Blue Box Bricks
Overlords-verse: Reign of the Supermen (read desc)
Just to clarify, nothing to do with the Reign of the Supermen storyline. Just needed a good title, and, well, it fit. So, judging as the Superman of the Overlords-verse has been around over a century, I thought it wasn't unreasonable for others to have tried to create Super-beings for their own nefarious purposes *cough* Lex Luthor *cough*. So, I came up with this lot, and improved Project Kr a bit too while I was at it. I'm also gonna put some dates before the stories, just for e, so I can keep track of what's happening when. So, onto their stories (L to R):
Cyborg Superman (1993) - The first successful attempt by Lex-corp at a Superman Luthor could control. Hank Henshaw was just one of many test subjects. A former astronaut, his shuttle had been hit by a solar flare, which had caused the untimely deaths of his fellow crewmates. Henshaw, by some miracle, had survived the initial flare, but was now suffering the after-effects. His body was changing, poisoned against him, and he knew he didn't have long. And so, he volunteered himself to be experimented upon, and hopefully be reborn as a cyborg. The process was long and painful, countless surgeries were performed, and with every one, Hank lost a little bit of himself.
After nearly two years, he was ready. He awoke standing in front of a small group of scientists. Their mouths were agape, and sheer horror was spread across their faces. Though his hearing wasn't quite working yet, he caught the odd word. "freak" "mistake" "abomination". He stumbled his way through the lab, pushing and shoving his way to the doors. They were locked. He flew into a mad fury, destroying everything he could reach, his newly found heat vision setting the lab ablaze. As the sprinklers settled the fire, Hank looked down, and saw himself reflected in a piece of polished steel. He was a freak. Those scientists and doctors had turned him into a nightmarish, twisted version of himself. Hell, he wasn't even himself, just a distorted image of Superman. Launching himself into the air, he flew through the night sky, straight up, away from it all. He needed...time away, to reflect. to try to come to terms with what had been done to him. as he drifted through space, he focussed his mind, tried to home in on something, anything to stop himself going mad. His hatred for Superman, the man he resembled so much, but was nothing like. That alien was a hero, loved by billions. He was just an astronaut who'd run out of luck, forgotten. All he was now, was a bad imitation of the man of steel.
Kr 1.0 (Bizarro) (2004) - Kr 1.0 was the first 'successful' clone of Superman that Lexcorp was able to produce. It had been years in the making, cost billions of dollars, but finally, it was ready. After the initial failure of the cyborg Superman, this was to be a success, a good investment. However, it was not meant to be. The tank was drained, and the clone was let out. It took a few steps, before falling to the floor, It was weak, barely able to move. No wonder, having spent all of its life in a tank. It was taken away to be clothed, and most importantly, assessed. Luthor and his scientists were eager to see what their investment could do. After many weeks, the scientists were able to confirm that though the clone had all the powers of Superman, it was a bit behind in cognitive ability. It often got lost in thought, which meant it struggled to control its powers. Luthor spent a small fortune in funerals for those it had incinerated while it wasn't paying attention.
It had been almost two months, when Luthor was awoken to an urgent phone call. The clone had broken free of its bonds, and had escaped. Though free, it seemed the clone didn't know what to do with itself. It just hovered, hundreds of feet from the ground, staring absent mindedly at the rising sun. It was transfixed, nothing could get its attention. Before Luthors men could recapture it, it was gone, flying towards the sunrise. It was here it met what it was supposed to be. Superman. It was still transfixed by the sun, just staring at it. 'The light's pretty, isn't it' It said to him. Superman was taken aback. This man, hovering in mid-air. It looked like him, but....something was wrong. The clones eyes glowed, burning with the heat vision it couldn't control. Before Superman could react, the clones eyes erupted with fire, the flames hitting a passing passenger plane, thousands of miles away. Superman shot off to save the plane, but he was too late. though he was able to catch it, the plane broke apart in mid-air, and crashed into a field. After calling in the League to help search the wreckage, he went back to find the man responsible. He had landed now, his head in his hands, weeping uncontrollably. He looked up when Superman landed in front of him. He looked angry. "Where did you come from?" Superman asked the clone. It looked down to the ground, not answering. It was clear it wasn't in its right mind, that something was missing. Then, it spoke, in barely a whisper "Kill me". Superman was taken aback. On one hand, he knew it had to be done, there was no way this man could be allowed to live, especially if he couldn't control his own powers. Before the war, Superman would have taken him to the fortress of solitude, tried to teach him to control his powers. But with everything going on in the world, the state of the world, and with his newly found cousin taken into account, he knew that for once, just this once, he would have to make the tough decision, and choose the easy way. Despite all this, he still tried to reach out to the man, to try to help him. "You don't understand, this was my fault. I killed those people. They're all dead, because of me. If you don't kill me, it'll happen again, and again, I can't control these powers" With this, Superman knew he had to make the choice. He told the man to turn away from him, to look at the flowers, shooting up from the grass. Once the deed was done, he buried the man, in a grave he dug with his own two hands. Having nothing to wrap him in, he took his own cape from his shoulders, and wrapped the body in it. He then laid him to rest, said a prayer, and buried the grave. He then flew off to help the rest of the league in their attempt to save whoever he could from the wreckage.
