Okay, first of all I have one thing to say. I have homework due tomorrow, I should be doing that instead of writing this. You're welcome.
Second, I swear Alexis/Markers/whatever-else-I-call-you if you steal any of my cookies I will kill you. :|
And this chapter was originally supposed to be twice as long with the next chapter but that one's not done yet so… you get this.
Bumbleboy92- WELL. I guess it's better for people to forget then come demanding I update. Demanding… like that story I haven't updated in almost a year… or two… asdfghjkl; I fail.
lilo202- Right now, actually. The others were just… a break from them planning and all. Back to business, though. :P
Dextra2- Thank you. :)
Peacelovebackstroke- Well, I think iSniffMarkers would kill me if I didn't add Rocket because she loves Raquel and is literally obsessed with the chick :) She even has a role-playing page on facebook, and on tumblr… and twitter too, I think. SHH, DON'T TELL HER I TOLD YOU. ADFGHHJGFDFGHJKJFGHFD;'KL' IT'S SO FREAKING HARD NO ONE IN MY CLASS IS EVEN PASSING AND I HAVE THE TOP JUNIOR AND SOPHMORE IN THAT CLASS! Actually, top two juniors. Madame needs to give us less work, or we just need to do our work… AND THANK YOU! I don't even know if you'll take the time to read this so…
kuromi123- Your questions, I like them. And I totally would have called him Renegade except for the fact that he's not really a traitor or anything and Nightwing still works because of where he got the name from and he dislikes Brucey/Batsy because there are reasons and you will see later and I think I've already revealed too much and I think I'll just shut up now and if you're wondering if he knows if Bats and Bruce are the same person and you're not sure, be aware that I'm not sure either and why am I still talking I think I need to shut up now and damn this is getting really long. Okay, I drank coffee an hour ago. I finished all of the sugar, I'm hyper and when I'm hyper I can't seem to keep my mouth shut so I'm just not going to answer any questions and I'm sorry if this is getting a bit too long I'll just shut up now.
PsychoPudding- Cookies are good, stuff is good too. Oh hey, look an update. Asdfghjkl I like your name. But I think I'm crazier than you, just sayin'… thanks for reviewing, feel free to leave another one after this! I don't bite. ;)
iSniffMarkers- SHUDDUP, GET YOUR HANDS OFF MY COOKIES OR I'LL CUT YOU WOMAN. Wait… asdfghjkl;' YOU NEVER UPDATED THAT STORY WITH THOSE PEOPLE AND THAT ONE GUY. ASDFGHJKL; Rocket sucks... don't stab me! AND NO FUCKING TASERS.
Wolf skater- A few of my stories haven't been updated in like a year, but five months is bad. Asdfghjl; YOU SHOULD UPDATE.
jake111- NO… actually, I don't know. Maybe. Okay, most likely. Yes, it's probably going to be him. I could have also said I was waiting for the hiatus to be over cuz we all know that would have bought me more time…
Poseidon'sdaughter3- ASDFGHJK:' That actually hurt my feelings fro like five seconds. You're happy they're trapped and at the mercy of the Light? I am too. :P
Okay, you can go read now.
Once she entered the cave's main room, the first thing that came to mind was the fact that the speedster was still not there.
For a speedster, he sure is damn slow…
Blonde hair was pulled back and out of her face. Artemis' waist held a belt that shaking fingers had managed to clip on. At first, she had been surprised to see that the outfit Nightwing had provided her with fit like a glove. The dark green fabric clung to her body at every curve but she could still move freely; it would make her job so much easier.
The arrow she sported on her chest had been foreign to her, though. Green Arrow, she had quickly realized.
The symbol was so much like his that she wondered exactly how he would react if he were to ever see her in it, see her wearing the symbol that stood for good and justice.
He'd probably be disgusted.
In a way, she had always admired the hero, but it would be nice to mess with one of the well-known members of the friggin' Justice League. He was nothing like Batman and capable of doing the exact same things as the Dark Knight, all while doing it in his own way. A different style; less… intimidating, to be exact.
