Disclaimer: I don't own DC or Halo franchises.
A/N: Hey guys, this is the same "The Ultimate Warrior" story I am writing for Marvel, but a DC version, more of Justice League Animated crossover which will progress into Justice league unlimited. From now on, each chapter will be updated alternatively between Marvel and DC crossover.
As for John, he's the same from Marvel crossover with the same powers, skills and abilities. John will definitely come across Doomsday and Darkseid, Brainiac etc.,.Though the actual main antagonist is neither of them. I am great fan of Harbinger of Kaos and his Justice league crossover. I hope you will enjoy this one too.
Besides I am uploading the first 6 chapters. But since I won't be updating this story for quite some time after this, take your time to read the story and get a feel for it.
Chapter 1:
Near the galaxy - Eye of Sauron...
63 million light years from Earth...
September 3rd, 62558 AD...
John-117, Supreme commander of human military-UGSC, was in his personal flagship, wearing his black body suit standing 7'7" tall(Face modeled after Bruce Wayne from Arkham Origins) in Labyrinth of Chaos, A human fortress vessel standing 260 kms tall 115 kms long and 100 kms wide plus the flagship of human military. Inside the armor, he stands 7'10" tall and weighs 450 kgs. The spartan IIs in general has been through several stages of evolution over the 60,000 year time span, thanks to Doctor Halsey, the brain child of Spartan II program. Without the armor, he can lift 50 tons and can run at 90 kms an hour and his body is 3 times the density of Osmium. He is also a great martial artist, thanks to Fred, his training with the other Spartan IIs made them the master of CQC combat as well.
He and his AI friend Cortana were called upon by the senate to investigate a transmission that originated from a mysterious portal beyond the galactic rim. The signal was first picked up by the Comm station in Planet Zenith that resides in a star system in the rim. When they tracked it's source, they relayed the message to the Security council on Charum Hakkor, one of the three capitals and military hub of Humanity besides Earth and Reach.
"What can you tell me about the transmission?" John asked as he and Cortana were working with hardlight consoles and displays in the bridge.
"A series of quantum bursts with 3 nano second interval. The information is encoded in a 10-dimensional sub-atomic data array. At least that's the technical aspect from where we are standing" she responded with a shrug.
"Can we decode the matrix?" he asked wondering if he can get an answer this time though his AI friend was already a step ahead.
"Done-...but" she said as the transmission has been decoded already which was quite satisfying. But still they had a problem.
"The signal in question itself is a different story" she said as she displayed a series of symbols in the display that John doesn't recognize.
"*SIGH*...this is what is left from the decryption. A series of symbols we have never seen before" she said as she still got only a half filled cup.
"What language is this and what does it even mean?" John puzzled as he didn't know how to proceed further. He was in deep thought and that's when Cortana interfered once again.
"WAIT! I think I found something" she said loud which alerted John. He could see Cortana was working on rearranging the patterns of the symbols to all permutations and combinations until it made sense.
"Gotcha!" she flared with a smile.
"Did you get it?" John asked hopefully.
"Not much, it's vague. But I see these words" she said as some part of the symbols rearranged to form the words in Human readable language which made John to shrink his eyebrows in suspicion.
"UNDER ATTACK...ASSISTANCE...HELP US-..THEY-...THEY ARE-...**TECHNICAL SCRAMBLE**"
But this didn't sit well with John.
"They-.. Is it from any distant galaxy that we don't know yet?" he asked running the possibilities.
"That's the thing. It is not even from 'THIS' universe" she said which stunned him for a second.
"What?" he asked shockingly.
"Yes, there is an extra-dimensional energy signature emanating from the portal. I think this signal is-...from a different universe." she said concluding her analyses, though she had stoic look, not knowing how to best describe it. John for his part was not new to alternate dimensions, realities. But this is the first time he's in a situation where they received a signal from another universe and the two immediate questions that rise in his mind were
"Who and Why?" he asked
"Not sure John. But I have a hunch" She said as the Spartan was listening to her.
"This must be a distress call. Some species with enough technological advancements must have gathered resources to send this signal. But someone must be really desperate to send a signal that can cross the dimensional boundaries" she said in awe, though it was more of a jest.
John was in deep thought, both as a soldier and Military leader. His every strategic decisions affects the whole empire. To him there are only two possibilities, one of them is this to be a trap. The other one is if the signal is to be legit and someone's really in need of help.
"Commander? Lost in thoughts?" Cortana snapped him out of his thoughts as he looked at her in dilemma. But being his close friend, she could easily understand his worries.
"I know you are split on your decision These are trying times. But remember, I'm always with you, whatever it is you decide" she said with a reassuring smile that made him smile a little. Of course John and Cortana had been together and been through a lot. They both take care of each other. Besides, there are no hurdles and odds that ever stopped him from completing his mission.
"So the Domain is open after a really long time and now someone is trying to mess things up everywhere. The domain give access to virtually everything. I won't be surprised if this distress call is good to be true" he said.
"And I'm worried who's behind this. Anyone who gains access to the Domain can control the fate of the universe and even beyond. We have seen it's power first hand" she said calculating the worst case scenarios of the present situation.
"Think about it, we are here just moments after the monitor Exuberant Witness said that the domain is back online. I think there is a connection here and I intend to find it" he said as he was peering through the situation.
The Domain is an ancient Precursor artifact that stores live information of the universe and multiverse. It's age spans a 100 billion years. Even forerunners gained many power and influence using the artifact. The Precursors intended it to be alive in a different way, it updates itself over the passing time, though there can be certain inconsistencies with the recording since the Forerunners activated the Halo array that disrupted the domain during the Forerunner-Flood war. But when Humanity restored it back around 10,000AD, it has gained all of it's previous functionalities.
"Then this is one of those end times, John. Like when we faced the flood invasion, Ceph invasion" She said to which he nodded in approval.
