Before Parasite could finish draining the last of Supergirl's life-force, it was struck with a series of powerful missiles exploding on impact. The creature grunted, staggering on its feet, its astral tendrils releasing Supergirl dropping her to the ground. The woman collapsed unconscious thirty feet away from an equally unconscious Dreamer, her sister's voice still shouting through her earpiece. Parasite ignored the superheroes, turning its head towards the source of the missiles.
"target hit but ineffective" Maxwell Davies reported, speaking to his engineering crew over the microphone hooked to his headset as his green eyes analysed the view screen in front of him. The image displayed the monster standing in the middle of the park glaring back at him, its face contorting in a snarl. A series of other screens and icons flashed around his HUD, confirming the assortment of other weapons ready along with the five other missiles still loaded. His silver hair was tied back so not to obscure his view, his face bathed in red and blue light. "Analysis the subject, thorough scan" he ordered, getting a computerised affirmation as a ridicule appeared around the monster scanning him.
The Samaritan stepped forward into the clearing approaching the monster, its hulking metal amour grinding with each mechanical step as gears spun and slotted into place. the red and blue plating reflected the midday sun as it came to a stop twenty feet in front of it, the large domed helmet fixing it's gaze on the alien, it's large metal S emblazoned prominently on its front. It shared all the hallmarks of Lex Luthor's battle suit in its design, with a few of Maxwell's own personal addition to maximise its efficiency. Inside he wore a skin-tight nanoweave outfit that was both comfortable and capable of syncing with the suits sensors so he could manoeuvre and control its exoskeleton easier and track any damage sustained. His engineered warned about adding pain sensors should the suit be damaged and talked him down to just shocks just so he knew when and where the impact occurred. It gave him an almost symbiotic relationship with his technology, a second skin he called it.
Maxwell Davies arrived on the scene after receiving the report over the police scanner, immediately jumping into his suit and prepping his field crew flying out of their base at TITAN Industries towards the park. By the time he got here Dreamer was already incapacitated and Supergirl was being restrained by the creature. He loaded two missiles into his wrist gauntlet and launched them at the purple alien, stunning it into letting the hero go. Now with both of National City's best out of action it was up to the Samaritan to protect the city.
"Status" he called over his radio.
"DOD confirms the alien subject known as parasite" the voice of his researcher and liaison at TITAN reported back in his ear. "Class a threat, capable of absorbing the life force of living beings. Also able to assume the powers of metahumans it comes in contact with."
"Switch the shielding to maximum" he suggested, his suit responding at his voice command as a bar filled on the left side of his view. His suit would prevent this monster from coming into physical contact with him, but the analysis also indicated that it would now have the abilities of both Dreamer and Supergirl. Out of view of his team, Maxwell smiled. He always wanted to see how this suit faired against someone as strong as Supergirl.
Sure enough, Parasite proved that indication true when twin beams of heat vision shot from its eyes towards him. Maxwell braced himself for the impact and was hit by the beam, his suit digging its feet into the ground as he pushed against it. Maxwell felt sweat fall down his face as his HUD measured the internal temperature rising. The beam halted when he twisted his wrist, the small energy cannon folding out of the arm firing a bolt of blue plasma at the alien knocking it back. The heat cut out and Maxwell was left standing with his suit on the verge of overheating. He read the internal temperature, making a note to his engineers; "look into auto cooling systems and ventilation."
With the Samaritan otherwise undamaged Maxwell walked forward engaging the parasite. The beast roared charging at him, leaping off the ground as if propelled to fly. Maxwell tracked its trajectory easily and dodged out the way at the last moment, avoiding the powerful fist that made a crater in the ground next to him. He swung back with his metal fist, the punch cracking Parasite across the skull only staggering it. "Shit, how much was that?" he asked his computer.
"At twelve percent velocity, the impact was met with the resistance equal to the toughness of an Abram's tank" was his response. The monster was as durable as Supergirl after all.
"Increase the velocity to eighteen percent" he ordered, following up with a second punch to its gut that succeeded in launching it across the park. Thrusted fired from his back and feet launching his forwards, but Parasite was already on its feet and ready as it caught his swing. They became locked in battle pushing against each other's might, Parasite several inches taller than the Samaritan until it's astral form grew to twice the size over him roaring in his face.
