"Blood-oxygen levels...stable. Blood-Kryptonite saturation...optimal. Proceeding with the extraction." Lex said aloud to a tape recorder, though only he remained in the lab, and it had only been him, after all.
Well, him, and the raised body of the Man of Steel himself, hoisted and displayed, he thought, like a prized pig to be gawked at and appreciated...but the kryptonian didn't seem to agree. He still stirred, or, as much as he could, anyway; the man could see his defined muscles constrict and contracted with godly strength that even he was surprised he'd managed to contain. Though, he'd had a great deal of help, he had to admit, from the massive tanks of green, distilled fluid that fed into various IVs and matching green-stone infused cuffs and bindings that stabilized the lifted specimen a few feet off of the ground, though he was still very much within grabbing distance. He took this opportunity to prod at him more, assessing his physical condition very closely as he was certain that he would never again have a chance quite like this one.
In every sense of the word, Clark was perfect.
Plain and simple, he was everything that Cadmus, and thusly, The Light, needed to bring their vision to light. Minding his nude form, there wasn't a shred of affection or attraction to be spoken of in this train of thought, but instead, he reasoned, pure and unadulterated fascination that only grew as the Man of Steel's eyes cracked open, a biting, spiteful, and best of all, defiant light glimmering in his eyes as Luthor smiled at him from where he stood.
It was remarkable. To think that he could be subject to this much kryptonite and various inhibitors, and still have enough power to glower at him...he couldn't help the excitable grin that split his face at the notion of the possibilities such a specimen could bring.
Superman didn't seem to agree.
"Let...m-me...go..." The man uttered under great strain, huffing exhaustively between gritted teeth as it seemed as thought he were fighting to stay conscious, an admirable fight, Luthor had to admit. Turning from Clark, the man sighed, chuckling under his breath at the pseudo-command he'd been given.
"And what? Give up the golden goose before they've laid their eggs? Come on, Superman; you know I've never been one to cut my loses at the finish line. Besides..." The man started, eying the multitude of small cups that rested upon a few tables, and the sturdy industrial fridge that would come to hold each and every one, taking a clipboard in-hand to do a final count of them before turning back to meet his eyes, however squinted and tired they were, exclaiming, "...this doesn't have to be entirely unpleasant for you. Not that you'd have a choice in the matter. It's happening either way. However, let's make this easier on both of us, yeah? I don't want to have to put you under; thought it was more respectful to at least let you know what's happening. See? I can be compromising." Lex almost seemed to joke, though Clark didn't find the notion remotely funny. In fact, the man's horror only grew as he watched the scientist set down his clipboard and walk over to a sink, washing his hands and sterilizing them only to don gloves right after. The snap of the plastic made the bound man flinch slowly, placidly, the drugs in his system and interlaced cuffs sapping every bit of energy he had left to give a more severe reaction.
Lex crossed the room again and eyed the many, many sampling cups, numbering at least thirty, if he'd counted correctly.
This was going to be a long night...but he had the time, the dedication, to make it work.
This had to work.
Grabbing one of them, and unscrewing the top, the doctor was surprised, again, to see Superman almost struggle as, even though his movements were sluggish and lax, there was no denying the power that flashed in bouts of panic that roused the man from his stupor, at least a bit. It had to have been the first time, Luthor thought, that he'd seen the man, the near-god, look so...utterly...powerless, and that same thought must have occurred to Clark as he thrashed in his bindings, threatening to loosen the many IVs that stuck from several sites about his body and to break to bindings that kept him contained.
Both of which didn't bode well for Luthor or the project, so he made the corrections at once.
"Subject 001 'Superman' still presents with significant resistance to attempted containment protocols and procedures. Increasing intravenous dosage of modified KT-002 solution by 1,000 CCs. Stand-by." He announced to the recording, red eye above them that surveyed the lab and the two within. Walking up to a standing machine, lined with various cables that were directly connected to the many vials of what was presumed to be KT-002, and at the sight of the doctor's intentions, Superman only struggled more, his voice desperate for reprieve that wouldn't come.
"N-no...stop...I said...don't - " His words were clutched in his throat as an influx of the quieting substance filled his IVs, flooding his bloodstream with liquid calm that, at once, made his muscles slow to a rest, his frantic efforts silenced as it did its job. It didn't take only at all for the man to go still, his breaths lingering and slow as his eyes, once wide and panicked, dulled ever so slightly, painting his face with soft languor. Luthor watched what had once been tense muscles turn to stern putty, what had been settled defiance become numb absence that even someone as esteemed, as powerful, as unstoppable, as Superman himself couldn't fight. It was beautiful, watching it in action.
Even more so that Luthor felt himself embolden enough to step with the man's space, inspecting him carefully with a smile.
He wasn't above science.
He wasn't above progress.
Closer, now, though, he could see the man was still awake, at least somewhat. He still reacted to his touch with active, if muted, animalism as Superman whined under his breath from the contact.
But that wouldn't impede his work.
So even 4,000 CCs wasn't enough.
He'd have to make a note of that.
"Right. Now, shall we begin?" With the cup he'd grabbed before still in hand, he looked down at the man's body, astutely admiring it before focusing his attention on the object of the procedure, the man's flaccid member still, despite the fairly undignified trembling of its owner.
