Young Justice
A Fiery Passion
Chapter Four: Never Meta Girl Like You.
The two of us stride down the hall, going deeper into the cave inside the mountain. I have never been on the inside of it. My cousins and I had always tried to find the door, but we never could. I've always imagined it to be dark and mysterious with human shadows lurking behind every corner. However, as we walk down the corridors inside the center of the mountain all those thoughts of it being dark and villainous just like the person who had discovered this place are instantly gone.
Of course, I am completely wrong.
The cave is nothing like what I have expected it to be. Sure there are a few stalactites hanging from the ceiling here and there, and the walls that kept the cave from closing in on us are dark brown and dry, kind of crumbly to the touch. I squeal as I feel part of the wall fall to pieces in my gauzed hand. Quickly brushing the dirt onto my jeans, I continue to follow Batman down the corridor that was illuminated with bright blue florescent lights. I can't keep the look of awe off of my face. It is as though it is stuck here, permanently.
"This place is so sneaky," I squeak with excitement, staring at one of cameras, which follows my movements. I catch up to Batman, who seems as though he has lost all hope of me not being curious seventeen year old. This thought is not unfounded, considering how I am constantly touching the walls in search of any of those top-secret passageways that lead out to somewhere equally top-secret.
When we reach the end of the corridor a large room lays out in front of us. On the ceiling hangs a computerized dome-like structure that responds to Batman's voice. In contrast, a circular design on the floor indicates where the computer is able to reveal holographic images. Batman stays silent while I stare at the technology that I am not used to. I know that the government and military uses it, so why not superheroes? This thought had never taken place in my mind before. The monitor screen shows images and data charts, as well as percentages of increasing and decreasing statistics.
Once the Dark Knight has finished with his business, he taps his finger on another holographic screen as if he was pressing a button. With that, he makes a request. "All Young Justice Members report to the briefing room immediately." He lifts his finger from the light blue floating screen and nods his head towards me. I come closer to him so that I am standing next to him, facing the hall that sounds as if a stampede is coming through.
Sounds of crashing metal and excited, rushed voices come closer by the second. Hurried footsteps are soon followed by another and another. A sudden high pitch cheer of excitement comes quickly, and I can feel myself growing nervous from the noise.
These kids are loonies.
Despite my sudden emotions, I stand tall next to Batman as the small crowd begins to pour out from the east hall. I can feel myself grow more and more tense every moment. I'm not at all like them. I don't lift weights, or run on the treadmill. I'm not acrobatic. I don't know martial arts. I don't belong here. This is a mistake, a big mistake and I can't fix it. It's already too late. My anxiety is at its peak. A feeling I know all to well, my hands are becoming a little hot, but the pain is nearly absent.
Six teens emerge from the hall, suddenly silent at the sight of Batman standing tall; while I stand beside him, panic in my eyes as I clasp my gauzed hands together over my mouth. I feel out of place, awkward.
"Hey, we have a new teammate!"
"Ahh, man, I thought we were gonna get a mission."
"A new teammate!" another cheers.
Suddenly a whoosh of cold air whips by me, and a heavy arm drapes casually over my shoulder. His hand squeezes my shoulder, and his pink lips are on my ear. "Hey gorgeous. Welcome to the team." His voice is low, smooth. I duck out from under the arm and raise an eyebrow at the red head. I feel my face grow hot at the movement, and pray for Batman to say something that will get this kid off of me.
"Uhm, tha-thanks," I murmur, brushing a strand of hair behind my ear while wishing I had the power to go invisible instead of combusting or whatnot. I take in a deep breath and tense when Batman speaks. The six teens, diverse in every way, stand in front of us in a horizontal line, their expressions blank.
Batman levels his gaze at the team, which I was supposedly part of. Wait. Do I stand with them? Do I stay where I am, next to Batman? I look at the team, clothed their different outfits, seeming so completely casual. A Martian is standing with them. I'm just about to implode with nervousness.
"This is your new team member, Rhyleigh," Batman introduces me to the team. His voice is calm, professional. "She'll be staying here for the weekend to get used to the base." He lays his hand on my shoulder lightly, as if he wants me to say something.
I blink my eyes, not really registering the fact that the others are waiting for my response. "Oh, right, uh ... Hi." I wave a bandaged hand, hoping that I will be able to pull this off well. I add a quick smile for good measure.
