Chương 51: Chapter 48
Yo, sorry for not posting this last week, I hope you guys enjoy the chapter!
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Talking, objectively speaking, it's such an easy thing to do. Just open her mouth and express her ideas, make a string of sounds that convey meaning. Heck, Kara didn't even need to open her mouth, she had taken a few moments to learn sign language between some of her experiments.
Subjectively speaking, however? It was harder than fighting that eldritch abomination had been. She was doing her best, but her throat locked up every time, the words dying in her mouth and leaving her looking stupid before just saying 'nothing'.
It wasn't that she didn't know what to say, she had practiced in her mind enough that she had three different scripts she could use. Kara knew exactly what she wanted to say, she just… couldn't do it.
Lying on the sofa, Dexter purring softly on top of her belly, Kara struggled to keep her mind on track. To not reach for her computer so she could distract her mind by watching Luthor still trying to justify a new leak —she still had some dirt on him she hadn't released— or lose herself on a new experiment.
Two lifetimes —short as they were— and she still hadn't learned how to take initiative on private matters. Show her an enemy and she would happily start plotting his downfall. Give her a project and she'd immediately start dealing with it but, when it came to her own personal life…
The worst was that she knew it was easy, just start talking. It was simple, extremely so, but she just… Could. Not. Do. It. And she absolutely hated it.
If it was anyone else facing the same problem, Kara would actually be pretty understanding, but when it was her own weakness.
Again, she caught herself reaching for the computer, instinctively trying to change her train of thought, to flee. It would be so easy, there was so much going on in the world, so many important things she could be dealing with.
The Light was adapting to her existence. Trigon was getting involved with the world. Mr. Mind was probably still alive and plotting something. She'd have to deal with the Injustice League soon…
Kara would really prefer to be dealing with any one of those things and, arguably, they were far more important than her inability to speak up.
Pulling her arm back, she squeezed her hand into a fist and closed her eyes, taking deep breaths as she tried to calm herself down, to swallow the lump on her throat and relax her body.
Feeling a gentle touch on her closed hand, Kara opened her eyes to see Dexter pushing his head against her hand, his purring getting louder as he rubbed his entire body against her.
Unable to help herself, she scratched the top of his head, watching as his eyes closed in pleasure, eventually, he actually lifted a paw towards her other hand and attempted to draw it closer, gently hooking his claws around her finger.
"Oh, you want both hands then, one isn't enough," Kara snorted. Letting out a long sigh, she obliged. "As the Overlord commands."
"Joy!" Kori exclaimed, catching Kara by surprise with her phone as she brought them food. "This will make for the most wonderful saver of screens!"
Kara flushed, but she still kept scratching at the cat's fur, letting her girlfriend continue to take a few more pictures of their interaction. "Just don't be showing that to everyone, you're gonna make them stop fearing me."
"Do not worry, after they beheld the way you fought the Yog-Sotha, that will not be a concern," Kori nodded, lifting Kara's feet and sitting down on the sofa before laying them back down on her lap. At Kara's inquisitive look, she continued. "There was a substantial amount of videos from Salem's battle."
It had only been a single day since the fight with Klarion and Kara was taking it easy, or at least trying to, with Kori having taken a day of leave to stay with her and help her recover from the ordeal.
Still, she should have expected videos of the fight to have spread far and wide, the internet was even more advanced here than in her previous life and there were several video sharing apps that were popular.
"Ugh, I really hope that didn't spread the damned cognitohazard," Kara sighed, lying back on the sofa's arm and continuing to run her hand over Dexter's fur.
"It did not, The Doctor Fate was sure of that," Kori answered, adjusting her position so her legs could hang besides Kara's.
"Good, did I at least look cool in the videos?"
"You looked most gallant," Kori nodded, handing Kara the plate of snacks before stealing a handful of them. "Indeed, watching you sunder the creature's phalange and bathe in its blood left me exceedingly aroused."
Kara choked on one of the snacks, causing Dexter to jump away as she coughed to dislodge the nugget from her airway. "Well… coff… I suppose that's better than the alternative."
"Still, I do hope you do not get covered in evil, eldritch ichor again, regardless of how appealing it was to watch your prowess."
"Don't worry. I have no intention of doing that anytime soon," she said, taking a sip of water to clean her mouth.
Grabbing the remote, Kara pressed play, finally letting the movie continue playing. Star Wars was still a thing even in DC and Kori was actually greatly enjoying the original trilogy, especially because the movie technology was much better in this world.
Even Kara loved it. The director had actually managed to preserve the mental aspect of Old Obi-Wan VS Vader while also making it showy, with both exploding into action in a short but epic duel at the end.
Still, Kara wasn't able to concentrate on the second movie, her anxiety starting to build again as she kept stealing glances at Kori.
Finally, after nearly twenty minutes, she grabbed the remote and paused the movie, staring at the screen as she attempted to gather her wits and open her mouth.
