Meanwhile, another universe on the other side of infinity was facing a similar crisis, their Final Crisis. This was Earth-318, a world of action and mystery where the Gods walked among you, and you'd never know it because they were just like you. Hello viewer, I am the Phantom Stranger, the Spirit of Justice, and I will be your guide through understanding this world, and how it ends. The champions of this Earth were facing an apocalypse like no other, as the literal planet of Apokolips was facing Earth and its champions. Transported across the cosmos by the closest thing to evil itself, Darkseid brought his world and all its forces via Boom Tube to take the prize he so desperately desired, the Anti-Life Equation.
Burned into the very crust of the Earth was an extremely intricate formula that unlocked the secrets of the infinite multiverse. To wield its power meant one could dominate entire galaxies with a thought and eradicate them with a blink. The ruler of Apokolips had sent scouts to Earth before, Steppenwolf, Kallibak, Granny Goodness and her Female Furies, all fell to the might of the World's Finest, the Brave and the Bold: The Justice League.
On this world, the Justice League was much more, well, limited. After six years of operating, they never took on more than 10 members at a time. The roster over their tenure consisted of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, the Flash from a Golden Age, a few Green Lanterns here and there, Martian Manhunter, Hawkman, Hawkwoman, Cyborg, Shazam, and Doctor Fate served as a mystical consultant for the team. While other heroes such as the Blue Beetle, Firestorm, Green Arrow, and the Teen Titans operated, defending the world from evil and injustice, they were all free agents.
With five members of the Justice Society serving on the team, the League was set in their ways; keeping things small to limit bureaucracy and better control the quality of the heroes who joined. The former was the downfall of the JSA 60 years prior. On their own, they took care of their own areas locally, but together would defend their planet from enemies among the stars. Otherwise, they would stay out of each other's affairs. They seldom interacted with each other outside of the occasional high-stakes emergency, or an obligatory monthly meeting.
The Justice League never became the family the Justice League of other worlds became. This was likely the fault of a lack of the Martian Manhunter, the heart and soul of most Justice Leagues, around to hold the team together. For after the founding of the team in this world, the Martian spent one week around Batman, reading his mind, and constantly feeling that darkness within his head, he left Earth entirely.
Other major distinctions that should be noted about this Earth from other worlds like this one is that Batman operated for nearly 15 years before formation of the Justice League, and the Teen Titans were formed and led by the third Robin, Tim Drake. As I mentioned before the Flash of the Golden Age, Jay Garrick, is a part of the Justice League, as Barry Allen lost himself to the Speed Force to stop Eobard Thawne, the Reverse Flash. The Legion of Doom had yet to clash against the League in this world, as Lex Luthor had seen himself above other supervillains, and didn't see the need to team up with anyone. And lastly, Darkseid is here.
The forces of Apokolips ravaged Earth, the Justice League was caught off guard. Darkseid kept plans of invasion very secret, and at a vulnerable point in time, he struck. Some prophecies foretold that Darkseid would die by the hands of his son, Orion. So naturally, Darkseid killed Orion first before coming to Earth. Across the entire planet, whichever few members of the League could be in one place were smothered by tens of thousands of Parademons. Despite being a team, they were dreadfully uncoordinated. Local heroes and military would try their best to hold off however many they could, they lacked the resources to assist effectively. Their downfall was hubris, in efforts to be incorruptible, they failed to ever become a true collaborative unit. One member of the League understood this in hindsight, that was Kent Nelson, Doctor Fate.
Doctor Fate levitated over the Sahara Desert, casting a variety of offensive spells, sending mystic blasts onto the Parademons, creating eldritch monsters to destroy them, or banishing them to another dimension entirely. This was mostly the work of Nabu, the Lord of Order that wielded Kent as a vessel through the Helm of Fate. His decades long ally, Carter Hall, Hawkman, was having the time of his life, letting loose and slaughtering as many Parademons as he could. Meanwhile, Kent let the deity take control as he himself was watching over the rest of his team and the events of other battles across the planet through his omniscience.
