Meanwhile, the world was in chaos.
For all humans all over the Earth, it looked like the end times promised in the book of Revelation had finally come.
Ironically, world destruction wasn't happening on just one earth.
Dark Multiverse
Earth -1
Rumble!
The ground under their feet trembled once again, causing everyone's expressions to harden.
From its initial state, the frequency had risen sharply. So much so that ten minutes later, it now shook every two minutes.
Earth -1 was collapsing. Yet, the heroes young and old could do nothing but listen as the League leaders of two different realities tried to come up with a solution.
".... Is there anything else?"
Bruce asked.
"That's ..... That's all I can tell you".
Clark replied helplessly.
Batman didn't reply. His posture as if thinking.
Time elapsed.
In this silence, until ….
"Alright … Have you figured out a solution?"
Wally West (-1) couldn't help but speak up what was on everyone's mind.
Unfortunately.
"No". Bruce replied curtly.
"Don't you mean not yet?"
"I mean not at all".
His words caused their hearts to sink.
"Before all this happened, the League was never prepared for such a situation. And even if we were, he would have destroyed the tools to achieve it".
Everyone knew who he was referring to.
Their recently deceased Superman who destroyed the Watchtower.
"Then that's it? We failed?"
"..... As much as I hate to admit it ... Yes".
Bruce uttered with clenched fists.
"... Wrong mate …".
A loud voice carrying a British accent fell into their ears.
It happened then.
Just when everyone was startled, a gold colored circular portal made of exquisite glyph symbols appeared not far away out of thin air.
A second later, two figures stepped out of it.
Blonde short hair, blue eyes and wearing a devil's trench coat.
The figure at the forefront was none other than the Infamous John Constantine.
"Well then ….". His gaze instantly scanned the group.
".... Where the bloody hell did these guys show up from?"
"John?" Batman turned, slightly surprised. "You died".
"Tell me something that's actually new". The Englishman replied apathetically.
As someone who dealt with demons, this wasn't his first rodeo with death itself. In Earth -1, the sorcerer had died twice. Even making it back in time for his own funeral the second time.
In such a situation, Constantine could describe it in four words.
'Been there, done that'.
Clark raised an eyebrow.
"Who is this guy?"
"You're telling me that you don't have a John Constantine in your reality?"
"Not really. At least, I've personally never heard of him. Is that a good or bad thing?"
"..". Bruce didn't reply at first.
"Well, It depends on how you view it. No offense John".
"None taken". The sorcerer didn't even bat an eyelid. Stopping a few feet away, his face took on a serious expression.
"From the way he speaks, I assume you aren't the mass murdering maniac aiming to maim us all?"
He uttered with his gaze lingering on Superman, before turning to The Dark Knight.
".... Our Clark is dead. They're allies". Bruce explained.
"Alright. Finally, some good news today".
"I wish it was". The Caped Crusader replied with an ugly expression. Clark had told him that the destruction of their world was due to the death of the person who wanted to destroy them all.
In that case, how could his death be considered good news?
".... Unfortunately. It's not going to matter in a few minutes".
"I've been informed". He uttered before taking a step to the side.
As a result, the man standing behind him instantly came into view.
"That's where he comes in".
Feeling everyone's gaze on him, The Phantom Stranger didn't react and remained silent.
At that moment, John Constantine turned around.
"Alright then Mr. Stranger. I've already agreed to your conditions. Now it's time to pull up your end of the bargain".
In response, John received a nod.
Following which, the Phantom Stranger's white eyes, previously obscured by his fedora began to glow.
A swirling vortex of mystical energy gathered at his fingertips and began to form spell runes in the air.
Powerful gusts of wind emerged, blowing in all directions.
"What's he doing?" Bruce asked solemnly.
".... You … all might want to step back for this one mate's".
John didn't answer Bruce's question. A golden magic circle emerged behind him which he walked right through without delay.
Seeing this, everyone else immediately followed.
The portal closed, and the group was teleported several miles away.
Meanwhile, The Phantom Stranger continued his actions unabated. With his palms opening wide, the magic runes grew infinitely larger and larger.
His cape billowed with the fierce winds as sand and dust were blown in all directions.
The Phantom Stranger stood tall, his eyes gleaming with determination as he began to chant the words of the ancient spell. The surrounding air began to swirl with an otherworldly energy, and the fabric of reality started to tremble.
"By the power of the cosmos, I call upon the forces of balance and order!"
As he spoke, a brilliant light burst forth from his outstretched hands, illuminating the desolate wasteland that was once Metropolis. The light spread, engulfing the entire world.
Far away, be it Superman, Constantine or the young heroes, everyone was forced to close their eyes for a split second due to the overwhelming light.
Eventually, it all receded. And when it did ….
"Holy freaking holy …".
The first thing Kidflash saw caused him to cuss subconsciously.
For the shock, he wasn't the only one.
"Are you all seeing this?"
It was no wonder. As presently, the destruction of the world was being undone.
Buildings rose from the rubble, their crumbling facades restoring themselves to their former glory. The streets, once littered with debris, became clean and pristine once more. The very earth itself began to heal, as if the wounds inflicted upon it were being sewn shut.
As they watched, the distorted reality began to unravel, restoring the city to its former glory.
"By the gods…" Diana whispered, awe-struck.
"What ..... What kind of magic is this?" Miss Martian asked, eyes wide.
"It's not magic kid". John cut in. "it's…reality manipulation. One on a cosmic scale".
John carried an expression similar to Batman at the moment. A grim one.
'Just what have I gotten myself into'.