"P-please...p...please...don't..." Clark just barely whispered, and Luthor didn't miss what he was sure were begs, pleas, coming from him of all people. That alone was a triumph, barring the current circumstances, but he staved the arrogant glean that flashed in his eye.
He could bask in this glory later.
For now, he thought as he reached forward and started his work, it was time to begin.
July 10th, 2010 - 07:15 PST
Superman could name a hundred places he'd rather be than here, and more so knowing that he'd have to see him as a result ofitspresence here. Walking into the false entrance of Mount Justice, he had to admit, though that being back was strange enough on it's own, the man thought as he looked about the familiar stone outcropping and metallic hybridization of architecture that had once greeted him on a regular basis before they changed their headquarters to their orbiting based amongst the stars. As a matter of fact, he wished very much to still be there, and he wondered vaguely why he'd even listened to Batman to come see the thing at all.
He could have refused, he thought; it wasn't as if anyone would have been able to catch him if he decided to fly off, but he refrained from committing to the thought. He knew himself well enough to know that he didn't backtrack on commitments...even if he really, really wanted to, and now, he thought, was one of those times as he passed through the identification film at the entrance of the cave, and upon being phased in, he knew that his decision was set in stone.
For better or for worse.
"01 'Superman', has been identified." The vocal identifier said, and the kryptonian sighed quietly under his breath as he made it to the base level and entered the main hub, where Diana, Bruce, Barry, Red, and Dinah all greeted him, along with the Team, too. He picked each person apart from the other seamlessly, noting Wally, Robin, and M'gann with a small smile...that is...until his eyes fell upon the clone.
Theabomination.
His face fell, shrinking into a dark look that only lightened he pulled his eyes away from the thing.
He didn't even want tolookat it.
"Hey, Wally, Robin. Ah, and M'gann, too. Hope you guys are adjusting well enough." He started, hardly even casting a passing look to his younger double as the clone looked at him tentatively, appearing to open his mouth to say something when Superman changed the subject, disinterested in hearing its voice, too.
"The place looks better than I remember it. I'm guessing you and the Lanterns are behind this one, huh, Batman?" He started, ignoring the wounded expression of the lesser version of himself, looking only at the others that he openly paid heed to as the dark-clad man, noticing, in some part, it seemed, what he was doing, didn't mention it as he nodded.
"Yes, actually. Not much needed to be changed; just some minor repairs and alterations to make it more modern and in-line with the Team's sensibilities. And, and speaking of which..." The Bat answered, looking primarily to Robin and Wally as the conversation shifted, and Superman noticed both of their hearts beginning to quicken in pace, a strong inclination towards anxiety obvious to the man as his interest piqued, if just a bit. If he could be frank, he wasn't entirely sure he took this whole "Little League" business entirely or terribly seriously, given the nature of its formation, and much more, the clear inexperience of the members that it bore. He knew well enough about the capabilities of Aqualad, Wally, and Robin, the three working fine in unison when they could actually cooperate. As for M'gann, or Miss Martian, he is told her pseudonym was, he has only heard reports of her incredible formidability and potential, more since J'onn's words were hardly ever embellished, even when speaking of the capabilities of his family. The four of them alone were enough to carry the weight of...whatever it was that Batman was having them do.
He just scarcely glanced at Kon-el from afar and noticed that the clone had looked away, eyes cast the floor as he assessed his lesser self for the first time, if only briefly. Part of him wondered if it were true...that the boy was...half-baked.
That his powers were...stunted in some way.
He'd never been one to heed rumors and hearsay (he'd always been taught to come to his own conclusions, and now was no different, no matter how much he wanted to pawn off the problem to someone else.
It was made fairly evident that the boy was strong, sure, but so were most other members of the team, as far as he could tell. Wally and Aqualad themselves had served just fine as the muscles at their mentors' sides, so having a third without some sort of...niche...it seemed rather redundant, he thought.
He, himself, seemed redundant in general.
The clone must have felt him looking at him as his matching eyes darted back at Superman's and they locked eyes for a moment, only for the Man of Steel to look away.
He didn't turn back to see if the boy was still gazing at him, but for that imperceptible moment, the thing almost looked...hopeful.
But he wasn't much concerned as to relating to what.
He wasn't interested in finding out, either.
"In relation to Selena Gonzalez, the person that I told you, Robin, Wally, and Aqualad to locate and protect, there are some recent findings that project that her disappearance almost certainly had something to do with Black Spider, Web, and some unnamed third party that might have been directly responsible for her...untimely absence. As I'm sure you three have aptly speculated, she was found deceased this morning at 02:14 PST. Her location changed, but she didn't seemed to have died at the sight." The Bat started as a few screens illuminated before them. Superman and the others were greeted to the image of a woman with dark hair that swept over her shoulders, her warm, amber eyes looking back at them as the report continued, though it was stopped by Robin, a question clear in his mind.
"Where was she found? And...was her family - " Before he could even get to finish, Batman stopped him.
