Chapter Summaries

Dane traveled to Kandahar and confronted its city spirit in a dream, seeking control of the city as a base for the Justice League. Meanwhile, Arthur learned from Vico that his mother had been exiled to the Trench Kingdom and prepared to meet Shazam with him; Kandahar's spirit faced Dane's ultimatum.

• Dane settled his disagreement with Diana and left for Kandahar.
• Arthur asked Vico whether Atlanna had been exiled, and Vico's reaction confirmed that she had been sent to the Trench Kingdom.
• Arthur told Vico that Shazam had appeared in his dream and promised to help rescue Atlanna, so Vico agreed to go meet him.
• Dane used the Dreamstone to draw Kandahar into a dream and restored the city to its ancient glory.
• Kandahar's spirit appeared and discussed Dane's desire for Eternal Metal and a secure real-world base.
• Dane gave Kandahar's spirit a choice between signing a contract that placed the city under his authority or remaining in the dream forever.

After Kandahar agreed to become Dane’s subordinate, he promised to protect the city and its people, then went to destroy the International Gang’s base at Hadidiya Mountain. He infiltrated the fortress as the God of Death and cut off its communications, while Ismael learned that something supernatural had entered the base.

• Kandahar chose Dane’s first offer and signed a master-servant contract with him after he promised Kandahar would never again suffer the flames of war.
• Dane transformed from Shazam into the God of Death and set out to crush the International Gang without compromising his public identity as Shazam.
• At Hadidiya Mountain, Dane found Rebel Army troops preparing to raid the International Gang’s fortified base and entered the fortress alone.
• Dane killed two guards, used one guard’s memories and voice to answer a radio call, and had Cortana take control of the base’s network.
• Dane put on the Green Lantern Ring containing Parallax and released a fraction of its power, spreading fear and unease through the base.
• Ismael’s subordinate warned him that an unclean presence had entered the base and killed people near the front.

Dane killed Ismael and the mercenaries at the base, while his fear aura caused the Rebel Army to faint before they could confront him. After reading King Acton’s notebook, Dane learned the history behind the Eternal Metal crown and considered using its demonic contract to gain a demon identity.

• Dane used Dream Power to put the mercenaries near the base entrance to sleep, then killed them with Kiss of Death.
• Frightened mercenaries fled the base, allowing a Rebel Army group to enter; Dane’s aura of fear made the rebels faint, and he used Dream Power to keep them asleep.
• Dane killed Ismael, picked up his notebook, and summoned the Spirit of Solomon to translate it.
• The notebook revealed that King Acton made a contract with six demons to gain power through an Eternal Metal crown in exchange for offering them the world’s souls.
• Dane learned from Acton’s notes about the origins and declining power of gods and demons, then considered using the contract to establish a demon identity for himself.

After Kandahar’s resistance defeated the International Gang, Umbrella positioned itself to shape the city’s future while General Lane recruited Amanda Waller to develop X-Force. In the Mariana Trench, a U.S. submarine was attacked by fast-moving figures that looked like people, and its engine room flooded.

• News that the International Gang had been wiped out spread through Kandahar, while Umbrella’s S.H.I.E.L.D. blocked foreign intelligence agents from gathering information.
• General Lane contacted Amanda Waller and offered her a chance to present her X-Force plan; she rushed to CIA headquarters and received authority to select its members.
• Amanda chose Deadshot to lead X-Force, while Lane approved her proposal after questioning her about it.
• In Kandahar, Dane and the local Umbrella branch worked with the resistance leader to publicize the victory and prepare for the resistance to take political power.
• A U.S. military submarine in the Mariana Trench detected dozens of unidentified objects that pursued and struck it.
• The submarine lost propulsion and began flooding after the commander learned the attackers looked like people and the engine room stopped responding.

Amanda sent Nanawi, a shark-like descendant of the Old Gods, to investigate the destruction of the California in the Mariana Trench, secretly implanting a bomb in his head to keep him under control. Nanawi plunged into the ocean and lost contact with the ship, leaving Amanda to decide whether to risk letting him escape; then the crew detected a signal.

• Black-armored attackers killed the crew of the California and stole its torpedoes, prompting naval officials to seek General Ryan’s help investigating the sinking.
• Ryan asked Amanda to lead the investigation, and she chose Nanawi, whom she had taken from the shark god Kamo and kept in Belle Reve Penitentiary.
• Amanda promised Nanawi food if he behaved, then had a miniature bomb implanted in his head while he was anesthetized.
• Amanda brought Nanawi and her team to the Mariana Trench and sent him underwater in diving gear fitted with cameras and tracking devices.
• Nanawi raced into the sea, damaged his tracking equipment, and stopped responding, so Amanda refused to disable the bomb in case he escaped.
• The crew reported that they had detected a signal.

