SENTRY

CAMERAS FLASHED as Lex Luthor took the stage before a sea of reporters in front of LexCorp Headquarters; the man clearing his throat as he looked around and began to speak. "Recently, we've experienced an upsurge in the number of attacks that have plagued this country. Following the events of the Dark Day months ago, a state of fear has spread. Terrorists have used that fear as an advantage to bring about chaos as they've attacked places like San Fransokyo, Las Dubai and many others. But that ends to today."

"IT ENDS with us when we refuse to succumb to their attacks and their threats to destroy all we've fought for as a nation. LexCorp was founded on peace and we will strive together to maintain it with relief efforts around the country and offering a hand to our military to strengthen security around our borders. Whoever those terrorists are, their days are numbered." Nightwing frowned as he shut off the feed from the tablet he held in hand, moving over to the next room in the Quinjet where Kid Flash, Aqualad, Artemis and Batgirl were, looking ahead at the pilot in the cockpit.

"Looks like Luthor's got the public fooled again with his campaigns for peace." Nightwing took a seat.

"Well, it will not be for long if we can expose his plans in Atlantis." Kaldur turned to him.

Nightwing nodded and went on comm. "Kara, what's your ETA from the next Hydra base?"

"WE'RE ABOUT four minutes out." The blonde sped through the skies, followed by M'gann, Blue Beetle and Raven as they soared over the skies above.

"Excellent." Nightwing's voice came. "Remember to only engage hostiles if you're spotted – the priority is to locate their bases so that we can launch a calculated attack on them later on."

"Relax, Robin, we'll keep ourselves in check." Kara smirked.

"It's Nightwing."

"Sure thing, Boy Wonder." She chuckled and went off comm.

"You think it's a smart move to get on his bad side, Kara?" M'gann flew beside her.

"He needs to ease up – there's no way we'd get spotted way up here." The Kryptonian turned to her. "We don't even need to go anywhere close to the ground since I can see far enough, so no worries."

"I think you should rethink that cuz we've gotta bogie!" Blue Beetle flew back.

"Huh?"

A missile flew past them and exploded, creating waves that rocked the four as they were nearly knocked out of the skies. M'gann shook her head and looked down, seeing three grey, ten foot tall, humanoid robots with yellow plated torsos with Hydra logos painted on their chests. "Oh crap, it's them."

"Okay, let's move!" Supergirl swooped down.

"YOU KNOW what? I think I hate swimming." Kid Flash looked around as he, Nightwing, Batgirl, Aqualad and Artemis swam over the deep blue ocean floor. "It's dark and no traction – it's hard to get any speed going."

"Well, it's nice to see you actually struggle for a change." Batgirl pulled out a small device from her pocket.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It's an even playing field." She clicked on its screen, bringing up a sonar reading.

"Well, at least they're some benefits of it." Kid Flash turned to Artemis, seeing her green scuba suit wrap around her body and accentuate her curves, bringing a grin to his face. "Yep, like what I'm seeing."

"Focus on the mission, Wally." Artemis swam onward.

"Eyes forward." He followed right behind her.

Shaking her head, Batgirl looked at the readings, raising her head to Nightwing who was ahead of her. "Atlantis is less than a knot away."

"Good."

"Remember to be careful as we proceed – this is not the peaceful realm my home was and we do not know what's in store for us once we arrive." Kaldur looked at them.

"I still think I'd keep on my toes with the normal Atlantis and its magic." Batgirl winced.

"Well, let's see what my first time there will be like." Artemis slowed down as she reached a rock, moving amongst the others. Kid Flash came up to her and cupped her ass. "Wally, not now!"

"Sorry, it's a great outfit." He moved back.

"Quiet, we don't wanna get spotted." Nightwing pulled up a pair of binoculars and surveyed the area, zooming in on the underwater city as he eyed the force field and buildings within. Looking to his right, he saw three underwater ships docked outside. "Got a visual on the LexCorp vehicles." He frowned. "Let's move."

The five moved toward the city and slowed down a few metres away, detecting movement near the barrier as a guard riding a seahorse patrolled nearby. Seeing him move away, they got closer and were stopped by Nightwing near the energy as he pulled out a device and scanned it.

