Atlantis' gates loomed over them like the shadow of a ravenous beast, and yet this far into the depths of the ocean, it was the only source of light for miles. Bioluminescence flittered in and out of existence in the distant darkness; on the scales of fish and tentacles of sea jellies. It would have been beautiful...if Harper wasn't so worried about the water pressure. Lara had done an admirable job on her suit, fixing it to her exact specifications and allowing her to journey this far without being crushed or drowning, but Harper still couldn't completely dismiss the possibility that these upgrades may not sync with the underwater environment.

Victor, who was anchored down by the weight of his body, stepped carefully towards the entrance. His face was completely covered by a helmet much too advanced for Harper to comprehend, and perhaps that was why the Atlanteans guarding the gates immediately pointed their weapons at them. Victor halted without a moment's hesitation and Harper, who hadn't even begun to move, watched with lingering dread.

"We're sorry for the suddenness of our visit, but we're here to see the King and Queen." Victor declared in a clear yet surprisingly diplomatic tone.

"They do not accept visits from Land-Dwellers anymore." One of them hissed, and Harper was suddenly grateful that Victor had installed a translator into her suit. Otherwise she was certain that their words would have sounded as foreign to her as Tarcis'.

"We're not just Land-Dwellers to them, we're friends." Victor insisted, but still the guards scowled at them with blatant refusal blazing in their irises. It looked, for those few seconds, as if entering Atlantis was a lost cause...but then the gates opened and from within emerged the familiar face of Prince Veran. He recognised the two visitors instantly, even beneath the bulk of their armour.

The young Atlantean pushed the guards aside and rested the end of his trident into the sand. "What is your business here, Victor Stone?"

"We're just here to see some old comrades." Victor answered vaguely. "Harper wanted to speak to everyone before she left."

Veran's eyes narrowed at the cyborg, who with his helmet, looked more like a full-fledged robot. "Do you take me for a fool? You are here to enquire about the reformation of the Justice League."

"If you know why we're here then you'll let us in."

"It is a pointless endeavour. My parents will never agree to partake in this charade..." Veran's grip tightened against the trident, which looked to be constructed out of a shimmering metal that Harper had never seen before. She supposed there were probably many more materials this far into the ocean's depths that no human had ever laid eyes on. This may have been a point of interest if she didn't have other priorities to attend to.

The young prince glanced around him, at the disapproving eyes of the guards, then stepped aside. The gate creaked open behind him as if by some invisible force and he gestured for them to enter.

Victor nodded his thanks, and with Harper following behind him, they stepped within the walls of the lost city.

Atlantis was much larger than Harper could have ever imagined; with gigantic jellyfish hoods that served as homes, neatly interwoven with technology even more advanced than anything on the surface. The entire city was lit by the gorgeous glow of sea creatures as they pushed through the water, and right at the end of this aquatic haven, was a castle that towered higher than anything else. It threw its shadow over the ruins of old Atlantis, that had been rebuilt at the bottom of a rather deep crater, and in front of this grand structure was a marble statue. The design was a throwback to ancient times; it was elegant, yet somehow haunting. The subject matter was a woman with unruly curls that Harper could only assume was Queen Camille. In her arms was a baby boy and around them swam a whirlpool of sea animals; the most prominent being a small squid that illuminated a purple light.

Harper scoffed. "Either they really love their queen, or she really loves herself."

"She wasn't here when they built that thing. Apparently she has an immense dislike for it."

"Why keep it up then? She could probably get away with tearing it down." Harper shrugged as if the solution were obvious, but Victor frowned beneath the safety of his helmet.

"The people made it for her. She probably didn't want to intrude on their freedom of expression...and I think some part of her wants to keep it up in honour of Kasalus."

Harper raised a dark eyebrow at him, knowing very well that he couldn't see it beneath her suit. "Kasalus?"

"Her first born." He pointed to the baby cradled in the statue's arms. "You don't want to know about that, trust me, but it's probably best if you didn't mention it to them."

Harper averted her gaze from the intricately carved child, with so much detail that it looked like it might spring to life, then hummed her understanding. "Roger that."

Admittedly surprised by Harper's quick agreement, Victor continued to lead the way forward until they reached the entrance to the castle. There was no door, only a blue veil that rippled quite differently to the sea around them, but still appeared to be water nonetheless. It could have been technology, but it was more likely combined with potent magic.

