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Chapter Text

Chloé Bourgeois did her best to contain her excitement as she sat in the back of the limousine with her mother. Her mother got to travel the world all the time and to the older woman this was all old news, however for the younger girl this was the first time she was allowed to join her. She no longer had to fantasize about going on trips with her mother to spend quality time together and if you asked Chloé who she'd thank for this turn of luck, it would be a girl she bullied for most of her life.

Marinette Dupain-Cheng. 

"Chloé! Will you stop daydreaming!" Said blonde winced as she looked to her mother, who had been talking to her while she was deep in thought. "Honestly it's ridiculous! Utterly ridiculous! I'm trying to warn you about the dangers of this city and you're probably thinking of a boy!" 

"I'm sorry mother." Chloé knew it'd be pointless to fight the woman so Chloé simply gave in. Some days she wished she had kept quiet about her Queen Bee identity, then she could fight back against her mother with no repercussions. 

Ah the mistakes of attention seeking, are there any more cruel? 

"Since I must repeat myself, I understand your a hero now and can defend yourself and Metropolis is nowhere near as dangerous as Gotham," Audrey shuttered at the mention of the city three counties away. "But with everything going on, it would be better to let the other heroes handle it."

Chloé soured a little at the reminder of 'Everything else going on'. The United Nations under the leadership of Lex Luthor had banned the Justice League from acting in the affairs of other nations. On paper it would sound like a good thing if not for the fact it forced other nations heroes to solve problems on their own. Like with France and Hawkmoth.

"I understand, but I'm still not giving you the comb." Chloé said in a more forceful tone, instantly backing down. "I mean, since Ladybug handed it to me personally, no one else can use it." 

That was a lie of course, but Audrey didn't know that. And what mother doesn't know won't hurt her. 

Audrey just let out a hmmph as she sat back in the cushioned seat. 

"Well just remember after the interviews we have a meeting and some photo shoots at the office. Then we'll be heading to Lexcorp for a new material they've synthesized that's just to die for!" The designer became more lively as she listed off their planned itinerary.

"What about the Wayne Foundation's Eco Contest?" Chloé asked.

"Oh. That." Audrey spat as if it were an afterthought. "We'll just have to go to the next one."

"But… my class was being presented the award." Chloé said the words in a whisper, trying to hide the sadness from her mother but she heard it.

"Honestly Chloé, are you going to throw a tantrum just because you won't get what you want?" It was a good thing they weren't in Paris, cause the rage Chloé felt at those unfair words would have gotten Hawkmoth's attention.

She suddenly had a flashback to two weeks ago, the argument that changed everything . Sabrina was upset, she was actually yelling at Chloé while Lila stood behind her and smiled like an evil snake. Chloé had challenged Lila after the Italian girl ordered her to stay away from Adrian. Now Chloé was discovering just how deep her claws were in the others.

It truly hurt that even though Lila orchestrated this conflict, she had enough kindling from many previous actions Chloé made. Then, unexpectedly, someone stepped in. 

It didn't make sense to Chloé, Marinette was already becoming a pariah in the school. Surely defending her would make things worse for the baker's daughter, so why would she step in and try to explain that the true culprit was the siren mesmerizing the school? Chloé understood now of course. Why does any good person do a good thing, not for recognition or superiority but because it is the right thing to do.

It was a lesson her mother didn't seem to like. Audrey had always taught Chloé that kindness was a weakness and adoration was the only thing important, much to the chagrin of her father and her butler Jean. 

Chloé was about to reply when something slammed into the limo they were in, flipping it over. Both Bourgeois women hung upside down in the overturned car by their seatbelts, Chloé still conscious but with a cut over her left eye while her mother was out cold.

"My Queen!" Pollen appeared from her Miraculous, looking worriedly over Chloé. Normally Audrey would chide both Kwami and her user about the spiritual creature being out in the open but this was an emergency.

"I'm okay Pollen." Chloé groaned as she held her hand against the wound, finding the blood soaking her hand. The two heard the groan of metal and fiberglass as the limo was suddenly lifted off the ground. 

"How about a new game, Superman?" A booming, childish voice called out before the car shifted again. "CATCH!" As the car began to enter the climax of the toss Chloé's stomach turned, 

"Pollen! Buzz on!" In a flash, the (not so) simple high school student transformed into one of Paris's protectors: the heroine Queen Bee. The weightlessness of the car became a sudden drop as a high pitched hum met with a pain filled groan outside.

With quick movements, Queen Bee ripped her mother free of the seatbelt before tumbling the two of them out of the falling car. The melody of broken glass and bending metal met her ears again as the vehicle she was once in laid upside down and smoking just a few feet before them. 

The ground shook accompanied by a booming thud, like giant footsteps, as Queen Bee turned to the source. A giant robot toy looked down at her, the huge grey alien styled head turning slightly to the side as it studied her. She knew this toy, many children in Paris were playing with them just last week. If the feeling she got when one child threw the toy at her head was any indication, she'd hate to get hit by this thing.

"Well what do we have here?" A nasally voice wheezed. "Pesky Bee. I know how to deal with you~" The child-like voice of the toy robot declared before raising a foot. While on her own, Queen Bee could dodge the giant foot easily, unfortunately she also had her unconscious mother with her so that left catching the giant foot instead. 

She heard the creaking from the metal limb as it dropped down in an attempt to crush her and closed her eyes, bracing for impact. She waited but she never felt the unyielding weight of the giant mecha on her shoulders, the clear groan of pistons struggling to move in the air. Chloé cracked an eye open to find floating just above her was a boy.

His clothing looked more like a kid attempting a low budget Superman cosplay with a motorcycle jacket styled red and blue with the zipper cutting through the 's' shield in the middle of his chest, faded blue jeans with the cuffs of his jeans darker thanks to burns. A black mop of hair was windswept back, allowing Chloé to look at a pair of majestic navy blue eyes.

"Hey, umm…" Superboy let out a grunt as he tried to hold back the metal foot. "Would you mind getting out of the way?" He asked with a weak smile. Chloé shook her head then gently picked up her mother to get out of the danger zone. 

He dug his fingers into the sole of the robot's foot then shot up high, forcing Toyman's mech off balance. The supervillian let out a scream of shock before his newest toy slammed into the road.

"N-no fair." The pilot let out a dazed whine as the robot attempted to sit up. A blue and red blur slammed into the robot's head, making it bounce back onto the road.

There was no mistaking the figure hovering over the robotic form. The red cape attached to his broad shoulder billowed behind him as he looked down to his beaten foe. Determination was etched on his face as well as caution, a look Chloé was all too familiar with.

"It's over, Winslow." The man of steel stated as Superboy joined him. "Give up now and maybe we can work out getting you a nice cell at Rykers." Superman said with his arms crossed. The toy head tilted up to look at the Super duo.

"Oh Superman… this was just the first round." One of the obsidian eyes took an emerald glow before firing a beam at the two. Superman took the brunt of the blast, the Kryptonian letting out a cry of pain as he was thrown back into a building. Superboy took a smaller portion of the beam, causing him to fall into one of the cars parked around them. The chest of the large robot opened up to reveal a smaller, 80's themed robot, the figure more a suit then a giant robot crawled out. "Here comes round two."

The second robot had a green glow emanating from the gaps in its armor plating, eyes and boosters. The robot rocketed toward Superboy as the younger Kryptonian struggled to stand. A fist slammed into the boy's chest, the car underneath him crumbling like paper.

Before he could deliver another punch to the younger hero's body a top slammed into the face of the robot. He followed the smaller toy back to its owner… The French heroine.

"That's enough you diminutive troll!" Queen Bee announced as her top bounced up, the blonde smoothly snatching it out of the air. "You have some nerve ruining my trip, I think I should teach you some manners." The figure just looked at her and laughed. 

"You might be hot stuff back in Paris, but you're in the states kid." Toyman mocked her with a chuckle, the tips of its index fingers splitting open to reveal a type of barrel. "A whole new playground you're not even supposed to play in." 

Green energy built up in an orb of energy just above its fingers before opening fire. With her mother safe behind a car, Chloé ducked and weaved around the blasts fired at her by the villain. The attacks were unnaturally warm but thanks to the power of the Miraculous, she was able to dance around the beams trying to strike her. She threw her top again, the rotating toy bouncing off a car door and right into one of the hands.

*CRACK* 

The robotic hand was ripped from the wrist socket, revealing a smaller hand underneath. He screamed, putting his hand underneath his left armpit. She jumped in the air, able to catch the top before pouncing on him. 

"Venom!" At her word, the tip of the spinning toy turned into an elongated sharp point, she jabbed it into the man's shoulder. The metal around his body creaked as he was frozen in place.

"No! No! I have to get back inside before the charge…" The green energy faded as a low hum died down. Superboy swayed as he got to his feet and took hold of the suit. With the same ease as opening a bag of chips, Superboy ripped the man free of the metal shell.

Chloé was familiar with Toyman's image, the man looking more like a father from an American 60's show with a blue and white diamond sweater vest and cream slacks. Then again there was the mask he wore, a ceramic piece sculpted like a doll's head with holes in the nose and pupils to allow him to both see and breath. The unnerving smirk etched on its features as he looked at the French girl.

