Warning! Character Death! Ignore this at your own peril!
AN: This chapter ended up being twice as long as I thought it would, and I need you all to know this was the only thing I did this weekend. I'm so happy with how it came out, and I hope you guys can forgive me. (Insert evil laughter here) Be prepared for a LOT of perspective changes, because holy crap, a lot happens in this chapter.
I also have received a bunch of questions about who Hardison is that it's finally important to answer. He's a character on a tv show about extremely skilled criminals who take down corrupt organizations and businesses to try and help people who've been taken advantage of. Because sometimes bad guys... make the best good guys. The show is called Leverage and it is wonderful, you should all watch it.
For now, sit back and enjoy the ride. I'm going to go take a nap because it's three in the morning and I'm TIRED.
Clark Kent
The Watchtower
Monday, March 20th, 2013
"Sorry I'm late." Red Arrow apologized when the zeta beam faded behind him. Superman turned away from the giant display of monitors and waved off the apology.
"Don't worry about it. Everything's been quiet today."
"That's good." Red Arrow answered. "How's Metropolis doing?"
"Luthor hasn't made any big moves lately, which would be a relief if it wasn't so worrying." Superman answered. "Unfortunately, it seems like everyone else sees it as an open invitation to make trouble. Mr. Mxyzptlk has showed up six times this month. If I didn't know better, I'd think he was trying to wear me out."
Red Arrow snorted, grinning along with Superman.
"How's Star City?"
"I wouldn't know." Red Arrow answered, crossing his arms. "Green Arrow and I aren't on the best of terms right now."
"What?" Superman's brow furrowed. "I thought the two of you had worked everything out."
"So did I. But apparently, he feels threatened by the work I've been doing." Red Arrow shot back.
"I'm sorry to hear that, Roy." Superman frowned. "Do you want me to say something to him?"
Red Arrow snorted.
"I think I'll live. Besides he should feel threatened. Apparently, I'm the only one getting any real work done around here."
Red Arrow reached into the pocket on his hip and pulled out a flash drive.
"You wouldn't believe what I had to do to get this." Red Arrow grinned as he tossed it to Superman. Superman caught the drive, examining it for any identifying marks and finding none. He turned it over, and it was the same black casing on the other side.
"What is it?" Superman asked.
"I don't want to spoil the surprise," Red Arrow smirked, a gleam of pride in his eye before he walked over to the Monitor Station and leaned on the back of Superman's chair. Superman turned the flash drive over again before following him.
He sat down, uncapped the flash drive, and plugged it into one of the computers. At least, he tried to. The USB wouldn't go in, so he turned it over, and it still wouldn't go in. Superman let out a huff as Red Arrow laughed at him. Superman frowned, ready to defend himself when Red Arrow raised his hands and said, "No I get it. Flash drives never go in the first time."
Superman shook his head, embarrassed at himself as he turned the flash drive over a third time and it finally slid into the computer.
"My two weaknesses; kryptonite and USB's." Superman muttered, opening the folder that contained the flash drive's contents. Red Arrow put a hand on the back of his neck comfortingly.
"Three." Red Arrow corrected him. Superman was about to ask what he was talking about when he noticed the flash drive was empty. There was nothing in the folder, no files, no data. No anything. Superman whipped around as Red Arrow stepped back, his eyes narrowing.
"Roy, what's going on?"
"Three weaknesses." Red Arrow held up a strangely shaped object and Superman recognized it, horror flooding his body as his hand flew to the back of his neck where Red Arrow had touched him. He felt something shift under his fingertip as the strange device finished absorbing into his skin, and he felt his body start to lock up immediately.
"No!" Superman shouted, trying to fly forward, but he couldn't move and there was a growing pressure in the back of his head that built with every passing second. The last thing he saw was Red Arrow reaching for his communicator.
Then nothing.
Barry Allen
"Flash, where are you?" Red Arrow's voice came through the communicator.
"Working out at the Watchtower." The Flash answered, not breaking stride as he sped along the overpowered treadmill. "What's up?"
"You're supposed to be on duty!"
"What?" That needed his full attention. The Flash turned off the treadmill and hopped off. "No, Superman's on duty now. He took over after my shift ended twenty minutes ago."
"He's not here. I came to drop off some intel and there was no one at the computer."
"Hang on. I'm coming up. Are you in the Monitor Womb?"
"Yeah."
"Lock down the zeta and transport bays and be careful. Something's wrong."
"Got it. You too."
The Flash sped into action, speeding out of the workout room and up the stairs, forgoing the high-speed elevator in favor of even higher speed running.
Red Arrow was waiting for him in the Monitor Womb when he arrived a few seconds later. Sure enough, there was no sign of Superman anywhere.
"You're sure he's not just taking a break?" The Flash asked, but he knew that was unlikely. There were plenty of Leaguers who would sneak breaks during their shift, but Superman had never been one of them.
"If by taking a break, you mean letting someone else take the reins for a while," A voice said from behind him. The Flash whipped around to see Superman descending from the vaulted ceiling of the Monitor Womb, his cape flowing ominously behind him while the look on his face was twisted in sick amusement. "Then yes, you could say that."
"Go get help!" The Flash shouted at Red Arrow. When the other hero responded by pulling out his bow and aiming at the Flash, Barry cursed himself for falling into such an obvious trap.
"Who are you?" He turned to whoever was controlling the still-hovering Superman. "What do you want?!"
"You'll have all the answers you desire when we take you too." Possessed Superman said.
"You know what? I totally forgot, I have a thing. Your evil plan sounds great, it really does, but I'm going to have to take a raincheck, okay?"
Superman caught up to him almost as soon as he moved, and it took all of Barry's control to dodge the blow that would have sent him flying into the far wall. He scrambled back until he got enough friction under his feet to zoom forward, speeding up the side of the wall and running up behind the massive zeta-generator.
The lack of heat vision confirmed that whoever was behind this either wanted the zeta-beam intact or they wanted him alive.
An arrow embedded itself it the wall in front of him and he skidded, trying to change direction as it started beeping. Gravity turned out not to like that maneuver, and the Flash lost his grip even before the arrowhead exploded. A frantic swirling of his hands generated enough of an air cushion that the fifty-foot fall didn't shatter his ribs, but the landing still left the Flash dazed and he lost precious seconds getting back to his feet.
He had to get to the zeta-beam. He had to get out of here and warn the rest of the League.
Superman shot forward, his fist punching a massive hole in the floor exactly where Barry had been a second before. A volley of arrows blocked his path, expanding foam and nets and weighed lines trying to drag the Flash to a stop.
Okay, forget getting to the zeta-beam. He just needed a millisecond opening to activate his comm.
Superman charged again and the Flash ran, trying to evade him but Superman was too fast. Especially when a bolo snagged around his legs and he tripped. Superman closed the distance and grabbed the back of his uniform, hauling him into the air before slamming him face-first into the wall hard enough to make him see stars. Luckily, it wasn't hard enough to break anything.
The Flash took a breath and focused all his energy on vibrating. He phased through the bolo, Superman's fist, and then all the way through the wall, freeing himself and putting an inch of steel between him and his attackers.
The Flash took off for the hangar, hoping that Red Arrow hadn't shut down access to the Javelins. He only got a second's head-start before the wall exploded behind him and Superman flew through, shooting forward and easily slamming a hand against the back of Barry's neck.
Barry froze, his body locking up like the world's worst muscle cramp.
"Are the cells prepared?" Superman asked Red Arrow as the other man joined them.
"They're ready. We can hold them all."
Barry tried to move, tried to yell or scream or vibrate himself free from his own body, but it was like a fog washed over him. The pressure in his head was building, so intense that Barry could barely hear the people right in front of him.
"Excellent. Then we're ready."
"Who do you want to start with?" Red Arrow asked, pulling out his communicator. That was the last thing Barry saw before the world went dark.
Diana Prince
"Clark?" Wonder Woman called, putting a hand on her hip. "Clark?!"
"Over here." Superman answered. Wonder Woman couldn't help but grin; Clark loved people watching. He had an obsession with those windows, and even though he could fly laps around the planet whenever he wanted, he always insisted there was nothing like the view from orbit with your feet on the ground.
"Find anything interesting?" Wonder Woman prompted.
"No. I actually have a favor I need to ask."
"What is it?"
"I think there's a problem with my communicator. Do you have yours?"
"Of course." Wonder Woman dug it out and handed it to him. "Here."
Superman smiled at her. The expression stayed warm as he tightened his grip and the device practically exploded into a shower of metal pieces and electronics. Wonder Woman's jaw dropped as Superman let the crushed pieces fall to the ground.
"What are you doing?!" Wonder Woman demanded. The smile on Superman's face didn't waver for even a second. "If this is some kind of practical joke, it isn't funny!"
"It's not a joke. I needed your help to set off the distress call."
Wonder Woman took a step back, her hand going to the lasso at her waist.
"…what distress call?"
A few minutes later, Superman stood over her unconscious body. He straightened, ignoring the growing bruise on the side of his jaw like he didn't know it was there.
"Yours."
"One down. The rest of the League to go." Red Arrow reported. "Flash, get her secured."
The Flash disappeared, taking Wonder Woman with him. Red Arrow looked through the windows down to the Earth floating in space below them.
"It's almost time. The world will soon see the Light."
Selina Kyle
Two-Face's Hideout
"It took a bit of digging, but it was nice to stretch these muscles again. Compiling witness lists almost brings us back to the good old days. Not that law school could ever be considered the good days." Harvey held out a piece of paper with both sides covered in names.
"Thank you, Harvey." Selina took the list from him and scanned through it. The supervillain watched her for a moment before clearing his throat hesitantly.
"Erm… we must say, as much as we are appalled that Deathstroke would so flagrantly violate your turf, we were worried that you had… approved it. You know that we go quite a ways back with Bruce."
Selina stopped reading and looked up at him. For all that Two-Face claimed to be Harvey's opposite, both of his personalities took personal loyalty very seriously. Selina frowned, matching the serious expression on Two-Face's two faces.
