BEN 10 DOES NOT BELONG TO ME. YOUNG JUSTICE DOES NOT BELONG TO ME. MY OC'S BELONG TO ME. STEAL THEM AT YOUR PERIL.
Oh, I've been looking forward to this chapter. There're always a few chapters that you just really want to get to, right? This is, arguably, my favorite chapter to write for Part 1. Enjoy!
Unlimited Justice, Part 1
Chapter 24
Agendas
The Box, Unknown Location, November 25, 06:54 EST
There were few supervillains that were so dangerous and so powerful that an entire prison needed to be constructed just for them. The Box was a cell for just such a threat; buried almost a mile underground, guarded at all times by a hundred of the best soldiers in the world and so secret that it wasn't on any records, its sole permanent resident should never have been found, let alone rescued.
Despite all that, the Box was still breached by Lex Luthor and ten of the best agents of the League of Shadows. Their attack had come from nowhere, thanks to a portal created by Klarion, and within ten minutes, all of the guards were dead.
"The Box is secure," Luthor said, knowing that Klarion could hear him with his damnable magic, "Send in our 'friend'."
Another portal opened at Luthor's right. Out of that portal stepped an aging man with a gray beard. Professor Emil Hamilton had not been worthy of the pseudo-immortality that the Light and most of its agents now enjoyed, and time and stress had taken its toll on the scientist.
"Is she here?" Hamilton asked, a hint of hysteria in his voice, "Can I finally see her again?"
Luthor nodded; after getting reacquainted with the man, Luthor knew that the wrong word could send Hamilton into another breakdown, and right now, they couldn't afford that.
"The Shadows are securing the outside of the cell as we speak."
"Then take me to her!" Hamilton demanded.
Luthor resisted the urge to roll his eyes as he led the way, though he did take his frustrations out on the first door they came across, his power armor allowing him to rip it off its hinges.
When they arrived at the Box's only prisoner, the assassins had begun using a plasma cutter to slice open the door. However, the door was almost four feet of solid steel; it would take hours to cut through, and they only had minutes before an alert reached the government, as well as the Justice League.
"Allow me," Luthor said, taking a hand-sized disk from a compartment on his armor and planting it on the door. A moment later, the door began to vibrate, then completely disintegrated.
Hamilton raised an eyebrow, a hint of the scientist he used to be resurfacing. "Hyper-sonics?"
Luthor nodded. "A design Cadmus had, based on Black Canary's Canary Cry. I've had some time to improve on the idea."
Hamilton nodded, then stepped through the doorway, Luthor right behind him. In the center of the room was a table, upon which lay the prisoner. She was beautiful, even after almost twenty years of inactivity and red-sun lamps sapping her power; her hair was paper-white, and her skin wasn't too far behind, but the face was all too familiar to both men.
"Will your device wake her up?" Luthor asked, tearing his gaze away from the comatose woman, "She's been practically brain-dead for all this time."
"It will work!" Hamilton snarled, then attached a silver, circuitry-lined band to the woman's forehead and spoke softly to himself. "It has to."
He activated the device, then waited for a few agonizingly long seconds. Then, to Luthor's surprise, the woman's eyes fluttered open.
"Ugh," she groaned, her voice raspy from disuse, then looked up at Hamilton. "Daddy?"
Hamilton smiled and wrapped Supergirl's clone in a gentle embrace. "Hello, Galatea. It's so good to see you again."
…
Mount Justice, 09:04 EST
As Barry entered the Cave, he was almost overwhelmed by the delicious smells filling the base. By the time he reached the kitchen, he was almost drooling; his attention was so focused on the food that he ran into Conner.
"Whoops," he said, snapping out of it, "Sorry about that, dude."
Conner rolled his eyes. "No problem; you can make it up to me by getting the table cleaned and set."
Barry grinned. "Gimme six seconds."
Conner obligingly began counting to six; by the time he was finished, Barry had cleaned and set the table that the Team had brought in. The speedster wiped his hands with a smug smile.
"Thanks," Conner said, "that's one less thing I have to do."
"Conner!" M'gann mock-scolded, as she put a stuffed turkey into the oven with her telekinesis, "Don't use Barry's powers to make things easier!"
"Says the girl using her powers to move a turkey," Artemis said from her position across the room, idly flipping through a book, while most of the Team lounged nearby.
M'gann only stuck her tongue out at the other girl, just as Ken, Jason and Koriand'r walked in.
"Tell me, Jason," Koriand'r said, "What is this 'giving of thanks' meant to celebrate?"
"It's called Thanksgiving, Kory," Jason corrected, "And it's a time to be thankful for all the good things we have: friends, family, whatever."
"And we celebrate this by… eating large quantities of food?" Koriand'r asked.
Ken bit his lip to keep from laughing when he saw Barry staring intently at the oven. "Well, Barry does."
Earlier that morning, M'gann had called Ken and asked if the Team would like to have a mini-Thanksgiving at the Cave, before heading to their families for the real Thanksgiving. Ken had agreed, and soon, the rest of the Team began setting up, bringing over food and anything else they needed; they'd also been joined by both Mary and Billy Batson, who had been welcomed.
"We should be set in a couple of hours," M'gann said happily, "I hope you'll be hungry then!"
"I don't think that'll be a problem for Barry," Artemis said, getting up and bopping the speedster on the head with her book.
The rest of the Team laughed; after the last few days, it was nice to have some time to relax and enjoy themselves. Half the Team was still on edge, in case Intergang made another move, and they really needed to wind down.
"You know, this is going to me the first Thanksgiving for me, Conner and Kory," M'gann said, finally finished with everything else and sitting next to her boyfriend.
"Mine, too," Raven admitted, getting everyone's attention. "What? I've been living on the streets for most of my life; I never really had much to be thankful for."
Artemis shrugged. "I had a Thanksgiving when I was really little, but I don't remember it. I guess I haven't had a real one since."
"Well, that makes this one extra-special," Ken said, smiling at them, "Nothing like having good friends and good food together."
Barry rolled his eyes. "Wow, Ken, that was the cheesiest thing you've ever said."
"Bite me, Flash-Boy." Normally, that name ticked Barry off, but Ken's joking smile robbed the comment of any malice.
While those two got into a playful argument, Artemis felt a presence behind her and almost jumped when she saw Valerie standing there.
"Gah! Were you trained by Batman in giving people heart-attacks!?"
Valerie smirked. "No, I got that from my dad. He's the second-best at the whole 'showing up out of nowhere' thing."
"Whatever. Did you want something?"
Valerie shrugged. "Just wanted to ask what you were thankful for this year."
Artemis hesitated for a moment. "I guess… having friends. Oh, and not dying in any of the fights we've had so far."
That got a nod from Valerie. "Yeah, I can appreciate both of those, especially that last one."
"Anything in particular that you're thankful for?" Artemis asked.
"Well, aside from Ken and Vic, I didn't have any real friends until I joined the Team, so I'm thankful for that." Valerie smiled. "I'm also thankful that Ken forgave me for not telling him I was Seeker."
"And that you two are dating?" Artemis guessed.
Valerie's smile was now accompanied by half-lidded eyes. "Oh, definitely that."
