"Let's just say I'm a friend. I can tell you're scared. My name is Kal-El, and I'm here to help."

Those words meant more to him than he could have honestly thought. A helping hand, coming in to drag him out of the darkness. Falling back, he could only look up at the now named Kal-El, tilting his head in confusion. It did beg the question though. Who was this flying being? Why was he so eager to help?

"Listen, we can start off slow. Alright?" Kal-El told him, slowly hovering over to the rooftop where he had been this whole time. Magnus… was that his name? He let out a groan as he tried to recall. Tried to understand just what words were making sense, and what words did not. He couldn't help it, stumbling backwards as the pain came once again. His mind was once again pulling tricks on him, and in the presence of someone who could help him.

"I… I don't uh…" For a moment, he was able to look up once more. A concerned look came to Kal-El's features. It was hard to tell if it was genuine or not, but for his own sake he had to hope that the former was the truth and not the latter. But as Kal-El got closer, he could only stumble back as the confusion threatened to overtake him, with everything that had gone down.

"Easy does it. Okay? Let's start slowly. Your name. Can you tell me your name?" Kal-El asked him. He frowned, holding his head in one hand as he tried to claw back at those words, fleeting at the edges of his mind. The words were there, he could practically feel them on the tip of his tongue. But just as Magnus reached him, he could only pause.

"Magnus? It was Magnus, right?" He asked himself, his gaze going blank as the confusion set in. He did his best to try and stop the quickening of his breath, that sheer panic and confusion that had been occurring before threatening once more to take over. He could feel it in te back of his mind. Words were there. But they held no meaning. No true tug at his heart. It was all just… blank. Meaningless in a sense. And that hurt. It hurt because if he could not even answer a question as simple as his name, then what hope did he have going from here on out?

Whether it be the way that he spoke, or how he had reacted to the question however, Kal-El did not get angry. He did not get frustrated, and in fact only held up his hands. It was an attempt to calm him. Not a placation, but a genuine attempt to reach out at the very least. It did help, but only slightly.

"Hey, hey. That's okay. You're scared. I can see that. Just take a deep breath, alright? In and out." Kal-El calmly instructed, his voice one of calm and encouragement. "I said I was here to help. I'm gonna do that. Just test it out. Say what you've been calling yourself, and work from there. If it sounds right? It sounds right. If not? We'll figure this out. Promise" Kal-El said, offering him a soft grin.

He could only nod, taking a small, shivering breath as he tried to school his features. He had already cried enough for one night, and clearly he had to at least have an understanding of what to call himself. He did his best to just mutter the names, not speaking loud enough to bother the only other person on the rooftop with him.

"Magnus. I… I can not promise that this is really my name. It is just the only one that sounds right to me, for right now at least. You can call me Magnus." He stated, giving a nod as he shakily stood up. "...Where am I? I do not know…Well. I think I mentioned it before. I do not know anything. I woke up and I was crashing….here." He finally said, gesturing out towards the rest of… the city? City was probably the right word in this situation. Kal-El let out a good-natured chuckle, finally landing on the rooftop. He took a careful step towards Magnus, following his gaze. Magnus decided that it was more than likely okay that Kal-El approached him. He hadn't shown any sort of hostile actions so far, and that meant more than anything else.

"Metropolis. That's the name of the city that you've found yourself in. As for the planet? Earth. Does that ring any sort of bells? Do those names mean anything to you?" Kal-El asked him, and Magnus frowned. He crossed his arms and once more tried to drag up any sort of ideas or memories. Giving off a brief wince, he shook his head. Nothing. Again nothing. At the very least, he had a name for himself. If he had a name, that was a start to everything.

"No. I'm sorry…Kal-El?" Magnus asked, glancing back at him. He nodded, and Magnus continued. "I am trying here, but nothing is coming to me. It's just…" For a moment, he tried to find the words. "A blank. That's the best way I can describe it. I…there's words. Jumbled fragments of names and ideas. But nothing I can rely on." He admitted. Neither spoke after that, letting the silence hang as Magnus was finally able to think with some clarity. Of course, that brought up another question that broke the silence.