"No fair, outside interference! This was a Metropolitan only game!" He screamed, pointing accusingly at Queen Bee. Superman soon joined the scene just in time for the foreigner to change back into her civilian form. 

"Throwing cars with people in them isn't a game, Toyman." Superman stated as the M.C.P.D arrived on the scene. Leading the charge in a squad car were two detectives: a short man in a blue suit with a white dress shirt underneath and a black tie, his gray hair was styled back, a pistol held tight in his hand. With him was a tall, short haired blonde in a brown trench coat with a black turtleneck underneath and gray slacks. Like her partner, her gun was drawn at the ready.

"Sorry Superman, we were dealing with InterGang at the docks when we got the call about Toyman." The man said as he rushed over to cuff the defeated villain. He then noticed a faint glow coming from the larger robot. "Don't tell me… Kryptonite." The older man sighed in annoyance.

"I can tell you from the blast, it felt like the synthetic stuff." Superman joked with a smile. While the blonde woman was  ordering a group of officers to deal with the Kryptonite, Superman turned to the now depowered Chloé. "You're a French hero, right? Queen Bee? Thank you for the help." 

Superman held out his hand with a warm smile on his face, a calming aura radiating off the man. Before she could shake it, the shorter detective stepped between them.

"Detective Dan Turpin. Miss, if what Superman is saying is right then I'm afraid you'll need to come down to the station with us since…" The man stopped, a sour expression crossing his face. " President Luthor and the U.N. instituted the Foreign Heroes Act." He said the words with an annoyed growl, looking away from Chloé. 

"Detective Turpin, with all do respect there is a loophole to the F.H.A that allows a traveler to use their abilities in a life or death situation. One miss Bourgeois had found herself in." Superman stated, the older detective perking up with a mischievous grin. 

"Oh, is that a fact? Well, then it looks like my hands are tied." Turpin laughed, raising his hands. "Between us, I still don't trust Luthor as far as Big Blue here can throw him." This caused Superboy to laugh, though Chloé was somewhat more uncomfortable at the joke. That's when they heard the yelling. 

Turpin's partner stood with her arms crossed while Audrey was now conscious, roaring insults at the woman. Turpin marched over to the pair, leaving the heroes on their own.

"Oh no…" Chloé sighed in embarrassment. Both American heroes winced at the fighting (mostly about both the car and luggage) then turned their attention back to the uncomfortable teen. 

"Hey, you really helped us out there." Superboy began. "Like how your top thing messed up his armor so he couldn't fire shots at us."

"Thank you, but you gave me the chance to pull my mother out of the way." Chloé then chuckled, looking at the woman. "For better or for worse." The two teens shared a laugh while Superman just smiled at the kids.

"-And unless you have my luggage, you can direct any other questions to my lawyer!" Audrey marched over to her daughter, grabbing her wrist. "Come along Chloé! We're leaving!" She growled before dragging her daughter away.

Chloé looked back at the heroes, both giving her a sad wave before they turned their attention to the now powerless robot.

"Honestly, this town and their monkeys in tights." Audry grumbled as she marched forward, pulling Chloé close behind. "And you. You couldn't have tried to save our belongings?" Chloé really struggled to bite back a response as they walked down the street, some watching and whispering about the French Hero.

It was a fact that life tended to be harder for heroes with well known identities, something Chloé from a year ago didn't really didn't really consider. That's a lie, it was more she didn't care about all that.

Thanks to Toyman, Chloé was beginning to worry about a target on her back, not just from the villains but also from the police as well. At least Superman and Superboy didn't seem bothered by her appearance in town. But then again Superman is known to be the ultimate nice person (just beating Marinette) so maybe he did have issues but was just keeping them to himself! 

Chloé shook the neurotic thoughts out of her head. It was fine, she just needed to not transform again and there'd be no problem. That was something totally do-able.

After trekking through three blocks of the bustling city with her mother switching to a low fumming annoyance they finally arrived to their destination. 

The bronze hue of the concrete building clashed with the silver and white hues of the other buildings around it, this however was more of a benefit to the landmark as it drew your eyes. If that wasn't enough, the sculpture atop the bustling news station/news paper really sold the brand. A recreation of the Earth spun on an axis with a ring sitting neatly in a slant with the words Daily Planet standing large for all to see.

"How gauche ." Audry sneered as she stared up unimpressed at the sight. Chloé honestly felt indifferent at the building as thoughts of some of her classmates came to mind. A year ago, Chloé would have mocked Alya that she was going to the place her idol worked or teased one of the comic book duo about how she'd met the Man of Steel himself. 

Now however, those thoughts made her feel regret. As Chloé watched her mother march into the building she made a vow that she'd be better than her past self, better then her mother, no matter how long it takes.

Chapter Text

A gust of wind blew through the Daily Planet's highest floor, the area currently under reconstruction from a villain attack earlier in the week. The absence of people and tarps covering the windows made it the perfect place for heroes to change into their civilian look (or as some called it, their 'Civies'). Thanks to the power of good old vitamin C to their Kryptonian DNA, Superman and Superboy swiftly returned to their normal identities: The father/son duo of Clark Kent and Jon Lane-Kent. 

With a bit of messing his hair lost the windswept look and returned to its messy mop-top state, a contrast to his father's neat right-side parted hairstyle. Their clothing style also clashed, Clark dressed in a two-piece blue suit with a white dress shirt and black tie while Jon wore a teal shirt under an open white shirt and gray jeans.

"That's the fifth time this week we've dealt with Kryptonite." Jon sighed as he put on his fake glasses. "I thought the JLA destroyed it all?" 

Jon looked at his father, seeing the older man slowly put on his pair of glasses with a concerned gaze out the window.

"They did. Someone else is making more." The statement held a twinge of worry as the older Kryptonian pulled something out of his super suit. 

To anyone else it would appear that he simply pulled out a case of wireless headphones, even opening it to put one of the buds in his ear. He pressed down on the remaining earpiece till it clicked, and a whirring noise began from the device activating a scan that soon gave way to a projected holographic screen. Appearing on the projected screen was Mr. Terrific, the dark-skinned man typing on a tablet.

"You're on with the WatchTower, how can we help?" He looked up from his second screen for a moment then did a double take, quickly putting the second device down. "Oh, Superman! How can I help you?" 

"We had another villain using Synthetic Kryptonite, I was hoping there was new information about where it's coming from?" 

The other superhero sighed.

"I got good news and bad news, but you aren't gonna like both." Mr. Terrific sighed. "The samples we obtained from MPD don't match the signature of any made from Lex Corp, but we do have a sample match, it's just..." He paused, "It's a match for the batch created by Dr. Emil Hamilton."

Jon heard the strain of the device as his father tightened his grip.

"Does that mean we missed some?" Clark asked, his face becoming more serious.

"No. The rate of decay in the radiation levels is only three days old." Mr. Terrific seemed to perk up. "I can call Batman. We can look into this for you-"

"Batman has a personal matter to deal with, besides… I need to be the one to handle this." It was clear to the two privy to the conversation that the legendary 'Man of Steel' was dreading this whole thing. "Keep me posted if you find something else." 

"Of course. Stay safe out there big guy." The screen vanished as Mr. Terrific ended the call. With a heavy sigh, Clark removed the earpiece and returned it to the case. 

"You know Batman wouldn't mind helping, Pa." Jon began, "That whole plan with Damian's girlfriend ain't till tomorrow, he could-"

"Jon." The boy stopped as his father looked weary. "This is my responsibility. After we do the interviews, I'll make a quick trip to Blackgate and have a word with him. You, on the other hand, will be in charge of the city."

Jon's mouth went dry at that. Sure he's protected the city before but he had someone like Karen or Dr. Irons watching his back. However only he and his dad were currently on Earth, the closest Super off-world being Karen, who was healing in the Watchtower.

"The- You sure Pa?" He asked, scratching the back of his head. "I mean, I haven't done it solo before. What if I mess up?" His father laughed, patting his shoulder. 

"I promise, it'll just be an hour. I have faith in you, Jon." The smile his father had with encouragement was legendary, filling people with hope and courage.

"I- Yes, sir." While extremely nervous still, Jon tried stuffing down those feelings to do what he was told. 

"Good, now we should probably meet up with your mother." Clark's face then held a strained smile. "Quickly… Audrey and Chloé just entered the building." Perking his ears, Jon could already hear the excessive complaining and energetic conversation the older woman was having with her daughter about their hero suits.

The elevator opened with a ding to the busy floor of ' The Daily Planet's writers' room. From traditional news methods like Newspapers to Online Opinion pieces and everything in between. As Clark walked further through the crowd of journalists, Jon stopped to watch Jimmy Olson.

"Hey there everyone, it's Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olson, giving you a sneak peek at the latest news of 'The Man of Steel' and 'The Super Family'." The redhead gleefully exclaimed. "Join us later today as we bring you the story of Toyman's latest attack and the surprise save from an out-of-towner. Then tune in tomorrow as we speak to Kon-El, fresh off his trip to Mars with some big news. All this and more on Olson's Orbit , only on The Daily Planet App ." 

