The Warrior Legion

Chapter 2: Cerberus

I was a hero now, and apparently I looked like one. The black leather jacket blended well with my red shirt, and matched my black jeans. What stood out the most, was the Silver and Red Symbol on the right of the jacket, on my chest.
The red A was surrounded by the silver irregular pentagon.
Atlas, that's what it stood for. I think what Hannah meant when she gave me that name, was that Atlas and I both had something in common.
We both held the weight of the world on our shoulders.
"Hey, stop daydreaming." I heard Hannah's voice in my ear.
"Right." I responded.
"We're on a mission, remember?" Hannah asked yet again. She asked me every two minutes. As if she would let me forget.
"Yeah, I know that." I replied. "I just don't get why we have to wear these communicator things." I said as I poked at the device in my ear.
"Stop that you moron. We need to focus." Hannah commanded.
"Whatever, it's not like this is important anyway. It's just guard duty. We're stuck babysitting some businessman instead of actually helping people." I complained.
"There's more to it than that. Batman sent us on this mission, which means that there is a possibility that this man could be a target." Hannah explained.
"He manages a branch of a lab, I doubt many people would want to target him." I said.
I leaned back against the wall on the second floor of the station. Hannah was on the other side, scanning the area, looking for anyone who seemed suspicious.
"Atlas, suspicious activity spotted. Four men approaching the target." Hannah informed me. I walked to the railing and looked over to the target, she was right, four men in suits were approaching him.
"Alright Hannah, I'll stall them, get to the exit point." I commanded.
"Codenames dumbass." She retorted through the communicator.
"Right. Astraea, get to the exit point." I corrected myself.
Astraea headed towards the stairs, while I took the escalator down to the first floor.
The target was in sight, and he had just been approached by the group of suspects.
They began to walk with the target towards the exit, and I caught up to them as they were about to leave.
"Mr Andrews? Is that you? It's me, Arthur's son!" I shouted towards the target.
"Umm.. right! Arthur's kid, Adam, right?" He asked flustered.
"Yeah, that's me. What are you doing here Mr Andrews?" I asked nonchalantly.
"Umm, I'm headed for a meeting with the Star Labs branch in Central City." He replied.
"Let's go Andrews." One of the men said.
"Who are these guys? Are they your bodyguards?" I asked.
Hopefully I had bought enough time for Astraea to get into position.
As if in queue, her voice spoke through the communicator.
"In position, waiting for arrival now." She spoke.
I sighed in relief as the men turned to the exit with the target.
"See you later Mr Andrews!" I called back as they opened the door.
The door closed behind them, and I heard Astraea jump into action.
"Up there!" One of the men yelled.
"We've been compromised!" Another shouted.
I opened the door to help Astraea take the men down.
The door slammed open as it turned the handle, and one of the men's backs slammed against my chest.
I pretended to fall to the ground, to maintain my cover. The man fell on top of me. He went to get up when I pulled in his collar.
"That's enough. Say goodnight." I said as I lightly chopped his neck, rendering him unconscious.
I pushed him off me and got to my feet. By that time there was one man left, put his finger to his ear and shouted into what I assumed was a communicator.
"The extraction is compromised! Activate Cerberus now!" He hollered.
"Cerberus?" I asked confused. "What the hell is Cerberus?"
Astraea jumped in the air and planted her foot inti the enemy's neck.
The man fell to the side and hit the ground in response.
"We're not done yet!" Astraea shouted at me. "He called for backup! We need to get Andrews out of here now!"
I was about to grab Andrews when I heard the scream of a young girl.
"AAAAAHHHHH!!" She screamed in pain.
I shot a look at Astraea, and she nodded in response. I left Andrews at the exit, and ran back into the station.
"Get Andrews out of here! I'll deal with whatever this Cerberus thing is!" I ordered.
"Understood. Deal with the backup and catch up with me at the emergency extraction point." She spoke into the comms.
I ran into the station to find a girl on her knees, grasping tightly at her head and screaming intensely.
"AAAAAHHHHH!! IT HURTS! HELP ME PLEASE!! AAAAAHHHHH!!" She screamed in pain. She was surrounded by curious civilians, who encircled her and watched.
