Chapter 10: Bereft

A/N: Welcome back, folks. Chapter number 10! Don't have anything to say really other than the usual 'we only own out OC's' drill.

Cowriting and editing done by Batmarcus, Ghost Fire 6, and Lord Zeppelin.

Bialya, September 4, 00:52 EEST

The first thing she noticed was the cool sand beneath her, before M'gann opened her eyes to behold the starry sky and the moon hanging above her. "T'er sacandro…?" The green skinned telepath muttered to herself as she sat up, only for her to notice her surroundings. 'S'kar miran? Telja a'jar H'ronmeer...?' She thought to herself in her native language, seeing the color of the sand. 'F'roj a'mar? P'edi a'r Ma'alec'andra…' She thought, finding herself in a black uniform, beginning to put the pieces together. The single moon, the lack of H'ronmeer's Keep, the yellow sand, the uniform she was wearing, the fact that she was breathing oxygen... "Hello Megan! I'm on Earth!" Miss Martian exclaimed in English, only for her brow to furrow. 'But what am I doing on Earth? And why am I wearing this costume?' None of this made any sense. Why was M'gann on Earth? The last thing she could remember, she was on Mars with her family, preparing to receive a new series of transmissions from her uncle J'onn on Earth…

Her reminiscing was cut short as an object impacted next to her, the Martian was temporarily blinded by the upturned sand. When the dust settled, she saw a young man in a black t-shirt and jeans, a wild expression on his face. "Who…?" She started to ask, when she noticed the red S on his shirt. That symbol… she recognized it from the transmissions her uncle had sent them. "Are you… Superman?" Apparently not, judging from how the boy's face twisted into an expression of rage.

"Grahhh!" He yelled out, ripping off the S and charging at her. She barely got into the air in time to dodge as he impacted the ground where she had been, only for a crippling headache to hit her.

"Stay out of my head!" Superboy yelled out, slamming his fist on the countertop hard enough to crack it, startling her.

"...Superboy?" The name just came to her, but if Superboy recognized it, he gave no indication. Instead, he roared and leapt up at her. Miss Martian's eyes glowed green as Superboy's fist collided with a telepathic shield, which she quickly converted into a blast that sent him flying back to the ground. When he recovered, Superboy looked up at the sky, only to be greeted with the sight of the starry, moonlit night.

"Grahhhh!" The Kryptonian yelled out, before he went leaping off. Once she was certain he was gone, M'gann removed her head and ceased her cloaking.

'What's going on? Superboy didn't recognize me at all…' She thought, when her brow furrowed. 'Come to think of it, why do I recognize him? The transmissions my uncle sent never mentioned a Superboy…' Miss Martian frowned, before she sighed in frustration. 'I won't get any answers here. I need to start moving.' And with that, she flew off, unaware of the sleeping archer just behind the rocks…

Morning

Francis stumbled to his feet, steadying himself against the rock he'd woken up behind. "Oh, Christ…" He groaned out, his head throbbing. The bright sun didn't help, though it was a little easier when Trickshot activated his mask's polarized lenses. 'Where am I? Sure as hell not in Kansas anymore…' He thought to himself, but before the young archer could ponder it anymore, he heard the sound of an engine approaching. Trickshot could barely get into a good hiding position before the jeep tore around the corner, narrowing his eyes as he took note of the uniforms of the Middle Eastern soldiers in the vehicle, particularly the bee-like insignia on her shoulder. 'Those uniforms… those are for the Bialyan Republican Army …' Trickshot noted, only for his brow to furrow as they drove off. 'Since I doubt they invaded Arizona overnight, that means I'm in Bialya. But how'd I get here?' He reached to activate his communicator and radio for help…

"Maintain radio silence." Batman ordered. "It is imperative your presence remain undiscovered by the Bialyans."

...only to move his hand down. 'Ok, so Batman has something to do with the reason I'm here.' Trickshot leaned against the rock, only to feel something in one of his suit's back pockets. He reached in and pulled out what looked like a small black device with a Bat-logo affixed to the bottom. He pressed a button, and the screen turned on to show a topographical map of Bialya. There were two dots, one blue and one red. 'These are obviously mission points, but what…' He stopped when he spotted the date at the bottom of the screen.

"September?!" He exclaimed, suddenly clamping down on his mouth and seeing if he could duck behind the rocks more so than he already had. Looking around to make sure no Bialyan soldiers heard him, Francis slumped back against the rock. March had just begun, so how could it be September? He was in Bialya, all alone, forbidden to contact anybody, six months just gone and…

'No. Calm down.' A more rational voice inside of him spoke up, Francis taking a deep breath. 'Stay calm, observe the facts.' He was in Bialya, a rogue state that refused to honor to the Justice League's UN charter. Batman had something to do with that reason, and whatever it was had something to do with the coordinates on the GPS. Something had obviously transpired that wiped his memory, but he had no idea what it was. He concentrated, thinking as hard as he could… only to come up with nothing. All he could think of was a girl with green skin and red hair, and a smile that got his heart pounding. "M'gann…" He muttered, only to blink in confusion.

Who was that? Why did she make him feel all warm and fuzzy? 'Worry later. For now, remember your training.' The voice in his head was right. All he had was the two set of coordinates, so for now, all Trickshot could do was head North, heading to the coordinates for the red dot closest to him, and hopefully, to the answers he was looking for.

Not too far away, T'zari slowly rose to his feet, groaning as his eyes adjusted to the bright morning sun. "What in Bast's name…" He groaned out, and got to his feet.

VMMMMMM

"Hey, easy. No sudden movements." The voice of a young man spoke up behind him, White Wolf took a deep breath, he spun around and kicked the black and blue gloved hand away as the unknown armored man fired an energy blast of some sort. Acting on reflex, he extended vibranium claws he didn't even know he had, and slashed the chest of the armored man in front of him. But when this didn't force him down, T'zari held his claws to the man's throat…despite his opponent holding a hand at the Wakandan's chest, his weapon powering up.

"Who are you and where have you taken me?" T'zari growled out, but the armored teen's tone didn't change.

"Funny, I was about to ask you the same question." He replied, getting narrowed eyes from White Wolf. "I'm picking up vibranium in your suit. Are you Wakandan?"

"... I am." He answered, and took note of the design of the armor. "Are you… Iron Man?"

"Iron Knight, thank you very much." Iron Knight responded, and looked down at the suit. "Though I've never seen this armor before. I just… woke up in it-"

"With no memory." T'zari finished for him, looking at his own costume. "I am… unfamiliar with my own attire as well."

"Sounds like we're in the same boat." Iron Knight responded, the repulsor powered down as White Wolf removed his claws from Knight's throat. "Sorry about that. Didn't know if you were behind this or what."

"No need. I would have done the same in your position." T'zari reassured before looking at the claw marks he had left on the other. "My apologies for that."

"No worries, it's only on the surface. You didn't hit anything too important." The other amnesiac responded, letting out a sigh as he lifted up his faceplate. "I'm Nolan, by the way. Nolan Stark."

"T'zari, son of-"

"-T'challa and Mari McCabe." Nolan finished for him, only for him to blink in confusion. "You're Black Panther's son. How do I know you're Black Panther's son?"

"And I know that isn't your primary suit of armor, merely it's stealth variant..." The Wakandan Prince responded, and Nolan's faceplate shut.

"Hey, uh… what's the last date you remember?" Nolan asked, and T'zari's brow furrowed.

"March…"

"Well, hope you didn't have any plans for the next six months, because, well… it's September, according to my armor's system clock."

"Hm. So as I suspected, our memories have been erased." The white clad Wakandan stated.

"So did you also suspect that we're in Bialya?" The boy genius across from him asked, causing his new friend's eyes to widen.

"That… is not something I had considered." He said, and Nolan tapped his chin.

"Who would bring the prince of Wakanda and an American heir to Bialya?"

"I can think of reasons Queen Bee would seek to harm me." White Wolf ominously stated.

"Well I can't think of what I did to piss her off, but I know where we can find answers." Nolan spoke up, pointing west of their position. "I'm picking up a Stark Tech signal from over there, and considering Bialya's on my dad's 'no sale' list…"

"It must have something to do with what brought us here," The Prince concluded. "Very well. I do not mind being carried, if that is what is required."

