Chapter 1

"Do we have all the six DNA samples ready?" A middle-aged age man wearing a lab coat and a pair of glasses asked out loud, as he was staring straight into a machine resembling a cocoon connected by six different tubes

"We have, but Dr. Shaw are you sure about this? That much information could damage his mind, he's just a kid Dr." Another doctor, a redhead young woman also wearing a lab coat said as she looked at the Dr.

"Nonsense Dr. Roberts, we are on the precipice of greatness, so let go of your concerns or get out!" Dr. Shaw said and Dr. Roberts frowned in frustration but didn't offer any more comments

"This is my ticket to the Light, so let's not fuck it up people!" Dr. Shaw said as the group of doctors began the project and started pressing and checking multiple computers and devices

"Okay people, let's start with DNA number 1, Teleportation," Dr. Roberts said as another doctor raised a lever

Then the cocoon started glowing bright yellow and a blue liquid started moving from one of the tubes that connected the cocoon and suddenly the room was filled with the screams of a young child

Dr. Roberts's eyes were filled quickly with disgust and despair and she couldn't look at the cocoon anymore, so she looked away and started at the machine in front of her "DNA number 2 Kinetic Energy," Dr. Roberts said as the cocoon glowed again behind her and she closed her eyes trying to not listen to the screams behind her


A long, long time later

"Doc, is it ready? The kid could be here any minute," A man, clearly a soldier or bodyguard said as he was keeping an eye on Dr. Roberts while also keeping his team keeping an eye on the entrance

Dr. Roberts appearance had change, she was no longer the young woman she once was back in the experiment, she now was a woman in here later years, around her seventy years of age as a huge chunk of time had passed already for her

"Two more minutes Clyde, I'm almost there," Dr. Roberts said as she was currently looking through a microscope making sure her experiment was going positively "Keep an eye out on lights, if they start malfunctioning, it means he's here," Dr. Roberts said and nodded in acknowledgment

He took out his walkie-talkie and started talking to his team, especially the quad outside "Lookout squad come in," Clyde spoke to the walkie-talkie expecting a response but got none

"Lookout? Come in, lookout," Clyde said but still got nothing then the lightbulb above him started malfunctioning, as it started turning on and off, and that got Clyde's instincts kicking in

"Look alive people, he's here," Clyde said and the team of soldiers got their guns out and started looking around

Then the lights went off for a couple of seconds and the squad heard a puff sound once the lights turned back on there he was, a sixteen-year-old blond kid appeared in the middle of all the guards, this teen was wearing a pair of black cargo pants tied with a pair of black leather boots, a grey tight long sleeved shirt topped with a black bulletproof vest, and a dark facemask that covered the lower half of his face.

The teen turned around and his bright blue eyes which were covered behind some red ruby combat glasses connected with Clyde's as the soldier started lifting his gun little by little "Kid, please we just want to help, we don't want to hurt you," Clyde said, and then the kid disappeared again and Clyde turn to his left when he heard a crying of pain form one of his squad mate and only saw him falling to the ground dead

"Doctor you better fucking hurry!" Clyde shouted as the doctor turned around and pressed a button on the wall closing the access into her small lab, afraid and with a sense that she had to rush to finish her experiment

She continued to work as if her life depended on it, and in this case, it did, she did her best to ignore the shouts from the outside, but just as she finished loading his experiment to a nearby compartment the screams died down, and made her looked back

And there he was, the teen soldier looking straight into her eyes as his face and body were filled with blood from the guard

"Nate, wait, I promise this is for your best, I just want to help," Dr. Roberts said moving her hand a little to the left

"You left us, doctor, why?" Nate asked confused as his hand had a dagger ready to do the job "Why did you turn yourself away from the light?" Nate asked

"Those aren't your words Nate, I hate what we turned you in, a soulless machine for them to use," Dr. Roberts said "You deserve a chance to discover who you are, Nate." She said and Nate moved forward

"I'm sorry doctor but I have a job to do," Nate said and the doctor moved a little bit to the left

"So am I," Dr. Roberts said as she moved to the left as quickly as she could and pressed a big red button just before Nate managed to stab her left side straight into her lungs "Don't worry, the truth will set you free Nathan," Dr. Roberts said out of breath and her hand went to Nate's face mask and managed to move it down and then a red sort of gas started to appear from the vents of the lab

Nate started to look around confused as he let the doctor go and fell to the ground, he didn't know what it was but he knew it was an attack so he concentrated on teleporting outside but then nothing happened, he tried once more but nothing happened again

So he looked up and noticed several devices connected to the corners of the wall, devices that were tampering with his powers but before he could do anything it was already too late

The gas had started to make its way through his mouth and lungs and he started coughing a lot suddenly whatever this was started doing some effect as Nate suddenly and out of nowhere lost consciousness


Two years later, present day

"Here you go kid," A man about forty of age said as he handed Nate a glass of soda

"Thanks, Marcus," Nate said as he cracked his neck and took a sip of his drink as he saw Markus taking a seat in the booth in front of him

"Something bothering you?" Markus asked and Nate looked at him and let out a tired sigh

"Memories," Nate said as he looked down at his drink "It's been two years, and as much as I'm getting used to this new life, I'm still getting nowhere with the other thing," Nate said taking another sip

"You trail ran cold again?" Markus asked and Nate nodded his head "Shit kid I'm sorry, I know you've been working hard on it," Markus said and Nate sighed and leaned back then he noticed the mischievous look on Markus's face

"Do you know something?" Nate asked and Markus shrugged his shoulders "I hate when you do that you know," Nate said and Markus chuckled

"Cadmus, they seemed dubious," Markus said and Nate raised his eyebrow in confusion "Too small of a lab for that kind of funding, they have a boatload of money coming from a lot of investors, one of them being Luthor," Markus said and Nate hummed

"Worth a look?" Nate asked and Markus scratched his chin and nodded his head

"Worth a look, maybe you'll find something," Markus said and Nate crossed his arms and frowned in deep thought

"Something is better than nothing, give me the coordinates," Nate said and Markus nodded "Let's hope it turns out something useful," Nate said as he took the final sip of his drink


