Be a Maverick

"Hrrrrggg rah!"

"C'mon SB! Getting soft in your old age?"

"You're one to talk. Aren't you a little old for these quips of yours, 'Wing?"

"It's part of my charm! I put effort into these retorts y'know."

Back and forth they went. Conner and Nightwing engaged in light casual sparring to pass the time while M'gann watched with a bowl of popcorn. She insisted they do the match with their shirts off. They both knew the reason why, but the cave's air conditioning was a little spotty today so off with the shirts. Over the years, Conner had certainly improved from just brute force punching. Canary bequeathed upon the young Kryptonian all her knowledge in judo, tae kwon do, and more. Dick having learned from the Batman had a few tricks up his sleeve too. He couldn't punch Conner straight on without injuring himself, so Nightwing had to rely on speed, agility, and using Conner's momentum against him. Of course, Conner knew this, so his best chance was to anticipate where Dick would land next. But who could ever predict Dick Grayson? Dick threw a right hook causing Conner to duck to his right. Conner put up his hand expecting a kick from Dick's left leg, but it never came. Instead, Dick latched his arm around Conner in a headlock and pushed off from his feet. They both landed on the ground with Dick furiously gripping Conner's neck. As they hit the ground, the VR screen lit up with the words "Superboy: Loser."

"Alright alright! Uncle Uncle!" Conner admitted defeat.

"Always expect the unexpected."

"As these years and still cocky as ever."

"I'm telling you man, it's my charm!" Dick teased offering a hand to pull Conner up.

"Reccgonized: Batman 02"

"Recognized: Robin B-13"

Conner and M'gann gave each other confused looks before turning back to Nightwing. Dick gave no answer as he approached the Dark Knight and the new protégé.

"Mission briefing, five minutes," Batman ordered.

Moments later after Conner and Dick dried themselves off and got their gear in order, Batman brought up a picture of Queen Perdita of Vlatava.

"Sigh, once again Queen Perdita is in danger," Batman began.

"Again? How many times is it now?" Conner asked.

"Doesn't matter. This time, the kidnappers are hiding under the guise of the US military. This is Lagrange Point Delta. It's an Air Force base in Qurac. It was supposed to be a quick launching point in case Bialya turned hostile. Well, more hostile than usual. Anyway, as a show of good faith and support from Vlatava, Queen Perdita agreed to visit Lagrange. But for some reason she and her entire staff cut off all communications. Despite multiple hails, the entire base has not responded for 18 hours now. The only form of communication sent out from the base is the green all clear signal. Obviously, the League cannot barge in without losing favor to the American public. As such, you four will have to infiltrate, save the Queen, and liberate the base."

"Us four?" M'gann asked.

"This is Robin," Batman nudged Jason Todd a little, "I've taken him under my tutelage. Dick and I have been training him for the past few months. He's taken on a few villains in Gotham, and I believe he's ready for a Team mission."

"'Sup!" Jason greeted.

"Hiya I'm M'gann aka Miss Martian and this is Conner aka Superboy."

"Pleasure to meet ya! Can't wait to work with you all….well most of you anyway," he said sending some side eye towards Dick.

Dick rolled his eyes as the entire exchange didn't go unnoticed by Conner and M'gann.

"You have your mission. Move out in 10 minutes."

The flight on Bioship was comfortably silent before Jason decided to break the ice.

"So, SB," Jason asked, "You're like a clone of Superman, right?"

"Well, half a clone really. I don't have all his powers."

"Yea, but you're like, invulnerable, right?"

"To an extent. I'm not as strong or fast as he is, but I do have his heightened senses."

"Wicked!"

While Jason and Conner chatted along, M'gann opened a mind link with Dick feeling his distress.

"Must feel weird, doesn't it? Seeing him in your old colors?"

"A little. But I gave up the red and black for the blue. It was my choice."

"Why did you choose blue anyway?"

Dick paused for a moment not really wanting to answer. He blushed a little signaling M'gann to prod a little deeper.

"I thought Zatanna's favorite color was purple?" she smirked.

"It is. But she started it. She won't admit it, but she chose her current blue tailcoat to match my eyes. Thought I'd return the favor."

"Ugh, you two are almost sickly at this point."

Dick could only shrug at M'gann's comment.

