"WHERE IS MY DAUGHTER?!"
Is the first thing I hear as I enter the cave.
It's been two days since Addie ran away from me. I still don't know what I'm going to say to her if we see each other. What can I say? She admitted that she doesn't feel that way about me, and that she's been feeling/not feeling this way for me since I told her I love her.
I see Wonder Woman in the cave, dragging a mass of red around, throwing it into walls.
The rest of the team, minus Addie, is standing back with eyebrows raised in concern watching the Amazon.
"Uhh… so, what's going on over here, exactly?" I ask Wally, as I watch.
"Addie's missing, and I think this guy was in the apartment when WW got home, and Addie was nowhere to be found," Wally explains.
"Guy?" I ask.
"That's the Magician from the Tower of Fate. The one who Addie was fighting while I put on the Helmet," Wally states.
"Wait, and Addie's missing?" I ask.
"No one has been in contact with her since All Hallows Eve," Kaldur states, his seafoam blue eyes glaring at the red figure with calculations running through his mind.
'She's been missing for that long? She's missing because of me… Guardians I'm such an idiot… If I hadn't been such a jerk to her, she'd still be safe. But why was the Magician still at her place?' I wonder.
"I swear, if I knew where she was, don't you think I'd have told you by now?" The Magician yells in a tired, accented voice.
"Why should we believe you?" Robin asks. "You're the villain remember?"
"Maybe once… then a few times after that, but she's been helping me become a good person. Why would I wish anything bad upon her, when I owe her my life?" The Magician asks back.
"Who knows what kind of ulterior motives you might have?" Wally asks, placing his arms over his chest.
"Why won't you listen to me?" He yells at us, Wonder Woman tightening her grip on him.
"Miss Martian," Kaldur calls. "Do it."
Her eyes become a bright green color as she reads the Magician's mind.
"He doesn't know," She confirms. "And so far, it looks like he's telling the truth about everything else… I hate to say it Aqualad, but his story checks out…"
"Then who took her?" I rage out. "You were there weren't you? Then you saw who took her!"
"Lantern-" I vaguely hear Kaldur call me.
I grab the Magician by the collar of his stupid suit, and bring him off of the ground.
"Who took her!?"
"So I finally get to meet her Lantern," He mocks. "Too bad, really. When she came back, I might have spotted tear stains on her porcelain cheeks. I assume it was you who put them there?"
I growl, and wind my fist back to punch him in the face, but I feel someone grab my arm before I have the chance.
"Stand down," Kaldur orders. "We will find her, but this is not the way to go about it."
My lip curls up into a snarl, then I drop him back onto the floor with a thud.
"A man in a black and orange mask took her. Something about being a mercenary, and needing to collect her as his bounty," The Magician informs.
"An orange and black mask? Mercenary? Collections?" Robin begins to put together, bringing up a Holo-screen image of a large man with the very same mask, and packing with weapons. "That's Deathstroke's M.O."
"Deathstroke? Isn't he like, the best mercenary since, oh I don't know, ever?!" Wally yells.
"A mercenary took my daughter? A Princess of the Amazons?" Wonder Woman begins to shout. "He does not yet know the wrath of the Amazons! Nor the severity of his crimes!"
"Hey, hey, WW!" Wally approaches. "Take a few breathers! We'll get her back."
"This is not a mission for the team," The voice of Batman states, making himself known. "This is a top priority League mission."
"Oh? Because that went over so well when Tornado was 'top priority'," Robin states. "No offence, but we can and will do this."
"Do you even know where to begin your search? Who Slade might have given Wonderbat to?" Batman shoots back.
"If you let us investigate, I'm almost- no, I'm positive that we'll be lead to Cadmus," Robin argues.
"Cadmus is no longer in operation," Batman states.
"At least not publicly!" Robin counters.
"The team is not to go on any mission regarding Wonderbat. Am I clear?" Batman states as more of an answer than a question.
"Yes sir," Comes Kaldur's strained reply.
"Good. Superboy, Kid Lantern, lock him up in the second interrogation room," Batman orders.
Superboy and I take the Magician roughly by the arms, and half walk, half drag him into the interrogation room.
"You go on, Supes. I just need to reinforce the lock, and we'll be good here," I inform.
"Whatever," Superboy replies quickly.
Despite giving off this tough guy act, I know that Superboy wants to watch over came from the same place after all. He's worried about her, and we all know it. He just shows worry through rage.
And I lied.
I'm not reinforcing anything, but the fact that I'm going to free Addie.
I'm going to do this by stealing the Magician.
I silently open the door again.
"What is it now?" The Magician asks boredly.
