Chapter 41 - A fork in the road

It was the largest nuclear missile ever built by humanity. And what followed after its detonation more than matched its name.

Galatea noticed how both Superman and Naruto seemed to have been petrified, with their eyes fixed on the sky above them. She had also heard a particular noise but she had not given it a second thought...until she also looked up. It was then that she realized the reason for the two powerful men's shock.

And that was the last thing she remembered clearly. In the next moment, she felt all air leave her lungs violently as someone appeared to have grabbed her from the waist and thrown her into the distance. But it had been so abrupt, so unexpected and with so much power that she felt as though she had been slammed by a speeding train. Her body broke way past the sound barrier, deafening booms shaking the skies as she was sent barreling through. In only 2 seconds, she found herself more than a mile away from where she had been before. She was just about to right herself in the air and take control of her flight when she saw the massive missile impacting the ground...And that was the last thing she remembered. The explosion both deafened and blinded her. The shockwave that came with it had been so powerful that, at the impact, the girl lost her consciousness.

It was a scene out of an apocalyptic prophecy. An enormous fireball appeared and it continued to grow until it seemed like it was about to swallow the sky and the land alike. It was over 16 kilometers wide and it was still growing. The shockwave of the explosion pulverized the land below but as a result of that, the enormous fireball was pushed into the air. A mushroom-shaped cloud came from it and continued to rise high up in the air. It broke through the lower layers of the Atmosphere, reaching well into the thermosphere. The mushroom cloud was over 100 km large and over 350 km in height.

...But that was not the end. The explosion triggered a catastrophic earthquake in its wake. A rupture appeared and it began to swallow the land like the gaping maw of a primordial beast. The geography of the Southern part of Severny Island was changed irreversibly. A rift broke the surface of the island in two, with the water filling the void right away. A new, 'man-made' island was 'born' through the partial destruction of the original one. From that day, Novaya Zemlya archipelago would have 3 large islands.

Nevertheless, the catastrophic earthquake did not affect only the geography of the Severny Island...tsunami waves of a never before seen size were roused. What followed the detonation of the largest nuclear missile in history was a series of cataclysmic events that greatly affected the Northeastern side of Europe and spread panic across the entire Globe.

Tens of thousands of square kilometers of the surface were invaded by the raging tsunami waves produced by the earthquake and the shockwaves generated by the explosion of the missile completely broke any sort of telecommunications in the entire European side of Russia, all the Scandinavia Peninsula and in the continent, all the way to Switzerland in West and to Bulgaria in South. Despite being hundred of kilometers away, in Finland, Sweden and the 3 Baltic countries, the windows of houses burst into pieces, and in Sankt Petersburg, Russia, many of the monuments and historical significant buildings and monuments along with some of the older civilian buildings collapsed, trapping and killing their inhabitants.

But what was even worse, was what came with the shockwaves. The electric power was cut in half of European continent...which in turn triggered another chain reaction; another series of deadly catastrophes. There were almost 100 Nuclear Power Plants in Northern and Eastern Europe... 10 in Sweden, 4 in Finland, over 30 in the European Russia, 15 in Ukraine and quite a few others in the rest of the states. Despite all the safety protocols installed for emergency situations, some of the older power plants proved to not be fail proof. Eleven of them suffered fatal explosions due to the impact created by the shockwaves and the subsequent power cut. Tens of thousands of people died and millions of people were poisoned in the following days by the radioactive fallout; the clouds of radioactive matter were spread by the air currents over vast areas... millions of people would contract cancer or leukemia in the incoming few months and die... not to mention how many of the people that were undergoing surgeries and treatments in hospitals also died after being cut from the machines that kept them alive or from the mistakes made by the surgeons when the power was cut.

In only one day, the number of people that were killed or doomed to die in the following months reached almost the number of the ones that died during the 2nd Wold War, in a span of 6 years. It was the deadliest incident in the history of human kind.

Scene break

'It's so cold.' she thought and shivered as a wave washed over the beach and over herself too, waking her up from the state of unconsciousness she had been in.

Another wave of ice-cold water washed over her and she started to cough. Her hands clenched and she felt the texture of the wet sand. A freezing wind blew and a wave crashed against the beach once again.

'I'm alive.'

With difficulty, she pushed with her hands against the sand, trying to lift herself up.

'I feel so weak.'

She had felt like that only once before. It was when she had used up all the solar radiation in her body to shoot 2 overpowered heat beams in the life and death battle atop the Altantic a few weeks back.

