To Be a Hero
I'd like to give a shout out to: Anime hotty lover.18, Molly Grace 16, Inu-Hanyou2016, Guest, Applejax XD, I am catlord,ultima-owner, chibi-Clar, Kitsune's Den, Lost in Reality's Mirror, OriginalElementa, and Mistress Freya. Thank you all so much for the reviews and support.
Disclaimer: Rumiko Takahashi owns Inuyasha. Brandon Vietti, Greg Weisman and Cartoon Network own Young Justice. I own Karin/Moriko...That is all.
Chapter 10: Who Are You?
Bialya September 4, 08:34 EEST
Karin winced at the bright sunlight shinning in her eyes. She groaned as she sat up from the ground and grabbed her head in pain.
'What happened?' she thought to herself, since her head felt like it was split in two with an ice pick, then got stitched back together.
Karin shifted her body slightly and quickly noticed that the ground that she was laying on was very peculiar. She looked down and lifted the bits of sand in her hand and felt the texture between her fingers.
The sand was extremely hot.
Taking a look at her surroundings, it became obvious that Karin wasn't in Japan anymore.
"A desert," she identified in annoyance, "How in the hell did I end up in a desert?" She lifted herself up on her feet and dusted the sand off her clothes, that's when she noticed what she was wearing. "Okay, I'm dressed as Moriko so," she tried to think of a logical reason of why she was in the desert in her hero persona. "Did something happen when I was with my Kaa-san?"
Not knowing what else to do, Karin closed her eyes and cleared her mind. "Outo-san," she called out, trying to reach her step-father. "Outo-san, can you hear me? I need your help. I don't know where I am…Outo-san!"
After a few minutes of endless calling and pleading, it became clear that wherever Karin was…she was alone.
Karin looked around the hills of sand and couldn't see or smell any traces of her mother or Kirara. "Now what?" she mumbled to herself as she continued sniffed the areas.
Suddenly she paused, picking up a scent that was close by. It was definitely a person and not a random desert animal. Karin didn't know who this scent belonged to and yet the scent seemed very familiar to her.
"Who is this?" Karin wondered out loud, as she began to follow the scent trail left behind by the only person she'll probably ever find out here.
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Bialyan Desert (Elsewhere)
Kirara meowed as she wandered the desert she had no memory of journeying to.
How did she get here?
Why was she here?
Where was her charge, Karin?
Transforming into her yōkai form, the neko flew into the sky and began her search for her charge. She only hoped that nothing horrible happened to Karin in her absence.
Not long after Kirara started her search, using her eyes and nose, she spotted an unconscious body in the sand. It wasn't Karin's body but her scent has definitely been in contact with that person in the sand less than half a day ago.
Kirara flew back to the ground and silently walked up the unconscious young man and sniffed his unique scent.
The young man smelled like sea water and fish. He wasn't a yōkai from what the neko's instincts could sense, but she was still wary since the young man had visible gills on his neck.
Kirara nudged the young man with her nose, which made him groan in response. He began to mumble a language that the neko had never heard before in her long years of life, before he fell back unconscious.
The neko concluded that the young man wasn't a threat and by the way Karin's scent lingered on his body, he was a friend.
Suddenly hearing a noise, Kirara ducked behind the boulder that shielded her presence from what was approaching.
Four Bialyan jeeps passed by filled with soldiers, with lots of guns and rifles.
Kirara glared harshly at the soldiers, who had the scent of ill intent lingering over them. She knew that young man would be in danger if he was left alone like this. Especially by the way his body seemed to be visibly sweating from the harsh sunlight.
The neko laid down next to him, using her body to as a shade of sorts to block the young man from the unforgiving sun.
Kirara looked around the seemingly endless desert and hoped that Karin was safe where ever she was.
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Bialyan Desert (Elsewhere...again)
Moriko wiped her forehead that was coated in sweat with her sleeve. The extreme heat of the sun was really getting to her. The scent she had been tracking had grown stronger, which made her slow down and realize how exhausted she was.
