When Worlds Collide

79) Back At It Again @ the Watchtower

A/N: I am officially caught up to where I have written to, so... I'm a bit fucked. Also, this one is short. 

Nico, despite how annoyed he was with Kaldur, showed up to the meeting. He walked out of the zeta tube and immediately went to the conference room. To his surprise, it was a unique assortment of people present.

"Hi, I'm Ed Dorado," a teen, who was probably a few years older than him,  said as he approached Nico and offered his hand. "It's nice to meet you."

Nico shook his hand with a nod before a man who looked to be in his mid forties approached him. "And I am Dr. Dorado. I am continually impressed with what you and your team have been doing."

Nico shook the man's hand as well before crossing to take his seat, eyeing Vigil as he stood anxiously next to Kaldur by the door.

Kaldur nodded to Virgil before crossing the room to stand at the head of the table, Vigil doing the same except for he sat down in one of the chairs.

"Thank you all for being here," Kaldur said as Ed and Dr. Dorado sat down as well. "I have spoken to Ed, Virgil, and Dr. Dorado about this already, so this meeting is mostly to get you up to speed," he said, looking to Nico.

Nico nodded, pushing his annoyance aside in order to focus on the task at hand.

"After the meta-active teens that were rescued by your team, we now have 28 meta on our hands. These individuals need support that the League alone cannot provide. Dr. Dorado has offered to run a new program to help them, but there are still kinks in the plan. We wish to form a Meta-Human Youth Center that will be run by Dr. Dorado out of Taos, New Mexico. It will be run through the JLA and STAR Labs and offer support and training to meta youth."

"Will they be forced to go?" Nico asked.

Dr. Dorado answered before Kaldur could. "No. It will be completely up to them. We will encourage them to go, but ultimately, it will be their own decision."

Nico nodded, gesturing for Kaldur to continue.

"We have arranged the volunteers and guidance staff, however it seems like it might still be a few months before it can open to the public."

"Why?"

"STAR Labs has donated the majority of the funding, however the League must fund the rest. I am sure there will be large donations from companies after it opens, but we cannot accept anything until it is publicly announced. The League has private funding, but we cannot use it on the center without UN approval and Luthor is purposely slowing us down. We have the building already, but it is empty."

Nico nodded to himself before reaching into the shadows and grabbing something that he hadn't touched in a long time. He stared at it for a long moment before sliding it over to Kaldur, who picked it up and looked confused.

"Lotus Hotel and Casino," the man read before looking to Nico in confusion. "Why have you given this to me?"

"Buy whatever you need for the Youth Center. It has no limit, and neither do you. Those kids deserve a place to feel safe and Luthor shouldn't be allowed to take that away from them."

"But-"

Nico stopped him. "I insist that you use it. You don't even need to tell anyone who paid for the stuff."

"We will need an explanation."

Nico shrugged. "Then tell them that the stuff was donated from my team and our families. If they ask how we knew about the project, just tell that that we reached out about the meta-active kids we rescued. Keep it as vague or be as specific as you want, just make sure the kids get what they need."

Kaldur looked at him for a look moment, not looking sure about it. "I am assuming this money will come from an account your dad made for you. Are you sure he will be-"

Nico laughed. "This money had nothing to do with my family, either side of it. I have refused all money they have tried to give me. This card was something given to me a long time ago."

"How long is a long time ago?" Dr. Dorado asked, seeming intrigued by the dark tone he had taken.

Nico looked at him, eyes guarded, as he simply said, "sometime in the early 1940s."

The man looked surprised, but didn't ask a follow up question.

Nico looked back to Kaldur. "I haven't used it since I was 10, but it should still work. You can spend as much as you want."

Kaldur seemed hesitant, but reluctantly nodded. "Thank you."

The demigod just gave him a nod. "When do you think the center will be ready to open?"

Dr. Dorado took over for Kaldur. "Assuming that all goes smoothly, we should have it ready in about a week for the grand opening."

Nico nodded, pulling out his phone and putting the predicted date in his calendar. "I want to be there. I know there will be Leaguers present, but a lot of people are against metas right now, and even more people are against the League. I want the kids to see they have more people than just the League to protect them."

Ed looked at him in surprise. "You want to go to a League event? I thought you were supposed to be keeping a low profile for League stuff."

Nico shrugged. "It might cause some questions, but I'll make sure the right reporters are covering the story. The safety of those kids comes before any publicity concerns. Lex will probably have a conniption, but he'll most likely keep it private."

"And if he doesn't?" Virgil asked, sounding cautious.

"Then my team can deal with it. We have faced worse than a bald man trying to play god." 

A/N: I hate writers block. I haven't had a problem with it this whole time throughout this book and the last one, but it's beating me over the head rn. Also, I just started back at work and I really forgot how much I hate working. 

Vote. Comment. Tell me how proud you are that I remembered to add this part (I'm very proud of myself).