A/N: Ugh, I've hardly had any time to sit down and write and when I finally got this chapter finished I had to wait 3 days to post it b/c our internet (and tv) were down. Very irritating.
So here's part 2 of 3 of the Harm saga. It's specifically dedicated to Rowanfall and HeyI'mTalkingtoYou b/c something they both said in a review for a previous chapter (chapter 11 specifically) is what triggered the use of a specific character in this chapter (and in part, triggered me to use ep 18 "Secrets" at all b/c it was the perfect way to pull this character in more as they requested). I'm sure you two will know what I'm talking about as you read ;)
Anyway, as usual, I apologize for the delay, but this chapter's got a lot of action in it so hopefully that helps make up for it some. Enjoy!
Disclaimer: "I don't own Young Justice. DC Comics, Warner Brothers, and Cartoon Network have the rights to it. I'm just having some fun :)"
Rated T for some language, suggestive themes, and descriptive violence.
Italics mean thoughts
"Italics within quotes" mean telepathy
Note: For this chapter, "Bolded italics within quotes" means radio transmission
Honesty doesn't always pay, but Dishonesty always costs . . .
Tangled Web
Chapter 14: The Lesser of Two Evils
Gotham City
October 22, 21:40 EDT
A man with a silver head of hair and matching mustache in a brown trench coat adjusted his black rimmed glasses and surveyed the damage from the doorway of the Gemology Room. The alarm that had alerted Commissioner Gordon and his men had been shut off, leaving an eerie silence in its wake. As with the other room, only one item seemed to be missing. The only things stolen from the Gotham City Museum of Natural History were an old sword and a man made diamond. He didn't get it, the two items didn't correlate. His thoughts on the matter were interrupted by one of his officers.
"Sir there's a body over here!"
The commissioner rushed across the room and the sight that greeted him made his stomach churn. On the floor was a blonde female in a green costume lying on her side, blood pooling in front of her from a severe stab wound to her chest. His heart clenched, she couldn't have been any older than his own daughter.
"Does anyone recognize the costume?" he finally managed to ask the officers standing nearby.
"We think she was emulating Green Arrow due to the costume and the quiver and bow on her back," one of the men replied. "It looks like she didn't even get a shot off before she was murdered."
He was so caught up in her youthful appearance that Gordon hadn't even noticed the bow and quiver.
"She isn't his new sidekick, is she?" another asked. "You know, since Speedy went solo as Red Arrow? I heard his new sidekick was female, but I haven't seen any pictures."
"Nah, Green Arrow works Star City, that's all the way on the west coast. What would his new sidekick be doing all the way out here in Gotham?" a third officer asked. "She was probably just some young kid looking for a little action."
"One thing's for sure, they keep starting younger and younger," the commissioner spoke with a sad shake of his head. "I don't know what I'd do if my Barbara was running around this city at all hours of the night."
A few of his men nodded in agreement, thinking of their own children.
Finally, Gordon said, "Radio the forensics team to-"
"Gone!"
The commissioner and his men turned to see an older gentleman with rumpled black hair and thick black framed glasses briskly walking towards them, a panicked look on his gaunt face. It was the museum curator. He'd been alerted with the police when the alarm had gone off. Gordon moved to intercept the man before he got close enough to spy the murder scene. He didn't look like a man with a strong stomach.
"Gone!" the curator cried again. "The sword is gone!"
"We know. A report's already been made concerning both the sword and the diamond," Gordon explained.
The curator shook his head. "You don't understand. It wasn't just any old sword; it was the sword of Beowulf!" At the commissioner's less than impressed look, he elaborated. "It's an ancient sword teeming with power. Legend says it provides great power to the pure of heart. There's even an old English incantation that's needed to summon the power: Abanan afoll Beowulf."
Gordon cleared his throat uncomfortably at the seriousness in the curator's tone. "Right, well, power or no power, we can't-"
A throaty chuckle suddenly sounded from above, drawing the attention of everyone in the room. A young man in an open grey trench coat was perched precariously in the corner on a thin ledge that ran along the room. He jumped down to the ground and dropped the ordinary sword he'd been holding in his right hand. It hit the floor with a hollow clatter. He reached over his shoulder and pulled forth what looked like a mummified yeti hand acting as a scabbard for a larger, more ominous sword.
