Half-Justice
Fresh Air
Cadmus Sub-level 35
Superboy finally felt what it's like to be alive, and he was incredibly annoyed by it.
Trapped inside a pod for all of his existence, always limited, always sedated, it never occurred to him how suffocating it all was until he was finally free. All he wanted to be was to be strong like Superman, and he was always told that he wasn't ready and wasn't as strong as Superman. But now he was awake, and he felt his power flow through him. He knew that every nagging voice in his head that Cadmus programmed in there was all a lie. He was strong. He could be superman! Cadmus wasn't his home. It had only held him back.
Never again.
So he was gonna make sure Desmond and all of Cadmus knew how he felt. So when the first G-Trolls stood in his way, all the anger he didn't know he felt raged out and brought the big creature to the ground in less than a second. The creatures were bred for super strength and Superboy downed one with one punch. He turned and faced the other monsters, ready to put them down. Right before he did so, a fist larger than himself flattened him to the ground.
Superboy grimaced for a second when he hit the floor, then realized that it didn't hurt him, he just flinched. Did he really think that punch would hurt him? He was the next Superman. What made this G-Troll think that such a weak punch could hurt him? Did Cadmus not realize the full extent of the clone's power? All this talk about him not being ready, a weapon, a tool, but thought that these creatures could hurt him? These thoughts burned into Superboy's mind, and before the G-Troll could raise his fists off Superboy's face, he broke free and began wailing on the creature who dared think he could be caged by just one swing!
"Superboy!" A familiar voice, Aqualad yelled. "The goal is to escape, not to bury ourselves here."
This ticked Superboy off, he had momentarily forgotten about his companions and their plans. Thats right, he needed to be free of this place, he mentally kicked himself in the head for this lapse in judgment. "You want escape?!" He yelled, and picked up the unconscious G-Troll and tossed it at the others with all his might knocking them all down.
"Gods, what kind of milk were they feeding you?" Perseus, his annoying savior, noted.
Superboy grunted at his so-called saviors. Especially Perseus didn't realize it when he was fighting him earlier, but the guy is really annoying.
"This way," The one called Annabeth yelled, clutching her tablet in her hand. She scrambled her fingers across the screen, and the elevator door opened right up. Though the elevator itself wasn't there.
"Great, Any chance you have a spare grappling hook?" Perseus asked robin.
The boy wonder gave an apologetic shrug.
"Oh please, seaweed brain" Annabeth jumped and grabbed the elevator's edge. "I've seen you climb worse"
"Fine," Perseus grumbled, "Just give me a sec to-"
"Shut up" Superboy got tired of waiting. He grabbed Perseus by the scruff of his neck and tossed him 4 levels high.
Superboy then grabbed Aqualad and prepared to take off. It was second nature to him, or so he tried to convince himself. He knew the experience from the pod, the thrill, the push of flight, the grappling of gravity. All those sensations were absent from him. As soon as his feet left the ground, he felt something was off. He couldn't grasp the space around him, he reached out as he did in the simulations, but nothing happened. He didn't know what was happening. His flight slowed, faster and faster beyond what Superboy was willing to. He didn't know how, and suddenly he was struck with a feeling that the pod scarcely showed him. He was not flying.
"I am falling," He mouthed
Luckily The world seemed to move faster for his companions than it did for him. Perseus was able to grab the two from plummeting any further.
"I gotcha, big guy" Perseus struggled to pull them up and stay balanced on the edge.
"Looks like you are gonna need more than a single bound," Perseus quipped.
Superboy ignored his wit. He still lamented his failing takeoff. "Superman can fly. Why can't I?"
The grin disappeared from Perseus's face and was replaced with one Superboy was unfamiliar with, but he did not care to focus on that right now.
"Hey, if it's any consolation, you do punch like a bullet," Kid-flash shouted from the lower level, for once taking his eyes off of Annabeth. "My ribs are still healing."
"Thanks," Superboy told the two heroes at his side.
The blonde girl said, free-climbing her way up the elevator shaft one hundred while carrying her tablet. She swiftly moved up to their level, holding her tablet to her chin. After a quick and fluid series of taps on her tablet, the elevator shaft opened. "Let's get out of here,"
The shaft opened up, and the six of them jumped right in. The walls were not made of flesh and metal pods, so they were getting close to the top. Several Genomorphs creatures came out of the corridors and started chasing them, but the 6 of them managed to evade them.
'How are we going to get out of here' Superboy thought, 'This place is a maze.'
