Superboy's Match

by Bromo

Summary:

When Conner breaks into Cadmus to free his twin brother, he's the only one who could conceive the obstacles ahead of them.

Match has to navigate what it's like to be a person and what it means to have a family.

Fortunately, others are there to help.

Chapter 1: KON-EL

Batman is shadowing me. So are Red Hood and CM3. They're only there for backup if things get out of control, but I know I can do this. It's safer for everyone if I go alone. Kid Flash and Impulse are prepared to speed in for an extraction if I get incapacitated, but I know they won't need to. I need to see my brother alone, and this time will be different.

I'm wearing a black tactical suit. I can't wear an ‘S’ around Match yet. We don't know how he'll react to it and I need him on my side. It will be fine as long as I'm meeting him and not his programming or insanity. Batman says Luthor lied about him being insane. He says that Match was raised telepathically to be violent, but he had his own mind and his own heart. Like me, he gets to decide who he is once I take out the telepaths.

I get to his chamber easily. Too easily. It should be on sublevel 52 but it's only on sublevel 40. I know it's a trap but like a fish who gets away with the bait without taking the hook, I will get us both out of here alive.

Impulse followed me.

“What's up, Superboy? Found him ye...et?” he says as he realizes there's a giant cryostasis pod in the center of the room.

“Impulse, get out of here while you still can. Cause a distraction somewhere else, close to the exit. I need some time with him before we can leave.”

“You got it, Superboy!”

Impulse disappears and promptly, the alarms go off, but they're silenced a minute later. Either Impulse disabled the alarm or this is a massive trap.

I try to work the computers, but I don't understand them. This isn't like opening a file on a PC. Everything is closed and without the codes, I have no way of working it.

I do the next best thing and smash through the glass of the pod with my fists, punching until all of it is out of the way. I rip off the manacles and bonds that restrain Match and he falls forward onto me.

He's cold. I move us to a better position on the ground so that he can wake up comfortably. I try to warm him with my arms, but it's not enough. I lean him against me and try to warm him with my body heat. His eyes start to flutter and my breath hitches.

I've got my brother back. No one will take him from me.

But we still have a long way to go.

Notes:

I still have a few places to fix punctuation and things like that throughout the story, but none of it really detracts from the story itself at the moment.