Now, I hope you all enjoyed the relaxation of last chapter (God knows the characters needed it). Because now, we're getting right back into the action! Yes, this chapter will have the Young Justice team on their first official mission! However, in addition to the mission in cannon, the Team will go up against an enemy never introduced in the show: the Church of Blood, led by the nefarious Brother Blood. Also, as you are aware by now, there are more members this time. To reiterate, the current roster is:
Michael Verser/Atlas, Dick Grayson/Robin, Kaldur'ahm/Aqualad, Wally West/Kid Flash, Conner Kent/Superboy, Koriand'r/Starfire, Rachel Roth/Raven, Victor Stone/Cyborg, Megan Morse/Miss Martian, Donna Troy/Wonder Girl, Adam Verser/Timeshifter, and Architect.
Definitely more members now than before. Let's see what they can accomplish with these numbers.
And now for the disclaimer: I do not own Young Justice in any way, shape, or form. Young Justice is the property of Brandon Vietti and Greg Weisman, created for Cartoon Network. If I DID own Young Justice, however, Season 3 would be out on Netflix by now! So please support the official release, and get Season 3 out there already!
Finally, know this: there will be a lot of references in this chapter. I would like to state that I own NOTHING of the franchises said references come from.
Now then, let's get this started!
Voice Cast (Including how I envision certain characters being voiced):
MAIN:
Michael Verser = Yuri Lowenthal (A/N: Think the voice of Peter Parker/Spider-Man from the 2018 "Spider-Man" video game.)
Rachel Roth/Raven = Taissa Farmiga
Koriand'r/Starfire = Kari Wahlgren
Victor Stone/Cyborg = Shemar Moore
Kaldur'ahm/Aqualad = Khary Payton
Richard "Dick" Grayson/Robin = Jesse McCartney
Wally West/Kid Flash = Jason Spisaks
Conner Kent/Superboy = Nolan North
M'gann M'orzz/Megan Morse/Miss Martian = Danica McKellar
Donna Troy/Wonder Girl = Emma Stone
RECURRING:
Akima/Lambda = Lindsay Jones (A/N: Think her actual voice)
Masamune = Jennifer Hale
Adam Verser = Christopher Daniel Barnes (A/N: Think the voice of Spider-Man Noir from "Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions")
Architect = D.C. Douglas (A/N: Think the voice of Legion from the "Mass Effect" games)
GUEST:
Sebastian Blood IX/Brother Blood = John Boyega (A/N: Think the voice of Finn from "Star Wars: The Force Awakens")
The Antiverser = Sam Witwer (A/N: Think the voice of Lord Starkiller from the bad ending of "Star Wars: The Force Unleashed")
Bane = Danny Trejo
BGMs:
My Hero Academia - The Day [English Dub Cover] - Nathan Sharp
Pursuit of the Cygnus Thief - John H. Clarke
Bombing Mission - Final Fantasy VII Music Extended
Final Fantasy VII - Still More Fighting [HQ]
Final Fantasy VII - Victory Fanfare [HQ]
Joe Budden - No Church In The Wild
YES - ROUNDABOUT (JoJo's Bizarre Adventure ED1) || RichaadEB & Caleb Hyles
Third Person's POV:
Zandia, July 19, 23:50 EET
On the island nation of Zandia, there stood a building secluded from the rest of the land. A church, whose interior was dark and barely lit, save for the torches that provided light through the hallways.
Not many would come to visit this place, unless they had a good reason to do so.
Emerging seamlessly from darkness, The Antiverser strode through the torch-lit halls as if he owned the place, unseen by all. Reaching the end, he stepped into a large room of people dressed in red robes, the kind one would find in a cult. Ironic, considering that everyone in that room was a part of a cult.
The Church of Blood, to be precise. A cult that has existed for seven centuries, every member were devout followers of Trigon, a multi-dimensional demon who wished to spread its evil across the Earth, as well as the father of Rachel Roth/Raven. Cheery bunch of fellows, wouldn't you agree?
Standing before the group was a pale skinned man with red eyes dressed in red robes, yet beneath the robes one could tell was an armor for combat. Sebastian Blood IX, a.k.a. Brother Blood, the ambitious 14-year-old High Priest of the Church of Blood. How did he get this position, you may ask? He murdered the previous High Priest- his own father, Sebastian Blood VIII- and took over, as per the group's laws.
Yeah. Fucked up.
Currently, he was busy with continuing his late father's work, by spreading his 'faith' into the U.S. in order to gain more power for his cause of world domination. He would be a perfect pawn to the figure in black.
"My followers," Blood began. "Today, I am pleased to announce that our progress is coming along quite nicely." Everyone was cheering before he raised a hand to silence them. "Even now, we are gaining more followers in the United States. And with them, more loyal followers of Lord Trigon!"
Another round of cheering rang out. "Praise Trigon! Praise Trigon! Praise Trigon!"
"Yes, my followers! However, we must remember not to draw too much attention to ourselves," Blood said as he quieted them down. "Even with all our might, we do not yet possess the means to fight our biggest threat: the Justice League."
"What a coincidence." Everyone turned to face to source of the cold voice, eyes resting on The Antiverser as he casually leaned against the wall. "I can provide you with the power. And the means to acquire said power."
"Who the hell are you?!" a follower cried out.
The Antiverser simply stared silently at the speaker, which made everyone even more unnerved. "I am but merely an agent of destruction, just as the rest of you," he finally answered, bringing his gaze back to where Blood stood. "One who is interested in your cause."
All was silent for a few moments, before Blood smiled widely. "Well, it appears that we have gained a new ally!" he exclaimed as he walked forward. "Tell me, what exactly can you provide us with?"
"Four things," he promptly answered. "First: the daughter of Trigon." Everyone was talking as soon as those words were said. It made sense. After all, what servant of Trigon wouldn't know of his 'Pride'? "I've done my research, Brother Blood. If you can marry her, then you'll be able to gain the power to unleash Hell upon this world. Which, in turn makes my goal much easier.
"Second: how to properly perform this ritual. Unless it is done right, you'll fail. Third: a little something to use against one of her 'protectors'."
Blood was nodding at this, eager to put whatever this ritual was into motion. "And Fourth?" he inquired.
"A means to lure her to you," he answered as he brought out a cylindrical device, which held a sickly black crystal in the middle. "As well as a means to keep her from running away."
His face broke out into a wide, evil grin. "I'm listening..."
Watchtower, July 22, 20:59 EDT
"This better be good, guys," Duncan said in a testy manner as he, Power Girl, Flash and Captain Marvel took their seats at the table. "I've got a prior engagement with Karen and a brand new chocolate fountain, and I'd rather get to it ASAP, please." Only a few noticed the blush that graced PG's face at that statement.
The rest openly groaned in embarrassment. "Why did we let him join again?" Hal asked out loud.
"Because fuck you. That's why," was the immediate reply.
Clearing his throat, Batman said "If you're done, Oberon-"
"Once more, with feeling!" Clearing his own throat, Duncan said "Fuck!...you, Hal."
Everyone shook their heads, quite used to their fellow League member's antics (and knowing they couldn't do anything about it...save Karen, who could cut him off from sex with her). Hal, meanwhile, simply formed a giant green middle finger, aimed at Duncan.
"If you're done," Batman said tersely, "maybe we can get started on the meeting?"
"There's a few topics that need to be discussed," Superman started, looking around the table. "Who would like to begin?"
"Ever since the discovery of the true face of Cadmus, it's become apparent that the bad guys are wising up," Oliver Queen began. "Plus, with the recent attack against our proteges, with the intent of trying to turn Red Tornado, it's clear that something's up."
"Obviously, they've got lots of funding, connections, and kind of hate us," Duncan pointed out. "There's...let's see here," he began, reaching into his pocket to pull out a piece of paper and began listing names off. "Okay, we've got Vandal Savage, Lex Luthor, Ra's Al Ghul, Ocean Master (lame-o), that creepy demon kid with a stupid haircut and the equally stupid cat, Queen Bee...et cetera, et cetera. Doubt they're all connected, but there's some ideas."
"Luthor, I could see," Aquaman nodded, "especially if he found common ground with Ra's. Ocean Master, however, is another story. He'd never accept help from surface dwellers. He has too much pride, thankfully."
"And I shudder to think of what would happen if someone like Klarion is involved in all of this," Zatara muttered.
"Most of those names, I recognize," J'onn said. "But this...Vandal Savage is one I don't know."
"He's an immortal," Batman answered. "Lived since the cavemen walked the planet, and has lived through every civilization after that. Definitely someone we should keep an eye on." Though the problem was that no one knew where he was, or his last known location.
Save Duncan, of course. Even now, he had an eye kept on the immortal bastard, plotting all the ways he could ruin his plans.
"From what intel we have on her, Queen Bee's more concerned with ruling Bialya, but she could definitely be connected somehow," Captain Atom spoke up. "Though we should also assume that it could be someone we don't even know about."
"Off-world influences?" Diana proposed.
"Possibly, but there aren't many too interested in Earth who are...subtle," Superman answered, thinking of two certain Alien Warlords. "The only one who'd try to be quiet would be Braniac, but we know how to detect him now."
"And I haven't heard anything big out in the other sectors to be worried about at present," Hal added.
"Still, we should keep a close eye out just in case," John said.
"There is another factor to consider," Diana said. "The supernatural."
"Which parts?" Duncan asked. "We've got dozens of different factors, both good and annoying."
"Take your pick: spellcasters, magicians, sorcerers, Gods, demons..." Dinah listed. At that last part, she noticed Zatara tense a bit. "You okay, Zatara?"
"It's nothing," the magician said. "Just...well, it could be nothing, but..."
