Welcome back to Injustice Dragons Among Us 2. Last time, we saw what would happen if the dragons sided with Batman in the final standoff. Now, we see the final ending from the initial three options. The ending that got absolutely no votes in the poll whatsoever, the Regime Ending. So, how could this possibly work out? Read on to discover...
(Our story resumes as we started last time: Batman, Lex Luthor, and Superman at a stand-off, each prepared to fight to the end, and Spyro and Cynder on the sideline, trying to figure out exactly what's going on, still trying to figure out who to side with)
Superman: This madness has to end, Bruce!
Batman: Not if it means another avoidable loss of life.
(At this point, the dragons have decided, and they stand with Superman)
Lex Luthor: (Completely stunned) What?
Batman: It can't be.
Spyro: Superman's right. Cyborg has been able to hack Brainiac's encryptions before. Given that, it's only a matter of time before he can hack the Skull Ship and restore the cities.
Cynder: And there's one risk you aren't taking into account. What if you bond Brainiac to his ship again and he picks up right where he left off? What if he's able to detonate the surviving Betas? He's too much of a risk to be kept alive.
(And now, all out war breaks loose. Batman starts by attacking Superman, but Cynder is quick to headbutt him away, as Green Lantern starts fighting Superman. Flash tries to subdue Wonder Woman but fails. Robin starts fighting Catwoman, while Supergirl and Lex Luthor are just trying to get the fight to stop, with both trying to stop a punch Superman is about to throw)
Supergirl: Kal, you don't want to do this!
(With that, Spyro grabs Supergirl and Lex Luthor, pulling them off of Superman, and throwing them back into the wall)
Spyro: Stay down you two, none of us want to hurt you.
(Now we focus back on Green Lantern fighting Superman, with Cynder backing him up)
Green Lantern: Stop, Clark, this is over!
(As Spyro arrives in the fight, Green Lantern throws up a construct shield, which Spyro just... breaks through with minimal effort. Ultimately though, Green Lantern tangles Spyro, Cynder, and Superman up in another construct and throws the entire group out the side of the Skull Ship, before all four end up in a struggle as they fall to the ground, eventually crashing with nobody really sustaining serious damage)
Superman: How can you be against me on this, Hal? Brainiac took Coast City!
Cynder: Think about Carol. Think about everyone you ever loved, Hal. They're all stuck up there in Brainiac's ship, and we're the only ones giving you a way to get them back!
Green Lantern: You were there when I broke the Red Lanterns' control over me. I won't let my rage control me again. It won't bring Carol back, just like Clark's couldn't save Lois.
(With that, Green Lantern tries to attack. But at this point, Cynder specifically has had enough of Hal Jordan, and knocks him out with a single punch, which knocks him to the ground instantly, causing Spyro to erupt into laughter at the sight)
Cynder: Looks like I was wrong about you, Jordan.
Spyro: (Amidst his laughter) One punch! All it took was one punch!
Superman: I bet he understands how Guy Gardener felt now.
(But Green Lantern isn't knocked out, as he tries to get back up as Cynder turns her back on him. But Spyro sees him and flies over Cynder's shoulder to grab his hand before he can, blocking his construct from even forming. And in this moment, Spyro's willpower overpowers Green Lantern's, and the ring ceases to work for him, allowing Spyro to break his hand as the ring flies off it, rendering Green Lantern simply Hal Jordan once again)
Hal Jordan: What? But... how?!
Ring: Spyro of Realms Unknown. You have the ability to overcome great fear. Welcome to the Green Lantern Corps.
(At this point, the Green Lantern ring Hal Jordan once wore fits itself snugly on Spyro's finger, turning Spyro into a Green Lantern)
Spyro: Apparently, my willpower outclassed yours.
(And with that, Spyro forms his first construct, a single fist to knock Hal Jordan out, for good this time)
Superman: (Seeing Spyro in his Green Lantern suit) Is it weird that I always thought you'd be a Blue Lantern, rather than Green?
Spyro: (Looking at the Ring on his finger) This... is a little weird, but...
(But before Spyro can even get a word out, two red streaks dash across the field, throwing Spyro and Cynder to the ground, before revealing themselves as Flash and Supergirl, holding back Superman before he throws them off as Spyro and Cynder rejoin him.)
Supergirl: Kal, Spyro, Cynder, stop! These are your friends!
Superman: I would expect my friends to be helping me, rather than standing in the way.
(Supergirl then flies in attempting to take out her cousin, only for him to fling her into a building as Flash gets in a few lightspeed punches on the entire group before Cynder hits him with a gust of wind, sending him flying into a building as the rest of the group arrives after him)
Cynder: It's weird that this always begins with you, Barry.
