Precisely six hours later, she was sitting at her desk yet again, shooting the clock anxious looks every few minutes.
7:54.
Damn it.
Hurry the hell up. She internally growled at time itself as she tried to look busy on something while not actually starting any new projects. She'd picked up an entry to the "Dear Missy" advice column in yesterday's paper that morning and was trying to come up with a letter piece to respond to it, though she had no intention of ever sending it.
Then again, she might. Just to tick the advice columnist off. And if she was spending an hour and a half on such an easy piece, she might as well show off her skills.
…
…
...
She hit send and glanced at the clock.
8:23.
Damn it!
Coffee. Coffee was a good idea. No, not the boring stuff they had here, she'd take a walk down the street. She stood to leave and nearly bumped into Jimmy.
"Wha- oh, hey Jimmy." She said trying to move around him.
"Hey Lois… hey, have you seen Clark?"
She froze for a brief moment as her anticipation nearly overwhelmed her before turning back to him with feigned disinterest. "Thought he said he was going back to Smallville for a family thing. Should be back tomorrow or something."
"Oh," The younger man said in surprise. "Did he tell Perry?"
No he did not, and seeing as we're not super busy yet, his needs a better excuse. She thought. "I don't think so, but it sounded like an emergency. I'm sure he'll call when he can, you know Smallville." She brushed him off, moving away and he seemed satisfied with that.
He can thank me later. She thought smugly. Or, we'll just call it even if this 'surprise' is really all that worth it. She shrugged.
She got her coffee and was back at her desk at precisely 8:53. She sighed in relief, starting to re-read some of her recent stuff, spending the last minutes trying hard not to notice the infuriatingly slow way the second hand was counting down…
8:58…
"Superman?!" Someone gasped, and her head snapped up fast enough to get whip-lash. People were whipping around to see Jimmy staring with wide eyes… out the window?
Her eyes followed his gaze, out the wall of glass that revealed the beautiful skyline of Metropolis—which was completely wasted in this office, where the workaholic writers barely ever looked up from their computers—and felt her jaw drop slightly.
Superman, in all his superhero-ness and larger-than-life Boy Scout impersonation was hovering just outside the glass, smiling warmly at the reporters currently gaping at him, alien blue eyes twinkling happily at their shock. He scanned the room quickly and locked eyes with Lois.
She nearly had a heart attack when he gestured her to come to the window.
Everyone else—whose jaws were also all hanging wide open at this point—watched in astonishment as she ran to the window and flew it open.
"Uh… hello, Superman." She said awkwardly, but throwing her shoulders back and clenching her jaw in determination, refusing to let the eyes on her stop her from finding out what he wanted.
You are SO dead for this, Smallville. She thought as she fought back the blush of embarrassment at this situation. Lois Lane DID NOT get embarrassed.
Clark had done this on purpose, just to throw her, she was sure.
Oh, he was going down…
"Lois." Superman nodded to her in greeting, his 'I'm-in-charge-and-here-to-help' voice that caused many to flitter in awe that the actual Superman was hovering outside the Daily Planet windows. (which, Lois thought was totally idiotic seeing as he typically avoided reporters from his own office on the off chance they'd make the connection between is secret identity and his hero mantel if they got close enough)…(thought admittedly Lois had indeed been VERY close to both Clark and Superman and didn't guess at it for a years... but that's not important right now) "Are you busy today?" He said innocently with a kind smile, and she heard several behind her shift and whisper. Superman's eyes flashed behind her, and they fell silent.
Super-hearing, idiots! She scoffed in her head.
"I'm working on a story." She said firmly, not going to let him just whisk her away that easily. Perry would have a fit. "Why?" She demanded.
He smiled knowingly. "I have a story of my own for you. I was told we needed a reporter or two, and I said I knew a few. You and Kent have done some impressive things."
She felt her eyebrows starting to raise in disbelief.
"'We'?" She asked.
His smile broadened when he realized he'd gotten her. He held out a hand in offering as his answer.
