Chapter 59: Lies

Kara:

"What's going on," I scream, looking around to see cracks appearing all over the surface of Apokolips. Massive cracks literally break the surface and it's only a few seconds afterward when lava rises from the cracks. "What is going on?"

"I don't know," Superman screams, looking around and seeing the same things. "Wait, what happened? What happened to Darkseid? To the super parademons? To the war machines?"

I look around again and see more. There, laying before us and around the Rusted, are all the super parademons. I can't be sure but it looks like some of them were frozen while others seem to have just fallen without any injuries. It doesn't take long before some of the super parademons are consumed by the rising lava. As the lava keeps on rising, some of it shoots into the air and now it's raining fire.

"Get back," I say, pushing Superman back. We barely manage to dodge some droplets. I watch as they hit the ground and start to melt it.

"Kara," Superman yells, grabbing my shoulder. "Come on! We need to get out of here! Fly back to the ship!"

I shake Superman's hand off.

"Not yet," I scream. I look around and scan the area. "Where is he? Where is The Man?"

"What?"

"The Man in the Sunglasses. I don't see him anywhere! Do you see him?"

"No!"

"We have to find him! We can't leave without him!"

"Let's go then!"

With the lava at our feet, we both jump into the air and start to fly. Almost the whole area is already covered in lava. Somehow, the Rusted is able to survive it. It's floating on top of the lava as if the lava is nothing but simple water.

About to reach the ship, we stop when The Man appears right in front of us. He appears out of nowhere, flying and covered in strange glowing black cracks.

"Wait, you can fly," Superman asks, "Also, what happened to you? Why are you glowing like that?"

"Are you okay," I ask. I lend toward The Man, wanting to check for any bruises, but The Man flies back a little.

"Listen," The Man says, "Apokolips is on the verge of total destruction. We need to get out of here as soon as we can."

"Total destruction," I repeat. "Wait, how? Why? What happen?"

"Something very bad," The Man says. "Something that shouldn't have existed."

"Shouldn't have existed," I repeat to myself. "What is he talking about?"

I don't have any time to think about what The Man said. Lava shoots into the air near us and almost hit us. Using the blue ring, I summon a shield to protect the three of us.

"Come on," The Man yells, "To the Rusted! Kara, keep the ring up! Superman, you do the same!"

Superman nods his head and uses his yellow ring to shield us. Together, the three of us fly over to the Rusted.

"Superman," Woman Woman and Black Adam shout as soon as they see him.

"Supergirl," my friends shout as soon as they see me. "And The Man? You can fly?"

"Question later," The Man says, stepping onto the Rusted. The second his feet touch, he runs up the Rusted. "Escape now."

Jumping and landing behind the wheel, The Man activates the thrusters. They roar to life and push the Rusted through the lava.

"Everyone brace yourself," The Man orders, "This is going to be a bumpy takeoff!"

Immediately, we all grab onto whatever is nearest to us. A few of us hang onto the ship's railing. Some of us latch onto the ropes tied between the ground and the flag. I hug a cannon and prepare for the worst.

The Man:

The wind is pushing against me. Sweats from the intense heat are blinding me. The sound of everyone screaming is deafening me. However, I have to endure this. I have to hold on. I have to fight through everything. I look down and see my glowing hand. It's still pulsing, like a heartbeat.

"Calm down," I told myself as I close my eyes. "Calm down. Look at what you did already. You destroyed Apokolips. You need to calm down."

No matter how many times I told myself to calm down, I can still feel the black veins pulsing. I hear the sound of wood cracking and open my eyes.

"Shoot," I say, seeing the crushed remains of one of the wooden handles. I grind my teeth and throw the broken handle to the floor. I grab another handle and steer the Rusted. By now, practically all of Apokolips is covered. It's nothing more than one big ocean of orange and red.

Grabbing and pulling a lever down, all the thrusters change angles, and the Rusted shoots into the air. It rockets through the air and directly into space in only a few minutes. The Rusted still sailing at high speed, it doesn't take long before all the gauges and meters start to scream at me. They flash red and are telling me the Rusted is at her limit.

"I know I'm pushing you," I say, turning a dial and pushing a series of buttons. "I know I am to your limit and beyond, but we need you to come through for us! Come on! You can do this! I know you can!"

The gauges and meters crack. Pieces of the hull fly off into the void of space. The solar sail flag is shaking so fast it's ringing. It's ringing so fast that there are aliens on the other side of the universe wondering what that sound is.

I raise my hand and slam it down on the last button. The Rusted shoots out a portal and we all go right through it.

"Is everyone okay," I ask as we exit the portal. I'm still pulsing but luckily, it seems to have died down a little. "Hey, is everyone okay? Is everyone still alive?"

Everyone reply with moans and groans. It takes a few minutes but Cold is the first to make an actual sentence.

"Define alive," he shouts, pulling himself up. He tries to stand up but falls over a cannon. "If this is living, then kill me now."

"Ahh, don't be so dramatic," I say with a wave of my hand.

"Dramatic," Cyborg repeats, "What the hell was that? What the hell happened to Apokolips? One minute, we're getting our asses kicked. The second, I hear nothing but explosions and screaming, and I don't think it was us. What the hell did you--"

Before Cyborg could finish, I walk down the stair and slap him on the back of the head.

"Don't swear," I say.

"What," Cyborg asks.

"Don't ask," Cheetah says while pulling her claws out from the floorboards.

"Where are we," Hawkgirl asks, standing up and looking around.

"We're back at Oa," I say. "Well, not exactly Oa. We're a few lightyears from Oa. Oa should be right over there."

I turn around and point to Oa, only to freeze immediately.

"Oa," Kara screams, running up the railing. The two of us couldn't believe our eyes. Oa, the once bright-green planet, home to the Green Lantern Corps., is covered in yellow spots.

"Oa," I say, clenching my fists. "It's under attack by yellow lanterns. It's under attack by yellow lanterns!"

I feel nothing but rage and anger. I want nothing but to destroy the man who lies to me.

"Superman," I yell, stomping my feet as I turn around. "You lied to me! You lied! You gave me your word! You gave me your words that your yellow lanterns wouldn't attack Oa! You bastard!"

"What are you talking about," Superman asks. He looks past me to see Oa under attack. "Wait, I didn't--"

I didn't want to hear another word out of Superman's mouth. I charge toward Superman and punch him across the face. He drops down flat against the floorboard.

"Superman," Wonder Woman yells. She and Black Adam grab my arms to try and stop me but it was no use. With a fling of my arms, I throw Wonder Woman and Black Adam to the side.

"Hey," Cyborg says activating his arm cannon. "Stop that now or I'll-"

I don't waste a second. I shoot out my hand and blast Cyborg, the tin man breaking the railing and almost going into deep space.

With Wonder Woman, Black Adam, and Cyborg down, I stomp on Superman, pinning him to the ground. With Superman trapped beneath my foot, I shoot out my hand again and pull out my sword. I then raise it high into the air.

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