Chapter 112: Dawn of Justice
"They're approaching the hospital!" One the scouts called out to the halls. The sound of this announcement immediately sent his compatriots into a flurry of action.
Ever since the… "Metapocalypse," as the news was calling it, had started, nearly every major building in Central City had gone into lockdown and barricaded its doors in preparation for the eventual attack. CC General was no different — they had tried to keep their doors open as long as possible, to bring in as many civilians into its safe haven, but eventually they had been forced to close them due to shrinking capacity and in anticipation of the approaching army. Now, those who were willing and capable of fighting were grabbing what weapons they had in order to defend the building if need be.
At the front of the line were Joe and Iris West, two cops straight from CCPD's First Precinct — one of the few that had managed to escape Zoom's takeover of the building due to a lack of presence there in favor of the hospital. They had been at the forefront of managing the defense, due to their general familiarity with metahuman crime, and had ample reason to stay on top of things. Two of their friends were currently being treated in CC General, after all.
Iris was currently tying up her hair into her customary "work" bun so it wouldn't get in the way when the fighting started. Next to her, her father was cleaning his gun, not wanting it to jam or anything of the sort when they were in the middle of fighting. Both had metal bars strapped to their backs, courtesy of the hospital. An extra weapon for when their guns, inevitably, ran out of bullets.
"How did our lives end up like this?" Joe wondered aloud as he finished putting his gun back together. "Stuck in a hospital, preparing to fight off an army of super-powered thugs from another world. Sounds like something out of a comic book."
"Dad, I'm sure there are plenty of people that feel the same way you do," Iris pointed out with what little mirth she had left. "And Central City has kind of been a comic book ever since the Particle Accelerator exploded. This is just the culmination of that."
"I guess so, baby," Joe reluctantly agreed. "Now, what's bothering you?"
Iris stilled for a moment. "What do you mean, Dad? There's plenty bothering me right now."
Joe gave her a flat look. "Iris, I've raised you by myself since you were three. I know when you're hiding something from me but want to tell me anyway. What is it?"
His daughter opened her mouth for a moment, but no sound came out. Finally, she managed to say "Barry," but that was it.
"Barry?" Joe blinked, raising an eyebrow. "What about Barry?"
Iris winced, but before she could say anything more, a horn sounded out. "Never mind, they're here," Iris hurriedly told him as she rushed towards the entrance. Maybe it was for the best. There's a good chance they would both die here, and if that was true, she didn't want her father's last thoughts to be plagued by the death of his surrogate son.
Her own thoughts would have plenty of that.
"Why did you post such a powerful vanguard at S.T.A.R. Labs?" Black Siren asked as she leaned against the wall of the room. Zoom, unmasked as Hunter Zolomon, and her were currently standing in the crime lab of CCPD's First Precinct, which had the best view of the burning city below. The rest of Zoom's lieutenants were at the aforementioned lab, guarding it with a contingent of some of the weaker metahumans.
"Because when the Justice League does return, whatever they plan they have in the works will inevitably involve something in that building," Hunter replied, watching with subdued glee as his army continued to ravage this earth's Central City. "So the vanguard will hold them there, until you and I arrive with the rest of the army to crush them entirely. And once we do that, we can take over this world, unopposed."
"And after that?" Siren couldn't help but ask, smirking slightly at the thought of murdering her doppelganger and that bitch Supergirl.
"We consolidate our rule over this earth. Then we go about dealing with other worlds, in case they decide to invade this world too. I, for one, have no intentions of dealing with another alien invasion like this world did. Or possibly another hostile earth."
"So we wipe out all other life in the universe?" Siren grinned.
"The multiverse," Hunter corrected her, smiling slyly in himself. "There is a device in Mercury Labs that will aid us in that endeavor. After we take over the city, I'll have it appropriated and modified for our use. Of course, we can't actually risk using it yet without solidifying our hold over this earth, but having it in our possession earlier will be a boon regardless."
Siren's grin widened. "I love it," she admitted.
"I knew you would," Hunter told her, turning around with half-lidded eyes. "That's why you're my favorite."
His lieutenant brightened for a moment, looking less like a sadistic supervillain and more like a young girl that just got complimented by her father. Ah, Dinah. Always so desperate for someone to fill in the hole your father left behind. Hunter resisted the urge to shake his head. That was what made her the most valuable of his soldiers. Not just because she was a powerful metahuman, not just because she was smart, but because she was truly loyal. That's what made her such a great counterweight for Reverb. He knew he didn't have to fear for dissent as long as she was around.
"Boss!"
And speaking of dissenters… "What?" he demanded of the arriving and panting Sand Demon, "Didn't I say we were not to be disturbed unless there was an emergency?"
"There is! An army has begun to circle the city!" Sand Demon hurriedly explained, knowing that his life was on the line.
"Oh?" Instead of sounding worried, Hunter looked intrigued. "A last ditch effort to liberate the city, most likely. They were probably getting sick of waiting for the Justice League to come back. Fine then." He turned to Siren. "Go get Snart. It's time to show the world how truly futile their efforts are."
