[Hey, Kori,] Joseph said through a mental link.
[Joseph!] Kori replied, giving him a hug. [Why didn't you visit?]
[My bad. So many things have been going on. And I didn't want to burden you. You're my girlfriend, not my therapist.]
Kori gave him a weak punch on the shoulder. Weak for them, anyway—it was powerful enough to make a crater in concrete. [I'm your girlfriend, so I still want to be there for you. Next time, talk to me, okay?] she said with a frown.
[Okay,] Joseph replied, turning her frown into a smile. [I have a gift for you, but first, I should introduce you.]
They were in D.C. because Intergang had a cache of Genesian tech hidden there. The gang had it all over America since they were primarily U.S.-based. Their group had already retrieved the stolen cache in Metropolis.
Transporting it to New Genesis was no issue—Vykin simply opened a boom tube, and a New God on the other side named Lightray moved them to a secure warehouse.
Joseph knew from Ugly Mannheim's memories that their weapons were supplied directly from Apokolips through Desaad, Apokolips' God Scientist and chief torturer—a servant of Darkseid.
The purpose of this was probably to test Apokoliptan weaponry and hinder the Justice League to aid the Light.
Joseph had contacted Kori while flying to D.C. since she was already patrolling the area.
They flew down to where the New Gods, Sphere, and a moody Green Lantern were waiting.
"Hey, Sphere!" Kori said, causing Sphere—in bike form—to return her greeting with cheerful beeps.
"This is Starfire," Joseph said, introducing her to the New Gods before introducing them to her.
"I'm not opposed to another girl joining us. Is she your lady friend?" Dreamer asked.
"Uh, yeah," Joseph said, a bit embarrassed for some reason. Kori smiled and hooked their arms together prompting Hal to huff muttering something about a star sapphire. How did he get Kori's name wrong?
"Good job, man," Bear said. "Dreamer and I have been courting for like forever, but she doesn't want to get married yet."
Dreamer rolled her eyes. "It's only been a couple thousand years. And we're still only in our 16,000s."
That prompted Joseph to raise his eyebrows. He'd underestimated how long-lived the New Gods were. Hopefully, he and Kori could stay together for just as long.
"We're attracting attention. Let's get to the stolen tech," Hal said moodily. Joseph ignored him. He didn't care for people with big egos—respect had to be shown to be reciprocated.
Still, Hal was right. Joseph could see several civilians taking pictures of them and their companions.
"He's about as grumpy as Orion," Joseph's enhanced hearing picked up Serifan whispering to Moonrider, prompting the usually quiet New God to chuckle.
"Follow me," Joseph said, taking charge. He led them inside an abandoned theater building into an auditorium. "The weapon cache is underground, but the entrance is quite tiny. I think they deposited them through a boom tube."
"No problem," Bear said. "I'll just make an entrance big enough."
Bear slammed his fist downward, shattering the theater floor and opening a ten-meter-wide crater that revealed a cavern beneath.
Without hesitation, he leapt in.
Moments later, he shot back out—like a missile—crashing through the roof from red beams pushing him.
Joseph instantly went on alert. His Nova Sense hadn't detected anyone underground—but then, for a brief moment, he felt a power unlike anything he'd sensed before.
That same energy flared again as two crimson beams erupted upward, then sharply arced at ninety degrees toward the group.
The first beam targeted Kori, who was slightly ahead of the others beside him.
Joseph slowed his perception of time with the Speed Force, darted in front of her, and reinforced his body and suit with his new forcefield ability, causing a gold aura to appear near his skin, as well as Strength Force for maximum durability.
He took the full concussive blast head-on—his suit holding against the impact—then pushed forward toward the source.
He could draw from an infinite well of energy now, but more power never hurt. He began absorbing the red energy into his body… and all he felt was pain—raw, searing, unbearable pain. His vision went black as he was knocked out.
**
It all happened almost too fast for Kori to process.
She saw Bear crash through the ceiling—and then Joseph appear in front of her, intercepting two red beams. For an instant, his body was wrapped in red and yellow light, his skeletal structure visible beneath his skin, before he slammed into her with tremendous force. They tumbled through rows of seats, finally crashing into the far wall of the auditorium.
When she looked down, Joseph was unconscious but breathing. Relief washed over her—Nova's healing systems would bring him back soon.
She laid him gently across a seat and tried to contact the League, but her comms weren't getting any signal—jammed.
Kori rose, Starbolts glowing around her fists, as she faced the crater. The others—Green Lantern, Vykin, Dreamer, Moonrider, and Sphere—were already on guard.
A figure emerged from the pit: a gray-skinned woman wearing dark attire under a gray cloak marked with an inverted omega. Her red eyes burned with malice, and her long black hair was shaved on the right side in an undercut. The soles of her boots shimmered with solid light.
"Who is she?" Green Lantern asked.
"Grail," Vykin answered grimly. "Daughter of Darkseid. Why are you here, attacking us? Do you intend to violate the treaty?"
"I'm simply reclaiming what's mine," Grail said with a razor-sharp smile. "And if we're assigning blame—Bear attacked first. Clearly you've set an ambush with superior numbers. So, this… is self-defense."
Then she launched herself forward.
"You lyin' varmint! Those caches are our property and Bear didn't—" Serifan shouted, drawing his twin pistols.
But Grail was already upon him. Her punch sent him crashing through the wall in a burst of debris.
She was on Vykin next. The ground surged upward under his command, forming massive shields. When they clashed, the impact unleashed a shockwave that rocked the entire theater.
Then Grail drew her weapon—a hybrid between a scythe and an axe that hummed with dark energy.
Kori's instincts screamed. Grail's power was immense; her beams moved faster than most of them could track, yet she was toying with them, engaging hand-to-hand for sport.
Kori wanted to fly Joseph to safety—but she had a feeling Grail wouldn't let her prey leave. Those red beams would cut them down mid-escape.
The comms were still jammed—no doubt her doing—so if Green Lantern couldn't reach the League, their only hope was to hold out until Nova recovered.
It stung her pride as a warrior princess to admit it, but since his return from Thanagar, Joseph had definitely surpassed her in strength. And that gap was only growing.
Kori took to the air, launching Starbolts as the others joined the fight.
Moonrider fired blue bolts of energy beside Sphere's yellow lasers. Vykin manipulated the terrain—raising walls, forming shields of earth and metal—while Dreamer stayed close, shielding him from counterattacks.
Green Lantern engaged Grail directly, wielding a glowing baseball bat and shield construct.
Despite his skill, he was clearly outmatched. Grail's martial prowess forced him onto the defensive, her movements sharp and deliberate. She smiled as she fought, easily deflecting his blows, always aware of the others around her.
Because Lantern and Grail were locked in close combat, the others couldn't unleash their full firepower without risking friendly fire. The few shots they managed to take were effortlessly blocked or deflected by Grail's weapon, or dodged entirely as she darted through the air with the light-tech beneath her feet.
"Green Lantern! Have you contacted the League?" Kori called out.
"Negative!" he grunted, barely blocking a strike. "Comms are jammed—has to be her Fatherbox!"
Grail smirked. "Talking during battle? How disrespectful, Lantern. Perhaps I've been going too easy on you."
Her scythe sliced through his shield construct, shattering it like glass. She followed with a heavy backhand that sent him crashing across the room—straight into the seats beside Joseph's unconscious form.