Cadmus

Nate sometimes wonders if all the bad luck from his childhood had run out and karma had decided to bring him some good luck, it turns out that when he decided to look at Cadmus, a fire broke out in the laboratory, talk about coincidence, and a perfect distraction for a way in which Nate was gonna take full advantage of

He was currently keeping a lookout in the building in front of Cadmus, he was wearing a dark black hoodie with a face mask hanging low, a pair of cargo black pants, and black sneakers, a downgrade from his previous armor but beggars can't be choosers

He took out something from the front pocket of his hoodie, a deck of poker cards and he started shuffling them as he saw a red flash run towards the falling doctors "The sidekicks? What are they doing here?" Nate thought in curiosity as he tilted his head when he saw Wonderkid and Aqualad appearing on the scene

"Huh," Nate said as he started shuffling the cards and then took one out that being the jack of spades "Seems the cards are in my favor today," Nate said as he took a step forward while putting the deck of cards back on his pockets and moving the face mask up

He was about to jump forward and teleport but stopped midway as he frowned in confusion and looked at the floor for a second "Where did those words come from?" Nate thought in confusion but then he shook his head and focused on the task ahead

So he jumped and with a blue puff he teleported and landed perfectly and silently inside and behind the sidekicks, who were currently looking at the elevator in front of them, so he hid out of the sidekick's view while he kept a close eye on them

He saw Aqualad opening the doors of the elevator forcefully and then saw Robin shooting a rope to the top of the vent, so Nate waited for the sidekicks to drop down, he then walked to the elevator shaft and looked down at the endless elevator shaft, he looked up at the rope and shrugged his shoulders, if the sidekicks were creating a path for him to use, he wouldn't complain so he grabbed the rope and followed the young heroes down

They stopped at sub-level 26 and Nate waited for the heroes to clear the entrance before jumping there, he then started following them forward and hid again when they stopped in front of him, they stopped because, in front of all of them, a horde of enormous creatures were marching on, these creatures were like nothing Nate has ever seen, so he figure these creatures were homemade, but why? That was the question

He figured his best bet to find some answers was to keep going in the same direction as the young heroes, so he kept a trail on them as they entered a room on the right of the hallway, Nate quickly entered before the door could close, then he hid again outside of the heroes' view

He looked up to one of the capsules that surrounded the room, there some electricity bugs were in there, and the machines were using them, sucking their powers to keep this facility running, "Slaves huh? This place keeps getting better and better," Nate thought and got lost in his mind but returned to the real world quickly when he saw another party coming to the room

A man wearing blue armor and a yellow bright helmet entered the room in a rush followed by a handful of the creatures they had seen earlier, Guardian was his name, if Nate could trust what Aqualad said, apparently he was some kind of hero, but something felt off to Nate, so he leaned forward and kept a good eye on the scene in case he needed to get involved.

Then he saw the small creature on Guardian's shoulder light up his horns red and that could only mean trouble, and it did because suddenly Guardian had become hostile and he and the creatures attacked the heroes in an instant

Now, Nate could've used the ruffle as a distraction and to his advantage but he then saw Guardian tackling Aqualad to the ground

Past Nate would've ignored that and kept on moving but he had made a promise to change for the better, to be someone outside of the puppet they had made him, he owed it to Dr. Roberts, so he decided to lend a hand to the young heroes

So he moved forward and teleported himself between Aqualad and Guardian, both of them had their eyes big in shock and confusion about the appearance of the blond teen

Nate used that confusion to his advantage and grabbed Aqualad's arm and teleported both himself and the young hero out of there to where Kid Flash was, then he quickly grabbed Kid Flash's arm and teleported both heroes and himself to the hallway where Robin had run off

Both heroes fell to their knees dizzy from the sudden experience and then saw a hand in front of them as Nate was offering his help to get up "Sorry about that, teleporting can take some time to get used to," Nate explained and Kid Flash looked up in confusion

"Who are you?" He asked and Nate looked up and narrowed his eyes

"Not the time, come on let's get out of here," Nate said and Aqualad quickly took his hand and helped Kid Flash up

"He's right, we should get going," Aqualad said and Kid Flash nodded and ran up ahead followed by Nate and Aqualad

Both older teens saw Robin and Kid Flash entering the elevator and Nate looked back and saw the horde of creatures quickly catching up to them, so he grabbed a card from the jacket of his pocket and this card started glowing bright purple "Don't puke," Nate said as he dropped the glowing card on the ground and teleported himself and Aqualad inside the elevator

Aqualad fell to his knees once again and Nate looked outside of the elevator and smiled behind his facemask as he snapped his fingers a bright purple explosion stopped the horde of monsters in their tracks as the doors of the elevator started to close off

"Who's the new guy?" Robin asked as he stared at Nate who started to turn around and face the Young Heroes just as Aqualad managed to stand up

"A concerned citizen that's all, the name's Nate," He said as he dropped the face mask and the hood down Robin frowned at him in mistrust but Aqualad put a hand on his shoulder

"He helped me and Kid back there, he's okay," Aqualad said and Nate hummed in appreciation

"You trust easy, good quality to have my guy," Nate said with a chuckle as he leaned on one of the walls of the elevator

Then Aqualad moved his eyes from Nate to the front of the elevator and noticed they were going down

"We're headed down?" Aqualad asked and Kid Flash's eyes winded and then looked at Robin

"Dude out is up," He said annoyed and got up to Robin's face who looked at him annoyed

"Excuse me, project Kr is down on sub-level fifty-two," Robin explained and Aqualad let out a sigh and held his head

"This is out of control," Aqualad said as the whole group looked at him "Perhaps we should contact the league," He said and both Robin and Kid Flash looked down frustrated

But then Nate cleared his throat gaining the attention of the heroes "We're here people," He said and the rest of the group saw that they'd arrived at the sub-level 52 floor

The group started to move forward and got behind some devices as cover as they got to a crossroads as the road split into two hallways "So where too, creepy looking hallway number one or creepy looking hallway number two?" Robin asked but then a figure appeared in hallway number one with its red horns glowing

