Mount Justice
The attack came without warning. A massive ship, almost half the size of Earth's moon, arrived without being detected by any sensors and took up orbit within minutes. Soon after, it began deploying swarms of smaller ships. The Justice League wasn't going to take that lying down.
Batman flew his Batwing alongside John Stewart and Hal Jordan. The cameras were deployed just before the two Green Lanterns tried to get the ships to leave peacefully. One of the several blood-red bulges scattered across the ship fired a massive beam of red energy.
Whatever kind of energy it was, it punched through the Lanterns' green barriers without even slowing down. When the beam touched them, they were destroyed at the atomic level. With this clearly being an invasion, Batman deployed several heroes from his haul.
Superman, Captain Marvel, Captain Atom, and Martian Manhunter. Despite avoiding the lasers initially, all four heroes fell like the Lanterns. Batman was quick to follow. The team watched the recordings of these brave heroes' demise with tense, unblinking eyes.
"Black Canary." Zatara had appeared on a screen. "Did you…"
"We saw." Black Canary assured. "Our celestial defense has failed, so we must now initiate our terrestrial measures."
"Affirmative." Zatara nodded. "See you in the field."
The magic user then ended the call, and Canary turned to the team. "I must join the league. We will protect this planet at all costs; however, if we fail, the responsibility will fall to you."
"We'll stand ready." Omni declared firmly. "Good luck."
Later…
The battle went from bad to worse. Nothing the league had could defend against the aliens' technology. Eventually, they were whittled down to a pitiful few. Even then, they made their last stand right down the final hero.
"Team." Black Canary was all that was left, and she made the call knowing the younger heroes would be watching. "I'm sorry, but I'm all that's left. You must defend Earth. You must…"
"Black Canary, look out!" The hero turned at Robin's warning, but it was too late.
She was hit with a blast of energy and wiped out like every other hero before her.
Omni sighed as he shut down the call. "They're all gone." He turned to his team. "It's up to us now."
"So, what are we waiting for?" Superboy asked impatiently. "A theme song?"
"We'll get out there, but we just saw what running out there without a concrete plan gets us." Omni reasoned. "What we need now is a strategy. Earth's weapons are ineffective, and it's been made clear a direct attack isn't an option."
Omni did know of one alien he had access to that might be able to destroy that ship, but he was still the leader of this team. They needed him, so he resolved to hold off on trying to use him for now.
"Checking satellite imagery." Robin busted out his holo-computer and hooked it up to the Cave. "Here's where the aliens are concentrated now."
Superboy pointed at the map. "Why is that one away from the others?"
Robin zoomed in to show a single, alien ship had landed near the North Pole. "It's not too far from the Fortress of Solitude."
"That makes sense." Superboy stated. "The Fortress has all kinds of Kryptonian tech, so it must have attracted the aliens' attention enough to send someone to check it out."
"That's a bit much for a guy wearing spandex, don't you think?" Cameron commented.
Wally elbowed him in the side while everyone else ignored his attempt to lighten the mood.
"So, what's the plan?" Robin asked.
"We have to uphold their legacy by taking up their roles in defending the Earth. From this day forward, we are the Justice League." Omni looked at the muted news report with images of missing or dead heroes from Superman all the way down to Starman.
"The Justice League chose to put their life on the line to save Earth, and it's time we make that same choice. So, I say we go after that scout ship, break it down, integrate it into the Bioship, and hit those good for nothing trespassers with a taste of their own medicine. Who's with me?"
The entire team wiped the grim looks off their faces and smiled. M'gann gave him a warm hug while Wally raced behind him putting an arm around his shoulder. The team then moved to their rooms to prepare.
The Fortress of Solitude
The team snuck out of the Bioship clothed in white versions of their costumes that covered every inch of skin save for their faces. It appeared that the alien ship was simply observing the Fortress, so the team observed the ship.
"Get ready to move in." Omni stated over the psychic link. "Now!"
Miss Martian moved first and yanked the ship to the snowy ground where it was restrained by Superboy, Ion's ring, and Lucky Girl's magic. The rest of the team, plus Wolf, stood by ready to help if they were needed.
Superboy scanned the ship with his X-ray vision. "There's no one inside. It's a big robot!"
"Well, at least it means we won't have to hold back." Kid Flash stated with a carefree grin that began to fade when he noticed the ship's tail begin to twitch. "Hey, what's it…"
Without further warning, the tail swerved and pointed at Wonder Girl. A beam of deadly energy raced towards her, but Wolf knocked her out of the way just in time. With a brief howl of pain, Superboy's pet was gone.
