Kamal was not surprised to see that Aidan had let himself in, and found him in the drawing room. He was surprised, however, to see the speedster actually sit down for more than fifteen seconds. "Hey, Kamal, thanks for seeing me."

He shrugged. "You said that Olivia and the baby are in danger. It was the least I could do. What's going on, Aidan?"

The younger man sighed. "Ever since Marvel came back, Heartbreaker's asked me to keep an eye on her. She and Mr. Miracle think there might be something up with his return. They also think Olivia's in danger. If she is…and if something should happen to her…"

"I understand," Kamal said. He knew the implication well. He had his own concerns with Olivia and her child, especially after he had heard about the accident. "How is she taking things with Ollie?"

Aidan shrugged. "Better than I thought she would. I'm just afraid that something's going to happen to her, Kamal. I-"

"Aidan!"

The voice was Olivia's, and it came from Aidan's communicator. He frowned, holding it to his lips. "Olivia?" he asked. There was just as much fear in his voice as there had been in her's; she had been frightened, and desperate. "Olivia?" His eyes met Kamal's. "She's in trouble."

"Then we go to her."

"Come on!" He grabbed Kamal's arm, all but dragging him. He felt water on his face, and looked down; they were running across the water. Kamal knew Aidan was pushing his limits; it took him no more than three minutes, and he recognized Mount Fuji. Aidan went up to the single house.

"Stop," Kamal said. The man did so, obediently, though he looked agitated. "The door's open."

"Olivia!" Aidan rushed in. By the time Kamal had entered, he was back in the mess that was the main room. Furniture had been strewn everywhere. "There's a pot of water still on the stove," Aidan said. He was a hair's breadth from panic at that point. Then, his communicator went off.

"Flash, we just had another energy reading."

"In Japan, right?" Kamal asked.

"Yes, how did you know?"

"Someone got to Olivia," Aidan answered. His voice was wavering. "I think they took her to Apokolips."

"It was Marvel," he heard Heartbreaker say. "It had to be. We can't get a hold of him. Miracle was right; he was brainwashed."

Aidan's fist nearly crushed the communicator. "We have to get her back!" he demanded. "We have to, she's trapped on Apokolip, with Darkseid, and the baby, and she has the baby, and…"

"Aidan!" Kamal shouted, grabbing his arm. "Calm down. You can't do her any good like this. We have to think."

"Yes, think of a way to get her back here, safe!" Despite himself, Kamal was surprised; he had known Aidan for some time, almost as long as he had known Olivia. Rarely, if ever, had he taken anything seriously; he had not even taken the news of his child seriously. Now, he was panicked, worried about his lover and their child in a way Kamal did not think was possible in the man. "Heartbeaker, we need to get to Apokolips."

"I'm bringing both of you to New Genesis Land," she said. "I'll see if Miracle will get us there. If you know any friends, now would be a good time to call them."

Kamal smiled. "I have one in mind." He pulled out his cell phone, and made the call quickly. He explained the meeting time and place, and hung up. As he did, blue light formed around him, and he found himself standing in the empty parking lot of an amusement park.

It took nearly an hour, but his contact arrived just in time. He even took Aidan by surprise.

"This had better be good, Batman," Hawkman said, folding his arms over his chest.

"You want to join our little foray to Apokolips?"

"Apokolips?"

"Yes. Darkseid has one of our members," Batman explained. "She's pregnant. Darkseid is after her unborn child."

Hawkman's face grew longer under the mask. "I can see why you need all the help you can get," he said. "I'll help. But…this had better not be all of us."

"Not at all." Batman turned to look at the speaker, recognizing her seductive voice immediately. Heartbreaker stepped out of the shadows, swaying her hips as she walked forward. Hawkman seemed to puff out his chest slightly, wings folding out just a bit more. It seemed that, human or Thanagarian, hot was hot. "We're just waiting for Miracle, is all. Then, we'll leave." She looked over at them, and then to Aidan. She smiled slightly, and he seemed to calm. Batman tried not to scowl; her powers were those of the heart, and she toyed with emotions the way a cat would toy with catnip- constantly and without remorse.

"What are we waiting for?" Batman looked up; Miracle was standing on the top of a light pole. He hopped down, throwing out two small disks and hopping onto them as they gently brought him down to the ground. "Are we the raiding party?"

"This is it," she said."

