*Stryker's Island Penitentiary, Metropolis, New York, USA*

17:01 PM, June 11, 2013

The heroes at the cell block were split. On one side, Superman and Supergirl stood ready to prevent Batman and his allies from taking the inmates. To their shock, Power Girl, a fellow Kryptonian and member of their family, had willingly sided with Batman and his followers.

"Power Girl, what are you doing?" Supergirl stood ready. Though she and Kal were hard to kill and ready to fight if needed, they faced dangerous opponents. Hawkman held his axe in his hands, glaring at the two from across the hall. Martin Manhunter took a position, ready to enforce Batman's will – even if it meant taking on his friend, Superman - Starfire's hands turned to their fiery green flame and Cassandra and Nightwing stood ready.

"What am I doing?" Power Girl responded, a gust and shocked. As if she had been accused of a horrid crime.

"What are you two doing? You're siding with them" she pointed to the infamous collection behind them.

Power Girl's facial expression was one of disgust,

"I'm standing on the side of true justice, with Batman. You're on the side of the Joker."

The Joker spoke up.

"She's right you know, Sups, in a way, I always knew you had a thing for me. Ohhh we're so much alike. Two freaks who don't fit in and closer to Batsy than anyone else." He let out another sick laugh.

"Shut up, Clown!" Yelled a furious Batman. Speaking for the first time since they arrived. He marched up directly to Superman, his patented glare on display.

Superman gestured to Supergirl to stay back as he approached.

The two stared each other down. Neither backing down.

It was Batman who spoke up first.

"I know there's no point trying to tell you to move aside. You're too stubborn for that. Just know, we came here to do what must be done, and you won't get in the way."

"Be smart about this, Superman, there is no need for any confrontation here." Martian Manhunter added.

Superman wasn't fazed.

"What are you doing, Batman, you shouldn't be here. Least of all of them." He said, lightly gesturing behind himself.

He placed a hand on the Bat's shoulder. Which made his allies perk up in an offensive stance, but Batman put up a hand, signalling them to stand down, which they did.

"You need to stop; take all the time you need to grieve, for Talia and Alfred…"

This earned his hand being shoved off by an angry Batman.

"Don't you mention them…" he snarled with a furious growl.

"I'm sorry. But I'm your friend. Let me help you. You can still stop this. Let's get out of here. Put Two Face here where he belongs, and we can undo what-"

Batman interrupted suddenly. Maintaining Eye-contact with Kal.

"Cyborg, are you patched in?"

"Yeah, I have full access to Stryker's security gates and other systems."

"Good, open them one by one."

The solid glass doors creaked open.

Grodd, Nimrod and Bane were freed. But only for less than mere seconds. Before they could do or say anything. They vanished without a trace.

"Kid Flash!" Superman called out. "That's enough!" calling out to Wally West to cease what he was doing.

"Opening cells in that order. Be ready, Flash." Cyborg spoke nonchalantly as he focused on the data pad on his arm.

Superman faced him.

"Cyborg, stop this now!"

Cyborg simply ignored him.

"Last warning." Superman spoke. Eyes now red.

"Cell opening in one, two – "

Cyborg did not get a chance to complete the hack. As his robotic left arm where he was in the process of gaining access to, was fried, melted and set abalze by Superman's heat vision.

Victor yelled out in absolute pain, dropping to his robotic knees with a thud, clutching his now smoking and half melted arm.

The enraged voices of Power Girl, Batman, Night Wing and Starfire went up at once:

"What have you done!" Batman angrily yelled.

"Just what is wrong with you! Yelled an exasperated Power Girl.

"You freakin' lunatic!" Nightwing said in horror.

"I'll fry you for that!" Starfire proclaimed.

Hawkman pointed his battle axe at Clark.

"You bastard," he furiously snarled.

Even Parasite spoke up from afar.

"Damn, Superman… that's brutal."

Above it all though, it was Supergirl who was the voice of reason. She swiftly got between Superman and the Leaguers to deescalate the situation as best she could.

"Everyone please just calm down. We can't do this, especially not in front of these guys."

She went over to Cyborg, still clutching what remained of his hand.

"I'll help you get out of here as soon as I can. Okay?" Cyborg stiffly nodded. She went back again to the heroes.

"This is pointless, we're all friends." She looked over to Karen in particular, "Family."

Suddenly, another face joined the party.

"She's right. Come on guys. Let's keep this nice and peaceful like."

Hal Jordan, better known as Green lantern. He flew down from above to talk with the others.

Before Superman could speak. Batman beat him to it.

"What are you doing here, Lantern. Helping him?" he pointed to Superman.

