Well folks, it's official: I'm back!
Sorry for the extended hiatus that I've been on. It's been almost three months since I last updated, and I can't apologize enough for being gone. university just decided to hit hard and hit fast, and I'm only now catching up. I would like to thank all of you for sticking around as long as you have. Any lesser audience would have left after such a long dry spell, but not you guys. It means so much that you're still here.
Now in more tragic news, just recently we lost Stan Lee. The man was my hero, and he was responsible for some of our most beloved heroes, and he certainly made some of my favourites. One of which went on to become the Sandman that I know and love. Without Stan, there would be no Sandman Unlimited, or Alchemic Justice. So now, let us all show the proper respect befitting such an icon. RIP Stan Lee, time to put the pencils away. You did good. Excelsior!
And thank you for all of your reviews that you've left. They're always fantastic to see. Let's check them out, shall we?:
CRUDEN: Yeah I get it, "Jason forgave too easily" and "his crusade ended too fast". I accept those points. however, allow me to remind you that in this canon I stated that he'd only been Red Hood for a few months at most. He hasn't had that long to stew on it. And he's substantially younger than most other incarnations, only being 17 here. I acknowledge that I probably did a shit job there, but I at least have a reason for it.
rmarcano321: Heh, how could I possibly forget about Bob? He's the number one guy for a reason! What inspired me to create these fics? That's literally just my love for Flint Marko, and the fact that Keemia hasn't really been utilized. Like at all. And there isn't really any unifying theme between the two, except maybe for growth, redemption, and evolution of character (Maybe?).
TheGreatGodzilla: Um... well clearly Keemia is the team sorceress. She has been since day one. It even says so in the description? And her relationship with Zatanna is an extremely loving and positive one, not just as mother/daughter, but also teacher, student? I mean, I thought that was clear. And the only people aware of the other universes are as follows: DC - The Justice League, Amanda Waller, Galatea. Marvel - The Avengers and allies (X-Men, Heroes for Hire etc.), SHIELD (possibly), Flint, Shocker, Rhino, Keemia, and Salamandra. None of the villains on either side know at all about the other universe. Much less, do they have ways to get there.
Celgress: Glad to hear you liked it. Yeah Bob deserved way better. But then again, I guess that was part of the joke. Don't worry, the Joker will show up... eventually. I can't guarantee that he'll get an entire chapter just for him, but there will be a plethora of character moments and arcs regarding him that will show up.
Dion ComicWiz: Always great to hear from you my friend. I always appreciate the insight you provide for me. I've wanted to play around with the Red hood for a while now, so being able to pick apart the "Under the Red Hood" story was always going to be inevitable. And it even allowed me to get closure with Ivo! Robin and Keemia really needed some moments for the two of them to interact alone, because they don't generally get that, so I hoped this would work out in favour of it. Besides, she needed the closure. Snowflame was another character I desperately wanted to use, and while I love his absolutely absurd (and I mean STUPIDLY absurd) incarnation from his original appearances, I thought that a more competent and menacing incarnation might be apt for the situation. He'll definitely be showing up again in the future. For Jason's resurrection, it certainly will tie in to the "Season of Infamy" ideas I have. Can't say much more, but know this; we will see the return of someone from "The New Batman Adventures", and it will be heartfelt. Giving some more of Jason't canon backstory was fun, and I like utilizing the Squad as more of a... tenuous family unit (at least as far as Harley and Deadshot are concerned. Boomerang is just the drunk uncle... a drunkle if you will). Again, I will say that Jason was not Red Hood for years as he was in canon, it hasn't been nearly that long. But I did do a pretty rushed job there, I will admit. And yeah, it is hard to read Starfire's dialogue given recent incarnations, but I just stick to Marv Wolfman's original and that serves me well. I don't really know if I will use "The Killing Joke" for anything in the future as far as an entire chapter for it goes, but it will be referenced in the future. I have plenty of plans for Jason coming up soon, and Nina... well she's not very far away now ;)
Zeo: Well, Flint is sterile so I wouldn't expect him and Z to have a child. Giganta... well I do have plans for her. Brainiac 5 will not be showing up though. Spider-Man and Galatea already have a great thing going for them on their own.
Lucian Naruto: Savage is plotting, carefully moving his chess pieces about the board. And I think Lex is more comfortable here than he was in the Secret Society, that's for sure. I mean, he gets LexCorp back. But I think we all know he was tempted with the hair. It's always the hair.
Wonderbat385: Is it wrong for me to say that I probably won't? I mean, I like WonderBat okay, I just prefer other ships for them. they'll get a resolution to their ship, I just can't guarantee it'll be exactly what you expect.
7-Eleventh: Well you left quite a few, so I'll answer them all here. Coldnsap will be back for good in the future, just not yet. That's still a few chapters away. And yeah, it is rather nice that I have ten team members now. So many fun interactions to play with now! Ashley and Keemia will get their resolution to their relationship soon... ironically enough it will be around the same time that Conner and Megan get theirs. Huh, funny how it works out. Niuhi... will not end up with Kaldur though. That is for certain. Barry and Artemis will get their moments though. Now, when I mentioned that Thor event, I meant it more like it would work as an Omake. Not exactly canon to the fic, but as close as you would get if it did happen. And no, Venom will not show up. I mean, yeah Parasite is "dead", but you never know. He might come back. Comic book logic is a bitch. Terrors will be coming soon, but for now, it's time for "Bereft".
Thanks again for all the reviews! This support kept me going through the dry spell and I love each and every one I get. Please be sure to leave more in the future, I love to read them. Hopefully there aren't any more large dry-spells like this one in the future. I'll try to be more frequent with the updates guys.
But for now, disclaimer: I own NOTHING! Keemia Marko, Sandman, and all related characters are property of Marvel Comics and Disney (RIP Stan Lee). Young Justice, Psimon, and all related characters are property of DC Comics and Warner Bros. Please support the official releases.
And now, onto the chapter!
Bialya – September 4th, 00:16 EEST
The first thing that M'Gann noticed upon waking up was the feeling of the sand beneath her. It was fine and soft and cold, much like the wind that blew into her face from over the dunes. She slowly sat up, groaning in pain as she held her head. For whatever reason, it was throbbing.
She muttered to herself in her native Martian tongue before finally taking stock of her surroundings. It was nighttime, that much was for certain. However, the sands were not red, nor was the air nearly cold enough. Then she saw the sky… and the moon.
This wasn't Phobos or Deimos. Instead, there was only one in the sky. And it was perfectly circular.
Her eyes widened in realization as she felt the sand between her fingers again. Then, she tapped her head with a small smile. "Hello Megan, I'm on Earth!" she said to herself as though it were obvious. She stood up, starting to walk down the side of the dune she awoke on.
"But, how did I get to Earth?" she mused, before holding the cape she wore curiously. "Why am I wearing this costume? And why does my head hurt so much?" she groaned as she held her forehead again at the near-migraine she felt.
As she was lost in her thoughts though, her footing became erratic as she suddenly fell forwards, tumbling down the dune. She rolled all the way to the bottom, before sitting up again. "Is… is this a dream?"
She didn't have long to ponder this before a solid impact showered the ground behind her, spraying sand in every direction, and forming large dust clouds that obscured her vision. She gasped in surprise before looking back as the dust settled, revealing what appeared to be a human.
He wore a black shirt with the red crest of the House of El emblazoned upon it. He was breathing heavily as he stayed crouched on the ground, slowly looking at Megan as the two stared into each other's eyes.
Megan's eyes wandered down to look at the symbol on his shirt. "W-wait, I've seen that symbol. Are you Superman?" she asked timidly.
The boy suddenly looked to the symbol on his shirt before giving an enraged scream. He tore at the emblem, leaving his shirt in tatters before suddenly leaping at the surprised Martian girl. She barely had time to dodge as his fists collided with the sand where she previously sat. He soon attacked her again before she took to the air to avoid his thunderous blows.
This did little to deter the enraged boy as he leapt after her into the air. Megan used her telekinesis to try and block his assault, as he collided with her mental barrier before the two crashed into the ground from the impact. He stared at her for a moment before leaping away in the opposite direction, cutting across vast swathes of desert as he did.