"Shut up," I say, throwing a gag into his mouth with my ring. "You are going to help me find her."
He replies with something equivalent to 'why would I do that?'
"Because A) you don't want to be here, B) I don't want you here, and C) because despite you being a villain, she still cared about you. That means she'd kill me if she found out that I hurt you, even in the slightest. So are you going to help me, or not?" I ask.
His electric blue eyes narrow, then he nods slowly.
"Good. Now stay behind me, and I'll get us out of here through the back door," I say as I use my ring to un-do the iron shackles and I take away the gag.
"Just so you are aware," He begins. "I'm not helping you. I'm helping her."
"Good to know. Now our first stop is going to be back at the house. We need to pick up Sko so he can track her scent," I begin.
"Not a problem," He smirks.
He takes my arm, and I feel a sudden wave of nausea hit me.
When I open my eyes, we're in Addie's apartment.
"How did you-whoa… dizzy…" I say, falling to my knees on her carpeted floor.
"A magician never reveals his secrets," He states. "Don't you know that?"
I glare up at him as I regain my balance and sight.
"Skotádi!" The Magician calls through the apartment.
A mass of dark blue comes running out from under the couch, and behind the Magician's legs.
"I know, Eomma isn't here… but we will find her. See? I have brought you her Green Lantern friend. He will help us," He explains to the Space Dragon.
"Does it even understand you?" I criticize.
"Dragons learn more languages than humans can ever hope to within their infant year," He explains to me. "And Skotádi is a boy. Not an 'it'."
"Whatever," I say. "Now how is he gonna lead us to Wonderbat?"
"Adeline is perfectly capable of taking care of herself in these types of situations," He spits. "Skotádi can track her from many miles away. He just needs something with her scent on it… but it must be something strong, a hairbrush, or toothbrush will do the trick."
"I'll go get a hairbrush …" I say walking down the hallway, and turning into the first door I see.
"Her door is the next one down," He calls from the other room.
I pout, then walk into the next door.
"I knew that… I was just... making sure we are in the right place…"
"Do you know anyone else who has a dragon in their home?" His smug voice replies.
I make faces at the door as I look for Addie's hairbrush.
"Her brush is on her nightstand," The Magician calls.
I turn around to face her bed, and I see a blue, 'Little Mermaid' hairbrush sitting on her nightstand, next to her blue and silver colored lamp.
'I've never been in Addie's room before…' I notice, taking in my surroundings.
The walls are a light green color, and her door is an off white, much like the marble columns on Paradise Island.
She has anime, movie, and t.v show posters placed inside poster frames, placed artistically on her walls.
Her bed is a black sleigh bed with a Captain America shield hanging on the front, and her pillow is a picture of the characters from Supernatural.
She has a small nightstand next to her bed, and across from the shield is an off-white, distressed dresser with rod-iron ladder looking thing hanging above it with necklaces, and two bows clipped onto it.
But it's what's on her dresser that makes me feel even worse about myself.
There's a picture of us.
I remember when she took it, but I didn't know that she framed it.
It's when we first met, and I found out that she had never been to a zoo.
She was smiling the whole time we were there, especially when she saw the lions, and the free range peacocks, and chickens, and ducks.
She wanted a picture to remember the lions, so she took a few, then I remember stealing her camera, and snapping a few photos of her, then she took one of us together. Our heads connected on the sides, and a big smile plastered on her face. Her glasses were a bit misplaced on her face because of my head leaning on them, but that just managed to make her look even more adorable than she already was.
"How long does it take you to find a hairbrush?" The Magician complains, walking into the room with Skotádi on his shoulder.
I look up, not realizing that I had picked up the picture and was examining it with care.
"I found it," I say. "I just… I've never been in her room before…"
"And I take it you've also never seen that picture before?" He asks.
"I have, but I didn't know that she framed it…" I admit, looking back at the picture, sadly.
"She's right," he begins. "You are dramatic."
"What's that supposed to mean?" I yell at him.
"It means 'pull yourself together'!" He shouts. "We'll get her back. Now quit crying, and let's get a move on. It won't be long until they realize we're gone."
I steel my jaw.
"Right," I reply.
"Come on Skotádi," The Magician coos at the Space Dragon, lifting the brush up to his nose. "Where is Eomma?"
The small dragon closes his golden-red eyes, and takes a few sniffs of the brush.
His eyes flash open, and he begins chirping, and pulling the Magician's bright red hair.
"He's found her scent," He announces.
"I could've guessed that much," I retort.
He glares at me.
"Lead the way, Skotádi," He says. The dragon points it's head north.
