Seg and Lyta walk through the undercity and talk about the people they pass. They end up talking about their own relationship, and how they could leave everything behind. Lyta warns that Jayna would hunt them down, and Seg vows that he would defend Lyta from her mother.
Later, Seg and Lyta take a skimmer to Kryptonpolis and Seg assures her that they have the rest of their lives to figure out how they'll live. When they arrive, Seg tells Jayna gave him the bracelet from her binding. He explains that he talked to Jayna and she helped him get his rank bank and the apartment. Now they can have it all just like Lyta always wanted and proposes to her. Lyta immediately accepts and they kiss.
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At the Fortress, Seg has the4 computer scan Brainiac, trying to find Jor. He doesn't find Brainiac, and Nyssa finally tells him to stop because his efforts are useless. Seg insist that he has to do something, and Nyssa tells him to face the truth that they've lost Jor. He apologizes for failing to keep his promise to keep Jor safe, and Nyssa tells him that the three of them together felt too good to be true. She promises to raze the universe before giving up on Jor, and suggests that they talk to Val since he saw Brainiac's potential futures while in the Phantom Zone. Dev and Jayna come in and ask what happened there.
Lis administers a drug to Doomsday, rendering him comatose again as he started to wake up. Zod arrives and tells her that her lack of progress is disappointing, and invites Lis to walk with him. She admits that she's worried what Brainiac is up to, and Zod says that they need to take control of Doomsday so they can use it to drive off Brainiac as he returns. Lis explains that they have to condition Doomsday to obey Zod, and the creature is immune to toxins. Zod tells her that there's such a toxin, and takes her to see a Black Mercy plant. He explains that it's a parasitic plant from another planet, and says that it creates an alternate reality in the host's mind. The Black Mercy has attached itself to Lyta, and Zod tells Lis that the "Lyta" that died on Wegthor was a clone.
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Lyta prepares for her Binding, and Jayna comes to see her. She assures her daughter that she's more than ready and has never looked more like herself. Jayna give her a garment representing the joining of the Houses of El and Zod. Lyta thanks Jayna for letting her leave Kandor to bind with Seg, and standing with her means so much. Jayna tells her that Seg has the same strength an audacity as her dead husband, and Lyta assures her that she's happy.
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Jayna expresses her sympathies when Seg and Nyssa explain what happened. Dev tells them that the Zod has launched his first fleet of spaceships, and they're heading to Wegthor for a final assault on the Rebellion at Wegthor. The comm system is down and they have no way to warn the Rebels, and Dev warns that the only way to stop Zod fleet is to destroy it.
Dev figures that they have to break into Fort Rozz, and Seg says that he knows a way in. He and Kem used to liberate various goods from the Guilds and redistribute them to the Rankless, and used tunnels near Fort Rozz... where Zod's shipyards are. There's an armory inside and Jayna knows of a private armory. She has the codes to disengage the security systems.
The quartet sneak into Roz and kill a passing squad of Sagitari. One of them flies a gun before going down, and the quartet take cover and fire back. Seg has no choice but to surrender and comes out, putting his gun on the floor. The Sagitari move in and after a moment, Nyssa joins Seg while Dev pulls Jayna away.
Lis examines the Mercy, and tells Zod that it's having a negative reaction to the extraction. Zod says that Lyta has been the Mercy's host for months after she was troubled by the loss of Seg. Lis tells him that the Mercy's negative reaction could prove fatal to Lyta, and Zod orders her to proceed. He insists that Lyta's strength has been tested before and will be again.
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Seg and Lyta are Bound and have their child Dru-Zod foretold. He is assigned to the Military Good, and the priestess Anda says that he will conquer 467 planets and eradicates 233 billion life forms. Everyone is pleased except Lyta, who tells the Priestess to check the Oracle again. The Priestess insists that the Oracle has spoken and walks out. Dev asks Lyta if everything is all right, and Dev asks how she can abandon him when she told him that she loved her. He says that what she says now won't change what Lyta did, and walks away from her, his arm missing.
Lyta turns to Dev's wife Nyssa, and Nyssa says that all the people Lyta love have suffered to protect her. The guests all glare at Lyta, and she runs out.
Later, Lyta looks out on the city. Seg and Jayna arrive and ask if she's all right, and Lyta insists that she's all right. her husband says that he can't believe her after she betrayed all of them and chose her son Zod. Lyta notices Jayna bleeding, and Jayna reminds her that she shot her.