"Uh, I wouldn't worry about that too much." Nolan stated. "When you called this a stealth armor, you weren't kidding. No flight, limited weapons… and not designed for extended use. Battery's pretty low, meaning that we've been out here for a while."

"So it seems we have quite a journey ahead of us," T'zari remarked, and his companion sighed.

"Well, we might as well start walking."

This was not the first time X-23 had ever woken up in a strange place. Sometimes, it seemed to the young clone that her handlers took extra delight in tormenting her, including but not limited to gassing and dropping her with little information.

However, this was new. Rather than a cargo plane or a car, X-23 was laying on the hot desert sand, the sun beaming down on her. She checked her wrist, expecting to see a mission timer with instructions, only to find a strange black glove. Come to think of it, X-23 had never seen the clothes she was wearing before. It seemed like something they would have given her-it was smart, tactical, efficient-but that would have been too generous for them… especially with the red X on the belt.

"Logan…" She whispered out, and for a second, she was stunned. The clone knew of Weapon X, of course. Videos of him served as the basis for her training, and she viewed them as nothing more than her source material. But when she said his name just now… X felt all warm inside, like there was someone looking out for her.

But that wasn't her reality. She had a mission, and she needed to figure out what that was.

"Laura?" A voice asked, she immediatelyspun around as she popped her claws, being greeted with the sight of a man in a black full bodysuit with a white spider logo. "Whoa, easy!"

"How do you know that name?!" She growled out.

"I-I don't know! I just saw you standing there and the name just popped into my head and WHOA!" Scarlet Spider barely managed to dodge as X-23 charged him, rolling from a slash from her claws. Though she kept at him, forcing him to leap and twist his body from another slash. He prepared to catch a spinning kick, only for his spider sense to alert him as she popped a foot claw, fortunately bending backwards n time that his only wound was a small slash across his chest. "Hey, watch the claws!" X-23 didn't respond, instead slashing and kicking at the arachnid. "Oh this is going to suck…" He muttered to himself, catching her kick by her heel and activating a bio-electric shock. He winced as the red electricity backfired on him, but it seemed to do the trick and stun Laura.

"Hrrrg…" She groaned out, senses num from the shock.

"Ok, so are you willing to talk now?"

"Fuhhhh…"

"I'm sorry I had to do it, but for some reason you trying to kill me brought back memories of being trapped in some sort of weird horror movie." Scarlet Spider apologized. "Now, you willing to-" He started…then before his spider sense went off again.

"Freeze!" A heavily accented voice yelled, and Carter looked up to see Bialyan soldiers surrounding them. "Surrender, in the name of her royal Majesty Queen Bee!" Scarlet Spider's eyes narrowed as he assessed the situation. There were four...five...six soldiers surrounding him and Laura, all guns trained on them and, if his spider sense was any indication, they all had itchy trigger fingers. If this was the city, he'd have been able to use the surrounding buildings and such to his advantage, but he wasn't used to fighting in the wide open spaces of… Arizona? Nevada? Point is, he had nothing to bounce or swing off of…

SNIKT

And suddenly the situation changed. Without a word, X-23 and Scarlet Spider both sprung into action. The recovered mutant charged forward, slicing a gun in two before it could be fired while Scarlet Spider jumped and kicked a soldier in the face, before webbing a rifle out of a man's hand and swinging at the head of another. After slamming her heel into the jaw of the first soldier she attacked, X-23 secured her footing before springing forward like a jungle cat, landing and slicing another soldier's gun before spinning around and destroying the last gun with her foot claws. Before the soldiers could react, she drew back her arms, preparing to jam them into their necks…

Only for her to withdraw them at the last possible second. Instead, she punched them both in the face and knocked them out. "What…?" She gasped out, looking at her hands. "I… didn't kill them?"

"Is that supposed to be a bad thing?" Scarlet Spider asked, searching the unconscious soldiers for water canteens.

"Killing is my purpose. It's what I was made for. Trained for. But just now, all I could think about was how I couldn't kill them, no matter what." She responded, the arachnid's eyes just widened.

"Moving on… so, am I the only one getting the feeling that we're supposed to know each other?" Carter asked, picking up a canteen and shaking it. "Like, I feel like I've watched you take down bad guys before." He answered, pulling his mask up and taking a swig of water. Once he was done, he held out to her, and Laura took it.

"As have I," She replied, frowning as she began to think, taking a swig of water. There were all these memories rattling around in her hand, like fragments she could just barely reach before losing them. "Are you… Jason?" The mutant asked, and, once again, Scarlet Spider's lenses widened in confusion.

"No, but the fact that you know that name both answers and makes more questions." He responded, causing Laura to frown. Jason… why was that the first name to pop into her head? "Ok, so let's try comparing notes. What do you remember?" Laura concentrated. What did she remember…

She watched as Superboy and Scarlet Spider carried the strange device off of the bioship. "Remind me what this thing is again?" Artemis asked next to her, as Iron Knight and Robin examined it.

"It's a mobile scanning station." The Stark responded, as the device seemed to unfold and expand, the screens powering on. "The Watchtower's satellites were able to narrow down the energy signal to within a few clicks of here, but that's still a lot of desert to check."

"And there is no way I'm spending all night running around the desert." Kid Flash commented.

"So, once we get this up and running, it'll be able to pinpoint the exact location."

"We're here…looking for something." She responded.

"An energy signal or something, right?" Carter asked, his companion nodded.

"I'm remembering something about it too."

"Truce? At least until we can get a handle on all this?" He offered.

"Doesn't seem like I have many other options." X-23 shrugged, shaking his hand before sniffing at the air.

"There's a somewhat familiar scent to the west, let's move."

Artemis groaned as she opened her eyes, vision slightly blurred along the edges. She could see a hole of light above her. She blinked and everything came into a bit more focus, now aware of some busted uo hut she was in

'Well aside from the splitting headache, I seem to be alright,' She thought, sitting up and nearly headbutting a red headed boy dressed in a black and red suit.

She let out a gasp backing away, as she scooped up her bow and quiver and backed into the wall.

"Whoa there, take it easy. It's okay. I swear I'm not going to hurt you. I'm one of the good guys. You know? Kid Flash?" He smiled, standing up and placing his hands on his hips.

"I've seen Kid Flash on the news, he doesn't wear black." Artemis pointed out, narrowing her eyes as the boy looked down at himself.

"Yeah, still trying to figure that one out myself. Though, not a half bad look, so what's your deal? Green Arrow fixation?" He asked, making Artemis look down in shock as she too saw what she was wearing.

"Who the hell put me in this!?" She demanded.

"Oh wow I am not going near that one with a ten foot…anything. So, anyway, you know how to use that bow?"

"Yeah, my dad taught me… DAD! He must have done this, another of his stupid tests!" She growled staring at the weapon in her hands before rolling her eyes.

"What kind of test?"

"He probably wants me to kill you." She shrugged as if that were a completely normal thing to say, which Kid Flash had to admit he had heard way more often than any teen should have. Before he could respond any further, both teens heard what sounded like a bomb falling. Eyes widening, they both sprinted out of the shack they were in just in time to watch as the whole thing went up in smoke. They could see several vehicles coming towards them, including three tanks at the rear.

They made a break for it as the guns opened fire on them. They ran just as a truck was gaining on them, Artemis grabbed an arrow from her quiver. Knocking it, she fired at the undercarriage of the nearest truck. The explosion was small, but it's placement caused the whole truck to flip over them.

Impressed, Wally looked back in time to see the tanks lining up their shots as Artemis attempted to take out another few trucks. Kid Flash slid down his goggles and sprinted over to her, scooping her up and hurled off, avoiding the tanks blasts.

"Sorry, but they've got bigger arrows!" He pointed out as they got further and further away and out of sight.

"Thanks," She said with a slight soft smile.

"No problem. Like I said: good guy. Now, if you don't mind me asking what's your name? Oh, and what was that about you killing me?" He asked.

M'Gann was at once very excited and extremely confused as she flew around, wherever in the world she was.

'I can't believe I'm really on Earth! Even if it is nothing like it was on TV. Now why don't I remember how I got here?' She thought coming to a stop as she hovered cross legged above ground.

'Concentrate, remember.' She thought as things began to flash before her eyes.

