Mount Justice
October 23, 17:21 EDT
Cyra, along with the rest of the Team, were silent as they sat around the Cave. After the whole virtual reality fiasco, everyone wasn't even in the mood to talk. Cyra attempted a few jokes, but they died in her throat. Even the loud-mouthed Green Lantern didn't want to talk.
One at a time, they were talking each of them into a room with Black Canary for a little one on one time with the therapist. Superboy was her current victim. Cyra's foot tapped with the speed that could rival the Flash.
"Can you stop tapping?" Wally snapped.
"No."
"Geez, who died?" an older voice said from the door and Cyra spun around to see Hal Jordan standing there in all his Green Lantern glory.
Her ring quickly spun alive on her finger, wrapping her in her green suit as she zipped through the air and tackled Hal in a hug. "We all died. It sucked."
Hal pats her back. "Yeah, I heard about the simulation. You alright?"
"Pfft." Cyra pushed the older Lantern away. "Of course. It takes a lot more to shake a Green Lantern."
Hal smiled at her, but it was forced as he rested his hand on Cyra's shoulder and guided her out of the room and into the secluded training room, where the boxing bags hung limply and the acrobatic rings were collecting dust. Cyra suddenly found her feet very interesting, refusing to look up at her mentor.
Hal sighed, resting against on the weight benches. He suddenly looked a lot older than he was. "Cyra," Hal started slowly.
"Hal, I'm fine. I'm being serious for once. I feel fine. It was just some stupid simulation. It didn't mean anything and I got out with all my limbs intact," Cyra jokes. Her smile didn't quite reach her eyes.
"Okay." Hal shook his head, defeated. Cyra was never going to admit something was wrong and Hal didn't want to force it out of her. Hopefully, she would come to him when she was ready. "So, you ready to go see Doctor Canary?"
"Ugh, no. That's even more stupid than the virtual reality." Cyra crossed her arms.
"Hey, maybe it'll help you out some," Hal shrugged. "It couldn't hurt."
"I hate therapists," Cyra muttered. "They ask so many questions."
Hal let out a small laugh. "That's their job, Cyra."
"That's their job, Cyra," Cyra mocked like Spongebob when she had no other arguments to say.
"Green Lantern," a dark, familiar voice said from the doorway. Cyra turned away from Hal to look at Batman, a questioning look on her face despite already knowing what he was there for. "You're next."
As Cyra dragged her feet down the hall to their personal little therapist office, she ran into Superboy. Literally.
"Hey!" Cyra barked, rubbing the shoulder Connor just hit. The boy was built like a truck. She caught the angry look on his face. "Whoa, did someone prying into your life not go so hot?"
Conner was steaming. His fists were clenched so tight his knuckles were white and Cyra was wary of getting punched in the face. "She has no right!" Conner shouted, pointing in the direction of the office. "I'm not Superman!"
Cyra put her hands up, trying to soothe the raging clone. Of course, she had no idea what he was talking about but she could roll with the punches. "Yeah, you're not Superman. You're Connor. Man, you're really riled up. They must have put you through the ringer."
"I don't understand what you are saying," Conner said through short, angry blasts of air.
Cyra patted his back. "Why don't we get out of here? Blow off some steam?"
"What about your session? You are supposed to be next."
"Pfft," Cyra shrugged it off. "Trust me, I'm as mentally stable as you can get. Let's go before they realize we're gone!"
Cyra tugged Conner along down the hallway and out of the main exit by all the vehicles. She powered up her Green Lantern ring, allowing her to fly and taking Conner along with her. He let out a yell of shock, but Cyra ignored him, dropping him down next to his bike. Wolf followed out of the Cave.
"Why do you want to get away?" Superboy asked.
Cyra shrugged. "I don't like therapists."
"Understood. Red Tornado! Open the hangar doors!" Connor yelled, and the doors started to open.
Sphere, the rolling futuristic super-ball, rolled in front of Conner before he could escape.
"Sphere, move!"
The sphere began to beep.
"I think he wants to come," Cyra said.
Suddenly, Sphere began to grow, shifting it's mechanics into a super high-tech machine that Cyra assumed to be a new poppin' motorcycle.
"Wicked!" Cyra whooped, pounding her fist into the air. "Riding with style."
Conner smirked and hoped on the new bike. Wolf jumped into a little compartment on the front. They started up the new cycle and took off out of the Cave. The motorbike took off the ground. Cyra flew next to them, cheering about escape and freedom. Conner let out a whoop of joy himself.
