Sam landed with Steve on the second carrier. "So, how do we tell the good guys from the bad?"
"If they're trying to kill you they're bad." Steve replied as Sam took off for the sky.
Across on the first helicarrier you can almost see the cartoon art of HYDRA goons being thrown through the air.
Clark took a breath of relief at this point he'll have the ship in their control in another minute. He ran through the ship gentle taps on the head to dispatch the crew. Before long he found his destination in the engine room opening it only for a sword to come right at him as Clark acted quick and caught it stopping Steppenwolf's killing blow.
Steppenwolf looked at him. "Hmm I knew you'd be on the first boat. Always the hero."
Pierce watches from the window the commotion caused by Steve, Clark, and Sam trying to stop the helicarriers from firing, he turns to one of the World Security Council. "Let me ask you a question. What if Pakistan marched into Mumbai tomorrow, and you knew that they were gonna drag your daughters into a soccer stadium for an execution?" Pierce hands the man a glass of champagne. "And you could just stop it with a flick of a switch. Would you? Wouldn't you all?"
The man looked at him disgusted, "Not if it was your switch." He tossed the glass away showing why he was chosen for the job.
One of the HYDRA agents hands Pierce his gun and Pierce points it at the man, suddenly an older woman kicked him out of harm's way, then effortlessly took down the other HYDRA agents in a series of kick punches before finally taking the gun from Pierce and pointed it at him, she then removes her disguise to reveal it's Natasha.
"I'm sorry. Did I step on your moment?" Natasha asked.
Maria kept her eyes on the monitors. "Guys no one is at the point where they need to be what's going on?"
Clark dodged a sword swing as fast as he can. "I'm fighting the devil's uncle give me a minute."
Sam flew through the sky two planes right in pursuit. "At this point it's an accomplishment I'm still alive. I found those bad guys Steve was talking about."
Maria shook her head not good. "Five minutes guys!"
One of the security council looked at Natasha typing on a keyboard. "What are you doing?"
Pierce shook his head so this is how the future will die if they have their way. "She's disabling security protocols and dumping all the secrets onto the Internet."
"Including HYDRA's." Natasha replied.
Pierce nodded. It's a new world whether this succeeds or not. Everyone but the vigilantes in Metropolis' life is going to be turned upside down. "And SHIELD's. If you do this, none of your past is gonna remain hidden." Natasha continues typing into the computer "Are you sure you're ready for the world to see you as you really are?"
"Are you?" Natasha asked.
Clark threw a punch that Steppenwolf dodged and jumped high. "Hiding up high is a coward's tactic."
Steppenwolf looked at him unflinching. "You're so sure you're the good guys right. Do you know why we're taking your world?"
Clark rolled his eyes. "Because nothing good ever comes out of the sky anymore."
"The humans" Steppenwolf shook his head in disgust. "So primitive and violent still after all this time. They'll all draw her gaze and trust me you don't want that."
Clark looked at him. "Who?"
Steppenwolf shook his head in disbelief. If Kal El is too stupid to figure it out he's not going to tell him. "I'd laugh if it wasn't so pathetic." Steppenwolf threw a couple knives Clark was quick to dodge as he jumped down.
Pierce looked at the Russian woman. "Disabling the encryption is an executive order, it takes two Alpha Level members."
Natasha looked at him unplaced. "Don't worry, company's coming." Pierce looked out the window as helicopter appeared outside, landed and Nick Fury stepped out to enter the building to Pierce's surprise with a blond with a recurve bow following closely behind.
Pierce looked at him undisturbed. There's a reason he chose Nick for the job. "Did you get my flowers?" Fury looked at him coldly "I'm glad you're here, Nick."
Fury looked at what used to be a friend. "Really? Cause I thought you had me killed."
"You know how the game works." Pierce countered.
"So why make me head of SHIELD?" Fury asked.
Pierce looked at him with almost a smile thinking back to happier times. "Cause you're the best and the most ruthless person I ever met."
"I did what I did to protect people." Fury countered.
Pierce nodded because sadly and morbidly he agreed with Fury. "Our enemies are your enemies, Nick. Disorder, war. It's just a matter of time before a dirty bomb goes off in Moscow, or an EMP fries Chicago. Diplomacy? Holding action, a band-aid. And you know where I learned that; Bogota. You didn't ask, you just did what had to be done. I can bring order to the lives of seven billion people by sacrificing twenty million. It's the next step, Nick, if you have the courage to take it."
