A/N: Here's the final installment of the three part story involving Harm. I do want to warn everyone that this chapter is more graphically violent than usual, so please read with caution.
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
The Trust of the innocent is the Liar's most useful tool . . .
Tangled Web
Chapter 15: A Psycho, a Ghost, and a Goddess
Mount Justice
October 22, 22:15 EDT
An unbearably loud crackling flooded the room for only a moment, then it was gone, leaving nothing but silence in its wake.
"What the heck just happened!?" Wally demanded, eyes on his best friend. "Where'd the transmission go?"
Robin shook his head. "I don't know. It sounded like a surge of electricity shorted out the connection."
"Were you able to pinpoint Artemis's whereabouts?" Kaldur asked, his calm voice underscored by a note of genuine concern.
"Yeah. Her signal was coming from the Gotham Museum of Natural History before the connection was cut."
"Well what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Wally exclaimed, his feet already carrying him out of the room.
"I too am concerned for Artemis's safety," Kaldur spoke as he and Robin hurried after the anxious redhead, "but Wally's level of distress . . . I cannot help but feel as though I am missing something."
"You have no idea. You wouldn't believe me if I told you," Robin replied as the pair raced into the bioship hanger.
x x x
Gotham City
October 22, 22:34 EDT
When the team of three reached the Gotham Museum of Natural History, it didn't take them long to locate the exhibit the disturbance had taken place in, but they were unprepared for the sight that greeted them. The bodies of several uniformed cops littered the floor of the gemology room, their blood smeared across the tiles, broken glass and gemstones from some of the display cases scattered everywhere. Within seconds, Wally performed a quick sweep of the entire museum in search of their missing teammate or the other girl she'd been with, but they were nowhere to be found. A few of Artemis's arrows and what looked like one of Batman's own batarangs – something Robin intended to look into – was the only physical proof they'd been there.
"She's not here," Wally informed when he returned to the gemology room. Robin was typing away on his wrist computer while Kaldur checked each body for signs of life.
"Some of these officers are still alive," Kaldur informed his teammates, his fingers against the neck of an older gentleman in a brown trench coat. "We must call an ambulance."
"Already did," Robin explained, his fingers constantly moving along the tiny holographic keyboard of his wrist computer.
"What are you doing?" Wally asked as he looked at the screen over his shoulder.
"I hacked into the security camera feed for the entire building and I'm linking all the footage that Artemis appears in together so we will hopefully have a better understanding of what happened and where to go from here." After a few more key strokes he said, "There, that should do it." A large projection appeared above his wrist just as Kaldur joined them. The grainy black and white footage started silently playing. Artemis was shown talking to a tall man with long hair, a trench coat, and a massive sword, her bow drawn with a trick arrow.
"Wait, there's still some footage before this-"
"Who cares? We don't need to watch that psycho massacre a bunch of cops, we need to know what happened to Artemis," Wally argued.
The footage played out like a silent movie. They watched as Artemis went toe-to-toe with Harm, then another figure joined them.
"That must be Batgirl," Robin stated. Batgirl threw a projectile weapon at Harm then tackled Artemis to the ground as Harm threw the exploding arrows the blonde had just fired back at them. "There," Robin said, "that's how the signal in Artemis's belt buckle was triggered." He hit a separate key on his wrist computer and the radio transmission they'd heard from the cave intercom started playing in sync with the footage.
They listened to the transmission playback as the footage unfolded before them. When Harm's sword stopped against the slender slope of Artemis's neck, Wally inhaled sharply. He balked in outrage, however, when she put her collapsible crossbow away to engage Harm in hand-to-hand combat. "Is she out of her mind? Why the heck did she challenge him to fight weaponless?"
A few moments later they watched Batgirl receive an electric shock after attempting to take the sword.
"There's your answer," Robin said.
"The sword is enchanted."
Wally groaned at Kaldur's words. He hated when magic was supposedly involved. A second later Harm's open palm connected with the side of Artemis's face, sending her to the ground and Wally growled under his breath, anger burning in the pit of his stomach. Batgirl threw a smoke bomb at their feet and the pair ran from the room. Having been pulled from different cameras as the girls ran, the rest of the footage played out stilted and jerky, but it was enough to give the boys an idea of how everything went down. The last of the footage showed Harm violently electrocute both girls before he threw Batgirl over his shoulder and grabbed Artemis by her long ponytail, dragging her unconscious body behind him as he exited the building. The footage ran out and stopped. All three boys were silent for a moment.
