Injustice: The Path To Hell (DC Comics)

Saturday, 16th October, 16:10

Rhode Island,

Happy Harbor,

Mount Justice

One by one, the team watched in stunned silence as the Justice League fell before the alien invaders. Robin had pulled up multiple satellite video feeds, and the images before them were nothing short of devastating. Earth's strongest defenders—mentors, loved ones, legends—were being picked off like insects, utterly powerless against the overwhelming force.

Yet, as the footage played, none of them reacted. No anger. No sorrow. No fear. No grief. They stood there, eyes locked on the screens, utterly devoid of emotion. Numb. Detached. As if what they were witnessing held no real meaning.

"Red Tornado to Cave," the robotic hero's voice crackled over the comms, the distant sounds of battle roaring behind him. "I fear I am all that remains of the League."

"RT—" Robin barely got the words out before the transmission cut to static. The line went dead. Silence fell over the Cave once more, but even then, there was no shift in atmosphere. No sense of panic. No mourning. Just the same eerie calm that had gripped them from the start.

"We are Earth's heroes now," Aqualad said, his voice as composed as ever, his words carrying the same unsettling detachment that filled the room.

Superboy turned impatiently toward Esau and Aqualad, his frustration bleeding into his voice. "What are we waiting for, a theme song?"

"A strategy," Aqualad replied, sparing a glance at Esau, who stood motionless, his expression distant.

Barbara, standing beside him, nudged him sharply in the side, jolting him back to reality. The rest of the team watched this unfold, their concern growing. It wasn't the first time they had noticed Esau acting strangely—his mind elsewhere, his focus shattered.

The past few days had been a blur of confusion and uncertainty for him. Ever since Jason had revealed the truth about the Yokai, Esau had been lost in a whirlwind of thoughts he couldn't escape. The revelation clawed at him, distracting him at every turn, plaguing his mind in moments when he needed clarity the most.

It had showed.

His training had suffered. Once the strongest and most determined among them, Esau had become sluggish and unfocused. He'd gone from outmatching his teammates ever since unlocking his first tail to being the weakest among them, losing every sparring session with ease.

Worst of all—he couldn't shake it.

No matter how hard he tried, Jason's words kept replaying in his head like a broken record.

He was a half-breed. Neither human nor demon. A child of nowhere.

It gnawed at him, the weight of his existence heavier than ever before. Because of that, he had failed his team—failing to arrive in time for the mission against T.O. Morrow, forcing Kaldur to lead the operation without him. He had missed the battle against Red Volcano, a foe so destructive that Red Tornado and his android siblings had barely managed to stop him.

Even now, in the wake of the League's destruction, Esau's mind was still clouded.

"Checking satellite imagery," Robin announced, bringing up a global map. Across the planet, red markers lit up like a swarm, pinpointing the locations of alien forces. "Here's where the aliens are now," Robin continued, his voice steady.

Superboy scoffed, pointing at a lone dot on the screen, far from the others. "This one get lost?"

Barbara's eyes narrowed as she recognized the location immediately. "It's not lost—it's near Superman's Fortress of Solitude."

Superboy's head snapped toward her, his expression shifting. "Superman has a Fortress of Solitude?" The words were laced with frustration, yet another reminder of how little he knew about the man whose DNA he shared.

"Its power source must have attracted the aliens' attention," Robin theorized. "At least enough to send a scout ship to investigate."

Superboy clenched his fists, turning away, his irritation bubbling beneath the surface. Miss Martian moved closer, placing a gentle hand on his arm in an attempt to comfort him, but he barely acknowledged it.

Barbara, meanwhile, crossed her arms. She, like the others, understood the urgency of the situation. If the aliens got their hands on the technology within the Fortress, Earth's already slim chances of survival would be reduced to nothing. Things were bad now, but if that happened?

It would be game over.

"That's where we'll go first," Esau finally spoke, his voice even. "Find more stragglers if you can."

But despite issuing the command, there was something off in the way he spoke. The usual weight of leadership, the ironclad confidence that had made him a force to be reckoned with, was missing. Instead, his words felt hollow—merely going through the motions.

The team noticed.

Something was wrong.

Terribly wrong and they didn't need to be mind-readers to see it.

-X-

Saturday, 16th October, 17:45

Arctic,

Superman's Fortress of Solitude

Moving swiftly and silently, Esau and Batgirl crouched beside Artemis, eyes locked onto the alien ship stationed just outside the Fortress of Solitude. They had been observing for the past ten minutes, watching for any signs of movement—an exit, a scan, reinforcements—anything.

But nothing happened.

No aliens disembarked.

No visible attempts to interact with the Fortress.

No activity at all.

It was as if the invaders were simply waiting.

That unsettling lack of action led to one troubling question—had they already infiltrated the Fortress?

