Alright BOIS, and girls (if you're reading). Here's the next chapter, hopes it's enjoyable.
As always, there's a few notes at the bottom just so you guys can see where I'm at. Nothing too important, but still relevant to the story. So if you care to, take a look at them and don't be afraid to share thoughts via reviews or pm.
Disclaimer: All characters go to their respective owners!
Key:
"Speaking"
"Thought or telepathic convos"
"Automated speech or comms"XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
It had been about 10 days or so since Artemis joined the team. She'd done well to make quick friends with both Megan and Max. Though she was a bit put off by the young genius at first. He was as socially awkward as one could imagine, constantly caught in muttering of his thoughts and enthusiastically trying to help. Sometimes over enthusiastically.
But the new heroine guessed that he was just out of his element, all of them were. But at least they all had common ground in the fact that they were sidekicks- heroes. He was just 'tech support', he didn't fit in with them, in a traditional sense. Though he did seem to get along just fine with everyone. He even dared to tease Superboy, which Artemis did enjoy to watch.
The archer did, however, notice that the small genius spent a remarkable amount of time training his hand to hand.
She didn't know it, no one really knew it, but the run in with 'Cheshire', as the cat themed assassin had been dubbed, rattled him. Black Canary's words haunted him along with the memories.
He was totally useless, save for a minor distraction. Even then, Max realized that nothing he did actually favored a victory. Cheshire spared them because her objective held no purpose anymore, she spared him on her whim. He lived only because, she felt like it.
The thought frightened him and so he reconsidered his stance on attending the combat lessons Canary offered. Even going as far as to having Aiva look up various fighting styles and teach, if that were the right word, them to him. Really it was just her explaining movements and theory about the arts. Max was intellectually gifted enough to understand and apply them, though physically he was unable to actually use them
That's why he currently found himself going toe to toe with none other than Superboy. It'd had become fairly common a sight at this point. Though the opponent wasn't always Superboy, sometimes Kaldur, Robin, or even Wally.
Since power usage was normally off limits in these little sessions, he found himself relatively equal to Wally, given the elder sibling relied so much on his speed he was rather lacking in the martial department. The real divider between the two was Wally's experience in combat.
Wally was really the only one he had any chance at beating, Robin and Kaldur were simply too competent in pure unarmed combat for him to hope to be a match. And Superboy, even though powers weren't allowed, was still much too strong.
"Initiate combat sequence." The computerized voice of the caves built in system said. The young genius was still in the process of persuading Batman to let him upload Aiva to the caves mainframe and take over. Not that the system that was already there would be terminated, it just would have a much smaller role.
The brown haired teen ducked a hook and scooted back a bit when Superboy tried to grab him. That was probably worst case scenario, fight ended the moment the kryptonian got a hold of him. There was no way he'd get out of that grip.
He didn't just evade though. Max lifted his lead leg up and kicked at his opponents mid section. He knew it was a mistake the moment his foot left the ground. He nearly dropped to his butt in pain but settled for a grimace and made some space.
"Invulnerable body, remember? I don't know why you always wanna do this, you can't really do any damage to me. No offense, but you just aren't physically strong enough." Superboy said
Max sighed and then smirked, "I know." Suddenly the shoes he had on his right foot transformed and folded up to mid shin and a sleek but powerful boot. This wasn't his nanotech, he wanted to keep that a secret for now and surprise everyone when he finished. They'd be shocked when they found out he could go on missions with them!
"They're made from some sample space metals I got from Batman. I was only supposed to analyze them, but don't tell him that. They're both ultra light and ultra strong."
Superboy shrugged, "You should've made em' for your hands."
"He's right Max, you seem to favor you hands more than your feet. Perhaps this can be of use for further models?" Kaldur who spectated on the side spoke up as well.
Max opened his mouth to retort before he closed it. He clicked his tongue, they were right! "They were for… Wally! Yea, I made these for him! I'm just testing them out, you know science and stuff."
"Smooth move genius." Artemis teased next to Megan. Both blond and green skinned girl giggled, while Max blushed in embarrassment. Wally, wasn't paying attention, too absorbed in his burrito.
"Can we start again already?" Superboy complained.
In a burst of speed that surprised him, the genetic clone of Superman found Max's fist inches from his face. He could've stood there and tanked it, but out of reflex he leaned his head out of the way.
That was just as Max wanted though and he brought his leg up as Superboy leaned down. On the side of his metal boots, small thrusters lit up bright and boosted his leg faster and harder than he could ever hope to throw. It connected strongly, but Superboy was able to absorb the blow mostly unharmed.
"That was a good hit."
"Thanks…?" Max backed up and had to circle around as his housemate pushed forward with a controlled flurry of punches. This was a mistake. With these boots on he was unable to counter, his upper body just not strong enough to do anything. They did, however boost his speed.
Off with Artemis and Megan, they had a little bit of girl talk. "Kaldurs, uh nice, don't you think? He's handsome, commanding. What's not to like? You should totally ask him out!"
Megan giggled amidst the background grunting of Superboy trying to hit Max.
"Always the running with you!" He was sounding frustrated.