"I have made my decision. With the available data, can you plot the location of this universe from our current multiverse chart?" he asked determined. Cortana knew he would come to this point.
"No problem! We have the dimensional energy readings, coupled with the cosmological resonance constant. Give me few minutes, I can create an anchor in between here and that universe through the portal" she said as she worked with the hardlight display doing complex calculations.
"Then extrapolate the graphical points in the chaaaaarrrrt...Done! Now we have anchored our position here with that of signal's source itself. Even the nav-points are ready for deployment" she said with pride in her face, as the chart was rearranged into a new graph with new plot points and space-time pathways connecting the alternate dimensions. Though the location of this mysterious universe was really far from the other places they have discovered, which raised lot of suspicion. Either way, John was quite satisfied with the result.
"Now we need to alert everyone" John said as he brought the comm channel. But Cortana was feeling a bit odd about John's decision.
"Wait, isn't it a little hasty? You don't usually barge in front just like that. I took you for a down to earth strategist" She said folding her hands with a chuckle. She was right on that regard for a fact. John looked at her with a warm smile.
"While you were plotting course, I have been calculating a 100 different possibilities and outcomes of this engagement. I am well prepared for this bout. Besides, it is my duty to make sure whatever threat that awaits on the other side is neutralized to keep everyone here safe" he said determined to see through this new mission as he opened another comm channel.
The one who answered the call was none other than his fellow Spartan Fred-104.
"Greetings brother! May I know the reason for this interruption?" he asked which made John to raise his eyebrows a little.
"Where are you?" he asked puzzled with his response.
"Well, One of the Aurelian colony world is being attacked by an unknown alien coalition called the Seekers from a distant space, said they wanted them to surrender the planet. We received their distress call and took a fleet to deal with the threat. We are almost at the edge of our frontier" he said though with no hint of distress.
"Do you require assistance?" he asked though he knew this was their regular regime.
"Nope. We blew up their ships and taken prisoners for questioning. Soon we'll know their agenda. But let's talk about what you wanted. You didn't call me without a reason" he asked now seriously.
"Yes, I need you to listen very carefully" he said as he proceeded to explain everything starting from Exuberant's claim of the Domain being opened, a distress signal originating from another reality.
"*SIGH* Great! So we've got another big trouble our way and this is beyond anything we have faced before. Once I'm finished with this. I will head your way" Fred-104 said though he was rejected of his idea.
"No, I need you to alert everyone and have every military personnel, fleet and Spartan fireteam ready in case of an attack, while I and Cortana investigate this" he ordered his comrade.
Fred knew John enough to believe that he was always right and atleast 3 steps ahead of everyone to deal with the unknown. Frankly, he expected this from John-117.
"And I will send you all of my compiled reports regarding this so you can give others a better explanation yourself" Cortana added her thoughts.
"Knew you would say that. Fine, I will have the other IIs ready and relay your orders to all of UGSC. Good luck to both of you...and!?...You guys better be alive!" he said with a chuckle as he cut the channel. John let an evasive smirk at his fellow Spartan's quip. Cortana smiled at that and nodded her head in amusement.
John turned to look at Cortana who was awaiting the 'go-ahead' nod from him.
"Let's move" he said as she grinned and she piloted the vessel. the huge ship cruised to a certain distance.
"Initiating the Natal void transit to the coordinates. Powering the engine in 3...2...1" she initiated the countdown as a bluish white vortex opened wide.
John and Cortana watched as the ship entered the Natal void, a dimension that acts as a medium of transit in the multiverse and thus marking the beginning of their new mission. The vessel then completely vanished into the void as the portal closed behind.
...
Unknown Reality...
Unknown Planet...
Unknown Timeline...
**MULTIPLE GUN SHOTS...MULTIPLE DISTANT EXPLOSIONS**
There was chaos everywhere on a beautiful world filled with enriched flora and fauna. Fires raging everywhere as the sky was red and ammo flying in all directions, tearing through the sky like a cloth cut with scissors. Unknown bipedal beings dressed in red and white suit carrying guns and shooting at huge golden and grey metal mechanical constructs that were roaring and firing golden colored ammo from their oddly looking hand held rifles that disintegrates everything it touches. These constructs also instantly teleport to confuse the natives and kill them through surprise attacks.
"Hold the line! HOLD THE LINE!-...AAAHHH!" a red and white suited soldier yelled as his unit were firing upon a 5 huge mechanical constructs that were charging down and roaring towards them.
One of the construct impaled a huge golden energy blade into one of the soldier's chest and threw him over another soldier.
**BOOM...BAAAMMM**
Another construct fired a grenade launcher like weapon from it's arms and it blew up a group of soldiers as they disintegrated to nothing.
"Forager, these things have surrounded us. All our homes are destroyed. We have managed to evacuate the survivors towards the cave system under the mountain" said one of the fighting soldier.
The alien being called the Forager was wearing the same red and white suit with red face mask and what appears as the goggles. He was worried about the safety of his people and also these constructs were spawning endlessly. It takes a great effort even to kill one of these being and the whole place is swarming with these constructs.
**DISTANT ROARS...MULTIPLE GUN SHOTS AND EXPLOSIONS**
"Good, though I'm not sure how long we can survive this. Even the gods above struggle to repel them" he said with bleak tone, losing hope. They had never seen abominations like this and being violently attacked.
"Let us keep fighting until the end. For our people and let's pray with whatever little hope we have that the world doesn't end today!" he said as they moved forward firing at the mechanical constructs.
Meanwhile in a Floating city...
Amidst the beautiful city floating on rock floating above the ground. The same golden constructs were mercilessly attacking everything causing strife and chaos everywhere. Now there was only fire and some shattered buildings with civilians, men, women and even children running for their lives. Parents embracing their kids in hopes of keeping them safe.
