motherbox YOU have. It's not personal, but you must die. I'm sorry"

Saying that, Amazo let out a powerful sonic Black Canary scream that stunned Victor.

At this moment, Victor was facing a robot with the power of the two powerful people groups on the planet. And, he didn't know how to win.

-----------

With the arrival of the reinforcements, practically all important fights were ending. Such reinforcements meant that heroes, who were fighting alone against powerful opponents, could combine into teams and easily win their fight.

An example of this was Livewire, who was fighting alone against Dr. Light. Their fight was very close, as Leslie (Livewire) had charged up with a lot of energy, and had put our beloved Japanese researcher in check many times.

But, Black Lightning had come to the rescue and using his powers, becoming a sort of storage battery, he was able to absorb Livewire's power and weaken her enough for Kimiyo to knock her out.

Another example of teamwork was the two model friends, Fire and Ice. The two teamed up against Killer Frost, who had Ice in a bloody mess before Fire's arrival. Simply put, the mastery she had in her power was too much for our Ice-powered heroine.

But, by putting together both fire and ice powers at maximum power, they generated a combined attack so powerful, generating a heat vapor wave that practically knocked out Caitlin Snow (Killer Frost).

Other powerful opponents that were already practically finished were Weather Wizard, and Mirror Master. Both at the hands of Zatara who had demonstrated that, although he did not have the power of Doctor Fate, his wit and skill in magic were of another level.

Mirror Master played the fool and wanted to lock him in the mirror dimension, but Zarata was a magician who specialized in getting out of traps. Practically, at this moment, Mirror was trapped, but inside Zatara's wizard hat.

With Weather Wizard it was more difficult as practically the villain had used his 'wand' to rain most of the battlefield. Mastering the weather was difficult. But harder was defeating someone like that. But, what angered Zatara the most was that he was posing as a 'Wizard'. He didn't know how real a wizard was. And Zatara was going to prove it to him.

Weather Wizard fought by throwing powerful lightning and tornadoes at Zatara, but Zatara proved that sometimes quality was better than quantity and subdued the villain with a pair of magic ribbons that wrapped around him and trapped him unable to move.

Now, they were both locked in the magic hat, which was a powerful artifact that simulated a pocket prison to lock up opponents without magic power. Practically, said hat was where Zatara had locked up the other members of The Light who were knocked out. Lex Luthor, Merlyn and some soldiers were trapped in said hat.

However, not all the fights were team fights, and this was noted in Catwoman, who was still battling Shadow Thief alone. A duel between the two most famous thieves in the world was brewing.

--------

"So you're my replacement in the group. Yeah, I'm not impressed in the least" Catwoman said mockingly to the Israeli woman, dressed in her leather shadow suit. To her, this woman was just her cheap replacement to solve her departure. Both were master thieves, but Catwoman, was simply better in every way.

"The opinion of a traitor is worthless. Even among thieves there is honor, and you, in my eyes, don't have a shred of it" Shadow Thief replied angrily.

"Honor?, Ha, you think this group has honor. What a joke. I left because this group was just using me. And it's doing the same to you. However, by the time you realize that, it will be too late"

"Mmm, maybe you're right. Unfortunately you won't be alive to see that"

At that, Shadow Thief melted into the shadows. Unlike Duke's magical power, Shadow Thief didn't need to have to see if shadows of her size existed in order to use her power. Her power was more artificial, and she could enter shadows of her own making. She could also create weapons with her shadow power. Any weapon that was not so detailed could be created.

Materializing right behind Catwoman, she created a shadow saber and slashed Catwoman's back.

"AAAGHHHH!"

Catwoman screamed in pain and dropped to her knees. However, Shadow Thief was not idle and slashed again right where Selina's heart was. Selina coughed up blood and, in a lot of pain from it all, she laid down on the ground. After struggling for a couple of seconds, she lay on the floor completely motionless. The life in her eyes was gone.

Selina Kyle was dead...

"Ha, that's what you get for being a traitor" Shadow Thief said with a maniacal grin on her face. Turning around, she wanted to leave, when something strange happened.

Just then, a leather whip was wrapped tightly around her neck, which began to choke her. Turning around she could see her attacker. But what she saw, left her completely frozen.

