A new chapter has appeared! And on New Year's Eve no less!
Man, this year was a wild one, wasn't it? A lot of bullshit going on in a barrage, but hey, we're here at the end, let's hope next year's gonna be better.
It sucks too, 'cause near the end of the year and Tom Kane—who's voiced Yoda, Yularen, and was the narrator in Star Wars the Clone Wars, Magneto in Wolverine and the X-Men, Professor Utonium in Powerpuff Girls, and Takeo in Call of Duty Zombies just suffered a massive stroke. Thankfully he's recovering, but it's still real bad, here's to hoping he gets better.
As said last time, this chapter's gonna be "The Return" followed by "Ultimatum", and I'm excited for the next one, 'cause I've got some ideas to implement.
In regard to A Sinister Past: I have a poll up on my account about whether or not to post the overhauled chapters in two parts or all at once. I'm almost done with the first batch of chapters, so after I finish that I'll wait three weeks, and whatever wins the poll will affect when they get posted. Go check it out please, so far there's a vote for each.
An on another note—let's say I'm hypothetically writing an Avengers fanfic and I might have trouble picking a love interest. The two possible love interests for this hypothetical story are Scarlet Witch and Spider Woman, with two votes to Scarlet Witch. What do you think? Leave a review if you have an opinion.
And speaking of reviews, let's reply to some!
God of the Challenge: I did not know that, thanks for the fact!
Ve and Tyler: Pretty sure this is the same person, so here you go!
JLU Fun Fact 6: Bruce Wayne is the only character to appear in all DCAU shows.
Well, that's all from me, on with the story!
The Return
Eric
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ERIC!"
I sigh and turn to Zatanna, wearing a strapless purple dress that stops just below her knees with black high-heels and some purple eyeshadow and ruby red lipstick, with a black purse at her side.
She looks up at me with a smile. "Surprise…"
"You promised we'd eat dinner," I dryly reply.
"You promised you'd be happy," she counters. She then holds my hands and leads me deeper into the club she managed to rent out for the night, meaning everyone here is a hero or can be trusted with our identities.
"I mean, my birthday's next week, why celebrate now?" I question.
"Because we're busy, baby. And today's pretty slow, never know when the chance will arise again," Zatanna explains.
"Yo! Happy birthday, man!" Todd Rice, Obsidian's real name, says as he walks up with his sister, Jade, and father, Alan Scott, the first Green Lantern. His sister happens to have jade green skin and dark green hair.
"Right, thanks, Todd," I reply. "Even though it's a week early," I say as I look at Zatanna pointedly. She just smirks and gives me a thumbs up.
"Gotta take the chance when you can, right?" Jade rhetorically asks.
Zatanna holds my right arm and leans into me, a knuckle subtly digging into my side. "What a perfect thing to say, Jade! Thanks for coming you three!"
"Thanks for inviting us," Alan replies with a smile. "Now if you don't mind, Ted's gonna sing, and I'm just waiting to see him rupture the eardrums of everyone watching," the three then go to Wildcat at a karaoke machine, a few Leaguers watching excitedly.
I sigh deeply and walk over to the bar, Zatanna still holding on to my arm. "You didn't have to do this, you know."
"I wanted to," Zatanna replies. "You've done so much and been through so much. You deserve this, Eric."
"I don't know about deserve," I whisper. "Like I said, I'd prefer a private dinner with just the two of us. Or at most, a small celebration with the Group and my family. This is too much."
Zatanna looks at me in understanding before shrugging. "Well, like I said, you deserve this. And you should know, I always go big for the people I love."
I let out a quick laugh. "That you do…"
An arm wearing a red blazer is thrown over my shoulder. "Well, if it isn't the early birthday boy!" I turn around to see Wally. "How've ya been dude? It feels like forever since we last talked!"
"Wally, we literally fought Captain Cold and Heatwave this morning," I reply.
Wally just rolls his eyes. "I'm a speedster, time moves different for me," he then sits down next to me. "So, what're you doing here? Shouldn't you be in the middle of the dancefloor? Today is your day, after all."
"He doesn't like his party," Zatanna says with a dramatic air. "Oh, how I've failed as a lover. However shall I recover?"
Zatanna and Wally laugh as I sigh and shake my head with a small smirk. "No one drains me more than you two."
"Please," Zatanna scoffs and rolls her eyes. "If anyone's a drain, it's you. Should've seen it, Wally, when we started practicing with his Anam, dude nearly put me in a coma."
I wince at that.
The day after the fight at the House of Mystery, Zatanna wanted to help me practice with my newfound powers. We started simple, mana absorption. Thanks to my time as guys like Chromastone and Feedback we thought it'd be something I could do no problem. That wasn't the case.
The mana absorption was out of control. Instead of taking a small amount to create a simple fireball, I absorbed a ton of Zee's mana, knocking her out for the entire day. I couldn't exactly go to Zatara, I'm still a little mad about him hiding this about me. So, I called Abuela, she stayed for the day and thankfully Zatanna woke up the next morning perfectly fine.
"I said I was sorry," I mutter.
Zatanna smiles gently and caresses my cheek. "You've got nothing to be sorry about, Eric."
I smile at her in thanks.
Suddenly, two heads—one with black hair and the other a redhead—appear on either side of me. The one to my left belongs to Patrick "Eel" O'Brien, the Plastic Man. And the redhead is Ralph Dibny, the Elongated Man. I follow their necks to see their bodies at the complete other end of the club.
"Well, if it isn't the birthday boy! How are ya, kid?" Eel asks.
"I'm good, Eel. You guys enjoying the party?" I ask.
Ralph nods. "This is great. Sue and I have been meaning to go to a party whenever the chance arrived. Thanks for inviting us."
"Thank Zee, I had no part in any of this," I reply.
I was always a little on edge regarding Ralph and Sue Dibny, not because I didn't trust them, but because of the Identity Crisis storyline. What happens to them is horrible, and what's worse is that Zatanna plays a big part of that story. So, I've made sure to keep an eye on them and Dr. Light. Thankfully, nothing's come to my radar yet, but as soon as there's a hint of it happening, I'll stop it.
"How is Sue?" Zatanna asks with a smile.
Ralph has a dopey smile on his face. "Perfect as always…"
Eel rolls his eyes behind his iconic goggles. "Hey, Ralph, this is Eric's party, not yours."
"It's fine," I say.
"Whatever. Well, I'm headed back to my body. See you later, birthday boy!" Eel's head then returns to his body, followed closely by Ralph's.