With a click, the recording ended, Jimmy sighing as he wiped the sweat from his brow. He opened his eyes to find the boy looking at him with a grin.

"Hey, Johnny. Here to see your mom?" Jimmy greeted the kid with a matching smirk as the two hugged. 

"Yep." With a more mischievous expression, Jon leaned closer and whispered. "So… what's this about a new hero helping out Superman and Superboy?" Jimmy looked around then leaned down with him. 

"Toyman was using a dual mech suit powered by Kryptonite, he had our heroes on the ropes when a French hero popped up. Rumor has it-" 

"FINALLY! You'd think a building like this would have faster elevators!" All eyes turned to the elevators where Audrey Bourgeois and her daughter marched out. (Well one marched out, the other tried to sink into herself). Jimmy let out a squeak and then dived under his desk. 

As Jon watched the woman march across the floor with her daughter in tow, Jon tried not to sigh. Five years ago, the 5th-dimensional being known as Mr. Mxyzptlk was released from a prison by Jon. As a thank you, the impish being fixed a big issue his family was having: that they were in fact from an alternate reality. 

Jon won't lie, things were hard for a while. His dad was accused of being a fake Superman, his mom was unable to report live incidents since the previous Lois Lane died live on T.V. from a bomb's detonation. Then just like that, Mxyzptlk merged their timelines. Lois survived the bombing, and Superman never had Solar poisoning but of course, there was a price.

Since the other timeline never had a child whose parents were Clark Kent and Lois Lane, there were moments when Jon had no idea about something that had happened. One instance was when his folks talked about the time the 'Boy of Steel' traveled to Paris with his mom. 

Audrey stopped midway through her stride to look at Jon. Whatever she was going to say was gone the minute she noticed Jimmy hiding 

"Olson! I see you're still working here." She sneered at the nerve wrecked ginger. Jon stepped in between them, the woman tipping down her glasses. "And… why do you look familiar?" She looked him up and down, the girl behind her looking mortified.

"Jonathan Lane-Kent, Ma'am." He replied with a smile, not giving the woman the fear she seemed to want.

"Ah yes, the Kent boy." She spat out his last name with a tinge of disgust. "Is your mother here?" 

"Yeah… I'll take you to her," Jon said leading the two blondes away from the still-cowering Jimmy. Near the other side of the large room were the conference room and a few offices, the largest belonging to the Planet's owner Perry White while the second largest belonged to his mother, Lois Lane. Thanks to the blinds being open the three could see both Clark and Lois in an embrace, Lois cradling her husband's head in the crook of her neck.

"... It's going to be okay Clark." Jon listened through the walls as his mother comforted his father. "You've more than redeemed yourself from what Darkside made you do, even if Dr. Hamilton still won't see it." Lois then opened her eyes and groaned. "Oh, crap… She's here."

"Yeah… I meant to warn you." He heard his father laugh. With a groan, she broke the hug and walked out of the office.

"Lois! Darling!" The fashion designer called out, rushing over to the brunette. She kissed both her cheeks and then looked at the taller man. "Kent." 

"Always nice to see you, Mrs. Bourgeois," Clark said with a smile, receiving a flat look from the woman. 

"And I take it this is your daughter, Chloé, right?" Lois asked, earning a smile from the girl. Before she could answer, Audrey butted in.

"Yes yes, now come, we have much to speak about and so little time." The Lane-Kent family watched the girl physically deflate at the action of her mother, causing Clark to step up.

"Mr. Bourgeois, would you mind if I interviewed Chloé? It's not often I get the chance to interview a real hero." The family had to hide their snickers at the statement, technically true that 'Clark Kent' hadn't interviewed a hero before.

"Fine, fine. Shall we begin, Lois?" The duo soon walked into the office, leaving the three heroes alone.

"Um… Monsieur Kent?" Chloé began, pausing to take a breath to collect herself. "Before we begin I wish to apologize. Both to you and your son." For a moment she looked at the office her mother was in before continuing. "I know the last time we met I was une horreur absolue, but I want you to know I have changed, I promise." 

"There's no need to apologize." Clark quickly began with a comforting smile. "The more we grow, the more we learn and change. It's only when you learn you're doing wrong and keep doing it that's a problem."

The French heroine gave a smile to the older man before something flew out of her pocket. 

"See? I told you, my Queen." The small creature chirped happily. "It's not about who you were, but who you'll become." The girl held a hand up as the creature nuzzled her cheek.

"Hey, uh… What's that?" Jon asked, pointing to the tiny thing. To the boy, it reminded him of an alien bee creature. At Jon's mention, the creature zoomed behind Chloé's head. Chloé gently reached back, cupping the big-eyed creature in her hand.

"Hey, it's okay." She cooed to the small creature before looking up at the reporter and son. "Mr. Kent, Jon, meet Pollen. Pollen, this is Clark Kent and his son." 

The small creature peered out from over Chloé's fingers to look at the two, giving them a meek wave.

"If I remember correctly, the French Heroes use mystical creatures to help them fight, right?" Mr. Kent asked as he penciled some notes on paper.

"You are. Ladybug told me that The Kwami are living embodiments of stuff like Creation, Destruction, Illusions, and in Pollen's case, Subjugation." At the blonde's words, Jon brightened up.

"So, like the Lantern Corps? You know, Green is Will, Red is Rage." Pollen floated up, appearing to be braver.

"That's a little more complicated." The small creature squeaked, "The Kwami-" The small creature began to hiccup, bubbles spewing out her mouth. "Sorry, there are some things we can't talk about without our Guardian's permission,"  Pollen stated with a frown.

"It's okay, I can understand keeping secrets." The reporter said with a knowing smile.

The Daily Planet abruptly trembled as the nearby windows exploded. The others working by the windows either ducked under the desk or ran to safety as a figure floated above them all.

"Superman?!" Chloé cried out in fear as both Clark and Jon cringed. She wasn't the first to mistake the imposter for the real thing, after all, he even fooled Lois when he first appeared. But then there was the key difference, that being the figure's half-mechanical body.

"Cyborg Superman," Jon growled as he stepped between Chloé and the fake. Looking closer at the metal nightmare, Jon noticed the fiend's metal parts seemed to have been upgraded from the crude designs CADMUS Labs crafted.

"What are you doing here, Hank?" Clark asked as he glared down the abomination. The man said nothing, dismissing the reporter instead to scan the room. 

"There she is." His synthesized voice purred. The three followed his line of sight over to where Audrey and Lois stood shocked. Before anyone could move, The Cyborg Superman took a deep breath and blew the group across the room!

This was the hard part honestly, at least for Jon. Clark had worked for years figuring out just how to act for things like getting hit by a ball, falling from a great height, and even getting hit by an oversized mallet! Jon had been learning to do the same but there were a few instances where he needed to kinda use his abilities, like when blown out a window and plummeting to the ground.

Holding the blonde in his arms, Jon flew their bodies closer to a construction site to try and miraculously grab a ledge or girder. Instead, one swung into his side, sending both he and the girl he was trying to save through a large condo building. To a human, going through four walls, a few dozen pipes, and tons of wiring would be life-ending, to the Kryptonian however, he may as well have been hit with wet noodles.

"Wait… how…?" Chloe worked her way out of Jon's arms, looking between the destroyed walls and then back to Jon, her mouth hanging open. "WHAT?!" Jon just sighed, dusting himself off.

"Look, I know you have a million questions but I gotta get back," With a quick whirl that'd make a tornado jealous, Jon was out of his civies, only the shirt he was previously wearing was destroyed, holding together by strips. 

"My mom is in trouble." He abandoned his clothes with Chloé, shooting back toward the Daily Planet.

Floating in the air was the former human, Hank Henshaw, holding his mother in one hand and Jimmy Olson in the other. The second the insane duplicate noticed him the man reared back his arm and chucked Lois through the air, swiftly throwing Jimmy in the opposite direction.

The former human suddenly charged Jon, the Superboy using his abilities to keep them both from slamming into a building. This seemed to surprise the Cyborg Superman.

"Well, what do we have here… someone's been eating his vegetables huh?" He laughed as Jon began to push back harder. "No… this is something else… The Genetic Matrix, right kid?" 

Jon grimaced at the bad memory creeping into his head, of his time in The Phantom Zone . Wherever the thought process was going to lead was cut short as Superman blew into his doppelganger. 

"Superboy, Jimmy!" With the distraction, Jon turned away from the two and shot after Jimmy Olson. Superboy weaved through the buildings, collecting speed as he charged toward the sound of screaming. 

He found Jimmy twenty feet from the ground and closing the gap fast! Jon's heart pumped harder as time seemed to crawl slower, allowing the hero to move faster. With a quick twist, he flipped his body around to catch the reporter with a good five feet from the ground to spare.

Jimmy took deep breaths, looking between the hero and the ground.

"I'm getting too old for this stuff." He sighed, wiping sweat from his brow. Superboy set the redhead down, letting out a sigh of relief himself. That's when a look of recognition crossed his face. "Superboy, you need to hurry back to Superman!" 

