Story: A Hero by Any Other Name: The Chloe Collins Chronicles

Rating: T for language and adult themes.

Main Characters: Chloe Sullivan (Smallville), Bruce Wayne/Batman (JL Animated Series/Dark Knight Trilogy), Oliver Queen/Green Arrow (Smallville), Clark Kent/Superman (Smallville/JL Animated Series)

Note: This story is AU of Smallville. Will try my best to stick to Smallville Canon until Season 10 Episode 1, Lazarus and will throw in references to the wider DCU. The story line follows Justice League the Animated Series: Secret Origins and is my alternate take on how the Justice League forms.


Chapter 7-Invaders, Welcome to Earth

~Rome: Flash & Green Lantern~

"You guys are totally no fun!" Flash complained as he skidded to a halt after his quick run to Rome.

"This isn't supposed to be fun. We're saving the world here." Green Lantern pointed out. Surveying the scene in front of him to start contemplating strategies.

Flash grumbled something about being able to do both before doing a quick loop around the parameter.

"Looks like they secured a parameter, all the civilian's are out but there are now three "Walkers" to deal with." He reported back.

Green Lantern nodded.

"Soooo, how do you know Chloe?" Flash asked nonchalantly leaning against a turned over car.

"We're really making small talk right now?"

"It's not small talk. It's important, she died. Like gone, we had a funeral and everything. Then 5 years later she pops up and happens to bring in three new heroes who failed to have ever met her. You gotta give me something here."

"One, I don't have to give you anything. Two, we're kind of in the middle of something so this little heart-to-heart is low on my priority list. Three, I didn't know she was Chloe, she was a random girl who I owed a favor to. Didn't know there was a history."

Lies Green Lantern thought to himself. Sure he didn't know that she was Chloe Sullivan, the former Watchtower that was mentioned every once in a while in hushed tones or absentmindedly brought up before someone quickly changed the subject.

He didn't know who she was, but he did know she wasn't Sally Prescott. He also knew that she had some ties to other heroes and that if she gave you help, you never mentioned that it came from her.

He knew all that whenever he teamed up with Flash or Superman or Green Arrow, but frankly, Sally or Chloe or whatever name she was going by that week had been there for him always. From the moment that ring chose him, she was there and she always gave her support. He didn't know her name, but he knew her, and it was her that his loyalty lied. No questions asked.

Flash just nodded, "Chloe has a way of collecting favors, doesn't she."

"Let's focus on the task at hand, shall we?" Green Lantern suggested returning his attention to the Invaders.

"You got it." Flash zipped off Lantern following quickly behind him.

~Sydney: Batman & Superman~

Superman touched down with Batman in tow across from the Sydney Opera House.

"Sorry the flight can be a little rough if you're not used to it." Superman said apologetically

Batman showed no weakness though and just grunted. He turned towards the alien structure rising high in the distance pulling out his binoculars to observe the situation they'd be facing.

"Right side, a quarter of the way down. There seems to be a shuttle bay. That's our opening."

Superman zoomed in on the area with his X-Ray vision. "Looks like 5 guards once we get inside. Also don't know if we get past the walkers on our way in."

"You think going from the inside is the best option?" Superman questioned.

"Well, considering how well the direct approach worked in Metropolis. Yes."

"Listen, can we talk about something for a second?"

Batman raised an eyebrow at the blue clad hero.

Really, he wants to do this now? Batman thought.

"You've been working with Chloe." Superman didn't ask, it was a statement.

Batman gave no response.

"I know Arrow went to you for help. He told you we lost her, shared the files from Flag. Asked you to help us find her…"

"He never asked me to find her. He said Watchtower was dead. He said she took Cyanide."

"And you took the information he gave you and confirmed that she took the pills. You gave us the documents that proved. Then she shows up here. How long has she been in Gotham, how long have you kept her from us?" Clark was angry, no he wasn't angry, he was furious.

He was mad at Batman, he was mad at Chloe, he was mad at himself. Oliver had said it wasn't true, had told him they needed to find her, and Clark had ignored him. More than that, he had not only denied Oliver's claims but in that argument had ruined one of his truest friendships. Oliver and he had never recovered from it.

Batman sighed. "I never said she was dead. I handed over the evidence I found and frankly it was the most logical conclusion that she took her own life. All the records pointed to it, she had the pills and she used them. I gave Queen the information I found."

"Did you know then?" Superman questioned.

"No."

"When did you find out?"

"I became suspicious after our run-in with Joker. I never confirmed it." Batman answered honestly. He understood the anguish Superman was going through, and he knew that if the roles were reversed, he'd have clocked the man before him cold.

