The Road ahead
Hell
Big Barda strained with all her might to hold onto the lasso. Augmented by Aphrodite she had not lost any ground. The lasso was stretched deep into Hell and its very presence seemed to warp the space around it. Hell was fighting back, trying to tear the lasso from their hands to expel it from its domain.
"I fear they are in danger of getting lost,' Aphrodite said.
"You're a Goddess, why didn't you just go with them?" Barda asked.
"I'm forbidden,' Aphrodite replied. "There can be no love in Hell. Those are the rules."
"Screw the rules, I say,' Barda growled, as the strain continued to mount. "No one ever left Apokolips either, but I did."
Aphrodite seemed to look off into the distance for a moment.
"I fear Apokolips will be here soon enough. Darkseid's forces have arrived and the battle has begun. Superman will be needed if Earth is to prevail."
"There are other Kryptonians, Aphrodite, other heroes' Barda offered. "Even without him they pose a formidable power, along with the rest of the Justice League."
"True, but every bit helps,' Aphrodite replied. "Perhaps it's time for another player that has been on the sidelines to reenter the fray."
"Who?" Barda asked.
Monument Valley
Lyla
Her whole life had been spent in a make believe world, a ship in a bottle sitting on someone else's desk. Kandor. A hermetically sealed world, complete with myths and Gods, which for most had been enough, but not for her. She had dreamed of touching her God, knowing him, knowing Superman.
She found out that Gods Fall.
Lyla was now in the real world. It was so different than she'd imagined it would be. The wild deserts and canyons stretched out all around her. The shifting yellows, oranges and reds of the high desert played against one another and always enticed her eyes. This was his world, her one time husband, Kal-El. There was no glass bottle surrounding it.
That was back on Kandor.
She was an empireth, which meant like all empireths every single one of Lyla's cells were telepathic. Kandorians had persecuted all aliens, but empireths in particular. Simply being one on Kandor was a death sentence. She remembered growing up and her father telling her all the old myths about Superman, the God. She had loved listening to all the stories about him and even began to feel a connection between them. He was guiding her life, giving it purpose.
That faith was shatter when the Kandorians murdered her father. Her God, Superman, had done nothing to stop it. She was forced to hide who she was, to blend in, become like everyone else. She could never let anyone see how special she was or it would mean death.
Those were the rules of the ship in a bottle world.
Faith dies hard. As hopeless as her situation was, Lyla found she couldn't stop believing in her God, Superman. They say those that suffer the worst always cling to faith the hardest. In those lonely nights, Lyla began to dream of Superman, feeling as if they were connected through some sort of visions.
She could never tell anyone because that would draw attention to her. Instead she silently called to him, to rescue her, to give her a sign that she wasn't alone. A miracle happened and he appeared before her. He was broken and battered to the point of exhaustion, but she knew who he was with only one look. A God in mortal form finally came to her, but it was too little too late. Her father was dead, her people hunted to extinction.
She wanted to hate him, to make him know just how terrible her life had been. Using her abilities she nursed him back to health, while changing his reality. In the new world she created for him, he wasn't a God or Superman. He was just a low-level official worker for the Kryptonian government and Krypton had never been destroyed.
She made him believe he was nothing more than a nobody in a menial job with no future and no dreams. She infused him with her own frustrations about the futility of existence. She stayed by his side, becoming his wife so she could watch him suffer as she had. Her plan was perfect, except for one thing; she fell in love with him.
Because of the constant danger, she'd never fallen in love before. Being around Kal-El day after day, she couldn't help noticing his handsome features and tall masculine build. She saw herself anew reflected back in his eyes. Her willowy features and figure were beautiful to him and for the first time in her life she felt beautiful.
With each passing day, Lyla's hope began to return. She realized perhaps there was another world out there beyond the bottle for her. She began to dream of that other world, the one Kal-El lived in. Perhaps she could go there too and be a Goddess at his side. It was such a beautiful dream.
It was just a dream, though as her plans had already gone to far, and the Kandor police were after Kal-El. They would soon turn their xenophobic eye towards her and find out what she was. She couldn't stay in the ship in a bottle world any longer. It broke her heart to leave but the memory of what they'd done to her father was still fresh in her mind.
