The next morning came and Atticus left the house after breakfast, he wondered what his Uncle Sombra was up to that he heard from last night despite being fast asleep, but it would have to wait until after school.
"Hey, Cherry, how'd it go with Social Services?" Atticus asked Cherry.
"It seemed to be alright," Cherry shrugged. "To be honest with you, I feel a lot more at home with Bruce and Alfred than with my parents... Also, someone else I met, but... I can't say who she is right now..." she then said.
"Well, okay. Oh! Before I forget..." Atticus said before whispering of what he, Patch, and Jessica discovered.
"...Huh?" Cherry asked.
"I know, it's crazy, but isn't that great?" Atticus smiled.
"...Yeah, it's pretty nice..." Cherry admitted. "All the kids in school are talking about it though."
"Yeah, I know." Atticus said.
"Pretty sure no one's gonna talk about anything else..." Cherry smirked as she walked into the school with him. "At least hopefully, it gives Archie Andrews a break from Betty Cooper and Veronica Lodge."
Atticus laughed at that with her before they ran into one of the mean girls of school.
"Excuse me!" The black-haired girl who had a white streak in her hair glared.
"Sorry, Skunk-... I mean, Alexandra." Cherry replied sassily.
"I heard that and I am not a skunk!" Alexandra glared.
"Can I go now, Alexandra?" Cherry grinned a bit cockily. "I gotta get to my locker."
"Yeah, so if you don't mind..." Atticus added.
Alexandra rolled her eyes and she soon stormed off.
"Sheesh! What a hard case." Lionel smirked.
"Yeah, nothing seems to change her attitude." Atticus smirked back.
"Lionel, good to see you're in a better mood." Cherry said to the inter-dimensional imp.
"It's good to be back too," Lionel replied. "I'm just very sorry for shutting you and Thor out like that."
"It's okay," Cherry patted him on the head which seemed to make his right foot thump up and down out of excitement. "I just hope they can get back or whatever so they don't end up stuck there."
"I'm sure they will." Atticus said.
"Lionel, do you think you can help them out?" Cherry asked.
"I'm afraid I'm not sure if I could do that," Lionel shrugged. "I may have crazy, out of world powers, but I think it's just up to nature... I'm just glad that Batman's alright."
"And the other heroes?" Atticus prompted.
"Huh? Oh, yeah, yeah, sure them too." Lionel then nodded.
The rest of the school day went by as usual. Thor made sandwiches for everyone at lunch as they didn't want what the school had.
"Vegetarian option for me, please..." Mo said as she came by.
"Mo! Hi!" Atticus smiled. "It's good to see you."
"Um, thanks?" Mo smiled back, though a bit bashfully.
"Where else would she be?" Lionel smirked at Atticus.
"Oh, uh, I dunno..." Atticus shrugged. "I didn't see her much today in school... Especially in the morning."
"Had a bit of a late morning," Mo replied. "Luckily my brother drove me to school."
"Good... Good..." Atticus nodded at that. "You and your siblings seem real close with each other."
"Well, you tend to bond easier when you lose your parents." Mo said softly.
"I guess I wouldn't know." Lionel just shrugged.
Mo soon sat down to eat lunch with her new friends. Soon enough, Conner joined them for lunch.
"Hey, Conner," Atticus smiled. "Good to see you too."
"Hey." Conner nodded his head as he sat with them.
"So how's your dad handling everyone thinking Cyborg Superman is Superman reborn?" Lionel asked him.
"My dad had a pretty interesting reaction to say the least..." Conner replied mysteriously.
"He threw something at the TV, didn't he?" Cherry smirked.
"Yeah... He wasn't that happy about it," Conner remarked. "I'm just glad he didn't throw me."
Cherry chuckled a bit to herself as she found that to be funny.
"And I think this town is big enough for more than one Superboy." Conner said.
"I'm glad you feel that way, Conner," Atticus beamed. "It's always good to have heroes working together like that."
