So this will be a little chaotic and cringe, but who cares it's my AU
☆ In this AU Sam will be Talia's and Bruce's biological son so that's where we will start off
☆ I imagine that Sam would be conceived during Bruce's time learning and training with Ra's
☆ There would be some complications, and Sam or as Talia names him, Shammil would be born early, and they would quickly discover that he is dying from internal deformities as well as being poisoned from the Lazarus Pits (this is why Damian would become a tube baby)
☆ Sam would only "live" for three months even with the best care in the world that Talia and Bruce could find
☆ Eva Alexander would be Talia's half-sister
☆ During the three months Sam is alive, Jesse Alexander is shot into the DC universe due to the Nova Force
☆ The Nova Force has a goal, it's Sam. (the Nova Force is somewhat alive)
☆ Jesse immediately meets Eva, and they very quickly fall in love
☆Eva and Jesse want a life together, but Eva can't have children
☆ Jesse tells Eva that Xanderians can add their DNA to another's child so they would biologically have four parents. Their DNA would be less prevalent compared to the two biological parents
☆Eva immediately thinks of Shammil and how they look similar enough
☆ To be able to steal Shammil, she would need to stage his death. This would not be hard as Sam was dying. Eva would get into contact with people who could help her and would get a deceased body to replace Shammil
☆ Jesse would be trying to find a way home to the Marvel Universe
☆ Eventually, Eva is able to snatch Sam in the middle of the night
☆ Jesse thinks he found a way home through a black hole, but it's actually the work of the Nova Force taking them back because it got what it wanted (Sam)
☆ Due to Shammil's death and finding out Ra's true motive, Bruce and Talia split up
☆ They are both deeply grieving Shammil's death and still love each other. They just can't stand to look at each other right now
☆ Whan Jesse and Eva get to Earth 616, Jesse quickly takes Shammil to Xander to get medical help as well as add his and Eva's DNA
☆ Their DNA is successfully added, and Sam grows healthy. The Nova Force allowed their DNA to be added so Sam could gain alien genetics. While Sam's alien genetics grew stronger, somehow, Jesse and Eva's DNA was diminishing slowly over time. In turn, making Sam alien while having no actual alien parent in due time. (If ya get what I mean)
☆ Sam became Nova after Jesse's disappearance at nine years old (I think Jesse would have done something stupid and gotten killed in this AU)
☆ Sam would be the only Nova and Xanderian left (Richard Rider would be dead at this time)
☆ Eva would love Sam but would never love him as much as she loves Kaitlyn and Jesse
☆ At 15 years old, Sam has been Nova for 6 years and has been a part of the champions for 3 years
☆ Richard Rider somehow comes back to life and hears of the only Nova left
☆ Rider isn't pleased that it's a 15 year old boy who he deems unworthy but decides to semi-mentor Sam (he is not a good mentor)
☆ Rider would eventually learn that he couldn't revive the other Nova's or Xanderians with the Xanderian worldmind
☆ Doesn't like that it seems like Sam is slowly growing stronger than him. (The Nova Force has a favorite)
☆ Rider decides to take Sam's Helmet and not allow him to be Nova for his own "safety" but conveniently forgets that Sam's enemies know where he lives (most leave Sam alone when they realize that he no longer has his helmet)
☆ During Sam's time with the champions, he lets them know his secret identity because he craves connection. They do not share the same sentiment and treat him like an idiot.
☆ When his helmet gets taken away, Sam thought that he would still have the champions as friends, but they all ghost him
☆ Viv Vision will be Sam's only real friend. For a couple of years, she really does think this is all for his own safety. She slowly learns of Riders jealousy and tries to find a way to get Sam's helmet back. (She does not contact Sam as to not rise suspicion)
☆ back to the DC universe
☆ Damian is born 9 years after Sam and Bruce and Talia are still not back together
☆ Talia finds out what happens to Sam/Shammil when a hit is put on one of Eva's contacts that were involved with taking Sam
☆ They try to use this info to live, but Talia finds out as much as she can from them before she kills them off.
☆ She does not tell Bruce anything in case it is all a lie. She finds out all that happened that night.
☆ She tries to find a way to the Marvel Universe without Ra's knowing anything
☆ handy dandy Nova Force notices what she is doing and yanks her into a portal.
☆ Talia lands into Carefree Arizona, where the Nova Force leads her to Sam and his place of work
☆ Sam is 16 at this time
☆ She decides to spy and learn more information before she can approach Sam
☆ She learns of Sam's home life as a provider and how he is treated at school and is not happy in the slightest. She also learns that Sam was a superhero known as Nova and everything that happened to him
☆ All Talia wants is her baby and to punish Eva for what she's stolen from her.
☆ Eventually confronts Sam in the night on his way home from work.
☆ Tells him that she is his mother and he does not believe her till she gives proof
☆ After Sam learns everything, he's angry and sad
☆ Talia tells him to come with her. He goes with the promise of being trained
☆ Sam doesn't really feel that he has a purpose after the Nova helmet is taken
☆ Talia tells him of Damian and how he needs protection from Ra's
☆ She tells him that once he's been trained, he can go to him and become a hero and protector to Damian.
☆ Sam finally agrees to go with her. They set it up to look like a runaway situation
☆ Nova Force takes them back.
☆ unknowingly to Sam, ever since the helmet had been taken, the Nova Force had been growing in him.
☆ Talia only lets her most trusted people train Sam, and he is unknown to Ra's
☆ To the leagues shock, Sam is a very fast learner. In both combat and academics. (He just wasn't applied at Carefree's schools)
☆ At 20 years old, Sam has completed his training
☆ Talia quickly takes him to Gotham with her to find Bruce
☆ She meets up with Bruce and tells him the truth of what happened to Shammil
☆ Bruce is angry that she didn't tell him sooner but is very happy that Shammil is alive
☆ Damian learns that his mother is in Gotham and breaks into her safe house to only find Sam
☆ Bruce and Talia show up to tell him the truth and formally introduce him to Sam
☆ Sam is happy to have a younger brother
☆ Damian is wary of him and is not easy to open up, but some small part of him is very pleased
☆ Bruce quickly notices that Sam is wearing a domino mask and asks if he'd take it off
☆ Sam does not and tells him that he will not be seeing his face until he trusts them (trauma with the champions)
☆ Talia leaves him with them
☆ Bruce takes him back to the Cave and informs his adopted children of Sam's existence
☆ They are all flabbergasted (Bruce has another demon child!?!?)
◇ I also want to make it known that Sam still loves Eva. She is the first mother he has ever known, and he knows the love and sacrifices she made for him were genuine. One of the main factors of him leaving was for her and kaitlyns safety. While most of Sam's villains left him alone, he still feared that one of them would attack his family if he continued to stay with them. He did what he believed to be best for them.
◇ Sam loves Eva, but at the same time, He hates her
☆ I kinda want to make this a soulmate au (cringe, I know!)
☆ I, of course, want Brutalia. My girl has been done wrong for years due to racist writing, and she is a good if not misguided mother dammit!!
☆ Now what you've all been waiting for!!
☆ I want to make Sam and Dick soulmates...(I've even made a soul mark and everything!!)
☆ But imagine the angst I can create. The Marvel Universe won't have soulmates, and Eva would have told Sam his soulmark was a drunken tattoo from Jesse. The league won't talk about soulmates, so Sam would be completely clueless.
☆ I want this boy to be in denial and avoid dick even more than he already does
☆ Dick doesn't like Sam even before he learns that Sam is his soulmate because he's Talia's son and he chose to learn from her
☆ Sam thinks that it's weird as fuck that his bio father's adopted son is his so-called "soulmate"
☆ The night that Dick's parents died Bruce had already felt that Dick was like him and he wanted to take him in and learning of his soulmark only made him feel even more responsible for him
☆Dick is pissed and starts to think the only reason Bruce took him in was because of his soulmark
@/tuubeon or imonsterheaven is a shotacon and batcest shipper. it was revealed on twitter and i’m posting it on here too so everyone knows. i can’t post everything so pls go look at the original post on twt
The one and only time I posted something negative about Taylor Swift, I got more anon hate than I have collectively gotten from TERFs in two years of this blog existing
Summary: Sam is allowed to stay with Pamela, but he must go to the local high school. He meets his new Trainers, who are around his age, and becomes very close with them over the years. Sam becomes just as good as they hoped he would four years later. He finally goes to Gotham. Bruce is terribly angry about Sam being hidden from him. Damian attacks Sam the first time they meet.
Warnings: None
Authors note: I imagine Katherine to look like Jennifer check and Sylvia to look like Bailey Bass. The hairstyle i try to describe is the style her avatar character wears. I do not believe that I described Sams suit well so I will link an old draft, ignore the green on his legs.
Left alone while the two women “talk”. He could hear them raising their voices, which can only be heard through the thick wooden door due to his enhanced hearing. He didn’t want to listen, so he blocked it out the best as he could.
Pamela’s house looked like it was straight out of an old magazine, with warm, golden brown wood and windows everywhere. It was sleek but also cluttered, in an organized way. When he was outside, he saw that it was two stories high. To his right were a set of stairs that led downwards, suggesting a basement. The ceilings were tall, and the far wall featured a stone fireplace. Walking further into the home, what he saw made his mouth drop. Right where you would expect to see a couch was a large conversation pit. Right then and there, Sam decided that Pamela was one of the coolest people he’s ever met.
He very quickly took off his shoes and placed them against the wall. Eva had made sure that Sam learned not to wear shoes on carpet. He made his way through the living area to the pit and made his way down, scared to mess up anything. Once he was seated, a small, almost unoticible smile grew on his face.
He didn't even realize that he had dozed off until he heard cooing and a hand threading through his hair. Fluttering his eyes open, he looked over and saw Talia sitting beside him. She was the one who had her hand in his hair, and Pamela stood in front of them; she was the one cooing.
He shot up, embarrassed that he had fallen asleep, and by the way they were acting towards him. He wasn’t used to affection.
Flustered, he shouted, “S-stop it!” Talia's hand fell out of his hair, seemingly deciding not to push him any further.
Pamela burst out in mischievous laughter, curls falling in her eyes.
His cheeks reddened; pouting, he turned away from them.
Pamela brushed a tear from her eye before speaking. “Talia and I have come to an agreement, you can stay with me at my home on one condition: attend the local high school and l will begin teaching you after school as well.”
Furrowing his brow, he responded, “Teach me what? I don’t have an affinity for magic. And if I'm getting tutored here, what’s the point of going to school?”
She brushed off his confusion and clapped her hands together. “Well, from what I’ve heard from Talia your grades are not good,”
Sam could feel his face burning with embarrassment.
“ I’ve been alive for a very long time, and I do not have any faith in the school system here, so I’ll teach you everything. And also, the reason you need to go to school is that you need to solidify your existence in this universe; popping out of nowhere will do you no good in Gotham, and the neighbors are nosy.”
Ok, that’s a bit strange, but he would learn, if not only to make his newfound aunt happy. But how old was she? She looked early 30s at the most. Shrugging his shoulders, he made a sound of agreement. Talia stood from her sitting position beside him.
“Shammil, walk me to the door, would you?” she asked
Nodding his head, Sam scrambled to get out of the pit and walk her out. Talia opened the door and paused, turning around. She quickly grabbed Sam’s cheeks and kissed him on the forehead. It all happened so fast that he couldn't even process it till she had already pulled back.
She stepped out of the home and turned to look at him over her shoulder. “I love you, Sam, be good for your aunt.”