The Martian is the first to relax from her stare and smiles back at me. "Hi, I'm M'gann M'orzz. I'm from Mars." She steps forward from the line of staring teens. "But here on Earth you can call me Megan." Another smile as she tilts her head, her red brown hair flowing with the movement.
Nodding my head I, too, introduce myself. I might as well be friendly if I want to have friends. "Rhyleigh Wainwright. And you can call me Rhyleigh." I offer another ghost of a smile as I take in the other five members of the team. "Thank you for grabbing me some clothes by the way."
Megan beams, "It was not a problem! Easiest mission we've had in a long time."
"Artemis." The blond standing beside Megan speaks up. The corners of her mouth lift upwards into a crooked smile. "I picked out your clothes. Megan wanted you to run around in a skirt and boots." She shakes her head, but the tone in her voice is lightly teasing as she elbows her friend in the ribs. The team chuckles with one another in response as the Martian squeaks. Her green skin flushes in embarrassment, and I feel as though I can actually get to know these people to a small degree. I'm really not a people person. Instantly, I miss Nathan. I want to tell him everything.
A young man in a windbreaker jacket and baggy jeans steps forward, offers his webbed hand, and says, "I'm Aqualad. When we are off duty I go by Kaldur'ahm: However, my friends call me Kaldur." A gentle smile was given as well. "I am from Atlantis, a world below the surface." I can't keep my eyes off his brown webbed hand as it is still waiting for me to shake it. I respond timidly as my bandaged hand is enclosed by Kaldurs' own.
"I'm from Valley Falls," I respond, shyly wincing from Kaldur's grip. The town or village is small, very small, and compared to Happy Harbor, its neighboring, inward city, it looks like a speck on a map. I shift my weight onto the other leg nervously as I slip my hand out of Kaldur's. As I drop my bandaged arms by my side, I am introduced to the last three boys.
The redhead who spoke to me earlier pushes Kaldur out of the way, his arms spreading wide. "That's Robin, and that's Supey." He gestures to the remaining ebony-haired boys with a wide grin. "And I'm Wally, Kid Flash, and the Fastest Kid Alive." Once again Wally has rushed to my side and wrapped his arm around my shoulders, pulling me closer to his chest. "But you can call me anything you want."
My eyes widen, and I can feel my face flush again as I wriggle to get loose from Wally's grip. "How does 'Inappropriate' sound to you?" I question him, once I am free. I cross my arms over my chest and stare him down with a raised eyebrow. For once in my life my height of five feet and seven inches proves to be useful.
"Huh. I like you already," Artemis claims, grinning, her hands on her hips. I watch Wally's freckled face turn red. Turning to Wally, Artemis states, "It's a perfect name, for you. Don't you agree, 'Inappropriate'?" mocking the redhead with a sassy smirk.
Wally huffs dejectedly at his new-found nickname as the rest of us laugh together. The group has managed to gather from Batman's silent protectiveness that I have been neglected at some point in my past. Now, circled around me, are six kids who have me spinning in circles. They tell me fast paced jokes. They give me facts about crime fighting, their goals with their missions, who their mentors are. In all, they give me a warm welcome as I try my best to introduce myself to 'Supey' and Robin.
Robin is the protégée of Batman, as he claims proudly to me. His longer dark hair gives him a slightly childish appearance that's professional at the same time. At a single glance you can tell that Robin has grown up under Batman's leathery cape. However, as an adolescent, he's able to make the jokes necessary to carry on a conversation. Although his smile is genuine when he speaks or laughs, it seems as if it weren't because of his black sunglasses that hide his revealing eyes. Robins' glasses make him appear much darker then he truly is.
Lastly the biggest one, Superboy or Connor, has made it clear through his hand shake that he lives up to his name of 'Super'.
After the fellow teen releases my bandaged hand, the sharp pain reminds me of my burns that I've tried so hard to ignore. If it's out of sight, it's out of mind. Unfortunately, that thought process does not apply to my arms, since they're limbs and kind of attached me. I sigh, letting my burnt, bandaged arms sag by my side.
With my arms being in such pain, I silently wish to shove them in ice and hope for the best.
The Martian lifts my arm in her green hands and frowns. "Are you in pain?" she asks quietly as she brushes her fingertips across the wrappings lightly. I want to so badly to say I'm not, and that the gauze is just a decoration. I shake my head instead.
