"I...I just don't understand. It was…immense, overpowering. It frightened me." J'onn said as he sat at the meeting table at the Justice League Watchtower, the pinnacle of Martian Technology. And oh yeah, it's on the moon.
"You think there may be more of these creatures?" Superman asked.
"No, the creature we fought in Hawaii was one of a kind, at least on earth. From what I deciphered it seemed to be alone in that regard." J'onn said standing, "I'm wasting time Clark. We should be helping the others with repairing the damage done."
"J'onn, you're scared. It's plain to see. You don't get scared J'onn. You saw something and I know there's more to it than what you're telling me." Superman said.
"I don't want to talk about it." J'onn said defensively.
"Too bad because we damn well are!" Superman said grabbing J'onn by the arm, squeezing slightly, "J'onn I'm your friend. You can't keep whatever it was bottled up inside you. It's not good for you."
"Don't you think I know that?" J'onn said, uncharacteristically loud, "Clark, what I saw was…it was beyond anything I've ever seen. The evil behind it… it was worse than Darkseid, than Mageddon, it was worse than anything I have ever known. I just can't put it into words."
"Then show me." Superman said, releasing J'onn's arm.
"No." J'onn said.
"Why not?" Superman asked.
"Because Clark, we're going to need Superman when this….thing comes. And we don't need Superman to be a basket case." J'onn said.
"Surely if you can handle it then I---"
"No Clark, you can't. You can't shift the structure of your brain to make it more logical, more ordered. You can't cut off the centers that cause fear. I can and I'm barely managing. I'll get past this, but you can't see it. Your mind would snap." J'onn explained.
"God, J'onn. What was it?" Superman asked, mouth gaping.
"It was evil Clark. It was evil in the purest sense. I don't know how or when, but it's coming. This thing we fought today, it was picnic compared to what's coming. I felt this…force in my mind and I have no idea what it truly is." J'onn went on.
"No idea at all?" Superman asked.
"None." J'onn replied.
"Looks like we have research to do."
Superman and J'onn turned to the doorway of the meeting room as Batman strode in, confidant as God.
"Morning Bruce." Superman said.
"Morning Clark." Batman replied as he went to a computer console.
"Do you have any input, Batman?" J'onn asked.
"Not as of yet. I don't put much stock in visions or portents though. No offense J'onn." Batman stated.
"None taken."
"But I do have a few ideas. This could be anything. We're looking at a possible weapon that the creature you fought had. A fear probe if you will. It could just be the creature exerting its will on J'onn with its dying breath. It could be an outside party taking advantage of the situation. You never know when someone like Prometheus might pop up. It could be a weapon of Luthor's. You never know." Batman went on.
"Any other ideas?" Superman asked.
"Judging from what J'onn said over the telepathic uplink, the creature was very old. Possibly the servant of a new cosmic force, or more precisely a very old one." Batman continued.
"You were listening in?" Superman asked.
"I'm always listening in." Batman replied.
"Why didn't you say anything? Contribute some tactics?" Superman asked.
"My livelihood depends on silence Clark. I can't run my mouth all the time." Batman smirked, albeit slightly.
"The last possibility seems most likely depending on what I felt." J'onn added.
"I tend to agree. We simply have to look into what great forces have heralds. Imperiex is dead, so it isn't him. This doesn't seem like something Galactus would do either. Either of those two would have made their own presence know by now. The creature did superficially resemble the Star Conqueror though. Perhaps a new breed, but I discounted that when you said it was organic only on the outside. I came here to the Watchtower to try and delve into our records. See if there was anything like this before." Batman said, clicking into the Justice League archives.
Superman smirked, "Your own archives weren't enough?"
"No one likes a smartass Clark." Batman said solemnly as he began to dig for research.
Wham went the punching bag.
"No no, Nibblit. Like this." Spike said before violently hitting the punching bag, "Snap your wrist. Quickly. Now try it again."
Dawn looked at the punching bag and nailed it again, this time more effectively.
"Alright!" Dawn squealed, "Thanks for helping me Spike. The combat skills Buffy's been trying to teach me kind of decayed since the whole Potential Slayer army showed up on the front lawn."
"No prob Bit. It's what I'm here for. Someone's gotta keep you out of trouble, and then I come by, knock them out and help you get into it." Spike smirked as he lit up a cigarette, "You've really come a long way. Your sis must have trained you a lot over the summer when I was gone."
Dawn's smile turned to a frown.
"Spike, things are better now right?" Dawn asked.
"Well yeah, Bit. Why?" Spike said, responding to Dawn.