"But really, Dick. Why are you so distressed with Jason coming on this mission?"

"Sigh, I don't think he's ready. I think he's a little hot-headed and quick to act."

"Batman seems to think he's ready. What's got you all knotted up?"

"Well -"

"We're here!" Jason exclaimed.

Lagrange Point Delta came into view. All looked peaceful and quiet. Soldiers were tending to the surrounding aircrafts, and some were keeping watch at the outposts. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. The quartet stealthily landed on an outer wall of the base. M'gann linked up everyone mentally.

"If this base was really taken over, the bad guys are doing a really good job at hiding it," M'gann stated.

"There's a lot of ground to cover. We'll have to split up and cover ground quickly," Conner added.

"Agreed. Robin, you take the south side….Robin," Nightwing tried to order.

True to Boy Wonder form, Jason had vanished. From the corner of his eye, Nightwing noticed the boy flipping his way past some B-52 bombers.

"Wow, he really is a Robin," Conner chuckled.

"Dammit Jason!" Nightwing cried as he chased after the young hero.

"Guess we'll go the other way," M'gann decided.

Robin flipped and twirled and leaped all around the base. Nightwing with his speed and agility was able to keep up with the boy, but he was getting irritated very quickly.

"Dammit Jason slow down."

"Why? Can't keep up with me, bro?"

Left and right Jason was taking out various soldiers on the outer perimeter of the base. A birdarang here, a kick in the head there, down went the many soldiers. Fed up with his defiance, Nightwing finally caught up to Robin and held him by the cape.

"I said slow down! You can't just take these guys out willy-nilly!" Nightwing scolded.

"Why not? Batman said this base was overrun. These are bad guys!"

"We don't know all the facts yet. Right now, we need to gather information. Besides, you're not being strategic about your take downs! A lot of these bodies are out in the open. You could be tipping off a lookout and putting the whole base on alert!"

"This is taking too long!"

"Uhh boys?" M'gann interrupted via mindlink.

"What's up Miss M?" Nightwing asked.

"I interrogated one of the assailants. We've got Bialyan troops all over the base. The hostages right now are being held in Hanger E57 but-"

"Alright I'm closest! Last one there is a rotten egg!" Jason exclaimed leaping into action.

"Jason wait!"

M'gann shook her heard a little at how much the young Robin reminded her of the old Boy Wonder. She looked back down at her 'interrogation suspect.' Despite looking directly at his lifeless beady eyes and his drooling mouth, she felt no remorse. She simply put her hood on and flew away leaving the suspect on the ground without a single thought.

Robin slowly climbed through the window of the Hanger. Looking around he saw soldiers standing around out in the open. Their hands looked stiff, but Jason didn't care. He leaped into the fray gliding down and kicking one of the soldiers. The others turned around, but no one fired. Thinking this is too easy, Jason continued to flip and kick the soldiers guarding the hostages. With the last one on the ground, he noticed that the soldier's hands were duct taped to the rifle. Unfortunately, he wasn't given a second to think as one of the 'hostages' got up and smacked the back of Robin's head with a pistol knocking him out cold.

"We have Robin. It looks like American heroes have arrived. Signal headquarters. We burn the base tonight," the Bialyan 'hostage' ordered his men.

They tied up the Boy Wonder and placed him in the middle of the room with Queen Perdita on the side. One of the men slapped him awake.

"Huh what?" he huffed.

Jason's eyes widened as he looked down the barrel of a rifle.

"Hello little boy. Demands are simple really. You move, I pull trigger, BANG. Ok?"

Jason froze. He trembled as he continued to look into the barrel. His mouth dried up completely and his heart pounded in his chest. He tried to speak but only a tiny croak came out of his throat. Back on the streets, he always found a way out of situations. He always had an exit plan or was able to overpower thugs who thought he was too small or not tough enough. But here, in the middle of the desert with his arms tied up and a gun pointed to his face, he felt powerless. He felt scared. Perdita noticed his uneasiness and nudged him to the side.

"You feel strong, don't you? Pointing guns at unarmed children like us? I don't see you as strong. You are just little man," she spewed with venom.

"Why you -"

The soldier was about to retort but was interrupted by the loud blaring alarm. Everyone turned to the front of the hanger as bright sirens blared and cried through the night.

"What the hell is that? Someone radio boss! What's going on?"