*BANG*  

Jon froze, his eyes going wide in shock. It wasn't the sound of the gunshot that caused his reaction or the scraping of metal against metal, no it was the dual screams of pain that followed. 

"No!" As he turned away to fly off another gunshot filled the air. "Aghaaaaaaaaa!" The bullet burned as it ripped into his shoulder. He screamed, falling onto his back as he could no longer stay in the air.

"Damn." A voice huffed, accompanied by heavy footsteps. "My aim assist needs an update." 

Jon opened one of his eyes, his tears giving way to see the man who spoke. The toe-headed man appeared to be just another man with green eyes dressed in an expensive tan suit. Then Jon noticed the right arm of the suit torn apart, replaced with a large gun.

Seeing the man, Jimmy rushed to the only thing he could grab, a large trash can, holding it over his head.

"Stay back, Metallo!" Jimmy yelled, charging forward. The other man smirked and raised his left arm, the limb growing in length to lash out at Jimmy, throwing him into a car.

"Stop humiliating yourself, Olson." Metallo sneered as his hand retracted back to his arm. Jon attempted to crawl back but the pain in his shoulder began to spread to the rest of his body. 

The man's eyes held a green gleam to them joined with a sadistic smile as he pressed the heel of his designer shoes into Jon's wound. The teen let out a cry of pain as the man was able to keep him pinned to the road.

"I won't miss this time," The man laughed as he cocked his right arm. He pointed the barrel at the hero's face as a crowd began to gather, some begging Superboy to get up. "Goodbye, Superboy"

*BANG*

Chapter Text

Chloé stood with her mouth a gap. No way. No way that just happened. She slapped her cheeks in an attempt to wake herself up, but all it did was make her face hurt.

Her mind then raced back to when they first met. Chloé was little and her mother was home for once which made her Papa ecstatic. Gabriel was over so she was playing with Adrikins when some more people showed up to speak with their parents, with them was a small boy around her and Adrian's age… Or was he younger? 

He spoke in a funny accent and was kinda a pushover. She remembered he was crying because she told him he couldn't be a knight when they were playing knight and princess. He didn't want to be just 'the farm boy'.

"My Queen?" Chloé shook herself free of the memory, returning to the present. Chloé ruffled as she realized Jon's clothing was in her hands and after placing his wallet and phone in her purse, she threw the outfit on the floor.

"That…That…" Her face grew red as she reached into her open bag. "If he thinks I'll just sit here and watch his things, he has another thing coming!" Chloé removed a case from her purse. She opened the container to reveal seven honey buns in different colors, pulling out the purple one. "Pollen! Power up!" 

The Bee Kwami opened her mouth wide, eating the treat in one bite. The moment she swallowed the power up her body gave off a purple glow before transforming.

Now, Pollen had a pair of glowing gossamer wings on her back, the Kwami giggling as they fluttered. Chloé put the case back, walking over to the hole Superboy had created.

"Pollen, Buzz On!" As Chloé transformed for the second time that day her appearance had altered somewhat. The top of her unitard had changed to black with six glowing yellow stripes on her body and two on each shoulder then yellow with black stripes leading into black boots. A bubble-like dome sat on her head with a pair of bug-like antennae. 

While this suit was built for space travel, it would still give her the speed she needed to catch up with the Kryptonian. At least she hoped so. 

She jumped out of the hole and flew upward to try and get a bearing of where he went. In the distance, she could see two figures floating by 'The Daily Planet' when a third suddenly smashed into the locked figures. Thanks to her new helmet, she could focus on them and see Superman talking to his son, the image suddenly zooming out as Superboy soared off.

She tried her best to follow after him but once he sunk further into the building lines she lost sight of him. She flew around buildings to try and find him, growing frustrated as she couldn't find him.

*BANG*

Her stomach dropped as she made a one-eighty turn, charging around the Metropolis branch Waynetech building to find Jimmy Olson thrown into a car. She followed the retracting arm to a man dressed in a gaudy suit, his other arm a large gun. 

He stepped on Superboy's shoulder, causing the boy of steel to scream out in pain.

"I won't miss this time," The man mocked as he cocked his right arm. A crowd had formed, people screaming at the scene as the man aimed his gun at the boy's face. Very little was left to the imagination as to what the man was planning to do, so with fast hands, Queen Bee threw her top as the stranger once again spoke. "Goodbye, Superboy"

The top ricocheted off a lamppost and into the building next to it before making its way toward the gun arm. The magical toy slammed into the gun forcing it away from Superboy's head.

*BANG*

The gun went off while the man screamed in the pain. His head turned to find where the top came from, allowing him to see Queen Bee flying right at him. She grunted with just how heavy the man was, struggling to tackle him off the fallen boy.

The man skidded on the ground, tumbling down the road as something seemed to be left behind in the asphalt. "Power Down" once the words were called out, the hero returned to her normal look. She studied her opponent, the man's body lay in a twisted heap of twisted limbs. 

Now that she was sure the threat was taken care of she took a closer look at Superboy. She couldn't help but gasp at the sight of the hero's veins pulsing with a green glow under his skin. The worst of it came from around the bullet wound in his shoulder.

"H-his chest…" The boy grunted, taking labored breaths. "P-power…" She leaned down to try and hear him better. 

*BANG* 

A vicious pain erupted from between her eyes as Queen Bee was thrown onto her back. It was like the worst sinus headache you could imagine as she lay stunned, suffering from the pain. 

"Right between the eyes." The badly dressed man's gloating was joined by the sounds of metal creaking and scraping against stone. Queen Bee struggled to force her body to move as the man got closer. "Anyone else feels like playing the hero?" Annoyed by his candor, our heroine let out a grunt before rolling back to her feet.

Queen Bee was now face to face with a nightmare, parts of his skin torn off or missing to reveal the metallic skeleton underneath. She was reminded of a scene from one of those Metallica albums covers.

"Great. Another bulletproof hero." The metal man growled out as he ripped the rest of his skin and hair from his skeleton. "Don't they teach you manners in Paris? It's rude to stare." He growled as the girl before him was simply stuck in fear at the sight.

A groan of pain freed her from her fearful stupor as Chloé looked down at Jon.

"What did you do to him?!" She growled, pointing to the hurt Super. The robot man just laughed, opening the side of his arm. Inside she could see bullets tipped with green material, glowing the same color as the one in the hurt boy.

"Kryptonite-tipped bullets. Not the knock-off kind either, this is the genuine article." The metal man purred, motioning to the worsening hero while closing the compartment of the other. "And as you can see, that's not good for Superman or his brat." 

Looking at Superboy she could see he was getting worse. He took pain filler gasps as he trembled on the ground. She could really use Superman's help right now. 

"I can see it in your eyes girl. You're hoping Superman will come to the rescue." Metallo then began to howl with laughter. "I regret to inform you that Superman is dealing with his own dose of Kryptonite poisoning." The people around them gasped, some crying out at the news. It was in this instance she asked herself, what would Marinette do?

"Hehe," The chuckle found its way off his lips before going into a full-on laugh. "Hahaha! You think I , Queen Bee, need Superman's help to defeat you?!" She asked, feeling all eyes on her. "RIDICULOUS! UTTERLY RIDICULOUS!" She then got into a fighting stance. "Get ready, l'homme d'étain, I'm going to send you to the scrapyard."

Her bravado had the desired effect as the people around them started to cheer. Good, they were buying that she wasn't scared out of her mind. 

"Je m'appelle Metallo," The robot man growled out in perfect French, "Et tu aurais dû rester en dehors de cette petite fille." He ran at Queen Bee, his left arm sprouting a blade.

Each swing cleaved through the air with a hum, the French heroine having to dance backward to avoid the strikes. His slashes were getting closer to hitting her, the heat of the energy blade tickling her skin the closer it got. 

As she performed a backflip away from Metallo his energy blade caught a lock of her hair. Her stomach dropped as he held the served strands.

"So, you aren't indestructible… just your suit." While the robot was unable to smile she could feel its glee. "This makes things a hell of a lot easier." People seemed to back up more at the declaration, a majority running into any building they could.

Queen Bee could see Superboy behind the metal jerk and swallowed the lump in her throat. This was taking too much time and he was getting worse. She needed to end this now and save him. 

Metallo charged at her again, his energy blade digging into the road. Marinette was better at coming up with plans on the fly than the blonde, if only she could make him stop for a second.

Wait…

She could do that!

Metallo descended upon them like a predator, swinging his arms wildly in an attempt to catch her off guard and deal a devastating blow. She weaved past a swing from his right arm, then ducked under the left. Now was her chance!

"Venom!" She declared, vaulting right up to the figure. She made a sharp jap with the top, the enlarged point penetrating the robot's skull!

"ARRRRR-*static*-RHA-*static*-AAAA-*static*-AAAAH!" His voice was broken while his joints ground to a halt. The robotic being was now forced to stand frozen, like an iron statue. Even his weapons seemed to fizzle out, only the lights in his eyes seemed to work.

It was then she noticed the glow… The green energy emanated from his chest. It clicked his chest, a power source . Acting fast, the blonde dug her fingers into the edges of the chest plate and ripped it free. Behind the metal slap sat a gem as big as a baby's head and as green as moss. She grasped the stone and pulled, shocked by just how easy it was to pull it free while the lights faded from Metallo's eyes.

