Hello everyone! I'm here for another chapter. I'm sorry about the hiatus situation, but I wanted to be sure nobody had to keep waiting on me when school became a priority. Now that this chapter is out, i only hope I can get the next part out much sooner than this one.
Please enjoy and thank you for your follows and reviews! Please review if you can. I could really use the advice and criticism. X3
-Mount Justice
August 3rd, 12:54 EDT-
"As a leader, it is best to always keep a cool head in every situation," Aqualad's voice resonated deeply, his words echoing through the large cave of the mission debriefing room. "Adding unneeded stress from worry and uncertainty can prove fatal in more dangerous circumstances."
Standing alongside Aqualad clothed in her hero uniform like her fellow team mates, the white-haired second in command nodded in understanding, her eyes focused on a small notepad in one hand while the other held a pen.
The team had been called in hours ago. The promise of a mission and needing them all as soon as possible by Batman himself had most of them scurry to the cave like ecstatic kids getting a fun surprise. Already on a high and excitement bubbling from their successful, albeit destructive mission in Santa Prisca, it was no surprise that the team had no trouble making their way to the base as early as possible.
Perhaps...a bit too early now that Samantha thought about it, the idea only iterating more in her mind when she noticed Batman and Red Tornado absent; as well as Superboy who was still on a mission in Metropolis.
If only she could have gone.
Not just because Superboy was going or anything! She just was glad that the bonding time for him and Superman had finally come. She wanted to be sure nothing went wrong.
As a friend, of course. Who was worried about another friend.
But she knew better than to intrude on that. That was Superboys' time with his father and she had no reason to be there, no matter how much her stomach was flipping out about not knowing how it was going.
Occupying herself was the best bet until she and the rest of the team heard the good news from the clone himself.
So with free time in her schedule and knowing she was not going to just sit on the couch in an unproductive manner, the ice heroine decided it was high time she get started on her leader training. The first step being to ask Kaldur for his wise advice on how best to keep level-headed. With M'gann, Wally and Robin dueling one another with a holographic game table to kill the time, Samantha had situated herself far off to the side with Kaldur, hoping to stay far away from any other distractions during her note taking.
Extremely, well written note taking she might add.
"Prove fatal in other circumstances." Samantha muttered in repetition, scribbling every word down.
Smiling at the invested form of his teammate, Kaldur rose a brow at Samantha's avid note taking. "Are you truly alright with writing down every word of advice I give you, Samantha? There is no need. I am happy to repeat any advice again if you require."
Pen stopping momentarily in it's tracks, Samantha looked up to the Atlantean before her eyes slowly drifted away from his own gaze as they gleamed with uncertainty. "Is it…bothering you?" Her notepad lowered a bit to reveal a worried facial expression. "I'm the one who asked you to do this for me, so I don't want to waste your time asking again if I forgot. Taking notes seemed like the best option."
"I understand that you wish to not burden me with your questions, but as I said in Santa Prisca, I am happy to help," Kaldur spoke, a nod of approval. "The effort to remember my words is appreciated, but if you keep writing notes you may in fact hinder your own progress."
"Hinder my progress?" She repeated, the words rolling off her tongue and the pen in her hand lazily poking her lips. Thoughts wrapping around the advice in her head, the ice user slowly nodded and stared down at her notepad. "I'll end up relying on these notes more than myself." She concluded, eyes widening just a fraction to show her realization.
"Indeed." Her fellow leader added, leaning back on the metal sheet of wall behind the two.
Thumb tapping on the paper of her notepad, the young heiress huffed and flipped it shut. "I don't want that. I'm trying to boost my confidence, not make it any less significant than it is." Slipping the notepad and pen into her costumes' pouch, Winter scratched her head. "I'm going to end up making more mistakes trying to make sure I don't at this rate."
"It seems that way at first, but that is how everyone feels when they are learning new skills and find roadblocks their first time. Just take it slow." Kaldur added, a smile gracing his lips to reassure the heroine.
Nodding, Samantha casually leaned back on the same wall. "Astute advice. Now all I have to do is make sure I don't second guess those skills."
A comforting, warm hand rested on the ice user's shoulder; courtesy of the Atlantean."You worry too much. Trusting in yourself is a tough task, however once you learn to grasp it, the road ahead will be much less troublesome."
She couldn't help but smile.
"A road with less bumps would be nice."
*Beep*
And than that smile soured into a frown.
"Wooo! Three wins in a row!" Wally yelled at the top of his lungs, the red-head's voice echoing through the cave along with an airhorn signal.
The small bubble of security and calm made by the two leaders popped by the loud noises from beyond, Samantha's shoulders hunched in surprise at the noise and turned to look over at the source of the loud noise along with Kaldur.
All of a sudden a light weight began to build on the ice users shoulders.
"Though, that might be a bit hard with Wally." Samantha muttered, realizing where the sudden stress was coming from.
"We have our work cut out for us." Kaldur concluded.
"We sure do." Samantha added, her comment causing both her and Kaldur to smile to each other before chuckling quietly amongst themselves.
"Hey, what's so funny?" M'gann called joyfully, the martian looking over to see the two leaders silently chuckling with one another.
"They're probably just laughing at Robin's losing streak against me. I know I'd be laughing too if I wasn't such a gracious winner." Wally proclaimed from the game table, a winning smirk on his face while he struck a victorious pose.
"Oh yeah? Best two out of three." Robin retorted back with an eager glint in his masked gaze, setting up the game table once again for another match with the speedster.
Hearing the two other males on the team bicker back and forth playfully, Samantha shook her head and returned her attention to her fellow heroine.
"It's nothing important," Samantha replied, dissuading M'gann's curiosity. "Just trying to wrap my head around all of these leadership pointers from Kaldur. Pretty typical and boring stuff."
"Do you want to play a game with us, than?" M'gann suggested, green eyes sparkling at the two heroes beside her. "It'll be fun to pass the time while we wait for Batman."
"It would be nice to take a break from our lesson." Kaldur spoke up, the first to take of M'gann's offer and headed towards the hologram.
Unlike her Atlantean companion Samantha mulled over the idea, her head tilting to the side in thought. Was it right for her to be slacking off on her new duties as sub leader? Her passion to better know what she was in for was peaking her interest, but on the other hand it sounded nice to just kick back and relax until this mission got underway.
"Are you sure that's wise? Wouldn't it be better to finish the lessons now so we don't stop in the middle and have to continue later? I mean, just in case I need to know something ahead of time." The ice user asked, hesitant to move from her spot.
Kaldur merely smiled back at the hesitant heroine. "We can continue the lesson another time. A balance of relaxation and responsibility is necessary for a focused mind."
"Don't try, Kaldur." Wally pointed out, zipping out of the briefing room for a moment only to return from the kitchen with a banana in hand. Peeling the fruit and taking a bite out of it, the speedster wiggled his eyebrows at Samantha in a joking manner. "You know how she is. All work and no play. Probably hasn't got a fun bone in her body."
A slight pout taking over her features, Samantha crossed her arms over her chest in a protective manner, huffing at the comment. "I-I know how to have fun." Samantha protested, her voice going a pitch higher from embarrassment.
Only a second sooner after her reply was spoken did Wally speed over next to the ice user, the red-head wrapping an arm around the heroine's shoulder in a friendly manner.
"Than why don't you put your money where your mouth is?" Wally goaded, taking another bite of his banana and chewing loudly next to Samantha. "Cmghon. Uht'll ve phun." Wally said, attempting to speak with banana in his mouth as he leaned in close to Samantha to annoy her further.
It was working, if Samantha's squirming had anything to say about it.
"Alright, alright. Just stop blowing chunks of banana in my face. It's disgusting." Samantha stressed, pushing a hand on Wally's face as faintly and quickly as she could to not let any of his excess bits of food touch her.
"He sure knows how to push her buttons." Robin muttered with a dry laugh, watching said heroine make her way to the rest of the team while Wally sped back to his spot on the opposite side.
"I guess that's what makes Wally...Wally." M'gann concluded with a shrug of her shoulders, looking over to Samantha and giving her a relaxing smile to ease the girls' irritation.
