Ch.19: Usual Suspects
Gotham City: December 30, 5:45
Batman walked down the halls of Wayne Manor. He was heading to Danny's room, since he already woke Robin up. The Boy Wonder was now getting a quick shower before they went to the Hall of Justice to set up for the five new members acceptance into the League. He wanted to get there by at least six to help set up.
He walked up to his adopted son's door and knocked. "Danny, open up."
He didn't get an answer. He knocked louder. "Danny, wake up and open the door."
He still didn't get an answer. Batman gave an impatient sigh, and tried opening the door himself.
It was locked.
"Danny, open up, now!" Batman shouted, annoyed and worried.
"One min-" Danny's voice was cut off and Batman didn't know from what. He got out his lock pick and easily got the door open in five seconds. He opened the door and entered the room.
The sound that was unheard through the door immediately hit Batman's ears. He ran over to the bathroom and busted the door open.
Danny was on the ground, retching into the toilet, tears streaming down his face. Batman got a rag, wetted it with cold water, and was by Danny's side an instant. When Danny finally stopped a second later, Batman wrapped an arm around his shoulders and wiped off his mouth. He rinsed it out, and placed it on Danny's sweating forehead. As he did, he noticed that a blanket and a pillow were laid forgotten on a rug by the shower.
"Danny, can you hear me?" Batman asked. The hybrid nodded, and grabbed the area around his ribs and grimaced in pain. He vaguely heard Danny mumble 'Why can't I suppress it?', his voice was so low.
Instantly, Batman knew Danny was beyond a simple cold or flu. Whatever was wrong was way beyond that now.
With some help, Danny was able to get onto his feet.
"Danny, do you know what's wrong?" Batman asked.
"No."
The simple word was slurred and obviously a lie to Batman's ears. He knew Danny was not going to tell him. So, he did what any other sensible person would do in this instant.
He grabbed Danny's wrist and started dragging him to the med bay.
The boy let out a yelp and stumbled behind the Caped Crusader.
"Where we going?" He asked, trying to keep up.
"The med bay."
"Why?"
It wasn't Danny who asked. It was Robin, who walked around the corner at that very moment. Batman gave Danny a small glare, which made him shrink back some. "Because he's sick and didn't tell me."
Robin raised an eyebrow. "I thought ghosts couldn't get sick."
The Boy Wonder trailed behind the Dark Knight who continued to drag Danny.
"They can't, and neither should Danny, which is exactly why he's in trouble." Batman said.
Danny winced but not from Batman's firm grip. "It's not that bad. I have it all taken care of."
Another lie.
Batman gave Danny a look, seeing right through it. Danny winced again.
Batman drug Danny to the med bay, Robin hovering behind worriedly. As they got there, Batman ordered Danny on the bed and after a few tests, an MRI, a CAT scan, and an x-ray, they found a growing tumor in Danny's ribs.
When they found, Danny looked away guiltily. Batman narrowed his eyes. "How long?"
Danny looked at the ground.
"Answer me, Danny. Now."
The halfa shrunk back.
"Danny."
The Ghost Boy mumbled something incoherent.
"I can't hear you. Say it louder." Batman ordered. Danny finally looked at him, still guilty. "Since I came back…"
Robin's eyes widened and his mouth hung open in shock. Batman looked at him furiously. "You didn't tell me because?"
Danny shifted. "I didn't know until sometime after and I thought it'd go away…"
Batman pointed to the sheet with the tumor. "Does it look like it's going away?" He hissed. Danny looked away and shook his head.
"You're staying here until I can figure out a way to get it gone."
Danny remained nervous on the bed. "You can't."
Batman crossed his arms. "And why not?"
Danny looked close to tears. "It's a rare illness among ghosts. It's so rare it's actually considered a myth in the Ghost Zone and they have no idea how to cure it. I'm not sure how I got it, but it slowly takes away my powers and then kills me."
"I'm going to find a cure anyhow." Batman said determinedly.
Danny shook his head. "It's no use."
Robin stood up. "How can say that, D? You've faced more than a little virus and now you choose to give up?!"
Danny turned his head to him sharply. "It's not just a little virus! This tumor is killing me! If it was a little virus I would have already healed it! But it isn't a virus and it's killing me! I'm dying at this very moment! There's only one way to cure it and I'm not sure if it's really worth it anymore…"
Batman leaned forward and put his hands by Danny's body. "It's worth it if it saves you."
Danny shook his head. "No, it's not."
A beep went off.
Batman sighed and pressed his com.
"What is it?" He said sharply. He let out an exaggerated sigh. "Do I have to come?" He clenched the bed sheets. "Fine." He cut off the call and looked at Danny. "I have to go to the Hall of Justice. You're staying here."
Danny looked at him hard. "No, I'm coming whether you like it or not. I won't tell anyone and we can come here straight after."
Batman let out a very annoyed sigh. "Fine, but no one breath's a word, and we are coming straight back after the ceremony."
Danny nodded. "Fine with me."
Washington D.C.: December 30, 09:16EST
"The Justice League was formed for two reasons. First, as an acknowledgment that no single individual, no matter how powerful, can solve the world's problems alone. And second, to uphold the values of truth, liberty, and justice. That uh, last one's even in the name." The press laughed at Superman's small joke and cameras flashed. The Man of Steel turned to the five heroes becoming League Members. "These five heroes have sworn to uphold those values."
