LOOTING DC #27. You Guessed It.
He didn't need to keep the boy pinned for long.
By the time Superman finished recounting what had happened all those years ago, Damien wasn't just listening - he was locked in.
No. More than that. He was invested.
Wait-
He was also worried.
Then relieved.
Then worried again.
"So, if Grandpa didn't choose The Orphan after me…" Damien trailed off, piecing it together as he looked to Superman. "Then that means…"
"Roy."
The name landed like a weight. Heavy. Unwanted.
He connected the dots he didn't want to believe.
"We need to stop him before he does something we all regret," Damien said, urgency flaring in his voice.
Then the entire hall pulsed - once, twice - before bursting into a bloody red glow.
"How did he-?" Superman started, eyes narrowing-
-but he cut himself off as the first crack split through the air.
Not good.
In a blur, Superman launched himself past Damien, shattering through the wall and the next, accelerating with every structure he punched through.
Damien stood frozen for a heartbeat. Processing. And suddenly, he understood why Batman had always made him secretly carry Kryptonite.
But he didn't have time to dwell.
His jaw tightened. He grabbed his batons, checked the weight of his sword, and muttered, "That way, then."
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Artemis couldn't believe what she was watching.
Since when-
When did he-
She swore she beat that guy!
How the hell was he keeping up with Wonder Woman?!
RAAAMMMM!
Their fists clashed again. The shockwave split the air down the middle - and nearly took her face with it.
That… that shouldn't be possible.
That kind of force should've vaporized him. But there he was - already winding up for another swing.
How?!
She beat him. Easily.
Had he been faking the whole time?
She'd buried arrows in him - now he was dancing around Wonder Woman's blade, playing with her Lasso like it was a skipping rope, and dodging her charged strikes like a leaf in a thunderstorm.
Who the hell was the Spider?
Meanwhile, The Spider in question - Jake - was having the time of his life.
Adrenaline was a drug, and right now, he was overdosing. Wonder Woman wasn't just tough - she was fun. She wouldn't break easy, and that made him punch harder.
And that?
That felt good.
Problem was, the fight was escalating.
She was starting to lose her patience.
And from Jake's Spider-Sense tingling like mad, that wasn't a good sign.
His intuitive WOL Combat profile confirmed it:
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W-O-L Combat Profile
Name: Diana Prince
Alias: Wonder Woman
Skills: Superior Hand-to-Hand Combatant, Tactical Combat Precision, Adaptive Reflexes, Pressure Point Targeting, Exotic Martial Arts
Weapons & Equipment: Lasso of Truth, Indestructible Bracers, Sword and Shield
Special Abilities: Flight, Superhuman Strength, Enhanced Perception, Divine Aura
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The Divine Aura wasn't really awakened. It was the threat of something clawing its way to the surface. A danger his Spider-sense was warning him about - whatever it was… he wasn't ready for it.
She looked on the verge of cracking. Irritated. Rattled. Not from Jake. But from herself. Like something was chewing its way up from inside.
The Lasso caught web again. Both pulled. And clashed.
BOOM!
The shockwave swept Artemis clean off her feet.
Jake swallowed the pain with a half-grin:
"You look distressed."
"Guilt finally catching up with the expression... Or is it something else?" he added, eyes narrowing.
She grunted. Forced them apart.
The ground shook again.
Artemis stumbled.
Jake and Diana didn't even flinch.
"This has gone too far," Wonder Woman said, lowering in the air slightly.
Her voice was calm. Too calm. Cracked-glass calm. "What have I become?"
Jake's expression shifted.
No.
No.
No.
This was already fun. She couldn't renounce all her bad decisions now. That would ruin the fight.
"This isn't what I fight for," Wonder Woman said.
"Hurting those I'm meant to protect."
Jake moved before she could say more.
"You already crossed that line. You can't uncross it," he snapped, launching a kick.
She caught it effortlessly. Didn't counter or even try to capitalize.
"I am Diana. Princess of Themyscira. Sister to the Amazons," she said- not to him, but to herself.
Jake didn't give her the moment. He fired webs. She dodged, shielded, sliced - like a warrior shaking off rust. Like a warrior reawakening.
"I fight for Truth and Justice," she declared, cracking the Lasso like a whip. It snapped out, coiled back to her hip, fluid as breath.
