It had been a day since they've defeated the Ratcatcher, and the four were back in the Rust Bucket, having not yet left Gotham. The city was full of life. It was lively and bustling. There was no shortage of things to see or do. Even though Gotham was infested with criminals, the city still managed to stay alive. And while the four weren't leaving just yet, Ben was taking advantage of this time, looking for somewhere to eat. "Hey! Let's go here! It looks like it has a cool arcade!"

"It does have one, but it's not as good as Mr. Smoothies." Jon said, reading the description on the sign.

"Mr Smoothies...? Gross!" Ben gagged at that. But we need food anyways. Besides, we're not gonna be in the arcade all day."

"Alright, but let me pay."

"Why?"

"Mom gave me a lot of money for the vacation, and it's only fair I spend some of it to make up for the fact that I came along."

"Well, I don't see anything wrong with it. You're part of the group, so why not?" Gwen nodded, walking up to the entrance with Ben and Jon.

"Alright then. I'm getting a lot of fries." Ben smiled.

"Same. I've been craving fries since yesterday."

"Alright then, but I get dibs on the ketchup." Ben smirked.

The group was in line, and as the trio waited for their turn to order, Max had gone off to find a parking spot for the Rust Bucket. As the trio waited, Jon couldn't help but admire how big Gotham was. There were so many tall buildings and skyscrapers that it almost seemed unreal.

"I wonder if this is the biggest city in the country?" Jon asked himself.

"Probably. But I've heard that Metropolis is the same size as it." Gwen shrugged. "It's pretty big here."

"Yeah...I wonder what else there is here."

"Well, we could always check the map." Gwen pulled out her phone, checking it out.

"Or, you could ask the Bat." Ben chuckled.

"Bats?" Jon asked, curious to know more. "What do they have to do with Gotham?"

"Batman. He's a vigilante. Like a superhero but not super. And he's a hero in Gotham. A pretty cool hero too, but he's also a loner." Gwen explained. "But Jon...Do you know a lot about Batman? He and Superman are teammates, right?"

"Oh, yeah. For sure you know some stuff about him!" Ben added, excited. He couldn't believe Jon actually didn't know Batman. "Well?"

"Oh, uh..." Jon rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, I know him. He's pretty cool from the time he's been around. But that's only because I hang out with Robin a bit."

"Heh...Figures. Man, I'm lucky to have a Superhero joining this road trip. Then again, I'm a Superhero too." Ben grinned while having his arms crossed.

"You? A Superhero? That's a terrifying thought." Gwen snarked.

"What? I totally saved you back there!"

"Maybe...but that doesn't make you a hero, dweeb."

"Uhh...yeah, it does!"

"Nuh-uh."

"Yeah-huh."

"No way." Gwen said.

As always, they were bickering yet again and Jon had to hear it all. He sighed. 'It's gonna be a long day...'

It was the late afternoon, and the sun was beginning to set. The streets of Gotham were lit up with neon lights, and the city was full of life.

And the four had now finished up with their meal. The Rust Bucket was parked near the restrooms as they were all doing their own thing. Max was busy on his computer while the kids were busy talking. And it was mostly Ben and Gwen doing the talking.

"Hey, Jon." Gwen called out, getting the Kryptonian's attention.

"Yeah?"

"I was thinking..." She was a little nervous, but she had to say it. "Why don't we explore the town for a little bit? I mean, we could do some shopping or just check out the city." Gwen wanted to hang out with the half-kryptonian. And it was a perfect opportunity. She didn't have the chance before since she had been too busy being disgusted by rats and dealing with a creepy villain. Now was her chance.

Jon, on the other hand, was caught off guard. "Uh...well...I don't really have anything too important going on right now?"

Gwen smiled and looked at him with bright, excited eyes. "Well, I thought maybe we could go shopping again or something like that. I don't really have anything planned, but I just wanna spend some time with you. Plus, it's been forever since I've had a friend to go shopping with! Plius, it's an excuse to do something without Ben." Gwen was excited and hopeful.

"W-Well...Sure!" Jon stuttered. "And...we're friends now?"

"Of course we are. Why wouldn't we be? These few days we've been on this road trip, you've been a lot of help, Jon." Gwen smiled at him, her cheeks turning pink. "I'm glad I thought about bringing you along."