Inside the Hall, the Team and their new member Rocket, watched the footage as Cat Grant covered the story. She looked very excited to be doing this story.
"You are watching live coverage of the Justice League's induction of its five newest members. Looks like the entire League showed up to welcome the new blood. Everyone from Batman to Captain Marvel." Cat said.
Wally smiled at Captain Marvel's figure. "I'm glad they didn't kick Billy out and I love the fact that there's a ten year old on the League." He said.
Rocket turned to him like he was crazy. "There is?"
Danny, who seemed paler than usual, face palmed. "Idiot."
Robin bumped Wally for being so ignorant. "Way to keep a secret, genius."
Wally didn't see a problem with what he did. "Hey, she's on the Team now, right?" Wally bit into his apple and the Team continued to watch.
"Superman is now handing out official League membership cards starting with Dr. Fate-"
Zatanna looked away, knowing her father was in that suit. Robin placed a hand on her shoulder in a comforting way. Danny, from afar, gave her a small frown in understanding.
"Atom." They saw a really small man on Plastic Man's shoulder, holding the card that was bigger than him. "Plastic Man and Icon."
"You know, I was the one who convinced Icon to be a hero in the first place. I should be outside celebrating with him, not hidden away in here." Rocket said, jealous.
Aqualad smiled at her. "Welcome to our world."
Danny scoffed. "No kidding." He mumbled.
Rocket smiled at Aqualad, not having heard Danny. "Well, I suppose there's an upside too." The teens turned their attention back to the screen to see Green Arrow hand Red Arrow his card and shake his hand.
"Finally, Green Arrow welcomes his former protégé Speedy, now known as Red Arrow, to this roster of heroes." Cat observed.
"Way to go Roy!" Wally cheered.
"He finally has his wish." Aqualad said with a smile.
"First of us to make it. No one will call him a sidekick anymore." Robin said. Danny shrugged, not really caring. He never had a problem before with the term 'sidekick' and he didn't know Red Arrow all that well anyways.
"Wait, since when has being sidekick a bad thing?" Rocket asked. "You sidekicks were my inspiration!"
Robin looked at her with a frown. "Well, see, six months ago it-" Robin was cut off by his watch. Danny was by him in an instant.
"So, there you have it." Cat Grant said, finishing up this story. "The world's officially a safer place."
Heroes like the Hawks, Captain Atom, and others of the life flew off, and the press begged questions from Superman.
Batman, Black Canary, Martian Manhunter, Icon, Red Arrow, Plastic Man, and Atom walked inside the Hall and stopped by the doors.
"Are you ready to see the Watchtower?" Black Canary asked.
"Born that way, plus six months." Red Arrow said with a smile.
"I'm sure the Team will want to congratulate you first." Canary said.
"You don't know Raquel, that is, Rocket. After making her wait inside, congratulations may not be the first thing on her mind." Icon said.
"Congratulations will have to wait from Danny. He and I have some business to take care of." Batman said, emotionlessly.
"What business?" Canary asked.
Batman glared. "Important business."
Black Canary rolled her eyes but they walked inside.
The room was empty.
"Well I thought she would at least stick around." Icon said, seeing the room.
Anger radiated off of Batman in waves. "Danny is in so much trouble."
Smokey Mountains: December 30, 10:48EST
The Bio-Ship flew over the Smokey Mountains, all the teens in costume.
"Are you sure it's her? I mean, are you absolutely positive?" Artemis asked nervously.
"See for yourself." Robin said and brought up a video. "This is the security footage from the Ashville Regional Airport."
The video showed a girl with black hair in a ponytail and a hat get on a private jet.
"Facial recognition confirms that's Jade Nguyen. But you've seen her without her mask. What do you think?" Robin asked.
Artemis looked down. "It's Jade, Cheshire."
"Agreed, but focus on what she carries." Aqualad said. The screen went from her head to her hand which held a fancy case.
"Is that the case you saw in New Orleans, the one that got away?" Aqualad asked.
"Yes." Artemis stated.
"Ok, I'm guessing from the mug shot that this Cheshire's the bad guy but what's so important about that case?" Rocket asked, gaining everyone's attention.
"Remember the Injustice League?" Robin asked, bringing up a picture.
"And their giant evil plants? Uh, yeah!" Rocket said.
"The Team and the League put them in prison but their allies still scheme and whatever's in that containment case seems important to their plans." Aqualad informed.
"We had a chance to grab it in New Orleans. But someone screwed up." Kid Flash said, giving Artemis a pointed glare.
"Kid, I seriously wish you would shut your big mouth and stop playing the innocent card."
Everyone turned to Danny, who was furious, in shock. He was glaring at Kid Flash, leaning forward from his seat by Robin. "I am so sick of hearing you bag on Artemis for what she did wrong. How would you like it if I kept nagging you on how you lied to everyone about believing in magic? You wouldn't take it very well. Mistakes are a good thing. They help you learn. People fall to teach themselves to get back up and keep fighting. So next time you decide to say something rude, keep your mouth shut."
Danny turned to the front, missing everyone's shocked looks, and a guilty one from a certain speedster.
"Batman's going to kill you." Robin mumbled so only Danny could hear.
The hybrid shrugged. "I'm already on my way there, anyways." Robin looked at him sadly.