Superman: You leaving the Regime was quintessential to it's fall. And leaving the Earth vulnerable to Brainiac as a result.
Flash: If you're going to accuse me of losing my nerve, don't bother. I lost mine the first time I didn't stand up to you, Clark.
(Now the battle begins. While Flash clearly has the speed advantage, Spyro and Cynder's greater array of power has the speedster down in a matter of moments)
Cynder: I wish it didn't have to come to this, Barry.
(As Flash is down, Supergirl flies into the room)
Supergirl: Kal!
Superman: Kara, please, just hear us out...
Supergirl: No, please, hear me out. There's still hope. I know you're afraid, for everyone here. And you have been ever since you lost Lois.
Superman: (With a sigh) Trust me Kara, you're not wrong. But ever since Metropolis, I've seen that all that fear ever did was hold me back from becoming the hero the world truly needed.
Spyro: No, Clark, just no. That's not what did it at all. That's the propaganda Diana spoon-fed you in a vulnerable point in your life.
Superman: What?
Cynder: Kara still has a point. I can sense the fear on you.
Superman: (To Spyro) Is this true?
Spyro: Fear is one of her Elements, so yeah, it's totally true. She can sense your fear.
Cynder: You may not have the same fears as before, but the fear is still there. Once you feared what would happen if you didn't hold back. You feared you lived in a world made of cardboard. But now you fear what happens if you do hold back.
Superman: (Re-evaluating his life) I... never thought about it that way before.
Spyro: The world is a lot stronger than cardboard, but not as much as Diana would lead you to believe. You've lived your life on opposite extremes long enough. It's finally time to find a balance.
(At this point, we see that Lex Luthor has followed them here, landing his Warsuit before stepping out of it)
Lex Luthor: I couldn't have put it any better.
Supergirl: Lex?
Lex Luthor: Clark, I've known you your whole life. I know how much losing Lois hurt you.
Superman: Then tell me why you turned on me, Lex. Why did you fund Batman's Insurgency behind my back?
Lex Luthor: It wasn't out of something against you. It was to show you what you'd become. The Insurgency was meant to hold a mirror up to you and show you what you'd become, nothing more. To show you what Diana had made you into.
Superman: (Looking at the blood on his hands from Batman's Gold Kryptonite dagger) What have I done?
(At this point, Superman falls to his knees, head on his arms, and starts crying into them, just as he was when Spyro and Cynder faced him last time)
Superman: (Amidst his tears) Not again... I almost let it happen again...
(And just as before, Spyro throws a caring wing over Superman, which Cynder follows suit in doing, followed by Supergirl and Lex Luthor putting their hands on his shoulders)
Superman: (Seeing the support around him) Even after all I've done, you would still side with me?
Cynder: You know it, Clark.
Superman: (Drying his eyes and seeing the House of El symbol upon his chest) Earth has lived in fear of this symbol long enough. It's time we put some hope back into it.
Spyro: There's still two loose ends from this. Bruce and Diana.
Superman: We'll get after Bruce first. Diana will be right with us in going after him.
Cynder: Which will draw her out long enough for us to take her down.
Superman: Exactly. Now then, let's get to work.
(And with that, the group takes off, Supergirl and Lex Luthor starting ahead to make it look like a chase, with Superman, Spyro, Cynder, and eventually Wonder Woman following them straight into the Batcave, where the confrontation begins just as Batman leaps down from the rafters in a Kryptonite enhanced suit)
Batman: This war ends here, Clark.
Superman: (Seeing the group around him, remembering the friends he's lost, then to Batman) You know, fighting on the same side, after all these years, it felt like the old times again. But, I guess we both knew this was the only way it could end.
Batman: Do you remember, the night you told me Lois was pregnant?
Superman: You knew before anyone else. Before even Lex here. I didn't even have to say anything.
Batman: That was a good memory.
Lex Luthor: And they're the ones the world has tried to hold onto. That we've tried to hold onto.
Batman: I miss who we were back then. When the three of us used to pal around like we'd known each other since childhood.
Lex Luthor: Bruce, what are you saying?
Batman: That those days, are from a lifetime ago.
(As he says this, Batman activates something on his gauntlet, that causes Lex Luthor's Warsuit to start sparking, almost as if it's going to explode)
Lex Luthor: Bruce, what are you doing?!
Batman: What I must to ensure the Regime never rises again.
