279 The Boys: Fortress of solitude, learning to fly and saving the plane against Homelander.

Allen had a strange premonition as he walked toward Kara's living room. The girl simply smiled in amusement upon seeing Allen's expression.

Ivy – Wow, I seem to remember that not long ago this girl was shouting from the rooftops about how she was going to kill Allen..."

Hestia – It's true... such a cheeky girl -_-

Allen sensed someone else in the room, and his suspicions were confirmed when he saw a man in a checkered shirt and blue jeans sitting on the couch.

"Good morning," the man said, standing up and walking over to Allen to shake his hand.

"Good morning... Superman," Allen responded with a subdued tone, extending his hand.

They both took seats on opposite sofas. Kara apologized and went to prepare some drinks.

"When did you figure it out?" Allen asked with a suspicious look, smiling nonchalantly as if he had been caught but didn't care.

"From the beginning... or at least, I'd like to say that," Clark smiled and adjusted his glasses. "The truth is, it was only when I saw your relationship with Kara that I pieced everything together, haha."

"We don't have a relationship!!" Kara shouted from the kitchen, embarrassed.

Allen shook his head while chuckling softly. Clark leaned forward on the couch, looking at Allen with seriousness.

"I know my cousin, and she wouldn't be able to date a real villain without feeling guilty about it. So, I thought, either you brainwashed her, or you're not a villain..."

"I see..." Allen neither confirmed nor denied anything, just nodded in understanding.

Kara entered the room with three glasses, her face flushed from her cousin's comments. Clark kept insinuating that Allen and Kara were involved.

Kara set the glasses on the table and sat next to Allen, which made Clark smile. When Kara realized her actions hadn't gone unnoticed, she tried to get up. Allen put his arm around Kara's shoulders and pulled her close in an intimate manner.

"What are you doing?!" Kara shouted, a mix of embarrassment and anger in her voice. Allen smirked arrogantly without responding to Kara's complaints and winked at her. She was annoyed but remained silent.

Allen looked at Superman with a sense of superiority. "You're too gullible, Clark! With my charm, taming your cousin isn't that difficult, haha!"

"Shut up!"

Kara was upset and punched Allen in the stomach, but he didn't flinch. She crossed her arms, annoyed, and refused to look at him. However, she made no attempts to move away from Allen, allowing him to keep his arm around her shoulders.

"Besides..." Clark paused, ignoring the lovers' quarrel, and took a sip of his drink. He seemed unconcerned that a villain was taking advantage of Kara. "Besides, I never felt you were a villain, Allen. Your power is real, and the fear it represents is too. However, I never felt that anyone was in danger around you..."

"Even when I fired a Red into the city?"

During their first encounter, when Allen kidnaps Kara, he uses The Cursed Technique Reversal: Red to distract Superman.

"..." Clark didn't answer, only stared intently at Allen.

Allen regarded Clark with condescension for a moment, but soon his facade broke, and his expression returned to normal.

Allen raised his hands in surrender. "All right, Smallville, you caught me," Allen laughed. "I'm not a real villain, haha."

Kara pinched Allen's leg for being so brazen, then leaned closer to whisper something in his ear. Clark sighed inwardly, watching how his cousin Kara wasn't distancing herself from Allen despite being free.

Clark understood that relationships are complicated; Normally, people go in and out of several relationships before finding a lifelong partner, and even then, many couples end up divorced. However, Clark had a feeling that if his cousin fell for Allen, that wouldn't be the case. He was right; Allen wasn't the type to give up easily.

'Is this a good thing?' Clark wondered. He had promised to protect Kara as his only blood relative. Was it all right to trust Kara to Allen?

Clark had his doubts. Allen wasn't a villain, but that didn't mean he was perfect, especially since Clark knew Batgirl had a similar relationship with Allen and there was the issue of Wonder Woman... was Kara okay with that?

"I'll apologize to him later; don't be mad, Kara."

"Hmph, you better!" Kara pouted.

Clark observed the big smile and the love-struck expression beneath his cousin Kara's angry face and decided to accept it. Superman decided to trust his cousin, believing that the teachings of his parents on Krypton should be enough for her to make her own decisions. Even if she made a mistake, it was part of her life.

