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***
It was lunchtime at the Lookout Tower, and the heroes who weren't at their posts headed to the mess hall to snack on delicious food from around the world, and sometimes the universe.
The dining room was equipped with the latest technology, and the cooks here were both regular humans and aliens who took human names. For example, the Martian Hunter had taken the name "John" and the cook Sarah, who was a Cthuhalian resembling a sea octopus, prepared seafood meals, which was a bit of a paradox. When Will stood beside her with a tray, an unsure smile on his lips, Sarah had put some crap on him with tentacles that were also moving. He didn't want to say it looked like Sarah's own little brethren, because that would be rude, but there was nothing to stop him from joking:
«Isn't that cannibalism? - Will whispered in Kara's ear.
«I don't know, should I ask her? - she replied nonchalantly.
«No, I'd rather not. She's already looking at me with suspicion.
«Oh, come on, Sarah just loves the new kids. If you don't want this stew, give it to me! Sarah's a very good cook.
Kara reached for his plate, but Will pulled it away. Kara looked at him with pouty lips.
«You've been eating a lot lately.
"I'd rather sacrifice myself than let her gain weight," Will thought selflessly, pursing his lips and raising a noble suicide bomber's gaze to the cosmic ceiling (because he was going to eat some unknown crap).
«It's not too much! Give me more, Sarah! - Kara shouted.
«No," Sarah grumbled, poking Kara in the chest with her tentacle, "you've had too much. There's only one portion for everyone.
«Oh, man.
Will grinned, and then Sarah snatched his plate from his tray and carried it over to Kara's tray.
«I can hear you. If you don't like my cooking, go eat somewhere else.
«Hey, I was kidding! - Will said.
Sarah snatched the empty tray out of his hands as well, and Will ended up walking to the next food counters, where he was already silent and quietly taking the food that was there, Kara meanwhile unnerving him with giggles behind his back.
After choosing their food, they sat at a table near the space glass instead of the wall, and Will carefully placed a tray with a lone muffin and a cup of coffee on the table. That was all he managed to get after the other cooks heard Sarah's comments about Will's "showing off."
«Why are they all so touchy? I didn't say anything.
«You hurt her feelings, so she'll be upset with you," some black superhero grinned as he passed by. Apparently he was used to the rules here, and he didn't want to pout," "Don't worry, in a week Sarah will forget all about it, and you'll be able to eat like everyone else again. You're not the first person to go through this. Walter got food thrown down his throat, and he just said his mom cooked better.
«And in general, the canteen used to be better," said another hero.
«I'd rather starve than eat this crap," Vanessa Wayne said, suddenly sitting down at the table next to Will and Kara. And of course she threw a scornful glance at Will.
Vanessa had the same muffin and coffee on her tray as Willa. Only on top of that, she'd found meat salad, soup, and steak with tomato sauce from somewhere. Kara immediately explained that Bats' daughter had snagged a Special Pass from her daddy that allowed her to eat custom food from the Watchtower chefs. Among the assembled heroes, she was the only one sitting in the dining room as Queen with an incredibly delicious meal.
Usually the best heroes were given this pass for Great Feats. Obviously, Vanessa hadn't done anything like that herself, but she'd gotten it from somewhere. Will had been whispered to by the chicks that Bruce Wayne had given his daughter his own pass because she complained a lot, and that he ate like a regular hero, if he ate at all. Bruce Wayne was generally an inveterate workaholic, and it is unknown whether he ate normally at all without the help of Alfred the butler. And for the reason that Bats himself voluntarily gave the pass to his favorite daughter, no one objected to Vanessa when she, to put it mildly, fucked up in the dining room.
When other heroes watched Vanessa getting fucked up and eating a super tasty steak, and they were choking on Sarah's cooking, the usual tomato salad and boiled chicken (quite good, by the way), these heroes were not thinking first of all that Batman's daughter was stale. Oh no, they were thinking about what a fucking great guy Batman was, because he gave all his privileges to Vanessa.
And yet in the Watchtower's dining hall there was a clear order and discipline, everyone was equal, no matter whether you were Superman or a sucker who was just starting to be a hero. However, anyone who risked their lives and did incredible feats were sure to be rewarded with a Special Meal Pass. For those who risked their lives for the sake of others and the preservation of life on earth, it was the least the Lookout Tower could do.
Yet even in such small things, the Bats stood out.
When Vanessa ate the best food without merit, fellow Batman, even while performing the most complex universal tasks and saving entire worlds from destruction, ate like a regular average superhero.
"Yeah, Batman's the fucking type," Will thought, enjoying his muffin and flavored coffee.
