Sleep came to Karen with more ease than she expected. The girl had figured that, with everything that had happened, she'd be up all night. But, mere moments after she got into her bed, under her blankets, she fell asleep. Perhaps, with the flow of the day, she was just exhausted.

But her sleep would not end the day yet. Karen, in her usual outfit, found herself in a blank white canvas of a world, nothingness in all directions. She whirled around. "Hello?" She called out. She didn't expect any real thing here. This just happened to be an odd dream for her.

She also hadn't expected someone to respond directly to her.

"Hello, Miss Beecher."

Karen whirled, turning to a large, well built, long-haired man in a white poncho. Instinctively, Karen scooted back a bit. "Oh, hello," she said again. "I'm sorry, I wasn't expecting to see anyone."

The man smiled kindly, easing Karen's nerves somehow. "No," he chuckled, "I don't expect you did."

Karen hesitated, but moved forward anyway. "I know I dream of guys on occasion, but I think I would remember one like you," she asserted. "That in mind… who are you?"

The man's smile grew wider. "I knew that you were clever, Miss Beecher. And that assertiveness will help you forward as well."

He cleared his throat, before he held out his hand. "I'm Lonar. The New God of Journeys."

Karen tentatively took his hand, and shook it. Once she let go, however, is when things got started. Without warning, a light came, emitted from the man, and swallowed them both.

Karen rubbed her eyes. They had to be playing tricks on her. One moment, she had been in that odd, white space. Now she was… Well, she didn't know where she was standing.

"Sorry. I find that's usually jarring for humans," Lonar apologized. Karen blinked, before looking around. "Okay, where are-" She cut off, the sight horrifying her.

Fire, blood, and screams. She saw and heard that. No horror movie could hold a candle to this. People being whipped, people being… killed. She curled up, horrified. "What is this place?!"

The man smiled sadly. "This is the homeworld of the gods of Anti-Life, slavery, and degradation. This is Apokolips."

Horror was all Karen had. She pinched herself, over, and over, and over. But nothing happened. Panicking, she whirled to Lonar. "Why can't I wake up?!" She screamed.

The man's smile brought her some comfort, but not much. "Because", he told her, "This isn't a dream. I moved your consciousness to Apokolips. This is a very real place, located in another world. Many other worlds, in fact."

Karen looked at the scene again. "Why did you bring me here?" She whispered, her terror sapping some of her strength.

Lonar patted her shoulder, taking her attention. "Because your journey with young Mr. Olsen will take you here."

Once again, he teleported her, this time, to a secluded part. A room. Karen surveyed it, recognizing it as a lab, but… She shuddered. The lab's operating tables were covered in blood and viscera. But something glistened with light, catching her eye.

She looked, and she saw it. A cube, on a table, radiating energy. "What… what is that?" Karen asked. It was a dangerous thing; the girl could tell that much quite easily. But somehow, it also felt… interesting.

"That is a Father Box," Lonar explained. Karen turned to look at him, her curiosity clear on her face.

"Like a Mother Box?" She asked.

Lonar crossed his arms, tapping his chin, mulling over her question. He wanted to find the best way to explain this. "Not exactly," he began. "A Mother Box is a living computer, powered by the positive energy of the Source."

Karen's confusion deepened, and she opened her mouth to ask another question, but her guide cut her off before a sound left her mouth.

"Now isn't the time for you to learn about the Source. For now, the Father Box?"

The girl sighed. "Fine. What's the Father Box?" She was gradually forgetting her previous horror and discomfort, thanks to Lonar. She didn't notice, though, too distracted by her thirst for knowledge. Lonar, however, did. He smiled, before he continued his explanation.

"The Father Box was created as an Apokoliptian response to the Mother Boxes. Powered by the negative energy the Source generates, it has abilities similar to the Mother Boxes, and a few others."

He pointed at the one on the table. "Jimmy's going to need that. He'll try to get it and he'll doubtless fail. You're going to have to be the one to take it."

Karen whirled. "Me? But how would I-"

Lonar cut her off again. "Bigger isn't always better, kiddo, and you know that better than anyone, save two," he told her, hands on his hips. "You'll understand later, but only you can do this. His path can't work without you."

The young superhero glared at him. "Then why can't you go talk to him? He seems to be a New God thing himself! So why me?!" Her eyes cut into him, the girl seething.

Lonar smiled sadly again. "Because, he wouldn't go down the path well. Karen, his path is to begin as a human, then New God. But not a true one. His next phase needs that Father Box. And more importantly, he needs you to help him. To guide him. To keep his humanity, while his power evolves. A God cannot guide a human to become a God if that person forgets his humanity. " He moved forward, resting a hand on Karen's shoulder. "I am the God of Journeys. I know best who the guide needs to be."