Then there were these armored flying beings who were firing laser beams at the constructs. One of them wore a red suit with golden armor and some sort of hand held jet pack retrofitted with laser guns. Another being wore a white suit with some golden head gear firing being of energy from his fists.
"Orion, where is the High father and the Children?" asked the man called Lightray.
"I don't know, the last I saw them was with Metron. High father is managing to keep the inner sanctum safe. But we need to stop these creatures here and now before they managed to reach there" He said as he fired his laser beams at the constructs.
Suddenly, there was a huge construct that teleported out of nowhere. This one was very huge and had red spikes on its back.
"Looks like we've got a lot of company" Orion said as he and Lightray were getting ready for the new wave.
It then raised some mechanical chirping sound and raised it's arm above and all of a sudden 5 huge constructs popped up with guns ready. They presumes the huge construct to be a leader of sorts.
**ZZZAAAATTT...BAAMMM**
The creature started to fire heavy rounds which scattered and exploded everywhere.
"Damn! We need to flank em" Orion yelled as they moved to the sides to attack them with the energy beams.
But the constructs were smart as the leader ordered to spread through and the heavy infantry units teleported randomly around Lightray and Orion. They had hard time evading them.
"They are well coordinated. These things must be artificial intelligence. But-..*GRUNT* who sent them?" Orion yelled as he hid from one of the explosions.
In the Sanctum...
The sanctum is at the heart of the city, a huge towering obelisk. There was an old man inside with thick white beard and wearing white robes. He wielded a cane. There were children in the Sanctum, his students who were afraid of the chaos everywhere.
"High Father? What is happening? I am scared!" a little girl wept in fear. The old man embraced the little girl and knelt down to look at ther with a reassuring smile.
"Don't be afraid. I am here to protect you all" he said to which she wiped her tears and smiled.
"Metron, how are our defenses? Can we hold?" High father asked seriously with a glimmer of hope.
The one called Metron in a purple suit was working with multiple holograms. His attire had more of a scientist's appeal.
"I am doing all I can High Father. I have never seen these constructs before and they are lot powerful. Every time we kill them, they disintegrate in to photonic matter, but I am reading some sort of data in an unknown language. Kill one, two will take it's place" Metron said distressed as he was quite upset the city's defenses are beginning to collapse.
"Never before, the Gods of New-Genesis needed help from anyone. But for this time, we need it for the sake of innocent men, women-..." he said as he turns to look at the kids,
"...-and the children. Let's hope some one received your signal" he finished. Metron glanced at the old man with a sad look.
"Huh, he's right on that regard, atleast! The Lantern corps are our best bet. They will use the boom tube to get here" he thought with hope though downcast as things looked bleak with everything that's been happening.
On the planet's orbit...
The Labyrinth of Chaos just exited the Slipstream space in front a blue green planet just like Earth.
"Cortana?" John asked after a rugged 10 minute journey through nothingness, finally seeing the space filled with stars and planets.
"Sublight and Translight engine good, Shields maximum, Nexus core good and all weapons and life supports are green" Cortana finished systems check as she brought up the holographic image of the planet.
"Are we still anchored?" he asked to which she nodded. John was relieved to hear that as he didn't want them to get lost and stuck here for a long time until they can get back.
"Now about the signal's origin, this is the planet from which we received the distress call" she said as she pulled the topographic data.
"Population 500 million, as for the natives-..." she said as she brought images of biped human like being with different skin conditions, chromosomes. Then she brought out images of huge carnivorous worms and then finally the other beings which made her wide eyed.
"Holy crap!" that was her only comment.
"They look human coupled with all those enhancements and advanced technologies. But on the genetic level, they are highly evolved and attained it's peak, ability to control energy itself" John said after assessing the beings.
Then once again, they received the same distress call. But surprisingly this time, they were able to fully understand.
"This is Metron of the New Genesis. We're under attack by unknown mechanical constructs and appreciate immediate assistance. We are pinned down"
"New-Genesis? At least now we know where we are" John thought.
"Triangulating position...Got it! It's from here!" she said as she brought a separate 3-D hardlight replica of a city floating above the ground, they didn't miss even a small detail. They both admired the beauty of the city.
"I have to give them credits for their architecture!" he thought as he had seen similar floating buildings in forerunner cities.
Then suddenly the bridge alarmed in red.
"What is that?
"I think we've found the reason of the distress call. The planet is under attack by-...She scanned and finally revealed the image and it's supporting data of the attackers-... and she gasped in terror.
John for his part glared at the image of the attacking constructs which made him kick his spartan instincts instantly as the adrenaline flushed through his blood. Cortana turned to look at John clueless on how to handle the situation.
"John, I can't believe what I am seeing. THIS NEEDS OUR IMMEDIATE ATTENTION!" she said firmly with a cold glare. For John, he didn't need this to be told to him twice.
"Prometheans! It must be the domain. First we need to deal with them, secure the city and the ground side, then keep looking for survivors" he said with clear focus.
"I will be here to watch things from above and assist you in anyway I can" she said as she readied the ship board weapons in case of naval engagement.
"I'll head down" he said as he raised his arms to the side and then the dark silvered Armageddon battle suit wrapped around him and finally the helmet covered from left and right, then top and then the bluish green visor at last.
"John, be careful. I believe there's more to it than what meets the eye" she said with concern and she didn't want them get stuck in an unknown place with unknown variables. But John is well well aware of his mission and he will see through it to the end.
"I will" he responded casually and an yellow energy field surrounded him and he was teleported out of the ship to the surface.
On the surface...
The alien called Forager and his people were doing everything they can to fight the mechanical abominations. Even the small units required explosive power to kill them. The big ones were really hard to kill as they had to do sitting ducks. Forager almost lost everyone who had been fighting besides him, until only 3 of them were left including him.