"You . . . you don't think they . . ." Wally couldn't bring himself to finish.
"I think Harm would not have bothered taking them unless they were still alive," Kaldur responded in a firm and assured voice.
"The real question is: why did he want them?" Robin mused out loud. "In the transmission he mentioned a secret. 'It will tell Harm It's secret,'" he quoted. "What secret? Artemis doesn't have any special powers and it didn't look like Batgirl does either."
"Their civilian identities perhaps?" Kaldur supplied.
"Maybe, but I don't know why he'd care to know that, or go through all that trouble to find out for that matter. I mean it's not like they went quietly."
"Well, as soon as we find him you can ask him!" Wally exclaimed. "Meanwhile while we stand here discussing that psycho's motives, he's getting farther away with Artemis!"
"Kid is right. We will start within a one mile radius of the museum and work our way out from there. Let's go," Kaldur order and the trio headed back to the bioship.
As they ran up the stairs towards the roof to re-board the bioship, Wally did his best to keep the worry that was gnawing at his stomach at bay.
x x x
Gotham City
October 22, 23:04 EDT
The pounding in Artemis's head was so intense she thought she might puke. Every square inch of her body ached. She supposed getting electrocuted would do that to a person. She tried to place a hand to her throbbing head, but her wrists were bound behind her back. She'd been dumped in the corner of a dimly lit room, her butt and thighs numb from the cold floor beneath her. As her eyes roamed the room trying to regain their ability to focus, all she saw was one small square table made of chipped up wood and a matching chair. The current bane of her existence was sitting in the chair. When her eyes locked with his she glared hatefully. He smirked.
"It finally awakens. Harm was beginning to grow impatient."
"Well, if Harm didn't want to wait so long, maybe he shouldn't have electrocuted me," she replied dryly. "Where's Batgirl? What have you done with her?"
"The Batgirl is fine, for now."
"Meaning?"
"It will tell Harm It's secret, or It's partner will pay the price."
"I don't know what you're talking about!" Artemis insisted.
Harm rose from his chair in a flourish. "Do not lie to Harm! Harm killed you, he knows he did!"
"Oh my God with the third person thing!" Artemis cried in irritation. "Look, buddy, there is no secret!"
With a frustrated growl, Harm strode over to the blonde, grabbed her by her hair, and yanked her out of the room. Artemis bit back a cry, her scalp still extremely tender from the last time he pulled her by her hair. Harm dragged her down the hall and through the doorway of another room located near the top of the stairs before releasing her. A quick glance around at the canopy bed topped with stuffed animals and the purple walls showed the room belonged to a young girl. Batgirl was lying on the wooden floor by the foot of the bed, still unconscious. A few quick strides put Harm right next to her limp form. Artemis struggled to her feet – a difficult task with her hands bound behind her back – and watched him warily. He drew his sword and placed it along the front of her spandex covered throat.
"Harm will give It one more chance to tell It's secret." When Artemis remained silent he applied enough pressure to slice through the fabric and break the skin. Deep red droplets of blood began to bead along the slit he'd created before running freely down the slope of Batgirl's neck.
"Alright!" Artemis suddenly cried. She didn't want to tell him, but her secret wasn't worth Batgirl's life. She knew Harm would kill the other girl as soon as he was done with her, so she silently prayed that she could buy Batgirl enough time to wake up and stage an escape. It was the best she could hope for. "It's the tattoo on my back, at the base of my neck."
Without a word, Harm pulled his sword away from the shallow cut he'd created in Batgirl's throat and sheathed it. Then he pushed Artemis back out of the room, slamming the door behind him. He roughly shoved her back into the first room and she fell forward, her mid section knocking against the edge of the wooden table. She pulled away to try and face him, but Harm grabbed the back of her neck and rammed her head down, forcing her left cheek to lay flat against the scratched up surface. With his other hand he threw her impossibly long hair out of the way and pulled the zipper on the back of her shirt down far enough to reveal her tattoo. He admired the intricate mark for a moment before he pulled a dagger from his belt. Artemis froze when she felt the sharp tip of the cold metal resting against her skin.
