Avenging Justice 3:
To Infinity and Anti-Life
Part X
Earth, New York, S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier
"Director, we've got the Avengers inbound," one of the communications officers reported. Iron Man is five minutes out, Captain America and the others are about ten. No word on Thor."
The bald man with an eyepatch and sporting a very well-worn trench coat nodded. They could have used Thor's lightning, but Stark was already boasting about some new toys he had cooked up. Fury could deal with the ego, the man was one of the brightest on Earth. According to his displays, the Fantastic Four were out of immediate action rage.
Depending on how the next few minutes went, would let him know if he needed to put a fire under Reed's ass to get him here. They had Solaris and Luna on target now, and they'd be the first to reach the giant metal skull in the sky. He had a feeling they would be enough, but it never hurt to put your money on more than one solution.
Around him, the other agents looked on as if they hadn't just witnessed an interstellar invasion, by portal. He'd give them no slack on this, it was just another day and another threat to deter. It was why he had argued for, and fought for the Avenger Initiative. A group of special people, doing what others couldn't, to keep their world safe. Since then, it seemed the veritable flood gates had been opened. As a quick reminder, he pulled up the status of the Krytponian Triumvirate. The same ones from the invasion of New York, relief flooded in as they all showed still in custody.
However, another surprise waited on him as he turned around. He didn't even need the call out from the monitory tech. Immediately his curiosity rose, would she rise to the occasion like her cousin, or stay in his shadow? Fury stared stone faced, sure he was about to find out. Behind him, the alert that the council was calling, elicited a slight groan.
Earth, Delaware, Metropolis
"Well, that's something you don't see every day," Solaris quipped, as he came to a floating rest a few hundred feet from the giant metal skull. "Giant metal skull, tendrils floating all about, did we wake up in an anime today?"
Luna gave him a quick bump to the arm, "You're incorrigible. Let's see if we can make contact. Maybe they'll be like Abby Sciutto."
"Goth on the outside, big-hearted person on the inside," Solaris shook his head. "If only we were that lucky."
He dashed towards the ship and soon found a three tentacled orbs blocking his path. He moved to the right, then the left. Each time they followed him, and when he attempted to go up and over, they whipped out their metal arms. He dodged the first, parried another, immediately recognizing a painful sensation.
It had been a while since he'd felt that, at least since Doomsday. So, whomever was in that floating metal skull, they could bring the pain. It also meant that those unlike him, others hit might be dealt fatal blows. That wouldn't do, and he started to get the feeling Luna's optimism was about to be tested sorely. However, if this thing came down to play, he could play and roughly.
"Don't think they're here for sightseeing," he called out as he went straight at the three robots blocking his way.
About fifty feet away, Luna was surrounded by darkness and shadow. She sent out dark clouds to engulf the three in front of her. Then she brought the cloud closed, quickly folding itself over and over, like some giant piece of paper being folded by a child. What surprised her, were that two of the three broke through. The one that didn't was crushed as she planned, but only one of the two escaping ones was undamaged.
The damaged one buzzed and shrieked, as whatever was powering it started to go critical. She enveloped it again, just as it went. The explosion was contained, but now she had the undamaged one coming right at her. She dodged, but still felt a burning across her back. Without thinking she whipped her hand out and grabbed the metal tentacle. Fury in her eyes, she pulled on it, and sent her fist colliding into the robot connected to the tentacle.
"I don't think these things play fair," she huffed as she scanned for Solaris.
She saw a bright explosion of light, and recognized the sword of light that he used. Another of those drones ran at Solaris. Quick as lightning, he slashed thrice, and the drone fell to pieces. It exploded, and he sent a light whip out, to pull the last of the drones near it. As expected, the explosion took out the remaining drone. Then he turned his attention to the skull ship, which had settled over the center of the city.
"No, now I do believe our guest better have a good reason," Solaris said as he formed the light sword again. "Because that was just rude."
The two heroes blasted off towards the skull, just in time to see more of those drones head out towards them. Apparently, it was going to be along day. Both laid into the drones, only to find that these were slightly harder than the first wave. These fired out beams of energy that burned, once again something both hadn't had to really deal with in months. However, that only served to make them fight even harder.