As we watch their heads return to their bodies, we notice Victor walking up to us, barely avoiding Eel's head on the way. Once he reaches us, he punches my shoulder. "Yo, yo, yo! One punch down, twenty-two to go!"
I rub my shoulder to soothe the pain. "Looking forward to it."
Victor chuckles. "You should. Come on, Dick and Kory are at a private booth, and you look like you need some time away from everyone."
Thank you, Victor.
The three of us get up and follow him to the others. I occasionally nod and thank the Leaguers or civilian crew that wish me a happy birthday.
We then arrive at the booth. Kory gets up and hugs me and kisses me on the cheek. "Happy early birthday, Eric!"
"Thanks, Kory," I then pull out of the hug for me and Dick to do our special handshake before we all sit down on the couch.
The outside's quiet, the thump of the music being the only thing we hear. Inside of here there's a couch along the back and sides of the room, a table in the center. A lot like the club we went to last year with John.
I rest my head on the couch as I close my eyes. I prefer this. Being in a private space with my friends, I don't have to worry about everyone's eyes on me. I'll admit, if this were the early birthday party, I'd be fine with it.
"What's he thinking about?" I hear Wally whisper.
"Kicking Vilgax's ass?" Victor theorizes.
"Beating Wally in a race?" Kory wonders.
"Hey!" Said speedster exclaims. "No one can beat me in a race! Even in their dreams!"
"Maybe he's thinking about being alone in a field," Dick says. Well, he's the closest.
"No. He's thinking that he'd prefer this as his celebration, instead of all the hassle I had to go through to rent this place out, give the employees the day off, and turn off the security footage so no one can trace it back to us," Zatanna says. Bullseye, for the beautiful magician.
"Zee's got it," I say as I open my eyes and sit forward.
"How ungrateful," Victor says with a smirk.
I just shrug.
"Hey, how's your Anam going?" Dick asks as he takes a drink.
To demonstrate, I touch Zatanna's shoulder. The familiar rush of absorbing mana flows through my body, but I quickly stop and hold my palm out. "Fireball."
Instead, a cube of ice appears from the black and purple magic circle.
I growl before dropping it in Victor's glass, nearly overflowing his drink. "That doesn't look like a fireball," he says.
I growl in annoyance. "Really? I hadn't noticed."
"His magic's weird. Sometimes it'll work perfectly. Other times, he'll get the completely opposite effect," Zatanna answers. "There's no pattern."
"Which is why I'm not learning healing spells or anything else like that," I add with a sigh.
"That would be bad," Kory agrees.
We then fall into a comfortable silence for a moment before Wally eventually breaks it, as always. "You know, there's been something that's always been bothering me," he begins. "So, the kids, they're the "Teen Titans", right?" At our nods he continues. "So, what's that make us?"
"I thought we were just "the Group"?" Zatanna asks.
"Well, yeah, but that's just so uninspired. We need something cool, something that we can use if we ever become a public team, you know?" Wally says.
"Well, what do you have in mind?" Victor asks.
At that, Wally grumbles and sinks into the seat. "That's a little harder to answer."
The others adopt thinking positions and really brainstorm ideas about what to call ourselves. Me, I have a name in mind already.
"What about "the Titans"?"
The others look at me curiously.
"I mean, we're the mentors to the Teen Titans, so it makes sense for us to be the Titans, right?" I explain.
They all share glances before Dick fills some glasses with champagne and handing them out to all of us and raising his. "Well, to the Titans!"
"To the Titans!" We all cheer before clinking our glasses together and drinking the champagne.
As we finish our glasses, another song comes on at the dancefloor, which leads to Zatanna, Kory, and Victor perking up in their seats. Zatanna then turns to me. "Eric?"
"I don't dance."
"Really now, Disco King?" She asks with a brow raised in amusement.
I growl as Dick, Victor, and Wally chuckle.
Zatanna then holds my hands. "Please, Eric? Just this one dance? Then you can go off and brood all you want," she says with puppy dog eyes.
God, I'm weak.
I sigh before standing up, still holding her hands. "You owe me for this."
"Yay!" Zatanna wraps her arms around my neck. "I love you, Eric!"
I just shake my head with a small, barely noticeable smirk.
I may as well enjoy today.
Never know if I'll get the chance next year…
"So then John says, "Boom. You lookin' for this"?" Dad mocks at a table telling stories of his time with John in the military. John, Mari McCabe (Vixen), Clark, Gregory Sanders (Vigilante), Mom, and myself.
John groans and slowly puts his head in his hands, looking like he's slowly regretting this. "Of all the stories, Mercer…"
Mari leans closer to John, snaking an arm around his shoulders and looks at Dad with a smirk. "Don't stop there, Mr. Mercer. Tell us more about John's "embarrassing" military career," right, after weeks of getting after him, John finally relented and now he and Mari have started dating.
Dad thinks for a moment before smiling widely. "Well, there was this one time in Germany (where Eric was born, by the way), when John had this bet about who's the best sharpshooter by throwing cans in the air that they'd shoot. But there was one can-"
"Cake's here," Clark interrupts.
We all look to see that the cake is indeed here.
And goddammit, Zatanna.
It's a massive cake with orange frosting and white borders on it. It's three layers tall, and each layer has candles in the shape of my aliens. And not just any aliens, but my first twenty-three. From Heatblast to Feedback.
Zatanna walks up to me with a smile and takes my hand, leading me through the crowd standing around the cake. "Thgil eht seldnac," the heads of each figure flickers with a small flame. "Okay, three…two…one!"
Everyone begins to sing happy birthday, and as one normally does, I stand around awkwardly. Eventually the singing ends and I lean into Zatanna's ear. "Uh… how am I supposed to blow all the candles out?"
Zatanna smiles. "Eno wolb morf cirE sekat meht lla tuo."
I nod and take a deep breath, I then blow out the Pinball candle, which leads to them all simultaneously going out. Everyone applauds as Zatanna chants another spell, the cake cuts itself into multiple pieces and plates and utensils then fly out, perfectly matching the number of guests here.
Everyone then spreads out into their groups. The group listening to Dad's stories returns to their spot. I go to join them, but Zatanna stops me and pulls me into a deep, passionate kiss. After a few moments, she pulls back and looks me deeply in the eyes. "I'm sorry, Eric."
I smirk. "Don't be. I've come to enjoy this. Besides…" I look at Ralph and Sue, the two laugh after Sue puts some frosting on Ralph's nose, he then does his signature nose wiggle. "You gave a lot of us some much-needed rest. Thank you, Zatanna. I love you."
She smiles and kisses me again before leading us over to Dad's group.
