#loop195

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.12

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195-masterlist

(ep10) (ep11)

@Miharuki:I took the things Winnie wrote; we both wrote together, but you may notice that the writing is a little different because of that,I'll leave all her social networks here in case you want to see

Wattpad Ao3 Quotev

Upon arriving at the location, Wally shot off in a red blur, circled the area, and returned to the team in an instant.

"Nothing," he announced, hands on his hips. "This isn't simple holographic camouflage. So, what do you think?"

Artemis frowned, analyzing the shimmering air. "Adaptive micro-optoelectronics combined with phase shifting?"

Wally almost accepted the theory, his face brightening for a fraction of a second—until he realized who it came from. His expression hardened into forced sarcasm.

"Absolutely… not. Clearly, mystical powers are at work here." His voice carried a disdain that didn't even sound genuine, just defensive.

"A test of faith," Aqualad murmured, his eyes fixed on the pulsating void. He walked ahead of the group. "Stay behind me."

With a decisive gesture, he inserted the metal key into the air. The space before them roared and tore open, revealing an arched doorway of black stone and, beyond it, the impossible silhouette of the Tower of Fate hovering over a starry abyss. Everyone entered. As soon as the last foot crossed the threshold, the door vanished without a sound.

"Hmph. Where did the door go?" Superboy asked, turning around and clenching his fists, only to find solid wall.

A golden light coalesced in the center of the room, forming the translucent image of an elderly man with a severe countenance.

"Greetings. You entered with a key, but the tower does not recognize you. Please, state your purpose and intention."

Wally, always the first to jump, stepped forward with a confident smile. "We're true believers, here to find Dr. Fate!"

The lie echoed like a shout in a cathedral. The stone floor beneath their feet cracked with a thunderous boom, flipping over like the jaw of a monster. Screams filled the air as everyone fell into the opening void.

*Renji!* you commanded, mentally, panic a silent scream.

The animal—your weasel—laughed, a sharp, amused mental sound. *"Now?! What timing!"* But he obeyed. He spat your yo-yo into your open hand.

In the midst of the fall, you threw it. It didn't go towards the ground, but against the walls of the shaft, striking and ricocheting at impossible angles. The string, now tinged with an amber energy you didn't even have a name for, wove a shimmering net between the stones, stretching out like a divine spider's web.

*THUD. THUD. THUD.*

The team fell onto the net, which stretched elastically before firming up. You glared angrily at Wally, your fingers tightening around the yo-yo string as if it were his neck. He just raised his eyebrows, spreading his arms in an innocent gesture.

"What?" he asked, as if he weren't the one responsible for them almost plummeting into an abyss of mystical magma.

You then shouted, your voice cutting through the tense air like a blade, directed straight at the void where Nelson's apparition had dissolved:

"Red Tornado sent us to check if Mr. Nelson and the helmet were safe! WE ARE NOT ENEMIES!"

The echo of your words seemed to vibrate in the stone. For a second, nothing happened. Then, with a deep groan that came from the tower's very bowels, the cracks in the floor began to close. The incandescent lava that flickered in the abyss drained downward, as if sucked by a giant drain, and the large stone slabs fit back together perfectly, as if they had never been split.

With a final, firm tug, you reeled in the yo-yo. The abrupt movement made the energy net dissolve, and the team, who were still in a slight state of suspension, fell back onto the now-solid platform. Some fell face-first onto the cold floor, others landed sitting in a clumsy heap. You and Renji remained standing, unfazed. The animal swallowed the yo-yo back, his small body shaking with a silent, triumphant laugh that only you could feel, as if the whole mess was the best fun he'd ever had.

Wally, dusting himself off, saw his chance. He lunged towards Megan with an exaggerated smile. "Don't worry, M'gannicious, I got you!"

That scene. That pattern. The desperate, pathetic attempt to impress the girl, completely ignoring that they almost died. It was identical to timeline 22. And in 22, that distraction had cost everything.

The anger, fermenting for weeks, exploded. You didn't think.

"ENOUGH! GODDAMMIT, WALLY! YOUR GAME TO IMPRESS MEGAN ALMOST SCREWED EVERYTHING! WE COULD HAVE DIED!"

The silence was sudden and absolute. Wally stopped mid-stride, his face a mask of genuine confusion.

"Since when is the blame on me?" he asked, arms open.

That only enraged you further. You closed the distance in two steps and jabbed your index finger against his chest, each word a stake.

"YOU SAID WE WERE TRUE BELIEVERS! BUT HELL, YOU DON'T BELIEVE IN MAGIC! YOUR MIND IS LOGICAL, IT'S THE SAME CRAP AS AN ATHEIST SAYING THEY BELIEVE IN GOD!"

You released him, stepping back as if he burned. Your ragged breathing echoed in the stone room. Everyone was staring at you—shock, alarm, consternation. You turned to a wall, trying to contain the tremor in your hands. It was intrusive. Everything was so intense, so irritating.

"Wally… you don't believe?" Megan's voice was small, hurt.

He sighed, rubbing his face. "Alright. Alright, I lied about believing in magic. But magic is the real lie! A big fat lie that…"

"Wally," Aqualad interjected, his voice calm as deep water. "I studied for a year at the Conservatory of Sorcery in Atlantis. Mystic arts created the skin icons that energize my water-bearers."

"Dude, have you ever heard of bioelectricity?" Wally argued, ignoring Kaldur. "In primitive cultures, fire was considered magic too. Nowadays, it's all just a bunch of…"

"You're pretty close-minded for a guy… who can break the sound barrier in sneakers," Artemis cut in, dryly.

"That's science! I…"

"DO YOU ALL WANT TO STOP?!" Your shout cut through the air again, making everyone flinch. You turned to them, eyes burning. "SAYING MAGIC EXISTS WON'T MAKE HIM BELIEVE! IT'S LITERALLY A BELIEVER TRYING TO FORCE AN ATHEIST TO SWALLOW THEIR FAITH! JUST…" you swallowed, forcing your voice down to a hoarse whisper, "…just let Wally be the science nerd. As long as he stops almost getting us killed with it."

Without waiting for a response, you knelt and found a nearly invisible trapdoor on the floor. You opened it. An icy wind, carrying snowflakes, rose from within. You descended first, without looking back.

The others followed, the trapdoor closing with a final click, muffling their shaken murmurs. The new chamber was a frozen study, books covered in frost.

"What's that?" Megan pointed to a staff of intricate wood, leaning against a bookshelf.

You and Wally moved at the same time. Your hand wrapped around the shaft at the same time as his.

"Let go!" you snarled.

"Easy! I… can't!" Wally's voice was panicked. The staff wasn't just being held; it was stuck, as if the wood had come alive and grabbed their hands. In your own hand, you felt a pulling resistance, elastic and insistent, like gum.

Before anyone could react, the staff rose on its own, lifting you and Wally like puppets. A vortex of golden light engulfed you.

They reappeared on a flight of infinite stairs, twisting and spiraling in space like Möbius strips. Wally was still struggling to free his hand, muttering "Sorry, sorry, I didn't know!", oblivious to the figure appearing above them.

Kent Nelson, solid and real, flew down rapidly and with a simple gesture, he touched the staff. The mystical adhesion dissolved. You both let go, and Nelson wasted no time. He struck the base of the staff against a seemingly solid stone wall, which dissolved into a misty doorway. "In here!" he ordered.

You entered last. In the final gap, through a break in the mist, your eyes caught a scene in the main hall: Klarion, the Witch Boy, with his cat Teekl on his shoulder, and Abra Kadabra, the master of futuristic tricks. Klarion was raising his hand, fingers contorted to cast a spell, when Teekl, the cat, suddenly arched its back and hissed—directly at your hiding spot. Its yellow eyes met yours for a fraction of a second, sensing the danger, the anomaly you represented. Then the misty door closed, cutting off the view.

Inside the small safe room, you let out the breath you didn't know you were holding. Renji jumped from one of your arms to his usual perch on your shoulder. The animal, with its immaculate white fur and ordinary appearance, trembled internally.

"By the way," Kent Nelson's gentle voice broke the silence. He was sitting on a stone bench, with a tired but genuine smile. "My name is Kent Nelson."

Wally, rubbing his red wrist, rolled his eyes. "We know! Hey, what…"

*THWACK.*

Your punch to the back of Wally's head was fast and solid, cutting him off with an "Ouch!"

You approached Nelson, your fury dissipated, replaced by resigned exhaustion. You shook the old wizard's extended hand.

"Nice to meet you. I'm (Hero)," you said, your voice finally calm. "The other one is Wally."

"The pleasure is all mine," Nelson replied, his grip firm and surprisingly warm. His smile faded, replaced by a deep gravity. "Although, I must say, our circumstances are less than ideal. We now face an opponent… with tremendous mystical power."

"Abra Kadabra? Hmph." Wally snorted, crossing his arms. "The Flash proved he uses futuristic tech to simulate magic. The guy's all show and no substance."

"You are right." The answer came from Nelson, not as a compliment, but as a fact. Wally looked at you with a confident smile, seeking validation. You just rolled your eyes and turned away.

"Abra Kadabra is a charlatan. A high-level illusionist, but a charlatan nonetheless," the old wizard continued, his eyes losing focus, as if seeing through the tower's walls. "But Klarion… the witch boy with the cat… he is a true Lord of Chaos. The ultimate enemy of a Lord of Order, like Dr. Fate."

"Right. And you're a Lord of Order," Wally deduced, raising a finger. But his face twisted in confusion as Nelson shook his head with a sad smile.

"Oh, no, I'm not. Not by a long shot." He pulled a medallion from his coat, stroking the silver surface with his thumb. "I was just… an old coat that Fate used. Until my wife, Inza, convinced me that life could be more than that. Ah, she was a real pest, that Inza… the best kind of pest." His voice wavered for a moment before he swallowed hard and put the medallion away. The tenderness evaporated, replaced by urgent practicality. "Anyway. Klarion is after the helmet. If he gets his hands on it… he won't want to rule the world. He'll want to break it. Turn the planet into his own personal pandemonium playground."

*KNOCK-KNOCK-KNOCK.*

A metallic, rhythmic sound echoed in the room, coming from a large duct in the corner. The sound of something—or someone—being repeatedly banged against the walls of a metal tube.

*KNOCK.* Moan. *KNOCK.* Muffled cry.

"Friends of yours?" Nelson asked, raising a gray eyebrow in the direction of the noise.

"No," you replied without hesitation, your voice a flat murmur. "Just coworkers." You didn't see the look the old man gave you—a mixture of curiosity and a spark of recognition.

The moment was interrupted by a blood-red glow that appeared through the wall, shaping itself into the form of a chaotic energy scythe. Klarion. You didn't think—you acted. A hand on Nelson's nape, you pushed him down, forcing him to crouch. The energy scythe hissed over your heads, exploding against the bookshelf behind in a shower of splinters and burnt paper.