"Uh...should I be concerned about that?" Harper asked only half jokingly.

"Only if you harbour ill will towards Arthur or Camille." Victor answered much too quickly for Harper's liking. "It's there to capture anyone who would enter with violent intentions."

"But...let's say I'm just a violent person," Harper quipped, though it seemed a serious enough concern in her mind. "and I don't want to hurt them in particular, I just want to fight something."

It was clear, despite the metal contraption covering his face, that Victor was smiling. "I guess we'll find out soon enough."

Exuding an impressive amount of confidence, Victor stepped through the veil. The water whirled around him, but didn't make any effort to stop him from entering the palace. Now on the other side of the barrier, Victor turned and waited for Harper to follow suite. His image was distorted by the flowing veil, and it had the effect of making his metal body look almost liquid. Muttering quiet curses to herself, Harper finally stepped through. The water churned, then bubbled, but allowed her to pass through without incident.

Harper sighed. "Thank god..."

"I guess we have our answer." Victor teased as the water veil fell back into its previous serenity. "Good to know that you're not here to kill anyone."

"Oh shut up. If I were really here to go on a murdering spree, then you'd be the first one I'd go after."

A chuckle resonated through their communicators as  they continued forward. The palace was massive and spotted artwork on every wall, much like murals, that moved like tiny animations. Each showed a different story in Atlantean history; like the splitting of the city into the seven seas, and the birth of King Orin. There was even one telling the story of Queen Camille and, what looked like, her journey to help save Atlantis from a tyrant's rule.

"Victor... It's been a long time." A smooth voice suddenly spoke, snapping Harper's attention away from the artworks. They both glanced up simultaneously to see Mera blocking their path. Her red hair flowed into the water like vibrant streaks of blood, and danced around her floating form so gracefully that the eerie contrast could be easily ignored. Mera's gaze turned to the large mech suit that stood next to her old friend and scowled. "Who's this?"

"Harper." Victor answered swiftly.

"Oh...and what is she doing down here? I thought she was too busy with her new powers to care about the rest of us."

Harper frowned, but decided not to explain the situation. Mera clearly didn't want to hear it anyway. "Are ya gonna let us pass or not?"

Mera narrowed her cerulean eyes, but didn't protest to letting them through to the throne room. "They're both very busy, as I'm sure you can imagine, so make it quick."

She gestured to the room behind her and then disappeared into it. Victor wasted no time following her, but Harper stood there for a moment longer to analyse her surroundings. There was a guard at almost every corner; their armour shimmered like bright golden scales and their helmets were shaped like different creatures. She may have stayed longer and asked one of them what their suit was made of if her curiosity wasn't already starting to make her look suspicious.

Harper finally entered the throne room with the eyes of many security personnel watching her every step of the way. This section sported to large chairs right at the back, one looked to be made of some kind of bone...by the size of it, Harper could only assume it was a whale. She recognise the man sitting in it immediately as Arthur Curry. The other was created with all manner of coral and seashells. The woman in this throne was completely unfamiliar to Harper. She had eyes of sun-kissed sand and hair so curly that even the water couldn't straighten it entirely. They both granted Harper a glance, the woman even managed a welcoming smile, but their attention swiftly turned back to Victor who was in the midst of an explanation.

"-she'll be going back to her own time soon, but she was insistent on meeting everyone beforehand." Victor finished, and though she had missed the majority of this conversation, she knew that he had just recapped the events of the last few days.

Arthur didn't look entirely convinced, but given his position as protector of Atlantis that wasn't surprising. "I thought she couldn't walk..."

"I can't." Harper answered quickly enough that Victor didn't have to do it for her. She supposed that it was only natural for them to forget the small details. Not only did Harper rarely speak to Arthur in her own time, but it had been many years since they had seen her at all. "My suits are linked with a neural implant installed in my head. Whenever I'm inside one I don't need a wheelchair because my brain is sending the same signals that used to go to my legs to the suit instead."

"Basically, the mech's walking for her. Harper's body doesn't actually need to do anything." Victor simplified.

"Oh right. I remember." The queen nodded towards the Atlas model suit, assuming that Harper could see her beneath all the armour. "I'm glad that you decided to pay us a visit, but something tells me that this isn't a simple social call."