She let the stone fall to the ground with a loud *clunk* before she reverted to her empowered state. She kicked the stone, hitting it with the ball of her foot instead of her toes to avoid hurting herself. Satisfied with how far away it was, she ran over to the other hero.

She was breathless, having almost jumped to his side, her hand going to his cheek. "Hey," she called, giving him light slaps in hopes to stir him back to consciousness. "J-" She bit her lip to keep from saying his real name. "Je suis désolé," Chloé reared her hand back. "But I need you to WAKE UP!" She delivered a strong slap, but nothing worked.

"Oh no." She looked up to see Jimmy Olson, holding his shoulder as he shuffled over to the duo. "We gotta hurry, otherwise he isn't gonna make it." He told her, pulling Superboy up.

"Which way is the hospital?" Chloé asked, taking Superboy's other side.

"We'll never make it in time." Jimmy started, positioning Superboy to carry on his back. "I know a guy who can help, we just need to get to his diner." While Chloé wanted to argue she also needed to get Pollen some food because something told her she'd need to use her powers again soon. So with a nod, Chloé followed the redhead.

Lois Lane felt numb while EVERY fiber of her being wanted to wail in agony. One minute, her husband was fighting Hank Henshaw, an astronaut turned science experiment who blamed all his problems on 'The Man of Steel', then there was the gunshot. The bullet tore through Henshaw's cybernetic body, Lois seeing the green glow just moments before it penetrated her husband's body.

She was helpless as she watched the two fell from a height of twelve stories, their bodies creating a large crater with a loud *CRASH* 

She followed them to the hospital, Lois working through who in the hell could have made that shot. At the moment, she had four names: Floyd Lawton, Robert DuBois, Slade Wilson, and John Corben. Frustratingly, she could only cut the list down by one since Floyd, aka Deadshot, was currently locked up in Belle Reve. Corben had become Metallo because of her husband, Slade blamed him for a recent accident with his daughter, and DuBois had already shot him once.

Then to add to all of this, the moment she arrived in the waiting room people were gathered around a TV showing the news. On the screen was Queen Bee fighting Metallo, her son laying behind them. 

"The fighting ended just moments ago with Queen Bee ripping out the Kryptonite powering Metallo. The young heroine then left with the injured Superboy and who some claim to be our own James Olson. With both Earth-bound Supers out of commission, many fear what will come next. From the scene, this is Kat Grant, back to you Paul."

This was bad. 

Her phone began to ring with a Caller I.D. of B.W. 'This just proves how bad it is.' Lois thought as she picked up the call. She waited a moment for the ding, once it went off she knew the call was secure 

"How is he?" The gruff voice rumbled passed all pleasantries to the point of the matter. Normally she'd tease him, but this was not a normal day.

"He's in surgery right now, it shouldn't be much longer," Lois stated. "So far I'm waiting to hear back from some informants but I have two suspects for the shooting." She bent down as if to pick something off the ground before whispering, "Wilson and DuBois."

"We can count Slade out. Signal and Bluejay are trying to beat him to the Canadian border." She could hear typing in the background. "DuBois is in Metropolis. I can send the team in a matter of seconds." Lois was about to answer when she looked up, seeing Robert DuBois walking, locking eyes with her.

"If you don't hear from me in five minutes, head to Metropolis General." Lois then hung up the phone, sitting down in one of the chairs. A moment later the seat next to her was taken.

"Miss Lane," The Cajun man said, keeping his sight straight. "We need to talk." Lois said nothing, instead, she reached into her purse and ripped out a taser, jamming the device into his side.

"You have sixty seconds to tell me why I shouldn't use this." She hissed, no one around them noticed anything wrong. DuBois said nothing to the woman, instead showing her his phone. The picture on the screen was of a teenage girl bound to a chair, a newspaper held by her head from the Daily Planet with the day's date.

"Someone's trying to play me, Miss Lane. I received that picture this morning with one demand, to shoot Superman again. But look at the image again." He was angry, but not at her. Lois amused him and looked at the image again: upon a closer look you could notice the small things, an extra finger, a missing shirt sleeve, and even one of the girl's feet was turned backward. 

"An AI-generated picture?" She kept her voice low and monotone while Robert DuBois switched tabs on his phone. He showed her a string of text messages:

08:23 Tyla, are you alright?

08:26 Tyla answer me!

08:34 I'm going to fix this, I promise. You'llbe okay.

08:37 Dad, what the hell are you talking about? 

08:39 Dad!

08:45 DAD! PICK UP YOUR PHONE!

08:50 Why aren't you answering me?! Please don't do anything stupid!

12:23 WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO?!?

"Someone hacked my phone and kept me from getting her messages and calls." The man said, pocketing his phone. "Then I hear Metallo attacks the boy." He looked around as if expecting someone to jump on him. "I think Waller is trying to pull me back into her Suicide Squad."

Lois meanwhile had put her taser away, her phone in her hand.

12:42 B- Got new info. Bloodsport is being set up as a patsy. 

Chapter Text

The duo had been running for five minutes, the ginger man taking deeper breaths as he was just a tad out of shape. 

"It's over here!" He said to Chloé, the blonde carrying Superboy on her back. He could see she was tired but she did her best to keep up with him even carrying the hurt hero and the fact she was only a car's length away from him was surprising. He wiped his brow clean as both he and Chloé found themselves before a wooden shanty-themed café, the pink neon sign atop it glowing with the name Bibbo's. 

"A restaurant?! He doesn't need food, he needs a doctor! This is ridiculous! Utterly Ridiculous!" Chloé glared daggers at Jimmy, the cameraman waving his arms in defense. 

"Hold on! Cap'n Bibbo is a friend who dealt with something like this before." Jimmy explained. "Let's hurry. The lunch rush might have started but-"

An energy blast interrupted Jimmy, knocking him to the ground. Before she could do anything, energy wrapped around her neck! A force dragged her to her knees, causing her to drop Jon while Pollen floated in the air.

"My Queen!" The Kwami cried out as Chloé could only choke out a gasp. Three men surrounded Jimmy while two men stood on the blonde's sides, followed by a red-headed woman holding the whip which was coiled around Chloé's throat.

"I do love a super who needs to speak." The redhead grinned walking over to the girl. With a smooth motion, she positioned herself around and stomped on Chloé's back, pulling her energy whip taut as the girl let out a pained choke. "It doesn't take much to make you helpless." 

"W-Whisper A'dair." Jimmy groaned as he tried to sit up. One of the men surrounding him stepped forward and kicked him, toppling Jimmy back to the ground.

"Miss A'dair," One of the guys by Chloé began, lowering his weapon. "The boss wants us to collect that comb-" 

"I know what Manhiem wants." She interrupted, throwing a glare his way before easing a little on her hold over Chloé. "But I can play with her a little before we take it." Pollen looked back and forth between her chosen and the Intergang lieutenant then with all their might, threw their small body at the woman.

"Let my Queen go!" Pollen's attack did little to hurt the criminal, instead causing her to be more annoyed than anything. Pollen tried to attack again, only for the woman to slap away the small fairy.

"We aren't getting paid enough for this." Whisper grumbled as she leaned down, her face close to Chloé's ear. "You got two choices, kid. You and that little magic toy of yours come with us and let Superbrat here die…" She then pulled tighter on the whip, once again choking Chloé. "Or you both die, and I just take it anyway." Chloé closed her tear-filled eyes and raised one of her hands, flipping off the criminal.

A loud bang caused her ears to ring, the bright flare of light blinding her at the same time. Whisper dropped her whip as the flashbang stunned her. As her sight began to return she found a smoke screen forming out of nowhere, separating her from the rest of her Intergang agents.

She quickly found the French girl stunned on the ground and put her boot back atop the girl, keeping her pinned to the ground. As the ringing in her ears died she could hear cries of pain from her men as something in the smokescreen picked them off. Then she heard the gunshots.

Not many 'heroes' use guns and only half of them use live ammunition, but only two use this tactic, depending on which it would mean this battle would be easier or harder. The smoke cleared as her men writhed in pain on the ground, a familiar mop of neon red hair framed by black pointed ears.

"Well well, if it isn't Batbitch." Chloé looked up to see one of Gotham's resident bats turn to face the mercenary, her eyes hidden behind white lenses. 

"Really," Batwoman asked in a masked voice. "Couldn't find any toddlers to kidnap?" She then leveled her guns at the other redhead, pulling the hammer back on the glocks. 

"This doesn't concern you," Whisper growled, stepping forward as she grabbed the watch on her wrist. "Why don't you flutter back to Gotham… While you still have the chance." 

Chloé took advantage of the bat's arrival and mustered her energy to shove Whisper forward. She could hear Batwoman laugh as the Mercenary fell flat on her face, the blonde rushing to pick up Superboy. 

Chloé shivered as she heard the guttural hiss behind her. She turned to see the woman's skin gain scales, her canines transforming into true fangs while glaring with slitted yellow eyes. She lunged forward but was caught at the last second by a grapple line.