A few people tried to help her, but every time someone got too close, she would scream even louder.
I pushed passed the civilians to get to the girl. When I saw her I froze.
"Are you the new kid?" She asked as I turned around to meet her.
"Don't worry, it's alright. A lot of people get lost on their first day." She smiled back at me.
"My name's Ashley. Vex-Ol is a pretty odd name." She replied.
It was her. That same girl that treated me kindly that day I went to school.
Here she was, clutching her skull, and screaming in pain right in front of me.
"AAAAAHHHHH!!" She screamed again.
I rushed over to her side and grabbed her shoulders.
"Hey! Are you alright?" I asked in a concerned tone.
She jerked her head up and looked at me.
"H-Hel-lp m-me." She begged as tears rolled down her face. "I-It hurts s-so much." She was trembling with fear.
"Don't worry, I'm here. It'll be okay." I reassured her as I turned around to face her properly.
"O-Okay." She stuttered.
"Look at me." I ordered. "Now breath slowly."
She looked into my eyes and breathed in and out slowly.
Tears continued to stream down her face as she tried to steady herself.
I slowly grabbed her wrists and held them outwards.
"Focus on my voice. Block everything else out." I commanded. "Block out your thoughts, your memories, your pain. Focus on my voice, my words, and my eyes." I spoke calmly and softly.
I didn't know what I was saying. It was as if another part of me had taken control and rushed to help.
My actions and my words sounded so familiar, yet I don't remember ever doing or saying any of this before.
She began to calm down, and her eyes stopped watering. Her breathing steadied, but she continued to stare at me.
Her sky-blue eyes hypnotised me, and I froze. I was petrified as I stared into her soft, blue eyes.
Everything was silent, and it was just me and her, alone in the station.
A moment later, everything changed.
Her sky-blue eyes changed into a crimson red, and the veins in her face began to glow orange.
"AAAAAHHHHH!!" She screamed once more. This time it was much louder. The windows of the station, and all the glass shattered at once.
I let go of her wrists and grasped my ears. The blood-curdling scream deafened me as I shouted in retaliation.
"GAAHH!" The scream echoed in my head, and I began to feel a liquid coming from my ears.
Ashley had stopped screaming, and I pulled my hands away from my ears. Blood splattered on my hands, as I realised what had happened. My ear drums had shattered.
I was dizzy, and I could barely keep my balance, as I looked around the station.
"Run!" I shouted as loud as I could to the civilians. "Get out of here now!"
The civilians eagerly complied as they ran towards the exit as fast as they could.
Within a few minutes the station was empty, apart from me and Ashley. As I turned to face her, I noticed the changes.
Her skin had got slightly darker, and her hair changed from chestnut brown, to jet black.
Her eyes were a dark crimson, and glowed menacingly.
"You're Cerberus." I spoke loudly.
" Primary Objective: Obtain Target. By any means." She growled menacingly.
"What the hell?" I shouted, shocked.
She walked towards me, and I tried to get her attention.
"Ashley! What's going on?" I asked.
She ignored me and attempted to walk passed me.
I grabbed her shoulder to stop her.
"Wait. Tell me what's going on." I ordered.
She grabbed my hand, and brushed it off her shoulder.
I froze again, in shock this time. She brushed my hand off with such ease. Something had happened, she was different now. Somehow, she had become strong. Really strong.
She walked passed me, and headed towards the exit, the same exit Astraea and Andrews went through.
I snapped back into reality, and turned around to Ashley.
"You aren't leaving." I commanded.
She stared back at me with her fierce Crimson eyes. I could sense the killing intent emanating from her.
It looked as if she was scanning me, like she was processing how to stop me.
"Secondary Objective: Subdue and Capture the Kryptonian." She spoke monotonously.
She knew I was Kryptonian. This was worse than I thought. She was being manipulated somehow, and I had to stop it.
She bolted towards me with astonishing speed, and was in front of me before I could blink.
She clenched her hand into a fist, crouched down, and plunged her fist into my stomach.
I couldn't stop her, she was far too fast, and incredibly strong.
I flew against the wall behind me, and my back cracked from the force.
The wall cracked and crumbled from the pressure, but it held firm.
