Milk_Is_My_Drug
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Chapter 53: Tearing Down Delusions
🕑 Added 2025-06-01 15:06:29 +0000 UTCSuperman stood in the center of the Watchtower briefing room, arms crossed, his face hard with concern as he listened to Kara recount her troubling dreams. The idea of someone cloning her was disturbing enough, but the fact that Ashborn made an appearance in her dream, calmly identifying the clone, weighed heavily on his mind.
“He wasn’t involved,” Kara emphasized again, her voice shaky but resolute. “But… he knew. Like, instantly. He wasn’t surprised.”
Superman ran a hand over his face, his fingers pressing into his temples. “We need to check with him. If he knows something, we have to hear it. I just…” He sighed. “I’m not looking forward to stepping into his office again.”
“He seems to carry kryptonite like it’s candy,” Wonder Woman said dryly. “But if this dream has any truth to it, we have to get to the bottom of it, even if it’s by sword, if needed.”
Superman gave her a warning glance. “No violence. We don’t even understand what this ‘Shadow Monarch’ is yet. And Ashborn already knew our real identities. I don’t want to end up in court with him again.”
“I’ll go,” Diana offered. “He seems to enjoy provoking you, Kal. Maybe I’ll have better luck.”
“I’ll tag along,” Martian Manhunter said from the corner, his tone neutral but serious.
Kara straightened. “I’m going too.” She looked between them. “If there really is a clone of me… I need to know.”
Superman gave a silent nod. No one objected. She deserved answers.
At that moment, the doors whooshed open and Flash skidded to a stop inside.
“You’re late,” Batman said flatly, not even turning his head.
“I know, but you need to see this,” Flash said, already tapping away at the Watchtower terminal. “It’s… insane.”
The others gathered around as the large screen lit up, showing a trailer, complete with booming music and dramatic narration.
The title read: “ULTRAMAN”
The screen flickered with images of a man dressed in a costume, blue cape, inverted Superman color scheme, an exaggerated “U” emblazoned on his chest. He soared through the sky with the speed of sound, smashed through steel with a smile, his eyes saw through objects and shot lasers to make rocks in molten lava, and posed heroically in front of the American flag.
But the story wasn’t his.
It was about the CIA.
As they desperately, and hilariously, tried to assassinate a journalist who was so good at his job that he pissed off all the wrong people. This journalist just wanted to write good articles and pet his dog but secretly was none other than Ultraman. Every attempt ended in spectacular failure. One scene showed a sniper rifle melting in the sun. Another had an agent slipping on a banana peel moments before firing. With each failure, the CIA grew more desperate, paranoid, and ridiculous.
“Are they serious?” Kara muttered.
Superman squinted at the screen. The way the hero moved, the glasses, the job at a major newspaper…
“This is me,” he said with a groan. “It’s a parody of me.”
“Ultraman is definitely you,” J'onn confirmed.
Flash pointed at the screen. “And guess who’s producing it?”
The screen showed the production logo: Shadow Corp.
Superman’s groan deepened. “I’m going with you to Ashborn. I have to stop him from making this show.”
“Think he’s mocking you on purpose?” Diana asked.
“Perhaps… or it might be him warning you to act against him” Batman added.
Kara couldn’t help but chuckle slightly, despite her unease.
___________
The sun had barely broken the horizon when Ashborn stepped into his office, a fresh cup of coffee in hand. His stride relaxed, and a slight smile played on his lips. Inside, four costumed figures waited for him with varying degrees of patience and tension.
He walked past them casually, not sparing a second glance, and simply said, “Good morning,” as if greeting a passing colleague. Then he made his way to his desk, sat down, and took a slow sip of his coffee.
Wonder Woman narrowed her eyes, arms crossed tightly. “You don’t seem surprised to see us.”
Ashborn placed his cup gently on the desk and met her gaze with that same smile. “I had a feeling you’d visit. And I suspect I know the reason… but go ahead, surprise me.”
Her tone sharpened. “Then I won’t waste time. Who created Supergirl’s clone and what do you know about it?”
Ashborn leaned back in his chair, his fingers lacing together in front of him. “Why do you think she has a clone? And why would I know about something like this? Bit random, no?”
Before Wonder Woman could respond, Kara stepped forward. Her expression was conflicted, but her voice was steady. “I’ve been having dreams. Of doing things I would never do. Hurting people. Killing. And in the last one… I saw you, meeting the clone.”
Ashborn’s eyes drifted toward her, still smiling. “So you two share a link,” he said. “That’s why she came to me. Like you were affected by her… she was influenced by you. That explains her strange decision making. Still strange though, why do you have such a connection?”
