Chapter 6: Heavy Metal

TOKYO
FEBRUARY 14, 13:30 UTC+9

The almost innumerable skyscrapers could mark the base of Olympus itself, Wonder Woman thought as she flew into the capital of Japan. She hoped that the Appellaxian that was attacking here wouldn't be too difficult to face, but she knew this threat was bigger than any she had faced before and it was oddly unnerving for the Amazon heroine. Despite this, it felt good to her to be working with others who shared a cause with her, and her allies were men who did not underestimate women.

I wonder, what could we do for the world together?, the Amazon princess thought as she neared the Shibuya district of Tokyo. Surprisingly, there was damage primarily in that area much the same as the other locations where the Appellaxians had attacked. The Japanese military was mobilized to fight, but at the moment, there was no sign of the creature behind this ruin.

Wonder Woman landed atop a communications building to wait when a few seconds later, a grinding, resounding screech knocked against her eardrums. And then she saw the Appellaxian tearing its way through Japan, and her eyes widened in real surprise. She breathed, "What in the name of the gods?!"

It could be said that Wonder Woman's surprise was justified, for the Appellaxian giant menacing Tokyo was made of solid gold. It had a round head with a single red eye and it stood on two legs and had three claws on each foot. Surprisingly, the golden creature did not have arms but two enormous wings that could act as front limbs, and its body had a rounded chest and pelvis with a segmented abdomen. It was perched atop a skyscraper at the moment, glaring down at the military below like some huge bird of prey.

Wonder Woman began to fly slowly, analyzing the situation and waiting to see how the creature would strike. For a while, it didn't move, but then it began beating its great wings. They beat faster and still faster until an overpowering metallic ringing filled the air. Suddenly, the golden monster took to the air, its high frequency causing several buildings to shatter as it passed.

Now was Wonder Woman's chance and she took it. She flew up behind the golden creature and struck it in the back of the head, causing it to sail into the street and come to a halt.

When the golden creature rose up, it turned around to find Wonder Woman hovering before its glinting face.

"Leave the innocent in peace, giant!" she cried.

The golden creature let out a metallic screech in reply and began to beat its wings once more. Once it was in the air, it came at Wonder Woman intending to smite her down. Sadly, the creature's lack of arms was of no help to her, for Wonder Woman was hit by its left wing as she readied herself to strike and she ended up sailing into the rubble of a skyscraper that had been shattered in two by the golden being's wings.

Wonder Woman wasn't too badly injured, but her ribs ached in her chest and she could feel the vibrations in her insides. Nevertheless, she flew after the creature and used her magic lasso to pull it to a stop. The monster struggled mightily, but the lasso did not even split a thread, for it was so strong that no physical strength could release its hold.

Thinking quickly, Wonder Woman began spinning the golden Appellaxian around until she slung it into the sky, whereon the lasso released its grip. That's when Wonder Woman took off and attacked the golden creature with her bare hands. She dealt several punches to its face and chest and even tried kicking it across the sky. Her attacks were swift and fierce and the golden monster received several dents in its metal hide. Despite Wonder Woman's valiant efforts, the dents soon filled, and the creature shrieked at her once more.

Then Wonder Woman got a really bad surprise. The golden giant began beating its wings so the air around it was stressed and becoming more disturbed by the second. Not willing to waste a second, Wonder Woman flew to strike another blow at it, but this proved to be a mistake. The monster spread its wings wide and released a concentrated sonic blast. It hit Wonder Woman in the chest and blasted her straight into Tokyo Tower.

As she got to her feet, the unrelenting heroine shook her head to clear out the ringing in her ears, and then she flew back to face the golden giant. But this time, she wasn't going to let it catch her unawares.

The moment she was looking into its one eye, Wonder Woman struck the creature upside the head, which caused it to stumble back for a moment, then she landed more blows on the golden monster's chest and back. She then bound it with her magic lasso and slung the monster into the air before dealing punches to its wings. The battle took at least forty minutes, but in the end, the golden giant gave a screech of defeat and flew out of Tokyo.

