Not entirely happy with certain parts of this chapter, but I hope you enjoy it anyway.
TW: Yep. You'll see on Prometheus.
Metropolis
Four years earlier
Lana Lang was on the phone, leaving a message to Chloe when a tranq dart broke through her wind shield and hit her in the neck, injecting her with a sedative. Lana was out almost before she could register what had happened.
Seconds later, Oliver approached the car, looking inside.
"Oliver? Who's in the car?" Clint asked over the Comms.
"Luthor's girlfriend," Oliver said, recognizing her from the file on Lex. "She must have followed us here. You're getting sloppy, Dragon."
"Yeah yeah. Just get back in here and we'll drop her and Luthor off at Metropolis General," Dragon said.
Oliver stiffened, sensing something behind him. Then, he whirled around, tossing a flechette that struck Clark's shoulder. But, to Oliver's surprise, the flechette bounced off Clark's shoulder like it had hit a wall of steel. Oliver stared at Clark in disbelief, wondering if he was seeing things.
"What did you do to her?" Clark demanded.
"Just knocked her out. Wouldn't have had to if she would have stayed out of this," Oliver said, wondering what this guy was.
"You abducted Lex," Clark said hotly.
"To find out what he knew. You know what he was up to on Black Thursday?" Oliver asked and saw Clark gulp uncomfortable. "You do. So you ever think certain people might have questions about that?"
"Who are you?" Clark demanded.
"Someone doing a job. Now I've done it, so are you gonna let me get her and Luthor somewhere safe or not?" Oliver demanded.
Clark stared at him for a long moment before he seemed to vanish. Oliver almost wondered whether he had imagined the whole thing. Then Oliver glanced down, seeing flechette that was now slightly dented, and he knew he hadn't.
Metropolis
Now
"The Avengers. The X-Men. Barry. Now the Blur? Are there any superheroes you don't know?" Sara asked Oliver in exasperation as they followed the former Avengers, Clark and Kara back to Clark's base.
"He wasn't the Blur when I knew him," Oliver tried to explain.
"How do you even know him? Can't imagine there were many places you two ran into each other," Clint noted.
"It's a long story, we don't have time for it right now," Clark shut down the conversation.
"Besides, we shouldn't be having this conversation out in the open," Steve pointed out.
"Watchtower isn't far," Clark said, hoping no more problems would arise.
At a different hotel than the one Magneto had attacked, Sam Lane sat awkwardly across from Charles, who stared at him calmly. Chloe stood by his side, the other X-Men around the room, standing guard in case Magneto tried another attack. Barry, Kurt and Matt were out searching for Magneto.
"How are you feeling, Uncle Sam?" Chloe finally asked gently.
"Well, I was just attacked by a madman. Considering the circumstances, I think I'm doing okay," Lane said and a beat passed. "What are you doing here, Chloe?"
"That's a long story. But I don't think I'm the one you should be talking to right now," Chloe said with a glance at Charles.
"General Lane, my name is Charles Xavier," Charles introduced himself.
"I know who you are, Mr. Xavier. The Pentagon has a file on you and your school a mile long," Lane said and Charles smiled.
"I imagine they would. You have served your country with honor, and everyone in this room thanks you for that. But not everyone in this country is as honorable as you. The less honorable people in this nation have enacted the Sokovia Accords to persecute mutants and those who would wish to help people. I know you believe that not everyone who takes the law into their own hands is as honorable as Steve Rogers," Charles said as Lane opened his mouth to argue. "And you're right. But how can the solution be to persecute a group of people that have done nothing wrong but be born with powers?"
Lane faltered and Charles knew he was reaching him, so he pressed on.
"General, the world is at a tipping point. More and more mutants are coming to believe that Magneto is right, that a war with humans is our only chance for survival."
"But not you," Lane noted.
"No, not me. I believe a day will come when humans and mutants will live side by side, in peace. But I fear that day will never come, if things continue as they are. You have the power to stop that. People listen to you, they trust you. Use that…before it's too late," Charles told him and Lane was silent, deep in thought.