Eastern Seaboard
October 23, 18:04 EDT
Cyra swooped down over crashed waves, spinning in the air. Flying never got old.
"Whats next?" Cyra called over to Conner.
"Let's see what this thing can do."
Conner began to do flips in the air, causing Wolf to bark. Cyra floated back, watching.
"Oh yeah!" Conner hooted, followed by a, "Woah!" as a flying car steered right in front of him. He jerked the handles to the left, avoiding a collision. Cyra cause sight of the fancy retro-future looks and Sphere-like car. The Green Lantern quickly went to Connor's side.
"Return the New Genesphere and the rest of the technology you have stolen from the New Genesis, Human," the man that Cyra assumed to be the leader said from the front seat of the car. He looked like a Vandal Savage remix with Einstein hair.
"New Genesis?" Cyra questioned.
"Who are you? What do you—"
"Let's keep this simple!" The leader interrupted Superboy, pointing at the bike he was on, "that belongs to us. Give it back!"
Sphere beeped and Wolf began to growl.
Another beep talked back, this time a little box in the hands of a dark guy with a bike helmet. "Forever People, stand down! This one did not steal the New Genesphere. He saved it from the real thieves!"
"Apologies! The Forever People embrace you both as a friend, ally, and worthy warrior." The man in the front smiled. Cyra rubbed her neck. She might be getting whiplash as she shared an estranged glance with Superboy.
"You're kidding, right?" Superboy asked. Wolf growled in confirmation.
"Forever People?" Superboy asked as the two vehicles flew side by side. Cyra flew in the middle of them.
"We are young gods," the main man explained. "New gods!"
"Right," Superboy murmured.
"They call me Seraphin," the younger boy in the cowboy hat said.
A pretty girl with black hair said her name was Dreamer. A silent guy with dark hair was Moonrider and their real leader was not the Savage look-alike in the front, but the dark-skinned man named Viken.
"Hmm," the look-alike hummed. "I am named from an animal you would not find on this world. But you may call me . . . Wolf!"
"This is Wolf," Superboy nodded to Wolf, who looked away.
"Ah, Bear then! Bear is even better."
"I'm Con—Superboy."
"Green Lantern," Cyra grinned at them.
"A Green Lantern!" Bear shouted with joy. "I knew you looked familiar. I did not know there was one on this world."
"There's, like, three."
"Too bad we don't have one of you where we are from. It would help greatly with the Apokolips people."
"The Apokolips people?" Cyra asked, but was ultimately ignored.
"This is Mother Box—the living computer," Viken showed the beeping box from earlier. "She has tracked technology stolen from our home world, New Genesis. She has found our rescue drill there." The group nears a growing city.
"You say your homeworld, but I've never heard of New Genesis," Cyra said. "What sector is it in?"
Viken laughed. "It is not in any section of your galaxy. New Genesis resides in a parallel universe to your own."
"Oh," Cyra nodded her head as if she understood. "So, now what?"
The car circled over a few of the skyscrapers. "It is beneath us," Viken said. "Eighteen meters underground."
"That's a construction site. Perfect cover for drilling, especially with the Federal Reserve conveniently located across the street," Superboy said. The New Genesis people only stared at him. Superboy explains, "the government keeps money there."
"It's a heist!" The cowboy jumped from his seat, taking two guns out of his pockets and spinning them in his hands. "C'mon partners, let's run in there guns a blazin' and round up them outlaws!"
"Yee haw!" Cyra agreed.
"He's watched a lot of Earth Westerns," Dreamer explained.
"Yeah well, there's a time to go in strong and a time to go in smart," Superboy said.
Cyra leaned against his shoulder, floating horizontally. "And this is the time to go in strong?"
"No," Superboy deadpanned.
"It is your guy's world. We will follow the lead of Superboy and Green Lantern," Viken announced to the rest of the Forever People.
Cyra smirked at Superboy. "Epic alien team up!"
"Nolan!" Cyra watched as an old lady walked into the circle of thugs holding guns. "I brought you a jacket."
One of the things, Nolan, turned with a puzzled look on his face. "Mom? What are you doing here?"
Suddenly, Moonrider takes out two of the thugs with bolts of lightning.
"Mom, get down! It's not safe—" The thug stopped mid word as the thug's 'mom' morphed back into Dreamer.
"So cool!" Cyra bit her hand to keep in the squeals.
Next, Viken caused the man to hit himself repeatedly in the face with his gun by miming the motion with his own hand. He fell to the ground, unconscious.
Cyra flew down from above. "What type of crazy tech is that?" She asked. Robin's little geek heart would have probably grown wings and flew away at this point if he were here.