"Location: Family home. Family...family was also deceased. They were confirmed to have been killed there, if forensic evidence is true, but all leads indicate their deaths happened in the home." The man said curtly, and the candidness in which his old friends espoused this information...made the Man of Steel feel cold. He didn't often (as much as he once had, at least) find himself aiding civilians in these smaller ways, he thought, looking to the screen to find not just Selena, but her two children and wife as well. Their bodies were...twisted, bent and broken beyond repair as images of the crime scenes were transitioned through, giving an accurate picture of the event. His crystalline eyes trekked over to M'gann's, Wally's, and Robin's faces and his own softened as he could only imagine what might have been thinking at the time.
Then he turned to Batman.
He felt inclined to ask whether this sort of mission was appropriate for their first foray into the life of heroes (or junior heroes, in any case; they weren't quite part of the League, but this was heavy, even for him). Surely there had to have been some other mission that they could have been sent on that wouldn't result in such irreversible consequences. Just seeing the amounting of horror and guilt that riddled them as they took in the massacre that had happened (at least indirectly) by their hands was enough to stir a touch of irritation in Superman.
But Bruce continued, unabated.
"Despite this, though, Hook and Black Spider, as reported by Aqualad in his follow-up investigation, have been incarcerated at Belle Reve for questioning about their intentions regarding the former CEO of Farano Enterprises. However, we have a bit of insight that even local authorities do not have." He stated, almost sounding smug.
Superman could have rolled his eyes, but he resisted the urge to. However, he didn't conceal his disapproval at the man's staunch hoarding of information, a conversation that they had to have had a dozen or so times already in reference to both the man's inclination to dig into and manipulate channels of intelligence that could help forward the efforts of local law enforcement (a point of continued annoyance for the Man of Steel). But second to this, the means in which he even procured this information, whilst always helpful...always left a bad taste in his mouth.
The bat was never open about the means in which he secured these revelations, and by any means, he didn't think the man would ever be. The other hero was more protective of his "strategic advantages" than anyone else he'd ever known, and though he appreciated the diligence in which he worked to give the best shot that they had at securing victory...he wasn't sure if he could condone such secrecy when he didn't know what it entailed.
Robin, however, as he always did when it came to his mentor, was all the more impressed, despite his dour tone. There was sort of tentative fascination that filled his voice as he spoke.
"Great. Maybe this will give us some insight into why they were targeted by the League of Shadows..." He trailed off, gears turning with intrigue and anticipation. Seconding his statement was Wally who'd had a similar response, though his was far less subdued.
"Yeah, then we can finally nail the pricks that killed her. Get them at the root so that they can stop targeting innocent people..." He cut with his words, thought Clark could feel the swell of emotion that fell over him as he looked, again, to the screen...and last traces of Selena and her family before turning back to Bruce.
The Bat nodded.
"And that's exactly right. Turns out, Farano Enterprises weren't only concerned with pharmaceutical products...but also, the genetic manipulation and cloning trade as well. It was apparent that they, at some point, had close ties to Cadmus...which ties neatly into a little document detailing Selena's efforts to cut ties with company, and well...we know how that ends." Bruce told them, an absolute bombshell that brought Superman's eyes right back to Kon. The teen looked just as taken aback, his eyes firmly set upon the long-deceased woman's face as unknowable thoughts filled his mind, and filled Clark's in kind.
It was more than likely, he realized, that she might have known about the clone's existence, and Project Kr, too; why else would someone have had her and her family taken out if that weren't the case. Of course, knowing that she'd been killed due to her connection to Cadmus, another part of him wondered who else might know the nature of the organization.
How many others might have contributed to thatthing'screation?
How many more people might have been responsible for what happened to him?
The thought made his grow warm, sick with anger that trembled through powerful hands but settled quickly, as if he'd placed a top over a boiling pot, calming himself.
He had to stay clearminded about all of this; they didn't know enough to even pin down most of the researchers at Cadmus, seeing at the main building, it seemed, was destroyed, and apart from that, all ties to Project Kr had gone eerily quiet. For the most part, the organization seemed more than content with the idea of sinking into obscurity, and in any other that might have been fine...but Superman was too personally invested to let this rest.
It hit too close to home knowing thathe, Luthor,was out there, waltzing around...untouchable.
And to make matters worst, he would be forced to look at the very result of it all.
The freak that should have never been,he thought, eying Kon-el, the clone, his lesser, with disgust before turning away again, happy to find that throughout all of this, the thing remained silent.
As if should be.
"Then that settles it, right? Cadmus is still trying to tie up their loose ends, then. So doesn't that mean that we can go after them? It's not like their hands are clean as it is." Wally offered up, and in a way, Superman could see where he was coming from. This direct line of relation was too much of a coincidence to write off as just happenstance, wasn't it? Despite what looked to be an obvious course of action, the Bat hesitated to agree so quickly, but Diana answered for him, shaking her heads.
"If it were that simple, we'd have gone after them already. But see, just because there's a correlation, doesn't mean there's a sense of causation." She explained simply, and though Wally, Robin, and M'gann seemed to understand the concept, Superboy, dully, lagged behind, scratching his head with confusion as, for the first time since Superman arrived, he spoke.
His voice made him feel sick.