On his ship, Brainiac turned his attention to the two fighters. He was curious, the drones were sending in information at a rate that would be astounding to the primitives of this planet. None of his tech had been able to correctly identify their species. In fact, his drones were giving him readings that only pointed to one conclusion. One of these primitives was very skilled in genetic manipulation. He was curious about their methodology, but really there were volumes of collected information on such manipulation already in his archives.
"Fascinating, genetics of three races in two beings," he turned his attention to other drones that had spread across the globe. "Ah, Kryptonian survivors, and incarcerated. How curious, on a world like this, they should have been deities. Interesting, naturally occurring and artificial vibranium energy signatures. A primitive civilization still wandering in the dark, but clever, for lesser beings."
A warning came across, and he switched his view. A teen girl in Kryptonian suit, and a red skirt and cape was coming in quickly. Brainiac knew of her, the people here called her, "Supergirl." After watching her, and what she had done, he was certain she was no dire threat to his operations. However, he should collect her too, as one of the last surviving Kryptonians.
So, he sent out a squadron of his newer generation of probes. He had given them an estimated chance of defeating Superman of around ninety two percent, but against her, he figured the odds were closer to ninety eight percent. With the upload of Earth's data, that was ongoing, a piece of information had stood out to him. One that explained why she'd fail where the other would succeed. He was raised here, she wasn't. This was his home, to her, it was just another world.
Supergirl busted two drones together, felt their explosion rock her back. Immediately she found another target, and ripped that one apart. She could see the other two, recognized them from both the Doomsday event, and from news reports. She felt bad for them, as the news was hardly generous in their coverage of the pair. They were even harder on them, then they were on her. Especially the Daily Bugle, which constantly blasted them and their other target, Spider-Man.
She turned, just in time for a green beam of energy to hit her. Immediately her body was on fire and she screamed out in agony. Another hit her, and she saw her skin start to turn red, as the energy burned her. Supergirl let out another cry, but this one was full of rage and pain. With it she also sent out burning energy from her eyes. The heat vision turned one drone to falling, oozy, slag.
From her side another beam came, she managed to get out of the way. Unfortunately, it hit a nearby building. A whole chunk of the building turned to dust and screams came from the people inside. Just what this fight needed, innocents caught in the crossfire! She saw another beam coming and took it. She couldn't let innocents suffer, even as she felt herself being thrown back.
She crashed to a nearby rooftop, and got back up. Her heat vision took out two more drones, only for four more to show up. Another three came up behind her, and she felt the lancing pain of their energy blasts hitting her. She rolled, even as her body was wracked with pain. She picked up a nearby brick and threw it at a nearby drone. Thanks to the speed she applied, it destroyed the drone. It also created a mini sonic boom, and basically atomized the brick into nothingness.
She took to the sky again, and slammed into another of the special drones. Another beam of energy skimmed her arm, causing another blossom of pain to erupt. However, she pushed through it. Ripping apar the drone she had in her hands, she sent the pieces at the other drones. Two more fell, with more coming to replace them. How many of these damned things did this guy have?
Supergirl was surrounded, and she braced for another blast of pain. Only a bright flash of golden light came. She turned to find another of the drones attacking her, consumed by impenetrable darkness. She didn't hesitate and dismantled another, feeling pain as the metal of the drones tore at her hands. However, it was working, as more and more of the drones fell.
"Thank you, now Brainiac is mine!" Supergirl said, with the last few syllables quickly becoming more of a growl.
Luna smiled, "As much as we can appreciate that, three will be better than one. Besides, this is our world. I'm really tired of things coming down and trying to destroy it."
Solaris pointed and both women saw more drones coming out of the skull ship. He didn't wait and immediately was attacking the drones. Supergirl and Luna quickly followed suit, bashing the drones into one another. They fought their way into hanger, and Supergirl was even using the remains of one as a club against others.
Brainiac watched as the three figures battled their way towards his bridge. Data was being collected and the drones could be rebuilt. However, with the way things were going, he'd have the data he needed and now new biological samples. Based on the increased scans from the drones, he calculated they were at the limit of their abilities.
However, one piece of information came up to the front of his stream, that made him rethink this. A gray monster that fought three of them, and immediately Brainiac was curious if he could find that sample. He kept a search going on the background to see where the Earthlings had done with it. In the meantime, the intruders looked to require his more immediate attention.
Landing on the deck below, he felt the cables disconnect from his body and the streams of information were suddenly gone. It was like a warm blanket being removed on a cold day. That was the closest biological entity feeling he could attribute to the sensation. Still, it was there, just waiting for him to finish up and plug back in. This wouldn't take very long, and then he'd be back to finish the specimen collection process.