"Yeah, I guess it is." Conner said with a small smile.
"Oh, yeah." Mo also smiled.
"So, what do we do while the Justice League is, uh, missing in action?" Thor asked.
"I dunno, I guess we just keep up appearances until something comes up," Lionel shrugged. "What're they gonna do, look for a new Justice League?"
"Yeah, right. Like they would do that." Cherry smirked.
Lionel suddenly played ominous music as Cherry seemed to tempt fate. Cherry rolled her eyes slightly from that as she ate her sandwich.
Meanwhile with Lois...
The female reporter was shown at the cemetery that Cyborg Superman visited last night and had some questions for the groundskeeper.
"It was him," The groundskeeper told Lois as she took notes on their interview. "Well, half of him, anyway."
"Was he with anyone else?" Lois asked.
"I thought I saw somebody else, I didn't see anyone there, but there was also her." The groundskeeper replied as he gestured to the gravestone that Cyborg Superman visited last night.
"'Terri Henshaw'?" Lois read aloud once she came to the grave.
"He was pretty out of it. Stood there half the night talkin' to the air," The groundskeeper told her as she took a closer look. "Looked tormented. 'Course, that's not unusual around here."
"It is for Superman." Lois said.
Eventually, school let out and the kids went to visit Hilda's coffeehouse to hang out and do their homework together, but just as they were going to go inside, Atticus's cell phone started to ring.
"Excuse me a sec," Atticus smiled to his friends before he took out his phone and answered it. "Um, hello?"
'Atticus, were you anywhere last night?' Lois asked on the other line of the phone.
"Oh, uh, I was going home of course," Atticus smiled innocently. "I took a quick walk before dinner and went back inside before curfew."
'Are you in public?' Lois asked from that answer.
"Sure, hold on," Atticus said before he went to the bathroom and found no one else in there, so he locked the door to keep the bathroom to himself so that he could talk to Lois on the phone properly. "Okay, now I can talk," he then said. "I was flying on my way back to Uncle Sombra's, then I saw Cyborg Superman at the graveyard last night."
'Did you hear him talking to himself?' Lois asked.
"Yeah, he said 'Yes Master', but before that, he seemed to be in pain." Atticus said.
'Master... And some pain...' Lois took note of those two clues.
"That's about all I can tell you," Atticus replied. "But I also feel like this Cyborg Superman isn't exactly the Superman that you and I both know and love."
'You and me both, and I think I know someone who we should go see tonight.' Lois said.
"Yeah, I know," Atticus replied. "Later though, right?"
'Of course,' Lois told him. 'I'll call you later on, you go do what you gotta do, you should be out of school by now.'
"Yep, I sure am." Atticus nodded.
'All right, I'll meet you later tonight then.' Lois suggested.
"Sounds good, ma'am," Atticus replied. "I appreciate the call though."
'Just had to make sure if you were anywhere last night.' Lois said.
"Yeah, there... And some light life-saving..." Atticus grinned sheepishly.
'Just like any hero.' Lois smiled.
"Yes, ma'am," Atticus smiled back. "I try my best, even after Superman adopted me, and, and-"
"HEY! UNLOCK THE DOOR!" A voice called out from behind the door. "I GOTTA GO, MAN!"
"Whoops! I gotta go," Atticus said sheepishly as he unlocked the door. "Sorry about that."
A black-haired boy glared as he was at the door.
"Aw, great..." Atticus groaned. "Hello, Reggie."
"See that it doesn't happen again!" Reggie glared as he shoved Atticus a bit and stormed off in the bathroom. "You don't gotta hog the whole bathroom for yourself!"
"Well, sorry." Atticus rolled his eyes.
Reggie grumbled as he slammed the stall door shut so he could do his business. Atticus soon walked out and came to his usual spot with his friends as Hilda took their orders, which she already knew since they visited all the time.
"So, uh, what was your phone call about?" Thor asked Atticus.
