Disclaimer: I own nothing, Wanner Bros. and DC own Young Justice and Max Steel is owned by Mattel.
Young Justice: Turbofied
Chapter 4: Meeting the League
San Francisco, California, USA
When Steel told Max that the world they were in had superheroes, like comic book superheroes with capes, tights, powers, gadgets, and everything in between, there was no denying that the Human-Takonian had a feeling that they would cross paths at some point. He just figured it wouldn't be so soon, like not even a few hours after they arrived on this earth. But he couldn't deny that the moment was a little more surprising and scary at the same time. Reading about comics is one thing, but seeing real superheroes in person was another.
Standing in front of him were six actual superheroes. Like any warm-blooded child, he always wanted to meet the heroes he read about in comic books, but now that he actually was, Max didn't know what to say.
However, the same couldn't be said for Steel, who immediately unlinked from Max and flew right at the closest hero, his single eye dilated as much as possible.
"Ohmigoshohmigoshohmigoshohmigosh!" Gushed the Ultralink, waving his little arms like a teenage girl meeting their pop star crush in person, "THISISAWESOME!"
"Woah!" Said the Green hero, his green ring lighting up, "What the heck is that?!"
"Uncatalogued lifeform detected," the ring said, getting the attention of all that were gathered, minus Steel who was still zipping around the heroes.
"Who-What is that?" asked the man in red, watching as the Ultralink flew around them.
"That's Steel," sighed, Max actually glad Steel's love of superheroes was set into overdrive, it brought the awkward silence to an immediate halt, "You don't have to worry, he's not gonna go anything dangerous."
"Maybe not dangerous," commented the green hero with the ring as he lowered his right hand, "But without a doubt annoying."
Steel might have had a comeback for Max's statement of 'not being dangerous' and being 'annoying,' but right now, he was too busy zipping around the gathered heroes like a child who was told to go nuts in a candy store and grab whatever they want.
"THECAPES!THECOSTUMES!THESYMBOLS!IT'SEVERYTHINGIHOPEDFORANDMORE!" The Ultralink shrieked with glee as he flew from the first hero to the red and yellow one, and then to the green one.
"If you can't tell, major superhero fan," said Max, with a short cough, feeling a little embarrassed by Steel's antics.
"We noticed," remarked the red hero with a snort but found the geek out to be kinda funny.
"We need you to come with us," said the hero in the black and grey outfit, stepping towards Max, which unfortunately got the attention of Steel.
The alien robot let out a long and dramatic gasp as he floated toward the hero, who reacted by narrowing his eyes at the approaching machine. "There's even a brooding hero who secretly has a heart of gold!" Steel whispered, or said it in a voice that was a bit quieter than previously.
Now that got a reaction out of a lot of heroes, the blue and red hero letting out a chuckle while the red and green heroes started laughing, the latter slapping his knee. Even the woman couldn't suppress a smile from forming.
"I take back what I said earlier," commented the green hero with a broad grin, "I think I like this little guy."
"Okay, Steel, you mind taking it easy?" Asked Max with a cough, feeling that Steel had enough time to superhero geek out.
"Dude, you want me to take it easy?!" Asked Steel incredulously, "I'm meeting actual superheroes! It's been my dream forever!"
"I get the feeling that these guys aren't here to pat us on the back," said Max, as he glanced at the first hero, the one in red and blue with the 'S' on his chest, but he tilted his head a bit, "and what do you mean by actual superheroes? I don't count?"
"I've met you before, and you're like half a superhero without me," explained Steel nonchalantly.
"Wow! Seriously?" Max said, pretending to be offended, but before the two could trade more jabs, the green-skinned man interjected.
"If you would please come with us, we have much to ask of you two," he said, stepping between Max and Steel.
"We may also have something that belongs to you," said the woman in a friendly tone as she took a step towards him, "I'm also sure you two have many questions of your own."
"We actually do," confirmed Max, nodding at the woman.
"I know I do!" Agreed Steel, eagerly floating over.
"Great!" Said the red hero, clapping his hands together, "let's get going!"
"What about these guys?" Asked the teenager as he turned to look at the restrained Royal Flush Gang.
"We'll take them," said a new voice, getting the attention of all the heroes.
Approaching the heroes was a young Asian-American woman with brown eyes and long dark hair. She has her hair in a high-set ponytail, while her attire consisted of a red jacket with the sleeves rolled up to her elbows, long loose-fitting grey pants, and black shoes. Underneath her jacket, was a black short-sleeved t-shirt. With her were several police officers.
"Detective Ellen Yin, San Francisco PD," she introduced herself while the police officers went to work slapping the cuffs onto the gang's wrists while a few other officers went about picking up the pieces of Ace, "Should I send the bill to the League for this mess?"
"Actually, that was me," corrected Max, raising his hand.
"You?" Ellen repeated as she looked at Max with a raised eyebrow before looking back at the other heroes, "He new or something?"
"You could say that," replied the first hero, earning a sigh and an eye roll from the chief of police.
"Guess he didn't get the memo that police and people tend to like it when collateral damage is kept to a minimum," said Yin in a somewhat cynical tone as she approached Max with her arms folded.
"I'll keep that in mind, but if we're being fair, it could have been a lot worse, considering this was my first time fighting these guys," Max replies as he gestured around them, "And at least only one building got trashed."
Yin gave the teen a hard look before letting up and giving him a faint smirk, "Just don't make it a habit alright kid?"
"I promise nothing, but I'll keep the destruction to a minimum if I can," answered the Turbo Charged hero as Yin nodded before she left to make sure the Royal Flush gang was secured in their transport with Ace being scraped up and taken in a different transport.
