The air is buzzing with anticipation as soon as Artemis steps out of the zeta beam into Mount Justice. Or at the very least M'gann is buzzing with anticipation, and the result is more or less the same. Artemis tries not to let it show as she walks through the hallway, keeping the click of her boots at a steady tempo. The last thing they need to do is raise any suspicion.
She checks to see if anyone is around quickly, pulls open one of the hallway doors, and steps inside Wally's room. She can still remember that first weekend after Wally disappeared when no one seemed able to clean the mess left behind by the Flash's frantic search, and the way that people would enter later, like they were on a pilgrimage, and slowly put pieces of the room back to right.
Now it sits pristinely, its sharp lines giving away Wally's absence just as loudly as the chaotic mess once did.
The others are already there, perched on various furniture in a half circle around the room. She hasn't missed much. Robin is just pulling up the files on the screen hovering in the middle of their circle. She slips easily into their mental link, and she can feel the different flavors of anticipation roll about in her stomach.
How does it look?
Robin frowns as he slides through the windows open in front of him. Every report we have indicates that Catwoman has been exclusively in North America for the last four months at least. None of the locations left are specific. Cities, towns, but no actual addresses, and trying to find out the exact location of one isn't going to happen any time soon. Every location is going to require a large search grid.
Artemis falls to her knees, leaning forward to get a better look at the screen. There are five red dots blinking on the map of Northern America. One is in Mexico nestled along the Gulf Coast. Two in Canada: one just above the border, one high up in the icy ranges. In the US there is one dot in the east and one in the west.
We've got to be able to narrow it down better than that, she thinks.
Kaldur hovers his finger over the little dot in Mexico. This section of the Gulf has been affected by several storms in the last weeks. It is unlikely that Catwoman would have been able to obtain transportation from this location to Gotham recently.
A few swift key strokes dims the dot to a cool blue color. We can rule out north Canada this time of year too, Robin thinks, dimming that dot as well.
Conner's fists clench. None of it's going to do any good if we can't get there to look for him.
At this point something its easier said than done. Batman has slowly been giving them more control over the missions. It's not something any of them would be complaining about during normal circumstances, but the time and effort involved in putting together missions, and going through retrieved data barely leaves them any for small meetings like these.
M'gann is wringing her hands together, and Artemis briefly wonders what she'll do after this to work of her nervous energy (the halls still have a lemony fresh sent from Kaldur's stay in the med bay a few weeks ago when she started washing the walls, everything else already tidied away in its proper spot). If we only we had missions in the areas we could search for Wally at the same time.
Robin's face contracts for a second, and then blooms into the wicked smile that usually means he's placed explosives somewhere. That, he thinks. That might just work. We just need to find a low level mission and convince Batman that we should be sent on it.
Of course, thinks Artemis. All we have to do is pull one over on Batman. What could be easier? Why didn't we think of that before?
Kaldur gives an exasperated look. She smiles happily back at him, always glad to help him test his patience. Sarcasm aside this does seem to be our best chance. Robin, can you cross reference these cities with the information we have been sorting through?
Robin's fingers clatter against his keyboard. Already done.
They come up with and get the missions approved; something Artemis is certain required interference from Robin on the home front.
Vancouver, their first stop, is a success only in that they manage to confirm one place Wally isn't, and in the spectacularly quick and boring mission they put together as a cover.
Chicago is next on their list. It's Red Tornado's city, so none of them are too hopeful, but any city known largely for a kind of food has to be worth checking out in a search for Kid Mouth.
They land, camouflaged, on a roof near the target building. Superboy separates from them with a nod. His superhearing and M'gann's telepathy are the two best ways to thoroughly search the city. M'gann stays behind, necessary for the mission at hand no matter how much of a farce it ends up being.
The four of them make their way over to the roof top. The building has an old glass ceiling designed to let light in, and presumably cut even more costs on whatever products were produced at the time. It's the kind of ceiling that makes it ridiculously easy for heroes like them to take a look inside, and they intend use it for just that.
There are several large machines throughout the interior. Artemis isn't sure what exactly they might be used for, but they certainly look evil in the dim lighting available to them. The vats look pretty suspicious as well, light blinking on their sides showing that they are currently in use. Nothing on first sight that screams out at her 'evil lair' so much as 'B grade horror movie set' though.
Robin unhinges one of the panes of glass, pulling it completely out of the sunlight, and M'gann flies in securing a grappling wire to the rafting so that she and Kaldur can follow, Robin jumping down unaided.
Robin flips ahead of them, jumping from one rafter to another with only the lightest touch of hand or foot in between. The offices are this way.
Artemis exchanges an exasperated look with Kaldur, and they follow at a much more sedate pace.
The building is set up in an L shape, the offices and the factory each taking their own section, so Artemis has no warning for the sight that greets her besides Robin's sudden halt.
Below them gathering in silence for what appears to be some sort of prayer are over a hundred Cobra initiates.
Well, maybe the mission isn't going to be a total farce after all.