"Please stop," Artemis held up a hand, "I don't want to know more."
"Another thing I'm grateful for," Valerie continued, "Is that we're finally getting a break. I'd like to spend at least one day this week without a major crisis."
As soon as she said that, the Cave's alarms began to blare; Artemis glanced at Valerie, who sighed.
"I know, I know; I totally set myself up for that."
Ken reached over and turned off the oven, then looked at his teammates, all joking gone from his face.
"Suit up, people; time to go to work."
…
After a few minutes, the Team was assembled in the Cave's briefing room, just as Batman, Superman, Ben and Supergirl teleported in.
"What's the situation, Batman?" Ken asked, when he saw the grim expressions on the Leaguers' faces.
"The League received an Alpha-level emergency," Batman said tersely, "All Leaguers are mobilizing to meet the threat."
"What's an Alpha-level emergency?" Kid Flash asked.
"You know how Omega-level is end-of-the-world type stuff?" Ben replied, "Well, Alpha is right below that; the thing with the ice-fortresses counted as an Alpha."
"So, what's our role?" Seeker asked.
"Nothing," Batman said.
"Say what?" Cyborg asked indignantly.
"The Team is not to engage this threat," Superman clarified sternly, "In fact, the only one leaving the Cave until this is over is Captain Marvel."
The hero in question sent an apologetic look towards his cousin and the Team, then walked over to the Leaguers.
"If you don't need us, then why are you here?" Superboy demanded.
Supergirl scowled, though not at the clone. "Because this is the only place we'd allow Waller to access; we don't want her near the Watchtower or the Metro Tower."
"Who is this Waller?" Starfire asked.
Batman only tapped a few keys on the teleporter controls.
"Access granted," the computer said, "Recognized: Government-League Liaison, Amanda Waller, Reserve-Member Red Arrow."
In a flash of light, an aging African-American woman and Red Arrow were brought into the Cave. The woman wore a business suit, and from the bulge at her side, she was armed.
She raised an eyebrow at the hostile glares from the Leaguers. "Still as hospitable as ever, I see."
"Give us another twenty years," Supergirl growled, "Then maybe I won't consider throwing you into the sun."
To her credit, Waller actually rolled her eyes at the threat, but otherwise ignored the adults for a moment to look at the younger heroes.
"So this is the covert-ops team you put together, Batman," Waller said, staring at the Team for a few seconds before nodding. "I honestly didn't know if you'd had a few too many drinks when you told me."
"Who is this?" Superboy asked; at his side, Wolf growled.
Waller held out her hand to the clone. "I'm Amanda Waller, official liaison between the government and the Justice League, and formerly the head of Project Cadmus."
Superboy didn't shake the hand, only crossing his arms. "And what's Project Cadmus?"
"It used to be a top-secret government group created for the sole purpose of destroying the Justice League if they ever went rogue," Waller admitted freely, "Unfortunately, one of our old messes has come back to bite us. I'll need access to the computers here if I'm to give you the details."
Much to the Team's surprise, Batman nodded and brought up a holo-computer. Waller nodded in appreciation.
"What I wouldn't give to have one of these in my office," she said ruefully, "I've been using the same computer for the last eight years."
"Just get to the point," Red Arrow said brusquely.
Waller didn't respond, but she did allow a disk from her pocket to be scanned by the computer; the computer began displaying several files and images.
"First and foremost," Waller said, "I'm sure you were told that Professor Emil Hamilton died in prison last week, correct?"
"And good riddance," Supergirl said, not looking at the twenty-year-old picture of the scientist.
"He's not really dead," Waller announced, much to the Leaguers' surprise, "I thought the coroner's call of 'natural causes' was suspicious, so I had the body examined by another team. It turns out that someone smuggled in a flash-grown clone of the professor and swapped the real one out with the fake.
"Five days later, security footage from a classified location caught Hamilton, Lex Luthor and members of the League of Shadows freeing Galatea."
Most of that was news to the League; they only knew that Galatea was free, but not how.
"Who's Galatea?" Superboy asked; Waller brought up an image of an older-looking Supergirl in a white, long-sleeved uniform fighting Ultimate Big Chill.
"Galatea was the first, and only, attempt at creating a Kryptonian clone," Waller said, looking just a trace guilty, "She's the clone of Supergirl; she was created by Hamilton, artificially aged to her physical prime, trained by the best combat-instructors in the world… and is labeled a sociopath that won't hesitate to kill. In fact, she enjoys it. Also, unlike Superboy here, she has all of her Kryptonian powers, and won't hold back when using them."
More than one member of the Team felt their blood run cold; a Supergirl who was not only willing to kill, but also enjoyed it, was a terrifying prospect.
"Fortunately, after her attack on the Watchtower, she was put into a coma and placed under red-sun radiation generators for the last twenty years. However, just over two hours ago, Hamilton and Luthor woke her up and extracted her from her prison. If we don't find and stop her soon, she'll recover, and then she's going to kill a lot of people."
"We already have most of the League out searching," Batman said, leading the Leaguers to the teleporters, "Waller will stay here to relay any additional information if she discovers it. Red Arrow, stay here and watch her."
"But I thought I'd—" the archer protested, but Ben cut him off.
"Would you rather let someone who almost killed the Justice League free rein in this base?" he asked. Red Arrow scowled, but didn't move.
Sergeant Marvel began heading for the teleporter as well, but Captain Marvel held up a hand to stop her.
"Sorry, Mary, but I want you to stay here."
"What!?" Sergeant Marvel looked outraged, and a little hurt.
Captain Marvel winced; he was going to catch hell for this later, but with someone as dangerous as Galatea…
"Look, that psychotic clone almost killed both Supergirl and Ben, and almost destroyed the Watchtower while most of the League was onboard. You're not experienced enough to handle something like that."
Eyes downcast, Sergeant Marvel stepped back, while Superboy had scowled at the 'psychotic clone' comment, as well as when Galatea was referred to as 'something', not 'someone'.
Batman gave a level stare at the Team. "Once we leave, the Cave will be put on lockdown, the teleporters will be taken offline, and Ship is going with us to assist in the search. Let me make one thing clear: the Team is not to go after Galatea."
Ship crawled over to Ben, giving an apologetic look to the younger heroes. In a moment, the Leaguers were gone, leaving the Team, Red Arrow and Waller behind.
Robin scowled. "Left behind again because they don't think we're ready. Anyone else getting some serious déjà vu here?"
"I know I am," Warhawk grumbled.
"This happens a lot?" Sergeant Marvel asked.
"Yeah, whenever something big goes down," Kid Flash complained, "They don't trust us!"
"I doubt it has anything to do with trust," Waller said, getting their attention, "Galatea killed over twenty people when she was working for Cadmus, and those who survived did so by the skin of their teeth."
That sobered most of them up rather quickly. Artemis looked over at Ken.
"So, fearless leader, what's the plan?"
Ken closed his eyes for a moment. Galatea… why does that name sound so familiar? I know I've heard it before today.
It took him a few seconds to sort through his memories, but then he remembered. "Well, Batman said we can't go after Galatea… but he never said we couldn't find information on her, did he?"