"There was a vehicle. I stopped it by accident. And then I pushed someone else when they tried to approach me. Was anyone hurt?" He asked, looking towards Kal-El, who only shook his head.

"Don't worry. They were the first ones I checked up on. The car's okay, just a few dents. The person you pushed is fine, just slightly shaken up." He said, and Magnus could only let out a sigh. "Trust me, I know what it's like not knowing my own strength." Kal-El said, gesturing for Magnus to take a seat. "Come on. Sit down. Relax. We got something important to talk about." He continued. For a moment, Magnus was confused. He frowned, trying to understand what he did wrong, and found nothing. With some reluctance, he took a seat, still trying to figure out the problem.

"I feel…that something is wrong. Is there? Because…" For a moment, Magnus could only trail off. The look of confusion that had remained on his face previously did not change, because he was lost about everything going on. "And…I suppose that another question I had just came up. What are you exactly? You do not look like the other people that I have encountered here. You dress differently, that is obvious." He continued, gesturing to Kal-El's own outfit.

"Hah! You're not wrong. No no, I guess you can say that I'm not like a lot of the other people here." Kal-El admitted, chuckling a bit. "Let's just say I help people. And that's why I need to talk to you. I can't really lie, wanna be honest with you Magnus. You crashing here? That scares people. Good and bad." He continued, and Magnus could only freeze for a moment. He hadn't meant to scare anyone. "Don't worry. You didn't do anything wrong. You just crashed here. No one can blame you for that. But here's where I have to ask you something important. And something that you need to think about. Okay?" Kal-El said, looking towards him.

"I see. And just what is this that I have to think about? And what is it that you have to ask me? Because this seems to be something that I might not find appealing." Magnus noted, trying to keep the wariness out of his voice.

"Right again Magnus. See, I want to ask you to come with me, to a place that can hopefully give you the help you might need. You're free to say no, by all means in any case. But the people I work with are good at what they do. Some of the best on the planet." Kal-El said, once more offering Magnus a hopeful, comforting grin. "We can figure out what you are. Maybe we can even understand what caused you to come crashing down into Metropolis. You think that's something you're interested in doing? I know I'd like to figure out if I didn't have a clue who I was." He admitted, shrugging as he turned to look out at the city.

Magnus frowned for a moment, already trying to think of a response. The offer that Kal-El had given out almost seemed too good to be true. Just like that? He would know who he was? Why could he not remember anything? His confusion must have leaked out into his facial features, because Kal-El was already waving him off.

"Hey, don't worry. You don't have to answer right away. I know it's a tough question to give an answer towards, believe me it sounds almost like a dream come true, given your situation. But I wanna make it clear. I'm not lying to you. Never intended to, and never will. Just laying out what you can do right now. In the end I won't force you to come along with me. It's what you want." He said, standing up and offering Magnus his hand. Magnus could only stare for a moment, trying to understand if he had heard things right.

"So… you are saying that you might be able to help me remember?" He finally asked, having gone quiet for a moment. He looked down at his hands. All he could focus on was the fact that he tore through a fence like nothing. That he stopped a vehicle without getting injured. That he almost hurt someone due to how he had panicked. He couldn't run the risk of that happening again. Letting out a bitter chuckle, he glanced back up at Kal-El. "Is it bad to think that I am scared of figuring that out?"

"Heh. No, no it's not. Trust me, I was like a lot when I was younger. Had my own issues, and I was mighty confused about myself for a good while. Everyone's trying to understand who they are. You just need something to start you off. So, you up for it?" Kal-El asked him.