"New Genesis. The gods have powers unlike any technology you would find on Earth," Viken explained.
"Yeah well, it's nothing a Green Lantern doesn't already have." Cyra winked and flew down the hole that had been drilled in the ground that the earlier thugs were protecting. Superboy and Bear fell down behind her. Cyra put a shield over her hands, diving head first to where three thugs stood, guarding down below. She hit them full force, causing the ground to shift and the thugs to go flying into the wall the brown dirt walls.
Cyra stood up from the wreckage, dusting off her hands. Superboy and Bear ran past her.
"That was amazing, Cyra. You're awesome, Cyra," Cyra muttered to herself. "Well thanks, you guys. It's nice to hear I'm appreciated."
"Green Lantern!" Superboy shouted from ahead.
"Coming!"
The Forever People plus Superboy and Green Lantern gathered around, hiding behind a section of wall. Superboy put up a finger to demand their silence before moving into the tunnel.
From around the corner, Cyra watched as some thieves wearing red and black were loading gold into a containment unit. The drill laid a few feet away. Viken began to move forward.
"Wait—!" Superboy shouted in vain. "I guess we decided the direct approach after all."
Cyra let out a laugh. "Please, I'm here. It was bound to happen anyway."
"That drill and these carts are the property of New Genesis. You will return them now," Viken ordered the red-clad criminals. Cyra let out a snort.
"Gold goes back too," Superboy added. The Green Lantern let out another snort, ignoring the glare Superboy sent her way.
"Interfere and things get ugly," a redheaded woman said. She seemed to be the leader. Cyra cracked her knuckles. Like a glowstick, she began to glow green with her ring's energy.
"I'm ugly," an ugly man with a mustache said. His vest started to turn into a red machine gun and Cyra managed to react just in time to shield them from some glowing red disks. It hit the shield and fizzled out.
Disks curved behind them, trapping Viken in an electrocution trap that sounded like it hurt from all his yelling. More disks flew, being shot down by Seraphin, their person sharp-shooting cowboy.
Cyra move her arm through the air, pointing at Mr. Mustache. A green machine gun grew on her arm. "Five seconds to surrender and not get wasted," Cyra yelled."
"We would never surrender to a child!"
"Zero!" Cyra said, and green bullets rained from the gun, slicing through the air. The bad guys instantly dove for cover.
One of the disks hit Moonrider in the back when he was trying to free Viken. Earth surrounded him in a tight ball. More disks were befalling Cyra's shield as she kept it tight to her body, shooting wildly.
The guards came out with new weapons and the redhead had to flaming scarlet whips growing from her hands. Cyra gulped.
"This weapons are not form New Genesis. These are the enemy," Dreamer said from somewhere behind Cyra. The Green Lantern was mostly focused on not dying to listen.
"What enemy?" Superboy asked.
"Thee enemy. The gods of anti-life. These weapons are of Apokolips."
Bear ran at the enemy, but sunk neck-deep into mud from their weapons. Cyra was really beginning to wish they could just use swords like every other aesthetic villain out there. Seraphin freed Viken from his shocking cage.
Cyra made her shield smaller, running at the enemy similar to bear and flying off the ground to avoid the mud. Her machine gun shifted mid-fire into a swinging hammer that would make Harley Quinn proud. Her shield covered her as she knocked one thug into the wall and then swung for another. She missed and her hammer connected with the wall. Dirt fell from the ceiling.
"Green Lantern, be careful! The tunnel isn't stable! More hits like that and you might take it down," Viken yelled. Cyra growled in frustration. Her hammer disappeared. "The confines of this tunnel favors their weapons. We must bring them into the open."
They ran for the hole in the ceiling where they entered.
"They're getting away!" The woman yelled, slicing her whips through the air. Cyra shielded them from touching anyone.
"C'mon," Cyra pouted at her. "You can't even catch a few kids."
Cyra burst through the ceiling, shielding the underside of her so all their attacks bounced off uselessly.
"I have no wish to prolong this battle," Viken said once they all had reached the top.
"Agreed," Cyra said, dusting off some dirt from her Green Lantern attire. "Let's annihilate these guys and go home to celebrate with ice cream and air hockey."
The drill suddenly broke the ground beneath them, causing them all to jump back as the drill came above ground, opening it's yellow mouth. The Apokolips bunnies followed in suit.
"Let's finish them," Mr. Mustache growled.
"You're not. She will protect us," Viken said.
"Who? Dreamer?"
"No, the New Genesphere."
A gun popped out of Sphere.