"The signal's two clicks north." Iron Knight stated, and Kaldur turned to M'gann.

"Miss Martian, Trickshot, X-23, you three scout ahead and report back." And then she was back in the cave, watching some kind of old movie with the Team. She was seated on the floor next to Francis, about to put her head on his shoulder…

"Team, report to the mission room," Batman's voice said over the loudspeaker, and the team all groaned in frustration.

Her eyes snapped open, and she smiled. "I'm on a team!" Miss Martian exclaimed. This was even better than she could have hoped. Not only was she on Earth, but she was on a superhero team with teen heroes like Iron Knight, Kid Flash, Robin, Aqualad, and-

And Francis. Who was he? Was he her… boyfriend? All she knew was that whenever she thought about Francis, the Martian got all warm and fuzzy on the inside. As sad as M'gann was that she couldn't put it into words, she at least had one answer. 'My memories… they're all jumbled up.' The Martian thought to herself, frowning as she began to think.

This was not an uncommon occurrence on Mars. In a society of telepathic beings, it was not unheard of for one Martian to wipe or scramble another Martian's mind, though it was considered one of the most vile crimes on the planet. There was no way to recover memories in the event of the former, but fortunately, M'gann had already been taught what to do in the event of the latter. All she had to do was concentrate, as her eyes glowed green.

They'd touched down in Bialya just a few minutes before midnight local time. After setting up the mobile scanning station, Iron Knight quickly located the source of the energy, and Aqualad had asked her to investigate, along with the others. She had proceeded ahead, infiltrating the main tent. There was a strange metal sphere in some sort of contraption, and it almost seemed… alive. Miss Martian went to investigate, and…

"Forget."

And that was all M'gann was able to piece together, earning a sigh of frustration. "Come on…" She sighed out. Still, it was progress. She now knew that she had a team, friends, a maybe-boyfriend, and a mission. Now, M'gann just had to find them. "Team? Team, can you hear me?" She called out telepathically, only to receive no answer. "Hello, Megan! They must be outside my range." The redhead said to herself, when she heard the sound of distant explosions. That was as good a place to start as any.

While M'gann was having her meditation, Kid Flash continued to carry Artemis, stopping behind a rock outcropping. "I need a breather…" Kid Flash panted out as he set Artemis down.

"Are you ok?" She asked, keeping a hand on her quiver.

"Yeah, just… running on fumes…" Wally panted out, opening a compartment on his glove and frowning at the empty contents. "Uh oh…"

"What now?"

"We've been out here for a while. My cupboards are bare." The speedster answered, showing the contents to the archer. "I've got a boosted metabolism, so I burn through calories pretty fast. Don't think I've got a whole lot of running left in me…" As soon as he said that, they heard what sounded like another mortar shell falling. Before Wally could pick up Artemis and run off, the object impacted. As soon as the dust cleared, they saw none other than an angry, shirtless Superboy. And Artemis had what she thought was a perfectly logical reaction to seeing an angry, shirtless teenager drop out of the sky.

"What the f-"

"Rahhhh!" Superboy charged at them, Artemis dodging and Kid Flash sidestepping the Kryptonian. He retaliated with a punch to Superboy's jaw, but in a move that felt oddly familiar, the amnesiac clone grabbed his wrist and threw him into a rock. An arrow hit him in the back and exploded, drawing the berserk hero's attention. He roared as he rushed Artemis, who fired explosive arrow after arrow at him, to no avail. He was about to close the distance, and reduce Artemis to a green and blonde smear on the desert…

When a repulsor blast hit him square in the chest, knocking him back. Superboy looked up to see Iron Knight on the rock formation, White Wolf leaping ahead of him. He kicked Superboy in the chest, his momentum knocking the Kryptonian back. White Wolf landed on his feet, bearing his claws. "I look at you, and I feel as if I am looking at a friend. Stand down before I am forced to harm you."

"What he said," Iron Knight spoke up as he jumped down next to the Wakandan, aiming his repulsor at Superboy.

"Stark? What are you doing here? And who's your friend?" Kid Flash asked.

"Could ask you the same thing, and I have a feeling that both of our answers are pretty similar." The boy genius responded as Superboy looked up at them, seething with pure anger and ferocity, and was about to jump them again…

When a tank shell impacted the ground in front of them, knocking White Wolf back and drawing Superboy's attention. Two tanks were coming over the hill, and Superboy let out a yell as he charged the tanks. "Should we help him?" Artemis asked, and Iron Knight watched as Superboy bent the cannon with his bare hands

"Y'know, I think he's got this. We need to move before he decides to come pay us another visit." The Stark replied as he helped White Wolf up. The four began to run in the opposite direction, Kid Flash at a normal speed, and they managed to put a fair amount of distance between them and the battle… before they ended up at a slope. They slid down the sandy hill, but when they landed at the bottom, Kid Flash's foot hit a rock and tripped him, causing him to wince in pain.

"Gah!"

"Kid, are you injured?" Iron Knight asked.

"My… foot…" Kid Flash grunted out as White Wolf bent down to examine the Speedster's foot.

"It doesn't appear broken. I believe the ankle is merely twisted."

"Doesn't make me any less useless…" Wally groaned out, and Artemis looked up.

"We've got company!" She yelled out, and the other three looked up to see a pair of Bialyan drones circling them like vultures.

"Demethi!" White Wolf cursed out, as he began to pick Kid Flash up and sling him over his shoulder.

"Hey, easy!"

"Yell at me later!" White Wolf pointed out. Artemis aimed an explosive arrow at a drone, following the drone's flight path…

"Team! Can you hear me?" When she heard a girl's voice in her head, startling her and causing the archer to loose her arrow early.

"Did anyone else hear that?"

"You mean the voices in our head, spurred on by an impending sense of doom?" Iron Knight half joked. White Wolf looked down his and Kid Flash's planned escape route to see the other drone approaching from it.

"We are running out of options!" He called out, Iron Knight saw the drones each launch a missile.

"Everybody get close!" He yelled out, and as the other two standing heroes got close to him, he held up his arms. The repulsors on his chest and hands glowed as an opaque blue dome appeared around them, just as the missiles impacted against it. Once the explosion cleared, Kid Flash saw the drones circling around.

"Uh, Knight? They're coming back around!" He called out, as the shield faded away and the lights on Iron Knight's armor turned off. "Knight? Nolan?!" He got no response, and as the drones circled around again, they prepared for the end…

Only for one of the drones to explode in midair, and the three looked to see Miss Martian flying towards the other drone. Her eyes glowed green as a telekinetic blast tore through the drones CPU, disabling it and sending it crashing into the ground. White Wolf set Kid Flash down as they watched Miss Martian fly towards them, a bright smile on her face. "Guys! I'm so happy that I found you!" She exclaimed as she flew towards them, only to get a confused expressions from all three of them.

"Uh, you know her?" Artemis asked, Wally just shook his head.

"No, beautiful, I swear I've never seen her in my life," He responded, and the Martian frowned.

"You really don't remember me?" She asked, and Wally looked at the large red X on her chest.

"Wait… J'onn? I mean, I dig the new look, but it doesn't really scream 'Manhunter'...".

"You guys know my uncle? Of course you do, you're Kid Flash! Wally! And Artemis, T'zari, and Nolan." Miss Martian said, and T'zari was about to say something...

"Uh, guys?" Nolan's muffled voice said from inside his armor. "It's starting to get a little hot in here. Mind getting me out of this thing?"

"Oh, uh…" Artemis said, looking for some sort of release lever or something.

"Third rib on the right."

"Alright…" Artemis pressed the third rib on the right, and the front of the armor opened up to deposit a sweaty Nolan, sweat stains visible on his black undersuit.

"Man, it's like being in a furnace…" He panted out. "That little shield trick used up the rest of my armor's power supply, including the air conditioning…" He panted out, when he noticed M'gann. "Is uh… is J'onn trying out a new look?"

"No guys, it's me! M'gann!" The Martian pleaded, only to be met with blank stares.

"You will have to forgive us. It seems our memories have been taken." T'zari spoke up. "The past six months are gone, with only fragments left behind."

"We're all teammates! I made you cookies, and we watched movies together…" She recalled, when they heard a distant explosion. They looked to see smoke rising from the distance, in the direction they had come from. "That's probably Superboy."

