DISCLAIMER: All recognizable characters belong to DC Comics.

CHAPTER TEN: Escape

"Kent, where's that interview!"

The man sighed as he sat heavily in his chair across the desk from the striking brunette chewing on the end of her pen. "I didn't expect to see you back already, Smallville."

"Yeah," he shrugged out of his jacket and draped it over the back of the seat. "I didn't even stop for breakfast, just came straight here from the airport. Of course, I didn't exactly plan on taking the first plane this morning back from Gotham after taking the redeye there last night in the first place. I don't think I've slept in two days."

Lois Lane put her pen down and leaned her arms against the surface of the desk. "Is that because of the story, or the subject?"

"Off the record?" he had learned to ask that question early on in their professional relationship, and she knew herself well enough not to be offended. When she nodded, he sighed again and slumped down into his chair. "Subject. It's tough, you know, waiting. Dick's such a good kid and what he's done for Bruce… He won't be the same if he doesn't get his son back."

She nodded again. "I don't think any parent is ever the same after something like this. At least he's got friends like you and Oliver Queen to get him through this."

He shook his head. "He hit me; then his butler kicked me out."

Deep brown eyes widened in surprised. "What questions did you ask to get thrown out of Wayne Manor?"

"Kent, interview, where is it?" Perry White was there beside him, scowling down at the reporter.

The man that was Superman frowned. "I didn't get it."

"You didn't get it?" the question was in stereo as both his editor and some-time partner exclaimed it at the same moment.

"How did you not get it?" Perry demanded, arms folding over his chest.

"His son has been kidnapped and is being held for ransom," Clark growled up at the man. "He wasn't exactly forthcoming with the emotional heart to heart or whatever it is you were hoping for!"

"Whoa, there CK," Lois reached across the desk and put a comforting hand on his arm, drawing his ire from the boss. "Colour us surprised when those all American baby blues of yours don't net results. It just caught us off guard, that's all."

Clark felt his temper cooled under her gaze and he nodded, turned back to his employer – and friend – and apologised. "This situation has me a little strung out, Sorry Perry."

The older man sat on the edge of the desk, a hand resting on Clark's shoulder. "Forget it, kid. I can appreciate it's a tough assignment, since you're a friend of the family. As it is, I thought you would have stuck around Gotham until it was over. I've already got Lois covering the rest of your stories."

Adjusting the glasses on his nose, Clark shook his head. "I wasn't exactly welcomed there, and I can't-"

"…rman! Help!"

The cry was faint, even with his super-hearing.

"You can't what, Kent?" the editor in chief prompted the other man when Clark drifted out of the conversation as he was prone to do when the thoughts carried him.

"Hmm? Oh, sorry. I'm just not comfortable sitting at home doing nothing." He strained his concentration, hoping to hear it again. His effort paid off.

"Superman, help!"

The voice was that of a boy, young by the sound of it.

"Metropolis calling Smallville, come in Smallville?" Lois pinched his arm, and he barely registered it in time to fake a flinch of surprise. She was smirking at him, and when their eyes met her smile softened to one filled with concern. "Clark, you're not going to do yourself or anyone else any good here. Go back to Gotham, and don't let Wayne scare you away again. He's going to need you if…"

"Superman, help me!"

The boy sounded desperate.

"You're probably right," He agreed readily, standing quickly and draping his jacket over his arm. "I'll just…bye." He turned abruptly, aware of their amused looks as he forced himself to go only humanly quick to the stairwell.

"Superman!"

Once there, any resemblance to Clark Kent was gone, and Superman was jetting out of the roof access and high into the sky above the Daily Planet.

Above the city, away from the dampening effects of people and cars and buildings, he was able to focus his hearing. He closed his eyes, heightening the sense all that more without the distraction of sight. Normally a patient man, had any one asked he would have been unable to explain why he was so anxious.

