-6 months after being time scattered-
-The Ice Age in what would be Arkansas-
"You know.." Todd began crossing his arms as he peaked into the igloo. "I never thought I'd be into that Eskimo look, but you really-"
Snart tackled him back into the snow the two tumbling in the cold white fluff. "Where have you been!?"
Todd grinned pushing back on his shoulders sitting up. "Taking a stasis nap back on the ship with Mick for oh I don't know 60-70 years? Just woke up about an hour ago thanks to some historian guy and Sara's Arrow friend."
"You and your beauty rest, I've been here for six months." Snart grinned leaning in giving him a passionate reunion kiss.
"Woah...uh oh, so they're together?" Nate's mouth dropped in surprise. Ray, Sara, Jax, Stein, and Mick all standing in the ships open but nicely heated cargo bay with Nate watching on. Snart the third to last to be rescued. Clarity and Rip still needing to be retrieved.
"Yup, his girlfriends a guy." Mick crossed his arms. "But he makes him happy so what do I care."
"What did you expect from that tackle?" Sara looked at him.
"Oh, I thought they were just broin' out you know." Nate replied miming a bro hug. "Like bro's do."
"Trust me, Dude, those two fool around way to much to be bro's." Jax shook his head.
"Bro's fool around that's like-" Nate started to protest before Ray cut him off a bit of a haunted look in his eyes.
"Not that kind of fooling." Ray warned, a haunted look in his Bambi eyes, "Trust me."
"Perhaps we could speed this along?" Stein called out to the boyfriends. "We do have two more teammates to procure. Our resident Glitch and Captain Hunter aren't going to rescue themselves."
"Flick's interrupting and she's not even here." Todd chuckled holding out his hand to help Snart as he stood up.
"Sounds about right." Snart took the offered hand standing up. He grabbed his cold gun from inside the igloo and the two were getting on the ship Gideon shutting the doors for them. The waverider flying to its next destination.
-uncharted island in Indian Ocean the year 740-
"It is time, Goddess." A servant bowed her head, blonde braided hair falling across one shoulder, freckled tanned hands clasped in front of her. "All is ready for you."
The so called Goddess said nothing. Her head was pounding and there were spots dancing in her vision. Abnormal blue eyes focused on the room off to the side. Black dots dancing across the sheer curtains that were drawn closed in a feeble attempt to hide the fact that someone was lying across the alter, waiting to be sacrificed like an animal to the slaughter. Only this island had no animals, nothing bigger than the size of a dove, nothing that had enough electrical energy to keep her alive. Normal people only needed two things to survive: food and water, but she was no longer a normal human, she hadn't been for a few years now and thus she needed three things to survive: food, water, and electrical energy. Her body was capable of generating electricity on its own yes, but when she was this low on power, her body wasn't able to replenish it fast enough to store it, the energy all but disappearing as fast as it's created and it wasn't enough of a spark to hold a charge, not even close. If she didn't recharge again soon...she would die.
The storm that she had arrived in six months ago, had been the first and last she ever saw. In fact, it was the first storm the people of this isle had seen in over a century. Because of this, they regarded Clarity as their goddess. Devoted themselves to her as if she was the highest royalty. To them it was like she was an angel fallen from the heavens and now it was their duty to serve her, care for her in any way she needed and in return Clarity gave them guidance and protection. She was their Zarysa pronounced Zar-ee-sa, the isle people's word for Queen. Over the course of these 6 months she'd earned many titles as their ruler, but Zarysa was by far the most meaningful.
"Zarysa," The freckled woman knelt by her throne green eyes shining with concern. "You must replenish...the time is now. The people see you grow weary. We worry...if our enemies return from the north and you do not have the strength to-"
Clarity raised two trembling fingers and the serving girl went quiet at the gesture.
"Apologies your purity," She bowed her head. "I meant no disrespect. You were most wise and merciful to let our enemies return home to their families. I know the ritual is trying on your mind, but we mustn't delay any longer. The pin wheel in the sea, the rotating wheel in the water, all have failed and broken apart. The ships cannot find the sea creatures that you've detailed. No Eels nor Stinging Ray's. There is nothing left. We must return to the ways of the beginning. The days with which you first came to us. As the ancients provided for the storm bearers before we shall do the same for you."