Karen's frustration dimmed at that. It was still there, but she thought about dinner. About the story Jimmy had told her. About the face the boy had made. He needed his humanity to move forward. And if Lonar was a New God… he probably wasn't the right teacher for Jimmy. Not yet.

The girl sighed. "Fine. Get the Father Box. Then what?"

Lonar's smile broadened. "Ah, that's actually the second assignment. Just wanted to mentally prepare you for the darker parts. This first one, I think you'll like."

And with that, the energy swallowed them once again.

When Karen looked around, she still expected to be on Apokolips. But instead, she was in the midst of what looked like an armory. An armory with super suits.

The young genius' jaw slipped open. These were insanely technologically advanced. She whirled around the nearest one, taking in every part. She reached out to touch it, feeling the cold, solid metal.

She turned her ear to Lonar, her eyes never leaving the armor. "What is this? What are these? Who built them?!"

The New God laughed at her excitement. "I figured you'd like this!" He said, ruffling her hair. He gestured to the suits. "These are Darkstar Exo-Mantles. One version, at least. These are high-tech, high-quality super suits on par with the Oan Green Lantern rings."

That last statement caught Karen's attention. She whirled around to face him, breaking her stare for the first time since they got there.

"How?"

She'd wanted to say more, but the statement had surprised her to the point where that was all she could really say. She kept trying, but nothing else came out. Oan technology, as far as she was aware, was some of the best stuff around the cosmos. Jessica, Hal, and John were all living testaments to that fact.

Lonar, noticing this, kept going. "The ones who built them are an offshoot of the Oans. The Controllers. Not as flexible, but just as clever. They built these, and other variations." He glanced at her. "Would you like to see them made?"

The face Karen made was akin to a kid in a candy store. She nodded so hard, it was a wonder her head didn't come off.

In a flash, Lonar moved them into the lab, where the alien race was hard at work, building the armor.

Karen watched as the Controllers built the mantles, the sparks flying. So far, she only had one question.

"How come they can't see us?" She asked Lonar.

Lonar chuckled. "I can't be perceived by people if I don't wish for it. It doesn't affect other Gods, and it's honestly better in a time travel situation. But, as long as you're with me, no one can notice you, either."

Karen blinked for a moment. "That's kinda cool."

"I know, right?"

Lonar took Karen throughout time, and she studied each and every variation of the Darkstar Exo-Mantles. Forward and back, she could now recreate an entire armor from any period. But Karen had another idea in mind- and Lonar himself could guess what it was.

The two transferred back to the white area, standing in silence for a moment.

"So, you have the plans, right?"

Karen nodded. "Yeah," she confirmed, "I have them, right up here," she said, tapping her forehead. "I'm gonna put the plans together after I get back."

She blinked, as something occurred to her. "Would I have the parts I need?"

Lonar grinned. "Let Jimmy help," he advised her.

Karen stared at him, annoyed. "Right, like the guy who brainwashed me is going to help me build an exo-suit, made as strong as a lantern ring."

Lonar laughed. Honestly, he was a seriously jovial New God.

"Just try it!" He told Karen. "It might surprise you how willing he'll be." Karen snorted, crossing her arms.

"Sure. I'll believe that."

Lonar smirked. "I think you do. Otherwise, why did you flirt with him earlier?"

Karen's face flushed. Her arms failed as she denied Lonar's words. "I wasn't flirting! I was just, y'know, being nice, being… cool! Yeah, yeah, I was cool!"

Lonar's smirk grew. "Sure. I believe you." He said sarcastically. The man turned to look around. "You're going to wake up soon. So, think about what we talked about," he instructed her.

Karen shook out her blush, sighing, before flashing the New God a salute.

"Yes, sir!"

"Please don't do that."

"Oh! Sorry, I'm sorry…"

Karen woke up, her mind pounding, so many thoughts racing in her mind. She picked up her phone. It read 3:43 am. Honestly, she woke up hours before she had to get ready. Karen rolled over, staring at her work desk.

She rolled over, trying to go back to sleep. But her mind kept racing, plans and parts surging into her head. They were so real, so vivid. She had to make them. She just had to. Sighing, she got out of the bed. She wasn't getting back to sleep any time soon.

She took a seat at the desk, grabbed some paper, a pencil, and started drawing.

Karen worked for hours, until she had everything drawn out and written on the pages in front of her. She looked it over. While… doable, this piece of tech was still a pipe dream. She wouldn't be able to work it without a viable power supply, let alone build it without a viable material. And finding those things would definitely be a problem, especially when she didn't know… where this idea came from.

