METROPOLIS
December 22, 14:39 EDT
Claire tapped the snooze button on her alarm for the third time and snuggled deeper into her comforter, burying her head into it like it would shield her from the world.
But, what she didn't know is that it wouldn't shield her from Cami.
Before she knew it, the sheets were forcefully ripped from over her and left her vulnerable to the biting chill of the morning air beneath her pajamas.
She groaned and cracked one eye open to glare at her sister, who only crossed her arms and patted her foot on the floor.
She closed her eye and sighed, "Real mature, Cami."
"Thank you 'cause I'm not about to watch you wallow around contemplating about your self-worth for another day. Get up; breakfast will be ready in ten."
She laid unmoving and listened for Cami's receding footsteps before she rolled over onto her back and stared aimlessly at her ceiling.
A single tiny tear rolled down before she forced herself out of bed and got semi-ready for the day. After she was done with everything, she trudged down the stairs and to the dining room. But, she perked up a little when she saw Captain Atom sitting there along with the rest of her family.
"CA? What're you doin' here?"
Her parents winced at her expression, and Cami frowned at the clear bags under her eyes from stress.
She just wished Claire would open up more to her. She knew about the argument she had with Kid Flash, but she could feel there was more than what Claire was letting on.
"What? Can't heroes come check on their favorite Protegés?" Captain Atom asked with a smile, but Claire sent him a tight-lipped one in response.
He sighed, and his face dropped.
"You haven't been at the Cave... The Team's worried about-"
"Tell 'em I'm fine." She interrupted him bluntly. "There's no reason for me to be there right now."
"Look, if Kid Flash is the problem, I talked to Flash and-"
Claire's tired gaze hardened, and she scowled. "I don't want to talk about him right now." She seethed.
Captain Atom turned away from her vicious gaze and glanced at her family. Cyrus and Candice looked away, and Cami glared at her breakfast.
"Fine." The Leaguer sighed and stood up. "There's actually one more reason why I'm here. I meant to tell you last week, but I got called away. The League had a meeting for new recruits, and Batman and Canary vouched for you..."
Claire took a step back and shook her head as Captain Atom continued.
"Claire... you're gonna be a member of the Justice League."
Pin drop silence followed before a breathless laugh pushed past Claire's lips.
"Me? In the Justice League?" She took a slow breath and looked down at her hands.
"Me, in the Justice League." She whispered to herself before looking back up at everyone else, biting her lower lip in thought.
"What about the others? Are they in too?" She asked, but Captain Atom let out a quiet 'no.'
After a short moment, she exhaled and shook her head slightly.
"Then, I-I can't. I can't leave the Team. They need me."
Captain Atom's eyes widened, her parents gasped.
"Claire, are you sure? This has been your dream forever! Think about what you're doing." Cami stood up with her hands on the dining room table.
Claire chewed her lip again before nodding in determination. "I'm sure. I'm not leaving the others behind." She looked over at Captain Atom.
His words reverberated in her mind. The Team was worried about her.
The Team needed her.
"Please don't tell the others, okay. I don't want them to know. Not yet anyway."
He nodded, and Claire sighed before she disappeared and reappeared in her suit.
She put one hand on her hip and gave them a genuine small smile, something they hadn't seen a little while longer than they would have liked.
"Guess this is a sign that the duty of an unstoppable superhero is never done."
-
MOUNT JUSTICE
December 22, 15:02 EDT
"Recognized, Stellar. B-0-5."
"Hey, kiddos. Miss me?" The blonde superheroine's cape flapped slightly behind her as she walked up to Conner, M'gann, Robin, and Artemis. Her hands were on her hips, and she let out a quiet laugh once M'gann and Artemis practically tackled her.
"Where have you been?" They asked in unison but with different tones. M'gann had a smile on her face while Artemis had a slight glare. Robin kind of awkwardly stared at the exchange, awaiting an answer; Conner did the same but feigned indifference.
"Home, I was feeling a little sick." She lied but smiled to cover it up. M'gann cooed and placed the back of her hand on her forehead, and sucked her teeth. "Well, you are feeling a little warm. Have you been drinking water?"
Artemis crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes a little, "Can you even get sick?"
"Umm... Oh hey, what's that?" Claire swiftly changed the subject and pointed to the hologram map behind Robin and Conner.
M'gann and Artemis looked over at it while Robin moved to the side to allow everyone to see it better.
"This is our next mission." Three red dots appeared on the map. "Advanced weapons tech has been stolen at manufacturing plants throughout Europe, and each theft coincides with tour stops made by the Haly Circus. Batman's sending us undercover to catch the thieves."
Claire crossed her arms, and a sly grin etched itself onto her face. "Looks like I came back just in time."
"Me too." Red Arrow walked up to the group and stood beside Robin. "This clown car have room for one more?"
Robin tensed up, and he side-eyed the red archer. "Uh, we've- we've got this covered." He answered, but Arrow scowled and leaned closer, whispering under his breath so that only the Boy Wonder would hear. Though the action was impractical, seeing as how two of the heroes present had super-hearing and another could read minds.
"You've got the mission covered, but who's covering the potential mole suspects you're bringing along?"
Claire's eyes narrowed, and they moved between Robin and Red Arrow. What were they not telling her?
-
BRUGES
December 22, 20:08 CET
The full moonlight shined down on the giant blue tent, housing the screams and excitement of men, women, and children alike, natives of Bruges and tourists, anxiously awaiting for the show to start. And just moments later, it did.
"Damen und Herren! Madame et monsieurs! Ladies and gentlemen..." A mysterious voice spoke loudly but unseen, quieting the crowd's voices before an eruption of light and smoke erupted from the center of the round stage. Gasps were heard from all around the tent, swiftly transitioning into screams and cheers once more when the circus leader appeared before them through the smoke.
"Welcome to the Haly International Traveling Circus! Where the world of the center ring is your oyster. And these are our latest pearls..." Haly pointed his black and gold cane up into the air, and the crowd's eyes looked up in wonder as the spotlight lit up the upper area of the tent.