"You two seem pretty close from what I see~" Clark teased with a playful glance.

"No!... I... I'm sorry..." Kara blushed again because she was "scolding" Allen, but it seemed like something very intimate, and she did it with her cousin nearby.

Clark set down his drink and adopted a serious, solemn look. "You don't have to apologize... I trust you, Kara."

Kara noticed this and lowered her head for a moment, then lifted it with a determined look. Clark smiled at this. 'I see you've made your decision.'

Clark turned to Allen. "Allen Walker... I'd like you to come with me. Maybe I can help you with your problem..."

Allen's eyes widened when he realized Clark knew more than he let on. Allen looked at Kara, but she was also confused and surprised.

"Hehe, remember?" Clark pointed to his ears and eyes. "Super hearing, super vision, and x-ray vision."

Certainly, Superman could hear what was happening all around the world. It was only a matter of time before he knew about Allen's streams.

Gwen said, "It feels like Allen is getting his father-in-law's approval."

Diana asked, "Isn't that basically what this is?"

Tearju wondered, "Wait, isn't Kara older than Superman?"

Nikky responded, "Depends on how you look at it~"

Rogue explained, "Kara spent many years in a cryogenic capsule, which halted her growth, so both physically and mentally, she's like what you see. But technically, she's older than Superman."

(A/N: Allen is already part of the family🗿)

...

Allen, Kara, and Clark flew to the Fortress of Solitude.

Allen sighed. He had tried to fly with Sentry's power, but it didn't work. There was something different between ki and the Sentry's energy.

Allen stopped thinking about it and focused. Soon, the weather changed from clear skies to a cold snowstorm. Allen, Kara, and Clark arrived at a massive structure made of pillars set against each other and interlaced in an "/\" pattern.

Clark approached the door, bent down to pick up a key from the ground, and opened the door.

McDragon commented, "Isn't it a bit insecure to leave the key at the entrance? I understand it's in Antarctica, but..."

Rick added, "That thing weighs half a million tons..."

McDragon exclaimed, "Huh?!"

Thor laughed, "Haha, I'd love to have a barrel of beer with this guy!"

Hulk said, "Hulk can lift key!"

Allen remained silent. Superman's strength was absurd yet inconvenient. With that strength, he could easily destroy the planet, but he chooses to restrain himself, even when Doomsday gives him a near-death beating.

Clark smiled and tossed the key to Allen. Allen was startled. If that thing fell to the ground from even this distance, it would be like a meteorite impact.

Allen caught it quickly and glared at Clark, "Hey, what kind of Superman are you?! Do you want an ice age?!!"

In this world, there are many people Allen cares about.

"I'm sorry, but I wanted to test your reaction..." Clark smiled. "Don't worry, even if you hadn't caught it, I could have grabbed it before it hit the ground..."

"Kal-El?!" Kara was annoyed, and Clark realized his joke had gone too far.

"I'm sorry," Clark apologized.

Ivy, Harleen, Barbara, Diana, Hippolyta, and Antiope were in a cold sweat. The world almost ended because of a Superman joke. What an absurd thing is that?!

...

Everyone entered the Fortress of Solitude, greeted by robots. The advanced technology even intrigued Rick, Tony, and Rebecca. If Allen were a biologist, scientist, or researcher, he would have been ecstatic.

Rick – *Burp*...

Tony – What is that thing, is it a device to enter another dimension or is it a toaster?!

Rebecca – F*ck!, I'd heard that Super is really smart, but I didn't think it was real because the guy just punches and that's it HAHAHA.

Allen replied, "Superman is very careful not to progress Earth technology outside of his time, that's why he doesn't usually use anything from the fortress."

The tour fascinated the Chat, much like the space shuttle Columbia that was destroyed in the past and the Titanic.

Ruby – "Is this legal?"

Carol – "Since Antarctica is unclaimed land... I suppose no one can complain about preserving lost relics…"

When they arrived at the zoo of exotic extraterrestrial creatures, people were left speechless. Inside, there were many strange things such as never-before-seen.

Gwen – Superman gathers animals and creatures from all over the universe in danger of extinction and protects them.

