NO MORE RUNNING:
Well, FINALLY have the first chapter of this story ready to go :) It's taken me far longer than I'd ever have expected to get this story done, and like a few others, it was only meant to be a one shot, and now has ended up a few chapters long :P
This is my first time writing this shipping; For quite awhile now I've loved all three pairings of BatFlash, SuperBat and SuperFlash, and when I very first sat down to start this story, I just couldn't chose between the three...soooo, here was born, a SuperBatFlash story! XD rofl.
Actually I'm surprised by how much I've come to like all three together, especially since writing a threesome relationship is something new to me (unless I include a couple of my old Yugioh stories :P), I just hope I pulled off this story well enough, remembering in the long run that this was written purely for the fun of it, and originally it was meant to be a short, funny fic...lol, but I'm afraid I have a bad habit of adding a little more drama and emotions to my stories...can't help it! XP
Oh, just so it's clear, this is set during the Justice League: Unlimited series, but before certain events. Also, just so it's hopefully not confusing...
. Character thoughts: 'Written like this'
. Comm link conversations: "Written like this"
Hope that it's clear that way...
Anyway, enough from me, please Enjoy ^_^
Warning: There's nothing high rated in this story, but it is non the less a shonenai/yaoi fanfic, so fair warning.
Disclaimer: I do not own Justice League or any of it's characters, only the plotline of this fanfic.
Chapter 1: Going too far
The passage of days was an instinctively known occurrence; a fact…a part of life as simple and routine as eating and sleeping. Yet up here, beyond the range of said instincts, only the clocks told of how time was indeed still moving at its natural pace.
They told Shiera that it was mid-morning, even though an eternal night was still the view out every window she passed.
It didn't bother her one way or another though. True it had been difficult perhaps in the beginning for all of them to adjust, especially when rotating back to their regular lives on Earth below. But to some manageable degree, their instincts had adjusted enough to make the rotation just a bit easier.
And what a lovely morning it had been so far; A nice breakfast in the cafeteria…a short but great workout…chatting with one of her friends (despite their differences)…seeing her so named little brother come racing along half naked…
'Wait! What...?'
Shiera and Diana were brought to a halt as Flash came charging out of his room and leant against the door. The top half of his suit was hanging around his waist, his face a blend of shock and panic.
"Flash...?"
Having not been aware of their presence, the red head almost jumped the full way out of his suit. In typical Flash style though, he tried to brush it off with a grin and confident stance.
"Morning ladies! How's breakfast in the mess hall today?"
"Almost gone, if you haven't had any yet…" Diana answered, "They'll be starting to pack up…"
"No problem, I won't hold them up," Wally grinned, "You know me, I'll be done in a…"
"Flash."
The voice interrupted his cheesy pun, and made the young man's face pale.
"Was that…?" Shiera raised an eyebrow towards his door.
"T-that!?" Flash held his hands up, grinning sheepishly, "…That wasn't anyth…"
"Five seconds head start Flash!"
"Don't so generous, he only needs two."
"Even with me on his tail?"
"Why do think I was allowing TWO seconds?"
"And was THAT…?" Diana copied Shiera upon hearing the second voice from within the room.
His eyes flittering between the girls and his door, Flash suddenly span on the spot, allowing himself an ounce of rather pointless privacy as he pulled his uniform fully on.
"You didn't see me!" He quickly whispered and made to dash past…
…only to turn back to them and beg…
"…pretty please?" And away he ran for real this time.
"Well, we BARELY saw him…" Diana grinned, sharing a laugh with Shiera.
The door beside them slid open; a few months ago, it would've been a very questioned thing, but at least for the rest of the founders, the sight of both the man of steel, and the dark knight exiting the scarlet speedsters room, was no longer much of a shock.
It did still, however, raise a few hackles once in a while…
"What're you two up to?" Shiera questioned in her big sister voice.
"Careful, we might not want to know," Diana teased, making it hard for the Thanagarian to keep a straight face.
"Come on Shiera, which way did he go?" Superman smirked at her.
"You couldn't see through the walls?"
"The Flash had lead panels placed along the inside of his walls," Batman spoke, "…rather surprising, from him at least…"
"Hardly," Shiera stood with her hands on her hips, "Wally told me he'd felt like someone was watching him sometimes when he was alone," She glared at Superman.
"…I meant it was surprising that he didn't make the mistake of trying to use lead paint," Batman finished, "Not that he should have to do either…" He looked to Clark over his shoulder.
"Oh don't you try to shrug it off like you're innocent," Clark quickly countered, " Your reasons for taking so much monitor duty aren't as responsible and work related as you'd love us to believe."
At that, Batman returned his smirk.
"You both know how shy Wally can be!" Shiera scolded, "I don't care if he willingly bounces into most of what you three get up to, if either of you wanted privacy, you'd make sure he couldn't disturb you."
"Well we don't exactly disturb him," Clark grinned.