"That's the sword! The sword of Beowulf!" the curator cried, raising an accusing finger at the man.
The police officers immediately drew their guns from all sides of the room ordering him to freeze.
"Harm has made his heart pure, but he did still need the incantation," he said, ignoring the words of the cops.
"Drop the weapon and get on the ground!" Commissioner Gordon demanded, his gun trained on the intruder. "You're under arrest for larceny and first degree murder!" When the man didn't budge he cocked his gun. "I said get on the ground!" he repeated.
Instead of heeding the commissioner's words, Harm raised the sword with a smile. "Abanan afoll Beowulf," he spoke. The fingers trapping the sword in the scabbard opened and Harm pulled the blade out in one swift motion. An intricate circular symbol the color of blood began to glow over his heart.
"But, the legend says only a pure heart can wield it," the curator whispered in awe.
Harm's smile widened as he began to move forward. "The legend didn't say the heart had to be pure good."
He rushed towards his new victims amid a hail of gun fire and screaming.
x x x
The first thing Artemis felt upon rejoining the living was a dull ache in her chest. With a groan she clutched the painful spot, her memory still fuzzy on the details that led her to this point. A wail of agony ripped across the room and her eyes flew open in time to see a uniformed police officer drop to the ground like a bag of rocks, blood spurting from a wound in his neck. Within seconds a man in a long grey coat welding an enormous broad sword viciously cut down three more cops. Artemis realized with vivid clarity that it was the same psychopath – Harm he'd called himself – who'd decided to rob the Gotham Museum of Natural History on the same night she and her sister showed up to steal a man made diamond for reasons the blonde still didn't know. He was also the reason behind the painful throb in her barely healed chest. She saw an older gentleman in a brown trench coat approach Harm from behind, but he spun on his left heel, sending a hard kick to the head of the approaching man, rendering him unconscious. Artemis immediately recognized the man with the silver hair and mustache as Commissioner Gordon of the Gotham City Police. Harm raised his sword overhead, intent on impaling him. Disregarding the pain in her chest, Artemis swiftly rose up on her knees, pulled a steel tipped arrow from her arsenal, and let it fly all within a heartbeat. A loud clang rang out as the steel of her arrow met the steel of Harm's blade. The sword was knocked to the side, missing Commissioner Gordon while the arrow ricocheted off and embedded itself in a nearby wall. Harm whirled around to see who caused the interruption and the excitement in his eyes at all the bloodshed he'd caused was instantly replaced with disbelieving shock as he stared at the girl he'd killed himself.
"No . . . no, that's impossible," he whispered. He pointed an accusing finger at Artemis and shouted, "Harm made It like Gretta!"
"I don't know who Gretta is," she replied as she struggled to her feet, "but I can guarantee that I'm one of a kind." She reached for another arrow and restrung her bow. "Ready for round two?"
With a cry of outrage Harm rushed at Artemis and she immediately fired her arrow. He swiped at it with his sword, cleaving it in two before reversing the arc of his blade, swinging it up at her. Artemis side stepped the attack and lashed out high with a roundhouse kick, aiming for Harm's face as she simultaneously reached for another arrow. He caught her ankle with a smile. His smile faded into a frown, however, when he noticed that Artemis had an arrow pointed directly at him. The tip was flashing.
"You little bi-"
Artemis released the arrow and Harm had to drop her ankle and raise his sword instantaneously in order to block the shot. The arrow hit his blade and exploded, sending the pair flying back in opposite directions. Artemis rolled to her hands and knees and shook her head, her ears ringing from the explosion. Her head shot up when she heard an enraged bellow and she saw Harm, sailing through the smoke towards her with his sword raised. She pushed herself up onto her knees and leaned back, bow poised in front of her in an attempt to take the blow he was about to deal, when another figure slammed into his side with a flying kick, black cap fluttering behind them. The kick sent Harm soaring, crashing through a case of precious gemstones head first, the stones scattering across the floor with broken glass in every direction.
"Mind if I join the party?" The person said in a feminine voice, holding out a hand to help the archer up.
