Long time no see/update! I'm not dead. Here's the next chapter, any feedback is really appreciated! Thanks so much for reading~
Aqualad sighed, pausing momentarily to gather his thoughts. Another failed mission was out of the question. But the way things were going, it might end up as one.
None of the employees in Star Labs could remember a thing that had happened, and all of the security cameras had oh so inconveniently gone dark during the time of whatever had occurred.
"I have other things to deal with down in the Gulf, so you and your team will have to handle this." Batman had said while briefing them on the mission ahead.
"It had to have required some major resources to pull this off," Robin said.
"Not even a warning of the oncoming hack. Even I would have a hard time doing that, with this advanced of a security system."
"Maybe the League of Shadows?" Kid Flash suggested.
"It doesn't seem like their style though. They're more 'Here I am!' and lots of chaos than be sneaky stealers." Robin pointed out.
"What did they steal?" Aqualad asked.
"Some important data. It's completely wiped out, so I don't even know what the data was on." Robin replied, punching in a few commands on his computer glove.
"Ugh! I can't coax their memories out; it's like it never happened." Miss Martian said, entering the room. "And nothing but a few star-shaped bruises on the security guards that they can't explain."
"This is strange…" Aqualad murmured.
Robin extended a small cable and connected it to a port on the main control system.
"Excellent, there's a tracker installed on the hard drive. Gotta love these big corporations and their expensive toys… Got a read on its position. Not too far," he looked up at Aqualad.
"Miss Martian, stay with the researchers until the authorities arrive. Keep trying to stir up their memories until then. Kid, you run ahead and try to catch up with the thieves. The rest of you follow me," the Atlantian took point and started in the direction that Kid Flash had run. "We must be vigilant. We do not know our foes, or what they are capable of."
~~o~~
There wasn't much time, and Sync was slowing them down. She had only been in training for a week now. While she had made great progress, the girl simply couldn't keep up with the years of hard work Boko and Shroud had spent, making tasks like these just another daily occurrence for their bodies.
Boko could feel Sync beginning to fall behind; it was like she was taking two steps forward and three back.
"Shroud, you're sure that no one can see us?" Boko asked after veering into an ally. The three stopped to let Sync catch her breath.
"Yeah." Shroud replied, closing her eyes for better focus. Shroud's ability to cast illusions and manipulate the five senses let them move without being seen by people and potential pursuers. It didn't do the same for a security camera though, and that was up to Sync.
Boko turned the small data hard drive over in her hands, "I wonder what Marvella wants with this?"
"It was a lot to transfer, that's for sure." Sync said between pants in her little southern twang.
"Ha, you know, you look like a walking circuit board with glasses." Boko commented on Sync's gray suit with light blue lights woven in technological patterns. Her glasses allowed her to see any data from any source she needed to without the inconvenience of lugging around a laptop.
"And you look like you were brought back from the dead with that stuff," Sync replied in regard to Boko's purple tribal face paint that substituted for a mask.
Boko smiled hauntingly, "Is that so?"
Sync straightened up, "I'm fine, let's go." They turned and sprinted down the street, unbeknownst to the casual passerby.
Boko was on high alert, most likely they had sent out some lackeys to search for the missing data. She just wanted to report back to Marvella for a mission success. They continued the fast steady pace towards the city's edge.
"Not quite two kilometers left 'til our pick-up zone, you're doing fine Sync. Just push a little more." Boko encouraged. It was hard for her to try and compensate for Sync's rookie abilities, but she was pleased at how hard the girl was genuinely trying. Maybe she'd really fit in to her and Shroud's little team after all.
"Boko, I think someone's coming!" Shroud exclaimed.
"Damn it!" their leader growled. She fished out the hard drive from her pocket. She found that a small green light blinked mockingly up at her. "You didn't turn off its tracking device?!" Boko rounded on Sync.
"Quit that. Now." Sync commanded and the light ceased, "I'm sorry! You said we need to get in and get out, and with all that was going on I didn't think about it! I've been focusing on all the cameras we pass and whenever we hit a Wi-Fi spot it's really distracting…"
Boko sighed patiently and waved her hands to quiet her, "It's fine, this is your first time out in the field. I'm not used to such a new partner. I should have thought of it too."
"They know where we are, they're coming extremely fast." Shroud said urgently.
"Take this!" Boko ordered shoving the drive into Sync's hands, "Let us take care of this, and you stay out of sight. Whoever this guy is doesn't know how many of us there are. No matter what, make sure Marvella gets this. Understand?"
"Yes." Sync answered, her head drooping in guilt.