"If we are finished here, I suggest we return with our two guests," suggested the Green Skinned man.
"Uh, you mind if I ask who you guys are first?" said Max suddenly, getting the attention of everyone gathered, "Don't get me wrong, going off with superheroes is like every kid's dream, but I'd still like to know who you guys are."
"Dude, what is wrong with you?!" demanded Steel flying right over to grab Max's helmet with both arms. His eye squinted into a look of disbelief and frustration at not being able to go off with REAL superheroes.
"Steel, we just met these people," elaborated Max as he pushed the Ultralink off his face, "We don't even know their names."
"Wow," commented the man in red with a smirk, "You two must really not be from around here."
"But he isn't wrong for being cautious," said the man in blue, "It wouldn't really track for someone who just traveled to a different dimension to be so willing to trust someone they've never met before."
That last part caught the attention of both Max and Steel, as they looked at him with surprise, "How'd you-" Max started before the green-skinned man spoke up.
"We detected a spatial anomaly with extremely high energy levels present," he explained, "Followed by another anomaly that led us to believe that you two are from another dimension."
"You guys have met people from different dimensions?" said Steel, amazed by what he was hearing.
"On occasion," shrugged the man in blue, however, it seemed like the man in the black and grey costume decided that enough time talking had been wasted.
"If we're done, we should return to the Watchtower," he interjected, "We have some questions we need you to answer."
"We still didn't get your names yet," pointed out Max, "Like, I assume most of, if not all of you have secret identities, but I'd like to know what you call yourselves while on the job. Also, what's The Watchtower? That like your headquarters or something?"
"The Watchtower is actually our headquarters," nodded the man in blue as he gestured to himself, "I'm known to the world as Superman, and our group is known as the Justice League. My brooding friend here is Batman."
As he said that, he raised his hand to introduce the name of the black and grey-suited man who merely grunted. Soon, each member began giving their name.
"I am Wonder Woman," introduced the woman.
"Martian Manhunter," said the green-skinned man.
"Green Lantern," introduced the hero with the green glowing ring.
"The Flash: Fastest Man Alive," said the man in red, now identified as Flash. However, that little title caused Max to snicker while Steel looked up for a moment.
"I can think of 52 different jokes that have a different meaning to being called 'the fastest man alive,'" stated the Ultralink after a moment, "Most of them are sex jokes and the rest are about being the last to arrive."
"Everyone's a comedian," grumbled Flash while Green Lantern chuckled at his friend's expense.
"You gotta stop adding that title, Flash," commented Lantern as he and the others turned to leave, but he realized something, "Didn't catch your name, kid. Got your little buddy's name, but not yours."
"Oh, right," said Max as he followed them out of the building with Steel hovering next to him, "Max."
This caused Flash to raise an eyebrow, or look like he raised one from the way his mask shifted, "Just 'Max?'"
"Well, when Steel and I combine, our full name is Max Steel," explained the teenager, earning a snort from Green Lantern.
"Not very creative," commented the intergalactic hero, who received a pointed look from Max who turned to look at him.
"Neither is 'Superman' or 'Batman,'" defended Max, before glancing at the two heroes, "No offense."
"None taken. I also wasn't the one who came up with the name," assured Superman as they led the two young heroes outside.
"Really?" Inquired the young man, a bit curious as to how he got his superhero name, "How'd you get it then."
"Another time," said Superman as the heroes stepped out of the jewelry store.
Outside, Max could see a pretty large crowd had gathered, along with a few news crews as well as a dozen police cars. Superman and Wonder Woman went over to speak with the gathered reporters. It seemed like media coverage of superheroes was quite the hot topic, but what had Max and Steel's attention was the sizeable futuristic-looking jet that was parked just outside the jewelry store. It had a very sleek and aerodynamic design, with it being primarily white with some black stripes. The landing gear was quite impressive in itself and made for a very transition to the boarding ramp.
It had a similar profile to the N-TEK jets used by Kat and Jefferson before the upgrade his mom had T.H.I. implement to help combat Dread's forces and Makino's when some arrived on Earth after the defense shield was destroyed. Max had to admit it was pretty impressive, while Steel let out a girlish squeal.
"They even have their own high-tech jet!" Gushed the Ultralink.
"He gonna be like this all the time?" asked Flash glancing at Max, who just shrugged in response.
"Definitely," replied Max as he glanced at Steel, the Ultralink's eye still very dilated in excitement.
The young man had already figured that for the longest time, Steel is gonna basically geek out over pretty much any and every superhero detail they come across. If Super Mode was any indicator, it might be a while before the novelty of being in the presence of superheroes wears off.
"This may get a little old," said the scarlet hero.
"He has a mute button if it's any comfort," said Max as they approached the jet, Batman being the first to get on, followed by Martian Manhunter.
"If only Booster had a mute button," commented Green Lantern as he also boarded the Javelin with Flash.
Superman and Wonder Woman followed next, having finished the short interview with the local newsgroups and came back to rejoin their League mates. Following the two, Max and Steel were the last ones to get on board. Inside the jet, there were two rows of seats leading to the cockpit where the pilot and co-pilot would be seated. The two young heroes marvel at the high-tech interior of the jet. While the heroes got seated, Max and Steel looked around a bit to take in everything.
"Take any spot you want," offered Flash as he took his seat.