Aquaman was successfully defending his kingdom alongside his military from the hordes of Parademons and the might of Kallibak, the son of Darkseid. This Aquaman was ever capable unlike other realities popularly observed. And Kallibak was always a minor threat compared to the other generals of Apokolips, so this was not a surprise. It almost gave Fate some relief, until he saw his other allies.
Cyborg was in Beijing fighting Steppenwolf. Fighting was a generous word. This Victor Stone had never joined the Titans, but rather joined the Justice League right off the bat, in the following week after the leaving of J'onn J'onzz. Perhaps this was to his detriment. For without the important training and reaffirming of his humanity, he never reached his true potential, and was isolated from the rest of the League for lacking much common ground, and now was greatly outmatched.
Flash was fighting the Apokoliptan general Kanto in Rio De Janeiro. The master martial artist was putting up a decent fight even with Garrick's speed. Perhaps he was slowing down in his old age. Jay Garrick did not belong as a paragon of this time. He was replacing someone else who was in their prime, and he was having trouble keeping up with time.
Shazam was being swarmed by thousands of Parademons in Australia, led by Virmin Vunderbar. Billy Batson thought he had found a family with the League. Superman was the greatest teacher one could ask for when it came to having such great power, Wonder Woman provided the gentle compassion he always sought, and in this world, Batman had Batson legally placed in the care of Bruce Wayne. One could even consider him a Robin. Billy Batson has just turned 18 and was about to start college before the Crisis emerged. Would he ever truly get to grow up?
And Wonder Woman, Hawkwoman, and the Green Lantern Jessica Cruz were in London, clashing against Granny Goodness and her Furies. Diana Prince was stretched thin between evacuating citizens and fighting warriors on par with the Amazons she trained with. Even covered in bruises, blood, and debris, she gave the fleeing populace a reassuring smile. She'd never let herself be shown as vulnerable to people, and it exhausted her constantly. Kendra Saunders was an easy target for the Furies, she was one of the least experienced heroes there. She was the reincarnation of Shayera Hol, a legacy she never thought she could live up to, and hardly even remembers. Was her best truly the best she could do? The almost grief of who she used to be racks her and leads to further mistakes. Jessica Cruz is full of her own fears, and to wield her ring would require her to overcome them. This method of coping proves unhealthy, and while she's surviving the onslaught here for now, things could get worse if they survive this.
The other Green Lanterns: Veterans Hal Jordan and John Stewart, and recruit: Simon Baz would try and handle the invasion from space, but precise positioning of fleets by DeSaad would lead to the death of Baz, leaving only a black and green costume crawling with yellow energy. Simon Baz is a Green Lantern heavily overlooked, and he is universally sidelined in many other realities. He is in this one too, but at least Simon got a mention of doing something important here. Fate let out a disappointed sigh when he witnessed the death of Baz, but he was taken out of this brief mourning when he took notice of the final two members of the League.
They were the World's Finest, Batman and Superman. Even if they weren't the longest acting heroes on the League, these two were the ones who had gone through the most during their tenures. The two of them were the textbook definition of "Brothers in Arms", and instrumental for each other's growth as heroes. Superman helped Batman become more hopeful and heroic after the death of Jason Todd, and Batman helped Superman understand the greatest power of the human spirit. They were fending off the heart of Apokolips' Invasion in Metropolis. Batman sent the Titans to control the chaos in Gotham while Superman alone battled Darkseid.
The Kryptonian put up a good fight, the epitome of hopelessness was launched through buildings by the symbol of hope, slammed down into pavement, and hammered at mercilessly, but after every blow, Darkseid would get back up as if nothing phased him. The sheer size of Darkseid's armada was able to blot out the Sun, and after effortlessly burning through Superman's remaining reserves, Clark Kent was forcefully kneeled before Darkseid. "You did not last as long as I was hoping for, Kal-El. Frankly, I am disappointed. No matter, you will be at your strongest again soon, and at your rightful place: by my side."
