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Gotham's Dead End Bar Ch.60
🕑 Added 2025-03-19 02:17:42 +0000 UTC— Kara —
Mid-flight, Kara was forced to duck and dive. A beam of electrified, half-solidified, and widely varied radiation swept through the space she just was a moment later. Even her Kryptonian physiology would’ve had trouble standing up to it. Especially since the monster seemed to be learning, adapting, and semi-evolving on the fly. Half of that radiation was of the Kryptonite variety…
Kara pulled her charge up short and flew back up. Hovering high, she took a moment to take in the battlefield. The destruction that even the Justice League was struggling to prevent. City blocks upon city blocks lay in ruin. They were working overtime to keep the fighting contained and evacuate civilians at the same time.
Flash was dashing about at full speed. Batman and Martian Manhunter were acting as the proverbial eyes in the sky. Aquaman kept the fighting from surging into the Bay. Zatanna and Doctor Fate fortified and warded an evacuation shelter that was ever-growing. The Teen Titans had been called up due to their close proximity, running around everywhere they were needed. Shazam, Green Lantern, and Kal did what they could to help in the fighting itself, while Plastic Man was on the defensive. Kara and Diana were with them, but they weren’t making much progress on that front at all.
At the center of it all, a towering, mutated monster rampaged. It’d risen from beneath the ground without much warning. The Earth had barely even quaked. But it’d come all the same. A gaping sinkhole marked the source, the start of the rampage. And from it, there was a consistent line of pure destruction.
Buildings had been stomped completely flat. Roads were in ruin. Whole train and tram lines were thrown straight into the air, seemingly never to come down again. The smallest of sparks lit reserves of gas and fuel into massive fireballs. Burning lines were constantly carved from irradiated breath beams. From it all, it seemed as if Godzilla had truly come to San Francisco.
The monster itself was a massive thing. Stories upon stories tall and heavy enough to crush buildings outright. Its skin was black and cracked like cooled lava. When it bled, something offensively orange leaked out from the wounds.
It looked — for everything — like a primordial cross between lizard, burrowing insect, and biblical demon. Half a dozen pairs of horns formed halos behind its head. Its jaw didn’t so much open as it split its face in two, with beam-firing mandibles extending from either side of the gaping split. It moved with terrifying strength and quickness, just as home on six legs — two pairs of ‘arms’ — as on two. And that was all without mentioning the scorpion-like tail and stinger that emerged from its rear.
As if to make things even worse, it had regeneration on par with Martian Manhunter and seemed bestially intelligent enough to direct that regeneration into adaptive evolution. Only to a certain extent, thankfully. It wasn’t developing immunities on the fly. Just adjusting the attacks that didn’t work, piling on more magma-flow armor, and reinforcing its biology to the point of redundancy.
Still, its threat level was steadily rising. The claws it wielded carved and cleaved through just about anything in front of it. Its beams of irradiated energy and force were even worse. And Kara was positive it’d grown in size since it emerged.
The only saving grace was that it wasn’t flying… But Kara didn’t to tempt Murphy by thinking about that too hard.
And the Kaiju — Kara really couldn’t bring herself to call it anything else — was only one side of the destructive equation. It came from the Earth, and an opponent appeared from the stars. The Justice League had more warning about that one. But not by much. They’d ignored all attempts to communicate, just plowing straight into the fray.
Following the Kaiju train of thought, the other party couldn’t be anything but Super Sentai Robos. There were five of them, and they’d come plunging through the flames of re-entry like a Kryptonian — not a scratch on them. Each was bipedal — classically Mecha-human in shape — and about five stories tall compared to the Kaiju’s 20-something. The Mechas brought whole arsenals to bear against the Kaiju — machine guns, auto-cannons, lasers, plasma beams, more than a few missiles, and even two swords (katanas… Kara honestly didn’t expect anything else).
