Shayera was not used to sitting still, not when there was a battle right above her head. Locked away from the bridge, she had no idea what was going on, who was winning, or…damn it all, this was goddamn unacceptable!

The only reason she knew there was a battle was because of the alarm. She knew that klaxon intimately, meaning that everyone needed to head to their battle stations. Her kinsmen that had rushed by hadn't told her anything, but there had been a few keywords she had picked up.

War. Atmosphere. Kalanorians.

After all of this time, the Kalanorians had arrived. Thankfully, there had been that perimeter of Thanagarian ships in the atmosphere, but how many reinforcements went up there was unknown. It had been some time since the alarm had gone off and surely the battle was at its apex.

That still left her stuck in this cell, helpless, unable to so much as swing her mace.

She hated it. She hated sitting on her ass, unable to do anything. In fact, she had given up on sitting and was pacing in her cell like one of those big cats in the zoo. Anxiety was high and it only got worse the longer she was trapped in here.

Hro, her promised, had done this to her. Kragger had his part to play as well. Both were on her shit list and you better believe she was going to knock them upside the head when she got out of here.

However, her anger at them was second to the fact they had planned on destroying Earth regardless of the outcome of this battle. They wanted to make certain Despero no longer wrecked havoc throughout the universe and Earth was an acceptable sacrifice for that goal. Even now, she saw the determination on Hro's face as she pleaded for him to change his mind.

After this, she wasn't sure if she could see through their own engagement.

Of course, there were only complications as well. There was John, who no doubt was fighting the Kalanorians. She cared for the man, but she also cared for Hro as well. She honestly wasn't certain who she had more affection for. She was sure as hell upset with Hro right now, but she couldn't bring herself to hate him. John was the other man, one she couldn't just toss aside, not when she cared so much for him.

Faintly, she wondered if the Black Hole Generator should go off. That way she wouldn't have to make a decision if one or both men were sucked in. Her too if Hro turned it on early.

However, her thoughts were sidelined when she picked up on very familiar sounds. Looking towards the bars of her cell, she only saw the hallway beyond it. Her ears, on the other hand, detected…fighting. Yeah, there was a fight happening out there.

As if to confirm this, a Thanagarian went flying by, passing from one side of the doorway to the other. Shayera heard shouts and war cries, then Firestorm flew right by her cell, leaving a trail of flames in his wake.

Immediately, Shayera rushed to the bars, slamming against them as her head jerked from side to side, trying to find someone else. As fate would have it, a guard came stumbling into sight, Vixen all over him. She had her feet planted on top of his thighs, her hands on either side of his head as her fingers dug into his skull. The way she was baring her teeth, her back arched, she must have been some kind of big cat, a tiger or lion. The guard had his arms up, grabbing onto her arms as he tried to pry her off of him.

As he took a stumbling step back, he spun to one side, leaving Shayera a view of Vixen's back. Suddenly, she pulled both arms back, then struck him with each one, swinging one arm after the other as she battered his head. Side to side, his head jerked from the blows before the model-turned-hero crouched down and then leapt upwards. Going into a flip, she swung her feet up, landing a double-kick beneath his chin, snapping his head back as the back of his skull cracked hard against the wall behind him.

Finishing her flip, Vixen landed on her feet, going into a crouch even as the guard slumped to the floor. "Vixen!" Shayera shouted, getting the woman's attention as she snapped her head to one side so that she could look over her shoulder.

"What are you doing behind bars?" she questioned as she stood up, turning so she could face the Thanagarian.

"Long story, but you need to get me out," the redhead responded.

"Got it. Black Lighting will get you out." Vixen then darted back the way she came, which only frustrated Shayera more. She just about pounded her fist on the bars when Black Lighting appeared next to her cell, staring at what must have been the control panel.

He didn't say anything to her, just held his hand out, which was out of her line of sight. There was the sound of crackling electricity, but whatever he did, it had the desired result. The bars slid out of her way, disappearing into the doorframe.

At long, fucking, last.

Shayera darted out of her cell, head jerking back and forth to see just what she was running into. To her left, she saw Steel slamming his hammer into the face of a guard. Vixen was springing off of the floor, bouncing off of a wall to launch herself at another one. Overhead, Ice was making some sort of ice bridge…ice ramp? Whatever it was, she was using it to move overhead, sliding across it. Fire was bathed in green flames and flew underneath the ice bridge, keeping up with her friend. To the right, Firestorm was filling the hallway with fire, keeping reinforcements at bay. No doubt Fire and Ice were going to back him up.

"It's time we blow this popsicle stand," Black Lighting stated as she stood next to him. "Have any idea where we can get a ship or an escape pod?"