"Not in the way you're implying…" Shiera retorted.
Diana smiled and touched her friends shoulder. It was too much in the Thanagarians nature to butt heads if challenged, AND to get feistily defensive of those she cared for. But no one there would really do anything to hurt or offend each other…they'd had one true argument within the group, and not one ever wanted to repeat that time.
"Alright, whatever Flash did…or whatever's going on…does he deserve it?" She spoke calmly.
"….Mostly," Clark answered after a moment.
"So, which way did he run?" Batmans patience finished there.
The girls looked to each other.
"You know he probably DOES deserve it a little…" Diana shrugged.
"…Alright…" Shiera sighed, and pointed over her shoulder, "That way…"
Superman went to move, but Batman stopped him. The dark knight stared down Shiera, who looked uncomfortable, and averted her eyes.
"Clark, head towards the mess hall."
"But that's in the other dire…"
"Yes, but sooner or later he'll have to go there," Batman explained, and turned, walking away.
Superman nodded. He flew off down the hall, whilst Batman took a last look at the girls, and walked off in the same direction.
When out of ear reach, Diana smirked.
"Did you just out play BATMAN?"
"Hey, I didn't lie…if he chose not to believe me, it's his own decision," Shiera shrugged, "But I'm curious to see how long it takes him to realise."
"So, are you going to keep helping Wally?"
"Nope. Like you said, he probably has…whatever it is…coming to him, BUT, that doesn't I'm supporting "Team Cape" either."
They shared one more laugh, before continuing on with their original conversation.
Further down the hall, Batman touched his ear piece.
"Superman?"
"He's not here yet. You sure Shiera was lying?"
"I wasn't sure at all, but there's no way she's going to aid us in this."
"I don't think anyone will. You have to admit, this is rather childish of us."
"And just who was it that first made the suggestion…?"
" Touché. So what now? Even with my x-ray vision, I can't look everywhere at once."
"Stay where you are for the moment, and don't worry, soon he won't be able to hide from either of us."
"What are you going to do?"
"Just even the odds a little."
"How exactly…?"
Batman smirked.
"What was it you were accusing me of before…?"
'Man this sucks….this so so SO sucks!'
Wally rubbed his stomach as it grumbled, like a child seeking attention and wondering why it wasn't getting it.
"Easy belly, I know I know…" He stared back in the direction of the mess hall, "…but we don't wanna go in there whilst Captain Primary Colours is lurking…"
Flash had doubled back and taken an alternate route to the mess hall when his stomach had first cried 'empty'. But upon peeking through the doors, he'd found the man in red and blue hovering around calmly.
Superman occasionally turned around, but thankfully he mustn't have been using his x-ray vision, since he didn't react when he turned towards the entrance.
'Ok, think brain. How to get in…get food…and get out without being caught…'
He leant back against the wall, fingers on his chin.
'Maybe a major wedgie for distraction? Hmm…no, too mean…save those for the bad guys. Besides, it would only get me in way more trouble. I suppose if nothing else, I can run in, grab chow and have it to go.'
Grab food before Supes grabbed him? It could be done, but not without being noticed, and unlike the rest of the Justice League, Superman could give chase AND stand a chance of catching the speedster…
…a very good chance at that.
Flash glanced back through the gap in the door. Superman was on his communicator, perhaps talking to Bats? The dark knight must've been searching elsewhere.
'Sheesh, kinda glad it's the big blue boy-scout I'm facing down, and not Mr tall, dark and "scare the speed out of me"!'
Wally suddenly quirked his head, eyebrow raised. It wasn't the first time he or anyone else had referred to the man of steel as a boy-scout, but the speedsters easily distracted mind couldn't help but imagine the tall man in the full outfit; big hat, shorts, badges and all.
A quiet snort left him as a grin cracked over his face.
It died quickly though, as Superman spun right back in his direction.
'Oh shoot! No way he heard tha…! Oh…right. Superman equals super abilities, equals super HEARING! Smooth one West…'
"Ready or not Flash…!" Superman smirked widely, ignoring any strange looks he got from others in the mess hall.
"Guess that's a firm and clear 'busted'," Wally back up from the door.
"Here I…"
Flash sped off before the other could finish his sentence, but it only took a second before he heard the cafeteria doors crash open.
"Thinking fast…thinking fast…" Flash mumbled as he raced through the watch tower, "training room…training room…broom closet…ack! Loose bucket!...Training room…training room…bathroom…ooo, GL's room, I wonder if he's got any…wait! Why have I stopped!? Back to running, back to running…!"
He was up two levels of the watch tower before he dared to stop, and still he searched frantically for somewhere to hide.
Store room? Too obvious…trash can? Don't be silly, way too small…and smelly! Air vent? Not bad, but slow…Laundry chute…
"Wait…we have a laundry chute?"
He peered down the gap in the wall; It was fairly large, big enough for one with a slighter build like his.
"Convenient…if it works…do we even use this thing?"