"Well, it's hit and not get hit. Remember?"
Megan clapped her hands together lightly, "Kaldur's like a big brother to me. But you know who would make the cutest couple…?" She countered Artemis' suggestion. "You and Wally!"
Back on the sparring grounds, Max nearly stumbled over his feet, "Her and Wally?!"
Superboy pounced and grabbed a hold of Max's shirt and smiled, "Hit and don't get hit, was it?"
Max kicked up but Superboy caught it and used the momentum to turn them and throw Max. The boy tumbled and landed next to the girls flat, who were laughing amongst themselves, on his back.
"Combat Fail."
"Um, hi ladies." He didn't say anything about the fact that he could see up Megan's skirt for the simple fact that he didn't want to give anyone the wrong idea. Last thing he wanted was for everyone to think he was a pervert.
"Black Canary taught me that one." Superboy said with a smile.
"I'm sure she did…" Max sat up and tried to stand, but fell back down when his ankle didn't bend properly. Looking down he gasped and cried out. Around the ankle of his armor was a distinct hand mark. The metal warped and wiring stuck out where it shouldn't. "You used super strength! That's cheating!"
"You're the one that broke out the super boots. Not fair for you to complain." Artemis said as she pat Max's back.
"Artemis, they aren't boots! They're-"
"Boots?"
The boy sighed, he had failed to come up with a proper name for them, so this may have been his fault. He pressed a button on the sides of the boots and the retracted back into the shoes he wore. One of them had a bit of trouble creaking and scraping as the folded back into place.
A small circular section above the room opened above them and out from it came their very own den mother.
Wally immediately sped over, "Do you have a mission for us?" He said excitedly.
Tornado turned robotically, "Missions are The Batman's responsibility."
Wally rolled his eyes and responded, "Well the Batman is with the Robin doing the whole dynamic duo thing." He sighed before smiling at Tornado, "But you're going to do something riiight? A hot date? Or maybe, a mission?" Wally shot the robot the finger guns and rose his eyebrows provocatively.
"If we can be of help…" Kaldur commented on the side.
Red Tornado turned on his heel on pulled up a large projection of an elderly man, "This is Kent Nelson, a friend. He is 106 years old."
"Doesn't look a day over 90." Wally joked.
"He has been missing for 23 days. Kent was a charter member of the Justice Society. The predecessor to your mentors Justice League." Tornado cycles over another picture, depicting a man with blue clothing and ornate golden armor.
Kaldur's eyes widened, "Of course! Kent was earth's Sorcerer Supreme! He was Dr. Fate!" It was rare to see Kaldur so excited.
Wally scoffed and whisper over to Artemis, "More like Dr. Fake. Guy knows a little advanced science and dumbledores it up to scare the bad guys and impress the babes."
Artemis rolled her eyes and Max chuckled, "Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic, that may be true. But who's to say that it's actually technology at work and not something mystical? I don't think anything Zatara does can be achieved with just technology. Let's keep an open mind."
"Yea, but remember Abra Kadabra? Total fake!"
"One bad apple doesn't make the bunch does it?"
Red Tornado spoke over them, gaining their attention, "Kent may simply be on one of his walkabouts, but he is caretaker to the Helmet of Fate, the source of the doctors mystic might. It is unwise to leave such power unguarded."
Megan seemed enthralled by the information of earth's very own sorcerer supreme. "He likes the great sorcerer priests and priestess' of Mars! I would be honored to help find him!" She never imagined humans were so similar to martians.
At the sound of Megan, Wally near instantaneously changed his tune. "Me too! So honored I can barely stand it. Magic rocks!" The speedster folded his fingers into the rock symbol and smiled at the green skinned girl.
Max and Artemis shared a look. Max chuckled and Artemis groaned.
"Here, take this." Red handed Kaldur a strange key of sorts. "It is the key to the Tower of Fate. You cannot enter without it."
Wally dashed next to Megan and place a hand on her shoulder, "What are the chances we both so admire the mystic arts?"
Max stepped forward to Kaldur and Red Tornado. "Um, if it's alright with the both of you… I'd like to accompany the team on this mission. I-I can't help but be curious. The thought of magic intrigues me."
Kaldur thought on it a moment before he opened his mouth, "I don't see why-"
"No way! After what happened last mission? It's too dangerous for you to go out with the team." Wally declined his little brothers request.
"But I-"
"No. Just stay here Max. If something ended up happening and we had to fight, you wouldn't be able to protect yourself. You'd just end up in the way." Ouch. It came out way harsher than he intended it to, and Wally internally winced as he saw the boy look down. But even so, he meant what he said.
Max knew his older brother was right. No matter how much he'd trained in these past days, it simply wasn't enough to have made a real difference. Sure he was noticeably better, but still leaps and bounds from where he needed to be to properly defend himself against real villains.
"There's no need to be so harsh Wally." Artemis defended, "He's your brother, why don't you have a little faith? Besides, it's just a search mission, no combat necessary. I vote, he comes along."
