Author's Note: This chapter will wrap up "Usual Suspects." It's pretty much one giant fight scene the whole time, with a tiny amount of Artemis/Desmond thrown in. Anyhow, enhoy!

Disclaimer: I own none of YJ.

Chapter Thirty One

Reckoning

Desmond stepped on the tarmac at Cape Canaveral. As Ra's had said, there was a jet waiting to fly the teen to Santa Prisca. The others had told Desmond a long time ago about their run in with the drug lord known as Bane on this island, so he was expecting that the jet maybe had a few of Bane's thugs within. What he was not expecting, however, was Talia.

"My dear brother!" she nearly shouted, rushing up to her younger half brother and giving him a squeeze. "You have finally come around. Oh, this is a glorious day. Finally it will be as it should; you, me, and father. The al Ghul name will become synonymous with power at last. And it's all because of you!" he planted a kiss on his cheek, and he turned away

"Yeah," he said. "Yeah… all because of me…" Talia made a sympathetic 'aww' sound.

"I understand it was hard to leave your friends," she said. "But you will find new ones. Among father's Shadow's, there are many great warriors. And you will lead them, brother." Desmond looked at her in confusion as they boarded the jet.

"Me?" he asked. Talia smiled.

"Oh yes," she said happily, as the engine began to come to life. "Father has already informed his ranks. After our dealings at Santa Prisca are completed, you will take command of the League of Shadows."

"What about… father," Desmond choked the last word out.

"He will still make the final decisions," she explained. "It will still be his force to control, but you have complete access to any one of them. It will no longer be just father that controls them." Desmond gazed out the window as the jet began picking up speed. Talia put a hand on his shoulder.

"Imagine it," she said. "An army of trained assassins, all at your control." Desmond nodded weakly. He remembered the vision Madam Sight had showed him at Haly's circus. While Desmond had seemed much older in the vision, maybe his partnership with Ra's would start early. If things didn't go right today… He didn't want to think about it.

XxXxX

The jet soared through the sky at breakneck speeds. It seemed to only be a matter of minutes before Talia and Desmond arrived at Santa Prisca. The jet door opened, and Talia stepped out. She offered a hand to Desmond who took it. As the teen emerged from the jet, the first person he saw was Superboy. The Kryptonian's eyes widened.

"Des?" he asked, sounding shocked. Desmond didn't have the will to meet his gaze, and Talia put an arm over his shoulder. She led her little brother over to their father, who put both his hands on his son's shoulders.

"My son," Ra's said with a bright smile. "You've come home at last." Desmond nodded solemnly.

"I'm here to serve you," he said. "…Father…" Ra's beamed, and embraced his son tightly. Desmond stiffened up, but returned the hug. When they pulled away, Desmond glanced over his shoulder. "Why is he here?" he asked, referencing Superboy. "You said you would leave my friends out of this." Ra's put a hand on Desmond shoulder, and spun him so they were both facing Superboy.

"And I did leave them out of this, my son," he explained. "However… I cannot tell another father what to do with their son." As if on cue, several people walked out from the shadows of the nearby trees. Most notably, Desmond spotted Blockbuster, Sportsmaster, and a woman he knew to be Queen Bee. And leading them was the billionaire Lex Luthor.

"Ah, is this the density shifter then?" he asked, referring to Desmond. "I must say, Ra's, your boy is a sight to see. If you look close, he looks just like you. The cold eyes. The tan skin. Soon he'll grow a beard." Ra's, Lex, Queen Bee and Talia laughed. Desmond faked a chuckle.

I want to strangle this man, he thought to himself. Just then the sound of a helicopter's propeller became audible, and within a few moments, a large black chopper had landed. The doors opened, and out stepped Cheshire and Artemis.

"Artemis?" asked Conner.

"What's she doing here?" Desmond asked, whirling to face his father. "You promised me her safety." Ra's held up a finger.

"Tut tut boy," he said. "Really, you mustn't blame every cruel twist of fate on me. Your companion has chosen to leave the hero life herself." Desmond widened his eyes, and turned to the archer.

"Artemis?" he asked her. She returned with a cold gaze.

"The hero thing wasn't working out," she said. "You guys get it." Desmond and Conner exchanged a glance, then looked away.

