MOUNT JUSTICE
SEPTEMBER 14TH, 2010
12:32 CDT

Holding a debrief in the middle of the day was a strange occurrence. Up until now, they'd mostly ranged from the earliest parts of the morning, into the dead of night. Non-standard hours were an occupational hazard for one, but also out of courtesy for those attending school during the day.

Even more unusual was the presence of Superman. This was the first time he'd been in the presence of the gathered Team since... well, since they'd rescued Superboy.

Speaking of whom, the older man was steadfastly ignoring eye contact with Conner, remaining uncharacteristically silent and fully supporting Batman taking the lead with this matter. Hovering behind the Dark Knight was a holoscreen, displaying mugshots of five familiar cold-themed ne'er-do-wells.

Alongside Hawkgirl stood Miss Martian, Superboy, Aqualad, Martian Manhunter, and Red Tornado.

As both Robin and Artemis were still stuck at school, their absence was understandable.

Once he was sure he had their full attention, Batman began. "This past Fourth of July, five ice villains staged simultaneous attacks. Mister Freeze, Icicle Jr., Killer Frost, Captain Cold, and the Snowman were all easily apprehended. Perhaps too easily."

Hawkgirl remembered that fight, not for its memorability, but rather how it led to their false induction into the Hall of Justice and the debacle with Cadmus' labyrinthine headquarters.

"Cold, Snowman and Frost were immediately sent to Belle Reve penitentiary, a federal prison designed to house supercriminals. The Snowman managed to overpower his guards and escaped on route to the facility and is currently unaccounted for, but we cannot rule out his possible involvement. The seventeen-year-old Icicle Jr. was sent to a juvenile facility, Mister Freeze to his usual cell in Arkham Asylum. But Freeze petitioned the court to be declared legally sane, and Junior sued to be tried as an adult. As a result, both await transport to Belle Reve, which seems to have been the goal all along." Batman paused, his gaze focusing on Miss Martian and Superboy. "I'm sending the two of you in to find out why."

An infiltration mission? That was... unexpected.

Aqualad voiced his immediate concern, "Who inside the prison will know their true identities?"

"No one," Batman answered. "We can't be certain the prison staff isn't compromised."

That was a surprise. Usually on an infiltration mission, there was at least some kind of inside source providing aid, especially for two rookies. But if the entire prison itself was compromised... Well, that boded ill for two reasons. One, the sheer number of notorious villains currently incarcerated. And two, the proximity to the Hawk family's stomping grounds and how often they'd worked with the prison in the past.

Batman outlined the rest of the plan and in turn revealed the reason for Superman's reluctant presence. Their teammates would be assuming the identities of two super-powered siblings currently on a crime spree, being sent to Belle Reve in their place. The plan was a good one... But plans never survived actual conflict.

"But... And I don't want to sound pessimistic..." M'Gann was chewing on her lips with worry. "But what if something goes wrong? I mean, neither of us have really done anything like this before?"

"We are not going to leave you completely alone." Red Tornado answered, attempting to assuage the teen's reservations. "Aqualad and I will remain stationed in the bioship, concealed outside of the prison during the course of the operation. In the event that emergency backup is required, all of the Hawks are remaining on standby despite prior obligations."

Now the reason for her presence became clear. "We can fly to Belle Reve from St. Roch in under twenty minutes." Ski'Lira offered nonchalantly, definitely not attempting to ease some of M'Gann's worries. "Usually, we'd station ourselves closer, but there's an arms deal going down dockside tonight we've been scheduling to intercept for weeks. But I'm sure you'll both be fine."

Conner glanced over at her, "You really think so?"

"Why wouldn't I?" She didn't miss the way Superman's posture shifted ever so slightly in his discomfort with the situation. "Anyways, just remember to be aware of your surroundings at all times. And if you get in a fight, win, and watch out for hidden weapons. If they get in close with their hands held low, they're probably trying to stab you."

"Thanks for the advice," M'Gann still looked a little shaky, but she was rapidly regaining her confidence. "How do you know that, though?"

"Standard Thanagarian social practices, why?"

