DesertedMirage Says: Sorry it took so long for this. Just a few chapters left now.

RedSharkBait, I forgot to add in my last author's note that it's perfectly fine - I like long reviews. :) Thank you to dispatcher652, bubbles'cute, This is L.

Terry was the first thought in my mind when I regained consciousness. I was under house arrest in my apartment, with guards stationed at my door and patrolling outside the window on the ground. The sky was black; I must have been out for the entire afternoon. I splashed cold water onto my face in the bathroom and took sips to clear my head. I lifted my head to look briefly in the mirror.

He sighed, then frowned in concern when he spotted a cut on my temple, sustained from the sharp rocks in the river.

"You're bleeding…"

With a soft sigh, I touched the cut, then quickly washed and bandaged it.

Terry was in the agency's custody, no doubt. I couldn't know if they had made any other moves yet, but I had a feeling they would want to get information out of him before anything else. This meant I had some time, although I had to use it wisely. I needed to get to him immediately, so that we could communicate and conspire a method of escape.

My plan was to bring the entire Guardian Angel Agency to ruins. There was no other way out.

I hastily paced the floor, trying to assemble my manic thoughts. After so many years of following orders, it was difficult for me to do something contrary to the agency.

I breathed in deeply, perched cross-legged on the end of my bed. My eyes scanned my room, eventually lingering on the laptop in my desk. Good thing I hadn't left it in my office the day before.

I need some help.

Although I was shivering with fear of my own newfound insubordination, I opened the laptop. I knew that they were closely monitoring me...Zeke in particular. He had kept my previous Uptown communication with Terry a secret from my father. This worried me, because I knew that he had an ulterior motive behind his "protection." But I couldn't weigh that risk at the moment; the time was racing away and Terry needed me.

I was sending a distress call to the Batcomputer itself. Oddly enough, I could remember the IP easily, despite the many things I had forgotten. Only Terry, Barbara Gordon and I knew the IP address. Knowing I was chancing the secrecy of the Bat legacy, I typed the message anyway. Concisely as I could, I unfolded everything that Bruce needed to know of our whereabouts, including information about myself to prove to him that it really was me and not an imposter. While I awaited his reply, I rummaged through my kitchen and gathered items for a makeshift utility belt. My first stop would be my office, to retrieve my suit. Until then, I would have to go old school.

I laid out onto my bed a screwdriver, kitchen knife, matches, penlight, extension chords and pepper spray. I was certain I could take the basic security down without many tools, and I also had my identity on my side. They wouldn't want to harm the boss's daughter, now would they?

As for the security cameras, I would handle them the same way I would any others on a mission: set up a false feed by looping the image. All it took was a simple hack into the security system through my computer.

I turned at the sound of an incoming message. I quickly returned to my desk and read the laptop screen.

Our communications will have to be brief, Max. Don't reply to this message; it's dangerous enough that we're in contact at all. Do exactly as you said. Hack the security system and infiltrate the cameras with a false feed. Now that I have your IP, I can access limited control of the cameras as well. I'll make sure there are no glitches with your override. I'll be monitoring from afar, but it's mainly up to you now. Get to Terry and make your escape. Make sure you have a cleared exit from the building if you're planning to use explosives. It's too dangerous for police personnel to ambush the island, so you'll need to leave by boat. I'll see both you and McGinnis soon.

When I closed Bruce's message, I sat in numbness for a moment.

This is it.

With Terry on my mind, I deleted the message for safety purposes, then proceeded to hack into the mansion's local security system and loop the video camera feeds.

I shut my laptop and hid it away into my desk. After securing my homemade utility belt, I used the old-fashioned trick of piling pillows beneath my covers to give the illusion that someone was sleeping in the bed.