Artemis took in the person before her. She was young, definitely no older than herself, with long flowing red hair and a suit of grey, a yellow bat symbol across her chest. Her cape was black with a yellow underside just like Robin's, and she wore a pointy eared cowl similar to that of the Dark Knight himself on top of her head. A yellow utility belt encircled her curvy waist. The girl suddenly gasped. "You're injured," she said and Artemis realized she was staring at the large red stain on the front of her costume.
"It's not fatal," was all the blonde said as she reached out to take the proffered hand.
The redhead in the bat suit looked around at the bodies littering the floor. She inhaled sharply when her eyes fell on a particular figure. Artemis followed her line of sight and saw Commissioner Gordon.
"T-that's the commissioner. Is he-"
"No, he's alive, just unconscious," Artemis informed. She watched as the girl's shoulders sagged in relief and was curious at her intense reaction, though she didn't voice it. "So, you got a name?"
"Batgirl," the redhead replied with a grunt as she hoisted Artemis to her feet.
"Original."
Batgirl scoffed. "Oh yeah? What do you go by?"
"Artemis," the archer replied.
"You named yourself after a Greek goddess? How narcissistic of you," Batgirl shot back.
"Look we could stand here all day arguing about code names, but-"
A malicious chortle interrupted Artemis and the girls turned to see Harm approaching them, eyes trained on the archer.
"It defies death and brings more back up. Harm has underestimated It." He raised his sword in an offensive position as his eyes moved to Batgirl. "Harm did not know the Batman had a female protégé."
Batgirl looked slightly abashed. "He doesn't know he has one . . . yet."
Uninterested in Batgirl, Harm's gaze made its way back to Artemis. "Harm desires more power. He will discover It's secret. He will cut down anyone in his way to obtain that power!" he proclaimed as he dashed at the pair.
Batgirl pulled out a batarang – happy not for the first time that her father was the police commissioner and that he kept all the bat tools he found at crime scenes – and threw it at Harm. He easily deflected it with his sword then snatched the two explosive arrows Artemis shot out of the air and threw them back at the pair. Batgirl dove at the archer and tackled her to the ground, the circular belt buckle with an arrow Artemis wore digging into her shoulder in the process. Together they rolled across the floor and behind a display case of emeralds as the arrows explode where they'd been standing.
"Ugh, he's fast, I'll give him that," Artemis admitted with a grimace.
"We need to get out of here, or the cops that aren't already dead are going to be," Batgirl said.
"Agreed." Artemis rose over the case with her bow strung – hoping to distract Harm with a trick arrow so they could make a run for it – only to see a dagger flying at her face. She moved her bow on reflex to intercept the shot and the dagger struck it instead. The string on the bow snapped and the dagger grazed the edge of her mask, splitting it near her cheek but, by some miracle, left her skin unmarked. She cursed at her misfortune. "Hold him off while I restring!" she ordered Batgirl.
x x x
Mount Justice
October 22, 22:03 EDT
The sound of a small explosion suddenly sounded overhead, startling the three young heroes lounging on the common room couch at Mount Justice.
"What the heck was that?" Wally asked as he dumped the handful of popcorn he'd been about to inhale back into the bowl.
Kaldur sat up straight, eyes alert. "It sounded like it came from the cave's intercom system above," he speculated, eyes turning to the ceiling.
"Ugh, he's fast I'll give him that."
The three boys stared at each other in surprise at the voice drifting out of the intercom.
"That sounded . . . like Artemis . . ." Wally said as he rose from the couch.
"We need to get out of here, or the cops that aren't already dead are going to be," a second, unfamiliar voice spoke above.
"If the first speaker is indeed Artemis, then who is with her?" Kaldur asked. "And why are we hearing them?"
"More importantly, what did she mean 'dead cops'?" Wally added, his voice taking on a note of concern.
"Agreed."
"Her belt buckle," Robin suddenly said.
Before his teammates could question him, he sprang off the couch and ran from the room, Wally and Kaldur following after him. Overhead there was a ringing of metal hitting metal and a startled noise from the person believed to be Artemis followed by a curse word being uttered.
"Hold him off while I restring!"
"Okay there's no doubt about it, that's definitely Artemis," Wally insisted.
Robin led them to the large holographic computer located in the zeta tube chamber where he immediately began to type.
