Chapter 41 : Superboy
[Author note : We're 10 chapters ahead on Patréon for anyone interested (replace the é in Patréon by an e). You'll also find a few of my original stories. Check if you're interested or want to support me and don't hesitate to leave a comment. And now, read on !]
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A N.O.W.H.E.R.E. base, undisclosed location.
Zaniel Templar, a high-ranking member of the organization was observing their latest subject through a monitor in his office. Only the light of his screen was somewhat piercing the darkness in the room, and yet… It didn't seem able to shed light on the man's face. Standing behind him was an attractive woman with red hair, wearing a lab coat. Caitlin Fairchild. She was in charge of their project to create a Kryptonian-human hybrid, something she managed, considering the subject fighting on the screen.
« How's the subject faring ? »
« Subject Superboy is doing well, all things considered. He presents almost all the powers of a fully matured Kryptonian under the yellow sun, albeit they are slightly inferior. However, he doesn't seem to be able to fly, use his heat vision or icy breath. I assume that his cells haven't been imbued with enough solar energy. Though it could also be caused by other factors… »
« Such as ? » Zenial asked softly.
« As you know, we used half of a kryptonian genetic's material to create him. The other half was human. Perhaps, this addition has lowered the subject's abilities. Or, it could also be caused by our cloning techniques. I, unfortunately, can not say at this point… »
« Hmm… »
* * * * *
Superboy was frowning as he was fighting the forces of his organization in a 'sparring' match. Although, it was a spar in name only, as the people around him came at him with not only extreme aggressiveness, they carried weapons. Not only that, those weapons hurt a lot, as he made the unfortunate discovery a little earlier.
If it were just that, Superboy wouldn't be frowning so much however. What really angered him was that he felt… incomplete ! He was strong, fast and pretty durable, but he couldn't muster any other of a Kryptonian's abilities, for some reason. If it weren't for the simulations and his enhanced capabilities, Superboy would have had a hard time in this situation…
Planting a firm foot on the ground, he used it to launch himself forward, denting the ground as he went. The next moment, he backhanded one of his assailant, sending him crashing into the wall in the opposite direction. Then, he ducked under a sword stroke, punched the attacker in the gut, before jumping back, dodging another attack.
To avoid getting shot by the energy weapons the men were wielding, Superboy continued to move, thinning their numbers as he went. A couple of minutes later, an alarm rang signaling the end of the spar. The doors opened and a few men ran in to check on his 'partners' while he made his way out without a care in the world.
Well… Actually, that part was slightly untrue. Although he didn't care about the people he hurt and possibly killed, he was quite bothered by his obvious weaknesses. The lessons in his simulations taught him a great deal, among which were how to use his powers. And now… he didn't have those powers. He felt cheated, lied to. But worst of all, he felt like a failure. His creators hadn't made him to be such a weak weapon ! And as this thought crossed his mind, he instantly felt a dash of fear rising inside of him. If they deemed him a failure too, what would happen to him ?
No matter what, he couldn't let them think of him as useless… He needed to prove himself somehow ! He just hoped they would give him a chance to…
* * * * *
While all this was happening on the side of the shadowy organization, and the duo of Robin and Wonder Girl were getting acquainted, Ned was conducting his own investigation. Since he knew who Robin actually was, he was able to track down his last location to a Penthouse in Lex Tower, Metropolis. One which, incidentally was blown up. He pulled up camera footage of the event from the outside, on the net. On it, you could see Robin fly out the window, while a few shadows were scurrying around in the background right before the explosion. He assumed it was the first encounter between the boy wonder and this so-called N.O.W.H.E.R.E. organization. The boy wonder and Wonder Girl… Ah ! Ned thought to himself as he continued to sift through data.
He was able to find hints of another abduction in the form of a news report about a young speedster. Appropriately named Kid Flash, the boy had tried and failed to help fire fighters do their job. Unfortunately, the kid didn't think things through at all ! And instead of helping, he caused a backdraft that turned the fire from manageable to uncontrollable. He was also knocked out by it. And of course, the media weren't kind to him, as well !
However, after this event, Ned was unable to find any mention of him anywhere. The way the boy's character was, he doubted that he would just give up after one failure… Even such a monumental one. Besides, from a few animated iterations, as well as comics, there was one thing that speedsters often shared… It was shamelessness ! Barry hitting on women, or being oblivious, running his mouth off without thinking… Actually, there was also a Kid Flash with similar character flaws in the Young Justice show if he recalled accurately.