Darkseid placed one hand on top of Superman's head, forcing him down, while he opened his other hand to reveal a swirling white matrix of incomprehensible information. Batman watched in horror as the pieces of the Anti-Life Equation stretched out from the hand of Darkseid like tendrils snaking into the mind of Clark. Instinctively, he reached into his utility belt and put on a pair of Kryptonite laced brass knuckles, "Please don't make me do this, Clark. Fight it!" Batman yelled towards his compatriot.
The Kryptonian rose and turned around to face the Dark Knight, his eyes glowed bright red. No yellow sun was needed when powered by the secrets of the universe itself. He slowly hovered upward, focused its gaze upon the Bat, and darted down forward. Fate witnessed as Batman put up his dukes, time seemed to slow to a crawl as Batman and what used to be Superman were about to make contact, and then they stopped.
Doctor Fate stared in confusion as his view of the battle halted. He regained control of his body from Nabu and looked around, time had stopped in Egypt as well. Hawkman was about to decapitate a Parademon with his mace, but he was frozen midair. Everything seemed to gain a sinister grey shade, the surroundings distorted around Fate, everything became twisted and wrong. It was as if Order had no place here, he went to cast a spell to break free from this façade, but his helmet was plucked from his head and held in front of him by one of Fate's great nemeses, Klarion the Witch Boy.
And there he was, what appeared to be a little Victorian boy, no older than 13, with pale skin, spiked hair, dressed in black, floating in the air with his legs crossed, caressing his familiar, an orange tabby cat named Teekl. As Doctor Fate was an emissary of the Lords of Order, Klarion was the same to the Lords of Chaos. This was a demon taking the form of a child, anchored to this realm by that cat. The two of them sworn enemies, but their relationship had gotten to the point where the fight felt more of an obligatory song and dance. Klarion was more a nuisance than a nemesis to Dr. Nelson at this point, "In a bit of a tickle, aintcha?" he asked with a smirk.
"That is an understatement, the world is doomed if I don't act now." Kent answered firmly. Without his helmet, Kent was powerless to do anything. He went to grab his helmet back from the boy, but he merely floated backwards away from him.
"I mean, it's doomed even if you do act. Your name is Doctor Fate, you knew this was gonna happen the moment you put the dinner bell on!" Klarion retorted as he stood up and walked in circles around Fate.
Kent paused, he knew Klarion was right, but the Lords of Order barred him from preventing the natural order of the universe, "Yes."
"Hate to say you finally beat me. Order beats Chaos. I just came to congratulate you!"
"What do you mean, I've won?"
"Consider the following, the Anti Life Equation, used by Mr. Stoneface out there is used to overpower the free wills of any sentient lifeform, and do the user's bidding. Everybody is doing the same thing, all the time, no matter what. It's all predictable, straightforward, and…" Klarion trailed off, hoping to let Kent figure it out on his own.
"Orderly." Kent answered with a shudder in his voice.
"Ding ding ding! That is correct!" Klarion exclaimed, knocking on the front of Kent's helm, ringing it like a dinner bell. "This is exactly what your bosses wanted: Perfect Order. Now, obviously, my bosses are kind of mad about this. And if they get mad, I might get dead. And I know that you probably don't want things to go this way, right?" Klarion asked tilting his head curiously. "What is it that you want?"
Kent stared with his own eyes. He was a very old man, nearly a century man now, but the magic in the helm sustained him to look around 70. But that deity within that helmet was very controlling, and very vengeful. Without it now, Kent could think much clearer. "What is it that you are proposing?"
"Answer my first question, old man. What is it that you want?" Klarion asked again with a raspy giggle.
