Kal-El.
My future grandson.
This is the story of the House of El.
Our ending has yet to be written.
But this is how we began.
Ours is a story of sacrifice
and triumph.
How the House of El
led a revolution against tyranny.
The story of your family isn't how we died.
But how we lived.
Synced & corrected by kinglouisxx www.addic7ed.com
Two hundred years before your birth,
the House of El almost ended.
And I was almost the last of our line.
It began the day my grandfather
was tried for treason.
That day saw the rise
of a terrible new power in Krypton.
And an end to all we had previously known.
Val of House El.
I offer you a final chance
to pledge your loyalty to His Eminence,
the Voice of Rao.
Don't hold your breath.
Listen to me.
The old counsel is no more.
They've already sworn their allegiance.
All but you.
You're our greatest scientific mind, Val.
Think of all you've accomplished.
Are you willing to throw it all away?
I've taken measures to safeguard my work.
I had to.
You can deny it all you like.
But the truth is,
we are not alone in the universe.
Krypton is vulnerable.
And praying to him won't be enough to save it.
Val of House El.
For rebelling against the lawful authority of the state,
you leave me no choice but to find you guilty of sedition.
You are hereby sentenced to death.
The name El will be struck from the Registry of Citizens.
Your family will be stripped of all rights and privileges.
You are now to be considered Rankless.
Without guild.
Without name.
Without honor.
You chose the wrong side.
Remember, Seg.
Keep believing in a better tomorrow.
Grandpa!
I love you!
No! No!
Grandpa!
Shh.
Where's the money, Seg?
Fifty thousand Solars. Remember?
What're you waiting for?
I vaguely recall 30.
Come on now. Up you go.
Thank you. Thanks.
All right.
50 it is.
Only 'cause you seem like nice guys.
Why so surprised?
- Didn't think we'd find you? - Honestly?
You look like you'd have trouble finding your own ass
with both hands tied behind your back.
And my guess is you're the smart one.
Oh, that was fair.
And I deserved that.
So I should apologize.
Please tell your wife and your sister
I'm gonna be late tonight.
If that's the best you got...
maybe I won't be as late as I thought.
Always got something clever to say, haven't you?
Well, if you're so clever, tell me this.
How come you're on the stupid end of this blaster?
Easy, mate.
My stupid end's bigger.
Seg, you'd better pay them now.
Just pay them.
Ah, easy. Easy.
Bye-bye, now.
Bye.
Yeah, all right. Calm down, calm down.
For all you degenerate gamblers who bet our boy
could last more than one minute and 37 seconds,
a hearty congratulations.
The rest of you, pay up.
Come on, it's pay day. Let's go.
One minute, 37 seconds.
- That was impressive. - Mmm.
That didn't go through. Come on.
Could you remind me why I'm the one who has to go
and provoke the very large,
very corrupt government officials?
I guess that's just the way that this one goes, isn't it?
- Mmm-hmm. - Plus you've got
superior stamina and, uh, a very punchable face.
Mmm, well, yours is looking more punchable
- by the minute, mate. - Wow.
How'd we do?
Uh, 218 minus 50 for damages.
Yeah, not a bad night's work.
And good clean fun.
Maybe it's good clean fun for you.
Yeah, I think I'm gonna bounce, mate.
Uh, can I use the, uh, back way?
- Uh, any particular reason? - Nope.
Other than the friendly government officials
that just went out front.
Free drinks for the next hour!
Sorry, mate.
It's just the way this one works, I guess.
But Seg... Hey, Seg...
No, Seg, you can't leave.
This is com... this is coming out of your share!
Seg, where've you been?
Hi, Dad.
Whoa, hey, wait. What happened?
You okay?
Yeah, had a great night.
Look, 150 in profit.
Pretty good, right?
Please tell me you and Kem
didn't pull that scam again last night.
All right, fine. I won't.
If you keep carrying on like this,
Dad, we can talk about this in the morning, please.
It is morning, Seg.
You can't keep doing this.
If you're caught after curfew...
They'll put me in the lunar work camps, I know, I know.
Look, we need that money.
Well, I can take extra shift.
- At the Guild? - Yeah.
Great.
The same people who executed Grandpa.
Forced us to live down here.
Sounds like a plan.
Well, I should get going.
- Seg... - I know.
I'm sorry. It was stupid.
- Does that hurt? - Mmm.
Yeah, a lot.
Good, maybe it'll remind you
to start using that brain of yours.
There's always a chance.
Oh, your dad's forgotten his meds.
Mom, don't worry. I'll get them.
- Don't worry. - No, you're still drunk.
That's how I do my best work.
You look terrible, and you smell even worse.
Fine, I'll get cleaned up first.
Wouldn't want to put more shame on the family, would I?
