Bardi's movement froze. Hearing Kanna's wailing cry, he felt a bit helpless.
He had only intended to swat the speedster into the atmosphere, send him flying into space to wander. He hadn't expected the collateral impact on Earth to resemble a watermelon being split by a knife, the crack stretching over 100,000 kilometers.
Kanna cried her heart out, sobbing uncontrollably. No one loved the Earth more than she did.
Seeing such a massive rupture in the planet's surface felt like a dagger to her heart.
Under the blazing sun, all the dust gradually settled.
Bardi's body remained still, jade-white and dust-covered. The magnetic field around him began to distort and warp. Without intending to, his body emitted a super gravitational field, distorting and erasing the surrounding space and matter.
He slowly retracted his right hand, moving deliberately. His body was too powerful. The magnetic field it emitted was difficult to suppress. Within nearly a thousand meters around him, everything twisted. Light bent and spiraled like a vortex, threatening to collapse into a singularity from his gravitational distortion.
"Stop crying. You're irritating me. If I lose control, Earth will suffer even more."
Bardi glanced at Kanna, who was lying on his shoulder, her tears dripping onto his chest.
Every one of his movements now carried immense power and magnetic gravitational feedback. If he lost control, the Earth could truly be destroyed.
Kanna stopped sobbing. Tears welled up in her eyes, her lips tightly sealed. She didn't dare cry.
She understood. Bardi wasn't joking.
Suppressing her grievances, she wiped her tears, then used Bardi's body to dry her face, forcing herself to stop.
Over at the base camp near Highway 6, some soldiers had already noticed something was wrong. A few Kryptonians approached. Upon seeing Bardi, they rushed forward, but he immediately signaled them to stop and keep a distance of two thousand meters.
A crack over 100,000 kilometers had opened on Earth. Hera, the Earth's central terminal, had already detected it. Through satellite surveillance, it saw Bardi's presence.
Hera, Raven, Pamela, Jenny, and the others flew over from Metropolis not long after.
"Stop!"
Bardi quickly stopped Jenny from approaching. As a mortal, she could be crushed by his aura alone. He had no choice but to keep them two kilometers away. Even reunions had to happen at a distance.
Two kilometers apart, seeing so many of his women again, Bardi felt helpless. He was even a little excited, which caused further magnetic distortion. A terrifying gravitational field almost formed, startling everyone.
What was going on?
Had Bardi become a black hole? Was he untouchable?
Helplessly, Jenny raised binoculars, met his eyes, and looked at Bardi with concern.
"Raven, Hera, I need you two to create a device that isolates magnetic gravitational fields. Otherwise, I won't be able to hug any of you."
"Alright, we'll start collecting data now."
"I'll build armor using magical technology to isolate gravitational reactions."
Hera and Raven responded immediately and began mobilizing reconnaissance satellites, initiating full scans. They started gathering powerful artifacts and magical items to construct an isolation device for Bardi.
During the scan, Bardi pointed at the underground Pandora's Box and asked, "What's this about? What happened to Earth in the last two years?"
Bardi didn't recall any breach in the item vault that would've allowed a speedster to enter so easily and steal a Class B item like Pandora's Box.
The Hera present was Little Hera. Two years later, she had grown slightly taller and now looked like a lively teenage girl. She wore hot pants and a vest, her fair skin glowing with energy. From thousands of meters away, she called out to Bardi.
"It's a long story. Since Master is back, nothing else matters. Let's get some fruit, pitch umbrellas, bring out the loungers, and talk slowly."
So, under Little Hera's command, they set up parasols two kilometers away, brought reclining chairs, colorful drinks, and fruit, creating a beachside vibe. They lounged comfortably like it was a Hawaiian beach, sipping juice and chatting with Bardi in the sun.
Little Hera had always been unruly. She knew Bardi wouldn't mind, so she relaxed with a sip of watermelon juice.
From afar, Kanna stared at the fruit eagerly. The food and setting looked better over there, so she quickly climbed down from Bardi. With his reluctant approval, her short, chubby legs kicked up dust as she dashed over. Before she could even taste the fruit, Raven and Jenny surrounded her with questions.
As Kanna munched on fruit and shared her emotional tale with Bardi's return, Little Hera began recounting what had happened over the past two years.
First, Hal Jordan's body was taken over by the Parallax. With lingering obsession, he returned to Earth seeking revenge on Bardi. Hera used him to manipulate seventeen of Earth's support pillars, and combined with Raven's magic, they trapped him in Coastal City.
Now, in Coastal City, all living beings—humans included—have been corrupted by the Parallax Demon and turned into his minions. One hundred thousand Kryptonian soldiers are stationed outside the city, ready to respond.
Additionally, Jenny has been chosen by the Violet Lantern of Love. For the past two years, she has worked to help the people of Coastal City return to normal, freeing them from Parallax's fear-based control and turning them into warriors of love.
Bardi glanced at the rings on Jenny's hand—one silver, one violet.
Jenny noticed his gaze, raised her hand, and wiggled the lantern rings in front of him.
Then came Brainiac and Mongul, who arrived aboard Warworld. Brainiac had clashed with the Hera Terminal. Both were emotional constructs born of artificial intelligence, so their fight was evenly matched. Eventually, Brainiac captured Mars, transformed it, and set his sights on Earth. But he hasn't taken action for two years, which remains concerning.
The Hera Terminal must remain on Earth to maintain containment of the Parallax Demon, so it cannot act proactively to eliminate Brainiac.
As of now, Brainiac remains on Mars, unknown in his activities.
But with Bardi back, none of that mattered.
Additionally, Mongul, piloting Warworld—a planet-sized battle arena—accidentally arrived through a space rift and attempted to claim Earth for his amusement.
Currently, General Ott is stationed on the Diamond Moon, and his forces are engaged in heavy combat with Mongul and Warworld.
Lastly, the most serious issue: Oa sent a Green Lantern to track the Parallax Demon to Earth and demanded Hera hand over Abin Sur's Green Lantern ring. But that ring belonged to Bardi. There was no way Hera would hand it over.
This led to a conflict with the arriving Green Lantern. Not long ago, the Guardians of the Universe and the blue-skinned Oans appeared, declaring Earth could not continue like this. They intended to restore Earth's order and led the Green Lantern Corps to invade Earth, aiming to revert it to its previous state.
The idea of one person dominating the center of the universe clearly threatened the Guardians. A full-scale confrontation with the Green Lantern Corps was imminent.
"That's about the extent of our crisis. Too much tech and manpower is tied up in various battles, and it's tough to guard against all these little rats."
Little Hera lay leisurely on her lounge chair in her hot pants, oversized sunglasses shielding her eyes. Her fair, slender legs were crossed, and her toes playfully tapped the air. She took a sip of her mixed fruit juice—durian, mango, watermelon, pineapple, apple, orange—and spoke casually.
(To be continued.)
***
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