"Approaching Cheshire's jet." Megan said, breaking the silence, but then gasped, everyone following. Artemis had to look away.
The jet they found was completely destroyed in a pile of rubble.
"Looks like there were no survivors." Megan said.
"Don't assume so early on. Remember the last few times we assumed." Danny said. The entire Team, not including Rocket, grimaced.
They parked the Bio-ship mid-air and went down cautiously to investigate the crash site.
"How come Homeland Security and the NTSB aren't all over this?" Kid Flash asked.
"Cheshire's ID was a League alert. Authorities didn't pick it up, and her jet didn't follow its flight plan. Flew under the radar, literally. But the Watchtower auto-tracked the jet and recorded the crash." Robin said.
"Then why isn't the League here?" Rocket asked.
Danny smirked. "Because little Boy Wonder here has some freakish hacking skills and got the alert first."
"And because Cheshire and that case represent our unfinished business." Aqualad said.
Danny gave an annoyed glare. "Do you know how offensive that sounded? Dude, I'm a ghost! How else did I get here?" Aqualad rolled his eyes.
Superboy moved a piece of the plane out of the way. "Where are the bodies?"
"Here's one."
The Team's heads snapped up and saw Cheshire on a cliff above unscathed. "And it is stunning."
Artemis couldn't hide her small smile in joy.
"I am flora, not fauna!"
Danny couldn't suppress his groan. "Oh Lord, not again. Didn't we battle him last week?" He asked Robin who sighed in annoyance.
"I am foliage, not trees! What am I?" Riddler said, surrounded by guards with Apokoliptan weapons and Shimmer and Mammoth.
Riddler snapped his fingers and a bunch of pylons came out of the ground, making a green dome.
"Come on, you can get this. I am shrubbery, not grass. What am I? I…" Riddler trailed off.
"Ambush." Danny and Robin both said. Riddler walked forward with a smirk and looked down at the teens. "Didn't you think we'd be zipped if we knew you were on Cheshire's trail? We're tired of your interference kiddies. This is the end game. Ordered from above and executed by their master's strategists, muaw."
"Miss Martian, is everyone linked?" Aqualad asked.
"Yes." Megan answered immediately.
"Go."
The Team split up to battle their respected foes.
"Ekahs siht ebolgwons!" Zatanna said, and a snowstorm started up in the dome. (Instead of the Greenhouse Effect, it's the Snow Globe Effect!)
Kid Flash and Aqualad easily started taking out troops who had the Apokoliptan weapons.
"Superboy, the pylons!" Aqualad said.
"Working on it." Superboy mumbled and walked behind a piece of fallen debris. He got his box with the Shields. Only one was left.
"Last one. Better make it count." He mumbled and stuck it on under his sleeve on his wrist and groaned. Then he ran to do his job.
Artemis shot an explosive arrow at Cheshire, sending the assassin back and causing her to drop her case. Cheshire easily got out her collapsible swords. Artemis shot another arrow, but Cheshire easily dodged. The masked woman ran forward and got into a battle of martial arts with the teen.
You could hear Cheshire chuckle. "Just like old times! Dad pinning us against each other!"
Cheshire continued throwing all her weight into the throws of her sword and Artemis used her bow as a shield.
More ground troops were taken out by Kid Flash as he ran passed them. Rocket flew by and started taking out the guards on the ledges of the cliff faces. She knocked another one off and onto another ledge. It was actually kinda comical.
Megan dodged another shot of red as a troop slashed his scythe. She used her telekinesis to throw him off the side and into another troop. Again, very comical.
One troop shot a blast. A disk flew out and started shocking the new hero Rocket. She obviously screamed in pain. Robin jumped up and kicked the troop in the head, instantly knocking him out.
Aqualad ran to help, but a troop caused the ground under him to turn into mush, and Aqualad fell into it.
Danny flew to Rocket and blasted the disk causing her pain. Megan came up behind the guard that got Aqualad caught and threw a boulder into his side.
Superboy destroyed another pylon with heat vision, trying to set them free. Mammoth jumped behind him and punched him to the cliff face on the other side of the canyon. Mammoth jumped across the canyon but before he could reach Superboy, the clone jumped back at him, punched him in the face, and grabbed his shirt. He flew into the air, still holding Mammoth.
"SB, you're flying!" Robin said astonished.
"Wow." Was all Danny was able to manage saying.
Superboy flew a little higher before throwing Mammoth into the top of the shield. Mammoth was shocked and fell to the ground. Superboy was behind him in an instance and got him with x-ray vision into another cliff face. He then started punching Mammoth at a speed that was so fast, you couldn't see his arms. His punches caused a small avalanche on that side. And it fell right where Artemis and Cheshire were battling.
"Artemis!" Cheshire shouted, abandoning her weapons, and tackling the archer out of the way. When it was over, Artemis looked at Cheshire in shock. No words were said but they hung in the air.
Cheshire sighed. "Fine, we're sisters. I don't actually want you dead." The assassin got up and disappeared.
Artemis got up too and looked around. She spotted something under some rocks and rubble. The case.
Riddler and Shimmer watched the fight from their spot, but a bomb landed beside them, blew up, and smoke got in their faces, making them cough. A net flew out of the smoke and caught Shimmer. Robin followed and punched Simmer in the face. The scrawny girl was lurched backwards into a wall and fell to the ground unconscious.