Kara’s heart pounded, but she felt a small sense of relief. If Ashborn wasn’t surprised, if he recognized the clone, then maybe her dreams weren’t some buried side of herself. “So… who cloned me? And why?”
Ashborn took another sip of coffee and stared into the dark liquid for a moment. “That’s for you to figure out,” he said finally. “I won’t share the details of what’s going on. But I will tell you this: the clone isn’t your enemy… but she’s not your friend either. Her goals are similar to yours,p eace, order, but her methods differ. Killing is a tool she’s more than willing to use.”
Wonder Woman’s fists clenched. “This isn’t something we can overlook. Someone cloned Supergirl, weaponized her. They’re using her to kill. We need to know who, and why.”
Ashborn looked at her with a calm amused smile. “You won’t find your answers here.”
Diana took a step forward, her voice rising. “Can’t you see the threat she poses? What if they create more? What if they abuse that power?”
Ashborn tilted his head slightly, amusement glinting in his eye. “And what are you doing with the Watchtower? Assembling heroes, building a force of power in orbit. That’s fine, but someone else doing it is suddenly unacceptable? That’s… awfully hypocritical, don’t you think?”
“Don’t compare us to them!” Diana snapped. “We have a noble mission. We act in the open, not from the shadows!”
Ashborn chuckled, his gaze sharp now. “A princess from Themyscira lecturing me on nobility and transparency… how ironic. Save those words for someone who doesn’t know what your precious island has done in the shadows.”
Diana’s jaw clenched, her eyes narrowing as she stepped forward. “I won’t allow you to insult my home.”
Before she could go further, Superman stepped up and gently placed a hand on her shoulder. “Diana.” His tone was firm but calm. “Ashborn… let’s keep things civil. There’s no need to reduce this to accusations and insults.”
Ashborn was quiet for a moment. Then he leaned forward, one eyebrow arched as a quiet laugh escaped his lips.
“You don’t know, do you?” he asked, eyes locked on Diana. “You’re the princess… and you don’t know?”
He leaned back in his chair and laughed harder. “Now that’s funny.”
Diana's eyes narrowed into thin slits. “What are you accusing my people of? The Amazons are righteous, upright. Something you clearly lack.”
Ashborn laughed. Not a scoff. Not a smirk. But an actual, full-bodied laugh, as if she’d just told him the most absurd joke he’d ever heard.
“You really believe that?” he asked, voice low and amused. “You still think your noble warriors are the shining beacon of purity?”
“Let me paint you a picture, Princess. Your ‘righteous’ warriors? They attack ships, cargo, military, doesn’t matter. They take the men for breeding, then kill them when they’re done. The women, if any, are often left to die. Then they sail back to their ‘paradise,’ where newborn girls are raised into warriors, and the boys? They’re traded for weapons. Hephaestus has been making deals for a very long time, your lasso was bought by one of your poor brothers.”
Diana’s lips parted slightly, but no words came.
Ashborn’s voice dropped, colder now. “When you go back, look into it. You’ll find what you don’t want to. Your island keeps its filth in the shadows. Just because you don’t see the blood doesn’t mean it’s not there.”
He paused, and then smirked. “And while we’re tearing down delusions… you weren’t carved from soil and given life. That’s a story they told to make it all sound less… tribal. You came into the world through the old hip dance ritual. And your divine power, because the male donor was Zues.”
The heavy silence followed. Superman looked between them, tense and ready. J'onn frowned realizing things could explode at any moment. Kara stared, stunned.
Sure enough, Diana exploded.
With a furious cry, she shoved Superman aside and drew her sword in one smooth motion. “I will not allow slander and shame to stain my people!”
Ashborn’s hand moved like lightning, he opened the drawer of his desk, pulled a strange looking pistol, and fired without hesitation.
The crack of the gunshot echoed through the office like thunder.
Diana knew bullets are harmless against her. She didn’t even raise her bracers this time expecting to bounce.
But the bullet didn’t bounce.
It tore through her shoulder, a clean, sharp wound that forced a cry of shock and pain from her lips. She stumbled, staring at the blood staining her armor, wide-eyed.
“You are in my office, behave” Ashborn said with the same smile.
Comments
Milk_Is_My_Drug
Yup, you are right
Nightshadeq8
I think you meant Hephaestus not Prometheus author
Nightshadeq8
you poor bastard. its his weird patreon rule ,where you pay a dollar for each new chapter. There was an option where you could select a max amount or something like that. best bet message the author
Ruzzzy
Dude, what the fuck? They charged me $75 for a subscription!
