Luthor
Gotham Docks, the cold, dark and silent passage out to the river for most, but tonight there was something more on the pier that oversees the river bank of Gotham. A helicopter was stationed right at the pier's end. Selina Kyle, the notorious Cat Burglar known as Catwoman steadily walked over to it. Dressed in a black leather jacket with the sleeves rolled up, her hair was brushed over to the left side. Her green eyes pierce right at the chopper as she made her way to it, holding a leather brown rucksack over her shoulder, which held her costume.
"I can't believe that I am actually doing this..." Selina scorns herself through her own thoughts as she is equally disappointed with herself as she was intrigued by what would await her when she would step back onto the ground. The woman's eyes focus at the chopper as the door was pulled open, revealing the inside of it. Next, she sees a man step out. She took note of the man, who had slicked back brown hair and who was not near clean-shaven as he was shown to have stubble under his jaw, not quite enough to be a beard, however, it was noticeable if you looked long enough. The man was dressed in a tight-fitting black shirt, with the sleeves rolled up and a loose collar and a pair of black jeans. Selina's eyes locked onto the man's left wrist which had a golden watch on it, one that she knew would cost thousands.
Their eyes meet "So, are you the tool that wanted to hire me? I should warn you that I charge a premium price for my services" she tells the man. The well-dressed man gave a coy smirk at the woman's words as he steps out of the chopper, he looks to her.
"Your client: my boss wishes to remain anonymous for this job. My name is John Corben, I am here to deliver you to the location of the job, miss Kyle. You are going to follow my orders - word-for-word. You are to finish the job in the time that we want you to, you will complete this job - my employer is placing a large amount of trust in me for this endeavour. I want to make one thing clear, you were not my first choice, but your friend convinced me that you are unknown in Metropolis. You will be the best bet for this job since no one will be looking for you"
"I don't care. You got the money, Johnny?" Selina rests her hands on her hips, raising an eyebrow alongside her inquiry. John Corben lugs a briefcase out from the chopper and holds it towards her. He gives her a smug smirk as his eyes meet her own. Selina had no idea why she was thinking it, but couldn't help but notice how easily he was carrying the briefcase singlehandedly. Her mind also wondered how she hasn't even seen him take a single breath since he got here.
"It is Mr Corben to you, understand? This is strictly professional, Miss Kyle. Now if you would be so kind and get in?" John tells the woman which she followed, but with a sigh beforehand. They both sit in the chopper. Selina's eyes focus on the briefcase that was now resting next to the man sat opposite her "Not so fast, kitty. Get the job done, then it is all yours" John crosses his arms "Also...put your seatbelt on" he tells her as the chopper begins to take off "It's going to be a few hours until we land in Metropolis"
"And I am going to have to put up with you for that long? I may as well just jump out now...it would be less painful" Selina batted her eyes, leaning back and crossing her legs "Just let me know when we get there - this cat is going for a nap" she tells Corben.
Metropolis, LeX Corp
"Sir, Bruce Wayne is here to see you"
"Send him in"
The doors to the office were pushed open as Bruce walks into the room. Before him stood Lex Luthor. A bold man who was dressed in an equally fancy suit like him. Lex wore a black glove on his left hand, he gave a look to Bruce, one of intrigue as he clipped shut a black briefcase that was full of paperwork "You must forgive my surprise. I thought we were meant to meet at the party in a few hours. So what brings a man like Bruce to Metropolis?" Lex questions.
Bruce straightens his tie "The fundraiser tonight, odd I thought you would have known...since you were on the guest list" he answers the man's question in a confident tone. Luthor took note of the man's body language, he holds his arms out to his sides.
"But why Metropolis? I thought your priorities were focused on Gotham - gods know that the city needs all the help that it can get. Metropolis has a record-low crime late. The lowest in all of America, but your city? The kids there can learn the alphabet by using the names of all those freaks that it has...it's the most dangerous city in all of the country" Lex leans against his desk.
"I've come here to discuss the business that we planned over the phone. I thought that we could get a head start on it now"
"I appreciate the gesture, but unlike you...I actually run my company. I don't like putting all my faith in the board, I am a very busy man. We made the timeslot for that tomorrow, so if you would please excuse me" Lex points to the doors "I have plans already, but I would love to catch up at the fundraiser later..." Lex adds.
