ALL NOVEL Chapter 11.2
“I have to confess I’m a fairly strong telepath for a Genomorph, but there are G-gnomes who are both stronger and more skilled,” he answered as he stared at the boy with some pity in his face. “Why do you ask?”
“Can you find and modify mental commands?” she asked, her mind working hard to think about the opportunity.
Didn’t The Light like to use double agents to infiltrate the Justice League? She was already taking one of their facilities so, maybe she should take one of their plans too.
“That depends on how strong of a command it was and how deep it’s been buried,” Dubbilex said with a thoughtful voice. “I certainly couldn’t disable a command created by someone like the Martian Manhunter but, if you can bring the subject to us and know what to look for, the G-gnomes are used to working with each other and there’s enough of them to overcome just about anything.”
“How… interesting,” she suddenly couldn’t contain herself and started snickering and then she laughed. “Muahahaha… wait where are you going?”
Dubbilex had retreated from her side and taken quite a few hurried steps away from her; at her question, he stopped and righted himself, but his red eyes avoided her own. “Apologies, Desmond used to laugh like that and it brought to mind some unpleasant memories.”
“Ah, right,” damn, she really had to stop with the maniacal laugh, it was cathartic, but she didn’t want to give her cousin the wrong impression. “Anyway, that’s for later. Can we unfreeze him right away?”
“I can get one of the scientists over if you need?”
“No, let me check their information first.”
It seems Cadmus did indeed have the facilities necessary to unfreeze Roy, but it wasn’t like Kara could just take him out of the pod. The entire process would take at least a day and his recovery a few days more to be safe.
With a sigh, Kara decided she would be flying with not one but two pods towards the fortress. Her takeover of Cadmus was far too risky and she wanted to leave as few vulnerable targets on the facilities as she could manage.
“Dubbilex, get their pods ready for transport, please, I’m gonna have to make some calls.”
“Very well. I’ll have a G-Troll bring the batteries over and move the pods.”
Nodding to the male, Kara went back towards Match’s pod, sitting down on an empty spot where another pod should be, dialing his number on her Kryptonian tablet. She smiled as his phone started to ring.
She really did love Krypton technology, no way would a human cell phone work this deep underground.
“Hello Kara, did you need anything?” Her cousin asked with a tired voice, Kara didn’t know if she had ever seen or heard him when he wasn’t tired. The League really was overworked. “I’m just getting home from League work if you could wait a little.”
“Hi, Kal-El, we need to talk,” She said with a serious voice. “When were you going to tell me there was another Kryptonian alive?”
“Kara I… it's complicated,” He gave a huge sigh and Kara could feel the amount of frustration and exhaustion He was feeling even from across the phone. “He was made, Kara, made by my enemy to replace me… I just didn’t want to get you involved and at risk.”
“Kal you have Krypton’s cultural data, you know being ‘made’ isn’t exactly odd for a Kryptonian,” letting her body slip towards the floor Kara rested her back against the support.
“He’s dangerous Kara.”
“He’s a kid Kal, he needs help,” Kara hit her head against the support in frustration. “I have seen what you have done for this planet, what you stand for, you’re better than this.”
“I-I know, I’ll talk to him alright?” another sigh, another long pause. “Look, can we talk about this in person? You’re still coming to the family dinner on the weekend right?”
“Only if I can take him too,” when there wasn’t a response Kara cursed in her mind. “Kal I won’t say you’re his father, but he is a member of the house of El, he’s family.”
“Alright, I guess I can introduce you two then.”
“Kal, I already met the boy.”
“WHAT?”
“I just said he was family, did you think I was just gonna leave him alone on that mountain?” Kara almost screamed back and had to take a second to calm herself, to remember her cousin was a failed being just like everyone else. She took another glance at the second clone inside his pod. “Look, don’t think about him like he’s your son, he isn’t, just think of him as any other kid who suffered because evil people messed up his life, right now, he just needs help Kal.”
“You’re right,” Kal-El eventually said as she heard him throw himself on the sofa. “You’re right, is he still on the mountain?”
“Yes, I offered for him to stay with me but he needed some time to think.”
“I’ll talk with him tomorrow then. I really need to rest right now.”
“That’s all I ask,” she told him and smiled, she’d still have to get back at him for his fuck up so he wouldn’t think she’d just let it pass but, at least it wouldn’t need to be anything drastic. “I’ll see you on the weekend then.”
“Alright, yeah,” yet another frustrated sigh as Kara heard something breaking in his hand, then he relaxed. “And, Kara, thanks for calling me out on it.”
“My pleasure, his name is Kon-El by the way, can’t believe none of you guys even thought to give him one.”
She turned off the phone and went back to looking at Match’s pod. She had gotten her cousin to at least talk with Kon, but she didn’t think he needed to face a second clone right now, one who was dying too.
Kara didn’t have Batman’s phone and a quick search on the internet with her device didn’t uncover Bruce Wayne’s personal cell phone, but she did find the Wayne manor landline on some private database.
She was still angry at the Justice League but, now that she thought about it, she couldn’t justify keeping Roy hidden away from his adopted family. With some luck, Batman would manage to see the advantage of keeping the boy hidden and convince Green Arrow, she’d hate to see her newly formed plan be ruined because of her ethical standards.
By Rao, being a supervillain must be so much easier.
“You’ve reached Wayne Manor, how may I help you?”
“Hi Alfred, This is Kal-El’s cousin, Kara, can I talk with Batman?”
There was a beat of silence over the phone and then Alfred took a deep breath. “Master Bruce will not be happy with this.”
“Alfred, put Bruce on the line, please.”
“Very well, it will be just a moment,” Kara heard him walking for a minute or two before talking with someone. “Master Bruce, Superman’s cousin wishes to speak with you.”
“Clark wasn’t supposed to share my identity,” he said in a harsh, angry voice.
“My cousin didn’t tell me you were Batman.” She huffed.
“How did you find out?”
“I’m a Kryptonian under a yellow sun, how do you think?”
“Hmm, what did you need?”
“I was just curious, you guys had a Kryptonian, two green lanterns and the world’s best detectives, how did you miss a second Superman clone and a frozen kid when you searched Cadmus?” she said in a conversational tone, “Particularly when it was the second time you guys dealt with a Cadmus problem?”
There was a long silence filled with barely contained tension before Batman spoke a single word. “Explain.”
Kara was certain her device was secure from anyone trying to hear their conversation, both because her technology was so advanced and because nobody knew they had to counter it yet so, she did.
“I’ll be there in twenty minutes,” was the only thing the Bat said before turning off the phone, but Kara’s enhanced hearing managed to hear a lot more.
The slight tremble in his voice, the shaking of his hand on the phone, the beating of his heart, the harshness of his voice, Batman was absolutely furious, almost beyond reason.
Without even touching the ground around her, Kara floated up and back to her feet, from the side, a huge G-troll came around the corner carrying a portable battery.
“Can I get a G-Gnome to help me bring Batman inside and make it seem like everything was in order?” Kara asked Dubbilex.
“Does he approve of our actions?”
“I doubt it, but he isn’t saying anything yet and, after the way he dropped the ball here, do you think he has the right to say anything?”