"Let's go!" you ordered, pulling the old man back to his feet. Nelson, surprisingly agile, was already moving. He struck a small bronze bell on a table; a clear *ding* echoed, and a section of the wooden paneling on the wall slid aside to reveal a secret passage. You ushered him inside, with Wally covering the rear, his eyes wide from the near-death experience.

The passage led them straight to the sanctum sanctorum. In the center of the tower's top, under the dome, rested the Helm of Fate. Nelson ran towards it, his trembling hand reaching out.

*ZZZRAAA-KOW!*

A bolt of pure red chaos shot from the shadows, aiming directly at the old man's back. You moved in the last possible instant, your arm wrapping around Nelson's frail waist and pulling him hard to the side. The bolt passed, scorching the air where your chest had been and incinerating a marble column.

The two of you rolled on the floor. You recovered first, kneeling over him, one arm still protectively across his torso.

"Are you okay?" you murmured, your eyes not on him, but scanning the shadows above, looking for a yellow glow and a feline silhouette.

Nelson, panting, nodded. There was a different spark in his eyes now—not fear, but assessment. He grabbed his staff, which had fallen beside him, and with a grunt of effort, struck its tip on the floor.

*"Per istam virtutem, protegam nos!"*

The Latin words came out firm. You understood them and watched as a dome of translucent golden energy erupted from the staff, enveloping the three of you. An instant later, another chaotic bolt slammed against it and dissipated into harmless sparks.

Behind the barrier, Nelson turned to Wally, who was crouched, mouth agape.

"Not bad for an ex-Dr. Fake, huh, kid?"

"Stay down and hold him," you ordered Wally, your voice making it clear it wasn't a request. "Don't let him do anything heroic and stupid."

Wally, still dazed, just nodded, wrapping a protective—if still clumsy—arm around the old wizard's shoulders. You, with cold eyes, watched as Nelson's golden shield trembled under the next impact.

"Believe what you can no longer deny," the old man whispered, his eyes fixed on Wally with a final intensity. Then, the light in them went out. Nelson's body went heavy and limp in the speedster's arms.

"No… no, no, no!" Wally screamed, panic taking over. He laid the old man carefully on the floor and began chest compressions, his hands shaking but moving with trained precision. "Twenty-eight… 29… 30!"

As he leaned in to give rescue breaths, you felt it. Didn't hear it, but felt it—a crack in the air, a groan of energy. The golden shield Nelson had conjured trembled, becoming translucent, its runes flickering in distress. Without the mage to sustain it, it wouldn't last more than a few seconds.

You stood up.

"(Hero?)" Wally's voice was a mix of pleading and desperation. He didn't stop the compressions, his eyes begging for help, for a solution, for a miracle. "Where are you going?!"

You didn't answer. Your mind had already calculated all the variables, lived through this moment (or something horribly similar) too many times. Wally couldn't put on the helmet. In the lines where he did, the result was catastrophic—either he was consumed by Fate's archetypal personality and lost forever, or the process took too long and everyone died. The breaking point was now.

Your steps were steady towards the podium. The Helm of Fate rested there, not as an object, but as a silent vortex of absolute power. You could feel the ordered madness whispering from the cold metal.

A telepathic cry of pain and despair made Wally shudder internally:

*WALLY! WE'RE IN TROUBLE! TELL KENT WE NEED DR. FATE! NOW!*

Wally, still kneeling over Nelson, froze for a fraction of a second. His gaze turned to you, his lips parted to relay the message, to pass the responsibility.

He saw your hand close around the helmet.

"NO!" His bellow was a burst of pure terror.

Renjichiro jumped from your shoulder, landing on the floor with a soft *pat*. The animal sat on its haunches, its head tilted with obscene curiosity, its bright eyes watching you lift the Helm. Inside your mind, you could hear him laughing—a laugh of pure hysterical fascination, like a child watching an epic, terrible ending to a fairy tale.

You didn't hesitate. You placed the helmet on your head.

The world vanished.

There was no pain. No explosive light. It was a sudden, absolute silence, followed by an infinite pressure, as if all the weight of every possibility and law of the universe was being squeezed inside your skull. You floated (or sank) in a void where time had no meaning.

And then, a voice. Not coming from outside, but emerging from the very depths of the consciousness the helmet now touched. It was an ancient voice, calm, immensely tired, and infinitely powerful.

"I was hoping you wouldn't do that."

In what was now your world, you turned (if "turning" existed there).

There was Kent Nelson. Not the physical body that lay on the tower floor, but although he looked much like him, you felt it wasn't quite him.

"I thought it would be the red-haired boy," Nelson's apparition continued, his wise, sad eyes fixed on you. "He has the right heart… and the necessary stubbornness. But you… you seem to carry the weight of an entire world on your shoulders, maybe worse. Why did you do it?"

He knew.

"How do you…"

"Don't be so startled by it, child. I can see it in your eyes, not the obvious disguise."

It was at that moment you looked at your clothes, different from the disguise; they were clothes you liked to wear. Pulling a lock of hair, it was your hair. The glasses weren't there. None of the fake civilian disguise was. For a moment, your hand hesitated to touch your neck, the fear of it being there making you swallow hard. You prayed it wasn't. Unfortunately, when your fingers touched the soft fabric, you realized that even there, that thing didn't come off. But feeling around, you noticed something was missing: the trigger pin. Normally, the choker had a pull pin like on a grenade, to kill you and reset the timeline. But it wasn't there.

"Wait, by any chance…"

"Don't worry, you're not dead. But unfortunately, your soul no longer controls the body. Not does that thing."

"What?-"

"But don't feel bad for me," he said, as if to cut off the question. "As soon as this little mess is over… my spirit will ascend, and I will finally be reunited with my beloved Inza." His tone was one of sweet anticipation, not lament. He was a man ready for rest, not a trapped ghost.

He then looked directly at you, at the silent panic that must have been written in your essence, and smiled—a genuine, reassuring smile.

"You see, we're inside the helmet. You put it on, and what remained of my soul… was sucked inside. Probably because I spent many years serving as its host, its channel. One last crumb of connection."

"Nabu," you murmured, the name coming out like a grim recognition. The true power, the intelligence behind the legend.

"Exactly," Nelson confirmed with a nod. "One of those Lords of Order I mentioned. He's the one controlling your body now."

"Want to watch?" Nelson asked, and before you could agree, the wall of the void before you dissolved, becoming a translucent window to the outside world.

The view was strangely intimate and deeply alienating. It was your point of view—the height, the angle—but filtered through the cold, immovable lenses of the Helm. You saw through them, a spectator inside your own body.

Your body (or what had been your body) was standing, erect and imposing, now wearing the heavy golden robes of Dr. Fate, which had materialized from nowhere, replacing your uniform. Cosmic energy of Order pulsed in silent waves around it, making the air tremble. Ahead, floating with a mocking smile stretching his pale boyish face, was Klarion. Teekl, his familiar cat, was perched on his shoulder, yellow eyes fixed on the hooded figure, a silent hiss escaping its throat.

"Give it up, Nabu!" Klarion's voice was a sharp, irritating singsong, full of perverse glee. "Order went out of fashion in the 20th century! Chaos is much more… fun."

The response came, and it was your voice that emitted it, but transformed. It was deeper, resonant, carrying an authority that echoed not just in the room, but in the very foundations of reality. There was no emotion in it. Only declaration.

"This battle is futile." Your arm (Nabu's arm) rose, and a shield of golden energy, studded with complex runes, sprouted from the air to block a red chaotic bolt Klarion had suddenly launched. The impact was silent, the chaos energy dissipating against the ordered barrier like smoke against glass. "You tried to take the helmet before it found a host. But you are too late."

The statement seemed to irritate Klarion deeply. His childish face contorted into a grimace of pure rage.

"Shut up, you senile old fool!" he screamed, gesticulating wildly. More bolts of distorted energy shot from his fingers, weaving an unpredictable and deadly pattern towards the body you inhabited.

The response was a single word, spoken with such immense disdain it was almost physical. A word that summed up centuries of cosmic disagreement, uttered with the final coldness of a judge passing sentence.

"Brat."

And then, your body moved. Not with your usual agility, but with a terrible, economical efficiency. Every gesture was calculated, every deflection a geometric proof against random chaos. You watched, a prisoner in your own flesh, as a battle that transcended mortal understanding unfolded, piloted by an ancient will using your limbs as tools.

Nelson, beside you in the void, sighed, a sound of tired resignation.

"And so it goes," he murmured. "The eternal dance. I'm sorry you got pulled into the center of it, my child."

Until a bolt of pure chaos, denser and more violent than the previous ones, pierced a momentary breach in the shield and struck the golden chest plate of Dr. Fate.

The pain was not filtered. It was not lessened by Nabu's presence.

It erupted directly into you, into the fragment of soul trapped within the Helm. A scream tore from your spiritual throat—an agonized, raw sound that echoed in the void. Outside, your physical body (controlled by Nabu) fell to its knees on the floor with a dull thud, sinister smoke rising from the point of impact.

And then, something else happened.

Around your spiritual neck, the Choker—which was the physical anchor of your temporal curse, your true form—began to vibrate. Within the non-physical space of the helmet, it seemed to gain weight, density. And then, it discharged. Sharp, merciless shocks of reverse temporal energy coursed through your essence, not healing, but undoing—as if trying to rewind a film that was being burned. The sensation was of being dismantled and reassembled at the same time, an agony unique that surpassed the physical pain of the bolt.

You fell to your knees on the floor of the void, gasping, glimpsing for an instant the stone floor of the tower through the observation window. The pain of the shock was so real, so yours.

"What… what was that?" you panted, your spiritual voice trembling.

Kent Nelson was beside you in an instant. Not to help—he couldn't—but with a look of deep pity.

"Well," he said, softly. "It's your body. The connection is still there, even with Nabu in charge. You feel what he feels, on a fundamental level. But you can see now… you can see why I haven't put on the helmet for 65 years. The price isn't just control. It's sharing all the agony."

You looked at him, still kneeling, your spiritual face probably pale from shock and residual pain.

"What if…" your voice failed, choking in the spiritual void. You swallowed, forcing the syllables through a throat that didn't exist. "What if Fate loses this fight? I can't… I can't…"

The sentence died in a whisper. *I can't die like this? Trapped? I can't be locked in here forever?*

Nelson understood. His gaze became even gentler, a profound compassion tinged with sorrow. He saw the dread of eternal imprisonment, something worse than death for an already exhausted spirit.

"You'll see Inza before I do, then," he murmured, as if offering a macabre comfort. For him, the passage to the beyond was a serene certainty, a long-awaited reunion. For you, it was just another precipice of uncertainty.

Then you shook your head, looking at the floor. It didn't make sense. You looked at the man before murmuring:

"But the thing is, I can't die."

"How?"

"I… well, in simple terms, I'm the impossibility of dying."

"You're an immortal child?"