Kent looked back at Carter in freeze frame, he thinks back to the other remaining JSA members Diana and Jay, and then the rest of the Justice League, "This small band of heroes is all I have left in this world. I've spent so long defending this world from chaos, I've never lived in this world. Inza's gone. Almost all the Society is gone. I have felt alone for a very long time. The League is all that I have left." He continued with a voice full of regret. "I want to save them, and everyone else from the Anti Life Equation." Kent stated with conviction.
"I think I can make that work." Klarion answered with a cheeky smile. "I'd love for us to finally team up! Order and Chaos! Best Buds for the rest of your slowly decaying life!" he added laughing.
Kent took a deep breath; he already knew he had made a grave mistake in allying himself with the Witch Boy. "What is it that we must do?"
It appeared Klarion wasn't listening, he was scratching into the helmet, seemed to be a sigil of some sort. "Well, hate to tell you this, this world, this universe, is royally doomed. Nothing in this universe is powerful enough to save it." He said callously.
Kent was outraged, "What do you mean?! I thought we were teaming up?!"
"I said this universe, Doc, there are others. You and I both know the confines of reality don't mean carp to us. What if I told you right now, there's another universe that is about to go bye-bye, with an artifact just as powerful we can use?" Klarion proposed tossing the helmet back to Kent. "I put a sealing spell on it. It should keep Nabu out of your ear, at least for about 10 minutes. He's already burning through it."
Kent Nelson examined the sigil, then put the tampered helmet back on to turn back into Doctor Fate. Klarion's little sigil also sent him in the right direction in where to find Universe-203225 at its final moments. Through the helm's clarity he views the history of this world and its heroes. "This world has faced fewer struggles, and even united, it falls to one it was unprepared for. I wish I could say we were united, but perhaps failings of the JSA prevented the League from becoming more. I take blame for that. What am I doing with this world?"
"We're gonna be doing something called an Amalgam, Universes 1 and 616 did something like that a long time back. They needed some shmuck called Access for it. We're not gonna need him this time, we're doing our own thing. We're going to combine the two universes into one, and everyone in each. That's gonna make Darkseid and the guy with the magic rocks mix into one, and the power of the Anti-Life Equation and those shiny rocks will cancel each other out and kill them both." Klarion explained with a shrug.
"This will catastrophically change billions of lives. It will be complete chaos."
"Yeah, but your friends will be alive, in a sense. That's what you wanted, right Doc?"
Doctor Fate sighed, "T'is the only way. Well, I suppose we must go the apex of our Armageddon if we are to make this work." He said opening an anhk of Fate and flying through it, and appearing in the center of Metropolis, where he saw Superman; puppeteered by the equation and dangerously close to Batman. Klarion was already there, and time was still stopped. Darkseid towered over everything like a statue, unmoving and ominous. Klarion's magic kept everything at bay, as the Lords of Chaos supercharged the demon's power for one last ditch effort to save their hides.
"Here's the process, you're gonna open a rift in reality. Then, I'm gonna grab that dying one by the silly strings, and yank into this one. Cast one more big spell to duct tape them together, and if we're lucky, the Anti-Life Equation will collide with the pop rocks, and we might live through this." Klarion explained frantically.
"You don't sound as sure of this as you did before." Fate mentioned, now a little nervous.
"Chaos demon here, certainty is lost on me. Let's just do it!" Klarion answered impatient.
Doctor Fate focused on an area between Darkseid and themselves to open the rift. He started gesturing his hands to cast sigils in a perimeter around the area. Fate whispered incantations into the helm as his eyes shined with an incandescent white light. This was such a complex spell, he had done it before, but not for purposes such as this. Within the circle, cracks formed in the ground, no, in spacetime. The multiverse was visible within the crevice, the endless universes seemed to revolve around like clothes in a dry-cleaners rack until the avatars of Order and Chaos found their target. From what they could see, Thanos was defeated, and Magneto was forming the Infinity Helmet, "Grab it, Klarion!", Fate yelled, clearly straining himself to keep this world in grabbing distance.