Seeing the smile, Samantha sighed and let her anger simmer down. Calming her nerves, she smiled back to M'gann in the same, friendly manner.
"That's a given. Nobody can get on my nerves like Wally can." Samantha joked quietly to M'gann, the two girls giggling at their inside joke.
Swallowing the banana down and pressing a gloved hand onto the game table, Wally smirked and set the next game up as he stared at the rest of the team across the table. "Alright, who's got the guts to take on the champ of air hockey?"
"Since you made such an effort to get me over here, I'll give it a go." Samantha responded, taking up the challenge as she placed her hand on the game table, activating her own side of the table. "Somebody might as well knock that cocky grin off your face before this goes to your head."
"Ooh. Someone sounds confident." Wally joked, a gleam of competitive nature popping in his eyes. "Too bad the masses are on my side. My adoring crowd won't want to see me lose." The speedster proclaimed, outstretching an arm to signal the rest of the team.
"Take him down, Sam. Defend my honor." Robin cheered, moving closer to Samantha's side of the table.
"May the best hero or heroine win." M'gann joined in, clapping her hands to add to the jovial mood.
"Be sure to watch his movements." Kaldur spoke, joining in to Samantha's cheering section.
"Hey? I said adoring crowd. Don't side with the enemy." Wally said in a sour tone, the puck of the game table appearing on the screen as he flicked his arm forward in a quick swipe, knocking the puck towards Samantha's side of the table.
"You should know that nobody likes winners who gloat, Wally." Samantha jabbed, knocking the puck back with her own swipe on the table, the puck smacking into the side barriers of the table and zipping back and forth towards Wally. "Looks like I'll need to overthrow you."
Deflecting the puck from his goal, Wally continued his onslaught with a powerful swipe. "Bring it on, ice queen."
Holding in the urge to roll her eyes to continue focusing on the game, Samantha knocked back each attempt Wally tried to score a goal. Thankfully knowing the kind of strategies Wally worked with, Samantha was having a good time holding him off. Yet, even she knew this could go on for much longer if she didn't think of something.
Ugh, there I go again. I'm overthinking this like this is a mission. It's just a game.
"Man, this is getting tense." Robin muttered quietly, leaning closer to the game table to watch the battle continue.
"To be holding out this long means she's been perceiving his movements. It's commendable, but she'll need to find a weakness in Wally's strategy to win." Kaldur mused, standing alongside Robin as he watched the game continue
"What's the matter there, Sammy? Getting tired?" Wally joked, smirking at his opponent as he blocked his goal from being taken by her. "You seem distracted."
"I'm not. I'm just thinking of a plan, unlike you." Samantha poked back, her own semi-confident smirk appearing.
If only there was a way to get Wally...Wait! That's it! If I can just hold out long enough, that might just work.
Smiling to herself as she knocked the puck back at Wally, Samantha moved her eyes for a second to look at M'gann, the martian noticing the eye contact right away. Moving her ice blue eyes from M'gann to Wally in a quick, yet animated fashion to convey the message she wanted, M'gann stared back at Samantha a bit confused, only to see her eyes widen ever so slightly and nodded, holding in a bit of a giggle as they broke eye contact.
Glad to know her silent message was received, Samantha moved her attention back to the game, pushing the puck back to Wally in their small bout.
"No plan is gonna stop me from taking the fourth win in a row." Wally proclaimed with confidence, knocking the puck back to Samantha.
"You sound really confident about that, Wally." M'gann spoke up, making her way to the red head and standing beside him on his side of the game table.
Taken back by the sudden calming voice of his super crush, Wally moved his gaze away from the table to notice the martian girl beside him, smiling the sweet and innocent smile she always had.
His face melting into a look akin to a lovesick puppy, Wally chuckled casually and shown a cheesy smirk to M'gann, moving his hand on the game table away to lean casually. "Well, when you're as skilled as me at games, beautiful, there's no way you can think otherwise."
"That's too bad." Samantha spoke up with a smirk, seeing her opponent had fallen for her trap. The game puck knocked over by Wally coming her way, Samantha smiled confidently and swiped her arm forward, pushing the game puck back with great force towards Wally's side.
Toward an unprotected goal.
The puck already half way in by the time Wally snapped out of his stupor and heard Samantha make her comment, his lovestruck face replaced with despair and surprise.
*Beep*
The game was over...but he wasn't the winner this time.
"What? N-No!" Wally exclaimed, hand reaching up to grasp at his head in confusion, his thoughts for a moment jumbled by the shock of losing.
"Oh yes!" Robin responded, moving over to Samanth and giving her a high five. "Thanks for getting my honor back."
"It was no trouble. After I realized the game was going nowhere, I knew some outside help was needed." Samantha explained, looking over to her fellow heroine and winking back at her. "Thanks again, M'gann."
Giggling a bit, M'gann nodded and turned to the disheartened Wally. "Sorry, Wally. I sort of helped out Samantha a little bit."
"What? Megalicious, how could you?" Wally asked, saddened by the sudden confession of his crush. Realizing the new information, the speedster pointed frantically at Samantha while taking a bite of his banana. "Yugh chefted!"
Her face scrunching in disgust at the second attempt at talking with his mouth full, Samantha feigned innocence with a casual smile and held her head up high. "I did no such thing. Cheating would mean I actively worked to undermine your victory with underhanded tactics and dishonesty. All I did was strategize and work for the good of my team."
"She does have a point." Kaldur spoke up, smiling at the two going back and forth with one another. "She did exactly as a hero and leader would. Kept a cool head and stayed focused, strategized to find the enemy's weakness, and exploited it to gain victory." Stepping over to Samantha, Kaldur gave an approving nod and rested a hand on the petite teens' shoulder. "A plus for today."
"Yes! A plus!" Samantha cheered with a smile, pride beaming from her confident form as she couldn't help but jump a bit in joy at the well received grade.
"Only an unfun person would be more happy about a good grade than winning a game." Wally muttered, finishing off the rest of his banana in one fell bite. "Bught I'ull vee vhack wifh ugh affenginse!"
"Um...Wally, could you repeat that?" M'gann asked, not sure exactly what the speedster said with his mouth full.
"He said he'd come back with avengeance." Samantha translated with a roll of her eyes. "If you're going to threaten me, at least do it when your mouth is not full of food. It's disgusting, like I said."
"Recognized. B-05. Superboy."
The familiar sound of the cave's zeta tube recognition software booting up for an arrival, the team turned around to watch the gate light up with zeta radiation. A few moments to have his body fully appear in the room, Superboy walked out of the transporter, insignia shirt, jeans, and boots in all.
Her attention once on the beaming pride she'd had now dashed by the arrival of her friend, Samantha rushed over to the taller boy excited to hear how his mission had gone.
"Superboy! Hey, how did the mission go with..." Trailing off a bit as she noticed the tight, closed fists and hunched form of the clone, Samantha slowed in her walk towards the hero and stopped as Superboy walked past her without so much as a single noise or word.
She turned back to watch him walk off, hoping he'd say something back to her on the way or stop to look at her, but nothing was said.
Not even his usual grunt or scoff.
A frown overtook her features, the once jovial mood and energy she had moments ago now replaced with feeling like a stone was sinking into the pit of her stomach.
Superboy. What happened? Did...it not go well?
Of course it didn't, the condescending voice in her head answered for her. From the way he's acting, the mission went in the completely different direction of going well But why? Did they fight? Did they not even talk? Was Superman critical of him or did Superboy do something that got Superman angry with him?
There were so many questions, but only Superboy knew the answers to them.
Her hands clutched the ends of her battle skirt nervously, not sure what to do with the jumbled feelings that were sprouting inside of her.
If he wants to talk, it's his choice. I told him that but...I wish he'd say something.
"That was very rude for little boy of steel. Should never ignore lady."