Will, on the other hand, who used to eat buns and milk and occasionally a good sausage and some chicken when he lived in Russia, was happy with an ordinary muffin and coffee. And they were so damn good! It was as if they had been prepared by the master of five-star cuisine himself. Probably all the food in the Watchtower was on a similar level, and Will was even tempted by the idea of one day becoming a Justice League hero.
He will walk through this grandiose space station in his personal cool suit, and every day he will have this fucking delicious muffin and aromatic coffee in his hands. Here he will stand at the big space window, contemplate the stars from a great height, admire mother earth and get ready for new feats.
How did it sound? Will cheered up, for he had always wanted to be in such a grand setting. The people he was surrounded by here were diverse, and some of them had been born on other planets! Who could ever dream of such an incredible experience?
His life would no longer be the past.
And yet among these big-name heroes came the uncomfortable realization that dreams are dreams, and reality is full of disappointments. Today he drinks cool coffee, and tomorrow he may be killed in a space battle. It's better not to get too carried away with heroism, it's all for the naive brave.
Meanwhile, Vanessa continued to glare at him while Kara told him how she planned to spend her honeymoon with him.
«By the way, you can eat my portion if you want. You didn't think I'd leave you in the lurch, did you? - Kara said, handing Will the surviving half of the succulent chicken stew.
«Thanks, baby. I don't know what I'd do without you," he smiled.
«Can't you do it somewhere else? Am I actually eating here? - Vanessa cut in.
***
It had been a couple hours since Will and Kara had arrived at the Observation Tower. They had time to walk through most of the open bays, and then stopped in the weapons room. Here there were targets to practice shooting on, and along the wall lay a large number of different weapons. The strongest and most dangerous weapons were hidden behind protective glass, which could be opened by entering the right password or applying the fingerprint of a trusted hero.
The weapons room was large, but it was the one Will was most interested in, because he was curious about what weapons were predominantly used in this DC universe. As it turned out, most of the weapons were laser and alien, or weapons from Earth but enhanced by alien developments (the latter two types were the most dangerous).
Will was interested in the weapon that was just lying on the bench. Apparently someone had left it behind. The weapon was an ordinary iron kunai, which he hadn't expected to see with all his imagination.
«Chichi must have left it," Kara explained, "she's Japanese and prefers to use her country's classic weapons.
«This weapon looks familiar to me. Do you remember if I've ever used it before? - Will said.
«Uh-uh.
Will took the kunai and "tried" it in his hands. The blade was unusually docile, and he could have sworn it would fly off his hands and hit him right in the bull's-eye. He didn't check it and put it back, feeling a strange tension in his palm. Premonition was a deceptive thing, but it wasn't his weapon, and it would be wrong to use it.
And then, partially, his premonition did not deceive him. The mark of the God of Thunder suddenly appeared on the kunai.
"Fuck... reflexively left it, or something?" and while I was looking at the incomprehensible hieroglyphics trying to erase them, Kara was babbling something to herself.
Erasing nothing worked, so Will, like a decent citizen, went to plan B.
«Let's go, then. I hope Diana has contacted Batman or Clark by now," Will said distractedly, taking Kara by the shoulders and leading her toward the exit, as long as he wasn't suspected of damaging the property.
«Actually, Clark's not answering... and Batman's busy too," Kara said thoughtfully.
Clark and John had some sort of complications during the meteor explosion mission, details Diana hadn't told even Kara. Green Lantern and Falconer went to help them, but suddenly disappeared from the radar. Now Diana decided to look for them, and the first thing she did was contact Kara.
«Diana is asking me to help find Clark and the others. Space is very dangerous, if something happened to them, they could die. I'm sorry, Will, I have to go. When I get back, we'll be sure to talk to Clark.
«It's okay," Will nodded thoughtfully, "but the situation looks familiar.
And then he remembered a similar situation in one of the Justice League episodes, where Clark and John had gotten to Warworld after an accident, where they had been forced to fight the Great Mongul. It started out the same way, they were trying to blow up an asteroid and then the situation got out of control and they got caught in the blast. An unconscious Clark and John were then taken away by Mongul's hunters on World of War.
The World of War itself looked like a lifeless desert, and the people in it were all sorts of alien creatures. They lived in dilapidated houses, wore ragged cloaks and tattered clothes, and ate all sorts of nasty stuff that would give a normal person serious indigestion or put them off.
Battles on this plane usually took place in the Coliseum, and the gladiators were prisoners, bandits, or thugs that the hunters of the Great Mongul gathered from all over the universe. The most dangerous among them was Dreig's huge gray-skinned Velikah, who nearly killed Superman in a deadly fight.
Superman could have died at the hands of Mongul, but he was saved in time by Falconer and Green Lantern. And in this reality, something happened to them!
His thoughts were immediately filled with doubt; Will suspected that there had been a deviation from the main plot in this reality, and that meant the possible death of Superman. And without Superman, Earthlings might not be able to survive an attack by a powerful enemy like Darkseid and the other space titans.