Clarity gave the briefest of nods in reply signaling that she was ready. Well, as ready as she would ever be.
"Would you prefer not to see Zarysa?" The girl presented a blindfold as she always did. Clarity lifted two fingers again. No. She had to see their face when she did this. What she was about to do was wrong enough, it made her stomach twist at just the thought of it, if she would do nothing else she would look them in the eye. It was the only right thing about what she was about to do.
"Favio, Abrexis, take Zarysa into the sacred room. She is ready." The serving girl ordered two guards. They both got on either side of Clarity and lifted her up carrying her through the curtains. Once past them she could clearly see a man lying down on the table. Ritualistic designs painted all across his skin from head to toe. The two guards setting her down on a crystal seat just before the alter. Candles of incense were lit all around the room. The echoing of people whispering a chant could be heard drifting throughout the room.
"You lie in the presence of Clarity Springs first of her name," The serving girl announced, standing at Claritys side once again. "Bringer of the Storm, The Divine one, Goddess of light, Goddess of lightning, the spark of nightfall, Protector of Zaralty, Striker of the Dishonored, Eyes of the Incandescent, The Asher, rightful ruler on high, Zarysa of the Zorcai Isles and Seas."
"Na...wha...ss...n...me" Clarity attempted to ask, but her tongue wouldn't move properly. She barely had the strength to lift it to speak. Luckily the man lying there understood just the same.
"I am called Ronalty, your grace." The man answered. "I have lived my life to its fullest regard you have my word. I have not seen my family for many moons. It is my desire to be with them once more. I offer my soul's blood to you. May it replenish and bestow the strength that you require. Accept my offering for I make this sacrifice of my own free will. I wish to see your eyes shine as they once did."
With that said, no more words were spoken. The time for talking was over. The serving girl turned her back to the scene. As did the guards. The chanting people bowed their heads in reverence voices raising from a whisper to a roar. Clarity took a deep breath and placed one hand on the man's chest and another on his head. She reached inside him, taking hold of the lightning in his body and pulled, quite literally sucking the life out of him. She could feel her strength returning, her skin becoming less sunken and ashen, more full of life. Her vision was clearing of spots and she no longer felt like she was going to keel over, but at the same time she could feel Ronalty dying by her hand, his eyes losing that spark of life, skin graying and shrinking to resemble a raisin. It was painless, Clarity made sure to shock his nerves to numbness, but even so it broke her heart she had to do this in order to live. Killing by accident was one thing, killing on purpose was another, but Clarity didn't exactly know where voluntarily murdered stood between those two.
Doing this, draining someone of the electricity in their bodies they needed to live... she didn't like it, not one bit, even if most of her victims, aside from those she'd killed 6 months ago on the beach when she was unconscious, were willing victims. But what other choice did she have? Die of electrical starvation? She had to survive until the team came for her, if they came for her, Clarity wasn't sure they ever would at this point. It had been six months, six months of being worshipped by the Zoraltites. These people, her people, they wanted her to live. For their Zarysa to stay strong by whatever means and try as she might Clarity could not deny their help, their sacrifices, for without them her body would likely be rotting on the beach somewhere. Dead due to a lack of electricity. She wondered, not for the first time why she'd been sent here of all places. What had she done to deserve to be put through this agony? Physically, mentally, emotionally, she didn't think she deserved to be here either because everything was too hard or because getting worshipped made things far too easy. She'd always wanted to be a Queen when she was little or more accurately a warrior cowgirl pirate ninja fairy princess superstar queen, but she never thought it would be like this.
Clarity gasped, hands sliding off the now dead Ronalty, clutching the alter. She felt it, the waverider, felt them, her team, but she did not have the strength to Glitch there. Even with absorbing all of Ronaltys energy she barely possessed the strength to stand. If she let go of the alter she would surely fall down again.