Last she checked, she wasn't overly fond of intimidating. She remembered how intimidating her father had been. There they were; those stupid memories of her father. She would have to ignore them for now.
A scowl formed on her lips as she stepped through the archway. There was a moment of awkward tension as the three boy who were in the room heard her enter. Apparently, she wasn't being as quiet as she thought she had been. Why the hell am I the only girl? It was both flattering and irritating, especially since they were all incredibly good looking.
Especially, Conner.
Stop thinking about this! She mentally slapped herself and resisted the urge to do so in reality. Her eyes nonchalantly landed on him. His black shirt with the crimson Superman symbol was no longer on his person, nor where the jeans he wore.
No, instead he wore a guard's uniform that made him look all the more appealing. She guessed it was for the whole undercover act, she wasn't going to ask about it though.
Thankful that none of them were actually staring at her as she observed – no, she wasn't gawking! – the Boy of Steel, she nimbly made her way over to where Nightwing stood, typing into some kind of holographic computer on his wrist.
He didn't look up when she stepped up beside him and crossed her arms over her chest but the smirk that formed on his lips let her know that he was fully aware of her presence. The archer studied him with an unreadable expression and finally, he chuckled, looked up at her – giving her his undivided attention. "Can I help you or did someone not teach you that it's not polite to stare?"
She opened her mouth, immediately prepared to reply with some snarky remark… until she realized he said someone, not 'your parents' like everyone else seemed to. That struck her as odd. She reluctantly swallowed whatever it was she was about to say and sighed, looking around. "How the hell do you know so much about us… about me?" No one was supposed to know about her, that was the whole point of a secret identity; keeping her identity a secret.
"Well…" He tilted his head to the side, contemplating his choices. He picked his words out carefully, making sure not to let anything slip. Anything like what? Artemis thought to herself, immediately becoming suspicious. What are you hiding? "I've spent a lot of time dodging the Bat, so I have to know my way around the files. Literally. I've collected information on just about everyone, no one is too unimportant in my book. Just in case I need to be a step ahead. Don't get me wrong, you weren't easy to figure out. But it was possible. The only people I don't know about are the ones who do know how to hide their secrets, very well I might add."
"Like Batman?" She asked, her nose scrunching up in confusion.
He shook his head. "No, like Deathstroke."
Artemis immediately went on defense and placed her hands on her hips in her ever defying nature. "What's there to know about him? He just wants the job done. As long as I get my money, I don't give two cents about his secrets."
"Ah." He grinned, pointing at her almost accusingly; the only thing that kept it from being hostile was his teasing tone. "So you got your mission from him too, huh?"
She nodded slowly, wondering if there was something she was missing. Didn't everyone? "Yeah… I'm friends with his daughter…" Her eyes widened slightly and she wondered if she should have said that because all of a sudden, a mischievous spark grew in his eyes. "He is the one who set up this whole thing, right?"
"No." Her eyebrows shot up as she turned to the Kryptonian, not expecting for him to be eavesdropping. His relaxed demeanor was now laced in anger and Artemis admitted to herself that she was a bit scared of him like that. He could probably punch a hole through her skull, couldn't he? "I got mine from The Brain."
"And I got mine from some unidentified female." Kaldur'ahm spoke up for what seemed like the first time since their mission plans. He seemed tense; he was hesitant to speak of the mission. He just wanted to get it over with. This seems to get more suspicious the deeper any person digs… why did I ever agree to any of these things? I am going against everything my king stood for.
"I got a note from Cold." They all turned to see the speedster walking in, scarfing down what seemed like a brownie. Artemis' nose wrinkled up again, this time in disgust as he wiped the crumbs form his lips. Did he even swallow?
She noticed he was wearing what seemed to look like the Flash's costume except his was a dark gray color and his fiery red hair was visible form the top of his cowl. He raised an eyebrow at their looks. "What does it matter? Since when do any of us overthink anything? We're the bad guys, remember? Well, except for you Kal but that's a while different story."
"Wait, what?"