_
Do not mistake passion for strength.
The ability to divorce oneself of emotion during battle
is what separates the living from the dead.
Sagittari Zod.
Weapons or hand-to-hand?
Dev-Em, choose for your intended.
Hand-to-hand.
Ask for mercy.
No.
Ask for mercy!
No!
Mercy!
Black Zero!
Beasts of the Outlands.
Factions within other city-states.
All of them seek to annihilate us.
We are Sagittari.
The tip of the spear that guards this city.
We never ask for mercy.
And we never give it!
Do you understand, Lyta-Zod?
Yes, Mother.
_
You call yourselves freedom fighters,
but you wage war on the people of Kandor City.
You claim to fight for equality,
but bring only bloodshed and chaos.
That ends today.
You have all been found guilty of high treason
for aiding and abetting
the terrorist organization Black Zero.
Seg, we should not be here.
I know, but he needs the optics, and he's in chambers.
- What do you want me to do? - Just hurry up.
Hey, there's no Rankless in this sector.
No, I understand. I just need to pass something onto my father.
- Leave now or be arrested. - Okay, we are leaving.
Excellent job manning your post, by the way.
Your Reverence.
If you would give the condemned their final benediction.
He's got a bomb!
Death to the Voice of Rao!
- Seg! - Behind me, Your Magistrate!
Damn filth!
You did a brave thing, Seg.
We are in your debt.
You hate me.
I took the life of a man you loved,
took your family's rank,
erased its future...
Before it could even be written.
You turn 23 soon, don't you?
If you were Ranked,
you'd become a Guildsman.
Perhaps even granted permission to Bind with someone.
But I'm not Ranked, sir.
Not yet.
Under certain circumstances,
the Council can re-instate family Rank.
What?
I have conferred with a genetic council.
They have deemed you best suited to join the Science Guild.
You are to be assigned a new surname.
My name.
Vex.
Nyssa here has yet to be paired with someone.
As my youngest daughter, you'll be Binding with her.
He's a wonderful choice, father.
Welcome to the family, Seg.
Well, that's not how I thought today would go.
Really? No, I was pretty sure
that you'd get a Guild rank and a wife before lunch.
Don't forget foiling a terrorist, 'cause I did that, too.
We, yes, we did do that. But you know what?
I'm gonna let you take the credit on that one.
It's not like I wanna be a Vex.
What's not to want?
You've got better food, better air,
better ice.
- You're gonna be one of them again. - But not as an El.
And you've as much of a right to be Ranked as me.
Oh, shut up, Seg.
Look, once you get Vexxed up,
if I ever, ever see you down here again,
I'm gonna shred you myself.
On your knees!
Why's he down here?
Clear the sector, citizen.
I said move along.
- Leave it, Seg. - Hey!
Seg!
- Seg, just leave it. - Hey!
He worked the Outlands for more than 50 cycles.
His mind's not right anymore.
Clear the sector, Rankless.
You and the burnout.
You wanna explain this, Saj-Atara?
I was clearing the sector of potential threat
when this piece of shit attacked me.
Threat? He's an old man.
- Now, now, just a simple... - Get back!
- Understanding. - I've got this, Dev.
Face down, Rankless. Hands behind your back.
I'll book him. You handle the other moron.
What the hell were you thinking, Seg?
Are you gonna uncuff me or what?
I like you this way.
The whole city's on alert,
and you mix it up with a Voice security detail.
More like an out of control goon squad.
What happened to your people having some discipline?
They were handpicked by the Voice himself,
chosen for their devotion.
Great, people are crazy on both sides now.
Turn around.
What's that supposed to mean?
Um... I'll tell you later.
What happened to your hand?
Mother and I spent some quality time
in the training room.
Tomorrow night. Don't be late.
Don't even think about it.
Okay, I don't wanna fight.
Who are you? And what are you wearing?
Is that a guild? Is that a guild?
No, it's not a guild.
This is the Detroit Tigers, man.
Just... Would you just shut up and listen to me?
Okay, I've traveled across a lot of time and space
to come find you.
What I'm about to tell you is gonna sound, um...
Uh... Completely insane.
But, um, please, just go with it.
Yeah? Okay.
My name is Adam Strange, and...
Will you just let me finish?
I come from a planet called Earth.
A time centuries from now.
And I've come here to warn you.
Someone from the future is coming to destroy Krypton.
- Okay, right. - Whoa!
Why? Why would they do that?
Because where I'm from, your grandson
becomes the greatest hero in the universe.
Like, ever.
Unless somebody changes things to make sure
that he's never born...
You all right?
I'm running out of time.
Take this.
You have to find the fortress.
You have to save Superman.
Where did...
Well, it's a... it's a variation,
but it's definitely our family glyph all right.
What exactly did this Strange guy say again?
