CHAPTER SEVEN: BLOOD OF ATLANTIS

Robin was still thinking of how amazing it was that he was actually going to Atlantis! He'd wished all his life to go there after finding out it was real, and now he was going to be able to witness it firsthand. It was a very special day for him. However, he still remembered the threat, and how serious the situation was. He knew it was best to be careful when down there with Aquaman. He wasn't sure what enemies he would be facing. All he could do was tell himself to be ready to fight if the time came.

He and Aquaman were in one of the Watchtower's deployment ships. Not only could it fly, but it could dive underwater. Robin was amazed. Of course, he was in the co-pilot's chair, while Aquaman was the pilot. He'd asked why they didn't just swim down there, with him wearing one of the special diving suits recommended to them by Superman, but Aquaman told him, "If we have enemies in the water, we don't want them to see us right then and there. This ship has a cloaking device, so they won't find it unless they look real hard."

Robin had only nodded and returned to watching out the window. But by now he was becoming anxious, wanting to know what was coming of the rest of the Justice League.

"Who do you think is coming down there to fight us?" Robin asked.

"Since that mysterious man mentioned Atlantis, it's likely Black Manta is somewhere in the mix," Aquaman replied. "Of course, there is something else…someone else…"

"Who would that be?" Robin said, wanting to know what he needed to know before facing the villains that were supposedly waiting for them down there in the depths of the sea.

"Ocean-Master," Aquaman said. "Over a year ago, I and Aqualad faced this mysterious Atlantean who had infiltrated our labs and studied our science. When he appeared to me, he wielded the Trident of Neptune. He injured me badly when we fought, but with Aqualad's help, I was able to defeat him. I later found he had injured my brother, Orm. I haven't seen the Ocean-Master since, and both I and my brother share a grudge against him. He nearly killed my wife, as well. Even now, we don't know who Ocean Master was, and for all I know, we might never find out."

"You shouldn't give up hope when it comes to things like that," Robin said. "Keep believing, but make sure you don't become dark and attempt vengeance on him. In my opinion, that's the only problem with Batman. I like him, but as a result of his pursuit of 'justice.' A lot of it is intertwined with his wont for vengeance, and I'm not sure what anyone can do about it now. He becomes so salty, and I can't always stand it, and neither can any of the other sidekicks. Not me, Batgirl, Nightwing, Catwoman, or Spoiler. Catwoman is more of an ally to him than one of his sidekicks, as he once told us, but I count her as a great enough friend to be a sidekick. But anyway, I just wish he could be more of a…father-figure. An example for everyone to follow. Unfortunately, that probably won't be coming anytime soon."

"I know what it feels like," Aquaman told him. "My father was good, but he was strict. My mother was the best thing about my life while growing up, other than my brother. Of course, my father was a lighthouse-keeper, and my mother was an Atlantean. But enough with me. I wanted to tell you that no matter how hard Bruce might be, let me tell you, he loves you and your other friends very much. He told me so during one of our missions."

Robin looked at Aquaman with much surprise, his mouth agape. "Wait, you know Batman's real name?" Aquaman nodded. "Wow…well, that shouldn't be too surprising, since you've worked with him for a while now. But…when did he tell you that about loving me and the rest of the Bat-Family?"

"It was during a fight against…an android named A.M.A.Z.O.. In the case of him dying, he told me that he wanted all of you to know that he loved you, and that he wanted you all to live your lives the way your God intended. In Atlantis, of course, we believe in those such as Neptune. But I respect most religions. And when it comes to what he spoke to me, I agree with him. It is best for all of you to take his advice. Especially with what is happening right now."

A long and uncomfortable silence fell over them. Robin began thinking about what he'd heard. It seemed Aquaman—and Batman—were right. But for the moment, all that mattered was the fact that they saved Atlantis from whatever villains were about to attack it.

"And there it is," Aquaman said for the first time in a long time. As soon as he spoke, Robin looked out the window and saw many large buildings and towers. As they were still far above it, Robin could see just how large Atlantis truly was. It was the size of a small continent, for as far as Robin could tell. At least, that was his best guess.

Millions of glittering lights were all around them. The towers reached high, though not high enough at the moment to hit the ship. Even so, Robin was transfixed by all that was around him. Both before and after becoming Batman's sidekick, he'd dreamed of going to Atlantis, and now he was finally here, in one of the most colorful places he'd ever seen. There were colors all around them: blues, greens, reds, purples, and pinks. Even exotic shades such as violets, livids, and magentas. It was one of the most beautiful locations he'd ever seen. The water around them was a mix of both navy and azure blue.