"Halt," The creature spoke as he levitated to medium-sized canisters and Nate wasted no time knowing full well what the creature was going to do

So he threw two glowing cards that connected to the canisters midway through and exploded them before they could hit the group of teenagers "Creepy looking hallway number two it is then," Nate said as he teleported out of the danger zone and started running as the group of young heroes trailed behind him but Kid Flash quickly managed to past him

Nate was the first out of the remaining trio to get to the end of the hallway as the young speedster managed to stop the door from closing "Hurry!" Kid Flash said worrying that the canister he had placed to stop the door from closing wouldn't hold long

Nate narrowed his eyes on the inside of the room in front of him and teleported inside leaving only a trail of blue smoke as evidence that he was previously there

Nate straightened up and looked back making sure that Robin and Aqualad made it inside safely, he started walking forward alongside Kid Flash but was stopped by the sight in front of him

"Um guys, you probably would want to see this," Kid Flash said as he pressed some buttons and lit up the room, in front of them a pod was connected to several wires and computers all around the room

"Woah," Robin managed to say as inside the pod, which contained the letters Kr in the front glass, was a teenage boy about roughly seventeen years old, pitch black hair, and with a white suit that had the characteristic S on its chest, the same S that Superman wears on his suit.

Kid Flash took a step forward and looked at the letters on the glass "Big K little r, the atomic symbol for Krypton," Kid Flash said and then looked back "Clone?" He asked

"Most like it," Nate said as he crossed his arms and leaned on one of the devices around "Still a bit young to be a perfect copy though," Nate said and Aqualad narrowed his eyes

"Robin, hack," Aqualad commanded and caught Robin off guard but he quickly focused back on the task

"Oh, right, right," Robin said as he started pressing buttons on the main computer and connected his pad to it "Weapon designation Superboy, a clone force grown in sixteen weeks!?" Robin said in shock and Nate whistle

"I stand corrected, he's older than he looks," Nate said and Robin continued then talking

"From DNA acquired from Superman," Robin explained and everyone there narrowed their eyes in disgust

"Stolen from Superman," Aqualad corrected and Kid Flash scoffed

"Not that the big knows of this," Kid Flash said and Robin continued on

"Solar suit allows him to absorb yellow-sun radiation 24/7," Robin explained and Aqualad looked down

"And these creatures?" Aqualad said pointing at the creatures above Superboy in the computer in front of them

"Genomorph Gnomes, telepathic, force-feeding him an education," Robin said with a sour tone in his voice.

"And we can guess what else," Kid Flash said gaining the attention of everyone there "They're making a slave out of, well, Superman's son," Kid Flash said and Nate cleared his throat

"I think the term better suited is a weapon, but the sentiment is the same," Nate said shrugging his shoulders and Aqualad narrowed his eyes once more

"Now we contact the league," Aqualad said pressing the symbol on his belt, the one his mentor and king wore all the time, this symbol glowed blue a bit and Nate raised an eyebrow in expectation but nothing happened

"No signal," Robin said as neither of the trio could manage to make contact

"We're in too deep, literally," Kid Flash said and Nate cleared his throat gaining the attention of the kids once more

"So, you have your backs against the wall, what's next then?" Nate asked in curiosity "Because I can assure you that they're waiting for us outside," Nate explained and Aqualad looked at him in curiosity

"Do you have a plan then friend?" Aqualad asked and Nate shrugged his shoulders

"Not really, the only way out of here that I see, is to make a run for it," Nate explained and Aqualad pursed his lips and looked down

"There is still an issue," Kid Flash said and everyone looked at the pod in deep thought

"We cannot leave him here," Robin said and Aqualad narrowed his eyes at the pod

"Set him free," Aqualad said and Nate's eyes winded

"Are you sure?" Nate asked gaining the attention of the young heroes "We don't know what the gnomes taught him, he could be hostile, or worse, primal," Nate said as Kid Flash and Robin looked at Aqualad in concern who did not waiver

"Do it," Aqualad said and Robin nodded and pressed the button that opened the pod

The pod started opening slowly as the young clone remained sleeping but then his hand moved and a cracking sound could be heard, Nate slowly started reaching for his deck of cards feeling the sudden danger on him and then the clone opened his eyes abruptly and connected eyes with Nate

And in the blink of an eye, Superboy was already in front of Nate, ready to punch his head off, but thanks to the years of experience that Nate had under his belt he managed to teleport himself out of danger just in time

He looked at the young clone and saw that Superboy had changed targets and now he had Aqualad down on the ground as the Atlantean tried to cover himself from the blows

"Woah there Supey," Kid Flash said as he and Robin managed to grab each of Superboy's arms

"We're on your side!" Robin said and Nate crouched down taking a good look at Superboy, he could intervene but interference without a plan would be suicide, he needed info, info on how the young clone moved

Superboy managed to free himself from Kid Flash's grip and send an uppercut straight into the speedster's jaw, sending him flying and crashing into one of the tubes of the room getting knocked out immediately

Then he managed to push back Robin and ran up to him as Aqualad managed to catch his breath, Robin dodged a strike and sent a Taser to Superboy's chest but it did nothing to the clone

Superboy grabbed the two wires pulled Robin to him and gave him a clothesline that sent him to the ground, the clone started pressing his foot and applying pressure to Robin's chest

But then a glowing purple slight pink projectile hit and exploded on Superboy's chest sending him flying away, Nate teleported next to Robin making sure he was okay, he heard Superboy standing up and running up to them, and heard Aqualad running up to strike Superboy so before any of them could get to both he and Robin he teleported away, making sure Robin was out of danger

Once he made sure Robin was okay, he looked back and saw that Aqualad had a hold of Superboy, wrapping his arms below his armpits and behind his neck and started sending electricity to the clone trying to get him to calm down

But Superboy managed to resist and jumped up into the rocky ceiling as Aqualad first with his back but managed to hold on so Superboy jumped again this time with more force and that was it, the force of the impact sent Aqualad unconscious

