Back with a new chapter for your favorite story. Heads up, I have Summer school, so updates will be more delayed than usual. Well, time to start the story. Like I said, this is going to be when Darkseid and Braniac attacks! Also, a new character will appear! Have fun with it!
Chapter 18: Twilight
Apokalips. The world full of fire and suffering. The home of kidnapped slaves and bloodthirsty demons. The world of the most evil god in existence, Darkseid, a being who destroys and kills just for the sake of it. He was big and bulky, wearing black, his skin gray and rough, like stone, and his eyes glowing with red power. He was also the only one who, not only beaten Superman, but manipulated, brain washing him and turning him against his city. He greatly enjoyed that.
But his goal wasn't to destroy worlds or humiliate those who equal him. No, his goal was to the find the source to give him ultimate power, the Anti-Life Equation. It was a theory he made centuries before, after meeting a wandering Martian. With it, he could destroy freedom, happiness and hope.
He kidnapped the smartest beings in the universe, drained every knowledge in their life, but none came close to the equation. But he knew it exist. He just needs to find it.
As he sat on his throne, the ground suddenly shook and loud explosions rocked the air.
"What is going on?" Darkseid said as Desaad, a hooded man with a deformed face rushed towards him.
"My lord, we are under siege!" Desaad exclaimed.
"By who?" Darkseid said with narrowed eyes. No one would be foolish enough to attack his planet.
"By…him," Desarm said with fear, which as only shown towards him.
Darkseid walked towards the edge of his empire, only to see his slaves running and parademons attacking the invader.
"You…" Darkseid growled with glowing red eyes staring at the one invading Apokalips.
"What should we do, my Lord?" Desaad asked.
"We fight back," Darkseid said.
"Are you sure that is wise?" Desaad asked, causing Darkseid to look at him. When Desaad noticed, he quickly backed away as Darkseid's eyes glowed. "My lord, I didn't mean that!"
"Never question me again, Desaad," Darkseid growled. Desaad, out of fear, tried to run for his life. But he didn't make it. Beams shot out from Darkseid's eyes, disintegrating the hooded man. Suddenly, another boom shook the world, causing Darkseid to look at the invader, his eyes narrowed.
Later…
Phantom was walking towards the monitors, since it was his turn for Monitor Duty. He was walking through the halls and saw Hawkgirl, watching a hawk flying through the air, a strange look on her face.
"Hawkgirl, you feeling alright?" he asked, surprising her.
"Phantom, didn't hear you there," Hawkgirl said, as she stood up. Phantom finally realized that she looked homesick. "I'll go now."
"Hey, do you wanna talk about it?" Phantom asked, causing Hawkgirl to look at him. "You know, how you miss home."
"…I don't want to bore you," Hawkgirl said.
"I'm going to do Monitor Duty," Phantom said with a deadpanned expression. "I need to do something to stimulate my brain."
Hawkgirl smiled slightly. After a second, she sat down and talked. Phantom listened to her talking about her home planet, Thanagar. She told him how she was a police officer in her planet, about the food she ate, the places she would flew to, the landmarks. It was fascinating for him, which made her happy that she shared.
"No wonder you missed that place," Phantom said once she was done. "It sounds amazing."
"Earth is amazing too," Hawkgirl said with a small smile. "It's just…It's not Thanagar."
"I get it, you're lonely," Phantom said. "You missed seeing other Hawkpeople. But you're not alone. Wonder Woman is exiled, Green Lantern is avoiding the other GLs, and the only guy I can really relate to is Plasmius, and you know how much of a Fruitloop that guy is."
And that was true. Out of all the Justice League, only the four of them were alone in the universe. Superman has Supergirl, Martian Manhunter has Megan, Flash has his mentor, and Batman has three sidekicks.
But them, they didn't have anyone to relate to. Wonder Woman still wasn't allowed on Themyscira, Green Lantern wasn't contacting the other Green Lanterns, Hawkgirl was far, far away from her home planet, and Phantom only has one guy that he could relate too, and he was evil.
"Maybe we should just call ourselves the 'Just Us' League," Hawkgirl said with a smirk.
"That would be an improvement," Phantom said with a chuckle. "Besides, us lonely people has to stick together."
Suddenly, the alarms blared and the entire place shook. Surprised, Phantom looked at the screens and saw that an anomaly was detected, inside the Watchtower.
"We have a breach!" he exclaimed, causing Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman and Martian Manhunter, who were on duty, to immediately go towards the monitors. "What is this?"
Phantom showed them the anomaly, and they were all confused to what it was, except Superman, who was looking at it with wide eyes.
"It's a strong energy surge," Batman said, studying it. "But I've never seen a signature like this before."
"I have," Superman said with a scowl. "It's a boom tube."
The moment he said that, there was a loud 'boom!' and a white portal appeared behind them. They all tensed as someone walked through it. E yes widened as Darkseid walked through the Watchtower with confidence, his very presence causing them to freeze.
"We meet again, Kal-El," Darkseid said with a smirk.
With a growl, Superman rushed forward and punched Darkseid two on the face before one on the stomach, sending him crashing towards the wall, causing the entire satellite to stumble.
