Chapter Summaries

Su Ming and his allies took Dove to Arlington National Cemetery to search for Hank and his brother, while preparing to draw out the Black Lantern threat. They found the cemetery overrun with Black Lantern Zombies, and Lobo began a dive after Su Ming offered him more money.

• Bobo reported that no other Black Lantern Zombies had been found in Titans Tower and speculated that Raven’s versions might have been scattered across different Earths.
• Su Ming suggested checking the graves of Hank’s father and brother, since Hank might have gone to see whether his brother had risen as a Black Lantern Zombie.
• Dawn revealed that Hank’s family was buried at Arlington National Cemetery and worried that the group would face Black Lantern Heroes near Washington D.C.
• Su Ming assured Dawn he could handle the Black Lantern Justice League, then led the group to Washington on his flying Cloak alongside Lobo on Ramona.
• The group reached Arlington National Cemetery and saw that nearly every grave had been opened, with Black Lantern Zombies watching them from below.
• When Lobo refused to investigate, Su Ming offered him more money, and Lobo dove toward the cemetery on his motorcycle.

Su Ming and his allies searched Arlington National Cemetery for the First Dove, Donald, while Lobo slaughtered the remaining Lantern Zombies to draw them away. They found Donald’s empty grave but could not track him, and Su Ming revealed that Sepulk had already scanned the United States without finding him aboveground.

• Lobo flew over Arlington National Cemetery and killed Lantern Zombies, drawing them away from Donald’s grave.
• Su Ming and Bobo joked about the zombie they thought was George Washington before Dove guided the group to Donald’s grave.
• Diana found Donald’s coffin broken open and suggested using magic to track him through his burial belongings.
• Black Alice failed to find a suitable Shadow Magic spell, and Bobo suggested asking Madame Xanadu, Doctor Fate, or Constantine for help.
• Su Ming ruled out searching aboveground because Sepulk had already scanned the United States, then explained that it could observe the current timeline using technology from Perpetua.

Su Ming and his allies investigated the abnormal Black Lantern outbreak on Earth-12, then fought the zombified Justice League members who arrived at the gravesite. Hal revealed that he remained conscious while the Black Lantern controlled his body, leaving Su Ming to decide how to stop him.

• Su Ming concluded that the outbreaks at two different Time Points were connected and said they needed to find First Dove, while Bobo noted that the Black Lantern Rings seemed to be reviving too many corpses.
• Su Ming's group prepared to leave as Lantern Zombies approached, but the Black Lantern Justice League arrived and attacked Lobo.
• Su Ming assigned Diana to fight her zombified sister, Harley and Laurie to handle J'onn, and himself to face Hal.
• Su Ming struck Hal with reduced force after Hal pleaded for help, then realized the Green Lantern was resisting the Black Lantern's control.
• Harley, aided by Laurie's magic and a flamethrower, attacked J'onn while the two Dianas fought.
• Hal told Su Ming that he remained conscious while the Black Lantern controlled his body and begged to be stopped.

Deathstroke fought Lantern Zombie Hal Jordan for intelligence and learned that Batwoman remained uninfected but was hiding. After killing Hal and restraining his Green Lantern Ring, he joined Little Dai’s battle with Black Lantern Big Dai and captured her with the Regret Chair.

• Su Ming negotiated with Hal during their fight, demanding useful information in exchange for killing him.
• Hal revealed that Batwoman was uninfected but had disappeared, and Su Ming decided to find a way to draw her out.
• Su Ming destroyed Hal’s Black Lantern Ring, beheaded him, and forced his Green Lantern Ring to remain on his corpse.
• Su Ming descended to help Little Dai fight Big Dai and captured the undead Diana with the Regret Chair.

Su Ming used Godslayer to clean Black Lantern Big Dai before Little Dai destroyed her Black Lantern Ring and killed her. Su Ming sent Hal and Big Dai’s corpse to the sun for cremation, then led the group toward the embattled Martian Manhunter.

• Su Ming explained that Black Lantern Big Dai could only be revived through the White Lantern Entity of Life and offered to clean her before killing her.
• Big Dai accepted Su Ming’s help after comparing her dirty hair with Little Dai’s, despite Little Dai’s objections.
• Su Ming used Godslayer as an automatic head washer, stripping Big Dai’s rotten flesh and leaving her with a bare skull.
• Little Dai gagged at Big Dai’s appearance, scolded Su Ming, then destroyed Big Dai’s Black Lantern Ring and killed her.
• Su Ming sent Hal and Big Dai’s corpse to the sun for cremation and led the others toward the beleaguered Martian Manhunter.

