Chapter VII
"And I thought things were bad the way they were before," spoke Wondergirl the moment her sneakers contacted the ground. Her legs, not unlike the bodies of those around her, had become engulfed in shroud as the five landed on the ground.
They were all together. They were all very much apart. All at once, the unsettling reality of the situation sunk into their young hearts as they wandered amidst the stagnant fog.
The usually lively voice of XS quivered with diffidence, "…I-Is everyone still there? This is pretty scary," as she despairingly reached out with both arms extended, only to feel no one and nothing. The mere fact that Jenni Ognatz, the emotional pillar of the team, was in so much disarray was cause for great concern in the team and the task at hand.
Equally nervous as his cousin, but a fraction as honest, a jittering Impulse insisted, "Scary, nah, this is… it's…Robin, what is this?" The confusion had reduced his closest friends to distant shadows, and all around him, the shadows danced in frantic chaos, forcing Robin to constantly remind himself the true identity of each silhouette. "Stay calm," he mentally repeated, but despite his mind's most diligent efforts, he could not deny the progression of fear as it slithered in his heart.
With the vagrant cries of mystification from his friends, Robin knew that no matter what, he could not allow Harm to do this to them. Shrewdly, Robin took command once more and stated, "Look, yes, we've lost one sense, that's a given, but that's just the thing. We don't need to see clear to see clearly." Oblivious to its meaning, Impulse had no desire to ponder its message and instead muttered, "what'sthatnowwho?"
"Secret," Robin resumed, "you take point and use your mist powers to lift the fog in front of us. Wondergirl, you fly above us in case one of us is blindsided." Upon his request, Secret ghosted to the front of the pack and, lengthening her left arm, lifted the dense fog around them in a five foot radius. Within an instant, the cloaking veil imposed upon the forest had, at least in part, been dispersed. Before each of them appeared the relieving sight of four familiar faces. Conversely, Secret bashfully began, "Sorry…" and feeling she had let down the team, Robin especially, she finished, "that's the best I can do."
Robin quickly pointed out, "No need to apologize, you did great. This is all we need to make our way through the forest." Encouragingly, XS also added, "Yeah, you did a really great job, Secret! This place is so much more beautiful now that I can actually see it."
As opposed to everyone else, Impulse had a quite unique point of view on the fresh visage before his eyes. "Meh, it looked cooler before. Now it's just a bunch of dumb trees." Wondergirl, who like XS lavished the gentle finesse of nature, acerbically commented, "Alright there, Plastic Man, don't get too worked up."
Intent on maintaining focus, Robin continued, "XS, Impulse, we need you to phase along the perimeter in opposite directions to try and redirect the current of the fog towards the back exit of the forest." The temerity in Robin's voice proved reassuring to XS. Her initial panic conquered, she affirmed, "Got it!"
"Alright, everyone, let's get moving. Harm is in here, somewhere, so be careful and remember the plan." On the heels of Robin's words, the two young speedsters vanished into the night, leaving behind smoke of two bodies traveling at speeds surpassing sound.
Moving forward, Secret tentatively led the way, maintaining a constant five foot radius of clarity as they trudged deeper into the core of the forest. It was if the animals bowed to the oncoming battle to be waged as they all hid in silent observation. The trees too seemed to stop rustling as the trio walked. A dark chill passed over them as they carefully stepped forward. However a grave misunderstanding had occurred as the arctic gust sweeping beside them was no earthbound gale, but the cues of a predator stalking its prey.
Since the very moment they had descended into his trap, Harm had known precisely where his guests were. Not only was his jewel granter of indelible power, but it also allowed Harm to sense the energy signatures of those around him. Using this great knowledge as a great power, he, as silent as the Secret herself, positioned himself inside an upcoming tree.
The pulsating thrill of the chase exhilarated Harm as he waited. He the hunter, they the sheep led to the slaughter. The time had come to end this magnificent exercise and take the respect he so rightfully deserved. It would be in blood they would know his name.
Unaware of Harm's presence, Wondergirl toured through the sky above Secret and Robin providing a bird's eye-view of the forest. Preceded by an ever so delicate bustling of leaves, Harm viciously leaped out of his hiding place inside a tree and pounced onto Wondergirl as she flew by. Terror instantly gripped her as her heart exhaustively pumped in response to the weight of Harm on top of her.
Landing on her back as she flew through the air, Wondergirl, intent on shaking him off, began to barrel roll in the air. Despite the turbulent velocity of each spin, Harm maintained his position. A demented smile then formed across his face as Harm raised his blade to the sky. In aesthetic harmony, the edge of his blade and vampire grin glinted insidiously in the washing moonlight. Though on the ground, Robin and Secret immediately heard the impact of Harm's body pressing against Wondergirl's, and to their adamant horror, watched helplessly as he maliciously stabbed his sword into her back.