"Harvey, I swear to you that I had no idea what was going on. But that bastard is going to learn the hard way why you don't ever get in Catwoman's way."
"We are glad to hear that." Harvey looked relieved.
Selina returned her attention back to scanning the list of Deathstroke's known associates, vaguely recognizing name after name as military contacts, other mercenaries, along with a wide array of weapons and explosives dealers. One name jumped out at her near the bottom of the page and she looked up. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion.
"Alec Hardison?"
Two-Face nodded.
"Russo put them in touch a few years ago. Deathstroke needed a hacker for something and apparently never asked for another."
Marcus Russo was a notorious fixer, the closest thing the Rogues had to a talent scout. Selina had never used his services, she was perfectly capable of making contacts on her own thank you very much, but most of the other Rogues did when the cut-from-the-mold henchman wouldn't do for a particular job.
Alec Hardison on the other hand, was the self-proclaimed greatest hacker in the world. He was no cat-burglar, but there were only so many people in the world who were as good at what they did as Selina was. They'd never worked together before, but on one memorable occasion, he'd tried to hire her to steal some gimmicky sci-fi prop from a soundstage and she'd declined his (albeit generous) offer with a hard pass. She had standards, after all.
Now though, she was glad he'd tried to hire her. That had been the reason he'd appeared on her radar five years ago. It was also the reason why she knew exactly where he was right now.
"Harvey, I do not say this lightly. I owe you one. Thank you."
"We will certainly keep that in mind, Selina. Now go make sure that bastard knows better than to disrespect Gotham."
Boston Museum of Fine Arts
There was something about art museums that gave them a special kind of magic; Selina was in and out of the GMA every single day, and she never got tired of it. She would have made a terrible art thief is she'd even gotten bored of it. The history, the talent, the passion, the value. It was as intoxicating now as it had always been.
And tonight was the biggest fundraising event of the year; the entire Boston art scene was inside the museum in front of her, mingling, drinking, admiring the art, and reaching deep into their pocketbooks. It was a thief's paradise.
But Catwoman wasn't here for the art, or the wallets, or anything else inside the gloriously illuminated building with its classical architecture and Greco-Roman columns, and the towering posters displaying the Special Collection. She was here for the black van parked near the back of the staff lot near the loading bay.
There wasn't anything particularly special about the van, but Catwoman took a second to appreciate that it was a perfectly placed for a fast getaway. Anyone coming out of the loading docks would have plenty of time to get in and make it out of the lot before security could have any chance to catch up.
Catwoman landed on top of the van, deliberately hitting the metal as hard as she could to scare the occupant. She waited until the doors to the back opened slowly, before swinging herself down and slamming her legs into her target's chest.
The man fell back with a wheeze and Catwoman landed softly inside the van, standing over him in all her villainous glory.
"Hello Hardison." Catwoman cracked her whip threateningly, taking vicious delight as she watched the hacker's eyes dart around nervously as he looked for a way out or a weapon or anything that might save him from her wrath. "I like your van, it's very techno-geek."
"I didn't know! I…I… I swear, I didn't know!" Hardison stammered, raising his hands even as he lay flat on his back.
"I don't care what you did or didn't know. Tell me where he is!" Catwoman snapped. Her usual charm was nowhere to be found; instead, Catwoman looked at the young man in front of her and only felt fury. Batman had confirmed his hacking signature as the one that had interfered with the Batcave's systems and had overridden the zeta-beams at the Watchtower. Hardison had attacked her family and helped hide what Wilson was doing to Dick.
He was going to tell her everything and he was going to pay for what he'd done. In that order.
"I don't know!" Hardison repeated frantically.
"For someone who's managed to lock the Justice League out of their own systems, there's an awful lot you seem to not know."
"Look, if you just—"
The hacker tried to get up and Catwoman hissed, pressing him back against the floor of the van with her foot.
"Do not make me ask you again; where the hell did Wilson take him?!"
"I don't know! He wanted the messages scrambled!"
"I know exactly what you're capable of, Alec. Don't pretend that would be anywhere near enough to stop you!" Catwoman spat. "Tell me where he is!"
"Get away from him." A man growled from behind them in a thick Midwestern twang.
"Elliot, don't!" Hardison wheezed from under her heel, but Catwoman was faster. She spun, whip cracking through the air and stopping a few inches from the other man's face. He stopped, watching the weapon carefully as the end of the whip dropped to the ground. The look on his face made it clear he knew she hadn't been trying to hit him, just to make him listen. Elliot was smart enough to get the message.
Even though he clearly wasn't ready to back down.
"Don't you dare defend him!" Selina snarled, gesturing at Hardison without taking her gaze away from the hitter. "He is the reason that my kid is in the hands of a violent psychopath!"
Elliot Spencer stopped dead. The former marine-turned-retrieval specialist froze, before his eyes narrowed in fury and he glared at the hacker lying on the floor of the van.
"You did what?!" The man shouted, and Hardison shifted to try to make eye contact.
"I didn't know!"
"Alright, everyone, let's just take a step back here!" A voice exclaimed in a very calming British accent. The voice belonged to a woman dressed for a Black-Tie event, wearing a stunning Oscar De La Renta and matching Louboutin heels, with a diamond necklace draped around her neck that Selina recognized all too well. She'd stolen it on behalf of the man the grifter had taken it from.
Aside from Sophie, Selina was also familiar with the people standing behind her, wearing a server's uniform and a tuxedo respectively. Parker was a true cat-burglar, one of the select few in existence who could give Selina a run for her money. But Nate Ford… the former insurance investigator that had gotten in her way a few times back in the day? To anyone who didn't match wits with the Batman, he might've been a tricky rival but to Selina, he'd been a fun opponent to outsmart.
"Selina, I would really appreciate if you don't suffocate Hardison." Sophie Deveraux smiled sweetly, while the hacker tapped Selina's heel to desperately indicate he couldn't breathe. "Why don't you let him go and we'll talk this out?"
Selina stepped back and climbed gracefully out of the van, allowing Parker to run past her and check on the hacker.
"What's going on, Selina?" Nate asked her with a tilt of his head. He didn't look worried about the fact that she'd just assaulted a member of his crew, and Selina added that to the list of things she appreciated about him. Ford always knew how to read a situation.
"I heard you got in the game." Selina said. "Taking down the people who crush anyone in their way, fighting for the people that can't protect themselves."
"We try." Nate nodded. "Why are you threatening my hacker?"
"She said he was involved with Grayson's disappearance." Elliot growled, crossing his arms over his chest. In an instant, the suspicious look on Nate's face turned furious… and it wasn't aimed at her. Selina suddenly remembered that he'd lost his eight-year-old to cancer a few years back.
"Hardison." He said in a very cold tone. "You have ten seconds to tell me that you had nothing to do with it."
"I didn't know." Hardison said, looking at the ground. Parker was helping him sit on the edge of the van, but she stopped abruptly, literally dropping him the last few inches.
"Hardison, what did you do?!" The thief demanded, jabbing a finger in his face.
"I didn't know!" Hardison's shout echoed through the empty parking lot. "Okay?! I messed up! But it's not… it's not what you think!"
Hardison looked up to see five angry faces staring back at him.
"Look…" Hardison grabbed his head in his hands and took a deep breath. "When I was seventeen, I started skimming from the mobs. All of them, any accounts I could find. And it… did not end well. This guy Russo bailed me out, managed to convince them not to kill me and he didn't want anything for doing it."
"You got talent scouted?" Elliot demanded, apparently recognizing the name. "Unbelievable."
"Who's Russo?" Parker asked.
"Shush. I'll tell you later," Sophie whispered to her.
"Russo put you in touch with Wilson." Selina prompted. Hardison nodded.
"Right. I hadn't heard from him in years, then one day he called and said he had a friend who needed to hire a hacker. I owed him, so I said I'd do it. It was an easy job, a few hours and then I made…" Hardison shook his head like he was counting it, "SO much money. It was a great gig. Wilson was a pro; he gave great intel, he paid well, and—"
"And you didn't care about who you were helping him kill." Elliot finished furiously.
"What? No! It was like insurance fraud and stuff." He looked at Nate and swallowed nervously. "I mean… uh… Look, sometimes people wanted wills changed. Make sure they get their inheritance, that kind of stuff. You would not believe legal bullshit you have to go through to get it."
"Unbelievable." Sophie muttered, putting a hand to her forehead. "You didn't know who you were working for, did you?"
"I did! After… a couple years." Hardison admitted. "He wanted me to make him a bunch of new covers, so I looked him up while I was doing it. After I knew, I said I was done working with him."
"But you still made him his ID's, didn't you?" Elliot asked. Hardison shrugged.
"Damn it, Hardison!"
"Look, I'm not proud of it but it was a long time ago! I never worked another job for him after that."
"Then what were you doing in the Justice League's system in January?"
"Hardison?!" Sophie sputtered, eyes bulging in shock. Nate fixed him with a disappointed glare that made the hacker wilt in shame.
"It's a long story." Hardison began heavily. "About a year ago, Wilson reached out to me out of the blue. He said one of his partners wanted to learn to code and asked if I'd be willing to teach him. That's it. It was just a tutoring gig, so I said I'd do it."
"Are you an idiot?!" Elliot demanded. Hardison's head snapped up defensively.
"How the hell was I supposed to know?!"
"How were you supposed to know it was a bad idea to teach the partner of the most dangerous mercenary in the world to hack?" Nate asked, sounding decidedly unimpressed.
"You don't know him like I do!" Hardison shouted in frustration.
"You think you know him?! Hardison, he's Deathstroke the fucking Terminator! He makes the worst shit I ever did look like a day at Disneyland. And you just went along with whatever he said because you think he's your friend?!" Elliot shouted, fury and disbelief warring on his face.
"Stop it!" Selina snapped. She turned to Hardison, and for the first time, she realized how young he was. At twenty-two, she'd been overconfident and naïve. She thought her skills would get her out of anything, and acted like she was invincible… until she wasn't. Hardison, although he certainly hadn't helped, wasn't the problem here. "This is how Wilson manipulates people. He finds people that are useful to him and befriends them, makes them think he's on their side until it's too late. It's exactly how he got Dick."