I sit down across from John and notice the slightly tired look behind the mirth as Dad tells an embarrassing story about my short two years in Germany. "Hey, John," I interrupt Dad. "You're looking a little tired. You good, man?"
The others look at him as his eyes widen in surprise before he nods in understanding. "Right, enhanced senses," he sighs and puts his cake down on the table. "Well, when you're one of the six leaders of the biggest superhero team, in charge of the training for younger heroes, and dating an insane woman it tends to get to you."
"I understand those last two perfectly," I mutter.
As expected, Zatanna elbows me in the side. "Jerk!"
I let out a quick chuckle.
"Eric Francisco Mercer…" Mom warns.
I groan as Greg, John, Mari, Clark and Zatanna laugh.
"Francisco!" Zatanna stops to laugh and leans into me. "I forgot that was your middle name!"
"Thanks, Mom," I whisper.
Mom smiles and reaches over to pat my hand. "Of course," she then turns to John. "If you're stressed why not take a quick vacation? I mean, aren't there, like, three other space Green Lanterns?"
"Yeah. There's Guy, but that's just inviting disaster. Hal's focusing more on Sector 2814 as a whole. And Kyle's on Oa right now," John says.
"He's been there for a while now, hasn't he? What for?" I ask.
"Downtime," John answers.
"Well, why don't you call? Kyle has to have recovered by now. And besides, Victor's more than capable to cover your spot on the meeting table until you come back," I suggest.
A few months ago, the rank of seconds-in-command for the Founding Six had expanded. Victor is John's, Zatanna is Diana's, and in a surprise turn, Bruce chose Oliver as his. J'onn and Wally are the only ones who have yet to make a choice.
"There we have it. Now you can't not take a break," Dad says.
John thinks it over before nodding. "You know what? Why not? I'll call when I can, but we're not here for that, we're here to hear embarrassing stories of the birthday boy."
Dad chuckles before resuming his story, Mom would occasionally chime in.
I groan and rest my head in my hands.
Please let this be over with.
Watchtower
It's been a few days since my early birthday party, and right now J'onn, John, Zatanna, and I are in the monitoring station on the bridge. John's currently trying to get a reassignment to Oa, but the Guardian he's talking to isn't letting that happen.
"Come on, you could send Rayner over in my stead. He'd be a fine replacement while I'm off-world," John argues.
The Guardian of the Universe currently taking the call shakes his head. "I'm sorry, but we are not at the leisure of allowing you on Oa at the moment. There are more pressing matters at hand."
"What kind of pressing matters are we talking about here?" John asks, cocking an eyebrow curiously.
"There's an object approaching Oa at a somewhat astonishing speed," the Guardian explains.
"We'll take care of it," Kyle says confidently before he and a large group of Green Lanterns go to take care of whatever's approaching Oa.
I tighten my right hand around my left arm as I narrow my eyes. There's something off. My mind's doing that thing again.
"You okay?" Zatanna asks, concerned.
"…yes," I answer.
Zatanna looks at me with a furrowed brow before pulling me to the side.
Once away from the monitoring station, she looks deeply into my eyes. "You're lying."
"…yes."
"What's up?" She asks, folding her arms.
"I don't know, something seems off," I answer. "I mean, who'd move that fast at Oa? The home of the Green Lanterns and one of the most fortified planets out there? Whatever's doing this is either powerful, or suicidal."
Zatanna hums. "Yeah, now I see why you're concerned. Remember the last time we were on Oa?"
I scoff. "You mean after Aggregor nearly killed us? How could I forget?"
Zatanna opens her mouth to reply but John's voice interrupts her.
"Oa. It's gone…" I hear him whisper in shock.
My head shoots up and I look in the direction of the monitoring station, catching Zatanna's attention. "What? What's wrong?"
"It was the former," I say.
Her eyes widen and the two of us run back to look at the video call. Instead of seeing the center of the universe, we see space in its entirety. Oa is gone.
"It gets worse," J'onn says.
Zatanna looks at him in shock. "Worse!? How much worse, J'onn?"
J'onn brings up a star chart, showing the trajectory of whatever destroyed Oa, now on its way to Earth. "The android is headed to Earth," he concludes.
"What android?" Zatanna asks.
"Professor Ivo's android, Amazo," J'onn explains, bringing up the file on the android.
"Ah crap," Zee and I whisper.
Stories of the League's past missions have been thrown around when the chance arises, and the one of Amazo is very well known. Thanks to Amazo's ability of copying powers there have been betting pools of who'd win in a fight between me and it. I really don't wanna find out, but it looks like today's the day.
I recover quickly and activate the communication station, calling through the entire Watchtower and the annexes. "Attention all Justice League members and associates. There is an Omega-Level threat on its way to Earth. All members are to report to the Watchtower immediately and report for assignment. This is not a drill."
I turn around to see J'onn giving me a grim nod. Zatanna has a small, proud smile and gives me a thumbs up. John just gets ready. His ring flashes green as he glares at the star chart.
"Let's get to work."
In a little over half-an-hour, all the heroes are currently on the bridge, a feeling of fear and dread can be felt in the crowd, but determination as well. The Founding Six and the lieutenants are currently on the monitoring station as J'onn beings the planning.
"We'll set up three layers of defense," he says, bringing up a holographic diagram of the planet and the Watchtower. "One on the ground, one in the upper atmosphere, and one in space."
"That last one is me," Green Lantern says with a grim frown. "I wanna hammer that thing before it gets anywhere near here."
"Move out!" J'onn orders.
Various Leaguers break off to join their teams. Batman leads mostly non-powered heroes towards the Javelin bay so they can assist in space.
Zatanna puts a hand on my shoulder and turns me around. "I'm on the space team."
"Ground," I reply before deactivating my mask. "Be careful, okay? This android took out Oa in one hit."
"I know, I won't stretch myself out," she then looks down and takes a deep breath before looking at me again. "Dad's on the ground team as well. Can you…?"
I nod. "Of course. Be careful."
Zatanna smiles and kisses my cheek before backing up to join the space team. "Right back at you, Mr. Mercer."
Zatanna goes off to join the space team. I then feel a hand on my shoulder and turn to see Diana standing next to me with a smile on her face. "She'll be fine, Eric, Zatanna's strong."
"Yeah, she is," I agree. I then notice Clark looking concerned, as if he's thinking about something. "What's up, Clark?"
"When the android left Earth, he said he'd evolved to a level where none of us could offer anything," he says before looking at me and Diana. "So, why's he coming back?"
"Maybe he's got unfinished business?" I guess. "I mean, why else would he come back?"
J'onn's head shoots up. "Supergirl!" She flies up to us, looking at J'onn curiously. "You and Triumph have another assignment."