"Tekcajtiarts!" A straightjacket appeared around Riddler and he gasped in shock. "No! No! I am not the straightjacket type! I am strictly Belle Reve! Not Arkham!"
Danny jumped up from behind and punched Riddler in the back of the head. "Now you are. Hey Zatanna, can you gag him? I didn't punch him that hard and he should wake up in a few minutes."
Zatanna shrugged from behind. "Gag mih." A gag matching the straightjacket appeared around him.
Danny gasped. "He matches!" Robin rolled his eyes.
Zatanna landed on a near-by ledge and Rocket flew up and stood by her.
"Is it always like this?" The rookie asked.
"Yeah, pretty much. Hguone htiw eht ebolgwons." Zatanna commented. The snowstorm stopped and so did the Snow Globe Effect. (Bummer.) Rocket and Zatanna walked away to meet up with the others.
Mount Justice: December 30, 15:45EST
"Tell me if this sounds familiar. You hacked League systems, disobeyed protocol, endangered your lives, and your initiative resulted in the capture of three escaped felons, proving Warden Strange runs Belle Reve as a cover for criminal activity." A ghost of a smile played on Batman's lips. "Well done."
The teens gave each other winning smiles. "And then there's this." Batman said, walking up to the case Artemis got. "Bio-technology integrated with some form of nano-circuitry."
Icon picked one of the pieces. "Though I am unfamiliar with this species, the bio-component is clearly not of earth."
Batman closed the case after Icon put it back. "We'll take it to the Watchtower for further study. And as for Danny,"
The Ghost Boy in question shrunk back, hood up.
"You are in so much trouble." The Dark Knight hissed.
The teens, all except Robin, who gave his brother a sympathetic smile, were confused.
"Why is he in trouble and we aren't?" Wally asked.
Danny chuckled nervously. "I may have some "business" with him that we were going to work on after the ceremony. But as you can see, we were doing something important. Yeah…"
Batman narrowed his eyes. "That's your excuse."
Danny shifted his foot. "I was doing poetic justice?"
Now Batman flat out glared earning a few more nervous chuckles. "We'll take care of our business later, but until we sort it out, you won't be seeing much of your friends."
The teens were in shock. "Why not?" Megan asked.
Danny put a hand on her shoulder. "I already knew that was going to happen. I'm pretty sure I'll see you again."
Batman continued to glare at Danny. "You will see him again. I'll pick you up in an hour. You will be here, right?"
Danny nodded, really fast.
"Good."
With that, the Leaguers left the teens and went to the Watchtower.
Before Icon could go though, Rocket flew to her mentor's side first.
"Congratulations on the League thing. Sorry I skipped out." She said sheepishly.
"Yes, well, we both seem to have found teams that seem to suit us." Icon commented. Rocket smiled at her mentors words.
"We should go too. Don't want to miss the League's induction party." Canary said and led Icon to the Zeta-Tubes.
"Black Canary; 13."
"Icon: 20."
Once the adults were gone, the Team went into business mode.
"You realize we were set up." Robin said.
"Yes, Cheshire and Riddler were tipped and ready for us." Aqualad said.
Artemis grabbed her head. "Not the mole thing again."
Rocket walked over confused. "Mole thing? Again?"
Kid Flash sighed. "We had Intel that there was a traitor on the Team."
"Namely Artemis, M'gann, Danny, or me." Superboy said angrily.
Aqualad grabbed his arm in a comforting gesture. "It is more complicated than that."
Superboy threw Aqualad's arm off and started walking away.
"But your recent behavior does concern me. Your attack on Mammoth nearly got Artemis killed." Aqualad said.
Superboy continued walking but grabbed his ear when he heard a high-pitched noise. He vaguely heard Danny do the same.
"What is that noise?" The hybrid complained.
"What noise?" Robin asked worriedly.
"That high-pitched one! How can you not hear it?" Danny questioned.
"Are you sure you don't have a tumor in your brain? It does that when you do." Danny glared at the Boy Wonder but nobody else got it.
As that was happening, Superboy heard something else. "Superboy, I believe you used the last of your Shields. I have more. Meet me at Santa Prisca."
Superboy heard Danny sigh in relief when the noise stopped.
"Superboy?" Aqualad asked, noticing his hearing acting up to. Superboy turned to the group. "There's something I need to do."
Santa Prisca: December 30, 17:57ECT
Superboy flew the super cycle Sphere down to Santa Prisca, where he had his first mission. He landed in a clearing and heard someone behind him. He turned around, a scowl on his face, and was met with the sight of Lex Luther, Queen Bee, and the millionaire's assistant, Mercy.
"Welcome Superboy. I'd like to introduce you to my associate, Queen Bee." Lex said. The ruler in question smirked as she took the man's hand.
"My pleasure." She said. Luther also smirked. "I believe you know everyone else."
Superboy continued to frown.
"Sportsmaster, Mercy." Luther said, and the villain in question walked up and the girl remained standing still.
"Blockbuster."
The freak from Superboy's first memory walked up too.
"And our new friend Bane, who's allowed us use of his island in exchange for certain… considerations."
The traitor from the first mission walked up behind with a few troops.
"There is one more person I would like to introduce. And his name is Vlad Plasmius." Lex introduced. Superboy watched with disinterest as a vampire wannabe appeared next to Luther.