The sound of a phone ringing interrupted the tense atmosphere.
"Sorry, that's me," Chloe said, pulling out her phone and answer. "Yeah…okay, I'll tell him. That's was Barry. Magneto's in the wind."
"You think he'll be back?" Bobby asked.
"Not tonight. Erik knows we will stick close to the General for the night. He will not be foolish enough to attack again," Charles said confidently.
"So what now?" Logan asked and Charles was silent for the moment.
Fury, who had been watching from the corner of the room, silent, spoke up.
"I think we need to get some rest. Two of us should take turns standing guarding in case Magneto sends Mystique to finish the job," Fury said and Charles grimaced.
"I thought she was apprehended by the authorities not long ago," Ororo interjected confused.
"She was. But on transfer to The Raft, Magneto staged a breakout. Ross has been covering it up, but one of my old contacts filled me in," Fury explained.
"Perfect. So Magneto has the perfect assassin to send after the General," Kitty said sarcastically.
"So don't let anyone in," Logan said as he looked around at all of them. "Two people stay with the General at all times. Don't let anyone in that you're not certain is one of us. Even then, when you see us, ask us something only one of us knows that can be verified by one other person."
"You'd have made a good soldier," Lane noted and Logan smiled tightly.
"I was, a long time ago," Logan said but left it at that.
"It' a good plan, but we can't stay," Chloe interjected and they all turned to her. "Fury, Logan, I need you to come with me. Matt and Barry will meet up with us midway."
"Meet up with us where? Why us?" Logan demanded and she looked him in the eye for a long moment, as though trying to measure what to tell him.
"It's time to meet up with Oliver. Besides, I've met your team. Time for you to meet mine."
Watchtower
Not long after
Lois was pacing back and forth, waiting nervously for Clark and Kara to return. As if in answer, the doors opened and Clark walked in. Lois was halfway to running into her boyfriend's arms when she realized he and Kara hadn't returned alone.
"Uh…Smallville? Do you know Captain America is behind you?" Lois asked as she stared at the former Avengers, Oliver and Sara. "And Oliver Queen?"
"We kind of all met up on the same mission," Clark explained.
"It's a complicated story…which just got more complicated," Oliver said grimly, thinking of Adrian.
Metropolis
Not long after
"Well, that could have gone better," Adrian said as he met with Godfrey and an old woman.
"The Kryptonian and the archer retain their freewill," the woman said with distain.
"For now. But as they are now, Kal-El and Oliver Queen will fall to Darkseid. Luckily, there's someone who can push Oliver Queen to his limits," Godfrey pointed out and Adrian couldn't help but laugh.
"It's ironic. I spent three years planning my revenge against Oliver Queen…and all that time, someone else was planning the same thing. Even picked the same name I would have used," Adrian mused before glancing at the old woman. "Do you know who he is under that mask, Granny?"
"Yes, I do. But why spoil the surprise, Adrian? You'll love it," Granny said with a wicked laugh. "Oliver Queen will meet his destiny to serve our dark lord, one way or another."
Watchtower
Later
"Please tell me, you at least got his Intel on you, Smallville?" Lois asked once the heroes had finished explaining what had happened at Club Desaad.
"Found a flash drive on him, took it," Clark said as he pulled it out. "Let's see what's on it."
Clark plugged it into the computer and they watched as images of Clark disappearing and reappearing at various places, lifting things like trucks and trucks were shown.
"How'd he get all this?" Clark wondered.
"I'm worried about if he has copies," Lois pointed out.
"Can you find out?" Kara wondered.
"I'm no hacker. We'd probably have to break into Godfrey's office," Clark said.
"Or I can hack into his computer from here."
As one, the heroes and Lois looked up, seeing Chloe standing in the doorway, flanked by Barry and Matt on one side, with Fury and Logan on the other.
"Hey, guys. I'm home."