"Adding a 'But' at the ending of a sentence means it's not nothing," Barry pointed out. "If there's something up, you can spill it Zatara."
He sighed. "Five days ago, my daughter and I were investigating a disturbance on the other side of the world. Mystical in nature. She insisted on coming along in order to learn...imagine our surprise when we were accosted by demonic shades."
"Which pantheon?" Diana asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Close to the basic modern Christian perception of demons," the Spellcaster elaborated. "The most distinct factor they had were two sets of eyes. That was familiar to me, so I looked that up, and found a name: Trigon."
"Trigon?" Hawkman spoke. "What kind of name is that?"
"Possibly one whose owner doesn't like to have made fun of," his beloved, Hawkwoman, chided a bit.
"Indeed. Trigon is an inter-dimensional demon of great power," Zatara went on to say. "It's said he's conquered nearly all of his home realm, and has amassed a vast legion of followers. Heavens help me, there are even people in our own realm who worship him."
"Yeah, what's that cult leader's name?" Duncan asked, snapping his fingers to jog his memory. "Brother Blood, leader of the Church of Blood! Typical cliche villain name with an equally cliche group name just proves he's overcompensating. And evil."
"The current leader of a familial lineage of madmen," Zatara scowled. "And it gets worse. After we dealt with the shades, one of them said that they would never stop. They would find their 'wayward mistress'; the child of Azarath."
"Azarath?" Batman scowled, thinking. While he himself did not like employing magic, preferring scientific facts, he still made note of certain supernatural aspects. "We've heard that name before."
"It exists in a realm between realms. A home for all who seek peace, and offers sanctuary for the lost. The people are extremely pacifistic by nature, and never seek conflict. Only those who have a connection to magic and the supernatural know of its existence."
"'Knew' of its existence." Duncan corrected. "Last I checked, it was unfortunately... no more."
Zatara sighed heavily. "Unfortunately so. Trigon was summoned years ago to that realm. Not even a minute there, and he turned the entire sanctuary to smoldering rubble...no one survived."
"Then why have I heard of 'Azarath' prior to this meeting?" Batman asked, likely raising an eyebrow behind his cowl. "And I'm not one to study magic."
"I mentioned it once in passing, during a mission with you. Besides, with it destroyed, it seemed unnecessary to mention it again...until my discovery of a survivor," he said solemnly. "Raven."
"So Raven survived an atrocity that leveled an entire realm?" Superman asked. "Then why do you look more suspicious than pleased, Zatara?"
"Think about it, Superman: Trigon was summoned to Azarath through an unknown source. Demons are out and about searching for the only survivor, calling her a 'wayward mistress'. And when we visited this team we've assembled during practice two days after the demon attack. Zatanna sensed demonic energy...coming from Raven."
"Oh no. We're not doing this," Duncan suddenly spoke up in irritation. "I know what you're insinuating here, Mr. Mustache. We're not keeping Raven under lock and key because she's Trigon's daughter- and before you start freaking out: yes, she's Trigon's daughter. And yes, I've known the entire time. And no, she's not a big fan of her dad."
"Oberon, how could you have possibly-?"
"I'm not called Oberon for nothing," Duncan deadpanned. "I've been to Avalon. Learned all manner of magic from the Fae, and then branching out. I pegged the Trigon connection the moment we saw her at Cadmus. I put the Father-Daughter thing together later. So I'll reiterate: we are not putting Raven under serious suspicion because of her bastard father."
"Yeah, I'm gonna have to side with him on this," said Billy Batson, a.k.a. Captain Marvel. Noticing the looks from others, he defended "What? He made some good points there. Besides, I think we could at least give her the benefit of the doubt."
"/Both Oberon and Captain Marvel are correct,/" Red Tornado spoke up. "/I have been observing all of the team while stationed at Mount Justice. She has shown no inkling of being a threat. If anything, she has bonded well with the others to varying degrees./"
"If that's the case, I doubt she'd want to put them in harm's way," Dinah said.
"So we're just going to ignore the potential threat living in the old clubhouse?" Barry asked. "Don't get me wrong, she seems okay, but there's the fact that she could unintentionally have them hurt. Like Zatara said, this 'Trigon' is looking for her. And I doubt he's going to care about the welfare of the Team to get her."
"Well then if all else fails, we could go to the ole' super-secret 'Punch-you-in-the-face-until-you-black-out' technique on Trigon," Duncan retorted. "I mean...how many completely over-powered heroes do we know and/or have in this room? Superman is...well, Superman. The Flash can just run around the world and use metric fuck-tons of kinetic force for one punch. Batman will cheat. Diana is an immortal amazonian warrior with ties to Hera. Hal and John each have the most powerful weapon in the Galaxy. I BEAT EVERYTHING. DO I NEED TO GO ON?"
...To his credit, he made a very convincing argument. Though Zatara still had some reservations. "You're sure this won't backfire on any of us, Oberon? I'd hate to have the trust in one of my colleagues be misplaced."
"Would you relax?" Duncan said. "Everything's under control."
"The last time you said that, three of them nearly got shredded," Dinah pointed out.
"Yeah, but that was in Adam's mind, so they get a pass. In the real world, they'll be-"
*RING* *RING*
"*sigh* Hang on, I've gotta take this," he said, taking out his cell phone. "Hey, Adam, what's up?"
["MIKEY BLOODY FUCKED UP!"]
The sheer volume of the scream forced him to recoil in pain. Interesting enough, even though the phone wasn't set to speaker, everyone present could hear what was said in perfect clarity. Which left everyone silent as Duncan hung up, reluctantly savoring the taste of the foot he planted in his own mouth.
"...Was it just me, or did he sound British just then?" Barry asked, breaking the silence.
Sighing in frustration, Duncan muttered "I knew I shouldn't have put Mikey in charge of the bomb."
The League's eyes widened in shock after hearing that. While Batman's narrowed. "Bomb?" he growled.
"Yeah, the one I said to plant in Bane's factory." Looking at him curiously, he innocently asked "Didn't I tell you about that?"
Batman only glared harder.
(Play "My Hero Academia - The Day [English Dub Cover] - Nathan Sharp")
(Flashes of light illuminate the darkness, before a large one shines brightly.)
You see the sun rise, a new day's upon you
You bit your nails as your knees start to tremble
(The camera pans back to reveal Michael Verser, kneeling before the great source of light, rises to his feet with an awed expression on his face.)
The time is upon you to show them what you can do
And soon they will know that
(In the light, a group of hazy figures appears, with Duncan Verser's hand outstretched with a welcoming grin on his face. At that point, Michael's fist clenches in determination.)
THE DAY HAS COME!
(Michael dashes forward, others appearing right behind him. As the instrumental plays, images of Multiversers w/ allies [Adam Verser, Kay Verser, Architect, Masamune] and the Team [Robin, Kid Flash, Aqualad, Superboy, Miss Martian, Starfire, Raven, Cyborg, Wonder Girl, Artemis, Aquagirl, Green Lantern IV, Zatanna, Terra, Supergirl, Firestorm, Atom II] flash by, with each hero striking a pose in front of their names/codenames. Once the final image fades away, the title appears in text not unlike what one would find on the cover of a comic book.)
YOUNG MULTIVERSER
Late into the night I hear it storming
An end to the rain is what I pray and I'm hoping
(Michael is shown standing alone in the streets of a large city, looking up at the dark and cloudy skies as people casually pass him by on the sidewalk.)
Now I feel the pressure of the city
Oh, how it eats me whole
(Closing up on Michael, it shows him sighing plainly as he walks forward gloomily.)
So many names and faces
Sleepless nights, spent in unknown places
(As Michael walks along the path, the figures of the primary Team members fade into being one by one, brightening the background and Michael's spirits noticeably.)
And every day I walk into the great unknown
(Closing up to Michael, he is handed Masamune, her spirit and all of his mental roommates smiling at him as he nods to the others.)
I'm not to blame, I'm gonna take a stand
(The camera zooms away to show morose images of Miss Martian, Artemis, Raven, Cyborg, a fractured Terra, and Starfire, with larger silhouettes of a White Martian, Sportsmaster & Cheshire, Trigon, Dr. Silas Stone, Deathstroke, and Blackfire standing behind them with their backs to each of them.)
You say my name, I'm telling you to reach out and
(The scene switches to Michael, Robin, Aqualad, Kid Flash, Aqualad, Superboy and Wonder Girl, looking down at the ground while in the towering shadows of their respective mentors, before focusing on Michael.)
Finally take my hand!
(Michael, joined by the Team, boldly leap forward out of the figures' shadows. The screen is then consumed in flames, burning away into a split screen as The Author and Satan Verser, briefly cutting to The Antiverser & Lucifer Verser, Vandal Savage & The Light, and a cavalry of enemies standing in a cloudy wasteland.)
Colliding fists, they're what's gonna make you
You grit your teeth or they're gonna break you
(The camera changes darkens a bit as The Antiverser- alongside villains such as The Joker, Reverse-Flash, Deathstroke, Cheetah, and Black Adam- charge forward as one, with the intent to attack the Team. Leaping against them in defense is Duncan Verser, joined by Adam, Kay, Zack, Alexis, Dexter and LaTrell Verser.)
The time is upon you to show them what you can do
You're breaking the mold, you're gonna show them
(Facing them head on, the other Multiversers and the Justice League charge forward, each of them trouncing or holding back the villains, before taking on the next ones to clear the path, allowing the Team to power up and charge forth.)
Will we break through? I don't know, don't know
The bells are ringing, come out and play now
(Moving as one, Michael, Robin, Kid Flash, Aqualad, Superboy, Miss Martian, Starfire, Raven, Cyborg, Wonder Girl, Artemis and Terra charges forward, each of them attacking villains with their unique abilities.)