"The Daring Dangers!"
There was another collective gasp from the crowd before cheering ensued once more when Robin, dressed in a form-fitting white tank top and circus tights, both with intricate red accents and patterns before being completed with a red and white mask showing off his eyes; waved and grabbed hold of the trapeze bar in front of him.
"Dan Danger!" Haly introduced him before doing the same to M'gann, who wore the same outfit after she and Robin flipped and switched bars. "Dawn Danger!'
"Diane and Dane Danger!" Artemis and Roy stood on the ground level and readied their bows with three arrows. Artemis' hair was down, and she wore something similar to M'gann. Arrow's shirt was parted in the middle but otherwise the same as the others.
"Dean Danger!" Conner's outfit was the same as Roy's save for a different pattern on his shirt as he juggled huge green barrels with his super-strength.
"And last, but certainly not least! Dana Danger!" Claire stood on a tight rope just above Robin and M'gann and waved at the crowd. Her hair was pulled back out of her face in a half-up half-down style as she hopped back and grabbed the rope, flipping on it right as the two archers released their arrows into the sky.
Conner threw two green barrels up, and Robin and M'gann flew through them, narrowly dodging the sparkler arrows as Claire flipped up and posed in the air right above them.
The crowd somehow seemed to cheer louder than before as she landed back on the rope with another wave. Haly chuckled.
"You'll never see another trapeze act like this, folks. And all performed without a net."
As soon as the words left Haly's mouth, M'gann and Robin headed toward one another to switch bars once again. The Martian's legs were bent over the back of the bar with her arms outstretched toward Robin, who fell toward her hands, but their timing was off, and Robin's fingers just barely brushed hers before the Boy Wonder was seen falling from the air.
"Robin!" M'gann's voice rang through their thoughts, alerting the others to the problem. The crowd gasped below them; eyes transfixed on the falling boy.
"Don't blow our cover!" Robin was quick to order as he caught eyes with Claire, who he saw slightly lean over her rope, preparing to fly down after him.
"But saving your life's okay?" Conner satirically replied as he threw one of the barrels up toward Robin, who let out a grunt once he landed on it and shot back up to M'gann, who just so happened to be coming back around. He held his arm up for the Martian but was somehow still not close enough to her hands. Her eyes narrowed a bit before Robin could see them glow the faintest shade of green as he was lifted up into her hands.
"What did I just say?" Robin reprimanded as they swung through the air.
"The crowd couldn't see me use telekinesis from below. Besides, I've been using it all night." She confessed as the two reached the platform and began waving at the crowd. "I'm not exactly the acrobat you are."
"Yeah, neither am I right now." Robin quietly admitted as he rubbed his arms against his face, wiping off some of the sweat that had gathered there. "I think I caught that twenty-four-hour bug that's been going around the circus. But..." He sighed and put on a smile for the crowd below.
"The show must go on."
"Put your hands together for the Daring Dangers!" Haly shouted. The cheering got louder as the 'family' finally came together and waved at the crowd. The 'familial' act finally coming to a close.
"Didn't think you'd make it through," M'gann said, and Claire agreed. "You're tellin' me. You were kinda lookin' a little dead up there." She commented, looking down at Robin's palish blue eyes.
"Heh. Let's just say I'm definitely not feeling the aster right now." He turned around and winced a bit, placing a hand on his head. "Help me backstage."
At his request, Robin put one arm around Stellar's shoulders and the other around Miss Martians as they headed through the backstage curtains.
"Ray, you seen my other torch?" A man in a demon outfit asked the roustabout just as the group walked past.
"Here, you dropped it outside the train." The blond man, Ray, handed over the torch with a friendly smile.
The man in the demon costume's face lit up once he grabbed it. "Thanks, man! You're a lifesaver, really." Ray chuckled and patted him on the back.
"It's no problem. Break a leg."
Just as the demon man walked away, Haly walked in from the front and sighed as two brothers in gold and blue costumes stood in front of him.
"Haly, what's the deal giving our top spot to those Danger kids? That's our slot!" The bigger of the two shouted.
Claire and the others paused and turned around to watch the exchange.
"Was your slot. Until you missed that performance in Paris." Haly countered calmly, but the man clenched his teeth. "Carlo was sick! He's better now!" He pointed to the slightly smaller guy standing next to him.
Carlo nodded his head and pointed his thumb back at the group, "Plus, those Dangers are a sham. They say they're brother and sisters, but they don't even look alike."
"Nah," Haly rolled his eyes and pushed past them. "You just don't like the competition." He called over his shoulder before he walked right into a white-haired man with crossed arms in a blue suit and tie.
"Oh for cryin' out loud. Not you again. We're in the middle of a show."
The man looked unimpressed with his stern gaze boring into Haly's seemingly annoyed one. "Then we'll talk after, but we will talk." The man declared. "Another city last week, another tech firm robbed, another stop on your tour. If I prove you're responsible, I will shut you down." He pointed his finger at Haly's chest.
Haly's eyes narrowed to match the white-haired man's.
"I've got three minutes to gather props and get back to the center ring." He explained and walked away from him. The white-haired man's eyes followed him for a moment before he looked ahead at the group of teens staring back at him.
"Hey, you." He walked up to them and pulled out a badge, "Agent Faraday. Interpol. New act?"
"Just joined the tour," Robin answered. Claire looked Faraday up and down; he looked... odd, to say the least, seemingly in his mid to late twenties with hair as white as snow.
Faraday gave the others in the group a once over before nodding to himself as he put his badge away.
"Probably clears you. But don't get too comfortable. Haly's going down for this."
After he walked away, Claire looked down at Robin in time to notice his eyes narrow into slits at the agent's back.
-
Stellar hovered beside Robin in the stealth version of her suit. They overlooked a warehouse building with a green pyramid at the top. Her hair slightly blew to the right from the crisp winter winds as Superboy's voice filtered into the mind link.
"If Interpol's already on this, why are we bothering?"