Immediately, Shayera shook her head. "No, we need to head for the bridge. That's the only way to put a stop to this."

A confused look appeared on the man's face. "What do you mean?"

Before she could answer, a guard appeared behind the dark-skinned man. He held a mace over his head and was clearly looking to smash it on top of the Leaguer's head. Immediately, Shayera launched herself at the guard, reaching out with her hands to catch the mace. She caught it with both hands, fingers wrapping around the weapon's shaft as she stopped it from clobbering Black Lightning.

Spinning around, Black Lightning immediately reacted. Pointing a hand point blank at the guard, he fired an electrical discharge into his torso, shocking the Thanagarian as he screamed. Increasing the intensity, Black Lightning sent a pulse that blasted the guard away, leaving Shayera holding the mace in the process.

Well, at least she was armed now.

Spotting another guard nearby, Shayera lunged towards him. He had his back to her, which made it easy for her to slam her mace on the side of his head, knocking him out cold. Oh yeah, this was so much better than being stuck in a cell.

Unfortunately, that seemed to be all of the guards on this side of the corridor, which left the ones Firestorm, Fire, and Ice were holding off. Seeing Vixen and Steel beginning to head that way, they only stopped because Black Lightning had moved right up to Shayera. "Why do we need to go to the bridge?" he demanded.

Seeing Vixen and Steel were giving them curious looks, the redhead knew she couldn't keep this under wraps, not if they were going to stop what was to come. "There's too much story to go into everything, but what you need to know is that the Defense Shield Generator doesn't make a forcefield—it's going to make a black hole so that the Thanagarian High Command can eliminate Despero once and for all."

"A black hole?!" Steel exclaimed. "But wouldn't that—"

"Destroy Earth in the process?" Shayera interjected. "Yeah, and they don't care. If we want to stop this, we have to go the bridge."

"We have to let the others know," Vixen added. "The whole world needs to know."

"Is there some communication hub we could use?" Black Lightning asked. "Or is that only on the bridge?"

Actually…"Yeah, there's one on the way," Shayera confirmed. "We head there and let the rest of the League know what's happening. If there's anyone that can help us stop this, it's them."

Leaning forward, Batman studied the board. Black and white chess pieces were scattered throughout, though some were noticeably missing.

For Batman, he had lost half of his pawns, a bishop, and a rook. Despero was doing better, only missing three pawns and a knight. The Kalanorians was staring at him from across the board, a knowing glint in his eye.

Batman raised his hand up, fingers hovering over his last bishop, thinking, then withdrew his hand. He eyed one of his pawns, seeing an opportunity to remove one of Despero's pawns, but immediately spotted the rook lying in wait. Unfortunately, he didn't have any other pieces guarding that square to come out ahead of that trade.

But there was a knight piece unprotected. Grabbing his own knight, he moved it to take the piece, setting it to one side with the other eliminated pieces.

In an instant, Despero grabbed his bishop and took the vigilante's last bishop, leaving him bishop-less.

"A curious turn of events," the Kalanorian murmured. "You are without your bishops and I am without my knights. I wonder how this will influence the game."

Batman ignored the man, instead focusing on the game. He had left his bishop wide open for the taking, something he was kicking himself over. It was a sloppy move, one he should have known better than to take. Now he only had his rooks and his queen for long distance moves, each now more valuable.

It didn't help that he had more pressure on him. Despero had placed stakes on this game and naturally the well-being of his planet was a constant thought in his head. It was a concern that only grew as the game progressed. As for Despero, he was quite relaxed, playing as if he had nothing to lose. In a manner, he didn't. If he won, he would be that much closer to destroying Earth. If he lost, he could find some other means to achieve his goal. This game mattered less for him than it did the Dark Knight.

Perhaps he should do the trade-off with the pawn. It would be one less piece to worry about, even if he did lose his own.

"Don't do it."

Batman didn't even flinch from the sudden urge. He had gotten used to Ace rearing her head at unexpected moments. "Why not?" he asked her calmly.

"He wants you to make the trade."

Batman narrowed his eyes as he looked at the pawns. He had already seen Despero's rook waiting in the wings, which would…allow him a straight path to taking one of his knights on his next move. He had almost missed that. Right now, that rook was unguarded, but without a bishop, he couldn't strike at it just then.

"Thanks for catching that," he internally grunted. "I didn't realize you knew how to play."

"I don't. I can feel him probing you. He's been trying to influence you since you started."

Of course Despero was doing that. That he hadn't detected it was alarming. He usually knew when someone was trying to influence his mind. The re-educator during the first Kalanorian Invasion hadn't fared well in that regard. It shouldn't be too surprising that the leader of a telepathic race would be more refined in his abilities.