Her body was shivering and she teeth were chattering from the low temperature. She had never felt such intense cold. She gave up on trying to stand up. Instead, she crawled away from the water's range and coiled up, desperately trying to fight against the hypothermia. But it was hopeless. She was completely naked. She may have managed to survive the blast of the nuclear missile but the shockwave that saved her life by blasting her away, was still hot enough to melt everything on her possession in a heartbeat. Now, devoid of all her superpowers, she was just an ordinary woman. Wet, without clothes, at the edge of a frozen waste.

In her delirious mind, it was only one figure that popped up.

'Naruto..'

When his face appeared at the front of her mind, she regained some clarity.

'He saved my life.'

She remembered the explosion. A desperate feeling of urgency appeared in her heart and her body began to absorb the solar radiation at a much faster rate than before. She wanted to rush back and find him. She didn't want to think of the possibility that he was dead. She didn't want to accept it.

The feeling of cold soon faded to a mere chill and she stood up on her feet. But when she looked at the ocean, all feeling of hope disappeared from her face...A tsunami wave nearly 2000 feet tall appeared to have blocked the sky as it furiously advanced towards the shore. There was no escape. (1)

Scene break

White was all that his eyes could see. He couldn't distinguish anything around him. It looked like the place he was in had no limits, the white extending infinitely. The only thing he could feel and touch was the white floor beneath his feet.

'That's not how I imagined afterlife to be like.'

Dispirited, he turned around. To his surprise, it was Kyuubi. He was in the size of an ordinary fox cub that he usually kept. But he appeared to be lifeless. There was no movement coming from him and no sound of breathing could be heard.

'Kurama!' he called out.

Bending down, he gently took Kyuubi in his hands, the fox now being so small that Naruto could fully cup his entire body with his 2 palms alone. He caressed the fox affectionately, as his eye were fighting a losing battle against the tears that flooded them. Guilt was eating at him. In his past life and in his current one too, Kyuubi had always saved him. In this life, he had come to acknowledge that Kyuubi had always been his best friend. And now, he had gotten him killed. He had summoned the fox only for the mother of all nuclear missiles to drop on them.

'I'm sorry, Kurama.'

He let himself fall to his knees and hugged the fox to his chest as he silently cried and grieved.

'The demon is not dead. And neither are you.' the deep but kind voice of a middle-aged man was suddenly heard from behind.

Naruto abruptly turned around, his black Raiton no Yoroi instantly enveloping his entire body, ready to fight.

'What are you doing here?' he asked and blue crystal-like bones began to protrude from his torso and from his elbows.

'I have nearly forgotten how violent and deadly the one known as Uzumaki Naruto used to be.' the middle-aged man stated in what seemed like a neutral type of amusement.

But Naruto did not let his guard down. He didn't know what to make of the situation, but he knew one thing: the man in front of him was not one he should take lightly: dressed in a blue suit and wearing a golden cape and a golden helmet, it was none other than Doctor Fate. And Naruto had never underestimated Doctor Fate. While Galatea could kill Green Lanterns as if they were children and then knock unconscious even the Man of Steel himself with only one hit, Naruto had seen it with his own eyes that she had had serious problems against Doctor Fate, not managing to get the upper hand against him.

'Your memory sure is short, old man.' Naruto bit back 'It was only a few weeks ago that I tossed you around like a rag doll on top of the Atlantic.'

Doctor Fate said:

'For you, it may have been weeks, but for me it's been more than half a year.'

Naruto looked at him through narrowed eyes:

'What is that supposed to mean? ...and where the hell is this place? What did you mean by both my partner and I not being dead?'

'Your partner, hm?' Doctor Fate talked to himself, noticing the way Naruto spoke about the fox. 'So it isn't a mere pet, nor just a summoned demon?'

'If it wasn't for the fact that you might hold the answer to several of my questions, I would've cut you down for speaking like that about him.' Naruto said dangerously, his bone protrusions crackling with lightning.

'Dully noted.' the sorcerer stated, only increasing Naruto's ire. 'But as much as I would like to discuss the nature of your relationship with the demonic being next to you, I do not have much time left and we have other, more pressing, matters to address.'

'I'll start by saying that I'm not the Doctor Fate that you know -'

'Wha-'

'- I'm from the future.' he finished, and Naruto fell silent at that.

'In my time, you didn't survive the nuclear missile explosion. Your partner in crime, Galatea, was also presumed dead, her whereabouts unknown. But the demonic beast you seem to hold in such high esteem, managed somehow to actually survive. And once it found out who launched the missile, it went on a destruction rampage. With only one attack, it razed Russia's capital, Moscow, off the map, taking the lives of over 10 million people at the same time.'

Naruto listened with rapt attention. That truly sounded like something an enraged Kyuubi would do.

'In the wake of that destruction, the Earth's heroes - all of them, not only the Justice League - banded together to fight against the beast. And they succeeded, but not without paying a terrible price. More than half of them died in the process. It was a pyrrhic victory.'