"Cheer up," Boko punched her arm teasingly, "This mission isn't a flop yet."
She scanned around in the darkening afternoon. "There!" she pointed and set off again. Shroud followed, her shadowy cape billowing out behind her. They were heading for a construction site that had been started in hopes of raising a new library. Not much was done; only one wall was even partially finished. All the workers had gone home for the day making it an ideal location to take care of their pursuer.
The two perched themselves high on a beam like a couple of hawks waiting for their prey. A yellow streak slid to a stop in the street and looked around.
"Which way did they go…?" he said to himself.
Great, a speedster, Boko thought. She was about to drop down while his back was turned when a hulking black mass jumped in, leaving a crater in the sidewalk.
Shroud glanced at her, her expression voicing Boko's own feelings: More of them.
Three more arrived. Boko picked up a large construction bolt and sent it flying behind them, deeper into the site, hoping to draw the enemy in. The loud clang made the enemy congregation flinch and face the source of the noise. They all drew and prepared their weapons.
"Spread out," one in red said and they advanced cautiously.
Under the protection of the illusion, Boko whispered, "You know what to do." and dropped down. These guys were too special to just be a simple group of hired muscle.
~~o~~
Superboy spun around, "What was that?!"
"What?" the rest of the Team asked looking around frantically. Nothing moved in the waning light.
"I don't see anything." Kid Flash said, rubbing his goggles to see if there was dirt on them.
"It was right there!" Superboy growled, "Over there-"
Aqualad walked over cautiously, looking around with keen eyes. "There is nothing here that I can see," he said, walking back to the group. "Shadows can play tricks, especially in this light."
Superboy clenched his fists in frustration, "Fine, whatever. It was nothing."
"There it was!" he shouted, running forward a few steps, turning his head back and forth, searching the area for something.
The group looked around.
Artemis put her hand on her hip, "Superboy there's nothing there," she said as soothingly as she could muster. The Kryptonian snarled in anger.
"I know I saw something!"
"Enough!" Aqualad said forcefully. "I need you to be one hundred percent, understand?"
Superboy opened his mouth to reply, but fixed his gaze past his leader. "Superboy?" Aqualad asked uneasily. The dark haired boy launched himself into the air, yelling angrily, and landed out of site over a tall chain linked fence that contained the work vehicles. Dismay bloomed in the Atlantian.
"Stick together!" he said over his shoulder and sprinted after Superboy. He scaled the fence and dropped quietly amongst the sleeping metal beasts. Superboy had disappeared amongst the shadows. He walked forward into the shadows cautiously.
"Salut," a voice murmured in greeting behind him. He turned as a girl popped up out of nowhere. She was garbed in a black cloak with purple trimming that matched the paint on her face.
Her expression twisted into a cunning, sinister smile. "Well, well, well. Isn't this one tall, dark, and handsome?" her eyes took a quick inventory of his figure. She surprised him by closing the gap between them and planted a kiss on his cheek before dancing back out of reach. A dark mark surfaced on his skin where her lips had touched.
He drew his water bearers in one swift motion to subdue the girl. His arms felt like lead, and he had to fight to move them, but the weight was too much.
"What?!" he cried while his body refused to respond to his will. He fought the invisible binds vainly.
"We don't want this to be difficult, do we? I don't anyway," she said. She held up her hand and a long shadowy tendril extended from her fingertip to Aqualad.
The mark on his cheek pulsed with an unusual energy. "You're good, you guys almost caught us."
"You're the one that stole the data?" Aqualad asked.
"More or less." she offered, confirming his accusations. "What's so important that they'd send you and your little band after it?"
He stopped struggling for a moment, and raised an eyebrow in confusion. "You do not know what you stole?" is was strange that this girl would go through all this trouble without knowing what she was trying to steal. He needed to get free and find Superboy; his mind raced through the possibilities to defeat this opponent.
She shrugged her shoulders, "Not my problem, that's not where I pull the strings. All I want to do is get it into the proper hands." Like a puppeteer she twitched her finger back, bringing Aqualad closer. She smirked, "Good night."
She drew back her fist then landed it heavily in his face. Blackness exploded across his vision before the numbing dark took over.
~~o~~
Boko shook her hand. That kinda hurt. That guy was made of tougher stuff than she had thought. She left the boy lying there and slunk into a hiding spot behind a dump truck. She climbed up to see the speedster and the other two were waiting in the same spot, back to back, scanning the darkness. Somehow she needed to split them up.