"Where are you?" she questioned out loud.
Suddenly, the scent Moriko had been following was approaching quickly to her position. She paused to look around and didn't see a soul in sight.
'Then where are they?' Moriko thought in frustration, before she realized which direction she had failed to look at.
Up.
Moriko looked at the sky and saw someone falling.
'No not falling. Landing,' she grasped that someone was about to land right where she was standing.
Moriko quickly evaded from her spot as a person landed on the ground with a massive force that she had only seen someone with super-strength use.
As the dust cleared, Moriko saw a shirtless teenage boy emerged from the crater that he created. He was glaring at her with a predator like stare. The more she looked at him, the more Moriko couldn't help but notice how similar the boy's face resembled someone that she knew. 'Superman...He looks like Superman,' she took one sniff in the air, 'And he smells similar to him too.'
"Umm, hi," she spoke to the teenage boy cautiously as possible, since his intense glaring had her timid. "I'm Moriko. Who are you?...Are you Superman's son?"
Superboy growled before he super-jumped towards her, obviously ready to strike at her again.
Moriko dodged the attack easily, quickly learning that Superboy was strong but not all that bright. "What's your problem?" she yelled at him.
Superboy didn't answer her question. He only growled and roared out a yell before charging towards her, again.
Moriko sidestepped the first punch that Superboy initiated, and blocked the next with great regret. This guy was definitely stronger than her and he wasn't afraid to hold back.
Since Superboy was much closer now, Moriko was able to get a good look into his eyes. Normally she wouldn't bother with something like that, but since this guy clearly wasn't in the mood for chatting, she had to learn about him somehow.
In his eyes, Moriko noticed that there was no harsh emotion inside of them. There was no hatred. There was no anger. The only emotions that she could sense was confusion and self-preservation.
'He's…protecting himself,' Moriko realized as she continued to dodge the Superboy's attacks. She didn't know this person's name, but apparently he was just as lost and confused as she was now. And for whatever reason, he's following basic instincts of conservancy.
"Alright," Moriko grunted out as she back flipped to avoid another punch from Superboy. "Let's get you to trust me in a way you'll understand." Getting a running start, Moriko used her yōkai agility to jump over Superboy's head, and land behind him. Turning as fast as she could, Moriko wrapped her arms and legs around his body, to keep him in a vice grip.
Superboy struggled to get Moriko off.
"Submit," she softly growled into his ear to calm him down and make him stop. Superboy's struggling continued but Moriko held on to him with all the strength she had. "Submit," she ordered again more harshly.
Superboy struggle's began to lessen and he slowly started calm down a bit. Moriko relaxed her hold a little, glad that she was getting somewhere with him.
With some of her guard down, Superboy grabbed Moriko's arm to flip her off his back and forced her flat on the ground, knocking the air out of her. He quickly lowered to the ground to hold both of Moriko's hands in one of his and placed them above her head, while he used his upper body to keep her still.
On instinct, Moriko turned her face away from Superboy and closed her eyes tightly for whatever was about to happen.
Superboy slowly used his free hand to pull the scarf that was covering Moriko's face down. The glare in his eyes lessened as he eyed her face. He gradually leaned forward and lowered his mouth to Moriko's ear, "Submit?" he whispered, repeating the word back to her.
Opening her eyes, Moriko turned back to look at Superboy. 'Did he just talk?…And asked me to,' she couldn't even finish the thought as her face began to flush. Whenever an animal female asks another to submit, it's to protect herself from harm. But for a male, especially an alpha male, of any animal species asking a female to submit is asking them to surrender 'everything' she has to give.
Realizing that Superboy was waiting for an answer, Moriko forced her body to relax and slowly nodded her head, "O-okay." The corner of Superboy's mouth curved into a small smirk. She had pleased him, 'Good…Now I just got to get him off of me,' Moriko thought embarrassed.
Suddenly, a noise caught both teenager's sensitive ears. Something, or someone by the looks of it, was coming towards them.
Fast.
