Kai was the first to wake up in Titans Tower, he shifted himself to look at the alarm clock that laid on a small cabinet beside the bed.
"Four O'clock. . ." He muttered to himself, sitting up from his bed.
His room was spacious, it's design looked like it was straight out of a sci-fi film, consisting of a black and blue colour scheme. The Starsuit stood proudly behind a glass casing, a small TV fitted into the wall, a coffee table which held a laptop and games console. The ensuite bathroom was fitted with a walk in shower, complete with auto cleaning machines that maintain the room without damaging anything. Finally, there's Kai's king sized bed, fitted with silky black sheets.
Not wanting to waste anytime, the hybrid decided to get a head start, leaping out of the bed with a burst of energy. After a five minute workout and stretches, he took his shower, pressing a button on the wall to open the glass cabinet for retrieving the Starsuit once he had finished cleansing.
Then once he completed his cleaning routine, he left the room in pursuit of breakfast, eager to power on through the day. As he entered the lounge, he sensed a presence in the kitchen, the sound of the kettle boiling, the quiet humming from a familiar woman caught his attention. Wonder Girl was already up, placing slices of bread into the toaster, and taking out a jar of peanut butter, her outfit was a set of blue pajamas, with little white stars on the legs, complete with bunny eared slippers. Not wanting to startle her, Kai cleared his throat quietly.
Cass turned around to see him, she smiled softly before speaking. "Morning Kai. You're up rather early."
"Couldn't fall back asleep, so I said to myself "screw it"." He replied, moving to the dining table. "How about you Cass?"
"Woke up to the sound of my stomach." She giggled, hearing the hybrid chuckle.
"I'll be at the lab today with Doctor Thomas. Just a short shift so I should be back after two." Kai explained as he moved to one of the cabinets, grabbing two mugs for him and Cass.
"You look like you're enjoying being an apprentice there Kai." She said as she kept an eye on her toast, noticing the smile on his face.
"It's where I can learn about my mother, and hopefully I'll be able to carry on her legacy." The kettle finished boiling, and the hybrid made coffee for both of them.
"What about you Cass? You dealing with that asshole teacher?" He asked as he stirred the mugs, passing one to his companion.
"Thankfully he's not in today. I've only got three lessons, finish at one."
Kai nodded in approval. "If you want, once I'm done, you wanna get pizza?" The hybrid sat back down.
Wonder Girl smiled at him. "Large BBQ Chicken supreme?" She noticed his face light up.
"You've read my mind."
Several hours later. . .
Doctor Thomas and Kai were going over new ideas for the Starsuit, they both agreed that a helmet fitted with an oxygen system would be beneficial in terms of space and underwater exploration.
"Of course we'll need to come up with different designs so that it can support the O2 function." Kai jotted down on his tablet, already looking at the basic design.
"Sounds like we've got ourselves a new project." Luke said cheerfully. "We'll start in the next two weeks."
"Two weeks?" Kai asked, "Is something coming up?"
"I'm taking some time off. So that means you'll also be taking time off. If you want, we can plan a day out, get to know one another ya know?" The scientist patted his back, taking a slow walk.
"That actually sounds fun. Count me in Luke." Kai excitingly said, before realising what he wanted to ask. "Before we start re-arranging the files again, can I ask you something?"
"Fire away."
"Why did my mother give me the middle name Thomas?" The hybrid noticed how Luke paused in his movement, his face turning to a more serious one.
"Can we discuss this in my office first?" He asked Kai, who nodded quietly as they began to walk to Luke's office.
Doctor Thomas's office was unlike the rest of the labs, with an almost cabin like interior. Pictures of various places that Luke visited in his youth were hung on the wall, along with a picture of the entire S.T.A.R Labs staff, including Alice, and John.
"So. Where do I begin Kai?" Luke said as he offered a mug of tea to the hybrid, who accepted.
"Whatever is easiest for you." Kai answered, sipping on his tea.
