As they moved, Solstice suddenly glanced around mid-attack, her glow dimming slightly.
"Where's Robin?" she asked, brows furrowing.
Kid Flash skidded to a panting stop beside her, eyes scanning. "Oh no. Did he Batman us again?"
"He definitely Batmaned us again," Enchantress muttered, throwing a curse over her shoulder as she vaporized a tail swipe. "He was literally behind me ten seconds ago."
"Of course he did," Solaris called out, blasting a Genomorph with a solar beam that melted its claws mid-swipe. "Trust the Boy Wonder to vanish when things get dramatic. We've got bigger problems—tin can's still standing."
Troia landed beside him with a spin, her golden lasso glowing like a second sun. Her hair clung to her forehead in wild strands, her breathing fierce.
"We do this my way this time," she said.
Solaris cocked a smirk, sparks dancing down his arms. "Your way? You mean the part where I distract with my raw emotional depth and you get the glory?"
"I mean the part where I lasso him, and you stop trying to flirt mid-battle."
He winked. "But what if the flirting is part of my battle strategy?"
She narrowed her eyes. "Then I reserve the right to punch you after we survive this."
"Kinky," he muttered with a grin.
She groaned. "You are the worst."
"And yet, here we are."
Together, they charged.
Troia spun her lasso wide, a ribbon of golden fire, and lashed it around Guardian's shield arm, anchoring her heels and yanking hard. The cobalt-and-gold sentinel jerked sideways from the impact, bracing to resist, but Troia gritted her teeth and pulled harder.
"For someone brainwashed, he still has great form," Solaris muttered, ducking a retaliatory swing and rolling to the side.
Guardian's eyes flickered. Just for a moment. A stutter in the storm.
Solaris charged a flare between his palms, the light searing and unstable. His voice was soft now, nearly human.
"Jim... I'm really sorry about this. You're kind of awesome. You've got a real Captain America vibe going on. But this isn't you."
Guardian lunged.
Solaris stepped in.
And jammed the crackling orb of magic into Guardian's chestplate.
The world cracked like thunder.
Light exploded outward in a dome of gold, heat, and kinetic rage. Troia ducked and rolled with the blast. Solaris was flung backwards but caught himself mid-air with a solar burst and landed hard.
Guardian staggered. Dropped to one knee. His breathing turned ragged. The shimmer in his eyes trembled, then dimmed.
Troia rushed forward and caught him as he collapsed, fingers digging into his armor.
"Jim... come back."
Guardian blinked—just once. The fog in his eyes broke. And he slumped.
Behind them, the Genomorphs shrieked.
Then froze.
Supergirl caught the shift mid-air. She flipped through a midair corkscrew and landed on two Genomorphs, knocking them out cold with a sonic clap of her palms.
"I think they felt that," she said, hair flying.
Sentinel charged the last beast, grappling with it in a blur of brute force before hurling it into a cryotube.
Kid Flash zipped through the debris like a tornado, scooping unconscious bodies into neat piles.
"Hey, anyone else feel like we should be charging Cadmus for pest control?"
"Send them my therapy bill too," Enchantress said dryly, chanting a final spell. Emerald runes shimmered through the chamber as she and Solstice linked hands, their energies pulsing in unison.
The last of the psionic static burned away.
And for the first time in what felt like an eternity—the silence hit like a breath finally exhaled.
They'd won.
Troia knelt beside Guardian's unconscious form, brushing hair from her face, breathing hard.
Solaris stepped beside her and nudged her with an elbow. "Told you the smolder would work."
She stared at him.
Then punched him in the shoulder.
"Ow," he said, smiling.
"Still the worst."
"Still yours."
She blushed. Again.
—
The corridor was pulsing like a dying artery, all red strobes and screaming alarms. The overhead klaxons wailed like they were personally offended someone had made it this far without authorization. The air reeked of ozone, scorched steel, and panic.
Robin hunched over a gutted terminal, cloak draped back like wings, fingers tapping furiously on the interface embedded into his gauntlet. The screen scrolled green as he hacked deeper into Cadmus's core systems.
"C'mon, c'mon... Sub-level access override. Elevator recall. Lockdown bypass. Disable annoying A.I. voice prompts—because seriously, no one wants to argue with an elevator about clearance levels."