Once more, it all seemed too good to be true. He wasn't sure who to trust, but from what he could tell, Kal-El had not lied to him, or tried to mislead him at any point so far. If anything, Magnus had expected to be attacked, considering the fact that he had caused quite a few issues in the short time he had spent on this planet. Going over most of his ideas and options, it was clear that Magnus had only one real way to move things forward. He looked up, meeting Kal-El's gaze. He stared back at the man that had been so adamant at helping a total stranger, because he could. Magnus reached up, taking Kal-EL's hand and standing up.

"In any case, you seem to have been so sure that you can help me. It is a chance that I want to take. I will follow your lead Kal-El. I just want to start somewhere." He said, offering the other man a short nod. Kal-El grinned, patting Magnus on the shoulder.

"That's the spirit! Don't worry Magnus. We'll do what we can. Promise. Now do me a favor, alright?" He asked, causing Magnus to look at him in confusion. "Just don't move. This might feel a bit weird." Kal-El continued, reaching up to his ear. "Superman to the Hall of Justice. I need a teleport at my position. I have a passenger with me." Magnus could only blink in response.

"Why did you call yourself Superma-"

And then everything went white.

Magnus had not expected the sudden arrival on what appeared to be a cold, hard floor. He had not expected to suddenly feel like his head was going to explode, or the fact that suddenly up felt like down and down felt like up. Everything felt off, even as Kal-El had coaxed him forward. Eventually they had reached a room, where a sense of foreboding slowly began to overwhelm Magnus, as the waiting began. All of the waiting.

Of course, while Magnus waited to see just what else might occur, Kal-El tried to coax out more answers. But nothing came. No matter what questions were asked, Magnus could not give a straight answer, much to his own annoyance. Then, when things started to get frustrating, a question was given.

"Would you be okay with giving up a DNA sample? It's the best way to help figure things out. I mean, considering the language you've been speaking I already have a clue. But this should confirm it." Kal-El said, gesturing towards him. Magnus could only frown in confusion, tilting his head.

"Language? I am speaking another language? What am I speaking?" He couldn't help but ask, once again trying to understand the words that escaped him. Each time he spoke, he had noticed that something had felt…wrong in a sense. The words came out naturally yes, but at the same time something felt wrong.

"Heh. Good question. Technically you're speaking English right now. But it's off in a sense. So I'm guessing it's not your first language." Kal-El noted, looking up. "Hey, there's the medical drone. Just hold out your hand." He said, and Magnus followed his gaze. For a moment, everything was fine as a small, clearly mechanical device floated towards him. He followed Kal-El's advice, and began to hold out his hand. Everything was fine.

And then it wasn't.

The machine brought out a needle. A light flashed across his face. It went downhill from there. Everything went into focus, where everything stood out. The lighting around him was off. The room felt cold. He could feel his breathing increase. His heart beating faster and faster. And only one thing could go on through his mind.

Getawaygetawaygetawaygetawaygetaway

Magnus hadn't even noticed that he had moved. Nor had he even realized that the machine was now in his hands. The tearing of metal broke the silence that had formed, the drone practically bending apart as Magnus stood there, breathing heavily. Looking down at his own hands, Magnus could only drop the remains of the drone, looking from it to Kal-El. He shook his head as he stumbled to the side.

"I don't…I don't know. I don't know what happened. Everything just went…" Magnus trailed off, groaning as suddenly, everything felt wrong. His stomach felt like it was doing flips, a ringing began to form in his ears. His vision began to blur, and he could only let out another groan. "...I don't feel so good." He quietly admitted. This time the world did not go white, and instead went black.


Clark had expected a lot of things, bringing Magnus to the Hall of Justice. But he hadn't expected such a violent reaction to a simple medical procedure. When the unknown alien began to fall, Clark didn't hesitate to move, making sure that Magnus didn't hit his head.

"God…what happened to you?" He quietly asked, shifting his hold so that it was easier to move Magnus around.

"I think that's something we all want to know." Another voice said, near the entryway. Clark looked up, not surprised to see one of his closest friends standing there. Bruce, or as he was known here on the Hall of Justice, Batman had a nasty habit of being able to sneak up on just about anyone. Clark didn't mind that. Especially when they had more pressing matters to deal with. "That, and he'll need to be sedated."