"What are you gonna do?" she asked, keeping her voice as even as possible.
"Harm will take It's secret for himself; tear it right from It's flesh." She could hear the excitement in his voice and she shivered involuntarily. "Then he will be invincible."
Artemis tried to push back but his grip was firm and unrelenting. "It doesn't work like that!"
His only response was to sink the blade into her back. Artemis cried out in response, her blood seeping out and running down her back in a thin trail.
Harm's smile grew as he slowly started dragging the blade through her flesh. "Harm enjoys It's pain."
x x x
Gotham City
October 22, 23:08 EDT
Kid Flash couldn't keep his leg from jiggling. He was so high strung he could practically feel his molecules bouncing around his body. He, Aqualad, and Robin had been scouring the area surrounding the Gotham Museum of Natural History for a half hour in the hopes of finding a lead that would help them track down their missing archer. Out of nowhere the sound of a small struggle started coming from Robin's wrist. He'd been steering the bioship but put it on autopilot in order to tinker with his wrist computer. Before leaving Mount Justice, he'd routed the signal in Artemis's belt to be sent to his wrist PC in the event that it was reactivated. With a few key strokes he knew their luck had changed.
"Artemis's signal is back on-line!" he announced.
Wally sprung up from his seat. "Well hurry up and trace her before it-"
"What are you gonna do?"
The boys collectively froze at the sound of their missing teammate's voice.
"Harm will take It's secret for himself; tear it right from It's flesh. Then he will be invincible."
"It doesn't work like that!"
A moment later an anguished cry – clearly belonging to Artemis – filled the cabin of the bioship startling all three guys.
"Harm enjoys It's pain."
"Anytime you wanna pinpoint her signal, Rob!" Wally barked, frustrated by the powerlessness he was feeling over his inability to do anything other than listen to Artemis scream.
"Locked onto her coordinates," Robin finally said. "She's about five miles west of here." He pulled the bioship out of autopilot and rushed it towards their destination.
x x x
Happy Harbor
October 22, 23:04 EDT
If Superboy had the same heat vision Superman was known for, the entire Happy Harbor football team would have been incinerated by now from the glares he'd been sending them all night long. Guys hadn't stopped talking with Megan since the pair had arrived at Mal Duncan's Halloween party over two hours ago and it made Conner furious, not to mention jealous. It was clear a good majority of them were interested in her. He honestly couldn't blame them; Megan was a pretty amazing girl and, between her performance at the Homecoming game and the way she saved the routine by bringing Artemis in at a moment's notice, others were starting to realize that too. The thing was that Conner had begun to think of her as his girl. He had so few things that meant anything to him, he wasn't about to share the most important one. He knew it was selfish but he couldn't help it. He'd spent most of the party tucked away in the corner, arms crossed over his chest defensively, the toilet paper Megan had wrapped him in to make his mummy costume hanging off his body haphazardly, while Megan walked around, surrounded by her fellow cheerleaders, talking with other students from school. With each tinkling laugh that escaped from Megan's lips, Conner felt himself grow increasingly insecure. She was so friendly and outgoing, practically the exact opposite of him in every way that he was beginning to doubt they could ever be more than teammates, no matter how much he might want things to be otherwise. Sure they'd shared a few special moments and had a bit of a bonding experience during the mission in Bialya that had since altered their relationship somewhat, but was it really enough if they were nothing alike? After all, Megan still didn't feel comfortable enough with him to reveal her true form to him, something he knew she was hiding from the mind meld they'd done during their battle against Psimon in Bialya. She wasn't differentiating him from the other members of the team at all.
Now he felt like a fool for ever thinking she would.
x x x
Gotham City
October 22, 23:12 EDT
Once Robin had locked onto Artemis's new coordinates, it'd taken less than two minutes to reach the building detaining her, but having to listen to Artemis's brutal screaming had made it the longest minute and a half of Wally's life. Robin finally cut the signal as the bioship came down towards a street behind a two-story square city house made of brick. Wally was out of his seat before the ship finished touching the ground. The only thing that stopped him from bolting down the exit ramp was Kaldur's firm hand on his shoulder.
