This is actually a two-shot. At first, I thought about putting this as a separate story, but in the end, I decided it'd be easier to put it in here. Its the my YJ version of the classic Teen Titans two-parter. Enjoy! I do not own YJ, DC or TT.
Superboy ran faster and faster. He was hot on the trail. He could see the green-and-purple figure in the distance with his super vision. He bent his legs and took a giant leap, landing right on top of him. Right on top of Lex Luthor. "You must be very eagar to see me, Superboy.", he said with a malicious smirk. "I must say, I'm flattered." "I'm not here to see you!", Superboy shouted, his eyes narrowed into slits. "I'm here to stop you!" "Hmm...but I wonder...how can you stop me...when you don't even know what I'm planning?" "Like this!" Superboy tried to land a punch on him, but Lex broke free of his grip and dodged his attack.
Superboy punched away dozens of huge boulders, toppling each of them over one by one, like dominos. Finally, Lex emerged from the shadows. "Excellent, Superboy. We appear to be evenly matched, and equally ruthless. Not surprising, though. You and I are so very much alike." Superboy punched him in the face and grabbed him by the collar. "I'm NOTHING like you! You're a criminal! A psychopath! All you care about is destruction!" "And all you care about, you destroyed.", Lex said, holding out his arm in a sweeping motion.
Superboy turned to see stone statues of his closet friends—Dick, Garfield, Mal, Karen...M'gann—all crushed and broken by him. His heart wrenched inside. "No..." He ran over and gathered the crumbled remains of M'gann. "No!" He turned around to see Lex standing over him. Slowly, he put his hand over his face and dragged it down, the features of his head being yanked off like a rubber mask. When he pulled it all off, Superboy came face to face with...himself. Underneath the mask, Lex had Superboy's face, from his dark black hair to his chiseled chin. He laughed evilly at his shock. "Conner?...Conner?...SUPERBOY!"
Conner woke up in a cold sweat, panting heavily. He looked down to see he had fallen asleep at a desk, going over Lex's files. Nightwing was right next to him, a hand on his tense shoulder. "You were having a nightmare." Conner shook his head, holding it in his hands. "Sorry, I didn't have any plans for tonight, so I thought I'd do some research." "Why didn't you ask someone if they wanted to hang out?" "I tried!", he sighed. "But they were all busy! They treat me like an outsider. None of them give me the time of day. I may as well not even exist." Especially wherever M'gann's concerned.
It was true. Whenever Conner and M'gann were in the same room together, M'gann would pretend as she she couldn't see or hear him. She only focused on La'gaan, kissing him or flirting with him. La'gaan loved seeing his rival flinch whenever he saw him and M'gann together, and took every opportunity to rub their relationship in his face. Dick shook his head. "Be patient, Supey. You'll see. Someday, they're all gonna realize just how much you mean to them." Just then, Mal came into the room. "Its him. Its Luthor."
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"Good morning, my little sidekicks.", Lex greeted as the Team all gathered around the holographic screen. "I do hope I didn't wake you." Conner pushed his way to the front of the crowd to glare at his arch enemy. "What do you want?" Lex smirked. "Well, that's precisely what you've all been trying to find out , now, isn't it? And despite of all your efforts, you're all still in the dark about the Light's intentions." He shook his head. "Disappointing, really. I expected a little more from you." He stepped to the side, revealing a large shape covered by a blanket. "Since you've been unable to discover our plan, I suppose I'll just have to reveal it myself." Two minions pulled off the blanket to reveal a horrible looking machine. "I'm sure you are all familiar with the concept of a Chronoton Detonator?"
"No!" "Oh!" "Uh-oh!" "No way!", Beast Boy cried. He scratched his head. "What's a crooton detonator?" "It irradiates all chronotons within a localized area, utterly destroying the temporal component of the space-time continuum!", Blue Beetle said. Beast Boy raised an eyebrow. "It stops time...permanently.", Impulse explained. Gar panicked. "If he triggers that thing downtown, it can freeze frame the entire city!", Mal cried. "Tell us where it is!", Conner demanded. "You're a clever boy, Superboy.", Lex said. "I'm sure you and your little friends can figure it out. Of course, since I control the detonation-" He held up the remote control. "Time, is not on your side." The transmission ended.
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Thanks to Batgirl and Robin, the Team discovered the detonator was being held at Pier 41 at the docks. They finally came to the warehouse, only to find it completely empty. All of the sudden, an army of Luthor's minions fell from the ceiling and charged into battle with the Team. "Team, GO!"
The minions were indeed worthy opponents for the young heroes, but Young Justice had something those minions would never have—spirit and heart. They were down to the last numbers when M'gann realized something. Perhaps these minions knew where it was Lex was really hiding with his Detonator. She stood over one of them, holding her hand out before her. "This'll all be over in a moment..." Her eyes began to glow green. "NO!" The next thing M'gann knew, she was being crushed under Superboy's weight as the minions ran off to safety.