Then… the five Mechas combined and transformed. Because of course they did, Kara sighed. Was there ever any doubt? The two sword-wielding Mechas became the arms, two others became the legs, and the last became the torso and head. Combined and transformed, the new Mecha just about matched the Kaiju in size. And that’s when the fighting and destruction truly began.
Honestly? While this could be considered their ‘Threat of the Week’, the Justice League was playing second fiddle here. The real fight seemed to be entirely between the Kaiju and the Mecha. But they couldn’t just… not show up. So they rescued civilians, contained the destruction, and did their very best to stop the two city-destroying foes from fighting to the death.
The Mecha hopped back with worrying dexterity and agility for its size. It moved just like a man, a warrior. With the distance it gained, a flight of missiles streaked forth from its shoulder blades. The roaring rockets arced and homed in on the Kaiju. They splashed against its blackened armor in quick succession, exploding payloads heavy enough to level buildings.
The Kaiju roared. But largely, it was unaffected by the missile barrage. A few craters formed on its body. A bit of orange blood bled. But that was it. In return, it leveled its mandibles at the Mecha and let loose with a quick, bursting beam.
The Alien Mecha was staggered by the counter. But just as quickly, lasers on its torso snapped into being. They lanced across the distance between the two foes in an instant and carved a scale from the Kaiju’s armor.
Watching it all, Kara heard Batman’s voice broadcast across all open frequencies, trying to get through to the Mecha, “Unidentified Mecha: stand down! Respond to our hails. We can work together here. Otherwise, you will be held responsible for the collateral damage you’re causing here.”
Kara thought it was a bit of a pointless gesture at this point. The Mecha From Space hadn’t responded to any of their other attempts. There was no telling if they even understood them. Only one thing was certain about them: they were deadset on their mission. The Kaiju could’ve been the only thing on Earth, and the Mecha still would’ve shown up to duel it to the death.
Sure enough, the Mecha didn’t even flinch at Batman’s call for peace. One of its katanas lit up with plasma as it leaped back into the melee. The Kaiju swiped it out of mid-air. Uncountable tons were diverted from their course as it slammed the Mecha into and through an office building. The Mecha’s torso lasers fired again as it scrambled back to its feet. The Kaiju screeched in pain as the concentrated light burned across its face.
Still, Kara and the others tasked with focusing on the fight couldn’t sit idle. With an empowered glare, Kara used her heat vision to a similar effect as the Mecha’s lasers. Kal joined her after only a moment. They struck one of the Kaiju’s mandibles, burning it straight off. It fell away but was already growing back mere moments later.
Still, their combined attack brought a moment of pause. Shazam took advantage of it. In a flash of lightning, he seemed to teleport right into the Kaiju’s face. The punch he threw there thundered — quite literally — and sent the Kaiju down to four legs out of six. But the remaining two legs swatted Shazam like a fly. He cartwheeled boot over cape for a mile or so through the air before he recovered his bearings.
Meanwhile, Diana mounted the Mecha’s torso as it was getting to its feet. It paused. But she didn’t even get a word in before all of the lasers on the Mecha’s torso lashed out at her. Instantly, Diana’s shield was up, deflecting the lasers back into the Mecha’s armor. Kara imagined Diana’s glare then would’ve given the Mecha pilots a second moment of pause, but they just swiped her off the torso with one of its massive swords.
As Plastic Man caught Diana, the Mecha fully stood. So did the Kaiju. Immediately, the duel refocused and resumed. The Kaiju’s stinger shot out and lodged itself in the combined Mecha’s hip. The Mecha used the moment to get close enough to swing its swords, both illuminated by plasma coatings.
For a moment, both foes deadlocked each other. Even the plasma swords failed to completely burn through the Kaiju’s armor. And though stuck, it was clear that the stinger hadn’t gotten anything crucial to the Mecha’s function.