I stepped to the window. Sure enough, a guard was walking below, in the grass. Thankfully, I was able to open the antique window without making much noise. The guard moved normally, oblivious. I stretched a leg outside, straddling the window-sill. My room was on the third story of the mansion, and the ground was far below me; good thing I enjoyed heights. I crouched on the narrow ledge, eyeing the premises. There were too many guards patrolling below for me to go it by foot. My best bet was the rooftops. Feeling like my teenage self pre-Batgirl, I tossed the extension chord to wrap around the gutter, then pulled myself up. Gracefully, I swung my legs onto the rooftop and rolled. I stood up cautiously and surveyed my surroundings. The rooftops stretched for yards around. The mansion blended into office complexes, training quarters, the hospital ward, and the security station, where Terry was being held.

First, I needed to get to my office. I sprinted lithely across the uneven roof, feeling a rush in my veins and cool wind filling my chest. The sky above was scattered with stars and a half-moon, but flashing storm clouds hung over the lake in the distance. I paused when I arrived at the air duct which I was sure would eventually lead to my office. With a few twists of my screwdriver, I had tugged off the vent. I dropped inside, landing as lightly as I could into the horizontal, metal cavern. Here, it was cramped, with only a few feet of elbow room on all sides. I crawled along the cold aluminum chamber, grateful that it was summer and thus the metal wasn't hot from the heater. I could see the offices of a few other top agents on the way. All of them were empty at the late hour. After wriggling down another vertical drop, I spotted my office through a vent. Thankfully, it was empty.

I pushed open the vent and slid onto the ground. It was dark inside, and I left it that way so as not to draw attention from outside the closed door. Using my penlight clenched between my teeth, I opened the closet and reached for my suit. After peeling off my clothes, I hid them in my closet and got into costume. Once I had pulled on my cowl and replaced the vent into the ceiling, I moved to the door. I no longer needed the cover of the air ducts, now that I had my suit. I used my infrared vision to check the hallway. Someone was walking by the door. I waited for them to pass, then left my office, locking it behind me. Moving carefully in the shadowy hallway, I leapt across to Axis' door. I pressed two fingers to the surface to hear through the microphones sensors in the suit. Vacant. The next objective required no lock-picking whatsoever; Axis had given me the passkey long ago.

I tapped the code into the keypad and let myself in. I strode up to his closet and pushed aside his business suits and ties.

We can't have Batman fighting without a costume...

Finally, my hand found the angel suit, then folded it and tucked it beneath one arm.

Hmm. Air ducts or roofs?

I glanced up at the vent, scowling.

Roofs.

I opened the window and scaled my way up to the rooftop.

Now I needed to access the security wing.

The security presence was more prevalent when I came upon the portion where the traditional mansion rooftop merged with the industrial concrete. I sidestepped behind an air duct before I could be seen by a rooftop guard toting a gun. When he went the opposite direction and his back was turned, I leapt out and wrapped my body around him. Before he could even let out a cry, I had pressured his neck. His body went limp as he fell, stunned. I bound his wrists and ankles with chord, then hid him in the air duct. Another guard had just turned up ahead, a female. She frowned in confusion upon seeing me.

"Luna, what the hell are you doing up he--"

I silenced her with a tranquilizer dart, then did the same with her as I had the other.

I kept forward, making steady progress toward the prison area. I would need to go inside, where the guards would be practically everywhere. I would have to attract all of the sentinels within the inner sanctum and somehow cut them off from the rest of the wing while I made contact with Terry. My plan was to use my identity and status to my advantage.

Working from the outside in, and trusting that Bruce was ensuring my override on the cameras was holding up, I entered the duct just above the chief security officer's station. The ducts were wider now, and I could walk instead of crawl. I grumbled when I saw the size of the vent leading into the officer's quarters. It was as tall as me, and it wouldn't be as clean of an entrance as it was in the mansion.

I used my screwdriver once again, not wanting to kick it open and cause a stir. The metal creaked, but the burly guard remained seated at his desk, gazing sleepily at the wall of computer monitors. I continued with my unscrewing, then once the lid was free, I held it in my fingers before it could fall and crash to the tile floor. I extended the lid outward, into the room, then carefully lowered it to the floor. He jerked out of his half-asleep state when I leapt into the office. Sluggishly, he turned in his swivel chair. His bleary eyes widened in curiosity.

