Young Justice: The Mimic Contingency (A Young Justice Fanfic)

Back to the Bat Cave

MOUNT JUSTICE - November 12th

11:50PM
Desmond had won.
Barely two minutes after they had left, Superman had been killed by Desmond. With Flash left a paraplegic by Desmond, that meant that the whole Justice League was now neutralised. The world's strongest defenders were no more.
'Desmond had won', these were the only words that echoed clearly in Dick's stressed mind. How could this have happened? How could the Mimic Contingency have succeeded so easily? How could they have allowed themselves to be torn apart? All of these questions and more fluttered through his mind, nagging at him like flies on a hot day, but none of them buzzed louder in his head than the most worrying question:
Did Batman really help make the Mimic Contingency? Did he really believe the League to be ineffective?
Dick put his head in his hands, burying his face so deeply that it blocked out the light from his room.
"What the hell are we going to do..?" he asked himself.
But before he could answer himself, his door opened abruptly, with Wally standing just outside.
"You OK, Dick?" he asked with folded arms.
Dick looked at him, almost amused at the irony of that question.
"I should be the one asking that question." he replied. "How's your uncle doing?"
As Wally unfolded his arms, the solemn expression on his face on his expression became heavier.
"Not well." Wally said bluntly. "Losing his legs...That just really took the life outta him. He's so depressed day in and day out..."
He sat on a chair across from Dick's bed. 
"It's taking a toll on Aunt Iris too..."
Dick was about to offer a sympathy or another "I'm sorry to hear that", but opted to not say anything. With the situation they were all in, it was impossible to make anything better with words...
Instead, he changed the subject:
"How's Connor doing?" 
"He's fine..." Wally said. "He's unconscious, but the dangerous bits of Kryptonite are out of his system, but the rest will just have to flush itself out. Which means that he's going to be weak for a while..."
Anxiety washed over Dick's face.
"But is it true?" Wally asked. "Did Batman really have something to do with Desmond's plan?"
Dick shrugged.
"I don't know..." he sighed. "I don't know what to do, who to look up to, who to trust, or what the hell to do!"
He grunted with frustration and ran his hands through his hair, hunching over the edge of his bed angrily.
"Why?! It doesn't make any sense! Why would Batman of all people help destroy the League?! Why?!"
Wally shrugged. 
"Maybe something was wrong-"
"THERE WASN'T!!!" Dick snapped at him. "There was NOTHING wrong with the League!!!"
The echo of Dick's yell echoed throughout the room, the cold feeling of shock still melting away from Wally's core. He had never seen Dick this angry or confused.
"If only we could investigate this..." Dick muttered to himself. "Some records...Some information...Some data-"
Then it hit him. 
"The Batcave!!" Dick exclaimed. 
"What?!" Wally exclaimed. "What about it!?"
Dick grabbed his utility belt from his shelf and bolted out the door.
"Dude?!" Wally called out after him. "What are you up to?!"
But Dick was already on his way to the Zeta-Tubes.
"C'mon man!!" Wally groaned. "I'm a speedster! Not a mind reader!!"
Thankfully, he was quick enough to be transported in the same Zeta-Beam.