Then again, anyone that could go toe-to-toe with J'onn with telepathy was not someone to underestimate.

Now he just needed to move that pawn…

Batman closed his eyes. There, he had detected Despero's influence. The Kalanorian was wanting him to do the pawn trade-off. It was rather annoying. "Can you get him to stop?" he asked the telepath in his head.

"No," Ace replied. "I can't give myself away. If I do, he'll take steps to destroy me."

That gave the vigilante pause. This was a girl that tossed J'onn out of his mind without a second thought. She had done the same to the god-possessed Dr. Destiny. Was Despero really that terrifying to her that she was walking on eggshells?

"He is well-versed in destroying minds," Ace reminded him. "He could rip me out of your mind at any given moment. I'm trying not to be detected by him, so there isn't much I can do to help. Sorry."

If he wasn't being watched, Batman would have narrowed his eyes. "For someone that can drive people mad, why don't you do that?"

"I could," she acquiscented, "but I'm under orders not to draw his attention."

Under orders? Who's orders? "Was it J'onn?" he guessed.

"No, Dr. Fate. He has—"

"You seem distracted," Despero observed. "A sheckle for your thoughts?"

Batman froze, startled out of his mental discussion. He couldn't help but puzzle over Fate's order to Ace before he figured a sheckle must have been some sort of currency on Kalanor. It was the equivalent of asking someone for a penny for their thoughts.

"Just thinking six moves ahead," he responded. He eyed a pawn that was currently covered by another pawn, but if he moved it a square up, it'd be covered by his knight. It wouldn't be able to do much, but it was the safest move he saw so far. He'd keep it in mind as he searched for something else.

"A wise strategy," Despero said, "but thinking ahead like that can leave you blind to the short-term, often leaving one paralyzed in place."

That was a good word for how he felt—paralyzed. He was having to readjust his strategy on the fly with a Kalanorian using his telepathy to cheat. Thinking about his pawn move and still feeling as if it wouldn't benefit him, he then abruptly reached for that pawn and moved it into the protection of his knight.

Despero eyed the move before it was his turn to lean forward as he studied the board. Heh, if the Kalanorian thought he could keep trying to influence his mind now that the vigilante was onto him, then he had another thing coming.

A pair of heavy footsteps clashed against stone, only stopping as the metal-encased J'onn rammed right into the giant form of Despero. The Martian had used every bit of power he could gather into that clash, Despero no doubt doing the same. The result was the proverbial unstoppable force meeting an immovable object.

Muscles strained as the two combatants pushed against each other. J'onn bared his teeth as he pushed his legs as hard as he could against the ground, his arms entangling with his foes. Despero gnashed his teeth, only snarling as he struggled back.

It was becoming more and more evident that this Despero was not the one J'onn had become accustomed to fighting. Though he hit much, much harder, his skill was rather lacking. There was no other thought than to simply overpower. This…this was a personification of Despero's full might, nothing more.

That did explain why the Kalanorian seemed to hit harder and pushed stronger. He was raw strength without the restraint of intelligence. Despero was a seasoned warrior, so he knew when to conserve his power and when to unleash it. He knew not to throw everything he had at the beginning of a fight so that his endurance could last throughout a prolonged confrontation.

However, considering how "all-out" his opponent had been going with no evidence of fatigue and J'onn had to wonder just how powerful Despero was.

Case in point, his arms were slowly being pushed to either side of him, Despero starting to win their close-range struggle. J'onn fought to restore the former status quo, but was beginning to realize he was not going to succeed.

That's when Despero lunged forward, slamming his head against J'onn's. That turned out to be a mistake, one a competent fighter would not have made. Because of his metal form, it resisted the headbutt, an example of bone striking steel. For a moment, Despero looked dazed as his strength weakened against the Martian.

That's when J'onn struck. Flinging his arms out, which allowed him to remove his foe's own arms as an obstacle, he then threw a punch, one that slammed into Despero's abdomen. He threw another, striking the man's chest, the force of the blow causing him to back away, but only for one step. Throwing yet another blow, J'onn sent it upward, landing an uppercut that snapped the Kalanorian's head back, and forced him to back away another couple of steps.

But then Despero snapped his head back down, all three eyes and opened mouth glowing with power. The energy blast he fired hit J'onn point blank, sending him careening backwards as he cried out. He hit the stone floor moment later, skidding across it as he left a trench of crumbling rocks.