"Holy crap," Robin whispered. "So this is Atlantis. I never thought I would live to see it."

"Well, then, consider yourself very lucky. We're going to the Aéras Tower. That first word comes from one of your languages on the surface. It seems someone was very lucky to discover Atlantis's name, and even now it still surprises me that most of our language is also a language on the surface. I believe you call it Greek."

"So what does Aéras mean?"

"Air. It turns out, Batman came up with it when he came here the first time. So we started construction on it, and completed it the next year. It's been four years since then."

There was something strange about the way he was speaking, Robin noticed. He wonderd why that was. But he believed it might have something to do with all that was about to happen here.

Atlantis began coming closer, and soon one of the towers was right there in front of them. Robin guessed that was the Aéras Tower, and that they would be going through some sort of docking chamber.

Once the ship came close enough, two doors slid open, and the ship began to dock. Robin felt the ship shake a little. Tension rose in his stomach, but it soon went away, and he was back to normal.

"All right," Aquaman said. "We're here. Now we must go into the inner chamber. My wife is waiting for us, and possibly my brother. But it will not be as much of a surprise if he is not around."

"Why do you say that?"

"He was recently very badly burned. We Atlanteans cannot sustain ourselves well if we are burnt by fire. It is something we share with the Martians. If the Martian Manhunter was burnt in such a way, he would most certainly need medical attention. Water and fire do not mix."

Aquaman and Robin exited the ship and entered a hallway. Other than the floor, which was made of tile, or so it seemed, the whole hallway was made of glass. Robin could see out them and observe all that surrounded him.

But at that moment, something more came to mind, and the fact he was admiring Atlantis left him. He decided the main thing at hand was stopping the villains that were coming to possibly kill the Atlanteans.

Well, they can't kill them all, Robin thought. That much is obvious. But it will not be a good thing if any of them are killed. If any of them are killed, then for all I know, they might be one of Aquaman's friends, or maybe even family! The citizens of Atlantis need to be kept safe, and I'm going to do all in my power to stop whatever threat is coming.

Soon enough, they exited the hallway, and found themselves in some sort of main hall. A beautiful woman stood near two ornate chairs, which Robin guessed were where Aquaman and his wife sat. Then realization hit him. The beautiful woman was Aquaman's wife.

"Orrin, is it true, what you sent me?" she asked, with a faint accent trailing her clearly pronounced words.

"Unfortunately, it is," Aquaman told her. "I brought a friend to help. This is Robin, one of Batman's sidekicks. I believe you remember, Batman."

"Yes," she said. "He was quite stiff, rough, and rash, if you ask me. But yes, I remember him quite well." She looked down at Robin and smiled. "It is nice to meet you."

Robin smiled. What she had said about Batman was almost too true, he thought.

"Robin, this is my wife, Mera," Aquaman explained. "She is my pride and joy. And she is also pregnant with our child."

"Really?" Robin asked. "That's great! Congratulations! It is really great to meet you, Mera."

Mera laughed and looked to Aquaman. "He seems to be less like his mentor," she observed.

"Yes." Aquaman walked to his chair and sat down. He rubbed his face with his hands. "This is all stressful. It is clear we must prepare for the worst. We must gather men and women to fight." He sighed. "We must be ready before all Hell breaks loose."

There was a sudden BOOM! from outside, and the entire building shook suddenly. Robin fell to the ground, while Aquaman and Mera stayed standing. Mera helped Robin up. They grouped together with Aquaman, who told them, "This must be their first attack. It seems we've had no time to get our warriors ready. But that does not mean we cannot fight back. We'll fight back with all our resolve." He looked to his wife. "You must go and hide, before the enemies arrive."

She nooded, and was about to heed his words of advice, but there was another BOOM, but this time, it came from the front of the room. Robin peered at the location of the sound, and found a white, glowing tube. At least, that was how he would describe it.

Out came three villains. Robin recognized two of them, and knew one of them quite well: Firefly, a.k.a. Garfield Lynns, a pyrotechnics expert and homocidal maniac with burns covering ninety percent of his body. It seemed peculiar to Robin that a villain who controlled fire would be here in Atlantis, where they were surrounded by water.