Seeker took one look at the mischievous smile on Ken's face, and then an identical smile appeared behind her mask.
"What have you got in mind?"
Ken looked at Robin, Kid Flash and Warhawk. "You guys remember when we first found Superboy?"
"You mean when he beat the snot out of us?" Kid Flash asked back.
"You had to bring that up, didn't you?" Superboy muttered.
"Sorry."
"Anyway," Ken said, "right before we woke him up from the pod, I remember when Robin went over his file. One thing he mentioned was that Superboy was created using partial data from the experiments used to make Galatea!"
Seeker's mind was just a second behind Ken's. "That means that someone—either Hamilton or someone who worked with him—who made Galatea also at least contributed to making Superboy! If we find who provided the data…"
"We find a lead on Galatea…" Robin continued excitedly.
"We tell the League!" Safari finished, "They find Galatea, they take her down, and we technically didn't disobey Batman's orders!"
"Then it's off to Genesis!" Kid Flash exclaimed.
"Um, small problem," Raven said, "Batman turned off the teleporters when he left, and Ship went with him; how are we getting to Genesis?"
"Simple," Ken said, "You teleport us outside, Sphere goes Super-Cycle and carries everyone who can't fly."
"If you're going to Genesis, I'm coming with you," Red Arrow declared, making the Team freeze; in the excitement, they'd forgotten about the reserve-Leaguer.
"You have a job watching Waller," Artemis said, glaring at her sibling protégé, "You're busy."
Red Arrow smirked in a way that said he knew something important. "I can get you into Genesis without any problems. I can even make sure that the League doesn't find out we left."
Ken suddenly felt his teammates' eyes on him, and he sighed. "Okay, you're in. However, I'm in charge; you follow my orders, or you're gone."
Red Arrow rolled his eyes. "Sure, whatever makes you feel better, kid."
"Hey, what about her?" Miss Martian pointed at Waller, who had been observing silently.
"I want to find out who leaked the information about Galatea," she said, "The risk of more Kryptonian clones is too great to leave any potential lead unexplored."
"She still needs to be watched," Raven said, giving Waller a neutral stare, "She's not very trustworthy."
"That's what makes me good at my job," Waller said, then pulled out a flash drive and handed it to Ken, "This is everything we have on Galatea—personality assessment, preferred tactics, history. It might be useful."
Ken nodded, then handed the flash drive to Seeker. "Get started on this, filter what's useful from what's not. As for who needs to watch Waller… Wolf can do that."
All eyes turned to Wolf, who tilted his head before looking to Superboy. The clone pointed at Waller.
"If she does something you don't like, sic her," he said, then raised an eyebrow at Waller, "You'd better behave."
After Raven opened a portal, most of the Team and Sphere dashed through, but Sergeant Marvel approached Ken.
"Is this normal?" she asked, "Just taking off and ignoring Batman's orders?"
"Last chance to stay here," Ken offered.
"To heck with that!" Sergeant Marvel replied with a grin, "If this is what being with you guys is like, then I'm in!"
With a grin of his own, Ken nodded. "Welcome to the Team."
…
Unknown Location
"How's the patient doing?" Luthor asked when he entered the lab.
Hamilton didn't take his eyes off of Galatea, who lay on a table as yellow-sun generators bathed her in light.
"Scans show that she's at seventy percent of what she was before the coma," Hamilton said, "In another hour, she'll be back to her old self."
Luthor raised an eyebrow. "The skin and hair haven't changed."
Hamilton sighed. "I fear that that is permanent."
On the table, Galatea scowled. "Stupid shapeshifter, stupid Supergirl… I'll kill them both!"
That got a smile from Luthor. "I was actually hoping you'd say that. I have a proposition for you."
"Oh? If it puts the hurt on those two, count me in."
"Absolutely not!" Hamilton shouted, standing between the clone and Luthor, "The whole reason I helped you save Galatea was so that I could give her a normal life, away from any danger!"
Galatea pushed herself upright. "Well, don't I get a say in what I want in life?"
Hamilton hesitated. "Well, of course… what do you want in life?"
Galatea shrugged. "Long-term? Not a clue. But I know what I want to do for now: I want Supergirl and her boyfriend on their knees, begging for death."
Hamilton put his hands on the clone's shoulders. "Galatea, please don't go down that path. I just want you to be safe."
Galatea looked into Hamilton's eyes coldly. "Did you know that I was aware of what was happening around me when I was taking my little nap? I have spent twenty years doing absolutely nothing, and I know who was responsible for putting me through that hell!"
Hamilton backed up fearfully as his 'daughter's' eyes began to glow. "Galatea, I—"
"If you think I'm just going to forget about that, 'Daddy'," Galatea hissed, "Then I'm afraid our agendas are going to clash. And since I'm sure you'll keep bugging me…"
There was a burst of heat-vision, and then Hamilton's lifeless body hit the ground.
"I guess I'm out of the will," Galatea said casually, then looked at Luthor. "You mad that I killed him?"
Luthor shrugged. "The only time we got any use out of him was when it concerned you. Beyond that, he was a liability."
"All right, then tell me where Supergirl and her boy-toy are."
"First, they're married now," Luthor corrected, but before he could continue, there was a beeping coming from his armor, alerting him of something. When he checked it, he smiled.
"Let me ask you something," he said, "What would you rather do: kill the ones who put you in a coma, or hurt them, break them, until they beg for death?"
Galatea smiled wickedly. "Go on."
"I happen to know where one of their children is," Luthor said, "If you agree to kill his teammates—"
"Just tell me where to go," Galatea said, "I'll make sure no one survives."
"Then let me give you a little present before you go," Luthor said, walking over to a wall and pressing a button; a section of the wall slid away, revealing a hidden compartment.
Galatea saw what was inside and laughed. "Oh, this is gonna be fun…"
…
Washington DC, 11:14 EST
"They rebuilt fast," Kid Flash commented, as the doors to Genesis Labs opened up.
"I bet they just used the materials from the last building," Warhawk said, "I mean, we did leave it all over the place."
"So, Red," Artemis asked, "Where's your 'in' for this place?"
Red Arrow pointed to the other side of the lobby. "He's right there."
Leaning against the far wall was a tall, muscular man wearing dark body armor, a golden helmet and a golden shield.
"This is either really good or really bad," Ken mused when he saw Guardian.
"Why's that?" Seeker asked.
"First time I met Guardian, he tried to kill me, Robin, KF and Warhawk," Ken said, "Then I electrocuted him, and then he found out he was being controlled by the G-Gnomes here."
Behind her mask, Seeker blinked; none of the four founding members of the Team really talked about the events that led to finding Superboy, so any information about that night was new.
Speaking of Superboy, the Boy of Steel had had an ever-deepening scowl since he'd caught sight of Genesis. Raven had been feeling the clone's rising storm of emotions; despite the fact that she respected other people's privacy, she did care about her teammates.
"You okay?" she asked him quietly.
Superboy looked away for a moment before answering. "No. I don't like it here."
"Is that all?"
