I could see her red eyes, trembling stature, her tear stained face and her surprised expression.
Yep. Been a while since I saw her like this. Last time was months ago. When she just arrived.
"You.....". Kara exclaimed.
"You showed up".
"Pretty much". I shrugged and replied in a casual tone.
"After all, have nothing better to do". I could see her face darken slightly. Why, though? It was the truth.
"Plus...". I raised my finger and pointed to the ground.
"This is legally my property. So you're trespassing".
"Oh! Then am I going to go to jail?" If her looks weren't enough, Her half annoyed, half sarcastic tone pretty much hit the nail on the head that she wasn't her best self at the moment.
"…. Ok..... What's the problem"? My voice held no intrigue or curiosity. She didn't seem to notice.
Her face changed slightly as she turned around to face away. Her hands folded across her chest.
"I... Clark and I had an argument…".
"Let me guess then. Adaptation issues?" I raised an eyebrow.
"How..... Did you know?" Her eyes were wide before narrowing.
"Are you spying on me?" She knew I had Alice. Not surprised at that, either.
"Common sense". I gestured to the side. "Probably from day one".
Superman and Supergirl having..... Issues due to their different views was quite expected. Kara wasn't from this world. It would be impossible to act directly like Clark who, although similarly wasn't from this world but lived his entire life here all the same.
"The Cerebral Transducer let you know more. Everything you needed to know about living as an earthling. So you wouldn't make the common mistake of asking, "Who?" When they mentioned Einstein". I paused for a second.
"..... It wouldn't change the way you are used to things. Just because you know what a paper map is doesn't mean you won't subconsciously ask artificial intelligence for directions. Which are rare and aren't widespread in this world".
"You also won't get accustomed to earth law that easily either".
"…" Kara was silent.
"…. Ok, another guess... You almost killed someone. Didn't you?"
"Stop that".
"What?" I felt amused.
"Stop... Ugh..... Stop knowing things". She looked like she could pull her hair out in frustration.
"I…. I tried. But it's so difficult to live like this. Always worrying about controlling my strength, always having to remind myself that things don't work like that anymore…. And the crimes..... Ugh".
Turning around, she hugged herself a bit tighter while listing out her grievances incessantly.
"I mean…. Who does that? Things like this don't happen on Krypton. Prisoners who've done wrong get exiled and never come back. Not... Not this".
"On Krypton, there was law and order and peace and stability. The chaos here is way too intense. It's so primitive, and wrong, and.....".
"... And it's Earth".
Amari let out an upbeat laugh as he interrupted her mid-speech.
"Deal with it".
My words shut her up. Following which, she drooped slightly.
"… I... Maybe I don't belong here".
I could hear her tone and knew what she needed.
She needed someone who understood her. Or more accurately..... Someone who she thought understood her.
In this case, I was both.
Only...
"You don't". I said bluntly causing her to shake slightly.
"You.....". Kara felt annoyed. Was that what someone would say to a distressed teenager?
Even if it was true, it sounded inappropriate for the situation.
'Dolt!' she cursed in her mind.
However, I wasn't done.
"But neither do I and ....". I smiled. "I'm still here anyway".
"The world's not perfect. Never has been. Never will be. You can't have it exactly how you want. But…. You can make it as close as it can get".
Then, I fell into contemplation.
"Or... You can just go to another Earth and try your luck".
"Oh..... i…. Huh? Wait a minute". Hearing my words, Kara shook her head and uttered with a face of disbelief.
"What?"
"Another Earth. One of the others in the multiverse". I shrugged.
I was kidding. And she knew it. But she still couldn't get the thought out of her head.
At that moment, the sound of sirens fell into our ears, prompting Kara to look towards the distant Gotham.
A robbery was going down
"That's Batman's turf". I uttered with interest.
"You going to take it?" My gaze fell back on her, wondering if she would go out to stop it.
After all, this was what Clark had taught her.
"I..... No". She hesitated for a moment before shaking her head.
"I think…. I'm done for the day". She didn't feel like going to stop bad guys. Not after what happened today.
"Well then... Since you look so down. How about dinner?" Seeing her crestfallen expression, I smiled and proposed.
"Wait... Dinner?" Kara's eyes looked weird.
"Like a date?"