"I-It was nothing! Just happy to help!" Jon laughed nervously as he blushed, trying to keep his cool. But it didn't last for long. Gwen would grab his hand, dragging him along. "W-Where are we going?"

"To the mall!"

"Well isn't that sweet?" Max watched them go off. "Usually Gwen's rather combative with you, Ben. But being around Jon seems to put her at ease."

"Bleh." Ben rolled his eyes, sticking his tongue out.

As Jon was pulled along by Gwen, he was curious to see where the redhead wanted to take him. She had been so excited, and he couldn't help but smile.

"Come on!" Gwen was pulling him by the hand. The two were going to explore Gotham. It was night now and the city was full of lights. They could hear music playing in the distance and people talking on the street. It was a very lively city. Jon looked around at the sights and sounds. "I've never been to Gotham before. It's so...so...I dunno...big!"

"Well, if we get lost, I can always count on your Super Hearing to find us." Gwen joked. "I can't believe I didn't know you were a half-alien until now. It would've been nice if you've said that in the beginning." She sighed.

"Well, I was nervous. I thought it was a secret, and I didn't wanna share that with you."

"I know, I know." She giggled. "Secret Identities and all."

"Yeah." Jon chuckled, scratching his cheek.

It had been an hour, and they were enjoying themselves. The two of them were laughing and talking as they walked. Jon and Gwen were now on the second floor of the mall and were looking for something to eat.

Gwen looked at Jon and giggled. She thought it was cute that he didn't know what to order. "I'll take a vanilla shake, and Jon, you want a strawberry one?" Gwen asked, taking the lead as Jon just followed along.

"Yeah, sure." Jon nodded, taking a seat at a table in the mall. He had a feeling he wasn't going to be able to eat a whole lot of food. Gwen would go over to the food counter to order while Jon sat there and thought about things. He had to admit, being with Gwen was a lot of fun.

But as they were enjoying themselves, on another district in Gotham, crime was active. It was always active in Gotham City, hence its reputation. Even after Ratcatcher had been defeated yesterday, there would naturally be another problem somewhere in the city. This time, a gang of criminals was trying to break into an armored truck and get away with it.

They had been at it for the past couple of days, trying to steal as much as they could, and they weren't stopping. The criminals would try and break in through the back of the van. The first one to go up was the one in charge, a burly man in his 30's who had tattoos on his arms, and a black mask. He tried to pick the lock, but the van was too secure for him to crack.

"Damn it, it won't open!" He said as he slammed his fist on the side of the truck. "We can't get this damn thing open!" The criminals would try to force it open but were unsuccessful.

"What's the big deal?" One criminal said, pushing past his leader and slamming his own fist against the side of the truck. The lock was sturdy and would take some time to break open. But the criminals weren't willing to give up just yet.

As the gang tried to figure out a way to break into the armored truck, they would be approached by someone else. Someone in a dark corner, someone watching them. The figure was covered in shadow and darkness, watching the group carefully.

"Hey, I'm not sure if we're going to get the truck open. Maybe we should just get outta here." One criminal would speak.

"No way! If we don't get the money from the bank, then what was the point?!" The leader said. "This is a simple bank heist! What's so hard about that?! We can't give up now."

"Well, I'm not sure about that. We can't stay here all day." Another criminal said, shaking his head.

But before the criminals could respond, they'd all hear a voice coming from behind them.

"Leave it." A voice said from the darkness. It was a deep voice, a masculine voice, and it was coming from a dark, shadowy corner.

"What?" The leader turned and looked into the darkness. He saw nothing but shadows.

"I said, leave." The voice came out again. It was stern, serious, and threatening.

"Who's there? Show yourself!"

"I don't have to show myself. And I'll repeat myself, leave."

"Ha!" The leader scoffed, laughing. He walked over to the darkness, ready to fight. The leader cracked his knuckles, getting ready. The rest of the criminals followed him. "Whoever the hell you are, get out of here! Or else!"

The figure didn't budge. The criminals started to advance, their weapons at the ready. Suddenly, one of them was knocked down, and the others turned around, seeing the fallen member.

