THIS IS PERSONAL | yj next gen

Ⅰ

16:55
12 JULY, 2041
MOUNT JUSTICE RUINS aka 'CRATER OF JUSTICE'

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The Happy Harbour zeta tube worked overtime to accommodate the large number of transports after remaining unused for so long. Eleven name counts later, the team was assembled outside a shed in the woods, the disguise this particular beam had been given. The wildlife in the forest near Mount Justice's crater had finally re-established itself after its untimely obliteration caused by a rogue Atlantean group's bomb. Birds were nesting in the trees, a brook babbled past lazily and the signs of destruction had all nearly faded. Each of the kids took a moment of silence, and Cayden especially took the time to close her eyes and appreciate it. After all, it had been her father who set the explosive while undercover in a dangerous organisation. It was short-lived, however, because Irey broke the content silence by beginning her warmup for the mission, which involved doing shuttle runs between every tree from their position, all the way to the crater and back again. All anyone could see of her was glimpses of the brilliant white-blue suit and the sparks of the same hued lightning trailing after her.

"We should get moving," Mar'i said, a small smile coming to her lips as she watched Irey bounce like a pinball between trees further and further ahead of them. Apollo was also smiling, a private grin that usually came to his face when his sister was happy, despite her antics. He still had memories of darker times, when all she could do was sit and stare after that black day.

"Come on, Hal!" Irey squealed as she rounded back around to the group again, locking her arm around Hallie's and dragging the green-skinned girl off, laughing. The rest of them followed suit, making their way in the direction of the 'Crater of Justice' as some had begun to refer to the ruins as. Cayden and Lena, the dark haired girl who shared a passion for hacking alongside her cousin Alex, branched out to the side, locked in a quiet conversation, while the two Martian-Kryptonian boys, J'onn and Clark, spoke telepathically to each other. Anyone else would think they were being anti-social, but the group knew they were trading jokes, puns and making random comments about things they saw. Every now and then, one of them would begin to smirk or let loose a chuckle. Alex and Peter, the African-American boy, were sniggering about something, and at the back, Zac, Apollo and Mar'i were having a serious discussion about what the mission might involve.

Five or so minutes later, the team reached the lip of the crater that used to be the old HQ, their questionable meeting place. All of the debris had been cleared away years ago, and the rocky base of the hollow mountain was the only thing left. Many members of the Justice League were stood some way to the side, on the beach beside the deep hole. It, like the base, had originally been wiped out, but with time the waterline receded again to reveal the sandy plain.

It was vaguely surprising to the older members of the team to see so many important Leaguers in one place, including the likes of Green Arrow and Solstice.

"Y'know," Zac murmured to Mar'i, Cayden and Apollo as the others in the group took off towards them, "this kind of looks like a send off. A big, 'we'll never forget your service to this country', send off." The three made sounds of agreement, eyes narrowing suspiciously.

"Must be one dangerous magic artefact," Apollo replied, "otherwise there wouldn't be so many of our parents here." He eyed his own surreptitiously and then went after his sister, followed by the other three.

Zac trudged across the sand until his mother came into view. He expected her to be there, as who was more qualified to advise on the retrieval of a clearly dangerous and 'big-deal' magical artefact than Zatanna Zatara? Other than his grandfather-but-not-grandfather Doctor Fate, of course. He was still a little distracted, contemplating what was so important that they needed a huge assembly of Leaguers, so it was not until he was practically at his mom's side that he caught sight of the man standing next to her. All conversations on the beach came to an abrupt and incredibly shocked stop when Zac asked, with the most bitterness anyone had ever heard leave his lips, "Why the hell are you here?"