Cameron gaped. "Oh no…"
Not wanting anyone else to get hit, and to avenge Wolf, Wonder Girl smashed the tail to pieces. "I'm sorry Superboy…"
"Can't do anything for him now…" Superboy answered back quietly before beginning to tear at the gun. "Let's go."
The gun soon came free of it's wiring before M'gann and Superboy hopped over onto the camouflaged Bioship. M'gann placed her hands along the side of the ship.
"Rerouting systems to integrate the weapon into the ship's bio matrix." She stated. "I'll need to de-camouflage for a few minutes."
Miss Martian let the ship fade back into existence.
"We may not have a few minutes." Robin warned.
Everyone soon spotted three ships bearing down on them.
"Miss Martian! Open fire!" Omni ordered.
"Can't! Weapons systems are offline to incorporate the new cannon, and that's not fully integrated either!" Miss Martian declared.
Omni immediately dialed up his Aerophibian and slammed the face plate down. "Jetray! Ion, you're with me while the rest of you defend this ship."
"Understood." Ion replied.
The pair ascended into air. Jet ray used his neuro blast from his tail and eyes while Ion fired off many, strong will blasts. With great effort on both their parts, they managed to fell two of the ships. The last had flown around them to attack the team and Bioship.
Wonder Girl and Superboy where there to defend the team with the pair flying and jumping up to it, respectively. They came crashing down and pummeled the machine to the relief of the others. It crashed in a plume of smoke. Then, it all went wrong.
The final ship's still functional tail canon took aim and fired at Lucky Girl. By the time Jetray realized this, not even flying at his top speed would be enough to save her. At this range, he couldn't even reach that speed in time, but he still had to try.
Lucky Girl saw the ship in time to erect a barrier, but it ended up failing just like the Green Lantern's barriers earlier. Jet Ray flew past where she once stood. His cousin was gone, and the weight of the day's events suddenly came crashing down on top of him.
"GWEN!" Superboy raged.
He put that rage to use pummeling the tail that took her from him until he was positive it would not claim another. The rest of the team stared in shock. One of their own had just died. Jetray collapsed to the ground and shifted back to normal.
"They're dead!" Superboy jumped down with an enraged expression. "Every last one of those aliens is going to die!"
"Yeah." That snapped Omni back to the situation at hand. "I'm right there with you. No matter how much we want to rush in, it's not the right time." He looked to the rest of the team. "We're leaving."
Bioship
The way back from the Fortress was a quiet affair. Each member of the Team was lost in his or her own thoughts on what had just happened. Most of their missions had been high-risk, but they'd all come back… Until now.
Omni honestly felt utterly distraught. He was trying his best to hold it together for his team, but it was hard. Ever since that road trip, they'd become a lot closer as family, but even his younger self would have never wanted this.
Everyone was broken from their mourning by Superboy who sniffled. "She's gone." He put his head in his head. "She's gone, and I'll never have the chance to tell her I loved her."
For once, Cameron was glad his body and mouth were acting for him as he stood up before placing a comforting hand on his friend's shoulder. "Conner, I'm sorry she's gone." He sighed. "For what it's worth, I knew you guys had something special from that first kiss of yours."
"Thanks Cameron." Superboy wiped his eyes before looking at the rest of the team. "I swear I'm going to do my best to ensure we don't lose anymore… if I can help it."
Omni collected himself knowing that the words he was about to say would be just as much for his benefit as the others. "We will all look out for each other and make those trespassers pay. No one gets away with killing our own without consequences."
Suddenly, it hit them. They hadn't just lost Lucky Girl. They'd lost the entire Justice League. Teachers, friends, and family. All had died today, and they hadn't reacted like they should have. What was wrong with them?
Had they just been unable to believe what they were seeing and hid behind their usual attitudes? Even by the standards of soldiers in war, that was cold. No more. In the name of Gwen, the Justice League, and everyone who had fallen, the team would fight to their last breath.
"So, what's our next move?" Miss Martian asked. "Do we head back to the Cave?"
"The Hall of Justice." Omni replied. "As the new Justice League, its only right that we protect our predecessors' headquarters for respects sake. Besides, the world needs to know that there are heroes still protecting them." Omni looked over to M'gann. "That there's still hope."
Washington D.C.: Hall of Justice
Most of Washington D.C. had been destroyed in the early hours of the invasion, but the small part that remained was protected by several thousand soldiers who had stubbornly refused to give up the last of the city.
