The moment we launched ourselves at Amazo, the world became a blur of motion and violence.
Guardian and I hit the android simultaneously from opposite sides, our fists connecting with its metallic body in perfect synch. The impact created a shockwave that rippled through the air, and I felt the satisfying crunch of my knuckles meeting resistance. My Viltrumite strength, reinforced by my TTK, poured into the blow with everything I had. The android's body buckled slightly under the combined assault, its red eyes flickering as its systems processed the damage.
But even as we connected, I could feel something wrong.
The resistance wasn't consistent. It was like punching through layers of different materials, first hard, then soft, then hard again. Amazo's advanced technology was already working, it's programing adapting to absorb the kinetic energy of our strikes. I could see the surface of its synthetic skin rippling, and then restructuring itself, at what was probably a molecular level to better withstand our attacks.
"It's adapting!" I shouted to Guardian as we both pushed off, creating distance.
Guardian didn't respond verbally. Instead, he became a blur of black and green, moving around Amazo at incredible speed. He was faster than me, significantly faster. His punches came in rapid succession from every angle: left side, right side, above, below, behind. He never stayed in one spot for more than a fraction of a second, constantly repositioning, constantly attacking from new vectors.
I watched in something close to awe as Guardian's fists hammered into Amazo with machine-like precision. Each punch landed with a thunderous crack that echoed across the battlefield. The android tried to track him, its head swiveling, its arms moving to block, but Guardian was always somewhere else by the time it reacted.
He's good, I thought. Really good. That isn't just raw power, this is experience.
I launched myself back into the fight, trying to match Guardian's pace. We flew away from the gas station, taking the battle higher into the sky where we wouldn't endanger anyone below. As the ground fell away beneath us, the lights of the convoy becoming small pinpricks in the darkness.
Amazo floated between us, its body rotating slowly as it calculated trajectories and our attack patterns. Its red eyes glowed brighter, and I could see energy building within its core, a pulsing, crackling accumulation of power that made the hair on the back of my neck stand up.
"Watch out!" I shouted.
The android's body suddenly erupted with electricity. Blue-white lightning arced across its surface, spreading outward in a sphere of pure kinetic energy. It was a rebound attack, all the force we'd been hitting it with, stored and redirected back at us in one devastating burst.
I threw my arms up, my TTK flaring to maximum output to create a barrier. The kinetic wave hit me like a freight train, and even with my defenses up, I felt the impact rattle my bones. The force sent me tumbling backward through the air, spinning end over end until I managed to stabilize myself.
Guardian had blocked it too, his arms crossed in front of his chest, but I could see the strain in his posture. The reflective black glass of his helmet caught the moonlight as he steadied himself in the air.
Then Amazo moved.
It shot toward Guardian with frightening speed, its fist pulled back for a devastating punch. Guardian moved to intercept, his own fist coming forward to meet the attack. But his punch went right through Amazo's body.
Guardian's fist passed through the android like it was made of smoke, meeting no resistance at all. His momentum carried him forward, off-balance, and Amazo solidified instantly. Its elbow came down hard on Guardian's back, driving him toward the ground.
Of course this asshole can phase. I thought bitterly.
Guardian caught himself before hitting the ground, spinning in mid-air to face Amazo again. I could see the tension in his shoulders, the way his hands clenched into fists. He was pissed.
Good, so was I.
Amazo and Guardian clashed again, and this time it was pure, brutal combat. They exchanged blows in rapid succession, their fists moving so fast they were almost invisible. Each impact created a shockwave that cracked the air itself, producing sonic booms that rolled across the landscape like thunder.
Guardian's technique was flawless. He used his whole body, fists, elbows, knees, even his head. He fought like someone who'd been doing this for years, it was almost familiar in the way he moved and fought, I just didn't know how l. Every movement was efficient, designed to inflict maximum damage with minimum wasted energy.
But Amazo was learning with every exchange, and it adapted a little more overtime. Its blocks became more precise, and Its counters became more effective. It was studying Guardian's fighting style, cataloging every technique, every pattern, every tell.
I dove back into the fight, coming in from Amazo's blind spot. My fist connected with the side of its head, snapping it to the side. Guardian took advantage of the opening, driving a knee into Amazo's midsection that would have shattered concrete.
The android's eyes flared brighter, and suddenly twin beams of heat vision lanced out, catching Guardian square in the face.
The beams hit the reflective black glass of his helmet with incredible force. I saw the visor crack, spiderwebs of damage spreading across its surface. Guardian's head snapped back from the impact, and he let out a grunt of pain that his helmet's systems couldn't quite mask.
"Guardian!" I shouted.