Selina took a deep breath, winding her whip around her waist before looking at Hardison. "I'm sorry I attacked you. You know Wilson better than any of us. Can you help me find him?"
Hardison looked at her, guilt written all across his face as he nodded.
"I have a suggestion, how about we continue this at the pub?" Sophie said.
Nate pulled out a chair at one of the tables and pushed it at Hardison.
"Explain. Now." Nate said, sitting at the head of the table. Hardison took a deep breath and puffed up his cheeks before blowing the air out.
"I started helping Gray with his code about a year ago. There's a platform I designed to work on split-screen modules so you can see everyone's code, and there's a separate chatbox to talk. I use it for all the kids I tutor. Wilson found out I was teaching and asked if I'd mind picking up another student. There was nothing weird about it, I swear. The guy called himself Gray, he was kind of grumpy at first, but man, that kid's going to better than me."
"What kind of things did you teach him?" Sophie asked, lacing her fingers together as she leaned forward.
"I… he blew through everything I had in about a month. So I…" Hardison exhaled heavily, "…started showing him the kind of stuff I do. Making ID's, planting covers, multi-key decryption and… Gray just ate it up. I didn't know anything about him, but I had… there wasn't anything wrong. I swear, I had no idea who Gray really was. There was a couple times he joked about being in middle school, but I thought… I thought there was no way in hell he was actually a kid."
"So why did you break into the Justice League?" Parker asked, sucking on a lollipop that nobody was exactly sure where it had come from.
"Wilson called me. He said Gray was on a job that went wrong, he needed immediate evac or he'd be going to prison for the rest of his life. I… I know I shouldn't have, but I… Wilson was a fri—look, I've known him for a long time. And I never had a reason not to trust him, and I didn't want to abandon Gray. So I did what I had to and got him out."
"When did you know who he was?"
"I didn't know Gray was Richard Grayson until Wayne did that interview with Cat Grant. I swear, I didn't know."
"Where are they now?"
"I don't know. I talked to Gray a couple days after it happened and he was having fun messing with me. Look, I might be the only person that knows both of them, and I don't have a freaking clue about what's going on with them. For all I knew, Gray wanted to be there."
"He's a good actor." Selina said quietly.
"That was the last time I talked to him. I haven't heard anything from them in a couple months. I don't know where they are. I… I don't."
The pub was silent for a few long moments. Hardison frowned, his hands squeezed into tight fists as he looked away from his crew like he couldn't stand to see the disappointment in their eyes. Selina didn't blame him; the looks they were giving him weren't pretty.
"So. How do we stop him?" Nate asked.
"We don't." Elliot said. Parker frowned in confusion.
"What? He must have some weakness, I mean, everyone does! Like how Sophie has shoes and Nate has alcohol and you have models and—"
"This isn't the kind of guy you stop, Parker! This is the kind of guy you stay the hell away from. You can't fight him, you can't steal from him, and you can't out-think him."
Nate set his whiskey glass down a little too hard, a little too much aggravation behind the hard lines on his face.
"You see, Elliot, that's not good enough. You know why? Because there's a kid's life on the line here, and we are not going to let him get away with this."
"Look, Nate, I know how hard you take it when kids are involved, and believe me, I would like nothing more than to rip this guy's head off. But if we go after the Terminator, he will kill us. I can't protect all four of you, not from him."
"Uh, Catwoman? Ma'am?" Hardison interrupted quietly, not taking his eyes off the glaring match that had erupted between the mastermind and the hitter. "Can I talk to you over there for a second?"
Selina nodded and followed him to the alcove at the back of the restaurant. Hardison swallowed and twisted his hands together nervously.
"Uh, so there's…" Hardison started, trying to figure out how to get the words out. "…you know about the Watchtower and… that stuff that happened? And uh… who… did it."
Selina's face froze. She wasn't surprised that Hardison knew Dick was Robin. She just didn't know what he intended to do with the information.
"I do." She said carefully. Hardison licked his lips, glancing over Selina's shoulder to where the rest of the crew was sitting. They were clearly all watching the two of them, but out of respect for Selina, kept their distance.
"I didn't tell them." Hardison said. "I figured that's not my secret to let out."
Selina let out a huff of air.
"I appreciate that," she frowned. "How long have you known?"
"I didn't!" Hardison blurted defensively. "Not until… when Wilson reached out, he said it was an emergency. Gray was trapped on the Watchtower, he needed a way off. I got control of the system and the cameras, and then suddenly I was watching Robin break into the Justice League's headquarters. I didn't have any idea, I swear. I mean, I thought Gray was younger, but I didn't know he was a kid, let alone… I'm so stupid. I…"
Hardison cut off as his phone chirped loudly. He held up a finger, the look on his face turning into confused panic.
"That's a bad sound. That's bad. I gotta…"
Selina nodded and stepped back as the hacker pulled out his phone at the speed of light.
"Oh SHIT."
"What?"
Hardison turned the phone around and Selina's jaw dropped.
"Oh crap." She muttered.
"That's… that's not really him, is it?"
Selina looked at the screen, picking out all the little details a copycat would miss; Spitcurl's signature curl, the crows' feet under his eyes, and the tiny scar on his jaw from a stray kryptonite shard. She let out a hard breath of air, her stomach sinking.
"It's him. But something's wrong."
"Uh, yeah, you don't say!" Hardison half-shouted nervously. Elliot and Parker looked over at the shout.
"What's going on?" Elliot called.
"Oh nothing." Hardison answered, pressing his lips together and nodding nervously. "Just the threat of planetary annihilation."
"I need to get back to Gotham." Selina said. "I'll be in touch as soon as I can. Whatever you end up doing, do not let Wilson know that you're looking for him. He trusts you right now, and that's an advantage we can't afford to lose."
"Uh, yeah. Sure. Right." Hardison said nervously. "Uh… you don't… do you think… Superman's not really gonna…"
"Alec." Selina said firmly, putting a hand on his shoulder the way she did when Tim had a nightmare. "It's going to be okay. Superman is not going to destroy the planet."
And if he was going to, Selina thought to herself, there wasn't exactly anything Hardison would be able to do about it.
Vandal Savage
The Watchtower
Vandal surveyed his conquest, the victorious gleam in his eyes strengthening with every prisoner he walked past. Most of the Justice League's members were still unconscious, but Hawkwoman was awake and thrashing against the restraints. She growled when she made eye contact with Vandal, snarling at him through the reinforced glass.
The Justice League's headquarters had already been well-equipped to house prisoners, to Vandal's great delight. The added measures his drones had installed would make the already formidable cells inescapable.
"My dear Sheyara," Vandal stepped forward, shaking his head in disappointment. "I think you'll find it wise to conserve your energy."
"What did you do to Superman?!" The alien demanded, leaning forward as far as the restrains would allow her. Given the way she flinched as the bindings tightened around her wings, that motion was not nearly as far as she would have liked. A pity. Of course, that flinch could have been owed to the numerous injuries that were evident, or possibly the unnatural bend in her blood-covered wing. The heroes had put up a valiant fight, as Vandal knew they would.
"We've simply encouraged him to embrace the Light, as the rest of you will learn to do."
"I'll hold my breath." Hawkwoman spat. Vandal smiled at the passion in her voice. Unfortunately, he couldn't stay to enjoy her company any longer.
"If you'll excuse me, my dear, I'm afraid I have other matters to attend to." Vandal said smoothly.
"Don't call me that, you piece of shit." Hawkwoman growled. Vandal inclined his head at her and moved on, leaving her to struggle in vain. He strode down the hallway, passing yet more unconscious, helpless heroes until he reached his destination.
The cell door was wide open, but Savage chose to stop just beyond the enclosure.
"Well, look who finally made it." Klarion snarked, rubbing a hand over Teekl's fur when the cat let out a hiss. Vandal shared the creature's sentiment; he'd never cared for cats any more than they cared for him.
"We can't all run around at fleeting whims." Vandal responded imperiously. Klarion made a face at him and they both turned to the cell's other occupants. Ivo was muttering nonsense to himself as he hovered over the restrained robot, pressing keys and adjusting wires. Vandal Savage never claimed to understand technology, but then again, he didn't need to. That's what Ivo was for. "How is your project coming?"
"Very promising. Just a few more minutes to dissolve Morrow's pathetic safeguards, giving me full access to all his systems." Ivo responded.
"Warning; attempts to alter my internal programming will be met with hostile force." Red Tornado rattled as Ivo attached yet another cable to his frame.
"Oh, you can try." Ivo clucked, shaking his head. "A shame; Morrow left so little of his work behind to remind us how pathetic he was. Ah, well."
"Can you reprogram the stupid thing or not?" Klarion demanded impatiently.
"Indeed I can," Ivo responded. He cracked his neck and shook out his fingers. "Deconstructing Morrow's lifework has been one of my favorite pastimes these last few months in prison. A place where, I might add, I only remained in because you and your friends didn't see fit to release me sooner."
Vandal fought the urge to roll his eyes, but Klarion saw no need to restrain himself.
"I'm sorry, do you want an apology?" Klarion sneered. On his shoulder, Teekl let out a hiss. Ivo chuckled.
"Save us all the trouble." Ivo turned back to Red Tornado, surveying the robot. Vandal noted the sound of gears and joints creaking as the robot attempted to free itself. "It's almost a shame to destroy it. Eighty years of a machine thinking it's a man; imagine the research that could be performed on non-organic psychology. No matter, all progress comes with a price."
"Do not." Red Tornado boomed, his voice approximating something that might have been called panic. If Vandal cared at all about technology or its progress, he might've been impressed that the robot was capable of imitating emotion so well. Ivo patted the robot's cheek in a mockery of affection.
"Don't worry. It's not like you're going to feel anything. Goodbye, Tornado."
Artemis Crock
"Thank you all for coming." Kaldur said. Conner sat across from him and Artemis slid into the booth next to Conner while Zatanna took the open seat next to Kaldur. Artemis glanced around the restaurant, her stomach clenching when all she could think about was the last time the team had gone out to eat together.