"Goddess? What is wrong?" The serving girl was by Claritys side once more noting her distress in an instant.
"Newcomers on the eastern shore." Clarity told her, voice soft barely audible as she tried to conserve her strength. "Take Ronalty to the burial site there, and bring those who've landed on our shore here unharmed. I think they've finally come for me."
"By your decree, Zarysa." Both guards banged their spears upon the ground before they wrapped Ronalty's body in a silk tapestry and went off to carry him to the site as Clarity asked.
"Come Zarysa, we shall relax the mind and body while we wait for their return." The serving girl gently grabbed her arm to guide her out of the sacred space.
"Marinique, we've talked about this. I don't have to be pampered." Clarity protested shaking her head. Though she had to admit the idea did sound nice. Especially after what she just did. It would help take her mind of the horridness of it all.
"You are goddess, Zarysa." The serving girl now known as Marinique, replied leaning forwards placing a loving kiss on Clarity's lips before pulling back, stroking her hair running her fingers through Clarity's chesnut locks. "You deserve all. It is known."
"I get thrown into the ice age and Clarity gets a beach vacation?" Snart complained as the cargo bay doors opened all of the team walking off the ship in normal clothes.
"It's still not Aruba." Mick, stepped onto the beach with a scowl. "This sand sucks."
"Yeah, doesn't seem like a good beach. It's got crazy rocks popping up everywhere." Jax eyed the thin twisting structures that sprouted from the sand practically every which way you stepped. There was barely even any room to walk between them to get up from the beach to the mainland. "They all look like some kind of weird sand explosion."
"Wait, Jax those aren't rocks." Ray protested, as he surveyed one fingertip resting lightly against it. "I was an Eagle Scout. I know my minerals and all these structures..."
"They're fulgurite." Stein finished, looking around with a grin. "Remarkable. I don't believe there's ever been a recording of this magnitude."
"The hell is fulgurite?" Jax asked, confusion written across his face, not that it was even needed to be read due to the tone of the young man's voice.
"Beats me." Todd shook his head.
"Sounds like a gem. This crap worth something?" Mick eyed it thoughts already on stealing some of the smaller bits.
"Doubtful if we've never heard of any worth stealing." Snart replied.
"On the contrary it depends on the quality." Stein answered Mick. "Fulgurite is an incredibly fragile silica glass. The glass takes on a tube like shape and it is formed when the silica, the rock minerals, are exposed to a direct minimal heat of 1800 degrees celsius."
"What causes that type of heat instantaneously like that?" Nate asked. "And in such a direct spot?"
"Lightning." Sara answered, running her hand along a piece of fulgurite, the outer layer falling away at Sara's touch, crumbling to reveal a glittering glass crystal with jagged edges. Even though the Assassin could only see a small portion she knew it was as beautiful as the person who'd created it.
"Or more accurately a lightning strike. Most of which have a temperature of 2500 degrees celsius." Martin answered. "Fulgurite is quite fragile and for all intensive purposes is nothing more than fossilized lightning."
"Woah, wait so does that Clarity made all this fulgurite stuff with her powers?" Jax asked.
"Yes, that would be the most likely conclusion." Stein grinned. "It's truly astonishing. I don't believe the thermal capacity of her lightning has ever been test-"
"Maybe another time." Snart cut off Martin's science babble a smirk on his lips. "Claritys not going to rescue herself."
"Harty Har Har, Mr. Snart. Using my own words against me." Stein shot him a dirty look. "It's not a game you'd like to play."
"I'll say because-"
"Guys, something's wrong." Sara interrupted as she scanned the tree line, looking for a wisp of blue, maybe a set of sparks, an accidental tree fire, but there was nothing. "Clarity would've felt the Waverider the second we touched down. You all know how excited she gets she'd Glitch right to us."
"Well, the ship is cloaked-" Nate began.
"She can sense the ship even when its in its cloaked form. Maybe even better since that's just another system humming." Ray denied. "And she would've felt us too. Sara's right."
