Disclaimer: Here's the next entry for crossover, and on Father's Day, no less. I hope you'll show you dads how much you love and appreciate them.
As always, I don't own the rights to Marvel or DC Comics.
Chapter V
At the command of Kalibak, the hover tanks trained their massive duel-cannons down on the two intruders. One braced for battle, while the other simply stood by as if to watch the show. With a wave of his battle club, Kalibak gave the command to open fire. The front-most tank fired a large blast at the intruder with the hammer, who brought the hammer up to deflect the blast. The blast pushed him back, leaving a trail in the ground. The blast ceased and Thor righted himself and looked up at the tank with a smile. Kalibak snarled at the apparent arrogance and commanded another of the tanks to fire.
The tank on the far left fired, and Thor jumped into the air to avoid the explosion. From up high, Thor spun Mjolnir around to summon a bolt of lightning while the tank trained its cannon up. Thor attacked first, sending the lightning strike down onto the tank. The tank instantly exploded, stunning the Parademons and Kalibak into a silence. Thor returned to the ground and stood triumphantly amid the charred remains of the hover tank. He then glanced around at the remaining tanks, the Parademons and finally at Kalibak.
"At least make it a challenge for me." Thor said directly to Kalibak.
Kalibak appeared incensed by Thor's apparent boasting, enough to jump from the top of the tank he rode to face the Asgardian. "You would dare make a mockery of the armies of the Great Darkseid."
Thor spun Mjolnir in one hand and replied, "Yes, I would."
Kalibak readied himself for battle and declared, "You will answer for your insolence and you be brought before the Lord of Apokolips to face judgment."
"Then by all means," Thor readied himself for battle and added, "Take me to your master, beast man. If you can, that is…"
Without hesitation, Kalibak rushed Thor with a loud bellow of rage. Thor simply stepped to the side as Kalibak closed on him, sticking his foot out to trip him. Kalibak lost his footing instantly and fell flat on his face in front Doctor Doom, who simply stood by as all was happening. Rising up, Kalibak rushed Thor again with his battle club raised overhead. Thor creaked his head from one side to the other as Kalibak closed the distance until he was near enough to attack.
Kalibak took a heavy downward swing that Thor sidestepped, followed by a lower sideways swing that Thor also avoided. Kalibak tried a wild swing that sent him spinning and facing the opposite direction, and Thor almost playfully slapped Kalibak in the back of the head. Then Thor kicked Kalibak in the backside to knock him down onto his face and chest. Angered, Kalibak rose back up and charged Thor again. By that point, Thor was finished playing around.
They finally collided their weapons, and Kalibak was the one with a decided advantage. At least, that was what Thor wanted him to think. Kalibak took a series of swings at Thro as he blocked one after the other with his hammer. Thor was smiling the entire time as Kalibak came at him relentlessly and brutally. Every swing from Kalibak had poise and purpose, and none of it was enough to break through Thor's defense. Thor could see it; Kalibak was tiring and starting to make mistakes. He could see that Kalibak was slowing his attacks to catch his breath, while Thor appeared to be amused.
Sidestepping Kalibak again so they were standing opposite of each other, Thor said to brute, "That cannot possibly be all that you possess, monster. Loki puts up a better fight."
Kalibak angrily replied, "Darkseid will make you his pawn before you even have a chance to protest."
Thor smirked and replied, "This Darkseid fellow sounds like quite the challenge. And I would greatly relish the chance to prove Asgardian superiority."
Kalibak roared, "Parademons, attack."
Every Parademon shrieked in response to Kalibak's command and converged on Thor, who simply smirked in retort. The first few Parademons to get close enough to bit into Thor's limbs were instantly batted away by Thor swinging Mjolnir from the inside out. The next wave moved in and each Parademon took a heavy hit to the head and/or chest from the mighty hammer. Thor's smile never vanished as he clobbered one Parademon after the next. He hit some hard enough to sending them flying and when other got close enough, he got behind and snapped their necks.