God, it felt like a million years since the Reds had stormed the cave and nearly killed them all. She remembered how messed up they'd all been, how terrified out of her mind she'd been when she was the only thing standing between her teammates and certain death.
She almost let out a laugh at the thought of it. Yeah, things had been bad then, but Artemis had no idea how much worse they'd get. There'd been so many betrayals and secrets and fuck-ups, plus they'd all almost died more times than Artemis could remember.
Still, the last time they'd been at the dinner it had been the six of them. Four wasn't that much fewer than six, but without the rest of their teammates—Wally and M'gann and… and Dick—the booth felt disturbingly empty.
"Of course." Conner answered.
"It's been so weird not seeing you guys at the cave every day." Zatanna said, trying to disguise the sadness with anything else and failing miserably.
"You haven't made other living arrangements?" Kaldur asked. The frown on his face deepened and Zatanna looked away with a too-casual shrug.
"All my stuff is there." Zatanna said evasively. "It's… you know, it's home now. M'gann's not around much these days, but, uh… Canary's there a lot. Other than that, it's just me and Tornado."
Silence followed. Zatanna cleared her throat, trying to fight back the blush of embarrassment.
"What about you, Conner?"
"I've been staying with family." Conner said after a pause. "It's different. Not bad, uh… I've got more space to work on some projects and Wolf has a lot of room to run around."
"That sounds nice." Artemis smiled. Conner was spared having to say anything else when the waitress walked over.
"Hey there, I'm Linda, I'll be taking your orders. What can I get you kids?" The waitress asked with a big smile on her face, holding a pen to the pad of paper in her hands.
"Cheeseburger with fries and a chocolate milkshake." Artemis ordered first.
"Same as her." Conner nodded.
"Great, and for you?"
"The vegetable burger, please. Nothing on the side." Kaldur ordered. Artemis raised an eyebrow at him and he ignored her.
"Good choice, the veggie burgers are my favorite! Well, they're all my favorites, but the veggie burgers are great!" Linda scribbled the order on the pad and looked at Zatanna. "And what can I get you?"
"Can I have the special?" Zatanna asked, pointing to the hand-drawn chalkboard behind the counter. Linda glanced at it and beamed.
"One 'Eggers can't be cheesers' coming up. Anything else?"
"I believe we are set. Thank you."
"Anytime! I'll be back with some waters for you."
Conner crossed his arms on the table and leaned forward. He cut right to the chase with his usual bluntness.
"So I take it you didn't just ask us to come here for the burgers?"
Kaldur sighed heavily.
"I'm leaving." Kaldur said.
"What?" Conner asked.
"What do you mean, you're leaving?!" Artemis exclaimed while Zatanna's jaw dropped. "Kaldur, you can't leave!"
"I appreciate the sentiment," Kaldur smiled sadly and there was something in his eyes that made Artemis stop. She knew that look, and unlike the last time she saw it, she knew what it was. It was the exact same hopelessness she'd seen on Dick's face the day before Winter Break. "But it's time."
"What happened?" Artemis demanded.
"Nothing." Kaldur responded quietly. His mouth twitched at the disbelieving look on Artemis' face in a way that could have been a fond smile if he didn't look so sad. "It's just time."
"You can't leave!" Zatanna exclaimed.
"The arrangements have already been made." Kaldur shook his head. "I wanted to wish my friends well before I left."
"That's bullshit."
"Artemis." Kaldur said gently.
"Don't 'Artemis' me, you can't sit there looking like someone killed your pet fish and then say nothing's wrong." The look on Kaldur's face didn't budge, and Artemis took a deep breath before jamming a finger onto the table for emphasis. "Look. The last time I saw one of my friends look that sad, I didn't do anything. I left him alone and I figured he would figure it out on his own. And look how well that worked out for Dick."
All three of them winced; in Kaldur's case, he just shut his eyes.
"If you think there's any way in hell I'm losing another friend, you're dead wrong. Tell us what's wrong."
"I don't think that's—"
"Please." Artemis frowned. Kaldur held out for a few seconds before he slumped.
"I don't believe that I can do this anymore." Kaldur said. "Life on the surface world has turned out to be… difficult in ways I never could have predicted. I feel as though every choice I make just complicates thing further. You made me your leader, and the League expects me to be responsible for you, but most days I feel as though I am being crushed by the weight on my shoulders."
"Kaldur, that's terrible." Conner frowned. "I didn't know you felt like that."
"There have been so many secrets and so many lies. So much pain caused by ones I trusted."
Conner winced. Artemis saw him do it, but it seemed like a bad idea to ask right this second.
"In any case, I have come to realize that the surface world is not where I belong. I…" Kaldur trailed off before shaking his head. "I will not burden you with my problems any further."
"Kal." Zatanna looked aghast.
"Do you think you're burdening us?" Artemis asked, feeling more like Black Canary than she ever had.
"I know that I am."
"Who told you that?" Conner demanded.
"No one."
"Holy shit." Artemis realized suddenly. "Roy said that to you?"
"No, he…" Kaldur stopped. His shoulders slumped forward, the weight of the world dragging them down. "Yes."
"That's it. I don't care that we called a truce, I'm going to go kick his ass."
"Artemis, please. My decision has been made. All I ask is that I can enjoy your company for one last time before I depart."
Artemis sat back against the booth, her heart pounding. There were a million things she wanted to say, but none of them would come out. What the hell was she supposed to say to that?!
"Here you go, two cheeseburgers, a veggie burger and a special. Anything else?" Linda the waitress appeared with their plates, saving Artemis from having to figure out the answer.
"We are fine, thank you." Kaldur answered. When she was gone, Kaldur gestured at their plates. "The food is very good here."
"It looks good." Zatanna said awkwardly. The rest of the meal passed with awkward, stilted small talk. Nobody wanted to upset anyone else, but there was so much that went unsaid that there was practically a storm cloud hanging over their table.
Artemis tried to think of anything she could say that would change Kaldur's mind; they needed him here! Aqualad was the team's leader, sure, but he was their friend. He belonged here on the surface world. Roy was a piece of shit, and on top of that, he was an idiot for treating Kaldur so badly. There had to be something that would convince Kaldur he was making the wrong choice. That he needed to stay.
A trio of kids came bursting out of the kitchen suddenly, shouting over each over as they threw themselves at the waitress.
"Mom!" The boy shouted, grabbing onto Linda's hand. "Mom! Mom!"
"WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!" One of the girls shouted, sounding half-panicked and half-excited. Her pink hat flopped from side to side as she jumped up and down.
"What? What? What's wrong?!" Linda asked as the kids swarmed her.
"Superman went evil!"
"He's gonna destroy the planet if we don't make him supreme ruler of everything," the older girl said plainly, sounding amazingly calm for the insanity of the words coming out of her mouth.
"Well that doesn't sound like him!" Linda exclaimed.
Artemis froze, looking at her teammates in horror. As one, the four of them dove for their phones. Artemis' jaw dropped when every news alert announced the same thing; Superman declares himself Supreme Ruler.
"Ycavirp neercs!" Zatanna chanted, and the air around them shimmered for a second. "What the hell is going on?!"
"I haven't gotten any messages from the League." Artemis said, scrolling through her phone to see if she'd somehow missed something.
"And there was nothing on my communicator." Kaldur said. The team's leader was all business now that the world was in danger. And shit, if Superman had actually just threatened to take over the world or destroy it, the world was in a LOT of danger.
"What are we supposed to do?!" Zatanna freaked. Artemis reached across the table to put squeeze the younger girl's hand.
"It's going to be okay. We'll figure it out, but panicking isn't going to help anything." Artemis said, trying to remember the way Robin had sounded so sure of himself when he'd said, "Get traught, or get dead."
Shit, was this how he'd felt then?
"Where's the League?" Conner asked.
"I can't contact any of them." Kaldur shook his head.
"Let me try." Zatanna pulled out her own communicator.
"Wait." Artemis said. "This could be a trap. If the League is compromised, using our comms will just tell them exactly where we are."
Kaldur frowned and set his comm down carefully.
"I believe we should relocate."
"Good idea." Conner nodded. They all stood and Kaldur dropped a thick wad of bills on the table as they left their half-eaten food behind. As they left the restaurant, all four of their communicators chimed at the same time. Artemis looked down and her jaw dropped.
Robin was on the line.
"What the hell?" Zatanna stopped outside the door, staring down at her comm.
"This has to be a trap, right?" Artemis asked. Kaldur frowned.
"Almost definitely." Conner agreed.
"Great. Any objections?"
"Do it, but be cautious." Kaldur nodded. Artemis took a breath and answered the comm call.
"Is anyone there?!" The voice on the other end was most definitely not Dick's.
"Who is this?" Artemis asked.
"Artemis!" A new voice burst in, the sounded flooded with relief. This voice, Artemis knew.
"Babs?!"
"It's Batgirl. Are you safe? Is anyone else with you?"
"I'm safe. Where are you?"
"That's not important. Look, the League has been captured. They're being held in the Watchtower. Something's wrong with Superman! He and the Flash—"
"—and Roy—" the other voice interrupted.
"Went crazy. They let a bunch of bad guys onto the Watchtower and everyone on the League is either unconscious or under their control." Batgirl finished.
"How do you know this?"
"I hacked the Batcomputer. It's still got a piggyback onto the satellite that houses the League's mainframe."
"You hacked the mainframe?" Zatanna asked.
"I'm not as good as…" Batgirl trailed off, and they all knew who she was talking about. "But I got in. Robin and I can help you."
"Robin?" Artemis asked slowly, wincing at the pained expression on her teammates' faces.
"Yeah. You have a problem with that?" The unfamiliar voice demanded.
"Jason." Kaldur's voice was steady, but Artemis almost took a step back from the intensity of the look on his face. "I cannot allow you to do that. It is far too dangerous."
"So is doing nothing and letting the planet be destroyed!" Jason retorted. Artemis blinked when she finally placed the name, the realization hitting her like a brick to the face. Dick had four siblings; Jason was his younger brother. "Everyone who's supposed to keep us safe is trapped on the Watchtower or they're already being mind-controlled! I'm not going to just sit back and wait for the world to end!"
