Hey, guys! So this is the official start to our story! I hope you guys like it! More details will be posted at the end of the story!
I do not own Young Justice. I only own my Oc.
St. Roch, LA|11:00 am CST July 4th, 2010
"Today's the day," I screamed with delight as I dodge ice beams being shot in my direction. "And what can be a better way to start than beating the crap out of this guy!"
Hearing a chuckle right above me as I fly, I notice Hawkwoman sharing in my delight. Neither one of us could help it since it's simply in our culture to fight. Honestly, the thrill and the rush that comes with different battles is something I'll never get used to.
"Since it is the day, do you want to have the honors of taking him out?" My mentor asked me as we avoid another barrage of ice attacks. I simply nod my head as I change directions to fight our current foe.
On our way to the Hall of Justice, we received a call from our local authorities about an attack downtown. Minister Blizzard, a small-time villain, decided to 'cause a scene by freezing innocent bystanders. Obviously, the Hawks were called in to deal with the issue since they're the only heroes in this area. However, what bothers me is the fact that Minister Blizzard usually annoys Wonder Woman, who's stationed in D.C. So, why is he here?
"Eh, who cares," I shrug to myself as I pull my wings closer to my body. This, in turn, helps me gain speed as I race towards the old man. Finding an opening, I swoop down on his left side and swing my mace at his stomach. By the time I fully land, Minister Blizard is unconscious a few feet away from me from the force of my hit.
"Nicely done," Hawkwoman states as she lands right beside me. "I suppose you are ready, War Hawk."
"It's about time!"
Washington D.C.|July 4th, 13:45 EDT
By the time the Hall of Justice comes into view, half of our group has already arrived. Batman, Green Arrow, Robin, and Speedy. Landing beside them, Hawkwoman immediately nudges me with her wing towards the Bat. Earlier, when we were handing Minister Blizzard to the cops, she told me since I dealt the finishing blow, it was up to me to give the report. This is supposed to teach me responsibility, or something like that.
"Hey, Bats, sorry we're late, you know how it is," I told the older hero. "It's been a busy morning for us. We had to answer a call against Minster Blizzard."
"Another," Green Arrow muttered, coming to stand next to the Bat as he leaves his protege behind. "That's three in one day."
"A pattern," Batman grunted before turning to my mentor. "Have you heard from the others?"
"Not yet, but knowing them, it won't take too long until they get here… Well, at least the Atlantians will be here soon."
"Agreed, in the meantime, we'll have to wait to discuss this further."
Understanding this is my silent cue to leave, I walk away from the group of adults. Instead, I make my way to Robin and Speedy. Waving at the two as I approach.
"What's up?"
"Hey, War, what took you so long," Robin asked as we fist bump. "I thought birds are supposed to be fast.
"So are speedsters but not a single one is here yet," I joked as I ruffle the boys' hair. He slaps my hand away in playful annoyance as I turn my attention to the taller boy next to him. "I've been fighting since I put my uniform on this morning and from what it seems, I'm not the only one with an exciting start."
"No, but you did just make mine better," Speedy says as he hugs me. He lingers for a second before he lets go. "So, where's Hawkman?"
I only hesitate for a second before answering, "Probably on Monitor duty. Today is his turn, so I probably won't be seeing him anytime soon."
"Well, least we won't have a crowd."
"Uh, I might disagree with you there," Robin said, pointing to a figure in the distance. "Here comes Aqualad."
Turning, I notice the tall Atlantian making his way to us while his mentor joins the rest of the group. As I watch him near, an unsuspecting smile crosses my face. Honestly, he is so fine! It's a wonder I'm able to speak to him without making a complete fool of myself. The only one who knows about my crush on the dark-skin boy is Robin since he doesn't know how to mind his own business. Still, it doesn't matter due to the Atlantian's crush on a former classmate of his, Tula…
"Hey, Aqualad," I smile at the approaching figure. "You beat KF here."
"I'm not surprised," He smiles in return as he shakes his head. "I've never seen him appear until after the fact… unless foods involved."
All of us snicker just thinking about the goofy and laid-back missing teenager. It's an inside joke among the entire league to never expect a speedster to arrive on time. If the meeting is super important, make sure you lie to the Flashes about what time it's supposed to start. Originally, ours was supposed to start at 13:00, but due to the morning we've been experiencing, it hasn't been that easy to stay on time. For this reason alone, none of us are blaming the speed duo for their late appearance. Although, if they don't arrive soon we might start without them.