Bound together, both sides let loose with all they had. The Mecha’s lasers snapped, its shoulder-mounted cannon barked, and even a flamethrower on its crotch — of all places — spewed blue-hot, blowtorch-esque flames. With that, a decisive blow was finally landed. The lasers burned through blackened scales until they were boiling blood. The cannon ripped a gaping hole in the Kaiju’s opposite shoulder. And the crotch-mounted flamethrower… didn’t really do much at all.
But at the same time, the Kaiju tore at the Mecha’s armor with its claws, snapped a bite out of the Mecha’s raised arms, and fired its breath beam straight through the Mecha’s core from there. Steel screamed. A minor explosion popped off to one side of the Mecha’s core. And the bitten arm came straight off the combined body to float at the Mecha’s side.
Kaiju and Mecha separated, both limping. But already, both were healing. They’d seen the Kaiju do so already. The Mecha employed its own recovery methods now, though. Nanomachines, magitech, straight-up magic — whatever it was, the Mecha was healing at a visible rate. The floating arm Mecha recombined with the whole, and claw-shaped furrows in the armor closed rapidly.
In mere moments, they were back at it. The Kaiju roared. The Mecha replied with an electronic screech.
“This isn’t working,” Martian Manhunter’s voice resonated through Kara’s mind, linking the fight-facing members of the Justice League in that unintrusive psychic way of his.
“You don’t say?!” Shazam snarked, his true age showing through.
“It’s quite difficult to find an opening here,” Diana said.
“We could force one, but I’m worried the Mecha will turn on us just as readily as the… monster,” Kal hesitated at the end.
“Kaiju~!” Kara helpfully and excitedly corrected him.
Kal just sighed, “Yes… Kaiju…”
“Gotta get the terminology right, my (Super)man,” Plastic Man chuckled goodnaturedly before suggesting. “Tripline ambush?”
“You mean having them trip over you,” Batman bluntly translated.
“Well, yeah, duh,” Plastic Man joked. “You see anyone else made of plastic here?”
“No, but I could do a thing or two to help that plan,” Green Lantern said.
“And then what? Just wrestle ‘em down?” Shazam asked.
“Why not,” Kara could practically hear Plastic Man shrug. “I’ll let you invulnerable packages deal with the, ahem… ‘wrastlin’. Just call me when you need a rope.”
“Patrick. You’re arguably the most invulnerable one there,” Batman pointed out with a grunt.
“Whaaaaaaat~? Naaaaahhhh,” Plastic Man playfully denied. “Lil’ ol’ me is just made of plastic!”
“Japes aside,” Diana pointed out. “It could work. Conventional options for subduing them… don’t hold the same promise.”
“… You’re right,” Batman admitted. “We’ll be here all day if they keep healing like this. The city doesn’t have that luxury.”
“So… Me and Diana, Kal and Billy?” Kara asked.
“Do it-,” Batman chopped out. But on Kara’s end, he was cut off by an unexpected arrival.
A wide portal split the air beside her. Kara was still reacting when a vehicle… just about spontaneously appeared… in mid-air. It didn’t fall. Just parked itself there as if there was a road beneath its wheels. No surprise attack came, and Kara was left blinking… until she saw the familiar faces smiling at her through the driver’s side window of the honest-to-Rao-and-Didi classic VW Camper Van.
Then… she was suddenly smiling too, bright and genuine, “Hiya, Sean~! Hi, Didi~!”
“And ‘Hiya’ right back at you, Kara,” Sean waved.
“Hello, Kara,” Didi greeted her as well.
Kara felt Shazam’s face scrunch up in confusion in the back of her mind through the link, telling her the new development was being conveyed to the others, “… Who?”
Plastic Man laughed, “You don’t know about Mr. Barkeep? Even I paid enough attention to hear about him! Well… mostly Mew… but still!”
“Hey!” Shazam protested. “Some of us have, like, other stuff that occupies our time!”
“You mean homework?”
“… Shut up.”
“Children. Be serious. This is a major development,” Green Lantern chided sternly.