With the real guards distracted, no one noticed a pair of black escrima sticks bouncing around the walls and ground.

*POW POW POW*

One by one the sticks ricocheted off the ground and railings knocking out nearly all the guards. The remaining two looked around before a pair of hands smashed their heads together knocking them out cold. Perdita's eyes lit up as she beamed at the blue hero.

"You two ok?" Nightwing asked.

"Yes yes! Thank you, Nightwing!"

"My pleasure, Your Majesty. Let's gets these bounds off. I'm assuming those in soldier garbs are actually your entourage?"

"Yes! They killed all the American soldiers and then dressed themselves up as hostages. They forced my men into the soldier uniforms to deceive any cameras or spy drones."

"Good to know. Alright let's get moving."

Nightwing helped Perdita and Robin up before calling for the rest of the team.

"Ms. M, we need collection at Hanger E57. We're gonna need a quick evac. SB, do a quick scan of any other heat signatures. Soldier garbs are hostages."

Moments later, Bioship and M'gann appeared in front of the hanger. Perdita boarded the ship while M'gann used her telekinesis to pick up the hostages Robin had unknowingly taken out. Feeling ashamed, Robin dug his boots into the ground refusing to look Nightwing in the eye. To his surprise, Nightwing ruffled his hair.

"Do you now understand why the prefix dis- is added to aster?" Nightwing asked.

"Huh?"

"Aster is the situation in the moment. Disaster obviously is a bad situation. The dis- makes the difference."

"Yea. I almost royally messed-up."

"Yea. You almost added a big time dis-. But lucky for you, you can learn from this."

"You're not mad?"

"I'm just happy you're alive. Look, I'm sorry for being too harsh on you during training. You and I are different from the other heroes. We don't have superspeed, superstrength, or even simple flight powers to fall back on. We have to work twice as hard and be almost perfect solely so we can survive. I had it rough when I started. Bad guys didn't care that I was a minor and they won't care for you either. I've had my fair share of bullet wounds, stabbings, scars, and more. I didn't want to push that life into you. However, you chose this life. If you continue choosing this life, you have to abide by mine and Batman's training. It'll be tough, but we'll sharpen your skills so that you can survive. We demand perfection not because we're assholes, but because we worry about you."

"I-I see."

"Like today. You rushed in not knowing the Bialyans were posing as hostages and forcing Queen Perdita's staff to be guards. You left your team hanging playing catch up as opposed to formulating a proper plan. Things could have gone much farther south."

"Y-yea. I'm sorry. You're right. I was almost shot and killed today."

"Exactly. Like I said, we're just human. We have to be better."

"Yea. You're right. Thanks bro."

"So, we good?" Nightwing asked extending his hand.

"Yea. Thanks," Robin said shaking it.

*BOOM*

An explosion from the main building sent a lone figure flying out and in front of Bioship. Conner landed with a thud and fell completely unconscious.

"Conner!" Ms. M exclaimed.

From the fire a hulking figure with flowing red hair and cracks in his skin emerged. He roared and pounded the ground like an ape.

"Mammoth? Shit what's he doing here?" Nightwing cried out.

Before anyone could answer, a squad of Bialyan jets zoomed across the skies dropping bombs all over the base. Planes, gas tanks, buildings are exploded and crumbled into dust.

"No time to figure things out. M'gann, grab Superboy and evac ASAP."

"But what about you?"

"I'll hold off tall dark and ugly. Robin, get on the ship!"

"No way dude! I'm staying."

"Jason! That's an order!"

Interrupting the conversation, Mammoth leaped into the air and slammed his fist down separating the trio. M'gann levitated Conner and brought him into the Bioship. Nightwing with his escrima sticks furiously tried to land a hit on Mammoth. His impenetrable skin left him unphased before Robin throw some flashbangs into the monster's face. Hearing the roar of the jet engines, Nightwing looked back to see the Bialyan fighters come in for another bombing run.

"M'gann take off now!" he ordered.

Realizing the situation, M'gann piloted Bioship out of the area.

"You guys hang tight! I'll swing back for you!" she said via the mental link.

