After 15 minutes of silence, we all were unsure where to start talking. Though Kaldur certainly knew there were reasons I never spoke of my past, nobody else knew what to say. Bringing up conversations is not my strong suit either. "So how did Artemis know to contact Ra's and Talia? Or even Bruce for that matter?" Clark was curious.
"Emily Blackwell, Evelyn's mother, was so dedicated to her job, to the point she forgot about the one job my mom tried to have. Taking care of her kids. Talia had become a mother that Evelyn didn't have and they've been in frequent contact. I never mentioned it to the League because I wanted to make sure who we had with us. Once I revealed Techna's unveiled face, everything was confirmed for Talia and Ra's. Evelyn Blackwell was Techna. So I tried to keep them in the loop while learning more about Emily and Dylas. It turns out Dylas isn't doing this for the reasons we thought," Artemis explained.
"Let me guess. Another trying to impress my mom and convince her to stick around plot?" Artemis and Green Arrow looked at me. "I may not have seen them in years, but I know my parents and their relationship isn't the best."
"It is rather unsettling how well you know them for how distant you've been," Ra's answered and I let out a hollow chuckle. Does he forget what he's done in the past? Who he's trained? "Should I be concerned?"
"The more things change, the more they stay the same." Standing I glanced out the window before getting a beep on my communicator. "What's up Zach?" Doc and Drew never tell me or Zach when we're out on missions, so communicators are usually the giveaway. We don't use our cellphones unless our communicators are on the fritz, even for casual conversation. Reminds us of our duty to protect the people of Earth.
"I'm going after them. I've got a lock on Emily and that means Dylas is there. He's in Gotham." Before I could even think I grabbed my face shields. Everyone stared at me as I secured them to my face. "They stand no chance against me. With my power I can outfox them all."
"Zach no. You don't stand a chance against Dylas and his creatures. Stand down. The Team will pursue," I assured before the line went dead. "Zach? Zach you better damn well respond." With nothing I scoffed and looked at Kaldur and Nightwing. "Don't ever repeat that I said this but I will need your help. Zach's being a dumbass and going after Dylas alone. He stands no chance."
"Agreed. Those creatures punctured Bruce's liver," Superman answered and I glared at him making him cringe. He knows the exact damn reason his friend got his liver punctured and it was all for the sake of a show when I had no clue.
"He only got punctured because he was trying to act all chalant with his company." Bruce glared at me and I chuckled. "You know I'm right so don't get all Bat glaring at me."
"If you have to, resort to that. Do not let your brother die if you can prevent it," Ra's ordered me which made me nod and run off with the others in the Bioship.
"Did you get a fix on him?" Kaldur and the others were still suiting up while I was setting the coordinates into the ship. Zach's tracer was working beautifully which meant I could take shortcuts to where we needed to go.
"Luckily," I answered showing the Gotham North High. "It's a large enough school that he could easily hide himself and his creatures there." Arriving, Zach's bike was there. "Zach's got a head start against us. We have to catch up with him."
"Of course," Kaldur answered as we walked inside. Looking around, there were no signs of the creatures nor of Dylas. "It's quiet."
"Too quiet." Nightwing and I had the same feelings, though it was clear only Nightwing could express it verbally. Zach's quiet when he's looking around, but with the roughly 15 minute head start he had on me, there should be a growl or even a voice.
"Zach," I called into his communicator. "Zacharias respond." With no words I tracked his communicator to the pool area.
"Evelyn, have you got him? Have you got our boy?" Oh no. Not the time for them to be contacting me about this matter. Why do my aunt and uncle pick when I'm mid mission to ask these vital questions that pick at me too?
"I've got a lock on his communicator. I'll call with updates soon," I answered cutting them off before opening the rooms to the pool area. On the benches was his communicator. "Zach! This isn't funny. Where are you?" Before I could say much more, a sound of water moving caught my attention and I gasped as I saw it.
"Wing," I stammered which was met immediately with 5 different beeps of communicators coming on air.
"What is it? Techna what's the matter?" Batman had never seen me like this. I stammered no intelligible words. "Nightwing get to her. Now."
"Kaldur and I are coming right now Techna. Do not move." That's easy to do considering what I'm seeing in front of me. Red. Dark red. Rusty colors. By the time the doors opened again and they walked to me, they saw what I was pointing to.
"Batman we need a medical team. A coroner more specifically." Kaldur knew how to remain calm which is something that I can give him credit for. I can't pull this off without pretending that I myself am dead. But Zach makes emotions spur in me that I don't feel often. Care. Worry. Name anything weak and that's me when it refers to Zach.
"That's for the dead," Superman warned. For 5 minutes nobody spoke again. "Techna talk to me. What's happened?"
"He. He," I stammered before breaking and covering my mouth at the sight of Zach in the pool face down in his own blood with some chlorine.
"Zach was killed," Nightwing informed before we all heard it. Movement behind us and I growled before aiming my hand and it glowed red before securing a fix on a creature that lunged out at us.
"Shit," I snapped before jumping sideways and grabbing my glove and pressing it to the neck of the Canis Lupern (wolf with sharper teeth robot) and electrocuting it until it short circuited out. "God damn it," I spat.
"Language," Kaldur, Superman and Drew responded. I glared at Kaldur and he shrugged before helping me up. I took off my glove and shook it a bit.
"What did you do?"
"My glove allows me to shock. But being a computer whiz was what I became so I wouldn't rely on this weird power I have," I explained to Nightwing. He waited as we now were waiting on a medical team to come and collect Zach. "When my parents first left me to train with the League of Shadows, I had to grow up quite quick. I learned to fight grown men. Engage six hundred of them. Slowly Ra's said that he saw a talent in me that was rare. He trained me to be able to sense my surroundings at a heightened level. That's why my hand glows red. It's a part of that. We never understood it. Then as I trained, I began to study more and gained another ability. I'm able to move objects with my head. I try to keep things close, so nobody sees. At least while I was posing as Techna. Mere computer whiz for Young Justice."
"I never mentioned anything to Kaldur until the engines failed. When the engines failed, I knew there was no right time. Kaldur had to know the truth about who you were. When I uncovered you were Emily Blackwell, it made me proud. You took that advice seriously." I chuckled knowing what he was referring to. When we lived in Gotham I had went by Hunter for a criminal name. Nightwing and Robin took me out and told me to consider changing my act. Which I did. "It didn't matter to me that you were Emily Blackwell. Your actions were speaking much louder than the words. Like how we ignore the venom you spray at Garfield when you're ticked off."
"Essentially," I chuckled. When the medics arrived, they looked at us and Kaldur nodded. We both slipped into the water and I winced as I touched my cousin's body and helped lift it, to see a stab wound and a weapon left. Snagging it silently, I bagged it and hopped out with Kaldur helping me since the pool was pretty low in the ground.
"What did you grab?" Kaldur would see me obviously and I pulled out the weapon. "That's tampering with the evidence."
"Not really. Not if I bring it to League Headquarters and analyze." He looked at me stunned and I chuckled. "I wore a glove and used the telekinesis to move the knife so my hand wouldn't actually touch the prints."
"Smart thinking. Let's get back to base," Nightwing answered. Walking onto the ship I glared at the sky ahead of me. Dylas and Emily Blackwell had best prepare for the fight of a lifetime when I get my hands on them. Nobody touches Zach and dares to speak of it again. But worst of all, nobody kills Zach and lives to tell the tale.