«Sound familiar? You're making that up again.
«I don't want to let you go, Kara, but it's better than sending you to Fargus 4," Will said, taking her hands in his, as if he were seeing her for the last time.
«Don't worry about it, is this the first time I've been in trouble? - She smiled sweetly, "I promise I'll be back, and we'll do something interesting.
«I get it," Will laughed.
The words came out of Will's mouth hard, reluctantly, for it seemed dangerous to let the girl he loved go after what he had heard. He himself seriously doubted that he would be of any use against the mighty alien creatures. Yeah, he got Vanessa, but how? He was bruised, and she'd shown him that he wasn't ready for serious fighting.
Kara, on the other hand, no matter how he looked at it, was a Kryptonian and under Diana's guidance could very well have saved Superman from Mongul's clutches.
***
Kara and Diana set out to find John and Falconer. They gathered at the main computer and tried to track the heroes' last movement. On a large star map, the last traces of John and Falconer were marked on a deserted planet full of bandits and smugglers.
«And what did they forget there? - Diana asked.
«Maybe they were trying to find some information about Clark and the Martian Manhunter," Will suggested, even though he knew it was true. Saying such a thing with absolute certainty would be like going into an important meeting and claiming you'd seen the future. They'd look at you like you were an idiot, and then they wouldn't listen to you at all.
And of course, the nerves made his fingers tingle a little. Will tried to steer Diana in the right direction so she wouldn't get into more trouble while helping her cousin. The idea of telling them where Clark had actually disappeared to came to mind.
«Can I see the star chart? Maybe I can understand something.
«I'm sorry, Will, but I can't trust you with the main computer," Diana said, giving him a condescending look, "I'm sorry.
«Diana, let Will help! He's very smart," Kara said.
Diana shook her head.
«I'm sorry, Kara, but that reason is clearly not enough to trust a regular civilian with access to the Watchtower.
«My dad personally awarded this guy a scholarship, and lately he's been watching him personally, but from a distance," Vanessa said distractedly, appearing out of nowhere. Apparently it runs in the family with Daddy.
«It's still not enough, and mind your own business, Vanessa," Diana cut her off.
«Whatever you say, but then don't blame me if something happens to Superman. He's just the most important symbol of humanity's defense.
«She's right, Diana, why not trust this guy? Bats would never lay eyes on a regular guy, there's definitely something about him," Flash said.
Flash! The guy appeared in a flash, right next to Diana, and waved at Will and the others. He also asked how they were doing, and so on and so forth, so fast that Will didn't even have time to open his lips. The thing was, Flash was not only moving fast, but thinking fast, too, so it was hard to keep up with the speed of his thoughts. Diana, on the other hand, was quite easy to talk to, and Kara, too, and Vanessa, and everyone! Will was the only one who had trouble.
"Apparently I'm not used to it yet," he took hold of his aching head.
After hearing Flash's argument, Diana finally gave in and granted Will access to the mainframe with the words, "After all, I told you myself that since Clark and Kara trust you, I won't doubt you."
"A man of his word," Will thought smilingly, pleasantly surprised by her words.
Being Superman's friend and Batman's business interest was so cool, it made him involuntarily nervous. All he had to do was fulfill the expectations of two of mankind's greatest heroes...that's all.
Will stood at the computer and... it was so fucking complicated and confusing! There were so many screens, buttons, symbols, and other nonsense that it made him dizzy. But Bats and the others were having fun with this multi-million dollar toy, and they were having fun!
Will didn't think of himself as stupid, but even a perfectly intelligent person would be confused the first time he encountered such a powerful computer. What was he supposed to be doing here when he volunteered to help? Will immediately cursed himself for being naive! And everyone was staring at him, especially Kara, who was waiting for his next feat so she could reward him in bed as erotically as possible.
"Man, what am I even thinking? Apparently I'm going to get a minus point on Kara's Boyfriend Coolness chart this time," he sighed.
The first person to notice his doubts was, of course, Vanessa Wayne. She was the only one who'd realized that Will wasn't as smart as he was thought to be. She'd clearly borrowed her father's insight and wit, and she had the nerve to silently walk up to Will and shove him in the side with a pathetic, "hmph."
«I knew you'd have a problem. First time you've seen a toy like this, huh? Let me explain it to you.
"She's suddenly kind... It smells bad," Will thought, and then he got another kick in the butt.
«What planet do you want?
Looking at the huge space map with a bunch of planets that were divided into compartments so that Will could see them without any extra space voids, he nodded in surprise. Vanessa, using only her keen mind and clairvoyance, had been able to pick out the most suitable sectors of planets for Superman's search, based on Will's sketchy hints. Among them, Will saw the two most suitable.