"Handing in a fugitive actually… seems I came at an awkward time though…"

The tension of the stand-off was as thick as any substance. Kal broke it though. Eyes returning to normal. A sorrowful expression of regret on his features.

"Kara… you're right." He looked over to Cyborg, now standing and holding onto his mangled arm.

"Cyborg… I- I'm sorry, I didn't mean to- "

Suddenly. A voice appeared on the monitors.

"Inmates of Metropolis and Gotham. You're under attack by a crazed lunatic in a Bat suit who wishes to kidnap and murder you. The security has clearly failed to stop them, you have no choice but to defend yourselves from this mad man. Go get 'em. "

"Mercy Graves." Batman snarled angrily.

Supergirl looked to Lantern, "You didn't put her in a cell?"

He looked puzzled. "Left her with a guard. She was in handcuffs." He insisted.

Kara simply raised an eyebrow.

"A former professional thief turned expertly trained bodyguard, proficient in all known forms of combat, firearms and escape, and you left her alone with one guy?"

Hal just rubbed his head awkwardly. Realising his mistake.

*The deepest cell of Stryker's Island*

Meanwhile this was all occurring. Mercy's words reached one of Stryker's most dangerous prisoners. As he registered that the Justice League were here, Amazo threw away the now depowered shackles, then powered through, crashing out of his cell.

The android listened closely to the words coming through from the speaker. The Justice League was here. Unknown to the authorities and the heroes who had put him here, his chip had been recently upgraded with a combat activation protocol upon the words of the "Justice League" being said within range of his antennas – as well as this, it also retained his abilities to mimic all seven original members of the JL. With that knowledge. The freed Amazo activated his battle mode.

"Access: combat. Access: Superman. Priority Objective Alpha: Kill the Justice League"


Before anyone could comprehend what was happening. The floor below them exploded and a massive, eight-foot figure emerged.

"Amazo…" Superman spoke.

As well as that, all cells opened.

"Kill the Bat, before he kills us!" Parasite called out, taking the initiative.

They were surrounded. The levels of danger from each of the inmates varied, but it would take all of them to survive today.

Superman looked to Batman.

"We'll continue this later. Right now, lets just stop them from getting out of here."

Batman stared at him and nodded.

"Understood."

Amazo analysed his targets, leaving it to random as to who to attack first. His calculation was made in less than a micro-second.

"Target for termination: Power Girl."

Utilizing Superspeed, he ran into her at full force, crashing her into countless walls of concrete.

"Power Girl!" Kara immediately flew after her and Amazo.

Batman turned to Superman. His team already taking on the countless freed villains in the background.

"Go help your cousin. Manhunter will go with you. We'll the rest here. Go!"

The Man of Steel nodded and sped away to catch up to Amazo, Karen and Kara. Manhunter closely following.

As Batman returned his focus to help contain the breakout A heavy led pipe was smashed into the side of his head. The resulting cackle left no doubt as to who it was.

"Getting slow, Batsy." He pointed his pipe to the still disorientated Dark Knight. "You owe me an explanation, young man" He smacked him again. This time, the Clown held the bar of the pipe directly against the Bat's throat. Pinning him down and straddling him.

"So, tell me, just how did Baldie make you do it when I couldn't, Bats. What does he have that I don't, ha? All these years of waiting, cutting and blowing up, and you lost control for him and not me? come on tell me, tell me! All this time and all it took for you to lose it was just one old man, some lady and that cesspool of a city of ours?"

The Joker tutted like a disappointed father. A much more dangerous smile on his features. A sharpened shiv in his hand.

"Oh well… I guess we'd best go out with a bang and a smile."


*Stryker's island Penitentiary, Metropolis, New York, USA*

By the time Amazo stopped. They were now in the courtyard of the prison island. The android threw Karen against the fall. She soon manged to get, regained her bearings and took up a fighting stance.

"This time, I'll send you to the scrapyard."

The stoic Machine simply looked on.

"Access: Red Tornado." And with that, he aimed straight for her. Knocking her back in the red mass.

She tried to use her heat vision, but the machine's chip functioned faster than any normal brain.

"Access: Martian Manhunter."

Her head was hit by the worst pain she had experienced since the party at Starr Industries. He had copied J'onn's telepathic powers and was using them on her.

He walked up to the weakened Power Girl, ready to deliver a fatal blow. But before he could.

"Hey, mind if I but in?" Supergirl game in and landed a blow that drove the android through a wall. The younger Kara helped her alternate version to her feet.

"I had it under control." Karen muttered, with a frown across her features.

Kara simply gave a smirk at that. "Sure, you were."

Superman and Martian Manhunter arrived, flanking the two.

"Power Girl are you ok?" asked the concerned Superman.

