"Playtime after the mission."
Mallory jerked her head up, arching an eyebrow at Dick. "What was that?"
His eyes widened slightly and he looked down at where she was crouched beside him. "Oh, uh, after the mission we should catch a play," he replied quickly. "You know, sense we're in Hollywood."
She shook her head. "Let's focus on this for now, and talk about your newfound love of plays when we're out of enemy territory."
He nodded in agreement and they both looked back at the mansion they were about to break into. It had been two weeks since the memorial, and she was still staying with Dick. She'd gone on a few patrols in the last two weeks, but tonight was bigger for Dick. It was his first mission after Tarantula, and if she was being honest with herself, she had come more to watch his back than anything else. Not that she wasn't curious about what they might find. This was the house of Gretchen Good, founder of the Goode Goggles. After she and the rest of the team had found the goggles at the metahuman manufacturing plant, she'd asked Dick to look into it for her, and this was what he'd proposed two nights ago when they were watching an interview about the new movie she was involved in. So, now they were dressed in all black, masks covering the bottom halves of their faces, and Mallory had purposefully left her hair black to help blend into the shadows.
She tilted her head, studying the layout of the mansion. "I don't know what a simple recon of her house is gonna tell us, but–"
"Hey, I said 'recon', I never said 'simple'," Dick corrected her, smiling as he pulled out a small device from his pocket, looking satisfied when it beeped.
Mallory narrowed her eyes slightly. "Is that a Motherbox?"
"Yep. I told it to ping if it sensed any Apokoliptian signatures inside, and ping it did. Looks like Granny's in bed with Intergang, and we know that means the Light, too."
"Dick, are you suggesting an illegal search of an old woman's house?" Mallory asked, smiling a little.
"Hey, that ping was probable cause. Besides," he added, grinning beneath his mask, "we can't leave an old lady alone with Apokoliptian tech. She might hurt herself."
Mallory chuckled. "As long as we're on the same page."
They darted through the woods surrounding the mansion, keeping to the shadows, and went right up to the back door. "Camera," Mallory murmured, nodding up to the security camera above them.
"They're down," he replied after a moment.
Her eyebrows furrowed slightly, but she followed him up to the door, where he pulled out a device and held it over the lock's keypad. It figured out the combination in less than twenty seconds, and they heard the bolt being thrown. She looked around them, the hairs on the back of her neck standing on end. Something didn't feel right. "This is too easy," she said, not making a move to open the door.
"I know, I know, but we've got Motherbox. If things turn Apokaliptik, we'll boomtube out. Besides, I've got you with me, and I won't judge if you decide you need to burn a few rooms to get us out." He pushed the door open and led her inside. She ignored the sour feeling rising in her gut and followed him into the mansion.
At first glance, it looked just like any other rich person's house. There was a huge sofa set into a sunken spot in the middle of the room, a movie theater screen across from it. Paintings and vases worth more than her apartment were set artistically throughout the room. She looked at Dick. "I don't see anything, do you?"
He opened his mouth to answer, but he didn't get a chance. Motherbox pinged frantically, and the floor beneath them glowed. Mallory flamed up, intending to fly off the spot, but she and Dick were sucked into the light before she lifted off the ground, and the next thing she knew was an unbearable, intense, all encompassing agony.
Kaldur dodged the current his protege sent his way, enjoying the way the water kept his body suspended, unlike on the surface. One kick, and he was above Nautica, his water bearer already forming a rope. She swam backwards, the tattoos on her arms lighting up, showing the sharks that were usually invisible. A hammerhead shark appeared out of the water between them, glowing bright blue, and rammed him in the chest before he could swim away. V'lana was on top of him before he sank to the ground, pinning him in a way that she had adapted from Black Canary to work under water.
"Very good," He told her, conceding the match.
She floated up and offered him a hand. "Thank you, I have been practicing that hold. Do you have any notes?"