"Jason, please." Kaldur repeated.
"My dad is up there, okay?! They have Batman! They have aun—Wonder Woman too! If we don't do something, they're all gonna die and I am NOT LOSING ANYONE ELSE!"
Kaldur heaved a sigh, his hand scrubbing over his face. Artemis couldn't bring herself to break the silence. Jason was right; they had less than 48 hours to free Superman from whoever was mind-controlling him and stop him from destroying the planet. But Kaldur was right too. This was going to be the most dangerous mission they'd ever been on.
"Say we do this. How are the six of us supposed to stop Superman and the Flash and whoever else managed to take down the ENTIRE JUSTICE LEAGUE?!" Zatanna pointed out, derailing an argument they really didn't have time for.
"Wait, six? Don't you mean eight?" Batgirl asked. Artemis and Conner looked at each other, and Artemis felt a pang of guilt.
"No." Kaldur said.
"She's right." Artemis shook her head. "I know you're mad at them, but the entire Justice League is down for the count. We need all the help we can get."
"Very well." Kaldur agreed stiffly. It was a testament to how bad things were that he let up so easily. "Have them meet us at..."
"Meet us in Gotham." Jason—the new Robin- said. "There's a safehouse near the harbor where we can come up with a plan."
Batgirl sent the coordinates across before ending the call. Conner was the first one to break the silence.
"You guys take Sphere. I have to make a call first, but I'll meet you there." Conner said.
"Who are you calling?"
"Backup." Conner answered. "Look, I'll explain it when they get here, okay?"
"Very well." Kaldur said, but he really didn't look happy about it.
Wally was expecting her call; he didn't make a big deal out of it, he didn't say anything about the fact that they'd clearly been left out of the loop, he just listened when she told him the address and said he and M'gann would meet them there. He also offered to pick up her costume and her fully stocked quiver without her even having to ask.
The two of them were waiting in the safehouse when Sphere arrived, along with Batgirl and the newly-minted Robin. Jason was taller than Artemis expected him to be; if she hadn't known Dick as well as she did, she wasn't sure that she would have been able to tell that this was a different Robin at all. At least, from a distance.
As soon as the three of them walked in, Kaldur stopped dead. Zatanna looked back and forth, watching the way M'gann shifted uncomfortably but stayed silent. Artemis crossed the room and pecked Wally on the cheek before accepting her uniform and weapons.
"I'm going to go change." She announced to the silent room. "If you're going to tear each other's heads off, at least wait until I get back."
To her relief (and shock), everything was calm when she returned. It was still horribly awkward, but the standoff between Kaldur, M'gann and Wally had ended. Small victories.
"Perimeter alert." Batgirl announced suddenly, and everyone was instantly on guard. Miss Martian relaxed a second later.
"It's Superboy."
It was Superboy, and he'd brought friends. On his left was a woman with short blonde hair and a hastily assembled costume that looked like she'd chopped up Superman's costume and put it back together with her eyes closed. It was actually kind of cool. But it was the boy on Superboy's right that had Artemis staring in shock. He looked identical to Conner in every way, except that where Conner was wearing a black t-shirt and cargo pants, he was wearing a spike-studded leather jacket, a blue-and-red bodysuit, and four-inch-tall combat heels. The right side of his head was shaved, the rest of his hair falling to the opposite side.
Artemis blinked. Punk Superboy. That was not something she was ever expecting to see.
"It's not just me, right?" Zatanna asked. "You all see the other Superboy?"
"Ahuh." Kid Flash nodded.
"Guys, this is Cameron and Kara. Cam, Kara, this is the team." Conner introduced them.
"I take it Cadmus was busier than we were led to believe." Aqualad said, his voice sounding strained.
"Cameron is. Kara is—"
"I'm Superman's cousin. Technically, I'm his older cousin, but the Phantom Zone is kind of a weird place."
"Okay. Sure." Batgirl nodded, taking it in stride while everyone else kept staring. "That's cool. So we might have a chance at not immediately being destroyed. That's great, actually. Is this everyone?"
"I believe so. Unless there are any other last-minute surprises?" Aqualad asked rhetorically. "In any case, the floor is yours."
"So, here's the plan." Batgirl began, pointing at the screen she'd pulled up. "We figured out that this guy is the one calling all the shots."
She pointed at the screen and Artemis frowned.
"Vandal Savage. Haven't seen him since he tried to murder Perdita." Kid Flash said, crossing his arms over his chest. "Not surprising he's been waiting for something big."
"He's not the only one. This guy took over the communications center; I've had to pull back most of the surveillance capabilities so he doesn't figure out we have eyes on them. It looks like there's some kind of robot guarding him."
"Ivo." Conner frowned. "Looks like he fixed AMAZO."
"Dammit." Artemis swore.
"Uh, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that's bad," Cameron said, looking a little bit lost.
"AMAZO is a self-improving android with the ability to learn from its opponents and replicate their abilities."
"Okay, so whatever our plan is, the three of us shouldn't go anywhere near him." Kara pointed at Conner and Cameron in turn.
"That would be wise." Aqualad agreed.
"We're not sure how they're controlling Superman and the others, but hopefully if we can take down Savage, it'll weaken the control enough for them to break free."
"That's not going to work." Miss Martian frowned.
"It has to." Batgirl shook her head.
"No, Meg's right. It's the chips. Remember after New Orleans, we brought back an entire case full of them. Enough to chip everyone in the League and all of us. It's not going to be that easy to break their control." Kid Flash said.
"Then how do we break it?" Superboy asked.
"Where's my uncle?" Miss Martian broke the silence, turning towards Batgirl. Batgirl raised her glove and pulled up a holocomputer like the one Robin used; it took Artemis a second to realize that it was actually Robin's old gloves.
"He's in one of the cells." Batgirl finally answered. Miss Martian nodded.
"We don't know exactly how the chips work, but if we can free Uncle J'onn, the two of us might be able to break through their control."
"Then that's our objective. We must remove Superman from Savage's control. If that is not possible, we must subdue him."
"Leave that to us." Superboy said. Kara and Cameron nodded emphatically.
"Good." Aqualad turned to the rest of them. "The rest of us must free the League, take down AMAZO, and defeat Savage. Batgirl, Robin, you'll go with—" Aqualad paused, not for very long, but for long enough that it was impossible to ignore his hesitation. "Miss Martian to free the League. Artemis, you're with them."
"Right." Artemis nodded, pretending not to notice the way M'gann flinched. She didn't blame her; it was killing Artemis to see Kaldur treat their teammates so coldly, and she wasn't even one of the people he was mad at.
"No matter what happens, your priority is to keep each other safe, and avoid capture. Do you understand?"
"Of course." Miss Martian answered softly. Aqualad couldn't meet her eyes, and he took a second to steel himself before looking at Zatanna.
"Zatanna, you and Kid Flash are with me. We will handle AMAZO."
"Wait, if the three of you take AMAZO, who's supposed to deal with Savage?" Batgirl asked.
"We will deal with him once the other threats have been dispatched." Aqualad said.
"He's the most dangerous person on the Watchtower right now! We have to deal with him first!"
"Very well. I will handle Savage. The rest of you have your assignments."
"Then I'm helping them with AMAZO." Batgirl stood firm, putting her hands on her hips. Zatanna and Kid Flash froze, looking at Aqualad to see how he'd react to her announcement.
"Absolutely not."
"We don't have time to argue." Batgirl snapped, throwing her hands out to the sides. "I know it's dangerous, okay? But if we can't stop this, the entire planet is either going to be destroyed or trapped under Savage's control."
Aqualad sighed, but he nodded.
"How are we going to get onto the Watchtower?" Kid Flash asked.
"They're going to be watching the zeta beams; if we come through that way, they'll pick us off as soon as we get there." Superboy agreed.
"We'll take the bioship." Miss Martian said.
"We're going to need a distraction. Something to keep their attention off the ship to ensure they don't notice our arrival."
"Leave it to me." Kara said. "I'll go through the zeta and draw out as many of them as I can. If I can get Kal to follow me, it'll give you guys more room to work with."
"That is wise." Aqualad agreed. He looks around at the assembled group. "Any questions?"
Everyone stayed quiet.
"We leave in ten minutes."
Aqualad stepped outside once everyone nodded their agreement, seizing his chance to get some air and center himself. Artemis sat against the wall, double checking her arsenal and making sure her arrows were properly prepared. She saw M'gann approach Conner, looking nothing like her usual confident self.
"Conner, I… I'm so sorry." M'gann said, tears welling up in her eyes. "I never meant to lie to you, and I never wanted any of this to happen, I… I'm sorry."
"I know you didn't." Conner's voice was quiet. Artemis suddenly realized that she was intruding on a private moment, but she couldn't tear herself away. M'gann sniffed, wiping at her eyes with the back of her hand.
"I guess I know what you've been doing the last few months," M'gann offered him a watery smile as she glanced over at Cameron. "I can't… imagine that was easy."
"It was worth it." Conner answered simply. M'gann's smile faltered as she looked back at Conner.
"I missed you so much."
"Me too."
They both hesitated for a second before M'gann threw herself at Conner, wrapping her arms around him and burying her face against his chest. Conner pulled her close, squeezing his eyes shut and leaning his face down to press against her hair.
Artemis jumped when something squeezed her hand.
"Are you ready?" Wally asked her.
"Not even a little."
"Me neither."
Conner Kent
Tuesday, March 21st, 2013
"Recognized; controlled access exemption D-05." The zeta-log announced as the blinding light faded. The figure shot into the air, dodging the projectiles that sped toward them the instant they appeared.
"Kal-El!" Supergirl thundered, hovering in the air just beyond the Flash's reach. "What the hell do you think you're doing?!"
"You have no business here. Leave immediately or be destroyed." Superman responded, his eyes glowing red before she could even consider leaving. Supergirl countered his burst of heat vision with a blast of her own. Then she pulled back and grinned.
"Make me."