Kent Farm, Four years earlier
Night
The next night, Clark walked up into his loft, stunned to find someone there.
"Clark Kent," Oliver greeted from where he had been looking at Clark's study. "Nice to finally meet you face to face."
"Nice to see what you look like under that hood," Clark said, having used X-Ray vision to see under the hood the first time they met. "How'd you find me?"
"Someone with your abilities is someone I find…intriguing. It was a simple matter of looking into anyone connected to Luthor who matched your description. You weren't hard to find, Clark," Oliver said as they faced each other.
"What do I call you?" Clark asked and Oliver smiled tightly.
"Doesn't matter. I'm a ghost, someone with no name, no home, no family," Oliver said with a sigh.
"Sounds lonely. But you didn't come here to tell me that," Clark noted and Oliver nodded.
"You're right, I didn't. I've done my homework on you, Clark. You're always at the scene of the crime, always involved in some problem. Specially, you're involved in how it gets resolved," Oliver noted.
"I try to help who I can," Clark said modestly and Oliver smiled tightly.
"And you help a lot of people, I've noted."
"And yet I feel like there's a 'but' coming up," Clark said and Oliver nodded.
"But there's a whole world of people out there, Clark. I've been to a lot of different places, Hong Kong and Russia for one, and everyone suffers. Someone with your abilities…you can make a difference the rest of us can only dream of," Oliver paused, remembering the message from his father before dismissing it. "You have potential that most of us would kill for, and you're wasting it."
"What are you trying to say?" Clark asked and Oliver reached into his jacket.
"If you ever feel like you want to make a real difference…give me a call," Oliver said, putting something down on Clark's desk before walking out.
Clark watched him leave before glancing down at the desk, seeing there was a card with a number on it.
Watchtower
Now
"Godfrey doesn't seem to have any copies. But, to be on the safe side, I just sent a virus to his system that'll cause it to crash," Chloe said as she stood at the computer.
"Nice job, Chlo," Lois said with an impressed whistle and Chloe shrugged.
"It's what I do. Sorry I just kind of took off," Chloe apologized, glancing at Clark.
"Like you said, you brought back help," Clark said, glancing over at where Oliver was talking to Barry.
"You have to admit, this is pretty cool, Ollie," Barry said as they looked around.
"Says the guy who teamed up with Spider-Man," Oliver pointed out and Barry glanced over at him.
"That made the news, huh?" Barry asked and Oliver nodded.
"Where have you been, Barry? Why haven't you contacted your friends? They're worried about you," Oliver said, remembering Felicity getting a call from Caitlin about Barry's disappearance.
"And I'm sorry about that, but Chloe told me I had to keep my distance for now," Barry said and Oliver glanced at Chloe warily.
"You know her?" Oliver asked.
"Joe sent me to science camp the summer after my mom died, thought it might help me to take my mind off things. I met Chloe there; we stayed in touch until she moved to a town in Kansas. Then she showed up in my lab a few days ago, telling me she needed my help to save the world," Barry explained.
"Do you believe her?" Oliver asked.
"Well so far, she hasn't been wrong. Ollie, she knew I was The Flash and that you were The Arrow," Barry said and Oliver stared at him in disbelief.
"How is that possible?"
"The Helmet of Fate," Oliver and Barry looked up as Fury approached. "It gives the wearer the ability to see the future. Chloe Sullivan is the next wearer."
"Really?" Oliver gave him a deadpanned stare.
"I've seen a lot of things during my time as Director and even before that defy explanation, Oliver. There are some things in this world science cannot explain," Fury said simply.
A few feet away, Logan was observing all this when Sara stepped up beside him.
"Hey."
"Hey. So, you've been busy," Logan noted and Sara shrugged.
"Prometheus dragged us here. But now, it seems like we stepped in the middle of something way more complicated," Sara said and Logan let out a bark of laughter.
"Been there. Not even sure why I'm here, blondie says I need to be here for some reason," Logan said with a glance at Chloe.