That courage wasn't much of a comfort at the sight of most of the capital leveled. There couldn't be more than a few buildings that still stood, and it was a sobering sight. As Bioship flew closer to the Human holdouts, they could see the smoking wrecks of hundreds of alien vessels.
Unfortunately, there were millions more, and at that moment, the army was struggling to fend off a few dozen. It was a desperate battle, but the soldiers managed to destroy a handful. That handful now had a clear shot because the soldiers' antiaircraft guns needed reloading.
The aliens only got a few shots off before Bioship opened fire destroying three of them. Superboy, Wonder Girl, and Ion jumped out to destroy the rest. As they stepped away from the wrecked craft, Bioship landed to deposit the rest of the Team.
The heroes then approached the army with Omni speaking up with a steely tone. "Who's in charge here?"
An aging, gray-haired man stepped forward and saluted. "General Ross, US Army."
Omni nodded. "Omni-X, and I come with the New Justice League. I've got a couple of people here who can help salvage some of the aliens' cannons. Then, we'll need to set up around the Hall. Once we've got a solid defense, we can start our counterattack."
Later…
Omni had Superboy, Robin, Ion, and Bushido working with the army on adapting the alien's tech while everyone else helped move the wounded. It was selfish of him, but once everyone had a task, it allowed him a moment to himself.
He wandered aimlessly through the Hall which had taken heavy damage. Eventually, he found himself in a room that was all too familiar. The library. Many would argue it was after Cadmus that their team formed, but Omni would argue it'd all started here.
"I wonder what would have happened if we'd stayed?" Omni thought. "Would we have been Leaguers by now. Maybe we could have fought at their sides. Maybe…"
Omni's thoughts just petered out because he couldn't take it anymore. He knew Gwen was gone, but what about the rest of his family. How were his cousins, parents, uncles, aunts, and Grandpa Max? The thought that he might be the only one left was too much.
Omni fell to his knees and sobbed. "I'm so sorry." I'm sorry I couldn't protect you Gwen, and I'm sorry I'm not there for anyone else. I'm just…" He was stunned as someone hugged him, and he looked up to see that it was M'gann. "You shouldn't have to see me in…"
"No." Miss Martian hugged him tighter. "Out there, you can be our put together leader, but right now it's okay. Just let yourself fall apart, and I'll be here for you."
Omni and Miss Martian both ended up crying with each other for all that was lost. Eventually, they stood up and whipped their faces. They couldn't stay here all day, so they left to rejoin the others. Everyone just pretended not to notice each other's reddened eyes.
"Anything to report?" Omni asked.
"Most of the cannons are online." Ion stated tiredly. "Everything that could be moved here is either being set up or on its way now."
"Good." Omni nodded. "Robin, get to work on that data. As of now, it's your top priority. Wonder Girl, I want you coordinating with General Ross as leader of all air-forces. Miss Martian… what are you doing?"
All eyes turned to the Martian in question who was lifting a chunk of debris with her telekinesis. She tossed it aside when she saw who had been buried underneath.
"Uncle J'onn!" Miss Martian cried out before trying to fly forward to hug the older Martian.
Omni grabbed her arm to stop her. "Check his mind first. Make sure the person matches the brain."
Miss Martian's eyes glowed for a moment, and her smile grew even wider. "It's him! It's really him!"
"How are you here?" Superboy demanded. "We saw you get disintegrated in space along with everyone else in the first battle."
"Yes." J'onn was holding his head as Miss Martian helped him up. "I remember getting struck. I cannot recall how I survived, nor how I made it here."
"Maybe you went intangible just in time." Miss Martian suggested.
"If not, who knows?" Robin shrugged. "Maybe it scrambled your brains a bit."
"My mind is clouded." J'onn admitted. "I feel certain that I had something important to tell you."
Suddenly, Kid Flash's eyes lit up. "Hello, Wally! I've got it!" He dashed up to Robin and grabbed his wrist before activating the boy wonder's holo-computer."I recognize this reading." Kid Flash said excitedly, "It's Zeta-energy! These weapons don't disintegrate; they teleport!"
"Maybe." Robin stated sounding unsure.
"No 'maybe' about it!" Kid Flash said. "Lucky Girl's alive which means they're all alive!"
Miss Martian hugged J'onn tightly. "That must have been what you wanted to tell us!"
J'onn didn't say anything and only held his head once again. The mini celebration would have to wait since Superboy's super-hearing picked up incoming alien ships. From the sound, it was a lot more than last time.
"M'gann, get Bioship inside." Omni ordered. "KF, get General Ross and as many of his men as possible in here as well."