"I'm fine!" she practically growled back.

Before anyone could say something else.

Amazo had recovered.

"Access: Superman."

J'onzz spoke up next.

"We must take him together. Amazo cannot focus on four of us at once."

Superman nodded.

"Right, get ready."


*Meanwhile*

"Oh well… I guess we'd best go out with a bang and a smile." Joker stated sadistically as he tried to slash at the Caped Crusader.

Batman managed to throw Joker off him, before landing a punch that sent the clown down, face first onto the concrete floor. Knocking his archenemy out cold.

"Not today, Joker." Batman said to himself.

All around, chaos had erupted. Starfire and Cyborg were fighting off both Livewire and Killer Croc. Cassandra was single-handily taking down the normal inmates with little trouble. Hawkman was battling Parasite.

"You know, you look a giant chicken." Parasite commented.

"I'll cut you in half with this axe." An enraged Hawkman responded.

That shut him up.

Nightwing and Green Lantern worked on taking out Silver Banshee. They both took cover to avoid her screech.

"And I thought Canary's scream was bad." Nightwing quipped.

"No kiddin'. I just need to get behind her to shut her up."

Nightwing picked up on where it was going.

"I get it, I'll act as bait, keep her attention while you do that."

Nightwing jumped and ran across the sides of the cells. Using his natural athleticism and gadgets to stay ahead of the radius of Banshee's yell.

As she did a turn. Lantern trapped her mouth with a contraption of his ring. This was all the first Robin needed to knock her out.


It was easier said than done to keep ahead of an android, but the team of four were managing, if just barely.

The fight eventually took them to return to the inside of the prison, where they crashed on through some floors below where the inmates and heroes were engaged above.

This drew Batman to arrive. Knowing the others above could handle the rest.

"I see you're doing well." Batman snidely remarked.

"Trying our best." Superman defended as he charged at Amazo.

Supergirl dropped beside Batman.

"I mean… Amazo is an android. He'll end up repaired no matter what happens to him."

Batman finished the sentence for her.

"No need to hold back." He stated in conclusion.

"Best to let out some of that rage, I guess." She agreed.

"Access: Superman."

Batman glided towards the giant who quickly caught him by the throat.

Amazo looked on dispassionately.

"A poor tactical choice, Batman, unlike you. Prepare to meet your end." His massive hand about to decapitate the Dark Knight.

"I doubt it." Batman replied. Registering with Amazo what could likely be equated with what organics described as "surprise."

A sharpened and large chunk of Kryptonite in his hands.

The previously unstoppable and unfeeling android quivered and weakened as a result of the exposure. For as easy as he gained the abilities of his opponents, he would also gain their weaknesses.

Suddenly, at his stomach area. Amazo saw that the Batman had placed some sort of device. Batman used this uncertainty to break away. Just as the incendiary device went off. Engulfing Amazo's insides, his eyes aflame and his mouth began belching smoke, he collapsed.

Superman was confused.

"How did you – "

"This version of Amazo was clearly designed to combat high-powered opponents. Against a non-powered threat, it did not know how to react. Plus, it's armour is weak under the chest."

Batman looked to Superman.

"You brought Kryptonite?" Superman looked in shock and betrayal at the act, who returned the shard into one of his back pockets.

"I always come prepared. And I knew you'd be here. Glad I didn't have to use it on you."

Before Superman could say anything else. Batman continued.

"Best if we don't leave his remains to let anyone else repair and reprogram him. Dump him in the remotest part of the world possible. "

Clark so no sense in disagreeing with the logical move and went to it.


Supergirl, Power Girl and Manhunter had returned to the cellblock and aided the others in pushing back the freed inmates.

Karen's frustration boiled over as she crashed into Killer Croc. Allowing Starfire and Cyborg to get the upper hand on Livewire.

She began to pummel the mutant and seemed to barely be retaining her strength.

"I'm sick of all of you!" she yelled as Croc's attempts to fight back were pointless and simply covered up, trying to just survive the assault.

"You harm and murder innocent people, you do it and enjoy it! Laugh about it!"

She started to punch harder and harder. More and more blood splattering all over her gloves and suit.

"You think you deserve help?!" after everyone you've hurt, you think you monsters deserve anything ?!"

Waylon Jones, known as Killer Croc, one of Batman's most feared and dangerous villains, crawled away in fear for maybe one of the first times in his life.

"Please… I surrender!" he growlingly begged.

"No." Karen snarled. Her eyes red. Kara saw from her side as she was guiding Harley Quinn and some normal inmates back to their cells what her cousin was about to do.

"Power Girl, stop!" she pleaded, as she flew towards Karen, and lightly pushed her to the wall. Killer Croc getting away from the angry Kryptonian as fast as he could. Limping wounded and bleeding profusely from his head.