{"There's nothing inside,"} Miss Martian informed them over the psychic link. {"They're all in the ship."}

{"Then what the hell are they doing?"} Artemis muttered, voicing what they were all thinking.

Had they already stripped the Fortress of its technology? Were they running tests inside their ship? Neither theory made much sense. The sheer speed required to dismantle and process Kryptonian technology was unbelievable—just as impossible as the way they had decimated the Justice League.

Without further hesitation, Miss Martian reached out with her telekinesis, gripping the ship's hull. A sharp wrenching sound echoed as she tore a section clean off. {"Communications disabled. Propulsion disabled,"} she reported.

With that, the ship lurched downward, crashing into the snow and kicking up a thick cloud of ice.

Artemis seized the opportunity, stepping out from behind cover and loosing an arrow directly at the large red circular node on the ship's exterior. Upon impact, the arrow exploded, releasing a viscous, expanding substance that rapidly hardened over the ship's surface.

As expected, the ship's turret rotated toward the source of the attack, unleashing a flurry of energy blasts in Artemis' general direction. {"And they're sealed inside,"} Artemis announced as she, Esau, and Batgirl burst from cover, dodging erratic beams of energy as they sprinted toward the ship.

The distraction worked.

Beneath the ship, Aqualad erupted from the ice, the ship's weight sinking slightly as it teetered over the freezing water. Just as the turret adjusted to fire at him, Wolf lunged forward, its powerful jaws clamping onto the turret's base, violently wrenching it aside. The resulting blast fired harmlessly into the sky.

At the same time, Superboy landed hard on the deck, gripping the turret with both hands and forcing it into place, preventing it from swinging back into position.

Seizing the moment, Kid Flash streaked across the ice, providing Robin with the perfect springboard to launch himself onto the ship's hull. Landing beside the turret, Robin's holographic computer activated as he typed rapidly.

{"Identifying structural weak points and connection nodes…here, here, and here."} He gestured at the designated spots, and Miss Martian immediately sent precise telekinetic strikes at each one, severing the turret from the ship's mainframe.

With a grunt of effort, Superboy braced himself and pulled.

The turret groaned in protest, metal screeching as it bent and snapped. However, just as the final supports gave way, Esau, Artemis, Batgirl, and Aqualad noticed something alarming—tiny circular nodes exposed from the broken wiring, sparking violently with electricity.

{"Superboy, move!"} Batgirl yelled but Wolf reacted first.

Its ears perked up, eyes widening as if sensing the danger before anyone else. With lightning-fast reflexes, the massive creature slammed into Superboy, knocking him clear just as a sudden burst of energy fired from the ship.

But Wolf wasn't so lucky.

In an instant, the energy blast engulfed him and he was gone.

A heavy silence followed.

For the first time since this battle began—since this entire invasion began—a feeling crept into their chests.

Loss.

Grief.

Anger.

It was subtle, barely noticeable, but it was there—lurking in the background, scratching at the edges of their numbness.

"Wolf?!"

The moment stretched on as no one spoke or moved. It was as if reality itself had glitched for a moment—like Wolf had been erased from existence.

Then, Robin snapped back to the task at hand. {"There was no indication of feedback. I'm sorry,"} he muttered, eyes still scanning his computer screen.

{"We can't do anything for him now,"} Superboy said, his voice tight with frustration. With gritted teeth, he jumped back onto the ship, seized the turret once more, and with one final heave, ripped it clean off.

Superboy leaped onto the Bioship, turret in hand. Miss Martian pressing both hands against its hull, the ship shifting and morphing to accommodate the new weapon. {"Rerouting systems to integrate turret into bio-matrix. But I need to de-camouflage for a few minutes."}

Before anyone could respond, two more alien ships roared overhead.

{"We may not have a few minutes,"} Robin warned.

{"Miss Martian, open fire!"} Aqualad commanded.

{"I can't! The weapons system is offline while integrating the turret!"}

Esau, Batgirl, and Artemis continued sprinting toward the Bioship, but as they ran, Artemis suddenly stopped. She pivoted on her heel, nocking three arrows at once.{ "I've got you covered! Get inside!"} She called out.

She loosed the arrows, striking true—one exploding against an alien craft while the other grazed a second. The damaged ship spiraled out of control, colliding into the other, sending both crashing into the snow.

A second warning cry rang out.

{"Artemis, behind you!"} Miss Martian shouted.

The team whipped around just in time to see a third ship, its weapons charging. Esau reacted immediately. He dug his feet into the snow, spun on his heel, and launched himself back toward Artemis, desperate to reach her in time.

Artemis turned, raising her bow, but it was too late.

The ship's weapons fired.

"Artemis!"