Then Superboy straightened himself looked forward and narrowed his eyes at Nate who had a card in between his fingers "I do not wish to hurt you mon amie, but I won't go down that easily, " Nate said, and once again got slightly confused from where those words came from but this time a small migraine invaded his mind that mad him lost focus for a moment

A moment that Superboy took advantage of as he moved forward with super speed, Nate managed to teleport behind the clone, then he sent a card again to the back of the clone and made a small explosion that pretty much annoyed the clone

Nate realized he needed a little bit more power but he didn't have time to think as the clone jumped at him, and that's what the strategy they both at each other, Nate would teleport out of danger, send a couple of cards to tire the clone out and Superboy would jump at Nate trying to hit the blond teen but Nate would teleport out of the way

Both teens knew this was getting them nowhere and they needed a plan but the migraine came back in full force and made Nate twist in pain, and Superboy took advantage of it and moved at Nate with incredible speeds

Nate saw the punch coming at him in slow motion but then the scene in front of him changed, he wasn't seeing the young clone, but a man with brown bright hair, a pair of ruby glasses, and a charismatic smile on his face was looking at him

"Dad?" Nate whispered but then he felt the full force of Superboy's fist connecting with his jaw knocking him out cold instantly


"Wake up Nate, you have a job to do," A familiar voice hit Nate's mind, he couldn't place whose voice it was but it was enough to stir Nate a bit

"Time runs short," Then another voice hit his mind, a rougher and unfamiliar one "You must awaken, you must awaken now!" The voice said forcefully fully waking Nate he opened his eyes just to find himself tied to a pod and with Superboy glaring at him and the young heroes

He moved his jaw around biting the pain down, the clone did pack a punch after all and Kid Flash couldn't help himself

"What? What do you want?" Kid Flash asked annoyed at the young clone "Quit starting, you're creeping me out," He said glaring at the clone

"Uh, KF, I think is better if we don't piss off the guy who can fry us with one look," Robin said and Nate hummed in agreement

"Wise words," Nate said as he looked straight at the clone "Is this a good time to say I told you so?" Nate asked the other teens who groaned in response

"We only sought to help you," Aqualad tried to say to the clone calmly a big difference from KF's tone

"Yeah we freed you and you turned on us," Kid Flash said annoyed "How is that grat-, "He said but was interrupted by the Atlantean

"Kid please be quiet now," Aqualad said as he looked at the young clone "I believe our friend was not fully in control of his actions," Aqualad said, and in the meantime, Nate started moving his hands a little and close his eyes

His power of teleportation was still working, so he could get out of there if he wanted to, but best to keep pretenses otherwise he would risk the other's lives, made him wonder when he started caring so much

"W-what if…" The clone started saying as Nate opened his eyes again and looked at the clone in curiosity "What if I wasn't?" Superboy asked seriously and narrowed his eyes at them

"Then no harm no foul," Nate said beating the others to the punch and speaking first as the clone looked at him in curiosity "I've been in your shoes, being forced to do things against your will, ain't pretty I'll tell you that," Nate said and the clone frown in deep thought as the heroes looked at him in concerned and sympathy before looking back at the clone

"I assume that the Genomorphs taught you telepathically," Aqualad noted and Superboy nodded his head

"They taught me much," Superboy said "They taught me how to read, how to right, I-I know the name of things," He explained

"But have you seen them?" Robin asked in curiosity "Have they let you see the sky? Or the sun?" Robin asked now realizing that maybe he was taking those things for granted

"Images are implanted in my mind," Superboy explained but then he frowned in frustration "But no, I have not seen them," He explained

"Do they at least take you out of your pod?" Nate asked and Superboy looked away not wanting to respond

"Do you even know who you are?" Aqualad asked and Superboy looked up with narrowed eyes at Aqualad

"I am the Superboy, a Genomorph, a clone made out of Superman's DNA," Superboy said and Nate narrowed his eyes at the mention of the stolen DNA "Created to replace him should he perish… to destroy him should he turn from the light," Superboy said and while the light comment could be interpreted by one sort of way, Nate understood completely what he means, or rather what his masters meant

"The light? Is that what the scientist here has told you?" Nate asked to the confusion of the sidekicks but Superboy nodded "They worked for them huh? Shit," Nate whispered and was only heard by Superboy who frowned in confusion but then Aqualad brought the conversation back on track

"To be like Superman is a worthy aspiration," Aqualad said gaining the attention of the clone "But like Superman, you deserve a life of your own, beyond your solar suit, beyond your pod, beyond Cadmus," Aqualad said and Superboy narrowed his eyes

"I live because of Cadmus! It is my home!" Superboy said angry at the thought of leaving Cadmus but Nate didn't let Superboy process those words

"The life of a slave," Nate said as Superboy's eyes winded and looked at Nate quickly "You are their weapon for them to use and toss out as they see fit, you've seen it," Nate said as he leaned forward and narrowed his eyes at Superboy "You weren't in control of your actions when you took us out, I wonder who else or what they will want you to destroy next," Nate explained and Superboy looked down and tighten his fist

"You have been secluded all of your life," Robin said "Let us go and we can show you the sun," Robin offered a compromise hoping that the clone would be swayed to let them out

"Um pretty sure it's nighttime, but we can totally show you the moon," Kid Flash said under the glares of Robin and Nate

"We can show you, introduce you to Superman," Aqualad said and Superboy frowned in deep thought at the prospect that was made to him

But his thoughts were interrupted as a scientist made his way toward them accompanied by Guardian and another scientist all with Genomoprhs gnomes "No they can't," Desmond said as he glared at the teenagers in the pod "They'll be otherwise," he said giving them a smirk and then looked at another scientist "Activate the cloning process," Desmond said as Nate looked up to the pod and a plan started constructing on his mind

"Pass," Robin said cheekily "The Batcave is crowed enough," Robin said to Desmond who just gave him a huff and turned to Guardian

"And get the weapon back in its pod," Desmond said and Superboy looked at him annoyed

"What did I say, a weapon for their disposal," Nate said as Superboy looked up Nate stared straight at his eyes "How long till they find you disposable?" Nate warned him as Guardian grabbed Superboy's shoulder but the teen shook him off

"Don't start thinking now," Desmond said as the Gnome on his shoulder jumped into Superboy's one "See you are not a real boy, you are a weapon, and you belong to me!" Desmond said glaring at the clone who offered no response or emotion "Well to Cadmus. Same thing!" He huffed and Nate chuckled at his misstep and the doctor glared at him before looking back at Superboy "Now get back to your pod!"