"You're sneakin' around the vents now, Luna?"

I smirked, lifting a finger up to my lips in a shushing motion. I withdrew the tranquilizer gun from my suit's utility belt. The guard was wide awake now. Before he could reach for his gun, I'd fired. But his size would make it take longer for the chemical to spread. The guard stumbled toward me. He tackled clumsily, but I tripped him with my leg. Once he was on the ground, I pinned a knee against his back and used my chord to bind him.

"Who are you?" he drawled in the throws of unconsciousness.

After he was bound, I lugged him up into the air duct. I parked myself at his desk.

"I'm Max Gibson," I whispered as my fingers rattled on the keys. The main computer system control was in Zeke's office. But I could at least disable the cameras in the security wing from here, and see which cell Terry was in. My eyes scanned the twenty-five monitors, each one showing a different hallway or prison cell. Finally, I spotted him. His cell was large and dim, with stone walls and floors. His wrists were chained behind his back, against the wall.

I felt a warm lump rising in my throat, seeing him like that. Knowing I had to move quickly, I looped the image on each camera, then left the office.

The hallway was vacant, but the walkway leading to Terry's cell was on a bridge outside of the building. It led to a tower where a sniper was stationed. This led to yet another bridge and tower. There were four in total, forming a square around a central corridor, where Terry's cell lay. I would have to subdue each sniper and hope I wasn't seen from the ground officers. All it would take was a single slip, and my mission would fail. Not even angels were allowed to walk around the high security area of the agency's prison without a passkey.

I would have to move with stealth and speed. It was the only way to avoid being seen below.

I stood at the doorway leading to the first bridge. The wind had picked up substantially, and the night air swept into my direction. I crouched and lay flat on my stomach, then inched out onto the bridge. Carefully, I grasped one of the iron rungs of the railing, then shifted my body over the edge. Using the magnetic technology in the fingertips and feet of the suit, I crept upside down on the underside of the bridge. Hopefully, to the guards below, I was one with the shadows, in my black suit. My heart throbbed with apprehension as I made my way to the tower. My head was taught with pressure from being upside down, and I had to focus to see the inverted view of the tower.

Once I'd arrived, I pulled myself up to the bridge, being careful not to make a sound. The tower was windowless, with only a pointed metal roof above the sniper. I knew a few of the snipers that worked here, and they were all serious men who were masters at their craft. Not only were they skilled marksmen, but they were known for their hand-to-hand combat as well. While they weren't angels, they were still some of the top-rated agents at the headquarters, since they guarded my father's captives.

I gathered a deep breath. I would have to do my best to make a sneak attack on him before he could send out an alarm for backup.

I released the breath I'd been holding. The sniper whirled.

Panicking for a moment, I remained still.

"ID yourself!" he snarled, gun trained onto me.

Great!

I glanced at the weapon. "India," I tried to keep my voice level.

The sniper's brow creased in skepticism. He glared from behind his sunglasses.

"I'll remove my mask." I lifted my hands slowly to my neck. The sniper's stare followed with hawk-like precision.

When my cowl was slid back onto my neck, the guard's jaw tensed.

"Don't make this difficult," he advised severely while lowering his weapon. He wasn't ready to risk causing me harm.

"But it's much more fun that way," I murmured, then pounced.

The guard was strong in his body-armor, and it took a great amount of work to wrestle him to the ground. But he suddenly flipped me, reversing my progress. I wrapped a leg around his knee, attempting to dislocate it, but he held firm.

Think!

I relaxed and ceased struggling. The guard puffed a sigh, reaching for his tranquilizer with one hand. Before he could use it, I flung my head back into his face. He fell back, holding his bloody nose. Instantly, I was on my feet, kicking his tranquilizer and sniper rifle to the side. The guard was beginning to recover, so I swiftly used the tranquilizer. I missed on the first shot, and he thrust me into the railing with a bone-crushing swoop. I reached up to grasp him in a headlock before my arms could be pinned, then quickly injected his neck at point-blank range. He fell back, staggering and reaching for his communicator. I snatched it away just as he fell to the ground, and cancelled the call before it could be sent.

