As the metal whip lashed toward him, Dio instinctively summoned The World. But before his Stand could even strike a defensive pose, a purple blur streaked past the edge of his vision.
"What the—?!"
The metal froze less than ten centimeters from his face.
Because…
"Ora ora ora ora—!!!"
The purple giant roared, its fists turning into a flurry of afterimages!
It moved so fast it shattered Dio's understanding of Stands.
Was this his dad's full power?
Dio's eyes widened, dazzled.
Each punch was like a star exploding in his vision!
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
The metal giant's body shattered like fragile glass.
The liquid metal tried to reform, but it was blasted into dust by sheer force.
Dio could even trace the slow spread of the silvery particles in the air, like fireworks in slow motion.
"Dio—!"
Clark's shout cut off abruptly.
In his view, the menacing metal monster suddenly disintegrated, thousands of fragments exploding in the rain like a sudden silver storm!
Even with his sharp vision tracking each piece's trajectory, he couldn't make sense of what had happened—
One second, the enemy was lunging at them; the next, it was a cloud of metal debris.
"What… what just happened?"
Raindrops clung to his eyelashes, Clark's eyes full of confusion.
He turned to Dio. "Did you do that?"
Clearly still sore about the punch Dio landed on him earlier.
Dio didn't answer.
He just stared ahead, the corners of his mouth twitching upward.
Deep in the rain-soaked haze, the man in mud-stained work pants casually slung his shotgun back, acting like nothing had happened.
But Dio saw it.
The towering purple figure behind his father, like a god of war.
Star Platinum turned slowly, giving Dio a barely perceptible nod before vanishing into the rain.
Like a lion showing its cub how to hunt.
Hmph, stupid Clark didn't even see it.
Dio shoved Clark with a look of disdain.
Ignoring the dumbfounded boys behind him, Lock crouched down, inspecting the silvery fragments dissolving in the rain.
He nudged a few larger chunks of metal with the barrel of his shotgun.
Inside one partially melted piece of armor, he spotted a clear laser-etched code:
WEAPON X - REAPER-9
Rainwater slid down Lock's neck, cold and biting.
That mark was all too familiar…
Not as a Kansas farmer, but from his days as a comic book nerd before crossing into this world.
Wolverine, Captain America, Deadpool—big names in the comics, right?
But few knew…
They were all products of the "Weapon X" mutant experiment program.
To think Weapon X existed in this world.
But from what he remembered—
There was no Stark, no Captain America here.
Aside from a handful of so-called mutants, Marvel elements were practically nonexistent in this world.
Squinting, Lock eyed a few drops of liquid metal wriggling in the mud, sizzling eerily as they dissolved in the rain.
A term popped into his mind:
Adamantium isotope alloy—
A knockoff of real adamantium, developed to mimic its strength.
It could match the original's durability for a short time but constantly leaked radioactive toxins, eventually melting its host into a puddle of waste. In the comics, this stuff was often used in suicide weapons for mutant death squads.
So, it was obvious…
The truth about Reaper-9's appearance here came into focus. It was clearly an escaped test subject programmed with a kill order.
No wonder it mindlessly charged forward, attacking anything alive.
How the heck did this thing even make it here?
Crunch!
Lock's boot crushed the last chunk of metal.
The silver liquid seeped into the soil, turning the nearby grass visibly black and wilted.
But he didn't care much about that.
This was Weapon X.
And now he was tangled up with it.
Who knew what might follow—maybe a Weapon X retrieval team, or worse…
Lock let out a dry laugh.
He stood, slinging the shotgun over his shoulder.
What did it matter to him?
He roughly wiped the rain from his face.
Mutant weapon programs, adamantium alloys—what did any of that have to do with a Kansas farmer?
Tomorrow morning, he had oats to harvest. Jonathan's bull needed breeding next week, and Dio and Clark's summer homework wasn't even half done. That was reality.
"Dad!"
Dio called out from behind, his wet blond hair plastered to his forehead.
The boy put on an innocent act, but the curiosity in his red eyes was impossible to hide.
Lock knew that look all too well.
It was the same one Dio had when sneaking peeks at his hidden Playboy stash.
"Come here," Lock called to the two curious boys, pointing to a spot near the wheat field where a gutted deer lay, unnoticed until now. "Grab that deer."
"We're eating good tonight."
Clark was still in a daze. "But that robot—"
"Rusted out."
"But it just—"
"Old metal corrodes, Clark. You know how it is."
"???"
Dio snickered, letting his dad lead him and Clark forward, then whispered, "I'm not a big dummy like Clark."
Lock's hand froze for a split second.
"You little punk," he muttered, grabbing Dio by the collar. "We're not done talking about you sneaking out here."
"Back home, you're copying the Farm Safety Manual ten times!"
"???"
Under the boys' sulky glares as they hauled the deer, the tractor's engine roared closer.
Lock tossed the deer into the back and shoved Dio and Clark into the cab.
"Uncle Lock…" Clark started, "I still think—"
"Clark," Lock cut in, "why's one of the blasting caps missing from the third beam in the barn?"
"Dio did it."
"Shut up, you idiot! You promised not to tell!"
"Dio, I'm sorry. I don't want to copy the Farm Safety Manual again."
"Clark, you jerk!"
In the pouring rain, the tractor wobbled back toward the farm, the boys' bickering filling the air.
No one noticed the silver liquid seeping into the soil, slithering with purpose, leaving faint fluorescent traces before fading away. Nor did anyone notice an ordinary farmer effortlessly taking down a robot, preventing a potential bloodbath in Smallville due to a botched retrieval mission.
But…
Farther out, on the interstate, a black Chevy tore through the rain, its radar locked onto a fading energy signal.
"Damn it, how'd you lose that thing?!"
"It's too unstable—it's a Reaper! Who's gonna chase it down before the next wave of weapons arrives? We're not mutant criminals! And didn't it probably just blow up? How else does the signal vanish at this farm? You tell me, Agent Smith—think a farmer took it out?"
"Hey, don't underestimate farmers, you jerk!"
The argument raged on inside the car.