Aqualad took a defensive stance, water blades humming with energy as he positioned himself between the assassin and Dr. Roquette. "Samuel, keep the doctor safe!" he ordered before clashing with the intruder, his weapons meeting the sharp edge of her sai in a flurry of strikes.
Samuel didn't need to be told twice. He had already activated his status screen, analyzing the woman before him.
Name: Jade Crock
Type: Fighting/Dark
Ability: Infiltrator
…Jade Crock.
His eyes narrowed slightly. Crock. A name he had heard before.
Artemis Crock.
Coincidence? Unlikely. Two highly trained combatants, both skilled beyond their years, sharing the same last name? No, this was something else.
But he had no time to dwell on it. Aqualad took a hard hit to the ribs, sent flying into the wall with a sharp grunt of pain. The assassin turned toward Samuel, her eerie white mask concealing her expression, but he could hear the smirk in her voice.
"Your turn." She spun her sai with mocking ease. "Shame, I don't know much about you. But I do know you won't be blowing up this time—not unless you want to take your 'friend' with you."
Samuel didn't react. Didn't hesitate.
[Samuel used Encore!]
Jade Crock's movements jerked unnaturally, her body reacting to an unseen force. Her grip on the sai tightened as she tried to strike, but her hands betrayed her, twirling the weapons uselessly instead.
Her head snapped toward Samuel, confusion flickering behind the white mask. "What the—?"
[Samuel used Yawn!]
Jade staggered, her body suddenly growing heavy. Her limbs sluggish. She clenched her teeth, fighting against the creeping exhaustion.
[Samuel used Tearful Look!]
[Jade Crock's Attack fell!]
[Jade Crock's Special Attack fell!]
A sudden wave of weakness swept over her. It wasn't just fatigue—her strength was draining away, her body reacting as if it had already lost the fight.
"The hell did you do to me?" she growled, trying to shake it off. But her voice slurred. She wavered on her feet.
Samuel didn't answer. He just kept staring, watching as she swayed, eyes struggling to stay open.
Then she collapsed.
Samuel exhaled slowly. Easier than expected.
But just in case—
[Samuel used Tearful Look!]
[Jade Crock's Attack fell!]
[Jade Crock's Special Attack fell!]
Again. And again. Making her as weak as possible before she woke up.
He turned his head toward Dr. Roquette, whose wide eyes flickered between him and the unconscious assassin.
"Keep working," he said flatly. "The faster you finish, the faster this ends."
Dr. Roquette swallowed hard but nodded, returning to her frantic typing.
Footsteps pounded from the hallway. Aqualad, groaning as he finally regained consciousness, pushed himself up. The rest of the team—Artemis, Miss Martian, and a soaking wet Kid Flash—rushed into the room.
All eyes landed on the unconscious assassin.
Aqualad took in the situation, then looked at Samuel. "Impressive."
Samuel shrugged. He didn't even have to use iron defense since he didn't get hit. "She wasn't hard to deal with."
His gaze shifted to Artemis.
Something was off. She was staring at the assassin—no, not just staring. She was tense. Rigid. A mix of emotions flickered across her face, quickly hidden behind a scowl. Samuel's guess was probably correct.
Before he could process it further, Jade stirred.
The assassin's body twitched, then stiffened. Though Samuel couldn't see her eyes beneath the mask, he could feel her glare.
"You," she hissed, voice laced with irritation. "You were unexpected."
Then, her gaze swept across the rest of the team. Her tone shifted, lighter, almost playful. "Well, this was fun… but I won't let some random kid ruin my mission."
In a blur of movement, she flicked her wrist—
A smoke bomb hit the floor, hissing as thick gray mist filled the room.
Samuel's fingers twitched.
He should've used Mean Look.
By the time the smoke cleared, she was gone.
"Are you kidding me?" Roquette's frustrated voice cut through the haze. "She got away? You're just letting her get away?"
Samuel sighed. "Focus. One last time."
But Kid Flash had already turned, jabbing a finger at Artemis. "This is your fault! You were on perimeter! How'd that Shadow get in?"
Artemis bristled. "Oh, so it's my fault?"
"That's not really fair," Miss Martian interjected. "I was outside too."
Samuel caught Aqualad's eye and gave a subtle signal. Aqualad understood immediately, stepping forward before the argument could escalate.
"Enough," Aqualad said firmly. "The Shadows could return at any moment. We need to be prepared."
-[Aqualad.]
Suddenly, Robin's voice crackled through the comms, sharp and urgent.
-[We're over Philadelphia. We found the Shadows' next target—S.T.A.R. Labs. But we were too late.]
The room fell into a tense silence as Robin continued. [The place is gone. Completely destroyed. The Fog tore through everything—concrete, steel, security systems. And now? Now, the Shadows have everything. Cutting-edge science, experimental weapons, classified research—if it was in that facility, they've got it.]
Aqualad's expression darkened. "This is bad."
-[No kidding] Robin muttered. [If they hit S.T.A.R., they're not stopping there. We have to move now. What's the plan?]
Aqualad straightened. "Rescan for the Fog. Find it. We're moving the doctor."
Samuel was lost in thought.
S.T.A.R. Labs. The pinnacle of scientific achievement. The dream destination for anyone who ever aspired to change the world through technology. The birthplace of so many marvels—some of them heroic, some monstrous. A place where the impossible became reality.