"Something like that," you said, already standing up and rubbing your neck. "I, in somewhat simple terms, can be sliced up, have my head ripped off, be burned, well, you get it. There might be nothing left of me, but I'll still be fully conscious of everything. Even when they give me sleeping pills, when they introduce things to make me sleep or rest, it's like…"

"Nothing works, no matter what they do…" he said, looking at you as you nodded in agreement. "And how do you sleep, then? Or do you heal and regenerate?"

"No, I'm physically like a human. I feel pain, I feel dizziness, but I can't heal. I'm not like Wally with his accelerated healing, or Megan who can reshape her body by modifying it. My body is completely mortal, but my consciousness remains. So, my heart could be cut out, ripped out, it could have stopped, but I would still be conscious. I'd just need to stick everything back in place, and I'd come back, even if like Frankenstein, or a vampire, or a zombie…"

He looked at you, almost frightened, before squeezing your shoulder.

"Child, how do you deal with that? That must be horrible. At least your mentor must know, right?" Noting the silence, he looked again before saying, "I'm so sorry…"

"You don't have to be. I've been at this for… more years than I can count," you said before turning back to watch the battle.

"You're out of practice, Nabu!" Klarion's voice cut through the charged air, sharper than the clatter of rubble. A grotesque lance, twisted from visible nightmares and silent screams, descended in a purple and black whirlwind. It crashed against the runic shield that Nabu—using your reflexes, your posture—had conjured. The impact wasn't a sound; it was a sensation: the Tower of Fate itself groaned in its mystical foundations, ancient stones grinding like clenched teeth. "And this pathetic host body… zero affinity for the mystic arts! It's like piloting a rusty wheelbarrow!"

Klarion laughed, a sound like shattering crystal. Then, with an abrupt, childish gesture, he tore.

Not the air. But the very fabric of reality between them. A thunderclap of pure, cloudless, physically uncaused sound exploded in the room, a wave of force that pushed dust aside in a perfect ring. Nabu, within you, reacted with a frightening economy of motion. Your hand (your hand) rose, palm forward. Not to block the brute force, but to redirect it.

Where the invisible shockwave met the rising golden barrier, it didn't dissipate. It transformed. The air around the impact point became a frenetic kaleidoscope, sparks of every color of the spectrum—shock pink, acid green, electric blue—gushed and danced, creating a rainbow of pure energetic chaos that hissed and crackled against the ordered defense.

Klarion floated at the epicenter of the storm he'd created, his eyes wide with pure delight.

"Ooh. Rainbow power!" he hummed, swinging his feet in the air like a child on a swing, his voice a falsetto of pure malevolent glee.

The cat's meow, coming from Klarion's shoulder, was more than a sound—it was a vibration in the very fabric of reality, a tug on the chain linking the witch boy to this plane. Sharp, insistent. It wasn't encouragement. It was a warning. An urgent correction.

Klarion's smile, until then a mask of amused cruelty, cracked. He frowned, a flash of genuine childish irritation crossing his pale features.

"I am paying attention, you stupid cat!" he muttered, throwing the words at the feline like stones. The look he then turned back to Nabu, however, had lost a thread of its confidence. It was a bit wilder, a bit more forced. "In case you haven't noticed… I'm winning."

The window to the outside world showed the climax in slow motion: Nabu's bolt of pure Order, guided by impersonal cosmic calculation, didn't aim for Klarion, but at the sibilant black shape on his shoulder. Teekl mewled in agony, a sound that cut the air and, apparently, something much deeper within Klarion himself. The witch boy screamed—not in rage, but in genuine, primal terror. The bond was severed. Klarion's form dissolved like smoke in a gale, sucked back into the Chaos plane, his screams of fury echoing until they faded.

Silence.

The tower stopped shaking. The residual chaotic energy dissipated like a bad smell. Dr. Fate—your body, dressed in those heavy golden robes—hovered in the center of the chamber, motionless. Victorious. Unshakeable.

Inside the helmet, you watched, your tactical discovery now a grey, empty taste in your mouth. They had survived. The team was safe, the world was safe. Klarion had been banished.

And then, the question, small and fragile, formed on your spiritual lips and escaped into the void shared with Nelson.

"Uh… it's over, right?" your voice sounded a bit confused as you looked at the old man beside you. "So… why doesn't Nabu take off the helmet?"

You saw, through the window, your own hand (Nabu's hand) rise. Not to remove the Helm, but to examine the back of the gauntlet, as if inspecting a tool after use. The action was calculated, possessive.

The answer didn't come from Nelson. It came directly to your mind, resonating within the very metal of the helmet. It was Nabu's voice, no longer projected to the outside world, but inwards, to the fragment of soul that now shared your prison. The voice was calm, logical, and absolutely relentless.

"Because the Earth needs Dr. Fate."

The statement was simple. An axiom. An unquestionable fact of reality, like the law of gravity. There was no emotion in it, only absolute certainty.

"I will not release this body."

*He can't do that*—you whispered, your spiritual voice a thread of pure panic. You turned to Nelson, pointing frantically at the vision of the helmet—your helmet—floating in the air, a golden shell that now housed your living tomb. *Can he? Can he do that?!*

Nelson closed his eyes for a moment, a deep pain crossing his ethereal features.

"He can," he admitted, the word heavy as a tombstone. "The Helm is his prison, but it is also his domain. The host's will… is secondary. But—" he opened his eyes, and there was a stubborn fire in them, the fire that defied fate itself for love. "—it shouldn't be. Nabu, listen to me! This isn't the right candidate! Her soul… is bound elsewhere! Bound by something else! Sooner or later, the connection will break, she'll be expelled from here! This isn't a permanent receptacle, it's a cracked cup. Even if she can't die, that doesn't mean she'll live!"

Nabu's voice responded, not with anger, but with an infinite, exasperating patience, as if explaining something obvious to a child.

"It is true, but I do not enjoy remaining permanently hidden, useless, and isolated for decades on end. We cannot allow chaos to reign."

"That won't happen again." Nelson's voice was firm, carrying an authority that came not from power, but from experience. "(Name) will take the helmet. And she will ensure that you are… well-utilized. Right?" He turned to you, his wise eyes seeking yours, offering a lifeline amidst the shipwreck.

"Ah, yes," you nodded in agreement.

Nelson smiled, a small, sad, but genuine smile. He turned back to Nabu.

"And in the meantime…" he said, shrugging with a lightness that seemed impossible under those circumstances, "I'll stay here. Keep you company. One old ghost for one old lord of order. We must have much to talk about regarding the good old days… and the not-so-good ones."

The declaration made your brain (or what was left of it) freeze.

"W-wait," you stammered, looking at Nelson. "What about your ascension? What about… Inza?"

Nelson's expression softened, a profound peace washing over his features.

"Relax," he whispered, as if sharing a sweet secret. "I'll spend a few millennia here, then I'll go see Inza." His smile became almost mischievous. "That's the great advantage of eternity, my child. It is… eternal. A delay of a few millennia is like a sigh between old friends. I can wait. She will understand."

The offer was monumental. A sacrifice of long-awaited peace, made out of compassion. So that you wouldn't be alone.

Faced with that silent generosity, Nabu seemed to consider. The void around them seemed to weigh the proposal.

"The arrangement…" the Lord of Order's voice echoed, "…is acceptable."

---

"Listen, child, you have a bright future. You should be having fun with your friends, but from what I noticed, you barely speak to them properly."

"But I-"

"You're angry, I understand. I've felt that too. But you know, sometimes things are better if you just let yourself go."

"Let myself go?" You looked confused at the man. How did he know so much? Maybe he really was much more magical than everyone thought. As if reading your mind, or your face, he approached, placing his hand on your shoulder.

"I have some advice. Feeling anger can be easy and all, but so is ignoring it. So why not take life a little more lightly? Nothing is going to end just like that, or at least not while you're enjoying it properly. The best things are the simplest. Like a date."

"No, thanks. All the relationships I've had have already shown me enough to know I'm fine as I am."

"Is that so? Well, I may not know what happened to you, but I know enough to know that sometimes loneliness can be a bit bad. Try to have fun, even if by yourself. Spending eternity can be fun if you have someone. And I'm not talking about that magical animal of yours, who, honestly, is much worse than Klarion."

The silence was quite heavy, until the old man placed his hand on your shoulder, smiling as he said, looking into your eyes.

"Try to live," he said, and the words were simple, but carried a weight you had never heard before. "Not because of the burden of what has passed. Not as a soldier marching to the next battle, counting the dead from previous wars."

He paused, and his gaze seemed to see through the shell of the hero, the time traveler, the prisoner, to the worn-out, forgotten core of what she once was.

"Try to live… for the details you've been avoiding. For the taste of food you swallow without feeling. For the warmth of the sun on the skin you treat as armor. For the stupid joke that makes no sense but makes someone laugh." He tilted his head towards the window, where the cosmic battle raged. "Even for the anger of a stubborn boy, or the clumsy concern of a colleague. Those things aren't obstacles to your mission, my child. They *are* the mission. The only one that truly matters, at the end of all lines."

He took a step back, his glow beginning to soften, as if being pulled towards a greater, warmer light.

"Open your eyes. Not just to the threats and the patterns of fate… but to the life that insists on happening between one moment and the next. It is fragile. It is irritating. It is gloriously imperfect. And it is the only real thing any of us have. Don't lose the only thing left for you. Don't lose your last part."

His smile was his last gift to you—serene, complete, full of a peace you could scarcely conceive.

"Now go…"

tag:

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 . 𝐀𝐓𝐎 𝐈

synopsis:

"When It All Began"

"You know, (name), throughout my existence, I thought at some point you would give up. I thought you'd grow tired. But I must admit, your persistence is something truly admirable. I'm... what's the word again?

In love with your determination.

Even after thousands of timelines, even after going back countless times, even after erasing timelines, with you being the last one left in the entire multiverse—you still don’t give up.

Even after watching your friends die, even after pulling the trigger over and over and over again, even after hearing the same things repeated endlessly, you don’t give up.

I’m amazed, I admit. Though I can’t love you or have any kind of emotional attachment to you, I think they can do that for me. After all...

‘The love I once felt for you grows within them more and more.’

So tell me...

Even with me sharing a fraction of my power every time the timeline resets, even as you forget, as you lose yourself and drift further from who you once were...

Do you still believe you’ll achieve your precious ending? Without any consequences?"

—(Hero Name), are you ready? Today is the day.

"Tell me, are you ready to start again?"

EPISODIOS. SEASON 1

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.01

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.02

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.03

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.04

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.05

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.06

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.07

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.08

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.09

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.10

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.11

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.12

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.01

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195-masterlist

WASHINGTON, D.C.

JULY 4TH, 2:00 PM

“All right, (hero), as you know, today’s the day,” says the blonde woman, Black Canary, as she places her hands on your back, guiding you toward the Justice League headquarters. You walk calmly, rejichiro perched on your shoulder. “Today will be just another day. I can’t fail this time,” you think to yourself as you walk confidently, being the first to arrive.