Superboy offered no response and just started walking away, Desmond turned back and saw the heroes and Nate staring at him with the blond teen glaring at him "Something on your mind?" Desmond asked sarcastically and Nate smirked at him

"Everything you've been working for is falling apart, it's fun to see it," Nate said glaring at the end as Desmond took a step back and gulped but then he composed himself and gave a nod to the other scientist who activated the protocol

Then from inside the tube, four syringes came out on each pod and connected to each person in the pod on their chest and started drawing their blood and DNA forcefully, the trio of heroes started screaming immediately and Desmond had a huge smile on his face but that smile went away when he didn't hear Nate screaming

He looked over there and saw Nate biting hard his pain and starting daggers at him and again Desmon got slightly scared "Where's Dubbilax?" Desmond asked and as he was summoning the creature it appeared next to him and scared the crap out of Desmond "Lurking as usual, get the G-gnomes downloading their memories, once that's done," Desmond said glaring at Dubbilax "Delete the source material," Desmond said and then looked at Nate as the blond teen grumble

"Coward, if you are gonna kill us the least you could do is do it yourself," Nate spat out as he kept glaring at Desmond, but he wasn't just talking for no reason, he threatened Desmon so Aqualad could speak to Superboy without anyone hearing it

Aqualad's good heart apparently had won, because the door was suddenly torn apart by Superboy surprising the head scientist, and it also cut the power as the process of cloning had stopped

Desmon's eyes narrowed as he, The Guardian, and Dubbilax ran up to Superboy to stop him "I told you to get back to," Desmond started saying but the Superboy pushed the four out of the way knocking out the trio in the process

"You are here to help us or fry us?" Kid Flash asked as Superboy narrowed his eyes but then nothing happened

"Huh, I don't seem to have heat vision, so I suppose helping you is my only option," Superboy said and Nate chuckled

"Seems like the G-gnomes taught you a sense of humor too," Nate said and then a puff of blue smoke appeared on the pod surprising Superboy and the heroes "Nice entrance though, 9/10," Nate said behind Superboy and in front of the passed out Dr. Desmond

"Wait, you could've gotten out at any time? Why did you wait!?" KF asked and Nate looked back

"I didn't know if Sups was on our side or not, and I couldn't risk them killing you guys, so I waited," Nate said with a shrug and Kid Flash smiled knowing the new stranger cared about them

Then Robin managed to get out of his cuffs also meanwhile Nate started looting the things Desmond had on him finding an iPad which he bet contained a lot of sweet information.

Nate looked back and saw Superboy helping Auqlad down while Robin messed with the main computer, Nate teleported himself next to Robin who flinched a little

"That's something I have to get used to," Robin murmured and Nate looked at the computer

"What are you doing?" Nate asked in curiosity and Robin looked at him

"Trying to get rid of our DNA, but it seems once the process begins it cannot be turned back," Robin said and Nate saw Desmond waking up slowly

"Don't worry I know a way to deal with it, let's just get out of here," Nate said as the group of teens started running to the exit

"You'll never get out of here, I'll have you all back in the pods by morning!" Desmond shouted and Nate threw four cards at each storage of DNA

"What pods?" Nate said cheekily as he ran away snapping his fingers and the pods exploded from the kinetic energy on the cards leaving Desmond in a room surrounded by flames

The group started running back where they came from towards the elevator with Aqualad and Kid Flash leading the charge "We're still 42 levels below but if we can make it to the elevator," Aqualad said but then those giant creatures blocked their path, and made them stop

Superboy and Nate, the ones who were at the back of the group turned around and saw several smaller Genomorphs standing there ready to take them down, Nate looked forward and grabbed Superboy's arm "Best if we don't waste time mon amie," Nate said and teleported himself and Superboy just outside the elevator shaft and Superboy fell to his knees by the sudden movement

"If you could open the doors that would be dope," Nate said as he disappeared and appeared again but this time holding Robin, who also fell to his knees and held his hand over his mouth

Superboy didn't waste more time as he quickly opened the doors of the elevator, well he broke them but it served the same purpose just as Nate appeared with Aqualad and Kid Flash with him, and the two had gotten used to the movement of Nate's power

"That's a cool power but please just warn us next time," Kid Flash said holding his stomach and Nate smiled

"I'll think about it," Nate said as he sent five cards to the ground in front of him in between the group and the creatures as the others started climbing and jumping in Superboy's case up the elevator shaft

Nate snapped his fingers and teleported inside as the explosion stopped the creatures from advancing, Nate looked up and teleported to where Superboy had started falling realizing that the clone couldn't fly like Superman, he managed to grab both him and Aqualad and teleported mid-air to safety as he helped both teens stand up on of the ledges

"Superman can fly, why can't I fly?" Superboy asked out loud in slight shock and despair as Nate helped him and Aqualad stand up

"Don't know," Kid Flash chipped in making Superboy look at him in confusion "But it seems you can still leap tall buildings in a single bound. Still cool," Kid Flash offered and Superboy sighed as he looked at Nate

"Ah, thank you," Superboy murmured and Nate just gave him a nod knowing that the clone didn't need any more words then Robin gathered all of the group's attention

"Guys! This will have to be our exit!" He said looking up as all the teens looked up and saw the high speeds elevator coming down at them

Superboy and Aqualad opened the doors to sub-level 15 and the teens quickly jumped there avoiding the elevator just in time

They didn't have any time to think as a horde of creatures were rushing towards them so they started running away, they ran without any direction for a couple of minutes but then Superboy spoke up

"Go left! Left!" Superboy called out turning left as the group followed his lead "Right!" He said again and Nate raised an eyebrow in curiosity, wondering how Superboy knew the way out