For, just holding the whip, was Selina Kyle, who was perfectly fine, and her saber wound was already closed and dried blood remained as evidence that it had happened. However, on Selina's beautiful face there was only a look of anger for this woman who dared to kill her.

"Agh, agh... How?" was all Shadow Thief could say. For her throat was closing up from lack of air.

But Selina, didn't even deign to speak to her. She simply pulled her with all her strength and slammed her hard on the ground. Then, with total anger, she used her claws from her catsuit, made with the Promethium created by Atom, to slice Shadow Thief's neck with a claw. She could do nothing to defend herself.

That claw was delivered right into the Israeli woman's carotid artery. This alone meant her death. After drowning in her own blood for a couple of seconds, the light in Shadow Thief's eyes faded and her breathing stopped.

Aviva Metula (Shadow Thief) was dead.

"For your information, I have 9 lives. Puff" with that said, she spat in the face of the villain who was dead.

Selina had an accident a long time ago that gave her cat abilities. The details, she doesn't remember well, as her mind becomes fuzzy when recalling said accident. However, one thing was clear. She claims there was a black cat there, when it happened.

Either way, she gained superhuman abilities. In addition to the inhuman agility she had, and her great senses, it also connected her on a personal level with these animals. But, the main power she was granted was that she had 9 lives. Actually, counting all the times she died, at this point she only had 5 lives left. But, that she had so many lives, is not to say that she liked to die. Actually, she had been hurt a lot by Shadow Thief's attack and that made her angry.

However, she couldn't complain anymore, when a creeper grabbed her by the neck and pulled her closer to Ivy who was still sitting watching the whole fight on her giant carnivorous plant.

"Hey Selina, long time no see"

"Ivy, if you let me explain-" Selina wanted to say, but Ivy interrupted her.

"Why did you decide to betray me. I considered you my precious friend. Just as precious to my beloved daughters. Did my friendship mean a joke to you?"

"You don't understand Ivy. I couldn't stand there anymore, watching The Light go off the rails as we became dictators. It was too much, even for someone like us. That was wrong"

"The only thing I could see, Selina, is that you betrayed me. That you decided to turn your back on my friendship and love for you"

"Ivy, that's not true, I…. aghh, aghh, aghh, air, aghh, air, I can't, agh, breathe, agh" Ivy no longer wanted to listen to her. For her, her friend's betrayal could only be repaid with one fate. Death.

Ivy began to shed a couple of tears as she watched her friend drown. Her hue was bluish and her body was beginning to stiffen from lack of air. Catwoman's consciousness was fading.

"This hurts me more than it hurts you, Selina. But it is necessary. Your betrayal only made me look weak in the eyes of others and I must make amends. Besides, I know of your many lives. So I will take each life from you, one by one in increasingly painful ways. It is your punishment for betraying me"

Catwoman was seeing blurry. Her world was going dark. Only before she succumbed, a powerful laser cut through the vine, freeing her and allowing her to breathe again.

"Cough, cough, cough, cough, cough" began Catwoman coughing wildly. In the end, she could do nothing but pass out due to the severe lack of oxygen her brain lacked at that moment. But she was still alive, and that was a great advantage.

However, Ivy looked only at the opponent who dared to cut the vine. Someone quite familiar to her, as he was supposed to be locked up as a prisoner. It was Black Manta.

"You... you should be a prisoner of theirs"

"What can I tell you. They let me out for good behavior"

"Good behavior? Ha, what a joke. You're just a rabid dog. The only reason you're here is because you decided to betray us. I see now that loyalty doesn't exist and that I must only trust my little ones"

"You're right, I am a rabid dog. But you forget that even rabid dogs bite their owners" with that, Black Manta moved, and launched a powerful plasma beam that burned all the surrounding plants. Ivy summoned a wall of vines that covered said laser.

"You dare to attack my little ones. I will kill you in the most painful way possible"

"And you are so easily distracted"

"What do you mean-"

However, that's when she realized what Manta was referring to, when several water spikes embedded themselves in her skin, making her bleed green. And if that wasn't bad enough, a powerful golden bolt of lightning struck her all over her humanity, turning her into a bleeding mess. The attack was so powerful, it made her scream in pain.

"AAAAHHHHHHHHHH!"