“You did so well,” the woman says, glancing toward the headquarters. You notice the figures but don’t look. You already know they’re Batman, Flash, and Green Arrow with their partners. Your fist tightens as you walk alongside the others toward the entrance. “Once again, here we are.”

—“So, this is the day it happens again, isn’t it?” Renjichiro comments, watching you as you prepare. You press a button on the choker around your neck, and your hero costume materializes. The same choker that, with a simple pull of the pin, will kill you and reset the timeline.

—“What number is this? The 140th? Or less? Or perhaps more? Aren’t you excited to see your friends’ faces again?” The voice of the mystical animal resonates in your mind, a memory flashing back to earlier.

"Ugh, I knew we’d be late!” Kid Flash complains, approaching with Flash. The group, now assembled, looks toward the grand Hall of Justice. Photographers, paparazzi, and fans surround the building, admiring not only the structure but also the heroes as they approach the entrance.

“Good to see we’re all here,” Aqualad comments, glancing at everyone.

“Have the five sidekicks ever been in the same place at the same time?” Kid Flash asks, raising his hand, prompting a serious reply from Green Arrow:

“Don’t call us sidekicks. Not today.”

“Sorry, it’s my first time in the hall. I’m a little emotional!” Kid Flash says, giving you a gentle nudge with his elbow. “Bet (hero) feels the same, right?” You ignore him, staring ahead with a neutral expression.

“You’re overwhelmed, Freeze was underwhelmed. Why isn’t anyone ever just whelmed?"

Upon entering, everyone marvels at the grand statues of the Justice League members standing above the doors—a breathtaking sight for all but you. You’re long accustomed to this place after countless timelines. You know it like the back of your hand, even in complete darkness.

“Maybe that’s why...”

Beneath the statues, the doors open, and Martian Manhunter and Red Tornado step out.

“Welcome. You now have unrestricted access to the academy, our fully stocked kitchen, and, of course, our library,” Martian Manhunter announces.

The group enters, admiring the surroundings—everyone except you. You’ve seen this place too many times before, across the erased timelines. You know every inch of it.

“Make yourselves at home!” Flash says, prompting Kid Flash, Robin, and Aqualad to throw themselves onto the chairs. Meanwhile, you and Green Arrow remain standing. You lean against a bookshelf behind the boys.

“A quick meeting to discuss four ice villains attacking on the same day. We won’t be long,” Batman says as the League members prepare to be scanned.

As the door opens, Green Arrow speaks, but you’re too tired of the same old routine to pay attention. In previous timelines, you tried stopping him, reasoning with him—it always ended badly. Sometimes he pushed you, tried to fight, or even attempted to kill you later. Now, you’ve learned to ignore it.

You’ve decided not to grow attached to anyone, no matter the member. Attachment always leads to problems. Your only goal is to complete the mission—nothing more, nothing less.

“You’re not ready!” Green Arrow yells, storming out. You roll your eyes. Overdramatic as always. You couldn’t care less about “joining the Justice League.” It’s just a title, nothing more, and it’s irrelevant to your mission. The League has hindered you more than helped in the past.

You follow the others toward the adults, picking up a hat the previous boy had thrown to the ground. You open the yo-yo hidden inside it, place the hat inside, and close it. Renjichiro’s weapons always seemed random, sometimes dangerous, sometimes absurd, or even playful objects like toys with unexpected powers.

“Stay here!” Batman orders, only for Robin to interrupt: “What?! Why?!”

“This is a League mission,” Aquaman says, walking off with the other heroes.

“You’re not trained!” Flash adds, shocking Kid Flash. “Since when?!”

“Not trained for this team,” Flash clarifies, gesturing at the adults.

“There will be other missions,” Aquaman says before Batman interrupts: “But for now, you stay here.”

You feel a hand on your shoulder. Black Canary looks at you with a reassuring smile. “I hope you understand, (hero). But I know you do—you’re smart,” she says, patting your head before walking after the others.

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.10

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195-masterlist

“What a hottie…” Artemis’ voice sounded in your head and you could only roll your eyes, while your hands moved the yo-yo in the air, making it go down and return to your finger in repetitive, bored motions, playing with the weapon. You didn't even speak; in fact, you hadn't thought of anything the entire time your mind was connected to the others' in the joint telepathy. And you didn't care at all what was going through their minds; it was like a TV channel on static. You didn't even notice the looks directed at you, nor did you care. You were tired of everything anyway, you just wanted it all to be over quickly.

"He can hear you. We can all hear you." Miss Martian's tone sounded jealous, and you knew it, you knew it so well you could already picture the scene and their faces. It was irritating. While one hand moved the yo-yo, the other, free one, moved between opening and closing, mimicking a mouth moving, as you could hear Artemis say, "Ah, I know that very well." You pretended with your hand, imitating Artemis talking, while rolling your eyes at their mocking tone. Girls always chasing after boys. You used to be like that too, a few timelines ago, and frankly, you hate how pathetic you were.

"Miss Martian, Dr. Roquette has located The Fog. Reconfigure the Bio-Ship for Robin and Superboy to pursue it." Aqualad's voice sounded in your mind, and out of the corner of your eye you could only see him going over to Robin and Wally, probably to ask them something. You didn't even care. Your job was to keep everyone alive, just that, nothing more.

Kid Flash was outside the room while you and Aqualad protected the doctor. The yo-yo went up and down, until you heard a noise and, looking at the door, you saw only the reflection of the redhead leaving. You could sigh, knowing that now the problems were coming. With a tap on Aqualad's shoulder, you just shook your head towards the door, not letting him notice that your hand had left a mini-tracker on him. You had already placed one on the doctor a while ago. With the door closing behind you, and as soon as you heard the click, you grabbed the yo-yo and opened it like a compact mirror. From inside, a small screen showed a 3D view of the building's walls and rooms and a red dot moving. It was Wally. So you didn't waste any time, running out. You had minutes to spare. As soon as you saw the open door revealing the pool, you looked at the yo-yo and saw that Kid was right in front of you, but at the same time, he wasn't. Only one thing crossed your mind: "Shit."

You didn't even hear Artemis's thought upon hearing your voice for the first time all day. "What was that?" Looking at the pool, you saw Wally's body already sinking. With the yo-yo closed, you threw it into the water, making it wrap around the boy's waist, and with a yank, his body flew out of the pool. You were already kneeling beside him. Checking his pulse, you saw his breathing was slowing down with difficulty; water must have gotten into his lungs. You performed first aid. With your hands, you pressed a specific point on his chest. You did it once, twice. "Shit, shit, shitt!" You were so out of it today. If Kid Flash, no, if Wally dies, you'll have to go back, you'll have to kill yourself. Not again, at least not now over something stupid.

Tilting the boy's head back, you held his nose so he wouldn't breathe and his chin before giving him mouth-to-mouth resuscitation. You could feel Renjihiro's eyes watching you with amusement. That animal was probably laughing at you. So you repeated it: hands on the chest and forced breaths for a few minutes until you felt his breathing return. You moved away when you saw the boy coughing, vomiting water, and breathing heavily. "(Hero name), you..." Kid Flash tried to speak, coughing while staring at you, who seemed indifferent to everything. But inside, you sighed in relief at not having to die again to reset the timeline, not seeing that the boy had already woken up during the last breath and just waited for you to move away so he could vomit the water.

"M'gann, Kid, Artemis, we're under attack in the computer lab." Aqualad's voice cut through the mood between Kid Flash and the possible romantic vibe he thought he had with you, while you had already stood up. Looking at the boy who got up quickly, almost tripping, you watched him as you turned and ran. One mistake was enough; the others couldn't die. With that, you opened the door already in a hurry, throwing the yo-yo and grabbing the masked woman's hand, preventing her from throwing the smoke bomb. You were panting, both from running and from having given some of your oxygen to the redhead. Your damn body wasn't used to it. Just like everything else, it regressed; it doesn't stay in the same form you acquire through years of training and fighting. It was frustrating. If it weren't for that, you could practically match Superman, given the years and timelines of training you've had. A shame that nothing applies when your body reverts to that of a teenager without strength or training, especially compared to someone who had been trained since infancy, like the masked woman in front of you.

With a yank, the masked woman pulled the string, pulling you against her. Without noticing, Artemis had already shot the arrow. Predicting it, the masked woman pushed you as a shield, causing the arrow to hit your stomach. Surprised, your hand let go of the yo-yo, freeing the masked woman's hand holding the smoke bomb, allowing her to break free by jumping onto a table while she watched you look down at your stomach where the arrowhead was visible. She threw the smoke bomb on the ground, disappearing before Miss Martian could even fly to grab her.

Even if the arrow doesn't kill you, even if it could have hit your heart, that doesn't mean you don't feel the pain. And it's agonizing. But you have to endure it; you've been sliced into a thousand pieces before, this is nothing. "(Hero name!)" You hear the alien say as she comes towards you, with Kid Flash running quickly to hold you, but you pull away from the touch, almost making you fall if it weren't for the redhead catching you.

"She's getting away! You're letting her get away!" shouted the doctor, while Kid Flash already turned to yell at Artemis. "It's your fault! You were on perimeter duty. How the hell did that Shadow get in? You not only let her escape, but you shot (hero name) with your arrow!" "That's not fair. I was out there too! The arrow was an accident!" Miss Martian joined the argument, trying to at least defend the blonde, who remained quiet, clenching her eyes shut. "Out there being distracted by HER! And that still doesn't change the fact that she shot (hero name)!" Kid Flash pointed his hand at the blonde, who continued to stay quiet. You, in pain, just groaned, now on your knees, with the redhead noticing and holding you carefully so you wouldn't collapse onto the floor hard. "Will you all shut up?!!" you say loudly, panting, while trying to stand up. "Whoa, whoa, take it easy, hot stuff, you're still injured. You know I can't stay mad at you," Kid Flash says while holding your shoulders so you wouldn't fall. "Besides, you gave me mouth-to-mouth."

"We heard that!" Miss Martian's voice sounded in their minds, while Kid Flash could only cringe at the thought leaking out and him forgetting about it. "Damn it." "In case you haven't noticed... the arrow wasn't vital. So... how about you stop blaming each other and get back to the mission," you say between labored breaths, holding the redhead's shoulder for support while the team and the doctor circled you. Aqualad was the first to approach carefully. "You are seriously injured, (hero). I suggest you stay safe on the ship—" "I SAID I'M FINE, DAMN IT!" you interrupt Aqualad, yelling, making you tired. "Easy there, hot stuff, easy," Kid Flash says while carefully sitting you down on the floor. You feel the tip of the arrow that went through was there, under your uniform. "Like I said, the wound isn't vital. I'll be fine. But who won't be... is the doctor. There are people after her head. So instead of arguing, we could take her to a safe place. Wasting time with me here will only make the Shadows want her head more." A minute of silence stretched out while you were panting.