Karen was still angry and shoved her cousin's hands off her. Fists clenched still.

"We don't act like that. We must be better than them. You're better than that!" After a look of pleading in her eyes, Kara turned around to get back to her duty to restore order at Stryker's.

It was the last mistake she would ever make.

She had underestimated just how angry and frustrated Power Girl was, who in her state, without thinking or even comprehending. She threw a punch as hard as she could that went straight into the back of Kara's neck.

"Stop telling me what to do!" she screamed.

A snap and crack were heard. A sudden and brief gust of air come out came out.

Kara fell, face first into the floor. She did speak, or make a sound, or draw another breath.

Power Girl breathed in and out. Regaining some sense of control and calm.

"Super Girl?" she asked puzzled. Expecting her little cousin to get up – maybe return the hit or tell Superman to yell at her for not keeping her temper in check – but the Kara Zor-El of this Earth simply stayed down.

"K- Kara?" she asked again. When no answers were heard, and her own heart rate and anxiety rising fast. She looked over her cousin's vitals. The carnage and fighting were just background noise now. It didn't matter.

There was no heartbeat. Or any brain activity.

Supergirl, her cousin, Kara, was dead. And she was responsible.

She felt the tears stroll down her face.


Superman was back as fast as he could. It was difficult where to find the proper place. So he decided it was best to just leave it in the middle of the most isolated spot in the Nevada desert for now. He'd go and retrieve it another time.

Batman had made his way back and was helping Dick and Cassandra with the last group, and with Superman's return, any other thoughts of resisting imprisonment melted away.

"Amazo is down. All of you return to your cells. Now!" the Man of Steel ordered.

As Superman scanned the area, looking for Power Girl and Supergirl, he spotted the former seemingly weeping and cradling the Girl of Steel. His heart sank at the realisation at what had happened.

"Kara..." he said, more a quiet whisper than anything else.

Very soon everyone, heroes and inmates, looked on too, in various states of shock, confusion and horror.

"Clark… I… I didn't mean to." Her features, normally self-confident, irritated and annoyed was replaced with a look of pain and guilt that he never seen on her before.

"What… what happened?" he asked. Though he didn't seem to be waiting or looking for an actual answer. Eyes focused on Kara, who looked like she was asleep. Eyes shut and never to open again.

"I'm sorry… so sorry." Karen replied, half weeping, half-pleaded, Superman said nothing but collapsed to his knees at her side. Not even acknowledging his other cousin on the other side.

For what felt like a lifetime, a cloud of silence hung over the block. Nobody said anything, aside from the occasional mutterings of apologies from a distraught Power Girl.

Superman then lifted Kara's body in his big arms. Silently walking away. All present, no matter who they were, made way – out of fear, but on some level, some measure of respect for the Man of Steel and what he had lost, even Mercy failed to contain the tears as she watched the events from the monitor.

Superman said nothing.

Karen staggered to her feet.

"Clark… please… I" she was quickly taken into the arms of Starfire, who muttered soothing words to her. Batman placed a gentle and reassuring hand on her shoulder.

"I didn't think I'd- "

"Shhhhh, it's okay. We know." Starfire gently whispered.

"It wasn't your fault, Karen." Batman added.


*Lois Lane and Clark Kent's Apartment, Downtown Metropolis, Delaware, USA*

Lois had been glued to her work laptop and dealing with the constant buzzing of her phone since Batman's announcement he was taking Stryker's inmates and moving them to his new facility. She had wanted to head out herself, but Clark had called and begged her to stay out until he deescalated the situation.

There was a total blackout of the island, and nobody seemed to know what was happening. No matter what happened how many times the island authorities were called, and how often she tried to call Clark.

His phone had gone to voicemail yet again. Nobody would pick up, not Clark, Kara or Karen.

"Hey Smallville. We might be dealing with one of the biggest stories of this whole situation. Call me back when you tell Mr Long Ears that we don't operate by kidnapping already institutionalised lunatics and thugs. Lois out."

As she continued her draft for tomorrow's headlines, she heard the window door to their apartment open. Strangely, there were no calls from Clark that he was home as he normally would.

She rolled her eyes, got off the bed and went over to the doors, which led through to the kitchen and living room.

"Finally, he shows up. You know I get this might be another small-town cham things, but- "

The sight that met her was one she could only picture in her nightmares.

Kara Zor-El, one of the last few, and one of the closest people to her, but especially her husband. Lay dead in his arms.

"Oh my God…"

"I failed…" was all the words he muttered.

She ran over and hugged him tight.

They both lay there. In their shared grief of the loss of one of their family.