She contemplated this for a moment- before she heard a knock on her door. Alarmed, she fell back in her chair, onto the ground.

"Karen! You okay in there, honey?" Her mother's voice rang through the door.

Karen sat up a bit, rubbing the back of her head before she answered. "Uh… Yeah, yeah, sorry, Mom! I just… slipped a little, but I'm fine!"

"Okay, sweetie! Out to school in fifteen! It's almost 7:30!"

Karen blinked. She looked at her phone. As her mother said, it wasn't long until 7:30. She'd been working for almost 4 hours, making the most advanced schematics she'd seen thus far. Strange way to greet the day.

The young superhero shook her head. Now wasn't the time for thinking about the matters, she had to get to school! She quickly got dressed, and promptly rushed out the door to Metropolis High.

But, realizing she was still someone's host, she backtracked, rushing back to the house.

She made her way to the family room, glancing in to check up on Jimmy. Apparently, he hadn't slept in a long while, because he had wrapped himself in the blanket, and was in what she recognized as "hibernation" mode. Giggling, she decided to just leave a note.

With that done, she rushed off to school.

Jimmy woke up, bundled in blankets, his mind racing, almost immediately connected to the internet. It was 11:47 am. He chuckled. This was the longest he'd slept in a good, long while. He extracted himself from his cloth cocoon, and sat up, rubbing his eyes. He checked around the house, sensing for anyone else, finding no one around.

Karen was at school, based on the time, and likewise, her parents were most likely at work. So, he was alone. He sat up on the sofa, knocking over a slip of paper that had rested on his blankets. He picked it up, glancing at the contents on it, recognizing the handwriting as Karen's.

'I hope you slept okay, it began, and I hope you don't freak out all alone at home. But I had to run. Foods in the fridge, and TV is available. Be safe. Karen.'

He put the paper down and sighed. "Well," he said to himself, "let's find something to do, then." Because there was no way a super genius was not going to just watch TV.

And that was how Jimmy found himself wandering around the house, building an undetectable, underground secret base. With his powers, it honestly took an hour to complete, teleporting and moving space beneath the building, creating a pocket dimension underneath the Beecher home, and another hour to put everything in place.

Bored, at 1:02 pm, he plopped down back on the sofa. "What to do now…" He wondered aloud. He crossed his arms, floating. He pondered for a moment, before he chuckled to himself.

He landed on the floor, making his way to Karen's room.

Karen's machinery was interesting, Jimmy would admit, and maybe he could borrow the design, make an army of drones. Probably not, but it could be fun to look at the tech she used. He figured he could fix some of the glitches. While she always had her suit, she would have left some parts at home.

He walked into her room, looking around for the parts. In the midst of his search, he noticed the clutter of paper on Karen's desk. His curiosity piqued, Jimmy walked over, picking up some of Karen's drawings.

No, he realized. These were schematics. Blueprints. Really good ones.

Jimmy grabbed as many pages as he could, looking them over, before lying on the floor on his back. Something… was cushioning his head. He reached a hand back, pulling up one of Karen's-

The boy promptly panicked, yelping in surprise.

Karen walked home, sighing. She'd had to ditch spending time with her friends to check on Jimmy. She didn't want to say she didn't trust him, but... she didn't really trust that boy. Not Just yet.

Her time with him told her that without a guiding hand, he would be a danger to himself and others. That cute idiot was going to-

Karen stopped in her tracks; her face flushed. Cute? Why had she called him cute? What was that about?! She shook her head, most of the blush leaving her cheeks. She growled as she resumed her march forward.

His mind control. Had to be. Why else would she just… feel like this? Those feelings were squashed down, as deep as Karen could shove them.

She made her way to her front door, unlocking it, and making her way into the house. Karen looked around for the boy. Weirdly, she couldn't find him anywhere.

"Huh," she said to herself, "I guess he went out?" She sighed, and made her way to her room. She could wait for him to come back later, but they would need to have a talk if he was going to be living in her house. Even if she was mind controlled, he would still have to tell her if he went out.

She reached for the handle to her door, before noticing her door was open-

Wait... what?

Karen rushed to her room, seeing Jimmy going through her new blueprints. He'd been staring at the pages, before he looked up, feeling her eyes on him. He blinked, chuckled sheepishly. "Ooh… hey, Karen…"

Her eyes widened, and her blush returned- in force. "What are you doing in my room?!" She screamed, fury and embarrassment clear on her face.