She then walked down the stairs and into the woods, he could see her for a few seconds before the trees swallowed her figure”
“Sammy!” Pamala called from behind him. Turning around, she was standing by the stairs with his bag on her shoulder. “Come on, you gotta go to bed, if only for a few hours.”
Nodding, he grabbed his box and skateboard and followed her up the stairs and found himself in a hallway lined with many doors.
Pamela nudged him in the direction of the last door in the hallway. “Go on! Open the door.”
Startled, he looked from her excited face to the door. She seemed very happy when she didn't want him to live with her an hour ago. Pushing open the door, he couldn’t see anything except for their reflections on a window straight ahead. The room was dark.
“Here we go.” With a flick of Pamela’s wrist, all the lights in the room turned on.
The lighting was warm and yellow, like the rest of the house. The first thing he notices is the wall of glass, which faces the same forest that he had come through. To his left was the bed, side tables, and a dresser pressed against the wall next to the entrance. And to his right was what he thought might be the closet. The room was remarkably barren besides the essentials; there was not a trace of anyone ever having stayed there.
“I know it’s a little empty, but I’ve never had anyone live with me before,” she confessed bashfully.
“Really? Never?” Sam questioned while walking further into the room and setting his box onto the side table. Turning back around Pamela was leaning against the doorframe. Her gaze flickered to the floor before she answered him.
“Nope, never. I haven't lived with anyone since I became an adult and got my own place, and that was a very long time ago,” cracking a smile she waved him towards the bed. “Now get to bed, we have a long day tomorrow. No offense, but we’ve gotta get you a new wardrobe.” she glanced around the room and it’s empty walls. “And some decorations for this room.”
His face flushed. God how many times was he going to get embarrassed tonight? He knew his clothes were old and a little too big. But that's all he could get at the thrift store in Carefree, it didn't have anything that fit his prefrences. He was short for his age, so unless he wanted to wear something stupid he took larger clothes. Talia and his bio father were tall, so hopefully he’d grow taller.
Panicked, he waved his hands in the air, “you really don't have to–”
She cut him off, “I want Sam, you're my nephew, and now you live with me, you're my responsibility.”
She seemed like she really cared, besides Talia he hasn't had anybody to care that much in a long time. He nodded his head and sat on the bed. Pamela smiled at him and told him to get some sleep before shutting the door. He grabbed his pajamas from his bag and changed before heading to bed.
When he woke up he could hear music blasting from downstairs, he groaned and pulled himself out of bed. He left his room still in his pajamas and went downstairs. he could make out the sound of the song now. It was the mamas and the papas, he didn't know the exact song though. Smelling bacon cooking he followed the source of the smell and found himself in the kitchen. Pamela was standing in front of the stove and turned around when she heard him.
“Good morning Sammy! It’s only 11A.M. i’m surprised you woke up so early, I made breakfast. But before that you have some people to meet.” she said while putting some eggs and bacon on four different plates.
“Who?” he asked
“The teachers your mother sent, quite the two interesting people they are. You passed right by them in the living room, you must have been so tired you didn't notice them. Now grab two of these plates and follow me.” she told him and then grabbed two plates and walked out of the room.
He quickly grabbed the last two plates and quickly followed after her into the connecting dining room. Once in there he sees two teen girls, one taller and the other shorter. The taller girl has medium length straight dark brown almost black hair and fair skin, she reminded him of a 2000s popular girl. Especially with the glare on her face. Quickly looking towards the other girl, she appeared to be mixed with brown braids on the top of her head that transitioned into long curls that ended towards her lower back. Her face was kind and she smiled with her teeth, and he noticed she had dimples. The dark brunette was wearing low rise jeans with a lacey black henley and the other girl was wearing a flowy white skirt, a lacey tank and a brown sweater.
The girl in the brown sweater rushed up to him and grabbed his hands. “Hi, I’m Sylvia and I'm here to teach you acrobatics and dancing. I hope we get along.”
Startled, he could only stare at first before responding in confusion. “Acrobatics? Dancing? Why would I need to learn that?”
Sylvia tilted her head to the side, “to be more graceful and acrobatics come in handy, you're gonna need it. It'll also help you learn to read a person's body language.” she pointed towards the dark brunette girl behind them “I think her name is Katherine, at least that’s what your mom told me.” she leaned closer towards him and whispered “she’s a little grumpy”
“I can hear you” snapped a voice from behind them, looking over Sylvia’s shoulder he could see the dark bruntette walking over to them. Stepping next to Sylvia she crossed her arms and looked down at them with a sneer. “As you've already heard, my name is Katherine. I’m here to teach your weak ass to fight.”
“Weak!? I know how to fight!” Sam protested.
Katherine looked him up and down, “Uh huh, sure you do. You're as skinny as a twig and I can tell just by looking at you that you’ve never had any proper training. Even one of the lowest ranking footsoldiers of the league would be able to kill you.”
Gritting his teeth he held back some choice words and glared at her through thick dark lashes, “fine, then train me to be better”
Her glittery pink lips pulled into a smirk “I’m not going to go easy on you.”
“I wouldn't want you too”
Over breakfast he learned a lot about them. Pamela was three hundred and twenty five years old, witches stopped ageing after reaching adulthood. Katherine was a senior and two years older than him and Sylvia. Sylvia was from a family of acrobats who were second only to a family called the “Flying Graysons.” Besides being acrobats they were assassins who worked for the league and held an alliance with Talia. Katherine had learned to fight all her life and was better than most of the senior members of the league and had her own apartment but would have her own room here when she needed it. Sylvia had decided to stay with him and Pamela because she was too young to have her own and people would notice. All in all Pamela was right, they were an interesting bunch.
—___—___—___—___—
Four years later…
BEEP! BEEP! BEE–
Groaning he swatted his alarm clock cutting off the incessant noise. Hearing the click of his speakers turning on,“Lullaby” by The Cure started playing.
* “Sammy, turn that emo shit down would you, I’m on the phone!” Katherine shouted from across the hall.
“Shut up, Kitty!” he grunted as he peeled his eyes open and rolled out of bed. “This isn’t emo, you know the difference!”
He could hear feet rushing to his door. He knew who it was, it was Sylvia, just woken up from Sam's music and coming to rush him to get up and get ready for practice. He was just as good as her now with acrobatics and dance, but they still liked the routine of working together. He’d been learning from Katherine for just as long and he could confidently say he could even give Talia a struggle. The training had been brutal, from all of the women of the house. He had to wake up at 4A.M. and train an hour and a half with both of the girls. He would then have to go to school where he quickly learned that Sylvia and him were outcasts, Katherine had quickly risen up the ranks and became the “It” girl of the school. After school had ended he had to study with Pamela for a few hours before continuing his practice with the girls. For a long while with all of the training he had to endure he thought he was going drop dead.
He graduated highschool with striaght A’s and then was accepted into the local college. It was small and private, but strange. He learned not to question the weird things on campus after his first year.
Sylvie banged on his door “Sammy, Open up!” she shouted while jiggling his doorknob.
“I’m not dressed yet, give me a minute” he called back before walking to his closet and pulling out a compression shirt and some leggings. Quickly throwing them on he opened his door and looked down at Sylvie. Yeah, you heard that, looked down. During his junior year of high school he had a growth spurt and quickly grew to 6 '4, even taller than both his bio parents. He was lean and tall, not inheriting a bit of Bruce’s bulkyness. Talia had said that he had gotten his height from her father who was also 6’4. It took him a while to learn to become mindful of his new height and not hit his head on doorframes. Their bullies at school quickly learned to leave them alone when Sam finally beat some jock up for messing with Sylvia, his newfound height scaring them. This also meant he had to get a new wardrobe, now filled to the brim with 80s and 2000s clothing.
“Let's go!” Sylvia squealed and bolted through the house, Sam following behind her. Katherine was indeed on the phone and gave him the finger as they left. They went out through the backdoor and went into the woods. The world rippled and suddenly they stood in front of a large building, the work of Pamela’s magic. She couldn't have a big training building in her backyard, the neighbors would question it and it would ruin her aesthetic (her words). So she created a pocket dimension for them to train in.
Walking into the building, they warm up and follow their usual routine of flips and tricks on the trapese before Katherine walks in. She whistles and they snap their heads to her in attention, both mid swing on the trapeze before dropping down onto the net below them.
“What’s up?” he questions.
She looks up at him “Your mother is here, it’s time”
His eyes grew wide, he’d almost forgotten the whole reason he had come here. To learn to protect Damian. It had been four years of his training and Talia spoke not a peep of him going to Gotham City, where Bruce and his little brother lived.
“It’s time?!” jumping off the net with a front flip and landing on his feet. Sylvia quickly followed behind him, oddly quiet. “Oh gods, Kitty hold me!” throwing himself into her arms to be dramatic, she swiftly dropped him to the floor. “Oof!”
Pulling himself into a sitting position on the floor he looked up at her and spoke in a fake mournful voice. “That was a little mean, I see how it is–” he was going to continue until he saw the looks on both girls' faces. They were upset.
His voice went low, trying to soothe them “hey, it’s–”
“Not right now Sam, Later” Katherine spoke, her face twisting into a scowl.
He glanced at each girl.“Ok, we’ll talk later,” he confirmed while pulling himself from the ground.
They all walked out of the building together, their shoulders bumping his arms as they pulled closer to him. In the four years of him living in Hargrove, they've never had to separate for long, one week max. They had no clue when they would see each other next. But he’d be damned if it was for long.
They walked through the woods, and passed Talia’s plane, the same one she used to bring him here. Exiting the woods, they made their way to the house and entered through the front door. The two elder women were standing in the living room waiting for them.
“Shammil, there you are” walking up Talia pulled Sam into a hug, curling him until he was bent over enough for her to place her head upon his. Surprisingly, she was the one who took his height change the hardest and refused to hug him any other way. He patted her back before pulling away, only because she allowed him too. She turned to the girls and nodded, “You two have done well.”
All they did was nod their head back, Katherine clenching her jaw and Sylvia looking down at the ground. Talia’s eyes flick from them to him before she seems to realise something.
Clapping her hands together, Pamela pointed them to the dining table. “Go, sit, I've worked way too hard for our breakfast to go cold.”
Sylvia was the first to move, bolting to grab Pamela’s famous french toast.
“Hey! Save some for me!” Shouted Sam as he bolted after her into the dining room. She made it to the table just seconds before him, grabbing as many as she could from the large pile. Reaching over her he grabbed himself some before he sat down to the left of the head chair where Pamela sat. Sylvia sat next to him when Talia placed herself to the right of Pamela’s chair and Katherine sat next to her. Digging in they ate for a few moments before Talia cleared her throat.
He paused and looked at her. “Hm?
“You’ve trained for four years, and you've made far more progress than we thought you would in such a short amount of time” she began “Your Grades have gone up at school and with Pamela's teaching your advanced in many subjects, you wouldn't need to go to college if you didn't want to.” Taking a deep breath she looked into his eyes “I think it’s time, time for you to go to Gotham.”
Katherine was right, Talia thought it was time for him to go. “I go to college here Talia, what would I do about that? I refuse to transfer.”
“Summer break started last week, you have three months before it starts back up and I’m sure you can go online.” she assured him.
He grimaced “yeah, Anyway when do we leave?”
Talia sat up straighter “Tonight would be best.”
Pushing his chair back he stood up “ I'm gonna go pack” he said and walked off . he heard two other chairs pull out from the table and the voices of Katherine and Sylvia saying they were going to go help him. Jogging up the stairs he walked to his room. He’d built a life here, and while he knew he would have to leave at some point he’d gotten comfortable.
