Chapter Eighteen

Metropolis Outskirts

Metropolis

United States

20:37 – Eastern Standard Time

March 14, 2007

Pauline Lester pulled up into the parking lot of her father's rental place. Her mother had been a nurse, while her father had been a military man. After he had left the armed forces, he had drifted from job to job in order to pay for her going to college to become a doctor. It had worked out, but her younger brother hadn't been as fortunate. He worked for her father, having not really gotten anywhere.

The four-door car came to a stop and they all climbed out. Pauline turned to the others. "Wait here," she told them. She then headed off towards the office.

Galatea addressed her father once she was sure Pauline was out of earshot. "How much do you trust her, really? And be honest."

"A lot," Emil said firmly. "She isn't leaving her home and job behind for the fun of it, Tea."

"If you're sure, then I guess I'll trust her too," she said with reservation.

They watched as Pauline stepped out of the office with an older man who appeared to be nearly seventy. Beside him was a much younger man, with dark hair and to Galatea's eyes quite pleasant to look at.

"This is my dad and nephew," Pauline said.

The father shook Emil's hand, while Galatea eyed him suspiciously.

"Been years since I've seen you," the old man said to him.

"You still working, Earl?" Emil asked him. "People usually retire by the time they get to your age."

"I like to keep myself busy," he responded. "Sitting at home alone doesn't appeal to me."

Emil looked at Pauline expectantly.

"Mom died about three years ago."

"I'm so sorry."

"No, it's fine. I've healed. Well, as much as one can."

"We all have," Earl said. He then looked at Galatea. "This your daughter, then?" he asked, with a warm smile.

"I am," she responded.

"Doesn't look much like you. I guess she got all her looks from her mother."

Galatea snorted. "You have no idea," she muttered under her breath.

"She's not my biological daughter," Emil explained to him.

"Adopted?"

"Yes."

Earl gestured over to an old station wagon. "Well, there she is. Beautiful isn't she."

Emil stared at the car that looked like it was straight out of the seventies. "You rent cars from forty years ago?" he asked in surprise.

"Look around," Pauline suggested.

Emil did, as did Galatea. They both noticed for the first time that most of the cars were older models.

"Classic car rentals," Earl told them. "And you're getting a '72 Vista Cruiser. Got the styling of a Cutlass, but a station wagon. Best of both worlds."

"As long as it gets us there," Emil said.

"It will," Pauline responded. "I'll go fetch the bags."

"I'll do it," Galatea said.

"I'll help," the nephew offered.

The two made their way back to Pauline's car and opened the trunk. Galatea watched with a smirk as he pulled out one heavy case with a red face, planting it roughly on the floor, before retrieving a second.

"You take the small third one," he told her as he struggled to pick up the two cases, before putting them back down. "Wow, these are heavy."

She rolled her eyes, her smirk growing into a smile as she leaned forward and picked them up with ease. "You take the small third one instead."

He stared at her in shock. He couldn't believe how easily she was holding them bags when he could barely lift them. "How?" he stammered.

"Does it matter?" she said to him. "Now get that case."

He reached in and took the much smaller and lighter case, then the two of them headed off to the station wagon.

She easily lifted the two bags and placed them in the trunk, the cousin doing the same.

"Got some muscle on you there," the father said.

"Yes," she replied simply.

Pauline gave her father the keys to her car. "Get it off the road. I know this is asking a lot and I thank you."

"I know you've got your reasons." He passed his daughter the keys to the car. "The Vista Cruiser's got more power than that thing you drive, so be careful on the accelerator."

"I will don't worry and thanks again."

They climbed into the car, Pauline behind the wheel, Emil in the front passenger seat and Galatea in the back. She started the engine up and turned on the headlights, before waving to her father and nephew, before rolling down the window

"I love you both," she called out to them. "Hopefully I won't be away too long." She rolled the window back up.

"Can we get going now?" Galatea asked.

"We're off," Emil said as the car began to move forward.

"How long's the trip going to be?"

Emil looked back to her daughter. "We'll be on the road for a few hours. We won't be heading all the way there tonight."

