The Last Daughter of Krypton - IC

[ChasNicollette]

Chloe. Combat medic.

Chloe's eyes went wide wide wide as she saw with her own eyes the connection of Kryptonian fist to Kryptonian face, John Smith went hurtling, ragdoll physics...

Merick arrived beside Chloe, his arms on her shoulders. However he was no longer the Merick he had been at school. He was sheathed in emerald. He smiled as he touched Chloe's shoulders. "You okay? What the hell's going on? Also, um. I think that Mr. G may have walked in as I swooshed out. Guess I will deal with that when the time comes. So? Catch me up..."

Chloe whirled, she was so glad to see him, so very very impossibly glad to see him...

She was a journalist, and thus conciseness came easy: "Kara's bugfuck, clocked Var-Sen!"

She pointed. "Swooosh! Get me over there, I can-- I can fix him!"

 

[Lunaramblings]

Chloe's eyes went wide wide wide as she saw with her own eyes the connection of Kryptonian fist to Kryptonian face, John Smith went hurtling, ragdoll physics...

Merick arrived beside Chloe, his arms on her shoulders. However he was no longer the Merick he had been at school. He was sheathed in emerald. He smiled as he touched Chloe's shoulders. "You okay? What the hell's going on? Also, um. I think that Mr. G may have walked in as I swooshed out. Guess I will deal with that when the time comes. So? Catch me up..."

Chloe whirled, she was so glad to see him, so very very impossibly glad to see him...

She was a journalist, and thus conciseness came easy: "Kara's bugfuck, clocked Var-Sen!"

She pointed. "Swooosh! Get me over there, I can-- I can fix him!"

Merick was moving before she finished speaking. The world folded once more around them. More metaphysical origami. Merick appeared with Chloe just before Var-Sen.

"Professor Livingston I presume? Looks like that hurt. Give Chloe a sec, you'll be good as new."

 

[AmenRa]

Martian Manhunter

She was fighting him with everything she had.

Struggling within his grasp, breaking free.

He poured on speed. The fields below them began to blur. The ground itself blurred, as the sky around them warped, and they were nothing but a red streak shooting across the heavens, and then even that couldn't be seen.

J'onn's face was a grimace as he fought not only to maintain faster than light travel, but fought to maintain hold on Kara.

Kara. Dear, sweet Kara. I knew you as a child. I held you when you were but an infant. Now, I hold you, sickened by the red poison within you, fighting against me, one who would never, ever see you harmed.

And I must fight you to see you safe.

J'onn was losing his grip on her as she struggled. Her flailings destabilized the warp field around them, destabilized his flight, and they plummeted headlong into the frozen arctic wastes.

BOOOOOOMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The sound of their impact with the ice reverberated across the valley where the Fortress of Solitude lay. Mountains of ice gave up their mettle as sheets of avalanche broke free.

J'onn J'onzz climbed out of the crater, holding Kara by her arm. He shook his head, his cape swishing to and fro, then held her up before him. The Fortress was but a few hundred yards away, gleaming spires of crystal that reflected the Aurora Borealis above them.

His eyes were fire.

He reached for the ring.

 

[ChasNicollette]

Chloe. "I can rez."

Merick was moving before she finished speaking. The world folded once more around them. More metaphysical origami. Merick appeared with Chloe just before Var-Sen.

"Professor Livingston I presume? Looks like that hurt. Give Chloe a sec, you'll be good as new."

There were many colours of lights in The Universe.

Even black, the colour of Death, could burn with a light of its own.

But there were seven colours that could bind together and form the colour of Life...

White white light boiled at Chloe's fingers, it was instinct, she clenched her eyes to hold back tears, this was always rough, this part, could she heal him enough without dying herself...?

She could die and come back but that didn't make the process any fun at all.

Light blistered at the point at which her touch contacted Var-Sen's face and she murmured... "Heal."