"Just as I thought – there's a current of six hundred thousand watts. It must be a security measure."

"They must have increased their security after I escaped." Kaldur frowned.

"So, what now?" Artemis frowned.

"I will try something." Kaldur moved ahead of them and fished out his water bearers. Weaving a current through them, he held the hilts forward and charged at the force field, injecting water into it and parting his arms. The energy field surged slightly and parted as he spread his limbs, creating an opening. "Go now." He strained.

Giving him a quick nod, Nightwing, Kid Flash, Batgirl and Artemis jumped in, letting him quickly dive in and roll to his feet in the ceramic tiled alleyway. Moving up to the street, Nightwing looked around and saw a guard in the distance, stepping back to his friends. "Okay, we're clear." He pressed a button on his belt buckle, retracting his webbed shoes and drew his batons. "Let's get moving."

The five manoeuvred through the alley and hid behind buildings, reaching the end of the block and crossing the road as they continued onward. Kaldur looked around and turned to the others. "The palace shouldn't be too far now."

Nightwing turned to a corner and halted, turning to the street and seeing armed men roam the sidewalk. Kid Flash stopped and ran up to him. "Hey, what is it?"

"Those're LexCorp soldiers." He squinted as he got closer, seeing the company logo on their uniforms.

"Well, if they're here, then we'd easily be spotted." Batgirl walked up to them.

Kaldur jumped into the alley the others were in, pulling Artemis with him as he saw a soldier move passed. "We have to find a way to proceed without being detected."

Kid Flash looked around and grinned, seeing some Atlanteans nearby. "Oh, I have an idea."

BLUE BEETLE forged his arm into a sonic cannon, firing a beam at a Sentry that stepped out of the way and ran toward him. The heavy machine moved nimbly for its size, gears and pistons audibly clanging with its metal body as it transformed a gun of its own and shot him out of the sky with an orange burst. Raven surrounded the robot in energy and sent her hands to her right, slamming it against the dirt and flinging it forward.

The android flipped over in mid-air and crashed against the ground, grazing to a stop and thrust its fist against the rocks. A wave shot out of it, knocking Raven and Blue Beetle off their feet and sending dust into the air. Standing up, it aimed its cannon at them when it suddenly fell back, thrust by M'gann who pressed it against the earth.

The robot fired at her, sending her plummeting down and drawing Kara's attention and distracting her from another android that punched her, sending her flying back. Struggling to her feet, she looked at the others as they recuperated. "Skye, you got anything?" She went on comm.

"No, I can't seem to find a particular weak spot." Skye responded. "Guess you'll just have to keep hitting it hard."

"Yeah, but they hit harder." M'gann strained as she created a force field that blocked one of the robot's punches.

"Sat scans are detecting radiation coming off the robots – they must be powered by something nuclear and it's very volatile."

"Seriously?" Blue Beetle huffed as he shot toward an android.

"Whatever you do, you have to put them down now before they explode and cause fallout."

"What's the blast radius?" Supergirl frowned.

"Two and a half miles."

Supergirl looked around and huffed as she saw a city in the distance, pressing her earpiece. "We're only half a mile away from a city."

"Kara, you need to get those robots outta there in twenty minutes or the city's done for."

"Crap."

"In coming!" Blue Beetle jumped away from an energy blast.

Supergirl flew out of the way and fired lasers at the android, grazing against its arm as it shielded itself and ran toward her. She swooped down and punched it, breaking half its face off and causing it to recoil. It grabbed her midsection and slammed her on the ground, tossing her aside and blasting her in the chest.

M'gann shot toward a robot and smacked against its chest, receiving an electric shock as she was unable to phase through it. The android grabbed at her and she flew out of the way, elongating her arm and cracking it over its head. Clutching its chest, she smacked it on the ground and ascended into the air, bringing a force field upon it that pushed it against the rocks.

Blue Beetle fired two staples at an android and jerked back in surprise as it smacked them aside, retaliating with a sonic beam it rained down upon it. Raven enveloped the robot in energy and thrust her arms down, smashing it against the ground and cracking its back. The Sentry turned to her and shot a beam at her, knocking her aside and burning her cowl.