I fell back to the ground, on my hands and knees. I coughed and spat up blood on the floor. I was in immense pain.
In an instant, wind brushed past me, and Ashley grabbed the back of my head.
Her nails had grown, and were incredibly sharp.
She threw my head against the floor, and I screamed out in pain.
"GAAHH!!" I tilted my head up to see Ashley's legs in front of me.
I grabbed her leg and looked up at her face.
"Ashley, please. Stop this." I pleaded.
She pressed her other foot against the back of my skull, and squashed my head against the ground.
"Please. I don't want to hurt you. Stop this now." I pleaded again.
She leaned down heavier on my head and I could feel my brain getting squashed against my skull.
"GAAAHHH!!!" I yelled in agony. "Damn it Ashley!" I shouted as I yanked her leg towards me.
She lost her balance and fell backwards.
Her other foot jolted off my head as she fell back, and I shot to my feet.
Her head bashed against the ground as she fell, but it didn't seem to faze her.
She scrambled back to her feet, but it was too late.
I sped behind her and grabbed her arms. I held them behind her in an armlock, restraining her.
"Astraea!" I shouted into the communicator. "I need you back here now! We have a serious problem!"
"On my way!" I heard her respond.
Ashley threw her head back violently, smashing against the bridge of my nose.
I jerked back in response as I heard my nose crack.
"Ashley! Stop this!" I shouted. "I haven't known you long enough to tell you what you're really like. But I know this isn't you! Now snap out of it! I don't want to hurt you!" I shouted.
For a brief moment, she stopped resisting.
"Help! I can't stop! It's like someone else is in control!" She yelled in fear.
She was about to shout something else, when her body tensed up again.
"Let! Me! Go!" She barked incredulously.
"I'm sorry about this Ashley! But I can't let you hurt anyone!" I shouted.
I threw my head forwards, and smacked the back of her head with my own.
Her body jerked forwards, but within seconds had turned around to face me.
She was different yet again. Now she no longer spoke and acted like a machine, instead, she held herself like caged animal. Her teeth grew into fangs, and her nails had transformed into claws.
She was so unlike her original self that I could barely tell who she was anymore.
I grew angry at the change. I liked the kind girl I met before.
This wasn't Ashley, this was Cerberus. A hellish beast. She charged at me with her arms outstretched, attempting to slash at me with her claws.
Was it just me, or was she slower?
I evaded her slashes by sidestepping in the opposite direction she slashed.
She repeated her attacks multiple times, each from a different origin. She wasn't mindlessly attacking, the attacks were co-ordinated, as if she was using some sort of technique.
I kept evading when I noticed I began to walk backwards in order to dodge her attacks.
She threw her claws towards me once more from above, but before she could connect them with my face, I stepped back and grabbed her wrist with my opposite hand.
In an instant she stopped her attack, and her eyes flickered slightly.
So that's how it is.
I smirked. "Alright, I've got all I need, now I'll stop you." I spoke bravely.
Ashley spun around, and tried to kick the back of my head with her leg. I let go of her wrist and ducked under her leg.
Her leg continued forward until it hit the ground, and for a moment she was unbalanced.
Instantaneously, I sped around to her back.
"Ashley, I'm sorry, but this is going to hurt." I said as I straightened my hand out. I brought it into the air and brought it down on the back of her neck with force.
The ominous red glow in her eyes changed to their usual sky blue. Her black hair reverted back to chestnut brown. The claws and fangs recessed back to normal, and Ashley fell unconscious into my arms.
I propped her head on top of one of my arms, and picked up her legs up with the other.
"It's alright now. You're safe." I whispered to the unconscious beauty in my arms.
I heard a small buzzing sound coming from Ashley, and I used my enhanced hearing to focus on the sound.
"Cerberus Protocol Failure. Cease all contact and eradicate all connections with the host." I heard a voice from Ashley's head say.
I used my X-Ray vision to scan her body, and found a small device in her ear.
I let go of Ashley's legs momentarily, and took the earpiece out of her ear.
It was a small communications device that had lodged itself in her ear, it was probably what these people used to control her. This was a planned job.