Amanda watched Nanawi investigate the California, where he attacked a group of Atlantean soldiers and killed them after their assault drove him into a frenzy. At Justice Hall, Dane showed Arthur and Vico the footage and revealed that the attackers served Orm, Atlantis’s king and Arthur’s half-brother, then asked Arthur how he would respond.

• Amanda directed Nanawi into the California’s weapons bay, where he encountered an armored figure and bit into him, becoming frenzied after tasting blood.
• Nanawi fought the Atlantean soldiers who entered the compartment, killing them before the camera feed went dark.
• Arthur Curry and Nudis Vico arrived at Justice Hall, where Cortana identified them and Dane welcomed them inside.
• Dane showed Arthur and Vico footage of Atlantean soldiers attacking Nanawi near the Mariana Trench.
• Vico identified the soldiers as Orm’s troops and explained that Orm was Arthur’s half-brother, the king of Atlantis, and an enemy of surface dwellers.
• Dane asked Arthur how he intended to deal with the incident, and Arthur asked what he meant.

Dane and Vico warned Arthur that Orm planned to provoke a war with the surface and urged him to claim Atlantis’s throne by finding Neptune’s Trident. When Atlantis unleashed a tsunami toward Point of View, Dane and Arthur rushed to save Thomas Curry, and Dane began confronting the wave with magic.

• Dane explained that Orm could use stolen torpedoes to frame the surface-dwellers and win support for war, prompting Arthur to vow to stop him.
• Vico urged Arthur to become king and revealed that finding Neptune’s Trident would establish his right to rule Atlantis.
• Cortana detected an artificial energy signal near Point of View, and Dane identified it as the source of a massive tsunami heading toward the coast.
• Dane and Arthur arrived at Point of View; Dane stayed to confront the tsunami while Arthur ran to rescue Thomas Curry.
• Dane summoned a powerful cyclone with his divine power, and it collided with the tsunami, tearing apart the first wave and creating waterspouts.

Dane stopped the tsunami from destroying Point of View, though a second wave of ocean garbage buried the coastline. He discovered that Orm had ordered the attack and confronted Mera, who asked him to let the undersea kingdoms resolve the crisis.

• Dane weakened the first tsunami and let the remaining garbage tide hit Point of View, where it buried boats and covered the coast in trash.
• Arthur escaped inland with Thomas as the garbage tide washed over the shoreline, leaving rescue teams unable to search effectively.
• Dane returned the storm water to the Pacific, then found Mera questioning Atlantean soldiers about their use of a wave-control device.
• Dane seized a soldier and forced him to reveal that King Orm had ordered the submarine seizure and tsunami attack.
• Mera confronted Dane, who told her that the surface world would demand an explanation and threatened to kill Orm.
• Mera urged Dane to wait and trust that the undersea people could resolve the crisis, and Dane agreed to listen.

Dane took Mera to meet Arthur Curry and Thomas Curry after she proposed that Arthur could challenge Orm for Atlantis’s throne. At Justice Hall, Dane revealed that Queen Atlanna was alive, leaving Mera eager to hear more.

• Mera suggested that Arthur Curry could defeat Orm and end the war, and Dane warned her that Orm might be targeting Arthur and Thomas.
• Mera agreed to meet Arthur, and Dane flew her through the clouds before accelerating to Point of View.
• Dane introduced Mera to Arthur and Thomas, and Thomas asked about Atlanna.
• Dane assured Thomas that Atlanna was alive, surprising Mera, and said he would explain more at Justice Hall.
• Dane teleported the group to Justice Hall, where Vico was relieved to see Mera and she realized Dane could have teleported them instead of flying.

Dane led Arthur, Vico, and Mera through the Trench Kingdom to the Hidden Sea of the Earth's Core, where Neptune's Trident and Atlanna were hidden. Mera reunited with Atlanna, and Dane brought Arthur and Vico out of the sea so the family could meet.

• Dane warned Thomas to stay behind and took Arthur, Vico, and Mera toward the Trench Kingdom.
• Dane drove back the Trench with Holy Light Expulsion and led the group to a glowing vortex, then sent Arthur and Vico through before entering with Mera.
• Dane and Mera arrived in the Hidden Sea of the Earth's Core, where Dane revealed that Atlanna and Neptune's Trident were there.
• Mera recognized Atlanna, who had been disguised as a Trench, and embraced her.
• Atlanna asked where Arthur and Vico were, and Dane sensed them nearby and brought them out of the sea.