His walls were no longer barren, covered in actual band posters. He had a closet full of clothes that fit him and were his style. He spent hundreds of hours in thrift stores with the girls and Pamela trying to find the right pieces and when they couldn't, Pamela made them into existence. He had friends, and had made sisters out of Katherine and Sylvia. They were his family, but so was Damian. Maybe he could introduce them to each other? While he was thinking the girls walked in and leaned against his sides.
“You know we don't want you to go,” Sylvia reassured “Even Katherine wants you to stay, no matter what the big ole grumpy says–”
Katherine whacked her in the head “Shut it Sylvie!”
Sam chuckled, they always knew how to make him feel better. Pulling away from the girls he fell backwards onto his bed. Slyvia quickly followed and Kathering just behind her.
He felt a poke on his side and glanced over at Katherine, she was already looking at him.
“What do you want to bring?” she questioned. “ I refuse to let you look like a loser in front of those rich assholes.” flipping her hair over her shoulder she sat up in a criss cross position.
Thinking about it, he didn’t know what to bring, all he knew was that he refused to trust any of them. He gained some trust issues after dealing with people in his universe knowing everything about him and him knowing nothing about them. Most of them refused so show him their faces, and while he knew it would be different with Bruce and his brood as he would live when them. He refused to be vulnerable and if things went wrong they wouldn't know what his face looked like, so he’d be harder to find. It would also be pretty fun to mess with them. He wouldn't tell them where he lived for the past four years, to protect his family and so that they wouldn't know where he was if he left. Content with his plans he looked at Katherine, who was staring at him with her eyebrow raised.
“Sooo… ya done thinking there” she questioned
His face broke out into a smile, “yeah, your gonna like what I have cooking up”
“Well come on, tell us!” shouted Sylvia.
Rolling his eyes he sat up, leaving only Sylvia laying down. “I’m not gonna let those fuckers see my eyes. I don’t trust them.”
Katherine bumped her shoulder against him “And you can still look good while doing it”
His eyes shifted to his lap, “maybe it would be a good idea to dress plainly, at least for the first couple of months.”
“Why would you do that?” Sylvia questioned, her curls creating a halo around her head.
“Yeah, you're so not doing that.” Katherine exclaimed while pulling a loli pop out of her pocket, unwrapping it and shoving it into her mouth. “We’ve worked too damn hard building up your wardrobe just for you to pussy out of wearing it around some dickweeds that mean nothing to us.” she shoved him “so you're wearing your clothes!” laughing she got up and walked to his closet, pulling the doors open she started throwing shirts onto the ground behind her.
He scrambled out of bed and slid over to Katherine, “Hey!”
“I’m choosing what you're bringing, if I look away for one second you're gonna try to hide some ugly stuff in your suitcase.” she said while further in his closet, pulling out some of his jackets and hoodies "I've heard Gotham is cold so your gonna need these”
He turned around after hearing some shuffling behind him to see Sylvia pulling out his suitcases from underneath his bed, throwing them onto the mattress she turned to him. “Give those to me Sam!” she said while pointing to the ever growing pile of clothes on the floor. He bent down and began tossing the clothing to her.
Coming out of the closet and walking to his dresser to begin rummaging through his stuff Katherine spoke to him from over her shoulder. “So, you will want to wear sunglasses while there, which will make you look like an asshole, which is great by the way. You only have a couple pairs so I’m going to give you some of mine.”
“The big girly ones?” he questioned, he had no problem wearing more feminine clothing.
“Well duh, and some of my other pairs, you’ll look like a diva” Katherine said while throwing pants, socks and undergarments at him. Once she was done with that she started piling his accessories into a safe bag.
It took them many hours to pack all of his things and once that was done they piled onto the bed and watched movies they all liked and fell asleep.
—___—___—___—___—
Sam felt a hand on his shoulder shaking him with gentle motions. Groaning, his eyes fluttered open, the room was dark and he could still feel Katherine and Sylvia sleeping against his sides. His eyes glided around the room, landing on a figure crouched in front of him. It was Pamela.
“It’s time to go hun, Talia’s waiting at the plane” she patted his knee and stood, Teleporting away to do who knows what.
He nudged the girls awake, Sylvia whined but peeled her eyes open, looking into them he could tell that she knew it was time. He could feel the sadness oozing off of her. Katherine grunted and pressed her face harder into his shoulder not wanting to wake up.
“Come on Kitty, I gotta go, and I don't want to leave while you're sleeping.” he quietly spoke, rubbing her back, hoping to gently wake her up. She could be a beast when anyone tried to wake her up from her beauty sleep.
“That would be an asshole move” she grumbled before peeling herself off of his side and standing up. She walked to the other side of the room, next to his closet and grabbed one of his suitcases.
Nudging Sylvia she got up and grabbed his accessory bag. He grabbed his last bag before they left the room and downstairs. When walking past the kitchen he heard a voice call out to him.
“Sammy! Come over here” Pamela’s voice trailed out from the kitchen. Peeking his head in, he saw that she was standing by the counter with multiple tupperware containers.
“What’s going on Melly?” he questioned as he walked into the room.
She crossed her arms and looked to the side a little “well, I thought you might want a little taste of home while in Gotham. So, while you guys were watching movies, I was cooking this all up.” She sounded unsure and a little nervous. “ I know you’ve only lived with me for a couple of years and you may not consider this your home–”
He cut off her rambling by pulling her into a hug. He leaned down a little to place his head on her shoulder, breathing in deeply. “Melly, this is my home. You three are my home, no matter how far I go, I will always come back to Hargrove, to you.” he squeezed her tighter “your the best aunt anyone could ask for, and thank you for the food. I’m gonna need it, i’ve heard their butler is british.” he was joking towards the end and it seemed to work, making Pamela laugh.
His aunt pulled away and wiped some tears off of her face, “your always welcome back, your room’s not going anywhere.” gesturing towards the food “I’ve made some rolls, soups, cassaroles, and pretty much anything else I could think of. None of it will go bad, it’ll stay as fresh as the day I made it.”
Pushing him towards the doorway “Now I’ll take them to the plane, yalls hands are full.”
“Ok,ok I’m going,” he said as he walked out of the kitchen. Pamela cast a spell and followed behind him. Walking out the front door the girls were nowhere to be seen, presumably already at the plane, to give Pamela and him some privacy while they talked. Pamela had nothing in her hands when they walked into the woods, he knew better than to question what she did with the food, it was probably already on the plane. They walked in silence before his aunt turned to him.
“I’m going to ask the girls if they want to stay. They don’t have to of course, I know they just came here to train you, but i’ve grown fond of them and they care about you.”
He smiled “I think they'd like that. I know they don’t want to go back to the league. They've lived basically normal lives here, besides the occasional mission and training me. I’d like for you guys to stay together.” he could see the trees opening up and the plane in the distance.
His aunt beamed “Then it’s settled! I’ll ask them once you leave.”
He chuckled at her enthusiasm. Seeing Talia,Sylvia, and Katherine standing at the entrance of the plane, seemingly waiting for him, made him rush to get to them faster.
“Hey, what’s with the long faces, it’s not like I'm dying,” he joked, making Katherine scowl.
“You might as well be, who knows when we’ll see you next.” She flicked her sucker stick at him, dodging, he heard his aunt curse. “I’ve thrown in some perfume in your bag as well. So you don't stink while you're gone.”
He pulled her into a hug “Thanks, Kitty,” pulling away he turned towards Sylvia and opened his arms, she slammed into him, almost knocking him off balance.
“Whoa! Sylvie, be careful” he caught himself and hugged the shorter girl back.
She pulled away and smiled sadly up at him.“We’ll miss you Sammy, visit us soon, ok?”
“Yeah, of course Sylvie” he told her while pulling away “tell my friends that i’ve gone out of town for the summer for me will ya?”
“No problem!” she bounced away "They're gonna be so angry, I can't wait to see the looks on their faces.”
He could feel a bead of sweat run down his neck. Thank god he didnt have to tell them, he’s just gotta deal with the aftermath. Which might be just as bad. Fist bumping Sylvia he started walking up the ramp to the plane when he felt a tug on his shirt, turning around it was Katherine.
“Don’t forget about us.”
He felt himself tearing up, wiping his eyes with the back of his arm. “I won’t,” he pulled away and walked onto the plane. If he had to look at them for any longer he would cry like a baby. Seeing his luggage he placed the last suitcase down next to it. Talia was already sitting at the control panel, waiting for him to sit in the co-pilot seat.
“Shammil, there is a metal case on that seat over there, go open it. It’s for you” she called over her shoulder.
He scanned the seats till he found what she was talking about. it was a large sized silver metal case with something etched onto the front. Walking closer until he was standing in front of it he could see the design. It was a Nova star, the same one on his helmet. Crouching to get level with it he could see a hidden fingerprint scanner. Pressing his thumb against it would cause the case to pop open with a hiss. Sitting in this case was what looked like an altered version of his nova uniform. Pulling it out he could see that there were a few key differences and it resembled Talia’s white suit in some patterns. The main colors were still black and gold but the circles that were usally on his chest and stomach were gone. Sleek black fabric would run all the way up his neck, leaving none exposed and have a gold choker like band starting slightly lower on his neck. It would connect with the rest of the gold on his sides and shoulders. Green fabric would wrap around his waist, his gloves were still the same and looking in the metal case his boots also looked the same as his Nova uniform. One key difference was the lack of a helmet, in its place was a bright red domino mask that faintly resembled his Nova star.
“Wow, this is beautiful Talia. Thank you” he expressed his gratitude. He really was grateful, he had no clue what he was going to wear when he followed Damian around Gotham in the middle of the night.
“Anything for you habibi, now come sit down. We must talk.”
Listening to her orders he closed the case containing his suit and went and sat in his seat. She started the plane and eased them into the air before setting the course on auto-pilot.
“Time to quiz you on your knowledge. Who are all apart of the Bat’s Brood?”
He knew this, she told him when she was training him. “The eldest member of the household is Alfred Pennyworth, the butler of the family with a history in the British special forces. The head of the family is Bruce Wayne, my biological father and Batman. Bruce’s eldest Ward is Richard John Grayson, who is a police officer by day and Nightwing by night. The Second eldest Jason Peter Todd was actually adopted, he died as Robin and after being revived became a crime boss by the name of Redhood. The third is Cassandra Cain, daughter of Lady Shiva and adopted daughter to Bruce, she is a formidable fighter. After her is Duke Thomas, foster, soon to be adopted son of Bruce, the only daytime hero, Timothy Drake, adopted son, known as Red Robin, respected by Ra’s for his intelligence, has an odd habit of falling asleep in random places, and lastly is Damian, Bruce’s youngest and only, besides me, biological child, he is Robin.” taking a deep breath before continuing “Lastly some notable members who are not officially in the family are Barbara Gordon, formally known as BatGirl before her accident that left her paralysed from the waist down, she built herself back up and became Oracle, Stephanie Brown, daughter of Cluemaster, was Robin for a short time before becoming Spoiler. Both women are beloved by the family.” tilting his head at her he raised a brow as if to ask if he missed anything.
She seemed pleased with him “Good, you know the basics.” picking something up from her lap she handed him a slim case.
Taking it from her hand he opened it, inside were a pair of circular sunglasses.
“I heard from Katherine that you’re wanting to hide your face from them, it’s best if you wear lead based lenses, so nobody, not even a kryptonian can see your face.” patting his hand she continued “She gave me your other pairs and I quickly had all the lenses switched, you have quite the interesting collection.”
“I bet I do,” he joked.
He spent the rest of the time to Gotham forcing Talia to listen to his music and answering her questions. He knew they were in Gotham when the clear sky turned foggy and shadows got darker.
