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When they got back to the warehouse, Megan, Dick, and Lagaan met them at the door.
"Welcome back, Jaime," Nightwing said with a strained smile.
"Thanks. It's good to be here," he replied.
Zatanna crossed her arms, looking at Dick. "What's up?" she asked pointedly.
"What?" he asked, trying to brighten his smile, but all of the older team could tell there was something bothering him.
"Please, I know you. Now what's on your mind?" she asked.
He sighed. "Well, actually, I do have something that I need to tell you. All of you."
Mallory's heart skipped a beat and she looked at Megan, who nodded slightly. The pyrokinetic took a breath, preparing for what was coming.
"What is it?" Vigilante asked.
"Well," Dick said, glancing around, and he told them everything, starting with Kaldur leaving the team and becoming a double agent, and ending with Megan's capture and how she was able to escape. No one said a word the whole time, and when he was done, he looked around nervously. Still, the room was silent for a long time, until Zatanna broke it.
"So…you're saying that Artemis is alive?" she asked quietly.
Dick nodded, and Raquel put a hand to her mouth. The others started to react. Gar and Peter broke into grins, and Zatanna, Megan, Mallory, and Raquel moved closer together. "Can you believe it?" Zatanna asked.
Mallory winced. "I'm so sorry I didn't tell you, but…"
"It's ok, I'm just so glad that it's true," the magician replied, tears welling in her eyes.
Dick gave them a few moments to come to grips with the information, then he got their attention back by saying, "I told you this for a reason. I received a message from Kaldur today. The Light is setting up a summit with the Reach. This will be the perfect opportunity to put a stop to both the Light's plan and the Reach's involvement on Earth. All we need is a plan."
Two days later, the team and key Leaguers gathered in the warehouse to discuss that very plan. Wally showed up with Bart and Flash, and Mallory grinned, greeting him with a hug.
"Hey, what are you doing here?" she asked.
He shrugged. "Just wanted to see you guys, and–" He was cut off by the door opening, and Tigress walked in. Everyone stared at her, their eyes wide, only partially believing that it was really their friend. She stood there, her eyes narrowed, making her face look threatening, but then she reached up and took off the necklace, and her appearance changed to the familiar ones that they all knew.
"Artemis!" Zatanna exclaimed, and she was the first to engulf the archer in a hug.
Mallory walked over slowly, unable to take her eyes off of her friend.
"Hey, Mallory," she said quietly.
Mallory smiled and hugged her. "I'm so glad you're here," she said quietly.
"Seconded," Wally said behind her, and Mallory let go so he could greet his girlfriend. Peter and Gar were not so courteous. They grabbed her in a hug at the same time, pushing Wally away, and Artemis laughed and hugged them back. "I missed you too," she said.
"Not half as much as we missed you," Peter assured her. He looked behind her. "Where's Kaldur?"
"He couldn't get away, but I have all the information we need," she said.
"Ok, let's get this started," Dick said from the other side of the room.
Artemis nodded and she and the others went to the screen, where she told them all about the summit, the place, time, and the Light's plan. "They wanted to put the Earth in the galactic spotlight to make sure that their survival of the fittest plan would happen on Earth, and that in turn will transform the Earth and the Light into the eventual rulers of the Milky Way. They've been playing the Reach since day one. They sabotaged all of their attempts to further their own goals, and they swayed public opinion when they got too close to winning. They are holding this summit to start breaking their ties with the Reach. Once they have the War World, they'll start taking control one planet at a time, starting with Earth."
"But the Reach has the War World," Captain Atom said.
"Maybe, but if they could, they would've already used it," Dick mused. "They must not control everything."
"The key," Conner said. "That's the only thing they wouldn't have. And since it was moved around so much, there's no telling where it ended up."
Artemis nodded. "Well, I'm sure we'll find that out tomorrow," she said. "We just need to talk about strategy. Kaldur and I will be on the inside, but if this is going to work, we're going to need a few more things."
"Right. You'll need a few more people on the inside," Canary said.
"Megan could pose as someone," Gar offered.