'Turn left, brother'
'What?' Superboy reacted to the intrusive thought. Why go left? He has never left his pod, much less the building, so he wouldn't know where the exit is. But Superboy guessed it was better than nothing.
"This way," Superboy yelled and took a left at the next possible moment. The others followed his lead.
'Turn right
"Right," Superboy yelled, but that led straight to a wall.
"I thought you knew where you were going!?" Perseus yelled.
"I dont understand," Superboy told them.
"No, no, this is perfect," Annabeth once again tapped away on her tablet. While tapping away, she pointed at a ventilation shaft that was stationed above them."These ventilation systems connect to a majority of the sub-levels," She said, not taking her eyes off whatever she was working on.
"Well, you heard her, "Perseus said "Lets get-go"
Everyone hurried and scrambled up the wall. It didn't take long for all of them to do it. However, the Boy wonder held back for just a second.
"Is something wrong?" Annabeth asked the Boy Wonder, who gave a stink eye to the blonde.
"You beat me by 5 seconds." He murmured
"Come again?" Asked Ammaneth. She seemed to be surprised by the hostility.
"Never mind," And the Boy Wonder immediately ran up the wall and disappeared in the hole.
Annabeth was the last one to enter. Superboy jumped right before her. He heard her come in, closing the grate behind him. The six of them crawled through the metal tubes. Superboy was surprised that the chutes could support all of them, and his mind briefly wondered to what material the chutes were made off before he heard a commotion from one of the vent's entry ports.
Genormorphs and what sounded like other staff members of Cadmus, running and searching through every room on the floor. It seemed that they successfully avoided them for the time being, but that doesn't mean they won't find them whenever they get out of the chute.
"We can't hide in here forever," Aqualad mentioned
"I dont know," Persuas added, leaning his back against the wall. "Toss in pizza, blankets and I think we can hold down for a couple of days"
"Maybe throw in a TV and some video game consoles, and maybe it might be close to being a 3-star Motel," Kid-Flash added. "At least this place has internet."
"I am not spending another night in this place," Superboy growled.
"You know that gives me an idea," Robin said, pulling his holographic wrist computer. "If I can send in a trojan horse into the security frame, I may be able to…" His voice trailed off. He squinted at the screen and then slowly turned over to Annabeth. "You hacked the motion sensors already, didn't you"
"First thing I did, actually," said Annabeth with a hint of gloating. "Hurry up, then take the grate thats 4 grates down the left-hand side"
Not having any reservations, all six of them crawled through the shaft to the point Annabeth specified. Persuas kicked down the grate to find a section that was perhaps the only section of Cadmus that wasn't swarming with creatures.
"Alright, let's Hurry" Annabeth said as she jumped from the wall. "They are not gonna be distracted forever"
"Great, now I have room to breathe," Kid Flash said before speeding off ahead, coming quickly back and grabbing Annabeth's hand.
"Thanks to you, beautiful," He said, kissing the woman's hand. Kid then sped off as quickly as he came. Superboy rolled his eyes at this. Surely there had to be something else on the speedster's mind besides romance. Annabeth, too seemed to be caught off guard by the Flash's comments. Superboy did not think she was flustered by the speedster's comments but was confused by them. Her partner took it a different way. He seemed to be holding back forceful laughter.
"I'm so sorry, Annabeth," Aqualad began saying, cringing at the speedster's actions. "He can be a bit much sometimes"
"It's fine," Annabeth regarded "let's go."
"Yes, lead the way, your majesty," Pesuaus said jokingly.
"Shut up, seaweed brain," Annabeth said grumpily,
The four of them ran up the stairs. Robin had beaten them up the stairs. He took down any straggling genomorphs that weren't already knocked down. His wrists lit up, and his masked eyes widened. "We have more coming at us."
Sure enough, one of the doors behind them opened, and a trove of monsters started pouring through the door.
"On it," Annabeth shouted, doing a couple of sweeps on her pad, and the door slid closed, cutting off a majority of genomorphs from coming after them. However, many more still crawled in after them as they made their way up the stairs. Superboy turned to crush the stairs to block their advancement, but before he could lift his foot, as luck would have it at that moment, a pipe burst out of the wall, and a forceful of water barreled through the wall and wiped up all the creatures that were crawling up the steps.
"You know, times like these that I am forever grateful for centralized plumbing," Superboy heard Perseus say infront of him. Superboy thought the line was off for a random occurrence, but he couldn't focus on that. He and the others were up to sub-level 8. They were so close to finally getting out of here. He was finally about to see the sun.
They were right infront of the last door to take it above, but Annabeth stopped them. "Not here!" She shouted.
