The First Wave

It's New Year's Eve, the roof of a high-rise covered with a thin layer of fluffy snow, the sounds of holiday songs and honking of cars stuck in traffic are coming from somewhere below, the remains of a burning billboard illuminate the silhouette of a weird fire-breathing monster in high-tech armor, as well as a superhero in a tight green-and-black suit, whom this monster is trying to crush with his paw right now. In short, typical Gotham.

I was about to intervene, taking aim with my revolver loaded with expansive bullets, when a shadow flashed in my field of vision, and the armored monster was blown away by Bats on a cable. After flying a dozen meters, the monster landed directly on the ventilation box, turning it into a pile of scrap metal and bricks.

Damn, that fool's got at least a hundred pounds, maybe two hundred! How did the Mouse blow him away like he was nothing?! No, it's obvious that it's all about Qi, but even I would need to seriously strengthen my body and reinforce myself with spells to pull off a stunt like that. Although maybe it's all about controlling this mysterious power? I'm not always able to strengthen myself the first time, not to mention more complicated tricks like speeding up my regeneration or increasing my reaction speed.

As I pondered the possibilities of life energy and methods of controlling it, convincing myself more and more that I should start training with the Amazons as soon as possible, events continued to unfold.

Bats punched the lying monster in the face a couple of times and obviously tried to start a rapid interrogation. The interrogator obviously didn't like this attitude, so he breathed flame, forcing the superhero to retreat, and then he turned into a walking flamethrower, pouring flames on the roof, hoping to fry the too-tight target. By this point, Lantern had finally woken up and used his ring to create a natural steam engine, which, after a short burst of acceleration, slammed into the jackal-headed freak's carcass, driving him into the wall.

"Oh, my God! Batman... Are you real!!!! - the man, having illuminated the area with an artifact, stared in surprise at the Gotham protector crawling onto the roof. - And here I thought it was all just a city slicker.

After a brief glance at the "assistant", who almost turned him into a tortilla, Bats turned his attention to the defeated monster, who seemed to be waiting for it. One more spit of flame, which made the heroes shift sideways, and the mutant, having released from behind powerful one and a half meter wings, began to run away straight through the air. They resembled the wings of a pterodactyl, but had a black and green coloring to match the color of the articulations of the armor, and until now successfully hid under the armor, forming a small hump. And the most interesting thing was that he didn't even think of flapping them, but only tilted them a little, as if catching the wind currents, but at the same time the speed of tactical retreat was very decent, allowing him to overtake Green Lantern on the afterburner.

An anticipatory grin appeared on my face.

It is not even necessary to have true sight to realize the value of these wings, because they are clearly more powerful than those of the parademons, and they have enough magic to be able to see the faint aura on the second layer. However, this magic again carries a small flair of demonic coloration, giving the new monster even more similarities to the minions of the Steppenwolf.

I didn't rush to notify my allies of my presence, but simply followed them, surrounding myself with attention-dissipating spells. I wasn't sure if the spell would prevent Bats from detecting me, so I had to keep my distance. It was easy enough, since all I had to do was move to where I could hear the panicked screams of the townspeople or explosions and flames all along the way. Soon the monster realized that annoying, but very dangerous people would not get rid of him, and he decided to hide from them in the sewers. But knowing Bats, he couldn't help using various beacons at the first contact.

"There's our stalker!"

As soon as I descended into the underground realm through the hole in the ground, my body was instantly immobilized by the green armature that emerged from the air.

"It's the Joker! - Green Lantern exclaimed happily, slowly floating down from the ceiling. - Ha-ha-ha, only a day in Gotham, and I've already caught his chief criminal. You should learn from me.

The superhero was really glowing with happiness, glancing superiorly at Bats, who was staring glumly at the screen built into the wristband.

"Huh, I guess you've been away from Earth for a while. I'm a superhero now, too," I replied calmly, eyeing the structure of the rebar with interest.

"You're lying!"

"What about the snot?"

"You get out first..."

The armature crumbles into harmless green sparks.

"to threaten me. How did you do that?! - the man even opened his mouth in surprise.

"Ha ha ha, it's magic," a rainbow appeared between my palms spread apart.

It wasn't very hard to get out, as the structure of the construct created was incredibly similar to regular shield charms. And although there was a relatively large amount of energy in them, I could just see where to hit to break the ordered structure. At the same time, it cannot be said that such a trick is possible for every wizard, especially with my reserve, because to strike I not only cast a magic spike weave, but also generously splashed prana into it, which is unlikely to be done by any other normal wizard, unless it is a matter of life and death. In addition, we should not forget that a complex segmented structure, and even with rounded edges, imitating twisted steel bars, is much weaker than clearly defined geometric shapes. If Lantern had created a cube or at least rectangular pads, then I would have to spend a lot of money to overload the main nodes, if it could be done in principle, because the redistribution of energy between neighboring clusters no one canceled. And in general, the ring of my new acquaintance interested me very much, because it gives an incredible scope for imagination, and it also, as it seems, has a built-in library, where all the knowledge of the universe, collected by the guardians of Oa, is stored.