Wonder Woman watched the creature leave, making sure that it did not return for another attack, then saluted the soldiers below her before departing Tokyo herself for the United States. Hopefully, she would meet with the others and they could share the tales of their success.


CAIRO
FEBRUARY 14, 7:12 UTC+2

Aquaman reached the Mediterranean Sea in less than three hours, and he wasn't a moment too early, for he could see the beginnings of destruction in Cairo already. Thinking quickly, the king of Atlantis swam into the Nile Delta and entered the city. He searched for the Appellaxian that had begun its part of the conquest here and for a while had no luck, but then he heard a roar that sounded like boiling liquid and saw the hostile being tearing its way through the city.

To Aquaman's shock, this Appellaxian was made of mercury. Unlike the other aliens, this elemental creature was a mass of liquid metal with only its head and arms discernible. It had deep gray eyes and a mouth that resembled a small cavern. Its form was surprisingly contained, but the danger was still real and had to be stopped.

That creature's form is harmful, Aquaman recalled. I'd best keep a safe distance. But I can't use water against it as its mercury form would poison the Nile and cause health problems throughout the Sahara.

With that in mind, Aquaman used his trident to raise himself up on a waterspout. He got high enough above the mercury creature for the waterspout's shadow to fall over it. The creature merely turned its metallic head around to look at him, and Aquaman shouted, "Have at thee, alien creature!"

He used the waterspout to set himself on land, then released a blast of mystic energy from his trident. To his utter surprise, the mercury giant parted its body so the beam went through it harmlessly.

Aquaman tried the same attack three more times, but he learned that this Appellaxian would be more difficult to handle than the others. Knowing he needed a new plan, Aquaman decided to lure the creature away from the river and try a different tactic.

Aquaman tried to lure the mercury giant away from the Nile by drawing it across the bridge that linked Cairo to Giza. His tactic was successful and they were now where Aquaman could fight the monster without anyone else getting hurt. Now the matter concerning him was how to deal with the mercury monster.

He aimed his trident at the creature's dribbling face, and this time he scored a hit. The mercurial creature seemed to recoil from the magic beam, but it dodged the second attack and then came at him like a metallic mudflow.

Nimbly avoiding the monster's deadly touch, Aquaman tried to strike with his trident again, only for the mercury giant to rear up and let out its gurgling roar. Then it began hurling globs of liquid metal at the Atlantean hero, intending to smother him in its toxic substance.

Knowing that he was running out of options, Aquaman decided to use his trident's power to give the mercury giant a taste of its natural temperature-sensitivity.

As the torrential alien giant came at him, Aquaman used his trident to create a whirl of water and spun it around his head. Then another movement of his only weapon turned the water into a frigid blast of cold. It hit the mercury giant full in the face and spread over its form, and the dripping metal from its body became hard as stone. It was instantly frozen stiff as a board, but a split second later, the moisture burst into flame and enveloped the mercurial giant in a rush of fire and steam.

The metallic alien gave a bubbling, hissing shriek as it tried to beat the flames off its body to no effect. Then it dove into the sand to put out the flames and began tunneling under the desert floor for a few minutes while Aquaman stood ready in case the creature went for another attack.

Finally, the mercury monster shot from the sand with the awesome force of a geyser. The flames were out, but the burning feeling had clearly left it unwilling to continue the battle. Before Aquaman could react, the giant shifted into a bubble of mercury and flew off into the sky.

Aquaman swam up the Nile towards Cairo to ensure that there would be no further harm or damage. Luck was clearly on his side, for the mercurial being did not return, but simply flew over the Mediterranean and away from Egypt.

"Excellent!" Aquaman cheered. "Now to meet with the others at the Batcave and prepare the next course of action!"


A/N: Flash and Martian Manhunter will be up soon. While I'm working on the next chapter, you'll see my first Disney fanfictions appearing as well. They'll be one-shots, but they'll hopefully be just as invigorating as the stories I have up now.

Feel free to rate and review, and as always, have fun reading!