Crying out in pain, Wondergirl lashed about in midair as a crimson fountain of blood rained onto her two mortified friends below. Fortunate for Wondergirl, the brisk spins of her barrel rolls prevented Harm from digging the blade as deeply into her as he would have liked; that being completely through her. Nevertheless, Wondergirl spiraled down towards the ground, slipping unconscious due to the agonizing blow.
As she plummeted towards her friends, Harm unsheathed his blade from where it lay inside Wondergirl, and bounced off her limp body into the air. Rotating in the sky, Harm lithely landed in front of Robin and Secret seconds before Wondergirl's body brusquely crashed into the thick bark of a nearby tree. Deeply concerned over her friend's safety, Secret rushed over to the rubble created by the crash to find Wondergirl.
Face to face, the enmity between Harm and Robin intensified to unequivocal levels. With jackal eyes, Harm snickered, "Ah Robin, had I known we were to do battle I would have brought the baby stool." Robin had no desire to respond, he had no want of anything save to shut Harm up now and forever. As his blood boiled, Robin took notice of the stolen jewel adorning his opponent's chest. Just as quickly, Robin's eyes turned away, unable to stare at the embodiment of his ineptness to stop Harm.
Drawing on Robin's palpable sense of doubt, Harm cockily struck with words, "I see you've noticed my latest acquisition, but of course, I have you and your friends to thank for it. After all," his perverse smile growing, "none of this could have been possible without your amazing leadership. Take a bow for the brief few moments you still stand, boy."
Robin knew better than to attack Harm one on one. He was too dangerous. He had made that misstep in judgment once before. He had a plan now, a plan that hinged on him of all people following through in it. Even with that, there was something in Robin that would not so easily be swayed. That face, that snaking grin infuriated Robin as it tapped into a deeply rooted vein that gashed pride and spurted hate.
Blind now to the merit of the plan, Robin enlarged his bow staff and prepared to strike. Harm eyed his opponent, thoroughly entertained by Robin succumbing to his will, and easily avoided his lumbering stab with his staff. He could feel the pressure suffocate Robin and degenerate his customarily graceful technique into uncoordinated fury.
As he dodged Robin's horizontal swipe Harm swiftly retaliated with a sweep of Robin's leg, instantly toppling him. Feverishly Robin nipped up to his feet, but as he did so, Harm mocked, "Aw, what is the matter boy wonder? You have been such a great help to me all day, yet now you fail me as a sparring partner? It would be a miscarriage of truth to say that I am even barely trying. Hahaha!!"
That laughter was intolerable, and determined to snuff it out Robin lunged towards Harm, yelling, "Enough!!" Surprising his confident adversary, Robin connected with a crushing roundhouse kick to the unsuspecting temple of Harm. However, before Robin returned to the ground Harm hastily countered with a sharp knee that slammed bluntly against Robin's abdomen. The wind mercilessly knocked out of him, Robin dazedly raised his head to face Harm, but all he could see was his approaching fist bashing his nose.
The cold impact of the punch sent Robin stumbling back two steps, but in this small window of opportunity, he calculatingly returned fire. In motion with the impact of the blow, Robin swung his bow staff at Harm. With but a second to react, the air parting bow staff clanged against Harm's sword as he blocked the incoming strike. Resilient as ever, Robin then whirled the bow staff back around and jabbed it into Harm's puffed out chest. The collision of steel against bone stunned Harm, who huddled in equal astonishment and agony. Hoping to seize the moment, Robin performed a sudden second attack, this time turning the staff vertically and brutally thrusting it up into Harm's protruding chin.
For the first time in the battle, Robin felt as though he had hurt Harm. An ached grunt escaped Harm's lips as the steel staff crunched his jawbone, the force of the shot uplifting Harm's head and nearly tearing it from his neck. Like Robin before him, Harm tactically decided to ride the momentum of the blow and back-flipped after receiving the hit. As he did so, he cleverly used his rotating left foot to fiercely strike Robin in the face. Reeling from the unexpected flip kick, Robin stumbled backwards. Intent on sending a clear message to his foe, Harm dashed towards Robin. With the sheer aggression of a locomotive, Harm landed a second kick to Robin's damaged face that immediately dropped Robin to the floor.
Ever so slowly he began to close in on Robin as he lied in the grass. Clenching his sword tightly, he pressed the tip towards his fallen prey. Maniacally, he told Robin, "I have enjoyed toying with your fragile sense of morality all day, but I have to admit, nothing is as satisfying as physically beating my superiority into your obstinate skull. Nothing in this world can quite compare to the thrill of cradling another's life in your arms, only to squash it between your fingertips. DIE!!" With the raise of his voice, he thrust the piercing tip of his blade directly at Robin, who lay gasping for air.
From across the misted forest and with the rage of the heavens came a heaving gust of mahogany wind that boomingly blasted Harm back seconds before the edge of his blade slit the throat of Robin. Caught off guard, the shockwave of the blast tore Harm from the very earth he stood on and sent him flying several feet backwards, culminating in his stone like back splattering against the front of a tree.
