Broken(DC)

They fought fiercely, landing savage blows that tore through the air with each collision. I stayed out of the battle for now, my body recovering from the devastating effects of the black hole. Several chunks of flesh had been ripped from me. Their fight gradually moved farther away from my location.

Once I had healed, I rushed to follow them. Their speed was so incredible that I couldn't keep up. After several blocks, I lost their trail. Taking to the rooftop of one of the buildings, I scanned the area for signs of destruction left in their wake. Red beams suddenly burst from one skyscraper, slicing through anything in their path. There they are!

Leaping toward them, I caught sight of people still trapped in the building. As on the streets, not everyone had managed to escape, and the skyscraper was beginning to collapse. I could only watch helplessly as countless lives teetered on the brink of being lost in the destruction. I had a choice: I could rush ahead to stop the two of them, preventing further deaths in the future, or stay behind and try to save those people. But how?

A fire ignited within me, and streams of flame, obeying my will, began to coil around the building. No, they didn't burn it. At my command, the fire acted like a giant hand, gripping the skyscraper and holding it in place. Guiding the flames toward pieces of metal and nearby vehicles, I began melting them into molten steel. Like lava, I shaped fiery supports at critical points, stabilizing the building and preventing it from collapsing further.

Superman, seemingly realizing the harm they had caused, shifted the fight toward the Metropolis shoreline, where everything was already in ruins. Once I had finished reinforcing the structure, I launched myself in their direction with a powerful burst of speed.

I reached them just in time to see Superman struck several times and sent flying. His opponent, with every step, closed the distance between them.

"I was born a warrior! I've trained my entire life, honing my senses. And where did you train? On a farm?" he roared furiously, tearing off his armor. What remained was a skintight suit similar to Superman's, but black and without a cape.

[IMAGE]

I caught up to him just as he was about to lunge at Superman. My fiery fist struck his face, sending him flying several meters back. He immediately rose to his feet, but a red mark remained on his cheek. Turning toward me, he gave me a menacing glare.

"And who are you?" he asked.

"Your demise," I replied, throwing myself at him in a fiery assault. My body became engulfed in flames.

I unleashed a flurry of powerful blows against his body. He tried to counterattack but failed. My flames began to scorch his flesh, leaving burns with every strike.

"AAAAAAA!" he roared, his battle cry echoing as his eyes glowed crimson. A laser beam shot from them, striking me in the chest and throwing me several meters away.

Superman didn't remain idle. He slammed into the opponent with both fists, sending them both into the sky. Their silhouettes grew smaller as they ascended into the clouds until they vanished entirely. Rising to my feet, I brushed off the charred fragments of armor. My wound was healing rapidly. What temperature was that beam? Hm, even my flames aren't that hot. How many degrees could it possibly be?

Seconds later, the sky erupted with fire, as if a meteor shower had begun. Fiery chunks rained down toward the city. Extending my hand, I summoned flames to intercept the debris. Clenching my fingers, I incinerated the remnants of a falling satellite. The city had suffered enough an actual firestorm was the last thing it needed.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted two figures locked in a deadly grapple, plummeting toward the ground at full speed. Propelling myself off the ground, I flew toward them. They crashed into a building, smashing through its roof. I didn't bother with subtlety, breaking through the wall in pursuit and nearly crushing a man in my path. He froze in terror, his face stiff and unmoving, like a lifeless doll.

Ignoring him, I turned my attention to Superman. He was holding his kinsman by the throat. A laser beam was charging from the opponent's eyes, aimed dangerously close to a group of people huddled in a corner, too paralyzed to flee. Leaping toward them, I placed my hand over the opponent's eyes, blocking the beam. The searing pain burned into my skin.

"Do it!" I shouted to Superman.

He hesitated for a few seconds, unable to take that final step. So I did it for him. Grabbing the enemy's head with my other hand, I twisted sharply, snapping his neck.

Superman now looked at me warily, his body tense and ready for another fight.

"Calm down. I'm from Earth," I said, trying to diffuse the tension.

"Forgive me, but I don't recall any beings like you here," a red-haired woman interjected, running far too close to us. If I were the enemy, she'd already be dead. Superman understood this too, stepping protectively between us.

"Kal-El, are you all right?" she asked, her voice filled with concern.

