The beams struck with greater intensity than ever before, slamming him into the ground with explosive force. His anti-gravity field softened the impact but couldn't stop the sheer energy from pinning him down.
He retaliated with Nova Beams of his own, golden energy pouring from his eyes.
The twin streams collided—his golden light against her crimson entropy. He poured in more power, turning his beams white-gold—powerful enough to melt Nth-metal ships whole—but they barely pushed hers back.
He wasn't taking real damage, but the force of the blast was burying him deeper. She couldn't stand the tie, so now she was spamming her ult.
Enough.
Dropping the dampening field, he redirected all his Strength Force–amplified anti-gravity against her. The air itself compressed, and she grunted under the pressure. He dragged her toward him, telekinetically seizing the inert Infinity-Man and smashing it into her to close the distance even faster.
"You asked who I was?" Grail screamed, unleashing one final surge. "I am Grail—daughter of Darkseid, God of Evil!"
Her Omega Beams flared brighter, overwhelming his Nova Beams just as the boom tube behind her finished opening. The combined energy hurled her backward into the portal—
—and it snapped shut the instant she vanished.
His energy, which had constantly clashed with Grail's Omega Beams, tore through the building and released a golden beam into the sky before he finally ended it.
Did she really think she could escape after starting all this?
'Nova, open a boom tube tracking her. We should have her energy signature after eating her beam.'
//I can't, sir.//
'What do you mean, why?'
//You were not fighting at full strength and have yet to heal. The battle only delayed your recovery. And Grail has likely retreated to Apokolips—where her father, Darkseid, rules. It would be most unwise to rush into the lion's den alone and injured. You have already killed Desaad, and you don't know whether that will incur Darkseid's wrath—toward you or toward Earth—when he finds out.//
Nova's logic cooled Joseph's rage. It was right.
He hadn't been at full strength, and the pain he'd ignored while absorbing Grail's Omega Beams now returned in full. Every muscle screamed.
He dipped his head back into the crater, ignoring the still-inert Infinity-Man. Silence filled the ruined chamber.
Then Joseph felt it—Source energy, flaring above him in the sky.
//Warning: a boom tube is opening nearby,// Nova reported.
Joseph immediately stood, sword ready—only to see Wonder Woman, Icon, and another New God on an Astro-Harness descending: Orion.
Before he could speak, Orion fired an Omega Beam straight at him.
No way was he getting hit with that again.
Joseph moved with the Speed Force and dodged. The blast was definitely weaker than Grail's.
"Stop! He's one of ours!" Icon shouted as Wonder Woman blocked another Omega Beam with her bracelets of submission.
But Orion kept firing. Icon moved to restrain him—only to be sent flying out of the remains of the building with a single punch.
Joseph could feel it through the Strength Force. While Orion's Omega Beams were weaker, his raw power surpassed Grail's. He was as strong as Superman.
"Where's Grail, Apokoliptan? I felt her Omega Beams!" the New God roared, crimson lines burning across his face as his eyes glowed again. He clearly wasn't in the right state of mind.
Apokoliptan?
"I think you've got the wrong idea here."
**
The clash with the Apokoliptans lasted only ten minutes—long, considering their combat speed.
By the end, the building had collapsed. The entire area would need to be cordoned off because of the massive crater below and the risk of nearby structures sinking. Nova calculated that wouldn't happen for another three days—not that Joseph could admit how he knew. Thankfully, Green Lantern's ring confirmed the same thing.
After Joseph woke Hal with a psychic pulse, they gave a brief rundown of events—though Joseph changed a certain detail citing escape rather than death. Joseph wasn't in the mood for a lecture about killing, especially not from Wonder Woman, who had already chastised him before for attacking Silver Swan. Quite hypocritical, considering the reports of how many Nazis she'd flattened.
"Sorry again for attacking," Orion said. "I lose control sometimes. My anger is… an unfortunate inheritance from my biological father."
Apparently, Orion was Darkseid's son—sent to New Genesis while Highfather's son was sent to Apokolips as part of a peace pact. If both Grail and Orion possessed the Omega Force, it was likely hereditary—passed down from Darkseid himself.
That meant Darkseid probably wielded an Omega Force beyond Grail's, coupled with strength greater than Superman's. Terrifying. No wonder no one had dared challenge his rule of Apokolips in over ten thousand years.
Icon, Wonder Woman, and Joseph had struggled to calm Orion down without injuring him and jeopardizing diplomacy. He finally relented after Nova sent a message to Orion's Motherbox explaining they'd fought Grail and weren't Apokoliptan.
Other Motherboxes didn't mistake Nova for a Fatherbox when uncloaked, thanks to Sphere's modifications that made him appear more New Genesian. So why had Orion mistaken him for an Apokoliptan? Some remnant trace of Desaad's energy, detectable only by those tied to the Source? Or maybe Orion sensed Source energy in Joseph himself and drew his own conclusion.
"And thank you for saving the Forever People," Orion added, glancing at Infinity-Man.
That made Joseph raise an eyebrow. So Infinity-Man was the Forever People? He'd thought Grail had killed or teleported them away. Were they conscious during that transformation?
Whatever. They couldn't exactly fault him for taking down one of their enemies. He'd deal with any fallout later. Right now, the ache in his body overrode everything.
"Don't thank me. Nova saved everyone here," Green Lantern said, pointing at Joseph with his right arm encased in a green energy cast. "I was a bad matchup against her. She had a way to corrupt willpower. Speaking of everyone—where are Starfire and the robot, Sphere?"
"I teleported them to the Cave at the start of the fight," Joseph replied.
"How?" Orion asked. "My Motherbox tells me a technology-jamming field surrounded this area until recently."
The Justice League members turned toward Joseph, curious. From their perspective, it didn't make sense for him to have stayed trapped on Thanagar or in the Gordanians' arena if he'd had the power to escape.
Joseph debated lying, maybe claiming a mirror-gun variant he'd reverse-engineered—but if the Forever People had been conscious as Infinity-Man, they'd know and it'd be a bad look. And honestly, who was going to press him?
"Like this," Joseph said, raising his arm and opening a golden boom tube. "I came across several pieces of Apokoliptan tech during my takedown of Intergang and managed to figure a few things out," he said vaguely. "It's how I communicate with Sphere—and how I told you to stand down through your Motherbox."
"I see. That explains one thing," Orion muttered. Then he opened a twelve-foot yellow-orange boom tube with his Motherbox and turned to address the others.
"I'll take Infinity-Man with me to free the Forever People from the Fatherbox's control. Though this visit was brief, I've seen some of Earth's beauty—and its power. The Apokoliptans have made it personal for attacking the Forever People. I'll try to convince my father to ally with the Justice League."
"Thank you," Icon replied, his diplomatic tone calm and practiced. "We—the Justice League and the people of Earth—appreciate your visit. I can join you to discuss further details of our future cooperation if you wish."
Orion nodded, then pushed the still-inert Infinity-Man through the boom tube. Icon followed, and the portal closed behind them.
Green Lantern tried stretching but winced when his right arm moved.
"I got other abilities too. I can heal that if you want," Joseph offered.
"Nah, the ring'll fix it quick. Appreciate the offer, though, kid," Hal said with a smirk. Joseph rolled his eyes—not that anyone could see through the white film covering them. "I'll coordinate with the firefighters to cordon off the area," Hal added before flying off.
That left only Wonder Woman and Joseph. She hadn't said a word so far, which made things awkward. Joseph nodded, turning toward the still-open boom tube leading to the Cave—until he felt a firm hand grip his shoulder.
"Why do I feel Amazon blood in you?" Wonder Woman asked, her tone deadly serious.