Chapter 1

On the scene, LexCorp and the surrounding blocks are in an uproar. Civilians are running in every which direction. Buildings are becoming unstable, pieces of them falling. The people flee to avoid injury, some unsuccessfully. The roads and sidewalks are cracking and splitting in some places as the ground quakes.

By the time the Young Justice team arrives, the founding Justice League members are inside trying to shut down the machine. A few other members are outside protecting the populous, guiding them in the direction of the nearest shelter.

Quickly assessing the situation, Aqualad turns to his teammates and gives them the battle plan.

"Robin, Kid Flash, and Artemis help evacuate the remaining people in affected buildings. Superboy and Miss Martian, help me with the outside. Leading people away from danger is the number one priority. Go!" Said groups split up and sprint into action.

Robin's team starts at the closest business, going floor by floor, and rescuing people pinned under rubble or trapped in confined spaces. When they finished with one, they moved on to the next: apartments, restaurants, even a couple of law firms. Robin and Artemis use their quick thinking and many tools in their arsenals. Kid Flash's speed lets him quickly get him and others out of danger in seconds.

Meanwhile, Aqualad's team is playing by sight. They're letting the people know the best direction to run and keeping them from harm by catching falling debris. Miss Martian uses her enhanced alien mind to feel who's in danger and prevent it without lifting a finger. Aqualad's magic water gauntlets aid him in demolishing anything in his way. Superboy's strength has almost no boundaries as he smashes cement and catches metal as they fall.

No matter their abilities, protecting the people is paramount.

After a seemingly endless amount of time, the last of the civilians make it out of the disaster zone. Without any other orders from Batman, the team is at a loss for what to do now.

That doesn't mean the fight is over. There's still the source of the anarchy.

Superboy knows this.

"We should go inside." He says to the others. Aqualad is the first to respond.

"No, we shouldn't. We do not know what's going on in there. Batman only said for us to help with the situation on the outside."

"But, he never said we couldn't go inside after we were done out here." Kid Flash adds.

"I hate to say it, Baywatch... but you've got a point." Artemis agrees.

"I don't know, guys. If the Justice League needed our help, they would've asked for it, right?" M'Gann says.

"When have they ever done that?" Superboy comes back, the question being rhetorical as he dashes toward the LexCorp lab anyway. The rest of the team lingering behind for a moment before quickly following him. They can't say they didn't expect this. The hot-headed super-teen is notorious for running head-on into danger, being reckless. This time is no different.

On the inside, the Justice League barely has a handle on controlling the experiment. Batman is at the main controls trying to figure out how to shut it down from there. Wonder Woman and Martian Manhunter are trying to do damage control, stop any more things from being damaged. They need to salvage as much as possible so they can know what it is and what it does besides carnage. Flash, unfortunately, is behind Batman and unconscious. Superman is trying to help Wonder Woman and J'onn, but the machine uses Kryptonite as a stabilizing agent for the portal in the center of the room. The rock reduces his strength and his other powers don't work.

Superboy runs into the room, the rest of the Young Justice team behind him soon after. Superman is the first to see them, his eyes widen.

"What are you all doing here?!" His booming voice catches the attention of Wonder Woman.

"You all need to leave now!" She shouts.

"No! We can help you! Just tell us what to do!" Superboy shouts back. Before the older heroes can say anything more, an alarm starts blaring. A red light flashed in synchronization with the tone. Everyone turns to Batman.

"Batman, what's happening?!" J'onn asks with urgency.

"The machine's generators are overloading! We only have a few minutes before it implodes and collapses the building on us!" Batman answers, setting the time limit.

The machine releases a small shockwave, knocking everyone back into the far wall. Some are unable to get back up. Superboy is the first as he realizes the only course of action to save everyone in this room.

Destroy the machine.

First, he goes slowly to the main terminal. Superboy's body is starting to feel the effect of Kryptonite exposure, as he feels weaker by the second. He gets to the controls, raises his arms, then smashes them to the floor. The machine stutters but shows no real sign of stopping. Superboy shifts his gaze to the metal arch in the center of the room. It's emitting strange energy, both from the Kryptonite and something else he can't identify. He doesn't care at the moment.

Superboy sees a closed panel on the right side of the arch that looks important. He rips it open and starts yanking out wires.

Superman sits up, momentarily disoriented, and sees Superboy in the middle of his task.

"Superboy! Get out of there!" He shouts, knowing how dangerous it is to be so near it when there's a risk of severe injury or death. The boy hears the yell, but he doesn't listen.

With a final tear, most of the components are out on the floor. The machine seems to power down slowly.

It has one last surprise in store.

A bright light starts coming from the center of the arch. Superboy puts an arm over his eyes to shield them from the intensity. Loud whirring comes from all around.

Maybe demolishing this thing wasn't an excellent idea.

Superboy turns to get away before it does something. He tries too late.

The whirring gets louder and higher until it's like a dog whistle; everyone covers their ears. The light engulfs everyone and everything. The last thing heard is Superboy's scream before a deafening *BOOM*.

Then it's just black.

Wonder Woman rouses from unconsciousness to a dark room. She faces the rest of her comrades and the younger heroes. Her short-term memory takes a few seconds to catch up with her, and her eyes widen.

The machine! What happened to it, and how are they all still okay?

Everyone else is starting to wake up, so she looks around the place. There's no hope of reactivating this thing, that's good, but the amount of damage makes it more difficult to analyze it. Bruce will come through in that department; he always does.

As she takes it all in, Diana can't help but feel like something is off. Something's missing.

...Or someone.

She looks at everyone behind her. Batman, Superman, Flash, J'onn, Kaldur, Artemis, Wally, M'gann, Robin.

Where's Superboy?