"Right," she said unenthusiastically. "You could just tell me where we're headed and I could meet you there."

Emil pulled a face. "That's not really a good idea. Best we stay together."

"If you say so," she accepted as she stared out of the window. As to where their destination was, she still didn't know.

Watchtower II

Earth Orbit

20:40 – Station Time (EST)

March 14, 2007

Nightwing was used to fighting more than one combatant at one time. What he wasn't used to was fighting Gordanians. They were savage and unrelenting. Unlike the usual criminal, individuals didn't scamper away or try to flee when they thought they were beaten, they just fought harder.

Captain Atom and Metamorpho seemed to be having no trouble at all. He, Zatanna and Crimson Fox were having a much harder time. The problem was that there seemed to be an infinite amount of them. They kept rushing in as more shuttles attached themselves to the hull. Not only that, but the fallen Gordanians didn't stay unconscious long. They were soon back up continuing the fight.

That wasn't the only problem. The other was he was starting to get fatigued. By the looks of Zatanna, so was she. He knew that using magic too vigorously for too long was tiring for her. As for Crimson Fox? At first glance, she seemed to be doing just fine, but there were small things like stance and foot placement that showed that she too was starting to feel tired.

"We need to defeat them soon," Nightwing said as he dodged a blow.

"More and more of them are staying down every minute," Captain Atom said. "Keep at it and they will be defeated."

"What do we do once they are?" Zatanna asked as she threw one back with a spell.

"Put them back on their shuttles and send them back to their ships."

"And what's stopping them from sending them right back?" Nightwing questioned.

"Nothing, but we've got nowhere to hold them all. Best to send them back and see what happens."

To Nightwing's ears, it didn't really sound like they had much of a plan. But short of killing them, they were stuck in a circle. Unless they could render them unconscious long enough to take out the rest.

Nightwing saw an energy bolt shoot at Zatanna out of the corner of his eye. She managed to dodge out of the way, but his lapse in focus allowed his opponents to knock him to the ground.

A heavy foot slammed down on his chest, pinning him to the floor. The Gordanian stood over him, axe held high over its head, ready to bring the weapon down. The others were far too busy with their own battles to help him right now and he knew that he was seconds from death unless he got out from under its foot in the next half-second.

Out of nowhere, a green bolt struck the green lizard-like alien, sending it flying into the group behind it.

The next thing he knew, he was being hoisted up back onto his feet rather sharply.

He only had time to glance at the Tamaranean, Koriand'r and utter a "Thank you."

Then he was back in the fight, both her and her brother joining in.

The two extra fighters made all the difference and soon they were on top of the fight.

The battle played out on the Watchtower. Superman's group was the first to fully defeat their adversaries and put them on their shuttles and send them back. Then it was Captain Atom's, thanks to the extra help. After that, it was Wonder Woman's team, then Barda's.

Before long, the Watchtower was clear of the enemy and they were all being sent back, unconscious, their guidance systems locked so that even if they awoke they would have a hard time turning their shuttles about.

With that unpleasantness out of the way, those that needed it headed or were taken to the infirmary for treatment while others remained on guard.

Of the Five Founders on the station, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Flash, and Shayera, they gathered in the Nest with Mister Terrific and Argo tagging along.

Flash was the first to speak. "What happens now?" he asked the others.

"It's up to them," Superman said. "If we're lucky, they'll take the hint and leave."

"Or they could destroy the station," Lantern pointed out. "We're not out of this yet. Not by a long shot."

"He's right," Shayera said. "If they don't think they can win, then they'll destroy the Watchtower and they might even take the planet for themselves."

"So we have to stop them," Superman said sourly.

"We might have to permanently stop them," Shayera told them.

"You mean kill them all?" Flash asked not liking where the conversation was going.

"We only need to take out their commanding officers."

"I'm not ready to kill them just yet," Superman said. "In fact, I think there's another way. There's always another way."

"Not this time," Shayera warned.

"It may be necessary," Wonder Woman added. "We swore to protect the people of Earth, all of them."