"Stop him before he puts us out of orbit!" Batman ordered as Superman was about to deliver another punch.
A green wall appeared between the two, stopping the fist, giving Wonder Woman and Martian Manhunter enough time to grab Superman and hold him back.
"Easy there, Supes," Phantom said, his hands glowing green and sweat dripping on the side of his head. That punch was so strong that he felt it through the shield. "We can't have you causing an earthquake. Or is it a spacequake? A somethingquake. We can't have you causing a somethingquake."
Darkseid stared at the green shield with slightly widened eyes before at the source. He never heard of this boy before, but there was this power he could feel from him.
"This boy…can it be?" Darkseid thought before he stood up, looking at the restrained Superman. "I see you haven't forgotten me."
"What are you doing here!?" Superman demanded, glaring at the being he hated with every cell in his body.
"As it pains me to say it, I need your assistance," Darkseid said, causing Superman to stop struggling and stare at the being with narrowed eyes. "My kingdom is under siege, and my latest skirmish with New Genesis has left my military force at considerably less than full strength."
"And why should we help you?" Superman demanded.
"Because my enemy is your enemy," Darkseid said as he pulled out a Mother Box. "Even as we speak, Apokalips is being assimilated by the Kryptonian Menace, Brainiac."
A screen appeared above the Mother Box, showing the picture of an alien robot with three circles on its head, its white eyes staring blankly.
"You're lying," Superman said with narrowed eyes. "I destroyed him."
"Apparently, he is harder to kill than you realize," Darkseid said as the screen showed a video of an alien ship attacking Apokalips, with tentacles that were absorbing whatever it touches. "You know the pattern, Kal-El. Once he finishes siphoning the memory banks and technology of my planet-."
"He'll annihilate it," Superman said. "Good."
"What!?"
"Superman!"
"You can't be serious."
Everyone was shocked by that answer. This was Superman, the man who would save anyone from anything, no matter what or who they are. But the way he coldly said that was unexpected.
"You may not care what happens to my world," Darkseid said as he activated another boom tube, stepping into it. "But know this: if Brainiac isn't stopped, countless millions more will perish. Think about it."
With that, he stepped into the boom tube, before it disappeared, leaving the heroes alone. Superman glared at the place he disappeared before walking away.
"Hang on, Superman," Phantom said, flying in front of the guy. "You're not serious about not stopping Brainiac, are you?"
"If Brainiac destroys Darkseid, then so be it," Superman said coldly. "And if they destroy each other, so much the better."
"So what?" Hawkgirl said. "You're saying you've sacrifice millions of lives just because you don't like this guy?"
"You don't know Darkseid like I do," Superman said to them.
"We know that he used you," Batman said, getting their attention as he walked towards Superman. "Humiliated you. Brainwashed you. Wound you up like a tin soldier and set you loose against Earth."
Batman then leaned to Superman until they were face to face.
"Cry me a river."
Superman frowned and shot him a glare.
"On the outside chance that this isn't another one of his schemes, we have to take action," Batman said. "So I suggest you get over it."
Martian Manhunter walked towards the pair before they would do something stupid, placing a hand on Superman's shoulder.
"Brainiac has already destroyed countless civilizations and now he threatens another," he said to Superman. "Do you want this to be the legacy of your people."
"I'm telling you there's something wrong with this whole scenario," Superman insisted. He thought about if for a few seconds before turning to Batman. "All right, we'll play Darkseid's game. But I need you to do something for me."
Batman looked at Superman, raising an eyebrow behind his mask.
"I want you and Wonder Woman to go to New Genesis," Superman said as he walked towards a compartment, pressing a code. "Something doesn't add up to his story. Once you get there, search for Orion."
"How will we get there?" Wonder Woman asked.
"With this," Superman said, showing a Mother Box. He pressed the coordinates to it, causing a boom tube to open. "This will take you to New Genesis. While the rest of us will go to Brainiac."
Batman nodded before he and Wonder Woman entered the portal. The boom tube closed before Superman opened another one.
"Heads up," Superman said, turning to Phantom, Hawkgirl and Martian Manhunter. "Apokalips is not a pretty place."
"The name made it kinda obvious," Phantom said before they flew in the boom tube.
Phantom thought going through the boom tube was like going through the Ghost Portal. He was wrong. In the boom tube, it felt like something was pulling and pushing him through the portal, like a fast ocean current.
The four finally reached their destination, Apokalips. It was the worst place Phantom ever saw. The smell of black smoke assaulted his nose and the heat was just unbearable. Mars was a paradise compared to this place. They then saw the invader, a giant ship with tentacles, absorbing everything in sight.
The four immediately charged at the ship. Superman went to destroy the tentacles while the others attacked the ship. Inside, Brainiac looked at them with emotionless eyes, not bothered that a nuisance appeared. The forcefields are enough to handle those interferers.
Suddenly, a strange energy signature caught his attention. He turned the screen on to see where that energy was coming from. It was from the white-haired figure, firing his ship with green rays.
"What is this energy?" he said to himself as he started scanning Phantom, his eyes glowing. "Name: Unknown. Species: Unknown. Planet: Possibly Earth. Must capture for further studies."