"Hey, we're not done yet." Batwoman pulled on the line, dragging the snake-mutated merc away from Chloé. Man, the blonde was beginning to miss Hawkmoth. 

"Chloé!" He shook her head, pulling Superboy with her over to Jimmy, the photographer somewhat worse for wear. As she got closer, she could hear him pound on the door, the blonde stealing glances back as Batwoman fired non-lethal rounds into the snake woman's stomach. Man was she really missing Paris right now. 

When she turned back she found the dinner door open, a large man stood in the doorway, wearing white jeans and a Superman t-shirt along with a sailor hat. His eyes grew wide as he saw Chloé pulling the hurt Superboy with her. He charged over to them, surprising Chloé as he picked both of them off the ground.

"Come on you two." With only a small amount of large steps, The three were inside the establishment. Jimmy shut the door behind him as the fight outside continued. The large man put Chloé down and then pressed a button on the side of the door, a loud series of clicks quickly following.

"Alright folks, stay on the ground till the cops get here." The large man ordered the frightened people in the restaurant, most of them still watching the news covering Superman's surgery. "You two come with me." 

Chloé tried to speak, only to wince in pain and cough as a croak came out. Pollen had been holding Chloé's shirt since A'dair smacked her away, the small fairy looking alarmed at her wielder. 

"Oh no… My Queen." Unable to speak, she shared her Kwami's look, both knowing that thanks to her injury she wouldn't be able to become Queen Bee. She passed the concerned Jimmy Olson to follow the apparent owner into the kitchen, the large man leading Chloé to the freezer. 

"Here's the deal kid, after the last time I yanked a slug outa' my pal, Superman, he asked if he could install something in case of emergencies, and of course, I said 'yeah'." He popped open the freezer door and indicated to go inside. "Twist the second to last hook on the right and let the doohickey scan him." 

The door burst open to a worried Jimmy, constantly looking behind himself.

"Captain Bibbo, more Intergang guys showed up and Batwoman isn't looking too good." 

The man grits his teeth, then dug through his utensils, picking up a meat tenderizer. 

"You better hurry, miss. These dopes aren't pleasant." He told her, gripping the handle tightly. "And if you ever come to these parts again, consider your meal on the house." Bibbo gave Chloé a toothy grin before shutting the freezer door.

Chloé and Pollen shivered in the cold as the French girls looked at the hanging meat hooks. Second to last on the right… But did he mean the right standing facing from the doorway or toward? She let out a curse then with her free hand, took the hook on her right. It took a bit of force but the mechanism clicked, opening a panel on the wall. 

A beam of light scanned Jon before the world seemed to just fold in on itself. Her arms were heavy and her knees were weak as the momentary weightlessness caused her to stumble forward. She'd have laughed at the extreme workout she was getting from her day in Metropolis if she wasn't running on fumes. Chloé swallowed deep breaths as her sense began to return to normal. 

She used this moment to center herself, closing her eyes to concentrate on five things she could feel.

'My shirt, Pollen's comb, the smooth surface of the ground, my bag on my hip, and Jon.'

She then opened her eyes looking up to concentrate on four things she could hear. 

'The wind, a mechanical humming, Pollen speaking to me, barking?

Chloé opened her eyes to see indeed a dog was barking at her, the white pooch looking worried at Jon. Pollen was making sure her wielder was okay while she continued with three things she could see.

'A dog, A statue of a man and woman holding a globe, and a robot coming toward them.' 

"Trespasser, step back from Jon-El." The newest robot ordered, causing Chloé to sigh. Just how many robots were tied to Superman?! Chloé wasn't even able to try to speak before she was tasered by the alien droid.

Lois held her phone between her ear and shoulder as she typed madly on the keyboard. Since DuBois revealed he'd been played, Lois got to work creating a web of who it was that possibly orchestrated today's attack. Finally, the other person picked up.

"What do you want?" A woman's voice growled. 

"For starters?" Lois began, finally guessing her father's newest password to dig through the files of Task Force X. "I want to know what you're planning for Metropolis." 

The line was quiet for a moment before a laugh filled the silence.

"You think I'm behind this hit?" Amanda Waller laughed. "I'll bite, what possible reason would I have to kill Superman and Superboy?" The amusement then faded from her voice. "Thanks to your little exposé on project Task Force X, I've had to do everything I could to scrub every record of my team, so why would I jeopardize that work to put them in the crosshairs of the Justice League?"

Much to Lois's chagrin, she opened the file to find it empty. Nothing about Louisiana, the assassinations, or even the inhumane actions Waller went about controlling the villains. She sighed, leaning back in her seat at the setback. Then again, maybe this was an opportunity.

"Then you must have pissed someone off if they're trying to frame you for this." Lois began. "A mutual friend of ours has evidence someone hacked his phone and created a ransom demand with a fake image of their kid." Once again, the other line was silent, Waller thinking about her response. 

"Since Deadshot is in the field, I'm guessing Bloodsport was the shooter." She thought aloud, "You said he was sent an image, Photoshopped?"

"AI-Generated. It was almost perfect, an extra finger here, a twisted foot there." Lois answered as she could feel where this conversation was going.

"Send me the image, I have people who can look it over," Waller stated. "By tomorrow morning, I can tell you more than Batman or his little group can." Waller then hung up the phone, a link suddenly appearing in the Task Force X file. Lois chuckled.

"I think she knew you were on the line," Lois said as she hovered the cursor over the link.

"No doubt." Barbara Gordon replied on the other end, the cursor moving on its own as the link was scanned. "I guess that means you want any info from the picture by midnight?"

"Nah, she can knock herself out. Have you found anything out about that bug?" Lois asked as the batfamily's computer expert scanned the link, the file coming up clean of any Malware. That intrigued Lois just as much as Barbra, the brunette fixing herself in her seat.

"Okay, this thing is off." She heard the red head huff followed by the sound of chewing, no doubt the other woman was chewing on her thumb.

"Off how?" She asked. Babs is a tech wiz, If she found something strange, then it could be big.

"I recognize the Virus but the code is written differently. Normally that only happens when it's upgraded with a new function but it's almost like someone tried to make a copy from scratch." Lois then noticed two notifications, Barbara swearing on her end.

"I gotta go. I'll call you back." The girl said before ending the call. Lois clicked on the notifications to see what was going on. The first was some rag talking about Damian and a mystery girlfriend from a group of visiting French students in the states for a Wayne Tech contest. 

"Oh, Damian." Lois shook her head as she knew this would set back whatever it was Bruce was planning for the group. Since said group was connected to the Hawkmoth situation in Paris, she figured it was a recon stunt with how fast it was set up but she was sure even if it was real, the kids would have won.

The next made her freeze. Unlike the terms she kept feelers out for such as things dealing with friends or a crackpot claiming to know Superman's identity, this was more of a security alert. Lois looked around before entering her password when the update revealed itself to be from the Fortress of Solitude.

Alert: Jon-El has entered the Fortress. Status: Wounded with Kryptonite Projectile/ Suffering Kryptonite Poisoning. Undergoing healing.

Alert: Unknown has entered the Fortress. Status: slight trachea damage. Currently held in Cell #2 

Lois closed the alert and rushed out of the room. Since Jimmy would have been recognized by the system, she had to guess that Chloé was the second person mentioned in the alert. Lois dialed Audrey's number as Perry White ran into her on the way out.

"Lane! Any update on this attack on the Super Clan?" The man asked, holding two titles in his hands for tomorrow's paper.

"I have a source working on it now chief but I gotta go. Clark called, Jon hurt." The elevator opened with a ding as she left her boss aghast at the news. When most people talk of Perry White they talk about both his time as a reporter himself as well as the leader of the Daily Planet's crew, a no-nonsense man who always tries to get the story. What many forget is that the man is still human and cares for his team and theirs as if they were his own.

"Great Caesar's Ghost…" He looked at the ground stunned for a moment, his grip tightening on the papers. "Williams, redirect any important calls to Lane or Kent to Lane's cellphone! Tucker, find out what you can about this supposed Batwoman sighting. If she's out of Gotham I wanna know why and will someone find me Olson!" The man barked out the Planet's marching orders as he prayed Jon would be alright.

Chapter Text

A soft hum pierced the silence as Jon's eyes began to flutter open. Things were too bright as tears fell from his eyes. He tried to remember how he got here or even where here was. 

He remembered being shot. The slow-burning pain from the Kryptonite spreading from the bullet as it hurt to stay conscious. Chloé saved him and beat Metallo, but things were fuzzy after that. Did he fall at some point? And he was cold for a bit.

As his vision cleared he found himself looking at Kelex m.6, the sixth iteration of the service droid for the house of El. Jon noticed the other feeling, a warm tingle pouring down all around him. One look at the glowing white suit and he figured out where he was now, he was in a Solar Tube at the Fortress of Solitude. 

"Greetings, Master Jon-El." The silver android welcomed, the tube depressurizing with a hiss before the glass door opened for Jon to exit. He rubbed his face with a groan as the world seemed to steady after a moment.

"Kelex," He shook the weariness from his mind and searched for his savior. "How long have I been out?"