Megan stared after him in disbelief before her arms wrapped around her knees, pulling them close to her chest. "No… not a dream…" she said fearfully.
"… A nightmare…"
Early the next morning the sun was already nearing its peak, as was the arid heat along with it. The temperature had already risen to near forty degrees centigrade and was expected to get even higher. And yet, despite the discomfort of the blistering heat, and the scorching sands, Robin still managed to move among the tall crags of rock that he had woken up near an hour before.
He grunted a little in exhaustion, his feet trudging on almost involuntarily until he turned a corner of the rock to see the telltale dust clouds of an approaching armed convoy. Now on high alert, he quickly scaled the rocky face, taking shelter on a narrow ledge as the convoy passed under him. The armed soldiers within were very clearly searching for something, and they meant business if the calibre of rifles they held were anything to go by.
"Those are Bialyan Republican Army uniforms…" Robin muttered to himself before activating his holoscreen to take a look at his coordinates. "But what are Bialyans doing in uh…. Bialya?" he said in surprise, noticing his GPS location. "Okay, better question; what am I doing in Bialya?" He asked before finally noticing the date.
"In September?! What happened to March?" he exclaimed in surprise. The last thing he could consciously remember was how he and Dick had handled a bust against Two-Face just the night before. He should have woken up in his own bed at home. The fact that he didn't was… alarming to say the least.
"Better call Batman," he mused, touching his commlink. However, a sudden memory flashed through his mind.
'Maintain radio silence at all times' Batman's voice chided from somewhere within Robin's memories.
"Or not." He decided, before leaping from the rock face gracefully, flipping down to the sand below. Upon his landing, he noticed what appeared to be a ragged chunk of cloth on a nearby rock. Upon closer examination, it proved to be a scrap of a torn t-shirt. A black one to be precise. On the cloth, emblazoned brightly was a red crest of the House of El.
He looked at the scrap suspiciously before pressing on.
"Hey beautiful, wake up."
Artemis groaned in pain, clutching her head as her eyes slowly opened. Looking down on her from above was the smiling visage of a red-headed teenage boy. His body was garbed in a black and grey uniform of some sort. As he came into focus, she gasped in surprise before scrambling backwards, grabbing her bow which laid nearby.
"Hey, it's okay, it's okay. I won't hurt you, I'm one of the good guys." He said, holding his hands up in a placating gesture as he hoped to calm her down. "You know, Kid Flash?"
"Seen Kid Flash on the news, he doesn't wear black." She replied suspiciously.
Kid Flash took that moment to look at his uniform, his face bearing a clear mark of confusion. "A little unclear on that one myself. What about you?" he asked, gesturing to her outfit. "Green Arrow fixation?"
Artemis was about to deny it before she suddenly saw her own uniform. "Who put me in this?!"
"Wow, I'm not touching that with a ten-foot… uh… so, you know how to use that bow?" He asked hopefully.
"Yeah. My dad taught me," she nodded, before a look of realization came over her. "Dad! He must have done this. Another of his stupid tests."
"What kind of test?" Kid Flash asked curiously.
"He probably wants me to kill you." She said in a deadpan tone.
Barry's eyes widened in shock, but before either of them could comment, a quiet whistling sound could be heard on the air. It was faint, but it was growing louder and louder with each passing second. Not wasting any more time, Barry quickly grabbed Artemis before pulling her out of the shack they were in, just as a missile struck the building, detonating it.
The two teens were sent sprawling from the blast, before looking up to see three tanks rapidly approaching on the horizon, being led by an armed hummer full of Bialyan soldiers. The two scrambled to their feet, running in the opposite direction as the officers in the hummer opened fire.
"Don't let them escape!" the leader called, as they continued their barrage.
Thinking quickly, Artemis drew an explosive arrow before rolling out of the line of fire and shooting it under the truck. The explosion knocked the vehicle into the air, sending it flying before it landed roughly on the ground again, tumbling in a heap of metal.
As she loaded another arrow to fire at another vehicle that was rapidly approaching them, Barry pulled his goggles down onto his face before racing in at top speed and pulling Artemis out of the line of fire. It was just in time too, as another missile soon struck the ground where Artemis had been kneeling just seconds before.
"Sorry, they've got bigger arrows!" Barry said hurriedly as he ran with Artemis in his arms bridal-style, dodging each subsequent missile with ease as he raced through the canyon.
"Thanks," Artemis said, genuinely grateful for his help.
"Hey, I told you, good guy." He shrugged. "Now, not to pry but, what's your name?" he asked as Artemis flashed him a brief smile. Barry wouldn't say it out loud, but he thought she was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen up to that point.
"Oh, and what's this about you killing me?"
"Ugh my head… Roy was this your idea? Another weekend bender? Who does that on a Tuesday anyway…?" Keemia groaned, trying to sit up before the pain became overwhelming. She soon let loose the contents of her stomach as a wave of nausea hit her all at once. "Wait… sand? Why is there sand? Why am I in the desert?!" she cried in alarm before grasping her head again. "Ow… too much noise…"
"Keemia? You're awake!" a voice suddenly called before someone hugged the surprised sorceress from behind.
"Ah! Holy shit!" Keemia cried in alarm before scrambling out of their grasp. "Wh-who are you?"
"What do you mean? It's me, Ashley? Don't you remember?" the eponymous Ashley asked, her black lips now put together in a small pout.
"I… I don't know…" Keemia admitted as she looked at the girl. 'Damn she's cute… wait, do I like girls?' she thought to herself, looking off to the side in surprise. After a moment, she looked back at Ashley before taking in all of her features. 'You know what? I do. Why is she so familiar though?'
Much like the first time they'd met, Ashley heard her every thought, and for a moment, her own heart raced as a blush adorned her cheeks. "Keemia, I think something's tampered with your memory."
"You know what? I'm inclined to agree with you." Keemia nodded, slowly standing up before nausea hit her again, and she dry-heaved into the desert. "What was it though, and why did it hurt my head so much?"
"It was telepathy, a powerful telepath wiped your memories from you. And given your previous history with CADMUS' G-gnomes, I guess it hurt you more than expected." Ashley said, moving closer to her. "When I found you, it looked like you were having a seizure."
"Oh shit…" Keemia said in surprise before trying to think. "I don't recognize any of that though. CADMUS, G-gnomes, none of that's familiar."
"They're parts of the memories you lost. I'd assume the rest of our team lost their memories too." Ashley sighed.
"Team? We're on a team?" she asked before the two heard the sound of approaching vehicles in the distance. "Are those friendly?"
"Probably not," Ace said, shaking her head as the men in the vehicles aimed their guns.
"Take them out quickly?"
"Most definitely." Ace nodded before using her telekinesis to hurl a massive cloud of sand into the air, obscuring the view of the soldiers.
"Oh, now that's perfect!" Keemia grinned before conjuring her staff and twirling it in front of her. "Mrotsdnas!"
The sand that Ace threw into the air suddenly hurled towards the vehicles as a massive storm front, sending the cars tumbling backwards across the dunes. However, neither girl wanted to stay very long to inspect their handiwork.
"Let's get a move on before they come to their senses." Ace urged.
"Yeah, or bring their friends." Keemia nodded before both girls took off running away. As they ran through the dunes, they would soon pick up the sound of another voice. Curious, they followed it to find a boy. He was cursing profusely, and gesturing with the two pistols in his hands as though they'd made a personal insult to his very being.
The strange part about him was the outfit he wore. A brown leather jacket, combat armour underneath, with grey cargo pants. A red Bat symbol was emblazoned on his chest, which perfectly matched the red helmet that he wore on his head,
"Another one of ours?" Keemia asked before making a mental note to remember some of the more… colourful phrases he spouted.
"Yep, that's Jason." Ace nodded.
'I'm actually on Earth! I've wanted this for so long! Even if it's not exactly like TV.' M'Gann thought to herself excitedly, as she soared high over the sands of the desert. Feeling the warmth of the sun, and the cool southern breeze just delighted her to her very core. If it wasn't for the confusion at her situation, and the sudden and alarming attack from that… boy… it would have been ideal.