Something about my future grandson.
Another planet.
Detroit, I think he called it.
And...
Something about a fortress.
Well, I shall take care of this for you.
Why?
What's the big deal with it?
Well, the symbol, it's, uh...
It's outlawed. You know that.
It's much too dangerous for you to be carrying around.
Especially now that you're going to be Ranked.
You mean we.
We're about to be Ranked.
No, son, this is not how it works.
No, the offer is for you only.
We... We won't be joining you.
You think I'm gonna go live up there
and leave you down here?
I... I'm sorry, that's not happening.
Seg, this is a chance at a new life.
Come on, you should probably go.
You're due in the Genesis Chamber soon.
Fine.
All right, but we're not done discussing this.
Love you.
Bye.
We have to tell him.
No, he's not ready.
If Val was right,
it doesn't matter if he's ready or not.
_
Strange to think our ancestors used to carry
children in their wombs.
Just seems so inefficient.
After you.
The Oracle foresees the product of your union.
The child will be male.
His name: Cor-Vex.
He will be of sound health and good character.
Bio-scans designate he will be best suited
for the Lawmakers Guild.
He will live 173 cycles
in noble servitude to His Reverence.
Such a rush of maternal warmth.
Cor-Vex.
He seemed handsome enough. There's that at least.
Doesn't it bother you?
Knowing exactly how his life's gonna play out?
I'm the fifth of five daughters, Seg.
It's a miracle the Council are allowing me
to bind with anyone.
I'll take what I can get.
Even a Rankless boy with a chip on his shoulder.
Your father chooses me, and you accept without a word.
Please tell me you aren't that naive.
You are the grandson of a traitor.
If my father binds you to us, he is taming you.
Proving that even a dreaded El can be co-opted
- and brought into the fold. - I'm just a game piece.
Everyone in Kandor is a game piece to my father.
Including me.
Besides, you're not completely repellent.
There's a lot I could teach you about life up here.
My father only thinks
he was the one who chose you.
So, what's she like?
Nyssa-Vex.
She's interesting.
She's funnier than you'd think, once she loosens up.
I'm happy for you.
Council's scheduled my Binding to Dev.
Two weeks from now.
Before the Council controlled everything,
the binding ritual was a choice.
Shut up.
I just want this.
You.
Right now.
Curfew is in effect.
Oi, Rankless!
What are you doing out after curfew?
Uh, hey, guys.
Look, I was working late.
Um, I lost track of time.
I'm headed home right now, so...
We're on a terror alert.
You lose track of that, too?
Uh, mate, look, it's not a big deal.
- Against the wall. - Can we just... Do we have to...
What's this?
Where is he?
He's not down here!
He must have gone the other way!
- Seg, get in! - Mom?
Come on, let's go! Get in!
Mom, what's going on?
Don't start.
You're playing a dangerous game with Lyta-Zod.
If her mother finds out...
You've been following me.
You were told to leave that Sunstone behind.
You do know what this is.
Yes. And I'm sorry.
That's why I'm here.
It's time you learned the truth.
And you had to steal a skimmer for that?
I prefer borrowed.
We need it to get where we're going.
Welcome to your grandfather's Fortress of Solitude.
Go on. Try it.
He was right.
The guy who gave me the Sunstone.
Adam, he... This place is real.
I don't know how he knew about it, but...
Yes, it's real all right.
Why'd you never tell me about this place before?
To protect you.
If your father had his way, you still wouldn't know.
But I figured it was time you learned the truth.
This fortress.
It's why they killed grandfather, isn't it?
Val was determined to prove
we weren't alone in the universe.
After the council shut down his work,
he would come here to continue in secret.
He found something he wasn't supposed to.
Some kind of alien presence
he believed was consuming other worlds
and would someday come for Krypton.
He tried to warn the Council, and they silenced him for it.
Your father and I believed him. There was nothing we could do.
With Val dead, we didn't even know
how to get into this place.
Your grandfather was no traitor.
He was a hero.
He was trying to protect Krypton.
He believed in it so much, he was willing to die for it.
We have to finish his work.
Together.
Military scout ships.
They must have tracked the skimmer.
Come on, let's go.
I wiped the skimmer's nav-data
so at least they won't be able to find the Fortress.
True, but sooner or later,
they're gonna figure out who took it.
Looks like sooner.
Seg, we've gotta go. Come on, quick.
You can't let the Sunstone fall into the wrong hands.
- Keep it safe. - Mom, I'm not leaving you.
You'll need it to finish Val's work.
That's all that matters now.
Do you hear?
Now, go.
Now you. Get in.
- Mom. - I'm not coming.
- Surround it! Around the back! - Mom, stop.
No, Mom!
You are under arrest!
Let's go! Clear that corner.