"I suppose it's not...wait, what?" Her thoughts a bit side tracked by the arrival and subsequent shutting down of Superboy, Samantha hadn't noticed the taller figure who'd decided to stand next to her, but became aware when she began to answer with her own comment. Turning hastily to the right to see who she'd suddenly began talking to, the white-haired teen jumped in surprise as the figure's name left her lips.
"I-Ice!" Samantha exclaimed, her saddened expression replaced with shock and surprise. The taller and more mature figure of her mentor standing beside her, Samantha focused on making her voice stop straggling out of her own throat to speak "W-What are you doing here?"
Her eyes never leaving the retreating form of Superboy, Ice Maiden calmly spoke. "Friend of mine said she was coming here to help you all today. I decided to come long and see little snowflake and team do business. Did not expect to see rudeness from little boy of steel, though."
Samantha raised a brow at the explanation. She had many ideas of how she wanted to ask Ice Maiden what she was talking about, but one notion of hers made the girl stare confused. "A friend?"
"That would be me." Another voice spoke up, making Samantha turn towards the hallway of the base.
Black boots knocking against the steel flooring of the room, the lean, yet curvaceous figure of a blonde-haired woman made her way into the room. Her body dressed in a black leotard that clung to her well toned form, legs covered by black stockings and her upper form and shoulders dressed with a small blue jacket up to her biceps. One of her hands rested on her hip as she casually swayed with an adult sense of confidence and authority, the woman waved a black fingerless gloved hand up to signal her arrival.
"Black Canary." Samantha spoke with awe, only to recompose herself and bow politely to the heroine. "It's good to see you again."
The faintest of smiles overtaking her lips, Black Canary lost the relaxed look moments after, her eyes shifting from Samantha to Superboy. "Stick around. Class is in session." Black Canary spoke up, her tone clear that she did not want to waste any time.
Stopping in his tracks, Superboy turned back to gaze at the older heroine. His own steeled eyes meeting hers, the two held each others gaze in silence, almost as if a conversation was trying to be spoken with their eyes alone.
One that nobody else would dare try to come between.
Deciding action would better add to her words. Black Canary walked further into the room, taking the center of the room alongside Ice Maiden as she stared at the teenagers around her.
"Like Ice Maiden said, I'm here to help you all today just as I promised the day you all arrived here. I consider it an honor to be your teacher. I'll throw a lot at you. Everything I've learned from my own mentors-" She spoke, removing her jacket with a wince growling in her throat, a wrap of white bandages around her upper forearm. "And my own experiences."
Miss Martian's face fell at the wound coming into full view in the light. "What happened?"
"The job, little martian." Ice Maiden replied, answering for Black Canary. "Heroes and heroines do not get break because we fight for people who need us. We are strong and fight for truth, but even we are not invincible. Which is why canary bird will be teaching how to not get punched or have bones broken." The blue-skinned woman said with an accepting nod of her head to her fellow league member.
Nodding back, Black Canary looked at the following eyes of the young heroes. "And it won't be easy. First lesson is combat is about controlling conflict; putting the battle on your terms. You should always be acting, not reacting. Now, I'll need a sparring partner."
"Oh! I shall help canary bird." Ice Maiden spoke up, raising her hand excited at the idea.
An amused grin on her face, Black Canary looked back at her team mate. "A nice offer Ice, but I think a better learning experience may be from one of the others taking part."
"Oh. That is too bad." Ice Maiden said with mock depression, walking back to stand with the rest of the teens, though she kept close to where Superboy was in case he tried to leave.
"Oh! Right here!" Kid Flash offered, raising his arm up in a waving motion like he was in a crowd of people. Stuffing the rest of his banana in his mouth and making his way to the center of the stage before Canary had a chance to answer, the speedster threw the peel of his banana into a nearby trash can. "Swish! After this, I'll go and show you my moves." The speedster spoke with an air of confidence.
"Eww." Winter muttered, a chill having nothing to do with her ice powers running up her spine. "Does he ever know when to not sound like a perv?"
Chuckling beneath his breath, Robin leaned over to Winter. "Ten bucks he doesn't last a minute."
Smiling at the bet, the ice user kept her gaze on the mock battle. "Thirty seconds is my limit."
"Wouldn't it be more efficient for Kid if we instead gave him our support?" Aqualad spoke up, poking into the two teens' conversation.
Winter shrugged her shoulders, crossing her arms over her chest. "I would have, but after that gross attempt at flirting, I decided to hold my tongue."
Nodding at Winters' explanation, Robin too shrugged his shoulders and laughed a bit. "I just want to see him get his butt kicked by Canary."
A sigh was Aqualad's only response.
Black Canary and Kid Flash settling into their stances as the floor beneath them lit up signaling the match was seconds away from beginning, time passed fast enough that when the match began, Black Canary, who was unaffected by Kid Flash's poor attempt at flirting, rushed in to make the first move.
Surprised by the sudden speed of the older woman, Kid Flash used his quick reflexes to dodge the punch, moving to the right to gain more room between him and his opponent.
Unlucky for him though Black Canary already seemed to anticipate even a speedsters' movements. Taking his surprised mindset to catch him off guard, Canary ducked low to the ground and swung her leg out underneath Kid Flash's, causing the boys' legs to be caught by her own.
The strong sound of a body thudding hard onto the glowing floor, Kid Flash gasped out a hard breath of air at the collision, the teen groaning as his limbs were sprawled out on the floor.
Winter felt her smile widen further, leaning over to Robin. "You can give me my ten dollars some other time."
"Aw man." Robin huffed, saddened he hadn't won the bet.
"Ugh. Hurts...so good." The speedster gasped out, moving his head back to look at the rest of his team mates with a grin, still trying to look cool even on the ground.
"It was a good block," Black Canary complimented, reaching down to help Kid Flash up. "Did anyone spot the mistake Kid Flash made.
Undeniable glee at getting a chance to mess with his friend, Robin decided to speak up with a raised hand. "Oh, oh! He hit on teacher and got served?" He suggested jokingly.
Winter rose a pale hand up to her face, hoping to cover the spreading grin that had appeared from Robin's comment. It was rude to laugh at someone who was failing, but seeing Kid get his butt kicked after his flirting had felt so...satisfying.
Kid on the other hand didn't look so happy at being called out.
"Dude!" Kid Flash exclaimed, staring down Robin with a look of shock and a hint of betrayal.
"Was fight supposed to go that fast?" Ice Maiden added in confusion, only making Winter and Robin snicker further at the heroine's observation.
"Aww, c'mon." Kid Flash muttered, being pulled up to his feet by Black Canary and heading back to stand with the rest of the team.
"No, but this is practice, Ice. If we'd like a longer match," Black Canary spoke, her gaze drifting from Aqualad, to Robin, to Miss Martian, than Superboy, and lastly...
"Winter." Black Canary spoke up.
Hearing her code name being called by the veteran hero, the younger ice user straightened up at attention, her previous jovial mood gone as she became clearheaded. "Y-Yes?"
"Would you mind stepping into the ring?" The heroine asked, her head cocking to the side as strands of blonde hair fell over her shoulder. "I helped train with Ice and she passed my training to you. Surely you can last a bit longer than your thirty second bet, right?"
Blushing at suddenly feeling the attention of most of the spectators on her, Winter felt her gaze drift to the ground.
Oh, I should have known karma existed!
"Of course she can!" Ice Maiden proclaimed confidently, clasping her protege's shoulder hard and shaking the petite ice user lightly. "She will show canary bird how well Ice is at teaching. Will not let down, won't you snowflake?" Ice Maiden asked, grinning at Winter with pride.
Blushing at the sudden praise Ice Maiden was giving her with her staring, Winter felt her eyes drift upwards to Ice Maiden, only to slink away in the hopes of not seeing the hope in the adults' eyes.
It was in that small moment of lucidity that Winter caught Superboy in the corner of her eye, his presence clear on her form. Her gaze settling further to see Superboy staring at her and Ice Maiden, the clone broke the eye contact when he'd noticed her, the scowl he'd been wearing morphing into a hardened frown.
What was up with him?
"Snowflake?"