"Hey, Aqualad, did you fight a cold villain?" Robin asked as he pulled up a Holo-monitor from his wrist.
"Yes, I'm assuming by your question that the three of you have as well."
"Four," Speedy corrected, pointing to Robins Holo-screen. On the screen, we see KF and Flash handing Captain Cold over to Central City police officers. "Busy morning, huh?"
"I wonder why of all days, the cold villains decide to attack simultaneously today?"
"Not to mention some of their weird placements," Robin states, pulling the pictures up for the four of us to see. "I understand Captain Cold and Mr. Freeze, but the rest never even venture to their captured areas."
"Perhaps-"
"We'll have time to discuss that later," Batman said, cutting over Aqualad. "In the meantime let's begin."
Washington D.C.|July 4th, 14:00 EDT
Understanding what this meant, the four of us lined up beside our mentors as they introduced us to our future.
"Today is the day."
"Welcome to the Hall of justice!" Green Arrow exclaimed to us, pride shining through him.
"Headquarters of the Justice League."
"Your starting line to becoming League members," Hawkwoman adds as she gently places a hand on my shoulder. However, before anyone could say anything else, steaks of red and yellow appear beside us.
"Oh, man!" Kid Flash begins to whine. "I knew we would be the last ones here!"
"As Wonder Woman likes to say," Hawkwoman says before curling her lips in disgust. "Men."
Pushing me forward with her wing, the two of us start to walk down the hill towards the Hall of Justice. Soon enough the boys all appear by my side. KF tries to stand next to me but Speedy pushes him out of the way. Aqualad quickly takes the space on my right side, forcing KF to give up and stand next to Robin who's in front of us. As we near the Hall, groups of tourists line up behind the ropes to take a closer look at us.
"Is that Batman?"
"Look it's the Hawks! Wait, where's Hawkman?"
"I see Flash and Flash Jr!"
"His name is Speedy. Duh!"
"No, Speedy is Green Arrow's sidekick."
"Well that makes no sense"
"I agree," Whispering to my friends. "You guys might wanna think about a name change."
"It's not my fault they can't remember my name!"
"Technically it is, dufus!"
Green Arrow chuckles at my comment before directing his attention to his protege, "Ready to see the inner sanctum?"
"Born that way."
"I'm glad we're all here," comments Aqualad, and I can't help but agree. After all the ups and downs we had to go through to get to this moment, it almost seems unbelievable.
"Have all five sidekicks ever been at the same place?" Kid asked no one in particular. "At the same time?"
"Don't call us sidekicks, not after today"
"Geez, Speedy, calm down," I grumble at the hot-head as I smack his bicep. "It's the first time any of us have been to the Hall. Some of us are a bit overwhelmed by the experience."
"You guys are overwhelmed, Freeze was underwhelmed. Why isn't anybody ever just whelmed?" Robin muttered as we stepped inside of the building. Upon entering a look of astonishment replaced his look of annoyance. "Oh, maybe that's why..."
"What's wrong boy blunder," I snicker at the smaller teen, pushing him forward. "You look a bit pale."
"shut up..."
As the group continues to walk, The Martian Man-Hunter and Red Tornado appear before us to greet us. Welcoming us inside, the five of us follow the green alien along with our mentors to the inner sanctum.
"You now have unlimited access to the gym, our fully stocked gallery, and of course our library," The Martian informs us as the adults gather around Batman.
"Make yourselves at home," Flash states with his arms wide open. Preferring to stand rather than sitting, I offer my seat to Aqualad. I remain by his side as our younger friends take up the remaining seats.
"Quick debrief to discuss the coincidence of four Ice Villains attacking the same day," Batman calls out to us. "We shouldn't be long."
The group turns to another opening behind them where all of the members of the league are scanned in. After the scan confirms each member, the team sets to depart to their next destination when Speedy interrupts them.
"That's it? You promised us a real look inside, not a glorified backstage pass."
"It's the first step," Aquaman says, trying to calm the younger hero. "You've been granted access few others get"
"Oh, really? Who cares which side of the glass we're on?!"