Arthur failed Karathen’s test and was rejected by the Golden Trident, leaving his allies without the weapon that could help him claim Atlantis and stop Orm. He returned to the group discouraged, while Mera recognized that his failure had been predictable.

• Atlanna reunited with Arthur, and Dane urged him to retrieve the trident before Orm discovered their plan.
• Atlanna explained that Karathen guarded the trident and that only a true king could pass its test, then led Arthur to the waterfall entrance.
• Arthur found Karathen and claimed he would be Atlantis’s new king, so the creature released him and offered him a chance to prove himself.
• Arthur grasped the Golden Trident, but it shocked and blasted him away; Karathen declared him unready and swept him out.
• Arthur returned empty-handed and admitted that he had failed, leaving the group worried about his chances against Orm in an underwater king’s battle.

Dane defeated Karathen, claimed the Golden Trident, and gained its power to command the beast. He then gave the trident to Arthur, who accepted his responsibility as a bridge between Atlantis and the surface world and wielded it successfully.

• Dane entered the ruins, defeated Karathen by spinning and hurling it, and took the Golden Trident from the throne.
• The trident's divine power let Dane breathe underwater and understand Karathen, which recognized him as king and obeyed his command.
• Dane rode Karathen out through the rock wall, stunning Mera, Arthur, Atlanna, and Vico with his power and the Golden Trident.
• Dane told Arthur the trident belonged to him and urged him to take the responsibility of kingship seriously.
• Atlanna explained how Arthur could unite Atlantis and the surface world, and Arthur grasped the Golden Trident without being rejected.

Orm launched Atlantis’s planned invasion of the surface world, targeting Metropolis, where Superman arrived to defend civilians and confront the Atlantean forces. The Atlanteans discovered that magic could hurt Superman, but he continued fighting and rescued a pilot before charging their soldiers.

• Orm killed a soldier who reported that one man had stopped the tsunami, then ordered Atlantis’s armies to assemble and attack the surface world.
• Orm rallied the Atlanteans by accusing surface dwellers of attacking Atlantis and killing its people.
• Clark left his date with Lois Lane after hearing trouble, changed into Superman, and flew toward the coast as the Atlanteans began attacking Metropolis.
• Superman shielded civilians from Atlantean weapons, but Orm’s trident-enhanced cannon blasted him away and revealed that magic could harm him.
• Superman caught a damaged fighter jet, rescued its pilot, and then used his super speed and strength to disable Atlantean soldiers.

Superman crushed Orm’s invading fleet after the Atlantean gravity weapon failed to hold him, and Queen Atlanna intervened to stop the remaining soldiers from fighting. Orm emerged to challenge her authority, insisting she was an exiled criminal.

• Orm ordered his technical officer to increase the gravity field, crushing Atlantean soldiers while Superman remained trapped beneath the seabed.
• Dane learned that Orm had landed near Metropolis and brought Arthur, Atlanna, Vico, and Mera to the battlefield, warning them that Superman would unleash his full power if angered.
• Superman escaped the gravity field, destroyed its generator, and disabled Orm’s warships with Heat Vision.
• Dane and the others arrived, and Atlanna ordered the remaining Atlantean soldiers to cease attacking and lay down their weapons.
• Orm emerged from his flagship, confronted Atlanna, and told the soldiers that she had been exiled and was no longer their queen.

Arthur confronted Orm after Orm accused Atlanna of betraying Atlantis, and Orm manipulated Arthur into accepting a duel in the Ring of Fire. Dane then stopped Orm from retreating and forced him and Atlantis to face the consequences of starting the war, leaving Orm cornered as Karathen destroyed the Atlantean fleet.

• Arthur attacked Orm, but Orm provoked him into agreeing to duel for the throne in Atlantis three days later.
• Dane blocked Orm's retreat, disarmed him, destroyed the Atlantean mothership, and stripped off his armor before throwing him at Atlanna.
• Orm refused to submit to Dane, declaring that neither he nor Atlantis would surrender.
• Dane summoned Karathen, which emerged from underground and crushed two Sea Clan flagships while Atlantean weapons failed to harm it.
• Orm collapsed as Karathen attacked his army, while Arthur accepted Dane's actions despite worrying about his mother's feelings and his bond with Vico.