"Cool," Superboy and Cyra said in unison. "Wait—Sphere's a she!" Superboy shouted.
Sphere blasted two of the bad guys, putting them on the ground before flying back off into the air.
"It is time," Viken said, holding up the Mother Box.
"Time for what?" Superboy asked and Cyra pulled him away.
"Tah-ruh!" The Forever People yelled. The Mother Box connected all their raised fists to each other by a golden string. Their figures turned gold, shifting into strands in the air. They formed together.
"What type of Voltron crap is that?" Cyra shouted, flying away from the huge blue and orange robot that just formed.
"Okay, that's new," Superboy sad.
"You think?" Cyra snapped. She took off next to the New Genesis robot. The Green Lantern landed across from Red. "You ready for a fight, loser-town?"
As the robot walked in the air and dissipated the other side's weapons, Cyra and the woman squared off.
"You're going to wish you went to bed early, kid," she growled, snapping her whips through the air.
Before Cyra could move, the robot shot the ships, making them disappear into thin air from the woman's hands before knocking her into the dirt.
"Hey, that was mine!" Cyra shouted to the robot, but it didn't seem to care much for dibs.
Mr. Mustache opened some golden portal with his little high-tech vest. His team began to walk into it.
"Wait!" The woman yelled, but it was too late. The portal had closed and she was wrapped in a black rope, unable to break free. The robot spread his hands towards the drill. A portal opened up beneath it, swallowing it. Cyra figured it just got an easy ride back to New Genesis.
The robot deformed, separating back to the five Forever People with a glow of golden light.
"What was that?" Superboy asked.
"Infinity Man," Dreamer explained. Cyra coughed at the name. "We merged to become one with the Source and greater than the sum of our parts."
Cyra clutched her skull. "My brains starting to hurt."
"Glad my teams not that close," Superboy crossed his arms. Cyra opened her mouth to respond, but shut it, shrugging.
"Lower beings tend to fear intimacy," Bear said.
"That's deep," Cyra said. "Shut up."
"This doesn't make any sense," Viken said. "How are these Human acquiring technology from New Genesis and Apokolips?"
Cyra turned her amber gaze over to the redhead, who avoided her stare. "Why don't we just ask?"
They stood around the tied-up enemy, looking down upon her.
"I'm not talking," she growled.
"You were not asked." Dreamer put her fingers to her temples and her eyes started to glow purple.
"That's so cool," Cyra failed to keep it in. "Can you guys do that?"
The Forever People minus Dreamer shook their heads.
"Makes it even cooler."
Smoke started to steam from the woman's head, making a figure of a man appeared. Cyra grimaced. If she thought Mr. Mustache was ugly, wait until she saw this guy. Cyra swore he was the Emperor from Star Wars second cousin or something.
The Emperor chuckled darkly. The New Genesis's eyes widened in fear.
"De Sade," Dreamer exclaimed.
"Look, I've been remarkably patient, you know, for me," Superboy said, throwing his arms.
Cyra nodded in agreement. "We aren't the most patient of the group."
"What's going on?"
Dreamer and Viken exchanged a glance. Viken nodded. Dreamer set her fingers to her temples once again and shaped an imagine in front of them of a blue planet spinning around a burning red one.
"The new gods come from two worlds at war. Those of us from New Genesis are gods of light, freedom, and the Source. Our enemies are Apokolips, gods of anti-life, slavery, and segregation. This is De Sade." Dreamer turned to Snoke. "God, scientist, and chief torturer of Apokolips. His experiments are pure evil, his works—abominations, his master—"
"Unspeakable," the imagine interrupted, chuckling darkly once again.
With a flick of Dreamer's wrist, the man faded into smoke.
"He is seriously creepy," the redhead states.
They stood outside from creepy warehouses at a place where they keep airplanes that wasn't nearly as creepy as De Sade, but still pretty sketchy. The Mother Box beeped.
"Mother Box says there is a large cash of Apokolips technology inside," Viken translates.
Superboy narrows his eyes.
Cyra copies him.
"Shut up."
"I didn't say anything!"
They got closer to the building. Superboy gazed in.
"Infrared vision shows no heat signatures. Even so . . ." Superboy drew off.
"Regular vision isn't getting anything either," Cyra said, sounding bored. Her chin rested on her hand. Welp, anything was better than bleed your heart out time with Black Canary, she thought.
"Shut up."
"No."
They walked into the building. Dream and Superboy disguised as thugs while the rest of them were invisible. "Still no heat signatures," Thug-Superboy said. Dreamer turned them back into themselves.