A few things clicked in Superboy's mind. "So the Injustice League was just a distraction. You three have been behind everything from the start."
Luther chuckled. "A flattering notion son, but we have many friends."
A helicopter appeared over the clearing and landed aways from the group.
"This one of your friends now?" Superboy questioned.
Luther smirked. "No, my boy, one of yours."
The door opened up to the helicopter and Artemis and Cheshire got out. The two friends gasped upon seeing each other.
"Artemis?" Superboy said, totally astonished. The two girls walked up to Sportsmaster.
"The hero thing wasn't working out. So you see how it is. No trust." Artemis said and shrugged.
Sportsmaster put his hand on his daughter's shoulder.
"This is where I belong." She said.
Queen Bee smirked. "It's a fast growing club."
The Bio-ship flew up ahead and Megan floated out, hood up. She gasped upon seeing Connor and landed near Queen Bee.
"Why are they here? You promised!" Megan said to the queen.
"I have kept your secret and my promise. Now, you keep yours." Queen Bee said defensively.
Megan nodded.
"Good girl."
"Of course…"
The three friend's heads whipped to the figure that emerged from the forest, hood up. Green eyes peered at them sadly.
"Well, at least I know someone here beside the dear old fruitloop standing over there." Danny said, pointed to the older halfa, and walked over to Plasmius who smirked in response.
Danny glared at the older man. "Give me the cure and I'll listen to you."
Plasmius smirked. "Of course, Little Badger."
He threw a vial to Danny, who easily caught it. Danny popped off the cork and drank the whole thing, except for a few drops. He felt the growing pain in his side start to die down already.
"Now, come here, Little Badger." Danny walked to Plasmius' side silently.
"Danny, what do you mean, cure?" Megan asked. Danny didn't meet her eyes.
Vlad chuckled. "Your little friend here has been sick for some time. Didn't he tell you?"
The others shook their heads and Vlad chuckled again.
Superboy shrugged. "I don't care. Just give me my Shields and I'm in too."
Luther walked forward and smirked. "My boy, you're a terrible liar."
Superboy looked at him in anger and got ready to attack.
"Red sun."
Superboy froze and became still.
Megan looked down and Artemis walked forward.
"What do you want us to do?" The archer questioned. Luther nodded to Sportsmaster, who nodded back.
"You three, follow me." He ordered to the last remaining teens.
"But what about Superboy?" Megan asked.
Queen Bee smiled at Megan sweetly. "He'll be fine. He simply requires a few adjustments."
Luther walked away from the frozen still boy.
Superboy stopped before he left completely. He turned around. "There's something I need to do. Something I need to tell you. Last month, on Thanksgiving, I went back to Cadmus. I found a few things out. When I was cloned, only half the DNA was Superman's. The other half was human. That's why I don't have, I'll never have, full Kryptonian powers."
"You sure? Cause you sure seem to have them today." Robin said.
Superboy showed the Shield on his arm. "I've been using these. Shields. They suppress my human DNA. I get the flight, the heat vision. But I think I also get angry, well, angrier. I'm sorry."
"Where did you get those?" Aqualad asked.
"From my human father, Lex Luther." Superboy said simply. Everyone's eyes widened.
"Lex. Luther. Is your dad!" Danny and Robin shouted.
Superboy nodded. "He's summoned me to Santa Prisca."
Megan walked by the stiff Superboy with a guilty look. She looked down at the ground after a small peak.
"Bring him along." Luther ordered Blockbuster. The freak walked forward and got ready to pick up the boy.
Artemis narrowed her eyes, ran forward, and shot an arrow, to her sister and father's surprise.
Artemis watched Superboy's confession in shock and decided to do the same.
"Uh, listen." She started.
Everyone had eyes on her now.
"Superboy's not the only one suffering from bad DNA." She said and walked away. The blonde brought three pictures up on the computer. One was of Sportsmaster and his secret ID, Cheshire and her secret ID, and a villain named Huntress and her secret ID, Artemis's mom.
"My mother is Huntress, an ex con. The rest of my family aren't even ex. My dad's Sportsmaster, and he's sending my sister, Cheshire, to fly me to Santa Prisca." She confessed.
"That's why…" Kid Flash trailed off but Artemis knew what he was saying. "Yeah, I was so desperate to make sure none of you found out."
"We knew." Robin said, gesturing to him and Danny. Artemis looked at the smirking boys, startled, and so did everyone else.
"Hey, I'm a detective." Robin said.
"And I'm the adopted brother of a detective." Danny said smirking, and shrugged. "But it never mattered."
Robin nodded, agreeing with Danny. "You aren't your family. You're one of us."
Artemis smiled.
The arrow hit Blockbuster and foam trapped him in its grasp.
"Sorry dad! I wanted to play you like you played me but I can't let you mess with Superboy's head!" Artemis said and pointed an explosive arrow at Sportsmaster and Cheshire.
"Megan, be a dear, and take Artemis down." Queen Bee said, through a mental link. Megan turned to Artemis defiantly and lifted her in the air, saving her from Sportsmaster clutches, but evil intent all the same.
Megan looked at the screen and to her friends. Wally put a hand on Artemis's shoulder.
"So, who's next?" He said jokingly.
"I am." Megan said.
Everyone looked at her shocked.
"I swear, I was kidding." Wally said quickly, putting his hands up.
