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Chapter 380 Drag the Leader Out
Time slowed, and the lunging figures froze in mid-air. It was as if the entire world had ground to a halt, leaving Orin Vale, who was maintaining extreme speed, as the only creature still able to move.
This was a combination of his own incredible speed and his application of the Speed Force—giving him an endless amount of time whenever he desired it. What was a fleeting moment for an ordinary person could be an eternity for a Speedster.
This gave him ample time to search each of these floating figures for clues.
As expected, they were all humans. The technology of Apokolips had modified their bodies, granting them enhanced physical abilities, but Orin Vale guessed that to the army of Apokolips, they were nothing more than low-level, errand-running cannon fodder.
People like this were inevitable in any war. Fear and suffering make principles cheap; for many, if they could trade betrayal for survival, they would do so without hesitation.
In fact, it was only natural for "human traitors" to appear in a war like this, and there were undoubtedly many of them across the world.
"There's a certain compound common to each of them." Orin Vale leisurely approached the men frozen in stasis, his eyes shimmering with a faint blue light as he continued to scan them. "If this is anything like the Metropolis I know, this compound should be rare in this city. This compound would only appear in the pipeline system built by Lex Luthor, and I only remember three such locations... So that's it. Hiding their stronghold in a place like that is certainly ironic."
Orin Vale turned his head and switched the type of ray his eyes emitted. His vision penetrated layer after layer of obstacles, soaring unimpeded across half of Metropolis before quickly locking onto a location underground.
"Bingo."
He smiled faintly and his figure slowly levitated. With a light beckon of his finger, light energy was released, forming barrier-like constructs that enveloped the men frozen in mid-air, as well as the woman who had been sent flying earlier. They all floated around him, ascending together.
There was a flash of extreme speed, the surrounding rooftops blurring into a rapidly changing landscape. An instant later, time resumed its normal flow.
The men who had leaped into mid-air finally completed their attacks, only to punch empty air, leaving them completely dumbfounded.
"Where'd he go?" one asked, his face a mask of confusion.
"He disappeared?"
"Where did he go?"
"Wait a minute... something's not right..."
Someone looked around, taking in the vaguely familiar pipeline system and the pungent stench of the sewers, which felt as familiar as home...
"This is the base!" that person exclaimed in astonishment. "He brought us back to the base!"
The men were instantly stunned.
A moment ago, they were still shocked that their opponent was fast enough to dodge their punches without any of them seeing his movements. But now they realized that was nothing. Not only was he too fast for them to see, he was fast enough to grab all of them in the instant before their punches landed, fly them across half the city, and dump them back at their own stronghold!
What the hell kind of god-defying speed was that!?
Even The Flash, that new speed-type hero from the news, isn't nearly this fast, is he?
No, wait. Before that... how did he even know where the stronghold was?
"I tracked the compound on your bodies to find this place—the underground area beneath the former site of the Daily Planet."
Orin Vale's voice echoed from above them. The men looked up in terror at the figure floating in mid-air.
"A very ironic choice. A building that was once a symbol of hope, and now the underground beneath its ruins is a breeding ground for sin," Orin Vale said coolly. "I know your facility is hidden here, but there's interference blocking X-ray vision and other detection methods.
"It's not that I can't find it, but I'd prefer if you'd cooperate and save me the trouble."
The men exchanged glances.
Three seconds later, one of them shot up. "I know! I'll lead the way!"
The others finally reacted, annoyed by their own slowness, and scrambled to speak up. "Me! I know too! I'll talk! The alien nest is hidden just behind this!"
Yes, it seemed a bit shameful and spineless, but they didn't care. They'd lost any claim to integrity the moment they decided to work for the Apokoliptians.
To put it bluntly, they had only sided with the enemy out of fear because the aliens were too strong. If life hadn't forced their hand, who would really want to be a human traitor?
Integrity was already a long-lost concept to them, so seeing the tables turn, they felt no psychological burden in betraying their employers.
Besides, this couldn't even be called betrayal. They had sworn allegiance to whoever had the bigger fist from the very beginning; it just so happened that the one with the bigger fist had now changed.
"Bullshit, I was the one who reported it first!" someone started to argue, already fighting for credit.
"I was enduring this humiliation from the start just so I could destroy the alien stronghold from the inside!"