Bruce walks forward as he stands in front of one of the paintings in the room. He steadily places a small object under the frame behind his back "Oh come on, Lex. A man with your power and resources can delay a meeting once in a while. Trust me, I am a master at it. Just take 10 minutes of your busy schedule to go over our proposals"
"What is there to go over? We both want to branch out to the other's city, but the locals are giving us both trouble. You help sweet talk your Mayor in letting Lex Corp open up office in Gotham - And I will have the Mayor let Wayne Enterprise open up here in Metropolis, sure there are some specifics that we need to go over, but we have already arranged to do that...tomorrow" the Luthor reminds Bruce as he clearly shows Wayne that he was losing his patience.
"Got a lock on the signal, Bruce" Lucius spoke to Bruce through the communicator that was placed in his ear "Beginning decryption now...And got it" Lucius informs him.
"Okay, Mr Luthor. If you think that is the best action, then I will humour you. I will see you at the fundraiser tonight, remember it starts at 10 on the dot, your donations are greatly appreciated" Bruce gives a slight nod to Lex as he begins to walk out of the room.
"Mr Wayne, I feel it is best that I warn you that flying too close to the sun will not work out for you, it didn't for Icarus, and it certainly will be the undoing of you. So I am giving you a friendly warning...don't get too close to that sun...because you will get burned and fall. Whatever you are really up to? Whatever you might be planning? Just know that this is my city...my eyes and ears are everywhere, take care, Mr Wayne" Lex gives a light smirk as he sees the man leave the room and the doors close behind him.
"The signal is around thirty percent decrypted, just got a whole lot of firewalls. This may take a little longer than expected, Mr Wayne. Get back to me in an hour, I should have it all done by then. Whatever this signal is...it can't be a good thing, whatever it is...it seems Lex Corp's satellite is sending whatever is in the signal all over the world. I may need to reprogram the Wayne Satellite to locate just where the message is being sent to..." Lucius tells Bruce.
"Do whatever you have to, Lucius. Lex is naïve and may be messing with forces that he can't fully comprehend. You made a right call in bringing this to my attention, we may be able to stop him from making a terrible mistake" Bruce replies in a lower tone of voice "I will be making my way to the fundraiser now, which means that I will have to put on a smile for the press. Shouldn't be too hard" Bruce adds.
"Try to make it look convincing will you, Bruce?" Lucius jokes on the other end.
"I'll try" Bruce smiles.
The night had overtaken the city of Metropolis, unlike Gotham, the city was just as beautiful in the late hours. Neon-blue lights light up the city in all its glory, the city was just as lively and the people of the city have flooded the grounds of it, the city was a safe haven for most, a utopia compared to Gotham. Cars drive past on the roads, the cloak of the night did not disparage the people, in fact, they seemed to be even more fond of the late hours that took the city.
The chopper lands down on the harbour of Metropolis, on the edge. Selina Kyle steps out as her green eyes look over at the city, she saw its beauty and its serenity. She found it to be a far cry from the state of Gotham, but deep down, she felt slightly homesick. John Corben exits the chopper after her. His eyes look to her as he gives the woman a coy smirk "It must be quite the surprise for you, considering the mess that your precious city is in. Metropolis, the city of tomorrow. One of the most peaceful cities in all of America, even the world...now come on. Your partner is waiting" he comments.
"Hold on. Partner? You never said anything about me having a partner. I only go at it solo. Having to babysit others will only hold me back" Selina argues with John as she gives him a firm glare, she tilts her head and places her hands on her hips "They will only slow me down" she adds.
"Oh don't misconstrue my words, miss Kyle. You are meant to steal the goods by yourself, but she will destroy all the evidence after you have completed your job. I hear that you and she used to be quite close when you were children" Jon Corben replies with a sharp smile and a tooth-filled grin "This job must be done, my boss is putting a lot of trust in me to accomplish this. You will get your three million dollars after you do what we hired you for, then you can go on your own way. If you stop mouthing off, I may even give you a ride home"
"Oh come, John. Can't you help a gal out? If you give me the money now...I will be very grateful to you...I won't tell a soul..." Selina whispers to the man as she slowly reaches for the briefcase that he was holding "It will just be between us, okay?" she winks at him.
