A/N: I own nothing you recognize.
Update (May 2023): so I changed Fireworks a little! It's not super major, and it doesn't change the trajectory of the story, but I think it gives a little more insight to the changes Lark is experiencing, and also I realized it didn't make sense that she would be electrocuted if Desmond wasn't originally planning on taking her DNA. Anyway, it's not necessary to reread, but if you are interested in seeing the new scene, it's the scene where Desmond is collecting their DNA.
(Also sorry, this will be going in the A/N for the chapters I have posted, just in case someone is in the middle of reading the posted chapters *sheepish smile*)
3.0 - Welcome to Happy Harbor
Location: Star City, California
Date: Saturday, July 17, 2010
Time: 2316 PDT
"You again!"
Lark exchanged glances with Robin, Aqualad, and Kid Flash before the former three raced after the latter in the direction of the commotion.
"I'm startin' to get insulted Green Arrow's not messin' up my operations personally!" the ringleader yelled. Lark recognized him as Brick, a common foe of Green Arrow's. He was pointing his laser gun in the air, and Lark followed the trajectory to find Speedy, minus the hat, perched on the catwalks that crisscrossed above the docks.
Brick fired a few shots, all of which Speedy gracefully dodged. The archer finally strung another arrow and it landed in the muzzle of the gun. It exploded, taking the gun and most of Brick's shirt with it.
The white-haired man growled. "Do you know what I pay for a suit in my size?!" he snarled rhetorically, glaring up at Speedy. Turning to his men, he said, "Scorch the earth, boys."
"That's our cue," Lark murmured, and she and the others took off.
Kid Flash raced ahead and disarmed two of the henchmen by grabbing their guns and knocking them in the heads with them. Robin's cackled carried in the night air as he sailed ahead on his grapple, throwing two disks which knocked the guns out of the hands of two more goons.
Lark dropped between the disarmed men and gave them a dazzling smile before punching one across the jaw and elbowing the second in the nose. They staggered back, clutching their faces and groaning as Aqualad used his water-bearers to knock them into the back of the truck.
Brick began ripping up chunks of earth and hurling them at Speedy. The redhead dodged the first and jumped out of the way of the second, only for Aqualad to appear between two shipping crates in front of Speedy and slice the rock in half wth a water sword. Speedy released a gas arrow at Brick, which struck him in the middle of his chest before he began coughing.
"The cave is perfect," Aqualad said to the young archer. "It has everything the Team will need."
"We're the covert mission guys," Lark said as she and Robin dropped in behind them.
"You know, all that cool spy stuff," Robin added with a grin.
"And wait 'til you see Superboy and Miss Martian," Kid Flash said brightly, racing up the side of the stack of crates to stand with them. "But I saw her first!"
Below them, Brick yelled in anger and chucked another hunk of rock their way. Everyone minus Aqualad scattered, the Atlantean holding his ground and smashing the boulder to pieces with a water mace.
Three more arrows embedded themselves into Brick's bare chest, each exploding one after the other, but it didn't seem to do any good. He laughed tauntingly up at them. "Tell Arrow he shouldn't send children to do a hero's job," he sneered.
Lark rolled her eyes. "When will everyone stop underestimating us?" she asked her partner rhetorically. He only shrugged, a scowl on his face.
Speedy strung another arrow and Brick spread his arms wide. "Go ahead," he invited with a confident smirk.
The archer released the bow string and the arrow sailed through the air to land in the center of Brick's chest. For a second, nothing happened, but then something red expanded from the arrowhead casing, quickly covering Brick in the substance and rendering him immobile.
"High-density polyurethane foam," Kid Flash identified as he rejoined Speedy on top of the shipping crates. "Nice."
The older redhead didn't respond, just turned on his heel and walked away from the scene below.
"So, Speedy," Robin said from his spot leaning against a metal crate, "you in?"
"Pass," Speedy said darkly, glaring slightly at the raven-haired teen. "I'm done letting Arrow and the League tell me what to do," he snapped, his tone becoming progressively harsher with every word. "I don't need a babysitter or a clubhouse to hang out with the other kids. Your junior Justice League is a joke, something to keep you busy and in your place," he snarled. "I don't want any part of it," he growled as he walked between two crates and effectively disappearing.
Lark scowled after him. "Someone's cheery," she grumbled. She was no stranger to Speedy's moodier side, but she didn't think she'd ever seen him this moody.
"Come on," Aqualad sighed. "It's late, and we could all use a good night's sleep."
"You comin', L?" Robin asked when he noticed his partner hadn't moved.
"Yeah, yeah," she nodded, looking like she was coming out of her thoughts. "I'll meet you back at the Batcave."
"Where are you going?" Robin called after her as she took off in the opposite direction.
"To talk to a certain red-headed archer," she growled.
Robin whistled as he and Kid Flash shared a look. "He'd better watch out," Kid Flash joked.
"Why?" Aqualad inquired curiously as the trio walked to the Zeta-Tube that was located a few blocks inland of the Star City docks.
"It's no secret Roy can be...as fiery as his red hair," Robin started, "but I think Lark and Black Canary are the only two women who can knock some sense into him."
"Ah," the Atlantean said, though he would be the first to admit, from what he'd seen of Lark so far, she didn't seem the type to be able to go up against the hot-headed archer. But, looks were often deceiving, and Robin and Kid Flash had known her longer, so he decided to take their word for it.