"What the-" But the next criminal would be knocked down by the figure. He went straight for the leader, delivering a powerful punch, knocking the criminal to the ground, and the others quickly turned and fired their guns. The figure jumped into the air, evading the shots, and delivered another punch. The figure moved swiftly, and the criminals couldn't keep up. He punched, kicked, and sent the criminals to the ground. They tried to fight back, but it was futile.

Soon, all the criminals would be knocked out, with the figure standing over their bodies, his cape flowing behind him.

He looked down at them and spoke, "Gotham belongs to me."

It was the Batman.

Once again, he stopped a threat as always. But this didn't seem to be a run of the mill threat. Something caught Batman's attention. When knocking down the criminals, he noticed that they dropped a few things. Things that would've normally been on them, like their weapons. But they didn't seem to be carrying them on them, instead dropping strange items.

Otherworldly items to be exact. Items that didn't belong in this world.

The items that the criminals dropped looked alien, with glowing lights and symbols, and Batman knew he needed to take these back with him. The hero would pick up these items, holding them in his arms. "Where did you get these...?"

After the night they had, the four were now back in the Rust Bucket. And once again, they had a long day. Ben and Gwen had fallen asleep in the Rust Bucket, while Jon was sitting at the edge, staring out of the window. He couldn't stop thinking about his time with Gwen. It felt so natural, like she'd known him for a while. It was strange, yet it felt good.

"I had fun." Jon whispered, his voice barely audible, not wanting to wake anyone up. But he wasn't going to sleep just yet. Instead, he would take in the city and its night life. The neon lights were shining and illuminating the city, giving it a beautiful glow. But even as the city looked beautiful at night, it was always still grim regardless, keeping that ominous aura about it.

Jon was going to stay up and watch the city for a while. But then he'd feel a shift in the air, something that made him nervous, but not afraid, not too scared. But he couldn't put his finger on why. He could've sworn there were a few more heartbeats nearby. He'd look out, using his x-ray vision and super hearing, trying to find out what the disturbance was. But there was no disturbance, nothing out of the ordinary, nothing he could see or hear. He shrugged, deciding to stay up a little while longer to make sure everything was alright.

It was 1 AM and Jon was now getting ready for bed. As he laid on the bed that was on top of Gwen's, he'd hear the girl talking. He'd listen closely, hearing Gwen say how much she loved the city. How much fun she was having. How much fun she was having with him. He smiled. She really was happy.

Jon's thoughts were soon cut off as the feeling came back again. This time, it was more intense. He was feeling that presence again, the one that made him nervous. It wasn't anything malicious or anything. He'd get out of the bunk and use his X-Ray Vision to see outside and around. But he'd find no one was outside and no one was around.

He was now more confused. But then he heard it again. He'd hear a heartbeat that was near the Rustbucket, one that didn't belong to any of the people in the Rustbucket.

"Hello? Who's there?" Jon asked, walking outside. But he'd be greeted to nothing but silence.

He looked around and found no one. But then he'd feel the presence again, this time it was stronger, and it made him shiver. It made him scared, yet he felt like it was nothing to worry about.

"This heartbeat...What is it?"

Indeed, Jon did feel someone's heartbeat. But it wasn't near at all. In the further areas of Gotham City, located underground, a heartbeat was going off at a rapid rate. In an underground system, the source of the heartbeat was being approached by some individuals. Individuals that were apart of the same group of criminals that Batman had stopped.

And these criminals stopped before something. Something in a large glass container with a strange liquid, and it was hooked to numerous wires. The liquid was a bright green color, and inside was a strange-looking creature with sharp teeth and a large tail.

But this wasn't just a strange-looking creature, this was an alien creature that the criminals were working with. It had one eye while also having its entire body be a brain, hence why the wires and the liquid container were needed. And despite the fact that the alien was hooked up to wires and in a tank, it was still alive. It was able to speak, and it was able to think. The alien's name was Vhiktor.

"Ah. My associates. It's so good to see you." The alien's voice came from inside the glass. "How is our project progressing? Did you manage to find the items we needed? Are they ready?"

"We have everything we need, but the Bat got in our way and stopped us!" One of the criminals would say. "We lost most of the tech! But we do have the rest!"