But he was already moving. Even with his visor damaged, even with what had to be incredible pain, he didn't hesitate. His hand came up in a knife-hand strike, fingers extended like a blade, aimed at Amazo's throat.
But the strike had phased right through.
Amazo had gone intangible again, its body becoming incorporeal at the exact moment of impact. Guardian's hand passed through empty air, and I could see the frustration in his body language, the way his shoulders tensed, the way his other hand clenched.
But I know the best way to deal with a power like his, and something tells me I still a little more durable the android.
Amazo's phasing wasn't instantaneous. There was a fraction of a second, maybe a tenth of a second, between when it went intangible and when it solidified again. A window of vulnerability so small that most people would never notice it.
But I wasn't most people.
As Guardian's strike passed through Amazo's throat, I was already moving. I timed it perfectly, my fist shooting forward just as Amazo began to solidify. My knuckles connected with the android's head at the exact moment it became tangible again, and my entire fist punched through its skull and into the circuitry beneath.
Amazo's eyes went wide, as wide as an android's eyes could go. Its body convulsed, electricity arcing across its surface as my fist disrupted its internal systems. Sparks flew from the entry wound, and I could feel the heat of melting circuits against my skin.
"I'm not doing this shit all night," I growled, twisting my fist inside its head.
The android started short-circuiting. Its movements became jerky and uncoordinated. Smoke poured from its eyes, its mouth, the hole in its head where my fist was buried. Its limbs twitched spasmodically, and the red glow of its eyes flickered like a dying light bulb.
I yanked my fist back, pulling free with a spray of sparks and melted metal. Amazo's body went limp, and it began to fall, tumbling through the air to the ground.
Guardian and I watched it fall for a moment, both of us breathing hard. Then Guardian turned toward me, and I saw him raise his hand to his face, covering the damaged portion of his helmet where the heat vision had cracked the visor.
"Are you okay, Guardian?" I asked, floating closer.
Guardian's hand stayed pressed against his helmet, hiding his face. When he spoke, his voice was rough and unmodulated, the helmet's voice distortion systems must have been damaged along with the visor.
"Yeah," he said, and I could hear the strain in his voice. "Don't worry about me. We better go and retrieve the android. Its black box should still be intact."
I narrowed my eyes, studying him. There was something about his voice now that it wasn't being processed through the helmet's systems. Something familiar that I couldn't quite place. It nagged at the back of my mind like an itch I couldn't scratch.
"Right," I said slowly, still watching him.
We both flew down toward where Amazo had crashed. The android had hit the ground hard, creating a small crater in the asphalt near the convoy. Smoke still rose from its damaged body, and I could see exposed circuitry sparking weakly.
As we descended, I saw the bioship landing nearby, its organic hull rippling as it touched down. The hatch opened, and Miss Martian emerged, her white cape flowing behind her. Flash was with her, looking a bit worse for wear but otherwise intact.
"Good, you're okay, Caius," M'gann said, relief evident in her voice and on her face.
I landed near them, my boots touching down on the cracked asphalt. "Yeah. Are you okay, Wally?"
Wally rubbed the back of his neck, his expression sheepish. "Yeah, more or less. That group had a psychic with them, and some guy in a fancy suit with a European accent. Next thing I know, I'm feeling sick and I pass out."
That sounds like Count Vertigo, I thought. And as for psychics, that could be anyone. Psimon, maybe? Or someone else entirely.
The pieces were starting to come together in my mind, but I didn't have the full picture yet. Who were those attackers? Why did they want Amazo activated? And who was behind all of this?
Miss Martian turned to Guardian, who had landed near the fallen android and was kneeling beside it. "Thank you for your help, Guardian. If you need medical attention, we have some League members en route with medical supplies on their Javelins."
Guardian didn't look up. His hand was still covering the damaged portion of his helmet, hiding his face. He was tearing through Amazo's circuitry with his other hand, ripping out components with casual strength.
"No, I'm fine," he said, and his voice was still rough, still unmodulated.
That voice. Why did it sound so familiar?
Superboy, Atom Eve, and Supergirl touched down in the area, joining our group. Conner's costume was torn and dirty, and I could see bruises forming on his exposed skin.
"Miss Martian," Conner said, his voice grim. "We've got four dead from the GDA security detail. Robin, Static, and Aqualad are securing the area now."
M'gann's expression tightened. "Understood. The amazo robot is taken care off"
Guardian pulled something from Amazo's chest cavity, a small black box, maybe the size of a deck of cards. It was made of some kind of advanced alloy that seemed to absorb light, and it had a symbol etched into its surface that I couldn't quite make out from this distance.
"What is that?" Eve asked, stepping closer.