Across town, a lithe figure scaled the fire escape with ease as she made her way to the safehouse she figured Roy would use. Unlike the hidden safehouses Green Arrow had around the city that were fully stocked with extra uniforms, equipment, and some that were even designed for sleeping, Roy's shabby apartment was rented under his own dime and didn't have any of the bells and whistles that Green Arrow's had.
Her hunches turned out to be correct as she peered into the grimy window to see Speedy digging around the refrigerator.
As quiet as a cat, Lark entered the small apartment. She remained standing by the window as Roy continued looking around the tiny kitchen.
He finally spotted her when he turned toward the equally small living room, a box of cereal in one hand and a carton of milk in the other. He blinked but then continued toward the crouch, which Lark took as her go-ahead to approach him.
He flopped down heavily on the lumpy sofa and tossed his feet up on the coffee table, mask long gone. Lark remained standing and silent.
After several mouthfuls of dry cereal, followed by a couple long pulls of cold milk, Roy finally broke the silence. "Just spit it out, already. I know you're dying to."
"You're a real ass sometimes, you know that?"
Roy snorted. "Just because I don't want to join your little daycare club?" he asked snidely.
Lark ripped off her mask and glared at her friend. "Look, I appreciate the text after the Cadmus incident, and I understand why you might not have responded right away. But I gave you a few days to cool off before reaching out again, but you ignored me completely!" she snapped. "A simple, 'Hey, I'm not dead' text would have sufficed!"
"No, it wouldn't," Roy muttered, already feeling bad for vanishing for a few days.
"You're right, it wouldn't!" Naomi agreed angrily. "I get you feel too old to be babied, but that doesn't mean you're too old for your friends!" The fight left her in a rush, though, as her gaze settled on the floor and she added softly, "Unless you are, and all we are to you are annoyances."
"Well that's just bullshit," he waved off.
"Then act like it!" she yelled. "If we're your friends, give us the courtesy of letting us know you're alive! Roy, you're one of my best friends and not hearing from you...not knowing if you were okay..." She sucked in a deep breath and when no other words came to her, settled on glaring at him again.
For the first time, Roy saw up close what his sudden absence had done to his closest friend and his heart clenched. He set down the cereal box and got to his feet, going to her immediately. He pulled Naomi to his chest in a tight hug, his chin resting on the crown of her dark head.
She stubbornly refused to return Roy's hug, instead standing stiff as a board with her nose pressed uncomfortably against his sternum. "I'm still mad at you," she mumbled into his chest, and he couldn't help but chuckle.
"I completely understand, and I expect nothing less," he said with a small smile. His expression turned serious as he assured softly, "You could never be an annoyance, to me or anyone else."
"So you promise to reply to my texts?" she asked as she leaned back slightly from Roy's embrace so she could look at his face. He nodded his head in agreement as he dropped his arms from around her, then held up his right hand in the Boy Scout salute, making Naomi snort in amusement as she imagined a young, short-tempered Roy Harper hanging around a bunch of young, do-gooder Clark Kents.
"If you don't," she warned, her expression morphing into a scowl, "I will hunt you down and drag you out of whatever hole you're hiding in, and if I'm feeling particularly moody, I'll bring Dinah too!"
Roy couldn't help the shudder that passed through his body as he imagined two very pissed off heroines coming for his throat. Naomi smirked triumphantly and he nodded, saying again, "I promise I'll respond to your messages as soon as I'm able."
"Does that mean you'll start using your old phone again, or should I expect more unknown numbers texting me at all hours of the night?"
"I'll dig up my old phone and charge it."
"You better," she grinned.
Roy gazed down at Naomi, a solemn expression on his face. "I am sorry," he murmured, reaching out to tuck a wayward strand of hair behind her ear.
"For disappearing on us?" she asked with a quirked eyebrow as he quickly dropped his hand. "Or for making me worry?"
"Both," he said with a small chuckle. He opened his mouth to say something else but was cut off when Naomi's cell phone suddenly buzzed.
You track down Roy yet?
"Is that Dick?" Roy asked, finally stepping back from Naomi when he realized they were still practically chest to chest. She nodded in response. "You'd better get going then; it's almost three in the morning in Gotham."
Glancing at the time on her phone, she saw he was right and suddenly yawned at just the thought of the late hour. "Sleep does sound very attractive right now," she admitted with a chuckle. "You promise you'll keep in touch?"
"I swear," Roy reassured, and after giving Naomi one last hug, she slipped out the window and made her way to the nearest Zeta-Tube.
Location: Mount Justice, Happy Harbor
Date: Sunday, July 18, 2010
Time: 1116 EDT
"Recognized: Lark, B-0-1; Robin, B-0-2; Kid Flash, B-0-4."
"Did you ask him?" Robin asked immediately, racing ahead of Lark to join Aqualad, Superboy, and Miss Martian in the middle of the room, where several holographic screens were pulled up. Everyone was dressed in civvies, and only Lark and Robin continued to protect their identities with black-lensed sunglasses.
"What did he say?" Kid Flash asked imploringly as he joined them.
"He's arriving now," Aqualad informed once Lark had completed the circle of young heroes.
"Then what are we waiting for?" Kid Flash exclaimed. He took off, and the others followed after him.
Lark finally caught up with Kid Flash in time to see a portion of the ceiling suddenly lower, letting in the late morning sun and the smell of sea water. They walked up the grassy incline just as Red Tornado's signature red tornado appeared, and they stopped to greet him.
"Red Tornado!" the speedster called, waving his hand.