The lights suddenly came to life, revealing the room was filled with human holding Apokolips super-technology.
"Or I could be wrong."
"Regular vision is picking something up now, captain."
Superboy elbowed Cyra in the side.
"This tech masks heat signatures filters out illusions," Mr. Mustache explained from behind the eye of his machine-gun-chest-vest-thing. "We got you."
And then he fired, knocking them all into the air like rag dolls. Cyra caught herself mid flight, flying in a looping motion. Moonrider blasted two thugs right off the back and the rest of the New Genesis team was kicking butt. Even Wolf was doing his share.
"These weapons resist my magnetic power. We'll soon be over run," Viken said as more of the enemy started to stream in. "It is time."
The New Genesis people ran together.
"This won't take long," Bear said.
"Go!" Superboy ordered, punching three thugs down with one hit.
The hammer was back and Cyra was swinging to the tune of Jingle Bell Rock, taking out dozens of the thugs, but there didn't seem to be an end to the first and only wave of attack.
The Mother Box connected them and they turned back into golden waves, twisting together.
Cyra's eyes widened. One of the thug's skin split apart, revealing De Sade. He handed a box to Mr. Mustache. As the robot formed, he threw it before Cyra could yell. The gold and blue robot turned red and black.
"That can't be good," Superboy said.
"Kill the boy and his little dog too," Smoak said and the robot moved to Superboy.
"Hey!" Cyra shouted, waving her arms wildly. "What am I? Chopped liver?"
De Sade chuckled darkly. "I didn't forget about you. I want to run some tests on you. What type of New Genesis power is that?"
Cyra gave him a weirded-out look. "I've already been experimented on by a robotic brain, do you think I'll let you do it? I have standards on who gets to cut me open, thank you very much." Cyra focused her energy, shifting her green power into her own green robot, enveloping her inside as if it was a suit. The head of the machine as a round smiley face. "New Genesis? Nah. This is pure cosmic power, uggo!"
Sweat trickled down Cyra's face as she lurched the robot forward at De Sade. This was by far the more difficult creation she had made. Maybe she went a little too over the top with the smiley face.
Superboy was thrown through the side of the building by Anti-Infinity Man. Disks and shots were fired at Cyra, but they disappeared once they hit the robot. Cyra's hands were shaking as she had to blink repeatedly to hold her concentration.
She kicked some thugs one way and more the other. Some flew at her through the air and she slapped them to the side like flies.
"Is that all you got?" She roared from inside her own machine. Robotic classes were really paying off.
The Snoke double laughed. Cyra was really beginning to hate that laugh. Superboy shouted for help from outside. Cyra ran to him, on the way knocking a crate De Sade's way, causing him to get knocked against the wall. The Green Lantern smirked.
Outside, Anti-Infinity Man was wasting Superboy as easily as a lamb would roast a beetle. Cyra came out behind the other robot and grabbed it around the neck, forcing it to the ground. They wrestled. Black spots began to dance in the Green Lantern's vision. Anti-Infinity Man got the leverage and knocked Cyra away. The robot landed with a thud. The fall caused Cyra's head to whirl and the construct disappeared as if it was never there. Cyra laid against the ground, groaning. Her limbs were heavy with exhaustion. Wolf leaped at the dark robot but was hit away. The robot destroyed the piece of plane Superboy threw with his laser eyes. Cyra struggled to reach her knees. A red disk flew out of the shadows of the building, hitting her in the back. Suddenly, pain racked her body. Cyra let out a guttural scream as electric shocks shook her body.
"Cyra!" Superboy's voice sounded far away. Cyra fell to her side, the whole world blurring as she watched Superboy have to take on the robot.
A plane floated into the air, enveloped by a golden glow, and smashed down on Superboy. The plane was thrown to the side and Superboy's limp body was picked up by the 'new god'.
"No," Cyra muttered but was interrupted by another bout of screaming.
De Sade and the surviving humans walked out. "Infinity is finally mine—my masters," De Sade corrected himself."
"Why doesn't he get it over with," Mr. Mustache asked.
"I'm not one for getting it over with. Father Box knows my . . . proclivities and programmed Infinity Man accordingly." De Sade grinned wolfishly. The Apokolips looked over to where Cyra was withering on the ground. "Pack up the Lantern."
"Are you sure?" Mr. Mustache seemed uncomfortable. "She's only a kid."
"A kid with the powers of the cosmos at her fingertips. She'll be very useful to my masters and I."