The time is upon you to show them what you can do
And soon they will know that
(The Author, Satan Verser, Lucifer Verser, Vandal Savage and the members of The Light make their move, charging with their own allies behind them. Wielding Masamune, Michael leads the charge with his sword brandished high.)
THE DAY HAS COME!
(The camera closes up on Michael, showing a face of determination as he swings the blade down. Flashing with images of the rest of the Team, the final shot shows the heroes gathered together in front of Mount Justice, grinning and posed in various ways as they stand ready to protect the world.)
(End "My Hero Academia - The Day [English Dub Cover] - Nathan Sharp")
Chapter 8: First Mission, Part 1 (Heroes and Cultists and Giants (Oh My))
Michael's POV:
Happy Harbor, July 22, 19:03 EDT
'Only a matter of time now,' I thought to myself. 'Be honest with me, Masamune-chan: on a scale of 1 to 10- 10 being most likely- do you think something's gonna go wrong on this mission?'
'Without a doubt,' she answered without missing a beat.
A sigh escaped my lips. 'Wonderful.'
In this world, it had been less than a few days since she had reawakened from her coma. In that time, it had been weeks since I arrived on Remnant, then traveled to the Multiverser's central home planet, received one of my newest weapons, and got her transferred into said weapon to wake her up. Plus, I found out that Duncan knew about my pheromone problem, and chose not to warn me about it (I got my revenge, though...but Prime-sensei showed up soon afterwards to talk about the Torchwick situation).
All of that, however, was not what had me concerned at the moment. What was, however, was the fact that any moment now, we were going to get our first official mission from the Justice League. And for some reason, I couldn't shake the feeling that something bad was about to happen.
'/It's probably just pre-mission jitters,/' Akima offered.
'...Maybe you're right,' I thought. 'Still, we should probably be prepared.'
'Is that why you put those back on display?' Masamune asked, gesturing to my left forearm. Tattooed onto it was a small horizontal line of symbols: a white and blue handgun, a white and blue katana, twin black and gold revolvers, and twin black and gold scythes. 'Speaking of which, you know that you're gonna get it from them for not bringing them to a fight for so long.'
...Crap, she's right.
Next thing I knew, I saw a familiar shape as I walked through the cave. It was Raven, who currently had a frown on her face. "Hey Raven," I said, getting her attention off of whatever she was thinking about.
"Hi, Michael," she said distractedly.
I wonder what she's thinking about.
"Something on your mind?" I asked.
"...I had a bad dream, is all," she said, while looking at her hand, subtle fear in her eyes. "But the way it looked. How real it felt...I just have a feeling something bad is going to happen tonight."
"Like what?"
"Like...if we go out tonight, we might be attacked. Or worse."
Not surprising, considering we were about to go on a mission to stop a terrorist cult from developing a new super steroid, while also fighting off the original owner of said steroid-producing factory and his well-armed force of goons under his employment. Plus the first test subject of the new super steroid.
Walk in the park for a Multiverser.
"Well, I think we can handle anything that gets thrown at us."
"...Somehow, I doubt that," she replied. "There are some things, that people can't handle." To the average bystander, she could've been talking about an actual attack on us. However, those who know the empath best could tell the hidden meaning to her words: how we would handle the revelation of her heritage.
I sighed in realization. She was still afraid of us finding out about who her so-called 'father' was. Worried that if they found out, then she'd lose her friends.
Note to self: address that ASAP.
Wait, don't think about it, or she'll suspect something, think of something else!
"Hey, Mikey, what's going on?" Adam called out.
"...Oh thank you, every and all deities listening," I quickly whispered, thankful for the sudden arrival of something to help talk with Raven. During our walk, Raven and I wound up walking by the kitchen where the others currently were gathered (minus Tula, who was fast asleep at this point from a long day of training). Architect and Adam had made a lot of food, and everyone was digging into it (especially those with high metabolisms).
The two of us headed over, with my response to Adam's question being "Not much. Just trying to get Raven's mind off something."
"Really? What's wrong?" Megan asked.
Silently, the half-demon sorceress glared a bit at me before responding "I...had a nightmare, is all. We had gotten into a fight...and lost. Badly."
"How badly we talking?" Robin inquired.
Her response? "Everyone-ending-up-dead badly."
"...Yeah, that's bad, all right."
Nudging her a bit, I said "Don't worry so much over a dream, Raven. If we work together, we can all get out of any fight without a scratch," I said supportingly.
To my credit, I succeeded in making her smile at my attempt to cheer her up (along with the others). "I appreciate your enthusiasm, Michael. But I'm pretty certain fights don't work that way."
"Well, most fights don't involve me," I replied with a goofy smile on my face. That got a small chuckle from her, along with the rest of the Team.
"He's got you there, Rae," the young Speedster said as he got close. "Though maybe we could take your mind off that dream with some fun. What say you and I go hit the town?"
"No thanks," she said without missing a beat.
...
...
...
...Yeah, we couldn't help but laugh at how quickly he got shot down. "I'm impressed, Wally," Donna began, "Looks like you do everything fast!"
"/Indeed. Addendum: you suck with women."/
He flipped Architect the bird in response, while everyone else laughed harder.
["Hello, everyone,"] Duncan's voice spoke through the speakers, a merry tone to it. ["This is your friendly neighborhood Duncan Verser, here to give you lot your first official mission. So, if you don't mind, then I'm kindly requesting that once you're all done with your 90210 horseshit, TO REPORT TO THE MAIN HALL! Thank you. And don't forget to hide your porn. You filthy little teenagers."] With that said, he turned off the speakers. Leaving the Team to stare in silence at them, mouths hanging open in shock.
...
...
...
...
...
...
"...It truly says something when we're used to that by now, huh?" Conner asked, speaking the question on the minds of a few here.
"Yeah," Megan nodded. "Well, better go see what he wants."
With enthusiasm, Adam cried "Team, Assemble!"
...
...
...
"...What," was Raven's flat reply.
"I-It's a...battle cry?"
"...You need to work on it, dude," I offered in pity. Adam merely grumbled in response.
"Why don't we just 'semble' instead?" Robin offered jokingly, once again showing his habit of messing around with words.
Adam, however, wasn't exactly in the mood, as he said "Robin, if you patronize me one more time, I will 'semble' the shit outta you, bitch!" He emphasized his point by bringing up his right hand in a backhand position.
"Jeez, chill out, dude!"
"I WILL NOT CHILL OUT!"
Sighing tiredly, I muttered "This is gonna be a long mission."
The Team were standing in the main room as Batman and Duncan entered the area. We were all at attention, save for Wally (who was busy eating a bag of chips). "You said you have a mission for us?" I asked.
"As a matter of fact, we do," the latter said as a screen was brought up. "This is Isla Santa Prisca, a small island off the coast of Venezuela."
"It's also the biggest facility in the world for making an extremely dangerous and highly illegal neo-steroid sold under the street name 'Venom,' and developed by one of my rogues, Bane," Batman continued. "Infrared heat signatures show the factory is still working at maximum capacity. However, all shipments of Venom have stopped. That's where this team comes in."
"We want you lot to go in, observe, and report to see if the Justice League is needed to intervene," Duncan said. "That makes this a covert op. That means no fighting unless absolutely necessary, no heroics unless you have no other option, and no dicking around in the orange soup. Are we clear?"
"Yes, Commander!" we answered.
"Good. Now, this mission requires two drop zones," he continued as the screen showed a map of the island, two different areas lit up. "I expect you guys to be able to handle this."
"So who's in charge?" Robin asked.
"That would be Adam and Michael," Duncan answered. "They both have leadership capabilities, and can keep the team together when needed. Don't do anything they wouldn't do."
The Boy Wonder shrugged in approval. "At least he's got experience in this stuff," he said, recalling a few times he worked with the brothers in the past.
"On that note, keep this in mind: if anyone goes against orders, I will personally make them go through remedial training," Duncan said with all to wide a grin on his face. "Which will last all day."
A cold pit formed around everyone's stomachs. My own, included. "That's Duncan for 'leaving ya with a warning', by the way," Adam threw in, looking a bit pale from the flashbacks of Duncan's training.
Batman added "Though there will be League supervision to make sure you don't push yourselves too hard." Which meant anyone there would still be worked like a mule. Fun.
"Noted. Alright, team, head too the hangar," I said facing them. "And for the love of God, PLEASE don't do anything to go through Duncan's training," I then pleaded.
"Got it/Right/Understood/Definitely/I'm not suicidal." A surge of agreements later, we headed out.
"And Mikey?" Duncan called out, causing me to look back to him. "Two things. One: could you do me a solid and listen to Adam on this mission? It'll be super easy, trust me." I nodded. "And second: do us all a favor. When you're on this mission...DON'T FUCK UP!"
Third Person's POV:
Caribbean Sea, July 22, 20:08 ECT
"I do not fuck up!" Michael ranted. "Not intentionally, but still!"
"You do fuck up, Mikey. You just do. Accept it," Adam said with a straight face.
Gaping, the Multiverser turned to his friends. "Guys, back me up here!"
"Ehhh..." Robin drawled, shaking his hand a bit.
"He does have a point," Kaldur said.
"Yeah, he seems more crazy than you so I'm inclined to agree for the sake of both sanity and safety," Wally said.
"..." Silently, almost pleadingly, he turned to the others. "There's a hint of truth in his voice," Raven said.
"Yeah, you just seem to have that quirk that screams 'fuck up'," Victor stated honestly. "Sorry."
"I don't know you that well, so..." Donna said.
"I'm with her in this one," Conner said pointing to Donna.