She was about to climb back down when a crash behind her grabbed everyone's attention. She turned to see a decent-sized plum of dust and debris. When the girl looked back all eyes were on her. Boko and the green clad girl locked gazes for a moment. The archer sent an arrow flying, which Boko narrowly missed by diving into the bed of the truck. She tucked herself into a ball, rolled across the bed of the truck, and leapt out the back in time to see a crane come to life. It swung over, breaking through the fence, and crashed into the partial wall that was just behind the blond archer. The wall began to crumble in pieces around her.
"Artemis!" cried the boy in yellow who was already to the chain link fence. He turned back to save his partner, but even his super speed wasn't enough to get him there in time. Artemis screamed while the rubble encased her.
Good job Sync, Boko thought out to her friend realizing that she must've activated the crane from somewhere nearby. She still hoped that Sync would leave and get the drive to safety. Climbing the fence, Boko dropped to the other side and ran for the two boys while they were distracted.
"I'm alright!" came Artemis' muffled voice under the wreckage.
Kid Flash and Robin tried to dig her out, but the chunks her too heavy. KF turned his attention back to Boko. He sped towards her and landed a blow to her stomach, making her fly onto her back.
"That's for trying to crush my teammate!" he shouted at her.
She stood back up gasping for air. While she stood, unsteadily, trying to regain her breath, the boy in red and a cape brought down an assault of blows. She managed to parry his kicks and jabs, but it was all she could do to keep up with him. Boko was given a moment of reprieve when he flipped away to let Kid Flash take another swing.
This time she was ready.
She blocked his punch and grabbed his hand, yanking him to where she could brush the bare skin of his cheek with her fingertips.
A star shaped mark appeared on his cheek.
"What?!" Kid Flash exclaimed, "Robin I can't move!" His body's control was surrendered to Boko; she flexed her fingers adjusting them to the nuances of his physical being.
She made him face Robin, "All right boys. Let's play."
~~o~~
They were everywhere. The shadows—darting in and out of his sight. Some came so close he could feel their cold breath as they passed.
The shadows were creeping not only around his vision, but into the darkest corners of his mind… and it fed his maddening urge to destroy them. He saw them more often, becoming more substantial. Every time he almost made contact, the shadow would slip away, taking some of his sanity with it.
One loomed to his right, only to dance away like a fox eludes its hound. More sprang up, this time to circle him like a pack of hungry beasts. He shut his eyes tight and shook his head to rid himself of the nightmare.
When he opened them again the shadows retreated. They melded, making one whole figure. It was a girl, her skin the white shade of death. Her black hair faded into the shadows that were her lower body and made a dark shawl around her shoulders. She extended her hand as if wanting the boy to join her in the dark embrace that comes after life. Her lips parted to make an unearthly wail of sorrow.
Fear shot through Superboy. He wanted M'gann. He wanted to hold her, have her soft words chase all that was wrong away—bring the color back into his world.
The creature ascended, hand still reaching for the boy. She began a creeping, slow spiral in the air for him, shadows trailing behind. Her gaping mouth uttering what can only be described as pure sorrow. The Kryptonian broke into a cold sweat. He punched the creature, but it had no effect. She passed through him, making him feel like an empty shell. The only emotion left was his fear. It soon turned to anger. He roared in his rage and swung a powerful arm aside to punch a beam in frustration. It made contact, sooner than he expected, and the illusion shattered.
A cloaked girl slammed into the dirt and tried to suck in some air. The color came back and Superboy stood over her. Their eyes met before hers rolled into the back of her head and she lost consciousness. He scooped her up, slinging her over his shoulder and ran back to the main site.
He found Kid Flash attacking Robin whom was doing his best not to fight back and
hurt his best friend. Robin threw a smoke bomb and disappeared momentarily.
"What are you doing?!" Superboy asked outraged. Without any grace, he dropped the girl from his shoulders like a sack of potatoes, and readied for a fight.
"It's not me!" the speedster insisted as he was manipulated to turn on Superboy.
He spotted the girl controlling Kid Flash and sprinted for her. She tried to have her captive intercept him, but only succeeded in having Kid Flash bounce off the juggernaut's solid frame.
"Ow…" he moaned dully.
Superboy launched himself on the girl and slammed her head into the ground, taking her out instantly. He straightened up and paused long enough to take in her painted face before laying her next to her partner.
Robin dropped down agilely to help Kid Flash to his feet. "This is a bit overwhelming." He stated.
"Superboy, get Artemis out from under there!" Kid Flash said urgently pointing at the collapsed wall. He reached down and snapped the cord holding some kind of fang tied to Boko's arm. It was as good a souvenir as any.
