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Public Enemy Number One, chapter 2

Kon went crashing through a wall and landed roughly. Kor-El had punched him, and it hurt. He was vaguely aware of Wonder Girl trying to tangle the more physically developed clone in her lasso, but his first thought was about how much pain he was feeling.

He struggled to his feet in time to see Kor-El knock Cassie out.

"She's kind of cute," Kor-El said with a smile. "You've got good taste. I wonder if it's a genetic predisposition. You think Kru-El's got the hots for her too?"

Kid Flash charged at him but bounced off a telekinetic barrier and landed with a thud. Speedy shot an arrow at him, but Kor-El deflected it.

"Please," he laughed. "What are you thinking, using physical projectiles against a telekinetic? Even if your little arrow could hurt me, it can't even get close."

Superboy unleashed a blast of heat vision. Kor-El staggered a bit.

"Cyborg, now!" Robin shouted, signaling Cyborg to unleash a sonic blast at him.

Kor-El took a step back and flashed a grin. "Is that the best you've got?"

"Get him!" Robin shouted as the remaining Titans charged.

Match looked at the readings. They weren't good. He feared he knew what was happening.

"Titans, report," he ordered.

"We're a little busy right now!" Robin shouted.

"Outsiders, how long will it take you to get to Titan's Tower?" Match demanded.

"Approximately five minutes," Nightwing replied. "We're en route now."

"Robin, can you hold out that long?"

There was no answer.

"Superboy, are you there?"

There was silence.

"Raven? Report!"

"I'm afraid they're all unable to talk to you right now," a familiar voice said. "I'll tell them you called when they awaken. If they awaken, that is."

"What do you want?" Oracle asked.

"I want Kru-El," he demanded. "He and I will fight a duel."

Match checked the Outsider's status. They were still over four minutes away. He made his decision.

"I'm on my way," he said before cutting the communications channel.

"Match, this is exactly what he wants," Oracle warned.

"I know. Have the Outsiders rescue the Titans when they arrive. I will provide a distraction. I'll attempt to move the battle away from them."

"It's too dangerous!"

"I have no choice," Match said as he headed into the teleportation booth.

Match took in the state of Titan's Tower with a glance. The place had been trashed during the fight. He saw Kor-El in a copy of Superman's costume standing in front of the Titans. Match relaxed slightly when he confirmed that they were all breathing.

"I've waited for this," Kor-El told him with a smile. "Do you like my preparations for the party? I knew you'd take great interest in the decorations, Kru-El."

Match unleashed a telekinetic blast from his eyes and was quite surprised to see it blow Kor-El through the walls of Titan's Tower. Perhaps his fight with the Titans had drained him more than Match thought it would.

He followed through the hole, ready to pounce on any opening. He saw Kor-El grinning at him, apparently unhurt.

"Was that really the best you could do?" he sneered. "I'm disappointed."

Match landed a powerful blow, throwing the larger man through another wall to outside the building. Match hesitated briefly. It seemed as if Kor-El was luring him into a trap. He would have to be careful in fighting him, keeping an eye out for bystanders.

Kon found himself waking on the floor, his body aching. He forced himself to remain awake and checked the other Titans. He breathed a sigh of relief when he confirmed that they were all alive.

He saw a gaping hole leading outside of Titan's Tower, and he staggered over to it. He looked out and saw his brother battling Kor-El. Since he tapped an identical telekinetic field, he could sense how much power the two of them were using; it was enormous.

Match was sweating from exerting so much power, but he was growing more confident. The battle was turning into a contest of endurance, and he had faith that he'd be able to outlast Kor-El. Kor-El was too unstable to keep his abilities at such a high level over a long period of time.

There were distractions that he had to deal with. News helicopters were around them, and he had to move to make sure that they weren't hit by any errant fire.

Kor-El presented an opening, and Match took it. He delivered a powerful uppercut to Kor-El that sent him flying. However, Kor-El was able to change the arc his body was following to land in the city.

Match tightened slightly. He had no choice but to follow him, even though they'd be in a densely populated environment. He wouldn't be able to unleash his full power lest he injure civilian bystanders. Still, there was no choice, and he flew after him.

Kon-El frowned as he saw Match go after Kor-El. Kor-El was luring Match somewhere; he was sure of it.

He heard movement behind him and turned. The Outsiders had arrived and were treating the Titans.

"I'm going to go help Match," he told them, as he started to gather his power.

"Don't," Nightwing ordered. "You're barely able to stand."

"I've got to help him."

"All you'll do is give Kor-El a hostage," Nightwing said coldly. "If you go, you'll give him an advantage over Match."

Kon flinched as if he had been slapped. "That was harsh."

"I know, but it was true. It'll take us a minute to see to the Titans. Then, Jade and I can go with you. That should be enough to ensure your safety and Kor-El's defeat."

It was good that nothing more than the basics of hand to hand combat had been implanted in Kor-El, Match thought. The larger clone had little idea of how to block or exploit an opening.

Bystanders were gathering, but, to Match's surprise, Kor-El had not tried to exploit them. In truth, Kor-El might not have been able to exploit them since Match was using his advanced martial arts skills to give him trouble.

"You think you've won?" Kor-El whispered to Match. "You haven't."

Match kept his focus on Kor-El, ready for anything he'd do. Since his focus was on the larger clone, he was unprepared when the crowd started throwing things at him.

"Get away from Superman!" one of them shouted.

"You lousy clone!" another shouted. "You ought to be ashamed of yourself!"

Match raised a telekinetic barrier to block what the crowd was throwing, but splitting his concentration and focus left an opening for Kor-El to strike. He hit Match, and he went flying. Kor-El followed him and unleashed a blast of heat vision that Match wasn't fully successful in blocking.

"Do you understand?" Kor-El asked softly. "I'm going to destroy you before I kill you. It would be too easy for you otherwise. I want this to hurt, Kru-El."

Jade, Nightwing, and Superboy approached. Kor-El straightened and flashed them a grin.

"I'll leave him in your hands," he said as he flew off.

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