"North it is," He replies, grabbing my arm again.
"Oh, no!" I yell. "We're not gonna-"
We did.
That turdblossom teleported us without asking me.
"Here?" he asks Skotádi.
Skotádi sniffs to the left.
"West," Magician states, teleporting us West.
"Here? No? More eastern?"
Teleport.
"More West?"
Teleport.
"Less West?"
Teleport.
"Here?"
"Boy, it better be here!" I yell at him. "My breakfast has gone topsy-turvey from the first few teleportations!"
"Relax yourself, Lantern. Skotádi says we're here," The Magician states.
"Where exactly is here?" I ask looking around and seeing nothing but trees and rocks. I bring up a map of the U.S on my ring.
"Yosemite? Why would they bring her to a National Park?" I wonder.
"The same reason one would be in Yellowstone," Magician replies.
"You know about Yellowstone?" I ask.
"Adeline may have mentioned something about heading off to the park," Magician states cryptically.
"Where is she, Sko?" I ask the dragon as he's placed on the ground.
Skotádi sniffs around the floor for a minute, runs over into a few bushes, then chirps.
"He only makes those sounds when he senses her," Magician states hurriedly, running over to follow Skotádi into the bushes, me following shortly after.
If I weren't awake then, I am now.
I skid to a halt when I notice where we are in the park.
On top of a waterfall.
"So… she's invisible?" I ask in shock.
"No… Skotádi senses Adeline here…" Magician states.
"So, what do you think? Underground?" I ask.
"No… in the Waterfall," he states.
"You gotta be joking," I laugh. "Who's gonna build a secret lair in a waterfall in Yosemite, with millions of people here everyday?"
"Who says the entrance is in the waterfall, baegchi?" He spits. "The entrance must be somewhere up here… but where?"
"Maybe Skotádi senses Addie up here, because the entrance is up here?" I point out.
"Do you see anything that might be an entrance to an underground lair?" He asks sarcastically replies.
"You can't do something with those powers of yours?" I ask. "And here I thought that you were supposed to be this 'all powerful' being."
"I never said that I was 'all powerful'," He spits back, getting in my face.
"Then I guess that makes you just another street magician?" I taunt.
"Adeline trusted my powers enough," He states. "Does this account for nothing to you?"
"Addie isn't here, now is she?" I respond.
"She's here somewhere. And when we find her-"
"You'll what? Prove to me 'once and for all' that you're a good guy now?" I mock.
"I don't recall needing to prove anything to you," He glares.
"If you want to go back into that interrogation room, then I suggest you keep doing what you're doing," I threaten.
"You got me out. I doubt you could get me back in even if you tried," He laughs.
"We'll see about that…" I throw a green bubble at him, but he expected it, and teleported behind me.
"Indeed, we will!" He laughs.
I turn my ring into a blaster, and begin shooting at him wherever he teleported to.
"Why don't you get over here and show me how powerful you are!" I dare the magician.
"You hardly seem like it would be worth it!" He replies.
I shoot a large blast at him, hitting the tree behind him.
Let's just say, whatever I hit, made the grass and rock drop out from underneath me.
I awaken to feel something licking my face.
I open my eyes, and I see Sko.
And that scared the crap out of me.
I jump up quicker than a lightning strike, and held out my ring in protection.
'Calm down… it's fine' i think to myself.
"No it's not," I hear the Magician reply.
"You're right," I agree. "You're still here."
I see him roll his bright blue eyes under his bright red hair.
"Where are we?" I ask looking around.
I see a small light at the top of the tunnel. I assume that's where I fell in. But all around us are rocks, like we're in some sort of sideways cave.
The cave is dark and musty, but the air is cool and light. This place makes no sense…
The walls are wet, and have moss growing between them, but there isn't anywhere it could be growing from…
"Do you feel that?" the Magician asks me, his bright eyes illuminating the darkness, just as my ring, and suit do.
"Feel what?" I ask.
"There is an air current, but no place for it to be coming from," He states.
A small gust hits my face.
"Yeah… yeah I feel it…"
"There must be a fake wall. A complex hologram, perhaps… I sense no magic at work," He explains.
"So we just find the wall? No big deal," I laugh.
"Not if it has electric properties," Magician deadpans.
"Who would want to-"
"You would be surprised," He interrupts me.
"Okay, then… so what's your bright idea magic-man?" I ask, folding my arms over my chest.
"Why me? You broke me out. Aren't you supposed to be the one with a plan?" He criticizes.
"I broke you out so you could assist me," I growl. "Now, do your thing and assist."