Beep. The screen blinked.
The elevator roared to life behind him.
A bulkhead slammed open at the far end of the hallway. Echoing footsteps. Hissing.
"Robin!" Troia's voice rang out. Urgent. Fierce.
Through the smoke and electric sparks, the rest of the team stumbled into view—Solaris supporting Supergirl, Sentinel dragging his trident like a warhammer, Enchantress clutching a spell-scarred wrist, and Kid Flash already mid-panic.
"We got a problem!" Kid Flash shouted, skidding to a halt beside Solstice. "Multiple problems! Probably enough to file a group complaint!"
"At least six incoming Genomorphs," Solstice reported, eyes wide and glowing. "Big ones. Fast."
"Awesome. Mutant velociraptors 2.0," Solaris muttered, flinging a solar bolt behind him without looking. It struck something that shrieked.
Robin didn't glance up. "Elevator's online. Get in."
Kid Flash spun toward him, flailing. "Oh, well THANK YOU, Robin, for being an amazing teammate and totally not disappearing on us mid-battle!"
"I assumed you either had it handled or were right behind me," Robin replied flatly, still typing. "Was I wrong?"
"That's not even close to an apology!"
"Wasn't trying for one."
The elevator doors dinged open.
"Move!" Sentinel barked.
He shoved Kara inside despite her protest.
"I could hold them off!" Supergirl snapped, heels skidding.
"You're not playing martyr today, Kara!"
"I'm not playing! I'm stalling!" she shouted as he dragged her in.
Troia shoved Solaris forward, who dug his heels in.
"Ladies first," Solaris offered, flashing his usual crooked grin.
She shoved him again. "Not today, smolder-boy."
"You wound me."
"I will if you don't get in!"
The team piled into the elevator. Only Aqualad remained in the corridor.
He turned to face the hallway.
Dozens of Genomorphs surged through the haze.
He cursed in Atlantean.
"Come on, come on!" Solstice shouted, hands glowing, face pale.
"Holding the doors!" Enchantress yelled. She cast a barrier rune that barely held as claws raked against it.
Aqualad sprinted.
Time slowed.
Robin lifted his arm. Calculated the distance.
"Now."
Aqualad dove, slid under the closing doors, and collided with Sentinel, who caught him mid-roll. The doors slammed shut a heartbeat before a Genomorph claw cracked against them.
Silence.
Breathing. Panting. Groaning.
Solaris raked his fingers through his sweat-damp hair.
"Well," he said, still catching his breath. "That was fun."
Troia spun toward him, hair half-untied, cheeks flushed with adrenaline. "You almost got vaporized!"
"And yet," Solaris said, tapping his chest, "still smoldering."
Kid Flash groaned. "If this elevator crashes, I'm blaming the two of you and your unresolved sexual tension."
"You act like it's one-sided," Troia shot back.
Solaris arched a brow. "You admitting something, Princess?"
She crossed her arms. "I'm admitting that you talk too much and think you're hotter than you are."
"I am literally made of heat."
"Still not my type."
"Yeah," he said, leaning against the wall with a grin. "But I could be."
She blushed. Again.
Robin didn't say a word.
But his eyes never left the digital readout on his gauntlet.
Because while the others laughed and bickered and finally exhaled...
Robin had already seen what waited above.
And it wasn't over.
Not even close.
—
The elevator thrummed beneath their feet like a held breath, the descent disturbingly smooth — like falling in slow motion with no impact in sight.
Troia stood near the back, arms crossed tightly over her chest. Sweat and blood streaked her brow, but her posture never slouched. She kept her glare laser-focused on the glowing floor-level counter as it ticked lower and lower.
Beside her, Solaris leaned against the wall like he owned it, one shoulder scorched, hair damp and tousled just enough to still look good. Naturally. Emerald eyes flicked between her and the display, like he couldn't decide what was more fun — impending doom or annoying her.
Kid Flash paced in twitchy circles, boots squeaking faintly against the polished steel floor.
"Okay," Wally said, making a wide 'what-is-happening' motion with his arms, "so... uh... honest question. Why are we still going down?"
Aqualad narrowed his eyes at the elevator readout, his trident lightly tapping the floor with each tick. "This is not the way out."