H

"Okay, okay, what if..." Wally's excitement was so high, he couldn't stop wildly gesturing. "You held me by my ankles and then I create a vortex underneath us! And then we'd shoot into the air!"

Ski'Lira seriously considered the scenario, "That is... an idea, certainly. But you'd have to keep your body perfectly straight in order to prevent yourself from flipping yourself up into me. If you started to take your core exercises more seriously-"

The speedster deflated, along with his dreams. "Oh, yeah, definitely don't want to do that. That's way too much work."

"Wait, hang on," Artemis interrupted before Ski'Lira could bully the redhead. "I know you can carry Kaldur... But how many of us can you carry?"

Taking a moment to run through a rough mental estimate, she tilted her head to the side. "All three of you, easily. The issue would be the logistics of how."

One would think they were just a group of fanboys fighting over 'who would win in a fight' and 'wouldn't it be totally epic if', but in reality, they were making a sincere attempt at coming up with team maneuvers.

With a chunk of their team currently out on mission, Hawkgirl had proposed an improvised, more casual training session with the remaining members. The response she'd received was far more enthusiastic than she'd been expecting.

Already they had figured out that Hawkgirl could get a solid hold on Artemis's knees, letting the archer dangle upside down like a trapeze artist and fire arrows as she was carried through the air. The archer's aim wasn't perfect, due to the hindering factors she had yet to be able to compensate for, but it was a lucrative enough plan that they vowed to practice so it was battle ready.

Kid Flash and Robin had shown off their 'piggyback ride and birdarang throwing' maneuver that they'd developed some months prior, the small bird cackling madly as training targets exploded behind them while they zipped away to safety.

Robin was insistent on testing out a 'Fastball Special'. Ideally, it would be Superboy acting as the pitcher, but Hawkgirl was a great stand in. She had picked up the smaller boy by an arm and a leg, throwing him like a discus. He'd flipped through the air, landing safely on his feet. The moment his toes touched the ground, Wally threw his arms up, shouting "GOAL!" at the top of his lungs.

So maybe the 'training session' had devolved a little, but at this point Hawkgirl was having far too much fun to call the shenanigans to an end.

That brought them back to the current problem they were trying to solve.

Artemis posed the first suggestion, "Robin's pretty small, he could probably ride on your back. His balance is good enough. And you could hold Wally and me with either arm."

"That could work," Hawkgirl admitted. "One step at a time. Robin?"

Robin hesitated for a moment, but he ended up leaping onto her back, looping his scrawny arms around her neck. He slotted easily between her wings, thanks to his skinny frame. After giving a few tentative stretches of her wings to guarantee he wasn't hindering movement, she suggested, "You might want to hang on a little tighter."

Only once she felt his grip strengthen did she dare to take to the air. Her hover was wobbly for a moment as she adjusted to the unusual weight distribution, though it quickly smoothed out.

"Okay, this is awesome," Robin declared. "Think you can handle more?"

Confident in her stability, she held out her hands invitingly.

"Heck yeah!" Darting forward, Wally was the first to jump up towards her outstretched hand. Her fingers hooked around his wrist just as Artemis caught her other hand. She had to readjust her sense of aerial balance almost entirely to compensate for the additional weight, but soon enough, she was making lazy loops around the training room without so much as a wobble.

"How are you holding up?" Artemis called up to her.

"I've never carried more than two people before, but it's easier than I expected."

"It's surprisingly comfortable up here," Robin admitted, daring to remove his grasp of her neck and hold his arms outstretched. "Not gonna lie, I totally didn't expect this to work. Is this weird for you, HG?"

"Not particularly," she answered truthfully, risking a slightly sharper bank, satisfied when the equilibrium didn't alter. "Most likely some innate instinct. This is how Thanagarians usually carry their young."

Wally proceeded to inhale a lungful of air in precedent to a guffaw, only to end up choking on his own spit. That didn't stop him from letting out a laugh that was more of a harsh coughing fit. It was only Hawkgirl's steady grip that kept him from plummeting towards the unforgiving floor of the training room.

Artemis' amusement was far more subdued, while Robin was pouting.

"I am not a baby." He insisted.

"No one said 'baby' except for you." Artemis pointed out, which only made him frown harder in indignation.