Then they got to a dead end, a wall with only a vent connected to it "Great directions, Supey," Kid Flash said sarcastically as he frowned at the clone "Are you trying to get us repodded?" He asked and Superboy looked down in confusion

"No, I-I don't understand," Superboy said confused as the rest of the group caught up to him and Nate put a hand on Superboy's shoulder

"Do not apologize, mein Freund," Nate said with a smirk not noticing that he was using words that he did not know again

"Yeah, this is perfect," Robin said with a smirk looking at the vent in excitement

The next thing the group knew they were all crawling to the vent with Robing and Nate leading the charge, they made good progress and it served to confuse their chasers a bit but not everyone was feeling it

"Ugh, at this rate we will," Kid Flash complained and Nate gave him a chuckle and turned around

"Patience is a virtue, mon amie," Nate said as Kid Flash grumbled but then Superboy shushed both

"Shh, listen," Superboy said as they heard something crawling through the vent behind them and turned around trying to see anything

"This way," Robin said as he kicked a vent and the group fell back into the laboratory premises, Robin quickly found a port to connect as Nate and Aqualad kept an eye out

"I hacked the motion sensors, should give us some time," Robin said cheekily and Kid Flash smirked in excitement "Still plenty of them between us and out," Robin remarked

"Sweet," He said moving his goggles down to his eyes "Gives me enough room to move," He said as he opened the door to the stairway and started running without a second thought

He got far and then he was met by a hoard of creatures, he was about to run them over but saw a glowing oink card in the middle of the creatures and Kid Flush grumbled internally "Not again," Kid Flash mumbled irritated but couldn't do anything when he felt himself teleported to the next floor by Nate

Kid Flash looked back as Nate was crouching on the ledge of the staircase with a small smirk on his face and the speedster just grumbled and looked away not bothering to say anything and continued running away

He ran to the exit but he wasn't quick enough as the doors started to close up and the speedster couldn't slow down so he came crashing head first into the door as a blue smoke appeared next to him "Don't," Kid Flash said noticing the smirk on Nate's face

"We're cut off from the street," Aqualad said as the rest of the group caught up with Nate and KF

Kid Flash managed to stand up rubbed his head in pain and looked at Aqualad with a bored tone "Thanks, my head hadn't noticed," He said sarcastically as Superboy passed by him and struck the door but it didn't make a dent

Then he grabbed the left side of the door and Aqualad grabbed the right side trying to pry it open but they couldn't do it

"I can't hack this that quick," Robin said and Nate looked to his right and kicked a door to another hallway

"This way," He said as the teens started running only to be met by Guardian and a huge hoard of creatures waiting for them

They were surrounded and Nate was trying to find a way out, an opening he could teleport everyone out but then the horns of the Genomorphs started glowing and the rest of the group fell unconscious with Superboy falling to his knees

Nate looked around in confusion wondering why he was okay and then heard an unfamiliar voice in his head "Interesting, I haven't seen a mind so well protected in a long time," The voice said as Nate looked around and saw Dubbilax, the skinny Genomorph from earlier, looking at him in curiosity and then he turned to Superboy

"Perhaps it is time, for the sake of all Genomorphs, that our brother Superboy make up his mind," Dubbilax said as both Nate and Superboy heard him and the young clone looked at Dubbilax

"It was you," Superboy said as Nate put his hands inside the pocket of his jacket, he would let Superboy take care of this for now, but he was ready for anything

"Yes brother, I was the one that set off the fire that lured your new friends and woke them when they were in danger," Dubbilax said as Nate looked at him with narrowed eyes wondering why the Genomorph was doing this

"And guided me," Superboy said as he stood up "Why?" He asked as Nate put himself in front of him

"Because you are the hope for all Genomorphs, you will blaze a trail for all our brothers, showing us the way to freedom," Dubbilax said and Nate narrowed his eyes

"Imposing your will on him will not grant him that," Nate said as Dubbilax looked at him in curiosity "Freedom is yours to take, not for him to grant it," Nate explained and Dubbilax hummed

"Then it seems we have a lot to learn," he said as the group of young heroes started waking up and groaning from the effects of the mental attack "So what will you choose brother?" Dubbilax asked as Superboy looked down in deep thought

"I… chose…freedom," Superboy said looking at Dubbilax with a newfound confidence and they heard a groan coming from Guardian

"What's… going on?" Guardian asked out loud as he held his head in pain "Feels… like a fog…. Lifting," He said shaking his head, and Aqualad who managed to stand up looked at him in concern

"Guardian?" He asked with guard up worrying that the hero would turn against them again

"Go," Guardian said with conviction "I'll deal with Desmond," He said but then they heard a laugh behind them

"I think not," Desmond said looking at all of them with hatred in his eyes "Project Blockbuster will give me the power to restore order on Cadmus," He said taking a blue vial from one of his pockets and glaring hard at them, then without any doubt he drank the vial and then immediately started twisting in pain

The group took a step back as Guardian put himself in front of the teenagers they saw Desmond starting to get bigger and bigger as his muscles started building and tearing through his skin till a big blue monster remained in front of them glaring and roaring at them

"Get back," Guardian shouted as he rushed to the monster but the creature swatted him away as the hero crashed into the wall and got knocked out

Superboy and Nate didn't waste any time as the clone rushed forward and hit the jaw of the monster Nate took advantage of the distraction and took out a small metallic cylinder from his pocket which activated creating a metallic Bo-Staff

He sent two glowing cards to the face of the Monster invading its view line with pink smoke but otherwise did nothing much to the monster, Blockbuster roared but then lost its breath as Nate managed to strike him straight in the stomach and then flipped the staff a bit as it started glowing and hit the monster on the cheek and exploded on impact sending the monster three steps away

Superboy took advantage and jumped at the monster but it had managed to recover and met Superboy mid-air, Nate saw them break the ceiling and teleported to the back of the monster and plant a card on its neck

He teleported himself and Superboy back to where the other trio had jumped on and snapped his fingers as an explosion occurred behind the monster's neck and sent it tumbling down

