312 - DC: The Infinite Villain (Patreon)

312 - Caitlin Snow's Problem

"That seems a bit much, doesn't it? Making a fool of Bruce once is enough. Twice would be cruel." Damon managed to look conflicted, even ashamed, before asking anyway. "What's her name?"

Talia gave a quiet laugh. "She's different from me. You might not be interested, but that doesn't mean she isn't worth meeting. Silver St. Cloud. She's from one of Gotham's prominent families. She pursued Bruce when he was less experienced, and she had him thoroughly captivated. It didn't last, but she remains one of the women who mattered to him."

"And she still hasn't married."

"Oh, her." Damon remembered Silver. She was a Gotham socialite who knew how to get what she wanted.

His only other recollection was her chest, which he judged to be about as ample as Talia's.

"Do you want to meet her?" Talia asked.

Damon thought it over and shook his head. "No. Whatever she had with Bruce ended long ago. It's nothing like you and him, so where's the fun in 'helping' him? Handle the Black Lantern business as you see fit. Call me if you need anything."

"All right." Talia was disappointed, but she didn't press him.

Steppenwolf was dealt with. No one had found the Book of Darkness yet. Mera was the other loose end. Damon contacted her and learned she was discussing Atlantis with the Justice League. The war with Atlantis wasn't truly over.

Once Mera told the League the truth, they would have to expose Orm's scheme and save Atlantis.

They didn't seem to need Damon. So what should he do now?

Star City? Central City? Coast City, to tease Carol Ferris? Or a visit to Harley Quinn? He was still weighing his options when his phone rang. The number surprised him, and he smiled.

That settled it.

He answered, exchanged a few words, and hung up. Blue light flared; Damon vanished.

A cafe in Central City.

A faint breeze rose and died without a sound.

At a corner table upstairs, Damon lifted his coffee and watched Caitlin Snow stare at him in disbelief.

It had been a while since he'd seen her. She hadn't changed much, though she seemed more assured than before.

Caitlin put her phone away and smiled, apparently searching for something to say. "We've slept together," Damon said. "Surely a little time apart hasn't made us strangers."

Color rose in her cheeks. "I wasn't... I just..."

"If the awkwardness is this bad, we could always find a room and get reacquainted."

"Is there something wrong with me?" Caitlin asked abruptly.

Damon's smile sharpened. "So you know?"

"I knew it. Am I... am I dealing with another personality?" Her expression turned grave.

"Something like that. I met someone with a similar condition recently." Damon moved into the seat beside her and ran a hand over her stockinged leg. "Whether you call it another personality or something else, there's another self inside you. One with powers. Killer Frost."

"You've checked yourself, haven't you?"

"Everything looked normal," Caitlin said. "I first noticed it when the Reverse-Flash was revived. Cisco ran tests too, but found nothing. We don't even know how to bring the other me out."

"Your body reads as entirely human until the change. Then your cells alter, you gain powers, and that other self emerges. Samantha Arias is similar. Most of the time she's an ordinary woman; when she changes, she becomes a Kryptonian, like Superman."

"Then how did she fix it?" Caitlin asked at once.

"She hasn't," Damon said.

Caitlin's face fell.

"But we have a lead. A particular kind of black kryptonite can separate two selves. In theory, Killer Frost could leave your body and exist independently, like a doppelganger. The problem is that the stone has only worked on Kryptonians. On humans..."

"I can study it."

"I'll find a way," Caitlin insisted.

"You haven't worked with kryptonite enough to do it alone. Come to my villa in Central City. I'll bring someone who can help." He was thinking of Lena Luthor. Her intellect and experience with kryptonite made her the obvious choice.

Bringing Lena over would also let him act on what he'd discussed with Lois Lane.

"All right." Caitlin brushed back her hair. "Thank you."

Damon glanced at the hand still resting on her leg. "After all this, you don't have to thank me. Just keep me company when I need it."

"Go home for now. Come to the villa tonight."

"I will." Caitlin stood and left.

Damon opened a shockwave breach and crossed to Earth-38.

He contacted Indigo first. She was still absorbing Mother Box technology, so he left her alone. He located Lena Luthor and Lucy Lane: Lena was at work, Lucy at the D.E.O. Damon went to Lena.

Damon found Lena at the company.

Her office had a wall of broad windows.

She sat on a sofa, rubbing her feet after taking off her heels. When she looked up, Damon was standing in front of her. His gaze had been fixed a little lower than her face.

"Did you appear out of nowhere just to stare at me?" she asked with a smile.

"Clear some time and gather the equipment you'd need to study kryptonite. I'm taking you somewhere to research black kryptonite. In return, I'll tell you a secret that matters to you." Damon got straight to the point.