"Um, I agree with Wally…" Surprisingly it was Megan who voiced this. "Not that I think you'd be in the way Max! It's just, things like this can go south fast, I don't want anything to happen to you is all…" Max frowned at the martians words. He'd thought that they'd grown pretty close in the time they'd spent together here.
Artemis, Wally, and Megan all looked to Superboy who looked confused at their gaze, "What?"
"Do you have a vote?" Megan asked, her eyes pleading that he agree with her.
The clone shrugged and looked away, "If he wants to come, let him come. I don't see what the big deal is." He said curtly and walked away. He needed to change into something that wasn't slick with sweat.
Megan sighed and the other turned their eyes to Kaldur for a tie breaker. The atlantean sighed, "Max, I don't think you are a burden in any way, shape, or form. I want you to know that. But it is true that should a villain show up, you may find it more than challenging to stand up to them. I need you to know, that even a simple search and rescue like this can turn sour. With all that said, do you still want to come with us?"
Max swallowed and nodded. He knew the dangers and understood the consequences that could befall him. He'd weighed them in his mind for years, though when he did he was a hero. Not a scientist. "Y-Yes!"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"So, Wally, when did you first realize your 'honest' affinity for the mystic arts?" Artemis sarcastically questioned. The team had take off by now and were already nearly to the drop point. Max sat off a bit to the side, he felt a bit awkward actually being here.
"Well, I'm not one to brag. But before I became Kid Flash, I seriously considered becoming a wizard." Artemis scoffed but fell short on her questioning as they came up on their destination.
"There's nothing here?" Superboy questioned as he and the others stepped out of the bioship.
Max looked around his eyes observing everything around them, "How strange…"
Kaldur had Wally run a quick perimeter, just to see if maybe there was something they were all missing. He was back within seconds, "Nope, nothing at all. This isn't simple camouflage..."
"So what do you think, adaptive micro opto-electronics combined with matter phase shifting?" Artemis snarked
"I don't think so, matter phase shifters are incredibly complex to make, and expensive too. I doubt someone could make a device large enough to cover a whole tower. Not to mention the power it'd take to keep such a large piece of tech running. We'd have seen a massive power output from Megan's bioship scanners already." Max put down the theory before Wally could happily agree.
"Ahm! Clearly mystic powers at work here." Megan smiled at Wally and continued to look around.
Max did too, sticking next to Artemis while he thought to himself. His neurons firing in thought, faster than what even a 'regular' genius could comprehend.
"So, what do you really think it is? Are you actually curious about magic or just set on proving it wrong?"
"Prove it wrong? Not at all. Wally would like to believe that everything can be achieved through science. That everything has a clean and clear cut explanation. That's the rule he lives by. I, however, live by a different rule."
"And that is?"
"That there's an exception to every rule. So if everything can be explained by science, then magic is surely the exception, no?"
Artemis thought about it for a moment, she was by no means dumb. She was actually pretty smart, but Max was a complicated individual. His mind worked in ways she couldn't hope to comprehend and so did his personality. One minute he was confident and snarky, another he was timid and reserved, the next he was cool and collected. The young man operated on a multitude of sudden wave lengths that she barely kept up with. She would've thought he was bipolar if she didn't know he wasn't under a different kind of pressure than most normal kids.
"Sounds… complicated? No, I still don't understand your point."
Max smiled, he didn't expect the arrow themed hero to get the philosophy behind him. He decided he'd tell her nonetheless though, simply because he felt like it.
Max heard Kaldur mumble something, before asking everyone to step back. The dark skinned teen inserted the golden key Tornado had given him into what looked like thin air and twisted. With an echoing click a large brick tower revealed itself.
"Amazing." Max spoke in awe. He walked in as the doors opened for them and snapped his head back when the doors slammed shut, "Hey! The doors gone!" He exclaimed.
Superboy turned around too and knocked on where the door was before, "He's right, it doesn't even sound hollow here when I knock. It's solid stone."
Every one collectively jumped when a gold projection of Kent Nelson materialized in front of them. "Greetings. You've entered with a key, but the tower does not recognize you. Please state your purpose and intent." It said both commandingly, yet cordially.
Wally smiled back at Megan and stepped forward dramatically, "We are true believers, here to find Dr. Fate!" Wally was always one for extravagance. The projection frowned in displeasure before before fading away.
As it did so, the floor creaked eerily. Max took a single step back and the entire floor collapsed beneath the six of them and a scalding temperature burned their skin.
Realizing that he was falling towards a pool of red hot lava, Max's stomach whirled. In his infinite wisdom he'd decided that he didn't need to bring any of his little gadgets or even his nanotech. After all, what could go wrong? He should've known better than to tempt Murphy's law.
Luckily Max was more on the edge of the hole so he was able to grab a piece of rock strong enough to hold him up before he gained too much momentum.
Artemis was smart enough to bring a compact crossbow and fired something similar to a grappling hook. She swung to a nearby wall, grabbing Kaldur as she did so.
Megan was able to grab a hold of Wally, only just barely, and Superboy clawed his fingers into the walls as he slid down.
"ARGH!" The clone shouted as his feet dipped into the lava. Max winced at the tone, "Those were my favorite boots!" Oh right, invulnerable.
