FudoTwin17: Yo, guys. I'm tired.

Cat: Informative.

FudoTwin17: Yup. Anyways, I'm here to give you guys an update! Yay!

Goldfish # 4: *sarcastically* Yay.

FudoTwin17: *glares*

Goldfish # 7: Don't be mean.

Goldfish # 4: What? This is wrong! All we goldfishes are supposed to be against the author! How-What-

Cat: Um, back to the story. Um, well, she doesn't own YJ. And, please, tell us what you would like FudoTwin17 to update. She would like your opinions. Which reminds me, thank Mily for this update as it was her request that caused Fudo to update. Thank you. And onto the chapter!

FudoTwin17: Uh, yeah. *still in shock*

Chapter 36

"So that's it? All of it?" Questioned the eerily serious voice next to her. Faintly, she couldn't help but think that his voice wasn't meant to be serious. It was always supposed to be joking, light. Not this. Not what it was forced to become by-by her kidnapping and Josh. It was just wrong.

The two of them, Ruxandera and Wally, were in an almost compromising position. If it were anyone else, the position might have been awkward. However, they were best friends, meaning that the barrier that would normally stand between the boy and girl was gone. Their faces were close together, as if they'd been sharing secrets. Her shaking hands had been grasped in his larger ones long ago. Their knees were pushed together, and, though it looked uncomfortable, it was just the opposite. It was comforting.

Rux nodded faintly.

"Wow." Wally breathed, knowing emerald eyes not leaving her face. "I mean-wow."

She chuckled lightly, adjusting so that she could lean against him despite her restricting dress. He pulled her up, wrapping an arm around her before recapturing her hands in his. They stayed there in silence for a moment before Wally opened his mouth again.

"So he seriously hasn't gotten a clue?" Asked Wally, tone too serious for the topic that he had first chosen to tackle.

She sighed, her back shaking slightly with the slight release of breath. "Nope."

For a few moments, they just sat there in relative silence. It was comfortable, as if they were back to being the best friends with nothing that could possibly stand between them. Rux smiled at the thought. She had missed this.

She had missed being with Wally. Young Justice had caused them a fair few fights as well as to cause space to grow between them. Maybe no one would have noticed, but Robin had. She and Wally knew. It was in the arguments, the teasing, and all the little things that seemed to work themselves out later. It had damaged their unique best friend relationship, and Rux hadn't known what to do.

Then she was kidnapped, and it seemed almost like the perfect opportunity to her. Though she was desperate to escape, it seemed as if her kidnapping was the perfect thing for bringing people together. She had met Zatanna (and liked the girl immediately), and she had been able to fix her issues with Wally. She sighed.

The only way to make it better would be to escape.

"So what are you going to do?" Her best friend's words brought her out of her reverie, making her cerulean eyes flash under dark lashes.

"I don't know." She smiled weakly. "At this point, I'm just making it up as I go. I don't have enough forewarning to plan it out. And with having only eight days before he plans to turn me into one of them," Wally's hold on her tightened almost painfully, "I'm all out of ideas."

Wally sighed. "I see. The teams working on it, but it's going to take a little bit of time. Plus, we don't have our tactician where she belongs." Rux smiled lightly. "But we'll do it. I just wish we had more time."

Rux leaned her head back against the soft muscle behind her. "Don't we all."

They lapsed into silence again, both being the other's only comfort within the confined castle walls.

. . .

Megan and Conner were silent as they slid down deserted corridors, checking rooms. The two didn't speak out loud, almost afraid to be caught. Truthfully, though, they weren't really too afraid of being caught considering the fact that only slaves seemed to be the only ones roaming the halls, and the slaves would sooner help them search than turn them in. They were afraid to fail.

Any luck? Asked M'gann silently, eyebrows furrowing as she opened a door only to find a good trapeze set. She couldn't help but think that Robin would like it, but she quickly put it out of her mind, closing the door again. They had to find the room!

No-Wait. Her boyfriend paused at a door, and M'gann was immediately at his side. The door was made of solid titanium, or at least some kind of ridiculously strong metal, and there was a pad on the cream wall. The pad had number keys as well as a screen and a sensor in the shape of a hand. It looked like something that Robin would love.

Do you think this is it? M'gann whispered in her mind, voice coming out raspy despite it not even being carried by sound waves in the real world.

Only one way to find out. She heard his reply. She could practically feel herself shaking in anticipation as Conner scanned the room with his x-ray vision. When a grin slid onto his face, M'gann couldn't help her own tug at her mouth. This is it.

She didn't wait for the other questions that should be on their minds like how to get in or when to get in to appear. She just pulled him down into a happy grin, excitement bubbling up through her lips and the mindlink.

We're almost there!

Soon, they would be free.

Soon, Rux would be free.

. . .