When he came to a stop, a wince twisting his face, J'onn actually felt fatigue—this was not a good thing. With eyes cracked opened, he glanced towards his foe—

—only to find him rushing towards the Martian. Leaping into the air, Despero had a fist drawn back, ready to smash it down on him.

Immediately, J'onn changed the composition of his body. His metal form liquified in time for Despero's fist to strike the floor, utterly demolishing it. Rapidly, J'onn drew his liquid metal body further down the platform and onto a walkway, gathering himself until he was able to reform his normal self. Gone was the silvery metal and back was his green flesh, blue cape, and red suspenders.

With a snarl, Despero charged towards him, rushing onto the walkway. J'onn kept his eyes on the approaching hulk, holding an arm back, one that began to grow larger. It elongated, forming a club, one that immediately sprouted out spikes from its rounded top all the way down to his elbow.

The moment Despero swung a punch at him, J'onn backed away, allowing the devastating blow to sail harmlessly by in front of him. Air pulled at him as wind was formed by the missed punch. Countering, J'onn swung his clubbed arm, striking the Kalanorian's head, the spikes digging into flesh and tearing it.

As his head jerked from the blow, the galactic tyrant paused, then slowly turned his head to growl dangerously. Across his cheek were cuts, which leaked out dark blood. It was superficial to be certain, but it was quite clear all this did was enrage the man more than he already was.

With a war cry, Despero lashed out with a giant fist. Immediately, J'onn lost his solid form, dropping to the floor as he appeared like a pile of green slime. That slime then darted forward, moving through the gap between Despero's legs, the green ooze seemingly stretching out from one place to another.

And then J'onn pulled the viscous substance he had become together, reforming into his solid, humanoid form again, only this time he was staring right at his opponent's back. Instantly, he fired his Martian Vision right into the unguarded back, causing Despero to flinch from the blow. Because of how quickly he had fired the attack, J'onn had to admit he hadn't used as much power as he wished.

It became apparent that this was a mistake the moment Despero began hunching over and took a step backwards. He did this again and again until he stood before the Martian, who was strengthening his blast as quickly as he could.

Despero then held both of his arms up at shoulder height. He twisted his waist to his left, allowing him to swing his tree trunk sized arm through the air and bash it against J'onn's head. This immediately cut off his Martian Vision as he cried out.

His foe then twisted the other way until his other arm rammed right into him. Pivoting on his feet, Despero spun around, throwing yet another punch, this one nailing J'onn against his face. The force of the blow sent him flying off of the walkway, sailing over a dark abyss from whence this whole room seemed to emerge. It wasn't until he crashed back first into a large pillar that he stopped.

For a moment, J'onn lost his breath from the collision, gasping as the air in his lungs was forced out unwillingly. He immediately sought to reverse this as he sucked in as much air as he could; this panicked response, however, left him wide open.

Not that Despero would have cared. No, the Kalanorian had launched himself off of the walkway moments after punching the Martian off of it. He soared through the air towards his helplessly opponent, smashing into him mere moments after the initial crash.

The force J'onn was hit with forced him through the pillar, bursting out the opposite side in a rain of stone debris. Without its base, the top of the pillar tilted in the direction J'onn and Despero had come from, toppling over. Due to its incredible height, it was able to land right on top of the walkway the two fighters had previously been on, its sheer weight allowing it to break right through it, along with a number of other walkways, stairs, and platforms the massive pillar was able to reach.

Meanwhile, J'onn found he could not worry about that, not when Despero was literally on top of him. As they sailed through the air, the Kalanorian pounded his fist into the Martian's face, over and over, one arm drawing back as the other was thrown. It did not matter that the two could fall forever, this mindless hulk only cared about beating his foe to death.

This had to be stopped.

After the latest fist struck him, J'onn reacted. Seeing the next punch coming, he threw up an arm to block the blow. In this he was successful as his forearm did block the punch, though it trembled from the force it stopped. Then came another punch with Despero's other arm, to which J'onn moved his other arm up, also blocking this, but his resistance was much weaker. His blocking arm was pushed towards him, only just stopping the approaching fist by inches.

And then he countered. The top of J'onn's head stretched forward, moving at an incredible speed. As it stretched, it began to thin until it was perhaps the size of a baseball. This was alright since his target was a small area.

That area was Despero's throat.

Feeling his stretched temple hit the tyrant's neck, he knew he had hit it with enough strength as Despero instantly began gagging. No longer was he raining blows upon the Martian, leaving them to descend down into the darkness below.

Darkness that began to reveal more of the stone jungle they found themselves in.

The two combatants managed to part, if only for a second. They both landed hard on a large stone platform, the rock crumbling from the force they hit it with, but not completely destroying the area.

