Superman: The Ark of Krypton
Chapter 120
by
Jason Richard
Superman's head spun with nausea, and he could tell that the other Kryptonian's were in the same position. Superman, Kara, Zod, Ursa, and Non had all collapsed onto the sand, Non just feet away from the unconscious form of Edward Lytener. Meanwhile, John Corbyn just strolled up to them, pleased with the technology in his chest. Dealing with these aliens would be a breeze.
He saw Superman on the ground and felt a measure of satisfaction. He knew it wasn't the right time, but he was eagerly anticipating the moment when he'd get to go toe to toe with that goody-two-shoes.
He then looked over, and the biggest of the Kryptonians was far away, rolling around with his head in his hands. He didn't seem to be a problem at the moment, so Corbyn decided to focus on the other two.
Seeing Corbyn ignore him, Superman slowly stood up, a process that was taking far longer than it should have. Even so, he knew he and Kara had to get out of there and fast, so he forced himself stand and begin walking towards the young girl.
Zod also managed to stand up, and he staggered towards the Cyborg with a raised fist. He tried to summon his strength, but the more he tried to reach for his power within the Kryptonite radiation, the more pain he felt, and he didn't put nearly as much power into the punch as he intended. Corbyn easily batted the punch away and hit him with a fist full of metal bone, sending Zod sprawling on the ground.
Zod looked up and charged his heat vision, while Corbyn charged the Kryptonite battery in his chest. The red beams from Zod's eyes collided with a green beam from Corbyn's chest, but the green blast blasted through the red one and sent Zod sliding through the sand.
Corbyn approached the trembling form of Zod gleefully, and Superman couldn't help but look. It wasn't a pleasant sight, as Superman wouldn't wish death by Kryptonite on anyone, even Zod. Still, if Zod and his minions were distracted, then he and Kara could get away. He turned...
But Ursa came up from behind and put her arm around Superman's neck. Superman was still low on energy after Non's previous attack, giving Ursa the upper hand and making Superman's attempts to yank her off of him futile.
"Cyborg!" cried Ursa. "Stand down or I'll kill him!"
Corbyn took one look, grinned, and kept walking right towards Zod. Ursa looked on in horror as her grip tightened around Superman's neck.
"I'm not bluffing!" cried Ursa. "I'll do it!"
"He's..." Superman said hoarsely, "He's...no...friend of mine..."
Ursa looked down, unable to believe it for a second, and then threw Superman away, rushing at Zod with everything she had. The closer she got, however, the more intense the pain became. The moment she winced Corbyn turned around and punched her away, the sound of metal clanging against bone ringing through her ears as she slid across the sand.
"Oh yeah!" said Corbyn. "Who's the strongest person in the room now you alien freaks!"
Corbyn turned around, only to find Zod had stood up. The Kryptonian general threw a punch at Corbyn. He was more prepared for the pain this time but still couldn't put his whole power into it. Corbyn staggered back a little from the blow, but immediately punched Zod back, sending him sprawling on the ground.
"I bet I feel as good as you feel bad," said Corbyn. "I mean, I'm about to go down in history as the first human to kill a Kryptonian. What a rush!"
Zod tried to stand, even as his entire body trembled. Ursa also staggered up walked towards Corbyn, intending to fight. Non, meanwhile, was so far away and so focused on his own pain that he hadn't noticed the fight, so Corbyn was content to ignore him and keep focusing on the other two.
"You will pay for this," said Zod, getting to his feet. "I will beat you senseless, melt down your cyborg body and forge it into my throne!"
"Why that's almost a compliment," said Corbyn.
"Forget the throne," said Ursa through gritted teeth. "He's barely good enough for a sewer pipe."
"So," said Corbyn. "Ladies first then."