The breath of her mentor whispered close to her ear, Winter jumped in surprise as her nerves stood on edge at the woman's' closeness. Blushing, she spoke up while wriggling out of her mentors' grasp. "Y-Yeah. I'll do my best, Ice."
Heading into the same ring as Kid Flash had and standing at the opposing side, Winter tugged at the ends of her combat skirt and sleeves to loosen her costume a bit to get a feel for moving around.
The floor beneath her heeled boots beginning to glow the same as before, Winter breathed a deep breath to calm her nerves, and slowly let it out as her body settled into a relaxed, yet poised combat stance.
Thank goodness the bruise from Kobra was gone, or this could have been a lot tougher.
The sounds around her beginning to drown out as she focused on the sound of her breathing, Winter reacted quickly when she noticed Black Canary rush towards her, similarly to how she had with Kid Flash.
Not wanting to make the same mistake, Winter called upon her years of maneuverability training and ice skating, making short but fluid motions on the ground to move her feet. Her footwork much reacting far faster than Canary had anticipated, the veteran hero opted for a close in encounter, reaching an arm out to elbow the teen in the chest.
Knowing there just wasn't enough time in the moment to maneuver yet again away from Black Canary with only her feet, Winter gritted her teeth as she pulled herself downward to bend low enough to dodge the elbow, tucking her body to roll out of the way and make space between her and the veteran.
It was a little sloppy, but it got the job done.
Pushing a loose strand of hair out of her face, Winter decided to take the initiative and rush towards Black Canary, swiftly throwing her own punch towards the heroine. Sadly the attack was caught by the gloved hand of the blonde siren, the determined gaze of Black Canary settling on Winter's ice blue. Swinging her own fist towards the heroine's left side, Samantha matched the same movement Canary did and grabbed the woman's fist in her palm, her smaller hand shaking to fight against the woman's bare strength and keep hold.
The siren and the ice user facing one another with fists in hand, the two eyed each other down in a silent stand off, both trying to keep their hold and add their own strength to push the tide of the fight.
"Go, Winter!" Miss Martian cheered, the alien cheering ecstatically at her team mate going head to head with Black Canary.
"Looks like she lasted longer than you, Wally." Robin joked, poking the speedster with his elbow.
Frowning at the observation, the speedster scoffed. "Well...It's cause I wore her down." Kid said, pointing a thumb at himself to try and give himself credit.
"Keep fighting good fight, snowflake." Ice Maiden added, eyes sparkling with satisfaction in her protege's performance.
The sounds of chatter coming from off in the distance Winter couldn't see, the ice user felt a bead of sweat roll down the side of her head, strength beginning to really sap out of her during the stalemate. She was actually surprised. She never thought she'd been able to last this long without getting her face slammed into the floor.
Maybe that karma thing isn't all that bad.
Eyes drifting to see the others watching her mock battle with Canary, Winter felt her eyes narrow and strain on Superboy standing off to the side. He was watching somewhat, but his gaze flickered from the match to the floor, glaring every so often.
The ice user felt her face grimace.
Why don't you say something, Superboy?
"You're distracted."
"Wha-"
A forceful push of her body snapped the ice user out of her staring stupor. Not keeping her mind on the battle of dominance she was in, Black Canary pushed the distracted teen hard, letting go of one of her hands and keeping hold of the other while Winter fell back a bit.
Unable to keep her balance properly form the sudden shift in weight, Black Canary took the opportunity to grab Winter while she was unable to defend herself. Pulling the teen back towards her and watching her flail a bit back towards her form, Black Canary twisted the girl around for her back to face her and reached her arm around her, twisting it and bending it behind the girls back in a forceful lock.
Wincing at the unnatural twist of her arm, Winter regained her balance somewhat, but fell to her knee as she winced in pain from the arm hold Canary had trapped her in.
"That was a good fight. Ice has taught you well." Black Canary spoke from behind Winter.
Wincing as she shut her eyes to register the pain she was feeling and adjust, Winter let out a pained chuckle. "I try."
"That is too bad. Would have liked to see snowflake take down canary bird." Ice Maiden spoke, her excitement falling into that of disappointment of the match being over.
Letting Winter go and stepping back up to her feet, Black Canary stared at the audience and waved a hand out in presentation. "Now for this fight. Does anyone know exactly what Winter did wrong?"
Smirking at his own opportunity, Kid Flash waved his arm up and down while standing on his tippy toes. "Oh, I know this one! Winter was eyeing Supey and got distracted."
Forgetting the momentary pain from the hold Canary had put her through, Winter got up to her feet with haste and glared at Kid Flash, her pale cheeks aflame with a deep blush.
"I-I was not!" Winter cried back with protest, clearly affected by the comment.
"You actually were distracted." Aqualad had to point out, disregarding Kid's comment to add his own.
"Indeed. Snowflake was not watching where she was needing to go." Ice Maiden chimed in, a knowing look being passed over to Winter.
Samantha felt an awkward chill run up her spine.
"I..." Knowing that some of the most mature people in the room had already spotted the momentary distraction, Winter crossed her arms over her chest and pouted, looking away to hide her scarlet flushed face. "It's true. I wasn't paying attention when I should have."
This sounds like that conversation I had when I was fencing for father all over again.
The ice user felt a bitter taste in her mouth at the memory.
Nodding at the few comments made, Black Canary stood tall amongst most of the group, her eyes sharp and focused as Winter walked back to join the others. "It was a good match, but you should never allow your opponent to-"
"Oh, please." Superboy spoke up irritated, making the rest of the group in the room turn back to look at the super clone. "With my powers the battle is always on my terms." Superboy said, defiance clear in his voice. "I'm a living weapon, and this is a waste of my time." He finished, ready to turn his back from Canary and her lesson.
"What is he doing?" Winter whispered in a worried tone.
Catching the sight of her protege looking a bit nervous, Ice Maiden bent a bit to lean towards Winter. "Are you worried, snowflake?" Winter asked inquisitively.
Turning her head to look back at her mentor, the worried look on Winters' face only grew larger after being caught. Despite this, Winter quickly tried to compose herself and answer without further embarrassment. "I...Is it wrong to be worried about a team mate?"
Shaking her head, Ice Maiden moved back to her original position to watch Superboy and Black Canary eye each other in the ring, the super boy challenging Canary to a fight.
"He does not need your worry. What he needs is discipline." Ice Maiden answered seriously, eyes carefully watching Superboy from her spot in the crowd.
Superboy decided to take the first move after seconds of silence, using his strength to lean in and throw a hard punch towards Black Canary.
Anticipating the punch and sliding to the left to dodge, Canary reached out and grabbed the outstretched arm of Superboy, his weight already causing him to lose his balance and footing. Pulling him further to ruin his stance, Canary pulled the boy towards herself and used the weight of her turning body and Superboy's falling to twist the boy over her head and flip him over her taller form. Throwing him over her shoulder, Superboy flew into the air for a split second or two before crashing down like a rock, his back slamming hard and grunting on impact.
The youngest member of the team bursting out in a hearty laugh at one of another team mates failed attempts, the hacker felt a sudden thud against his ribs and steeled stare from Aqualad on his left. Fearful of the gaze, Robin decided to turn away to the right to escape the stare-
Only to see the scolding gaze of Winter.
Unable to control his laughter still and the two leaders looking at him with clear disappointment, Robin opted to cover his mouth with his hands, muffled giggles still escaping.
And this was why he wasn't leader.
Anger radiating off his body, Superboy huffed a heavy breath and climbed back to his feet, turning back to glare at Black Canary who watched him from his spot.
Seeing him get up, Canary's face hardened. "Your angry. Good, but don't react. Channel that anger into-"
Ignoring the advice yet again from the siren, Superboy followed with the same rushing attack, a familiar roar of anger heard by the group as he readied a heavy tackle with his body. Rushing like a bull towards his target without relent, Black Canary opted out of confrontation, instead jumping over the charging teen with a front flip. Landing on the floor and ducking below him, Canary swiped a long leg beneath the clones' feet, the sweep pushing Superboy backwards with a thud for the second time.
