It had been a long week, but Friday had finally come. Abigail was bouncing up and down impatiently.
Richard was talking to Bruce-Batman-about something. She got tired of waiting. "Oh, come on already!
Can we go?" Batman and Robin turned to her. "What is your rush, baby sister? they can't exactly go on the mission without us, I mean, we do live with the dispatcher." Robin said finally walking over to the zeta-tube. "I know, I know, I know. I just want to get there. I miss the team and I am so ready to go on a mission with you guys. So cool!"
Robin looked at Batman, who was currently typing in the coordinates for the zeta transport. They had actually been talking about that mission. Batman was worried about letting Nightinggale go. Robin knew how important this was to his sister, so he swore up and down, left and right that he would watch her back and it was all gonna be fine. "It is just a routine covert ops mission after all, Bats. So,
no worries." Robin had said. *Let's just hope that KF doesn't make some failed attempt at stealth* he added mentally.
They zeta beamed into Mt. Justice where the team was all waiting for them. "Aaaaaa!" Megan and Abigail screamed at the same time. Abigail ran to the Martian girl and hugged her. "Oh! I am so excited for you to go on this mission with us!"
"Me too." Abs said, huge grin on her face. Conner picked her up from behind, swinging her onto his shoulders. There was an unspoken agreement between the two that this was her official spot. Abigail smiled contentedly.
"Ahem," everyone turned to Batman. "Now for the mission." He gave Conner and Abigail a look, but they stayed how they were. Neither even made an attempt to change their position. "You will be going to a warehouse and monitoring a drug deal. There has been suspicious activity going on there lately and, based on tips and other-wise gathered information, we believe that they might be dealing in something more serious than cocaine or heroine."
"Kobra-venom." Robin and Nightinggale said at the same time. "Correct," Batman said. "Your job is to watch. Do not engage. All the League wants is for you to find out the players, what they are dealing in, and how much. Also, find out what the trade is. Money, weapons. Don't be seen. Only fight if you have to."
"Wait, don't you want us to get some background info? I mean, we could break into the warehouse, hack their system, get the dl and be out like that," Robin snapped his fingers.
Batman looked at his two birds-for it was clear that's who Robin's 'we' was- "Fine. But do not engage."
The team suited up, and went to the warehouse for their mission. When they first sat down, and the seat-belts popped into existence, Nightinggale jumped a little and said "Whoa!" The team smiled. They all remembered their original amazement at M'gann's ship.
When they got to the warehouse, Aqualad had Miss M establish the mental link. (Everyone on?)
They all responded in affirmation. {Said yes, in case you don't know what that means} (Alright then. Superboy, you will go with Robin and Nightinggale. Make sure they don't run into any trouble.)
Aqualad thought.
(Got it.)
(Robin. You and your sister hack into the system and find any information you can. Don't sabotage their system,
or do anything that will draw their attention to us being here.) At first, Nightinggale didn't understand that last bit. Why did Aqualad think they would be so stupid as to-
(Oh, come on Aqualad! Give me some credit. I wasn't gonna-)
Aqualad gave the younger boy a look. (hack all their systems.) Robin finished.
*Oh.* NG thought to herself. *That's why.*
(Kid Flash, Artemis, Miss Martian. You three and I will keep watch. Kid, run perimeter. Miss Martian,
get us an aerial view of the situation. Artemis, you and I will scout things out from here. Everyone clear?)
(Yes.) (Yep.) (Got it.) etc. (Then let us go.) the Atlantian told his team.
Things were going great until Superboy tripped the alarm. He didn't mean to. They had gotten tons of info on what had been going on for the past few months, the only trouble was getting out. While trying to avoid a guard, Superboy accidentally. . . bumped into a guard. They sounded the alarm and that lead to more guys coming in and then they were surrounded. (Aqualad! I think we could use some help.) Robin thought. (Oh, ya think?) Nightinggal thought sarcastically.
(We are on our way.) (You might be 'on your way.' I am already in.) thought the ever cocky ginger speedster.
(Me too.) thought M'gann.
And then the fighting ensued. At first, the kids were doing pretty well. Then Aqualad and Artemis got in and they were doing really well. That's when things usually tend to go wrong for heroes, right? Well this time. . . it still was that time.
