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Chapter 36 - chapter 16

In the midst of Metropolis, one of the biggest, and most up and coming tech companies was Starrwave industries. It had made waves over the last year and had put several key advances on the market. And it had been ahead of several of the trends which had been prominent in the sector which they were working in.

In a conference room area, a young woman with dark hair and blue eyes, dressed in a casual blouse and skirt combination, viewed the scene playing out. A battle between Superman and Doomsday took place. The young woman's eyes widened as she realized what happened.

"Karen, it's happening."

The door opened up a second later. A tall woman with shoulder length blonde hair, blue eyes, and buxom looking features turned up to join the other woman. Her eyes fell on the television screen and frowned.

The woman's name was Karen Starr, the CEO and namesake of Starrwave industries. And her attention locked on the screen and the battle caused her expression to go dire. Superman was in fact fighting Doomsday.

"Karen?" the woman asked.

"Thank you, Atlee," Karen said. "It's happening. The first battle. And Harry might be in trouble. Especially if he's here."

"You mean...Lex?"

The voice dropped a few decibels to pure silence. Karen answered with a somber nod and put her hand on Atlee's shoulder. Atlee relaxed ever so slightly for her.

"We know the deal he made," Karen said. "And what he did to my world."

Atlee swallowed and responded with a nod. Karen told all about it. While this Earth's version of Lex Luthor had not been without his critics, the Lex Luthor of Earth Two, well he had been something else entirely. Seconds passed before Atlee watched Karen leave out of the corner of her eye.

It was time. Time for what, she was not sure. Karen only told Atlee bits and pieces about what happened. And she did not know the entire picture.

X-X-X

Doomsday had been an unfeeling killing machine, not caring about what carnage he left in his path. And Harry realized that the monster was completely in charge. Any trace of the man, well he disappeared in an instant for some reason. Doomsday lunged at Superman intent to kill.

Superman blocked Doomsday's best assault and launched him high into the sky. The two zipped into the sky. Doomsday made his most honest attempt to stab at his enemy. Harry evaded the slashing moment and propelled the monster high into the air with an uppercut punch.

Doomsday slammed down onto the ground. Superman got him a bit away from civilization. However, Doomsday would find his way back and continue the rampage unless Superman stopped him.

"Come on!"

Superman fired a beam of energy from his hand and heat vision from his eyes. Doomsday screamed in agony for a second before picking up a large chunk of debris. He forced it against Superman's face for a second, but Superman headbutted through the debris and sent Doomsday crashing down to the ground.

The Man of Steel came up high and crashed down low with a thunderous smack. Doomsday's legs wobbled as he remained standing. Superman reared back and clipped Doomsday in the jaw with multiple punches.

A flying kick came down and caught Doomsday in the head. Doomsday staggered a few feet and spun around. Superwoman fluttered down to next to him.

"They've all been evacuated," Superwoman said. "And you knew I wasn't going to let you fight this alone."

Harry and Kara turned and fired beams of heat vision at Doomsday. A ring of fire surrounded the creature to keep him caged. Then Supergirl dropped down and fired her beams of light. Harry, Kara, and Kay caged the creature for a few seconds.

At least until Doomsday burst out of the fire, more dangerous than ever. The monster charged the trio of Kryptonians only to run into an Amazon. Diana hoisted Doomsday high off of the ground and planted the creature. The creature landed on its head and neck with a force which would kill most.

However, Doomsday came back up.

"Great, Hera," Diana murmured.

"My thoughts exactly," Kara said. "We need to…."

A winged blur came at Doomsday. Harry realized that it was an old friend. Shayera Hol, better known as Hawkgirl, and she introduced the mace straight into the chest, face, and head of the creature. Each swing with that ever present mace cracked Doomsday and sent the creature staggering back.

"Come on!" Hawkgirl yelled.

Hawkgirl swung back the mace and cracked the creature. Blood spurted from the creature. Doomsday howled in agony and picked up a large van. He hurled it at the heroes with all of his might.

Then a bleeding Doomsday turned around and rushed off.

"Your mace damaged him," Diana said.

"Not enough though," Harry responded. "Sadly, not enough."

The fleeing Doomsday disappeared into the night, but left Harry enough data to send back to the Fortress. And a trail to follow for the inevitable battle.

X-X-X

The mace rattled Doomsday more than anything else. However, it was not enough.

"The Nth Metal made by the Thanagarian's mace did disrupt the monster," Selena reported back to the Fortress. "It disrupted some of his healing factor, but it won't be enough. You need to shut him down once and for all. And you were on the right track."

Harry heard no more screams, which put an uneasy chill into his body. Doomsday had self preservation which was a nasty trait for one so destruction.

"I must warn you, it's not pleasant what has to be done."

Harry figured that much, but he would not let that deter him.

"Just tell me what I have to do and I'll do it."

"The Genesis Blade is the start," Selena said. "But, you are going to have to channel a potentially lethal amount of magic through yourself. More than anyone could safely challenge. It will be enough to eradicate Doomsday. But this amount of magic comes at a price."

"Yes," Harry said. "I know."

