Avenging Justice 3:

To Infinity and Anti-Life

Part IX

Earth, Delaware, Metropolis

Clanging metal, blasts of unbearable heat, and the hum of an energy source pulsed from the workshop. Iron Man would be proud, especially with the one of a kind Irons Power Source. The bald man raised and lowered his hammer, over and over again. A composite blend of several materials slowly took shape. Still the man continued to hammer, a man who had been hiding, but now had a new mission.

The man stopped to think about falling, and then not. One minute thinking about how he'd never be able to make up for the monstrous things, those things he unleashed on the world. Truth be told it was the corporation that was responsible, but he had created them. Without his genius, they would never have escaped Pandora's Box. Then came Doomsday, and the world lost its hero. He had survived, when Superman hadn't.

There must be a reason for that, and why came in a few days later. Metropolis Police started to report new weapons on the street. They put huge chunks into buildings, obliterated people and vehicles. Even the most heavily armored vehicles fell before them. To the man working at the forge, they were well known. They were his designs, and going by the name, "toastmasters," on the street. If Superman were still here, they would be gone.

It was time for someone to step up. He put down his forging hammer and let his newest creation cool. Sweat ran down his head and neck, he took a cooled rag out of a nearby cabinet. Wiping off the perspiration, he turned on the radio, and listened as it squawked to life. The news wasn't good, another gang war with the toastmasters. Many casualties, and some of them not limited to the gangs. No more innocents would be harmed by his creations.

"Officers under attack, high yield energy weapons in use," came the excited voiced of a police officer. "Requesting back up!"

John Henry Irons turned the radio off and walked over to the hanging suit, "Time to get to work."

Jeanie was running for her life. Five gang members were behind her. She wasn't sure who they were, or why they had picked her. She did know what they wanted. They had seen the heirloom necklace around her neck, and the iPhone in her hand. That was moments go, and since then she'd been running through the back alleys. Normally this was a safe city, but not recently.

Going by instinct, Jeanie had managed to barely keep out of their reach. However, she heard them slowing down. At first thinking they had given up, till she saw the dead end fast approaching. She turned, wishing that she knew how to fight better. Sure, she had brothers that she had wrestled with when she was younger. However, these people weren't looking for playful kid wrestling. The knives and batons were meant for more deadly things, and one of them held a can of spray and a lighter.

As if to accentuate the danger, the guy with the spray and lighter, sent a plume of flame straight at her. He laughed at her terror, and did it again twice more. The others quickly took positions around her, some taking quick strikes at her. She fought back, letting her flight or fight instinct go into fight mode. She managed to connect with one, and was rewarded with a baton to the gut. The woman she'd hit brought the baton back up, and then it was stopped.

A blue and black hand, crushed the attackers hand. All Jeanie could see was the red cape, and the dark hair. What she wasn't expecting was the other hand to come out, and energy to come out, incinerating one of her attackers. The baton wielder didn't so much cry, as yelped as she went unconscious. It was a mercy, as even to Jeanie's untrained eyes, the mangled hand was beyond repair. Another of the five rushed forward, his reward was a fist through the chest. Looking horrified at the arm sticking out of him, the gang member had only mere moments before he expired.

The other two decided to flee. They didn't make it far, with one being crushed beneath a blue and black boot. The other had their arm torn out of their socket and off their body. Both would survive, one paralyzed for the rest of their life. The other would remained maimed, but came out better than the others. The woman with the crushed hand, was in and out, and Jeanie recognized the symptoms of shock.

The man who had come from the sky, tuned and Jeanie was shocked. He looked like him, even had the symbol on his chest. However, behind the visor, which seemed to be golden colored, there was no kindness in those eyes. He looked like Superman, but if it was, he was changed. This man rose off into the air, not a question to see if she was fine. The other thing that really bother her, no sirens coming.

She looked at the mangled people around her, and pulled out the iPhone, "I think Superman just killed my attackers."

Lex Luthor stood at the podium, making a speech. Standard stuff for him, promises of sharing his tech with the police. He promised to bring down crime, he would step in for Superman. He hated saying that. The idiot masses idolized the alien, even if his last bout nearly leveled a good portion of the city. He made sure to get some samples from both creatures, Superman and the creature. He had to remember to keep his mind focused. He couldn't afford a slip of the tongue.