His orders were only somewhat fast-enough. While Kid Flash was able to get Ross and a few dozen of the soldiers inside, it was too late for Bioship. He was hit by one of the aliens and was gone. The psychic feedback knocked Miss Martian off her feet.
"M'gann, are you okay?" Omni asked while holding her in his arms.
There were tears rolling down Miss Martian's cheeks. "That didn't feel like a teleport."
Omni clamped down on his grief over the loss of another friend. "We need to get out of here. Robin, can you activate the cannons and try to buy us time?"
Robin was already on his holo-computer. "Ugh, something's jamming my signal." He produced a remote form his belt. "I'll have to go out there and reset it."
"No, you won't." Bushido had snatched it. "Omni needs his second in command, so I'll do it."
"Hold on." Omni interrupted. "Regardless, I can't send either of you out there alone."
"Then, I'll go with Bushido." Wonder Girl volunteered before looking to Robin. "Sorry, but Bushido is right. You're needed here."
Robin nodded firmly.
"You've got two minutes." Omni sighed. "Once time is up, you get back here no matter what." Once the two ran outside, he looked at Martian Manhunter. "We can use the Hall's teleporter to get us all to the Cave, but we can't access the systems here without a senior Leaguer."
J'onn nodded. "I can give you my codes, but they will only work on one person at a time."
Superboy pointed at Ross and his men. "The soldiers first."
"Belay that." The general stated sternly. "We'll hold them off for as long as we can, but you people are too valuable to lose. You go first."
Omni could see the conviction in the aging man's eyes, so he gave a respectful salute before guiding the other heroes to the teleporter. He saw Ross and his men taking position near the entrance. The leader felt this would be the last time he saw any of them.
With Wonder Girl and Bushido
"Come on…" Bushido grunted as he tried to make the cannons work.
"Any luck?" Wonder Girl asked.
"No, and it's not like I'm a failure at this stuff either." Bushido declared frustrated.
"Then we need to leave." Wonder Girl declared. "Our two minutes are up."
Bushido sighed. He knew dying honorable in battle was nothing to be ashamed of, but he'd been hoping to give these brave men a way to take more of the enemy down with them.
"Let's go." The swordsman stated.
As soon as they started moved back to the Hall, a squadron of ships split off from the main group and went after them. Wonder girl immediately acted in taking them down while Bushido scooped up some discarded riffles knowing he just had to make do.
While his bullets didn't do much, they did distract the aliens long enough for Wonder girl to beat down the ships. It was a harrowing fight, but they managed to bring the squadron down before grouping back up.
"Nice job." Wonder girl nodded. "For a swordsman, you're a good shot." Her smile soon faded when a hundred more ships surrounded them with their weapons charging. "We're not going to make it back, are we?"
"I'm afraid not." Bushido steeled himself to meet his end. "I think this is as far as we go."
The aliens opened fire.
Inside
Miss Martian stumbled as she felt two mental presences suddenly vanish. "Wonder Girl and Bushido are gone."
"Let's just get out of here," Superboy growled.
"Go." J'onn had finished at the console. "I have set it to activate as soon as the next one finishes."
"Robin, goes first." Omni ordered. "You have the data, and that's what's most important."
Robin nodded very Batman like. "Right."
Robin vanished in a flash of light, and was soon followed by Kid Flash, Martian Manhunter, and Miss Martian. While the others were in the process of teleporting, Cameron heard the cry of a soldier as he was pinned under debris. He and Superboy moved to help him.
Superboy picked up the massive rock and temporarily used it as a shield while Cameron lifted the wounded soldier onto his back. He let him wrap his arms around his neck as he moved back towards the tube.
"He goes next." Superboy stated.
"Accepted." Omni nodded. "Just get him in there as soon as it's done priming."
"You're cold." The soldier commented from Cameron's back.
"It's one of my superpowers." Cameron retorted.
Something clicked in the soldier's eyes. "You're Icicle Junior!"
"He's also part of the league." Superboy added.
The soldier looked in between the two and sighed. "I guess both sides have to work together to survive."
Cameron was startled. Through this entire invasion, his father nor his criminal background crossed his mind. How was he? Was he alright? Was his father even alive?
Cameron grimaced and looked down. "I guess so."
The soldier, Cameron, and Superboy made it through leaving just Ion and Omni. By now, that soldier they had in the cave was the last of them because every other soldier had been able to fight until their last moment.
"Hey Omni…" Omni looked to Ion before he was suddenly shoved into the scanner. "…it's been an honor. Take care of the team."
After he was gone, Ion destroyed the controls to keep the team from being followed. He then ducked behind some debris and took a calming breath.