“I’m not taking you straight to the cave, I have to speak with your father first. To let him know that you are alive.” she informed before turing the plane to the left, veering towards a large skyscraper.
She had told him that she wasn’t going to tell anyone that he was alive a month into his stay in Hargrove, it would make things harder, harder to hide him, harder to protect him. So he accepted it, but now he’s wondering how this will go. Being told your son who you thought was dead for the last twenty years has got to be a shock. He wouldnt believe it if someone had told him that, luckily he has Talia to back him up. She landed the plane causing it to shake a little, and flicked multiple switches to shut down the engines. Putting on his sunglasses he unbuckled his seatbelt, he could hear people standing outside the ramp and walked over behind Talia to see many hotel staff waiting for them. They greeted her when she walked down the line, him following close behind not wanting to talk to people. Once someone had led them to the elevator and left them alone did he finally relax.
“So where are we going now? A hotel room?” he questioned while picking at some stray string on his jacket sleeve.
She glanced at him from the corner of her eye, “No, we’re going to one of my safe houses, one of the few apartments I own in Gotham.”
He followed her out of the elevator and to the exit where a black car with tinted windows was waiting for them. They quickly got in, Talia in the driver's seat, and drove for the next thirty minutes. By the time they arrived at the apartment building it was well into the night. The building was decrepit in every sense of the word with crumbling brick and boarded up windows. They quickly got out of the car and went into the building. The first thing he noticed was the smell, chemicals and decay. Shaking his head, he tried not to pay attention to it. He noticed that the lobby was empty when they walked through, actually the whole building was empty from what he could see. They went up the stairs, passing the first and second floors. When they entered the third floor it was just as barren as the last ones he saw. The walls were a dirty off white with a red carpeted floor, which was dirty with grime. He could feel the carpet sticking to his shoes. They would walk down the hall until they stopped in front of a brown door with gold numbers saying 23. Talia pulled out a key from her pocket and inserted it into the dead lock, with a click and a rough shove the door was open. The apartment was surprisingly furnished, with a dark blue couch and coffee table in the living room. They put his bags against the wall near the front door before she turned to him.
“I’m going to visit your father now, just relax while I am gone” she told him softly “He will accept you.”
It’s like she could read his mind, the fact that Bruce may not allow him into Damian’s life had plagued his mind for years. But he refused to voice it, in fear of speaking it into existence. He watched her leave the apartment before he walked over to the couch, now noticing it covered in plastic, he grabbed it and pulled. In turn disrupting the dust covering it, quickly covering his face he coughed and threw the plastic to the side. He sat down on the surpisegly plush couch and closed his eyes falling into a light sleep.
—___—___—___—
Talia would find herself in her beloved's cave, where she could see him working on the large computer that covers multiple sections of the wall. She slauntered over to where he sat, him seemingly not noticing her. She now stood behind him, slowly she slid her arms around his broad shoulders, leaning down to whisper in his ear.
“Hello beloved.” she purred, wishing to get a reaction out of him.
“Talia,” he grunted, pushing her arms off of him and spinning around in the chair. He was not wearing the cowl, so she could see all of his beautiful features, Shammil truly did look like him.
“What are you here for Talia?” he questioned with a raised brow.
She smiled innocently, “Can’t a woman visit her beloved without any ulterior motives?”
Bruce narrowed his eyes and looked her hard in the face “You never just visit. Tell me what is going on.”
This was the hard part, telling him their son was alive, and that she’d been hiding him after she found him. He was going to be angry and in disbelief, she knew him, knew him like the back of her hand. She couldnt hide it from him any longer, he needed the help protecting Damian, and Shammil was already twenty years old, she couldnt deny him any more years with his son. So, she took a deep breath and looked him straight in the eyes, he rose a brow.
“Shammil is alive Bruce.”
—___—___—__+_
When he began to question Talia, he thought she might be here for league work, and needed his help for something. He was not expecting what came out of her mouth.
“Shammil is alive Bruce.”
He couldnt believe it, and began to grow angry. How could she lie about their baby being alive, he had seen his body. But why would she do this, to get a reaction out of him? Before he could spiral anymore Talia’s perfectly manicured hands grabbed his face and pulled his head up to look at her in her beautiful deep green eyes.
“What are you saying Talia? We both know the baby is dead.”
Because that is what the baby is, dead, he could never find it in himself to say his name. He had failed his baby and Talia, but she had also failed him. They both should have known with all of the things that they exposed their bodies with that the baby would come out wrong. Damian had been lucky, months into her pregnancy Talia had taken him out and placed him in a artificial womb to fix any potential problems. He only knew this because Damian told him himself. The baby was supposed to be the first mark of Talia’s freedom and the beginning of their life together. With his death they had both pushed each other out and split.
He could feel her beginning to pet his face and he pulled away, getting out of her arms. Once standing he backed away from her, like she was fire and he was water about to be vaperized. A pained look crossed her face, it was fleeting, before she crossed her arms as if to protect herself.
“Just as I said it beloved, Shammil is alive–”
“But how, where is your proof?” he interrupted.
Her eyes narrowed “if you would let me speak I can tell you.”
Ashamed his eyes flicked to the ground, she was the only one able to make him feel like this. He nodded for her to continue, but squashed any hope from growing in his heart.
“I was on a mission, to eliminate one of Eva’s men who had begun to sell information about the league. It would have been her job, but she had been missing for sixteen years at that point. Father thought her to have betrayed us or dead. Right before I could pierce him in the heart he screamed that our firstborn was alive. I of course did not believe him, I am not a fool. But then he began to ramble about things only we knew about Shammil’s death. He said that Eva and her lover wanted him. We both know that Eva had a very slim chance of being able to conceive children. So, this man said that she ordered him to go out and find a body to replace him. After they had gotten the body, they went into the nursery and took him. I was still skeptical but I began looking after that night.”
He walked towards her, now only measly three feet away, “what did you find Talia?” he urged her to answer. He wanted, no, needed to know what she found. If there was any chance his son was alive he would run to save him.
“Him, I found him, living with her in a cramped apartment and working a job to help support them. She was no longer interested in him Bruce. Her lover had disappeared, but from what I learned was a terrible father. She had her own child with the man, and got with another years after he was gone. She stole our child, just to shove him to the side.” she gritted out through clenched teeth, digging her nails into her arms clearly angry
He grabbed her hands and pulled them away so she could no longer hurt herself and let go, not wanting to push any boundaries. He was in shock, his son was alive? All this time he could have been with him, if only he had looked into his death more, if he wasnt blinded by his grief and pushed everyone out he could have saved him. If this boy truly is Shammil that is.
“How do you know it was him and not someone else?” he pushed, disbelief in his tone.
“He looked just like us Bruce!” she shouted, clearly done with him doubting her.
“The boy looking like us is not proof that he is the baby Talia–”
“I stole his some of his hair and did a DNA test! He’s ours beloved! That boy is ours, he is mine, my baby.” she was breathing heavily from shouting at him, but she would not back down.
Bruce was silenced, rightfully so, his anger simmering down to almost nothing. “Then where is he Talia? If he is in the situation that you say he is in, then we need to go get him.”
She begins to look sheepish and he relizes that she’s hiding something from him, his rage flares.
“Talia, your hiding something,” he accused.
“Ive known about him for four years and I took him to my sister–”
“And you didnt think to tell me!?” he yelled and then gets real quiet “Your telling me I missed years with him I could have had?”
“It was for his protection!” she countered, “He needed to know how to defend himself and fight back before I could allow him into this world. he was already strong but not strong enough!”
“But why didnt you tell me?” he gasps, swallowing hard.
“He couldnt be with either of us beloved!” and in a act of vulnerability her voice brittles and cracks “ I wanted him close, I never wanted to leave his side but he would not have been safe with us. Shammil would not have been safe around my father, Damian was not even safe around him. He couldnt be with you because you have your own enemies and they would have gone after him. I was doing what I thought was right.”
He didn’t want to agree with her, he wanted to think that no matter what he could have protected his son. But he knows that he would not have been able to be with him all of the time, and the potential of him being hurt was high. The bat could not be everywhere. The room was silent, but what they didn't notice was the young boy watching in the rafters, they were both far too emotional to hear when he left the cave and out into the streets of gotham. To find this so called older brother of his.
—___—___—___—*
Sam was sleeping lightly, and could feel eyes on him when he awoke. He could hear a small heartbeat in the room, to large to be a rat. He didnt move a muscle, not wanting the child to know that he was awake. His sunglasses hid his eyes and when he opened them, he could see him. A small boy perched on the small coffee table before him, just staring at him. The child was wearing a bright green,yellow, and red suit with an R on the left of his chest. Over the suit was a black cape with a hood, it was down so he could see his entire head. The boy’s skin was the same shade as his, and his hair just as black. He looked just like him when he was younger, the only difference was his bright green eyes, He himself had Bruce’s ice blue eyes. He knew then that this child was Damian, his little brother.
Damian glanced away from him to look towards his luggage and a mischievous idea popped in his head. Silently he leaned forwards until he was only inchs away.
“Boo” he whispered as Damian looked towards him. The boy jumped before lunging at him.
“I’ll kill you!” Damian yelled as he threw himself towards Sam. Damian raised his fist and tried to punch him, before he could Sam grabbed his wrist and used his momentum to slam him onto the couch. Sam know hovered over Damian, trying to grab his other hand.
“Hey calm down!” he shouted. Damian would not listen and resorted to kicking Sam in the stomach, trying to get him off of him.
“Unhand me you giant!” he grunted, unable to get his hands out of Sam’s grasp and his kicks seemingly doing nothing. At this moment Sam was never more grateful for his invulnerability, at least Jesse’s genes were useful for something. He was actually grateful for all of the abilities that his alien genetics granted him.
“Not until you stop fighting me!” he responded playfully.
The boy’s face twisted in rage, growing red. Finally in defeat he went limp. “I yield, now unhand me!”
Letting go Sam threw himself into the couch next to Damian. The boy scooched as far away from him as he could on the tiny loveseat, which meant he didn't get very far.
“See was that really that hard?” Sam sighed and closed his eyes. Luckly his sunglasses hadn't even budged during the scuffle. From the corner of his eye he could see Damian studying him with a harsh glare on his small face. He opened his mouth to speak once more but was interrupted.
“Boy’s” a sharp voice belonging to Talia called out from behind them. They both jumped and looked over the back of the couch to the front entrance of the home to see Talia and right behind her was the big bad bat. The next thing he did was truly stupid, but he couldn't stop himself.
Summary: Talia and Sam finally meet, and decisions are made. Sam will go with Talia, with the promise of training. Sam finds out he has a younger brother. He leaves everyone behind and ends up in the DC universe. And finally, he discovers that he has an aunt with whom he will be staying for his own safety.
Everything appeared normal, so why did he feel like he was being hunted? For weeks now, he’s felt like he’s been watched and has been seeing things out of the corner of his eye. Only for him to turn to catch a glimpse and find nothing there. He felt like he was going crazy, but Sam knew that he couldn't have been losing his mind. He’d been a vigilante for years. His senses had never failed him, at least about something as simple as being stalked. He could feel eyes burning into his figure at almost all times, at school, work, and even at home in his own room.
He walked down the stairs of Carefree High School with his skateboard under his arm, about to make his way home. There it was again, the feeling of being watched; he felt it during first-period gym class, then it suddenly disappeared. You'd think that would make him relieved, but no, it just made him more uneasy. Sam knew that the feeling wasn’t going to go away anytime soon. Throwing his board onto the ground, he stepped on and kicked off, speeding down the cracked pavement. Passing through the downtown area, he would make a sharp turn into an alley behind an old mom-and-pop shop. Going this way meant that he would get home a little sooner than he usually would.