Project Kr - Won't bother with their story, as I've covered it so many times before. Same as before, can't breathe our air, weakened powers, full powers yadda yadda yadda.
The Eradicator (2001/2) - When Superman found his cousin hidden away in the ruins of a CADMUS research facility, he discovered many other Kryptonian artefacts. Amongst them was a sentient computer system. When he touched it, it sprung to life, growing a body. Once complete, it rose from the ground, hovering in the air. "Recognised, El bloodline. Kal-El son of Jor-El and Lara-El recognised". All good so far. "Criminal element detected, Crime: high treason, Verdict: Guilty. Punishment: death. Kal-El, son of Jor-El, prepare to be eradicated". Shocked Superman stumbled back, preparing himself for a fight. Though weak, exposed wires and servo units, the eradicator floated towards him, arm outstretched, burning with Yellow light. Using his heat vision, Superman was able to repel the Eradicator, sending it flying into a wall. Though it got up, the ceiling collapsed, an the Already weak eradicator was destroyed. Pulling it's body from the rubble, Superman returned it to the Fortress of solitude, where he could safely study it, as well as find out what it meant when it talked of his recently discovered father, and what it was he had done back on Krypton.
So, those are the other Supermen of the Overlords-verse. Quite enjoyed coming up with these, and I'm glad I was able to find a goodish way to tell Bizarro's story. So, as always, please lemme know what you think, and if you'd like to see even more of the Overlords-verse :D
Overlords-verse: Reign of the Supermen (read desc)
Just to clarify, nothing to do with the Reign of the Supermen storyline. Just needed a good title, and, well, it fit. So, judging as the Superman of the Overlords-verse has been around over a century, I thought it wasn't unreasonable for others to have tried to create Super-beings for their own nefarious purposes *cough* Lex Luthor *cough*. So, I came up with this lot, and improved Project Kr a bit too while I was at it. I'm also gonna put some dates before the stories, just for e, so I can keep track of what's happening when. So, onto their stories (L to R):
Cyborg Superman (1993) - The first successful attempt by Lex-corp at a Superman Luthor could control. Hank Henshaw was just one of many test subjects. A former astronaut, his shuttle had been hit by a solar flare, which had caused the untimely deaths of his fellow crewmates. Henshaw, by some miracle, had survived the initial flare, but was now suffering the after-effects. His body was changing, poisoned against him, and he knew he didn't have long. And so, he volunteered himself to be experimented upon, and hopefully be reborn as a cyborg. The process was long and painful, countless surgeries were performed, and with every one, Hank lost a little bit of himself.
After nearly two years, he was ready. He awoke standing in front of a small group of scientists. Their mouths were agape, and sheer horror was spread across their faces. Though his hearing wasn't quite working yet, he caught the odd word. "freak" "mistake" "abomination". He stumbled his way through the lab, pushing and shoving his way to the doors. They were locked. He flew into a mad fury, destroying everything he could reach, his newly found heat vision setting the lab ablaze. As the sprinklers settled the fire, Hank looked down, and saw himself reflected in a piece of polished steel. He was a freak. Those scientists and doctors had turned him into a nightmarish, twisted version of himself. Hell, he wasn't even himself, just a distorted image of Superman. Launching himself into the air, he flew through the night sky, straight up, away from it all. He needed...time away, to reflect. to try to come to terms with what had been done to him. as he drifted through space, he focussed his mind, tried to home in on something, anything to stop himself going mad. His hatred for Superman, the man he resembled so much, but was nothing like. That alien was a hero, loved by billions. He was just an astronaut who'd run out of luck, forgotten. All he was now, was a bad imitation of the man of steel.