"How far are we willing to go to protect Earth, though?" Kara asked. "We also swore to protect the laws. Murder in most places is against the law."

The others looked at her as if only just noticing her for the first time.

"It isn't murder," Shayera said. "It's defending our home no matter what."

"I need your attention," Terrific said. They all looked his way. "The dreadnought has gone into a lower orbit and is charging their particle cannon."

"They're going to fire on the planet," Shayera told the others.

"Can we stop them?" Superman asked.

"Too late, even for Lantern to get there in time, because they're firing."

"Location!?" Superman shouted as he moved up beside him.

"California."

"Where in California?"

"Jump City."

They all stood there in complete silence, none of them knowing what to say. It was their duty to stop things like this from happening. It was why the Watchtower existed in the first place.

They had failed everyone in that city and they had failed themselves.

"How many people live there?" Flash questioned finally.

"Half a million or around there," Terrific said solemnly, his voice quiet. "Their beam has ceased. It wasn't a full charge."

Superman rubbed his eyes while Flash leaned heavily against a console. The rest just stood there.

The next one to break the silence was Shayera. "Do we go that far now? Are we willing to do whatever it takes to stop them?"

"We need the Binary Fusion Gun online," Superman said, straightening his posture.

"We can't," Terrific informed him. "The flow regulator is in the Metro Tower and I doubt they're gonna let us take a Javelin down there to retrieve it."

"What about teleporters?" Lantern asked.

"We're still being blocked. Can't communicate with the Metro Tower, let alone use the teleporter."

"Could one of us fly down and grab it?" Argo asked.

"Lantern could possibly, but the chances are he'd be shot out of the sky. They have pretty powerful weaponry on those ships," Terrific said.

"Stolen weaponry," Shayera added.

"The flow regulator is also a delicate piece of equipment," Terrific told them. "We can't risk having it shot and damaged or else we'll have nothing."

"So we have to get it up here stealthily," Superman surmised. He thought for a moment. "Any word on Batman?" he asked.

"His Javelin went down in the Atlantic. With luck, the Atlanteans picked them up."

"We need to get in contact with him," the Man of Steel declared. "If anyone has a stealth ship that can break orbit, it's Batman."

"Yes, but does he have one big enough for the flow regulator?"

"We have to put a stop to them," Wonder Woman said. "We either go over to their warship and destroy it, or we use our gun. One way or another we-"

Terrific raised his index finger with one hand and gestured to a blinking light with the other. Wonder Woman fell silent. "We're getting a call from the Gordanians."

Superman sighed. "I guess we should hear it."

Terrific put it up. "You have one Earth hour to give us what we want or a bigger city will be destroyed."

"They've ended the call."

"Is that clear enough for you?" Shayera asked him. "They won't stop."

"Then we have to make them stop," Wonder Woman said firmly.

Superman stared at the monitor screens, knowing that they were right. He just didn't like the implications of what stopping them might entail.

New York State

United States

20:51 – Eastern Standard Time

March 14, 2007

Galatea's eyes opened and she looked around the car's cabin, briefly confused as to where she was. It took a few moments for her to remember.

She had just been elsewhere, seeing the senior members of the Justice League talking about aliens. She had felt the sadness wash over her when they had fired on the city, but it wasn't her own sadness. No, it had been Kara's sadness. The thing was she couldn't remember dozing off. She had been sat in the back of the car and then she had been on the Watchtower. It was odd, to say the least.

"Daddy," she said, leaning forwards, feeling the confusion start to lift, wondering if what she had just seen was real or just a dream.

He looked around "Yes honey?"

Galatea hoped it was real or she was going to look stupid. "You know you told me about that stealth suit you were working on before Superman went rogue a few years back?"

Emil frowned. "When he worked for Darkseid after he supposedly messed with his memory? Sure I remember," he said, clenching his jaw. "That's the one thing I doubt I'll ever forget."

"Is it still around?"

He shrugged. "I don't know. It was last time I was at the lab a few years back, why? What made you bring it up?"

"I think we need it."

"Need it? What for?"

"Turn on the radio."