"As much as I hate to say it, (hero) is right. The Shadows will be back any moment, and with a team member injured..." Aqualad says, kneeling to look at the wound, until Robin's voice sounds over the communicators. "Robin to Aqualad. We're over Philadelphia. We located the Shadows' next target: S.T.A.R. Labs.....We're too late. It's destroyed. Totally wiped out. The Fog obliterated it." "This is bad. S.T.A.R. Labs is cutting-edge science. Now its secrets are in the enemy's hands." "What's our next move?" He looked at the team members. A silence passed before you put the hand that was on your stomach on Aqualad's shoulder. "I have... I have a plan..." Aqualad turned to you before saying to Robin on the communicators: "Search for that Fog again. Find it. We're moving the doctor." With that, Aqualad stood up before turning to Kid Flash. "Can you take (hero)?" Kid Flash, Wally blinked, then nodded quickly. ‘Yeah, I can take her.’

"I can take her if you want!" Miss Martian says, raising her hand. And you shake your head, with Aqualad saying, "You will be of great use for the plan."

With the team moving to run out, you grunted in pain when the redhead had to pick you up in his arms. If Artemis had hit your heart, the pain would be even more unbearable. The team and everyone might think there's a chance you could die from this or lose consciousness, but unfortunately, that doesn't happen. You could be sliced to pieces and still be alive and fully conscious of everything. It was crap. You watched the team move and could only think about how everything was going wrong. If everything goes wrong and happens like before, the arrow in the stomach will be nothing compared to dying again and having to start all over. And you had progressed so well in this timeline.

@minimari415@reeyy0-2@katty167@lunafrisk303999@supermira247

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.09

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195-masterlist

“Everything’s alright now…” Your mother soothed you as you sat on the bed with your knees drawn to your chest, arms wrapped around them, a blanket draped over your shoulders. One of your hands was being treated by the adult, who carefully wrapped bandages around your injured hand. The small red stain slowly disappeared with each turn of the gauze. Once she finished, you hugged your legs tighter. Your mother watched you with concern, sighing as she glanced around your room—it was an organized chaos, with books on the desk and the next day's clothes laid out on the chair. Turning back to you, she noticed your weary expression, the dark circles under your eyes, your dead-eyed stare, and your hair, fallen messily over your face from the… episode. Your mother wasn't even sure if it was a panic attack or a stress attack, but whatever it was, you looked awful—probably something bad. She couldn't ask for explanations; she wouldn't understand what happened, and even if she could, it would be difficult. She knew you barely spent any time at home. As a mother, she knew what to do. Sighing softly, she held the hand that was hugging your knee. "You don't need to say anything to me… but know that if you need to… if you want to, you know I'm here to listen." She kissed your forehead before pulling away, probably going to fetch a drink, some food, something to help. But you paid no mind. As soon as the bedroom door closed, you raised your hand and switched off the alarm clock on the nightstand, showing the same time you woke up every day. And with that, you got out of bed, slowly. At each alarm, you pressed the button to silence them all. With the last one on your desk, you lifted your eyes to look out the window—the moon was still in the sky. You turned and went back to your bed, sitting down again in the same spot. Your mind was empty.

Maybe having a minute of peace… no. Looking to the side, you saw your phone—your personal one, with its cute case, wallpaper, everything. You picked it up, checked the time and date, then unlocked it. You thought about messaging a friend, doing something, but you just stared at the phone before letting it go and lying back on the bed, arms spread wide, staring at the ceiling. You should go downstairs, to the basement, train, write letters, then clean the house, make breakfast, head to the dirty neighborhood before changing into your fake "civilian" persona, before going to the Mount of Justice. But you were tired, feeling a deep, hollow emptiness in your chest now. What would you do now? This is just another timeline, and even if you sleep and stay in bed all day, nothing will change. Someone dies, and you'll be forced to reset. And then a new cycle repeats—a new personality, new costume, new power, new weapon. The only thing that remains is you, who persists through every timeline.

And so, without even realizing it, you were back at the Mount of Justice. You hadn't even thought about it properly; your body was so accustomed it just went through the motions as always. You didn't even notice you were at the Mount until you realized you'd forgotten a book, one you usually took to read on site. When you noticed, you stared for a moment into the empty bag, then sighed and closed the locker, putting the usual padlock on it and the key that always hung around your neck. You looked around the place. You had arrived early, and with nothing to do… watch TV? You know what shows will be on; you've already watched them in the previous timeline. Normally, you'd exercise all day until the mission or until the adults told you to go home. But you were so tired. You looked at the mirror on the locker door—yes, even tired, you had put on your false civilian persona. Your subconscious must have done it.

Your steps dragged as you went to the beach. The water was calm and cold. Taking off your shoes, you left them in a corner and walked barefoot. You went into the sea, wading in deeper and deeper, until you gave up and just floated there. Death was never an option; even if you tried, all that would remain was the pain. You'd still be there, conscious and feeling all of it. You stared into the depths of the sea, arms spread wide, floating face down while your swimming goggles protected your eyes. Then you turned your body to look at the sky. It was silent, just the water gently rocking. Well, why not use the 'shackles' you use? No? Then, with a light hand gesture, you passed your hand over the choker, a screen appearing in your vision:

`Call Reinjichiro``Weapon Information``Costume Information``Death Style`

But you didn't even want to know about some of those. Your eyes landed on the icon in the corner, the extras or settings. In it were the choker's settings—change its color, models, accessories, and some other things, like screen settings, increasing text size, transparency, etc. Below the entire list, you went to the "Mods" section. It was still in beta. Reinjichiro had told you in previous timelines he was designing some things, including the headphones. Selecting this "mod," the choker changed—nothing too major, just two earbuds emerging from the choker, wired headphones, with your MP3 player attached to a cord wrapped around your neck. You put in the earbuds while the screen with the headphone mod appeared: a list of future and past songs you'd listened to, and "connect devices" to 'suck' music. You'd used it before in previous timelines to connect and have your saved music, and now, having scrolled through the huge list, you selected the one you most wanted to listen to at that moment.

Closing your eyes, you let yourself float in the water while the music played in your head. You didn't even notice how much time had passed, but you were so at peace.

Meanwhile, the team—the four: Kaldur, Megan, Superboy, and Robin—were in swimwear, admiring the blue sky, ready for a swim, with a picnic basket, surfboard, and such. The four seemed happy, playing around, until it was Superboy who spotted something in the sea, pointing at the distant figure. "What is that?" "Looks like a person," Robin said before giving Superboy a pat on the shoulder. They were at the beach; it was obvious there would be people nearby. But it was Kaldur who decided to go check. He dove in, swimming towards the figure, now seeing your body floating in the sea. You seemed at peace, breathing calmly, as if in an eternal serenity.

…Well, until someone poked you, making you open your eyes and look through the tinted diving goggles at Kaldur's face. So much for your peace. "What is it?" Your tone was strong, gruff, with a hint of irritation as you looked at the dark-haired boy. Your finger brushed over the earpiece, pausing the music.

"(Hero Name), you—" You cut the boy off. "I'm fine." With your movement, you stopped floating, your body now submerged in the water with just your head above the surface. You didn't even wait for Kaldur to speak, diving under the sea. You started swimming towards the shore, passing by the boats, not really paying attention to the voices of the boys. Once you were close, you emerged from the water, now standing in the sea, your wet clothes clinging to your body. You just walked out onto the sand, wringing the water from your hair before passing by the team, ignoring everyone, and heading towards the Mount's entrance.

"Was that (Hero Name)?" Superboy asked as they all watched you walk away with calm, relaxed steps. "It was. Looked like they were just floating peacefully." They all turned to Kaldur, who had swum back and was now standing in the water amidst the group, watching you leave. "People going to the beach usually wear swimsuits, right? Why were they in normal clothes?" Megan asked, confused, while Robin just shrugged. He didn't want to comment that it was actually a bit of a shock to see, and that in a way, the wet clothes clinging and showing your physique left something to the imagination. Now he was curious to see what you would look like in a swimsuit. "Whatever it is, they seem to have been here before us," Kaldur said, placing a hand on Robin's shoulder, bringing him back to reality.

Back inside the Mount, you walked through the common room heading to the bathroom. You took off the clothes wet with salty seawater to step into the shower and wash off all the salt. The music still played through your earbuds, even in the shower. You stayed there for a good few minutes with the water running over your shoulders and hair. Once satisfied, you turned it off and stepped out, now dry and changed, drying your hair and looking in the mirror. The dark circles were evident. You even thought you looked like a walking corpse. You stored the diving goggles in your locker, now dry and clean.

Everything was a blur; you didn't even see time passing. You only snapped to when you saw the new team member: Artemis. While Batman and the others were explaining, you hadn't even realized—luckily no one noticed. Lucky that the mask and the hero costume Reinjichiro made seemed to hide any expression on your face, concealing your empty eyes. You were too busy watching the yo-yo go up and down on your finger, until a thud made everyone look at the door. It was Wally, fallen on the floor in his swimwear and holding a bunch of beach stuff. "THE GUY," huh? "Love the uniform. So, what are your powers exactly?" Artemis said, holding the green bow in one hand and mocking Wally, who just got up and moved closer to Kaldur, asking him, "Who is she?"

"Artemis, your new teammate." The redhead then approached Artemis, raising a confused eyebrow. "Kid Flash. Never heard of you."

"Um, she's my new protégée," Green Arrow said, placing a hand on Artemis's shoulder. "What happened to your old one?" And as if to answer Wally's question, who appears in the doorway is speedy, now calling himself Red Arrow. What followed was just a buzz to you; you were already checked out, inside your own mind. Your finger mechanically lowered and raised the yo-yo like a robot. You only heard a high-pitched ringing that drowned out the buzz of the team's conversation, the whistle getting louder and louder as you continued to let the yo-yo go down and up, down and up… You only returned to reality when someone touched your shoulder, making you catch the yo-yo and look up to see Ricardito—now Red Arrow. He whispered something in your ear before giving you a couple of pats and leaving through the zeta-tube. COMPUTER: Recognized: speedy...

"It's Red Arrow, B06. Update," the redhead said before vanishing. And now, back in reality, you put away the yo-yo since there was a mission to do now, with the new member. You switched your costume to stealth mode like the rest of the team before heading to the designated location. "Miss Martian, connect us. We don't want the Shadows intercepting our communications," Aqualad said. And then you started hearing voices in your head but remained silent, both mentally and physically. "Is everyone connected?" the alien thought, while Artemis put a hand to her head. "Oh, this is weird."

"It's disturbing. Encoding a distributed algorithm virus on a kids' computer... with less RAM than a wristwatch is hard enough. Now I have to listen to the teenager think in my head?" the woman thought while typing rapidly on the keyboard with impressive speed. "Miss, do you always complain when someone tries to help you?" Wally thought, munching on a granola bar he'd brought with him.

