(General POV)
Location the New Earth, North Pole: Within the Cube
The battles raged on, inside the Cube, as heroes, villains, and anti-villains, struggle to find their specific target...the next marker, in order to find the first Core of Reality, the Nature's Heart.
Right now, a battle was nearing it's end...as another wall of ice, was busted open, by a giant, long-armed, behemoth made from flesh, machine, and dark arts, the Infernal Lord, Golem was rolling across the frozen floor.
Groaning and yelling, as the giant flesh golem, stumbled and smashed onto the floor, a couple times more, and then his hated open, came charging through a huge man, in a advance armor, resembling a rhino.
But of the two behemoths...it was clear that the Rhino, he was the most injured and exhausted of the two, in fact he had to use his brain to finally match against Golem.
Not a bit ago, they were fighting in a tight stair way, now they're in a perfectly rectangular hallway, that used to be one-way in...until Rhino tossed Golem through a wall, now Rhino, growling like an actual animal, he charged in to kill this freak, that has been beating him around the place, without mercy or relent.
Not even when he faced the likes of Captain America, Spiderman, and even once Hulk, has anyone manhandled and tried to kill him, in such a violent and brutal manner.
As Rhino closed the distance, Golem was already at his feet, panting in eagerness and anger, as he said in a low voice, "Me not made to lose. Me kill you. Me!! Kill you, now!!!" roaring as he swiped at the Rhino, Golem's sharp, metallic claws, surging with purple spark of electricity, and since Rhino was rushing in at full boar, so he couldn't react in time.
As Golem slashed at him, with all the strength the flesh construct could muster in his attack, slashing into the side of the rhino-helmed of the Rhino, cutting deeply and connecting to a vital spot of Aleksei's face...his left eye...
Aleksei screamed as both the pain and his now gone vision, from his left eye, surged through his mind and body, as he stumbled onto the ice made floor, blood pouring out of the helms, former left eye-lense, along with staining his once sleek, gray and electric blue accented, animal themed power-suit armor in fresh blood.
Golem didn't stop, he turn his roaring at Rhino, as he lifted his massive, long arms, interlocking his claws, and bringing them down, hard onto the back of the supervillain.
A great impact occurred, the blow making Aleksei scream in pain, as he felt like his upper back was about to broken, while the force behind Golem's blow, actually started to crack and burry Rhino, slightly into the floor.
Making ice particles, small shards, and frost, blast into the air, Golem grinded his fists into Rhino's back, growling out, "Me break you now." Golem started lifting his arms again, ready to smash down onto Rhino once again...when, a stream of pressurized seawater, blasted onto Golem, making him scream out in clear discomfort, as the stream of seawater, sent Golem crashing, straight onto the chamber, when the water stopped pushing onto Golem, cause of decreased pressure and force, from range, Golem crashed onto the floor, face first.
Coming through the hole, that Rhino made with Golem, is the warmongering, undersea, warlord and rogue Atlantean, Attuma, his golden armored and cyan skin colored presence, almost overbearing for the clearly wounded Aleksei, as Attuma scoffed, saying, "Finally found the thing, that dared kill some of my warriors." drawing his serrated long sword, ready to face Golem again.
As the Atlantean warlord, walked straight at the slowly standing Infernal Lord, he gave a quick glance at the wounded surface brute, clicking his tongue, he ordered his fishmen looking warriors to take Rhino away, as he'll face Golem alone.
At that moment Golem was standing on his feet again, staring at the Atlanteans taking Rhino, growling in angry frustration, he shouted, "Not again!! You no take Horn man!!! Me kill him, no take!!" this made Attuma laugh, as he pointed his sword at Golem and spoke to Golem, "Mindless monster. You really do remind me of Hulk, in his more savage time. Mindless. Brainless. And monstrous. Now without any distractions, let finally settle if you are a worthy adversary, beast." Golem turned his helmed head, towards Attuma.
His engine bursting and sparking aggressively, with power, as Golem spoke, "Me tired of people, taking Me victim. Fishman. Me hope you, no break fast." Attuma growled, even in broken speech, he understood that Golem was both looking down and insulting him, and Attuma never accepts insults.
Letting out a battle cry, Attuma gripping his blade with both hands, rushed straight at Golem, while Golem grumbled, lifting and pulling back his right arm, now surging with purple electricity, as sword and electric fist, clashed on this frozen chamber.