"Because Batman said so. Why, you got something better to do?" The Boy Wonder snarked and glared in the clone's direction. He and Miss Martian stared back from the roof of a nearby building.
"How do we even know the thieves will hit here?" Artemis' skepticism was evident as she lowered her binoculars.
"There are more obvious targets." Red Arrow agreed.
"And Faraday will have them covered. But, I've already analyzed the stolen tech, and the pattern suggests that this is the place." Robin sighed and lowered his binoculars to rub some sweat off his forehead.
"You're still lookin' in pretty bad shape. How're you feelin'?" Stellar asked and descended, so she was standing on the roof beside him.
"Lousy, actually." He slightly shook his head and sent her a slight side grin. "But I'll manage."
After some silence, Superboy's eyes narrowed to the side of the factory warehouse.
"Contact. Northeast quadrant."
Stellar's eyes moved over to where Superboy and the others were looking and watched a man in a dark hat and trenchcoat run up to the barbed wire fence and jump on the light pole, then flip over the top.
"Woah, guy's got moves." Stellar commented. Meanwhile, Superboy rolled his eyes, "Well, it looks like we know why Carlo missed a performance."
"Could be Carlo, could be his brother..." Robin paused for a short moment. "Keep an open mind and move in."
The Boy Wonder stepped over the railing and grappled to a nearby building. Stellar flew off the building's rooftop and landed on the side of one of the buildings beside Robin, the archers, and Miss Martian.
Next, Superboy crashed to the ground in a crouch and stood up.
"Did any of you see where he went?" Robin asked; Stellar turned around and activated her energy vision. The others watched as her head turned to look through the whole area before shaking her head and deactivating the power.
"I can't see. The-there's too much stuff..."
"I see him. Follow me." Superboy growled as he stomped into the warehouse. Stellar's eyes narrowed as she and the others followed. Her energy vision functioned extremely close to the clone's infrared vision. So how could he have seen what she couldn't?
Once the six teens snuck into the warehouse, they stood atop a platform, overlooking the thief below them, breaking into a crate with his face hidden by a ski mask.
Robin made their presence known when he laughed, prompting the man to turn around with wide eyes.
Artemis and Red Arrow had their bows aimed at him while Superboy crossed his arms.
Miss Martian and Stellar hovered a bit off the platform, and the blonde smirked before waving.
"Caught red-handed," Robin announced victoriously with his hands on his hips. "Red-faced too, I'll bet."
"Acrobatics won't get you out of this," Artemis notified as the man pulled out a torch and lit it with a lighter before holding it in their direction and blowing it, sending a stream of fire out at the group.
"Look out!" Robin ordered and dove out of the way with Miss Martian and the archers. Superboy dodged to the side, and Stellar stood in front of the others and turned around to shield them from the flames.
Red Arrow pointed his bow around Stellar's body and aimed before his eyes moved up to a cluster of crates at the other side of the warehouse, the flames licking at the crates with the words 'Live Ammo' on them in big yellow words.
"Those crates are full of live ammo. Move!" The red archer announced and jumped out of the way with the others in tow just before an explosion shook the building from the inside.
Stellar, who was already beside them, attempted to shield the group once more from the explosion, using her body as a cover and taking the brunt of the impact of the debris crashing down around them.
After a moment, the debris began to stop falling, and Stellar slowly stood, pushing the debris that gathered above them away and allowing the others to stand as well.
She turned around and watched Superboy's fist burst from underneath a pile of rocks before he stood up as well. His eyes frantically looked around the burning building.
"That guy's dead meat!" He growled and began to run through the fire.
"Superboy, no!" Robin shouted, stopping the clone in his tracks as he held the Martian up. "You need to get her out!"
"But he's getting away!" Superboy replied, pointing in the direction they had last seen the man. Stellar's eyes narrowed, "Superboy, the fire's killing her! What is wrong with you?"
The clone blinked a few times before his eyes moved to the unmoving Martian. "Right. Right." He muttered softly and grabbed M'gann out of Robin's hold before rushing her out of the building.
The Boy Wonder stood up, unburdened by Miss Martian's weight, and pointed in the direction Superboy pointed to only moments prior.
"Stellar, Artemis, Arrow, find the thief." He ordered and took only three steps forward before falling to his knees.
Stellar and the others scrambled to him, and Stellar kneeled to pick him up.
"Because that matters more than you?" Artemis asked.
"You're still off your game, pal. We're getting you out too." Arrow informed, and Stellar looked up to a hole in the roof.
"Grab on." She told them, and once they each had an arm around her shoulders, she knelt and burst into the air flying out of the building and back toward the circus.
-
The morning snowfall lightly pattered against the circus tent as the team, dressed in their circus disguise, hid behind one of the purple curtains to listen in on Haly and Faraday's conversation.
"Another weapons plant hit. And once again, the circus is in town. I don't believe in coincidences." Faraday explained, pointing his finger at Haly's chest.
"And I don't really care what you believe. My people are not responsible." He forced out. "I did a bed check last night, and every single member of my troupe was asleep in their bunks."
Claire crossed her arms, and a sour look appeared on her face.
"Well, we sure weren't."
"And if he was lying about us..." Roy let the thought linger as Robin sharply turned around and headed to the group's shared room.
The others followed, and once everyone was in the room, Claire closed the door.
"So, two thieves, right? The fire-breather and one of the acrobats?" M'gann asked.
"Dressed in identical clothes," Artemis added.
"Maybe not just two," Robin said as he pulled up his holo-computer. "Here's the Madrid security footage." He informed. A video of a man dressed up identically as the perpetrators last night is seen pulling iron bars apart with his bare hands.
"Then Paris." He continued, and another person in identical clothing walked along a thin powerline.
"So the strongman and the clown too?" Roy stood with his arms crossed and hardened eyes on the video. "If the entire circus is involved, Haly himself might be the mastermind."
"You don't know that." Robin quickly disagreed as he powered off his computer.
M'gann placed a hand under her chin in thought. "But, it would explain his lies."