"It was Ms. Lane, she just had some questions about what I did last night." Atticus replied bashfully.
"Ah." Thor smiled.
"Yeah, no harm done," Atticus smiled back. "Food here yet?"
"Nope, we just ordered," Cherry replied. "I'm also so ready for a vacation away from school. I hate studying Math."
"I can't wait for vacation either." Conner said.
The others nodded at that.
"Guys... What's it like?" Conner asked softly. "...Having a family you feel close to and can love and trust and rely on?"
"Oh, it's a very wonderful feeling," Thor beamed. "Even if you might sometimes have a little sister you gotta watch over all the time until she falls asleep or would rather watch The Sky Dancers instead of something cool like wrestling." he then added with an eye roll.
"Why do you ask?" Lionel asked.
"I was just wondering what it might be like." Conner shrugged as Lex was thought of as his father, but he didn't exactly act like it.
"Well, you could always stay with one of us." Lionel suggested.
"I couldn't do that," Conner replied. "There's no way I'd be allowed to."
"Fair enough." Atticus said.
"Well, this is a very lively conversation." Cherry deadpanned with how boring everyone seemed.
Once they got their orders, the group soon ate. Thor beamed as he liked the food the best, but sighed a bit.
"Still down that you got to join the League only for the big guys to suddenly go missing?" Lionel guessed.
Thor nodded with a whimper.
"I get that," Lionel soothed as he patted Thor on the head. "But don't worry, we'll find them somehow."
"I wish that my uncle could bring them back, but he says it's too much even for him to handle," Thor replied. "He said to let nature take its course."
"I guess that's fair... Meanwhile, I'll go meet up with some others myself..." Atticus said mysteriously.
"Yeah, I guess Superboy will be busy too." Conner said.
"Sounds like it," Atticus replied with a small smile to help make his new friend feel better about at least something. "Superman."
"With of how I've been acting, I'm beginning to wonder if I'm even a Superman." Conner whispered to himself.
Atticus frowned softly in concern.
"Hey, I kinda get that," Lionel shrugged. "All my life I spent time idolizing and looking up to Batman, even before I discovered Cherry and Atticus, but I do what I can to make myself a loyal fan and helper."
"I guess that makes you a Batboy." Conner replied.
"Bat-Mite, thank you," Lionel corrected. "But still, it's the dedication and love that keeps me going. Maybe you should try the same."
"Yeah... Maybe..." Conner nodded.
"Just give it some thought," Lionel replied. "That's the best advice I can offer."
"Isn't he so wise?" Thor grinned.
"Yeah, I suppose he is." Conner chuckled from that.
"I can be very wise." Lionel smirked.
"Yep, he sure can." Thor smiled.
"Heheh, easy, big guy," Lionel chuckled. "I have a fragile ego."
"Too late," Thor smirked. "I'm gonna inflate like a Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade balloon."
Cherry rolled her eyes slightly before shaking her head fondly.
"Guess while I'm cooling down, I could hang out with you guys and get to know the other students better." Conner said as he looked around to see other kids from school, especially Betty, Veronica, Archie, and Jughead.
"Besties!" Thor smiled.
Later that night in the city, Steel AKA Robot Superman was seen flying before landing behind a building. He saw that he was alone and soon put his hand against a scanner which opened a door for him and he stepped inside as it closed behind him. Steel's metal face soon lowered and he appeared to be human underneath before he concealed his cape and put up his metal hammer and soon the metal body came off as he came into what appeared to be home.
"It's about time you showed up." A voice greeted him once he came into the new room.
"What the-?" John asked as he turned to see Lois and Atticus/Superboy in the room.
"Yeah, you shouldn't leave your bathroom window open," Superboy remarked. "Anyone could get in here."
John frowned a bit from that.
"So, I got a lead at the cemetery that I think we should-" Lois was about to explain until John gave them a bit of a funny look, so she decided to confront him about it. "John? You know that I know you're Steel, right?" she then asked him. "And I'm literally the worst at secret identities. I mean, if you couldn't fool me..."
