"What? The earthquake is weakening?!"
President Ellis, who had been sitting in frustration just moments ago, nearly sprang out of his chair when he received the report.
"Yes, Mr. President,"
Secretary of State Evan continued his briefing.
"According to the data we just received, less than ten seconds after that individual entered underground, the USGS detected a clear and continuous reduction in seismic intensity."
"Good!"
Ellis laughed, his face lighting up with excitement.
He truly had not expected Lucas to be capable of stopping something on this scale. The relief came so suddenly that it almost felt unreal.
"Mr. President, this is the live feed from the scene."
At that moment, a staff member activated the display. The screen showed Los Angeles, where the seismic readings were visibly declining.
But in the very next second—
Brilliant blue-white beams of light burst out from the cracked ground.
A violent explosion erupted, blasting several square kilometers of land straight into the air.
Mud and debris completely obscured the cameras' view, but moments later, two beams of light tore through the dust, shooting straight into the sky.
One was wrapped in golden radiance—Lucas.
The other was engulfed in deep blue light—a mysterious entity.
"What is that?" Ellis asked instinctively, staring at the blue-glowing figure on the screen.
"I'm sorry, Mr. President," a technician replied quickly.
"Our database cannot identify it. It doesn't match any known category."
---
High above the battlefield, Lucas stared at the blue light opposite him, a trace of confusion flickering in his eyes.
From their brief clash underground, he had already confirmed one thing—this entity possessed independent intelligence.
However, it was clearly not humanoid, nor did it resemble any mammalian or conventional lifeform.
What intrigued him even more was the sheer magnitude of its energy.
Although it couldn't injure him, its power output far exceeded his initial expectations.
Now that he had encountered it, there was no chance he would allow it to escape so easily.
At the very least, he needed to determine what this thing truly was.
The blue light suddenly trembled, flaring brightly—
Just as Lucas prepared for another attack, the blue sphere abruptly retreated and turned to flee.
"?"
Lucas did not hesitate. He instantly adjusted his energy output and gave chase.
The two figures accelerated rapidly, one pursuing and the other fleeing, their speed climbing higher and higher as they tore through the sky.
Within seconds, they left America behind and arrived above the Pacific Ocean.
The blue sphere suddenly plunged downward, attempting to dive straight into the sea.
Lucas narrowed his eyes.
There was no way he would allow it to escape into the ocean depths, where the terrain was unimaginably complex and perfect for concealment.
Raising his right hand, he formed an energy net directly in the blue sphere's path.
Before it could change direction, three more massive energy nets materialized around it, sealing off every possible escape route.
The blue sphere was trapped.
Lucas flashed forward and appeared directly in front of the containment field, watching the blue light struggle violently against the barrier.
His brows knit slightly.
As it struggled, its true aura began to leak out.
This was neither human, nor mammalian, nor even vaguely humanoid.
Yet it had been capable of triggering a catastrophe on a continental scale.
Exactly what kind of existence was this?
Deciding to find out, Lucas let out a low shout.
Instantly, powerful Super Saiyan energy surged into the net.
Golden energy clashed violently with the blue-white glow, both sides rapidly consuming one another.
"Not a low-level energy form," Lucas muttered, judging its strength from the rate of depletion.
After roughly five minutes, the blue sphere's protective energy finally collapsed.
Lucas had deliberately restrained his output—too much force might have destroyed whatever was inside, and then it would be worthless.
Yes.
Lucas had already decided—whatever was inside that blue-white shell, even if he didn't fully understand it, Phastos could study it later.
As the light dispersed, a fist-sized blue, faceted crystal floated into view.
"This is…?"
The crystal was flawless and translucent, like blue jade, emitting a soft, misty glow.
Suddenly, it flared with dazzling brightness, vibrating violently as it attempted to flee once more.
But a large hand closed around it.
Lucas clenched his fist, trapping the crystal firmly in his palm.
"Keep struggling if you want to be destroyed," he said coldly.
Instantly, the crystal ceased resisting.
Cracks formed across its surface, and a strange blue-silver liquid began seeping out, spreading across the crystal.
In just two seconds, it reshaped itself into a beetle-like form, its jade-like exterior transforming into metallic armor.
"A Blue Beetle?"
Lucas immediately recognized it.
In the DC universe, this entity was better known as the Scarab—a biological weapon of the Reach.
Hearing of Kord Industries earlier had already hinted at its existence in this world.
He had simply assumed it hadn't yet found a host.
What he didn't know was whether this version had already been damaged by a Green Lantern, as in some continuities.
If it were the comic version, it would be of little use to him.
But if it was closer to the film version, then it still had value.
"I know what you are," Lucas said coldly.
"Show me your power. If I'm satisfied, you live."
"And if I'm not—"
His eyes hardened.
"I'll make sure you never see another star."
The Scarab immediately panicked, flashing rapidly.
A message appeared directly in Lucas's mind:
[Let me bond with you.]
"Then attach to my hand," Lucas replied.
"If I sense even the slightest trick, I'll crush you instantly."
Without hesitation, the Scarab latched onto his palm.
Blue light flowed out once more, spreading like living veins up Lucas's arm—
And the fusion began.
....
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