"I told you to keep an open mind!" Robin shouted at all of them with angry blue eyes. He breathed heavily before storming out of the room.
The amber-haired girl's eyes followed him as he disappeared from sight. Then, suddenly she slapped a hand on her head.
"Hello, M'gann. I'll read Haly's mind." She announced to the team. Claire smiled to herself, glad that the Martian was using her real name now instead of Marie Logan's fictional counterpart. To her, it seemed like a step in the right direction.
"I'm not sure we can trust you to do that without tipping him off." Arrow notified, and Conner fixed a glare on him.
"Or maybe you don't trust her, period." He scrutinized as he walked up in his face. "I heard you talking to Robin back at the Cave. I know you're only here to spy on us."
Roy leaned closer with clenched teeth, "Not all of you. There's a mole on this team, and I have good reasons to suspect you, Miss Martian, and Artemis. Those two have already been caught in lies. And you could be programmed by Cadmus without even knowing."
"Or maybe I take your head off without even trying." Conner countered, and Claire tensed, prepared to intervene if she had to.
Fortunately, though, M'gann calmed the clone down before things escalated further, and the two exited the train car.
Artemis glared at the male archer as she stood up, "None of us are perfect... But each of us would give our lives for this team. So try to keep an open mind." She snapped as she too walked away.
Once Artemis left, Claire, glanced at Roy, who was already awaiting her opinion.
"Come on, Red. I know you don't know them like the rest of us. But I've trained and fought beside these people for months. If they wanted to betray any of us, they could have done it ample times over. They've each fought hard to earn our trust, and they deserve all of our respect, including yours." She finished with a pointed look as she, like all of the others, left the teen to his thoughts.
-
The light snowfall had since transitioned to something much larger in scale as the only things heard around the circus was a light twinkling as the snow compounded onto one another.
Robin walked through the soft snow, lightly kicking the frozen magical substance along the ground as the small flurries gathered in his onyx hair.
His hands sought warmth in the pockets of his bulky black coat as he stared aimlessly at the circus posters that adorned the various train cars through his red and white mask.
As he walked past a yellow and black poster called 'Titano,' his attention was caught by another poster. Its yellow and red striped outline was all too familiar to him. He took a small breath once he saw the blue silhouetted figures of acrobats swinging right beneath the name of the poster.
"The Flying Graysons." He whispered to himself as a memory resurfaced within his mind.
Unexpectedly, his comlink beeped, and he was forcibly ripped away from the recollection. Quickly he tapped the device in his ear, "Uh, yeah?"
"Dude, where are you?" Wally's voice filtered in through the gadget.
"Confidential mission from Batman," Robin answered somewhat hesitantly, taking one last look at the poster before continuing his walk.
"Wow. You know what I'm doing?" The ginger asked with a slight edge to his voice. "Making a bologna sandwich. Kinda like you just did. I talked to Tornado. You guys are not on a mission. Not on an official one anyway."
The Boy Wonder let out a sigh once he realized he was caught.
"A friend, Jack Haly..."
"The circus guy? From your Flying Grayson days?" Wally's voice asked.
"Yeah." Robin confirmed, "He's implicated in this global crime spree. Someone in the show's dirty, but I need to prove old Jack's clean, or he might lose the circus."
"Then why not bring me along?" Wally's tone had an apparent tilt of hurt. "I know your back story. I know what that circus means to you. It's where you grew up... It's where you lost your-"
Robin stopped and laid his head back into another poster, this one depicting a woman with vibrant red, green, purple, and blue hair jumping through a ring; her smile seemed to sparkle even through the poster paper.
"I left you behind because you know my back story. I didn't want my best pal questioning my objectivity."
"Dude, that's what a best pal's for." He replied earnestly.
Robin looked up at the cloudy sky, allowing the snow flurries to land on his face as he felt his eyes close on their own accord. Silence ensued after Wally ended the communications channel.
"I trust you, Dick." Claire's voice broke Robin out of his serenity. His eyes snapped open, and he gasped once he found the blonde standing beside him with her head resting against the train car as well; her hands were deep in the pockets of her own coat, protecting them from the cold. The way she just casually said his real name aloud was fresh in his mind.
"You... My... How?" He stuttered.
She just looked at him through her eyelashes with one eyebrow raised.
"Please, I found out who you were two months after we met. Besides, you, Wally, and Kaldur should be a lot more discreet about what you say on a team with people who have super-hearing." She answered.
"Oh, right." He muttered and looked down at the snow collecting on his shoes. She sighed and lowered her head so that it was lying atop his. Her honey blonde and his onyx black hair mixed beneath the snow.
"But the point is, I trust you. You're one of my best friends, and if you think Haly's innocent, then I do too." She declared, and she watched a puff of misty air plume from his mouth as his signature laugh resurfaced.
"You're only saying that 'cause I'm one of your only friends."
She rolled her eyes and sighed, "Way to ruin a bonding moment. Dick."
"I'm not even gonna ask how you phrased that." He snickered.
"Good idea."
A comfortable silence passed over the two before the Boy Wonder whispered. "You should talk to Wally. I know how much the two of you care about one another... And honestly, he hasn't been the same since you left."
Heat rushed through Claire's face, painting her cheeks an angry red, though it was difficult to tell if it were from anger or a different emotion.
"There's nothing to talk about," She replied, watching fascinatingly at the snowflakes falling and landing softly, joining the others on the ground.
"You're mad at him right now, but you know Wally. He's passionate about what he believes in. But that doesn't mean he isn't sorry. Just please talk to him, maybe not even for him, but for yourself."
A low exhale passed through Claire's lips as the two stared into the snowy, starry sky.
Her lack of a response plunged the two back into the well of silence save for the winter winds howling in the distance.
-
"And that's forty-three to your thirty-nine. I win." Claire gloated after putting the last crate onto the train, leaning on it with a smirk as Conner glared at her.
"You don't have to make everything a competition." He grumbled under his breath as she shrugged and walked over to M'gann.
