Gotc: Hi everybody!!!!!!!!!! Sorry for the delays but we had some unexpected company show up.

Ace: Your uncle's kinda weird….

Gotc: Don't remind me. But I also got a job at the local pet clinic! YAY FOR EMPLOYMENT!!!!!!!!

Ace: glares at Squeaky Like we need more pets….

Gotc: Anyway…I'll try to keep updating regularly, writing is my life after all, so this doesn't mean that the stories are going to stop when I start work.

Ace: Crap.

Gotc: So thanks for stickin' with me, and more thanks to Moogsthewriter for pointing out my mistake in the last chap, and I'll throw another your way! Squeaky!!

Squeaky: Squeak! (Gotc doesn't own JL, Ace is hers, as is her awesome job at the clinic. Enjoy!)

Rise of the Guardian: Ancient Power, Modern Age

CHAPTER 8: Brush With Death

The heavy steel doors of Wayne Enterprises main laboratory flung open with a resounding clang. Superman entered the massive three story lab, followed by the other three Leaguers.

"Batman, what's this all about?" He asked as soon as he saw Batman, "You weren't exactly clear in your transmission. I got that something was wrong with Diana but-"

Superman stopped dead as Ace turned around from a nearby lab table and leveled a glare at the man of steel.

"Shut up will you?" Ace growled, "I'm trying to work."

"What's he doing here?" Lantern demanded.

"Saving your friend down there," Ace said motioning over the banister.

The group peered over to see Diana suspended in a tank in the middle of the arena below. J'onn was down there as well monitoring the many devices that were keeping track of her rapidly deteriorating condition.

"What did you do to her?" Flash yelled getting in Ace's face

"I didn't do a thing!" He yelled back, "And I suggest you show me a little more respect since I'm the one who's trying to save her! Now get your red pajamas out of my way so I can do my job."

Flash backed down but didn't take his eyes off Ace. Ace returned the glare, before turning back to the table where a mired of bowls simmered over open flames. Ace reached for a fleshy stalk laying in front of him, and reached around for the sword on his back. The league behind him immediately tensed up, and Ace cast an irritated glance over his shoulder.

"Oh calm down will you?" He said pulling the blade, and rapidly scored the stalk against it until it began to ooze.

He squeezed the gel-like substance into the main bowl on the burner until it turned a pale green color.

"See?" He said putting the sword away.

"I still don't trust you," Superman said folding his arms.

"I never asked you to, nor do I really care one way or another," Ace said adding a fine white powder to the brew, "I do fine on my own, and if you would have listened to me and stopped following me in the first place, your friend wouldn't be in the mess she is right now."

"You still haven't told us what's wrong with her," Flash pointed out.

"Right now, she has a large amount of Shade in her bloodstream, "Ace explained not looking up from what he was doing, "I'm sure you all know by now what Shade does. For the drug to work properly, Shade is supposed to be mixed with boiling water, and the steam inhaled. By mixing it with the hot water, it does two things. One: it dilutes the powder, and the potency of the drug to a level where the body isn't overloaded. Two: because of all the blood vessels in the lungs, it is distributed to the body quickly and evenly."

Ace paused to stir one of the bowls before continuing on.

"What happened to Diana, was a perfect example of Murphy's Law. The Shade entered her bloodstream without being diluted, and at a single point. So it's affecting her body in different ways because some areas have had a greater exposure to it. And because it hasn't been diluted, simply existing puts her in a world of hell. The faintest light burns, the smallest whisper pounds against her ears. Everything her skin touches induces a pain like no other. Even the beating of her own heart is like being stabbed over and over again," Ace stopped and met the eyes of the League, "That's what's happening to her."

"Is she gonna be ok?" Flash asked

"I hope," Ace said, "She's lucky to have lasted even this long. Most don't survive long enough to receive the antidote-"

Just then, the sensors below erupted into a panicked frenzy.

"Ace!" J'onn yelled, " She needs the antidote now!"

"No kidding! But it's not ready yet!" Ace yelled in frustration.

"She may not last long enough for it to be ready!" Batman said taking off down the stairs to the lower level to help J'onn.

"What's the problem?" Lantern said in the commotion

"Her whole body's shutting down!" Ace said turning up the heat under the bowl, "And the antidote isn't ready yet! I can't get it hot enough!"

"Let me," Superman said, "I should be able to get it hot enough-"

"No!" Ace stopped him, "Your powers come from the sun's radiation you absorb. If you try it, you could ruin the whole batch."

"Then what do we do?!"

Ace glanced around the room frantically looking for anything he could use to boost the flame underneath the antidote. His eyes finally landed on a bottle across the room.

"Speedy!" He yelled at Flash, "I need that bottle now!"

Flash was there in the blink of an eye, and picked it up.

"Rubbing alcohol? Isn't this a bad time to thinking about your aches and pains?"

"NOW!!!"

Flash chucked it to Ace, who ripped off the cap and filled his mouth with it. When the bottle was empty he turned to the flame under the bowl, and spit. The fire roared to life as it met the alcohol. The antidote in the bowl bubbled and frothed as the heat worked its way through it. Ace grabbed a syringe on the table and filled it with the boiling liquid.

As soon as it was full, he turned to the banister and took a flying leap over it, landing squarely on the tank holding Diana below. He winced as his injured arm strained to hold on to the tank, but ripped off the top with his good arm.

"Sorry about this," he said to Diana before sticking the needle into her neck.

A muffled scream came through her regulator, before her entire body fell limp. A single piercing tone shrieked through the room as her heart failed.

"What did you do!?! Batman cried in horror.

Ace didn't reply, and pulled the empty needle out and put two fingers to the vein in her neck, feeling for a pulse. The rest of the world faded out, as he waited for any kind of response from Diana.

"Come on, come on, come on," He murmured, praying that he hadn't been too late.

Batman watched helplessly as seconds crawled by, and the heart monitor kept emitting its wailing tone. Diana wasn't moving, and every machine connected to her kept displaying the horrible outcome he didn't want to face.

Suddenly, the whole room seemed to come alive with a barely tangible energy that sent a shiver through his body. Time seemed to stand still for a moment, until the monitor's tone was interrupted by a single beep. At first he though he imagined it, when another came, followed by a steadily increasing stream. His whole body suddenly felt weak with relief, and completely drained.

Ace sighed and pulled his arm out of the tank. He leapt to the ground, and sat down with his back against the tank. The League gathered around him, and he looked up at them wearily.

"What now?" he groaned.

"You saved Diana," Superman said, "But I think you still have a lot to explain."

Gotc: Ok, I've got some stuff to do, so no long thing here after the chap. But just remember to R&R and the next chap should be up in the next couple of days!! THX!!