Seeing this as the end of the exercise, Hawkgirl lowered her altitude to safely drop two of her charges on the ground.

"Robin, hang on tight," that was all the warning she provided before she resumed her aerial laps. Arms back around her neck, she picked up the speed and executed a few loops and spins, purely for his benefit.

When Hawkgirl landed, boots making little noise despite being made of metal, Robin planted his boots into the middle of her back and used her like a springboard, executing a neat flip as easy as breathing.

"I think it's safe to assume we've all reached the limit of our productivity today." Hawkgirl began, a mischievous smirk spreading across her face. "After all, it's about time for the baby to take his nap."

Robin's indignant, "Hey!" just set Wally off again, the speedster collapsing to the ground in a fit of laughter.

H

"Okay, one boat I can understand, but two?" Artemis' incredulous expression was downright comical. "Did he do it on purpose?"

"I think Twister was too focused on taking everyone else down for that kind of forethought." Robin mused. "There's no way it was planned... right?"

Everyone lapsed into a contemplative silence, which was instantly shattered by the systematic crunching noise of Wally eating his way through a family sized bag of Cool Ranch Doritos.

After she'd called the training session to a close, they'd all showered, dressed down to civvies, and regathered in the rec room in an attempt to relax and burn some time. Both Robin and Hawkgirl had hero obligations in a couple of hours, while Wally and Artemis claimed they were swamped with homework.

They were cherishing this brief amount of free time they had it, also relishing the rare opportunity to just... coexist with each other.

"Hey, Hawkgirl?" Artemis looked over at the brunette. "Can I ask you something I've been wondering about?"

"Sure?"

"Will you tell us what Thanagar's like?"

That wasn't anywhere close to a question she'd been expecting, "... Why?"

"Because we don't know anything about it?" The blonde offered her counterpoint as if it were the most obvious fact in the world. " "I mean, I assume I'm speaking for everyone when I say that we know practically nothing about where you came from. M'Gann? She's an open book, she'll gush about Mars for hours if you let her. Even Kaldur never misses an opportunity to talk about Atlantis."

"I... suppose your curiosity is understandable." But that left the question of if she actually wanted to tell them? The interest was genuine, she could tell.

Educating Superboy on small details about her home had gone well, despite his frustration when she only offered barebones information.

Roy, on the other hand, was a different story. He used to enjoy hearing her stories, he loved to hear about the floating cities, her Da'my's bakery, citing he always wanted to find out what Thanagarian pastries tasted like. Though his feelings about Thanagar were... soured, by the end of their friendship.

Dragging her thoughts away from that veritable minefield, she instead reminded herself that the people currently present were members of her kast. They at least deserved a chance.

"Ask your questions, then."

Wally did a double take, hastily swallowing his mouthful of chips. "Wait, really? You'll just... answer whatever questions we want to ask?"

"That is how questions tend to work, yes. Though I retain the right to refuse to answer if need be."

"That's understandable," Artemis nodded fervently. "Alright, uh... I honestly didn't think I'd get this far. So... I guess we'll start with something easy? What's it like? I mean, as a whole. A society."

See, now Hawkgirl had a choice.

And it was within her nature to go with the option that was downright chaotic.

She forced her face into a chagrined expression, "There is... a sharp contrast between the wealthy and the poor, a large divide that's plagued Thanagar for decades. Some decades ago, it all came to a head. As a result of severe overpopulation, food supply is in a dire situation, and riots are commonplace, especially over supplies of basic necessities. There are so many rioters roaming the streets, that when they are arrested, there is no room for them in jails and prisons. Instead, they are transported to massive facilities where they are executed and their corpses are turned into a highly popular food substitute."

For the rest of her life, however long that may be, she would cherish the looks of sheer and utter horror on her friends' faces. Artemis' face had paled, then turned decidedly green from nausea, while Wally was regretting the entire bag of junk food he'd just consumed as it threatened to make a reappearance. Even the usually unflappable Robin was shocked, which meant something considering he'd gone toe to toe with the Joker more than once.

When Robin spoke, his voice was small and breathy, as if speaking too loud could do more damage than her words. "... Really?"