«What are these planets called? - he asked.
«Kir-23, it's in the desert planet sector. There's almost no life there, so it's unlikely that Falconer and John went there," Diana said.
«The second planet... A world of war? What a strange name," Kara said.
«I think you need to go to World of War," Will didn't immediately add, afraid that the change in the plot affected where Clark and John might have gone.
«A world of war, huh...? - Diana put her fingers to her lips thoughtfully. She obviously knew something, but she didn't bother to speak," I'll pass the information on to the Green Lantern familiar right away. They'll check out those two planets for us.
Diana was skeptical at first, but five hours later she came running to him with verified information on World of War and Kir-23. It turned out that traces similar to Superman's presence had indeed been found in the neighboring sector.
Diana and Kara immediately began preparations for the flight to the World of War. Will was with Kara the whole time and hoped to the last minute that she wouldn't have to go.
A feeling of regret and lingering anticipation came over him, because as a man he didn't want to let his baby go to a deadly planet. Who knew how else the plot might change in the future? Maybe there he would lose Kara once and for all.
***
«How did you figure that out? - Vanessa asked.
«You're not happy again, are you? As always," Will said.
«Shut up and answer the question asked. Maybe the others won't tell you anything, but I won't keep quiet. If you don't, I'll tell your father, and then you'll be in trouble.
«What a dubious threat. Unlike you, your father actually has a brain. - Will's getting excited.
He was really getting tired of this arrogant bitch who minded her own business every time he tried to get away from her. And he tried not to hurt her highness, but there was nothing he could do about it.
"A smart man won't go up the mountain, a smart man will go around the mountain," Will sighed, subduing Vanessa's curving lips with a skeptical look.
And soon after that came the expected blow, which Will intercepted. And they froze in front of each other.
«I'm not in the mood to talk to you right now," Will said.
«Oh, yeah, why? Because your shallow little girl decided to leave without you? And here I thought you had no balls at all, Willard Light.
"Take it easy, Will. That bitch is provoking you."
But it hits the target, because Will is overcome by a wave of shame and anger. As he imagined that he had to trust Kara with everything and let her go on a dangerous mission, he immediately remembered the words of his father, who used to say, "Son, never let your family get hurt. You are a man, and therefore you must properly take care of your baby," - yes, such an old man he had, serious, responsible and with a light humor. Will loved him and owed him a lot when they were living on the edge. And before the old man died, leaving him with his sick mother.
Will involuntarily drew parallels. What if Kara really would be worse off without him there? She's so unstable sometimes.
Swallowing possible words like 'yes, you're right' or 'Kara could really die', he said discreetly:
«Kara is strong and savvy enough to stand up for herself. I'm proud of her, and I don't think she needs me to defend herself.
«That's bullshit, did you really say that?
«Sometimes the man is the one who can face the truth despite his personal fears. Kara has a lot more exploits than you, so relax and mind your own business.
Vanessa opened her lips tentatively at Will's words and suddenly froze as if struck by some miracle. The familiar winged feeling that she'd felt only for those she respected flickered inside her, but she mentally crushed it and suppressed it with a curve of her lips.
«Hmph... you're a weird one. But..." she crossed her arms over her chest and looked away.
"Not every guy has the sense to say something pathetic about his girlfriend," unfamiliar thoughts flashed through her mind that made Vanessa uncomfortable.
More than once in Gotham City, the likes of Harley and Poison Ivy have raised whole sexist holivars in which they demeaned men by calling them...whatever the hell they called them.
"Men keep them to themselves, like an expensive piece of jewelry or a lovely wife who is fit only to do the laundry, cook and take care of the children."
Such a concept stifled Vanessa through life, she hated this kind of attitude towards women. She respected and loved her mother Selina, who was a self-sufficient, free and strong woman, and more than once left Bats with nothing when they quarreled. However, she also respected and loved him like no one else. It was a confusing and complicated relationship.
But Vanessa's father, Bruce Wayne, often treated Vanessa herself not only as a child, but also as a weak girl. He protected her and did not trust her with dangerous missions. It pissed her off, and more than once she ran away from home or did dangerous stunts during missions to prove to her father what she was really capable of.
And Bruce was constantly berating her, even though Damien was constantly doing the same thing! Yes, Batman scolded Damien too, but Bruce never restricted Damien like he restricted Vanessa.
And when Vanessa heard Will's words, she decided that there might not be all that bad in this hopeless guy.
And a painfully interesting thought popped into her fevered head.
«Okay, since that's the case, you have to help me," Vanessa said, grabbing Will's hand.
«Hey, where are you going? - he blurted out, sensing something wrong.
«He what?! I'm definitely going after them! - Kara blurted out, flying into the air in anger.
***
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