"Since you helped me defeat them, it's clear you're not an enemy," Clark said.

"I saw him fight them and stop the skyscraper from falling," added a dark-skinned man. Well, I had no intention of becoming a hero; the glory could be his. Breaking away, I leapt out of the building without saying goodbye.

Right now, all I wanted was to find Elizabeth and make sure she was safe. I hoped they had managed to evacuate. The only problem was my appearance it was far from human. Bounding across several blocks, I stopped in an alleyway. Spotting a passerby, I grabbed him. He almost screamed at the sight of me, but a quick gesture with my finger silenced him.

"I need a phone," I said.

"Uh… uh…" was all he managed to stammer out.

Carefully, with my oversized hands, I rummaged through his pockets and pulled out his phone. I quickly typed a message to Elizabeth and deleted it from the device. It was brief: "I'm okay. We'll talk later." Star City was about a thousand miles away just a quick sprint.

"Apologies for the trouble," I said politely before leaping away again, vaulting over several buildings and leaving Metropolis behind.

POV: Lex Luthor

When the alien ship appeared over Metropolis, humanity finally saw what I had known all along. We are not alone in this universe, and our enemies have already breached our defenses, ready to annihilate our planet. Now humanity's only option was to fend off the attack and survive long enough to prepare for the true battle the war against extraterrestrial invaders.

Many of my projects had been hindered because governments refused to fund them, calling me a lunatic for asking for billions. Who's the lunatic now? I foresaw all of this. The moment I saw a man flying through the air, it was clear he wasn't of this world.

I was just about to close a lucrative deal when they arrived. I had no choice but to leave. Elizabeth's reaction didn't surprise me it was the natural response of any sane person. But Brian surprised me. It was as if he was ready to throw himself into danger to protect her at any cost.

"This is an alien invasion," I declared, heading toward the exit of my office. "And they've declared war on us." Evacuation was my only option; I had nothing here to counter them. All my weapons were stored in facilities far from Metropolis. Here, we only had non-military manufacturing.

"Hurry to the rooftop. There's a helicopter there. We can make it to a safe location," I said, striding quickly as I led the way.

I didn't want to abandon my new business partners, so ensuring their safety was important to me as well.

"And what about the rest of the people?" Elizabeth asked. I wanted to tell her it was impossible to save them, but saying that would have damaged my image. It was foolish to worry about others when you were in danger yourself.

"Go, Mom, find somewhere safe to hide. Luthor, I hope your words about us being friends weren't empty, and that everything you learn will remain confidential," Brian said. Hmm, he wanted to fight them, which meant he had uncovered the secret of his true nature.

"Of course. If you can stop this, I'll owe you a debt," I said, escorting Elizabeth out of my office. If I could get her to safety, it would bolster my standing in his eyes. As we left, I heard the sound of shattering glass behind me the reinforced, bulletproof kind.

Walking through the corridors, my secretary Sarah intercepted us and guided us toward the helicopter, already prepped and waiting. Her efficiency and discipline were always invaluable to me such punctuality and responsibility.

We reached the rooftop, boarded the helicopter, and it lifted into the sky. Below, I could see beams of energy obliterating parts of the city. It seemed to be some sort of gravitational weapon everything was being pulverized into dust under immense pressure. Suddenly, a streak of flame surged toward the alien ship from one of the city streets. I noticed a figure cloaked in fire. Could that be Brian? Fascinating. I glanced quickly at Elizabeth she didn't seem surprised. So, it was him after all.

"Sarah, contact the military and request authorization to deploy our projects," I ordered. If he couldn't handle this, we needed to be ready to face the threat ourselves.

"Yes, sir," she replied, pulling out a specialized phone capable of maintaining a signal even at depths of a hundred meters underwater one of my designs.

"Don't worry, Mrs. Olsen. I'm sure your son will be just fine," I said, crafting an image of politeness and empathy.

"I know, but I can't help worrying. He's been through so much already," she replied with a hint of sorrow. So, he'd been shaped by a difficult life. I'd need to request a detailed report on him.

Watching the battle unfold from above, I could see flashes and bursts of raw power. Earth's military forces were utterly ineffective little more than children's toys against the Kryptonians.