Down on the ground Mammoth was giving Nightwing and Robin the business. Robin tried to smash his staff onto Mammoth's head but that only shattered the staff. Nightwing fired a grapple tying Mammoth's hand and then attached the other line to the side of the hanger locking the brute in place. Robin, seeing the opening, rolled right in front of Mammoth and then pushed off kicking him in the face. Angered, Mammoth roared one final time before ripping the hanger panel right off the wall free his arm.

"Great, now what?" Jason asked.

Nightwing looked around and spotted one of the few intact few tanks in the distance.

"You ever play cat and mouse?" he smirked before throwing another explosive at Mammoth.

Immediately, Nightwing back flipped and ran the other direction. Robin, completely flabbergasted, could only follow.

"That's your plan!? To run away?" Jason screamed.

"Not exactly."

Nightwing peeked back to see Mammoth gaining ground. Looking forward, he decided that everything was lined up perfectly.

"Do you trust me?" he asked.

"Do I have a choice?" Jason answered.

"Just follow my lead."

Abruptly, Nightwing turned around and prepped a battle stance. Robin followed suit. Mammoth sped up and rampaged directly towards them.

"NOW!" Nightwing shouted.

Both Boy Wonders ran towards Mammouth and leaped on top of him and pushed him forward. They grappled away to a nearby building but not before Nightwing threw three explosive discs at the fuel tank behind them. They detonated just as Mammoth ran headfirst into the tank causing a massive explosion. Nightwing and Robin perched atop the building's roof to see Mammoth stumble out from the flames. Seconds later, he collapsed onto the ground completely exhausted.

"Cool. Now what?" Jason asked.

"M'gann are you able to pick up?"

"Negative. I've got Bialyan fighters on my and the base is crumbling. No good landing spots."

Looking around, Nightwing spotted a single intact hanger. A light bulb went off in his head.

"Shake them off and then return to rendezvous point," he ordered.

"But you and Robin!"

"Rescuing hostages are more important. You can't afford a dogfight right now. Robin and I have a plan B."

"Copy."

With that, M'gann flew the Bioship further and further from the base. Nightwing made his way towards the hanger with Robin in tow. Gripping the doors, they both pulled open the hanger. Nightwing peered inside and chuckled while Robin stared in disbelief.

"That's your plan B?"

"She's a beauty, isn't she?"

"You're out of your mind! Can it even fly?"

Resting inside the hanger was an old 1974 F-14 Tomcat. The wings were folded, and two fuel lines were connected to its underbelly. Nightwing approached the fuel conduit and tapped it a little. The panel lit up exciting him.

"Yes! Ok, here's the plan, I'm gonna get up there and start her up."

"Can you even pilot this thing?"

"We'll find out."

"…..oh my God we're gonna die."

"We are with that shitty attitude. Look grab those G-suits. It's gonna be a bumpy ride."

Now prepared in proper gear, Nightwing began giving Robin the final flight prep instructions.

"Alright look. When I get in the cockpit, you turn this lever and keep it going until this gauge hits 120. Then, when I turn on the engine, remove the corresponding fuel lines. Remember to remove the missile pins, then climb aboard. Got it?"

"Got it."

Nightwing climbed into the pilot seat and plopped down. The old electronics and outdated meters shocked him for a bit, but he quickly regained his composure.

"Damn this is old. Nothing like the batwing."

Quickly he flicked a few switches turning on the console and panels.

"Left engine," he shouted pressing the button.

The left engine sputtered and fired out a cloud of ash as it fired up. Quickly, Robin unplugged the attached fuel line. They repeated the sequence with the right engine before Robin finally jumped into the backseat.

"Oh my God, we're going to die," he exclaimed looking at the archaic panel.

Ignoring his comment, Nightwing pressed down on the pedal slowly taxiing the plane out. Bombs still fell from the skies as explosions bloomed all around them. He brought the plane out to a middle lane before pressing on the brakes into a full stop. Looking around, he noted the debris littered everywhere and paused to rethink this plan.

"Uhh Dick, both runways are cratered. We're stuck."

Taking a deep breath, Dick eyed the lane in front of him. After a quick mental calculation, he lowered his helmet's visor and clipped on his oxygen mask. To his left, he flipped open a panel and slowly moved up a lever. The plane's wings began unfolding.

"Uhhh Dick, why are the wings coming out?"

Dick gave no answer as he increased the thrust and gently pressed upon the pedal.