I held it in the palm of my hand as I examined it. It was slightly bigger than the communicators Astraea and I used.
I crushed the small device, and dropped the remains on the ground.
"Let's get you some help." I spoke to the unconscious Ashley.
I picked her legs back up, and began to carry her towards the exit.
Astraea burst through the door and scanned the room quickly with her eyes before she spotted me.
"Is that?" She began.
"Yeah." I cut her off. "Ashley was their backup. I think whoever organised this was targeting me." I summarised. "After my stunt the other week at the museum I must have been identified. And whoever it was wasted no time in targeting people I would have known."
We stood in silence for a moment, and just as Astraea was about to respond, she was interrupted by the sound of a helicopter above us.
The authorities had arrived, and I heard a large group of people outside.
"We'll talk about this later, for now we need to get out of here." Astraea instructed.
"No! We have to get her to a hospital!" I argued.
"We don't even know what's wrong with her. Well take her to the cave and get Batman to examine her." Astraea said.
"Are you nuts?" I spat. "How do you think she'll react when she wakes up in a dark cave? I'm taking her to the hospital. You go and complete the mission, you still have to secure Andrews." I commanded.
Astraea stayed silent for a moment, before nodding her head and running out the back exit.
I walked towards the main entrance, and opened the door.
I was met with multiple flashes of light from cameras, and multiple reporters rushing towards me.
Barricades were set up by the police, and there was a large crowd of civilians staring back from behind the barriers.
The reporters began to ask questions as they pointed microphones at themselves, and then at me.
"What happened in the Station?"
"Are you a new hero here in Metropolis?"
"Was this an act of terrorism?"
"Why was there such a loud commotion inside?"
"Was this a villain attack?"
"Have you captured the criminals behind this attack?"
These were the questions that I could make out over all the other noise.
I stayed silent as I walked through the reporters, and to the barricades.
I was surrounded by civilians, there was no chance I could get through quickly, and Ashley needed help now.
I bent my knees down, and squatted closer to the ground. I grabbed Ashley tighter as I pushed my legs against the ground, and flew high into the air.
I stopped high in the air, and searched around for the nearest hospital.
After a few moments, my sight narrowed on the bright blue sign on top of a building. It read: Metropolis General.
I directed myself towards the building, and pushed to get there as fast as I could.
As I reached the building, I dropped to the ground, and my feet landed on the ground, causing a loud thud as I made a crack in the spot.
I walked into the building, holding Ashley tightly.
"Hey! Can someone here help! She's hurt and I don't know what's wrong with her!" I shouted down the busy hall.
A moment later, a couple of doctors, followed my multiple nurses filed into the hall, and rushed towards me.
"What happened?" One of the doctors asked as he grabbed her wrist to check her pulse.
"She lost control of herself and went on a rampage." I tried to explain.
"We need to take her to an ER now." The same doctor said as he let go of Ashley's wrist.
"Follow me, we'll take her to a room where we can determine what happened to her." The other doctor said as he began to walk down the crowded hall.
I followed eagerly, hoping they could help her.
As we got to the end of the corridor, we reached an elevator where the doctors and I filed into.
"Don't worry son, we'll make sure she's alright." The first doctor reassured me as the other doctor pressed a button on the panel.
The doors closed, and the elevator began to move upwards.
I held Ashley tightly as the elevator ascended, until it eventually stopped on the third floor.
The doors opened again, and the doctors walked out of the elevator. They turned to the right, and walked quickly down a hallway.
There were windows and doors to each side, and as I walked passed them, I noticed that each room had a patient in a bed in it.
We walked to the end of the hallway, and one of the doctors opened the last door to the right.
"Place her down on the bed." The other doctor said as I entered the room.
I complied with his command, and I placed Ashley on the bed.
"Please wait outside in the seats outside the room, we'll contact her parents and help her as best we can." The first doctor said.
"Thank you." I said as I walked back out of the room.
One of the doctors walked back the way we came, and got a nurse. He got her to grab a few pieces of equipment which I couldn't understand, and then walked back down the hallway once more.
"We need you to go and sit in the waiting room. We're contacting Ashley's parents now, and hopefully they will be here shortly."
I nodded and headed towards the waiting room.

