The intense collision between hot magma and the freezing cold caused the entire Yellowstone volcano to rumble ominously.
But this time, most of the material inside had already been ejected. Like a blister that had been popped, there was nothing left to erupt. So despite the deep rumbling, the massive supervolcano finally fell into silence.
The air, once scorching hot, suddenly dropped in temperature. Captain Cold's freezing cannon emitted frost nearly approaching absolute zero. Even if it didn't quite reach that theoretical limit, the freezing power was beyond imagination.
Especially now that it had been supercharged with additional energy, the weapon's capabilities had increased dramatically. It could easily freeze an entire city in minutes, and now, it only took ten to encase Yellowstone National Park in solid ice.
"Is it over?" Shin asked, hovering above ground as he looked down at the now-frozen terrain.
"That's right," Luthor replied, arms crossed as he surveyed the quiet scene. "Once this layer of ice melts, the lava will cool and harden into solid rock. After such a massive eruption, Yellowstone should remain dormant for at least a few thousand years."
Green Arrow frowned, letting out a long sigh. "It's a shame we were a little late. The ash cloud has already blanketed all of Wyoming. The death toll... it'll be in the millions. And the long-term effects? Even worse."
"The volcanic ash likely carries nuclear radiation," he continued, voice low. "Even though most of the solid debris and ash was sucked, the remainder is enough to coat half of America."
And with the jet streams and air currents at work, it was only a matter of time before the toxic cloud spread across the entire country and beyond. The environmental fallout would be catastrophic. Diseases, cancers, and respiratory illness rates would skyrocket in the coming decade.
Of course, this outcome was still far preferable to the complete annihilation of America or worse, a global extinction event.
"Well, we're not gods," Luthor said, turning toward Shin. "We did everything we could."
"Was Superman captured?" he asked, eyeing Shin sharply.
In such a chaotic battlefield, especially under those harsh environmental conditions, even someone like Luthor, armed with advanced tech, couldn't track the final moments of a battle between two godlike beings moving at hypersonic speeds.
Shin nodded. "Yes. That leaves us with only two final tasks."
He smiled faintly. "We need to rescue the Flash and destroy the AI calling itself Grid. Then it's over."
At this, a wave of relief washed over the group. Luthor immediately stepped forward.
"Then let me help restore Superman to normal."
Shin's eye twitched. He glanced at Luthor like he'd just suggested letting Lex babysit a radioactive child.
"No thanks. I've got a way to restore him myself."
"You don't trust me?" Luthor's face darkened.
"Of course, I don't," Shin said flatly. "Would you trust you? If anyone here thinks we should let you handle Superman, speak up."
He turned and looked around. No one said a word.
Even the Joker and Captain Cold raised their eyebrows but said nothing. Luthor glared at the others, Wonder Woman, Aquaman, and even Green Arrow, but not one of them looked remotely willing to hand Superman over to Lex Luthor.
"Hmph! Fine. But don't come crying to me when things go wrong!" Luthor snapped, crossing his arms.
Wonder Woman didn't even flinch. She casually tapped her shield against his power armor, sending a low clang through the suit. The jolt made Luthor's teeth rattle.
"You don't need to worry," she said coldly. "I trust Shin far more than I'll ever trust you. Frankly, if things weren't so chaotic right now, I'd have had you locked back up for suggesting such a thing."
"Shin," she turned to him now, more softly, "you can restore Superman?"
Shin nodded again. "Yeah. It might hurt him a bit, and he won't be battle-ready for a while. But I can purge the Brother Eye infection."
"That's fine. We've got enough firepower left," Wonder Woman said confidently, brushing hair from her face. "Aside from the two Flashes, all the other heroes under Brother Eye's control have been freed."
"Wait—" Shin suddenly paused. "What about Batman?"
"He's back online," Wonder Woman said, her expression a mix of exasperation and amusement.
"He sent us a signal that he's fully recovered."
"Hahaha... Is this guy really a superhero?" Green Lantern burst into laughter. "Even Brother Eye didn't bother upgrading him. No cybernetic enhancements, no implants just got knocked out of control by a basic EMP!"
The Joker crossed his arms and scoffed. "He's an intelligent superhero, thank you very much. Intelligence over brawn!"
Green Arrow chimed in defensively. "Superheroes aren't just about raw power. They're about courage, heart, strategy—"
Some of the more "human" members of the League looked especially offended now. The idea that Brother Eye had decided Batman wasn't even worth upgrading rubbed them the wrong way.
After all, Batman built the Brother Eye system. The AI was his brainchild and now it had the audacity to write him off as irrelevant?
Truthfully, Brother Eye's programming discarded anyone without superhuman enhancements. Once under control, intelligence alone was meaningless, and a puppet had no need for critical thinking. That's why Batman hadn't received any 'upgrades' he simply wasn't worth it.
Shin shrugged. "Where is he now? Should we bring him here? He knows the system best and he might be our key to taking down the Grid."
"He's still in Gotham," the Joker replied, holding up a communicator and grinning. "And I'm not sure we've got time to wait. The Brother Eye system converted a ton of Arkham's inmates into robot hybrids. Now that they're free of control... let's just say they're 'celebrating' in Gotham."
Ah, Gotham. A city of chaos, corruption, and now for a select few inmates, a land of absolute freedom.
Even in the wake of the near-apocalypse, Gotham's infamous citizens had already started shopping for free. No doubt half the city was on fire and the other half was looting convenience stores.
As always, the people of Gotham remained... resourceful.
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