Hope you like the chapter. It is the first one that starts moving things towards season two, so hope you like it. Also, I'm really, really struggling with trying to write missions, so I could really use some suggestions. I don't want to make all the missions simulations, so if you have any favorite villains from the comics, or ideas for missions, or anything like that, tell me about it in the reviews. And I'm also taking suggestions for a partner for Mallory, and for that I could take lesser known heroes from the League and de age them for the story, or maybe a civilian, honestly, it could even be a bad guy. Leave those suggestions in the reviews, too. Please review!
Mallory woke up the next morning to Wally standing over her after just pushing her out of bed. She glared up at him, her eyes blazing, and he grinned and put his hands up. "Hey, don't shoot the messenger. We have a mission," he said.
She groaned and pushed herself up. "All right, I'm on my way," she muttered, and he nodded and sped out of the room. She got ready quickly and hurried to the training room. Batman was there, as was most of the rest of the team. The only person that wasn't there was Garth.
"Where is Tempest?" Batman asked.
"He is in Atlantis. I do not think he will be able to accompany us on this mission," Tula replied.
Batman sighed and pulled up the screen. "Sportsmaster and Black Spider have been spotted in Bludhaven. I suspect that they are there to complete a deal for the League of Shadows, or more specifically, for Ra's Al Gual. Your mission is to split into two groups and follow the suspects. Report what they do, and if they are involved in something bigger, call in the League. A few members will be standing by." Batman was staring at Robin as he added, "and stick to the plan."
Mallory winced, and Robin narrowed his eyes angrily. Batman closed the screen and strode out the room, and the team headed for the hangar to board the bioship.
"Perhaps one group should take different transportation, while the other group remains on the bioship to keep watch," Kaldur decided.
Artemis nodded and went straight to her motorcycle, and it was decided that Mallory, Robin, and Wally would be on the streets with her, the rest would be in the bioship. The members who would be on the bikes put civies on over their suits and straddled the motorcycles, waiting for the bioship to take off before revving the motors to life and going through the zeta tube after the ship.
They came out in an old tube in the heart of Bludhaven. The surroundings were grim. The streets felt eerie, like they would just swallow you up and you would never be seen again. It felt ten times worse than being in the heart of Gotham at night. Mallory noticed that even Robin was watching their surroundings closely, and when they had to stop at lights, he kept his head on a swivel, his hands tightening on the handlebars.
"It had to be Bludhaven," Wally muttered on the link.
"What is wrong with Bludhaven?" Tula asked from the bioship.
"Nothing, if you don't mind a city without a hero," Artemis replied.
"Yeah, Bludhaven's pretty much a pit stop for supervillains," Robin put in. "And the citizens don't do anything to try to stop it."
"Well, aren't you used to this sort of place, Robin?" Gar asked.
"No, Gotham isn't like this. Bludhaven during the day is as bad as Gotham is at night. I don't even know what it's like at night, I've never been here after rush hour," he replied. Mallory kept her fire ready. If Robin was this on edge, then she was on the verge of panicky.
"The signals just split," Robin announced.
"What does that mean?" Zatanna asked.
"Sportsmaster and Black Spider, they aren't travelling together anymore," he explained.
"Well, we are already in two groups. Why don't you guys go after one of them and we'll go after the other?" Megan suggested.
"Agreed. Which suspect would you like?" Kaldur asked.
"Oh, please, allow me to find my dad," Artemis said.
"All right, then it is decided. The ground team will follow Sportsmaster, we will tail Black Spider from above," Kaldur said.
"Right, and hopefully they'll meet back up at the meeting spot," Robin finished.
"We can hope," Conner said.
Robin pressed a button on his cycle and it sent a map of the city and a GPS of where Sportsmaster was to their cycles. The next second the ground team veered off the main highway onto a narrower street.
"How do we even know where they are?" Mallory asked after a moment.
"Batman managed to put tracers on them when he tracked them to Gotham last night," Robin explained.
"Why has Batman been working on this? This is our unfinished business, not the League's," Mallory said.
"Hey, don't be like that. If the League can help, why can't we just take it. I mean, after all this time dealing with the Light, aren't you ready for it to be over?" Rocket asked.
"Besides, the Light isn't just our unfinished business. It's the League's, too. This all started because the League's main enemies wanted to get an edge over them," Zatanna pointed out.
Mallory sighed. "I know, but we've been doing this alone for all this time, and now Batman's going to swoop in and try to solve everything? I mean, why now? There has to be a reason, there always is with him."
Robin revved his motor, gripping the handlebar tighter. "Can we not talk about him right now?" he asked. Mallory looked at him, feeling bad that she'd brought it up.
