"Siren, I am Batman. Welcome to the Hall of Justice." He glowered. Meeting the Batman for the first time made me feel a good three feet shorter then my five foot frame. I had a suspicion that he did that to everyone. He did not smile at me, not that I expected him to, but I figured he was benign, if not nice, and would be more likely to protect me than to persecute me, so long as I did not cross him. Because of this, I did not truly fear him despite the knowledge that if I angered him, his wrath would be deadly.
I bowed to him. I would have inclined my head, but I felt that did not do him enough homage, and I dared not speak, not that I felt my powers would have any hold over his mind.
"Captain Marvel, retrieve Siren's headset. Wonder Woman, go ahead to Mount Justice and type Siren's code into the Zeta-Beam."
"You got it, Batman!" enthused Captain Marvel as he cheerfully waved to me and practically shot out of the room. Wonder Woman merely gave Batman an affirmative nod before glancing to ensure I was doing alright alone and heading through the Zeta-Beam.
Batman looked me over again. "Your team has not been informed about you. It is your job to fill them in on what you consider necessary details. I strongly suggest you do not hold back information, lest your team suffers from it later."
I averted my gaze and wondered how many things I was willing to tell the team. I knew I would have a better grasp of how they may handle any information I trust them with once I meet them, but I hadn't actually talked to a dude my age in over three years, and I was afraid of how I would affect them. I was especially afraid that they would not accept me because I could control them if I was not careful.
I had no more time to dwell on these fears, because Captain Marvel showed up with what looked like a wireless MMO headset. He fitted it onto my head, and adjusted the microphone in front of my mouth. It was not a microphone in the traditional sense, as I would not be speaking with my mouth so I was not sure why it was there, but apparently it picked up directed thought just fine.
Great, now I'd look like a geek all the time. Far cry from the Grecian dresses of Themyscira which I had become accustomed to, but it was better then mandatory hipster glasses, and now I could talk.
"If those are comfortable, it's time to head over and meet the team. I just can't wait to see their faces!" Captain Marvel was essentially bubbling over with enthusiasm as he headed to the beam, and I vaguely wondered what his deal was.
"Lead the way, Captain." I followed after him into the Zeta-Beam. My new voice sounded human, for which I was grateful, but despite many similarities, something about the tonation made it notably different then my natural one.
I was sure however that it worked just fine in stifling my powers. I had addressed the Captain by name with a full sentenced command, and he was unaffected. I nearly did a happy dance, but there was no time for it, as we had arrived in the Cave.
ARTEMIS POV
I was in the kitchen, getting myself some granola when Robin came tearing through the room, and seeing me, skidded to a stop.
"Artemis, you've got to come to the Zeta-Beam. Wonder Woman is here and she says she's got news!" He headed off again looking excited. The team hasn't been getting any missions lately, and it's made us all a little antsy.
"Know what it is?" I asked him as I caught up to his pace, granola forgotten.
"I've got no idea." He huffed as we skidded to a stop in front of Wonder Woman.
"I will be more then happy to fill you in when the others arrive." Wonder Woman stated kindly.
Soon the others filed in from different areas of the cave, and we waited for Wonder Woman to speak. Kaldur looked calmly attentive, but the rest of us shifted in anticipation.
"The news I have for you is that there will be a new member of your team. She is female, so your numbers will be more rounded out. She should be here momentarily." Everyone broke out talking at this, and I glanced uneasily at Wally. He looked like he was about to burst, talking excitedly to Robin and Kaldur about how he thought she would look. I wasn't surprised at his antics, but they made me feel kind of hollow inside. Disgusted at myself, I turned to M'gann and Connor who were talking about if we really needed another member or not.
"I don't see why you have so much resistance! Would it not be good to know that there was another person there to have your back and repress the evil which we stand against?" M'gann inquired hotly.
"That's just it!" Retorted Connor, "The more people we have the harder it is to keep track of everyone! If the group gets large enough we might forget to give someone vital information, or we won't notice if we are giving them info and they're using it against us!"
