Hey everyone! Thanks so much for the review I'm really happy you like the story. I should have one more chapter after this one and then it's finished.
~ 20 minutes later ~
"KF, are you positive about this?" Robin's voice echoed out of the access vent.
"Positive, dude" Wally replied easily. He sat on the ground next the open hatch as he looked over the holo comp's projected schematics again.
Robin was about to say something, but M'gann re-entered the room calling out "I have the lemonade, who wants some?" Behind her floated several glasses of ice cold lemonade.
Wally jumped up and zipped over to her "Thanks Green Cheeks, you're the best!"
"Shut it, Kid Idiot and bring me a glass." Artemis barked from where she sat on the ground near the tool kit and the access hatch.
"Quit being so bossy, and maybe I will!" Wally shot back with a mock glare.
"Don't tell me what to do!" she replied, but held out her hand to receive the glass the Wally offered her.
M'gann made her way around the room handing out glasses to her teammates. "Robin, I have one here for you when you finish." She said as bent down towards the open hatch.
"Thanks, Miss M. How are you, though? I know being this close to the machine while it's giving off so much heat was making you dizzy." Robin's voices echoed.
"I feel much better, but how are you? You've been in there for so long; you might get dehydrated or suffer from heat exhaustion." She worried, but moved away from the opening to go stand near Conner.
"Not really feeling the aster, but I been through worse so, I'll live." The Boy Wonder replied with a cackle that only echoed creepily of the metal wall of the machine.
"This is some delicious lemonade, what's the recipe you used?" Raquel asked as she tried to ignore the fact the small Bat's laugh was still creepy even when she knew exactly where he was.
"I'm not really sure where it's from. Conner brought it back with him from…where was it?" the Martian asked as she turned to look at her boyfriend.
"Smallville." Conner grumbled in reply. Conner was about to continue when M'gann began to faint, he moved forward to catch her but in doing so he released the lever to hold the access panel open. "M'GANN"
*pffts*
*KLANG*
Several things happened all at once. Raquel released the water she was holding in her force bubble so she could grab Artemis and move her out of the heavy door's path. Conner caught M'gann, and she started to regain consciousness. Lastly, Zatanna leapt forward in alarm because Robin was now trapped; however she too released the toggle she was holding.
*vzzt* *spzrt*
Everyone began shouting and trying to get Robin out of the now live device. Only to have loud metal banging sounds come from inside the machine. Everyone quieted down to hear what the bird was trying to say.
"Hey Guys! Seriously stay traught, I'm fine. First, Zee could you go deactivate the electricity. Once it's off if Conner or Kaldur could push that lever down again, the door will open. And Wally?" came Robin's heavily muffled voice.
Zatanna rushed back to the switch and as Kaldur moved the push the lever down. "Conner, please escort M'gann up stairs" Kaldur spoke as he moved.
"No, I don't want… to just… leave you guys…" M'gann mumbled as she leaned against Conner.
"Then just sit on the stairs with me, we aren't leaving but a least you will be away from the heat." Conner grunted, trying to reason with his girlfriend.
"Kay," she replied and allowed him to move them away.
Kaldur had to use more effort than he expected to push the lever down due to the heat. The door slowly began to swing open. "Yeah, dude what's wrong?" Kid Flash asked as he bent down to look into the machine.
"You suck at this mechanic thing." Robin barked back.
"What?! No I don't!" Wally cried indignantly.
"Then can you explain to me why when I was supposedly almost done, the electricity arced through this and the fuses FRIED?! All of them!?" Robin shouted indigently.
"What, that doesn't make any sense? Those new fuses are designed for a 1000 megawatt system like this; you must have just put them in wrong." Wally said with his arms crossed.
Suddenly at wet bundle of cloth came sailing out of the vent and hit Wally square in the face. "This is a 1000 Gigawatt system…" Robin hissed in anger.
Wally spluttered at the offensive bundle of cloth, which now appeared to be Robin's shirt. "No this system is…" But his voice trailed off as he read over the holo screen "Oh… oops" Wally said as he wiped a little sweat off of his face.
