I stood at where my home had just been. Ice jaw dropped. Besides the unfinished square that only the brick border reached up two feet and the fact that I didn't even have a roof (or walls in the case), a beautiful new cottage proudly sat on the ground. I pushed the door open and looked inside. It was dark, until Ice spotted the candle lamp next to the doorway and lit it up.
"What happened here?" I stared in awe. A chimney was in the side, complete with a fireplace and a cast iron pot for regular soups or witch potions.
"Look! Your treasure box is still here!" Ice cried. I walked up to it and opened the box. I still had my clothes, my scrolls, my potions...
"My...home?" I murmured. Ice picked up a note from the newly polished table.
"We're even," she read, "Hope you like it. It's from Red Hood!"
Amazing.
"I wonder how he does it," I murmured.
"Keeping in mind he gets an average of $800,592.67 for every successful illegal drug shipment they make a month, not too shabby an allowance for someone like that." I stared at her in astonishment and uttered, "How did you..."
"Spitfire keeps me informed," she winked with a smirk. We found the bedroom on the second floor with the most comfortable looking bed in the middle. But I settled down on the plushy rug right next to it. Yes Jason, we are so totally even.
...
The next few days were almost magical. Ice and I made a pond in the backyard so it would be nicer than the boring forest that surrounded the land. We dug a well to produce clear fresh H2O which came out as an utter failure because I got sewer water instead and I even invited Nightwing over for the evening.
"I am glad we have a more comfortable place to rest now," I said as I snapped my fingers. The broom stopped sweeping the floor and flew back into its corner. It was just a manipulation potion that my Aunt used to use on everything.
"I found some herbs," Ice bumped in the front door wearing my hooded cape, "See? I even got the rare midnight toadstool!" Yes, I'm really fascinated about that but why did you go out to the woods without telling me?
"Red Riding Hood," I started with a bit of sarcasm, "You didn't talk to any wolves right?"
"Nah. I chatted with an alligator," Ice shrugged, "He's got nice pants."
O O
"Excuse me?" I responded with the most funniest face I've ever made in my life.
"He's looking for a sewer hole. I told him to try the city," Ice continued, "either that or jump into the well." I smacked my forehead and ran out the front door. It was dark now and the fireflies were starting to glow. Ice locked the house up and followed me.
"You can't just let a mutated alligator run through the city," I sighed and leaped down into the well. I was knee deep in stale water again but followed the iron tunnels. My plasma pet transmuted into her sprite form and landed on my shoulder. Fighting noises and gunshots echoed through the tunnel.
Biff.
Smack.
Bang!
Bang!
Thud. Whack!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
CLANG.
Bone crushing sounds reverberated through the sewers.
"AAARGH!"
We hurried up and turned the corner. Ice was right. The mutated alligator really has nice pants. The problem was, HE'S EATING JASON'S SHOULDER! Not literally. Jason, (who wasn't wearing his red mask now that it had been split in half) pushed the alligator off and rammed an explosive on its chest. It blew the monster down into the abyss of never ending caves. Blood colored the greenish water that flowed between my legs. Red Hood pushed himself off the wall clutching his mangled shoulder and stumbled forward before losing balance. I ran up and caught him.
Whoa.
That is a lot of blood.
"Why exactly is Red Hood here?" Ice asked me. I looked up and spotted a guy running to the exit carrying a bag.
"Ice, get him." I said. Her arm shot up and grabbed the guy from 50 feet away. I glared at her.
"Not like that."
Jason had an impression on his face like if he was dying. Well, almost but at that moment I was more concerned than anything else. "How bad is it?" I asked softly.
"Bad enough," he murmured. I tried to help him walk to the exit.
"How many fingers do you see?" Ice asked as she held up a hand. I glared at her again and she instantly backed down. "Fine. If you really want me to say something more useful than I will say it," she huffed.
"Actually," I responded, "I was hoping you'd say nothing at all."
Silence.
"The alligator is Killer Croc who apparently wasn't smart enough to tell the difference between peppermint toothpaste and Mr. Scarecrow's toxic mouthwash," she finished with a smirk on her face.
What?
How did she know that?
Ice dragged the guy we caught earlier and swiped her hand in his bag.
"See?" she beamed as she held up a small vial of yellow liquid, "he's got some of the venom here so apparently Croc is supposed to kill the Red Hood."
"Exactly how many assassins have been after you?" I asked Jason.
