There was never a vent Billy couldn't get through. That was his thing - Gather evidence to put the bad guys away by crawling into the air ventilation tunnels.
So how did Billy Batson, vent crawler extraordinaire end up with his belly jammed in the vent, stuck in his mortal form in the stronghold of mind controlled "zombies"?
Mr Morris and the Kents had six months to feed him to a healthy weight or Bruce Wayne would take custody of him. So they went all out to fatten him to the target weight and beyond.
On top of that, just before Shazaming to answer a League emergency, Ma fed him a pie, chicken and roast beef feast. He'd eaten until his pants were about to burst.
Transforming back to Billy didn't get rid of the tummy bloat.
Groaning, the little boy wiggled half an inch forward, getting hopelessly stuck.
Oil!
He had seen an open can beside the vent. Maybe a little goo could help him slip through.
His feet could just reach the can.
Carefully picking up the can with both feet, he gave it a toss, drenching his clothes with the lubricant.
"Cap! Where are you?" Hollered Barry.
No, not now. Not when he's so close.
His team mates had no idea Captain Marvel's real identity. He planned to keep them guessing until he was at least eighteen.
Wiggling like an eel, Billy managed to advance a few more inches when
Splat!
The Flash slipped on the oil spill, rammed into him, sending little Billy flying through the vent, right into the tunnel.
Finally! Billy mentally fist bumped.
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"No, I crashed into a kid!" The blood drained from Barry's face. "He could be badly hurt!"
"What kid? We've evacuated this place. There's no one here but the mind controlled zombies and whoever's behind this mess," Hal shrugged.
"There's a kid in there," Barry pointed at the vent.
Peering through the hole, Hal and Barry couldn't see anything for the pitch darkness.
"Are you sure? This hole is too small for anyone to crawl through," Hal frowned.
Maybe you saw a rat? Or a cat?" Hal scratched his head. "Or a cat chasing a rat?"
"Or a rat chasing a cat?" Barry scratched his nose. "That happens..."
"Code red. Superman's under mind control," Batman sounded them off through the comms.
"Quit fooling around and get to these coordinates now!"
-------
"King of the world by mind controlling the masses," cackled a very familiar, nasally voice.
Dr Sivana. Cap's nemesis.
Billy peeked through the grating, snapping photos and taking videos for the evidence he needed to take down the creep, and for his next broadcast.
Where did Sivana hide his master controls? Knowing chrome dome, he'd have an off switch somewhere.
Sivana climbed up his make shift throne, put his cosplay crown on his head and held out a gleaming scepter.
That scepter had many buttons on it. That had to be the master control!
"Get on your knees and lick your king's boots!" Sivana pointed his scepter at a middle aged gentleman dressed in an expensive looking business suit.
The blank-eyed man crawled on his knees like a dog and obeyed.
"You! Dance like penguins!" He pointed at a group of snobbish looking men and women who started doing the penguin dance.
Walking around the room, waving his scepter, Sivana sneered. "I'm the king of the world!"
As Sivana walked past the vent, Billy flung down the grating to grab the scepter.
The grating landed on chrome dome's head. Sitting on the ground rubbing his head, Sivana yelled, "get him!" Nothing happened. The businessman continued licking Sivana's boots while the rest of his slaves chirped and sang like penguins.
Pulling out another gadget from his pocket. "Think you won, brat? Take this!"
He pressed a big red button.
-------
"Captain Marvel! Come to these coordinates at once!" Batman growled through the comms for the umpteenth time.
Blank eyed Superman tore through the bridge.
Green Lantern caught falling cars in a green net while Flash evacuated everyone from the falling bridge.
Wonder Woman flew up to meet Superman head on but got swatted away.
Cyborg blasted his sonic canon at Superman.
Covering his ears, Superman roared in anger, blasting Vic with his heat vision.
Suddenly, Superman's head jerked up. Then he disappeared in a blue and red blur.
-------
What did that red button do?