"Same here," Megan said.
"You do remind me a little of this one soldier in Tamaran's military," Kory said. "...his career didn't end well."
"/We have witnessed you in the field enough times to see Adam speaks the truth,/" Architect said dryly.
"...You guys suck," he muttered dejectedly.
"Sorry if they accept the truth, Mikey. If you did, this would be easier," Adam said, now sharpening his blade. A flipped bird was Michael's response to the Aspect of Time. Adam responded by flipping one of his Silencers into his fist, giving the appearance of a bladed middle finger. "Mine's bigger," he retorted.
"...I hate you so much."
"Lies," came the cool response of the Multiverse's resident time traveler.
"Are they always like this?" Kory asked Architect.
"/Yes./"
"Game faces, everyone," Victor said, catching everyone's attention. In front of the ship, the rapidly approaching form of Isla Santa Prisca came into view.
Everyone got themselves ready as they approached. "We're approaching Santa Prisca," Megan said, activating the ship's camouflage mode. "Drop zone 'A' in T-minus thirty."
"Alright, Kaldur, this is your stop," Michael noted. "Take care of the motion sensors on the beach so we can land."
He nodded, getting up and activating his costume's stealth-tech, turning the colors to shades of black and gray. "Ready for deployment."
"Drop zone 'A' in 3...2...1." The floor opened up, dropping Kaldur into the sea with a soft splash. "Perfect landing," Adam said.
Soon enough, Kaldur reached the shore, equipped with heat and motion sensors. Once those were fed a continuous loop, the Team were clear to move above the island. "And here's drop zone 'B'," Adam said as they approached. Inside the ship, Megan had the ship create cables to attach to their belts.
Hooking up the the cables, Wally and Michael then activated their respective stealth-tech modes. While the former's turned gray and black, the latter's turned from white and blue to black and indigo. "One of the coolest additions to our costumes yet."
"Tell me about it," Wally agreed. "I feel like James Bond."
"You wish you were James Bond, dude," Adam said cheerfully...and with a bit of a knowing tone.
Ignoring his friend, Wally "Still, how cool is this?" he asked Megan.
"Very impressive," she agreed. With her mental commands, she shifted her clothes into their stealth appearance: a skintight black bodysuit going up to her neck, with a red 'X' over her chest. Her blue cap remained, though now it had a hood attached to it.
Michael and Wally stared at the sight, both finding it...well, they definitely thought it was cool. "So, Conner," Michael said as he got back to attention first, "you sure you don't want your costume?"
"No capes, no tights," he stated. "No offense."
"None taken," Michael shrugged. "Your look works for you."
"It really does," Megan agreed as she looked him over. Realizing her slip up, she hastily added "I-I-In that you can totally pull that look off! Just like Michael does with his outfit! Th-That is, the both of you can really work in the field in those outfits!" The two men in question just stared at her, causing her to throw her hood up and turn invisible.
'Well that was odd,' Michael noted to Adam and Architect. 'I mean, Conner, I can understand, but me?'
'...'
'/.../'
'...What?'
'Nothing,' Adam mentally replied, before quietly adding 'Not yet anyway.'
Architect's plates shifted a bit. '/...No data available./'
One of the best parts of being a Multiverser is that any mental conversations- whether between our mental roommates or others- occurs in an instant for others, yet to the Multiversers, time moves more slowly. This allows Multiversers to come up with solutions on the fly. Or have long, drawn out conversations.
Michael sighed, knowing they knew more than they let on. '...I swear, ever since Project Freelancer, you two-'
*SCREEEEEECH!*
At that point, the brakes in his mind hit as Michael remembered why they acted so irritably during the project. Specifically, with his interactions with a certain redhead. '...wait a minute...'
'...Can it be...?' Adam's eyes widened, as if the unthinkable had happened. 'I'll have to watch this closely!' he said to Architect. 'For science!'
'She acted the same with me,' Michael said quietly, '...like with...Conner...'
'This never happened in my world,' Adam said with a mental sigh. 'We just went in, fucked some cultist bitches, and got the fuck out. None of this drama. I made sure we saved that shit for off field.'
'"My world"?...Wait...Adam, did you-?!'
"Michael, you there?" Robin asked, snapping his fingers in front of the Multiverser's face.
"You really need to stop spacing out, bro," Adam quipped, looking like he was focusing on the mission the whole time.
Michael glared at his brother. 'This isn't over, Adam,' he warned.
'It just ended. Now focus on the mission.'
Grumbling (though promising himself he'd get answers out of Adam later), Michael and the others descended through the hole opened up in the bio-ship's floor, reaching the ground in mere moments. The humid air hit them the instant they left, coupled by the light rain.
All in all, the infiltration went well...
*BOOM!*
...Except for when Conner leaped out of the ship without a cable, thus creating a small crater upon landing (one the others managed to get out of the way of). "Knew I didn't need a line," he said smugly.
"And yet, creating a seismic event may not have helped us much with the covert!" Robin sarcastically pointed out.
"/You may have destroyed our cover because you did not take stealth into consideration,/" Architect stated, his plates shifting into a facsimile of a scowl. "/Addendum: Does the phrase 'think before you act' mean anything to you at all?/"
"Aqualad, drop zone 'B' is good," Megan said.
["Head for the factory,"] he instructed, ["I'll track your GPS and rendezvous with you ASAP."]
"Roger that," Victor said.
"Okay, we all know the plan. But before we begin," he said, gaining everyone's attention. Turning to face me, Adam said "Mikey?"
"Yeah?" Michael asked.
"...Don't fuck up," he deadpanned, his face completely straight. "Because if you do fuck up, you're gonna have to answer to me. And being my brother will not save you from the wrath of Adam Verser!"
"Oh my- will you ever let that go?!"
"NO!"
We managed to get quite a ways inland by the time we decided to split into two teams: Adam elected to scout the factory area with Architect and Robin. The rest of the Team would meet up with Kaldur and rendezvous with the others one click from the factory.
...Of course, considering Michael had a good idea of what's going to happen soon, it'd be anything but.
"Alright, Robin, Architect and I will recon the place, see what their defenses are like. Everyone else, stay in the shadows," Adam said as he, the Multiversal A.I., and the Boy Wonder went off into the jungle. "And don't fuck up!" he called back/added.
"...That means you, KF," Michael said with a glare.
"Me?! Why me?!"
"Because you're you," was his simple reply.
"Wait," Conner cut in. "Did you hear that?"
"Hear what?" Victor asked.
"It sounded like someone's close."
"Uh, we didn't hear- wait, is this a super-hearing thing?" Wally asked.
"He does have good ears," Megan stated, quickly adding "Must come from his Krytonian DNA."
"Keep a sharp ear out, Superboy," I said. "Last thing we need is anyone sneaking up on us. Speaking of which: thermal vision."
Activating his goggle's thermal vision, he zoomed in on a group of heat signatures on the right. "Got a squad of armed bozos coming our way," he observed.
"Two squads," Conner corrected, seeing another from the left with his own natural thermal vision. "But they'll meet each other before they run into us."
"You think they're together?" Donna asked. The sounds of gunfire cut through the night.
"I'd bet against that," Raven responded.
"We need to sneak around, yesterday," I said. "Any ideas?"
Putting on his goggles, Wally said "I'm gonna go scout ahead, see if there's another way around."
"No, dumbass, we can't be seen!" Victor hissed.
"Do you want to get our cover blown?!" Donna added.
"Will you relax? I'll be quick about it."
"Wally don't- OHHOLYFUCK!" Before he could stop him, Michael was pulled along with the speedster due to the extra weight, however, Wally was unable to keep his balance, and stumbled halfway through.
"OH SHIT!"
"DAMMIT, YOU SPEEDY SONUVA- OOF!"
"OW!"
"AUGH, SHIT!"
"CRAP! OW!"
The two of them cursed and grunted with every tumble down the hill, each of them vocalizing the pain of their descent. With a final grunt of pain, Wally and Michael skidded to a halt, the former laying on top of the latter.
Right in between Bane's forces and Kobra's followers.
"...Uh, guys...I think our cover's blown," the speedster said into the comms. Every gun in the area was instantly aimed at the two of them, safeties off once again. "And it might've been my fault..." A grenade pin was pulled. "...But I doubt it."
"...You know what? I actually hope they shoot you," Michael snarked.
Meanwhile, the trio of Adam, Robin and Architect were in the middle of recon. As the three moved along the treeline, they stopped at the edge of the forest, the factory in sight.
"Architect, scan the factory," Adam said, as his A.I. partner nodded his head and his upper flaps rose upwards, as if focusing his eye on something.
The next thing both organics saw was the small winged drone Architect had deployed earlier before exiting the Bio-ship flying toward him as it landed on his back, folding back inside his body. He then stood there for a second, processing the information he was now given.
"/Scan complete. Defenses are average, armed guards, as well as snipers on the roof. As if they aren't expecting anyone to attack. Or they're simply under the human emotional influence known as cockiness,/" Architect said dryly. "/A coordinated attack could catch them off guard and allow us to neutralize them./"
"Wow. With Batman, it'd take us about a minute to get all the defenses highlighted, but with you, it takes only a second," Robin said, impressed by Architect's advanced tracking methods.
"I designed him, Robin. So I made sure he had the best tech for the job," Adam said with pride, proud of his creation one-upping Batman. "Okay, things look normal, we should-" Adam stopped talking, noticing something. "Architect, take a picture of that cultist with the vials, and scan the substance. Matter of fact, make a picture of the whole factory's defenses."
"/We calculated the probability of you asking us to perform that action to be 99.9%. Therefore, we had already taken the photos,/" Architect said, bringing up photos of a chemical vial containing a substance, the factory with defense highlights, and a moving hologram of the factory defenses.