Keep your hands where I can see them.
Take the entire place apart.
A skimmer was stolen last night.
Your son was seen within the same proximity.
We need to speak with him.
If he ever comes home again,
I'll be sure to tell him you stopped by.
You understand we don't need to take you in alive.
Right?
Tell me where he is.
You're wasting your time.
My son didn't steal the skimmer.
I did.
- I serve Black Zero. - Take her!
Seg, you shouldn't be here.
Let's just tell them the truth
and give them the Sunstone.
Maybe they'll spare you.
This is bigger than me.
This is about our entire civilization.
Get him out.
He was never here. Understood?
Tell me he played no part in this treachery.
You know our children love each other, don't you?
That's why you're protecting him.
I will not allow my daughter's life
to be ruined by your son's mistakes.
Death is not the only thing the Council can threaten you with.
And certainly not the worst.
I know what they can do.
Then tell them everything you know about Black Zero.
Seg will live.
And I promise you a good death.
Like the one they gave Val?
Primus Zod,
the accused claims she acted alone.
Would you enlighten us?
Our scanners clearly registered
two bio-signatures in the stolen skimmer.
Your scanners are wrong.
Yet upon your capture,
you claimed allegiance to Black Zero.
I told them what they wanted to hear.
To get in front of the people of Kandor.
To tell them the truth.
We are not alone! Don't believe their lies!
- Val-El was right! - Enough!
The only one who lies here today is you.
14 cycles ago, we condemned your father-in-law
to the ice.
And now you maintain his claims!
Tell the truth.
You stole that skimmer in an effort to locate
Val-El's hidden fortress.
Did you not?
Hmm.
Well, did you find it?
Who was with you in that skimmer?
Who was your accomplice, Charys?
Dad.
Tell me the truth!
- I have to stop this. - No, son, you cannot...
- I have to stop this. - You cannot do this.
The punishment for high treason
is unequivocal for the sake of your husband and for your son.
I love you. It was me!
No, Ter!
I was Charys' accomplice!
Take him!
Dad!
No!
No. Please, no.
Please, no! Please!
Mother, no!
No!
I don't care what it takes.
- Find it. - If this fortress does exist,
- what makes it so important? - Weapons, technology.
I will not allow Val-El's legacy
to fall into the hands of Black Zero.
Black Zero? Please.
Ter was covering for his son.
Charys confessed for the same reason.
We could have questioned them further
if they'd been taken alive.
I upheld the law.
There were other options.
But like a blunt instrument,
you chose to terminate them both.
If I didn't know you better, Jayna,
I'd think it was an act of mercy.
They knew exactly what you'd do to them
if they surrendered.
Or did you forget the resolve of House El?
You should have considered that
before offering him to your daughter.
You gave Seg a Rank in the Science Guild.
And you believe you can control him?
I'm just a blunt instrument, Daron...
But I'd rethink it.
Your Reverence.
I didn't see you there.
I'm so sorry.
If I could undo what my mother did...
She killed my parents, Lyta.
They were all I had.
You still got me, Seg.
Well, you said it yourself.
This had to end.
We were never gonna find a way to be together.
Especially now.
Where are you going?
- Thank you. - No worries.
Where have you been? I didn't know...
Kem, I have to get out of here, mate.
I need to be alone.
Can you help me?
What do you need?
Thank God, it worked.
Sunstone opened this place up.
What are you doing here?
Well, I was looking for you.
Wasn't sure if you found this place or not, but...
You got my parents killed.
What are you talking about?
You gave me that Sunstone.
You told me to find this place, and I did.
And now my parents are dead!
They died to protect me!
They died to protect whatever all of this is.
And it doesn't matter.
Does it?
If you really believe that,
then why are you here?
Huh?
I don't know why I'm here.
I thought that maybe if I could finish my grandfather's work
then maybe my parents didn't die for nothing.
But what I do know for sure is that because of you...
My entire family's gone.
You only think that you're the end of the line.
This belongs to your grandson.
Kal-El.
Emphasis on the El.
Why's it doing that?
It's like an hourglass.
Once this cape is gone, our time's up.
And Superman will have been wiped from existence.
This isn't just about your grandson, Seg.
This thing that's coming.
It's not just gonna stop at Krypton.
It is coming for everything.
What are you talking about?
It moves...
from planet to planet
conquering civilizations.
Destroying billions of lives.
It's known as the Collector of Worlds.
But it's true name...
Is Brainiac.
Now, I'm sorry about your folks, Seg.
I really am.
And it seems your parents gave their lives
because they knew this threat needed to be stopped.
And they believed that you could stop it.
Now, maybe you're up for it,
maybe you're not.
But the only question that matters is:
Are you willing to try?
Synced & corrected by kinglouisxx www.addic7ed.com