Sorry guys that this chapter is short. Tomorrow's chapter is going to be three times as long. It's going to be super long! So hopefully that will make up for it. I might post the chapter later today, but it depends on if I get it done in time. Here's hoping for some super fast inspiration!
Connor turned as soon as the door to the control room opened to spot a familiar figure walking towards the three remaining Young Justice members.
"Kaldur!" Connor immediately offered up a nod and a small smile.
"Connor, M'gann, Wally," Kaldur greeted, face lighting up with hope, "it is good to see you. I got a call from Green Arrow. He said they received a message from Robin."
"It's playing on loop now." M'gann gestured to one of the many screens up. "Robin is alive."
Kaldur's sturdy shoulders sagged in relief. "I would not have believed it. It has been so long."
"Batman is getting the device ready. He's not allowing any of us to go." Connor looked to Wally, who was on a continuous pace in front of the control panel near M'gann. He didn't appear to realize Kaldur had arrived.
"What?" Kaldur stood straighter, jaw set and fists clenched. "I understand he is Robin's mentor, but we are his teammates. We should be allowed to also retrieve our friend."
"We tried telling him that, but it didn't exactly work. Batman's hard to argue with." M'gann bit her lip and fiddled with her fingers. "I could feel his emotions. I don't think Robin is just a partner to him. I felt more than just what we're feeling."
"That's because he's not. Rob's more like a son to him." Wally spoke quickly and vigorously, continuing to pace furiously. "I'll rot in hell before I let Rob get hurt by him again. No, we're going with."
"Wally, he already said—"
"I don't care what he said!" Wally shouted, gaining unwanted attention from the few remaining people in the control room. "Let's talk elsewhere."
"Sounds good. I think it's safe two rooms down." M'gann led the way, and made sure no one else was following before ushering them into an empty room.
"What do you think you guys are doing?"
Wally shot out of the room to face Roy Harper, frown on his face and expression a bit lighter than what Wally was used to.
"Roy! Hey, c'mere!" Without Roy's consent, Wally pushed him into the room and locked the door. "I've got a plan. We're not letting Batman go in alone."
"Let's hear it then." Roy nodded and the planning began.
"Look, Bats, even though it sounds like a perfectly solid plan, we still haven't tested the second device yet. What if it doesn't send you back home?"
Barry looked between the two devices. One was polished, green and silver metals decorating the outside of a darker green base; the other was a mixture of different metals and very rough around the edges.
"Robin found a way to communicate home. From the message, it sounds as if he infiltrated the Watch Tower, plugged in the League's communication codes, and hoped for the best. Because it was successful, I'll do the same with this device." Batman held up the rougher model. "We'll send a small physical message to the Watch Tower with the coordinates of that dimension. Once we know you've received it safely, I will return with Robin."
"What if it doesn't?"
"There isn't time for ifs now. He called for help, and the longer I argue here, the higher the chances of him being critically or mortally injured." Batman growled, taking both devices in hand. "I'm leaving now."
He pressed a button, taking a step back as the original device whirred to life. There was a suction sound and then a large chunk of the floor was torn open, revealing nothing but darkness. The darkness was darker than that of space, but was covered up by a window. Securing the other device, Batman took a step forward, listening to the crack of the glass.
With one last nod to the rest of the founding member of the League, Batman gave a harsh stomp on the window and it broke, dropping him into the abyss along with sharp shards of the broken glass. Superman couldn't help but lurch forward; his instincts telling him that falling through a window was never good. Wonder Woman caught his arm and he steeled himself.
The floor began to repair itself when two blurs rushed past them. They had just enough time to register Kaldur on Connor's back and M'gann in his arms with Wally pulling along Roy just barely ahead of them. They, too, fell into the abyss.
"Wait, stop!" Green Arrow lunged forward but the floor was complete just as he fell to his knees.
"Those kids…" Dinah snarled, pulling Ollie up. "They never listen, no matter how much any of us tells them no."
"They're teenagers, what do you expect?" Barry sighed and put a hand to his forehead. "There's going to be hell on our hands when Bats gets back—if he doesn't kill them first."
"Is this funny to you?" Clark grouched, red cape swishing as he rounded on Barry.
"No," Barry answered immediately, "but what are we going to do? Go after them? The device left with Bats and if you haven't noticed, it's too late to stop them now. My nephew just crossed dimensions and I have to go home and explain it to my wife."
"He's right." Diana crossed her arms. "What's done is done. Now we wait."
Just an off topic question; Does anyone look at Chubby Bubbles pictures? Or how about play Amnesia? Just wondering. Those things have been on my mind for the past two days.