I had been sitting in the waiting room for hours. I was getting restless. I crossed my arms and stared up at the ceiling. My foot tapped off the ground, and I continued to grow anxious.
The elevator door opened once more and I heard hurried footsteps rush out of the elevator.
I turned my head to see who it was, and I was met with a man and a woman hurriedly running towards the receptionist.
The woman looked similar to Ashley, she had the same chestnut brown hair, and held a similar figure.
The man had similar features to Ashley too, he shared her eyes, and their bone structure was eerily similar. His jawline was only slightly higher than hers, but I could see the resemblance she shared with both of them.
I assumed they were her parents.
They talked briefly with her receptionist, and then hurried towards the door I sat beside.
I stood up as they approached.
"Are you Ashley's parents?" I asked as they slowed down.
They looked at me in confusion, before the man responded.
"Yes, I'm Ashley's father. And who might you be?" He asked menacingly.
"I'm Vex, a friend of Ashley's." I responded.
"You must be the boy that brought her here!" The woman said enthusiastically. "Thank you so much!"
She threw her arms around me and hugged me in gratitude.
"Grace, come on. We need to check on our daughter." The man said as he placed his hand on her shoulder.
"Of course." She complied as she let go of me and stood back.
They walked through the door, and into the hallway that Ashley's room was in. I followed them, hoping I could get in to see her.
As we walked down the hall, a doctor walked out of Ashley's room, and greeted her parents.
"You must be Ashley's parents." He said.
"Yes." Grace replied. "How is she?" She asked worriedly.
"She's alright, there's no need to worry. She's already awake and healthy." The doctor responded.
"Is it alright if we go in to see her?" She asked hopefully.
"Of course, just be careful with her. She's still a bit out of it, and her memory is a bit hazy." The doctor explained as he stepped out of the way.
Ashley's parents walked passed him and towards the door to her room.
I went to follow them, when the doctor stopped me.
"I'm sorry son, family only. No one else is aloud to visit her just yet."
Ashley's father turned around and spoke to the doctor.
"It's alright doctor. This boy brought Ashley here, and waited here for hours while we weren't able to. He deserves to see her." Ashley's father explained.
The doctor sighed, and then responded.
"Alright, you can see her." He said, as he turned and walked away.
I turned to Ashley's father.
"Thank you." I said.
"No. Thank you." He held out his hand. "You were there for my daughter when I was not. You have my gratitude." He smiled at me.
I took his hand and shook it firmly.
Grace opened the door to Ashley's room and walked inside. She was closely followed by her father and me.
"Mom!" I heard Ashley shout as she saw her mom.
She held her arms out and embraced her mom in a hug.
"Dad! You're here too!?" She shouted joyfully as she looked at her dad.
"We're glad you're alright pumpkin." Ashley's dad said as he stared back at her daughter in the hospital bed.
I smiled at the sentiment, and I was glad she was alright.
"You're friend is here to see you honey. He says his name is Vex." Ashley's mom said as she motioned Ashley's dad to step to the side.
He complied and stepped to the right, giving me a clear view of Ashley.
"Vex! You're here!" She exclaimed.
"Honey, Vex is the one that brought you here." Ashley's mom explained.
"Really?" Ashley asked.
"Yes." Ashley's dad spoke. "If it weren't for Vex, you might not even be here right now."
Ashley looked into my eyes, and I returned the action. Her eyes were a beautiful shade of blue. Thank God.
I smiled at Ashley as I spoke.
"You're safe is what matters, it doesn't matter if it was me or not."
Ashley smiled back at me.
"Thank you Vex, for everything." Ashley said as she wrapped her arms around sides and hugged me.
I hugged her back, and silently wished this would never end.
As if on queue, a large bang sounded outside. It was similar to an explosion, but sounded more like something was being torn.
Ashley let go of me and rushed to the window, as did her parents.
"Oh my God." Ashley's mom said as I made my way around the bed.
"Woah." Ashley exclaimed as she stared up in the sky.
As I made my way to the window, I found what caused all the confusion.
The sky was tearing apart, as if a rift had formed.
I used my Micro-Vision to look closer at the rupture in the sky.
"No way." I stated. "There's someone up there."