Fury shook his head. "No, I have the courage not to." Fury took Pierce to the retinal scanner with Natasha pointing her gun at him in case he tried anything.
"Retinal scanner active." The computer announced.
Chloe walked over to Natasha looking at her screen of SHIELD's secrets on the off chance there's actually something that got by her Brainiac fueled firewalls she learned of during the possession a couple years back.
Pierce looked at Fury almost insulted. "You don't you think we wiped your clearance from the system? "
Fury nodded. "I know you erased my password, probably deleted my retinal scan, but if you want to stay ahead of me, Mr. Secretary..." Fury removed his eye patch to reveal his scarred dead eye. "You need to keep both eyes open." They both looked into the retinal scanner with Fury using his dead eye.
"Alpha Level confirmed. Encryption code accepted. Safeguards removed." The computer replied.
Clark threw a punch catching Steppenwolf in the jaw. Steppenwolf responded with a punch to Clark's gut that knocked him off the top of the boat to the floor wih rattling impact. Well at least at this rate they're going to damage the carrier enough to sink it.
Steppenwolf held his sword. "Give it up Kal, you can't beat me!" He lunged down ready to impale Clark to the carrier as the kryptonian got his hands up and caught the sword.
Clark looked at him. "Honestly I don't know if I can beat you or not." He kicked Steppenwolf and got to his feet. Steppenwolf quickly switched to knives to try for a repeat but Clark just stepped aside and grabbed him by each wrist with his hands. "I just know I don't have the time to."
Steppenwolf shouted as his entire body turned to light and was seemingly absorbed by Clark's hand.
"What the fu…" Sam looked down disturbed while dodging missiles and bullets. "Clark, I'm not seeing things up here right? Your hand did just eat someone?"
Clark looked down at the phantom zone crystal he took from Watchtower. "It's complicated I'll explain if we don't die."
"Fair enough"
Chloe smiled seeing everything. "Hey we're trending number 2 worldwide."
Fury looked at her. "What's number one?"
"Hashtag… The Last Jedi spoilers?" Chloe replied she looked up and a burning hole forming in the world security council members one by one until only Natasha was left.
Chloe quickly grabbed her bow and Fury aimed his gun at Pierce.
Pierce shook his head. "Unless you want a two inch hole in her sternum, I'd put that gun down." Natasha just grabbed her gun and aimed it as well. "That was armed the moment you pinned it on." Fury, Chloe, and Natasha reluctantly lower their weapons."
A swarm of HYDRA Agents rushed to the now open door just as quickly they're sent sailing through the air and to the floor. Clark kept walking not even slowing down while he pulled out his targeting blade and put it into the base. "Alpha locked."
On the second carrier the famous shield bounced off the last soldier's head as Steve caught his weapon and calmly put the second blade in. "Beta locked."
Sam flew and a dodged missile that blew open a hole in the last ship as Sam flew in and quickly kicked the last two guards knocking them down. He ran up and installed the last blade. "Charlie locked."
The Hydra officer stared in confusion as their targeting systems went offline as all twenty million targets disappeared. "Targets… where are the targets?"
Maria smiled seeing how fast those three worked. "OK guys since you did that so fast it's going to take me a minute to redirect. Just get clear for now."
Pierce frowned hearing the team's success over the intercoms. He turned to Natasha so much already wasted. "Time to go, Councilwoman. This way, come on. You're gonna fly me out of here." Pierce started to leave with Natasha.
"You know, there was a time I would have taken a bullet for you."
Pierce turned to his old friend with a smile. "You already did. You will again when..." Just then Natasha quickly activated one of her weapons causing it to shock her and give Fury a chance to shoot Pierce, Fury aimed quickly and fired twice before Chloe could even notch an arrow.
Chloe looked in a bit of wonder. "Whoa"
Fury walked over to Natasha who is lying unconscious on the floor. "Romanoff! Natasha! Natasha, come on!"
Natasha opened her eyes. "Ow. Those really do sting."