"Forager, we are all that's left" one of his comrades said as if he knew their fate.
"I know, it will be a rewarding death, but we won't go down with out a fight!" he said as they let a war cry and both started firing their weapons. They knew they don't stand a chance like the New Gods since they were over whelmed and surrounded with no avenues of escape
"The golden constructs were unfazed as one of the commander fired a grenade that hit their spot and
**BOOOM** the explosion filled the area with dust but the two opened their eyes to their confusion refusing to believe they were still alive.
"What just happened?" Forager asked as they turned to look around to see the explosion had knocked everything around them after a certain radius, but leaving themselves unharmed.
"I uhh-...I don't know...LOOK!" the other soldier said as he spotted something or a certain dark silver armored someone at a distance as the visibility cleared. Forager turned to look at what his friend pointed him to see and he was wide eyed in terror. They both saw a huge tall armored bi pedal being that was raising it's left arm straight pointed to them.
John used his telekinesis to protect the two alien beings from the Promethean commander's grenade. Then he instantly summoned his pulse fusion rifle from the slipspace container that appeared out of nowhere into his hands.
"By the Gods! Who is that?" the two alien beings wondered. They found him to carry an aura of death and destruction.
John immediately fired the weapon that shot mini proto-star rounds that melted the Promethean carapace and disintegrate the hardlight.
"Time to finish them off!" he thought.
Once the Prometheans found who it was, they all let a digital roar and began to spread out to take him down as quickly as possible.
John identified multiple Knights, Knight wagons and two Commanders in his HUD. Three knights instantly teleported near him for point blank shot. But John ducked under using his quick reflex and shot two rounds that disintegrated them followed by a powerful back kick that knocked another knight to the ground, followed by two rounds which disintegrated the construct. The third one took multiple shots, but his armor was not even scratched and he killed the remaining one.
But this wasn't the end as already four more knights and three wagons randomly teleported near him and swarmed him with rifle shots and scatter shots. but the Armageddon suit which can easily withstand a supernova was unfazed. Though an AI combat unit, they were very keen on eliminating him instead of strategic thinking.
They all randomly attacked him with cross and hook followed by rapid fire. John countered every move until he caught a wagon's arm from back and ripped it off which then vanished to invisible photons. Then he fired three rounds that killed the first wagon and when two knights leapt above him, he telekinetically stopped them mid air and forced them to the ground at enough speed to kill them. Then the remaining two wagons split in opposite directions and fired alternatively. John analyzed their move and in split second he teleported behind one in a surprise move and summoned a long energy blade from his upper wrist of the right arm, made from telekinetically assemble photons and pierced the heart that killed it instantly and fired his rifle simultaneously at the last wagon in the opposite end which had nothing to do but burn. Then he finished of the remaining knights by firing three rounds at each which killed them.
Then just when he was gonna divert his attention to the commanders, they already launched three Z-040 pulse grenades at him which created a very powerful plasma implosion sphere and exploded with enough force that pushed John a couple feet. John is very well aware of the pulse grenade. If it were his MJOLNIR mark VI, his shields would have drained and damaged his armor severely. But it didn't do a hair width of scratch. John sent the rifle back to slipspace. When the commanders again launched another wave of grenades, John sent a gravity surge that deflected them back to the Prometheans and with a huge explosion, the commanders were shorted and were cracking with electricity leaking out. John instantly summoned his long wrist blades on both the hands and ran at unimaginable speeds and did a cross slash that cut them into two. Thus killing the last of them.
And this whole fight lasted only 5 minutes.
John then disbanded the blades back as his HUD didn't pick up any hostiles nearby. He then proceeded to walk towards the two alien beings wearing red suit who were in turn terrorized by his appearance and his fierce action.
"By the Gods! You killed them like-...like they were nothing!" the Forager said though he struggled to speak as he was mildly shivering from the trepidation.
"I hope you are here to help us!?" the other soldier asked.
"Yes. Are you the one in charge here?" John asked turning to the Forager, with no shift in his stoicism.
"Ye-...Yes. I am Forager, Leader of the Bugs people on the surface!" He said now calming down after rejuvenation of hope. They both felt relieved after seeing the mystery person killing these machines. It was like their prayers were answered.
"Bugs!?...must be their people" John thought as he felt odd with the name of their species.
"Where are the other survivors?" he asked.
"We had them moved towards the far of mountain, deep into a chasm, before they began their assault" Forager replied.
"We have been fighting these machines for 8 hours. Almost all of our fighting units were killed, except the two of us. *SIGH*...We were ready to die to keep our people and children safe. But then you came. Now even alone, I have hope" the other soldier giving a blithe response.
John pitied their situation, but gave credits to their bravery and the selflessness even in face of overwhelming odds, just like the soldiers and Spartans of his universe.
"Don't worry. We will fend them of. I came here in response to a distress call that I tracked down to this place-...There in that floating city" John said as he pointed his fingers towards the city which the two noticed and gasped in response.
"The Gods over there protects us. We thought they had no problem dealing with them! If they are seeking help from someone, then this is truly a grave situation" Forager said as he was crestfallen after what their savior revealed to them. He always believed in the New Gods and considered himself worthless in front of them.
John for his part was a little bit in dilemma as this Forager kept calling the city people as Gods. Though he understood, that due to their ability to control energy may have rendered these 'Bugs' to refer them as such. The suit's HUD scanned Forager's genetics and sees a similar potential within him, though on a lower scale.
But he couldn't understand why he was seeing himself inferior and modest.
"To me, you both are the heroes today and did your duty to protect your people, at any cost. Don't self-deprecate yourselves. Go back to your people and keep them safe. And-..." John said as he opened his left palm and a spherical object appeared out of slipspace container much to the awe of the two bug soldiers.