She stole Superman's powers and used his connection to the real world to break out into his Fortress of Solitude. Flying to Metropolis, the golden city she had heard so much about in her childhood, she thought the people would worship her just as they did Superman. Another myth from her childhood was shatter, as they didn't look at her in awe and wonder but fear.
She was alone again.
Superman eventually returned, but the love for her was no longer in his eyes. She'd lost him and his world. There had been a battle in which she had saved him from the Kandorian policeman, Preus, but things would never be the same between them.
She'd left Earth and traveled the stars hoping to find a place out there. It had been a fool's errant. Her mind kept returning to Kal-El and the life they briefly shared in that ship in a bottle world. It always seemed to draw her back here, to Earth, to him. They had lived as husband and wife and she wanted that again, yet she couldn't forget the look in his eyes the last time she'd seen him. He had turned away from her.
So here she sat, the power of a Kryptonian filling her body, yet she had no one to share it with. There wasn't even anyone for Lyla to pray to. She was alone.
"You want him back, don't you?' A voice whispered to her.
Lyla turned quickly; ready to defend herself but there was only a shadow hovering just out of her reach. It was a women, the most beautiful woman she had ever seen, but she was just a shadow, a phantom.
"Who are you?' She asked. Her lithe body ready to defend herself against anyone.
"One who knows love and sees it in you, Lyla,' the shadow replied.
"What do you want?"
"Simply to help you, Lyla."
"Why?"
"I thought we could help each other,' the shadow said. "You want something or someone and I want something."
"It's too late, he doesn't want me, he hates me,' Lyla sadly stated. The weight of saying those words out loud caused her slender shoulders to slump downward.
"No."
"Yes, I saw it in his eyes,' Lyla said as she bowed her head in sadness.
"Are you the same Lyla that found her sealed world lacking and set out to change it?' The shadow asked. "He is a man, Lyla, you wounded his pride, but soon enough he will be alone. There are so few that he can really be with, you don't want to miss your chance. His world is in danger, Lyla, mortal danger. A great evil, far worse than any you have imagined has arrived. This is your chance at redemption. By helping to save his world, you will prove what is really in your heart. He is of this world now, but to be what he can fully be he must travel to the stars. He will need someone at his side to remind him of this world. Purpose, Lyla, it is what you've been lacking. Perhaps when he sees what you can be, he will return to you. Time to change the world around you again, Lyla."
The beautiful shadow began to fade, leaving Lyla to wonder. She stood looking out over the beauty all around her. She was alone, but perhaps there was still hope.
Hell
Artemis struggled to support Lashina. She was upright and walking, but whatever she'd seen had shattered her. She stared blankly off into the distance, looking at nothing. The lasso was wrapped repeatedly around her, but the truth she'd seen had been too much for her to bear. They pushed on.
The soft music could barely be heard above the howling wind, but Zatanna knew it by heart. The landscape around her had been shifting constantly since they ventured into Hell, but now something began to form in the distance. It was a music hall. She knew this place. It seemed to come out of a memory or a dream from her childhood. The red carpet was out and the sign said sold out. The others continued on, but Zatanna felt the pull of the music and the hall. Slowly she began walking towards it. The front doors open and the music grew in volume.
The lasso silently slipped from her wrist.
Spiral staircases swept up to the sides of the main doors. Zatanna saw the ancient refreshment counter, but no one was behind it. Slowly she made her way towards the main doors, the music seemingly pulling her along. The doors opened for her and she was at the top of a large auditorium. Every seat was filled, but she could only make out the back of their heads. Huge velvet curtains hung across the stage and as she moved down the descending aisle, they silently opened. The music built towards a crescendo and then a puff of smoke appeared on the stage. Zatanna stopped about halfway down the main aisle, not believing what she was seeing, but unable to tear her eyes away. A man stood center stage, dressed in a black tux, cape and top hat. The audience cheered wildly, but Zatanna couldn't seem to move. It wasn't possible she told herself, but then the man looked out at the audience and smiled. Giovanni Zatara, Zatanna's father was on stage.
"Dad?"