"Hmmm...That Batman I've been hearing about. If I am to be able to return to my planet while also continuing my plans on Earth, I cannot have any sudden obstacles such as a Batman in my way."

"We should've told you in advance that he'd be around. It's his thing, being around Gotham."

"I see...either way, he cannot be allowed to get in my way. My brain pulsates more and more the longer I am on this planet without proper protection." He would growl out. Vhriktor was currently in a poor state. His body, which was an entire brain, wasn't properly protected, having a large wound that had scarred over. The reason why he was here on Earth was because of the incident that happened to him on his planet. "I need more protection...! And more power...! You will bring me both. So I can have the means to complete my goal. You all want your desires to come true, no?"

"And how are we gonna do that? Batman is always in the shadows. Not even the cops can keep up with him." The criminal said. "We'll have to try and get more tech. The only thing we have left is some of your guns."

"Then use this." Suddenly, the alien would start groaning, the pulsation getting stronger. The juices from his brain body would start spilling out, parts of it going through the wires. The criminals grimaced at this sight in disgust as the juices dropped outside.

But these juices were capable of something amazing. Creation. The liquid would morph into something, transforming and changing its shape until it formed into something else. A blaster of some kind.

"Take it." Vhriktor said. "It has at least 30% of my brain power within it."

One of the criminals walked over and picked up the weapon, seeing it had an alien-like appearance to it.

"I wish it wasn't so wet right away..."

Jon tried finding the sound of this heartbeat, leaving the Rustbucket this late at night. He could still hear the heartbeat, even though it sounded like it was dying down. But that heartbeat, which came from Vhriktor, was a result of him exeerting his power to make weapons.

"What's the sound...?" Jon wondered.

"Jon?" Just then, Gwen appeared behind him. Jon turned around, seeing Gwen standing behind him, her eyes looking tired.

"Gwen? Why are you awake?" He asked.

"I could ask the same. You looked like you were ready to sleep but didn't."

"Oh, uh...well, I was going to. But then, I heard a heartbeat. A crazy heartbeat that's so weird."

"A heartbeat?" Gwen looked confused. "Where?" She looked around.

"I don't know. It sounded like it was near me, but when I looked around, there wasn't anybody." Jon explained. "It felt...weird...and strange. But I couldn't figure out what it was." He'd rub his neck as Gwen looked at him.

"Hmm...is this your first time hearing a heartbeat?" Gwen asked.

"Yeah. My Super Hearing hasn't really picked up on it before, but I always knew what it sounded like in class."

"Well, just like your dad, you're probably gonna hear a lot of heartbeats when your hearing develops more." Gwen shrugged, but the thought did make her think. "Maybe you're just not used to the sound. But why did you go outside?"

"I thought that someone might've been outside. Like a criminal or a burglar." He shrugged. "I dunno, it just seemed weird."

"It is a bit weird. But it is Gotham..." Gwen nodded, crossing her arms. "You don't suppose we're in danger, do you?" She asked, getting worried.

"No. It was probably nothing. Let's get some rest."

"Hmmm..." Gwen would hum. She didn't really feel the need to stay awake, and it wasn't like Jon was in danger or anything. So she went along with him, heading back to the Rustbucket. But just as she did, her eyes would shift to the side, catching a glimpse of something moving in the shadows.

"Jon..." She'd grab his hand. "Look!"

Jon's eyes widened as he turned around. There, in the shadows, was a small figure wearing a cape, dashing through the city streets this late at night. Jon narrowed his eyes as he was already on it.

"I see it!" Jon was on the move as he would run off to chase it, not even using his superspeed as Gwen followed.

"Jon, wait! What's wrong?!" Gwen would be the one to question as she didn't see anything. But she'd run off to chase after him.

Jon didn't reply, he just kept running, following the mysterious figure. Gwen certainly couldn't keep pace with his superspeed at all as he ran, but he'd make sure to keep an eye on the shadow figure.

He was keeping track of where the figure was running to and what it was doing. But then the shadow would suddenly vanish. The young half-kryptonian stopped, looking around. "What...? Where did it go?" He'd look around the dark alleyway and spot a dark shadow on the ground, running through a corner. But when he got there, it was gone.