"What, why?" Kid-Flash asked.
"It's an ambush," Annabeth yelled in a horse tone. "They are waiting for us above the stairs."
"Really?" Robin asked "I dont see them on my end."
"Trust me, they there," Annabeth said "They must have cut you out of the system or something. Let's go!"
The five of them exchanged nervous looks. Persuas face was the most concerning out of all of them. He reached out and grabbed her shoulders. "Hey, Annabeth are you feeling alright-"
"Let's move it," She said in a more forceful tone, shaking off her his hand and dashing into the room next door. Hearing the growls behind them grow louder, superboy and the others followed the girl in the other room, where the door closed behind them.
A red tint entered the room, and surrounding them at all sides, a legion of Genormorphs was waiting for them, all of them led by Guardian.
"What was that about an ambush?" Robin shouted back, drawing a staff. "You led us straight to them"
"I don't understand," Annabeth said, rechecking her tablet. "Why did?-"
Her voice gone shadow, Superboy picked up a sound of raspy wind slowing down and a drumbeat descending. He soon realized it was Annabeth. She had lost consciousness and slumped to the ground. Perseus grabbed her before she hit the ground.
"No, what did you do?" Perseus yelled, drawing a weapon in his free hand while clutching his partner's limp body. The others readied themselves as well, steading their breaths, harnessing their powers, and controlling their heartbeat. Before anything else was said or any of them had a chance to move, a chorus of red lights flickered among the monster's ranks. A warm sensation flowed through the clone's body, he didn't realize it, but his knees buckled to the melody of the Gnomes mind. Through their sirens, Superboy heard the heartbeats of his companions weaken, though he paid little attention to it as his mind was being drained of stress, worry, and desperation.
But it was not free of caution. He still knew he had to get out of there, but he seemed more centered. He sees visions of himself in supermans places. Visions of him back in the pod, scenarios, and information were once again bombarded in his brain. But they weren't genuine, but they weren't suffocating either. It almost felt protective.
"Nows not the time be sleeping everyone," A voice in his mind told him. It was familiar, but it wasn't his own. It was more personal genuine, and human. "Not when you are so close"
"Your not superman," The voice told him. "Here, all you are is a clone"
The voice disappeared, and the images of the metropolis faded as well, and
"Perhaps for the sake of all genomorphs," A different voice projected into his mind. One that was foreign but very familiar.
With a Bang, Superboys' eye exploded and turned to face Dublix. It was his voice that guided him through the compound.
"It was you?" He asked in his mind.
"Indeed brother, it was I who started the fire, and lured your new friends to liberate you," Dubilix told him. "Though not without some… outside assistance."
As if on a cosmic queue, Perseus stirred next to "What going on? That voice..."
"So you're awake, sir Jackson" The genomorph mused "Your resilience and character have been a welcomed change"
"You! You were the one who called me here!" Persuas said, "You're the voice from beneath."
"Indeed, sir Jackson," Dubblix told him. "I called you and your partner here to assist the genomorphs and superboy in his path to liberty. And convinced you and young Annabeth to set fire to draw the others here.
"Okay, but why?" Persuas asked, "What made you choose me?"
"The moment you arrived in the city, I sensed our shared Kinship as well as your heart." The head genomorph explained, "A heart that can liberate superior. The heroes next to you can do that but he will need someone to see the world, to find a path that is beyond one that treads."
Superboy stared at Persuas. He didn't know how he felt about him. Sure he had only met him about 2 hours ago, but there was something about him that was different than the others. One of them being every time he talks, he has the urge to punch him in the gut and get back at him for cutting his face. But there seems to be a genuine aura, he admits. The way he acts and talks is not held back or premeditated. He isn't like the speedster who speaks his mind, the secrecy of Robin, or the noble intent of the Atlantian. He was Persuas was guided by something other than a heroic drive. He was different.
"Okay, I know you're desperate, and I dont like my plans being hijacked by unforeseen beings. But I am glad I was able to help," Persuas said, scratching the back of his neck, looking back at Superboy, "But you said we had a kinship? What do you mean by that?"
"It's the reason why you hear our voice so easily. You hear our cries and are resilient to the gnome's influences," Dubblix explained. "There is a connection between you and us in a way that transcends blood and kin"
"Okay, but what does that mean?" The sword hero asked. "Are you guys part horse?" Persuas asked
"Part horse?" Superboy asked, confused by that response.
"Perhaps, or perhaps not," Dublix asked with a cheeked smile.
"Why does that matter?" Superboy asked. "Are you a part horse?"
"Eh," Persuas said, vaguely shaking his hand at the clone.