She ducked another bust of heat vision and barely had time to straighten before Superman was on top of her. They exchanged blows at superspeed, trading punches too fast for the human eye to follow. Superman's leg shot up and nailed Supergirl in the stomach, throwing her into the wall with a crash. Before he could follow up the blow, Conner leapt from his hiding place to strike him in the back, right between his shoulder blades. Superman stumbled, and that was all the time Supergirl needed to climb back to her feet, brushing the rubble off her costume.
Superman turned, fury blazing in his eyes. Before he could move, a new voice rang out.
"Hey dad! Remember how you said we should do more family bonding?" Cameron asked, flying forward to land a punch on Superman's jaw. His fist landed in the center of his cheek, and Superboy could see the flesh rippling as Superman staggered under the force of the blow. "How 'bout we just go camping next time?"
The Flash sped forward, using his momentum to slam Cameron out of the way. Immediately, Supergirl turned and took a huge breath before blowing hard and encasing the Flash in a solid layer of ice. Superboy pulled Cam back to his feet, standing between Superman and the now-frozen Flash.
"It's too cramped in here!" Superboy told Cam. "We have to take this outside."
Superman charged forward and Superboy met the attack, grabbing Superman's fists and locking two of them together.
"Is he going to be okay like that?!" Supergirl asked, checking her handiwork to make sure the speedster wouldn't be able to break free. Conner gritted his teeth and dug his heels in, focusing on the sound of the Flash's heartbeat. It was slower than usual but completely steady.
"He'll be fine." Superboy answered confidently. "Get Superman back to Earth."
"Right." His cousin nodded. Supergirl launched herself forward, grabbing Superman around the waist and slamming him backwards out of the hangar. Cameron shot into the air, zooming after them as they hurtled towards the Atlantic Ocean.
Superboy stopped. He couldn't follow them, not without…
It was a terrible idea. But he didn't know if the two of them would be able to stop him; neither of them had much fighting experience, and Superman wasn't himself. He didn't care about hurting anyone; not Kara or Cam, not himself, and definitely not any innocent bystanders that might get in the way.
Superboy reached into his pocket and pulled out the case Luthor had given him. This was an emergency; it wasn't like he had any other choice. He had to get down there so he could stop Superman.
Conner suddenly had a horrible realization that this was, in a way, exactly what he'd been made for. The Light wanted a weapon that could take down Superman if he ever strayed from them. The only difference was that he was trying to help Superman, not destroy him.
Superboy opened the case, pulled out one of the remaining shields, and pressed it onto his arm. It burned like it always did, his blood starting to pound the instant it touched his skin. The world around him got louder as his hearing enhanced, and he felt lighter as gravity lost its meaning. He narrowed his eyes, focusing on the comet hurtling towards the planet's surface as Kara and Cameron tackled Superman.
Superboy knelt on the ground, gathering energy before blasting off the Watchtower at supersonic speed.
Artemis Crock
"Supergirl has engaged. We're clear for entry." Aqualad said. The bioship docked underneath the meteor the Watchtower had been built into. The team crawled through the access hatch and picked their way through the tunnel until they were standing in the hallway of the lowest floor.
"Sync up your comms." Aqualad ordered, and as one, they all activated their comms. "Is everyone clear on their job?"
He was met with a chorus of yesses, and nodded.
"Good luck. I will see you all shortly, when this mess is over."
Artemis and her squad turned to go, but Batgirl grabbed Robin's wrist before he could take more than a step. Artemis knew her friend well enough to see how nervous she was, but Batgirl's face was set in pure determination.
"See you soon." Batgirl said. Robin nodded. Artemis' stomach curled, suddenly nervous. Barbara was new, far newer than Artemis had been when she'd gone up against AMAZO the first time. But Barbara didn't have any of the training Artemis had, and she definitely hadn't been raised to be an assassin from birth the way Artemis had.
But before she could say anything, Batgirl, Kid Flash and Zatanna were gone. Artemis forced herself to look away. Barbara would be fine. She had to be. Because the thought of anything happening to her was unthinkable.
Artemis tightened her grip on her bow, nodded, and followed Miss Martian and Robin toward the cell blocks. She didn't know what she was expecting, but it definitely wasn't row after row of empty cells. At the very end of the hall, the last cell was shut and the room was dark.
Robin dug a flashlight out of his utility belt and clicked it on.
"AH!" He jumped back as the light glinted off something sharp and metallic, illuminating narrowed eyes and a row of bared teeth. But Artemis recognized the mask.
"Hawkwoman!" Artemis exclaimed, running up to the glass. "What happened? Where's everyone else?"
"It's a trap!" Hawkwoman's voice emerged from the darkness, the sound tight with pain. "Get out, now!"
The lights turned on suddenly, and Artemis blinked at the sight of row after row of hero, surrounding them on all sides. At the back, Psimon chuckled darkly, a strange red glow emanating from his head that looked like it was courtesy of Klarion.
"Of course you little brats would show up." Klarion sneered. His attention locked on Robin with a snarl, "And you! Do you have any idea how much work your little stunt made for me?! This was supposed to be the easy part, now I have to puppet all these idiots on my own!"
Psimon scowled. Teekl let out a low mrowl, and Klarion rolled his eyes. "Yes, fine, he helped. But I did most of it! No, I did not! Teekl! GAH, just get rid of them!" Klarion shrieked.
"It will be my pleasure," Psimon let out a low chuckle, raising his hands. As one, the mind-controlled Leaguers looked up, focusing in on the three of them. Klarion stomped his foot on the ground and then he and Teekl disappeared in a glow of red light.
"Robin." Artemis breathed, her heart pounding in her chest.
"Yeah?" Robin asked, the quake in his voice revealing how terrified he was.
"Run."
"Psimon says, GET THEM!"
Wally West
"Ah, I was hoping it'd be you, Flash boy. I've always enjoyed our spirited exchanges." Ivo grinned when the three of them approached the monitors set up in the middle of the room.
"Sorry, the feeling's not mutual." Kid Flash shot back.
"Have you met my newest toys?" Ivo asked, snapping his fingers. AMAZO stepped out from behind a stone pillar, looking exactly the same as he had the last time the team faced him.
"You call that new?" Kid Flash mocked. "You didn't even buff out the scratches from the last time we beat him."
"No, not him." Ivo grinned, and there was a whirling sound from above their heads. Kid Flash looked up to see a swirling red vortex descending, and at its center…
"Red Tornado!" Zatanna shouted. She whirled on Ivo furiously. "What did you do to him?!"
"I simply revamped his code. It needed it, and badly. It was so ancient it practically had cobwebs hanging off it."
"Tornado, it's us! Fight him!" Zatanna pleaded.
"I'm afraid that's hopeless, sweetheart." Ivo mocked. "Although, if it's a fight you want… AMAZO, Tornado, destroy them. Priority alpha."
Just like that, it was a fight for survival. Kid Flash dodged as Red Tornado blew past him, feeling the wind shoot through his hair. Batgirl shot off her grappling line and leaped into the air, swinging out of the way as AMAZO crashed into the ground where she'd been only seconds before. Red Tornado turned toward Kid Flash, hands raised as a massive vortex swirled up around him. Kid Flash was about to dodge when Batgirl cried, "Don't! AMAZO'll copy you!"
Kid Flash froze, accidentally giving Tornado an opening to throw him across the room. He hit the wall hard and grunted as the wind was knocked out of him.
"Kid Flash!" Zatanna called, running to his side.
"We have to regroup!" Batgirl said, launching a Batarang at AMAZO. It lodged in his arm and began beeping before the explosion knocked the robot back a few steps. Red Tornado launched a vortex across the room and Batgirl let out a yelp as it engulfed her.
"Part mih!" Zatanna chanted, and sections of the floor twisted back and wound themselves around the android, allowing the tornado to dissipate enough for Kid Flash to pull Batgirl loose.
"Go!" Zatanna shouted, and the three of them sprinted for the door.
"Leaving so soon?" Ivo mocked. "We certainly can't have that, can we?"
He pressed a button and panels on all the walls slid open, revealing electrical pylons that extended out and into the air. With another tap, electricity burst to life, surrounding the three of them in a sparking net of crackling energy.
"That's not good." Batgirl muttered.
"No, it is not." Zatanna agreed.
"Goes without saying, but don't touch those." Kid Flash said.
"Oh, you think?!" Zatanna and Batgirl shot back at the same time.
Artemis Crock
Robin lunged out of the way as Aquaman brought his trident down where he'd just been standing. Artemis shot an instant-freeze arrow that caught the Atlantean in the stomach. Massive icicles bloomed out from the arrowhead, quickly encasing him in ice from the chest down.
Miss Martian's hand shot out and a telekinetic wave shoved Wonder Woman into the wall before her sword could chop Artemis in half. Artemis returned the favor by shooting a flash-bang at one of the Green Lanterns that dissipated the giant sledgehammer about to collide with Miss Martian.
A Batarang sliced across Artemis' shoulder, not deep enough to leave more than a scratch. Artemis dove out of the way, barely in time to avoid Batman's heel.
Robin threw a pellet that exploded into a cloud of gas, creating a thick smokescreen that filled the air. Artemis scrambled back as she reached for another arrow, only getting a few steps before glowing green shackles appeared around her wrist. She pulled back, dropping her bow to grab the crossbow on her leg.
She fired two shots, nailing the Green Lantern's ring on the first and hitting him on the shoulder to knock him back. The shackle around her wrist disappeared and she scooped her bow off the ground. Captain Atom rushed toward her and Artemis called, "Maneuver three!"
Artemis dropped her weight and threw Captain Atom over her back, sending him directly into the path of Miss Martian's fist. He went down and didn't move, and Artemis and Miss Martian moved to cover Robin's back.
"How are we not dead yet?!"Robin hissed, his chest heaving with exhaustion. There was a shallow cut across his arm, and part of his cape had been torn off by Hawkman's mace, but other than that he was okay. Miss Martian's eyes glowed as she sent Captain Marvel crashing into Dr. Fate.