Max looked around for a moment before taking a window seat with Steel hovering close by. The young man was so focused on the jet around them, he didn't notice Wonder Woman take a place beside him. However, right before Max could notice, he felt the engines of the jet ignite, causing the young hero to grab the armrests for a moment as he felt the jet begin to take off. A few moments later, the jet rocketed forward, pressing Max into the chair, with Steel grabbing onto the headrest.
"BEST! DAY! EVER!" Whooped the Ultralink as the jet ascended into the sky.
It didn't take long for them to get used to the speed and Max looked out the window again, seeing the city slowly disappear beneath the clouds as the jet ascended.
"It shouldn't be long before we arrive at the Watchtower," said Wonder Woman, getting the human-Takonian hybrid's attention, "Is there anything you would be willing to tell us about yourself or your friend?"
"Sure, although, there is something I was wondering about. Something the green guy, Martian Manhunter, had said," replied Max as he turned to look at the woman, noticing that she was in fact quite tall.
Max had a decent height, being six foot one, but Wonder Woman was actually taller than him, like, tall enough that if Max were to sit in her lap, she could rest her chin easily on the top of his head. She was also very beautiful.
"What's that?" asked Flash, leaning a bit forward to get an unobstructed view of Max.
"He said that you guys had something that possibly belonged to me and Steel," he recalled, "That there was another anomaly detected?"
"Believe it or not, we actually had a big meeting about you," answered Flash as he explained what happened not long before they went to meet with Max and Steel.
*Earlier…*
It was a pretty mundane day for most heroes, aside from a few like the Flash and Green Lantern, who had just finished dealing with their own problems and had returned for this emergency meeting that Batman had called for the League to meet up for. Dinah was among the first to arrive, along with Ted, who might not be an official member, but since he worked with the Justice Society, he was essentially entitled to a sort of honorary membership. The only members who were there ahead of the blonde martial artist were Martian Manhunter, Batman himself, and Red Tornado, a tall red robot with no ears or nose. He does have a mouth and eye sockets, though they were black giving him the appearance of an emotionless robot, a yellow T symbol on his chest, and a yellow arrow on his forehead, with a blue cape hanging from his shoulders.
More members that came after Dinah were Wonder Woman, Superman, and several other members.
Some of these other members were Captain Atom, otherwise known as Nathaniel C. Adams, a man with silver skin, hair, glowing yellow eyes, red gloves, red boots, and on his chest was a red atom symbol; Green Lantern, a different member from the other one that was in space not too long ago. There were actually three Green Lanterns on Earth: Hal Jordan, the one that came back from space to help bring in the vehicle; Jon Stewart, an African American male with a slender build and short black hair. Unlike Hal, he doesn't wear a mask to conceal his identity. His costume is mostly black, except for green parts on his wrists and on his shoulders and upper chest. He also wears the Green Lantern Corps symbol on his chest.
And lastly was Guy Gardner, whom Dinah has never met in person, but from what she's heard from Hal and Jon, the muscular Caucasian male with short red hair and green eyes was quite a character and not in the flattering sense. Essentially, if there was an image in a dictionary to go with words like unruly and rebellious, Guy's picture would be right next to both. This is likely why Guy was never offered a membership to the League.
Next came Green Arrow, or Oliver Queen. Dinah and Oliver were actually quite familiar with each other, operating in Star City together. The archer has blond hair, blue eyes, a blond mustache, and a beard. Since his codename is Green Arrow, his clothes seem to mostly be green, with a dark green shirt with a hood underneath a long light green vest with three dark green oval-shaped fasteners, black pants, and green boots. He also carries a quiver along his back that is filled with arrows and has a black strap that goes along his chest. He also has long green gloves, a black mask, and a green belt with a gold "G".
Following Green Arrow were Hawkman and Hawkwoman.
Katar Hol, otherwise known as Hawkman, had giant wings on his back with heavy armor on his chest. He also wore a black cuirass with a hawk logo in a red circle in the middle. His belt, spaulders, greaves, and gauntlets are golden. He also dons a golden helmet with a beak-shaped front and outstanding wings on top.
Like Hawkman, Hawkwoman, or Shayera Hol also had giant wings on her back, with her costume matching her husband's attire quite closely. While it lacked the same amount of armor, Shayera dons a golden breastplate, leaving the top of her torso bare, and a black skirt with dark red plating. Her arms were wrapped in black and dark red cloth, with extra padding around the shoulders. She also wears knee-high greaves. Her helmet is less elaborate than Hawkman's, featuring only two brown wings facing outward. It allows her red hair to flow out the back.
Last but not least was Orin, or to the world at large, he is known as Aquaman. Orin was a tall, muscular Caucasian male with short blond hair, a blond beard, and aqua-blue eyes. As Aquaman, he wears an orange scale-mail tunic and dark green leggings. At his waist is a gold belt that is clasped with a stylized letter "A", which has a built-in communicator. He also wears golden gauntlets on his wrists and dark green greaves.
However, while Aquaman may have been one of the last members to arrive for the meeting, that didn't mean he was the last one to arrive. That honor was reserved for Flash who, despite being able to break the sound barrier in a pair of track shoes, still found a way to be late to things like this.
"Sorry I'm late," apologized Barry as he took his place at the conference table, next to Hal, "Was finishing up with Captain Cold and Heatwave who had decided to work together again when the call came in."
"Late again, Flash?" taunted Hal as he glanced over at his friend, "You sure you're not just late because you wanted a schtick or something? Like, you're the fastest man alive, but you're always late to stuff?"
"You mean like how yellow things are your weakness?" quipped Barry in response, causing Hal to roll his eyes, though it was difficult to tell from the domino mask that hid his eyes.