"Kent's home in Smallville." She said argued. It would be hilarious if this backfired on him and he couldn't share in this story as he obviously intended by mentioning himself as one of the reporters he wanted to take.
"We can pick him up on the way. Won't take more than a minute." His smile told her he knew exactly what she was thinking.
Damn, super-speed. Forgot about that.
"And just like that I'm suppose to follow you?" She huffed, slightly insulted he'd make her play out this damsel-in-distress-in-love-with-her-savior act. She was often kidnapped and he did often save her on top of being the man she was in love with, but that was beside the point. She didn't like to show it, was all, especially in front of the entire office.
"You don't have to," He said easily, shrugging a bit indifferently, but still managing to smirk. "Though, if you do, I would be honored. Tell me, how do you feel about space travel?"
She stared at him for a long moment.
"Chief! I'm going out!" She called, not taking her eyes off the man hovering before her.
"Yeah, yeah, just get the damn story!" She heard her boss shout behind her.
She reached over and took Superman's still-out stretched hand and he pulled her out the window easily. The next instant they were off, leaving the Daily Planet as a tiny speck on the earth far below in seconds. He started curving in the air, heading west.
"Where're we going?" She demanded as the earth shot by beneath them in a blur of colors. She would have been freezing in the wind, but he'd gotten very good and shielding her from most of the cold and rapid winds.
"Smallville." He said innocently.
She rolled her eyes. "That was a front. Where are we really going?"
"Directly up, actually. But since you can't survive in outer space without a space suit, we're taking a safer approach, which is back home, so we really are going to Smallville." He clarified most unhelpfully and she huffed in annoyance.
"Fine then, I can wait." She allowed. She'd been waiting all morning after all. "That was quite the scene you pulled." She accused, shoving his shoulder though she could've been shoving a boulder for all it did.
He grinned. "Purely for my own enjoyment," He laughed and she growled at him. "But really, you'll appreciate it when you get back with the biggest scoop of the year and get to keep everyone waiting in suspense for it."
She considered it for a moment, and decided the know-it-all inside her actually really enjoyed that fact.
She wasn't going to say it though.
"Fine, you're excused for now. I still have to see what this is all about." She grumbled, and he laughed again. "And way to work it so you're on the story as well. And here I thought there was no hope for you."
"Just because I don't fight tooth and nail to get every by-line doesn't mean I don't work hard for it anyway," He pointed out. "I'm just not as aggressive as some people I know."
"I take that as a compliment." She deadpanned.
"As you should," His own deadpan tarnished by the smirk fighting on his lips. "However, of all the people to co-write this with you, I'm the most qualified to answer the questions you're bound to have after today. We only have an half an hour or so of their time and then about an hour or two more while you still have access—sorry, in advance for these security measures, it wasn't my idea, and the guy who came up with them has some pretty intense paranoia."
"Who is 'them'?" She pleaded, but he just smiled in excitement. She groaned in annoyance. "Fine then, keep it to yourself! Just fly faster, Boy Scout."
He laughed once, and their pace picked up until the wind was so loud she wouldn't have been able to hear him even if he yelled in her ear. Not two minutes later they started slowing and descending. The familiar farm came into view, and she could almost see the smoke coming from the chimney and hear Mrs. Kent waving hello, when they passed right over it.
"Woah, where're we going?" She asked.
"A little ways out of town," He promised her. "It's only a temporary entrance. Again, they didn't want you knowing where the official entrances were, seeing as you'd be vaporized if you ever tried to enter without permission."
She stared at him. "What kind of whack-job designed this place? And where is it that it's in space, but one of its entrances is in Kansas?" He said nothing and she glared at him.
They started dropping quickly and a forest came up around them. Superman touched down lightly on the forest floor and set Lois on her feet. She glanced around expectantly, and he smirked as he took her hand and pulled her through the trees until they came to a metallic-looking arch. It was free-standing, meaning there was nothing there but an arch: no entrances.