Ski'Lira gave up on the ruse, snorting loudly. "Of course not. I was just describing the plot of Soylent Green, a human invention. How does that make you feel?"

"That was horrible." Despite her snappish tone, Artemis was visibly fighting back a grin as she caught onto the harmless joke.

"I couldn't resist." Settling back further into the couch (careful not to squish her wings too badly), Hawkgirl pulled her legs up into a lotus position. "In truth, Thanagar is quite different from Earth, though there are still some similarities. We are a warlike people, yes, but we are not mindless brutes. We have laws that are strictly followed and are punished fairly if disobeyed, we have a reigning government body, and we have mandatory education that is freely available for all ages."

"Wait, does that include college?" Wally asked, and when she gave an affirming nod, he cursed. "So unfair. My turn for a question. Where did you grow up, exactly? Big city girl?"

"Not exactly," Ski'Lira replied. "More about the equivalent of a small town, called Hei'Thir."

Leaning forward, elbows perched on her knees, Artemis prompted her to elaborate. "What's it like?"

"For one, most cities and settlements on Thanagar are built atop and into floating to the sheer amount of Nth metal saturating the land and water, it has had some... strange effects on the geography. Most of the solid land broke away from the planet's crust over time, caught in constant suspension over the grey seas. My parents were both born in raised in the great capital city of Thanaldar, the largest city on the planet, but since I was given to my Da'my Maye and Da'my Tildi, I lived with them in Hei'Thir instead."

Wally interrupted before she could explain some more about the architecture, "Wait, hold on, your parents didn't raise you?"

"Of course not, they were both in active service."

The redhead's face did something strange, a mix of disbelief and hurt (on her behalf?). "So they just... left you?"

Hawkgirl suddenly understood, reminded (for what was sure not to be the last time today) of their vastly different societal expectations. "Cultural difference," she cited, musing that it was practically a catchphrase for her, considering how often she'd had to use that excuse. "Since there is such a high percentage of the population in active and reserve military service, it is fairly common for those unwilling or unable to leave active service to leave their offspring with family or friends until they reach a more... manageable age. Thus, I was left with my maternal aunt Maye and her wife Tildi."

As if suddenly gifted with a second's worth of psychic ability or M'Gann's telepathic prowess, she answered Robin's inevitable question just as he began to open his mouth. "Yes, on Thanagar, there are no gender limitations for marriage. Problem?"

"Actually, it's another point in Thanagar's favor, I think." Robin explained, earning agreeing nods from both Wally and Artemis.

"I have so many more questions," Wally flopped back into the sofa. "I barely even know where to start... You said most Thanagarians are military and that there's mandatory education. Does that mean you guys are basically raised to be soldiers?"

Waggling a hand back and forth in a so-so gesture, she fought to find a way to phrase her answer without it sounding concerning. "Yes and no? Combat training is mandatory, as battle is in our blood, and having a horde of untrained weapons running around as they please is... dangerous for all involved. There have been countless studies over the years identifying the most effective way to temper a Thanagarian's inherent temperament without causing detrimental harm to the individual or the whole. But training doesn't start until after the first molt."

"Molt? Like... like actual birds?" Stifling his chuckles with a hand, Wally averted his eyes to avoid her heated glare. "I'm not laughing at you, I promise. It's just... it's just the mental image of a bunch of featherless Thanagarians..."

She supposed she could see the humor in it, at least from the perspective of someone who'd never experienced the crippling pain and discomfort of a molt before. Instead of causing him bodily harm for his teasing, she merely hummed in agreement.

"As I was saying," she said, bringing the topic of conversation back to the initial query. "Education begins at age five, where we learn the basics just as you do here, reading, writing, mathematics, and so on. Since I was always meant to come here, I had a supplementary education. During the day I would attend class at the outdoor pavilion with my peers, and in the evenings I would learn about Earth from virtual programs. As for Thanagarian education, you partake up until you reach adulthood, and then you are admitted into the Academy. That is where military training begins."

"And how long does that last?" Robin asked.

"It depends on which branch you enter. The average is... around a year, more or less. Those destined for more... specialized careers usually take longer. And then those intended for medical or scientific work, stuff like that, usually go to different schools after that. All for free, of course."

