[I am under… zzzzZZZt… Kiskdif… Verde… Omnic… Ult…]

The line went silent.

“Friday. Friday? Friday!” I hissed into my communication unit. Nothing.

My stress hit a sky record and I could hear my heart hammer into my chest. My vision dimmed and I closed my eyes as a wave of nausea washed over me.

“What's wrong?” Then Kara was there.

Her scent of sunshine and wind filled my nose as she hovered high enough to hug me into her chest. Her concern stemmed from the fact that she could hear my heart rate spike.

I took in several deep breaths.

I hugged Kara but only spoke into my communication system. [Captain Brown. We need to speak. Now.]

[I hear and obey.]

I leaned into Kara. I was no longer alone. This burden was not only on my shoulder. Yet the nightmare of Zemo was still there. I would be sending my children to die today.

Priority Zero…

“Zatanna and I are getting emergency summons to the Watch Tower… Johnny, do you know what is going on?” Kara whispered to me. Concern spread across her voice and I could feel her heartbeat also increase.

Candice landed before us. Her 5th generation Protect Gear was an amalgamation of new and old. Traditional Protect Gear design, with Iron Man armor type enhancements. The best Sue and R&D could design so far.

“Friday gave me a Priority Zero. Val Verde is most likely under attack right now,” I said as I took a step back. Kara and Candice gave me a wide eyed stare.

“If Kara got a Watch Tower summon… then this isn’t regulated to only Val Verde,” I guessed. It didn’t really matter to me. Val Verde would be enough problems on my lap and I suspected that Venezuela was going to be in trouble now or soon.

“Captain Brown,” I used my serious voice. My Supreme Leader voice.

Candice snapped up to attention. Fist over her heart.

“Organize a controlled withdrawal from this island. Then you will be our reinforcements,” I said as I turned to Kara. “Do what you must. If this is a global problem… Val Verde is not so weak that we fall again.”

Kara winced at my tone. She knew I was not judging her. She also knew that the Fallacy of Zemo was a sore spot for the country as a whole.

“I will return immediately. Check-in when you have settled back,” I said and turned. “Candice. Either you will reinforce us, or you will avenge us.”

Candice did the fist, fist, palm. Her mind was a whirlwind of logistics. She began to bark out commands and her troops snapped to action.

“Wong. Zatanna. I appreciate your support today. If you ever need to vacation, I welcome you to vacation at Val Verde,” I began with a sad smile.

“Tragically, I suspect that you both will be very busy, very soon,” I said as my helmet activated. “My country is currently under attack. The timing with the Justice League summoning. Requiring both Zatanna and Super Girl means it is a global problem.”

“Friday’s last message said Omnic which means robot invasion,” I gave Kara a hug and then stepped away. “I wish you all good hunting.”

I activated my Impulse thrusters and took off. I was a discount Iron Man in a business suit. Thinner armor, but much better looking.

I flew to the portal directly behind the bunker. It would lead me onto our largest military base. From there I could get a hop to the spiffy new command bunker on the moon.

—

[Command Center, Lunar Base Verde]

[June 21, 2023]

[8:44 PM]

“The whole island is under attack. Half of the legions are already defending. The other half on standby,” Sue informed me as I walked into the secure room. “Venezuela is under attack by Cobra. Fenris and his Iron Wolves are dealing with that.”

I nodded and noted the guards standing around each of the 4 walls.

Rows of Black Turtle Legion lined the walls. The elites trained in defensive actions for VIPs. They would fight to the death with a smile. They were recruited from those who had broken souls but desired a meaningful death.

Broken people given purpose… few things were as dangerous as these people.

“How are we doing?” I asked as I stared at the massive wall of displays. Over a hundred communication officers chatted as they sat in transparent AR booths. They could see feeds of relevant data and display them as needed.

The coordination of the entire Val Verde military. Our systems were currently undergoing a serious stress test. I could see the various shapes of our green fighting invading red.

“Not great. Omnic forces are surging in. They are swarming us in a literal tide of metal,” Sue explained. Our own Omnic communication officers kept working.

I had some concerns but ignored them. If they were here then they were vetted. Sue wouldn't take such foolish risks without alerting me.

I had discussed such a possibility before. If it was ever an Omnic on Omnic fight, we would support those who embraced the path of the greater good. Citizens earned their right to stay in Val Verde.

Traitors, if there was any, could be dealt with later. Especially Omnic traitors or prisoners. I knew Sue was itching to get her hands on some for research purposes.

Sure you could take a mad scientist out of a evil organization. Good luck bleaching away that curiosity though.