"You wanna fill us in on what's going on?" the speedster irritably asked as he watched Robin's fingers deftly fly over the keyboard. He was growing increasingly impatient. One of the voices they were hearing definitely belonged to the Team's archer.
And from the sound of things, she was in trouble.
x x x
Gotham City
October 22, 22:05 EDT
Batgirl vaulted over the case and threw a batarang with a cable attached to it at Harm. It wrapped around his forearm, but before she could do anything he grabbed it and yanked her towards him, then planted his foot firmly in her stomach and shoved, sending her lithe form skidding across the floor. Artemis abandoned her attempt to restring her bow and flung herself over the case. She swung her compound bow at him and he sliced downward with his blade, chopping her bow in half. She discarded the broken bow and reached for the collapsible crossbow she kept in a pouch strapped to her thigh, all the while she followed through with the momentum the swing granted her. When she came back around, she had the crossbow trained on him, finger on the hair trigger, while the sharp edge of his blade was resting against the smooth skin of her neck.
"Looks like we're at an impasse. You wanna play without the toys?" she questioned with a smirk, a forced air of confidence in her tone. Batgirl balked at her suggestion to fight weaponless, but Artemis ignored it. She needed him to put down the sword. At the rate things were going, they didn't stand a chance if he didn't. She had no doubt he was a skilled fighter even without a weapon, but at the moment it was the lesser of two evils.
Harm returned her smirk with one of his own as he pulled the yeti hand from his back and sheathed his sword. "It tries to bate Harm, leave Harm weak," he slammed the sword into the floor, cracking the tiles from the force, "but Harm has no weaknesses." He removed his oversized coat and beckoned her forward.
Artemis pulled her crossbow back and returned it to its holster, then she charged at Harm. He stepped back as she sent a left jab at his face, then again as she swung with her right fist. She hooked her right fist back, hoping to catch him by surprise, but the back of her hand met with open air instead of the side of his face as she'd intended. Again and again she swung at him, throwing in some fierce kicks as well, but none of her attacks were landing. It didn't matter though; all she needed to do was keep him busy long enough for Batgirl to grab the sword. Artemis tried to watch for the redhead out of the corner of her eye. She suddenly felt the air in her lungs forced out when Harm's knee connected with her abdomen. She clutched at the spot as she tried to suck air back into her empty lungs.
"So unfocused. It can't fight Harm if It can't focus."
"Would Harm stop referring to himself in the third person? It's really starting to annoy Artemis," Artemis ground out through gritted teeth as she back flipped to avoid a kick.
Behind them, Batgirl quietly approached the sword. She grasped it firmly and pulled. It didn't budge. She tightened her grip and gave a mighty yank, but the sword stayed rooted to the ground. All of a sudden a yellow glow engulfed the sword and streaks of electricity erupted from it, shocking Batgirl. She let out a shrill cry of pain and dropped to the ground.
Artemis immediately looked behind her. "Batgirl!" she yelled when her eyes landed on the redhead, tendrils of smoke curling into the air from her singed costume.
Harm's open palm connected with the side of Artemis's head with such force that it instantly sent her to the floor next to Batgirl.
"And It cares about others, another weakness." He shrugged back into his coat, his cold eyes falling on Batgirl as she sat up. "The sword rejected It's impure heart. It has not made the sacrifices Harm has to become pure."
Harm reached for his sword and effortlessly pulled it from the busted tile. He unsheathed it, the glowing red circle reappearing over his heart, and began to stalk towards Artemis. "Harm is tired of playing; It will tell Harm It's secret."
When he was directly in front of the blonde she lashed out with her left leg, sweeping his feet out from under him. As Harm fell back Batgirl threw a smoke bomb on the ground in front of them. Grey smoke immediately began to spew forth from the little black ball, effectively covering their forms.
x x x
Mount Justice
October 22, 22:06 EDT
"Looks like we're at an impasse. You wanna play without the toys?"
"Well?" Wally demanded, eyes still on Robin.
"Okay, I maybe might have . . . bugged Artemis with a one-way radio and tracer," Robin explained, eyes not leaving the translucent PC monitor.
"You had reason to believe something such as this was necessary?" Kaldur asked in surprise. He knew he had reason to suspect Artemis, but he had no idea anyone else did.