"Analysis confirms astral projections only mimic the available mass and power of the subject" his crew reported. Which meant despite the size parasites strength never once increased.
Maxwell slowly increased the power in his suit to compensate, the lock turning in his favour until Parasite blasted him in the helmet with another beam of heat vision. Maxwell grimaced as the inside of his suit heated up, barking at order to his HUD; "Strobe lights!"
Outside the Samaritan's chest suddenly lit up with a hundred volts of energy, the flash blinding parasite temporarily cancelling his heat vision. Maxwell used the advantage to throw the monster over his head and smash him into the ground and pummel him. It lashed out with astral tendrils that wrapped around his suit, trying to rip the armour plating away and slither inside. He retracted a blade from his right arm and cut them off, stabbing into the creature causing it to wail and throw him off. Maxwell landed on the ground with a thud grunt from the impact sensors running up his backside. "Suit integrity" he asked.
"Still functioning and optimal" they replied.
He returned to his feet and found the monster stumbling towards the edge of the clearing, seeking escape and more sources to feed. He held up his left arm and fired a grappling hook catching its leg, yanking it to the ground and dragging it back to him to continue fighting. He spun around and roared, unleashing an astral blast from its mouth that sent the Samaritan flying across the park. He caught his footing and slid backwards to a stop by the trees, his ears ringing from the blast. He made another note to look into sound dampeners. When he looked up he found parasite floating from the ground and flying into the air. He activated his thrusters and gave chase.
"Analysis?" Maxwell asked as they rose over the park.
"Analysis complete" his HUD replied, logging the encounter and data collected.
He nodded, telling his crew he was ending the threat and to alert the surrounding police department and air traffic control. He increased the thrusters and caught up to the monster, his flying sluggish reminding him to update the flight controls.
Parasite looked back and saw him gaining, turning around and unleashing a torrent of frost breath at him. The Samaritan was coated in ice as the gears started to freeze up, but this was one contingency Maxwell was prepared for as he engaged the internal radiators to melt the frost and keep the machines from locking. He pushed through the attack and grabbed parasite around the throat.
He activated a protocol as a spike sprang from his hand, stabbing it into the creatures side listening to it scream in pain. A progress bar lit up on his right and he waited for the extraction to finish before switching it to another setting. Inside his gauntlet a container was attached to the spike before he detached the wrist, increasing his suits power level to throw the monster as high and as far into orbit as he could. Parasite rocketed into the stratosphere roaring as Maxwell fell back to earth, monitoring the monster's journey while he safely landed his suit back in the park. Once he was on the ground and it was clear of another potential fallout, he ordered the contents to release.
In the sky, the container attached to the spike lit up as the plutonium stored within was injected through the spike into the alien. It instinctively fed on the new source of energy and became stronger, but was forced to continue absorbing it once it reached its capacity. Overfed and overloaded with energy, Parasite started glowing bright purple roaring and screaming before exploding in a ball of violet light. Down below everyone saw the monster explode, safely out of range of the potential fallout. In the DEO, Brainy monitored the explosion confirming the alien was destroyed, much to everyone's relief.
"Status?" Maxwell asked, his helmet filtering out the blinding light so he could watch the explosion.
"Detonation successful" his crew reported. "Plutonium levels are at acceptable range. The fallout radius outside of populated areas. The alien threat has been eradicated."
He sighed in relief, running a diagnostic on his suit while he talked. "Have the DOD been notified?" he asked.
"Yes sir. And a copy of the Samaritan's performance is already being sent to their liaison."
"Excellent" he grinned. "Make a note of all the damage sustained, no matter how minor. And tell engineering I have a few things we need to go over. The ride was rather rocky when I got into the air. And I'm starting to see their point about the sensors in the controls. I'll accept their recommendation to remove them."
"Understood sir" they reported.
He turned around and checked the park, his HUD locating the two unconscious superheroes nearby. He ordered his HUD to perform medical scans once he reached the body of Supergirl lying on her side, gently rolling her over examining the pain and shrunken skin. "Condition?" he asked.
"Heartrate detected. Breathing patterns sporadic. Condition: critical."