The three took a breath of relief until the shadows on the wall came to life starting to take shape as a flock of ravens before turning into one massive shadow standing as a thirteen feet tall shadow with glowing red eyes.
Fury looked at it. "What the hell is that thing?"
"Darkseid." Chloe replied. The three fired but since it was just a shadow hit absolutely nothing.
The shadow moved now standing over Pierce. "Is this how you want your story to end?"
Pierce shook his head. "I wanted to save the world."
"You still can." The shadow offered. "Your dream doesn't have to die here."
Pierce looked at him. At the end of the day he is still a business man. "What do you want in exchange?"
"Your soul." Darkseid answered.
Pierce smiled. "Peace is a responsibility. Do whatever you have to do."
Darkseid smiled and seemingly disappeared into Pierce.
Natasha, Fury and Chloe watched as what should be a dead corpse got back to his feet. The three each fired to almost no effect as Darkseid just ran for the window and jumped right out of it seemingly into the sky.
Clark smiled seeing daylight as he stepped outside all the guns aimed at each other until a shadow filled the sky. Clark looked up in confusion what can bring shade to a… "Oh sh…"
Darkseid crashed into the kryptonian for lack of a better word as three loud crashes were heard one for each floor they crashed through. Darkseid smiled picking Clark up off the floor and just threw him in a straight line through two more doors bringing him back to the control room.
Clark got to his feet and Darkseid looked at him trying to get a familiar feeling. Clark shook his head and looked right at him and hit him with a blast of heat vision knocking him to one knee.
Darkseid got to his feet. "You beat your darkness. Makes it interesting." Darkseid put his hand up as smoke left it and entered the collection of blades.
Maria typed in the last command ready to fire until to her horror the original twenty million targets showed up. "Guys? Guys something just went horribly wrong!" She went frantically smashing at the keyboard. "No, no, no!"
"What!" Steve asked hearing the panic attack.
Maria looked at it. "Something went wrong in Alpha carrier, Insight's original targeting just dropped like a hammer and I can't turn it off!"
Steve's eyes widened just once this looked like it was going to be easy. "Sam!"
"I'm coming hang on!" Steve simply ran for the edge of the ship and seeing Falcon quickly jumped off. Sam quickly grabbed Steve as they made a break for the first carrier.
The two quickly make it to the first carrier only for one of Sam's wings to take a hit from a bullet forcing him to drop Steve onto the ship as Sam lands not so gracefully afterwards.
Maria's eyes quickly widened seeing the STRIKE team on its way. Three right at the door. She quickly pulls out a gun and effortlessly killed the three as they entered.
Steve turns around and sees the Winter Soldier was who shot Sam down. "Buck, look a lot of people are going to die if you don't let us through."
Chloe looked at the screen nervously. "Guys, Maria is about to have some company. I'm not worried about the toadies but Rumlow could give her a problem."
Steve turned to Falcon. "Can you get to her?"
"Of course." Sam started running as Steve threw the shield hitting Bucky in the face knocking the winter soldier mask off.
Clark stayed hidden at the tower he needs time to figure out something he's not giving up but Darkseid isn't even trying here. He ripped off a piece of the metal floor and just chucked it right at Darkseid.
Darkseid simply stuck his hand up and caught it and tossed it aside. Darkseid held his hand up and against his own will Clark floated into the demon's hand as Darkseid clutched the kryptonian around the throat. "You're not there yet." Darkseid threw him through two walls. "And you never will be."
Clark's eyes glowed red and he screamed out letting loose with everything he had.
Darkseid smiled as his eyes glowed a much darker shade of red as two beams shot out of his eyes. The first one cut a path right through the heat vision hitting Clark with the force of an eighteen wheeler on a defenseless kitten. He feels everything light up in pain feeling like he just bought a butane lighter into a fight against a flamethrower. To his surprise Darkseid's blast curves taking him up into the air.
Sam fell closer to the building Maria was in before deploying a parachute. He saw the building coming up quick and used the guns on his suit to shoot at a window weakening the glass right before he hit it and crashed into the building for lack of a better word but got into the building. He put the wings aside being nothing more then a wing and a used parachute.
Steve moved quick blocking shot after shot from Bucky's metal arm with his shield. The fight came to a grinding halt when Clark was launched from below them into the sky in front of them. They watched as a second beam came out and launched Clark back to the ground.