Outside, Phantom kept firing the shield, but it kept getting blocked by a forcefield. Suddenly, two tentacles grabbed him. He quickly turned intangible, escaping from the tentacles, before slashing at the tentacles with glowing hands. As soon as he did that, all the tentacles started attacking him.
"Okay, why are they attacking me!?" Phantom exclaimed as he started slashing and blasting the tentacles. Another tentacle was about to attack him from behind, but was stopped by Superman.
"Looks like Brainiac got interested in you," Superman said as blasted some tentacles with his heat vision. "That's not good."
"Why's he so interested in me?" Phantom exclaimed.
"You probably have something he doesn't," Superman said.
"Something I have?" Phantom said as he started thinking about what he had. He had a cellphone, some spaceship figurines, a laptop…and a half-human/half-ghost core. His eyes widen when he realized Brainiac was after his core, the source of his powers. "Well I ain't giving it to him."
He pulled out a laser Bo staff and started slashing at the tentacles. He knew watching those demos online was good training, as he kept twirling the staff, slicing off the tentacles, but every time he kept slicing one off, more sprouted from the tentacles.
"Okay, how exactly do we beat this guy!?" Phantom exclaimed as he and Superman were back to back as the tentacles grabbed Martian Manhunter and Hawkgirl. Before they could be overrun, they heard a roar. They looked and saw a small army of parademons, led by a hairy man-like creature with a mane of black hair, dressed in green armor.
"ATTACK!" the creature shouted, pointing at the ship. "Destroy the invader, in Darkseid's honor!"
The parademons attacked the ship, blasting it with their weapons and slashing the tentacles with their claws.
"Never thought I'd see the day when I fight alongside parademons," Superman said as they kept fighting.
Suddenly, there was a sound that caught his attention. It sounded like a cannon charging. His eyes widening, he looked at Darkseid's fortress and, using his super sight, saw a cannon aimed at them.
"Everyone, move!" he exclaimed as he flew to the side. Phantom, Hawkgirl and Martian Manhunter heard him and quickly flew to the sides, just as a red beam was fired towards the ship, taking a lot of parademons with it.
When the beam slowly stopped, the heroes, and Kalibak, were shocked to see that Brainiac's ship was still intact, though the forcefield seemed to be flickering and lost all its tentacles.
"At least we know the shield's weakening," Phantom said.
"Then let's break it," Hawkgirl said, clenching her mace. With a roar, she charged at the ship, followed by the rest of her friends. Hawkgirl slammed her mace to the weakened shield, causing it to weaken even further. Martian Manhunter and Superman punched the spot where Hawkgirl smashed it, causing a hole to erupt. Phantom followed the attack by charging a strong Ghost Ray, firing at the ship.
It managed to pierced through, hitting Brainiac straight on the chest, causing him and the ship to explode.
"Wow, that part was easy," Phantom commented as they watched the ship turn into debris, falling into Apokalips. "Did we really need help this planet?"
"It is not over," a voice said behind him. They saw Darkseid on a floating platform, hovering towards them. "Since Brainiac survived Kal-El's attack, then there is reason to believe that he has more than one body."
"Wow, that's creepy," Phantom commented.
"We must eliminate him, before he comes back," Darkseid said as he took out his Mother Box, revealing a map of space. "My slaves have scouted beyond the planet and recently found Brainiac's hideout."
"Well, what are we waiting for?" Hawkgirl asked, hefting her mace over her shoulder. Darkseid created a boom tube in front of them before flying to it.
Superman narrowed his eyes at Darkseid, but followed the god to the boom tube, so did everyone else. Once they traveled through the tube, they found themselves in front of an asteroid belt.
Acting quickly, Phantom created a green bubble around him, Hawkgirl, Superman and Martian Manhunter before they suffocated.
"Hey, Tombface!" Phantom exclaimed angrily at the god with glowing eyes, who didn't seem bothered by the lack of oxygen. "Warn us if you're going to drop us in space!"
The god just stared at him before leading the way. Phantom growled, but a hand on his shoulder calmed him down. He looked and saw Hawkgirl trying to calm him down. With a deep breath, Phantom followed Darkseid through the asteroid field.
"Hey…is this safe?" Phantom suddenly asked as they followed Darkseid towards the very dangerous, giant rock-filled belt.
"No," Martian Manhunter said.
"Thank you for being so blunt."
"Wait, look!" Hawkgirl said, pointing at Darkseid, who was passing through the rocks, like they weren't there.
"The asteroids are holograms," Martian Manhunter said as they flew passed the fake. "But why?"
"To hide something," Superman said as they kept following Darkseid until they stopped.
"Here we are," he said, showing a very big asteroid in front of him. Superman gasped as he looked at it. Confused, the three looked at it closely and saw that it had a face carved on it, the face of Brainiac.
New Genesis…
Batman and Wonder Woman were flying over the city floating with the clouds, with Batman holding on to Wonder Woman. They were really shocked to see a giant city floating in the air. It really is like a city for gods. It was thanks to a man that saved them that they knew where to go. It still shocked them that that person would regard himself so lowly.