Winter and the rest of the team frowning, or laughing in Robins' case, the ice user bumped Robin in the ribs the same way as Aqualad had while keeping her eyes on the defeated Superboy.
He's charging far too much into things. He's not following any of the direction Black Canary is trying to give him either. Does he just not want to listen? Or is something else going on in his head?
"If you keep looking that way, wrinkle is sure to follow." Ice Maiden commented, moving to lean beside her protege.
"What?" Winter asked, looking back at her mentor. "W-What look?"
"You have look of fear on your face," Ice Maiden said, poking Winters' cheek. "You need to relax. It is only training."
"I..." Unsure of how to response, Winter turned away from her mentor and continued to look at Superboy, the clone getting up once more without the help of the outstretched hand of Black Canary. "I'm fine, Ice." She stressed, hoping her tone would give her mentor a hint to leave her alone. At the moment, she wasn't in the mood to really be joked around with.
It's not fear on my face, Ice. It's worry. And lots of it for Superboy. He's not...something's wrong. He's angrier than usual.
To think she knew him long enough to know when he was too angry. If that was even possible.
"That's it! I'm done!" Superboy yelled in frustration, picking himself off the floor and turning his back from the training session.
For a moment Winter...Samantha felt her shoulders rise up in a flinch, the loud yelling making her jump a bit. A reflex long since imbedded into her from her fathers' "conversations", Samantha took a nervous breath and watched the scene between Black Canary and Superboy unfold.
Realizing Superboy was getting ready to storm off in one of his rages, Winter took a hesitant step forward in the hopes of trying to calm him down, or at the very least try to talk some sense in him and get to the bottom of this. But just as she was about to take another step towards him, the soft yet powerful grip of someone's hand landed on her right shoulder, holding her down and keeping her in place.
"Stay here, snowflake." Ice Maiden commanded, keeping her hand on the younger ice user.
Her walking halted by her mentor, Winter looked over her shoulder to her long time teacher. "But Ice, he-"
"Will be fine." Ice Maiden finished, her eyes sparkling with understanding and the gleam of maturity showing. "You are good friend to help when he needs, but this is not time. Small boy of steel must learn from teacher. Learn on his own and without help."
"But..." The words of her teacher sinking in, Winter bit her lower lip and looked back at the sight of Black Canary and Superboy having a hardened stare off with one another. Her worrier spirit was slowly building, but she held it in and did her best to relax.
Ice...is right. I do want to help, but Superboy did get himself into this mess. He needs to learn on his own.
Nervously, her fingers wrapped around the lace ends of her skirt in a tight grip.
You can do it, Superboy. She silently prayed.
Just as Superboy was opening his mouth to say something back in retaliation, the familiar sound of a message being received rang in the briefing room, a holographic screen appearing and hovering above the group.
The hooded cowl of Batman appearing on screen, Black Canary, Ice Maiden, and the rest of the team all turned to see the dark knight looking back at them with his usual stoic face.
"Batman to the cave. Five hours ago a new menace attacked Green Arrow and Black Canary." Batman reported, the young heroes and older keeping their eyes on the screen.
A new menace? Is that how Black Canary got hurt? And is Green Arrow okay?
Frowning, Winter placed a hand on her chin in thought, gaze falling from the screen. For a moment, the thought of wondering if Speedy knew if Green Arrow had been hurt crossed her mind, but just as quickly left her thoughts as Batman continued.
The screen suddenly changing to show various photos taken from the battle, the target of the conversation came up to view in a matter of seconds. Taller than Samantha by more than four feet and body hardened by strong muscles the being looked almost human like, except the strange pointed ears and menacing brute force pushing that theory aside.
Around the combatant was various leaguers from Black Canary, Green Arrow, Flash, Ice Maiden, and even Superman himself holding his own against the unknown force.
"The attacker was capable of studying than duplicating the powers and abilities of its opponents. Arrow called in reinforcements, which nearly proved to be disastrous as our foe gained more and more power with each new combatant." Batman concluded, the pictures disappearing as the dark knight came back on screen.
Hearing the news, Winter turned to face her mentor, a look of worry on her face as she tried to look at her mentor for any visible injuries. "Are you okay, Ice? You didn't get hurt, did you?"
"Only some bad booboos. Ice Maiden much stronger than silly robot." Reaching a hand to the younger teen, the ice woman softly ruffled the top of Winters' head. "No need to fret, snowflake."
"Wow. One guy with the powers of the entire league?" Kid Flash surmised with astonishment.
"In the end it took ten leaguers four hours to defeat and dismantle the android." Batman added.
This detail caught Robins' attention. "Wait, android. Who made it? T.O Morrow?"
"Good guess Robin, but no. Red Tornado doesn't think so." Batman replied, dashing the younger detectives' theory.
"Technology has symbol of tiny scientist, Professor Ivo." Ice Maiden pointed out, giving the small detail for the rest to review.
"Ivo? But he is dead." Aqualad spoke, confusion riddled in his voice.
"Umm," Voice speaking to add to the conversation, Miss Martian raised her hand up. "Sorry to ask, but...who is Professor Ivo?"
Seeing the confusion on Miss Martian's face, Kid Flash leaned over to the martian. "Criminal scientist with a knack for making some seriously bad tech. He fought the league years back, but uhh...it didn't turn out too well for him in the end." He finished, scratching his cheek.
"Which is why this isn't a very good sign." Winter added, eyes looking to the ground while she thought. "Ivo's dead and suddenly some new tech we've never seen pops up? Is there any way he could have...faked his death? Even possible?"
"I wouldn't put it past a mad scientist like him." Black Canary spoke, turning to look at the younger heroes and heroines. "However this might also just be some leftover tech running around. In either case, we shouldn't let our guard down."
"Which is why we have taken the necessary precautions." Batman answered for Canary, the screen in the room lighting up with a large map, lines of red and blue etching through road lines in the map. "To make certain this threat is neutralized, we're sending two trucks carrying the android parts to two separate Star Lab facilities in Boston and New York for immediate evaluation. Every step is being taken to making this goes smoothly."
"Why are you telling is this?" Superboy asked, irritation rising in his throat as he glared at the screen.
The cowled eyes of Batman narrowing on Superboy, Batman looked back to the rest of the team. "There will be four additional decoy trucks to create confusion in case Ivo, or anyone, attempts to recover the remains. You will be split up into two undercover teams to safeguard the real trucks."
Winter felt her stomach drop at the information.
"We're...guarding the real things?" Winter asked, uncertain if she'd heard right.
"Woohoo! We're going on a road trip!" Kid Flash exclaimed, clearly not registering the information Batman had just dropped on them.
"At least it seems like a pretty boring mission." Robin said looking over to the nervous ice user.
"And this will be a good chance to practice your newly required skills." Aqualad added, smiling to Winter.
Hearing that, Winter felt like her stomach had just disappeared.
Oh God, he's right. We're splitting into two teams. Which means...I'm going to lead.
Winter placed a hand on her head, trying to keep hold of her skull as she felt a wave of nausea rush through her.
No pressure.
Everything would be fine. Just as long as nothing crazy happened like in Santa Prisca or Cadmus and everyone worked together, the plan would go smoothly and there would be no bumps in the road.
"So now we take out your trash?" Superboy huffed out, a scowl on his face.
Well, there was that.
Keeping her mouth shut as the Superboy began tp pick another fight, the ice user kept her eyes on the clone as Batman did nothing but glare back at the teen, his face showing no sign of amusement or intimidation from the clone. "You have something better to do?"
Glaring back at Batman, but finding no clear answer to retaliate back with, Superboy let his gaze wander away from the screen, his blue eyes meeting with Winter's ice blue.
Anger that once flashed in his blue orbs disappeared, this time replaced with what seemed like sadness and hesitation. Just as Winter was about to speak, see if Superboy would talk, the clone broke eye contact and stared at the floor.
So that was how it was going to play.
"Coordinates received," Aqualad spoke up, cutting through the awkward tension in the air to focus on the mission. Pulling out two GPS devices, the Atlantean gave a nod of agreement to Batman. "We're on our way."
