The room was banged up, and the three heroes were on the ground, looking as though they were knocked out. He took a deep breath and schooled his features. This wasn't the time to make any mistakes.
The door opened up, and the person who entered evoked a feeling of rage in him, though his face remained passive. "Ah, I see you have dealt with our intruders. Excellent! Excellent work! See Guardian, the weapon knew how to do your job better than you. Get the heroes into the pods, and we can clone them and kill the leftovers." Desmond told the man to his right, whom he assumed was Guardian based on the gold helmet the man wore.
Guardian didn't answer and went to gather the sidekicks. His hand snapped and grabbed hold of the man's wrist. "What the? What are you doing, you fool?! Weapon, I demand you release Gua—." He didn't let Desmond continue his rambling, throwing Guardian at the mad scientist.
The others took that as their cue and sprang into action, starting to attack the other G-gnomes. He instead aimed for the bigger monsters and, with a leap, threw a haymaker, knocking out the giant monster. He looked at the fallen monster in amazement and back down at his clenched hands. His strength was exhilarating.
He grabbed the horn and lifted it off the ground with a grunt, then threw it at the other monster with a yell, knocking them both down. He jumped and slammed down into one's head, knocking it out and breaking one of its horns.
Suddenly, he was thrown forward, his back flared in pain for a second before the feeling disappeared. Landing on the ground, he turned to look and saw the other G-gnome got back up quicker than he anticipated.
It started running at him, with him in return meeting it head-on. Just as they were about to collide, he slid under it and kicked its leg. He felt the ground shake and turned around, leaping at its head with a punch. It groaned in pain before slumping forward.
He laughed at the sight of their knocked-down forms. "Hahaha!" He felt invincible, as though he could take on the entire world and win. "Hey, how about instead of laughing, you can help us!" He heard Kid Flash yell out.
Turning back to the remaining enemies, he started taking them down in quick succession, and in no time, the four of them defeated the remaining G-gnomes. He walked over to the downed Desmond and Guardian, kicking them lightly to make sure they were down.
"You okay there, Supes? You dealt with those big boys in no time." Kid Flash pointed at the downed monsters. He grunted and grabbed both men by the collar of their uniforms. "Not my name. Anyway, if we can use these two as hostages, the facility most likely won't attack us." He told them, but quickly noticed the frown coming upon the teens' faces.
"We don't take hostages." Aqualad said seriously. "Yeah, we're heroes here. We don't stoop down to the villain's level." Kid Flash commented.
A sigh escaped his mouth. "This isn't the time to argue whether this is right or wrong; what we should be focusing on is escaping this place. Besides, if something goes wrong, I can protect them." He had no problem with Guardian, and if something happened to Desmond, well, the guy should have protected himself better.
The man was despicable, experimenting on unwilling people, kidnapping, and probably committing multiple other crimes he didn't know about. This entire place was filled with garbage human beings who deserved no mercy.
"I suppose it is a good plan," Aqualad consented, although his reluctance was obvious. The other two looked at him in shock but stayed silent. "We should head back. Keep your guard up." Aqualad ordered us.
It's best to follow his lead; the guy had more experience than him, so he would be arrogant to think he could do better. They started running towards the elevator, encountering multiple G-gnomes who were about to attack them, but stopped when they who we we're carrying.
They tried to call on the elevator, but it wouldn't budge. He was frustrated, but quickly thought of a solution. He grabbed Desmond by the neck and lifted him. "If this doesn't come down in the next five minutes, I'll snap his neck!" He yelled, applying a bit of pressure on the man's neck.
"Dude, what are you doing!?" Robin whispered to him. He ignored him, and for a while it seemed like they wouldn't believe him. He added pressure to the neck, which seemed to rouse the man from his sleep. "Huh, wh—." Desmond started choking, and that seemed to do the trick as the elevator started descending fast.
The elevator door opened, and they quickly entered. As soon as the door closed, he felt someone try to push him. "What the hell, man?! You just threatened to kill that guy!" He turned, narrowing his eyes at Kid Flash.
"Yeah, we don't kill." He then glared at Robin.
"What, you want me to ask them to please open the door? No! I don't know what kind of shit they have in this place! What if they had some Kryptonite? Or, I don't know, something that could take you down? You think this is a game, huh? Of course I threatened him!" He yelled at them in disbelief and anger.
"That's one line we don't cross." Aqualad commented, his eyes narrowed, but more in disappointment.