"What is it?" She frowned, expecting more.
He chuckled. "It's only a temporary entrance, mind you. Once we're done, I'll move it to its real location."
Her frown deepened. "It doesn't lead anywhere." She pointed out.
Clark rolled his eyes. "Such little faith, huh? Anyway, the important thing to remember is not to forget who you're talking to. We're open to questions, just don't get too deep ok? This isn't a personal interview, this is an interview on behalf of all of us as a group. A few of them know I'm Clark Kent, but some don't, so try and keep that quiet. I wasn't lying when I said they needed a reporter and I volunteered you, so don't try and out-do yourself by getting neck-deep in this. The sheer fact you're going to step foot anywhere near this place is more than enough of a story."
She tried to take all that in. "Are you going to show me, or just keep giving me rules?" She challenged.
He sighed. "Fine then, one more rule: no recorders."
She blinked. "Wait, what? Then how will I cite my sources?! If I don't have the facts lined up, it's not-!"
"You have Superman's word that what you say is true, plus about thirty reporters who all watched you go. Besides that, I'll help you write it so you have the direct source to make sure everything is factually in check." He reasoned calmly, and she debated that for a moment.
"Fine…" She grumbled.
He grinned. "Great! Let's go," He took her hand and pulled her towards the arch. She wasn't afraid until a moment before they entered it—after all, they'd just go through it, right?—and Superman wrapped one arm around her waist tightly, holding her firmly against his side like they were about to…
Her stomach dropped away and the world spun in a sickening blur of colors, but not the greens and browns of the forest. Light and electricity seemed to glow around her, streaked with every color she could think of.
And just like that it was over in an instant, and she hadn't even finished gasping at the strange sensation.
"Recognized… Superman, A-01…Recognized…Guest, Z-03…" A female robotic voice announced, echoing around the room. Lois looked up and felt her jaw drop of its own accord for the second time in less than twenty minutes.
The room was spacious like a gymnasium, made of metal with screens dotting the walls in-between a dozen or so identical metallic arches like the one they'd just stepped through in the forest. She glanced behind her and saw the other side of the arch she'd stepped through, but beyond it she could only see a small alcove in the wall. She wondered where all these other gateways lead to… they could go anywhere, and this seemed like a meeting point of a lot of different places…
"About time!" Someone called in relief, and Lois felt a small breeze before a man in a scarlet red, skin-tight suit was suddenly standing in front of the pair, grinning from ear to ear… or little lightning bolt to little lightning bolt as the small decorations seemed to be over the ears of his cowled face.
"We're early, Flash." Superman pointed out in amusement.
Her eyes bugged out.
"The Flash…" She choked out.
"Excellent! You didn't tell her anything!" The speedster howled in excitement. "This is gonna be awesome, I can't wait to see her face- and then the observation deck! You have to let me come, this is-!"
"Ignore him." Superman said helpfully, taking Lois' arm and pushing past the rapidly babbling scarlet speedster. "He's easily excited." He teased lightly, and she heard Flash snort behind them.
"I've been waiting for an hour! Do you know how long that is to me?" He complained as they walked out of the room to a side door.
"You need more patience."
"You need to learn to be pre-punctual!"
"What, show up before you're meant to?" Lois blurted out, snapping her jaw shut as she suddenly felt like she was getting in-between two giants, but sighed in relief as neither seemed to mind her interruption.
"Exactly," Flash said happily, taking Lois' statement as a sign she was on his side.
"I am pre-punctual or whatever. I call it being early. For you and your speed, you're always late, how was I supposed to know this would be the one time you'd be here when you were supposed to?" Superman argued.
"Because he's been infuriatingly excited for this all week." A female voice said dryly as they entered the next room. Lois felt her mouth go dry as she looked past everything to see the giant glass windows showing out into… space. Outer space in fact. Like, she was actually orbiting around the earth at that moment, thousands of miles up…
At least, she hoped they were orbiting the earth. If that teleporter could get them somewhere new in the blink of an eye, what's to say it couldn't get them somewhere very far away…
She shook it off, knowing that if she wanted, Clark would take her back the teleporter and back to Kansas and then her desk in less than five minutes… it was just, a lot to take in right then.