"You mean the Abercrombie model that just tried to kill us is Superman's son?" Artemis asked, Kid Flash frowned.

"I don't think so. Him beating the crap out of me felt a little too familiar."

"Regardless, I don't think we're in any position to help him right now," Nolan spoke up, as he shut his open armor. "My armor's out of juice, and I don't think Artemis here has enough arrows for us to take on half the Bialyan army."

"I agree. Our only hope right now is to head to our previous destination," T'zari stated.

"Whoa whoa whoa, you guys actually know where you're going?" Wally asked.

"Kind of. My armor was picking up a StarkTech signal, which we were heading to when we saw you guys fighting Superboy," Nolan answered, pointing in a direction. "It was that way, and I think we were getting close."

"Well, it beats my idea of just running around the desert until we found something…" Kid Flash remarked.

"So what are we going to do about this?" The archer asked, gesturing to the dead armor.

"Well, I definitely don't want to leave something like this behind where Queen Bee can get to it, and I hate destroying my armors." Nolan said, and he sighed. "Hey, Artemis… you got any rope?"

Meanwhile, a group of Bialyan soldiers had somehow managed to get ropes around Superboy's wrists, and were currently pulling on both sides to keep the feral kryptonian restrained. It was little use, as Superboy managed to grab on set of ropes and swing the group of BIalyans into the others. As he watched this, the Bialyan's commander looked at his compatriot, a man in a dark hooded trenchcoat. "Please, you must help us! Use your gifts to control his mind!" He begged, and the hooded figure stepped forward. He removed his hood, revealing a pale skinned man whose brain was visible through the large dome atop his head.

"Hm. Doesn't seem to be much of a mind left to control in there. Just a whole lot of rage." Psimon stated, as Superboy turned to him. "Sleep." The telepath ordered, and with it, Superboy's eyes closed as he collapsed on the desert sand.

A short while later, the five were crossing the desert. Using the grappling arrows in Artemis's quiver, Nolan and T'zari managed to use the cables to pull the armor across the desert, while Artemis helped Wally limp across the desert, M'gann flying overhead. As they walked, the quintet had been comparing notes, sharing any of the fragments that they had been able to piece together since waking up that morning. "So, what do you think we were here to investigate?" Wally asked, earning Nolan to frown.

"With Bialya, it could be anything. Queen Bee's not a 'take over the world' type like Doctor Doom, but that doesn't mean she's content to just sit here and do nothing," Nolan stated. "If memory serves-"

"Which it might not, but continue." Artemis pointed out.

"-Bialya's always had tensions with neighboring countries, particularly Qurac."

"And those tensions have increased ever since Queen Bee ascended to the throne," T'zari spoke up.

"Make no mistake, Queen Bee is as deadly as she is beautiful. A mutant who uses her powers of pheromone control to twist those around her to get what she wants, no matter who gets hurt."

"Sounds like you have some personal experience," Artemis remarked, and the White Wolf's eyes narrowed.

"That is one description for it," His tone indicated that he did not wish to discuss it any further, and fortunately for him, there was no time to pry, as the five heroes soon saw what looked like a large black computer bank sitting in the desert. "Is that what we are looking for?"

"Well, considering that it's the only thing we've seen all day, it's gotta be." Artemis remarked, and Nolan let go of his rope to go investigate.

"That's… that's StarkTech! This is what we've been looking for!" He exclaimed, and ran towards it…

Only for four Bialyan soldiers to emerge from the sand, yelling something at him in Arabic. The others were about to spring into action, when a red shuriken flew out of the darkness and nailed one of the guns out of the soldier's hand. A smoke bomb exploded and bathed the area in grey smoke, and the soldiers looked around. The quintet of wanderers heard what sounded like grunting, and when the smoke cleared, they saw none other than Robin standing surrounded by unconscious soldiers. "Well it's about time."

"Rob!" KF exclaimed, offering a fist bump as the others approached the Boy Wonder. "How long have you been here?"

"All day. Went to sleep in March, woke up in September about a mile or two in that direction," He replied, pointing behind him. "I got here a few hours ago, saw these amateurs over here waiting for an ambush. Figured someone familiar would wonder along eventually," Robin answered, gesturing to the unconscious soldiers. "Seriously, it's like they wanted to be seen. You'd have to have been-"

"Yeah yeah, I see where this is going. Pardon me for not being trained by Batman." Nolan responded and headed over to the computer bank. He pressed a button, and it powered on and expanded. "Oh sweet technology, how I've missed you..."

"Well, there's only one person I know who acts that way around technology," A new voice said, and they all looked up to see Trickshot on a hill. M'gann's eyes widened as soon as she saw him, and judging from his body language, he was thinking something similar.

"Francis…" She gasped out as he slid down the hill. From the fragments she'd been able to piece together, she knew that whoever this was, he was important to her.

"Kid Flash? Nolan? Robin? What are you guys doing here?" Francis asked, and he looked at Artemis and T'zari. "And who are… your…" He trailed off as he looked at M'gann, before he composed himself. "Who are your friends here?"

"Well, from what we've been able to piece together, we're some sort of… Team." Artemis answered.

"That certainly explains a few things." A new voice said, and they all looked up to see Scarlet Spider and X-23 approaching.

"Bug boy!"

"Bird boy!" Scarlet Spider greeted Robin, the two sharing a fist bump as Trickshot's eyebrows furrowed as he looked around at everyone.

"We work for the Justice League," He concluded, drawing everyone's attention. "Think about it. We've got five sidekicks, more if my hunch is right about you four," The male archer said, gesturing at T'zari, Artemis, M'gann, and Laura. "All of us are sidekicks, and we're in Bialya, home to one of the League's enemies. We're not just a team, we're some kind of strikeforce, working for… if I had to guess, I'd say Batman."

"Hey, how do you know we don't work for my mentor?" Kid Flash asked as he jabbed a finger in his chest, hitting his emblem and causing the costume to turn yellow. "Whoa…" He gasped out as he began pressing the button, the others all doing the same with their logo. Only Scarlet Spider's got a reaction as it turned red and blue.

"Yeah, I'm gonna take a wild guess and say Flash didn't make this," Scarlet Spider said, as Kid kept activating his stealth tech.

"So, this is a Justice League sponsored Team on a mission to Bialya," T'zari concluded.

"God, this is insane. How'd we end up in Bialya?" Artemis asked, only to sigh as KF kept touching his logo. "Quit touching yourself!"

"Just gonna ignore that…" Jason muttered to himself, only to let out a sigh. "We're just going around in circles now."

"Agreed. We need our memories back." Laura said, and M'gann tapped her chin.

"I… might have a way." She spoke up. "Judging from the flashes we've all been getting, I don't think our memories were erased. It's more like they're… scrambled. All jumbled up."

"Like a jigsaw puzzle." Carter suggested, gettimg a nod from the Martian.

"Exactly. Since that's the case, I may be able to help us remember."

"So, to continue the metaphor, you think you can reach inside our boxes and put the puzzle back together?" Nolan asked, and she nodded.

"I can."

"Wait, so we're just going to let a complete stranger reach inside our heads and poke around our deepest darkest secrets?" Artemis asked. "I think I'll pass."

"I am inclined to agree." Laura spoke up. "I have… things I'd rather not have anyone else see."

"It won't be like that." M'gann reassured. "If I manually reorganized your memories piece by piece, it would take forever. But I'm pretty sure that, with all of us here together, we can fill in enough blanks that our minds will just be able to fill in the rest." She explained, and Robin tapped his chin.

"I'm not seeing any other option. Wandering around the desert without any idea of what we're doing is pointless."

"I am inclined to agree. I need to know what has brought us here." The Wakandan Prince agreed.

"Seconded." The group's wall crawler spoke up, Artemis simply sighed.

"Fine. But only the last six months, and only what you need." She reluctantly agreed, Laura nodding in agreement.

"Same here. I don't need everyone knowing my business." Nolan said. He couldn't remember exactly what it was, but he knew that he had something that he didn't want the others knowing just yet…

"So it sounds like we're in agreement." Trickshot said, and looked at M'gann. "You've got this." She smiled in appreciation, before she began to concentrate. Her eyes glowed green, and there was a flash of white, before the Team found themselves in some sort of dark space, with flashes of the past six months swirling above them.