"So, what's the plan for when they get to their meeting?" Wally asked.
"We listen to what they're saying, then we crash it and put the ringleaders behind bars," Artemis said simply.
Wally chuckled. "Oh, is that all?" he asked. Artemis shot him a glare, and Robin sighed. "Could you two not argue for just one mission? This is kind of important," he said, but Mallory could see his smile through the dark glass of his helmet.
"Oh, let them argue. It's better than no one talking the whole time," Zatanna said.
The ground team made another turn onto an even narrower street. They had to ride single file through the one way street, and Mallory wondered vaguely if it was really an alley. In this part of town it was a little hard to tell.
"It looks like Sportsmaster is going to the edge of the city," Robin said.
"Does anyone know what's out that way?" Conner asked.
"There's a bar that's a cover for an illegal casino. Batman and I have crashed it once or twice looking for information," Robin replied.
"And they didn't move the location?" Rocket asked.
"They did. This is the new location. Batman keeps an eye on it in case we need to find someone there again. But why would the League of Shadows need to have a meeting in Bludhaven? They could meet anywhere in the world," Robin said thoughtfully.
"Maybe they aren't meeting with members of the Light. Maybe they're here to recruit enforcers," Artemis mused.
"Yeah, or maybe they're here to get rid of someone," Wally suggested.
"Why would they need a meeting for that? These are both professional killers. If all they were doing was getting rid of someone, it wouldn't take two of them, and they would just do it and disappear before anyone even heard about it," Mallory pointed out.
"Agreed. So the question remains, are they on a mission for Ra's al Gual and the League of Shadows, or are they on a mission for the Light?" Kaldur asked.
"Well, either way they need to be shut down. Sportsmaster's slowing down. We should be finding out where he's going in a few minutes," Wally said.
"Hey, Rocket, when did you say Darius was coming to the cave for dinner?" Zatanna asked after a minute.
"What?" Mallory asked, and Robin said, "Really, Z? We're in the middle of a mission."
"I know, I'm multitasking. All Black Spider's doing is jumping from building to building. We've got some time before he should double back, that is, if we still think they're going to meet at the casino. Is he coming this week or next?" Zatanna asked.
Mallory could almost feel Raquel's smile over the link. "Next week, if things stay calm," she said.
"Careful, you do not want to jinx it," Tula cautioned, and Mallory smiled. "Good to see I made a believer of you," she said.
"You cannot ignore statistics," Tula replied.
The ground team slowed their cycles as Sportsmaster slowed to a stop a few blocks ahead of them.
"We're stopping a few blocks away from the casino," Robin announced, and the conversation stopped as the team switched to business.
"Maybe he's not going there?" Megan suggested.
"Maybe," Robin said unconvincingly. "Where are you guys?"
"We're still moving, but we're going to the other side of town," Conner replied.
"So, who do you think is going to double back?" Wally asked.
"Perhaps Batman was mistaken about the meeting. They could be here to fulfill separate agendas," Tula suggested. She didn't get an answer. The team knew better, and so did Tula.
Mallory rested her forearms on the handlebars as she watched Sportsmaster, in civies, get out of a car and walk into a building six blocks away from where Robin had predicted he would go.
"Should one of us follow him in, or go on the roof, I don't know, something?" she asked, looking at her companions.
"Perhaps it would be wise for you to see what is inside," Kaldur said. "But have two people go in, just to be safe."
Mallory looked at the others to see who would be the two to go in. "Not me. My dad'll recognize me the second I take my helmet off," Artemis said. Mallory and Robin looked at Wally, but he shook his head as well. "Sorry, hard pass. I'm sure he'd recognize me if he saw me. Besides, red hair doesn't blend in very well." Mallory and Robin got off their bikes and took off their helmets, and Mallory let her black hair down. They walked across the street to the building Sportsmaster had gone into and Robin held the door open for Mallory. They found themselves in a dingy lobby looking room. They started to walk down a hall and someone said, "can I help you?"
They spun around to see a woman behind the desk staring at them. Robin took Mallory's hand and pulled her gently towards the desk.
"We want a room," he said.
"This is a hotel, right?" Mallory added.
The woman eyed them suspiciously for a moment. "What are you kids doing in this part of town?" she asked.
"Um, does it matter? You gonna rent us the room or not?" Robin asked, narrowing his eyes behind his sunglasses.
The woman sighed and pulled a key from under the counter. "Fine, but keep it down, and don't trash the room. I'm tired of cleaning up after everyone," she said. Mallory took the key and they started walking down the hall. "Wait," the woman said, and they half turned. "you pay up front," she said. Robin went back to the desk and put a hundred dollar bill down. "Will that cover it? We'll only be needing it for a few hours," he said, and he and Mallory went to the stairs.