It was several moments before J'onn groaned. His entire body was throbbing and sore after that last clash. If this fight continued for much longer and he wasn't certain if he could keep up. If Despero could only stay where he was, if only for a minute or so, he would most welcome it.

If only…

Dr. Fate could feel his patience running out.

This creature he was facing radiated power. Yet, he sensed that it was toying with him, a child giggling to itself as it was chased.

Currently it was flying straight up through the chamber, rising higher and higher even as it looked down on him. Dr. Fate was giving chase, but he wasn't closing the distance between them. He did not bother throwing magical attacks as they seemed to only miss. He needed to conserve strength rather than waste it.

Further and further they rose, encountering different levels of platforms and staircases, much like the lower levels had been. Seeing as he had this fiery entity's attention, it would not see an attack coming from ahead.

Dr. Fate held up his hands before him, the third and fourth fingers pressing into his thumbs while the first, second, and fifth fingers remained extended. A magical aura began to glow around him.

Further ahead, large, square platforms seemed to hover in midair, connected by elaborate staircases. It was from the base of these platforms that thin pillars of masonry suddenly jutted out, extending out into open space.

The timing of this was perfect. One of the pillars struck the entity from its blindside, abruptly stopping its flight. It was left stunned, leaving open for a second pillar, and then a third, to ram into it. More and more, platforms from all over shot out these thin pillars, striking their target at the center of a growing mess of masonry.

Dr. Fate slowed his flight, now holding both of his hands before him, fingers spread wide. Between his palms, an orb of bluish-purple magic formed, the symbol of the ankh at its center. Thrusting his arms out, he threw the attack towards the center of the colliding pillars The orb moved slowly, almost painstakingly so considering what was at stake. However, it reached its target without issue.

The resulting explosion was nearly blinding. Dr. Fate stared into the bright, white light, the helm protecting his vision. Stone masonry was consumed whole, small pieces of it flung in every which direction. It was several moments before the light faded away and only smoke remained, broken pillars either hanging outside of the cloud, or more whole ones continued into it. The smoke was rather thick, so the sorcerer could not see through it.

Visibility would matter not. A blast of purple fire suddenly erupted from deep within the dark smoke cloud, causing the remaining smoke to part away as if stung. The fire flew towards Dr. Fate, growing larger and larger with every passing second.

Immediately, Dr. Fate threw his arms out to either side of him, calling upon a teleportation spell. In an instant, his view of an approaching fireball changed to a different angle of the smoke cloud. He had an angle on the fiery blast, keeping an eye on it as it soared towards one of the hanging platforms. It struck the stone and detonated into an incredible explosion, the force of which reached the sorcerer, pushing him back through the air. Out of pure instinct, the man in the golden helm raised his arms up to protect his face, his cape whipping behind him, pulling at his neck and shoulders.

It was several moments before the power of the explosion dissipated, revealing the complete disappearance of the platform it had struck. Dr. Fate stared at the destruction before returning his gaze back to where he had last seen the entity.

He immediately spotted it charging towards him, whatever semblance of childish glee no longer on its indecipherable face. It came to an abrupt stop right in front of the sorcerer, holding up its arms. In an instant, it fired off a blast of its power point blank at him, Dr. Fate crying out as he found himself being carried backwards by the attack.

He flew through the air, the raw power of the attack imprisoning him, not allowing him to free himself easily. Tilting his head to one side, he saw he was sailing towards another platform—and if the previous one was any indication, the subsequent explosion would consume him whole. With little choice, he summoned an aura around him, his outline shining blue.

Moments before he struck the doomed platform, he expanded his magical aura, forming a round shield around his person. The blast then slammed him onto the stone platform and subsequently exploded. Thankfully his shield held firm, making the world around him appear solidly white.

Once the whiteness faded away, Dr. Fate found himself in the ruin, the platform that had been destroyed appearing as if it had never been there. The only signs that anything had been there were crumbling staircases that had once connected to it, scorch marks outlining the edges.

Looking to where he had last saw the being of raw energy, he found it hovering, waiting expectantly as if it were expecting a counterattack.

Far be it for Fate to not oblige.

With a single hand, he held it out in front of him. His blue, magical shield immediately erupted with countless, fluorescent blue hands. An onslaught of them raced towards the being, seeking to capture it.

Seeing them coming, the entity took to flight, the hands giving chase as they followed it. It first went up, then to one side, then it flew right into the storm of grabbing hands, flying between them, dodging them, evading them as they all grabbed at it.

Dr. Fate got the impression he was being toyed with. He did not like this one bit.