All eyes turned to Artemis, she glanced at Kaldur in confusion. She'd thought that he was some kind of gang member or maybe a master assassin; something along those lines. He was innocent? "Is something wrong..?" He asked hesitantly. There was a thought that passed through his head as he imagined Artemis pulling out a weapon and killing him on spot.
Surely she wasn't that vicious… right?
"I thought you were… aren't you…? Oh nevermind, it doesn't matter." She waved away the thought and sighed loudly, spinning on her heel and finding Nightwing standing right beside her. Her feet quickly made her jump back and he smirked triumphantly, proud that she hadn't felt him come up behind her.
"Here you go." The raven haired boy held out an object in his grasp. It looked like her bow. But… no, it wasn't her bow. She took the thing, noticing that it was a dark green color and even though it felt like hers; it definitely was not her original bow. It was familiar though, so she didn't complain.
No one said a word as he quickly moved to exit the room. As he walked a few steps ahead of the others, they all noticed that he wasn't going back the same way they entered.
All of them were hesitant in their steps.
It wasn't until they reached the loading bay that their eyes fell on what seemed to be a van.
They all stood before the very plain black van.
Somehow, this did not seem to fit Nightwing's style at all. He grinned as they all gave him dumbstruck expressions, obviously having expected their reactions. He once again motioned for them to follow and they tentatively did so. His fingers gripped onto both of the back doors and he easily tossed both doors open. Well, they were wrong. It definitely did fit his style, at least from their new point of view.
"I figured we needed something inconspicuous." A full assortment of gadgets lined the walls, monitors and screens everywhere. It was all mostly digitally worked and held an azure glow. "Okay, all of you get in." He ordered sharply, grabbing Blitz by the neck before he could make a dash to the driver's side. "Conner, you're driving."
The teen let out a grunt, confirming that he'd heard Nightwing. As he slipped in and started the van, they all drowned out the speedster's cries of protest. No one was about to let him drive. "Shut up, already." Artemis hissed when they were all settled in the back of the van; concealed from any prying eyes.
"Blah blah blah." He mimicked her tone, narrowing his eyes at her as a child would and crossed his arms over his chest as he looked away.
No one bothered to make them apologize as they drove out of the mountain. "I believe we are all in agreement when I say that our identities are to remain a secret to everyone but ourselves in the duration of this… project." Robbery. No one bothered to correct the atlantean. They all slowly nodded, glancing at each-other. "Then think of the designation you chose for yourself when we contact each-other, seeing as we do need to keep in contact."
Artemis chewed on her lip, sighing. "Um. Tigress." That was the only name she could thing of that would hold no ties to her personally.
"Just Blitz." Wally replied in a bored tone.
The youngest chuckled, rolling his eyes. "Nightwing."
"Superboy." No one bothered to ask why.
Kaldur'ahm sighed, shaking his head before speaking. "I will go with Aqualad."
In spite of the atlantean's sad tone, Artemis smiled encouragingly and reached forward to take his hand with her free one. "It works."
His only response was a nod and everything became silent.
That was until the kryptonian had announced that they had arrived. A flicker of doubt crossed her mind and she remembered when Rose had told her to just quit if it got too hard. She wasn't about to back out at a time like this, though. She'd just have to suck it all up. "Alright, let's do this thing!"
"Agreed." Wally replied, looking at all of them with an excited grin.
Nightwing nodded and handed them all com-links. "Our only source of communication, don't lose yours, Blitz." He looked pointedly at the ginger.
"Got it." The speedster simply nodded, placing the bud into his ear and shrugging off the other's warning. They all did the same, placing the small objects into their ears before looking back at him.
Conner said nothing as he slid out of the seat and away from them, they heard his footsteps dissolve as he walked away.
And the first part of their plan was in motion.
"So, you never told me how we were getting in." Artemis spoke up, turning to Nightwing. The grin he gave her made her frightened of whatever his answer would be. It wouldn't be bad, right? Easy maybe? Possibly? Hopefully?
One question escaped his lips.
"None of you are afraid of heights, right?"
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