"Good work, dude."
"/We do our best./"
"Okay, recon complete," Robin nodded. "Let's meet back up with the others and-"
(Play "Pursuit of the Cygnus Thief - John H. Clarke")
The sound of gunfire drew the trio's attention, as well as the screams of panic that followed. "Shoot them in the asses!" Bane ordered in the distance. "In the asses! Aim for their asses!"
"No, not the ass!" Wally begged.
"Come on, dude!" Michael cried out. "I use that to sit down!"
Adam grumbled in annoyance. "Goddammit...Kid Flash fucked up, didn't he?"
"/Most likely,/" Architect nodded.
*RATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATAT*
*BRAKAKAKAKAKAKAKAKAKAKAKAKAKAKAKAK*
"I FUCKING HATE YOU RIGHT NOW, KF!" Michael roared over the gunfire. He and the speedster were currently running to and fro, doing their best to avoid getting ventilated with speed and acrobatics. "YOU JUST HAD TO LISTEN TO ORDERS AND NOT GO AHEAD OF US! AND WHAT DO YOU DO?! THE EXACT FUCKING OPPOSITE! IS TODAY OPPOSITE DAY OR SOMETHING?!"
"LESS BITCHING, MORE RUNNING!" Wally responded. "Um, por favor no shooting! Please?! I-I've always loved Mexico!"
Of course, neither side listened, instead focusing on turning the Multiverser and his friend into pincushions. "I don't think they care about that- JESUS FUCK!" the Multiverser cried, a bullet barely missing his crotch.
"Oh for the love of- ANY TIME NOW, YOU GUYS!"
At that, Victor laid down covering fire with his canon, knocking others back. This gave Conner the chance to leap off Victor's shoulders, leaping into the air and grappling with Bane. Though the villain held him in a submission hold, Conner quickly turned the tide by sweeping the legs, giving him the leverage to judo flip the masked wrestler into a tree. "Well whaddya know," he commented. "Guess I really owe Michael for those judo lessons-"
"Look out!"
*BLA-KOW!*
A blast from Kory shot down a member of Kobra as he snuck up on Conner, hitting him dead center in the chest. "He gonna be okay?"
"I held back from that blast," she answered. "Though I still don't understand why we should."
"Maybe because we're setting an example," Donna offered, tying up her opponents with her lasso. That confused the Tamaranean princess more (A/N: In her original appearances in comics, Starfire was much more willing to use lethal force against enemies, though her time with the Titans caused her to hold back her strength).
A trio of shadows descended onto the field. Robin hit the ground first, followed by Adam and Architect (both of whom tackled some of Bane's crew). Split kicking two bozos, Robin cried out "What part of 'covert' do you people not understand?!" as Wally and Michael rapidly punched and kicked a guy into submission.
"You wanna blame anyone, blame Speedy Gonzales Jr. for rushing ahead when we told him to stay put!" Michael called back, emphasizing his statement by kicking another Kobra cultist in the cojones. He always had an...issue of nutcases related to anything serpent-like (such as Hyrda), and as such, these morons deserve to be hit in the balls.
Wally snarled "The hell'd you just call me?!"
His outburst was met with Megan telekinetically slamming two cultists against a tree. "I think he just compared you to a cartoon mouse," she offered.
"An apt comparison," Raven said on beat, binding a few goons together. A strangled cry came from the trees, as Kaldur zapped a Kobra member into unconsciousness as he tried to get away. Like that, they got them all.
'Not even two minutes. Are we good, or are we good?'
{Considering you went up against flunkies, of course it was easy.}
'...Way to rain on my parade, Weiss-kun.'
(End "Pursuit of the Cygnus Thief - John H. Clarke")
After tying up Bane and the other baddies, Adam went up to speak with our speedster. "Hey, buddy."
"What's up?" Kid Flash asked, turning around As soon as he did, he recoiled in fear as Adam he saw his face.
A face that looked like he was ready to bring the Wrath of God down on the speedster. "Let me be perfectly clear: if you fuck up our cover again, I. WILL. MURDER. YOU. IN. YOUR. SLEEP." Every word was punctuated as the Aspect of Time poked his teammate in the chest.
The young speedster nervously gulped. "Y...Yes sir," he said shakily, scared of the idea of Adam hunting down his home. The image was haunting him enough to not want to piss him off any further, especially since he's related to Duncan. Meaning he'd take this kind of shit to the extreme.
"Glad you can listen to reason," Adam said politely.
Michael stood against a tree, chuckling with his eyes closed while the others talked (and chewed out Wally). 'So, when'd you show up in this world, Weiss-kun?'
{About an hour ago,} he responded. To those confused, the young Multiverser recently came into possession of an Artificial Sacred Gear made by Duncan. This weapon held the soul of the dragon Weisslogia, and as such, he now existed alongside Michael's subconscious roommates. As an added bonus, said Artificial Sacred Gear also served as a temporary home for Masamune, until her sword could be fixed.
Plus, the White Dragon was apparently pretty good company.
'So, thoughts on things so far?'
{Besides the fact that your speedster friend seems to have ADHD, and your brother is batshit, I'd say things are going okay.}
'Well at least we have a more saner person in the group now,' Masamune stated. 'That aside, what's the plan, Michael?'
'Might as well stick to canon, for the most part. Of course, we're gonna have to take care of Bane before he betrays us.'
/Thoughts on how to do that?/
"Atlas!" Kaldur called.
'Figure that out later,' he answered. Walking over to the others, Michael asked "So, what've we got on the bozos?"
"The guys in uniforms? They're members of the Cult of the Kobra," Robin replied. "An international terrorist cult. What's worse is that from what Timeshifter, Architect and I found, their leader is here, too. Kicked Bane and his guys out of the factory and took over the island."
"I'm certain Batman would've known and mentioned that dangerous extremists were running a Venom operation," Kaldur said.
"Batman, maybe," Adam said. "Oberon? He'd leave Atlas and I in the dark just to get kicks out of it." Noticing everyone gaining disturbed looks, he added "But he'd only send us if he knew we could handle it. Same thing applies to this situation."
"The situation being that we've got a cult wanting Venom to make super cultists?" Victor asked.
"If that were the case, then they wouldn't be hoarding the stuff," Robin clarified. "They're using it for something else."
The chortling of Bane drew everyone's attention. "Such clever Niños and Niñas," he mocked. "As you said, you don't even know the full story. I can show you the rest, by helping you get into the factory."
"I am reading something about a secret tunnel in his head," Megan said as she tried reading Bane's mind. "But he's hiding something as well...ugh, I can't get anything else from him," she said. Made sense, since Bane trained his mind to resist telepaths.
"Sorry, chica, but Bane is not so easy to break," Bane said smugly. "I'm the only one who knows where the secret entrance into the factory is. So here's the deal: I show you the way in, and you take me with you to fight the snake."
"What makes you think we'd trust you?" Raven sardonically asked.
"Simple: the enemy of my enemy is my friend. I just want my factory back. If it means helping you, then so be it."
Humming, Michael muttered "Well, if it gets us into the factory..." Plus, if and when the supervillain betrayed them, they could easily whoop his ass.
Bane smiled at the Multiverser's insight. "So, what do you say, Niño-"
*POW!*
*CRACK!*
Fast as lightning, Michael punched Bane in the face so hard, the impact cracked the trunk of the tree. As the bound man fell unconscious (and thus failing in his attempt to get his factory back), the Multiverser turned to face his stunned teammates. "...Sorry. I just...have a difficult time reigning in my anger when someone calls me that. Especially in that accent."
Recalling the fight against Satan, everyone decided to let it slide. "Well, now we have a secret entrance into the factory, and no one to show us where it is," Conner muttered. "What else can go-"
"DON'T!" Michael, Adam, Kaldur, Wally, Robin and Architect shouted at once, making the clone flinch in shock. "Supey," Adam said slowly, "never, under any circumstance, say anything like what you were about to say."
"...Why?"
"/Murphy's Law dictates that anything that can go wrong, will go wrong,/" Architect stated.
"You actually believe that?" Raven asked in disbelief.
"It's happened before, and I'd rather not tempt fate."
"Let's focus on the matter at hand," Robin brought up. "We've got a supervillain cult in control of another supervillain's factory, and if what we gathered is right, then they're also planning on selling the product of said factory to someone. If we don't do something about this soon, then we've got an international incident waiting to happen."
"Alright, then let's call the League, and-"
"We don't have time, KF," Donna cut off. "We have no idea when the buyer will show up, so we need to take care of this now."
"She's right," Michael added. "We need to end this sale before it can even begin."
Scoffing, Wally said "Oh come on, it can't be that bad."
"Is that so?" Adam asked, glaring at Wally, knowing he probably didn't listen to the briefing. "Let me ask you something, Sparky. Do you even know what this factory is doing right now?"
"Uh, Batman and Oberon said that it manufactures Venom to sell to the highest bidder," Wally retorted sarcastically.
"Oh yeah, really? Then what exactly is this chemical vial Architect managed to get a picture of?" Adam retorted just as sarcastically, showing the Team a picture of some purple liquid that was clearly NOT Venom.
"Well, obviously, that's the Ven-...uh, oh shit," he muttered, realization catching up.
"THAT'S RIGHT, SPARKY!" Adam passionately cried out, channeling his inner Barret Wallace. "We are gonna make Kobra pay for their transgressions against the common people! Brewing a new breed of super steroids for who knows who or what?! By God Almighty, there will be an avalanche of justice!"
Hesitantly, Victor asked "And how exactly are we going to-"
"We're gonna blow this mother fucker up."
...
...
