"Master, when you flew to the moon, Kara-El was already in a small spacecraft and connected to my network."
"After genetic verification, it was confirmed to be Kara-El."
"Because the master was engaged in battle at the time, and according to my assessment, knowing Kara-El's presence would not affect the battlefield outcome, I did not alert the master."
Bardi nodded, then connected to Hera's network to obtain the detailed information.
Kara had indeed survived. When Zod exited the Phantom Zone, he encountered her by chance and captured her along the way.
Now, she had become a symbolic offering from Hael to Bardi.
But what did this mean?
"Well done, Hera."
Bardi gave a faint word of praise, then cut off the connection and turned his attention back to Hael.
Inside the cabin, the blocked breach still let in a soft, whistling wind.
Bardi stared silently at Hael, saying nothing.
That silence weighed heavily on Hael's chest like a stone.
The quiet spread across the cabin, broken only by the occasional hiss of wind. Once comrades-in-arms, they now stood in silence, the warmth of friendship long frozen.
Bardi's nature would never allow him to forgive betrayal. Reconciliation was impossible.
They had diverged, separated, become two fundamentally different people.
Hael, being intelligent enough, understood Bardi's nature. In the face of Zod's command and with the desire to see Krypton rise again in the universe, he had used Kara as a bargaining chip to offer Bardi.
"I surrender, Bardi."
Hael's expression was calm as he spoke. "But you must carry forward the glory of Krypton. You cannot let Krypton vanish from the universe."
Hael believed Bardi would make the rational choice. After all, under the sun's radiation, Kryptonian warriors possessed power that made them unparalleled soldiers for Bardi's conquest of the stars.
These warriors were too efficient to ignore. For either Bardi or Hael, Kryptonian bloodlines created through genetic engineering were a cost-effective, powerful resource.
"I don't know, Hael... what makes you think you're qualified to negotiate with me?"
Bardi's voice was cold.
The most powerful of them, Zod, had already fallen to Bardi's hands. His head still lay at Hael's feet.
This Kryptonian spacecraft, piloted out of the Phantom Zone, had no qualification or leverage. Hael had nothing to offer Bardi that Bardi could not already take.
The so-called Kryptonian criminals and warriors under Zod had threatened Earth, but with Bardi's existence, he could suppress them single-handedly. They were never a true danger.
Bardi's power was enough to suppress an entire planet.
"I know you have the courage to devour the universe... and the ambition to rule the galaxy."
Hael was composed, brushing aside the past. In his eyes, logic and calculation replaced sentiment. He listed the pros and cons clearly.
In the world of adults, there was no right or wrong—only gains and losses.
To him, the betrayal of Bardi was no longer something that weighed on his heart.
"I possess a comprehensive collection of Kryptonian knowledge, Bardi. More detailed than anything you imagine. All the scientific knowledge from the Krypton Science Institute is stored in my mind."
Hael's eyes gleamed with confidence, rooted in his unmatched research talent.
His posture straightened instinctively, eyes sharp and unwavering. He cast aside all guilt for what he had done to Bardi, his face now cold and filled with unshakable belief in his own brilliance.
This was the result of years of expertise and standing at the peak of his field.
In scientific research, he lost to no one, not even his former father, Jor-El.
Kryptonian intelligence systems once predicted that he would be the one to carry forward the brilliance of Krypton, the leader of a new age, a limitless future ahead.
When Krypton perished, Hael carried within him a vast store of data.
One man could carry the legacy of an entire civilization.
Bardi narrowed his eyes, the coldness in his heart deepening as he stared at Hael. He was silent, as if weighing something internally.
"I can submit to you, Bardi."
"All of this—the Kryptonian spacecraft, the Kryptonian army, the alien criminals that came from the Phantom Zone, the Kryptonian data stored in my brain—"
"All of it can help you develop the cosmos, conquer the solar system, expand into the Milky Way, and build a great galactic empire."
Hael bowed slightly, his tone respectful. But a faint sorrow rose in his chest.
The bond of former brotherhood and friendship was now gone.
All that remained was the identity of a subordinate.
With his head slightly lowered, the shadows masked the brief flicker of gloom in his expression.
"Oh? So this is what you offer as a general? You want me to restore Krypton's glory?"
Bardi looked down at Hael coldly, his expression merciless and ruthless.
If Hael truly wanted to help him, then the Earth could enter a new era of rapid advancement in the coming decades.
Hael was indeed extraordinary.
Even on Krypton, he had been a prodigy among prodigies.
Bardi had once treated him like a brother, placing deep trust in him. Yet in the end, he had not received Hael's support. And now, Hael stood before him not as a friend or brother, but asking to be his subordinate.
"Yes."
Hael lifted his head again. His expression was solemn, voice steady.
"But… I have one condition that you must agree to."
Hael's eyes burned with intensity. For a moment, they shone with a radiant, blinding resolve.
Like a moth to a flame, he stepped forward, ready to pay with his life.
He believed Bardi would not refuse. This condition, he thought, was also in Bardi's interest.
To save Krypton. To reverse everything. To rebuild Krypton. To let everyone live together again.
In Hael's heart, a feverish passion nearly erupted. His blood surged, and his breath quickened.
Suddenly, Bardi saw, in a flash of memory, the same young Hael who once followed in Jor-El's footsteps like a devout disciple—so much so that he called Jor-El father.
It was this devotion that led Hael to betray Bardi on Krypton, causing the failure of the revolution.
Boom...
A loud sound erupted.
Bardi's body transformed in an instant, bursting with demonic force. With one hand, he reached into Hael's armored chest.
The armor tore like paper under the pressure of Bardi's strength. His hand pierced Hael's flesh, seized his ribcage, and blood spurted wildly into the air.
In an instant, Bardi stood behind Hael, his arm through Hael's back.
In his hand, he held a bright red heart, still beating violently, pumping blood that splattered across Bardi's white coat.
Hael's expression froze. It took a long moment for him to register what had happened.
His chest… was empty. His heart was gone.
"Why… why… I… I…"
Hael looked down in disbelief. His trembling hands reached toward the space where his heart had once been. He pressed against the wound, confirming the dreadful truth—his heart was gone.
"I have a feeling… you would have become a problem again, just like on Krypton."
Bardi crushed the heart in his palm. It shriveled like a rag before he tossed it aside.
His gaze was cold and detached as he looked down at Hael's fading expression. The disbelief, the pain, the regret… all slowly drained away.
Hael collapsed, the life in his eyes extinguished. He died at Bardi's feet.
Bardi stood still, silent. His face expressionless as he looked at his former friend—Hael, dead.
(To be continued.)
***
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