The team stood outside the base, all gearing up quietly for what was to come. They'd traced Steppenwolf to an abandoned nuclear power plant; now it was time to confront him. The air didn't feel very well-charged. Clark had left to speak with his mother, and it was clear some members of the team were worried about whether or not he would show in time. Mack knew better, knew to trust in Superman. After all, the symbol on his chest wasn't just there for giggles. Bruce walked up to Mack, offering an earpiece that she accepted easily.
"You and Alfred will stay here, coordinate the attack. We'll handle the heavy lifting." Even after two years, Mack still thought the voice modulator on his cowl sounded ridiculous. Nodding, she tucked the tech into her ear. "If anything goes wrong, Alfred has the emergency protocols." With a final goodbye, the team took off in the jet, leaving Mack with the impossibly patient butler.
"They'll succeed." He sounded so sure, his voice soft yet strong. Mack nodded and together they headed down into the base of operations. Dozens of screens fed information from each team member, and one by one their communications devices crackled to life. It didn't take long for the team to reach the objective, and Mack had to brace herself as she could hear the fighting. She could hear Cyborg muttering to himself about the cubes, and she drummed her hands on her thighs impatiently. A quiet alarm went off and both of them turned to see civilians in the area. "Whatever you're in the middle of, it's spreading for miles." Alfred was already typing, gathering what information he could from the Wayne Enterprises satellite. Mack had rolled her eyes when Bruce had told her about it the first time. "Satellite shows civilians moving east." Alfred gave a small sigh. "They aren't going to make it."
"Barry." The Bat's voice was somehow extra crackly. "I need you to take a walk." It didn't take long for the satellite to pick up on something moving very fast towards the civilians. Anxiously, Mack looked over the other screens. Where was Clark? What was taking him so long? Alarms drew her attention back to the fight, and she saw that Cyborg was down.
"You're all too weak to see the truth." Steppenwolf's voice was muted, and Alfred was already in motion to do what he could for Cyborg. Another blip showed on the satellites, moving to them quickly, and Mack gave a relieved smile.
"Well," Alfred's head shot up, a small smile forming on his face as well, "I believe in truth." There were crashes, and they could see Cyborg was easily putting himself back together. "So, how do I help?" Mack wasn't sure who Clark was directing the question too, but frankly she was too giddy with relief to care. Clark was here; they were going to win. The team were quickly able to take Steppenwolf out of the game long enough for Cyborg and Clark to pull the cubes apart. The resulting explosion could be heard in every headset and Mack and Alfred shared a look.
"Clark?" Mack knew he didn't have a headset, but surely someone had eyes on him. The line was uncomfortably quiet, and she began to panic. Smacking a button, she took control of the jet, impatience growing as her seat became a cockpit.
"Alright." His quiet voice nearly sent her over the edge, and she gave a watery laugh. "Now I wanna die." There was palpable relief from the team as she brought the jet around, letting them take a good look at the battlefield as it filled with vegetation. Mack did her best to focus as she worked on the controls, sharing a look with Alfred. Excusing himself to make tea, Alfred left her to handle bringing the team home.
"Mack?" Clark's voice was too loud for him to be talking next to one of the others; sensors confirmed he must have taken Bruce's earpiece.
"Cutting it a bit close, aren't we?" She could hear his chuckle, and it hit her again that she finally had Clark back.
"How soon is this jet going to get us back?" She tilted her head, signaling for everyone to take a seat as she turned for home.
"I'll get you back just as quick as possible, don't you worry." There was a beat of silence from the other end.
"You can fly?" He sounded so surprised and she gave her own chuckle.
"Someone showed me the skies once and I couldn't get it out of my head." Remembering that night brought a flood of memories as she shot the jet off into the sky: the not-date, flying through Metropolis, the kiss… Clearing her throat, she focused on the task at hand. "You'll all be back in two hours. See you then, Superman." It was the second-longest two hours of her life as she flew them back. Thankfully, no one distracted her as she landed the jet directly behind her, trying to focus past all the noise. Everyone filed off, chatting over their victory and going to treat their wounds as Mack stood from the console, stretching tense muscles. A throat cleared behind her, and she turned to see Clark in all his hero glory, giving her a small smile.
"You ready to go home?" Something in her heart sang at the question, even as she turned a questioning look to Bruce. At his nod, she gave a bright smile, moving to take Clark's hand. She led him out to her car, and he was a good sport as she drove them to her new apartment building in Gotham. Clark looked around, seeming impressed as she pulled into an underground parking garage and led him to the elevator. "Moving up in the world."
"Well, it helps to work for a billionaire who, honestly, has no concept of what normal life costs." Mack gave a laugh as they moved up to the penthouse, earning a quiet laugh from Clark. They lapsed into silence, and Mack wondered if Clark was still not quite at 100%. The ding of the elevator brought her back to the present, and she led him into her home. "Welcome! Make yourself at home." Clark moved through the living room, looking around in interest.
"Can't say I blame you. This is definitely...bigger than the old place." He settled on the couch and she kicked off her boots, moving to join him. Keeping a cushion between them, Mack hugged a throw pillow to her stomach.
"Yeah, well, after...everything" she swallowed, looking down "I just needed a change of scenery I guess." They were silent for a few moments before Clark slid closer, easily pulling her against his side. With a small smile, she snuggled deeper, sighing. "Is this what happens after you save the world?"
"Yeah, it's hard to just go back to normal." Clark's voice was low as his hand smoothed over her arm. She yawned, resting her head against his shoulder. "I can go if you want to sleep." A strange panic settled in her chest at the thought of him leaving and she shook her head. He gave a quiet laugh, leaning down to press a kiss to her hair and making her heart jump. "Go to sleep. I'll be here when you wake up." Mack murmured something even she couldn't decipher before falling asleep.