This was a combined attack by Mera and Aquaman who were lying in wait for when Ivy was distracted. Said enemy had decimated many troops and needed to be defeated at any cost. Good thing Black Manta and Catwoman were the perfect distraction to accomplish this feat.

However, they could not attack anymore, when the giant plant, closed its mouth, protecting its owner and returned to the depths of the earth. Even all the plants that were attacking the opponents in the area, withered and died.

Whether Poison Ivy was still alive or not... that was something the heroes did not know.

However, Aquaman looked menacingly at Black Manta and said.

"I heard what you said, about rabid dogs biting even their owners. I remind you that your freedom is on trial and that, if you betray us, you will meet a fate worse than death"

"I know..."

Black Manta said no more, only turned away and continued to fight. Mera whispered to her husband.

"Love, I know you and Edgar set him free, but he doesn't look good to me. He's a pretty volatile person"

"We know, and Edgar put me in charge of keeping an eye on him. Don't worry, when I see something suspicious, I'll act"

"I hope you're right, my king"

"So do I, Mera. So do I.…"

--------

Another opponent who was already practically defeated was Carol Ferris (Star Sappire). Her pink power ring was practically with less than 10% battery and at this moment she was defending herself with pure willpower, or well, pure love power she had.

Summoning a pink shield, she defended herself from a green machine gun attacking her, but could do nothing, when a green hammer just sent her flying and crashing hard on the ground.

Blood poured from her mouth and nose from all the power she had consumed. And her vision was blurry. She couldn't take it anymore. She wanted to fly and get out of there, but green handcuffs held her to the ground.

She tried to summon her power, but just at that, she finally succumbed to mental exhaustion. She had no more energy left and fainted. She had even stopped looking in her Sappire outfit, and was currently wearing an office worker's outfit. The one she always wore in the office of her aviation company. At this moment, Carol looked like a simple civilian.

John, who was the creator of the hammer and handcuffs, flew in just at that moment and saw the woman lying there defeated. However, his look was one of doubt. At this moment, his head was replaying the last conversation he had had with Ganthet, the guardian of the Lantern corps. (AN: Chapter 45)

"But, if it's not enough and negotiations fail... then to avoid war, you have to do what it takes to take down that woman..."

"Are you asking me to kill her?"

"I'm saying, do what NEEDS to be done. Now go, and go patrol your sector"

John knew that as long as Carol existed as a member of Star Sappire, the tension of war would continue. A war that would devastate part of the galaxy. And one that would be very detrimental to the Green Lantern Corps. This was something to be avoided at all costs. However, John hesitated.

His mind was telling him what he should do, but his heart... was telling him not to do it. He was not a murderer.

However, he hardened his heart and put his doubts on the back burner. His absolute resolve came back to him. This was what needed to be done for the peace of the universe. At least, that's what he wanted to believe.

Summoning his power. He created a green sword, and placed it just above where Carol's heart was. The sword would destroy her heart and take her life in the most painless way possible. An instant death, practically.

However, just as the sword was about to fall, a green shield protected the fallen Carol. It was a shield created by Hal.

"John, what do you think you're doing. Because to my eyes, it looked like you wanted to murder Carol. I hope I'm wrong"

"Hal...I...I, just...those are orders. A war is lurking and Carol needs to die for the sake of the Green Lanterns"

"Orders from the Guardians?"

"Mmm" John nodded.

"...I see"

Hal looked down. He looked down at his ring. And then, he looked back at John. Hal no longer hesitated. A giant green hand sent John flying, throwing him away.

"I'm sorry, John. But I choose to disobey orders"

Hal took the ring from Carol and put it in a special box created by Cyborg. He had asked Cyborg to build him something like this after fighting Carol in Australia. This would keep the pinky ring away from her, so that her mind and sanity would return to her. Hal understood Carol wasn't evil, it was just that her power had corrupted her. But he would help her.

Just then, however, John stood up and threw a green plane at him. However, Hal summoned some chains and stopped the plane's advance.

"John, you think the guardians are right, and that their voice is absolute, but you are wrong. Killing Carol will only make the war come sooner"

"You lie. Your love for Carol blinds you Hal. And you stop seeing the big picture. You fail to see what our duty is"

"I see... If words can't get through to you, then actions can"

With that Hal moved. He launched a mighty green beam of pure raw power. And John replied with his own. Sparks and green flashes glanced off into the sky. Neither gave quarter.