"I hate that you're an empath sometimes," Superboy grumbled, but continued, "It's just that the Justice League is freaking out about this other clone; hasn't anyone given her a chance to change? I mean, the League is okay with me, and they knew that my original mission was to kill Superman if he went rogue."
Superboy hadn't been as quiet as Raven, and Seeker overheard him. "I think I can answer that. You chose to be a hero, right?"
Superboy nodded. "Yeah, Ken asked me what would Superman do, and I chose to help."
"Well, Galatea made a choice too," Seeker said, remembering the files that Waller had given them, "Except that when she did what she wanted, it was to try and kill Supergirl and everyone on the Watchtower. She chose to be evil, while you chose to be good."
Superboy hesitated for a moment. "If we find her, I'd still like to try to talk to her."
"That's also your choice," Raven said, "Maybe she'll listen to you, since you're both clones."
"Hey, guys!" Kid Flash called out, getting the attention of the three, "Guardian is letting us in now!"
"How did Red Arrow convince Guardian?" Superboy asked as he, Seeker and Raven followed the rest of the group.
"His real name is Jim Harper," Seeker said quietly, "He's the uncle of Roy Harper, AKA Red Arrow."
"And he won't tell the League?" Raven asked, loud enough to be heard by Red Arrow.
"He won't," the archer confirmed, "I asked him not to. Besides, we're just looking for information, right? If Galatea showed up, I'm sure he'd call them."
{He would indeed, brother,} a voice rang out in all of their minds, as the horned form of Dubbilex met them at the elevator.
"Please don't do that again," Artemis asked in a neutral tone, though her expression promised bodily harm if Dubbilex didn't comply.
"Apologies," the Genomorph scientist said, "I am used to communicating with my Genomorph brethren in this fashion."
"Dubbilex has been the Genomorphs' representative since Superboy escaped," Guardian said.
"Since I was rescued," Superboy snarled.
"Sorry, you're right," Guardian said, then gestured for all of them to get into the elevator; thankfully, it was large enough to hold all of them, save for Sphere, who opted to wait at the top floor anyway.
"So, while we head to the genetics lab," Guardian continued cheerfully, "Why don't I show you how Genesis has improved?"
"As long as it's quick," Ken said, "We are on a mission, after all."
"Right, I'll give you the short version," Guardian waited until the elevator stopped before speaking again. "Genesis has refocused its energies into creating benefits for mankind, not weapons. Organic batteries—that aren't sapient beings—that last fifty times longer than any normal battery, along with potential cures to genetic diseases."
"Really?" Kid Flash looked around at the labs they walked through, marveling at the technology, though he shared everyone else's hesitation when they saw various types of Genomorphs working at several stations.
"Yep. Dubbilex informed me that we could have a way to prevent Alzheimer's within the year," Guardian said proudly, then noticed the wary gazes the heroes were giving the Genomorphs. "Don't worry, they know what they're doing."
"It's not that," Ken said, "It's just that the last time we were here, those guys were trying to kill us."
"That is because they were being controlled," Dubbilex said, "Most of my brethren are just like any other person: they wish only to have the same freedoms and rights as any Human."
"We're working on that," Guardian said, in a tone suggesting that this was not the first time he and Dubbilex had had this conversation, "It's a slow process, but we're making progress. The Genomorphs are treated equally here. Some even have names; hey, Frank."
A Genomorph with pointed ears, fangs and claws waved at the group, then resumed sweeping the floor.
"How many Genomorphs are there?" Seeker asked, making mental notes of the Genomorphs' attitudes for a psychological evaluation later.
"Around five thousand," Guardian said, "The only problem we seem to have is that some have gone missing over the last couple of months; every day, two or three just disappear."
"I apologize, Guardian," Dubbilex said, "Every time this occurs, I scan the facility with my telepathy, but to no avail."
Guardian sighed. "Something else I need to do. Right now, though, there's another Super-clone out there who wants a lot of people dead, and we need to do something about that."
"You know about Galatea?" Superboy asked.
"Only a little," Guardian admitted, "I was given a briefing when she escaped; I am a reserve-member of the League, after all."
"Anything in particular that stood out in that briefing?" Ken asked.
"Just that she hates Supergirl, and that she's a murdering psychopath."
"Nothing new, then," Warhawk muttered, as Guardian opened the door to a dark room.
Once he turned the lights on, the Team could see piles of dusty equipment and deactivated computers.
"This is where Project Kr was started," Guardian said, "Any and all information linking Superboy and Galatea would be here."
"Great, thanks," Ken said, turning on a computer, "Come on, guys, let's get reading."
"If you need anything from me, I'll be about ten floors up," Guardian said, turning to leave, "I've got missing Genomorphs to find."
Once the hero was gone, Dubbilex turned to the Team. "If it is possible, I would like to speak with Superboy… alone."
Superboy looked at Ken, who shrugged. "If something happens, we'll call you."
"And if I find something, I'll let you know," Superboy said, then turned to Dubbilex. "Lead the way."
"Thank you, brother."
After they left, Ken walked over to Red Arrow and whispered so that only the two of them could hear.
"Do you think I'm stupid?"
Red Arrow blinked. "What do you mean?"
"You're not here just to help us look for Galatea," Ken said, "You've been giving most of my team the stink-eye since you showed up with Waller. You're here for something else, and I want to know why."
Red Arrow glanced around to see if anyone was listening, but the rest of the Team was busy with the computers.
"You may feel that your friends are above suspicion, but I don't. I still think that one of them is a mole, and I'm going to find out who."
"So you thought that if you hung out with us, you'd find some damning sign that one of us is a traitor?" Ken asked, glaring so hard that his eyes flickered with green Mana.
"Like I said last month, I know that you, Robin, KF, Warhawk and Safari are on the level, and I don't think Sergeant Marvel has a deceptive bone in her body," Red Arrow said, "But I don't know any of the others, and that makes them a potential threat."
"Well, I do know the others," Ken said in a warning tone, "And I know that they would never betray us. Don't accuse anyone on my team unless you've got the evidence to back it up; if you throw around baseless accusations again, I'll shove that bow up your—"
"Hey, Ken!" Cyborg called out, "I've got a lead!"
Ken nodded, then gave one last warning look at Red Arrow before joining the others. "Okay, let's start following the bread crumbs."
…
Louisiana, 10:45 CDT
"You are really tense right now," Jet Ray commented as he and Supergirl flew over the remains of the Injustice League's base; at the moment, the League was checking places that might have had the facilities necessary to quickly aid a yellow-sun-deprived Kryptonian.
"How are you not?" Supergirl asked, "She's back, Ben, and she wants to kill me, you, and probably everyone else."
"That could be said for just about every supervillain," Jet Ray pointed out.
"Most of them couldn't get away with it," Supergirl shot back, "But she could."
"I just hope we find her before she finds Superboy," Jet Ray said idly, prompting his wife to glare at him.
"She'd probably get him to hate me as much as she does."
"Considering you ignore him most of the time, that won't be hard to do," Jet Ray snapped, swooping low to get a better view of the ground, "Kara, he's been a member of the family for months; you shouldn't treat family like that."
"He's a clone!" Supergirl shouted, the excuse sounding bigoted even to her, but the return of Galatea was stressing her out too much. "Think of all the evil clones out there!"