"Now, to find this Orion Superman spoke of," Wonder Woman said as she flew through the spectacular city.
As they flew through the city, an orange-haired man spotted them. He was dressed in white with gold bracers and a golden headgear, and red underwear and boots. He smirked before flying towards them, surprising the two heroes.
"Well, well, I've never seen bugs like you before," he said in an arrogant tone. Wonder Woman seemed offended as Batman just raised an eyebrow at the man.
"We are not bugs," Wonder Woman said.
"Sure, you're not," the man said as he slowed down a bit. Without warning, he went and slapped Wonder Woman's butt.
"Hey!" she exclaimed, both shocked and anger.
"Catch me if you can!" the man exclaimed before flying off at a speed that matched hers.
"He is dead," she growled before chasing after him. The man just gave them a taunting smirk before increasing his speed, but Wonder Woman's wasn't slow. She also increased her speed, surprising the man. Soon, their game of super cat and mouse was at a standstill, since they're speed were equal.
"Sent him towards me!" Batman exclaimed before he let Wonder Woman go and landed on a nearby building, removing his cape. Wonder Woman chased after the man, leading him towards Batman.
"Give it up already," the man said in a taunting tone. "You'll never catch-wah!"
He was startled when Batman threw his cape around him, blocking his view and causing him to fall to the ground. He and Wonder Woman quickly tied the man up with the cape, causing him to struggle.
"Let go of me!" he exclaimed as the cape was wrapped tightly around his body.
"We're not here to hurt you…much," Wonder Woman said, still miffed at the spanking. "We are looking for Orion."
"And what do you want me?" a voice above them. Batman and Wonder Woman and saw a man on a flying platform, dressed in red and a sliver helmet. "Well? What do Earthlings want with me?"
Brainiac's Asteroid…
"Man, this guy really loves himself," Phantom commented as they floated near the asteroid. "What else does he have? An army of himself?"
"You'd be surprised," Superman said as they watched Darkseid use his Mother Box to gain access to enter the asteroid.
"Let's go," Darkseid said as the mouth opened, revealing the entrance.
"Now I know how French fries feel," Phantom whispered before entering the mouth. They kept walking until the rock was replaced by metal, and the hallway changed from nothing into something that only greater intelligences can create.
"Impressive," Martian Manhunter said.
"Yeah, can't wait to smash it," Hawkgirl said, tightening the hold on her mace.
They followed Darkseid through the halls, and Superman noted that he was walking with confidence, making him suspicious. He could tell that he was up to something.
After a few minutes, they finally reached a big room with floating platforms and computers, and on the center of that room was Brainiac, looking at the screens without any emotion.
"That's him?" Phantom whispered to Superman.
"Yeah," Superman said with a tense expression. One of the beings capable of beating him. When he destroyed him, he was little guilty, but he was glad that he was gone. Now, here he is, like he never gotten destroyed in the first place. "Brainiac."
"What are we waiting for?" Hawkgirl said, eager to fight.
"We have to be sure there aren't any traps," Superman said, remembering all the times he was outsmarted.
"There aren't any," Darkseid said. "I disabled them all."
Phantom looked at Darkseid and narrowed his eyes before looking at Martian Manhunter. He noticed the look before nodding.
"Can you read his thoughts?" Phantom asked once he felt the Martian's probing his mind. He could also feel Superman and Hawkgirl's mind, connecting all four of them.
"I cannot," Martian Manhunter replied. "His mind is that of another level. I can't even touch the other walls."
"So we can't tell if his lying or not," Phantom said, worried. Should they really risk this? He may just have met Darkseid, but his presence made him feel like he couldn't be trusted, like if he ever offers a hand, it would just to pull out his arm just for the heck of it. "Guess we just have to watch our backs."
"Indeed," Martian Manhunter said.
"Let him try," Hawkgirl said. "I'll just smash his face with my mace."
"Just be careful," Superman said before their link ended.
"Attack!" Superman exclaimed as they charged. Brainiac looked at them before at the area, like wondering why it was doing nothing. Before he could react, Superman swooped in and gave the robot an uppercut that sent him flying towards Hawkgirl, who smashed Brainiac with her mace, sending her to Martian Manhunter who hammered the robot towards the ground, where Phantom was waiting for him, his hands charging with energy. With a shout Phantom fired a large Ghost Ray, sending Brainiac to the wall, burning him until he turned black.
When he stopped, all was left was a melted robot and scorch marks. They were still tense, waiting for another surprise, but there was none.
"…That's it?" Phantom asked. "That's kinda lame. I thought Brainiac would be more like a final boss or something. This is kinda a letdown."
"…Something's not right," Superman said, looking at Brainiac. Even if they took him by surprise, Brainiac wouldn't be so careless to let them attack him…Unless this was a trick! He quickly turned around, only to be punched by Darkseid.
Superman was sent slamming towards a wall, which suddenly sprouted Kryptonite shackles, restraining his arms and legs. Before the others could react, the screen showed Brainiac's symbol as the walls sprouted weapons and shackles, aimed at everyone except Darkseid.
"Apprehend all intruders," a robotic voice said as the weapons glowed.