Sheathed her sword. Already predicting his next move, like she had her own Spider-Sense.
"Nothing will stop me from doing what's right."
Jake curved his web like a trick pitch - fast and unpredictable.
"I. Am. Wonder Woman," she said, and something rekindled.
Hands up. Palms open. Ready.
PWAH! PWAH! PWAH! BRRUUUUKTTTT!!!
The ground split between them - eager, like it couldn't wait to reveal something worse.
Jake's webline snapped off-course in the quake. Before Wonder Woman could grab it, he latched onto Artemis and held tight as the earth heaved, trying to throw them into the carving cavern below.
The whole island was cracking - splitting apart like it was scaling into something catastrophic.
Jake glanced across the fissure.
Wonder Woman stood on the other side - warrior pose still intact. She looked like she was planning something.
Had she caused this?
'What beast did I just awaken?' Jake wondered with a mix of fear and anticipation.
He felt Artemis' body suddenly become heavier in his grasp. He glanced at her.
"Artemis?"
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The girl behind the reinforced glass, floating in amber light, didn't move.
Roy didn't either.
She couldn't see him - at least, he didn't think so - but he just stood there. Watching.
The pod was suspended by coils and braces thick enough to anchor a warhead. Arcane seals shimmered beneath it, pulsing red and green like they were trying to hold her heartbeat down.
She didn't look like a threat.
She looked like a dream he'd buried.
Legs curled, fingers twitching, breath steady in that eerie rhythm. Every few seconds, her skin flickered gold, then dimmed - like her body couldn't decide if it wanted to be divine or dormant.
She had her mother's eyes.
Sharp. Defiant. Even closed.
But the jaw was his. So was the nose. And that little wrinkle between her brows.
She was two.
He moved closer, one hand brushing the glass.
"Hey, Little Arrow…"
His voice cracked.
She smiled in her sleep. Just a little.
It broke him.
Then he saw it.
A mark on her neck.
A brand.
Black. Shaped like a dragon.
His stomach twisted.
"…No."
He pressed his forehead to the glass.
"No, no - damn you. DAMN YOU."
His fist curled tight. His voice shook.
"What did you do to my daughter?"
He made a promise then. One he'd made long before this moment.
"I'll fix this. I swear it. She won't carry your curse. I will."
Her hand twitched again, reaching in sleep.
It would be okay.
He was here now.
He'd finally met his daughter.
And then the world shattered.
CRASH.
Concrete exploded. A thunderclap tore through the chamber as Superman burst in, eyes blazing.
"HOW DID YOU FIND THIS PLACE?!"
Roy didn't answer.
Superman lunged - not to speak.
To stop him.
But Roy moved faster. From his coat, he drew a worn metal case. Flipped it open.
Green light filled the room.
Superman dropped, gasping as Kryptonite burned through his momentum.
"You think you could keep her buried forever?!" Roy shouted. "Call her a hazard and sleep at night?!"
"She's not stable," Superman choked. "Your presence is making it worse-"
Roy pointed at the pod, shaking with fury.
"She's a little girl."
"She's sinking the island," Superman growled. "She'll take a country if we don't-"
"Don't what?!" Roy interrupted. "Haven't you done enough?"
Superman hesitated.
Roy stepped forward, voice raw. "You didn't even tell me she existed."
"We were trying to protect her."
"No. You were protecting yourselves."
"Roy!"
Damian dropped into the breach, cape fluttering.
"You need to listen."
Roy turned, betrayal written in his eyes.
"You too?"
Damian was calm. "I'm not taking sides. I'm trying to stop a disaster."
"I don't care about your protocols," Roy snapped. "I'm not letting anyone cage her again."
Lian chuckled softly.
The ground rumbled. The pod cracked.
Damian stepped closer.
"I know you're angry. But Superman's telling the truth-"
"Stop calling him that," Roy hissed. "He left a child in a box."
"She's causing fissures and cracks," Damien emphasized. "The island is destabilizing."
Silence.
Roy leaned in, voice colder now.
"It's a pity your grandfather still thinks you're his heir…"
Damian tensed.
Roy sneered.
"At least he owns what he is."
He took a step back.
"You're just like them."
His free hand found the containment glass. It exploded a beat later.
...
Oolong Island collapsed.
Streak? Day 1/10
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