"No kidding," Sentinel grunted. He stood like a wall — arms crossed, hair slick with sweat and fury, pale green eyes hard. "Robin. This had better be deliberate."
"Up is out," Wally added, flapping his arms like that would help explain anything. "Up is sunlight. Snacks. Showers. Bathrooms, for the love of Flash."
Robin didn't answer immediately. He was hunched over the access panel, cloak swept aside, gauntlet synced to the terminal. Fingers moved fast, typing like the keys owed him money. His eyes stayed locked to the screen.
"Project KR is on Sub-Level Fifty-Two," he said, flat and precise.
The elevator dinged softly — polite, smug, unbothered.
Troia straightened sharply. "Fifty-two? That's twelve levels below what's listed on Cadmus's blueprints you hacked into earlier. There isn't supposed to be a Level Fifty-Two."
Robin finally turned, face lit by the cold blue glow of the screen. "Then someone forgot to tell the encrypted corridor labeled 'PROJECT KR.'"
Supergirl stepped forward, one boot dragging slightly, her cape torn and fluttering like a battle flag. Her braid was half-unraveled, but her expression was still fire.
"Robin, this is way out of control. We need to call the League. Now."
Robin didn't blink. "We will. After we find out what they buried under a dozen security layers, bio-locks, and kryptonian encryption."
The team fell into silence.
Sentinel let out a tired, frustrated sigh. "Right. Sure. Let's go deeper. Because the creepy science lair always gets less terrifying the farther in you go."
"Sub-Level Fifty-Two," Solaris muttered under his breath, green eyes gleaming. "Sounds like the title of a horror movie I regret agreeing to star in."
Troia scoffed. "You? Star in anything that isn't just a close-up of your jawline?"
Solaris grinned. "Oh, so you have been noticing the jawline."
"I've been noticing you talk like a walking Tinder bio."
"I'm multifaceted," he said, brushing ash off his armor. "Hot and humble."
She snorted. "Only one of those is true."
He winked. "You think I'm hot?"
"Absolutely not."
"You hesitated."
"Did not."
"She did," Solstice said brightly, hands glowing faintly. "I felt the spike in her heart rate."
Troia glared at her. "Stay in your glow-lane."
Enchantress, leaning against the wall beside Sentinel, rolled her eyes. "I swear, if they start making out mid-Genomorph ambush, I'm hexing both of them with acne."
"Powerful acne," Solstice added helpfully. "Emotional damage-tier."
Kid Flash flailed an arm. "Guys! Focus! We're heading toward something called Project KR and no one is even a little worried about the horror movie music that's probably playing on the other side of those doors?!"
The elevator hissed to a stop.
SUB-LEVEL 52 – UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS DETECTED blinked in angry red across the panel.
Aqualad tensed, stepping forward, his trident humming low. "Robin… this place feels wrong. Worse than the Genomorph pods. Worse than Guardian. It's like we've crossed into something we weren't meant to find."
Robin didn't reply.
Because the elevator doors slid open.
And beyond them… darkness.
Not total, but too much. The corridor ahead flickered with dim, stuttering light. The walls were laced with thick black tubing — not tech, not organic. Somewhere in between. They pulsed with a faint, disturbing rhythm. Like breathing.
Two corridors branched forward — identical, sterile, winding out of view.
Kid Flash made a face. "Okay. Option one: creepy hallway. Option two: slightly creepier hallway. Are we just flipping a coin or what?"
"Right is usually wrong in horror movies," Enchantress said, eyeing the walls like they might blink.
"Left could be a trap," Solstice added quietly. She was glowing softly now, light pulsing in response to the corridor's weird, unnatural hum.
"Split up?" Supergirl asked, already cracking her knuckles. "Cover more ground, faster."
"No," Sentinel said immediately, stepping out into the entry. His voice was stone. "We don't split."
Solaris let out a long, theatrical breath and clapped his hands once. "Alright, Boy Wonder. Flip the detective switch. Which path leads to Frankenstein's Evil Clone Basement, and which leads to instant regret?"
Robin stared down both halls, lips pressed in a thin line.
Didn't speak.
Didn't blink.
Then he stepped forward.
Straight into the left corridor.