Luthor Mansion, Metropolis
"There he is," Supergirl says as we both see Luthor being interviewed by a number of reporters.
"How people can look over his past actions, I'll never know," I reply in my Kryptonian form, Er-Mer.
Like my Ikathan and Tamaranean forms, I look a lot like myself, though my muscles are even more defined. My hair stays black and my pupils shift to orange. My boots are black with orange soles and an orange line at the top of the boots, the pants are entirely black, and I have a white belt. The top half of my suit is also black, with a black Kryptonian crest, the white symbol also looks like a stylized Omnitrix crest and the sleeves stop just short of my wrists. The Omnitrix crest is in the center of my belt.
"Your new book, Into the Light, certainly projects the image of a man who's reformed," a reporter says. "But many people are skeptical, Mr. Luthor. For good reason."
"I understand the skepticism," says baldy. "But the fact is that I'm not the man I was before."
Supergirl scoffs. "Sure."
We can see Luthor open his shirt, revealing a green vest with a red hexagon on the front.
"This device might stop my kryptonite-induced cancer for another thirty years," he has a rueful smile. "Or it might be thirty days; for all I know, it could be another thirty minutes. However fate plays her hand, I want my remaining time to have meaning; I want to have a positive difference in the world."
"I call bull," I mutter. Supergirl laughs in response.
"So, you're a new man?" The reporter asks, not exactly believing. "No grudges or vendettas? Even against the Justice League?"
Luthor laughs as they walk outside. "Oh, far from it; I owe them everything."
Right, the Justice Lords, that was all over the news for months.
"They trusted me when no one else would," he continues. "I'd like to think that we might be friends one- what the devil?"
They all look up to see Supergirl and I flying in. Supergirl swoops down and grabs him under his arms and flies off with me following closely behind.
We fly to the main city of Metropolis. Luthor continues to struggle in Supergirl's arms.
"Let go!" He orders.
"Keep fighting me, Lex, and I just might," she threatens.
Luthor looks down at the ground, hundreds of feet below and stops fighting. Looks like he is smart. When he isn't fighting super powerful aliens, that is.
"What is this about?" He demands.
"There's an old friend of yours coming back to town," Supergirl replies.
"Ivo's android. Amazo," I clarify.
Luthor's eyes widen in as he remembers whatever happened between him and the android. And whatever happened had to be bad, I wouldn't put Luthor as the type to be scared of anyone.
"Wherever you're taking me won't be safe enough," Luthor says after calming down. "But I know just the place."
The two of us look at each other confused.
May as well.
The three of us land just outside of your regular barber shop, not a place you'd see Luthor at for two reasons, one, he's a millionaire, two, he's bald.
"This is your safehouse?" Supergirl asks disbelievingly.
"It's perfect," I say with a vicious smirk. "After all, who'd think to find Luthor here?"
Luthor glares at me. I just smirk wider in response. He then marches inside, the two of us follow after fist bumping. Luthor sits down in a chair made ready for him. He then sits down and gets comfortable.
"Really? You've got an android who just destroyed an entire planet on your ass, and you're taking time to trim your nose-hairs and get your eyebrows done?" I ask in disbelief. "What's next? Chest-hair waxing? Actually, how would you do that what with the anti-cancer vest on your chest?"
Luthor glares at me from the mirror before smirking. "Just watch," the barber pushes a button. A metal, egg-shaped shell surrounds Lex and a hole in the floor opens up beneath him, the egg then travels down it.
"Hey!" Supergirl shouts before flying down after him, I go down after.
Down the tunnel below the barber shop, Luthor's pods travels, every twenty-feet thick, steel walls close, but for two Kryptonians they don't matter. Supergirl, flying ahead, punches through them, and the laser cannons that appear later down the line I destroy with heat vision.
After running through a few walls, we reach a problem.
Five branching paths. We've lost Luthor.
I look around with x-ray vision. "Dammit. Lead-lined."
"Well, eeny, meeny, miny, mo?" Supergirl suggests.
"We go together. Luthor's fought Kryptonians for years, separating would be stupid," I say.
Supergirl nods before rocketing into the center tunnel.
I follow after her but the two of us don't fly far; the tunnel has chunks of kryptonite embedded into the walls. Oh, that's what it feels like. Supergirl and I fall over as the radiation seeps into our systems, taking us both out quickly.
I slowly sit down and shakily reach for the Omnitrix crest. I slam the dial down and transform into my Segmentasapien form, Legorilla.
I look like a gorilla made out of Lego blocks. My block colors consist of orange, green, and blue. My eyes are orange and I have black lines going across my body separating the blocks. The Omnitrix crest is in the center of my chest.
I move over to Supergirl and quickly become a spherical shape around her, blocking out the kryptonite radiation. I shift my head inside the sphere. "Man, kryptonite radiation isn't fun."
Supergirl moans in pain and rubs her head. "No, it isn't. Thanks."
"You're welcome," I shift to look like a car and begin to drive out of the tunnel. "Come on, let's let Luthor win this one; we've got an android's ass to kick."
Outer Edge of Earth's Atmosphere
Zatanna
I hate this. The waiting.
Right now, I'm in a Javelin with Batman, Wildcat, and Vixen.
For the longest time everything's been silent as we wait for the android to arrive. Batman's been silent almost the entire time, occasionally checking in with other Javelins and the heroes in space. Wildcat's on the guns, his fingers occasionally twitching as he waits for the android to appear on radar. Vixen fidgets in her seat, so I decide to talk to her.
"Hey. Nervous?" I ask.
"Of course I am, Zee," she replies. "I mean, this thing took on the Justice League before the expansion, and it hasn't been seen in years, who knows how many powers it's gained since then."
"Yeah, I know what you mean. Seeing something gain more and more powers that quickly can be scary," I reply.
"I guess you of all people would understand that," Vixen whispers.
Huh? "What's that mean?"
"Just that you're dating Triumph, and that guy gets new forms every other week. And now he can use magic?" Vixen clarifies. "He should be up here instead of on the ground team."
"Most of Triumph's more powerful forms can't survive in the vacuum of space, or they can't fly. That and he's our last line of defense," Batman says.
"Just the kid? Isn't that putting too much on him, Bats?" Wildcat wonders.
"Triumph's been a hero since he was ten, far longer than most of the League. He's incredibly skilled at combat and he's a master tactician. The ground team is the best place to put him," Batman explains.
Wow had no idea Bruce thought that highly of him. I'll be sure to tell Eric when this is over.
"You cannot keep me from my goal."
The four of us look at each other confused. Where the hell did that come from?