Superboy growled in irritation as his mood changed back to predator mode. Only this time, Moriko smelled that he was also feeling, territorial. "Oh great," she mumbled before Superboy jumped off her and ran off the ledge that they were on, landing right in front of the intruder.
"Whoa," said the speedster as he put down a girl he was carrying next to him.
Moriko looked over the cliff and recognized the speedster, "Kid Flash," she said relieved as she pulled her mask back up. At least she thought it was the speedster, since this guy was wearing black instead of his usually yellow and red. But Moriko had seen Kid Flash on the news with Flash all the time and knew he'd help her get out of this stupid desert.
Jumping off the cliff, Moriko landed right in front of the girl.
The archer grabbed an arrow and pointed it towards Moriko "Who are you?" Artemis demanded.
Moriko held up her hands in surrender, "It's alright. I'm not here to hurt anyone."
"Tell him that," yelled Kid Flash dodging Superboy's punches with his super-speed. Eventually, the speedster got back handed by the Boy of Steel and hit the side of the cliff.
Superboy turned toward Artemis, whose arrow was now aimed at him, and charged toward her. The archer fired one of her explosive arrows at him, hitting him in the chest. The explosion didn't leave a mark or slow him down.
Moriko ran in front of Artemis and faced the Boy of Steel head on, "No," she said just as Superboy's fist paused before it hit her face. "Safe," Moriko said calmingly to him, using easy words and gently grabbed his arm with both her hands, "No threat...Safe."
Slowly, Superboy lowered his fist as he looked into Moriko's eyes. Just as slowly as before, he lowered her mask down and this time pulled her hood off too.
Moriko's breath caught from the intense gaze Superboy was giving her. His glaring was replaced with an emotion she couldn't place. But whatever it was, it was making her heart beat faster.
Suddenly, out of nowhere, a bomb landed right next to the young heroes. Blowing them back a few feet away from one another.
Superboy was the first to recover from the blast and he looked towards Moriko, who was now on the ground groaning in pain. Infuriated, the Boy of Steel looked towards the source of the attack.
Tanks filled with the soldiers of Bialya, were approaching the young heroes.
'Protect,' was all that was going through Superboy's mind, as he super-jumped toward the tanks and began to attack them. Using his super strength, he pulled the gun of the tank right off, forcing the soldier to come out of his protective vehicle. The other soldiers began shooting at the Boy of Steel, only to have the bullets bounce off his body. Superboy grabbed the soldier from the tank by the vest and threw him in the opposite direction of the young heroes.
Moriko groaned as she lifted herself off the ground.
Artemis stood up the same time as Moriko. "Umm, whose side is your boyfriend on?" Artemis asked dusting herself off, as she watched Superboy tear then tank in half.
Before Moriko could correct her, Kid Flash appeared next to the archer. "Let's not stick around and find out," he said a little terrified. That's when he noticed the other girl and recognized her from the news, "Hey, you're Moriko, right? Miko's sidekick."
"Protégé," Moriko corrected.
"Whatever, we got to get out of here," he said quickly while grabbing both girls under each arm and used his super-speed to get them both out of there.
After putting a few miles in between the young heroes and the tanks, Kid Flash tripped on a rock hidden in the sand and dropped both girls. The trio rolled on the ground for a few moments before coming to a stop.
"Why did you do that?" Moriko complained as she got up from the sand.
Kid Flash rubbed the back of his head because of the soreness of his fall, "Hey, I didn't see the rock, ok."
"No," growled Moriko as she put her mask and hood back on, "I mean leaving 'him' back there like that."
Artemis gave her a look as if Moriko had grown a second head, "He was gonna kill us."
"No he wasn't," Moriko defended, "He was confused and scarred. He wouldn't have hurt us."
"Not you at least," Kid Flash pointed out, referring to how the guy seemed to listen to her.
Moriko blushed slightly.
Suddenly, two killer drones came into view in the sky and began to shoot at the young heroes.
