CHAPTER 10: Hell Hath No Fury
"No!" cried Jean as she drew closer and closer to the body of the demigod, absolutely certain that if did indeed plunge into the mass of cosmic flames and galactic firestorm, she would be instantly incinerated within seconds, practically diving into the corona of the sun. Not ever her strongest telekinetic shield could help her.
It was then that Supergirl acted and performed a very noble sacrifice…
"Jean, get back!" yelled Supergirl as she then shoved Jean out of the Phoenix's talons, not caring if the energy from the tangible rings holding Jena prisoner burned her gloved hands the instant she made contact. Jean was sent flying out towards to safety before the Phoenix, startled and enraged at the interruption, consumed Supergirl into the very core of its being, and the heroes and the New Gods of Apokolips could see the young, blond-haired teenager gasp as she was drawn into the heart of the Pheonix Force.
"Supergirl!" screamed Batgirl, Jean, Althea, and Cover Girl at the same time in dreadfulness.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!" howled Supergirl as the talons of the firebird dragged her into its very core, and upon the contact, the Phoenix also cried in pain. To the outrage and extreme, disappointed consternation of Darkseid, Kara In-Ze was now fully immersed into the middle of the Phoenix Force, the guardian of the crystal. Now, unsatisfied with the chosen body and still linked to the M'Kraan Crystal, he would never find the Anti-Life Equation and the Phoenix would surely kill him and his entire realm!
"Professor Xavier, you have to do something! Save Kara! Please!" pleaded Batgirl, her eyes brimming, at the man in the wheelchair. Professor X shook his head helplessly.
"I cannot, Batgirl! The Phoenix Force is too powerful for me to drive it away!"
"NO!" roared Darkseid as Supergirl cried and writhed inside the spirit, trying to fight her way out of the intensity of a thousand suns, "Damn you, you incompetent, naïve twit! You are inadequate for a host! You foolish girl! You doomed us all! Now the guardian of the M'Kraan Crystal will kill all of us because of your nosy intervention, you -!"
Then the alien leader of Apokolips stopped and stared in disbelief and growing realization when the form of Supergirl went slack, her eyes now glowing bright yellow, like shining stars, as her body was starting to stiffen and was gently caressed by the flames of the Phoenix Force, her face frozen with a blank, emotionless look. Darkseid's eyes widened as he then smiled maliciously, evilly, the truth now dawning on him.
The Pheonix Spirit and Supergirl! Of course! Even though she was not a mutant, the protégé of Superman had as much potential herself as any of the Earthling mutants he had kidnapped for the motive of releasing the infernal guardian from the crystal! So if the Phoenix was distracted with the alien victim in its clutches, then that meant…
"Yes! The Anti-Life Equation is mine!" roared Darkseid in the closest feeling he had to triumphant glee as he reached out with his hands towards the crimson precious stone, but while he was mesmerized by the phenomenon of Supergirl surviving inside the Phoenix Force, he did not see the telltale wire that shot out and attached itself to the far wall until it was too late.
"Oh no, you don't!" screamed Batgirl as she swung by and before Darkseid could even react, as she passed by the alien thanks to her Bat-Grappler, she snatched the enormous M'Kraan crystal out of his reach before he could even touch it, and despite it being half her body height, she managed to exert all of her strength to ensure she wouldn't drop it as she swung to solid ground. Darkseid was now incensed as his eyes began to glow, now fully intent on desecrating the red-haired Earthling female with his power.
"Die, you - !" but the rest of what he was about to bellow was lost as he was instantly struck by a wave of energy. The alien king hollered in rage and pain, the blue chaos magic eating at his flesh and body, ravaging his very heart of stone, before the Omega Effect ceased to flow from his body. Darkseid's eyes widened in alarm as he realized that the energy left him powerless.
"No!" he snarled, trying to blast Batgirl, but it was no use. Batgirl was spared as she quickly backed away from the fuming Apokolips tyrant with the M'Kraan crystal clutched firmly in her hands as she rejoined the side of Professor Xavier, standing next to him in a gesture of trust. Darkseid then whipped his head around to see to his horror…General Hawk, Trinity, Forge, and Rogue standing next to a now liberated and emancipated (and thoroughly pissed off) Jean Grey, Storm, Wolverine, Avalanche, Wavedancer, and Scarlet Witch.
Darkseid was now truly fearful and shocked, to his very core of his blackened soul, as he gasped, "You…You're all free! How is that even possible?"
General Hawk smirked as he clarified, "Since your minion, Desaad designed those energy prisons to incarcerate the Misfits and the X-Men, it was only reasonable that he would also know how to disable the rings as well."
"And it was easy for me to absorb the stuff we needed outta him," sneered Rogue smugly as she held up an uncovered hand.
"And with Rogue giving us and Forge pointers with the alien technology that Desaad designed for his alien computer networks, it was child's play to navigate through his encryptions and free our sister and her friends. And we'll make sure the notes we took will be used well to break through the technology and computer systems you designed for H.A.T.E. back on Earth with Kanto," grinned Daria, thoroughly relishing the look of dawning horror on Darkseid's face.
"My…my Omega Effect!" Darkseid gasped with disbelief before he then looked up to see a fuming and very irate Scarlet Witch, now free from her energy rings that were restraining her and building up powerful surges of blue chaos energy in her hands for a second time.
"Guess my hex-bolts also suppress alien powers as well, huh, Darkseid?" she snarled rhetorically before she then, with all her frustration and vengeance, sent a humongous wave of hex-energy at the alien tyrant.
KA-SHAAAAKKKKK!
Crash! Darkseid nearly collapsed as he was hurled against his throne, sent flying from the energy of Scarlet Witch's hex-bolt, before he collided against his stone and metal furnishings, his body now halfway buried underneath stone and bits of metal.
"That takes care of him for now," Scarlet Witch rumbled, still angry.
"But the battle's not over yet, Scarlet Witch!" Logan snapped as he pointed at the battle between the X-Men, Misfits, Joes, and the Furies, "we still gotta help 'em out! And there's no way in hell I'm leaving X23 with that heartless Granny and her bitch-squad!"
"We're on it! Yo Joe!" yelled Avalanche, pumping a fist in the air as a war cry as he and the others rushed out to battle.
"YO JOE!" yelled General Hawk and the others as they charged out. Meanwhile, Batgirl was now begging to Professor Xavier, still hoping that one of the most powerful telepaths could save her friend before she could quite possibly die under the mercy of the firebird howling before them, the winds now picking up due to the writhing and thrashing discomfort of the Phoenix.
"Professor X, there has to be something you can do, something you can think of! Please, don't let her die! You have to save her! Please, I'm begging you! Try anything!"
Charles Xavier then gave Batgirl a look of utmost sympathy and commiseration, his eyes troubled and sorrowful as he whispered, "Batgirl, I cannot do anything. I…am sorry, but I cannot save her. I cannot save Supergirl…"
Batgirl's face fell as she then turned back to the Phoenix Force, still keeping the imprisoned Supergirl within its clutches, damning her to a very gruesome and distressing end, before her face and eyes hardened with resolve. The Professor then picked up on her stray thoughts as he gasped, his eyes widened.
"Batgirl, you cannot possibly - !" he cried out, but the red-haired vigilante, still holding the gargantuan M'Kraan Crystal in the crook of one arm, then fired the last remaining hooked lifeline from her Bat-Grappler, ensnaring it in the ceiling in the spot right above the guardian spirit.
"I'm sorry," she whispered before she took off before the Professor could even stop her. Flying like the wind, the Bat-Grappler in her hands felt cold, so foreign, as she ascended higher and higher towards the very tip of the ceiling at a slight angle, now going more than twenty stories upwards before she finally reached the very tip of the ceiling. Taking a deep breath to qualm her pounding heart, Batgirl looked at Charles Xavier and smiled gently…before she released her hold on her Bat-Grappler and dove straight into the Phoenix with her hands holding the crystal in front of her.