She pushed him off of her using her telekinesis and stood on her feet, her eyes growing green with anger. "What were you THINKING?! You just ruined our chances of finding the Detonator! Do you WANT time to freeze?!" Superboy looked around as he stood up. All the others had already left to find Lex. He stepped up and looked her square in the eye. "There must be another way to get the information! This isn't like you, M'gann! Taking what you want from people, not even caring what becomes of them afterwards! Its awful and evil! Its like you're not you anymore! You're not M'gann anymore!" He poked a finger right in the center of her chest. "You're just as bad as Psimon, if not even worse!"
She growled at him, pushing him away and pointing right at him. "Well, if I'm no better than Psimon, than you're no better than Lex Luthor!" His eyes grew wide. "You don't really feel that way, do you?" M'gann crossed her arms. "Oh, please! Don't deny it! You're both hot-headed, opinionated, and determined to get your own way! You have everything in common!" Conner held back tears. He couldn't believe she had just compared him to Lex Luthor. "I am nothing like Lex! He's trying to destroy the world! I'm trying to save it!" "Well, same goes for me and Psimon!", M'gann cried.
He shook his head. "You know what? Forget this! I'm going to find Lex on my own." He turned his back to her and walked away. "You can't! That's stupid and dangerous!" He looked over his shoulder at her. "What do you care?" She scowled. "Y'know what? Fine! Go ahead! Look for Lex! Go get killed! See if I care!" She flew out of the warehouse to join up with the others. Conner looked around at the empty house around him. "Guess I'm on my own. Than again, what else is new?" Suddenly, he noticed something move in the shadows. Forgetting all about his fight with M'gann, he ran after the mysterious figure.
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M'gann flew after the rest of the Team, trying to hide how angry she was. She was tired of fighting with Conner. Why couldn't he see that her new ability was helping, not hurting? All of the sudden, out of nowhere, she let out the loudest sneeze ever. The sneeze, doubled with her telekinetic powers, caused everyone to go flying into the air before landing hard on the cement ground. "Sorry, guys.", she sniffled. "I'm allergic to metallic chromium. There must be some nearby." She let out another sneeze, sending everyone into the air once more.
Blue looked at his back fir a few long moments. "Really?", he said finally. "That's amazing!" "Not really.", M'gann said, her nose a bit stuffy. "Chromium allergies are actually quite common on Mars." "No!", Jaime said. "Scarab says that the key component for a chronoton detonator is a metallic chromium core, which means..." "Sis! You can track it!", Beast Boy cried. "You're like an alien bloodhound!" M'gann sniffled and flew towards the scent of the chromium, her argument with Superboy all but forgotten.
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Lex sat in his seat, looking at the security cameras, and was pleased to see that Superboy had been separated from the Team. "Yes...all according to plan. I knew Miss Martian would try to brain blast one of my minions, launching her into a fight with my son. I knew he'd try to go off on his own after his lil' tiff with her. Everything's going perfectly." "Until now!" He looked up towards the ceiling just in time to see Superboy fall from the ceiling, his fist ready to pound and punch. Lex dodged him just in time.
"Superboy. Welcome. I've been wondering when you'd show up at last." He held up the remote control for the Detonator. "Looking for this?" He waved it around before placing it on the table before him. "If you want it, I suggest you come over and take it." A few moments of silence passed before Superboy ran over and began a real fight with his greatest foe.
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The Team followed a speedboat that held the Detonator through the sewers. Finally, Lagoon Boy landed in the boat and ripped out the controls, slowing it down until it finally stopped. Robin and Blue Beetle hopped on and walked over to the Detonator. "We better do this fast, before Lex decides to trigger this thing."
Robin carefully opened it up. Inside was a glowing red orb the size of a basketball. "The chromium core." Blue leaned forward. "Very unstable. No sudden movements." M'gann felt her nose itch. "Aah...aaah...AAAHH-". Nightwing slapped his hand over her mouth and nose. Her sneeze became muffled, and he retracted his hand back to find a trail of snot between it and her nose. "Sorry."
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Superboy went flying back into the wall. Lex stepped forward, hidden beneath his suit of glowing green Kryptonite armor. "C'mon now, son. You'll have to do batter than that. I haven't even broken a sweat." Conner went into full rage mode. They fought viciously. Finally, Lex drove him into the floor. Conner punched the ground. "I understand your frustration, son.", Lex said, walking over to him. "You hate losing as much as I do. One of the many qualities we have in common."
Those words ignited fury inside of Superboy, and he put it to good use as he pummeled Lex into the ground, shattering his Kryptonite armor. He walked over and grabbed the remote from his open palm. "Its over, Luthor!" Suddenly, the remote let out sparks of electricity and fell apart to pieces. "On the contrary, son,", Lex said calmly, sitting upright with a nasty smirk on his face. "This is only the beginning." "Where's the real trigger?", Conner demanded to know. Lex let out a sinister chuckle. "Don't you get it? There is no trigger...because there is no detonator."
