AN: Woah, this was hard. Had a lot of ideas I had to fit in here! We finally meet the now Emperor Zod. I don't know how comic accurate he is, but I do want a unique spin on him. Please tell me how you feel, and don't forget to review! Please stay safe and healthy my friends! Expect more content soon now that I have three weeks off because of the virus.
A soft, deep breathing was the only sound that could be heard in the white room. Barely audible, soft and labored and almost serene, Oliver Queen lie motionless. His chest barely budged, the heart monitor beside his bed the only clear sign he was even alive.
His survival had been a miracle, if they were being honest. What they did to him on that station…Kara's fists clenched just thinking about it. She knew that Zod and his army were bad, had seen what they'd done to Krypton but this? All the scars they left on him, the burns and the cuts? They say seeing is believing, and Kara finally believed it to be true.
She hadn't really left his side since they brought him here eight hours ago. It felt wrong, she had been tasked to bring him here safely and she wouldn't feel comfortable until he was awake, until he was okay. She took a second to let her eyes scan the young man who got dropped into a world that he had absolutely no reason to be involved in.
He was attractive, she had to admit. He clearly took care of his body, he was well built and clearly exercised and kept his body in really good shape and…she shook her head. That was wrong, on so many levels. Did she really just say all that? Her eyes went to his face, and if she were able to look past the bruises and scars he almost looked peaceful for the first time.
She heard the door to the room open, and in walked Mon-El. He took the seat next to her, draping his arm over her shoulder. She instinctively leaned her head on his shoulder, eyes drifting from his body to the heart monitor.
"Hey," he whispered, kissing her head. "You should get some sleep."
She shook her head softly, although the mention of sleep did remind her body of just how drained it was. "I should be here when he wakes up."
"Kara, you've done enough," he chided gently. "He'll still be here if you take some time to rest. Why do you even care so much?"
She couldn't believe Mon-El even had to ask that question. Why did she care? Because he was a person, and he had experienced what looked like the worst hell imaginable and she wanted to be there, needed to be there to help him if she could! "Mon, look at him. He's been through hell, and I just… I want to be there for him. I know what it's like to lose family…"
He nodded in response, but she didn't really feel convinced. He seemed…tense, for some reason. She didn't get it, but frankly she was too tired to press further. "I'm not leaving, Mon."
"Then neither am I," he smiled, although it didn't fully reach his eyes.
Just because she wasn't leaving didn't mean she couldn't drift off a bit. Just for a few minutes, she told herself as she shut her eyes.
"Live, my boy, and go home…I am so sorry, my boy."
Oliver's eyes shot open, panic setting into his every cell. "DAD!" He screamed, flinging his body forward, ignoring the shooting pain in his…everywhere. Quickly, his eyes darted around the room, trying to make some sense of where the hell he was and what the hell was going on.
He spotted two figures, both seated in chairs near the bed he was laying in, both looking startled. It looked like he had just woken them up from their sleep or something. One was a dark haired male, taller and lean but clearly he was in good shape. And next to him sat a woman, long blonde hair and green eyes. Had he seen her back in Starling he'd already be hitting on her, she was definitely his type.
But he wasn't in Starling. He wasn't anywhere he knew, he was trapped and stuck and his Dad was dead and so many other people too and he was tortured and oh GOD he was tortured and all of it was just way too much.
"Hey," the woman said softly, standing up and raising her hands in a gesture of peace. "We're not here to hurt you. We're friends, we rescued you from Kaiross Station, remember? You're safe here."
"Who the hell are you?" He questioned, inching away from her and as far back on the bed as he could get. "What's going on? Where am I?"
"My name is Kara Zor-El. This is Mon-El. We are fighters for the Insurgency against Emperor Zod, and this is our base. Our leader, Jor-El, had us nurse you back to health. You're really hurt, you should try to relax and not move too much. You've been out for almost a whole day."
The second he heard the name Jor-El he stopped listening, his brain too focused on the drive in his pants. Jor-El, that's who his dad had sent him to give it to. His Dad's last request…
He was gonna honor this one. God knows he'd failed to honor most of his father's wishes, but he'd be damned if he failed to honor this one.
"Jor-El. I have information for him, I need to talk to him."
"You need to rest, I could just take it to him-"
"NO!" Oliver countered. "Jor-El's eyes only, that's what I was told. I'll only give it to him."
Their eyes met, and he refused to back down. Not on this. After a moment that felt like an eternity she sighed, shaking her head. "Follow us."
Five men stood around the arena, decked head to toe in deep black armor. Spikes protruded from their armored shoulders, deep metal designed to cause terror in dread in all who looked. Their faces were completely obscured in helmets with intricate carvings. Every detail about them was meticulously crafted to utilize the greatest weapon against a foe: fear.
