2008 - Smallville, Kansas - Kent Farm - Clark's Barn Loft
A heavily armored muscular man with a big glowing axe is swinging it, destroying everything in his path.
I was alerted by Kelex that there was a disturbance. I flew to the outside of the barn.
"SHAZAM!" I exclaimed, transforming into my Superman costume. The costume resembled the Batman V Superman movie costume with more detailed gauntlets and boots. A lightning symbol was on the belt to represent the powers of Shazam.
I entered the barn, rushing the figure, grabbing the axe from his hands and breaking it over my knee. I melted the axe with my heat vision and used my arctic breath to cool the puddle of metal.
I heard the noise of a portal opening and saw a purple flash. Three individuals emerged from the portal.
I grabbed the maniac who was formerly wielding an axe by the throat and lifted him off the ground.
"Look what you did to my barn!" I yelled. "I don't care if you tried to kill me, but do you realize how long this will take to repair? It's a waste of my time. I'm a very busy person!"
I knocked him out and turned to the three new arrivals. From the left to the right was a blonde woman wearing a red leather outfit, a tall man dressed in black, and a redheaded guy dressed in a blue leather jacket with lightning marks along the lapel along with matching blue leather pants.
"Let me guess," I said to the new arrivals, "From the sound and color of the portal, that was a time portal. From your sense of fashion, you must be from another time period. Add that together, and you're from the future. Perhaps you were pursuing this individual?" I asked while kicking the man on the ground.
The three of them looked shocked.
The man in the middle dressed in black answered, "Yes, Kal-El. We were pursuing this man. But now that you've incapacitated him, we can take him off your hands."
"Just like that?" I asked. "No introductions? No further explanations as to why someone is attempting to kill me by traveling to the past?"
The man looked hesitant, then sighed, "I'm Rokk, also known as Cosmic Boy. This is Imra, also known as Saturn Girl. And this is Garth, also known as Lightning Lad. We are from the Legion of Super-Heroes from the 31st Century. We were pursuing this man named The Persuader who is part of a human supremacist movement. He traveled back in time to kill you Kal-El."
I laughed, "I find that highly unlikely. If he traveled back to kill me, why would he come back at this point and not much earlier? A guy of this caliber couldn't have even killed me at the age of 14 much less now."
Rokk looked uncertain and then said, "Yes, I think you're right. This is a strange time period to travel to. He should have chosen a time where you are much weaker."
Garth excitedly said, "He's so much cooler than the holovids says! Look at his costume, it's amazing!"
Imra scoffed, "Calm down, Garth." Then, she smiled. "I have to agree. You're much more impressive than history states."
I smiled, "Thank you. Imra, I think it's time for you to use your telepathic abilities to navigate Persuader's mind to determine what his plan was."
Imra looked surprised that I knew her ability, but just nodded, "Affirmative."
She placed her hands to the unconscious man's head and scanned his mind. After a short while she frowned.
Imra said, "He was here to destroy the Phantom Zone crystal of Kal-El's to prevent Brainiac from being extracted from his human host's body."
I cocked my eyebrow and said, "Well, it's a good thing I don't keep sensitive alien technology on this farm. Besides, it seems history needs a rewrite… I've already neutralized Brainiac."
Rokk took off Persuader's Legion ring and said, "Goodbye poser." Persuader disappeared in a flash of purple light, returning to his time period.
Rokk said, "No, you haven't neutralized Brainiac, Kal-El. He's still alive."
I smiled, "Ok. I'll prove it to you. Come with me to my Fortress, and I'll show you."
Garth looked positively giddy, "Awesome! We get to go to his Fortress!"
"Hold hands with each other." I demanded.
They looked confused, but followed my instruction. I placed my hand on Rokk's right shoulder, then teleported us to the Rock of Eternity, then back to the Fortress.
Garth yelled, "Wow! What the heck was that!? How did you do that!?"
I said, "I have powers beyond those of my Kryptonian heritage. I am currently the wielder of the powers of Shazam. Earth's champion of magic."
They looked stunned.