Really, who would want to do the Justice League's laundry?
He jumped when he heard the doors around the corner slide open.
'Well…if not for dirty clothes…' He made to climb in.
He paused and looked back to the air vent in the ceiling. He jumped up, pulled the grate off, and let it clank loudly on the ground. The footsteps he'd heard around the corner sped up, so he rushed back to the chute and grabbed the top.
"Please don't let me get stuck…" He gritted his teeth and swung down into the space, fighting with himself not to yell out at the drop.
Supergirl and Fire came around the corner, searching for the source of the noise.
"So that's what it was? How did that happen?" Fire queried as they walked towards the fallen grate.
"HELLOOO!?" Kara called up into the vent, and waited for a moment.
She used her x-ray vision to check the vents around the hall, before shrugging.
"Must've just needed a repair…" She moved towards the chute.
Her arms were full of dirty clothes, which she dumped down the hole.
"Since when would anything in the tower be allowed to go without repair?" Fire continued, following her actions with her own laundry.
Kara grabbed the grate and hovered just under the vent. She held the metal in place and carefully used her heat ray to meld it back into place.
"Nothing does," She smiled playfully.
Fire shook her head, but returned the grin.
Wally managed not to cry out until the end, when the vent ended, and he landed in a large, soft but smelly bundle.
He gasped for air as he popped his head back out.
"The stink…the STINK!" He choked out, hanging over the edge of the giant clothes basket, "…soooo rank!"
He just hung there coughing for a moment, a bit dramatic true, but it really was rather foul in there.
"At least that vent finally ended, I was about to claim claustrophobic!" He panted, "…so we really do have a laundry service here? Seriously, why didn't anyone tell me abo– OOF!"
A new batch of clothes rained down on him. He groaned and rested his chin on the edge of the bin.
"Well…I guess it would be pretty awkward if your washing machine at home broke down and you had to try washing your uniform at the laundromat…"
He grumbled as he pulled a piece off his head, only to freak and drop it when he realised it was female lingerie.
Flash was a flirt…hell, a Casanova wannabe as some had called him…but he wasn't pervy enough to look through ladies underwear…
…anyway, trying it in the watch tower would also spell one big, painful death penalty if he was caught!
Shuddering at the thought of an enraged Wonder Woman, he climbed out of the basket, shaking off any loose clothing bits.
"EEWWW!" He tossed away a set of red underwear that got caught on his foot.
Rather stylishly designed, yes…
…but not made for a FEMALES body!
"Don't know…don't WANNA know…will try not to have nightmares about it!"
He looked around the room then. Fairly dark with the lights turned out, but indeed it looked used enough.
The quiet of the room was actually kind of pleasant to, so he let his feet wander as his mind started turning.
"Just what's got into Supes and Bats today anyway? I must've done something REALLY bad to get them both after me, but what?"
He leant back against one of the washing machines; as far as he could recall, he hadn't done anything particularly bad or annoying lately, just the usual wise crack here and there.
"Maybe all the jokes have just finally built up into one big thing?" He shrugged to himself.
"Guess again."
Flash doubted he could've screamed louder at the voice over his shoulder, and jumped away…literally! With his speed, he wound up on the other side of the room…right back in the clothes bin.
"GAH…! Huh? Oh come on…!" He groaned as he pulled the same red undies off his head.
Laughter brought his attention back to the man floating closer to him.
"I-I don't get…how'd you…?"
"Let's say a little birdy told me, ok?" Kal grinned, "…or to be more specific, a birds teacher."
Not stopping to think about it, Wally started grabbing bundles of clothes, and in a flurry of arms, pelted them at the man of steel.
Kal swatted a few away, but at that speed, he was soon buried and looked like a colourful snowman.
Wally almost made the mistake of laughing again, but as Kal poked his arms out the sides of the cloth mass, he squeaked and threw a few more t-shirts, before zooming out of the laundry…once he stopped scurrying enough to find the door.
Kal ended up having to rise off the ground just to free himself, and turned towards the exit.
"Well you made THAT too easy for him."
"Oh like you wanted it to be easy for us," Kal smirked, touching his ear, "Don't tell me you didn't enjoy seeing him jump like that."
"Not the point; you still wasted a great chance to catch him."
"Like I said, where's the fun in making this too easy?"
"How'd he know, how'd he know!?"
Flash took a break near….where was he…? Oh, one of the main meeting rooms. Wow, that was fast even for him; he was back near the top of the tower again!
'Why did I never realise how many stairs we have here until now? I must use the elevators more than I thought…and those things are so slow!'
Well, slow by a speedster's view point anyway…
"How'd he find me so fast? I didn't even hear him enter! He…he'd have had to be there before me! That's why the lights were out. But even if he'd realised where I'd gone, there's no way he could've…"
'A little birdy told me…'
"Since when did Clark start talking in riddles? He's always been pretty straight fowa…"
His eyes widened then.