"-...This is a bubble shield module that can create an energy shield the size depending on how long you hold this button. In case the hostiles find you, this will protect you" he said as he handed over it to Forager. He took it and smiled at his gesture.
"I thought we were always trivial, but this man sees us differently and this is the first time, we were even called 'heroes' by an unknown outsider. Surely he must be sent by the gods!" Forager thought with blistering hope this warrior had infused into them.
"Before you go, what do we call you?" asked the other soldier. John stopped and turned to look half way back and replied.
"Spartan-117" he said as he proceeded to move towards the floating city.
John then walked as he contacted Cortana.
"Cortana, I have made contact with the locals here. They call themselves the-...'bugs'. I have cleared the Prometheans here. But I am reading more number in the city" he said.
"'Bugs'? huh, fine. Mean while I am looking for a conduit that brought these machines here. I will update you once I'm done" she replied through his speakers.
"Acknowledged, 117 out" he said as he cut the comm and levitated above the ground using the anti-gravity propulsion and then flew towards the floating city.
Meanwhile Orion and Lightray were fighting endless wave after wave of the machines. They had spent too much energy to a point, they began to feel exhausted.
"Damn machines! These things keep coming. There's no end to this madness!" Orion yelled in agony as he had been fighting 8 hours straight and these things keep spawning outta nowhere.
"I hope Metron is doing what he can. Glad the city's defenses are holding, though it won't be long before they overrun us" he said as he was firing photon blasts towards the huge machines.
When all seemed blurry, Orion received a transmission,
"This is Spartan 117 broadcasting to the New-Genesis. I am here in response to the distress call, I repeat I'm here in response to the distress call, ready to assist, does anyone copy?" the transmission went on which was picked up by both Light ray and Orion. Once they heard the message, they both glanced at each other in confusion.
"Spartan 117? I don't understand, who's this guy? I remember Metron talking about getting help from Lantern Corps" Orion asked both in frustration as well as in confusion.
"Just cool down Orion. Let's hear from him" said Light ray, despite in the same state as Orion, he decided to listen to this mysterious person who claimed to be here to help.
"This is Light ray of the New Genesis. I read you loud and clear. Listen, I don't know if you are hear alone or brought an army to help, but we are being-...ARRR-..." he grunted in middle as a huge machine was firing heavy mortar.
"-...Being overrun by these mechanical constructs" he finished.
"Not any more!" he said which stunned him and in the next second, he heard a huge explosion nearby that wiped out every single machine in the vicinity.
"What the hell? What was that?" Orion yelled as he and Light ray caught sight of a huge armored being to their right that was hovering in the air and that made even them to widen their eyes in amazement.
"That guy is looking HUGE!" Light ray said as he was gaping his mouth like fish at the sight of the Spartan.
John moved in and landed on the ground as two members of the New Gods, one is wearing a red suit and golden helmet flying in a jetpack and the other one, a white suit and a head band and red symbol in his chest. They immediately questioned him.
"Who are you? I don't think you are with the lantern corps" The red suited man asked, in a little bit authoritative tone.
"I am the one broadcasted the message. You can call me Spartan-117 or just Spartan in short" he replied as his HUD scanned them both, for their bio-profile and the technologies they carried.
Light ray and Orion were wary of this new guy as they had not seen anyone like him before. They were not sure, if he's an enemy or an ally and what his true motives are, but decided to let it slide for then. They both know Metron expects the Lantern corps to answer the call since they are the universal police force.
"Glad you are here Spartan. We have been over run by-..."
"Prometheans" John finished in one word which made them shrink their eyebrows.
"I am sorry, but what did you say?" Light ray asked giving prudent stare towards him..
"Prometheans, Combat AI constructs, their bodies composed of pure hard light" he explained which stunned them both as they didn't even know for 8 hours what exactly they were fighting.
"How do you know that?" Orion asked this time losing his patience. John can sense his growing frustration telepathically.
"I have fought them before. A few minutes ago, I saved a couple of people down there calling themselves 'bugs'. One of them was named Forager" he said which made them wide eyed.
"FORAGER?" they both asked simultaneously.
"How is he? Is he safe?" Orion asked as concerned for his old friend.
"He's concerned like a friend" he thought.
"Forager is one of our closest allies. Amidst the chaos, we almost forgot about him" Light ray as he too was concerned.
"He is safe along with his people in the far off mountain. I have given him an energy shield module to protect them from the attack" he said which relieved them both.
"Thanks Spartan. I don't know who you are. But you saved our friend. And that makes you our ally" Orion said feeling a little ashamed of his behavior previously, but his doubts are not entirely misplaced as he's till suspicious with the fact that this Spartan is already acquainted with these 'Prometheans' and the nature of relationship between him and these constructs.
"I apologize for my rudeness. But we've been through a lot today. Not sure how many casualties we have in the city" Orion said in a calm tone, but with mild sadness.
"No need. These prometheans a lot powerful to repel. You did your best" he replied casually which surprised the other two.
"Huh, he radiates an aura of power and death, yet he's calm and composed. He must be a seasoned warrior!" Orion thought analyzing the armored man.
"Where are you from? What race do you represent?" Light ray asked.
"Humanity" he said which amazed them both.
"Humanity? So you 're from Earth?" Light ray asked which startled the Spartan.
"Earth exists here? How is it they know? So it means this reality is not so different from mine. They share certain similarities. Like a parallel universe or an alternate reality" he peered into his thoughts of possibilities.
"You know th-...'US'?" he asked not divulging much of the details.
"Earth had been our ally since our enemy Darkseid was hell bent on destroying New-Genesis. A kryptonian there was our first contact, then followed by a Green lantern and a Thanagarian" Light ray went on to explain, though it didn't make any sense to John as he's new to this place and has no idea who or what lives here.