"This definitely wasn't in the history books. You seem to be much more powerful than we have recorded." Rokk said.
"Yes, something like this should have been recorded. Nearly every thing about his powers has been documented. But nothing beyond his Kryptonian abilities has been mentioned." Imra said.
"I'm not going to complain! He's so much better than we knew! Hey Kal, can you train me a little before I go back? Or maybe you'd be up for a spar? How can we leave without getting a lesson from the greatest superhero in history!?" Garth rambled.
"Sure, kid. I'd be happy to help you in any way I can. But first, let's deal with Brainiac." I said.
"So, where are his remains?" Rokk asked.
"I'll show him to you, but I need you to immediately take action when I release Brainiac from his confinement. Garth and Rokk, you will need to sync your attacks to deliver an EMP to disable him. He won't be down for long, so while he's down, I want Garth to shock him while Rokk uses his metal manipulation in a fine-tuned manner to extract all of his nanites, lifting them into the air and turning them into a giant metal ball. After that, you will take him into the future to reprogram him into something useful." I explained. "Is everyone okay with the plan?"
Garth looked flummoxed, "Kal-El is even more amazing! He has such a strategic mind!"
Rokk looked contemplative, "I've never used my powers in such a controlled way. I don't know if I can do it, but I'll give it a try."
I sagely responded, "No. Try not. Do...or do not, there is no try."
They smiled at my sage wisdom.
"I'll deliver the first attack. Then, you can proceed with the plan. Are you ready to take down Brainiac?" I asked.
Garth shouted, "Yes! Let's do it!"
The other two simply said yes.
"Jor-El!" I yelled. "Please release Brainiac from his confinement. The Legion of Super-Heroes from the 31st century is here to disable him, then take him to the future to reprogram him."
"Very well, my son." Jor-El responded.
A crystal cage rose from the ground that contained Brainiac. The crystal receded then shattered, releasing Brainiac. Brainiac quickly awoke and stared at me.
"Well, it looks like you've finally decided to take me out of my time-out. What is it you need, Kal-El? Do you still think I will change my ways? You are so naive. You act more and more like those silly humans you insist on protecting." Brainiac taunted.
"I only have one word to say to you." I said.
Brainiac smirked, "Oh, and what's that?"
I rushed forward faster than he could react and grabbed him from behind, "SHAZAM!"
A lightning bolt struck Brainiac knocking him to the ground.
"Now!" I commanded.
Garth and Rokk used their EMP attack ensuring Brainiac was down for the count.
"Get ready for a techno exorcism!" Garth exclaimed.
He held his hands up and began a charge running through Brainiac, disrupting Brainiac's body's control over his nanites. Rokk raised his hands and began manipulating Brainiac's nanites, he pulled them into the air, disassembling Brainiac piece by piece until his bodily form was gone and all that remained was a shining metal ball.
"Yes, we did it!" Garth yelled.
"Good job, you guys. I'm impressed by the control of your powers." I complimented.
"Are you kidding me!?" Garth said. "You hit that dude with a lightning bolt! That's insane! My powers are over electricity and that bolt puts my powers to shame!"
"I can show you more later, but can you first take Brainiac back to the future to be reprogrammed? I don't want to risk him escaping or infecting anyone. He's highly unpredictable." I cautioned.
"Okay, Kal." Rokk said. "We will be on our way. We can come back after reprogramming Brainiac. But before we go, take this." He passed me a Legion Flight Ring. "Since you appear to have mastered flight, the flight capabilities have been left enabled. If you prefer to rely on the ring instead of your personal energies, it can save you energy. I know you rely on the yellow sun, so this ring can help you if you're running low on a solar charge."
"Thank you for coming to ensure my safety. Good luck reprogramming Brainiac. If you ever need my help, please don't hesitate to call me. At the risk of sounding cocky, trust me when I say there are very few threats that exist even in your timeframe that can stop me." I said.
They smiled and nodded.
Rokk said, "We'll be sure to keep that in mind."
All three of them got in a triangle pattern positioning and held their rings in the air and said, "Long live the Legion!" and disappeared in a purple flash of light.