...
...
...
...
...
The Aspect of Time's response was so perfectly delivered, that for a moment, no one could speak from shock.
"...What?" was Wally's intelligent response.
"You heard me, Sparky."
"O-Oooooh...yay!" Michael muttered.
"Duncan did fill you guys in on what we'd be doing here, right?"
"I think he neglected to tell us about blowing up buildings," Raven snarked.
"Yeah, I'm with Raven on this," Robin said.
The Aspect of Victory threw in his thoughts by saying "All he told me was 'Hey, Mikey, could you do me a solid and listen to Adam on this mission? It'll be super easy,'" the last words said through gritted teeth.
"The plan is fairly simple. We will split into three teams,/" Architect said, bringing up a hologram of the island with a wave of his three-fingered hand. "/Team one, which will be lead by Aqualad, will create a diversion, drawing the attention of the inhabitants./" He brought up a marker titled "Team One" moving to one side of the island. "/Team two, which will be lead by this unit, will infiltrate the compound and gather intel as well as sabotage the Venom./" A "Team Two" marker showed up inside the factory. "/Team three, which will be lead by Timeshifter, will plant the bomb inside the factory, evacuate the facility, and detonate the explosive, destroying the factory and accomplishing the mission./" Now, a "Team Three" marker appeared, before speeding out of the factory with Team Two and an "explosion" followed, which reduced the factory to digital ash. "/Once complete, all teams will rendezvous at these coordinates, where we will report back to the Cave,/" the Multiversal A.I. finished his plan, highlighting a specific location for the teams to meet, before speaking again. "/We have already assembled the teams: Team One will consist of Aqualad, Kid Flash, Starfire, Superboy, and Wonder Girl. Team Two will consist of this unit, Raven, Cyborg, Miss Martian, and Robin. Team Three will consist of Timeshifter and Atlas./"
Everyone was staring at the A.I. platform and his complicated plan. "Oh yeah, that sounds super easy all right," Conner deadpanned.
Looking over at me, Adam smiled. "And guess who's planting the bomb."
Now everyone was looking at Michael, who groaned in realization. "Ugh...me."
"And guess who's gonna guide you~?" he asked, his grin even wider.
"Oooooh...you," he moaned.
"That's right! I'm going to be like a spirit animal, only not in your body, giving you advice. Ask me what you should do."
"...Spirit animal, what should I-"
"Don't fuck up!" Adam cut him off, walking off before disappearing out of sight.
"...Is he always like this?" Donna asked.
"All the time," Michael moaned.
(Play "Bombing Mission - Final Fantasy VII Music Extended")
As Team One sat around watching the cultists, Kaldur was chatting with Architect. "We are in position, awaiting your signal," Kaldur said, as he heard a mechanical stutter noise in response. (A/N: Think the typical grunting and chirping the Geth make in the first Mass Effect)
["We are prepared to initiate the signal."]
"Yeah, what is the signal, by the way?" Wally asked, only to receive silence.
["...You will know when you hear it,"] came the short response before the sound of a comm shutting off was heard.
"Alright, everyone. Get ready," Kaldur said as he and the others sat in silence, waiting for whatever Architect had planned to do.
...
...
...
...
...
"...Okay, seriously, what the hell is he-"
*CRACK!*
The sound and sight of the light near the cultists breaking shut Kid Flash up long enough for all to realize a bullet had hit the light. "Guess that's the signal," Conner observed.
"Go, now!" Kaldur said, as they all rushed out of their cover, ready to fight. Conner struck first, jumping into the fray with a punch that sent one cultist flying into another.
Wally then sped by, dragging the two with him, their faces mashing into the dirt. For added measure, he used them as battering rams to hit another small group. "Beep beep!" he mocked, running away like the Road Runner himself.
Others began to shoot at him in response, until Kory fired a few Starbolts into them, sending them into the realm of unconsciousness. As she did so, another group started shooting at her, forcing her to fly and evade. Donna came to her rescue as she flew into the five cultists, knocking them all down like bowling pins in a single strike.
Aqualad then drew his Water Bearers, the shape of swords appearing as he sent cultist after cultist to the ground.
Eventually, they managed to take out the entire area of cultists, before the sounds of more approaching was heard. "I guess we got their attention," Wally said.
"And now we keep it. Don't let them know of Team Two's infiltration. Architect, Phase One of the plan successful."
"/Acknowledged, Aqualad. Commencing Phase Two,/" Architect said, having watched the fight through his sniper scope while burning a hole through the roof he stood on. The hole then fell through, allowing him to drop in and regroup with the rest of Team Two, who had go in while he kept an eye on Team One until their part of the plan was complete.
Looking around, he noticed something next to his feet.
Something that made his plates shift into a wide-eyed expression.
'/Architect to Team Two,/' he said via mind link, '/we will be right on your tail./'
'Roger that,' Robin confirmed. 'Where do we find you?'
'/Look for the moving cardboard box./'
Silence greeted the synthetic as Architect picked up a large cardboard box, shifting onto the ground so he could cover himself completely in it. As he began his trek with the box in tow, Robin gave a flat 'What.'
Not even responding, he came up to a guard, one of a few left inside in case the intruders got inside. Making as little sound as possible, he snuck up...and bolted up, grabbing him by the neck and dragging him under the box. "Oh not again-!" we his last words as Architect punched him into unconsciousness.
A few minutes later, he crawled up to the others, who were just mopping up the last of the goons in the server room. "Oh my God, you actually used a cardboard box," Robin muttered in disbelief/fascination.
"How the heck did you manage to not get seen?" Megan asked curiously.
"/You would be surprised how often organics overlook a cardboard box,/" Architect replied, getting up and setting the box in place. "/Raven, Miss Martian, stand guard 50 meters from the server room. Keep an eye out for anyone heading our way and contact us if enemies approach./"
"Just hurry," Raven said as she and Megan flew off. "We don't know when the bomb is going to go off."
"Well, as long as Michael and Adam set it up right, everything should be fine," Victor said offhandedly. Bringing out a cable, he attached it to the server and started a program. "Downloading now."
"Starting a backup drive just in case," Robin added. "Should be a piece of cake."
Architect started his own download of the Kobra-Venom...while also glaring a hole into Victor's head, contemplating the pros and cons of shooting him in the head for what he said.
/We hope this doesn't mean anything bad for Adam and Michael/ he thought to himself.
Michael's POV:
With the other teams doing their tasks, Adam and I were left to sneak through the factory unnoticed. 'So, any idea on where to put this?' I asked, referring to the large bomb I was holding. Seriously, this thing had so much C4 and other explosive materials, if placed just right, this whole building would go up in smoke!
'Yeah,' Adam responded. 'The biggest, most explosive part of this place.'
'Like that?' We had stopped by a series of large vats. Didn't know what was in them, but it had to be something important to Kobra and his goons.
'Perfect! Now just do as I tell you, and don't fuck up!'
At this, I went to work setting the bomb...right before an alarm rang. ["The fight is a distraction! The intruders are trying to destroy the factory!"]
'DID YOU BLOODY FUCK UP?!' Adam's voice rang in my head, sounding...British?
What the fuck?
["Send in Mammoth to deal with them, immediately!"]
That was when I recognized the voice...as a guard I thought was unconscious. 'I...might have fucked up, yes.'
Suddenly, giant footsteps could be heard as we turned to see Mammoth bounding in, clearly looking pissed at our attempts to destroy the factory.
(End "Bombing Mission - Final Fantasy VII Music Extended")
(Play "Final Fantasy VII - Still More Fighting [HQ]")
The two of us turned around to face the massive disciple of Kobra. "Alright, Mikey. Show me what you got!" Adam said, back to his normal voice.
At that, I nodded my head with a confident grin, exclaiming "Time to cut this guy down a few pegs!" I charged forward and swung [Aura Radiance] at Mammoth, who didn't seem fazed by the attack.
"...Wow," Adam deadpanned.
"I-I know, right?" As I asked this, we dodged Mammoth as he charged us. Honestly, I was kinda nervous that he took that strike so casually. "My skills are one of a kind!"
"Are they really?" Adam asked sarcastically, effortlessly dodging Mammoth's left arm.
"What? Not convinced? Then check this out," I said, as I did the exact same attack on the brute, with the same effect.
"THAT WILL! NOT! WORK! THAT DOES! NOT! WORK!" Adam shouted in exasperation.
{Yeah, I'm gonna have to agree with him on this!} Weisslogia threw in.
"Trust me." I swung at his head, who was not even affected that much. My nervousness was starting to grow more and more, though I stayed cool on the outside. "I was trained by Duncan, remember?"
"Right now, that fact is truly scaring me!" Adam shot back. "And animals? They can literally sense fear!" Mammoth growled at that, turning his glare toward Adam. "There, you see?! It knows I'm afraid!"
"Actually, I think he's just pissed- SON OF A BITCH!" I barely managed to dodge that last swipe. "So, uh, suggestions?"
"Try! Something! DIFFERENT!"
Thinking fast, I looked around for anything to use...and noticed a nearby water pipe. "Timeshifter, waterbend!" I cried, kicking Mammoth in the face as I did so. Acting fast, I began to channel my inner Fire Bender, working the flames within until I began sparking with electricity.
Realizing what I was trying to do, Adam said "Bringing the rain!" as he forced the water out. With a flourish of his hands, the dazed Mammoth was now soaked with water. And I shot a bolt of lightning out of my index and middle fingers, sending the attack right at Mammoth's chest.
*ZZZZZZZAAAAAAAAPPPPPP!*
(End "Final Fantasy VII - Still More Fighting [HQ]")
The electrified supervillain roared as he was sent flying back through the factory, all the way to the other side, until...
