Chapter 44

Before they could react, Chronos pushed a button on his belt, and a time-tunnel opened. From the other side emerged the same group of Jokerz as before, minus Chucko, while Chronos pushed another button.

"Get the belt!" ordered Batman, "Nothing else matters!" he dove for Chronos, but the maniac disappeared into another time-tunnel.

War Hawk flew at the Jokerz, but Bonk turned his hand into a hammer and knocked the half-Thanagarian through the roof.

Before Bonk could make another move, Ultiman flew forward. "It's Hero Time!" he yelled as he smashed the clown through the walls and outside the jail.

Ben activated the Ultimatrix. "That's my line!" he shouted, as he slammed the dial down. "ARMODRILLO!"

The new alien was almost ten feet tall and looked like an armadillo, standing on two legs and covered in yellow metal. His arms were reminiscent of jackhammers. He charged forward and grabbed the hyena with one arm. The jackhammer-like part activated, and the hyena was sent hurtling through the air. Armodrillo jumped into the air, then dove into the ground as if it were water. All the shaking was too much for the poorly-built structure, and it began to collapse.

"We'll come back right over there." Commented Paradox, pointing to a far-off pillar. The jail collapsed, but only on the Jokerz; the heroes, plus Enid, emerged from behind the pillar.

Static looked around. "How did you do that?" he asked.

Paradox smiled. "At the moment, I can't see the big picture, as it were, but I can still see a lot of shortcuts." His smile turned into a frown as he saw the Dee Dee twins and Ghoul emerge from the rubble. "I consider myself a gentleman, but I do believe that any kindness given would be wasted on them, wouldn't you agree?"

Green Lantern nodded, then flew up to War Hawk. "Feel like taking down the bad guys with your old man?"

"Always." Said a grinning War Hawk.

Static flew off to help Ultiman who, while taking Bonk by surprise, had been driven to a stalemate by the clown's augmented strength. Neo-Batman was left to face the twins, while Lantern and War Hawk squared off against Ghoul.

Ghoul looked at War Hawk, then at Green Lantern, then at his saws. "You know what? Forget it; I'm goin' home." With a slump, Ghoul left.

"That was… surprisingly anticlimactic." Said War Hawk.

"Oh well," said Lantern with a shrug, "we can still take down the twins." The two flew down to help Neo-Batman, saving him before he was ripped apart by their whips.

"Hey, Ken!" shouted Static, doing his best to hold off Bonk, "Isn't it time you took the kid-gloves off?"

Ultiman nodded. "It's time to go Ultimate!" then slapped the symbol on his gauntlet. On his chest appeared a circular dial with four spikes, like the Ultimatrix, but instead of the same symbol, an "S-shield" appeared. With a grin, Ultiman shot forward, his fist connecting with Bonk's jaw, sending him hurtling into the sky.

Armodrillo emerged from the ground, just in time to see the impressive display. "What was that?" he asked.

"It's my Ultimate form." His son explained, "Normally, my Kryptonian powers are at half the strength of what Superman's would be, but it's supplemented by my other powers. When I activate my Ultimatrix, I can suppress my other DNA, and allow my Kryptonian powers to go to full. Unfortunately, I can only use my Kryptonian powers, and the effect only lasts for ten minutes."

"Still awesome." Said Armodrillo.

"Of course it is," Ultiman said, "you made it for me."

Enid watched the whole battle from in front of the pillar, only turning when she saw Chronos appear near her.

"How could you betray me, Enid?" he asked, "Everything I've done, I've done for you!"

"Don't blame this on me!" yelled Enid, "I just wanted you to assert yourself, not destroy reality!"

"Couldn't you just go to couple's counseling like normal people?" asked Armodrillo, as he and the other heroes, who'd finished their fights, approached. They were relatively unharmed, though Green Lantern had suffered a cut on his scalp in the battle with the twins.

"Chronos!" yelled Batman. "Look at what's around you; look at the sky!"

Chronos looked up and saw the white light literally erasing the sky. "Pretty…" he said, his mind unable to comprehend what he was seeing.