"What do you mean you never confirmed it? You're Batman. You confirm everything."

"It wasn't my business."

"Wasn't your business? Are you serious right now? A girl might have come back from the dead and it's not your business to check it out, but you come to Metropolis and it's your business to track me down and confirm my identity. I don't get that at all Bruce." Superman huffed in complete disbelief. How the hell was this happening.

"Careful there Clark. Do I have to remind you that you broke the code first. Besides, there are certain secrets that aren't yours to tell, you should know that, Chloe certainly does." Bruce didn't need to be reprimanded by Clark freakin' Kent on ethics and honor. Not when the alien looked under his mask within 3 minutes of meeting him.

Clark glared at the masked millionaire. "This wasn't your call to make, you should have…"

"You're right, it wasn't my call to make, it was Chloe's. Don't you think that if you were supposed to know she was alive, she would have told you herself? I don't know all the details Clark, out of necessity I dug as far as I needed to confirm her story and determine if I could trust her. Out of respect I went no further. Having said that, I know enough to know that any issues you have right now can be taken up with Chloe, not me."

Batman went back to his observation of the factory, putting an end to the conversation. At least that was his intention.

"Is she okay? Is she happy now?" Batman looked back at the Kryptonian and even without the glasses he saw Clark Kent, concerned friend instead of the man of steel he was meant to be in that moment.

Bruce nodded, "She's okay."

"You're taking care of her?"

"She doesn't need anyone to take care of her. But when she needs help, I'll always be there." Batman said firmly. But it wasn't Batman anymore, it was Bruce Wayne giving his word to Clark Kent that he would keep Chloe safe.

Clark nodded. "Good."

And the moment was over. Bruce slipped back into his Batman persona. Clark returned to focus on the threat, determination in his eyes.

"Okay, let's do this." he said before taking off into the air.

~ Arrow & Diana~

"You have an invisible plane?" Oliver asked the Amazon as he stared at nothing in front of him.

Where do these people come from? Oliver thought.

The Amazon nodded, "Watch your head." She warned and continued to walk towards...the woods?

"Listen, Princess…" Oliver tried to follow her except he smacked his head against something hard.

Grasping his head he stumbled back cursing.

"I told you, hold on a second." She disappeared and then suddenly a jet materialized in front of him.

Oliver let out a whistle, "Where has this technology been?"

"Themyscira" she responded simply. "Let's go."

Oliver took up the copilot seat. "So, I bet this gives a whole new meaning to 'dude where's my car?'" he joked.

"I don't have a car."

Oliver nodded to himself. "Right."

They sat in silence for most of the flight. Oliver turning his thoughts back to Chloe.

Chloe alive, Chloe showing up with help. Chloe apparently knowing other heroes and calling them into action…

"So, how do you know Chloe?" he asked, voicing his stream of consciousness.

"Chloe provided a great service to my sisters. She helped to recover a relic that was stolen off our Island."

"Really?" Oliver asked, wondering when in hell Chloe had managed to stumble upon a random Greek Island that was hidden from man.

Then again, it's been almost 5 years. Who the hell knows where Chloe's been in that time.

"Yes, I was tracking the thief in Paris when Chloe determined that I was not…" Diana paused for a moment, "I believe she said that I wasn't an average tourist. Anyway, she offered her assistance, she was aware of the thief and their previous crimes. She was able to determine what their next move would be and that gave me the opportunity to retrieve it."

Oliver nodded during the story. Of course Chloe would just stumble onto a mission and offer assistance. That's what Chloe does afterall.

Or did.

"She was a great help. She showed courage, compassion, and characteristics admired by the gods."

"She also offered her friendship to me. Helping me navigate this world that I am not familiar with. Showing me the value in all life, and the gems in man's world. She made me realize that not everything happens within the confines of my Island. There are people here that are trying to live their lives to the fullest, and sometimes they need help. When she called me to help defend against the invasion I had to come."

Oliver sat in silence, taking everything the princess said into his heart before sending it to his head for analysis. He let the warmth of Chloe's steadfast belief that everyone was worth saving flow over him. He was familiar with her speech about responsibility and justice, he'd been at the receiving end of the impassioned plea to step-up and be the hero that she knew he could be.

It seemed that those speeches were not reserved for him. He allowed a moment of bitterness to fill him before quickly dismissing it.

Chloe was a beacon of hope and not just for him. He knew that if a hero ever needed a pep-talk, a villain ever needed a reason to reflect, or if a man ever needed motivation to face down his inner-demons, Chloe would be there to offer support and guidance.

