Three days had passed since the world fell into chaos. Every city was a battlefield. Smoke blotted out the sky. Oceans churned black with oil and wreckage. From above, Earth looked like a dying ember, cracks of fire blazing across its continents. And yet, in the midst of that hell, a single unlikely voice still commanded the armies. She stood on the cracked runway of what was once a U.S. Air Force base, now renamed Project Last Dawn. It was rather accurate considering the situation. It may very well be their last dawn if they failed. Around her, soldiers, metahumans, mercenaries, and even former villains were gathering under one flag. Harley Quinn adjusted her baseball bat beside Deadshot. Peacemaker patted his pet eagle with a smile while clenching his assault rifle. Constantine was drinking from a flask. He and Zatanna were invited to defend Earth, and they agreed despite knowing the risks. She was standing beside him hesitantly, holding a book. Black Adam hovered silently above the hangars, lightning flickering in his eyes. He has been released from his containment chamber by Waller to fight in exchange for freedom. Captain Atom, being promised a pardon once again stood at the front. He had not much choice. Waller's coat flapped against the wind as she surveyed the holographic display. "Satellite feeds are gone, but we've got local scans," she said coldly. "The Syndicate's command zone is centered over Metropolis. Ultraman's established their Fortress. Power Ring's troops have occupied the East Coast. Johnny Quick's running recon through the west. We don't have time to regroup, we must strike, now. Before they come for us all. " She turned around and surveyed the gathered people. "Listen up, whatever crlimes you did, how many you have killed, this is your chance at redemption. Today, we fight to save our world. Although we have often been at odds, today we put that aside to be the hero this world needs." Her aide trembled. "Director, with respect, half of these people are criminals. If we attack them head-on, some might just escape." "We all die if we don't," she cut him off. "I don't care if they're criminals, gods, or ghosts. Anyone who can fight — fights. If we fall, we make sure they remember humanity's last day wasn't spent begging for mercy. And they know, running away isn't an option. The syndicate will find them." A ripple of murmurs passed through the crowd. Some grinned. Others just looked scared. Black Adam descended beside her. "You're brave, woman. Or insane. Perhaps both. But I agree, they wil not destroy Kahndaq on my watch." Waller didn't blink. "You want to live, don't you? Then earn it. Use your powers against them." Then there was a burst of wind, and someone landed in front of them with a thunderous impact. The earth was trembling. They immediately became alert and pointed their weapon, but Waller stopped them. " Wait, I believe that's our last member. Now we also have a god on our side." She smirked, feeling more confident. Everyone was awestruck as a tall blonde muscular woman wearing a futuristic style armor emerged from the crater. Even Black Adam had a hint of blush as she walked towards them with a grin. "Sup folks. The name's Cassie, Cassie Elric. Goddess of Strength and Beauty and something else, I forgot. I'm filling in since my sister is MIA for some reason." Constantine dropped his cigarette. " Oh, Fuck me dead! It's that pretty violent chick from the Grail war! What's she doing here!" Zatanna raised an eyebrow. " Pretty? Didn't you say I was the prettiest girl you've seen?" Constantine raised his arms in surrender. " That's the part you focus on ? She's a brutal violent woman! She almost punched me to death!" Cassie sighed. "This is why I should get a face mask or something. People start acting all nice once they see me, that ruins the chance of a fight. I hope those bad guys don't fold before we fight properly." Waller coughed lightly. " Ehem, Miss Cassie here is the sister of Wonder Woman. She will be our main strike force with Black Adam. Mr. Constantine and Ms. Zatanna would support them. Firestorm and Killer frost, clear up the path for others. The rest of you, don't charge in recklessly, find your opening . Peacemaker, Deadshot, you two will take out Ultraman with the Kryptonite bullets. Then target their brains, Owlman. If these two can be taken out, we can win this." The wind howled as engines roared. Dozens of A.R.G.U.S. gunships took to the sky. Behind them, metahumans leapt into the air. Firestorm blazing, Killer Frost skating on