Kara mostly ignored them. Sean was here! And Didi! The ‘Threat of the Week’ was as good as solved! And maybe she’d get to hang out with some of her favorite people in one of her favorite places after everything was wrapped up~!
“Bit of trouble?” Sean asked, gesturing at… everything.
“Oh, Rao, more than a bit,” Kara groaned. “These meanies are just-! Just rampaging! If they have a reason for it, we haven’t found it yet. Can you help, Sean? Please~?”
“Since it’s you who asked so nicely,” Sean put on an overly dramatic sigh that made Kara giggle. “I really just came to make a little announcement, but I suppose I can lend a hand or an artifact or so on.”
In the back of Kara’s head, Batman grumbled, “Grrr… Just perfect.”
“Batman, stop being a grump,” Kara said aloud. “Sean’s here to help~!”
“And as much as we could use the assistance, that’s the problem,” Batman deadpanned back.
“He’s complaining about me, isn’t he?” Sean smirked.
Kara giggled, “Was there ever any doubt?”
“None at all,” Sean shook his head. “But I suppose I’ll just have to shut him up for his own good. Let’s see what we’re working with here, shall we?”
“Keep it quick, Dear,” Didi said. “I don’t want to waste too much time before we can get to our fun.”
“Of course,” Kara nodded. “We wouldn’t want to keep you. But essentially, Sean? Big Kaiju running rampant, plus big Alien Mecha that isn’t answering our hails and is doing just as much damage as the Kaiju.”
“Hmm, classic,” Sean hummed, glancing out the window at the continued fight and its destruction. “Even the location is perfect. If it’s not Tokyo, it’s bound to be San Fran. Personally, I think it’s the bridge that attracts fights on this scale.”
“He has a point,” Diana noted in the back of Kara’s mind. “We should keep that in mind for the future.”
“Somehow, I can’t imagine it’s truly the Golden Gate’s fault,” Kal chuckled.
The two colossal parties hadn’t paused for a moment. The duel raged on and on. As Sean looked them over, the Kaiju shot a beam that missed its foe and tore through the buildings behind the Mecha. Likewise, the Mecha fired another salvo of missiles. They missed as well, the Kaiju darting to the side at the last second. Massive clawed feet trampled through a park, and the missiles themselves exploded amongst asphalt and abandoned cars.
Immediately, they were back upon each other. The Kaiju tore a road into its claws and flung the debris into the Mecha’s face. It bum-rushed the massive combined robot, tackling it through yet another building. The Mecha grappled with it for a moment, before throwing it off as if it was just another normal-sized Judo match.
Meanwhile, Sean and Didi considered their options aloud, Didi pointing out, “You could show them what ‘Mecha’ truly means, Sean.”
“I could,” Sean considered. “But that would mean getting out of the van… I don’t know if I could be bothered.”
Despite the nonchalance, Kara couldn’t help but giggle. It was an urgent moment, but not necessarily a dangerous one. Other than property damage, of course. Flash and the others tasked with search and rescue had long since cleared the area of potential collateral damage. That didn’t stop Batman from grumbling — genuinely grumbling~! — in the Justice League’s mental link.
“I think I have a Masterbolt stashed away somewhere…” Sean muttered. “But even after I made Zeus into a vegetable here, I don’t particularly want to deal with the drama that would bring before we leave.”
‘Leave?’ Kara cocked her head curiously. Was that their announcement? It sounded serious, but she was confident Sean and Didi would never leave them for good. She’d just wait and see what they meant from the proverbial horse’s mouth.
“You could use that one Shard that likes impersonating me so much,” Didi suggested.
“A C’tan is a bit overkill, my Death,” Sean chuckled. “They’re barely 300 feet tall, after all.”
“Eye of Magnus? Chaos Emerald? Triforce?” Didi shot off rapidly.
“Unlimited power does have its appeal…” Sean allowed. “But they’d all be a Whole Thing™. No, I think I’ll go with something they’ve seen from me already. We hardly want to come back to the paperwork Batsy would force upon us.”