"Wally, I am just as worried about Artemis as you are, but we cannot rush into this situation without a plan," he said, his grip on the speedster's shoulder still tight.
Robin seriously doubted Kaldur's worry for the blonde was as acute as Wally's, but he chose not to comment on it. Instead he said, "No argument there. Whoever this guy is, he's completely deranged."
"If we waste anymore time, Artemis might be dead before we even go in there!" Wally burst out.
"If we don't have a strategy in place before we head in, she's as good as dead," Robin rationalized. "And so are we."
Wally let out a harsh sigh as he fisted his hands in his red hair. He knew they were right. "Alright, then what's the plan?"
"We will go through the back gate and enter the house from the rear. You and I will go for Artemis," Kaldur explained. His eyes moved from Wally to Robin. "Robin, you will go for the other girl. We do not know what condition either girl is in, so our goal is extraction."
"Grab the girls and go. Got it," Robin said.
The three boys discussed a few more details then hurried down the exit ramp and quietly sneaked through a gate set in the wooden lattice fence that surrounded the backyard. As soon as Robin jimmied the backdoor open their ears were assaulted by an agonizing cry. Together they silently rushed up a set of stairs leading to the second floor. Robin broke off and headed into the first room he saw on the right, while Wally and Kaldur continued on, following the screaming further down the hall. Robin found himself in a small room with purple walls and a matching rug, a white canopy bed and dresser in the comer. Bound and gagged in the middle of the floor was a girl with red hair spilling out from underneath a familiar looking cowl. She was awake and she eyed him with surprise. He hurried over to her and removed the duck tape covering her mouth with one quick yank, earning a grunt from the girl.
"Thanks," she whispered and he began cutting through the ropes binding her hands. "My first patrol and I already get to meet the Boy Wonder. Lucky me, I've always wanted to ask you a few questions."
"Yeah, well, I've got some questions of my own I want answered," Robin replied as he moved to take care of the rope around her ankles. "But first things first, we need to get out of here."
"There's another girl here. Harm's got her. We can't leave without her."
"I know. My friends are already on it."
Down the hall, Kaldur pulled out his waterbearers and two aqua maces formed. With a nod of his head, he and Wally charged into the room, the metallic sent of blood heavy in the air. Harm had his back to the two boys and had just begun to turn his head at the noise when Aqualad slammed one of his maces into Harm's side. Harm staggered several steps to the left, dropping the dagger coated in Artemis's blood on the floor in the process. As soon as he caught his footing he ripped his sword from its scabbard and spun around with his blade, hoping to slice through the intruder, but Aqualad parried the blow with his maces. With Harm no longer forcing her against the table, Artemis's knees buckled beneath her weight. Before she could collapse to the floor, a pair of warm arms encircled her, supporting her gently.
"I've got you," a familiar voice said.
A roar from across the room drew the blonde's attention and she saw Aqualad parry another blow from Harm. Then she glanced up and behind to see who was supporting her. Her disoriented eyes landed on a shock of red hair and green eyes.
Wally.
In the short time she'd known him she'd never been so happy to see him. He wasn't looking at her face though; he was looking at the damage Harm had inflicted with his dagger. He'd almost managed to cut all the way around the butterfly tattoo between her shoulders before he and Aqualad barged in. Her back was slick with sweat and thin trails of blood that had managed to ooze from the wound all the way down to the small curve of her back, soaking sections of her crop top in the process. Despite the blood, Wally could still see the faint scars he'd seen during their mission in Chicago, the last time her back had been exposed to his eyes. And once again, he could have sworn her tattoo was even more faded than before.
"Wa-Kid," she corrected, still having the good sense to use his moniker, "how did you guys-"
"We'll, talk about it later," he replied as he quickly zipped her shirt back up, covering the old scars and the fresh wound. "Right now we need to get you out of here." He scooped her up in his arms, hooking one arm under her knees and the other around her shoulders, careful to avoid the damaged tissue. Then he looked over at Kaldur. "Aqualad!"
"We are done here," Kaldur remarked as he blocked a downward thrust with his right mace and swung out hard with the one in his left hand. It slammed into Harm and knocked him clear off his feet and into the wall. Kaldur hurried from the room with Wally and Artemis.
"No! It belongs to Harm! He will have It's secret!" he shouted after them.