ice, Hawkman and Hawkgirl spreading their wings. Constantine tried to make small talk in the jet. " Um, Cassie was it? Where'd you get this new armor? Last time. You had something similar to your sister." Zatanna glared. " You remember the details of her armor wven when she pummeled you ?" Constantine sighed. " Just making small talk luv." Cassie replied nonchalantly. "It's fine. My brother made it. Pretty cool right? He likes to make these things. I think dad gave him Hepatitis domain or something a few years back?" Zatanna chuckled." You mean Hephaestus, the forging god?" Cassie smacked her palm. " Yeah, that's it. He can make better stuff now, things that don't explode." Constantine asked hesitantly. " Who's your dad ? How can hand over gods domains like handing candies at Halloween!" Cassie shrugged. " Dad has a bunch of those from killing gods from his younger days. He's quite stingy though. I wanted Apollo and Thor's domain, but he didn't give me." Zatanna shook her head as a respectful smile appeared on her face. " You should keep quiet about these things lady Cassie. Others might figure out about you and your father. But I must say, it's an honor to meet you. I read stories about your father growing up. He is a great man." Cassie sighed." Yeah, who hasn't. Everyone knows him. It's such a hassle to be compared with him all the time. But to me, he is the best dad in the world, not some legendary hero or something." Even Constantine had realized by now. "Oh fuck me in the arse ! You're HIS daughter?! Where is he ! If you are here, does that mean he's coming too? I can bloody relax then." Cassie shook her head. " Nope. Dad said to let humans learn to clean up their own mess. He said something about growth and development. I fell asleep halfway." Follow current novᴇls on 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭⚫𝘧𝘪𝘳𝘦⚫𝘯𝘦𝘵 Zatanna chuckled. "You're such an interesting person lady Cassie." The world's last army rose toward a sky painted red, heading towards Metropolis. Metropolis ,The War Zone The city that once symbolized hope now stood as the Crime Syndicate's fortress. Skyscrapers bent like crucified metal. The air shimmered from Ultraman's heat vision. Every street crawled with Minutemen, meta human soldiers under Power Ring's command. There were over few hundreds of them. And above them all, Ultraman watched. His cape rippled in the solar wind, eyes burning like twin suns. "They still resist," he said with amused contempt. "You'd think they'd learn." Superwoman stood behind him, arms crossed, wearing a seductive smirk. "Humans always fight hardest when they're cornered. Makes killing them more fun." Power Ring's distorted voice crackled through the comms. "Incoming aerial signatures, dozens of them. Not ours. I'm sending my guys to take them down." Ultraman grinned. "Finally. Let them come. Once I crush them, the world shall belong to me." The sky lit up as Waller's forces broke through the cloud cover. Explosions painted the heavens gold and crimson. Firestorm unleashed solar flares that split through the upper atmosphere. Missiles streaked past Deadshot's crossfire. Black Adam plummeted through the storm, his lightning tearing into the Syndicate's Minutemen. Cassie charged with a roar and punched through the tanks and minutemen that were unlucky enough to stand in her way. She was like a bulldozer, smashing through their defenses. The first wave hit hard. Constantine shouted over the comms, "I think I hit Power Ring's bloody drone!" "Good," Harley yelled back, laughing amid the chaos. "Keep throwin' till ya hit the scary ones!" Below them, Power Ring screamed as one of his corrupted constructs shattered. His ring pulsed with rage. "You miserable insects!" He fired back, emerald fire consuming the sky. Waller's command ship shook violently as the fell to the ground. "Hold the line!" she roared. "We push through or die trying!" They crashed, but thankfully a few magic constructs appeared to slow their fall. Waller groaned and took out a plasma rifle and decided go out and fight." Maintain the communication channel. I'm gonna go fight for my damn planet. If I don't return, Emilia takes charge." Before she could exit, Superwoman smashed through. "Are you the one behind this little rebellion? Shame, I expected it to be someone more interesting." Waller smirked. "Then this might come as a little shock to you." She pulled the trigger, blasting Superwoman away who let out an angry yell before crashing into a building. Waller walked out of the crashed ship and joined