"Get the job done. Our friend will get you up to speed, though it shouldn't be a challenge for you...the more difficult task will be trying to not get her to kill you" he jumps back into the chopper and waves; letting the piolet know that it was time that they left "Don't pull anything stupid, girl,. I will know and even worse for you...my boss will know too. And he isn't as forgiving as I am" he calls out to her as the chopper ascends into the air and flies off.
"Wait, where is this friend of yours? A little information would go a long way!" Selina calls up as John who was clearly out of hearing range. She rolls her eyes and lets out a frustrated groan, tapping her heel against the ground she looks away from the sky "What am I supposed to do now?" she talks to herself.
"We do our job" a voice calls out from behind.
Selina turns her head, recognizing the owner of the voice.
"Bridgit? I should have known you were the girl that creep was talking about. Tell me, girl, how have you been? Gone on any murderous rampages lately?" Selina asks the other woman. Brigit Pike, AKA Firefly - her body is covered in third, second and first degree burns. She was dressed in a much more advanced gear compared to when they last met face-to-face. Though the bug-eyed goggles were the same as before, the rest of her outfit has taken a turn. Her body was covered from head to toe in black armour that was slightly tinted gold in some areas. Selina could still see the eyes off her once friend underneath the goggles though she had to look hard to see them.
"It is Firefly. Bridgit Pike has burned to ash long ago. Before we get down to business I really want you to know that I want you dead, I want to burn so badly, but I need your help to keep up this gig. It has been raining green lately and I need your help to keep it that way. If you help me with this job...I won't burn you alive. I will let get the hell out of the city and spare you until the next time we meet, understood? If it wasn't for your recent unlawful activities...you would not be standing before me today, got that?" Firefly's voice was slightly distorted by her helmet, but Selina could tell that it was her.
"That's good. For a moment there I thought you didn't like me" Selina gives a light chuckle.
Firefly's eyes narrow from under her mask "You better shut it. You are the reason why I am like this"
"What? You did that to yourself" Selina gasps.
Firefly steps forward and tights her left fist "Funny because I remember that you came with that guy to my brothers with that job which caused them to make me do their dirty work!"
"You mean those brothers that you BBQed?" Selina raises an eyebrow in response.
"Damn right. Remember...I did that to them without thinking twice...so you really shouldn't push me" Firefly warns Selina.
Selina rolls back her shoulders "Okay, Okay. I can sense that there is some tension between us. Let's just agree to talk only about business on this trip, agreed?"
"Sounds good" Firefly growls at her.
Wayne Fundraiser
The room was full. An assortment of people gathers around the room. At the end of the room, stood a woman in a black dress in front of a microphone stand as she sang into it as a piano was played behind her "Somebody save me, let your warm hands break right through it. Somebody save me, I don't care how you do it, just stay, stay, C'mon, I've been waiting for you...I see the world has folded in your heart, I feel the waves crash down inside. And, they pull me under, I would give you anything you want, oh. You are all I wanted, All my dreams have fallen down, Crawlin' around and around and around, Somebody save me..."
Bruce taps the communicator in his ear "How goes the work, Lucius? Have you got any further in deciphering the signal?" he asks as he swirls a glass of wine in his hand, he looks out to the room. Hundreds of people joined him at the event, none of which who he recognized but they all knew him. He was near to feel intimidated by all the unknown faces that were there with him "Our friend has not arrived yet, but I got a feeling that Lex isn't late because of a flat tire"
"Though you managed to plant that decoder in his office, I may need more time than originally thought. I don't exactly have all the resources that I usually do. But I am approaching to 75% decryption, but the more I decode...the more firewalls that I have to contend with...and the more I hack...the harder the next one becomes. If they keep up this pattern then I am sorry to say this, but it will take a few days to fully complete and by then...Lex might know that someone is hacking into his systems" Lucius explains over on the other end.
"I know that you can do it, Lucius. You haven't let me down once in my time knowing you" Bruce replies. The billionaire's eyes widen as he sees a brunette woman step in front of him with a smile. Wearing a red dress with a silver chain-necklace and white arm gloves. Her eyes meet his.
"Sorry...uh miss...?" Bruce questions the woman who holds her hand out to shake his.