Throwing a frown at us, Bats decided to intervene nonetheless:

"The Joker has truly become a hero."

"Except for the tight tights," I decide to elaborate.

"Now be quiet and follow me, the enemy is close," Paphose Mouse finished sternly, starting to move along the tunnel going somewhere to the northeast.

There was no long walk in silence, as Lantern was closing in on Barry in terms of enthusiasm level and the length of his awl at one point.

"So you're really a hero, huh? - The man whispered, hovering beside me, watching the dim glyphs flashing beneath my feet with interest. There was no convenient curb, so I had to scramble to keep my feet out of the wastewater.

"Uh-huh. I didn't expect that of myself, but I thought, why not? It's so much fun, and it's less hassle for the police, ha-ha-ha!

"Mm-hmm... I see," I got a complicated look on my face. - Listen, what are Batman's powers? - suddenly asked the superhero. - I didn't see anything but gadgets.

"He can boost hits with pathos, and he can also use it to ignore any incoming damage. You know, a few other little things, like hiding in shadows. Pretty much a typical vampire, except he doesn't drink blood... I guess."

"Uh, uh, is that true? - he decided to clarify my answer to the person in question.

"No. Joker, do not mislead our ally."

"Hmm. Then what? Superpowers?"

"No, I don't."

"Maybe flying? - Lantern continued to torture Bats, who was no longer glad he'd answered.

"On an airplane."

"Wait..." His eyes widened slightly at the realization. - Are you really just a regular guy in a bat suit?

Gotham's defender turned around, a slight smirk appearing on his face.

"Are you kidding me? - The shocked man landed in front of Mouse, muting his green aura.

Bats silently continued to stare at his interlocutor, pressing on with pathos.

"What? You didn't get invited to prom, so you decided to dress up in that dingy bat costume to snoop around your parents' basement?"

Oh, he shouldn't have done that. Popcorn would be great right now, but not even a psycho would eat it in a sewer.

The mask's eyes squinted slightly. There was a brief pause.

"How does it work? - The superhero fidgeted with one remarkable ring with a green stone.

"What," Lantern stared in shock at his artifact in the stranger's hands. A moment, and his suit disappeared, replaced by a brown jumpsuit with the initials "H. Jordan."

Ignoring the frozen man, Bats turned away and continued on his way, scrutinizing the ring.

"No buttons or touch pads. It seems to work when you focus."

"How did you do that? - I asked at the same time as Jordan. - What? You gotta admit, he got you, and in a flashy way, ha-ha-ha! I want to do that.

"Tz! - With a frown, the superhero stretched out his hand, and the artifact, briefly surrounding itself with a green cloud of energy, returned to his finger on its own. - You won't do it again," he tried to adopt a threatening pose, which looked comical after such a performance.

"If I don't want you to," Mouse shrugged indifferently and continued on his way, occasionally checking the readings on the screen.

My mind was frantically recalling all the details of the short conversation, paying special attention to the position of my hands. Unfortunately, the Lantern's back partially blocked the view, but even so I could see the moment of removal... I could see it, but I didn't pay attention to it, as if it should be so! I don't know how, but Bats' palms managed to blur in perception even in my memories, and at that moment the rest of the superhero's body was completely motionless, which looked rather unnatural to the outside view. But there's still the question of how Bats bypassed the Ring of Will's defenses. If I understand anything about artifacts of this level, they must have protection from outsiders, and here some leftist type manages to quietly take it from its current owner. Although there is an explanation, and quite logical...

"Hey, you and I aren't done yet," Hal's exasperated voice pulled me back to the real world. - Let's dance, scarecrow.

The lantern was clearly not going to forgive such neglect, but my hearing suddenly picked up quiet sounds nearby that clearly didn't belong in Gotham's underworld. Well, not unless you counted vagrants eating a corpse.

~Tuke~

A light fist bump on the goofball caused the green aura surrounding the superhero to flare a little brighter. Well, the aura acts independently of the user, which reduces the options of how to get around it. Next time, I'll try throwing some prana into the touch and see how it reacts.

"What are you..."

"Shh, shh, shh, do you hear me? - I whispered, throwing the man off balance. - I think we're almost there.

The tunnel led us into a large room, where the monster was sitting with his back to the entrance. Judging by the strange squelching sounds and the position of his hands, he was trying to please himself, or digging into his stomach.

"I never thought I'd be watching a masturbating xenos..."

"You think? - Hal grinned amused at my words.

"Well, what else does it look like? - I nodded at the scene unfolding nearby. Twitching arms and shoulders were accompanied by squelching sounds and the lurching of an armored creature.

"Shh, we're just observing for now," Bats cut into the conversation, touching his temples to adjust the spectra of the mask's vision.

