Crystal Kent
Connor's face was a blank while he drove the truck. Of course, M'Gann never had a problem reading him, she knew what he thought of this, but it was the best thing for them to do for their daughter, Crystal. M'Gann didn't like it either, but their baby was in danger. They were warned by many that if they were to have a child, many more wouldn't tolerate it. They decided they didn't care what others thought and near nine months later, they had their beautiful little girl. A month later, an assassin was sent to kill her in her crib. It was then that M'Gann and the team talked Connor into sending her away, where she could be safe.
M'Gann looked behind her. Crystal slept peacefully in her car seat. She turned to speak to her husband, but one look inside told her he didn't want to hear it. She sighed and watched the road the rest of the way, but her mind was somewhere else.
"Megan, Connor, so nice to see you," Mrs. Kent said sweetly, "Come in, come in." "Thank you Mrs. Kent, but…" M'Gann was interrupted by Connor, "We can't stay. We need to leave soon. Nobody can know we were here." Mrs. Kent's face became grave, "Of course." With tears in her eyes, M'Gann handed her sleeping child to her. "We'll visit when we can," she said as she walked to the vehicle. Connor was already in, turning the keys. M'Gann didn't need mindreading abilities to tell he wanted to leave before he changed his mind or before someone attacked them; which she thought he would have preferred more. As they pulled out of the drive, Connor took one last glance at his child in his grandmother's hands and a single tear rolled down his cheek. He turned away, closed his eyes, then sat up, looked directly down the old country road road, and sped down it as fast as he could.
Crystal Kent, Five Years Old
Crystal hopped up and down on her toes as quietly as she could. Her father's truck had just driven up. Her father hadn't visited in three million years, or maybe just three. She didn't know why she didn't live with him, but she was sure he had a reason. She tip-toed to the attic trapdoor. She wasn't technically supposed to be in the attic, but she just loved it. Plus, she didn't have to use the door to get up there. She sucked in her breath and threw her head down into the door. She look around the hall and, seeing no one, she leaned forward until she was she was standing on the ceiling. She then ran down the wall, through the hall, down the stairs, and jumped into her father's arms. "Daddy!" she shrieked with joy. "Hello Crystal," he said embracing her. " Daddy, guess what?" she said excitedly," The other day, I walked through the wall! And the day before, I walked on the walls! And think of a number; I can guess it! Um, Daddy, which number is M'Gann?" Connor froze for a second and then told her it wasn't a number, it was her mother's name, he was just testing her. "Oh, I remember now!" she said," Daddy, will you tell me a story about you and Momma?" A smile flickered across Connor's face. "Ok, which story do you want to hear?" "The one where you kissed Momma and told her that you loved her," she answered dreamily. "Well," he began," Your mother and I were in deep cover, trying to stop a giant prison break from the inside. During the fighting, Killer Frost froze her. After I knocked out everyone, I spoke to her telepathically and she broke through the ice. That's when I pulled her close, and we kissed. I never said out loud that I loved her, but she knew." "That's a really short story," Crystal said frankly. Connor just smiled, "So, Crystal, tell me a bit more about what you can do." Her eyes lit up. She told him about being able to pick stuff up by thinking it really hard and how she could change colors and shapes and how she could be invisible, "But my favorite is my Momma sense." Connor shot her a questioning look, "What does your Momma sense do, Crystal?" "It lets me talk to Momma," she stated matter-of-factly. "What do you mean by 'It lets you talk to Momma?'" Connor asked, his eyes wide with both shock and confusion. Crystal looked at her daddy like it was a silly question, "Well, sometimes when I'm sleeping or I concentrate really hard, I can see her and she talks to me and laughs at my jokes and tells me stories and sometimes if I'm scared, she'll sing me to sleep." Connor continued to stare at his daughter. Was it possible that with both of their telepathic abilities combined and the fact that they're related make it where Crystal and M'Gann could speak over millions of miles? "Daddy," Crystal said worriedly, "Did I do something wrong?" That snapped Connor back into reality, "No, Crystal, you didn't do anything wrong." "Daddy," Crystal became absolutely serious, "Will you tell me what happened to Momma. I-is she …?" "No," he interjected, "No. The truth is, we don't know where Momma is. Everyone has been looking for her; Me, Aunt Kara, Uncle Dick, Uncle Cal, even Grandpa Jones and Papa Kent. We simply can't find her." "I want to help , Daddy," Crystal said. "Crystal, you can't, you're too young." Crystal thought on this for a moment and said, "Ten years." "What?" Connor said. "Ten years. In ten years, if you haven't found Momma, I get to join the team and help find her." Connor looked into his daughter's wide violet eyes. Her jet black bangs were in desperate need of a trim. He loved her so much, how could he possibly let her do what he had done all his life? Yet, if he didn't agree, she would be so upset and that would just crush him to see her sad. "Ok," he said finally. Crystal smiled and hugged her father tightly. "I love you, Daddy," she said slightly muffled, as her face was pressed against his shirt. "I love you too, Crystal.