THE BATCAVE RUINS - November 12th

11:53PM


Nothing had changed in the Batcave.
Everything was exactly the way that Dick had seen it right before Batman's funeral. The metal roof supports were still in contorted, beaten piles, the Batmobile was still a huge wreck and the piles of rubble were beginning to collect dust.
Dick took a sharp, nervous breath as Wally approached him.
"It's OK, man..." Wally assured him. "You don't have to do this...I know it's hard..."
But Dick shook his head.
"No..." he replied firmly. "We have to."
He shrugged Wally's hand off and clenched his fists, marching along the ruined catwalk until he found his objective.
The Bat-Computer, which was still covered with Desmond's taunting words of "See You Soon".
"Looks like we saw him way too soon, huh?" Wally said.
But Dick ignored him and wiped at the screen, which caked his whole hand in dust.
He placed a small, rectangular device on the keyboard and entered a few keys, which turned the Bat-Computer on almost immediately.
"It's amazing that this thing still works..." Wally said with amazement. 
The screen hummed and soon, the whole screen was spammed with wave after wave of files.
"Man..." Wally groaned. "We'll be here forever going over these..."
"Not if we're looking for the right file..." Dick added.
Dick cycled through all the folders, one by one, until he found the file he was looking for, but something was off...
"That's weird..." Dick said quietly.
"What is?" Wally asked.
"The data size..." Dick answered, pointing at the file size. "The plans are mostly made up of diagrams, simulations and voice records, which are only a couple of ten gigabytes, but this file goes up to almost three terabytes!"
Wally looked at the screen with awe. What could be in such a massive file?!
With a hesitant finger, Dick pressed the button to open the file and the contents were absolutely shocking.
"Oh my god..." Wally gasped. "Is this-?!"
Dick could barely believe what he was reading too. The Contingency plans were controversial to the League, but this sort of data was NOTHING compared to that!
"Does anyone else know about this?!" Wally asked. 
Dick swallowed nervously.
"I hope not..." he replied, his shock still lingering.
Suddenly, Wally's phone went off, startling the two of them. Wally quickly pulled the phone from his jacket pocket.
"Artemis?" he asked into it. "Is something wrong?"
"I'm not sure." Artemis replied. "I've been looking over the scanners with Zatanna and there's movement just on the cliffs outside Happy Harbour..."
She sighed anxiously.
"It's Desmond..." 
Wally's eyes went wide. How could he have left Artemis by herself?!
"But he's just standing there, watching our mountain...Like he's waiting for something..."
Wally held the phone closer to his ear.
"Do not move, Artemis!" he said to her. "Me and Dick will be right back at the Cave very soon."
"OK..." Artemis said nervously. "I love you..."
When Wally hung up the phone, he could tell something was worrying her. She had said that she loved him before, but saying it so anxiously and adamantly meant that seeing Desmond not even half a town away from them made her frightened. 
"Desmond's near the Cave." Wally said to Dick, who was packing up his equipment. "We need to go there and help th-"
"We're not going to the Cave." Dick declared.
Wally looked at him in shock.
"Why the hell not?!" he snapped.
Dick put his rectangular box-like device in his belt and walked to the Zeta-Tube entrance.
"Because we need answers about that data and if that data is what I think it is, then there's only one person who can give those answers to us..."
Wally didn't like where this was going...
"Come one, Wally..." Dick said. "We're going to see Desmond..."


