[One week later] [Kahndaq]
1 week has passed since the battle with Zod and his army. John, Maureen, and Harley destroyed every piece of Kryptonian technology and turned those who had died to ashes. As for the Husks, with the mothership destroyed, the remaining of them self-destructed.
The only survivors were Faora and Car-Vex.
The problem was the fact that they were genetically engineered in a Genesis chamber on Krypton. They were bred specifically for combat and protection, making them fiercely dedicated and "genetically incapable" of feeling empathy toward their enemies. And their "boundaries of thought" were programmed, which gave them limited free will and a tendency toward a dogmatic, soldier mindset. So, until that DNA coding is somehow removed, they will remain a danger to all.
[Containment lab]
John stood in the observation room with his hands in his pockets, staring through the reinforced glass. The cells below were built with layers of technology and magic designed to ensure nothing inside could escape. Batman had taken every precaution. The walls were lined with kryptonite, suppression fields, and reinforced cuffs were locked tightly around their prisoners' wrists.
Faora sat upright on the bench, her back straight and posture flawless even now. Car-Vex leaned against the wall, her eyes half-lidded but still alert in a way that suggested constant awareness.
John exhaled slowly. "Yeah. They haven't changed."
Harley sprawled across a chair behind him, one leg hanging over the armrest as she casually spun a small knife between her fingers. "What'd you expect, hon? You don't just flip a switch and turn scary space soldiers into cupcake lovers."
Caitlin stood near the console with her arms folded, watching the readings scroll across the screen. "Vitals are stable. No aggressive spikes. That does not mean they are calm." She glanced at John. "They are holding themselves back because they know they cannot win here."
John nodded once. "Exactly."
He pushed himself away from the glass and walked toward the console, his eyes narrowing slightly as he focused on the data. "Their biology is not the real issue. The problem is the structure behind it. The way they think. The way that mindset is locked in place."
Harley tilted her head. "So… brain problem."
"Not exactly." John tapped the side of his head. "It goes deeper than that. It's built into them. Not just behavior, but identity."
Maureen frowned slightly. "Like a command structure they cannot ignore."
"Yeah. And it doesn't disappear just because the war is over." John's gaze shifted back to the cell. "For them, the war never really ends."
Inside the cell, Faora slowly lifted her head and locked eyes with him through the glass. Even from a distance, her intent was clear. It was measured, focused, and completely unshaken.
Car-Vex followed a moment later, her gaze moving between them as she assessed the situation with quiet precision.
Harley let out a low whistle. "Still gives me the creeps a little."
Caitlin's eyes were still on the screen as the data kept scrolling.
"So what's the plan?" she asked, tapping a few keys before glancing back at John. "I can run deeper scans and try working with Ivy to figure something out, but their DNA is heavily modified at a foundational level. I don't think we can just create something that rewrites all of that and removes it cleanly."
John didn't look concerned.
"Oh, don't worry about that," he said calmly. "I already know someone who can strip the modification out completely." His tone stayed casual, but there was certainty behind it that made it clear he wasn't guessing. After a brief pause, his eyes narrowed just a little. "The real question is what we do with them after they regain their free will. Once they're thinking for themselves, everything changes."
Harley perked up immediately, the knife stopping mid-spin before she pointed it lazily toward the glass. "Easy. We recruit 'em," she said with a grin that came back just a little too fast. She swung her leg off the chair and leaned forward, clearly invested now. "Give 'em a shot at redemption. New start, shiny purpose, maybe even matching outfits if they behave. Who knows, we can have some fun and do naughty things and maybe down the line they'll beco—"
Maureen didn't even look at her. She just lifted a finger slightly.
Frost crept across Harley's lips in an instant, sealing her mouth shut mid-sentence.
Harley froze, eyes widening as she tried to finish her thought anyway, the muffled sound dying behind the thin layer of ice. "Mhmmm~!" She shot Maureen a sharp look, half offended and half amused, then pointed at her own face in protest.
Maureen finally turned her head and gave her that look. "Not a single word," she said flatly before returning her attention to the cells.
John took a deep breath, clearly used to this by now. "Well, there's only one way to find out... Enchantress." He called.
The air shifted...
It started as a faint drop in temperature, subtle enough that it took a second to register; then it deepened into something heavier. The lights above flickered once. A thin layer of frost crept along the edges of the reinforced glass, spreading outward like veins.
Even Maureen felt the chill down her spine.
Caitlin's fingers stilled over the console as the readings spiked without warning. "That's not coming from the cells," she said quietly, her eyes narrowing at the sudden surge of unfamiliar energy.