Now Emil was really confused. "The radio? Why?"

Pauline who was driving shook her head. "I prefer the peace and quiet."

Now would show whether she was losing her mind or not. If what she had seen was real, then every radio station in the nation would be reporting on the attack on Jump City. "We're not listening to music," she said. "Just do what I say."

"Okay, fine," Emil said leaning over and twisting the dial. Music began playing. He was about to change the station when the telltale jingle of a news bulletin chimed.

"This is MNR, I am Gary Neil. Moments ago were told that the Justice League had disabled their weapon, but from the destruction at Jump City, it seems not to be the case."

Emil slammed his hand down on the dashboard. "They did it again."

"It wasn't them," Galatea urged.

Emil looked around. "It wasn't?" he asked with surprise. "Wait, hold on, how did you know about this in the first place?"

"You know that thing I had going on before with Supergirl?"

"Thing?" he asked. "What thing?"

"Where we were seeing what the other was doing."

"Yes?" he questioned cautiously.

"Well, it's kinda happening again."

"That's not good," Pauline said. "That means Kara'll be able to see through it the other way, too."

There was still something that wasn't adding up in Emil's mind. "Why did you ask about the stealth suit?"

"I think I'll need it."

"For what?"

"They need a device for their gun to stop the aliens."

"Aliens?"

"It was an alien ship that fired on that city."

Emil switched the radio back off. "You want to take it to them?" he asked in disbelief. "No, Tea, this is stupid. We need to disappear. Forget what you thought you saw, there's no reason for you to risk your life to help them."

"I'm not helping them, I'm helping us," Galatea retorted. "If the aliens blow up the planet then we'll all be dead."

Emil clenched his jaw. "It'll take a while to get there."

"We have less than an hour before they fire again," she urged. "From here which direction is the Metropolis Star Labs?"

"We're heading northwest, so that way," he said pointing.

Before he could say anything else, Galatea had opened the car door and jumped out. She swiftly grabbed the car from underneath and flew them in that direction, her speed increasing as she flew back in the direction of Metropolis.

After a few minutes of flying, her powerful eyes found the building in the distance. She changed heading and she flew over, swiftly landing in the parking lot. She put the car down and chuckled when she saw Pauline holding on tightly to the steering wheel, knuckles white, eyes wide, her mouth agape.

Emil stepped out of the car and stumbled slightly. "Please don't do that ever again."

"We're here," she said, ignoring him. "Now let's get that suit."

"No guarantee it'll even fit you. It was made for Superman after all."

"Enough chatter, we have fifty minutes for me to get that suit and get to the Metro Tower."

"Will they believe you want to help them, though?" Emil questioned. "You aren't on good terms with them."

"I'll see won't I," she said as they both walked inside. Galatea paused and looked back to Pauline who was still gripping onto the wheel. "Will she be okay?"

"She should be. She's just surprised, that's all."

"Fair enough," she said as she headed inside, Emil by her side.

They both headed for the front desk, where the receptionist on duty looked up at him. Her disinterested look quickly turned to one of shock. "I wasn't expecting to see you here, Doctor Hamilton," she said as she attempted to regain her composure.

"I need to talk to Burton," Hamilton said.

"I'll give the Director a call," she said, picking up the phone.

Galatea leaned over to her father and whispered. "We can't wait, we have less than fifty minutes and they still have to install the thing."

"Director Thompson will speak with you," she told him as she pointed. "That way."

"Where is the suit held?" she asked her father as they headed down the hallway. "Maybe I can grab it while you're speaking to this guy."

"I would rather not get into a fight over this. We'll talk to him first."

Galatea didn't like that idea. "If you say so. But if he stalls, then I'm getting it myself."

They went up a flight of stairs and entered a second waiting area, where they were told to wait.

"So who is this Burton guy?" she asked her father.

"Burton Thompson became the director a few years back," Emil explained. "It wasn't long after the incident where I got a-hold of Supergirl's DNA. Suffice to say, I got a bad feeling about him. I still do. He didn't know about you or my role at Cadmus. When he did, I was essentially fired."