"Now don't worry," Ice continued, "That stuff will only make your boyfriend's heart stop after forcing the liver and organs to shut down."
"Only?" my face twitched with horror.
"Ya, did I mention the hallucination part too?" she also added.
"Just move it," I growled and she jumped a foot in the air before zooming out of the sewers. Tucking the vial in my pouch, I then took a step forward only to realize Jason was being stubborn again. Even though he looked like he was about to drop dead, he pushed himself out of my grasp and staggered to the opening. I felt like I really needed to say something but instead sighed and followed him. Leaping right out of the well which was more than 50 feet deep, Jason staggered toward the forest.
"Jason," I ran after him, "Please listen. You will die if you don't let someone help you. I can at least heal your shoulder. Batman can probably fix up an antidote in time." He didn't say anything and just kept stumbling to wherever he was trying to go.
Bleck!
Ice covered her face.
Oh, now I understand. Jason vomited behind a tree. I massaged the bridge of my nose with my finger trying not to feel too awkward.
...
"Ice," I spoke as I brewed a potion with the herbs she found earlier, "drop that guy in the police station and bring one of the vials to Batman. Hurry, this is urgent."
"Got it!" she saluted then picked up the bound guy and flew out the door. Jason was sitting on the chair pouring alcohol on his shoulder. His shirt was on the ground. Ripping one glove off, I stuck my hand in the pot and activated my healing powers. They weren't very strong though and that's why I had to use the potion to heighten this ability. On normal circumstances, I would never make this because finding the main ingredient of the midnight mushroom is as rare as finding a diamond in the middle of a desert. My hand glowed aqua white and the potion simmered in the heat. I listened to the crickets chirp and Jason grunt with excruciating pain in the background. I do admit, that guy really has a lot of endurance though. The time slowly ticked by. Finally, the window rattled and Ice came rushing in.
"Batman was sort of busy..." she panted, "But don't worry, I asked Nightwing to do it. Of course, his results won't be ready till a week later."
"A week?!" I exclaimed, "Are you sure Batman can't do it?"
"Um...I don't know," Ice shrugged, "Have you ever tried asking an unconscious guy?"
"What happened?" I asked even more concerned.
"Mister butler dude told me that Bruce had been knocked out with some sort of gas that some villain developed. He's already been treated with whatever that counteracts it but he'll take a couple weeks to recover." A tingle sound caught our attention so Ice and I turned to the table.
"Oh no," Ice murmured. Jason was slumped over the table with his arm hanging over the edge. We rushed over to him and pulled him back to a sitting position.
"I will never listen to the walls that recite prophecies ever again," I huffed. My hand brushed against his forehead and what kind of fever was that?
"This is not good," Ice said, "At this rate, Jason will die in two days. Three days at the most."
"You're kidding."
...
This is already becoming a nightmare. You'd think coming back to Earth would be a rather pleasant thing but the last five years were so messed up. I find a guy that had been hung on a string and beaten like a pinata, then the fact he died, then years later the same guy comes back planning awesome revenge, I get into the ugly mess with mentor and student, they separate forever, so finally I break free only to be stuck between a super hero and a so-called anti-hero, where one was almost cooked to death and the other is sort of eaten by a mutant alligator. I dipped my towel in a bowl filled with my potion and pressed it against Jason's shoulder. Let's just say it hurt...a lot.
"Whoa!" Ice exclaimed as we jumped back, "I thought you were gonna kill him! Sheesh, this guy is strong!" I glared at her.
"Why do you talk so much so suddenly," I said, "Just 6 months ago you barely even utter a sound and now you can kiss yourself in front of Nightwing."
"My personality changes to balance my master," she replied, "Spitfire has become some sort of overprotective righteous proto-plasma. And because of that, we are now separate entities." Before I could retort, a rattling sound of the door caught our attention. Ice opened the door and exclaimed, "Spitfire!" Apparently, the perfect copy of the Red Hood stepped inside. Ice was right. Spitfire seemed awfully shy which was unlike his supposed to be character.
"There's an explosion in Nightwing's nest," he said quickly, "It looks very bad."
"How did it happen?" I asked immediately.
"I can't tell for sure," Spitfire told me earnestly, "But it seems like the synthetic chemicals you sent him was the cause of the accident." He glanced at the morose look on my face and then added in speedily, "Although, I also spotted a scarecrow hovering around in the area."
