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To the attention of the readers who enjoy reading an intelligent main character like Miles will definitely like my original story, Arrival : Ruptures. Comments, likes and reviews are appreciated. Here are the links for : AO3, Spacebattles, Royal Road and Webnovel.
—
Iraq
Convincing Mophir was an exercise in futility. Instead of wasting any more breath, he decided on a different approach.
"Why don't you go with the armor? If you think it is a trap, it will be best for you to follow," he offered with a strained smile. There was no other way he would agree to this proposal.
The guardian of the Heart of Darkness began to pace around the cave, mumbling in low tones.
"You have to decide whether to stay here until someone stumbles in by accident and finds the crystal, or take a risk."
Mophir grumbled something his translator did not pick up.
—
"There you are. How did it go?" Karen asked Miles as she arrived at the cave, seeing no crystal anywhere.
He had apparently needed a lift for some reason.
"The crystal's protector is off to space for a little adventure," he said. He had brought a secondary watch along. He did not know if the crystal could affect him through the armor or not. It was best not to take chances.
Mophir had taken the spare, while his armor was carrying the crystal.
"US forces will be here in an hour. They are sending in a lot of men," she said, lifting him up from his armpits.
"Good. We all got what we wanted, that is, as soon as the rewards are processed," he said, shivering slightly. The temperature decreased sharply as the sun had set. He would have to wait for his armor to return while the other one took Mophir on a slow journey back to Metropolis. He deserved to see what he had protected for so long.
"Got any plans after we return?" she asked out of nowhere.
He tilted his head upward, glancing at her. "Nothing urgent."
"I wanted to try this new Turkish restaurant down where I work." She would have to quit as soon as she received the reward. She did not know when she would be able to find time for a date.
"Taking me on a date? How can I refuse?" While he felt a chemistry between them, he did not expect her to ask him out. He certainly was not going to refuse an offer from a woman like her.
"Great, how about tomorrow at 12?"
"Agreed."
Claire made cooing noises over the comms. Baraka chuckled but tried to keep it down.
—
Chinooks and Apaches appeared on the horizon with the first light of the day. He and his team waited patiently as the Marines offloaded while the attack helicopters surveyed the area.
"Mr. Reddington? First Lieutenant Dewey." The man at the head of the troops approached. His subordinates quickly surrounded the bound criminals, searching for any sign of a trap.
"Lieutenant. They are all yours."
"What about the complex?"
"Cleared and ready for you. They have quite the setup for narcotics. The storage is full, close to half a ton."
"We've been looking for Rashidi everywhere. Your assistance is appreciated."
"My pleasure."
They had to wait until the complex was secured and the lieutenant gave the all-clear. Citing that they had transportation waiting, they refused the offer for a lift. Agent Carter was briefed on the spot. He promised their rewards would be processed quickly.
Once suitably away from the US forces, they teleported back to Metropolis.
—
Metropolis
Beckett Residence
While everyone went inside to rest, Miles waited in the backyard for Mophir to arrive. The armor he had given to the ancient tribal warrior was invisible to the outside but visible to him due to the selective camouflage.
He landed before him, and the armor peeled away.
Mophir's eyes were glowing with a childish wonder. Miles guided him inside without a word, letting the ancient man enjoy what he had seen. For someone who had spent thousands of years in that cave protecting the Heart of Darkness from the outside world, seeing the sun and the moon so close must be a dream.
"How do you feel?"
"Empty. Mophir protected that crystal for so long, I don't even remember when it began. It's gone now. Burned by the sun."
He had made the correct choice by choosing a house with good sound insulation because Mophir's laughter would definitely wake the household. Karen was a different matter, but since she did not get up, it appeared to be fine.
He let the old man tire himself out and showed him to another guest room.
—
"Who is our guest?" Raven asked dryly, pointing at the newest addition to the breakfast table. She knew better than to judge someone based on their looks, but the guest looked like the crazy old hillbilly she had seen in a cartoon.
"This is Mophir. He is a tribal warrior tasked with protecting a crystal carrying the souls of a serpentine-humanoid species known as the Ophidians that lived on Earth thousands of years ago," he said. Raven was in deep meditation while he planned to target the crystal. Everyone else already knew the story.