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Lis tells Zod that the half-life of the toxin is apparently limitless, and a host could remain bonded to the Mercy forever. Zod explains that he's learned that the only way to break free of it is to reject its false reality, but only a few have the awareness to see through its false reality. Lis wonders what will happen to Lyta, and Zod tells her to focus on what will happen to her if she doesn't bend Doomsday to his will. She says that the toxin should weaken Doomsday's will without its succumbing to the hallucinations. Lis injects Doomsday with the toxin and reports that it's working but says that they'll need more. As she extracts more of the toxin, Zod receives a report that Seg and Nyssa have been abducted. Nod orders that they be taken to his quarters so he can speak to them.
Lyta wakes up from her hallucination and pulls the Mercy off of her. She manages to stagger out and then hides as a Sagitari guard comes in. They fight for his gun, and Lyta finally manages to shoot him with it.
The Sagitari takes Seg and Nyssa to Zod's quarters, and Zod figures that Jayna and Dev came with them. He wonders who is watching over Jor, and insists that he never would have let anything happen to his brother. Seg points out that Zod let Lyta die, and Zod asks if he would have negotiated with Jax. He angrily says that Val stands with Jax, and explains that Val bombed the Elevator Station taking thousands of lives. When Nyssa defends Val, Zod says that they choose to demonize only him, and says that he loved Lyta.
Seg approaches Zod and says that if he truly loved Lyta, she'd still be there. Zod says that Jax corrupted Val and he asked them to join forces with him for Krypton's future. Seg points out that Somatic reconditioning doesn't work on him, and Zod says that he will oversee Nyssa's reconditioning. The Sagitari take Seg away.
Two Sagitari get the drop on Jayna and Dev, ordering them to drop their weapons. They have no choice but to do so, and the Sagitari says that Zod doesn't want them alive. Before they can shoot, Lyta arrives and shoots them from behind. She calls to Jayna and staggers, and Jayna goes to catch her. Jayna says that she's there as Lyta breaks into tears.
Lyta lets them into a room using her old security codes, and Dev demands to know who she is. Jayna tells him to stop, and Lyta says that her clone must have died and she was imprisoned in a fantasy until something went wrong. Memories of her real life bled through.
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Zod confronts Lyta and insists that the colonization of alien planets is their future, and Doomsday is the most efficient past toward them. He says that Lyta taught him that victory requires sacrifice, and Lyta taught him that. Lyta refuses to let Zod do it and says that they can find another way. Zod tells her that Seg has made her weak, and Lyta insists that Seg has made her stronger even after his apparent death. Zod attacks her and the two fight. He finally pins her to the floor and says that he will give her more time and she will one day realize that she was wrong to doubt her.
The fantasy resets and Lyta is back in her apartment. She realizes that none of it is real, and told Jayna that she is happy but that's not enough when the world is in danger. Seg comes in and says that all he wants is for them to be together. Lyta tells him that she loves him and wants to spend her life with her, but she can't. She says that Brainiac took Seg away, and she shot Jayna and has been trying to run from her wrong choice ever since. Lyta insists that none of it is real, and breaks out of the fantasy.
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Lyta tells Jayna how sorry she really is, and Jayna says that all matters is that she's there. Dev apologizes for ever doubting her, and Jayna says that Seg is back but he's in danger. They want to get Lyta far away, but Lyta refuses to abandon Seg and checks the detention center plants to find Nyssa and Seg. She tells Dev and Jayna that she won't lose Seg again.
Seg and Nyssa are tossed into a cell, and Seg figures that Zod is scared that they can defeat him. He wonders why he puts people in danger to help other people he loves, and Nyssa says that she chose to be there and they'll be all right because their son still needs them. Seg tells her that he doesn't know how they're going to find Jor but promises to be with Nyssa every step of the way.
Dev comes in and tells them to come back and then knocks out the energy field over their cell.
Zod receives word that Seg and Nyssa have escaped. The Sagitari says that alarms in the shipyard have been activated.
Lyta and Jayna monitor the Sagitari heading for the shipyards.
The Sagitari arrive at the shipyard and realize that the alarms were set off.
Dev leads Seg and Nyssa into the catacombs, and Dev starts to tell Seg about Lyta. Lyta and Jayna arrive and Dev says that it's the real Lyta. Seg and Lyta kiss and then they head out.
Zod confirms that Lyta has escaped, and says that they will wipe out every Rebel on Wegthor.
Written by Gadfly on Aug 1, 2019