"No!" yelled the Professor, but it was too late as Batgirl and the M'Kraan Crystal flew straight down like a bullet before she and the gem of space and time plunged into the body of the Phoenix Force. Upon contact, the Phoenix Force bayed and wailed so piercingly, everyone went nearly deaf as it arched its back and flung its head upwards, crying to planes beyond this dimension and time as it felt the M'Kraan crystal now fully crack within its body, rent into two pieces and as a result, the M'Kraan crystal began to glow before a whirlpool of essence and energy began to swirl around it, growing slowly yet surely. Batgirl, despite the heat of the flames, threatening to burn her within seconds, then managed to exert enough strength to swim through the very ectoplasm of the god itself before she grabbed on to the shoulders of Supergirl, feeling the Phoenix now invade inside her soul as well. Dear Lord, it was more painful than anything she could ever imagine! Yet, to divine intervention, the spirit prevented Batgirl from being burned to a crisp, shielding the girl with the same energy and force swallowing Supergirl, as Batgirl held on in front of her friend's face and tried her best to snap the blonde-haired alien out of her stupor.
"Supergirl! Wake up! Snap out of it! Please!" Batgirl sobbed as the M'Kraan crystal began to pull more and more towards the yawning gap of emptiness that grew from its very surface, breaking all boundaries and rules of space, time, and reality itself.
At the same time, the battle was raging even more fiercely now that Jean, Wolverine, Storm, Wavedancer, Avalanche, and Scarlet Witch were now involved.
How ironic that the very mutants of infinite power and fighting spirit that the Furies and Darkseid had intended to sacrifice to the Phoenix would be the same soldiers that would turn the tide of battle against them.
"No! Stop this! X23, stop this now!" Jean cried as she flew towards where Xi, Beast and Blind Master were trying to subdue Lady Deathstrike before she hovered in the air directly in front of the Female Fury and brought her fingers to her temples as she telepathically assaulted Deathstrike's mind. Lady Deathstrike shrieked like a wild animal as she collapsed to her knees in anguish suffering, the suffocating presence of Jean in her psyche now being so unbearable, exactly like how it felt when Granny Goodness brainwashed her earlier.
"Get out! Get out! Damn you, get out of my head, you witch!" Deathstrike screeched inhumanely as she squeezed her eyes so tightly, the veins on her forehead and temples were sticking out grotesquely, bearing testimony to the former X23 trying her best to fight Jean. Jean gently pushed as she slowly but steadily undid all the damage the psychopathic and pitiless Granny had done on the innocent. Jean just closed her eyes in pity for the girl who had no life and nothing to live for as she then lovingly and softly, like a down pillow, contacted Deathstrike through her mind.
X23, I am not your enemy. I will not hurt you, I promise. But this is not who you are! Let me help you…please, for your father, Wolverine, and for yourself. Wolverine cares for you so much…you have no idea how much he was worried about you when he found out Darkseid kidnapped you for his own vendettas.
"What are you doing?" gasped Beast as he was witnessing this.
"I'm trying to reconstruct her mind! I'm using my telepathy and reversing the brainwashing Granny Harkness did on X23! If I managed to destroy all the mindless orders she was branded with, I think I can bring her back to her old self! I have to do it! She doesn't deserve this! I have to help her!" Jean shouted back as she managed to still tenderly bring back the mutant to her old consciousness.
"Go for it, Jean! I think it may be working! I can sense her rage disappearing!" shouted back Blind Master, encouraged, as he and Xi stood guard to make sure no one could interrupt Jean's attempt to save X23.
Meanwhile, Spirit was caught off guard as he was knocked down by a acrobatic Bernadeth, managing to catch the side of his head with a flying turn-kick, and the Native American G.I. Joe was left stunned and lightheaded, blood matting his hair, as he vainly tried to get back up from his sprawled position on the floor, his nerves quaking, as the red-eyed, green-robed woman held her knife in a stabbing position, high over her head and ready to bear down on the back of the G.I. Joe soldier.
"Die, you useless Joe!" Bernadeth hissed, but then a familiar tremor knocked her back, the ground quaking madly beneath her feet as she stumbled backwards. Spirit groggily lifted his head to see, to his relief and unmeasured joy, his son, Lance, furiously attacking Bernadeth with his seismokinesis.
"Back off, Bernadeth!" yelled Lance hoarsely, his face and vision red, his teeth bared in a feral snarl, "GET AWAY FROM MY DAD, YOU WITCH!"
"Lance…" panted Spirit, his mouth dry with a cracked layer of blood from his battle with Mad Harriet as the Female Fury then tried changing tactics as the Apokoliptic warrior was about to hurl her knife at Lance, s sure kill thanks to its homing ability, yet Toad was quicker.
"Oh no, you don't, yo!" Todd cried out in fury as his slimy yet extendable tongue then lashed out of nowhere and securely wrapped itself around the handle of the knife in Bernadeth's hands, startling the soldier as Toad then expertly relinquished the blade from his enemy. Now Bernadeth was left completely weaponless.
"My blade! Give me back my treasured Fahren knife, you slimy toad!" Bernadeth hissed, but Toad then expertly made a break for Spirit, carrying the G.I. Joe out of harm's way as he called over his shoulder.
"I got Spirit, yo! Finish off this witch, Lance!" Lance's eyes then went white as he invoked every ounce of his anger, his rage, his desire to keep his father safe, as he then knelt on one knee and touched the metallic, stone ground with his hands, his palms caressing the ground and instantly jump-starting his psychometry with the palace's terrain. Right away, the very ground bucked and wavered wildly, tossing back the Female Fury like a piece of driftwood amongst the waves of a stormy sea, sending Bernadeth to fall on her side painfully as the ground pounded on her.
"Stop! Stop it, you infernal cur! You will not achieve anything! Lord Darkseid will triumph over all of you!" Bernadeth hissed in ire and indignation as she tried to dash towards Lance, ready to pummel the teenager to death with her martial skills, but Lance was far from danger. With a rumbling boom, the ground suddenly collapsed, no longer stable and sturdy enough to maintain its hold from the powerful seismic waves ripping through it, as it was split asunder, exposing nothing but the fiery drop of oblivion towards the scorching and blazing core of the planet Apokolips itself. And this was enough to send Bernadeth flying into oblivion, and though the Female Fury managed to grab the edge of the chasm, preventing her descent, by sheer bad luck, the very rook and domed ceiling of Darkseid's throne room, also heavily giving in to the tremors Avalanche was sending throughout the entire citadel, caved in. Bernadeth looked up to see tons and tons of stone and debris rain down on her exact position.
"NNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" shrieked Bernadeth as the wreckage bore down upon her, breaking the very floor and stone she was holding on, and Lance could hear the echoing shrieks of disbelief and fear as she plummeted into the fire pits beneath. After several seconds, Bernadeth's screams were cut off drastically, leaving nothing as she was reduced to ashes. Avalanche just looked at the gaping hole before he managed to use his mutant ability to reseal the gaping abyss, his face serious and slightly remorseful.
"You were going to kill my Dad, you were going to kill me and my friends without any second thought…I had no choice," he said softly, his voice slightly shaking; deep down, Lance would never wished to kill, not if he could help it. Avalanche then rushed back to where Spirit was slowly recovering as he woozily stood up, smiling with great relief and pride at the Misfit teenager. Avalanche was slightly surprised to see that his eyes were welling with tears.
"You came for me," Lance managed to croak, smiling. He then rushed to Spirit as the Joe firmly and gratefully embraced Lance in a fierce hug, happy at the reunion.
"As always, Lance. I said I would never leave you," Spirit said softly, stroking his son's head.
"Thanks…Dad," sniffed Lance before he got an evil glint in his eyes as he cheered, "Now let's go kick some Apokolips butt!"
"You took the words right outta my mouth, Lance! Charge, yo!" laughed Toad as he, Avalanche, and Spirit rushed towards the fracas.
Mad Harriet cackled with glee as she managed to catch Scott unaware, and before Cyclops could react, the Female Fury sunk her power claws deep into his back, right into the bone of his shoulder. Cyclops screamed, slightly cursing for not being more aware as Mad Harriet was about to ram her power spikes into the Earthling's head. But a roar from her right caused her to pause as she turned to see a fleeting image of Wolverine rushing towards her with his adamantium claws out and ready…
SPLACK!
"You all right, One-Eye?" Wolverine asked, allowing Cyclops to lean against him heavily, his shoulder bleeding, as the now headless body of Mad Harriet toppled to the floor. Mad Harriet's own head, frozen in a wide-eyed, glassy look of shock and surprise, was eternally etched on her face as she continued to lifelessly gaze her dead pupils to the ceiling as it rested in a pool of blood, separated from the body.
