"Hey! You black-hearted Death Eater—or whatever you are—take this!"
After setting Wonder Woman down, Shazam shot back into the sky, lightning spiraling around his fists as he charged Darkseid head-on. With Zeus's power flowing through him, his thunder could burn enemies to ash.
But against Darkseid's Omega Beams, Shazam's lightning was still pushed back—overwhelmed, crushed under the beam's brutal force.
Even so, after taking a direct hit, Shazam stayed alive—thanks to Zeus's divine power and Atlas's endurance.
"We need a coordinated attack plan! We can't let Darkseid keep firing that beam!"
The situation was turning disastrous. Batman knew they couldn't keep trading blows like this—they needed a concrete objective and clean teamwork.
"Then blind him."
Wonder Woman answered instinctively, like it was obvious.
Batman didn't argue.
As long as the team could focus on a single shared target and synchronize their actions, his purpose in speaking up was accomplished.
"I'll restrain his movement!"
With the goal set, Superman unleashed freezing breath at Darkseid.
Arctic wind slammed into him. Ice spread across Darkseid's body in an instant—
—but it wasn't enough.
The ice exploded apart immediately. Darkseid pushed through the frost without slowing, powering straight into Superman's breath and striking him in the head.
Wonder Woman attempted a flanking charge—
—but a swarm of Parademons surged in to block her.
"Art is Patrick Star!"
Ben shouted at the top of his lungs, and a blazing explosion tore through the Parademon cluster. A pillar of flame punched skyward, clearing Wonder Woman's path.
From the rubble, Shazam shoved aside a massive slab of broken concrete, his head spinning.
Getting embarrassed while trying to look cool had made him furious. Seeing Darkseid pounding on Superman, he rushed in again without hesitation.
Lightning wrapped around his fists—Zeus's thunder, ready to detonate.
Solomon's wisdom warned him: if he wanted to maximize Hercules's strength, he needed Mercury's speed to match.
"Hey! You dark—whatever! Eat this!"
He didn't even get to land the punch.
Darkseid reached out and caught him by the throat—one-handed.
The gods' gifts were impressive, sure.
But Darkseid was the Dark Lord, ruler of Apokolips—the strongest of the New Gods.
Shazam discharged lightning desperately, trying to force Darkseid to release him.
It did nothing.
With a flick of his hand, Darkseid redirected Shazam's lightning, compressing it into a crackling sphere and hurling it toward the others.
Wonder Woman had already reached Darkseid. She crossed her arms—Hephaestus-forged silver bracers taking the blast cleanly.
Then she lunged, blade aimed straight for Darkseid's eyes—
—and Darkseid casually swung Shazam like a club, smashing him into Wonder Woman and sending her flying.
"It's no big deal—I can catch you!"
Shazam scrambled back up, ready to rush again—
but Wonder Woman stopped him. A reckless charge would only disrupt the plan.
"Don't act like a child. You need to cooperate with your allies—not become an obstacle."
Shazam lowered his head like a kid caught by a parent, mumbling, "Yes, ma'am!"
"Good. Then follow me—charge toward victory!"
She drew her sword, took point, and led the team back into the assault.
At the edge of the battlefield…
Batman grabbed Hal Jordan before he could chase after Wonder Woman.
There was a task only the two of them could carry out—quietly, without alerting the enemy.
"Move, Batman!"
Hal didn't understand why Batman was blocking him. He wanted Darkseid to learn what Green Lantern power really meant.
"What are you trying to prove?"
Batman's voice was flat, cutting.
"I'm not trying to prove anything! Stop acting like you know everything—you don't get it!"
Hal already disliked Batman. In Hal's eyes, Gotham's vigilante routine was just rich-guy hunting—no different from bored aristocrats playing predator, only worse.
"We're fighting alongside aliens, Amazons, a lightning god, a robot, and a Speed Force runner."
Batman could tell Hal had the wrong idea about him—and he needed the right leverage to make Hal listen.
"Leaving out the kid who can turn into aliens… Hal, you and I are the only normal humans here."
He deliberately framed it as shared ground—pulling Hal closer, while planting a hook for Hal to bite.
Hal's brow furrowed.
"Wait. I don't remember telling you my name."
Batman pointed toward Ben—currently in the air, blasting Parademons with fire.
"He did. He's been yelling it the whole time."
"Damn it—how'd that kid recognize me? I thought he was an alien at first… turns out he's just someone who can become aliens."
Hal scratched his head, irritated—and unsettled. He still didn't understand how a fifteen-year-old Earth kid knew so much.
If the situation weren't so urgent, he'd demand an explanation.
He forced it aside and looked Batman over again.
Even if both of them were "human," Hal was working-class—
and Batman was something else entirely.
"Still… you're not normal either. Who knows how long you've lived to get that rich."
Batman didn't respond with sarcasm.
He removed his cowl.
"My name is Bruce Wayne. When I was ten, my parents were murdered in front of me. I inherited my family's fortune."
Hal blinked, caught off guard.
"I trained myself—spent my entire life fighting crime. But this time is different."
Hal still didn't understand where Batman was going with this.
"…So what are you trying to say?"
"The enemy's power can't be beaten head-on. We have to break out of привычное thinking and find a way to crack the situation."
Batman pulled his cape in, then picked up clothing from the ground—rapidly disguising himself as he spoke.
"We need to enter the enemy's territory—get inside—and remove whatever is blocking Cyborg from connecting to the Mother Box."
Hal stared as Bruce Wayne finished a perfectly believable civilian disguise in seconds.
Hal, now also stripping down his own Green Lantern look, could only exhale one stunned conclusion:
"Bruce Wayne… you're even crazier than I am."
…
Join here to read ahead.
In Star Rail, Ultra-Beast Armored — Have I Caught "Equilibrium"? l (Chapter 60)
Uma Musume, But I Only Have Five Years Left to Live (Chapter 80)
Zenless Zone Zero: I'm a Doctor, Not a Bangboo (Chapter 60)
Ben Tennyson Wants to Join the Justice League (Chapter 64)
TYPE-MOON: Redemption Beginning with the Holy Grail War (Chapter10)
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