She started to move down the center aisle, but the huge crowd was on its feet and blacking her way. She pushed her way forward, but it was slow going. The applause slowed and then stopped, but the crowd continued to hamper her movement forward.
"Dad!"
"Welcome! Welcome to the show!" Zatara said. "I'd like to open up with a real crowd pleaser here in Hell, a trick I call the disassembling magician!"
"Dad!"
Wild cheers went up and as Zatanna continued to try and push forward. She heard the sound of what seemed like wild animals and a chill went down her back. A pack of massive wolves leapt onto the stage and began tearing Zatara a part front in front of his daughter's eyes. She screamed in horror, but couldn't seem to get any closer to the stage. Her eyes opened wide, not believing what she was seeing but somehow feeling it was all real. Blood splattered everywhere as the wolves tore him limb from limb. Zatanna screamed again, but as she tried pushing through the crowd she saw the audience had transformed into demons. They began rushing the stage to get in on the act. Tears poured down her face as the nightmare continued. She tried shouting spells but nothing seemed to be able to stop the carnage she was witnessing. The frenzied crowd knocked her to the ground and she could hear the horrible sound of her father being ripped apart by the beasts and demons.
Then everything stopped.
Zatanna slowly opened her eyes and she wasn't in the theater anymore, but back on the plains in Hell. Artemis stood over her, the lasso once again wrapped around her wrist.
"You let go of the lasso,' Artemis said. "I almost lost you. Don't let it happen again."
Smallville
The battle had been joined. Darkseid and his parademons attacked with brutal force. The League members fought back, even as the call to the members in space went out. The parademons pushed the heroes back towards the house where Mary and the child were. A huge ship opened and Darkseid appeared. He floated majestically down towards the ground and surveyed the heroes.
"Give me the Golden Goddess and I will make your deaths swift,' he offered. "Defy me and you will know agony like you never imagined."
"How about option three,' Vigilante called out. "YOU GO FUCK YOURSELF!"
"I like that option better,' Wildcat said.
"This world isn't for the taking, Darkseid,' Batman replied. "We will not surrender to you or anyone."
"So be it."
Hell
Clark flew downward; trying to block out the images he was seeing all around him. They were illusions he knew, but they were so real. Nightmares and dreamscapes flashed before his eyes, both enticing him and revolting him. They were all there to tempt him to stop, to slow down just long enough for Hell's illusions to begin working on him again.
He didn't stop, but continued on down towards the gates of Hell.
In his mind he was thinking of what he'd been through, what Hell had done to him. He'd been tested, but the testing wasn't over. He would get out of this place, he told himself, but what then? After what he'd been through could he go back to his old life as if nothing had happened? He realized he'd been drifting up to this point in his life. The mirrors still haunted him, even though he knew they were illusions. The trouble was they were possibilities, perhaps real possibilities for the future.
His mind drifted back over the last several months. He'd screwed so many things up. He'd betrayed his friendship with Diana by sleeping with her mother. He'd kept Hippolyta's secret, even though every part of him screamed that it was wrong. There was Dinah and what should have been the start of something amazing. He'd botched that up by continuing to see Hippolyta. Time after time he'd done things he either knew he shouldn't or made decisions without considering the consequences. Clark realized he'd hardly been the hero everyone thought he was.
In a way the person he let down the most was himself. He still had the same core values those hadn't gone away. He remembered trying to explain them to Hippolyta over dinner. They still rang true, but he wasn't sure he was living up to them any more. He felt like such a hypocrite, pretending to stand for one thing to the public at large while doing the opposite in private. It wasn't even about what his birth parents or his adopted parents had tried to instill him in, it was about what he wanted to be.
He was an adult now, the time for relying on others to give him a moral compass was over. It was easy to say all the right things, but living them took a quiet sort of courage. It was the difference between sending young men into harm's way and being one of them. If you believe in something, you should be willing to back it up with your actions. He would never be good for anyone until he was right with himself. They didn't deserve that. Each in their own way deserved a whole man, who stood by what he believed. Words were easy, but actions showed the truth. Perhaps it was time to take a step back and away from all of it and figure out just who he wanted to be and start acting like it.
The answers were out there, he just had to go and find them.
But first he had to get out of Hell.