"In brightest day, in blackest night,
No evil shall escape my sight.
Let those who worship evil's might,
Beware my power... Green Lantern's light!"
Ion glowed brilliantly before he went outside to take as many ships down with him as he could.
Mount Justice
Omni teleported into the Cave on his back to the confusion of the others.
"Where's Ion?" Miss Martian asked.
She saw the devastated look on her boyfriend's face and felt a sinking sensation in her stomach.
"He… he didn't make it." Omni stated quietly.
It took everything Miss Martian had not to break down at the loss of another teammate. Superboy punched the wall while Robin shook his head in denial. Cameron curled up in the corner fighting tears since he found he really came to care for this team.
Despite still thinking this was teleportation, Kid Flash found himself fighting tears, and J'onn's head was bowed in muted grief. The remaining heroes allowed themselves a few minutes to process what had happened before moving on.
Omni was tired of all the sacrifice. He knew his team needed him, but what was the point of leading a team if there were no team to lead? He knew he could stop all of this, and he shouldn't have waited this long. He should have done this from the beginning.
"Omni, what do we do next?" Robin finally asked.
"You guys are going to stay here in case I die." Omni sighed. "As for me, I'm going to hit them really hard."
They were all dumbfounded.
M'gann stepped forwards. "That better be a joke because that sounds like something Cameron would say!"
"Even I realized how dumb that sounded, and I'm me." Cameron stressed.
"Just imagine we all go in and die." Omni stated. "Who will protect the planet then?"
He had proposed a question that no one could argue with except for M'gann who didn't need sound reasoning to debate now. "Then, it'll be someone else's problem! We did our best! If we can't stop them, what can we do?"
"You survive." Omni replied firmly. "If one of you still breathes, the war will never be over, but I can't go all out if I know you guys could get hurt."
"And you really think I'm going to just let you go alone?" M'gann questioned.
She stepped forward only to feel Superboy's hand on her right shoulder and Kid Flash's hand on her left.
"No, I count on Conner and Wally to keep you here." Omni then turned to his second in command. "Dick, I need a favor."
"Why me?" Robin asked.
"Because I need you to tell me where their base is." Omni replied.
Robin pulled up a holo-map and searched for several moments before expanding the holo-map so that the entire team could see it. "I'd have to guess their mothership, it's the vessel that initially arrived here and dispatched the other drones, is currently sitting in Smallville, Kansas."
"Before I leave, I want those of you here and those of us not to know that it's been an honor leading all of you for the brief time I did." Omni stated resolutely.
M'gann wanted to run up and slap her boyfriend; however, Superboy and Kid Flash held her back. "Don't you dare talk like you're not coming back! Don't you dare do that to me!"
"M'gann, I'm sorry." Omni bowed his head. "I can't pretend I'm not scared because I am. It's not easy doing what I'm about to do, but I know you guys will live. To me, that's worth it."
Omni then became Jetray and took off with a sonic boom.
Smallville, Kansas
Jet Ray landed in the dirt several hundred feet from the Mothership before taking a deep breath and smacking the symbol on his chest to become Way Big. Way Big stood at roughly half the size of the ship, but this was his trump card since Upgrade could never take something this big.
Way Big wait patiently for several seconds before finally speaking, "I figured my presence was enough to sound a few alarms, but I guess I figured wrong."
Way Big ran at the Mothership and reared back his fist before striking with every ounce of his strength. He didn't think this form's power was enough to destroy the ship, but he assumed it'd do quite a number here. The truth was rather shocking to say the least.
"That's impossible…"
Way Big pulled his fist away to reveal that there wasn't a dent on the ship's hull. As the vibrations began to dim, thousands upon thousands of holes began opening and releasing the drones that contained the disintegration ray.
Way Big may have been many times larger than the ships, but their beams still stung. He could endure long enough to end this. Way Big crossed his arms and prepared to unleash his cosmic energy. Sparks of blue energy flew around his arms before releasing.
The wave of blue energy tore through the ground and air with such verbosity that it caused the ground beneath him to shake. The blue energy slammed into the mothership. With this power in tow, he couldn't imagine losing. As the energy faded a plume of smoke took its place.
Way Big expected to at least have scratched the paint off, but the mothership stood unfazed. The ships that had been swarming the titan were long since turned to dust by the blast, but the Mothership itself was unaffected.
Way Big took a step back before falling on his back causing an earthquake "This is insane! What is that thing made of?!"
Suddenly, the Mothership released mechs that were nearly twenty feet tall and sported an array of weaponry. They were soldier-like drones. A second line of defense. The drones that had wiped away the Justice League and dominated the world were just the first line.