The three scattered and started destroying the weapons and shackles. Unfortunately, Brainiac had knowledge on both Thanagarians and Martians. To Hawkgirl, he aimed at the middle of her back, where her wings were connected. She screamed in pain before falling towards a waiting cage, trapping her. Martian Manhunter was destroying the weapons until four small orbs surrounded him. Without warning, fire erupted from the balls, forming a cage. Unprepared, Martian Manhunter began to weaken before he fell to the ground, unable to move.
"Guys!" Phantom exclaimed before dodging the shackles and flying towards the others. Suddenly, glowing green shackles caught his arms, surprising him. He tried to turn intangible, but his powers weren't working. "What the? My powers!"
"I have enough data to restrain you, Danny Phantom," Brainiac said as a low-quality video appeared, showing Danny Phantom fighting ghosts. "Though primitive, Earth's information network provides enough data about you. But it does not explain your unique energy. Requires further studies."
Suddenly, the shackles pulled him to the wall, which ate him, causing the others to worry.
"You…" Superman growled, glaring at the smug Darkseid.
"What else did you expect, Kal-El?" Darkseid said as he walked towards the Kryptonian. "I made a bargain with Brainiac, that if I gave him the Son of Kyrpton, he will leave my planet. The others were just extras."
Suddenly, Superman was lifted from the ground, facing the computer.
"It is time we finish this, Kal-El," he said before shocking Superman, causing him to scream in pain. "I will extract every ounce of information out of you, and then you will be deleted."
Meanwhile, Phantom found himself inside a pod full of tentacles with injections, one of his worst fears. He needed to escape. Looking at the shackles, he tried to go intangible, still can't. He tried blasting them, but the metal seems to be absorbing his energy.
"This might take a while," he said as he looked at the moving needles. "Think Phantom, how are you getting out of this?"
A sudden idea struck him. Looking at the shackles, he hoped this idea worked.
Meanwhile, Superman was trying hard to break free, but the chains were too strong, and it felt like his entire being was being harvested. Hawkgirl and Martian Manhunter were still trapped, and then Phantom got taken somewhere.
"Stop resisting," Brainiac said as the shock became stronger. "And just surrender."
Unknown to them, Darkseid was walking towards the controls, and, without anyone noticing, attached his Mother Box to it. With a smirk, the Mother Box merged to the controls, and the symbol changed from yellow to red.
"What!? My systems are being overrun!" Brainiac exclaimed as the symbol rapidly changed color, fighting for control. "Must…override…must…serve Darkseid."
"Yes, serve me," Darkseid said with a smirk as the shocking stopped. "Now, I want all your focus on the one called Danny Phantom."
"As you command," the robot said.
"What do you want with Danny?" Superman asked as he struggled to get free.
"The boy has something I wanted for a long time," Darkseid replied. "And once I have it, no one will ever oppose me, not New Genesis, not High Father, not even you, Kal-El. And after Brainiac finishes his research, I shall use him to destroy New Genesis!"
"Warning. Danny Phantom has escaped. Initiating guards."
A few minutes ago, with Phantom, he had his eyes closed, focusing on the cuffs. It was strange, but he could finally feel the energy the shackles absorbed. After a few minutes, he could feel the pod he was trapped in. He briefly wondered if this is what Technus felt. Taking another deep breath, he tried to control the energy out of his body, hoping this would work. Just as the needles were about to poke him, they suddenly backed away as the entire pod was encased with a green glow.
When he opened his eyes, which were glowing green, the door was blasted open and the shackles exploded. His eyes returned to normal as he staggered out, feeling a little drained.
"I'm never doing that sometime soon," he groaned, rubbing his head. He then looked around the place and paled. It looked like those labs in those sci-fi horror movies he watched, where the abducted people get probed in the butt, only creepier because of the alien designs. "I have to get out of here."
He looked and saw what, he hoped, was the door. He walked towards it before a sound caught his attention. He turned and saw another pod, and there was something moving in it. Looking around, Phantom walked towards the pod and peeked at it. He jumped back when he saw a pair of green eyes looking at him.
He took another look and saw that the green eyes belonged to a girl, and she looked like she's in pain. Without a second thought, Phantom blasted the door open and grabbed the girl's shackles, turning them intangible. The girl fell towards him, but he managed to catch her.
He then got a good look at the girl, she has red hair that reached all the way to her back, orange skin, eyes that were only green, and was taller than him by a foot, and she was dressed in a purple, revealing outfit, only a short skirt and a shirt that barely covers her body, fingerless gloves that reached her elbows, boots that reached her ties, and a chest plate with a green gem on it. Phantom stared at her body before looking back up her face, trying to control himself. If he would describe her, she was an exotic beauty.
"You okay?" he asked the girl. She replied, but the words she spoke were gibberish to him. Phantom stared at her before a blank expression. "I'll take that as a yes. C'mon, let's get out of here."
He helped the girl up her feet and pulled the confused girl with him through the girl, turning intangible. The girl seemed surprise, with her talking, but she just followed him. They kept running through the halls until the walls opened and a dozen Brainiacs appeared.
"Stop. There is nowhere to run," they all said in unison.