“Put me on all communication channels,” I ordered and Sue nodded.

She gave out a silent sigh. She missed this. The direct chain of command. She liked Friday, but Friday had been the far more efficient relay between her and Johnny. Turned out she had missed this more than initially thought.

“To my brethren… no my Children. Val Verde is currently under assault and all they will find is regrets. We are no longer the children of yesterday. When Zemo lead us to a path of mutual destruction,” I began.

“We are stronger,” I hissed it out. My own pains bubbled forth. “We are greater today, unified against them. Show them not our courage, but our sheer tenacity and will. This Steel Tsunami looks impressive, but no wind or water have broken us yet.”

“Let them come. Let them even land. We fight not for inches of the land, but for the lives that gather around us,” I stood straight and tall. Proud and fierce. “We are the children of Val Verde. Let them break their teeth on our necks. Where a soldier enters their third service, another steps up to fight.”

“Reinforcements are prepped and en route. We will show them, and the world, that Val Verde bows to no one,” I finished. I motioned a cut around my neck and Sue turned off the broadcast.

“Project Prometheus?” I asked.

“Final preparations,” Sue answered as she checked her own records. The AR glasses gleamed with data. “T-Minus 85 minutes.”

“Project Thuderbolt, MS, and BP?”

“All ready to go,” Sue answered as she rechecked her data. She was slower than Friday but no less capable at this moment. She also tapped into the new system.

“Magi suggests this course of action,” Sue said as she brought up the 3 supercomputer analysis.

Major Omnic Titans were attacking from the West and East. Then the North had a moderate problem, and the south had the smallest surge. The local defense seemed to be holding in that area.

Everywhere else, the green dots were pulling back to premade defensive lines.

Magi had yellow dots showing where to put our engines of modern warfare.

“Approved,” I said as something red flashed across the screen.

“Incoming distress signal. Xavier gate has been activated. Jade Falcon base has refugees,” Sue read out loud.

The screen changed to showcase confused, and emotionally charged metahumans. They were congregating onto the tarmac of Jade Falcon’s base. Soldiers and medics were already driving out to provide support.

“Incoming call,” Sue said and put it online. The caller was already on the VIP list. She connected Magi to the current call.

“Johnny! We got problems!” Logan spat out as he growled. The sounds of metal tearing through metal came across loud and clear.

“What kind of numbers are you dealing with Logan? How many giant robots are you dealing with?” I cut to the chase. Snark and sarcasm could wait.

“We got about a hundred sentinel sized ones, five super sized ones, and a literal army here!” Logan screamed as others joined in around him.

“Understood. We will be sending reinforcements as we can. We are under attack as well Logan,” I explained and made the cut motion.

Sue nodded and cut the line. “Magi suggests that we can spare one Battle Platform and ten Mobile Suits.”

“Make it so,” I ordered. Sue nodded and the suggested deployment changed as Magi updated the plans. The 3 independent AIs had discussed, planned, and arranged faster than I could burp.

“Incoming call. Miss Caturday,” Sue said as she allowed the call to go through.

“Supreme Leader!” Shelly Mara Brown saluted. The fist, fist, palm.

“Captain Brown,” I said.

I gave her a soft smile. We dined together once a month and I had the pleasure to see her grow from a young woman into a fine young captain.

While most considered her too young, I also agreed. She also was leading the charge with the newest of Val Verde’s finest. Not a weapon, but a new force nonetheless.

“Green Guardians are ready, sir!”

I closed my eyes at the news. She was barely older than Carmen was. Well a fair bit older if we were going to be honest, but she was still so young and naive.

Something I was about to crush out of her. Her the rest of her generation.

“I ask from all of you, a sacrifice that I would personally embrace. It is not fair of me to direct you into the arms of Third Service. Yet that is exactly what I am ordering you to do,” I clenched my teeth. How pathetic I was in the face of reality.

“We hear. We obey!” a choir of hundreds of voices came across.

Magi must have filtered them and arranged them into something coherent. Or they had been practicing.

“Green Guardians ready for Duty. SIR!” Shelly growled at me.

She been wanting to prove herself. Prove that the metahumans of Val Verde were ready. Cheeky little brats.

“Captain Brown,” I stared at her. “You are to deploy to West City and defend our people. Defend with extreme enthusiasm.”

The line cut out as I heard Shelly scream at her peers. A cheer started but did not finish as the line ended.

I wonder how many would go from loving me today to hating me. I took a breath.

It didn’t matter as I would accept it all.

This was the burden and karma that all Supreme Leaders shouldered. To knowingly send their children to their certain demise.

————

Chapter 62 - Priority Zero