"A little birdy…OR…a bird's teacher…" He mumbled, before slapping his head, "…bird equals Robin…bird's teacher equals Batman!"
The dark knight must've seen him somewhere. Hmm…maybe it was him that he'd heard coming before he'd jumped down the chute? The whole air vent trick wouldn't likely have fooled the tactician, but surely even then he couldn't have figured it out fast enough to warn Superman where Wally was g…
"Oh…" The answer caught his attention then, like a blinking red light in a dull grey street at night.
It first made him frown in annoyance (not to mention a bit of embarrassment), but then he grinned that grin that most in the Justice League would know as a warning of something highly cheeky approaching.
"Batman, I haven't seen him for a while. Any luck?"
"Not yet. It would seem he's either figured it out and is dodging the cameras, or he's gone into hiding somewhere without surveillance."
"About the only places like that are closets and people's personal bathrooms. Should I check his bedroom?"
"Negative. I've been keeping an eye on it, and he's made no attempt to return there."
"At least to my eyes, there's a fair number of places he could be hiding. Remind me again why we have so many random pieces of lead built in everywhere?"
"Give me a sec. I'm going to try switching to the thermal imaging. It may not see through walls, but it may help us to…wait."
"What?"
Batman raised an eyebrow as he looked to one of the top right monitors. An image had appeared in place of what should've been the front of the gym. It was naught more than a white back ground with a large red arrow pointing to the left.
Something moved out the corner of his eye, and he looked left to see the next monitor sporting the same image, except that the arrow was pointing down.
No sooner had he seen it, that the monitor right below joined the other two.
One by one, he watched the right side monitors change almost faster than he could follow the arrows.
"Superman! Where are you!?"
"Only a few feet from where I was…why?"
"Flash is on the move, he's…!"
"…Batman? You still there…?"
The dark knight had broken off in his sentence as he looked to the final monitor left free on the right hand side. It showed the outside of the door to the security room, where he was currently working.
Arms all too casually crossed over his chest, Flash leant against the wall there, smirking straight at the security camera…
…at Batman himself.
The speedster playfully saluted and poked his tongue out, before hitting the panel next to the door.
Batman heard the door hiss open, and a gust blew his cape up around him. He jumped to his feet, but he barely saw the scarlet blur before he finished fiddling near the base of the console, and rushed back out of the room.
Batman looked back to the monitors, but now everyone…left right and centre…were all black and lifeless; Flash had pulled the wires out.
He crouched to rewire, only to grumble at what he found.
"Wally…" He growled, holding the yarn ball of effectively tangled wires.
"Batman! Has your communicator stopped working or something?"
"No Clark, Flash was just here."
"There? Well no wonder I can't find him, I wasn't even searching in that direction. Where is he now?"
"Can't tell, he's blinded the cameras, and by the looks of it, the thermal imagining as well. It'll take a while to get it all back up."
"It sounds like something he'd do, although even he must realise it's pretty irresponsible…"
"He'd just say that it sounded like a good idea at the time."
"So we're on a wild goose chase unless I can spot him and catch him off guard?"
"Not entirely. I can still track his communicator. Anyone else and it would hard to tell with so many communicators in one tower, but since our favourite speedster's version of a calm walk is cheetah speed…"
"Alright, which way then?"
"First things first. He wants to get a bit irresponsible? Then we'll play his game."
"Bruce…why do I get the feeling this 'game' is about to get more serious than it should?"
"I always play seriously Clark."
"Well if you were only 'playing serious' when you growled at me during yesterday's mission, I'm rather glad I didn't see you actually mad."
"Very funny. Remember that I wasn't the first one to miss catching him today."
"Hey, if 'you' want to try chasing him, then be my guest. I'm sure that would be quite a show."
"Just go where I say. He has an edge on us, so let's get one on him."
"Come on, you've gotta have something!"
"I'm sorry Flash, we're all packed up now."
"Anything at all! Pancakes? Sausage? A breakfast roll someone didn't want? Heck, I'll settle for an apple or six..."
"I'll, check and see if we have anything I can grab for you…" The worker headed out the back.
"Thanks man, we appreciated it!" Flash patted his stomach, as though it were still a complaining child, "Down belly, don't be rude!"
"That stomach of yours is so loud, I think we could use it as an alarm sometimes."
He looked up at the laughing voice. Green Lantern had entered the cafeteria, and walked up to him.
"Yeah well, it feels like my stomachs on yellow alert or something…and at this rate, red alert isn't far off."
"Drama queen," GL teased, "So where were you at breakfast? There was actually enough food for everyone else today."
"Oh ha ha. I was right here….and there…and everywhere in between…" Flash shrugged, sitting on one of the tables.
"And…that translates as?" GL raised an eyebrow.
"Uuhh…say, didn't pass Bats or Supes on the way here did ya?"
"Hm? I haven't seen Batman yet today," GL shrugged, "But Superman wasn't far behind me if you were looking for him."