Suddenly, for every guy they managed to take down, another popped up, this one bigger than the first. Then, the team wasn't even doing okay. They were losing. Badly. Nightinggale was scared. Her original euphoria at being on the mission had given in to an adrenaline rush at the thought of a fight with them. And that made way for the now nagging exhaustion and fear that ate at her. She was alone.
Miss Martian had long ago dropped the link to conserve energy to fight off the bad guys and call her bio-ship.
*Still not sure how she can talk to a machine,* thought Nitghinggale. The whole bio-mechanic thing was a little confusing to her.
She narrowly avoided having her guts spilled out by a very large, very sharp knife. *Oh I can just hear Bruce now if he could see this.* She thought to herself. He would yell at her saying 'That could have killed you.' *Focus.*
She spun and kicked her attacked in the head. "Nighty, night." Nightinggale laughed at her own pathetic pun.
In her peripheral, Nightinggale noticed a yellow blur. She wasn't alone after all. KF was fighting right next to her.
Kid Flash glanced in relief to see Nightinggale fighting next him. As he ducked to avoid being punched in the mouth-his signature feature-he cupped his hands to lift her up. Even without the mental link, Nightinggale knew what he was doing. She stepped into his hand and pulled out her bird-a-rangs as he lifted her into the air. As she spun, she let them loose on their assailants. And then KF heard a click. A very distinctive click. The cocking of a gun. Kid Flash looked around to see where the shooter was, preparing to dodge the bullet. *I just hope I have the energy* he thought. KF had long ago run out of snacks, and was therefore running on empty. He found the man holding the gun.
And that was when he realized the gun wasn't aimed at him. "No." Kid Flash muttered. Yes. He spun to see that the gun was, in fact,
aimed at the girl he considered his sister. Wally forgot about being hungry and tired and hurt. He just focused on the gun aimed at his sister and, praying he was fast enough, charged her the minute he heard the gun fire. They both fell to the ground.
Everyone in the warehouse froze. No one on the team had a gun, so they could only assume one of their own had been hit. *Who-*
Aqualad didn't finish his question. The scream of Nightinggale cut him off. "No, no, no!" The drug-dealers snapped out of their stupor. They started fighting again, so did the team. "Miss Martian," Aqualad yelled. "We need to leave, now! Call the ship."
"A-Already d-d-done. She's right outside." Miss Martian stuttered. She saw Nightinggale bent over Kid Flash, trying to stop the bleeding. She also saw two men coming up behind her with knives. "No!" Miss M yelled and, with new found energy due to her anger, threw the men at their comrades. The girl didn't even look up.
Robin ran in, having been fighting a separate group of guys in another room with Artemis. "Kid?" Robin called out, voice cracking.
"KF!" He ran to his sister's and best friend's sides. "What happened?" Nightinggale didn't look up from Wally's face. *And I thought he was pale before* "Someone tri-tried to shoot me. Kid, he-he took the bullet." Nightinggale said in a strangled voice. Robin looked at his sister's face. She was probably trying her hardest not to look at KF's bloody shoulder. "Come on KF. Let's you up and out of here." Robin said,
"Rob. Look at me." Wally didn't say anything more. Just asked for his friend to look at him. Shouldn't be that difficult, right? Wrong.
Dick knew what he would see if he looked into his best friend's eyes. "Robin." Robin let out a puff of breath and saw it. The unspoken request. "Robin. Nightinggale. We need to leave. Hurry!" Aqualad yelled as the rest of the team fought their way to the ship. "Please."
Kid Flash said. "KF-" Wally shook his head. "Now."
Nightinggale looked at her brothers. "Now? Now what?" Then she noticed Kid was pushing her hands away. "No. No!" She yelled emphatically. "You can't be serious. Robin?" She looked desperately to her big brother, hoping to hear some sense. "Robin. You have to." Robin looked at Kid Flash one last time.
"Robin, hurry!" Aqualad shouted.
Robin and KF nodded their heads once in some silent agreement. Then Robin wrapped his arms around his sister and grabbed her wrists from Wally. Of course, she fought. "No! What are you doing? We can't just leave him!" Abigail screamed.
"Artemis." Robin called. She had lingered, waiting to help Robin if he needed it. Although, she thought it would be to help carry Kid Mouth.. . . Not Nightinggale. Not away from Wally. She helped anyway. "Shhh, sweetie. It's gonna be okay." Artemis was very good at hiding her feelings.