Superboy pulled Artemis from the rubble. She cradled a broken arm, but was otherwise alright.
Aqualad walked up, rubbing his jaw, just as Miss Martian flew in.
"What on earth happened?" she asked.
"We had some… difficulties." Aqualad mustered, still rubbing his sore jaw. He looked over at the two unconscious girls on the ground.
Kid Flash squinted and leaned closer to Aqualad.
"Dude, is that lipstick on your cheek…?"
~~o~~
Shroud groaned as she slowly awoke from the blackness. The last thing she remembered was…being hit… by the enemy. She sat up in alarm and the sudden motion sent a shooting pain through her side. As she cradled her aching ribs, she looked at her surroundings, to find herself inside what looked like a clear glass room with small breathing holes. It was bare save for the small bed she was sitting on, and a frosted room in the back that served as the bathroom.
As her mind slowly began to clear, she remembered all that had happened before she'd been knocked out. She began scanning the room for any way out of her prison...
~~o~~
The sliding of an opening door announced a visitor. Kid Flash stepped up, "So, how's it going Shadow Babe— Artemis?!"
"Get me out!" the angry, green-clad archer demanded. "I came to check on her and she used some illusion on me to get me in here!" she cried angrily. He typed in the door code as fast as he could.
"Which way did she go?" he asked as the door slid open. Artemis grabbed his arm and yanked as hard as she could, making him stumble into the cell. She slipped past his stumbling form and slammed her fist against the lock panel.
"You have got to be kidding me…" Kid Flash sighed.
Shroud just smirked and turned to leave. However, an un-amused Red Arrow towered directly in her way. He arrested her with an iron grip, "Don't think you're too clever." He said irritably, "Come on Kid, she didn't even have Artemis' broken arm," he said.
He looked back down at her and her blue eyes began to glow with a milky light. Suddenly the archer was engulfed flames. A terrified cry escaped him; he released her, patting at his arms and legs, his face, all in attempts to extinguish the phantom flames. She dropped to the ground, ducking past him, and sprinted to the door.
"Red Arrow! What's happening?! You gotta fight it man, whatever it is, it isn't real!" Kid Flash yelled against the muffling effect of the cell. Red Arrow couldn't hear him over the roar, the flames making him writhe in pain on the floor. As suddenly as it had all started, the illusion died. The shock quickly turned to anger. He clinched his teeth and chased after the escaped girl.
Kid Flash pounded on the glass wall, "Wait! Let me out! Red…! …I'll just wait here then…"
~~o~~
I'm coming Boko, but where are you? Shroud thought. She scoured the next hall over which contained nothing but empty holding cells, and a packed supply room down a neighboring hall. The only other way left to go was up.
She ran up to the elevator and punched the button several times, trying in vain to speed up the elevator's descent.
When it finally opened, Shroud was about to charge in, but reeled back in shock when she saw a red man standing inside. She hadn't sensed him at all.
"Oh? What are you doing out?" he asked. She conjured the most intense inferno she could imagine. She projected the image to him. Nothing happened.
"No!" she growled and tried again, the tendrils of her illusion trying to penetrate his mind. Still nothing happened to him.
She ditched her first attempts and threw a punch for his head. His cold metal hand caught hers easily, twisting her arm to flip her on her already damaged side. The metal man proceeded to pick the girl up by the collar of her cloak and carry her back to the cell. She struggled, but could not break his iron grip.
As Red Tornado carried her back to her cell, they met Red Arrow who was charging angrily through the hall. He slid to a stop when he saw the two. He sent Shroud a death glare.
"She seems to be a tricky one," Red Tornado commented as they approached her cell. "I am… surprised that she got the better of you two."
"Kid came to fraternize, and wound up in there. She used her powers on both of us… It seems like her illusions don't work on you though. Don't think any of us should be around her except you until those devices are finished." Red Arrow said.
Kid Flash crossed his arms indignantly as Red Arrow punched in the code to release him. "I wasn't 'fraternizing,' I just didn't feel like checking on psycho Voodoo Woman."
"A good idea," Red Tornado continued, ignoring Wally. He tossed Shroud onto her bed, and hit the lock button from the outside.
The three left her alone, a dim light her only company. She felt cramped in the small, clear room. Once her anger at being caught again faded, she began to shake. It wasn't cold, but she shook anyway. She poked at her sore ribs, and could feel that at least one was broken, the others possibly cracked. Wrapping her cloak tighter around her shoulders, she quietly dozed off on her prison cot.
A sudden warmth sometime later stirred her from her light sleep. She heard the door slide shut and opened her eyes. There was a blanket laying over her. She looked up and saw a young girl with black hair standing outside her cell.