"We'll be booming in somewhere outside the main citadel," he said. "Any closer, and we're liable to trip the sensors. We'll have to sneak in from there. It isn't going to be easy, and it's going to be even more difficult getting to Olivia and getting her out, I think. But it's not impossible. Just stick close and use the element of surprise to your advantage."

He pulled a box from his belt, and pressed a button. One of the tubes opened. "Here we go," he said, running through it. Heartbreaker went through next, then Aidan, Hawkman, and finally Batman. Coming out on the other side, they were bathed in oppressive heat. "Ah. Home."

"Which way?" Flash asked, looking around. Even though the only skin showing on him was on his face, Batman could see Aidan sweating. In fact, the only ones who seemed to not be sweating were Miracle and Heartbreaker.

"This way," Miracle said, floating on the disks as he moved. Aidan was right next to him the rest of them following behind. "We have to get up over that rock formation," he said, pointing ahead of him. "From there, the citadel is not far off, but we have to be careful. There will be parademons everywhere."

"Sounds bad to me," Heartbreaker said.

"Very bad. We don't have any time to waste."

Inside, Olivia was waiting tensely in her cell, when the door opened. She shrank back against the wall, again holding her stomach protectively. The intruder had terrible yellow skin and thick green hair, and had a twisted, chilling grin plastered to her face. "Is the pretty liking her new cage?"

"What do you want?" Olivia demanded, getting to her feet. Before she had a chance to fully get her balance, the woman was in front of her, holding her by the throat. She struggled, but found that once again, she couldn't break free. "You…can't…do this," she gasped. "The…child…."

The woman laughed. "I know where a child rests." She forced her to the ground, pulling back with one hand. Spikes appeared in the gauntlet, and she proceeded to beat Olivia's face, leaving her bruised and bleeding. "The great Darkseid wishes to see you. You come with me!" She grabbed her by her hair and started to drag her down the halls. Olivia tried to get up, but as soon as she did, the woman tripped her, sending her onto her back again. This time, she grabbed her by the nostrils, dragging her along the stone ground. Olivia could do little but grab onto the arm and hope that the tearing she felt was only in her mind.

Back in the main chamber, she was let loose, and she stood up, wiping the blood from her face and checking to see what kind of permanent damage may have been done. Again, she was standing before Darkseid, only this time she was feeling much more vulnerable; unclothed, beaten and bloodied, her belly showing.

"Kneel before your god," he ordered.

"You're not my god," Olivia growled. She didn't see the little man in the purple cloak come up behind her; she definitely didn't see him touch her back, sending a painful shock through her system. She cried out, but managed to keep her feet. "Do that again, and it might hurt the baby. Why do you want it so bad, anyway? What's the big deal about my baby, because it might grow up to be a speedster? I know I sure as hell don't have any powers worth killing for."

"Not long ago, the universe as we known it was destroyed," Darkseid said. "In its place rose the multiverse. The child you are carrying," he paused to look pointedly at her slowly swelling belly, "is the key to the multiverse. It spans all known realities, and is the key to bringing them all together. As for the father, well, he is not the same being that planted the seed within you; he is no longer entirely here."

Olivia frowned. "What do you mean, not entirely here?" she demanded. Both her hands had gone over her stomach now. "My baby doesn't have any power that isn't already in our genes. Whatever this multiverse thing is, none of us have anything to do with it."

"I am offering you a single choice," Darkseid said. "I will allow you to carry the child to term and bear it on your own, if you obey me. Otherwise, I will take the child from you, and Desaad can torment you until you finally die."

Olivia turned her head in time to see the little man reaching forward, shocking her again. This time, she fell to her knees. He put a hand on her shoulder, keeping her there.

"I require your answer, Olivia."

She looked up, with considerable effort. "Don't," she whispered, forcing the words from her mouth. Every fiber of her was screaming to fight him, to stave off whatever he had in mind, but she knew that there was little hope of surviving; at least if she had the baby inside of her, she could protect it for another few months. "Don't take my baby from me. Please."

"Take her back and have her dress," Darkseid ordered. "We will have the ceremony immediately."

Olivia looked up, feeling her throat tighten. "Ceremony, what ceremony?"

Desaad grabbed her and hauled her up, handing her back over to the yellow-skinned woman. "The great and glorious omnipotent Darkseid will be taking you as his bride, of course, you mortal fool!" he gloated.