The scientist took a deep breath, taking out a sheet of paper from his desk, placing it in front of the hybrid. Kai looked at the paper, reading every detail.
DNA blood samples from both Luke Thomas, and Kai Thomas Black confirm that they are biologically related as father and son. The hybrid felt a strange feeling inside of him, like his whole world just shut itself off.
"Alice and I. . . We were close." Luke softly spoke, unsure of Kai's reaction to the news.
"Did you love her?" Kai asked, the lack of expression on his face could be comparable to Batman's.
Luke answered, "More than anything."
"If you excuse me Doctor Thomas. This is a lot to take in, but bare in mind I do not hate you." Kai stood up, preparing to leave.
"I'll call you once I've gotten my head around it all, I hope you understand. . ."
Luke silently nodded, letting his biological son leave his office. "I have to give him space. . ." He looked up at the photo of Alice, her smile was the only thing that told him that everything was going to be okay.
As Kai left to meet with Cass, he felt a rush a various emotions, first came anger, then followed sorrow. He thought he had no family left. John Millar was never his father, just a man who envied Alice and Luke's hard dedicated work. Donning the Blackstar mantle again, he flew away from the labs, a tear leaving his eye as he went off to meet with Wonder Girl.
Wonder Girl; the daughter of Helena Sandsmark and the god known as Zeus, was walking by herself within the local shopping mall, browsing the latest CD albums out of boredom. She eagerly waited for the hybrid to show up, knowing he wouldn't be too long. As she looked through the metal genre, she smiled at one of Kai's favourites, a group he mentioned once or twice.
"With Roots Above and Branches Below. . ." She said in her mind, but just before she could touch the album, she felt the familiar hand touch her shoulder.
"Quite the vocals on the lead singer." Kai greeted with a hug, his friend returning with a peck on his cheek. "What was that for?" He asked.
"Just pleased to see you Kai." Cass poked her tongue out playfully.
"Shall we get stuffed?" She asked, already knowing the answer.
"Absolutely." And so the two went off to pursue a delicious meal.
Thirty minutes into their lunch. . .
Wonder Girl and Blackstar indulged in a BBQ Chicken Pizza supreme, a side of garlic doughballs, and two large chocolate milkshakes. They paid no attention to the occasional stares from one or two citizens, their whispers made Kai smile as his ears moved to the sound.
"Is that Wonder Girl?"
"Whose the weird fox thing?"
"Is she dating that?"
Cass tensed up a little, a little annoyed by the way they referred to Kai as a thing. "I don't like how they regard you as a thing. Pisses me off."
"Let them talk Cass." Kai waved it off, focusing on the lovely meal.
"Even if they think we're dating?" She enquired, noticing the tiny smirk.
"I guess dating a fur covered being would put many off." He responded.
Wonder Girl jumped in defence. "No! I-I didn't mean it in a bad sense!"
The hybrid chuckled, "You're not at fault my dearest. I knew what you meant, but who cares if we were dating?" He asked, taking another slice of pizza.
The heroine blushed at the thought. She wouldn't say out loud, but there was a mysterious yet warm aura around Kai. That smile, the icey blue eyes, the messy black hair that surrounded his head and ears, and that silly fox tail of his.
"Holy crap he's attractive!" Wonder Girl thought, before grabbing a slice.
After eating their lunch, Kai generously paid the bill, and so they departed back to the Tower, both flying back together. Once indoors, the hybrid walked Cass back to her room.
"Thanks for hanging out with me Cass. We should take the entire team out to that place sometime." Kai said, leaning against the wall.
"Sounds like a future plan." She awkwardly opened the door, unsure of what else there was to say.
"Well, I'm gonna chill in the lounge for a bit. Talk to you later Cass." The hybrid walked off, waving.
"See you soon Kai." She waved back before walking into her room. She threw away her shoes before moving towards her bed, sighing in content.