"I'm mostly curious about how this Robo Superman thing started and why." Superboy spoke up.
"It's Steel," John told him before explaining. "And Superman saved my life once. Now that he's gone, I owe it to him to fill the void." he then said as he set his wristwatch which made the room look more like the lair of a superhero rather than a regular old home.
"Neat." Lois said.
"Really is." Superboy added.
"What did you find at the cemetery?" John asked Lois.
Lois typed in the computer as an image of a brown-haired woman came on screen.
"Terri Henshaw?" John then asked once he saw who it was. "The astronaut? She was on the Excalibur, right?"
"Yep," Lois nodded before asking, "Can you access the S.T.A.R. Labs' mainframe from here?"
John soon typed to do just that.
"If this Cyborg is telling the truth and he really is Superman, then why would he be visiting Terri Henshaw's grave?" Lois asked.
Information on the S.T.A.R. Labs' mainframe was soon shown.
"This is odd," John said as a white-haired man was soon shown on the screen next. "It says Henshaw's remains were never recovered," he then saw something else. "Sorry. Remains were recovered for Terri Henshaw, but not for Hank Henshaw."
"Weird." Superboy commented.
"The Henshaws, of course," Lois said. "The husband and wife astronauts, we did a huge story on them. They were both assigned to the Excalibur."
"So, it was the husband's body that was never found." John replied as Superboy looked a bit wide-eyed.
"It's him, John," Lois explained. "It's why he was visiting Terri's grave. I don't know how, but the Cyborg Superman is Hank Henshaw."
"Now that I'm getting a good look at his picture, Hank looks just like Dad, except for the white hair." Superboy said.
"I'm very sorry, Superboy." Lois said softly.
"It's okay, really," Superboy replied. "Now we know."
Lois nodded from that. Superboy soon heard Cyborg Superman contact him that he would need to come to, thanks to his super-hearing.
"You gotta go?" Lois asked Superboy.
"Uh, yeah, looks like it." Superboy replied.
"Well, okay, watch your back." Lois told him.
Superboy nodded before taking off at super-speed.
"You like that boy, huh?" John asked.
"I may not be as close with him as Wonder Woman was, but I like to think we have a mutual respect for each other." Lois replied.
Meanwhile, at the Superman memorial statue...
Superboy arrived at where Cyborg Superman was.
"Glad you could make it." Cyborg Superman said to Superboy.
"Of course," Superboy replied. "I couldn't miss an event like this."
"Superboy." President Dale smiled once she saw the boy.
"Sorry I've been gone for so long, Madame President; I just wasn't feeling like myself at the moment." Superboy said apologetically.
"I see, I hope everything's alright." President Dale replied.
"No harm done," Superboy smiled. "Let's get this show on the road."
"I really love your spirit," President Dale admired. "Let's get on with it then."
Superboy nodded in agreement. Everyone with cameras was seen taking pictures of the event. Superboy flinched only slightly from some camera flashes, but smiled as he got to be apart of this. Cyborg Superman looked all around before he seemed to see something that no one else could see during the photo taking. He soon went wide-eyed as he saw his master who was... Sombra. There seemed to be fire all around Sombra who looked over with a menacing grin and his eyes flashed a hellish red as he looked right at the cyborg.
"Superman?" President Dale called.
Cyborg Superman soon snapped out of it and looked over at her before she gestured for him to come to the podium to speak. "I-I don't think..." he then started.
'What's wrong with him?' Superboy thought to himself. 'He must have seen something that was shocking.'
Even President Dale began to look a bit concerned.
"The Justice League were the best among us," Cyborg Superman soon started once he came to the podium as the crowd got quiet so that they could listen to him to hear what he had to say. "As such, they would want us to celebrate today. Not mourn. Yet, here we are. Surrounded by reminders in stone of the mournful times that have befallen our world. It's only by a miracle of alien science that I am here today. Alive. Standing in for the real heroes we lost. During the Doomsday battle, the Watchtower attack, and too many other bloody incursions." he then continued as even John and Lois were in the crowd.