Megan looked at the ground still, though. "Queen Bee's been blackmailing me. She wants me at Santa Prisca too."
The Team looked at her confused.
"Blackmailing? How?" Aqualad asked.
"She knows my true Martian form."
They were still confused.
"Bald M'gann? Who cares if-"
"No." Megan cut off Robin. She sighed and became her white Martian self, earning many startled gasps, open mouths, and wide eyes. Only Superboy and Aqualad hid it. Danny did too, but he still had wide eyes.
"Wow." Rocket said.
Megan placed her hands around herself. "I realized you guys would never accept me if you saw what I really am."
Aqualad looked at her seriously. "M'gann, do we really seem so shallow?"
"I couldn't take the chance. Being a White Martian among the Green on Mars, I endured constant rejection. I couldn't face that from-"
"Me?" Superboy cut off. He walked forward and took her hand. "I've known since we mind-melded last September in Bialya."
Megan looked at him, confusion written across her face. "But that was before we even became a couple. Why didn't you say anything?"
Superboy looked at her in understanding. "I figured you'd tell me when you were ready." Megan looked at the faces around her.
Megan secretly raised her hand under the one holding Artemis and threw Queen Bee into a tree. She let Artemis swivel around and let loose the arrow she had readied.
Megan put her hood down. "Queen Bee's down. Superboy, you're safe from her control."
Superboy came out of his frozen state, never really in it. Superboy walked forward.
"May not be much of a liar, but I fooled you." He said to Luther.
"And I'm so proud. I take it Miss Martian erased Red Sun from your mind." Luther said as Mercy got in front of him. "And confirmed Aqualad, Robin, and Kid Flash rescued me from Cadmus before you had time to install any other programming." Superboy said.
Luther frowned. "All true. Personally, I blame Doctor Desmond."
Blockbuster escaped from his prison with a roar, gaining Superboy's attention as he jumped forward to fight.
"Daniel, help Lex!" Plasmius ordered and turned around, and frowned. Danny had backed up some with a smirk, and was pointing an ecto-blast mixed with ice at his chest.
"Let me guess, you were never going to obey me, were you?"
Danny's smirk grew wider. "I said I'd listen, I never said I'd do what you told me to."
Danny looked at the happy faces around him and sighed.
"Batman's so going to kill me for this later." He said and walked forward to the computer.
"Why's he killing you?" Kid Flash asked, but Danny merely pushed him out of the way and started typing on the computer.
Kid Flash sighed. "Great, another confession."
Danny shrugged. "Maybe, maybe not. But this is serious."
The pictures of Artemis's family went down and were replaced by a picture of a vampire wannabe with the name Vlad Plasmius and a tumor in someone's ribs.
"The vampire wannabe you see on the left is Vlad Plasmius, my old arch-enemy from the good old days. He had a serious obsession with my mom, killing my dad, and getting me as his son/apprentice. Actually, he's still trying that last one." Danny explained glaring at the picture.
"What's with the tumor on the other side, though?" Kid Flash asked. Robin's mood darkened considerably.
Danny sighed. "Kid Flash, that tumor... is inside me."
Everyone looked at Danny in shock and he sighed again.
"The tumor is the cause of a virus injected in me, which developed into a tumor and grew bigger as time wore on. This certain disease only affects ghosts. It slowly takes my powers, hence why I couldn't go intangible on the last mission and still can't, and it slowly kills me."
Gasps went throughout the small crowd.
"Can it be cured?" Megan asked.
Danny nodded. "It can, but only one person knows because this disease is considered a myth. I didn't tell you this this morning Rob, but the more I use my powers and keep my ghost form, the faster the tumor grows."
Robin looked absolutely furious. "You better know how to cure this so I can pummel you later."
Danny shrugged. "I figured as much. Batman's probably going to do the same thing since they only found out this morning."
Aqualad looked at him seriously. "This morning?"
Danny chuckled nervously. "Yeah, I may have been caught hurling in my bathroom."
"No wonder they want to kill you." Artemis said, crossing her arms.
Danny looked down. "Yeah… So anyways, the only way I know how to cure it is getting it from him." Danny pointed to Vlad.
"He has the cure?" Superboy said.
Danny nodded. "Yeah, and I'm supposed to get it tonight. At Santa Prisca."
Danny chuckled. "We played you, Vlad, we played you good." The beam shot out of Danny's hand, sending the vampire back.
Blockbuster smashed Superboy's head into the side of a cliff that fell into an ocean of trees. They were over the long way to death.
Luther looked at Bane. "Un poco de ayuda."
Bane gestured to his troops behind him and they opened fire.
Sphere, who was nearby, reacted to the sound badly and lifted into the air. Sphere started shooting at the shooters. They had to jump out of the way from being killed.
Artemis ducked as Megan flew above her but got right back up and watched as people shot at the Martian, trying to hit her.
"You have been a very naughty girl." Sportsmaster said, twirling his mace, Cheshire walked behind him. Artemis shot an arrow but Sportsmaster used his mace to block it. "Guys, reinforcement time."
Rocket flew out of the forest, picked up a troop, and dropped him off somewhere in the forest, probably unconscious. Kid Flash ran by and knocked out a few, or the majority, of Bane's crew. He ran away as one of the remaining crew started shooting.
Bane hooked his Venom machine to the back of his head and he went from bulky to even bulkier. He roared as it flooded through his veins.