Nate narrowed his eyes wondering if that was enough to take it down but grumbled when he saw the monster standing up again but this time with a whole regenerating where the card had exploded

He teleported forward while sending a barrage of cards at the monster, he managed to appear in front of the monster and stabbed the right knee of the creature with his staff and then flipped it and hit its jaw in one simple motion, he sent another card to the eye of the monster but this time the creature wasn't having it

So it moved forward very quickly and grabbed Nate by his left arm and threw him away into a pillar of the building ripping the left sleeve of his hoodie and revealing a storm dragon tattoo sleeve on his left arm, his back hit first on the pillar breaking it in the process

He stood up and cracked his back preparing to fight back but then the boy wonder grabbed his attention "Hey blondie, come here!" Robin shouted and Nate teleported next to the young teen

"Name's Nate, use it," Nate said and Robin waved him off

"Yeah, yeah, see these pillars," Robin said showing the blond teen a hologram of the building's blueprint specifically the pillars from his pad Nate took a closer look "If we destroy them we can bring the ceiling down on the monster," Robin said and Nate hummed in agreement "I'll get the others to help," Robin said and Nate put a hand on his shoulder stopping the boy wonder in his tracks

"No need, I see your bet and I'll raise it," Nate said with a cocky smirk "Just tell me when to bring it down," Nate said and Robin looked at him in confusion

"Are you sure you can do it?" Robin said and Nate smiled at him

"Don't worry mon amie, the cards are always in my favor," Nate said teleporting away and Robin shook off his confusion and started conveying the plan to the rest

The young heroes plus the clone started attacking and distracting the monster while Robin kept an eye on Nate, not that he didn't trust the blond to get the job done, but to make sure everything was going according to plan

But then he saw it, every single pillar started glowing bright pink in an instant and Robin couldn't help but be amazed by the sight of it "Hey boy wonder, tell me when!" Nate shouted keeping his sleeveless arm connected to a glowing pillar

"Right, Superboy, KF!" Robin shouted as both named teens nodded and got the attention of the monster Robin put an X on the center of the facility

KF ran forward with the monster on his tail and Aqualad made a path of water for the speedster to slow down Superboy jumped forward hitting the monster in the face and bringing it down

Aqualad then used the water to electrocute the monster to keep him down and Robin looked at Nate while sending bomb devices to the ceiling "Now!"

"Auf Wiedersehen, mein Freund," Nate said as he let go of the pillar and snapped his fingers all the glowing parts of the facility simultaneously exploded bringing the ceiling right on top of the monster

They overdid it, as the whole lab got destroyed and several parts fell not only on top of the monster but also on top of the young teens but Superboy managed to block the concrete and protect the group

He moved the piece of concrete away as the group took a deep breath in off the air and chuckled a bit "We… did it," Aqualad said out of breath as Robin and KF gave him a smile and a chuckle

"Was there…. Any doubt?" Robin said as he high-fived the speedster but then both teens groaned and held their stomachs as the pain kicked in a bit

Superboy took a step towards the monster and out of the rubble making sure Blockbuster was down for the count

"You smell that?" Nate asked and Superboy looked at him in confusion "The sweet smell of America's polluted air, take it in," Nate said as Superboy took a deep breath in "Better than the air in that cave right?" Nate asked cheekily and Superboy snorted in amusement

"See?" Kid Flash said putting a hand on Superboy's shoulder and gaining the attention of the clone as he pointed upwards Superboy looked up "The moon," Kid Flash said as Superboy's face formed a small smile at the view

Then his eyes narrowed as he saw something, or rather someone flying in his line of sight and rapidly approaching them "Oh, and Superman," Kid Flash said with a big smile on his face "Do we keep our promises or what?" He said and then received a push from Nate and looked at him in confusion

"Don't gloat, dude," Nate said and Kid Flash gave him a sheepish laugh as Superboy looked at Superman with a nervous look as the group saw the whole Justice League arriving behind the Kryptonian hero

Nate saw the hesitation in the young clone so he gave him a small push forward and Superboy glared at him in return before looking forward

He took a few steps forward as he connected eyes with Superman who looked at him in curiosity, then he lifted the broken part of his solar suit revealing the iconic S symbol

Superman's eyes widened in shock as Superboy got excited at the prospect of Superman accepting him but his excitement went away when he saw Superman narrowing his eyes

"Is that what I think it is?" Batman asked taking a step forward while looking at Superboy closely

"He doesn't like to be called it," Kid Flash said and Nate cleared his throat

"Dude," Nate said and Kid Flash looked at him confused and Superboy took a step forward

"I'm Superman's clone," Superboy said shocking the entire Justice League and they started to look at each other in confusion

Batman glared at the sidekicks and addressed them ignoring Nate and Superboy completely

Superboy kept his eyes completely focused on Superman and Nate found a rubble to sit on as he took the tablet he had stolen from Desmond and started rummaging around all the folders he could find, for any type of info or lead that might lead to what he was looking for

After a few moments of not finding anything of relevancy, Nate saw a bunch of leaguers take the Blockbuster creature away, he looked to where Superboy was and saw Superman approaching him and from Superboy's body language Nate could tell that whatever Superman told him didn't sit right with the clone

So he teleported next to the clone as the young black-haired teen looked at him in curiosity "You keep calling yourself his clone, I disagree you know," Nate said and Superboy raised an eyebrow in confusion "They may have created you for that purpose, but I believe you can be something more than just Superman's clone, is up to you to figure what that something is," Nate said putting his hand on Superboy's shoulder

Superboy smiled and gave Nate a nod in a thankful manner "Thanks," Superboy said and Nate then gave him a small smirk

"And if that doesn't work you can always find work as a Superman impersonator, I heard they pay good money for that," Nate said as Superboy huffed and pushed the laughing blond away, and then both teens looked back as Batman made his presence known followed by the sidekick's mentors

"Cadmus will be investigated," Batman said gaining the teen's attention as Nate put the tablet away "All 52 levels, but let's make something clear-"Batman said but then The Flash took a step forward

"You should've called!" The Flash said narrowing his eyes at the teens as the Dark Knight gave him a look