Darkseid jumped out moments later and looked at Clark practically broken. "Impressive, I did not think I would meet a man that can survive a blast from my Omega beams let alone two. Sadly you'll obliterate my darkness if you're not stopped." Darkseid looked at him and stood ready to fire when two very unexpected things happened. First Darkseid was hit in the side of the neck hard by a thrown Vibranium shield. The second the blind sided Darkseid involuntarily put his head up as the beam fired directly at Charlie carrier.
Clark and Steve watched as the beam hit Charlie carrier head on and destroyed it leaving nothing but smoke in its wake.
Steve smiled seeing at least one of the ships gone. The smile quickly vanished as Bucky got him into a choke hold trying to choke the life out of him.
Darkseid looked at Steve for a moment that's not going to happen again. Darkseid simply kept looking at Captain America as an Omega beam fired again heading for Steve. Clark moved as fast as his legs could still take him grabbing the shield in mid air and landing right in front of Steve. The shield did its job and sent the blast right to back to Darkseid punching a hole through Pierce's chest knocking him down and gasping for breath. Clark took the opening and just threw the shield at Bucky's head knocking him out cold as he and Steve fell to the floor.
Clark ran in a blur and came back with a parachute. "Get him out of here! Don't let him out of your sight! I might know a way to help him."
Steve looked and saw Pierce getting back up. "You sure about that?"
Clark nodded and let out a savage heat vision blast at Darkseid knocking him down before he could even get up. "I know who I am… and I know what to do."
Steve put Bucky over his shoulder. "Good Luck."
Rumlow ran for Hill how can one SHIELD agent put down so many of his friends… one that is not Barton or Romanoff anyway. He ran on the same floor as Hill and just then Sam rushed out and attacked Rumlow but Rumlow managed to knock Sam down. "This is gonna hurt. There are no prisoners with HYDRA, just order. And order only comes through pain. You ready for yours?"
"Man, shut the hell up." Sam countered and the two fought Sam wanting to give Hill more time to shut it down.
Three months ago.
Clark looked at his younger… older cousin dejected. Jor El chose her. "I think I liked it better when I was showing you the ropes."
Kara smiled remembering her first days. How did Kal El not lock her in the zone? "I guess change is in the air."
Clark closes his eyes trying to focus. This is the last thing he has to learn. Flight, he doesn't know what happened to him because he's been able to do this since he was 14. He should have mastered it by 18. But denial… one hell of a thing. It's a mental block because of his denial of being anything but normal. But flying has happened a couple times accidentally. Now he has to control it to stand up to the darkness according to Kara.
Clark looked at his cousin for some last piece of advice. "This is easy for you huh?"
Kara shook her head but a gave a little nod too to his confusion. "No it's-it's not easy or hard, it just is. I mean I-I reach for the sky and the world just falls away. I'm not thinking of anything I'm just in the moment."
Clark smiled for so long he figured it was just something with him and in a way it was. A mental block he put on himself. He'll never be human he was born a kryptonian. It's time to accept that. It just is. Clark ran to the edge of the carrier and simply jumped off taking to the sky. Clark smiled seeing the sky stopped moving and him still in it. He did it.
Darkseid let out a mean snarl. He's doing it. "You will not stop me now!" Darkseid went to fly after him but the gaping hole in his chest stopped him. Darkseid grabbed the wound and just fired in a flurry releasing six lines of the omega blast.
Clark flew faster then he thought possible the six beams right behind him. Wow he thinks the cape makes him quicker and better with turns. He took a sharp turn right and the beams followed. Clark shook his head. Great heat seeking laser beams, well that's a new one.
Natasha looked at the sight from the carrier's camera. "He can do that!?"
Chloe looked at it with a smile. It's about time. "He does that!"
Clark looked at it. OK he can't out run them because they follow him so let's try this. Clark spins in a barrel roll eventually turning into something like a red twister. The six beams continue to chase him turning into a swirl until eventually three of them collide creating an explosion leaving three beams left. Clark flew for the Bravo carrier and came to a stop. Clark watched the beams come at him and he has one chance. He flies and grabs onto the side of Bravo carrier and quickly flies up making one the beams hit Bravo carrier for the same result bringing the ship count down to one.
