Brainiac's ship was a treasure in itself, but it was too dangerous. Just the stash of star-destroying bombs inside could wipe out the solar system a hundred times over. Kaitou Kid wouldn't dare touch them, and Superman wouldn't allow anyone else to, either.
Superman retrieved the miniature glass container of Metropolis and carefully placed it back into the giant crater. He opened the lid, and unbelievably, Metropolis reappeared in its original spot. But all the power lines, water pipes, and cables were severed. Repairs would take a long time.
Liu A'dou watched how easily Superman restored Metropolis and couldn't help thinking, 'What if he didn't line up the center point right? Or worse, put it back crooked?'
Of course, his worry was pointless. Superman would never make such a rookie mistake.
"Kal, we need to release Kandor," Kara said, clutching the bottle that held it.
"No, no way," Liu A'dou quickly waved his hand before Superman could reply. "If a few million Kryptonians suddenly popped up on Earth, wouldn't that be total chaos?"
Superman nodded. "Kara, we need to find a place where our people can actually live before we release them."
Kara knew they were right. She lowered her head, silently staring at Kandor. But in her heart, she swore she would save her people.
"Besides Kandor, there are many other cities here. What are we supposed to do with them? We can't just treat them as crystal ball decorations. But finding thousands of planets suitable for their survival—that's an impossible task."
Even Superman stayed quiet at that. It was too difficult. Even with a lifetime, it might never be achieved. "Let's just find a place to store them for now."
"Forget the cities for a second. What about those insanely powerful bombs?" Batman stepped out from the ship, having inspected it inside and out. "Each missile holds enough energy to wipe out Earth—no, the entire solar system."
"I'll take them to an uninhabited star system and deal with them," Superman offered.
"No need for all that trouble," Liu A'dou said, gesturing with a grin. "I'll toss them into another dimension. Simple, quick, and eco-friendly. Done deal. I'll handle the bombs, you guys deal with the cities."
He turned and walked back into the ship. With the danger gone, he finally had the chance to look around properly. The vessel had drifted through space for hundreds, maybe thousands of years. Much of it was worn out, walls gray and dim. As he followed the walls down a corridor, he suddenly noticed a tiny crack.
His sharp eyes caught how out of place it looked against the otherwise solid surface. 'Did Batman really miss this? Or… did it just appear?'
Curious, he tugged the crack open. Inside was a hidden chamber, lit up to reveal a single object. Another miniature city.
"Hiding it here, huh?" Liu A'dou muttered, stepping closer. Then he froze. This wasn't just any city. It was the capital of Colu—the homeworld that created Brainiac.
A magnificent city, but in the scale of the universe, just a speck of dust. Even civilizations built over tens of millions of years could vanish in a single mistake, gone in an instant. Colu had fallen that way. Krypton had too. And countless others scattered across the stars.
But why was this one hidden away? He didn't have time to figure it out. His vision blurred. The sensation was all too familiar—teleportation.
'Again?! Seriously, I need to find a way to block this crap. Always silent, no warning. I'm Kaitou Kid, dammit, I protest!'
But protest was useless. He was already inside Colu's capital, within the miniature city itself. Like Ant-Man, shrunk and dropped into a bottle.
The scenery around him shifted instantly. Towering skyscrapers, and even a blazing sun overhead.
"…This isn't the Watchtower," Liu A'dou muttered in confusion.
His outfit stood out like a sore thumb. Around him, green-skinned little people stared in fear, keeping their distance.
"An intruder! An intruder!" The cry rose from the crowd, and soon, robots closed in on him.
"What the hell is going on?" Robots swarmed in, but Kid didn't want to waste time tangling with them. He leapt into the air, soaring upward to get a better view of where he was.
But the moment he rose, he realized he couldn't fly far. The sky was sealed above him. He was trapped inside a miniature city?! Who the hell brought him here? Wasn't Brainiac already shut down by Superman?
Helpless, he returned to the streets. All that existed under the glass dome was the city itself. The green-skinned people around him still stared at Kid in terror.
Robots closed in. Kid casually smashed them all to scrap. "Anyone here kind enough to tell me if this really is the capital of Colu?" Luckily, the Justice League communicator already had a translation function, so he had no problem talking to aliens.
After some hesitation, a stooped old man stepped out. "Yes, outsider. This is indeed the capital of Colu."
"I see. Then why the hell am I here?"
"Wasn't it Brainiac who sent you in?" the old man asked in confusion.
"He's been destroyed. I was just cleaning up the mess when I suddenly got teleported here." Liu A'dou needed to figure out what had happened before he could get out.
"Brainiac destroyed? Impossible!" They were stunned. Their planet had been ruined by Brainiac—how could he be gone?
"It's the truth. But I need to understand how I was brought here. Do you know anything?"
But the crowd was too shaken by the news to even respond. Nobody cared about Kid at all. He shrugged, when suddenly a young green-skinned man stepped forward. "Outsider, if you don't mind, come rest at my home. I can tell you about this city. Maybe it will help."
"Thanks a lot. You're a good guy," Kid said, relieved at least someone was willing to talk.
The alien explained that they had been trapped here for a very long time. More importantly, Brainiac wasn't just one unit. He was actually four—Wisdom, Jealousy, Greed, and Rage.
The one Superman shut down had only been Wisdom. The other three still controlled this city, enslaving everyone inside.
Liu A'dou finally understood why Colu had been hidden separately. Brainiac feared the other three AIs would interfere with his pursuit of pure knowledge.
"Jealousy, Greed, and Rage. What the hell were you thinking making artificial intelligences like that? What's the point?" Kid really couldn't grasp why the Coluans had dug their own grave.
The young Coluan gave a bitter smile. "Unhappiness is easier than happiness. Evil is simpler than justice. Ugliness is easier than beauty. Bad things come to hand more easily than good ones. Sadly, we never got the chance to build an AI of tolerance."
"So… they're the ones who teleported me here?" Liu A'dou frowned. "But why? If they can drag me in, why not just leave themselves?"
"They can't leave," the alien replied. "Their mainframes are fused with the city itself. They cannot survive outside. That is the seal of Wisdom."