The pawns, the weakest, and the default. The new drones sprayed Way Big, who had gotten to his feet, with a new weapon that sent powerful shocks through the victim's body with every strike. Way Big tried defending himself, but they kept coming.
Way Big was too big of a target now. "I can't do this anymore!"
Way Big shook the mechs off him and backed away while firing more cosmic energy at them. Once he had backed away, a green light signified his return to normal. He was falling from nearly half a mile up and had time to examine his enemy.
They were searching for him before returning to the Mothership. Ben sighed casually as he fell through the air approaching one thousand feet. He was about to transform again when something intercepted him. Something warm yet dangerous.
"Ben Tennyson!" M'gann yelled in anger as she caught him only a few hundred feet in the air.
"M'gaan? I thought I told you…" Omni began.
"Don't ever tell me to let you die again, or I swear I'll kill you myself!" M'gann shouted as she lowered Ben to the ground gently and embraced him in a hug.
Eventually, while still holding him, Miss Martian took him to Ship who blasted off back to the Cave.
Mount Justice…
Omni was still reeling from doing nothing to that ship, but he quickly shook it off because they had to come up with a new plan.
"If the aliens are really using Zeta-powered weapons to teleport their victims…" Robin began.
"Which they are!" Kid Flash cut in.
Unfortunately for him, the rest of the team had trouble believing that that was true.
"…Then, they would be held in the main ship." Robin continued. "We know it's sitting on top of what used to be Smallville, Kansas."
Robin looked over at J'onn. "This ringing any bells?"
The Martian Manhunter sighed. "No, I'm sorry."
"Alright, we'll work out the details once we arrive, but I've got a basic plan already." Omni just had to shake off his shock and lead this team once more. "Superboy and Ship, I'm sorry to ask this of you, but we'll need a distraction."
"Don't worry." Kid Flash nodded. "Worst case scenario is that they get teleported in, and we come to free them."
Superboy was more logical about this and knew there was a real chance he wouldn't be coming back. "I'll do it."
Ship nodded firmly. "Ship!"
"Alright, let's gear up and move out." Omni declared firmly.
Smallville, Kansas
The team had flown to Kansas aboard Ship, but to avoid detection, they arrived short of their destination before making the rest of the journey on foot. Ship was clinging to Omni. Now, they were on a hill overlooking the remains of the town and the giant vessel that sat on top of it.
Not taking his eyes off the massive ship, Omni gently nudged Miss Martian. "Keep an eye on your uncle. He's still a little off." Miss Martian nodded and walked over to J'onn. "Alright." Omni looked at Ship. "Just in case none of us make it, thanks for being my pet Ship."
Ship nuzzled against his cheek. "Ship."
Omni then took a deep breath. "First squad, deploy!"
The green-skinned duo took to the air and activated their camouflage-modes. The plan required them to infiltrate the vessel first.
"We're in position." Miss Martian reported.
Omni then nodded to Superboy and Ship. Superboy jumped half a mile and landed on the ship with a grunt. Ship changed into his ship form and flew at the mothership before bombarding it with every weapon in his arsenal.
Omni became XLR8 before letting Cameron on his back and Kid Flash let Robin on his. The two speedsters then ran them to a cliff and jumped managing to land on one of the docks getting them inside. Omni then reverted to normal.
"Ship is gone." Superboy reported. "He managed to merge with one of the alien's crafts, but was taken down immediately after."
Omni closed his eyes tightly. "Ship…"
The little, dog-like Mechamorph hadn't even hesitated to help them with the distraction. Still, the group pressed on and met up with the two Martians. They then made their way deeper into the ship while avoiding patrols of small, floating robots armed with oversized cannons.
For the first time since the invasion began, things were going smoothly. As they headed down a dark, cramped corridor, Miss Martian stumbled only to be caught by J'onn. Miss Martian groaned and held her head.
"Don't tell me Superboy…"Cameron feared the worst, and he got a nod. "Damn it!"
Kid Flash tried to console him. "It's okay. We'll find him just like the others."
"No." Martian Manhunter stated with a resolved tone. "My mind is clearer now. The disintegration beam is exactly that. There is no detention facility. Our mission holds no purpose."
Kid Flash grabbed the taller being by the shoulders. "No, you're wrong! The Zeta-radiation proves…"
Omni punched the speedster making him reel back. "Stop. You don't think Robin would have picked up on some prisoners by now if they were here? What about M'gann or J'onn? They'd have surely picked up on something. They are not here because they're dead."