« Wait… Didn't Kid Flash die in that show ? » Ned muttered to himself. « Let's hope this kid doesn't meet a similar fate… »
Returning his attention on the screen frozen on the image of Kid Flash and commented :
« His sudden disappearance is probably a sign that he was abducted, too… Who the hell could catch a speedster ? » A pause and then he said : « He must have been caught by surprise ! Or he could be a moron… »
He shook his head before switching on his children's video feed. Softly, so as to not startle them, he asked :
« How are things going on your end ? »
« Doucement, » Mel answered before continuing in English : « Frankly, it's a bit frustrating watching these two hormonal kids behaving around each other… Are they actually taking this crime fighting seriously or are they in it just to flirt ? »
Winston interjected :
« I do not think Miss Sandsmark is flirting. Nor is she a crime fighter, judging from the trophies in her apartment… »
« C'est vrai. But, Robin is, right ? What about his investigation ? Not to mention the fact that he's much too young for her… »
On Mel's feed, he saw Winston adjusting his glasses before voicing his thoughts :
« Perhaps, Robin's strategy is to stick close to Wonder Girl since she's already been targetted by N.O.W.H.E.R.E. ? I also saw him search for reports on Meta-human teens… If he can't stay with Wonder Girl, as it's apparent that she doesn't particularly like having him around, he'll find another Meta-human to observe… »
« Speaking of which… » Ned spoke up. « There's a story on the Internet about a man-sized insect roaming around not far from your location. According to one of the witnesses, it's just a story, but… Well, it's worth checking out ! »
« Sérieusement ? You're always giving us the hard work… After spying, now we have to track something that might not even exist ? »
« No… For now, stay put. If the story has any relevance, I'm guessing Robin will check it out. In the meantime, I'll do some checking of my own… »
« Did you not want to lay low since, as you put it, you would rather make a grand entrance ? » Winston asked, trying to dissuade his father from doing anything foolish.
« No worries. I'm not joining you just yet… I'll be looking into something else. »
As he said this, he looked one last time at the image of Kid Flash, before he turned off the monitors.
« Stay in touch, guys ! Symmetra and Bastion will provide support if need be and I'm unable to join with you guys ! »
« Bi-boop ? » Bastion biped his question.
« Yeah, it's finished ! » Ned answered with a grin. « You and Sym'll be able to stretch your legs if you want. That said… I still expect the house to be protected ! »
« Not to worry, Ned. If everyone performs their function, victory is assured… »
Ned smiled wryly as he shook his head. Sometimes, the catchphrases of the Overwatch characters came out of the blue, even when they were accurately placed… It brought a bit of nostalgia for his old life to the young man. In fact, it was probably the reason why he was working on a VR gaming console, as well as the Overwatch game. Well, the latter was… As for the former, Ned had the idea for a while already.
With the knowledge of his former life and that of its fictions, access to magic and an intellect rivaling the likes of Lex Luthor, there were quite a few things Ned wanted to recreate. Whether or not, he'd be able to, however, was another story. Still, he was confident !
The gaming console could not only bring him another source of revenue, it would bring him one step closer to accomplishing the 'Matrix project'. After all, His VR console would use illusion to immerse the player into the virtual (or rather illusionary) world. The illusions in questions weren't like the No-majs, who relied on tricking the senses or misdirecting the attention of the viewers. Illusions, in the magical world, were derived from the mind arts… They could be said to be an advanced application of legilimency. Although he still hasn't managed to figure out yet how to plunge someone in an illusory state, with his mom's expertise in the subject, he had high hopes of succeeding soon. And from there, the transition from illusion, to memories and then data wouldn't be far…
Truthfully, the last part would be the hardest. Initially, he wanted to basically download information from instruction manuals directly into someone's mind. However, the difference between the theoretical subject on paper and its practice required completely different things. For the former, a good analytical mind and understanding. And for the latter, habit and muscle memory. At least, in the case of something like martial arts… So, the problem was therefore to not only download the data inside someone's mind, but also the experience needed to accomplish it. And that was a bit problematic for now… The process would probably need to target specific regions of the brain. Something he was unable, and more importantly unwilling to do for now. After all, his studies on the brain were… well, he'd just started !
Heading for the mechanical platform, he mentally sent a command to his workshop and whoever was listening right now (Bastion or Symmetra) to put his armor on. A couple of minutes later, Ned took off into the sky.
* * * * *
Meanwhile, in another N.O.W.H.E.R.E base, in another undisclosed location, a certain teenage speedster was conversing with another boy. Using a chalk he 'conveniently' found while being brought in his cell, Kid Flash was, almost compulsively, covering the walls of his small cell with the Flash's symbol.
« Don't worry, Danny ! I'm working on a plan to break out of here… » Although his voice sounded upbeat, his eyes looked dead and hopeless, and the grin on his face was fake. The fact of the matter was… he was lost, had no idea how to get out of here, or even how he got here in the first place. One moment, he was in his home and the next… Right here !
Danny, another one of this place's inmate, was basically a lifeboat for his falling sanity points. With him here, and the fact that he sounded much younger than Bart (Kid Flash), himself, it gave him courage. Courage to support the both of them and in time, hopefully, help them escape !