"Welp," Wally muttered, "guess we're picking trap-door number one."
"Bet you it's full of teeth," Enchantress said.
"I swear, if the walls start bleeding, I'm quitting," Solaris muttered, moving after Robin. "I'm gonna start a garden. Or a bakery. Something wholesome. Something that doesn't involve secret clones and flirty Amazons who keep threatening to kill me."
"You do make it easy," Troia said, stepping beside him. "All that charm? It's like a shield made of cringe."
"Shield of Cringe," Solaris repeated. "Wow. That's going on my tombstone."
"If you die down here," she muttered, "I'm writing 'Death by Ego.'"
"Still better than 'fell for the hot solar guy,'" he said under his breath.
She paused. Gave him a long, unreadable look.
Then walked past him.
He blinked. "...Was that a—wait, was that a smirk?!"
Solstice drifted by, beaming. "It so was."
Solaris pointed. "I saw it! She likes me!"
"Yeah," Sentinel muttered, pulling up the rear. "That or she's planning your murder."
"Same difference," Solaris said cheerfully, and followed.
Robin didn't say a word.
But his eyes flicked once to the glowing map on his gauntlet.
Then forward.
To the heartbeat buried deep in the shadows.
Waiting.
Watching.
Alive.
—
The air was different here.
Too thick. Too quiet. Like they'd crossed some invisible line between the world of science and something older. Something wrong.
"This place feels like it's watching us," Solstice whispered, her glow dimming slightly. Her freckles stood out sharp against her pale face, framed by tousled ginger curls damp with sweat. "Like... like we're not supposed to be here."
"You're not wrong," Enchantress muttered, brushing her black hair behind her ear and narrowing her eyes at the walls. The strange pulsing cables along the corridor throbbed faintly. "The magic's warped. Like it's being smothered."
Kid Flash wobbled to a stop next to her, flailing slightly. "Okay, new rule: next time the creepy death hallway feels like sentient plumbing, we leave. Immediately."
They rounded a corner.
And the air snapped cold.
The Anthropoid was waiting.
Seven feet tall, skin the color of forged steel, eyes glowing blood-red beneath a fused black faceplate. Twin horns arched up and back, pulsating with crimson energy. His body shimmered faintly, like reality wasn't sure it wanted to hold onto him.
"Halt," he said. Just one word, but it scraped across the air like a scream dragged over glass.
Solaris, leaning casually near Troia, gave a low whistle. "So. Guessing he's not here for a team-up?"
"Definitely not here for a hug," Troia muttered, muscles tensing beside him.
The horns pulsed.
Two massive cryo-canisters rose from the ground behind the creature, lifted by raw telekinesis. They hovered a second. Long enough to register.
Then launched.
"Scatter!" Sentinel barked.
The teens exploded into motion. The first canister shattered against the far wall in an eruption of frost and pressure. The second burst in the air, sending sharp ice shards flying like shrapnel.
Supergirl shot forward. "Hey! Big, mean, and horned! Try someone who punches back!"
She flew straight at him. The Anthropoid raised a hand.
Kara froze.
Mid-flight.
Limbs locked. Muscles convulsing.
"Okay, definite bad touch!" she shouted.
Robin flung a disk. It whirled through the air in a perfect arc.
Stopped. Floated.
Crumpled.
And clanged to the ground.
"We can't beat him head-on," Robin said, eyes locked on the threat.
Troia lashed her golden lasso out. It hit an invisible barrier and rebounded like a rubber band.
"We need a plan!" she called.
"Preferably one that doesn't end in ice and telekinetic implosion!" Solaris added, ducking behind a scorched pillar. His emerald eyes flicked toward Troia. "Unless you're planning on distracting him with your glower."
"Oh, please," she shot back, grabbing his arm and dragging him when he started charging another solar flare. "If I wanted to distract him, I'd toss you at him shirtless."
"Flattered," he grinned, even as they ran. "And slightly turned on."
"Keep talking," she warned, "and I will let him catch you."
"Still better than dying without flirting."
Behind them, cables began to snap taut, the floor quivering under their feet.
"Move!" Supergirl shouted, breaking free of the telekinetic grip with a furious scream. She swooped down, scooping Solstice and Enchantress in her arms as she blasted back.