Harley pulled her legs up onto the chair and hugged them instinctively. She broke the ice from her mouth and said, "Okay, yeah… I don't like that. That's spooky in a bad way."
A wisp of green magic curled into existence beside John. It twisted slowly at first, like smoke being pulled through invisible fingers, then thickened and folded inward. The space around it warped slightly, as if reality itself was being bent to make room.
Then she stepped out of it.
Enchantress appeared without a sound, her form solidifying as the green glow faded into her skin. Her eyes flickered faintly with that same eerie light, and for a brief moment, the temperature dropped even further before stabilizing.
John didn't react.
He simply turned his head toward the others. "This is Enchantress," he said, his tone calm and matter-of-fact as if he had just introduced someone new to the office. "She's joining the team starting today."
Caitlin straightened slightly, studying her with an analytical gaze. There was curiosity there, but also caution. "Her energy output is… insane," she noted under her breath, her eyes flicking briefly to the readings before returning to Enchantress.
Harley tried to smile, but it wasn't easy to smile before the ancient witch. "Well, ain't she a bundle of sunshine," she said, looking between John and Enchantress. "You always bring home the fun ones, huh?"
Maureen said nothing. Her eyes stayed locked on Enchantress as if she was measuring every detail without needing a single word.
John finally turned fully toward Enchantress. "How are you holding up?" he asked.
Enchantress tilted her head slightly, her expression calm on the surface, though something deeper moved behind her eyes. This was the first time anyone had asked how she was doing. "I've managed to suppress the madness for now," she said. "But it is getting worse with each passing day. The longer I hold it back, the harder it pushes."
Harley shifted slightly in her seat, her grip tightening around her legs. "Yeah, that sounds like a problem we should probably not ignore," she muttered.
John stepped closer. He raised his hand and placed it gently on the top of Enchantress's head.
"Don't resist," he said quietly. "Let it flow."
For a split second, nothing happened.
Then the lightning emerged...
Golden arcs of divine energy formed around John's hand, then sank into Enchantress's body in thin streams. The glow spread slowly, tracing along her arms, her neck, and across her chest like veins of light threading through something dark.
'Dang! So much dark magic and unstable shits in here. But nothing I can't fix with the power of twelve gods,' John thought as he began to heal her.
Enchantress stiffened.
A sharp breath escaped her as her fingers curled slightly at her sides. The green aura around her flickered violently, reacting to the intrusion. For a moment, it surged outward as if trying to push the lightning back. Enchantress gritted her teeth as she looked at John.
John didn't move his hand.
"Let it go. Trust me, I'll never hurt you," he said with a reassuring smile.
The lightning pressed deeper.
The green magic twisted harder, flaring and lashing in uneven bursts as if something inside it was resisting, fighting to stay intact. The air around them warped again, pressure building just enough to make the room feel tight.
Caitlin's eyes widened slightly as she watched the readings spike and then shift. "How is he doing this?" she said under her breath. "He's… restructuring her energy... Magic."
Enchantress's breathing grew uneven for a few seconds. Her body trembled lightly as the golden light spread further, reaching deeper layers of whatever power was coiled inside her. The green glow started to fracture, not shattering, but separating. Threads of it peeled away from the darker core, unraveling under the steady pressure of the lightning.
Then something snapped.
The resistance broke.
The green energy surged once more, then calmed. The chaotic fluctuations smoothed out as the darker undertone that had been twisting through it began to fade. The glow softened, becoming steadier and more controlled.
Enchantress's shoulders lowered slightly.
Her breathing slowed.
The tension in her body eased as the last traces of instability were burned away, leaving behind something far more balanced.
John let the lightning fade.
The golden arcs dissolved into nothing as he lowered his hand, watching her for a moment to make sure the change held.
Enchantress blinked once.
Then again.
The faint green glow in her eyes steadied, no longer flickering unpredictably. When she looked up, there was clarity there that hadn't been present before.
She exhaled slowly.
"The noise…" she said softly, almost to herself. "…it's gone."
She summoned a ball of arcane magic on her palm. It was bright green, instead of the dark green with a black touch. She smiled. "You have no idea how quiet it is now." She closed her fist, snuffing out the arcane ball, and took a deep breath. "I'll need some time to stabilize my magic; after that I'm at your service." She lowered her head a bit.
Then, a gust of wind swept through the chamber as she transformed back to June.
She looked at everyone with an awkward smile. "Hello!"
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