"It...it vanished!" He said. He'd start to get a bad feeling, his gut starting to twist.

Gwen was out of breath and was now catching up to the boy, panting as she leaned on a wall, tired from the running. "What happened, Jon?! You just ran off like that! And where did you see a shadow?" Gwen was still looking around but saw nothing. "Are you sure there was one? Or are you just tired?"

"Hmm..." Jon kept a good eye out along with his ears, waiting to hear something out of the ordinary. And that's when he did hear something. Something, or rather, someone had dropped down on the street he and Gwen were on.

"Wha?!" Gwen turned and gasped, seeing the shadow in front of them. She hid behind Jon, intimidated by the sudden shadowy figure. But Jon's serious face then turned into a smile once he saw who this was. Stepping out of the shadows was a good friend of his he knew all too well.

"What are you doing here?" Damian Wayne. Otherwise known as Robin. He was in his Robin costume, which had been recently remade thanks to his father.

"Damian!" Jon grinned.

"Ugh...Way to scream my name out loud..." Damian facepalmed.

"Umm..." Gwen was completely lost as to who this guy was. But then, her eyes would go wide and her mouth would gape. "Wait! Damian?! Like, Bruce Wayne's son?!"

"Oops..." Jon realized his mistake. He was used to calling Damian by his name and not his codename, and now Gwen knew. "My bad..."

Damian sighed as he was in his full Robin attire, arms crossed. "Yes, it's me." He rolled his eyes, annoyed. "But call me Robin in public, will you? You're not supposed to know that."

"My bad. Got too excited..." Jon chuckled.

"Oh, right, you do know Robin!" Gwen said.

"That's right! He and I have been friends for a while." Jon said.

"And I wish we weren't..." Damian mumbled, earning a frown from Jon.

"Well, you two seem like you have history together. So you and Jon must've had a lot of adventures!" Gwen smiled.

"Trust me, there have been way too many." He said. Damian walked up to the two and crossed his arms again, raising a brow. "So what are you doing in Gotham?"

"Well, I'm here for a summer trip. Gotham's just one of the places we stopped by. We'll be gone by tomorrow morning anyway. Are you on an important mission tonight?"

"I am. Someone's supplying criminals strange alien weaponry

"Oh, right, you do know Robin!" Gwen said.

"That's right! He and I have been friends for a while." Jon said.

"And I wish we weren't..." Damian mumbled, earning a frown from Jon.

"Well, you two seem like you have history together. So you and Jon must've had a lot of adventures!" Gwen smiled.

"Trust me, there have been way too many." He said. Damian walked up to the two and crossed his arms again, raising a brow. "So what are you doing in Gotham?"

"Well, I'm here for a summer trip. Gotham's just one of the places we stopped by. We'll be gone by tomorrow morning anyway. Are you on an important mission tonight?"

"I am. Someone's supplying criminals strange alien weaponry. They're somewhere here in Gotham and it doesn't seem to be someone like Intergang thus far. Which is why Father and I are going to find them tonight."

"Alien weaponry?" Jon repeated. "So then...that heartbeat I was hearing. Do you think it's related to that?"

"...What heartbeat?" He now had Damian's full attention. The Boy Wonder's eyes would shift to Jon's face and his expression would become more serious. "Tell me everything. Now."

"Well...earlier I was about to get some sleep, and then I heard a weird heartbeat coming from nearby. But it was really strange, it was really fast, and it sounded like it was in pain."

"Where'd you even hear it?"

"If I remember...I think it was...in that direction." Jon pointed at the direction he'd run from, which was also in the direction of the warehouse they had left. Damian looked in that direction and frowned.

"Figures. I was heading down that path too." He grumbled. "So whatever that heartbeat you were hearing was...that must be where the clue leads to." He then turned around, getting ready to run. "If you heard it that close, then the person must've been nearby. Come on, let's go find out where it was."

"We'll come with!" Gwen said.

"As if." Robin halted her on the spot. "You're staying back like you should. Jon's coming with me since it's only natural."

"W-What?" Gwen stuttered, surprised that she was getting told what to do like this.

"I said no. You're going back. This is hero work, and you're a normal kid. You can't help."