"It tries to bate Harm, leave Harm weak, but Harm has no weaknesses." The voice was deep and off putting. The sound of hand-to-hand combat became evident. Wally felt his worry increase.
"Well, yeah, after I found out that Artemis goes solo around Gotham from time to time," Robin lied. He wasn't about to take the time to explain that he was certain she was involved in something dangerous and that the events of the Gotham Academy Homecoming dance spurred him to install it. "I was worried about her running around Gotham on her own, so I installed a bug in her belt buckle. If it gets hit hard enough they're triggered. I had the radio feed connect directly to the main PA system so that somebody was bound to hear it if it was triggered." That last part was true.
"So unfocused. It can't fight Harm if It can't focus."
"Would Harm stop referring to himself in the third person? It's really starting to annoy Artemis."
"So can you tell us where she is then?" Wally asked. "Because whoever she's fighting sounds like a total wackjob!"
"I'm tracking her signal now via satellite."
"Well track it faster!" the speedster urged.
A crackling sound was heard right before a shrill cry erupted from the speakers in the ceiling, startling all three boys.
Batgirl! The sound of a hit connecting followed the shout.
Robin froze for a split second before he was typing again, the alias Artemis called catching him by surprise.
"And It cares about others, another weakness." There was a pause, then: "The sword rejected It's impure heart. It has not made the sacrifices Harm has to become pure."
"You're right, this guy does sound like a wackjob," Robin said as a map appeared on the screen.
"Harm is tired of playing; It will tell Harm It's secret."
x x x
Gotham City
October 22, 22:10 EDT
"Run!" Artemis ordered as she sprang to her feet.
Together the heroines sprinted out of the room. When the fourth floor stairwell came into view, Artemis threw open the door and pounded down the winding staircase, Batgirl right behind her. Artemis could hear heavier footsteps echoing further back and knew they belonged to Harm.
"The It's will not escape Harm!" he howled.
He stopped on the landing between the third and fourth floor and held his sword out. A golden glow engulfed it and lightning surged forward, climbing down the stairwell towards the girls. A yellow brightness caught Artemis's attention from the corner of her eye. She turned to see fragments of lightning streaking towards them. She cursed and jumped, skipping the rest of the stairs and going straight for the second floor landing. Batgirl followed suit. As soon as their feet hit the ground Artemis lunged for Batgirl, tackling her into the second floor door. The redhead's back hit the door's release bar, and the heavy metal door swung open. They tumbled through the doorway as the lightning rushed passed. Both girls hit the ground, rolled right back onto their feet, and kept on running. They rushed into the next stairwell they came across and took it down to the first floor.
"As soon as we get outside we-" Artemis stopped short as they rounded a corner and came face-to-face with Harm.
"Enough games!" he barked. He raised his glowing sword up high and smashed it into the tiled floor. Massive orange and yellow lightning bolts shot forward along the ground. Before either girl could blink the lightning had reached them. It raced through their bodies with so much force they were lifted into the air as they were electrocuted. When the electricity finally faded, their limp bodies fell to the ground in a heap, clothes smoking. Harm sheathed his sword and placed it on his back. He grabbed Batgirl and tossed her onto his shoulder with ease, her arms dangling lifelessly behind his back. Then he wrapped his fingers around Artemis's long blonde ponytail and began to drag her unconscious body behind him as he walked towards the exit.
To be continued . . .
A/N: So what'd everyone think of Batgirl taking Zatanna's spot? My desire to utilize Batgirl is why I changed the location from NYC to Gotham. I apologize if she wasn't completely in character. I didn't read the comics and we've only seen her, like, twice in YJ so I don't have much to go on I'm afraid. I get the impression though that she's got some sass to her (like Artemis) so that's how I tried to write her. My goal was to pull some stuff directly from ep 18 "Secrets" but twist it to fit what I have going on and to make it different enough to be worth reading. I hope I succeeded. I don't know if anyone knows what the incantation is that Harm says to release the sword, but I gave my best guess at how to spell it. If anyone knows for sure, please let me know and I'll edit it.
Sorry it ended on a cliffhanger of sorts again, but it was just the best place to cut it. Hopefully it just left you all wanting more hehe If you can spare a moment, please let me know how I did, your comments mean the world to me :) See you in chapter 15!
SakuraJade