The conclusion of the Santa Prisca mission! Robin has discovered and confirmed Luna's identity, but how will she take it? Enjoy the bit of drama!
"Something does not add up." Luna commented as they ran down the mine shaft. She had just been filled in on the situation more clearly.
"Luna's right. Sportsmaster is the supplier-slash-buyer, but it still doesn't track. He doesn't have the juice to acquire the Blockbuster formula." Robin explained, looking through information on his glove's pop-up computer. "Or to get Kobra to do his dirty work!"
"And neither of them have the chops to bond Blockbuster with Venom. That took some major nerdage." Kid Flash put in.
"I believe the expression is, 'tip of the iceberg'." Aqualad commented as he stopped just before the entrance of the shaft to outside. The others all stopped behind him as well.
Bane stood in their way, pumped up on Venom and holding a detonator in his hand for explosives lined around the edge of the cave. "Halt ninos." he said in a gruff, amused voice. "I'm feeling... Explosive."
"You betrayed us!" Aqualad said in shock and anger. "Why?"
"Why did you even team up with someone such as him in the first place?" Luna whispered to Lantress.
"Dude, I don't even know. I knew it was a stupid idea." Lantress grumbled.
"I want my factory back." Bane replied to Aqualad. "So I forced you into a situation where you would either take down my enemies or die trying. If the latter, then the Justice League would certainly come and avenge their sidekicks. When the smoke cleared, Santa Prisca would be mine once more. Blowing the tunnel with you inside, should have the same effect."
Bane was about to press the switch when a blur ran past him and snatched the detonator. "Huh?" The thug uttered, surprised.
"With what? This trigger thingy?" KF smirked from behind him, leaning against a tree and waving the detonator at him.
Angry, Bane went to throw a punch at the speedster teen when he was yanked up in midair by a green claw, curtesy of Lantress. Superboy walked up beside him with a smirk. "Finally." he said. "Drop him."
Lantress gladly let go of the amped-up man and allowed him to be beaten up by Superboy.
-l-
The helicopter for Sportsmaster to use to depart was operational once again, and the villain was about to leave with the new Venom-Blockbuster formula in his hands when Kid Flash came barreling onto the scene and the cultists shot after him with guns a-blazing madly.
"Leave with the shipment!" Kobra demanded of Sportsmaster, who nodded and began to make his way to his transport.
Superboy stood in his way, smirking as the distracted minion who got super-juiced was blasted away by Aqualad's powerful serpent of water. However, the moment he turned his back, Sportsmaster fired at his back from behind with some sort of laser gun. Superboy grunted and backed away, wincing a bit at every shot. Lantress, in her stealth suit, hid behind some crates in the helicopter and was ready to jump Sportsmaster to give her crush more of a fighting chance.
Little did she know that her enemy knew she was there and once she lunged at him, he jumped behind and she went face first into the dirt.
"Gah!" She let out in frustration, getting up only to be caught in the grasp of their opponent.
He held her tight and continued firing at Superboy, now under distress at what to do.
Meanwhile, Robin and Luna had taken down the minions near Kobra and left him as the only one standing.
"We know you hate to get your hands dirty." Robin smirked proudly.
"I would not get cocky if I were you." Luna dryly commented under her breath.
The Boy Wonder ignored his companion as Kobra shed his cloak and stood before the two, ready to fight. "True, but sometimes even a god must stoop to conquer." he replied back to Robin.
"Hmph. Leave him to me!" Robin charged at Kobra, trying a swift kick to the cult leader's head.
He was, unfortunately, blocked too easily and Kobra grabbed his ankle, throwing the Boy Wonder back. Luna sidestepped to let him land on his feet. "It would appear you need help." she commented again.
"Not from you." He threw back snippily.
"What's wrong boy? You look disconcerted." Kobra's voice was hard and mocking of Robin.
Robin glared at him and growled slightly under his breath. Lantress was thrown into Superboy, Sportsmaster boarding the helicopter with a feeling of success in his veins. Until a bomb went off in his cargo hold as he was in the air. He cursed under his breath at those stupid teens and parachuted off the plane into a clearing in the jungles of Santa Prisca while the helicopter went and crashed into the Venom factory.
In the Kobra fight, Robin was thrown onto his back and a large foot on his chest constricted his breathing.
"I am plagued by mosquitos!" Kobra glared hard at the chaos around him.
"Good!" Robin groaned under the pressure of his foot. "'Cause this mosquito's mighty 'concerted over your pain!" He swung his legs and pulled himself out from underneath him, landing by the rest of his team members.
Kobra glared at them all, realizing that he was outnumbered one to seven. "Another time then." he spoke lowly, vanishing back in the jungle and the shadows.
Robin chased after and peered into the bushes and shrubbery, backing away and returning to the others when he didn't find anything.
"We picked the right guy to lead." Robin smiled, gesturing to the destroyed factory with a sort of juvenile glee. "Automatically making YOU the right guy to explain THIS mess to Batman!" he laughed his stereotypical laugh as he walked back to the bioship.
Aqualad sighed deeply and in exasperation while Luna rolled her eyes under the mask.
-l-
"A simple recon mission; observe and report." Batman said straight to their faces with a stern, intimidating voice. "You'll each receive an evaluation, detailing your many mistakes. Until then... Good job." he flashed a ghost of a satisfied smile.
The team's ashamed faces all lit up to surprised ones.
"No battle plan survives first contact with the enemy. How you adjust to the unforeseen is what determines success. And how you choose who leads determines character."
Out of the corner of Luna's eye, she could see Aqualad and Robin glance at each other, smiling. Mentally, she smiled a bit as well. Temporarily of course.
After their meeting with Batman, Robin grabbed Luna's arm and pulled her aside.
"What?" She asked blandly.
"You know what! Don't think this identity thing's just gonna be forgotten in my mind, 'cause it's well 'gotten!" He said, getting up in her face.
Unfazed, she made another snide comment. "'Concerted" and 'gotten' are not words in the context you happen to be using them, Robin."
He growled and did something radical; The Boy Wonder reached over and snatched the mask on Luna's face, starting to pull it off. In sharp movements, she grabbed his wrist and slammed him onto the ground, foot on his back and arm pulled back behind him.
"Don't. You. Dare." She spat icily.
"Please, you can't fool me for long! I finally got an idea of-" Robin looked back and found that her mask was slipping off.
Luna noticed too, and made the mindless mistake of loosening her grip to try and use one hands to fix her mask. Robin pushed her off and pinned her against the wall as they sat on the ground, pulling off her mask.
"Who you are." he finished finally. "Callie."
The girl kept her face turned away from him, but then turned and looked him in the eye with a cold, scornful look. "You're horrid." she said plainly and monotonously.
"You've told me that a lot, just not as you, Callie." he scoffed.
"Stop calling me that. You have no right anymore."
"Says who?"
"Me, you juvenile jerk." She glared and pushed him away, putting her mask back on. "You've obviously also figured out I know who YOU are."
"Yeah. How else would you tease me so mercilessly at school?" he shot a reply back.
A short silence followed before Luna finally spoke. "Tomorrow after school. Meet me at my house and we will talk."
With a curt turn of her heels, she stood stiffly and walked down the hall as the air grew icy.
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