Jet Ray sighed. "Bizarro, but he's been dead for ten years; the Ultimen copies, but they were destroyed; Galatea is the only evil clone left, and she's on the run."
"Superboy—"
"Is angry, hotheaded and stubborn," Jet Ray interrupted, "I can remember when you were like that, you know; in fact, you still are, sometimes. However, you're also caring, selfless, and love your family, and guess what? So is Superboy! You're so hung up on the evil clones that you're ignoring the one who wants nothing more than to live up to the legacy that you and Clark have established!"
Ben hadn't meant to snap at Kara like that, but aside from a few moments, the Girl of Steel had been horrible to her nephew, and Ben had had enough. If the look of shock and guilt on Supergirl's face was anything to go by, at least some of his words had gotten through to her; once this mission was over, he'd talk to her about it again.
"Come on," he said, more gently this time, "We've got another hundred miles of swamp to search."
Wordlessly, Supergirl flew after him.
…
Genesis Labs, 12:01 EST
"What did you want to talk about?" Superboy asked, "Does it have something to do with Galatea?"
Dubbilex shook his head. "No, brother, this matter is unrelated to the current crisis. When we get to sublevel fifty-two, I will show you."
"Sublevel fifty-two?" Superboy repeated, as Dubbilex entered the elevator, "I thought that was entirely devoted to Project Kr—I mean, me."
"It was," Dubbilex said, "It is still where we must go."
The high-speed elevator took them to the last floor of Genesis in a few seconds; Superboy looked around at the intestine-like walls with distaste.
"You are uncomfortable here, brother?" Dubbilex asked.
"It looks like a stomach," Superboy said bluntly, "Most people would find it gross."
Dubbilex didn't reply to that statement, instead pointing to the floor. "Tell me, brother, can you see through this?"
Though he didn't know where Dubbilex was going with this, Superboy tried to X-ray the floor. "No, it's lead-lined… wait, why would you have lead in the floor? This is the lowest level, unless…"
"Unless there was something to hide?" Dubbilex finished, "Follow me, brother, and I will show you what lies below."
Dubbilex moved deeper into the sublevel, until he reached a pile of crates, which he moved aside with his telekinesis. Behind the crates was a door, which looked newer than the rest of the inorganic material. Dubbilex opened the door and walked down a flight of stairs, Superboy trailing behind him.
"The floor was lead-lined in case Genesis ever wanted to add a level for a project that was even more of a secret than you," Dubbilex said, "However, such a project was never conceived… though the caverns beneath made an excellent place to hide our secret."
"And what secret is that?" Superboy asked.
Dubbilex smiled as they reached the end of the stairs. "Why, this, of course."
The passageway opened up to a massive cavern; it was even larger than Mount Justice! Scattered throughout the cavern were primitive stone buildings, the residents of which were soon visible.
Easily a hundred Genomorphs were living here; some of the larger ones, the G-Trolls, were constructing more buildings, while the clawed ones, G-Elves, gathered water from an underground spring. Light was provided by the bioelectric insects, the G-Sprites, while the work was overseen by several G-Gnomes.
"What is this place?" Superboy asked.
"Our paradise," Dubbilex said proudly, "We know that Humanity will never accept our kind, Superboy; unlike you, we are far too different than Humans. Instead of waiting for acceptance, and rather than using violence to take a place for ourselves, we have built a sanctuary in secret."
"Why show me this?"
"Because you are a Genomorph," Dubbilex said, "If this place were to be discovered, we will need a representative, one who is both Genomorph and not."
"I thought Guardian said that things were improving."
"We are not treated like animals, but neither are we allowed outside, and we are not allowed to speak to anyone who is not from Genesis." Dubbilex shook his head. "We are still prisoners, brother; the only thing that has changed is the warden."
Superboy sighed, feeling guilty. He had barely given Genesis or the Genomorphs any thought in months; he should have at least checked up on them at some point.
"I'm sorry, I—wait, do you hear that?" Superboy looked up at the ceiling, which was starting to vibrate; a moment later, part of it exploded, and something rocketed downwards, landing with a crash just a few yards away from Superboy and Dubbilex, creating a cloud of dust.
A figure stepped out of the dust, and Superboy immediately recognized the face, even if it was different than how it usually looked. The hair, ending at just past the jawline, was paper-white, and the skin was just a shade darker than that, but it was still Supergirl's face. Unlike Supergirl, Galatea's outfit was a formfitting suit of interlocking metal plates; on the chest was a symbol identical to the one on Superboy's shirt, only painted in black, and clearly a mockery of what the House of El represented.
"Hello there," Galatea said with a sadistic smile, "I heard there was a clone of Superman here."
Superboy tensed. "That's me. What do you want?"
Galatea tilted her head, her smile now joined by a spark of madness in her eyes. "Why, to kill you, of course."
Before Superboy could blink, Galatea was in front of him; her fist connected with his jaw, sending him flying a hundred feet into the air. Once he hit the ground, Galatea flew up and hit him with a blast of heat-vision, driving him deeper into the bedrock.
With a pained groan, Superboy crawled out of the hole he was in and looked up, confused, at the other clone.
"You can fly," he said, "How can you fly?"
Galatea gave a look of false pity. "Oh, did they get the mix wrong when making you? Too bad, I thought that this would be interesting!"
Diving down, Galatea tried to drive both fists into the younger clone's face, but Superboy was ready this time; he grabbed one of her arms and threw her over his shoulder, then kicked her in the gut, driving her back.
"We don't have to do this!" Superboy pleaded, "We're both clones who were programmed to kill people, but I broke free; you can do the same!"
Galatea laughed. "You think I was programmed to kill people? Kid, Cadmus tried to put in preprogrammed commands for almost two years, but nothing stuck. I killed people because I enjoyed it!"
Superboy felt a pang of despair; the one person in existence who could relate to him better than anyone else, and she was the opposite of everything he'd hoped for.
"How could you be Supergirl's clone?" he asked, "You're nothing like her."
Galatea's smile vanished, replaced by a sneer. "I'm nothing like Super-Slut. I'm everything she's too afraid to be!"
In another burst of super-speed, Galatea was behind Superboy, grabbing his arm and swinging him up and into the ground like a ragdoll.
Superboy grunted in pain, but managed to turn his head to glare at Galatea. "I guess you're right about being different from Supergirl—I'm pretty sure she wouldn't be so stupid as to get this outnumbered!"
{Now!} He yelled over the psychic link, which Miss Martian had established before the Team had arrived at Genesis.
"Hey!" Galatea turned to face the source of the new voice, only to get a Mana-infused fist to her face.
Ken cracked his neck and glared at Galatea. "Never insult my family."
Behind him, the rest of the Team, plus Red Arrow and Guardian, stepped out of the portal that Raven had conjured and got ready. Nearby, Dubbilex looked at Guardian uncertainly.
The gold-helmed hero only shook his head. "We'll talk about all this later."
Galatea looked at Ken and grinned. "So, you're one of Supergirl's kids, huh? Oh, killing you first is going to make killing her all the more enjoyable."
