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Chapter 247 Deaf and Blind Teammates
Metropolis, a city block.
A fierce wind erupted, and a sudden storm threatened to devour everything. The airflow, like thousands of blades, tore at the earth. At the center of the storm was a spinning, opening white vortex—a channel for some form of energy.
A Boom Tube, the interstellar teleportation gate created by the signature technology of Apokolips.
A burly figure stepped out, treading slowly across the fractured ground.
He was an absurdly muscular man, nearly twice the height of an adult male, standing like an unshakeable mountain peak. He had dark skin and broad shoulders, a powerful physique that seemed carved from a boulder. His wide, coarse hands were like battle-axes honed by time, brimming with power.
His name was Kalibak, son of the Apokoliptian god Darkseid.
As the eldest son, Kalibak had inherited from his father a formidable power, second to none among the New Gods. He possessed overwhelming physical prowess among the Divine Race.
But perhaps the New Gods followed some law of conservation for attribute points; if too many were allocated to strength, the intelligence attribute would inevitably suffer. Thus, although his strength was immense, Darkseid had never liked him, because his intelligence was deficient, far below the normal standard.
"Father wants Earth. I am helping Father relieve his burden."
Kalibak walked out of the Boom Tube, still muttering to himself. Just then, he heard the screech of a tire behind him. He had appeared abruptly in the middle of the road, and the truck driver was startled, frantically slamming the brakes and cranking the wheel. The truck drifted into a spin, slamming sideways into Kalibak.
With a deafening crash of metal, the truck's body was forcibly broken in two against Kalibak. The sundered truck flew forward under its own momentum, its cabin crashing into a streetlight. The cabin was instantly crushed and deformed. Spewing electric sparks, the lamppost toppled, shattering a storefront window and crashing into a shop on the side of the street.
The road instantly descended into chaos as pedestrians fled in terror. Kalibak stood in the middle of the street, letting out a roar like a lion's.
"Bring me... Superman!!!"
"The matter of the invasion requires careful planning."
Within a certain building in Metropolis, in the darkness.
The New God, Trickster, who had fled from Gotham in disarray and slipped away to this place, was pacing back and forth, muttering incessantly.
"The situation on Earth is more treacherous than we imagined. We need more intelligence, a better plan..."
A nearby Parademon mumbled something incoherently, gesticulating wildly with its hands.
"Shut up, you incompetent fools," Trickster snapped. "Our advantage is operating from the darkness. Only an idiot would give up such an advantage. What would you have us do? Charge into the human streets like a moron and shout at the sky, 'Who dares to fight me?'"
A Parademon handed him a screen. Trickster stared at it. The image showed a Metropolis street, where the stupid son of their lord from Apokolips, Kalibak, was waving a mace and roaring at the sky. His voice was too muffled to make out the words, but Trickster figured it was probably not too different from, "Who dares to fight me."
Trickster: "..."
The New God covered his skeletal face with his hands, suddenly feeling mentally exhausted.
He even wanted to ask, who the hell let this simpleton come here?
But he was, after all, a teammate from Apokolips—and their lord's idiot son, no less. He couldn't just be ignored. Kalibak was strong, but Earth was not without its own powerful individuals. If he was left to his own devices, within a day Kalibak would become the first New God from Apokolips to be captured by humans. The absolute shame of Apokolips.
Trickster grabbed a Mother Box and opened a Boom Tube. A spatial storm erupted. By the time it subsided, Kalibak had appeared in the center of their hidden room, still holding his "come at me" pose and letting out a bizarre cry.
He yelled for a good while before stopping. Still holding his arms high, he glanced around and blinked a couple of times.
"Huh?"
Kalibak's gaze fell on Trickster. He broke into a wide, simple-minded grin and waved.
"You're here too? What a coincidence..."
Trickster sighed softly.
The last outing had already been a disaster, and now he'd picked up this giant man-child. Oh well. At least he was a man-child who could fight. As long as he obeyed orders and followed his command, he should still be quite useful.
Hmm. Let's hope he obeys orders.
"Why did you come here?"
"I heard Father is attacking Earth, and Father wants Superman. I, Kalibak, will help Father by sharing his burden and clearing the way!"
Kalibak placed his hands on his hips and proudly puffed out his chest.
"Father will be happy! Will give Kalibak a hug!"
Trickster: "..."
Well, such filial piety was a rare thing. But whether Father would actually be happy was another matter entirely.
Trickster knew this simpleton had limited intelligence, but that didn't mean he'd be easy to command. Giving direct orders might not work; dealing with him would require a mix of coaxing and trickery.