That confusion continued to bring a frown to her face every time she thought about it. "But why can't I remember how I got here?" she asked herself, before flying closer to the ground. Floating between two dead trees, she floated midair in the full-lotus position as she focused her mind to meditate.
'Concentrate…' she told herself mentally. 'Remember…'
Suddenly, numerous images flooded her mind.
The boy from before leaping towards her with a roar of aggression.
"Good idea. Go." A voice called from beside her, as her one-time attacker stood in front of her, his face bearing a small smile and his clothing intact.
"Be careful," he urged.
"Careful Superboy, they're hot," M'Gann chirped, as she offered a tray of freshly baked cookies to the clone. He smiled warmly as he reached to grab one, before Barry suddenly zipped past in costume, stealing the cookie from his hands.
"Not as hot as you, babe." Barry grinned before eating the cookie in one bite.
"Thanks, Barry… that's um…. Sweet?" M'Gann said in confusion while Superboy levelled the speedster a glare, before grabbing himself a new cookie.
"Not as sweet as you, sugar!" Barry smirked before Artemis suddenly cuffed him upside the head as she walked into the room with Ace in tow.
"Oh, grow up." She scolded him before grabbing her own cookie. Suddenly, Batman's voice was heard over the intercom.
"Team, report to the mission room." He said as the teens all nodded. Then, her visions ended.
"I'm on a team!" M'Gann said excitedly. "I have friends! And a Superboy who might be…" she trailed off, a blush growing on her face before she suddenly nodded in determination. "I need to find him! Er, them!" she corrected herself, before taking to the air again, and soaring high across the desert, attempting to retrace her steps.
'Hello? Uh, team?' she called out telepathically, before frowning. "Maybe they're just out of my range." She determined, before soaring off faster than before.
As the sun slowly started to set on the horizon, Barry finally came to a halt just next to the wall of a small rocky canyon. He carefully set Artemis down before taking a moment to catch his breath, his body seriously feeling the fatigue of running for almost an hour straight.
"Sorry… running on empty. Don't think I've eaten in a while." He said to Artemis, still panting as he opened a hidden compartment in his glove where he normally kept his extra food. To his surprise, he found it empty. "Been out here over twenty-four hours, or my cupboards wouldn't be bare."
Before Artemis could reply, a sudden massive impact would send the two stumbling back as an enraged Superboy landed in-between them. As the dust from the impact settled the clone would lash out, backhanding Barry away into the canyon wall, before he rounded on Artemis.
The archer was quick to back-flip out of his reach before firing an explosive arrow at him. The clone staggered a bit from the blast but kept approaching her steadily, even as she held her barrage upon him. Finally, he came within range to grab her, but she narrowly rolled to the side to avoid his grasp yet again.
Superboy gave a roar of anger before a sudden mortar shell slammed into him, creating a massive explosion that sent Artemis sprawling. The sudden blast caused the clone to cry out in pain, his telepathic anguish managing to reach M'Gann as she had just flown into range.
'Superboy! Where are you?' M'Gann called out telepathically, as she searched from the sky, before noticing a plume of smoke rising into the distance. She immediately took off at top speed to try and reach it.
Back at the site of the explosion, Artemis weakly attempted to sit up from where she was launched by the blast, while Superboy simply leapt over her, now intent on engaging the approaching tanks who had attacked them moments prior.
He landed on the first, grasping the long barrel of its gun before pulling as hard as he could, his muscles straining before he ripped the barrel free, flinging it away. A soldier immediately appeared out the top, opening fire on Superboy with his rifle. The bullets didn't bother the clone, however, as he easily crumpled the gun with one hand, before grasping the soldier with the other and flinging him away.
Superboy then grasped the top of the tank, pulling as hard as he cold before tearing it free and throwing it away into the distance as the second tank responded by shooting him point-blank with another missile. Superboy was sent flying out away from the vehicles, before standing back up, seemingly unaffected by the blast as he leapt back into the fray.
Artemis and Barry watched from a distance, the two of them morbidly fascinated with the scene unfolding before them. "Whose side is he on?" Artemis asked with a grimace.
"Want to stick around and find out?" Barry asked as the two looked at each other before returning their attention to the animalistic teen. Superboy savagely struck at the side of the tank, denting and tearing at the metal as he ripped this tank in half, much like the first.
Barry took that as their cue to exit, as he picked Artemis up like before and started running off down a nearby dune. Unfortunately, in his fatigue, he missed spotting a rock, which he, in turn, tripped over. The two teens were now tumbling down the dune, before looking up at the sound of something flying overhead.
Two remote drones flew past them at breakneck speed, before turning back and opening fire on the teens. "Get down!" Barry urged as he kept Artemis on the ground, using his body to shield hers as bullets narrowly missed them, striking the sand all around their bodies. The drones flew past again before circling around, ready for another attack. Artemis took a moment to load her bow, aiming at the drones until a voice rang out in her head.
'Don't worry, I'm almost there!' A girl called out, surprising the archer long enough for her shot to veer off-course, away from the drones as she gasped in surprise.
"Did you just hear a girl talking in your head?" she asked in alarm.
"Girls are always on my mind," Barry shrugged with a smirk. "But they aren't usually talking."
The drones continued to barrel through the air towards them, before M'Gann finally arrived, keeping speed with the drones as she used her telekinesis to force them to crash into each other. A small explosion happened soon after as the flying machines crashed into the sand below, before M'Gann landed on the ground in front of the two relieved, yet perplexed teens.
"Well J'onn, the costume looks familiar. But I'm not sure the new bod screams 'Manhunter'." Barry said, his face looking unsure.
"You know my uncle J'onn?" M'Gann asked excitedly before remembering. "Hello Megan, of course you do. You're Kid Flash, Barry. And you're Artemis." She said gesturing between the two.
"Wait, wait, wait, Martian Manhunter's your uncle? Is that how you know my name?" Barry asked in surprise, while Artemis' eyebrow quirked slightly.
"Your name is really Barry?" the archer asked flatly. Barry looked at her for a moment before groaning as a slight red tinge covered his face.
"It's okay, we're teammates – friends! I made you cookies." M'Gann continued, hoping to jog their memories.
The two stared at her before Artemis glared at Barry with an undercurrent of jealousy clearly evident. "You know her?"
"N-no, I swear beautiful, I've never seen her before in my life. At least…" he rambled before M'Gann sighed in defeat.
"You both lost your memories too…" she trailed off.
"They're not the only ones." A new voice called, as the trio turned to see three more people approaching them. "Is that really you Barry?"
"Keemia? Holy crap, a familiar face!" the speedster grinned before Artemis' glare intensified.
"You know her too?"" she accused.
"Yeah, but don't worry. He's like a little brother to me. All the energy of a five-year-old, and twice as taxing on your patience." Keemia smirked. Ace and Red Hood were right behind her as M'Gann looked to them.
"They're our teammates too… I remember you." She said, pointing to Ace. "You're Ashley."
"Yep, that's me. I still have my memories though, so don't worry." She assured her.
"You still have them all? Could you help us get ours back?" Barry asked hopefully.
"I've been wondering that too. It's kinda weird falling asleep with a broken shoulder and then waking up in the desert with healed bones and rubber-bullets in your favourite guns." Jason mused dryly before Keemia cuffed him upside the head gently.
"Relax Hood, we'll get them back." She said before looking to Ashely with a frown. "We will get them back… right?"
"Of course, but it might be best if we gathered the others here first. There's no telling how much energy it'll take us to do it, and we might need their help as well with finding the missing pieces." Ace reasoned before the six looked out across the desert at a rising plume of smoke, which had drawn the attention of even more armoured vehicles.
"Might want to get a move on then." Keemia grimaced before M'Gann gave a short nod.
"Come on, I'll fill you in as we go. Robin and Superboy need our help." She said before starting off again, with the others falling in behind her.
"Of course," Barry nodded. "Robin and… Super what now?"
After an exhausting battle between himself and the Bialyan soldiers, Superboy had finally been restrained somehow. Thick cables were bound around his arms as several soldiers held on, attempting to stop him from moving as they tried to capture him. However, Superboy struggled against his bonds, his anger never once fading.