Corbyn ran up and punched Ursa in the stomach, knocking her to the ground again. He then blocked a punch from Zod, grabbed the Kryptonian's wrist and flipped him over. Zod found himself on his back with Corbyn squatting above him. Corbyn then punched Zod, and punched him again, and again, and again. Between the pain from the Kryptonite radiation and the blows to his head from metal fists, Zod felt himself slipping away.
Superman couldn't even watch. During the fight, he had made his way over to Kara, who had also managed to stand. They walked towards Edward Lytener much more Slowly than Superman would have liked. Even so, Superman couldn't help but look back for a moment, feeling sorry for Zod.
"Come on," said Kara. "We can't stay here."
Superman knew she was right, but felt a heavy heart as he kept on walking, feeling just a little better as each step took him just a little bit farther from Corbyn.
Corbyn, meanwhile, continued to pound on Zod, bruises forming on the man's face. Ursa, who was also wounded from the fight, cried out, "Zod!"
Non, who was still rolling around on the ground in pain, heard this, and his eyes grew wide. From several feet away he looked over and saw Zod. The large man finally realized what was going on and he forced himself to stand from the pain. Then he screamed a battle cry that could be heard for miles around.
Corbyn, hearing him, paused his punching and looked over, saying, "Well well well, guess the big guy's not completely useless after all."
He got ready, but not ready enough. Non forced himself to run forward incredibly fast and throw a punch that sent Corbyn flying off of Zod.
"Non!" cried Ursa.
Corbyn got up and was immediately attacked by a barrage of punches from
Non, too fast for him to handle. Non, angry at seeing Zod hurt, fought through the pain and used the vast reserves of energy he'd gotten from Lytener to attack Corbyn. The cyborg had to put his fists up to keep from getting hit in the face.
By this point, both Zod and Ursa had stood up. Superman and Kara had also reached Edward Lytener. Superman knew it might not be safe to move his body, given that he'd been smashed against a metal wall, but with Corbyn and the Kryptonians fighting nearby it wouldn't be safe to stay either, so through the pain, he picked up Edward and walked away. As they walked, however, Kara looked back.
She didn't envy Zod, Ursa, and Non's position.
Corbyn, finally got a hit in and Non staggered back. As he did, he cradled his nose, pulling his hand away to see blood. Zod and Ursa saw this and realized just how much trouble they were in. Corbyn grinned in satisfaction, while Non just looked at his two comrades in utter terror. Non closed his eyes.
"Run," said the large man.
"Non," demanded Zod. "What are you..."
"Run!" cried Non, charging Corbyn. "Run!"
Non rushed forward, screaming at the top of his lungs and running faster than anyone could track. Corbyn was taken off guard by this sudden burst of speed as Non grabbed the cyborg around his waist and ran off with him, charging off into the distance.
"No!" the other two Kryptonians cried, but it was too late. Non and the Cyborg vanished into the distance.
Corbyn, distraught that the other two Kryptonians were getting away, linked his hands together and hit Non's back again, and again, and again until Non fell over and they rolled across the sands. Corbyn got up immediately and looked back. The other Kryptonians were nowhere to be seen. Corbyn clenched his fists and looked at Non, who had gotten up again and was preparing to fight.
Corbyn, snarling from anger, met the Kryptonian head on, and the two traded blows, each impact causing them to slide in the sand. Non was faster at first, but Corbyn didn't have pain from deadly radiation throwing him off, and he was easily able to dance round None's punches until he got on of his own it, fighting seriously for the first time since he'd gotten there. Soon Corbyn was hitting Non over and over again, bruises showing on the giant Kryptonian's face and blood flowing from his nose.
Finally, Corbyn threw a roundhouse punch, sending Non sprawling. Non landed face first on the desert ground, going completely still. Corbyn stared at him for a moment, his eyes cautious. He approached cautiously, kneeling down to check Non's pulse, but held off for a second. Non's body trembled for a moment before finally going motionless.
Corbyn checked the pulse and confirmed what he thought. Non, a powerful Kryptonian soldier, was no more.