"All right, we just have to get over this wall," Miracle said, as he looked up. Suddenly, he tilted his head to the side. "Get down!"

They all dropped to the stone bed, except for Batman, their eyes looking up. Heartbreaker could see strange looking beasts riding what appeared to be pterodactyls, or something resembling them. "Parademons," Miracle said, his voice tight in thought. "Strange. They're in an odd formation."

"Ceremonial?" Heartbreaker suggested.

"Possibly. I don't like the looks of it; we had better hurry. This way." He was on the discs again, making his way over the wall, Batman right behind him. Hawkman lifted herself and Flash easily, as they all perched high above some sort of power center. Down below were six dog-like men.

"I was hoping we wouldn't have to waste our time fighting," Flash said. He was growing more and more worried by the moment. Heartbreaker fed off of his fear, focusing on the guards below. She smiled slightly, extending her hand, and with a flick of the wrist, she had them; and they didn't care.

"We can go," she said. "They won't be bothering with us."

"Are you sure?" Miracle asked.

"If she says they won't bother us, then they won't," Batman growled. They made their way down, Miracle looking somewhat uncomfortable as the dog-men looked over, then went back to staring straight ahead. They walked down a long, straight passage.

"This isn't right," Miracle said. "This place should be swarming with parademons."

"Now you tell us!" Flash exclaimed softly.

"He's right," Batman said. "This is too easy. He might be expecting us."

Heartbreaker closed her eyes, stretching out her senses. There was fear and suffering, as she expected, but somewhat muted, and all congregated at a specific point "There's a meeting going on, straight ahead. Where the head is."

"That's Darkseid's main chamber," Miracle explained. "Come on, we have to hurry. We may not have much more time."

Olivia found a box sitting in her cell when she returned, and opened it to find a dress made of shiny, hard black scales sitting in it. Thankful for something to cover her body with, she got into it quickly, trying to ignore the cuts and scrapes the scales gave her. It hugged her body uncomfortably, especially around her belly. She found that her door opened, and along with the yellow-skinned woman were a handful other women, all looking equally as depraved and twisted. Looking down at herself, Olivia sighed deeply. She tried to get the blood off of her face, but she could do nothing for the bruising and swelling.

She was surrounded by the women, who led her again through the halls. She couldn't see around them, but it didn't matter; her eyes were on the ground, her shoulders slumped, head bowed. She was defeated.

Finally, the women moved away, and she found herself standing in an open-air courtyard. In front of her was a large raised dais, with throngs of followers surrounding all sides of it. On the dais itself was Darkseid and Desaad, both who looked expectantly at her. Kalibak came up, grabbing her arm so violently she almost lost her balance. Trumpets sounded behind her, as she forced her head to stay up.

He lifted her off the ground and placed her up on the dais. Darkseid took her hand, almost crushing it in his viselike grip. She looked over at his arm, but refused to look up; she was ashamed, ashamed of what she was doing, of what it meant.

They managed to get past the first long run, when they all turned their heads; trumpets were sounding. "Oh, no. This is a bad, bad sign."

"You want to share?" Flash asked.

"The ceremony's already begun," he replied. "Let's go." As he opened the door to the spiral tower that led to the giant head statue, he jumped back with a shout. Ten parademons were lying in wait on the other side. Before Heartbreaker or Batman had a chance to react, Flash had managed to get Miracle out of the way, and Hawkman flew in with his plasma hammer, swiping all ten of them with one broad sweep, knocking them flying.

"Let's go," he said. They continued on at a harried pace.

Olivia couldn't look up as Desaad starting speaking. "Do you, oh great and powerful Darkseid, master of the known universe and all of it's inhabitants, whose every whim should be carried out with the swiftest efficiency and without question and to whom all others should bow down to and kneel before and worship, whose very gaze can cause even the bravest of men to run in fear, the one who dominates all darkness in the uni- eh, multiverse! Do you agree that this female be yours, to have and hold and torment, to use and abuse and discard as you will, whether she grow old and die of neglect or by your hand, to be your willing servant and slave for the rest of her days?"

"I agree."

There was a slight pause. "She agrees!"

Olivia felt a painful crushing of the bones inside of her hand, and she ground her teeth together, looking up. Darkseid was looking at her expectantly; he was not about to forgive her this humiliation. She stared back for a long moment, until she remembered his threat, and the life inside her. "Yes," she whispered. "I agree."