"Hey, Danger girl number three. Ya almost ready?" She asked, and the Martian nodded, reaching down to pick up her last suitcase. "Yep, almost-"
"Hey, need any help?" Ray the Roustabout asked, appearing out of literal nowhere and picking up the suitcase for her; their fingers just barely brushed against one another.
"U-uh no, I'm fine, thanks." M'gann stuttered and pulled back, lifting the suitcase onto the train before turning back to the man. "But, if you really want to help, those guys look like they can really use some. I think they've caught that flu." She gestured to the strongman and fire-breather sitting in chairs and groaning in pain.
Ray shrugged and smiled politely. "It's going around."
Then, he looked at Claire with that very same smile. "You're Dana Danger, right? Great job on your act." He congratulated her and patted her shoulder several times before excusing himself and boarding the train.
Conner stepped up to the duo as Haly's head popped out of the side of the train car.
"All aboard! Hurry up, everyone; we're leaving now!"
-
"Robin, I just want you to know that I hate you."
Coal plumed from the top of the train as the vehicle rounded a mountain on its course to Geneva.
"You look better, Rob," Artemis observed as the team stood in the room the girls shared.
"I feel better," Robin admitted before looking at M'gann and Claire, the blonde lying at the top of the bed propped up by over half of the pillows in the room and the Martian lying at the bottom with a considerably smaller amount.
"I'm sorry, Cla- Dana, and Dawn. I hope you didn't get it from me." The Boy Wonder said.
"We did." Claire shorthandedly replied and turned her lip up at him, placing one finger on her right nostril and breathing in to clear some of the mucus out.
M'gann sighed tiredly, softly squeezing Conner's hand, "I feel so silly. Who knew a Martian could be vulnerable to a human virus?"
"Uh, H.G. Wells. Look, when did you both first feel sick?" Robin questioned.
"Just after boarding the train," M'gann answered weakly. "It came on so suddenly."
The Boy Wonder placed his index and thumb under his chin. "Same with me the other night. I remember Ray rubbing my head for good luck just before our show."
"Ray the roustabout?" Conner asked as his eyes narrowed into a glare. "He touched both of them just before we boarded. Guy must be a walking Petri dish."
"Yeah... Yeah, maybe." Robin affirmed and still, with his hand under his chin, turned to exit the room.
After stepping out, he ran straight into Haly, wheeling around a large steel cart.
"Dan!" The circus owner greeted fondly. "You look... refreshed."
"Thanks," Robin replied and took a step closer. "Uh, Jack, how long has Ray worked for you?"
Haly looked down, thinking on the question for a moment before answering.
"I picked him up at the start of the European tour." He informed as Artemis, Conner, and Roy walked out of the room to stand behind Robin. "Poor lad's down with the same flu as the rest of them."
"We'll check on him." Artemis offered with a fake smile. "It's the least we can do."
"If you insist." Haly smiled as Artemis led Conner and Roy down the hallway. Claire and M'gann walked to the doorway before Robin stopped them.
"You two should stay in bed."
Claire shrugged and turned around, "Don't gotta tell me twice." She took a step back into the room before M'gann's hand wrapped around her arm and pulled her back to the Martian's side.
"As a good friend once said. We'll manage." M'gann smiled weakly at Robin and tugged a groaning Claire down the hall. The Boy Wonder gave Haly a thankful wave and followed the two girls down the aisle.
With all six of the teen's backs turned, Haly's face morphed into Ray's before he started whistling and wheeling the cart down the aisles.
Meanwhile, Artemis burst through the door to Ray's room, with Conner and the others following closely behind.
"Guess he wasn't that sick." The clone ascertained with a scowl at Ray's empty bed.
Roy gestured to the giant crates around the room. "Does this circus have an elephant I don't know about?"
"Not on foreign tours," Robin answered while Roy opened up the crate and squinted.
"Empty." He observed before taking a closer look as a tiny glint sparkled at the edge of his vision. He stuck a finger into the crate then pulled it out, pinching his index and thumb together. "Ash?"
"From the warehouse fire in Bruges." Realization sparked onto Robin's features just as Artemis called for their attention, pulling out a severely realistic mask from beneath the roustabout's mattress.
"Uh, guys, I found Ray."
"Split up! Search the whole train!" Robin quickly ordered.
-
Robin walked cautiously through train cars before a muffled 'help me!' was heard through one of the rooms near him.
He kicked open the office door to find the real Haly in a t-shirt and underwear sitting on the ground with his hands tied behind his back and a gag over his mouth.
Robin rushed forward and ungagged him. "Who did this to you?" He asked as Haly frantically shook his head to get the gag as far away from his mouth as possible.
"Ray! Ray the roustabout! Right after the train left, Bruges!"
The young teen's eyes narrowed sharply, and he immediately ran out of the room, leaving Haly still lying on the floor.
"Hey! I'm not Houdini here!" The ring leader shouted after him but was ignored.
"M'gann, Claire?" Robin tried calling through the link but was met with silence.
He tapped his communicator. "Dawn, Dana?"
"Uh, Dan?" M'gann asked, confusion and fatigue evident in her voice from his use of the group's communicators combined with her and Claire's shared sickness.
"I tried reaching you both t-the other way." He whispered the last part, running from one end of a train car to the next as the Martian sighed through the earpiece.
"I think the flu's knocked out my other way."
Robin clicked his tongue, "What about you, Dana? How's your fight or flight?"
It took Claire a moment to get what he was asking, but once she did, she scoffed and tapped her communicator, joining the conversation.
"Fight or flight? More like crash and burn." Her voice was raspy from her sickness but otherwise understandable, causing Robin to nod his head.
"That clinches it." He tapped his communicator again and called for the others. "Dane, Dean, Diane, come in. We're chasing someone who's stolen Dana and Dawn's acts. Their whole shticks, if you catch my drift."
Conner walks through a dining car, his fingers on his earpiece, listening to Robin's warning before quickly taking cover as someone steps foot inside the room with him.