The video communication cut off and the screen disappearing from the briefing room, members of the team began to head out the room and head towards the hanger bay, Superboy being the first to stalk out of the room.
Watching the team head out, Winter moved her gaze over to the form of Aqualad, the Atlantean lagging a bit behind the others as he reviewed the GPS coordinates. Knowing this was the best time to ask, the ice user hastened her walking pace to walk beside Aqualad.
"Hey, Aqualad?" Winter spoke up, trying to keep her voice neutral so the others did not hear them.
Her voice catching his attention, Aqualad looked up from the small devices in his hands and smiled to Winter. "Ah, Winter. Good, I was needing to give you this. These are the coordinates for the truck you and your team will be supervising." The Atlantean said, handing the heroine a small tracking device.
Taking the item in hand and scanning over it, Winter smiled and held the device close to her chest. "Thank you. I promise I'll do my best to keep your lessons to heart today."
Smiling at the clear determination. Aqualad nodded and walked beside the ice user. "I am certain you will do fine. But don't think it is all upon you. You'll have some of the others beside you to help. So don't believe you will need to shoulder all the responsibility."
"Of course. Speaking of our teams," Winter said, trying to ease her way into the subject. "I don't know exactly how you want them formed for this mission, but if possible could..." Winter trying to get the rest of her question, the ice user felt her throat close up on her, apprehension seizing her vocal chords. Uncertain of how to gain control of her voice, her ice blue eyes dropped to the floor.
"Winter? Is there something wrong?" The Atlantean asked, stopping in his tracks and turning to stare at Winter.
"N-No," She spoke up, looking back up and waving a hand to dismiss the concern of the Atlantean. "It's nothing serious. It's just...Superboy."
"Ah," Aqualad answered, nodding to show his understanding. "He was acting rather...harsher than usual. I am sure we were not the only ones who noticed it."
"It was probably clear when he talked back to Black Canary." Winter muttered, a nervous chuckle escaping her throat, only to die out as she composed herself for the conversation.
"You...saw the way he acted. He's angrier than usual ever since he came back from Metropolis." Winter spoke, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "I know it's not my place to be fretting over team mates like this and try to pry, but the way he's acting...it won't be good for the mission. It'll make it tough for him to work with the others. Which is why I was hoping it'd be okay if he was placed on my decoy team."
"Your team?" Aqualad repeated, minor shock in his tone. "Are you sure you'd like to watch over him in the state he is in?"
She nodded. "Yes. It's not like I believe I'll suddenly take the reigns and get control of the situation if he's on my team, but Superboy is still a bit distant with all of us. I've managed to get through to him a little, but that doesn't mean he's ready to work with everyone. I thought since he's been a bit more willing to take a bit with me, if he's on my team, at least there will be more of a chance of calming him down. Maybe even get to the bottom of this."
As her explanation poured out into words from her lips, Winter nervously rubbed the back of her neck, what ifs' and unknown scenarios popping in her head. "I mean, not that you aren't capable of doing it. You are, just not...I...what I meant to say was-"
The strong clasp of Aqualad's hand on her shoulder knocked the ice user out of her confusion.
"It's alright, Samantha. I understand what you mean." Aqualad spoke, instead using her name to relax her nerves. "We'll have Superboy stick with you. Just...be careful when trying to talk with him. He's more agitated than usual and he might burst out unexpectedly."
"Yeah, I know. He's yelled at me a few times on accident, but he's learning still. I don't take it to heart." Winter said with a small smile, slowly walking towards the hanger with Aqualad beside her.
"Alright. If you need any help, just call on our communication line." Aqualad suggested in brotherly tone.
Smiling back, Winter nodded.
"Got it."
-Litchfield County
August 3rd, 20:08 EDT-
The sight of the rendezvous point for the trucks checking to be sure all security measures were being taken care of, members of the Justice League surrounded and kept an eye on the parts of the powerful robot being placed in containers and trapped within the large vehicles.
Teams already formulated before the group had left, Aqualad, Miss Martian, and Kid Flash were lined up next to each other formulating one team while Winter, Robin, and Superboy took the second.
The group sequestered in a small clearing nearby some trees and bushes on the large desert roads of Litchfield County, the members of the team were dressed in leather driving outfits color coded to their hero and heroine ensembles. Each teen dressed for protection from leg, arm, and body gear with added helmet, all of the members of the team were doing their own thing to take up their time.
Aqualad reviewing the GPS coordinates.
Miss Martian taking in the view of Litchford County.
Kid Flash playing around with the new features of his transportation.
Robin keeping his eyes on the transports.
Superboy silently gazing out into the distance.
And Winter? Well...
"Stupid mini death trap." Winter muttered, fingers hesitantly gripping upon the handles of the newly acquired miniature motorcycle. A mixed look of terror, uncertainty, and annoyance flooding her features, the ice user fidgeted in her seat, nearly knocking over her bike helmet in the process.
She should have known Ice knew about this when she'd given her that knowing smile of mischief on their way here. The older woman knew how much Samantha did not enjoy rides on the smaller vehicles, but she'd always prod her into riding with her when the two were together, the rides becoming more frequent as of recently and even adding in some impromptu lessons to actually steering thing.
Against her will of course. She should have put two and two together weeks ago, but it was already too late.
Her body covered in an ice blue and white leather motorcycle outfit, Winter tugged lightly on the collar of her outfit, trying to adjust to the tight fitting clothing.
Her hair no longer tied in the usual side ponytail, Samantha rested her hair in a neat hair bun, a small strand or two escaping to frame her face. She'd need her hair as tied up as possible if she was going to keep her helmet on.
"Couldn't I just use my frost step and skate my way along the street instead?" Winter asked, exasperated by the situation she was stuck into doing.
"You think you can keep up by skating?" Robin asked, a playful eyebrow raised as he turned to look at the uncomfortable ice user.
"It's better than having to ride this...thing! I'd feel more safe skating on a street rather than this evil contraption." Winter argued, defiant in tone.
"Well if it makes you feel better, Ice made sure they equipped these bad boys with auto pilot. You can let the death trap steer for you." Kid Flash added with a glint in his eyes, revving his engine a little to spook the ice user. "You know, since your scared and all."
Oh, she was not letting Kid get the better of her.
"I'm not scared," Winter spoke up, shifting her body to sit up straighter than she had before. "I'm being cautious. And I don't need the auto pilot. I'll navigate this...thing on my own. Just you watch."
"Is everyone ready?" Aqualad called to the team, all members of the young heroes turning to look at the main leader. "The trucks are set. Our mission begins now."
All of the teens nodding and taking their time to turn on their vehicles, ready their equipment, or turn on their GPS, the two groups revved their engines and drove out of their hiding place, both team separating from one another as they followed after the large trucks containing their cargo.
Heading out and driving a few feet behind the truck heading towards Star Labs, Winter took the center of the road as Robin drove to her left, Superboy driving on her right side.
Eyes focused on the truck ahead of her thanks to the minimal view of her helmet, Winter kept her grip steady on the handles of the motorcycle, trying to make sure she didn't suddenly crash from a twitch of her wrist.
"How's the driving going, Winter? Still think it's a death trap?" Robin asked curiously, speeding up a bit to meet her eye to eye.
Hunching bit closer to the controls, Winter kept her eyes straight ahead. "It's...going okay, but I still feel like this is a disaster of an idea."
"Don't worry. I didn't know how to use one of these things when I first got on either. You're not going to be a disaster. Hm..." Robin said, only to trail off in thought.
"What? Is something wrong, Robin?" Winter asked, feeling comfortable enough to take her eyes away from the road to look at Robin real quick.
"I was just thinking, if dislike is the opposite of like, is disaster the opposite of aster?" The detective asked, a real sense of curiosity in his voice. "You know," Robin spoke as he zoomed in between Winter and Superboy to make his point. "See? Instead of things going wrong, they go right."
"If I remember my flower terminology correctly, the word aster the name of a flower of the asteraceae family, which is one of one hundred and eighty species." She spoke in a matter of fact tone.