"Telepathy," Superman says through the comms.
"I'm not impressed," Green Lantern replies.
"Why have you come back?" Superman demands.
"Why do you ask questions that you already know the answer to?"
"Luthor…" Superman says. He's the reason Amazo's here!? Great, why am I not surprised?
A bright, golden light appears in the distance, it's far, but closing in fast. The Javelin's all power up, Wildcat looks ready to fire all the weapons on this jet.
"Of course."
"We're not going to give him up," Superman states.
"He's your enemy; you owe him nothing."
Amazo finally appears on the radar, and the screens show the blank-faced, golden android coming right at us. He doesn't look to be slowing down one bit.
"Turn back now," we can hear Superman's heat vision charge up for emphasis.
"I have evolved far beyond what I was when we last met. You do not want to challenge me."
"Light 'im up!" Green Lantern then lets out a roar, followed by a massive, emerald beam. Superman fires his heat vision, Orion shoots from his hovercraft thing, Captain Atom shoots radioactive energy, STRIPE shoots everything at Amazo, and the Javelins join in on the fun. Wildcat even laughs.
For a second it looks like it works, and then Amazo flies through the barrage. The android then glows with a blinding golden light before it explodes outwards.
The Javelin is knocked off course and alarms begin to blare left, right, and center. I hit my head particularly hard on the back of the seat.
The edge of my vision begins to swim with darkness as we watch the android head towards Earth, our defense doing nothing to stop him.
You'd better kick his ass, Eric.
Everything then goes black.
Above Metropolis
"Be prepared," J'onn's voice says in the comms. "The space team has failed. He's coming."
"Not for long," Supergirl declares. While she looks determined on the outside, deep down, she's terrified. After all, Amazo was able to tear through not only all the Javelins and space capable heroes, but he also got past her cousin, severely shaking her belief in her own skill.
A metallic hand is put on her shoulder. The Last Daughter of Argo looks over to see Cyborg flying next to her, two metallic wings jutting out of his back. "Hey, we've got this," he assures her.
Supergirl nods before looking back at the rest of their team, Fire, Steel, Red Tornado, and Rocket Red.
Cyborg suddenly looks up to the sky. "Incoming," his right becomes a cannon as a rocket launcher appears on his left shoulder.
Supergirl nods with grim determination before flying ahead, intending to take the android down before any of her allies can get hurt. During her flight she falters at the memory of Superman doing nothing against Amazo, but she quickly corrects herself and collides with the android.
Instead of her intended effect, the android punches her away towards Metropolis' warehouse district. The Girl of Steel tries to get up but falls unconscious.
"Ah, hell," Cyborg mutters.
Rocket Red is the first to act by firing missiles and shooting at Amazo from the minigun attached to his shoulders. Amazo just shrugs off each attack and slowly approaches, so Rocket Red flies back to keep his distance. Amazo then catches up with the Russian superhero and tears the gun off his shoulder before punching him back a fair distance.
Emerald flames then wash over the android. Amazo looks up to see that Fire is now attacking him, her entire body is green, with flames covering parts of her body. The android quickly approaches her and grasps her throat, slowly chocking her out. Just before she passes out, she hears Amazo's voice in her head.
"Your bravery is admirable, but annoying."
Amazo then let's go of her, Rocket Red quickly flies after Fire to catch her. The reaming three attack together.
Steel flies in and swings his hammer, but Amazo raises a forearm to block it before backhanding Steel away, knocking him out of the fight almost instantly. The android is then hit in the chest by a tornado. Amazo is then surrounded by an even larger cyclone, but not for long.
A golden beam cuts through the cyclone and cuts Red Tornado in half, leaving Cyborg as the last hero standing.
The android and cyborg stare each other down as they both float in the air.
"You are different from the others. Your potential is amazing."
Cyborg blinks in surprise before aiming his cannon at Amazo. "Well…thanks. But I'm gonna have to ask you to leave. While we don't exactly like Luthor, we can't just let you kill him."
"Why is that? Luthor is your enemy, why do you defend him?"
"Because it's what a hero does," Cyborg replies. "Now, you gonna stand down or not?"
Amazo looks down at the defeated heroes for a moment before looking up in the direction of the defeated space team. The android then looks back at Cyborg and aims a palm at him.
"No."
Cyborg isn't sure what happened, but all he knows is that the android is powerful.
The data from his cybernetic eye cuts to black as he hits the street below.
Amazo's descent continues.
Eric
I flex my hand and dart my eyes around as we wait for anything regarding Amazo. Granted, I already know the other teams have failed, but they're still alive, Amazo wouldn't kill them, that's not what happened in the show.
Then again, Jon Kent and Damian Wayne didn't exist in the show, did they?
I shake my head to clear my thoughts. I look around at the ground team. Ice, Vigilante, Shining Knight, Atom Smasher, Zatara, and Flash, all led by Wonder Woman.
Our communicators crackle to life, which can only mean one thing. "The second line of defense is down?" Wonder Woman asks.
"Yes," J'onn replies. "You are all that is left. Good luck."
Flash stands next to me. "If they're down then that means Vic and Zee are-"
"Fine," I interrupt. "They're fine. It'll take more than a superpowered android to kill them," I dial through the Omnitrix and become Feedback.
All right, let's do this.
Watchtower
As he watches Amazo's progress, J'onn frowns. All the Javelins had been called in due to the damage they had sustained, and heroes from the space and upper atmosphere team are currently being taken care of in the med bay. Though this now taxes the medical staff, as they never thought there would ever be a time when most of the League would need medical assistance at once.
Thankfully, some heroes were less injured than others, Batman, Vixen, Wildcat, and Zatanna for example. The four just need some checkups and a few minutes rest and they should be ready to assist again.
As he thinks up new plans, J'onn feels a presence behind him and turns to face it. "Have you come to offer help?"
Dr. Fate steps forward. "Not help. Hope."
Metropolis
Amazo lands in front of us standing in front of Luthor's barbershop. Even though what passes as a face is entirely blank, I can feel Amazo's frustration and boredom from here.
"When will you learn?"
The android lifts a hand, shooting out a wave of energy that knocks out everyone else. Thanks to my reflexes I'm able to absorb the energy. Amazo looks at me and tilts his head.
"You are the only one to have survived an attack of mine."
"Yeah, it's pretty hard to take me down," I boast. I then take a deep breath and look at him seriously, my hands raised to show I mean no harm. "Hey, can we talk?"
The android stares at me for what feels like forever.
"Very well."
We're then teleported away.