"Since he is here, I assume you destroyed the crystal?"
"Yes. Nothing a little trip to the sun couldn't solve."
Their Kryptonian guest downed her glass of orange juice, washing the chocolate pancakes down. "What are you going to do with him? He is way out of time."
Karen's words rang true. In canon, he had gone to play in advertisements. He did not feel like making him work after all he had sacrificed.
"How would you like to retire?" he asked the warrior, already preparing to explain what the word meant.
"Retire?"
"In our world, when people reach a certain age, they don't work anymore but enjoy the rest of their time in peace. I have another house in a faraway place." He took his phone out, displaying the images of the house and the lawn.
Once he had the time, he would buy Lana'i, an island that was on sale. It would give the old man a chance to explore without a worry.
"You can live there and enjoy your time. There are plenty of fun things you can do. Consider it a reward for your hard work."
"This is all yours?" Mophir asked, his eyes widening more with each image.
"It is. What do you say?"
"Mophir accepts."
"Wonderful."
"Baraka, Zalika, new task for you two. Teach Mophir about the modern world, how to use appliances and so on."
"Got it."
Karen, who was watching with a lazy smile on her face, pushed her chair back. "Thanks for the breakfast. You are really talented in the kitchen."
"Wait till you eat the barbecue he cooks. It is divine," Claire commented, taking the dishes.
His bodyguard leaned down to Karen's ear. "If you bag him, you are going to live like a queen," she whispered to the Kryptonian, winking at the end.
Karen chuckled and left the house with goodbyes.
"Shall we make you the host of a matchmaking show? Claire's Fiery Encounters, guaranteed to find you the love of your life," he suggested.
"No thanks. I'd rather crack heads than connect hearts."
"Still, though, dating her? You are one lucky man," Baraka said, a faint smile forming on his face.
His boss was the coolest.
—
Miles sat in his study, alone.
A rather problematic event was approaching. The Justice Lords, counterparts to the Justice League who had gone down a dark path following President Lex's execution of the Flash, would be upon them soon. He considered how to intervene.
Creating an android replica of himself was one option. The decoy would pose as Miles Beckett from the dimension of the Justice Lords. He would be kind enough to inform them of what the Lords had done on their Earth. The League would not even be deceived by the alternate Manhunter.
It came with its problems.
The android could be exposed in a thousand ways. It could be attacked; its lack of information on the Earth the Justice Lords had come from would make it clear there was something wrong, and even simple X-ray vision would show the truth. It would lead to uncomfortable questions.
Questions he did not wish to answer.
Something more foolproof was necessary. He could not directly accuse the alternate Manhunter. Casting suspicion on his motives would not deter the League from following to aid their embattled counterparts. Batman had not trusted the Justice Lord version of Manhunter from the start, but even he had followed.
Another, more direct idea came to mind.
He had to make a call.
—
EnviroCorps Robotics Research Center
His head tilted up and down as he walked in front of the line of nanotech androids. An army of mass-produced, highly adaptable synthetics meant to share a single pool of powers, switching as necessary. They were not at Amazo's level. The silver android was the crowning achievement of a dying man.
An expensive achievement.
The mass-produced versions, individually at least, were not strong enough to defeat all members of the League at once. As a swarm, they would overwhelm the seven of them.
"I still need time for the finishing touches. The construction bots are good for most of the work, but I have to handle the finer details."
"How long for this batch?"
"They will become operational gradually and help me finish the rest. So a week in total."
"Good. Excellent work, Thomas."
—
"You seem worried. Got word about something?" Claire asked. Her boss was forthcoming about the dangers they would face. His silence did not bode well.
"Did you ever have a sudden sinking feeling in your stomach with no explanation, only for something dangerous to come out of nowhere?"
"I did. Then my parents sent me to the Center for Paranormal Studies, and you know the rest."
"I have a feeling like that."
"Just a feeling?" Baraka asked, his brows creasing.
"I am not omnipotent, Baraka. Neither is any system out there without fault. I see more than most, but not everything. Instincts, however, tell us of dangers we can't see."
"Right now, I have no choice but to trust mine and prepare."
"You have another thing to prepare, just in case you forgot."
He smiled.