"Correlation? Causation? I don't...get that? What are you trying to say?" He asked, looking about sheepishly as the others looked at him, and like them, a collective sort of annoyance at him seemed to fester within the group. What had been just disgust and repulsion with the clone only magnified within him, but Black Canary didn't mince her words as, unlike something the woman had ever done when speaking to her other protégés, she huffed with agitation as if, just like him, the clone was irritating her, too.
"What, the g-gnomes didn't teach how to comprehend? - "Her eyes narrowed at the teen, and the others followed suit.
"Figure it out. Being part of The Team means that you should already be able to understand perfectly well what is happening at all times. There isn't time to explain simple concepts that you should understand already."Red Tornado criticized, harsher this time, a tone that Superman, even in his heightened state, had never heard the robot take with anyone before. However, no one seemed bothered by their words, and stranger, still, neither did Superman. For some reason, he felt all the more okay with the stunned silence that followed after the boy's question as even without feeling so...annoyed, he was sure he wouldn't have bothered answering it, either.
And no one did, with most of the others disregarding his question entirely.
"I just...nevermind."Superboy uttered, the clone fidgeting slightly under each of their glares as, in the same vein that a veil had been lifted, the atmosphere lightened again, and everyone blinked suddenly.
M'gann remained unmoved, though most others hadn't been paying attention to her as Black Canary looked to Kon.
Smiling, she gestured to him, as if that sudden agitation had completely dissipated.
"Wait...were you asking me something, Superboy? I think I remember you were trying to. - " Dinah wouldn't get to finish before the boy scoffed, tightening his arms across his chest in the midst of him looking away. The teen withdrew himself, closing the potential conversation off before it even had the chance to start.
"No, I wasn't. I didn't...I didn't askyouanything. Why would I need to? I can figure out this stuffmyself." He responded.
The group was silent for a moment as they tried to grasp what even happened, most more confused, but more irritated, at his snarky remarks than anything. In fact, it was Dinah herself that bit back, her eyes squinting sharply at the boy as she straightened her posture, and mirroring his folded arms, Clark could sense her authority shining through where typically, she was always so lax. He could imagine that to incur her wrath, the clone must have already been on her bad side, or most of their bad sides, it looked like, as Wally, Robin, Bruce, Diana, and Red Tornado frowned again.
Superman remained still.
He was indifferent, after all.
"You know what? I think for the rest of the the meeting, you can go back to your room." She commanded, and that seemed to trigger something in the former as his face hardened.
"I don't take orders from you. I don't take orders fromanyone." Kon asserted with a dangerous voice, one that wasn't missed by everyone else as Dinah looked shocked, hearing the boy mouth off to her, but she doubled down, stepping forward assertively and meeting him dead in the eye. Despite their clear difference in height, with Superboy dwarfing her in size, the woman didn't appear bothered by this detail.
She stood her ground against the boy as opened her mouth to speak again.
"I said...go to your room, Superboy. I won't tell you again. This is the last time I'm going to tell you to, so don't make me repeat myself. Go. NOW." Came the woman's command, and knowing from experience, Canary was not someone to be tested. The rest of the Team looked to Kon-el with something to revelry and bafflement as they, much like the rest of them, just couldn't for the life of them understand where all of this aggression had come from, and for a moment, the clone didn't look as though he would relent, his broad shoulders squaring and tensing with interlaid muscle as if priming himself to retaliate...physically. But another moment of the two staring each other down, and Superboy's own eye catching sight of the very confused gazes of his Team and mentors, the first of anger only weakened as, even when he backed down, it was still clear to the Man of Steel, from the rushing pump of his heart, to the beads of sweat that trickled down his furrowed brow, the boy was still peeved.
Verypeeved, in fact.
Just not enough to stand against one of the best hand-to-hand combatants that the League had to offer.
At least he was smart enough to see how badly that probably would have gone for him, not that the bar, in Superman's mind, was terribly high.
With a scoff, he waved them all away dismissively, turning on his heel and walking away in a huff without so much as a departing glance to the others that he'd be leaving behind. Wally and Robin looked at each other before looking to everyone else, as if searching for an answer in their faces that they wouldn't be able to give. However, all at once, the rest of the members of the meeting were speaking about him, crude words that, if the clone had nearly as sharp hearing as he did, or even just a fraction of it, then surely he would have heard what they were saying.
"God, I thought he'd never leave."Wally said, his voice feeling colder than it usually did.
"Could he be anything but a prick?"Robin said, hardly containing himself when it came to scorning his name.
"He's been nothing but trouble since the day he got here; he'sobviouslynot ready to go on missions. Not as he is." Canary stated, making no effort to lower her voice.
"He's a nuisance."
"He's never in a good mood."
"Mean."
"Hard to read."
"Bad attitude."
"Not the brightest."
"Not enough."