They climbed up to the third story and let themselves into the room they'd rented, and updated the team.
"A hotel?" Conner asked, his voice unimpressed.
"Perhaps it is more than it seems," Tula said.
Mallory looked around the room, careful not to touch anything. Everything was filthy, and several cockroaches were scurrying around the room. "I sure hope it is," she said. "It looks like she got tired of cleaning a long time ago."
"Well, go look around. We'll keep an eye on the outside," Wally encouraged.
Robin downloaded the blueprints if the building and they crept out of the room. The place was all but deserted, but they still kept their footsteps soft in case the receptionist was listening for them. They went to the top floor and started making their way to the first floor.
"You find anything yet?" Conner asked.
"Nothing yet," Mallory told him. They heard the receptionist walking towards them and Robin gently pushed her towards the wall. She leaned against it, and the wall gave way. They fell backwards into a brightly lit room with a round table and six broad men in suits and masks. "Although," Mallory said, staring up as the men started towards them.
"Well, well, well. Who do we have here?" Sportsmaster said, coming to the front of the group. Mallory and Robin sprang to their feet, back to back against the circle of men.
"A little help here," she said.
"Coming," Artemis replied.
"You want we should kill them?" one of the men asked.
"No, as long as they were so curious, let's let them see what they came here for," Sportsmaster said. Mallory and Robin were tied up and led to a back room. Mallory recognized Mammoth immediately at the front of a large group of supervillains, though none of them were direct members of the Light.
"I think we're gonna need backup," Robin said. Kid and Artemis were there the next moment, and Mallory burned through her restraints and civies to reveal her suit, putting on her mask before the flames died down.
"Mal!" Robin said, his tone reprimanding.
"What?" she asked.
"Way to be subtle, Inferno," Wally said, grinning.
"He knows we're with Artemis, what does it matter?" she asked.
"Um, maybe you shouldn't have shown exactly what you can do," Artemis said, looking at the sea of villains in front of them.
"Uh, guys, we might need a little more help," Wally said.
"We are in our way. We will leave someone tailing Black Spider, and we will call the League on our way," Kaldur said.
"I will stay with Black Spider," Tula offered. There was some talk while the other half of the team worked out what they would do, and in the meantime the ground team started fighting. Mallory stayed in the air, flamed up, and sectioned off the room. Wally and Artemis were in one half, and her and Robin in another. It didn't take long for the rest of the team to get there, and they regrouped at the edge of the room. There were a few villains lying unconscious on the ground, but most were getting ready to charge.
"Anyone have a plan here?" Rocket asked.
"We just have to hold our own until the League comes," Kaldur said.
"That's a plan?" Mallory asked, looking down at their leader with a grin.
Kaldur looked up at her. "It is all I have for the moment," he replied, not returning the smile.
Mallory sighed and concentrated on trying to keep the fight as even as possible.
They fought for several minutes before Flash ran in, taking out three villains on his way. "The cavalry's here!" he announced loudly. Mallory looked around, waiting for the rest of the League to crash through the ceiling or something, but nothing happened. Flash frowned after a minute and put a hand to his ear. "Uh, guys, you totally left me hanging," he said, dodging Sportsmaster's attacks distractedly, which angered the villain even more. A minute later, Superman, Batman, Black Canary, Green Arrow, Wonder Woman, and Dr. Fate came in.
The team allowed themselves a brief moment of relief while the League made their initial attack, then they jumped back into the fray. Mallory and Conner stationed themselves near Clark, helping each other keep up with the Man of Steel. Mallory noticed that Robin stayed with Zatanna and Kaldur instead of going to his mentor like Wally and Artemis had done. She didn't have time to dwell on it, though. She ducked and let Conner punch Bane, moving around him at the same time to shoot some fire at Mammoth. Conner told her to get down, and she dropped to the floor. He threw Bane over her and into Mammoth, settling that fight for a few seconds, which was enough time for Superman to knock out Blockbuster and take on the other monster of the Light's creation.
While he was battling Mammoth, Mallory and Conner turned to face Bane, and Batman took advantage of his distraction and cut the tube feeding him the drugs, which took the heavy hitter out. Superman knocked Mammoth out, and everyone looked around the room. The fight was over, with the villains either unconscious or tied up.
"Where's Sportsmaster?" Artemis asked, looking around. The team looked, but he was nowhere to be seen.
"He must have gotten away in the confusion," Wally said. Artemis let out a frustrated grunt, and Wally put an arm around her. Mallory and Zatanna leaned against each, catching their breath, and the Leaguers gathered in the middle of the room to discuss the fight. Robin stood in between where the team was standing and the League, trying to hear what was being said and clearly not liking being left out of the discussion. Finally, Batman turned back to the team.