"You have been inside the Solar Recharge Chamber for approximately: Five Hours, Twenty-Three minutes, and Thirty-Six seconds. " The robot stated. "The current time in Metropolis is: Seven Fifty-Eight in the evening." 

Jon became pale upon hearing that bit of news. He's been unconscious for hours! Did his mom and dad know where he was? Were they freaking out?

"Your mother has requested you to join her by the computer when you have awoken." Uh oh. If his mom wasn't waiting here for him, then something was wrong. Jon zipped away from the robot. 

While the fortress was in the arctic, the place didn't feel like it. His dad explained it had something to do with Kryptonian science, the fortress was a biome explorers used for inhospitable planets. Jon looked at all the statues and murals projected in the crystal walls. Before the end of Krypton, the memory matrix that powered this place copied everything the planet had on file: Art, Science, Agriculture, Architecture, Religion, and Laws.

It was crazy to think that his Dad set up everything inside the building in three years with the help of Kelex of course. Though there were a few he wished they could replace, like the statue of Jor-El. Biting his lip nervously, he landed next to his mother.

Lois was hunched forward as her fingers danced across the keyboard at speeds more common for speedsters. Her teeth threatened to snap the pencil in her mouth, Jon noticing this was the third of her three bad habits. This was not good. Sleeping next to her was Krypto, the white dog sitting just at her feet.

"Mom?" Her head snapped toward him, her eyes were red and puffy. With a shocking speed she clung to him, rubbing his back as she cried. Krypto meanwhile jumped around them, letting out happy barks.

"Jon! Oh, my sweet baby." She stepped back, looking him over for any damage the machine may have been unable to heal. "Jon… Jon, you and your father…" His stomach hurt as the memory hit him like a brick wall. He remembered listening to the bullet leave the gun and cut through the air, then, the bullet tore through Cyborg Superman… It distracted him long enough for Metallo to shoot him.

"Mom. Please tell me he's alive." Jon struggled to get the words out of his dry mouth, fear gripping his heart.

"Ray and Karen arrived at the hospital. When the bullet went through Cyborg Superman, it caused the bullet to crack, and when it hit your father's sternum it caused it to break apart in his body. The two of them are pulling the pieces out of him now, with hope they'll have the bullet fully removed sometime in the morning." 

While Jon was slightly relieved to hear the news a new dread filled him.

"Wait, who's watching Metropolis?" He trusted the police, he did, but there were threats they couldn't handle on their own. Lois became uncomfortable and then looked her son in the eyes.

"Jon honey… We weren't going to leave you completely alone." She could see her son's shocked frown. "Intergang was caught dealing some arms in Gotham so we made a deal with Batman. Since Kate was visiting Maggie anyway, she promised to try to keep an eye on you while investigating them."

Jon felt betrayed by the news. He just wanted his folks to trust him and yet they kept babying him. Honestly, he wondered if things would have been different if he never left with Jor-El since that's when his family's overprotection began. Not just his parents, but everyone. Only the change with Damian was positive.

"Sweetie we love you, but with Intergang and this new conspiracy and then adding Chloé we just didn't want to take chances." For the second time that day, Jon felt incredibly stupid.

"Chloé! Wait, Mom, where is she?" A look of realization crossed her face as like her son, she too forgot about the French girl.

"Oh, crap." She moved a few of the windows around to search the system, finding the alert she needed. "She's in cell two." Horror crossed Jon's face before he blasted away.

Five Minutes Earlier…

Chloé groaned as she came to. She paused, letting out another groan to confirm something. She didn't feel any pain. 

"You're awake!" Pollen hugged her cheek, and Chloé cupped a hand over the fairy to reciprocate the feeling.

"Pollen, what the heck happened?!" The blonde asked after the hug ended. "Where are we?" 

"Hehe, isn't it obvious?" Pollen let out a whimper, burying her face in Chloé's chest as the heroine looked behind her. They were in a cell, however, unlike the one she and Pollen were in, this one was bathed in an eerie red glow. The figure in the cell sat in the middle with a hood over his head. He turned to look at her, his face hidden by the darkness of his olive-green robe. "You are where you belong, inside a cell." 

Something about the man, about his presence, was all wrong and the worst part about it was she couldn't tell why .

"What are you talking about? Who are you?" She growled, switching from fear to bitch mode. She put a protective hand over Pollen, glaring at the stranger.

"The better question is… who are you?" The man moved his face back to his cell door. "Queen Bee, Queen Wasp, Anti-Bug," The man let a laugh slip past his lips again. "Ridiculous names, all belonging to Chloé Bourgeois." The Parisian girl glared at the stranger, her joints creaking as she tightened her fist.

"I'm not Queen Wasp or Anti-Bug." She defended, holding Pollen close to her chest. "I'm going to make up for my mistakes because Ladybug trusts me to be better!" The stranger let out a loud laugh.

"I've seen your potential future." Man was now shrouded in shadows, towering over the sitting Chloé. She could make out one cold steel gray eye judging her. "You betray Ladybug and the other Miraculous users out of petty spite… You become Miracle Queen, a collaborator of Hawkmoth to punish her." Horror fills her face at the story he was telling her. "You make life hell for Marinette Dupain-Cheng." 

"N-n-no." Chloé shook her, she could have written him off as simply a crazy psycho but then he dropped Marinette's name and she knew he wasn't talking about the fashion designer, he was talking about the heroine of Paris. "I- She trusts me! I'm making up for my mistakes!"

"We both know you can never make it up to them. Soon you will deem this path a failure and give up as all humans do." Pollen could see the man's words shaking her chosen's resolve, picking at the doubts and fears already in her head. "After all, this act that you're better than that is 'Utterly Ridiculous'." 

Her legs gave out as this cell forced her to face the fears she held. 

Pollen could see it in Cholé's face, the fear and doubt eating her. At times like this, she wished she could talk to Nooroo or Duusu, they were better at helping their wielders with their emotions (at least, when open to the help.). She floated over to the hooded stranger seeping an energy foreign to this universe, standing tall for her Queen.

"Leave her alone! I don't know what you think you know but she isn't just proving herself to Marinette!" She yelled, receiving an unamused look from the stranger. She then returned to Chloé, comforting the stunned human as she fought the urge to cry. "I know she's doing better and so do others." The man turned his back to the Kwami, retreating to the other side of his cell while Pollen comforted her human.

Some time passed before a loud whooshing noise made itself known, the three finding Superboy arriving at the cells.

"Ah. Jon-El." The man in the other cell turned to the visitor, but Superboy ignored him, instead opening the cell door where Chloé and Pollen were being held.

"Oh man, I'm so sorry. Kelex was just going through its basic security protocols." He said to the crying girl. She said nothing, instead pushing him aside as she stormed off.

"You should be wary of her, Jon-El." The man stated, causing Jon's face to sour. "She's a stone's throw away from becoming just another villain." 

Chloé ran at the snide remark, her insides churning because of the simple fact the man was right. There was a darkness inside her and no matter what, even with all the good she's done and the good she would do it was still there.

Pollen said nothing as Chloé stopped down a hallway and slid down a wall to weep. She hiccuped as tears ran freely, the blonde Parisian finally allowing herself to feel her emotions free from judgment.  

She jumped, feeling her purse buzz unexpectedly. She reached into her bag and pulled out two phones, the first a phone in a beat-up blue case belonging to Jon and the other her more pristine ivory and gold phone, the device buzzing with life as Marinette's name appeared on the screen. She swiped right on the green icon before putting the phone to her ear.

"H-hey Dupain-Cheng, are you alright?" Chloé did her best to pull herself together.

"Are you okay Chlo?" Her heart ached at the hiccup in her friend's voice, the reforming bad girl laughing at both of them. 

"It sounds like we're both having a rough time." Marinette joined in her laughing and crying.

"Yeah, but you were the one fighting three supervillains today." Marinette teased. Chloé merely scoffed.

"I only fought TWO villains, Dupain-Cheng. That woman snuck up on me from behind." She muttered, still annoyed at what happened. "So I guess you already know Superboy was shot?" 

"Yeah, someone recorded the fight you had with Metallo and…" Marinette took a moment to think. "Chloé, I'm worried you might be in the middle of something because Superman was shot at the same time as Superboy." Chloé vaguely remembered seeing the news about Superman in surgery but she thought it was the robot version and not the actual Superman.

"I didn't know that." She swallowed hard as a new worry weaseled its way into her head. "Mari… My mom's been trying to get the comb from me since we came to the states, but I don't know if I could stop the Justice League that easily." 

That was a thought that scared the teens in the back of their minds. The idea that just like that, one of the world's top superhero teams could deem them unfit and try to take their Miraculous. 

"I brought Kaalki with me, so if you need a quick return to Paris let me know." Marinette's tone was serious, one that became apparent she only used it when trying to fight off her nerves. After all, a good leader was strong for her partners.

"Thanks, I should have known you'd have an ace up your sleeve." Both girls laughed into the phone. "Okay, enough about my problems, what's happening with you?" The other end of the line was silent causing Chloé to roll her eyes. "Dupain-Cheng."