Clark smiled flying up and saw one of the Omega beams fly above him. Clark took a sharp turn to the right dodging the beam with a smile. He flew a bit before he gasped for his next breath he looked down and saw the last of the Omega beams as it shot out of his chest then disappeared.
Darkseid watched in a smile with Clark falling towards him just trying to hang on and stay up so he sent the last beam after him.
Clark flew right at Darkseid coming down to the carrier's level. Darkseid smiled as his eyes lit up but stopped as Clark crashed about ten feet from him.
Darkseid smiled walking over to him as his eyes lit up. "In what world could you have stopped me?"
Darkseid bent down to grab Clark when top his surprise The teenager's arm moved in a blur and snatched him by the throat lifting his head up.
Darkseid growled as… the light went out of his eyes and his face lit up in fear seeing the last Omega going right for his head. "Oh sh…"
Pierce's head was vaporized instantly as a flock of ravens scattered to the sky.
Clark went to stand up but that wasn't working as he fell right back down. "Maria, can't help but notice this thing is still getting ready to fire."
Maria took out her gun shooting the last two leaving her an empty gun with one HYDRA agent left Rumlow. She took a breath of relief seeing Rumlow tackled aside by Sam so she has no shot without friendly fire. "Yeah I'm working on it one minute to go. Or till Rumlow gets past Sam."
Steve looked up from the ground and hist his communicator. "You can't turn it off!"
Maria shook her head. "All I can do is swap out the targets from the list so what poor bastard are we dropping one third of the wrath of heaven on?"
"Number 16! Everything you have on 16!" Clark shouted.
Maria's eyes rose. "What did 16 do to you?"
Clark shook his head. "I'm number 16. All the bullets go straight up and the missiles will…"
"Tear this ship apart." Maria finished as she shifted everything to one target.
Chloe smiled hearing that. "Ever the hero"
Clark looked as all the guns aimed up and fired randomly into the sky. He only smiled seeing the missiles in the sky as they all went up for a couple moments before dropping right down coming for his head. "Oh and don't forget to take Zola's algorithm with you on the way out."
Steve watched from the ground as a flat out horror show took place in the sky seeing the ships own missiles tearing it apart. Sad thing is if Clark wasn't doing it… he would have done it in his place. He watches as the carrier starts to drop a piece smashing into the building Sam and Maria are in. "Well that can't be good."
Maria got up from the computer and took a jump drive that now contained the algorithm all the boats are blown to hell why would Clark want this. She looked out the window and saw a ship rapidly coming right at her as she ran out of the room.
Sam and Brock continued exchanging punches when to their surprise Maria went running out of the room heading for the other side. The two men watched as the walls practically exploded as the two ran after her.
Sam desperately ran. "Tell me you have that thing in the air!"
"Sam where are you guys?" Natasha asked.
"41st floor, north-west corner!" Sam shouted catching up to Maria as Brock was hit by the debris quickly disappearing into it.
"We're on it, stay where you are." Natasha ordered.
Sam ran with Maria the two desperately trying to get away from the destruction the helicarrier is causing the building. "Not an option!" As the building is being destroyed the two jumped out the window as Natasha and Fury fly their chopper in time to catch him. Natasha catching Sam Chloe catching Maria before they go right out the other side.
"41st floor! 41st!" Sam shouted.
Fury glared at him. "It's not like they put the floor numbers on the outside of the building!"
The group looked down and saw the carrier hit the ocean with a giant wave and then nothing as the final helicarrier sank to the ocean bottom.
Clark looked on as water began to overtake him. He looked to the ocean and knew what Darkseid as capable of. He wondered if anyone had gotten off those carriers when he and Darkseid started fighting. He was planning to throw them off when the guns started shooting and then Darkseid showed up. He watched as more and more of the earth started to disappear from view swallowed by water. Well he stopped HYDRA he'll…
Clark sunk lower and lower not moving. He kept sinking till he was grabbed by a gloved red hand as Steve pulled him back up swimming for the surface.
Steve took a breath of relief coming to land and dumped Clark atop the parachute. He looked around rattled not seeing Bucky.