Wanting to defuse the situation as quickly as possible, GA steps in to speak to his protege. "Roy, you just need to be patient."
"What I need is respect!" Speedy sharply replies before turning to the rest of us. "They're treating us like kids. Worse, like sidekicks! We deserve better than this."
Expecting a reply, Speedy waits for a moment until to his surprise, he receives none. KF, Robin, Aqualad, and I remain silent as we watch our older friend flounders about. Sure, we would love to be apart of the meeting, but it's not our place. If anything, the more Roy argues with the League, I suspect the less they'll want us to join. He might ruin our opportunity for future missions.
"You're kidding, right? You're playing their game! Why?! Today was supposed to be the day, step one in becoming full-fledged members of the League."
"Well, sure, but I thought step one was the tour of the HQ," Kid Flash replied to the older teen.
"Except the Hall isn't the League's real HQ. I bet they never told you it's just a false front for tourists and a pit stop for catching Zeta-beam teleporter tubes to the real thing, an orbiting satellite called the watchtower."
Shocked, I look to my mentor, but a subtle shake of her head warned me to stay silent. Luckily, my reaction was lost within the glares being directed to Green Arrow and his big mouth. Funny how he's dating Canary, yet his voice is the one that does the most damage.
"I know, I know, but I thought we could make an exception," GA explained to Batman, but one glare from the Dark Knight made the answer clear. "Or not."
"You're not helping your cause here, son," Aquaman told Speedy. "Stand down or-"
"Or what? You'll send me to my room? And I'm not your son! I'm not even his. I thought I was his partner, but not anymore," Speedy declares as he throws down his hat, signaling the end of his and Green Arrow's partnership. As Roy begins to walk away, he speaks again, but this time it's directed to the four of us, "Guess they were right about you three. You're not ready."
I would have been shocked by what he said had it not been the fact I was roughly grabbed by the hand a moment later. I heard a roar of anger behind me and I knew my mentor was not happy with the scene currently unfolding in front of her. I don't have to look behind me to know the men surrounding her must be holding Hawkwoman back from harming Roy. Before the situation can get worse, I release myself from his grasp. The confusion on his face matches mine as we stare each other down.
"What are you doing?" Roy asked me as he tried to grab my hand once again. Taking a step back from him, Roy's confusion soon turns into anger and then denial. "No, not you too."
"Roy-"
"I expected better from you, War Hawk. I thought you would understand better than anyone else what it's like and how I felt! You know they're treating us like children instead of their partners. You understand how it feels to be pulled in every direction instead of the place you want to go!"
"Roy, I-"
"You even knew about the Watch Tower before I did! GA told me!"
A series of yells erupted behind me and I can feel my wings drooping against my will at the sound of my friend's voices. However, it's not my fault that I knew the truth about the Watch Tower.
"Enough!" Hawkwoman yelled as she stormed towards us. However, before she could any closer to us I held my arm out to stop her. Hawkwoman stilled as she searched my face for an answer before taking a step back.
"You're right, Roy," I announce to the entire room of heroes. "I do know about the Watch Tower, but that doesn't mean I agree with you and what you're doing right now. If you want to leave everything behind then go for it, but don't drag me down with you."
Crossing my arms, I stare my old friend down, hoping he would make the right choice. Sadly, he didn't as he continued on his way out the door. I didn't bother watching him go as I walk to Hawkwoman who gently pats my head. Suddenly, before anyone can say a word, an alarm begins to blare overhead. All of the League members make their way to the computer where Superman appears in front of them. Not wanting to miss anything, the rest of us stand not too far behind the group of Leaguers.
"Superman to Justice League. There's been an explosion at Project Cadmus. It's on fire"
"I've had my suspicions about Cadmus," Batman states the group. "This may present the perfect opportunity to in-"
"Zatara to Justice League. The sorcerer Wotan is using the amulet of Attan to blot out the sun. Requesting full League response!"
"Superman?"
"It's a small fire. Local authorities have it under control"
"Then Cadmus can wait. All Leaguers rendezvous at Zatara's coordinates. Batman out," The dark crusader orders before redirecting his attention to us. "Stay put."
"What? Why?" Robin asked his mentor, however, it's Aquaman who answers him.