"Dick! This is a taxiway. A very SHORT taxi way."

"Faith, trust, and a little pixie dust, kid," Dick answered still increasing the thrust.

Gradually the plane picked up speed. Nightwing continued to eye the speedometer praying they'd make it to speed. Quickly, he pulled up on the stick gently lifting the nose of the plane. Nightwing clenched his teeth as they approached a large building fast. Jason closed his eyes thinking they were going to crash. Thankfully, at the very last second, the jet got just enough lift to soar right above the building roof with only the front landing gear being broken off.

"Holy shit we did it! We did it!" Jason cried.

Dick let out the breath he'd been holding in as he raised the landing gears and began cruising to the air. Their relief was short-lived though as the console lit up with multiple beeping tones.

"That doesn't sound good…" Jason noted.

Dick looked around and saw that he was being boxed in by three different Bialyan drone fighters. Two flew behind while one was just ahead to the right. The radio crackled as the Bialyan forces tried to get in contact with the boys.

"Uhhh so what's the next part of your brilliant plan?" Jason asked.

"Y'know you ask a lot of questions."

"Hey man I'm just following your lead."

"Let me think."

"We fast enough to outrun these guys?"

"No. They're modern drones. They've got more speed and firepower….but"

"But?"

"They're unmanned. We might have a slight advantage."

"So? Let's cook these birds!"

Smirking, Nightwing slammed the stick right forcing the Tomcat to break right. As he passed the first drone from behind, he pulled the trigger firing the machine gun and destroying the first fighter's engines.

"Jason, look behind you and tell me the instant you see smoke in the air."

"Roger."

Jason tilted his head back eyeing the two drones chasing their tail. Dick in the meantime kept swerving to avoid getting target locked. From the corner of his eye, Jason spotted a drone launching a missile.

"Smoke in the air! Smoke in the air!"

"Hang on!"

Then he pushed the throttle to max speed, swerved to the left, and blasted away. The missile followed the jet's path and crashed into the first drone completely destroying it. A ring of air formed around the plane and a loud thunder crack boomed through the air. Dick had pushed the fighter into supersonic speeds. However, as he predicted, the drones were keeping up. Another drone fired a missile.

"Here comes another one!" Jason warned.

Quickly Dick pulled up flying towards the moon.

"Uhh Dick, it's getting closer!"

"Flares now!"

With a push of a button, counteracting flares were released confusing the missile which exploded harmlessly.

"Coming around!" Dick ordered.

Dick quickly cut off the thrust from one engine but maxed out the other. The plane spun mid-air as the drone blew right past them. Seeing his target zoom by, Dick leveled out the thrust and resumed air speed. Now the prey had become a predator as Dick's fighter was now chasing the drone. The console beeped signaling target lock and allowed Dick to fire off a missile. To his surprise though, the drone pulled off a maneuver similar to his. It jerked upwards and rotated around the missile and then used the air drag to fall behind Nightwing and Robin.

"What the fuck was that?" Jason screamed.

"Damn good remote controlling," Dick answered pressing harder on the throttle.

He pointed the stick down forcing the plane to head through a mountain range. Swerving and zigzagging, Dick did his best to fly between the mountain peaks.

"Uhh Dick? You sure you're that good a pilot?"

"I just have to be better than that guy."

From behind, the drone fired its machine gun. Most had missed the Tomcat but a few had punctured the hull.

"We took a hit! We took a hit," Jason said.

"Just brace yourself!"

"C'mon Dick, now's the time to pull out that prodigal son shit!"

Dick pulled up on the stick and cut the thrust. Pushing on a lever, he expanded the wings to create as much drag as possible. The plane abruptly pulled its nose up and used the air drag to stay in place while the drone zoomed past under them. Immediately, Dick restarted the thrust and pushed the nose down.

"Holy shit I'm gonna be sick!" Jason exclaimed.

Once level, Dick pushed for max thrust and began chasing the second drone. He quickly got target locked and fired his last missile. Sadly, the drone was still pretty smart and released flares completely avoiding the missile.

"Dammit I'm out. Switching to guns," Dick stated.

Pulling the trigger, he fired his machine gun furiously at the drone. Completely ignoring the ammo gauge dropping from 200 to 100 and then to 30, Dick kept his hand on the trigger hoping to finally take out the enemy. With the last 30 bullets, he was able to pierce the drone's engine causing it to crash into the mountains.