"Is there any other way?" Kara asked.

"I wish there was," Selena said.

"Everything will be okay," Harry said.

"But she just said..."

Harry turned to Kara and the rest of the group. He could sense the worry in Kara and Kay, and while Diana and Shayera did a better job in concealing their concern, there was a lot there as well. Which Harry appreciated, but he was not going to let this get in his way of getting done what needed to be done.

"I appreciate it, I really do," Harry said. "But, the alternative is countless deaths. We can't afford that. And everything will work out."

"He knows what he's doing," Shayera said. "He has a plan. I say we follow his lead."

"Make sure you keep that mace in hand," Harry said.

Shayera nodded. It did damage the monster, although it did not damage it enough. That was concerning.

"We'll be with you," Diana said.

"Always," Kara said.

"Stand back when I give the signal," Harry said. "I mean it. It could get ugly."

It would get ugly, Harry would be lying if he did not have a fair amount of concern with what he was doing right now. The trail of blood got fresher and he could hear some panicked sounds. Doomsday was back in the wild and back causing destruction. Time ran out for them, but not if Harry could fix this.

He would fix this. Big time. Harry took flight. Supergirl, Superwoman, Hawkgirl, and Wonder Woman all followed his lead.

X-X-X

A group of civilians strayed past the barricade, a mistake which they might live long enough to regret. Doomsday stalked them, and terror spread through the faces of everyone as they backed off.

Superman came back into the picture. The moment Doomsday caught sight of that symbol, he rose up. Just in time for Superman to propel Doomsday away from the people with a huge burst of super breath. Doomsday lifted off the ground and dropped down, legs almost crumpling underneath him as he landed on the ground.

"Did you think we were done?"

Doomsday charged Superman. Both punched at each other. Superman put some energy into the punches. He had to set Doomsday up for the kill, or this gambit was worthless.

From the sky, came another figure. Dressed in a form fitting white outfit with a very prominent cleavage window in her uniform. Her lucious toned legs were on display, with blue gloves, boots, and cape. Her short-blonde hair and blue eyes gave her a stunning expression. She looked like a more mature version of Kara.

"Stand back!"

She lifted a hand and sent a disc through the air. The disc connected with Doomsday and caged the creature.

Superwoman dropped down, eyes widened for a second. She gazed upon this mysterious new woman, as if trying to figure out who she was.

"The name's Power Girl," she responded. "And I'm…."

Doomsday broke through the cage. Power Girl looked at him, eyes widened.

"I don't understand. That should have worked."

"Stand back!" Harry yelled.

Harry finally had Doomsday in position. He knocked the creature into the crater in the straight with a furiously huge punch. One extraction of the Genesis blade and Harry channeled the magic that he could. Even as every nerve ending in his body rippled in pain, he had to do this.

Doomsday almost jumped up into the air. Superman turned and plunged the blade into the monster's chest. Superman's entire body glowed and crackled with energy. The force of power erupted through his entire body with Doomsday cracking into pieces.

"Just a little bit more!"

The glowing dome around the area caged them in. Superman did precisely everything possible to protect them. The rattling of the magic echoed.

Doomsday slammed down onto the ground. The area resembled a miniature nuclear explosion going off, with Superman plunging Doomsday deep into the hole with an extremely violent attack. Energy waves crackled around them.

X-X-X

"Superman!"

Power Girl called through the dust and the debris. Supergirl and Superwoman stood on either side of her.

Kara could not see what was going on. The magic had blocked any attempt to get a fix on her. Was Harry still down there? Was Doomsday? Kara did not like the answers. Her hand trembled, frustration picking up.

A large pile of debris covered where Doomsday and Harry fight. Power Girl flew over, along with Supergirl and Superwoman. The trio of women were on the same wavelength, as they dug through the debris.

The lack of heartbeat increased Kara's frantic thoughts.

"He's got to be in here!" Kay yelled.

Finally, they saw Harry's broken, battered body lying at the bottom of the crater. No Doomsday, but Harry laid. Kara leaned in and listened and checked for signs of life.

"Nothing," Kara said. "Damn it, you said everything was okay."

"C-calm down," Kay said. "Oh, Rao, this is…"

"No, we can still..we can still save him," Kara said. "We just got to get him back the Fortress."

"There's no time, he's gone," Karen said. "And we're...we're doomed."

A whirling of a helicopter came down. The trio of Kryptonian women gazed up just in time to view the helicopter drop down and with it, Lena Luthor coming out. Lena looked positively grim.

"There's still a chance, but we must hurry," Lena said.

"You can get him to the Fortress?" Kara asked.

Lena shook her head. "No, not the Fortress. Somewhere else. But we better hurry."

X-X-X

Lena's helicopter flew to Nanda Parbat. Strapped to a gurney, carried by the trio of Superwoman, Supergirl, and Power Girl, was Harry. They touched down as close as they could. Lena got off the helicopter, and hung on tightly to the gurney while they flew up to the mountain.

None of them spoke a single word when they arrived. They were afraid to break the silence of the moment. Kara had to keep her focus and stop from trembling and dropping the gurney with her cousin on it.