"We have to take a look," Ice noted, "This is too much of a coincidence to ignore."
"You stay here Ice," I interrupted, "I will go with Red Ho...I-I mean Spitfire."
"Aw..." she whined, "Okay then." I slung my cloak over my shoulders and blew the door open with my hand. Spitfire and I flew out a second later.
...
"Oh gosh," I gasped as we landed outside. Rubble was everywhere and smoke was steaming off of it. I ran up and desperately flung burnt boards, sticks, along with wooden beams. Spitfire joined the hunt too and he moved a log before I spotted Nightwing pinned underneath. He was just beginning to stir.
"Oh, hey Comet..." he groaned weakly, "How are you?" I stared at him in disbelief and then finally noted quietly, "You're the one stuck under a house."
"Right," he glanced around, "You don't mind if you could lend me a hand?"
"I could lend you two," Spitfire sidled up. The look on Nightwing's face changed.
"Does he always follow you?" he exclaimed, "What's up with hanging around a guy that's already dead?!"
"Nightwing, this is Spitfire," I sighed, "Jason's pet prototype plasma." Spitfire morphed into a glop of crimson gel before returning to his original form.
"Clayface?" he raised an eyebrow.
"Let me just help you," I rolled my eyes before sticking my hand under the steel thing. With a huff, I raised it up and threw it thirty feet away. The ground shook as it landed with a crash. Spitfire pulled Nightwing up by the arm but stopped as Nightwing cried, "Ow! Ow! Ow!" With more observation, it seemed like he got a dislocated shoulder. We got Nightwing on his knees and then I asked him if we should pop it back in.
"On three..." he noted but Spitfire took matters to his own hands.
"I got this," he said and placed a hand on Nightwing's shoulder. With the other, he held his forearm. In one smooth twist, it snapped right back into place. Nightwing yelped and then laughed weakly.
"You know your stuff don't you," he rubbed the shoulder for a second or two.
"What happened to the place?" I questioned.
"Right. While I was studying the samples you lent me, it exploded into erosive gas," Nightwing explained, "I considered the possibility that the Scarecrow might have placed a micro explosive inside as a trap but I didn't expect it to take my whole house down."
"Are you sure you can't develop an antidote in two days maximum? We can find a different place to run tests. It's just...Jason's not doing too well," I sighed.
"You mean besides the fact that he is already poisoned by the scarecrow's toxic liquid?" Nightwing said skeptically. I think he added a touch of sarcasm as well. I glared at him.
...
"There," Nightwing finished. We stared at what apparently was the antidote tucked in its little vial. It took him three hours of constant use of Bruce's super computer (which we borrowed) and four more to actually mix the chemicals needed itself.
"It will work?" I asked.
"One way to find out," Nightwing replied, "Well, should we fly back?" I realized I was lost in time and quickly snapped out of it.
"Right," I said and we quickly ran to the exit.
"Master Dick, you're leaving so soon?" Alfred asked from the doorway.
"Tell Bruce thanks," he waved as he grabbed my hand. I dragged him into the air and we made a long trip back to my cottage. None of us said a word for a while since we were both lost in thought. As swift as a sparrow, Spitfire flung himself over me. An explosion hit him, and he fell down below, melting into a glop of plasma.
"Spitfire?" I called in horror. What was that?
"Comet!" Nightwing shouted. He let go of my hand and sort of pushed me to the side. A huge missile barely missed from between us. I was afraid of the fact that Nightwing couldn't fly but he snapped his arms out like an airplane and glided with the fabric webbed under his arms. It was pretty fascinating.
"What's going on?" I cried.
"Howdy!" yelled a voice above us. I looked up to see a lady in a jet pack.
"What is Catwoman doing with that?" Nightwing exclaimed.
"An old cat can also learn new tricks Sweetie," she called and blew Nightwing a kiss before shooting another missile at us. This time, I snatched Nightwing's hand and pulled him out of the way.
"This won't be too hard," I said and twisted around to shoot the stuff off her back. She evaded my attack but I knew all too well that she'd do that.
"Co-met!" I shouted. My starbolt that was hurtling into the sky U-turned and blasted Catwoman from behind.
"So THAT was your special move," Nightwing breathed, "I heard Starfire mention it once." Catwoman pulled the wreckage of her back while she free fell to the ground. To my surprise, she landed daintily on the roof of a building and started to make her getaway completely unharmed.