"Oh, well, sorry, I'm not hero material the second I'm outside the pod. It's not like we were in tight on options." He responded sarcastically, ignoring them in favor of turning his attention to the awake Desmond.
"You." He grabbed the man by his arm and lifted him roughly. "Once we're at the top floor, you'll order your goons to stand down; the Justice League is already on their way." This seemed to scare the man, but he quickly put on a brave front.
"You're bluffing," Desmond smirked. "Your friends wouldn't have been able to contact anyone at the level we were in." He smirked in return, confusing the man.
"Maybe, or maybe the Justice League will notice their missing proteges, and it won't take them long to realize that the last location they were seen was Cadmus. Now, tell them to stand down." This seemed to break the man's bravado, and they made it to the first floor.
The man grumbled something about how he'll be killed by his superiors, but in honesty, he hopes Desmond rots in Hell.
They exited the elevator, and outside was a large number of G-nomes and armed personnel. "Stand down." Desmond muttered in defeat. They were escorted to the entrance, and he felt his heart jump at the sight of the outside and allowed himself to smile.
"So," Robin uttered. "That was...underwhelming." He snorted.
"What, did you want us to have a big epic fight, with collateral damage." He smirked at the teen, who slightly grinned. "I mean, it seemed like it was leading to that."
"I gotta agree with Rob here, like we find a secret elevator that leads to a secret room where we find a clone of Superman, and that same clone, instead of helping the people who made him, decides he wants to be free and helps us defeat the same people who created him. We have to fight our way out of the place, and when we enter the elevator, it feels like, I don't know, we deviated off course." Kid Flash explains. Aqualad grabs both guys by their shoulders.
"Well, I for one am happy we managed to survive and complete our mission." He says.
Outside of Cadmus, I took a deep breath, taking in the fresh air. "That's it." He breathed out in happiness and relief. He felt a tap on his left shoulder. He turned to look at Kid Flash.
"Look at that man, the moon." He looked at the full moon and smiled at the sight of it. Even though he didn't stay long in Cadmus, the thought of being trapped there for a long time was horrifying. You honestly didn't know how much the little things matter when your fate was uncertain.
That's when he saw it, descending from the sky as though they were divine beings. At the front was Superman, and behind him were Martian Manhunter, Zatara, Captain Marvel, and Red Tornado flew behind.
He looked on in awe as the other heroes landed. His eyes zeroed in on Batman, and he had to force himself not to run up to the man and ask for his autograph.
As they land, Batman walks up to Superman, followed by Flash, zooming behind them. He saw Superman looking at him in confusion, probably noticing the resemblance between them. He composed himself immediately when he saw them glance in his direction.
"Is that what I think it is?" Batman asks. His awe was completely shattered, and he felt himself flare up at being called an it.
He was about to spew and insult at the man, but Kid Flash spoke up for him."Don't call him an it." Kid Flash said.
"I'm Superman's clone." He tells them. Superman looks at him in shock and horror. He saw the other heroes look at each other in shock. He ignored them and locked eyes with the man who was basically his Father, in all honesty.
"I thought you'd be taller, old man." He smiled teasingly, but the man didn't seem to find the joke amusing. "Haha!" Although this seemed to make Shazam laugh out loud, of course.
Batman's eyes lock onto the teens. "Start talking." He let the other teens start explaining while he looked at some of the heroes. The other heroes started to go around and interrogate the workers inside.
He walked up to Superman and watched with amusement at the way the man looked nervous at his approach. "Hey." He greeted the man. "Hello." Superman replied curtly. He chuckled at the man's nervousness. "I gotta say, it's an honor to meet you, Superman." The man seemed to look confused.
"What?" Superman said in confusion. "Well, you're the hero. Who wouldn't be inspired by you? I mean, this place tried to make it seem like you were a threat, but for a guy like me, who all I knew were the Scientists' cruelty, you gave me hope in a dark place." It wasn't a complete lie; in both this life and the previous, Superman was a man who inspired him to be better. Although it is more his past life than this one.
Superman looked like he didn't know what to say; he looked happy, but at the same time, angry. The anger didn't seem to be directed at him, more like himself. The man didn't say anything and just gave him a pat on the shoulder before leaving.
He didn't care that much; he only really wanted to talk to Superman more as a fan. Who wouldn't? He looked around and saw all manner of workers being escorted into police trucks. Desmond, though, was trapped inside a sphere by Hal Jordan. It seemed like they were focusing on interrogating Desmond themselves.