And now? Gone. Just like that. Data wiped, research stolen, everything reduced to nothing in mere moments.
Samuel barely heard the chatter around him. He wasn't even sure he was processing this properly. Was this even real? The destruction of a research facility of that magnitude should have sent shockwaves across the globe. There should have been emergency meetings, security lockdowns, politicians scrambling to respond.
Instead?
Nothing.
No breaking news. No government response. No widespread panic. Because? This wasn't new. It was just another day in a world where cities got leveled by sewer mutants, and everyone shrugged it off. A world where threats capable of rewriting history were met with the same casual acceptance as a traffic jam.
He exhaled slowly. He was too exhausted to even think about bringing up Jade Crock to Artemis. Not that he had planned to in the first place.
His gaze drifted to Dr. Roquette, still hunched over the cheap computer in this rundown PC café, typing away at her virus program. His job? Stay near her. Keep her safe.
Samuel had refused at first. Reminded Aqualad, yet again, that he was a spectator. That Aqualad was clearly just using him.
Aqualad didn't deny it. Instead, he met Samuel's stare with quiet conviction. "Lives are at stake. If the Shadows retrieve technology of this level, the consequences will be catastrophic. And the Fog isn't just a tool for theft—it's a weapon. Civilians inside those buildings won't just lose data. They'll die."
And what could Samuel say to that?
Nothing.
Because morality was something he took seriously. And if he walked away now—if he just watched while people died—then he wouldn't be neutral. He wouldn't be a spectator. He would be complicit.
The moment he was entangled with this team...he had no choice.
At least Miss Martian was posing as Roquette elsewhere, acting as a decoy. That meant the assassins would be lured away from their location.
…Or so he thought.
Samuel's gaze shifted to the window. He wasn't paying much attention to Aqualad's telepathic updates—he had been filtering out Artemis and Kid Flash's constant bickering—but now, this was something important.
'Aqualad to team… the Shadows are here. As planned, I'll allow myself to be taken down.'
Samuel's eyes narrowed.
Outside, in the dim glow of the streetlights, two figures emerged. One in an absurdly theatrical magenta suit, an insect-like helmet giving him a ridiculous bug aesthetic. The other? A massive, looming brute with a giant metal hook for a hand.
Samuel blinked. Seriously?
Not a single gun? Not a single modern weapon? Did these assassins take some kind of oath to only wield impractical, cartoonishly inefficient tools?
Soon enough, the figures—alongside Jade Crock—moved out, rushing toward Miss Martian's location.
The plan was in motion.
Jade watched the battle unfold from her vantage point. Inside the building, Spider and Hook were engaging two vigilantes—Kid Flash and Artemis. They were holding their own, for now.
Something felt off.
That kid—the one who had single-handedly shut her down before—wasn't here. Maybe there was a reason for his absence, but instinct told her something was wrong.
Her gaze shifted, locking onto Dr. Roquette, working in plain view. Too exposed. Too easy. A sitting target.
Her fingers tightened around her crossbow. She took aim. Then, realization struck.
Martians.
Martians could shapeshift.
Her lips curled into a smirk as she ignited the tip of her arrow. Then, with a sharp twang, she loosed it straight at Roquette.
The 'doctor' flinched, eyes widening at the sight of fire.
Artemis moved instantly, an arrow already nocked and released. It met Jade's midair, deflecting it before it could reach its target.
The deception crumbled. Roquette's form flickered—melting away into the green-skinned features of Miss Martian.
"We've been duped," Jade muttered.
"You'll never find Dr. Roquette," Miss Martian declared.
Jade scoffed. "Never is such a long time."
Without hesitation, she leapt from the building.
Then—snap!
A coil of water lashed around her ankle, yanking her midair and slamming her back toward the ground.
Aqualad stood firm, his water bearers glowing as he held her in place. "It won't be like last time."
Jade smirked. "Oh really? Let's test the limits of your jellyfish immunity then, shall we?" She flicked her wrist, sending three poison-tipped darts flying toward him.
"I don't think so."
Artemis fired an arrow from behind, forcing Jade to twist and deflect it midair with her collapsible katana. Meanwhile, Aqualad raised a water shield, blocking the darts with ease.
Jade laughed.
"Oh, I was hoping it'd be you… Didn't want that kidruining the fun again. I do not like being played." Her voice turned sharp, edged with challenge. "Let's get this over with."
With a flick of her wrist, she hurled a fire bomb toward Aqualad, using the explosion as cover. Artemis fired another arrow, but Jade was already moving. She wasn't fighting to win.
She was searching.
Her eyes scanned the ground, picking out the freshest footprints in the dirt. Among them—two distinct trails. One light, belonging to a woman. Another heavier, from a man. And they led—
'There.'
Her gaze snapped toward a small, dimly lit building. An internet café.
'Good.'
With a flash of smoke, she vanished from sight.
Aqualad's voice rang urgently through the telepathic link. Samuel, she's coming your way!
But Jade was already inside.
Rows of empty computers lined the room, their screens dark. Only one was on, casting a pale glow in the shadows.
And there, sitting at the terminal, was Dr. Roquette.
Jade smirked. Found you.
Then she noticed something.
Someone else was there.
Sitting in the corner. Watching.
The kid.