"This is interesting. Looks like these people are in good terms with the humans. I should go and visit Earth to see how much it is different from mine" he thought in amusement.
"Very well, but-..." John was immediately cut short by the next wave of prometheans that raised roaring and chirping noises.
**MULTIPLE ROARS AND CHIRPS**
"We need to contain them, move!" John yelled as he summoned the pulse fusion rifle from the slipspace which made the other two to glance and try to grasp what just happened. John was quick to move and without wasting time, he fired 3 rounds at each construct which all disintegrated, growling in digital pain.
Orion and Light ray assisted him in shooting the prometheans with energy blasts. Since John posed a bigger threat than them due to his versatile attacks, the constructs targeted him as they concentrated more fire on the Spartan.
"Oh no! They are targeting him! We need to help" Light ray yelled in concern though he was surprised that the Spartan was totally unharmed as their ammo didn't even scratch his armor.
"By the gods! How could his armor withstand that punishment?" he thought loud in anxiety.
John didn't mind as he focused his fire on the knights at lethal speed as they all fell one by one leaving only the Wagons and the Commanders.
"Despite his huge appearance, his movements are fluid and precise. What kind of fighter is he?" Light ray wondered as he believed that the Spartan must be fighting for a long time.
Suddenly they teleported randomly towards him. But John's HUD was able to predict their path with high accuracy as he side stepped when one wagon jumped on him and swung it's left arm. John ducked under and gave a powerful punch that broke the carapace and disrupted the photon core. The wagon died as it screeched. Then three more wagon speed blitz towards him. One of them was killed by Orion. As for the other two, John instantly teleported behind one and delivered a powerful kick that sent it stumbling front. Then before it could turn, John fired 3 rounds that killed it. The other one made a mistake by lunging at him. John summoned the telekinetically assembled photon wrist sword and pierced the chest and killed it in seconds.
It was then the 3 Knight commanders. All the three fired their Z-390 incinerator cannon that sent raving explosive rounds. John raised his left arm and brought a telekinetic shield that blocked all the rounds as they all watched the bright explosions filling their eyes for a short time. After the light cleared out, Orion and Light ray watched as he stopped the explosives using his mind which began to amaze the two.
"He's got wide range of powers. It's like the ferocity of an army infused into a single person" Light ray thought.
John lifted one of the commanders through telekinesis and threw it towards the wall that impacted it's armor. Then crushed it with his mind which made it to crack electricity and then throw it to the right which flew out of the city. The other commanders seeing this teleported out of the place and came near him to his sides. Orion and Light ray found an opening as they both fired concentrated energy blasts that finally pierced their hardlight carapace and killed it. John fired his weapon, but it made a zig-zag movement. Having fought these before, he knew what happens next. Just as expected, when it comes to his left, John timed his attack by launching his wrist blade at the same time it popped out before him. The blade finally ended the huge AI construct and thus they all fended off another wave.
"It's over, but of no use. They will be back" Orion said as he stated the obvious. That's when Cortana spoke through the speakers loudly which startled the other two.
"Commander, I have managed to locate the conduit that keeps feeding off these AIs" she said.
"Who's that?" Light ray asked as the third unknown voice of a woman came out of no where.
"That's Cortana, my AI and my friend" he replied and proceeded with the conversation.
"Can you break the connection?" he asked.
"Yes, the trick geodesics. I can use the translight engine to tap in to the conduit and warp it. It will permanently cut the throat. But a fair warning, I am reading multiple active conduits though the destinations are unknown at this point" she said which didn't sit well with John, but he decided to focus on the task at hand.
"Huh, then we've got a busy time!" he thought as he began to feel that this fight was far from over.
"Then this is an invasion. These so called Prometheans are everywhere!" Orion came to a grim conclusion and John had to agree though wondered why target this specific universe.
"One thing at a time, first we will free New-Genesis. Will take care of the rest afterwards" he said leaving no room for further argument.
"Aye aye. Initiating disruption sequence in 5...4...3...2...1-...Bingo! The dimensional path has been severed. We are safe Commander!" she said with little satisfaction, though the other two were astounded with the technological feat of disrupting a dimensional pathway which added more mystery to the Spartan.
Orion and Light ray sighed in relief as this chaos was finally over.
"Cortana, I will sweep into the city to take off the remaining stragglers. Then will proceed with search and rescue!" he said which made Light ray and Orion to smile at his devotion to help them and see through this.
"Understood, Go give'em hell, commander!" she said to which he internally smirked a bit. Then the comm was closed.
"Thanks for doing this. But your friend calls you 'Commander'. Are you from the Earth's military?" asked Orion. John gave a thought about that and decided to give short response until they get time to discuss everything further.
"Yes. Now let's move" he said as the three began progress into the city.
There were still many Promethean units crawling the streets. John managed to take them down with brutal efficiency which made the two New Gods as well the civilians to look in awe at the soldier. They had never seen anyone like him in centuries. He was friendly yet an enigma. John also treated the civilians who were wounded. Even though they were a race of immortal beings doesn't mean they can't be hurt. John made sure there were no hostages, fortunately, these combat AIs are designed for destruction and don't take hostages, so it wasn't hard for him.
The civilians and the children were happy to have been helped by this unknown soldier after several hours of life and death situations.
The Spartan, Light ray and Orion finally reached the inner sanctum.
"I hope High Father and Metron are safe" Orion said.
"Last I heard him say, he had to fortify the defenses" Light ray responded. John was unaware of who they were so he queried them.
"Who are they?"
"High father is our leader. Metron is New-Genesis fore-most scientist. Every law, every rule here is set by the High-Father. His wisdom has no bounds. He is both calm, level headed and fierce when it comes to fight. But he always promoted peace. Children loves him very much" Orion explained.
"Seems like a good person. It will be interesting to meet him!" John thought with amusement.