Robin and Batgirl rushed out of the room closest to the staircase to see the others heading their way.
"Robin, is-"
"It's set," Robin assured Kaldur as the group tromped down the stairs for the ground floor.
A moment later Harm tore out of the far room and down the hall after them. As he neared the room Batgirl had been in the sound of someone laughing mockingly began to drift from the cracked door. With an angered growl he shoved it open with the butt of his sword and stormed in, eyes wildly scanning for the source. Several silver disks with red flashing centers were stuck to the walls around the room. The cackling suddenly stopped and the flashing red lights became solid.
Harm's face soured. "Fuck."
The group of five teens ran out onto the back lawn just as an explosion on the second floor went off, sending a small shock through the ground. As the group hurried for the back gate, Artemis noticed something in the corner of the rundown fence across the yard, hidden in shadows.
Wait, wait stop," she ordered as she shrugged out of Wally's grasp and padded towards the object.
"Artemis, what are you doing? Let's go," Wally urged.
Artemis didn't respond. She stopped in front of it and stared. It was a small, grubby plank of wood sticking out of a mound of semi-fresh dirt. Light from a street lamp trickled across it through the slats in the lattice fence, shinning on some writing that had been etched into the surface. The blonde leaned a little closer.
"Greta Hayes. Beloved sister," she read out loud. Her eyes widened and she took a step back. "Oh my God . . ."she whispered.
"Artemis, what is it?" Kaldur asked.
"His sister," she whispered.
"What are you talking about?" Robin asked.
"It's a grave, for his sister."
As if to verify her claim, a bright, white, translucent figure suddenly rose out of the dirt mound, startling the entire group. It was the figure of a young girl around 10 or 11, with long blonde hair held away from her face by a headband, and a flowing white poncho over her clothes with matching boots and black leggings. Everyone froze.
"A ghost. An actual ghost," Batgirl whispered in awe.
Wally had his eyes trained on the figure in disbelief. He believed in ghosts about as much as he believed in magic. Despite his lack of faith in all things supernatural, he was finding it very hard to explain the sudden appearance of the eerie figure standing on top of the handmade grave.
For a moment the ghostly girl – presumably named Greta as her makeshift headstone read – simply stared at Artemis, who stared back in astonishment, then she slowly moved towards the blonde.
"Same," she stated, her haunting voice like the wind rustling through the autumn leaves. "Same," she repeated.
"What is she talking about?" Wally asked, the situation starting to make his skin prickle with wariness. Wally didn't do ghosts, but that didn't change the fact that an unknown individual was approaching Artemis.
The young girl turned her eyes on the speedster sharply and said, "Secret." Then she turned back to the blonde, reached her opaque hands out, and touched the smooth skin of Artemis's cheeks.
The blonde's eyes went wide with surprise as images assaulted her mind.
Greta – dressed exactly the same – cowered on the floor in the corner of the same room Batgirl had been in, her eyes stricken with fear and sadness. Harm loomed over her, his face impassive, the same dagger he'd used on Artemis clutched in his right hand.
"Stop it! Stop touching her!" Wally cried, the vacant look on the archer's face spurring him into motion. He lunged for the figure, but instead of making contact with the girl he sailed completely through her form, an unsettling coldness washing over him from head to toe in the process. He landed on the ground a foot away with a grunt. Not letting his mind dwell on the impossibility that just happened, he turned back to the pair. Greta kept her hold on Artemis.
"You said you'd always be there for me, Billy. That I was the only person you ever really loved," Greta whimpered, tears of despair escaping her eyes.
"You are," Harm responded, his tone emotionless. The words had hardly left his mouth before he brought the dagger down quick and hard. He mercilessly repeated the motion, the maniacal gleam in his bloodthirsty eyes brightening with every slice he made. Blood splattered his face but he didn't flinch, he just kept tearing into his little sister with the dagger.
The horrific scene faded from Artemis's mind and her eyes were once more staring directly at the ghostly apparition of Greta.
"Same," the girl whispered again, her voice heavy with anguish.
Artemis couldn't argue with that statement. They were the same, both having been killed by their older siblings. Greta simply didn't possess the ability to come back to life, not like Artemis. She rose from the dead in a different way. An explosion from behind forced everyone's attention back to the house. The backdoor had been blown off its hinges and Harm stood in the doorway, his jacket streaked with soot and ash, electricity running the length of his sword.