"This is a League mission-"
"You're not trained," Flash tries to finish for the other man, but his own protege interrupts him.
"Since when?"
Being annoyed by the back talk, Hawkwoman responds next, "He meant you're not trained to work with the League."
"There will be other missions when you're ready," Aquaman adds as Batman steps forward once again.
"But for now, stay put."
One by one the Leaguers leaves the common room through another door that they were scanned earlier. There was only a moment of silence before KF begins to throw a fit. "When we're ready? How are we ever supposed to be ready when they treat us, like-like sidekicks!"
"My mentor, my king, I thought he trusted me"
"Trust? They don't even trust us with the basics! They've got a secret HQ in space!"
"What else aren't they telling us?"
"I don't know, maybe we should ask War Hawk," KF yells, throwing his arms up in the air as he looks at me. "She seems to know everything!"
I click my tongue in agitation as I round on the younger hero, "Shut up, Kid! You act as if you know the whole story!"
"Then what is the whole story," Robin inquired with an inquisitive look. "How did you find out, and why didn't you tell us?"
"...I found out through GL," I muttered to the group of boys. Apparently, this wasn't enough since they continued to look at me with a hint of suspicion in there eyes so I went on with the story. "Remember when I told you boys, I went to Oa to train with the Green Lanterns? Well, that's when I found out about the Watch Tower. Kilowog accidentally let it slip because he thought I had seen it when I left Earth to Oa. What he didn't know is that Green Lantern took a detour to make sure I didn't find out it existed. When GL found out that I knew he made me swear not to tell anyone except the Hawks that I found out about it."
"Oh.. well, you should have-"
"I should have what KF?!" I growled, my wings puffing out in anger. "You boys know how difficult my home life is. I didn't want to add to the fire!"
"It is alright, War," Aqualad said as he puts a hand on my shoulder. "We understand you were put in a difficult situation."
"Thanks, Aqualad."
"Well, now that we have the answer to that, I have one question left," Robin told the group. "Why didn't we leave with Speedy?"
"Because Speedy is a hot-headed dummy," I replied flatly to the boy wonder. "Listen, I'm as annoyed as the rest of you about our current situation, but walking out of here with Speedy would have done us more harm than good."
"Says the favorite," the red-head teased as he wiggles his eyebrow. I push the boy off of me with a flap of my right-wing. "Ugh!"
"What is Project Cadmus?" Aqualad asked the group, bringing us to a new topic.
"Don't know but I can find out," Robin replied. Walking to the computer Robin begins to type away as we stand behind him. At first, his access to the files is denied but the boy makes quick work hacking into the software.
"Whoa," KF mutters in astonishment. "How are you doing that."
"The same system as the Batcave," Robin grins as he successfully finds the file he's been searching for. "All right, Project Cadmus. Genetics lab here in D.C... That's all there is, but if Batman's suspicious, maybe we should investigate."
"Solve their case before they do," Aqualad says as he follows Robin's train of thought. "It would be poetic justice."
"Hey, they're all about justice!"
"But they said stay put."
"For the blotting out the sun mission, not this."
"Wait," Kid Flash says as he pulls Robin closer to him in excitement. "Are you going to Cadmus? Because if you're going, I'm going!"
The two turn to face us with matching foolish smiles. Still, against my wishes, a smirk of my own begins to form on my face. "Why not, it sounds like fun."
"Not you too," Aqualad groans. "I had hoped you would put an end to this."
"Not a chance," I grinned at the taller teen, moving closer to him until our faces are a couple of inches apart. "You coming?"
Aqualad grins in return, and with that, we're all in agreement to head out. After getting the address of the genetics lab we make our way to Cadmus. As we arrive, an explosion sounds, and two scientists are thrown out of the building. Kid Flash races off to help them but somehow makes the situation worse. He grabs both men and brings them to the rooftop instead of the ground. As he does this KF loses momentum and begins to fall. Luckily, he grabs the window ledge from the second story before he can reacquaint himself with the ground.
"It's what's his name," A firefighter calls out to his teammates. "Flash boy!"
Laughing from our hiding spots, Robin and I make fun of the poor boys' inability to make a good entrance. Aqualad, on the other hand, does not share in our fun.
"Does he always have to run ahead? We need a plan. We-...Robin?"
