Chapter 33 - The Reactions - Part 5

Metropolis- Home of Clark Kent

"Welcome back, Smallville," a melodious and confident voice echoed through the hushed apartment, comforting Clark as he stealthily made his entrance. He had just landed swiftly and silently on the roof of his apartment building, then quickly changed out of his Superman attire into his less conspicuous civilian clothes that he had carefully hidden away.

Without uttering a single word, Clark gently closed the door behind him, his heart pounding as he crossed the room to embrace his girlfriend, the fearless reporter Lois Lane.

"Glad you're back!" Lois reciprocated the hug, her words full of genuine relief and affection.

After what seemed like an eternity, they finally separated, but only to lock eyes and share a passionate kiss. They savored the moment, then slowly pulled away from each other.

"You don't know the half of it!" Clark confessed, his voice heavy with fatigue.

"Spill it! Give me the scoop!" Lois replied, a playful smirk dancing on her lips as she teased Clark.

Clark couldn't help but smile at her persistence and began to unravel the intricate details of the war and his alarming meeting with Orach. His account sent shockwaves through Lois, filling her with a potent mix of worry for Clark's safety and anger towards the high-dimensional entity, Orach. After finishing his story, they shared a simple yet comforting dinner. Then, Lois led him to their bedroom, where the quiet night was punctuated with passionate noises after a minute or two.

As the sun peeked over the horizon the next morning, Lois stirred from her sleep and immediately began working on an explosive new article. Once she was satisfied with her draft, she sent it off to her boss via email. After a thorough review, he gave the green light for it to be published on the Daily Planet's website.

The article spread like wildfire, causing a global uproar, especially in their home city of Metropolis. Many city residents were outraged at Orach's audacity, while a few were fascinated by the alien entity and expressed their desire to meet him after reading Lois's controversial article.

CADMUS Underground base-Metropolis

Similar to the report Flash gave his team, all surviving generals gave reports to their superiors.

Sitting in a round table were military personnel and scientists all looking nervously at a authoritative lady, called Amanda Waller.

"What are your thoughts on this entity who refers to himself as being from a higher-level dimension? Do we, as a collective, accept his assertion of existence beyond our own dimension?"

"I had the opportunity to witness this being in close proximity, and the overwhelming sense of terror that exuded from him was palpable, even to a non-scientific mind like mine. I may not have the academic background, but the sheer magnitude of what I witnessed and the fear I felt in his presence makes me inclined towards believing his claim of originating from a higher dimension," said a seasoned general, his voice heavy with the recent memories of the battlefield.

"Come on, general! How can you just believe that alien! He is just another invader! We should try to trap him and extract a sample of his blood."said a scientist stubbornly.

"Yes. I agree. There is no proof of higher dimensions. How can we trust this alien."shouted another scientist

"If you all have a death wish they go and kill your selves on your own! Don't drag us down with you! Unlike Superman, this one will not hesitate to KILL!"shouted another general who had survived the war.

Surveying the room's division with sharp, calculating eyes, Amanda Waller abruptly slammed the table, instantly commanding attention from everyone present.

"QUIET!" she commanded, her voice echoing through the room with an undeniable authority.

In response, the room fell silent immediately. Any conversations that had been ongoing abruptly ceased, and all eyes turned towards Waller.

"Generals," she began, her tone grave and serious, "since you were firsthand witnesses on the battlefield, could you confirm if this new alien entity truly managed to halt Superman's full force punch with just one finger?" Waller asked, her gaze narrowing seriously as she awaited their confirmation.

After a moment of silence, one of the generals stepped forward, his face still visibly shaken from the memory. "Yes. That alien, who introduced himself as Orach, not only halted Superman's punch, he even slammed him into the ground and stomped on his face, pinning him down. Superman, one of our strongest, couldn't even struggle!"

Following his statement, a hush fell over the room. The expressions of disbelief were evident on everyone present, everyone except for Waller. After a minute of contemplation, Waller spoke again, her tone grave, "We must refrain from acting against this new alien. He is not an entity we can provoke at this point. However, give the command to locate and monitor this alien. Scientists, I want you to continue your work on the clones. Generals, you've more than earned your rest after surviving the recent war. You are DISMISSED!"