It was in her eyes that the Secret was disrobed. Cloud and shroud had become a part of her, and over time, it had, in truth, become her. Heart and emotion enslaved to the distancing mystique of her power, she, with every reason to forsake her fragile humanity, could not ignore the ravenous beating inside her, reminding her of something she, not unlike so many, had possibly forgotten.
She was human.
Beneath the darkness and against the moonlight, the Secret was a girl. She was a simple, innocent, gentle human being who saw the man she dare not admit she love in need, and she acted. She had successfully defended her lover, friend, she corrected, and while Robin or anyone else might never know, she had also succeeded on a second, much deeper level.
As Robin struggled to his feet, he like the blown away Harm was greatly surprised by Secret's awe inspiring demonstration of power. Unlike Harm however, Robin was further relieved by the graceful sight before him. This was neither the place nor the time, but Robin could not help but admit that there was something undeniably beautiful about the girl he and everyone else knew so little about. In her gentleness, she wisped over beside him and helped him to his feet.
Afar, the welting bruises on Robin's youthful face were cast away by the shadows of the night. Here, huddled beside him, Secret's voice failed her as she held him in aghast to the brutal beating he had endured. Finally, she tenderly managed to say, "…Are, are you okay, Robin?"
He liked her voice.
In but a brief moment, Tim Drake felt as if though it was the warm breeze who had soothingly touched him. It was calm, serene, and sincere, and it was then he realized, much to his unsuspecting delight, that it was not the fickle wind that cared for him. No, it was another, it was something much better. Raising his head as he tottered to his feet, Robin's ivory eyes, for a forever second, met those of the woman who tended to him.
In reply to her concern, Robin reclaimed his balance and said, "Thanks, Secret," and, rushing back to his consciousness, his mind turned to their injured ally, "How, how is Wondergirl?"
Though the Secret had grown all too accustomed to it, never had she grown impervious to being disappointed. It seemed so perfect, at least it seemed to start so perfectly, Secret heartbrokenly thought as she heard Robin's warranted, but nevertheless crushing sentiment for Wondergirl. "Oh," she answered, disheartened, "…She's in a lot of pain, but fortunately she didn't get any critical damage. She said she'll be fine in a few minutes, she just needed to rest and recover."
"That's a relief," Robin concluded. As he continued, he slightly fumbled over his words, "I…you really saved me…That was some blast you gave him, I'm impressed."
"I am not." The chilling cry of Harm as he rose to his feet and flipped back to the battlefield instantaneously dissipated the fledgling moment between the Secret and the Robin. The blindside attack perpetrated by Secret served as a cold reminder for Harm that his underestimation, not of the latent talent of Young Justice, but rather the simple reality of their numerical advantage would be his undoing. He could not afford to fall victim to his bloodlust, no matter how he thirsted for avian arteries.
Harm readied himself to resume combat as he hunched his slung body over and clasped his already dripping sword. Sharp as it was, the sword rigidly tore into the grassy knolls as he briskly began to bolt towards the two. Secret watched as Harm drew inexorably closer to her and Robin, but on the heels of her previous success, she again launched a rippling tsunami of gaseous mist at her opponent.
Banking on her overconfidence, Harm basked in the laughable predictability of his nemeses. Without breaking stride, Harm anticipated her every move, and timing his jump perfectly, he somersaulted in mid air, over her blast, and landed behind Secret. Before she had realized his cunning intention, Harm then dismissively extended his left arm, and to the frightful discord of Robin, and for a breath Secret, a crippling surge of lightning beamed from out his hand and exploded against Secret's back, causing her to immediately shriek out, "AAAAGGHHH!!"
Upon the blast's sizzling impact, Secret screamed louder than Robin had ever heard in the ever expanding time he had known her. This unprecedented outcry from his typically subdued partner painfully accentuated the unreal anguish thrashing through her body.
Where once she stood, the force of the lightning bolt instantly knocked Secret unconscious as her limp body crumbled to the ground. Furious, Robin retaliated, "HARM!!" as he slammed his metallic staff against Harm's blocking sword, intending instead for his bow staff to slam against Harm's skull.
Harm seized this moment to strike, for he knew sooner or later the rest of Robin's incompetent, but many cronies would arrive to outnumber him. While he possessed the potential to smite every last one of them and the police, Harm calmly reminded himself that he still needed time to cultivate his power fully.
Parrying his emotionally unraveling adversary, Harm reversed with a sudden spin to Robin's side, and finding Robin momentarily vulnerable, Harm cudgeled the back of Robin's neck with the hilt of his sword. The grit of the impact was sufficient to drop Robin as he achingly plummeted to the floor.
Although Harm indubitably desired to taunt his defeated combatants, he had to keep moving lest he fall into whatever juvenile trap they set for him. Still, as he slipped through his synthesized fog deeper into the heart of the forest, he muttered to their unconscious flesh, "It'll be a sad, sad day when the Bat passes the torch, or ceremonial feather, or whatever they do when nobody's around to this wretch."