For an unknown length of time, they went on and on about the kid, even as he'd long since retreated to his room. After everything was said, the group, again, seemed to switch gears, as if flipping a switch entirely as Canary, still standing where she'd been when she sent Kon off, she looked around, mildly confused at the gap in her memory, but it was imperceptible as she scowled again, but she dropped the situation, sighing deeply as she walked back to where she'd been before. After a moment, Diana rested a hand on her shoulder, her expression steeped in sympathy that was shared between Red Tornado, Batman, and Dinah herself. None the three of them spoke for a breath before Batman cleared his throat, calling back to attention the meeting that had long since thrown off-track, with the exclusive fault for that lying with the clone himself, Superman thought, feeling a sudden relief knowing that he was out of his sight.
It couldn't have happened soon enough.
"Well, anyway...let's continue the meeting. We'll fill in Superboy later when he's...a bit moreagreeable. But for now, here's what going to happen going forward..." The bat started, and with complete redirection from Kon, the group cast him from their minds, and they were back on track.
- (Same time) -
"He's a nuisance."
"He's never in a good mood."
"Mean."
"Hard to read."
"Bad attitude."
"Not the brightest."
"Not enough."
Not enough, not enough, Not Enough, NOT ENOUGH -
Slamming the door shut behind him, Kon-el felt himself boiling beneath the skin; the door rattled slightly against the frame, and it was a good thing that it was so sturdy as if were not a steel-reinforced panel and any other material, he was sure it would bent out of shape from the force he applied to it alone, if not just broken out-right. But the last thing he was concerned about was a door, the teen thought as fuming, racing thoughts buzzed around his mind with reckless abandon made it harder to coordinate himself. He felt very much that he needed an outlet, an unwilling victim for his blazing anger, and without so much as considering the consequences of his thoughts and subsequent actions, the kryptonian felt his hand lift the dresser containing all of his clothes and possessions from the ground, and in a bout of effortless strength, he flung it across the room with a shout, breaking the wood apart into shredded, broken pieces that scattered across the floor after colliding with the wall.
Articles of clothes that had one been folded so neatly were strewn haphazardly amongst the shards of wood, and with a huff, he turned to face the wall closest to him, and with a shout, he threw his fist into it, over and over again until with a grunt, he stopped, minding the small crater that he'd worked into stone and metal by his hand. Huffing from exertion, he allowed his hand to drop by his side, the anger that had spurned him into action fading away to bubbling hurt that he...wasn't sure he could name.
He sighed.
What was even happening anymore?
Sliding down the wall and slipping into a sit, Superboy groaned loudly as he placed his head into his hands in consideration of his own thoughts. From waking up to find M'gann in his room, the confusing, strange thoughts and dreams that he was having, the feelings that he'd never felt before...the sneaking suspicion that things weren't fitting together true in terms of the truth of what happened that morning...his mind felt heavy with uncertainty he wasn't sure how to reconcile.
Or...whether he could even begin to.
Things didn't feel this complicated when he was still those fifty-two levels beneath the earth, Kon-el lamented with a lean upon his arms, shielding his eyes from his destructive handiwork though it didn't do much to cover his realization that one of his guardians would come in and surely scold him for his outburst, though admittedly, it couldn't make him feel worse than he already did. At least down there, in Cadmus, his choices were all made for him, he didn't have to think, he didn't have to feel...and that made it impossible for him to mess up.
How could he have, He thought, tightening his knees to his chest as he thought back to all the ways, in two, measly days, that he'd managed to make everything so much worse. It should have been impossible to fuck up as much as he had, yet here he was, practically hated by people he barely knew, really, and for what? Because he couldn't get his shit together?!
How much worse could this day get?
Superboy paled at the question: he didn't want to know, and he definitely didn't want to jinx himself into stooping even lower.
But knowing his luck and stupidity, it wasn't that far-fetched to think that he might manage to...somehow. But in some small, almost immutable ways, there was a sense of wrongness to all of this, he thought, considering the bed beside him as he tried hard to remember something...but he could recall nothing.
Nothing at all as his hands clenched in frustration.
Nothing as his mind only drew blanks and vague memories, though the angered faces of those that he wanted to call friends and mentors started at him, searing into him red rage that he didn't know the source of. It seemed all too easy for him to stumble into conflict, even during times when he wasn't even trying to...but he clearly had a knack for making every despise him, somehow, someway, no matter what he tried to do. From Black Canary, to Robin, to even Wally (who he understood, in some parts, to the most optimistic and understanding of the group) didn't spare him patience...though in his mind, there was one that had.
The very same on that triggered all of this, he thought, all the same.
M'gann, he thought to himself, looking over the chair where she'd been that very morning, laid upon his bed and smiling and joyful...the first face he'd seen that day.
Something in thinking about her roused a sickness in him that he couldn't explain, but suppressed, unsure if he felt justified in feeling it at all.
He could only recall her being...kind. Thoughtful, if to an annoying degree, Superboy reasoned well-enough, thinking back to the way that he'd spoken to her before, and unlike before, where his body had just reacted without him thinking, he considered himself, and bit his lip with embarrassment.
Had...he been too mean?
Thinking back to how everyone was reacting to how he'd behaved, it was safe to assume so, right? Besides, Kon thought, leaning forward onto his forearms, she hadn't really done anything. She just...brushed his arm, that's all.
And before...she was just trying to help him pick his clothes.
There was nothing weird about those things, was there?
But his skepticism answered, a cold voice that answered every bit of his leniency with suspicion that grew within him.