However, Hal proved that his power was greater than John's and gradually gained the upper hand. In the end, a defeated John was left. He lay panting on the floor and his ring pulsed with shutting down due to low battery.

"John. I know you think I'm crazy or that I've betrayed the corps, but I haven't. I really don't. When you're ready to talk, with a more open mind, then I'll tell you everything. Nothing is what it seems, John"

With that, Hal struck John making him pass out. He then took his power ring from him, and stored it in the same container as Carol's. Hal then took both bodies with him.

<Understood, Hal. We'll take it from here>

With that, Hal set off at supersonic speed for Lian Yu.

Surely, everyone will think that he went bad and betrayed his own. Or that John, was right in saying that Hal was blinded by love. But this was the furthest thing from the truth. Hal knew better. For, at this moment, he was going over a memory in his mind.

--------

START OF THE FLASHBACK

Hal's room, 3 months after becoming a member of the Green Lantern Corps

Hal was in his room, watching the projection of a purple-skinned alien. It was Abin Sur, his predecessor in the ring.

Hal was just a trainee, and was traveling to Oa practically every week to become a Lantern officer. His instructors encouraged him that he had to learn the most advanced functions and intricate secrets of the ring on his own. And that was something he did every night.

He got a big surprise, however, when he discovered that there was a recording stored in his predecessor's ring. And that only the ring's successor could see.

Looking at the projection, Abin Sur spoke.

"This message is for my successor. First of all, I hope you are well, and that you are acclimating well to the ring that for many years served as my companion in adventures both good and bad. It will be your greatest ally, as long as you have full confidence in its power and your willpower. Remember, a powerful Green Lantern is not one who relies on his ring alone, but one who works to make his power his own. Unfortunately, it pains me to have to give you this responsibility. But it is necessary. I can only trust the person my partner has chosen to succeed me"

Abin Sur sighed heavily and looked solemnly into the camera.

"A great conspiracy is taking place in the Lantern corps. A conspiracy that even involves the Guardians I respected so much, and who, at this moment, sent to hunt me down for all I know. Perhaps they will say that my death was at the hands of space pirates or bounty hunters, but make no mistake, my death was due to them. That's for sure. Right now, I'm hiding from the hunters. A species of robots called Manhunters, relentless in everything and doing whatever it takes to fulfill their purpose. Robots created by the Guardians as their elite force when they want a job well done"

Hal couldn't believe his eyes. Abin Sur was practically confirming to him that his death, due to having to escape and his ship plummeting to Earth, was due to the Guardians. This was a huge revelation.

"I'll be brief because I don't have much time. There are other Lantern corps. Specifically, three more. The red ones, the blue ones, and the indigo ones. All of them, being enslaved and suppressed by the Guardians. Unfortunately, I don't know more, but my information and sources indicate that the guardians want to get something, something that will make them more powerful than they are. My sources indicate that they are looking for something called the white battery, or the battery of life, but I could not find any further clues to this. My successor, please follow my words and trust no one. Believe no one. Do as you are told, but always think for yourself. Not everything you are asked to do will be good. Unfortunately, that was something I realized late..."

At that the recording shook, and the image became blurred, due to Abin Sur's ship being damaged.

"They are here. They have found me. Successor, trust no one. Above all, the Guardians"

With that, the recording stopped. Hal was numb and didn't know what to think. However, in time, the Guardians would prove to him that they hide more secrets than they reveal, and that many missions that pass in the corps, are actually fakes of other, more secret, and crueler missions.

And, above all, he would see with his own eyes these robots called Manhunters cruelly slaughter a group of rather infamous space pirates, confirming his suspicions.

Abin Sur was right....

END OF FLASHBACK

---------

Black Adam was demonstrating why he was a formidable opponent by defending himself against two opponents similar in power to him. However, just when he thought he only had to defend against the two of them, a new opponent arrived right where they were. It was Shazam.

However, instead of getting annoyed by that and attacking him, Black Adam smiled at him.

"Hero boy. I see you deign to join the party"

"I come to defeat you. It is my destiny as champion of the gods"

The most surprised of all, however, was Superman, who asked Billy in total anger.