The lantern looked confused as the younger males face drained of colour.
"Uuum…HOW far behind exactly?"
"Someone looking for me?"
Flash almost fell of the table as he turned back to the entrance. Superman was standing there with an innocent expression, but it was only moments away from turning sly…which he DIDN'T try to hide.
"I think Wally was, but…" GL cut off in his sentence at a loud thud, as Flash lost his balance and fell, "…is…something going on?"
"Nothing at all. Right Flash?" Superman said casually, strolling over.
Oh did his face ever spell out 'you're in trouble'!
"Y-yeah…nothing…at all…"
There was an awkward pause just long enough to realise what was coming, before gusts of scarlet and blue burst around the cafeteria, from one end to the other.
"WHOA!" GL dived under a table, covering his head as the others raced past, making the tables shake, " You two want to let others get out of the firing line first!?"
Flash raced close to the wall, skidding out of the way as Superman literally swooped at him.
The space was confined enough that speed wouldn't be as much help as usual. Instead he had to trust in his agility to dodge out of the way; Supes could keep up with him, but he couldn't change directions so easily.
"Flash!" The worker came out from the back then, a couple of apples in his hands, " They said I could give you a few…"
His smile faded as he saw the commotion taking place.
"Go long dude!" Flash waved from one of the table tops.
He jumped to the next one as his chaser made another grab at him.
GL could only grumble as they passed over his hiding spot. The worker on the other hand, looked to the apples, and without a clue of what else to do, he threw them as far across the room as he could.
Flash zipped around a few times, before jumping through the air to catch the fruit…
…only for Superman to beat him to it, snatching an apple in each hand before they reached the speedster.
"SUUUPPPEEESS!" Wally whined as he stood from a less than graceful landing, "That's not playing nice!"
"Oh?" Kal turned to face him, still smiling, "Well how selfish of me…"
He took a bite from one apple, then held out the other.
"…I'd be happy to share?"
Flash stared longingly at the apple. He was on the verge of drooling, but he didn't trust that playful glint in the Kryptonians eyes.
"On second thought…I don't think I want it anymore…"
"You sure?" Kal took another bite, and indicated to Wallys mouth.
Oh…so he WAS drooling…
Wally promptly wiped it away.
"You're just being seriously mean now…"
He turned and zoomed out of the cafeteria.
"Just what are you up to?" GL frowned as he crawled out of hiding, "I'd expect this kind of behaviour from Flash, but not from you Clark. And since he asked about Batman, do I dare assume he's involved as well?"
"And others say I get uptight," Kal laughed, and threw the spare apple back to the lantern, "Don't worry, I'll come back and clean up in here when I'm done."
"Done with what? Trashing the rest of the watch tower?"
"John, it's that rare day all the founding members get a day off. Just enjoy it," Kal chuckled, and left the mess hall.
"I was enjoying it before I nearly got swept up by a man made whirlwind!" GL grumbled loudly.
"Man, forget this! I think I'm gonna collapse of hunger before they call off the hunt!"
Wally was starting to feel the lack of breakfast; he knew he wasn't running as fast as he should've been able to. He could definitely still outrun Supes, but if this kept up…
"Well, if I can't have a late breakfast….then maybe an early lunch!"
He changed course, nearly knocking over Red Tornado and Vigilante as he went by. Keeping an eye out, he made his way to the main deck, where the tele porter was.
As he got to the controls though, he felt his heart sink.
"H-hey guys…what's going on?"
"Hello Flash, just some repairs," J'onn offered a kind smile as he indicated to Mr. Terrific and a casual worker sorting through the wires beneath the controls.
"No no, that goes over there!" Terrific pointed out, the worker nervously complying with his order.
New guy, it would seem…
"Was there, something you needed Flash?" J'onn continued when the speedster was silent.
"For…you guys to not tell me…those repairs are for the tele porter…?" Flash mumbled weakly.
"Yeah. Some nut bag on board decided it would be hilarious to rearrange all the wiring," Green Arrow answered as he leant against the control board.
"One or two of the wires are even cut. Not just worn or frayed, actually cut!" Black Canary put in.
"Make that cut and burnt," Terrific corrected her as he held up a wire.
Clean cut, but also looking singed.
"Blow for blow…hey Supes?" He grumbled, trying to imagine how the Kryptonian could've pulled that off without being noticed.
"Pardon Flash?"
"Oh, Uuhh…nothing J'onn," He grinned sheepishly, "So umm…how long do you think it'll take to get the tele porter back up and running? Just out of curiosity of course."
The Martian gave him a look, and sensing what was coming, Wally quickly spouted out;
"J'onn, you don't wanna look up there right now," He indicated to his head, "I missed breakfast this morning, so all you'll find in there at the moment are dreams of waffles and cheese burgers."
"Separate or together?" Canary teased.
"A bit of both," Wally shrugged, not noticing her surprised look of disgust, "Look, would you mind letting me know when the tele porter's back online? I think the old stomachs about to go on strike," He joked.