After a few moments of silence, Naruto willed his black Lightning Armor to fade away and his bones retracted back into his body.

'I assume that you are here to prevent all of that from happening?'

'I would not have come back in time if it was only for that. Time Travelling is not something that can be done on a whim, only because some people died.' Doctor Fate said grimly.

'Half a year later, Earth was invaded. After so many superheroes met their end in the fight with your demonic beast, the few ones that survived, never stood a chance against the invasion. And Earth's military was powerless to do anything against it.'

'It wasn't only the heroes that died. The invaders started killing the civilians as well. Their cruelty knew no bounds. It was a genocide.'

'I managed to initiate the spell to travel back in time only seconds before the entire planet exploded.'

Naruto was finding it hard to believe.

'How do I know any of these is true? Destroying an entire planet? Do you realize how ridiculous does that sound? Also, time travelling? You'll have to excuse me for being skeptical.'

'Your suspicions are valid,' Doctor Fate said 'but you still being alive should give my words some credibility.'

'The biggest problem with what I did is that my time is close now. Simpy by saving your life, I have irremediably changed the future. Furthermore, there cannot exist 2 Doctor Fate at the same time. This version of me will soon disappear.'

Naruto looked at Doctor Fate deeply.

'You sacrificed your life just to come back in time to save me?'

'I'm merely rectifying my past mistake. Your death triggered a series of events that eventually caused the Earth's annihilation...'

'Just before the missile detonated, I managed to create a portal and teleport everyone away, to safety. But I had purposely left you, the clone and the demon behind. I had hoped that the missile would kill the three of you.'

Not leaving Naruto that occasion say anything about that, he continued:

'You have to understand that, objectively, the three of you were in my mind back then some of the most dangerous beings I've ever met. Furthermore, you were ruthless killers. You still are. Putting yourself in my place, would you have tried to save your worst enemies?'

'Of course not. I am not judging you for that.' Naruto acknowledged.

It was then that Doctor Fate's body started to become blurry and flicker like a hologram that was about to fade.

'It seems I was right in my assumptions. I am going to disappear within a few moments.'

'Uzumaki Naruto, I heard you were a man of your word. That you would never forget a debt of gratitude.'

'And how would know that?'

But Doctor Fate did not answer his question.

'I saved your life and that of your demonic partner. I could help you save the life of the superclone too...'

'...But you have to give me your word.'

Naruto let go of his doubts and his wariness. Doctor Fate saved his and Kyuubi's life. Naruto was not the type of person to just brush aside something like that. He was not one to leave a debt of gratitude unpaid.

'Make your request. As long as you're not asking me to harm my family, I have no reason to refuse it.'

A relieved sigh came from the sorcerer.

'Make peace with the Justice League. I know it's not realistic for this to happen right away but, gradually, this could be achieved. This antagonistic relationship going on between you is doing nothing but harming both sides.'

'I understand that you could probably never become friends. But you could become allies. And trust me when I say that in the future invasion, the Earth will need all the power it can muster in order to survive.'

A difficult expression appeared on his face when he heard Doctor Fate's request. What the sorcerer wanted was not an easy thing to accomplish at all. He had killed Shazam and Aquaman, two very important members of the Justice League. Red Tornado and Hawkman, while not really significant in the grand scheme of things, were also members of the Justice League that died at his hands. Naruto had killed 4 members of the Justice League...becoming friends was at that point in time was nothing but a pipe dream.

'What you're asking of me is not realistic. It's nearly impossible. Unless I saved their lives or managed to make them feel deeply indebted to me, us becoming allies would never happen.'

When Doctor Fate was about to express his disappointment, Naruto said:

'But I owe you my life. And, by saving me, you also prevented Kurama from being killed.'

The sharp tip of a bone broke through the skin of his index finger and he cut the palm of his other hand with it. Blood began to flow, its crimson red colour making a stark contrast when it splattered against the white floor. Clenching his bleeding palm he vowed:

'I give you my word. I will do everything in my power to see it through, to make sure that that future will not come to be. This is my debt of gratitude.'

Doctor Fate nodded at him.

'Uzumaki Naruto, before I disappear I want you to answer me a few questions...take it as dying man's last wish.'

'Why do you hate the Justice League? Why are you so ruthless?'

Naruto pondered for a few moments to choose his words.

'Hate? That's too strong of a feeling. If I had hated them, they would have all been dead by now.' he said bluntly. 'I only hated 2 people for real in this life: the Joker and Shazam. And now, they are both dead.'

'Then what about the rest that you have killed?'

'You seem to have forgotten that the punitive force that the Justice League had put together to attack me atop the Atlantic Ocean was meant to kill me. A punitive force that you were part of too.'