Everyone saluted and responded in unison, "Yes, Ma'am!" before leaving the room to either carry out their respective tasks or rest.

Once the room was empty, Waller retreated to the solace of her office and shut the door, sealing herself off from the world. Later, she initiated a video call to Washington DC to report the situation.

However, Waller was completely unaware that the Mother Empress was monitoring her every action and conversation!

Atlantis-Outskirts

"Here." Arthur's voice was curt, filled with exhaustion and annoyance. He held out the gleaming artifact, the precious box that was the cause of his current predicament. "I've got your precious box. Now, please do me a favor and don't contact me," he added, his tone making it clear he was done for the day. All he wanted was to retreat to his humble abode and sleep, yet he found himself returning the mother box of Atlantis for its safekeeping.

Vulko, an older Atlantean with a wise gleam in his eyes, took the box from him. "I knew you could do it." His voice was filled with pride. "Arthur, your mother, the late queen and I have always seen your potential, something you fail to see in yourself. You have the potential to be great," he proclaimed, seeing past the grumpy exterior to the true king of Atlantis beneath.

Arthur was not in the mood for such speeches. "Enough, Vulko. I just want to be a simple man, nothing more. I'm extremely tired right now, so take this thing, and let me go home," he retorted, his longing for solitude evident in his words.

Vulko wished to say more, to convince his student of his true worth, but seeing Arthur's fatigue and irritable mood, he decided to accept the box and send him home to rest.

Mera, a fiery Atlantean princess with a fierce gaze, had been glaring at Arthur while standing beside Vulko. "I can't fathom how the late Queen bore you," she started, her disdain for Arthur's lack of regard for his heritage evident. "Why do you detest your Atlantean heritage? We are the world's strongest power, and you, by birthright, are our king. Where is your pride, your respect for our long heritage?" she demanded, her voice echoing off the walls of the ancient city.

"Strongest? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" The sound of Arthur's laughter echoed through the room, a boisterous, robust sound that reverberated off the walls. Arthur found it hard to keep a straight face at Mera's words. It was as though he'd heard the most hilarious punchline to the world's funniest joke.

"YOU!…" Mera's voice was a low growl, her anger palpable at being the subject of Arthur's amusement. However, before she could muster her rage and argue back, Arthur interjected, "Man, that was a good joke! Quite a belly laugh, princess." His words dripped with sarcasm and a dollop of mockery. "You should know that there were individuals on the surface, mere days ago, who could decimate your weapons and cause untold devastation amongst your ranks."

He paused for dramatic effect, then continued, "But now, there's a new player on the board. A being of unimaginable power, who crash-landed in the middle of the battlefield where I was in the thick of the fight, without any backup from my supposed kingdom." Arthur's words were laced not just with sarcasm, but a bitter sense of irony.

"This person isn't just an alien, but a being from a higher realm! I've witnessed his power first hand. Believe me when I say, he could obliterate our entire world if given a reason to be angry. So, princess, I'd think twice about flaunting your supposed power. In front of him, we're all just insignificant ants!" Arthur's tone was serious now, the levity gone. Despite his anger towards Atlantis, he cared for the people present and didn't want them to provoke this powerful being.

"…Are you serious, Arthur? Is there really such a being that arrived on our world? A being in front of whom we are all ants?" asked Vulko, his tone shaky and fearful. As one of Atlantis' finest warriors—loyal, strong, and brave—he had seen a lot but, he trusted Arthur and was inclined to believe his words.

In response, Arthur simply nodded at his mentor and friend. Mera was silent, her long-held beliefs being challenged. Despite her initial disbelief, she, too, was inclined to believe Arthur's words, having built a modicum of trust with him over the years.

"Vulko, guide that young ruler so he doesn't seek death in his arrogance of Atlantean superiority. He'll drag you all down, and even though I'm currently on decent terms with this powerful individual, I wouldn't be able to stop him from decimating you all."

