The skies burned with an ominous red as the planet's core destabilized, shaking the ground violently. Buildings crumbled under the immense pressure, their crystalline spires falling like glass rain. Panic filled the air as citizens moved around like headless chickens, their faces twisted in fear and despair.
In the heart of this chaos, Jor-El sprinted through the collapsing corridors of the Kryptonian Science Council Building. The Codex—a glowing, crystal artifact containing the genetic essence of Krypton's people—was tightly clutched in his hands. His white ceremonial robes were singed, and his face bore the marks of a desperate man who carried the weight of an entire civilization.
"Jor-El!" Lara's voice crackled over his communicator. "Have you secured the Codex?"
"Yes," he panted, ducking as a chunk of ceiling crashed behind him. "But Zod's forces are closing in. There's no time to lose."
Ahead of him, a detachment of Zod's elite soldiers emerged from the smoke, their weapons trained on him. "Surrender the Codex, Jor-El!" one of them barked. "General Zod demands it!"
Jor-El's eyes narrowed. He tapped his wrist console, activating a defensive drone that unleashed a barrage of energy pulses, forcing the soldiers into cover. Using the distraction, without looking he darted into a nearby laboratory—one of the council's most secretive experimental chambers.
The chamber was a chaotic mess of shattered equipment and glowing consoles. In the center stood a teleportation device, its angular frame buzzing with unstable energy. It was a prototype meant to explore the theoretical boundaries of space-time—a project deemed too dangerous for public use.
Jor-El's attention snapped back as the lab doors exploded inward. Zod's soldiers stormed in, blasting at anything that moved. Diving for cover, Jor-El gritted his teeth. There was no escape now.
As shots were being fired over Jor-el's head, he began lamenting the fact that he most likely wouldn't be able to send the codex off with his son, Kal-el, in hopes that he would one day restore Krypton's people on a planet that wasn't collapsing. Suddenly, a stray blast struck the teleportation device's control panel next to him, causing it to spark and overload. The machine began to hum ominously, its energy field growing wild and erratic.
"Jor-El!" Zod's voice boomed as the general himself stepped into the room. His imposing figure, clad in dark battle armor, radiated fury. "You cannot save Krypton. Hand over the Codex, and we can rebuild—our way."
Jor-El ignored him, frantically looking for a way to escape his current situation. Just as he contemplated jumping out the window and having his drone catch him, a beam from Zod's rifle struck the ceiling, causing debris to rain down. A massive chunk struck Jor-El's shoulder, sending him sprawling. The Codex slipped from his grasp, landing directly into the teleportation beam.
"No!" Jor-El reached out helplessly as the device roared to life. The Codex dissolved into the beam, vanishing into a glowing vortex of light and energy. The machine overloaded further, sparking uncontrollably.
Zod's rage was palpable. He grabbed Jor-El by the collar, lifting him effortlessly. "What have you done?" he snarled. "Where is the Codex?"
Jor-El smiled weakly, blood trickling from his lips. "I don't know… but you'll never find it."
Before Zod could react, an explosion rocked the lab. The teleportation device imploded, tearing a rift in space-time. The force threw everyone back, and the scene dissolved into chaos.
The Codex drifted silently through the infinite void of the multiverse, glowing faintly as it spiraled between dimensions. Time and space warped around it, pulling it toward an unfamiliar universe.
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Warping through the void, the Codex began to resonate with something—a fading soul. A 17-year-old boy named Marshon Byron hovered on the edge of death, his body frail and broken from a long, losing battle with a terminal illness. His life was only filled with the entertainment of manga, anime, and comic books as he laid in his hospital bed for more than 10 years. His thoughts were a swirl of regret, yearning for the life he never truly lived.
As the Codex approached, it glowed brighter, sensing the boy's potential. In a cosmic dance of fate, the Codex merged with his soul, reshaping his essence. Energy surged as the genetic template of Krypton fused with the remnants of his humanity. The mutated soul continued traveling through the void to enter a universe different from his own in many ways.
A new destiny was forged—a soul reborn with the genetic legacy of an entire civilization.