The others were lower than him, but even from his elevated height, Max felt like he was inhaling flames. He could only imagine what it was like for the others, let alone for Megan and Kaldur.
"My physiology, and M'Gann's, are susceptible to extreme heat! We must climb out of here quickly!"
"Artemis! If you can hang on to a foot hold or something a moment, I can latch your hook into the edge of the hole! Just toss-!" Without warning the rock Max held onto shifted. His weight was too much to hold and it, along with him, dislodged from safety.
A sensation of weightlessness made his stomach flip. "MAX!" Wally shouted.
"I can't catch him without falling into the lava too!" Megan cried. Artemis wasn't in any position to make a dive for the younger boy, her hook couldn't hold more than what she had with her now. They'd all plummet to their death. And by the time he made it to Superboy he'd be ankle deep in gooey lava.
Time almost seemed to stop for Max as his thoughts ran a mile a minute. There had to be a way to fix this. It couldn't be such a dead end right?
Like a light switch flipping, he realized. They never truly answered the question! Wally had boasted to about being a true believer and then the floor collapsed! But, could it really be just that? The teen didn't have time to question his conclusion. It was either take the chance or die quietly.
"We're friends! Red Tornado sent us to see if Kent Nelson and the Helmet of Fate were safe!" The teen squeezed his eyes shut as his body gained momentum. He expect to feel unbearable heat, the fiery embrace of death by burning.
He was pleasantly surprised though when instead of having his bones smelted into liquid, his back smashed against a metal hatch and his head whipped back harshly with it. The impact created a dull ringing in his ears as he sat up in shock.
It worked!
He heard similar thudding noises as everyone dropped to the new platform. "This platform should be red-hot, and yet it is cool to the touch!"
Max wanted to say something while he waited for the throbbing in his head to clear, but he was cut off when Wally roughly grabbed his shoulders. "Max! You see, I told you it was too dangerous for you here! You almost died here, and would have brought us with you!"
Max opened and shut his mouth, Wally wasn't wrong. He was headed straight for him and Megan, it was a miracle that the Martian girl was either able to dodge in such a weak state or he simply missed them. He could've literally been in their way. "I-I'm- I wasn't try-"
Artemis had had about enough of Wally though. She pushed him roughly and glared at him, "This is not his fault, it's yours! Max saved us from your little 'impress Megan at all costs' game, which nearly got us ALL barbequed!"
"So it's my fault the so called, sorcerer supreme decided to drop us on a vat of hot lava instead of talking things out?"
"Uh, Yea! Maybe if you hadn't lied to that, whatever it was, and called yourself a 'true believer' we wouldn't be in this mess!"
Megan looked surprised, "Wally, you don't believe?"
The speedster groaned and waved his arms, "Alright, FINE! I don't believe in Magic, I lied! But magic is the real lie, a huge load!"
Kaldur looked on in disapproval, "Wally, I studied for a year at the Conservatory of Sorcery in Atlantis. The mystic arts created the skin icons that power my water bearers." The leader tried to reason.
"Dude, ever heard of bioelectricity?" Wally countered. "You know, way back when, fire used to be considered magic too. But now we know better. It's science."
"You're pretty close minded for a guy that can break the sound barrier in his sneakers!"
"Again, science! I replicated the experiment that gave Flash his powers and here I am. Everything can be explained with science."
"Shall we test that theory?" Kaldur challenged as his hand reached for a hatch in the vault door.
Wally looked panicked as his teammate began to pull up, "Wait! The backdraft from the lava will roast us alive!"
With a strong tug, the hatch was lifted. Instead of the skin melting heat Wally expected, he received the sting of freezing cold air.
Countless small snowflakes filled the hole they were in, "Its snow!" Megan spoke excitedly.
"Do you ever get tired of being wrong?" Artemis said smugly.
The team dropped through the hatch, Max following behind quietly too afraid of causing something to go wrong to be at the front. The sensation of falling through the magical door was strange. They clearly fell downward, and yet upon crossing the threshold the doorway was vertical instead of horizontal.
Max shivered as he regained his footing, he was dressed slightly warm but still unsuitable for the snowy mountains they ended up in. Just ahead, the young West could hear Wally and Artemis bickering.
He decided to keep his words to himself, instead searching for anything that could help the group find their target, "Hey… is that a cane?" Seeing a chance to redeem himself, Max trudged through the snow.
A smile broke out on his face, maybe Wally wouldn't be mad anymore now that he found a key piece of the puzzle! "Hey guys, look what I found!" He grabbed it and picked it up, holding it to the others.
Wally sped over immediately, "Stop grabbing stuff!" He tried to steal it from Max's hand
Artemis followed and grab ahold as well, "Stop telling him what to do!"
Wally glared at her and then to Max who looked away, "Let it go Max!" The cane suddenly began to glow and Max tried to pull away, only to find he was unable to, "Hurry up and let go!"
"I-I can't!"
"Me neither!" Artemis cried. The trio shouted in surprise as the cane lifted the three high into the sky and bathed them in a golden light.
When the light died down, Max and company found themselves in a puzzle of stairs. Much like the painting of relativity.