Other Parademons moved in for the attack, and they too were quickly beaten back and pounded into paste by Thor. He looked back briefly to see that Doctor Doom had yet to intervene, not that he was expecting such. As Thor turned, he took a hit to the face by a brave Parademon. The Parademon shrieked in supposed glee until Thor gave it a menacing glare… and a smile. Spinning Mjolnir from the strap, Thor uppercut the Parademon into the blood red sky. Then one of the tanks moved forward.
Thor noticed the tank approaching and summoned a bolt of lightning from the sky. He thrust the hammer forward in the direction of the tank and the lightning struck it hard. The ensuing strike traveled to the next tank and then the next as well as any Parademons nearby. The three tanks either dropped to the ground in metallic heaps or exploded outright while the shockwave knocked the remaining Parademons and Kalibak to the ground. Thor planted his foot down on Kalibak's chest, holding Mjolnir down toward his face and still smiling.
"Anyone else you wish to throw at me?" Thor asked.
Suddenly, Thor was hit from behind by a blast of energy and dropped Mjolnir to the ground beside Kalibak's head. He turned briefly to see Doctor Doom's outstretched arm directed at him. Before he could react, Kalibak struck Thor in the face with his club and sent Thor sailing across the ground. Thor landed with a heavy thud and left a crater in his landing, and his winged helmet flew off and landed nearby. Looking toward Mjornir, Thor reached out for his weapon but was struck by another attack from Doctor Doom.
Doctor Doom assaulted Thor with a sustained energy attack and thus prevented him from summoning Mjornir to him. It didn't take long for the remaining Parademons to swarm Thor, literally piling on top of him and beating him down. As all this was going on, Kalibak reached for Mjornir and tried to lift the hammer. The hammer wouldn't budge for Kalibak no matter how hard he pulled. Meanwhile, the Parademons continued their assault on Thor until Doctor Doom forced them away with only his presence. Thor was still conscious enough to see Doctor Doom standing over him seconds before Doom kicked his face and knocked him out.
Kalibak was still struggling to lift Mjornir when Doctor Doom said, "You're wasting you time, creature. Mjornir can only be wielded by one who is worthy, and you clearly are not."
Kalibak ended his attempts and stalked toward Doom with his club. "Who are you to judge me unworthy?" Then he took a swing at Doom.
The swing was caught by Doom and through sheer strength, Doom squeezed Kalibak's wrist and made him drop to a knee. "I am Victor Von Doom, and you shall take me to you master. Now!"
Alfred Pennyworth had been the trusted butler of the Wayne Family for many years, more so since the fateful night that left then eight year Bruce an orphan. Since the deaths of Thomas and Martha Wayne, Alfred essentially adopted Bruce and looked after him. He watched as Bruce grew up from a scared and confused boy into a well-traveled young man. When Bruce declared his intentions to study the criminal mind, train in a variety of martial arts and employ fear to target the fearful, Alfred was with him albeit reluctantly. But Alfred stood as the staunchest of allies when Bruce Wayne eventually became the Batman. Through all the criminal and maniacs that Batman had battled like the Joker, Two-Face, Poison Ivy and Bane, Alfred stood with him at all times.
It didn't come as a surprise to Alfred that Bruce brought a woman to Wayne Manor. Salina Kyle, Andrea Beaumont, Kicky Vale and even Talia Al-Ghul had all been guests at the Wayne family household. But the woman that was currently resting in the guest room was one that Alfred had never met. Sporting a form-fitting blackish-gray body suit and long red hair, the woman appeared to be resting comfortably on the couch in the reading room. Alfred was cautious to not wake her for consideration of reprisal.
After another periodic checkup on her, Alfred made his way down into the Batcave where Bruce spent the majority of his time. Even as a member of the Justice League, Bruce hardly ever socially with anyone except for Alfred or the occasional appearances from Dick Grayson or Tim Drake. Alfred had a metal tray in his right hand and a cloth on the left, ever careful with each still he took as he descended into the cave. He could already hear the chirping of bats in the foreground, a custom with which he'd grown quite accustomed.
