The Watchtower observation deck had been cleared. The long curved window that looked down on Earth now served as a backdrop for a simple podium bearing the Justice League emblem. Cameras floated on automated mounts. Every major news feed on the planet was patched in. Seven billion people were about to watch.
Clark stood at the center. His cape hung still. His jaw was set.
Diana was at his right shoulder. Barry at his left. Behind them, Hal Jordan, J'onn J'onzz, and Oliver Queen stood in a loose line. No one spoke. The silence before the broadcast was heavier than any noise.
"Three minutes," J'onn said.
Clark nodded. His eyes were fixed on the planet below. Blue and white and impossibly fragile.
"You're sure about this," Oliver said. It wasn't a question.
"I'm sure about the truth. The rest we'll figure out."
"That's not a plan."
"It's the only one I have."
The broadcast light turned green.
---
"My name is Clark Kent. Some of you know me as Superman."
His voice filled the room. Filled every newsroom, every living room, every phone screen tilted toward a face.
"Two days ago, a young woman named Robin was killed on a city street. She was not killed by a car. She was not killed by a bullet. She was killed by a man who can run faster than sound. A man named A-Train. A member of Vought International's team, the Seven."
He paused. Let the name settle.
"The Justice League has obtained footage of this killing. I am going to show it to you now. It is graphic. It is real. And it has been hidden from the public by the company that employs him."
The screen behind him lit up.
The footage rolled. Golden afternoon. The couple on the sidewalk. The girl laughing. The boy with his hands in his pockets. The wet impact. The spray. The severed hands. The speedster pausing, turning, his lips forming words that the whole world could now read. I can't stop. Then running. The boy alone. The blood spreading across concrete.
The broadcast showed it all. Unedited. Unblurred.
In the Watchtower control room, a junior technician turned away from her monitor. Barry Allen had stopped breathing.
When the footage ended, Clark's face returned. His expression had not changed.
"A-Train is not a hero. He is a man who killed an innocent woman and fled the scene. And Vought International covered it up. They visited the victim's boyfriend within hours. Offered him money. Made him sign legal papers. Treated the life of a human being like a business expense."
He leaned forward. His hands gripped the edges of the podium.
"The Justice League does not recognize Vought's heroes. We are launching a full investigation into the Seven and the corporation that controls them. Effective immediately, A-Train is a wanted fugitive. He will be found. He will be detained. And he will face justice."
A murmur rippled through the floating cameras. One of the automated mounts dipped as if the machine itself was surprised.
"We are not asking permission. We are not waiting for politics. The League was founded to protect this world from threats that no single nation can handle. Vought International has become one of those threats. We will treat them accordingly."
He straightened. His cape shifted. For a moment, he looked less like a speaker at a podium and more like what he was. The strongest thing on the planet. The one who had burned an alien fleet out of the sky.
"To the members of the Seven. You know what you've done. You know what's been covered up. You have a choice. Come forward. Cooperate. Or we will come for you."
He stepped back from the podium.
"This is not a warning. This is a declaration."
The broadcast light went red.
---
Silence filled the observation deck. Then Hal let out a long breath.
"Well. That's one way to do it."
Clark didn't answer. He was still staring at the dark screen.
Barry rubbed his face with both hands. "You just declared war on the most popular superhero company on Earth."
"I declared war on murderers."
"Same thing. In the polls."
"I don't care about polls."
Oliver stepped forward. "You should. Vought's not going to take this lying down. They'll hit back. Hard. And they won't fight fair."
Diana spoke for the first time since the broadcast ended. "None of us expect them to fight fair. That's why we're not giving them time to prepare."
J'onn was at the main console. "Global response is already coming in. Fifty-three nations have issued statements. Twenty-seven are demanding more evidence. Twelve have condemned us outright."
"And the public?" Hal asked.
J'onn pulled up a data stream. Social media. News comments. Live reaction feeds. The text scrolled faster than human eyes could track.
"Mixed. Forty percent approval. Thirty percent hostile. Thirty percent waiting for more information."
"That's not terrible," Barry said.
"It's not good," Diana replied. "We need more evidence. More than one video. If Vought discredits this, we lose the public completely."
Clark turned from the window. "Then we find more evidence. We find A-Train. We find the other victims. We build a case."
"And until then?"
"Until then, we protect the people Vought won't protect. Starting with the boy in that video. Hughie Campbell."
---
The Watchtower shifted into night-cycle operations. Most of the League dispersed to their stations. Diana lingered at the observation window.
Clark approached. Stood beside her.
"You disagreed with something I said."
"No. I disagreed with how much you believe it will work." She turned to face him. "You told the world we would capture the Seven. You gave them a chance to surrender. You believe they'll take it."
"You don't."
"I believe men with power and no accountability don't surrender. They escalate."
Clark looked out at the Earth. "Maybe. But we have to give them the choice. Otherwise we're not the Justice League. We're just another group of powerful people imposing our will."
"And if they choose wrong?"
"Then we stop them. The way we've stopped everything else."
Diana nodded slowly. Not agreeing. Accepting.
"Bruce would not have done it this way," she said.
"No. He wouldn't have." Clark almost smiled. "That's why he's not standing here."
"He called you."
"Yes."
"What did he say?"
Clark was quiet for a moment. "He said the public system would backfire. He said the government is with Vought. He said I was too soft."