"Well would you look at that…" An aged voice said, drawing the newcomers attention.
"Abra Kadabra!" Wally shouted. Max recognized the fake magician, but his companion was unknown. A seemingly young man with an orange cat.
The old man glew the same gold that the cane did and floated over to them. Only when he took the cane into his hands, could Wally, Artemis, and Max let go.
"In here." He said hurriedly. Magically, an elevator door opened on the door adjacent to them. The teens rushed in, the old man not far behind.
"No, no, NO! I want that helmet!" The young man in the suit held his hands up, but the the elevator doors closed shut before he could do anything.
Max felt the elevator shift before it began to lift. The ride was awkward to say the least, corny music and near absolute silence. At least until the the old man decided that he ought to introduce himself, "Oh, I'm Kent Nelson by the way."
"Really? Couldn't have guessed… ow!" Artemis elbowed The speedster.
"I'm Artemis. Miss Manners here is Wally."
"And I'm Max…!" The genius said in a mixture of shyness and excitement. Shy because he didn't want to be scolded by Wally yet again, excited because he had earths sorcerer supreme in front of him. There were so many questions he wanted to ask.
Was he really using magic? Could such energy by quantified and recorded? Did it even give off a signature? Was there a secret society of mages? Did magic have its own laws, similar to the laws of physics? Was it a finite source of energy that each user drew from, or was it unique to each individual.
There was so much he wanted to know, he felt like he was ganna explode. "Well, Artemis. Max. We're up against an opponent with tremendous mystic power.." Kent said gravely.
Wally scoffed, "Abra Kadabra? Flash proved he uses futuristic tech to simulate magic. Dudes all show and no biz."
"Right you are, young man! Kadabra is a charlatan, but Klarion the Witchboy, is an actual lord of chaos."
"I assume he's the kid with the cat right?"
"Correct again! He's the ultimate enemy of a lord of order, like Dr. Fate."
Wally rolled his eyes, "Right, you're a lord of order…"
Kent simply smiled at the young man's words, "Oh no, not me. I'm just an old coot Fate used to put on. At least, until my wife Inza convinced me there could be more to life. She was a real pistol, that Inza…" the old man popped open a pocket watch reminiscing in the memories of old. "Anywho, if Klarion gets his sticky little fingers on the helmet, he'll turn the world into his own personal playground of pandemonium."
"Sounds like we have to protect the helmet then-"
"No, we, have to protect the helmet! Not you." Max ignored his brothers outburst and continued with his line of thought.
"-But I'm curious. If you said Fate, 'wears you', does that mean he doesn't exist on this plane?"
Kent looked surprised at the deduction, "Hmm, that's right. Lords of order can't exist in this dimension without a medium, Fates is the helmet."
Max nodded in understanding, "I see. If that's true than the same thing could be said for Klarion right? Considering he a lord of chaos he must be bound by the same rules, meaning, he must have a medium as well."
Artemis took her chance to inject herself into the conversation, "What are you getting at?"
"Well, if he's got a medium, then all we have to do is disrupt it right? Unless Klarion is the exception, then surely if we disturb his means of staying here he will be unable to keep his form." Max explained.
Kent smiled brightly, not even he had thought of that. He was too concerned with the potential fight he'd have with The Witchboy. "Brilliant! You've got a sharp mind boy! I can assure you, Klarion is no such exception. His medium is the cat, attack it and he will be unable to keep from here. Though be warned, it is no simple cat."
The elevator dinged, letting its occupants know that they arrived at their destination. The doors opened and Max could see no true differences to the maze they were in before. Well, other than the large golden bell in the center of everything.
They group walked over to the bell. As they came closer though, the rest of the team fell through an opening, conveniently right in front of them.
Artemis looked relieved to see them, and ran over to fill them in on the situation. "Friends of yours?" Kent asked.
Before Wally could retort, they were forced to dodge as a surge of electricity zapped overhead. The three guys hit the deck, successfully dodging their potential taze.
"Friends of yours?!" Wally asked sarcastically.
Abra Kadabra shot another bolt at them and they rolled. The fake then shot a bolt at the rest of the team, forcing a split between them.
Kent rose to his feet along with Max and Wally, right next to the large bell. He grabbed his cane and tapped it against said bell, the item beginning to glow with mystic power. Max was startled when Kent seemed to walk into the bell and hastily followed.
On the other side he saw nothing but the open night sky, "We're on the roof?" A glint of gold caught his eye, "And the helmet of fate!"
Kent reached out for the helmet, no doubt to wear it once again.
"You're a spry old coot!" Klarion had followed them. The lord of chaos shot a powerful red energy at Kent, he was much too old to be able to dodge it. The once mighty sorcerer caught the blast on the body and fell back into Wally in pain.
"Mr. Nelson!" He shouted. Nelson recovered as much as he could and stood. He recited something in a language that neither Max nor Wally understood. The cane lit up with power and when he slammed it's base into the ground a golden shield erupted around them.
"Not bad for a former 'Dr. Fake' eh kid?" He said weakly. The old man stumbled and fell, Wally was able to catch him before he collided with the floor.