"Get down!" Kid Flash yelled, as he knocked Artemis to the ground covering her with his body. Moriko ducked down close to them.
Once the firing stopped, the teens looked up and saw the drones circling back towards them.
Artemis aimed her arrow with her bow at one of the drones.
"I'm on my way," a voice said in the young hero's head, making Artemis miss her shot as soon as she fired.
"Did you just hear a girl talking in your head?" Artemis asked them.
Moriko nodded and pondered on why the sensation of the girl speaking in her head felt familiar.
"Girls are always on my mind," Kid Flash commented, "But they're not usually talking."
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Miss Martian flew to her teammates as fast as she could.
After awakening in the desert and meditating for a while, the Martian remembered that the group she was with was a team.
A team of young heroes.
She searched the desert for any signs of life and as soon as she sensed Superboy in danger with the tanks, she headed towards them.
Seeing the drones in sight, Miss Martian used her telekinesis to smash the drones together, destroying them. The Martian landed in front of Kid Flash, Artemis, and Moriko, who looked at her questioningly.
"Well J`onn," Kid Flash said uncertainly, "The costume is…familiar. But that bod doesn't scream, 'Manhunter'."
"You know my Uncle J`onn?" Miss Martian asked excited before more memories flowed back to her. "Hello Megan, of course you do. You're Kid Flash. Wally. And you're Artemis," she gestured to the archer.
Moriko's eyes widened, "My step-father is your uncle?" she asked using the English terms.
Miss Martian's memories of her cousin came back and she quickly hugged Moriko, "Karin! That's right, we're cousins by marriage." Moriko slowly hugged the girl back once the familiar smell hit her nose.
"Your name is Wally?" Artemis asked the speedster, once Miss Martian let Moriko go.
Kid Flash groaned that Artemis found out his real name.
"It's okay," Miss Martian said reassuringly, "We're all teammates…And friends."
"You know her?" Artemis asked Kid Flash.
The speedster shook his head, "No, I swear, Beautiful. I've never seen her before in my life."
"Wow," Moriko said surprised and disappointed by Kid Flash's quickness to impress a girl. 'Hope he didn't do that with me.'
Miss Martian sighed, "None of you have your memories either." Gun shots in the distance made the young heroes look back. "I'll explain everything. Right now, Robin and Superboy need our help."
The name struck a chord in Karin's mind. 'Superboy,' she repeated with a hint of familiarity.
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A Few Miles Away (In the desert of course)
Kirara silently growled at the soldiers that arrived not too long ago. Luckily they didn't see her or Aqualad in their hiding spot behind some large boulders. The neko knew that whoever the soldiers were definitely a threat.
Especially the way they were treating a strong teenaged boy they brought with them.
The soldiers had Superboy restrained but he was still causing them trouble with his super-strength.
"Control his mind," one of the soldiers ordered and begged Psimon, the villain who could control people's minds.
Psimon used his powers to will Superboy to calm down.
Superboy stopped his yelling and struggling, before he collapsed to the ground unconscious.
The soldiers grabbed the Boy of Steel, threw him into one of their army vehicles and left their location.
Kirara whined silently as she watched them go with their prisoner. Normally she would have gone after the soldiers after seeing such an act, but that would leave Aqualad unprotected. The neko looked down at the Atlantean, who had still not awoken since she arrived, and nudged him again with her nose.
Aqualad still did not awaken.
The neko sighed as she laid back down on the ground, eager for the Atlantean to wake up so they can both go and find Karin.
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One Hour Later
The sun had set a few minutes ago and the desert began to get colder.
The Team had been walking continually, as they listened to what Miss Martian remembered.
"So we're a team?" asked Artemis trying to understand.
"Yes," answered Miss Martian. The archer gave a small smile, hoping that she really was a part of something that was good.
Suddenly, the sounds of gun fire was shot in the distance.
"What now?" Moriko said in dread.
Kid Flash put his goggles down and used his super-speed to see what the commotion was about. Once he got there, he saw a bunch of soldiers attacking his best friend, Robin. With his speed he grabbed all of the soldier's guns before they even realized they were taken. "I'll hold those, thank you."
