Clark stayed on high alert as he flew, his eyes scanning the horizon. He knew from Lex Luthor's predictions that today was the day the infected army from Kahndaq would attack the survivors gathered at the port.
Superman had planned to use this event to rally the heroes for a final push, but if the attack succeeded, all hope for Earth would be lost.
As the day wore on, however, everything remained calm. With some heroes using shows of force, there were no riots among the survivors. The evacuation went smoothly, and Clark started to relax.
"It seems Luthor did something to change the future," he thought, figuring it was the only explanation. Either that, or Luthor's predictions were simply flawed. Even with the Speed Force and a Kryptonian mind, predicting the future perfectly was impossible.
"Take a break, Clark," said the towering figure of Atom Smasher, who was gently placing a new cruise ship into the water.
"Yeah, it looks like everything's under control," Clark replied, relieved. The mission was halfway done, and it seemed the survivors would make it to Gotham safely.
Atom Smasher sighed. "I feel a little guilty. If we were stronger, kids like you wouldn't have to be out here on missions." This sector was being managed almost entirely by the "Super Sons" and other young heroes, and it troubled him. But with manpower so low, they had no choice.
"Don't worry about it," Clark said. "I have the power, and I should use it to help people." He landed in a shady spot to rest. Even though Kryptonians don't get sunburned, flying for so long was exhausting.
Suddenly, a massive spatial fluctuation hit the brains of every superhuman. Clark and the other heroes instantly looked up. A huge, dark portal had opened in the sky, crackling with lightning. Black Adam and his army of infected were emerging from it.
As the Black Witch looked back, more infected people teleported through smaller portals, appearing directly among the crowd of survivors.
"Monsters! The monsters are here!" a survivor screamed.
Clark, Jonathan, and Supergirl immediately flew toward the looming threat. "We have to hold them off until Dad gets here!" Jonathan yelled.
"Wait!" Atom Smasher shouted, raising a massive hand to stop them. "You three protect the survivors. I'll handle the main force in the sky!" He grabbed a cruise ship and swung it like a baseball bat, charging toward the infected horde.
"Okay! Be careful," Jonathan said. The young heroes agreed that they were better suited to dealing with the smaller threats on the ground. They flew to protect the survivors from the infected who had appeared from the smaller portals, who were mostly ordinary humans.
After being infected with the Anti-Life Equation, Black Adam, despite losing his sanity, had retained some of his strategic mind. While the heroes were transporting people, he had used the Black Witch's portals to gather infected from all over the world. Without that, Kahndaq's army alone would not have been this large.
The young heroes were more than a match for these ordinary infected. Their powers made them virtually untouchable, but many survivors were still injured in the surprise attack.
In the sky, a countless number of infected poured from the giant portal, falling into the sea and completely covering the port's surface. Atom Smasher's enormous size made him a devastating weapon. He used the cruise ship to knock over infected by the dozens, but he was facing a much more dangerous foe: Black Adam.
Atom Smasher kept his eyes on Black Adam, knowing that his opponent could easily pierce his skin and kill him. But his massive size also made him a huge target. Black Adam zipped behind Atom Smasher with superhuman speed, then pierced straight through his shoulder like a bullet. The Anti-Life Equation virus immediately infected Atom Smasher.
"No... no!" Atom Smasher cried out. In his last moment of lucidity, he swung the cruise ship at Black Adam, knocking him into the water. But it was too late; his eyes glowed a furious red, and he turned to attack the very people he had sworn to protect.
"Damn it, Damian, the survivors on the ground are yours! Clark, let's go!" Jonathan shouted, flying toward the now-infected Atom Smasher, drawing his attention with a blast of heat vision. Clark did the same, and together they worked to keep the giant distracted.
At one point, the two Kryptonians were in the same spot, and Atom Smasher saw his chance, swiping at them as if they were flies. The two were pressed into his palm, but they reacted quickly. Back-to-back, they pushed with all their might and broke free.
Before they could recover, Black Adam appeared above them, a bolt of magical lightning striking at Clark.
"Look out!" Jonathan yelled, flying in front of Clark and taking the hit. Unlike Clark, Jonathan's magical resistance was higher, so he wasn't seriously injured, but he couldn't block Black Adam's next attack. Black Adam grabbed Jonathan, slammed him into the ground, and held him there.
"Jonathan!" Clark rushed to help, but he couldn't even budge one of Black Adam's arms. Supergirl and Damian arrived at the same time, and together they managed to push Black Adam back. But with a single roar, he sent them flying. They were talented, but they were still just children, no match for the demonic power of Black Adam.
Jonathan kept firing his heat vision at Black Adam, but it was like a tickle. "Dad!" he screamed as loud as he could.
Miles away, Superman heard the cry. "Jo?" he said to Lois. Realizing his son was in danger, Superman flew across the sea and reached the port in less than a second. He landed with a powerful punch that sent Black Adam flying.
"Are you okay... Joe?"