DC Universe, Earth 12.
Metropolis.
A 24-hour convenience store at the end of Third Avenue.
The automatic doors slid open to both sides, and the plastic shopping bags collided with each other, making a screeching sound.
Shayera Hall walked out of the store carrying two large bags of items.
The bag contained six dozen cheap beers, three vegan burgers, two cold sandwiches, and a box of discounted cookies that were about to expire.
A few minutes earlier, she had slapped a few crumpled coins on the cash register.
The convenience store owner didn't reach out to take it; he just stared at her with disgust, gesturing for her to put the money into the register herself.
Shayera silently complied.
Its enormous wings were folded behind it, and the grayish-brown feathers looked somewhat dim under the streetlights.
She kept her head down and walked quickly.
The streets of the Metropolis are always clean and tidy, and the glass curtain walls of the skyscrapers reflect the golden sunset.
This is Superman's city.
Full of hope and light.
But none of this concerned her.
Ahead is a small community park.
Several children are chasing and playing in the sandpit.
A boy stopped and pointed to Shayera by the roadside.
"Look! It's that birdman!"
The other children all turned their heads away.
"Traitor who betrayed Earth!"
A girl picked up a stone from the ground and threw it at the girl.
The stone traced an arc in the air.
Snap!
The stone struck Shayera's right wing and bounced to the ground.
Shayera stopped in her tracks.
She didn't turn her head.
More stones flew through the air, hitting her shoulders, back, and calves in turn.
The Thanagar people's Superman physique rendered these attacks completely harmless, causing them no pain whatsoever.
"Get off this planet! You liar!"
The boy grabbed a handful of sand and threw it forcefully at Shayera.
Gravel hit her white T-shirt and slid down the fabric.
Passersby stopped in their tracks, but no one stepped forward to stop them.
Several adults quickly led their children away, avoiding the area around Shayera.
Shayera stood there for a full two seconds.
The image of the Planet Thanagar mothership hovering above Metropolis flashed through my mind.
She leaked the hyperspace portal plan to the Justice League.
The invading fleet from the home planet was defeated.
Earth was saved.
But she became a traitor to the Thanagar and a criminal in the eyes of Earthlings.
Her hometown can't accept her, and the people of Earth won't tolerate a traitor. Now she's caught in the middle, hated by everyone.
Shayera started walking again.
They walked faster and faster, as if that would leave the insults behind.
After turning two street corners, I went into a dimly lit alley.
This is the cheap apartment building she rents.
The walls were covered in messy graffiti.
The trash can smelled bad.
Instead of taking the stairs, she bent her legs and exerted force suddenly.
He leaped up from the ground and landed on the rooftop of a five-story building.
The rooftop was piled high with abandoned ventilation ducts and rusty iron frames.
Shayera walked to a raised concrete block at the edge.
Throw the plastic bag on the ground.
She sat down, her legs dangling in the air, swinging on the outside of the rooftop.
Pull the tab off a can of beer.
He tilted his head back and poured the icy liquid down his throat.
The liquor flowed down his chin and down his neck.
She wiped her face casually and took out a squashed and deformed vegetarian burger from the bag.
I tore open the wrapper and took a big bite.
The cold vegetarian meat patty had a strange plastic smell.
Metropolis, the afternoon sun was still blinding.
Shayera stared at the building in the distance, the LexCorp Building, a landmark of the Metropolis.
Boom!
A red and blue afterimage streaked across the sky, creating a strong gust of air.
That's Superman.
Immediately afterwards, a green beam of light flashed in the clouds and headed straight for the atmosphere.
The green light outlined a giant Falcon in the sky.
John Stewart, the Green Lantern.
Shayera stopped chewing.
The hamburger in his hand was suspended in mid-air.
She instinctively straightened her back, and the wings on her back slightly unfurled.
The muscles tensed instantly.
I wanted to take flight and catch up with that green light.
The next second.
A golden cheetah made of magical energy appeared next to the green light Falcon.
Two beams of light flew side by side into the distance.
Shayera relaxed her tense muscles, and her wings drooped again.
Fingers dug into the edge of the cement block.
The hard cement block was crushed into powder, and the fragments fell down in a flurry.
The image of Diana holding the Lasso of Truth came to mind, her eyes filled with disappointment, as if she were scrutinizing a complete traitor.
The words, "You betrayed the Earth, Shayera," still echo in my ears.
She looked down at the half-eaten hamburger in her hand.
He squeezed it into a ball and threw it into the trash can downstairs.
She opened another can of beer.
Keep filling it.
Time passed little by little.
The Sun gradually sank below the horizon.
The city's neon lights lit up one after another.
A dozen or so empty wine cans were scattered on the rooftop.
The nights in the Metropolis are far from peaceful.
The distant sounds of explosions and police sirens could be heard intermittently.
Shayera leaned against the concrete block.
He let out a burp.
She dusted the cookie crumbs off her hands and prepared to get up and go back to her room to sleep.
Buzz--
The air in front of them suddenly began to distort violently.
A pale blue light suddenly appeared without warning.
A bright light pierced the darkness of the rooftop.
A sudden gust of wind rose from the ground, whipping up empty wine cans that clattered against the metal rack.
Shayera stopped moving.
A two-meter-tall five-pointed star portal suddenly tore open.
It hovered less than three meters away from her.
Blue energy flowed around the edges, crackling with electrical bursts.
Shayera stood rooted to the spot, her eyes fixed on the strange five-pointed star portal.
Here we go again.
She uttered two words.
What the hell is going on?
He reached for his tactical belt at his waist with his right hand.
I touched the edge of the communicator.
Simply press the button, and the Justice League Watchtower will receive a spatial anomaly alert.
Superman and the Flash will arrive in three seconds.
The finger paused on the button.
She remembered that she had removed the core chip of the communicator a month ago.
She had personally deleted all the contact information from the file long ago.
"Ha... Even if we made contact, who would believe a traitor?"
Shayera parted her lips and let out a short, cold laugh.
She withdrew her hand.
Reach your hand behind your back.
He grasped the handle of the Nth Metal warhammer out of thin air.
Pull hard.
The warhammer brought forth a muffled whistling sound.
Golden electric arcs lit up the surface of the Hammerhead.
The Nth Metal, which has an absolute restraining effect on magic and energy, reflects a cold texture under the light of the portal.
The electric arcs on the warhammer repelled the energy of the portal, creating transparent ripples in the air.
Shayera, carrying her warhammer, took a step forward.
So be it, I'll just die.
She lifted her foot and stepped into the pale blue light curtain.
The feeling of weightlessness, as if pulled apart by space, instantly enveloped my entire body.
The scene before my eyes began to distort wildly.
The electric light from the top of the warhammer illuminated the metal floor on the other side of the portal, and a tall figure with one hand in his pocket.