“You, you mean,” Didi tittered behind her hand. “As my Hand, any and all paperwork — mortal or otherwise — falls to you, Dear. As is only proper.”
“Yes, only proper,” Sean rolled his eyes. “So, good ol’ Keyblade, it is.”
“That should do it,” Didi nodded, satisfied.
Kara cocked her head to the other side and just watched. As she did, Sean reached… into his Heart. A key-shaped blade emerged from within his very core as he pulled his hand back out. So casually, Sean held the Keyblade out the window, looking as if he was just lounging with the powerful weapon in his hand.
He flashed a grin Kara’s way, “Back in just a mo’, Farmgirl.”
It made for a… unique scene. But then, everything about Sean did. Kara considered herself decently used to Sean’s antics by now. This, however, would be the first time they saw him in a situation the whole Justice League could understand and relate to. It was the closest thing to traditional heroics Sean had done. And he did so with a key for a weapon, an old, chugging Camper Van as a steed, and Death in his passenger seat.
Oh-so-casually, his van pulled away from Kara. It spat all the smoke one might expect from so ‘ancient’ a vehicle. But the huffing and puffing only added to the van’s character. Sean didn’t make the van fly as much as it simply… ignored the terrain (or lack thereof). At entirely normal speeds, Sean and Didi entered the fray in honestly enviable comfort.
Contrastly, the Mecha-Kaiju fight was anything but mortal, anything but ‘normal’. In another age and another world, either could’ve been considered a god. The Kaiju raged and roared with primordial fury. The Mecha clanged its colossal swords in challenge right back. Neither noticed the ‘fly’ coming their way until it was already between them.
Once there, Sean put the van in park. But he didn’t even bother getting out. Instead, he simply inserted his Keyblade into a lock none could see. The Mecha and Kaiju lunged at each other, sword and claw primed to tear the other apart. Sean twisted the key.
A gong rang, the sound not quite real yet heard all the same. Instantly, both dueling parties were LOCKED. Motors and muscles ceased to move. Joints froze stiffer than steel. And as if gravity was suddenly working quintuple over time, both the Mecha and the Kaiju were forced flat in their frozen states. They didn’t — couldn’t — move an inch from there.
Between one moment and the next, the entire battleground city had gone utterly silent. Kara heard Martian Manhunter sigh, not quite in her head but not hiding it at all, either. A moment later, the rest of the Justice League and their allies were added to the mental link.
Flash, of course, was quickest with his reaction, “What the hell happened?!”
“Mr. Barkeep happened,” Batman grunted.
Kal sighed, “He did… something. With a… ‘Keyblade’? It was certainly effective.”
“Oh… Sean…? Cool,” Flash rapidly transitioned from stunned realization to a nonchalant shrug.
“Truly? By Fate itself…” Doctor Fate muttered, audibly stunned.
“A-A Keyblade-?!” Zatanna sputtered. “We saw a Keyblade in action?! Please, tell me someone recorded it!”
“It’ll be in the report, I’m sure,” Diana chuckled.
“Sean,” Raven deadpanned. “Of course, it’s Sean.”
“Friend Sean is here~?! Re~joyous~!” Starfire cheerfully chimed.
“Didi as well~!” Kara added to her friend’s chime.
“Oh, how splendidiforous~!”
“Odd…” Damian considered aloud. “Mr. Barkeep does not usually interfere like this. And She Who Gives Exquisite Headpats certainly doesn’t…”
“I think it’s just a coincidence,” Kara explained. “Sean said he and Didi came to make an announcement, not join the fight.”
“Until Kara convinced him to help by asking very nicely,” Diana teased.
“… Understandable. Kryptonian puppy dog eyes will make anyone cave,” Aquaman’s nod could be heard even through the mental link.
Kara blushed, “I-I just said please! Politeness! That’s it! Nothing else!”