Once in the wide-open space that made up the Batcave, Alfred started toward the Batcomputer where Master Bruce was no doubt studying everything he could about the mystery woman. Alfred took in the sight of that Batmobile and the Batwing nearby, the training area in the background and the countless amounts of memorabilia from all of his successful missions. The giant penny was still a sight to behold. Continuing on, Alfred approached Bruce at the computer as he was looking through a series of female faces scrolling upwards. Alfred was quick to take note that Bruce was unmasked, not that his secret identity was in danger. Alfred was well aware of the identities of the League's member anyway.
"I was not aware that you'd gotten into the habit of online dating, Master Bruce." Alfred remarked with his usual sarcastic wit, which Bruce ignored completely.
"I've run the facial recognition scan to get an ID on our mystery woman but nothing has come up yet as of yet. The one thing that's certain is that she's not a native of Apokolips." Bruce stated.
"No denying her humanity, but if she's not an Apokolips native then from whence does she come?" Alfred asked.
"Another Earth, not unlike the theory of the Multiverse but vastly different from our Earth as it is to hers. Furthermore, she mentioned an individual called Thor." Bruce explained further.
"The Thunder God of Norse Mythology?" Alfred said.
"Apparently, he's as real to her as Superman is to us."
"Well, I assume you'd be used to being in the presence of literal gods, what with Mr. Kent and Princess Diana among the League's numbers. Let us not forget the young Miss Roth." Alfred stated as Bruce was rising up from his chair.
"Raven's not a full time member of the League, Alfred." Bruce said as he walked into a separate room nearby.
"Neither are you in that regard, sir. You only ever interact with the League on a strictly part-time basis despite your occasional associations with Masters Grayson and Drake." Alfred explained to Bruce as he returned to the cave.
Bruce had removed his suit and was now dressed in workout clothes with a towel around his neck and shoulders. "So you're basically saying I should try interacting more with my allies."
"It would be a step up from you usual brooding. In any event, the woman is still resting upstairs. A friendlier face might help to lower her guard so that you might be able to speak with her." Alfred said as Bruce walked by.
Bruce replied with a hint a humor, "If that doesn't work, I can always go back to brooding."
Natasha stirred about on whatever surprisingly soft surface she was resting on and slowly opened her eyes. Looking up at the ceiling, which was very high off the floor, Natasha initially though she was back at Avengers Tower in New York. At the very least, she expected to be at Tony's penthouse. But as she rose up to a seated position and her eyes focused, she knew instantly that she was in neither of those places. She looked around from the couch and then stood up with a slight wobble, using the armrest to steady herself. She took an accounting of her immediate surroundings.
She was apparently in someone's mansion. The room in which she awoke was large enough to fit a small apartment, and there had to be millions of dollars worth of furniture. Yet there was an air of modesty around her, a whole lot more than what she'd come to expect from Tony. Her thoughts trailed back to the man in the bat costume. He had to have brought to this place, but why? Her best guess was that he had friends in high places, in this case, another billionaire playboy like Tony. That was just her luck.
Natasha started moving through the mansion, combing every room that was enterable for clues to the owner's identity. She walked along a massive staircase that diverged into opposite direction, examined a room full of antiquities including ancient suits of armor and studied several posh guest rooms. The latest room was apparently a reading room with large windows that offered an impressive view of the coast. Natasha looked at the fireplace and at the large portrait above it. It displayed three people; a man, woman and a child: a family. A slight shrieking noise drew her attention to the ceiling, where a small bat was fluttering around looking for a way out. Before Natasha could delve deeper, she heard a sound from behind her and bolted from the room.
Returning to the room in which she awoke, Natasha sat back down on the couch and developed the appearance of just waking up. Soon after, a man approached the area where Natasha sat. Natasha took an accounting of him; tall, muscular and disarmingly handsome, dressed in no more than workout clothes with a towel around his neck and shoulders. Natasha noticed something else; something oddly familiar as the man approached her and held out his hand.
"Welcome to my house, Miss…"
Natasha wasn't stupid, and she opted to play it safe when she introduced herself. "Rushman, Natalie Rushman."
"Miss Rushman, or Natalie. May I call you Natalie?" the man asked.
"Sure, and you are?" 'Natalie' asked.