Su Ming’s group destroyed the Black Lanterns in the cemetery and burned the remains before leaving to rest. On Earth-0, Superman woke from a nightmare in which Darkseid controlled him with the Anti-Life Equation and killed the Justice League and humanity, but the dream lingered as he fell asleep again.

• Harley accused Bobo of encouraging her to burn Martian Manhunter’s rear, and Bobo explained that he had told her to burn J’onn’s eyes.
• Su Ming had Diana end Martian Manhunter’s suffering and sent his corpse to the Solar Incinerator.
• Su Ming stopped Lobo from desecrating Hawkman’s corpse, and the group helped destroy the remaining Black Lantern Zombies.
• Su Ming ordered the corpses burned, and Wonder Woman told Barry that seeing another Justice League corrupted had affected her.
• Superman woke in Kansas from a nightmare about Darkseid controlling him with the Anti-Life Equation and told Lois what he had dreamed.
• Lois reassured Superman that Batman or Deathstroke would find a way to break the control, and Superman fell asleep seeing Darkseid again.

Batwoman investigated Joker’s murders and Punchline’s mass suicides while Gordon warned that Gotham’s growing support for Joker could let him become mayor. In a past time point, Deathstroke’s group waited in Gotham’s sewers, confident that Batwoman would come to investigate them.

• Batwoman told Gordon that Joker had infiltrated Arkham and killed Bane, and she set out to find Joker and stop Punchline’s followers from committing suicide.
• Gordon worried that Punchline’s influence was more dangerous than Harley Quinn’s and asked how they could catch her without causing more deaths.
• Batwoman suspected Punchline had psychological expertise and a hidden identity, then left before Gordon could finish questioning her.
• In a past time point, Deathstroke’s group rested in a Gotham sewer maintenance room and explained why Batwoman would monitor their movements.
• Harley said the group’s displays of competence, willingness to be bought, and madness were meant to lure Batman to them.

Batwoman confronted Su Ming’s group and agreed to take them to Brother Eye after recognizing that Deathstroke was negotiating for intelligence and help against the Black Lantern Crisis. She led them through the sewers to a hidden entrance, where they were about to discuss their request.

• Batwoman emerged from the shadows and questioned Dawn, then recognized Diana and identified Deathstroke as the group’s decision-maker.
• Su Ming asked Batwoman to use Brother Eye to locate Hawk, Mocun, and the Emperor, and Batwoman challenged his claim that he was trying to save lives.
• Batwoman ended the exchange by agreeing to lead the group onward, while Barry gathered his unfinished hot pots and followed.
• Harley and Detective Chimp speculated about Batwoman’s motives and age as the group discussed the crisis while traveling through the zombie-filled sewers.
• Batwoman removed an electrical box, pressed a hidden brick, and opened a passage into a concealed space.

Batwoman negotiated with Su Ming’s team to reclaim Gotham and offered them access to Brother Eye in exchange for clearing the city of Black Lantern Zombies and activating its isolation system. Su Ming and Laurie teleported away to begin the purge, while the rest stayed behind with Batwoman and Barbara Gordon.

• Batwoman introduced Barbara Gordon and showed the team a concealed Gotham isolation system that could be activated manually at Wayne Tower.
• Batwoman asked Su Ming to purge Gotham’s zombies and activate the system in exchange for access to Brother Eye and information about Mocun and Emperor.
• Su Ming challenged Batwoman’s claim that he knew who Mocun and Emperor were, and Batwoman agreed to let Barry use Brother Eye.
• Su Ming made a deal with Batwoman, then teleported with Laurie to the Gotham sewers while the others stayed behind.
• Su Ming explained that they needed to destroy the zombies’ rings or neutralize their Black Lantern energy, since a neutron bomb would not work.

Su Ming and Laurie traveled through Gotham’s sewers to find the Final Laugh, which Su Ming planned to use to spread White Lantern energy and purge the Black Lantern Zombies. After fighting off undead attackers, they reached a strange underground tower that might house the equipment.

• Su Ming explained his plan to use the Final Laugh and the Owl Maze’s Amber Gold to awaken Earth-12’s Crisis Energy and draw out the Entity of Life.
• Killer Croc attacked Su Ming and Laurie, but Su Ming punched him away and convinced him with his Black Lantern Ring that he was one of the Corps.
• Su Ming and Laurie encountered Talon assassins serving Nekron, and Laurie froze nearly a hundred of them with her Cold Breath.
• Laurie told Su Ming about her time with the Birds of Prey and their breakup after Poison Ivy’s betrayal, while Su Ming described Sharice’s team, Humiliation.
• Su Ming and Laurie reached a weathered tower surrounded by sewage, and Su Ming landed beside it to investigate.