A few moments later, he popped out of his hiding place with a glare at a clown wheeling the same steel container the Haly imposter was wheeling earlier. The clown placed the container down to raise his hands and telekinetically lifted the chairs and tables around them before throwing them at the clone.
Conner punched through all of them with grunts and watched as the clown used Claire's powers to lift the container and run out of the train car.
"I got him. But he's on to me. Exiting the dining car now." Conner followed the man outside and looked up, faintly seeing his outline slink up to the top of the train. "He's going topside." He declared before jumping up after him.
Claire, M'gann, Robin, Artemis, and Roy all met with Conner and the clown on top of the train. M'gann's knees shook as she stood, and Claire looked a bit paler than before.
"There's nowhere to run now, clown," Conner growled, clenching his fists as the villain smirked. Robin pointed his finger at him.
"That's no clown. He's the Parasite. The guy who once stole Superman's powers."
"As if you kids are who you claim to be." The clown gave them a sinister grin. "Please!" He raised his head and used M'gann's shapeshifting powers to change his form into what Claire thought resembled a purple muscle man with a prune for a face.
"Stay out of his reach!" Robin warned Conner, who took a step closer to him. "There's no flu going around. The weakness comes when he makes physical contact and feeds on the powers and abilities of others!"
A deep chuckle resonated from the purple prune.
"I have been a bit of a glutton today. Chowed down on the skills of nearly every loser in this troupe, but oh my, my, my... the pièces de résistance were Dawn and Dana Danger. Or whatever their real names are."
"Thought I'd munch on Dawn's trapeze skills, imagine my surprise when she tasted like Martian Manhunter instead. But Dana Danger..." Claire shifted uncomfortably under his gaze.
"She was truly exquisite, so much so that I wouldn't mind seconds." His eyes flashed a deep green, and the blonde froze up before being drawn to Parasite by M'gann's stolen telekinesis. But, before Parasite had her in his grasp, Conner stepped in front of her.
The villain practically groaned in pleasure once his hand enclosed around the clone's face. "Mmm. Now that's the full-bodied Kryptonian flavor I love."
"Everyone stay whelmed! Subdue but keep your distance!" Robin called.
Artemis and Roy raised their bows just before Parasite's eyes flashed red, and he raised his left hand; two beams of intense heat shot out of his eyes, and one blast of golden light flared from his hand, burning the bows into piles of ash on the roof.
"You know I almost never say this. But I'm sated." Parasite began, dropping Conner and sending him tumbling back to the team. "Hate to eat and run, but you know how it is." He knelt before bursting off the train and into the sky with the steel container floating up after him. However, Robin hopped onto the container before Parasite flew too far away and used it to propel himself toward the villain.
Parasite turned around and backhanded the Boy Wonder back down to the train. "Sorry, no hitchhikers."
Robin crashed down onto the vehicle and rolled a few times before sliding off the edge. Claire dove for his hand and just barely grabbed it, clenching her teeth and using all of her strength to hold on.
Robin grunted as the wind crashed into his body. "Don't let go!"
"Like I'd be going through all this effort if I wanted you to plummet to your death!" She shouted back in reply, tightly squeezing her eyes shut and groaning loudly as she slowly pulled him back onto the train, spending the last of the energy reserves she had gained since Parasite absorbed her powers.
Claire rolled onto her back to catch her breath as M'gann ran up to Conner.
"Conner, are you okay?" M'gann asked. Conner sat up and shook his head while Artemis and Roy helped up Robin and Claire.
"Fine. I'm fine." He growled as the others walked up to him.
"You're drained. Parasite took more power than you even have; heat vision?" Robin asked, and the Kryptonian shrugged weakly.
"I have the genetic potential for it. Must've been enough for him?"
"Gah!" Robin let out an angered growl as he led the group back into the train car. M'gann followed at the tail end of the line behind Claire after Conner insisted that he go on without her and that he was fine.
-
Claire placed her stealth black domino mask over her face, obscuring her eyes in a mysterious white as she completed her costume.
The rest of the team stood around in the room, all wearing their super-suits as well.
"At least this mission isn't a complete debacle." Robin began, pulling a silver flash drive out of one of his suit pockets and holding it up for the others to see before plugging it into a USB drive in his glove. "I picked Parasite's pocket, got this flash drive; what do you say we see what's on it?" He smirked at the others as his holo computer switched on.
Robin's hacking algorithm activated; the four red Robin faces, each turning to smirking green ones, as the algorithm finished and unlocked the secrets of the flash drive for everyone to see.
"Looks like Parasite's working for Intergang. Everything he's stolen, they're all pieces of something. They're putting together a weapon that generates..." His eyes went wide. "Black holes?"
Red Arrow scoffed.
"Oh, come on, to build that, you'd need a particle accelerator."
"Like the large Bozon Collider in Geneva?" Stellar supplied, a heated blush rising up her cheeks at the shocked looks she gained. "What? It's like you guys forget I'm actually not an idiot."
Robin's fingers tapped on his holographic keyboard before speaking up.
"She's right. And Geneva's the circus' next stop. But now that Parasite can fly, he's got a big head start on us."
"Sorry." Miss Martian whispered, her head lowering slightly.
Robin swiped the hologram away as he stood up, "Not your fault. But this thing could wipe out entire cities. We need to hurry."
"You and I need to hurry." Red Arrow scoffed once more, reaching up and snagging a second bow from above a cupboard in the room. "Without powers, the others would just slow us down."
"Hey, you're not the only one who brought a backup bow." Artemis countered, holding up a dark green crossbow she had grabbed from under her mattress.
Unexpectedly, a loud thud drew their attention to Superboy, whose fist sat in the center of a large dent in the wall.
"And my powers are back." He announced gruffly, standing tall.
"How?" Robin asked as Red Arrow's eyes narrowed.
"We're still-" Miss Martian began, gesturing between her and Stellar before she's cut off.
"I guess Kryptonian's recover faster than Martians or... whatever, Claire is." He suggested, rubbing his right arm in circular motions.