the fray. "I'm not going down without taking a few with me." She grinned and spat out some blood. On the horizon, the smoke parted, and a red blur shot through them. He ripped through fighter jets like paper, each sonic boom carving fresh wounds in the air. Bullets couldn't touch him. His laughter was all the warning they got. "Too slow, too weak!" Then Black Adam was suddenly punched before he could see it. He was planted deep in the ground. The battlefield paused for a second as everyone looked at the leader of the Crime Syndicate, Ultraman. He was hovering over them, looking down arrogantly. Two gunshots sounded from two sides. Ultraman casually grabbed the bullets and smirked. " How nice of you to send me some snacks." He absorbed the powers from the Kryptonite until they crumbled to dust. Cassie charged with a yell , only to be stopped by Superwoman. "I'll be your opponent little girl. Let me repay you in full for the insult your sister inflicted on me. " "Piss off old hag!" Cassie punched her away. Ultraman looked amused. " You're quite strong, and beautiful. How about you stop hanging out with these weaklings and become mine?" "You lucky my dad isn't here. He'd rip your balls and feed it to you. " Cassie punched him without holding back. A loud impact was heard before the shockwave sent everyone back. When the dust cleared, everyone looked amazed. Ultraman and Cassie were almost evenly matched. But Ultraman was growing stronger by absorbing sunlight. Plus, he had a Kryptonite armor underneath, further augmenting his strength. He grinned and punched Cassie, who flew back a kilometer. "Fine, I like my woman a little feisty." Cassie scowled. " Get lost ugly bastard." Ultraman snarled and punched her with all his strength. Cassie slammed into the pavement hard enough to crater an entire block. Asphalt cracked like broken glass beneath her armor as she spat blood and grinned. "Not bad for a knock-off," she muttered, her hand brushing the dust from her cheek. Ultraman descended slowly, the ground melting where his boots touched. "A shame, really," he said with cruel amusement. "You could have been a queen." Cassie rolled her shoulders. "Nah. Queens sit on thrones doing nothing. I've seen my mom." Then she was gone, a golden blur smashing into his jaw. The air itself screamed as shockwaves ripped through the skyline. Buildings shattered. Clouds split. Ultraman hit back instantly, heat vision igniting from his eyes in twin beams of annihilation. Cassie twisted, deflecting them with her bracers, sparks ricocheting into the ruins below. Every clash shattered the surroundings. Down below, Black Adam streaked across the horizon, electricity shredding through the Minutemen army. His fists glowed with ancient fury as he collided with Johnny Quick, whose laughter became a blur of motion. "You're fast," Quick sneered, circling him, "but not me fast!" Adam's eyes flared. "Then try running from a storm!" He slammed his hands together, summoning a blinding surge of divine lightning that engulfed the street. Johnny Quick screamed, his speed faltering as half his body charred from the inside. "Keep talking," Adam muttered, grabbing his face and smashing him into the asphalt. Power Ring screamed through comms, "Johnny!" and unleashed a barrage of emerald fire toward him, but Zatanna's voice rang out above the noise — sharp, commanding, each word heavy with magic. Power Ring's constructs froze mid-air, trapped in ice-like stasis. Killer Frost followed up instantly, shattering them with an elegant twirl of her hand. Constantine was crouched beside her, flicking a blood-lit sigil into the dirt. "Bloody hell, that'll hold 'im for ten seconds. Frost, Z, buy us a pint after this, yeah?" "Focus, John!" Zatanna hissed, eyes glowing white as she chanted again, sealing several corrupted Minutemen in containment runes. Meanwhile, Waller, bleeding from her forehead, stormed through the chaos with a rifle in hand. "Push forward! We're not dying in retreat! Atom, give me a hole in that wall!" Captain Atom clenched his fists and unleashed a contained nuclear burst, vaporizing a swath of enemy troops and punching through the Syndicate's defense lines. High above, Cassie and Ultraman collided again. She drove her knee into his ribs — cracked them — before he countered with a backhand that sent her spiraling through a skyscraper. She coughed, blood painting her teeth, but she was laughing. "That all you got, sunshine?" Ultraman's smile faltered for a moment. "You're starting to annoy me." "Good," Cassie