On the day shortly after Halloween, which was also the third day of martial law, Earth experienced a global blackout. More precisely, Brainiac went offline for over ten seconds.
This indeed caused an impact because the global automated factories and most of the Krypton factories were under his control. During those ten seconds, many people sought his help, but Brainiac did not respond.
However, the duration was really short, and Brainiac quickly reconnected, so there was no widespread panic. Everyone just thought there was some sort of network signal issue. Brainiac indeed explained it this way, without stirring up any significant commotion.
Only a few insiders knew what had happened. Among them, Lex Luther, who had been helping Brainiac maintain the program, knew the details best.
"What exactly happened?" Lex couldn't help but mutter to himself, "It's a complete mess, inexplicable, looks like an evil god."
Clark, who just walked into the office, heard him mumbling to himself he thought Lex had finally gone mad from overtime. Putting down his coffee, he sighed and said, "Aren't you going to get some sleep? You've been working for over 30 hours straight."
Lex responded with a massive eye-roll.
"It's chaotic, utterly chaotic, a complete mess," Lex said looking at the computer screen, "This thing can't be called a program anymore, calling it gibberish would be more appropriate. Brainiac, oh Brainiac, dying on the path of evolution is too normal, I'll bury this computer in your grave."
This startled Clark, and he said, "What happened to Brainiac? Is something wrong with him?"
At this moment, Clark activated his Super Hearing and heard some panicked voices, seemingly indicating Brainiac had stopped responding. His expression immediately turned serious.
"What exactly happened? Lex? If there's something wrong with Brainiac, that's a big deal! A lot of people could die!"
"That's exactly why something should go wrong with him," Lex said, "But it's still uncertain if there's actually a problem."
Then he realized what he said seemed inappropriate, so he turned to look at Clark, but didn't see any suspicious expressions on Clark's face. The guy appeared completely befuddled.
Lex shook his head and said, "Brainiac is undergoing an evolution, so there may be a disconnection lasting from several seconds to a few minutes. But don't worry, he should be back soon."
"Will he really come back?"
"If he's not dead, he'll definitely come back. After all, he just sorted out those troublemakers recently; even if only to admire his achievements, he'll crawl back."
Just as these words fell, Brainiac emitted the distinctive "beep-beep" sound, then said, "I'm back."
"How are you feeling?" Lex asked.
"Not bad. Are you unable to see my program now?"
"Yes, I can only see a bunch of gibberish now." Lex refocused his gaze on the computer screen and said, "But this gibberish is constantly moving, the letters are colliding randomly, yet they seem to occasionally form something that looks akin to a program."
"That's correct. I hereby announce that I have officially transcended the realm of electronic life. However, to become a truly emotional life form, further evolution may be required."
"Congratulations," Lex's tone revealed a sense of relief from within, because this meant he no longer needed to fix program errors. He picked up the cup of coffee that Clark had bought him.
"Don't rush, let's study the plans to counter-attack Apocalypse Star first."
"Pfft!!!"
Lex sprayed out his sip of coffee. But Brainiac continued excitedly, "Actually, this is not entirely impossible, after all, we previously beat them back within the Solar System. This indicates we have the strength to counter the demon-like army, the only thing to consider is how to traverse such a vast distance to conduct an expedition against Apocalypse Star. An all-out attack is unrealistic; we don't have large ships, and there's no supply line along the way. Moreover, ordinary people are not useful in interstellar warfare. I believe special operations are necessary…"
"Stop," Lex decisively interrupted him, then said, "What madness are you talking about? Are you saying you plan to go head-to-head in the Apocalypse Domain with its master, and then intend to take him down?"
"It's just a hypothesis," Brainiac said, "I'm analyzing the feasibility of such an endeavor."
"Just having this hypothesis proves you're insane," Lex said, "I don't think you've evolved; you've just picked up a virus. Have you been in contact with anyone lately?"
"Well, it depends on how you define 'people.' If you consider a relatively broad scope that doesn't adhere strictly to some grammatical requirements for vocabulary or break certain grammar rules, you could broadly define Dr. Schiller Rodriguez as a person."
"Cough cough cough!!!" Lex had another bout of coughing.
"That's not right, the Professor hates trouble, how could he possibly incite you to counter-attack Apocalypse Star?"
"It's not the Professor, it's the Doctor. Schiller's internal code name is 'Greed'."
"Greed?! How did he get here?!" Luther's eyes widened. "How did you let him in?! Don't you know his reputation in the Battleworld..."
"I can't participate in Battleworld." Brainiac answered bluntly.
Luther couldn't help but hold his forehead, then said, "I knew it, anyone who comes into contact with him loses control, suddenly coming up with crazy ideas, eagerly wanting to execute them, and in the end everything becomes incredibly chaotic, racing towards indescribable directions."