In other words, he had to be tricked so thoroughly that he'd help you count the money after being sold.
Just as he was mentally formulating a way to persuade Kalibak, a Parademon flew over and chittered a few words. After listening, Trickster's heart leaped with joy.
Finally, some good news.
A Kryptonian had been captured.
"Bring him up quickly!" Trickster said impatiently.
Everyone knew that a Kryptonian on Earth named Superman had attracted Darkseid's attention. Beneath the main objective of invading Earth was a crucial secondary objective: to capture Superman alive.
Whoever could bring Superman back to the great Darkseid would undoubtedly be credited with a great achievement.
However, when a few Parademons excitedly carried in a middle-aged reporter whose beer belly was nearly bursting the seams of his Superman uniform, Trickster's vision went black, and he almost fainted from rage.
"Open your stupid eyes and look! Is this thing Superman!?" Trickster roared.
The Parademons looked at each other, their eyes filled with bewilderment.
Their expressions seemed to ask, "Isn't this Superman?"
"You... you..."
Furious, Trickster floated down. A skeletal leg shot out from beneath his robes, kicking a Parademon and sending it flying. With a splat, it hit the wall, bursting into a puddle of Parademon paste under the New God's divine power.
"Idiots! Blockheads! Are you blind?! Even if you're too face-blind to recognize him, can't you even read the identification device?"
The remaining Parademons exchanged glances again, muttering to one another and gesticulating.
Their gestures seemed to convey, "The device said he wasn't Superman... We all thought it was malfunctioning..."
Trickster nearly fainted from anger again.
This time, however, he didn't even have the will to beat them. He just shook his head repeatedly. These idiot teammates were impossible to carry. He was just so tired.
But to his surprise, when he turned his head, he saw Kalibak behind him squinting. He scrutinized the reporter below, Zod, who was dressed as Superman, for a long while. Then, looking puzzled, he swiped open the floating screen on the terminal beside him, pulled up a picture of Superman, and compared the two for a long time.
Then, Kalibak also looked up at Trickster in confusion and asked, "This isn't Superman? They look exactly the same..."
Hearing this, Trickster's vision went black again.
You...
What kind of deaf and blind teammates am I stuck with?
(end of chapter)
Metropolis, a city block.
A fierce wind erupted, and a sudden storm threatened to devour everything. The airflow, like thousands of blades, tore at the earth. At the center of the storm was a spinning, opening white vortex—a channel for some form of energy.
A Boom Tube, the interstellar teleportation gate created by the signature technology of Apokolips.
A burly figure stepped out, treading slowly across the fractured ground.
He was an absurdly muscular man, nearly twice the height of an adult male, standing like an unshakeable mountain peak. He had dark skin and broad shoulders, a powerful physique that seemed carved from a boulder. His wide, coarse hands were like battle-axes honed by time, brimming with power.
His name was Kalibak, son of the Apokoliptian god Darkseid.
As the eldest son, Kalibak had inherited from his father a formidable power, second to none among the New Gods. He possessed overwhelming physical prowess among the Divine Race.
But perhaps the New Gods followed some law of conservation for attribute points; if too many were allocated to strength, the intelligence attribute would inevitably suffer. Thus, although his strength was immense, Darkseid had never liked him, because his intelligence was deficient, far below the normal standard.
"Father wants Earth. I am helping Father relieve his burden."
Kalibak walked out of the Boom Tube, still muttering to himself. Just then, he heard the screech of a tire behind him. He had appeared abruptly in the middle of the road, and the truck driver was startled, frantically slamming the brakes and cranking the wheel. The truck drifted into a spin, slamming sideways into Kalibak.
With a deafening crash of metal, the truck's body was forcibly broken in two against Kalibak. The sundered truck flew forward under its own momentum, its cabin crashing into a streetlight. The cabin was instantly crushed and deformed. Spewing electric sparks, the lamppost toppled, shattering a storefront window and crashing into a shop on the side of the street.
The road instantly descended into chaos as pedestrians fled in terror. Kalibak stood in the middle of the street, letting out a roar like a lion's.
"Bring me... Superman!!!"
"The matter of the invasion requires careful planning."
Within a certain building in Metropolis, in the darkness.
The New God, Trickster, who had fled from Gotham in disarray and slipped away to this place, was pacing back and forth, muttering incessantly.
"The situation on Earth is more treacherous than we imagined. We need more intelligence, a better plan..."