They spoke as they reached a huge door. Light Ray opened the door and the three entered a huge hall where John caught sight of old man with a stick and another person in a chair working with hologram. Then there were few children and telepathically he could sense their fear.
"High Father!" Orion called out concerned for their leader. There were few fires as they could see there was some fighting in the room.
"ORION! LIGHT RAY!" High Father called them out in mild joy as he could see them unharmed after a prolonged battle. But his attention instanly shifted towards the towering armored being which turned his face alarmed as he assumed him to be some hostile force. He immediately changed his stature into a defensive.
"Who are you, Stranger?" High father asked in an authoritative tone. Before John could answer, the man in white suit responded.
"Whoa High Father! Please calm down. He is the one who answered Metron's message!" Light ray rushed in before he did something that might prove hostile. The High Father's eyes were fixed on him and he reluctantly let his guard down.
"Light ray speaks true High father. He calls himself the 'Spartan'. He is from Earth and came to help us" Orion said as the three walked up to the two. That's when Metron spoke as got off the chair.
"A Human? But it can't be!" he asked as he rubbed his chin. The New Gods are aware of humans, but also he is well aware of their technological advancements as they are still in the space age. And the only way to get here is through a boom tube, the one on Earth was given by the New Gods to the resident kryptonian. Technically they can't come here by any other means.
"There is no way Humans can get here without a boom tube and there wasn't any boom tube signatures detected for the past 8 hours till now. Who are you really?" Metron got serious as he readied his weapons. Orion and Light ray didn't have time to think this through as there is a logic in his words.
"What is this boom tube they are talking about? But looks like I have to come up with the truth to prevent unwanted violence" John thought as the current situation didn't make any sense, but was determined to keep this under control, so he finally breaks silence.
"Listen, What your men says is true. I received your message about an attack, so I came to help. But I am surprised to find these attackers here" John said which confused the two.
"You know these machines?" High father asked.
"Yes, the Spartan calls them, 'Prometheans'" Orion replied. High father and Metron were clueless about them.
"Never heard of them before! Could-...Could it be Darkseid's another abominations sent to destroy us!?" Metron ran the possibilities. The gods of New-Genesis were always at odds with Darkseid and his world Apokolips. It's no surprise to raise suspicions on that mad man.
"That name doesn't ring any bell. Where do they come from?" High father asked speaking out Metron's thoughts.
"You probably never will hear about them, coz they are from my universe, not yours" John monotonically replied that made everyone gasp, their eyes wide in shock.
"Wait! You don't mean-...I-...I'm sorry, but are you saying you are from an alternate universe?" Metron asked hitting the nail in his head. Metron is a genius scientist and having explored the boom tubes, he has researched a lot into alternate dimensions and realities. But what really bugs him was that he never expected someone from another universe to travel here, coupled with the fact that he got here without the boom tube.
John nodded in response which made everyone to be mind boggled.
"Spartan, what do you mean by that? Is that all real?" Orion asked troubled by the revelation.
"You know what? when he said he was a human, I had my doubts. We have been fighting these constructs for a day, then he comes and swept them. Plus, there's no human who carries that kind of power, armor and technology" Light ray said, having foreground knowledge about humanity.
"It may be true here. But in my universe, humanity is an inter-galactic empire" He said as he brought a holographic 3D image of space filled with stars and galaxies covering the whole room. The new gods were astounded with what they saw. They couldn't believe humanity were the apex species in the Spartan's universe with all their advancements. This brought on a whole new level of perspective.
"One species conquering this much? Then they truly are formidable!" The High father thought in awe.
"Amazing! So what about these prometheans?" Metron asked still reeling from what the Spartan revealed. Also the question of how he was able to receive the transmission was puzzling.
"These are AI combat units created by an ancient civilization in my universe, a 100,000 years ago. They know nothing but violence. We made sure, none of these existed. But some how, the remnants have found a way to cross dimensions. We believe someone or something is guiding them" John said not divulging everything related to his place especially the parts about Domain being open and the Precursors, but just enough information to convince them. As a military leader, it is his sworn duty to keep up with the highest traditions and make sure none of their enemies or unknown people have access to their secrets and other classified information.
"But how did you find us?" High father asked.
"One of the sensors in the 'Eye of Sauron' galaxy picked up a transmission, so I went to investigate it. Due to the different dimensional energy signature, we couldn't decipher it completely except few words " he finished.
"But even then, New-Genesis cannot be reached through conventional means. You need a boom tube to access this place" Orion said which made the Spartan look a little confused.
"If this boom tube is your way of transport through space and time, then we don't use it. Our medium is different. We call it the Slipstream, it's a 11 dimensional space that we use for FTL. But we have developed drives that can cross the cosmic barriers with pin point accuracy. Alternate universes are a common study for a really long time" John replied.
"We expected the Lantern corps to assist us. So, the transmission went beyond our reach. Is this some sort of coincidence? I only programmed it to be broadcasted within our place" Metron said as he felt perplexed of the uncertainty.
"None of that matters now Metron. You came to our aid at the right time Spartan, even though you could have simply ignored it. For that, you have our gratitude. We were more concerned for the children's safety" High father said turning to look at the kids around, with a smile since the crisis is over once and for all, he didn't have to pry too much. Besides, even with the deadly appearance, he was calm and collected something the old man found intriguing.
"No need Sir, it was my duty" he replied which made everyone in the room to smile. That's when a little girl wearing a white dress, reminiscent of a princess with a tiara walked towards the huge armored man, with little fear and anxiety.
"Are they really gone? Are we safe now? They won't hurt us anymore right?" the little girl asked rubbing her palms to control her fear.
John looked at her with sympathy and turned to look at the other kids who were expressing the same concern in their face. This reminded him of his days in the war where even the children had to live in constant fear and that the enemy showed no remorse.