After about thirty minutes of Karen chasing Jimmy around, before he let the girl tackle him and slap his face… a lot, they found themselves on the sofa again, in a tentative, awkward silence.

Jimmy tapped his fingers together, stealing glances at Karen. The girl in question was still furious, refusing to look at him, her arms crossed, glaring forward.

"Sooo…"

"No, no, no, no, no, no," Karen interrupted. She crossed her legs. "I'm not talking to you just yet."

Jimmy blinked. It had been a while since something like this had happened to him. He also felt… bad, when he thought about it. He hadn't meant to be in her room when she got back, and he hadn't meant to snoop too much, but now that he was caught, he needed to reflect. Breaking into a girl's room probably wasn't a smart or mature thing to do, even for a New God.

"Sorry."

Karen slid back on the sofa. "Mm-hm."

Jimmy blew some air out. He recognized he would need a peace offering here. So, he thought back to her blueprints. There might be something to those that would help him keep the peace.

He cleared his throat. "I, uh… saw the plans in there."

"Mmm."

"It's a good design. Stable build."

"Yup."

"Were… were you going to build it?"

"Can't. No viable materials."

Jimmy had set himself up for the shot. Now, it was the moment of truth. He exhaled, trying to ease his nerves, and spoke.

"I went over the designs, and I have a variety of materials across the multiverse. I could totally help you with that."

Karen blinked, her eyes widening a bit. She sat up, staring at the boy. "What."

"Yeah. I stashed some pretty tough metal in these secret bases I made. Plus, I'm a technopath. I can help configure the systems to be pretty user friendly. I'm basically Rick Sanchez."

Jimmy smiled at her hopefully under her steely stare. Karen looked at him for a while consideringly. She snorted and stood up. "Fine," she said.

Jimmy looked up hopefully at her. "Sooo..."

"I get to slap you a few more times first, and you can help. That'll be a good start."

"Sounds fair."

Karen put out her hand. Jimmy stood up, shaking her offered hand gratefully.

"Now," the boy said, "let's do this!"

And with that, he snapped his fingers, and a portal opened. Karen's eyes whirled to it. "What the-"

Jimmy cut her off. "Yeah, sorry, forgot to mention that. I can create Boom Tubes, capable of transport to just about anywhere."

Karen glanced at him. "Anywhere, huh?"

Her stare made Jimmy uncomfortable. Fidgeting with his collar, he looked to the portal. "Well, let's just… get to work, huh?"

Karen looked around. A well-stocked lab, that's what the base looked like. A massive, silver room, several heavy tables all around, tech scattered on them. "And this took you how long to make?"

"An hour. It's been a slow day for me. Why?"

Karen squinted at him, trying to figure out what to say to that. She shook her head, deciding to shelve the matter for later, and pulled out her blueprints.

"Okay, we're going to need a tough metal to build this up to par. What do you have?"

"Promethium. Near indestructible metal. Will that do?"

Karen rubbed her head. "How- Wha- I- I-" She stammered like that for a moment. "How do you do this?!"

Jimmy shrugged. "Luck, I guess. Plus, y'know," he waved, "super genius? I grab what's handy. Depleted promethium is virtually indestructible when mixed, and malleable at first. Plus, a few parts of nth metal for flight and magic immunity, we've got something started."

Karen stared at him in shock at him, before she sighed. "Let's just do this."

She wasn't even going to question him anymore. Doctor Impossible was a good name for him. He did and had insane stuff, and he didn't even find that odd. She couldn't keep up with it all.

The two eventually found themselves in a steady workflow, welding, wiring. Karen worked the programming and weaponry in as well, testing the now far more ample firepower.

Meanwhile, with his super durable body, Jimmy actually worked on their project's construction. He bent the metal into place, adding parts.

The two were finished in two hours. Karen and Jimmy stared at their completed work- A Bumblebee armor, silver and black.

Jimmy tapped his chin. "I kept it more compact than the other one. Shrinking should be easier to do and maintain. Firepower has had a significant increase. And flight stability and speed has increased."

Karen nodded. "True. But we still have to deal with power. I did the math, and with everything we used to restructure it, my power cells would burn out in about an hour of use. It needs way more than my other suit. This one is an energy hog."

Jimmy nodded. Karen glanced at him. "Got anything for this?"

The question was rhetoric. She fully expected him to have something.

"As a matter of fact…"

Yup. She figured.

Jimmy opened up another Boom Tube, reaching in, and pulling out a… cube. Karen's head hurt. Her mind pounded as she stared at it. She massaged her temple. "What is that?