Upper Atmosphere
Superman, Green Lantern, and the few other heroes able to move are currently in space, assessing the damage done to the Javelins and are collecting the debris. Never know when a villain could take the pieces and use them to their own advantage.
As they clean, Superman notices a green light in the distance, which is also getting closer to them. Green Lantern notices this as well. His eyes widen in surprise as the light gets closer, revealing itself to be about a dozen Green Lanterns, Kilowog, Katma Tui, and others. Kyle is leading the group.
"You're alive!" Green Lantern says hopefully as the group comes to a stop.
Kyle, on the other hand, has a somber frown. "Which is more than I can say for Oa."
John's hopeful face becomes serious again. "What's the plan?"
"We're gonna use every bit of power we have left in our rings. We'll take one last shot at the android," Kyle says seriously, shocking John.
"A blast like that could destroy half the planet!"
Kyle looks down at Earth and sighs before turning to John with a frown. "Half a planet is better than none."
Watchtower
J'onn and Fate had heard the entire conversation. The Martian sits back in his chair with a sigh. "It's the only way."
"Those words are always used to justify destruction," Dr. Fate says snidely.
J'onn turns to face him with his ever-present serious look. "We can only guess how much power the android has amassed as it's made its way across the galaxy. I don't believe even Triumph could stop it with all of his forms! It has to be stopped, Fate! Here and now. Not just for the sake of this world, but for all worlds."
Dr. Fate looks at the Martian before folding his arms and floating in the air, looking down in disappointment. "There is more to Triumph then you would know…" His head shoots up in shock, catching J'onn's attention.
"Doctor? What is it?" J'onn asks in concern.
"The android has left the planet's surface. It's gone," Dr. Fate answers.
J'onn furrows his brow. "Gone? Gone where?"
Unknown Location
I look around at the strange planet we're on. The stars in the sky are unrecognizable, so I haven't been to this part of the…
Whoa.
I turn around to see an endless expanse of stars, moons, and galaxies in the sky, going as far as the eye can see.
It's…beautiful.
"Where are we?" I whisper in awe.
"An uninhabited world. I often come here to think. I rather like the peace and quiet. You wished to speak privately, so talk."
I shake my head to take my focus off the sky and look at the android. "Right. Why do you hate Luthor?"
"He used me, tricked me into stealing for him, and attacking people for him. For that, he will die."
"Yeah, okay, I can see why you'd wanna do that," I admit. "But seriously? Revenge? Look at you, man! Look at your power! You travelled the galaxy in the span of an hour, ran through the Justice League, destroyed Oa, all for revenge against a single human?"
Amazo just stares at me. Those eyes are really unnerving. Wait, did he hear that?
"He has done much harm to Earth, all for his own personal gain. He must be stopped."
"There are countless people who do that, you gonna kill them too?" I ask.
Amazo shakes his head.
"No. Luthor is my target. He must die."
New tactic.
"Okay, you kill Luthor. Hooray, one less asshole billionaire to worry about, the Superfamily doesn't have to deal with him anymore. What's next for you?" I ask.
"Elaborate."
"What happens after you kill Luthor? Are you gonna travel the galaxy and be some sort of anti-hero? Or are you just gonna sit here until the end of time? When more people just like Luthor—and some worse—come along," I elaborate.
Amazo stays silent, but this silence seems different, as if he's contemplating something. Eventually, he looks up at me.
"I had not thought about that. I have a few questions."
"I have few answers."
Amazo studies me, again making me feel uncomfortable. Just as I go to speak, he telepathically relays his first question.
"You are not from here, are you?"
I blink in confusion. "Wh-what?"
"I must elaborate. There is something…off about your vibrational frequency. It is in line with this universe, but occasionally there are shifts, you become out of line with reality. Why is that?"
Holy shit, he knows I'm not from here!?
"I- holy crap. I-I don't know how to respond," I whisper.
"I see. Now, my other question."
I shake my head and focus on him. "Yeah?"
"What would you have me do?"
Oh. Oh, I did not expect that. Granted it is an easier question than the first one.
I look up at the sky again and mull over his question. The hell am I supposed to say? I've never had someone give me this much control over their existence. Oh man, this is so difficult.
As I despair, I remember Cyborg's words to the android. I look up at Amazo. "I'd have you do whatever you want," Amazo tilts his head in confusion. "But you wanna know what I hope you'll do?"
Amazo looks at me, almost like he's waiting for the answer.
"What?"
"Be a hero."
Watchtower
Zatanna
Batman, Wildcat, and I are now entering the bridge. The three of us arrive just as the surviving Green Lanterns and John head down to Earth.
"What's going on?" Batman asks as we arrive at the monitoring station with J'onn and Dr. Fate.
"The Green Lanterns attempt one final effort against Ivo's android," Dr. Fate answers. "They intend to hit it with everything they have left within their rings," he turns to look at us. "Destroying half the planet in the process."
Wildcat and I step back in shock as Batman's eyes widen in surprise. "And this is on the table why?" He demands.
"Because there is nothing else that has any chance of working, Batman," J'onn replies with a deep sigh. "All teams have been defeated. This is our last bet."
"The Justice League doesn't sacrifice the people we defend to win, J'onn!" Batman growls.
Before the argument can continue, the communicator activates, showing Green Lantern's pissed off face. "Watchtower, this is John."
Manhunter turns around to reply. "This is Watchtower."
"The android's gone," Green Lantern says, surprising the three of us again. Though Dr. Fate and J'onn don't seem surprised. "Triumph's gone as well."
My heart skips a beat.
"Ekat su ot siloporteM!" I shout.
Eric, where are you?
Metropolis
Me, Batman, Wildcat, and Dr. Fate arrive just in front of a barbershop as the ground team recovers with the help of some Green Lanterns. I look around frantically to realize that Green Lantern's right, Eric and Amazo are nowhere to be found.
I notice Dad and Flash seem to be the most recovered, so I march up to them. "Where's Eric?"
They both look at me with wide eyes. Flash opens his mouth and closes it before sheepishly rubbing the back of his head. "The, um, android kind of, uh…" he trails off and says the rest quickly says the rest.
I narrow my eyes and glare harder. "The android what, Wally?"
"It, uh, kinda…took…him?" Flash says, his voice getting higher pitched at the end.
I blink in surprise and just stare at the two for a moment. My glare then returns tenfold and I stomp my foot down, forcing the two to step back in surprise. "YOU LET THIS HAPPEN!?"
"Eric was right, she can get angry," I hear one of the Green Lanterns say.
I turn to glare at him, realizing it's Kyle, Eric's best friend. I've only seen him a few times during their video calls. He raises his hands in surrender and backs off.