Then why did she lie?! She said she found you in the kitchen, but then how would Red Tornadoa and Black Canary know? Something isn't right!,It bellowed, arousing his fears, but he tried to quell them.
Maybe...he'dheardher wrong. Hewasprone jumping the gun, he found, his mind flickering to the groups words upon his exit for reference.
He wasn't the smartest, he knew that well enough. He wasn't well-versed in technology in the same ways that Robin was, or smart with science things like Wally; he was painfully average when it came to those things, and horribly below average in most others.
And he wasn't bright enough, either, to pick things up to understand them. To keep up when people were saying things.
So...it wouldn't hurt to think about it more, did it? He'd been off all morning, thinking up things that didn't happen, dreaming up fragments and memories that didn't exist...of course he was the one in the wrong, he thought, cheeks brightening with humiliation at the way he'd acted.
He as causing problems.
He...wasthe problem.
Just then, there was knock at the door. Sighing, he had every intention on telling whoever it was to go away, but a newer, more conscious part of his brain pulled back on that instinctual inclination towards aggression. It was critical of his slowness to learn, his stupidity running rampant, it thought, as he stifled his agitation.
Think, dummy. Try to be nice for once,It spat, and the teen obliged, suddenly feeling very stupid.
That anger was what got him in trouble in the first place. His bad attitude.
He had to work on that.
He really needed to.
"Uh...y-yeah?" He tried to answer as pleasantly as he could, wavering a bit as the tone sounded...off in him. He wasn't used to attempting to sound...like this, whatever he would call this, but the person on the other side seemed to take nicely to it.
"Kon? May I come in? It's M'gann..." It was her voice, that sweet, kind girl that everyone really liked, and if everyone really like her, he thought, considering himself for a moment...than he should, too. And if he liked her, that meant he should let her in, he thought softly.
Yes, he'd let her in. Yeah, that was what he was supposed to do.
No more problems.
He would do better.
"Sure." He answered as calmly as he could, but just as she opened the door, his eyes darted to the mess of wood and clothes and almost mouthed an apology, but couldn't find the words to justify what he'd done. It was his anger, that very same thing that had been the crux of much of his problems that entire morning, and so he thought it bore no explanation that he needed to give.
She was smart enough to figure out what he'd done.
He was just too bullheaded to stop himself. Miss Martian, however, didn't even acknowledge the shard of wood that were made splintered and broken around her feet, not was she bothered by the piles of shirts, and briefs, and shorts that remained upon cold metal floors. Closing the door behind her, leaving just the two of them alone.
The two of them...alone.
Why...why did this feel familiar?
So...familiar...
He couldn't pinpoint why, but it was enough that his pale eyes kept on her unflinchingly, hardly blinking as she came over to him, her smile never fading as she slipped beside him on the floor, studying her hands carefully, quietly, when she opened her mouth to speak.
"Rough day, huh?" She started, looking at him as she spoke.
Kon-el didn't meet her eyes, but he wanted to try to get to know her, so he half-nodded, then he shrugged.
It was...something like that.
"Yeah, I guess." He answered, offering little in the way of conversation. He...wasn't really sure how to do that well yet, talking to other people. The White-coats never usually spoke to him, and the few times that they did, it was always an order, a command, a statement that he only needed to follow, and that didn't really require him to think about a response to questions and things like that.
He wasn't trying to be rude.
But that wasn't how M'gann seemed to take it.
Smiling sadly, the girl turned from him slightly, folding her hands over her knees as her skirt was hiked up a bit, but Superboy didn't look down at it. Instead, he was just focused on her face.
The way her eyes watered, the shakiness of her voice, and he knew at once that he'd messed up again.
Just as he always did.
"You don't like me very much, do you?" She started, and Superboy was taken aback.
Why...why would he not like her? She was literally the opposite of him; everyone liked her, she was kind, she was thoughtful and pretty -
"You think I'm pretty?" She beamed, and at her words, Kon-el turned away, unsure of what to say.
But he thought the nicest thing was the best thing. So he agreed.
"Well, yeah. At least, I think so. Never, you know, talked about this sort of stuff before. Wally and Robin would be way better at this than me." The clone admitted, feeling at a bit of a loss. He'd never even had the chance to learn about ways of talking to girls, so he was probably messing the up pretty badly, but when M'gann's eyes lit up, he thought maybe he'd done something right.
He hoped he had, at least.
"Thank you. I...think you're cute, too." She offered, playing with her fingers as she leaned close to him, and at the touch of her head upon his shoulder, Kon coughed awkwardly, shifting a bit to pull away, and noticed her eyes lose their sheen, darkening slightly as she stopped fiddling with her hands and looked him squarely in the face.
Kon-el swallowed.
He...didn't know what to do with this. He was just trying to be nice.
Maybe he should just...change the subject?
Yeah! We should talk about something else...,He thought, trying to think of things to say. What did he say? Should he talk to her about the weather? Maybe sports? Did Martians know about Earth sports? Did she even like sports? Was she good at drawing? Oh! Asking about hobbies is something people did, right?
Feeling assured, he thought to ask her about the things she liked, but she stopped him before he could continue, her face stock still.