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"Moment of truth, team." Impulse covered his eyes. "I can't watch." Robin cut the wire, and the machine seemed to shut down. Everyone let out a joined sigh of relief. But before they could celebrate, the detonator suddenly whirred back to life and moved it's parts. Beast Boy flew into a panic. "Aah! We blew it! We'll be frozen in time forever!" Just then, the detonator stopped moving and fell to pieces, just like the remote, letting out smoke. "Uhhh...why are we not frozen in time forever?" Nightwing frowned. "Because this isn't a real chronoton detonator! Its a fake!"
All of the sudden, the machine shot out red laser beams all around, hitting each and every hero, from Guardian to Wonder Girl. The impact sent them flying into the smelly waters that surrounded the boat. Beast Boy stuck his tongue out. "So, aside from the taste of nasty sewer water in my mouth, I think I'm okay." "I feel fine!" "Me, too!" "Whatever that beam was supposed to do, it didn't do it." Blue Beetle spread his wings and rose up from the waters, looking at his teammates. Then he noticed something he hadn't noticed before. "Hey! Where's Superboy?"
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"Nanoscopic probes.", Lex said, gazing at the screens showcasing the bloodstreams of all eleven remaining members of the Team, minus his clone, now tainted with deadly microscopic devices bearing his company's logo. "The Detonator was merely the bait, for a much bigger trap." He held up another trigger. "You see, with the push of a button, my probes can destroy your friends, from the inside out." "You can't control them!", Superboy retorted. "No matter what you threaten, they'll never obey you!"
"This isn't about your team, Superboy.", Lex said. "This is about you. Its always been about you." "What?" He circled Conner like a hawk circling it's prey. "You see, son, for some time now, I've searching for...an apprentice." He stepped towards him, his face mere inches away from Conner's. "And congratulations...I've chosen you." Conner growled. "If you think that I would ever-". He was cut off by Lex holding the trigger to his face, his thumb nearly touching the button. "If you join me, if you swear to serve me, if you never speak to your friends again, than I will allow them to live.", Lex explained. "But if you disobey even the tiniest little command, I will annihilate them, and I will make you watch." He grinned wickedly. "Do we have a deal?"
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The others looked around to see that their Kryptonian friend was indeed nowhere to be seen. "Come to think of it,", Nightwing said, stroking his chin. "I don't remember seeing him chasing the boat with us, or being onboard with the detonator." Just then, he noticed Miss Martian was looking down at her knees with a guilty look on her face. "You guys go on ahead and look for him. Miss M and I will catch up with you later."
As the others flew off, Nightwing sat next to M'gann. "Is everything okay?" M'gann bit her lip and shook her head "no", hugging her knees to her chest. "I got in another fight with Conner. He's just so stubborn, Dick! He's so caught up in his ideas, he won't open up to anyone else's! With him, its either his way or the highway! I'm getting so sick of it!" For a moment, she almost told him what the fight was about, but managed to keep her mouth shut. Nightwing nodded understandably. "This fight of yours have anything to do with how you choose to use your powers? Ripping intel from minds and stuff like that?"
She whipped her head towards him, her eyes wide. "You knew? How?" Dick shrugged. "I'm a detective, remember? I wanted to have a serious talk about it with you, but Kon talked me out of it." M'gann stared ahead. "He...He did? Why?" Dick smirked. "'Cause he believes in you. A part of him trusts that you'd eventually figure out it was wrong. You did it for him back when the Team just started, and now he's doing it for you. That's what you do when you care about someone. You trust in them, and try to help them not make stupid and dangerous decisions."
M'gann's heart sank, remembering the last words she had said to Conner. Y'know what? Fine! Go ahead! Look for Lex! Go get killed! See if I care! "Oh, no...", she whispered, getting to her feet, folding her hands over her cheeks. "Oh, no...oh, Mars, I made a huge mistake! Its all my fault! I let Conner go off on his own!" She flew through the sewer pipes. "I've gotta find him!" She flew up to the surface world, high into the air, trying to find Conner's presence. Conner! Conner! Where are you? She tried to find him in her telepathic range, tears spilling down her cheeks. Conner, if you can hear me, I'm sorry!
But Conner couldn't hear her. He was too focused on his new uniform. It consisted of a deep purple shirt with a popped-up collar and black straps criss-crossing across his chest. He wore skin-tight green pants with high-knee boots the same deep purple of his shirt, and green leather gloves on his hands, covering his long sleeves. "I know it seems bad now,", Lex said, circling his new apprentice, checking him over. "But trust me...you'll learn to love it." He smirked as he slunk back into the darkness, leaving Conner standing alone, staring down at his shadow, a single tear sliding down his cheek.
Sorry to leave you on such a cliffhanger, but I promise I'll publish the conclusion as fast as I can!