"Yeah, I'll live," Cyclops managed to groan…
During this, Blob and Professor Xavier were truly in a bind as a now recovered and conscious Granny Goodness was now trying to blast and kill the both of them with a newly acquired power truncheon.
"You dare foil my Lord and Master? You shall all die here, X-Men!" Granny roared as she kept blasting at Blob who was valiantly trying to protect Professor Xavier by blocking the energy discharges with his own body. Yet regardless of how invulnerable the Blob was, he wasn't so sure how much longer he could take, especially since Granny's second energy mace was fully functional and was set on the highest intensity for an immediate kill.
"Sheesh, get your facts straight, lady! I'm a Misfit, not an X-Man! And try tellin' us something other than we're gonna die here! Professor, can't you knock her out with your telepathy or something? I can't hold out much longer!" Fred called out. Professor X was at a loss as he shook his head as the energy blast grew larger and stronger
"I cannot! Her mind is shielded somehow against my powers! I cannot even sense anything in her head!" Then Granny sent out a powerful blast that sent Fred flying back over the Professor's head before crashing against the opposite wall, stunned but still alive and cognizant. Xavier, however, was now in grave danger as Granny sneered as she aimed the head of her scepter at the leader and mentor of the X-Men.
"Farewell, my dear," she said in a deep snicker of heartless malevolence, but she was so anxious and eager to kill Professor X, she didn't see General Hawk rush up behind her with the power truncheon he acquired from her earlier when she fought against himself, Beast, and Low Light.
"Farewell, yourself, you sick hag!" General Hawk roared as he jammed the glowing head of the mace into the back of Granny's skull, the polarized end breaking through the metal plate wielded against her skull underneath her flowing, white hair. Granny Harkness then screamed as she dropped her weapon, blood now pouring out of her eyes and nose, running in thin streams, as the energy truncheon flashed, sending an intense and searing wave of energy into her brain, and to the professor and general's collective surprise, there was a faint explosion as the Apokolips matron toppled over, dead at last and her head now devoid of any hair and bone as her brains were fully exposed thanks to the discharge Hawk rammed into Granny. And after needing a second to get over their disgust, the Professor could see that in the leaking gray and red matter were…metal electronics and alien microchips.
"A…computer?" gaped the Professor as he turned to Hawk who was grim and dour.
"Darkseid replaced Granny Goodness' mind with a computer, to overcome the damage Superman did to her when he threw her against her own brainwashing machine after he broke free of the very same brainwashing she did to him and X23. Since her mind must have been destroyed from that brawl, Darkseid must have still wanted Granny to be a fully functional soldier for his army. So he must have given her a brain made from Apokolips technology and computer components so that she could still serve him, which also explains why you couldn't use your telepathy on her. After all, you can't mentally shut down a computer with your powers, no matter how much you could have tried."
General Hawk then managed to give Professor Xavier a very shaky smile. He asked with great compassion, "Are you all right?"
The Professor smiled a bit in return as he commented with ease, "Yes, thanks to you and the other Joes…"
Back at the north parts of Darkseid's throne room…
"AAAAAAAA!" yelled Roadblock as he was caught by Lashina's steel band, the lash wrapping itself around his torso and pining his arms to his sides, and Lashina was persistently trying to pump her energy from the steel bands into the Joe, killing him bit by bit.
"Fry, Joe…fry!" she snarled, coldly inexorable, but then a steel ninja star flew out and actually cut the steel band connecting to Roadblock from Lashina's hands, and Roadblock was able to break free as Nightcrawler rushed to the Joe's side and teleported the African American soldier out of danger. Lashina instinctively drew out her last steel whip from her leg as she whirled around to see a livid Wavedancer. Even without any water on Apokolips and after throwing her last ninja star she had on her person, Wavedancer was far from helpless, ninja training flooding her judgment and senses as she got into a battle stance.
"I've got a score to settle with you," Althea said simply, dangerously, with narrowed eyes. Lashina just growled before she blitzed the female Misfit, her steel lash cracking and snapping with dangerous, lethal energy. Wavedancer and Lashina then brawled in the most extreme and severe battle either one had ever faced. Lashina swiped her metal strip at Althea's head, hoping to decapitate her, but Wavedancer then crouched, ducking to avoid the weapons, before doing a sweep kick and knocking Lashina off her feet. Lashina expertly cartwheeled backwards before flailing her lash at Althea again. Althea strafed to the right before springing forward with a jab. The Female Fury whirled around, avoiding the punch and letting the black-and-blue-haired girl pass by her before striking with her weapon. Althea cried out as she felt the whip rip through her uniform and cause a deep laceration on her back, but fighting the urge to give in to the pain, Wavedancer expertly delivered a backwards heel-kick to Lashina's torso, breaking two of the Apokoliptic warrior's ribs instantly. Coughing up some blood, Lashina then delivered a jab of her own, but twirling like a ballerina, Wavedancer dodged the punch before catching Lashina's nearby face with her elbow before delivering a karate chop on Lashina's upper-left arm, breaking it. Roaring, Lashina transferred the steel lash to her right hand before successfully managing to catch Wavedancer around her right leg before jerking her off her feet, and Althea cracked her head against the floor painfully as she fell before Lashina then sent a powerful surge of energy into Wavedancer.
Wavedancer screamed as she bent her body into a fetal position, nearly passing out. Lashina grinned, her mouth stained with blood, as she whispered with sick fascination, "Scream louder, little army girl. Your screaming is so much fun…"
"Back off, yo!" and Lashina looked up too late to see Toad spew a glob of slime into her face, sticking and hardening upon contact, and enraged, Lashina dropped her whip and clawed unsuccessfully at the hardened mucus. Althea recovered quickly before she heard Toad call out.
"Althea, catch!"
The Joe ninja then found that Toad slipped Bernadeth's knife into her hands, and knowing what to do, Wavedancer roared as she rushed at Lashina right as the Female Fury managed to tear off the slime from Toad.
Spuck!
Lashina's eyes went wide, her body going into slight spasms, as she vainly struggled against Wavedancer as the Misfit coldly twisted the Fahren knife she plunged right into the alien's chest, between the ribs and into the middle of where the heart was. An instant kill…
"You were right," snarled Wavedancer with satisfaction, "that was fun." And the leader of the Misfits just looked on without remorse as she witnessed Lashina give a final scream of rage and pain as the Fury was incinerated to death, burned to a charred cadaver from the inside out thanks to Bernadeth's Fahren knife.
Cover Girl, Bezerker, and Low Light managed to subdue Live Wire, now powerless thanks to the silicone dust Bobby and Kurt managed to spray upon her, and with one quick uppercut, Cover Girl managed to knock out Live Wire, rendering her useless for the battle for the Furies. Storm, on the other hand, concentrated her attacks in front of Darkseid himself as she flew up in the air and invoked her powers.
"You wanted to use us for our powers?" growled Storm at the Apokoliptic leader and ruler as the winds picked up, "Well, let us give you foolish deviants a true revelation of the extent of our mutant abilities!"
Darkseid then heard the distant yet powerful sound of thunder as lightning flashed from outside the palace. Storm then calmly invoked anything destructive she could think of for this planet of death and strife and suffering. Cold, artic winds, hail, snow…and then suddenly, rain. The ashy clouds of smoke and choking carbon that covered the entire planet now suddenly could not help but release torrent and torrents of acid rain, falling over every single inch of Darkseid's kingdom. With Storm summoning gusts of cold with her abilities, the conflicting heat and cold clashed against each other, raising and altering the pressures all around the planet like some wildly, out-of-control roller coaster, and as a result, the sky let loose big, constant, quick, and heavy droplets of water, immersed with acid and liquid chemicals from centuries and centuries of the burning fuels and materials Darkseid's minions used in their cities. And all around, there were the cried and howls of confusion and fear from the servants and soldiers and slaves of Darkseid as cyclones and typhoons tore across the lands and buildings, tearing structures out by their roots and foundations as the ground, unable to absorb the sudden downpour, let loose flash floods of water and acid that rushed and roared and surged in speeds of the hundreds. Thanks to the rainstorms, water was prevalent and overrunning the entire surface of Apokolips; not a single area of land was spared from the monsoon and deluge. And predictably, the water, with no place to go, was starting to drain into the infinite fire pits all over the planet, the water causing a building pressure in the planet's core as the steam from the fire core meeting the water of the rainstorms began to build and build at extremely dangerous levels, causing several sections of the land to quake and rumble from the unstable stress and strain underneath.