A nearby Parademon mumbled something incoherently, gesticulating wildly with its hands.
"Shut up, you incompetent fools," Trickster snapped. "Our advantage is operating from the darkness. Only an idiot would give up such an advantage. What would you have us do? Charge into the human streets like a moron and shout at the sky, 'Who dares to fight me?'"
A Parademon handed him a screen. Trickster stared at it. The image showed a Metropolis street, where the stupid son of their lord from Apokolips, Kalibak, was waving a mace and roaring at the sky. His voice was too muffled to make out the words, but Trickster figured it was probably not too different from, "Who dares to fight me."
Trickster: "..."
The New God covered his skeletal face with his hands, suddenly feeling mentally exhausted.
He even wanted to ask, who the hell let this simpleton come here?
But he was, after all, a teammate from Apokolips—and their lord's idiot son, no less. He couldn't just be ignored. Kalibak was strong, but Earth was not without its own powerful individuals. If he was left to his own devices, within a day Kalibak would become the first New God from Apokolips to be captured by humans. The absolute shame of Apokolips.
Trickster grabbed a Mother Box and opened a Boom Tube. A spatial storm erupted. By the time it subsided, Kalibak had appeared in the center of their hidden room, still holding his "come at me" pose and letting out a bizarre cry.
He yelled for a good while before stopping. Still holding his arms high, he glanced around and blinked a couple of times.
"Huh?"
Kalibak's gaze fell on Trickster. He broke into a wide, simple-minded grin and waved.
"You're here too? What a coincidence..."
Trickster sighed softly.
The last outing had already been a disaster, and now he'd picked up this giant man-child. Oh well. At least he was a man-child who could fight. As long as he obeyed orders and followed his command, he should still be quite useful.
Hmm. Let's hope he obeys orders.
"Why did you come here?"
"I heard Father is attacking Earth, and Father wants Superman. I, Kalibak, will help Father by sharing his burden and clearing the way!"
Kalibak placed his hands on his hips and proudly puffed out his chest.
"Father will be happy! Will give Kalibak a hug!"
Trickster: "..."
Well, such filial piety was a rare thing. But whether Father would actually be happy was another matter entirely.
Trickster knew this simpleton had limited intelligence, but that didn't mean he'd be easy to command. Giving direct orders might not work; dealing with him would require a mix of coaxing and trickery.
In other words, he had to be tricked so thoroughly that he'd help you count the money after being sold.
Just as he was mentally formulating a way to persuade Kalibak, a Parademon flew over and chittered a few words. After listening, Trickster's heart leaped with joy.
Finally, some good news.
A Kryptonian had been captured.
"Bring him up quickly!" Trickster said impatiently.
Everyone knew that a Kryptonian on Earth named Superman had attracted Darkseid's attention. Beneath the main objective of invading Earth was a crucial secondary objective: to capture Superman alive.
Whoever could bring Superman back to the great Darkseid would undoubtedly be credited with a great achievement.
However, when a few Parademons excitedly carried in a middle-aged reporter whose beer belly was nearly bursting the seams of his Superman uniform, Trickster's vision went black, and he almost fainted from rage.
"Open your stupid eyes and look! Is this thing Superman!?" Trickster roared.
The Parademons looked at each other, their eyes filled with bewilderment.
Their expressions seemed to ask, "Isn't this Superman?"
"You... you..."
Furious, Trickster floated down. A skeletal leg shot out from beneath his robes, kicking a Parademon and sending it flying. With a splat, it hit the wall, bursting into a puddle of Parademon paste under the New God's divine power.
"Idiots! Blockheads! Are you blind?! Even if you're too face-blind to recognize him, can't you even read the identification device?"
The remaining Parademons exchanged glances again, muttering to one another and gesticulating.
Their gestures seemed to convey, "The device said he wasn't Superman... We all thought it was malfunctioning..."
Trickster nearly fainted from anger again.
This time, however, he didn't even have the will to beat them. He just shook his head repeatedly. These idiot teammates were impossible to carry. He was just so tired.
But to his surprise, when he turned his head, he saw Kalibak behind him squinting. He scrutinized the reporter below, Zod, who was dressed as Superman, for a long while. Then, looking puzzled, he swiped open the floating screen on the terminal beside him, pulled up a picture of Superman, and compared the two for a long time.
Then, Kalibak also looked up at Trickster in confusion and asked, "This isn't Superman? They look exactly the same..."
Hearing this, Trickster's vision went black again.
You...
What kind of deaf and blind teammates am I stuck with?
(end of chapter)