"Whoa…" Robin gasped out, as M'gann opened her eyes.

"I've constructed a mind space for us to share. It'll allow our minds to communicate and help fill in what we're missing." Miss Martian explained. "Once we start, it's all going to be coming back at once. It might be… overwhelming for some of you."

Artemis couldn't help but think about how that was an understatement. She looked around at the fragments, seeing bits and pieces of the Team's various exploits. She could see them fighting the Sinister Six, Superboy getting blasted by the Amazo, herself facing off against Cheshire, and other stuff she couldn't begin to describe. Was this really her life? Was she really putting on a dumb costume and risking her life fighting assassins, robots, and God knows what else?

She was pulled out of her little existential crisis when she felt something on her hand, and the female archer looked down to see Kid Flash squeezing her hand. This was...oddly reassuring, and Artemis let out a breath she had been holding in.

"Is everyone ready?" M'gann asked, and everyone nodded. "Alright, here we go…" Her eyes glowed green, and she reached out towards their minds…

"With great power comes great responsibility."

"Today is the day!"

"They're treating us like kids! Worse… like sidekicks!"

"You do not have to be what they made you."

"You have to get out of here, Laura!"

"Get on board, or stay out of our way!"

"Jason, meet Cassandra."

"Just be yourself."

"I want to bridge the gap between man and machine."

"You think this changes how this is going to go down?"

"You are not ready. But you will be."

"And I will always care for you, my wolf."

"Hello, Megan!"

"We already have an archer!"

"Find your own little Spitfire."

The Team was in the lounge, as the second Gray Ghost movie wrapped up. "Man, these things are so corny…" Artemis commented, as Jason caught up to change the movie to the third one. "I mean, Commander Swastika had the Gray Ghost right over the acid vat! One of our villains would have dunked him right then and there instead of explaining his plan."

"Oh right, you're still new. Trust me, bad guys loveto monologue. I dunno if it's ego or stupidity, but you should hear some of the rants I've had to listen to." Jason pointed out. "If you ever get captured by Two Face, try asking his thoughts on the justice system. You'll get treated to, like, twenty minutes of him going back and forth with himself. It'd be entertaining if it wasn't so sad."

"Is Jason talking about Two Face again?" A new voice asked, and everyone looked up to see Nolan entering the lounge.

"And just where have you been?" Wally asked, only to get a shrug.

"I had something I had to take care of. I do have a life outside of here, y'know," Nolan responded.

"What was it? They have the first calculator on display or something?" Francis joked, Nolan simply rolling his eyes as he noticed what was on the screen.

"Oh, Gray Ghost, nice. My dad's got one of the original theatrical posters, signed by Simon Trent himself." He commented as he sat on the ground next to Superboy, and M'gann sighed contently. She was about to set her head on Francis's shoulder.

"Team, suit up and report to the briefing area." Batman's voice called over the intercom, earning a groan from everybody.

"Time to get back to it…" Wally groaned out. Soon, they were all suited up in the briefing room, standing in front of Batman and Captain America.

"Last night, Watchtower satellites picked up an immense power surge in the Bialyan desert. Spectral analysis revealed several unidentified elements, non-terrestrial in origin." Batman explained.

"The Watchtower's database has no match for any of the energy signatures or trace elements we were able to pick up, indicating that Queen Bee has acquired an alien weapon of unknown origin." The Sentinel of LIberty said, pulling up an image of the Bialyan map. "We need you to go to Bialya, investigate, and find out what's at that sight."

"The Watchtower's satellites were unable to pinpoint an exact location, and as Bialya is classified as a rogue state by the UN, we can't have you just drop in," Batman explained, as an image of the neighboring Qurac appeared. "You'll land the Bioship in the desert bordering Qurac and Bialya. There, you will unload the necessary scanning equipment and use it to pinpoint the location of the energy signature."

"Seems simple enough…" Superboy remarked.

"Afraid not." Steve Rogers spoke up. "As we mentioned before, Bialya is a rogue state. They refuse to acknowledge the League's UN charter, meaning that any League presence there would be considered an act of aggression."

"That means it is absolutely paramount that you maintain radio silence." Batman stated. "That means maintaining a telepathic link at all times. There will be no League back up, no communication or verification. Essentially, you'll be flying blind."

"We are prepared for such a challenge."

Then, they were in Qurac. Laura and Artemis watching as Superboy and Scarlet Spider carried the device from the Bioship. "Remind us what this is?"

"It's a mobile scanning station." The Stark responded as the device began to expand and unfold, as he and Robin began examining the screen. "The Watchtower satellites were able to narrow down the energy signal to within a few clicks of here, but that's still a lot of desert to check."

"And there is no way I am running around the desert." Kid Flash commented.

"So once we get this up and running, it'll be able to pinpoint the exact location."

Several minutes later, the device beeped. "And we are in business. I'm picking up traces of Zeta Beam radiation, as well as… something I've never seen before."

"And unless the League set up a Zeta tube here recently, that sounds like our site." Kid Flash commented, as Aqualad turned to Miss Martian.

"Miss Martian, Trickshot, X-23, you three will scout ahead. The rest of us will follow." He instructed, only for Trickshot to get up from the rock he was sitting on.

"Makes sense. Moving in groups, rather than as one unit, should keep the Bialyans from picking up on us."

"Exactly. The rest of us shall approach from different angles." Aqualad explained.

"Here, Tricky, take this." Iron Knight offered, tossing the archer a small, phonelike device. "It's a GPS marker. Should let you find your way back if you get turned around."

"Do we all get one of these?" X-23 asked.

"I'll head up one group, Knight will be a part of the other. Between all that, we should be good if we get lost." Robin explained.

A short while later, Alpha Squad was coming up over the hill, where they saw a large tent. "Damn, we're too late." X-23 commented, as M'gann activated their telepathic link.

'Aqualad, the Bialyans already have control of the site.'

'Proceed in stealth mode, and remain undetected.' He instructed, and Trickshot looked down at the tents.

"There's an opening right there. Should be enough for you to sneak through."

The memories then jumped to M'gann infiltrating the tent in camouflage mode, effortlessly sailing past the Bialyans and into the tent. The first thing she saw was a large, metal sphere in some sort of contraption. 'Guys, I'm in the main tent. The Bialyans are experimenting on some sort of device. I think… it's ali-

'Well now, who do we have here?' A new voice said through their mind link, and Miss Martian's eyes widened as she spun around to see a man with his brain encased in a glass dome on his head looking right at her. 'Seems like we have a peeping Tom on our hands. What to do about you?'

'I've been spotted! Everyone get out-'

'Psimon says… forget.'

"M'gann? M'gann, what's-" Francis tried saying aloud, only for all of them to cry out in pain as they were hit with blinding headaches. Trickshot wandered off, X-23 and Scarlet Spider collapsed on the spot, Artemis slid down a hill with Kid Flash, Iron Knight and White Wolf collapsed together, Robin fell where he stood, Superboy yelled and ran off, and Aqualad…

"Oh my god we forgot about Kaldur!" Wally exclaimed, looking around the site they were at. "He's not here… he must have been captured."

"We don't know that for a fact. He could still be on his way here or-" T'zari tried saying, but Nolan shook his head.

"Kaldur's an Atlantean. If he's been out here in the desert this long, there's no telling what shape he's in," He pointed out, as Laura looked away. Artemis noticed she seemed to be wiping off tears, and approached her.

"Hey. You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm… I'm fine. I just… remembered some stuff I'd forgotten." The mutant reassured. "So, what's wrong with Superboy?"

"Didn't you guys say that Superboy was grown in like four months? If my math's right, he didn't even exist six months ago." Carter pointed out. "He's probably forgotten… well, everything. Right now, he could be all rage."

"Who was that guy? The one with the weird brain head?" Artemis asked.

"His name is Psimon. According to my father's files, he is a telepathic mercenary, one known for completely obliterating his target's mind." White Wolf explained. "If he is here with the Bialyan army, then it stands to reason that he has been hired by Queen Bee.

"How'd he get all of us? I thought telepaths have a limited range." Nolan asked.

"I… think that's my fault." M'gann spoke up, looking down at the ground. "Psimon must have picked up on the telepathic link we were using and… I guess he hacked into it."