"Superma-"

The voice was coming from the south, and the sudden quieting of the cry had the Man of Steel breaking the sound barrier as he sped in that direction.

He hovered over Suicide Slum, where several corporations were hoping new construction would help bring some life back into the ghetto. Dozens of high rises and office buildings were in various stages of completion. Superman tilted his head to the side, a habit since his enhanced hearing first manifested, and once again closed his eyes.

"Come on kid," he breathed after a minute. Another passed, his head starting to pound with the effort of filtering through the noises of the Slum. "Come on, come on!"

"… help, please…"

There is was! Fainter than it had been when he'd first heard it, scratchier and more defeated, and Superman allowed a brief moment of wonder of how long the boy had been yelling. He swooped down lower. He had it now, and was able to further narrow the location every time it came.

"… where are you Superman…"

I'm coming kid…

"Batman… I need you…"

That stopped Superman as if he'd run into a wall of kryptonite. But it was the next choked plea for help that had the Man of Steel moving faster than he had in a long time.

"… Clark, you gotta hear me…"

"Superman to Watchtower!" He activated the comm sewn into his suit as he flew about the neighbourhood. He had it narrowed down to several blocks, but unless he heard it again… He started scanning with his x-ray vision.

"He Supe," Hawkman responded from the orbiting station, "If you're about to tell me about Star Labs, I already know."

"What?" That was not what he wanted to hear, and right now he didn't care. "Not important-"

"Not important?" the other hero exclaimed. "Uh, you're not calling in about Star Labs, are you?"

"No, now shut up!" Superman snapped uncharacteristically. "I've got a lead on Robin!"

"Batman's Robin? What about him?"

Oh, how he wanted to break something! Or someone! "He was kidnapped two days ago-"

"Help me… please, someone…"

The last of any doubt that ignoring whatever was happening at Star Labs was right dissolved with the sound of the desperate sobs.

"What? And you're just now telling us?"

"Will you please shut up!" the frantic Kryptonian snarled as he sped toward the partially constructed building. His barely had time to remind himself to swerve instead of just ploughing through the concrete walls. He followed the entrance ramp down into the lower levels, barely registering the burst of static from his comm as he zeroed in on the crying.

On the deepest level he found him, and he was horrified at what he saw.

The boy had been dressed in his Robin uniform, and obviously beaten. The left cheek was severely swollen and a large, green-tinged bruise ran along the jawline. His lips were had been split and were scabbed over, and distinctive finger sized bruises decorated the entirety of his throat.

And then there were the restraints.

The use of shackles and chains was disturbing to see being used on the boy, but the worst was the thick metal links around Dick's neck, pulling him stiff and straight, unable to relax in the slightest lest he risk strangling himself.

It was the final straw.

"Dear god… Robin!"

The chain connected to the concrete ceiling was snapped before Robin was even aware that Superman was suddenly beside him. His body, however, felt the release and he slumped exhausted against the chest of the Man of Steel.

"What have they done to you?" Superman wrapped his arms around the boy wonder as the teen shook with the effort of controlling his tears. Clark let his cheek rest atop the dark hair and closed his eyes to the prickling he felt at their edges. It took less than a minute, something which Clark didn't need to be told was unhealthy, but Robin was soon the same, collected hero he'd come to acquaint with the crimson R on the boys chest.

"Didn't think you heard me."

Superman winced at the sound of Dick's voice. It was faint, and if he hadn't super hearing he doubted he would have actually heard more than a breathy whisper. "It took me a while to find you."

"Can you get me out of here please?"

"Let me take a look at what you've gotten yourself in to this time," he said lightly, earning a weary but amused scoff. Keeping his hold on the young man, Superman leaned around to look at the thick cuffs. He hissed when he saw the blistered burns, skin red and seared to the metal in several places. "What did they do, solder it to you for good measure?"

"Pretty much," Robin tried to answer blithely, but the pain that laced his words left the Man of Steel feeling sick to his stomach.