"We need to shut this asshole down." John muttered.
"How? He's Superman to them," Lois replied. "I could try to pitch the Henshaw story to Perry White, but without any evidence, he won't go near it."
"Which is why today, I am announcing the establishment of a new, stronger league." Cyborg Superman announced.
Superboy went wide-eyed after hearing that.
"A Cyborg Corp, to honor those who have perished in the name of justice, and by taking volunteers." Cyborg Superman continued.
Superboy patted his face a bit as sweat profused from his forehead.
"What the hell?" John mumbled from that.
"I volunteer." A man in the crowd spoke up.
"What?" A woman asked as she looked at him.
"But I don't have any power." The man frowned.
"No one has," Cyborg Superman replied. "Not really, but I can change all that if you come forth."
The man nodded at that as he decided to follow through with it.
"Eric, no!" The woman cried out for him.
"Becky, please. This could change everything," The man told her. "For the world, for us." he then walked away from her and soon joined Cyborg Superman and Superboy on top of the platform while President Dale watched in silence.
"Welcome to the team." Cyborg Superman said before placing an S-Shield shaped device on Eric's chest.
"Yeah... Uh... Welcome." Superboy added softly.
Eric soon glowed from the shield on his chest and he wore a new bodysuit that was mostly black and had some red on it. The crowd looked a bit horrified from how Eric suddenly looked. Superboy looked wide-eyed as this wasn't how heroes were made.
"I can give each of you the power to be your own hero. The same technology that saved me can save us all." Cyborg Superman told the crowd.
Eric soon suddenly bolted over to the nearby news van and lifted it up with his new strength. This wowed and shocked the crowd from the super-suit that Cyborg Superman had given Eric.
"Doomsday was only the beginning," Cyborg Superman told the people. "Our enemies haven't been destroyed. Only delayed. When they return, who will stand and fight with me?" he then asked.
The crowd soon decided to go along with Cyborg Superman as it sounded like a good offer to them.
'Why do I have a bad feeling about this?' Superboy thought to himself. 'Where on Earth did Hank Henshaw get his hands on that? Unless... No way.'
"This is it, this is his plan." John told Lois.
"How the hell did Hank Henshaw get his hands on that kinda tech?" Lois wondered.
"Intergang's been running Luthor's Apokolips tech," John replied. "I can get to them. Find out if they have ties to Cyborg Superman."
"Sounds like a plan," Lois replied. "I'll go lean on Lex," she then saw that Superboy looked a bit sick to his stomach over this. "Poor Superboy."
After the event, Superboy was seen flying away before getting encountered by Cyborg Superman.
"Superboy, where are you going?" Cyborg Superman asked.
"I just remembered," Superboy said, a bit shakily as he looked pale in the face suddenly. "I-I have to leave!"
"So then you won't join the new Justice League?" Cyborg Superman asked.
"Sorry, but I got my powers on my own and not from a device." Superboy said.
"You can still help out, with or without this machine I've invented for the greater good," Cyborg Superman replied. "Don't you love your home and want to keep your friends safe from trouble? I thought you did."
"I do..." Superboy frowned, suddenly feeling guilty.
"If you don't help out the new Justice League, you're letting them all die and I know you don't want that." Cyborg Superman told him.
"Of course I don't and neither do the other Supermen." Superboy replied.
"Then why are you leaving?" Cyborg Superman asked. "You should help out when you're needed, shouldn't you?"
Superboy groaned as he suddenly felt guilty, though that was what Cyborg Superman wanted. "Yeah, I should..." he had to admit out of guilt. "I guess... I just... I just... Okay... I'll stay..." he then said out of defeat.
"Great, thank you." Cyborg Superman said.