 

[AmenRa]

Light blistered at the point at which her touch contacted Var-Sen's face and she murmured... "Heal."

Searing, white-hot pain.

And then he opened his eyes.

And he looked up, and he saw Chloe.

And Merrick.

And, finally, Var-Sen of Krypton smiled.

He stood, a little shakily at first, then brushed the brick debris and dust from his clothes.

He looked around, looked outside. Kara was gone.

"Ummm?"

 

[Lunaramblings]

Merick grinned as he looked around.

"So... not to be like the downer for this reunion special... but it occurs to me that you just got punched through a wall. And there are peeps staring. Granted, being all green and glowy tends to be a bit of an attention getter, but I think we need to make haste. Like now...ish?" Merick slid his arm around Chloe. "Good work babe."

 

[TearsoftheWorld]

Despite her repeated attempts to break free, J'onn managed to hold onto her body until they had reached the desolate and frozen reaches far to the north. Eventually, however, Kara had managed to break J'onn's ironclad grip and they both came crashing down. A loud boom followed their chaotic landing, but the howling and unrelenting winds of the Arctic managed to drown out the sound to anyone that wasn't within a hundred yards. The impact left a deep crater in the ice, and from its center emerged J'onn pulling Kara by the arm. The Martian picked her up and then dared to reach for her hand.

"N... no..." she muttered, snow and shards of ice falling from her body as she swatted his hand away from her. "You can't take it away from me," she scowled.

The fire in his eyes burned with as much ferocity as the passion and aggression that coursed through Krypton's Last Daughter.

Kara wrapped both hands around J'onn's wrist and held on tight. She lifted herself up into the air, carrying him with her. Pulling hard, she managed to twirl their bodies around and around, finally letting go and throwing the Martian back towards the ground.

Not bothering to wait for him to land, she flew straight at him, both fists drawn forward and aimed at his chest.

Behind her, the Fortress loomed, sparkling and glittering with absolute purity even as its Keeper fought hard against her friends and allies.

 

[AmenRa]

Kara wrapped both hands around J'onn's wrist and held on tight. She lifted herself up into the air, carrying him with her. Pulling hard, she managed to twirl their bodies around and around, finally letting go and throwing the Martian back towards the ground.

Not bothering to wait for him to land, she flew straight at him, both fists drawn forward and aimed at his chest.

She was strong, and she was resourceful.

Centrifugal force had allowed her to throw him to the cold arctic ice.

There would be another crater to add to the one from before.

He saw, though, that Kara had other plans as she aimed for him in a downward dive, both her fists held out before her.

Kryptonian fists that would strike hard against his chest.

A blow from her, with the speed of her flight behind her, would certainly render him useless for a few moments.

So the Martian Manhunter became intangible. Still visible, but his molecules were floating free, clear and boundless as the air itself.

And Kara simply punched through him. Right through him, as if he wasn't even there.

If she didn't stop in time, there would still be another crater to add to the one from before.

 

[ChasNicollette]

Chloe. "What's your damage?"

Searing, white-hot pain.

And then he opened his eyes.

And he looked up, and he saw Chloe.

And Merrick.

And, finally, Var-Sen of Krypton smiled.

Flower petals fluttered around them, shards of furniture and bits of mortar and Chloe staggered against Merick's emerald frame wreathed in emerald flame.

That had been... hard work.

Chloe's jaw ached and she wondered if one of her ribs might be cracked.

But the job was done, he'd lived and she hadn't died trying.

He stood, a little shakily at first, then brushed the brick debris and dust from his clothes.

He looked around, looked outside. Kara was gone.

"Ummm?"

Merick grinned as he looked around.

"So... not to be like the downer for this reunion special... but it occurs to me that you just got punched through a wall. And there are peeps staring. Granted, being all green and glowy tends to be a bit of an attention getter, but I think we need to make haste. Like now...ish?" Merick slid his arm around Chloe. "Good work babe."