'And it's because I was part of it, that I can tell you that our purpose was to capture you, not to kill you.' Doctor Fate countered.

'Don't be naive. Not everyone is as noble as you or the Gary Stu Superman.' Naruto scoffed. 'Aquaman, Hawkman, Hawkgirl, Green Lantern and Wonder Woman... I felt their bloodlust. They had every intention to kill me. And when someone tries to kill me, I am not kindhearted enough to let it pass. I will always respond in kind.'

Doctor Fate kept silent, deep in thought.

'I've been a hero once.' Naruto said, surprising Doctor Fate with his words. 'Despite all the hate and mistreatment from the early years of my life, I persevered. I put my life on the line for other people more times than I can count and I've always tried to see the good in people, to change them. I was selfless to extreme. I even forgave and welcomed back as if it was my brother, someone that had tried to kill me twice. And I did it with my arms wide open.'

'You're...is that a past life you're talking about?!' Doctor Fate exclaimed in wonder. For someone like him, it was not hard to believe that Naruto's words were real. Naruto was not the first person in his knowledge to have been reincarnated.

'Yes. But in the end, despite all the good I've done and despite living selflessly my entire life, I died a dog's death, before I even reached adulthood.'

'I won't make the same mistake in this life. I will always put my needs in front of that of a stranger's, like a normal person should. And if anyone threatens my family's safety, regardless of who they are, I will kill them. That's why I even killed Lex Luthor, despite the massive influence he had on both the political and economical scene of the USA.'

Doctor Fate sighed as his body started to resemble that of ghost more with each passing second.

'With your power, you could do so much good. You could save so many innocent lives.'

Naruto shrugged.

'People die every day, and others are born in their place. Whether they die today or after 20 years, they will still die in the end. This is the cycle of life. Why should I bother trying to save them? How does it benefit me that I'm extending their existence a few more years? They are going to die eventually anyway.'

It was a harsh and cold statement. One that brought a deep frown on the face hidden by the Helmet of Fate.

'If what you say about your past life is true, then you went from the extreme of selflessness to the polar opposite, to the extreme of selfishness... Ask yourself: what if you were also part of the helpless and weak people? What if you were also one of those that depend on the mercy of the powerful?'

Naruto didn't speak for a while.

'My sister was part of the helpless ones too. Back then, I was not powerful enough to help. And nobody else saved her. Now why would I want to save others when she received no help?'

Despite those words, Doctor Fate still did not want to give up:

'Tell me sincerely, Uzumaki Naruto...when your sister was in danger... did you not wish in that moment for someone - anyone - to help her? To save her?'

The blonde fell silent once more. He could still vividly recall the agony and despair he felt when he thought Misaki had died. His anger at the superheroes for not doing their supposed 'job' properly, despite that what they were doing was technically just volunteer, unpaid and life-threatening work. They had no obligation to save anyone. Naruto knew that they were many times better persons than he was. Even if perhaps not all of them had pure intentions in their hearts, the end result was still that they risked their lives to save the ones that were too weak to protect themselves.

'Uzumaki Naruto...despite everything that you have done, the general population still sees you as if you were a hero.'

'Pfft! I merely exploited the feelings of weakness and rebellion they had, for my benefit.' Naruto muttered 'I could manipulate these feelings of theirs because I felt them intensely myself once too. What people see me as, is not a hero. I think that deep in their hearts, they believe that I will restore the order. They hope that I'll become their Messiah. They hope that I will give them back the feeling of safety they used to have before all kinds of metahumans popped up and started terrorizing their lives.'

'Is that not what hero is? A person that inspires hope?' Doctor Fate asked.

Another sigh came from the sorcerer.

'I will disappear any moment now, we don't have any time left.'

A golden light came from his hand and a purple portal appeared in front of Naruto.

'This portal should take you to the approximate area where I believe that the shockwave of the explosion must have carried Galatea after you threw her. But her survival is still no sure, it will all depend on you to find her before it's too late. And before you start making a fuss, our chat did not last more than a second in real life.'

With Kyuubi safely held in his arms, Naruto was about to step through the portal.

'Think about what he have discussed, Uzumaki Naruto. With your great power you could make a real difference. When Superman is the symbol of light and hope for the general public, you could become the symbol of order, of peace. You could become their pillar of strength.'

Naruto paused in his steps. Throwing one last look at the sorcerer, he said, before vanishing through the portal:

'I will think about it. But I'm telling you that even if I do end up one day trying to actively save people: you should know that I will never - absolutely never - sacrifice mine or my loved ones' happiness for the sake of others. My oath to you was to stop the invasion and prevent our destruction, not me becoming a superhero.'

'Thank you for saving my life and giving me another chance. Regardless of the agenda you had in mind when you saved me, I will forever be grateful.'