Artemis nodded. "Yeah, and we can sneak a few of you in as Manta's patrol. The rest will just need to stay hidden."
"We can be outside, like the backups at Malina Island," Captain Atom suggested.
"Woah, you can't all be there," Artemis said. "The League needs to be seen around, or it'll be suspicious. Besides, I can't sneak that many people in."
Atom sighed heavily. "Fine. The team will be on hand to assist at the site, and there will be some Leaguers not far away if you need more help."
They nodded, and Atom and the other Leaguers stood to go. Mallory, Zatanna, and Rocket stayed put, and he turned to them and opened his mouth to say something.
Mallory sighed and raised an eyebrow. "I sure hope you aren't going to say something stupid like we can't be in on this," she said, and he closed his mouth. "'Cause if you were, you'd be wasting your breath. This is our unfinished business, and there's no way we would leave the rookies to take care of it."
"Hey!" Peter said.
She smiled at the boys. "Oh, don't worry, I wasn't talking about you," she said, winking at them.
"All right," Nate said, and Mallory smiled and nodded a thanks, glad that he was finally letting her do something. They left by zeta tube, and the team started going over the details. When they got everything figured out, the team members said goodbye to Artemis and started to leave. Robin and Batgirl went to Gotham, Peter and Gar went to Mallory's parents' house, Lagaan went to Atlantis, Mal and Karen went to Happy Harbor, Jaime and Impulse went to El Paso. Soon, it was just the original team, except for Kaldur, left sitting in the living area of the warehouse alone. Wally had his arm around Artemis on the couch, the others were sitting around.
"It's good to be back together," Megan said, looking around. "There was a time I didn't think we ever would be again."
"Guys, I am so sorry about this, we all are," Artemis said. "We should have told you."
"Yeah, well, let's all keep that in mind for the next time one of us has to fake their death for a mission," Raquel said. They chuckled.
"Guys, after tomorrow, this is going to be over," Wally said quietly, looking around them. The weight of what he said hung over them, and they looked at each other gravely. "Six years of fighting the same people, trying to figure out who they are and what their plan is, and it all led to this point."
"Wow. six years. A lot's changed since then," Dick said, looking at the speedster. "Can you imagine if we had listened to the League and just stayed in the Hall that day?"
Wally leaned his cheek on Artemis's head, looking at Conner and Megan and Mallory and Zatanna and Raquel. "No," he said simply, and they all nodded. None of them could imagine their lives without each other, and none of them wanted to. Through all of the hardships they had survived, all of the losses, they still had their family, and they wouldn't have traded that for anything.
"There were so many things that had to happen at random to bring us all to the same place at just the right time in our lives," Zatanna said thoughtfully. "I don't think it was all coincidence."
"What, you think someone brought us together on purpose?" Conner asked.
She shrugged. "I just think that there are some things that happen for a reason, and they are so powerful that nothing can stop them. This right here is one of them."
They smiled, and Mallory looked around at the people that had been there for her for so long. She was almost fifteen when she first walked into the cave, alone and afraid of her own potential. Now, she was twenty one, a hero in her own right with more control over her powers than ever, and she had more family than she knew what to do with. She thought about the prophecy and looked down. If this truly was the end, then she likely wouldn't be around the next night when the smoke cleared. She looked around the circle again and smiled. "I'm so glad I have you guys in my life. I really don't know what I would do without you. I love you so much."
They smiled, and Wally nodded. "Ditto," he said.
Artemis checked the time and winced. "I have to get back," she said, pushing herself to her feet. She started to put the glamor charm back on, but Wally grabbed her wrist. "Wait," he said, getting up. He kissed her and pulled her into a hug. "I'll see you tomorrow," he said.
She smiled, looking up at him. "You're coming too?" she asked.
"Well, duh. This is my history, too," he said, smiling. "Besides, I don't want to waste a second with you once this is over."
She smiled and gave him another kiss. "I'll see you on the other side of this," she said, looking at all of them. They nodded, and she put on the glamor charm and went to the door.