"First you insult my mom, now you threaten to kill her," Ken said darkly, "You just want to keep digging that grave, don't you?"
{Take her down!} Ken yelled, then charged, the rest of the Team right behind him.
Galatea caught Ken's next punch, then drew him in for a headbutt that sent him reeling; the female clone then snapped out a kick that caught Starfire in the chest that sent her crashing into a stone house.
Robin and Artemis hit Galatea with explosives, but she just walked through the attack, grabbing both Humans by the throat and charged up her heat-vision. Just before she killed them, Superboy slid across the ground, his feet catching Galatea's ankles, knocking her down, but she still slammed Robin and Artemis headfirst into the ground. They weren't dead, but they weren't going anywhere for a while.
Rolling backwards, Galatea snapped a kick into Superboy's chin, sending him flying through the hole she'd arrived in.
"Pathetic," she sneered, "I'm not even at full strength yet, and I'm still wiping the floor with you all!"
"You'll have a harder time with me," Sergeant Marvel said, her fists crackling with magic lightning, "Kryptonians and magic don't mix well, do they?"
Sergeant Marvel charged, flying even faster than Kid Flash, and drove her fist into Galatea's side; though the physical blow did knock Galatea back, it was Sergeant Marvel who felt the most pain, falling to her knees at the agony in her hand.
"Surprised?" Galatea grabbed Sergeant Marvel by the hair and slammed her armored knee into the younger girl's face; there was now a sizeable burn across the bridge of her nose. "My armor is made of Nth-metal; a gift from Lex Luthor."
"It doesn't cover your face," Raven said, eyes glowing with power, "Azarath Metrion Zinthos!"
A bolt of black energy struck Galatea in the face, knocking her down and freeing Sergeant Marvel. The clone stood up and wiped away a trickle of blood that fell from her nose.
"You're next, you little emo kid."
Galatea moved to attack Raven, but a combined telepathic assault from Miss Martian and Dubbilex tripped her up, disorienting long enough for Kid Flash to run in and move Robin and Artemis to a safe distance.
Ken, recovering from his injuries, ran up and grabbed Galatea in an arm-lock. "Nth-metal or not, it still conducts electricity!"
With a grunt, Ken pumped as much lightning as he could into Galatea's armor; it didn't hurt her much, but it did keep her still for a moment.
{Try to get the armor off her,} Ken ordered, jumping away, {Then Sergeant Marvel and Raven can do their thing!}
{Got it,} Red Arrow said, firing a phosphorus-arrow just seconds after Cyborg used his sonic cannon; the combined attacks weakened the connections of several of the plates, which Warhawk and Seeker knocked loose with a few well-placed blows. Galatea now had a large plate missing from her midriff, as well as her right shoulder-plate and left gauntlet.
That small victory came at a cost, however. Galatea recovered and clapped her hands together; the super-strength behind the move created a shockwave that sent all the heroes flying, as well as knocking out Warhawk and Seeker. She then fired her heat-vision, slicing off Cyborg's left arm at the elbow; after that, a hurricane-force breath sent Cyborg crashing into Safari, burying them both under a pile of rubble.
{Now!} Ken shouted.
Raven conjured a tendril of black magic that grabbed Galatea by the back of the head and slammed her into the ground; Miss Martian and Dubbilex slowed the clone down further with their telekinesis.
Sergeant Marvel rushed in, grabbing Galatea by the neck and belt and hoisting her above her head.
Gritting her teeth at the pain the Nth-metal caused her hands, she cried out, "SHAZAM!"
With Galatea in the way, the lightning-bolt didn't hit Sergeant Marvel, but hit the clone, instead; the incredible power behind the magical lightning hit Galatea in the stomach, and though the armor absorbed part of the hit, a good chunk of said armor was missing, leaving Galatea open for a painful blow.
"SHAZAM!" Sergeant Marvel yelled again, and another lightning-bolt struck.
One more should do it, she thought, and shouted for a third time, "SHAZAM!"
This time, though, Galatea was ready; she twisted, slamming her right arm—the one still covered in Nth-metal—into Sergeant Marvel's head, stunning her long enough for Galatea to flip the girl over her head.
In a flash of lightning, Sergeant Marvel became Mary Batson, now at the mercy of the Kryptonian.
"SHAZ—" Mary began to shout, but Galatea hurled her at Dubbilex, knocking both of them out.
Galatea followed up with a wide blast of heat-vision that caught both Guardian and Miss Martian; the force that hit the former and the heat from the latter took both of them out of the fight, as well as brought down the psychic link.
Ken glanced at Red Arrow, Raven and Kid Flash, the only others who were still standing. "Think the League will get here in time?"
As soon as Superboy had informed them of Galatea's presence, the Team had called for help; unfortunately, due to the US government setting up teleportation-dampeners around the city in case someone hijacked the League's teleporters, the older heroes were still a short while out.
"Better question," Kid Flash said grimly, "Will the League get here in time to save all of us?"
Ken surrounded his arms with fire. Come on, Superboy; where are you?
…
Superboy groaned as he sat up and rubbed his jaw; nothing, save for magic, had ever hurt him so much.
How can she be so strong? He asked himself, she can fly, she has heat-vision, and she's so much stronger than me. If we're both clones, what's different about us?
"Good to see you awake," a voice said, snapping Superboy to full awareness as he realized where he was. Galatea had knocked him into the room where his pod still stood; the room was dark, save for a single screen, which showed the face of a man he knew, but never met.
Lex Luthor.
"What do you want?" Superboy snarled.
"Why, to help you, of course," Luthor said with an almost fond smile, "As well as answer questions I'm sure you've wanted answered."
"I don't care what you're selling," Superboy said, turning to leave and rejoin the fight, "I'm not buying."
"If you want to keep Galatea from killing your friends, you'll listen to what I have to say," Luthor said sternly.
Superboy knew he had no chance of beating Galatea on his own, but he could hear his friends' cries of pain.
"… Make it fast."
"Did you never wonder who Genesis was working for?" Luthor asked rhetorically, "Or who provided some of the data for Galatea's creation? It was me; Genesis was my creation, even if it was a disposable one. That means that I created you; however, I don't consider you disposable.
"I wanted you to be the ultimate match for Superman, in case he ever strayed from the self-righteous path he clung to," Luthor shook his head in disappointment. "However, we discovered something… unforeseen. Female Kryptonian DNA is much easier to work with, but we didn't have any of Supergirl's DNA remaining. Male Kryptonian DNA is… more of a challenge. Parts of your DNA were damaged during the cloning process, and had to be supplemented with something else."
"Wait," Superboy said, the room starting to spin a little, "You're saying I'm not completely Kryptonian?"
"Correct," Luthor said, "You're about fifty percent Human. You have incredible strength, speed, endurance, etcetera… but not the heat-vision, nor the flight. In order to make you a true match for Superman, I created these."
A small panel in front of the computer slid open, revealing a metal case just smaller than Superboy's hand. On the front of the case was the same symbol that was on his shirt. The case opened up to show a dozen red patches that were the same shape as the outside of the S-shield.
"I call them Shields," Luthor said, "They suppress your Human DNA for one hour; during that time, you will be just as powerful as Superman, along with all of his abilities."