Smallville
Darkseid's Omega beams lashed across the landscape. Batman had given instructions to every member about them. They grabbed the nearest parademons and used it as a shield. Darkseid growled in frustration and then began to move towards the house. Heroes lunged at him, but he swatted most way easily. He had just reached the front yard when he heard the battle cry. The force of Diana's blow made him stumble. Before he could react, four beams of intense heat blasted into his skin. Darkseid screamed in pain and rage. Supergirl and Power Girl poured on the heat vision driving him away from the house.
The three women gave him no respite, hammering away at him continuously. Kara and Karen concentrated on his eyes, trying to take his most deadly weapon away from him. Diana went for the body, her fists and swords punishing him again and again. Batman signaled to the others to keep the parademons away from the three, giving them all the room they needed to fight the dark lord.
Smallville – inside the house
Dinah, Shayera, Wally, Mari and Hippolyta manned every entrance, fighting off any parademons that slipped through. The sheer number of parademons meant they all had a fight on their hands. Wally seemed everywhere at once, becoming little more than a blur. Hippolyta slashed her way towards the front door and then called to Shayera.
"You're limiting yourself in here,' she said. "Take to the skies where you are at your best!"
Hippolyta had become the defacto leader of this small group. Her nerves were steady and her instructions concise. Though she was the newest of them all, she had so many years of being in command; it was just seemed natural to follow her lead.
So many things had changed in the last few months for her. She had been prepared for death and had lived accordingly. She thought her fate was sealed and nothing could change it. Her world had always been about omens, prophesies; destiny, yet now she saw everything with new eyes. It hadn't been destiny that made Themyscira what it was, but the hard work of herself and her sisters. The Gods may have shrouded them from the outside world, but what they built they did on their own.
All of her actions had stemmed from that belief. She had been so sure whoever wore the armor was destined to die. Out of love she couldn't allow that to be Diana. Hippolyta would not ask another to take her daughter's place, but had made the sacrifice herself. The tournament, the looks of betrayal, the massive confusion from all on Themyscira seemed worth it, as long as Diana lived.
But all the omens and prophecies had been wrong and fates changed as everything else did. She had ventured through time and saw the outside world change so much in a blink of an eye. Yes, there were still inequalities, but such progress had been made in just the last seventy years. Both men and women had fought for those changes and were still fighting for them.
Then there had been the birth of her daughter, Diana. Sorrow and joy like nothing she had ever felt before mixed so deeply in that one moment. The truth had finally come out after all this time. Diana knew that Hippolyta wasn't just her mother in name, but her biological mother as well.
Now she was back in the present. This fight would decide many things, but not the internal conflict Hippolyta was experiencing. Everyone assumed she would go back to being the Queen of the Amazons. One day she most assuredly would, but was that day today or tomorrow? Could she just put aside everything that had happened and return to that role? Hippolyta felt like she needed time to assimilate everything she'd been through and experienced. Both she and how she saw the world had been radically altered by the recent events. Changes had happened, but should she just turn her back on them and go back to the status quo?
First this battle had to be won or the rest would be moot.
Hell
The landscape changed. Gently, rolling fields stretched out in front of them. Artemis stopped on the edge and let her eyes move over the sight. Lashina stood, half supported by Artemis, a dull, vacant look in her eyes. Zatanna moved up next to Artemis. She was still shaken by the vision of her father, but she was trying to get past it.
"Why are you stopping?" Zatanna asked.
"These are the fields of the fallen warriors,' Artemis replied. "It-It shouldn't be here. I shouldn't be seeing this. Only the dead can see this."
Zatanna saw Artemis tense and move into her battle stance.
"What? What is it, Artemis?"
"They are coming! I don't understand this! The lasso should burn away this falsehood!"
"Artemis, it's true if you believe it is,' Zatanna shouted at her. "The lasso burns away falsehood, but not belief even it can't do that. Whatever you're seeing isn't real!"
"But they … I know them, I've seen them fall in battle,' Artemis whispered. Her eyes were transfixed on the warriors marching and riding towards her. Where Zatanna only saw a rolling field, Artemis saw an army of the dead warriors coming for them. These were the fallen, the vanquished warriors locked in an eternal struggle and now they were coming for her.