"One down, three to go…" I muttered while stretching my aching back. After I'd bound the sniper, I noticed a black figure jogging toward me on the bridge, from the other tower.

Slaggit.

Obviously, the scuffle had drawn some attention. My cowl was still unadorned, and I left it off.

"Freeze!" shouted the sniper, weapon aimed.

I don't have time for this.

Deciding to eliminate this one quickly, I began to walk forward a few steps, hands raised as a sign of surrender. As I drew nearer, this sniper, too, looked baffled upon recognition of my face.

This one chose to try to call for help before dealing with me, however.

"Code red, there's a distu--"

My batarang rendered the sniper's communicator useless, and I rocketed forward, aiming for their knees. I was able to tranquilize him and tie him without as much of a fight as with the other.

But two others still remained. My method of working the perimeter wasn't succeeding as smoothly as I'd hoped, and I knew I needed another approach. After dumping the second sniper next to the first in the tower, I deduced that the bridges were no longer a safe plan of travel. I looked up at the sky, now amassing dismal, black clouds. Raindrops began to drizzle, and the wind swirled unpredictably, switching direction with each second.

I'll have to fly.

The rain would help to conceal me, but the wind would make it difficult to steer. With a sigh, I leapt into the air and spread my wings. With difficulty, I flew about fifty feet above the towers, all the while being pummeled with rain and angry gusts. I hovered above the third tower, then made a dive bomb to the bridge. Before the sniper could turn, I'd flung a chord, yanking him to the ground. Once he was unconscious, I flew to do the same with the final sniper guarding the central prison chamber. The last was firing his gun upon sight of me. I had to dodge the bullets before I could attack. I let a yell escape when one caught in the shoulder of my suit. While I didn't think that it had pierced my skin very far, the impact sent a painful jolt through my muscle tissue. When the final sniper was out, I leaned for a moment against the railing, hunched over and pressing a hand to my collar. Removing it, I saw ruby blood smeared on the black fingers of my suit.

I had only felt a bullet in my skin three times. Once when on a mission with Axis and Luna, now, and when I had saved Terry in Gotham three years ago. The burning was intense, and I felt white hot pressure in my eyes while I struggled to bear the pain. Some of my agony was fear-induced, because I had been deeply traumatized by my first experience with a gunshot wound.

You're almost there, Max!

Swallowing back the cry in my throat, I clawed myself up to my feet. Now that the snipers were no longer a concern, I could move with more freedom across the final bridge.

I had to grasp the railing several times to steady myself as I moved cautiously across the bridge in the open air. The wind fought to blow me over the edge, and the rain was traveling in diagonal sheets. When I stood outside of the heavily secured door leading into the top security prison, I reached into my belt compartment for one of the keycards I'd swiped from a guard. With a quick scan across the sensor, I was admitted entry.

The rain was muted against the heavy concrete and steel walls of the prison, and I used my ears and infrared vision to see around corners and partially through walls. The hallways were dark and narrow, but eventually I arrived at an open space with black stone walls and bare light bulbs flickering on the ceiling. Some areas of the floor were well-lit, others were shrouded in darkness. But most notably, three guards stood before a pair of titanium doors. Still hiding in the shadows of the hallway, I replaced my mask, then casually walked inside.

"Luna? We weren't expecting you," noted a guard with a suspicious edge in his voice.

I felt my heart hammering wildly in my chest. If I was caught now, in here…it would all be over. I was deep within the center of the prison, with the only way out being the exact way I'd come in. It wouldn't be hard for them to trap us here. And they were sure to hasten Terry's death, if they found me.

I exhaled inaudibly to calm my nerves.

"Boss's orders. He wants me to administer serum--to get him to talk," I answered quietly, hoping they would think I sounded like her, and that I had been right in my assumption that they were planning to give Terry truth-serum before the execution.