With one tug, he sent several of the soldiers sprawling across the desert as he pulled the cables they were holding on to. The others struggled to regain control, while off to the side, their commander watched fearfully. Behind him was a pale man, his face obscured by the grey hood that he wore.
The commander grimaced under his mask before turning to the pale man. "You must control his mind," he urged.
"Doesn't seem to be much mind left in there to control," the pale man mused, a small smirk on his face before he raised his hand. "But… be still." He ordered.
Almost immediately, Superboy's struggles ceased as the man invaded his mind before the clone collapsed in an unconscious heap to the ground. The soldiers quickly moved in to grab him again as they dragged his body to one of the vehicles, each muttering a string of curses in their native tongue.
The pale man smirked triumphantly as they now had what they were looking for in their possession before the vehicles all drove off again to their base of operations. Unbeknownst to them, however, another teen was unconscious behind some nearby rocks.
Aqualad.
Night fell quickly, as the dunes of the desert no longer glowed under the evening haze. Instead, they were illuminated by the silver glimmer of the moon above. Robin continued his trek through the dunes, moving far further than he had just hours prior as the temperature was now far safer for movement. His holoscreen was active as he followed a path to a marker he had seemingly placed sometime earlier. It gave him some comfort as it was a sort of reference point for him, but he still couldn't remember why he would have placed one.
"Wish I could remember why I put a GPS marker here," he muttered. As he came over the crest of the dune, he saw a large black box sitting in the sand, before he quickly ducked out of sight. After looking at his holoscreen, a dawning look of realization came over him. "Huh… guessing that's why."
Carefully peering over the dune again. He checked that the coast was clear before leaping into action and landing near the box. However, several soldiers emerged from the sand as he did, arming their rifles.
"Her majesty wants him alive!" one of them called out before they all moved in. Robin was less than impressed as he just dropped a smoke pellet down before they could approach. As the soldiers were left coughing, and blindly stumbling around the smoke, Robin went on the offensive, taking them down before he could be seen.
He used his bolas to rope up two of them, before leaping onto the shoulders of another, spinning his legs to take down three at once. He then drew several of his throwing discs before using them to disarm some of the soldiers. However, for every one that he took down, another two would take their place as he soon found himself starting to get overwhelmed.
He leapt out of the fray to get his bearings, as the soldiers pointed their rifles to him. "Enough, open fire!" one called as they started shooting. Robin back-flipped out of their path as a sudden blur whizzed by, stealing their guns.
"I'll hold that, thanks!" Kid Flash grinned, before leaping into the fight once they were all disarmed. Two more attempted to sneak up on them from behind. However, M'Gann flung them out of the way with her telekinesis. Another group was trying to retrieve their guns before Red Hood suddenly landed in front of them, knocking sand in their faces as he took them down by attacking their pressure points.
"Dnib meht ni sniahc!" Keemia called, conjuring chains to bind the downed soldiers together as Ace used her own telekinesis to stop them from moving. One soldier attempted to run away, however, he was caught by a net arrow Artemis fired downing him in a second.
With the last of them on the ground, the teens regrouped as Robin approached Barry with a grin. "KF! Man, it's good to see a familiar face!" he grinned as the two gripped each other's hands.
"Hey Rob, memory loss?" Barry asked.
"Six months!" Robin nodded as Keemia approached.
"So, about the same for the rest of us. Oh, and thanks for the warm welcome Pigeon." She snarked, floating on her staff as Ace nudged her with her elbow gently.
"Sorry, guess I'm just trying to process this still." He sighed, before gesturing to the soldiers. "Let's hogtie the rest of these creeps and compare notes."
"So, we're a team?" Robin asked in surprise, once the rest of the soldiers were all tied together.
"Yep, we are." Hood nodded, his arms folded across his chest as he watched their flank in case more soldiers showed up.
"The seven of us, and Superboy," M'Gann confirmed.
"Then this must be his," Robin determined, pulling out the torn cloth with the House of El emblem.
"Yes! Did you see him?" M'Gann asked eagerly.
"I think we did," Artemis mused, looking at Barry.
"Feral boy? Some teammate, he attacked us." He grimaced.
"He didn't know who we are." Artemis defended. "I don't know who we are!"
"I remember Batman ordering radio silence," Robin said. "Our team must work for him."
"How do you know we don't work for my mentor?" Barry asked before pressing the Flash logo on his chest. When he did, His outfit changed from the sleek black and grey to the normal yellow and red. "Whoa, this is so cool!" Barry grinned before pressing it, again and again, to keep it changing colour.
The others briefly checked to see if their outfits worked the same, but it appeared that only Barry's did. "Ugh, we look ridiculous." Artemis groaned before looking at Barry who was still changing the colours. "Quit touching yourself!"
"Not touching that with a ten-foot pole," Keemia murmured to Ace as the short telekinetic giggled lightly.
"We need our memories back." Artemis scoffed.
M'Gann looked at everyone, nervously rubbing her hands together as she internally debated something. After a few moments, she made a decision. 'To help Superboy,' she thought to herself before raising her hands and opening a telepathic link between everybody.
There was a brief flash in front of everyone's eyes before they found themselves in what appeared to be a mental dreamscape. Various memories flashed all around them, each seeming to be random and unfocused. Each one was also a memory that they were all missing.
"I brought you into my mind to share what I've remembered so far," M'Gann started before appearing before them. "But I need your help. Together our broken memories can form a whole if you open your minds to mine."
"Wait, where's Ashley?" Keemia asked before looking around. Sure enough, the smaller girl was nowhere to be seen.
"Oh, I'm right here," Ashley said before appearing alongside them. "Sorry, sometimes I forget that I finished my telepathic training. I instinctively mask my presence whenever someone tries to get in my head, so I can instead enter theirs."
"You bypassed my telepathy… I couldn't even sense you!" M'Gann said in shock.
"Yep. You're good, but you're not done your training. You will be soon." Ace assured her. "It's because of my own training that I could keep all of my memories."
"So that's why you remembered everything. Did you see who attacked us?" Jason asked.
"No, unfortunately not. I wasn't looking for him, and he attacked M'Gann first. That much I do know." She said.
"Hang on, can we just backtrack for a second. You want to paw through our private thoughts?" Artemis asked with a scowl.
"I have no wish to intrude but…" M'Gann started before Robin cut her off.
"We need to hack our minds to get what happened to us. Got it. Go." Robin nodded.
"Just be careful while you're in there. Whatever I'm missing caused me to have painful reactions to telepathic intrusions." Keemia said uneasily before Ace reached out, gently holding her hand.
"My brain's all yours." Barry grinned. "Try not to let its brilliance overwhelm you."
"Or underwhelm you," Robin smirked, causing Keemia and Jason to chuckle. "Hey, why isn't anyone ever just whelmed?"
Artemis still looked reluctant at this, before casting a brief look to Barry. The speedster nodded before gently taking her hand in his. Now reassured, the archer sighed before nodding. "Last six months only, and only what you need."
"Don't worry, I'll be in there too to make sure nothing private gets blown out in the open." Ace assured them before walking over to M'Gann. The two girls shared a nod before using their telepathy together to extend tendrils of energy towards their teammates, so they could extract the memories.
"The Watchtower detected an immense power surge in the Bialyan desert," Batman said, gesturing to a screen behind him that showed a map of Bialya. "Spectral analysis revealed elements non-terrestrial in origin. On top of this, an archaeology student native to Metropolis, Nina Dowd, was reported missing by the rest of her dig team in nearby Qurac. Dowd is a prodigy in the field of anthropology, as well as an expert in the field of extraterrestrial artifacts; specifically, those of the New Gods. Find out what happened at that site, what landed there, and if you can, retrieve Nina Dowd."
The team nodded at this before Batman continued. "Bialya is a rogue state, ruled by Queen Bee," he said before showing a picture if the eponymous Queen Bee. She was a dark-skinned woman, dressed regally in various silks, with a gold diadem on her forehead. "It is also not a member of the League's UN charter. All communications are suspect to interception. Maintain radio silence at all times."
"You'll land in Qurac, on Bialya's border, two clicks from the hot zone."