After another quick examination, Clark realized they weren't come off cleanly. "The seam is the weakest point and will be the best place to put the pressure. They're custom made, not sure out of what, but there's a thin coating of lead. I can get them off, but it's going to hurt."

Robin snorted derisively, and his already abused body tensed with expectancy. "Do it."

With a curt not, Superman carefully took hold of the thick cuff. Three inches wide and nearly a half inch thick; it wouldn't take much to break them off. What worried him was the thought of doing more damage to the already wounded wrists. He squeezed.

The lead cracked and instantly he felt his strength rush from him. His head spun, his vision clouded, he was vaguely aware of Robin calling out to him as he surged to his feet to get away. As soon as he stood, a searing pain shot through the side of his neck and his hand flung to the spot. Pulling the dart away – no, out of his skin, he saw a drop of opaque green fluid drip from the needle's tip.

He wouldn't remember falling to his knees next to the Boy Wonder. He wouldn't hear the teen hero painfully forcing his voice as he shouted Superman's name and calling again for someone to help them.

He wouldn't know that no one came.

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Trained by one of the best, that skill honed by the best, Artemis was usually not so high strung. But as she stood hidden behind a gargoyle on the roof of the building across from Star Labs she was unable to calm her nerves and release the tension in her body. Her knuckles were white from her fingers wrapped so tightly around her bow. The shaft of the arrow she held in the other hand, ready to be knocked at a moment's notice, creaked under the grip.

"Calm down," Red Arrow, standing a few feet away from her behind his own concrete statue, didn't even look her way when he hissed at her. He awkwardly, yet expertly, held Green Arrow's borrowed bow. "You guys trusted the mind monkeys-"damn Wally for that stupid name! "- when you came to Star City, trust the information that they'll be coming here next."

She nodded, frowning at herself for letting her emotions cloud her rationality. When Green Arrow had inspected the files gathered by the Queen Industries' Security, they exposed a secondary program on the memory stick. When it was accessed, a dossier on a laser prototype was opened. It wasn't much different than anything else out there; nothing more than a high grade medical laser, actually. But the light was being focussed through an element that had been discovered in some microscopic interstellar dust recovered from the exterior of the space shuttle. That the dust had survived re-entry into Earth's atmosphere had scientists biting at the bit for a chance to see what it could do.

The evidence suggested that when they were downloading the schematics of the compressor from Star City, the G-gnomes has also uploaded the dossier onto the system, attaching it to the security file that would be accessed during the investigation.

The Mind Monkeys were playing both sides.

Once they reached Metropolis, Oliver had contacted Watch Tower to give the League the heads-up. That was when they learned that Superman had reported a lead on their missing friend, only to vanish himself. Hawkman hadn't had the chance to trace the Kryptonian's signal and neither had the man given his location.

With the Man of Steel's disappearance, word went out through entire League but only a few were able to start making their way to Metropolis. The Flash had been there in moments, and both Red Tornado and Black Canary came in from Mount Justice, but the rest were in the middle of missions themselves.

Bruce Wayne, they were told by the Flash when he hooked up with them, was still being watched by the media and the Gotham Police were working with him to get the 'ransom' for Dick Grayson together for the drop the following day. Batman was aware of the lead on his missing partner and, as circumstances contained him, he was trusting the team to bring Robin home.

None of them wanted to let the man – or their friend – down.

They were now split up into pairs, situated around the Lab, waiting for Sportsmaster or Guardian to show up.

With the corner of her eyes, Artemis allowed her attention to be drawn to her companion. Despite the animosity he displayed around her, the young girl couldn't deny that she felt better with him there. His was alert and poised to strike, but he wasn't tense or anxious. Watching him she could see what it meant to be an Arrow, and why some of her team mates – why Green Arrow - still compared her to him.

"Quit looking at me and pay attention," he said in a low tone.