It was a weapon that the imposing Emperor Zod knew like the back of his hand. The once General Zod was no slouch, and his physique demonstrated that. A large man both in height and mass, he towered over most other people and had a body chiseled out of granite.
Zod smirked, a menacing and deadly grin, nodding his head for them to let the challengers in. Three people were ushered in, chained and bound and ravenous. Aliens from across the galaxy who made the foolish mistake of breaking the rules on HIS planet.
Trials by Combat always had a way of making the day more fun. Zod cracked his knuckles, staring down his three newest victims. One was an absolutely massive alien. Two giant horns protruded from the sides of its head, light yellow and winding. His body was covered in rough green scales, and a set of light green spikes ran down its spine. Three talons protruded from his hands, sharp and deadly.
The next was a scrawny thing, barely above five feet with alabaster white skin. Two antennae jutted out from above its eyes, surrounded by the wisps of silver hair that fell around its wrinkled face.
The third prison was a dark-skinned humanoid, with a multitude of scars littering his face. His hair was a mess of tangled dreadlocks pulled back, and an eye patch covered his left eye.
"Welcome, prisoners, to your one chance at freedom. You have broken our laws, defied the basic principles of our society, but I also see something else: potential. Potential to earn your freedom in service of the crown. Of me. But, I do not settle for ineffective tools. So, prove your worth."
And with that, they charged. The reptile rushed first, lifting its arms in the air and trying to slam them down on him. He sidestepped easily, slamming his left fist into its side. It let out a roar, swinging its arms in a wide arc. Zod ducked, grabbing its face and slamming his knee into its nose.
This is when the white skinned alien got involved, pulling a pipe off the wall with its mind and throwing it at Zod at intense speeds. A telekinetic, he mused with a smirk. Good start. He grinned, standing his ground and catching the pipe, stopping it dead in its tracks in a feat of strength. He pulled back, throwing the pipe as hard as he could and it flew through the air piercing the alien in the gut.
How disappointing, he rolled his eyes and sighed. The dark skinned human rushed in, throwing a right hook directed at Zod's face. He ducked, throwing his foot out in a low kick to his thigh. The man blocked the kick with his shin, spinning and aiming a kick at Zod's gut. He caught the foot, however, slamming his elbow down and shattering the leg. A sickening crack echoed throughout the small arena, followed by a wail of pain as the man stepped back with is hand on his now broken leg.
Zod pressed the advantage, rushing forward and leaping in the air before rearing back and sending a vicious punch to the face of the man, eliciting another crunch from his bones. The man fell onto his back, hands clutching his now clearly shattered nose. Weak. He raised his foot, clearly intending to finish him once and for all with a head stomp when a large fist collided with his spine, sending him flying across the room.
Zod turned around, rage glowing in his eyes as he stared down the reptile, that was now letting out a roar before charging forward. Zod charged forward as well, letting out a roar. When the two monsters were mere inches apart Zod dropped down, sliding between the alien's legs. He spun, kicking it behind the knee to get it to fall down. He then jumped up to his feet, raising his elbow high and slamming it down onto the back of its skull, knocking it out.
Zod placed his boot down on the back of the alien's neck, reaching down and grabbing both of its horns. Then, he started pulling. A sickening popping sound rang out as he wrenched the horns, prying them off the alien's unconscious skull. With a violent crack they were free, blood and brain matter flying everywhere in a beautiful display of carnage, Zod roaring in a powerful rage as he held his knew trophies in the air.
His soldiers remained in their place, impassively standing guard. The only one who reacted to this display bloodshed was the dark skinned man, who stared in panic before scooting back as Zod approached, a menacing grin gracing his features.
"Please, I'm sorry, I can be useful I swear, please don't kill me," the man pleaded, raising his hands in a desperate bid for survival.
Not saying a word, Zod raised the horns above his head and slammed them both down onto his head over and over again, a splatter of blood flying into his face with each hit.
"My Lord Emperor," a voice sounded out, and Zod slammed the horns once more down, leaving an unrecognizable pile of mush and brain matter where his head used to be as he turned to see who would DARE interrupt him. He turned to see one of his prized General's, Non.
"What is it, Non?" Zod growled out, taking a towel from a guard and cleaning off some of the gore. "If you couldn't tell, I'm busy. As you should be, you have a station to run."
"That is why I am here, Emperor," Non said. "Do you remember the report about the criminal Robert Queen, and the information he stole from the Demon's Head and planned to give our enemies?"
"Yes," Zod replied with a scoff. "I told you to handle it."
"And I did, sir," Non replied. "But there has been a…complication. We blew the ship up, but an escape pod escaped at the last second. We tractor beamed it into our station, and attempted to extract the information from the one man inside the pod. Unfortunately, the Insurgents broke aboard the station and freed him before we could get it out of him."