Aqualad raised his trident, waves of hard water coalescing around him. "Go! I'll hold—"
"No," Robin cut in sharply. "We all move."
He turned on a dime and dashed back toward the split junction. The rest followed without hesitation.
"Wrong hallway!" Wally yelled. "Left is always death!"
"Then right is marginally less death," Enchantress hissed.
They bolted through the second corridor just as a reinforced bulkhead slammed down behind them.
A breath of silence.
"Okay," Wally panted, hands on knees, "please tell me this hallway doesn't also lead to Demon Baphomet's Funhouse."
"No promises," Robin said.
Solaris caught up beside Troia, hair wild and damp. "So. Wanna admit we made a good team back there?"
"We ran away."
"Together. That's bonding."
She rolled her eyes. "Your definition of bonding is a war crime."
"Only if there's tongue."
"I hate you."
"But you laugh at my jokes."
"Once. By accident."
"Once is all I need."
She punched his shoulder.
Solstice drifted past, glowing softly. "You two are exhausting."
"And weirdly hot," Enchantress added.
"It's all the rage," Solaris said with a wink. "Danger. Trauma. Sexual tension."
Sentinel groaned. "Please. Less flirting. More not dying."
Robin didn't join the banter. He stared down at the pulsing dot on his gauntlet. It was still there.
Beating like a second heart.
Project KR was close.
Too close.
And whatever was waiting…
It had just started waking up.
—
The clang of the locking mechanism behind them echoed like a vault sealing their fate.
"Engaging emergency lock," Robin muttered, his HoloGlove flaring to life in cold blue light.
Sentinel stepped forward, brows drawing together. "Wait—lock? As in... trap us in here with whatever freakshow Cadmus cooked up?"
There was a solid clunk. The lights overhead flickered.
"It just means we're locked in," Aqualad said, voice low and grim.
Robin didn't flinch. "We need time. We can't let that thing follow us."
"Oh, fantastic," Enchantress muttered. "We're now officially in every bad sci-fi horror movie ever. What's next? Alien spores? Murder walls?"
"Why would you even say that?" Kid Flash groaned, dramatically throwing his arms up.
Then, from deeper in the room: "Uh... you guys? Might wanna see this."
They turned. Wally stood in front of a sleek wall-mounted console, its surface dark save for a pulsing standby rune.
"Wally," Supergirl said sharply, hands on her hips, "do not touch anything."
"I'm not!" he shot back, already mid-button press. "Okay, maybe just one thing. Just—"
Click.
The chamber lit up like dawn breaking.
Overhead lights flared to life in synchronized bursts, revealing the full expanse of the room—steel catwalks, lab benches, and in the center, on a pedestal of obsidian and chrome, a single containment pod the size of a stasis tank.
The fog inside hissed, clearing.
And then they saw him.
He looked fifteen. Maybe. Black hair, tousled and damp. Pale skin. A white suit that clung like armor, unmarred except for a bold red S across the chest. The Kryptonian symbol. The legacy.
Just beneath the glass, someone had scrawled, in angry black marker:
KR
Solaris stumbled to a halt.
"No way," Kid Flash whispered. "Is that... is that what I think it is?"
Robin stepped forward. "A clone."
Sentinel crossed his arms. "That's not just a clone. That's... him."
"Don't," Solaris snapped, his voice sharp.
Troia turned to him, her brow lifting. "What?"
He didn't look at her. His emerald eyes stayed locked on the boy in the pod.
"He looks like Dad," Solaris said quietly. "Like... exactly."
"He is him," Solstice whispered, stepping forward. "Or... a version. Half, maybe."
Robin tapped another panel. Data flooded the display—genetic code, psychological profiles, fail-safes. LUTHOR-CODE blinked in red.
Supergirl's face paled. "No. No, that's Lex's sequence. They didn't just copy Kal. They... spliced him."
"Half Kryptonian. Half human," Robin confirmed. "Designed to follow orders."
Sentinel's fists clenched. "They didn't even give him a name. Just 'KR'."
Solaris took a step closer. His expression twisted, caught between awe and fury.
"He's our brother."
"Or our Frankenstein," Troia said, arms crossed.
"You say that like it's his fault," Solaris bit back.