"Can you fight?" Phantom asked the girl, and his answer was her flying towards the robots with a battle cry, her eyes and hands glowing brightly. She smashed the first robot with her fists before blasting the other two. "I guess you can."
Phantom then charged and fought next to her as more Brainiacs appeared.
Meanwhile, Darkseid was watching the fight as the Brainiacs tried to recapture Phantom and the girl he rescued. It amused him how someone with that power would be a hero like Superman. The boy hadn't even scratched the full potential of that power. It was wasted to him.
"Soon, the Anti-Life Equation will be in my grasp," he said as more Brainiacs attacked.
Suddenly, a boom sound caught his attention. He turned behind him and saw someone he didn't expect; Orion, along with Batman and Wonder Woman, appearing.
"Darkseid!" Orion shouted as he charged at his father, ramming into him. As the two fought, Batman and Wonder freed the others. Wonder Woman destroyed Martian Manhunter and Hawkgirl's cages as Batman frees Superman from his restraints.
"Remind me not to let you take charge again," Batman said as he caught the Kryptonian. "You alright?"
"I'll live," Superman said as he looked at the others. "Why are you here?"
"Blame your friend," Batman said as he watched Orion fight Darkseid.
"You okay?" Wonder Woman asked the two aliens.
"I'm a little sore, but I've been hit with worst," Hawkgirl groaned, knowing she can't fly for a while. She then looked around. "Where's Phantom?"
"There!" Martian Manhunter said, pointing at the screens. The girls looked and saw Phantom fighting Brainiacs with an orange-haired girl.
"A Tamaranean?" Hawkgirl said in shock. "But…They're supposed to be extinct."
Darkseid looked around and saw that the other heroes are free, ready to fight. If this keeps up, he will be defeated, and the Anti-Life Equation will be out of his grasp.
"Brainiac, I order you to destroy these heroes and New Genesis!" Darkseid ordered.
"I do not want to, but I am forced to comply," Brainiac said before the walls opened up and hundreds of Brainiacs appeared. "Designation: New Genesis."
"No!" Wonder Woman exclaimed. "If he hits New Genesis, everyone will die!"
"We have to stop him!" Superman exclaimed before they were surrounded by Brainiacs.
"First, we need to break these tin cans!" Hawkgirl said, readying her mace. She can't fly, but she can still wreck things. She, Superman, Wonder Woman and Martian Manhunter started attacking the Brainiacs as Batman rushed towards the controls and used his limited knowledge to hack it, to stop it from destroying New Genesis.
Back to Phantom and his friend, they managed to destroy at least four dozen robots until they finally stopped. He did hear that they were going to New Genesis, and it sounded bad.
"We have to hurry!" Phantom exclaimed to the girl, who just stared at him before nodding, still not knowing what he was saying. They ran through the halls, expecting more Brainiacs, or something else, to appear.
Luckily, nothing appeared, and they finally found themselves in the control room, where Superman, Wonder Woman, Hawkgirl and Martian Manhunter were fighting Braniac robots, Batman trying to hack the controls, and Darkseid fighting a guy wearing a helmet before helmet guy tackled Darkseid towards a wall, leaving the room.
"Did I miss something?" he said to himself. He then saw that Hawkgirl was about to be overrun. He acted quickly by flying towards her aid, firing at the robots with a strong Ghost Ray. "You alright?"
"Thanks," Hawkgirl said before she saw two Brainiacs behind Phantom. "Watch out!"
Before those robots could do anything, the girl smashed them to the ground, breaking them to pieces. She looked at Phantom, saying something in her weird language, but by the tone, she probably asked if he was okay.
"I am, thanks," Phantom said with a nod before turning to the Brainiacs. "How many robots does this guy have?"
Suddenly, all the robots stopped and started malfunctioning, surprising everyone. They started falling like dominoes, their eyes dimming.
"What just happened?" Hawkgirl asked as she kicked one of the robots.
"I managed to stop the robots," Batman said behind them, still typing on the controls. "But that's all I could do. I can't stop the asteroid!"
"You stopped the robots? Using an alien computer…" Phantom said, looking at Batman. "…Are you really human?"
Batman seemed annoyed by that question, especially since Phantom said that, since the boy was half-human.
"No!" suddenly, the controls exploded, sending Batman flying towards them. Wonder Woman managed to catch him before the screens showed Brainiac's symbol. "I will not let you lower lifeforms take control of me! I will destroy you all! Initiating SELF-DESTRUCT!"
Suddenly the symbol was replaced with something that looked like a timer, with alien symbols. Hawkgirl and the red-haired girl gasped before she started saying something in a panicking tone.
"Is it bad?" Phantom asked, looking at the girl.
"We have five minutes until the place blows up," Hawkgirl explained.
"That's not so bad," Phantom said.
"And the asteroid will reach New Genesis in about five minutes," Batman said. "The shockwave and debris could destroy their city."
"Okay, it is bad," Phantom said, panicking a lot. "How are we gonna stop this!?"
"…We can't," Batman said to everyone, causing them to look at him with wide eyes. "Which is why I sent a message to High Father, to evacuate New Genesis. Now to have leave!"