Stellar rolled her eyes, "Wow, so funny I forgot to laugh." She grabbed one of Artemis' shock arrows out of her quiver and placed the tip on the palm of her hand before pressing down. A short blue electrical current pulsed out of it and traveled around her hand before turning a dull gold and disappearing.
"Oh, and for the record, my powers came back a while ago." She slightly closed her hand, and the arrow snapped in two.
Miss Martian looked between all of them before placing her hands on her hips.
"Well, don't even think about leaving me behind."
-
GENEVA
December 23, 00:37 CET
A clear sky sat over the city of Geneva, allowing the moon to illuminate the dome-shaped building housing the Bozon Collider.
Robin kneeled by a groaning cop lying unconscious as the others stood behind him. Stellar looked ahead at the trail of unconscious bodies leading into the building and rolled her eyes as she walked around Robin, stepping over the bodies, then walking into the building.
The sound of furious typing echoes through the spacious room as Parasite stands over the control center. "This would be a lot easier with my flash drive." He commented with a sigh as he placed some kind of foreign object into the computer, causing it to light up a bright blue color.
"There. Now let's fire this baby up and see what's left of Geneva when we're done." He finished malevolently, typing on the keyboard once more and activating the large collider.
Outside the building, a large cyclone formed above the dome; while inside, Robin used a small camera to peek at Parasite from around the corner while Stellar just stared intently through the wall at the villain.
"We need to take him down. Or at least lure him away so we can safely disengage-" Robin was interrupted by Superboy shouting loudly and beginning to run around the corner. "No! Superboy wai-"
The Kryptonian punched through the wall of pipes that obscured them from Parasite's vision and ran right at him.
"Thirds?" Parasite turned to him and smirked. "No, I couldn't." His eyes flash green, and Superboy's levitated a short distance off the ground before he was pulled to Parasite. At the last second, though, the clone was able to land a solid punch across the villain's face.
The purple humanoid staggered back before glaring and uppercutting Superboy with his own strength, plus what power he still had from Stellar, sending him stumbling to the ground and allowing Parasite to once again pull the clone towards him with Miss Martian's telekinesis.
Behind the wall, Red Arrow's mouth laid agape.
"What is wrong with-" He started to seethe but was stopped by the Martian standing beside him.
"Wait." She urged him with a hand on his shoulder. Everyone looking at Superboy hit the roof before he's drawn to Parasite and grabbed.
"Oh, what a rush." He groaned, shutting his eyes and holding his head up. "How do you do it, kid? Even Superman never recharged this fast."
Superboy let out a weak groan in defiance before ultimately falling limp as Parasite drained the last of what he wanted and tossed him to the side. The power levels on the collider increased, and outside the building, lightning struck the ground.
"All right, Dangers, come on out. Only a couple more minutes before this baby's done warming up and eats, Geneva."
"What do you think?" Miss Martian whispered after announcing her plan.
"Big risk to take on a theory," Arrow advised. Robin looked between them before shutting his eyes. "Do it. Go."
The others nodded and moved into position. Stellar moved, preparing to get Parasite's attention. But Robin placed a hand in front of her.
"Stay here; we don't need him absorbing more of your power than he already has."
Her eyes narrowed before she nodded sharply, watching him run off to join the others.
Miss Martian ran in front of the villain, standing with her hands on her hips. "So, what do you have against Geneva anyway?"
"Never liked the food." He admitted before smirking as his eyes flashed green. "But, the menu keeps improving."
Parasite used his telekinesis to attract her toward him.
"If you're so hungry..." She began. Parasite reeled his fist back only for Miss Martian to dive last second, landing on the ground behind him. "Here's the main course!" She grunted as she swiped his legs out from under him.
He fell to his knees, and Red Arrow quickly shot a foam arrow at his chest.
"Foam?" Parasite bellowed. "You think foam can hold me?" He looked up at the ginger perched on the balcony above. Suddenly, Arrow's bow flew out of his hands before he levitated off the ledge he had been crouched upon. "Or stop me from crushing you with a thought? Combined Martian and Kryptonian powers here."
"But do any of those powers stop me before I sabotage your death thingy?" Robin asked, drawing Parasite's attention to him typing messing with the collider's controls.
"This one does." The prune answered, his eyes glowing red as twin beams of heat flew out of them and struck the control console, causing Robin to dive out of the way.
Artemis backflipped above Parasite and shot an arrow down in front of him. His head shot up, and his eyes glowed once more, but this time, when he used his heat vision, an explosion erupted, igniting the area around them in flames—the arrow letting loose flammable gas into the room. Red Arrow dropped to the ground, free from Parasite's hold.
The villain chuckled, "So clever, tricking me into igniting flammable gas. But you forgot, triple dose of invulnerability here. Fire... can't... Touch me."
"Unless you make a meal of my powers." Miss M announced proudly, standing in front of him with a victorious smirk. "And, get my weaknesses as a side dish."
"No." He howled. "I won't get beat by a bunch of stupid kids!" With a deep breath, Parasite blew the fire away with a cool blast of frost. Next, his eyes flashed a bright green, and the others placed their hands on their heads before falling to the ground, unconscious.
With a grunt, he broke through the foam and scowled, staring directly at the corner Stellar hid behind.
"Come on out, Dana! I know you're there!"
Her eyes narrowed as she walked around the corner and out into the open. She watched as the villain grinned predatorily at her. "There you are. Let's make this quick, huh?"
Her fists clenched, and she smirked as well. "Couldn't agree more."
Faster than sound, she zoomed up in front of him and raised her fist into his chin, the hit reverberating through the building as he flew through the roof. She flew up after him, and another punch connected before she grabbed his arm and hurled him further into the sky. The lightning and thunder around them from the storming black hole were nearly deafening.
She flew up to strike him once more, but this time, he grabbed her closed fist and punched her in the mouth before kneeing her in the stomach and clamping his hand around her arm, absorbing her power.
"How do you kids do it? You recharge faster than the big leagues." He groaned.