Gwen was a bit shocked by that, and so was Jon.

"Come on, Damian...You don't have to say that!"

"I'm serious." Damian frowned. "You're staying back. If I let her come with me, I'm just gonna have to babysit her while I do my work." Damian was acting pretty harsh and Gwen didn't take too kindly to that.

"I'm not going to slow you two down! I can take care of myself!"

"No, you're going to fail on the spot. So I don't want a kid that doesn't know how to fight or have powers coming with."

"Wha-? I'll be fine! Besides, I'm pretty smart, you know!" She said. "I'm not useless. I know my way around things."

Clearly, it was getting heated between the two.

"Do you have any special skills? I was trained by the League of Assassins in various styles. What do you have?"

"Uh...W-Well...I go to Karate Classes here and there..." She muttered, looking away.

"All I needed to hear." Robin saw her as pointless in all of this.

"Hey, come on, Damian." Jon turned to face Gwen, placing his hands on her shoulders. "Sorry, Gwen. He's pretty hard to budge on stuff."

"But..." She looked at Jon, a bit sad that she wasn't allowed to join. She sighed. "...Fine." She pouted and turned around, crossing her arms.

"But, even so. I know you could do it anyway." Jon said as she looked back at him. "I mean, so far, you've been pretty awesome in dangerous situations. So if you ask me, you could do it."

"Heh..." Gwen smiled a little bit with a tiny blush. "Thanks, Jon." She'd then leave the area. As for the duo of boys, they'd look at each other. Robin wasn't amused with the whole 'comfort' bit.

"You really need to stop acting all nice. I can see you being a softie already. It's embarrassing."

"I'll be right back, Gwen. Just let Mr Tennyson know." Jon said, removing his casual clothing to reveal his usual costume underneath.

He was ready to go. The duo of Superboy and Robin were on their way to finding this mystery heartbeat and those connected to it while Gwen watched them go.

'Geez. This new Robin is such a jerk. I liked the old one better.' But Gwen wasn't about to go down so easily. Not when she felt like she could do something.

As for Jon and Damian, they'd run across the rooftops and were back to where they started, searching around the area and using Jon's super hearing to try and track it.

"So where's your dad?" Jon asked, curious.

"He's on his own little investigation. He was going to look into the weaponry and try to track where it came from. He and I have the tech on our comms to locate it. But that's the thing. While he has no problem, my tracker's going off at random intervals. Which is weird."

"I wonder why?" Jon asked as they both looked at each other.

"I've got an idea...Maybe the weapons were being moved or something." Jon theorized. "They've been in and out of places, maybe that's why you're tracker is acting strange. Either way, we're gonna find it. That heartbeat was definitely coming from that direction."

"I'll take your word for it. But it was nearby, you said. So it must've been coming from this street. Keep your ear out."

"Got it." Superboy and Robin were on their way to finding out what caused that heartbeat and to take down the criminals behind it. "You know...it feels good to do this again." Jon said. "Doing hero stuff with you is always a good feeling."

"Don't remind me. It's a hassle whenever we team-up." Robin said, rolling his eyes. The young Wayne was always annoyed with how happy Jon could get when doing things together. He just couldn't stand how much he enjoyed doing heroics. It made him feel sick.

"Well, I like hanging out with you." Superboy smiled, looking at his friend. Robin sighed.

"Just keep looking, Kent. This is serious business."

"You always are, Damian." Jon smiled, flying a bit higher.

They searched the whole area and didn't come up with anything. Jon's heartbeat was still there but there was no way to pinpoint it. Until, he spotted some criminals down below. They seemed like normal thugs, and one of them held the same type of alien weaponry that the Batman was investigating. "Hey! Look!" Jon pointed.

Robin looked and saw the criminals too. "That looks like the same tech. Let's get them!" He said.

"Gotcha!" Superboy flew down to the criminals. The thugs would turn to face him.

"Hey, who's this guy?!"

"It doesn't matter! We have the gun! We can take 'em!" The criminals would fire at him, and Jon would dodge them easily, grabbing a thug and slamming him down. The others would charge in to attack him.

And this is where the specialty of these guns came into play. Due to them being powered by actual brain power of the alien Vhriktor, they could shoot a lot harder and more powerful blasts. They'd blast Superboy away and he would fly through a building, breaking through a wall.