The remainder of the day was spent in preparation. He called Amazo to see how the android was doing. He was traveling all over the planet, learning, adapting, and helping wherever possible. He had promised to arrive quickly should a crisis break out.
The Red siblings were already at the tower and did not need to be called.
As the day came to an end, he slept with a resolute mind.
—
Breakfast was a light affair for him. He ate, shaved, took a shower, dressed casually yet stylishly, gave Claire and Baraka the day off, and left to meet Karen.
The teleporter saved him the trouble of driving.
She had arrived early, much as he had. Dressed in blue jeans, a white blouse, and a blazer jacket, the Kryptonian was breathtaking. "Milady," he greeted, landing a kiss on her knuckles.
"My, how suave."
"You deserve nothing less."
She chuckled, dragging him along. "Easy there, cowboy. You are going to make me blush."
"You dressed up nicely."
"I had time to learn as a teenager," he said. It was just one of the many parts of life he had to learn. Though this one certainly had a more apparent advantage in the current context.
"Just like you learned to barbecue? I am looking forward to that, by the way."
"Not to bore you with the details of my less-than-stellar life with my parents, but yes."
"No, no. Go ahead. Knowing you, it is bound to be something interesting. That is, if you want to speak about it."
"Let's take a seat and order first."
The restaurant was small but cozy. The smell of meat on charcoal grills, mixed with spices and herbs, made his stomach grumble in anticipation. They ordered a single deluxe plate. It was a mix of almost every item on the menu. They could try everything at once and decide for the future.
Orders placed, he began with his family life. His workaholic, career-focused father. His drunken mother, who had realized far too late that the person she had wed was not who she thought he was. Anecdotes from his childhood followed, mostly his adventures in learning to improve himself—not just theory, but practice as well.
"Following my father's death, she eloped with her boyfriend. As you can understand, I did not want anything to do with her."
"I would have done the same in your position."
Her life on Krypton was incomparably different. As a society with a rigid caste system, most of her life was predetermined before she was even born. Her parents were members of the Science Guild. Raised to be a scientist, she had actually come to enjoy the field.
Her parents were delighted upon discovering what a prodigy their daughter was.
Then came the tragedy of Krypton. The planet's core had destabilized, much like in this dimension. Brainiac had deceived the Science Guild. Her parents had seen the truth later than her uncle and aunt. Jettisoned from the planet on a pod after her infant cousin, Karen's journey had lasted years when the pod was damaged as her homeworld was torn apart.
Arriving to find the cousin whose diapers she had changed grown and physically older than her was a shock.
Between the kebabs, skewers, and a myriad of delicious dishes—tempered with ayran, a drink made from yogurt—she kept speaking about her life on Earth. Adjusting to a backward planet, no offense intended, and a nation with a wildly different society from her own had taken time.
The taste of self-determination won her over quickly. She was delighted by science, but the chance to determine her own path in the field rather than follow what her elders told her was intoxicating. She had quickly made a name for herself in the field of clean, cheap energy—something both Earths desperately needed.
She was surprised by his revelation that EnviroCorps was developing deuterium fusion reactors, and even more so when he mentioned they were close to a breakthrough. With what she knew and what EnviroCorps had in store, an opportunity existed.
One that could catapult the fusion reactor plans forward.
She agreed to reach out for cooperation once everything was set up.
"Is that why you invited me to this bounty-hunting adventure?"
"I had no need for the money, only the destruction of the crystal. I could have handed you the money, but I know from experience that such large sums tend to create friction. Once I learned that a Hassan with a reward on his head had seen the cave, I thought you might appreciate the opportunity."
"I do. Thank you for that." She could have gathered investors, but owning the company and deciding its future herself was far more efficient.
She raised her glass to meet his.
—
In the next chapter:
"You know, I half expected there to be a crime that would interrupt our date," Karen muttered, watching the surrounding area for any sign of a disruption.
Miles chuckled. "So did I, yet I never voiced it."
"Never took you for one as superstitious," she said, winking at him. He watched her blonde hair shine in the sun, her deep blue eyes twinkling.
A nearby explosion wiped her smile off.
Miles winked at Karen. The Kryptonian hung her head, mumbling, "Shut up."
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