"Shazam what are you doing here, we told you that you were NOT coming to fight" this scolding only brought embarrassment to the young hero. A blush was visible on his adult face. With regret, he replied.

"I...I'm sorry, Superman. But Roy wanted to come. He said we were all grown up and I told them no, but they said yes, and well-"

"Wait, wait, what do you mean by 'they'?" interrupted Superman. An ugly thought came to him at that moment.

Unfortunately, his suspicions were correct when he saw in the distance, with his super vision, his cousin flying overhead and destroying the remaining robots that still remained.

'That girl is going to listen to me' he thought angrily.

How dare she take the risk and come here. Her recklessness would kill her. But first, Superman would kill her from the anger he had.

In the end, he could only sigh. There was nothing else he could do at this point. Just hope she would take care of herself and not do anything stupid.

However, Black Adam had to move to dodge the chain of fire that threatened to hold him back.

"A lot of talk. Let's fight" was Edgar who was getting bored of this soap opera drama. However, as he was about to move to attack Black Adam, that's when he felt it. Something told him that Diana was in danger.

"Edgar, Diana is falling!" Superman told him, as he pointed to the sky.

At this point, Diana was plummeting, and from her speed, it seemed that she wasn't slowing down one bit. Moreover, she seemed totally unconscious....

---------

Major Force was an unstoppable force. At least that's what Firestorm believed as he fought against him. One with molecular atomic powers and the other with dark matter that repelled atomic energy.

However, because of Major Force's strength, speed and experience, he was a far more dangerous opponent than Firestorm and he proved it, when, with powerful blows imbued with his power, he began to deliver an inhuman beating to Firestorm, leaving him lying on the ground.

He was so badly beaten that he had even left his transformation behind. At this point, both Martin Stein and Ronnie Raymond were lying, totally unconscious at the mercy of the ex-soldier member of The Light.

However, just as he was about to finish them off with a dark matter wave. A shield just happened to crash into his face. Then, a lasso grabbed him by the neck, pulling him away. It was Wonder Woman, glaring angrily at Major Force. Her eyes glowed electric blue, because she was using her father's power, enhancing her abilities.

Major Force stood up, spat some spittle on the ground and moved at full speed to strike Wonder Woman. But she proved she was on another level, dodging his blows with total grace and poise.

Then she countered with a powerful stomp, a combo to the ribs, and a powerful blow to the chin, which left Major Force numb. She then finished him off with a wrestling hold that knocked him to the ground and delivered a blow so powerful it shook the ground beneath them. Major Force was practically momentarily knocked out by this attack.

As if that wasn't bad enough, Wonder Woman tied him up with her lasso and sent him crashing away with great power, creating a crater with the force of the throw.

In short, Diana was an absolute fighting animal.

When Major Force wanted to get up from the crater, he had a sword at his neck, pointed at him.

"Surrender, Nathaniel. You don't stand a chance. Besides, look around, this fight is over. You have lost"

Nathaniel looked around. It was true. Already practically those who were left fighting were being decimated or were barely defending themselves. This fight was over.

"You're right, Diana. I have lost this fight. But that doesn't mean the war is over. For a soldier, the orders of his superiors are absolute. And my orders are to win this war, no matter what it takes. Hey, Diana, you know what happens if my body gets a hole in it..."

The last part confused Diana. If his body were to get a hole in it then he.... Diana's eyes widened in surprise.

!!!!!!!!!

"Don't do it!"

But it was too late. Nathaniel grabbed his hand and punched a hole in his chest. From there, dark energy began to be released and began to disintegrate the entire area he was in.

"Damn Hades. What the hell did you do, Nathaniel?"

"Winning the war, Diana. I'm a soldier. That's what we do"

Nathaniel's alloy was an energy container. As much as it allowed him to absorb and release atomic, molecular, or dark energy, it was also his prison to keep his power from spiraling out of control. If his body were to rupture, it would explode. And not just any explosion.

An explosion in the battle zone of his energy would be like detonating 10 nuclear bombs. And that was something Diana couldn't let happen.

Grabbing him with her lasso, she began to fly at a fiendish speed into the sky. The problem was that even if the atmosphere fell victim to the blast, it could cause a more serious long-term problem such as a drastic change in atmospheric temperature and thus severe environmental problems. The explosion had to be higher up in the stratosphere.