"Superboy!" Robin called, running towards the building to help Superboy.

"Ow..." Jon groaned, rubbing his head.

"You alright?"

"Yeah...Those things pack a punch..." He got up and walked out of the hole he had made. The thugs were now on top of a rooftop, looking around for him. "What was that..?"

"Works like a charm." One thug grinned seeing how it managed to push someone like Superboy back. And now they saw how efficient they were, the thugs unleashed more of the guns' power, blasting away at everything around them, destroying the area.

Superboy and Robin both dodged out of the way. But Jon was still shocked. "Why is it so strong?!"

"I don't know, but we can't let them get away! We need to stop them!" Robin yelled as they both got up. Robin ran up the building, throwing shurikens at the criminals.

The thugs tried to aim and shoot at Superboy but were having difficulty hitting him due to his quick movements and the fact he was dodging every shot.

Robin was also having trouble with the criminals. They kept shooting at him as well, forcing him to retreat behind a building. But he was still determined and would pull out an explosive batarang. He threw it at the thugs, who looked up and were shocked to see a Batarang coming towards them. They ducked to the floor as Robin then jumped down at them.

"Get them!"

The thugs would get back up and aim to shoot at the Boy Wonder, only for Jon to grab Robin, carrying him away. The guns kept firing, their power increasing as they could easily break apart bigger parts of walls now.

"These guys have some serious firepower!" Jon exclaimed as he landed with Robin. "I didn't think they'd hurt that much" He asked, holding onto his arm, feeling it bruised up.

Robin saw that they were in a bit of trouble and then had an idea. "Superboy, I need to you draw the fire of their weapons! Distract them!"

"Huh?" Jon was confused, but then he understood and nodded, getting up and running at the criminals again. He'd run around them and try to dodge the blasts they were sending his way, but he wasn't doing a great job. He kept getting shot by their weapons.

While he was being fired at, the Boy Wonder was working on a plan of his own. Robin had a plan, he pulled out his grapple hook and used it to swing across the rooftop to the thugs.

"Get over here!" One of the thugs shouted at Superboy and fired at him with the alien guns, but Robin had gotten to them by that time and used the grapple hook to swing over the thugs, landing behind them.

The thug who was shooting at Superboy didn't notice Robin and continued to shoot. Superboy, on the other hand, did and flew towards them.

Robin, being as agile as ever, would dodge the shots and jump at the thugs. "You're finished!" Robin then used his batons and smacked one thug with them. He'd kick him away and punch another.

"Ow!" The thugs would try and aim at Robin, only to have Jon speed his way to them. He'd grab a thug, spin him around, and throw him at another thug, knocking both of them out.

"You little!" Another would go at Superboy but Jon would just trip him over. But he was then hit by another one of those alien guns. It pushed Superboy away, but it wasn't enough to hurt him this time. Superboy got back up, shaking it off and charging at him, tackling him into the ground and punching him in the face, knocking him out. Robin was now taking care of the rest of the thugs.

But one thug remained, having just arrived at the rooftop and he aimed at Robin. He had a clear shot, believing he would get a good hit on him. But as soon as he went to fire, a weird green liquid dropped from above, landing right on his hand and the gun.

"Huh?" The thug saw his hand was now stuck to the gun. "What is this?!"

Jon and Robin looked up to see the one responsible. It was Ben. Or rather, Ben as Stinkfly. And on his back was Gwen, who came along regardless.

Robin would then grab him and throw him to the ground, kicking him in the face to knock him out. The thugs were all taken out, with Ben looking at them. Robin looked at him as well. He had no idea what Ben had been doing here, or what that thing he turned into was.

"What?" Robin asked, confused as to why a bug thing had done that to him. "What are you supposed to be? And what are you even doing here?"

"What, I can't just fly in the city? I'm just minding my own business." Stinkfly shrugged.

"And why are you here?" Robin narrowed his eyes at Gwen. "I thought I told you not to come?"

"Well, it's a good thing I didn't listen." Gwen shrugged. "I was gonna come anyways, but I had to bring my doofus cousin along."