"It's just…sometimes I'm confused about you." Dawn explained.
"How so?" Spike asked, hopping up on the washer smoking.
"You're nice to me. You were before you got your soul." Dawn continued.
"Well yeah, I'm a nice guy." Spike smirked.
"I know. That's what I don't understand. How could someone who's nice try to rape my sister?" Dawn asked.
That one hit Spike hard. His smile likewise faded. He looked down, ashamed, and inhaled on his cigarette. He closed his eyes.
"Bit, do we have to talk about this?" he asked.
"Yeah. We do. If we want to be friends like we were before, we do." Dawn replied, "Why'd you do it Spike?"
Spike slowly opened his eyes and looked at her, "I was mad. I was as angry as anytime in my whole life. I loved you sister Bit. I still do. But back then, if she felt anything for me she hid it pretty damned good. She told me I was nothing to her. I was shit. But she'd always come to me, wanting me. And God help me I was weak because I wanted her so much. I was sure she loved me. I knew it. But she'd never say it. Never one kind word, or gesture. Then she'd leave me there by myself, addicted to her. It was maddening. Eventually, she just pushed me too far and I snapped."
"Oh." Dawn said.
"Through it all, your sister wasn't the bad guy. She was confused. I was confused. We both wanted something, but it wasn't the same thing. What I did…it was wrong. It was wrong, even back then I knew it was. But she had to throw me off of her before I'd see. It's why I went to Africa to get my soul. So I could be the man she wanted.
"I love your sister, Bit. Love her with all my heart and now all my soul. And I think she feels something for me now. I don't know if its love or not, but at least its there. I'm just lucky that she's such a hell of a woman that she'd forgive me. You told me once that if I ever hurt her again, you'd set me on fire. Well, I'd let you set me on fire. I can't bear to think that I would ever hurt her again. I'd die first." Spike finished, throwing his cigarette down.
Dawn stared at him in silence and then reached out to Spike and touched his hand.
"I know Spike. I think she knows too." Dawn said, her eyes somewhat watery.
The touch of the hand turned to a full embrace.
Gaira wanted food! He growled and roared and threw a coffee mug. He wanted food damn it!
"SHIRAAAAAAAAAAAOW!" Gaira screeched.
"Alright, alright. Geez, I'll get you something." Andrew grumbled heading to the kitchen followed by the diminutive monster. Willow was sitting in there drinking coffee with a smile on her face.
"Willow? Gaira's hungry again. What should I feed him?" Andrew asked.
A tear rolled down Willow's face.
"Willow?" Andrew asked.
"What? Oh sorry. Was just talking to Tara with my mind. She just did something that made me proud. What was it you wanted?" Willow asked.
"Gaira's hungry and throwing things again! He almost hit me with Giles' coffee mug!" Andrew whined.
"Oh okay, um, let's see." The witch said looking to Gaira, "Fish?"
Gaira screeched loudly.
"Ow okay, okay. No fish. How about bacon? Some nummy raw bacon?" Willow asked.
Gaira considered it and gave a satisfactory "shurk".
Willow went to the fridge and unwrapped the bacon and gave Gaira a few pieces. The former giant sat down and began eating ravenously.
"You two get along really well. Almost too well. You're plotting against me." Andrew said, observing.
Willow rolled her eyes, "Yes Andrew we're plotting against you."
" I KNEW IT!" Andrew shouted.
Willow gave him a look.
"That was sarcasm wasn't it?" Andrew asked pitifully.
"That it was. But yeah we get along, especially considering we tried to kill each other two months ago. But he's been fairly domesticated since then." Willow explained, petting Gaira's head.
"The hell he has. He's always throwing things at me and bugging me." Andrew complained.
"Well yeah, he sees you as his primary caregiver." Willow said.
"WHA?" Andrew asked in shock.
"Come on Andrew, he's always around you. He likes you. I mean who took care of him when we all went to New York? You. Who increased his size even though he probably shouldn't have done it? You." Willow added.
"So I'm like his god…"Andrew finished.
"Well no, not exact—" Willow furrowed her brow.
"I'm like a god." Andrew said in wonder.
Willow just sighed.
Far below the earth, the First observed its newly developed hand in the womb of its chrysalis. Claws jutted from the obscene appendage. It laughed slightly, a dry, throaty, chuckle. It then smiled. It had just laughed for the first time in its new body. The small chuckle became a full out assault of laughter that echoed against the walls of its cocoon.
"Soon, I will be born. Excellent. Simply marvelous." It thought to itself as new structures began to emerge from its back.
Wings.
"Simply marvelous."