Dane captured Orm and ended the Atlantean invasion, while Arthur and Atlanna organized the retreat. After reports of the attack and the military’s failures spread, public opinion turned against the military, whose leaders secretly approved a plan to attack Atlantis with toxic substances.

• Dane took Orm to Justice Hall, imprisoned him in a Dreamstone dream, and ordered an underwater prison built in Kandahar.
• Atlanna ordered the remaining Atlantean forces to withdraw, while Arthur privately dreaded becoming king and Clark discovered Lois had left their date to cover the invasion.
• Lois reported the Atlantean invasion, and public debate split between calls for retaliation and appeals for peace as people watched eyewitness footage online.
• Dane had Cortana release selected footage and revealed the Navy’s lost submarine, worsening public distrust of the military and threatening its congressional funding.
• At the Pentagon, the Navy admiral claimed he had located Atlantis and persuaded fellow generals to support a covert plan to poison the ocean, keeping military personnel and the public unaware.

Dane uncovered a military plot to use a genetic weapon against Atlantis and traced the plan to the Suicide Squad, General Ryan, and LexCorp. After watching the officials discuss mass killing, he began investigating Lex Luthor and found that his weapon could threaten ordinary humans as well as metahumans.

• Swannick reported the Pentagon’s decision to retaliate against Atlantis to Dane, who suspected General Sam Ryan was involved.
• Dane and Cortana traced Ryan’s connections to the CIA and Amanda, then learned that Amanda’s Suicide Squad plan had gained approval from Sam Lane.
• The navy admiral told Ryan that a LexCorp genetic weapon could kill Atlanteans through seawater, and Ryan agreed to leave the operation to Amanda.
• Dane and Martian Manhunter watched the discussion remotely, and Dane promised to expose the plot publicly while telling Martian Manhunter to stay uninvolved.
• Dane ordered Cortana to breach LexCorp’s systems and discovered Luthor’s plans against the Justice League and that the genetic weapon could kill ordinary humans even more effectively than metahumans.

The admiral’s alien allies planned to spread a genetic weapon and target Atlantis, while Amanda Waller assembled X-Force for a secret operation against the undersea kingdom. As the squad departed, Dane warned Arthur that the military was preparing a retaliatory attack on the Atlanteans.

• The admiral met with his alien compatriots, who celebrated recruiting an Earthling to bring their genetic weapon to Atlantis and decided Atlantis was their next target.
• Amanda Waller accepted General Ryan’s secret mission and selected Peacemaker to lead an elite squad, judging that he would follow orders without hesitation.
• Harcourt recruited Peacemaker from Belle Reve Prison, and Amanda’s team added Dot-Man, Blackguard, Mongal, and Shark King Nanawi to X-Force.
• Harcourt had miniature bombs implanted in the squad members and sent them to a secret base, where Peacemaker learned the mission details and showed his ruthless resolve.
• Dane contacted Arthur through the Bracelet and warned him that the military was preparing a retaliatory operation against the Atlanteans.

Arthur learned that a genetic weapon intended for use against Atlantis could target all humanity, while Dane suspected an extraterrestrial mastermind. The Justice League prepared to investigate, and Dane considered whether Parasites were involved before requesting the Dreamstone from Cortana.

• Dane told Arthur that the genetic weapon could cause heart failure in all humanity, and Arthur went to inform Atlanna.
• Atlanna named Arthur king, then left for Xebel to warn the other kingdoms and rebuild ties with them.
• Dane briefed the Justice League on the planned attack against Atlantis and revealed that the weapon's target was all humanity.
• Batman took charge of investigating the suspicious admiral, while Dane said the League should remain alert for an extraterrestrial threat.
• Dane searched the Green Lantern Ring's database, considered Parasites as a possible culprit, then asked Cortana to retrieve the Dreamstone.

Dane used the Dreamstone to make Atlantis’s citizens dream of Arthur as their ideal king while concealing the gathering, preparing to lure the Suicide Squad and the mastermind into a trap. X-Force departed for the Atlantic to search for Atlantis.

• Cortana entered Dane’s nanomaterial Bracelet, and Dane traveled to Atlantis to coordinate preparations with Arthur.
• Arthur agreed to keep Atlantis’s citizens within the territory, then announced that he would meet them at the Ring of Fire the next day.
• Arthur appeared before the Atlanteans with Neptune’s Trident, winning their attention as Dane secretly cast a Dreamstone spell.
• Dane made every Atlantean see Arthur as their perfect king and concealed the gathering beneath a second dream.
• After training and upgrading their equipment, X-Force set out in a submarine to search the Atlantic for Atlantis.