Kaius, exhausted from his overuse of heat vision, was held up by Jor-Lar the Destroyer with one massive hand. His strength was nearly depleted.
"Kai... Avenger, be careful!"
Diana leapt across the crumbling rooftops nearby, her heart racing. During the earlier clash, she had diverted to rescue several trapped civilians, leaving her slightly behind in the fight.
Spotting Jor-Lar gripping Kaius by the neck, Diana acted swiftly. She raised the Sword of Vulcan, harnessed the momentum of her descent, and struck with all her might.
Slash!
The sword cleaved through Jor-Lar's arm with a sickening sound. Kaius broke free, landing a powerful kick to Jor-Lar's chest, sending the monster sprawling.
At that moment, three armed fighter jets roared into view overhead. Their payload of Tomahawk missiles gleamed ominously as targeting systems locked onto the street below.
"Report to command," one pilot said, scanning the area. "We've located the targets on Twenty-Fourth Street. Streets are clear of civilians, but there may still be people in nearby buildings. Requesting instructions."
"Prioritize eliminating the targets. Fire immediately!" Colonel Lane's stern voice crackled through the headset.
The pilots obeyed without hesitation, pressing the missile launch buttons.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Nine missiles streaked down in unison, heading straight for the battleground.
Realizing the danger, Kaius growled in frustration. "Are they out of their minds?!"
Though the missiles posed little threat to him personally, the collateral damage could be catastrophic. Diana and he had spent the entire fight protecting bystanders and minimizing destruction, yet now the U.S. military seemed determined to undo all their efforts.
"They're insane!" Kaius muttered angrily as he grabbed Diana. "We need to move!"
Jor-Lar, however, didn't even flinch. He stood his ground as the missiles hit.
BOOM!
The explosions tore through the street, sending shockwaves and flames in every direction. Debris rained down, and the surrounding buildings trembled under the impact.
Kaius shielded Diana with his body, absorbing the brunt of the blast. "Diana, are you okay?" he asked, brushing off shards of metal and debris.
"I'm fine," Diana replied, her voice steady but her eyes filled with worry. "But there are still people in those buildings!"
She gestured to the collapsing structures nearby. Walls had caved in, and smoke and dust filled the air.
Kaius's eyes never left the battlefield. His vision pierced through the lingering smoke, and what he saw made his heart sink.
Jor-Lar the Destroyer stood unscathed in the center of the wreckage. His grotesque form seemed to thrive on the destruction. The missiles had not only failed to harm him but appeared to fuel his regeneration.
The stump of his severed arm now sprouted bone spurs, jagged and menacing. His appearance grew increasingly monstrous—more like the dreaded Doomsday with each passing moment.
"These idiots don't know what they're dealing with," Kaius muttered under his breath, glaring at the fighter jets circling above.
Meanwhile, the pilots celebrated prematurely.
"Command, all missiles hit the target," one of them reported.
Colonel Lane responded coldly, "Good work, but don't get complacent. Confirm the kill. If the target is still alive, prepare to attack again."
"Roger that," came the reply, as the jets prepared for another run.
Kaius clenched his fists and looked at Diana. "This is going to get worse before it gets better," he said grimly.
The pilots of the three fighters maneuvered their aircraft in a graceful arc, preparing to regroup and return to base.
Suddenly, there was a "BOOM!"
A dark figure erupted from the smoke below, trailing a plume of debris as it rocketed toward the middle aircraft like a missile.
"Myers! Watch out!" one of the other pilots yelled into the intercom.
But it was too late.
Destroyer Jor-Lar launched himself with terrifying speed, landing directly on the fighter. With a roar, he ripped through the aircraft's metal exterior with his bare hands. Using the jagged bone spurs from his severed arm, he impaled the pilot in one swift motion.
Without hesitation, Jor-Lar leapt from the damaged aircraft as it spiraled out of control. Using it as a springboard, he crashed into another nearby fighter.
"Rumble!"
The second fighter disintegrated under his assault, torn apart like paper. The pilot inside was killed instantly as the aircraft broke into several pieces and plummeted toward the city below.
"Damn it! Are they trying to make things worse?" Kaius growled in frustration.
Acting quickly, he flew toward the falling wreckage, redirecting the debris to crash outside the city limits to minimize civilian casualties.
Now, only one fighter remained in the sky. Inside, the terrified pilot was on the verge of panic.
What had he just witnessed?
A monster not only survived a missile barrage but also jumped hundreds of meters into the air to destroy fighter jets with its bare hands?
"Is this real life? Or am I in some sci-fi nightmare?" the pilot muttered, frantically reporting back to headquarters. "Eagle One and Eagle Three are down! Requesting immediate support!"
As he finished speaking, a black blur appeared ahead of him. When he looked up, he saw Jor-Lar, the monstrous figure, flying straight toward him like a nightmare incarnate.
"God help me! I haven't even had a girlfriend yet!" the pilot screamed, bracing for impact and closing his eyes.
But the blow never came.
At the last second, Kaius intercepted Jor-Lar mid-air, tackling him with enough force to send them both hurtling toward the city's outskirts.
The pilot opened his eyes and gasped in relief. He was alive. Tears of gratitude filled his eyes as he whispered, "Thank you, God."
Meanwhile, Kaius grappled with Jor-Lar, who thrashed violently, his monstrous strength pushing Kaius to his limits.
"Roar!!"
The two combatants crashed into the ground, carving deep trenches into the earth from the force of their impact. Dust and debris filled the air as the battle raged on.
Kaius gritted his teeth, throwing punch after punch to subdue the beast. But he knew brute force alone wouldn't be enough.
He needed the power of kryptonite. The problem was, the only place he knew that still had a significant amount of it was far away—in Smallville, the site of the meteor shower two decades ago.
Jor-Lar roared again, lunging at Kaius with his bone-spur arm. The sharp appendage pierced into Kaius's abdomen, driving him back as they tumbled across the ground, carving another deep trench.
Gasping, Kaius managed a weak grin despite the pain. "Why is this guy so strong? Is it because he's bald now?"
Kaius thought back to Jor-Lar's appearance before his transformation. He had once sported a thick head of hair. Could it really be true that losing his hair had made him stronger?
"I'm bald... but also unstoppable."
The absurd thought almost made Kaius laugh despite the dire situation. "Great, I'm fighting an invincible bald monster. Just my luck."