"Thanks," she murmured, smiling weakly. She'd heal, but she had to recharge, first. "Have I ever told you I love your speedy delivery?"

"I think J'onzz was putting the whammy on the bystanders," Chloe rasped, "if they're seeing us again, that means he's gone, and wherever he's gone, he's gone after Kara. They vanished faster than I could see, but--"

She smiled faintly. "Obviously, Professor, you don't have that problem. Deep scan? Find 'em and let's get gone."

 

[AmenRa]

Merick grinned as he looked around.

"So... not to be like the downer for this reunion special... but it occurs to me that you just got punched through a wall. And there are peeps staring. Granted, being all green and glowy tends to be a bit of an attention getter, but I think we need to make haste. Like now...ish?" Merick slid his arm around Chloe. "Good work babe."

"Thanks," she murmured, smiling weakly. She'd heal, but she had to recharge, first.

"I think J'onzz was putting the whammy on the bystanders," Chloe rasped, "if they're seeing us again, that means he's gone, and wherever he's gone, he's gone after Kara. They vanished faster than I could see, but--"

She smiled faintly. "Obviously, Professor, you don't have that problem. Deep scan? Find 'em and let's get gone."

Var-Sen shook his head once more to clear the cobwebs.

"Merrick," he said, "you have an uncanny way of showing up just in time. Reminds me of that time you caught me falling from the sky."

He patted the young man on the back.

"I have a feeling I know where J'onn is taking her," he told them both. "The Martian Manhunter's powers are without limits, and he is possibly the only one who can stop Kara Zor-El from hurting herself, or hurting someone else. I believe he is taking her to the Fortress of Solitude, where I had attempted to lure her before she decided to knock me through this wall." He gestured to the remains of brickwork. "I must contact Raya. In case J'onn fails, we will need her here on Earth to assist. I can do that from the cave's control room here in Smallville, but I can also access the trans-dimensional vortex through the Fortress' systems.

Merrick, can you get us to the Fortress?"

 

[TearsoftheWorld]

Kara had moved quickly, swiftly through the air with the intent of striking J'onn hard and fast. She learned firsthand that fighting against the Martian Manhunter would not be easy. He had far more years of combat experience, trained to take on multiple dangerous opponents with far more cunning and skill than just a headstrong Kryptonian.

She flew right threw him.

She could see his body. She could see him.. but she couldn't touch him. She couldn't harm him.

That frustrated her to no end.

But she was also faced with another problem. Kara managed to slow herself down a bit after she had passed through the Martian, but she still landed hard within the center of the crater. Her hands and knees made the crater even wider as the ground cracked beneath her, and more snow and ice began falling all around her as the resounding boom from the second impact faded away.

 

[Lunaramblings]

Var-Sen shook his head once more to clear the cobwebs.

"Merrick," he said, "you have an uncanny way of showing up just in time. Reminds me of that time you caught me falling from the sky."

"I ever tell you about this little church in Germany? Another time... Merick was still grinning. That whole night seemed surreal, especially the beach... he would really love to go back there some day... so beautiful....

He patted the young man on the back.

"I have a feeling I know where J'onn is taking her," he told them both. "Merrick, can you get us to the Fortress?"

"Well, never been there... but, let's see?" Merick waved a hand toward Var-Sen, surrounding him in a bubble, along with himself and Chloe.

Within a second the world was flashing by, Swoosh... Swoosh... Swoosh... Merick teleported 100, 1000, times... maybe more. innumerable scenes flashed before his eyes. Further north with each fold of reality. All in the blink of an eye. At least, it felt that way. From far up he saw the crater. A new smear on the stark white. Couldn't be a coincidence. He gestured to the distant mark. He could not make out much detail. But he knew Var-Sen would be able too. With a thought he shifted his field, still swaddling himself and Chloe, but now giving Var-Sen a way out. Merick subtly shifted them almost constantly, making it appear as if they were hovering. This was a trick he had practiced several times in "the barn".