Kaldur had noticed the argument by now and had joined in. "If she is trusted by the Justice League, then she is trusted by us. It will be a sad day when seven people is too large a group to function, considering that the league does just fine with sixteen."
"Yeah, but the League is led by Batman, and consists of responsible adults." I chipped in, glaring at Wally for the last jab.
"Hey, where's the fun in responsibility? I could carry my own weight if I wanted to!" Wally shot back at me.
We were so engrossed in our argument that we didn't even notice that the girl had arrived until Captain Marvel cleared his throat. I turned to look at the girl. She had a serious face despite her soft features, her eyebrows raised in mildly surprised displeasure at our yelling. She had choppy bangs covering her entire forehead, the rest of her hair flowing freely to her waist and nearly causing the odd headset she was wearing to go unnoticed. She was short, perhaps Robin's height, but I could easily tell she was fit even with the shapeless gray sweater she was wearing and her baggy cargo pants.
Wonder Woman was the one to break the silence, looking obviously relieved that we had stopped our quarreling. "Siren, I'm glad you made it. How's the headset working?"
"It seems to be functioning efficiently. I'm sure I won't cause any trouble." Her mouth did not move when she spoke, and it made me extremely uneasy. Wally, M'gann, and Robin, however, seemed to decide she was the best thing since sliced bread and all raced over to greet her properly. Of course, Wally was the first to reach her.
"Hey, I'm Kid Flash, but you can call me whatever you like." He winked at her, and she grinned at his flirting. He was then pushed out of the way by Robin who grabbed her hand shaking vigorously.
"It's great to have you here. Siren, right? That's a great name. I'm Robin." He was talking so fast he seemed to trip over his own words, and that's when I decided enough was enough.
"Guys, if you suffocate her she'll never date you." I quipped dryly, glancing pointedly at both of them, and jabbing Wally in the ribs for good measure. Robin backed off sheepishly, but Wally seemed to act like even more of a prick after that.
Through the entire rest of the introductions, the girl, Siren, kept giving me odd looks. I didn't know what her problem was, but I supposed that I would find out eventually if she was to be living with us.
OLIVIA POV
The team seemed very nice so far, but I was a bit uncertain when it came to Kid Flash and Artemis. I figured Kid Flash was single judging by how he tried to flirt with me. I would be totally fine with that, as I'd never gotten attention from a guy before and he was very cute, but I had quickly realized that Artemis seemed a bit too protective of him.
I watched the two of them interact during the rest of the introductions and came to the conclusion that she was crushing on him but wouldn't admit it. I couldn't tell how he felt, but I figured I shouldn't butt into that delicate balance off emotions that was going on between them while I was so new here.
Eventually Wonder Woman and Captain Marvel left, making it so the only League member present was a strange looking robot, called Red Tornado. I was informed that Red Tornado stayed here all the time to take care of us, and another League member called Black Canary would come around soon for training.
"Let's go to the kitchen so we can all get to know each other a little better." The green one, Miss Martian, said after they had laid the daily schedule out for me.
Aqualad was the first to speak when we got there. "I am the leader here. You may call me Kaldur. What is your story, Siren? What can you do, and why have you come here?"
I figured it was easiest to start with the basics and work up from there. "I am human so far as I know. I developed my power at the age of eleven, and could not function in society, so I was sent to live with the Amazons. While I was there I learned their art of combat, and I am now a proficient fighter. I am here because I am a warrior, like Robin and Artemis. I am not here because I am a mutant. My powers do you no good, anyway, since I can not control them."
"And do your powers happen to have anything to do with the fact that you talk through a speaker?" interrupted Artemis.
"I have the power of verbal persuasion. If I spoke to you and was not careful about it, it is possible I would brainwash you by accident. To deflect this, I wear a headset to broadcast my thoughts. It filters out the parts of my voice which try to infiltrate your mind." I was not being entirely truthful, but even the watered down version came out more threateningly then I had hoped it would. No one likes a loose cannon, and I was well aware of that.