A teammate heard this and retorted unhappily, "And who was it just a while ago, shouting 'For Darkseid!' with all their might? You were screaming your head off, and you have the nerve..."
The man's face flushed bright red. "As if you weren't shouting it too..."
Boom.
With an expressionless face, Orin Vale punched a huge hole in the wall.
"Get on with it."
The men shuddered, not daring to spout any more nonsense. They scrambled over to the wall of the pipe.
They reached out, sliding their hands along the cracks in the brickwork. After fumbling for a moment, one of them pressed a certain brick.
In a design reminiscent of an ancient mechanism, the brick sank inward, and the wall began to transform along a set track. The bricks slid apart, revealing a metal gate.
One of them placed his hand beside the gate. From within the metal surface, a transparent light ray seemed to slowly scan his hand, verifying his identity. Authentication passed. The dull whirring of machinery sounded from within the gate, followed by a soft *click* as the panel popped open, slowly revealing a gap.
"So it really was hidden here," Orin Vale said.
The stronghold for these human traitors who had forsaken hope was buried beneath the former site of the Daily Planet. The Apokoliptians certainly had a twisted sense of humor.
While the men were opening the door, the woman silently sidled up to Orin Vale. Although the earlier flick of his finger had left half her face bruised and swollen, the enhancement from Apokolips was apparently quite effective, as the injury was merely superficial.
She said cautiously, "Um... General, I actually wasn't lying earlier. I really am a married woman..."
Orin Vale: "..."
He couldn't be bothered with her. As the hidden door opened, the men all stepped to either side, putting on a respectful display as they waited for Orin Vale to enter.
The men had their own little schemes. They hadn't yet realized this General was an impostor, guessing only that he might be a hidden, ace-level Metahuman from the World Army. Regardless, they were certain they couldn't defeat him.
Therefore, if they invited this powerful figure into the stronghold and the big shot from Apokolips won, they could claim to have successfully lured their prey to the right spot. On the off chance this man actually destroyed the stronghold, they could just suck up to him, and it might count as atoning for their crimes with a meritorious deed.
However, Orin Vale just tilted his head, glanced at the pitch-black entrance, and then casually pointed to one of the men.
"You, drag your leader out here for me."
The man: "???"
(end of chapter)
Time slowed, and the lunging figures froze in mid-air. It was as if the entire world had ground to a halt, leaving Orin Vale, who was maintaining extreme speed, as the only creature still able to move.
This was a combination of his own incredible speed and his application of the Speed Force—giving him an endless amount of time whenever he desired it. What was a fleeting moment for an ordinary person could be an eternity for a Speedster.
This gave him ample time to search each of these floating figures for clues.
As expected, they were all humans. The technology of Apokolips had modified their bodies, granting them enhanced physical abilities, but Orin Vale guessed that to the army of Apokolips, they were nothing more than low-level, errand-running cannon fodder.
People like this were inevitable in any war. Fear and suffering make principles cheap; for many, if they could trade betrayal for survival, they would do so without hesitation.
In fact, it was only natural for "human traitors" to appear in a war like this, and there were undoubtedly many of them across the world.
"There's a certain compound common to each of them." Orin Vale leisurely approached the men frozen in stasis, his eyes shimmering with a faint blue light as he continued to scan them. "If this is anything like the Metropolis I know, this compound should be rare in this city. This compound would only appear in the pipeline system built by Lex Luthor, and I only remember three such locations... So that's it. Hiding their stronghold in a place like that is certainly ironic."
Orin Vale turned his head and switched the type of ray his eyes emitted. His vision penetrated layer after layer of obstacles, soaring unimpeded across half of Metropolis before quickly locking onto a location underground.
"Bingo."
He smiled faintly and his figure slowly levitated. With a light beckon of his finger, light energy was released, forming barrier-like constructs that enveloped the men frozen in mid-air, as well as the woman who had been sent flying earlier. They all floated around him, ascending together.
There was a flash of extreme speed, the surrounding rooftops blurring into a rapidly changing landscape. An instant later, time resumed its normal flow.
The men who had leaped into mid-air finally completed their attacks, only to punch empty air, leaving them completely dumbfounded.
"Where'd he go?" one asked, his face a mask of confusion.
"He disappeared?"
"Where did he go?"
"Wait a minute... something's not right..."
Someone looked around, taking in the vaguely familiar pipeline system and the pungent stench of the sewers, which felt as familiar as home...