The ship jerked and rumbled, causing Brainiac to grab a nearby cable. Immediately the ship reported that another attacker had breached the hull. Looking through the sensors, he located the three he'd originally been going over. Also showing up now were a new set of attackers, these though were of no danger to him.
For the briefest of moments, he even thought about trying to attack the armored one. Curiosity of how hard it would be to overtake the armor, or destroy it, quickly pulsed through his mind. However, there would be time for that, after he'd taken care of the intruders. That left him with the question as to what had caused the breach.
"It is time for you to leave," came a voice that was both biological and artificial. "Before things get worse…for you."
Brainiac sent out cables to capture the newcomer. Even as he disconnected out, he hadn't even taken a good look at whomever had invaded this far in. As he did get a good look, the closest thing he got to pure panic processed through his mind. There, using heat vision to obliterate his cables, was a familiar, yet different form.
There were obvious synthetic cybernetic parts, a leg, arm, and most part of the head. However, the biological parts would have been identifiable to anyone on Earth, as Superman. Even his armor melded into the cybernetic parts, turning his normally red and yellow shield to gray and black on the cybernetic side.
"Interesting, my calculations never showed you as being receptive to enhancements," Brainiac mused. "Though, I guess getting your head beat in by a primitive brute would change the mind."
The Cyborg Superman said, "I will not repeat myself. Leave this world and never return. However, stay and I will make you regret it."
"The process has already started," Brainiac sent more tendrils out to stop his enemy. "However, now I have the advantage."
Much to Brainiac's surprise two of his tendrils attach to the Cyborg Superman, and there was an almost immediate feedback of power. The tendrils fell lifeless, and the others sent out found themselves being melted by beams of heat. Then the Cyborg Superman turned towards Brainiac, and slammed into him.
Through the ship, the two figures fought. One might punch sent Brainiac out of the "eye socket" of his ship. He slammed into the cyborg, sending the potentially resurrected Superman down. Before he knew it, his attacker's metal hand was wrapped around his neck. Brainiac retaliated, surprised when this new Superman's arm started to change. A blast came from it, and sent Brainiac tumbling down to the ground below.
"I told you to leave, now you're going to be permanently removed from this world," Cyborg Superman pulled up Brainiac, slowly crushing his head between his hands.
"Kal! No!" came Supergirl's voice. "This isn't you!"
Cyborg Superman stopped, and slammed Brainiac back down, sending up loose dirt and rubble. He then turned around to look at the floating young woman. At the sight of his cybernetics, she held back her gasp of horror. He looked to be more machine than person, and his face looked more like a metal skull than the warm, caring man the world knew.
"You're….my cousin," he said painfully.
She flew over and tried to put a hand on his face, but he turned away, "Yes, Kal, it's me."
"Things are a jumble, so many memories," he said sadly. "My body was too far damaged."
She flew around to face him, "It's okay, I'm here now."
"I must stop threats, but I wasn't enough," he continued. "Now, I know I have to be more willing to permanently stop things. Threats like Brainiac must never be allowed to fester."
She interposed herself between him and Brainiac, "That's not you, Kal. I agree with that, but you always see the best in people. You believe they can be better, even your enemies."
"And that is why I died," the Cyborg Superman shot back. "My world was in danger because I was too lenient."
Supergirl landed, planting her feet firmly, "Doomsday was not your fault, and you stopped it. While it couldn't be reasoned with, Brainiac can be." Then pulling up Brainiac to her face, "You're done."
The alien warlord was about answer, when a mechanical hand reached out and snapped the being's neck. Supergirl looked up in horror as the Cyborg Superman looked sadly at her, and then flew off. He left her holding the now lifeless body of Brainiac, and feeling completely lost. This wasn't her Kal, this was a cold, almost emotionless machine.
"That is not my cousin," Supergirl quietly said as she laid the deceased Brainiac down.
Up in the ship, deep in the bowels of the mechanical abomination, things came to life. A deep wall opened and several drawers opened. From them came the misty whisps as the coolant mixed with the ambient temperature of the rest of the ship. Hissing and snaps produced a cacophony of noises, and on the nearby screens, alien script scrolled across them. "Consciousness transfer engaged, in progress. Completion in….."