This is familiar Arrowette thought as she saw Lutwidge standing with WonderGirl in his arm and a gun in his hand. She sighed, exasperated. All she wanted to do was go home and sleep. Arrowette thought for a second that Robin had given off the same sigh.


"Do you really think this is the time to play war games when half your compound is destroyed and escapees are getting away." Robin said matter-of-factly. Everyone stood still watching Lutwidge's moves. His hand clutching the gun so tightly his knuckles were turning white. As if watching an old western movie, they watched Robin, cool and calm but fatigued, approach Lutwidge. When Robin drew near Lutwidge's head jerked and his index finger twitched against the trigger. "This is not the time to negotiate. The battle is over. Why don't you put down WonderGirl, and we'll help you round up the subjects and forget it ever happened." Robin's voice was soft and reasonable. But Lutwidge's green eyes burned with madness.


"You can't win this one! I have the upper hand!" He shook WonderGirl's unconscious form. Robin began to wonder if the insane stage of the disease had gotten to him already.


Secret floated softly over to Arrowette and whispered to her, "Lutwidge doesn't have the cure." Arrowette cocked an eyebrow and looked directly at Secret.


"What?" She whispered harshly.


"I found it earlier, it was in a big white container but I lost it." Secret said solemnly looking at the mounds of the broken room. Arrowette's eyes widened.


"You mean…" Arrowette's gaze looked over the broken pieces and Secret nodded.


"It's somewhere in there." Secret glanced toward the debris. Arrowette thought for a second. She needed to be there with Robin as back up incase Lutwidge got out of control. And if he dare hurt Cassie…she'd kill him. Secret and Marina could easily slip through the cracks in the broken pieces to find the cure the way they'd done for Robin. She turned to Secret.


"Secret, get Marina and start going through the ruins to find the white case. I'll stay here and as soon as you get it, we need to give it to Bart." Arrowette told Secret silently. Secret wafted slowly trough the air towards Marina who was hiding away.


Robin spoke to the crazed man carefully choosing his words. "Just put her down…we'll get these guys back in their cells and then we'll just…leave." He carefully advanced toward Lutwidge. Robin knew that in a hostage situation with an insane psycho you have to try to play it toward their angle.


If Lutwidge is in his insane stage, Arrowette thought, he can't be reasoned with. Arrowette's eyes widened in a sudden realization Robin doesn't know that. He was first to go insane and he never saw when Bart went nuts. He must not know that the insanity stage increases someone's power!


"Rob…." Arrowette hissed towards him urgently. Robin's eyes hadn't left Lutwidge's. He uttered softly.


"What…" Robin kept coming closer ever so slowly. Arrowette came up behind Robin carefully trying not to attract too much attention. She whispered into his ear.


"Robin, I think he might be in the second stage"


"That's why I'm just going to ease him out of th—"


"No!" Arrowette interrupted him. "If he's in the second stage he CAN'T be reasoned with! He's going to go all out insane and start destroying stuff mindlessly! And he'll have amazing power."


"Amazing power?" Robin cocked an eyebrow skeptically glancing at Cissie.


"Yes amazing power! This disease increases someone's po—" Right then Lutwidge backhanded Robin with the gun forcing him to crash into Arrowette sending them both to the ground. "Oof!" Arrowette cried as she hit the ground and Robin fell onto her. Lutwidge's gun pointed down towards the two.


"It's my turn to talk now." Lutwidge said in a cold voice.


* * * *


"Come on, we have to go find a white case." Secret gently floated down next to Marina. She was hiding behind a large pile of debris curled up into a ball. Her crystal blue eyes looking up at Secret.


"Do you think that it'll do any good?" She asked coyly. Secret seemed a little surprised at the question but nodded.


"Yeah, of course it will. When we get the case we'll be able to help cure all the infected people. Come on, let's go." Secret began to head towards the rubble when she heard Marina sob.


"Oh Suzy!" She cried into her watery hands, "Maybe we should just give up! I didn't…I didn't mean to do all this! I just wanted to...to help! Maybe if I just go quietly, maybe he'll let everyone else go." She said softly trying, in vain, to wipe away her tears. Secret floated beside her.


"Don't cry Marina. And don't give up. We have to do this. There are a lot of people counting on us. We can't just give up. Not after all this! Come on Marina, let's just finish this." She offered a warm smile and Marina nodded slowly.


The two headed toward the pile of rubble and began to slowly go through the pieces, slipping through cracks, looking for the white container. They were tired and aching and all Marina wanted to do was sleep. They could here the sounds of Lutwidge's voice outside and they both shuddered.


"You don't know what this is going to do to my reputation and my career. We had scientists working on the NW5 project for months! The government was expecting the substance to be done by New Year's. Do you realize how far you've set back this project? Do you have any idea how many people you've infected? This could turn into a world wide epidemic!" Lutwidge shouted spitting the words out. "The first time you kids came to the D.E.O you were smart, oh yes. You broke out our subjects. You destroyed our facilities. But not again. I will not let it happen again! I swear…" Lutwidge continued on ranting.


Red Tornado had been watching the event for a while and he couldn't wait around any longer. He had the responsibility of watching over the fallen, Superboy and Impulse. But he couldn't stand by and not do anything. He looked back at the two boys hidden safely from harm. Red Tornado thought just how much longer Impulse had and he felt the slightly familiar feeling of sadness wash over him. But now was not the time for sorrow. It was now time for action.


"…much money a year! Do you know how little that is?! And the cost of this room alone…" Lutwidge had been going on like this for a while now. Waving his gun dramatically toward the crowd every now and then causing them to duck. But the gun would always return to Robin and Arrowette.


"Arrowette," Robin whispered softly to her. "on the count of three, you roll to the left." Robin had to do this quick and be careful about it. If anything went wrong…he tried to concentrate.


"…2TDNII and subject 6AHSDD! And you think that…" Lutwidge cried out, complaining.


"1…" Robin whispered


"…you can just come in here and destroy WHATEVER you want and…"


"2…"


"I DON'T THINK SO! Do you just go into any…"


"3!" Robin cried and Arrowette rolled to the left as Robin pushed Lutwidge's gun upward suddenly. A shot fired off into the sky but was hidden quickly by the dense fog. Robin wrestled the gun away, breaking a few of Lutwidge's fingers. Lutwidge howled and pain clutching his digits. Suddenly, as if it had been planned, Red Tornado swooped down from the bleakness grabbing WonderGirl from Lutwidge's arms. Robin acted quickly, took off his cape putting it over Lutwidge's head entrapping him. With a quick punch he knocked him unconscious. Robin turned back to his teammates. "Good work guys…"


All of a sudden, they heard a voice call from behind them.


"Hey guys!" Marina cried, "I found it! I FOUND IT!"