He thought, resisting the urge to rub his hair in frustration.
A flash of light illuminated the skies. The Phantom Stranger disappeared on the spot, appearing right before the group of heroes.
"Your universe has been corrected," he stated, his voice devoid of emotion.
"Corrected?"
"Indeed". The Phantom Stranger continued, "All consequences of Your Earth's Kryptonian have been reversed. Those slain will be restored".
Constantine nodded, understanding in his eyes. "You've undone the damage."
"That was the deal John Constantine. Restoring to you all that you have lost. Friends and allies, enemies and adversaries. Both the good, and the bad. I have kept my end of the bargain".
Both the good, and the bad?
Constantine caught up with the last words. He wasn't the only one.
Bruce with a not so good looking expression decided to speak up.
"You're saying you brought everyone back?"
"Yes".
"Including villains?"
"Yes".
His face grew ugly for a split second.
He opened his mouth to speak, but Diana beat him to him.
"What about Superman?"
"... Your Superman's actions have consequences. To avoid a repeat, I took it upon myself to leave his end as it is. He will not return".
Batman turned to Constantine. "You understand the implications. We will have to deal with the fallout".
The Joker, Darkseid, Lex Luthor, Mr. Mind …. They would all return.
Constantine nodded. "Some demons can't be killed twice, Batman. But we'll resolve that later."
This had been a long day.
"... Alright then. Now that it's over, why don't you go ahead and tell us the consequences what you've done here will incur".
This time, the Stranger didn't respond.
"Hold on . What consequences? Isn't this it….". Wally West (-1) asked.
"... Not quite mate". He interrupted. ".. I don't expect you to know. Dimensional warping and similar shit isn't part of your job description. Even I'm not exactly sure what he has done ….".
His eyes never left the man before him as he spoke.
".... But things like this always come at a certain cost". He ended there, not bothering to elaborate deeper.
'Now I can only hope that the cost isn't something that'll immediately kill us all'.
At the moment, behind his straight facade was a worried heart and a troubled mind.
"The fate of your universe has been forcibly altered. Balance will need to be restored".
Phantom Stranger replied.
"Balance? What do you mean?"
"Every action elicits a reaction as a counterbalance. In response to what I have done, the universe will create changes however it sees fit. As for whether those changes are for better or worse, I cannot say. I can only advise you to prepare yourselves for a possible crisis .....".
His words halted.
"Oh my".
And this was followed by a long period of silence.
Seeing this, John raised an eyebrow.
"Oi, everything alright?"
It couldn't be helped. The Phantom Stranger's behavior was odd.
Clark and Bruce could see it.
The Phantom Stranger turned to look at Superman, Diana and the team behind them.
"Hey, why are you looking at us like that?"
"..". There was no response.
A bad feeling suddenly washed over the man of steel.
But before he could voice his doubts, The Phantom Stranger turned to the side, stretched out his arm and .....
A light blue portal appeared in the middle of nowhere.
".... If you want to save what's left of your world. Come with me …".
... Wait … What?
His words stunned everyone.
In their momentarily daze, the man had walked through the portal and disappeared.
"Clark, what is he? ….".
Wonder Woman turned and asked hesitantly.
".... I don't know. But I have a bad feeling about this".
His gaze shifted to Bruce beside them.
"Go. You've done enough for our word. Now go deal with whatever's happening on yours. We can take it from here".
Clark nodded. Following which, he flew through the portal with his cousin in his arms.
Superman left, the others naturally followed.
Batman was not surprised by this. He was, however, surprised when he saw Constantine going towards the portal as well.
"John?"
The man paused.
"Is it the deal?"
"I'm afraid so mate". The Englishman replied. "Our world's fixed. The guy's held up his part of the bargain. Time to hold up mine".
..... There was a moment of silence. Until …
"Alright. Take care of yourself".
Bruce didn't inquire any further.
The blonde-haired man turned around, his face sporting a shallow smile.
"Cheers mate". Then he turned back and walked towards the portal.
"Take care of Zatanna for me". Those were his last words before he disappeared. The portal automatically disappearing with him.
"Bruce". Wally called out hesitantly. "What …. Do we do now?"
".... Set our world straight". The Batman replied, "And prepare ourselves for whatever may follow".
Today, his worldview had been widened.
When accounting for everything he had experienced, Bruce never thought it was even possible.
He needed to prepare, make plans, and countermeasures.
The man in a bat suit tightened his fists unconsciously.
He would never let the tragedy his world had just experienced happened again.
Whatever crisis was coming, this time, he would be ready for it.
Or so he thought.
Meanwhile ..... Metropolis.
The city had literally been made new. Everything ad everyone that died in the past two years was brought back to life.
The giant crater that once occupied the land was gone and in its place, the bright, illustrious city that was Metropolis.
The Phantom Stranger's spell had done all this.
Unfortunately however, it has done more than what anyone bargained for.
As unbeknownst to everyone, in the sewers of the city beneath the earth, a figure stirred.
Finding himself within the restored underground cavern, the Batman who laughs opened his eyes.
"Hahaha hahaha Hahaha ..."
Wild laughter was released from his lips, a maniacal grin spreading across his face.
"That .... That .... Was .... Fun ....".
"Hahaha hahaha Hahaha ..."
And with that, the darkness began to stir, as the Batman who laughs started to laugh once more, his eerie chuckles echoing through the depths of the earth, a harbinger of chaos to come.
Bruce didn't know that for Earth -1 of the negative multiverse, the crisis had come. Much, much faster than anyone ever expected.
Meanwhile,
Earth 16 .....
.....
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