I know this is out of order, but this chapter was originally was originally going to be the next chapter of Stargirl, but by the time I finished it, I realized that it would be better served as a Black Lightning chapter, so just this once, I am posting out of order, since I worked too hard on this chapter to let it go to waste and it serves as a good black lightning chapter. I will start working on the next Stargirl chapter next.
"Wait, are you sure this is the right place?" Jennifer Pierce asked her father as they arrived at coordinates in Blue Valley that her father's old Justice Society communicator had given them and it was for some big house.
"Yeah, Gambi confirmed that this is the place, though why we're at a private residence is beyond me." Jefferson said, right as he got a call from Gambi.
"I did some digging and I found something on that house that I think you'll find very interesting." Gambi said.
"Go on." Jefferson said.
"The owner of the house is listed as a Sylvester Pemberton." Gambi said and now Jefferson was on high alert.
"Are you sure?" Jefferson asked.
"Positive. And I've checked security cameras in the area and it turns out that another old friend of yours has been seen going in and out of the house over the past few weeks." Gambi said.
"Who?" Jefferson asked.
"Pat Dugan." Gambi said.
"Okay thanks Gambi." Jefferson said, feeling a bit less nervous since at least that was confirmation that this wasn't some kind of trap.
"Good luck Jeff." Gambi said as he hung up.
"So, what's going on?" Jen asked.
"The owner of this house is Starman." Jefferson said.
"Wait, as in the former leader of the JSA?" Jen asked, since her dad had told her more about the JSA on the flight out to Blue Valley.
"Yeah. And according to Gambi, security camera footage has caught Sylvester's old sidekick moving in. Whatever this is, it's not a trap." Jefferson said.
"Great, now how do we get past the gate?" Jen asked as Jefferson hit the buzzer.
"Can we help you?" A woman's voice asked over the intercom.
"Yes, my name is Jefferson Pierce, I'm here to see Pat Dugan. We're old friends." Jefferson said and for a few moments there was silence before they heard a buzzing sound and the gate opened.
"Well, that's a good sign." Jen said and Jefferson nodded as they headed onto the grounds and into the house where they found a familiar face, or familiar to Jefferson at least, waiting for them at the front door.
"Pat." Jefferson said as he and Pat rushed forward and hugged each other.
"Jefferson. It's so good to see you." Pat said.
"You too. Though I have to admit, I didn't think you'd be so happy to see me considering how I abandoned the team when they needed me most." Jefferson said.
"And if you'd been there, you would've ended up like everyone else that night. Besides, unlike the rest of the JSA, you were actually known as being the protector of your hometown. Your priority was protecting it. But should we really be talking about this around your daughter?" Pat asked, surprised that Jefferson was so open about this.
"So him Jen." Jefferson said and Jen grinned as she powered up her hand.
"Wait, so your daughter inherited your powers?" Pat asked.
"Technically, I think I'm an upgrade, since every test we've run back in Freeland shows that I'm way more powerful than my dad ever was." Jen said smugly.
"Come on in. I think we have a lot to discuss and I think that Jen is really going to enjoy hanging out with my stepdaughter Courtney and her friend Yolanda." Pat said.
"Why?" Jefferson asked.
"Because Courtney is Sylvester's daughter and Yolanda is Ted's niece and goddaughter and they both take after them." Pat said and now Jefferson understood.
"Okay Jen, let's head inside, I think you're going to enjoy this." Jefferson said, since he had to admit, one thing he thought might've helped Jen out in the old reality was if she'd been around other people her own age with abilities like her, it might've made her feel less alone.
"Wait, are you saying there are other kids my age with powers?" Jen asked eagerly.
"Kind of. Yolanda does have metahuman powers that give her the same abilities Ted's Wildcat suit gave him." Pat said.
"And let me guess, Courtney was chosen by her father's staff." Jefferson said.
"Yep. Come on, I think they'll be happy to meet you." Pat said as he let them in.
"Jefferson Pierce, Jennifer Pierce, meet my wife Barbara Whitmore." Pat said as they entered the den to find Barbara waiting for them.
"Nice to meet you." Jefferson said.
"You too. It's nice to finally meet you, Sylvester spoke very highly of you Jefferson." Barbara said as Jefferson recognized that she was the one who'd let them in.
"You knew Sylvester?" Jefferson asked.
"I'm Courtney's mother and Sylvester was my first husband. My father was actually the one who created the cosmic staff." Barbara said.
"I never knew Sylvester was married." Jefferson said.
"We kept it a secret to protect me and more importantly, our daughter Courtney from his enemies, though keeping that secret has come back to bite me since now Courtney wants nothing to do with me." Barbara said.
"Why?" Jen asked, though she had an idea.
"Barbara lied to Courtney about why her father disappeared and let Courtney think that her father just abandoned them instead of telling her the truth. She only found out the truth after the staff picked her and she's still mad that Barbara let her think that her dad didn't care about her, when in reality, he loved Courtney more than anything." Pat said.
"She'll get over it. Trust me. Jen was pissed at me when she found out I was Black Lightning and she discovered her powers." Jefferson said.
"Where is this Courtney girl anyways?" Jen asked, eager to meet another teenage superhero.
"She's downstairs in the Citadel, apparently Sylvester built a JSA base under the house without telling any of us." Barbara said.
"What brought you here anyways?" Pat asked.
"This." Jefferson said he pulled out his old JSA comm.
"Your old JSA comm?" Pat asked, since even though he'd never been given one himself, he recognized the device immediately.
"Yeah, yesterday it started going off and showed coordinates that led us here." Jefferson said.
"You think that maybe the AI downstairs sent out the signal?" Barbara asked and Pat shrugged.
"It's possible, but there's only one way to find out. Come on, let's head downstairs." Pat said as he and Barbara led Jefferson and Jen into Sylvester's study and Pat placed his hand on the photo scanner, which lit up green, revealing the hidden elevator.
"Wow, this is cool." Jen said, amazed as she was the first one to step into the elevator.
"Going down." Pat said as the adults joined her in the elevator and headed down to the citadel.