"Mr. Nelson, don't worry! I-I can help you!" Max kneeled next to him and pressed against his body to feel for abnormalities. But the truth was he didn't know what he was looking for. Would magical attacks cause physical wounds, or something more complicated?
He was really only trying to spare himself guilt, "What do I do?!"
"You know what you must do boy." Max shuttered as a foreign voice reverberated through his mind. This wasn't Megan's or anyone he knew, and it was unlike Megan's Martian telepathy. "I can sense it in you. Your desire for knowledge and your hunger for power." The voice was deep, gravely, cold even. But he could practically feel the power coming from it.
"What- Who are you?!"
Max fell back away from Kent as he fell limp, the sounds of Wally performing CPR and Klarion mystic blasts fading as he lost focus.
"I am what stands between this word and chaos. I am the order in your corrupted society. I am the power you crave. I am Fate!"
Max's eyes widened and his eyes locked onto the glowing gold helmet. Creepily, it's hollow eyes were locked with his own. "You're Dr. Fate!"
"Indeed. Put the helmet on child, you won't survive without it. I can sense it, unlike that other child over there, there is nothing special about you." Max grit his teeth at that, "Aside from the remarkable brain power you possess, you are useless on your own. I can change that."
Max thought back to the sequence of events that happened at the tower and Wally's words prior to their departure to locate Kent.
'If something ended up happening and we had to fight, you wouldn't be able to protect yourself. You'd just end up in the way.' End quote.
Max slowly stood to his feet and bit his lip, a twisted feeling filled his stomach as his hands gripped onto the gold helmet. Was it fear? Excitement? Or something else…
"I WANT THAT HELMET, AND I WANT IT NOW!"
"Wally, we're in trouble! Tell Kent we need Dr. Fate!" Max heard Megan shout at Wally through the telepathic link. Her cry of pain gave him the last resolve he needed. Without any second more of hesitation, he let the helmet cover his brown hair and then fair skin.
"Max, don't touch that!"
Golden light bathed the roof, and Klarion roared in protest. The Witchboy gathered a staggering amount of mystical energy into his hands and launched it at the the siblings. The blast exploded in an array of bright reds, leaving only smoke in its wake.
"You can not hurt Fate with such attacks…" A voice both Max's and yet not spoke through the clouds. From the obscured view, Max emerged. In a from that clearly wasn't his.
Blue robes adorned with ornate golden metal pieces and cloak, but most importantly, the golden helmet of fate.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
From Max's point of view, he saw a boundless silence. There was nothing for as long as the eye could see. "Where- Where am I?" He took a few steps before he stopped, what if he got lost in here.
"Relax kid- You? I expected the other one after the little spiel I gave him…"
Max's eyes grew wide as he saw Kent standing before him, "Mr. Nelson, you're alright!"
The old man shook his head, "Not alright, I'm on the borderline. It's where spirits go when they aren't quite dead yet."
"So you aren't-?"
"Not just yet, but as soon as this little brouha is over, my spirit will ascend and I'll be reunited with my beloved Inza!"
"Wait- if your here and I'm here- does that mean that I'm-?!"
Kent laughed loudly, "Like I said, relax! You're alive kid. But your soul no longer controls your body. We are inside the helmet. You put it on and it would seem my soul as left it's imprint in here, probably because I spent so many years as it's Master!"
"It's Master? You means Fates?"
"Yes, Nabu, the real Doctor Fate. He's the guy controlling your body right now."
"Nabu… So that's his name. He spoke to me earlier, told me that I knew what I had to do…"
"He spoke to you?!" Kent was shocked. Nabu was strong. Very strong. And though he may need a vessel to utilize his power most effectively, he didn't need one to make minor influences. "Was he really that desperate for a host? Perhaps it may not be my time to pass on yet..." Kent thought in worry.
Nabu was a lord of order. He was power of absolute might, and as such, he wouldn't be above manipulation to get what he wanted. So long as he thought it was for the best, Nabu would play just as dirty as the bad guys.
"Y-Yes. He told me he could 'sense' me." Max left out the part about his desire for power and knowledge. He didn't want Kent to think any less of him.
"I see… Well there isn't much we can do for now. How about we watch the man in action? I'm sure it could prove fruitful."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Outside Klarion rained down red energy blast after red chaotic energy blast, "Give it up Nabu! Order went out of style in the 20th century!"
Fate stood calmly a golden ankh projected in front of both him and Wally as a shield, "This battle has no point Klarion. You sought to take the helmet before it gained a host, but you are too late!"
Klarion growled and after a couple of complicated hand gestures large pillars of stone rose from the ground, slamming into him.
The pillars exploded and Fate came out with not even a scratch. The lord of order recited a short spell, firing a golden beam of energy at Klarion. The blast was held back for just enough time for the Witchboy to dodge away relatively unscathed.
"This body… It's weak." Fate thought, "It can hardly contain my power without destroying itself. I didn't expect to be so incompatible with the host. Though the brain power does allow me to use spells at minimal cost."