When the girls arrived, they helped take down the rest of the Bialyan soldiers.
The fight ended moments late.
Robin looked at the group who saved him, grateful for at least one familiar face, "KF!"
"Hey Rob," said the speedster in greeting, "Memory loss?"
Robin nodded, "Six months."
"We lost that much time?" Moriko said surprised.
"Let's compare notes," said the Boy Wonder, "After we tie them up," he gestured to the soldiers.
It took over twenty minutes to confine the soldiers and bring Robin up to speed. "So, we're a team?"
Miss Martian nodded, "The five of us and Superboy."
Robin pulled out a piece of a ripped shirt that had a red Superman symbol on it, "I'm guessing this is his."
"Yes," Miss Martian said thrilled, "Did you see him?"
"We did," said Artemis, gesturing to Kid Flash and Moriko.
Kid Flash laughed unamused, "Some teammate he was. He attacked us."
"That may be but it wasn't his fault," said Moriko strongly, "His whole body language and scent screamed of self-preservation whenever he attacked. Whatever happened to him, it was worse than memory loss."
Robin nodded understanding the situation, "One of the things I do remember is Batman ordering radio silence. Our team must work for him."
Kid Flash looked skeptical, "How do you know we don't work for my mentor?" asked Kid Flash pointing to himself. As he did, his suit changed to its known yellow and red colors. "Whoa," he said surprised, tapping himself again turning his suit black again.
"That explains a lot," said Moriko.
Artemis and Robin began tapping their suits to see if their changed, but to no avail, "We look ridiculous," complained Artemis. "And quit touching yourself," she ordered the speedster, who kept changing the color of his suit. "We need to find a way to get our memories back."
Moriko looked over to her cousin, who had a conflicted look on her face. "You can do it, can't you?" she asked Miss Martin, getting everyone's attention. The Martian nodded but still looked unwilling. "M`gann-chan, you're the only one who can help us right now…It's the only way to help Superboy."
With that being the only motivation she needed, M`gann opened everyone's mind to hers.
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M`gann's Mind
Moriko, Robin, Artemis, and Kid Flash were shocked by the sensation when Miss Martian pulled them into her mind. Suddenly they were facing countless images of the Martian's memory since she arrived on the team.
"This is all I can remember so far," Miss Martian said appearing in front of them, "But I need your help. With all of our broken memories formed together, they can become whole again. But you need to open your minds to mine."
Artemis was scarred of the thought, "You wanna paw threw our private thoughts?"
Miss Martian shook her head, "I have no wish to intrude, but…"
"It's the only way for us to know what happened," Moriko explained, "She'll only take what we need. Right?" she asked her cousin who nodded.
"Go right ahead," Robin said understanding.
Kid Flash shrugged then smirked, "My brains all yours. Try not to let its brilliance overwhelm you."
"Hey, why isn't anyone ever just whelmed?" asked Robin.
Moriko rolled her eyes, "Is that even a word?"
Artemis still wasn't convinced that this was a good idea. Kid Flash saw her distress and held her hand in comfort. Somehow, that gave her the courage to agree, "Just the last six months."
Miss Martian nodded and began to go through everyone's memory.
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"The Watchtower detected an immense power surge in the Bialyan desert," said Batman in The Cave, "Spectral analysis revealed elements non-terrestrial in origin. Find out what happened at that site, and what landed there. Bialya is a rogue state ruled by the villainess Queen Bee. All communications are subject to interception. Maintain radio silence at all times. Your team land in Qurac, on Bialya's border, two klicks from the hot zone."
The memory shifted to The Team arriving at the desert thanks to the Bio-Ship, to Artemis and Robin scouting the site of the hot zone that was now under Bialyans control.
"We will set up here," said Aqualad as he ordered Superboy to lower a giant extraterrestrial scanner from his back.
"We'll be up and ready in no time," said Robin working on the scanner.