And the second was Black Manta. Robin didn't know much of him, but he knew for sure that he was Aquaman's worst enemy. Or so he thought. He wasn't quite sure when it came to the last part.

The third person, however, Robin didn't know. It was obvious he was male, and it seemed almost too obvious what he was wearing was Atlantean. He wore a purple suit of armor with a cape. Spaulders protected his shoulders, there were fingerless gauntlets, greaves covering his forearms and shins. Robin saw his belt was adjoined by an upside-down crescent moon, and that he was barefoot. His face was covered by a purple helmet, red lenses covering his eyes, with only his mouth visible. The armor had an aquatic motif, with fin-shaped protuberances on the greaves, and rips and shreds on the base of the cape, which caused it to resemble a caudal fin. He held a trident in his right hand.

As soon as Robin saw the trident, something entered his mind, and he realized the third villain was the one Aquman had named Ocean-Master.

"Hello, King Orrin," Black Manta greeted in a deep, baritone voice. "We've come to take you where you belong."

"I'm not going anywhere," Aquaman told them. He looked to Ocean-Master. "It has been a long time, Ocean-Master. The last I fought you, you were badly wounded. How did you survive our last encounter?"

"I have friends in high places," Ocean-Master replied in a cool, yet sharp voice. "Please, don't tell me you brought children into our fight? Oh Neptune, look at what you've done, Orrin. You've killed yet another innocent soul!"

Aquaman was now baring his teeth, and Robin could guess Ocean-Master's words were beginning to get to him, and he couldn't blame him.

"Come on, let's end him now!" Firefly growled in his deep, gravelly voice. "I've been waiting for this moment for a very long time!"

"And you will be getting your choice soon enought," Ocean-Master said. "Patience is a virtue. However, I do believe we might speak of your wife. Mera, isn't it? What a pretty name. I wish I could name a daughter after you. Unfortunately, I will never have a wife, most likely."

"Not surprising," Robin joked. "How's about you take off that mask and show us all who you really are!"

"You dare insult me!" Ocean-Master yelled. "I will kill you for your insolence, boy!" He looked to Aquaman. "When I am finished with him, I'll be coming after your wife next. You'll be forced to watch as she is stabbed repeatedly until her blood streams from her open wounds!"

Aquaman had had enough, and he leapt at Ocean-Master, tackling him. Robin looked back at Mera. "Run…uh…my lady!" he shouted at her. "Go, before something happens to you! We don't anything happening to you or your baby, do you understand me?"

She nodded, and then went running for her life. Robin saw Black Manta begin to follow, but Robin ran at him, kicking Black Manta across the face, hoping he could cause the villain to stop. But Black Manta was not hindered. He continued to make his attempt to run past Robin, but Robin stopped him every time. Ocean-Master saw this, and he smiled at Aquaman in an evil way.

"Seems the little protégé is better than I thought," he said. "No matter. I can make short work of this." He raised his hand, and was about to send a spell at him, but Aquaman punched him in the face again and again. Soon blood streamed from a split lip. However, Ocean-Master still smiled. "You cannot defeat me." He shook with laughter. "I have won. My master has won this battle. This is where your reign ends, Orrin, and where mine begins."

Something sounded familiar to Aquaman. He punched Ocean-Master's mask. He punched it once more. And again. And again. Soon enough the mask was dented. Aquaman sent one more punch, and it broke the red lenses covering Ocean-Master's eyes.

Robin saw this, but continued his assault on Black Manta. The villain did not seem to feel the pain from Robin's punches. That was one of the two main things that bothered Robin at the moment. The second was that Firefly was still around, hovering in the air with his jetpack.

"Come on, Lynns," called Robin. "Try and get me!"

"No," Firefly replied. "Just wait."

Robin turned his head to look at the fight between Ocean-Master and Aquaman, and he saw Aquaman was about to take Ocean-Master's mask off.

"Now for you to be humiliated," Aquaman said. Robin had never heard him be so angry. He quickly placed his hand under the mask's edge around Ocean-Master's neck. He grasped it, and tore it off. There was a gasp, and the mask clattered to the floor. There was a young man, about six years older than Nightwing at the least, with Caucasian skin and black hair. His eyes were a deep green.

"My Neptune," Robin heard Aquaman say.

"Hello…brother," said Prince Orm, and he stabbed an Atlantean blade into Aquaman's belly.