"Enough," interrupted Batman, gaining the attention of the gathered heroes, "We have more important matters to attend to."
"You were kind of light on details, Batman," stated Green Arrow as he turned to the hero, "What was so important?"
Pressing a button on a holographic screen in front of his seat, Batman stood up as larger holographic screens appeared above the league. On the screens was a map of California provided by a satellite. The footage zoomed in on the state's capital, focusing on the more urbanized district.
"Approximately one hour, and thirteen minutes ago, a massive energy signature was detected in San Francisco," explained the Dark Knight as the screens showed an enormous energy spike appearing within the mentioned city, the energy levels from the satellite footage nearly went off the scale for a brief moment before the levels started to fall.
"Any injuries or fatalities?" asked Wonder Woman, her concern for the people's safety being her first priority.
"None to speak of," answered Batman as he gestured to the readings detected, "Surveillance shows that the energies detected were akin to tachyons."
"'Akin,' but not exactly," noted Martian Manhunter as he picked up on that specific detail.
"While the signature does bear a strong resemblance to Tachyons, they do not function in the same way as time travel some may be familiar with," elaborated Batman.
"You want to open an investigation?" inquired Hawkman, "Not much to go on."
"Agreed, were it not for what happened nearly forty minutes later," he said as he pressed some more keys and changed the satellite focus to Star City in California's north end, "Prior to our meeting, I had contacted Black Canary to investigate the matter."
"You asked Dinah to check out an unknown energy?" asked Oliver, a bit surprised to hear the Caped Crusader had asked her.
"He just needed a quick scan, Ollie," assured Dinah, knowing that the CEO of Queen Industries was just worried about her, "But it seemed like I wouldn't need to go anyway."
"How do you mean?" asked Superman, raising an eyebrow.
"Like the energy burst in San Francisco, another appeared in Star City," explained Batman as he showed a reading of the energy burst in a specific part of the metropolis.
"Isn't that Wildcat's gym?" noted Flash, recognizing the area as he had been there a few times to help Green Arrow out with some villains when they left Central City and made some trouble in Star City.
"The one and the same," confirmed Dinah, "But before you ask, no one was hurt there either. Though Ted may have an excuse to ride that motorcycle of his a bit more often."
"How do you mean?" inquired Captain Atom, raising an eyebrow.
"Those energy bursts may not have been energy bursts, but teleportations or a form of portaling like the Zeta Tube," explained Dinah.
"What makes you believe that?" asked Hawkwoman, folding her arms.
Batman's answer was to reveal what Green Lantern had brought to the Watchtower and was still sitting in the hangar. The screens flashed for a moment before a very armored and quite large vehicle appeared.
"This vehicle was found directly under the anomaly before it dissipated," answered Batman, turning to look at a holographic screen also, "However, upon more investigation, it was revealed that the vehicle itself seems to be powered by the same energy that was detected."
"Where is it being kept currently?" Aquaman asked.
"It currently resides in the Watchtower's hangar," added Red Tornado, "Batman asked for my assistance in accessing the vehicle's systems before our meeting. All attempts to gain access have failed."
Green Arrow let out a whistle as he looked at it, "Quite the car."
"You can say that again," confirmed Hal as he gestured to the thing, "Things got flaps from what I can tell. So, either it can fly, or it is damn fast."
"However, the vehicle and the anomalies are not why you called this meeting alone, is it?" inquired Superman, having known Batman for a while, so he knew that there was more to this.
"No, it isn't," confirmed Batman with a nod.
"You believe there was something left at the site of the first anomaly," concluded Wonder Woman, figuring out where Batman was going.
"Rather someone," corrected the caped crusader, pressing more buttons as he then showed radio frequencies.
It didn't seem like anything was out of the ordinary, that was until a source was established, pinpointing something flying across California. It stopped in the Sierra Mountain Range north of Lake Tahoe, before heading to what looked like a small town in the south close to the coast where it paused for a moment before flying towards the edge of the Mojave Desert and then headed back to San Francisco. It seemed like random places to go to, but for more experienced heroes like them, it was a clear sign that these places weren't random, but deliberate actions.
"Radio frequencies," identified Martian Manhunter.
"It would seem that the individual is searching for a specific frequency or information," explained the caped crusader, "The scanning is brief but deliberate. Almost unnoticeable."
"But you noticed," stated Hal as he leaned back in his chair.
"Yes," confirmed Batman simply.
"I assume you have a way of tracking this mystery person?" guessed Superman, glancing at his old friend and heroic rival.
"For the moment, the unknown has remained in San Francisco and has yet to move," revealed the secret billionaire.
"How do we go about confronting this individual?" inquired Aquaman, having had his fair share of encounters when Atlantis was revealed to the surface world, many of which weren't always the most positive encounters.
"We should approach with caution, but with peaceful intentions," suggested Wonder Woman, "Whoever it is could be confused and aggression may provoke them."
"How do we know if this guy's even friendly? I mean, you saw his car, he could be a threat," Flash said, catching many by surprise as all of the league members looked at him with varying looks of surprise, "What? Oh, so when Batman says it, it sounds reasonable; but when I do, it's crazy?"
"No, we're just surprised you were the one to say it, is all," explained Green Arrow, as the Scarlet Speedster let out an awkward cough into his hand.
However, it seemed like their plans would need to be put on hold for now. An alert started going off, causing the screens to change from Batman's presentation and findings to a news alert of a robbery in San Francisco.
"Seems like Cali is having quite the day, huh?" noted Hal.