On the horizon, he saw a shape. As he got closer, he saw that it was the silhouette of a woman, and she was not moving out of the way. He quickly hopped off his board and flipped it into his hands. Everything about this felt wrong, as if she shouldn't be there. Was this the person who had been stalking him? If so, what did she want? He had nothing to offer, unless she knew he used to be Nova.
“Samuel,” the woman addressed him with confidence, like she was sure she knew who he was.
She stepped closer towards him, and he jumped back. If she wanted intel from him, she would not be getting it unless she fought for it. Not that he had much to give, he was kept out of the loop, and very few of the Champions even told him their secret identities. He only knew Viv’s and Slim’s, and he wasn't giving those up. Even if Viv and he weren't talking anymore, and Slim was back to his adult self.
“Who are you, and what do you want? Sam demanded, not taking his eyes off the woman.
She steps closer, and he can finally see her through the glare of the sun. She was at least six feet tall, with rich brown skin, long curly brown hair, and the greenest eyes he had ever seen. She was unnaturally beautiful. One peculiar thing he noticed was that they shared the same moles.
“I wish to speak with you,” she paused, looking deeply into his eyes. “It is of most importance.”
“I’m not speaking with you until you tell me you wh—” he spoke through gritted teeth.
“Talia,”
“My name is Talia,” she said, looking at him with soft but sharp eyes, eyes that begged for him to listen.
Sighing, Sam ran a hand through his hair, cursing him and his soft heart. He turned and walked to the nearest wall of the alley. Leaning against the rough brick, he made a motion with his hand, indicating for her to speak. Talia had followed his lead and leaned on the opposite side. She crossed her arms, her eyes never leaving his.
“Fifteen years ago, I gave birth to a baby boy,” she began. “My Beloved and I were very excited for him to be born; he was the beginning of our life together.”
What this had to do with him, he didn't know. He wasn't expected home anytime soon, and maybe she just wanted someone to listen? So he continued to listen to Talia’s story.
“But he was born sick, very sick. With internal deformities and poison in his blood,” Talia spoke softly, like she was sad to talk about it. “He lived for three months before he passed one morning, or so I thought.”
Talia straightened her posture before continuing, “I recently found out that he was kidnapped, replaced with a corpse.” Her eyes narrowed, “My estranged half-sister stole him in the dead of night.”
He felt for her, he really did, he just didn’t understand what this had to do with him. This was something bigger than him. He couldn't help her; this was a job fit for other vigilantes. As Nova, he might have been able to do something, but currently, he couldn't even leave town. He had no car, only his skateboard. Did her sister live in Carefree? Did her son go to his school?
“What does this have to do with me?” Sam inquired. He shoved his hands in his pockets, waiting for an answer. He has homework to do that he actually wants to get done on time.
“Well, Samuel, you are that baby,” she proclaimed while looking him straight in the eyes, to make sure he was listening. “But I named you Shammil—”
“Wait, wait!” he shouted. “What the heck are you saying, I'm not your son!?”
“Yes, you are.” She countered, trying to get it through his thick skull. “Eva Al Ghul, now Eva Alexander, is my bastard sister.”
What the hell was he listening to right now? That didn't make any sense. Sure, he looked more like Talia than his mom, but that didn't mean anything. He’s literally half Zandarian for Christ's sake, proving that Jesse Alexander is his father. Unless Jesse was Talia’s beloved? But that wouldn't make any sense either. Just by looking at Talia, he could tell that Jesse would not have crossed a woman like her. She looked and felt dangerous, like she could end you in a second, and she was very much out of Jesse's league.
“Was Jesse your beloved?” he questioned, “otherwise that's not possible.”
“God no, I would never get with that pathetic excuse for a man,” she laughed with a mean look in her eyes before calmly telling him. “I know that you were Nova, and I looked into Xandarian customs. Turns out they can have four parents.”
Glaring at her, he gritted out, “How is that even possible? I would have known about that?”
“Not if they didn’t want you to know. Xandarians can implant their DNA into an already born child,” she told him softly, trying to get him to listen, to understand. “Their DNA would be less prevalent than the birth parents.”
“Do you have proof of this?” he countered, in hopes of it all being a sick joke.
He hadn't noticed the bag on her side until she pulled out some papers and what looked like a photo. She wordlessly handed them to him. Looking down, it was a paternity test. He didn't understand most of the information on the page. But he did understand what the results were saying. The results showed that he was, in fact, 99.9% her child. He decided to look at the picture next, and it took his breath away. The photo showed Talia lying in bed holding a newborn and a man with his arm around her. Sam looked exactly like the two. What features he hadn't gained from Talia were seen in the man. There was no denying that he looked like them and nothing like Eva or Jesse. He was conflicted, he loved his mom, but at the same time, he was growing to despise her. Was this why she was more dismissive, why she seemed to pay more attention to Kaelynn and her new boyfriend? He could feel himself start to tear up; he didn’t want to cry. A hand placed itself upon his shoulder. Startled, he looked up just to see that it was Talia.
“Do not cry over them; they do not deserve it,” she told him softly.
Wiping his tears away, he stood up straighter, just now realizing how much shorter he was compared to her. The man in the picture was even taller than her, so why was he so short? He racked his brain for questions. How did she figure out he was Nova, and what did she want with him now? He decided the best course of action was to simply ask.
“How did you find out I was Nova?”
She grinned, her eyes crinkling.
“I can figure out anything. I was looking for more information on you when I noticed something strange. Just a year ago, a vigilante was flying in and out of here all the time, and suddenly they stopped. Your school attendance was horrible, but after the vigilante stopped flying around, you were there every day. It wasn't all that hard to put together once I found all the pieces.”
He squawked, “W-what, I was very good at hiding my tracks!”
“You were, not many people could have found out, especially as fast as I did,” she reassured.
“Well, what do you want from me now?”
“I want you to come back with me, to where you belong.”
This shouldn't have been shocking, but it was to him. He didn't think that she would want to take him back. Why else would she have shown up, if not to take him?
“But my family needs me,” he tries to convince her, not even fully believing himself.
“They do not, that man provides for them well enough,” she argued. “Sam, I've watched you and your family for weeks now. They've barely interacted with you the whole time I've been here.”
She didn't say it in a mean way, but it felt harsh. Maybe it was better that he went with her? His home life was shit, and he was failing all of his classes, no matter how hard he tried. Maybe he needed a new start.
Sam looked back up at Talia, and she looked back at him.
“I could have you trained; you wouldn't need to be Nova to be something. I could help you find purpose again,” grabbing him by the shoulders, she continues, “ you have a younger brother who needs protecting, no matter how much he denies it. He’s seven years old, and I plan to send him to your father's. But even he can't fully protect him, but you could.”
“I have a little brother? And what do you mean, send him to our fathers? Are you not together anymore?” he questioned.
Talia shook her head. “No, after your perceived death, we couldn't stand to look at each other anymore. We still loved each other, but when we looked at each other's faces, all we saw was you. We failed you, Sam.”
All he could get out was a feeble “Ok.”
He had a brother, a little one at that. Sam had always wanted a younger brother, begged his parents for one after his sister had been born. Not that he didn’t love Kaelynn, he just wanted both a little sister and a little brother. Talia had said that his little brother was in danger, but from what? What could she not protect him from herself?
“He’s in danger? From what?” he questioned
She sighs, and it looks like the weight of the world was placed upon her shoulders.
“Your Grandfather, my father,” she answered, “He is not a good man, and he wants terrible things for Damian. I cannot protect him, not for much longer.”
Damian, so that was the name of his brother. Sam wondered why Talia couldn't protect Damian, what kind of life does she live, and who is her father?
“Talia, who are you? Where are you from?”
Her eyes narrowed, looking hard at him before she sighed, “We have a lot to discuss; you must not overreact.”
Giving her a look of annoyance, he made a gesture for her to continue.
“ You, Eva, and I are not from here. That blue light seems to have taken us to a completely different universe–”
“Wha–”
She cut him off quickly, “Let me finish. This world is completely different than ours. My father is a man named Ra’s Al Ghul, known as the head of the demon and leader of the League of Assassins. he has lived for centuries and desires environmental balance in the world by exterminating most of the population. I’ve been gathering my own supporters for years now, in secret, of course, to eventually take over the league. Ra’s wants to mold Damian in his own image and hold him against me. Damian’s life has been in danger since the moment he was born. You were as well, but your passing allowed you to escape his plans. I want my boys to be together; you both deserve to know each other.”
That was a lot for Sam to take in, but he believes that he took it in stride. He didn’t freak out; at least on the outside. So he’s from another universe, that's not weird at all.
Ok, so that actually is really weird. He would have never thought that he was from another world entirely. The fact that Jesse had managed to make it to Talia’s world at all was unthinkable. Jesse wasn’t the smartest, and Sam knows he’s not capable enough to make it on purpose, so it must have been an accident. Talia’s dad, his grandfather, is some kind of evil assassin guy. What kind of name is the demon’s head anyway? Sounds like a loser if you ask him.
“So you want to take me with you to train and then protect Damian? How would that work? It doesn't sound very safe for me to be around your father either,” he asked, “if he’s as good as you say he is, then training around him would give him the upper hand.”
“You're correct, you would not be able to live with me,” she said regretfully, “ I have an elder half-sister, my father does not bother her. She’s a Wiccan, and fortunately, she does not enjoy his company. The perks of being raised by her mother and her family. She lives in some small town in the Midwest. I would be able to station some of my people there to train you, but I won’t be able to see you as much as I would like. My father cannot know of your existence, and my sister could hide you extremely well.”
That’s cool, he thought, he had a witch for an aunt. Unexpected but not disliked.
“When would I be able to see you?” he asked, because he needed to know these things. He can't just leave this universe and then never see the person who took him, who is also apparently his birth mother.
It was hard to get a feel of her emotions, but from the vibe that he was getting, she seemed pleased that he was asking about her.
“I would try to see you as often as I could, anytime I can slip away from my father's view. Worry not, Shammil, I will not abandon you.”
There it was again, that name, Shammil, he’d heard her say it when they started talking. She’d said that it was the name she gave him, before he was taken. He actually didn’t mind it.
“Shammil, you said that was my name before I was taken. What’s the origin of it?”
Her lips twitched as if to smile, “It's an Arabic name, I am of Arab and Chinese descent. As my child, it is only natural to give you a name fitting of our ancestry. Your father wanted to name you either Thomas or Henry, but I would not have it.”
“And I still have my mom’s and Jesse’s DNA?” he questioned, his DNA sounding increasingly complicated.
“Unfortunately, yes.”
So, he had Hispanic DNA, Jesse’s weird alien DNA, and now he's discovering that he also has Arab and Chinese ancestry. Quite a discovery, if he says so himself. Shaking his head, he would glance at Talia from the corner of his eye.
“You can call me Shammil if you want, I don’t mind.”
Pleased with Sam’s response, she informed him, “All of my subordinates will know you as Shammil al ghul, everyone else can know you as Samuel Alexander, so that you can live a somewhat normal life with my sister. But that’s only if you’ve decided to leave with me.”
She wasn’t pushy; he kind of wished she was so that he had an excuse if anyone asked why he left. Sam had made up his mind, he’d go with Talia. He could get away from the life he lived, where he’d failed at every turn. Hopefully, he could make something out of himself. And if Talia was right, and he knew she was, he had a little brother who needed protecting. He was growing excited; the idea of a new life and purpose was just what he needed after the disaster known as Nova.