Danny sent few more kicks aimed at Vlad's head, but the older halfa blocked them, but just barely.
"I see you've gotten better, Daniel." Vlad said. Danny smirked and gave a punch to Vlad's face, sending him stumbling away. He smirked again. "Hey, being Batman's second protégé has its perks." He clapped his hands together sending a giant wave of ecto-plasm. It knocked Vlad right out.
Danny walked forward and kicked Vlad's head a little. "Oh, he so deserved that."
Danny got out his thermos from his N-space pocket and sucked the older man in, and then flew off to help others.
Luther picked up Queen Bee and nodded to Mercy. "Time to go."
His assistant nodded to him and followed behind as they tried to make an escape. Aqualad landed in front of him with water swords ready.
"Neither you or Queen Bee is going anywhere!" He exclaimed putting a sword to the billionaires's neck.
"Young man, if you expect to detain me, contact my attorney." Luthor said. Mercy stepped forward, making her hand into a gun, and she shot Aqualad, knocking him out. She waved the gun around as they finally left.
Megan held up a boulder as the troops continued to fire at her. It exploded under pressure, and rubble rained down on the troops. Robin jumped down from a ledge, kicked one guy out, and destroyed another's gun.
"Ekoms dna srorrim!"
The last guy's gun turned into a snake wrapped around him. The snake wrapped around him some more and held to him tight. Zatanna levitated down by Robin. "Egnahc sehtolc otni sgnidnib." The snake became a rope and the troop struggled against the rope. Bane dropped down from the ledge and tackled the two.
Blockbuster pinned Superboy to the edge and started punching him repeatedly. Superboy looked up in time to see Blockbuster punch him again, breaking the ledge, and sending the clone spiraling downwards. Superboy dug his fingers into the dirt, and was able to stop himself. He looked up and wondered how he was going to get out of this one.
Aqualad woke up and was able to see Mercy fly the helicopter upwards and out, Luther smirking at him all the way. Rocket appeared, flying above Aqualad. "I got this!" She flew after the helicopter. A gun appeared in the bottom and started shooting missiles at her. She curled up and formed a bubble around herself. The missiles exploded on contact, and the last one sent her back some.
She uncurled and saw the helicopter getting away. "I can still-"
"No! You are needed here!" Aqualad said. She watched the helicopter fly away before turning around flying back.
Sportsmaster threw the end of his mace at Artemis, efficiently breaking her bow. She landed on the ground painfully, and Cheshire dropped down in front of her, her swords out.
"You know I don't tolerate disobedience, Artemis!" Sportsmaster said, walking up. Artemis turned to him.
"Sure, Dad. Jade and I learned that the hard way." Artemis said, giving Cheshire a look.
Kid Flash suddenly zoomed by, crashing into Cheshire. He quickly recovered and tried to take Sportsmaster out the same way, but the older man threw him into a tree, efficiently knocking off one of its bigger branches.
Zatanna looked up in time to see Robin get thrown into another helicopter. Danny dropped down behind Bane and fired an electric green blast.
"Hey Ebony!"
The black wolf appeared behind Danny, crouching low in a hunting stance. Bane turned to him.
"My dear wolf, siccum." Danny said and gave the 'go ahead' gesture. The wolf lunged and latched onto Bane's arm, earning a scream.
Zatanna saw Robin get up, ready to help the wolf. "Etaerc Nibor snoisulli!"
Around five more Robin's appeared. Danny groaned. "Oh Lord, we already have one Robin, do we really need five more?"
Danny sighed before joining the battle.
Robin laughed though.
"Got to love-"
"-An army-"
"-Of me!"
Another stupid illusion laughed. In an instant, Bane was crushing the fake Robin's while the other ones were messing with his head. The real Robin unhooked the Venom tube. Danny jumped up behind, and put his hand on the outlet.
"Marrok's power!" Electricity cracked at Danny's fingertips and he sent in into the outlet. Bane screamed, and fell on his face, unconscious. Ebony gave Danny a nod before disappearing.
After much trail, error, and climbing, most of it being climbing, Superboy made it over the ledge. Blockbuster, who was standing right there, grew angry at Superboy's determination and ran forward. Superboy charged too, but Blockbuster won with one punch.
Megan ran in front of Superboy before Blockbuster had the chance to hurt him further and sent only a dozen boulders at him, most of it doing no damage.
Superboy got up and got ready to fight alongside his girlfriend.
"Superboy, Miss Martian, move!"
The two did as told and jumped out of the way. Four disks flew by and straight at Blockbuster. The disks flew around him and started electrocuting him.
Robin and Aqualad, both in Apokoliptan weapons, walked forward. Robin shot a few more disks, and Aqualad made the ground under the former Dr. Desmond mush, and he sunk into the ground. Once the muck was up to his shoulders, the disks retreated.
Superboy walked closer to the pit, and punched his fist into his hand.
"You should really learn to channel that anger." He quoted Canary.
Blockbuster roared but Superboy punched him, knocking him out instantly. Danny landed and froze the mud. "He won't be going anywhere anytime soon."
Artemis dodged the spiky ball and chain and let another tree get hit. She ran aways and then turned to face her father.
"Artemis, now!"
Artemis jumped up and grabbed a tree branch. The mud under Sportsmaster became thinner, letting him sink into it. He dropped his mace and stared in shock.