Crystal Kent, In Ten Years, Meet the Team, Pt. 1
CRAAACK! Crystal was blown backwards by the huge blast of energy. She propped herself up on her elbows and rubbed her head. At least her violet lightning didn't singe her. Just then, she heard an old truck horn. A rusty tan pickup drove into the clearing and her best friend, Jacob Drake. "Sup, Crackle?" Crystal shook her head and smiled. Jacob had been calling her crackle since she was twelve and she first found out about her lightning power. For a whole week her hands were crackling unless she wore rubber gloves. "Sup, Jake?" That was a nickname she and the team had given him, since he was 'Jake Drake'. "Haha," Jacob said, "Now get in, your dad sent me, it's time to join the team." Even though he was trying to make it seem like it wasn't a big deal, Crystal could tell that he was excited for her. He had joined the team when he was thirteen, and most likely because both of his parents were Robins, he was the newest Robin. His shaggy blonde hair was always slightly in his deep blue eyes. The girls on the team would always tease them, saying they were in love and junk. That couldn't be further from true though. As they climbed into the truck, Crystal turned the radio to the local country station. Jacob raised an eyebrow. Crystal smiled a wicked grin and said, "Get ready for this, because I know every station from Smallville to Rhode Island." "Jeeze," he said. He rolled his eyes and backed out of the clearing while she sang along with Darius Rucker.
"Audrey!" Crystal called as she stepped out of the zeta tube. "Crissy!" Adrienne called back as she sped towards her. They both fell over when Adrienne ran into Crystal trying to stop and hug her at the same time. "Ouch," they both said at the same time. Jacob was standing off to the side, laughing his head off. "Shut up, Jake," Adrienne said, hopping to her feet. Jacob helped Crystal up and she turned to Adrienne. "Is my dad here?" she asked. "No, he went with Red Robin and Aqua Lad on an Alpha mission or something." "Is Mark here?" Jacob asked. "Let me see," Adrienne said. She sprinted down the first hall and a second later, out the second. "I didn't see him," she said. "Let me try," Crystal said. She closed her eyes and focused on what Mark usually looks like, normal, with green hair and green eyes. She couldn't find him; until she remembered 'duh, Crystal, he's a shape-shifter.' But how do you track a shape-shifter? "You focus on the mind of the person, not the look," said a kind voice in her head. She smiled. It must have been her mother. She then focused on her cousin's personality; funny, joker, childish, and bingo! she got a hit. She blinked. That didn't make any sense. "Apparently, he's above us." They all looked up and saw a green mosquito turn into a giant pterodactyl and swoop down towards them. Crystal said, "Quick! Grab on!" She held out her hands and focused on air and nothingness. The pterodactyl flew right threw them and crashed into the floor behind them. Crystal ran over to it laughing. It was pretending to be dead. She poked its bird-like beak and its eyes opened. It changed again, this time to the form of a thirteen year old boy. He frowned at her and said, "That really hurt cuz." Then he smiled and ran to her and gave her a hug. "But I guess I might deserve it for bragging about being on the team longer than you." "You bet, you little jerk. Those random IMs of you saving something or other have me fully stocked with a quite a few pranking ideas." Adrienne put on a mock startled look and said, "Trust me, Crissy, you do NOT want to get into a prank war with Mark." They all laughed. This is so great, Crystal thought, I bet we're jinxing it by enjoying this time. "Crystal," Adrienne said bringing her back to the world, "You should meet Jazzy." "Who's she?" Jacob answered, "Her real name is Jasmine, codename Techie. She's from India and she can speak to machines." Adrienne cut in, "Right now, she's attempting to get the bioship to open up. So far, she's been unsuccessful." "Ok, maybe I can help get her open." "Cool," Adrienne said, "C'mon, she's in the hangar, I'll show you." Adrienne raced off down one of the many hallways. "Umm," Crystal said. Jacob laughed and said, "C'mon, I'll take you." He turned to Mark and said, "Tell the others where we are when we get back, K?" Mark saluted Jacob and jumped onto the couch. He turned on the T.V. and started up a video game. Jacob smiled and shook his head and said, "Let's go."