"What makes you think I want to assist you anymore?" He questions. "It's not like you've been very… accepting of my plans."
"Do you want me to take you back to-"
"The cell? You're going to need to try something else that actually frightens me," He smirks.
"So, straight to Wonder Woman then? And Batman?" I suggest. "Neither of them are all that fond of you. And plus, they think you took their daughter. Which makes you numero uno on their hit-list."
"But which one of us committed the real crime here?" He turns. "After all, I didn't break out of the cell myself. I couldn't either. It's made of iron. Iron and magic don't mix."
"They don't know that," I state.
"On the contrary," He points. "Why do you think Batman ordered you and the Superboy to place me in the second cell, and not the first? Would not have that been an easier feat?"
'Alright, magic-man… I guess you have a point…' I think to myself.
"I know I do. Now use your ring, and find the wall," He orders.
'Oh yay. Another telepathic… just what I needed today…' I grumble in my head.
"For Merlin's sake. If you're going to acknowledge that I can read your mind, they why don't you do the same with your feelings?" He asks. "Just say it."
I narrow my eyes at him, but I begin to use my ring as a metal detector of sorts.
It gets a hit.
"The wall to your right. It's a fake," I announce. "Unguarded. We can go through without hassle."
He wastes no time in stepping through the wall, Sko hot on his trail.
I follow closely after, and we run into a hallway. Like, a nice one.
The floors are marble, and the walls are a bright blue. Kinda reminds me of a hospital hallway, but with less… sanitation.
The ceiling is lined with those long LED lights that you'd see in a classroom, but these ones don't flicker.
"So what now?" I ask, flying up next to him.
"We follow the hallways, until we find her!" He calls out, making a right.
"And what then?" I ask.
"What do you think, oh wise one?" Magician asks.
We keep running down the hallway. So far, it has no separate hallways. Just a long hallway with lots of turns.
Finally, we come to a door.
We duck beneath the window, then we carefully glance through them in the corners.
Skotádi doesn't want to waste any time though.
He pushes the door open with his little head, and he bursts into the room, crying out for Addie through his chirps, and strange sounding calls.
"That dragon is going to get us killed…" I state as the Magician and I are forced to follow Skotádi inside.
Let me tell you: this room has to be the creepiest room I've ever been in. And I've been in Sinestro's old room on Oa.
The room was dark in comparison to the hallways, and in the center of the room, is a large tank filled to the brim with a strange green water like substance.
Addie is floating inside of it.
"Addie!" I shout, flying over to the tank.
She's asleep, she looks just like she did when I last saw her…
Well… that brought back up those memories…
"She's alive," the Magician states as I place my hand on the glass. "But what the substance around her is… I cannot say… It's nothing I've ever encountered before…and why is no one here?... I wonder..."
"But she's-" My ring starts to ring.
I place it up to my face and answer it.
"Kid Lantern here," I answer.
"Nash," My Dad answers back.
I inwardly cringe.
'He knows! He knows! He knows!' I yell at myself.
"H-Hey! Dad! H-How's it hangin'?" I ask, attempting to act casual.
"Nash Jordan, if you are doing what I think you're doing, and going out looking for Addie with that Magician-"
"Whaaaaat? Pshhh, naaa… I just… needed to get some air… She's missing, a-and I need to deal with that right now…" I lie.
"So. I'm standing right next to a zeta tube. If I go home right now, I'll find you sitting on the couch 'getting some air'?" He questions.
"No… because I'm not home! I'm just running around the cave right now… doing things…" I respond.
I spot the magician out of the corner of my eyes typing around on the tank's mechanics, and I see that he's managed to get it to drain, and Addie was slowly floating down with it.
"Oh really, now?" He asks.
"Yeah!" I respond.
'Sure, why not…'
"Then I'll see you in two," He states, ending the transmission.
"NO WAIT! I- auuunngghhh! Tell me she's almost out of there!" I yell.
"This is a gradual process," He responds.
"My death is about to be a gradual process! We need to hurry this along!" I shout.
"Then why don't you contribute, and use your powers to get her out of there!" He yells back as Skotádi paws at the tank leaving small scratch marks in it.
I push out my ring, and make it go through the glass, and wrap around Addie.
I have to think for a moment about how I'm going to get her through the glass. MY ring's power can density shift. She can't.
"I need you to teleport her out," I state. "She's breathing the air I placed in there, but I can't get her through the glass."
The magician pops in, then out of my bubble, carrying her in his arms.
Alright. I'll admit. That hurt. I am wounded.
I deactivate my bubble, then create a bulldozer to crash through the walls.
"Wait a second," Magician stops me.