"Greetings," Red Tornado said, landing in front of the Team. "Is there a reason you intercept me outside the Cave?" he asked.
"We were hoping you maybe had a mission for us," Lark said on behalf of their group.
"Mission assignments are the Batman's responsibility," the red robot reminded.
"But it's been over a week," Robin said with a frown, "and nothing—"
"You'll be tested soon enough," he interrupted, holding up his hand. "For the time being, simply enjoy each other's company."
"This team is not a social club," Aqualad pointed out, firmly but respectfully.
"No," Red Tornado agreed, "but I am told social interaction is an important team-building experience. Perhaps you can keep busy by familiarizing yourself with the Cave," he suggested, walking past them before they could respond.
"Keep busy," Kid Flash grumbled.
"Does he think we're falling for this?" Robin asked indignantly.
"Oh, I'll find out!" Miss Martian whispered excitedly. She turned to Red Tornado's retreating back as he walked through the scanner. The Martian sighed after a beat. "I'm sorry," she said, looking at the ground. "I forgot he's a machine, inorganic. I cannot read his mind."
"Nice try though," Kid Flash said as he walked up to her. "So, uh, you know what I'm thinkin' right now?" he asked flirtatiously.
"We all know what you're thinkin' now," Robin snapped, shoving his elbow into Kid Flash's side as Lark clamped her eyes shut and cried out, "My brain! I need bleach!"
"Hey, now," the speedster scowled while Robin snickered and high-fived Lark.
"And now, we tour the clubhouse," Aqualad sighed, not sounding happy about it at all.
"Well, Superboy and I live here," Miss Martian said hesitantly. "We can play tour guides," she suggested, glancing behind her at Superboy.
"Don't look at me," Superboy said dryly.
"We won't," Kid Flash promised lightly. "Besides," he added, turning to Miss Martian, "a private tour sounds much more fun."
"Sh-she never said private!" Robin stuttered, though he leaned toward Kid Flash as though to keep his voice down.
"Oh, brother," Lark muttered, rolling her eyes.
"Team building," Aqualad stepped in. "We'll all go."
Miss Martian started walking back into the Cave and Kid Flash turned to follow. Robin reached forward and yanked him back.
The Martian took them through the Cave, showing them the work-out room, the section of bedrooms, the library, and more. "The Cave is actually the entire mountain," she concluded as they walked in the direction of the kitchen and training room.
"It was hollowed out and reinforced by Superman and Green Lantern in the early days of the League," Kid Flash casually added. Lark rolled her eyes at his attempt to impress the Martian.
"Then why abandon it for the Hall of Justice?" Superboy asked.
"The Cave's secret location was compromised," Aqualad informed.
"So, they traded it in for a tourist trap?" he asked dryly. "Yeah," he scoffed. "That makes sense."
"It's a…false front for the public," Lark explained, recalling Speedy's phrasing from Independence Day. "The real H.Q.'s location is so secret, even we didn't learn about it until recently," she said, gesturing between herself, Robin, Aqualad, and Kid Flash.
"I guess that makes sense," Superboy mumbled.
"If villains know of the Cave, we must be on constant alert," Miss Martian declared, raising a pointed hand to emphasize her point.
Robin stepped forward and took her hand comfortingly in his. "The bad guys know we know they know about this place," he said, placing his other hand on top of hers. "So they'd never think to look here."
Kid Flash narrowed his eyes and stepped forward, putting a hand on top of Robin's. "Uh, he means we're hiding in plain sight," he translated as Miss Martian pulled her hand away. Robin glared at Kid Flash.
"Ah," Miss Martian said slowly, scratching her head. "That's much clearer."
Lark rolled her eyes (these boys were going to make her dislocate her eyeballs, the number of times they made her roll them) and helped extract Miss Martian from Kid Flash's grasp. "What these two idiots mean is," she said as she looped arms with the Martian and began walking away, "the bad guys won't think to look for us here, so we don't have to worry about them."
"Oh!" the green-skinned girl exclaimed, her eyes lighting up. "That makes much more sense!" Lark smiled at her, then threw a smirk at the two boys, who glared at her.
Robin opened his mouth to say something else but was cut off when Superboy sniffed the air and said, "I smell smoke."
Miss Martian gasped. "My cookies!" she exclaimed and then flew off in the direction of the kitchen.
Lark shared a glance with the boys before they followed after the Martian. When they arrived, she saw Miss Martian levitating a baking tray with nine hockey pucks out of the oven. Everyone gathered around the kitchen island.
"I was trying to make Grammy Jones's recipe from episode seventeen of—" She quickly cut herself off and laughed nervously. "Never mind," she said quickly.
"I bet they'd have tasted great," Robin assured her. "He doesn't seem to mind," he added snidely with a glance at Kid Flash, who was already crunching on one and had another in his hand.
Kid Flash glanced around. "I have a serious metabolism," he said through a mouthful of cookie.
"I'll make more?" Miss Martian offered hesitantly.
"It was sweet of you to make any," Aqualad said kindly.
"Thanks, Aqualad," she said gratefully.
"We're off duty," the Atlantean said. "Call me Kaldur'ahm." He paused. "Actually, my friends call me Kaldur."
"I'm Wally," the speedster said immediately, swallowing the cookie. "See? I already trust you with my secret I.D." He leaned across the island toward Miss Martian with a smile. "Unlike Mr. and Ms. Dark Glasses over here," he added, jerking his head in Robin and Lark's direction. "Batman's forbidden the Girl and Boy Wonder from telling anyone their real names."
