A few minutes earlier, I had been contemplating which destination to visit first on Earth. Now, fate had made that decision for me.
I was standing in my scout ship as Var-Mo brought us toward Gateway City. The vessel moved smoothly through the atmosphere, completely invisible to any detection methods these creatures or the warrior woman below might possess.
"We have reached the location, Your Majesty," Var-Mo announced from the pilot's position.
I looked out through the viewport and saw the battlefield spread before us.
Countless red creatures filled the sky, their wings beating frantically as they swarmed toward the city like a plague of locusts. Each one was roughly the size of a large animal, with features that seemed designed purely for killing.
And fighting them alone was a woman mounted on what appeared to be a skeletal horse that breathed fire.
She moved through the swarm with impressive skill, her massive sword cutting through the creatures with practiced efficiency. The horse was equally formidable, incinerating dozens of the red creatures with streams of flame from its jaws.
I watched as she fought, and understanding began to dawn on me. The inverted pyramid structure floating in the ocean, the red creatures, the warrior woman fighting them alone - all of it clicked into place with memories from Alex's knowledge.
This was the plot of Absolute Wonder Woman.
The realization brought both clarity and confusion. Alex's memories contained information about this series, but it had been a new one. Only a few issues had been released before... before whatever event had transferred those memories into my mind.
I knew the basic premise. The Absolute series was supposedly created by Darkseid, who had reached a much higher level of existence and was using it to torment the Justice League by stripping away the privileges they had.
Each member faced a darker, harder version of their origin story.
But that didn't make sense in the context of what I knew about this universe.
Darkseid existed here physically. He controlled multiple sectors of space with his armies and technology. Krypton had confirmed his presence as a major galactic power, locked in eternal conflict with the Gods of New Genesis.
So how could that same Darkseid be the one who created or controlled this entire universe?
The story I remembered suggested he existed outside normal reality, manipulating events from a higher plane of existence. But the Darkseid of this universe was firmly grounded in the physical realm.
The contradiction bothered me.
Either the story I remembered was wrong, or something more complex was happening here.
This universe has elements of Marvel, DC, and even the Viltrumites from another completely separate fictional universe. Everything keeps pushing me toward a single conclusion, one I've been trying to avoid accepting because of its implications.
This universe is not based on a single comic or fictional verse. It's something entirely new, formed by bits and pieces of multiple stories I have in my mind through Alex's memories.
The thought was both liberating and terrifying.
If this were truly a merged reality, then none of the stories I remembered could be completely trusted. Events might unfold differently. Characters might have different motivations, different powers, different fates.
I would need to verify everything rather than relying on presumed knowledge.
The comic book memories served as a useful starting point, but they could also be dangerously misleading if I treated them as the absolute truth.
Whatever the nature of this reality, one thing remained constant - I needed to empower Krypton and establish the foundations necessary to secure our future. Everything else was secondary to that goal.
"Your Majesty," Var-Mo's voice broke through my thoughts, "shall we engage with these creatures? The scout ship has enough ammunition to eliminate most of them. Our weapons systems are fully operational and ready for combat."
I considered the suggestion for a moment. It would be efficient to simply use the ship's weapons to clear the battlefield.
"Negative," I replied firmly. "Keep the ship stable and in stealth mode. Continue observing without interference."
From what I knew about this version of Diana, she was not just a warrior but a sorceress as well.
I had not yet seen any magic users in action throughout my life.
This would be an excellent opportunity to observe how magic functioned in combat and assess whether it posed a significant threat to empowered Kryptonians.
"Record the entire fight," I commanded. "Preserve every single word she says, especially any incantations or spells. Also, be aware of any energy changes around her. Send all data to the mother ship for analysis by Dal-Ek and his team."
"Understood, Your Majesty. Recording systems are active."
I watched as Diana fought with increasing desperation. She was skilled, incredibly so, but the sheer number of creatures was overwhelming even for someone of her capabilities.
Then she began to chant, her voice carrying power that I could feel even from inside the ship. The words were in an ancient language, probably Greek, given her mythological origins, and they resonated with energy that made the air shimmer.
So this is magic. I studied the phenomenon carefully, watching how the energy manifested and affected the physical world around her. Her sword became wreathed in flames that seemed to burn hotter than normal fire. When she swung it, the flames cascaded outward in a wave that consumed dozens of creatures.
The power was impressive, but analyzing it with my enhanced senses, I could see that it operated on principles different from the energy manipulation I was familiar with. It wasn't just raw power - it was power shaped by will and fueled by something I couldn't quite identify.
