Chapter 2 The Justice League

I came to with a groan of pain. My throat felt parched and scratchy. I fluttered my eyes open and winced at the bright lights. "Here you go." A soft voice said, and a glass of water was added to my hand. I immediately brought it to my mouth and took a mouthful of the precious natural liquid. "Hey, hey, easy." The glass was only taken from my hands after I was done with it. Having fought valiantly and stubbornly without any pleading or begging. Let no one tell you otherwise! After I was done with the water, I looked at the other occupant in the room and gaped at just how beautiful she was. "… huh.. hi?" I lamely said. "If this is how angels wake people up in heaven, then thank God I was religious." The woman was blonde, with black lipstick, a black costume, and…wait. "Black Canary?" I asked tentatively, my brain finally catching up. I was having some heavy suspicions about who she was. She nodded and rose from the chair. " I'm glad to see you're awake. Do you remember anything?" My heart started hammering in my chest as I processed the implications of standing - well, more like lying in front of a fictional character. Her question also triggered my most recent memories, and I started breathing heavily. I was in a fictional world. I was in…crap…I was in DC! Going by the looks of Canary and her voice, Robin's relatively young ag,e and snarky attitude, I must be in Young Justice. Half-forgotten cartoon I'd watched out of boredom. All things considered, it wasn't the worst of the DC universe, so I was relatively safe. For now, ow that is. "Can I use the bathroom?" I asked her and she nodded, helping me up. She then directed me to a door on the left side of the bed, and I entered. Before I could close the door, she placed a hand on my shoulder, and I turned to look at her in question. "I'll be back with someone to do a check-up on you and make sure you're completely fine." I nodded. Not opposed to the idea. Besides, how else would I get the answers to my questions if I didn't cooperate with them? Acting stubborn would only increase Batman's suspicions of me, and from what I knew about the guy, that was one way to make your life harder. I patted myself down…I had a hole on my chest last I checked. A hole made by a bullet. One would think that being from the dangerous part of L.A., guns and such would be something that I was familiar with, even from just a passing glance,ce but that couldn't be far from the truth. I had friends who had friends who were involved in cr, but most folks were just trying to live their lives normally. A word that I couldn't use so casually anymore. In fact, how did I even get here? I remember my whole life, so the chances of a ROB messing with my memories and personality were minimal. I was also in my original body. Dark skin, brown eyes, messy hair in a Taper Fade, 5 feet 8, and a slim build from long hours playing basketball. What's next for me, I wonder? I splashed a fecups'ps worth of water on my face and swallowed the sudden lump that appeared in my throat. I wouldn't cry. Like Dad always says, 'make the best out of every situation'. I knew it wouldn't and couldn't be easy, but you know what? It is what it is and crying like a little bitch wouldn't solve anything. As if to reward me for reaffirming my will, a piece of folded Paper suddenly appeared in a flash and lazily drifted to my open palm. I unfolded it and read. -Congratulations. Due to your universe achieving 500 universal cycles and planet 'Earth' reaching a milestone by producing over a quadrillion number of sentient creatures, one lucky schmuck has been chosen for a never before seen chance. A...… Multiversal Ambassador!!!!! You (Incase you haven't figured it out yet) are that lucky schmuck. Interact with the people of this Universe and stand a chance to win €^{^¢|°√€√÷÷×π¥π¥°×^. And if you win €^{^¢|°√€√÷÷×π¥π¥°×^, then you get to be a ÷÷×π¥π¥°×^$(_#$-6. Get it? All this is geared to HELP you. A system was tailor-made for you that was judged to be just…right for this world. Do not fret, however, if you feel like it's limiting, achieve different Milestones and power will follow you soon after. Excelsior! Young Aden, and like your name, Be STRONG. P.S - You'll probably never hear from us again, we have a shit load of work to do but luckily the system is fully automated and draws the energy to keep itself running from what the humans of this world call ' The Bleed.' The program is very, very advanced; no one and nothing will notice it. P.P.S - Although the potential for your growth is limitless, do note that the system will not stray from its core functions. No crafting if the system is meant for fighting P.P.P.S - No one will be watching, so don't get yourself killed too soon before you reach ÷÷×π¥π¥°×^$(_#$-6, kid. P.P.P.P.S - This is the final one, I promise! Your chosen system is…The Avatar System! Not only that but also