"I dont think thats a question you can say 'Eh' to"
"Just– forget about it" Persuas said in a huff. "It's not that important, plus it would take too long"
"Regardless, Superboy," Dubblix spoke up again, turning his attention to the clone. "It's time for you to make a choice. One that will determine the fate of all Genomorhs"
"But why? Why me?" The clone asked.
"You are the Genomorph hero. You will blaze a path for all our brothers to follow"
Perseus and Superboy both gazed at the creatures around them. Their expressions were nothing more than a mask, an elaborate farce. They were put up to this, they were not hunters, villains, or weapons. They were forced into this by Cadmus. They were bred and controlled for this. He remembers the voice and commands from the pod and when he escaped. It was deafening, and it was probably the same for the. Superboy looked over to his companion. Perseus looked over the creatures, his features weakened, and exchanged a glance. Superboy wonders if he came to the same understanding. How much of them, of himself, was denied? How much more of himself was chosen for him by Cadmus? Not by him.
These heroes, his — friends, came here because it was their choice. Based on their decisions life choices they made. They were all not born to be heroes. They chose to be one.
"This choice is now yours"
Now it was Superboy's turn. This was funny because there really wasn't another option for him, and he was happy with it.
"I chose Freedom," Superboy declared.
And all around them, a hum that was unknowingly buzzing in his ear had faded. The legions of Genomorphs that chassed them had their faces melted away into a more tranquil state, as everyone around them woke up.
Next to persuas, the other heroes began to stir, waking up from Dubblix's spell and lifted from their dream. Robin, Aqualad, and Kid flash got to their feet at their own pace. Perseus quickly got to his partner's side, helping her to her feet. Though she seemed more than capable of getting up on her own, she seemed to appreciate the gesture.
"What's going on?
Guardian also was coming too as well. No, that wasn't it. Color started flowing back into Guardian's face. More so than Superboy has seen before him, he never realized just how pale the hero actually was.
"It feels like a fog has lifted" His voice was now less strained, like his own vocal cords had cut themselves free.
The shield Hero turned to the 6 of them. His face now glimmering with a stern expression that Superboy couldn't make out.
"Guardian?" Aqualad asked anxiously, taking a step forward to the shield hero.
The hero's face hardens, and the superboy braces for a fight. Instead, the Sheild hero walked away from the group.
"Go!" He yelled at them. "Go get the league, I will handle Desmond."
"Like hell you will!" An angry voice bellowed in the halls.
Attention turned to another figure standing in the corridor. Dr. Desmond stood leaning against the doorway, looking worse for wear. His nose was still broken but had stopped bleeding though his face and neck were littered with dried blood and bruises. His lab coat was stained, burned, and shredded, revealing multiple injuries all over his body. He leaned against the metal wall grasping his clearly broken.
"Dude," Kid-flashed stated, almost lost for words at the site. "What happened"
Annabeth winced "I may have done a bit more than changing the motion sensors"
"You think you can break into my Cadmus, steal my projects, and get away with it?" Desmond spat
Perseus looked at the team, the genomorphs, Guardian, and then Desmond. "My dude, you got your ass handed to you by a couple of homewreckers, an underprivileged employee, and a literal giant baby."
Perseus turned to Superboy "No offense"
"No"
"Fair enough," Persuas shrugged "Point is, I dont see this ending any other way without you humiliating yourself further.
"You think your quips and jokes can save you?" The doctor barked
"I think they helped me more than that haircut helped you"
"Enough, both of you," Guardian came between the two of them. "Doc the best thing you can do for Cadmus now is to come willingly. Surrender yourself to the league we can work something out"
Guardian reached out a helping hand toward Desmond, but the doctor violently swatted it away.
"No! You think you can take Cadmus from me because you all came together and let loose the menagerie?"
"Doc, this isn't ––" Guardian tried to reason, but the doctor cut him short.
"You dont get to speak to me, you so-called 'Shield Hero'! You are no better than the cockroaches we breed here. You have no right to take control away from me."
Guardian flinched at the words, though Superboy wasn't impressed by Desmond's words of fire. He found it sad and pathetic, a man trying so hard to keep up his illusion of control. Superboy cringed that he was at the whim for so long. He was more than willing to finish Desmond out of some guise at mercy, but he knew that it was something that Superman would never do, so he stopped entertaining the thought.
"Easy, Doctor," Aqualad spoke up. "Let's not make this any harder than it needs to be. The league will be here any moment, regardless of how much of a fight you put up. It would be in the best interest if you came in peacefully."