"Mother Box. I've had a hold of this one for a while…"

Karen's headache dissipated as she stared at it for a moment. She sighed in relief and glanced at her new armor. "So, what are you going to do with your Box?"

"Well, I'm going to make a Source fuel for your suit. Should power it well into your adult years. Up to death, maybe, or until we find an alternative."

Karen nodded approvingly. She turned to face her lab partner, beckoning him closer. Jimmy sighed, and leaned in. Karen promptly slapped him.

Jimmy rubbed his cheek. He didn't really feel it with his increased durability, but the feeling behind it bugged him a bit.

"Feel better?"

"A little." Karen responded. "Now," she said, gesturing to the suit, "power her up."

He nodded. Jimmy walked over to the suit, holding out the Mother Box. Tendrils of energy reached out, surging into the armor. After a few moments, he stopped. "That'll do it."

Karen glanced at him. "That's it?"

"That's it," he confirmed. "Try it on."

Karen looked at the suit, and grinned. She walked over to the suit and pressed on the chest with her hand. The suit became like liquid, oozing onto her body, morphing until it was fitted around her body.

The girl clenched and released her hands, moving around, feeling the suit along her body. Jimmy, blushing, averted his eyes.

"Uhh, guest here?" He reminded her of his presence. Karen blushed a bit, before a thought popped into her head. She smirked mischievously.

"Ooooh? Well then, take another look!" She got in close, getting right in the boy's face. Jimmy blushed deeper, unable to maintain eye contact. Karen snickered. She was embarrassed for sure, but she was enjoying watching the boy squirm.

Jimmy cleared his throat, before pointing up. "Wanna try out your wings? Need to practice flying with the new suit!"

The girl grinned, excited by the idea. "Let's do this!" She glanced up, realizing something. "Wait, aren't we in a pocket dimension? How-"

Jimmy waved his hand, a portal opening.

"Oh."

"Yeah…"

"Honestly forgot about that."

"How? I just showed you a few moments ago! And I told you about it a few hours ago!"

"We were working on the best suit I've ever designed! I was enthralled by the great work!"

"It's a superpower! How is that so unremarkable? A hole in space and time?!"

A groan rang out. "Fine, whatever. I'm sorry. But seriously, we're going to get caught if we don't hurry this up. 'Portals in Metropolis.' Sounds attention grabbing."

Jimmy sighed. "Yeah, yeah. Go."

He perked up. "I could go with you. I can fly," he mentioned.

Karen blinked, before shaking her head. "Sorry, too risky. We can't risk you grabbing any attention. Making too much noise would bring Kara and her cousin right to you."

Jimmy huffed, crossing his arms. "Fine," he grumbled.

Karen hesitated for a moment, before she sighed, relenting. "Fine. You can come, but let's hurry. A portal is probably bringing up attention."

Jimmy gasped, smiling widely as he did. He grabbed Karen, pulling the girl into a tight hug, before he leapt through the portal.

Karen yelped in alarm, somewhat in shock as the boy flew them over the city. "Was that really necessary?!" She nearly screamed at him.

His smile was wide, and the boy laughed. "Probably not, but necessity isn't always fun!"

Karen growled a bit, before she shrank out of his grip. Her wings sprouted from the confines of her suit, buzzing with red energy. She hovered, before restoring her full size- and dropped, with all the grace of a professional diver. After a few moments in free fall, Bumblebee extended her wings, flying up with a corkscrew.

Jimmy flew next to her, smiling widely. "See? Now you're getting into it!"

Bumblebee rolled her eyes, a smile making its way onto her face. She flew higher, and high, Jimmy matching her. The boy reached into a pocket, yanking his mask out, donning it swiftly.

"You already wanna test this part?" He asked. He wasn't nervous. Between the two of them, the tech was all-around near perfect.

Bee's exposed mouth and up were covered with armor, giving her a breathing apparatus. The two of them, at Mach speeds, flew through the atmosphere, to the stars. Bumblebee stared at the celestial beauty, the vast expanse, before, with a start, she took a breath.

She sighed in relief. The apparatus worked, just as they'd designed. She could breathe, likely anywhere. And her suit could likely deal with heavy pressure, all the work it went through.

She felt something grasp her hand. She looked, and saw Jimmy flying alongside her, her hand in his. He turned to look at her, and somehow, she could tell he was still smiling under his mask.

Jimmy whirled, grasping her other hand, bringing her into a wide spin. Bumblebee couldn't help it. She laughed, and the two of them danced in space, streaks of white and red following in their wake.

From a distance, Lonar watched the display, sitting comfortably on an asteroid. He smiled. "There's the first step, kids…" He said to himself. "End of prologue.