There was a time in early 6000 AD when John led a team to stop a rebel alien faction, more of pirates in Andromeda who used to intercept other species cargo vessels that carried potentially dangerous weapons and technologies. One of the human colony in the N3/S3 arm was rich with resources that these rebels managed to land in the outpost for illegal mining. In the ensuing fight, the rebels managed to plant a bomb several miles deep into the subterranean crust that caused massive seismic activity and destabilize an entire landmass the size of China and Russia combined. John's team was the first to respond to the threat as they fended off the rebels. But when they saw that millions of civilians dead, out of which 30% were children mercilessly with no remorse, John went on a brutal cold rage that he highhandedly decimated the entire rebel faction and all of their remnants to extinction and even blamed himself for the loss of life claiming he could have prevented if he had been more proactive.
And now, he was seeing the same fear in these children's eyes.
John didn't want to scare them with his helmet, so he decided to show his face to her. Then the visor lifted in and the helmet split in to three, retracted and vanished behind his head revealing his face with face with crystal blue eyes, flat top hair cut and quite a beautiful face that made the girl to smile as she believed he was not a threat. He knelt down and placed his left arm to her right shoulder and smiled a bit.
"No one will hurt you anymore and I won't let them. If they try, they will get the worst punishment than your teacher could ever come up with" he said with a chuckle that made her glee and she hugged him.
To say, John was surprised by this. This was the first time in his life, someone even hugged him. This was a new feeling to him. The High father and the others were looking at him in awe. It has been only a few hours since they met and they are complete strangers to one another, yet he has a resolve to help others and be kind to them. They believed there was more that what meets the eye with this giant armored human.
"Such determination with kind heart and soul. He didn't have to do this, but he cares as if he was one of us
"So what now Spartan, that we have put an end to this crisis?" Light ray asked. John for his part pondered on the query.
He can go back to his place, but the presence of the Forerunner prometheans in another universe is highly unsettling and that they were using the domain as a conduit for transport is even more troublesome. He had to make sure this threat is truly over since Cortana said that still there are other pathways open from the Domain to this place which means there are more place these Prometheans could be crawling and above all, he had to find out how the Domain got active and who's behind all this play. He don't want humanity and all the other species to be in the receiving end of someone's lunacy.
"This is not over yet. I need to find out how these constructs got here and who is behind the scenes, pulling the strings" He said with determination which can be understood by the others.
"You think there could be more?" Orion asked with little dullness. Being New-Gods gave them the advantage to triumph with the help of Spartan. But not every civilization could be that lucky.
"Yes, I need to make sure this threat is truly over. Besides, I also plan to go to Earth. If the Prometheans are there, then they need help fighting them. *SIGH* After all, I am one of them even though its...not here" he said which made the High father to nod in acknowledgement. John was right on that regard, Earth is the birth world of humanity and he had fought thousands and thousands of years to protect it. He would not let this one succumb to devastation, even if it's not 'HIS' Earth.
"You are right. Once again, thanks for your help Spartan!" Orion said as he shook hands with him indicating a sign of friendship.
"If you ever needed our help, you can always count on us. Consider it an alliance! Am I right High father?" Light ray said as he asked the elder turning to him for his wise suggestions.
"You are right, Son. I could ask you to stay here for feast, but this city needs some recuperation from the trying ordeal it suffered moments ago" High father said regretfully.
"No problem Sir. And if you ever need my help, you can contact me in this channel" John said as he sent an encrypted comm channel data for communication to Metron. Metron acknowledged that he received the details.
"Then I must leave. See you soon" he said with a faint smile which is well hidden beneath that helmet.
"Fare well!" High Father raised his hands in respect and so did Light ray, Orion and Metron as John walked out of the room.
Then he contacted Cortana,
"Cortana, The city is secured. I am heading right there" he said.
"Acknowledged. Guess this was a good start?" Cortana asked.
"Very! I will explain in the ship" he said as he cut the comm and sent a command to activate the translocation grid. Suddenly a yellow light surrounded him at high speed and he vanished in an instant.
One thing's for sure, this is just the beginning of a new mission for humanity's hero.
...
Aboard the ship
John was out of his armor and the black body suit. He was wearing a tan colored full sleeved v-neck T-shirt and black Jean pants with combat boots. He was in his civilian persona as he didn't have any mission to carry over that requires his armor. Besides, he has asked Cortana to permanently sandwich the body suit with the armor part's inner side so he doesn't have to wear it separately. For the next three hours, John had his meal, intense workout and combat practice. After finishing them, he took a bath, dressed up as civilian and walked over the ship's bridge.
Cortana was in her regular routine and was working to find the location of Earth in the same Orion arm.
"So found our home?" he asked. Cortana chuckled and brought up the 3D hardlight display of Earth. John was curiously looking at the planet that brought lots of good and bad memories of his Earth from days of the Human Covenant war, they were distant memories but always took its place in the current perception. Such were those times.
"What about the space and ground demographics?" he asked folding his hands. She blew a whistle and raised her eyebrows which made John feel that something was not alright.
"I managed to hack into their satellites and you would be surprised, This Earth is only in the year 2030 AD" she said as he stood expressionless. Her facial reaction cringed further. John assumed that the time is flowing different here and that the home world is in its early stages.
"AAAANNNDD...We got...THIS!" she said as she brought multiple holo displays that showed up men and women fighting bizarre beings in colored costumes, running at hypothetical speeds, flying with their own powers, firing beams of energy from eyes and palms, lifting objects of several tons. The Spartan for quite sometime had to convince himself that he was watching some TV show.
John was looking at Cortana with that quizzical look to which Cortana simply shrugged, though internally, she was cursing
"SHIT!"
...
A/N: And there goes the first chapter. And one more point, John's love interest will be Diana and no second romance options. Also planning to bring a surprise character.