"Plus," Kid-flash sped to the Atlantian's side. "It's not like you can do anything about that anyway"
A hollow yet demented smile grew on Desmond's face. "Funny you should mention that"
He pulled a cracked but intact beaker from inside his lab coat. "Project Blockbuster here has all the power I need to restore order to Cadmus."
Before anyone could process what Desmond was doing, the good doctor downed the vial's contents. Immediately Desmond fell to his knees and hollowed in pain. Annabeth and Aqualad ran up to help, but Guardian shielded them back.
They all watched in horror as Desmond's body painfully transformed. His blood-curdling scream turned into a deafening roar, and every muscle in his body violently spasmed in all directions. He started to grow 2, 3 times the size he was before. His very skin tearing at the seam, revealing a cold blue underbelly divided by red lines of muscle and bone. Blood filled the whites of his eyes till they were full crimson. As he reached his full height, litters of skin, flesh, and a chunk of hair still wrapped around his body. Nothing human remained Desmond now, where a pathetic man once stood appeared a 12-foot monster took its place. Towering over all the heroes, the blue demon, formally known as Desmond, let out a hungry growl.
"Well, at least he got a Hair cut that fits," Perseus quipped,
"Everyone, get ba-" Guardian ordered before Desmonded swatted the hero to into the wall with the force of the runaway firetruck.
Seeing this as an invitation, Superboy clenched his fist. He looked past Desmond's scary features and saw Desmond's form as what it truly was. He wasn't a monster. He was just a bigger target and the perfect outlet for his rage.
Superboy charged, using the thought of Cadmus to fuel him, he planted a fist squarely into Desmond's face. But nothing happened. Instead, Desmond's crimson glare turned towards him. A violent blur from above smashed Superboy's face towards the ground, loosening some of his teeth. Swiftly, Superboy turned on his heels and launched an uppercut causing Desmond to stumble backward. Superboy quickly moved to a series of body shots, but the creature recovered faster than Superboy predicted. Desmond elbowed the clone straight in his gut. Superboy's stomach lurched as he fell against the wall. His lungs gasped for air as Desmond's monstrous form loomed above him.
"Cowabunga!"
Out of nowhere, Persuas flew into Desmond's neck. Grappling and pulling on Desmond's hair at every opportunity. The creature stumbled back, flaring his arms trying to grab the hero but it was pointless he could not reach.
"Haha!" Perseus laughed while riding through the monster's tantrum. "Come on, big man, let's make some Ratittoulie!"
Perseus's laughter made Desmond even angrier and disorientated. However, at one point, Desmond stopped reaching and lowered himself just a tad. Perseus's laughter ceased, and Superboy realized what he was doing.
"Hold it," he said before Desmond launched itself through the ceiling, taking Perseus with him.
"No!" Annabeth yelled in a taut voice.
Superboy stared in horror. Persuas didn't seem to have unbreakable skin or any powers to protect himself from something like that. He was not gonna be ok.
"Thats not how I would go through the ceiling," Robin told the group as he shot a grappling gun through the newly formed hole.
"You think P-body planned that?" Kid-Flash asked worryingly as he hitched a ride with Robin,
Superboy picked up the shocked blonded and leaped through the hole in the ceiling. As he headed out, he heard Aqualad say something in a grave tone.
"I dont think either one is planning anything anymore."
Cadmus lobby
This one was the most uncomfortable of all the walls Percy crashed through. He was still reeling from his clash with Superboy. Though he was partially healed his body, his body still ached before he was sent through 2 feet of concrete. It was a miracle that Percy didn't blackout from his upper back being scrapped and ripped by the granite. His head and shoulders ached with a vibrating numbness from the impact.
When they exploded into the Lobby, Percy was catapulted across the floor, landing against the glass entrance, still gripping a chunk of Desmond's hair.
"Gross," Percy mumbled, tossing the chunk aside.
He didn't have time to dwell much on that or the pain because Desmond came at him with another ariel assault. Percy rolled aside just as Dewmond sunk his fist into the concrete next to him. Percy tried to stand up and gain some distance, but the pain severely limited his mobility.
Desmond reached and snatched up Percy as he tried to crawl away. He lifted up and roared eagerly at the sight of his prey. Percy knew Desmond was winding up to either eat him (based on his breath) or flay him against the glass. Percy fumbled in his hands for Riptide, trying to grab his sword as fast as he could. In the nick of time, he whipped out the pen, flicked off the cap, and started to wail at any blue oily skin in reach.