"Recommendation?"
"Immediate medical attention."
"Recommendation for kryptonian physiology" he corrected. "Use DOD supplied database."
"Searching…kyptonian species absorb solar energy, their powers enhanced through yellow sun radiation. Recommend solar lamp protocol."
"Engage" he ordered, taking Supergirl in his arms and holding her in front of his suit. The S on his chest hummed and began radiating a yellow glow, focusing the lamp onto Supergirl's face and chest. He kept the scans running monitoring her condition, alerting the emergency services that paramedics will be needed.
After a few minutes Supergirl started move, colour returning to her skin as her body soaked up the yellow sun energy. Her breathing grew stronger and her energy refilled, her strength slowly returning enough for her to open her eyes. She looked up through a daze and found the towering red and blue mech cradling her, its visor looking down at her blankly. "What..?" she croaked, her voice still struggling to speak.
Maxwell checked her vital signs and was happy to find them strong, disengaging his HUD to retract the helmet into the suit. He revealed his face to Supergirl to put her at ease, assuring her everything was okay. "The threat has been dealt with. The city is safe" he told her.
The news helped her relax a little, her senses coming into focus as her hearing confirmed that parasite was gone. But when she turned her head and saw Dreamer on the ground she squirmed out of his grasp, stumbling towards her friend. Maxwell followed her and helped her to Dreamer's side, her condition slowly deteriorating. "Paramedics are on the way" Maxwell told her as she knelt by the hero's side, worrying over her friend's condition.
Nia groaned from the disorientation as her consciousness dragged itself back into her body, her head spinning like she was in a blender. She tried to move her arms, the motion sluggish like moving through syrup. She rolled onto her stomach, her face falling into the dirt making her cough. Her body seemed to ache, her muscles weak straining to push herself up from the floor. She cursed herself for being so reckless. Kara tried to warn her and she didn't listen. That thing got her because she leapt in blindly. She hoped Kara was alright, wondered where the monster was. She tried to listen for them, her senses muddled and muted. She couldn't seem to hear anyone, her vision fuzzy and a blur. Her sense of touch was heightened though, feeling the dirt stick to her face as she picked herself up from the floor. Her hands felt the uneven ground beneath her, the muddy texture slick underneath her fingers.
Wait, I thought I was in the grassy park?
She forced her eyes to focus and looked down, her vision clearing up as she found the ground wasn't grass or dirt; it was blood and flesh from the mass grave she was in.
She leapt back in terror, her strength miraculously returning to her as adrenaline raced through her bloodstream making her up. Or was she awake as she looked up at the choked sky, smoke rising from the horizon as the city burned in the distance. She panted heavily tasting the ash in there, her scrambling over the hundreds of corpses around her, all staring blankly back at her. She looked down at her body. She was in costume still, just like before she passed out. But now she'd woken up somewhere else. This wasn't the park, or National City. National City seemed to be in the distance, in every direction. Fire burned casting an orange glow into the smoke filled sky turning it soot black. The dead were men, women and children, aliens and humans clumped together in a landfill as far as she could see. How could she wake up to this?
No, I'm not awake she realised. I'm dreaming. I was knocked out and I'm having another dream, another vision. She took a deep breath and calmed down, following Jon's advice. If this was a vision, she had to stay calm. She couldn't panic. She needed to pay attention, every detail mattered. She thought about her sister, the one they always believed was going to become the Dreamer. She spent years studying dream interpretation. She'd be able to understand what she was seeing. Nia was left in the dark, but she had to try.
She looked at the bodies. She didn't recognise anyone. None of their friends, family, nobody she knew. Indiscriminate death, she thought. People and aliens are going to die. Hundreds of them. She looked at the horizon, National City on fire. The city burning, choking the air with smoke. The cities in danger, it has to be.
She finally heard something other than her own thoughts: sobbing. Weeping. She turned her head and found someone else amongst the dead with her, a young woman with her back to her. Nia gulped hesitantly before stepping forward. She had a good guess who this was even before she saw the red cape and blonde hair. She approached cautiously, stepping carefully across the corpses under their feet. "Kara?" she called out, her voice echoing through the silence.