“We realize he’s still going to make that announcement, right? Sean…” Raven stressed. “Making an announcement to the whole Justice League.”
Batman summed that realization up best, “… Fuck.”
“Oh, do calm yourself, Brucie,” Sean said, suddenly joining the mental link as if it were nothing. “You might even enjoy our announcement if you just hear us out.”
“J’onn…” Batman growled a warning after the sudden breach set in.
“Don’t look at me,” Martian Manhunter said dismissively. “There isn’t enough good zaza in the universe to make me try and stop them from doing what they please.”
“… Felt that,” Raven unceremoniously announced in commiseration.
Kal just sighed — again, “What were you going to tell us, Sean?”
“Nothing much,” Sean’s shrug was audible. “Just that Didi and I will be going on vacation. It should only be a few days on your end, so we’ll be back before you know it. Just thought it best to let people know before we disappear outright from your reality, even if only temporarily.”
Kara and Starfire were quick to give encouragement, “Have fun~!/The bestest of times await, Friends~!”
“Man, when was the last time we got vacation days…?” Cyborg muttered, mostly to himself.
A few moments later, Zatanna choked out, “Death… and her Hand… are going on vacation…?”
“Hn, wonderful,” Batman growled.
“Don’t worry yourselves to Death,” Didi giggled. “Only a portion of me is leaving. My usual duties will continue uninterrupted.”
“And I left the Dead End in… decent hands,” Sean added, chuckling. “If you need a drink, go on down. Hecate (not Alice), Simmy (not Ophis), and Ivy (not Harley) will have you covered. Again, we’ll be back before you know it. Don’t get all twisted up, yeah?”
“I, for one, will join Kara and Kori in wishing you an enjoyable time,” Diana said.
“Yeah, have fun, ya kooky kids!” Flash laughed.
“Where are you even going?” Raven asked flatly.
Sean’s replying grin must’ve flashed through everyone’s mind, “A cluster of worlds with spectacular sights, even more spectacular fights, old friends, rewritten ends, and enough bullshit that we’ll certainly won’t be bored. We’ll bring back plenty of souvenirs, so until then, kiddos, always remember to ‘DEFY THE HEAVENS’!”
With that cryptic hint and nothing more, Sean’s Keyblade unlocked a ‘garage’ door in reality that he proceeded to drive his van through. Just like that, he and Didi were gone, beginning the first of many road trips in Sean’s retirement. And the Justice League were left with one question, Raven voicing it best.
“… What the Hell is THAT supposed to mean?”
Well… maybe two questions, as Beast Boy spoke up as well, “Uh… You guys think he’ll bring back any interdimensional snacks?”
IIIII
[AN: Short chapter this time, but it really is just set up for the mini-arc to come. I figured it was best to not waste too much time on this and just hurry on to the good stuff. So! Cultivation vacation begins next chapter! Anyone else looking forward to it?]
IIIII
Bonus Pics (sauce below)
Comments
KickedElm0
Goes to mass effect and act like Suger Daddy and Suger Mommy for earth lol
darknes12378
Looking forward to can you plz have a chapter dedicated to the days that Sean and Didi are gon from the bar i would love to see what happens when they are gone a few days and what could either go right or wrong
HiCierra
I know it isn’t but the mecha fight combined with defy the heavens for some reason made me think of TTGL xD
RackOfLife
It would be cool to vust LOTM(Lord Of Mysteries)
QuantumServer
Thanks for the chapter
Kz3838
Thank you for the great chapter, I really like how you wrote this transition chapter. Stay safe out there and keep up the good work!
ExodiaTheForbiddenOne
Amazing work as always looking forward to seeing Sean and didi’s vacation !
dryskies_btb
Sauce Bonus 1: losergfff 2: arawhre0 3: Anastasia Kvitko 4: amfytamine 5: ceoofgothicc 6: nnnnekochan 7: StriderScribe 8: Alex Mucci