Mocun confronted Emperor across a strange expanse of time, but their clashing conceptual attacks destroyed the space around them and sent them elsewhere. Meanwhile, Su Ming and Laurie explored a mechanical tower beneath Gotham and prepared to activate its system to stop the citywide poison attack.

• Mocun pursued Emperor through the time-filled space and refused to accept that he would become his future self.
• Mocun created an Entropy Rift, but Emperor countered with an Entropy Rift Cannon built into his armor.
• Their attacks collided, disintegrating the Timeline around them and making both vanish.
• Su Ming and Laurie examined the tower’s gears and hydraulic machinery as Su Ming explained how it could spread poison gas across Gotham.
• Su Ming replaced the poison in the tanks with water mixed with White Lantern energy and sent Strangle to find the steam engine.
• Su Ming asked Laurie to use her Heat Vision to ignite the boiler’s coal, and she agreed.

Su Ming restarted Gotham’s purification system and encountered Earth-12’s White Lantern, Sinestro, whose body was split between life and death. Sinestro’s attempt to revive zombified Batwing instead trapped him in a painful cycle of dying and returning to life as they flew toward Wayne Tower.

• Su Ming restarted the tower’s boilers and wondered why Earth-12’s Entity of Life and White Lantern had not appeared.
• Sinestro arrived wearing both White and Black Lantern Rings, and Su Ming invited him to follow them toward Wayne Tower.
• Sinestro explained that he had sensed the White Lantern energy and noticed Su Ming’s collection of imperfect Power Rings.
• When zombified Batwing attacked, Sinestro placed a White Lantern Ring on him, but it fought with Batwing’s Black Lantern Ring and repeatedly revived and killed him.
• Sinestro left Batwing suffering on the street and continued with Su Ming and Laurie.

Sinestro explained how he had betrayed Hal Jordan over the White Lantern Ring and came to regret it, then asked Deathstroke to take the ring and help him die. Deathstroke activated Wayne Tower’s protective shield as the Final Laugh’s Purification Protocol began, leaving Sinestro kneeling beside him.

• Deathstroke, Laurie, and Sinestro reached Wayne Tower, where Sinestro urged Deathstroke to help stop Nekron.
• Sinestro recounted dying during Blackest Night, receiving the White Lantern Ring to find Hal Jordan, and withholding it after the Entity of Life called Hal the universe’s hope.
• Sinestro used the ring to resurrect himself, later realized he could not save the world alone, and sought Hal again but could not locate him.
• Deathstroke suggested that Sinestro give the ring to Batwoman, but Sinestro asked Deathstroke to take it instead.
• Deathstroke activated the protective shield as the Final Laugh’s Purification Protocol began, and Sinestro collapsed to one knee and asked Deathstroke to help him rest in peace.

Deathstroke eased Sinestro’s suffering with temporary Green and Yellow Lantern Rings and sent him to save the universe. He stayed with Laurie atop Wayne Tower, explaining that he had hidden the full power of his White Lantern Ring and urging her to keep their mission in mind.

• Deathstroke refused Sinestro’s White Lantern Ring and created temporary Green and Yellow Lantern Rings to reduce the Black Lantern Energy overwhelming him.
• Sinestro realized Deathstroke’s plan to use Parallax as protection from the Black Lantern Energy and flew off to save the universe.
• Deathstroke warned Sinestro to leave Gotham through the sewers without breaking the protective shell, then prepared to teleport back to the Batcave with Laurie.
• Laurie asked to stay and watch the luminous rain over Gotham, and Deathstroke admitted that his White Lantern Ring could revive people.
• Deathstroke told Laurie he had withheld the ring’s power from Sinestro to avoid being drawn into his affairs and reminded her of their mission.

Su Ming explained the origins of the Lantern Corps and their power rings to Laurie while they watched Black Lantern Zombies below the tower. Laurie learned that the Guardians had captured the Lantern Beasts and manipulated the Corps, and Su Ming prepared to meet Batwoman.

• Laurie asked Deathstroke to explain Power Rings and what lay behind them.
• Su Ming described how the Lantern Beasts escaped The Void, gained their emotional identities, and fought among themselves.
• Su Ming explained how the Guardians captured Ion and other Lantern Beasts and created the Lantern Corps to exert influence across the universe.
• Laurie said she had thought the Little Blue Men were good people, and Su Ming joked that aliens did not stand with Earth.
• Su Ming signaled for Laurie and Raven to head back as he prepared for his meeting with Batwoman.