replied, cracking her neck. "Dad says I have a gift for that." He rushed at her, like a comet of heat and rage. Cassie met him head-on, lightning flaring behind her like wings. Their punches met — the shockwave flattened six blocks. The world tilted. Firestorm struggled to stabilize his fusion output as he watched from above. "She's matching him! Holy—" "Don't lose focus!" Zatanna shouted from below. Then, Power Ring broke free from the ice with a demonic scream, his face half-burned, ring pulsating violently. "I'll tear your hearts out!" Cassie looked down. "You wanna try, lantern reject?" But before she could finish, Ultraman seized the moment — a blow to her gut, then a hammer fist that sent her crashing to the ruins below. She groaned, struggling to get up. The sky burned red above her. Ultraman floated down, his grin sharp as knives. "No one can stand against me. Not your Justice League, not you. Why struggle?" "You sure love hearing your own voice. " She spat out. But her heart sank as she looked below. The ground was a graveyard of steel and fire. Bodies, human and meta alike, littered the ruins. Waller's coalition forces were collapsing under the weight of the Syndicate's power. Superwoman led the charge, her laughter echoing through the crumbling skyline as her lasso of submission coiled around fleeing soldiers. "Oh, don't run," she purred, yanking a tank off its treads and hurling it into another. "This is just getting fun." Power Ring and his Minutemen swept through the air , their constructs destroying what remained of Waller's air support. On the ground, Johnny Quick was like a streak of lightning , ripping through lines before the human eye could blink. It wasn't a battle anymore. It was an apocalypse. Ground Command – Waller's Line The air stank of smoke and blood. Waller stood atop an overturned Humvee, barking orders through a headset. "Pull back the right flank! Firestorm, cover the retreat! Where the hell is Captain Atom?!" "Right here," came a metallic voice — before a blinding explosion ripped through the Syndicate's drones. Atom hovered in glowing armor, his energy cracking like a miniature sun. "Took me a while to stabilize fusion levels. Hope it's worth it." "It better be," Waller snapped. Everywhere she looked, death reigned. Meta-humans were falling one by one. Killer Frost screamed as a beam from Ultraman's heat vision seared past her. Deadshot fired until his gun melted in his hand. Harley was bleeding from a dozen cuts but still laughing. Waller slumped down, her fingers loosening against the gun. "I guess this is it." There was a gust of wind and light thud as someone landed beside her. Sh e looked up and smirked. " About damn time. I thought you left. "You know this is suicide," said the new arrival. It was Batman. He was wearing new armor that gleamed under the sunlight. He looked around to see if there was any survivors. Waller didn't turn. "You think I don't know that?" "Then why fight? You could have joined the president in the bunker." "Because someone has to remind them — the world doesn't die quietly. We humans are not so fragile." Bruce nodded . "Good answer." Waller coughed. " So, where's the rest of you?" As if on cue, there were multiple sonic booms and loud impacts as a bunch of new figures arrived on the battlefield. Diana, Barry, Hal, Arthur, Faora stood side by side. Diana looked surprised as she spoke to Cassie. " What are you doing here Cass? You're supposed to be at home!" Cassie grinned weakly. " Heya sis, I actually came to look for you in New York. Some stuff happened that totally has nothing to do with me bashing some government tanks. Then this lady came to me, saying earth was in danger. She asked for my help after I introduced myself. I am helping here!" Ultra looked between them with a smirk. " Your sister is rather beautiful too. I have decided to take both of you back with me. After you spend some time in the mind wiping chamber, you'd be happily serving me. Like your buddy Cyborg." A sonic crack split the air like a divine hammer. A blue blur tore through the smoke, and a shockwave followed, flattening half a block as it collided head-on with Ultraman midair. The tyrant reeled, coughing blood as he was hurled through the remains of LexCorp Tower. "You talk too much," a calm voice spoke. Superman hovered in the air, cloak torn but eyes sharp, like a beacon of Hope in the smog-filled place. Ultraman wiped blood from his mouth, then grinned. "You're back." Ultraman laughed, the sound ugly and full of rage. "Then die again!"