"I'm just getting impatient. She keeps spouting these lies, trying to entangle the others and the worst part is it's working." She let out a frustrated grunt as Chloé could here her hitting a pillow.

"The worst part though Chloé? Mme. Bustie and Adrian know what she's saying is a bunch of lies but they won't back me up. Adrian thinks his dad's approach of just leaving it alone is the right way while Mme. Bustie is trying to convince me I'M the one who needs to learn a lesson from all this.Chloé's heart hurt as she heard the hurt and frustration.

"I can get over there now and give her one sting. Then we can put her in… What's that building again? The one people keep getting out of?" Chloé snapped her fingers as she tried to remember the guidebook Marinette had the class read and Chloé did but many of the prisons in the US just had odd names. 

"Oh my gosh, Chloé we can't put her in Arkham. It's too cruel to the people already there." Marinette laughed, getting one from the blonde as well. The laugh faded with a slight sniff. "Thanks, Chloé, I'm really glad we can talk like this."

The blonde froze, biting her top lip as she held the phone tight. Her mind was cruel as it threw back the man's words.

"You don't think… I mean, even after everything I've done?" At first, she heard nothing, ice gripping her heart.

"Chloé… You know you've more than made up for that right?" Chloé let out a breath, the ice shattering as happy tears fell down her face. 

"Y-yeah, of course, I do, don't be Ridiculous! I-I just like hearing you say it is all." She turned in time to see Superboy standing before her, a soft smile on his face while Chloé's burned with humiliation. "I have to go, Marinette!" She shouted out.

"Oh. Okay. I'll see you tomorrow at the Ceremony." Those were the only words Marinette was able to get out before Chloé hung up her phone.

"Eavesdropping is rude, you know." Chloé growled at the hero, pointing her finger like a dagger.

"I wasn't trying to, I swear." The boy defended, holding up his hands. "I just wanted to check on you. I know what he's like when he gets in your head." His voice lowered at the admission, Chloé slowly crossing her arms as she studied him.

"Who is he exactly? I'd expect Batman to have prison cells in his hideout more than Superman." This statement causes the boy to laugh, not one of mirth but with more of a sadness to it as he takes a moment to think.

"His name is Jor-El. He was a scientist from Krypton who tried to warn the people of its impending doom. An imp from the fifth dimension named Mr. Mxyzptlk however, pulled Jor-El outside of time and tortured him for one reason: To break his son, my father…Superman." 

This surprised the heroine as she looked at the hero and then back down the hall he came from. 

"What would this Imp get out of forcing a father to go after his son?" Pollen asked, putting the words to her chosen's question. 

"Mr. M and my dad have a history. I'm not too sure why but something changed, Jor-El got the jump on him and took his power after years of torture. Jor-El used the Imps power to try and turn my dad away from helping Earth but then I kinda put a dent in that plan by freeing said imp and he at least fixed things involving me…" As he spoke, it was clear he was getting uncomfortable, looking at the rich girl and fairy as if expecting them to judge him.

"So 'Grandpa' tried a new approach. He tricked me into going with him for a few months and he… changed me…" She saw him flinch at that admittance, Chloé putting a hand on his shoulder.

"Why are you telling me this?" She asked, keeping her tone soft as she slipped into the voice she'd use on children after they were free of their Akuma. "You don't need to push yourself." He places a hand on hers.

"Yeah, but I want you to know so you don't let him get in your head. Because at the end of the day, he's just trying to manipulate you with glimpses of realities where only the worst outcomes happen. Nothing he said is set in stone."

Chloé smiled, putting her hands on her hips.

"So you did listen in on my call AFTER you left me to watch your things." She stated half-heartedly as she tossed Superboy his phone. She almost laughed as the shocked hero seemed to struggle to catch his phone, the younger Kryptonian looking at the cell in surprise.

"Well… At least mom won't have to replace another one." He laughed, taking a quick look at the device. His brows furrowed before he began to type out a message. Just as he locked it, the phone chimed with a new message. "Oh, that's not good." 

"What?" Chloé asked as unlocked his phone, laughing at the message.

"My best friend is having some trouble with his girlfriend and he's kinda not the best with people." He gave Chloé a big smile. "Honestly, when he told me he had a girlfriend I was shocked. It's not because he's a bad guy as much as the first ten years of his life were rough. Like really rough." 

"I know a few people like that," Chloé admitted with a matching smile but it quickly faded. "So what's the plan now? With Supe- I mean, with your father down, Metropolis needs you, right?" He looked at his phone in contemplation. 

"First, we're gonna follow a lead my dad found. Then, we'll meet up with Batwoman to see if she found anything else out." He pointed his phone back and forth between the two of them. "You're with me… Right?" 

The blonde thought for a moment then placed a hand on her hip, putting a finger in his face.

"The Wayne Foundation is having a Gala tomorrow night, you're going to help me get there, are we clear?" He nods his head in confirmation causing her to put the other hand on her hip. "Then before we do anything else, let's get something to eat."

Amanda Waller was not happy as she looked at the information on the screen. 

Pictures of Chloé Bourgeois were scattered around with many of her known associates. Her system chimed with an Akuma alert, the villain known as Mr. Pigeon was once again running a mock in Paris. 

She didn't bother switching her focus, Ladybug would deal with this imbecile soon enough. No, she stayed on Chloé, the so-called 'Queen Bee' might have vanished but she knew she'd return to Metropolis with Superboy. Soon, she'll have a Miraculous under her control, all she needed to do was wait.

Her computer then gave a new chime, the dark-skinned woman's eyes scanning the message.

Incoming Call: Oval Office.

Waller sighed, of course, he'd be calling her now. Minimizing the Paris news feed she picked up the call. 

"Good evening, Mr. President." Lex Luthor sat back in his chair, his fingers tented before his chest. 

"Mrs. Waller," The man smirked as her name left his lips, a stupid smug smirk she wanted to knock off with the coffee pot on her desk. "I wanted to check in on you with the Superman situation."

"Superman is still alive," She began, studying his face. While there was still a chance he wasn't involved with everything going on he had still enacted twenty-six plots against the man of steel in just the first year of his presidency alone. "Once they finish pulling out the Kryptonite shards they'll keep him under Sun Lamps till morning."

Luthor said nothing for a moment, ruminating over her words. No doubt he was thinking of ways to kill the Man of Steel in the hospital.

"And what of his shooter? Do we know who it was yet?" He finally asked, sitting forward in his seat.

"Bloodsport. However, according to Lane, he was manipulated into the act by someone pretending to have kidnapped his daughter. She sent us a copy of the picture to scrub through for any digital fingerprints." Amanda Waller brought up the photo, keeping an eye on the Akuma fight as Ladybug finally jumped in.

"My father used to say, 'Nothing is more powerful than a parent's love for their child.' " Lex almost sounded wistful at the memory before his brow furrowed. "However, my father was also a master manipulator." He allowed himself to think of his father before continuing. "What could you find from the picture?"

She moved her hands over a file on the screen, dragging it over the video to send to the president.

"We were able to find three of the images used to make this image. Otherwise, all of our searches on primer and free AI crafting tools have proved fruitless." She then brought up a geo link pin just outside Metropolis in the ocean. "And as you can see, the source location is also a bust."

Waller saw his eyes spark with something , if she had to guess perhaps it was amusement, or maybe it was an idea. Whatever it was, the man merely turned his chair around. 

"Keep me updated on the situation. Oh, and Amanda," He turned his chair back just enough to look at her with one emerald eye. "You are not to enter Metropolis until I give the order. Understood?" 

"Crystal." She replied before the video ended. Her hand shot for the mug on her desk before throwing it into the monitor on the wall, the screen remaining in pristine condition while the mug was in shards. The timer stopped as Ladybug defeated Mr. Pigeon. Two devices were activated in her office creating a holographic field allowing a hologram of a woman to appear before her.

The woman's skin took a blueish hue with pink hair styled in puff balls and purple lens-like eyes. Her clothing appeared like something out of TRON matching the color of her hair. She looked down at the ceramic pieces and then at the screen.

"Well… That could have gone better." The digital woman laughed trying to soften tension, only causing glare to go her way. "I finished going through everything and I'm 94% sure I know who's behind this." The woman said, rushing to get the information out quickly. Waller sat in silence for a moment, looking at the Miraculous file.

"Send Lois the bare minimum. Delete the rest." Waller said as she sat down. 

"Wait… Wha?" The other woman asked as her visage shuttered for a moment.

"You heard me, Hack. Send Lois Lane what we have on the picture as well as the location ping. Everything else is deleted. I want the entire system wiped clean of the information." She then typed into the landline on her desk, the phone only rings once. "Squad 6, this is command. The president has ordered us to stay out of Metropolis. Abort Project Miracle."

"You unbelievable bitch." Hack muttered in horror as she realized Waller's play. 

"Even without your information, would Superboy be able to handle the threat?" Waller asked as if already knowing the answer. Hack thought about it, playing the scenarios in her head.

"He and Queen Bee would be able to hold it off till Superman woke up" 

"Exactly," Waller interrupted. "Meaning we'd just be wasting time and data space." She then sat in her chair. "Now, do I have to resend your internet privileges, or are you going to do as you're told?"