Rushville was slowly emerging from the wreckage, though calling it recovery would have been generous.
Military trucks blocked off damaged streets while rescue teams searched collapsed buildings. Emergency workers moved between temporary shelters, carrying supplies and helping residents locate missing family members. Above them, Superman lifted a section of shattered concrete from a damaged apartment building, allowing a rescue team to reach the people trapped beneath it. Several blocks away, Green Arrow worked alongside military personnel, helping clear debris and directing civilians away from unstable structures.
Neither hero had stopped since arriving.
At Rushville General Hospital, things were quieter, but the tension hadn't disappeared.
Hal Jordan lay in a hospital bed with bandages wrapped around his torso. An IV ran into his arm, and a heart monitor kept track of his condition. The doctors had made it clear that he needed rest. Hal, predictably, had spent most of his recovery arguing with them.
The Flash stood beside the window, watching an ambulance pull into the hospital entrance. Batman occupied a chair near the foot of Hal's bed, his cape hanging over its sides. Two military personnel stood outside the room, keeping curious visitors away while the hospital staff treated the injured Green Lantern.
Hal glanced toward the doorway before turning his attention to the two heroes.
"I have to say, this is a new low for me. I've survived hostile planets, interstellar wars, and more near-death experiences than I care to count, but apparently getting crushed beneath a motel is what finally earns me a private room and a military escort."
The Flash turned from the window. "You could look at it differently. You're getting excellent medical care, security, and a room with a view. Some people pay a fortune for that kind of service."
Hal stared at him. "You have a strange idea of luxury, Flash. The view is a parking lot, my ribs feel like somebody used them to test a sledgehammer, and the only thing on the menu that doesn't taste like cardboard is the water."
Batman remained unmoved. "You could always try following the doctor's instructions. She might let you leave sooner if you stop attempting to get out of bed."
"That's easy for you to say. You're standing there in a cape, looking like you haven't experienced a normal night's sleep in twenty years."
"I sleep."
"Sure you do."
The Flash chuckled, but the sound faded as his attention returned to the streets below. Rushville had suffered enormous damage, and the rescue operation was likely to continue for days. Superman and Green Arrow could help, but even their combined efforts couldn't reverse everything that had happened.
Hal noticed where he was looking.
"How bad is it out there?"
"Bad enough that Clark and Oliver are going to be busy for a while," the Flash replied. "The military has established a perimeter around the worst-hit areas, and the rescue teams are making progress. They're still searching several buildings, though, so we won't know the full extent of the damage until they've finished."
Hal's expression grew serious. "People were just living their lives. They weren't soldiers, and they weren't looking for trouble. They were people going to work, visiting friends, raising families. Whatever happened here, they shouldn't have had to pay for it."
For once, neither the Flash nor Batman offered a joke.
The room fell quiet, broken only by the steady rhythm of the heart monitor.
Batman eventually leaned forward, resting his forearms on his knees. "We need to establish exactly what happened at the motel. You called the creature a Manhunter. That wasn't a guess."
Hal looked toward him. "No, it wasn't."
"Explain what you know."
Hal drew a slow breath, wincing slightly as his injuries protested.
"Zoe was a Manhunter, a creation of the Guardians. That's what I know. What happened in Rushville was more complicated than a simple attack, and I don't have every answer. Things went wrong, people died, and I ended up beneath half a building. That's about as much of a report as I can give you while I'm lying here trying not to breathe too deeply."
The Flash tilted his head. "You knew Zoe was a Manhunter before everything happened?"
"I knew what she was, but knowing that doesn't mean I understood everything she was involved in. There's a difference between recognizing something and knowing what it's going to do." Hal shifted against the pillows. "And before either of you decides that means I should have prevented everything, believe me, I've already had that conversation with myself."
Batman studied him for several seconds, searching for signs that Hal was withholding something important. Whatever his personal opinion of the Green Lantern, he wasn't going to dismiss information that might help them understand the disaster.
"We'll preserve the evidence from the motel and examine whatever remains," he said. "If there's something we overlooked, we'll find it."
Hal gave a faint, humorless smile. "Just be careful about poking at anything you don't recognize. Alien technology has a habit of making a bad situation considerably worse."
"Noted."
"That wasn't a suggestion, Batman. I've seen supposedly harmless equipment turn an entire operation into a catastrophe. If you find anything connected to the incident, get someone who understands it before you start taking it apart."
The Flash glanced between them. "I'll help with the investigation. We need to know whether what happened here is finished or whether there's something else we should be worried about."
As he spoke, a translucent blue window appeared in front of his eyes.
Neither Hal nor Batman reacted. The notification made no sound, and its contents were visible only to Barry.
\[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION\]
MAIN MISSION ACTIVATED
Find the Last Manhunter
Objective: Locate the last surviving Manhunter on Earth.
Reward: Classified.
Barry's thoughts sharpened.
The last Manhunter?
He read the notification again, searching for additional information. There was no location, no identifying description, and no explanation of how the System had determined that a Manhunter remained somewhere on Earth.
It had given him a target and left the rest to him.
Barry dismissed the window with a thought, keeping his expression steady. Batman was already considering the evidence, while Hal looked exhausted enough that pushing him for more information might accomplish very little.
Still, the mission couldn't wait indefinitely.
Barry turned toward Hal.
"Are you sure that's the last Manhunter?"