In the area that Arakune was facing off against Cheshire, Red Arrow, Black Archer, and Arsenal.
The lesser Black Beast, was sending out, multiple sharp, insectoid, bone made legs at the green themed, female assassin, Cheshire, which said former assassin was ducking, spinning, and dashing out the way of these, litteral spear like limbs.
Her hands gripping a pair of sai, desperately trying to close the distance and attack this black ooze nightmare, as three insectoid legs, rushed at her at the same time, Cheshire clicked her tongue, flipped to the side, and perform the oldest, and most trusted tactic...drop a smoke bomb, and use misdirection.
Normally this would work on most opponents...if they weren't a creature like Arakune, who laughed at the attempt, retracted his insect bone-limbs, and shifted his body to a liquid state, blasting his own body at Cheshire, smashing into her, at the edge of the smoke cloud, she'd gasped out in pain, as she tried to drive her sai into Arakune, which only made the Infernal Lord laugh, as he wrapped himself over her entire body, only leaving her feet and head exposed, as he spoke to her, "Let's see if you can, escape of this one?"
Like a flail, he swung his body with Cheshire still in his grasp, slamming her all over the ice made platform, causing her to grunt and yell in pain, Red Arrow seeing his wife in danger, ignored Merlyn, called out to her, "Jade!!!" rushing to her, as he started drawing arrows to help her, Arsenal seeing Jade and Will's situation, he also changed his target.
Seeing his opportunity, Merlyn, put away his latest arrow back into it quiver, and he ran, as a smart man, knows when to let enemies kill each other, then risk their own safety in such a foolish manner...Arsenal drew a special weapon, a energy bazooka, as he yelled to his clone-brother, "Will jump!!" not needing to be told twice, Red Arrow lep into the air, as a deep red beam, fired and passed right underneath him.
Hitting Arakune right in what can be considered his back, as the Infernal Lord, actually made a shriek of pain, as the wisp of sizzle, waft off the back of Arakune.
As the beam was still burning him, Arakune, he refused to let go of the woman, but then as Arakune was enduring the burning beam, Red Arrow was already readying his shot.
Taking aim and pulling back three, red trick-arrows, he let go of the bow-string and let loose those arrows, immediately when Arsenal beam ceased, Arakune felt three pricks on his back, then a surge of electricity, these are shock arrows, as sparks of blue electricity, spread across the mass of Arakune.
His body bubbled, dripped, and acted erratic, as his mask reappeared on his...head...as Arakune was forced to let go of Cheshire, as she dropped hard onto the ice made floor, she groaned, but having a lot experience of this kind of pain, she pushed through, and scrambled away.
Arsenal, the now landed Red Arrow, and a safe distance Cheshire, all locked their sights on the still electrocuted Infernal Lord, and after a bit, the shock of Red Arrow's trick-arrows have stopped, and Arakune was releasing more wisps of smoke and sizzle, as he dropped into a black puddle of ooze.
But none of the members of the Young Justice lowered their guard, when the three of them, having keen perception, they noticed that something was stirring from the black ooze puddle, that Arakune was currently.
As a swarm of thousands, tens of thousands, eldritch looking insects, started to emerge from the puddle state of Arakune's body, from sharp needled mosquitoes, serrated stinger wasps, acidic spewing flies, and more, started to swarm over at the three heroes.
With Red Arrow, Arsenal, and Cheshire were forced to dodge, as the black swarms, flew at them, their sense of danger, were blaring loudly, as they knew that staying in the path of the swarms, means certain death.
Arsenal as he rolled off the side, he was glazed badly on the back of his legs, tearing apart his black pants, as the eldritch wasps have cut into his leg, but luckily nothing serious, while Red Arrow wanting to protect his wife and brother, he shot some special trick-arrows, that upon exploding, the two were covered in hardening foam, forming a small dome on them.
Which protected them from the swarm, before Red Arrow could thick or act his next move, Arakune emerged in tact again, and clearly enraged by the previous attacks, from the damned red themed archer, before the clone could aim his arrow, at his enemy, Arakune sprouted some bone-limbs like a mantis blades, spinning in a liquid like ball of shredding death.