"Huh, that's..." Artemis was pensive. "I mean, I knew your people were kind of..."

"Bloodthirsty? Driven by the prospect of the glory of combat? Superior to humans in every conceivable way?"

That last comment earned her a good-natured shove from the archer, "The first two, yes. I just meant, I never figured Thanagar would be so... structured."

"I will take that as a compliment. I… must admit, I did not expect you all to be so… eager to learn about my home. Perhaps from now on I will be more open to answering your questions. And… maybe next time I can show you some pictures?"

"Asterous." Robin sent a bright grin her way that she couldn't help but return.

H

Confronting the arms dealers had been an easy mission, though a long one. After lying in wait for hours for the ship to sail into the harbor and dock, and then waiting even longer for the perpetrators to make an appearance and begin unloading their contraband. There had been significantly more individuals involved than intel had suggested, as well as bearing much heavier arms than expected.

Durable they may be, but they were just as susceptible to bullet wounds as any human, which meant the Hawks had to change their plan from a calculated assault to a stealth mission.

They'd taken down the goons one by one or in pairs, until soon enough, they were able to call in the authorities to retrieve the smugglers and their cargo. After Shayera had noticed Ski'Lira stifling a yawn, her mother had insisted she head home first, claiming she and Katar could oversee the cleanup themselves. With just aiding the police in transport and reports to give, Hawkgirl took the out she was given, relieved she wouldn't have to deal with the far more tedious aspects of hero work.

The flight home was smooth, as she stuck to the coastline of St. Roch on the journey home. Even though she was still technically on call in case of an emergency with the Belle Reve mission, she found herself looking forward to crashing on the couch at home.

Swooping down lower to catch a faster air current, her sharp eyes latched onto a bright spot of light on the beach below. Bringing herself down to a hover, she focused her gaze entirely on the source, trying to judge the situation. A small fire burned on the beach, a handful of inebriated humans surrounding it. Judging by the demeanor and appearances she noticed, they were all college students.

Usually, she would have let them be and been on her merry way, allowing the cops to take care of the situation when they were inevitably called for disorderly conduct or a noise complaint. However, a couple of the young men were having some sort of inane contest to see who could throw empty beer bottles furthest into the ocean, their companions cheering them on.

Near silent, she dropped into a dive, snapping out her wings just before she hit the ground, landing directly in front of the drunk duo. One of her arms shot up just in time to block a beer bottle that would have hit her in the face, deftly snagging it in her claws, careful not to break the sturdy glass.

"Stop that," she growled, still holding onto the bottle.

"You can't tell us what to-!" One of them tried to swagger forward in an attempt to intimidate her, only to trip on his own flip-flop and land face first into the shallow water. Rolling her eyes, Hawkgirl bent down and picked him up by the back of his shirt before he could aspirate any seawater. She tossed him onto the sand in the direction of his friends.

"We'll stop, Hawkgirl." The other man was bobbing his head so hard he was no doubt hurting himself doing so. "We promise."

"Good. And dispose of these properly." She emphasized her point by shoving the empty bottle into the more reasonable one's hands. "This is a public beach. Children and pets run around here."

"Yep, we'll get... right on that. Right now."

The college students all began to scramble, picking up errant bottles and packaging, stuffing them into empty bags. Satisfied she'd instilled enough fear into them, Hawkgirl prepared to take off... only for something else to catch her notice.

Further down the beach, there were strange gouges in the sand that definitely didn't look natural, leading up to a circular structure. Flying the short distance over to investigate, she recognized it now as a sewer drain pipe, about four feet across. Judging by the rusted condition and location, it was likely part of the old sewer system. Most of the pipes had been upgraded to non-lead counterparts, but some sections had merely been abandoned and blocked off, as it was cheaper to just dig new tunnels rather than replace old.

In an attempt to keep out interlopers, inch-thick metal bars had been fastened over the front over a decade ago. But apparently they hadn't been strong enough to keep out whatever had snapped them apart like dry spaghetti. Inspecting the discarded bars, she noticed streaks out of dark brown that didn't match the surrounding rust. A quick sniff confirmed her suspicion.

Dried blood.