"They're under Psimon's control." Miss Martian answered, her eyes narrowed in concentration. Robin ducked under Plastic Man's fist, grabbing the limb and yanking it in the way of the arrow Green Arrow just fired at him. "He doesn't have their combat skills, just their powers."
A Canary scream knocked the three of them back, but Artemis managed to fire off a weighted net that crashed into her mentor, wrapping around her tightly as she hit the ground. Canary tried to scream again, but with her face aimed at the ground, the sound just bounced back at her.
Artemis tried to turn, but something caught her in an invisible grip.
"Miss Martian!" She shouted as the Martian Manhunter approached, still pinning her place. His eyes glowed green and suddenly, her head pounded like someone was taking a mallet to her skull from the inside. Artemis screamed as the pressure in her head exploded and the Martian Manhunter forced his way inside her mind. She fell to her knees, blinded by the pressure and the throbbing pain.
"Artemis!" Robin shouted, and out of the corner of her eye, she could see him hurling something at the Martian. A yellow and orange fireball exploded, heat blasting over her, so hot it scorched her skin.
But the discomfort was worth it when the Martian Manhunter screamed and the invasive presence in her mind dissipated like it had never been there. Artemis scrambled back, grabbing Robin's hand when he ran over to pull her to her feet.
All around them, the other mind-controlled League members had frozen, clutching their heads in pain.
"That's it!" Miss Martian exclaimed. "It's a mind-link! If we take out Uncle J'onn, the rest of the League goes down too!"
Wally West
"Can you make me a platform? I have to get up there." Batgirl said. Zatanna nodded.
"It won't last long."
"I don't need long. Kid Flash, can you keep them busy?"
Kid Flash frowned.
"I can buy you a few seconds, but you'll be sitting ducks if it goes wrong."
"A couple seconds is all I need!"
"On your mark." Kid Flash steadied himself, nodding at Batgirl.
"Kid Flash, come in!" Artemis's voice came over the comm line, sounding urgent.
"I'm here!"
"The rest of the League is being controlled! Klarion and Psimon are using Manhunter as a connection line. Miss M thinks she can break it with a big enough energy blast, but we're outnumbered!"
"What's going on?!" Batgirl demanded, throwing herself out of the way of a swirling red vortex. Tornado advanced, the wind whipping up around him making it hard for her to hold her ground.
"Change of plans!" Kid Flash told his teammates. "Artemis, if you can get them all to follow you up here, we can overcharge the zeta-particle generator with enough energy to trigger a mass-EMP."
"That's perfect!" Artemis exclaimed.
"How long will it take you to get up here?!"
"I don't know!"
"Shit!" Kid Flash swore, forcing himself to dive out of the way at a non-super speed as AMAZO slammed into the ground where he just was. They'd managed to keep the android from learning any of their powers, but if the entire League was about to show up, AMAZO would become a much, much bigger problem. "Guys, we have to stall. And when they get here, we're only going to get one chance before we're toast."
"Great." Batgirl launched an explosive Batarang at AMAZO, knocking the android back and giving Zatanna time to get clear.
"So basically, the usual stakes?" Zatanna had just enough time to shoot him a grin.
"Pretty much." Kid Flash answered.
"Yub su emit!" Zatanna chanted, and a sphere of light sprang up around the three out them. Outside the bubble, time seemed to slow down, even by Wally's standards. "This won't last long, but every second counts, right?"
"How many of them are coming?" Batgirl asked nervously.
"All of them." Kid Flash frowned.
Conner Kent
Superman was slowing down. The fight had been brutal, but even with no regard for his own well-being, Superman was getting tired facing three-on-one.
But even though he was tired, Superman matched the hit for every one they landed on him. Superboy kept finding openings, ready for the perfect strike to end this battle when Supergirl or Cameron got in the way.
He growled furiously as Cameron shot forward, getting the way again before Superboy could take advantage of Superman's focus on Supergirl.
Superman threw Cameron off, plunging him into the water below. A blast of heat vision caught Supergirl off-guard, and she shouted, reeling back. Superboy used the moment of distraction to catch Superman from behind, slamming him into the side of the nearby cliff with a roar. The resulting crash sent boulders crumbling down and a massive wave shot out with Superman at the center.
Superman dropped and Superboy shot after him, pummeling him with a barrage of blows when he got close enough. Sand blasted up around them as they hit the beach with the force of a bomb.
Superman was down.
"He's out." Supergirl said, sounding relieved as she landed on the beach behind them.
"Is he okay?" Cameron asked. Conner glared at Superman's body, his x-ray vision examining him for any broken bones or injuries. Finding nothing, Superboy nodded.
"I'll stay with him. The last thing we need is him getting loose." Kara offered, her chest heaving from exhaustion. Conner climbed off Superman and looked at his cousin. The black eye had swollen to cover most of her face, and she was covered in burns from Clark's heat vision. A chunk of hair had been chopped short on one side of her face, and it looked a little bit like Cam's side-cut. "You guys get back to the Watchtower. Call me when you figure out how to snap him out of it."
"Are you sure?" Cameron asked her. He didn't look much better. In comparison, Conner had come out mostly unscathed; apparently he'd had a lot more practice taking down people who were stronger than him.
"Go. It sounds like they need you."
Superboy nodded, but before he could take off, Cameron grabbed his wrist.
"What's going on with you?" Cameron asked.
"Let go!" Superboy snarled, trying to yank his wrist free but his twin held firm.
"What is that?!" Cameron pointed at the shield on his forearm, horror twisting across his face. Conner felt his heart pound with rage and he pulled himself free, pushing Cam back with his other hand.
"We don't have time for this! Now are you coming, or not?!" Superboy demanded, taking off before he could answer.
Kaldur'ahm
"I suppose this is the part where you boldly announce you've come to stop me." Vandal Savage said, not turning around as Aqualad pulled his water bearers.
"Your plans will not succeed."
"Do you truly believe you can stop what's coming?" Savage hummed, his voice filled with mockery. "You heroes are all the same; so focused on whatever gets set in front of you that you miss the bigger picture entirely."
"Do not lecture me on the bigger picture." Aqualad growled. "Your views of the world are warped and out of place."
"The League has poisoned your mind, Atlantean." Savage replied. "You have been indoctrinated into their ruinous philosophy, taught to believe that humanity needs your protection. In reality, you heroes are dooming mankind. Humanity must evolve, and I will see it come to pass."
"You will destroy everything." Aqualad warned.
"If that is what it takes, then so be it."
Aqualad charged forward, swinging his mace with two hands. Savage dodged the blow, and let the mace pass by when Aqualad swung it back.
Savage was a difficult opponent. Aqualad forced himself to keep pressing, to dictate the speed of the battle as Canary had taught him. Savage was fast and very capable of evading Aqualad's attacks.
So he fought dirty.
He brought his mace down, striking with two hands so that Savage would see an easy counterattack. When Savage raised his hands, Aqualad split his water bearers apart, his mace dissolving into matching swords. He jabbed forwards, letting electricity flow through his body and into Savage's.
With a roar, the villain stumbled back, one massive hand clutching the wounds on his chest. They wouldn't kill him; the immortal had and would survive far worse, but it was more than enough to make him angry.
That was good. Anger meant he would become sloppy, lose control. Aqualad doubted the man had much practice fighting another while he fought himself and he hoped that would be enough of an advantage for him to come out victorious.
Aqualad met Savage's furious gaze with as much calm as he could manage, allowing one of his water bearers to reform into a mace.
"You would fight without honor?" Vandal Savage spat.
"I believe you've long-since forgotten the meaning of that word." Aqualad cautioned.
Savage moved first, and for all that his anger made him sloppy, it also fueled the force behind each hit. Aqualad was forced onto the defenseive, blocking and dodging and countering attacks where he could. The immortal was fast enough that Aqualad was exhausted just trying to keep up, and his hits were strong enough to make his arms shake.
Aqualad spun out of a hold and used his momentum to swing his mace through the air, directly at Savage's face. Savage blocked the blow, grabbing Aqualad's wrist and twisting hard enough that he lost control and the mace dissolved back into water. But Savage didn't notice Aqualad's other hand flick out, the water whipping around his legs and pulling them together as the line went taut.
Aqualad's leg snapped up, slamming into Savage's chest hard enough to break the grip on his wrist and send the villain crashing to the ground. With a burst of magic, the water around his legs froze into ice, trapping them together and freezing them onto the ground.
"Accept your defeat." Aqualad commanded, forcing himself to ignore the throbbing pain from his wrist. With another pulse, the puddle of water on the ground jumped to Aqualad's call and reformed itself into a sword. Aqualad took the appropriate amount of satisfaction at digging it under the immortal's chin.
"You may wish to look behind you." Savage said, predatory viciousness burning in his eyes.
"Do you really believe I would fall for such a ploy?" Aqualad asked, right before something slammed into his and knocked him off his feet.
Aqualad struggled as he was pinned by his opponent, his eyes going wide when he realized who was on top of him. Red Arrow's eyes were narrowed, teeth clenched together as he held Aqualad down.
"Roy! Stop this!" Kaldur cried, heart pounding in his chest with something that hurt far worse than terror. "This is not you!"
There was no recognition in his boyfriend's eyes. Nothing beyond hostility and aggression.
"What have you done to him?!" Aqualad roared, fighting back a wave of nausea as Vandal Savage grinned down at them.
"Impressive, is it not? I suppose monologuing risks falling too far into overused tropes, but it is a shame that you will never understand the countless hours and grueling efforts that went into making this day a reality. Red Arrow here was the cornerstone; his mind was our greatest tool. Our greatest weapon and against you and your precious League."
"Roy, you must fight him! This is not you, I know you would never do this!"
"Did you really believe that would work?" Savage mocked, his voice dark and cruel. "He is mine. You are nothing to him. And your time has run out."
"Roy, please!" Kaldur begged.
"Kill him." Savage ordered.
Roy removed one of his hands to reach for something. Then he raised a blade above Kaldur's head and brought it down. In a burst of strength, Aqualad wrenched his wrist free and slammed his palm against Red Arrow's chest, channeling the strongest charge of electricity he could manage.