Zod stared at him in shock, taking a second to process the information he heard. Then, with a roar, his fist slammed into the General's gut. "You mean to tell me that Insurgents broke onto the single most defensible fortress we have, and extracted the most important prisoner we have held there, all under your watch? Give me one reason not to kill you now!"
"Sir," he groaned out, getting to his feet. "Allow me to hunt these Insurgents and bring in the prisoner myself. I will make up for this failure."
"No," he shook his head. "Astra will hunt them. You will remain on Kaiross Station, as far away from me as physically possible, and earn your life. Now, get out of my sight."
Zod let out a sigh, mentally cursing his luck. Just when he had the fools on the run, when he could finally show Jor-El how foolish it was to deny his ascension, this had to happen.
"Send the next batch in."
Jor-El was a man of presence. He didn't look too impressive, honestly he looked just like any other dad if Oliver had to properly describe him, but something about him just made you listen and need to respect him. His salt and pepper hair and bushy beard didn't really scream resistance leader either, but here he was.
"So, you're Oliver Queen, Robert's boy? He talked quite a bit about you," Jor-El began, his deep baritone reminding Oliver of his own father. "The galaxy is dimmer now for his passing, and I am sorry for your loss.
"Probably nothing good, then," he muttered, shaking his head and sighing. "Thank you. My dad gave me this for you." Oliver reached into his pants, grabbing the drive and handing it to the man.
"From my understanding, you took quite the punishment to get this here. The people of Krypton are in your debt, young man. We will get you home as soon as we can, but truly thank you."
"No," he spoke before he thought, shaking his head. "I'm not going home. Not until I've done something more…helped your fight. My whole life, I lived for me and only me. And now? My dad died thinking I'm a lazy, selfish child who wasn't worth it. I want to honor his memory, and he wanted to help you. So, here I am." Besides, that asshole on that station deserved some payback for what he put Oliver through. But he wasn't gonna mention that.
"Are you sure, boy?" He questioned, raising an eyebrow. "There are other ways to honor his legacy without risking your life. He wanted you to live."
"If I just leave, go home seeing how your people struggle and need help, how could I ever live with myself? How could I pretend to be any better than I was before? I want to help, I want to fight."
"Well, then," Jor-El smiled, patting him on the shoulder. "Your training starts tomorrow."
"This is insane, sir," Diggle protested, shaking his head. "You want me to fly to Krypton, a military dictatorship in the middle of a civil war, in an attempt to find two men?"
"This isn't just about the Queens, Diggle," Chief Lance said. "There were six hundred people on that cruiser, and we owe it to their families to find out what happened to those people, and either bring them home or give them closure."
He sighed shaking his head. He knew Quentin was right, but still. He was not looking forward to this.
"You were a soldier, Diggle. Never leave a man behind if you can bring them home."
"When do I leave?"
"As soon as possible. I want you on a ship at eight AM in three days. Is that enough time?"
"More than enough, sir," Diggle nodded. "I'll be there." The investigator turned his head, turning around to leave.
"And Diggle? Before you go, know that I appreciate. You're the best investigator we got, and I'm gonna miss having ya around. Come home in one piece, or I'll whoop your ass. Dismissed."
Diggle smirked, shaking his head and leaving. His captain was an interesting man. Now, time to prep for a flight.
Kara found him standing out on the balcony, overlooking the sprawling mountains illuminated by the red sun setting over the horizon. He looked…tortured. His eyes carried the weight of someone who'd been through tragedy, a soul with the fire snuffed out of it. She knew it well, it was the same look she saw in the mirror.
"Hey," she said softly, standing a small distance away from him. "I heard you're joining up with our cause. It'll be good to have you. But, how're you doing? I'm sorry about your dad. We're all here for you, if you need anything."
He turned to her, looking at her, and she saw one single tear in his eye that he quickly wiped away.
"I…thanks…" he said quietly, turning back. It was clear he had a lot on his mind, but just had no idea how to deal with it. It was at this moment, seeing him appearing so broken, that she swore she would do whatever she had to to help him.
"I lost my parents, too, to this war," she leaned against the railing next to him. "I've been fighting for years, since I was twelve. It's hard, we've had to lose people. But we're a family. I wouldn't have gotten through it without Uncle Jor-El, or my sister Alex, or my friends."
He stayed silent for a minute. "I have a sister, too. She's ten right now, ten years younger than me. Her name is Thea. I…she and dad were so close, this is going to destroy her. I wish I could be there, wish I was a better brother to her. Wish I had been better for all of them…"
"We can't go back, Oliver. Only forward. It's never too late to be better, and you're already starting."
"I hope so…" he sighed, and the two entered a comfortable silence.
This would be harder than she thought.