Harm's eyes moved to Artemis – the only one he really wanted – and they narrowed in rage when he saw where she stood. "It defiles Harm's holy place!"
"I defile it?! You did this! To your own sister!" she accused, adrenaline and anger coursing through her, washing away the sluggish feeling she'd had due to blood loss. Harm simply smiled and Artemis gasped at the sheer audacity of it all. "You're proud of it?" she whispered. "And you had the gull to write beloved you sick son of a bitch."
"Not gull, truth. She was the only thing Harm ever loved. That's why she had to go. Harm's heart had to be pure. Greta had to be cut out, excised like an infection."
The smug look on Harm's face suddenly dropped and his skin paled two shades. Artemis realized he was staring at something beyond her and she turned to see that Greta had moved out from behind her.
"No . . . It can't be!" He backed up a step when Greta took a step towards him, then he pointed his sword at Artemis in an accusatory manor. "You did this!" he growled, clearly thinking she could raise others from the dead with her ability.
"No," Artemis replied, face impassive, "you did."
With a snarl Harm moved to attack the blonde. Aqualad immediately pulled his waterbearers from the harness on his back and generated his maces. He hurried to intercept Harm, but the sociopath directed his sword at the Atlantean and a bolt of lightning shot forward, hitting Aqualad full force in the chest. He dropped to the ground with a groan, the shock momentarily leaving him too weak to stand.
"Aqualad!" Robin called.
He grabbed the collapsible bo from his utility belt and ran at Harm. At the last second he dug the tip into the ground and used it to vault over Harm so that Harm's sword swung through empty air. Robin landed behind him and swung at Harm's head, but he spun around and raised his sword quick enough to parry the blow. He drew his sword back to slice through the Boy Wonder, but Kid Flash barreled into him from the right, catching Harm by surprise. The impact sent his body sprawling to the ground a few feet away. Before he could attempt to get to his feet, Batgirl sent a swift kick at his right hand, dislodging the powerful sword from his grasp. Light glinted off the blade as it spun through the air, the tip of it sinking into the ground when it landed vertically. Harm scrambled for it. Just as he reached for it Artemis closed her fingers around the hilt, pulled it out of the ground, and pointed it at Harm.
"Don't. Move."
"No, that's impossible. Only the pure hearted can wield it! Harm made sacrifices to be pure enough for the sword!"
"You think you're the only one who's made sacrifices?! Everything I've done I've done for others!" Artemis cried indignantly. As she spoke her face blurred, momentarily mingling with another. Then it was blocked out by Greta as the ghostly girl walked through Artemis's body from behind. As she walked towards Harm she passed down the length of Artemis's arm, then down the sword, all the while her eyes burned into her older brother's.
"Harm's not sorry! He's not!" Harm insisted as she drew near.
Once Greta reached him she wordlessly thrust her hand into Harm's chest and drew out a glowing red ball of light. Harm toppled over to the ground and she moved to stand over him, the fiery orb floating in her outstretched hand. Then it fizzled out and dissipated. With a harsh grunt Harm pushed himself to his feet.
"I don't need the sword!" he declared and drew his dagger, still coated in Artemis's blood.
"Funny, neither do I," Artemis sneered and threw the sword of Beowulf to the side. Harm rushed at her with his dagger but she easily kicked it from his hand. "So unfocused," she mocked, tossing his own words back into his face.
He swung at her head but she ducked and slammed her fist into his solar plexus, then she round house kicked him in the shoulder, spinning him. As he came around he saw Batgirl in front of him with her fist drawn back. She slugged him across the jaw then thrust her elbow into his nose, breaking it, before she spun him back towards Artemis with another roundhouse kick. He staggered towards her and she sent a firm sidekick to his stomach. When he doubled over from the impact, she thrust upward into his forehead with her knee, then she dropped low and swept his feet out from under him. He landed on his back and she quickly kicked him across the face. He let out a painful groan but made no attempt to rise.
Robin let out a low whistle. "You two really let him have it."
"Well, it wasn't like he didn't deserve it or anything," Batgirl reasoned.
"Very true."