"I will not surrender!" Artemis shouted, raising her sword to take on all comers. She started charging the dead, slashing and hacking her way through their numbers. Zatanna had to catch Lashina as she nearly fell to the ground. Zee looked at Artemis swinging her sword wildly at nothing, but knew something was there for the other woman to see. The lasso strained and stretched, but Artemis didn't stop.
"Artemis! Fight it!"
Zatanna shouted, but it felt hopeless. Belief, even if it has no foundation in reality, is a hard thing to overcome. All the facts, evidence and truth in the world will never persuade some that what they believe isn't real.
Smallville
Diana, Kara and Karen were holding their own against Darkseid. Their coordinated attack kept him on the defense, while the other heroes dealt with this parademons. He growled in frustration and then silently signaled to his ship. A small boom tube opened behind him and his reinforcements moved to attack. Steppenwolf, Kalibak, Kanto, the Furies – Bernadeth, Bloody Mary, Stompa, Gilotina and Mad Harriet, came at the heroes deflecting their attention away from Darkseid. He glanced at the house and his eyes flashed, unleashing his omega beams blowing a hole through the old structure.
Smallville – inside the house
Heroes barely managed to get out of the way, as the omega beams blasted everything in their path. The back room, where Mary, Billy and Mordred were, the beam barely missed cutting them in half.
Mary held the baby in her arms. It was a girl, a golden little girl and there was no trace of who she used to be. If this were the same Golden Goddess, only her skin color would have given any hint. It made no sense to Mary why the Goddess would do this. Why give up everything to start life over? She had been ruler of her Second World, just as Darkseid was trying to rule this one. Why give it up?
As she looked down at the sleeping baby, it suddenly came to Mary. Life, that was all that really mattered. The Second World was dead, along with everyone that lived in it. Mary had seen the monuments erected on that dead world to the Goddess. They had been erased by the sands of time, just as the Goddess had. She had faced a choice, cling to the past and everything that it was or live. It was really that simple. The Golden Goddess didn't want to die. If it meant giving up everything and starting over then it was better than the alternative. Life was so precious to her that in the end she chose it over monuments, statues and legends.
Mary looked at Billy and Mordred. They were facing away from her, protecting her and the child against whatever made it through the others. It was a microcosm of her life. Others had decided what would happen to her. Others controlled her fate. She'd had no voice in any of it. That had to change. The transformation of her outside now had to extend to the inside. She may look like an adult, but it was time to start acting like one too. It was the last hurdle between being a teenager and an adult.
"Billy. Mordred. You need to help the others."
The two turned to see Mary getting off the bed. There was a determined look in her eyes, as she held the baby in her arms.
"I'll protect my child, but you need to help win this battle,' Mary continued. "We all do. It's time to take responsibility for our own lives. However we got here, we're here now. It's our choice and it's time we made it."
"But you're the target, Mary,' Billy replied. "They are coming for you."
"We can hide, Billy, or we can take the fight to them,' Mary stated.
"I did that once before,' Mordred said. "I took the fight to my enemy. I lost everything, a thousand years of childhood was my reward."
"We've all been stuck, Mordred,' Mary replied. "We need to move on or we will still be stuck, even if our appearances change."
The two of them looked at her and her words sank in.
"We fight for us, this time,' Billy said.
"Yes, not for kingdoms or glory, but for us," Mordred added.
Hell
Superman was traveling faster as he moved down through Hell. He kept telling himself it was all an illusion, but when a powerful blow knocked him from the sky he had to take notice. Another one sent him tumbling. He managed to stop himself and when he looked up he saw the creature.
"Doomsday. You're not real,' Clark whispered.
The next punch said otherwise.
The Watchtower
The shields were still holding, as heroes scrambled to fight off the invaders. Mr. Terrific were manning the command post, trying to get everyone into the right place. The new arrivals in Smallville meant more power was needed down there. They sent the Lanterns, Captain Atom and Jonn to help out. Green Arrow, Fire and Ice were taking off in a Javelin, hoping the ship's speed could turn back some of Darkseid's ships. Everywhere you looked someone was running to shore up the defenses and return fire on the armada.