Silence becoming her response, Winter looked back over to Robin, the boy staring at her with what she guessed was a confused expression beneath his helmet and mask.
"How do you know that?" Robin asked confused.
Because my father demanded I know just about anything topical and ladylike for my reputation as a Freya?
Feeling like she was being put on the spot, Winter turned back to the road, careful to hold her tongue and choose her next words carefully. "I-It's just something I know, okay? There's nothing wrong with knowing about flowers."
"Okay, if you say so." Robin said, smiling as if he was hiding something before turning to Superboy. "Flower or not, looks like somebody here isn't feeling the aster. What's up?"
"Canary," Superboy muttered, his anger clear despite the roaring of the bike's engines. "What business does she have teaching combat skills to a guy with super strength?"
Winter frowned at the question, the ice user scooting her bike somewhat to get closer to the conversation. Now that Superboy had time to simmer down, perhaps he'd be more willing to open up? His issue with Canary was fresh, but whatever happened before was still gnawing at him deep inside. If they could get to the problem with Canary, they surely could solve whatever had happened in Metropolis.
Just ease into it. Don't force him to talk.
"Superboy, super strength is helpful, but you can't always rely on it." Winter spoke up, jumping into the conversation in a calm tone.
"Yeah. Taking down strong bad guys is a part of the gig. Black Canary learned the hard. Same with Batman and...well, me." Robin added, putting his own two cents into the discussion.
Their words traveling to his ears, Superboy only scowled back, his eyes narrowing further on the road ahead; almost as if he was having trouble registering their opinions.
The anxiety on his face bothering her, Winter continued. "Black Canary was only trying to help you. I'm the same way, just like you. I've got powers, but I know I can't always rely on them in a fight; which is why I listen to my mentor and anybody else who gives me advice."
"Yeah, sure. Advice." Superboy answered, sarcastic in tone as he kept his sight on the road. "The only reason your fine with it is because your used to doing whatever someone orders you to do."
For a moment, Winter wasn't sure if she had heard Superboy right. But slowly as her memories replayed the words he'd spoken to her, the ice user felt the grip on her bike handles loosen, her body feeling rigid in place as shock made her eyes widen at Superboy.
Is...Is he talking about my father and I?
Her voice caught against a lump in her throat as Superboy ignored her and Robin to speed off, Winter suddenly jerked a bit in response, making the bike swerve a bit on the road and nearly veer off course.
"Wow, wow!" Reacting thanks to the long time training from Batman, Robin quickly shifted towards Winter and reached out a hand to grab Winters right, clutching his own tightly over hers to steady her grip on the steering. "Hey, I got you!"
Taking the help from Robin and realizing her predicament, Samantha shook her head to regain her senses and hastily reached to slam her gloved hand onto the console in front of her, activating the auto pilot of the bike.
An alarm beeping in recognition as the auto pilot took over the controls, Winter gripped hard onto the handles of the vehicle as the bike's tech readjusted her position back to normal, allowing the ice user to lean forward and try to regain her senses.
Breathing in heavily as blood pumped through her veins like crazy and her heart slamming against her chest, Winter grabbed at the visor on her helmet and pulled it upward to allow her to breath in the outside air, the oxygen filling her trembling lungs.
"You okay?" Robin called out to her over the engines roars, masked eyes staring at her with concern as he let go of her hand and gave her some room.
Her body feeling a bit shaken by the accident she nearly got herself into, Winter took in one last deep breath before sitting back up and looking over to Robin, the ice user nodding hastily. "Y-Yeah. I'm...I'm okay. Thank you, Robin."
"No prob. Ice Maiden would kill me if she found out you got into an accident while I was with you." The young hacker said, giving the older girl a smile. "Not to mention we want to keep this mission one big aster."
Hearing Robin using his strange wording again, Winter smiled a bit back. "Aster is a flower." She joked, her voice still a bit shaken. "But you are right about Ice. She's overprotective like a mom."
Smiling, Robin was about to speak up to try and lighten to tense mood further, but shut his mouth when a shadow suddenly flew over him, momentarily blocking the rays of the sun from his form.
Seeing the shadow as well, Winter turned her head upward along with Robin to see what had caused the sudden shift in light. Winter could feel her eyes widen in shock as Robin glared at the source.
"I'm guessing those are robots too?" Winter asked, ice blue eyes settled on small flying contraptions that looked like monkeys. Metal plating and etched with green wires, at least ten robots in a group flew with the help of tiny jetpacks above the heroes, making their way towards their truck.
Never getting an answer, Winter focused in on her comm as it crackled with life, static clearing out as Aqualad called out to the rest of the team.
'Winter, Robin, Superboy! Our truck is under attack!'
Realizing the worse had come for the group, Winter steeled herself and narrowed her eyes on the robots and called back on the comm. "I think we're getting hit by the same thing you are! We'll try to get them off us!"
"I hate monkeys!," Superboy growled, anger radiating off him as his eyes settled on the robots.
The robots seemingly ignoring the heroes below, the tiny android flew down to land on the truck carrying the android parts, some clutching tight to the doors while others on top activated lasers to cut into the ceiling.
"They are robot monkeys!" Robin exclaimed, eyes widening in examination of the machinery. "Totally Ivos' tweaked style!" Switching a button on his cycle as his bike roared to life, a small piece of the vehicle broke off and lit up in activation, floating into the air and transforming into a miniature battle drone. "We need to get those things off the truck!"
"Thinking the same thing!" Winter called out, focusing her mind to visualize something light weight. "Robin, try to get those robots off the door! Superboy, activate your bikes' battle mode! We need the extra fire power!" Winter commanded, ice flickering in her hand for a moment before materializing into a small ice rapier.
"No point!" Superboy replied back, not giving Winter a chance to answer before he leaped off his bike and jumped on to the top of the truck.
His bike swerving off the road and crashing through the street, the auto pilot kicked in as Winter moved to the left, narrowly dodging the close encounter and sped the bike up. Her heart once again smashing against her rib cage at the adrenaline pumping in her system, Winter moved her bike closer to the truck and felt cold ice begin to build up inside her.
"Okay. Just have to balance." She muttered, getting up carefully from the seat of her moving bike and jumped off, only to zip in a cold wind of snowflakes as frost step activated. Moving against the friction of the wind resistance and trying to catch up with the truck, Winter gained inches closer to the truck with every once of power she had, her fingertips just barely close to the truck.
"Ah!" A burning pain clutching at her right, Winter felt the familiar sensation of her power backlashing on her as ice began to crawl along her arm. Her concentration broken in the moment, Winter felt frost step disappear around her as she reached out as best she could to grab onto the truck's edge.
Unfortunately, she'd been a few inches too short.
"No!" She screeched, feeling the sensation of gravity weighing down on her as she felt her stomach drop, along with her body as the edge of the truck started to get further form her.
Ready to taste the terrible flavor as asphalt and the pain of a broken bone or two, Winter shut her eyes and was about to give up on getting herself out of this mess...
Suddenly, a grip on her wrist stopped her descent, making the ice user smack hard onto the back door of the moving truck. Gritting her teeth at the mix of pain from the collision and the icy pain covering her arm, Winter held in a wince as she looked up to her savior.
"You might want to time that better next time!" Superboy yelled to Winter, keeping his grip tight around the girls' wrist as he pulled her up, swatting away at the monkey's trying to deter his attention.
Getting pulled up the the edge of the truck with the help of Superboy, Winter grabbed onto the ledge of the truck and helped to pull herself up the rest of the way. Reaching the top of the truck and taking a moment to regain some oxygen, Winter turned to look at Superboy, peeling off her helmet and giving him a nod of appreciation. "Thanks!"
With no more time to spare on talking, Superboy rushed back into the fray, swinging wildly at the robots plaguing the car with animalistic rage.
Readying the ice rapier in hand and leaning into a sword stance, Winter rushed forward and skewered a robot monkey in the air with quick precision, swinging the sword with a thrust to remove the broken robot from the blade. Making another short dash across the truck and stabbing another robot, Winter summoned an array of ice needles and flung them at the robots, some hitting their mark while others dodged and were pushed back from the car.