He turned to see Superman coming back. "We'll, uh, we'll figure something out for you. The League will, I mean," he corrects himself quickly. "Sure, man." He replied, looking at the man. "For now, I'd better make sure they get the prisoners squared away." Superman started flying away.
'I need his trust.' He thought before shifting his attention to something else. 'I seem to be not just strong, but smart too. My thoughts feel faster and clearer. Also, I'm more knowledgeable than I ever was.' He turned to the conversation in front of him.
"Cadmus will be investigated," Batman said. "All 52 levels, but let's make one thing clear—"
"You should've called." Flash interrupts, with Batman giving him a side glare.
"End results aside, we're not happy." The Dark Knight says in silent anger. "You hacked Justice League systems, disobeyed direct orders, and endangered lives. You will not be doing this again."
"I am sorry, but we will." Aqualad voiced his disagreement, looking at Batman in defiance. "Stand down, Aqualad." Aquaman orders his protégé shocked that he would go against them
"Apologies, my King," Aqualad disobeys his King, then his voice goes firm once more. "But no." This catches Aquaman off guard, not expecting this from his protégé. "We did good work here tonight, the work you trained us to do. Together on our own, we forged something powerful, important."
"If this is about your treatment at the Hall, the three of you—." Flash was cut off. "The four of us, and it's not." Kid Flash quickly corrects him.
"Batman, we're ready to do what you taught us, or why teach us at all?" he speaks, getting their attention because of how quiet he is.
"Seems to me you're squandering your own proteges' potential." He said, arms crossed. "This can help them gain experience as a team. Plus, they did help me escape, so I owe it to them." He watched Batman's eye narrow.
[Mount Justice]
He was finally in normal clothes, a Batman hoodie he chose and grey sweatpants, standing with the other kids in front of the older heroes.
"This cave was the original secret sanctuary of the Justice League." Batman informs them. "We're calling it into service again. Since you four are determined to stay together and fight the good fight, you'll do it on League terms." He nodded. At the moment, this was the only place he was able to live. Where else would he live? Gotham? That would be annoying.
Batman continued speaking. "Red Tornado volunteered to live here and be your supervisor. Black Canary is in charge of training. I will deploy you on missions."
"Real missions?" Robin says enthusiastically, now in his civilian clothes.
"Yes, but only covert." Confirms Batman, which dampens the others mood a bit but I now from canon that most times, well have no choice but to fight.
"The League will still handle the obvious stuff," Flash speaks up from behind Kid Flash's right shoulder. "There's a reason we have these big targets on our chest."
"But Cadmus proves that our villains are getting smarter. Batman needs a team that can operate on the sly." Aquaman continues, then turns his head towards Batman to continue the flow of conversation.
"The five of you will be that team." Says Batman. "Cool! Wait." Robin pauses. "Five?" He looked around them.
Batman only looks over his protége's shoulder, and the four of them turn at the sound of the Zeta—tube, and saw Martian Manhunter stepping out of the shadows, and alongside him is a green-skinned, red-haired teenage girl. "This is the Martian Manhunter's niece. Miss Martian."
Kid Flash looks down at Robin as he puts one hand on his hip. Robin, in turn, looks up at Kid Flash. "Liking this gig more every minute." Kid Flash walks up to her, blocking the view of the rest of the three. "Uh, welcome aboard, I'm Kid Flash." He points to himself confidently.
"That's Robin," the smaller raven steps to the side and gives a Rock 'n' Roll sign, "Aqualad." The Atlantean gives a small nod but says nothing more. "And the loner over there is Superboy. It's cool if you forget their names."
"I'm honored to be included." Miss Martian says sincerely, clasping her hands. He gave her a smile.
"Ignore that loser, you can call me Samael." She smiled back with a blush on her cheeks. "T-Thanks, I'm Miss Martian, but you can M'gann or Megan, whichever you like."
"I'll call you M'gann then." His eyes widened at the sight of her shirt changing to look like his hoodie, but with the Martian Manhunter symbol. "That's cool." She blushed at his praise. "Today is the day." He heard the Atlantean say proudly. True, today was some day.
(AN)
Hey, now I know I didn't update for a while, but it was because I was busy. So, I will try to update faster now, and I hope you enjoyed the chapter.
Also, tell me if you have a cool hero name for Superboy 'cause I don't want to call him Superboy. If I did, then I'd feel like he'd be under Superman's Shadow. And show me some suit ideas, nothing anime, I feel it won't fit in. Try something from the comics, maybe.