Keeping one eye on the evading entity, the sorcerer eyed a large pillar of stone, a staircase climbing up along its side, changing directions when it reached a corner of the square structure. Holding up his other hand, two fingers extending out, he pointed them towards the upper portion of this stone pillar, silently casting a spell to separate it from its upper reaches. He then pointed his fingers to a point far lower, doing the same there.

For a moment, nothing happened. It was subtle at first, but eventually, it began to lean to one side before it toppled over. It leaned too far over before it went right into free fall.

And as fate would have it, it was falling right on top of the area where the purple fiery being was having its fun. Emerging from the cloud of grabbing hands, it came to a stop as it saw the stone masonry falling towards it, too large for it to evade any longer.

Dr. Fate watched as the pillar collided with the being, pushing it downward until he no longer had a proper angle to keep it in sight. He continued to watch as it continued its freefall—

That's when he saw it. From the cracks that separated each block of stone that comprised the pillar, purple light began to shine. It started from one side, but spready out along the cracks until the entire, falling pillar was outlined with the light. Then in one terrible, catastrophic blast, the pillar exploded.

Because of his shield, Dr. Fate wasn't harmed too much. That didn't stop the very force of the blast from knocking him through the air. He lost track of time and distance, how long and how far he flew. Eventually, he was able to slow himself to a stop.

A moment later, he found his head tilting up.

Gone was the falling pillar. In its place was the entity, but it had increased its size tremendously. It was as tall, if not more so, as the Tower of Fate. It stared down at the sorcerer, a sense that it was not pleased with him.

Well, now he had to overcome this. The odds did not seem to favor him.

However, before he could even formulate what he could even attempt, he sensed something. It was faint, towards the back of his head, but it was growing larger. It was a sensation that he felt quite familiar with, a power that he had encountered only recently.

Before his eyes, the chamber was ripped away from his sight.

Because of its size, there was the impression it was barely moving. It rose up into the upper reaches of the atmosphere at a slug's pace, but it was getting there.

A protective detail of fighter jets had been following along, but they had to pull away lest the pilots lose control of their aircraft.

Up ahead was the battlefield, a brawl between Kalanorians, Thanagarians, and Green Lanterns. Explosions flashed throughout the dark backdrop of space, hiding the stars from the sudden flashes of polluted light. On the planet-side of the battle was a stream of Kalanorians ships that were breaching the atmosphere, much like the ones that had come before them. Thanagarian ships were drawing towards one side of the battle, clearly giving up on holding a defensive line. The Green Lanterns seemed to be more stubborn as green lights were converging to stop or limit the breach.

The World Engine might have something to say about that.

It was damn near horizontal to the planet, its three legs extending out in the direction of the space battle. It was almost as if it were using the planet as a bed. This was thanks to the Psion, who was busy at the controls, monitoring the massive terraformer's systems, ensuring that all was within parameters.

It wasn't alone though. The watchful eyes of Count Vertigo, Captain Boomerang, and Killer Frost were on alert for signs of treachery, though what they could do if the reptilian alien did try something was highly doubtful.

At a central terminal, Deadshot had a finger on a button, his eyes focused on a display, one that projected the imagery of the war happening outside. Every ship, no matter the size was examined as the perfect target was searched for. In the end, the sniper settled on the large, long spaceship that carried the massive cannon from which purple flame spewed from. Previous alien transmissions had shown this ship destroying Mars, and Deadshot figured that it was the most dangerous one out of the whole lot.

"This is absolutely nuts," Boomerang muttered.

"That is the job we were given," Vertigo responded.

"Doesn't mean it ain't crazy."

"Is this thing ready to go?" Deadshot called out. He didn't have much use for comments from the peanut gallery.

The Psion seemed to ignore him at first, right up until it called out, "All systems on-line. The World Engine is ready for use."

A smirk appeared on Deadshot's lips. He held his finger over the button, one that would do some serious damage.

"Bang."

From its center, white light glowed from the World Engine. It grew brighter and brighter, the legs self-adjusting to accommodate the power.

And then it fired.

The pulse instantly covered the battlefield. Everything seemed to stop, frozen in a standstill. The white light seemed to grow brighter and brighter, swallowing up all that it touched. The blues, and browns, and whites of Earth lost color, seemingly wiped away.

And then it started.

Ships that were caught up in the pulse, be it Kalanorian or Thanagarian were ripped to shreds. They all jerked in the direction the pulse forced them to go before they tore into large pieces, chucks of metals tossed out. Those pieces continued to rip apart into smaller pieces until they were no longer visible.

For the Green Lanterns, any that were caught up simply vanished, their green lights extinguished in an instant.