She turned to him. "I'm saying we don't know what he is. You want to crack the pod open without knowing if he'll try to vaporize us?"
Solaris met her gaze. "I know what he is. He's like us."
"You're not exactly a glowing example of stable either," she muttered.
"Still hotter than you admitted yesterday."
Troia's face flushed. "I didn't admit anything."
Solstice raised her hand like a game-show buzzer. "There was definitely a hesitation."
"Thank you, truth-teller," Solaris said, grinning.
Troia shoved him. "I will personally drag you into the sun if you keep talking."
"I am the sun."
Robin cleared his throat.
"Focus."
Everyone snapped back to the pod. Solaris placed a hand lightly on the glass.
Inside, the boy didn't stir. But the heartbeat monitor pulsed steady. Steady and strong.
"Robin," Solaris said, softer now. "Let him out."
Robin frowned. "He could be dangerous. He could be unstable."
"We were all unstable once," Solstice said.
"Some of us still are," Enchantress muttered, giving Solaris a side-eye.
"He didn't ask to be made," Solaris said. "He didn't ask for any of this. Just like us."
Troia exhaled through her nose. Her voice was quieter. "If this goes bad, I'm knocking you out first."
Solaris smiled. "That's how I know you care."
Robin glanced at each of them. At the Kryptonian teens watching their own reflection through glass. At the pod. Then at his glove.
He pressed the sequence.
HISS.
The pod began to open.
—
Cadmus – Sub-Level 52 – Outer Corridor
The emergency lights strobed red across the corridor like a war wound. Scientists muttered nervously in clusters near their terminals, avoiding eye contact with the figure at the blast door, where a female tech in a lab coat was elbow-deep in the exposed panel wiring, cursing under her breath.
Behind her, Guardian stood like a sentinel made of stone—hands on his hips, chest rising and falling in slow, steady breaths. A faint crack in his armor still glowed from the earlier psychic feedback loop, but he didn't flinch.
Across from him, the squad of Genomorphs stood on edge—muscled, twitching, loaded for whatever storm Cadmus had been bred to weather.
Then—
Thud.
Bootsteps echoed through the corridor. Quick. Heavy. Clumsy.
Dr. Desmond appeared from the hallway in a sprint. Or rather, the closest thing a man in an expensive, sweat-slicked suit could call a sprint. His tie flapped, his face was flushed, and his entire presence screamed boardroom panic shoved into a warzone.
Trailing him, the Anthropoid moved like a shadow made solid—calm, controlled, a war machine wrapped in silence. His molten red eyes flickered beneath his horned mask, glowing faintly with residual kinetic charge.
Desmond didn't stop to breathe.
"They're still in there?" he demanded, voice already several notches past furious. "With the weapon?"
Guardian didn't bother saluting. "We're locked out. Panel's fried, emergency protocol sealed the chamber. She's trying to bypass it."
He gestured with his chin toward the tech—who made an exasperated noise and smacked the side of the panel for good measure.
Desmond spun toward the Anthropoid, who merely stood watching like a statue.
"Use your telekinesis!" Desmond barked.
The Anthropoid tilted his head slightly. Calm. Dignified. Not even annoyed.
"I have tried. It is... fortified."
Desmond blinked at him. "What does that mean? You moved a cryo-chamber across the room with your mind!"
"That was a pod," the Anthropoid said, voice deep, like gravel wrapped in velvet. "This is an engineered lockdown of reinforced titanium alloy and psionic insulation. Designed against my kind."
Desmond stared at him for a long moment. Then exhaled sharply.
"Useless," he muttered. "This whole operation is a debacle."
"You're welcome," Guardian said dryly. "We only saved your lab from total collapse upstairs."
Desmond ignored him, pacing forward, tugging at his tie like it was trying to strangle him. He turned suddenly, pointing a finger.
"Get some G-Trolls. Muscle the door open."
Guardian raised an eyebrow. "Already called them. ETA two minutes."
Desmond paused. Narrowed his eyes.
Then stepped closer.
"You realize," he said, quieter now, "once we get in there... we can't let any of them leave."
Guardian's jaw tightened. "Doc... these aren't your average meddling kids. You're talking about Kryptonian hybrids. Atlanteans. Amazonian-trained demigods. You start something with them, it ends with the Watchtower's orbital cannon pointed at this facility."