"There is nothing to be worried about," Dr. Fate announces. "Eric is not in any danger."
"Oh, I'd love to see you be this calm if Inza were in his place," I retort.
He just looks at me blankly before turning to the Green Lanterns, John in particular. "Eric Mercer is saving the world."
A white flash of light blinds us. Once it clears, we see Amazo and Eric standing in the middle of the crowd.
"Eric!" I call out before running over and hugging him tightly. When his arms wrap around my waist, I feel safer. "Are you okay? The android didn't hurt you, did he?"
He shakes his head. "No, Zee, I'm fine. In fact, Amazo helped me."
"Triumph! Zatanna! Move!"
We look over to see the Green Lanterns surrounding us and the android. John's right in front of us, me and Eric being the only ones between him and it. I try to move, but Eric stops me.
"John, hold up. It's over," he insists.
Dr. Fate floats next to us. "He is correct. The android has proven benign before, and that is very much the case now."
"Benign!? You call destroying Oa benign!?" John snarls.
Even with his mask and goggles, I notice Eric flinch, the sign of a mental facepalm.
"I did not destroy Oa. I moved it out of the way."
The Lanterns all lower their rings as we all stare at Amazo in confusion.
"It was in my way."
"Well…could you move it back then?" John asks. It's clear to hear in his voice that he's trying to keep calm, hopefully the android's right about this.
Amazo's eyes glow for a minute before he looks at John.
"Done."
Amazo then looks down at Eric.
"Your friends have done nothing to warrant the harm I brought them. I will rectify my mistake."
Amazo's eyes glow again, and soon I feel the crick in my neck disappear entirely. Looking around, I notice the ground team is also fully recovered. Damn, how powerful is this thing?
Amazo then looks at me, catching me by surprise.
"This is your…mate?"
"Uh…yeah. Granted the term lover or girlfriend is preferred," Eric replies. He then steps aside, ignoring my quiet protests, and introduces me to the android. "Zatanna, Amazo. Amazo, Zatanna."
The android stares at me with its blank red eyes, making me feel uncomfortable before it slowly reaches out with a hand extended. I slowly reach out and shake its hand.
"Pleasure to meet you."
"…same," I reply in a small voice.
Amazo then nods and turns to Eric again.
"With that being done, I shall take my leave. It is time to find my purpose."
"Right. And hey, if you ever need someone to talk to, I'm here," Eric says, surprising me. He never was the type to extend friendship but look at him growing. I look up at him with a proud smile.
"I thank you."
The android then goes to leave, but Dr. Fate places a hand on its shoulder. "I can help in your search for meaning."
"Help me? Why?"
"Because, like Triumph, I am a member of the Justice League. And it is our duty to help lost souls like you to find peace," Dr. Fate answers. "And considering how abstract your problem is, it seems best for someone who deals with the abstract to assist you. What do you say?"
Amazo is silent for a moment before looking at the Doctor.
"I accept your offer."
Dr. Fate nods, the two then disappear with an ankh portal.
Everything is silent for a moment. Kyle then breaks that silence by standing on Eric's other side and clapping his shoulder. "And that's why I miss Earth. When you're in space you tend to get bored of alien terrorists and murder mysteries on newly founded colonies, you know?"
Eric chuckles and shakes his head. "Take John's place for a bit, you'll learn to hate it here," he then steps aside for me and Kyle to stand across from each other. "Best friend, Kyle, girlfriend, Zatanna. Girlfriend, Zatanna, best friend Kyle."
Kyle seems to pale a little before shaking my hand. "Nice to officially meet you, Eric's told me a lot about you. And sorry about earlier."
I shrug. "Eh, it's nothing. And yeah, Eric's told me a lot about you, too," I then lean in for a stage whisper. "You know, he's constantly said that with you here, our Green Lantern output'll increase."
John hears this (as I'd hoped) and folds his arms before glaring at Eric. "Uh-huh…"
"Whoa! Whoa! She's lying!" He tries to wave off.
John continues to glare at him before smirking. "Sure. Thanks for that, Eric. If you hadn't done what you did, I'm not sure what could've happened."
Eric shrugs. "It was a flip of the coin, really. I half expected Amazo to just wipe me from existence."
I look up at him with a glare. "What?"
Out of the corner of my eye I notice John's eyes widen before he flies away. Kyle backs up slowly. "Yeah, I'm gonna. Yeah…" He then flies away.
"You-you," I take a deep breath to calm down. "You took a gamble and risked your life?"
"Well, to be fair, I was confident it'd work," He tries to explain.
"You literally just said you half expected him to wipe you from existence!" I shout. I notice the other Leaguers slowly back up and teleport away one-by-one. Dad looks like he wants to stay, but teleports away regardless.
His mask goes away to let me see his ocean blue eyes dart away. "Right, I'll admit, I made a mistake!"
"A mistake is forgetting to zip up your fly when you're getting out of the bathroom! This is faaar from a mistake, Mercer!" I continue shouting. "Do you even care about your own life!"
"Of course I do! But if sacrificing myself means you, Esme, my parents, family, and friends will survive, then I'll do anything, Zee!" He shouts back.
I take a deep breath and slowly reach up to caress his cheek. "Your need to be the hero is going to get you killed, Eric."
He shrugs. "Was already killed once, that didn't last."
My blood runs cold and I feel my heart clench. "No, it didn't," I whisper.
I whisper a spell that takes us to the roof of the Daily Planet, giving us some privacy. The two of us sit down at the edge as we watch the clouds roll by. It's crazy how calm the day can get so soon after an Omega-Level threat.
Eric sighs. "What's my punishment?"
I smirk and look up at him. "I was invited to a party that's happening in a few days. I need a new dress. You'll pay fully for it."
He arches a brow. "That's it? Doesn't sound too- wait, there's more."
"You're coming with me to the party. And you're socializing," at his groan, I smirk. "And the next ten dates are on you. And you're going to make five new friends in the League."
"Okay, Mom," he quips. Eric then gets up and helps me up. "Take us home? There's something I gotta do."
I take his hands and smile. "Ekat su ot cirE's emoh."
Seattle
Eric
We arrive at my place, and almost immediately I head over to the garage. I pause for a moment at the lack of car, but I continue onwards to my target.
"What do you have to do?" Zee asks as she follows me.
I pull out a box from a secret compartment in the wall. It's about the size of a large suitcase. I put it down on the table and open it, revealing a silver and black robot, about three feet tall. Its eyes are currently black as a sign that it's currently off. There are black lines along its body. I take the robot out of the box and sit it down on the table.