"What?" I ask.
"I can teleport more than two people at a time," He states. "Take her arm. Come on up here Skotádi!"
The little dragon climbed up the Magician's leg, and into the place between Addie's stomach and the Magician's chest.
I take her arm, and the moment I do, I find that we have been transported to the cave.
In the middle of the cave…
Where everyone is watching us…
The team has a look of surprise on their faces, except for Robin and Kaldur. They look disappointed.
Wonder Woman, Batman, and my Dad all stand around us glaring, and gaping at us.
"So… there is a totally logical explanation for this…" I begin.
"Adeline!" Wonder Woman calls out, reaching for Addie.
"Hold on," Batman stops her.
He advances on us, making me back away.
He kneels in front of her, pulling something out from his belt, and placing it on her neck, wrist, and chest.
"She's breathing," He announces. "Vitals are normal. No oddities in her heartbeat… she's going to be alright."
I can practically see the relief fill the room.
"You…" Wonder Woman growls at the Magician.
"Alright, wait a second!" I yell, holding my hands out in front of us. "He didn't take her. It was Slade, remember?"
"He escaped!"
"I...uh… I-uh actually… let him...out…" I admit. "But he was the only way we could find Addie!"
"Nash, when we get home, you have no idea how much trouble you are in," My Dad growls.
"And I'm okay with that! I'm actually relieved! But let me just say this-" I begin, gesturing to the Magician. "He did more to save her than I did… Than I ever could… If anything, please just don't punish him. He's actually not that bad of a villain."
Batman glares down on the Magician.
"Is that so?" He asks.
"All of it!" I reply.
"I wasn't asking you, Lantern," He snaps.
"Sir… I wouldn't have come back if I didn't want her safe," The magician replies.
Addie begins to move.
"Addie?" I call, reaching her side.
Her eyes open halfway, revealing her dark blue eyes to us.
"Haneul…" She lazily smiles up at the Magician.
'Why is she laughing at noodles?' I wonder. 'Hah noodle? Is she loopy or something?
"I'm here," the Magician answers.
Skotádi begins to crawl up her chest and lick her face with his forked tongue.
"Sko…" She mumbles.
Sko gives out a chirp of happiness.
"I'll take her to the med bay," Batman addresses, taking Addie from the Magician's hold. "As for you two… you will both be addressed after I make sure she is stable."
"I understand sir," I state.
"Whatever," the Magician replies.
Batman exits the room with Wonder Woman following closely behind.
"So, Nash…" I hear Robin begin maliciously. "Care to explain to us your big idea?"
I cringe seeing the team's unanimous looks of disapproval.
"So you see... what had happened was…"
Undisclosed Location
"Was it wise to allow the Lantern inside? You know the mission was not made for him!" A young white haired male asks a tall blue haired male.
"I agree!" a second replies, his dark pinkish-red hair shrouded in the same darkness that the other two are. "Haneul was supposed to be the one to prove himself. To prove that he could do this alone."
"I don't see how it's fair though!" A third states, his dark hair accentuated by a single caramel streak. "How is he supposed to prove himself when he doesn't even know that's what he's supposed to be doing?"
"All in due time, brothers," The deep voice of the tall blue haired man replies. "Haneul will soon have his chance to show us his worth."
"But did we have to take the girl?" The second voice asks. "She doesn't have anything to do with this… and even if she did, we didn't have to pay the mercenary so much to go get her."
"You just wanted to go get her yourself because you think she's pretty," The third voice mocks.
"I don't see you disagreeing…" The second voice pouts.
Sorry this is so late in the day!
I've been staring at computer screens all week and my eyes are slowly killing me.
.L: Well, this is my own chapter this time... Misplaced is next though! And, perhaps... and perhaps not...?O_o?
Brandon12389: Glad you're semi-enjoying my story!
Kain: It's not trolling if you get caught in it before you reveal it.
Luna Star Phantom: Holy Jar Jar on a Jumprope! You read all these chapters in one day? And you liked them? You are my new spirit animal. My first was Sasha from Attack on Titan. But You're the chosen one now.
Baller12344: Thank you! And If you read my last chapter responses, you can see who I used to describe my characters. And It depends on what type of questions you mean?
IMPORTANT. PLEASE READ!
Thank you all so much! Just so you know, my updating schedule might be fluxuating for a while before I can get back on track. Finals, S.O.L's (that's STAR tests for my West Coaster's) and exams are coming up, so I won't have all that much time to update as I usually do. So please forgive any delays in chapter updates. I promise I'll be back on track by the next two or so months.
-Gargoyle77, out!