Maseo Yamashiro frowned heavily as he watched soldiers after soldiers line up, preparing themselves for battle. Unfortunately, due to the abruptness in which Zoom's army arrived, the military was scrambling to send in reinforcements. Right now there were only two regiments, or around five thousand soldiers, here, prepared to aid the Justice League in their counterattack against Zoom's army. Even with the recent training against the Dominators' forces, they would be hard-pressed to deal with enemies with individualized powers.
"Do I really have to put this on?" Floyd Lawton's voice whined from within one of the tents.
"Yes. Now shut up and put it on already, Lawton," Slade Wilson's guttural growl retorted.
And then there's that. Most of the Justice League had arrived via breach about half an hour ago and were now milling about, waiting for the battle to start. Maseo had already been told about the general logistics of their plan, including the pulse machine that would supposedly knock out all the Earth-2 metas. Truth be told, he was a bit skeptical about it, but considering the situation, he would take all the help he could get. After all, even with the Justice League, it would take a while to hold Zoom's army until the true reinforcements arrived.
To think Amanda had them in reserve as well… Maseo shook his head. His boss really had been prepared for every eventuality, hadn't she?
"Sir!" One of his agents called out to him. Maseo snapped to attention. "Our scouts indicated movement towards this general direction. We believe Zoom has taken notice of us and preparing him and his army to engage us."
"Then that means it's time to get this show on the road," Maseo replied grimly, dismissing the agent. He stood up, strapping on his gun, and quickly approached the back of the impromptu camp, towards the hidden area where the Justice League was currently camping out. It was sad not to see the familiar red form of the Flash there, but Maseo pushed the feeling away soon enough. There would be time to mourn the dead later. Right now, it was the living that needed help.
The moment he arrived to the small camp, Green Arrow stood up, having immediately spotted him. "He's here, isn't he?" Arrow noted, parsing through the look on Maseo's face.
"He is," Maseo confirmed.
Arrow glanced back at his team, who were all standing up, drawing weapons and preparing for battle. The three heroes who weren't official members of the Justice League (though Maseo imagined that would change after the battle, provided they won and everyone survived) had saddled up with Slade and Plastique and the recently-arrived Deadshot, along with the three civilians that would be setting up the pulse machine in S.T.A.R. Labs.
Maseo tried not to flinch at the sight of Harrison Wells. He knew the man was not the murderous time traveler that had replaced the real Harrison Wells over a decade a half ago. However, he was also from Earth-2, and to be honest, that particular earth was something of a taboo subject with everyone on this earth right now. Maseo had heard many of the soldiers whispering about the multiverse already, wondering what the implications of this meant for the world. For that alone, he sincerely hoped Amanda was alive, so that way he wouldn't have to deal with most of the fallout.
"Wait until I fully engage Zoom in conversation," Green Arrow ordered Task Force X and co. "Once he's distracted by that, have Vibe breach you all over to outside S.T.A.R. Labs. We don't know how many metahumans are hidden in there right now, so it limits the chances of an ambush upon arrival."
Deathstroke nodded, and started barking out orders of his own as Green Arrow turned his attention back to Maseo. "Bring us to him," Arrow told him, voice grim. "It's time I have a talk with him of my own."
The world shivered as the live feed was once again hacked by Zoom's forces. The multiversal conqueror had declared the country's armed forces had attempted to surround the southern half of the city, no doubt to push into Central City proper and calm down the chaos that his forces had wrought.
"… But of course, they will fail. And this is why." The feed then showed the front line of soldiers, hiding behind a makeshift barricade. A second later and a flash of blue lightning, they collapsed, their necks broken. The camera lingered at the bodies for a moment before directing itself back to Zoom. "Like I told you before, people of Earth-1. This world now belongs to Zoom. Accept that."
"No, it doesn't!"
The camera then turned towards the direction of a new voice — the new army. And at its head was the Justice League, including the League's unofficial leader, the legendary Green Arrow of Starling City. Riding beside him on a motorcycle was his partner, the famous Black Canary. On the other side of him were Vixen and Black Lightning, and flying above them all were Supergirl and Martian Manhunter. All six of the surviving members of the Justice League were present, and while many were disheartened at the missing form of the Flash, they couldn't help but feel some form of hope in seeing his teammates there regardless. Despite the seemingly insurmountable odds, their protectors had not abandoned them.
"Hunter of Zolomon of Earth-2!" Green Arrow called out, drawing his bow and notching an arrow, aiming directly at Zoom's black heart. "You have failed this city! No, worse than that! YOU HAVE FAILED THIS EARTH!"
Zoom scoffed. "I bet you've been waiting to use that for a while, right, Green Arrow?" The speedster mocked the other man.