Athena – There are creatures that even I didn't know about... is fascinating...

Rick exclaimed, *Burp* Superman has hundreds of creatures locked up, and everyone applauds him, but when I bring a small and adorable creature, everyone hates me!!

"Are you talking about Mr. Frundles, the creature that destroyed your world in 46 seconds?" Allen rolled his eyes.

Rick responded, "It was that idiot Jerry's fault…"

...

The Fortress of Solitude was incredible with many things still to see, but Allen didn't have time for that. More than anything, Clark said he would help and Allen thought they were going to train on flying with superpowers or something similar.

Clark noticed Allen's look and smiled slightly as he opened the door. Superman led Allen and Kara to a section of the Fortress under renovation.

Allen sensed something strange. As he approached a pit, enormous tentacles emerged. Allen went on guard, and so did Kara, but Clark stopped them.

"Don't worry, it's my suns-eating pet…" Superman approached a tentacle and petted it. "I found it floating around Jupiter's orbit."

The chat was left speechless by what Superman had just said. Allen didn't want to comment on a suns-eating creature wandering the solar system.

Superman smiled slightly while a tentacle of the Lovecraftian creature caressed his cheek. "It's still small and needs a lot of care."

"Clark, I have a lot of questions to ask, but first of all, why did you bring me here?"

Clark looked at Allen, "Your power is similar to mine, Allen…"

"You mean you know how Sentry's power works?" Allen was surprised that Clark knew that, but then thought Clark must have secretly watched several of his cousin's streams.

"It's embarrassing to admit, but as a young man, I had problems with my powers. I didn't even know how to fly…" Clark smiled calmly and walked to an anvil with a miniature sun floating on top. "It took me many years to understand the reason... it was accepting that I'm not human... there were times I didn't want to accept it. I just wanted to be an ordinary man, a regular human."

"But I'm not like that, and that doesn't change who I am," Clark said with a slight smile. He picked up the miniature sun with tongs and hammered it until it broke into pieces. "Now I feed my pet with miniature suns, which I create in my cosmic anvil…"

"I guess it doesn't matter if you grow wheat or create suns as long as you don't let it change you... that's what you mean?"

Allen's eye twitched and he had a bead of sweat on his cheek. Kara's mouth was open, seemingly surprised as well by this revelation about her cousin.

Clark took the glowing pieces of the sun and walked to the edge to throw them to the creature as if feeding breadcrumbs to pigeons.

People in the chat might complain that a sun wouldn't "break" if hit and that what Clark was doing made no logical sense, but it's better not to think too much about it.

Clark's pet seemed to enjoy its meal, trembling with delight.

Clark looked at his cousin. "Kara learned to control her powers at a basic level in just one week." Clark smiled and walked over to Allen, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Unlike me, she has always been Kryptonian. She never rejected her heritage…"

"..."

"Allen, before you train, before you try to control that power, why don't you start by accepting it…"

Allen shrugged. "I did, or I wouldn't be using it…"

"Then why do you call it Sentry's power?"

"...!"

"It's your power, Allen," Clark said, looking Allen in the eyes. "Don't you want to accept that power because with it comes sins, regrets, desires, and Sentry's will?"

"I..." Allen hadn't thought about it, but it was true that his initial thought when gaining that power wasn't to use it.

"You don't have to change who you are... you don't have to force yourself to any external desires. Just look in your heart... Sentry didn't give you that power because he wanted you to do something, but because it's who you are. You earned his respect in the end."

Allen sighed. He didn't like heavy things like this; responsibility after responsibility would simply crush him.

"Allen, do whatever you want…"

Allen smiled wryly. "And what if that something isn't good?"

"Who knows, but at least I'm sure you won't use it for something bad…"

"You have too much faith in me, Superman…"

"Of course, haha. Otherwise, I wouldn't trust you with my cousin."

Allen and Clark laughed heartily while Kara blushed. Shortly after, Allen turned around and began to walk as a portal opened in front of him...

"Thanks..." Allen said, stopping.

"Will you be all right?" Clark asked.

Allen turned with a half-smile, confident look, and eyes faintly glowing gold.