Kid Flash looked at the results, "This site's lousy with Zeta-Beam radiation."
Robin continued to scan, "There's non-terrestrial trace elements from that tent at the site."
"Whatever it is, they don't want anyone else to get their hands on it," stated Moriko.
"I can check it out in camouflage mode," suggested Miss Martian to Aqualad.
Aqualad nodded, "Go," he ordered.
"Be careful," Moriko warned her cousin, with Kirara meowing on her shoulder with the same urgency.
"Be sure to maintain telepathic contact," ordered Aqualad.
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Reality
Everyone's eyes widened in horror as they all remembered a missing member of their group.
"Aqualad!" they all yelled at once.
"Where is he?" asked Moriko worried.
"What happened next?" Robin questioned, just as concerned.
Miss Martian shook her head, "I don't know. That' the last thing we all can remember."
Artemis and Kid Flash both realized how close they were and that they were holding hands, which they let go of immediately. "We landed twenty four hours ago," Kid Flash reminded them, "That's not good for a guy with gills."
"Kirara is missing too," said Moriko, "If she hasn't found me yet maybe she's with him."
"Can you track them?" Robin asked.
Moriko nodded before searching for their scents. It took a minute to find them, "It's faint but they're not too far."
"Then let's go," said Robin.
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Ten Minutes Later
Kirara heard the sound of people approaching and stood up. The neko relaxed when she recognized one of the scents as Karin's.
"Kirara," Moriko said relived as she saw her feline companion and Aqualad uninjured. "I knew we'd find you both together," she told the neko as she petted her head and ears lovingly.
Kid Flash checked on the unconscious Aqualad, "He's still breathing. That's good."
Aqualad mumbled something in Atlantean.
"Can you restore his memories?" Artemis asked the Martian.
"Not in this condition," she replied in regret.
Robin thought of a solution, "We need to rehydrate him. Call the Bio-Ship."
Miss Martian shook her head, "It's out of range."
"Kirara can get him there easily," Moriko reminded them, "But you'll have to guide her to the Bio-Ship telepathically," she told her cousin.
"I can't," argued Miss Martian, "I have to help Superboy. Six months ago he didn't exist, that's why he's acting on animal like impulses. I'm the only one who can get him out of that."
Moriko nodded knowing that she was right.
Before another word was spoken, Miss Martian grabbed her head in pain, "Superboy, he's in trouble," she said worried, before flying off to the Bialyan tents that they've taken the Boy of Steel and extraterrestrial.
"Wait," called Artemis.
"We don't know what erased our memories!" yelled Robin.
Moriko managed to maneuver Aqualad on Kirara's back, "We have other things to worry about. We got to get Aqualad to the Bio-Ship, now."
Everyone reluctantly nodded in agreement.
Since Kirara couldn't carry all of them, The Team would have to walk all the way to the Bio-Ship, while the neko carried Aqualad. Fortunately, Robin can track the ship with his wrist computer.
After a few minutes of silent walking, Moriko heard something, "Wait," she warned The Team. "Jeeps are coming from the south east direction. And some men are coming on foot."
The Team and Kirara all ran to hide by nearby some nearby boulders.
Aqualad began to speak again in Atlantean.
"Shh," Artemis soothed him, "You need to be quiet, Kaldur."
Robin turned to Moriko, "How many soldiers?"
She concentrated to find out, listening and smelling the soldiers, "Five...But we can't risk a fight with Aqualad like this."
"Not just him," said Kid Flash exhausted, "I'm way out of juice."
Artemis checked her quiver, "And I'm almost out of arrows."
Moriko turned back to Robin and found him gone, "What the hell?"
"Ugh," Kid Flash said irritated, "I hate it when he does the ninja thing…Hey Artemis, you never said why your dad would want you to kill me?"
Moriko raised a brow, "Oookay, what did I miss?"
"It's nothing," Artemis answered quickly to both of them. "I was confused by…a movie I saw the other night. Where uhh, a ninja girl whose ninja dad ordered her to kill her ninja boyfriend because he was from a rival ninja clan," she explained.