The sword didn't break any skin but sizzled at every point of contact. Desmond let out a roar of pain and threw Percy aside. Percy braced to become a wall cake, but instead, he found himself laying against the front desk on the other side of the room, in the arms of Kid-Flash.
"Has anyone ever told you you run into things too quickly?" The speedster quipped.
Percy smiled at the irony. "Someone brings it up roughly once a week"
Annabeth and the others quickly appeared at Percy's side. His girlfriend directly passed a morsel of ambrosia into Percy's hands as they all closed in together.
"You alright?" Aqualad asked
"I'll live" Percy shrugged, wincing at the pain.
On the other side room, Desmond turned his attention to the berries and gave a deafening roar. Percy pocketed the ambrosia in his mouth and readied his blade. He felt the ambrosia seep through his body, the heat traveling through his veins and mending as much as it could. The boiling sweats embroiling themselves on his forehead were warning him that he was at a breaking point. This should be the last he takes for the night, and he was already pushing his limits already. He and the rest of the heroes turned their attention tword him, ready to find some way to bring the big man down.
"So, does anyone here have any plan for big bad and ugly here?" Kid-flash asked.
Percy instinctively glanced over at Annabeth. She had reached down and grabbed a chunk of broken concrete and rubbed it between her fingers, studying its dust and sand and the ceiling from which it fell from.
"Annabeth?" Percy asked, a little concerned she was getting lost in her subject matter.
"I have 2 or three brewing at the moment," She told the others, tossing the chunk of rock aside and drawing her Drakken blade. "In the meantime, hit him hard and see if he falls down."
"Yes, Ma'am," Kid-Flash sped ahead of the rest, dashing between Desmond's legs. The Shark Man turned to swat him, but Aqualad and Superboy stole his focus when they came in and clocked him in the face. Desmond stumbled backward, tripping over Kid-Flash, who had huddled behind his legs.
"Ha! Learned that one in Kindergarten"
Percy and Annabeth took this opportunity, leaped over the speedster, and brought down their swords to Desmond. Though he saw through this, Desmond moved out of the way right when their blades plunged into the ground. However, Robin had sawed through his movements and had thrown an exploding shuriken in a piece of Concrete right next to where Desmond had moved to avoid the two's swords. Robin's shuriken exploded, causing Desmond to be a little disorientated, giving Superboy the perfect opening to rush him plowing him in the stomach. Still, Desmond countered by throwing the clone into a pillar, causing the entire building to shake.
Out of the corner of his eye, Percy caught a special gleam glittering in Annabeth's eyes, and a determined smile grew on her face. She had a plan.
"Well, that was fast," Percy quipped.
"What was?" Robin asked
Annabeth playfully rolled her eyes but subtly gestured to the pillar around them and the center of the room. She didn't say anything but her intentions were loud and clear.
"Got it!" Percy told her and ran towards the monster.
Behind him, he heard Annabeth yell out, "Kid-Flash get over here"
"Wait, what are you doing?" Robin yelled, but Percy didn't have any time to stop and explain. He had to do his part of the plan. But to do that, he needed Superboy to be hands-free.
Luckily Aqualad had already beaten him to that. Kaldur used his water whip things to lasso Desmond's arm, stopping him from laying into Superboy. Percy saw an opportunity, took a page from Kid flash, slid between Desmond's legs, and sliced at where Percy supposed Desmon's Achilles tendons would be. The blade blistered against Desmond's skin, causing him to lose footing and fall against Kaldur's whip. In a show of flair, Percy reached down deep in his gut and redirected the building's water pressure. With an explosion, a powerful guiser erupted beneath the monster's feet, launching him in the air.
"What the" Aqualad gaped at the sight along with Superboy. "Where did that?"
"Don't worry about it," Percy told them. The geyser won't last forever. "Listen, I need you guys to do some damage to the pillars."
"Are you sure?" Aqualad asked skeptically.
"Yeah," Percy said, and he informed them about Annabeth's plan. The two of them listened and nodded in agreement and went ahead on starting their respective parts in the different corners of the building. As they did so, the water pressure died down, and Desmond's scary ass fell right back down to earth, and he was pissed. The force equivalent of a water park did not quell his anger in the slightest. Desmond growled and charged at Percy, but a sudden blur blazed across Desmond's face.
"Go-fish," Kid-flash joked as he tried to land other punches and moves on Desmond's joints and vital areas. However, the creature formally known as Desmond was only mildly distracted by Kid-flashes attempts of attack, as He seemed to have only one clear goal, kill Percy now that he was in his sites. Percy was moments away from a deadly punch in the gut that obliterated the pillar behind him. Perhaps he must be grieving the haircut harder than he expected.