Our helicopter reached the bunker I had constructed outside the city. Even in the event of nuclear war, it could sustain life for decades. As we landed, my guards greeted us, armed with top-of-the-line weaponry capable of penetrating any armor. Though I admitted to myself, it would be useless against beings like Superman.

After ensuring Elizabeth was settled in the complex, I excused myself to address pressing matters. Yet, all I truly wanted was to witness the outcome of this confrontation.

The fiery figure fascinated me there was no other word for it. It looked like something out of a nightmare, immense and engulfed in flames. Its wounds healed instantaneously. This was perfection a tireless, invulnerable machine. No injury seemed to faze it, and its strength and speed were unparalleled. The flames resembled those of the fiery man Brian. The more I observed, the more I wanted to uncover the source of his power. Where did it come from?

A report from military intelligence came through: the invaders were Kryptonians, led by General Zod, here for Superman. So, I was right every calamity traced back to him.

With great regret, I watched as the Kryptonian ship was destroyed. So many valuable samples lost. These military forces had no understanding of its true potential. That ship wasn't just an invader's vessel it was a key to our advancement. And they wiped it off the face of the Earth. Fortunately, it seemed one piece of it had survived. That would be enough for now.

The battle between the Kryptonians was incredibly fast; they devastated the city, destroying countless buildings. They were completely indifferent to human lives. However, I was pleasantly surprised by Brian, who tried to mitigate the consequences of the destruction, even managing to stop one skyscraper from collapsing.

Now, he had joined the fight. Astonishingly, his flames easily inflicted wounds on General Zod. It was remarkable to watch, and I couldn't help but smile this is what would allow us to create a shield against all such threats.

The battle finally entered its concluding stage. Unfortunately, the cameras could no longer capture what was happening inside the building where they had fallen. It seemed the fight had ended; there was no more destruction. This, then, was the price of ignoring an enemy half the city lay in ruins, with countless human casualties.

"You think we are weak, underdeveloped, and can be invaded without consequence. But you made one mistake you underestimated us," I declared, already formulating a plan to acquire their technology. No, not just acquire improve and surpass it.

End Lex Luthor's

POV Brian Forman's

It took some effort to make it back to my base. By the time I neared Star City, my body had returned to its original form. Apparently, my body adapted to threats, focusing on maximum protection in the moment. However, I couldn't understand where it drew this ability from. I only recalled a nightmare that felt eerily similar. Could it have been more than dreams or illusions?

If I was truly like that, and my body chose the form needed to protect me, then the root of the mystery lay somewhere in that moment with the skyscraper. A pivotal moment in time, perhaps even a divergence of timelines? No, that sounded absurd. I wouldn't cloud my mind with theories of a multiverse. What mattered now was the present.

Lately, I had been running around without clothes far too often. I'd have to address this issue and learn to control my transformations. I had no desire to become a three-meter-tall monster in the middle of a street. Understanding and mastering this would be my priority.

Finally, after obtaining a mobile phone, I called Elizabeth to assure her I was safe and to check on her. She had spent the entire catastrophe in a bunker, as it turned out.

"So, what's the status of our agreement with Luthor?" I asked. The timing of all this chaos couldn't have been worse.

"We finalized a mutually beneficial deal. I've taken care of all the formalities. I'll be flying back to Star City tomorrow," Elizabeth replied.

"Got it" I replied to her.

After a few more minutes discussing minor details, I ended the call and turned my attention to the reports sent to me. A quick review revealed that crime rates had dropped to record lows. Green Arrow had been highly effective in suppressing petty crime. Fear of imprisonment still lingered, preventing anyone from rising to lead organized crime again. They were trying to track down those mysterious arsonists, but so far, they had no success.

My business continued to thrive, and the financial results were gratifying. The security agency was successfully ensuring the safety of half the city's enterprises no more racketeering or "protection" schemes.

I felt a strong urge to take a break from it all. The past week had been far too intense. And honestly, who could stop me? For the next couple of days, I'd be off the grid. But where to go? Maybe I'd fly to a resort town and enjoy warm seaside shores and the blazing sun. Or perhaps I'd simply unwind in a peaceful setting. I'd leave that decision to the future me. For today, however, I needed to finalize our medicine and hand it over for testing in the laboratories of our pharmaceutical company.