When Artemis was sure Harm wasn't getting back up, she turned her attention to Greta. "We'll make sure you're buried properly. We won't forget about you."
Greta finally let her lips spread into a small grin, then she sank back into the ground. The sound of a police siren wailed in the distance and Artemis let out a tired sigh. "Cops are coming."
"Well, Boy Wonder here did blow up the second floor," Batgirl pointed out.
Robin bent down to tie Harm's hands behind his back. "We'll leave Harm here for the cops. They'll be able to make sure Greta's remains are properly taken care of as well." Once Harm was secure, he looked at Wally. "Help me get Kaldur to the bioship."
The speedster joined Robin. They each slung one of Kaldur's arms around their shoulders and heaved him to his feet. The girls followed behind. When they stepped through the gate and up to the bioship Robin took it out of camouflage mode.
"Sweet ride," Batgirl commented.
"It actually belongs to someone else on the Team," Wally supplied as he and Dick began to cart Kaldur up the ramp.
"So, what, you guys and some other sidekicks are all, like, the junior Justice League or something?"
"Or something," Artemis said as she dropped into the closest seat.
Now that they finally had a moment, Batgirl started at the blonde next to her long and hard. The blonde hair and fighting skills, the crossbow she'd seen her use on Harm, it was clear that this wasn't the first time she'd seen the archer in action. Finally she said, "You're her, aren't you? The girl with the crossbow at the Gotham Academy Homecoming dance."
Robin spun to look at her. His sudden lack of help with Kaldur caused Wally to haphazardly drop the heavy boy into the seat they'd been placing him in.
Eyes wide behind his domino mask he asked incredulously, "Wait, you were there too?"
"And I take it that means you were there as well," she countered. Her eyes moved to Wally. "And you considering you guys are all friends and one of the people I saw that night was moving incredibly fast. Although I have to admit I have no idea why you were present since you don't live in Gotham so I'm pretty sure you don't go to the Academy. Unless you knew something was going to happen in advance."
Wally's eyes darted to Artemis's and he wiped the back of his neck uncomfortably. "It's complicated."
Batgirl looked back at Artemis. "As far as protégés go, I recognize Kid Flash, Aqualad, and of course Robin, but I'm not familiar with you."
"I'm working under Green Arrow since Speedy went rogue as Red Arrow."
"Wait, you commute all the way from Gotham to Star City on the other side of the country regularly to work with Green Arrow?" the redhead asked skeptically.
Robin took his seat at the helm, put the bioship back into camouflage mode, and lifted it into the air so they wouldn't have a run in with the local police force that was beginning to close in. "We have our ways. What I want to know is how you got a hold of some of Batman's gear."
It was Batgirl's turn to look uncomfortable. "He leaves stuff behind at crime scenes. The cops confiscate it, and I managed to liberate a few gadgets from them," she answered vaguely.
I don't suppose you plan on making this your first and last mission now that you've seen just how dangerous being a vigilante is?" Robin asked.
"Not a chance. This city needs all the help it can get."
Robin honestly couldn't argue with that.
x x x
Mount Justice
October 23, 00:07 EDT
The team dropped Batgirl off outside of Gotham Academy, since it was a neutral location, before flying back to Mount Justice. Wally had taken it upon himself to clean and bandage the damage Harm had done to Artemis. She insisted the dried blood caked around a hole in the front of her shirt was from a superficial cut that didn't need attending to, so he let that one go, but he refused to ignore the fresh injury on her back given the extent of the damage. To his surprise, however, the gashes he was sure would need stitches needed nothing more than some clean bandages. By the time they reached Mount Justice, Artemis was patched up and Kaldur had come around. They quickly explained what he'd missed to catch him up to speed.
"I am just relieved we were able to find you in time," he said as the Team left the bioship hanger. "I need to go make a report of our nocturnal activities in the cave's log." He excused himself from the others and headed further into the cave.
"How did you guys find me anyway?" Artemis asked the other two boys, coming to a stop in the common room. She and Wally had removed their masks once Batgirl had departed the ship, while Robin's remained in place.
Wally looked uncomfortable while Dick wore a guilty expression on his masked face. Artemis raised an impatient eyebrow.
Dick sighed. "Before you get pissed keep in mind that what I did saved your life."
"Meaning?"