Mera gulped, her throat feeling dry, while Vulko grew solemn and nodded in understanding. Afterward, Arthur left for home, planning to get some much-needed rest after the day's revelations.

Wayne Manor-Batcave

Upon noticing Orach's departure, Bruce sprang into action. His first step was to transfer his data to a separate secure server as a precaution against Mother Empress. He was both amazed and wary of Orach's AI, which was the most advanced technology he had ever encountered. Being a cautious individual, he opted to use his backup server for his main files to prevent potential leaks. After completing the transfer, he began documenting his recent findings and observations.

He particularly updated his contingency files for Aquaman and Green Lantern with his new discoveries, while also creating new folders for Cyborg and Orach.

In Green Lantern's case, Batman utilizes a strategy that involves Scarecrow's Fear Toxin, without any modifications. Administering the toxin undermines the Lantern's will, making his fear of being unworthy of his power come to light. With his will substantially weakened, Green Lantern can be neutralized. This strategy is effective since, as it is commonly said, "fear is the enemy of will."

For Cyborg, Bruce developed a contingency plan that includes the use of a computer virus or an EMP to shut him down. He noticed that Cyborg has an intense psychological attachment to the smallest things, to the point of self-destruction. Batman could incapacitate him by exploiting these psychological weaknesses.

To date, Batman had meticulously mapped out contingency plans for each member within his select group of super-powered individuals. However, when it came to the enigmatic Orach, only one name emerged as a true potential countermeasure: "Diana Prince."

"Orach is an intriguing subject who asserts that his origins lie in a superior realm or dimension. This often leads him to view the inhabitants of our realm with a certain degree of condescension. However, this disdain for humanity is not a product of malicious intent, but rather a manifestation of the pride he takes in his Saiyan warrior heritage."

"In his interactions, Orach has revealed a surprising degree of peacefulness and cooperativeness when addressed with respect. Despite his innate warrior instincts, he has shown potential to act heroically if approached in a manner that appeals to his honor. His willingness to neutralize enemies when requested respectfully is an additional testament to this. Although he is a reasonable individual, he remains resolute in his stance of eliminating threats."

"In terms of physical abilities, Orach is inarguably formidable. Even when not tapping into his full potential, his base form is powerful enough to overpower Superman. This power escalates exponentially when he transforms into his Super Saiyan form, an ability inherent to his Saiyan bloodline. Notably, in his Super Saiyan form, his base power magnifies by a factor of 50. Further, he has demonstrated an even higher level of transformation, Super Saiyan level 2, which amplifies his base power by a staggering factor of 100."

"According to his own account, Orach possesses transformations that surpass even these levels. If he were to ever become hostile, his power would pose a catastrophic threat. Preliminary simulations I've conducted using various neutralization methods have proven largely ineffectual due to his formidable combination of power, intellect, and advanced technology. The only potential weak points that might yield some degree of success are fear toxin, mental, and magic attacks. While these are hypothetical scenarios, they represent our best contingency options."

"Interestingly, Orach appears to harbor romantic feelings towards Diana Prince, better known as Wonder Woman. This attraction seems to be reciprocated, albeit with a slight degree of resistance from Diana. The inception of this mutual attraction remains a mystery, but considering Diana's proven ability to pacify Orach on multiple occasions, it's plausible to suggest she may be the only person capable of stopping him should he ever go rogue."

"That being said, Diana could equally be perceived as his Achilles' heel. The prophetic vision Cyborg experienced, coupled with Orach's own confession about the possibility of losing control under emotional distress, suggests that Diana coming to harm could trigger an unstoppable rage within him. This potential outcome is precisely what our contingency plan aims to prevent."

"In conclusion, my recommendation is to maintain a peaceful relationship with Orach and to ensure he is immediately contacted if Diana is ever in danger, as he would undoubtedly rush to her aid. It would also be prudent to caution those in positions of authority not to provoke him, as they risk incurring the wrath of a Saiyan warrior."

Having concluded his comprehensive profile on Orach, Batman turned his focus towards drafting the charter for the Justice League. He worked tirelessly into the early hours of the morning, breaking only when Alfred insisted he rest.