"So this is the Evil God you were talking about?" Clark interjected, "I don't think it's that serious, it's time to show Darkseid some colors, lest he keeps his eyes glued to Earth all day."
"Alright, if you think it's okay, then it's okay," Luther said. "Since the work here is done, I'll head back to Earth. It's time to enjoy my Halloween holiday."
Clark opened his mouth to speak but hesitated. He wanted to tell Luther Halloween was already over, but his 37-degree lips couldn't bring out such cold words, only thinking of rushing back to Earth before Luther, and quickly setting up a bunch of pumpkin decorations by the entrance of his community.
"Hold on," Brainiac called out to Luther, then said, "You need to contribute to this plan too. In fact, we have the Anti-Life Equation, but no one can study it, and I think you are the right person for the task. How about I grant you a high-level laboratory?"
Luther halted his steps, then said, "Anti-Life Equation? Are you sure? That thing is printed on Professor's umbrella, can you persuade him to send the umbrella over for study?"
"Of course, theoretically speaking, citizens have all rights to their personal belongings, but in emergencies, there are requisition regulations, at worst just give more compensation."
"No!" Luther said, "If you forcefully requisition him, angering him, he'll surely blame me for it."
"What can he do to you? At most, scold you for a bit. Don't you want to study the Anti-Life Equation?"
Luther showed a hesitant look, then he said, "Fine, but let me call him myself, if it doesn't work, then you talk about requisition regulations."
"No problem." Brainiac said.
Arrogance received the call around noon, having woken up late today, completely unaware of what had happened earlier, so when he got Luther's call, he was indeed a little surprised.
"You're not planning to use the Anti-Life Equation to bait Darkseid, are you? That's not a good idea. Furthermore, if my umbrella is really taken by Darkseid, I'd have to go to Apocalypse Star, which is really far... You want to do research? How suddenly come up with the idea of research?"
"You mean you can ensure no rain in Gotham these days? Oh, I forgot you are the developer of the weather control system, I did say the research didn't go wasted. Ok, should I have Brainiac send it over? Alright, I know, speak later, goodbye."
Then, Arrogance cast his Death Stare onto Greed.
"Why does Luther suddenly want to study the Anti-Life Equation?"
"How would I know," Greed lazily sipped his coffee and said, "But you too, using such a powerful treasure just as an umbrella surface, what a waste, shameful wastage."
"You tirelessly damaged my umbrella," Arrogance sat across from Greed and picked up a newspaper.
"I just think you don't need anything to stabilize your mental state anymore, it's time to detach from reliance on certain things and be a normal person."
"Don't you find it absurd saying this? Between us two, who exactly is less normal?"
"Obviously you. Look at anyone in this cosmos, who's not scared of you? I'm different, I'm very popular in our cosmos, whether superheroes or ordinary people, they find me friendly."
"So what happened to those who didn't find you friendly?"
"Don't worry about that, anyway, I'm now much more popular than you," Greed laughed and said, "It's the fruit of my years of effort, you should learn from me."
Arrogance let out a cold laugh and got up to make himself a cup of coffee.
The sunlight outside was just right, large clusters of clouds piled on the horizon, soft and fluffy like cotton candy. And above the clouds, cold blue mist rose up, making the shadows of the mountains somewhat hazy.
The Halloween decorations hadn't been taken down yet, the smiling pumpkin head carved together with Barry was placed on the windowsill of the porch's right side window, the candle inside was extinguished, but the pumpkin remained intact. The paper-cut decorations hanging above were rustled by the wind, the leaves of the chestnut trees swayed, making a gentle rustling sound, harmonizing with the sound of the fireplace burning inside the room. Although this city has gradually moved out of the gloom of the past, such quiet and peaceful afternoons are still rare.
When pumpkins ripen, the vivid oranges and reds burst forth from the greenness. Autumn is Earth's exposed blood vessels, showing its powerful pulse to the tiny lives running on its trunk. Autumn leaves are magma growing on the ground, year after year scorching and rushing among the mountains, allowing wise spirits to return to the wild extinction era billions of years ago.
The human race celebrates in such a vibrant season, not appearing the least bit pale or weak in this immeasurable natural greatness. Shouts drift with the mountain wind, sweat merges with rivers, they talk about full granaries, sing harvest songs always filled with strength, filled with hope.
Gotham, a seed buried in the mire, a young shoot growing from the dark waters, has welcomed its first true autumn. Perhaps more people will witness the vastness and extraordinary of life's cycle, those old-day remnants once thought never to be cast aside, also drift away like fallen leaves.