Tim Drake was sitting down in the lounge, the TV only served as background noise whilst he read through Nightwing's former case files, ranging from Slade Wilson, Mad Mod, H.I.V.E, and The Brotherhood of Evil. He could hear Kai approaching, continuing to read on.
"Knee deep in case files?" Kai asked, hopping over the couch.
"I figured that if I just go through these, I'll learn about how to handle certain villains. Plus my predecessor's file helps me learn about our enemies." Robin stated as he passed a file for Kai to read for himself.
"A bit of homework never hurt anyone." The hybrid eagerly begun to read.
Tim and Kai must've spent hours reading through the files, they shared a pot of coffee as they discussed each villian, about their abilities, their mannerisms, and their past interactions with the original Titans.
"What time is it?" Kai asked, analysing the details of former H.I.V.E member Jinx, now a full time member of Titans East, and girlfriend of Kid Flash.
"Quarter to ten." Tim answered.
The hybrid's eyes widened in surprise. "Almost ten o'clock? Who would've thought that reading super villain files would be this entertaining." Kai could hear the chuckle from the boy wonder.
"When I was in Gotham, I'd spend hours just reading through all of Batman's rogue gallery. From the worst of the worst like Joker, to small time thugs like Falcone. Knowing who you're up against is essential, even if it's a new one." Tim shifted onto his seat.
"So Kai. . . Did Doctor Thomas tell you everything?" The question made the hybrid look up.
"Guess there's no point hiding it from you detective." He sighed before continuing. "He's my dad. . . Showed me the DNA samples he took when I started working with him."
Kai sat back. "He told me he loved her, more than life itself. I told him I needed time to wrap my head around it all. I don't hate him, but it's alot to take in."
"Of course it would be. But at least you know you have no blood relation to Millar." Tim settled his mug on the table. "You should talk to him when you're ready."
"Yeah. I've got two weeks off from work, so I'll see to it that it's done." Kai was surprised at how easy it came out of him.
"I think you won't regret in doing so Kai, Luke Thomas is a good man." Robin piled the files in order. "Well I'm done for tonight." He stood up with the files in hand.
"I think tomorrow we should all go on patrol, maybe we'll see your Onion Boy."
The hybrid scoffed. "I'd rather gouge my eyeballs than deal with that waste. Besides, it would be over in less than a second, with him drinking through a straw."
"No need to be so brutal Blackstar." Tim warned jokingly.
"Just saying we are overpowered Robin, maybe we gotta nerf ourselves." Kai chuckled with him. "You go rest Tim, I'm staying up since it's the start of my two weeks."
"Here if you need a hand Kai. Night!" Robin waved as he left for his quarters, leaving the hybrid to his own devices.
Kai grabbed the two mugs that were left, singing quietly to an song which played within his head.
"Paint a picture in my head. Yellow, black and red. Use it as a disguise. . ."
Music was Kai's escape from the mad world he lived in, though being a hero was a tough job, he always had time for a song or two.
"Spray it down to reset, clean bodies at rest, pull the wool over my eyes."
"Over my eyes." Unbeknownst to Kai, Wonder Girl was listening to his voice.
"Push me to the very end, this life was all but over when, all of my friends found their graves. Now use me 'til there's nothing left then shoot me with your medicine, 'til I can't feel any more pain. . ."
"I'm numb to this place. . ."
Kai finished washing the mugs, placing them back as he finished singing. He opened up the fridge in pursuit of a snack, oblivious to the watcher who listened to his warm, rough vocals.
"Gotta admit it, he's got a voice on him." Cass thought before retreating to her room, leaving a content Blackstar to indulge in his snack.
Between being a Titan, and prized apprentice, Kai still had one question left unanswered. Did he still want to be cured?
End of Chapter VII: The Truth
Author's Notes:
Happy New Year! So here you have it, Luke is Kai's father, but what were the circumstances behind his and Alice's relationship? Well that is for our next chapter.