"Thanks, Storm! I could use this!" Althea cried out as she then used her hydrokinesis to form several gigantic waterspouts to cascade and ascend upwards from the growing floods outside the palace before they came crashing through the roof of the throne room and swept away Big Barda and Stompa, distracting them heavily as they were struck by the powerful currents of water.
"All right!" yelled Bobby, realizing that the rainstorms Storm was summoning to flood all of Apokolips wasn't just helping Althea, feeling his ice powers now return, fully functional, "Now I can finally do some real damage!"
Forge then cried out as he, Trinity, General Hawk, and Professor Xavier rushed next to the teenager, "And it might help us shut down and weaken Darkseid and his armies permanently! The core of this planet's now unstable because of all the water that's evaporating and cooling it down! If this planet depends on the fire center for its power, then if we cool it down and extinguish it, it may be enough to put a real monkey wrench in his plans!"
"It's really risky, but Iceman, if you use your powers to continually send artic energy into the main fire pit of Darkseid's chambers, it may be enough to really cool things off and build up a lot of steam and pressure in the core, too much pressure for this planet to handle!" Brittany exclaimed, doing a quick calculation on her scanner.
"So what happens if we can build up the pressure in the core of Apokolips by creating all this steam?" Iceman asked.
"Um…a very big boom," Quinn finished weakly, wincing.
General Hawk's eyes were twitching slightly as he managed to ask, "Just…how big of a boom are we talking about, Trinity?"
Daria then winced as she clarified, "Let me put it to you this way: Darkseid's going have to rename his planet from 'Apokolips' to 'Kingdom Come'…"
"No, we cannot endanger their lives, even if they did try to kill us!" Professor Xavier snapped heatedly, "It would not be right to endanger the lives of those who live on this planet! We cannot possibly do this with good conscience!"
"But if we don't, Darkseid and that Phoenix thing is going to destroy us! And then he'll probably use the fire spirit to destroy Earth too! We can't let this problem grow, Professor! We have to stop it now!" pointed out Forge as he indicated to the Phoenix Force. The Professor couldn't argue against that. General Hawk turned to Iceman, giving a single powerful command.
"Do it." Bobby nodded as he used the now plentiful moisture of the rain pouring down upon them to change into his ice form before he rushed to the edge of the fire pit in the center of the throne room and sent a continuous stream of ice and chilling energy beams into the hellfire below. Almost instantly, the ground began to quake even more, the heaviness and compression forces now reaching critical levels exponentially.
"I'll help you, Iceman!" yelled Wavedancer as she sent all three waterspouts into the fire-pits along with Iceman's artic powers, causing the steam to push against the mantle and crust of the planet even more.
"NO!" roared Darkseid, figuring out what Wavedancer and Iceman were trying to do, but Storm angrily sent a gust of wind to send the alien leader flying back against the wall.
"Darkseid, heed my words! You may be powerful residents of alien worlds, but you are certainly not a God! And Earthlings are enough of a match for you and your shortsighted, conceited, haughty race!" Ororo shouted, rage coursing through every fiber of her body at seeing herself and her family and the Misfits being mistreated, all for the sick, twisted desire to gain power, despite the innocent lives that would have been lost, despite the callous injustice of being used like that. No, she would never be used again like the witch-doctor of her village, the Hungan, had done to her before when he kidnapped her to steal her soul. She would not let them use her, not without realizing the price. Storm would not let them go unpunished. Yet a scream from behind caused her to view upon an alarming and appalling sight.
Stompa was busy fighting Colossus, Shadowcat, Gambit, Dragonfly, Quicksilver, Scarlet Witch, Blind Master, Xi, and Blob, and in her rage, she brought her foot against the floor and caused another seismic tremor that sent them running for safety, trying their best to elude the powerful and deadly upheaval. But then one stray seismic wave came rushing towards Amara herself. Magma gasped as the fault-line went straight for her, ready to send her plummeting into a very deep trench before burying her alive within crushing rock and sand, yet Shipwreck was quicker as he shoved the X-Girl out of the path.
"Amara, stay back!" the G.I. Joe sailor yelled, sending the Nova Roman princess flying to a safe distance right before the ground collapsed underneath Shipwreck's feet.
"Aaahh!" hollered Shipwreck in pain as he tried to jump out of the way himself, but unfortunately, his leg got caught and due to the conflicting forces pushing the ground in various directions, his ankle and foot was slowly squeezed in a relentless vise before it broke with a faint crack. The Joe winced, feeling his foot bleed heavily from the broken bone protruding out of his flesh, as he tried to extract his leg out, but then he saw Artemis sneering as she aimed an arrow directly at Shipwreck's heart.
"Care to beg for mercy?" the black-haired, ice-cold goddess of Apokolips laughed as the drawstring went taut, the metal shaft in her crossbow quivering from the tension. Shipwreck gritted his teeth, hissing in pain, but he remained defiant and stubbornly quiet. Trapped, unable to move, and his Eagle pistols were empty! Damn it, he was a sitting duck!
"Shipwreck!" screamed Magma before she completely went berserk, throwing fireballs at Artemis in an effort to stop her from killing the bearded man, "Get away from him! Leave him alone!"
Yet Artemis' hound, Unus, came rushing directly at her, and gasping, Magma tried to fight the cybernetic hound before Quicksilver whizzed by and carried the X-Girl out of harm's way. The Apokoliptic Amazon still grinned as she was about to let loose the shaft; at least one of the heroes would die. Yet the sudden bolt of lightning from above struck the crossbow in her hands, splintering it to pieces and rendering it useless, a pile of burnt wood and metal. Artemis then looked up to see a livid and incredibly heated Storm flying above them, seething in anger.
"Hurt Shipwreck, and it shall be the last thing you will ever do!" Ororo yelled, her face contorted in rage as the winds began to blow even harder, at typhoon speeds, ripping and cutting at Artemis's body with chunks of ice and hail.
Artemis just scoffed as she then took out several throwing daggers from her belt before saying in a mocking tone, "Why, whatever is the matter, weather witch? Worried over your boyfriend? How pathetic that this drunkard is the best you were ever able to attract with your somewhat plebian appearance."
At this, Storm completely lost herself in her wrath.
"HE…IS…NOT…MY…BOYFRIEND!" she screamed to the heavens. Artemis then tried to throw her knives at the X-Woman again before she could attack, but Boom-Boom then intervened on Ororo's defense while Shadowcat clandestinely phased Shipwreck out of the ground, freeing him and helping him limp out of danger.
"Oh no, you don't!" yelled Boom-Boom as she flung several powerful time-bombs at the knives before they could even reach Storm, praying that the endless practice sessions in the Danger room had honed her accuracy. It did, and with several quick pafs, the knives were blasted into smithereens, which allowed Ororo to safely deliver a barrage of red and blue lightning upon Artemis, and the Female Fury couldn't not escape the attack quickly enough as she was electrocuted to death. She died without a sound, her eyes wide and white with a death look of surprise, as she toppled over, her body charred and smoking a sickeningly, sweet stench. Storm and Boom-Boom then rushed over to where Magma and Shadowcat were tending to Shipwreck's bleeding leg.
"It's got you bad, didn't it?" gasped Boom-Boom, holding a hand to her mouth. Storm didn't say anything, but she tried not to stare as she gazed at Shipwreck with worry and concern.
"Shipwreck, I'm so sorry!" wailed Amara as she wiped her eyes, but the Joe sailor managed to grin as Dragonfly, taking several bandages and two flat, wooden sticks out of her medical pack, spit several thick globs of her healing silk upon the broken and bleeding lacerations before she quickly and effectively put Shipwreck's foot in a splint as Lifeline had trained her to do.
"Hey, I would have done it again for you kids in a heartbeat, so for Pete's sake, don't blame yourselves for something I wanted to do, Amara," Shipwreck chuckled softly as Shadowcat and Dragonfly helped him up.
Meanwhile…
"Whitelighter, watch out!" yelled Razor, and Whitelighter gasped, looking up too late as he saw the last fleeting moments of Stompa about to crush him with her Gun Boots. Razor cursed, his muscles screaming, as he took off…
Smash!