Steve's eyes widened hearing the known sound of a gun being aimed behind him. "Bucky…"
"Who the hell is Bucky?" The soldier asked.
Steve put his hands up. "You, you're Bucky do you even remember your real name?"
The soldier looked at him keeping his gun at Steve but hesitating to pull the trigger.
Steve looked at him. "How about your parents, your friends, where did you got to school, where did you grow up?"
The soldier kept his focus. "Shut up!"
Steve kept his hands up trying not to force a fight. "You don't know any of that because HYDRA took it from you. All they gave you were missions."
"Be quiet." The soldier repeated.
Steve looked at him. "You know me."
The soldier dropped the gun but lashed out at Steve in anger as Steve dodged the punch. "No, I don't!"
Steve kept his focus he's not giving up on him. "Bucky, you've known me your whole life." Bucky hits Steve but Steve chooses not to fight back.
"No, I don't!" The soldier shouted.
Steve just let his friend hit him again with another punch. "Bucky, you've known me your whole life." Bucky hit Steve again but Steve chooses not to fight back still. "Your name is James Buchanan Barnes."
The soldier hit Steve again. "Shut up!"
Steve shook his head and took his mask off. "I'm not gonna fight you. You're my friend.
Bucky pushed Steve to the ground "You're my mission." He then mercilessly punches Steve repeatedly across the face in a ground and pound before long blood starts gushing from Steve. "You're my mission!"
Steve looked at him through the blood. "Then finish it." Bucky hesitated holding his fist up. "Cause I'm with you to the end of the line."
Clark opened his eyes and heard soothing music and saw Chloe hard at work at the side of his bed in a chair trying to find heads or tails of the Justice Society and Sam right next to her.
He rubbed his eyes seeing Emil Hamilton a doctor for his and Oliver's team come in. "What's today?"
"Wednesday Clark." Emil answered.
Clark nodded. "So, what I miss?"
"Tuesday" Emil answered calmly before adding. "That gaping chest wound was worrisome but you pulled through."
Clark nodded in acceptance though that calm from Emil was disturbing. "Is Natasha or Maria here?"
Emil nodded. "Natasha was in a senate hearing. She dumped a lot of secrets but luckily The Red Queen and Chloe kept all of you off HYDRA's radar. I think Maria is here. I'll go get her."
Chloe looked at him from her seat. "First thing you're thinking of when you wake up is the girls of SHIELD? For god sakes I can't find anyone we care about except Lois and Emil."
Clark looked at her. "Chloe, it will be alright. We'll find them. I promise."
Sam looked at him. "You seem very confident about that."
"I am." Clark assured the two. "Where's Cap?"
Sam looked at him and explained the situation as Maria walked into the room.
The SHIELD agent smiled seeing the young man awake although slightly disturbed that the entire payload of a helicarrier didn't even put a scratch in his costume. "You wanted to see me?"
Clark nodded. "Do you still have Project Insight?"
Maria went into her pocket and pulled out a flash drive that she gave to Clark. "I don't know why I still have something this dangerous."
Clark handed the flash drive to Chloe. "I need to find a couple targets. Specifically numbers 30 and 33."
Chloe's eyes lit up. "Oh my god that's brilliant! I'll check the rest of the thirties. That seems to be where we're all at."
Sam looked at her. "I don't understand what's brilliant."
Chloe got to work on the computer. "For two days I've been searching cell towers search history anything I can to find our friends. HYDRA already found them for Insight." Chloe put the flash drive in and before long Chloe got a location in… " They're at Black Creek. They're using Lex's old hideout."
Clark shrugged. "At least we know the layout of the place."
Chloe nodded. "Take a couple hours to rest up and get some sun. When Natasha comes back we're getting them out."
Author Notes
Thanks to everyone who reviewed and follows and favorites.
As for Darkseid. This will not be lame evil fog in a corpse. This is going to be a fight. Clark would not stand a chance as the blur he needed to be more in these stories. He has his powers he has the suit but he's not ready for the name yet.
Finally at a good place at long last and feeling good to write, the finale will be up by Friday and a long long awaited story should start on Sunday i wanted to finish one story first then update the rest of my stories.
Laptop 2007-2017 every time I thought it was dead it kept coming back finally gave up in march covered in duct tape.
Up Next: Epilogue