"Hey!" Stinkfly exclaimed as the Omnitrix was already starting to time out since he flew all the way here with Gwen. And from that red flash as Gwen hopped off, Ben revealed himself to Robin, who was surprised.

"What kind of...?" Robin looked bewildered, seeing Ben in the flesh.

"Oho! It's actually Robin! Well, the current Robin! Feast your eyes on Ben Tennyson." He said, putting his arms on his hips.

"Sorry. I kinda figured they'd come along anyways." Jon admitted while grinning sheepishly. "Hehe. And I'm guessing Mr Tennyson's with them too."

"Hah..." Robin sighed, shaking his head. "Either way, we still have to find the source of those weapons."

Jon was looking down at the thugs they just defeated and saw that the weapons they had been using were still in their hands, and that they were still active. And when looking at them, he heard it. The heartbeat. It came back up and it sounded faster than before, surprising Jon.

"The heartbeat..." He said, looking at the gun. But it wasn't coming from the gun. It was still in the same direction. However, the gun was shaking, pulsating, practically at the same pace as the heartbeat. In fact, all the guns were pulsating at the same pace. "The weapons...they're pulsating to the sound of the heart." He said to Robin, pointing it out.

"Hmm?" He looked at them too, seeing the guns were in fact pulsating at the same rate. He'd touch one and see that it felt like an actual pulse, which was bizarre. But it meant that these guns were somehow linked to something that was alive. "So the heartbeart's coming from where the tech's from, then? And they're connected?" He asked.

"Freaky...Then do you think it's coming from something that's alive?" Ben asked.

"I'm not sure...but if it is...we have to be careful." Jon replied. "There might be more to this than just criminals and guns. But we'll find out soon enough." He'd pick up one of the weapons. "So, what are we gonna do about them?"

"We need to take them with us and find the source. We need to make sure that we can't track them anymore, and we need to stop them." Robin explained.

Jon looked at Ben, and then at the weapons. He didn't want to leave the weapons behind because of how powerful they were. "Or...how about we go straight to the source." Jon smiled, deciding that going to the source of the heartbeat was the best option to go with.

"Sounds good to me." Ben agreed immediately.

"That can work too. Father is probably already doing so right now, so we might run into him on the way." Robin added on. But as the trio of young heroes agreed, they'd fail to realize one thing.

The alien guns would start pulsating more, shaking and trembling, and the hearts were getting more rapid. "Uhhh, are those supposed to do that?" Gwen pointed out as Jon and Robin were now staring at them.

"No...No, it isn't..." Jon replied.

And just as it did, it was as though the weapons could feel the presence of the heroes. The guns would then change and morph, taking a new shape. And the next thing the boys would know, they'd see a giant robot right in front of them.

"WHAT?!" Robin exclaimed. He couldn't believe it.

"Holy cow! How did that happen?!" Jon was just as shocked. No one had a clue as to how this was even possible. And now, they had to deal with this sudden robotic appearance.

Back at the warehouse, Vhriktor's container was shaking more and more, with his brain body pulsating rapidly. His heart was going fast, his pulse was racing, and the container began to crack, causing a liquid to seep out.

The criminal group, which was composed of three men, looked worried. Their leader walked over, noticing this.

"What the...what's happening?"

The other two also stepped forward, looking concerned as well. One of them spoke up, "This...This doesn't look good." The liquid was getting thicker and it looked as though the glass container would break at any moment. It was already starting to crack a bit and some of the liquid had seeped out of the container.

The third man stepped forward and spoke up again. "What the hell is wrong with it?" He asked, concerned about their boss' current condition. Suddenly, the alien would start to speak.

"Interruptions...more interruptions!" He angrily said while his voice was raspy. He could sense those sabotaging his plans and was getting furious. So furious that his body caused the guns to transform in the first place. But it also caused strong waves to come from his brain body, waves that would affect all of the other guns. The weapons were transforming all over Gotham.

"The guns!"

The thugs' guns would transform right in front of them. The weapons would turn into strange-looking robotic creatures with long arms and legs.

Vhriktor was able to create these beings thanks to his own brain. But they weren't sentient. They were simply puppets for him to command. Puppets for him to control and manipulate.

"My plan...must...succeed!"