Zatanna hums as she looks it over. "Kinda reminds me of… What was his name? Clunk?"
"Clank," I answer as I pull out the mechanical ball from my utility belt given to me by Amazo and put it on the table. I dial through the Omnitrix. I find the target form and slam it down, becoming my Planchaküle form, Manic Mechanic.
I become a small, goblin-like alien, smaller than even my robot, Silver Bolt. My skin becomes a red-orange shade. I have a long, pointed nose and two elf-like ears. My eyes are orange with black pupils, and I have a tail that ends in a spade shape. I wear black boots, black jeans, and a white t-shirt with a blue and red lightning bolt going from the left shoulder to the right waist. Ziggy Stardust, baby! I have two bands on each of my forearms, the Omnitrix crest is on the first left one.
I look up at the robot and giggle manically, feeling the urge to break it apart and put it together in another form. But I stop myself. I can't just put Silver Bolt apart; I need to put the T-Cog in him!
I scurry up the table and open up Silver Bolt's back.
Zatanna looks over my shoulder as I laugh and stick my upper half inside of Silver Bolt's back. "What're you doing?" She asks.
"Big plan! Big plan!" I reach my hand out. "T-Cog, please!"
I feel her put it in my hand. I laugh again and put it in. "And the red wire's connected to the, red wire! And the blue wire's connected to the, blue wire~!" I sing.
Eventually it's all done, and it. Looks. Beautiful. I feel a tear in my eye, so I wipe it away. "Oh, this is amazing!" I cry.
Zatanna looks at me in surprise. "I forget how badly your aliens affect your personality. Now I wanna see Rage again, I like that cat."
I hop out of Silver Bolt, close his back, and hop onto the garage floor. I then slap the crest and transform into Upgrade. I then fuse with Silver Bolt and download the proper systems into him.
IFF Reader. Check.
Self-Care. Check.
Weapons System. Check.
Transformation System. Check.
Galvanic Mechamorph Symbiote. Check.
Everything Else. Check.
I activate Silver Bolt and quickly un-fuse with him and transform back to normal. I then stand next to Zatanna as we both watch him wake up, her with an air of curiosity and me with excitement.
The lines along Silver Bolt's body flicker before becoming orange solidly.
He's about three-feet-tall, a little under half my height, with mainly silver plating, though from his knees down and his forearms are black. His body shape is extremely humanoid, though his ears have two blade-like protrusions sticking out of them, reminiscent of Wally's earpieces.
Silver Bolt's eyes flicker, imitating blinking as he slowly looks up at us. "Greetings."
I smile and lean back, pumping a fist in response. "Hell yeah," I whisper.
"Aww, he's cute!" Zatanna kneels down and holds either side of Bolt's face, turning his head side-to-side. "What's your name, little guy?"
"I am designated as Silver Bolt," the android answers. "Might I ask your name?"
"Well, I'm Zatanna Zatara, this is Eric Mercer," she introduces us.
Bolt looks up at me. "Are you my master?"
I shake my head. "No, I'm just your creator."
Silver Bolt perks up, his mouth also makes a smile. "Ah! You are my Father!" What? "Are you my Mother?" He asks Zatanna.
She smiles and looks up at me. "Sure."
The hell is going on?
"To thank you, I shall cook you a meal. Wait one moment, Mother, Father!" Silver Bolt runs out of the garage.
I stare at where he just was blankly. Seriously, what just happened?
Zatanna catches my attention and I notice a concerned look on her face. "He's not gonna go all Ultron on us, right?"
I chuckle and deactivate my armor. "Don't worry, I made sure his IFF tag knows who enemies and allies are. And I made sure I'm the only one who can change them."
"But what if you're mind controlled?" Zatanna asks.
I blink and stare at her for a moment. "Great point. I'll give you access too," the two of us walk towards the kitchen to find Silver Bolt making some food for us, a YouTube video can be seen playing from a holographic projection made by his left eye.
"Besides, he's got a little bit of Galvanic Mechamorph in him, think of him like a baby Upgrade," I whisper.
"Oh my God, you have another kid! Hey, how are your Big Chill babies anyway?" She asks with a smirk.
I groan and roll my eyes. "Haven't talked to them in years, Zee."
"Wow, you are a bad dad," She jokes.
I shake my head in amusement and watch as Silver Bolt nearly drops the salt. "He's gonna be busy for a while."
Zatanna leans forward, her front pressing into my back. She rests her head on my shoulder and turns her head to me, her lips just centimeters from my ear. "Well, after today I'm feeling a little restless," her arms snake around my chest. "Let's pass the time?"
I smirk before turning around and carrying Zatanna upstairs. "Yeah, let's pass the time."
Tower of Fate
Dr. Fate and Amazo arrive inside the Tower of Fate. Amazo, intrigued by the magical artifacts, goes to study them. As he does this, Dr. Fate exits the room and meets with his wife.
"We have another guest, Inza," he greets. "Would you prepare a place for him?"
Inza nods. "Of course, Kent," she then takes Amazo's hand and smiles kindly at the android. "Welcome," she then notices her husband's face as he takes off the helmet. "Are you all right?"
"I am fine," Kent replies. "Although there was a moment when I actually thought that John Stewart was going to attack me."
"Oh, I don't know about that," the three turn to see Shayera walking towards them. "His bark is a lot worse than his bite."
Metropolis
"So, that's the wielder of this Omnitrix?"
"Eric Francisco Mercer is his name."
"He's different from Benjamin. Better in some respects, worse in others."
"Well, he is an entirely different person."
"That he is. Come, we've been gone for far too long."
The two disappear in a flash of light.
Oooh, who could those two be? It's a total mystery~ Well, one of them you probably know already, but the other could be a mystery. Maybe. Whatever.
But man, DCAU Amazo has to be the most powerful version of the character, I mean, no other version of Amazo runs through the League like he does. Also, "Wake the Dead" was Amazo's last appearance in the DCAU. For this story, he's gonna appear every now and again, it'll make his relationship with Eric better.
But also, Silver Bolt! I've been meaning to have a companion like Ship for Eric for a while now, and now he's here. And not only that, but Silver Bolt can also be seen as Nova's opposite, which is something I have planned for a future chapter.
Oh, and Er-Mer is my idea of what Eric's Kryptonian name could be. I thought about things like Krypto-Knight but that didn't seem like a name Eric would choose, so Er-Mer we got. Also, Er is pronounced like "air".
Next time will be "Ultimatum" followed by a flashback chapter.
Well, that's all from me. If you have any questions or want to leave a constructive review you know where to leave 'em! Remember to stay awesome and see you next time you beautiful people!