Red Arrow screamed as he spasmed, the knife dropping out of his hands as his body jerked around like a puppet on a string. His eyes rolled back into his head and then he collapsed; Aqualad caught him before he could hit the ground, fighting back a yell when blistering pain shot up his injured wrist. Aqualad took a few deep breaths to steady himself through the pain, cradling Roy's unconscious body close to his chest.
"Forgive me, Roy," he whispered, planting a soft kiss to his boyfriend's forehead. For a single moment, the world stood still.
"How touching." Vandal Savage sneered. Aqualad rose to his feet, retrieving his water bearers and turning towards opponent with rage burning in his heart.
"Will you face me now? Or will you continue to cower behind dirty ploys?" Aqualad snarled, positioning himself firmly between the villain and Red Arrow's unconscious body.
"Do you really think you have what it takes to defeat me, child?" Vandal Savage laughed, the sound echoing through the dark room. "I am Vandal Savage, the One True Witness, He Who Has Lived Ten Hundred Lifetimes. You are a mere speck of dust in the face of eternity."
"And yet, I have already bested you in combat." Aqualad raised his sword, poised to strike in an instant.
Savage chuckled again and the sound filled Aqualad with a rage the likes of which he'd never felt in his life.
"Would you like to know why you can never defeat me?" Vandal Savage mocked. Aqualad tightened his grip on his weapons as they circled each other. "It's because right at this very moment, your little teammates are surrounded and outnumbered. I'd estimate they have another five minutes before they're overwhelmed."
"You're lying."
"Perhaps." Savage grinned, baring all his teeth. "But are you willing to stake their lives on it?"
Artemis Crock
Artemis sprinted down the hallway, shooting arrows behind her when their attackers got too close. Robin rounded the corner first, Miss Martian flying alongside him.
"We're almost there!" Miss Martian called into the comm.
"Anytime now!" Kid Flash shouted back.
A whirling sound appeared behind them, and Artemis turned her head to see Aqualad cutting his way through the ranks of mind-controlled Leaguers.
"Aqualad, this way!" she shouted, shooting a flashbang into the crowd to buy him time to catch up to her. The two of them raced down the hall, side by side, the entirety of the League just steps behind them. "We have a plan! When she gives the signal, cover Batgirl."
"Understood."
The doors to the main room had been blasted off their hinges, and the scene in front of them was something out of a battlefield. Their teammates were fighting for their lives as AMAZO and Tornado launched a barrage of attacks. The odds got a hell of a lot worse when another dozen mind-controlled heroes charged in behind her and Aqualad.
If Batgirl's plan didn't work, Artemis had just killed her team.
"Group up!" Kid Flash shouted and Artemis sprinted towards her teammates, ducking projectiles and arrows and leaping out of the way of Wonder Woman's lasso. She felt Kid Flash at her back and had just enough time to squeeze his hand before throwing herself out of the way of Hawkman's mace.
"Now!" Batgirl shouted. Zatanna cast a spell, causing glowing tiles to appear in thin air, hovering over everyone's heads. Batgirl took two steps and vaulted over Captain Atom, using the momentum to flip into the air and land on the lowest tile. She charged up the magical steps, somehow keeping her balance while Green Arrow shot projectiles and Batman launched a slew of Batarangs. Aqualad's water whip snatched most of them out of the way, and Punk Superboy's heat vision blasted the rest out of existence. Batgirl reached the zeta-particle generator at the very top of the massive room. That was Artemis' cue to notch her arrow and let it fly; the explosive detonated at the Martian Manhunter's feet, causing flames to encircle him.
At the same time, Kid Flash and Superboy charged Psimon, dodging the crowd of mind-controlled Leaguers to grab him by the arms and force him still as Miss Martian's form bubbled and shifted until an enormous, skeletal monster towered over the villain. Her eyes glowed bright green and Psimon's eyes widened as the mental barrage began.
Robin threw himself out of the way, causing AMAZO's blast of heat vision to slam into Red Tornado, dissipating the swirling red vortex at his feet. Artemis looked up, craning her head in time to see Batgirl slam the final piece of the overcharged EMP into place.
A shockwave blasted out, knocking Artemis off her feet and throwing everyone back. Echoes of a scream rocketed through her head as Miss Martian overpowered Psimon and obliterated the hold he had over the League; every one of them collapsed into a heap at the same time. There was a loud crash as AMAZO and Red Tornado powered down, their bodies slamming into the ground with the weight of several tons of steel.
Artemis pushed herself back to her feet, ignoring the way her head pounded while she looked around to check on her teammates; they were all climbing back to their feet. Nobody was hurt.
"Artemis!" Batgirl shouted, and Artemis's head snapped up to see her friend dangling from the bottom of the particle generator, hanging desperately onto a bar fifty feet off the ground. As Artemis watched, her grip slipped and she fell.
"BABS!" Artemis screamed, terror pounding through her chest. The world was moving in slow motion and Artemis was frozen in place, trying desperately to figure out what to do but she couldn't move. All she could do was watch, her face a mirror of the terror on Babs' face.
Something shot past her, and then suddenly Conner was there, launching himself into the air and grabbing Batgirl out of her fall thirty feet from certain death. He landed with a bang, and even though it had only been a few seconds, it felt like a lifetime.
Conner set Batgirl down and Artemis was across the room, hugging her for dear life a second later.
"Babs! You're okay?!" Artemis demanded. Babs nodded shakily, burying her head in Artemis' neck. Artemis' hand went to the back of Batgirl's cowl, holding her close to assure herself the other girl was still there. They'd already lost Dick, she couldn't lose Babs too.
Another body slammed into them as Robin threw his arms around Batgirl.
"I'm okay." Batgirl said, her voice already sounding steadier.
"Is everyone alright?" Aqualad asked, his voice a bastion of steadiness.
"Yeah." That was Jason, on Babs' other side.
"Same." Zatanna.
"I'm good." Conner.
"All good." Cameron.
"Yes." M'gann.
"Good here." Wally finished the count. They were all okay. At his words, Aqualad's shoulders slumped in relief. Batgirl pulled back, and Artemis let go.
"Good." Aqualad said, the single word holding a lifetime's worth of emotion. He held out his hand for Robin to pass him the inhibitor cuffs from his utility belt. "Superboy, help me disassemble AMAZO. Miss Martian, secure Psimon. Kid Flash, secure Ivo."
"Right." M'gann nodded. Her eyes glowed green, and the cuffs floated across the room, securing themselves to Psimon's wrists. Kid Flash blurred into motion, tying up Ivo tightly with Wonder Woman's borrowed lasso.
"Where's Superman?"
"Secured. Kara's watching him." Superboy reported. Punk Superboy nodded.
"We need to send a message to the UN and the World Leaders that the threat has been neutralized." Aqualad said as the League members began to wake up.
"What… what happened?" Wonder Woman asked, clutching her head.
"Mind control." Aqualad answered from the other side of the room where he and Superboy were still pulling the pieces of AMAZO apart.
All around them, Leaguers were climbing back to their feet where they'd fallen. Zatanna helped Black Canary back onto her feet, while Kid Flash pulled his uncle up. She saw Batgirl and Robin at Batman's side, the three of them staring at each other in silence. But not all of them were getting up. Artemis frowned.
"Tornado?" Artemis asked. The robot hadn't moved; he was a heap of red metal and blue cape along the Watchtower's floor. At her words, the League stopped and the room went silent. Superboy was the closest, so he dropped AMAZO's arm onto the ground with a loud clatter and stepped closer.
The robot didn't move. There was no power, no hum from the android's titanium carbide heart, nothing to prove that Tornado was more than just a hunk of metal on the ground. Superboy was quiet, the frown on his face deepening.
"There's no power. His heart is stopped." Conner said softly after a few moments of agonized waiting. The words hit Artemis like a punch to the gut. "He's gone."
Tornado was gone? No. No, he couldn't be. That was impossible, he's a robot, he shouldn't be able to... he couldn't be…
"No!" Zatanna pushed to the front, dropping to the ground in front of their mentor. She held her hands over the android and narrowed her eyes in concentration. "Nrut no! Odanrot, nrut no! Emoc kcab ot su! Nrut no!"
Nothing happened.
Zatanna pulled back, whipping around to stare at the League.
"We can fix him!" She shouted, tears leaking out of her eyes. "He had that other body in Mount Justice, the one he was working on! If we can… if we could transfer him… we just have to turn him back on and…"
"He's gone." A woman's voice came from behind them. Artemis turned to see Hawkwoman limping slowly into the room, supporting an unconscious Red Arrow over her shoulder with a broken, bloody wing visible on the other side. "Ivo destroyed his programming to overwrite it for his purposes. Savage came to gloat before it happened."
"No. No!" Zatanna said, shaking her head back and forth. Her head snapped to the side, her finger jabbing at the helmeted figure in the corner who looked as put-together as ever. "No! Fate, do something! Fix this!"
"Magic has limits." Dr. Fate responded, Nabu's cold voice layered over Zatara's heartbroken one. "I am sorry, but this is beyond my capabilities."
Someone stepped forward, crossing the distance and lowering himself so that he could put his hand on Zatanna's shoulder.
"I will do everything in my power to restore him." Batman promised, but Artemis didn't need to be the World's Greatest Detective to know that he'd already accepting it was hopeless. Artemis felt something drip down her face and she realized she was crying. Wally squeezed her hand, his face paler than she'd ever seen it before. She hadn't even noticed him come over.
The Watchtower was silent.
They'd done it. They saved the rescued the League, defeated the bad guys, and saved the world. And all it cost them was Red Tornado.
AN: There are two things that happened in this chapter I expect you to hate me for. One of them is killing Tornado, and the other is including the most inappropriately placed crossover I can possibly imagine. I hope you caught it, and if you do hate me, I understand completely.
Next up, we'll get to see how Dick is holding up. The answer will not shock you. And if there's any fallout from Superman going rogue and giving the entire planet a heart attack, I imagine we'll see some of that too.
Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed! Please leave me a review to let me know what you think! It makes my day to hear from you guys and I'd love to know if you "enjoyed" this chapter as much as I "enjoyed" writing it.