Stellar's jaw clenched, and she struggled in his grip, kicking at his chest for a moment before slumping. Her legs dropped, and her skin became paler with each passing moment Parasite held on.
Parasite's eyes flashed a deep green, scanning her thoughts before he smirked at a memory of her running beside a ginger-haired boy, their surroundings becoming blurred the faster they ran.
"Hmm, I've always wondered if all speedsters taste the same."
Stellar's eyes closed, and she dangled in his grasp, drained completely. Parasite chuckled as the green Martian glow receded to give way to his orange irises.
"Once I'm done here, maybe I'll just go pay Wally a visit."
His grip on her arm dropped, and she floated lifelessly in the air; the wind around them was enough to keep her airborne, powerful enough to tear the concrete and stone of the buildings and ground below them.
Parasite cracked his neck as he used his rejuvenated flight to drift away from her before he froze. His eyes narrowed as he felt a low pulse of energy bound off of the floating body behind him. Turning around, he watched as slowly, Stellar's skin regained its color, traveling up her form. First, her legs regained their milky hue before her cheeks tinted themselves a slight shade of pink.
A second later, her eyes reopened, and golden rays stared down the purple villain.
"No..." Her hair rose into the air as an aura formed around her. "You won't."
She raised her hand, and suddenly, Parasite flew at her; her hand covered his neck, and golden streaks of energy flew off of her into Parasite. The villain's eyes closed, and he took a short breath.
"Hey, dumb girl. You aren't doing anything but recharging me."
More beams of power converged into Parasite, and Stellar smiled as the glow around her became brighter.
"That's the idea. Let's see if you can handle this." Her echoed voice resonated through Parasite's brain as realization dawned onto his monstrous face.
"No!" He growled and tried to pull away, but he was too late. Suddenly, golden wisps of power materialized and danced around the two.
The soft golden nimbus around her transitioned into an angry golden flame as her smug grin became that of an irate scowl.
"You wanted my power."
Parasite tried to struggle out of her vice grasp to no avail.
The wisps became waves, and time seemed to slow for a moment. Stellar could hear her own breathing; she watched as the wisps, the waves of energy, circled them in almost slow motion. She could feel the very air practically crackling with her power.
Finally, she focused on Parasite, and time seemed to speed up once more.
Every second that passed was another second that her power grew. The wisps rose ever-expanding, hissing and biting at Parasite, burning him without so much as coming in direct contact.
"Now you're gonna get it."
Almost as if commanded by her voice alone, the waves spun faster, creating a ring of light in the sky before surging forward and imploding into the two. The sky seemed to split open from the power of the explosion; the black hole screeched, wiped away by the force of energy, painting the night sky in a glow so bright it was as if the sun itself was only inches from the earth.
At the center, Stellar floated, her eyes closed as the bright warmth that blanketed the sky slowly converged back into her. The angry fire transitioned once more into a gentle flare as her eyes opened.
Gradually the glow receded from its monumental proportion to that of a small shooting star. The glowing ball of light flew down from the atmosphere and hovered down in front of the superhero teens, awoken by Parasite's defeat. Still, even though it had dimmed, the light was still bright enough that the group shielded their eyes, at least until Stellar lowered her head, willing the energy away.
The glow diminished entirely, and she sighed before dropping to her knees; her brilliant, glowing hair fell dully down her back as Artemis and Superboy helped her up.
"What happened? Where's Parasite?" Robin asked, and Stellar raised her head to look at him, her lips in a thin line as she replied.
"I stopped him. He won't threaten anyone ever again."
She glanced to the side at the villain, a few feet away, twitching on the ground, eyes wide and mouth open with sparks of golden electricity traveling around his body.
-
MOUNT JUSTICE
December 24, 02:34 EDT
Claire placed a silver flash drive on the souvenir shelf. Her eyes moved to the green tracker beside it before arms wrapped around her midriff from behind.
"I'm sorry," Wally whispered in her ear, his chin resting on her shoulder.
Claire took a deep breath as he continued.
"I know I hurt you, and I should never have tried to force you to choose a side between Artemis and me. And I... I shouldn't have brought Trent up."
She tensed slightly at the mention of his name.
"There's no excuse for what I did, but, I promise, I'll do everything I can to make it better. I'll do whatever you want, I swear." Obscured from his vision, tears prickled in Claire's eyes as he spoke before finally breaking through the surface as he ended his apology with a soft voice.
"Forgive me? Please?"
Faster than even Wally could react, Claire had turned around and pulled him into a bear hug. Tears rolled down her cheeks as he tightened his hold around her, wrapping her in a protective cocoon of just him: his smell, his touch, his warmth.
"Yes-yes, of course, I forgive you. I l-" She paused, forcefully closing her eyes and burrowed further into him. "I... I'm sorry too."
"No." He forcefully replied. Pulling back to gaze into her eyes, wiping the tears from her cheeks with his thumbs. "You don't ever need to apologize to me; it was my fault."
Claire licked her lips. Wally's emerald green irises flicked down to them, and Claire leaned forward slightly, her own blue's moving down to his lips.
Her eyes just barely closed, and her eyelashes fanned over his skin as finally, their lips brushed for the second time.
When their lips touched, Claire could practically taste the glass of milk he had just minutes before. Her hands gently squeezed his shoulders as his smell of freshly baked cookies wafted up to her nose. She felt his arms wrap around her waist and tighten as he leaned closer, deepening their embrace.
Her lips tingled from his kiss. Unlike their first, which was all about the feeling, all about getting used to how they fit as one. This kiss represented something different, something better. Her heart pounded not of nervousness but something new. It was then that the truth fully dawned on her. Wally wasn't just her friend; he wasn't just her teammate; he wasn't even her best friend.
He was something... more.
-
Hellooooooooooo everyone! I know this chapter's late but to be fair it's just shy of 10,000 words. I know it's not really an excuse, but yeah.
BTW! We're in the last few chapters before the finale and honestly I am REALLY excited.
Ok, rant over.
Comment, vote, and or share (If you'd like to, of course.)