Billy didn't ponder long when a fist tore a hole through metal and concrete, inches away from him.
"Superman?" Squeaked the boy
Another blow landed closer to Billy.
"Shazam!"
Lightning split the ceiling open, transforming itty bitty Billy into the World's Mightiest Mortal.
Superman dived at Captain Marvel, who grabbed his arm and used big Blue's momentum to toss him through the wall.
The big man knocked down all the walls on that side of the building causing the ceiling to cave in.
"My castle!" Sivana grabbed his shiny head screeching in anger.
Flash was the first to arrive.
"Evacuate the building, then use this to free their minds," the Captain tossed the scepter at the Speedster.
Big Blue rammed his head against the Captain's abdomen, taking the wind out of the big man, crashing him through a mountain range.
Superman's eyes glowed red as he pinned Cap against the mountain.
"Uh oh," Cap braced himself for the searing blast that came next.
Bare, heavily muscled chest smoking, Captain Marvel flipped Superman and gripped him in a head lock.
"C'mon Clark. It's me, your baby brother Billy," he coaxed Big Blue. His deep baritone voice somehow sounded unconvincing even to himself.
Turning out, Superman threw down Captain Marvel.
His eyes glowed red as he unleashed another devastating blast of heat vision.
Blocking the attack with his bracers, the Captain called Flash on his comms. "Hurry! Free the victims with the scepter."
"Now you're on your comm," growled Batman. "Where were you?"
"Busy," Big Red dodged an roundhouse kick from Big Blue.
Pouring on his speed, he slipped behind Superman and held him in an arm lock.
"Shazam!"
Releasing Superman and flying out of the way of the lightning bolt, Cap called out to the League again. "Use the scepter to free Superman!"
"Which button?" Came Barry's reply.
Another fist swung at Captain Marvel.
Catching it, he yelled, "Shazam!"
Lightning hit both of them.
"Shazam!" Yelled Billy.
This time, the lightning that transformed Billy back into Cap knocked Superman unconscious.
Catching his falling brother, Marvel carefully laid him on the ground. His uniform was torn with scorch marks on his skin where lightning hit him.
His pulse was weak but steady. His breath, light.
Cap himself was sore all over. Heat vision especially stung.
"I know how to use the thingamajig! I'll free Superman now," grinned Barry.
"Waitaminit. What happened to Big Blue?"
"Now, you figured it out," sighed Marvel.
"Is he okay?" Barry peered at Superman's prone form.
"He'll live," Cap rubbed the back of his neck. His stomach was queasy at the thought of explaining Clark's state to Ma and Pa...
Then again... Brothers are known to fight, right?
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It's not fair!
The lightning that transformed him healed him of all injuries so he had nothing to show for his fight with Clark.
His big brother, on the other hand, was a pitiful sight. He had lightning scars and scorch marks all over his body.
Punching him out would have been a better idea. A broken jaw doesn't look as bad as electrocution marks.
Pa and Ma took one look at Clark, then at their itty bitty little god son, disappointment evident in their eyes.
"You are grounded," Pa said to little Billy as Pa and Ma supported the huge, muscular, limp, Superman, walking him to his bed.
"I didn't have a choice. He was out of control and wouldn't stop. He tried to kill me!" Billy protested.
Pa paused. "Ok. To be fair, you are both grounded."
Her eyes on Billy's smug, unrepentant face, Ma Kent added, "as long as your brother is bedridden, you take care of all his needs. You hear me young man?"
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"Ma, I really mustn't eat so much," Billy pushed his plate aside.
"Nonsense. You are a growing boy who is too tiny for his age. You've got a lot of catching up to do," Ma Kent pushed the plate back to Billy.
"I'm too fat to crawl through vents!"
"Why do you need to crawl through vents?"
"To take pictures."
"For what?"
"For evidence."
"What for?"
"So that Cap can put the bad guys into prison."
"Why can't you do it as Cap?"
"Cos he's too big to fit into the vent."
"....."
--- The End ---