"Dirty and unwashed. Have you two met?" Artemis said, gesticulating with her hands and smirking mockingly. "Hey, I don't need attitude... from the rookie who got Red Arrow kicked off the team," Wally argued mentally, pointing at the blonde, who stood up from the table where she was sitting, a strong tension of anger in her body as she turned her head and crossed her arms. "That's not my problem." The woman scientist at the computer just sighed. "The fate of the world is at stake??" You just stepped out from where you were leaning in the shadows at the back and approached the woman, giving her a pat on the shoulder as if in understanding, before removing your hand and watching her work. You weren't thinking, but rather remembering flashbacks showing what would happen next, just like in other timelines. And now, knowing the pattern, you would avoid death once again. The routine repeating, as always.

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.05

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195-masterlist

"It's my bio-ship, Martian style!" Megan says as she steps out of the elevator, heading toward the ship. Wally turns to Robin and remarks, "Cute, not aerodynamic, but cute."

Megan laughs before approaching the ship, smiling. "She's at rest, silly. I'll wake her up." She raises her hand, and the ship rapidly shifts shape, becoming larger and more ship-like than before, leaving everyone shocked—except you. You'd seen this ship so many times across timelines that you knew every inch of it by heart. It was boring.

"Well, are you coming?" Megan asks as a door opens at the back of the ship. Everyone enters nervously, and you sigh, watching them board. Renjichiro, perched on your shoulder, laughs in your mind as he observes the scene. "Kukuku, this is getting interesting. You knew this would happen, didn't you?" the mystical creature says, twitching his paw.

"Unfortunately, I have to go. We're fighting again today, and I have to make sure no one dies this time," you say with a tsk as you walk toward the ship. Renjichiro jumps off your shoulder and sits on the ground, watching you enter.

"Buckle up for launch," Megan says as seats form inside the ship. Everyone grins, throwing themselves into the chairs as seatbelts secure them safely. "Red Tornado, please open the doors." The cave doors slide open, and the ship takes off. You lean back in your seat, watching the landscape rush by.

"Incredible," Robin says, admiring the ship before Wally chimes in dreamily, "She sure is." Megan gives him a confused look before Wally quickly corrects himself, "I mean, the ship. Which, like all ships, is a 'she.'" You sigh and pull out your MP4—something you always carried to tune out the team when needed. You plug in your earphones and stare at the view, praying for this to be over soon.

"(Hero) will change their mind," Robin whispers, glancing at Megan, who looks at you with guilt and sadness. "Seems like they don't like me much," Megan whispers back, her expression still downcast as she watches you ignore everyone, swaying your leg to the music. Then, you feel a vibration and quickly stash your MP4, knowing it was time to act.

The team lands in the parking lot. You immediately assess the situation, rolling your eyes before sprinting after them. When no one's looking, you press a button on your choker. The light flashes, and Renjichiro leaps from the ground, materializing beside you. "What's the move?" he asks.

"No time, furry," you think, raising your hand. Renjichiro spits out the yo-yo into your palm before hopping onto your shoulder. You quickly pull a blindfold from your pocket, tying it over your eyes before removing your glasses and stashing them away.

You could only use the powers the creature granted you while in costume. Without it, you could only wield the weapon—and only if he was nearby. You flick the yo-yo, snagging Robin's leg and yanking him back just before a beam crashes down, saving him. You sprint to catch up with the team, the yo-yo retracting from the boy's leg.

"My apologies. You may call me Mister Twister," the villain says before blasting Superboy into a wall with a tornado. You take a deep breath, watching your team try to attack the robot. You recall all the timelines where you'd fought him—Megan usually won. Studying him, you deduce that cutting the blue cables would likely strip his power.

But just as you're about to throw the yo-yo to climb higher, you see Kaldur thrown aside. Obviously, you save him first.

You whip your yo-yo at pillars, collapsing them onto the robot before sprinting to catch Kaldur, creating a net with the yo-yo between the wreckage. "Thanks, (Hero)." You don't even respond, already running back out—only to see Megan, now speaking excitedly:

"Hello, Megan! Mister Twister is the Red Tornado in disguise! He's inorganic. An android. And how many androids do you know that can generate tornadoes?"

You roll your eyes at the stupidity before muttering, "By that logic, Superboy is Superman in disguise." But Robin cuts you off, declaring loudly, "Red Tornado sent us here after saying we'd be tested soon. This is his test! Something to keep us busy!"

"He's NOT Red Tornado!" you shout, but they ignore you, charging at the villain. You clench your fists, hearing Renjichiro laugh at you. Then, you bolt as the villain summons a massive tornado.

Hiding in the trees, you watch the team get thrown back. Once Mister Twister leaves, you stealthily chase after him. You wouldn't let the team's idiocy stop you from taking him down. Darting between trees, leaping and sprinting, you leave the team behind.

Meanwhile, the team gets up, watching the villain flee. "What happened?" Wally asks, looking at Megan.

"I put the Bio-Ship between us."

Superboy punches rocks in frustration. "And that fixes things? You tricked us into thinking Twister was Red Tornado!" He steps in front of Megan, joined by the others.

"She didn't mean to," Kaldur says, trying to defuse the situation.

"It was a rookie mistake," Robin adds. "We shouldn't have listened."

"You're too inexperienced. We should've listened to (Hero). Speaking of, where is (Hero)?" Wally asks, hands in his pockets, scanning the area angrily.

Megan, still sitting on the ground, looks at them. "Stay out of it. We'll handle this from here," Wally finishes, hands on his hips before walking off. Superboy passes without a glance. "Stay out of our way."

Robin shoulders past Wally. "Let's find (Hero)." The three run off, leaving Megan and Kaldur behind.

"I was just trying to be part of the team," Megan says guiltily, staring at the ground.

"To be honest, I'm not sure we even have a team," Kaldur replies before leaving her alone.

Back with you—you weave through the crowd before spotting a cop. You snatch his megaphone with the yo-yo and bolt into the mass of people. Clearing your throat, you speak firmly into the megaphone:

"GET OUT OF HERE!"

The amplified sound vibrates through the air, laced with power. Only about 6 to 12 people are affected, but it's enough—those under your command start pulling the others to safety.

Exhausted, you force yourself to keep running after the villain, megaphone in hand. You shake it violently, releasing the residual vibrations—like an invisible whip of air—that blast the ship Twister had thrown, diverting it from the crowd. Blood drips from your nose. The megaphone sparks. But the villain is still alive. Still there. Still watching you.

You sprint as he hurls a tornado at you. The creature on your shoulder doesn't move, just flicks his tail like he doesn't care—because he doesn't. He's incapable of emotion.

Hidden, you see Twister's back turned. Seizing the moment, you hurl the yo-yo with force. The cord wraps around one of his tubes. You sprint, looping the other end around a ship he'd thrown earlier. He struggles to tear free as you pull, your hands burning even through your gloves.

"(Hero)!" Someone calls, but you focus on the cord.

Finally, one of the villain's cables rips loose. The yo-yo snaps back, sending you flying. Wally catches you, but you shove him away and charge at Twister.

You rejoin the group as the villain flails, now only able to use one hand for tornadoes.

"Listen, all of you," Megan telepathically broadcasts. You clutch your head. "What did I say, damn it?!" The psychic vibration worsens your headache—like slamming your skull into glass while blades dig into your brain. Your veins throb.

"I know, and I know I messed up. But now I understand what we need to do," Megan pleads.

You double over, gripping your head. "Get out! NOW!"

"Please, trust me."

Robin, beside you and Wally, notices more blood dripping from your nose. He reaches for your shoulder. "(Hero)—"

You smack his hand away before he touches you. "DON'T TOUCH ME!" Your voice trembles with rage. More blood flows. You keep your head down, breathing hard.

With a yell, you throw the yo-yo again, latching onto Twister's damaged arm. You yank hard, preventing him from throwing another ship, buying time for people to escape. Maybe it's adrenaline or fury—you don't know—but you use all your strength to slam him to the ground. You collapse too.

Dazed, you see the crowd standing frozen. Then, you notice Red Tornado approaching—except it's not him. You know. He flies without tornadoes at his feet, his body and size are different. You sigh and sit back, letting the others handle it now. You're exhausted. The pain is unbearable.

You stand once it's over, clutching your head, breathing through your mouth—your nose clogged with blood. One of the drawbacks of using powers without the suit. Your ears ring. Kaldur tries to help, but you slap his hands away. You can't stand their touch. Not now.

Back in the cave, you grab your bag, pulling out headache pills. Dry-swallowing them, you sling the bag over your shoulder and head for the Zeta Tube.

"Where are you going?" Robin asks.

You flip him off. "To heaven."

And with that, you teleport home.

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.08

"AQUALAD TO (HERO NAME)" Aqualad’s voice sounded through the communicator. You press the button on the device before speaking. “(HERO) here.” You hear a sigh from the other end of the line as you keep driving, your eyes glancing at the yo-yo attached to the handlebar, showing the exact location of your yo-yo. “I tried to contact you before but couldn’t get a signal. Did something happen?” You roll your eyes — of course you didn’t have contact. Every time Renjiichiro is summoned or you access the main screen of the choker, it always causes interference. Maybe it's something electromagnetic or just the fact that the choker isn’t a normal device. You don’t even care anymore. You can already hear Renji’s sweet and cute voice talking about how the device was his creation and obviously better than any “garbage” inferior beings could invent. You roll your eyes just remembering it, sighing before gripping the motorcycle handlebar tighter, swerving around a moving car. “Must’ve been the monkeys,” you say before pressing the communicator button so your voice can’t be heard anymore — only Aqualad’s. “Ah, good. Robin got the location of where the monkeys are taking the parts, and probably where Ivo is. I’ll send it to you — meet us there. Over and out.” You don’t even bother to check the location. You already have it thanks to your temporary yo-yo, courtesy of Renjiichiro.

You hear the sound of a train, and from a distance, you can see it passing along a mountain above the road you were on. You roll your eyes, already annoyed at the thought of having to go there to retrieve your damn yo-yo. “Damn those useless fools who only get in the way of my mission — a bunch of annoying, hopeless teenagers!” you say with disgust, clenching your teeth, already feeling the stress vein pulsing on your forehead.

With one hand, you remove the yo-yo from the handlebar, closing the screen before spinning it in your hand, then using all your strength to throw it precisely at the train, making it latch onto one of the cars. You gently pull the string to check if it’s securely attached. Then you stand up on the bike, setting it to automatic mode to follow the GPS. Finally, with a firm tug, you launch yourself forward, leaving the bike and being pulled by the toy.

As you see yourself nearing the train car, you slide your finger along the choker, activating the magnets on your soles. You adjust your position, feet forward, and latch onto the car, using the yo-yo’s string as support. Once they fix onto the metal, you release the string with one hand, grabbing the edge of the car's roof, and with the other hand, you detach the yo-yo from the train and secure it onto your suit.