"The black box for the android," Guardian said simply. He stood up, the small device clutched in his hand, and I saw his body tense like he was preparing to take off.
"What are you doing?" I asked, suspicion creeping into my voice.
"I'm taking this back to GDA HQ," Guardian said, still not turning to face us fully. "My boss will be sure to share our findings with the League."
Miss Martian's eyes narrowed. "But this is a unified mission, not just the GDA."
Guardian's shoulders shifted, and I could see the tension in his posture. "Well, take it up with my boss." He gestured with the box, and his voice took on a harder edge. "We lost a lot of people for this."
Something in me snapped.
I moved faster in a blnk, my hand shooting out to grab Guardian's wrist. My fingers closed around his arm, and I felt his muscles tense beneath my grip.
"We all have the same mission," I said, my voice low and dangerous. "To stop the trafficking ring and soave those missing kids."
"Let go of my hand," Guardian said, and there was a warning in his tone.
"Not until you..." I started to say, but then I stopped, Because I saw his face.
Guardian's hand was still covering the damaged portion of his helmet, but it had shifted slightly. Through the gap between his fingers and the cracked visor, I could see part of his face. Blue eyes. Black hair. Asian features that I would recognize anywhere, even after five years.
And that voice. Now that it wasn't being modulated, now that I was really listening, I knew exactly who it belonged to.
My blood turned to ice in my veins, then immediately boiled with rage so intense it felt like my skin was on fire. Guardian's eyes widened as he realized what I'd seen. As he realized that I'd figured out his identity.
"What the fuck are you doing here?" I said, my voice shaking with barely contained fury.
Everyone around us immediately tensed. I could feel their attention snap to us, could sense the sudden shift in the atmosphere from relief to alarm.
"Caius?" Conner said, taking a step forward. "What's wrong?"
"Let go," Guardian said, trying to pull his arm free.
But I held on tighter, my grip becoming painful. I could feel my TTK flaring, reinforcing my strength, making it impossible for him to break free without a fight. My blood was boiling now, every muscle in my body coiled tight with rage.
"Superboy, Miss Martian, Flash," I said. "Guardian is Mark Grayson."
The effect was instantaneous.
Conner's eyes narrowed, and I saw them begin to glow with that dangerous red light that meant his heat vision was charging. His hands clenched into fists so tight I could hear his knuckles crack. His entire body went rigid with barely contained violence.
Miss Martian's eyes started to glow as well with green light instead. Her expression shifted from confusion to cold, and then fury. The air around her began to shift and become colder as her telekinetic power built, and I could feel the pressure of her mind reaching out, probing, searching for a way into Mark's thoughts.
Wally's face went pale, then flushed red with anger. Electricity began to crackle around his body, small arcs of white lightning jumping between his fingers.
"Tell me, Grayson," Miss Martian said, her voice colder than I'd ever heard it. "Why I shouldn't scramble your mind like you did to Beast Boy that day?"
She took a step forward, and the ground beneath her feet cracked from the telekinetic pressure she was unconsciously exerting.
"Or rip your head off like you did to Roy?" Conner added, his voice a low growl. His eyes were fully glowing now, twin points of red light in the darkness.
"Or drag you through the state by your face?" Wally said, his voice shaking with rage. The electricity around him intensified, creating a corona of crackling energy.
Eve and Kara immediately moved, positioning themselves between Mark and the others. Eve's hands came up, pink energy forming defensive barriers. Kara spread her arms wide, her own eyes beginning to glow as she prepared to intervene if necessary.
"Everyone needs to calm down," Eve said, her voice firm but worried. "This isn't the time or place..."
"Calm down?" Conner interrupted, his voice rising. "He killed Roy! He killed Gar! He sold out the entire fucking planet to the Viltrumites!"
"I know," Kara said, her voice strained. "I know, but if we do this now, if we fight here, people could get hurt. Innocent people."
"She's right," Eve added. "Please, just..."
Then a voice cut through the tension like a blade.
"That's enough."
I looked up and saw a figure materializing out of thin air. The teleportation effect of a shimmer of displaced air and a brief flash of light. The figure that appeared was a man in his forties, with a lean build, grey hair that is thinning on top, and striking blue eyes wearing a dark suit. His stoic face and tired eyes assessing the scene .
Cecil Stedman.
At the same time, I heard the distinctive sound of engines overhead. Three Justice League Javelins descended from the sky, their running lights cutting through the darkness. They landed in a triangle formation around us, their hatches opening with hydraulic hisses.
"I'm sorry you had to find out this way," Cecil said, his voice calm and professional. "But Mark Grayson is a member of the GDA."