"Lois Lane...I work for the Daily Planet. Didn't you get my messages?" she asks.
"Lane? Oh my secretary got your messages...all two hundred and eighty-four of them, and that was in a span of sixty-seven hours" Bruce tells Lois as he folds his arms.
"Hey. I wouldn't have to leave all those messages if you actually called me back? I wanted to get you for an interview. I feel that the people of Metropolis deserve to know why a billionaire from Gotham chose to hold his event in our city, plus there is the fact that there are whispers that you and Lex Luthor are working together on some project? You are aware of Luthor's criminal record, right? How has done illegal dealings before, so I want to know why working with him is a good idea in your mind? Could it be that you also like partaking in unlawful activities yourself? Wouldn't be a stretch considering how most Gothamites are" Lois asks her list of questions at the man while keeping her chirpy smile.
"I'm sorry miss Lane, but did you just..." Bruce was speechless at the woman's words. Not because he had nothing to say in response to her, but that he couldn't choose which part he should say first. Lois noticed the man's phlegm was beginning to fade in her prescience.
"Oh my god...I didn't mean for that to come out as it did. I swear I only have admiration for Gothamites. I'm sure that you lot do the best that you can in that city of yours...oh...I just did it again, didn't I? Okay...uh...do-over. Hi, I'm Lois Lane. It's nice to meet you..." she holds out her hand again with the same charming smile that she used before "I was previously trying to ask you about why you are working with Luthor. What time can we set up an interview for? You will finally take me to the front page" she speaks to the man as her voice booms with confidence.
"Sincerest apologies, Miss Lane. I have other plans while I am here" Bruce shoots back as he straightens his tie.
"Can I at least have a quote?" Lois asks in disappointment.
"I would, but what I want to say isn't something that should said at such a formal event, goodbye, Miss Lane. Just for you...I will tell security to leave you be...since you were not on the guest list. Take care" Bruce smiles at her as he walks off; leaving her standing by herself.
"Oh if he wasn't so rich...I would..." Lois thought to herself.
Bruce looks over his shoulders to see if anyone was watching him and when he was sure that he was in the clear he presses his earpiece "Alfred. Use the Batcomputer's face recognition software to locate Lex Luthor. Right now its search parameters are only for Gotham Try recalibrating it to also include Metropolis" he tells Alfred.
"Way ahead of you, Master Bruce. You will find that I have already taken the liberty in doing so. Lex was seen walking into to one of the Lex Corp warehouses not too long ago, and that's quite odd..." Alfred observes. Hearing the man's confused tone, Bruce tenses up.
"What is it, Alfred?"
"He also seems to be in the company of a Mr John Corben...which is quite odd since John Corben was pronounced dead last year, however, no body was ever found. Both Lex and this Corbin seem to be in the company of a number of men that are listed in the Metropolis' criminal databases" Alfred explains.
"Thanks, Alfred. I will check it out" Bruce taps his earpiece again "Lucius, I'm coming back to the jet to retrieve the suit. Something strange just turned up"
"It's ready for when you arrive, Bruce. But I must warn you that the city's hero may not appreciate you coming in and causing trouble. I would watch my back if I was you" Lucius replies.
"I'll try not to overshadow him"
"Okay, Selina listen carefully...your job is to steal whatever is kept in the safe at the top floor of this building..." Firefly points to the map that was rolled-out in front of them "We will only get one chance to do this. If you screw this up... I, Corben and our boss will have it out for you and will not rest until you are dead. The top floor is heavily guarded, one of the most protected buildings of the whole city. motion trackers, lasers, 24-hour surveillance and armed guards patrolling the floor..."
Selina gave a light chuckle "That's it? I break into tougher guarded places in my sleep. This is going to be a cakewalk"
"You seem really confident. May I remind you that unlike Gotham...this city's protector actually has superpowers. He can hear you all the way across the city, and he will come after you if he figures out what you are doing, he has already put out all of my fires so far..." Firefly adds.
"Fires? I wasn't told anything about setting fires" Selina questions.