Feeling a warm touch, she watched as Kori just embraced her, wrapping her arms around Kara's neck in a strong hug. "Kara, we are friends, more than that, we are lovers. No matter what you wish to say, I will always be here for you."
"I didn't used to be like this, you know?" Kara breathed out, a derisive tone in her voice. "While Kryptonians can get lonely or uncertain, we don't really have a need to talk, or even be with others. Such weakness had long since been purged from our nature by evolution or genetic manipulation."
Pushing herself up into a sitting position, Kara adjusted herself, her back straight against the sofa's arm as Kori laid between her legs, their hands interlocked. She hated feeling like this, weak. It really wasn't in her nature.
"On Krypton, we didn't really get like this. Our society let us achieve pretty much anything we wanted and we were born with a purpose. We didn't really get depressed, anxious or even uncertain," she told her girlfriend, the words finally leaving her mouth and causing a weight to leave her chest. "Yes, Father disapproved of my martial training, but that was actually the greatest setback I had… and it's not like I didn't enjoy my technical studies, it wasn't that hard to focus entirely on them. This is… shameful."
"Do not speak like that, just because you are struggling with something, it does not make you weak. Needing help does not make you unworthy," Kori said angrily. Releasing Kara's hands, she cupped her face and forced Kara to look into her eyes. "Kara, you are already doing so much for me, for the Titans. You do not need to do everything alone. We can help each other, no?"
"Sorry, it's just, I wasn't supposed to be like this, I was supposed to be composed, to be capable of making the hard decisions," pushing her head back, Kara closed her eyes to gather her thoughts. "Ever since I regained some memories back with the Psions, I have felt different. I know I'm still myself, but I don't think my family would ever recognize me now, either of them. Focusing on other problems lets me forget about it and makes me feel… normal."
"Kara, to me, you are normal," Kori smiled at her, releasing her face and pushing herself back again. "I did not know you or your family before, but I believe they would still love you no matter what."
Kara didn't know if Kori was right, but hearing it did make her feel a little better. Her Father had been a hard man, but he did love her in his own way, she really hoped he'd still do so even if he knew she had a second set of memories.
"Kori, have you ever heard about the multiverse? Alternate dimensions?"
"Yes?" Kori hesitatingly said, not understanding the change of subject. "The Titans have been reading through some of the Justice League's old reports as part of our training. They have many interactions with parallel dimensions."
"Right, well, I actually remember a different life, one where everything here was simply an animated series…"
Telling Kori about her previous life and her knowledge of the DC universe was easy. Just as Kara knew it would be once she managed to start. The problem had always been starting, not the conversation itself. Words flowed out of her mouth one after another as she spoke about everything in a clear and concise manner.
Kori didn't interrupt her, listening intently without saying anything. Explaining things didn't actually take too long, it wasn't like Kara had to teach her how to reincarnate, just that it had happened.
Explaining about the DC universe actually took longer, but it wasn't by that much. The concept that her life could be a story wasn't that alien to the woman, just strange.
"You already knew about me before we met?" Kori asked when she was finally done.
"Not exactly you, but some versions of you, and it's not like I watched your entire life and everything you have ever thought, just some moments a writer thought were interesting," Kara answered, a concerned look on her face. "Does that bother you?"
"It does not," Kori shook her head. Seeing the relieved look on Kara's face, Kori leaned down and gave her a quick kiss. "Kara, on Tamaran, I am a princess, the idea that someone knows about my life is merely a matter of course. I do not imagine it is much different for any member of the League."
Yeah, now that Kara had started speaking, she could see how silly hiding it all had been, particularly in a place like DC where things like that weren't exactly unheard of. No, if she was being honest, she could already see the silliness before. It just didn't make things any easier.
Still, now that she had started talking, it was easy to continue, even to discuss things, with Kori asking about the different versions of herself out there, getting both excited and scandalized by what some of her depictions did.
Grabbing one of her devices, Kara even created a holographic display to show what she knew about their own dimension, with lines and pictures showing what the original timeline should have been and what it looked like now.
"Our next action will be to rescue The Poison Ivy, yes?" Kori finally asked nearly three hours later, her eyes narrowed in thought. "Has The Detective Chimp found her exact location yet?"
"Our?" Kara lifted an eyebrow.
"You did swear you would not start a fight without me, no?" Kori frowned at her. "I will not permit you to fight the likes of The Black Adam and Wotan alone."
"Well, I wouldn't really call it a fight, fighting is for when I'm caught by surprise or in an emergency," Kara said and then her face became a smirk. "No, fighting means the enemy has a chance to react. With time to plan things, I want to utterly crush them before they even know they're being attacked."
"Regardless, I will not allow you to go alone."
"Well, I would have my own team for support, but it's not like I'm opposed to you coming too. One can never have too much firepower after all," Kara said, already looking at Kori's body. "And you would look hot in the right power armor."