Robin couldn't believe what he was hearing. He saw Aquaman's blood, and he was surprised such a thing had happened.

"This is a new age for Atlantis," Orm said. "Oh, how I will be repaid. It will be a handsome pay, I know for sure."

"You're nothing more than a traitor!" yelled Robin. He attempted to kick Black Manta in the face, but failed, as the villain grabbed ahold of his foot, and swung him into the main doors, which stayed closed.

"So, is it my turn?" asked Firefly. And Ocean-Master nodded, but not before getting out of the way. Firefly aimed his flame gun and shot flames out at Aquaman. Robin wanted to stop it, but he failed, as he was so dizzy from the pain in his head. He saw Aquaman begin to struggle as a ring of fire circled him, and he was sweating terribly.

"What do we do with his wife now?" Firefly asked.

"Kill her," said Ocean-Master.

Robin regained the normal feelings in his head, and began running for his life toward the other door, the one he'd seen Mera run through. He ran through it, even despite the yells he heard behind him. But then there was the slamming of the door, and Robin slowly looked back to see Firefly flying at him. Robin saw him raise the flame gun again, and Robin took out a sonic batarang. He knew it would stop the gun, and if he got it into the gun's nozzle, it would destroy the gun altogether when it went off. And that was just what he was planning on doing.

He picked the sonic batarang from his utility belt, and readied himself to use it. He heard Firefly gaining on him, and once he heard the deep, gravelly voice yell at him, with the voice being too loud, Robin whirled around and sent the sonic batarang at the gun. Unfortunately for Firefly, he'd believed the batarang would hit him, but never moved his gun. When the sonic batarang met its mark, Robin quickly detonated it, and the gun began shorting out.

Robin hurried to the end of the chamber, and suddenly there was the explosion behind him. He quickly turned around to find water leaking on the floor, from the force of the explosion. Firefly lay on the ground. He glard at Robin. Then he put his hand in his utility belt and took out a bomb. Robin's eyes widened.

Run, run, run, run…RUN! Robin thought, and he heard the bomb make contact with them floor. But Robin was already where he was supposed to be. He heard the second explosion, but took his mind off the fact Aquaman was defeated.

Mera looked over at him with anxious eyes. She saw Robin's expression. "Where is my husband?" she asked.

"He was stabbed. Ocean-Master was his brother. Oh God, this is stressful." He walked forward, and heard a small splash. There was water seeping through the bottom of the door. The bombs, thought Robin. He looked out the glass window in front of them. "Would my head implode if the glas down here is destroyed?" he asked.

"No," said Mera. "It wouldn't."

"Good."

Robin had the directions on how to call the ship. He knew how to make it go to autopilot. Now he just needed to make it crash through the glass of the room. More and more water was seeping in. While Mera most likely didn't mind the water, nothing was said about it, especially with her husband in jeopardy.

"We'll have to leave him behind for now," said Robin. "The rest of the Justice League can help."

Mera nodded. "Call the machine, then," she said.

Robin called the ship to him, and he thought he heard an engine buzzing outside.

Then it appeared.

Now to make it crash through, thought Robin. He looked down at the remote in his hand, and pressed the button to make the ship come closer. But there was the sound of the door breaking behind them, and in came Firefly, whose suit was dripping wet. He had a bomb in his hand. Robin threw a hard batarang at Firefly, knocking him out, but not before the bomb left his hands. The bomb hit the glass windows, and then exploded. Robin took Mera in his arms, and they shielded themselves from the glass. But Robin felt deep pain in his arm, and looking down, he found a large shard of glass sticking out of his right knee. He groaned in pain.

"We must leave," Mera said. Robin nodded, and they hurried to the ship.

She took hold of him, and she swam him to the ship. They entered it, and once he'd closed the ship's hatch, he said out loud, "Override, under the command of Aquaman, B06. Initiate autopilot."

As the ship went off, Robin felt the shard of glass in his leg again, and the pain worsened. Soon all became black, and he thought no more.

Meanwhile, five minutes after, Black Manta, Firefly, and Ocean-Master stood over Aquaman's body. Firefly held up a video screen in his palm. No picture appeared, but all three heard a voice.

"Did you succeed?" the voice asked.

"Yes," answered Ocean-Master. "Aquaman is down. But Robin got away with his wife."

"It matters naught," said the voice. "All that matters is the fact we are about to give the Justice League its coup d'etat. Out of the founding memebers, one down, six to go."