"We'll have to pick this up another time," stated Superman as he stood up, watching the news report provide more details of the robbery and the individuals in question, "Hal; you, Batman, Wonder Woman, Flash, J'onn, and I will handle this."
"What about us?" asked Captain Atom, turning to look at Superman.
"It's the Royal Flush Gang," responded Hal.
"Fair," replied the Captain, recalling what he knew about the villainous robbers, and sending Superman or even Green Lantern was enough to handle them.
"Keep scanning for the subject," stated Batman, "Inform us of any possible changes or other anomalies that may come up."
"Try not to do too much damage to the place," advised Green Arrow jokingly, watching as the aforementioned heroes and heroine made their way to the hangar, "Heard the police chief there has a bit of a chip on her shoulder."
"We'll be careful," replied Superman as he and the others headed to the Hangar to board a Javelin since a Zeta Tube hadn't been built in San Francisco yet. However, it seemed like they wouldn't be needed at all and would actually find that individual sooner rather than later.
*Present*
"Huh, so you guys have a big meeting about everything that happens on Earth?" asked Max, a little surprised to hear that his and Steel's arrival caused so many heroes to gather in one place.
Granted, a lot can happen on Earth at a given time, but still. So many heroes gathered in one spot for an energy anomaly seemed a little much. At least to him, but things could be different here, and possible threats can arise pretty fast.
"It was actually a slow day," said Superman, causing Max to chuckle along with Flash, while Wonder Woman just smiled.
"So, now that you heard about that, why not tell us about yourself?" inquired Flash, raising an eyebrow in curiosity. However, before Max or Steel could answer, Martian Manhunter spoke.
"In a moment, we have arrived," said the alien, causing the two young heroes to look out the window.
Floating in Earth's orbit was a huge building that looked to have been built into an asteroid. With huge windows and hangar entrances jutting out, it was a marvel of modern engineering and design. It took the duo half a second to realize they were in space, but the lack of zero gravity hardly bothered either of them. Steel for his part, let out what sounded like a wheeze of amazement, his eye dilating rapidly.
"This is the most amazingist day ever," declared the Ultralink after a moment, his tone level, having reached the point where he had no more levels of excitement. He resorted to pressing his entire self against the window to take in all that he was looking at.
"That's not even a word," chuckled Max, who was equally amazed, but still remembered to not touch anything, otherwise, there might be some problems.
"Do you have a better word?" requested Steel, looking at his best friend.
"Nope," the young man didn't even try to come up with anything.
They were both so engrossed at the site, the other heroes couldn't help but chuckle a little bit at their reactions.
"Like kids going to their first amusement park," chuckled Superman.
Slowly, the jet approached a hatch that opened up, granting access to the hangar. The landing procedure didn't take very long as the entrance shut behind the jet just as it landed. After a few moments, there was a chime, letting all aboard know that it was safe to exit the Javelin. Exiting the League's vehicle, Max and Steel looked around in awe.
However, it was something off to the side that caught Max's attention.
"My car!" said the young man in surprise as he stopped for a moment, seeing his vehicle was on the satellite.
"Figured that might be yours," commented Green Lantern as stopped next to the hero, "The 'M' on the hood kinda gave it away."
"How'd you even get it up here?" asked Max, bewildered that they got it all the way here so fast.
Lantern smirked as he rubbed his ring against his chest, "Where's the fun in just telling you?"
Max snorted as they continued on further into the Watchtower Max and Steel looked around in awe as they took in everything. The Ultralink's eye didn't once contract as he looked at everything. It didn't take them long for the group to reach the conference room where Max and Steel saw more heroes, causing the latter to wave his arms excitedly.
"This just keeps getting better and better!" gushed the robot.
"Steel, take it easy, you're gonna blow a gasket or something," advised Max.
"Who's this?" inquired Hawkman as he approached Max and Steel, Hawkwoman following her spouse.
"This is Max," introduced Flash as he gestured to the young hero, "And his little buddy is Steel."
"Together, they make Max Steel!" teased Green Lantern doing jazz hands as he said the duo's hero name. This caused Max to roll his eyes under his mask, but Steel didn't seem to care, looking around in awe at the other heroes.
"Creative," remarked Hawkwoman dryly.
"There are worse names," shrugged Max, "At least I get top billing."
"Enough," interrupted Batman, getting their attention as he took his seat at the head of the table, "We should begin the interview."
It was then, Max noticed that he was standing right in the middle of the room with Steel hovering next to him. The other heroes returned to their seats.
"This uh…," the young man started, "This feels less like an interview and more like we're on trial."
"You don't need to worry," assured Wonder Woman, an encouraging smile on her face, "We only wish to ask some questions about you and how you came to be here."
"You'll answer them truthfully," stated the caped crusader, "Lie to us; we'll know."
"Ominous, but okay," shrugged Max, "So, what do you guys wanna know?"
"Who are you?" demanded Batman, his tone not leaving much room.
However, working in a militaristic type organization, and having an uncle as the Commander, the tone didn't bother Max all too much.
"Well, as some of you already know, my first name is Max," explained the young man but then cleared his throat while turning to Steel, "Hey, Steel?"
"Huh?" Steel shook himself out of his hero fantasy and looked to his friend.
"Think you could uh?" the young man tapped his helmet.
"Really?" Said the Ultralink, a little surprised that Max would do that with people they don't know, even if they are heroes, "You sure?"
"They're heroes. Besides, a little trust goes a long way," shrugged Max as he looked around the table.
"If you say so," replied Steel as moments later, the young man's helmet retracted to reveal his face to the heroes.