Robin peered through his binoculars carefully, before turning to his teammates. M'Gann and Artemis scouted from their own positions while Superboy carried a large black box down the ramp of the Bioship. "All clear!" Robin said.
"The Bialyans control the site," Artemis said, reporting what she and Robin had seen while scouting out the area. Aqualad nodded in response before looking to Superboy.
'Set up here," he said. Superboy nodded before setting the box down and twisting a knob on the side as a control panel and several terminals appeared from within the box.
"We'll be up and running in no time," Robin said, typing several commands into the keyboard on the side of the box.
Barry read the date over Robin's shoulder before grinning. "Jackpot, the site's lousy with Zeta beam radiation."
"So, whatever it was got teleported in? That explains the energy output." Keemia mused.
"Detecting non-terrestrial trace elements from the tent." Robin nodded.
"I'll check it out in camouflage mode," M'Gann offered.
"Good idea." Aqualad nodded. "Go."
"Careful," Superboy warned, a soft smile on his face.
"And maintain telepathic contact." Aqualad nodded. "Ace can relay if you get too far, but only if you keep the channel open."
"I will, Aqualad," M'Gann said.
"Aqualad!" they all gasped, as their telepathic link closed with their memories restored.
"Where is he? What happened next?" Robin asked worriedly.
"I don't know, that's the last thing I-we remember," M'Gann said adamantly.
"What about her? Do you remember?" Jason asked, looking at Ace.
"I'm trying. Whatever attacked us left a lingering presence in my head. It's weak, but it's stopping me from finding out at the moment. Guess I couldn't block them out fast enough for that." The girl frowned.
Artemis and Barry finally noticed that they were holding hands, before quickly letting go and recoiling, fighting to keep their blushes off of their faces. "We landed twenty-four hours ago. If Kaldur's been wandering the desert that long, well… that's not good for a guy with gills." Barry said seriously.
"Well, now that I know to look for him…" Robin said before pulling up his holoscreen. "He's close, but he's not moving."
Far across the sands, and under a heavy guard, there sat a large tent surrounded by heavy military vehicles. Inside the tent, there were dozens of computers and other such machines, each monitored by various scientists. On one side of the room, there was a large spherical object, housed inside a solid frame that allowed it to spin in place, with numerous scientists watching it and taking notes as it was forced to move on its own.
On the other side of the room, Superboy was restrained against the wall with incredibly strong shackles. He lay unconscious in his confines while two scientists shocked him through the numerous wires connected to his body.
"Raise to shock level four," the head scientist ordered as his assistant did as he was told. Superboy then underwent a higher shock, causing the clone to cry out in pain as the electricity coursed through him.
Suddenly, the sphere started spinning weakly on its own, almost as though it were responding to Superboy's cry.
"Fascinating…" the pale man said, approaching the sphere before another cry of pain was heard. A young woman, enthralled by the sphere's response reached out to touch it, only to be thrown back by a mild shock. "Miss Dowd, we did tell you that you are to observe only, correct?" he chided.
"Y-yes sir… you did…" the petite student nodded before standing up weakly, noticing a spiralling design of circuitry-like burns adorning her arm where she touched the sphere.
"Hmph, go recheck the energy monitors." The pale man ordered, before once again looking to the sphere, a dangerous smirk growing on his face at the new revelation.
"Shit… that's not good," Keemia muttered as she gently held Kaldur's head. Her Atlantean best friend was unconscious and very clearly dehydrated. Whatever energy he had left was being spent mumbling incoherently in his native tongue.
"I can't restore his memories in this condition," M'Gann frowned.
"He needs immediate rehydration!" Robin said seriously. "Call the Bioship."
"It's out of range, but you can get him there fast." M'Gann offered, turning to Barry.
"He's too heavy, and I'm too low on fuel." Barry grimaced. "Right now, I couldn't even carry her." He said, gesturing to Artemis.
"Why not just levitate him back?" Artemis asked.
"I can't. I have to find Superboy!" M'Gann said seriously. "Six months ago, he didn't exist. He has no memories, just animal impulse. I'm the only one who can help him."
"I can help him too, you know." Ace pointed out with a frown.
"Besides, Superboy's indestructible. Just ask those tanks." Barry added. "It's Aqualad who needs your help. Like, now!"
M'Gann was about to respond before she grasped her head in pain, feeling Superboy's agony from one of the many tendrils she extended to search for him. "No! Superboy's in pain!" she said before flying off in a rush.
"M'Gann, wait!" Artemis called after her.
"We still don't know who erased our memories!" Robin said with a grimace. "It could happen again!"
But M'Gann was too far out of range, and too determined in her cause to be stopped now. She immediately entered camouflage mode and soared across the sand, searching for Superboy's telepathic signal.
"I have to go after her. Whoever attacked us last time couldn't get through me, and M'Gann will need all the help she can get." Ace said seriously.
"Then I'm going too, you might need the muscle." Keemia reasoned.
'Hey, you can't just leave, what about Aqualad? How are we supposed to carry him?" Artemis asked.
"Right… Etaerc a rehcterts rof rudlak!" Keemia called before a large stretcher appeared. "You can carry him with this!"
"Alright, but be careful. M'Gann's acting headstrong right now, and if you need us to call for backup, let us know immediately. We don't want to risk any more losses out here." Robin ordered.
"You got it Pigeon," Keemia said before rushing off with Ace.
"Be careful out there Sappho!" Robin called after her with a smirk as Keemia stumbled slightly, her face now blushing a dark crimson.
"You okay?" Ace asked.
"Y-yeah, let's just move!" Keemia said hastily.
Within minutes, she'd found Superboy's location, hovering over a large tent that was guarded by several Bialyan soldiers. She descended slowly before entering the tent, still under the cover of her camouflage, as she looked inside to see Superboy restrained on the wall and shocked by electricity.
She flew towards him before knocking the scientists away and shutting off the voltage. Superboy's screaming died down as he panted, before falling unconscious again.
"Well, someone's certainly a glutton for punishment." The pale man chuckled, as M'Gann let out a startled gasp at being noticed. He had seen her through the camouflage! The man slowly let the hood down from his head, revealing it to be crystal clear, almost like glass, as it displayed his brain within. "Psimon says… forget"
With that, he sent out a massive telepathic wave to M'Gann, who was now watching him in horror as he pulled her into a telepathic mindscape. She looked around, horrified at seeing all her thoughts and memories literally twisted and torn apart in front of her, haphazardly scattered all around in the air. Mount Justice, The Highway from the Amazo mission, Gotham City, Happy Harbour, all these locations were jumbled together all around her in a storm of nonsensical architecture.
"That's it…" Psimon's voice echoed. "Forget like before…"
M'Gann grunted, struggling to hold back his telepathic assault as her eyes widened. "Before…"
"I'm in," M'Gann reported, carefully sneaking into the tent to see several scientists and soldiers huddled around the sphere, observing it.
"Good, but tread carefully. Camouflage is not invisible," Aqualad warned.
"Make sure your relay is open too. You never know when you'll need a backup link," Ace added, as Miss Martian slowly took to the air, hovering above the men inside.
"They're testing something…" M'Gann said curiously, watching as the sphere spun in place. "But it's alive… in pain!" she said before slowly reaching a hand out to the sphere. "H-hello? Can you hear me?"
"I can…" Psimon chuckled, his voice echoing I the heads of the entire team. "And an open mind is a dangerous thing."
"Someone's hacked our link!" M'Gann said in alarm.
"Ace, can you try and stop it?" Keemia asked.
"I'll try!"
"Psimon can't see you… Psimon can't catch you…" Psimon chuckled darkly. "But Psimon can make you all… forget!" He said madly before attacking them all at once with his telepathy. Through the link with M'Gann, the entire team was assaulted at once as they all grasped their heads painfully under his attack.
Keemia fell forward onto the ground, her whole body seizing as Ace tried to steady her, her mind seemingly unaffected, while Superboy flew into a berserker rage and immediately started leaping out into the desert.
"No!" M'Gann exclaimed, attempting to halt his second assault on her with her own telepathy. "I won't let it happen again!"