As it was, Dr. Fate was far from even being at half his power. Max's body was weak both physically and mystically. He'd lured the boy to put the helmet on out of desperation, it didn't occur to him that the body would be so out of line with his spirit. The pro of fast spell casting with minimum energy usage was far outweighed by the fact that he'd destroy the vessel with his raw magical power.
Lost in his musing for a moment, Fate took a blast of energy directly to the back. It knocked him to the floor, where he scrambled to regain his footing. He rolled dodging another attack by a hair, only to come face to face with another. Luckily the blue and gold themed mage was able to throw up a shield, but it was just a diversion.
To busy caught with blocking the previous attack, Fate fell victim to a blindside. The sorcerer tumbled and slid on his knees, reacting within tenth of seconds to throw up a haphazard shield of mystical energy.
"This body is too weak! I need to use more power!" He shouted frustratedly. Though the host body may not be able to hold as much magic as he wanted, there were ways to increase it, though not without harm. Fate, however, couldn't care less.
His (Max's) limbs began burned, his forearms erupting in pain, and it wasn't due to muscle strain. Mystical energy was toxic to those who were incompatible, and having such potent power coursing throughout the body was indeed harmful. But that wasn't the worst part. The most damaging was Fate sacrificing pieces of Max's nerve endings to access more power.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Inside the helmet, Max winced in pain and kneeled. "W-What gives?"
Kent kneeled next to the boy, "It's still your body. You will feel what he does."
Suddenly though his arms exploded in pain, "Argh! What the hell is going on?!" Max felt like his arms were being stabbed with a thousand needles, he shook in agony as it only grew worse.
Kent grabbed his arms, wincing at the shout he got in response. "He's cannibalizing his nerves, to make artificial magic pathways! Does this boys body disagree with magic so much?"
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Outside, Fate seemed to have made the right choice and, almost instantly, overpowered Klarion. He pushed forward and fired point blank, sending his adversary smashing into stone.
Klarion got up with a smirk, "You're out of practice Nabu. And the host body, zero affinity for the mystic arts." Klarion then summoned what looked like a bolt of lightening straight from the sky. Fate was only just barely able to block it, sparks of rainbow flying from his efforts. "Ooh, rainbow magic."
Wally all the while clutched to Kent's shallowly breathing body. Both in shock at his absolute helplessness and in confusion. Was this actually his brother? He was suddenly jolted though and noticed Klarion saying something to his cat.
"That's right!" He yelled to himself. "The cat! Get the cat, it's his only way of staying in this dimension!" He shouted to Max- Fate, Whatever he was.
The mystic man's eyes widened and a smirk fell through under his golden helmet. He exploded in power, nullifying Klarion attack. "I see you still use petty animals as your anchor. Allow me to show you your mistakes."
"You're babbling Nabu!"
"Am I?" Nabu raised his hands and shot a golden beam, Klarion was quick to react and rose a shield of earth. The attack sailed by harmlessly, "You missed-!" Klarion stopped mid taunt when his form flickered in and out, "-You! You wouldn't!"
"I would and I will. Without your familiar, you have no anchor in this reality."
Klarion grit his teeth and shouted a multitude of obscenities at the lord of order, "We're outta here!" His flashed to his cat and disappeared in a haze of black and red energy.
Fate was victorious.
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
"W-We won!" Max exclaimed. His arms still tingly, hung at his side. The boy waited for a moment, and yet nothing happened, "Why isn't he taking off the helmet…?" He asked
"Because the earth needs Dr. Fate. I will not release this body." Nabu's voice boomed through the vast empty space.
"You-You can't do that!"
"I can child. It was your greed that led you to accepting the helmet. You have what you wanted, there is nothing for you to complain about."
Kent decided to step in at this point, "Nabu! This is not the right candidate. I know you know this. This kid's soul is so utterly unfit for magic, it can hardly stand up to your mystical presence. It wouldn't last you even a decade."
"True, but there are ways around his lack of affinity. And, I do not appreciate being permanently hidden away. Useless and isolated, for decades at a time… Chaos must not be allowed to reign!"
"That won't happen again! We'll take the helmet and make sure you're put to good use! I'm sure this old man could be of some use to this band of youngsters!"
"W-Wait! Mr. Nelson, what about your wife?"
"Don't sweat it kid, I'll see Inza eventually. That's the best thing about eternity, it's eternal."
"You take me for a fool Kent Nelson! Your soul rests on the borderline, you can not don the helmet!"
Kent smirked, he'd gladly pass on but with Fates desperation he didn't think it was safe to let it be. He'd have to help search for a true successor, a truly worthy candidate to satisfy Nabu. "Technology is a wonderful thing Nabu. Kid, you've got something out there don't you? I'm sure the justice league has some kind of gizmo that can help me out."
Max opened and closed his mouth, but thought on it. He did have the prototype he built for the isolation chamber. Only catch was, it gave off harmful radiation if you were exposed for too long. Not unlike x rays. It's why he took the time to redesign and begin to put a new version together. "Well… I do have something, but there's no guarantee it'll work. I mean, it may even harm you-"
"Can it be done?" Nabu asked forcefully
"Y-Yes?"