"My full name is Maxwell McGrath, and this Steel, or N'Baro Aksteel X377," introduced Max, as he gestured to the robot, "And like you might have guessed, we're not from around here."
"A kid?" said Captain Atom with a surprised expression on his face, "He's a kid?"
"Hey, I happen to be eighteen, thank you," retorted Max, folding his arms, and scowling at the man.
"Still, didn't think you'd be that young," admitted Hal, "Especially with how you handled the Royal Flush Gang on your own."
"We've actually been doing this for a while now," elaborated the teen, "So it wasn't that hard to take them down."
"So you've had experience, that's good," nodded Superman, leaning back in his chair.
"What are your powers?" asked Batman, getting things back on track.
"Well, it's actually quite the story," interjected Steel, floating forward, "You see, Max is a human-takonian hybrid."
"'Takonian?'" repeated the caped crusader.
"An alien race from our dimension," Steel expanded, as he brought up a holographic screen showing a planet, "In our dimension, there was a planet called Takion. The inhabitants of the planet had the ability to generate one of the most powerful energies in our universe: T.U.R.B.O. Energy."
"Is giving things corny names a staple in your universe?" interrupted Hal, with Flash snickering at the name.
"It's an acronym, genius," said Max, rolling his eyes, seriously, these guys were making him and Steel look mature at some points, "It stands for Tachyon Unlimited Radiant Bio-Optimized Energy."
"Max is able to generate the same type of energy," picked up Steel, bringing up a display of Max's vitals, "And a lot of it."
"Is that how you were able to change your suit's form and capabilities?" asked Wonder Woman.
"The suit is me actually," stated the Ultralink as he gestured to himself, "You see, the energy Max generates sort of acts like steroids, increasing his physical strength, durability, agility; basically everything about his physical body. Sadly, he can't really control it, which leads to a few problems."
"For one," to stress the point, Steel brought up a strain of Max's DNA, "Max can generate a ton of energy, similar to how the adrenal medulla produces adrenaline and other hormones. However, this is where the first problem arises. Being only part Takonian, Max's cells don't really have a shutoff signal, and his body will keep generating energy way past what a normal Taknonian would be capable of."
"What's the second problem?" asked Hal, a bit worried about what the other problem might be with the kid's genetics.
"The second problem is that technology and Max don't mix," stated the Ultralink, "Since Max generates so much energy, that energy can be channeled into devices or technology, but if it hasn't been specially designed to handle the amount of power, it will get fried as a result."
"So, I should probably keep my distance from Red over there," added Max, glancing over at Red Tornado.
"So, you're saying that the kid here is essentially a living tachyon bomb that blows up whatever technology you come into contact with," surmised John, looking between Max and the hologram as it showed a short animation of a body overloading with energy. As well as a short clip of Max holding what looked like a tablet that immediately surged with energy before bursting into smoke.
"Pretty much," shrugged Max as he folded his arms.
"What's stopping you from overloading from this energy output?" asked Martian Manhunter.
"That's where I come in," elaborated Steel as he gestured to himself, "As you know, my full name is N'Baro Aksteel X377 or Steel for short. I am an Omega Class Ultralink."
"'Ultralink?'" inquired Red Tornado, looking at Steel.
"Also known as the Makino, a bio-organic robotic race that has the ability to combine with anything or anyone to bring out the weapon potential of whatever it is they 'Ultralink' with," said the alien robot, bringing up a new screen, showing various images of other Ultralinks, combining with devices or objects and forming different bodies.
"So you are a bio-organic, robotic parasite," surmised Batman, his eyes narrowing slightly.
"If you're wondering if I'm controlling Max, don't, I'd never do that to my best friend," stated Steel, his tone, for the first time since he met the heroes, defensive.
Max had a feeling that might be how Steel would react. He knew the Ultralink would never take control of the suit unless absolutely necessary. Still, the alien robot could get a bit offended at times from being called a parasite from their link.
"Our link is more symbiotic," picked up Max, stepping forward between the Ultralink and the gaze of Batman, "You see since I can't control my T.U.R.B.O. energy, Steel helps out by harnessing and controlling the energy which is contained by the suit."
"Ultralinks are very adaptable robots," explained the Ultralink, "In most cases, the bond would be parasitic, but because of our link, it's symbiotic. Max's T.U.R.B.O. energy is contained and controlled and I'm provided a power source to continue functioning."
"What would be the consequences if the two of you are separated for too long?" asked Wonder Woman, her more empathetic nature making itself more known.
"We can be separated from each other for about eight hours," answered Max simply, "But any longer, Steel shuts down permanently and I go critical."
"So the two of you are married to each other, essentially," surmised Hal as he leaned back in his chair, "Man, that's gotta suck."
"Not as bad as you think," shrugged the teen, "Like I said, Steel does have a mute button, so if he's getting on my nerves, I can always turn off the reason for being annoying."
"Hey!" squawked Steel indignantly, putting his arms on his 'hips' and scowled at his best friend.
"Don't act like you wouldn't do the same," scoffed Max as he folded his arms, smirking at his friend.
"We have a few more questions, we'd like to ask you," spoke up Superman, "For one, how did you come here?"
"Oh, right. In our dimension, Steel and I work with an agency called 'N-TEK,'" while Max spoke, Steel brought up several images and a few videos also. The videos themselves ranged from simple images to a few short clips of N-TEK personnel working in the main HQ in Copper Canyon, "N-TEK was founded by my father, Jim McGrath; Steel; my mother, Molly McGrath; and my uncle, Forge Ferrus."
