Joey had no idea where Cyborg had obtained an Amazo android core from, though it was probably another relic inherited from the previous Justice League.
This thing was unimaginably dangerous.
A true apex predator of the universe in every sense of the word.
The nano-machine lifeform known as Amazo had once been an enemy that even the entire Justice League working together could barely handle, all because of its absurd mimicry capabilities.
With a single encounter, it could rewrite its own structure at the atomic level, perfectly imitating any opponent's traits and superpowers.
Fighting Amazo was essentially the same as battling an enemy that simultaneously possessed Superman's strength, the Flash's speed, Wonder Woman's divinity, Green Lantern's power, Hawkgirl's wings, and Martian Manhunter's telepathy.
When all of the strongest powers in existence were combined into a single entity, the result was something bordering on invincible.
Of course, Amazo was not truly unbeatable.
Copying someone's powers did not come without cost.
If it copied Superman's invulnerability, it also inherited his weakness to kryptonite.
If it copied Wonder Woman's divine power, it had to bear the burden of truth.
If it copied Martian Manhunter's psychic abilities, it also inherited his instinctive fear of fire.
That was probably why a fragment of ultra-pure kryptonite had been sent alongside the Amazo core.
This weapon was simply too dangerous.
There had to be a backup plan.
And that backup plan could only be Joey—a Kryptonian with an unusually high resistance to kryptonite.
But thinking about it in reverse...
With over a year of time, Tony Stark's intelligence, and Stark Industries' manufacturing capabilities—how many Amazo units could they produce?
Joey could not estimate the exact number.
But he knew this much:
It was a beginning.
For the first time, he finally possessed real bargaining chips capable of opposing the other two factions in the war.
Even if those chips were monstrously dangerous, he still had to do it.
Compared to Earth's destruction, the extinction of the Life Entity, and the collapse of the entire Flashpoint universe...
How much more dangerous could this thing really be?
Not only was he going to build Amazo androids—
He was going to build them out of vibranium.
...Crack.
"Hm?"
Joey suddenly turned sharply toward the sound.
Nothing was there.
Crack. Crack.
Where the hell was that sound of shattering glass coming from?
CRACK CRACK CRACK.
Joey's super vision swept across the entire living room and throughout the mansion itself, yet he still could not locate the source of the strange breaking noises.
In truth, the very first thing Joey should have examined was himself.
If a second observer had been present, they would have clearly seen that Joey's own body was beginning to fracture like shattered glass.
It was the visible manifestation of the space around him collapsing and breaking apart.
CRACK!
As the final collapse completed itself, everything in Joey's field of vision shattered.
He was still standing exactly where he had been before.
But now, the entire world had turned from vibrant color into bleak gray and white.
"Flame on!"
At the exact same moment, a furious battle cry erupted from behind him.
Then Joey witnessed the very first trace of color within this monochrome world.
A torrent of blazing flames—
As hot and violent as a supernova eruption itself.
The sea of flames instantly engulfed Joey's position—along with everything around it.
The beachside mansion built along the coastline was almost completely erased in a single strike, its structure melting into magma and ash.
"Don't lower your guard!"
"Did we get him?"
"Theoretically, yes."
"I still think it ain't gonna be that simple."
Within the burning embers and smoke, four figures gradually emerged.
One tall and slender.
One graceful and elegant.
One blazing figure.
One solid as stone.
Reed Richards—Mr. Fantastic, whose body could stretch and twist like rubber.
Susan Storm—Invisible Woman, capable of generating invisible force fields and turning herself invisible.
Johnny Storm—the Human Torch, able to engulf his entire body in flames of extreme temperature.
And Ben Grimm—the Thing.
The Fantastic Four.
"...And what exactly is this supposed to be now?"
Joey walked out from the still-burning inferno completely unharmed.
He removed the black-framed glasses from his nose—the same pair that had already warped under the heat—revealing his annoyed expression underneath.
"Do you people have any idea how much these glasses cost me?"
"They're the kind of junk you can buy online across the Pacific for ten bucks, yet somehow they cost me ninety-nine dollars!"
A moment ago, Joey had swept the entire planet with his enhanced senses.
Everywhere looked exactly like this place.
Everything was drained into lifeless gray and white, like a dead world.
He had most likely been dragged into some kind of alternate dimension.
There were no living beings anywhere in the entire space—
Except for the four people in front of him who had suddenly attacked him without warning.
"Where am I?"
"You don't need to know!"
Human Torch raised a hand and unleashed another torrent of fire, clearly determined to reduce Joey to ashes.
The completely unprovoked hostility left Joey utterly confused.
Facing the blazing heat head-on, Joey protected the Amazo core in his hand and lunged forward, preparing to deliver a nice friendly punch straight to Human Torch's face.
"Clobberin' time!"
The Thing hurled himself directly into Joey's path.
At the same time, Invisible Woman and Mr. Fantastic attacked together.
One generated an invisible force field to slow Joey's movements.
The other stretched out a rubber-like arm that whipped toward Joey like a living cable.
Slowed by Susan's force field, Joey was immediately caught by Reed's elongated arm.
The Amazo core slipped from his grasp and fell to the ground.
Before Joey could even break free, the Thing's crushing charge slammed into him.
One brutal elbow strike sent Joey flying clear beyond the coastline.
Stabilizing himself midair before crashing into the ocean, Joey finally began losing patience.
"Okay, hold the fu—"
Mr. Fantastic clearly had no interest in listening.
His arm stretched dozens of meters outward like a yo-yo and instantly yanked Joey back again.
Reed's body elasticity and durability were absurdly powerful—even Joey needed actual effort to break free.
Then came Invisible Woman's force-field blast.
Then Human Torch's flames.
And finally another thunderous strike from the Thing.
The Fantastic Four shared a strange energetic synchronization that allowed them to combine their powers seamlessly during battle.
Which meant that right now—
These shameless bastards were combo chaining him.
"For fuck's sake..."
Watching the Thing's giant concrete-sized fist rapidly approach his face, Joey finally found it impossible to maintain the relaxed holiday mood he had spent all Christmas building up.
This was only his first day in Tony's universe.
So why the hell was he already stuck in another absurdly intense battle?
Back in the Flashpoint universe, before coming here, he got beaten up every damn day.
Now he comes to this universe...
And he's STILL getting beaten up every damn day.
Then what the hell was the point of coming here at all?!