"Hello? You are talking to me! After our job is done...I will set the building ablaze and destroy any and all evidence of us ever being there as well the stolen goods will be assumed to have been destroyed by the fire as well my boss will be able to buy the building for pennies afterwards. You get your money, I get my money and my boss gets what he paid for and the building, along with the contracts to repair them. It is an all win situation here. We need to be there in an hour...so I suggest that you get changed, princess"
"Hold on. No one is getting hurt, right?" Selina urges Firefly who simply shrugged her shoulders.
"You are a thief. You hurt people all the time, sure not physically, but they will be mentally scarred by your greed, so stop acting like you are a good person. No one buys it, not even your boyfriend" Firefly growls at her "Honestly you actually beating them would probably leave fewer scars than your thrill-seeking adventures. You know sooner or later than you are not going to be able to help yourself and steal straight your sweet old boyfriend, Bruce Wayne"
"Whatever. Let's just get this over with" Selina hisses as she reaches for her rucksack that was next to her feet "I am going to get this job done, collect my money and get the hell out of this city. And hopefully, never have the displeasure of your company"
Firefly nods "I too want you out of this city. So let's get on with it"
Bruce pushes on his gauntlet and flexes his fingers, tightening his hand into a fist. Black fins flip upward from the glove.
Selina zips up her black jumpsuit at the front. She pulls her gloves over her hand much more tightly as she rakes the sharp claws that were attached to her nails. .
Bruce clips his utility belt around his waist and pulls his cowl over his face.
Selina straps down her helmet and pulls over her orange-tinted goggles she gave a low smile. Pulling up her boots and attaching her whip to her left thigh she found herself now ready for the task at hand.
Bruce's cape drops down and touches the ground which he stood on.
Selina's green-eyes pierce through the lenses of her goggles as her irises narrow into firm slits. She tilts her head and cracks her knuckles with each other. Some of her hair was pressed down by her helmet and was visible through her helmet.
Bruce stomps his boot against the ground as he looks up. His cape slowly falls around his shoulders and overlapped over the other end of it.
Batman stands above the streets of the Metropolis, stood on one of the tallest buildings in the city. His eyes look out into the distance towards the warehouse that was brought to his attention. His cape was blown by the much more gently and clear breezes of wind, one thing that he could instantly tell was much different than his own city. His eyes narrow and gets a run off of the building and begins to quickly descend to the ground around thirty stories below him.
He lifts up his arms and his cape expands. He begins to glide across the skyline of the city as he heads towards his destination "Be careful, Master Bruce. Lex will be sure to have top-notch security. Keep an eye out, will you?" Alfred asks. Batman's shadow begins to be moved against the buildings that he glides past. Bringing his arms inward he controls his descent as he slowly lower himself towards the ground, but he kept high enough to keep his altitude.
"For their sake...I hope that they do. If Lex doesn't want to make it to my party...then I will just crash his..." Batman replies as he was quickly approaching the target. His eyes focus on the roof of there Wearhouse. There was a segment of glass, most likely the skyline. Batman gave a smirk as he decided on his way of entrance. Batman quickly taps the side of his cowl. His eyes turn orange as his eyesight was changed to heat-vision
He sees seven Targets from within the warehouse. One of which he could tell was Lex Luthor from the lack of hair. Focusing further he sees that the men were indeed carrying firearms such as shotguns, which was nothing new to him. Though something seemed to be slightly off with the sight. One of the seven men appeared to have nobody heat or so little that his heat-vision could not pick it up, except for in his chest Batman had never seen anything like it before, he found it quite strange.
From inside the warehouse, Lex Luthor and John Corben stand beside each other. Lex flips open his briefcase as he rests it on the workbench "I am putting a lot of faith in you with this one. Are you sure that she can handle the job?" he asks as his gloved hand picks up a pile of paperwork from the briefcase.
John Corbin gives a soft nod in response "She's the best in the business. She is more than capable of doing the job compared to anyone in Metropolis. She knows that if she doesn't...she won't make it long enough to see the sun come up" he responds as he sees Lex look to him.
"Good. Once she finishes the job...kill her. I don't want any loose ends. A criminal like that is bound to turn on us to fill her own pockets with green eventually...I know that I would. Also, contact Winslow, I want to get an update on the progress of the device. Let him know that I will not accept any further delays. I have been fully funding his work for the past year, so I expect him to be done" Lex comments as he looks through the paperwork.