She flew at full speed, while carrying Nathaniel. She climbed and climbed. Her body began to grow cold from the chill in the atmosphere, but she continued. Her power was practically keeping her warm and conscious at this point.

She reached the stratosphere. But, just as she was about to release it, Major Force's body couldn't take it anymore and....

"BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!!!!!!"

The explosion was so big that it generated such a powerful wave that it knocked Diana out.

Diana began to descend at such a great speed. Mach 50, Mach 100, Mach 200, Mach 300. March 500 She was accelerating faster and faster, with no sign of slowing down. While she might survive the fall, frankly the aftermath of the fall would not be pretty for our beloved amazon.

However, just then, an orange portal materialised, and from there a hand grabbed Diana. It was Edgar. However, the power of Diana's fall had so much momentum that Edgar had to quickly open another portal near the roof of a building to prevent a bigger fall for both of them.

However, the momentum of the fall was so great that, when they reached the building, Edgar was thrown off the bike, and crawled all over the floor of the roof. At no time did he stop hugging Diana so that she would not get hurt. All the impact was on him. Reaching the edge, he finally stopped crawling.

"Diana, Diana, wake up. Are you okay, Diana?"

"Mmm... 5 more minutes. You are very comfortable" she said sleepily. She opened her eyes and with a smile, told him. "I knew you'd have me"

"Always"

"You are my hero, oh, great and handsome knight. What do you want as a gift, that I give you this princess?"

"You know what I want"

"Yes, I want that too"

Diana came up and was going to give Edgar a kiss. Edgar left his transformation to kiss Diana, but Diana stopped him.

"No, Edgar. I want to give you the kiss with your Rider form"

"But-"

"But nothing. I like you in every way, Edgar. Don't be ashamed of who you are"

"All right" Edgar transformed again and simply stopped emitting fire. Diana gave him a kiss on his skeletal cheek and one near his mouth.

"I love you"

"I love you, too"

However, this was a war and there was no time for more affection. They both knew it. So they stood up and resumed their warrior's countenance.

"With the reinforcements, the war is practically won. It's inevitable" said Diana, looking around the battlefield.

"Not yet. Even the toughest opponents are still standing. They can overturn everything with their power"

"Mmmm. What should we do?"

Edgar thought a bit and came up with an idea. An idea to take down Black Adam.

"Here's what we'll do..."

-------

Black Adam kept talking, trying to manipulate Billy with his words.

"You know. I can teach you. Teach you how to control the great power you have. Plus, I can give you advice on the problems you have"

"I don't want anything from you. Besides, I don't have any problems"

"Really?, I thought you'd have a problem because you killed Polaris" Shazam's eyes widened in surprise at this. "Don't be surprised, kid. I read the file on Polaris' death. I can discover that you fried his heart with your lightning. In fact, I have done the same thing many times"

"I'm not the same as you... I... I, it was an accident..."

"You think so. But we both know your mind battles because you and I both know what you felt at that moment. You felt the TRUE POWER. You found out how fragile people were compared to us, and that made you feel GOOD"

"THAT'S NOT TRUE...I...I...I...I don't know. I don't know what I feel..."

"Billy, don't let him manipulate you. He just wants to make you doubt and get you on his side" Superman interrupted him.

"Believe me I don't need him to win you, Superman. And my offer is real, kid. This is from someone who had to fight his whole life to get where he is. I'll guess, the wizard told you that I got corrupted, and that's why he had to lock me up. Well, I'm telling you, it's all lies. He locked me up because he feared me. He feared what I became. He locked me up because the gods feared me. And he will do the same to you, child, when you show the same control as me and the same abnormal growth we possess. When you grow up, the wizard will fear YOU just as he fears ME"

"YOU LIE. The wizard would never do that to me"

"Look into my eyes, child. See if I'm lying to you"

But Shazam saw it there. His eyes indicated he wasn't lying. Solomon's wisdom told him so. Everything he said was true. For a moment, he began to have doubts. What if it was true. What if the wizard started to fear him and locked him up like he did Black Adam.

Black Adam smiled as he felt his doubts.