"Then it is settled!" She was forced to turn, facing the people of Apokolips as their new queen. There was suddenly motion at the door. Two beams of red light arced out from her left, sweeping through the chamber before they culminated in a tiny explosion only a few inches in front of her. Olivia pulled back.

"What was that?" she demanded.

"None of your concern," Darkseid said. "I am amused; your friends planned a rescue mission sooner than I thought they would. Unfortunate for your friend, the speedster."

Olivia felt something inside tear, and she looked up at him in shock. "Aidan. You…you killed him!" Her fear wasn't enough to drown out her outrage, nor her despair.

"Not killed," Darkseid corrected. "I can bring him back any time I wish."

Olivia glared. "If I cooperate," she whispered.

He smiled at her, mocking her. "Now you're starting to learn."

From the door came more motion, and she recognized the man with the wings that she had met in Chicago as he flew in, his hammer swinging wildly. Behind him was Kamal, and behind him, Heartbreaker. She was moving her arms lazily, as people began to drop their weapons. She tried to pull away, but Darkseid had her hand fast. She was going to be forced to watch.

The fight lasted little more than a few minutes: Heartbreaker had managed to lock down not only the fifty guards who stood around, but also Desaad, who lay on the ground zapping himself with his own torture device. Kalibak had gone after the strongest one, and they were dueling it out between them. Again, she felt a painful crushing in her left hand.

"Enough." Darkseid said. Everyone turned; except for Batman. Olivia couldn't seem to find him. They were not looking at him; they were looking at her

"Stop," she said, looking down. "Please."

"Not going to happen." She heard him speak before she felt his hands grab her head and chin. Olivia stiffened, as Darkseid turned. Kamal had her head in his gloved hands, and was ready to twist. "Let her go, Darkseid. She's coming back with us." Darkseid said nothing.

"Batman, please," she begged. "The baby. Don't kill my child, please, he's already killed Aidan!" He shifted his hand, putting it over her mouth. Olivia closed her eyes for a moment, opening them again only when he twisted, just slightly.

"I am not playing games," he growled. "Let her go."

Darkseid smiled. He looked at Olivia, and she watched in horror as his eyes glowed red.

Heartbreaker could do little but watch as Olivia disappeared, seemingly in an explosion of what looked like water molecules. Batman was left with his hands empty. Suddenly behind Darkseid a boom tube appeared.

"Push him through!" Turning, she saw Miracle, hovering in his discs. "Do it, now!"

Hawkman wasted no time; he flew straight up to Darkseid, swinging his hammer with an anger that Heartbreaker could feel without trying. It took a few tries, but he managed to push the tyrant the couple steps he needed. As soon as he was through, the tube sealed up again.

"Come on!" Another boom tube appeared, and the three of them reluctantly went through, Mr. Miracle following after. They found themselves on the Satellite.

"Olivia is dead," Heartbreaker said. "I'm assuming Flash is, as well."

"They're not dead," Miracle said. "A least, not really. That was the Omega Effect. It breaks you down into molecules and scatters them across the universe. Darkseid wouldn't have killed her; he needs her baby too badly. He'll reconstitute her the moment he gets a chance. She won't be dead for very long."

"He has no need to reconstitute the Flash," Batman pointed out. He was just as angry.

"He'll use him as a threat," Heartbreaker said. "It'll keep Olivia in line. She's done some pretty stupid things for him in the past, and I don't see that changing any time soon."

"It's probably a correct assumption," Miracle said.

"So, what do we do?" Hawkman asked sarcastically. "Stand around and talk about what might happen, or do something about it?"

Heartbreaker nodded. "I know. I want to know why the baby is so important. I'm going to go down and talk to both of their parents; they deserve to know that their children are dead in person. I can make certain they don't overreact."

"The only one who would overreact is in a coma right now," Batman said.

"Besides, I want to ask them if there are any family secrets they are harboring," she continued. "If there is something in the lineage that Darkseid wants, it may help us in stopping him."

"I agree," Miracle said. "But I have my own sources. I'll get the answers my way."

Heartbreaker nodded. "I also want to be there in case Captain Marvel gets the same idea. I think I'll go see Olivia's parents first; as you said, her father's in a coma. It wouldn't be difficult for Marvel to finish him off."

"I'll go to the hospital," Batman offered. "You go tell Dinah."