Standing up straighter, he resolved himself, “I’ll go with you.” Walking forward forced Talia to take a few steps back. Sam threw his skateboard onto the ground. “But I need my things.”
“O-of course,” She slightly stumbled over her words, like she was surprised that he agreed at all. “I will meet you outside your home, at around three in the morning. Anything you forget to grab will have to be left behind; we cannot risk being found. And I can always buy you what you are missing.”
“Sounds like a plan!” he said while stepping onto his board, ready to speed off.
“Shammil”
He turned back around to look at her. They had been talking for a while, so the sun was beginning to set. With what was left of the sun shining brightly onto her face, he saw that her eyes were misty.
Opening her mouth, she paused before speaking, looking unsure of what to say before settling.
“Thank you for choosing us.”
He nodded at her before turning back towards the way that led him home from the alley. He kicked off back onto the street. This would be the last time that he would see Carefree Arazona. He was finally doing something for himself. He felt nostalgic skating by places he’d seen his entire life. The ice cream shop where his parents had taken him for his fifth birthday. The thrift store where he goes shopping for school clothes every year. He thought of his job as a waiter at Mary’s Diner; he was happy to be rid of that place. Fuck turning in a two-week notice, he was out of here. With a large smirk on his face, Sam rode all the way home, feeling free for the first time in a year.
He skidded to a stop in front of his apartment, hopped off his board, and ran inside. Forgetting to take off his shoes, he ran to his room. It didn't matter if he forgot; it wasn't like anyone was home. He rushed into his room and slammed the door behind him. Planning to make it look like he just ran away from home instead of disappearing off the face of the earth, he knew he couldn't take all of his things. Opening his closet would show the meager amount of clothing he had. At the bottom of his closet was a duffel bag that he used frequently as Nova. Bending down, he grabbed the bag and started to shove his shirts in it. nothing interesting, just a couple of black, red, and green t-shirts. Walking over to his dresser, he pulled open the drawers and grabbed his undergarments and all his pants. With all of his clothes packed, he noticed he really didn't have a lot, just enough to fill half the bag. He looked at the top of his dresser and saw his 80s magazines. He had gotten them from the thrift store, with topics ranging from clothes, bands, and movies. Did he really need to bring them? Hell yeah, he did. He only had a few things; taking these wouldn't cause any problem. He had plenty of room in his bag. So he grabbed them, and also the extra wheels he bought for his skateboard.
Flopping onto his bed face down, he rolled to the side a bit and shoved his hand underneath his mattress, feeling around, he found what he was looking for, his wallet. It didn't have much inside of it, but it was his hard-earned money. Tossing it behind him, he reached under the bed frame and felt cardboard. Using the tips of his fingers, he felt around for the handle and pulled it out from underneath the bed. He flicked the top off and looked inside. Inside the box were his souvenirs, things he took from space and other planets. There were some moonrocks and various other minerals. Some gadgets he stole from space pirates, the most interesting one was a fob to a spaceship. He’d been there a couple of times, kinda made it his own. Sitting up, he pulled the box up with him and set it right next to his bag.
The sun had already set by the time he was done packing. Now all he had to do was wait. Ironically, he heard keys jingling and people walking into the apartment. He stood up and walked out of his room, hoping to see his mom at least one more time. Yeah, she had done some things he didn't know if he would be able to forgive her. But she was still his mom; she still raised him to be a good man. This would be the last time he willingly saw her.
The hallway was dark, but he was able to see perfectly. He assumed it was because of his Xandarian heritage, but he would never be able to ask. The entire species was wiped out, as far as he knew, he was the only one left. Walking down the hallway and through the living room, he noticed that the kitchen light was on, and hearing Eva’s voice inside, he made his way over. He stopped at the doorway. She wasn't alone. Chris, her boyfriend, was also there. They didn't notice his presence at first, not until he cleared his throat. Startled, they turned to look at him. There was nothing remarkable about Chris; he was ordinary in every sense of the word. He had dirty blonde hair and an average build. Eva seemed to have a type. Remarkably, Sam and he did not get along.
Chris spoke first, “Hey, chum,” his voice grated on Sam’s ears.
Pointedly ignoring him, he turned to Eva. “I just wanted to see if we could talk, you know, like we used to.”
Eva sighed while placing a hand on her forehead. “Not now, Sam. I haven't been able to relax with Chris all day; Kaelynn was jumping all over the place. Maybe another day.” She dismissed him.
Of course, he knew she would say that; it’s what he’s heard for months now. She was too busy or too tired to want to talk with him. Kaelynn took all of her energy, and she just wanted to be with Chris, just for a little bit. But it was never for just a little bit.
He nodded his head at her and backed into the darkness of the living room. He would return to his room and stare at the posters he’d decorated the walls with. Sometimes those bands and movies were his only comfort. He sat on his bed and pulled out his flip phone; it was cheap and incredibly old. Jesse had bought it for him before he’d disappeared when he was nine, and it was the same device that he had used to take pictures on his adventures as Nova. He’d take it only for the pictures; it wasn't like anyone would be able to track it in another universe. Deciding that he would rather nap before leaving, he set an alarm. Falling backwards, he was asleep in seconds.
“Ri—” he quickly shut off the alarm in fear of waking anyone; his mind felt like it was stuck in fog until he heard a voice right next to him.
“You have a good reaction time.”
Jolting awake, he sat up. Sitting at the edge of his bed was Talia.
“Why are you in here!?” he whisper-shouted. “I told you I would meet you outside.”
She shrugged her shoulders while looking like the cat who got the cream.
“I was bored. Now come along, we have places to be,” she said as she stood up and wiped non-existent dust off her pants. “We must not get caught.”
He fell asleep with his shoes on, so all he had to do was grab his bag and the cardboard box containing his treasures. Looking over, he saw that Talia was already halfway out the window, quickly scrambling, and he crawled over his bed. Talia jumped out and landed gracefully on her feet. She turned around and held out her arms for him to give her his belongings. Tossing them to her, he then threw one of his legs out of the window before pausing. Looking back, he wished his mom would walk through that door and tell him to stay, that she loves him, but she didn’t. The room was dark, and the house was silent; nobody was coming for him.
He jumped out of the window, and they left, and he vowed to no longer hold on to people who did not want him.
They stopped in the alley where he had seen the blue light, the light that he knew was the Nova force. He turned to look at Talia in confusion, wondering how standing in a random alley was going to get them to where they needed to be.
“...So, how are we getting back?” he questioned while fiddling with the wheels of his skateboard.
“I don't know, but I had a feeling something would happen if I returned here.”
Sam gave her a deadpan stare. For a woman so smart, she sure had a lot of faith in this working. He went to respond to her before he noticed a blue glow start to grow between the two of them. His jaw dropped. How was this possible? Faster than he could blink, the light had engulfed them.
He felt weightless, and then the sensation of falling. He landed on a hard surface and rolled into a crouch. His vision was doubling, and he saw two Talia’s before his vision cleared. She had landed perfectly into a crouch. Shaking his head, he looked around. He was on what looked like a back patio; it was dark out, and they seemed to be surrounded by forests and very tall mountains. Slowly standing up, he looked at Talia for direction, but she was staring at a hologram that was above her wrists; she looked fascinated at what she was seeing.
Deciding to question her, he asked, “What’s got you so interested?”
She slowly turned to look at him.
“I have been gone for weeks, but looking at my computer, it says I’ve only been gone for five minutes. That is convenient, but peculiar,” she informed.
It seemed that the Nova force had many abilities, none of which anyone had ever thought of.
Talia suddenly grabbed his arm and started pulling him into the building. Now that he’d gotten a better look, it was humongous. He wanted to speak, but with the sharp look Talia gave him when he opened his mouth, he figured it was best to shut up and follow along. They snuck through the halls, pausing when they needed to hide from a person in what looked like ninja attire. If these were all of Talia’s people, why were they hiding? They had finally stopped in front of a large door. Talia pulled it open and slipped them inside. Once she had shut the door, he finally looked around. It was a large gray corridor that led up into a very large open space, and right in the middle was a jet. It looked very high-tech and was a sleek black color. Before he could stare longer, she was pulling on him again, towards the jet, and as if it could sense her, the hatch opened and a ramp extended. With no time to dwell on that, they quickly made their way inside, the door snapping shut behind them.
“You own a jet!?” is the first thing that came out of his mouth. He placed his things on one of the many open seats and followed her to the control center.
She sat down in the pilot's seat, and he quickly jumped into the co-pilot seat. Looking at him, she answered.
“Of course, we own a lot of things.”
Staring wide-eyed, he questioned, “How rich are you guys?”
She smirked, “Let's just say, the Al Ghuls are considered royalty.”
“...damn”
Talia started up the engine, flicked some switches, and the door to the large garage building opened.
“We can't have people knowing you're here, it's safer if no one knows of you except for my sister and the instructors I send.”
They were on the runway now and gaining speed, and very quickly they were in the air. This was the first time that he was in the sky since Rider had taken his helmet; he’d missed it terribly. The sky and above was where he belonged.
“Get some sleep, habibi, we have a long way to go.”
Deciding to take her advice, he leaned his head back against the headrest and closed his eyes. It took a few minutes before he felt himself start to succumb to sleep. In the moments before sleep, he could have sworn that he felt a hand run through his hair.
It felt like minutes before he felt something shaking him awake. Groggily, he opened his eyes, feeling disgruntled, grumbling in protest, he sat up.
“We’re here,” Talia stated from behind him.
He turned around, his eyes blurry, to see her standing by the entrance carrying his box of mementos.
“Where is here exactly?” he inquired. Standing up, he walked over and grabbed his duffel bag and skateboard, throwing the bag over his shoulder.
“Hargrove, Illinois. The only place my father will not go,” she made a motion for him to hurry up, already making her way outside. “We do not have much time; they will notice if I am gone for too long.”
Not wanting her to leave him behind, Sam ran out of the jet after her. Talia was waiting for him on a dirt path. The jet had landed in a small clearing in the woods, and the only sign of humanity was the dirt path that led off into the distance. It was still dark outside, but anyone could tell that it was early morning; the sun would be up in just a few short hours. They began walking down the path, the forest swallowing them in darkness. They walked for fifteen minutes before the forest became sparse, and a house could be seen in the distance.
Sam didn’t know much about houses, but he recognized the style of this one. It was a mid-century modern house, which appeared to have been built in the 1970s. It took his breath away with how cool it was; he’d always wanted to see one up close. This was where his aunt lived? And this was where he was going to live for the foreseeable future? He could get behind that! Jumping on the balls of his feet, he began to speed walk. Could you blame him? He was excited. He could hear Talia chuckle from beside him, easily able to keep up with his pace.
With the pace they set, they were on the porch in no time. All previous excitement was gone, replaced instead by anxiety.
Talia lifted her hand to knock, but before she could, the door opened.
“Talia,” A beautiful woman seethed from the other side.
She was just as tall as Talia, with curly auburn hair and skin that was lightly tanned. At first glance, they did not look related, but knowing that they were sisters, Sam could see some resemblances. They both had sharp cheekbones, and she shared the same nose as Talia and Sam. A trait they must have gained from their father.
She looked like she had just stepped out of the 1970s, fitting for the house she lived in, wearing high-waisted bell-bottoms and a croptop with long draping sleeves. She had a scowl on her face, her gaze laser-focused on Talia.
“Elder sister,” Talia shot back, her posture as straight as a board.
All Sam could do was look back and forth between the two women. Thankful he didn't have their attention.
“Even Ra’s knows better than to disturb me,” she leaned against the doorway before speaking smugly. “You know better than to think you can best me.
The vibes coming off of Talia after that statement were not good. Sam even took a step back. This caught the woman's attention, her gaze falling upon him, pinning him in place.