"Bruce Wayne. Welcome to my house," he said as an elderly butler approach with a tray of cups. "Care for a drink?"
"Thank you," 'Natalie' said while taking a cup, whiffing the surprisingly nice aroma of the tea. "So this is your house?"
"It is. Well actually it's my parents house, left to my name after they passed away. I have to say, that's a very interesting ensemble you're wearing. Also, I can't help but detect a slight Russian dialect in your tone."
"I grew in Russia, learning the language and the customs. But for the most part, I'm American." 'Natalie' stated.
"I've met quite a few Russian women, even dated a few. I wouldn't recall meeting someone like you before." Bruce said.
"I don't think you've ever met a woman like me… at least not until very recently."
Bruce narrowed his eyes on the woman and said, "I'm not sure I take your meaning, 'Natalie.'"
'Natalie' merely smirked at Bruce and asked, "Where's Thor?"
"The Thunder God of Norse Mythology?" Bruce asked, seconds before 'Natalie' pounced on him.
'Natalie' quickly pinned Bruce to the floor and pressed her knee to his face while twisting his arm around. "You think I wouldn't figure out your little secret? Even without those stupid, pointed ears, I knew who you were from the beginning."
"No need to hold back, then." Bruce said and forced 'Natalie' off.
Without waiting for Bruce to rise, 'Natalie' was on the attack. She threw out a series of strikes to keep Bruce off balance. Bruce managed to deflect most of the strikes as they came. Bruce responded with strikes of his own, though 'Natalie' managed to deflect them as well. He even tried to surprise her by throwing his towel. It worked; the towel blinded 'Natalie' long enough for Bruce to grab hold of her and bring her down to the floor. They struggled when 'Natalie' suddenly was on top of Bruce, must to his surprise. Bruce actually cracked a smile as he looked up at 'Natalie.'
"Not bad, 'Natalie.' Although, I'm guessing that isn't even your real name." Bruce said with a smirk.
'Natalie' moved he face closer to Bruce's and replied, "I told you; you've never met a woman like me."
"Then you obviously haven't met Diana." Bruce replied and pushed 'Natalie' away.
'Natalie' rolled backwards and righted herself while Bruce started to stand up to face her again. Before Bruce could make a move, 'Natalie' outstretched her arm and a wired projectile flew forward toward Bruce's feet. The projectile wrapped around Bruce's legs and he tumbled over himself, barely managing to get his hands in front to break the fall. The line wasn't completely taut, but it bought 'Natalie' enough time to make a break for it.
Bruce undid the line and quickly gave chase, and based on the layout of the manor and where 'Natalie' was running, Bruce knew exactly where she was going. As he ran along the next hall, Bruce quickly notice the key rack with dozens of car keys… and one missing. This only further enforced his belief of where 'Natalie' was headed. Taking the next corner, Bruce entered the parking lot-sized garage where all of his prized cars. He spotted 'Natalie' in a midnight blue sports car and she was already long gone by the time Bruce could reach the parking spot.
Bruce studied the spot where the car was parked and noticed something small and metallic on the ground. He went to retrieve, noting the blinking red light on top of it. Bruce was quick to determine that it was the tracking device he'd placed in all of his vehicles should they ever had been stolen. But this 'Natalie Rushman' was more resourceful than he'd thought. She'd done more than Bruce expected, including deducing his Batman persona and discovering the tracking device on one of his cars. He then heard a ring from a nearby communication node and rushed over to activate it, instantly hearing Alfred's voice…
"Sir, I've reestablished contact with the Watchtower. Apparently, they had some unexpected guests, one addressing himself by the moniker of Doctor Doom…."
"Let me guess; the other was called Thor." Bruce finished.
"Indeed, sir. I have Superman on the vid screen now. What of the woman, sir?" Alfred replied.
Bruce looked at the tracking device and replied, "She got away, and it seems like she figured out who Batman is. Tell Superman I'm on my way to the Batcave now. I have a feeling things are about to get a little more complicated."