"No!" Brainiac exclaimed, sounding angry. "You primitive peons will not escape me!"
Hawkgirl suddenly screamed as something shot her from behind. Phantom caught her before looking behind and saw some of the Brainiac bots trying to function. He fired at the one that shot Hawkgirl, destroying it.
"I will destroy yo-error!" Brainiac suddenly said as the screens started going haywire. "What is-error-happening! Scanning…Virus detected…Mnm/=gt893…Can not…80nt9r/h/…must purge…error…error…error…errrooorr!"
"What's going on?" Phantom asked, confused at what was happening.
"What did you do?" Wonder Woman asked, looking at Batman.
"I added a special computer virus in his systems when I was hacking him," Batman replied. "It won't destroy him, but it's enough to distract him."
"…Are you sure you're not an alien or something?" Phantom asked.
"Let's go, we don't have much time!" Batman said, ignoring Phantom, pulling out a Mother Box that he swiped from the orange-haired guy.
"Where'd you get that?" Phantom asked, only to be ignored again.
Batman opened a Boom Tube. Martian Manhunter took Hawkgirl and flew towards it. Phantom then turned to the girl, who looked afraid of entering the Boom Tube.
"C'mon!" he exclaimed, holding out a hand to her. "Let's go!"
The girl stared at him before grabbing his hand. The two then went through the Boom Tube. Wonder Woman was about to enter, when she noticed something.
"Where's Superman?" she asked, noticing that he was missing. Batman looked around before he frowned.
"That idiot!" he said before running off. "Go on ahead! I'll get him."
Wonder Woman was about to protest, but he was already running. She looked at him worriedly before jumping through the Boom Tube.
Few Minutes Earlier…
Orion smashed Darkseid through the walls, causing them to end up in a circular hallway, the red color making it look like blood vessels. Darkseid swatted Orion away, causing him to roll on the ground. Orion tried to fight him, but Darkseid was just stronger than him.
"Orion, ever the disappointment," Darkseid said to the child he gave to High Father.
He suddenly saw someone standing on the other side of the hallway; Superman, his arms crossed and a frown on his face.
"In just a few minutes, Brainiac is going to explode," he said calmly. "And guess what; you're going with him."
Darkseid looked at him before grabbing the Mother Box on Orion, only for a red laser to destroy it. Surprised, Darkseid glared at Superman.
"No, Darkseid," Superman said. "To get off this rock, you have to go through me."
Darkseid gave him an amused look, like an adult humoring a foolish child.
"You really are a glutton for punishment," he said. "Time and again I have bested you, humiliated you. What makes this so different?"
"Because this time, I won't stop until you're just a greasy smear on my fist," Superman said, uncrossing his arm. "Let's go."
Darkseid fired his Omega Beams at Superman, who dodged and flew towards Darkseid, both fists raised. He rammed his fists to Darkseid's gut before throwing a combo punch to Darkseid's face before a massive uppercut to the jaw. Darkseid growled before throwing a punch, which Superman dodged and grabbed Darkseid's neck to a sleeper hold. Darkseid struggled to get free before his eyes glowed. He then fired an Omega Beam, which curved upwards before hitting Superman on the back, causing him to let go.
Darkseid took the chance to escape before punching Superman on the face three times before delivering an uppercut that sent the Kryptonian flying a few feet away from Darkseid. Superman slowly sat up, recovering, until a shadow towered over him.
"It's time for another lesson in humility, boy," Darkseid said as he grabbed Superman by the face before smashing him to the walls, before running through the halls, scrapping his back, before slamming him to the other wall. He then grabbed Superman by the shirt and started slapping him on the face with enough force to shatter a boulder. After that, he slammed Superman to the ground before stepping on his face, like a cockroach.
"This is where you belong," Darkseid said as he grinded his boot, causing Superman to struggle as he tried to free himself. "On the bottom of my heel!"
Suddenly, Darkseid exclaimed in pain as red beams burst through his boot, causing him to step back from Superman, holding his foot in pain. Superman took the chance to jump back to his feet before punching the heck out of Darkseid. He kept punching the god with brutal force, not giving him a chance to retaliate. Then, with one devastating punch, he sent Darkseid through the air, scrapping through the ceiling before he fell to the ground, debris falling on him.
When the dust receded, Darkseid was pinned by the debris, black blood flowing through his nose, mouth and wounds. He slowly looked at Superman.
"Well?" he said, like how a nasty teacher said to a performing student. "What are you waiting for?"
Superman glared at him before walking towards, intending to end him once and for all. As he walked, Batman came running from behind. The Dark Knight was shocked at the destroyed hallway, before he saw an unconscious Orion, a pinned Darkseid and Superman.
"Superman!" Batman exclaimed, causing Superman to look at him.
"Go! I need to finish this!" Superman exclaimed as he turned back to Darkseid and started walking, only for Batman to grab his arm.
"Clark, don't be a fool!" Batman said, only to be swatted by Superman, causing him to hit the wall. He could feel that it almost broke his right arm.
"Get out of here, now!" Superman said before walking back to Darkseid.