"The bargain is acceptable. Do not try to fool me Kent, your word is binding."
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX
Max and Wally sprinted as soon as they materialized in the cave, the rest of the team close behind them. The got to his lab in record time and dashed around the clutter he had.
"Mr. West, welcome bac-"
"Aiva, prep the prototype IC!" Max dropped the arm he supporting Kent's limp body with. His own arms stung in pain due to whatever Nabu did to them while he had control of his body.
"Sir, the prototype proved incredibly inefficient. The radiation from the reactor-"
"It's an emergency!" Max popped the hatch to an egg shaped pod and motioned Wally forward. Lights lit up on the side and Max helped Wally lay Kent inside the pod.
"We'll be talking about what happened on the roof Max. As soon as everything settles down, we will have a talk." Wally said forcefully.
Max bit his lip but didn't respond. Why did it sound like he was in trouble? He saved Wally! He saved everyone! Well, Nabu did, but he did it using his body!
The young genius put an oxygen mask on Kent and sealed the hatch. Upon locking, it began to fill up with a thick green liquid, all the way until he was completely submerged.
"Subject has several internal injuries." Aiva informed, "Radiation levels are manageable. Beginning healing process now. Expected recovery time: 2 hours." Max let out a sigh of relief, he kept up his end of the bargain. Kent Nelson would survive this night.
"Will he be alright?" Megan asked worriedly.
Max nodded, "He should be. The liquid inside is meant kickstart his regeneration process and force it into overdrive. It'll penetrate his every pore, and make him as good as new. Or as good as a 106 year old man can be."
"Good. Let's go Max, we need to have that talk." Wally said
Max looked down and away, but his expression wasn't shy, scared, or ashamed. It was bitter.
"Why don't you back off for a while Wally? We've all had a rougher night than we expected. And as far as I'm concerned, he did a heck of a lot better out there than you did."
"That's not even what this is about Artemis-! Ugh! Fine, we'll discuss it later!" With that, Wally took the Helmet of Fate and stormed out of Max's lab. Most of the team followed, albeit less angrily and more exhausted.
Kaldur gave the boy a nod of respect, the leader thought Max did well given the situation. Nobody really knew what happened on the roof, but then again no one questioned it either.
"Why do you do that?" Artemis suddenly asked, once the two were alone.
"D-Do what?"
"You let Wally walk all over you! He may be your brother, but you should stand up for yourself!"
Max chuckled and shrugged. It had always been that way, well as of late, Wally had been decidedly more on his ass. Ever since that mission where they fought Cheshire, his older brother had been a lot more frank and up front with him. He was quicker to put him down, faster to disagree. But even though it was more frequent than before, it's just how things always were.
Max idolized Wally. He was everything that Max wanted to be, and then some. It was unnatural for him to truly clash with Wally.
"I don't let him-..."
"You do. Look, I know you look up to him, for whatever reason… But, you have your own special things too. Look at all this stuff in here! Wally couldn't dream of putting together half this stuff! All I'm saying is, stand up for yourself. You deserve some kind of respect from him."
Max blushed at her words and looked away, "W-Well, if you think s-so."
"Of course I do! Now let's get out of here, I'm starved!"
Max smiled and followed after Artemis, she really was making a spot for herself on this team.
Done
So, how do y'all feel about Kent being kept alive? Initially I wanted him to really kind of be a mentor to Max, but as I've began to write the next chapter and think about future ones it may work out better for him to be left to his own ideologies. Realistically speaking, there's no need for a singular mentor, given he's got a whole team and 3+ superhero's watching over the squad.
I also don't want it to feel like there's no stakes in these missions. If we know everyone is ganna be ok at the end of the day, then it kills the intensity right? I want there to be real consequences, but at the same time I didn't want my mans to die.
So I'm kind of lost on where that leaves good old Kent. I have a small idea to use it as a means to stir up some drama in the distant future, but that shouldn't be for awhile. In the meantime maybe I can use him as a mentor for Zatanna when that time comes along. I mean once she joins the team who else is ganna teach her about magic? And who better than the sorcerer supreme.
How'd you guys feel about me using the iso chamber? I got that particular idea from DBZ, kind of just ripped it off to be honest lol.
Other than all that, we should really start to see Max start coming into his own person pretty soon. He's beginning to know what he wants and is ganna pursue them. Despite what his brother might say. I'm hoping the drama didn't sound too forced for you all, last thing I want is for it to seem super fake.
Lastly, next chapter we should be getting into suit development territory and some other interesting stuff that will connect it all together. So hopefully it doesn't sound overly complicated or like I'm trying too hard to make it sound sophisticated. The goal here is to make it intriguing to read, and I think the best way to do that is make it as believable as possible. So look forward to that!
That's about it for my notes! As always, don't be afraid to let me know what you're thinking as well. Sometimes it's nice to hear someone else's ideas, especially since it'll be from a fresh perspective. The saying "looking too close" comes to mind when I think about this stuff. You guys may see stuff that I don't, simply because I'm too focused on one aspect. So I like to hear other people's thoughts.
Fav, follow, review, same stuff as always.
Peace!