The Py'tar Cannon didn't stand a chance either. It rocked to one side, even as its purple fire bubbled and spat out of its barrel. The main cannon tore off the ship it used as a stand, leaving it as two distinct pieces if only for a moment. Like the other ships, it was shredded into larger chunks, slowly breaking down into smaller pieces. As for the cannon, the moment its side was torn apart, revealing its innards, the purple fire it created was consumed by the pulse, disappearing completely.

Once the pulse ended, only wreckage remained. Explosions erupted at the periphery, the damage suffered by the smaller ships being too much for them to handle. Larger ships were able to remain intact, but entire sides were torn off, scorched marks marring their hulls.

Ships closer to the planet's atmosphere couldn't maintain their position, gravity taking hold and pulling them down. The heat created upon entry caused some to explode, others lighting on fire.

The odds had changed with that bright flash of light. Briefly, Wonder Woman wondered if this was what it would be like if Zues himself intervene in a conflict. The power and might displayed before her was reminiscent of the Gods themselves.

But this was no act or will of the Gods. This was the power of the World Engine, fired in the upper atmosphere, and the will behind it was mankind's. Man-made aircraft were returning to lower altitudes having guarded the terraformer up into space, its faint silhouette still visible if only just. The last she was aware, A.R.G.U.S. was the one in possession of the machine. In the back of her mind, she wondered if…if Steve had anything to do with this.

Battle was pure, feral, and chaotic. It was Ares' domain, and the less said about that God, the better. Still, there was a part of her that sang as she engaged in the ancient practice of war, and this battle held stakes that had not been seen since the Gods last walked this world.

The World Engine's intervention had changed war's tides. The sky had lit up white for what felt like hours, but couldn't have been longer than a mere moments. The smaller alien fighters were not firing their beams of plasma as often, perhaps shocked to inaction. The mighty warships that travel the stars could be seen falling to into the atmosphere, fires blazing all over their hulls. They marred the darkening sky with streaks of red.

One could only hope that the Py'tar Cannon, the weapon capable of destroying a planet, was in ruins. With all of the debris falling unto Earth, it was difficult to tell. It could still be floating up there as far as anyone knew, or it could be one of many pieces of burning debris. Some ships that made it through the atmosphere continued to fall, torrents of water splashing high into the air as they crashed into the ocean. Salt water churned as other warships sank into Posideon's depths,

And then Wonder Woman turned away to strike out as the nearest fighter ship. Though the sights she witnessed were horrific, the battle was not yet over. Only a moment to witness this spectacle was afforded. She knew too well the threat the Kalanorians possessed, and either they surrendered here or fled. She would give them a reason to make their decision sooner.

Once the threat was ended, then they could cope with this. They could figure out what to do with A.R.G.U.S. and its possession of the World Engine. They could put an end to the Thanagarian occupation.

But first, the battle called and she would answer. Only later would she recognize the wetness on her face. That the wetness came from her tears.

But why? Was it a reaction to psychological trauma?

Or was it mourning for innocence lost?

Starfire felt numb. That was one human word she did understand for it was the same sensation she felt the moment she last saw Tamaran as she was boarded onto a Citadel ship, guarded by Gordanians, and taken to begin the first day of a torturous life.

Her numbness was broken as she heard a laugh. Slowly turning, she could see Blackfire cackling at the sight of destruction.

"Oh, I think I might have misjudged these humans! To be capable of this! The Citadelian Royals would have been drooling over it if they still live!"

At face value, the younger Tamaranean could have considered it backhanded praise, an insult disguised as a compliment. Her first instinct was to refute Blackfire, and it was an instinct she was able to repress. There were little clues that indicated that the older Tamaranean was trying to hide her true thoughts.

Shock was not a strong enough word. Shaken…did not possess sufficient strength either. The display of devastation was having an effect over her older sister, that much was clear.

Based on prior comments about humans, Blackfire had not held a high opinion of them. They were an obstacle to her ambition, that was plain. That they were also capable of depravities on a scale greater than her, that Blackfire had not expected.

Starfire was not ignorant. There had been many depraved humans she had encountered on this planet. For each and every one she met, there were others who opposed them, examples of their opposites. Her friends were such an example. There was more to humans than their capability to engage in evil.

It was a lesson she was now to applying to her fellow Tamaraneans.

So she said nothing, and allowed Blackfire to handle her own trauma.

Green Lantern had seen many battlefields, both on Earth and out in space. He had seen many terrible things and had learned to cope with them.

This…this would be another. So many races out in the stars had developed technology capable of mass destruction; in that humans weren't alone. He had to find ways to keep his head, even in the face of absolute destruction, such as this.