Though this level of magic can hardly affect me in my current state, I noted mentally.
But I need to prepare proper countermeasures for magicians. Or better yet, have magicians on my side who can counter enemy magic users.
Adding magic users to our forces would be a strategic priority. If magic were one of the few things that could harm empowered Kryptonians, then controlling access to it would be crucial for our long-term security.
Just then, a massive creature emerged from the gateway structure. It was easily a hundred times larger than the others, covered in armored scales and radiating power that dwarfed its smaller kin.
The creature moved with surprising speed and struck Diana with devastating force. She was knocked from her mount and sent crashing into the beach below with an impact that created a visible crater.
I immediately activated my enhanced vision, scanning Diana's body through the dust and debris. My eyes could penetrate matter, allowing me to see her internal structure and assess the damage from the impact.
Surprisingly, there wasn't much trauma to her body from the strike. Her physiology was far more durable than I thought.
But one thing I found particularly intriguing was her right arm.
Unlike the rest of her body, which showed normal biological structures, her right arm had no blood vessels in it. No muscles, no bones, no organic tissue at all.
It was just there - a solid piece of something that was definitely not flesh. Some kind of prosthetic or magical construct, perhaps. The arm appeared completely functional, moving naturally as if it were part of her original body, but it was fundamentally different from her organic limbs.
That intrigued me greatly. Did it grant her additional abilities, or was it simply a replacement for a lost limb?
Questions for later.
Diana was standing up, clearly preparing to continue the fight. The massive creature was approaching her, and from this distance, I could see it was attempting to communicate with her.
I made my decision.
"Open the hatch," I commanded.
Var-Mo didn't hesitate despite the obvious danger. "Opening hatch now, Your Majesty."
The boarding ramp descended, and wind rushed into the cabin. I walked to the edge and looked down at the battlefield below. The massive creature was still talking to Diana, probably trying to intimidate her into retreating.
I stepped off the ramp and let myself fall for just a moment before engaging my flight ability.
I flew silently, positioning myself directly behind the massive creature that Diana was facing. Neither the creature nor Diana noticed my approach, both too focused on each other.
The creature was declaring something about this world belonging to them now, about preparing it for their armies. Typical conqueror rhetoric.
Diana was responding with her own declaration, revealing her identity and heritage.
I listened as she proclaimed herself Diana of Themyscira, the last of the Amazons, daughter of Circe, Princess of Hell.
Quite many titles.
Her eyes began to glow red as she channeled more power.
But before she could finish her declaration, I decided it was time to intervene.
I looked directly at the creature's head and activated my heat vision. The red beams lanced out from my eyes, focused to a point that could penetrate virtually any material.
The energy struck the creature exactly where I intended - directly through the center of its skull. The beams carved through armored scales, flesh, and bone as if they weren't there at all. The creature's head was vaporized along the path of the beams, leaving a perfectly circular hole that I could see clean through.
This one was weak for being the leader of these creatures, I thought critically. Its flesh vaporized almost instantly under my heat vision. Either these Harbingers were far less durable than their numbers suggested, or my heat vision did more damage than I thought, and I was not even using it at full power.
'I need another test subject to test my abilities.'
The massive body swayed for a moment before collapsing onto the beach with a thunderous crash that sent sand flying in all directions.
Through the smoking hole in the creature's head, I could see Diana clearly. And more importantly, she could see me.
Our eyes locked across the battlefield.
Her eyes were still glowing red from whatever power she had been channeling. The crimson light was similar to the glow from my own heat vision, though the nature of the energy was completely different. Hers was magical in origin, mine was the result of solar radiation empowering my Kryptonian biology.
But in that moment, with both of our eyes glowing the same color, there was an odd symmetry to the scene.
I could see surprise in her expression, quickly followed by wariness and calculation. She was assessing me as a potential threat or ally, trying to determine who and what I was.
I maintained my position, hovering in the air with my arms at my sides in a non-threatening posture. My crimson hair moved slightly in the wind, and I knew the half-sun mark on my forehead would be clearly visible to her.
For a long moment, we simply stared at each other across the battlefield. Neither of us moved, neither of us spoke.
Diana, Princess of Hell, last of the Amazons, daughter of Circe-warrior and sorceress, protector of humanity.
And myself, Kon-Rao, last heir of God King Rao, bearer of the Crimson Crown, leader of the surviving Kryptonians - emperor of a civilization that had lost its world but not its will.
Two beings of immense power, meeting for the first time on a beach littered with the bodies of creatures from another dimension.
....
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