And she wasn't wimping out.
She tried to focus and saw that the room was massive, easily fitting several gymnasiums. There was a center pillar that led upwards, and she could see different floors and levels going up into the bowels of this massive… space station, she guessed she'd call it for now.
No one was on the floor they were except a blonde woman who was typing away at a large computer console, with dozens of holographic screens displaying files and videos and text at rapid paces. She didn't take her eyes off the screen she was currently looking at as she addressed them, and while Lois felt she could speak freely with Superman and Flash for a) knowing Superman well, and b) Flash's super-friendly persona, she had a feeling her and this woman would get along simply on 'woman power' as Lois called it.
The blonde had on a thick black choker necklace, black leather jacket and boots, and a skin-tight gray and black suit beneath it. She radiated confidence and power, like she knew she had skills and wasn't afraid to use it. Lois liked it immediately, feeling that this woman knew exactly what it was like to fight her way through a man's world and finally get the respect and fear she deserved.
Oh yes, they would get along.
"Canary." Superman said in greeting and the woman nodded, without looking over.
Lois blanched. He didn't mean…Black Canary, did he?
"Superman," Another female voice came, this one slightly louder and more formal, but altogether more friendly that Canary's biting tongue. Lois glanced about but didn't see anyone, and her heart jumped as a figure seemed to fall from above and land before them.
Lois' eyes went even wider than before when she saw the new (alarmingly beautiful) woman was wearing nothing more than a bathing suit, with a golden rope on her hip and silver manacles on her wrists. She had long black hair pushed back by a golden tiara with a red star in the middle.
Wait…She didn't fall, she FLEW down... Wonder Woman? Lois marveled. How many superheroes were in this place?
No, it couldn't be…
She started to put the pieces together.
"Diana, this is Lois Lane, the reporter who's going to break the story." Clark spoke up, and Wonder Woman looked curiously down at the fellow raven.
"A pleasure to meet you," She said in an old-fashioned, formal way. "We have greatly anticipated this day for some time now. Superman assures us you have much experience writing on heroes."
Lois tried to keep her cool while having a mini-internal panic-attack while smiling at the heroine-HER heroine… she may have been a LITTLE bit of a fan of the powerful Amazon… just a little.
"It's an honor to meet you too, and I hope I'm up for this. I still have no clue what's going on." Lois allowed.
"I told Supes to keep it a surprise!" Flash called from where he was watching the screens with Canary.
Diana laughed. "Oh dear, I hope we do not overwhelm you," She smiled warmly.
"I almost wish it would," Superman said thoughtfully, eyes twinkling as he caught Lois' eye. "I have yet to ever see Lois Lane overwhelmed; it might be funny."
Lois huffed. "Keep dreaming, Boy Scout, not gonna happen." She quipped back. Again, she mentally cursed herself for letting her tone slip back into the familiarity it usually was with Clark—after all, here he was Superman and kinda earned a bit more respect than that. But, she was slightly relieved to see those present smirk a little, so she knew that they knew what their relationship was in civilian guise.
"Boy Scout…? I like it," A man in green with a large bow in his hand and a quiver of fancy-looking arrows came through the door from the teleporters. "Remind me to use that," He smirked.
"Because God knows you need the help for your insults." Canary snarked from across the room, and the blonde archer shot her an exasperated glare.
"Green Arrow, this is Lois Lane." Superman introduced, and the archer's eyes lit up upon seeing the reporter.
"Pleasure to meet you," Lois nodded politely, not liking the way his eyes strayed to her skirt.
"No, no! Pleasure's all mine," He grinned a thousand-watt smile, shaking her hand. Superman obviously noted this too, and Green Arrow took a couple steps back as the Kryptonian glare he was getting.