"He's already unconscious, Bruce."

In response, Bruce could only point to the now ruined drone. "And that is his reaction to what should have been a standard, non-threatening medical drone. Can you imagine what his reaction would be to waking up and finding himself under a full body scan?"

Clark blinked in confusion. "Wait what? I thought we agreed to only get a tissue sample. Why the change?"

"And what machine were we using? The drone wasn't just collecting blood samples. It's meant to do everything. Sedate him, and bring him over to Medical. I'll go ahead to get the scanner set up." With that, Bruce began to march away, leaving one last remark. "Sedate him. I mean it. Something like the drone can be replaced. The scanner can't."

Letting out a quiet sigh, Clark could only gently keep the body in his arms stable as he moved forward.

The good news in all of this was that Magnus had stayed unconscious during most of the tests. Blood samples, scans, the works. But the bad news, because there always had to be, quickly followed along.

"Is… is that his DNA?" Clark couldn't help but ask, looking at the scans in front of him. Bruce was already hard at work, comparing just about every sample that the League had stored. He had seen hundreds, if not more samples of DNA. It was part of the job sometimes. But the one in front of him? It almost looked fragmented, in a sense. "It looks…" Clark couldn't find the words, for a moment.

"Off. I know. Your guess when you spoke to him was partially right. The coding and sequencing certainly resembles that of an Almeracian. But that's not all. Further scans have shown something else. A sort of deterioration if you will." Bruce noted, shaking his head.

"Think it's something he ate?" Clark couldn't help but ask, trying to put some humor on the situation. If only because the DNA just looked wrong. "I don't suppose it's some sort of disease? Just want to make sure there's nothing he could spread. What about injuries?"

"No. The degradation doesn't match up to anything we've seen so far. And it's only a partial issue, not something that would be a gradual and long standing one. It seems to be the remnants of some procedure, but we can't be sure without more scans. And maybe some aid with the lack of memory. J'onn should be here soon. I've already briefed him on what we've managed to find out. As far as I can tell, there's nothing contagious in his body." Bruce continued, already searching through other files.

Clark let out a sigh of relief. The number of refugees that the League had often needed to treat was staggering, in many cases do to them needing to get used to Earth's atmosphere. To have one not having an issue was certainly something better at least.

"Yeah, well at least that's some form of good news. Don't want to tell Magnus that he's dying right off the bat after all. Or that he had some injury that he probably wouldn't remember getting." He said, letting out a small chuckle.

"So you were able to confirm his name was Magnus? He didn't give you anything else to work with?" Bruce asked, bringing up a scan of the very pod that the still unconscious alien had arrived in. "It matches up with the theme, all things considered. Especially when one only has to look at Maxima for a reference point."

"That's the name he was comfortable with. I was actually going to check with her after this, to see if she had a citizen missing." Clark said, looking over to Magnus. For a moment, he winced once more at the mention of the Almeracian queen. Her first venture on Earth was always gonna be an awkward topic of conversation. "What about his ship? I know we were able to get a hold of it before Luthor, or God forbid, Waller got their hands on it. Was there anything that stood out about that?"

"No. and that's what concerns me. On the surface everything appears normal. But something's off. I don't like it." Bruce shot back, giving another frown as he brought up the schematics of the ship that they had recovered. Clark looked them over, and his frown mirrored Bruce's. He had seen enough ships, crashed and not, to know just when something was off. The damage, or lack thereof, screamed 'wrong' in some way. And he could tell just where Bruce's train of thought was going, based on what they had already found. Of course, he had to speak up. "I'm recommending a security detail."

Clark hated when he was right sometimes.

"I thought he was a victim here. Why should we be treating him like a threat? He came here willingly Bruce." Clark said, crossing his arms.