John folds his arms "Already taken care of. Firefly was given the order to kill her once they make it back to the base, as for Mr Schott, I will get right on that once I return to LeX corp. There is a more secure line there. Don't worry Lex, the project is almost complete. All our hard work is going to soon pay off. We will soon take back our world"
"This world is full of those freaks these days. How is the common man supposed to prosper in a world bloated with gods and monsters? I am doing my fellow men a great service in doing this. This world belongs to mankind, not those...pale imitations of us. That is why the plan must work. If not...I fear the future of mankind in this world..." Lex gives a quick glance to Corben "It is our duty, once we establish contact with our friend in Gotham...nothing will be able to stop us"
From outside, Batman holds his arms to his side to begin his descent down towards the skyline. Crashing through the glass, he quickly holds out his arms to once again expand his cape to lessen his impact. All seven of the men look at the vigilante as the glass shards fall behind him. Batman rolls onto the ground and grabs one of gun holder's head and slams it into his knee; knocking him to the ground. Two of the armed men aim at Batman and begin to shoot. Batman runs and jumps over to cover. He pulls out two Batarangs from his belt and jumps out of his cover, throwing them towards the men that shot at him. The Batarangs slice through the barrels of both the shotguns.
Both men look puzzled as they see the state of the shotguns. Batman leaps forward and grabs one of the guns and whacks them on the head with it. Batman jumps backwards and delivers an uppercut to the other man which left four of the men which only two were left armed. One of the armed men tried to take a shot at Batman, but the vigilante was fast enough to pull the gun away from his sights; the shotgun instead shot the floor and Batman headbutts the holder of it.
With only one armed man left. Batman was at ease to deal with him in any way that he decided. Batman grabs the man's arm and throws him over his head and lets him hit the floor with enough force to knock him out. Batman turns his sights upon the last two men. Lex Luthor and John Corben, the same man who showed now heat signature before. Batman throws a punch towards Corben who easily caught it with his own hand, which caused Batman's eyes to widen in surprise.
"Oh, what a pleasant surprise! The Batman in Metropolis? So I guess that Heroes do need vacations" Lex observes as he watches Batman who was having his fist crushed by John Corbin "I don't know why you are here, but I'm guessing it has something to do with the recent hacks I have been experiencing, right? What? You thought I wouldn't know when my network was being compromised? No one messes with me nor my business practices…" Lex comments.
Batman's eyes widen as he feels his hand being crunched by the hand of John Corben "What the hell are you?" he growls. John Corben grinned as he reaches down with his other hand and places it on Batman's shoulder and lifts him up.
"I am the man who is going to kill you bat" John answers Batman. The Dark Knight turned on his heel and tried to throw the man over his shoulder and to the ground, but it didn't work. The man was way too heavy to do that, heavier than he should have been. It was like he was made of metal "Nice try, Bat" John wraps his arms around Batman's throat and pulls him closer to him "It takes a god to bring me down...so what chance do you think that you have?" John smirks.
Lex Luthor stands himself in front of The Dark Knight "A mere man against a world of freaks. I respect that about you, Batman. You make a stand for normal people like you and me. You give them hope that those monsters do not have the right to control their lives...that the people shouldn't have to live in fear because of those freaks. In a way, you could almost say that I admire you and what you stand for. So it's a shame that you had to come barging into my city and against me. You could have given the people true hope..., disappointing. Kill him, Mr Corben. I sleep soundly knowing that I don't get blood on my hands" Luthor orders as he walks off and grabs the paperwork and returns it to the briefcase.
"Well looks like I get the honour" John laughs. Though the moment was short lived as a red-blue-blur breaks into the warehouse and shoves John Corben across the room. John was thrown against the other end and was hit into a wall. His eyes narrow as he looks across as sees Superman. Lex's eyes widen as he looks over to Superman.
Superman's eyes look to Corben "You need to learn to play nicer, John. I could hear the ruckus from across the city, don't worry...I won't tell your parents" The Man of Steel calls over to John. Superman stood with his hands on his hips and his chest out wide to fully showcase the shield on it, including the S that was placed in it "Mr Luthor...I thought you were going to that party tonight? Ah, don't sweat it, I'm not a party person either" Superman looks at Luthor "And...a man dressed like a bat? You are a long way from home, aren't you? Sorry about your experience here...tourists always seem to have the toughest times here"
"You made a big mistake coming here" John growls as he stands to his feet "Don't you remember the last time that we met?"