"Idiot…" Lois heard Canary mutter not-so-quietly under her breath.
"Oh great, the writer's here." Another female voice came, only this one was much rougher than anyone else's, having a harder, aggressive edge to it.
"Hawkgirl," Superman smiled politely as a woman in a hawk-like mask swooped down to them, giant, regal bronze wings arched out to slow her landing. A black man in a black and green suit who seemed to be glowing emerald green flew down beside her. "Green Lantern." Clark acknowledged.
"Name's John, Miss." Lantern nodded with a polite smile to her, and she smiled back. Lois had the distinct feeling he was only smiling to temper the scrutinizing glare she was getting from the bird woman beside him.
She was thankful for it: while she thought she and Canary would get along from 'woman power', and Lois had worshiped the ground Wonder Woman had stood on since first hearing about the Amazon, Hawkgirl was a bit too aggressive it seemed. She looked like she wouldn't mind getting into a fight with the reporter, not caring that she was a superhero and Lois was not. She was frighteningly assertive and aggressive, and that much was very much evident even just standing ten feet away from her.
"I have been informed that Aquaman is dealing with matters in Atlantis and will not be joining us." A disembodied voice spoke, and Lois' heart skipped a beat as a spectral ghost rose from the floor beside where the little group had gathered, suddenly becoming a very solid green man in a blue cape.
"Why? I thought he loved to talk about himself." Green Arrow huffed.
"He's only upset we're talking about the League as a whole, not specifically about his own wonderful self." Hawkgirl scoffed shortly.
"My apologizes, Ms. Lane," The green man said, bowing his head slightly to the reporter, whose heart was just starting to slow at his shocking appearance. She wondered briefly how he knew her name, but decided not to put anything past a giant space station full of superheroes. "My name is J'onn Jones, I am the Martian Manhunter. I did not mean to alarm you." He said smoothly, and Lois found herself comforted by his presence. Even if his name implied he was a Martian, she was technically dating a Kryptonian reporter, so she had no right to have a problem with that, which she didn't.
"It's ok, I'm quickly learning not to expect anything," Lois smiled back at him. "This day just seems to be one big surprise." She allowed, shooting a small glare at Clark, who shrugged guilty, though pointedly not ashamed.
"Which is still a bad idea." A growl came, and despite her previous statement, Lois nearly jumped a foot in the air in surprise, not expecting anyone to have suddenly been standing a few feet to her left without any sense he'd been there previously.
She almost jumped again when she looked and saw none other than Batman, aka the Dark knight and the one hero possibly scarier than any villain she would come across. There were no pictures ever caught of the caped crusader, he barely spoke three words to the public, and almost everything known about him came from recounts of the criminals he'd locked up- and that rap sheet alone was scary enough to give her nightmares. The fact he was standing four feet from her was possibly the most overwhelming thing that today could have brought.
"Damn it! How does he do that?!" Flash complained, and Lois was comforted that she didn't seem to be the only one who jumped at his arrival. In fact, it seemed J'onn alone seemed unsurprised by his sudden appearance, even Clark jumping slightly
"That was uncalled for." Superman frowned, and the dark knight gave him a blank look and raised one eyebrow beneath his cowl.
"Walking?" He deadpanned.
"No, appearing out of nowhere," Superman complained. "I have super hearing for Christ's sake, you couldn't have just appeared without putting some effort into making sure I couldn't hear you!"
Batman didn't react to the Man of Steel berating him, simply lifting another eyebrow skeptically.
Lois realized this was a battle that Clark was going to lose. Usually, being Superman and all, he was sort of the top dog so long as he had the cape on, but now, seeing this, she saw it differently.
Not that it seemed that Batman was in charge per say, it seemed by the body language and expressions of everyone in the room that Superman and Batman were the sort of unofficial co-leaders, and this bickering was a very common sort of thing.
