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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.
—
Metropolis
EnviroCorps Robotics Research Center
"Energy absorption, you say? What kind?" Thomas kept firing questions while checking Baraka's state, though the young man was in perfect health by all signs.
"So far? Only the esoteric kind," Most scientists did not appreciate the term "magic" so easily, seeing it as a form of energy manipulation that could be solved through research, eventually.
Thomas stopped, raising an eyebrow with a dry look, as esoteric energy could refer to a lot of things, and he needed something more certain. "That being?"
"Sorcery of Morgaine Le Fay," If Thomas wanted more than that, he would need to find them alone, because Miles was not bringing Morgaine out of whatever hellhole she was imprisoned in.
"From the legends of King Arthur?"
"Not legends, as you can understand."
Considering his options, the android gave up. "Ah, I have no idea about the scientific background of her esoteric energy, so we'll start with what we know. Sit on that chair." He pushed Baraka forward, eager to start the testing.
"Now, I am going to expose you to electricity, but don't worry, it won't do more than just give you a small shock," Thomas explained while placing electrode pads on Baraka's chest.
It couldn't be worse than getting attacked by that witch, but Baraka still braced himself. "Okay."
"Felt anything?" Thomas asked, seeing no outward reaction from his test subject.
"No? Was I supposed to?"
"Let me increase the current." He dialed up the current, feeding more and more electricity to the human sitting on the chair, until the maximum level, and still, no reaction of pain or discomfort from the boy.
However, his hands began to glow, and Thomas shut down the current, approaching for an examination. "Fascinating, you absorbed more than enough to double our electricity bill."
"Next, let's try…"
—
For two hours, Thomas the android exposed Baraka to different energies, and the verdict was that the young man could absorb anything in the electromagnetic and thermal spectrum, including the small dose of radiation, but not mechanical energy, so he wasn't bulletproof.
Still, the radiation part had everyone's interest, because if Baraka's ability could be replicated on an industrial scale, they could use it for a variety of purposes. Even if it was limited, just being able to clean radioactively contaminated areas would be invaluable.
Chernobyl existed in this universe, and there was more than enough nuclear waste that the governments would pay handsomely to neutralize.
At his request—more like pestering Baraka non-stop—Thomas had finally convinced the young man to visit his labs for more tests in return for a space and help to train his powers.
—
Holt was still working on sabotaging Vandal's research, and the League members were busy with patrols and such, leaving Miles with nothing to do for now, except for planting the NEXTINSECTS in vital places, starting with Luthor's labs, office, and house.
Infiltrating the White House or an equally important government organization, such as Cadmus, would be his usual first choice, but there were changes, miniscule enough to not have an immediate effect but that would later grow in directions that he did not know.
Without the cancer caused by the kryptonite, who knew what Luthor's next step would be?
He would, once the bugs were in proper places. It took time to infiltrate all of Lex' holdings, but he had time until Michael was ready.
—
The car ride to their new house was silent until Baraka spoke, "So, I was thinking…"
"Go ahead," Now that he too had metahuman powers, Miles guessed it had something to do with a desire to put the said powers to use.
"Once I master my powers, can I come with you two?" Baraka asked, anxious.
Claire and Miles shared a look.
"Why?"
It took Baraka some time to come clean on the matter.
When he and Zalika were at the mercy of the gang all those months ago back in Korogocho, they were not expecting any rescue, yet Miles and Claire had come out of the blue.
Baraka wanted to pay back Miles for saving his life.
"I did not save your lives to make you two indebted to me. I did that to have the chance to offer Zalika a job, which I have. In that same vein, I can offer you a job, but I won't have you be some selfless martyr. I don't need a mindless drone to follow my every order, but a loyal person that can make his own decisions. Now, if you wish to fight on the field for what we are trying to accomplish, you will make sure to be ready for it."
He already had paid muscle to do his work and one loyal right-hand woman, a friend, but he definitely didn't need a person with the mindset of a martyr.
They tended to quickly spiral the whole matter of loyalty out of proportion.
"I got it, boss." Baraka flashed a thumbs up as he turned off the car.
"And no calling me boss." He still didn't like being called boss.
"Okay, Miles. When I am ready, I'll be there."