The girl groaned and pushed herself up, gasping as she realized her hood was destroyed and her changed skin was exposed. She looked around and spotted Blue Beetle who looked at her in surprise. "Raven?"

ARTEMIS RAISED her brow as she looked at her hands, frowning at the series of bracelets that wrapped around her arms and cloth that left her legs completely exposed. "I don't like this." She frowned.

"Well, it's no party for any of us, but we have to blend in to avoid suspicion." Nightwing pulled his hood over his face, huffing as his boots squeaked against the sidewalk.

"I kinda like it." Kid Flash looked at the gauntlet he wore with a grin.

"This feels wrong." Batgirl pulled at the thread of her bra, trying to cover her cleavage.

"Try to seem comfortable in your attire; we do not want to draw attention to ourselves." Kaldur quietened his voice as he led them toward an alley, looking around for onlookers as civilians walked past.

Moving up to a wall, Nightwing and Batgirl grappled their way up, Artemis firing a tethered, Kid Flash running up the structure and Aqualad drawing out his water-bearers and forging whips to pull himself up. The five entered the palace grounds and looked around, Nightwing throwing an electric Batarang into a guard and knocking him out.

"Let's move." He turned to the others.

A DART FLEW into a guard's neck and he fell over, quickly pulled away by Kid Flash as Aqualad, Artemis, Batgirl and Nightwing moved stealthily through the hall in the palace. Switching to infrared, Dick scanned the corridors ahead, nodding to the others as they moved onward.

Artemis adjusted her bow and adjusted the strap of her quiver. "Now this is better."

"Any outfit is hot on you, babe." Wally smirked and she hushed him, moving over to a corner and pressing her back against a wall.

Batgirl pulled up a small device, seeing enhanced sonar readings that spread throughout the building. "According to the scans, there's a large underground room that's heavily guarded – there must be something stored in there."

"Then let's go find it." Nightwing nodded.

"Okay, the entrance is under the east wing …" She read the scans. "Through a door to the right." She pointed at a wall.

"Uh, there's nothing there." Kid Flash raised his brow.

"That's what the scan says."

"Ooh, maybe it's a secret door." Artemis's face lit up.

"Alright, let's give it a crack." Kid Flash sped around it, rubbing his hand around every inch then appearing back to them. "Nothing – there's no secret button."

"It must be pressure sensitive." Nightwing walked up to him. "Try pushing at it."

Kid Flash zoomed about then stopped as he heard a clang. "Awesome."

Low rumbling met their ears as tiles on the wall slowly began to shift, creating an ovular shape as they moved around and fashioned a door. Bricks moved up and created an opening, tapering out into a hallway that went downward toward a dim light. Sharing cautious looks, the five entered the path and made their descent, Batgirl turning back and seeing the aperture close up and darken their way.

BLUE BEETLE'S eyes dilated in surprise upon seeing Raven's changed skin, his brows stitching as he moved up to her. "Raven, what happened?" The girl looked at him and sifted her mind for words, looking at her hands and clenching her fists.

"Uh, guys we need you to – whoa, Raven what happened?!" M'gann turned to them as she flew away from a Sentry.

"We don't have time to talk." Supergirl interrupted them. "Right now, we've gotta focus on taking these robots down!"

The blonde sped toward a Sentry with a powerful punch and it blocked the attack with its forearm, grazing against the dirt as she pushed it back and it quickly steadied itself. Smacking the appendage aside, she gave the android an uppercut that flung it back, lunging onto it and firing lasers at its chest. The robot got to its feet and fired a beam at her, knocking her out of the sky and it jumped up, grabbing her as she fell and smashing her down.

Raven raised her hands and summoned large boulders with her energy, levitating them high and crashing them down on the three robots. Getting to her feet, she clenched her fists and caused the rocks to explode, spraying the fractured bits around and stepping back as she caught her breath. Sparks met their ears as the Sentries pushed themselves up, their damaged bodies failing to impede them as they forged cannons from their arms and blasted at them rapidly.

