Countdown Read Online Free Page B

over the edge of the precipice.
    “Ohmigod.” His blue eyes widened in shock. “Lightray!”
    The battered figure lying within the crater was one of
    the New Gods, a race of vastly powerful alien beings who dwelt on the distant planet of New Genesis. Cosmic legend had it that when the primordial gods of antiquity perished in some bygone cataclysm, the universe gave birth to a new breed of gods who reigned from two eternally warring worlds, the heavenly New Genesis and the hellish Apoko-lips. Lightray, whom Jimmy had first met a few years ago, hailed from New Genesis. Eternally cheerful and optimistic, he had always struck Jimmy as the friendliest and least intimidating of the New Gods.
    But what had happened to him now? Despite possessing literally godlike power and immortality, Lightray looked more dead than alive. He lay sprawled upon his back, the cracked debris beneath him fused to a glassy sheen by the heat of his arrival. His skintight white uniform, which was usually spotless from head to toe, was tom, shredded, and eVen scorched in places. The golden headdress that framed his once-handsome features was dented and barely holding together. One eye was swollen shut, and his lips were split and bleeding. His wavy red hair had been burnt and tom away in spots, exposing the raw scalp underneath. A formerly radiant smile now lacked several teeth. A leg was twisted at an unnatural angle. His breathing was ragged, and he seemed to lack the strength to even lift his head from the glazed concrete. He looked barely conscious.
    Who could do this to him? Jimmy wondered. Darkseid? Doomsday? His affable manner notwithstanding, Lightray was no pushover. Along with the superhuman strength and endurance of a New God, Lightray also possessed the unique ability to harness all the various frequencies of the light spectrum. Jimmy had seen Lightray repel squads of vicious Parademons with the blinding beams that had inspired his nom de guerre. He could be a tough customer when he had to be. So how did he end up beaten to a pulp?
    A familiar whooshing sound heralded the arrival of Superman. Jimmy’s best friend, and Earth’s greatest hero, descended from the sky. His bright red cape flared out behind him. His world-famous S-shield was emblazoned on the chest of his sky blue uniform.
    “Sorry I’m late,” he apologized. “I was out near Vega when I got your—” He spotted the brutalized figure at the bottom of the crater. “Great Rao! Is that Lightray?”
    Jimmy knew that Superman and Lightray had often fought side by side against Darkseid and his sinister minions. “We heard what sounded like a battle going on above the clouds and someone screaming. Then he fell out of the sky.” He watched helplessly as Superman touched down beside the wounded god. Kneeling, the Man of Steel confirmed that Lightray was still breathing. Jimmy figured he was probably using his X-ray vision to check for internal injuries too. “Superman, is he dying?”
    “I’m not sure I even know what that means in the case of a New God, Jimmy, but whatever could do this to Lightray clearly isn’t to be trifled with.” Rising back onto his feet, Superman scanned the heavens with his super-vision. “I didn’t see anything unusual when I descended through the atmosphere, but I’d better take another look.” He launched himself into the air, raising a cloud of dust around the young reporter. “Stay here, Jimmy. Lightray knows you. Talk to him.”
    Me? Jimmy thought. He felt distinctly out of his league. “I don’t know what I could say that would make a god feel better,” he called down to Lightray, “but hang in there, buddy.” Not wanting to let his friends down, he scooted down the sloped walls of the crater until he reached Light-ray’s side. “Superman’s looking out for you, so you’re in good hands.... Hey!”
    Without warning, Lightray reached up and grabbed Jimmy by the wrist. “In-infinite..he said weakly, coughing up blood. His