"Not really your call, little girl." Psimon chided as he appeared in her mindscape as well. "The only one of you who stood a chance was Waller's little pet project. I could have crippled her if I tried, but I wanted to be as… stealthy as possible. Something you failed to do yourself." He chuckled. "But, that is of little consequence now," he decided before striking M'Gann with a concentrated blast of energy from his mind.
Aqualad laid on the stretcher stably, as Red Hood carefully carried it with help from Kid Flash and Artemis. Robin led them through the sand, looking at the directions on his holoscreen as he searched for the Bioship. The sound of an approaching car quickly caught their attention, as Robin turned to point a nearby rock they could hide behind. "Quick, over there!" he said as the four moved out of the way in time, and the car drove past them.
The sound of the car passing by caused Aqualad to stir slightly, as he let out a pain-filled groan before mumbling something in Atlantean. "Shh Kaldur, quiet now," Artemis whispered, holding his head gently while Robin stood to peek behind a rock. Jason did the same as the two looked out to see a small squadron of armed guards patrolling the area just on the other side of the boulder.
"Crap, what now?" Jason grimaced as Robin looked back to the others.
"We can't risk a firefight with Aqualad KO'ed like this," Robin said seriously while Jason checked his reserves.
"It's not just him, I'm way out of juice," Barry said tiredly.
"And I'm almost out of arrows," Artemis added.
"I've still got plenty of ammo, but I don't think my non-lethal rounds are gonna help much here," Jason said, as he checked his munition reserves. When the three looked back though, they noticed that Robin had disappeared again.
"Ugh, I forgot how much I hate it when he does that ninja thing." Barry scowled.
"I can do it too you know." Jason pointed out.
"True, but then again you don't need to." Barry pointed out before looking to Artemis. "Hey, you never said why your dad would want you to kill me."
Artemis froze for a moment, a light blush coming to her cheeks before she came up with an excuse. "I got confused by some old movie I saw the other night. About a ninja girl, whose ninja dad ordered her to kill her ninja boyfriend, because he was from a rival ninja clan." She said, waving him off dismissively.
"That sounds like a lot of Shonen Jump bullshit to me," Jason smirked as Artemis shot him a death glare.
"So, I'm your ninja boyfriend, huh?" Barry said with a grin as Artemis blush once again before levelling a new glare to the speedster.
"Hey, amnesia, remember? Completely forgot how truly annoying you are."
"Oh, like you're the goddess of congeniality!" Barry countered.
"God, would you please just make-out already! Find a closet, put a sock on the door, just do something! This tension is literally making me sick right now!" Jason growled out to the two embarrassed teens before Robin popped back with them.
"I'm with Jaybird on this one. Though to be fair, if Keemia's feelings were any more obvious you'd be saying the same thing to her." The boy wonder pointed out, acting as though he hadn't disappeared at all.
"Dude, where were you?" Barry asked indignantly.
Robin simply smirked at that. "Breaking radio silence."
A sudden sound of static could be heard from a couple of dunes away, drawing the attention of the guards as they ran after the noise. As they got closer, they started hearing the sound of Robin's laughter echoing through the sand. They advanced on the noise only to find the source devoid of anything. Anything, except for several explosive discs which lay on the ground with Robin's communicator attached, as the communicator played a recorded message of Robin's mocking laughter.
A few seconds later, an explosion was heard as a massive cloud of smoke poured out over the sand, leaving the soldiers coughing and sputtering on the ground. "That's our cue. Move!" Robin ordered as the four picked up Aqualad's stretcher again before continuing their trek towards the Bioship.
Back in the mindscape. M'Gann struggled to hold back Psimon's powers with her own, focusing her telepathic power into a dome that deflected his assault. The villain looked at her with a bemused smile as he continued. "You have potential, but you're too raw. Too… untrained." The large image of the villain's head suddenly opened its mouth as Psimon stepped out to face her. "And not at all in my league."
The villain fired another strong telepathic attack at the girl, sending her reeling backwards as her own defence was easily shattered. Back in the real world, since M'Gann was asleep, it appeared as though Psimon were just staring out into space, a confident smirk on his face as the other scientists looked on in confusion.
"Mr. Psimon, are you alright?" one asked as the villain continued to vacantly stare at the invisible Martian girl. However, the raw strength of the psychic energy in the room activated M'Gann's latent telekinesis as numerous objects suddenly started to levitate around them.
Outside the tent, and just a few feet away from the Bialyan's research site, Ace removed her hands from her forehead before turning to Keemia. "There's a massive spike in telepathic energy in the tent. I think M'Gann's found the villain."
"Is she okay in there?" Keemia asked.
"So far, yes. But she's not ready for someone of his calibre yet." Ace frowned. "We need to move in, now!" she said before moving on ahead.
"H-hey wait, what about the guards? We can't handle that many soldiers!" Keemia pointed out, hurrying behind her friend.
"Do you trust me?" Ace asked.
"I… yeah, I trust you." She nodded slowly. "Why do you ask?"
Ace looked at her for a moment before her eyes started to glow softly. Afterwards, she grasped Keemia's hand before walking with her towards the tent. Amazingly, none of the guards even appeared to notice that the two were there.
"How are you doing this?" Keemia asked in amazement.
"Telepathy, finely focused to literally prevent their brains from processing our sensory information. They can't see us or hear us." Ace said, as though it were an everyday occurrence.
Keemia looked at her friend for a moment before involuntarily shivering. "That is… that's honestly really scary. But also, incredibly badass."
"Thank you," Ace said with a small smile before the two stepped into the tent. Inside, they noticed that Psimon was staring off into space, clearly focused on M'Gann, despite the Martian girl being invisible. Behind the villain, Superboy was held by his wrists on a large metal slab, while off to the right, was Nina Dowd, currently examining the rapidly growing circuitry on her arm with a panicked expression. "There's Nina, you get her out of here, and I'll help M'Gann and Conner."
"You sure you can handle him on your own?" Keemia asked, looking to Psimon.
Ace looked at the villain for a moment before letting out a smirk. "Yep. He doesn't even know we're here, so I should be okay."
Keemia nodded slowly, grasping her staff tightly in her hands. "Okay, just… just be careful." She urged before looking at her shorter friend. Several thoughts ran through her head all at one before she slowly came to a decision. A risky decision, but one that she desperately wanted. Before Ace could answer her, Keemia leaned in and captured the smaller girl's lips in a brief, but searing, kiss. "There are some things I want to talk about when we're done here. And I need you in one piece to do it."
Ace blinked in surprise, her face a deep crimson as she touched her lips gently where Keemia had just kissed her. "Don't worry, I'll be back to you soon." Ace assured her, her confidence growing.
Keemia nodded before moving over to Nina Dowd and tapping the girl's shoulder. The student jumped in surprise, letting out a small scream. "Wh-who are you?!" she asked, not having seen Keemia until she touched her shoulder.
"One of the good guys. And I'm here to save you. Ready to go home?" Keemia asked.
"Yes… but what about him?" she asked, looking to Conner.
"My friends can help him. But for now, I'm here to save you." Keemia said before casting one last longing look at Ace and then grasping Nina's arm. "Tropelet su ot eht pihsoib!" she cast before the two disappeared in a small flash of light.
The flash of light shone against the unconscious clone's eyes, slowly waking him up again as he noticed the numerous objects levitating around the tent. At the center of it all, there appeared to be a body, but he couldn't quite tell. He switched to an infrared vision, picking up the heat signature of some ghostly figure, confirming his suspicions before he turned his head and saw Psimon, seemingly staring off into blank space.
Seeing the telepathic villain again caused his rage to bubble up to the surface as he let out a feral growl, his heart rate increasing. The sphere began spinning in response to this, breaking free from its confines as the scientists all dove for cover before the sphere crashed into the computer console. The damage to the console released Superboy from his bonds as the clone leapt free before attempting to punch Psimon.
However, the villain's psychic abilities formed a shield around his body, stopping the clone from hitting him as Superboy was knocked back near M'Gann. The clone stood up, holding his arm to the side where it bushed against M'Gann. The clone looked at the invisible girl in surprise before he too was suddenly pulled into the mindscape where M'Gann was battling Psimon.
M'Gann felt his touch before turning to see the clone alongside her, a broad smile on her face, "You're here!" she said happily.
