Another chapter, and yet another twist.
"Hey dad." Artemis called.
"Don't recall sending you an invite." Jade said.
"Not that it would have mattered, the invites you sent out had a fake address on them didn't they?" Sportsmaster said.
"Actually there were three sets of invites, all with false info on them, in hopes of keeping you way." Robin said.
"And why would you want to do that? I'm am the father of the bride after all."
"Why would we want to do that? Good question. Let's see there the fact you're evil, the last time you were with your daughter's you tried to kill them and am I missing something?" Zatanna said.
"He kills the mood of any party." Wally said.
"That works. Egnahc sehtolc otni ruo smrofinu! " Zatanna said reciting the spell. A grey mist covered the heroes and when it dissipated they were all in their uniforms.
"Canary, look out for my mom." Artemis said. Canary nodded and moved it front of Paula.
"Dad, it looks like you came to the party a little light on weaponry." Jade said adjusting her mask.
"You know I'm always ready for any game, little girl." He snapped his fingers and about thirty grunts (all carrying guns) appeared over the cliff. He motioned with two fingers and the grunts began fire.
"You know what's really sad." Rocket said from inside a force bubble.
"The fact that my dad was probably waiting with some high-tech listening device just so he could appear as Arrow said 'forever hold your peace'." Artemis said taking cover behind Superboy.
"Oh that is sad." Zatanna said, she and Miss Martian had taken cover behind a large boulder.
"I was actually thinking that it is really sad we went through this exact scenario at last night's rehearsal dinner." Rocket said.
"With good reason, obviously." Robin said. He threw a batarang from behind the maple tree.
"At least one of them actually happened." Jade said.
"What's that supposed to mean?" Robin asked.
"Dude, you made us go through about forty different scenarios yesterday." Wally said.
"Well we had to be prepared." Robin shot back
"Be prepared if a fifty foot radioactive monster decided to attack Happy Harbor during the wedding?" Superboy said.
"It could happen."
"Sure just like an alien armada could choose to attack at any moment." Roy said.
"If those things happen you all are going to feel so stupid." Robin said.
"I don't think your taking me seriously." Sportsmaster said.
"Dude we beat you more time than we can count, not really worried." Wally said.
"This is getting annoying….Taeh esoht 'snopaew latem!" Zatanna said. The guns glowed deep red and all the grunts dropped them.
"You fools don't just stand there…attack!" Three of the grunts were knocked out of the air as batarangs hit them.
"Technically they are hovering not standing." Robin said. He threw more batarangs but Sportsmaster blocked them with a weighted chain. He landed in front of the son of the bat.
"You mocking me boy?"
"Not mocking, just correcting. I think people should be penalized when they use words in the wrong context. By the way…I was mocking you that time."
Sportsmaster threw the chain at Robin, but the hero jumped up and disappeared into the branches of the maple.
"Come out and fight like a real man, boy." The villain yelled. He was knocked of his feet by an arrow exploding at his feet.
"Like that Dad?" Artemis said. He jumped up.
"I wish I could say I was proud but I'm not."
"Artemis look out." Jade pushed Artemis out of the way just a dagger of one the grunts sailed through the air where she had been. Wally saw this and ran head long into the offender sending both of them the edge.
"Why couldn't you just leave us alone?" Jade asked, helping her sister up.
"No daughter of mine is marring some red headed hero." He said.
"Is the fact he's a red head a contributing factor, or just that he's a hero." Robin appeared hanging upside down from the maple tree.
"What?" Sportsmaster took a swipe at him but Robin raised himself out of the way before dropping to the ground.
"Cause if red hair is a factor, then I'm sorry to break it to you…the boy who just ran over the edge there. You know speedster, red hair. Well he and Artemis are going strong."
"What?" Sportsmaster looked around wildly. Artemis shrugged and grinned.
"Kid you're looking for an early death."
"Yeah, so everyone says…" Robin jumped kicked Sportsmaster, but he dodged. What he couldn't doge was the roundhouse from his youngest daughter.
"But I'm still here." Robin finished, throwing a bolas around the villains legs.
"You going to give up now?" Artemis asked.
"And let me get back to my wedding in peace." Jade said.
"Sorry little girl, but I brought some more friends, hope you don't mind." He made a whistling sound.
"Hello kiddies." Riddler appeared over the clearing wear a jet pack, Bane and Dr. Light appeared next to him.
"Riddler, Bane and the light bulb. This is the best you can come up with. Dad you're slipping." Artemis said.
"Beggars can't be choosers…isn't that what you told me dad." Jade said grinning.
"You're right, but that's not all. You see your little playhouse club, we don't like how you've been a thorn in our sides…well the light sent one more person to help get rid of you once and for all." Sportsmaster said. As he said a high pitched laughter echoed around everyone. The heroes all froze. The young heroes knew that laugh. A red swirling vortex appeared in the middle of the clearing. Klarion the witch boy seems to walk upwards from it.
"I hope you don't mind, but Teekl and I just love a wedding." His cat meowed in agreement.
'Rocket, Miss M. take care of Bane, Riddler and Light while they are still in the air. They are at disadvantage there. Kid Flash can you get back up here?' Aqualad said.
"Already here," said the speedster, appearing next to Aqualad. "I can't leave to all alone for a moment, can I?"
"Let's have some fun shall we." Klarion said. He snapped his fingers and a vortex appeared next to Jade and Artemis and a second one next to Paula. The vortexes moved sideways, engulfing the sisters, their mother and Sportsmaster.
"No!" Kid Flash and Red Arrow yelled. Kid ran to the vortex that had taken Artemis. Robin who was closest to that one jumped in and Kid managed to reach it just as it was closing. Canary dived head first into the vortex that had taken Paula.
"I picked up some unwanted passengers. Whatever… they are Sportsmaster's problem now. We still have to finish you brats off." Klarion said in a board voice.
"Not good. Do we know where they are?" Red yelled.
'A little busy at the moment. Not really able to check their positions.' Zatanna said, blocking a kick from one of the grunts.
'They are out of my range.' Miss Martian said.
'We must focus on the matter at hand. We must take care of our problem before we can help them." Aqualad said.
~)O(~
"What just happened?" Artemis's voice came out of the darkness.
"Artemis, Jade?" Paula asked.
"Mom?" Jade said.
"Artemis?" Kid Flash said. "Where are you?"
"This is stupid, why are we in the dark?" A dim glow lit a small circle. Robin's holo-computer lit up the small area. Artemis and Jade instantly covered their mother. Black Canary turned in a full circle.
"I can't see anything." She said.
"I don't like this." Kid said. He moved closer to Artemis and took her hand.
"Really? I'm happier that a school boy on Christmas." A voice boomed through the dark. A single light came on. Sportsmaster was standing on a raised platform about thirty meters away.
"But that could be because I just got all my toys." He said. The whole room was suddenly lit making the heroes squint. Are their vision came into view. What they saw didn't bring them any joy. They were on what looked like a football field.
"This brings back memories." Jade said.
"None of them good." Artemis said.
From the expected to the unexpected. Bet Klarion was the last you expected to show up.
Nardragon~ until the next page.