Now it was Kid Flash who looked close to tears, but Omni kept going. "Our mission had two objectives: stop this invasion and free the prisoners. There are no prisoners, which means we can't let their sacrifice be for nothing. We will destroy this ship and save this planet."
He then walked down the corridor with Robin, Cameron, M'gann, and J'onn behind him. Kid Flash looked after them. For most of his time in the Null Void, Sevantis told him that the Coming Storm was just some kid who never should have wielded all that power.
Time and again, he proved himself worthy. He wasn't just some kid, but a leader. Sure, he'd broken down like the rest of them, but Omni's kept them going past all this tragedy. Kid Flash gained a resolute look as he followed the group.
They soon entered a corridor which opened to a massive, spherical chamber. At the center of this room there floated a yellowish-orange sphere with tubes connected almost haphazardly around the area. Robin scanned the sun-like ball with his holo-computers.
A few seconds later, his computer made a low ding. "Analysis of the ship's computer from the North Pole is complete. Looks like that big thing is the central power source. If we take it out, we take out this ship, and the feedback will kill the smaller ships."
"Robin, set the charges." Omni ordered as he changed into Big Chill. "Everyone else, cover him until the job is done. That's the only thing that matters now."
M'gann and J'onn came under fire from drones while Big Chill was distracted taking out the drones to the right. M'gann dodged a beam that went straight for Robin, Cameron, and Kid Flash with the two formers being the direct target. The speedster managed to knock both away.
Kid Flash was too slow to avoid the blast himself and was vaporized as Robin and Cameron fell to the power source. Robin grabbed Cameron's hand and caught them with a grappling hook. A machine prepared to blast down on them until the Martians moved into destroy it.
J'onn wiped his forehead and immediately felt a light bulb go off in his head. This epiphany would go unanswered as a beam came from behind and began to vaporize him. In the shortest of moments, J'onn used his psychic prowess to send a telepathic message to Big Chill.
When he was gone, M'gann crushed the drone with her telekinesis and yelled, "NO!"
Robin then let himself and Cameron fall to the power source below before deciding this was the best place to set his charges. "Countdown is started." He announced a few minutes later. "T-minus four minutes."
Miss Martian and Big Chill picked their remaining teammates up bringing them back to where they began.
"We got to get out of here!" Omni shouted.
The four of them backtracked the way they came only to be met with opposition once more. They ended up being able to smash through it. By the time they'd reached the one-minute mark, the doors throughout the ship began closing.
"That's just great." Cameron stated sarcastically.
More robots came after them forcing the heroes to diverge and dive behind some blocky protrusions.
"Forty-five seconds left!" Robin informed. "Big Chill, take Miss Martian and get out! We'll find another way to escape!"
"What?" Miss Martian looked furious yet resigned. "We can't leave you! We…"
"M'gann." Big Chill put a hand on her shoulder. "We need to go."
M'gann just sighed as they both phased through the ship. The last two left in there glanced at Robin's timer to see they had less than thirty seconds left.
"As unlikely as it may have seemed, I'm glad you ended up joining the team, Cameron." Robin nodded. "This situation proved you deserved your place with us."
"Yeah, well… excluding today… it's been fun." Cameron may not have been the brightest bulb, but he knew they weren't making it out of here. "Bet I take more of them with me than you. What do you say?"
"You're on." Robin led the charge.
Smallville
Omni and Miss Martian barely made it outside the blast radius and only by flying at their top speed. Even so, the shockwave sent them tumbling another half-mile before they righted themselves. Suddenly, Big Chill was hit by J'onn's voice which told him the truth.
"Don't…" M'gann stated brokenly. "Don't tell me the mission was a success. The price was too high."
Big Chill already didn't want to do what he was about to, so this only made him feel worse. Then, a shadow passed over them. They looked up to see an even larger ship setting to touch down where the previous one had been.
"We must get out of here!" Miss Martian exclaimed with terror in her eyes.
Big Chill slammed his fist over his symbol to become Diamondhead. "M'gann, I'm so sorry."
"What do you…" M'gann began.
Diamondhead plunged his sharpened, right arm straight through her chest. The tears and look of utter betrayal on her face tore his heart to shreds. M'gann felt darkness all around her…
Mount Justice
…and she awoke with a gasp. M'gann sat upright and found her body was undamaged. She looked around to find that she was now in the Cave and lying on a cot. All around her, her teammates, also unharmed, were waking up as well.
Beyond them there were a decent number of the Justice League, mostly mentors, helping them up. Ben didn't seem all that stunned, and as Hal helped him, the Omnitrix wielder could only stare at his feet.