"Need a hand?" Robin called from behind, making Winter turn her head to see the hacker rush off to slam a few robots with escrima batons. Batting one out of his way and dashing to Winters' side, the two stood back to back as they both knocked and stabbed yet another robot in their way.
"It feels like they keep multiplying. We aren't getting anywhere like this. Is there any way you can somehow hack them? Or short circuit them?" Winter asked, shattering her sword and etching ice over her hands to create gauntlets.
"Not like this! There's too many for me to ignore and I can't do it without some of their tech! There's not enough-"
"Argh!"
Jolting at the cry from Superboy, Winter jerked her head back to look over to Superboy, the clone hunched over and covering his eyes in pain. Eyes wide in confusion, Winter moved her gaze to a nearby monkey robot, its strange lifeless eyes glowing a sinister red.
"You stupid robots!" Winter cried out, anger radiating in her voice as she rushed over and swung a ice covered fist at the bucket of bolts. Slamming hard into the truck and falling into a lifeless heap on the street below. Another one of the nuisances out oft he way, Winter rushed over to the hunched for of Superboy, the ice user reaching a hand out to help her comrade. "Superboy, let me see. I can try to-"
"I don't need your help!" Superboy yelled, swatting the ice users' hand away and standing up in a haste, straining his eyes open as best he could at an attempt to see.
A small cry making its way out of her throat as she clutched her aching hand, Winter stared up at the enraged Superboy with worry, the clone moving back to swing widely at any robots that were unlucky enough to get in his way.
"S-Superboy, you need to calm down!" Winter exclaimed, trying to get the boy to listen to her like the leader she was.
Like the leader she was trying to be.
"Super-agh!" Winter cried out, losing her footing and falling over as a large explosion rocked the truck. Hitting the floor fo the truck with a hard thud, the ice user gripped the truck as best she could as the truck suddenly twisted and began to swerve on the road.
Opening her eyes to take in the sight before her, the ice user spotted the form of Robin also clutching the to swerving truck for dear life. Moving her gaze again to see Superboy doing the same but still attacking robots that were outside, Winter moved her eyes one more time and felt her blood run cold at the sight of the strange monkey robots flying off.
With the android parts in hand!
"No!" She cried out, clambering to her feet in an attempt to go after the robots. However as much as she wanted to, the rational part fo her made her glue her feet to the ground.
No! There isn't time! We need to get off this thing!
Taking a wobbling step on the truck, Winter carefully balanced herself and rushed over to Robin, helping to pull the Boy Wonder to his feet. The two trying to fix their balancing act, Winter motioned Robin to the front of the car.
"Get the driver! I'll get Superboy!" Winter yelled over the sound of screeching metal.
"On it!" Robin yelled back, reaching to grab a grappling hook and shot himself towards the front of the car.
Robin's job being done, Winter rushed over to the center of the car, the form of Superboy trying to blindly fight off a leftover monkey robot that lingered. Taking another swing with her ice gauntlet, the robot exploded into pieces as Winter reached out to grab Superboy by the waist.
"We're getting out of here! Hang on!" She called to Superboy, giving him no time to answer before she activated her frost step and jumped off into a flurry of wind. Flying through the air and moving far away from the crashing car, Winter deactivated the power yet again and crashed hard onto the street, both her and Superboy rolling on the ground with a heavy thud as the sound of the car crashing was heard in the distance.
A heavy thud heard across the other side of the road, Winter gritted her teeth in pain and sat up from the ground to see Robin rubbing his sore head with the driver beside him, unconscious.
"Robin! Are you okay?" Winter called, rubbing her sore arm and getting up to her feet.
"Yeah! Could be worse!" Robin called back, climbing up to his own feet and cracking a sore out of his neck. "Did they get em?"
"If you mean the parts, yeah." Winter answered bitterly, eyes glaring at the dirt ground below. "Whoever made those things wanted these parts. They hit both of our targets without being tricked by the decoys. They had to have known we were carrying them."
"Or they just knew what was inside." Robin suggested, heading over to where Winter stood and met the secondary leader. "We got to rendezvous with Superboy and the others. Compare notes."
"Yeah we...wait, Superboy? But he's-" Not understanding what Robin meant, Winter turned back to show Superboy was with her, but stared shocked at the sight of the super clone no longer where they'd landed. "Wha?! W-Where did he-"
"Raagh!"
The familiar cry of Superboy ringing through the air, Winter and Robin turned to see the form of Superboy jump high into the air, making his way over the remains of the broken truck and headed in an unknown direction.
"S-Superboy!" Winter yelled, trying to get the boys' attention.
"Where does he think he's going? And without us!?" Robin exclaimed, trying to keep his eyes on the retreating boy.
Knowing she would never catch up with him, Winter reached for her comm link and activated it to Superboys' channel. "Superboy! What are you doing?"
'I'm going after the cargo!' He exclaimed angrily.
Fingers pressing harder on the comm link in frustration, Winter grit her teeth together. "Not without the rest of us. We're a team. We can help you." She exclaimed.
Her left hand shaking as she tightened it into a fist, Winter turned to look into the direction Superboy had rushed into. "As your leader I order you to come back!"
'I don't need your help!'
The last words spoken by Superboy, Winter heard sudden screech through the comm before nothing but silence remained. Eyes widening at the sudden quiet from the comm, Winter pressed on the comm link again.
"Superboy? Superboy!?" Winter yelled through the comm, trying to get the clone to answer her.
No answer came back to her.
"I think...he ditched his comm." Robin spoke up, disappointment clear in his voice. Sighing, Robin looked up to Winter, the ice user still staring out into the distance where Superboy had gone off to. "I'm guessing neither of us are feeling the aster,?"
Her hand falling from her ear and lazily hanging at her side, Winter looked out at the orange sky courtesy of the setting sun. The smell of smoke, fire, and burning rubber still hanging in the air, Winter squeezed her hands into tight fists before letting out a heavy sigh, not even trying to answer Robin.
She said she could handle this.
This was her first mission as a leader and she was already screwing up.
The cargo that contained an extremely dangerous android had been stolen.
Superboy...didn't even want her help. Didn't even try to listen to her despite being team leader.
"The only reason your fine with it is because your used to doing whatever someone orders you to do."
Frustrated, Winter pulled her hair out of its bun and let her long white locks flow to her back. Gathering her bundles of hair and twisting it into its familiar side ponytail, Winter huffed and turned started digging into her suit pocket.
"What're you doing?" Robin asked curiously, watching the usually composed heroine fidget around silently.
"Trying to do a better job as a leader. I'm not letting this end in failure." She answered, confidence wavering in her voice as she reached up to activate her comm link and pulled out her GPS device.
"Aqualad, our were pieces were stolen and Superboy went off on his own. I couldn't stop him. Rendezvous at our location. We need to pool our information together and solve this." Winter spoke, her one sided conversation to Aqualad ended as she shut off her comm link.
Watching as the heroine began to make preparations for a mostly full team mate up, Robin decided to speak up. "So, what do we do now?"
Placing the GPS back into her pocket and shattering a few stray bits of ice off her arm, Winter turned her head to look at Robin, a strong look of determination he wasn't used to seeing on her face.
The kind of look someone had when they weren't messing around.
"We fix this mess."
And there is the first part! I'm so sorry this took so long to get out for everyone who's been waiting. My midterms for most of my classes were just announced and I'm swamped. I only wrote this now because I got distracted when i shouldn't have been.
But hey, new chapter for you guys!
I don't know when the next one will arrive. Hopefully when school settles down a bit and I get some free time again, then I'll get to work on it and get the rest out.
But I feel so bad, though. Samantha is trying so hard to be a good friend to Conner and give him space, but now it's backfiring and he's not working with the team and he's pointed out how much of a follower she is rather than a leader, whether unintentional or not.
Let's hope the team can pull themselves together before Amazo blows something up.
Until then, everyone have a good day/night! X3
Next Chapter: Schooled Pt. 2