Rather than talking, I point in the direction of the other boy. Aqualad groans in frustration as he face palms. Not wanting to waste any more time, I clear my throat to gather his attention.
"I'll grab the scientist while you help the firefighters. The last thing I want is to die a fiery explosion or have you die of dehydration."
I give him a moment to approve the plan before flying off. As I near the building, the scientist begin to go in a frenzy as they call for help. I ensure my speed is slow enough to not injure the men when I grab them. Quickly, I round back to the firefighters and Aqualad just as the Atlantian puts out the fire. After I put the men down I reassure the firefighters that we would look for anyone else in the building as they block off the area. Finally, Aqualad and I follow KF and Robin into the building.
"We appreciated the help," Aqualad jeered at the two remaining boys.
"You guys handled it," Robin pointed out. "Besides we're here to investigate. Poetic justice, remember?"
"Yeah, tell that to the men you two left on the rooftop," I snarked at the boy, before noticing we're one member short. "Hey, where's Aqualad-"
Just then I heard the sound of an elevator going off in the distance. Running into the hall with Kid Flash right behind me, I encounter a bewilder Aqualad muttering how he saw something in the elevator.
"Elevators should be locked down," Kid Flash remarked as Robin ran past us. We follow the younger hero to the elevator to find out what he can dig up.
"This is wrong," Robin states as he pulls up the schematics of the elevator. "Thought so. This is a high-speed express elevator. It doesn't belong in a two-story building"
"Neither does what I saw," Aqualad states, prying the doors open to reveal what's hiding on the other side. "Unh!"
"And that's why they need an express elevator," Robin mutters as all four of us stare down the abyss. Next, the boy-wonder pulls out his grappling gun and descends the shaft without another word. I'm right about to follow when an overly confident speedster pulls my attention away from the elevator.
"So how about a lift, babe," KF asked, trying to put his arm around me. Pushing him to the side with an eye-roll I shake my head at the boys' antics.
"Follow Rob, babe. I'm not your taxi."
Without waiting for a reply, I swoop down the elevator. It was a tight squeeze, but if I angle my body right, I can fit my wing diagonally down the shaft. In no time I catch up to Robin just as he reaches the end of his rope. Robin leaps to the ledge and begins to hack the software as our remaining teammates arrive.
"Bypassing security... There, go!"
Landing on the ledge, I grab the metal doors and pull them apart. Once it's open, I allow Robin to pass me as I help Aqualad and KF across the shaft since they're still clinging onto the rope.
"Welcome to Project Cadmus," Robin muttered as we examine our surroundings.
"Geez, what a dump," I mummer under my breath as Kid Flash runs in a random direction. "Kid, hold on! We don't know what's out there."
Following the boy, we soon encounter a strange sight. Enormous grey creatures, similar to the planet Zoron, are marching down the hall. The animals must have shocked Wally since trips over his two feet. I dive in to save him just as one of the beast was about to step on him. Scooping him up bridal style, I fly around the herd of animals until I make it back to our slower friends.
"Last time I checked, Earth doesn't have animals like this," I said in amazement as the ginormous creatures pass us. Before they left I noticed a smaller creature on one of the larger ones back. The horns begin to glow with an ominous red, and then they all disappear. "What was that?"
"How are we supposed to know?!" the red-head exclaimed, throwing his arms out. "We've been on Earth around the same time as you... give or take a couple of years."
"Then let's find a computer so Robin can hack the system and find the files on these... things. Oh, and this time KF, don't run off on your own. After seeing those creatures, I rather we stay together as a group."
Nodding in agreement, we start our search through the compound for a computer to use. Sadly, unlike most underground hideouts, finding one here seems almost impossible. We do our best not to come in contact with any more creatures like before, but it seems like they're everywhere. What's stranger is the different kinds we continue to run into. Some are tiny, and others around Robin's height. The only big ones we found are the elephant-like creatures we saw in the beginning.
"There has to be a computer here somewhere," I grumble to myself. "We can't just keep going in circles, we'll get caught. Is there any way we can track one down?"
"Wait a minute," Kid murmured as he zoomed back to the hallway we just left. "Guys! Over here!"
"Don't yell stupid!" Robin yelled back as he ran in his best friends' direction which in turn earned an eye-roll from Aqualad and I.