A flicker of recognition passed through her eyes. “And who is this?” she asked
“My firstborn,” Talia responded
The woman raised an eyebrow in confusion. “The dead one?”
Slapping a hand over his mouth, he snorted, trying to hold back from laughing. The woman cracked a smile, and Talia did not look amused.
“Well, Shammil, it’s nice to meet you. My name is Pamela. It seems your mother and I have much to discuss,” she crossed her arms and looked to Talia. “Talia, explain, now.”
“I need him to stay with you. I cannot protect him from Ra’s,” she looked pained when she spoke, like she did not want to believe her own words.
“Stay with me!?” Pamela choked out.
“Can we discuss this inside? I do not wish for anyone to overhear us,” Talia growled
With a quick motion, Pamela rushed them into her home.
Pamela looked at Sam. “Now, Shammil—”
He interrupted, “Just call me Sam.”
She nodded.
“Sammy, you can go sit on the couch while your mother and I talk.”
With that, the two women walked into another room, closing the door behind them.
Summary: While on a mission, Talia finds out her firstborn didn't die, but that he was stolen by her sister Eva. Sam reflects on how he's not Nova anymore; Richard Rider took that from him. While trying to find a way to Sam, Talia finds herself in the Marvel Universe.
Warning: Richard Rider bashing, Champions Bashing.
A shadow darts across the city skyline, jumping from one building to the next with ease. It was well past midnight when Talia had made it to the building where her target was staying. It was a run-down hotel, art deco in style, that hadn't seen that much business since the decade it was created. Talia jumped to the closest balcony that was two floors below the target's room and climbed up the old rusted structure. She gripped the bars to the target's balcony and in a swift maneuver, flipped herself upwards and onto the unstable flooring in a crouch.
Talia slowly stood up from her crouched position and looked down at her hands; they were covered in rust powder. “Tt, these will have to be thrown away,” She rubbed her hands against her black tunic in hopes of getting rid of the offensive stain. She hadn't had her hands covered in something like this in a long time. She was usually the one giving others missions like this one, this was beneath her. But Ra’s had been the one to give her the task, her target had been one of her sister's men, and a man who had been giving intel to the enemy. Her father now believed this to be a family matter, and with Eva gone and a disgrace to the family for abandoning them, it was Talia’s responsibility to dispose of her untrustworthy subordinate.
She glided to the sliding door separating her from the room. The target was in the bathroom taking a shower, the sound would cancel out any noise she made. It was disgusting, what once was a grand hotel had been reduced to a cesspool of filth. The walls were a shade of smokers' yellow, and it smelled like human waste. The bed was threadbare and looked to be caved in the center.
Stepping into the room, she would feel that the carpet was sticky and curled her lip as she looked for a place to hide.The room was already dark when she had stepped in, and all she needed to do was wait. Hearing the shower turn off, she quickly pushed herself against the wall next to the bathroom entrance. The dark would cover her, and her target would suspect nothing. A streak of light from the bathroom shot out into the room as the male opened the door, he moved with the confidence of a man not on the run.
As soon as the target took two steps forward, she would strike, grabbing him from behind and pushing her katana up against his neck, leaving a small cut in its path.
“Shit!” he snarled trying to break free but froze when he felt the blade firmly against his throat.
“ Mr. Adams, I would refrain from moving,” she mocked. She needed to get out of here quickly or the smell would stick. “Do you know what you've done, Adams?” she wouldn't give him a chance to respond "You've betrayed the league, and thought you could get away with it.”
“W-wait, don’t kill me! I have information you want!” he pleaded. These people would never learn, they had nothing she could want. The two things she desired most were either dead or gone for their own safety.
Sneering, she pressed herself closer to him, making the blade dig deeper into his skin. “What could you possibly offer me?” she chided, deciding to end this worthless man's life. Her blade tore into the male’s throat, now creating a steady stream of blood.
“Your firstborn, He’s not dead!” shouted the man, desperate to live.
“What” she was furious, because who dares joke about her first born, her greatest loss. Shammil had left behind a gaping wound that would never heal. The death of her baby had haunted her for fifteen years. Now she has this man trying to claim that her baby was alive. When she had seen his tiny, fragile body with no pulse, his veins full of poisonous Lazarus Water. Not even the pit could bring him back.
She flung her arm up and grabbed the man by the hair before slamming him face-first onto the ground. She would teach him a lesson for disrespecting Shammil, and then she would kill him.
___—___—___—___—___—___—___—___
“Sam, take out the trash before you leave!” a voice shouted as he was walking towards the back of the kitchen. Of course they wanted him to take out the trash again, they were supposed to take turns. They seemed to think that because he was the youngest and newest employee they could pass all of their work off onto him. Taking out the trash is one thing, but having to do most of their other tasks as well was annoying.
“Yeah, yeah, I got it!” he shouted back at them and turned around away from the locker room where his stuff was held. This was the earliest time he had gotten off in weeks, and it was still ten at night.
He just wanted to go home and take a shower, then try to do some of his homework before passing out. He shuffled past the fryers and ovens, making his way back towards the front to grab the trash. He passed Jameson, who was leaning against the counters and scrolling on his phone. It was his turn to take out the trash, but of course, he wouldn't do it. Next to Jameson were two large trash bags. Usually, taking out the trash took two guys, but Sam was stronger than most. It wasn't a surprise to him, he had been Nova for damn near seven years. Of course, he would be stronger than all of these guys.
He grabbed the bags and made his way outside to the alley where the dumpsters were and threw them in with ease. He knew he needed to make his getaway quick or they would make him stay longer. So he ran inside, ignored them calling out his name and grabbed his bag before sprinting out of the building.
Now it was just him, his thoughts, and the path home. It hadn't been that long ago that he was Nova, but it felt light-years ago. He became Nova at nine years old, after his dad had disappeared. Sure, he didn't know what he was doing and didn't have a mentor to train him, but he was doing his best. If you asked him, being a hero who did work in space and on Earth was a lot harder than sticking to one city.
He learned that he was the only Nova and Xandarian left and did what he could with what little resources he had. He joined the Champions at thirteen years old and had worked with them for two years before Richard Rider came back.
Richard Rider was Earth's original Nova, so of course, everyone else looked to him before Sam. The champions had already been distant when Richard offered to mentor him. Sam thought this was great, a Nova wanted to teach him, he’d have someone to relate to now. He'd have someone to teach him all about the Nova Corps, not that he had a good opinion of them. A space cop was still a cop, just in a different font.
Rider wasn't who Sam thought he was, he was a terrible mentor and seemed to be upset when Sam did well. He didn't see much of Rider, which was fine, he was busy too. He still had stuff he had to do in space while also working with the Champions. They never called him when he couldn't make it, but when he showed up, they seemed pissed at him. At least he thinks they were, they didn't acknowledge him often after he kept making mistake after mistake. But he thought everything would be fine, until Rider took his helmet.
He said it was for Sam’s best interest that he was no longer Nova, that he was too young, that it was unsafe, that the black Nova helmet was too much for him to handle. This pissed Sam off to no end, for fucks sake he started being a vigilante at nine years old. Who did Rider think he was, trying to take away Sam’s responsibility?
Unfortunately, Sam was unable to get his helmet back, and everyone supported Rider's decision as the elder Nova. It was tough, trying to get used to not having his helmet, to get used to gravity once more. Sam had no friends at Carefree High School, he’d spent every waking moment to the cause and even before that he was a loser. He messaged the Champions, expecting them to still talk to him, to still be his friends. But his messages wouldn't send, so he couldn’t lie to himself anymore, they weren't his friends. They hadn't been for a long time.
Sam had made it back to his apartment, which he lived in with his family, including Eva’s new boyfriend. The man was weird, but Sam tried his best to ignore him. Walking up to the front door and walking in, he would see that the lights were off. It meant that the others had already gone to sleep. He wanted to see them, but oh well, people have to sleep. He walked forward, avoiding all the creaky floorboards, and made his way to his room.
His room was off white in color; they couldn't paint it as they were renting. Not that Sam wanted to, he missed his room at their old house. The walls were covered in posters, well prints that the library would let him make for free. Bands like The Cure, Sisters of Mercy, Wham!, Whitesnake, MegaDeath, Eddie Money and Daryl Hall & John Oates. He liked the 80s but he also had some newer bands like MCR and The Smashing Pumpkins.
Throwing his bag onto the floor, he shuffled to his dresser and pulled out a green t-shirt and some black sleeping pants. He took quick showers so he was out within fifteen minutes. Homework would just have to wait until the morning, he'd done it before class plenty of times. Slumping onto his springy mattress never felt better, his bed was pushed against the wall, right next to the window. Just so that he could look out at the stars, where he should have been.
God, he’d give anything to be in space again; it's the only place where he feels at home. Being literally grounded for the past year has been horrible, his freedom was gone, and he had no purpose.
—___—___—___—___—___—___—-__—___—___—
It's like the man could feel her intent to end his life right that second and yelled, desperate for her to listen to him.
“I'm serious, Eva took him!” he was sweating profusely as he flipped himself around to look at her. She paused, because Eva had disappeared the night before Shammil had died. But she was said to have run off with her paramour. She would listen, if only to see where this would go.
“Explain, now,” she gritted out and pushed the man back down with her foot. This was not a pleasant conversation. Adams looked up at her, shaking and opened and closed his mouth a few times, not able to get a word out. Growing angry, Talia dug her boot further into the man's chest and pointed her blade at his throat, ready to strike. This would get him talking.
“Eva wanted him, she told me she couldn't have children of her own. She gave me the task of getting a body to replace him!” he whimpered in fear. “Even after finding a body, Eva had to pump it full of Lazarus water before it looked just like him!”
It would make sense. Shammil appeared to be getting better, but the doctors found him the next morning, dead. They said that the poison must have come back in full force when they weren't watching him; it had devastated her and Bruce. The death of Shammil was what had caused her and Bruce to separate. They were soulmates, but couldn't look at each other anymore; they both looked too much like Shammil. They were both the reasons he had died. Bruce had been inhaling toxic fumes all his life in Gotham and, by training to be the best, had exposed himself to far more dangerous chemicals. The doctors hypothesized that was why her baby had internal deformities. Talia had bathed in the Lazarus water plenty of times when she had gotten hurt or died, that's how they knew how the baby had gotten it in his blood. But it wasn't healing him, it was killing him.
Now there was a chance they hadn't killed their baby, but that he’d been stolen instead? She didn't want to get her hopes up, but she could feel it blooming in her chest. She’d do anything to have him back. A man will tell the truth if their life is on the line, with that in mind, she stabs into his chest.
She ignores his screams and leans down, her eyes narrowed into slits, and asks, “Is that true?”
“Y-yes! Her lover wasn’t from here, he said he was from another dimension!” he’s starting to choke. “ I watched them leave through a-a glowing blue portal, brighter than the sun. Please, I don't know anything else!”
That was all she needed before ending his life.
Talia had left that hotel with hope, she searched for information for weeks but was finding nothing. She had gone through every library they had, she couldn't go to anyone or her father would find out.
Growing tired of looking through countless documents on scientific theories, she got up to go outside and take a breather. She was staying at one of her safe houses in the mountains, she’d told her father she was taking a small vacation. She had very limited time before she was expected to return to her duties. She would not be able to continue the search.
Stepping outside, she closed the door behind her and leaned against it, looking up at the stars. She wished she had been able to look at the stars with Shammil like she had been able to with Damian. While looking at the sky she sees a shooting star, nothing abnormal. But why did it look like it was getting closer? Before she could even take a step back, she was engulfed in the blue light.