"Oh, hey Superman!"
'Already!?' The call from below made him jump again.
"Tacos and milkshakes on me if you get it up and running pronto…" He spoke in hush, though he knew it would be of little use, "…thanks guys!"
He left in a scarlet streak, the others unsure of what to say. Green Arrow was the one to break the silence.
"Eh, free tacos? I'm in."
"Did I just miss Flash by chance?" Kal floated up to the platform, his smile showing he already knew the answer.
"You wouldn't be picking on him by chance would ya?" Arrow answered slyly.
"What do you mean?" Still Kal looked innocent about it.
"I don't think I've seen him more scared," Canary laughed, though her smile suddenly faded, "…he's not in real trouble is he?"
"No, Flash wouldn't run if he knew he'd actually done something wrong," Kal assured her.
"So you are just….teasing him?" J'onn spoke.
This time Kal let a guilty edge touch his lips.
"Superman…" Mr. Terrific sat up then, "…I'm sorry to ask, but…know anything about this?" He held up the cut wires.
The man of steel lost all humour in his face.
"No, THAT I don't know anything about…" He frowned as he inspected the damage.
"I'm sorry, it's just…"
"No, I understand why you'd ask, but this is my first time in here today."
"It can't have been this way for very long. I used the tele porter to get here just this morning, maybe two hours ago?" Canary said.
"I only started one hour ago, and it all looked fine, but some of the others tried to use it about ten minutes ago, and that's when we found it like this." Terrific added.
"So it happened within the last hour? Who was at the controls before you?"
"Not sure, I'll check the roster."
"Not just that. Try to find out if anyone else was in here during that time, or who tried to use the tele porter."
"Yes sir."
"Arrow, can you find Kara for me?"
"Kara? Come on, the kid wouldn't…"
"I know she wouldn't, but just to be sure. Batman's in the security room, I'll check if he's noticed anything."
He left the room then. Arrow looked to the repairs going on.
"Ok you two, move over and let me try."
"You don't know what you're doing…" Terrific argued.
"Obviously you've never heard of Queen Industries pal," Arrow fiddled under the controls.
There was a loud crashing sound, before he held up a bunch of wires.
"No, obviously I haven't," Terrific said sarcastically as he was handed the wires.
"You think I didn't do that on purpose? It'll go a lot faster if you just replace that mess with new ones." Arrow stood and dusted himself off.
"That'll take forever!"
"As long as it would AFTER detangling the wires? They'll probably all be frayed by the time you finish anyway."
"This…probably wasn't the best way to go about it," J'onn answered him.
"Oh come on, I know you want some of those milkshakes Flash promised," Arrow teased as he walked away.
J'onn made to reply, but shut his mouth again.
Superman made sure he was out of ear reach, before touching his comm link.
"Couldn't wait for me to get there?"
"What're you going on about?"
"…Sorry, that was wrong of me, but when you said to make it look like the tele porter wasn't working? Well, someone beat me to the punch."
"…The tele porter ISN'T working?"
"It's been tampered with. The wires are all jumbled, a few even cut."
"Sounds like what Wally did in here earlier, except he didn't damage any wires. He'd know better than to go so far."
"How're you going in there anyway?"
"Nearly done. The wires weren't as tightly wrapped as they looked. Seems Flash only intended to slow us down rather than stop us completely."
"I guess he's a little wiser than we give him credit for," Kal gained a fond smile.
"Maybe, but if you DARE say that to him…!"
Kal couldn't help but laugh, and he didn't doubt that his rival was really grinning on the inside.
"I'll keep an eye open, let me know once the monitors are back up."
"Roger that. Clark…?"
"…yeah Bruce?"
"…Nothing."
Kal shook his head lightly.
"Don't worry, I'll be careful."
"Thirty eight…thirty nine…"
Wally counted out loud as he plucked the last of the papers from the security cameras. They still seemed to be offline, but he couldn't help wincing each time, certain they'd suddenly turn in his direction.
"I think that's all of them…" He sighed as he slid down against the wall
It made the whole prank earlier seem pointless, especially when he'd had to draw up all the arrows in the first place, but he'd known from the start he couldn't leave them there; calm day or not, this was still the watch tower.
He let out a soft whine as he stomach growled louder than ever.
"I know…I know…" He mumbled sadly.
He grabbed one of the sheets of paper between his teeth and gnawed at it. Heck, it made him feel at least an ounce better.
'Too hungry…stop it stomach, you're me making me start to smell food! Mmmm, cheese…pepperoni…tomato…it can only be…!'
His head shot up to see three figures approaching, the middle one carrying a large, flat box.
"…PIZZA!"
Hawk, Dove and Elongated Man all came to a halt at the outcry. It was a most unusual sight that greeted them; Flash huddled against the wall before them, hugging a bundle of paper as one piece was stuck to his mouth.