for reaching the milestone 'Out - of - depth - and Into - a - whole - other - universe' you get… Adaptable Body. Look at the System Interface to learn more. I finished reading the whole piece of paper and sat on the toilet seat numbly. The paper burst into flame, and I jumped a little before sitting down again and hugging myself. I gently started giggling. Out of the Quadrillion people who have supposedly existed throughout 500 universal cycles, I get chosen? Me? I mean, what qualifications did they even use? The guy with the nappiest hairstyle of all time? ( All I can say is I didn't use to look this good forever.) The door to the hospital room I was in opened, and I knew it was my cue to leave the bathroom. So you know what, I'm not going to care about any of that stuff. As long as these 'beings' didn't affect my life, I would live it as I saw fit. Out of sight, out of mind, and all that. I straightened out my hospital gown and left the bathroom. A few new additions were standing before my bed. One, a man dressed in an all Batman costume, Batman, another in the iconic red, blue, and yellow Superman costume, the last, dressed in a red costume munching on a Snickers bar, The Flash. Real life Superheroes in the flesh…wonder what they'll open the conversation with? "I didn't hear you, Flush." The Flash joke, and I chuckled. I've always liked his sense of humor. Not the time, though, given by the look Batman sent his way. The Flash looked away and said, "Wow. I love the decor." Superman snorted while Batman's glare intensified. "I'm just going to wait outside." The fastest man left the room in the blink of an eye. Batman levelled his gaze back at me. "We need to talk." He pulled up a chair towards the small table near the bed and placed a laptop on top of it. A logo of Wayne Tech appeared on the screen, and I swallowed a snort. Bruce then clicked on a video on the screen, and my eyes bulged out of their sockets. "What…" "That's you." I felt like shouting at him, ' I can see that,' but chose to focus on the screen instead. I was floating mid-air, a bubble of air surrounding me, rings of fire, earth, and water enclosed the bubble. The four elements. The Avatar State! I watched as I demolished the warehouse from before with a wave of my hand. Concrete broke free from the pavement and pelted the men running away in panic. A huge rock smashed a man into pulp, and I felt like vomiting after seeing the blood pool on the ground. I snarled and flames chased after a few men and burned them to a crisp. The camera evaded a huge rock and changed position. The last take they had of me before the footage ended was a black figure jumping in to stop me. I had my hand on my mouth as I looked at Batman. "I…I don't remember any of that." " That doesn't change the fact that you took the lives of three people and injured six others. Including Robin." It was like a gut punch once he delivered the last line. Robin was hurt? "God, is he alright ?… I swear I never meant for any of that to happen." Superman placed a hand on Batman's shoulder, cutting off whatever he wanted to say next. He ground his teeth and placed a bag on top of the bed. "Inside, there's a change of clothes. Get cleaned,p nd Superman here will walk you to the Cafeteria to get something to eat. After that, we will continue this conversation." Saying that, Batman turned around and walked off. Superman sighed as the door closed and patted me on the shoulder. "Don't worry about him. He's just been very worried about Robin." I shook my head, still feeling awful. "No, I understand. It's just that…" Superman sat on the table as I trailed off. "He's like that with every,ody so don't let it get you down, kid." "It's Aden. Aden Strong." Superman smiled widely. " Cool name. I'm Superman." We shared a laugh, and slowly I calmed down. I was loath to bring it up once more, but it needed to be said. " I don't remember doing any of that." He nodded understandingly. "When I got my powers, I almost hurt the people I care about. So I know what you must be feeling. What's done is done, and you can only move forward and make up for your past actions by doing something meaningful with your new powers. No one blames you for what happened, Dadenn, so don't blame yourself. There's nothing as bad as holding on to guilt. It eats you from the inside." He got off the table and smiled that million-dollar smile again, radiating warmth and reassurance. It was a reminder that everyone made mistakes, but it was how they chose to rise from them that truly mattered. “Let's focus on how you can use your abilities to help others. You have the chance to turn this around and become someone people can rely on.” His encouragement sparked a flicker of hope in Dadenn’s eyes, and for the first time, he felt the weight of his burden beginning to lift. "Now then, how about you get cleaned up and I'll introduce you to the rest of the League?"