| Mount Justice – October 1
With a sharp jolt, Kori woke up. Her alert mind slowly calmed as she recognized the metallic walls of the Cave's living quarters. Then she realized she was lying on a bed.
Her body felt sore but healed—every injury gone. Unfortunately, her suit hadn't been so lucky; it was torn and scorched in several places.
Beside her, Sphere rolled around in her spherical form. The last time Kori had seen her, Sphere had nearly been split in two defending her from one of Infinity-Man's energy beams.
Kori got up and wrapped her arms around the machine. "Thank you," she whispered. The responding series of beeps and boops told her Sphere understood.
Sphere rolled toward the door and stopped—unable to open it without limbs. Kori smiled, opened it for her, and stepped into the hallway.
She wasn't sure how she'd ended up back in the Cave, but her gut told her Joseph had something to do with it.
"Computer, what's the time?" she asked.
"The time is currently 4:20 PM," came the monotone reply.
That meant the fight had ended an hour or two ago. Since it was Friday, the rest of the Team would probably be back from school by now.
Kori entered the lounge—and her guess was confirmed. Everyone except M'gann and Conner was there, dressed in casual clothes. Match still wore his white solar suit.
"Whoa! What happened to you?" Artemis said.
"Yeah, you look like you just got barbecued by Heat Wave," Wally added.
At their exclamations, the others gathered around.
"Are you okay?" Raven asked.
"I'm fine," Kori assured them. "Not hurt at all. I appreciate the concern."
"Did it have anything to do with the reports of an earthquake in D.C.?" Robin asked, glancing at his wrist computer.
"Yes, actually." Kori wasn't surprised—he was Batman's protégé, after all. "Green Lantern, Sphere, Joseph, and I got into a fight with Apokoliptans while helping New Genesis retrieve stolen tech. Was the situation resolved?"
"Yeah," Robin nodded. "Green Lantern and Wonder Woman cordoned off the area."
"Where's Joseph?" Kori asked.
A yellow, circular portal appeared out of thin air.
Immediately, the entire Team tensed, assuming combat positions. Roy raised his cybernetic arm toward it while Raven and Kori charged up energy blasts. Match crouched, ready to launch himself at the first sign of danger.
Out of the portal stepped a figure in a sleek black-and-gold suit—Joseph.
"Oh hey, guys—"
Before he could finish, Match shot forward with so much force that the floor cracked beneath him. While he was familiar with the Team after having interacted with them for a while, the clone didn't recognize Nova; his implanted memories were from more than a year ago, before Joseph had joined.
Joseph calmly stopped Match mid-charge, suspending him effortlessly with his anti-gravity field.
"This is the fourth person I've had to do this to today," he muttered.
**
After answering their flood of questions, Joseph watched as the Team went back to what they were doing before.
Raven headed to the Grotto for quiet reflection. Kaldur returned to the Mission Room for training. Wally queued up a sci-fi movie for Artemis and Match, and Robin disappeared into the library to finish homework.
No one mentioned his connection to Lex Luthor. He could tell they were deliberately avoiding the topic, and he appreciated that. But one person still lingered—Roy, the one now going by Arsenal.
Roy regarded him with a measuring look. Not surprising; Joseph's identity wasn't exactly a secret within the League—a potential security risk, especially after discovering that the Light had once placed a mole among them.
Still, the League had confirmed that the Light hadn't used Red Arrow to uncover their civilian identities. If Lex had known Joseph's, he would've weaponized it long ago. Maybe the Light hadn't cared. Or maybe they already knew and were waiting. Either way, Joseph had to prepare for the possibility of exposure.
He dismissed the thought, retracting his helmet to reveal his face.
"I heard about what my… father did to you," Joseph said. "I'm sorry. If you want compensation—or if you'd like me to regrow your arm—just say the word."
Roy raised an eyebrow, then grinned. "Regrow it? Why would I want that? This arm is awesome." He flexed the cybernetic limb proudly. "And I'm not dumb enough to blame you for what your old man did."
Joseph smiled faintly. Roy was easy to talk to—much easier than his clone counterpart, Red Arrow. "Still, let me restock and upgrade the arm if you ever have issues."
"If you insist." Roy grinned wider. "You're alright, Joe." He patted Joseph's back before heading off toward the Mission Room.
Joseph watched him go, relieved there hadn't been any tension.
"Recognized: Superboy B-04, Miss Martian B-05," the Computer announced.
Joseph exhaled quietly. This was another reason he'd avoided coming to the Cave—the awkward reality that Conner was his half-brother.
He didn't resent him or anything. They barely knew each other. Conner had mellowed since his early days of impulsive anger, for which Joseph couldn't fault considering he was only 6-7 months old.
Family wasn't something Joseph was used to. His mother had been his only real family, and after she died, he'd thrown himself into work. Lex would never count, but he'd recently accepted Lena as his aunt, and Diana was technically a distant ancestor though they didn't interact much. Then there was Selina, who felt like an older sister; Kori, his girlfriend; Captain Atom, his mentor; and his friends Andrew and Jackson.
Conner and M'gann entered the lounge, M'gann levitating baking ingredients beside her.
Conner froze when he saw Joseph. Joseph did too.
Looking closer, the resemblance was there—the same eye shape, the same cheekbones. The rest was all Superman.
Joseph stepped forward, and Conner mirrored him. They met halfway and clasped hands in a crisp, perfectly timed dap that echoed through the lounge.
That was clean.
"Brothers?" Joseph asked.
"Brothers," Conner said with a small grin.
Match, who had been watching intently, suddenly flew over. The clone looked like a younger Superman, but with black sclera and light-blue irises. STAR Labs had not been able to slow his cellular decay yet. He'd been feral once, but after his mind was freed from Cadmus' control, he'd become gentler—though his intelligence was still childlike, and he remained nonverbal.
Judging by his eager expression, Match clearly wanted in on the action. Joseph extended his hand again, and Match dapped it with perfect enthusiasm. Another crisp clap filled the Cave.
He did the same to Superboy, then, without warning, Match wrapped both Joseph and Conner in a crushing hug, grinning ear to ear. The brothers exchanged awkward looks as Artemis, Wally, M'gann, and Kori burst out laughing.
Joseph and Conner glanced at each other—then started laughing too.