*Thud!*
With a dull sound, we had confirmed that Mammoth was now down and out.
(Play "Final Fantasy VII - Victory Fanfare [HQ]")
"And that's how I roll," I sighed, putting away [Aura Radiance] as I did.
Adam fist pumped the air, exclaiming "THAT! IS! HOW! IT'S! DONE!"
"You know, I'm actually a bit surprised," I said while looking in the direction of the roided-out villain. "Who would've thought lightning could hurt a guy like Mammoth that much?"
"ANYONE! EVERYONE WOULD THINK TO DO THAT!" Adam practically shouted in my ear, before we turned around to get back to work. "*sigh* I don't know why I agreed to this bullshit..."
(End "Final Fantasy VII - Victory Fanfare [HQ]")
'Now Mikey, insert the wire.'
'I know.'
'Make sure the charges are set.'
'I KNOW.'
'Now, set the timer-'
'I don't need you micromanaging me, okay?'
'OH, REALLY? BECAUSE AFTER THE EVENTS OF TODAY, AS WELL AS OTHER PAST EVENTS INVOLVING YOUR FUCK UPS, I WOULD HAVE TO RESPECTFULLY DISAGREE!'
'Hey, there are other people in this chat too, you know,' Kid Flash's voice echoed.
'SHUT UP!' we both shouted before looking back at the bomb.
'Now, set the timer-'
'I know what I'm doing!'
'That is an opinion you are having! Now set it to TEN! MINUTES!'
'FINE!' I said as I set the timer.
1:00
'...Ooooooh...' I heard Adam say, slipping back into that British accent.
'SHHITT!'
'Do not!'
'I-I-I can fix this!'
'DO NOT!'
'I CAN FIX THIS!'
'BLOODY TOUCH IT AGAIN-!'
0:45
At this, I heard Adam taking a deep breath.
I hesitantly tried again.
0:44
0:43
0:42
I then heard the sound of Adam growling and drawing Muramasa, as I turned to see his eyes had turned red. "Uh, Adam...?"
"...I'M GOING TO FUCKING KILL YOU, YOU BLOODY WANKER!"
0:38
"Okay, data's retrieved," Robin said as he removed a flash drive. "Now what?"
"Now we start sabotaging the-"
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!" His words died as he saw Adam and I running out of the factory, both fearful (though raging in Adam's case).
"...Something went wrong, didn't it?" Victor asked.
"It would appear so."
"...Run?"
"Affirmative." They promptly did so.
0:27
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Raven and Miss Martian blinked as they witnessed two Multiversers running past. "What the-?"
"Run!" Victor shouted as he and the others ran. "Just freaking run!"
Though floating, they hastily complied.
0:20
"Ohgodohgodohgodohgodoh- FUCK!" I cried, as Mammoth came charging into the factory, intent on finishing the fight. "No time for this!" I cried out, using increased strength to punch the mutated man in the jaw and send him sprawling to the ground.
He quickly got back up, just to hear Adam scream "NONE!" as he punched Mammoth with a haymaker.
Shakily, he tried getting back up...only for Architect to punch him so hard, he flew out from the roof and into the sky.
0:12
0:11
0:10
'Hey, how'd the mission go?' Conner asked, seeing Adam, Raven, Robin, Megan, Victor, Architect and I run out of the factory like bats out of hell.
/We theorize that something went wrong!/ Architect said running ahead of us.
'MIKEY BLOODY FUCKED UP!' Adam raged in the telepathic link.
'I DID NOTHING WRONG!'
'YOU DID EVERYTHING WRONG! YOU HAD ONE BLOODY JOB, AND YOU BLOODY COCKED IT U-!'
*KA-BBBBBOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMM!*
Thirty Minutes Later...
"-YOU BLOODY IDIOT! HOW COULD YOU HAVE COCKED UP THE ONE BLOODY JOB YOU HAD?! GOD, YOU'RE LIKE AN IMPERIAL STORMTROOPER'S AIMING WITH YOUR SKILLS!" a still angry and singed Adam raged, still speaking British. He was currently making a small trench in the ground as he marched back and forth, while I was currently on the receiving end of the tongue lashing. One that had been going on for half an hour (right after he told Duncan about my fuck up). "I fucking knew I shouldn't have given you a passing grade in diffusing bombs! But I didn't want sit through hours of trying to master that bullshit, so I gave you a fucking A! And that choice has come back to bite me in the arse!"
The rest of the Team were currently trying their best to stay out of it...until Wally opened his mouth. "But...Imperial Stormtroopers don't have aim," the speedster pointed out.
"Yeah, but First Order Stormtroopers are much more bloody competent," Adam muttered to himself.
"First Order?" Robin asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Wait, you don't know?" Adam asked in his normal accent, before pulling a calendar on his wrist computer, seeing the date. His eyes widened in realization. "Oh shit. You guys have five years till the new movie comes. Well, long story short, I'm a time traveler."
Silence reigned across the area as a result of that bombshell.
...
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"...WHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAATTTTTTTTTTTT?!"
Until Wally opened his mouth. Again.
"God, I swear you have hearing problems."
"Did you- did you just say- YOU'RE A TIME TRAVELER?!" Robin choked out.
"You say that like that's the most shocking thing you've heard in your life," Adam deadpanned. "Especially when you live in a world of aliens, magic, gods, demons, artificial intelligence, and super powers."
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"...I think you just broke Robin," I pointed out, concerned that the Boy Wonder was frozen to the spot.
At that, Adam spun around, rage in his eyes again, though not as bad as before. "And I'll break YOU if you FUCK UP AGAIN!"
I nodded my head in fear, not wanting to experience any more of Adam's infamous wrath. I've seen how far he'd go for simple revenge. I did not want to see how far he'd go for fucking up a piece of a mission that he had personally led.
...Now that I think about it, what even is 'fucking up', really?
"MIKEY, ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING?!"
"O-Okay, okay, I won't fuck up like that again!" I managed to get out, backing away from Adam as he got up in my face.
"Good to hear," he nodded. "Now, sit rep: what have we accomplished tonight?"
"W-Well, we stopped Kobra from making more Venom," Megan began.
"And we blew up the factory," Donna added as she gestured to the flaming ruins, "so Bane has nothing to go back to."
"On the downside, though, a lot of Kobra managed to get away during the explosion," Kaldur added. "Including Kobra himself."
"He can't run forever," I said. "Sooner or later, he'll show up again. And next time, we'll be there to bring him down."
"Other than that, I'd say mission accomplished," Robin said, all while admiring the burning building. "Though you realize that you two are gonna have to explain why we went against Batman's orders for Oberon's."
"That's our brother's problem, not ours," Adam and I said at once.
"...Fair enough."
"And with that out of the way, let's get the fuck out of here-"
An eerie red glow from beneath our feet cut Adam off, causing us to look down. Lines of red light spread out, connecting to each other until they formed a red pentagram in a circle.
Oh, and it was magic, too. Fun.
"DAFUQ IS THIS?!" I cried as none of us were able move out of the circle.
"I don't know! Why don't you ask it?!" Adam retorted, as the area suddenly brightened. "OH, SON OF A BIT-" He didn't get to finish as the entire team had suddenly disappeared in a flash of light, the only trace of our presence being a scorching hole in the ground.
Third Person's POV:
Zandia, July 23, 02:57 EET
In the depths of the Church of Blood's sanctum, Sebastian Blood observed the events through a pool of blood. With the aid of magic, he was able to use the spell the man in black taught him to bring Raven to his church, where his followers were waiting for her. The others...well, to him, they'd make good sacrifices.
"I've got you now, Raven. Soon, Lord Trigon will be upon us," Blood said as he gave a savage grin. "Now, come to us..."
"-CH!" Adam finished as he and the Team had now appeared on the other end of the magic circle. Everyone was flung onto the ground, smoking from the circle that shanghaied them from Santa Prisca. Groaning in pain, Adam looked around as he recovered...and found that they were still in what looked like a jungle, but the area felt...different. Restrained.
Whatever it was, he'd get back to it later. For now...
"Anyone dead?" he groaned/asked.
Everyone groaned in reply, showing they, too, survived the trip. Some threw in a few curses as well.
Getting up shakily, Michael muttered "I don't know why, but I have the urge to punch someone in the balls..."
"...The fuck are you looking at me for?!" Wally cried out, noticing the look in Michael's eyes.
"Well, you are closest."
"You can hurt Wally's balls later," Donna said as she dusted herself off. "In the meantime...any idea who- or what- brought us here?"
Back in his chamber, Blood gazed through the image...to find they ended up SOMEWHERE ELSE on the island. His response was to breathe calmly, saying...
"God...DAMMIT!"
And then promptly flip his shit.
"Don't know, don't care," Robin replied. "All I care about is getting the heck outta here."
"On it." Michael held out his hand, intent on opening a portal back to the cave...
...
...
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...
...only for nothing to happen. "...Ooooohhh...fuck."
"You can say that again," Adam muttered. "Something's interfering with our powers."
"Mine too," Raven said. "I can't open up a portal."
"Which means someone doesn't want us to leave," Conner said. "We're trapped."
"Who would-" Suddenly, Adam froze, noticing something in the distance...and smirked. "Ah...a victim," Adam menacingly muttered as he dashed off, his Dragon Arm materializing as he seemed to be chasing something.
Or someone.
Everyone tried to catch up with him, but it was in vain as he had already gone out of sight. "Aha! Gotcha, bitch!" came Adam's voice as they finally caught up and saw him pinning what looked to be a cultist to a tree (if the man's outfit was anything to go by).
"Please, don't, I have a family!" the captured cult member pleaded, his eyes closed.