The next thing she felt was the sensation of falling.
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Eyes closed and about to fall asleep, a bright light shone through his curtains. He bolted up in his bed, pulling his curtain to the side. He knew that light; it came off of him every time he put on his Nova helmet. Was Rider here? Or was it another Nova? The only way to find out was to investigate. Quickly throwing on his shoes, he bolted out of the apartment like a bat out of hell.
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She landed on the ground disoriented. Quickly pushing herself up into a crouch, she heard running footsteps in the distance, getting closer. Looking around, she noted that she was in an alley and the only way to hide was to go up. Standing up, she rushed to the fire escape and made her way onto the roof.
Just in time for a boy to run into the alley.
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Skidding into the alley where he saw the familiar light, he paused. There was nothing to indicate anyone was there. Stepping further into the dark, he searched for something, anything, to prove a Nova had been there. But there was truly nothing, if there had been one, they were long gone now. Was Rider mocking him? By showing up in his town and catching his attention, only to disappear before Sam could see him.
A shuffling caught his attention. He quickly looked up at the rooftops on either side of the alley, only to see a bird shuffling. Figuring he wouldn't find any answers, he turned around to leave.
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A shuffling noise sounded beside her, and she jumped. Looking to the side revealed it as a bird, embarrassed to be startled by a bird she looked back towards the boy. Only to see that he was looking right at her, he did not appear to actually see her. So it gave her time to look at him, and what she saw made her heart freeze.
His face was what had her attention. He looked exactly like Bruce, but with a few differences that made him look like her as well. He had her moles, two under his left eye and one above his lip on the right. They shared the same sharp nose and cheekbones. While he was tan, he was lighter than Talia but darker than Bruce. Where Bruce was tall and muscular, the boy was short and lean for his age, likely to have a growth spurt soon. His resemblance to Damian was uncanny; there were very few differences. Damian had her green eyes, and he had Bruce’s pale blue, almost white eyes.
There was no doubt in Talia’s mind. This was her baby. This boy is Shammil. She would panic when she saw Shammil turn and leave the alley. She had only just found him, she couldn't lose him now. So she followed.
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Sam made his way back into his house, kicked off his shoes, and went back to his room. He was annoyed that he had gotten his hopes up for nothing. That Rider wasn't here to give him back his helmet. He had given up on that months ago, but he was just a kid, so a little hope still lived in his heart. Flopping face-first into his bed, he groaned, he was so tired he didn't even wrap himself back into his blanket before falling asleep.
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Talia watched Shammil enter his home. She bolted to the other side of the building to try to find his bedroom window, she didn't want to lose sight of him for long. Luckily, the building was only one floor, so it wasn't hard to find his window. He had already fallen asleep in bed, and she wondered what had made him so tired to fall asleep that fast. She tried to pull up her wrist computer, but it could not connect to any satellites. The league has full access to all satellites, so she truly was in another universe.
Looking back up, Talia noticed that he didn't have a blanket wrapped around him. So, like any mother would, she slid open his window. Peering in, she could get a closer look, but couldn't actually go into the room without risking waking him up. He was beautiful, and hers. She pulled the blanket up to his chin.
She would find a way to take him back.
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A/N: This is my first attempt at writing fanfiction. There will be hurt/comfort in this.
'What the fuck' is all that Sam could think, because what do you mean that "Soulmates" are a real thing in this universe? he stared at Bruce in disbelief at what he had just said to him. 'Because what am I even supposed to say to that, and for my so-called "soulmate" to be—'
"you cannot be serious right now, him of all people?!" A voice trembled in unspoken fury scoffs. Sam flinches, and his eyes hidden behind his shades snap to the man across the room before he can finish his thoughts. The man was not the tallest due to his training in acrobatics, but he was certainty the most beautiful person Sam had ever seen, 'now if only he wasn't such a—'
"Dick" a gravelly voice, Bruce, interrupts Dick from speaking further. "No, Bruce" Dick starts, he sharply looks to Sam and then back to his father figure. "You told me my soulmate was dead, then-" he stops to run a hand through his raven hair, his posture is tight and his hands are clenched before he continues. "Then I see his mark" Dick exclaims through clenched teeth as the shadows of the cave deepen the displeasure on his face.
Sam looks from Bruce to Dick in quick succession, Talia and his trainer's had not prepared him for this kind of situation. Not even his time as Nova had prepared him for something like this. Surely this was some kind of joke that the two were pulling, Dick hated him for the fact that he had been trained willingly by the loa. Bruce had done the same thing, so it must also be the fact that he's Talia's son. For some reason those two both had some issues. Sam had been standing a few steps behind Bruce, by the bat computer, for the whole interaction and growing tired of his thoughts being interrupted decided to join the conversation.
Sam took a few cautious steps forward, Dick's and Bruce's eyes would jump to him like they had forgotten he was there. Sam was used to that, had been since he was a child. Even when he was apart of the Champions, they seemed to forget he was in the room. Viv wasn't here now, not to help keep his presence known. god he could already feel the anxiety building, but there was something else growing in his chest. Anger, he was growing angry because who the hell did they think they were. He was here for Damian, his brother. Not for them to try to make a joke out of him.
"Listen, I don't know what kind of joke your trying to pull, but this isn't funny," Sam muttered, turning away to sigh heavily. "Soulmates aren't real!."
"You think this is some kind of joke?!" Dick exploded. "You think I'd choose you—"
This would cause Sam's eyes to jump back to Dick, the man looked angrier than before. he had crossed his arms and was staring at Sam like he had said the stupidest thing he'd ever heard. 'oh great,' Sam thought.
"Dick, that's enough" huffed Bruce. he looked exhausted, having been in the cave all day investigating a cold case. "You two are going to talk this out, like civil adults, alone." The bat would turn on his heel and make his way to the elevator that would take him to the manor. God did Sam wish he could follow him, he just wanted to go to sleep. Not deal with this, this whatever this was.
Sam was looking to the ground at this point, then at Dicks shoes, no, he wasn't wearing shoes. Dick had on these circus themed socks, it felt silly, for him to be wearing those and yelling at Sam. He would give anything to not have to look at his face, to see the anger it held. Sam would look up, if only to get this conversation over with. Only to see that Dick himself was looking down, but like he could feel Sam's gaze, his eyes would shift upwards to glare at him. This was what Sam wanted to avoid, this guy hated him enough, now he finds out that their basically bound together. he would glare right back, not that Dick could see it, not with him wearing sunglasses 24/7 around these people. They didn't even know what his full face looked like.
"No one wants you here," Dick seethed. "Bruce doesn't know what to do with you," he crossed his arms and squared his shoulders.
Sam would just look back at him, it hurt slightly but he knew that. "I'm not here for any of you, I'm here for Damian, to protect him—" he retaliated before getting cut off by the shorter man laughing.
"You think he wants anything to do with you? He avoids you at every chance he gets!" Dick threw his arms out and sneered
Sam was done with this, he would not continue this conversation, fuck Bruce and fuck Dick. he had already turned from Dick and was making his way to the same elevator Bruce had left in. He needed to check on Damian, make sure the boy's room was secure while he slept.
"We don't want you here, so just do us all a favor and disappear." Sam would pause, then narrow his eyes and continue forward like he hadn't heard anything dick had said. 'Surely Damian needs me, Talia said he needed me,' but the seed of doubt had already been planted.
He doesn't remember making his way to Damian's room, just that all of a sudden he was standing in front of the boy's door. he raised his arm to knock, but before he could, the door would be ripped open by none other than Damian himself.
"What do you want," Damian snapped, he had his arms crossed and looked up at Sam with a look of displeasure.
"Damian, I just wanted to check on you and to be sure your room is secu—" he would be cut off.
"Why won't you ever leave me alone," Damian spoke through clenched teeth, his green eyes held malice. Damian's hand would grip his door as he took a step back. 'Shit,' Sam would panic and take a step closer when he saw Damian starting to close off, he wanted the boy to be able to rely on him.
"Damian, I just want to be there for you—" but the door would be slammed in his face before he could finish his sentence. 'what is it with this family and interrupting me in thoughts and in words,' he creased his brows in thought. Sam would go to knock on Damian's door again before he heard the boys voice from the other side.
"I do not want you to bother me any longer!" Damian bellowed in anger. This was a shock, Damian had gotten annoyed with him before but he had never had this much conviction in his voice. He truly did not want Sam anywhere near him. This would be devastating to him, it would mean Dick was right, and that Damian did not need him. His whole purpose here didn't want him, the man that was his father had no clue what to do with him. He was an unknown variable, in a house full of people who did not like unknown variable's.
'Dick was right, it's better for everyone if I just disappear' Sam thought solemnly as he stumbled back from the door and down the hallway towards the guest ward where he had been staying. That in of itself should have been a sign. ' Talia was wrong, Damian has plenty of protectors and does not need me to make things complicated.'
he had made his way back into his room and threw open his wardrobe, grabbing his duffle bag and throwing all he owns into it. he would leave right that second, no point in staying where he wasn't wanted. he would not go through that pain again, it would be easy to leave. Even all the surveillance cameras covering the grounds would be no problem for him to evade, the perks of his training. he was done packing, he took out the phone that Tim had given him. He had photos on it of Damian, he would not take it with him. But he would print one, it was a selfie of him and Damian, he was standing next to Sam, pouting with his arms crossed, looking away from the camera.
Sam would shove the picture in his bag and make his way to the window, jumping out and landing onto the ground below. he made quick work of leaving the grounds and making his way through Gotham city. he stood in front of a building that looked every bit abandoned, it was made of gray brick, with its windows covered in boards. Sam knew better, it was the safehouse where Talia had dropped off his car. A sleek black 1979 Chevrolet Camaro Z/28, he had spent his free time fixing it up. he grabbed the sliding metal garage door and pulled up with some force, it would protest with a screech but would non the less give. There it was, his car, every bit the beauty it had been in 1979. he pulled the keys out of his pocket and unlocked the door and slid into the drivers seat. He put his bag in the seat beside him before closing the door, it would shut with a smooth click. shoving the key into the ignition and twisting would start the car with a growl. Sam smoothed his hands over the steering wheel and sighed, it was time to go. Pulling onto the road, he would think about where he could go, before ultimately deciding to go back. back where?
To where Talia had left him for the last five years, Hargrove. He had a life there, its where he finished High School and was even enrolled in the University. He had left for Damian but had been keeping up with his work. There would be no complications, Talia would know where he was, he would force her to understand. Confidant in his decision, he speed out of the city.
Dick is not the greatest currently, but he'll come to regret his actions. Damian will not be pleased with this development, and Bruce will be distraught. Angst is the goal here, but there will be comfort eventually.
I'm not the best writer, and this is the first thing I've ever written like this. I'm thinking of making this a fic. It'll help me make more art. let me know how you feel!
Felt like making some angst. To make this make sense, this happens after Richard Rider takes Sam's helmet for his own "safety." While also forgetting that Sam's villains know where he lives. To connect it with this, it shows that Sam's still that kid who's bullied and has no friends while at Carefree. He was too busy being a hero and thought he had the champions as friends even if things went bad (newsflash, he didn't). My next post will be completely explaining my Nova/Batfam au!
This is my most recent drawing. A draft of Viv Vision. I wanted to see how she would look in my style. I also see her as the only true friend of Sam alexander/Nova. Because let's face it, the other champions are not great friends at all.
Sams face! Sam looks very similar to Damian wayne in the comics, which is good because I want them to be brothers. But I don't want them to look completely the same, so I gave Sam a different hair style. All I've posted so far has been old, so I'll probably go remake these!