"Not really. It's just numb," I lie, as I take my arm back from the green hands. I give Megan a reassuring smile to prove myself. But with the other five members and Batman looking at me, the smile is unstable, especially when another short burst of hot pain shoots through my fingertips up to my elbow. I clench my lowered hand in protest from the sting and resist the urge to hiss in pain. The smell of burning fabric soon fills the surrounding air. My heart begins to race, and my stomach tightens. I recognize this feeling, and the heat growing in my hands. It's an odd feeling, between pain and pleasure that dances on my nerves.
I look over my shoulder to see Batman's dark figure walk towards us his, mouth forming into a grimace. The closer the Dark Knight approaches us, me specifically, the more I want to just crawl under a rock. I turn to face Batman reluctantly, the team members that had once surrounded me having dispersed.
"Your palms," Batman voices, his tone rough as if he was interrogating a villain. I duck my head as I show him the black soot on my palms. Batman grabs my right hand and begins to unravel the bandages from my skin. I wince once again, ducking my head, blonde hair concealing my face from the others.
Whatever you do, Rhyleigh, do not cry. I tell myself this with my eyes clamped shut as I feel the last layer of cloth being removed from my dry skin. Batman drops my hand and picks up the other, and once again he removes the burnt bandages. Behind me, I can hear the quiet whispers of the teens as the last of my bandaged arms reveals its skin.
His voice is deep, but that is the voice of Batman. "You can look up now, Rhyleigh," he says, and instantly I do so, blinking my eyes forcefully to keep the unwanted tears from spewing from my eyeballs. He silently nods his head to my arms. I bite my lip as I raise my newly nude arms and shake my fingers as if to wake them up from a sandy sleep.
The skin does not have the same smoothness as it did before, and it lacks hair as well. My fingers, I expected them to be fused together. Luckily, they are not, in fact they look the same as it did before this whole fiasco. The thing that bothers me the most is the twitches before the pain sprouts from my fingertips and shoots up to my elbows.
"What's wrong with me?" I ask him, clenching my fists, and as if on cue the heat of the pain begins to form. "This isn't normal! I burst into flames, I'm hurting! I can't even… I don't understand!" And I can hear myself raise my voice in frustration, allowing everyone to listen to my anxiety attack. "And what's worse is that I don't belong here! I'm an… art nerd! I don't do this!" I cry out in anguish, spreading my arms out wide. With a heavy whoosh both my arms are ablaze in a hot red fire.
"She's on fire," Wally murmurs in awe, walking forward. "It's the Mystic Powers." He wiggles his fingers as if I was doing some sort of magic show. Artemis slaps his shoulder and sends him a muted glare.
I turn to him, bewildered. "Mystic Powers?" I question him, waving my blazing arms in the air. "This is hurting me!" The others watch my lunacy escalate, while I stand there and let the fire burn. "Oh Rhy, it's okay. It's just your metagene!" I say in mocking tone.
In the corner of my eyes, I can see Batman take a step towards me and my twin flaming arms. "Remember when I said you need to learn how to control your powers?" He asks me, calm and collected at the highest moment of my anxiety attack.
I nod my head, tears brimming to the surface. The burning sensation of the flames crawling on my skin doesn't hurt as bad as before, but it's still painful.
"Control. I can do that." I whisper before breathing in a huge amount of air through my nose. I hold the air in my lungs, focusing on my heart to calm it's racing pace. As I release the air through my mouth I watch the flames flicker and dwindle away just enough to prove to me that they're staying. The fire is a part of me, no matter if I like it or not.
"You have to release it," he instructs, as if he knows what I'm going through. Alright. Cool. Bet.
I raise an eyebrow at him. Right. Okay, sure. "Got any ideas?" I ask him. Sure, I am talking back to Batman like I do with my mom. Even though it seems as if he wants to help me stop turning into a bonfire, I can't help but snap back. It's a reflex.
"You need to relax. The team will help you to release the energy," he urges, crossing his arms over his chest as he looks over my head towards the team.
I just want to go home now.
Heyyy, So uhm. Feedback please. The complexity and understanding how an individual receive their abilities is all so different. So, creating a character like, Rhyleigh who is just so confused and in pain is soo…. Intriguing to discover and chisel away. I'm excited for this story to grow. I hope you are too!