"The two seem to share a single brain cell," The Atlantian whispers to me as we make our way to the other half of the team.
"Did you just now figure that out?"
"No, but it's becoming apparent they have no clue about it."
When we finally find the duo, Kid Flash is pointing to a now open circuit board. Confused, I merely raise an eyebrow, waiting for him to explain how this is supposed to help us.
"Seriously," KF groans at us. "This is the best way to find out more information about this place."
"How is that?"
"Because we can use the circuit board to point us in the direction of the main output and input of energy. All Rob has to do is connect his USB to the port and he can find out the layout of the facility through the electrical gridlines."
"Huh... I didn't think about it that way. Alright, why not-"
"Well, while you and Aqualad were taking your sweet time," jokes the boy wonder. "I already found the main source of input here."
"Where?" Aqualad asked the shorter teen.
"Two hallways back we need to take a left."
"Let's go."
Running to our destination with Kid in the front and myself in the back, we make it to a giant steel door. Robin immediately begins to hack while the rest of us stand guard. When the doors finally open, none of us move due to the shock of the sight in front of us. On the walls are glass cages holding creatures of a different breed to the ones we found earlier. These animals are generating electricity and their appearance is vastly different. However, they have similar black markings as the enormous mammoths we saw before.
"Okay, I'm officially whelmed," Robin murmured under his breath as the four of us enter the room. "This is how they hide this massive underground facility from the world."
"The real Cadmus isn't on the grid," Kid Flash states to the group. "It generates its own power with these…things. Must be what they're bred for."
"Even the name is a clue," Aqualad points out. "The Cadmus of myth created a new race by sowing dragon's teeth into the Earth."
"And this Cadmus creates new life too," Robin says as he connects his port to the computer. "Let's find out why... They call them Genomorphs. Whoa, look at the stats on these things. Super strength, telepathy, razor claws. These are living weapons."
"They're engineering an army, but for who?" KF asked the group, but I shake my head in response.
"I don't think they were made to become someone's army."
Confused, Aqualad turns to me and inquires, "Why do you say that?"
"Look at the data on the Genomorphs. They were created some time ago and they still haven't been released against mankind."
"They could be in the testing phase?"
"I doubt it... Most likely they're bred for work. The ones we see in this room provide energy for the facility like Kid-stupid mention before, while the Mammoths move the heavier objects around for their master. Each Genome has a specific job that helps the facility run smoother than normal manual labor could supply. It seems like the ones with the razor claws are the only ones deemed as security, unless the rest are forced into the position to defend, but-.
"Wait, there's something else," Robin announces, cutting me off mid-sentence. "Project Kr. Ugh! The files are triple-encrypted. I can't-"
"Don't move!" Someone screams at us. Immediately I move into a defensive position with my mace held in front of my body. I use my wings to cover Robin and Kid Flash as Aqualad moves to stand next to me. Our opponent, however, relaxes once he sees our faces. "Wait...? Robin, Aqualad, War Hawk, Kid Flash?"
"I know you," Aqualad says slowly to the older man. "Guardian, a hero."
"I do my best," he answers smugly to us and I snarl in response.
"I don't understand," I complain to the adult. "Why are you here?"
"I'm Chief of Security. You're trespassing. But we can call the Justice League, figure this out."
"You think the League's gonna approve of you breeding weapons?" KF yells as he moves to stand beside us. Despite saying something that should be known knowledge to the past hero, Guardian seems to be confused about what Kid Flash said. It's as if he doesn't know why he would call the Genomorphs weapons. He doesn't even try to defend himself or his employers.
"Weapons? What are you...What have I...ugh, my head," Looking at the man closely, it seems as if he's to make sense of the situation. Suddenly, the creature on Guardians shoulder begins to stare at him, his horns glowing red, and Guardian's eyes glaze over in anger. "Take them down hard. No mercy!"
The next thing I know, Robin jumps into the air dropping a few gas bombs just as the Genomorphs begin their attack. As my vision becomes obscured by the smoke, I use my hearing to fight. Scratching, footfall, screeching... ducking and spinning on the balls of my feet I stretch out my wings, knocking down two of the Genomorphs. Rising, I run forward and use my mace to knock down another one. When I reach the clearing I see Guardian knock Aqualad against a control panel. Flying forward I charge my mace with electricity and swing it at Guardian's head, knocking him out. Together, the two of us catch up to KF. Nevertheless, our enemy is on our tail leaving us no other option than to run. Kid zooms ahead of us to Robin's position at the now-open elevator. Seeing the hallway is wide enough, I grab Aqualad and fly us inside the elevator and force the doors shut.