Twin scowls were sent Wally's way, but he just grinned and shoved another cookie in his mouth.
"Mine's no secret," the Martian said brightly. "It's M'gann M'orzz. But you can call me Megan. It's an Earth name, and I'm on Earth now." She sounded as though she still couldn't quite believe it.
Lark saw Superboy straighten from his leaning position against one of the kitchen's counters and stalk away. She sighed a little sadly; with their talk of real names, he must have been feeling left out, since he lacked a given name. Or rather, his given name was Superboy.
Suddenly, he grunted and whirled around, looking both disgusted and terrified.
"Get out of my head!" he yelled, glaring darkly at M'gann. Everyone turned to the girl in question.
{What's wrong?} Lark's eyes widened as M'gann's voice rang clear in her head. {I-I don't understand,} the Martian said as Robin, Wally, and Kaldur winced in pain. {Everyone on Mars communicates telepathically,} she explained.
"M'gann, stop," Kaldur said firmly. "Things are different on Earth. Here, your powers are an extreme invasion of privacy."
"Besides," Wally said, leaning toward M'gann, "Cadmus's creepy little psychic G-Gnomes left a bad taste in his brain."
"I-I didn't mean to—"
Superboy cut off M'gann's attempted apology. "Just stay out," he said harshly, and he stormed out of the kitchen.
There was a heavy pause, which M'gann was the first to break. "Hello, Megan!" she exclaimed, hitting her forehead with the palm of her hand. "I know what we can do!" She took off, leaving the others to follow. Lark and Robin shared a glance as they passed Superboy, but before the older bird could address the clone, M'gann flew back down the hall, a little hesitantly.
Leaving the two to talk, Lark and Robin joined Kaldur and Wally further down the hall.
"Where'd M'gann go?" Wally asked, standing on his tiptoes to look over the already-shorter-than-him birds as though they were hiding M'gann behind their backs.
Lark rolled her eyes and put her hand on Wally's face, giving him a light shove. "She went to talk to Superboy," she said.
Robin snickered when Wally pouted, though Lark elbowed him in the ribs to keep him quiet. A minute later, M'gann came flying down the hall again, her expression much happier, Superboy trudging along behind her.
Once they had all entered the large industrial-sized elevator which would take them down to the hanger deck, Lark hung back to stand beside Superboy, who had taken refuge in the corner. He glanced down at her and her eyes slid up to meet his blue gaze. He couldn't see her eyes behind her dark sunglasses (he refrained from using his x-ray vision, though he was curious to know her secret identity), but he felt the weight of her stare and quickly looked away.
Lark was slower to turn her attention away from the clone, but she could see the conflict linger on his profile. She pursed her lips just slightly but hoped the visible uncertainty was an indication that Superboy felt bad about his actions and would be open to reconciliation.
When the elevator doors opened, M'gann stepped out and said proudly, "It's my Martian Bio-Ship." The Team followed her onto the landing deck and Lark saw a large red egg-shaped ship with two black horizontal lines circling the center.
"Cute," Wally said graciously. "Not aerodynamic, but cute."
"It's at rest, silly," M'gann giggled. "I'll wake it." She passed her hand once through the air in front of the ship and Lark watched in awe as it transformed before their eyes.
"Now that's a ship," Lark said, crossing her arms over her chest with an impressed smirk once it had fully transformed.
M'gann waved her hand again and it turned so they could enter. The back seemed to melt off to become a ramp for them to walk up.
"Well, are you coming?" M'gann asked, turning to look at them. Lark was the first to walk forward. She glanced back and saw the four boys follow more hesitantly, all with the same look of trepidation on their faces.
"Boys like to pretend to be all macho," Lark pseudo-whispered to M'gann, "but really, they're just big scaredy-cats." The Martian giggled again and Lark threw a smirk over her shoulder to the boys, who scowled at her.
They entered a circular chamber, and the back wall quickly disappeared to reveal another portion that ended in a rounded point. A circular mound was centered in the back, and five chairs around the perimeter of the ship materialized, along with the captain's chair and controls at the back, right in front of them.
"Strap in for launch," M'gann said, sounding slightly nervous as she stepped up to the captain's chair. Robin and Wally immediately went for the chairs that were on either side of M'gann. As Robin sat, the chair turned so he was facing front and he was strapped in by two belts that formed an X across his chest.
"Whoa," he breathed, and across the way, Wally grinned, "Cool." Kaldur took the chair at the head, and Lark sat to his left and Superboy took the chair to the Atlantean's right.
Once everyone was safely strapped into their seats, M'gann called, "Red Tornado, please open the bay doors." In front of them, the large steel doors slid open, and the Bio-Ship lifted off the landing pad and shot forward.
"Incredible!" Robin exclaimed as they moved smoothly over the water.
Wally sighed wistfully. "She sure is," he said. Lark tore her gaze away from the glistening ocean below them to raise an eyebrow at the smitten teen. When M'gann turned to look at him, he stammered, "I-I mean the ship, which, like all ships, is a 'she'."
"Fast with his feet, no-ot so much with his mouth," Robin commented, sharing a smirk with Lark.
"Dude!" Wally hissed. Lark chuckled lightly and returned to staring out the panoramic window.