Her respect for Clark doubled instantly. After all, he argued with the god damned Batman. He was her new hero, super powers aside.
"Can we get on with this? I was rather busy." Batman growled, moving to the computer consol, and Lois made note that she didn't hear him walking now either.
"So… what are we getting on with exactly?" Lois asked carefully. She was curious, but unlike before when she got in the middle of Flash and Superman, she really did feel like she was overstepping her bounds, trying to get in-between, or at least on par with Superman and Batman. Well, Batman really, as he seemed to radiate a dark confidence and power, and Superman seemed to be stepping up on his "in-control-superhero" mojo to banter with the darker hero.
She felt like she was standing between Russia and the US during the Cold War as they pointed an arsenal of nuclear weapons at each other, trying to ask them her normal reporter-ing questions and act like everything was casual. One did not simply get involved with two massive superpowers without feeling a bit out of place.
But she bit those doubts back and continued on, looking at all the heroes in the room expectantly for answers. They requested her, after all.
"We've recently formed a group to help spread our resources across the globe," Superman answered happily, glancing at everyone in the room who was watching this exchange closely. "We call ourselves the Justice League." He said proudly, and some rolled their eyes, but some smiled warmly at his excitement.
"Which was better than the title I came up with," Flash said randomly.
"Anything's better than the things you come up with." Hawkgirl snipped, and he frowned petulantly at her.
"W-wait, a group, as in…" She glanced about the room, taking it all in. "Oh." She said weakly. "Oh!" She realized as all the implications at that announcement finally sunk in.
"And it is not just us," Wonder Woman added. "There are others, though those you see before you today are what we consider founding or original members."
"There's Aquaman too, the king of Atlantis, but he rarely shows to these sort of things. Something about distaste for surface dwellers I think." Canary rolled her eyes.
"Well, the feeling's mutual." Green Arrow grumbled.
"And you all… do what exactly?" Lois asked, getting into the swing of the interview.
"We go where we are needed." Wonder Woman answered.
"This space station is what we call the Watchtower, sort of like a home-base." Superman explained. "We take turns on guard duty, calling out missions to League members, facilitating transport across the globe, and acting like a communicator to the many members around the world. Official League members can take up residence here if they wish."
"But non-members are prohibited from even getting close. You informed her about that, right?" Batman demanded of Superman, who rolled his eyes.
"Course I did. Can't having you vaporizing her, can I?" He snarked back.
Lois suddenly realized who 'Mr. Paranoid' as Clark had called him was, and why the security measures around this place were so tight. Somehow, she wasn't at all surprised it was Batman, and now wasn't at all interested in trying to figure a way around it. It probably wouldn't work out well for her. Hell, it probably wouldn't work out for the US government, if they were so inclined.
Speaking of that train of thought…
"So, the government knows about this place? I mean, the world's governments seeing as space is technically common ground." She asked.
"They know." Batman rasped curtly, not going into detail.
"We told the world's leaders what we planned to do, and since our members consist of people from nearly every nation on earth, most were ok with it seeing as they were decently represented, and everyone falls under our protection if we can have the manpower." Canary explained.
"What about the countries that didn't agree?" Lois asked warily.
"We convinced them." Batman grunted, again shortly, and this time no one elaborated. Lois didn't push, picturing Batman in the oval office just daring the president to say no. She didn't think any sane person would object to that.
"Ok…" She allowed. "So, how many members are there exactly?"
"Classified." Batman growled.
Superman sighed heavily at his fellow hero's bluntness. "We're not going into detail about our members, for security reasons. We may be a mass number of heroes to increase our effectiveness and combine our strengths, but that means we also have an even larger amount of collective enemies against us." He explained, and Lois faltered under that idea.
This really was the big leagues now- no pun intended- it wasn't just Superman against a giant robot tearing apart the city or Lex Luthor as she got kidnapped again, this was that times ten. Times a hundred or a thousand, or however many members there were. This was massive.