Su Ming and Laurie were separated from their teammates by a Timeline shift and found the Little Bat Cave abandoned. Su Ming identified signs of an enemy’s interference and followed a clue, while Bobo assured the others that the separation was expected and prepared a message for Su Ming.

• Su Ming and Laurie entered the Little Bat Cave, where automated defenses attacked them, and Strangle dismantled the weapons.
• Su Ming activated Brother Eye and discovered that they had landed in another Timeline.
• Su Ming reasoned that Mocun or the Emperor had caused the shift and said the enemy was trying to separate the group and defeat them individually.
• Su Ming told Laurie that Sepulk let him monitor Barry and the others, and that they did not need to retreat because the enemy had left a clue.
• In the original Timeline, Diana asked Bobo whether they should go after Su Ming and Laurie, but Bobo said the situation matched Su Ming’s expectations.
• Bobo told Barry to create a document and save his message on Brother Eye’s desktop for Su Ming to find.

Bobo deduced that Deathstroke had deliberately split the team to draw out an enemy targeting Superman or Batwoman, and urged everyone to watch for strange changes caused by the trans-dimensional battle. In another timeline, Deathstroke showed Laurie a newly appeared document containing pi and explained that Bobo had used the digits to signal him.

• Bobo explained that Deathstroke had likely lured an enemy into attacking the team by separating Superman and Batwoman, and Diana agreed with his deduction.
• Harley and Bobo concluded that the enemy had targeted the Superman side first, while the remaining team was protected by Diana, Lobo, Barry, and their own strategic strengths.
• Diana asked whether they should keep protecting Dove, and Bobo told the team to report any unusual objects, sensations, or sudden thoughts that might signal causal changes.
• Harley volunteered that she had suddenly wanted to draw a curled mustache on sleeping Batwoman, but Bobo dismissed her as an exception.
• In a dark cave, Deathstroke showed Laurie a document that had suddenly appeared and contained the digits of pi, explaining that Bobo had used them to communicate.
• Laurie asked Deathstroke how the numbers helped and whether the number of memorized digits mattered.

Deathstroke explained to Laurie how Hypertime had trapped them in a closed loop, using a computer document from Bobo to verify their situation. He left Laurie understanding that their story repeated from Blackest Night until they returned to the Batcave.

• Deathstroke told Laurie that Kang the Conqueror kept returning as his arch-nemesis, even when one version was killed.
• Deathstroke pointed out that their current Timeline was nineteen days before the time Bobo had sent his message from.
• Deathstroke explained that their altered story had been cut away from the main Timeline and made into a looping prison.
• Deathstroke used a projection of branching Timelines to show Laurie how the loop began and ended.
• Deathstroke tried to delete Bobo's document, but the computer prevented him, confirming that their loop could not alter the stronger Timeline.

Su Ming explained that the time loop had been set to target Laurie, while he had deliberately used their actions in Gotham to lure out their enemy. On Earth-0, Damian defeated Talia, learned that Deathstroke was his biological father, and left to find him.

• Su Ming told Laurie that their enemy had isolated the Timeline because their actions threatened the plan and that Laurie had been mistaken for a Kryptonian.
• Laurie worried that someone had been monitoring them, and Su Ming reassured her that Batwoman’s Safehouse was protected from observers in their dimension.
• Damian defeated Talia and told her he had learned the truth about his biological father.
• Talia explained that Deathstroke’s conflict with Ra’s al Ghul had kept him away, while Damian misunderstood her words as he reflected on their relationship.
• Damian revealed that he had drugged Talia with Croton Seed, left the castle, and vowed to bring Deathstroke back to them.

Su Ming explained why he planned to draw the Emperor into conflict with Mocun and concluded that they needed to find the source of Gotham’s growing Crisis Energy before the Emperor did. On Timeline 1, Harley questioned a seemingly sleeping Batwoman in the Safehouse.

• Laurie asked Su Ming what they should do next, and he weighed plans for using Hawk or intensifying the conflict between Mocun and the Emperor.
• Su Ming deduced that the Emperor would use Donald’s corpse to drive Hawk mad by overcoming the protection of the Force of Order with Crisis Energy.
• Su Ming concluded that the Emperor’s preparations depended on something in Gotham and said they needed to find it first.
• On Timeline 1, Harley asked Batwoman why their Safehouse was in the sewers rather than beneath her mansion.
• Harley decided to draw a huge smile on the apparently sleeping Batwoman with her lipstick.