Her attention was drawn back into the ship when Kaldur cleared his throat lightly. She glanced his way and when she met his gaze, she knew it was to get her attention. His eyes slid to Superboy, and Lark figured Kaldur had noticed her hang back with the clone in the elevator. She gave a slight nod when he looked her way again.
Kaldur started, saying softly to Superboy, "We may not have psychic powers, but we can guess what you're thinking. Your reaction garnered a different response than you were expecting, and now you don't know how to move forward."
"Believe me, we've all been in that position," Lark spoke up with a gentle smile. "I bet you're feeling conflicted inside now, maybe kinda twisted, because you feel like you're in the right, but you see how your words impacted someone else, and you feel bad, guilty maybe."
"An apology goes a long way," Kaldur added. "All you have to say is 'sorry.'" He offered the clone a small smile and the black-haired teen stared forward, looking to be in deep thought.
"He'll come around," Lark heard Robin whisper to M'gann.
"He doesn't seem to like me very much," M'gann whispered back, sounding despondent.
"You guys remember he has super-hearing, right?" Wally stage-whispered behind his hand, shooting a look at Superboy. Robin and M'gann glanced at the back of Superboy's head, but he resolutely kept his gaze forward.
"Hey," Robin said to M'gann, hoping to break the tension that had started to fill the ship, "how 'bout showing us a little Martian shape-shifting?"
M'gann gave a small smile and stood, and even Kaldur and Superboy turned around to watch as M'gann's outfit—black flats, pale pink knee-high socks, a dark pink skirt with matching cardigan, and a pale pink top—morphed into Robin's uniform, complete with mask and raven-black hair. She glanced at Wally, spun, and when she stopped, she was dressed in Kid Flash's uniform. While the uniforms were impeccable replicas, the figure beneath both betrayed the falsehood, with breasts and a feminine slope to the hips.
"Is it wrong that I think I'm hot?" Wally sighed, gazing at the female Kid Flash.
Choosing to ignore Wally's comment, Robin said, "Impressive," giving M'gann a little applause as she morphed back to her usual form. "But you know you're not exactly gonna fool anyone with those."
"Mimicking boys is a lot harder," M'gann admitted, sounding sheepish. "But girls are much easier!" she added brightly, turning to Lark before shifting into the dark-haired teen's identical twin, from the stylized L above her breast to the kunais and jō staff on her thighs. Lark's eyes widened behind her sunglasses; it was one thing to see oneself in the mirror or in a picture, but it was an entirely different thing to see oneself in the flesh.
"Wow," Lark finally managed. "That's…handy." She wondered briefly if M'gann's shape-shifting ability meant she would also inherit that individual's powers.
"And your clothes?" Kaldur asked as M'gann returned to her original form once more.
"They're organic, like the ship," M'gann explained. "They respond to my mental commands."
Superboy turned back to the front with a dark glower. "As long as they're the only ones," he muttered.
"Can you do that ghosting-through-walls thing that Manhunter does?" Wally asked quickly when he saw M'gann wilt slightly.
"Density shifting?" M'gann clarified, turning to Wally. "No," she sighed. "I-it's a very advanced technique."
Robin leaned forward in his chair and shot Wally a wicked grin. "Flash can vibrate his molecules right through a wall," he started with a laugh. "When he tries," he continued, gesturing to Wally, "bloody nose."
"Dude!" Wally exclaimed with a glare.
"Here's something I can do!" M'gann said brightly. "Camouflage mode." Lark glanced out the window and saw that the bright red Bio-Ship had seemingly disappeared on the outside.
"Red Tornado to Miss Martian," came the robot's disembodied voice suddenly. "An emergency alert has been triggered at the Happy Harbor Power Plant. I suggest you investigate, covertly." Lark glanced at the others, who were looking around the ship at everyone else. "I am sending coordinates."
"Received," M'gann informed a moment later. "Adjusting course."
Robin scoffed. "Tornado's keeping us busy again," he grumbled.
"Well, a simple fire led you to Superboy," M'gann pointed out optimistically. "We should find out what caused the alert."
The clone glanced to the side, his sensitive ears picking up the sounds outside the ship that were inaudible to the others. "I think I know the cause," he said, and Lark followed his line of sight.
"And it's heading right toward us," Lark warned, already bracing herself for the inevitable impact.
Before M'gann could maneuver the ship, it got sucked into the high velocity winds. Lark grunted as the ship began going in circles, following the path of the airstreams. M'gann finally got the Bio-Ship under control and steered them toward the ground, the tornado continuing on its merry way as everyone groaned in pain. The Martian opened a hole in the bottom of the ship as everyone stood, and one by one, they dropped down to the asphalt.
Lark heard the workers screaming as they fled the building and saw the tornado dancing along behind it.
"Let's go investigate," Robin whispered to Lark, but she hesitated. Batman was always telling them the importance of your partners knowing where you were at all times, and given how long he, Lark, and Robin had been together, it was easy to split off during missions.
But this team was new, and Lark wasn't sure if splitting up at the moment was a good idea, especially after what happened with Selena Gonzalez. Robin didn't notice her hang back, though, and he dashed ahead.
"Robin, are tornados common to New England?"
Lark winced at Kaldur's question, or rather, who the question was directed at, and he caught her eye. "Where's Robin?" he asked her.
"Uh…"
His question was answered when his tell-tale laugh echoed through the air, and Kaldur turned in the direction of the building.
"But he was just here," M'gann said, looking confused.
"It's a Bat thing," Wally shrugged. "You'll get used to it."