"Good."
Zalika was quiet, listening to her brother, one side dreading the thought of sending him off to fight villains, the other happy that Baraka was out of the limbo in what he wanted to do, but finally broke it, "I never asked, but Claire, do you fight for the same thing?"
"At first, it was for the money. You know my story, about the academy, the government, the island," Claire told her tale, starting from the planned nautical memorabilia heist, meeting Miles, and taking his offer.
For the first time in her life, someone was straight and direct with Claire Selton, and over time, as she saw that Miles was trying to actually make the world a better place and succeed, it became more than just about earning one million dollars a year.
Sticking it to the government, protecting the metahumans like her from being used, healing the environment, converting villains to the good side, and sending people like Black Mask and Roland Daggett to prison, Claire had found her purpose in life.
Fighting against oppressors like Agent Kurt, even if they weren't a part of the government.
She still wanted the money, though.
—
"Hey, I finished my work." Michael had called him close to the date of Vandal's plan to reach its conclusion.
"Excellent timing, Michael."
"The part we are changing is related to quantum telemetry. We turn a one to a zero, and when the machine is activated, everything goes according to Vandal's plan at first, before the portal just shuts down. The data will naturally show that time travel to the past is impossible for more than one reason."
"And once he believes that time travel simply won't work, I will arrange a small incident to destroy the lab, provided Savage does not dismantle the machine himself." It's best not to keep that machine standing around should Vandal discover another line of scientific research to lead him back to the idea.
"Then it's settled. I'll see you in three days."
—
For three days, Miles put his affairs in order to fully commit himself to deceiving Vandal Savage. The available NEXTINSECTs were all deployed, and Thomas was continuing production under extreme secrecy.
Too much work at once had slowed down his overall progress, but once the bugs and the relays entered mass production, his sole focus would be on the supercomputer and the satellite, marking the start of Overwatch.
Now, though, it was time to bring Vandal down a notch.
—
Michael had arrived in Metropolis for the second round of the talks with EnviroCorps and would stay in the city for two days for a tour.
The tour took them to the area of Vandal's lab, with a mobile lab built at the back of a van.
Claire was outside, watching the area for any sign of trouble while Michael worked his magic.
On the screen, Vandal had just run final diagnostics and ordered the clueless scientists to start the process. Two energy arcs met in the middle, and slowly, a gate was torn open in the fabric of space and time, showing nothing but the black void.
And just as quickly, it closed, wiping the triumphant smirk from Vandal's scarred face.
"What has happened? Why did the gate close?" Vandal demanded to know, scaring the scientists.
The sensors and scanners showed them the data, but in truth, it was Michael feeding them his carefully crafted package. "Sir, the preliminary data suggests that entropy sparked violently at the time backward causation began. The temporal portal, contrary to our theories, cannot seem to reverse entropy, and without achieving that, time travel is all but impossible," the senior researcher explained the exact reason Michael wanted them to.
"Let me see that." Vandal walked to the computer to personally examine the data in case of any errors by the scientists but found nothing else.
"Not only that, if I'm reading this right, the information from the past decohered instantly." As the genius in scientific matters, Michael had taken the initiative to create more than an impossibility for the idea of time travel to dissuade Vandal further.
Vandal bared his teeth, losing his cool, and said, "The universe refuses to allow new information to appear in its past, and even quantum tunneling cannot bypass it," and just like the scientists, reached the conclusion Michael wanted.
"Yes, sir."
"This entire project was a waste of time then."
"We apologize, sir."
"You are dismissed. This lab is closed, and you will be directed to other projects."
"Understood."
Michael chuckled, and Miles patted him on the shoulder. "I knew you were the right person for this job."
"You're welcome. Hey, Scientific Curiosity, mind if I keep these designs?"
Terrific was responsible enough to not screw around with the timeline, so Miles saw no reason to deny it. "As long as you don't time travel, by all means. Now, come on, celebratory dinner is on me."
—
Of course, just because victory was in sight didn't mean Miles would lower his guard. Vandal's lab was constantly watched should he return, and the two scientists assisting him were being trailed to find another one of the immortal human's bases, as well as to ensure they were actually relocated elsewhere.