'He's taking this a little too seriously.' Superboy thought to himself.
Tonight was definitely going to be a different night as Cyborg Superman was able to convince a lot of people to go with him.
"I can't believe I'm doing this..." Superboy sighed to himself. "But I wanna protect the town," he then paused thoughtfully. "I wonder what my friends would say?"
"Can't you see he's guilt-tripping you?" A familiar voice asked.
"Huh?" Superboy asked before he suddenly had a vision and a battle with his innermost thoughts and saw Cherry there since she was there with him since the beginning. "Cherry?"
"He's using you!" Cherry told him like a guardian angel. "It's so obvious and you're so smart, you should've seen that coming!"
"Ugh! You're right and where he's going the wrong way in giving everyone powers from a device." Superboy said.
"That's not what being a hero is all about," Cherry replied. "We all fight for truth, justice, and whatever else it might take, especially with Batman and Superman watching over us as we're young heroes-in-training and might even take over after them if they decide to retire."
"How could I let him deceive me like this?" Superboy sulked.
"Simple," Cherry replied logically. "He guilt-tripped you... He knows that you're like the original Superman and you would never put selfish needs before saving someone who might really need your help, so he used it to manipulate you."
"Just like with his speech," Superboy said. "It was a ploy to get someone from the crowd to join the new Justice League. Once he got one of them and gave them the device and a demonstration, the rest would follow."
"Exactly," Cherry replied. "People are sheep."
"You think that?" Superboy asked.
"Hmm... Okay, think about that time we heard about that Purple Space Cat movie that everybody in school saw except for us and they said it was the best thing ever," Cherry then said. "Then we went to see it and we fell asleep and we both agreed it was terrible?"
"Yeah... We had fun making fun of it even if other people got mad at us for that." Superboy chuckled.
"That's what I mean," Cherry replied. "People will be enticed by something very nice, but then it'll end up being a trap if you're not smart enough to see through it like that dumb Space Cat movie or Cyborg Superman trying to make a new League. While it sounds cool, it's all just a trap in the end."
"Hmm... And when Cyborg Superman put that device on this Eric guy, it seemed like he wasn't himself." Superboy said.
"Brainwash..." Cherry replied as she crossed her arms. "Atticus, I'm sorry, but I don't think this Superman is who you think he is."
"Oh, believe me, I know what you mean," Superboy replied darkly. "So what should I do?"
"Maybe trick him into thinking you're gonna have us join him and we can find a way to stop him before he destroys the world somehow?" Cherry suggested with a shrug. "That's the best idea I got at the top of my head, plus I really care about you. Even if your birth parents are missing and the real Superman's dead, you're still my brother-" she then looked bashful. "Friend. You're my friend."
"I feel the same way about you, Cherry." Superboy smiled.
Cherry nodded from that.
"...By the way, how are you doing this?" Superboy asked.
"I felt something wrong, so I visited the Spellman house," Cherry replied. "Hilda and Zelda were out, so Sabrina helped me with an advanced spell," she then shrugged bashfully. "I don't know if magical spells count as a superpower though, in the Justice League, it'd be nice if someone could help her out whenever her aunts aren't around."
"Yeah... That'd be cool for her." Superboy nodded.
"Well... Bye." Cherry said as she suddenly disappeared like a bubble popping suddenly.
Superboy's eyes opened from that sudden vision before he looked over at Cyborg Superman. "Hey, uh, Superman?" he then spoke up, trying to use the advice that Cherry gave him from the magical vision. "I'm going to help out."
"I knew you'd see it my way." Cyborg Superman approved.
"I just wanna go home and tell my friends real quick," Superboy smiled innocently. "After all, the more the merrier."
"Yes, that's true," Cyborg Superman nodded. "Alright, go tell them."
"Yes, sir!" Superboy saluted before taking off and chuckled to himself through his thoughts so Cyborg Superman wouldn't hear him. 'Sucker.'