Explosions rocked the building, the windows shattering at the impact. Lark's eyes widened. "Robin!" she yelled in alarm, taking off for her partner and the others following behind her.
Lark skidded to a stop when she saw their opponent blast Robin into the wall next to her. She raced to his side, Superboy coming in closely behind her.
"Who's your new friend?" Superboy asked as Lark helped Robin sit up.
"Didn't catch his name, but he plays kinda rough," he groaned and Superboy took off.
"My apologies," the giant red-and-black robot said, clearly not sorry at all. "You may address me as Mister Twister."
"Another tornado-themed robot?" Lark muttered as Robin got to his feet. "What're the odds?" she asked rhetorically.
Mister Twister closed his hands into fists and pointed them at the floor before slowly lifting them. Two tornados sprung up in front of him, and Superboy charged straight toward them. Mister Twister lowered his eyes and lifted his hand. One of the twisters caught Superboy and spun him around a few times before releasing him and slamming him into a wall.
Lark glanced at the others as they joined her and Robin. Wally pulled on his goggles and Robin straightened from Lark's supportive hold. The speedster took off running and did a handspring, landing a kick in the center of Mister Twister's chest before he was blown away. Kaldur and M'gann rushed him together, but the android easily blew them back. Kaldur slammed into a column and M'gann hit a railing.
"I was prepared to be challenged by a superhero," Mister Twister boomed. "I was not, however," he continued, "expecting children."
Subtly, Lark reached behind her back to pull out her birdarangs, and glancing to her side, she saw Robin do the same.
"We're not children!" Robin yelled angrily as he and Lark threw their birdarangs.
Robin's first disk slid under just as Mister Twister began his tornados, and it exploded beneath the robot, causing the tornados to be scattered and allowing the remaining disk and Lark's birdarang to lodge itself in the android's chest.
"Objectively, you are," Mister Twister said as he flicked the birdarangs out of his chest, which exploded harmlessly behind him. "Have you no adult supervision?" he asked in mock concern. "I find your presence here quite disturbing."
"Well, we hate to see you disturbed!" Robin called back. Superboy, Kaldur, and M'gann were up again and standing around the two birds. "Let's see if you're more turbed once we kick your can!"
M'gann reached forward and above Mister Twister, a tube exploded, momentarily paralyzing him with the pressurized air. Superboy took that time to leap forward, but Mister Twister just raised his hands and blasted the clone back, causing him to crash into M'gann in midair.
Lark, Kaldur, and Robin ducked out of the way of their sailing teammates and continued. All three were caught in three more of Mister Twister's tornados, but the winds suddenly died when the robot was shoved sideways by a mysterious force. Lark braced herself for the impact of her fall, but instead, her shadow appeared larger and darker than it should have beneath her, cushioning the blow. She glanced up in time to see a dark object in the shape of a fist retreat from Mister Twister's side before it melted into the wall again.
"Nice shot," Robin groaned off to her side. "You couldn't have made a cushion for us too?"
"Sorry," Lark said sheepishly as she helped Robin, then Kaldur, to their feet. "That must have been reflexive. I'm not used to using my powers in the field yet."
"No worries," Kaldur assured with a pained wince.
Once everyone was steady on their feet, they rushed to the large doorway they had seen Mister Twister exit, and Lark watched as Wally was suddenly thrown their way.
"I got you, Wally!" M'gann called. The dust cleared to reveal Wally was floating a couple inches off the ground.
"Thanks," Wally said a little breathlessly once he was back on his feet, looking like he was regretting eating the burnt cookies after getting tossed around like a rag doll.
"I would have thought you had all learned your limitations by now," Mister Twister said as they stood to face him again.
"What do you want?" Kaldur demanded, stepping forward with narrowed eyes.
"Isn't it obvious?" Mister Twister called, rising in the air. "I'm waiting for a real hero," he goaded.
"Read his mind," Kaldur told M'gann. "Find a weakness."
"I thought I wasn't supposed to do that!" M'gann replied helplessly.
"It's okay with the bad guys!" Robin snapped with a glare.
M'gann closed her eyes. "Nothing. I'm getting nothing!" she exclaimed desperately. Suddenly, she gasped and said, "Hello, Megan! Mister Twister is Red Tornado is disguise!" Lark furrowed her brow. "He's inorganic, an android," M'gann explained. "And how many androids do you know that can generate tornados?"
"If that's Red Tornado," Lark started skeptically, "then it's Red Tornado on steroids."
"He is the one who sent us here," Kaldur argued weakly.
"After saying we'd be tested soon enough," Robin said slowly, putting the pieces together. "This is his test, something to keep us busy!" he exclaimed angrily.
"Speedy called it," Wally griped. "We're a joke." Kaldur punched his palm as his pale green eyes darkened thunderously, and the redhead finished, "This game, so over."
"Guys, I don't think that's Tornado," Lark tried to persuade. "His tornados are red, for one thing," she pointed out. "But secondly, his creator could have easily made another android to have the same abilities."
"Come on, Lark," Robin said, his voice unusually sharp toward his partner. "You don't really believe that, do you?"
Lark's eyes narrowed a little. "Yes, I really do," she insisted. "What's your problem, Rob?" she asked incredulously when the raven-haired teen just scoffed and rolled his eyes.
"Just never thought I'd see the day when you got the wool pulled over your eyes," he snapped, turning his back to her and marching toward Mister Twister.
Kaldur, Wally, and Superboy followed after Robin, the first two a little uncertain how to address the unusual tension between the two birds.