"Because of the . . . trouble you've had recently with the League of Shadows, I installed a tracking device and one-way radio into your belt buckle that would trigger if hit hard enough. I wired them to the cave's mainframe so that if you were in trouble we'd hopefully know about it. Kaldur thinks I installed it because you patrol Gotham on your own sometimes."
"Let me get this straight. You installed a tracking device into my uniform without my permission," Artemis said, her voice flat.
"Life saving tracking equipment," Robin reminded as if to help his case.
Both boys stared at Artemis, cringing slightly as they waited for her to explode in anger at the invasion of privacy, but she was eerily silent.
"You're, uh, taking this pretty well," Robin finally said when it became clear that she wasn't going to respond.
The archer let out a tired sigh. "Honestly? I don't really have the steam to lay into you tonight given all that's happened."
"What was all that about anyway?" Robin inquired. "Because of the radio transmission, we heard him mention a secret several times."
"And why was he trying to cut out that tattoo on your back?" Wally asked. "The guy seemed borderline obsessed with you." His skin crawled at the thought.
Artemis shook her head. "I have no idea. The guy was a complete sociopath. Maybe he thought I had a secret because I managed to get the drop on him at the museum. Maybe he thinks everyone has deep secrets because he himself had a really dark one, who knows. Hopefully the cops put him in a nice padded cell in Arkham."
"How did you end up at the museum tonight?" Robin pressed, ever curious.
"I actually do patrol Gotham from time to time. I was a few streets over when the museum alarm went off," she lied. She couldn't very well tell them that she'd been there stealing an amorphous diamond with Cheshire, her sister, because the leader of the League of Shadows was so impressed with the job she'd done so far "spying" on the team that he wanted to start utilizing her for more. Since she did patrol Gotham once in a great while it wasn't a complete and total lie at least.
Wally raised a skeptical eyebrow and crossed his arms over his chest. "Why do I get the feeling you aren't tell-"
"Give it a rest, M'gann."
Wally broke off at the sound of Conner's voice, and the three turned to see Megan and Conner heading into the room.
"No, all night you sulked in a corner."
"What'd you care? You were busy hanging out with the football team all night."
"I'm a cheerleader, Conner! I'm supposed to talk to them!" Megan cried in frustration.
Conner scoffed. "Based on what? The stupid tv shows you watch? That isn't real life."
"Based on tv shows or not, my behavior is more real than yours. You wouldn't even talk to anyone, you were so rude. I don't know why you even went."
"Because you asked me to!"
Megan crossed her arms over her chest and looked away. "Well next time a social function comes up I won't bother."
Connor scoffed. "That's fine with me."
The pair passed through the common room without so much as a glance at the other three. Their bickering fading as they got further away.
"Wonder what happened between them tonight," Robin stated, eyes still trained on the hallway Megan and Conner had exited through.
Artemis gave a shrug. "Beats me, but I'm sure it was nowhere near the night we had. I mean it's not every night you fight a deranged psycho and see a ghost."
Wally groaned and Artemis turned her eyes on him, one delicate brow arched. "Don't tell me you're seriously going to try and deny that we saw a ghost tonight."
"I don't know what we saw, but I'm sure there's gotta be an explanation for it," Wally replied, voice as neutral as he could make it.
"Yeah, there is. When a transparent person rises out of a freaking grave it's called a ghost!"
"Look, there's no scientific proof that ghosts are real."
Artemis rolled her eyes. "Of course, seeing one first hand couldn't possibly make it real. You have got to be the most close-minded individual I've ever met." Artemis shook her head, exasperated. "I'm going to bed." She turned away from her teammates and headed for her private room.
Wally let out an irritated sigh. He didn't understand why Artemis was so bothered by his lack of belief in the supernatural. It was almost like she took it personally. He suddenly felt exhausted, the hours of worrying about Artemis and everything else that had happened clearly taking their toll.
"Smooth," Robin commented.
"Shut up," Wally grumbled and started for his own bedroom, Robin trailing behind.
To be continued . . .
A/N: I hope I managed to make the three chapters involving Harm different enough to make them worth reading. As usual your comments are always a pleasure to read so let me know what you think, please! Thanks to all who kept prodding me to update, it helps push me to do it more than you know, seriously!
SakuraJade