"I thought the whole point of the mind link was that it was supposed to be unhackable." Robin brought up.

"I didn't even think about what would happen if a powerful telepath picked up on the link." The Martian sighed. "He found me, and he used our link to try to make all of you to forget… everything."

"But the link must have, I dunno, diluted the mind blast somehow." Wally suggested, and Francis looked at M'gann.

"...yeah, that must have been it." He said, and sighed. This wasn't good at all. Yes, they had the answers about how they got here, but that created a series of its own problems. Kaldur was who knows where, probably dehydrated, confused, and lost. Superboy was little more than a mindless animal. Queen Bee had a brutal telepathic mercenary on her payroll, and he was protecting some sort of alien sphere. The mission had gone south in a most spectacular fashion. The logical move would be to find Kaldur and Superboy and leave, but if that sphere was some sort of weapon, and if it was in the hands of Queen Bee...

"Alright, everyone, listen up." The archer spoke up, drawing their attention. "We have our memories back. We know how we got here and why. I'm not gonna lie, even for one of our missions, this has gone south in the most spectacular matter. Hell, I have half a mind to grab Kaldur and Superboy, head home, and take the L." Trickshot said. "But well, I'm a lot like my dad. I tell bad jokes, I'm good with a bow, and I'm too stupid to know when to quit. Whatever that weird sphere thing M'gann saw is, I don't think it's something we want someone like Queen Bee to have."

"But what about Psimon? If he finds us again, there's no telling what he'll do to us again," Laura asked, and he turned to M'gann.

"He blindsided you last time. Do you think you could take him if you're prepared?"

"I… I think so." His crush responded, and Trickshot nodded.

"Good. So here's what we're going to do." He started, turning to Nolan. "Without your armor, can you track them?" Francis asked, and Nolan tapped his chin.

"I think so, if I reconfigure the Bioship to track that GPS device I gave you." He answered.

"Do it, then you and Wally coordinate from the bioship when it gets here." Trickshot instructed, then turned to the others. "There's no telling what kind of shape that Kaldur's in right now. He could be delirious, he could have no idea who any of you are, or the Bialyans could have him. As soon as you find him, let the Bioship know."

"If he's out here, I'll find him." Laura said, and something clicked for Carter.

"Wait, what are you going to be doing?" He asked, and Francis folded his arms.

"M'gann and I are going to be infiltrating the Bialyan camp."

"You mean where Psimon's going to be?" Artemis asked, folding her arms. "I am so not losing my memory again."

"It's also where Superboy's going to be." Miss Martian spoke up. "If I can restore his mind before Psimon notices me, the Bialyans won't stand a chance."

"That's a pretty big if…" Jason remarked.

"It's a chance we have to take. I'm not leaving anyone behind. We'd all do the same for anyone here." Francis answered, he looked at all of them. "We have our plan. Let's get to work."

Back at the Bialyan camp, a group of scientists were gathered around a table that had Superboy strapped to it, electrodes attached to him. "Try shock level four." One of the scientists suggested, and Superboy screamed in pain as the current passed through him. This pain, this upright table...he didn't have the words to describe the memories that flowed through him. The memories of the red place, of the pod and of the strict, cruel, demanding man with the glasses and the brown pony tail. All he knew is that they made him angry.

"PING PING." The source of this noise was the strange metal sphere caught in the contraption, and as Superboy screamed in pain, the noises it made increased in intensity as it spun in the contraption. As it did so, Psimon folded his arms, smiling devilishly.

"How interesting…"

Outside the camp, Miss Martian and Trickshot approached the edge, looking down at the tent. "Is he in there?" Trickshot asked, and Miss Martian nodded.

"Psimon would sense me if I did a probe, but I can just feel the rage and the anger coming off of Superboy. He's in so much pain, and he doesn't even understand any of it…" The Martian answered. "Do you think the others have found Kaldur by now?"

"If anyone can find Aqualad out here, it's X." Trickshot reassured, looking over the camp. "They've tightened security since last time, but I think I see a few spots where we can get in."

"Uh huh…" She agreed, and Francis looked over at her.

"You nervous?"

"I… yeah. More than a little." She admitted. "I was careless last time. I didn't even think that another telepath could pick up on the link, and we all lost our memories."

"It could have been worse. Psimon's MO is leaving people as brain dead vegetables, but we just lost six months. Even then, it just got jumbled around." The archer reminisced, and let out a soft chuckle. "And I think that was because of you. When Psimon brain blasted us, I think that you protected us at the last second. Kept him from blasting everything away." He explained, and he pulled down his mask to look her in the eye.

"You've saved us so many times. First with Mister Twister, then with Ravager, and now this," He remembered, taking her hand.

"You get down to it, Psimon is no different than any of those punks we've faced before. He's just a mean thug with a big brain, and you're a mean, green, telepathic machine. So trust me when I say you're going to kick that creep's ass," He finished, and M'gann just smiled and chuckled.

"You know, you've got a thing for speeches," She responded, and he smiled back at her.

"What can I say? It's a talent," He said, as he pulled his mask up. "So, let's get to work."

Entering the tent was simple enough. Two well placed arrows tipped with tranquilizers dispatched the guards guarding one entrance, allowing Miss Martian and Trickshot to slip in unnoticed. Trickshot ducked behind a group of machines, while the cloaked Miss Martian approached the captive Superboy. The scientists and Psimon had turned their attention to the Sphere, and the Martian reached her hand out to Superboy's head.

"Well well well, looks like someone's a glutton for punishment," Said a familiar voice that made M'gann's skin crawl, as Psimon looked in her direction. "Hm, I seem to be losing my touch. Psimon says…." The telepath said as he removed his hood, and M'gann braced herself. "For-"

Only for an arrow to fly out and hit Psimon in the forehead, the flashbang detonating and temporarily blinding Psimon. "M'gann, now!" Trickshot called out as he began firing arrows at the Bialyan soldiers. M'gann floated over to Superboy and put her hands on either side of his head, her eyes glowing green as she put Superboy's mind back together.

He remembered it all. His first four months in Cadmus, being rescued by the sidekicks, meeting Superman, joining the Team, fighting Amazo, everything else…

And Superboy was back, leaping into the action as soon as M'gann undid his restraints. He grabbed one soldier and threw it into another, before another tried in vain to unload his clip into the Teen of Steel. The Kryptonian clone grabbed the rifle from the soldier's hands, effortlessly twisting it into a useless heap of metal. "It feels good being me again." Superboy couldn't help but smile a bit, looked at the captured Sphere.

"What is that thing?" Trickshot called out, and Superboy narrowed his eyes.

"I don't know, but I know it's tired of being tied up." He said, destroying the machine and freeing the Sphere. It chirped in gratitude, and began rolling around and knocking down the soldiers that approached. Trickshot was about to fire another arrow, when he felt an invisible hand wrap around his throat, lifting him up off the ground.

"That…" Psimon growled as he picked himself up off the ground, directing his glare at the struggling archer. "...was playing dirty. Let's settle up, shall we?" He growled, and M'gann narrowed her eyes at him. She levitated a computer monitor and threw it at Psimon, who let Trickshot go in order to focus his attention on the other telepath.

"I'm the one you really want, aren't I?" She asked, and Psimon devilishly chuckled

"It's like you read my mind." He taunted. "Psimon says… forget." M'gann winced as he forced himself into her head, and a flash of light deposited her in an abstract version of the lounge at the cave. Bits and pieces swirled around her, pieces that evoked Mars, the Cave, Happy Harbor… this was her mindscape, the place that held her identity and all that she was.

"Oh no…"

"Oh yes," Psimon's voice bellowed out from all directions, as a massive projection of the villain appeared above her. "I underestimated you, little Miss Martian. I figured I'd just be able to wipe everything away, but I guess that's on me for assuming your mind was as weak as a human's. It's not a mistake I'll make twice." Psimon said, and M'gann gasped as pure white began encroaching on the mindscape. "Now, be a good girl, and forget!"

"No, I won't let you take it from me again!" M'gann said as she concentrated, and she began to push back against the white space.