But everything was going according to plan so far.
Taking Michael, Claire, and the kids with him, they went to a taco place, as their guest was more prone to choosing practical foods rather than fancy and expensive dishes.
—
Once Vandal Savage ordered the time machine to be dismantled, Miles knew they had succeeded, but he still had the bug stuck to the computer so it could be tracked to wherever Vandal had ordered it to be taken to.
Little by little, he would find Vandal's hideouts, labs, and most importantly, financial sources.
But for now, it was time for the vacation he had promised.
—
Hawai'i
"You are the best, boss," Claire complimented, handing Miles his drink while lying down on the lounge, enjoying the sun and the breeze.
She could spend the rest of her life here and never get bored.
Miles took a sip, appreciating the cold, citrusy taste. "I know."
"So humble too."
Baraka and Zalika were enjoying the water, having left Miles and Claire to just laze around.
The League, entrusting the matter of Vandal Savage to Miles, had mostly gone to help Green Lantern with a planetary disaster in a distant galaxy, as the space cop couldn't call for backup from the Corps.
He did not have the opportunity to hear the full reason behind why Green Lantern wanted their help for a mission across galaxies, but apparently, a ship had been stranded here due to an FTL malfunction while the crew was trying to escape from an event that would destroy their planet.
Long story short, and a lot of tears later, everyone except Batman and Miles was gone.
And with Vandal no longer looking to time travel to the past, the spacebound members would not find the entire world changed beyond recognition.
Alas, trouble was afoot.
"Officer, is there a reason you are harassing my charge?" Miles, having heard the commotion, smiled at the cop that was being rather belligerent to two teens enjoying the sea.
The cop took a step back, feeling a shiver go down his spine, while his partner stood at the back.
"We had reports of a disturbance in the area," the imbecile responded, and Miles lowered his sunglasses to convey his thoughts through his eyes.
"Wrong location then; there is no one causing a disturbance here." They were in a public space, though Baraka and Zalika were the only Black people in the area.
The cops were just being racist, a clear sign that they lacked proper intelligence.
"We still have to check."
"Understandable. However, do so while keeping your racism in check."
"Are you calling me a racist, sir?"
Miles pointed at the camera at the back, on the drink stand, which was seeing the entire area. "No, the camera back there does."
"Have a nice day." The racist fool made a hasty retreat, knowing it would backfire on him should those recordings be made public.
Claire, who was ready to spring forward like a cat watching prey, finally spoke, "I swear, next time, I am just going to kill that racist pig."
"Please, I have yet to see a pig act in any racist manner; do not insult those poor animals by comparing them to these." Baraka and Zalika found that amusing enough to continue enjoying the sea, though Miles grumbled, "I should have bought an island," under his breath.
—
Except for those racist police officers, their stay in Hawai'i was exemplary. Baraka had found some girls to hang out with, leaving his sister to learn surfing, while Claire was content with sunbathing, drinks, and food.
Being as objectively beautiful as she was, more than one man, and some women, had tried to speak to her, but she either ignored them, gently said no, or told them to get lost point blank, depending on the person.
Miles had looked to buy an island, or at least a large enough property to enjoy their next vacation in privacy, and found a nice mansion with its own beach and every other amenity to indulge in the full range of activities available.
The price was steep, as it was a gorgeous piece of prime real estate, and after negotiating on the details, he bought it.
Finding new staff for the mansion, refurbishing, and other necessary work meant they could not enjoy the place this time, but certainly for their next vacation.
—
The League had returned from their intergalactic relief effort; the world was still the same, with all its good, ugly, and evil, but thankfully without the Nazis. He informed them over the comms of the success of the operation and that he was tracking Vandal's movements.
The League's relief efforts were also a smashing success, stopping the indestructible meteor by directing it away from the star system.
—
In the next chapter:
"My apologies for interrupting your date," he said to Hawkgirl, who watched John leave with narrowed eyes.
"It wasn't a date," she rebuked. These days, whenever the two had some free time, he would always see the Thanagarian and the human spend time together.
It was heartwarming.
Miles smirked, "I hope not. The Watchtower shouldn't be anyone's idea of a romantic location, except for the view."
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