"That's alright, bro. I have a family as well: a beautiful daughter named Theresa," Adam said, with a smile on his face, remembering a part of his life. He was also ignoring the looks of surprise on the rest of the Team's faces at that bit of info. "Now, if it isn't too much trouble-"
The cultist cut him off with a scoff. "How can anyone with an arm like that call himself a parent?" he asked, gesturing to the draconian arm. When the others looked at Adam, they could've sworn that his eyes had turned into red slits and black scales started growing on his face. "Preposter-"
He didn't get to finish as Adam tackled him to the ground with his Dragon Arm clawing at the guy's face.
"AAAAAA-!"
"I would like to take a moment..." Adam began, looking at his now blood-stained Dragon Arm, which was currently dripping said substance, "...and apologize for what happened back there."
"...U-Ummm...apology accepted, but you were so busy clawing that guy's face off and tearing up his arm, that half an hour passed," Robin said carefully, not wanting to set the unstable man off again.
"Yeah, well, I just wanted to show that guy what it would be like to be a parent with a messed up arm," the Aspect of Time 'defended'.
"...That's...pleasant..." Conner muttered.
"This unit predicted you would react that way upon the enemy's questioning of your parental methods," Architect said. He was used to this sort of thing, as it has happened before.
"Remind me never to piss you off," Victor said, suddenly very wary of his team mate.
"Ditto," Wally said, hiding behind the relative safety of Victor's frame.
"You are much worse than my sister when angered," Kory noted in awe.
Donna's eyes lit up as she finished processing something. "You have a daughter?" she asked with curiosity.
"Yep. Her code name is Darkborne. She's got my wit, as well as her mother's annoyingly charming tendency to cut straight to the point. Overall, she's a good kid."
"You say that as if you didn't know her that well," Raven noted.
"Well considering the time jump I made at that point, I was considered dead for years until I managed to land in the future, where the world was...wait, why am I talking about this to you guys?! I can't jeopardize the timeline!"
"And yet you're fine with jeopardizing our cover by attacking that guy?" Raven sarcastically asked.
To his credit, Adam had the decency to look embarrassed as the others stared at him.
"While we're on the subject, don't you think you went a little overboard with hurting that cultist?" Michael asked. "Especially when he tried running away from you?"
"...Are you questioning my patriotism?"
"Quote, 'I'll burn you all to get that son of bitch,' end quote?" Wally retorted sarcastically through lidded eyes, referring to Adam's threat when he and the team attempted to stop him from harming the cultist any more than needed.
"He was asking for it!"
"But even though you hit him, you somehow managed to hit EVERYTHING ELSE!" Donna cried out, pointing the various scorched areas around them.
"Oh piss off!" he shot back. Over their private telepathic link, Adam bemoaned 'I swear, this is starting to turn into a repeat of my world.'
'Which reminds me,' Michael began, recalling earlier on the ship. 'Adam...were you in the world of Young Justice as well?'
He sighed in annoyance, figuring his brother would bring that up again. 'Yeah,' he responded honestly. 'Came to my own halfway through the two years you and Duncan spent in this one prepping. Though I spent a week in that world before I helped form the Team. And so far, everything happening so far has proceeded...EERILY SIMILAR to my own world. The crap that happened here on this island in my world...it was very disturbing. Especially since it involved...my...Rachel...' Adam said, realization slowly dawning into his voice. He then grabbed my shoulder. 'Of course! This is Zandia, the same island in my world that housed the Church of Blood!' (A/N: Here's a fun fact: in the DC Universe, the island of Zandia really did serve as the home for the Church of Blood. The more you know)
'Church of Blood? I feel like I've heard that name before,' he thought.
"Architect, where are we?" Adam asked, already knowing, but putting up an act for the team as Architect pulled up a holographic map.
"/...We are on the island of Zandia in Europe,/" the A.I. answered solemnly.
Adam nodded his head, though with an irritated look on his face. "Son of a bitch," he muttered to himself.
"What? What's on Zandia?" Robin asked, getting a grim look on Adam's face.
One that told a story of terrifying detail.
"Something like the Cult of the Kobra, but far more extreme. Whereas the Kobra saw a man as a god, these guys actually worship a deity. And if they bring him into this world, it could spell the end for all," Adam said, a tone of remembrance in his voice.
"You tangoed with these guys before?" Wally asked, noticing the knowing tone, despite doubting the deity bit, he could still feel the grimness of the time traveler's voice.
"...Time travel is a very dangerous game, Kid. Yeah, I've fought with these fucks before. And I'm not lying when I speak of how much of a threat they can pose."
"How do you know about what they worship?" Kory asked.
"You even certain their 'god' is real?" Wally asked with doubt.
"Because I've fought the bastard myself. And I nearly lost my life doing so."
That stunned all present into silence, allowing Adam to continue speaking. As he spoke, he closed his eyes, the chest portion of his suit shifting away to show his chest.
More specifically, a scar on his chest.
It looked like he had been impaled in the center with a giant spear, as well as the scars of burn wounds around it.
"You see this? I got this when that bastard they call a god impaled me into the ground and forced me to watch as he caused destruction around the area. I was cocky- still am but not as much as back then. I pulled a bad time jump, and ended up in an alternate future, one of many possible futures, where these guys actually succeeded in bringing their god to this world. I watched innocent people die to this monster's destructive power.
"And I may be in a time where they're still alive, but I still have their deaths on my conscience. So you tell me: do I sound like I'm talking bullshit right now?" Adam asked, his eyes red with rage, probably remembering his fight with the deity in question. He then closed them with a sigh. "Ever since I left that time line, I swore that if any future that ends in chaos and destruction exists, I will do whatever it takes to prevent it from happening. Because I am the Timeshifter, and it is my duty to protect all of time," he said, with determination in his eyes.
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...
'...Was it my imagination or did I see an American flag slowly appear in the background as he was talking like one of those movie speeches where someone is talking in front of a flag?' Michael thought in slight wonder. Followed by him telepathically asking 'Did you really fight this deity, Adam?'
Getting a mental sigh from Adam, he replied 'Yeah. Though the way it happened is different from what I told them. Had to say to in a way that made sense here.'
'Fair enough.' Switching to actual speech, Michael said "Then the way I see it, they're probably the ones who shanghaied us to this place. So if we want any chance of getting away and keeping them from bringing us back against our will, we have one option: bring them down. Anyone game for this?"
"Like you even need too ask?" Adam said with a dark grin. "Any chance to kick these assholes in the balls again is like Christmas for me."
"We'll follow Adam's lead," Architect responded.
"I'm in," Kaldur nodded.
Robin nodded. "Same here."
"...This isn't going to end well," Raven muttered. "But I'm in."
"Ditto," Victor said.
"Don't see any other choice," Conner said, "so I'm in."
"Me too," Megan said.
"I'm with you," Kory nodded.
"Agreed," Donna said.
"Yeah, I'll think I'll be staying here, away from the crazy cultists," Wally said, leaning against a tree. And gaining surprised looks from the others.
He might not have believed too much in the supernatural, but if what Adam said was true, he wanted to stay as far away from these nutjobs as possible.
"...Sure, you can stay here," Adam calmly relented. "But when we get back, I'm going to shove my fist so far up your ass, people are going to think 'Wow, that is the whiniest looking puppet I've ever SEEN!'" he shouted, holding up his Dragon Arm for extra effect.
Said effect was a horrified Wally.
"...W-What?" he whimpered, absent-mindedly clutching his buttocks.
"The fuck?" Michael asked with the same horrified expression.
"SHOULDER! DEEP! KID!"
Recoiling in disgust and fear, he said "Okay, okay, I'm going with you!"
"I knew you'd see reason," Adam nodded, willing the Dragon Arm back to normal. Wally merely flipped the bird.
( Play "YES - ROUNDABOUT (JoJo's Bizarre Adventure ED1) || RichaadEB & Caleb Hyles")
"...You know, a thought occurs," Michael spoke up as realization dawned on him. "If this is the turf of some doomsday cult...you think they might've noticed the explosions Adam made?"
"Like a moth drawn to the flame."
Everyone turned around to the source of the voice. Said source was a pale-skinned young man with a sickening smirk, wearing a blood red cloak, red and blue clothing, and a bone-like headdress. He was flanked by numerous individuals wearing purple robes.
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"...You are so fired from the leader position," Victor said to Adam with a glare.
"Agreed," Michael growled in irritation. "No kidding, after this, your leadership privileges are revoked."
[=/=/=To Be Continued...]
And just like that, the Team have jumped out of the proverbial frying pan, and into the possibly literal fire. With the Church of Blood surrounding them, and cut off from the Justice League and Duncan, how will they manage to get out of this predicament?
Find out the answer to that question- and more- in the next chapter.
Before continuing, I'd like to point this out: yes, an event similar to what happened here (and the next chapter) occurs/occurred in BioshockerN7's story "Multiverser Justice", which chronologically takes place before the events of this story. As discussed between he and I, we agreed to have it as a running gag where events similar to what happened to Adam Verser in his world occurs in Michael Verser in his world as well (much to the former's mental shock).
Also, for those of you who are also fans of VindictiveDunc's tale "MLTI VRSE", this chapter (as well as the next) take place after his first visit to Terra Infinitas, but before the events of the latest "MLTI VRSE" chapter. Ergo, that means that certain events have yet to happen to Michael (though they will), and he has yet to find his new goal that he attained in that chapter. That being said, he still has [Aura Radiance] and Weisslogia to work with, as well as a secret project he's been working on for the Breach. What is this weapon, you ask?
Stay tuned to find out. Until then, please leave a review/comment. BUT NO FLAMES!
Hero of the Multiverse, over and out.