Mr. Mustache shrugged. That was as far as his lack of conscious allowed him to argue. Cyra barred her teeth as he jabbed her back, shutting off the electric shocks. A sigh of relief escaped her lips as the man threw her over his shoulder. She was too exhausted. Her toes could barely wiggle at her request. Wolf tried to save Superboy but was swatted aside. Superboy was thrown to the ground inside the robot's fist. Anti-Infinity Man reeled up, ready to smash him when Sphere flew through the air. Cyra never thought she'd be happy enough to see a robotic circle flying to the rescue. Mid-air, it turned into a bug-like creature and snapped onto the head of the New Genesis robot. It plugged it's tail into the neck and turned it back into Infinity man, chasing all the red and black away.
"Attack!" De Sade ordered. "Attack while you still can!"
Mr. Mustache dropped Cyra unceremoniously to the ground. She let out a groan before rolling over on her side, looking up at De Sade.
"You seem worried," Cyra coughed. "Is it because you're going to lose or because you're going to get dismantled by a Green Lantern."
Before he could respond, Cyra jolted her hand out. A green boxing glove hit De Sade in the center of the chest. Cyra got to watch his eyes widen in pain before he was sent flying through the air, landing on the old shell of a plane with a wide crash.
Cyra smirked.
The battle took a turn for the better. Superboy leaped onto the top of Infinity Man, having installed the motorcycle into the head of the robot.
"Open fire—all weapons!" Mr. Mustache yelled to his remaining men, who fired upon the robot. Nothing seemed to harm him.
"Our turn," Superboy said. The robot blasted the ground, sending all the men back. Infinity Man grabbed Mr. Mustache. "Think I'm getting the hang of this. Pull!" Superboy shouted, pulling back on the handles and tossing Mr. Mustache into the sky. Cyra hopped he hit the moon up there.
Golden lasers hit the man falling, destroying his weaponry. He landed in the palm of Superboy's robotic palm. The man had no shirt on anymore.
"Now that's ugly," Superboy said.
The men stopped their firing to retreat, but Infinity Man wasn't going to let them get away that easily. He shot them from behind as they ran, leaving them to fall limply to the ground. He dropped Mr. Mustache neck to them.
"De Sade!" Mr. Mustache yelled.
The Apokolips had gotten up from the wreckage and had opened a portal. He turned back, his eyes holding the lights of a million different stars. "All will suffer," he hissed, throwing a bag into the air before disappearing through the portal. Infinity Man shot the bag, destroying it. It let out a wave of energy, reducing Infinity Man back into the Forever People. They laid, steaming on the ground. Superboy fell from the sky and Sphere was hurt in the fall. Wolf picked up the Father Box in his mouth and crushed it.
Good boy, Cyra thought. The Green Lantern managed to get back to her feet, stumbling over to Superboy and Sphere.
"She's hurt." Superboy's eyes widened in concern.
"The damage may be beyond repair," Viken informed him. "But the Mother Box will try."
Viken placed the Mother Box on Sphere. Instantly, Sphere began to repair herself back into the circle they all know and love. Cyra fell on the Sphere in a hug, half to keep herself from falling over.
"Nice to have you back, girl."
Sphere beeped.
"The healing process has begun and will be completed on New Genesis," Viken said. Cyra blinked and narrowed her eyes. She forgot that the whole reason they came to Earth was to get Sphere back.
"I'm sorry—what?" Superboy questioned defensively.
"We thank you both for your help, but we must take New Genesphere home now," Dream said. The Forever People got up from the ground.
"No!" Superboy argued. "No way!"
"Sphere is apart of the Team," Cyra patted the metal.
"Why should we leave her with you?" Seraphin asked. "To us she lives, to you she's merely technology."
"No, it's not like that!" Superboy yelled.
"Then what is it like?" Bear crossed his arms.
"We bonded, okay?"
Despite what Cyra believed what would happen next, which was the throwing of fists, the Forever People smiled.
"So it is," Viken said. He shook hands with Superboy. "You may keep her."
"Yay! Because if not," Cyra smiled sweetly at them, "we would have fought you and we would have destroyed you."
Mount Justice
October 23, 1:02 EDT
"Hi, Cyra. How are you?" Black Canary asked with a kind smile. It was different from her stone look that Cyra saw on her during training. "Heard you just got back from a mission."
"I'm fine," Cyra growled as she looked away from Black Canary, looking as if she was studying one of the paintings on the walls. "Just met some new people from a parallel universe who can turn into Voltron. No biggie."
"Are you sure?" Canary tilted her head.
"Yes, I'm sure."
"I meant are you sure you're fine."