"Does the fact that he came crashing down in an alien pod, while speaking English mean nothing Clark?" Bruce shot back, glancing over at him. "Or do I have to remind you about the last time that you didn't take enough precautions?" He continued. Clark already knew what Bruce was talking about. The Zod incident. For a moment, Clark could only look away, trying to think of a response. He closed his eyes, letting out another sigh.

"I'm not saying that you're wrong. I just think that we should at least try and figure out what he knows before we do something drastic." Clark said, letting out a quiet sigh. "Besides, who's gonna watch him?"

"I've already compiled a few possible candidates. Only the ones that are willing and capable of handling this issue. So far I've got a few promising results." Bruce said, pulling up another holographic list. Clark read through it and made a pleased noise. He knew all of the names that Bruce had listed off. Kara and Wally showed promise, and if push came to shove they could get the job done. However, he raised an eyebrow at one of them.

"Black Bat? You sure she's up for it?" He asked, looking up at Bruce.

"Her performance in the field has been exemplary. However out of field, she's grown distant. More than usual." Bruce admitted, and Clark could see that the frown on his face wasn't one from frustration, but concern.

He knew well enough at least some of the situation regarding Cassandra, at least that which Bruce had been willing to share, but Clark also knew that she had gone through something and it had left the poor girl changed. He could see a few of the other names and let out a quiet hum. His cousin was on here. Along with a few other options.

Kara had also gone through her own fair share of trouble, but this recent issue had only just shown itself. An incident with Red Kryptonite. Not the first time, Clark was cursing that damned piece of his homeworld. But suffice to say, there was a reason that Kara had been benched, and having this sort of assignment would certainly help her out in the long run.

"I'll go around and start asking them right now. Just call me so I can know if there's any change in Magnus. Figured that he'd be more comfortable waking up to a familiar face." Clark said, already making moves to get going. He already had a basic idea where some of them where, but it would take him a minute to find the others. That was long enough for Bruce to tell J'onn the situation, and get him ready just in case. He gave a short nod to the new arrival, giving him a grin and wave. "Hi J'onn. Sorry, I gotta get going. Batman can explain things from here." He continued, already taking off in search of the people Bruce had listed.

The Martian Manhunter took a moment to give Clark a nod, before walking up to where Bruce was, briefly glancing towards all the screens in front of them.

"Batman. I received your message. Is this the patient?" He asked, and Bruce could only nod in response.

"Glad to hear that you were able to get here so quickly. Superman's handling another task, so I'll bring you up to speed. Here's what we know so far."


Flashes hit him once more. This time they were stronger. More cohesive in a sense. They were familiar images, the same things that he had seen before. Of… his father. His mother. Home. Now he could at least see what home was. It looked familiar enough now.

A nice, two story house. It was a color. Grey? No. Maybe blue? It was one of the two. His dad was there, grilling something. A smile on his face, a beer in hand. Another image hit, One that stood out far more than the other.

He could see his mother in the living room. Was it his mother? He couldn't be sure. All he knew was that she was related to him. She was watching a movie. Did it have a name? Poorly made, but she loved it. Campy, bad acting and cheap effects, but it had it's charm. Especially the main actor. It was a man. The character had a name. It was… Magnus?

But that wasn't right. He was Magnus. Wasn't he? The dream was there, the memories slowly getting more and more focused. Suddenly there was another name at the tip of his tongue. What was it? Then it slowly began to form once more. He knew what it wa-


He shot awake with a groan. He wanted to get up, but his body refused. He was on a bed, at the very least, so that was better than waking up crashing and burning this time around. His throat was dry. His eyes hurt, and he could only try and move. Once more, his body refused. It ached and groaned, his legs felt like lead. Finally, with some reluctance he opened his eyes.

He refused to freak out at the sight of not one, but three people there. Of course, Kal-El was the first one he could make out clearly. The man was at the foot of his bed, offering a short smile. The other two figures drew attention as well.

