As we return to our heroes, they are on edge, awaiting the arrival of the Tameranian army.
Twenty Two: A Fleet on the Front
Robin paced up and down his room as Koriand'r watched him from his bed.
"They should have been here by now!" he exclaimed, agitated.
"Robin," said Koriand'r, "relax. They shall arrive You will see."
"I'm not worried if they'll come, I'm worried about when they'll come."
She stood up and placed her hands on his shoulders.
"Robin," she said, "you must learn to have faith."
He slumped and released his breath.
"Yeah," he said, smiling, "you're right."
She returned the smile and leaned in for a kiss when –
BOOM!
The entire tower shook from a massive hit out of nowhere. The sudden attack caused the two teens to loose their balance and tumble to the ground.
"You ok?" said Robin as he quickly got off of her.
"Yes," she said, rubbing her head.
"Come on!" And he grabbed her hand and led her out to where many of the Remainders had gathered just outside the tower.
"Where did that come from?"
"Are they here already?"
"What happened?"
Robin quickly found Bee standing with Roy, Garth, Raven, Garfield and even Komand'r. She was trying to calm the masses.
"People, people!" she called. "Calm down! Everyone just settle down!"
"What's going on?" asked Robin as he and Koriand'r came up to them.
"We don't know," said Roy. "we know the Gordanians attacked, but we don't know where."
Robin looked into the clouded, grey sky. Indeed, there was nothing there. He then examined the damage done by the blast. Half of the tower was ash black and there was a noticeable dent in the metal. An attack like that had to come from a Gordanian war ship. But where?
Suddenly, Robin chanced a look behind him. In the air, he saw a glint of orange metal.
"There!" he said, pointing. They all looked, and apparently saw it, too.
"I have and idea," said Bee, taking one of her yellow weapons from her waist. She pointed it and the glimmer of metal and shot a bolt of electricity. As it neared the clouds, it dispersed and blew away the mist revealing a large Gordanian fighter ship and several other small ones.
"Should we get the cannons?" Garth asked Bee.
"What cannons?" said Robin.
"Well," Bee explained, "when he was alive, Victor was working on these weapons. He modeled them after his own plasma cannon in his arm. He called them the ultimate weapon. But, they have never been tested, and they could backfire do some serious damage."
Robin looked over to see more Gordanian ships appear into sight.
"Do it," he said.
"But –"
"Listen, Karen, we're either going to die from the cannons or die from them. Which one do you want?"
"Um, dudes?" said Garfield. "I don't want to die – period."
She closed her eyes and thought. Then, she nodded, solemnly. Roy and Garth rushed off and Robin looked out to the distance. Now, there were at least five ships on the horizon.
"If they work," said Bee, "we may be able to hold them off for a bit."
"Let's hope."
A few minutes had passed, and the Gordanian fleet had still remained in the air, unmoving.
"Why do they not attack?" asked Koriand'r.
"Isn't it obvious?" Komand'r said, snidely. "They don't have all of their fleet yet. Gordanians never attack unless they have the odds well in their favor."
WOO – UOO CLANK!
Robin and the others turned as two huge cannons made of blue metal emerged from the ground. In length, they equaled about two school busses each and the barrels could have stored a small jet easily. They sat on a crank so as that they could be moved into different positions from a small seat on the back of the cannon. Sitting in the control seats for each were Roy and Garth. They looked like miniscule ants on blue-raspberry jolly ranchers.
"What are they waiting for?" Roy shouted to Bee.
"The rest of their fleet!" Bee responded.
The two boys looked at each other and smiled.
"Well, Garth," said Roy, "shall we see if these things work?"
"Let's," Garth replied with a smile.
Then, in unison, they turned on the behemoth weapons and revved them up.
VWOOOOO…
Blue light tipped the cannons and flowed like a river along its' sides. The ground shook with the intensity of the energy from both. The two cranked them up to an angle where the large war ship was a clean shot.
Below them, the Remainders had scattered to find cover. Robin, Koriand'r, Raven, Garfield, Bee and Komand'r had found a large rock to protect them. Others were finding similar hiding places, as well as bushes and behind the two metal monsters. And even though there was a fifty-fifty chance the two guns would blow, killing all of them, the six behind the rock kept their heads poked out so as not to miss a thing.
The tips of the cannons began to vibrate, ready to fire. Robin and Koriand'r held tight onto each other, neither dreaming to let go. Raven found her self grabbing onto Garfield's hand, and he squeezed just as hard. Komand'r found some moss to brace onto, and Bee wrapped her sweaty hands around her yellow, electric weapons around her waist. Roy and Garth exchanged one last glance before the moment of truth. They nodded and then, in unison, they slammed their fists on the fire buttons.
The cannons activated.
Will the cannons work? Are our heroes doomed? And does this lead to knowledge of the gunther knife? Tune in next chappie to find out!
T.
PS – I was tempted to make Garth (Aqualad) shout to Roy (Speedy) "I LOVE YOU!" just before they hit the button, just for a laugh.