With your free hand, you push yourself up using the one already holding the edge, managing to shift your weight upward and finally climb onto the car. On the roof, you open the yo-yo, watching it indicate that your weapon is only a few cars ahead. You start running across the tops of the train cars while watching the screen in your hand show the location.

Just as you’re about to jump, you notice there’s one more car to go — and then a sudden movement. You crouch down, lying flat on the roof so that the thing — or rather, the robot — won’t see you.

“Terminate him… Alpha Priority.” The voice of the adult man you recognize as Professor Ivo speaks to the android, prompting it to leap off the train. You even consider throwing a tracker at the android, but your temporary yo-yo isn’t capable of that, so you settle for retrieving the original and dealing with the android later.

As Ivo moves away, you jump onto the car he just entered. From there, you see a hole — you slide your finger along the choker, activating stealth mode, and slip through the opening, crouching in a shadowy corner behind some crates. Quietly and carefully, you take out your yo-yo.

“Well, I think I’ll enjoy watching my precious Alpha Priority destroy that little Super copy — such good entertainment,” you hear Professor Ivo say, laughing and clapping with pride.

You simply roll your eyes, grabbing your original yo-yo and opening it to record, capturing both Ivo and the audio. You then sneak out of the car while still recording, stopping only once you’re outside. With the weapon in hand, you sigh and look up at the night sky.

Then you press the top circle on the yo-yo, and a small screen confirms the file has been sent. With that, you toss the yo-yo, which latches onto a tree, and you leap, launching yourself in the direction of the road, releasing the yo-yo mid-air and landing perfectly on the motorcycle that had been following your location.

Looks like all that training paid off — but there's no time to brag. You stow the yo-yo next to the secondary one, open the bike’s screen, and check the location Aqualad had sent. Gripping the handlebars tightly, you speed off toward the school.

Your school…

Arriving just in time to witness the fight, you open the windowpane and slip into the school gymnasium, catching sight of the android using Red Tornado’s powers to hurl Robin and Superboy into the bleachers on the opposite side. In the corner of the bleachers closest to you, Kid Flash is groaning, rubbing his head in pain.

“Access: Captain Atom,” the robot’s voice declares, and you see it preparing to unleash an energy blast on Kid Flash.

“I won’t…” you think, throwing your yo-yo into the metal structure of the gym roof.

“...go back…” as the yo-yo darts forward and back, wrapping around the android’s arm.

“...to the beginning! Not now!” you growl inwardly, clenching your teeth and yanking the yo-yo line with all your strength, forcing the robot to aim its energy blast at the ceiling instead of the yellow-clad speedster.

“(Hero)!!??” you hear Kid Flash shout your name in surprise, but you ignore him, focusing all your attention on the robot.

“Access: Superman,” the tin can declares as it pulls the ensnared arm downward, lifting you into the air by the yo-yo string.

You grunt in frustration, swinging your body forward and delivering a powerful double-legged kick straight to the robot’s face. Simultaneously, you release the yo-yo line, dropping to the floor and landing on one knee. You rise just as your heels nearly hit the wall behind you.

With your fists now free, the robot raises its arm for a punch — but the blow never comes. A yellow flash speeds in and scoops you up in his arms, carrying you away from the attack.

“Gotcha, babe,” he says smoothly — only to be shoved hard as soon as he stops.

“Put me down!” you snap, jumping from his arms, clenching your fists in disgust and scratching at your arms as you put distance between you and him.

Your gaze shifts back to the fight, where Superboy attempts to strike the android, only to be punched in the face again and thrown into the bleachers. Robin watches, then grabs several discs from his belt and hurls them at the enemy — but they’re deflected as the robot calmly says:

“Access: Martian Manhunter.”

You spot the yellow-clad boy running toward the robot, only to be caught in its arms as it begins to squeeze him using Superman’s strength. You draw both of your yo-yos.

“Hey, tin can!” you shout, hurling both spinning weapons — their ends tipped with sharp blades — straight at the android. It turns its head in your direction, releasing the boy and catching one of the yo-yos with a single hand.

But it fails to intercept the other. Just before impact, however, a sudden arrow strikes your yo-yo mid-flight, knocking it off course and causing it to pierce through the villain’s body — which, unfortunately, messes up your plan.

The android grabs both yo-yo strings while you’re still momentarily stunned, then pulls hard before announcing, “Access: Black Canary.”

As you're dragged toward the villain, it opens its mouth and lets out a deafening sonic scream, launching you violently into the bleachers. You crash onto your back with a heavy thud, groaning in pain as you reel in both yo-yos.

It takes you a moment to spot the arrow lodged into the ground, its green color instantly making you growl in frustration. You already know who it belongs to.

“Great. Another nuisance,” you mutter under your breath as you push yourself up — just in time to see the robot has been destroyed.

Your fists clench in anger, your eyes locked on that damn arrow that ruined your attack.

“Superboy! Are you okay??” Megan’s sweet voice echoes as she flies toward the boy.

Renjiichiro emerges from your shadow, casually seated on the bleachers behind you. His soft voice rings in your mind, followed by his high-pitched, childlike laughter.

“Kyah ahahahahah!” His laughter grows louder inside your head.

You lift your gaze toward the team gathered in the distance, smiling at each other, reunited.

“Look at them again, having fun — just like before!” his voice echoes sharply.

Your fists clench tighter, one hand gripping your injured arm as your teeth grind in rage.

Excluded. Again. Always.

If it weren’t for your suit, your palms would already be bleeding from how hard you were clenching your fists, shaking with fury — a storm inside you.

The laughter of that creature rings louder, more twisted, more mocking, and as you stare at the team, it feels like they’re laughing too.

Like they used to.

Ignoring you. Neglecting you. Erasing you.

After all… you were never needed.

Aqualad turns to look at you from afar, head lowered. He thinks about calling out, but stops when he sees your body language — distant, shut off. You’ve already turned your back, walking out of the gymnasium. The door closes behind you, drawing the team’s attention.

“Is she okay?” Aqualad asks, only to be met with a collective shrug from the others.

Outside, you pull out an extra yo-yo and toss it toward Renjiichiro, who had been following you silently. He catches it mid-air and crushes it with a bite, the device vanishing into a small puff of smoke that quickly dissipates.

The entire way back to the Hall of Justice, you’re silent — too silent. But no one dares say a word. You stay distant, keeping to yourself while the adult heroes talk among themselves. And once the meeting ends — one you hadn’t even really processed — you grab your things and head for the teleporter, returning home without a word.

“Well, well, what an adventure, huh?” Renji says, perching on your shoulder as you walk through the dark streets toward your house. You don’t respond — only tighten your fists again, your jaw tense.

You don’t bother with the front door. Instead, you climb through the window.

Inside your tidy room, you toss your bag onto the bed, hitting a small mound of clothes you’d arranged beneath the blanket to mimic your sleeping form. Without a glance back, you head straight to the bathroom.

You stare at your ruined reflection. The dark circles under your eyes betray your lack of real sleep.

Your mind spins — haunted by laughter and memories, dragging you back to every moment you tried to bury.

The echo of past missions rises, especially that one… The one where you were injured. The one where Megan didn’t include you in the mental link. The one where you almost died — alone — because they forgot.

You remember the side comments. The way they avoided you. The way no one invited you to join their games or shared jokes. That one voice… still so vivid.

"Why is she even still on the team?"

That one phrase, dropped carelessly after a small mistake, festered like poison.

It all builds. The rage. The hate. The isolation.

And that laugh. Renjiichiro’s laughter, echoing in your head like claws scraping your skull.

You remember today. Them smiling. Together. Excluding you. Again.

It’s too much.

In a split second, rage explodes from your chest as you slam your fist into the bathroom mirror. The glass shatters, crashing down with everything on the sink. You kick over the laundry basket.

And then your knees give out.

You collapse into the shattered remains of your reflection — sharp, cold, cruel.

Fingers entangle in your hair, fists tugging violently as you tremble and gasp. Tears burn hot and bitter down your cheeks, but they do nothing. They don’t wash away the blood pouring from your cut hand, now running down your arm in red streaks.

You scratch at your skin, trying to feel something other than this.

The floor is a mess of cactus-green towels and broken glass — all of it reflecting your face:

Ugly. Ruined. Crying. Bleeding.

And still — Alone.

The memory crashes into you like a wave — Dick's voice, cold, tired, and full of something worse than hate: indifference.

"I only dated you because I felt sorry for you."

He hadn’t even tried to soften it. No guilt, no regret. Just filth, laid bare like trash on the sidewalk.

You remember the feeling. Betrayal.

You had protected him in that timeline. You gave everything. And what did he say at the end? "You’re just not my type. Never were, you know?"

His arm was around her — that redhead, whoever she was. You can’t even remember her name. Just the way she leaned into him like you’d never existed.

Then Artemis. Another timeline. Another wound. You’d tried to be her friend, to reach out — "I don’t like you. Can you stop bugging me? You’re being annoying."

You don’t know what hurt more — the words, or how casual they were.

Your fist rises before you can think — You slam it into the cactus shard on the floor, the one still reflecting your face.

It shatters. Thorns dig into your skin, blood now freely dripping, mixing with your tears.

You can’t take it. This hell. This pain. Being invisible, mocked, discarded like nothing.

“MY GOD, (NAME)!!”

A voice — real, close, here.

You’re suddenly lifted, your body trembling as your mother grabs your shoulders, eyes wide at the mess — the shattered mirror, the bloody floor, the look on your face.

You flinch away from her touch, instinctively recoiling.

But she doesn’t back off. She places a hand gently on your back, rubbing in small circles, trying to anchor you. Trying to find you in the wreckage.

You glance up — your father stands in the doorway, frozen, eyes full of fear and helplessness.

And that’s when it breaks. That final wall.

You collapse into your mother’s arms, letting out a sob you didn’t know was trapped in your throat. She holds you tightly, rocking you softly.

Your tears soak into her pajamas as your bloody hands shake, and your voice is lost in the mess of it all.

You’re broken. And she doesn’t even know why. But she holds you anyway.

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195 - EP.07

𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐏 195-masterlist

@WinnieB3d0:Hello everyone, Bedo here! If you don't know me, I'm one of the co-creators of Loop alongside Haruki. I post my stories on Wattpad, Ao3 and Quotev while Haruki posts here on Tumblr. I came to let you know that unfortunately the chapters may take a long time, just like this one because I unfortunately broke my leg. The story came out a bit confusing, but I hope you like it.

@Miharuki:I'll leave all her social networks here in case you want to see

Wattpad Ao3 Quotev

It was training day with your mentor on the Mount of Justice. Leaning against the wall, your hand moved up and down, playing with the yo-yo—sometimes using both hands to perform tricks. Compared to missions and previous days, you could say today was a "calm" day. Not the whole day, but the day itself. With your eyes closed, you listened to your team playing a game nearby, Wally winning the match. But before anyone could say anything, the transporter activated, its voice announcing:

"Recognized: Superboy, C04."