Superman charges forward like a blur as he punches John through the building and out into the outside world "I do...you gave me that same opening back then." Superman lifts one arm forward as he flies out of the room to follow after Corben. Lex quickly grabs the briefcase and makes a break for it. Batman's vision slowly comes back as he sees that Superman has forced the other man away from the site. Superman's eyes widen as he sees John getting back up in the middle of the street, after being punch easily over a hundred yards by The Man of Steel. Superman descends back onto the ground as he looks John "you were once a good man, John. We don't need to fight here...I know people who can help you" Superman spoke with concern to John.
"Help? Go to hell" John growls. The left side of his face appeared to be damaged, cracked in several places. Most noticeable was the green light that appeared to be coming from beneath the damaged tissue "I rather just kill you" John yells at the other man.
"Fight me if you want, but not here. There are innocents around us, they have nothing to do with this" Superman beseeches Corben as he slowly approaches the damaged man "You can't be alright with harming bystanders. I am asking you to give up before someone gets hurt" the man in the red cape continues his plea to Corben. Superman slightly tenses up as he gets closer to the man and his breathing becomes more heavy with every single step that he took "John, listen to me. Working for Luthor is not where you belong. You did a lot of good before, and you still can"
"The only good that I plan on doing is killing you" Corben smirks as the green glow beneath the cracks of his face brightens "A god like you has no place in this world" he forms his hand into a fist as he sees that Superman was having even more trouble coming towards him with every step. It was like he was in pain, both Corben and he knew the cause of it.
Superman gives a light smile towards the other man "God? You got me all wrong. I'm just a man in a silly red sheet" he then flies towards Corben in a red-blue-blur. Corben smirks as he manages to grab The Man of Steel, despite his speed and throws him into the ground; creating a crater where the man in the red cape was thrown. Corben then grabs Superman, lifting him up with the biggest grin on his face. The members of the public, men, women and children all run from the scene.
"Oh what's wrong? Has some meteor rock got you down? Good" Corben punches Superman in the face repeatedly, over and over "Makes it even easier to kill you" he winds up for another punch. Superman concentrates with his eyes as red beams of heat shoot right at the other man's face; burning it bright red. Superman then ascends slightly in the air and delivers an uppercut to Corben, knocking him into the air. The hero was fast enough to fly towards Corben and bring his fists together, slamming them down on the man's head.
"I said not here. Not with innocents around!" Superman reminds Corben who was propelled all the way onto the ground. Now missing the left side of his face, Corben was shown to have a metal skull with a green glowing eye that glares up at Superman. The Man of Steel's cape slowly sways in the wind as he stares back down to the damaged cyborg. Corben shows a devilish grin as he holds his palm towards Superman. His green eyes flashed brightly.
"Why not? That's is when you have to hold yourself back!" Corben's palm shoots out a green laser right at Superman. The Man of Steel moves out of the way of the blast, which caused the beam of energy to instead hit the building behind him. The laser cuts through the building, causing it slowly collapse in on itself. Superman's eyes widen as he hears screaming coming from the building, cries and whimpers. Even one death rattle from what sounded like a woman "It's your choice. Go after me or let those people die!" John grins, already knowing what choice Superman would make.
The man in the red cape flies towards the falling building and concentrates. Red beams of heat shoot out of his eyes and across the building; melting the parts back into place, after a few seconds he then slowly backs away and unleashes a stream of ice-cold breath to cool down the melted plates that now joined the buildings together. He then flies into the building towards the voices that he picked up before "Is everyone okay? Is anyone hurt?" he asks a group of people that were frantically holding onto each other.
Once he was sure that nobody was hurt, he flew back out of the building and saw that the man that had caused the incident was gone, vanished without a trace. His blue eyes look back to the warehouse from earlier, lifting one arm upward; he flies towards the building once more and enters through the hole that he made from his previous entry. He lands on his knees, he looks around the whole place and as expected both Lex and that Bat vigilante was nowhere in sight "Oh great Caesar's ghost" he whispers.
Chapter End