The only surprising thing here was that A.R.G.U.S. had figured out how to use the World Engine. That they would use it in a gambit against Despero could be reasoned out. If you had such a machine at your disposal, wouldn't you use it if it meant preventing the end of the world? A deep part of him could not hold that against them.

It also brought back the thoughts of that alternate him, the one from the dystopian future that never came to be. To have any opinion that felt like it could come from that man, that man who he never dreamed of becoming, gave him a feeling of disgust that he wanted to vomit out of himself.

It was complicated. The Kalanorians were hellbent on a mission of annihilation, their leader hungry for vengeance, so what was humanity to do in the face of that?

Too many questions, too many for a soldier to answer. In his heart, he was still one, and he was in the middle of a battlefield, so answering questions was not high on his priority list. Once they could get this situation with the Kalanorians squared, then they could start answering the tough questions here.

At least then, they would be alive so that the answers would matter.

Red Robin was sure his mouth wasn't the only one dropped open. The fighting had started up again, but from where the five of them…four of them stood, it was nothing but quiet.

All the smoke rising from the ocean, the sight of destroyed alien ships, the blinding whiteout of the sky itself, and finally the burning rain of wrecked spaceships falling through the air made a painting no sane man would ever create.

Beside him, Raven raised a hand to her head, her eyes nearly shut, and the corner of her lips twitching downward. One would think she was having a headache; however, Raven wasn't just anyone…

"Hey, you okay?" Trust Cyborg to pick up on the signs of distress—if you could call them that—that their friend was expressing.

Raven didn't answer, at least not immediately. Eyelids cracked open, and what one would call a grimace was all she expressed for several seconds. "It's…nothing I haven't felt before. I was…caught off guard."

"Caught off guard?" Red Robin repeated, eyeing the smaller girl closely. This had something to do with her powers, he knew it. One mystery still in his life was how those powers functioned. "Mind getting into some details?"

Dark eyes glanced at him, then looked straight ahead stoically. Eventually, after much scrutiny from himself and Cyborg, she replied, "Sudden death has a way of leaving an…echo. Fear…shock…are the primary emotions. It's hard to describe." She paused, and just when the masked teen thought she wouldn't say anything else, more words came out. "It's as…it's as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and—"

Abruptly she stopped, eyes flashing open wide. Her body fell still, giving away the fact she had been trembling just a second ago. It was an…odd reaction. Why was she…?

A green tentacle settled itself on one of Raven's shoulders. The fourth member of their group who wasn't standing like the rest of them sidled up next to the hood-and-cloak wearing girl, and with a teasing voice said, "Go on, Raven. You know you want to finish it."

Through clenched teeth, "Shut. Up,"

Red Robin frowned. What was happening here? And why was Beast Boy…? Something about the phrase Raven had used obviously prompted this reaction. Millions of voices crying out in terror? Strange, that sounded familiar…

"You're so close!" the shapeshifter wheedled. "Just a few more words! You know you have to finish it."

"The only thing I'll be finishing is the calamari that I tear out of your hide!" Raven glared at the green octopus.

Cyborg gave an unexpected chuckle. "Well, when you don't mean to quote Star Wars…"

"Would you look at that, the tin can I can preserve what I don't finish in."

Oh, now he got it. Keeping his eyes on the fighting as it began to slowly die down, he felt that particular quote was apt here.

Kid Flash had stood on the teen vigilante's other side and had been watching the whole thing go down. Out of all of them, he had seemed the least affected, so maybe that was why he cocked his head in confusion. "I don't get it."

You and a bunch of other people were in the same camp, perhaps.

Millions of voices suddenly crying out in terror and were suddenly silenced…yeah, that fit all right.

The target was confirmed destroyed. Mission accomplished.

Deadshot took an uncharacteristic moment to survey his work. Normally for him, a job was a job, and a hit was a hit. There was no need to stick around and admire anything when the next part was always hightailing it out of there.

This, this was something that he could savor for once, and so he did, ignoring the commentary from the rest of the squad while he did so. In a way, this made the last couple of months all worth it. If nothing else, he could die happy, Waller be damned.

Never before had one shot of his done so much. Sure, there were the political hits—because politics was always a reliable employer even with the all-too-common backstabbing—but decimating an entire race? Say what you want, but he hadn't felt this alive in a long time. There was no way to say the good guys had beaten this one.

But he wouldn't take credit, at least not officially. He hadn't gotten into this business for the fame or the glory. Only to make a quick buck, that's it. Turns out he was good at it; really good at it.

If he hadn't have gone to Gotham…

It was in the past, and this was just another shot at glory.

After this, it was back to the squad and the next mission.

And the mission after that.