Hell
Zatanna had shouted, pleaded and screamed, but Artemis was too lost in the battle to hear her. Lashina lay at her feet. Hopelessness seemed to overwhelm Zatanna as it all seemed to be unraveling. Far from saving Superman they were going to be trapped in Hell themselves. One by one they would let the lasso slip from their grasp and then they'd be lost. Zee knew she wasn't a fighter on Artemis or Lashina's level. She was a magician, a being of magic. She tried rousing Lashina again, but only got a dull vacant look in return. If only Zatanna could see what she was seeing or what Artemis was seeing, then maybe they could snap each other out of it.
We're not lost yet, Zatanna said to herself. She wasn't sure if her magic would work in Hell, but she was going to give it a try. It was a variation of a mind wipe, but instead of erasing, she formed an attachment between the three of them.
"Here goes nothing,' she said. Casting the spell, nothing seemed to happen for a moment, but it was as if the inside of her head were exploding. Zatanna screamed and slumped to the ground. She could now see through Artemis and Lashina's eyes. Over and over Lashina was seeing a woman being killed by a whip. The laughter that came with it was so cold and pure evil it sent a chill down Zatanna's spine. Forcing her will against the illusion Zatanna managed to get Lashina to snap out of it.
"My mother,' Lashina said, but then the tears started rolling down her cheeks. Zatanna didn't have time to deal with her right now and turned her attention to Artemis. Using the same process, she pushed through to Artemis' vision and showed her what Zatanna was seeing. Artemis suddenly stopped as the warriors turned to ash and blew away in front of her eyes. She turned and looked at Zatanna with a murderous look in her eyes.
"You!"
"Yes, I had to,' Zatanna replied.
Emotions seemed to play out over Artemis' face and then she slowly began to calm down. She dipped her head for a second and then looked at Zatanna again.
'Thank you, I was lost."
"Your welcome,' Zatanna replied. She gestured down at Lashina. "She still is."
"Then we'll carrying her if we have to,' Artemis stated. "The sooner we find Superman the sooner we can get out of here."
Smallville
Parademons seemed to be everywhere. Darkseid's Elite only added to the chaos. The more powerful members of the League were fighting them, but that didn't mean the other members weren't busy. Wildcat and Vigilante were standing back to back taking out every parademons they could.
"Still feeling old, pardner?" Vigilante asked between shots.
"Older than ever,' Wildcat replied.
"Still thinking of hanging it up?"
"Hell no!"
"Then I guess our trip was a success, wasn't it?" Vigilante said with a grin.
"Did you always talk this much even when you were young?" Wildcat fired back.
Smallville
Three of the Furies had Kara cornered. Mad Harriet lunged at her, claws poised to rip into her flesh.
"Die my pretty!" Harriet cackled.
"Up yours!" Kara shouted in response. She gave Mad Harriet a blast of her heat vision. The ground began to shake and Kara was knocked off her feet as Stompa landed on her.
"No smart comments now, huh?" Stompa asked.
"Hey!"
Stompa turned to find Karen's fist coming at her face. It made contact and sent the New God flying. Karen reached a hand down and helped Kara up.
"Thanks,' Kara said. "I still don't like you that much but thanks."
"That's cool, I don't like you that much either,' Karen replied. "I just don't like them even more."
"Well, I guess we can agree on something,' Kara offered.
"So do you want to hug it out?" Karen teased.
"NO!"
Hell
The very shape of reality seemed to bend and buckle as Clark and Doomsday exchanged blows. Illusion or not, Clark wasn't going to just take a beating from the monster. There was no holding back and each shot could shake mountains. They were both bloody, but neither had any quite in them.
"Die, Kryptonian!" Doomsday grunted, as he hit Clark again.
"It talks now,' Clark replied, deflecting most of the blow and returning one of his own. Back and forth they went, punishing each other with blows that would have killed most mortals and immortals, yet neither gave an inch. Clark finally rose up and unleashed his heat vision full power. The monster screamed in pain. In a desperate move, Doomsday leapt up and grabbed Clark's leg, smashing into the ground. His foot followed, driving Clark into the turf again and again.
Then everything stopped. Clark looked up, but Doomsday was gone. He finally noticed the lasso around his arm. Gazing over, Clark saw Artemis, Zatanna and Lashina.
