Dust Settles

The massive zombie had now fully entered an instinct-driven combat mode. Hearing the rush of wind from the side, it instinctively stretched out a pale hand and grabbed Superman's fist, a sinister grin curling on its lips.

Superman struggled twice but couldn't break free. What was going on? Their strength had been roughly equal until now.

"This guy's strength just spiked!" he shouted to the group. In his mind, this hulking creature was surely the result of some reckless human scientist's ambition, and he figured the Gotham crew might have some insight.

But Bruce and the others had been in full retreat mode this whole time, never engaging in such a direct slugfest. They had no idea what was happening.

Fortunately, Thea vaguely remembered something about the zombie having a 'withering ash.' Observing Grundy closely, she could indeed see a faint, intermittent grey mist swirling around him.

"Tell Superman to stop hitting its head," she said quickly to Bruce. "Didn't Commissioner Gordon mention the Court created a new personality to control it? Look at the mist around its body. I think its power surge means the old personality is waking up." She kept her explanation concise.

"Mist? I don't see anything," Bruce replied, squinting but spotting nothing unusual.

Uh-oh. Could it be that only she could see it? In her mind, two small figures appeared: a dark Thea grabbed a white Thea and slapped her repeatedly. Smack, smack, smack! Why'd you have to open your big mouth?"

Thea wiped nonexistent sweat from her forehead and stayed quiet, offering an awkward smile.

Bruce gave her a puzzled glance. "Then let's stick to our plan and contain it, then."

He picked up a device and spoke quietly into it for a few moments. In the distance, Superman paused, then shifted his attack, hammering Grundy's legs instead.

Well, look at that, Thea thought. They've got their own private comms channel. Their friendship was an odd mix of rivalry and teamwork.

Bruce spoke into the device again, then turned to Thea. "Take Selina and Freeze up there and freeze him solid."

"Got it." Without hesitation, Thea grabbed Catwoman and Mr. Freeze and headed toward the chaos.

With their guidance, Superman had abandoned targeting Grundy's head, focusing instead on its legs and arms. The gray mist, which had begun to solidify, seemed disrupted and started retreating into Grundy's body. The power balance tipped back in Superman's favor.

Superman going all out was no joke. Punches, kicks, and heat vision rained down. Grundy, like a punching bag, had his limbs broken by the assault. Even with its incredible regeneration, the prolonged fight slowed its cellular repair.

"Come on over!" the radiant Superman waved to the group on the Glider.

"Move, get down there!" Selina barked at Mr. Freeze, gesturing with the remote.

Though clearly reluctant, Mr. Freeze hopped off the board, trudging forward. Annoyed at his pace, Catwoman gave him a swift kick to hurry him up.

Reaching Grundy, they ignored its roaring maw. Mr. Freeze aimed his gun at its head and pulled the trigger. A visible wave of icy mist coated its skin. Freeze knew that if the giant zombie broke free, the two flying individuals wouldn't be in danger, but he, being the closest and slowest, would be the first victim.

Superman, who also had freeze breath, joined in after Mr. Freeze, perhaps to keep the collaboration smooth. Thea, caught up in the excitement and wanting to pitch in, fired a freeze arrow.

Mr. Freeze was all in now, with no prompting needed from Catwoman. He unloaded his freeze gas, occasionally hearing Grundy's muffled roars, which only spurred him to keep going. He shifted angles, icing the entire area until his tank ran dry. Only then did he stop, step back a few paces, and watch breathlessly for what came next.

Bruce hadn't been idle either. He'd converted his half-wrecked Batwing into a makeshift helicopter and hauled in a square metal container from Wayne Enterprises, a full ten cubic meters in volume, constructed entirely of solid tungsten capable of withstanding over 3000 degrees Celsius. It dropped over the frozen Grundy, followed by a flood of quick-setting concrete filling the gaps.

Watching Solomon Grundy gradually being buried until he disappeared, Thea felt a slight sense of regret. As a novice mage, she had sensed a very powerful force within the giant zombie, not physical strength, but something of a higher level, indistinct and hard to define. If she could study it, she believed it would lead to new advancements in her abilities.

But unfortunately, now wasn't the right time. It was difficult to act under the watchful eyes of Bruce and Superman. Moreover, her power was still weak; even if she obtained that strand of power from the zombie, her lack of control might cause even greater trouble.

"Are you… my cousin Kara Danvers?" Superman floated over to Thea, his tone uncertain.

He always felt this girl was strange. His X-ray vision couldn't penetrate her at all.

Others couldn't see the various anomalies, but he could. Every second, large amounts of solar energy continuously entered Thea's body.

In all his years on Earth, this was the first time he had seen someone absorb sunlight like this. Unsure if it matched his own experience, he thought of his long-lost cousin.

Bruce, who'd been zoning out nearby, perked up. Wait, what? She was related to Superman too? And Talia's sister? Did that mean Talia was also an alien?

Thea's face turned pale with panic. "No, absolutely not! You've got the wrong person!"

Why did these people randomly claim relatives? Claiming kinship in front of Batman instantly dropped her reputation score by several thousand points, didn't it? Besides, she wasn't related at all!

"I'll head out. Contact me if anything comes up." Superman didn't press after her denial. He gave Batman a cool nod, waved to the group, and rocketed off, breaking the sound barrier.

Bruce, expression unchanged, made some small talk with Thea, asking pointless questions like whether she was tired or feeling unwell.

Great, she thought, her reputation had definitely taken a hit, hopefully not by too much. She'd have to rely on Selina to put in a good word later, maybe get Talia involved too, to somehow pull that reputation back up!

"What now?" With Grundy sealed in the ten-cubic-meter box, the group—including Mr. Freeze—breathed easier. An unkillable, super-strong brute like this was a nightmare, especially in Gotham, where brains usually trumped brawn. Hero or villain, no one liked a table-flipper like Grundy.

"Bury it here," Batman's low voice growled through his modulator.

This kind of pit-digging, body-burying work certainly wasn't for heroes. Commissioner Gordon soon arrived with workers and equipment. After a quick briefing, they began drilling right there.

Bruce intended to bury it as deep as possible. Thea naturally hoped it wouldn't be so troublesome, but she had no reason to object. In the end, the construction supervisor stated that seeing as they weren't short on cash, the maximum depth was ten thousand meters; any deeper and the drill bits wouldn't hold.

Thea initially wanted to see the specifics, but hearing about the ten-thousand-meter depth, she immediately decided to leave. Wouldn't they strike oil at that depth? How long would it take? Using the excuse of needing rest, she said her goodbyes to the others and flew back.