My eyebrows couldn't get any higher.
"Whatever you say".
I took a few steps forward and a space crack appeared before me.
"Well, do you need an invitation?" I said while looking over my shoulder before stepping through".
.....
Outer Space.... The Watchtower.
[Recognized: Superman 01]
Clark walked in through the Watchtower Zeta tubes arriving straight at the Monitor Womb.
There, Batman was standing at the Watchtower Computer, looking at a holographic screen with rapt attention.
"Alright Batman. I'm here".
"I can see". Bruce replied without looking at him.
"And? What's the issue".
"....". Bruce was silent for a few moments.
"Bruce?" Clark called out with furrowed eyebrows.
"I'm thinking of how to put this delicately". His expressionless face looked weird when he uttered those words.
Clark couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
"Delicate is not your style".
"You're right". Bruce nodded and continued.
"You're cousin is a problem".
"What?" Clark's eyes went wide.
"Bruce, what are you saying?"
"I'm saying exactly what you told me a few months ago. You said we could trust her".
"We can". Clark's eyes narrowed with a glum expression. "She's only been here a couple of months. She's doing her best".
"Her best isn't good enough".
At this point, Bruce's plain tone was beginning to sound annoying.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Batman stepped away from the Watchtower computer and turned to Superman.
"You were so happy to discover someone alive from Krypton that you didn't bother to think about the consequences for the rest of us mere humans".
A video of Supergirl's recent attempt to stop a chopper chase earlier in the day played on the screen.
Followed by the destruction of Metropolis Square.
Batman put his hands by his side.
"In the short time she's been here, she's destroyed buildings and failed to control her powers. Worst of all, she doesn't care".
His face twisted to form a look of uncertainty.
"With her abilities, that makes her a threat. Especially since she spent a considerable amount of time with him".
Clark frowned.
"I don't like what you're implying".
"I know you don't. And you don't have to". He replied before turning back to the computer.
Clark couldn't say anything. Kara's outburst earlier was definitely something to worry about. Of course, he wouldn't tell the paranoid Dark Knight about this. That would only give Batman more reasons to turn up his suspicions.
"Kara's.... Trying. Adapting to earth as an adult is a lot more difficult. Especially when she just saw her entire civilization destroyed".
Superman directly played the pity card
"I know". Bruce froze for a second.
"But it's no excuse. It would be best for everyone if she learned to keep herself in check".
The frown on the face of The Man Of Steel deepened. He knew Bruce was particularly obstinate on most things.
"So that's what you called me here for? To tell me my cousin is a threat?"
"Actually... No". The answer was within Clark's expectations.
"So what's the matter?"
"I've contacted the Flash".
"The Flash? You mean the new guy from the other earth?"
"Yes". Bruce replied. "I think it's time we take care of his problem and get him back to his universe".
"Oh!" Immediately, Superman understood. Was it time already?
"But...". "There's no need to worry about this Clark". Batman interrupted.
"We can't keep delaying this matter any longer. He's growing impatient and Diana's status on the other end grows more uncertain with each passing day".
"But... We can't separate the manpower for this". This was true. At the moment, their world was.... In simple words, a mess. With their members not at full attendance, the Justice League had been spread noticeably thin.
Do not mention travelling to other worlds... They couldn't even guard theirs properly.
"I know. Which is why I'm sending in the team for this".
"The team?" Superman was startled.
"You can't possibly be thinking of sending in the kids to save an entire planet?"
"Why not?"
"Bruce, you can't be serious. They could get killed". Clark's tone was bordering yelling.
All the information they had on that universe was nothing but what was told to them by its own speedster.
There was another Version of him there. A darker, more twisted version of himself.
Clark didn't know how strong he was compared to his counterpart on that earth, but it definitely wasn't something a group of kids could handle. And that was far from the end of all dangers.
At this point, they hadn't even figured out how to properly travel between the breaches.
Normal people couldn't get through the barrier. And the Flash wasn't fast enough to make it there himself.
As for himself.... He would experience a situation similar to their missing Leaguers if he tried to force his way through.
Lost in space, perhaps for all eternity.
"I know". The Caped Crusader was surprisingly calm.
"They need to grow in the face of adversity. And besides.... I never said anything about them going alone".
...
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