Artemis smirked and let go, falling on top of Sportsmaster shoulders, making him sink deeper, and used him as a launching pad to get to stable ground. Sportsmaster growled and saw his older daughter walk up. He stuck his hand out. "Jade!"
Cheshire took off her mask, revealing a smirk behind it. "Sorry Dad. In this family, it's every girl for herself." Cheshire put her mask back on, and slipped into the shadows.
"JADE!" Sportsmaster shouted. Artemis walked closer to the pool her father was in. Then, she kicked him knocking him unconscious. The ice around him froze. She looked at Danny with a smirk. He smirked back. "I would've frozen him sooner but I wanted to make sure you weren't going to want payback for the last fifteen years."
Artemis looked at her father. "I should've done a lot more than that."
Kid Flash stumbled out of the forest, panting. Sportsmaster's mask was thrown at his feet. He picked it up and looked at Artemis who was once again staring at her father. Danny looked between the two before silently flying off. Kid Flash walked up beside Artemis and looked at the mask again.
"Souvenir." Artemis said and she and the speedster shared a smile.
Robin, Zatanna, Rocket, Megan, Superboy, Aqualad, and Danny were standing a circle when Artemis and Kid Flash walked up.
"It is always like this." Rocket said, having had fun.
Zatanna smirked. "Told ya."
Robin shrugged. "Hey, disaster averted. Feeling the aster."
Danny sighed. "I should beat you up for butchering the English language again but I'm going to go along with you here, and say feeling the aster."
Robin went star-eyed and mouth was open in happiness. Danny glared. "But that's only because I feel the best I've been in a long time! I can still beat you!" Robin still looked at him beaming.
Aqualad smiled at his Team. "I agree with Robin. This has been a good day."
Danny smiled at his leader. "You betcha. Now I'm going to call Batman and tell him I'm cured and that he doesn't need to ground me because our problem is solved and over! YEAH!"
The Watchtower: December 30, 23:46EST
Batman placed one of the little chips they found the case in a scanner and then sighed in relief when he replayed Danny and Robin's both hilarious, yet relief giving message.
"Scanning."
The components of the chip appeared in front of Batman, and he narrowed his eyes as he studied them. He heard another person walk in but didn't bother to turn.
"So, you ever joining the party?"
It was just Red Arrow.
"This bio-circuitry is disturbingly sophisticated." He commented as he continued to study it.
Red Arrow laughed. "I'll take that as a no."
He reached out in what would be a friendly gesture, but he actually placed something on Batman's neck.
The chip.
It sunk into his skin without a warning. His eyes widened for a second before he calmed down. He turned to Red Arrow and they left. The two heroes walked to where the Zeta-Tubes were and walked down the aisle of motionless heroes, all standing single file, in four lines.
The computer keyboard came up and Batman started typing on it. "Override. Batman; 02."
"Recognized."
The Zeta-Tubes started up, and a figure walked out of the tubes.
"Access granted. Vandal Savage; A04."
The villain in question smirked as he watched all the League members bow before him. Red Arrow didn't. He grimaced and grabbed his head, and then looked around startled. His eyes found Vandal Savage.
"I was the mole."
Savage looked at him. "Yes, yes you were." He said coldly. He walked past Red Arrow and the bowing League members, and to the observation window where the sun was setting behind the earth. The light vanishing from the Watchtower's grasp, and possibly on the world itself.
The teens were smiling, happy as can be. Then it hit Danny.
Something was wrong. Very wrong.
He stopped smiling and looked around in search of something, lost.
Aqualad and Robin noticed immediately. The leader and second-in-command shared a look.
"Everything alright, Danny?" Robin asked. Danny looked at him, grief-stricken.
"I-I don't know…"
Hey guys! Sorry for the late update! No I'm not. I really just didn't feel like updating yesterday. I was being lazy. I didn't even get on the computer to read anything.
Kadzait: *sighs*
Oh, shut up Kad!
Thanks to these people for favoriting and/or following: Tristan61, Djett4, Skymuse, Abxion294, Gur40goku, Ghostfiend, Tana1100, TwinMoonAlchemist, Gabby521, Pyrobookwyrm, WithBurningApathy,
Thank you Skymuse for favoriting and/or following me!
Reviews:
TomgirlBre: Yes... Kad is hilarious... (Kadzait: You don't believe that at all, do you? Me: Not even close.) And does this chapter answer your question?
Breyannia: Hahahaha! No, Vlad wasn't kidding though. And yes, Superboy does not Mr. Fag at all. I wish what you described would happen but it's not SO...
Supaherolena02: I'm so glad you enjoyed the chappie! XD
IWasNeverReal: Hahahaha! So glad you love!
GreenDrkness: Yes, you do get a reaction every time. And glad you loved!
Bibbledoo: Danny has a made up one that I have not bothered to make a name for. XD
Skymuse: Thanks!
Anonymous: Alright then... XD
THEBOXGHOST113: Sorry! Didn't mean to make anyone cry! XD
Azorawing: Oh, you'd be surprised. XD
BringbackDannyPhantom: It's hilarious how you decided to bring that up today. XD
Lexosaurus: Hahahahaha! So glad you a-loving the plot twists! And... That's a... Interesting story about your band practice. XD
Lee: Thanks, as always!
Hitmoi-tama: Hahaha! Don't worry! Aqualad's back!