"Hey, stranger, just passing through?' Zatanna joked.
"This does seem like an odd vacation destination,' Artemis added.
"I'm ready to leave,' Clark replied with a smile. He got up and moved towards the three. As he got nearer, he saw Lashina's eyes for the first time.
"What's wrong with her?" He asked.
"She needs to get out of here,' Zatanna offered. "She saw too much and it sort of shattered her inside."
"I'll carry her,' Clark offered, taking Lashina from the two of them. He picked her up and she put her arms around his shoulders, but didn't seem to acknowledge him anymore than that.
"So do you have a plan on how to get out of here?" He asked.
"We have back up waiting to pull us out,' Artemis said. She gave the lasso a snap that went down the line. "Hang on."
Smallville
Kanto was Darkseid's master assassin. He used the chaos all around him to get closer to the house. He drew his two daggers and smiled a cold, menacing smile. He would kill the child while they were all preoccupied. He would end this before they even knew what had happened. He was just easing a window open when a voice called out to him. He turned to see Batman standing five feet away. Automatically he threw a dagger aimed at Batman's head. Batman managed to dodge the dagger and moved towards Kanto.
"You won't stop me, human, the child will die!" Kanto shouted, turning to meet Batman.
"Not today and not by your hand,' Batman replied. "Not if I have anything to say about it."
"Than I will have to silence you first,' Kanto stated.
"I've heard that before,' Batman replied with a smile. "I'm still here."
The two warriors launched themselves at each other and the battle was on.
Smallville
Diana was holding her own against Darkseid. His Elite had managed to separate Kara and Karen from her, but she used every ounce of her strength, speed and ability to counter his every attack. His Omega beams flashed out again, but she bracelets managed to block them from hitting her. Faster than she thought possible, Darkseid followed the beams up with a powerful blow that rocked Diana to her core. She staggered and fell, while Darkseid moved into end it. He grabbed her by the throat and lifted her off the ground with his powerful hand.
"You fought valiantly, Amazon, but it was not enough,' Darkseid to her. "Time to die."
A warrior's cry came from behind him and then Darkseid growled in pain, as sword lanced through his shoulder. He dropped Diana and turned to see Hippolyta.
"You attack one Amazon, Darkseid, you attack them all!" Hippolyta shouted, twisting the sword and pushing it deeper. He growled and then swatted her away. It took a moment but he managed to pull the sword out and something he hadn't seen in a long time followed, his blood.
"I will kill you all!" He roared.
Hell
Barda and Aphrodite recognized the signal and had begun pulling with all their combined strength. It seemed the lasso went on forever, but they didn't stop until they saw the four on the other shore.
"Is it an illusion or is that really them?" Barda asked.
"It's them,' Aphrodite replied. "They are still holding the lasso."
Across the water, the four moved to where the ferryman's boat was just docking.
"None may go back once they reach the shore,' the ferryman said to them.
"Screw that,' Zatanna replied, stepping onto the boat. The ferryman started towards her, but Artemis met him first.
"We will be having a changing of the guard, ferryman,' she said. With a powerful backhand she knocked him over the side and then moved towards the tiller. "Superman, give us the best push you can and pray the ferryman doesn't get to us till we reach the other side!"
Clark put every ounce of power behind it and launched the boat into the troubled waters. It began to skim back towards the other shore even as the creatures swarmed to it. They could hear the ferryman cursing them, but they didn't look back. Hell was behind them now, and they planned on keeping it that way. Monsters of all shapes and sizes out of the worst nightmares appeared all around them, but they fought them off, as the shore grew closer. Barda and Aphrodite continued pulling the lasso, reeling them in like some big game fish.
At last they reached the shore just as the creatures swarmed over the boat. Artemis hacked and slashed the few that tried to follow them as Clark carried Lashina to safety. Zatanna cast another spell giving Artemis just enough time to get out of the creatures reach. The four collapsed down on the shore.
"We made it,' Zatanna said. "Wait until I see Constantine, I am so going to rub his nose in this."
"Your celebration will have to wait,' Aphrodite said. "There is still a battle to be won."
"Goddess?" Artemis said, dropping to her knees.