Stompa looked to see that she had missed, and gazing to her left, she saw that the kat had managed to tackle Justin out of the way before he could be stomped to death by the Female Fury. As the dust and quake cleared, Jake turned to Justin who was underneath him, the Misfit shielded by Razor's body, heavily panicking and panting at his brush with death.
"You OK, Whitelighter?" Razor asked, concerned. Justin then looked up at Jake's face before he blushed a very deep red.
"Um…Razor? You're…lying right on top of me," Justin finished weakly. Razor blushed, realizing the awkwardness of the situation, his ears turning outwards away from his head in embarrassment.
"Well, why don't I send you lovebirds to rest eternally?" sneered Stompa at the Misfit and X-Man in a scorning manner as she was about to cause the ground beneath them to crumble and cave-in upon the two Earthlings, but Sunspot was faster as he flew down, using his powered mode to gain enough strength to carry a enormous stone pillar he managed to rip from one of the palace's support beams, the obelisk weighing at least several tons, as he rushed to Razor and Whitelighter's rescue.
"Hey, Stompa! I still owe you one! So how about I help you see the beauty of this pillar…UP CLOSE?" yelled Sunspot as he then rammed the end of the gigantic rock support-beam, like a spear, directly on top of Stompa's body right before crushing her to the ground. Even with her invulnerability and metallic armor, Sunspot's mutant power, due to the additional power he got from Apokolips' three suns, brutally brought the stone pillar upon the Female Fury, not caring if he was overexerting himself as he pushed with all of his might upon the figure he pinned down to the floor. With a grunt, Roberto finally managed to collapse the stone column upon itself until it was nothing but rubble, burying Stompa underneath a ton of rock and metal. Razor shot Sunspot a look of thanks as he helped Whitelighter up.
"Roberto, thank you so much!" cried out Whitelighter in relief.
"Looks like you were able to drive the point home, Sunspot," the kat smiled.
"Aaaaaarrrrrrgggggghhhh!" screamed Stompa as she managed to break her way out of the rock-pile, fists first, "That's it, you little, snot-nosed, prepubescent jackasses! When I get my hands on you three, I'm going to kick your rears so hard, your spines are all going to be growing through your skulls!"
Then an ungloved hand grabbed Stompa and made contact with her cheek, and upon the touch, the alien mercenary screamed from the pits of her stomach, feeling pain she had never felt before as a bit of her life force and psyche was stolen away.
"You first, sugah!" Rogue growled before she then grabbed the Fury by the back of her yellow and red, metal uniform and heaved her away before using the stolen ability she gained by touching Stompa to send a direct tremor into the ground with a severe stamp on the floor, and like clockwork, Stompa gasped as the floor beneath her feet sunk, trapping her Gun Boots, as the stone and metal gathered around her legs, collapsing upon itself until it held fast to the female alien's legs. Grunting, Stompa tried to extract her trapped legs out, but it was no use. She was stuck. That was the moment Rogue was waiting for.
"Now, Sunspot!" yelled Rogue and she and the sunlit Brazilian mutant flew towards the mammoth, gargantuan Female Fury as subsonic speeds, nearly breaking the sound barrier, as they used every bit of their mental and physical limits to push their bodies to the ultimate speed they could possibly endure, more than they were ever able to do so in the sessions in the Danger Room. Stompa felt a shiver run down her spine as she saw Rogue and Roberto come up to her.
"Oh damn it to hell," she cursed right before Sunspot and Rogue both delivered a simultaneous uppercut to the Fury's chin, many times more powerful than the one Supergirl gave her back at the first battle at the X-Mansion.
POW!
"And she's down for the count!" cheered Sunspot as he, Rogue, Whitelighter, and Razor watched Stompa go flying through the wall and out of the palace, only to go crashing into the bastion's grounds many stories below.
"Goodnight, sugah," smirked Rogue, giving a bit of suppressed laughter.
"NO! This has gone far enough! I will not let any of you pathetic Earthlings leave here alive!" roared Darkseid as he finally felt Wanda's mutant hex wear off at last, but before he could blast them all into oblivion, he felt a sudden, sharp shooting pain in his back, and he bellowed in agony, feeling his wound now bleed freely as he turned to see Jean Grey and Lady Deathstrike standing side by side and glaring at him. Deathstrike's metal claws were dripping with Darkseid's blood; it was she who had stabbed him in the back.
"Deathstrike?" he snarled in insulted outrage, "How dare you? What is the meaning of this?"
The mutant girl then screamed her one statement of liberation.
"MY NAME IS X23, DARKSEID!" she screamed as she then raked her claws across the king's face faster than the eye could blink, and Darkseid howled, clutching his face as two long, deep, bleeding gashes streamed across his face of stone and fire, blinding him as the claws had also successfully gouged out his eyes. Now injured like this, Darkseid could no longer use his eyes to invoke the Omega Effect. Jean was frowning deeply as she used her telekinesis to pick up Darkseid and slam him into the wall, pinning him against the surface.
"H-…how?" Darkseid gasped weakly.
Jean answered coldly, "She did not deserve a fate to be your slave and pawn, Darkseid. I used my powers to free her from the cruelty you inflicted upon X23 when you ordered Granny to mentally rape her in order to capture me and my friends along with trying to kill them. I managed to at least help her regain what you stole from her, her identity and what little life she had…you manipulative, smug bastard."
Darkseid then gasped as he felt his mind light on fire while telekinetic forces pulled at his body, threatening to rip him apart. Darkseid then at last knew what it meant to truly fear someone as he gazed into the burning green eyes of the X-Man telekinetic. Jean then coldly addressed him.
"I have a good mind to kill you for what you have done, for all the innocent people you and your Furies have hurt and killed in your quest to use me and my friends as some sort of twisted game for your own pleasure. We're not your pawns, Darkseid. But…I will not kill you. Killing is not the X-Men's way, and we do not sink to your barbaric level."
"Showing mercy to your enemy?" spat Darkseid bitterly, contemptuously and disdainfully, as blood ran down his face, "You Earthling mutants truly are weak, and I will enjoy regrouping and attacking you and your planet in the future once I gather my forces…"
"Cannonball!" yelled Jean. Sam powered up as Wanda then covered the X-Men's body with her hex-bolts, using the energy's abilities to alter probabilities to protect Cannonball as she yelled at the X-Men and Misfits surrounding her. With Scarlet Witch's hex-energy surrounding Cannonball, it would allow the country-farm X-Man to use his gravitational force-field to absorb and utilize any energy that came close, building up his attack in strength and potency.
"NOW! Shoot Darkseid together!" yelled Scarlet Witch, and as one, everyone that could fired a discharge of power as Cannonball shot out like a rocket towards Darkseid. Gambit hurled his energy cards while Low Light transformed into a being of pure energy and shot out two pulsating beams of hot plasma. Bezerker and Sunspot both shot out parallel streams of sun-radiation and electricity while Lockheed roared as he breathed out a stream of dragon-fire. Trinity powered up as they held hands and shot out a huge flare of white, psychic lightning while Wavedancer summoned a stream of water to encapsulate Cannonball. Amara then shot out a continuous stream of fire along with Cyclops finishing it by firing a single, wide beam of optic solar energy.
Like magic, all these attacks surged and combined, raising the intensity of the energy around Cannonball as Wanda's hex-bolts kept the energy from conflicting and canceling each other out. In a colorful and stunning display of liveliness, the various attacks swirled and coagulated until they were nothing more than an infinite onslaught with Cannonball using his rocketing abilities to propel the torrent of energy directly to Darkseid who was still being pinned to the wall by Jean's telekinesis as Jean and X23 scattered out of the way.
"NO!" he roared right before Cannonball and the energy combination struck him with enough force to knock-out Superman.
KAAAAAAAAA-BBOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMM!
Heavily injured, Darkseid went flying through the wall of his private chambers and soared away from his fortress by several thousand feet before crashing onto the ground below. Jean's voice then spoke telepathically in a snide tone, echoing in Darkseid's mind.
Word of warning, Darkseid: we may be merciful, but that doesn't mean we're pushovers.
"I hate them…" hissed Darkseid in excruciating torture and pain, his body heavily damaged and smoking, "I hate them all! I hate them even more than I hate the Man of Steel!"
Considering this was Darkseid saying this, it was not a light statement.