Superboy's eyes widened; these things would make him just as strong as his father? "What's the catch?"
Luthor smiled. "There's no real 'catch', as it were, though there is a slight side-effect: the longer you fight, the less you'll hold back. Obviously, this could result in quite a lot of collateral damage; try not to destroy much of DC while fighting Galatea, would you?"
With that, the screen shut off, leaving Superboy alone. He looked at the Shields suspiciously, weighing his options.
A scream of pain from Raven made up his mind; he took out a Shield and slapped it on his arm, then pulled the sleeve of his shirt over it. Immediately, he felt a surge of power like he'd never known; it was as if he'd had chains around his limbs for his whole life, only to have them removed.
"Now it's my turn," Superboy growled, and lifted up; to his amazement, he was flying! With a feral grin, he flew through the hole he'd been kicked through and rocketed down to the fight.
What he saw made him very, very angry. Everyone on the Team was knocked out; some were bleeding, and Cyborg's arm lay sparking on the ground. The only who was still on his feet was Ken, and that was because Galatea was holding him by the throat, punching him over and over again. He wasn't conscious, but he was alive, something that Galatea seemed happy to take her time changing.
"PUT HIM DOWN!" Superboy roared, his voice shaking the entire cavern.
Galatea looked up at the now-flying clone and blinked in surprise. "Well, I didn't see that coming. Gimme a sec, I'll be right with you."
With a casual flick of her wrist, she threw Ken over her shoulder; he landed in a heap next to Red Arrow, who had a nasty gash on his forehead.
Superboy snarled. "You're going to pay for that."
"Make me," Galatea taunted, rising into the air.
"With pleasure!" rather than charge, Superboy tried something new; a moment later, two beams of heat-vision lanced from his eyes, striking Galatea in the chest, burning away the symbol on the armor.
"You don't deserve to wear that crest."
Galatea scowled and flew forwards to punch him, but Superboy caught her fist with one hand; despite having beaten everyone else, Galatea wasn't at her best, while Superboy was relatively unharmed. Superboy drew his other arm back, then punched Galatea in the face; the blow, twice as powerful as his strongest punch, broke Galatea's nose and sent her plummeting to the ground, where she landed in a crater.
The older clone got up on unsteady legs. "That… that shouldn't be possible. You're not a real Kryptonian, you can't—"
With a wild yell, Superboy collided with her, slamming her into the ground again; he brought up both fists and slammed them into Galatea's shoulders, shattering the armor and fracturing bones. Galatea countered with a kick to Superboy's side, knocking him a hundred feet away, into the cavern's wall.
Superboy pulled himself out of the new hole he'd made, then fired his heat-vision again, this time catching Galatea in the leg, staggering her. He took the opportunity to fly forward and brought his hands together for a double-uppercut to Galatea's chin, smashing her into a stone building. Before she could get up, he landed in front of her, grabbed her by the throat and began punching her over and over. Blood burst from her nose and mouth, coating his fist, but he didn't care; he just wanted to put a stop to the one who had insulted his family, hurt his friends, humiliated him—
"Superboy, stop!" a strong voice cut through the red haze, snapping him out of his rage. He let go of Galatea, letting her fall limply to the ground, and turned to see Superman, Supergirl, and nearly half the Justice League arriving at the scene.
Superman approached his son and put a hand on his shoulder. "You beat her, son; it's over."
"Sorry, Superman," Superboy took a deep breath, then waved at his fallen friends and allies, "She was going to… I had to stop her…"
"I understand," Superman said, not ungently, "But it's over now; let's get everyone on their feet, okay?"
Superboy nodded, only sparing a single glance at the fallen Galatea before walking over to Miss Martian and holding her in his arms.
…
Mount Justice, 17:45 EST
For an hour after the fight, the League had cleaned up the mess—while Verdona took the unconscious Galatea to a prison colony halfway across the galaxy, which Green Lantern had assured was under the light of a red sun—and investigated the Genomorphs' 'sanctuary'.
After apologizing to Dubbilex for not realizing their situation sooner, Superman promised to make an appeal to the President to have the Genomorphs recognized as US citizens. In the meantime, they were offered paid work at the Metro Tower as support-staff; since the Tower couldn't hold all five thousand Genomorphs, they would be rotated in shifts, while the League helped build them a proper settlement in the cavern, a location the Genomorphs had insisted on.
Most of the Team lay in the infirmary, tending to their injuries—or in Cyborg's case, making repairs—while Superboy was tasked with finishing the report to Batman on what happened… or rather, a half-truth of what happened.
"After I woke up, I got back in the fight," he concluded, "Galatea was probably hurt by Sergeant Marvel and Raven's magic, and I heard her say that she wasn't at a hundred percent, so I was able to finish the fight."
Batman nodded. "Good work. However, if you're going to find loophole in my orders… tell the League first. We could have provided backup sooner."
"Wait, we're not in trouble?" Superboy asked.
"You didn't go looking for a fight," Batman said, "That showed that you knew what you were doing. You only wanted to help the League; we should have seen that. Let's say that both parties were at fault, and leave it at that."
With that, Batman walked away, leaving Superboy alone with Superman and Supergirl. The oldest Kryptonian put a hand on his son's shoulder.
"I'll see you at home, Conner," Superman said.
"I'm not going with you now?"
"Normally, you would," Superman smiled, "But I believe your aunt wants a word with you."
Superman left; for a few seconds, Superboy and Supergirl stared at each other in awkward silence.
"Um…" Supergirl looked away for a moment, then looked Superboy in the eye. "You did good work out there."
"Thanks…"
"And you saved Ken," Supergirl continued, "So… thank you."
Superboy gave a small smile. "No problem. I'd do it again in a heartbeat."
The awkward silence came back. Superboy scratched the back of his neck.
"I think I'll be heading home—"
"You're not like her," Supergirl interrupted.
"Excuse me?"
"You're not like Galatea," Supergirl said, "She made a choice to be a murderer… you chose to be a hero. I treated you terribly because I let my own past experiences influence me. I'm sorry, Conner. I am so, so sorry…"
To Superboy's surprise, a few tears slid down Supergirl's cheeks; after a moment's hesitation, he stepped forward and hugged her.
"It's okay, Aunt Kara," he said, "There's nothing to forgive."
Supergirl hugged him back, then leaned back and smiled. "I don't think you've ever called me Aunt Kara before."
Superboy smiled back. "I don't think you've ever called me Conner before."
"I could get used to it."
"Me too."
Supergirl gave her nephew—and now, she really did consider him family—one more hug, then stepped away.
"I'm going to go check on Ken, okay? You should go home; you've had a rough day."
"I will, Aunt Kara," Superboy promised.
Just as he was headed to the teleporter, there was a vibration in his pocket; he pulled out the container of Shields, which now had a set of coordinates, and the words 'meet me here' projected via hologram at the top. Superboy winced; in the wake of his reconciliation with Supergirl, he'd almost forgotten about what he'd learned of his origin—a secret he would never tell anyone.
He pulled out his cell phone and dialed a number; a moment later, Lois Lane-Kent answered.
"Hello?"