"We can't have all the world's villains knowing which heroes are in the League, which are on their own, and so forth. It's bad strategy, and we don't want to give them a chance to form their own organization, or at least do what we can to prevent it." Green Lantern agreed.
"But we are all well-known amongst the world," Wonder Woman supplied. "Us ten, once Aquaman rejoins us, will be the face of the League, and individual members willing to reveal their involvement can do so at their own discretion. Other than that, we will keep specific League information classified."
Lois nodded to that. "So, besides the specifics, generally speaking you all work together? To do what exactly, other than the traditional roles you've played before?"
"Many of us are from other worlds." Hawkgirl said. "We've ended up here and wish to fight." She smiled a bit sadistically at the end, talking about fighting.
"We wish to help." J'onn clarified smoothly. "If it manifests itself into fighting for innocents, then that is what it shall be. My people have long since gone, I am the last of my kind, and I wish to call earth my new home. Other travelers from distant worlds may find a new home to protect a welcome gift."
"But some of us have cities of our own to protect," Green Arrow said.
"And others simply fight against certain villains," Canary added in.
"Or both," Superman shrugged.
"Either way, we're only one person for an entire city, and when things get to be a little too much or just a little bit out of hand, it's nice to know you can call up and ask for some help." Green Arrow allowed.
"'Cept Bats, who doesn't allow any meta-humans in his city." Flash grinned, and then flashed to hide behind Superman as Batman shot him a truly terrifying glare.
"Ignoring him," Green Lantern smirked, continuing on, "Plus, on top of all that, The Green Lantern Corps is an inter-galactial organization that protects innocents against threats and tries to keep peace in the universe. I was chosen as the representative on earth, but forming this League has brought the planet up to a level four and allowed it to join into the universe's ranks better. Not only will the League help organize and focus the world's protector's energy's better, but it will also allow earth to speak as one when dealing with other worlds, even be able to send out help to other worlds that need it."
"Again, the world's leaders just let you speak for them?" Lois asked with a frown.
"Not for them exactly," Superman tried to clarify. "Just… I guess, other alien races typically don't want to sit down and talk about peace treaties or trade with earth: most planets don't see earth as technologically advanced enough for that yet. And, by the time we are, I would also suspect there would be an international government of sorts to deal with that as well."
"…oh," Lois said. "You're talking about invasions." She realized.
"Yeah, and I'm pretty sure the world leaders are ok with us telling alien invaders to back off." Flash chuckled.
Lois considered that for a split second. "Duly noted." She agreed. "So…why now? I assume you've called me here to break the news that the Justice League exists and its functions in relation to the world, but is there any specific reason you chose today?"
They all exchanged perplexed looks.
"No, not really." Flash shrugged. "We had a break in our schedules." He grinned.
Lois was struck yet again with shock as it hit her that these people before her all had day jobs, just like Clark. Even Batman, strange as it seemed. She couldn't fathom it.
"We just got the Watchtower working properly and our systems and routines finalized." Canary supplied. "We're just ready now, that's all. We never had any intentions of keeping this secret, only secret enough so that our enemies wouldn't stop us during construction."
"But you haven't had time to figure out if this is even going to work?" Lois asked.
"You doubt us?" Green Arrow huffed.
Lois realized her mistake, and though she typically didn't really pay attention to who she insulted when pursuing a story, she belatedly realized that this was not the group to be insulting with her techniques.
"No, you've all proven yourself as great heroes, without a doubt," She assured him, backtracking without giving away that's what she was doing. She had her pride to maintain after all. "But, that's just it: you're all great heroes, on your own. Is there any proof that jumping straight from individuals to a massive team is going to work?"
They all glanced about again, surprised by the question.
"We worked together in the invasion that happened six months ago," Hawkgirl reminded them bluntly. "Why wouldn't it work now?"
"It's a much bigger team, and there's no dire necessity anymore except membership into a club without any reputation yet." Lois pointed out; faltering a little at the intense look the winged woman was giving her.
