WARNING: The following article contains spoilers for "Terminus," Episode 23 of Young Justice: Outsiders, streaming now on DC Universe.
After slowly building up his big plan, Darkseid is one step closer to achieving full dominion over the galaxy thanks to Granny Goodness finding him the Anti-Life Equation in Young Justice: Outsiders. It may have drawn the ire of Vandal Savage, but the forces of Apokolips don't care because their ultimate goal is finally within grasp. However, while we first assumed the equation was going to enslave everyone across the cosmos, we now know it's even deadlier for a certain segment of folks living on Earth, spelling doom for a ton of the planet's heroes.
The full brunt of the equation is felt early on in the episode when the Justice League raids the Orphanage only to get brainwashed, with the Green Lanterns, Superman and Wonder Woman among its victims. Halo is the key to this conditioning, and no one is safe from submission, whetting Granny's appetite even more as she now has the most powerful army around to wield for her lord.
But when the Outsiders and other Leaguers find Dick Grayson ready to return to action, there are some truths about the equation. Rather than spelling enslavement for non-metahumans, it means genocide. It turns out this is why Dick was so mentally broken and close to death physically after he and Black Lightning were held in Granny's X-Pit. The equation disintegrates the life-force of everyone in order to control them, and seeing as alien and metahuman specimens have stronger physiologies, they can withstand the conversion. But humans cannot, and so non-metas, like Dick, will die after a period of being mind-controlled if exposed to full conversion.
Black Lightning is a meta, while Kaldur and Wyynde used their Atlantean magic and overall genetic makeup to their advantage in the Pit, but now we know exposure means certain death for members of the Bat-family, like the Dark Knight, Oracle, Nightwing and Tim Drake, as well as other vigilantes such as Green Arrow. There are a lot of heroes in the DC Universe who aren't metas, so a lot of people will die if the equation is unleashed on Earth.
As to how this happens, the equation acts as a virus, a sentient organism permeating throughout the human/non-meta body. It craves only the strong and wants super-powered and higher beings, like Kryptonians and gods, as its slaves and vessels in order to spread its reach. Non-metas and ordinary humans are too weak to be avatars and, as a result, this infection deems such carriers non-worthy and expendable. Knowing it'll aggressively turn on and kill the hosts is a scary scenario, made all the more worse by the equation still being able to get some slave labor out of these victims until their bodies wither and give up.
It's truly the ultimate weapon, and it leaves us wondering what good is a planet that'll be mostly dead to the likes of Lex Luthor, the Light and of course, Vandal. It explains why he's so ticked at Darkseid, not to mention folks like Deathstroke would also be on the chopping block. Suspicions are that Darkseid played Vandal all along, knowing he'd end up with a bare planet to rule, while the Apokoliptian leader would have the rest of the galaxy cowering before him; something Vandal dare not even dream of. With all the dominoes falling into place and enemies being taken off the board, Darkseid is about to purge the cosmos and establish a reign that'll require everyone -- heroes and villains alike -- to dig deep and unite if they're to survive and offer any kind of formidable resistance.
New episodes of Young Justice: Outsiders premiere Tuesdays throughout the summer on DC Universe. The three-episode season finale premieres on August 27.