Several mantis blades, slashed onto Red Arrow across his right shoulder and upper chest, blood gushed out the wide wound, as several wasps, flew around under Arakune's command, stab onto the back of the red archer, he hissed out in pain, but then he started to feel weird...dizzy, slight nauseous, and his muscles felt very heavy, Red Arrow realized that he was poisoned, but before having a skeletal fist smashed onto his face, courtesy of Arakune.
The blow sending the poisoned young hero flying, and then smashing onto one of the hardening foam, cracking it, thus allowing Arsenal to see, Will barely conscious and clearly not alright, laying next to Arsenal's dome, as Arakune laughed his skeletal limbs, swaying in erratic excitement, alongside his crazed laughter.
Arakune calmed down, his blank mask, focused on the groaning and still fighting Red Arrow, as he spoke to him, "Futile effort, young archer. My minions' poison, now cources through you." letting out a wicked giggle, as he retracted all his limbs, with the exception of sprouting a new massive bladed, skeletal limb, as he continues speaking, "Now my compatriot, killed the green archer. Seems that I'll be, the second one that'll kill a archer. I hope that this is painful child, and worry not... You're wife and sibling, shall join you in the abyss." as Arakune finished his threatening taunts, he began to laugh in his insane tone.
As the swarms of minion insect, began to swarm around Arakune, Arsenal started scrambling to search for a weapon to not only break out of hardening foam dome, but also save Red Arrow, with that Arakune blasted forward to his target...
Another part of the Cube, in a long straight hallway of ice, half of the Suicide Squad was fightint some of the League of Assassins.
Harley Quinn actually just yipped, as she dodge a sword slash from Lady Shiva, while Katana rushed in to fight the high ranking member of the League of Assassins, as Shiva glance at the Japanese anti-heroine, with her soul taking katana, aimed straight at her.
But Shiva still calm and focused, she swung her scimitar in a rising spin arc-slash, striking at a angled point at Katana's blade, forcing her back, and letting Shiva create good distance between them, as both swordswomen started their duel, all while Deadshot was keeping the other kunoichis, away from Katana...and Harley that was dodging and weaving all slashes aimed at her, in a almost comical fashion.
If he didn't knew Harley, as much as he did...regretfully mind you, he'd would have said she was being a complete clown...but that Quinn for you, a utter whirlwind of chaos, as he started firing his wrist mounted guns at the ninja-women, while Harley bended, spun, slide, and even leap frogged over her attacker.
All while either showing expressions of surprise or enjoyment, as she use one of the kunoichis to pin her head, between her thigh, spin around, loud her revolver, hang herself from the unstable woman that she's clamped over, and shot two of the assassins that Deadshot didn't killed, then bending back and looking down at the confused, and clearly afraid assassin.
Harley gave her a playful kiss on top of her head, and told her, "Thanks for the ride babe. But it time to part...plus keeping alive, might make old Red very jealous... So sorry about this. By the way, I love ninjas so go with that info!!" placing her gun, directly on top of the assassin and shooting it.
Harley used the momentum and weight of the fall of the dead woman to release herself, and avoid hitting the ice, as she did a dramatic bow...while Floyd rubbed his masked face, reminding Harley, "Quinn...their not ninjas. They just look like them..." Harley looked back at Deadshot, and she shot back, "Hey Shot!! If they dress like that!!! Rarely talk!!! Use swords, pellets, and other pointy weapons, they are ninjas!!!! Also...again I'm not being disrespectful to Japanese, I just saying that if they dress and act as ninjas, their practically are."
Katana and Shiva, were clashing blades, with deadly skills and mastery, as "clanks" and scrapes of steel edges, slightly illuminated the faces of these two Asian, deadly beauties.
As Katana went for a faint low swing, forcing Shiva back a step, and Katana took advantage to deliver a high jump kick at Lady Shiva's chest, but as a master of combat, Shiva reacted quickly and blocked the kick of Katana, then she'd redirected Katana's kick, and then Shiva swung the handle of scimitar to Katana ribs, but Katana managed to spin her body to barely avoid the blow from Shiva.
Both women immediately stepped back, from each other, their guard at their highest level, when Shiva realized that all her subordinates have been killed, by the two idiots, that loudly bickering, if not for Katana's focus, being locked onto her, she'd escape...Shiva must focus to either eliminate a threat, or escaping, as this situation is completely against her, at that moment Katana struck again, as they both started to clashing blades again, while the two other members of the Squad, are focusing on the biggest issue...Shiva and Katana's duel.