HAPPY HARBOUR - November 13th

1:09PM


Desmond stood atop the cliffs near the entrance to Happy Harbour, his eyes still bloodshot from crying when he faced Superman.
The ocean air stang coldly against his face as a whoosh of wind appeared next to him.
Within a few seconds, Vandal Savage appeared next to him from a blur of orange, his face absolutely ecstatic.
"Took you long enough." Desmond remarked. "I've been waiting for more than an hour..."
But Savage ignored his curt remark and placed a heavy, muscular hand on Desmond's shoulder, like a proud father.
"Words cannot describe how proud of you I am, boy..." he chuckled. 
Desmond ignored his praise.
"There is just one more loose end. Those former team mates of yours..."
Desmond looked him in the eyes, almost defiantly.
"What happened to leaving them alone?" 
Savage's smile weakened slightly.
"Do not challenge me, child." he snapped. "You know as well as I that promises can't always be fulfilled..."
He nudged Desmond's back.
"Now go and deal with them, or I'll do it myself..."
Desmond was about to take a reluctant step forward until he heard a loud whooshing behind them.
"Hold up, Desmond!" Kid Flash demanded. 
Savage spun around, his face smiling again.
"How convenient..." he chuckled. "I can witness the Young Justice's destruction first hand..."
Robin looked at Savage angrily.
"What's the matter Savage?" he scoffed. "Batman helped you create the Mimic Contingency and now you want to kill his protégé?"
Savage looked at him with confusion, an expression he rarely ever showed.
"What are you talking about, child?" he asked calmly. 
Desmond looked at Dick angrily.
"Leave now, Dick." Desmond ordered. "Don't make me kill you."
Robin looked at Desmond with a mess of rage and defiance.
"You won't, Desmond." he challenged. "Not with the files I found."
"What files?" Desmond replied. 
"File Yankee-Juliet: 21-9-15."
Desmond's eyes went wide with shock.
"How do you know about that?!"
Savage looked at Desmond accusingly.
"What is that boy talking about?" Savage growled. "Is there something you're not telling me Desmond?!"
But Desmond ignored him and scowled at Robin.
"Don't go any further into this, Dick..." he warned. "Like I said, don't make me kill you..."
"And like I said," Robin repeated. "I know you won-"
But before Robin could finish his sentence, Savage lashed out and grabbed him by the throat, strangling him viciously.
"Silence, you worm!!" Savage roared.
Robin's face turned pink almost immediately as Kid Flash rushed Savage angrily. But before Kid Flash could even move, Savage swatted him aside like he was nothing, a loud snap of bone coming from Kid Flash's knee.
"Savage!!" Desmond yelled. "What are you doing?!"
"What you refuse to..." Savage growled. 
Robin's eyes began to roll back into his head.
"Now die, you pathetic insect..." 
But before Savage could say another word, Desmond flew at him and slammed his fist into Savage's back, making him drop Robin and sending him skidding a few metres along the ground.
"What are you doing?!" Savage snapped at him. 
Desmond's eye began to smoulder with rage.
"Protecting my friends." Desmond said defiantly.
He rushed at Savage again and hit him repeatedly in the chest and face, but before he could finish him, Savage caught Desmond's fist and began crushing it.
Desmond yelled out in pain.
"Your compassion makes you weak!" Savage roared.
He slammed his boot into Desmond's chest, making Desmond cough up blood all over the grass.
Savage threw him back near the cliff's edge, rage twisting and contorting every muscle on his face.
"Do you truly think you can stand against me?" Savage laughed. "It would take more of you, an entire ARMY to defeat me!"
But suddenly, Desmond began to laugh, his eyes turning towards Savage with a smug, evil grin. 
"Then it's a good thing I brought one..."
Before Savage could ask what he was talking about, Desmond suddenly looked into the sky, yelling out one word:
"NOW!!!" 
As soon as Desmond said those words, there was a loud thunderclap from the horizon. Before the clap even dissipated, a red and blur suddenly slammed into Savage's chest, knocking him off of his feet.
When the figure stood under the moonlight, his face washed with pale yellow, Robin and Kid Flash could barely believe their eyes. 
It was Superman!!
"Give up, Savage!" Superman ordered. "We have you surrounded!"
But Savage pulled himself up from the ground.
"We who?" he scoffed.
"US!!" A female voice cried out.
Before Savage could turn around, a bright, golden rope suddenly lashed out and coiled itself around him and pulled him back into the direction of an ebony haired woman that jumped out from the trees, her silver bracelet fists slamming into Savage's face and deepened the shock of Robin and Kid Flash's.
"Wonder Woman?!" Robin gasped.
"Don't forget us!!" a voice laughed above them.
When they all looked up, the cliff was bathed in a bright green light, which slammed itself into the ground next to Savage and transformed into bright green chains, locking him onto the ground. 
And when they looked up again, they saw Green Lantern descending towards them, followed by several more familiar figures...
"Impossible!!" Savage yelled as he saw them. "It can't be!!"
And right before the shocked trio, the entire cliff face was surrounded by people that they never thought they would see again. By HEROES they never though they would see again...
Standing right before them, was every member of the Justice League!!
"What the hell?!" Kid Flash muttered.
Savage looked at them with a panicked expression.
"But how?!" Savage screamed. "I saw it myself! Desmond killed you all!"
And speak of the devil, Desmond jumped forward and punched Savage across the jaw, knocking him to the floor.
"That's where you're wrong, Savage..." Desmond said to him. "I never did!"
He then leaned back and towered over Savage victoriously.
"You've been played since the beginning..."

The Justice League has returned?!
Desmond never killed any of it's members?!
Then what was the Mimic Contingency about?!
What was Desmond's plan all along?!
More importantly, how did he do it?!
What was in the file that Wally and Dick found in the Bat Cave?!
What will Desmond, the Team and the Justice League do now?!

Find out in the next chapter! :D Be sure to vote if you enjoyed the chapter and comment your thoughts so far! :D What did you think of that for a twist?! :D What do YOU think Desmond's plan REALLY was? :D

- Kai-Shiro :D