Doctor Doom wasn't one to marvel at anything that came close to the sheer enormity of his own castle, always taking particular pride in the construction of his home. With that being addressed, even Doom had a sense of awe at the sight of the high tower that Kalibak and his underlings were bring him. Doom took a short look at Thor. The Avenger had his hands shackled behind him and his long hair blocked the appearance of his face, but Doom was certain that he remained unconscious. That would likely change in the event he awoke. Doom returned his gaze to the high tower in front of him.
Once inside and led along by Kalibak, Doom realized that the tower seemed more akin to a citadel. As Kalibak led him along, Doom took in the sight of countless people apparently performing varying acts of hard labor… very hard labor. As much of a generally ruthless dictator as he was in Latveria, Doom never forced his subjects into such torture. His citizens lived a relatively peaceful life in Latveria when it wasn't invaded. Whoever this Darkseid person was, he obviously needed a lesson in ruling a kingdom and its people. Doctor Doom was going to teach him… by force if necessary.
Before long, Kalibak had led Doctor Doom to the top of the citadel. A narrow walkway lay before Doctor Doom, wide enough to move along but narrow enough for someone to fall into a pit of fire akin to the bowels of Hell. If nothing else, Doom admired overall layout of the chamber. Looking up at the pillars on either side of the walkway, he noted the tapestries shaded blood red and displaying what could only be described as an omega symbol. The meaning behind the symbol escaped Doom and intrigued him at the same time, while Kalibak stopped just ahead and knelt down. Thor was in turn thrown to the floor with some force, not that Doom would've cared. One of the Parademons pushed passed Doom, angering the dictator enough to want to attack right then and there, be he noticed a glass jar containing Thor's hammer along with a chuck of rock. The Parademons were nothing if not resourceful. The jar was set beside Kalibak as he address the shadowy figure atop a flight of stairs.
"Father, my forces apprehended these interlopers along the outskirts of Apokolips. One was armed with this hammer, and the other…" Kalibak couldn't finish when Doom walked right passed him.
"The other is no other." Doom said out loud and heedless of the customs of Apokolips.
"You dare address the Lord Darkseid with such arrogance. You will kneel before…" Kalibak suddenly shut up when Doctor Doom grasped him by the throat.
"Doom kneels to no one." he declared before thrown Kalibak down to the floor.
Kalibak snarled at Doom and with his club in hand, he moved forward until a booming voice shouted, "Hold, Kalibak…"
Kalibak looked up and he saw the glowing red eyes and fire of his father and master staring down at him. "As… you wish, Father."
Doom could see it; he could see and even feel the fear with which Kalibak addressed his Father. Kalibak took several steps back, holstered his battle club and knelt down on the walkway. Doctor Doom remained upright and still unconcerned about the customs of Apokolips as he gazed up at the top of the stair at the shadow that now loomed over him. He could easily tell that this individual was physically huge, maybe as big as the Hulk or even bigger. With each step he took down the stairs, with surprising grace for one his size, more of his features were shown for Doom to study.
Adorned in dark blue attire, including gloves and boots, and sporting rocky, gray skin, the apparent Lord of Apokolips made a slow gait toward Doom. Doom remained unyielding at the sight of this brute who finally revealed the rocky gray face and piercing red eyes that were akin to the Devil himself. This was no Devil; this, as Doctor Doom soon realized, was the Lord of Apokolips known as Darkseid.
Author's Note: This took a bit of time to put together but I got it done, starting with a nice little brawl between Thor Kalibak, continuing with visit to Wayne Manor and ending with the official appearance of Darkseid.
If you were hoping for a fight between Thor and Darkseid, you'll have to wait a while. I have bigger plans, but I'll never tell. Also, I imagined Darkseid having the first song from the X-Men: Apocalypse soundtrack. Given the title, it seemed appropriate.
Also, Alfred Pennyworth makes his first appearance. I originally intended for Barbara Gordon/Oracle to appear but I went with Alfred instead.
Natasha used her Natalie Rushman alias here, and it appears that she also figured it that Bruce Wayne is Batman. She's smarter than you thought. Anyway give me a shout out and I'll be back soon. Peace out!
Happy Father's Day!