The contacts in his eyes lit up, and he turned slightly to read the message. It was from Barbara.
'NW and Inferno have been missing for 24 hrs on recon of Goode's house.'
His eyes narrowed, and he pushed his concern down and looked at the situation practically. 'The illegal nature of their mission prohibits League intervention,' he replied. 'Can another member of our private group handle this? Or at least provide backup?'
'I'm sorry…' Barbara wrote, 'WW's gone, Batman and the others are in Africa, and Miss M is leading a team mission. I know the risks, but right now you are our only option for rescuing NW and Inferno. I'll provide backup.'
Kaldur sighed heavily, knowing she was right. He wasn't about to leave them alone with Granny. Assuming they were still able to be rescued. That thought spurred him into action, and he pushed his emotions down into the same box he'd been cramming them into since he first became Aqualad. 'I will leave at once,' he told her.
When he turned back around, Vlana was watching him, waiting for him to explain the call. He didn't want to tell her anything. He wanted to go to Goode's house, get his friends back, and take down the Light while he was at it, but he knew he couldn't handle this on his own. There were two of them there, and he didn't know what kind of condition they were going to be in. Putting aside that he didn't know what kind of ambush he could be walking into, he would need a second pair of hands to carry one of them out if it came to it. So, instead of telling her to continue her training without him, he made a decision that he hoped he wouldn't regret. "Come," he told her, "I will explain on the way. Nightwing and Inferno need our help."
It took them half an hour to reach Gretchen's house, but there they stood, on a hill overlooking the mansion. Kaldur used his contacts to zoom in on the building, where the old woman was reading a book right in front of a window. Too convenient. "Oracle?" he asked, starting to walk.
"Receiving mini-beetle drone feed," she reported. "Which is good, because I am not losing track of another squad. Transferring BMD controls to my station…Hang tight, I'll distract Granny and get her out of the house."
Kaldur narrowed his eyes, already standing at the front door. "That will not be necessary," he told her, and he rang the doorbell. He was done hiding. They had taken his friends, and he was not going to stand for it.
"Kaldur…" Barbara's tone carried warning, but he ignored it, and the door opened to reveal Grechen Goode, a knowing smile on her face.
"Good evening," he greeted, a cold stare on his face.
"Why, Aquaman, what a pleasant surprise," the woman said, barely even glancing at Nautica.
"Please, call me Kaldur'ahm. This is my protege, V'lana."
"Kaldur'ahm, V'lana, please, come in." The smile on her face was unnerving, but he'd known before he came that this would be a trap.
He strode inside, searching the room discreetly for signs of scorching or a struggle. Dick and Mallory wouldn't have gone down without a fight. As soon as the door closed behind them, Barbara's signal was lost. In fact, all signals were lost. His comm was giving off static in his ear, and his contacts were dead. He ground his teeth, keeping his face blank, but every muscle in his body was tense, ready for a fight.
"Let's put our cards on the table, shall we?" Gretchen said, stopping suddenly. "Why are you here?"
"Two of my friends paid you a visit, and disappeared."
She didn't look surprised. "You mean two of your friends broke into my home illegally. Are you here to bring them to justice?"
He put his hands behind his back. "Take us to them," he demanded, "and we will discuss it."
The smile that stretched across Gretchen's face couldn't be described as natural, and she nodded. "As you wish. Overlord?"
A light opened beneath their feet, and Kaldur spread his arms out to keep his balance as he, V'lana, and Good began to sink into the light. They were encased in a red, hologram-like cube and continued to go down, like an elevator that led straight to Hell.
"Those that require correction and discipline are brought here," Gretchen explained on their way down. "To my X pit. These naughty children required much of both."
The cube came to a stop, and Kaldur couldn't keep his chest from tensing when he saw them. Dick and Mallory, in black, unmarked gear, floating out in the pit. Their masks had been removed, so there was nothing to muffle their agonized screams as every nerve in their bodies were pulled apart. Their faces were contorted in pain, their bodies stretched out, offering no relief from whatever forces were acting on them. Mallory's fire was being leached from her body, surrounding her in a reddish glow.