Batman narrowed his eyes on him before he pulled out the Mother Box. And, without warning, he jumped on Superman's back and opened a Boom Tube, which was strong enough to pull Superman in.
"NOOOOooooo!" Superman exclaimed as he was pulled in the Boom Tube, along with the unconscious Orion. He was so close to finally getting payback, just a few steps away, only to be taken from him.
Darkseid watched them fly in the Boom Tube before it disappeared. He then gave a smirk.
"Heh…Loser."
Suddenly, the entire place exploded.
New Genesis…
Everyone was resting near a lake on the planet, New Genesis. The floating city was destroyed, but they managed to evacuate all of the people living there, thanks to the 'bugs' living below them. High Father expressed his gratitude to them for saving the children.
Superman, however, stared at the dark sky, seeing the remnants of Brainiac's destroyed asteroid, feeling bitter, even if the people of New Genesis survived. He heard Batman walk behind him, but he didn't turn.
"No one could survive that, Clark," Batman said. "Not even Darkseid."
"You know what, Bruce," Superman said, turning to face the Dark Knight with a glare. "You're not always right."
With that, he walked away from Batman, who just watched him go, not making a move to stop him.
Meanwhile, Hawkgirl was watching the children thanking the ones who saved them, who were happy to finally have a place among the ones they viewed as gods. She had a melancholy look on her face as she watched them.
"You alright, Hawkgirl?" Phantom asked as he applied first-aid on her wound. He had experience applying first-aid to himself whenever he was injured.
"Yeah," she said, still looking at the scene. "Just wondering…when I'll find my place in the world."
"You already have," Phantom said with a grin. She looked at him before returning the grin with a smile.
"So, who's your Tamaranean friend?" Hawkgirl asked, remembering the girl.
"Tamarind?" Phantom asked, confused.
"She didn't tell you?" she asked, surprised.
"Tell me? I can't even understand her," Phantom explained with a shrug.
"You mean…she hasn't done that yet?"
"Done what?"
Their conversation was interrupted when the girl floated towards them, calling Phantom, at least, he thought she was calling him.
"Hey, what's wrong?" Phantom asked. "You need somet-."
He suddenly felt something soft and warm touch his lips as red filled his vision. He blinked a few minutes before he realized that the girl was kissing him. It took him a few seconds to finally react how a normal would in his position; running backwards, stammering gibberish, face red. He kept running back until he tripped on a rock, sending him on his back.
"Are you alright?" a voice said, causing him to look at the unfamiliar voice. He saw the girl looking at him worriedly. "I hope I did not hurt you."
"You…You can talk!?" Phantom said, surprised.
"Yes," the girl said with a nod. "My people can learn languages through lip contact."
"O-oh…I see…" Phantom said, still red in the face. He then turned to Hawkgirl, who smirked at him. "So…Um…my name's Danny. Danny Phantom. N-nice to meet you."
"Greetings," she said with a small smile. "I am Koriand'r, but in your language, it is Starfire. I want to thank you, for rescuing me."
"Uh…You're welcome," Phantom said as he stood up. He then saw the sad look on Starfire's face. "Hey, what's wrong?"
"I…Have no place to go," she replied sadly. "My home planet has been destroyed by the Brainiac…my people are either gone or lost…I am alone."
"Well, you can come live with us on Earth," Phantom suggested, causing Starfire to look at him.
"Are you certain that is allowed?" she asked.
"Why not?" Phantom said with a shrug. "A lot of aliens seems to be living on Earth. Though we have to find a place for you to settle in."
"She can live with me," Hawkgirl said, getting their attention. "I've met a few Tamaraneans before. She'll be fine with me."
"Thank you," Starfire said with a small smile.
Phantom grinned before looking at the sky. The space dust caused by Brainiac's asteroid looked strangely beautiful on this alien planet.
And that concludes the chapter. First of all, I am sorry for the loooong delay. It's just that, I have Summer School. It's hard to learn study chapters a day, have projects every two weeks with little time, and studying for tests every two weeks. But now it's over, though class starts at August 21, so that's a bummer. I've also started playing Crash Bandicoot; N Sane Trilogy, so there's that.
Well, with apologies out of the way, I just want to say that I hope I did a fair job with the chapter. I decided to make it a little different from the show. Since Danny is half-ghost, that might gain Darkseid's interest, involving the Anti-Life Equation. I have very big plans for that idea.
Also, in this story, Tamaran was destroyed by Brainiac, and Starfire might be the sole survivor. Just thought that was an interesting idea. Wonder what she'll do on Earth, with Hawkgirl.
Also, I have reach 700 hundred reviews and 900 favs! That's awesome! If this keeps up, I might reach a thousand! That would be the biggest accomplishment I'll receive since joining the website. I want to thank you all for your support.
Anyway, since I have like 50 reviews per chapter, I decided that maybe a review reply isn't for this story. I love doing that, believe me, but answering 30 questions, and half of them are repetitive, that it just gives me a sore neck, so I might stop doing this. Sorry. I'm just making life a little easier for me.
Well, next chapter, another Batman and Phantom adventure. I said another, since there was one, possibly two, chapters involving these two. Look forward to it. See you later!