"What was the purpose of this organization?" asked Batman.
"Well, it's a little complicated to explain, but I'll give you the abridged version," said the young hero as he had a feeling this part of the introduction might be difficult to discuss. Seriously, how do you tell a bunch of heroes that your partner's race was created to basically absorb every planet in the universe into their master's being? His best guess would be to just rip the bandage off right off the bat, "N-TEK was created to stop the Makino, Steel's race, and their ruler, Makino."
The screens changed to display more Ultralinks and what they were capable of. Steel showed images of the Elementors, Blast, Prism, even Chomp, and some other Ultralinks combining and upgrading whatever they linked with. He also brought up the image of Makino.
"Basically, I was created to be a weapon for this guy, to help with his mission of devouring every planet in our universe," added Steel, also following Max's lead of ripping the bandage off and just coming right out with the hard part of his history.
"And before you say anything, Steel doesn't work for Makino and he isn't going to do anything evil," said Max, seeing Batman's frown deepen a bit.
"How can you be certain?" Asked Aquaman.
"Because Max's father, Jim, was able to change my mind and turn on Makino and his armies," stated Steel. However, that did little to change Batman's frown.
"And he helped destroy Makino," added Max, Steel bringing up some brief clips of him and Max fighting Makino and eventually ending with the duo dumping Makino into the sun.
The gathered heroes didn't really say much in regard to the video of Makino being destroyed, but the teenager and Ultralink could tell that some seemed to relax a bit. However, Batman still seemed unconvinced, though it was hard to tell as his demeanor changed the least. Guess he was gonna be the one who was always skeptical of the allegiance of former bad guys, and probably the harshest critic of his and Max's performance as heroes.
"Be that as it may, it doesn't explain how the two of you came to cross dimensions," stated Martian Manhunter, bringing the discussion from the focus on Steel's loyalty and trustworthiness.
"While Makino was destroyed, his forces weren't," answered Max, glancing at Steel for a second who nodded as he brought up the recording of their last engagement between them and their enemies.
"Some remnants of Makino's forces on Earth had come together with a few of our enemies," explained Steel as he showed the N-TEK assault on Dread's forces, "Their plan was to bring whatever remaining forces of Makinos in the galaxy to Earth via a massive energy teleport system to avenge their late boss. But Max and I went to stop them, however, the system they used began to overload and we were caught in the blast."
The heroes watched as the duo destroyed the machine and the explosion that followed.
"Next thing we know, we're waking up in San Francisco," said Max as he unfolded his arms and Steel dismissed the holographic screen and the two looked at the gathered heroes, "And that's how we got here."
Superman nodded as he leaned back in his chair. He had to admit, that was quite the background and honestly, a lot to process. Granted, there were some other outlandish stories for a superhero's origin and background, but as it stands, these two's history was by far the most complex.
"I think that is all for now, Max," said the Man of Steel as he adjusted himself in his seat.
"There are still other details we need to cover," spoke up John, while they had learned a lot, there were still many other things that would need to be discussed.
"We can go over those at a later date," said Wonder Woman, coming to Max's defense, "Max has been through quite a lot in a very short amount of time. I believe a break is in order."
"I wouldn't mind a break, honestly," said Max as he felt a wave of tiredness hit him, followed by a light rumble from his stomach, "And a meal actually."
"I'll show you to the cafeteria," volunteered Flash as he stood up.
"Try not to eat his meal, while you're at it, Flash," taunted Green Lantern, knowing the speedster's metabolism was seriously accelerated when he got his powers, so Flash was always ready for a meal. However, before the two left, Max saw that Steel was hanging around.
"You coming, Steel?" asked the young man.
"Dude, I've got actual superheroes right in front of me, and you seriously want me to leave to watch you eat?" demanded Steel incredulously, "I've got a million questions I wanna ask!"
Max rolled his eyes, of course as soon as the heroes were done questioning them, the Ultralink would want to ask his own questions. He couldn't exactly blame him, but he got the feeling that the heroes would have preferred to discuss things amongst themselves. But he figured it would be a waste of time to try and convince his best friend to leave them alone for a moment.
"Just, try not to bug them too much," said Max as he followed Flash out of the room and for the cafeteria.
"I promise nothing!" declared the Ultralink as he watched his human friend leave.
Once they were gone, the heroes turned their attention to Steel.
"Steel, I can tell that you really admire heroes," began Superman, hoping to persuade the Ultralink to give them some time to discuss the information they had been given, "But we could use the time to discuss amongst ourselves about what you and Max told us."
"Trust me, I've got a thousand and one questions already lined up," said Steel as he directed his focus to the Man of Steel, "But there is something I wanted to cover first with you guys that's more important."
"Which would be?" Said Batman, being a bit cautious around the Ultralink.
"It has to do with Max," started Steel after letting out an exhale.
This gained the attention of the League as they glanced at one another for a moment before returning their attention to the alien robot. What was so important that he wanted to talk to them about his friend when he wasn't here?
"How do you mean?" asked Dinah, a bit curious.
"Well, as you all know, having a secret identity means you likely have someone you want to keep safe or be able to do the right thing without being held back by law enforcement," explained Steel as he figured he would start off with something he figured the heroes could relate to.
"Yes, but what does that have to do with Max?" asked inquired Captain Atom.
"Well, one of his enemies was able to exploit finding out who Max was under the mask," explained Steel looking down at the floor.
He did feel a bit guilty about telling the league of what happened, but he couldn't just do nothing also. He wanted to help his best friend, but he didn't know how.