Five seconds later, it became clear that I'd been wrong after all, because when he finished grunting and twitching, the monster started clawing an all too familiar box to the wall. And yes, it turned out to be the same Mother Cube that had exploded when Victor had tried to rape it with his metal tentacles. Dark yellow metal bumpers with chip tracks and a large translucent bright scarlet stone in the center, covered by a thick transparent lens, I was unlikely to confuse it with anything else.

Having attached the device, the "now certain" parademon (or someone of that brethren) touched the center lens, and the box began to emit a red glow that grew brighter with each passing second.

"Shit, we have to get this bastard before he blows the place up! - Green Lantern exclaimed and rushed into action.

"Fuck," I tried to summarize my feelings.

And this guy with an awl in one place and a complete lack of discipline protects our sector of the galaxy? I wouldn't even trust him to guard an abandoned latrine!

"I'm inclined to agree," Bats suddenly supported me, and then rushed after the idiot in the green tights.

But the monster, having launched the device, was not going to engage in a silly confrontation. I had the feeling that he hadn't expected to be chased by anyone at all, though given the intelligence level of the parademons, that wasn't particularly surprising.

"To Darkseid! - The mutant almost growled and immediately blew himself up.

I had just enough time to put mana into the spell hanging in my aura, turning my shield around me before I was blown away by the shockwave. Now I know exactly how the hamsters trapped in the ball would feel if someone played soccer with them. It's a good thing I have a strong enough torso and am not in the habit of carrying stabbing and cutting objects outside of my spatial pockets, so I got off with a minor scare and a sewage-stained suit. The water balloon did its job successfully, washing and drying my clothes, and then I headed for the epicenter of the explosion, hoping that Bats wasn't hurt, because it would be uncomfortable to fend off another alien invasion without a man in tight black latex.

When the dust settled, I saw a large green safe hanging in the air, which opened as I approached. And it didn't open like an ordinary box, but inside, judging by the clanking sounds, some mechanism had obviously worked, scrolling the wheel and removing the locks. Eh, that seems cool, but the structure of such a detailed thing is relatively fragile, if I understand the working principle of the alien artifact correctly.

""To Darkseid," Lantern said thoughtfully, as he left the shelter, which immediately disappeared, retracting into the ring. Wow, there were no energy traces left on either the first or second layer of reality. - Is this some kind of metal band?

"Worse," Bats cautiously approached the box mounted on the wall. - This is the beginning of the invasion.

Then followed a detailed story of how we fought with Steppe Wolf and his army, as well as what were the past versions of parademons, it's a pity only without a detailed description of the epic final battle, well and Hal, or rather his ring, again amazed me, creating a whole research stand for analyzing the box.

"Unable to identify," a synthesized female voice sounded from the energy-generated device a few minutes later.

"But that's impossible! - The man was indignant, looking at the powerful piece of jewelry with indignation. - The ring knows everything the keepers know, and the keepers know everything! - He looked at us, as if seeking support, and then suddenly shrugged. - Batman, tell Joker to stop licking his lips at me.

"I doubt you're the one he's interested in."

"Hal, buddy! Can I borrow your ring for a couple days? - I couldn't take it anymore.

To think, this thing really has all the knowledge of the guardians in it! And the methods of creating energy surfaces are obviously different from the magical approach, plus, the built-in scanning device is obviously not a simple one. Seeing that my new best friend is not in a hurry to make the right decision, I decided to sweeten the pill and created a flat shield, which began to unload on it various junk from his pockets, offering an exchange. A lighter with a clown face, a trio of napalm grenades, a Snickers, two spare Glock magazines and handcuffs with fur did not arouse much enthusiasm from the superhero, but when an RPG barrel appeared from his pocket, followed by a couple of rune-enhanced projectiles, a long harpoon cane, a soft shibari rope, Harley's lacy lingerie, a tube of quality lubricant, and a metal bat with a simple rune of enhancement, Green Lantern's eyes turned into two saucers.

"It's... Like..." he waved his hands, trying to express the feelings overwhelming him.

"I don't know what the hell it is," my hand fluffed my green hair against my will. - I try not to take anything extra when I pack, but Harley still manages to slip me her weapons and things. Though, I have to admit, the magic source develops faster because of the slight overload.

"I mean the pockets! How do you fit so much stuff in there?!"

"Ha-ha-ha, the usual space magic. I can make you a couple similar pockets, but in exchange you give me a ring for a couple days. Just be warned, without magic, vault size and weight relief will be limited by background boost.

My interlocutor thought about it, but then, as it happened, Bats appeared silently nearby.

"I contacted the team. Flash also found a similar device and killed the new parademon without letting it explode. Cyborg has already flown out to Central City to help move the corpse to S.T.A.R. Labs. They have the necessary equipment for research. I suggest we disarm this Mother Box for now and start looking for the others, which are probably set up somewhere in the city."