"Something tells me that's where you need to be."

 

[ChasNicollette]

Rose. Five by five.

Her hands and knees made the crater even wider as the ground cracked beneath her, and more snow and ice began falling all around her as the resounding boom from the second impact faded away.

They moved from one winter day into a summer's eve and from there into winter anew.

The shadows parted, wailed and tore, and again Wraith's excess mass bled away into whirling darkness--

Almost before they'd landed, there at the base of the gate to The Fortress of Solitude, Rose was whirling, she was airborne: "THERE!"

She flew as fast as she could, she knew she couldn't use fire to boost her thrust for fear of hampering J'onn, but she could still move at a pretty rapid clip...

The crater walls began to tumble down around Kara and Rose blurred into that space, waving a hand and levitating those chunks and shards of ice, the water molecules responding to Rose's metagenetic gifts.

Rose grimaced with the effort, floating herself and that avalanche of snow, and her blue blue eyes locked onto Kara's.

"Are you ready to stop this?" she murmured. "You're my best friend, you and Merick. I know you're not going to hurt me."

"Just... please. Just think. Just stop."

"Please."

 

[AmenRa]

MM - Opening Up A Can....

"You are beaten," he said to her as he landed gently beside her. He paid no mind to the snow and ice that tumbled against them.

He felt a presence before he saw her. Rose was here. She had stopped the avalanche. That meant Wraith was here as well. He gave them no heed as he focused his attention on Kara.

Fully reformed from his previous intangibility, J'onn's cape swirled around him as he stood towering over her.

"Do not fight me anymore," he told her. "I have no wish to hurt you, Kara."

His voice was that deep bass of the Martian sands, and even though he spoke softly, it echoed across the valley of the Fortress.

'We must end this now. This conflict will resolve nothing. You must not resist me.'

He was inside her mind now. Conflicted thoughts assailed him, and he recoiled from her anger, yet he pressed on. He fought against her will to sink his statements into her consciousness.

'Resistance is futile.'

As strong as Kara was physically, she was equally as strong inside.

That, in some distant thought, made the Martian Manhunter proud. She would be triumphant in fulfilling her destiny.

And he resolved that he would fufill his.

A promise to an old friend.

To watch over her. Protect her. Guide her.

He loved Kara Zor-El like his own.

Like a daughter he had had once, long ago, on a distant Red Planet.

And for that, this battle truly hurt him more than it hurt the Last Daughter of Krypton.

 

[AmenRa]

Prof Smith

"Something tells me that's where you need to be."

Var-Sen nodded his head. "Indeed," he answered. And then he took flight, a gift from Sol to the Kryptonian physiology.

He touched down gently, near the Fortress' entrance. Kara had landed in a large crater, and J'onn beside her, and ice and snow flew and rained down upon them.

And he heard a noise, sounding like something moving through air.

He looked up, against the stark whiteness and blue, blue sky, and the wavering Northern Lights, and he saw a girl with blue, blue eyes.

Rose.

In spite of everything, Var-Sen smiled.

 

[Lunaramblings]

Merick smiled at Chloe.

"I love you, but I think that you need rest. Let me bring you home. Let me get you someplace warm and safe. J'onn is here. If things go bad, he will get us."

 

[ChasNicollette]

Chloe. Ashen to ashen.

"I ever tell you about this little church in Germany? Another time... Merick was still grinning.

Chloe grimaced. I bet you broke that poor holy man's coffee table, too.

He patted the young man on the back.

"I have a feeling I know where J'onn is taking her," he told them both. "Merrick, can you get us to the Fortress?"

"Well, never been there... but, let's see?" Merick waved a hand toward Var-Sen, surrounding him in a bubble, along with himself and Chloe.