"Uh guys, we've got company." Jax pointed time the tree line. Favio and Abrexis carrying Ronalty's corpse to the beach setting him down into a pile of quick sand. His body sinking into its depths.
"Dear god was that a body?" Stein asked.
"By the order of the Goddess, Zarysa of Zorcai Isles and Seas you are to come with us." Abrexis ordered tone commanding. "Your prescience is demanded before her."
"We're not going anywhere with..." Snart began to protest, but Nate was quick to cut him off.
"Zarysa, it's the indigenous peoples word for Queen." Nate explained. "We don't want to get on the Queens bad side. I couldn't find much of anything on this place other than the fact that their queens ruthless."
"New guy has a point." Todd agreed. "Maybe this queen'll help us find Clarity."
"Worth a shot." Jax shrugged.
"Alright boys," Sara grinned smiling flirtatiously between the muscled men. "Take us to your leader."
And that's exactly what they did the two soldiers of the queens personal guard leading them through the jungle. The legends all marveling are the immaculate pathways, huts, stone houses they came across and of course the marble palace that stretched towards the sky. Finally, they reached the throne room.
"Clarity!?" Sara exclaimed gaping at the sight before her, and the rest of the team.
"No way..." Ray whispered to himself.
Clarity lay across a giant throne of polished fulgurite long chestnut brown hair draped over her shoulder, a tiara of silver leaves sat upon her head, and she wore a luxurious gown. The blue fabric formed an X at the chest, the top of the X looping around the back of her neck, fabric stretching down along her arms just under her shoulder wrapping back around connecting into one piece behind her. The bottom of the X covered her cleavage, and was met with a V just underneath it that wrapped around her waist, the two connected letters leaving a diamond shape that outlined her smooth skin above her belly button. Upon her bellybutton there was a jeweled piece of ribbon which most likely kept the whole dress tied together. Below the belt the skirt split into two pieces, front and back, reminiscent of a loin cloth albeit much longer. The spaces where the fabric was left gaping, the diamond middle, the two spaces just below the front of her shoulders, and the upper most parts of each of her thighs was littered with polished fulgurite stones. Her hands were adorned in metal silver leafed coverings reminiscent of fingerless gloves, and on her feet were fulgurite crystals secured round her ankles stretching down the length of her foot, connected to her ring toe.
The giant crystal throne she sat upon glimmered in the light. A servant was at her feet painting her nails blue, another was holding her left hand filing her nails. A third was fanning her with a giant palm leaf keeping her still pale skin shaded so she did not get another sunburn for the thousandth time. Finally Marinique was hand feeding her strawberry's right from the vine.
"Silence in the presence of the divine one!" Favio slammed his spear down. "You will not speak outsiders."
"Who dares interrupt Zarysa's me time?" Marinique paused pulling the strawberries away, Clarity pouting at her because she'd been right about to eat one.
The guard fell to his knees to the ground spear clattering to the floor. "A thousand apologies, your divinity. I should not have been so careless as to interrupt, I was merely trying to do as you asked and I-"
Clarity spoke softly to Marinique, for she still could not speak at a normal volume.
"Goddess says, she does not want excuses. Take the bowl of pitless cherries and pass them out to the young as your punishment. We are to leave her. She wants to be alone with them."
All of the servants bowed, Clarity taking a moment to return the kiss Marinique had given her earlier, knowing full well it would be their last, before she was alone with the team.
"Damn if I squint I can Imagine that was Stargirl-" Nate muttered, only to get hit in the back of the head by Todd twice in a row.
"Ow! Dude c'mon twice!?" Nate complained.
"Two teammates needed their honor defended." Todd shrugged in reply. "Keep thoughts like that to yourself new guy."
"I liked you so much better when you were in stasis. Sorry if I've been fantasizing about them since my teens. It's not my fault they're totally hot." Nate grumbled to himself rubbing his head staring at Clarity almost in awe, she looked positively enchanting in that dress. Truly someone to be worshipped and revered.
"Hey, Clarity, are you ready to quit playing make believe and come home pachirisu?" Sara asked her.