"I see…"

Kara wanted to say something, but Clark stopped her. "You'll have time for yourselves later. For now, just let him go with a smile."

Kara nodded.

"By the way, Clark..." Allen stopped at the last moment.

"What's up?"

"How does tactile telekinesis work?"

Clark laughed...

...

Amid the clouds, illuminated by sunlight and surrounded by the sky, a portal opened, similar to the one before.

With one final leap, Allen entered this world once more, his gaze was calm as an untroubled lake in the forest.

The previous conversation helped clear Allen's doubts...

He no longer felt uncomfortable...

He no longer needed excuses to refuse or force himself to do anything... when the time came, he would simply be himself.

Without obligation, without commitment, without excuses... it was just a desire, just his desire. As the wind stirred his hair, Allen felt at peace...

"Clown Crown..."

While innocence could not be activated in this world, it could still exist, and although Allen did not need a suit, he felt he should don one.

His body was covered by the Innocence, which was not a suit per se; instead, some pieces of lightweight armor similar to those worn by an adventurer appeared over his black clothes, with protection on his arms, shoulders, chest, hips, and knees. Shortly after, a white and radiant cape spread out as if covering the entire sky.

Allen smiled, "This is a bit of an exaggeration heh..." Clown Crown proceeded to shrink the size.

The atmosphere around Allen was calm as a valley in the morning, maybe it was just Chat's imagination but it seemed like the day was a little brighter.

Once this was done, Allen opened his now-golden eyes and smiled. Allen's figure with his billowing cape stole the Chat's breath.

"Well... shall we go?"

Allen expelled a large amount of energy, a mix of brilliant gold and pure white swirling around him. He proceeded to fly into space.

Allen arrived in an instant and then fixed his eyes on the Earth.

"I understand why Superman likes doing this; Earth really does look beautiful from up here..."

Allen began his descent, first slowly, then accelerating as he entered the atmosphere like a comet.

'System, where is the plane?' Allen asked.

[Hehe, I'll mark the location on a screen.]

'Thanks, but why are you laughing?'

[Who knows~]

...

Allen broke through the different layers of the atmosphere and pushed the clouds out of his way as he slowed down as he approached the airplane.

Allen quickly reached the location of the falling plane. He also saw Homelander and Maeve arguing but ignored them completely and headed straight for the plane.

Rick said, – *Burp* You can accompany the plane while slowing it down until it reaches the sea.

Kara added, – Allen, my cousin says that if you're not sure you can use tactile telekinesis, you can surround the plane with your energy to keep its structure solid.

Allen didn't hesitate and approached the descending plane. Noticing the people at the plane's door, he used his energy to project his voice.

"You need to get back to your seats immediately. If I stabilize the plane, you might be thrown around."

"HELP!!"

"PLEASE!!"

Allen's voice reached everyone's ears loud and clear, with an abnormal calm and confidence.

The little girl from before looked out the window. Allen noticed her and smiled. The girl's eyes lit up as she pulled her mother to their seats.

"Mom, quickly!"

"But…"

"Mom!"

The others, not knowing the reason, also followed Allen's advice, as they had nothing else to hold on to.

Allen flew beneath the plane, with only a short distance left to the sea. He had to be a bit rough.

"Ladies and gentlemen, today is a beautiful day... let's not ruin it with something like this."

Allen felt as though he could grasp the entire structure of the plane at once, but it was unstable.

He lifted the plane slowly while the entire structure creaked as if it was about to break.

"Damn, it can't be DC brand planes?!" Allen couldn't use too much force or he would destroy the plane.

– "Remember, don't try to force it. Trust your power..." –

Logically speaking, Allen's energy should be like a million suns exploding. Even Sentry had problems controlling it, but Allen decided to trust it. Allen released more energy enveloping the plane.

"I've dealt with rebellious powers long enough!"

The Chat and the girls rallied to support Allen in this.

Raven – C'mon...

Gwen – C'mon!

MJ – C'mon!

Kara – C'mon...

Diana – You can do it!

Natasha – I trust you!

Emma – Allen!

"Don't break!!!" shouted Allen.

===

A/N: You can't say it's Cliff-kun if the chapter is over three thousand words long. 🍷🗿

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