Within a second the world was flashing by, Swoosh... Swoosh... Swoosh... Merick teleported 100, 1000, times... maybe more. innumerable scenes flashed before his eyes. Further north with each fold of reality. All in the blink of an eye. At least, it felt that way. From far up he saw the crater. A new smear on the stark white. Couldn't be a coincidence. He gestured to the distant mark. He could not make out much detail. But he knew Var-Sen would be able too. With a thought he shifted his field, still swaddling himself and Chloe, but now giving Var-Sen a way out. Merick subtly shifted them almost constantly, making it appear as if they were hovering. This was a trick he had practiced several times in "the barn".

Chloe wasn't great with heights. She'd managed to cope with the windmill at Chandler's field, and with brief stints looking up in the sky with John Smith, but as she was already feeling a little burned from the healing discharge, she found herself forced to scrunch shut her eyes against the vista below.

For a moment. For a moment. She buried her face against Mer's forcefieldy side and took a deep breath. Steadied.

And then looked again.

"Something tells me that's where you need to be."

Var-Sen nodded his head. "Indeed," he answered. And then he took flight, a gift from Sol to the Kryptonian physiology.

Chloe smiled a wobbly smile. "I like that. The time-lapse line-of-sight coordinate shift. Nice improv, Launchpad."

And then she took another deep breath, and tried not to pass out. "Also, when'd you learn how to fly a helicopter? You're holding out on me."

Merick smiled at Chloe.

"I love you, but I think that you need rest. Let me bring you home. Let me get you someplace warm and safe. J'onn is here. If things go bad, he will get us."

"I love you, too," she mumbled. "I don't think... I don't think you're wrong about that."

 

[TearsoftheWorld]

The world began falling around Kara as if to swallow her whole and partially erase the damage that had been done, but something interfered. Or rather someone. The slabs of ice and mounds of snow had been stopped from 'crushing' her, and under Rose's power they remained locked in place.

"Are you ready to stop this? You're my best friend, you and Merick. I know you're not going to hurt me."

"Just... please. Just think. Just stop."

"Please."

We don't need to whisper.

Kara faltered.

"You are beaten," J'onn said as he touched down next to her, his body towering over her like Goliath had towered over David.

"Do not fight me anymore. I have no wish to hurt you, Kara."

His voice was that deep bass of the Martian sands, and even though he spoke softly, it echoed across the valley of the Fortress.

'We must end this now. This conflict will resolve nothing. You must not resist me.'

She could hear him speaking to her even though his lips never parted. He was inside her head now, having fought against her physically and taking that next step.

'Resistance is futile.'

Rose.

J'onn.

Merick.

Kyle.

Var-Sen.

Kara stood up on her feet and tightened her fist with the ring still on it. Its hold on her was still quite strong, though a small part of Kara wanted to be rid of it.

'Resistance is futile.'

Kara clenched her teeth. She didn't want to hurt any of them, but she would if that meant she could be on her own. She would need to act fast. J'onn was impossibly strong, but so was she. Kara moved swiftly, pushing Rose aside in the hopes that she would lose her concentration and bury her "friends" under the snow and ice that Rose maintained control over. The young Kryptonian then flew up into the air, her eyes glowing red as the veins in her arm pulsed with crimson poison before disappearing.

The ring would not let go of her.

 

[AmenRa]

Var-Sen

He needed to contact Raya.

But other matters were more pressing.

Taking flight yet again, Var-Sen of Krypton soared over the ice and snow and came to a hover near where J'onn and Kara were in the crater.

Rose, her powers fully realized, was holding at bay the avalanche Kara's landing had created.

Var-Sen's eyes glowed firey red, and the ice and snow that Rose levitated and held at bay turned to vapor.

He saw J'onn had not even noticed his arrival. The Martian must be psychically connected to Kara, for J'onn noticed everything.

But even so the ice mass had been disolved, Kara had broken free from J'onn's psychic grasp, and she soared into the sky.

Gone.

 

[Lunaramblings]

"I ever tell you about this little church in Germany? Another time... Merick was still grinning.