Superboy looked at me like I was the scum of the earth, and everyone else seemed to be uncomfortably aware of his revulsion. Miss Martian gave him a soothing look, and he seemed to calm down slightly. I wanted to reassure him that I meant him no harm, but I doubted that would do too much to bolster his confidence in me.
"I have telepathy. If I were to enter your mind would it be dangerous for me?" inquired Miss Martian, "When we are on missions we find it best to stay connected that way. It would be detrimental if you would not be able to join in."
"Truthfully, I do not know. I have never before had my mind breached." I admitted, "There is a serious possibility that my thoughts, when not filtered, hold the same potency as my words, but I do not think that is how my powers work."
"Would you mind if I checked?" she asked.
"Don't do it M'gann, that's dangerous. It's not worth the risk." growled Superboy.
"I would not mind you breaching my thoughts to check, but I'd prefer you didn't dig around too much. I like my privacy." Then, to placate Superboy, I added, "The likelihood that Miss Martian will not be able to handle herself is not as high as you think. Since she is a telepath she probably has a strong enough mind to withstand it, plus my thoughts tend to be a bit scrambled, and are not entirely composed of words. This would probably be less effective then my speech is, anyway."
He scowled at me, and turned his face away in anger. I could feel the presence of Miss Martian enter my mind as I made eye contact with her. It wasn't comfortable, but it didn't hurt. I reached out to her mind and tried to communicate.
How are you doing? I asked.
Your mind does feel odd, but I do not sense any difference in myself. I do not think I am in any danger. she replied.
That's good. Thank you for trusting your mind to mine, Miss Martian. I smiled at her and she returned it, giving the "all's well" thumbs up to the rest of the team. They all breathed a sigh of relief.
I could say the same to you. Also, please call me Megan. It's my Earth name. she replied.
Alright, Megan. In that case, my name is Olivia. You may use it if you like. When I said this, her smile grew larger and she contentedly removed her mind from my thoughts.
"Now's my turn for a question. Does your voice sound the same as it does when it comes from your mouth?" asked Kid Flash.
"For the most part, yeah. Granted, it's hard for me to tell, because everyone hears their own voice differently then the rest of the world would. But I guess to me, this sounds like a recording of my voice." I couldn't put it any more clear then that, but he seemed to understand what I was trying to get at.
After a few more inconsequential questions, Aqualad said he would show me to my room, and dismissed the rest of the team to go back to whatever they were doing before I arrived. I waited for him to stand up and start heading down a hallway, but he just sat there and stared at me for a minute.
Finally, he said, "There was something wrong with your story. Why would living with the Amazons help in shielding others from your power? They are also affected by your voice, are they not? I understand that your powers are not to be used while you live here, but if there is something that you are withholding from us it might cost us our lives. I, at least, have the right to know about it."
I sighed, knowing that he was right. "Will you promise not to tell the others? I saw the way Superboy looked at me." I compromised.
"So long as it is not dangerous to the team for them not to know, I promise I will keep your secret." He vowed.
"There is little danger if I take precautions, but I am in less control of my speech then I first led on. If I were to talk to a female, no matter the strength or weakness of her mind, I could speak a couple words to her without any repercussions if I concentrated hard enough. When it comes to males, however, unless they have very strong minds, if I say anything at all to them, or even speak near them, I begin to influence their thoughts. I can not stop the process, and I have close to no control over what I am making them do.
"This is why I was brought to Themyscira. So if I spoke, no men would be around to hear me. As time passed, I showed proficiency in fighting, so the plan to bring me into the world of Superheroes was hatched. By the time my headset was built, your team had been formed, so I was to join you. That is why I am here now."
"I understand why you are hesitant to inform the others. However, if Superboy finds this out on his own, he will believe you were keeping information from him for a more malevolent reason and may never trust you. He has had some bad experiences with mind control. I suggest you tell him. If it comes from your mouth he may get over it eventually." Ending the conversation with that pleasant advice, Kaldur stood up, led me to my room, and left me to unpack alone.