I turned to look at him, and I felt my rage crystallize harder. "You're going to let this mass murderer think he can save a few lives and get a get-out-of-jail-free card? Like he doesn't deserve to rot for selling out Earth to the Viltrumites?"
Cecil's expression didn't change. He'd clearly been expecting this reaction. "Well, kid, last time I checked, you're a Viltrumite too." Cecil continued, his tone becoming slightly softer. "And I know you got a raw deal for what he and his father did. I'm sorry for that. I really am."
"But Mark has spent the last few years trying to make up for what happened," Cecil said. "He's saved lives. He's stopped threats. He's...."
"That changes nothing," I interrupted, my friends are still dead. My life for the past five years was a lonely hell. And don't think I don't remember that you helped Batman monitor me for god knows how long."
I saw Cecil's jaw tighten slightly. Good. I wanted him to feel uncomfortable. I wanted him to understand exactly how much I knew, how much I remembered.
"You had cameras on me in my own home" I continued, You treated me like a threat, like a bomb waiting to go off, all because of what he did."
I jerked my head toward Mark, who stood silently beside Cecil, his hand still covering his damaged helmet.
"So don't stand there and tell me about raw deals and making amends," I said. "Don't tell me about second chances and redemption. Because while Mark was out there playing hero for the GDA, I was being watched like a criminal. While he was saving lives, I was trying to figure out how to live with the fact that everyone I cared about was dead or traumatized because of him."
The Javelins' hatches had fully opened now, and three figures stepped out.
Steel emerged from the first Javelin, wearing his iconic armor with the red cape and the S-shield on his chest. His hammer was mag-locked to his back, and his expression was serious but not hostile.
Powergirl came from the second Javelin, her white costume with the blue accents and the distinctive window in her chest that showed her cleavage. Her blonde hair was pulled back in a ponytail, and her arms were crossed over her chest as she assessed the situation.
Zatara stepped out of the third Javelin, wearing his classic magician's outfit with the top hat and tails. His hands were already glowing with magical energy, ready to intervene if necessary.
I looked at them, then back at Mark. And that's when I saw it.
The symbol on the black box.
Mark had shifted his grip slightly, and the device was now visible in the light from the Javelins. The symbol etched into its surface was clear now. My eyes widened as recognition hit me like a freight train.
Oh my god. Everything suddenly made sense. The android. The attack. The coordinated assault by those five individuals. The trafficking ring. The meta-human weapons, and the rest.
I knew who we were dealing with.
I looked back at Mark, and some of my rage was temporarily displaced by the sheer magnitude of what I'd just realized. "This isn't over," I said, my voice quiet but filled with promise. I released his wrist, letting my hand fall to my side. "Get the fuck out of my sight."
Mark didn't move or didn't speak. He just stood there, his hand still covering his face.
"And remember this," I continued, taking a step back. "The next time I see you, I will finish what you started that day."
Mark finally moved, walking past Miss Martian and Superboy, and Flash toward Cecil. Both of them tracked him with their eyes, which were still glowing with barely suppressed power. M'gann's expression was one of cold fury, her lips pressed into a thin line. Conner looked like he was physically restraining himself from attacking, every muscle in his body taut with tension.
Mark stopped next to Cecil, and the older man put a hand on his shoulder. "We'll be in touch when we discover what's in the black box," Cecil said, his tone professional again.
Then they were gone, disappearing in another flash of teleportation light. The moment they vanished, Eve and Kara both let out hard breaths of relief.
"Thank god," Eve said, her hands dropping to her sides as her defensive barriers dissipated. "I did not want to see a big superhero fight tonight."
"Yeah," Kara agreed, running a hand through her blonde hair. "Thank Rao. That could have gotten really ugly really fast."
I barely heard them. My mind was racing, putting together all the pieces, seeing the full picture for the first time.
I activated my suit's interface, and a holographic window appeared above my arm, glowing with soft blue light. As my fingers moved across the virtual keyboard, pulling up files and images from the suit's database.
"Caius," Wally said, and I could hear the frustration in his voice. "Why did you let him leave with the black box? We needed that."
I didn't look up from my work. "Because I know who we're after now."
Everyone moved closer, forming a circle around me. I could feel their confusion, their curiosity, their lingering anger from the confrontation with Mark.
"What do you mean?" Conner asked.
I pulled up the image I was looking for and expanded it, making it large enough for everyone to see. The holographic display showed a symbol,that I'd seen on the black box.
"We're after the most prestigious organization in the world," I said, finally looking up to meet their eyes.
Eve's eyes widened in recognition. "What do you mean?"
"Were dealing with the HIVE Academy,"