Desmond didn't blink. "Better that than winding up on the wrong side of the Cadmus Board. Trust me—they don't believe in second chances."
Before Guardian could answer, Desmond's gaze drifted upward—landing on the tiny, horned G-Gnome perched on Guardian's shoulder. The little creature twitched once, almost imperceptibly.
"Contact the ones inside the pod," Desmond said firmly.
The G-Gnome's horns glowed faintly. Its beady black eyes closed.
It began to concentrate.
"Will it work?" the female scientist asked from the panel without looking up.
"Depends," Guardian muttered.
"On what?"
"If the kid in the tube wants to listen."
—
Cadmus – Sub-Level 52 – Inner Vault Chamber
The hiss of pressurized steam curling off the pod was the only sound.
The team stood in a semi-circle, eyes wide, breath caught. The pod unfolded in smooth mechanical layers, revealing a pale-skinned boy no older than Solaris, standing barefoot and silent in a glowing white bodysuit with a bold crimson "S" across the chest.
Robin took a half-step forward, fingers flexing inside his HoloGlove. "No sudden movements."
"Define sudden," Wally muttered, edging behind Aqualad.
The boy didn't move.
Then his right hand clenched into a fist.
Every muscle in the room tensed.
Solstice whispered, "His aura—it's frayed. Like lightning barely leashed."
The G-gnomes nearby began to twitch, their horn-lights pulsing erratically.
Then his eyes snapped open.
Blazing Kryptonian blue.
"Okay, nope," Kid Flash yelped. "That's a big nope!"
The boy lunged.
He hit Solaris like a freight train.
They tumbled off the dais with a crash of limbs and armor. Solaris hit the floor hard, air knocked from his lungs as the boy mounted his chest.
WHAM.
First punch.
Solaris' head bounced off the floor.
WHAM.
Second.
The third came hard and fast—but Solaris caught the boy's wrist.
His lip was bleeding. His emerald eyes weren't.
"Okay," he said, voice winded but calm. "Gotta say... for a clone, you hit like a substitute gym teacher."
The boy roared, wordless fury.
Troia surged forward, golden lasso slicing through the air with a snap.
It coiled around the boy's right arm just as Sentinel dropped from above like a missile, slamming into the boy's left and locking him down in a brutal combat hold.
Troia grunted, dragging the clone's arm back. "Can we not with the surprise fratricide?"
"He's not thinking," Solstice cried. "He's reacting!"
"He reacts like a wrecking ball!" Supergirl snapped.
"Solaris," Troia snarled, still wrestling with the thrashing boy, "get your stupid face off the floor and do something!"
Solaris gave her a cheeky grin. "That the way you talk to all the guys you pin down, or just the hot ones?"
Her face flushed. "I will throw you into the sun."
"You're not strong enough."
"Try me."
"Kids," Sentinel growled, holding the clone in a vice grip. "Less flirting, more restraining."
"Not flirting!" Troia snapped.
"Definitely flirting," Kid Flash called from behind a console.
"Shut up, Wally!"
Enchantress stepped in, eyes glowing green. "I'm going in. Mental sweep."
Solaris reached up and pressed two fingers to the clone's forehead. "I'm coming too. Might need a Kryptonian firewall."
Troia hissed, "You are the firewall."
"Then you're welcome."
Magic lanced from Enchantress' fingertips as she and Solaris dived in.
Inside the clone's mind, chaos reigned. Broken glass memories. Shattered commands. Test numbers. Pain.
<<"Project KR online." >>
<<"Obey. Attack. Survive." >>
<<"You are not a boy. You are a contingency." >>
Enchantress flinched. Solaris steadied her.
"He wasn't targeting me," Solaris murmured aloud, still half-there. "He was defending himself. Reflex."
"Everything in his head is orders," Enchantress said softly. "Orders and chains."
Troia looked down at the clone's face. His rage had faded to confusion. His chest heaved. His arms trembled.
Then— the boy blinked.
His voice cracked. "Who... am I?"
Solaris exhaled slowly, thumb brushing a smear of blood from his chin.
"We were hoping you could tell us."
---
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