You groaned internally. Because, of course, the day's main problem would revolve around him—just like in the thousands of previous timelines. Honestly, you couldn’t remember a single moment in any past timeline where he had been kind or even decent to you. No, he never had. Out of all the timelines, there had never been a genuine friendship between you.

"Hi, Superboy. How was Metropolis?" Megan said in a sweet, affectionate tone. She had a crush on the boy—just like in every other timeline. In the past, you’d wondered, "What does he see in her?" It was strange. You couldn’t deny that there had been timelines where, unfortunately, you’d liked him too. And even when you’d "stolen" Megan’s chances with Superboy sometimes, he had never chosen you. In fact, no one had ever chosen you. Always second. Always forgotten.

"Ready for training, guys?" Black Canary said, coughing as she entered alongside Martian Manhunter. You stopped playing with the yo-yo, storing it before slowly walking closer to the group—but still keeping your distance.

"Black Canary! Uncle J’onn!" Megan’s sickly sweet voice rang out as she ran toward the older man. Her behavior was irritating—you couldn’t deny that. You glanced at your mentor, who simply smiled and approached, placing a hand on your shoulder. She was one of the few people you allowed to touch you. Not even the other older heroes had that privilege. It would be a lie to say that, out of everyone in that room, Black Canary—Dinah Lance—wasn’t important to you.

"M’gann, I was nearby... so I thought I’d check how you’re all adjusting," the elder said, smiling at the Martian girl.

"A few bumps, but I’m learning."

You felt Canary’s hand leave your shoulder. Turning to see where she was looking, you spotted Superboy, already walking away.

"Stay. Class is in session," Canary said before stepping in front of the group, holding her jacket and surveying the young heroes as the floor lit up in white, filling the circular space.

"I consider it an honor to be your teacher. I have a lot to teach you..." The woman removed her jacket, grunting in pain as she moved her arm. "...everything I learned from my own mentors—unh—and from my own injuries." She tossed the jacket aside, letting it fall a few meters away.

You noticed the injury on your mentor’s arm and, without thinking, asked:

"What happened?"

Your tone wasn’t cold, harsh, or rude—unlike how you usually spoke to your team. That earned you a few looks. Wally, who was nearby eating a banana, and Robin, who raised an eyebrow at your tone, both turned their attention back to the woman. Black Canary smiled gently, as if she’d glimpsed something hidden.

"The job," she said before her expression turned serious again.

"Now, combat is about controlling the conflict—setting the battle on your terms. You must always act, never react. I’ll need a training partner."

Canary looked at you, as if expecting you to raise your hand. Hesitant, your hand was about to lift when Wally shouted:

"Right here, yeah!" He walked toward the older woman while still devouring the banana in his hand.

"After this..." Wally finished the banana, tossing the peel like a basketball. "...touché. I’ll show you my moves."

Kid Flash smirked confidently, making the teacher raise an eyebrow. In a flash, she threw a punch—which the boy blocked—but then swept his legs, sending him crashing onto his back. The floor beneath him displayed his hero name, followed by a red "FAILED."

"Oww. That hurt," the redhead groaned as he got up.

"Good block. But did anyone see what he did wrong?" Canary gestured to the group, pointing at Wally.

"Oh, I know—he hit on the teacher and got owned?" Robin joked, smirking.

Wally gave him a disbelieving look. "Dude."

You raised your hand—not high, just to chest level. Canary nodded for you to answer.

"He left openings in his attacks, letting you dictate the rules—"

"Oh, please!" Superboy cut you off from behind Canary, crossing his arms.

You lowered your hand with a "Tsk," glaring at him with pure disdain. Your fist clenched, knuckles cracking.

"Oh, please. With my powers, the battle is always on my terms. I’m a living weapon—this is a waste of time."

Canary raised an eyebrow before challenging him. "Prove it."

Superboy stepped forward, raising his fist to strike—but Canary caught his arm and threw him to the ground hard, making him grunt in frustration. She looked down at him before shifting her stance, transferring her weight.

Robin laughed but quickly covered his mouth after receiving an elbow from Kaldur.

"You’re angry. Good. But don’t react—channel that anger into..."

Superboy tried again, but the woman jumped behind him, sweeping his legs once more. She offered a hand, which he refused.

"That’s it. I’m done." He stood up angrily.

"Training is mandatory," Canary frowned.

But before the boy could storm off, the screen behind them lit up—Batman’s face appearing.

"Batman to the Cave."

Everyone gathered around as a smaller screen popped up beside Batman, showing a villain speaking:

"Five hours ago... a new threat attacked Green Arrow and Black Canary. The attacker was capable... of studying and then duplicating the powers and abilities... of his opponents."

The image changed, showing the villain fighting the heroes—grabbing Superman and using him to slam into Red Tornado and the Flash.

"Green Arrow called for backup, which almost proved disastrous... as our enemy gained more and more power with each new combatant."

The footage paused on the villain firing eye lasers, destroying what looked like Batarangs.

"Whoa. A guy with the powers of the entire League?" Wally commented, shocked.

Batman continued:

"In the end, eight League members took four hours... to defeat and dismantle the android."

Robin stepped forward, confused. "An android? Who made it? F.U. Turo?"

"Good guess, Robin... but Red Tornado doesn’t think so."

"The technology bears the signature of Professor Ivo," Martian Manhunter said.

Kaldur spoke in a worried tone. "Ivo? But Ivo is dead."

Canary glanced at him. "That’s what we all thought. Or hoped."

"To ensure this threat is permanently neutralized... we’re sending two trucks carrying the android’s parts... to separate STAR Labs facilities in Boston and New York... for immediate analysis."

Batman’s voice was calm and explanatory as a map displayed the trucks’ routes.

"We’ll have four additional decoy trucks to create confusion... in case Ivo—or anyone else—tries to recover the remains. You’ll split into covert teams to guard the two real trucks."

"Yay! Road trip!" Wally cheered, nudging you playfully.

You shot him a glare and stepped away. He raised his hands in surrender, muttering an apology.

"So now we take out your trash?" Superboy scoffed.

You clenched the yo-yo, veins pulsing with anger as you resisted the urge to tell him to shut the hell up.

"Got something better to do?" Batman raised an eyebrow.

The boy just looked down in silence.

"That’s what I thought."

"Coordinates received. On our way," Kaldur said, already running to gear up.

Canary and Superboy were left behind as the boy slowly walked toward the team. You ran a finger over your choker—a private screen appearing, visible only to you.

Options flashed:

"Call Renjiichiro"

"Weapon Info"

"Suit Info"

"Death Style" (a list of ways the choker could kill you)

Above the screen, numbers displayed the date, time, and how many times you’d looped back in the timeline. This was your 195th timeline.

You barely glanced at the info, thinking only:

"Bike suit."

In the locker room, your hero suit shifted into a biker outfit—different details, but the mask remained. You cracked your neck before mounting your bike alongside the others.

LITCHFIELD COUNTY AUGUST 3, 20:08

You eyed the helmet that came with your bike before putting it on, sighing as you prepared to move out.

"Boston is on the way," one driver said, starting the truck.

"Manhattan is on the way," another replied.

Batman’s signal flashed—all six trucks began moving.

You and the team revved your bikes, taking off. Unfortunately, you were stuck with Robin and Superboy.

"I’d rather have died today," you thought, gripping the handlebars tightly as Limp Bizkit’s "Take A Look Around" blasted inside your helmet.

Robin glanced at Superboy, who seemed deep in thought.

"If dislike is the opposite of like, is disaster the opposite of aster? Like, instead of things going wrong, they go right."

Superboy didn’t respond.

"Uh, clearly, you’re not feeling the aster. What’s wrong?"

"Canary. What does she know about teaching combat skills... to a guy with super strength?"

Robin shrugged. "Taking down stronger guys is part of the job."

You gritted your teeth, pulling up beside them.

"You should be grateful she wants to teach you. Canary is the best fighter there is—she outmatches Batman in that department."

Robin blinked. "I don’t think Batman—"

You accelerated, cutting him off as you pulled alongside the truck. Cranked-up music drowned out everything else as you focused.

Then—monkeys latched onto the truck.

You hit a button, switching your bike to autopilot, then whipped out your yo-yo—hooking one monkey and yanking it off. The blade-tipped yo-yo pierced its metal shell. You shook it violently, using it like a flail against the others.

One monkey went flying, rolling across the road.

"Hey, watch it!" Robin yelled.

Ignoring him, you stood on the bike as it sped ahead, pulling alongside the truck. With a flick, your yo-yo hooked onto the truck’s roof. A sharp tug—and you launched yourself upward, landing roughly.

Your magnetized boots kept you anchored as you kicked off more monkeys.

The music roared in your ears as you ripped off your helmet, swinging it like a mace with the yo-yo’s cord.

"(Hero), you good up there?" Robin’s voice crackled in your earpiece.

"Oh, just peachy—fighting off monkeys ALONE!" you snarled.

"Sorry—"

"I DON’T WANT SORRY, GET BACK HERE!"

You yanked the yo-yo, but the monkeys swarmed, cutting the cord. The case slipped away—your yo-yo still attached.

"Dammit!" You slammed a fist against the truck wall.

Tapping your comm, you growled: "(Hero) here. They took it."

You glanced at the others before swiping your wrist—your bike swerving back toward you.

A finger brushed your choker.

"Call Renjiichiro."

The screen vanished.

You leaped from the truck, landing on your moving bike.

"That damn Superboy and Robin—messed things up AGAIN!"

You snarled, shoving the helmet back on and gripping the handlebars, turning sharply to chase the monkeys.

"Mine, yours, theirs, mine—kukuku! Reijiichiro here! How’s it going, (Full Name)?"

The cutesy, playful voice echoed in your head as a small creature materialized on your bike’s handlebars, curling into your lap.

"The damn mission—lost my yo-yo, all because of those—argh! Need help tracking it and a new weapon."

The creature giggled. "Kukukuku~ Every new timeline, you impress me more, (Name)."

You tightened your grip. "Are you helping or not?"

Reijiichiro licked his paw casually. "Of course, angel. That’s what I’m here for."

With a retching motion, he coughed up a glowing sludge that hardened into a new weapon—a small, cutesy yo-yo with ribbons and charms, matching his aesthetic.

You stared at the frilly thing. "Seriously?"

He wiped his mouth. "What? I delivered. Now, you know the rules—"

You rolled your eyes, grabbing the yo-yo with one hand. "Yeah, yeah. If I lose this one, I have to find the original myself. Blah, blah. Once I get the original, this one returns to you. Got it."

The creature laughed, tail swaying. "Kukuku~ See you later, (Nickname)."

He hopped off, vanishing into a portal.

You sighed, opening the decorated yo-yo. A tracking screen displayed your original yo-yo’s location—still attached to the case.