Chapter 1: The Bat and The Alien
Somewhere in another dimension, there is a planet which exceeds even the human's imagination of hell; a place where literal demons cohabitate, ruled by their grey faced god, overlooking the fiery pits of this planet. Apokolips. The grey faced god, his name Darkseid, looked at the planet he ruled with a stoic expression. Unwavering, but also unsatisfied; he was hungry, anticipating the future. An old but healthy-looking woman, with white hair, wearing green armour, approached Darkseid, her yellow cape waving slightly due to the hot winds of Apokolips.
"Granny Goodness," Darkseid said, his face still pointed towards the horizon. "I assume that our forces are ready to mobilise?"
"Yes, my lord, the Parademons are ready to be released at full force. The Furies are also standing by. We are ready to invade to Earth, at your command," Granny Goodness replied, her voice unnaturally deep.
"Then release them. Call Steppenwolf," Darkseid declared, turning towards Granny Goodness, his red eyes swelling with the Omega Sanction, and his hands held behind his back. His black armour reflected the red light emanating from the landscape of Apokolips, and his voice was amplified by the echo in the room. "The Parademons will sweep across the land, and no man will escape the wrath of Darkseid!"
On Earth, the night sky is polluted with the bright lights of the city below. Gotham. Towering over most of the buildings within this urban jungle is the Wayne Enterprises building, where a man shrouded within the shadows, a black cape covering his entire body as he crouched, waiting for even the slightest mishap in the city's law and order, like a predator stalking, waiting patiently for its prey. Suddenly, police sirens blared, followed by the cars it originated from, zooming through the roads of Gotham. Through his earpiece, he intercepted the police dispatch:
"All units to the Bowery, I repeat, all units to the Bowery. Commissioner Gordon has been captured by an unknown metahuman, we need back up here now!"
The Batman leapt into action, somersaulting off the building on which he crouched, simultaneously grabbing a grapnel gun out of his utility belt and firing it towards a building near him, swinging off and gliding towards the direction of the Bowery.
Within mere minutes, he reached the Bowery, crouching on top of the gargoyle overlooking the ongoing crime scene. On the roof was James Gordon, bruised and bloodied, but not dead, laying on the floor, writhing in agony. Accompanying him was a grotesque looking creature, hunchbacked, his wings insect-like, protruding out of his back. His skin was grey and most of his body was covered by a green and gold-coloured armour. It was screeching nonsensically, while also holding a red cube, pulsating with unknown levels of energy. Batman observed the scene carefully, ensuring that he secures the cube while also saving Commissioner Gordon from the unknown creature.
"I can distract the creature long enough for you to grab the civilian, Batman."
Batman widened his eyes in shock by the voice inside his head. This voice was alien, deep, but also he knew to trust it, despite his reservations and uneasiness. Suddenly, an ethereal form of a man wearing blue armour, with red crosses on his torso, coupled with a red cape covering his back, phased out of the ceiling and solidified, punching the creature in the right side of its face, sending it flying into an antenna tower on the building. Batman followed suit, as if he had worked with him before, gliding on the roof they were on and grabbing Commissioner Gordon.
"I've got you, Gordon, you're safe. I'll get you to the GCPD below." Batman said, slinging his left arm across his shoulder and helping him up. He grabbed his grapnel gun and pointed it towards the building next to them, firing it.
"Thanks, Batman; I see you've made a new friend," Gordon replied, coughing blood. Batman merely grunted in reply.
The green alien had, meanwhile, subdued the creature, using a metal piece from the antenna tower to bind him to the tower, incapacitating him. He scanned the monster, his red eyes observing him from head to toe. Batman landed next to him, looking at the green alien with a slight scowl.
"Who are you?" the caped crusader asked, looking at the monster.
"It is not important; right now, we must focus on the task at hand," the green alien replied, looking at the monster. "I have the ability to read his mind; we can find out his purpose and aim…"
The creature snarled as his red eyes glowed. After mere moments, the alien writhed in pain, falling to the ground. The creature laughed and the red cube glowed. Yellow energy started to release between the cracks of the creature's armour.
"Hail Darkseid!" the creature howled as he exploded from the inside, green blood splattering in all directions and smoke covering both the Bat and the alien. As the smoke cleared, the red box started to hum slightly. The alien keeled over, and Batman helped him up.
"Thank you, Batman. My name is J'onn J'onzz, the last son of Mars," the alien said, "Some of your human kind call me the Martian Manhunter."
"You've been seen everywhere, Manhunter," Batman replied, "People think you're a myth."
"People outside of Gotham believe that too," Martian Manhunter said, his eyes glowing red. "However, we don't have time; the creature that exploded is known as a Parademon, part of an army of a hellish planet known as Apokolips. We need to hurry and gather the rest of the heroes… Darkseid is coming."
"Darkseid?" Batman questioned.
"The god of Apokolips. He travels between worlds through Mother Boxes," the Martian replied, pointing to the red cube. "Superman has faced him many times before."
"The Kryptonian… I have heard of his exploits," Batman pondered. "He was involved in the Hell in Metropolis event a few years ago. He's a threat."
"Funny," a voice interjected from above. "I could say the same for you, Batman."
Batman and the Martian Manhunter turned to see a man hovering in the air over them. His red cape blew in the direction of the breeze, the moonlight reflecting off the insignia of his costume, a red S. His blue and red costume gleamed from the moonlight as he gazed towards the two acquainted heroes.
"So, what can we do with Darkseid?"