"You got a bad feeling from him, but not from Waller?"

"I got a bad feeling from her, but she was promising to do something about Superman and the Justice League. Cadmus was set up specifically to combat people like Superman."

"People like me, you mean."

He looked at her in surprise. Then he nodded solemnly. "Yes, people like you."

"Director Thompson is ready for you," the second receptionist said.

The two stepped into his office. Burton Thompson looked from Hamilton to Galatea, then back again.

"She's a fugitive, you know that right?" the man said, his fingers webbed as his arms rested on his desk's surface.

"We need the Superman stealth suit," Emil said.

"Not in a position to make demands Hamilton," Thompson said as he leaned back in his chair, folding his arms across his chest.

Galatea rested her hands on her hips. "What happened in Jump City might happen here if you don't give us that suit."

"Not sure what you're talking about," Burton said, having not heard about the attack. "But I don't like people coming into my office and making demands."

"Jump City was shot at by aliens."

"Is that so," Burton said unconvinced. "You're an alien, are you not?" he asked Galatea. "Well, a clone of one at the very least."

"Listen, just give us the suit and we'll be gone," Emil said.

"I could. Or I could call the police," the director threatened.

Before he had time to react, the clone had moved across the room, pulled him out of his chair and slammed him against the wall. He winced in pain as he felt a rib crack.

"Stealth suit, now! Or I'll tear your head off. For me, it'll be no more difficult than plucking a hair."

The director decided to just comply rather than risk finding out whether she was bluffing or not. "Fine, it's exactly where it was when Hamilton worked here. The code for the lock is 1864-REL."

"I hardly need the passkey," she rebuked, letting him go.

"The lead wall is lined with Kryptonite," the man said. "You'd probably break your fist if you tried to punch through it."

"Whatever. "She looked at her father. "Let's get that suit and get out of here."

Emil led them down to where the stealth and the other superman suits were being stored. He input the given code and the door slid open. They both stepped inside, where there were four metallic suits, one of which had a hefty harness on it.

"I guess that one at the end is the stealth suit?"

"Yes," Emil replied. "It holds the stealth device in the harness. It can in theory project the stealth field around whatever you're holding as well, but it wasn't tested."

"Let's go get it," she said. as she took a step forward, she staggered slightly.

Emil rested his hand on her shoulder, getting her attention. "You okay?" he asked.

"I'm feeling a little dizzy," she told him

"It will be the Kryptonite in the walls," Emil explained. "We'll have to hurry."

As they both began forward, the door sealed shut behind them sealing them in.

"You're trapped," the voice of Director Thompson said over some speakers built into the ceiling. "I'm calling the authorities. You two just sit tight."

Galatea moved up to the door and pulled at it, but her strength was already waning.

"Hurry," Emil urged, "we have to get that suit on you."

She moved swiftly over to the stealth suit and her father helped her put it on to find that, as expected, it was way too big for her. Her face didn't even fill out the transparency in the headpiece of the suit, only the top of her nose and eyes were visible. The chest and arm area were also quite baggy. Unfortunately, it would have to do.

"Let's get out of here," she said as she moved clumsily back over to the door. She paused for a brief moment, looking at Emil. "This suit is going to need some getting used to," she commented.

"Have you forgotten?" the director mocked over the speakers. "Kryptonite lined walls."

She smiled as she tore the door off of its hinges.

"Wait, how did you do that?"

"Suit protects me from Kryptonite," she said grinning. She turned to Emil. "You and Pauline get away from here. I'm heading to the Metro Tower." Emil stepped in front of her, blocking her exit. "What?" she questioned.

"You don't have to do this. We can just drive away and let the Justice League deal with it."

She smiled. "Sounds nice, but I can't block their energy weapon if they fired it at Metropolis. You could be killed and I can't let that happen. I have to try and stop them. Earth is my home and I'm not gonna let some aliens blow it to pieces."

Emil nodded and reluctantly stepped aside. "Good luck," he offered, his face stricken with the look of worry.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine," she promised as she moved off.

Emil watched her go. "I hope so, I really do."

Updated December 2017