"Good…good day Flash. Is everything…alright?" Dove asked kindly.
Flash shook the paper free and dashed over to them.
"Hey guys….this is super major awkward to ask…but I kinda missed breakfast this morning, but I've had to run…uuuhh…do a lot of running around, and now the tele porter's not working…and well, you know…hyper charged metabolism and all, so…do you think, I could...please, possibly…?"
"Have a slice of pizza? Certainly Flash," Dove ignored his brothers protests as he took the box, "Luckily there's one slice left."
Flash wanted to hug the boy in relief, but before he got the chance, Dove jumped as an arm came around from behind him.
Elongated Man reached around both brothers to snatch the last slice straight from the box.
"Sorry," He spoke through a mouthful, "He means there was a slice left."
Flash went from wanting to cheer, to wanting to cry.
"Now that was just rude," Dove scolded.
"Calm down Don, it was just a joke," Hawk rolled his eyes.
"You would hardly see it as a joke Hank."
"Oh spare me! If he wants some food so badly, he can just go to the mess hall."
"There's pizza in the mess hall?" Flash almost whispered.
"Not likely, lunch hasn't started yet," Elongated smirked.
"Yeah, we got this from earth just before the tele porter broke," Hawk joined in.
"Come on guys, you don't have to be mean about it…" Flash hugged his now roaring stomach, "…I tried going to earth only about five minutes ago, but the tele porter was busted."
"Too bad, you'll just have to be faster next time Flash," Hawk taunted.
"Hank!" Dove began as the other two laughed.
He stopped though as he noticed Flash's face; the speedsters eye was twitching, and slowly, both eyes were narrowing to form an expression that made the kinder hero back away.
"Umm…Hank…Hank…?"
"Checks complete; all cameras back up and functional."
"Do you have full visual? Because I don't see any of the papers you told me about," Superman stared at one of the cameras as it turned towards him.
"Flash's communicator passed this way not long ago. He must've decided to take them down."
"Has he not appeared on the cameras anywhere yet?"
"Not yet, but I can see where he just was…you should be able to hear it from there."
"You mean that yelling? It just sounds like some of the younger recruits messing around."
"Not exactly…"
"Alright, I'll check it out."
Superman flew off in the direction of the commotion, barely taking a few seconds before super hearing wasn't required to catch the rather profound language in use.
"Hank, do I have to get the soap again? Your choice of words won't make this go any faster."
"Faster!? You're not even trying!"
"If you calm down I might."
Not really certain he wanted to see, Kal walked around the corner, and knew Batman had been right.
Dove was leaning against the wall, pinching the bridge of his nose, caught somewhere between grinning and frowning.
On the floor before him were Hawk and Elongated Man…both hogtied! Hawk with the red, cape like bits of his uniform, and E-Man with…well, his own limbs wound together!
But the REAL give away to the culprit? An empty pizza box on the floor.
"Please tell me you didn't taunt the Flash with food?" Kal raised his hand to mimic Dove.
Sure he'd teased with the apple earlier, but he knew the limit to push with the Flash; he would've handed it over if Wally had actually tried to take it.
"We didn't do anything!"
"You took the slice I'd already offered to Flash."
"So what? I bought it!"
"You bought half of it."
"Dove, please untie them," Kal sighed, turning away.
"Yeah, hurry up already!" E-man whined.
"….on second thought, go grab a coffee, THEN come back."
"Yes sir."
Kal touched his communicator, covering his other ear to block out the protests.
"Batman, it might be time for us to call an end to this game…he's ticked off."
"Was bound to happen eventually. Besides, it looks like we may have bigger issues to be concerned with…"
"Has something else happened?"
"I don't trust how the tele porter was damaged. A snapped wire or a few tangles could've just been bad maintenance, but this was intentional sabotage, and we already know it wasn't Wally goofing off."
"You're right. I guess our day off is cancelled. I'll find Wally, you get the others."
"Catch him, and this time don't let him get away…"
"Oh really? Bruce get passed it, I…"
"I'm serious! You know what he's like when someone actually manages to piss him off, his stubbornness goes up tenfold. So catch him BEFORE talking to him! Like you said, the game's over."
"Fair enough," Supes turned back, "which way did Flash go?" He looked to the bound heroes.
"No clue. He rambled something about a…aaaa…?" Hawk looked to E-Man.
"A super-secret-flash-stash, and then he took off," Elongated finished.
"Oh no…" Kal held his head in his hand, before flying away, "…Batman, brace for impact…we're about to lose all control of this ship…"
"NO! No no no no noooo!"
Flash tipped the large box up for the fiftieth time, but still the missing snacks failed to appear.
"This can't be happening…I looked in here just yesterday, and there was plenty!"
He clung to it still like in false hope, as he charged around his room, searching in and under EVERYTHING…even behind the toilet in the en suite.
"Doesn't make sense, I didn't touch anything between yesterday and now, so where…?"