(And then, in one final moment of agony, the Warsuit explodes, killing Lex Luthor and wounding Wonder Woman, but leaving the dragons and Kryptonians unharmed, physically that is, as Supergirl is completely and utterly flabbergasted by this)
Supergirl: Bruce, what have you done?
Batman: I can't risk everything I've fought for going up in smoke.
Spyro: That you've fought for? We were the ones who won your war, Bruce! We brought down the Regime, not you!
Cynder: And even then, you've turned to their exact tactics. Lex was your ally in your initial fight! Now you've killed him for turning on you?!
(Now the battle begins, but without Superman, who is still shocked by the death of Lex Luthor. And just as before, we see Batman getting the crap beat out of him by the two dragons, who have him down in mere moments.)
Spyro: And this time, stay down Bruce.
(As everything wraps up, we see Wonder Woman getting up from her injuries, and while Superman and Supergirl look on at what's happened to Lex Luthor, we see Wonder Woman attempt to stab Cynder from behind, but Superman and Supergirl get the jump on her)
Wonder Woman: What is this, Kal?!
Superman: It's called a trap!
(Despite Wonder Woman's struggles, she's flung into the back of the Batcave pretty quickly, as the Kryptonians and Dragons circle up around her)
Wonder Woman: (Seeing Spyro and Cynder first) I should've known you'd try to corrupt Kal. Try to turn him away from what needed to be done.
Superman: They weren't the ones who corrupted me, Diana. I see that the only one who did any corrupting here, was you. The Regime would never have come to be without you, at least as it was. (Looking to Supergirl) This time though, I've got better role models.
Wonder Woman: You've become just as weak as Bruce, Kal.
Cynder: Funny, I'd consider standing up to you to be a sign of strength, not weakness. And the same goes from restraint. A principle you tried to have Clark abandon. Batman wouldn't go far enough, but you've gone too far. Your madness ends here.
(Now the final battle begins: Everyone against Wonder Woman. Wonder Woman may have the strength of an Amazon, but against two Kryptonians and two Dragons, she's ultimately useless, and laid out in a moment flat)
Cynder: (Taking Wonder Woman's crown) You're not in charge here anymore, Diana.
Wonder Woman: You'll have to kill me before you can stop me.
Superman: Not this time. I've done enough killing for one lifetime. If I kill you, or Bruce, you'll die martyrs. Now then, it's time to build the world as it should be.
(Now we fast forward a time, to the Fortress of Solitude, where the analysis of the Skull Ship appears to be complete, our quartet observing it)
Superman: And there we go. If this data from Victor is correct, we should have just cracked the Skull Ship's code. The cities he's trapped will be restored soon enough. There's just one catch.
Spyro: That being?
Superman: Somebody's going to have to go out there and restore the cities on planets that can sustain their civilizations, and then destroy that technology so it can't be used to threaten other worlds.
Cynder: (Knowing exactly where he's going) Don't tell me, you already know who's doing it.
Superman: Yes. This looks like a job for Superman.
Supergirl: Wait, if you're going to be out there, what about Earth? Who's going to defend it?
Superman: You did amazing at it in my absence, Kara. I couldn't think of a better candidate. Besides, you're a better representative for the House of El these days, then I'll ever be.
Supergirl: (Seeing there's no convincing him) Then I'm going to miss you, Kal.
Superman: I'll miss you too, Kara. But it was good that I knew you while I did.
(With that, the group steps outside to see the Skull Ship parked there, with Cyborg standing there.)
Cyborg: Ready when you are, boss.
Spyro: You're going too, Victor?
Cyborg: There's got to be tech support on a ship like this.
Superman: But before I go, we really need to send you two home. (To Cyborg) Victor?
(With that, Cyborg activates a control on the Skull Ship, somehow creating a portal back to the Dragon Realms)
Cynder: It's really good to see you being the real you again, Clark.
Superman: I'm just glad I had you three to show me the error of my ways.
Supergirl: You two are welcome back here whenever you like though.
Spyro: We just might take you up on that, some day.
(And just like that, the story ends. Spyro and Cynder step through the portal, and as it closes, the Skull Ship takes off towards space, as Supergirl flies off towards saving the world, ending our story for today)
And that wraps up the Regime Ending. Okay, it's really not a "Regime" Ending, and more of a "Superman" Ending, but I still like it. Though I will say it's honestly my least favorite of the three. So, that should be it, right? That's all the endings, isn't it? Not quite. Since I split so many chapters up, this story got extended quite a bit. And in that, there was enough time to develop something more. That's right, there's a Secret Ending. And that's going to go up next week. So be sure to tune in for that! Same time... same channel!