What none of them had expected was that, while they discussed tactics without any real sense of urgency, habitually assuming Superman was strong enough to hold off any enemy...
Superman, who had just been trading blows above the clouds with the "newly appeared" Viltrumite, suddenly let out a weak, agonized cry.
Cyborg immediately fired his thrusters and rose into the air, trying to join the fight.
But Superman, sent plummeting by a devastating punch, hurtled past him at an even greater speed.
He fell with tremendous momentum, like a meteor from outer space.
Everyone else on the ground paled in horror. Barry Allen and the white Wally West who had arrived in this universe through the universe patch-the two Flashes-reacted first.
Two currents of Speed Force, both golden with only a slight difference in shade, began churning rapidly throughout the Titans Base.
Fortunately, the Speed Force remained reliable when it came to trampling the laws of physics. The temporary lightning field the two speedsters created actually managed to cushion and catch Superman, whose impact should have triggered an earthquake across San Francisco.
Barry cradled Superman, whose left cheek had swollen badly, in his arms and sharply stopped Wally from running up through the air to support Cyborg.
Wally was utterly baffled. Ever since he had come to this universe, this Barry Allen had been almost identical in every other respect to the one he remembered.
In his universe, Barry Allen, his predecessor as a speedster, had been forced to disappear into the Speed Force Field after an incident. Wally had always believed this Barry was likewise a superhero who never shied away from hardship or powerful enemies.
Besides, he was not that inexperienced black teenager, Wally West. He had taken over Barry's mantle early in his own universe and had