A knock interrupted his ranting.
"Flash? I'm coming in."
His eyes widened, before narrowing as he heard Supes enter behind him.
"Wally?" Kal spoke cautiously.
Flash didn't move, except to hold up the box.
" YOU did this, didn't you…?"
Whoa! That level of venom in his voice did not suit him one bit.
'Catch him, THEN talk to him.'
Not really Kals style, but in this case…
In a blur, he attempted to grab the speedster, who easily dodged out of the way. This time though, he didn't make a run for the door.
"DID you do this, Kal!?" Now Wally looked straight at him furiously.
'Didn't see this joke getting so out of control…oh well, gotta bite the bullet I guess…'
"Yes, I did…I just…"
Flash threw the box on the ground in rage.
"You JUST crossed the line! Taunting me with food is one thing, but stealing another's private stash is going too far!"
"I didn't steal them, they're just hidden…"
"Oh yeah? Then why can't I find them? I turned this room upside down!"
"Because I put them in the one place you never remember to check…as you've clearly done now."
"Drop the sarcasm!"
"Then lower your temper, Wallace West, and I'll tell you where they are, but right now we have bigger things to worry about. We think…"
"Don't want to hear it!" Flash turned away.
"WALLY!"
The younger man visibly flinched, but when he looked back, he was scowling.
"Why don't you go ahead and tell me to grow up…?" He spoke darkly.
"Because I know how much you hate anyone saying it…even when YOU know you deserve it."
This time when the speedster looked away, Kal could see his face just enough to know he was agreeing with the man of steel; Wally knew too well he could act really immature, but the other founders were starting to learn that…unlike a child…he was NEVER proud of himself for it.
"Wally…" Kal stepped forward slowly, watching Flash as he inched away, "…I promise, I didn't come to fight…"
There was something more to this; Flash had a surprising temper when he wanted, yes, but right now he was more than just angry.
He was…scared…?
Flash's comm link went off, and he turned his attention away.
"Go ahead J'onn…"
"Flash, apologies if I'm interrupting anything. The tele porter has just been repaired, we're running the last few tests now."
"Thank you J'onn!" Flash said loud and exaggerated.
He was frowning again as he stepped back to the door.
"Flash, don't…!"
"Sorry Supes, but it's not exactly like I'm much use right now anyway," Wally hit the button to open the door.
It hissed open behind him, but the speedster yelped as a mass crashed into his back, and found his arms pinned to his sides.
"How did I know you would try talking first!?" Batman growled at Clark as he held the struggling Flash.
"Let me go!"
"Not until you calm down Flash," Kal spoke firm but still tried to be gentle.
"quite struggling, I don't need super human strength to hold you," Batman tightened his grip.
"You know what one of your more annoying habits is Bats?" Flash was looking furious once more, "Your damn arrogance in believing YOU'RE the only one who knows how to get around their weaknesses…!"
The speedster stopped struggling, but only for a moment. The next thing, he started vibrating at a high speed, and Bruce's expression quickly changed to a pained one.
He grunted loudly, and was forced to let go of his quarry, who wasted no time in escaping the room.
"Bruce!" Kal moved to him.
The dark knights suit was sturdy, but he could see where the vibrating had worn at the arms at chest, leaving a nasty red in its wake, nothing serious but sort of like a major Chinese burn.
"Are you…?"
"Go after him!"
"Bruce…"
"Clark! Something is going on! I couldn't get through to J'onn or anyone before to tell them not to let him use the tele porter…now go!"
"But…J'onn just called him about the tele porter…"
"Clark!"
Superman reprimanded himself, and grabbed hold of Bruce. He held on tight as he flew them through the watch tower.
"I don't know how this is happening, but someone is messing us around. Flash is probably through the tele porter by now."
"Bruce don't worry, we'll catch him."
"The Flash?"
"We WILL catch him!"
They didn't take long to get to the main deck, but there was no sign of the man in red and gold.
"Arrow, where did Flash teleport to!?" Batman headed to the control panel.
"Flash…?"
"Should we assume Central City?" Kal moved to the platform.
"Superman, Flash hasn't been back since earlier," J'onn spoke, " I was expecting him soon, but he hasn't shown up as of yet.
Superman and Batman looked to each other.
He could've been to earth and back by now…" Kal almost mumbled.
Batman moved across the control panel to another section to check something.
"His comm link isn't showing up anywhere in the watch tower, so he's definitely headed back to earth somehow. If he didn't use the tele porter though, then how…?"
The man of steel and the dark knight seemed to hit the same thought at the same time. Batman touched his communicator.
"This is Batman to Javelin bay; I need to know if anyone's left the bay in the last two minutes!"
Well, that's chapter one down, hope it was alright. As always, sorry for any shocking grammar or spelling.
Also, sorry if any of the characters went OOC, or do so in future chapters.
Well, all the draft writing for the next chapter is done, so hopefully that won't take too long to get out.
Thanks for reading!