Tales From the Cave-Wally and the Magic Lamp

Friends

Wally and Artemis strode down the dirt roads, laughing and talking. The rest of the Team were a few steps behind, smiling, partly out of happiness, but also out of knowing. "I can't believe its really you!", he exclaimed. "I—we—never expected to see you again! Let alone here of all places! How long have you been here?"

"Since a few days after I left.", Artemis told him. Wally's face fell. "Oh." He chewed on his lower lip. "Artemis, about that...I am so, so sorry for what I said. I didn't mean any of it. I was just mad. I've kicked myself everyday for it." He looked up at her with sad puppy-dog eyes. "Can you ever forgive me?"

Artemis gave him the smallest of smiles. "Its alright. Actually, you had every right to be mad at me. Its just...there's something you should know." She took a deep breath. This is it. You're actually going to tell him the truth. "Wally, the truth is—" "Sportsmaster is your dad and Cheshire is your sister?"

She blinked three times, shocked at what her ears had just heard. "What...who told...how did you know?" "Rob was hacking some criminal files, and we came across some secrets." Wally huffed a little bit. "When I found out the truth, I realized...that was why..." Artemis hung her head. "Yeah...I was so desperate to make sure none if you found out. I thought if you discovered who I really was...you'd never accept me."

Wally took her hand. "After we found out, I raced over to your apartment to apologize...but you were gone. And not a day goes by that I don't regret saying those awful, hurtful things to you, Artemis." Artemis looked into his green eyes, full of sorrow and regret. "After our lil' spat, I came home to see Dad in my room. He told he that no matter what I did, no matter how hard I tried, no matter how much I fought, I'd never be one of you."

Robin came up to her. "That's not true, Artemis. You were one of us from the moment you walked into the Cave. You proved yourself over and over to us. You freed us from the Reds when they attacked our homebase. You sacrificed yourself during the Failsafe mission. And you helped us kick butt more times than I can count! The only reason we iced you out was because we were dumb enough to listen to Roy."

Roy stopped in his tracks, looking hurt.  "Hey!  I'm right here!"  He was ignored.  He hung his head.  "Oh.  I forgot.  I might as well not be."  He dragged his feet, a few feet behind the rest of the group, not daring to come any closer.  He listened to the chatter and the laughter, on the outside looking in, as he had been for the past two years.
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Purple mist floated above Count Vertigo's head.  He adjusted the king's mystic blue diamond just so, to reflect the light from the setting sun peeking in from the cracks in the ceiling.  "Spirits of the sky, disciples of Vishnu, let me see the world through your godly eyes!  Show me your chosen one, the diamond in the rough!"

The mist swirled around as yellow sparks struck it loudly.  In the middle of the mist, an image appeared, and it grew and grew until it was big enough for Vertigo and all his peers to see.  What he and said peers saw in the magical reflection made their jaws drop to the floor.

"Kid Flash?!"  The freckled, gingered, redheaded face of Wally West was grinning at the villains.  "You've gotta be kidding me!", Sportsmaster shouted.  "HE'S the diamond in the rough?!  Out of all the people in the entire world, in the entire universe, it had to be HIM?!"  His face was turning redder by the second, and was now beginning to take on a bright purple hue.

Vertigo rubbed his chin as he looked at the vision of the young hero.  The same young hero who had not only stopped him from becoming King of Vladiva, but had also caused him to be banished from his homeland forever.  He should have been boiling over with fury right then and there.  But instead, he seemed calm and collected.  "Soooo...this is the chosen one."  He shrugged.  "So be it."

"Look!"  In the vision, Wally led Artemis, partially hidden in her frumpy, shapeless brown cloak, up a ladder on the side of a building.  Vertigo's eyes went wide.  "He has the princess!", Vandal Savage said.  "How did he get her over the palace walls?"  Vertigo's emotionless line of a mouth turned into a malicious smile.  "Perhaps we may be able to use this to our...advantage."

He spun on his heel and walked towards the exit.  "Hey!  Where do you think you're going?", Ocean Master snapped.  Vertigo stopped in his tracks and looked over his shoulder, wickedness gleaming in his eyes.  "To summon the royal guards, to rescue the princess."