"You—you're a Kryptonian too!"
Lias immediately recognized Kara as one of her own kind.
She blocked Kara's punch, then countered with a heavy blow that sent Kara crashing to the ground. Anger flared in her eyes as she shouted:
"Why would you help the people of this planet fight against your own kind?"
"Do you really believe these people are your true kin?"
Kara did not answer. She rose again and threw another punch at Lias.
"You traitor!" Lias roared.
She twisted aside, evading the incoming blow, then pushed off the ground with both feet and appeared in front of Kara in an instant.
Her fist slammed into Kara's abdomen, and in the same motion her other hand clamped tightly around Kara's throat.
"Krypton has never shown mercy to those who betray their own civilization!"
Just as Lias prepared to finish her, a sudden sense of danger surged from behind.
She spun around sharply—
—and a barrage of small missiles was already racing toward her.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Explosions erupted one after another.
Using the chaos, Kara broke free from Lias's grip and pulled back.
The moment Lias burst out of the smoke, she ran straight into Captain America's ambush.
Facing a Kryptonian this powerful, Steve Rogers held nothing back. He launched into a full combination attack the instant he engaged.
Yet even with his enhanced physique, his punches and kicks barely fazed Lias—at most, they earned her a brief look of confusion.
Without hesitation, Steve raised his shield in front of him.
The next second, an overwhelming force slammed into it.
Hummmm—!
The vibranium shield resonated violently as its powerful counterforce rebounded, striking Lias and sending her flying backward before she could react.
"Damn it!" Lias cursed.
Her feet gouged two deep furrows into the ground as she stabilized herself, eyes locked onto Captain America.
Before she could move again, another eight missiles streaked toward her and detonated.
Steve immediately used the opening to retreat and create distance.
Whoosh!
The smoke twisted violently as Lias tore through it, killing intent blazing as she charged straight at Steve.
"Tony!" Steve shouted.
Already positioned behind him, Tony—encased in his Mark armor—grabbed Steve by the shoulder and rocketed upward at full thrust.
Lias halted briefly, fury twisting her expression. She bent her knees deeply.
Cracks spiderwebbed across the ground beneath her feet.
Boom!
She launched herself into the air with terrifying force.
"Oh, shit!" Tony swore, instantly pushing the armor to maximum output and climbing higher.
But Lias was faster.
In less than two seconds, she closed the distance.
Just as she reached out to grab them, a figure slammed into her from the side—
—Kara.
The two Kryptonians collided midair and immediately fell into a fierce aerial struggle.
Thanks to her control over a bio-field, Kara could fly freely, while Lias was forced to rely on momentum alone.
As they grappled, realization struck Kara.
These Kryptonians—unlike her and Clark—could not fly.
That was the key.
"They can't fly!" Kara shouted into the comms.
"They're not like Clark and me. Use that weakness—fight them in the air!"
Clark heard her clearly.
After being beaten down for far too long, inspiration finally hit.
He locked his arms around Faora, ignoring the blows raining down on him, and forced his way upward into the sky.
Then—at altitude—he suddenly released her.
Just as expected, Faora immediately lost all control and began falling toward the ground.
Clark darted beneath her, drove both fists upward, and launched her back into the air.
Before she could recover, he rushed in and slammed a punch directly into her face—then instantly pulled away again, denying her any leverage.
Over and over, he repeated the sequence.
The same tactic played out above with Kara and Lias.
Unable to stabilize themselves in midair, Faora and Lias were completely overwhelmed.
Finally, after sustaining repeated heavy impacts, both of their helmets malfunctioned.
Earth's atmosphere flooded in.
Stripped of environmental protection, their bodies weakened rapidly—and they lost consciousness.
---
"What do we do now?"
Kara asked, looking at the two unconscious Kryptonians on the ground.
Clark stood beside her, silent for a moment.
"This is obvious," Nick Fury said coldly.
"Now we kill them."
Ross and the soldiers raised their weapons, fingers tightening on the triggers—
—but Clark stepped in front of them.
"They haven't killed anyone," he said firmly.
"At least not yet."
"We don't have the right to take their lives like this."
"Are you insane?" Fury snapped.
Ross added sharply, "If you don't kill them, do you really think any normal prison can hold them?"
"They're weakened now because they're breathing Earth's atmosphere," Clark replied quickly.
"If we use a containment cell made of special materials and keep them away from sunlight, it will work."
Fury and Ross exchanged a glance, a strange light flickering in their eyes.
"You're certain?" Fury pressed.
"If this goes wrong, you'll be the one dealing with the consequences."
"Trust me," Clark said, nodding firmly.
"And where exactly are we getting a containment cell on short notice?" Swanwick asked.
Tony suddenly spoke up, casual as ever.
"I've got that covered. I'll have one modified and delivered immediately."
Fury shot him a suspicious look.
"And when exactly did you prepare something like that?"
Tony shrugged.
"After seeing Banner go berserk once or twice, I figured it was smart to plan ahead."
Steve sighed and shook his head but chose not to comment.
"Fine," Fury said at last.
"Strip their armor when the cage arrives."
He then looked toward the sky, his expression darkening.
"Next, we still have the Kryptonians in orbit to deal with."
"Once they realize they've lost contact, they'll definitely come back for us."
"I don't know why they're so determined to take Clark," Fury continued,
"but either their commander is extremely confident—or their numbers are limited."
"Otherwise, they wouldn't have sent just two people down here."
"If it's confidence, we'd better be ready for more Kryptonians. If it's the latter, then our chances just went way up."
Kara spoke again, her tone grave.
"No—you're right. Their numbers are limited."
"If I'm not mistaken, there can't be more than twenty of them."
"And their objective was never just Clark."
Fury and Ross both turned toward her at once.
"Then what do they want?" Ross demanded.
Kara answered without hesitation:
"To rebuild Krypton."
_____
T/N:
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