"Oh come now, you'll have to do better than that." Psimon taunted, as he fired a blast of red energy that knocked Miss Martian back, causing the emptiness to encroach on her memories. She grit her teeth and formed a shield, blocking the mind blast. "Well, there is some potential here, but it's too raw. All power, no finesse or talent. And nowhere near my league," The mutant shrank down until he was his normal height, firing a focused blast that shattered M'gann's shield and knocked her back.

The Real World

Superboy knocked one soldier out as Trickshot and the sphere took out the last ones, and Superboy noticed that several objects around them began to float. "The hell's going on?" The Kryptonian asked, and the son of Hawkeye looked at the completely still Psimon and M'gann.

"I think they're… fighting telepathically." He hypothesized, pulling out an explosive arrow. "I wonder…" He muttered, nocking an arrow at aiming it at Psimon. He let it loose, only for it to explode against a telekinetic shield. "Figured as much. Makes sense this creep would have himself protected."

"Too bad. I was looking forward to punching this asshole," Superboy spat out, as Francis turned his gaze to M'gann.

"Looks like it's all up to her now."

Elsewhere

Robin looked over from behind the rock he was crouched behind, watching as a Bialyan patrol drove by. "Alright, we're clear." He called back, and turned to the others. They had found Kaldur passed out behind a rock, and White Wolf was currently holding his head up as Scarlet Spider helped him drink some water.

"Tula...lih-so-mei…" The delirious leader mumbled out. "Ah-ga-pah oh-seh…"

"Any idea what he's saying?" Carter asked, and the Wakandan shook his head.

"I am afraid my Atlantean is not that sharp. He is either confessing his love for someone, or asking directions to the library." He responded, as Artemis activated a small device.

"Alright, transponder's been activated. Knight and KF should be here in the Bioship soon," She said, and Laura actually smirked.

"So, I noticed you and Wally got awfully cozy in that weird mindscape," The mutant teased, and Artemis's eyes widened as she blushed.

"T-that's because I just forgot about how annoying he was. I actually thought he was kinda… that's not important!" She hastily defended, earning a chortle from Laura.

"Sure, it's not." Laura said smirking until Artemis smirked back.

"Do, you want to talk about how close you and Jason have been getting recently?" Artemis countered which actually brought a slight blush to Laura's cheeks

"Yeah, ok." She dropped it, and Robin looked in the direction they came from.

"Hope the others are doing ok."

The Bioship

"Oh sweet airconditioning…" Kid Flash panted out as he collapsed into the seat of the Bioship. Once Nolan got his armor secured, he approached the cockpit, letting out what Kid Flash chose to view as a sigh of contentment.

"Oh I have waited for this day for so long…" He hummed out, as the cockpit configured itself for him. "Oh that sweet Martian biotechnology..."

"Dude, focus."

"Right, sorry." Nolan apologized, as he adjusted the scanner. "How's your ankle?"

"Still kills, but it should be good to go soon. Benefits of super healing." Wally responded. "You got the others?"

"Yep, picking up their signal now."

The Mindscape

Miss Martian winced as a blast from Psimon tore through her shields, knocking her back into a representation of some sort of living room. "Is this really the best you can do?!" Psimon bellowed out, firing a continuous beam at M'gann. She threw up a shield at the last second, but she knew it was in vain. She could feel Psimon's grip forcing its way into her mind, worming it's way in through her defenses. All she'd gone through, all that she'd accomplished, everything… everyone that she had found… he was going to take them all away again.

"Get down to it, he's no different than any of those punks we've faced before. He's just a mean thug with a big brain, and you're a mean, green, telepathic machine," Francis's words echoed throughout the mindscape, and Psimon's couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.

"Oh you have got to be kidding me…" Psimon groaned out. "I'm about to turn you into a vegetable, and you think your little boyfriend's pep talk is gonna save you?"

M'Gann hardened her resolve, slowly standing to her feet. She thought not just of Francis but all her friends. That gave her strength, she wouldn't, she couldn't let him take all that from her! Not now! Not ever!

Psimon fired another blast, but instead of forming a shield, Miss Martian retaliated with a blast of her own, meeting the black and red beam with a beam of green fire. "Oh, looks like someone's found their spine!" Psimon grunted out. "Good, I like it when they fight!"

"I'm getting tired of hearing you talk!" M'gann shouted, and Psimon's eyes widened as M'gann began pushing his beam back towards him.

The Real World

"So do you have any idea what this thing is?" Trickshot asked as he examined the sphere, and Superboy shrugged.

"Nope."

"The Bialyans didn't say anything, or name it, or-"

"Hey, I just got my entire life scrambled. I wasn't exactly worried about-" Superboy was cut off by what felt like a gust of wind, and the boys turned to see dust swirling around the telepaths. Before Superboy could ask just what the hell was happening, the telepathic vortex increased in intensity, causing a full blown cyclone of sand to envelop the tent.

The Bioship

Scarlet Spider and X-23 helped Aqualad onto a makeshift bed that the Bioship had formed, and Robin hooked up an IV drip to their Atlantean leader. "This should help get him hydrated faster. Good thing we got there when we did." The Boy Wonder stated.

"Uh, guys? You might wanna take a look at this…" Nolan's voice said from the cockpit, and the three ran to the cockpit to see a vortex of sand visible in the distance.

"So, who wants to bet that's where the others are?" Artemis asked, and Nolan placed his hands on the Bioship's control spheres.

"Hold onto your butts, folks!" He said, as he kicked the Bioship into high gear.

The Mindscape

Psimon grit his teeth as M'gann slowly but surely pushed him back, pushing back as hard as he could against the Martian's telepathic retaliation. He probed her mind and assessed her strength before he started his attack. The Martian should have been just another dime a dozen amateur telepath, one Psimon should have been able to easily crush like an insect. So where was all this power coming from?!

"Psimon says that's enough!" He yelled out, increasing his mental blast's, but it was all for naught, as M'gann simply increased her power in turn. "How?!"

"Because Trickshot is right: you're just a thug. A sad, pathetic little man who gets off on bullying others." M'gann said, and Psimon's eyes widened as memories began swirling around them of M'gann's time with the Team. "You don't fight for anyone but yourself. All you know how to do is take away and destroy, and that's where we're different. I have people important to me, who all help and build each other up. And I will do anything to protect that!" And with that, the green mind blast over took Psimon's, and he let out one last yell as they were engulfed in white.

The Real World

The vortex reached a fever pitch, before it violently dispersed. Trickshot staggered to his feet, before his eyes widened at the shadow above him. "Shit!" He cursed out as he dodged out of the way, narrowly avoiding being crushed by the machinery that impacted where he had been standing a minute ago. His mask lens was cracked, and he panted as he removed it. "Holy…" He gasped out, before his eyes widened.

"M'gann!" He began searching through the wreckage, looking for her, before eventually spotting her collapsed and unconscious. "No no no no…" The archer ran over to her, kneeling down and picking her up, cradling her head. "M'gann, can you hear me? M'gann? Megs!" Trickshot shouted, and the Martian's eyes slowly fluttered open.

"Mmm, five more minutes…" She weakly mumbled out, and Francis let out a sigh of relief.

"Psimon…?" She asked, and Francis looked around, not seeing any sign of the telepathic mercenary.

"I uh, I don't see him. I think...I think he's buried under something. Not exactly in a hurry to dig him out, y'know?" Francis reported, before he chuckled. "So, you kick his ass?"

"I… think so." M'gann answered, thinking back on her battle in the mindscape. "He almost got me again, but then… I thought of you guys. I thought of what you told me, and then…"

"Telepathic machine?" He asked, and she smiled at him.

"Telepathic machine." She responded simply, and they looked into each other's eyes.

"You're… you're really something else…" Francis responded, his heart pounding in his ears as M'gann cupped his cheek.

"I… couldn't have done it without you…" She mumbled out, and the next thing either of them knew, the two teenagers leaned into each other, their lips meeting in a kiss that sent Francis's heart exploding in his chest. They pulled away, the faintest hint of red on both their faces, before Francis smiled.

"Been… been wanting to do that for a while." It was all he could think to say, and he was yelling at himself for how lame that line was, but M'gann clearly didn't mind, instead smiling softly. Francis tried to think of something more romantic and less corny to say, but before he could, they heard what sounded like wreckage exploding. The two turned to see Superboy pulling himself free of the wreckage, the sphere right behind him.