Sportsmaster looked over to Ra's. "So, the prodigal son returns, eh al Ghul?" he asked in his gravelly voice. "Was my daughter's life really this important to you, Shifter?"

"More than anything," Desmond murmured, looking down. Artemis made a sound in her throat, as if she was going to speak, but had decided against it.

Just then a familiar sound came from over head, and the three ex-heroes looked up to see M'gann's Bio-ship floating above them. The Martian girl slowly floated down, and moved hurriedly next to Queen Bee.

"What're they doing here?" she asked, sounding as if she'd been betrayed. "You promised."

"I've kept my secret, and my promise," said Queen Bee. "Now you keep yours." M'gann slowly looked downwards in shame and submission.

"Give me more shields," said Superboy after a moment. "And I'm in too." Luthor walked forward, a sly smile on his face.

"My boy," he said. "You're a terrible liar." Superboy's eyes widened, and he moved to attack Lex. "Red Sun." Suddenly the Kryptonian froze in his tracks. No one made a sound. Then, slowly, Artemis stepped forward.

"What do you want us to do?" she asked Lex. The billionaire looked to Sportsmaster, and nodded.

"You two, follow me," he said to Artemis and M'gann. "The Demon can stay with his son."

"What about Superboy?" asked M'gann.

"He'll be fine," assured Queen Bee, but not in a compassionate way. "He simply requires a few… adjustments." Luthor began to walk, followed by Queen Bee. He told Blockbuster to take Superboy.

And then Artemis charged.

She quickly let an arrow loose, aiming for Blockbuster's chest. It impacted, and the blue monster was covered in her classic green foam.

"Sorry dad," she said, cocking another arrow. "Wanted to play you like you tried to play me. But I can't let him mess with Superboy's head." Just then M'gann's eyes glowed, and Artemis began levitating into the air. Then, out of nowhere, Queen Bee was mentally flung into a tree, knocked unconscious. Artemis flipped midair, launching an arrow at Sportsmaster. He dodged out of the way.

"Oh heroes," said Ra's in his son's ear. "What to do, what to do. Desmond, my son, go forth and fight for your father. Fight for the al Ghul name." Desmond hardened himself and nodded. He took one step forward, then spun on his heel, and delivered a punch that sent Ra's flying into a tree.

And then all hell broke loose.

Blockbuster broke free of his foam encasing and charged a distracted Superboy. The two began to duke it out. Ra's was away for the moment, but Desmond knew he'd be back. M'gann was dodging projectiles from an army of thugs, led by Bane. Artemis was dealing with Sportsmaster and Cheshire. Desmond rushed Bane, sending the luchador to the ground. Despite Desmond's raised density, the villain was an even match. Desmond could smell something odd on him, and realized it must be Venom; the super-steroid that Bane had created.

The two pushed against each other, about evenly matched. Then Desmond lowered his density incredibly fast, and Bane flew through his body. Desmond re-hardened himself, and delivered a kick to Bane's spine. The Spaniard flew towards the side of the cliff. Desmond ran and caught up with him. As Bane began to rise up, Desmond kicked his legs out from under him, and pushed him off the side of the ledge. Bane's fingers gripped onto the edge, and he looked to the waters below. He would survive the fall, but he would be out of the fight,

"Adios, little hermano," he said. "Tell your sister I said hello." With a cocky grin, the humungous villain released his grip and fell to the ocean below.

Guys, thought Artemis, making use of the mental link M'gann had set up. Reinforcement time. As if they had been waiting for a cue (which they had been) the rest of Young Justice sprang into action. Kid Flash began zipping around, taking out Bane's thugs that were shooting at M'gann and Artemis. Desmond saw Aqualad confront Luthor, but the woman he was with stepped forward suddenly. She held out her arm, and a cannon emerged from it, blasting Aqualad out of the way. Robin and Zatana began helping to rid the area of more gun totting thugs.

Shifter looked to Superboy, who was locked in combat with Blockbuster. Suddenly, the ex Cadmus researcher flung his creation off the cliff.

"No!" shouted Desmond, springing at Blockbuster. The two collided, and Desmond sent him flying into a boulder. The large rock cracked, and the two forms flew through to the other side, rubble scattering all around. Soon Superboy returned, but before they could double team Blockbuster, the hulking blue monstrosity flung Desmond off of him. The teenager flew through the air, and landed on his back. When he got up, he turned to the nearest person. Ra's. He had removed his usual green cloak, as well as his shirt. Ra's was a rather built man—running a league of expertly trained assassins is a great way to stay in shape.