"Perfectly fine with a cherry on top. Kind of hungry though." Cyra grinned through clenched teeth. Why did everyone keep asking me that?
"You seem agitated. Would you like to tell me what's on your mind?"
"No."
"Fine." Black Canary crossed one leg over the other and folded her hands across her lap. "We're sitting here in silence until you decide to talk—if you decide to talk. I have all day."
Cyra wouldn't even glance at her. That was fine by her. Cyra may not seem like it, but she could sit in silence all day if it meant she didn't have to share any of the "dark secrets of her mind" or whatever other crap the therapists spit out.
Time was weird. Cyra was never a good tracker of it. In the silence with little to no action and Cyra lost in her own thoughts, it could have been minutes or hours before Black Canary tried for another shot.
"I understand this may be hard for you, but it might do some good for you to talk about some of your problems. You aren't made of stone, Cyra. You have felt and it is better to let them out than bottle them up."
The Green Lantern's fist clenched around the air chair, turning her knuckles white. Black Canary's voice was smooth and comforting, like a mother speaking to her child. The perfect voice for a therapist to soothe her patients into a sense of security. Cyra hated it.
"I know that you haven't had the most . . . stable of childhoods and that you've had trouble in the past, but—"
"I didn't have the most stable childhood?" Cyra finally spoke. When she looked up, her amber eyes were dark like orange fire. "What are you talking about? My childhood was fine."
Black Canary gave Cyra a look that could be considered pity. "Cyra, you live with nine other siblings and a single mother. Your family's finances weren't the best."
Cyra narrowed her eyes in anguish. "How do you know that?"
"They did background checks on you when you joined the Team. We did that for all of you," Black Canary explained. "Let's talk about you. What do you think of your family? Are you content living with them?"
"What is this? A CPS meeting? I love my family," Cyra stood up and walked around to the back of the chair, pacing. She leaned on it, rocking her heels back and forth. "I'm not beat and I'm not neglected. There's always been amazing food on the table and cable."
"So, there is no negative feelings with your mother or siblings?" Black Canary arched a blonde eyebrow.
"No! Sure, my siblings and I fight, but that's what all siblings do. And my mom is great. Why are you asking this? I thought this was supposed to be about that stupid simulation to make sure we were all still in working order."
"We can talk about that too if you want. I just wanted to get a conversation going." Black Canary motioned to the chair. "Sit back down."
Cyra shook her head, not looking up to meet Black Canary's gaze.
"Cyra," Black Canary said ever-so-gently. The blonde blinked. No one used that voice with her unless they were nearing dangerous territory—and knew it. "What about your father?"
A lump built up in the Green Lantern's throat. "What about him?" She croaked.
"What can you tell me about him."
Cyra decided it would be best to sit back down. She ran her fingers through her hair, resisting the urge to put her head in her hands and draw her knees up to her chest and just rock for a while. Instead, she intertwined her fingers together. "Can we talk about the simulation?" Cyra asked, scratching the back of her head as she finally looked at Black Canary for the first time their whole session. "Please?"
Black Canary nodded. "Can you tell me what happened in the simulation."
"Batman and MM already told you what happened."
"I want to hear it from you."
"We went into a simulation that we didn't know was a simulation. We were fighting alien invaders and all died one at a time as it happened. The League died first, then Artemis, Superboy, Aqualad, me, Wally and Robin together, and lastly Miss Martian, who is the reason we were stuck in there," Cyra remembered easily.
"Do you blame Miss Martian for what happened?" Black Canary asked.
Cyra realized just how bad what she said sounded. "No, I know it's not M'gann's fault."
"Whose fault is it?"
"The simulator? I don't know."
"Whose fault do you think it is? Be honest. This is a safe place."
Cyra rolled her eyes. Therapists always said stupid stuff like that. "Nobody's. We didn't even know we were in the simulator."
"Whose fault do you think it is?" The Leaguer repeated.
Cyra thought about how Batman and Martian Manhunter put them in the simulation. How they couldn't control it and it ended with Manhunter having to fake kill his own niece to snap out of it. By then, everyone was dead and in comas anyways.
"I don't—"
Then, the Green Lantern remembered the green-skinned telekinetic, who let her imagination get the best of her and almost left them all asleep, believing they have died with no ways of waking back up again.
"Cyra . . ."
"I said I don't know!" Cyra barked.
Carefully, Black Canary asked, "Who do you blame for the simulation going wrong?"
Lastly, Cyra thought about how she just ran in and didn't seem to care about dying, because deep down she knew they were all going to die anyway and that it didn't matter.