So Percy did what Percy does best in these situations: mock the bad guys and run away.
"So, what was your grand plan here?" Percy asked, leading the Monster to a nearby pillar. "You sacrifice your mind and speech to turn yourself into some Gothic Shark man to what? Take down 6 teenagers from walking on your lawn?"
Desmond's punch next punch pierced through the next pillar inches away from his face. Percy rolled aside and blocked Desmond's attempt to grab using Riptide. "I would say that would be overkill, but you are doing a bad job at killing anyone."
Percy jolted aside, trying to get as much distance as he could but still be in mocking range. Which was hard because he was just a guy seconds away from breaking all of the bones in his body, and Desmond was a monster who out-class Percy in every physical manner. He was stronger and faster than him, luckily, Kid-flash was able to slow him down with a jabs attack, which did a good job distracting him in a pesky mosquito kind of way.
"Maybe this is his long-about way of getting out of paying his student doubt," Kid flash asked after trying to give Desmond a charley horse. "Do you think lenders will take the mad science excuse?"
"No," Percy told him, "He might find work as a Circus elephant, though."
Desmond let out a feral growl and smashed through the pillar Annabeth needed. Now all Percy had to do was bring him back to Annabeth.
"Beep, Beep" Percy jumped in the air mocking Desmond and turned and run away. Desmond gave an irritated growl and picked up the pace, shaking the building with every step he took toward Percy and gaining speed.
Up ahead, Percy saw Robin draw a big letter X on the ground ahead; realizing thats the spot, Percy made his way there with Desmond still on his tail. Now what he had to do was to make sure that Desmond got where he needed to be. It was risky and relied a lot on physics, something Percy never got higher than a C in school, but he still decided to stop ahead of the X and waited for Desmond to come to get to him. Desmond charged faster when he saw Percy standing still, not believing his luck. When Desmond got within arm's length of him, Percy lowered his center of gravity and spun on the balls of his feet with Riptide fully extended and swung at Desmond's shin with his full strength.
Desmond buckled at the pain, but the momentum kept him going forward, and he rolled right on the X.
"Jackpot," Percy said with a sense of triumph.
Then on cue, Kaldur dosed the Shark Boy with water and let out a powerful electric current through the stream. Desmond lit up like a Christmas Tree, paralyzed by the energy running through his body. He gave a powerful yet strained yell as he stood there, unable to move.
"Now," Annabeth commanded, and explosions went off, signaling Percy and the others that it was time to get the hell out of there as the building began to shake and collapse. With all the pillars destroyed, there was nothing left to hold up the rest of the 3 story building. So they all ran towards the exit as Annabeth's plan came crashing down around them (in a good way). Percy could barely make his way around the falling chunks of granite and glass before the building came crashing down. Luckily they had all just cleared the building.
Percy collapsed just as the dust explosion rang out from the site where Cadmus once stood. His body was strained and exhausted. Pain emanated from his Ankle. He had rolled or strained it on his way out of the building. He barely had the strength in him to violently cough up the mouthful of ash that had entered his lungs.
"Need a hand?" a voice asked as Percy finished coughing up his third lung. He looked up and saw Kaldur standing over him, just as bruised, beaten, and exhausted as he but still standing.
Percy reached out and grabbed his hands, and the Atlantian steadied him as he got to his feet. When he did, he looked around to find Annabeth and saw his girlfriend steadily holding herself up on a collapsed piece of rubble. He limped his way over to his girlfriend and helped her get to her feet. The two held each other and looked over the ruins of Cadmus. In the epicenter, he could see Desmond's unconscious body stuck beneath the slab of building material.
"We did it?" Kid-flash said in utter disbelief as sped to their side.
Annabeth gave the kid a cheeky gin, "Was there any doubt?"
Percy knew the answer, but Kid-Flash was caught off guard by it. His face turned bright red, and he began to stammer. "Well – – I didn't – – I mean you– – everything work– – Oh look it's the moon" He turned everyone's attention to the sky above. "Look at that SB. We kept our promise. How awesome are we"
Percy and the others looked at the full moon. It was quite tranquil in contrast to how chaotic this night had been. Percy couldn't help but enjoy the majesty of it all as it hung up there in the seas of the cosmos. Annabeth leaned her head on his shoulders, and for a moment, Percy wished it was just him and Annabeth enjoying the night together like they were originally planning.