"Thanks for the help, guys. I'm totally fine, thanks for helping..." The Kryptonian panted out, and saw the position the two were in. "What's wrong with you two?" He asked, and the sphere simply chirped and rolled around him.

"Just… making sure she's alright." Francis hastily justified, but Superboy just narrowed his eyes in suspicion.

"Uh huh…" Before he could ask any further, they heard a familiar craft flying overhead, and they all looked to see the Bioship uncloaking above them. The door shifted into the ramp, and they saw Scarlet Spider and Artemis standing in the entrance.

"Whatever that was, the Bialyans definitely noticed. Knight says they're already on their way!" Carter said to them.

"So it's time to get moving." Trickshot said, as he helped M'gann up and they approached the ship.

"What do we do about… whatever that is?" Artemis asked as she pointed at the sphere, and Superboy thought for a second.

"I mean… we do need a souvenir…"

Mount Justice, 18:02 EST

"Well that could have gone better…" Artemis sighed as she stepped out of the changing room, now dressed in her civilian clothes. Using the rotation of the Earth, the Bioship made it back to Happy Harbor in about three hours, and the Team was now currently washing off the stink of the Bialyan desert.

As Artemis redid her hair back into it's ponytail, she almost ran headfirst into Wally, whose eyes widened upon seeing her.

"Uh… hey." He awkwardly greeted.

"Hey yourself." She retorted, and the speedster scratched the back of his head.

"So, uh… about what happened back there…" Wally trailed off, and Artemis's eyes widened as she remembered their hand holding.

"Don't worry about it. Our memories had gotten erased, and I forgot how annoying you are." She responded, and oddly enough, that seemed to make him smile.

"And I forgot how unbearably uptight you are." He responded. "So… agree it never happened?"

"Agreed."

"Good. I'll… see you later." The West responded, but before he walked off, he turned around. "Oh yeah, what was all that about your dad wanting you to kill me or something?" He asked, causing Green Arrow's 'niece' to widen her eyes.

"So I had fallen asleep watching a movie six months ago, about this ninja girl whose ninja dad wanted her to kill her ninja boyfriend, who was from a rival ninja clan." She hastily explained, and Wally raised an eyebrow.

"And you thought that was happening because…?"

"Because Psimon had scrambled our brains, and I got all confused." Artemis 'explained.' Kid Flash didn't seem to buy it, but he didn't push it.

"Alright, whatever you say."

In the hangar bay, Superboy was finishing helping Nolan get his stealth armor into it's dock, and Nolan reached up and pulled out a charging cable, hooking it into the armor's chest unit. "Thanks, Supey. Who'd have thought that a suit of iron could be so heavy without power?" Nolan joked. "Also, sorry about blasting you back there."

"Don't worry about it. Probably brought back some Cadmus memories." The Kryptonian responded, and a high tech chirping drew their attention to the sphere as it rolled up behind them.

"So...I guess we're keeping this." Nolan commented, looking over the living device. "Never saw a design like this before. And what's this metal made out of?" He said, running his hand over the strange circles and lines on the small red circle. "I think it's… alive somehow. So if it's alive, it needs a name." The boy genius said, and Superboy thought for a moment.

"Sphere." He said, drawing a raised eyebrow from Nolan.

"So we have a living sphere of unknown alien technology, and you want to name it… Sphere?" Iron Knight asked, and Superboy shrugged.

"Like having a suit made of iron and naming it 'Iron Man'?" He retorted, and Nolan shrugged.

"Point taken. So, Sphere it is."

In the medical area, Kaldur's eyes fluttered open, where he saw Francis, M'gann, and Red Tornado standing over him. "Welcome back to the land of the living, bud." Francis greeted, and Kaldur rubbed his temples.

"My head…"

"I'm sorry. I tried to be as gentle as I could, but it wasn't easy putting your mind back together while you were asleep." M'gann apologized, as the Atlantean sat up.

"It's all coming back to me…" He groaned out, burying the memories of his conversation with Tula in Atlantis. "Bialya… what happened?"

"Long story short, our minds were wiped by an asshole named Psimon. M'gann here was able to put us back together, and she kicked Psimon's ass." Francis explained, and Kaldur took note of how the archer was rubbing the Martian's shoulder.

"I see…" Aqualad remarked. "You will have to fill me in later. If you'll excuse me, I believe I require something to eat." He said, and looked at Red Tornado. "Will you assist me?"

"I do not require nutrition, save for recharging my energy cells every forty eight hours." Red Tornado stated.

"I am… still weak. I require aid to the kitchen." Kaldur explained, and Tornado looked at him, and then nodded, helping the Atlantean towards the kitchen. Leaving M'Gann and Francis alone.

"So, uh… what exactly are we? I mean, are we…" Francis trailed off trying to find the right words, M'Gann chuckled at his struggle and hugged him.

"I mean, I want us to be. Don't you?" She asked staring up into his eyes as he wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Yeah, I really do." He admitted with a smile, his face now a bright red.

"Then yes, yes I think we are." She said before kissing him again as he kissed her back. They were lost in each other, which went a long way in explaining why they didn't hear the door open.

There was a slight clearing of the throat from the doorway, and the two jumped apart red in the face. They found Nolan standing there, arms folded, and a small smile on his face,

"Sorry to interrupt, but I do have some cuts and what not to deal with. I'll just…" Nolan trailed off grabbing a first aid kit, and heading back towards the door,

"Congratulations you two." He said and with another small smile he left the room tapping his private comm as he left.

"Well, he's going to give me hell later." Francis sighed, but was still smiling before he spoke again,

"I should probably get home though, Mom's probably worried sick here she was very not for this mission." He admitted.

"See, you tomorrow?" M'Gann asked.

"Of course." He responded, pressing a gentle kiss to her lips before setting out towards the teleporter. What neither could see was the other smiling wide. It had been a long mission, but overall no one could complain about the results.

Undisclosed Location

Psimon stood in front of eight screens that displayed the blurry silhouettes of the Light, his head bowed in shame. "Please, forgive me." He begged, and the Light was silent. "The Martian girl escaped with both the sphere and the Superboy."

"That hardly matters." The elegant, clearly female voice of L-6 reassured. "What matters is the successful testing of our new partner's delivery system." She said, and Psimon watched as one of the screens behind him began displaying footage from Bialya.

"*BOOM*"The explosion of sound was audible even through the grainy sound of the video, and Psimon watched as a tube of light appeared, depositing the sphere onto the ground.

"Yes, the sphere was lost. But with the testing of the delivery system, we are guaranteed the arrival of new tech. Technology that puts the sphere to shame." The cold logical voice of L-8 explained.

"Your failure is forgiven for now, but do not let it happen again." The timeless voice of L-1 growled, and Psimon bowed, before exiting the room.

"As successful as the testing was, I am more concerned with what we observed." L-2 remarked, and the screen began displaying grainy drone footage of Artemis, Kid Flash, Iron Knight, and White Wolf. "We now have proof that the children are expanding their ranks. If they continue to gain momentum like I believe they will, then they shall become more troublesome than we initially anticipated."

"And now Wakanda is involved." L-4 grimly stated. "If T'challa has begun to suspect our involvement…"

"Then we shall deal with him in time, as we shall deal with all of them." L-5 stated, but L-4's discontentment was clear through the transmission.

"Underestimating him is a mistake we will make only once."

"As will he, should he cross us." L-6 stated. "Careful, Doctor. Otherwise I will begin to think your paranoia is covering up your own weakness."

"Who cares how many kids they throw at us?" L-7 asked. "They can throw whoever and whatever at us, and we'll just crush them."

"Enough." L-1 bellowed, instilling silence in the transmission. "The children are a nuisance. Nothing more, nothing less. For now, our focus should be on making sure all the proper conditions will be in place."

A/N: Before we go, I have a request to make. We all love the feedback and support we've received the past nine months, but that being said, please, please do not put your own ideas into the reviews section. The four of us have a pretty solid plan laid out, and we're all looking forward to sharing what we've cooked up. So we don't need ideas, but feedback is always appreciated. Not only does it help us grow, but it also makes us feel all warm and fuzzy inside. So, until next time, be excellent to each other, drink some water, wash your hands good, and tune in next time.