Green Arrow scowled darkly from beneath his mask. Instead of cloth, this was a more form-fitting metal one, which covered the entire bottom half of his face. All the members of the Justice League had them on, allowing them, allowing them both further protection and further concealment of their secret identities. "It's over, Zolomon. Order your army to stand down and turn yourselves in. Do that, and no one else has to die."
"Now why would I do that? I have the upper hand, after all. You're just six people, plus whatever fodder you've managed to scrounge up. Compared to my forces, you are nothing." Zoom narrowed his eyes. "Face it, Justice League. You've lost. You can't beat this army — and you can't beat me."
While Zoom was confronting the Justice League with the bulk of his army, fighting had already started elsewhere, at the front of S.T.A.R. Labs. Zoom's other four lieutenants had created a perimeter around the building, preparing themselves for the anticipated attack by the Justice League. Zoom had warned them as much.
Well, they did get attacked. Just not by the Justice League.
"Well, well, well," Reverb tilted his head, smirking smugly. "If it isn't the B-Squad." His brother Rupture, Killer Frost, and Deathstorm all moved to stand beside him, already preparing themselves for a fight.
In front of them, having already exited the breach, were two of their doppelgangers: Vibe and Firestorm, along with a new addition in Pied Piper. "Call us whatever you want, knockoff," Vibe retorted, also angling to fight, "We're still going to kick your ass."
"Oh really? In case you haven't noticed, Francisco, you're outnumbered." Reverb gestured to not just his fellow lieutenants, but also the metahuman contingent that Zoom had attached to them.
"Maybe so," Cisco admitted, already preparing to fire his vibrational blasts, with Pied Piper and Firestorm mirroring him, "but we've faced worse odds before and won, and we'll do it again!" That said, he and Hartley fired the combination attack they had used during the Dominator Invasion. While the lieutenants managed to dodge it, half of the contingent weren't so lucky and were immediately blasted back into unconsciousness.
Reverb glanced at their prone forms in anger before whirling his head to glare at his doppelganger. "ATTACK!" he ordered, with roars following that statement.
"Cover me!" Cisco told his friends. Both nodded, angling themselves to stand in front of Cisco as he moved out of the line of sight, closer to the doors of S.T.A.R. Labs. He threw his arm forward, opening another breach, where Task Force X and the pulse machine team exited. "Go!" he told them, directing his attention back to the battle, where his doppelganger was about to engage him.
Slade nodded and started rushing everybody to the front doors. "Move, people! Move!" They quickly hurried to obey, with Slade himself pushing the cart that had the parts of the pulse machine.
"Maybe they can't beat you, but I can!" A loud, vibrating voice declared immediately after Zoom's statement. A very familiar voice.
Zoom flipped over as a force slammed into him from behind, and only barely managed to land on his feet. He shook his head to clear the sudden pain, and looked up, freezing when he saw who it was.
The Flash.
Almost immediately, the atmosphere changed. Zoom could hear the gasps of his army, the sound of many backing away in fear. "You said he was dead!" angrily came from Snart's voice, though who he was shouting at he couldn't tell. From the other side, from the army that was coming to back the Justice League, the reaction was the opposite — there were cheers and whispers. Already, he could feel hope emanating from them all, the same hope he had thought he had all but crushed over the past day. It was a very bitter pill to swallow.
But Zoom didn't care for any of that. Well, he did, but it was all lost at the sight of the Flash, the only person he had eyes for right now. And it seemed the Flash was the same. The man hadn't strayed his gaze once from him the moment he arrived. "You're supposed to be dead," Zoom observed, sounding far more calm than he felt.
The Flash snorted. "You're not that lucky," he taunted back. "I wasn't dead. Just sent somewhere else, and my team brought me back. But even if they hadn't, I would've found my way back anyway." He drew his knives, holding one in each hand, both aloft and ready. "It's like I said before, Zoom. It's time you and I finish this — once and for all."
Zoom craned his neck, rolling his shoulders. He hunched his legs, his clawed hands twitching. "Bring it on, Flash."
With that, the two speedsters charged, clashing in a brilliant display of dark gold and bright blue lightning. The Flash had one knife aimed at one of Zoom's eye, which was being blocked by the other man's hand grabbing onto his forehead. In turn, the other hand was aiming one of its claws at the lower half of the Flash's chest, and was stopped by the Flash sandwiching it with his knee and elbow. They stayed in that position for but a moment, before separating and speeding away to continue their fight across the city.
"CHARGE!" Green Arrow shouted as he quickly got onto Black Canary's motorcycle — an experimental model that went at much faster speeds than the commercial ones. A roar from his side followed him as the superheroes and soldiers alike followed him and Canary, and were met by the metahumans who followed Zoom.
The camera, which had filmed all of this, abruptly fell to the ground, cutting off the feed. It didn't matter, however. The world had seen everything, and now knew that a battle was being waged right now. Not just for one city, not just for one planet, but for an entire universe.
Only one thing was for certain: no matter who won, nothing would ever be the same.
And so, we're finally here. The last battle. The endgame.
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