"That was like...90 feet below," I hovered there in surprise.
"Yes," Nightwing said.
"And she's still running," I continued.
"Yes," Nightwing started to sound impatient.
"And can't seem to find my pouch," I looked around.
"Please can we chase after her now," Nightwing sighed exhausted.
"Okay," I smirked and darted through buildings with Nightwing yelling his lungs out. Catwoman looked back as she ran with something that seemed like surprise on her face before she sneered.
"Cat got your tongue?" she shouted.
"The early bird gets the worm!" Nightwing yelled back.
"It's too late for that!" Catwoman leaped high into the air. I was still flying after her. She flung something at us and it spewed clouds of purple smoke.
"Don't breath it in!" Nightwing cried, "Sleeping gas!" I wish he told me that earlier. I descended against my will and stumbled which was a terrible mistake because at the speed I was going, it slowed me down too much. We crashed into the cement a second later and skidded to a halt. Catwoman's laughter could still be heard in the city.
"H-Hey..." Nightwing groaned, "You...a-alright?" Both of us had taken a whiff of the gas earlier and according to my feelings, we were totally paying the consequences. Actually, I think Nightwing handled it better than I did; he sounded only slightly woozy. I didn't move from my position, still laying face down on the ground keeping my eyes shut to block out the pain. I know I scratched myself pretty bad right on the landing there but my lungs felt like they've been on fire. "Comet...can you hear me?" Nightwing shouted, "Are you okay?" After a couple fleeting minutes I shifted my body and turned my head more to the side to crack one eye open.
"A-Are...you sure..." I whispered, "Are you sure it's...sleeping g-gas? I-I honestly think it hurts more."
"Oh man," Nightwing groaned. I felt like I was dozing off but then pushed myself back up.
"Get on," I gritted my teeth.
"B-But..." he retorted.
"Ya you're right," I sighed and took and unsteady step forward, "I may faint at any time."
"Shouldn't you get some..." he pointed out but I ran him over again.
"We're going to lose the Cat lady if we stand around here," I stumbled forward uneasily and slipped a bit, "Now get on my back before I lose sight of her!" He just stood there. "Ugh!" I grabbed his hand with frustration and took of to the air with Nightwing desperately thinking of what to do to stop me. I flew raggedly for a while, possibly not even realizing it until it was he who was yelping every couple of seconds.
"Comet, I can take it from here," he said, "You should get some help."
"Right," I snorted, "I've got one right on me."
"No you don't look good," he argued, "You have to rest or you'll wear yourself out!" I tumbled a bit but righted myself. Somehow, my sense of up and down has been smudged.
"I have a choice to refuse Robin!" I steamed and skyrocketed into the air with the guy hanging on for dear life. "Comet Blaze!" I screamed with almost a deafening roar. Blue flames burst out of my palms and the moisture of the air instantly vaporized. My vision went black for a second and when it returned, we were free falling. I rolled over in the air and shot after the black figure somersaulting over roofs. I laser beamed a window off when I tried to zap her down. Nightwing suddenly pushed himself off of me and yanked me out of the air. We tumbled across street scaring quite a few cockroaches.
"What are you doing?!" I cried as he forced me up against the wall.
"Listen," he demanded, "I'm only doing this for you. And as your friend, I have a choice to stop you from making a decision that could cost you your life!" He tied me up well to a pole and continued in a softer tone, "In your condition, you could wind up killing someone. I'll go catch Catwoman while you stay here. I promise I'll come back to get you some medical attention okay?" Before I could yell at him, he shot a grappling hook and disappeared.
...
"Where did he learn to tie so well," I muttered panting quite heavily. I tried to pull my wrists through the loop but it was too secure. What kind of rope is that? Titanium laced? An average piece of string can't hold me like this for more than a couple seconds! And how long was I here, an hour? I swallowed and found that it was pretty difficult to do that and I was exhausted. Fuming silently, I had one last try. I used some of my energy and coated my whole body with it like a small forcefield. With a huff, I twirled around gracefully and the ropes fell off like noodles against a grinder. Staggering forward, I nearly lost my balance.
"B-Better give Nightwing a piece of my mind," I murmured to myself while I stomped eastward. I changed my mind and turned around. "Actually, I should head home." So I stumbled off, walking in a zigzag path, and I only knew that because the walls love bumping into me.