"Definitely." Clarity breathed hopping to her feet in excitement going to walk down the stairs but her legs gave out underneath her and she went tumbling down them instead.
"Hey are you okay?" Ray asked her, the whole team rushing to help her.
"I need to recharge, I landed in the ocean when I time scattered." Clarity explained voice trembling as she tried to speak louder. "There's no electricity here. I've had to...it hasn't been enough, improvising...need more, so much more."
"It's not just lack of energy is it?" Todd asked her. "You're not sweating from the heat." Todd's hand rested against her forehead. "Your sick from not using your powers."
"She's what?" Nate asked in confusion.
"When I don't use my powers I start getting really sick due to an excessive energy buildup or lack of efficient lightning reserves." Clarity explained. "If use my powers too much, like I did, if i'm so dangerously low on energy I get so drained that I'm practically paralyzed. Conversely if I don't use them enough and absorb too much I run the risk of giving myself a high fever and other medical problems."
"Alright Sparky, Lets get you back to the waverider." Mick went to pick her up.
"No, wait," Clarity raised a hand. "I can't just disappear. My people don't deserve to be abandoned. I have to decree a new ruler in my place. I need that parchment, paper too." Clarity pointed to her desk, Snart grabbing them for her.
"Thanks." She replied, writing as legibly as she could. She elected Marinique as the new Zarysa. Wrote a quick apology for leaving so suddenly, but she made up a story of the gods needing her to return home now. One she knew her people would believe and then back to the ship the legends went. Clarity leaving the rolled up note and Silver leafed tiara sitting upon the throne for someone to find.
A while later Clarity was now fully recharged, showered and changed into a fresh set of clothes. She smiled at the clickety click clickety noise her heels made as she walked onto the bridge, but that smile fell as Nate started talking.
"I'm sorry," Nate started looking around at the legends. "but so far I haven't been able to detect any historical alteration that would indicate Mr. Hunter was stranded in a time."
"Unlike all of us Rip is always good at not breaking the rules." Clarity leaned on the console. "I'm not sure if he'd leave any alterations. A former time master would be good at covering their tracks."
"But why hide from us if he's stranded?" Todd asked. "It doesn't make any sense wouldn't he want to be rescued?"
"Uh, why don't we ask Gideon where he is?" Ray suggested.
"Who's Gideon?" Nate asked, this being the first he'd heard of an Ai.
"She's the best friend I could ever have." Clarity answered leaning on the console. "Giddy, hey, we're back. Are you awake?"
"Yes, I am indeed awake, Clarity." Gideon answered her. "It's so nice to see you all again. I see we have a newcomer. Greetings, Dr. Heywood. I am the ship's artificial consciousness."
"Gideon," Sara smiled, "We need you to tell us where Rip is."
"I'm afraid I have no idea," Gideon admitted regretfully. "But I would be happy to play his final message for you all."
"Final message?" Ray echoed.
"Sounds ominous." Snart commented. "Gideon play it!"
"Sorry for stranding you all throughout history, but it was the only way to save you." A hologram Rip appeared.
"No..no," Clarity protested. "Rip Hunter you are not ninth doctoring us!" And how was dropping her into the ocean in a time period without electricity saving her? If anything Rip had just about condemned her to death.
"Well, you know what they say," The Hologram continued on as if Clarity hadn't said anything at all. "Captain must never abandon his ship. Well, neither shall I abandon hope of seeing you all again someday, somewhere in time. As flawed and unruly as you are individually, together you are the best crew, the best team, a captain could ever hope for. So... stick together."
"Rip... that means you have to stick with us too." Clarity protested, she wanted answers, how could he leave when she hadn't gotten them? As if hearing her this time the hologram turned to face her direction.
"And remember, history is yours now, my dear Legends. Good luck." Hologram Rip told them before the message ended. They thought the message was over but Hologram Rip popped up again.
"Oh, and Clarity, just to be clear, and because it's likely I'll never get this chance again... as my final decree as Captain," Rip smiled lightly to himself. "The waverider is most certainly not and will never be a tardis."