She focussed back on the Lab and sighed. "It's not because of who my father is, is it." She stated, not asking when she already knew the answer.

He looked to her and frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"Why you don't like me," she shrugged. "It doesn't bother me, but I know Ollie would like for us to get along better."

"Don't call him that," Roy snapped, forcing himself to look back at the building. "You may be his 'niece' but you don't have the right to call him by that name. "

"Maybe not, but that's what he's asked me to call him." She glanced at him before going back to her watch. "You don't have to be angry."

"And why is that?"

"Because I'm not you," she smiled to herself. "They're my friends, my team mates, but I'm not Speedy. I'm not you. I never will be you. And if you ever wanted it, I know that my place on this team is yours. I'm just the seat warmer."

Silence swirled around them with the breeze.

"I never was much of a team player," Red Arrow said after a few minutes. "Working with Green Arrow was great, for a while, but I'm better on my own."

She nodded in understanding. "I thought the same thing, until Ollie and Batman thought I should join the team. For my protection as much as anything, they said. I think it was more so they didn't have to babysit me as much."

Roy snorted his amusement. "They like to use the 'for your own good' excuse a lot."

"Most parents do," She quirked an eyebrow knowingly.

"Oliver's not-"

"-your father," she shrugged. "I know that. But that doesn't stop him from being your parent, being your Dad. Just like Batman's not Robin's father but is still his Dad. I saw Bruce Wayne's fear for his son in Gotham; I saw Batman's furry for his son in the Cave – 'cuz let's face it, that's what Robin is to Batman; and last night I witnessed Oliver's worry for his son. I have a father; and the bastard only ever showed me his contempt and his fists. Trust me when I say you've got nothing to be angry about; not when it comes to me."

**Eyes high, archers,** a voice interrupted the pair in their minds.

A voice that was not Miss Martian's.

**Seven o'clock.**

They both snapped their heads around, looking behind them and to their left, and Roy was moving before she registered the sniper laser sight settle on her left breast. He tackled her to the ground a heartbeat before the bullet cracked into the gargoyle where she had been standing. He rolled with her, away from more bullets as they thudded into the roof beside them. They never heard the shots fired.

When they got to the ledge of the building, the two foot rise of brick and mortar stopped them and provided minimal but effective cover. Artemis was the first to activate the communicator clipped to her lapel. "We've been made!" She shouted.

"Report!" Green Arrow demanded from his position with Superboy just inside the entrance to main Lab building.

Roy forced her head down as a concrete chipped around them as the shots continued. "Shots fired northwest of our position. We're a little pinned down up here!"

"We're on it," The Flash chimed in.

A few seconds ticked by, several more shots kept the teens low on the roof, and then they stopped.

"We found the riffle," Kid Flash reported, "But there's no one here. Camera and remote controlled. They could be anywhere."

"A distraction," Roy growled leaping up with Artemis right behind him. They were grabbing their bows from where they had been dropped and knocking arrows as they simultaneously drew up to their original positions. In almost perfect synch they had their weapons aimed at the building below them.

"Black Canary, Aqualad report!" Green Arrow snapped the order to the two who had taken up the duty of protecting the scientists and prototype while it was being tested. There was no response and Oliver swore. "Miss Martian?"

A few more tense seconds passed in silence, Barry and Wally speeding to a stop just outside the building in that time, before M'gann finally responded. "I'm not getting a reading from either one of them, Green Arrow."

"Star Labs security confirming that they have an emergency exit activated on the second floor," Red Tornado announced, "auditory alarm had been disconnected."

"No," Artemis muttered under hear breath, watching the building with growing apprehension. "No, we can't have missed them again!"

A full minute passed before anyone spoke. "Lab's been sacked," Superboy growled in everyone's ears. "Black Canary and Aqualad have been taken down - hurt and unconscious, but alive. The scientist too. And the Prototype is gone."

"Sportsmaster and Guardian?" Roy asked unnecessarily.

"Gone."