Psimon looked at the two before letting loose a chuckle at the sight of them. "You sound so relieved. Is that mindless creature supposed to save your mind?" he asked, bemused by the whole scenario.
"No," M'Gann said, grasping Superboy's head. "I save his!" With that, she opened a link to him before digging through his memories, bringing them all back to surface at once. Images of CADMUS, the genomorphs, Dubbilex, and the laboratory all passed through his mind, before more conscious thoughts came through.
"We are trying to help you!" Aqualad's voice said as images of Conner alongside Aqualad, Robin, Kid Flash, and Djinn in CADMUS appeared before him.
"I was just trying to be part of the team," M'Gann said nervously as Conner placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.
"You did alright," he assured her. Suddenly more images flashed by, of Ivo and his Amazo 2, Bane, the MONQIs, Blockbuster, and Mister Twister.
"Get on board, or get out of the way!" Superboy said to the Justice League defiantly, as the founders seemed to stare him down.
"Hey Superboy, come meet Miss M!" Tim said eagerly as he waved the clone over to their newest teammate. More memories of the red-headed girl flashed by, including seeing her with her Uncle and Aunt back at the Cave before they began their training with Black Canary.
"We'll uh... we'll figure something out for you," Superman said dismissively. "The League will I mean. Duty calls."
More thoughts suddenly flashed by, this time of Keemia. Laughing with her at Barry's expense, holding her as she cried over Kent Nelson, and walking with her through a portal to her own house.
"You want me to stay here? With you?"
"Yep. I figured you could use an actual home to stay in that wasn't just a hollow mountain." Keemia offered, as she welcomed Conner into her home, where Flint and Zatanna greeted him with opened arms.
More images flashed by now, this time of their numerous victories as a team, up until when they returned from the Tower of Fate.
"The Watchtower detected an immense power surge in the Bialyan desert," Batman explained as the team sat in the Bioship, preparing for their arrival in Bialya.
"Forget…" Psimon ordered as he forced his telepathic assault on the team through M'Gann's connection to them, sending Superboy into a feral rage as he remembered all his various rampages through the past day. Fighting M'Gann, the soldiers, being restrained on the table, destroying the tanks. Finally, it finished with M'Gann currently attacking Psimon until one last memory played for him.
"I'm so sorry, I should have paid more attention," M'Gann said nervously as she took a cloth before starting to clean Superboy with it. She was in a mad rush to make more cookies and as a result, ended up spilling most of her ingredients all over the clone. "It was too much at once, too much at once. Heh, Hello Megan. That's so me!" she rambled before looking up at the clone as her eyes met his.
There was a long pause as the two looked at each other, their eyes never once leaving their focus. "I…' M'Gann trailed off before the vision faded, and Conner's memories were back.
After returning to the mindscape, Conner looked at M'Gann in realization before nodding, a small smirk tugging at his lips. "Kick his butt." He said confidently before he faded, returning to the real world.
"By all means," Psimon chuckled. "Kick my psychic butt."
M'Gann looked at the villain with a focused glare before unleashing another psychic attack at him.
As Conner returned to the real world, he could hear the sound of guns being loaded off to the side as soldiers ran into the tent to attack him and the now visible M'Gann. However, the sphere was quick to respond as it ran over the soldiers, sending them sprawling over the ground. Once that was taken care of, it turned to Superboy before beeping, almost as though it were seeking approval.
"Uh… thanks?" he offered before more soldiers rushed in attacking Conner and the sphere. Conner gave a defiant roar before leaping towards them, while M'Gann increased her psychic assault against Psimon. Off to the side, Ace watched the entire situation unfold, her own psychic shield still masking her presence to everyone.
"This ends now," the girl decided before she too entered the mental fray.
In the mindscape, M'Gann launched numerous orbs of psychic energy at Psimon, hoping to strike the villain. However, he blocked them all with ease before reaching out with a massive black tendril of psychic energy, that attempting to trap M'Gann. The girl released four beams of energy to stave of Psimon's assault as the villain was forced backwards, blocking them with a small shield.
The beams soon ceased and he released the shield, only to be met with M'Gann striking him in the face with a punch that sent him flying back a few feet across the mindscape. Psimon cursed himself inwardly for allowing such an amateur mistake on his part. He felt like a fool for getting so distracted. How could this have happened? He should have seen it coming!
In his rage he grew larger until he towered over M'Gann, unleashing a massive beam of energy from his domed forehead. However, the Martian girl simply made numerous duplicates of herself which surrounded him. They all then unleashed their own beams at the villain as he cried out in pain, before curling in on himself and spinning rapidly to send the numerous M'Gann clones scattering across the mindscape.
The clones all faded as M'Gann formed a shield, similar to the crest of the House of El as the mindscape once again started fading away to white as Psimon erased it, firing yet another powerful attack towards the young Martian.
Superboy knocked the last of the soldiers to the ground before feeling an overwhelming oppression of psychic energy striking him from behind. He turned in time to see both Psimon and M'Gann now floating in the air a few feet off the ground. However, the scientists were now floating in the air as a result of the psychic energy the released, each one flailing about in a panic.
The psychic energy suddenly exploded out again, forming a massive tornado as the soldiers and the sphere were suddenly sucked in. Superboy dug his hands into the ground, struggling to not be pulled into the cyclone as well.
"Conner!" a voice called, as the clone turned to see Ace standing just a few feet away, her eyes glowing yellow as she used her telekinesis to hold herself in place.
"Ace? Is that you?" the clone called back.
"You need to help M'gann! She's trying her hardest, but Psimon's raw control is over-powering her. I need to infiltrate him from within, but for now, you have to help M'Gann!" she said hurriedly. The clone nodded once before leaping through the cyclone and landing next to M'Gann.
Like before, she and Psimon were still locked in their mental battle. However, judging from the effort clearly expressed on M'Gann's strained face, compared to the collected composure on Psimon's, it was clear who the current victor was.
Superboy grunted before reaching out and grasping her hand. 'M'Gann!" he called out before once again entering the mindscape with them. When he entered, he found M'Gann shielding herself from Psimon's assault inside a bubble, while the villain continued a powerful attack against them.
"H-he's too strong." She said fearfully as the memories around her once again started to fade away, Psimon grinning victoriously.
"You're strong… and I'm stubborn!" Superboy said defiantly, as he held her hand tighter. "Together!"
She looked at him for a moment before nodding, her confidence restored. "Together." She said as the memories around her continue to fade. Then, turning to face Psimon, she forced her psychic energy to pool around her at once, as the villain now struggled to keep his hold. "Get… out…. Of my… head!"
All at once, the energy was released as the memories restored themselves, forcing Psimon back as he cried out painfully and M'Gann regained control. After a minute though, the villain regained his senses before sneering at the two of them. "Congratulations, you now equal me regarding raw power. Took you long enough to get there. Unfortunately for you, that won't be enough. I am still the most accomplished telepath here."
"Wanna bet?" a voice echoed, as Psimon looked around fearfully.
"What? Who's there?!" He said in shock.
"I am," Ace said as she faded into view.
"Oh… Waller's little science experiment. So you've finally decided to arrive, have you?"
"No, I've been here the whole time." Ace said with a small smirk. "You might have noticed your focus slipping slightly, one or two blows that you should have dodged or even blocked… and yet…" she trailed off as Psimon remembered when M'Gann struck her earlier.
"That was you! You distracted me, but how? I should have sensed you!" Psimon said in shock.
"Because I outclass you… in every way." Ace said with a cold glare. "When you attacked us, I was able to defend myself, to keep my memories. Some of them were temporarily blocked, I will admit, but I regained them easily afterwards. With M'Gann's help, of course." She said, looking over to her Martian friend, who gave her a reassuring smile.
"This is impossible. I'm the most powerful telepath on the planet!" Psimon said, outraged.
"Far from it. You're lucky to be in the top five. Especially with Martian Manhunter around, and especially with me around." Ace said darkly as another voice started echoing around them. This one a dark, menacing laughter. A laugh that would send chills down the spine of every hero. A laugh that every Gotham resident knew far too well. "You think yourself capable of ruining my mind? Someone already tried that… Want to know what happened to them?" Ace asked as the laughter grew louder, and Psimon looked around as images of the Clown Prince of Crime suddenly flashed before him.