From what little she could see inside, there were further streaks both in the tunnel, and pooled at the bottoms of the gouges in the sand. Now that she was practically standing on top of them, they looked like dragging footprints. Very large footprints at that.

Blowing out a long breath, she said a mental goodbye to her downtime before it had even begun. She brought a hand up to her ear, activating the comm unit in her helmet to contact her parents. "I got waylaid. I think I've got a lead on a new case."

"Already? That was fast." Katar grumbled. "Be careful, and keep us updated. Good hunting."

"I will." Shutting down the channel, she cracked her neck from side to side to loosen it up. She just knew this wasn't going to be something simple. Nevertheless, she ducked down and entered the tunnel.

Ten minutes of being confined in the aging, cylindrical tunnels, she began to have some regrets and reservations. The pipes were spacious in theory, but not nearly as much as she wanted them to be. About a hundred feet after the entrance, the walls had widened considerably. If she wanted, she could stretch her arms out to either side and lay her hands flat, but her wings were forced in close to her body. Her neck was already screaming from her slightly hunched position, not to mention the instinctual terror constantly lurking in the back of her brain and threatened to overwhelm her at any moment was making this... less than pleasant.

The only positive of this situation was that whatever she was tracking left ample evidence to follow, blood-encrusted brick, concrete, and metal, providing a crystal clear trail. Usually tracking was not nearly this straightforward.

Relief came when the tunnel expanded even more, allowing her to stand up straight. Unfortunately, it was because the lower half of this section of sewer had cracked and sunk down from lack of maintenance, and water was pooling at the bottom. Green-tinged water lapped at her knees.

Just as she was considering turning back, a foreign, rumbling noise sounded from up ahead. Her resolve bolstered, she slipped her mace off of her belt, slowing her pace until she came to a corner. Plastering herself to the edge of the wall, she cautiously peeked around.

At first, all she could see was a light-colored mass, half-submerged in water, one that easily could have been mistaken for a mound of trash left behind. On closer inspection, the mass wasn't made of smooth plastic or detritus, instead sopping wet fur. The surface was marred by weeping crimson holes, steady trickles of blood dropping down into the water. In a burst of clarity, Hawkgirl realized exactly what, or rather, who she was looking at.

Drawing her head back, Hawkgirl snuck a good forty feet back down the tunnel, dropping her voice down to a whisper and switching languages to Thanagarian, for good measure. "Da'mi, Ta'me," she began, comm united reactivated. "I've successfully located the Snowman, but I think someone else got to him first."

There was no reply.

"Da'mi, Ta'me, come in."

Static.

Cursing under her breath, she blamed the people responsible for constructing the lead-lined pipes that were thoroughly blocking communications. She was thoroughly on her own for this one. If she retreated now, there was a chance the Snowman would either escape or perish down here by the time back-up arrived.

The last time she'd fought the Snowman, both of her parents had been with her. But as he was heavily injured, she hoped that would dull his strength and reflexes enough that she could take him on single-handedly.

Readjusting her grip on her mace, she straightened her spine and walked with confidence around the corner, doing little to muffle the splashing of her footfalls. She stalked up to the unmoving of the Snowman without fear. As the width of this dead end tunnel he'd crawled into only left a couple of feet of space around him, she maneuvered herself until she was looming over his head.

Her back was to a wall, but it was a risk she had to take in order to confirm his condition. The twisted, sasquatch-esque face of the Snowman was propped out of the water by a small pile of fallen bricks. His eyes were firmly shut, the only indications of life the shallow rise and fall of his chest, and the muted thud of his weak heartbeat.

With no sign of consciousness, she reached down and nabbed him by the upper arm, fully preparing to drag him out of the sewer.

The moment the clawed tips of her gauntlets made contact with his coarse and grimy fur, inhumane yellow eyes snapped open.

There was no time for her to dodge as a meaty fist slammed into her chest, rocketing her backwards into the stonework behind her.

A majority of the impact was absorbed by the back of her armor, which meant she was spared broken ribs. The Snowman's injuries played into her favor, as it was taking him serious time to struggle up into a standing position, height constrained by the low ceiling. She took the wisest course of action and used his moment of disorientation to dart around his shambling form and out of the dead end.