"We know who you are and what you want!" Robin yelled up at the android.
"So let's end this," Kaldur said with narrowed eyes.
"Consider it ended," Mister Twister said, and Lark knew if he had a face, he'd be smirking.
The android raised his arms in the air and two tornados erupted from them. Dark clouds started to form in the previously blue sky, and the wind picked up.
"An impressive show," Kaldur called, "but we will not indulge you! We will not engage!"
Lightning crackled in the sky, causing the hairs on the back of Lark's neck to rise.
"Uh, can Red Tornado do that?" Wally asked nervously.
"No, he can't," Lark snapped.
"You think I'm Tornado?" Mister Twister asked, sounding amused. "Ironic."
Lightning struck in front of them and everyone was thrown back.
For a moment, Lark blacked out. When she roused again, she heard Mister Twister say, "Fine then. I won't deny you children have power. But playing hide-and-seek with you would not help me achieve my objectives, so stay concealed. If you confront me again, I will show no mercy."
Hide-and-seek? Lark's muddled mind questioned as the evil robot flew away, taking the disagreeable weather with him. Concealed?
Slowly, everyone sat up.
"What happened?" Wally asked groggily.
"I placed the Bio-Ship between us," M'gann explained, glancing at the others nervously.
Superboy stood from the trench he had created and angrily punched a boulder to bits. "And that's supposed to make it right?!" he demanded with a glare. "You tricked us into thinking Twister was Red Tornado," he said, stalking toward M'gann as Lark, Wally, and Kaldur stood.
"And who fell for it?" Lark shot back, raising a challenging eyebrow at the clone. Superboy growled and stalked up to Lark, but she held her ground and didn't bat an eye at his proximity. When he failed to get the response he was hoping for (though he honestly wasn't even sure what that was), his eyes slid back to M'gann.
"M'gann did not intentionally mislead us," Kaldur spoke up, quickly stepping forward to keep Superboy from looming over the prone Martian.
"I-it was a rookie mistake," Robin defended weakly, turning to Superboy. "We shouldn't have listened." Lark scoffed at that, and if it had been anyone else, Robin would have given his best Batglare. Instead, he winced slightly behind his dark sunglasses, because he should have known better than to let his emotions cloud his judgement.
"You are pretty inexperienced," Wally said slowly. He stuffed his hands in his pockets and glanced at the ground. "Hit the showers," he said finally. "We'll take it from here."
"Stay out of our way," Superboy growled as he passed, glaring down at M'gann, who was still kneeling in the grass. He, Wally, and Robin hurried away.
"I was just trying to be part of the Team," M'gann said weakly.
"To be honest," Kaldur said softly, "I'm not sure we really have a team."
Lark shook her head as she glared after the others before sighing heavily and reaching down to help M'gann to her feet. "Aren't you going to join the boys?" the Martian asked weakly.
"Nah," Lark said with a small smile. "We only ever move with a plan. Robin should know better."
"I see," M'gann said as they climbed onto the Bio-Ship. Once they were seated, she said, "Maybe we should call Red Tornado and ask him to help us." Lark pursed her lips but nodded.
Their babysitter picked up immediately. "What has happened?" he inquired.
"We ran into the cause that triggered the emergency alert," Lark said as she stood beside M'gann. "A robot, calling himself Mister Twister. Guess what his powers are," she said rhetorically.
"And the rest of your Team?" Red Tornado asked.
"They ran ahead," Lark sighed. "Thought it was you in disguise."
"The Team really needs your help," M'gann said, a little desperately.
"If I intervened, it would not be to help," Red Tornado informed. "Still, it is an odd coincidence that this Twister shares my elemental abilities and my immunity to telepathy."
"Immunity to telepathy..." Lark repeated slowly, a thought coming to her. "Thanks, Tornado!" she exclaimed, her eyes widening behind her sunglasses. "We'll call back soon!" She waved her hand, ending the call with the red robot.
Turning to M'gann, the bird said excitedly, "If Twister is immune to telepathy—"
"Hello, Megan!" the Martian gasped. "That must mean there isn't a human inside the machine!"
Lark nodded slowly. "And if this android has the same abilities as Red Tornado, there's a chance it was created by the same person. If that's the case…"
"What if the creator wanted to draw out Red Tornado?" M'gann finished.
"That would make sense," the young bat nodded. "I mean, why attack Happy Harbor? It's just a quiet little coastal town."
"So we need a plan of attack," the Martian said, looking expectantly at Lark.
She thought for a moment. Finally, a slow smile crossed her lips. "If it's Red Tornado he wants, it's Red Tornado he'll get."
After explaining her idea to M'gann, they moved the Bio-Ship closer to the docks, where Mister Twister was fighting Superboy, Kaldur, Robin, and Wally.
{Listen to me,} M'gann said once she was in range of the others. {All of you.}
"What did we tell you?" Superboy roared up at the sky.
{I know!} M'gann exclaimed. {And I know I messed up, but now I'm very clear on what we need to do. Lark and I have come up with a plan. Please, trust us.}
After going through the plan with the rest of the Team, M'gann parked the Bio-Ship and she and Lark hopped off.
"We're not too far from the docks," the Martian said to Lark. "Are you going to be okay walking there?"
"Yeah, I'll make it in time," she replied with a smile. "See you there!"
M'gann smiled back and flew off, and Lark took off in a quick sprint, thankful not for the first time for all the cardio workouts she got running across rooftops in Gotham.
