Gotham City.
A city perpetually trapped between shadow and flame.
In one of its darker corners—where the streetlights flickered weakly against the thick curtain of fog—two figures faced each other.
> "Batman, I've heard your reputation."
The voice was cold, commanding, echoing faintly through the alley. Fully armed and unflinching, Diana stood opposite the caped vigilante himself, her expression carved from steel. The faint gleam of her armor caught the dying light, painting her in gold and crimson against the soot-stained skyline.
> "But this is something you have no right to interfere in."
> "I can't just stand by while people like you wreak havoc in Gotham—destroying this city at will!"
The deep, gravel-rough voice came from above. Batman stood poised on a ledge like a statue of judgment, the wind tugging at his cape. His gaze was unwavering, sharp enough to cut through the darkness.
> "Even if that person is you, Wonder Woman."
> "Then go tell that to Homelander," Diana replied evenly, tilting her chin up toward him.
"All I want is for him to return what's mine. If he does that, nothing will happen. But you and I both know—he won't. Will he?"
The name hung in the air like a spark waiting to ignite an explosion.
Batman didn't answer. He couldn't. Beneath the mask, his jaw tightened, a shadow of conflict crossing his face. She was right, and both of them knew it.
> "So I'll handle this in my own way," Diana said quietly, though her tone carried the weight of thunder.
"You can't stop me."
> "She's right, Batman. You can't."
The new voice sliced through the night—smooth, mocking, and unmistakably amused.
Both of them turned.
And there he was.
Standing at the far end of the street, framed by flickering light and drifting ash, Homelander appeared like a phantom stepping through reality itself. His presence seemed to distort the air around him, power leaking off his body like invisible heat.
> "Homelander," Diana said, her voice steady though her pulse quickened. "Return the Lasso of Truth to me. Don't make me treat you as an enemy."
> "That's my trophy," Alex said with a faint, dangerous smile curling across his lips.
"And you think you can just ask for it back? Do you really think the world works that easily?"
As he spoke, his eyes swept over her, measuring, calculating.
Hmm. Fully armed tonight.
The Starlight Tiara gleamed faintly beneath the streetlight, while the Godfire Sword shimmered with an inner flame that pulsed like a heartbeat. Her Silver Bracelets caught his attention next—still untouched, as always.
Too bad. Those would be nearly impossible to take. He didn't even know how to remove them.
Even if he guessed, brute force probably wasn't the answer.
No Golden Eagle Armor, no shield either. The last one he'd shattered into a thousand pieces. She hadn't replaced it yet.
So tonight, her valuables were down to just two—the tiara and the sword.
Only two.
Still, not a bad deal. The Lasso alone had earned him two thousand Source Points. These two… yes, they'd probably fetch the same.
Another several thousand points—easy money.
> "Homelander, you've left me no choice!"
Diana's voice sharpened, her fury finally breaking through.
She lunged forward, divine power flaring like a sunrise.
Whoosh!
The sound split the air. The shockwave of her motion cracked the pavement beneath her feet.
Boom!
But before she even reached him, another sound answered hers—a low, rolling concussion that shook the street.
Alex had already moved. One instant he was standing still; the next, he was in front of her.
Her eyes widened.
She didn't even see him move.
The Godfire Sword came down in a blazing arc of divine flame, slicing through the air—
—and stopped dead.
The world seemed to freeze.
A single hand had caught it.
Alex's hand.
> "What—?!"
Diana's pupils contracted, disbelief flooding her face. The sword—a weapon forged by the gods themselves—was trapped effortlessly in his grasp.
Impossible. It couldn't be.
Yet there it was. His skin unmarked, his expression almost bored.
> "What a fine sword," Alex murmured, twisting the hilt from her grasp with casual strength.
She tried to resist, but it was like wrestling a mountain. In one motion, he stripped the weapon from her hands.
The difference in power was terrifying—an unbridgeable gulf.
And in that instant, she realized she had already lost.
> "Your body… how could it be this strong?! That's impossible!"
Her voice trembled despite herself. She looked down at his hand again—still flawless. Not even scorched.
The truth hit her like lightning.
He wasn't just strong. He was beyond her.
> "That's another fine addition," Alex said lightly, testing the sword's weight.
A familiar chime echoed in his mind.
[Ding! +2000 Source Points.]
His grin deepened.
> "And that," he said, pointing toward her forehead, "looks pretty good too."
Diana's heart dropped.
Her tiara.
If he took that too, she'd have nothing left but the bracelets.
> "Homelander, your greed knows no bounds!"
Her anger finally erupted.
Boom!
The street split beneath her feet as she surged forward again, her divine aura igniting like wildfire.
But Alex didn't even bother responding.
He simply vanished—disappearing into a blur of movement so fast it defied the eye.
Diana's instincts screamed too late. A flicker of light, a breath of wind—
Bang!
The hit landed like a meteor strike.
Pain exploded through her chest. The force hurled her backward, through the air, smashing her into the asphalt with earth-shaking violence.
> "What… what is this power!?"
Her mind spun. Her lungs burned.
This speed—this strength—she couldn't even comprehend it. It wasn't human. It wasn't divine. It was something else entirely.
And then she felt it—an absence.
Something was gone.
Her hand flew to her forehead.
No.
Her Starlight Tiara was missing.
Boom!
She hit the ground, carving a crater into the street. Smoke and dust billowed around her like the remnants of a fallen star.
From above, a shadow descended.
> "Wonder Woman… was this fragile all along?"
Batman's voice carried disbelief. Even he, who had seen Alex's power firsthand, hadn't expected this.
That was Wonder Woman—a demigoddess born of Olympus—and she had been dismantled in seconds.
If he hadn't seen it with his own eyes, he would never have believed it.
> "Diana," Alex said smoothly, the Godfire Sword glinting in one hand and the Starlight Tiara spinning between his fingers, "you're welcome to come back for them anytime."
> "Homelander… you've truly angered me!"
Diana's voice trembled with rage, divine energy crackling faintly in the air around her.
> "Is that so?" Alex asked with a lazy chuckle.
"Then tell me—what can you do to me?"
He spread his arms wide, his grin widening—casual, confident, unstoppable.
The kind of arrogance that didn't just provoke anger—it inspired fear.
Even a demigoddess felt small beneath it.p
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