"Go get the right, fuses." Robin growled "And when this is fixed I'm going to rip you apart…"
"I'll help you, boy Blunder." Artemis snarled as Raquel released her from the force bubble.
"Yeah well, in the meantime hand me that socket wrench Arty." Robin sighed.
"Robin, do you think it wise to continue to attempt to repair the air conditioning unit? After all of these complications perhaps waiting for the League might be best." Kaldur said calmly, but they could all hear the strain in his voice.
"Raquel, if you don't mind go and help Kaldur keep the panel open. And Kal, this is the second time around so it should go faster… I hope" Robin responded, but by the end he sounded just as tired as Kaldur.
Raquel moved to help Kaldur just as Wally returned with the fuses. "These are the right ones. I triple checked." Wally said as he handed them over to Artemis.
Artemis sent a look that said 'they better be or else', but took them and passed them to the Boy Wonder farther in down the access channel.
~ 10 minutes later ~
"Okay, that was the last bolt…Zee release the electricity control toggle." Robin's exhausted voice called out.
"But Rob you're still in there." Zatanna worried.
"Just release it, I'll be fine." Robin replied.
Zatanna hesitated another second longer before activating the switch. Several seconds passed and nothing happened, Wally was about to speak when suddenly the machine made a large whirring sound.
*Wup* *Wup* Wip*Wip*Wvvv*
And blessedly frigid air began pouring out of the access vent. The team cheered in jubilation. They heard a few small metallic noises, but then one of Robin's hands stuck out of the opening followed by a grunt of "A little help."
Artemis and Wally grasped Robin's hands and helped pull him out and up to stand with the others. Once he was all the way out the team froze, Robin hadn't noticed due to his heat exhausted state.
"Let's get that hatch closed so this cold air will head up to the cave and start cooling it down. It should take 30 to 40 minutes before the cave's temp drops to something tolerable so hanging out in the pool until then should help us suffer less." Robin stated. No one responded or even moved everyone continued to stare at the shirtless Boy Wonder. By now Robin realized he could no longer here M'gann's and Conner's quiet conversation by the stairs, in fact no one was saying or doing anything.
Robin was about to turn and look at his teammates, but then Wally half whispered "Dude, scars…" Robin stiffened.
He had is back to the team and now he could feel their eyes staring at him with undisguised shock and horror. His left shoulder had bite marks like he had been mauled, his skin was littered with knife wounds, there were round puckered marks left from bullets, he had a few question marks carved here and there, chemical and heat burns, surgery incisions, and the words carved into him by that madman. Even though he had newer, redder, scars that marred this one older, paler, one it was still the most prominent scar on his back 'JOKER WAS HERE'.
Robin let out a breath slowly as he dragged is tired fingers through is sweat soaked hair. "I know they can be kind of grotesque when you first see them… sorry I just sort of sprung this on you guys without some kind of warning…" Robin remarked quietly without his usual confidence. Still no one said anything, Wally opened and closed his mouth a few times, but the words just never came out.
*pffts*
*KLANG*
Kaldur and Raquel had lost their grip on the lever, this caused the hatch door to swing closed. Everyone flinched at the sound. Robin recollected his wits and started for the stairs, on the way he snatched his holo computer and his discarded t-shirt. "I'm gonna get changed, I'll meet you guys at the pool." Robin stated as he moved through the room without looking at any of his friends.
As he moved more of his scars could be seen. The tally marks on his chest, claw marks, a massive jagged wound that ran the length of his side and went down past his jeans waistline, nasty tears in the skin where bones must have broken through the skin, and a sinister looking slice that ran along his throat. All of his scars were in different stages of healing some were red and angry, while others were very pale and had become less puffy over time.
No one said a word as he passed. Robin didn't even look at Conner or M'gann as he passed them on the stairs to get to the door leading back to the cave.
I know this ones a little short, but don't forget to review :)