'Yes, child. Do not hesitate and join me. Embrace your power and don't hesitate over moral trivia'

That's what Adam wanted. Someone to follow in his footsteps. Someone to follow his goal. A successor worthy of his legend. However, his happiness died when Billy told him.

"I... I... I... I don't want to be like you. I want to use my power to do good and fight for justice. That's what I choose to do with my power. THAT'S MY DECISION" Billy finally concluded resolutely. Black Adam just looked at him without showing any emotion.

"Well, I guess the wizard made a mistake in choosing the champion. If you don't want to make your power yours, then... I'll snatch it from your corpse"

Black Adam summoned his full power. His eyes glowed golden. The weather began to change and it began to rain again. With that, he moved.

However, he did not attack Billy, but moved against Superman, and sent him flying away. Then, without the threat of Superman, Black Adam moved against Billy, and began to beat him up.

Right punch

Left punch

Right punch

Left punch

"Enough!" Shazam parried his blow, and wanted to counter, but Black Adam proved they were not on the same level and headbutted him. Then he kneed him in the ribs, and grabbed him by the neck, sending him crashing to the ground with great power. However, he didn't stop.

He practically started slamming Shazam's head into the ground over and over again, numbing Billy's mind. Finally, when he had enough, he lifted him up, took him on his back and looked up at the sky. Summoning his power, he shouted.

"SHAZ- Aghh" but he couldn't scream as a chain of fire just pulled him by the neck, pulling him away from Billy.

Billy stood there, dazed and coughing from the beating. For the first time, he felt vulnerable against someone. They were supposed to have the same power, but Black Adam practically used him as a rag doll.

But he couldn't think anymore, when, at that, Wonder Woman flew up to Billy.

"Shazam, listen to me. I want you to prepare and be ready to summon your power. It's your only chance to defeat him once and for all. Prepare yourself"

With that, Wonder Woman flew away, leaving a confused Billy, but he did as she asked and waited. He was still tired. And he needed to pull himself together.

Edgar dragged Black Adam who was trying to break free from the grip on his neck. The worst part was that the hellfire was burning him, giving him pain like no other. It wouldn't kill him as with his power he was pretty much invulnerable, but it would hurt him severely.

Finally, he spun around and threw a powerful bolt of lightning at Edgar, which caused him to release his grip on the chain. Adam got up, and was about to move, when Diana came in and gave Adam a sweep across his feet that brought him to his knees.

Then as if that wasn't bad enough, Superman, who had been sent away, came in full force delivering a powerful blow to Adam's face that made him spit blood.

Then the chain of fire now wrapped around his right arm, restraining him. Diana grabbed his left arm with her lasso, also restraining him. Despite all that, Black Adam still wanted to get up, and was just getting up, when Diana shouted.

"Shazam, NOW!"

Shazam came and grabbed him by the arms and shouted to the sky.

"SHAZAM!"

"NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!"

Black Adam desperately wanted to break free from their grasp, but it was too late. A powerful white bolt of lightning struck Black Adam's humanity. And he could do nothing to stop it.

What was left was a bone-deep old man lying there totally limp and weak. Black Adam was over 400 years old. With his power he was fine, but without his power, he was just an old man with one foot in the grave. However, Old Adam still tried to summon his power again. With what little energy he had left and with difficulty, he wanted to say.

"SHA-"

"Not speaking"

However, he was just stopped by Edgar who lifted him by the mouth and with his fire practically burned his vocal cords. Adam could do nothing but cry from the pain he felt.

"Give it a rest. He's a weak old man"

Superman stopped Edgar who, to his eyes, was torturing him. Edgar simply let go, but it was all unavoidable now. Practically, with the dancing wind, Adam began to crumble to dust, leaving only a skeleton on the ground.

Teth Adam (Black Adam) was dead.

Superman looked angrily at Edgar. He knew they were supposed to stop him from speaking and saying the word SHAZAM, but it was still hard to watch an old man being tortured by the fire of Edgar. He was about to complain, when a loud crash interrupted his protest.

The crash was Doctor Fate who was sent flying into a building. In the sky, Mordru was still summoning his power, creating several clones of himself.

Discussions were for later, right now, they had to defeat the most formidable opponent The Light had.

Mordru was the last thing left...

----------

AN:

My P@treon

TioIroh99 (12 chapters ahead). Finished this arc on chapter 64 in P@treon.

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