The other two guards shared glances, their stern expressions unreadable. The one who had questioned me crossed his muscular arms over his chest.

"We didn't receive the memo."

"The storm's interfered with some of the communication. Now can I get this over with?" I gave my best attempt to imitate Luna's short-temper. If they bought this, I would be amazed.

The leader eyed me, top to bottom. I reached up to rub my neck, trying to hide the gunshot wound; I hoped I hadn't been too late.

The guard eventually stepped to the side, gesturing at the others with a wave of his hand. Reluctantly, they followed suit. The door was right in my path.

Sighing indignantly, I walked ahead. My pulse was galloping in disbelief that they had accepted my alibi. My thoughts tumbled over to Terry, who was just beyond the door.

But the light at the end of the tunnel was suddenly snuffed out.

The chief guard stepped into my path. "You know our drill, Luna. Show your face."

I supplied the first response that came to mind.

"And if I decide not to?"

The guard smirked, narrowing his eyes.

"We won't know that it's really you."

The guard on the left had moved from the door to directly behind me, and my eyes caught the other as he readied a chord from his belt.

The next instant, I had been grabbed by the guard behind me. The other tossed the chord, and my arms were pinned to my sides. Just as the chief reached for my cowl, I pulled up my legs to fire my rocket boots into his chest. As he went spiraling into the wall, the other guard and I were thrown into the opposite direction. When we collided into the wall, the guard slumped onto the ground. I still had two to deal with, and they each lunged. I dropped with an agile skid across the floor, then balanced on my palm while flourishing my legs. My kicking tripped the two, and I rapidly grasped my tranquilizer gun in the moment their backs were turned. One shot succeeded, but the other was off by a hair.

The chief guard was left standing, now angrily readying his gun. When he fired, I deflected with a swipe of the metal spikes on my arm. He continued to fire, but I was flying around the room now, trying to find a spot in the shadows to hide and drop-attack from.

"You can't hide up there forever!" taunted the guard once I'd vanished from sight, hiding on the ceiling. He shot blindly, blowing out one of the few light bulbs as he did so. Warily, I crawled along to another spot once his bullets began to ricochet too closely for my comfort. I unleashed a flurry of batarangs randomly, to distract him as well as to shatter the remaining lights. This fight would be easier in the dark.

The gunshots were more frantic now that it was pitch black. I used my night vision to find him, then jumped him from above. He was tall and heavy, and it took me a moment to have a free hand available to tranquilize him.

The silence following the struggle was a stark contrast, and the darkness made me shudder. I panted, holding my bleeding shoulder. After checking to make sure all three were knocked out, I finally walked up to the door. Taking a moment to compose myself and catch my breath, I readied the keycard.

Invalid ID.

I grumbled in frustration. This wasn't the right key.

What could it be?

I leaned in exhaustion against the ice-cold metal door, my fists pressed to my forehead. Lazily, my eyes rolled around the room. I was growing wearier by the moment, and it was getting harder to think clearly.

I turned and looked at each fallen guard.

Maybe I need their keys?

I gathered each guard's keycard, then returned to the door. And with a swipe of each, a click echoed from deep within the thick layers of titanium. It was the most welcoming sound I could hear at that moment. The door shrieked and cranked as it slid open. I waited to see inside.

The dungeon before me was a circular castle tower, a chamber of shadow and stone. A muted sapphire ring of light streamed from high above. I looked up to see windows some thirty feet up. My eyes followed the beams down to the ground, where they bathed the center of the space, and the edge of the glow rested on a figure against the wall.

His hands were bound in chains behind his back, his shirt was tattered and shred, and his form shivered very slightly.

My heart skipped in compassion, and I took quiet steps toward him. He hadn't looked at me yet, and kept his head down. I paused within a few feet of him, standing in the brightest spot of the room. Terry finally raised his head to look up at me.

His eyes glowed blue in the dimness. They held no recognition in them, though, as we stared at each other.

I reached up to my neck and slowly peeled back my mask.

"Max..." he whispered with a smile as I dropped to my knees and wrapped my arms around him.