However, things were not going well after this small victory. There was a brilliant flash as the X-Men, the Misfits, and the Joes saw the M'Kraan crystal began to pull matter towards itself even harder, like an inescapable whirlpool, a growing black hole that would surely doom everything in its path as it grew and grew.
"What…what's happening?" cried out Scarlet Witch as she blasted Big Barda through the wall, sending the Female Fury into unconsciousness, as the M'Kraan crystal opening the proverbial floodgates of Hell.
"Oh no! The M'Kraan crystal! It's completely out of control!" yelled Avalanche.
All the Misfits, the X-Men, and the Joes gazed at the scene with growing dread and fear. The enormous fire beast, the Phoenix Force, was crying madly and forlornly, as if in unbearable pain and anguish, as the firebird writhed and twisted madly while trying its very best to grab the behemoth crimson gem of the universe within its talons, yet without success. And they could all see the endless circle of darkness being born from the fractured fragments of the M'Kraan Crystal as it swallowed hungrily, wanting more to feed on, as the winds started to pull them all towards the Phoenix harder and harder. And in the very center of its chest, amidst the flames of its heart and soul, were the two heroes, Batgirl and Supergirl, both agonizingly immersed within the Force of all Life. Batgirl was screaming in pain and crying in excruciating torment, feeling the Phoenix tear through her very mind unbearably, as she still tried to maintain her hold on Supergirl's shoulders as a way to reach out to her best friend. Supergirl's eyes were ablaze, glowing yellow with the same color of the fire of the Phoenix Force, as she still maintained her stony, emotionless, statuesque demeanor.
"Kara!" screamed Batgirl despite the flames eating away at her body and uniform, "Kara, please, wake up! Please! Damn it, let go of her! Let go of Kara! PLEASE!"
A voice of reason, though she had no idea of comprehending whether it was real or imaginary, spoke, echoing in her mind, Then release your hold on the girl. If you do not wish to perish, save yourself and let go.
"NO!" yelled Batgirl, her resolve now intensifying as she tightened her grip around her friend, the memories coming flooding back. Supergirl and Batgirl joking on their way towards Bayville. The very first time they met when Live Wire, Poison Ivy, and Harley Quinn went on a rampage in Gotham City. The shared frustration the two felt when they were refused to join the Justice League until they had further training and time to grow. And the brutal argument at the X-Mansion that damaged their relationship and ended things on a very sour note.
Barbara would not let that happen. She would not give up and die. Not when she and Kara still needed to patch things up, to apologize, to get back together. She loved Supergirl like her own sister, her best friend. She would not let things end here on Apokolips without even getting the chance to tell Supergirl she was sorry, for everything she said.
"I won't! I won't let go!" Batgirl screamed stubbornly, her skin now showing third-degree burns.
Upon hearing those words, though it was largely unnoticed…the Phoenix Force stopped howling and peered down upon Batgirl, almost acting surprised at the strength the non-suitable Earthling possessed.
This feeling, this aura…
This power…
"You guys, we've got even more big trouble!" gasped Iceman as he ran up to them along with Forge and General Hawk, "My ice did too much damage! There's too much pressure in the planet's core! Apokolips is gonna blow big time if we don't get out of here!"
"But how? We don't have a boom tube! Only the Furies had that technology! We can't return back to Earth, so we're stuck here!" gasped Dragonfly, whimpering.
"And we can't leave Supergirl and Batgirl in there with that thing!" snarled Low Light as he pointed at the fire god.
"Mein Gott, we're done for! There's nothing that can save us!" cried out Nightcrawler as the ground began to rumble and quake even more from the building steam.
It was then that a voice spoke, ringing in all of their heads telepathically. It was not the Professor, this, the X-Men, Misfits, and Joes were certain of. The voice was different, neither male nor female, but something truly powerful, magnificent, the pure voice of a being that transcended all Earthly words and sounds altogether.
To tell the truth, at that moment, Kurt could have honestly remarked that this was the closest thing to talking with God.
Help me.
"Merde, what on Earth?" gasped Gambit.
"Professor, is that you?" Colossus asked.
"No, it's coming from…" but the Blind Master blanched as he turned his head to the direction of the Phoenix, amazed and slightly astounded.
"No way!" gasped Iceman, his jaw dropping.
"Who…who are you?" asked the Professor softly.
I…am the Phoenix Force.
"You want us to help you? Why the hell should we help you? You tried to kill Jean, Wavedancer, and the other mutants Darkseid kidnapped! You're Darkseid's weapon! You're our enemy!" Low Light snarled angrily.
No, Low Light. Regardless, I am not your enemy.
"Then…what are you? Why do you need our help?" Blob asked, his eyes wide and his face white.
I am the guardian of the M'Kraan Crystal, the very crystal Darkseid had tried to use to his own selfish gains, and by doing so, he has managed to break the very containment that possesses the power and underlying force of all life in every moon, planet, galaxy, and universe. For eons and eons, I have protected this crystal from the hands and clutches of evil, from beings who wish to selfishly use its secrets for their own personal gain. And now that it is broken…I have failed.
"But it wasn't your fault! Darkseid was the one who tried to break the crystal and use it to his own selfish needs! It wasn't your fault!" Xi protested.
Yet, I have still failed, Xi. And because of this, every living thing shall be doomed for eternity.
"What? But how?" Shipwreck gasped.
If the M'Kraan Crystal is left untreated, it shall doom every living creature within its glory. Apokolips, your world, your planet Earth, your solar system, this dimension, this universe…all shall perish. The M'Kraan Crystal shall swallow them all…
"But that's impossible! It's a scientific impossibility! Nothing can possible swallow galaxies and universes so quickly like you are proposing!" Beast shouted, his hands shaking as the threat loomed over his mind very clearly.
I am afraid it IS a possibility, Beast. The M'Kraan Crystal is a gem made form the forces of life and death and the creation of all galaxies and universes, a single force that holds the secrets of life, space and time within its beauty and radiance. Yet if destroyed, the boundaries are broken, and the crystal becomes a tesseract, a place where time and space have no meaning, and as such, it was will spread until it swallows everything
"But can't you fix it? You've been guarding it, so you must have the power to fix it!" Jamie pointed out, hoping it was true.
No…I am powerless to do so. I am the Phoenix Force, a being that was created since the universe and time began, but my role was to protect the M'Kraan Crystal, to keep it elusively out of any force who may try to harness it. Yet the guardian cannot integrate with that it is assigned to guard. The crystal is a living and breathing force in itself, such as I, not just a rock that bears infinite power and control over life and death and free will. It is a rock that lives, that has a will of its own. And I cannot heal it or fix it…because it requires someone who can feel, someone who has a soul. And sadly, I am limited in this. Though I am sentient, I have no free will of my own, I have no heart, no soul. As such, I cannot heal the crystal nor stop it from destroying all in its path. One who is soulless cannot heal one that has a soul.
It then clicked in Althea's mind as she gasped before she then asked softly, "That was why you were so drawn to us, me, Jean, Logan, Lance, Storm, and Wanda, wasn't it? It was because you've never felt emotion before, and because we are humans with souls and feelings…"
Jean answered sadly, her voice teary, "…you thought we could have the potential to bond with you and thus, give you the power to stop the M'Kraan Crystal from destroying itself and everything with it. Because that is all you desire to do. You just want to heal the crystal, do what you were created to do, and even if it meant using one of us to do it…"
The Phoenix Force solemnly then turned to Jean, fixing on her with its endless black eyes before it answered.
Yes…I am sorry that I had frightened you and your friends, Jean Grey, but in my desperation to heal the one I was sworn to protect, I needed to find a suitable host, one that had the potential to harness my essence without great cost to itself and one that could empower with the heart and soul of emotion. The host would be able to feel what I could not, could allow itself to bond with the soul of the M'Kraan crystal and be one with it, thus allowing me to use the Phoenix Force to heal it and make it whole again. Yet your friends, the ones you call Supergirl and Batgirl, and taken your places instead, and though Supergirl is one who also has great potential to bind with me…the female Earthling is not. And yet, despite her shortcoming, I sensed from Batgirl such strength and vigor, such heart. Even if it meant her own life, she was willing to do whatever it took to help her friend, to save her. I had never imagined that one who lacked the potential could still exhibit such inner resolve and feeling, such power that I have never felt since the universe was created. That is the one weakness of my being…I am empowered by emotion, and yet I lack the capability to understand it, to exhibit it.