The last thing she wanted was to get trapped in the wrong place.

Or rather, more trapped than she already was.

This situation was far from ideal.

Shoulders hunched up to his ears in order to fit through the tunnel, The Snowman locked eyes on her, jaw dropping open and letting out a bellowing roar. Clamping her hands over her ears in an effort to block out the thundering noise, Ski'Lira gritted her teeth. Once he had quieted, she screamed out a piercing war cry of her own, closing in mace-first. The spiked head of her mace impacted The Snowman's knee with a loud crack as bone gave way.

His answering bellow was pained, but in his adrenaline-fueled state, it did nothing to stop him.

Ears still ringing, Ski'Lira opted for further retreat, spinning around and sprinting as quickly as she could manage. Her movement was hindered by both the drag of the water around her legs and the slippery brick below her feet that provided little purchase.

The Snowman pursued her with singular desperation, seeming to possess little to no concern for his wellbeing, as he mindlessly chased her. Any attempt his body had made at healing over his bullet wounds was reversed, as his movements broke any scabbing or clotting. His shoulders and biceps scraped against the brick on either side of him, tearing off fur and exposing the sickly skin beneath as he went, which was summarily also torn open in long scrapes.

He had no hesitation, a wounded predator only seeing prey. The Snowman had always been less than... cognizant, whenever he went into his rages, any semblance of a fully thinking being lost to rage. That was one of the reasons he was so formidable of an opponent, and why it had taken three Thanagarians to take him down last time.

Hawkgirl didn't realize she'd accidentally taken a wrong turn until she noticed the lack of bloodstains marring the walls. Shortly after, she emerged into a large cistern she definitely hadn't passed through before.

A foolish mistake it may be, but she wasn't about to pass up the opportunity of a slightly more open battlefield. Taking a quick glance around her surroundings, she saw that the other end of the large cavern was a mass of rock and rubble, presumably where the other exit had been. The only way out was the way she came... which meant she had to get past the Snowman.

Sensing him being her, she pulled her wings in tight, dodging off the side just as she felt the air pressure change as he lashed out at her. Her luck was poor once again, as her foot caught on a small pile of loose gravel lying unseen below the water. Thus, it was less of a practiced dodge and more of an uneasy lurch. She ended up sprawled halfway on her side and partially underwater, her uniform thoroughly soaked through.

Before she could roll to the side, The Snowman's large hand shot out and grabbed her around the torso, bodily flinging her up and out of the water. Hawkgirl smacked into the opposite wall helmet-first, the force crumbling brick and leaving a circular imprint behind.

Letting herself go limp, she executed a sloppy roll to the side, careful to hold her breath for the brief moment her head was underwater, springing back up to her feet with an accompanying spray of water.

Dexterity and agility weren't going to be her friends here. Her opponent's sheer unpredictability made the approach dangerous, and she knew that even Robin would likely have difficulty maneuvering around the watery terrain. What she wouldn't give for Aqualad and his hydrokinesis right about now.

That just left brute strength.

Shifting her mace so that it was grasped with both hands, she dug her heels into the ground beneath her feet. She couldn't risk slipping again.

The Snowman's hands curled into fists, taking up the silent challenge as he charged straight for her.

She waited for one heartbeat, then two. On three, her opponent's form closed in, barreling towards her with no sign of slowing.

Just before the fourth heartbeat, a screech of effort left Hawkgirl's mouth as she swung her mace with the fullest amount of force she could muster, directly into the Snowman's face. Going beyond her safe limit, she felt muscle in her shoulder tear, one of her ankles twisted and nearly popped as it slipped further into the stone beneath her.

Any pain she experienced was forgotten as a rush of exhilaration surged through her body.

The Snowman was knocked out cold the moment that her mace made contact, but her hit had also sent him flying back diagonally, his head striking the ceiling and raining down further debris that dropped onto him. Thoroughly unconscious (hopefully for good this time), the beast of a man dropped down into the water.

Letting out a relieved breath, Hawkgirl made her way over to him as quickly as her smarting ankle would allow. A quick first aid check confirmed he was still breathing, but he definitely needed medical attention yesterday.

