Shadow Monarch in DC

The battle was a collision of forces, of wills, of power so overwhelming that the very air seemed to tremble. The Gate still open, vomiting wave after wave of beasts and insects into Gotham, but the ground below no longer belonged to them alone.

It was contested, violently and relentlessly.

And for the first time since the invasion began, the defenders weren’t just surviving, they were pushing them back.

Kara tore through the sky like a streak of red and blue, her movements more decisive as she intercepted airborne insects before they could reach the hunters below. Heat vision lanced outward in controlled bursts, carving through swarms with lethal precision, while beneath her, Green Lantern and Shadow Lanterns constructs reshaped the battlefield into, barriers, corridors and zones of control.

Wonder Woman was forcing the enemy back, her blade flashing in arcs that cut through both chitin and bone alike. Shazam crashed down nearby in a thunderclap, lightning exploding outward from his landing point and scattering armored ant-like creatures that had begun to overwhelm a defensive line. And The Flash was not easy to monitor, he was simple blurs that appear every moment, leaving behind him broken bodies.

And through it all,

The Shadow Lanterns struck with coordinated brutality, their forms weaving through the battlefield, cutting down anything that slipped past the League’s reach. Above them, their marshal commanded the storm itself, violet lightning tearing through the sky in devastating arcs that reduced entire swarms to ash in seconds.

And then,

Raven landed in the middle of a charging wave of beasts, her cloak flaring outward as shadows surged around her.

"Azerath... Metrion... Zinthos!"

The ground beneath the advancing monsters split open, almost spiritually, a rift of pure darkness swallowing the front line whole as the beasts were dragged downward into nothingness, their roars cut off mid-sound. The ones behind them barely had time to react before tendrils of shadow lashed outward, impaling, crushing, tearing through them in a violent cascade of destruction.

She stepped forward into the aftermath, eyes glowing faintly, already reaching for the next monsters.

"Hey!"

A familiar voice cut through the chaos,

Raven turned, and a blur of gold and red slammed into a massive wolf just to her right, sending it skidding across the ground before it could even reach her. Kara hovered there for a second, fists still clenched, before glancing sideways at Raven with a grin.

"I thought you’d show up eventually, it was odd enough that you agreed to Bruce’s plan."

Raven’s expression softened just slightly,

"You didn’t think I’d stay back and watch them kick your ass, did you?"

Kara snorted lightly, brushing a strand of hair back as another insect dove toward them,

Raven caught it mid-air with a flick of her fingers, crushing it into a compact sphere of dark energy before letting it implode silently.

"...Okay, yeah..." Kara admitted, smirking. "You can help.."

There was a moment of silence between them.

Then Kara raised her hand.

Raven looked at it, then, without a word, she lifted her own.

Their hands met in a quick, sharp clap, a high five that felt almost absurd in the middle of a battlefield tearing itself apart

And then they attacked,

Together.

Kara launched forward first, slamming into a beasmen with enough force to scatter them in every direction, while Raven followed a step behind, her magic expanding outward in a wave that locked the beasts in place just long enough for Kara to tear through them completely.

An insect swarm descended toward them,

Raven’s shadows surged upward, catching the front line and holding them, Kara flew straight through the rest, fists blazing, ripping through the formation in a storm of raw power.

They didn’t need to speak again, they fell into rhythm almost instantly.

Two forces, completely different, but perfectly aligned.

Not far above them, Shazam hovered midair, momentarily distracted from the immediate fight as another bolt of violet lightning tore through the sky, obliterating an entire swarm of airborne insects in a single, devastating strike.

He blinked.

"...Okay, hold on.."

Another bolt followed, even larger this time, chaining through dozens more creatures with terrifying efficiency.

Shazam frowned, glancing down at his own hands as faint lightning crackled across them.

"...That’s..."

He shot upward, Fast.

The Shadow Marshal Zeus didn’t slow down at all. He barely even seemed to acknowledge the battlefield anymore, his focus was absolute as he called down another storm.

Shazam pulled up beside him, hovering just outside the immediate radius of destruction.

"Hey...uh... quick question!"

Another bolt crashed down.

Shazam flinched slightly. "Right... bad timing.. I got it, but I just wanted to ask how are you d..."

"Move."

The word hit Shazam harder than the lightning.

Shazam blinked.

"...What?"

The Shadow Marshal didn’t even look at him.

"Move out of my way, boy."

Another strike followed immediately, forcing Shazam to shift aside as the lightning tore past where he had been hovering a second earlier, incinerating another wave of insects.

Shazam hovered there, staring at him.

"...Boy?"

He glanced down at himself instinctively, the suit, the lightning emblem, the very adult form he was currently in

Then looked back up.

"...Wait."

His eyes narrowed slightly.

"You can see through that?"

No response.

The Shadow Marshal had already shifted his focus, raising a hand as another storm gathered above, his attention completely back on the battlefield as if Shazam had never been there at all.