"That's it?" Clarity asked as the message finally clicked off. "That can't be it! He-he doesn't get the final say on that. It's not fair to use a recording. Gideon there has to be a way to track him."
"Apologies creator but I'm afraid there isn't." Gideon told her regret in her tone.
"So," Ray wondered everyone having migrated into the parlour. "What do we do now?"
"We drink." Mick answered.
"As Rip once said, 'Capital Idea.'" Snart toasted drinking a shot with Mick. He poured Todd a shot a moment later. The smoke hero much more quiet and reserved when he was grieving.
"It's not like we were exactly Time Masters, even with Rip." Sara rubbed at her hair sitting in a chair in the corner.
"But I think he knew that one day we might have to do this without him." Jax pointed out.
"And we all heard his message. He wanted us to keep going." Ray added.
"We have to keep going." Martin corrected.
"There's a rogue time traveler out there somewhere."
"Yeah, a time nemesis whose idea of fun is helping Damien Darhk and the Nazis blow up New York City." Sara reminded.
"You've got to be pretty sick to want to pal around with people like that." Claritt sighed, rubbing at the back of her neck. To think she'd spent the last 6 months without thinking of Thawne. So much for progress, but there was no way it's him. He was erased that's not something you come back from.
"What's to stop them from going back in time and kidnapping Einstein and his ex-wife again?"
"Nothing." Todd shook his head.
"We can't be everywhere at once." Mick protested as he ate a dooughnut. He ripped off a piece he hadn't bit near on the opposite side and offered it to her. She took it smiling in thanks. It's been a while since she had one.
"We were running ourselves ragged as it was. How do you think I let myself get so drained?" Clarity pointed out mouth full of doughnuts covering her mouth as she spoke food not yet all the way chewed. "We were barely holding it together."
"But you can safeguard the Einsteins." Nate pointed out.
"We can?" Snart asked.
"Safeguard the Einsteins?" Stein repeated in confusion. "How?"
"By making one slight alteration to history." Mate proposed and Clarity figures out what he was getting at right away.
Clarity smiled, "Make him share his credit with the likes of a woman who insults his intelligence in true divorcé fashion? Nothing would make me happier."
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Wooo! Okay and here's chapter 4 everybody!! I wanted to get it out like two days ago but it felt too short and then chores got in the way but hey at least it's out now right? Chapter 5 is going to be literally all the JSA stuff, and that'll be all one chapter cause I just don't really like the JSA that much even though I put Clarity in them and I want to get through that headache and get to the good stuff haha so keep a look out for it! It should be out in a few days!! I'm hoping to get it out by this Tuesday, but depending on how things go it might be Thursday instead since this chapter came out a few days later than I intended. I really hope you enjoyed this chapter as it's been sitting in my head for well over a year now. Anyways, here are some questions you guys! I'm curious to know your answers to them!
1. So what did you think of Clarity's Time scatter?
2. What did you think of this chapter? How did you feel while reading this chapter?
3. Is there anything else you'd like to know about her 6 month time scatter? If so what? I'll be happy to tell you.
4. What did you think of Claritys outfits this chapter? The Goddess gown and the normal clothes? Be honest.
5. Are you excited for next chapter? Why? Be honest.
6. It's going to take me roughly until 2024 to finish the Glitch series, (unless there are more than six seasons in which case it'll be longer) what I'm asking is, are you willing to stick around for four years or more to follow Claritys story? Be honest.
7. Do you have any Headcanons about Clarity? I'd love to hear them if you do.
8. Who are you shipping Clarity with? Why? Give me anywhere between 13 and infinity reasons why you ship your ship and why I should make said ship canon in the Glitch series! Tell me!! I wanna know guys!
Rip:
Sara:
Constantine:
Other:
9. This is very important, Firefox or Steelfox?
10. If you could change something about Clarity what would it be? And why?
11. Do you like how fast I've been updating?
12. If you could see Clarity in one show that wasn't legends what would it be and why?
13. Anything else you'd like to Ask, Rant, and or tell me!