"You know it's just us, right?" The young martian girl stated plainly, the blank expression of her face sending shivers along his back, but more than that, he was at a loss. Just them? Where had everybody gone -
"They went to do some scouting, mission stuff. They thought it was best for us to stay behind." She answered without him even saying anything yet.
It freaked him out.
He didn't like that.
He didn't want people in his head.
"Don't do that." He started, lowering his voice, though he tried to keep his tone even, it warbled with contained wrath at her intrusion. He'd left all of that behind when he left Cadmus, and yet, he thought, as his eyes widened, this same scenario, these same words...they felt too much like they'd been told before. As if...he'd been in a situation just this.
That he'd heard her in his head before.
That they'd...they'd -
"Why do you have to make this so hard for me, Konny?" She whispered, and Superboy leaned away from her, confused...and a bit scared.
"What...what did you do to me? Was...have you been in my mind this whole time? Making me - making me think and feel stuff, huh? Is that you?!" He shouted, and M'gann recoiled, her voice low.
"Don't yet at me - "Came her stifled demand, and the very notion that she was giving orders at a time like this, the teen could have laughed...if he weren't so fucking livid. No, no he wouldn't stop yelling.
No, he was fucking over this, he was overallof this.
"I told you not to tell me what to DO. Now answer me, was it you in my head this whole time?! ANSWER ME, M'GANN!" He screamed coming to a stand and clenching his fist into tight bundles of rage at his side.
The girl at his feet didn't move though. Instead, she clasped her hands together tighter.
Her face and jaw stiffened.
"I said don't yell at me, Konny. Please don't - "She tried to say to him a second time, but the boy couldn't hear her, not through the fire and blood that rushed through his ears; in all of this noise, he didn't notice the air beginning to vibrate with residual energy as M'gann tensed beside him.
But he didn't notice it.
He noticed...none of the signs.
"DON'T CALL ME THAT! WE'RE NOT FRIENDS, SO STOP ACTING LIKE WE ARE!" He screamed, and this time, his point was accentuated by the tremble of his fist as it collided with the stony wall of his room, only adding another impact crater where his strength diffused, but he didn't care about that, not one bit as his body shook with wrath.
She'd lied to him.
She smiled, made him feel like all of that was genuine, and for what? To play PRETEND?!WAS SHE FUCKING SERIOUS RIGHT NOW?
Yet even then, he felt her stand, and even more than that, had the gaul to reach out to him, as if attempting to hold onto him again.
But she was the last person he wanted to be touched by.
He wanted her out.
Now.
"Get out of my room." Kon-el spat, shoving her away from him and pointing the door.
They would never be friends.
His thought seemed to strike her, harder than when he'd pushed her away from him. She began to cry, but the clone didn't move, didn't flinch, at the sound.
She wouldn't get him again.
Not this time.
"P-please...Kon, I just wanted us to - "
"GET OUT!" He screamed again, and the room went silent.
Perfectly, terribly...silent.
Looking at her, at M'gann, her face had gone still again, a washboard image of neutrality that only seemed to move when he watched a calm, tranquil smile cross her pearly lips. There was sort of finality in the tranquility of her eyes, worsened, still, but the echo warmth that didn't seem to match what had only just been grief upon her face. Reaching out again, she didn't move from the spot where he'd shoved her, and her smile widened, meeting his confusion.
'It's not working."The girl said quietly, softly, stretching out her fingers as far as they would go with a step forward, but Kon-el stepped back, his eyes locked on her as he tried to understand what just happened.
Wasn't sure just upset? So what was going on now? Why...did she look like that? All of these question flashed in his mind as he did his best to stop her forward march.
He was getting uncomfortable.
"Hey, I said leave. Right now! I told you to - " But he wouldn't get the chance to finish.
His throat tightened, enough that his breath halted right then and there, the teen gasping with clawing hands to unravel the threads of pressure that began to clasp down harder, and harder, still. But there was nothing there, nothing but the manifestations of her psionic power that didn't ease even as she began to force himself backward onto the bed. All the while, her smile didn't cease, even appearing to widen as she stepped over to him and watched.
Watching the show of his desperate squirming and gasping and clawing and scratching as his eyes remained firm on her, even through the growing pain that collected in his chest.
C-can't...I...c-can't...breathe...I - ,His thought only amused her more as she squeezed harder, expressing little to know concern as she straddled one of his legs, ignoring his intensifying thrashing as she spoke.
"Do you see what you did, Konny? Hm? Do you? See what you're making me do? And all because you just couldn't...you just couldn't listen to me. You just couldn't...help yourself. Could you?" She whispered softly, leaning forward to bend over him, eying him closing as tears budded at the corners of his eyes.
He wanted to know why she was doing this. What he'd done to make her want to hurt him -
"I'm not hurting you!" She screamed without warning, and Superboy opened his mouth to scream when he felt her grip tighten even more; he though sure she was going to break his neck at some point, the boy figured as his eyes began to roll to the back of his head, the oxygen deprivation beginning to get to him. He'd never once felt like what it might been to be asphyxiated, but now, he could confidently say that he had, the teen thought, as his mind began to cloud, the edges of his vision darkening in kind. He didn't feel calm, though, the teen wishing desperately against all odds that there would be someone, anyone, here that could make this stop.
