The reason Shin didn't appear on Apokolips immediately was because he believed the planet must have a formidable surveillance system, and the boom tubes were far too conspicuous to hide. If he arrived directly on Apokolips, it would almost certainly lead to a confrontation right away.
Shin had no interest in engaging in direct combat with the masses of warriors stationed there; it would be an unnecessary drain on time and energy. Worse, if Darkseid himself decided to unleash his Omega Beams, things could become much more complicated. While the Omega Beams in the movie universe were not as devastating as their comic book counterpart, they were still extremely dangerous. They wouldn't kill Shin instantly, but they could still cause serious damage, more than enough reason not to gamble.
Instead of risking an open fight, Shin decided to take advantage of his own speed for a surprise assault. Darkseid, as portrayed in the movie, could not possibly move anywhere near the speed of light. In a battle fought at high velocity, Shin would unquestionably hold the upper hand.
Activating his heightened perception, Shin scanned the entire planet, quickly locking onto Darkseid's position. The tyrant sat upon his massive throne in the grand palace. Two ministers of the New Gods stood beside him, and a gathering of other New Gods was present as well.
Apokolips had only a few thousand New Gods in total, but each one was a powerhouse in their own right. Even the weakest among them possessed strength on par with the elite of Atlantean royalty. A dozen or so elite warriors could match Wonder Woman in raw combat ability. The highest-ranking members, such as Steppenwolf, served as Darkseid's most trusted lieutenants.
Darkseid himself was more dangerous still, potentially more powerful than Superman and wielding the lethal Omega Beams. In an honest battle, even the Justice League would be outmatched, at least the movie version of the team.
Beyond its warriors, Apokolips was a war machine. Endless demonic factories churned out weapons and soldiers, and the planet's influence extended over countless worlds. It was easily among the most dangerous forces in the known universe.
Yet something unexpected caught Shin's attention. Within the city, he sensed a Kryptonian sealed inside a containment pod, clearly undergoing a process of indoctrination or brainwashing.
He shook his head and dismissed the thought for now. There would be time to find answers later, after Darkseid was no longer a threat.
Without warning, a brilliant streak of light tore across the sky. In that instant, as Darkseid sat upon his throne, a sudden and unshakable dread pierced his mind. A blurred figure appeared before him, and before he could fully process the sight, a sharp pain exploded in his throat. The world spun around him.
A deafening roar followed. The palace was ripped apart by a cataclysmic shockwave, the wind generated from Shin's attack shredding everything in its path. Buildings within a dozen kilometers were obliterated, and even the metal ground of Apokolips groaned under the force.
This destruction was the inevitable result of Shin moving faster than light within an atmosphere, without restraining his energy. It was the same reason Superman always seemed to treat the world as if it were made of paper; unleashing his true power without restraint would reduce the planet to rubble in moments.
If Superman merely flew at superluminal speed for a second around Earth, the devastation would be beyond imagining.
In the comics, Darkseid was a titan whose might rivaled Superman's. Coupled with his Omega Beams, a power that bordered on cheating, he often surpassed Superman in combat. But in this movie-based world, just as Superman had been weakened, so too had Darkseid.
Superman's speed had been reduced from superluminal to around a thousand times the speed of sound, though in recent years his abilities had grown to several thousand times that speed. Darkseid, being only slightly faster, could perhaps reach ten thousand times the speed of sound at best.
Shin, however, was attacking at speeds a hundred times greater than Darkseid could ever achieve. The disparity was so extreme that the tyrant had no chance to react. The galactic glaze blade sliced cleanly through his neck, severing his head in an instant.
Shin was no Superman. He had no qualms about using weapons, no hesitation in going for the kill. He didn't bother with speeches or drawn-out duels; his goal was efficiency, and the sneak attack left Darkseid no chance to counter.
The palace guards, the ministers, and the rest of the New Gods within the hall were hurled away by the sheer force of the blast from Shin's entry. Even the most resilient of them were left coughing blood, their bodies battered. This wasn't Earth, and Shin felt no obligation to limit his destructive output.
The shockwave didn't stop at the palace. It swept outward, crushing buildings within ten kilometers and continuing for hundreds more, leaving destruction in its wake.
When the storm finally began to settle minutes later, some of the New Gods started crawling out from the wreckage. Their bodies, stronger than the metals that built the city, had endured the onslaught, but many bore serious injuries. Confusion rippled through the survivors. The attack had been so sudden and overwhelming that they hadn't even seen the attacker.
All they knew was that Darkseid's grand palace was gone, reduced to rubble in an instant. Many assumed it was the work of some enemy faction, a calculated act of terror.
In a sense, they were correct, the difference was that the "bomb" had been a living being.
DeSaad, Darkseid's loyal advisor and chief scientist, arrived at the ruins not long after. Known as one of the most cunning minds on Apokolips, he was unprepared for the sight before him.
Darkseid's massive body sat slumped on the throne, his head missing. And standing in the wreckage was a figure, an ordinary-looking man of human skin, calmly holding the severed head in his hands.
"This guy's Omega Beams don't seem tied to his biology at all," Shin muttered as he examined the corpse. "So the Omega Effect really is a unique energy phenomenon… If I remember correctly, Darkseid didn't originally possess it. He only gained it after discovering the Omega Effect itself."
After a moment's consideration, Shin decided to store both the body and the head within his dark dimension. They were still the remains of an immortal New God, even if this movie-world variant was weaker than his comic counterpart. Perhaps, in time, they could be useful... as trophies, research material, or even as a means of obtaining a new bloodline.
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