Nightinggale couldn't tell that Artemis was really dying inside. "No. We have to go back." Nightinggale insisted. She fought. Fought hard. Eventually they made it on to the ship. "M'gann, go now!" The Martian didn't need to be told twice. She sent that ship flying.
Miss Martian put the ship on auto, so she could help Wally, but "Where's Kid Flash?" She asked in confusion. Nightinggale just shook her head and collapsed in a heap on the floor and, pulling her legs up to her chest and wrapping her arms tight around her shins, started to sob. Artemis sat down and hugged her and cried too. Robin looked at the pair of crying girls. "Robin. Where is Kid Flash?" Kaldur asked, putting his hand on Dick's shoulder. "I-we-he. . . . .We left him." M'gann gasped. She covered her mouth with her hands in shock.
"What?" Superboy growled. "I didn't want to but. . .But I had to. We both knew that we couldn't carry him to the ship. He told us to go." Dick said. "He told us to." he repeated quietly before going to sit down. He didn't talk the whole way home.
Batman was waiting for the team when they landed. So was Black Canary. They all looked so. . .so desolate. Where was the usual laughter that came along with a finished mission? Where was- "Where's Kid Flash?" Batman asked. No one on the team had called the League. That would mean admitting that Kid Flash was really gone. "Kid Flash was injured. We had to leave him behind." Kaldur said. "What?" Canary asked. Batman was about to demand a better answer when the Atlantian continued. "Forgive, Batman. I know the answer leaves more questions than answers. And we will tell you the whole story, but first, I believe we all need time to wash away this day." Batman just nodded his head. Kaldur never talked so straight forward to him before. He let them pass.
All except for the last three. Robin, Nightinggale and Artemis, who was keeping Nightinggale from collapsing again. "Robin? Nightinggale? Are you alright?" He asked, being the concerned father he was. You could see plain as day that Abigail-for she had removed her mask on the ship-was not alright. But Richard. He wore a mask so thick, Batman didn't know what was going on in his head.
"Well, Batman. You will be proud to know that Robin did what it took for the mission. He didn't let his emotions get in the way of things. He left his best friend to die. So, no. I am not 'alright.' I am furious." Abigail said scathingly. She was also no longer leaning on Artemis. But her strength was short lived, because her legs started to shake again. "I got you, girl." Artemis said gruffly.
As the two girls walked away, Batman looked at the now pained looked on Richard's face. "Richard?" he asked, looking into his son's eyes. "What happened?"
Dick looked into his mentor's eyes. . .well, eye holes. "Just like Abs said. I left my best friend to die." He replied hollowly.
"But what happened?"
Suddenly, Dick's eyes were filled with tears. "I. . . Oh, Bruce." He just couldn't hold it in anymore. He started crying. Bruce pulled down his cowl and hugged the boy. "He got hurt saving Abigail. I didn't want to leave him. I tried to help him, but. . . . I knew there was no way we would get out if we tried. He told me to leave. He told me I had to. So I grabbed Abigail and ran. She fought me. Artemis and I had to drag her to the ship. Now she hates me. And, honestly Bruce, I hate me too!" Dick said with many gasps and much sobbing in the middle.
"Richard. Dick. She does not hate you. She is definitely mad, but she doesn't hate you. Besides, you did-"
"Don't you dare say it. Don't say that I did what I had to. I thought we went through this after that jacked up training exercise! I am not you! I can't be you! You might be able to handle sacrificing a friend, but I'm not! It's like-like-l-l-like a p-p-part of me was ripped away. He was my best friend and I just- just. Mmm." Richard sat down on the floor, hard. He started hyper-ventilating.
"Dick. Dick, look at me." Bruce said, crouching down and grabbing his son's face gently in his hands. "Just breath. Breath. It's alright."
Dick struggled but finally managed to breath normally. "I know that you aren't me. In fact, I don't want you to be. We talked about this. But that doesn't change the fact that you did do what you had to. Not for the mission. For your sister. If you hadn't been strong enough to leave, you both would have been captured and most likely killed. We will get him back. I promise."
Dick just nodded his head and wrapped his arms around his dad's neck. He knew that if anyone could get his friend back, it was the Dark Knight. That's when a thought cam to him. "Oh no." He said, pushing away from Batman.
"What?"
"W-Who's going to tell Barry?"