Heat rushed Cyra's eyes. A familiar blurry look took over her vision as Cyra fought back tears. "Myself," Cyra muttered, looking down at the carpet.
"Is that the same person you blame for everything else?"
Numbly, Cyra nodded.
Suddenly, Cyra let out a forced laughed that sounded like a frog was trying to break out of the back of her throat. "This is so stupid! This is worse than the simulation! Do you really think reliving the moment is going to back me feel better? Newsflash, I died. It wasn't nice and it wasn't peaceful. I don't even remember going down, just waking back up. Trust me, it wasn't a very good feeling."
"Cyra, this is about you. Not only the simulation."
A lightbulb went off in Cyra's mind and she jumped out of her chair. "That's why Hal was here. This isn't a 'make-sure-I'm-okay' thing. It's a mental evaluation. Is it just me who's getting this or is everyone being evaluated?"
Black Canary blinked as she adjusted in her seat. "Cyra, it isn't as simple as that."
"Oh," Cyra let out a laugh but it was void of any real humor. "That makes it so much better. Why now? Did the mission show I was so mentally unstable that they had to call in the shrink?"
"Cyra!" Black Canary's voice went from gentle and calm to sharp in an instant. "You have to calm down. It is this exact behavior that made us do this evaluation. So, sit back down."
Rage flooded Cyra's veins as her hands had to clench to resist her entire body from shaking. Hal betrayed her. The League thought she was a danger to the Team. Those facts plus the whole 'dying-not-dying' really put a damper on her mood.
Cyra did as she was told and sat back down in the chair. "What do I have to say for you to give me the all clear so I can leave?"
Black Canary tilted her head. "I want you to answer truthfully. Lying won't help you."
"Okay," Cyra said, shaking her head. Her anger faded as quickly as it came. "Ask away; not like I have much of a choice."
"A positive attitude will make this go a whole lot faster," Black Canary said sing-song.
Cyra laughed.
Batman and Green Lantern watched through one of the security cameras as Cyra Brion paced around the room with her arms crossed. Her face was turned towards the ground. Despite not seeing her expression, Hal knew the face. Disappointment laced with anger that Hal was lucky that he didn't see more often.
Black Canary entered the surveillance room. They couldn't hear what was being said, but it was quite obvious that Cyra was angry. It took an extra hour for her to answer the rest of the questions. Black Canary wrote down the results on her clipboard.
"So? What're the results, Doc?" Hal asked. He rubbed his hands together.
"First of all, don't call me Doc. Secondly, she has some major issues, but what hero doesn't? She's clear for training and missions."
"Yeah!" Hal cheered. "I can't wait to tell Cyra!"
"Just a moment Green Lantern." Batman turned to Black Canary. "Is she cleared for the mission?"
"What mission?" Hal asked, narrowing his eyes suspiciously.
"I don't think it's a good idea, Batman." Black Canary put her hands on her hips. "Cyra is . . . a difficult case. I don't think she should be around that stuff. That kid is a mess and it's like bring beer to an AA meeting."
"I wasn't asking what you thought. I was asking if she is cleared," Batman growled.
"Cleared for what? What mission?" Hal asked. His own anger was beginning to rise. "I'm her mentor. She's not doing anything without my okay, so you might as well just tell me what the hell you're talking about."
Batman remained silent, so Black Canary took it upon herself. "Batman wants to send Cyra to Gotham for a mission that involves going undercover in a drug ring."
Hal's brown eyes widened behind the film of his mask. "What?" He narrowed his eyes sharply, glaring down at Batman with the strength of a different universe's sun. "You want to put her in a drug ring? What is wrong with you! You know all about Cyra's past and your brilliant solution is throw her into the Gotham underground?" Hal shook his head. "No way. Not happening."
"Green Lantern," Batman said warningly. "Cyra is the best candidate for the mission. She is the correct age of one of their new recruits and she has the knowledge to pass as an addict. It will help her gain more experience if she is the join the League one day."
"Have Robin do it! He's around the same age and knows Gotham a lot better than Cyra!"
"No," the Dark Knight stated, signaling it was the end to that conversation. "Robin is not the right fit for this mission. Cyra is."
Hal looked to Black Canary for help. She held the same stone look on her face, her lips pulled tightly in a line. She just rolled her eyes at the two heroes in front of her.
"You know my side in this," she said.
"I have the therapist on my side," Hal nodded to Black Canary. "Cyra is not doing this!"
"I'll do it," a voice said from the doorway. The three heroes spun towards Cyra, who was leaning against the frame of the door with her arms crossed. A snarky grin grew on her face. "Anything for the League."