His Watchtower, always the beacon to bring heroes home.

His Watchtower.

He needed to be more careful with thoughts like that. It was one thing to still think of Chloe as his when she was gone. When there was no way that she would ever come back to the living and her presence would be in the memories he held of her.

Now though, now she was here as a full-bodied, breathing, woman who had apparently carried on her life without him. She wasn't his anymore.

Let's also not forget your girlfriend that would kick your ass for the fact that despite an alien invasion taking place, you have not thought of her wellbeing once.

And then a familiar feeling took over Oliver. Guilt. It washed over him fully, finding all the empty holes, nooks and crannies and filling them until he thought he'd explode.

He breathed deeply. Navigating the sea of emotion that had become a staple in his life. After years of practice he knew the path to swim out of the pools of dread that collected in his stomach and he knew how to pull himself up to tread water. He would not drown in the what-ifs and dark thoughts. The blame he laid on himself would be a burden to deal with another day. Now, Now he had a mission.

He pulled himself out of his thoughts and turned his attention back to Princess Diana.

"Okay, here's the plan."

~Metropolis: Chloe & Victor~

Chloe took a breath as the team dispersed to complete their various tasks.

Okay, that went better than I expected. Chloe thought, but she supposed the backdrop of an alien invasion probably helped to move any misgivings about her return to the back-burner.

She turned her attention to Victor.

"So, should we go fix a satellite?" She asked casually. Victor just grinned, "Chloe Sullivan, always right down to business."

"Yeah, well I guess some things don't change. Though I haven't gone by Sullivan in a long time."

"Yes, I'd like to hear about what you've been going by later. Right now, let's get over to QI."

Chloe nodded and followed Vic down the stairs and to the elevator.

Right when she was determining the best way to get to the QI tower across town a car zoomed up to stop in front of the entrance to the office building they had been occupying.

"Nice wheels." Chloe commented.

"Perks of working for a billionaire, new toys."

Chloe nodded jumping into the passenger seat. She remembered a few other perks of working for Oliver, of course those happened to be special to her.

She opted to shake her head of those thoughts and focus on the catastrophe at hand. She would have time to wallow and reflect after this mess was over.

She pulled out her laptop from the bag she kept with her and began tapping into the CCTV around where the Invaders factory had landed in Metropolis. Best way to keep an eye on it while they worked.

Victor did not say a word as they sped across town avoiding the abandoned cars and traffic cones. A couple times he had to make detours to avoid police barricades but overall they made good time to the tower.

"The military has arrived." Chloe pointed out from her seat surveying the scene on her computer.

"Excellent, as we know matters always tend to work themselves out when the military gets involved." Cyborg responded sarcastically.

Chloe smirked, "Isn't it the military that pays for most of your paycheck?" she questioned absentmindedly as she was busy hacking into said military computer systems in the hope of someone having something before the satellites were cut off.

Cyborg did not say anything as they pulled up to the front of QI Tower Metropolis. Chloe went to get out of the car but Cyborg was staring her down.

"You know about my QI projects." He stated.

Chloe paused only a moment. She had gotten used to telling lies, they had become second nature to her, but this was Vic. Vic who used to badger her on her coding logs and would bring pizza for movie night.

So she paused for a second before she said, "QI has always dealt in government contracts, especially with the military, and with Oliver's public announcement as Green Arrow anytime a contract is signed it makes national news. I've been hiding yes, but not under a rock."

She moved around the car heading towards the building. They still had a job to do, despite her slip.

"I didn't ask how you know about QI contracts." Cyborg pointed out holding the door open for her.

The building seemed deserted, Chloe assumed that like most of the city, the employees had evacuated after the meteor hit.

Cyborg moved swiftly through the lobby to the elevators and hit the button to go up.

As the elevator dinged he pulled out a key card from his front chest pocket and slid it into the reader before pressing the button for the executive levels.

"You know I work for QI and you know I work on the military projects because you've kept tabs on Oliver all this time." Cyborg said without room for argument.

Chloe rolled her eyes. Fine, we're gonna lay it out there. "Please Victor, I've kept tabs on all of you."

"Of course you did." Victor said, more to himself than to Chloe.

"Listen, I understand why you did what you did. Why you had to leave. But why'd you stay away for so long?"

"It was too dangerous to come back." Chloe said, then reconsidered and continued, "and you guys didn't need me anymore."

"Why'd you come back now?"

"Because now you do."


Author's Note: Just a quick emotional check-in chapter to hold you over. Once again I need to learn how to write action sequences so bear with me. Lot's of love to you all!

~Intrepid Reporter