Klarion smirked as he set his cat on the ground to free up his hands. They emanated with crackling green energy, he sent two eldritch hands into the rift, and grabbed the borders of the universe to drag through the rift. Many would question the physics of dragging a universe into another, but not Klarion. If it didn't make sense, and caused chaos, it was his forte. With great effort, a mini-incursion began. "Okay, we got it, get the magic stapler and get these babies together!"
That last part confused Fate briefly, but he deciphered his gibberish and began casting his final spell. Golden chains emerged from Fate's hands and wrapped around the emerging bubble coming from the rift and effectively stapling it to their own world. But by the time this started, the sigil on the back of the helm burned out, and Nabu was back.
Kent's consciousness was dragged from the outside world into the helmet. All the old man saw was a black void, and the helmet itself floating in from of him. "You have forsaken your oath, Kent Nelson. Working with the Lords of Chaos will bring great consequences to you." The deity boomed from inside the helmet to Kent.
"You aren't much better, Nabu. If I were not to act, the universe would be conquered by Darkseid. All order, no chaos. Our purpose is the maintain balance, is it not? Have you become so overzealous to stand by as free will is eradicated?" Kent chastised the manifestation of the deity, not backing down to its threats.
"You are naïve, Kent Nelson. The quest for balance was merely because the Lords of Order and Chaos were at a stalemate. Now that we have the advantage, we will let the universe take its natural order, and we shall eliminate chaos from this realm." Nabu answered coldly. "You have been a lapdog to the Lords of Order your whole life, you are beholden to me. You cannot resist my power." The same chains Kent conjured to hold the worlds together were now ensnaring Kent, strangling him.
Kent's strength was fading. Without Nabu sustaining him, his age was catching up with him. He'd been fighting for over 80 years; both the Justice Society and the League owe much to him. He had one last thing to say to the deity he'd been hosting, "Well bollocks to that, I haven't been fighting for Order. My whole life, I've been fighting for Justice!" he retorted with gusto.
And thus was my queue. If you don't remember, I, the Phantom Stranger, am the spirit of Justice. I was much obliged to help one of my longest standing champions. My power extends beyond the Lords of Order, for I am beholden to a power higher than even them. I appeared outside the Helm, and removed it from the good Doctor's head, and easily exorcised the deity from his anchor. "Finish what you've started Kent Nelson, serve justice to this world, and save it." I requested of Kent as I imbued the soulless helm with just enough of my own power to complete the job. This interference was breaking the rules a tad, but I think my Employer would understand in such dire circumstances. I then returned to my place outside of it all to continue observing.
Kent Nelson nodded to me and put the Helm of Iscariot on, and he continued to cast the chains to bind the universes together. Klarion appeared very confused to what just transpired, but he seemed to get a kick out of it.
With a few final incantations, the worlds collided, the three first residents of the Amalgam were created. Thanos and Darkseid became Ghanoseid. Magento and Doctor Fate would become Erik Nelson, the Fatal Compass, and Charles Xavier and the Witch Boy would become Khlarion X. After them, the world continued to fuse counterparts together across both universes. Ghanoseid had disintegrated from all that transpired. Khlarion X may have been created, but he was nowhere to be seen in the remains of this new battlefield. For even before the worlds collided, Magneto had used the Infinity Helm to completely alter the history of his world.
As the universes collided, creating more and more amalgamations of the heroes, villains, and civilians for this new world, one more casualty had taken place. Erik Lensherr and Kent Nelson's actions had both resulted in their own deaths. Doctor Fate had used up all his magic, and Magneto could not survive the effects of changing his world's history to not be inhibited by Charles Xavier. But for their sacrifice, the Fatal Compass finally knew peace.
Even I was not spared from the Amalgamation. The Phantom Stranger was combined with Uatu the Watcher to become the Phantom Watcher. Perhaps as repercussion for acting, we are barred from interfering again. I suppose all that is left for us to do is watch, and tell you dear reader, how the story of the Amalgam Universe shall unfold.