"End results aside, we're not happy," Batman said narrowing his eyes and Nate shared a look with Superboy as both teens smirked in amusement "You hacked the Justice League's systems, disobeyed direct order, and endangered lives, you will not be doing this again," Batman ordered as Aqualad took a deep breath in and stepped forward

"I am sorry, but we will," Aqualad said with conviction and Aquaman narrowed his eyes at the young Atlantean

"Aqualad, stand down," Aquaman ordered but the young hero shook his head and looked at him

"Apologies my king," Aqualad said bowing his head a little in reverence and then narrowing his eyes "But no," Aqualad said with a firm tone as Aquaman raised his eyebrow in response "We did good work here tonight, the work you trained us to do, together, on our own, we forged something powerful, important," Aqualad said looking at the other sidekicks who smiled at him

The Flash took another step forward and narrowed his eyes at the teens "If this is about your treatment back at the hall, you three," He said but then Kid Flash stepped up

"The five of us," Kid Flash said emphasizing the word five "And it's not that," Kid Flash said as Robin took the floor

"Batman, we're ready to do what you taught us, otherwise why teach us at all," Robin said he may be the quietest of them all but he felt just as strong as the others

"Why let them tell us what to do?" Superboy said narrowing his eyes "It's simple, get on board or get out of the way," Superboy said irritated as the Justice League heroes looked at each other in deep thought

"Independence has a nice tone to it," Nate said as the proteges stood tall in front of their mentors and Batman narrowed his eyes at the group


Mount Justice a few days later

Nate was looking around the premises of the Justice League wondering where the hell, or rather how this was made, he was wearing a pair of tight black jeans and a pair of red wine Converse, a sweater of the same color as his shoes, and a black leather jacket with a big red X on its back to tie it all up

Then his attention was brought back thanks to Superboy who gave him a shove and glared at him telling him to pay attention, Nate turned around as Batman and some of the League members were hanging behind him, those being Black Canary, Shazam, Hawkman, Red Tornado, and the proteges' mentors Aquaman and The Flash

"This cave was the original secret sanctuary of the Justice League," Batman said walking forward and addressing the five young teens "We're calling into service again since you five are determined to stay together and fight the good fight you'll do it on the League's terms," Batman said as Nate crossed his arms and paid close attention

At first, he had said no, he liked his independence and had told the young heroes that it would be better if they made their group and do hero work on their own, make a name for themselves which the sidekicks had refused, although Superboy didn't say no either

But then both Aqualad and Markus had talked to him one-on-one, and both had made strong arguments, Aqualad mentioned that by having a good relationship with the league he could have a better reach to help other people

But that wasn't what sold Nate on the idea of joining the others, no, while it was a good reason, it was what Markus had said

"The league has better access to the information that you're looking for, and their resources know no end, this is your best shot, Nate," Markus had said and that gave Nate a lot to think "Sides, are you really gonna leave those kids by themselves?" He said

And now Nate found himself here listening to Batman telling them what exactly this new team was going to do

"Red Tornado volunteer to live here and be your supervisor," Batman said as Nate looked at the Red robot and raised an eyebrow, then his eyes moved to the left to the woman in a leather outfit with the blue leather jacket on top, as she connected eyes with his and nodded at him with a small smile on her face "Black Canary is in charge of training while I will be deploying you on missions," Batman said as Nate's eyes returned to the dark knight

"Real missions?" Robin asked excitedly and you could tell his eyes were big even if his sunglasses covered them

"Yes but covert," Batman said as The Flash took a step forward

"The league will handle the obvious stuff," The Flash said with a smirk on his face "There's a reason why we have these big targets on our chests," The Flash said and Nate snorted

"That and merchandise sales," Nate said sarcastically gaining a snort from Black Canary who masked it with a cough when Batman glared at her

"Back to the matter at hand," Aquaman said backtracking the conversation again "Cadmus showed us that the bad guys are getting smarter, Batman needs a team that can operate on the fly," Aquaman said turning his head to Batman giving the Dark Knight the floor again

"The six of you will be that team," Batman said as Robin smiled in excitement but Nate frowned as the numbers didn't add up

"Cool, wait," Robin said as he also noticed that the numbers didn't add up "Six?" He asked in confusion

Then Batman looked up behind the young teens making them turn around and saw Martian Manhunter walking towards them with a young Martian redhead girl about sixteen years of age wearing a similar but girl-style outfit as the older Martian

"This is Martian Manhunter's niece, Miss Martian," Batman clarifies as the young girl gives a shy smile to the group

"Hi," She said shyly, and then Kid Flash smirked at Robin

"I'm liking this gig more and more," Kid Flash said cheekily as he moved forward blocking Superboy from Miss Martian's view "Um, welcome aboard the name's Kid Flash," KF said pointing at himself with a thumbs up "This is Robin," He said pointing at the young teen who put a rock and roll sign up "And that's Aqualad," He said pointing at the Atlantean who gave her a small nod "It's cool if you forget their names," Kid Flash said as the proteges took a step forward towards the Martain girl

"I'm honored to be included," Miss M said clasping her hands together and enunciating her feelings

Superboy and Nate hung back a bit as the young clone was looking at the floor in deep thought and Nate was looking back at Black Canary and Batman who were talking together as the dark knight had his eyes narrowed at him

"Hey Superboy, Nate, come and meet Miss M!" Robin said as they both teens looked there, Nate looked behind one last time as Black Canary again gave him a smile and a nod, and then the blond teen walked alongside Superboy towards the Martian girl

Miss M gave Nate a small smile and Nate nodded at her then she looked at Superboy as her outfit changed to the colors of his shirt "I like your shirt," Miss M said and Superboy smiled as Nate gave him a playful elbow and Superboy rolled his eyes

"Today is the day," Aqualad said as the young heroes gave him a smirk feeling proud of what was to come

End of Chapter 1

Just a small note, as you can see Nate's powers will be taken from some X-men's powers, which ones? I won't tell yet, this will be a slight crossover with the mutant heroes but they won't be appearing as major characters so don't expect them to

That is all

Adios