### Chapter 4: The Crisis of This World is Imminent
"All right, the Batwing! Are you taking us to the Batcave?"
While Ben was urging Batman to think of a solution quickly, a cool-looking aircraft hovered above the three of them in the sky.
A grappling hook shot out from the aircraft, accurately grabbing the unlucky guy whose genes Ben had repaired with the Omnitrix, as well as the armor he was wearing.
"I'll take him and that armor back for testing. As for you two, leave my city as soon as possible."
Retracting the grappling hook into the aircraft, Batman left without hesitation.
Regardless of the shapeshifting young man or the Green Lantern, neither of them belonged in Gotham, and staying in this city would do them no good.
"Batman is running away! Fire!"
Seeing Batman about to board the fighter jet, the decadence sheriff, acting on orders from his corrupt superior, helplessly issued the command to open fire.
Amidst a hail of bullets, Batman flew away in the Batwing, leaving Hal and Ben staring at each other.
"'My' city? Who does he think he is? I am a Green Lantern! The entire Earth is within my protected sector!"
Hal didn't like Batman's attitude; he seemed to see a shadow of someone else in him.
If a person like Batman were to fall, he might become a member of the Yellow Lantern Corps under Sinestro.
While complaining about Batman, Hal used green energy to create a barrier covering himself and Ben, shielding them from any stray bullets that might appear.
Although he could have just left, he couldn't leave Ben, who possessed mysterious unknown high-tech, wandering around the Earth alone.
Regarding Hal's complaints, Ben looked helplessly at the receding Batwing.
"He's just stating a fact. He owns almost half of Gotham."
Ben's answer surprised Hal. Before becoming a Green Lantern, he was just a fighter pilot.
He couldn't imagine a single person owning assets equivalent to half a city, let alone a metropolis like Gotham which ranked at the top of the national economy.
"So rich? Is he actually a vampire who has lived for thousands of years!"
Hearing Hal's words, Ben teased with a smile on his face.
"Accurately speaking, he is another kind of vampire... no, we generally call them capitalists."
"WTF?"
Ben's answer made Hal feel like the world had gone mad. A perverted capitalist wearing a bat suit at night to roam the streets as a vigilante.
If he really had a kind heart and wanted to help the weak, wouldn't it be more practical to just donate more money?
"You mean, he's just a normal person without superpowers."
"He has a superpower." Ben strongly objected to Hal's summary.
"Really?"
Seeing the boy's reaction, Hal Jordan remained skeptical.
Facing Hal Jordan's gaze, Ben recalled the scene from the Snyder Cut of the Justice League movie and responded with a serious face.
"He's rich."
"Oh, come on!"
Ben's answer proved that when people are speechless to the extreme, they might indeed laugh, but the twitching corner of Hal's mouth still showed his attitude.
"That joke isn't funny."
After teasing Hal, Ben, who had just recalled the Snyder Cut Justice League, finally realized what they had just dealt with.
Although the enemy's image and the current plot development were far from the movie, Ben had a strong premonition that he had guessed correctly.
"Damn, Darkseid! We have big trouble!"
"Darkness?"
Hearing Ben suddenly scream, Hal didn't hear clearly what he said, but he could feel Ben's mood suddenly becoming tense.
"Darkseid! That's the enemy's name. He is the ruler of Apokolips, the most terrifying and powerful evil god currently existing in the universe. What we just defeated was a biological weapon he modified from captives—a Parademon!"
As a supervillain comparable to the purple potato essence next door, Darkseid is definitely one of the Justice League's most powerful enemies.
Among Darkseid's subordinates, the most numerous are these monsters known as Parademons.
Parademons are biological weapons created by Apokolips technology that completely modifies the genes and bodies of other organic life forms.
They are genetically modified post-birth, possess no wisdom or reason, and are weapons completely loyal to Darkseid. That is why the Omnitrix couldn't record their DNA, and instead automatically initiated the gene repair function when the watch got close.
"Are you interested in taking me to Metropolis for a trip? I don't know the way."
Using the Omnitrix's gene repair function, Ben could solve those almost endless Parademons.
But to defeat the powerful Darkseid, without unlocking the 'Three Phantom Gods' in the Omnitrix, they must have Superman's power, or allow Ben to obtain Superman's power.
"What are we going there for?"
Hearing Ben's next itinerary, Hal Jordan scratched his head. To be honest, he didn't want to go to Metropolis.
Although they hadn't formally fought, ever since he completed the Green Lantern Corps training and took over as the person in charge of Sector 2814, the Guardians of Oa had been emphasizing not to interfere with that Kryptonian's life.
"Facing Darkseid, without Superman's power, this world will be in imminent danger!"
"Then let's go."
Batman had taken away anything that could be investigated. Hal Jordan was also half-skeptical about what Ben said.
However, one thing was certain: the equipment on those things Ben called "Parademons" was definitely not a product of Earth's technology.
Going to ask that big alien boy, perhaps there really would be unexpected gains.
Green energy quickly wrapped around the two and transformed into a jet. Hal Jordan, recalling the days before he became a Green Lantern, flew Ben toward Metropolis.
"Oh, come on! You want me to write a report? The targets all flew away? The chief will definitely kill me!"
Watching everyone leave, the leading sheriff looked very headache-stricken.
Ever since Batman appeared and destroyed the Falcone family, Gotham City could really be described as demons dancing wildly.
"This isn't something we can solve. Leave it to Batman."
A detective who arrived in a hurry patted his old friend on the shoulder, advising him to relax.
"Gordon, you just got here!"
Gently brushing away his friend's hand, the decadent sheriff was somewhat speechless.
"No matter how unhappy you are with those corrupt bastards, at least put on a show and don't be late."
Hearing his old friend's complaint, Gordon had a smile on his face.
"I was delayed by catching a nutjob on the way here. He said he was robbed of his bag and then kicked into a trash can by a sneak attack."
...