"But, as you said, we're all reputable heroes on earth." Superman said gently, getting between the two women before Hawkgirl threw a punch. "We hope this article can encourage the world that there is a credible team protecting them."
"And it hardly matters if members quit, this is all voluntary anyway." Canary shrugged. "And anyone crazy enough to be a vigilante wouldn't simply quit because they get nothing from joining. We join as heroes fighting for order and justice and all that great touchy-feely stuff: this is just a way to become connected to others as crazy as ourselves."
"Yeah, Batman's technically not a member, yet he practically helped found this place. Says he's not a 'people person', yet he's willing to help where needed." Green Lantern said, ignoring the death-glare shot his way for that. "We're all just trying to help. Even if all our other members quit, there will still be us ten, and I'd like to think we're a decent enough force for most of the things thrown our way."
"I believe the process of missions is so that individuals can be individuals if they choose and work it their own way, and offer their own help to those willing to ask for it. It does not necessarily mean we are all working as one large team on every mission." J'onn summed it up.
Lois thought it all over. "I suppose… I don't suppose there's anything else I could ask then. It would be up to see what happens next." She decided, referring to whatever acts of heroism they got themselves publicized for, and they nodded back to her in understanding. They were all pretty used to that drill by now.
"And Superman will always be available to answer later questions as well," Wonder Woman smiled warmly.
"I've also informed him of all specific procedure of what can be revealed to the public and what cannot, so he will actually be a decent factual source." Batman deadpanned.
"'Informed', more like drilled it into me." Clark mumbled.
"And he will be keeping personal opinions on other league members out of his reporting." Hawkgirl growled threateningly, twirling her mace between her fingers as easily as if it were a pencil.
"Of course," Superman rolled his eyes and shaking his head in disappointment at her doubt. "And since we still have a few minutes while her clearance still allows her to be here, I'll show her the observation deck and we'll get on our way, yes?"
"Great!" Flash nodded excitedly. "Love watching people's faces first time they're there! And I, uh, might've told my colleagues I was going on a bathroom break—any longer here and I think they might start to get worried…!" He grinned cheekily, disappearing in a blur tracing his path to a side door where Lois saw the vast windows revealing out into space on the opposite wall.
Hawkgirl and Green Arrow stalked away without another word, but the others milled around discussing things with themselves.
Lois glanced at where Batman had been standing, and blinked a bit to find it vacant. After a quick scan of the large room, she deduced he was truly gone.
"Come on," Clark smiled at her, noticing her brief search for the missing knight. "You won't find him—he doesn't stick around much longer than strictly necessary. The others will mill around here for a bit to answer any other questions you have." He explained, guiding her out of the room.
They entered the observation deck, and Lois felt her jaw drop.
Earth.
So… beautiful, so unbelievably vast, so silent and so… just, breathtaking.
She heard Flash let out a deep laugh, obviously enjoying her reaction, but she couldn't turn away to spare him a glance. This… this, all that beauty and silent life spinning so far below them… that was what they all stood to protect from the unseen threats that would come from the countless stars stretching out endlessly in the space around their small, beautiful home. From here, that one little planet was so small, and the vast space around it so large…
The streak of red flashing here and there, the flutter of wings higher up in the station's levels, the deep laughs and many voices talking business with their fellows… and most importantly the strong and silent presence of a man of steel standing beside her as together they gazed at their wondrous little planet.
They were here to protect such a small planet from such a large, imposing space.
If she had the power, she would gladly stand here and join their cause in an instant, without a moment's hesitation.
There was such nobility in the grace of standing silent above a world who did not know they were loved, that they were being protected and cared for.
…and it was her job to tell them of their heroes, of their saviors they did not know they had.
Biggest. Story. Ever.
"Was it worth the wait?" Clark asked quietly beside her, the smirk in his voice clearly audible.
She would've rolled her eyes if she could tear them away from the glorious sight below them.
So instead she just let out an impatient huff.
"You're still not getting my byline."