Chapter 64

He began to walk away, then paused and turned slightly. "Flash, while you're in there, focus on mastering the Speed Force. Learn to tap into it more deeply, because from what I've seen, there are Flashes across the multiverse who can move at the speed of light without issue. One of them even outran teleportation in a race."

Flash's eyes widened, stunned at the idea. Moving faster than teleportation? That was something even he couldn't imagine.

"Wonder Woman, you should focus on pushing yourself to your limit," Ashborn said. "You're the most balanced member of the Justice League. Strong, but not the strongest. Fast, but not the fastest. What sets you apart is your combat experience and skill, and untapped power. Use this time to tap into your divine power."

Wonder Woman paused, taking in his words. She was the daughter of Zeus—surely there was more strength within her, waiting to be awakened. She gave a firm nod, fully understanding what Ashborn meant.

"Cyborg, work on upgrading your body. You're no longer bound by human limits," Ashborn said firmly. "Martian, conquer your fear of fire. I know it's deep-rooted, but there are Martians across the multiverse who've overcome it."

He turned to the Lanterns. "John, Hal—stop creating basic human weapons in the middle of battle. You have the will to shape a superman, with all of his powers and capability so long as your willpower is strong enough, so why limit yourselves to hammers and guns?"

Ashborn looked over the room, his gaze sharp. "All of you should start training. After everything with Doomsday, I've realized something: I need to start traveling the multiverse. The longer I stay here, the more universes vanish."

With that, he tossed a flip phone toward Batman. It looked ordinary, simple, outdated even, but Ashborn's tone said otherwise.

"Use that to call me, I might also come to get one of you guys from time to time to fight my battles. I don't want the Darkness to know where I'm at. So get training, as your mutliversal selves might be stronger then you all combined." With those words, Ashborn teleported away.

"Can't you just leave? Why do I have to come?" Ember asked in annoyance.

"Are you dumb? Do I look like I'm in any condition to fight someone equipped with my armor?" Ashborn asked with a snort. Given how powerful his armor was, even a normal person wearing it would be enough to defeat him. Then again, if he got close enough, Ashborn believed he could simply command it to return to him—but he didn't want to risk it.

"Ashborn, you and your damn disrespect," Ember said through gritted teeth—teeth that clenched even harder when Ashborn blatantly ignored her. He tapped away on his phone, searching for a universe before opening a portal.

"…You said something?" Ashborn asked mockingly, further enraging Ember. But before she could respond, he stepped through the portal, leaving her no choice but to follow, though not before leaving a piece of herself behind. With Ashborn gone, he wouldn't be able to sense what she was about to do.

That fragment of Ember teleported away, reforming into her full self as it appeared before a door. She knocked once. Tyler opened it after some time and instantly froze, her eyes widening at the sight of Ember standing there with a cold, emotionless gaze.

Without waiting for Tyler to say anything, Ember stepped inside. Tyler stood frozen for a moment before slipping the gun she had been hiding behind her back into her coat, knowing full well it would've been useless.

"You can drop the act," Ember said coldly. "Why are you getting close to Ashborn?"

Tyler was silent for a moment, then slowly removed her wig, revealing the face of someone Batman knew all too well—Talia al Ghul.

"When Ashborn met with my father to gain his support in becoming the leader of the Justice League, my father noticed a few cracks in him," Talia said calmly. "As powerful as Ashborn is, he has a weakness—he's vulnerable around women. So, my father asked me to get close to him… to control him."

It was true. For all his overwhelming strength, Ashborn did have a lustful side, though he never acted on it. Mostly because he believed himself to be ugly. That belief only grew deeper with every rejection, making him think his charm stat must have been helping in some other way, just not romantically. 

Of course, Ashborn had the means to see through Talia's lies and act, but that would mean he was looking into her mind or something. And as Ashborn believed, treat people the way you want to be treated… unless they are a zombie or your employees, which you don't have to pay.

"Yet when he asked you out, you rejected him?" Ember asked, raising an eyebrow.

Talia had no answer. She couldn't explain it. She had Ashborn in the palm of her hand… yet she rejected him. Lied to her father, even—claiming she had asked Ashborn out and that he had rejected her.

She had crafted an entirely new persona—an alternate version of herself from another universe, one where she and Ashborn had a shared history. And for that, she was grateful Ashborn wasn't the type to pry into someone's mind to verify their story. He considered that rude.

"Ashborn is an idiot… but he's my idiot," Ember said coldly. "You'll tell him the truth the next time you see him."

With those words, Ember vanished, leaving Talia standing in silence. And in that silence, she realized something unsettling—she was more afraid of telling Ashborn the truth than she was of facing Ember.

***

"So, this is a universe where Superman is evil?" Ashborn asked, walking through the streets of a new world. His eyes stayed locked on the screen in front of him, scrolling through it as he searched for more universes worth visiting.

"Yes," he muttered with a bored yawn. "He killed his pregnant wife, or girlfriend, thinking she was Doomsday. He snapped after that. He started killing criminals. It didn't take long before he became a full-blown tyrant who lost his way."

"Can't you just broadcast a message across the multiverse and have the Justice League of every universe call for your help when needed?" Ember asked. "You could even create a place where time doesn't move… or something like the TVA, letting you answer all the calls."

Ashborn paused mid-step, realizing he hadn't thought of that.

"You're so stupid sometimes," Ember said, clearly speechless.

"How does not thinking of something make me stupid?" Ashborn muttered. "I can't think of everything. But you're right—I should study how others handle it and learn from that."