Percy took a glance at Superboy. The clone was fully entranced by the celestial giant sitting there. He felt a little jealous about the wonder painted on Superboy's face. This was his first time basking in the moonlight. His eyes lit up like a kid at Christmas, so in awe of the night and the stars in the sky. His face was still stern, but it had warmed up and brightened the clone's features. As if something awoken at the sight of the moon, something pure and good. Percy smiled and sent a small prayer to Artemis or any sky deity for giving the clone the perfect night for him to experience.
In the distance, a spec appeared in front of the moon. At first, Percy couldn't make it out. It kinda looked like a bird. No, on a second guess to Percy, it looked like a plane, but that wasn't it either.
As it got closer, the silhouette took the form of a person, like he was flying or something.
Percy's mouth dropped. He recognized who that was. The S on his shirt became more apparent the closer he got. Never in a million years did Percy think he would see him.
"Oh…My…Gods," Annabeth muttered breathlessly.
"Oh look, it's Superman," Kid-Flash said in pleasant familiarity. "Do we keep our promises or what?"
And before Percy's very eyes, the Man of Steel elegantly landed 8 feet infront of him. Along with all the members of the justice league.
Percy and Annabeth saw all their favorites; Wonderwoman, Batman, Martian Manhunter, Aquaman, Black Canary, Green Arrow, Both Green Lanterns, Hawkgirl, Zatara, Captain Marvel, Red Tornado, and Captain Adam. Percy did his best to contain his inner 11-year-old self from fansplouding right then and there. Next to him, Annabeth was trying just as hard. He could her mumbling to herself, reminding her to stay calm and to keep her breath steady.
"Annabeth," Percy whispered, seeing all the superheroes around him. "Its the justice league"
"I know," She told him, trying to hide her glee. "Let's try to keep our cool, and maybe we can get autographs later"
All of the leaguers looked down disapprovingly at all the teens. They didn't immediately take notice of Annabeth and Percy, those that did look quizzical. No doubt, wondering why Percy and Annabeth were even doing there to begin with. Batman and Wonder Woman, especially, was one of the few who seemed actively interested in their presence.
Before Percy could step out and say something embarrassing in front of his heroes, Superboy approached Superman. Taking in the awestruck moment, Percy also realized just how much Superboy looked like his source material. They had the same face and blaring blue eyes, but Superman was more filled out, and his cheekbones were more padded, not to mention easily having two heads over the clone. Superman studied Superboy, no doubt noticing the similarities between the two, and was curious to know what it was.
Superboy turned over his torn uniform, revealing his own Superman insignia showing it off like it was something to show the teacher at show'n'tell.
Superman's eyes widen at the sight of his symbol. His face tightened, and his glare turned sour, like someone had dropped a Baby Hellhound at his front door.
Percy's heart leaped out for Superboy. His face fell at the sight of Superman's expression. Percy didn't know what reaction he expected Superman to have, but that certainly wasn't what Superboy wanted.
Batman stepped forward. He was almost terrified now that he was standing infront of him in person. His cowl and insignia were indistinguishable from the night sky. The only thing penetrating the darkness was the whites behind his mask. His face held a permanent scowl as he looked over at Superboy and studied the clone.
"Is that what I think it is?" He said in a low, almost growling voice, which made Annabeth and Percy shiver in fear and excitement.
"He is actually a him, sir," Percy said awkwardly, drawing the gaze of everyone nearby. He could hear his girlfriend give a disappointed sigh right next to him.
"I am Superman's clone," Superboy announced. A ripple of shock and disbelief reverberated around all the superheroes. Each one registers the gravity and importance of Superboy's existence means.
Batman stared down all 6 of them. His cold white studying and examining all of them. "Start talking"
Then he turned his full attention to Percy.
"And perhaps you can explain what you are doing here," He asked "Perseus Jackson?"
AN: Oh boy, reaching the end of Cadmus here feels a little surreal. I had initially hoped to cover this in one or two chapters but 3 years later we finally finished it in 3. This chapter did end up on the lighter side, but I ended up cutting it earlier than I had planned because it was so perfect of an end tag. Now I get to start my favorite part, exploring the dynamic, this time outside of a combat scenario. Next chapter will have Percy and Annabeth officially join the team and begin their super-heroes careers. I have been looking forward to that moment, and I know you all have been too. I can't wait to show it to you all.
Lastly, thank you for all the reviews, kudos, faves, and follows. Seeing the outpour of love and support for this series despite its long hiatus has meant the world to me. I can't wait to share Chapter 4 with you all. It will come sooner rather than later (hopefully), and I can't wait to see you all then.
In the meantime, I will focus on my OC-driven stories like Ned or Nobel few. Plus, one last follow-up with Operation Traitor before it goes on Hiatus.