The Professor looked at the still, motionless forms of Batgirl and Supergirl in the Phoenix, both of them with the same frozen, blank looks on their faces as their eyes glowed with the same power of the firebird.
"So we are too late, then," mourned Xavier, "We cannot escape it…"
No, Professor Xavier. It is not too late…
"What? How?" General Hawk exclaimed as everyone's heads perked up.
I need the life force of more than what I have, presently. Though Supergirl and Batgirl are now wielded to my psyche, I cannot heal the crystal on my own. I need…additional life force.
"That's easy, then. Take ours," Roadblock said with hardened resolve of steel as he, Blind Master, Low Light, Shipwreck, Cover Girl, and Spirit stepped up gladly, "There's no point in taking it out on the kids. If you need additional life force, then take ours. We've already fulfilled our roles in our lives and the kids still have a lot to live for, and if dying to save the universe is what it takes, we'll all gladly do it. Phoenix Force, take it from us Joes and leave the kids be…"
"Absolutely not!" protested all the Misfits hotly in unison, enraged, "If you do it, then we're doing it with you!"
"There's no sense in all of us dying! You kids are needed far more than us!" General Hawk snapped.
"Like hell we are! We can't do anything without you guys, and if you leave us, we'll have nothing else to live for! You think we'll allow to have our parents sacrifice themselves for our sakes? We can't live with that, that kind of guilt! We need you guys! You're our family, the only family we'll ever have!" Wanda shouted, tears pouring down her face.
"No, let me do it. I was indirectly the cause of this by serving Darkseid. Let me sacrifice myself to save you all," X23 then finally piped up, but Wolverine snarled at his female clone.
"No way! Not a chance in hell, kid! I'm not letting you put your hide out for something you think you're responsible for!" Logan barked.
The Phoenix Force then answered gracefully, No, I need it from everyone. From all of you, every X-Man, every Misfit, and every G.I. Joe…
"All of us?" gasped Cyclops, slightly skeptical and suspicious of the request.
"But…if we do, won't it kill all of us?" Althea asked the mammoth firebird.
No, Wavedancer. Before, I would have without any second thought of how it would affect you or those close to you…but after witnessing and feeling Batgirl's emotion and her bond with Supergirl, I can see now that my previous decision would not have been as desired. If I attempt to heal the M'Kraan crystal now, it would not be enough to save all life in this world and the next and it would be at great cost to your two friends. After feeling the pain and closeness of the two in my essence, I cannot bear that. That emotion is far too painful for me to endure, to bear, to live with for all of my eternity. But it is possible that if you, all of you, both mutant and humans of Earth, all living things, can share your life force with my aura…I may be able to do so without endangering Supergirl or Batgirl…or the rest of this universe.
"I get it! It's like Spirit said! All living things are connected, a single force that connects every single living organism, whether you're an animals or a human or even an alien! All living things are connected by a universal force of life, of creationism, so if the M'Kraan Crystal is a living thing, it needs the energy of living things to heal it! That's why the Phoenix Force needs all of us!" Lance gasped.
Exactly, young Avalanche.
"I'm so scared…" whimpered Magma as she held on to Roberto.
"I think we all are, Amara," Ray said hesitantly.
"If we do this, is it guaranteed that everything shall be fixed?" Storm asked.
No, Storm. Even if I borrowed the strength from all of you, it is quite possible that it cannot be enough, and we will all still fail.
"So in other words, we either help a gigantic firebird to seal this powerful crystal to save the universe at a big risk to our lives, or we let this crystal suck up planets like a black hole and take everything in this dimension and our dimension along with it?" Quicksilver asked, deadpanned.
"You guys, of course, realize what we're gonna have to do, don't you?" groaned Sam, not looking forward to the decision they're going to act upon, as he sank his head into his hands wearily.
The Phoenix Force then spoke in a jaded tone that was the closest to begging.
X-Men, Misfits, Joes…everyone, please…give me your power. Lend me your life force. Help me heal the M'Kraan Crystal and save us all…
"Do it, then! Quickly!" General Hawk as he, the Joes, the X-Men, the Misfits, and X23 gathered in a circle, unconsciously holding and joining hands as the black hole from the M'Kraan Crystal was now growing enough to swallow half of the throne room. With a cry, the Phoenix Force raised its head as a white beam of light from its core engulfed all of them. Yet surprisingly, it was not the least bit painful as the Phoenix Spirit then bonded with all of the heroes gathered in the room.
For a glorious, rapturous moment, the Phoenix then felt the beautiful power of the human soul and heart.
It felt their pain, their sorrows.
It felt their joy, their moments of happiness.
It felt their frustrations, their fatigue, their unease.
Yet it also felt their pride, their sincerity, their determination.
It viewed the memories of love and kindness.
It viewed the nightmares of cruelty and hate and fear.
Yet there were also glorious surges of courage, love, wisdom, friendship…things that the Phoenix Force had never encountered before in its emotionless dark post of watching the crystal. It was as if it could feel itself through Supergirl and Batgirl, both of the young females smiling as their held a newly whole M'Kraan crystal, sharing it in their hands while the X-Men, the Misfits, and the Joes were gathered around the two, all of them smiling alongside, laughing and hugging each other, the crystal shining softly under their hearts.
It was then that the Phoenix Force felt the most powerful emotion from all of the mutants and humans, from all the members of the X-Men, the Misfits, and G.I. Joe, the one driving force that untied them and their dreams and their strengths.
For each other.
For a better life for themselves and for their families.
For a peaceful future, for a world where they could all survive and coexist
Hope.
The Phoenix Force then cried a ringing tone of joy as its wings enveloped around X23, Supergirl, Batgirl, the Joes, the Misfits, and the X-Men. Outside, Darkseid saw a brilliant column of fire appear from his palace.
"No!" the Apokoliptic leader screamed as there was a brilliant flash…
-000-
"Is there any way you can find out where Apokolips might be located, Abby?" the G.I. Joe ninja named Jinx asked the ex-H.A.T.E. soldier as Montoya, Bullock, Commissioner Gordon, and Maggie gathered around. But the girl miserably shook her head, weeping as the police units and special crimes divisions from both Gotham City and Metropolis gathered at the task of subduing the alien hybrids Kanto created from his H.A.T.E. followers.
"So now what do we do?" Bullock exhaled wearily, but then before anyone could answer, there was a brilliant flash of fire all around them before it collected together to form an enormous, glowing supernova, right there and then in the middle of the street in Gotham City.
"What the hell?" Maggie gasped, but with another flash, Maggie, Commissioner Gordon and their friends and officers saw a conscious Batgirl, Supergirl, General Hawk, X23, the Joes, the Misfits, and the X-Men appear out of thin air. Even an unconscious Live Wire was brought along for the tow since the Phoenix Force decided Live Wire belonged back on Earth, her home planet.
"Hawk!" cried out Maggie and Gordon if relief.
"Oh my God! We're back! We're back home! The Phoenix brought us back home!" Tabitha cried out in joy.
"Good ol' Earth!" sobbed Ray as he actually knelt down and kissed the pavement.
"Yay! We're back, we're back! The Phoenix Force brought us back home!" cheered Trinity in unison as they held hands with Jamie, Lina, Fred, Jean, Todd, Xi, Justin, Bobby, and Kurt and danced joyously in a circle.
"Supergirl! You're all right!" cried Batgirl as she joyously hugged her friend. Supergirl returned it eagerly before she nervously cleared her throat.
"Um…Batgirl? About what I said when we fought back at the X-Mansion? I…I'm sorry," the alien whispered, tears in her eyes. Batgirl nodded, sniffing and wiping her eyes, her voice strangled.
"I am, too. I didn't mean to be such a jerk about it. I'm sorry I said all those mean things…"
"Apology accepted," Supergirl whispered as she hugged her friend.
Unfortunately, the peace were not to last…
"Oh no, you little pipsqueaks, don't!" yelled Big Barda as she, Stompa, and a legion of Parademons leapt out of a boom tube out of thin air, still exact for revenge, "You aren't getting away that easily! We're still intent on making you all pay for what you did to our Master, to our home!"
Everyone then immediately sprang into action, ready for the defensive.
"I suggest you back off, Fury!" growled Maggie automatically as she and Gordon ordered Montoya, Bullock, and the officers to draw their weapons on the two remaining Female Furies and their soldiers, "We have you surrounded!"