"There is no time for that, Darkseid has invaded Earth."
"Darkseid."
The words came out low and angry from Clark. He glanced at Lashina but there was no response to her lord's name.
"Where is he?" Clark asked.
Smallville
Hippolyta had managed to save Diana's life again, but even the combined might of the mother and daughter wasn't enough against Darkseid. They were both battered and bruised. As hard as they fought he just kept coming.
Smallville – high above
Lyla floated over the scene witnessing the chaos below. She didn't know any of the participants, but she could instinctively tell who was on the side of good and who wasn't. At the center of everything was what she could only describe as a monster. He was huge and his skin seemed like rock. With her enhanced hearing she had been listening to everything. He was here to kill a child. Suddenly she saw her purpose. She would help stop him or die trying.
She fell like a raindrop, gaining speed with each moment. He was just about to kill two similar looking women when Lyla landed behind him. She was an empireth, which meant like every empireth every single one of Lyla's cells were telepathic. It was how she gained Superman's powers. Her body had duplicated them. It had worked on him, so she thought she would do the same to the monster. When she touched Darkseid they both let out a scream. The battlefield seemed to freeze in that moment as everyone was surprised and shocked by this. His Elite had never heard their lord scream in agony before or scream for any reason. The heroes for there part didn't know what to think. They had no idea who the woman was or what she was doing to Darkseid. Well almost none of them knew who she was.
Batman gave Kanto a spinning kick and followed it up with a right cross. The master assassin went down hard. Bruce turned towards the screams.
"Lyla?"
Darkseid lashed out, hitting her with one of his huge fists and knocking her away from him. Smoke curled from his eyes as he turned to gaze on who had the nerve to attack him. He was expecting to see the Golden Goddess, not this mere slip of a young woman.
"I don't know who you are, but you will pay with your life for what you've done!"
Lyla was slow to recover. The massive amount of power that streamed through her body had been too much for her to handle. If he hadn't swatted her away she knew she would have died. She had managed to weaken him, but not enough to stop him. She stared up as he moved towards her.
He never reached her, as Billy and Mordred slammed into him. Darkseid went flying, smashing into the barn and then out into the fields. His Elite had finally reacted and was charging towards the two new heroes. The all out battle continued.
Inside the house parademons were like roaches swarming through every opening. The heroes tried battling them all. Wally moved even faster, almost invisible to the naked eye. Dinah's screams were concentrated so the house wouldn't suffer further damage, but she managed to take out parademons after parademons.
Mary appeared from the back room. She still had the baby in one arm, but she began firing bolts of energy at the parademons, adding her power to the struggle.
In the field Darkseid struggled to stand. The young woman had sapped him and the twin blows had hurt far more than he imagined they would. He wasn't finished and slowly began to rise to his feet.
"It ends now, Darkseid."
Darkseid looked up to see Superman floating above him.
"So the other Kryptonian finally decides to show himself,' Darkseid spat out. "You will not win this day, Kal-El. I will see the Golden Goddess back in the Source Wall before I am done here."
Clark had scanned the whole area as soon as they arrived. He instantly knew the baby in Mary's arms was the Goddess, but he could see no power coming off of her. She had given up everything to live again. He would make sure she got that second chance.
"She's just a child now, Darkseid and no threat to you. Leave. Now."
"Her very being is a threat, Kal-El. You will watch your world burn and then I will take her by force and personally put her back in the Wall."
"No, this ends now."
In a blindly flash of speed, Superman picked up Darkseid and soared upwards. He gained speed with every second. Faster and faster he went until space and time collapsed around him. When they stopped they were at the Source Wall. With one might heave; Superman tossed Darkseid towards the wall.
"NO!" Darkseid screamed even as the gravity began to slowly pull him in.
"This is where all tyrants end up, Darkseid,' Superman said. "The Golden Goddess finally understood that. That's why she could escape, because she gave up dreams of conquest and domination for the one thing that truly matters, life. You worship the opposite of life. Now you will have it forever."
"I won't be stopped this easily, Kal-El! I am the master of the Fourth World. It is my fate to rule over all of it!"
Superman floated and watched Darkseid as he started to merge with the wall.
"Fates Change."