Moriko wasn't convinced by the archer's obvious lie, "What's the title of this movie?"
Artemis couldn't think of a title quick enough, "I umm can't remember."
Kid Flash looked more flattered, "So, I'm your ninja boyfriend, huh?"
Artemis glared, "We had amnesia remember? I forgot how truly annoying you were."
"Oh like you're the goddess of congeniality," argued Kid Flash.
"You both were so much more pleasant when you liked each other a few hours ago," Moriko reminded them smirking. "Actually, you looked like you more than liked each other."
"They seriously need to get a room," said Robin, startling his teammates.
Kid Flash glared at his friend, "Where did you go?"
"Just broke the radio silence," Robin said with a plotting look on his face. A few seconds later, a smoke screen bomb went off, causing the soldiers to cough hysterically. "Go," he ordered his Team.
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Qurac September 5, 02:32 EEST
"How is he?" Artemis asked Karin, who was looking at Kaldur's vital signs.
"He seems to be okay," she said gratefully, "Luckily, Kirara was there to watch over him."
A small Kirara meowed on Karin's shoulder, before rubbing her body against her charges cheek.
"Hey everybody," said M`gann telepathically, "I got Superboy. He's back to normal and we're on our way."
Without warning, Kaldur suddenly shot out of the bed, fully awake. "Who are you? And how did you get inside my head?"
Karin's eyes widened in realization, "M`gann-chan I think you missed someone when you brought our memories back." Kirara meowed interrupting, "I mean, two people."
"Ah man," Kid Flash said suddenly disappointed, "I didn't get a souvenir from the mission."
"We got that covered," said M`gann excited.
A few minutes later the Bio-Ship opened, M`gann and Superboy entered the ship with a giant moving object in tow.
"What is that?" Robin questioned.
"'That' is the extraterrestrial that we were sent here to find," M`gann explained before helping Kaldur and Kirara with their memories.
Karin walked up to the round like creature that was making beeping noises like crazy.
"Can I keep him?" Superboy asked the others. He had asked M`gann who said yes, but it was really a Team decision.
"Best souvenir so far," said Wally impressed.
"I'm pretty sure Batman is going to want to run tests on it," answered Robin, "So if he says yes, I guess so."
Karin put her hand on the sphere and gently stroked it, as if she were petting it. "What are you going to call him?"
Superboy thought about it for a moment, "…Sphere. His name is Sphere."
"Really?" questioned Artemis, "That's the name you're going to go with?"
"I like the name Sphere," countered Karin, "I think it suits him."
Sphere beeped happily.
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A Few Hours Later: The Cave
Superboy was in his room, just staring at the ceiling as he laid in bed. Contemplating what had happened to him on the mission.
He remembered everything that had happened while he was, 'out of his mind.'
From the moment he woke up in the desert, he only had one thing on his mind: stay alive.
Superboy rubbed the bridge of his nose and sighed as he recollected the raw emotions that came with that instinct.
He then recalled the moment that he ran into Karin and how his instincts had changed rapidly when she was defending herself from him.
Superboy's whole body shuddered in a foreign sensation when he remembered how…excited he was when Karin 'submitted' to him and how he was driven to protect what was his.
'Wait, 'mine',' Superboy shook his head out of the thought.
Karin was his team mate.
His friend.
'I don't think of her that way,' he thought to himself. Even though he was aware that his subconscious had a different opinion on the matter, 'Or...do I?'
Then there was M`gann and their almost kiss after they defeated Psimon. In honesty, he didn't know if he tried to kiss the Martian because he liked her, or if it was just from the adrenaline of the whole ordeal.
Either way, he was confused.
'What am I doing?' Superboy asked himself.
Well well well, what will Superboy do now? We'll have to wait and see. So what do you guys think? You love it? You hate it? You just want to strangle it? I wanna know. Next Time: The first day of school and some teen drama…or a lot.
Till Then My Readers