"Very well. Although I do not enjoy wearing too many coverings, I am willing to compromise," Kori said, satisfied she wouldn't be left behind this time.
"Say, you think Billy would agree to help out before the fight? Black Adam has the same powers as him and it would be good to be able to test some of my weapons."
"I do not see why he would refuse."
Looking at the web of villains and plots she had created with her holographic projector, Kara decided to save it, using her personal computer to do so.
She still wasn't willing to just… freely distribute the information to everybody and there were some details she'd have to scrub, but it was a good base to start working from.
The prospect of having the same conversation with Kal still bothered her, but not nearly as much now that she had done it once. Hopefully, she'd not backtrack again when the time came.
"Come on, since I'm already telling you everything, there's something else I want to show you," Kara said, finally pushing herself up from the sofa.
Using her personal computer, she called on her teleportation platform, the small one was just the correct size to fit into the living room without causing any problems while also allowing two people to stand on it.
A moment later, they appeared inside Kara's moon base, the defenses immediately deactivating as they verified their identity and allowing the both of them to step down from the platform.
"This does not look like the Psion ship we arrived in." Kori commented, looking around at the crystalline, square room.
"It's not, I've been meaning to throw that one into the sun for a few days now, just making sure there's absolutely nothing important still inside," Kara shrugged, walking towards one of the empty walls.
Suddenly, a crystal pedestal protruded from the floor in front of Kara, allowing the Kryptonian to rest her hand on top of the round tip until it turned blue.
With a 'hiss', a wide set of doors snapped open, the walls retreating to the sides and releasing a cloud of white smoke that spread through the floor, revealing a blue hallway, the walls glowing with an inner light.
"Kara, are you certain this base is secure? I do not think doors are supposed to release smoke." Kori asked, giving the opening a wary glance.
Kara blushed, her eyes avoiding looking at Kori. "Everything is fine, I just made it do that for the aesthetics," she said in a small voice, but Kori heard her anyway.
"It does look intimidating. Friend Robin would find it most impressive."
That really didn't help. In fact, it only made Kara even more self-conscious. She made a mental note to find an excuse for the smoke before bringing someone else here. Kara didn't really like lying, but this would be for a good cause. Namely, so she wouldn't be embarrassed.
Once she started walking, her posture regained her usual surety, her back straightening as she took large steps towards the outer wall. As always, when she wasn't dealing with something personal, she was far more decisive.
More than that, having gotten a weight off her chest, she was feeling great, even if her body was still hurting a little from the effect of Wrath's blast.
Kori herself floated behind her, her feet hanging up in the air as her green eyes took in all the changes to their previous spaceship, the crystalline walls becoming transparent to let her look at the ship's interior since Kara was giving her a tour.
"Sunstone isn't really the best material to build an entire ship, it's very versatile, but that means it's not the best in any one aspect," she explained as the hallway started lightning up further with every step. "Still, it's cheap, requires almost no maintenance and is easy to produce, not demanding any exotic materials."
Finally, as they approached the end of the hallway, a second door snapped open, releasing another wave of dry smoke that Kara ignored as she walked through the archway, stepping out into a balcony overlooking the outside of the ship.
Down below, a courtyard was hidden under the same holographic projector as the ship itself. It contained five hundred large spires of black crystal sprouting from the ground in twenty even rows.
The spires slowly grew while bathing in sunlight, only a little smaller than an average human, they absorbed every drop of energy to continue developing as fast as possible.
"Please, what are those?" Kori asked, her feet touching back on the floor at Kara's side.
"Ship seeds, they'll take a few more days to be ready and I'll have to hide them on the moon later, probably spread them around with matching holographic projectors so nobody notices, but, in a few months to a year, they'll be ready to fly."
"Kara, perhaps it is not the best idea to secretly build a fleet so close to an inhabited planet?" Kori commented as she looked at the seeds. "I do not know much about humans but, even in Tamaran, such large numbers would make my family very uncomfortable."
"Don't worry, I'm not planning on using them on Earth. The League alone could probably deal with half the fleet by themselves if I don't use exotic weapons, not to speak of the other heroes and villains on the Planet," Kara said, dismissing Kori's concerns with a wave of her hand. "No, this is a gift for you. Regardless of the League's decision, I told you I'd help retake Tamaran, your people are gonna need a fleet to protect themselves after that."
"You… are giving me a fleet?"
"There's a couple thousand aerokinetic Karabots too, but I'm still making improvements to them."
"That is… the most romantic gesture I have ever heard about!"
With a shout of happiness, Kori hugged her, the strong emotions giving the Tamaranean more power than she had ever displayed, causing even Kara to feel life being squeezed out of her.
Then she felt her shirt being pulled apart, the nano-robots that composed it unable to withstand Kori's strength and her concern turned into… another feeling altogheter. Well, she did need to test the ship's resistance. Hopefully, it would prove tougher than her reinforced bed.
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Thanks to Eric Faust for helping out with the chapter.
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