But there was no one here.
His thought confused her, and he noticed her composing herself after the outburst that she'd just had, leaning down, further this time to straddle his leg completely, a task that was easier now that his struggling had stopped. Loosing a deep breath, the girl giggled, taking her hand and stroking his sweaty face.
"I wouldneverhurt you, but...but youhaveto understand something, okay?" She said him gently, drawing her finger across his agape mouth, the teen still trying, and failing to take in any air as the girl spoke.
"I tried, you know that? I really did try to make it easy for you. To get you to like me so I wouldn't have to do...this. I was being patient, you know?" The girl told him as she climbed upon the bed, hovering above him as she leaned down, brushing her lips with his in a display that made the boy's eyes widen at the contact. His body froze with recognition, a flash of warm saliva and a slithering town shooting like blood-tipped arrows into his brain as he struggle became more frantic, desperate as he fought to throw her off of him, but when he felt his mind begin to throb, and his fighting become sluggish, his thoughts raced.
No...no, this isn't real...it's all in my head, it's all in my - , He gasped when that binding pressure around his throat released all at once, and whilst he hoped very much that that would mean that he would have the strength to leave, to look for help...his body didn't respond.
Only his body did as M'gann sat up, and came to a stand.
She grinned.
"Don't worry, I made extra sure to numb you a bit. It was a bit tough finding the connections in your head, but I wanted to be extra sure I got the right ones! See how much I care about you, Konny?" She cooed, and with her powers, the boy felt his body be lifted and placed back upon the bed, this time laying the right way as part of his body had been rested half-way off of the mattress, but now, he was set about it right...but his mind felt blank.
He couldn't...move. He couldn't even lift a finger, he thought with a strange sort of numb terror that made his heart pound, even more when he watched her join him...as that was the only thing that he could do.
He could only watch.
"Aw, don't be sad! When I figure out how to bend you right, then maybe I won't have to do this, but you're bad. And when you're bad, you don't get to move, but don't worry...I can do it, okay?"She assured him, straddling his waste again with her hips, her hands traveling his stomach - just like they had before - and touching his sides as the teen made every effort he could, with each and every cell, bone, and muscle he could call upon, all in the service of summoning the strength that he needed.
Yet with every thought, it only dawned on him...that he was trapped.
Completely, and utterly, trapped.
Superboy didn't understand.
He didn't understand any of it.
Regardless of his reservations, he watched as the girl worked his shirt over his limp body, almost tenderly, but each touch felt like poison to his skin.
He didn't want her to touch him. God, he hoped this was just a nightmare.
This...wasn't real. He refused to think it was so.
That was what he told himself. He needed something, anything, to believe.
But it didn't help.
He closed his eyes as he felt her stroke his bare skin, drawing small circles around his nipples in the moments that he could feel her ogling him, his discomfort mounting as she stopped straddling him...only to peel off his bottom garments, too.
No.
No, no, no, no, no, no -
He froze when he felt her hands on him, stroking his flesh vigorously, the girl spitting into her hands to ease the process.
Superboy was sure he was going to be sick, but it was worse knowing that he wouldn't even be able to do so, that his stomach would just have to churn angrily within him until this was..done? His closed eyes shed tears, not that he could have controlled, though, but she must have noticed that he had attempted to look away, and with a wrenching hand, his eyes were forced open.
There was that smile again.
He hated it.
He hated her.
But the thought brought pain.
Horrible pain.
Something like a great punch of solid air impacted his stomach as the teen lunged for a breath, and at once, a bruise bloomed upon his skin.
He didn't react, but everything in him wanted to scream in agony as his body vibrated with pain.
M'gann hummed scoldingly.
"That's a bad thought, okay? You don't say things like that about me, okay? That's not good." She corrected, thumbing his tip gently, enough that his body, despite its numbed state, trembled at the touch.
No...no, he didn't want this. He -
"Yes you do! Look! You're excited!" Her mind echoed back, and she gestured to his hardened flesh, veins pulsing and pumping along the shaft as precum trickled down her hand. Leaning down, she licked it clean, a show of shameless he didn't recognize on her seemingly innocent face as she sopped up every drop of him. The teen didn't blink, unable to fathom the situation as she began to undress herself, and his mind began to grow hazy.
This wasn't real. It was all in his head.
She didn't have her shirt on anymore. She took off her bra.
This wasn't real. It was all in his head.
She peeled off her skirt, her underwear, too.
This...this wasn't real.
She was on him again, straddling him, lining him up with her entrance. He didn't move.
He couldn't move.
He just stared at her. Stared as she reached down and grabbed his arm, directing his limp hand to her small breasts to rub against the hardened nubs that were her nipples. He wasn't sure what to make of them.
He was too numb to really think about it much.
He was too numb to really think about...anything.
The teen could hear her moaning, but he didn't feel anything beside the hollow pleasure that she'd forced onto him, and as she looked back down at him, eyes glistening wetly with need, his face remained unchanged as she lowered her onto his cock.
Then it she began to move.