"This is the base!" that person exclaimed in astonishment. "He brought us back to the base!"
The men were instantly stunned.
A moment ago, they were still shocked that their opponent was fast enough to dodge their punches without any of them seeing his movements. But now they realized that was nothing. Not only was he too fast for them to see, he was fast enough to grab all of them in the instant before their punches landed, fly them across half the city, and dump them back at their own stronghold!
What the hell kind of god-defying speed was that!?
Even The Flash, that new speed-type hero from the news, isn't nearly this fast, is he?
No, wait. Before that... how did he even know where the stronghold was?
"I tracked the compound on your bodies to find this place—the underground area beneath the former site of the Daily Planet."
Orin Vale's voice echoed from above them. The men looked up in terror at the figure floating in mid-air.
"A very ironic choice. A building that was once a symbol of hope, and now the underground beneath its ruins is a breeding ground for sin," Orin Vale said coolly. "I know your facility is hidden here, but there's interference blocking X-ray vision and other detection methods.
"It's not that I can't find it, but I'd prefer if you'd cooperate and save me the trouble."
The men exchanged glances.
Three seconds later, one of them shot up. "I know! I'll lead the way!"
The others finally reacted, annoyed by their own slowness, and scrambled to speak up. "Me! I know too! I'll talk! The alien nest is hidden just behind this!"
Yes, it seemed a bit shameful and spineless, but they didn't care. They'd lost any claim to integrity the moment they decided to work for the Apokoliptians.
To put it bluntly, they had only sided with the enemy out of fear because the aliens were too strong. If life hadn't forced their hand, who would really want to be a human traitor?
Integrity was already a long-lost concept to them, so seeing the tables turn, they felt no psychological burden in betraying their employers.
Besides, this couldn't even be called betrayal. They had sworn allegiance to whoever had the bigger fist from the very beginning; it just so happened that the one with the bigger fist had now changed.
"Bullshit, I was the one who reported it first!" someone started to argue, already fighting for credit.
"I was enduring this humiliation from the start just so I could destroy the alien stronghold from the inside!"
A teammate heard this and retorted unhappily, "And who was it just a while ago, shouting 'For Darkseid!' with all their might? You were screaming your head off, and you have the nerve..."
The man's face flushed bright red. "As if you weren't shouting it too..."
Boom.
With an expressionless face, Orin Vale punched a huge hole in the wall.
"Get on with it."
The men shuddered, not daring to spout any more nonsense. They scrambled over to the wall of the pipe.
They reached out, sliding their hands along the cracks in the brickwork. After fumbling for a moment, one of them pressed a certain brick.
In a design reminiscent of an ancient mechanism, the brick sank inward, and the wall began to transform along a set track. The bricks slid apart, revealing a metal gate.
One of them placed his hand beside the gate. From within the metal surface, a transparent light ray seemed to slowly scan his hand, verifying his identity. Authentication passed. The dull whirring of machinery sounded from within the gate, followed by a soft *click* as the panel popped open, slowly revealing a gap.
"So it really was hidden here," Orin Vale said.
The stronghold for these human traitors who had forsaken hope was buried beneath the former site of the Daily Planet. The Apokoliptians certainly had a twisted sense of humor.
While the men were opening the door, the woman silently sidled up to Orin Vale. Although the earlier flick of his finger had left half her face bruised and swollen, the enhancement from Apokolips was apparently quite effective, as the injury was merely superficial.
She said cautiously, "Um... General, I actually wasn't lying earlier. I really am a married woman..."
Orin Vale: "..."
He couldn't be bothered with her. As the hidden door opened, the men all stepped to either side, putting on a respectful display as they waited for Orin Vale to enter.
The men had their own little schemes. They hadn't yet realized this General was an impostor, guessing only that he might be a hidden, ace-level Metahuman from the World Army. Regardless, they were certain they couldn't defeat him.
Therefore, if they invited this powerful figure into the stronghold and the big shot from Apokolips won, they could claim to have successfully lured their prey to the right spot. On the off chance this man actually destroyed the stronghold, they could just suck up to him, and it might count as atoning for their crimes with a meritorious deed.
However, Orin Vale just tilted his head, glanced at the pitch-black entrance, and then casually pointed to one of the men.
"You, drag your leader out here for me."
The man: "???"
(end of chapter)
