A flash of golden light erupted as Shin reappeared inside the underground base.
Alarms were blaring throughout the facility. The ground trembled faintly beneath their feet. Shin scanned the panicked crowd with narrowed eyes, his expression tense.
"What happened? Did Grid launch all of Earth's nuclear weapons at once?"
"Not quite," Green Arrow replied grimly, brow furrowed. "But it might as well have. The Yellowstone Caldera has erupted!"
Shin's face froze. "Uh... yeah, maybe we should prepare for global evacuation."
"No," the Joker interjected with a rare frown, "we still have a chance. The eruption itself is catastrophic, yes but the deadliest part is the massive discharge of toxic gases and particles from deep beneath the Earth's crust. If we can't stop the eruption, maybe we can at least minimize its global impact."
Luthor, who had previously been slumped in despair, suddenly stood up and slammed his palm on the table. "Exactly. It's not over yet!"
He turned sharply toward the central terminal. "Brainiac, load the atmospheric storm model! Shazam, your flying speed can exceed Mach 1000, right?"
Shazam, still visibly shaken, blinked. "Y-Yeah, something like that."
Luthor pressed on, now fully locked into a mode of focused calculation. "And among your six divine gifts, one is the Wisdom of Solomon. That gives you accelerated mental processing, including perfect memory recall. We'll need that."
Shazam straightened up, gaining confidence from Luthor's tone. "Right. I can memorize anything instantly."
Though often mocked for the "Wisdom of Solomon" being little more than street smarts, the power did indeed grant Shazam enhanced memory and analytical ability. In this moment, it was exactly what they needed.
Luthor brought up a complex atmospheric model on the main screen an advanced simulation originally developed as part of his anti-Superman contingency protocols. The concept was to use Superman's extreme flying speed to generate a controlled, ultra-powerful tornado.
No one else fully understood the details of the plan only Luthor had studied Superman thoroughly enough to formulate such a strategy. Even Superman himself likely didn't realize his flying abilities could be used this way.
"Follow the flight path encoded in this model," Luthor instructed. "Circle the Yellowstone Caldera and generate a tornado. It'll draw up the volcanic material before it spreads across the continent."
Green Arrow raised a hand, his voice skeptical. "Wait a minute. Isn't that dangerous? Tornadoes inject debris directly into the stratosphere. Wouldn't this just accelerate the spread of toxic ash and gases?"
"Good point," the Joker chimed in, grinning sharply. "That's where Shin comes in. His gravity manipulation, if timed right, can absorb the volcanic discharge before it escapes the atmosphere. Pull the material into a gravity well, compress it into an asteroid, and launch it into space."
Understanding dawned in Green Arrow's eyes. "Ah. Contain the debris first, then eject it cleanly. I see."
Shin, slightly impressed, nodded. "Not bad. That plan might actually work."
If he had attempted to use Planetary Devastation (Chibaku Tensei) directly on the Yellowstone caldera, it could have fractured the entire region worsening the eruption and potentially dooming humanity. But if he waited until the ash and molten debris had been pulled upward, he could safely condense it and launch it away without further damage.
Luthor turned to Captain Cold next. "What's the maximum output of your freezing cannon?"
Captain Ice grimaced. "It's powerful, but not omnipotent. It works by absorbing ambient moisture. In an arid volcanic environment like Yellowstone Caldera, its effectiveness is seriously reduced. Without water vapor, I can't form ice."
"I can summon rain," Shin said calmly. "With a torrential downpour, your weapon should reach full efficiency."
He could have used Ice Release ninjutsu himself, but the chakra cost to freeze a supervolcano would be enormous not to mention the possibility of still having to fight Superman. Caution was the wiser move.
Captain Cold's eyes lit up. "If you provide the moisture, then I can build a freezing cannon with enough power to cool down the outer layers of the volcano."
"Then let's not waste another second," Wonder Woman said, striking her shield. "Everyone, move! Stay alert for ambushes."
As the Ancient One summoned his portal, the group stepped through emerging into a scene straight from the apocalypse.
The sky was dark and churning with black ash. The earth beneath them groaned and cracked. Fire and magma gushed up from below, and the air was saturated with the heavy stink of sulfur.
Despite the name, Yellowstone Park didn't feature a traditional volcanic mountain. The entire plateau was the volcano. And now, at its heart, a cratered impact site burned red-hot, proof of the B41 nuclear warhead that had detonated only moments earlier.
Magma surged up through the ruined landscape. Thick plumes of smoke poured into the sky. The atmosphere shimmered with deadly heat.
Shin, Wonder Woman, and Shazam remained unaffected by the deadly heat and radiation. But the rest, Captain Cold, the Joker, and Green Arrow were already struggling to breathe.
Luthor immediately tossed each of them a small metal canister. "Take this. Advanced anti-radiation agents. Synthesized in my lab. Should give you at least temporary protection."
These weren't your average iodine tablets. They were high-grade Luthor-tech, developed to neutralize most radioactive particles at the molecular level. If even these failed, it would mean they were already dead from thermal shock.
Even mutants like Quicksilver and Scarlet Witch accepted the medicine without hesitation. Though their genetics gave them enhanced resistance, no one dared underestimate the destructive force of nuclear radiation.
Shazam stared curiously at the canister, then looked up at Luthor. "You sure this'll work?"
"You're a magical minor with divine powers," Luthor said, rolling his eyes. "If anyone doesn't need this, it's probably you. But take it anyway."
"Alright, alright," Shazam muttered, downing the pills.
Luthor crossed his arms. "Everyone in position. We've only got one shot at containing this. Superman's still out there. If he makes another move, it could all fall apart."
They all nodded grimly. The stakes were clear. The Yellowstone eruption had the potential to end life as they knew it.
And unless they acted quickly and precisely, it would.
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