Artemis felt almost violated by the strange man's smile, by the gleam in his one eye. She felt like he knew everything about her and was willing to flaunt it. This was a man that she knew was dangerous, and she knew somehow that she didn't want him as an enemy.

However, despite his intrusive stare, she held her back rigid. She didn't let her hands tremble. She didn't bat a single lash. She didn't show any weakness.

After the short stare, his look lightened (though he still looked ready to take her out), and he chuckled. "You've changed, Artemis."

At the statement, every hair on the back of her head went up. She'd grown? It was as if he had known her at some point, or had talked to her. He sounded like an old teacher that had just seen one of his oldest pupils. It was creepy.

"Do I know you?" She asked, voice firm. He chuckled, seemingly amused.

"Not anymore." He stated. "You've grown into quite the woman. I'm sure your father is proud."

Immediately every single defense mechanism she had instilled into her seemed to scream. She needed to escape, to get away from this man whom she knew knew. He really knew everything. And he was ready to flaunt it.

"I-I-" She found herself stuttering, but was quickly cut off.

"However, that doesn't matter now." His tone was curt and his sentence was clipped. She knew that tone well. Each of her teammates had used it at some point. This man was on a mission. "What matters is that this situation is resolved. They need to be taken down, and I know that you will help."

From out of his sleeve, Artemis couldn't help but notice as he pulled out a small, metallic looking weapon. She tensed automatically, but before she could even prepare herself, he had grasped her wrist and shoved the tool into her hand.

"This is a vibracitor, a sort of vibrator. It will vibrate molecules until they become unstable or until you remove the vibracitor. You will need this soon, and you are the only one that I believe will be able to carry out this task. It'll help you free your friends." He stated, curling her fingers around the cool metal.

"What task?" She asked, shaken by the odd turn of events.

The man smirked. "You will see. Now, I need to make another visit before I go. You'll have to excuse me."

Before he could disappear, though, Artemis called out. "Wait!"

He paused, glancing at her. Artemis opened her mouth and had to shut it again before she could find the right words. "Why do you care what happens to the hero community? You-You're a villain, right? Wouldn't it be better for you if we were out of the way?"

A cold, calculating look slid over his face before he smirked, a deep chuckle bubbling from his lips. "Ignorant girl. Much more than the hero community is at stake here. They are taking over the entire world, making it theirs. If they succeed then there will be no more heroes or villains, just destruction. And even if I managed to remove both the creatures and the superhero community, it would be a loss. A hero can be a villain's greatest foe, but they can also be a villain's greatest tool." He glanced back at her. "Just like right now. You are my tool, and you know it. However, you have little choice. It's either your pride or your new family and friends." He smiled at her. "Now, I really must go."

Cold and shaken, Artemis stared after him. After a moment, she slid the weapon into her boot, finding it the perfect (and only) hiding spot.

Only later would she remember that she had only met one one-eyed mercenary during her childhood.

. . .

It was some time later that Wally and Rux were still leaning comfortably against each other. Slowly, Rux sighed. She was tired and a bit worried. How long would Josh allow her to miss her own after party? She wasn't sure, but she had a feeling that she should go soon.

A growling noise filled the air, interrupting her thoughts. As Wally turned beet red, Rux could help but cackle. "Someone's hungry."

Wally blushed deeper, his ears turning pink to Rux's amusement. "Shut up."

She grinned an impish grin at him. "Wanna go get some food?"

He smiled lightly, still red. "Sure."

Together, they made their way back toward the ballroom, Wally's arm comfortably draped around Rux's neck. She wouldn't have it any other way.

. . .

Kaldur was still pondering what Rocket had said when a pale finger tapped him on the shoulder. He turned, quickly scanning the man. He was tall, one-eyed, and was wearing an expensive looking suit (one that didn't seem to fit in, somehow). Before he could say a thing, the stranger spoke. "I believe you dropped this."

Kaldur frowned as the man slid something into his palm. Glancing down, he realized it was a flash drive, one of the computer plug-ins that Robin had explained to him long ago. He frowned.

He didn't drop this.

Looking back up, he spoke. "I'm sorry, but-"

Kal cut himself off, blinking. The strange man was no where in sight. He frowned unhappily.

And he thought he hated it when Robin did that.

. . .

Cat: That's all for today, folks!

Goldfish # 4: Yeah.

Cat: Can anyone guess who our one-eyed friend is?

FudoTwin17: If not, oh well. It's not that important. But I hope you liked it, and thanks for reading! Oh! And I almost forgot (again)! You guys out there, I want to thank you if you shared something with me or trusted me enough to post something about wanting to write, but being afraid to. However, I do need to say that if you want to write, don't let anything hold you back. There's always going to be that one person who doesn't like the story or feels the need to put you down, but don't let that stop you. If you want to write, write! Words may hurt, but they can be overpowered with a strong will. I love you guys, and I hope that you enjoyed this! I gotta go to church now, though. So . . . bye!