"Yes! Down goes the second one!" Jason cheered.

Relaxing finally, Dick pulled up and brought the plane to a nice cruising altitude. A loud beeping noise pulled them back to reality, however. They had forgotten about the third drone. Machine guns tore through their hull before Dick woke up and pushed to maxed speed.

"Smoke in the air, Dick! Smoke in the air!" Jason warned as the drone fired a missile.

Turning the stick, Dick did a barrel roll letting out the last of the flares. Unfortunately, the last few machine gun hits damaged the engines reducing the fighter's speed tremendously.

"Dammit, out of flares and out of ammo," Dick worried.

"Uhhh, Dick he's still on top of us."

Dick tried to swerve hoping to shake the drone, but it was following closely. Realizing he had no way to fight back, Dick pulled up and headed towards the sky.

"Jason, when I tell you, pull the ejection cord."

"What? No way bro!"

"Jason for once just listen to me ok! We're not going to make it. The least you can do is eject and survive!"

Machine gun fire peppered their plane from behind further cutting out the engines.

"Eject Jason! Eject!" Dick yelled.

Jason pulled the cords about him with all his might. He tugged and tugged but nothing happened. He tried to reach around but couldn't find the problem.

"It's jammed, Dick! It's jammed!"

"Fuck!"

More machine gun fire zoomed past them. A few grazed the wing causing the plane to become unbalanced with turbulence. Finally accepting his fate, Dick closed his eyes and took a deep breath. In his final moments, Dick's mind could only turn to one magician girl. His chest tightened as the realization that he might not make it out of this situation hit him. Goosebumps raised under his suit as his grip on the controls loosened. Jason behind him was unsettled and kept jerking and shaking clearly panicking. Dick tuned out everything that he was saying. All Dick could do was take deep breaths and find peace.

"Sorry, Zee. I guess I won't be coming home this time…"

Just before the drone fired off its last round of ammo, lasers rained down from the sky shredding the drone into bits. Jason looked up as Dick opened his eyes. Through a familiar mental touch, a friend said hello.

"Alright gents, please put your seats back in the upright position and stow your tray tables."

From above, the Bioship appeared and settled beside the failing F-14.

"Holy shit M'gann! Am I glad to see you!," Jason cried out.

"Hi Robin. Glad to see you two in one piece. Let's find a place to land and get you onboard so you can fly home in style."

Dick lifted his visor and wiped the tears off his eyes.

"Nightwing? You ok?"

"Just relieved to see you, M'gann. C'mon, let's go home."

After dropping off Queen Perdita and her men back at Vlatava, Bioship and company were flying back home. Along the way, Batman called deciding to debrief.

"Good job for rescuing Queen Perdita and her entourage. While it's unfortunate you couldn't reclaim the base, you were able to force the Bialyans to overplay their hand. Multiple witness reports and footage make it look like the Bialyan forces struck the base first. That's the narrative the US Government and UN are going with. Queen Bee will have to answer for an unprovoked air strike. Though with Luthor still in charge, she'll probably get away with it. At the very least, you've turned public opinion hard onto Bialya. Overall, successful mission."

"Thanks, Batman. We're just glad to be in one piece," Nightwing answered.

"Go home and rest once you arrive at Mount Justice. You all earned it. Even you, Jason. I'm proud of you."

"Thanks, Bats!"

Upon arriving at Mount Justice, Dick barely set foot onto the ground before a raven-haired beauty leaped into the air and latched herself onto Dick's torso. She grasped his neck with her hands and wrapped her legs around her waist. By instinct, Dick hugged her waist holding her up. Without warning, Zatanna pulled him into a hungry kiss as tears rolled down her cheek. Dick unable to really do anything else, melted and indulged her in the sweet kiss. Conner and M'gann shook their heads while Jason chuckled. They immediately vacated the hanger leaving the kissing couple with some privacy. With his left hand, Dick curled his fingers around her neck and rubbed her skin gently letting her know that he was really here and ok. Zatanna just held on tighter and tighter refusing to break lip contact. Starting to feel some strain on his back, Dick shifted his hands to cup her ass and carry her weight better. The shift abruptly forced Zee to release his lips as she rested her forehead onto his. However, tears were still streaming down her cheeks.