She arrived at the docks just as Red Tornado appeared. Lark remained crouched behind an overturned boat and waited for her cue.
"Hit the showers, boys," Red Tornado said as he landed in front of the Team. "I was hoping you could handle this. Clearly, you cannot."
"But we've got a plan now!" Robin exclaimed.
"The subject is not up for debate," Red Tornado said. The boys turned and walked away, Robin, Superboy, and Wally joining Lark in her hiding spot while Kaldur slipped into the water.
"I was beginning to believe you'd never show," Lark heard Mister Twister say.
"I am here now," Red Tornado said. After throwing a couple tornados back and forth, he said, "We are evenly matched, Twister."
"No, Tornado, we are not." Mister Twister sent arcs of electricity toward Red Tornado, who managed to dodge it until the bolt hit a boat's gas tank, causing it to explode. Red Tornado was thrown back and landed with a thud, and Mister Twister approached.
"Remain still, Robot," Mister Twister commanded as he stood over Red Tornado. He lifted his hand and five wires dropped from the tips of his fingers and attached themselves to Red Tornado. "The reprogramming won't take long."
Suddenly, Red Tornado lifted his hand and ripped out the wires. "Longer than you might think." His head had morphed into M'gann's, and Mister Twister stumbled back in surprise.
"No," he said, not wanting to believe it. M'gann raised her hand and blasted Mister Twister off his feet with her telekinesis. Behind him, a tornado appeared and tossed Mister Twister behind M'gann. The wind died down, revealing Wally.
Superboy instantly took advantage of Mister Twister's unstableness. He landed a few punches and then put his fist through the android's chest twice. With a final blow, Superboy released him and Mister Twister disappeared under the water.
A moment later, Mister Twister was thrown in the air again and he crashed onto the dock.
M'gann rose into the air and lifted the android, using her telekinesis to rip off his remaining arm. From behind her, Robin ran forward, throwing his exploding disks. They exploded in Mister Twister's chest and M'gann released him.
He fell with a thud and lifted himself so he was kneeling. Everyone stood before him, and Lark drew her grapple gun and fired it at the chest plate. Once the suction had stuck soundly, she gave the cord a sharp tug, causing the panel to pop off. It revealed a man sitting at controls, and he fell forward with a grunt.
"Foul," he said weakly. "I-I call foul."
M'gann stepped forward and then glanced to her side. She levitated a boulder and raised it above her head.
"M'gann, no!" Kaldur yelled in horror, rushing forward, but Lark placed a hand on his chest. M'gann lowered the boulder on the man.
Once Robin had gotten over his shock, he stormed up to the Martian and yelled, "Don't know how things are done on Mars, but on Earth, we don't execute our captives!" Rounding on his partner, he added angrily, "And you! Letting her crush him like a bug? Did you know she was going to do that?!"
Lark rolled her eyes. "C'mon, Robbie," she said. "Don't you trust me?" She nodded at M'gann, who shared the dark-haired girl's smirk as she lifted the large rock to reveal the broken parts…of an android.
"That's why I couldn't read his mind," M'gann said.
"We realized no amount of metal in the world would have been able to shield a mind from M'gann's telepathic abilities," Lark explained, wishing she had her phone to capture Robin's priceless expression. "Which meant there was no human operating Mister Twister."
Wally stepped forward and picked up an eye. "Cool," he grinned. "Souvenir."
"We should have had more faith in you two," Kaldur said.
"Yeah," Wally agreed. "You rocked this mission. Get it? Rocked?"
"Ignore him," Robin told M'gann. "We're all just turbed you're on the Team."
M'gann gave a small laugh. "Thanks. Me too."
That night, they debriefed in the mission room. They had gathered the pieces of the robots, and they were now on a platform that had risen from the center of the practice ring.
"It was clearly designed to sabotage or destroy you," Kaldur said to Red Tornado.
"I'm leaning toward sabotage," Lark said, sounding deep in thought.
"What makes you say that?" Kaldur asked curiously.
"Based on what this android said," she said. "It was talking about a reprogramming. And since he was the 'bad guy,' I assume the reprogramming wouldn't have been good for R.T."
"Agreed," the metal hero said.
"Is that why you wouldn't help us?" M'gann asked.
"No," he said simply. "This was your battle. I do not believe it is my role to solve your problems for you. Nor should you solve mine for me."
"But, if you're in danger…" M'gann said slowly.
"Consider this matter closed," Red Tornado interrupted. He turned and walked away before any of them could argue.
"Batman, Aquaman, and Flash, they'd have jumped right in to fix things," Wally said sourly, watching Red Tornado's retreating figure.
"Guess if we're gonna have a babysitter, a heartless machine is exactly what we need," Robin muttered.
"Dude!" Wally exclaimed.
"Harsh," Lark scolded, raising an eyebrow at her brother.
"And inaccurate," Red Tornado informed. "I have a heart: carbon-steel alloy." He turned back to them. "I also have excellent hearing."
Robin gave a nervous chuckle as Wally winced on his behalf. "Right. Sorry," he said sheepishly. "I'll, uh, strive to be more accurate."
"And more respectful," Lark added pointedly. Red Tornado turned and walked away again.
"Speedy was so wrong," Wally grinned to Robin, Lark, and Kaldur as they walked down the hall that led to the kitchen and living room.
"This team thing," Robin continued.
"Might just work out," Kaldur finished with his own small smile.