One making the statement he was about to though, needed the right stage. Only the observation floor in his building would due. This was going to finally cement his place as the world's real champion, not some alien in tights who could fly. On that note, he made another notation to take the recently "acquired" Stark repulsors and see if they were good enough to reverse engineer. That was for later, after this announcement.

"Ladies and gentleman, it brings me great pleasure to introduce a new man in town," Lex said as he motioned to curtain behind him.

Before he could signal for the curtain to fall, one of the bimbos he hired for this job lost her footing. She wasn't where she was supposed to be, and he made a note to fine the talent company for her incompetence. That and make sure his legal team had those signed forms, to prevent her family from suing him. Shouldn't have to worry about that anyway, she should have been on her spot. Probably was improvising, idiot.

Next, as that thought finished, was a blur of black, red and yellow. The screams of the falling woman were cut short and then a teen boy rose up into view. Holding on for dear life was the model that had fallen. Her hands holding onto the teen's leather jacket for dear life, and he gave her a cocky smile. Putting her down, the "S" shield became evident, as was the yellow version stitched onto the jacket's back.

"Hey, babe, you can call me Superman," the teen said, with a glint of overconfidence in his voice. "I'm the real deal, by the way."

Lex cleared his throat, "Well, what better way to announce the new sheriff in town? I present to you Superman, returned from the dead!"

An hour later the people of Metropolis were abuzz with the news, when a giant shadow swathed the city. Citizens looked up in horror, as a gigantic metal skull entered the atmosphere. Long tendrils whipped about and moments later the first jets were scrambling towards it. The first two were obliterated, the others started to fall to the ground. Meanwhile the skull shaped ship continued its flight towards the middle of the city.

The two pilots had the opportunity to eject, but stayed with their planes. Guiding their crippled jets down as best as they could. Their idea was to aim for the harbor or to the lesser populated areas of the city. That is what Superman would have done, he would have saved lives, even at the expense of his own. So, as the ground came up at them, in the last milliseconds of their lives, the pilots were at peace. They would die, but others would live.

Instead, both pilots felt their jets slow dramatically, and then bump as they were placed on the ground. They looked up to see two blurs blast off into the sky. Both pilots exited their crippled birds, legs and hands shaking, and with the others nearby, their gaze went skyward. Watching as two forms went towards the skull ship.

Brainiac looked over the city, and the ship started the specimen collection routines. The other cities were still on his screen, but he'd come back for those later. For now, this one would do. Maybe he'd find traces of the Kryptonian that had been here. His scans also had come up with another, this world called her Supergirl. He'd collect her too, as the last of her kind.

The sensors alerted him of two incoming figures. The screens shifted to the newcomers. They flew, so he sent out a couple of probes. There were others on this planet that could produce such a feat. However, he didn't recognize them, and till they were a threat, not worth his full interest. Instead, he feasted on the knowledge his other probes were feeding him.

At the Daily Planet, Lois Lane looked at the invader to her skyline. The beautiful towers of Metropolis office buildings, dwarfed by this giant metal skull thing. At once she wanted to know more, as a reporter and as a person. She was naturally curious, determined and as her father would tell you, always getting into trouble for good reasons.

Despite herself, and the pain she was holding in, she thought of a certain Big Blue Boy Scout. She missed him, but at the same time, didn't know if he was gone. It was the not knowing that was killing her. That and the two people that could tell her, had been avoiding her. Not like that was going to stop her. However, catching up with them was going to have to take a back seat. There was a new story, and she was Lois Lane.

He'd want her to continue being her. So, even fighting back tears at his potential loss, she moved forward. Already Jimmy was behind her, camera in hand and keeping stride with her. Lois smiled, he knew her well enough. She wouldn't be running from the danger, but right at it. Because that is where the story was. It was what made her such a good reporter.

"Lane!" the voice of her editor, Perry White rose above the commotion of the rest of the office. "Don't do anything stupid, he's not around much these days."

Lois clenched her teeth, then answered, "I can take care of myself, Chief. Just keep the headline free. This one is going to be big!"