Zenith Team, Old and New

by WizMonCruWil

I wrote this story in one day. The Zoom movie is kind of floppy kids stuff, at least critically, but I always wondered about the Old Team and what they were like before Connor Shepard turned evil. Enjoy!

1. Prologue

Prologue

The FC-12 flew through the skies above the Mojave Desert, heading back to Area 52. The New Zenith Team (as they were now calling themselves) was recovering from fighting with an enemy whom they now welcomed as a new member.

Connor Shepard, also known as Concussion, had been a member of the Old Zenith Team before he had turned to evil and then been exiled to another dimension. Trapped in an ageless world, he was now a 18-year-old in limbo, not quite in place with the kids who looked his age, yet not quite in place with the younger brother who was now a man.

Upon returning to base, Connor disembarked from the space saucer and headed inside without a word to anyone, as he had maintained the whole trip. The kids of the New Zenith Team – super-strong Cindy Collins, super-inflatable Tucker Williams, invisible-turning and clairsentient Dylan West and telekinetic Summer Jones – all looked at each other worriedly. With an encouraging nod from their leader, Jack Shepard (aka Zoom), the children followed Connor. They finally caught up with him in the cafeteria.

"Mr. Shepard's brother?" Cindy asked sweetly. Connor looked up. "It's OK to feel sad about what you did. We forgive you."

"Yeah, we welcome you back to the team. You're one of us now," Tucker added.

"And, since Ms. Holloway has decided to not be part of the team officially and just continue as a technician," Summer finished. "You would be another mentor to us."

Connor shrugged his shoulders. "What are you all saying, exactly?"

"We're saying… we want to get to know you, man," Dylan patiently explained. "But, in order to do that, we have to know what happened. The sooner we can bury the past, the sooner we can move on as a new team… as a family."

Connor looked unsure, but Cindy pressed him.

"What happened, Mr. Shepard's brother? Please tell us."

Connor looked to her, and for the first time the kids saw him smile.

"First of all, you can call me Connor, and I think my brother would prefer Jack. But I am the only one who can call him Jacky." The kids laughed. "Secondly, if you really want to know what happened during the times of the Old Team, I'll tell you…."