The first was possibly the more intimidating of the trio. Dark clothing, looming from the shadows. He seemed to have almost a permanent glare on his features, or at least what features that he could see. If he was going to be honest, the figure almost reminded him of a vampire. The stare he had faced was something of a combination of judgment, curiosity, and even suspicious, if he could call it that.

The other was a woman. Long black hair, clad in armor. It was well worn, ornate but at the same time fitting of what a warrior could have been. And it honestly looked like something out of one of those films his mother liked to watch. A sword was on her back, a…golden rope at her side. That was the best comparison he could make.

Kal-El was the first to break the silence.

"Glad to see you're awake, Magnus. You had a pretty tough reaction, so we had to move you over here. You feeling okay?" Kal-El asked him. He could only frown for a moment. Magnus? Then everything that had happened came crashing back. The pod. The landing. Flying. And now this. He tried to speak, only to pause. He didn't want to sound insane, or ridiculous.

"I'm… I'm sorry Kal-El. I know it seems odd. But my name isn't Magnus." He admitted, shaking his head. "My name is Marcus. Marcus Cooper." He continued, groaning as he reached for one of his legs. It was still hurting, but clearly the bed was at least comfortable. He looked back up at the other two oddly dressed people, still trying to understand what was going on.

The man in the corner only frowned, glancing at Kal-El, who only blinked in response.

"So you remembered your name. That's a good sign. But why was Magnus your first choice?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Because that… that was the name of a movie character my mother watched. I…well I think that it was my mother." Marcus said, trying once more to figure out if he had seen the two other figures. Nothing in his… admittedly fractured memories was ringing any bells.

"So what you're telling me is that you're from Earth? What about your powers? Or how you came crashing down into Metropolis?" Kal-El continued, crossing his arms.

"Not to mention the fact that your DNA clearly shows you as not human." The second man spoke up this time. "If you want to tell me that there was a mistake in that instance, by all means. Enlighten us." His voice was deep, intimidating in all the ways that Marcus had feared, when he first saw him. Marcus was about to open his mouth when someone else spoke up.

"Let's give him a chance to talk, Batman. He may be confused, but having some memories rather than none at all should bring some light to the situation." The woman said, causing him to frown for a moment. Another name. But at least she seemed like she was willing to listen to his explanation. Even if he wasn't sure of it himself.

Shaking his head, he did his best to come up with an answer that could please them. He opened his mouth once more, trying to find the right words. The light in the room was almost a bit too bright for him to properly focus, but soon enough he was able to at least get something out.

"I don't know. I really don't know. About why I was crashing in that ship I mean... Or why I have these…" Marcus trailed off, looking down at his hands. "These powers. But I know I was born. Here on Earth. My mother's name was… Edith. Or it might have been Emily." He continued, shaking his head. "I can tell you more. But I have like, three questions that are really starting to bother me. And I'm sorry, but I have to ask them, or I don't think I can focus anymore." Marcus said, barely finding the strength to even sit up in his bed and look back at them. The trio looked curious,

"Why are you called Superman? And why are you called Batman? Who are you people?" He asked.

To say that the trio's look of surprise was concerning would have been an understatement.


AN: Hello! I have to apologize for the wait, I was really contemplating on how to handle this chapter, if only because I wanted to deliver a good enough chapter to make up for that cliffhanger I gave the last time! In any case, I do hope that this chapter was worth the wait. I'll do my best to try and keep this story as entertaining for your readers as I can!

In any case, feel free to leave reviews! I read through as many as I can, and I always love to hear what you all have to say. Thanks, and until next time!

Edit 1: Hi there! Sorry if you saw this story updating, I was basically fixing up and cleaning this chapter and the previous one. Some of the dialogue and such felt clunky, and this was my way of fixing that! That and someone pointed out the Magna idea just felt like correcting a mistake...which it was and I couldn't live with it being that. Rest assured, I should be working on chapter 3 when these two get updated, so that's something to look forward to!