"How much do you know about her?" Sara inquired.
"Not much. Fury vouches for her, says the Helmet of Fate chooses someone of pure heart. But the Professor seems to trust her, so I guess she's alright," Logan said with a shrug.
"So are all of you here, in town?" Sara asked curiously.
"Most of us. The Professor, Storm, Bobby, Rogue, Kitty," Logan said and Sara raised an eyebrow.
"So I finally get to meet the people you work with. This should be fun," Sara quipped and Logan chuckled.
"Yeah, guess so. It is…good to see you, Sara. Just wish the circumstances were better," Logan said, looking at her in a way that made Sara's heart do a little flutter.
"Yeah. Me too," Sara said, the two staring at each other and not looking away.
"It's been a long time," Natasha said as she and Matt caught up.
"Years," Matt agreed. "I'd say it's good to see you but…"
"Yeah," Natasha said, flashing a slight grin. "How have you been?"
"Better. Went through a dark time for a while but…I'm picking myself back up," Matt said, thinking of everything he went through with Fisk and The Hand.
"I'm glad that you're better then," Natasha said, barely stopping herself from reaching out and taking his hand.
It wasn't her place. Not anymore.
"Am I the only one wondering why a blind lawyer is here? No offense," Lois said and Matt smiled tightly.
"Not taken, Ms. Lane," Matt said.
"He's Daredevil," Barry revealed and several pairs of eyes looked at him incredulous. "Hey, they were gonna find out sooner or later!"
"How have you maintained a secret identity for this long?" Clint asked in disbelief.
"He's a work in progress," Sara said and Barry looked at her annoyed.
"He is right though, you were going to find out eventually," Matt said, although a bit annoyed at Barry outing him like that.
"Is that why you recommended him to me last year?" Oliver asked with a glance at Natasha.
"No. You needed a good lawyer, one that wouldn't stab you in the back. Besides, he wasn't Daredevil when I knew him, although I suspected when I heard about The Devil of Hell's Kitchen," Natasha said glancing back at Matt.
"And you're The Arrow, Oliver? Wasn't hard to figure out," Matt said and Oliver smiled tightly.
"No, I suppose it wouldn't be," Oliver acknowledged.
"And now that we all know each other, can we get down to business?" Clint asked.
"Clint's right. We all know why we're here," Steve added, grabbing everyone's attention.
"The darkness," Clark said before looking over at Chloe. "Is that why you've been gone?"
"We need a team to take it on, Clark. It's why I've been putting us all together," Chloe said.
"What I'd like to know is how Prometheus is involved in this," Sam said before glancing over at Sara. "I'm still not completely sure it isn't Chase. It could have just been someone Chase hired to dress up in his suit you fought earlier, the same way Cap did with Oliver last year."
"But it wasn't just the suit, Sam. It was the way he talked, the way he fought," Sara explained before she looked at Oliver. "Ollie, he copied one of my moves, the same way he did with you at the plant."
"Copied your move?" Natasha asked, the former Avengers exchanging a startled look.
"Yes. Prometheus seems to be able to copy a move after he sees you do it. Why? Does that mean something to you?" Oliver asked, all of them noticing the reaction of the former Avengers.
"According to our Intel, the Power Broker was working on a chip that, once implanted in the brain, would allow a soldier to copy the fighting style of whoever they were fighting," Wanda explained.
"So Prometheus and the Power Broker are working together?" Sara asked in disbelief.
"Seems that way. I've been trying to go after the Power Broker for a while now, but it's next to impossible to lay eyes on them," Fury explained.
"Well you might get your chance, Nick. The Power Broker is meeting a member of the government in a few days," Steve told him and Fury nodded.
"And all this is connected to the darkness that's trying to do…what, exactly?" Lois spoke up.
"We're not sure exactly. All we know for sure is that it's here, and it's not friendly," Chloe told her cousin.
"And it could be anywhere, in anyone," Kara pointed out.
