Chapter 5
Chapter 5
Earth – 38; National City
Like everyone else in National City, Lena Luthor had been shocked at the sight of the red sky, before it suddenly disappeared, and a Tower, appearing out of nowhere, stood near the L-Corp building.
As she stared out the window in amazement, she was visited by Alex. As the DEO's director entered the building, slight shaking shook the building. Once the tremors stopped, Lena spoke up:
"Are you here to arrest me during the apocalypse, or to try and kill me because you weren't successful the other day?"
Given the current circumstances, Alex was shocked at the disdain in Lena's voice.
"I wasn't trying to hurt you, Lena," she replied. "I was trying to stop you from using Myriad."
"Right. Is that why you had a Claymore satellite aimed at me?" Lena said, sitting down at her desk. "And I didn't use Myriad, that was Eve Tessmacher."
Alex had to make an effort to stay calm.
"You and I both know that that isn't true." she retorted.
Then further shocks shook the office in the L-Corp building.
"The reason the sky is red, and the planet feels like it's falling apart is because it is." Alex continued. "There is an anti-matter wave that is tearing through the universe right now, and it will destroy Earth if Kara and the other heroes don't stop it. Now, I am working with J'onn to hedge our bets and mount an evacuation, but in order to do that we need your help. Look, I am sorry that I lied to you. And not just me, and not just Kara it was all of us. J'onn and Brainy and Nia… "
Lena remained neutral before answering sarcastically:
"You know, you actually had me believe that you hated Supergirl."
With remorse, Alex remembered when J'onn had erased her memories with Supergirl to protect her, and she had been hostile to her own sister.
"I wasn't pretending about that." Alex admitted. "And that is a long story. Listen, I I know that you feel burned by us. And that there is nothing that I can say in this moment that is going to change that. But if you could please just put your feelings aside, J'onn and I really, really, need your help."
Lena got up from her chair and walked over to Alex.
"I don't want your apology, Alex. 'Cause you will never again have my friendship or my trust. I have learned my lesson from all of you. But if the world is at stake, then of course, I'll help. It is hubris of you to think that I wouldn't, but then, you've made it perfectly clear how little you've thought of me these last few years, so what do you need me to do?"
Close to the Quantum Tower, Rocket and Groot both walked, looking around, ready to act in case of attacks. But the two Guardians of the Galaxy were nervous.
"I am Groot," the tree muttered in anguish.
"Yup, I'm scared too," Rocket nodded. "I thought we were done with overpowered guys like Ronan and Thanos… But this… This anti-matter and now the Anti-Monitor! I promise you, Groot, we're together on this time! If we lose, we'll lose together! With Quill, Drax, Nebula, the chick with the antenna, even Thor! We are a family and we will fight together."
Groot took his hand and looked at his friend determinedly.
"I am Groot."
Quickly, they were joined by the troop of heroes. Rocket could see Flash, Thor, Supergirl, Superman, Batwoman, Black Panther, Spider-Man, and Atom join the Quantum Tower.
"Whatever is inside there, it's working." Ray commented. "The anti-matter wave has stopped and it's slowly dissipating."
"So we have to protect this Tower if we want this Earth to survive," Thor replied, looking at the gigantic Tower.
"Do you really think we can stop a wave of anti-matter?" Rocket asked, his eyes fixed on the Tower in front of him.
"There is no more red sky, it's okay," Spider-Man replied confidently.
"Not for long," Batwoman added. "How do we protect that thing from an enemy we know nothing about, but we know is coming?"
"We head inside stake out strategic positions." said Green Arrow who joined them, followed by Mia in her new archer's outfit, as well as Clint Barton. "If we're fortified, we control the battle."
"That's a nice plan," Clint agreed.
"I agree," replied Black Panther.
An earthquake stirred the ground.
"Earthquake that magnitude could overwhelm the entire coast," Atom explained.
"The Supers and Thor need to go protect the Tower, while we take care with the enemy on the ground," Clint explained.
"Yes, I agree," agreed Batwoman. (She addressed the two Kryptonians and the Asgardian.) "Go. Help contain the damage."
"Go! We got this." Mia added.
"Good luck Supers!"Spider-Man said.
"Then we've no time to lose!" Thor said, waving his hammer and ax before flying up to the sky.
Then Supergirl and Superman joined him by taking off in their turns, while Flash left in super-speed.
Oliver turned to the heroes who remained.
"Let's go inside and dig in."
"You sound like Cap!" Clint said happily remembering his Avengers missions with Captain America. "Just like old times!"
And the heroes made their way to the Tower.
"I am Groot," Groot announced happily as he stepped into the Tower.
'Yeah Groot, we got this! You wont imitating the green archer!" Rocket muttered, rolling his eyes.
"I am Groot," retorted the tree with a smirk.
"Oh boy!" exclaimed the annoyed raccoon.
Earth – 16; Star City 2046
As they had just exited the elevator to enter Arrow's bunker, Sara noticed how run down the place was. Nature seemed to have reclaimed its rights, and the place seemed abandoned.
"You've gotta be kidding me." Sara replied, looking around.
Lois turned to Shuri and Brainy.
"Are you sure my son's pod landed here?"
"The pod is not here, but your son is somewhere in this place," replied Shuri, who had her tablet in hand and was looking around.