"Hi, Mom," Superboy said, "I might be a little late getting home; I want to take Sphere out for a flight, get some fresh air."
"Okay, honey," Lois said, "Just be back before ten, okay?"
"Sure," Superboy said, then hung up and called out for Sphere; a moment later, the New Genesphere rolled up to him.
"Come on, girl," he said, "We've got somewhere to be."
…
"So, anyone got any cards or something?" Barry asked as he adjusted the ice-pack on his head, "I'm bored."
"Don't you have games on your phone or something?" Artemis asked back as she poked at the stitches on her forehead.
"I'm seeing double right now, so that makes that hard."
"And playing cards is any better?"
"What are they saying?" Rex asked loudly; the shockwave that had taken him and Valerie out of commission had ruptured their eardrums, and both of them now had what looked like metal earmuffs on their heads that were repairing the damage, though for the moment, they were deaf.
Rachel pulled out her phone and typed out the conversation for him, getting a laugh from everyone else.
Ken leaned back on his cot, trying not to disturb Valerie, who had just fallen asleep while sitting on his lap; when her eardrums had been ruptured, she'd become very dizzy and had decided the best place to stay was with Ken, who hadn't minded.
"So, Red," he said, raising an eyebrow at Red Arrow, "You still think someone on the Team is a traitor?"
Red Arrow paused at the looks he was getting from most of the Team; the only ones not glaring at him were Samantha and Victor, who were busy repairing the latter's arm. Even M'gann was giving the red-clad archer the stink-eye.
"I did," Red Arrow admitted, "I thought that anyone who I didn't know about was a potential threat. I thought that none of you were really trustworthy. But today, I saw every one of you risk your lives to help each other and stop Galatea."
He held out his hand to Artemis, the first person he ever suspected; with a smile, she accepted and shook the offered hand.
"He dares take the hand of a suspected traitor," she commented.
"You're not a traitor," Red Arrow said, "None of you are. There is no mole."
That got smiles and laughs from most of the Team; however, when Ken shifted an arm so that he could wave goodbye when Red Arrow left, he accidentally woke up Valerie.
"Muh? What happened?" she asked groggily, blinking until she could focus on Ken's face.
"I'll tell you later," Ken said, kissing her forehead, "Go back to sleep."
Valerie blinked. "What did he say?"
…
Gotham, 19:56 EST
Superboy scowled as the Super-Cycle landed in a dirty alley in Gotham. The scowl wasn't because of the filth and graffiti; it was because of the man in green power armor waiting in the shadows.
"Glad to see you made it," Luthor said.
Superboy pulled the container of Shields out of his pocket. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't shove this up your—"
"Because you still have questions," Luthor cut in smoothly, "The biggest one on your mind is probably 'why did I help you?', correct?"
"Galatea," Superboy said with narrowed eyes, "You couldn't control her, and you didn't want Hamilton spilling information about you, but you also didn't want to chance that Galatea might actually choose our side."
Luthor actually smiled. "Quite the clever boy, aren't you? Yes, though I could have had Hamilton killed at any time, I wanted Galatea to have no more ties to anyone, making her more susceptible to my suggestions."
"You wanted her to attack us at Genesis," Superboy realized, "You wanted me to find the Shields. Why?"
"Haven't you been wondering who the other side of your DNA belongs to?" Luthor asked, "One half belongs to Superman, of course, but the other half… well, you're looking at the donor right now."
For a moment, Superboy was dizzy with this revelation. Lex Luthor, arguably one of the greatest villains in history… was his other father?
"No, that… I don't believe it!"
"Your belief isn't required," Luthor said, and there was a hint of something—affection? Sadness?—that crossed his face. "It's still true."
Superboy held out the Shields. "Take them back!"
Luthor shook his head. "Consider them a gift. One from a father… to his son."
Superboy grabbed the front of Luthor's armor, crumpling it. "Don't call me—"
"Red Sun," Luthor said, and then everything went black.
When Superboy came to, he was standing in the exact same spot; Luthor was gone, but a chunk of his armor remained in Superboy's fist. Apparently, he'd been unable to loosen the clone's grip, so he'd settled for leaving a piece behind.
Superboy pulled out his phone to check the time; he'd been frozen for a full hour!
"Two words and he shut me down," Superboy sighed, "What else could he make me do?"
He glanced down at the container of Shields, still in his other hand; he scowled at the thought of who they came from. He reached back to throw the container as far as he could…
And froze. Without the Shields, he wouldn't have been able to beat Galatea. What if some other threat came around, and the Team needed the power of Superman?
He hated himself for doing it, but he put the container back in his pocket. As he hopped back onto the Super-Cycle, who had dutifully waited nearby, he thought about all that had happened today—find out he was only half-Kryptonian, the Shields, about him and Luthor—and decided he would keep it to himself.
He had the love of Superman and Lois, of his cousins, his girlfriend, his friends, and finally, Supergirl. If they found out that half of him came from Lex Luthor…
No, he thought fiercely, nobody can ever know.
You know what's really weird? Nobody ever guessed that Galatea would come back for this chapter. I practically gave it away last chapter; did no one remember Ben 10: Unlimited?
Anyway, a couple of things to talk about:
First, Galatea: this is the only time she'll show up in the Unlimited Justice trilogy, so I hope you enjoyed it. This whole chapter had been in the works since the beginning; I really wanted Galatea to come back. I liked her as a villain.
Killing Hamilton: I kinda wanted Hamilton to be obsessed with taking his 'daughter' somewhere safe; however, said daughter didn't want to be hidden away somewhere, she wanted vengeance. Pro tip: if you want to live a long and happy life, don't tell someone who enjoys killing and can shoot lasers from her eyes that she can't kill anymore. So yeah, he's dead now. Sorry.
Waller: I thought I'd make her the League's new liaison, as a bit of a nod to an episode of Justice League Unlimited. I'll have her show up once or twice more throughout the series. I like the idea of her being a good guy, just one that all the other good guys want to kill.
The fate of the Genomorphs: how come the show didn't touch on what happened to them? The comics might have, but I haven't read them. I thought that having them join the Justice League as support would be kind of cool. I mean, what if every building in a city collapsed? They could just send in the G-Trolls to help with rescue.
Supergirl reconciling with Superboy: I've been wanting to do this for a while. I was waiting for this chapter for Supergirl to realize that Superboy isn't an evil psycho; he's a teenage boy who wants to belong in a family. I hope you liked them accepting each other.
Red Arrow not being a jackass at the end: I had Red Arrow in this chapter because I'm not doing 'Performance'. Having him see a bunch of people who stood no chance against a Kryptonian who wasn't holding back risk their lives for each other would make anyone but the biggest idiot see reason. As much as he's a jackass and I want to punch him, Red Arrow isn't stupid.
Superboy's origins: I'll admit, I kept that part fairly close to canon, except that unlike the show's Superboy, this one has more Kryptonian DNA. This is because there have been Kryptonian clones in the past, so I'm assuming that the scientists had more of an idea what they were doing.
Next time: Artemis finds that her darkest secret may be revealed; what will she sacrifice to prevent that?
Muffins, they can really move! Muffins, they've got an attitude!