"No… stop this, I beg you!" Psimon cried out as he grasped his head painfully under Ace's secret assault. "I'm begging you, have mercy!"
"This is mercy." Ace said before unleashing a massive telepathic assault at Psimon, causing the villain to cry out painfully. As she did so, M'Gann rejoined the charge, fuelled in part by Conner's presence as the two telepathic girls severed Psimon's connection to their mindscape.
Psimon's hold finally broke as the villain fell back into the psychic tornado, the winds growing strong enough that they completely destroyed the tent and the basecamp along with it. With the villain's influence gone, M'Gann finally released her telepathy, falling back into Conner's arms as Ace used her own power to carefully set the people caught in the gale onto the ground, the winds around them dying down. Psimon however, was sent careening away with an unseen telekinetic force, crashing in the sand a few miles away.
Conner looked at M'Gann with a soft smile as the girl slowly stirred in his arms, before smiling back at him weakly. The two stayed like that before Conner cupped her chin and they slowly started moving towards each other.
"That's sweet," Ace said with a small smile as the sphere rolled back alongside her before letting loose a string of beeps, breaking Conner and M'Gann out of their moment. "My thoughts exactly," Ace giggled to the sphere before looking at her teammates. "Sorry for ruining your moment there."
Conner and M'Gann simply sat there, dumbfounded, before a grin came over the clone's face. "Can I keep it?"
Qurac – September 5th, 02:32 EEST
"Alright, Nina's asleep and recovering from what was clearly both shock and being over-worked," Keemia saidwith a sigh as she sat down next to the bed where they'd laid Kaldur. He was currently hooked up to an IV machine in order to rehydrate him, and he already looked better than he did just a few hours before.
Artemis nodded to Keemia before coming over and dabbing a cold cloth on their Atlantean teammate's forehead, hoping to cool him down more. "Hey everybody, Ace and I have got Superboy!" M'Gann called out telepathically, the excitement clearly evident in her voice. "He's back to normal and we're on our way!"
At the sudden telepathic intrusion, Aqualad suddenly gasped before sitting bolt upright on the bed, completely awake. "Who are you? And how did you get inside my head?" he asked in a panic before Artemis and Keemia slowly eased him back down.
"Hello, Megan! Aqualad's memories!" the Martian girl scolded herself lightly. "I knew I forgot something."
"Kind of a big oversight on your part." Keemia pointed out.
"To be fair, it's been a trying day for all of us," Ace reminded her.
"Aw man, I forgot something too. I didn't get a souvenir from the mission." Barry scolded himself lightly.
"Don't worry," M'Gann assured him, as she looked down with Ace and Superboy to see the sphere rolling behind them. "Got the souvenir thing covered."
Mount Justice – September 5th, 12:01 EDT
"So, you said you wanted to… talk to me?" Ashley stammered, a blush growing on her face as she looked at Keemia. Since the team had returned from their mission, the team had gone their separate ways to return home. However, since Keemia's parents were in deep-space with some other members of the League at the moment, she elected to stay at the cave at least for a bit. Conner went on home ahead of her, but Ashley stayed behind to talk with her friend.
"Yeah, I did." Keemia nodded, clutching a mug of coffee tightly in her hands as she moved to sit on the couch. Ashley followed her, sitting on the other side of the couch as she watched Keemia expectantly. "I guess I should just say it now, but… Ashley, I like you. As more than a friend, I mean." She started, still incredibly nervous about the whole thing. "At first I wasn't sure, I've never liked anyone before. It was so new to me that I didn't know what to do. But now… after having thought about it, it just… feels right, y'know?"
She looked to Ashley, who seemed to be rooted in thought about the whole thing. Keemia gave a heavy sigh before sipping her drink. "I guess it was wrong of me to say that, wasn't it? Here I go falling for my best friend, and I don't even know if she feels the same way. Hell, I'm just now discovering I like girls, I can't go assuming that you do too." She said before looking away with a frown. "I'm sorry for bugging you with this… I hope I didn't ruin our friendship too much…"
Keemia started to stand but stopped when she felt Ashley grip her wrist gently. "You didn't ruin our friendship at all… And I do." She said before blushing darker. "Like you, I mean." She said nervously. Keemia looked at her in surprise before slowly sitting back down on the couch. "I have about as much experience with it as you do, but Mrs. Waller found someone for me to talk to about it, and they helped me to understand what my feelings meant." She explained, remembering the long conversation she had with Harley regarding her feelings. "And now, I know what they mean. They mean that I like girls, or at least, that I like you." She said, looking to Keemia with a kind smile.
Keemia blushed darkly as tears slowly brimmed in the corner of her eyes. "Ashley…" she whispered before the telepath reached out, pressing a finger on her lips.
"Don't speak, at least, not for now." She whispered before leaning in and kissing Keemia. It wasn't the same as before, the searing kiss that Keemia gave her back in Bialya. This one was more earnest, tender even, as the two girls lost themselves in their feelings. After a moment, they reluctantly broke away to catch their breaths, but they never once looked away from each other.
"How did you want to go about this?" Keemia asked.
'You mean… telling the team?" Ashley frowned.
"Well, yeah. They'll need to know eventually. Otherwise, it might affect our ability to function in the team. We can't just forsake everything for our feelings, no matter how much we'd like to." Keemia pointed out, albeit reluctantly.
"You're right." Ashley nodded. "In that case, how about we're only a couple when we're not on a mission? In the field, we act as teammates only."
Keemia thought for a moment, before nodding in agreement. "Alright, I can get behind that. I still feel like we should wait a bit to tell anyone. At least until we're more comfortable in this."
"Yeah, I know what you mean. How long did you want to wait?"
"Not too long. Just enough that we're ready to make the big announcement. We can at least tell our families about it though." Keemia offered. "Which leaves just one more bit of business; Ashley Walch, will you be my girlfriend?"
Ashley smiled warmly, before giving Keemia a light peck on the cheek. "Yes. Yes, I will."
Bialya – September 5th, 13:02 EEST
"The Martian girl escaped. With the sphere, Nina Dowd, and the Superboy." Psimon admitted reluctantly, as he stood in front of seven screens projecting the silhouettes of the Light. He was internally horrified at what their reactions might be to the news. He was a powerful telepath, but even he had limits. And this… cabal knew precisely how to push them.
And how to overcome them.
After a few agonizing seconds of waiting, they finally answered him. "That hardly matters." A woman's voice said, her voice haughty and vain. "What matters is the successful test of our new partner's delivery system."
As she said this, another screen behind Psimon suddenly turned on, playing footage of a Boomtube opening in front of the Bialyan soldiers, and depositing the sphere in front of them on the sand. "More tech will come," she continued. "Tech that will put the sphere, and perhaps even the Superboy, to shame."
At that, Psimon's confident smirk returned in full force.
And done! How was that?
Hopefully it was worth the wait.
We get a hint of Ace's true strength, and it is horrifyingly strong. Trust me, we'll be seeing more of that. Psimon will also be back, and he was probably one of the characters I had the most fun with when I wrote him. He's just great.
Also, Ashley and Keemia finally confess their feelings. This is a major milestone and I hope you find it as sweet to read it as it was to write it. I've been excited about this for a while.
teasing Kid Flash and Artemis is always fun. And a lucrative use of time.
M'Gann goes on to show that she's strong, but she has a way to go. But she'll have Superboy there to help her along the way. And there will be tons of cute moments to help with that. And a sphere!
Also, Nina Dowd appears. She might not have a very large role going forwards, but she will be an ally and confidant to the team. Full credit to Dion ComicWiz for the idea btw. Hopefully you like where I take her in the future.
But with the Bialya mission over, they're not out of the woods yet. Conner will face his greatest foe ever; SCHOOL!
And Keemia will have to face a triple bill of trouble. Roy Harper, The League of Shadows, and... Lex Luthor?!
Tune in next time for "Targets".
And as always be sure to read and review! I love them all, and they mean a lot to me.
Hopefully the next chapter doesn't take as long to get out to you guys.
Ciao for now!
~WafflesTheApprentice