"You… you're all alive!" M'gann cried out in joy.
The other members of the team seemed to come to the same conclusion. Most of them ended up running towards each other and shared embraces. Ben just stood where he was unmoving.
"What happened in there?" Batman asked J'onn.
"The exercise went wrong." The Martian replied.
"Exercise?" Robin asked.
"Try to remember." Batman stated sternly. "What you experienced was a mental training exercise designed by me and established via a mental link which Manhunter set you in. You all knew this going in.
You also knew none of it was real, including the deaths of the entire league. What you didn't know was that it was a train-for-failure exercise. No matter what the team accomplished, the scenario was designed to get worse."
Ben looked up. "That's why none of us mourned or even cared about your deaths. We knew it wasn't real, but then we lost Lucky Girl causing everything to crash down on top of us."
J'onn nodded. "Though she consciously knew that it was not real, Miss Martian's subconscious mind could not make that distinction. She forgot it was only an exercise, and her subconscious took control making all of you forget as well."
Everyone, but Ben, stared at M'gann who was starting to quiver. "I… I'm sorry…"
"This isn't her fault!" Conner yelled clearly angry over the situation. "Why didn't you stop the exercise!?"
"We tried, but M'gann had a death grip on the scenario." J'onn replied. "Even Lucky Girl, who should have awakened upon her 'death', was so convinced she had passed that she slipped into a coma. The rest of you followed in your own deaths.
I attempted to enter the mindscape and force control away from M'gann; however, I was bombarded by your collected emotions. There was too much noise to think clearly. It wasn't until most of you had been silenced that I could remember my objective.
By then, it was far too late to fight M'gann for control, so the only other option was to shock her out of the situation. I was faced with another problem. Just as I realized the way to end the madness, I too was destroyed.
I managed to send a message to the only other person in there with an emotional influence over M'gann, Ben." The person in question had stepped away from Hal and walked to the doorway before stopping at the mention of his name. "He successfully shocked her from the situation."
The team took a moment to process this. Most of them stumbled over to the cots they'd been lying on and sat down. Their parents and/or mentors took the opportunity to embrace the younger heroes. Ben turned his mentor away.
"So what?" Cameron asked. "Ben shocked M'gann out of it, and we're all safe now?"
"Simply put, yes." J'onn replied. "Though the long version is this. To shock her psyche enough to force the simulation's end, Ben had to do the unthinkable and strike M'gann with enough force to end her life."
Ben said nothing. He didn't even turn around or glance behind him. The Omnitrix wielder simply continued to walk down the hall and disappeared into the shadows. Later, it would be discovered that he had left the Cave with no indication where he went.
No matter what they could have tried, this was a situation where failure was the only option. No matter how strong any of them were, they weren't succeeding until someone took M'gann out of the simulation. For those of you who read Justice Era:Invasion, you'll recognize the similarities between this ending and that ending. The difference is that this Ben doesn't have loss like that Ben. Additionally, he's going to feel down about this, but Ben won't be attempting to resort to the same means.
Jebest4781: Thank you.
Jay: Exactly. I decided to make this Albedo a little smarter in gaining a bit more insurance. Additionally, it is insurance The Light is aware of and let happened.
The One Beyond You: Thanks for the suggestion. Before you ask, this was still a situation meant to fail. Even if they busted out the eventually named Justifier, it wouldn't have matter.
Aztec 13: I don't think the Light needs it. Albedo already has his own version of the Omnitrix, and the Light currently has Kevin. If it doesn't come about, it'll be through someone taking another crack at Amazo, and this one being able to scan powers like the previous one.
OmnipotentUIJudgeOfCharacterOV(Ch. 6): It took another user, The One Beyond You, to make me see it.
Afan: Fair enough.
OmnipotentUIJudgeOfCharacterOV (Ch. 7): Certain points are different, but they also tend to converge at points to.
TFG: Neat names. It's about time Ben got another alien or two anyways, so I'll see about possibly adding one of yours in with a canon one.
Guest: The Light is pretty plugged into the Earth as a whole from what we've seen, but Vandal has made it clear that he's more than okay with directing the heroes towards this. The main reason he took the Warworld to stop that invasion in season three was because he couldn't really direct enough fire power form the heroes to handle it.
OmnipotentUIJudgeOfCharacterOV (Ch. 8): Thank you
OmnipotentUIJudgeOfCharacterOV (Ch. 9): I did still have Superman have some reservations by alluding to past instances with clones, but in the end he could come to accept Conner earlier here.