"My intel seems to have been correct all along, which means that we will need to question the suspects to find out exactly what this meeting was about and how long this place has been a cover for illegal activity. I am not satisfied with the advanced team's performance, but the team fought adequately and managed to call us in time so that more damage was averted. Good work," he said.
Mallory saw Robin narrow his eyes, and she thought, "Yeah, we just couldn't have handled it on our own."
"I did not see Black Spider in the fight. Did he go to a different location?" Batman continued, not looking at Robin or Inferno.
"We were forced to leave our pursuit of Black Spider to help the ground team with this fight," Kaldur said, standing at the front of the group, as always ready to take full blame for whatever happened on the mission and shield the rest of the team from Batman's wrath, should it come to that.
"You left a known supervillain and assassin roaming free?" Batman asked.
"No, Aquagirl volunteered to stay behind and keep an eye on him," Zatanna replied. The team remembered Tula at the same moment, and they all looked at Megan, as the link had been lost during the fight.
"I'll see if there's any update with her," Megan said, and her eyes glowed white as she tried to contact Tula. After a moment, her eyes went back to normal, and she looked around the room with a concerned look on her face. "I cannot find her," she said.
Mallory and Zatanna straightened up, worry tugging at their chests.
"What do you mean, you can't find her?" Flash asked.
"Don't worry, I'm sure it's nothing. She's probably just out of my telepathic range," the Martian said, but her face said something else.
"We should go to where we dropped her off. She can't have gone too far," Rocket suggested.
Megan nodded, and the League had a quick conversation deciding who would stay with the prisoners. It was decided that Superman, Black Canary, Wonder Woman, and Flash would bring the prisoners to Belle Rev, and Batman, Dr. Fate, and Green Arrow would come with the team to the spot that they dropped Tula off. The group piled onto the bioship and took their seats, Robin at the controls while Megan sat at the front, searching for Tula. Mallory exchanged glances with Zatanna and Rocket and let her gaze settle on Wally. He looked over and tilted his head slightly, reassuringly. She gave him an almost imperceptible nod, and he turned his attention back to Artemis, who was scanning for Tula's comm along with Batman and Green Arrow.
"She's fine," Rocket said quietly from the back. Mallory and Zatanna turned to look at her, but she was facing Kaldur, one hand on his arm.
"I hope you are right. We should not have left her alone when we did not know what the League of Shadows had planned."
"Kaldur, you can't blame yourself for this," Raquel said.
Kaldur looked out the window, looking over the city below. "I know I could not have known that she would face danger, but I am the leader of this team. Anything that happens on our missions is my responsibility. I should have known better than to leave one of us behind."
"Kaldur, you were coming to help us. We wouldn't have been able to win that fight without you," Mallory said quietly.
"Yeah, and Aquagirl volunteered to stay behind. Besides, you're talking like she's never coming back. For all we know, she's just outside Megan's range, and we'll find her as soon as they get a reading on her comm," Zatanna added, smiling reassuringly.
Kaldur nodded gratefully to them, but he didn't look entirely convinced. The girls turned back to the front. They couldn't convince him not to worry when their own stomachs were tied up in knots.
"I just picked up her comm," Green Arrow said a moment later.
"I did as well. She should be just a few buildings from here," Batman said. He pulled up a holographic map, and Robin started the ship to the location. He landed on the roof, and the team and the Leaguers went into the building.
"I can't sense her anywhere," Megan said.
"The readings don't lie. Her comm is on the third floor," Artemis said.
"Maybe she's unconscious," Wally suggested. They continued on in silence until they reached the third floor, which was a large empty storage room. Artemis, Green Arrow, and Batman walked straight to the middle, and Batman knelt down and picked something up. Mallory stood on tiptoe, craning her neck to see what it was.
"It's her comm," Wally told her quietly. Mallory's eyes widened, and the team started moving around the room, looking for clues as to what had happened to their friend. After searching the room for the third time, Mallory looked up to see if her companions had found anything. Dr. Fate was standing in the middle of the room, looking like he was zoned out. Mallory went over to Zatanna.
"Hey, what's he doing?" she asked.
Zatanna looked at him briefly. "I don't know," she said, but then she froze. "Wait, yes, I do. He feels something, I sensed it too, when we came in, but I couldn't place it so I convinced myself that it wasn't anything to worry about."
"What is it?" Mallory asked.
"Mystical energy," she said, looking at Mallory grimly. "Klarion, he's been here."
Don't forget, review with suggestions, and with thoughts on the chapter!