"Trust us, Sawyer, to get back at the Joes, the Misfits, and X-Men for what they did to us, we'll gladly kill all of you!" Big Barda snarled, waving her Mega-Rod. Supergirl then had enough as she then did something completely unexpected, stunning everyone, including Big Barda and Stompa.
"No!" screamed Supergirl, and to the disbelief of the X-Men, the Misfits, Batgirl and the Joes, the alien girl was immediately bathed in fire before two majestic and stunning feathered wings of flame sprouted from her back, giving her the grand yet daunting look of a fire angel, to put it mildly. With a shriek, Supergirl shot out two intense and furious streams of actual fire from her eyes, and in an instant, the entire army of Parademons withered and died, reduced to ashes within seconds.
Everyone, including the ninjas, Snake Eyes, Storm Shadow, and Jinx, were staring at Supergirl incredulously.
"Whoa!" gasped Iceman, "When could you do that, Supergirl?"
"I…I don't know!" gasped Supergirl, shocked at her new abilities.
"Supergirl…you've got…totally new powers! That is like so cool!" marveled Shadowcat in shock and genuine happiness for the alien ally.
Stompa was still undaunted as she marched up, growling, "You think that's going to scare us, you little blond twit?"
"She won't, but we will!" declared a strong voice from above and every looked up for another pleasant surprise.
"No way!" Quicksilver gasped, "It's the Justice League!" Indeed, Quicksilver had spoken the truth, Landing in a formidable and stern, serious line were the heroes: Green Lantern, the Flash, Martian Manhunter, Wonder Woman, Hawkgirl, and of course, the Dark Knight of Gotham and the Man of Steel themselves, Batman and Superman.
"Hello!" murmured Shipwreck with eagerness as his eyes lit up when he spotted Wonder Woman. Storm, for a moment, shot him an annoyed look of jealousy.
"What kept you?" demanded Maggie a bit impatiently. The Flash grinned.
"We had a little problem with Brainiac while trying to recruit Static and Gear for part-time membership," he explained.
Martian Manhunter crossed his arms across his chest as he said solemnly, "You know this violates the treaty Darkseid has established with the High Father of New Genesis. We encourage you to go back and tell Darkseid that we are now fully aware of this infringement, and as such, there will be consequences."
"And can you even prove that?" sneered Big Barda, "You can even ask the High Father of New Genesis himself, and he will tell you that we have not violated that treaty in any way. We did not kill those people in Bayville, it was the Earthling, Live Wire. And we also did not invade Earth and try to conquer it. We simply escorted several members of this planet back to Apokolips. You may check all you like, but as long as Earth has not been attacked by Apokolips on a whole for the purpose of invading and conquering, then the treaty has not been violated in any way."
"How shrewd of you," Green Lantern muttered disdainfully, "now that you business is settled, go back now and leave the X-Men and the Misfits in peace."
"We will have no problem in forcing you should you still wish to fight," Hawkgirl added as she waved her mace threateningly. Big Barda and Stompa shot each other uneasy looks before summoning the boom tube again, but Stompa then growled, pointing a finger at the mutants and the Joes.
"Watch your backs, X-Men and Misfits! You killed fellow Female Furies, and we're not gonna let that slide by! Your time will come soon enough, you little brats!"
"We shall be waiting for you when it does," Beast growled with equal danger.
"Take a word of advice for Darkseid, you tramp!" growled Rogue dangerously, "Don't mess with the X-Men, Misfits, or the Joes!" Throwing them a last poisonous glare, the two Female Furies left, disappearing in thin air. The mutant teenagers then started gaping and whispering at the seven members of the famous Justice League.
"Whoa! The Justice League!" gasped Fred in awe.
"I can't believe it! We're in the presence of the Justice League!" Roberto exclaimed, his eyes going wide and glassy as he and Jamie literally fawned with delight at seeing their hero, the Dark Knight of Gotham City, the Batman. Althea noted the two with a roll of her eyes.
"You two can stop drooling, by the way…"
"By the Great Spirit! Take a look at Batgirl and Supergirl!" gasped Spirit, pointing hesitantly at the two people in question, and General Hawk, Commissioner Gordon, Maggie, Montoya, Bullock, the police officers, the Joes ninjas, the Joes, the X-Men, the Misfits, and the Justice League turned to the pair of female heroes to see a truly astounding sight. Both Supergirl and Batgirl, to their complete amazement and befuddlement, were gaping at their chests in shock as two fire emblems burned brightly, hovering directly over their hearts and emblazoned on the fabric of their uniforms, one for Batgirl and one for Supergirl, and yet not even scorching the bat and "S" logos on their costumes.
"The symbol of a Phoenix!" breathed Wanda in awe. Indeed, the signs of the godly, cosmic force were two identical outlines of a firebird, spread out majestically and extending its wings and tail feathers, and Batgirl and Supergirl could only just gaze upon the marks of fire symbolically worn as badges of honor and courage over the torsos of their bodies, their faces slightly aglow with yellow and crimson light from the blaze
"So…is it over? Supergirl, Batgirl…is whatever the Phoenix Force thing that put into you out of your systems now?" Sam asked the two girls hesitantly.
"To tell you the truth Cannonball," gulped Batgirl uneasily as the firebird logo slowly faded and extinguished into thin air from their chests, "we have no idea…"
Then Batgirl and Supergirl noticed that their mentors, Batman and Superman, were standing in front of them, bearing similar expressions of suppressed yet building disappointment and anger with crossed arms over their chests and scowls of the deepest degree. It was especially intimidating from Batman since you couldn't read his expression underneath his cowl, having it be a mask that could send shivers down your spine from just one hard, piercing glare.
"Uh-oh…" whispered Batgirl to Supergirl from the corner of her mouth.
"Batgirl, Supergirl…care to explain to us what in blazes were you two thinking going to Apokolips alone?" Batman growled in his emotionless, cold, bass voice.
"And you have better tell us everything if you know what's good for the both of you," Superman added darkly.
"Um…hi, my darling and generous cousin, who I know loves me so much and would never yell at me in front of public, and who I hope is so relieved to see me and Batgirl safe that he would not even bother to punish us severely…" Supergirl meekly avoided the request in a puppy-dog eyed, baby-like, overenthusiastic tone begging for some compassion and leniency from an elder as she and Batgirl weakly heh heh-ed at their mentors.
Batman and Superman just glowered sternly and silently at the two girls, but if looks could kill…
-000-
The firebird of the cosmos looked down upon the group solemnly, but with a touch of gratitude. It had never experienced the emotion of joy before, but as of now, the Misfits, the Joes, and the X-Men have also touched it in way it could never be the same again, and perhaps for the better. That one shard of emotion, of relief, was something that the Phoenix could and would treasure. The god of fire then whispered its last words.
Supergirl, Batgirl, X-Men, Misfits, G.I. Joe…I thank you…
And with that, the Phoenix Force let loose a chilling yet melodious and majestic cry of victory, tossing its head back and spreading its wings before it left Earth's ionosphere and flew off to distant galaxies, dimensions and universes unknown, caressing the now intact and whole M'Kraan crystal in its bosom as it vanished in a flash of pure, beautiful light.
And the Phoenix Force and the M'Kraan crystal disappeared forever in the endless darkness of space, to regions where time never existed, in no way to be seen or heard from ever again.
Author's Notes: Yep, that's the curveball, folks! Batgirl and Supergirl bonded with the Phoenix Force, and if you do a Google search for "Supergirl" and "fire angel", you'll find out that in the comics, she actually had new powers that consisted of: fire wings that could easily cause massive damage, flame vision which was more powerful than Superman's heat vision, and using her wings for shunting (teleportation across galaxies). I wanted to make Supergirl seem less of a Superman clone while taking a nod from the comics of her fire angel powers! I just twisted how she got them!
And now beware, readers! Next week is the last chapter! But don't worry! It's not the end but only the beginning! What do I mean? You'll find out next Friday! And we'll also find out:
1.) Who was behind this whole thing with providing the M'Kraan Crystal to Darkseid?
2.) Why were the Misfits and X-Men targeted?
3.) What's going to be the NEXT crossover? (Yes, I already planned it!)
Check back next Friday for the chapter, "Future Plight of the Phoenix", and until then, read, review, and constructive criticism welcome!