"...Okay," Shazam muttered, floating there for a second longer before shaking his head. "Cool. Cool cool cool."

Another bolt came down.

"...Still kinda rude, though."

And then he dropped back into the fight, lightning exploding outward as he slammed into a group of advancing beasts, leaving the Shadow Marshal to his storm.

*

Far from the battlefield, far enough that the thunder of war became a distant, constant tremor, the city stood hollow and abandoned.

Smoke drifted between the skyscrapers in thin trails, up here, on one of the tallest towers overlooking Gotham, there was only wind.

And then

The air split as a thin line carved itself into existence, glowing red, jagged and uneven like a beast claw. It stretched, widened, peeled apart with a low, tearing sound.

A portal, but not like the one down in the city, from within it, something stepped forward.

Rakan.

The Beast Monarch emerged, he stood tall, broad-shouldered, his expression was calm and focused, his beast eyes lifted immediately toward the distant battlefield.

He watched.

For a few seconds, he said nothing.

Then, beside him,

Another tear opened.

This one was different.

Green. Sickly. Pulsing with a toxic glow that bled outward into the air around it. The edges of the portal writhed slightly,

And from it

She stepped through.

Querehsha.

The Queen of Insects emerged with a grace that contrasted with the energy surrounding her. Her posture was almost elegant, her smile already present as she glanced out over the city, taking in the distant destruction with amusement.

Her eyes flicked toward the battlefield.

Then back to Rakan.

"Well," she said lightly, her voice unsettling warmth. "They’re putting on quite the show."

Rakan didn’t look at her.

His gaze remained fixed on the horizon, on the clash of forces barely visible from this distance.

"They were prepared," he said after a moment, still not impressed. "More than I expected."

Another distant explosion lit up the skyline.

"But it doesn’t change anything."

His eyes narrowed slightly, tracking the movement of the armies, the shifting lines, the resistance forming against the tide.

"They’ve barely scratched ten percent of what I’ve sent through."

Querehsha let out a soft laugh, stepping closer to the edge of the building as if she were watching a performance.

"How generous of you, Shadow Monarch." she murmured. "Leaving so many alive."

Rakan’s expression didn’t change.

"This Earth is... different," he continued, almost as if speaking to himself. "I can’t really put it into words..."

Then, he added.

"In any case, the Shadow Monarch was sleeping here apparently. My Earth..." he went on, his voice becoming darker slightly, "That one became my personal hunting ground. I left just enough alive to keep it interesting. A place to return to. To entertain myself."

Querehsha tilted her head, her smile widening just slightly.

"How cruel," she said, though there was no disapproval in her tone. Only amusement. "I didn’t see the point in keeping anyone alive."

She lifted one hand slightly, examining her fingers as if recalling something pleasant.

"I wiped mine clean. Every last one. Then I turned it into something useful."

Her eyes glowed green faintly.

"A nest. A place to grow my children without interruption."

She glanced back toward the distant battle, where the swarms she had unleashed were now clashing with forces that refused to break.

"And now," she added softly, "they get to experience them."

Rakan finally shifted his gaze toward her for a moment.

"There are strong presences here," he said. "Stronger than my Earth, I’m prepared but we need to be careful of them.."

His eyes tracked something unseen from this distance.

"The Kryptonian especially," he noted.

A faint smirk tugged at the corner of his mouth.

"And the Shadow Monarch’s influence is here... even in his absence."

Queresha’s smile didn’t fade. "Which makes this all the more interesting."

Rakan’s smirk widened slightly, something feral beginning to show through.

"I’ve faced them all before," he said, his voice lowering. "On my world."

"And I’ve killed them all, before I even claimed my own primordial darkness."

Queresha exhaled softly, almost bored.

"Yes, yes," she said, waving a hand dismissively. "We’ve both conquered our worlds. That’s not why we’re here."

She turned fully toward the battlefield now,

Then suddenly,

A voice grabbed their attention.

"Nice view."

It was calm, almost casual.

Both Monarchs turned.

Superman hovered behind them, not far, but close enough that the distance between them meant nothing. He was relaxed, arms crossed but his eyes were sharp, locked onto them with an unwavering focus.

"I’m going to go out on a limb," he continued, "and say you’re not just here for the scenery."

Rakan’s gaze sharpened instantly, recognizing him immediately.

"You..."

Queresha’s smile widened, her interest piqued as she studied him more closely.

"Well," she said softly, "this one does feel... different, from the one I knew."

Superman didn’t react to either of them.

He simply hovered there,

"I’m guessing," he said after a moment, "you’re the ones behind all of this."

Rakan’s lips pulled back slightly, revealing jagged teeth as something more predatory surfaced in his expression.

A feral laugh escaped him.

"Your guess," he said, "is correct."

Superman’s expression didn’t change, "Then we’re past introductions, Monarchs." he said, his voice firm now. his eyes starting to glow red. "Just understand something... You’re not the predator here."

/-\

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