The five evaded the onslaught and flew about in the air, M'gann summoning force fields to shield herself and Raven creating a wave that caught the blasts. "We have to take them down now!"

"I've got an idea!" Supergirl shot down and dove into the ground.

Burrowing through the dirt, the Kryptonian shot out behind an android and punched it down, turning to another that fired at her. She lifted the downed robot and shielded herself with its body, tossed it aside and fired lasers at it, screaming in rage as she powered the charge and knocked the machine down. The remaining Sentry shot at her and she sped out of the way at high speeds, hopping from place to place and tackled the robot, sending it bouncing off the ground.

"Whoa, remind me not to anger a Kryptonian." Blue Beetle jerked back as he watched her fight.

M'gann lifted a robot into the air and tossed it aside as it tried to fire at her, sending it to Raven who covered it in energy and folded it up. Breaking from the vice, the Sentry shot her down and plummeted, landing with a punch to the ground that created a shockwave that knocked Supergirl off her feet. M'gann flew down and enlarged her fist, grabbing the robot's legs and flipping it over her, smacking it down.

Blue Beetle fired two sonic beams on an android and created an energy cannon, unloading on the robot and creating an explosion that knocked him back slightly. The robot stood wobbly in a small crater, its chest fractured and fell to a knee; sparks surging through its body. Supergirl punched out another robot and Raven shot down the last one, downing the trio.

"What have you done!?" Daisy's voice came on comm.

"We took down those robots is what we did!" Blue Beetle smirked.

"But you've exposed the cores as well! You need to get them away from the city before they explode!"

M'gann turned to the robots and winced. "Yeah, that might be a problem." The Sentries rose to their feet and clenched their fists – their eyes glowing red as they stared down the Teammates.

AQUALAD'S TATTOOS came alight and illuminated their route as Artemis, Nightwing, Batgirl and Kid Flash followed him down and reached the bottom of the pathway. Entering a storage room, the five split up as a volley of energy fire came upon them as several guards engaged them. Kaldur drew out his water bearers and forged a shield with one hand, blocking a shot and created a whip with the other, smacking a guard away.

Artemis leapt behind a containment case, firing an arrow against the ceiling and creating a smoke cloud that enveloped the room. Blinding the guards in the smog, the Teammates donned goggles and switched to infrared, engaging their opponents. Artemis aimed at a soldier and shot a projectile that split into three and downed two other assailants.

Kid Flash zoomed through the room, punching out guards as they were overwhelmed by the assault, speeding up to one and tackling him, grabbing his legs and smacking him against a wall. Kaldur created two swords and attacked a guard, deflecting swings of his spear and cutting him down, flinging another into an attacker's chest. Nightwing and Batgirl sped through the haze, knocking down two guards with swift smacks of the batons and kicks and downing the remainder with electric Batarangs.

With the room cleared, Artemis looked around, seeing the fog settle and reveal several LexCorp containment units lain along the walls amongst high tech weaponry. Moving up to the end of the room, she walked up to a large metal door and drew her bow, firing an explosive arrow that punctured a hole through it. "Hey, we're supposed to be silent." Nightwing frowned.

"They already know we're here by now, so what's the point." She walked into the other room and her eyes dilated as she looked around, simultaneously draping her bow over herself. "Kaldur, you're gonna wanna see this."

Aqualad and the others entered the chamber and surveyed the room, frowning as he saw several paintings that showed ancient Atlantis, its fall and the modern world. Moving up to a large table at the centre of the room, he saw a map splayed atop of it that showed maps of the sea and fault lines around the world. He walked past the others as they inspected expanse, stepping up to a large vault with a small glass case he looked into.

"These're plans to cause earthquakes using LexCorp tech and attack major cities." Nightwing frowned. "He could decimate the whole world with this."

"And he has more than enough power to do so." Aqualad turned to him. "He has Aquaman's trident."

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Welcome to the Universe! Thanks to all of you who've waited, read, favourite and followed – it means a lot that you're still there. We apologize for the long hiatus – we'd been busy for the past month or so, but know that we're going to get back on track and move this story along. If you wanna see more, read more, favourite or follow and Await the Awesomeness as we dive into the Universe. Thanks for reading.