The moment they touched down outside of the temple, Talia had been waiting for them. Power Girl just frowned for a second.

"You...have no idea if that can even work," Power Girl told Lena.

"It's better than leaving him dead. None of us want that."

"Anything," Kara said. "Anything but that."

Talia walked over and made slow, confident strides when moving over to the gurney which Harry rested on. She laid a single hand on it, with a frown on her face.

"So the rumors were true," Talia said. "This is the beginning of the coming of Darkness."

Talia turned to a priestess who stood awaiting orders.

"Prep the pit," Talia said.

"At once."

Another woman walked outside. Dark hair, deadly, gorgeous, with startling green eyes, just like Talia's. She looked from Harry to Talia for a long moment.

"My sister, Nyssa," Talia said. "What is it?"

"We have no idea what will happen when someone of non-Earthly origin enters the pit,' Nyssa said.

"Yes," Talia agreed. "But, I believe the Pit will give him the spark needed. And it will only be for a minute."

The entire group walked into the temple. A pit of mystical glowing green waters had been ready.

"Strap him in," Talia said. "And lower him."

The guards, with the help of the trio of blonde Kryptonians, strapped Harry into the structure, leading him into the pit. Kara held on her cousin's hand briefly before pulling it away. Slowly, Harry had been lowered down.

Every grind of the chain as Harry lowered into the pit, was agony for Kara. She waited for this mystical bath to do something, but Harry would have to get there. Lena walked over to Kara and wrapped an arm around her, pulling her in tight.

"It will be okay," Lena said.

"Will it?" Kara asked.

Lena had no answer. They all watched Harry be lowered into the mystical pit. The pit bubbled and glowed when he lowed into it.

"He should rise momentarily," Talia said.

And yet, when Harry did not rise, even Talia showed a fair amount of concern. Time passed. Each agonizing second grinded by. Nyssa looked at her sister, as if trying to tell her something.

"I feel it," Talia said. "Pull him up."

They pulled the gurney of a still immobile Harry. Kara still could not hear the heartbeat. Harry was not resurrected at all and that put Kara in a very dour mood.

Suddenly, a warm energy filled the temple. Then, magical energy coursed through Harry's body. Every inch of his body twitched through him.

Then, much to the horror of a few, Harry burst into flames and burned to a crisp before their very eyes.

"What happened?" Kara demanded as she hoisted Talia up.

"Kara, wait?" Lena asked.

"Like a phoenix, he rises from the ashes," the priestess pointed out.

Sure enough, from the ashes, Harry's body reformed. Rebirthed to full physical peak without any injuries. And then his heart started beating again and his eyes glowed for a second. And then his breathing grew shallow.

"Told you everything would turn out alright," Harry rasped.

Kara leaned over with a frown and put her hand on Harry's head. "That's a matter of speaking. But, I'm glad you're alive."

"Thank you," Harry said. "Me too. Although I'm still feeling it and I can barely move."

"It will take some time before your body recharges," Talia said.

Kara figured she better contact the Fortress. Especially given Harry went into the mad move and lost all contact with them.

X-X-X

Lara arrived at Nanda Parbat, along with Astra, and Alura even came from Argo. The three of them did a detailed scan on Harry. Kara waited outside, along with Kay, and Power Girl. And Lena had disappeared to talk to Nyssa and Talia about something. Kara respected Lena's privacy by not listening in on the conversation, no matter how curious she got to what they were talking about.

Kara looked up to see her aunts and mother return. Lara moved over and wrapped Kara up in a comforting hug.

"He'll be okay," Lara said. "Physically. Although, I'm not sure the toll that dying and being ressurected will be on him entally."

"He will survive."

Talia stepped out of the room, with Lena and Nyssa following. The trio walked over to the assembled Kryptonian women.

"Yes," Nyssa agreed. "Although he is on a journey. His strength allowed him to come back. Although, I can see that he had many reasons. The support of his loved ones. That makes more of a difference."

"The Lazarus Pit can warp a person," Talia said. "Especially if they use it for selfish means. My father he used it to the point of madness. It was a sad day when I had to put him down like a dog."

The casual way Talia talked about that made Kay shudder ever so slightly. She turned around and came face to chest with the newest Kryptonian out there.

"You're kind of like Kara, but...um different," Kay said.

"Yeah, my hair's much shorter," Power Girl joked, in an attempt to lighten the mood. "Okay, sorry...when I was gone, I made sure that not a single piece of Doomsday was out there. While Har...Superman vaporized him, we can't take any chances."

"Right," Kara said. "So, what's your deal?"

Power Girl just smiled. She figured that was a conversation that was coming. It was not going to be a pleasant story, but the conversation needed to be had.

"I suppose I owe you an explanation. And the truth was, Doomsday forced me out into the opening much sooner than I thought I was going to be here."

Power Girl looked her counterpart straight in the eye.

"It's a long story, but given Harry's recovering, we've got time," Power Girl said.

"Plenty," Kara confirmed.

Kara's interest had been piqued by this mysterious woman and she wanted to know more.