"Stay with us, man, we've got a problem here!" said Lantern.

Chronos' mind regained its lucidity. "Right, you're right; this calls for another approach." He kissed Enid on the cheek, then jumped into another time-tunnel. "You'll love me next time!"

Batman, Lantern, Ben and Paradox, the closest ones to him, jumped in after him, leaving the rest of the heroes to hope for the best.

"Show 'em what Tennysons can do, Dad." Whispered Ken.

…

Inside the time-tunnel, Lantern created a protective bubble around himself and the others, willing themselves to go faster.

"Where's he going?" asked Batman, "There's nothing left!"

"Yes there is," corrected Paradox, "the beginning of time itself!"

At the end of the time-tunnel, beyond Chronos, Ben could faintly make out a giant hand, a spiral of incomprehensible energy in its palm.

"He could reset everything," continued Paradox, "he could make himself into a god!"

"Only if he gets there first." Retorted Lantern, and the bubble's speed increased.

"Just get me close enough." Ben activated the Ultimatrix and slammed down the dial. "SNARE-OH!" this alien seemed to be wrapped in bandages and had a distinctive Egyptian style to it.

"The Green Lanterns have a legend," said John, "no one can see the beginning of time; it's a universal law!"

"Then let's write him a ticket!" said Snare-oh.

Lantern opened a hole in the bubble, and Snare-oh sent a bandage outward that wrapped around Chronos' head and drew him into the bubble. Batman placed the disk into the belt, while the bubble began to shake.

"The program is uploading!" Batman said.

"Make it fast," Lantern said, "because I'm having a little trouble with the brakes!"

They fell towards the hand…

…

The Watchtower

Batman, Green Lantern and Ben looked around them with wide eyes; they were back in the cafeteria on the Watchtower, just before this whole mess started.

"That all… really happened?" asked Green Lantern.

"I think so." Said Batman.

"Looks like we won," said Ben smugly, "I so should have bet Ken some money."

"But is everything back to normal?" Lantern wondered.

Then smiles appeared on the three men's faces as Wonder Woman approached; she was okay!

"That's a nasty cut, John." She said.

Lantern's hand went to his scalp where, sure enough, there was the cut he'd sustained in the fight.

"You don't remember going on a mission with us today, do you?" asked Batman.

"I just got here." Said Wonder Woman, confused.

Batman leaned in close to Lantern and Ben. "The timeline's corrected itself; we're the only ones who remember what happened."

Lantern nodded, then his eyes went wide as he saw Shayera; the Thanagarian raised an eyebrow at his look, but decided to say nothing and walk off.

"That…" said Lantern slowly, "complicates things."

"How?" asked Ben, "You both care for each other; just let things take their course. Let people like Paradox worry about the timelines, and… hey, where is Paradox?" the three looked around, but couldn't see the time-walker.

"Does he do that often?" asked Batman.

"Only after leaving with some message or other." Said Ben. Then he felt something in his pocket; he reached in to find a note, which read:

I've taken care of the details; you can tell her, if you wish. This makes us even.

Paradox

Ben rolled his eyes. "What is it?" asked Lantern.

"Oh, nothing," said Ben, pocketing the message, "just Paradox getting the last word in."

Still, Ben was a little intrigued; Paradox probably meant that he could tell Kara about Ken, but that man never did anything without a reason. Still, he had good intentions; he made his decision.

"By the way," said Lantern, "what happened to Chronos?"

"I put him into an infinite time-loop; he'll never be able to escape."

"I'm… gonna go home, guys; see you later." Ben stood up, not paying attention to the conversation anymore, and made to leave, but not before turning to Wonder Woman. "Good to have you back, Diana."

As he left, Wonder Woman turned to Batman. "You are going to tell me what's going on."

Batman looked uneasy, while Lantern made a whipping motion with his hand.

"Wh-kssssh!"

…

Bellwood

"Professor?" asked a concerned Shifter, "Are you okay?"

Paradox smiled. "Of course, my dear; in fact, things are definitely looking up."

The time-walker left, not addressing the curious looks from the Plumbers.

…