"I was so worried," she started, "My heart was pounding. I could feel your fear, but more importantly I could feel your acceptance of death. I-I didn't know what to do. I couldn't breathe, Dick. My chest was in so much pain, I thought I was having a heart attack! God, don't you ever scare me like that again."

"I'm sorry, Zee. Honestly, I just didn't know what else to do. I really thought I was going to die."

"I don't fucking care. Don't you ever make me feel like that again. Don't you dare accept death like that. My God, Dick, I could feel my soul leaving my body again. You promised, Dick! You promised you'd always come back to me!" she stuttered as tears fell freely down her face.

"I know, I know. I'm sorry for scaring you."

"Dick, I-I don't know what I would do without you. You're my everything. I'm so happy you're home safe."

"I'm so happy to see you, Zee. I was so relieved when M'gann saved us."

"Dick, baby. Let's just take it easy for now, ok? At least until your detective scores come in. I'll take a few shows off. Just you, me, resting at home? Ok?"

"Anything you want. I could use a break."

"I love you so much," she cried pulling him for another kiss.

"I love you too, Zee. I will always love you."

She hooked her arms and ankles together as she deepened the kiss, refusing to let go of her man. Trying to get her attention, Dick squeezed her butt a few times so she would let him come up for air again.

"So uh, you gonna get off or…" Dick asked.

"No chance. You're carrying me home like this."

"Hahaa, of course I am. Is there anything else the lady requests."

She grinned and peppered him with kisses.

"Baby MWAH when we get home MWAH, you're taking me to bed MWAH, and we're going to fuck MWAH like there's no tomorrow MWAH. You and I MWAH are not leaving our bedroom MWAH for a minimum MWAH of twenty four hours MWAH."

"Hahaha, as you wish."

Many many hours later, a sweaty Dick and Zee laid curled up and tangle in their bedsheets. Dick's Nightwing armor pieces littered the bedroom floor along with Zee's fishnets, blouse, and tailcoat. Pocus's bed remained empty since he relocated to the living room couch once he realized what his parents were up to. Zee slept on her side with Dick spooning her from behind. Hoping to feel warm and safe, Zee had wrapped Dick's arms around her and lifted his leg onto her waist as well forming a little cocoon with Dick's body. Both were tired but very content and satisfied from their activities. But something was amiss. Zee could feel a slight headache forming. The room felt cold again, so she pulled Dick's arms around her tighter. She began to sweat and squirm at this queasy uneasy feeling. Once again, a small, tiny whisper was picked up by her ears.

"Secret."

Startled, Zee flung Dick off her and abruptly sat upright. Short of breath, Zee scanned all around the room finding nothing but darkness. To her left, she could see her phone and a picture of her and Dick hugging. To her right, a groggy Dick slowly wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her shoulder.

"Baby? What's going on? Are you ok?" he asked worriedly.

"I uh pant pant I'm ok. Just a bad nightmare, that's all."

"You seem scared. I can feel your fear too y'know."

"I uh, I guess I'm still scared about your near-death experience that's all. I uh dreamt about you fading into darkness."

"Oh? I see. I'm really sorry, Zee," he cooed kissing just under her ear, "Is there anything I can do?"

"Just just hold me, please."

He gently tugged her back into bed. She rested her head into his chest as he soothingly stroked her hair. Finally relaxing, Zatanna hugged Dick tightly tangling her legs with his. With his other hand, Dick traced little circles on Zatanna's back until her breathing leveled out and he felt her drift off into sleep.

Meanwhile in New Orleans, Madam Xanadu was dusting her knick-knacks when the bell rang signaling the entry of a new customer. Turning around with a smile, Nimue, attempted to greet her new guest.

"Welcome Welcome, traveler to Madam Xana-…OH HELL NO. NOT YOU!"

"Lovely to see you too, Nimmy darling. I'm sorry, but I'm not here for a good ol' fashion chin wag. We've got a bit of a bloody mess on our hands…"

AN: Hope that was fun for yall! I'm sorry for the minimal amount of Chalant lately. I promise to rectify that in Chapter 50 as Dick and Zee take a tiny little break. Please comment with any more suggestions on what you'd like to see in the story! Also yes...He's on his way mwahhahaha.