"Talk about close calls, huh boys," I mutter under my breath as I feel the elevator going down. "Hold up, why does it feel like we're going down?"
"Dude out is up," KF yells at the raven-haired boy.
"Excuse me? Project Kr. It's down on Sub-level 52!"
"This is out of control," Aqualad states as walks to the other side of the elevator while rubbing the back of his head. "Perhaps...Perhaps we should contact the League"
Just then the elevator rings and the doors open to sub-level 52. The four of us jump to the doors ready to fight, but no one is on the other side to greet us. Seeing the coast is clear, Robin runs ahead of us with Kid Flash not too far behind him.
"Let's go," Aqualad groans in annoyance. When we reach the two boys, they're hiding behind a few barrels which are scatter about hazardously. "Which way?"
"Yeah... Bizarre looking hallway one, or bizarre-hallway two?" Robin points out to the rest of us. I feel a chill running down my back as I like at the walls.
"Geeze, this place gives me the creeps. I feel like I'm inside of some monster's intestines," I groan in disgust just as I hear a set of footsteps nearby. "Hold on, someone-"
"Halt!" a mysterious figure yells at us, throwing explosives in our direction. Having no other choice, the four of us run towards hallway number two. Just then I hear the voice say in the distance that we're headed to Project Kr. Guardian must have found which level we arrived on.
"Guy's Project Kr is in this direction, but we have company!" I yell to my teammates. "KF, try to find us an exit!"
"But-"
"Shut up, Robin! Kid, run!"
Our resident speedster runs off to do as I said. It seems he couldn't find one but he does block the metal door from closing to the only room available for us to hide in. Turning around I see the creatures from before quickly catching up to us.
"War, take Robin!" Aqualad orders.
Grabbing the smaller boy, I fly us inside the room and dump him in front of what seems to be a control panel, "Rob, hack it, now!"
"Okay," Robin replies as he gets to work. Just then, Aqualad jumps into the room and knocks the canister out from the doorway. "I disabled the door. We're safe"
"We're trapped," Aqualad comments and nod my head in agreement. We are way in over our heads in this assignment, and when the JL finds out..., well it's not gonna be a pretty sight.
"Uh, guys," Kid Flash calls out to us, trying to gather our attention. "You'll want to see this"
Walking up to the yellow speedster we wait for him to show us what he found. Before he could turn on the lights I let out a gasp of shock since I can see in the dark. Once the lights hit the figure within the glass chamber, my companions understood why I seemed so surprised. Inside is a boy around our age with the symbol of Superman on his white bodysuit. The glass door is what holds the symbol Kr.
"Big K, little R! The atomic symbol for Krypton!" Kid Flash says in realization before turning to us. "Clone?"
"Robin, hack," Aqualad tells the younger boy.
"Uh, right, right," The boy wonder mutters as he pulls in his port once again to connect it to the computer. Promptly, he brings up files on the boy inside the glass cage. "Weapon Designation: Superboy. A clone force-grown in…sixteen weeks?! From DNA acquired from Superman."
"Stolen from Superman."
"No way the big guy knows about this," KF adds.
"What is the suit for?" I ask the raven-haired boy. "Does it have a purpose?"
"It's a Solar Suit which allows him to absorb yellow-sun radiation 24/7."
"And these creatures?" Aqualad inquires next, pointing to the three animals above the boy.
"Genomorph Gnomes. Telepathic; force-feeding him an education."
"And we can guess what else," Kid Flash says morosely. "They're making a slave out of...well, Superman's son"
"Well, if he's his son then shouldn't that mean he has another parent," I point out to my friends. "It could very well be the person who took Superman's DNA in the first place. Robin, can you find out who our mystery person is?"
"I don't think he has parents," Robin said as he searched the files. "He might just be a straight-up clone."
"In any case, now is the time we contact the League," states Aqualad. Simultaneously, all four of us touch a part of our uniform which sends a signal to our mentors. The only thing we receive in return is static, which means there is no way we can call for help.