Harper stepped beside Victor. Atlas was one of her largest model suits, and so it was a significant amount taller than him. "You're right. I came to talk about the Justice League."

The lines on Arthur's face deepened with the sudden tension that washed over them. Even Camille's smile seemed to waver at the mention of it.

The king frowned. "Then you've wasted your time. The surface world destroyed itself the day it condemned anyone with our kind of abilities. Atlantis isn't going to pick up the pieces for their mistake."

"I agree that it isn't Atlantis' problem." Harper said with the sort of clear determination that Victor hadn't heard since she came back to the Watchtower with a young girl clutching onto her hand. "It's the Justice League's. That team was created with the sole intention of protecting those that needed it; and the world needs it. Now more than ever."

Arthur's jaw clenched but his opinion remained immovable. "What does it need protection from? The children of the very people that they distrusted? Maybe they deserve it."

This statement shocked Harper to the core, but Victor appeared as if he had heard it before...dozens of times. "By using the Earth as their own personal playground, they're proving that the public was right when they condemned Superman...and anyone like him, for that matter. He was your friend. Doesn't that bother you?"

That question extended into uncomfortable silence. Arthur sneered at her as if she were wielding a blade and ready to attack him with it. Camille, on the other hand, looked almost saddened by the thought. From the best of Harper's understanding, the government had passed a law forbidding Superman from getting involved, and that was later revised to say that none of the League could interfere without the government's permission. They had given their permission years ago, but still nothing was done. Perhaps the look on Camille's face wasn't sorrow, but guilt...

"I'm passed letting the affairs of the surface bother me. Atlantis has been adhering to isolationist policy for decades now." Arthur finally answered. "I am only responsible for my own son's actions, and he, being an Atlantean citizen, has been tried and punished under our laws. Anything beyond the city walls is not my concern."

"But their destroying whole cities...people are dying."

"Everyone dies." Arthur bit back coldly, standing from his throne and grabbing hold of his trident. He didn't wish to hear anymore, that much was obvious. "Your trip has been in vain. Now leave."

Arthur didn't stay for long enough for either of them to argue against his command. He simply vanished out of the throne room, not even stopping to see if Camille was following him. Maybe because he already knew that she wouldn't run from this confrontation.

"I'm sorry about that." Camille said with a long sigh, mostly out of habit from her many years as a regular human, and a cluster of bubbles escaped her mouth. "He doesn't mean anything by it, his priorities just lie with Atlantis right now."

"And where are yours?" Harper questioned.

Camille's expression contorted into one of conflict. "With Atlantis, same as his."

"Are you seriously going to just ignore that anything's happening?"

"I know that it's not what you wanted to hear, but contrary to what you might think, I really do care about the surface world. I still have friends up there that I worry for, but there's nothing that either of us can do." Camille stood up and descended the stairs until she was at their level; like a close comrade, not the ruler of an entire kingdom. "Please try to understand. I was a cop before...well, before all this. I wanted nothing more than to protect people, but when I married Arthur Atlantis became my priority above all else; even my family...even my husband and my children. It was a difficult promise to make but it's still one that I intend to keep. When the government started restricting the Justice League's movements and bound them to the UN, we agreed mutually to cut ourselves off from the international stage until things changed for the better, not for the worse. We knew that any other decision could result in war."

"At the rate things are going it's more likely that there'll be an uprising against all superhumans...Atlantis is full of them. There's no way to know how war's start, or when they will, but wouldn't you prefer to know that you did the right thing?"

Camille chewed on her bottom lip. Her posture was still one of slight defiance, but Harper could tell that she agreed. "Look we can't do anything right now. I wish we could, but Arthur and I need to agree on it together. I can't go behind his back...but if Clark were to return I think I could convince him."

Victor crossed his arms and shook his head. "There's no way he'll come back."

Camille walked forward, and to Harper's surprise, she rested her hand on the shoulder of her suit. There was regret in her eyes, and guilt, and every other negative emotion. It consumed her bright brown irises until they were a pool of remorse. "I'm sorry, truly I am. My heart goes with you, but my duty is here."

Camille then followed her husband's previous path and exited the throne room. It was apparent to anyone that she sympathised with the surface world, but that mattered very little to Harper because the queen was still unwilling to help. Words meant nothing if they weren't lead by actions, and it seemed as if all hope of change had dwindled from the world.