Kara turned back in shock, alerted by the sound of her voice. She was in costume, her cheeks glistening with tears. Nia tried not to become shaken as she forced herself to analyse the situation, examine every detail. Her costume was intact, her skin unblemished. Kara wasn't hurt. But her hands were covered in blood, her sleeves stained red along with her skirt, her top, droplets splattered across her face. She turned and stood up, facing Nia with an expression of fear, shame, and regret. Nia tried not to overthink it. Whose blood was that? Her's? Theirs? Did she lose someone? Or did she…?
"I'm sorry" Kara apologised, her voice so quiet Nia could barely hear it. "I didn't mean to…" she sobbed, tears flowing from her eyes as she fell to her knees. Nia fought the fear rising in her gut. Kara looked ashamed, guilty, but she didn't want to consider she might've hurt someone. What if she'd killed someone? What if this is all her fault?
Just as Nia was about to step forward and approach her, a shadow fell over both of them. She looked up behind Kara as a dark figure rose from the flames on the horizon, the perspective warping as they stood over Kara's weeping form, its horns extruding from its head as its red eyes glowed brightly. Nia's breath caught in her throat as the figure she called the Red Devil learned over them, its laugh echoing across the field. Fear gripped her chest as it grew louder.
You must confront these visions instead of turn away from them Jon had told her. You can't let the fear cloud your mind.
So she didn't. She narrowed her face and exhaled slowly, marching forward past the crying Supergirl, her focus on the vision. She needed answers and this was the vaguest part of these nightmares, so she needed to confront it. "Who are you?" she shouted, building up speed as she sprinted towards the dark red figure. It laughed harder, taunting her from the horizon, always seemingly inches away from her. She sprinted harder, her feet bouncing off the skulls of the dead, her focus fixed on the figure in front of her. Brainy taught her dreams are as fluid as the mind. As the dreamer she could control it to an extent. She managed to run along the mass grave for miles without tripping once, compelling the figure to come closer and reveal itself.
After almost an eternity of chasing it, she reached out and managed to grab the figure in her hands, the dark silhouette becoming solid in her grasp as she pulled it closer. "Who are you!" she demanded, glaring at its glowing red eyes.
The figure laughed, its mouth spreading wide as the shadows suddenly melted away like ink, revealing the white face of a silver haired man with emerald eyes grinning back at her. She stared in dumbstruck shock as the man's identity was revealed, his laugh filling her ears as more of him started surrounding her, an army dressed like superman laughing over the dead as the city burns around them. She was drowned in their laughter, swallowed by their evil intent sinking into the grave screaming.
She bolted up out of her dream still screaming, her voice hoarse and wheezing as her eyes sprang open. She found herself back in the grassy park in National City, the blue sky above her with the midday sun bathing her in light. She heaved violently struggling to breathe, feeling hands grab her holding her steady as a voice told her "You're okay, breathe. Dreamer, it's me, you're safe." She looked to her left and found Kara sitting next to her, her face full of worry and perfectly clean. No blood, no ash, no shadows.
Nia panted rapidly as Kara kept her calm, repeatedly calling her dreamer. She reached to her mask and realised she was telling her they were still in public, only to use their hero names. She nodded, her body aching feeling like she was exhausted. She saw the skin of her fingers were wrinkly, felt the shallowness of her features from where Parasite drained her. Unlike Kara sunlight didn't rejuvenate her, but her nightmare was enough to wake her from her unconscious state. But now she was awake she was already falling sleepy again. "The monster…" she wheezed.
"It's gone" a male voice assured her, drawing her gaze up to the red and blue Samaritan suit towering over her. Maxwell's smile greeted her when her shrunken eyes found his handsome face. "Paramedics are on the way. But I'm glad you're okay" he said. Kara put her arm around her feeling the same.
But Nia stared at the man smiling down at her with complete terror, the man's laugh echoing in her memory as flashes of the red devil superimposed themselves onto his image, the faces of the dead looking to her hauntingly. She couldn't say anything to Kara, not which the image of her covered in blood and sobbing in the back of her mind. But seeing the two of them together in this park, unaware of what she had seen, left Nia Nal feeling very, very uneasy, unsure which one of them was going to be responsible for destroying National City.