"My poor, poor son," he said sadly. He slowly drew the scimitar clasped to his waist. "I had such high hopes for this day."

"You're a fool, Ra's," Desmond retorted, hardening himself for the battle to come. "I'll never join you. And now I need to prove that." Finished talking, Desmond ran at his father. He grabbed him by the shoulders, and flung him back. Ra's flipped over in the air and landed on his feet. The centuries old man charged his son, sword swinging violently. It slashed at Shifter, who blocked with his wrists. Though his density was high, this blade was sharp enough to cut solid stone, and it left gashes along Desmond's arms. Desmond saw an opening and leaned in for a punch, but Ra's brought the sword down hard. It slashed against Desmond's face, making him recoil quickly. A long gash made Desmond's face red with blood. It went from just under his right eye, across his nose, and ended near the left side of his bottom lip. He wiped blood away and spat on the ground.

"You'll need to do better than that," Ra's mocked. Desmond charged his father again, though this time his density was lowered. He ran straight through Ra's, spun around, and delivered three jabs to his upper back. The Demon's Head fell to his knees, but quickly flipped himself up and delivered a kick that hit Desmond in the abs. But Shifter was ready. He grabbed Ra's ankle, and twisted. Hard. There was the sound of bones breaking, and Ra's let out a bloodcurdling scream. Immediately Talia was there. She quickly grabbed their father, and began dragging him away.

"Today my heart is heavy, dear brother," she said to Desmond, her eyes full of sadness.

"You will regret this, boy!" spat Ra's, his face contorted with pain. His foot was practically backwards. "You will regret the day you chose them over me!" Talia helped Ra's back to the jet, and they promptly took off. Desmond watched them go for a moment, feeling relief flood his body. Then he heard an anguished cry.

"Artemis!" he yelled, hearing the archer fall to the ground. He ran over, and saw Sportsmaster readying up some type of flail. Cheshire stood over her. Desmond saw out of the corner of his eye Kid Flash coming in hot. He collided with Cheshire, and Desmond charged Sportsmaster. He dodged Sportsmaster's flail, and grabbed the hockey mask wearing villain by the arms. He lowered his density, and dragged them both into the ground. He released Sportsmaster just before his chest went under, so he was just a head, a neck, and half a torso. Desmond reemerged and walked up to Artemis. He offered her a hand, and she took it.

"Jade!" shouted Sportsmaster. Cheshire walked over.

"Sorry dad," she said, taking off her mask. She actually looked an awful lot like Artemis, but with black hair, and slightly more Vietnamese. "In this family it's every girl for herself." She looked to Artemis and Desmond, and winked at her sister. "That's a hell of a guy you've got there, sis." She commented, before disappearing into the shadowy jungle of Santa Prisca.

Artemis slowly strode up to her father, stuck deep in the ground. She smiled a sly smile, wound up, and delivered a kick so powerful it knocked off the hockey mask. She lifted it off the ground and walked back to Desmond with it in her hands. The density shifter looked to Sportsmaster, who had a bloody nose with no way to plug it up.

"Souvenir for Wally," Desmond commented. Artemis smiled, and wrapped her arms around Desmond tightly. He returned the gesture.

"We did it," she whispered in his ear. "We won." Desmond smiled and nodded. But he had to wonder if it was true. Ra's, Lex, Queen Bee and Bane had all escaped, not to mention Cheshire. But both these teens had put their fathers in their place, and that was victory enough.

The team grouped together as the few criminals that were captured got inhibitor collars snapped on their necks. Artemis and Desmond had their arms over each other's shoulders, both for friendly reasons, and since they were both pretty beat up.

"Disaster averted," Robin said, watching Blockbuster get hauled away. "Definitely feeling the aster." The others smiled and nodded.

"Agreed," said Aqualad. "This has been a good day."

So that was that. As you all know, the next episode is "Auld Acquaintance," the season one finale. I'll be honest, I'm not sure where to take it from there. I have my ideas, and I'll keep ruminating on them for a while. I'll keep everyone posted. Until then, please review and favorite, and keep an eye out for the next chapter.