"Just because we're keeping you in here as a prisoner, doesn't mean you have to be cold," she said. She looked away awkwardly, searching for something to say. "My dad… he used to come in when I was asleep and lay an extra blanket over me if I looked cold…." She looked down at the floor, a pained look on her face. "I miss him…"
Shroud moved to a sitting position. "I…I'm sorry. Did he die?"
"No, not exactly…" She scuffed her foot against the hard floor. Her face popped up, and she tried to smile, though her eyes were misty. "Do you have family?"
"No….not anymore…" Shroud pulled nervously at the blanket. This girl was the enemy, but here she was talking to her.
She gave Shroud a sad smile. "I'm sorry. My name is Zatana, by the way. If you need anything just ask. I'm going to go check on your friend." Zatana waved as she walked away down the hall.
Shroud stared at her as she walked away. "Th-thanks…" she said quietly. When Zatana was gone, Shroud lay down on the cot and drifted into a more comfortable sleep as her mind wandered to her family…
The mechanical man's presence woke her some time later. Red Tornado turned to leave and froze rigidly. Shroud pulled herself into a sitting position for a better look. His body relaxed and he brought a hand up to flex his fingers.
"Alrighty! You're kinda neat to play with—great programming!" a girl's happy voice said from inside Red Tornado. "Oops, now this is better." It said, returning to his original voice. Shroud hurried and pressed her hands against the glass. That had been Sync's little twang coming from him!
"Sync…?" Shroud said slowly.
"Hi!" The robotic man raised his hand in greeting, and the tone of his voice was incredibly chipper. Shroud couldn't help but grin.
Sync entered the code to release her friend from the cell using her host's knowledge. "Ok," the influenced Red Tornado said, "let's go. We need to find Boko."
Moving was easy, no one suspected Red Tornado, and Shroud could hide herself.
Using what her mechanical thrall knew, Sync was able to learn anything she wanted about Mount Justice, including Boko's location. The entire headquarters' tech was under her influence, but proceeding 'normally' so as to not raise suspicion.
"She's on this level," Sync said through Red Tornado's voice speakers. Zatanna and Artemis stood as casual sentinels outside a holding cell similar to Shroud's. The archer's arm was slung in a cast, the obvious cause of her sour expression.
"We should go," Zatanna said.
"Not a chance," Artemis snapped, "I'm staying until she admits what they needed that data for and who they're working for. Aqualad said someone sent them." Both girls jumped as Boko threw herself against the cell door like a feral animal.
"That arm of yours is the least of your worries when I get out of here, girly."
Boko hissed. Her own arms were bound in an almost straightjacket type contraption that prevented the slightest twitch of a finger. She paced back forth never breaking her gaze from the two.
Artemis regained composure, "This chick is crazy!"
Shroud almost snickered at her friend's antics, "She's so impatient."
"Perhaps you should go rest in your rooms. It is late," Sync said with plausible authority. The shell of Red Tornado gestured to the direction of the elevator.
Zatanna placed a hand on Artemis' shoulder and steered her away from Boko, "It's fine, Batman will get everything out when he comes to interrogate her. I almost feel sorry for her…" She nodded to their false den mother.
"Yeah, sure," Artemis said.
When they were gone Shroud opened the door to Boko's prison. Breaking the binds on her arms, using the robot's strength, they let the puppeteer take point.
"Almost thought I'd be stuck with that smartass chick forever. Might have gone crazy if I'd had to spend any more time with her... Does Marvella have the hard drive?" Boko asked. Shroud shrugged and looked to the metal man for an answer. Boko's green eyes lit up.
"Sync? Is that you?" she asked, "No way—you got a hold of the Tornado!" a small dong was made when she slapped him on the back in a fit of laughter.
"I'm hidden in the hanger. I sensed this big guy and thought he'd be good to get you out. I'm sorry; I haven't been able to meet her yet." Sync admitted. Boko dismissed the conversation with a wave of her hand. They made it to the large hanger as the alarms went off.
"They found the empty cells, this way!" Sync said emerging from her hiding place. Shutting down Red Tornado completely for a few precious minutes, she followed Shroud and Boko out the hanger door where three motor bikes stood awaiting them. Boko didn't ask how Sync got them there.
Boko subconsciously touched her left arm. She looked down to find her fang missing "I need to go back!" Boko exclaimed in panic.
"What? No time!" Shroud said mounting a bike.
"Est-ce être pire?"* Boko muttered. Shroud hid them as best she could as they sped away from Mount Justice.
*Could it get any worse?