Chloe grimaced. I bet you broke that poor holy man's coffee table, too.

He patted the young man on the back.

"I have a feeling I know where J'onn is taking her," he told them both. "Merrick, can you get us to the Fortress?"

"Well, never been there... but, let's see?" Merick waved a hand toward Var-Sen, surrounding him in a bubble, along with himself and Chloe.

Within a second the world was flashing by, Swoosh... Swoosh... Swoosh... Merick teleported 100, 1000, times... maybe more. innumerable scenes flashed before his eyes. Further north with each fold of reality. All in the blink of an eye. At least, it felt that way. From far up he saw the crater. A new smear on the stark white. Couldn't be a coincidence. He gestured to the distant mark. He could not make out much detail. But he knew Var-Sen would be able too. With a thought he shifted his field, still swaddling himself and Chloe, but now giving Var-Sen a way out. Merick subtly shifted them almost constantly, making it appear as if they were hovering. This was a trick he had practiced several times in "the barn".

Chloe wasn't great with heights. She'd managed to cope with the windmill at Chandler's field, and with brief stints looking up in the sky with John Smith, but as she was already feeling a little burned from the healing discharge, she found herself forced to scrunch shut her eyes against the vista below.

For a moment. For a moment. She buried her face against Mer's forcefieldy side and took a deep breath. Steadied.

And then looked again.

"Something tells me that's where you need to be."

Var-Sen nodded his head. "Indeed," he answered. And then he took flight, a gift from Sol to the Kryptonian physiology.

Chloe smiled a wobbly smile. "I like that. The time-lapse line-of-sight coordinate shift. Nice improv, Launchpad."

And then she took another deep breath, and tried not to pass out. "Also, when'd you learn how to fly a helicopter? You're holding out on me."

"I'm Launchpad! I can fly anything!" Merick chuckled as he held Chloe tightly.

Merick smiled at Chloe.

"I love you, but I think that you need rest. Let me bring you home. Let me get you someplace warm and safe. J'onn is here. If things go bad, he will get us."

"I love you, too," she mumbled. "I don't think... I don't think you're wrong about that."

"Home it is then. They know how to reach us if need be."

Merick swooshed them away. Chloe was standing beside her bed an instant later, Merick holding her gently.

 

[ChasNicollette]

Rose. Fire and Ice.

Rose staggered back in mid-air, the raw power of Kryptonian sinew propelling her away and only the mildly superhuman physique Rose had been granted kept her from suffering dire injury...

...her concentration lapsed, she forgot which way was up, it had been hard work staying aloft and keeping that crushing bank of crystal aloft with her, she felt that tenuous link snap...

...but then, even then, Var-Sen's eyes sizzled those crystals to steam and they were gone.

Rose clutched her shoulder, she felt bruising in the shapes of palms.

"I don't believe it," Rose murmured, utterly shell-shocked, her eyes snapping up to gaze at the sky.

"She could have killed me, but she didn't, that's something, at least, but--"

She shook her head. "What's going on with her?"

 

[ChasNicollette]

Chloe. "Get on with living or get on with dying."

"Home it is then. They know how to reach us if need be."

Merick swooshed them away. Chloe was standing beside her bed an instant later, Merick holding her gently.

Thoughts were a little easier to think on solid ground.

Chloe smiled lopsidedly, Mer' was holding her gently but she clung to him tightly, bundled him up in her arms and hung on for dear Life's Light.

"We should," she murmured, "we shouldn't just leave them to that like that, it's not... it's not right. I know I'm not a fighter, and I just burned up half my mana, but frack, Mer'."

She withdrew from him and held her side with the sore ribs. "If Uncle Sam caught me running away from the front lines like this, he'd have me deported, and there'd go my dream of working for The Planet."

"(Unless I worked in London, and that would just be weird.)"

 

[AmenRa]

Manhunter

She had beaten him.