"No signal."
"We're in too deep...literally," Kid groans.
"Well, what now?" I ask the group. "We can't contact the League and the enemy is waiting for us outside with an army."
"I thought you said they weren't weapons?"
"KF, this is not the time to be bickering about tiny details! We need to leave this place!"
"We also need to take him with us," Kid states, pointing to the clone within the glass chamber. "This is wrong."
"We can't leave him like this," Robin adds, but I don't like the idea. I hate the idea of leaving the poor boy here, but I have a bad feeling about him. When Kid Flash was talking just now, I noticed the Genomes horn's lit up to a familiar ominous red color. It's similar to what happened when Guardian decided to attack us or when we first encountered the giant Gnome. That's when our troubles began, and I have a suspicion it's all due to those tiny creatures.
"How about no," I reply to the boys. "We escape, and tell the League so they can rescue him.
"Why?" Aqualad asked, cutting the two other boys off before they can protest. "I do not believe you would categorize him as a burden to our escape.
"No, I wouldn't, but remember what Robin just said? Those Genomes are teaching him things, right? What if he attacks us once he's released."
"Perhaps, but-"
"No buts, Aqualad! The horns on those Genomes are red! I have a bad feeling about this. My feathers are all ruffled up."
"We can not leave him here, War Hawk. We may never have a chance like this again to save him. We also can not base this on your feathers," The blond replies wryly before turning to our resident hacker. "Set him free. Do it"
I shake my head in frustration as the boys ignore my warning. I keep my eyes on the clone as Robin releases him from his glass coffin. I notice a twitch from his fingers as it suddenly turns into a fist. I squeeze my mace in anticipation, waiting for him to make a move. It doesn't take long before he lunges at us. Pushing the boys out of the way with my wings, I duck to avoid the clone flying over me. He lands, but I don't give him a second to gather his thoughts as I fly to him swinging my mace. He dodges the first two before I sweep his feet and forcing him down to the ground and hitting him on the face three times. This isn't enough to subdue him as he grabs my arm when I'm about to strike him the fourth time, and he pulls down to the ground before rolling on top of me. He then proceeds to choke me. The other three come to my aide, but KF gets knocked out rather quickly as he's thrown across the room. Robin plants a knock-out gas on the clone as Aqualad throws him from me.
"Are you well," Aqualad inquires as he helps me up. I nod my head at the same time we hear Robin yell out in pain. The clone was trying to crush him under his foot. "Stay here," Aqualad orders as he charges forward with a war-hammer made out of water. "Enough!"
Quietly, I make my way to KF as Aqualad tries to reason with the clone. The boy is unconscious, and looking around I notice Robin is no different. If we don't force the clone back in his chamber, we might not make it out of this fight alive.
"AAGGGHHHH!"
Looking up, I watch as the clone gets electrocuted by Aqualad. He turns the tables by flying up to the ceiling to knock the other boy off of him. Aqualad holds on but he looks close to reaching his limit. I fly forward just in time to stop him from hurting my friend. Aqualad continues to hold him as I smash my mace into the clones' face. Soon enough, the clone kicks me dead on the chest sending me back a few feet. By the time I roll back onto my feet, Aqualad is unconscious beneath the clone. Yelling in anger I lash out at the clone knocking him to the side. I unleash the chain holding my mace to the hilt and hit the clone with it. In this form, my mace acts like a whip, allowing me to keep my distance while I deliver my attacks up to a 50 ft range. Nonetheless, this strategy only works for a moment as he dodges one of my swings and lunges to me. I try to evade him but it's no use as he catches me and throws me down. He straddles me as he chokes me once again. My mask may have filters to help me breathe in case there is no oxygen in the room, but that can't help me if my airway is blocked. No matter the amount of struggling I do, my vision slowly blurs as my lungs burn from the lack of air. Soon, all I see are dots scattering across my vision before the darkness ushers me into its fold.
So what did y'all think of the story? Leave a comment down below to let me know.
Now I understand right now this character might confuse you guys especially since no one has said her real name as of yet, but I promise in the next chapter you'll begin to understand more. By the way, this is a slow burn story, and by no means will it have a bunch of sappy moments. Sorry, not sorry. Well, until next time, bye!