Miss Martian's anguished scream tore through the frozen air, a raw, soul-shaking cry that sent chills down their spines. Every member of the team watched in horrified silence as Artemis was consumed by the alien ship's energy blast—her form disappearing in an instant.

Just like the Justice League.

Just like Wolf.

Just like that…she was gone.

Suddenly, this war wasn't just an abstract nightmare anymore.

It was real.

Too real.

Esau's entire body tensed, his breath hitching in shock as the weight of what just happened slammed into him. The sheer finality of it struck so deeply that for a moment, everything around him blurred. A raw, burning sensation built up inside his chest—grief, fury, helplessness—twisting together into something primal.

His hands clenched into fists.

His heartbeat pounded in his ears.

Then, with an explosive snarl, he lunged forward.

A single tail burst to life behind him, his power flaring, raw and untamed. His entire body propelled forward as he sprinted across the snow, dropping onto all fours, zigzagging at blinding speed to avoid the ship's retaliatory energy blasts.

Faster.

Faster.

With a feral growl, he launched himself into the air, fist cocked back, his muscles tightening with the full force of his unleashed power. His punch connected with the ship's hull, the impact detonating the alien craft in a fiery eruption of metal and energy.

The shockwave blasted through the Arctic landscape, sending snow and debris flying in every direction. The team staggered back, shielding themselves from the force of the explosion. As the smoke cleared, Esau stood in the aftermath, unscathed, his tail slowly fading away as his energy settled.

But the victory felt…hollow.

All eyes turned to the spot where Artemis had stood just moments ago.

An empty space.

A silence heavier than any battlefield filled the air.

Miss Martian collapsed, dropping to her knees, shoulders shaking violently as sobs racked her body, tears streaming down her face. The rest of the team remained frozen, their faces pale, their wide eyes struggling to process what had just happened.

Moments ago, Artemis had been right there. Real. Alive.

Now, she was gone.

That truth hit them all at once and with it—anger followed.

Blinding, suffocating rage.

Against the aliens.

Against their own weakness.

Against anything that could take the blame.

For Kid Flash, that blame landed squarely on Esau.

Esau, the leader.

The one they had all chosen to guide them.

The one who was supposed to protect them.

The one who should have saved her.

Kid Flash's hands shook, his breathing grew ragged, and without a second thought—he snapped. Before anyone could react, a blur of red and yellow shot forward, faster than he had ever moved before.

Esau barely had time to register the movement before a fist slammed into his face. His head whipped sideways, pain exploding in his skull as his body was launched backward. He hit the ground hard, skidding across the snow, his breath escaping in a pained grunt.

The world spun.

Before he could regain his bearings, rough hands grabbed the front of his suit and hauled him up. Dazed, head pounding, Esau groaned as Kid Flash's furious face came into view—eyes wild, teeth gritted, his entire body trembling with rage.

"This is all your fault!" Aqualad and Batgirl rushed forward, but before they could intervene, Wally shook Esau violently. "If you hadn't been so distracted, if you had actually led us—we wouldn't be in this mess! Artemis wouldn't be dead!"

Esau's vision blurred, his head still reeling from the hit. He tried to speak, voice hoarse and unsteady. "N-no… this…" Something nagged at the back of his mind. A feeling. A memory just out of reach. But when he tried to focus on it, a sharp pain lanced through his skull, making him gasp. "This isn't—"

"Wally, enough!" Aqualad yanked Kid Flash back, forcibly separating them.

Esau staggered, clutching his head as the ringing in his ears slowly faded.

Batgirl stepped in, furious, grabbing Wally's suit. "What the hell is your problem?!"

But Wally shoved her off. "My problem? My problem?!" He scoffed, gesturing wildly at Esau. "What's his problem?! Ever since he talked to Jason Blood, he's been like this! Useless! And now—Artemis is dead!" His voice cracked on the last word. A flicker of something—grief, guilt—flashed across his face, but he quickly buried it, roughly wiping at his eyes before the tears could fall.

Aqualad stepped between them. His voice, calm but firm. "Wally. Go back to the ship. Cool down. We can't afford to turn on each other."

For a moment, Wally looked like he would fight it.

Like he would keep screaming.

But then, with a shaky breath, he clenched his fists, turned on his heel, and stormed away.

The team watched in silence, the weight of the moment settling in.

Esau remained on the ground, mind still spinning, processing everything that had just happened.

"Are you okay?" Batgirl asked, kneeling beside him.

Esau exhaled slowly, eyes shadowed. "I… I'm fine," he murmured. Aqualad offered his hand and after a pause, Esau took it, letting him pull him to his feet. "Let's go," Esau muttered, his voice tired and hollow. "We need to get out of here before more of them come."

As he started walking toward the Bioship, Batgirl and Aqualad shared a look.

Something was wrong and they both knew it.