She had proven her worth to carry on the name of the House of El here on Earth.

She had resisted his telepathic attack. She had fought back against him, hard, and she had won. J'onn J'onzz had fought countless battles. He had brought lawbreakers to justice. In the name of the law, he had never, ever been beaten.

J'onn's head dipped. Not in defeat, but in dispair.

She was dangerous to herself. To others. She must be stopped.

Strength of might and strength of mind alone would not be enough.

Not this time.

"Find her," he told Var-Sen and Rose. "Find her and relay her location to me. Do not approach her until I am with you. Treat her as an enemy. She is dangerous," his voice was cold like the arctic air. He was giving them orders. He did not mean to be their commander, and he would never assume their loyalty to his word, but now was a desperate time.

"She appears your friend," he said to Rose, "but she is not herself."

He rose into the air, his cape whipping with the frigid winds.

"Remember," he said, "think to me when you have found her. Do not approach her alone."

And with that, the Martian Manhunter put on a burst of speed, taking him higher into the air. Once he was well above them, he accelerated past the Mach barrier, and then past the light speed barrier, warping the sky around him as he broke space/time.

His flight came to a sudden halt just outside Smallville, in rural Lowell County.

He hovered a moment above a pristine lake.

Crater Lake.

Not long ago, he had taken the limp body of Chloe Sullivan from this lake. And he had stayed with her until she had returned from the Never Place.

Now, he dropped down into the water, diving beneath the glassy surface to the sandy bottom far below.

It took only a moment to find what he was looking for.

He grabbed the jagged, green meteor rock and placed it into a pocket in his uniform.

He returned to the surface and flew up.

High into the sky.

Beyond the atmosphere of Earth he stopped, folding his arms across his chest and closing his eyes.

And he waited.

 

[AmenRa]

Var-Sen

"I don't believe it," Rose murmured, utterly shell-shocked, her eyes snapping up to gaze at the sky.

"She could have killed me, but she didn't, that's something, at least, but--"

She shook her head. "What's going on with her?"

"She has been...infected," he answered Rose. He then scanned her with x-ray vision as he touched her gently where Kara had pushed her. "Nothing broken," he announced. He gingerly gave her a hug. He remembered he had something for her in a pocket, but it would have to wait until this was over.

He gave a deep sigh.

"The meteor rocks," he told her, "the Kryptonite from our world affects us differently with each manifestation it takes as it was expelled from the fires of Rao. Green, as you know, can kill us. It damages us, physically. Red Kryptonite causes a different reaction. It damages our mind. It does enhance strength, but along with that, it destroys our inhibitions. It warps our reality, and causes our sense of self-worth to enhance to dangerous levels. The class ring she is wearing is made from a piece of Red Kryptonite."

And then J'onn spoke as he was leaving.

"Remember," he said, "think to me when you have found her. Do not approach her alone."


Var-Sen nodded his head. "You have my word, J'onn J'onzz."

The Kryptonian turned towards the Fortress. "I'm going to call for back-up," he announced to Rose.

 

[Lunaramblings]

"Home it is then. They know how to reach us if need be."

Merick swooshed them away. Chloe was standing beside her bed an instant later, Merick holding her gently.

Thoughts were a little easier to think on solid ground.

Chloe smiled lopsidedly, Mer' was holding her gently but she clung to him tightly, bundled him up in her arms and hung on for dear Life's Light.

"We should," she murmured, "we shouldn't just leave them to that like that, it's not... it's not right. I know I'm not a fighter, and I just burned up half my mana, but frack, Mer'."

She withdrew from him and held her side with the sore ribs. "If Uncle Sam caught me running away from the front lines like this, he'd have me deported, and there'd go my dream of working for The Planet."

"(Unless I worked in London, and that would just be weird.)"

"Tactical retreat. You are the only one that can heal the fallen. You need to be safe until then. Besides, London isn't so bad.