"Still," Grethen's voice broke Kaldur's concentration on his friends, and he had to shove his anger down to keep himself from snapping the woman's neck, "I believe they have learned their lesson. You're welcome to take your two friends now. Simply step through the wall of the cube."
He glared at her. "How gracious of you." He looked at V'lana, nodding to her. They couldn't leave them in the pit. They'd already been in there for twenty-four hours. The pain could kill them, if it wasn't already too late.
The Atlanteans pushed through the wall of the cube, and immediately, he couldn't breath. The sheer horror of the pit could not be known simply by looking into it. The torture was so much more than just physical. It went for the mind, the very soul. His hands went to his head, trying to push the demons out.
"Kaldur!"
He forced his eyes open at V'lana's voice. Her tattoos were glowing, and the blue light seemed to be pushing back at the energy of the pit.
"Your skin icons! The magic…helps," she grunted.
He lit his own icons, and some of the pain went away. They made their way through the pit, Kaldur grabbed Mallory, V'lana grabbed Dick, and then they were pushing back on the wall of the cube, and all at once, the torture ended, leaving only the echos of the agony.
The four of them fell to the ground, panting, tears streaking down Mallory and Dick's faces as their bodies continued to contort, and Gretchen watched it all with a satisfied smile on her face. "Overlord?"
They rose back up to the house and were left in a heap on the marble floor. As soon as Kaldur could move again, he checked on his companions. V'lana had Mallory's face cupped in her hand. The pyrokinetic was limp, though she was spasming every few seconds from phantom pains. Dick was out cold, groaning even in unconsciousness. The Leaguer pushed himself to his feet, supporting Mallory's weight, and V'lana followed suit with Dick.
"Thank you for your hospitality," he said, glaring at Gretchen. "We will show ourselves out."
They began to walk to the door, but the old woman stopped them halfway to their escape. "I said you could take your two friends," she said, turning around slowly. "I did not say she could take the motherbox."
Kaldur looked at his protege, his eyes going to her hand, where she was tightening her grip on the device. "Motherbox is a living being," he said, glad that she had thought to take it with her. "We will not leave her behind."
"That wasn't the agreement," Gretchen said, the smile leaving her face, a chilling glare replacing it. "She broke the rules. She must be disciplined. Back in the pit."
"No," he said, his voice low and firm.
Gretchen chuckled darkly. "Atrocious manors, Kaldur'ahm. Such behavior requires correction. Correction already made to Mallory, and Richard." As she said each of their names, Mallory and Dick stood up on their own and walked towards the woman. Kaldur's heart pounded in his chest as he realized what they were dealing with. "Now," Gretchen was saying to his friends, "obey your granny. My command is Darkseid's will. Teach your naughty friends a lesson."
They charged at the Atlanteans, each going for their rescuer. The Leaguer focused in on the pyrokinetic, trusting V'lana to hold her own with Dick, at least long enough for him to try to break the mind control. He caught Mallory's fist, twisting her arm behind her back and pinning her to his chest. "Stop! Fight her control," he ordered. Mallory glared at him over her shoulder, fighting against his hold.
"Fight harder!" Gretchen yelled. "You cannot be so easily defeated!"
Mallory's eyes glowed red, and adrenaline pumped through Kaldur's veins, giving him the boost he needed to push her away right before she burst into flames. She rose off the ground, fire licking her skin, gathering in her hands. He blocked out everything but her, hoping she was still there, even if it was just a little piece of her. "Mallory, you're stronger than this!" he yelled, trying to get through whatever brainwashing she'd endured. "You can fight this. You must fight this. Come back to us."
He watched the conflict grow on her face, her fire becoming unstable with the warring within her. All he could do was wait, and hope that his words were true, and she could break the control of the monster.