"That reminds me. Kara, your bracelet seemed to repel the darkness, not send it away," Clark pointed out.
"Same thing happened with Steve. It tried to go into him and it was like something inside him pushed it back," Oliver remembered as the all looked at the First Avenger.
"I can't explain it. All I knew was it was going after Oliver and I had to stop it. Then it was gone, along with Chase," Steve tried to explain.
"I don't think the bracelet will work as a portal. The darkness is trapped inside of a host," Kara explained.
"You're superpowered, so is Steve. Why wouldn't the darkness want the two of you?" Clark wondered.
Kara's silence and the nervous darting of her eyes was Clark's answer as the truth washed over him like a bucket of cold water.
"It's because you're pure of spirit. That's why you couldn't lure the darkness to you with all your saves," Clark muttered.
"And why it couldn't take over Steve," Oliver said lowly, also realizing the truth.
"I don't feel pure of spirit. It feels like I've made all the wrong choices lately," Steve protested, thinking of the mess with Tony.
"Being pure of spirit doesn't mean free of doubts or mistakes. It just means we don't let them weight us down," Kara explained.
"Kara, you risked your soul to save me. If you hadn't jumped between us-"
"The dark spirit would have taken over you and your friend," Kara admitted.
"It's like he could see things in me I didn't want to face," Clark admitted.
"Now imagine that creature in possession of all your powers. The people of this planet would be doomed," Kara told him.
"You sound like my father, that I was destined to fail," Clark muttered.
"Failure is one thing, but it's how you overcome it that defines you," Kara said as she placed ah and on his shoulder.
Oliver was silent, thinking of his own encounter with the darkness. It wanted him, that was for sure. It made Prometheus seem like Brickwell by comparison. And if it came after him again…he would be powerless to stop it.
"So what do we do now? How do we fight this thing?" Barry asked.
"I don't know. I'm not sure we can," Clark said lowly.
Logan opened his mouth to speak and seemed to freeze midway through. Literally freeze, he seemed frozen in action. Clark and Oliver looked at him and then looked around, realizing it wasn't just Logan. The others seemed frozen as well, as though time had simply stopped.
"Clark? You see this, right?" Oliver asked, making sure he wasn't hallucinating.
"Yeah, I see it. Something's happening," Clark agreed his heart racing.
The door to the room opened and Clark and Oliver turned around, seeing a middle aged man with short brown hair and blue eyes walked into the room.
"My sincerest apologies for interrupting," the man said as Clark glowered at him.
"Brainiac," Clark sneered.
"You know him?" Oliver asked, sensing he was missing something.
"We know each other quite well, Mr. Queen," Brainiac said simply.
"I thought we destroyed you," Clark said and Brainiac merely 'hmmed'. "Whatever you want, leave them out of it."
"Oh don't worry; I'm only here for you and Mr. Queen," Brainiac announced, to their surprise. "I wanted to slow things down. Make sure you can soak in this special moment."
"And what's so special about this moment?" Clark demanded as he stepped up to Brainiac threateningly.
"This is the moment where your lives change forever," Brainiac said ominously.
Then, in a flash of purple light, Brainiac, Clark and Oliver all vanished. When the light faded, normal time resumed.
"Clark?" Lois called out, realizing her boyfriend was gone. "Clark?!"
"Where'd he go?" Steve asked in shock and alarm.
"It's not just him. Oliver's gone too," Matt said immediately noticing the absence of Oliver's heartbeat.
"Chloe, where are they?" Lois asked alarmed but Chloe didn't have an answer, as bewildered by this turn of events as the rest of them.
Not entirely happy with the flashbacks, but hope you all enjoyed them. And in case it wasn't obvious, after the first flashback, Clark doesn't just blindly trust Oliver; he makes sure Oliver, Clint and Dragon do take Lex and Lana to the hospital.
Hope the Lane/Charles conversation was ok.
Those of you familiar with Smallville know what's about to happen. Clark and Oliver are both about to take a trip down memory lane, and then some.