There were only two options. One, go for backup and risk him bleeding out, or two, take him out of here herself.

The choice was clear, especially since it meant she didn't have to stay in these infuriating confines any longer than necessary.

Activating the secondary mode of her mace, Ski'Lira began looping the thin Nth metal chain around his limbs, shoulders, and torso, acting as both restraints and a method of lugging him to safety. She kept a firm hold of the handle, adding a few loops around her own waist to make transport easier to manage.

Thus, she began the long trek out of the sewers, a previously missing supervillain in tow.

H

The emergence from pitch black tunnel to clear, starry night messed with her night vision for a moment, and she had to blink a few times until her sigh properly adjusted. Taking in lungfuls of fresh air, she felt the lingering dregs of panic from being underground leave her mind space, along with the scent of stagnant water and unpleasant odors from her olfactory senses.

Mere moments after she'd deposited Snowman onto the beach, her view was plagued by a flurry of golden Nth metal, feathers, and a soft green glow.

"Ski'Lira Hol, you'd better have a damn good explanation for this!" Hawkwoman demanded, mouth set in a severe scowl.

Looking past her enraged mother, Ski'Lira saw that her father and Hal Jordan were already moving towards the immobile Snowman.

"... I can explain?"

H

"You were only away for what, four hours? And you already got yourself in trouble with the League." Dick's bared face was smug, blue eyes glittering with amusement, purely at her expense of course.

"Technically I'm not in trouble," Skylar corrected, leaning back in her desk chair. She was already starting to give in to her friend's insistence on a video call and it had only been fifteen seconds since she'd accepted. "Since I was in a communication dead zone, blame fell mostly to circumstance, and when I pointed out The Snowman's physical condition..."

"You should count yourself lucky. Seriously." The teasing expression melted away into something more sincere. "By the time your parents sent out the all clear, Bats was nearly at the Zeta Tube to teleport to St. Roch."

Sighing, Skylar ran a hand through the damp strands of her hair. It's not like she intended to send her parents into a panic when her comm went dark, thus prompting them to send out an alert to the entire League. By her count, she'd been on the less favorable end of three separate lectures, one from each parent and one from Hal. There was little doubt in her mind that she'd receive at least two more before the matter was fully dropped.

"Hey, look on the bright side," Dick said. "You managed to track down a wanted fugitive."

"A fortuitous coincidence for sure," she couldn't help but agree. "But I find myself wondering exactly how he ended up that way. Security footage from the convoy confirmed that during his escape he was only hit with tranquilizer rounds. Whoever shot him with actual bullets definitely did so afterwards."

Robin's eyes darted away, hand perched pensively on his chin. "Do... Do you think whoever did that to him were the same ones organizing the cold villains?"

"I wouldn't rule it out, but there's so little information... speculating is useless."

"I wouldn't say useless."

"I just meant that-" her defense was cut off as her phone rattled on her desktop. Grabbing it, she couldn't help the small wince as she had mistakenly used her still-healing arm to do so. There were three notifications from the same contact.

Conner: I think M'Gann and I are dating?

Conner: We kissed

Conner: Yeah, I'm pretty sure we're dating.

"Okay, whatever you just read must be pretty intense if you're breaking your legendary poker face." Dick spoke up, bringing her attention back to his virtual presence. "Spill it, Sky."

"It's from Conner," she admitted. "It seems like he and M'Gann admitted their feelings for each other."

"FINALLY! It took them long enough!"

Humming in agreement, Skylar started to tap out a message of congratulations to the Kryptonian. "I believe this means Operation: Shovel Talk is now active."

"I'm still not sure if we should put that into effect..."

"Dick," Ski'Lira interrupted his spiral of doubt swiftly and utterly. "Conner is definitely going to get a shovel talk from J'onn. And who else would act in our place on his behalf?"

"… Okay, two very good points. But I think we should come up with the speech beforehand, you know, as a team. Mostly because I'm afraid you'll go overboard. Scratch that, I know you'll go overboard."

"Threats are an art form, Dick. And such an occasion only deserves the finest of verbal warnings."

"Okay, okay. Let's just start brainstorming, and we'll move on from there."