Kr 1.0 (Bizarro) (2004) - Kr 1.0 was the first 'successful' clone of Superman that Lexcorp was able to produce. It had been years in the making, cost billions of dollars, but finally, it was ready. After the initial failure of the cyborg Superman, this was to be a success, a good investment. However, it was not meant to be. The tank was drained, and the clone was let out. It took a few steps, before falling to the floor, It was weak, barely able to move. No wonder, having spent all of its life in a tank. It was taken away to be clothed, and most importantly, assessed. Luthor and his scientists were eager to see what their investment could do. After many weeks, the scientists were able to confirm that though the clone had all the powers of Superman, it was a bit behind in cognitive ability. It often got lost in thought, which meant it struggled to control its powers. Luthor spent a small fortune in funerals for those it had incinerated while it wasn't paying attention.
It had been almost two months, when Luthor was awoken to an urgent phone call. The clone had broken free of its bonds, and had escaped. Though free, it seemed the clone didn't know what to do with itself. It just hovered, hundreds of feet from the ground, staring absent mindedly at the rising sun. It was transfixed, nothing could get its attention. Before Luthors men could recapture it, it was gone, flying towards the sunrise. It was here it met what it was supposed to be. Superman. It was still transfixed by the sun, just staring at it. 'The light's pretty, isn't it' It said to him. Superman was taken aback. This man, hovering in mid-air. It looked like him, but....something was wrong. The clones eyes glowed, burning with the heat vision it couldn't control. Before Superman could react, the clones eyes erupted with fire, the flames hitting a passing passenger plane, thousands of miles away. Superman shot off to save the plane, but he was too late. though he was able to catch it, the plane broke apart in mid-air, and crashed into a field. After calling in the League to help search the wreckage, he went back to find the man responsible. He had landed now, his head in his hands, weeping uncontrollably. He looked up when Superman landed in front of him. He looked angry. "Where did you come from?" Superman asked the clone. It looked down to the ground, not answering. It was clear it wasn't in its right mind, that something was missing. Then, it spoke, in barely a whisper "Kill me". Superman was taken aback. On one hand, he knew it had to be done, there was no way this man could be allowed to live, especially if he couldn't control his own powers. Before the war, Superman would have taken him to the fortress of solitude, tried to teach him to control his powers. But with everything going on in the world, the state of the world, and with his newly found cousin taken into account, he knew that for once, just this once, he would have to make the tough decision, and choose the easy way. Despite all this, he still tried to reach out to the man, to try to help him. "You don't understand, this was my fault. I killed those people. They're all dead, because of me. If you don't kill me, it'll happen again, and again, I can't control these powers" With this, Superman knew he had to make the choice. He told the man to turn away from him, to look at the flowers, shooting up from the grass. Once the deed was done, he buried the man, in a grave he dug with his own two hands. Having nothing to wrap him in, he took his own cape from his shoulders, and wrapped the body in it. He then laid him to rest, said a prayer, and buried the grave. He then flew off to help the rest of the league in their attempt to save whoever he could from the wreckage.
Project Kr - Won't bother with their story, as I've covered it so many times before. Same as before, can't breathe our air, weakened powers, full powers yadda yadda yadda.
The Eradicator (2001/2) - When Superman found his cousin hidden away in the ruins of a CADMUS research facility, he discovered many other Kryptonian artefacts. Amongst them was a sentient computer system. When he touched it, it sprung to life, growing a body. Once complete, it rose from the ground, hovering in the air. "Recognised, El bloodline. Kal-El son of Jor-El and Lara-El recognised". All good so far. "Criminal element detected, Crime: high treason, Verdict: Guilty. Punishment: death. Kal-El, son of Jor-El, prepare to be eradicated". Shocked Superman stumbled back, preparing himself for a fight. Though weak, exposed wires and servo units, the eradicator floated towards him, arm outstretched, burning with Yellow light. Using his heat vision, Superman was able to repel the Eradicator, sending it flying into a wall. Though it got up, the ceiling collapsed, an the Already weak eradicator was destroyed. Pulling it's body from the rubble, Superman returned it to the Fortress of solitude, where he could safely study it, as well as find out what it meant when it talked of his recently discovered father, and what it was he had done back on Krypton.
So, those are the other Supermen of the Overlords-verse. Quite enjoyed coming up with these, and I'm glad I was able to find a goodish way to tell Bizarro's story. So, as always, please lemme know what you think, and if you'd like to see even more of the Overlords-verse :D