"Oh no," realized Wonder Woman as her eyes widened a bit.
"I know it's not my place to tell this, so I'll just leave it at that," sighed the Ultralink, "But I just can't sit by and do nothing. So, I was wondering if you know someone who could keep an eye on him, just to make sure he's alright."
"It sounds as though you have that covered," said Hal.
"Max is good at hiding things, believe me," stated Steel, as he looked around the meeting room, "I would just like someone who knows how to handle these things to keep an eye on Max if something bothers him or whatever. It's been a year since the incident, and I can tell he hasn't gotten over what happened."
Superman unconsciously glanced over at Batman, seeing a parallel to what happened to Max and his best friend. They both had suffered a trauma and it sounded like the kid hasn't come to terms with it yet. So, Steel could only ask for help to make sure nothing happens to him.
"We'll come up with a solution, Steel," assured Wonder Woman, giving the Ultralink a kind smile.
"Thanks," sighed the alien robot with some relief, though, they could tell that he wished for more of a solution, "I'll let you guys get to discussing."
And with that, the Ultralink left the leaguers to mull over the information that they had been given. If any of them were being honest, there was a lot to discuss and obviously, many more questions that needed to be asked. For now, though, they had what they needed.
Now, they just needed to figure out what to do with the information given and hope they could help the two young heroes.
To Be Continued…
Sorry, it took so long to get the previous chapter out, was dealing with a lot of stuff in my life, and I just kept putting working on the chapter off because I was either lazy, too busy, or well. In any case, I hope this chapter was good, sorry if the opening was so dialogue-heavy, was just trying to establish a connection and cover my bases and stuff. In any case, I hope this next chapter is good, it may be a bit longer than the previous one. Also, I'd like to expand on some things and reply to some comments left in chapter 3.
RonaldM40196867: The gang is C-Tier villains at best, but for someone fighting them for the first time, Max did pretty well.
23debal01: thanks for the approval, I hope to somehow incorporate all of them, but some may not appear for quite some time, while others might not appear at all. I'll consider doing Stargirl, Huntress is already a no-go (in the YJ universe, she's Artemis' mom), but I'll see if I can go Vixen.
Vein Bloodborne: Happy Halloween, I'll try to keep doing my best.
Okaze: glad you liked the chapter, I'll most definitely incorporate elements from Outtakes.
DinoZillaPrime: I may have Tuppence have a crush on Max, but not so much the other way.
Guest: Glad you liked it. Hope to keep it up.
Hopefully, as the story continues and gets more popular, we'll get more reviews. On a side note, I may add some additions to the "harem" list.
In no particular order of good and evil, new additions include:
Some Amazons (namely Alexa, Antiope, Artemis, Nubia, Myrina, Pallas, Peng Deilan, Philippus, Yara Flor, and some priestesses (the amazons worship the greek goddesses; I'll let you guess which goddess these priestesses worship)), Lyssa Drak, Jessica Cruz, and maybe a few others.
Some of you might think doing some Amazons might be odd, given how in DC Animated they stick with the rule of no man is allowed on the island. I did some research and found that it depends on the continuity in question. So, I figured I'd do a sort of stance that men can step foot onto Themyscira, they just don't because some Amazons believe that all men should be killed on mass and stuff. So to avoid issues, men are told they should leave, otherwise, run the risk of being killed by the few that hate man's very concept/existence. Plus, Themyscira is a recognized country with its own seat in the UN, so Max might be one of the few men with the privilege to visit the island.
I also plan to combine bits and elements from other DC media, like some amazons that may only exist in one universe, or designs of characters from other timelines. I may even reference the many voice actors of the heroes and how Max and Steel, sound a bit different from how they imagined they would sound if presented with an image of them, sort of like voice actors. For example, Lex Luthor sounding like Clancy Brown instead of Mark Rolston, Batman sounding like Kevin Conroy instead of Bruce Greenwood, etc.
Speaking of Kevin Conroy, we have been graced with some sad news recently. Kevin Conroy, the original voice actor of Batman, has passed away at the age of 66. The world has lost a legend. I, like many other people, am sad to see him go, but while he was here, he gave us so much to love, voicing Batman for so many years. He set the standard for who Batman is, just like how Mark Hamill set the standard for who Joker is. It was said that Kevin suffered from health issues for quite some time, so a part of me is sad to see him go, but another part is glad that we didn't have to witness the man deteriorate like some other actors.
I want us to take a moment to reflect on Kevin's life, his contribution to the mythos of Batman, how much work he put into the character, and everything he has given us.
...
I posted this story a bit earlier than I originally, so I apologize if it seems a little... half-baked at moments. But the news of Kevin's death sort of prompted me to try to put more work into this chapter and get it out as soon as I can. I hope you can understand. I may not have been around when he first started voicing the Dark Knight, but I am glad and thankful that I was able to hear his voice when I watched the Justice League cartoon.
Also, I know I said that chapter 5 would be the first chapter of the YJ cartoon series, but I didn't want to cram everything into one chapter. It just felt like the story was dragging on and I decided to cut it early. Some of you may notice that I left out certain details, like Max's enemies and stuff, but they aren't the focus right now. I will have Batman address this fact in the following chapter, but I figured it would be better to cut it now and hope for the best. Besides, it does give me the chance to introduce other heroes of the League to Max.
In any case, that is all I wished to cover for now. So I hope you understand. Leave a review for this chapter, let me know of anything you want to see in the following story, and rest in peace Kevin Conroy, you truly were the best animated Batman there ever was, alongside Adam West.
AND HAPPY THANKSGIVING!