"Three billion, eight hundred and twenty seven million to one. Uh but the pod didn't land here." Brainy retorted.
"That's what I said." Shuri replied, looking at the Coluan with a disapproving look. (Turning to Lois and Sara.) "Using the technology of my Earth's Wakanda, this is where I tracked him. I'm sure he's not far."
"But I can't speculate as to why Oliver Queen would kidnap a baby." Brainy continued, thinking. "Sister of Black Panther, do you have a theory?"
"I am Shuri," replied the wakandan woman with an annoyed look. "And maybe Oliver Queen didn't kidnap a baby, but only put him to safety."
"Very good theory," Sara agreed. "He probably thought he was rescuing him. I mean, Star City is no place for a child."
"Star City of this Earth is not a place for a child," Shuri added, looking at the facility around her.
Lois spoke:
"Well, I'll thank him when I have Jonathan back. In the meantime, we should split up…"
She was interrupted when a pair of arrows popped up out of nowhere and imprisoned the bound Brainy.
"This is unnecessary." He retorted before falling back, immobilized like a statue.
New arrows appeared and Shuri was struck in turn. She was tied up there and thrown to the ground.
As Lois came to help the Coluan and Black Panther's sister, White Canary enlarged her staff and a figure descended a few meters from Sara, who recognized with amazement Oliver Queen in amazement. But that was another Oliver Queen than the one she knew.
"Oliver?"
The archer attacked the young woman, but she dodged him.
"Oliver?"
Her assailant didn't seem to hear her and attacked Sara with his bow.
Immobilized to the ground, Shuri hastened to use a Wakanda tool that she hid in her tunic to cut her ties. As Lois tried to free Brainy, she heard wails that were familiar to her.
"Jonathan?"
Immediately she ran over to her crying baby, while Brainy wriggled all over the place, immobilized on the ground.
Shuri, finally freed, joined him to undo his bonds, while watching Sara fight the archer.
After a while, Sara managed to get her assailant to the ground. The archer raised his head, looking intently at White Canary, then gasped as he removed his hood. It was Oliver Queen's face but older. He looked at Sara, eyes wide in amazement, as if he had just seen a ghost.
"What? No. No, it's not possible. You're dead. You you went down with the Gambit." he exclaimed, looking at the young woman in front of him in shocking disbelief.
"But I came back," Sara replied. "Remember? I found you in Lian Yu."
Oliver closed his eyes, as if he didn't want to believe what he was seeing, but opening them Sara was still there.
Shuri came to meet them, walking slowly. But the archer drew his bow and aimed at the Wakandan woman, who raised her arms in the air in surrender.
Sara intervened to prevent him from attacking the young woman.
"It's okay, Mr. Queen, we have not come to fight you, we are not your enemies," Shuri replied gently.
Oliver lowered his bow, looking at both Shuri and Sara in confusion mingled with amazement.
"I must be losing my mind." Oliver exclaimed stunned.
"No, Ollie, you're not," Sara replied, smiling softly. "Hey. You're not. It's just a long story. The longest."
Then the baby's crying started again. The three of them turned to see Lois cradling her son tenderly against her.
"We have not come to attack you, Mr. Queen," Shuri clarified. "We just came to bring this baby back to his parents."
"Thank you Oliver," Lois said smiling at the archer and holding her baby against her. "Thank you for helping my baby."
Shuri smiled at the archer upon seeing Jonathan in his mother's arms.
Earth – 38; National City
The group of heroes stepped into the rubble from which the Tower had emerged. Green Arrow, Clint and Mia had deployed their bows and were ready for any threats. Behind them, Atom, Batwoman, Spider-Man and Black Panther stepped forward cautiously.
"So, what is this? The proverbial calm before the storm?" Mia asked, keeping her eyes peeled around.
"Something like that," Green Arrow replied, nodding.
"Too bad this Tower doesn't have a security," Clint said, looking around.
"I have a bad feeling about this." retorted Spider-Man, ready for any threats.
"We have to stay focused on protecting the Tower," Black Panther said.
Green Arrow whispered to his daughter:
"Remember, Mia, whatever happens find your mother. Tell her how much I love her."
Mia nodded, while Clint turned to her.
"Mia, whatever happens to me, tell my wife and kids that I love them," he whispered.
"I hope I don't have to," the archer replied nervously.
"Hey, guys," Spider-Man said. "Sorry to interrupt your tearful promises, but something coming up. And a big lot."
Then the heroes then saw outside the windows, a whole multitude of shadow forms that floated in the air like ghosts.
"Okay," Mia swallowed nervously. "When Lyla said an army, I thought she meant an army."
"She did," Green Arrow replied, staying focused on the enemy. "It's just that we've never faced one like this before."
The three archers brandished their bows, ready to shoot arrows at the shadow army. T'Challa closed his Black Panther helmet and extended his claws.
"Holy crap!" Spider-Man exclaimed. "Dementors! Is Harry Potter here on this Earth? Because we would really need a very, very big Patronus!"
A few feet from them, Rocket and Groot walked through the rubble, their eyes peeled around, and saw an army of demons arrive to their encounters. The raccoon brandishes his blaster straight in front of him.
"Groot, we've company!"he exclaimed. (He screamed at the retreating army of shadows.) "Come and get some, space ghosts! Come on, get some!"
Groot clenched his fists with a fierce look and stretched out his great arms.
"I am Groot!"