Chapter 75 : Face-off

[Author note : I know some (if not most) of you guys aren't reading this story for me to reenact what happened in the comics. You want Ned ! And I apologize for that. At the time I was writing these chapters, I had troubles writing this story. The words just wouldn't come. Especially when it came to Ned... Anyways, just to tell you you'll see Ned again next chapter. And in the next few chapters, he should be back fully.

In other (old) news, you can visit my Patréon page if you want to read 10 chapters ahead (e instead of é). Search for Cathbel. Also, please leave a comment or review ! Enjoy !]

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While the strongest of them carried their charge, the rest of the Titans escorted the duo outside. In the cold and exposed air of the south pole. Almost as if they were waiting for them in order to make their entrance, three people appeared. Two of them, they knew : the Ravager, herself, and the one who called himself Grunge. The last one, half-humanoid, half-reptilian with an orange skin akin to sandstone… Him, they never met. However, they at least knew why they were here.

Robin didn't know what to feel at the moment. On the one hand, he should have expected some kind of retaliatory response to their assault on their facility. The security inside had been… subpar, to say the least. They didn't encounter any powerful metas. At least, Robin certainly didn't. And they achieved their objective remarkably quickly.

Robin was especially looking forward to finally finding out who was behind it all. He really hoped this was it and the veil would lift over the shadowy leader of the shadowy organization. Still, he didn't get his hopes too high up, yet. Before he plugged the flash drives into his computer, he would be able to tell what was on them.

Another reason why he didn't know what to feel was their current position. Tactically speaking, an open field like this one would be in their favor. Their opponents were only three ; any reinforcement they could receive they could see arrive. The Titans were in superior numbers. The downsides… Robin wouldn't be able to surprise his opponents. Also, they had to protect the weakened Superboy. Oh ! And their teamwork was pretty much shit !

Kid Flash did whatever he had on his mind at the moment. Cassie, the perpetually angry, albeit gorgeous, girl just wanted to pummel someone. Solstice was… For some reason, she made him wary. As for Bunker, he was too inexperienced. Thankfully, Skitter, or rather Celine, didn't accompany them ! A predator like her on a battlefield… He shuddered just thinking about it.

As he was rapidly assessing the situation, he noticed how the white-haired girl, Ravager, was also doing the same. However, she seemed to pay extra attention to their surroundings and the distance, as if there was a threat or a variable that Robin wasn't aware of…

So, he started to look for details. Like the soot on and holes in their clothes, the singed marks on exposed arm, the disheveled appearance of the wild man. He seemed especially angry, ready to explode. And indeed, he soon did :

« You fuckers thought you could just shut us down and kill us ? Some heroes you are ! » He scoffed, before grinding his teeth in anger : « Cowards' more like it… »

Kid Flash tilted his head in incomprehension while Cassandra's lips spread into a shit-eating grin. Solstice stayed silent, fidgeting behind the speedster. Bunker mirrored the latter almost perfectly, looking just as foolish. Robin was basically the only one to understand the situation the Ravagers' faced. Cassie might have figured it out, but she didn't give two shits about it…

This raised a couple of questions though… How ? And who ? Taking down a military chopper, especially a top-of-the-line, futuristic-looking like the one he'd already seen them use wasn't easy. Sure, Wonder Girl did it simply by ramming her body through it, but she was a different case. Besides, if someone had replicated her feat, he doubted whether the enemy leader would still be up and about.

For the same reason, he doubted rockets or explosives had been used. This left only two possibilities : an inside job and a surgical strike. An inside job would be his guess if it wasn't for Grunge's reaction. If they had survived, they would have captured or even killed the saboteur. His anger towards them would have been abated at least a little when he realized they had nothing to do with it.

Since that wasn't the case, that left only… The surgical strike. A localized EMP would be his choice. Robin suddenly shook his head ; although he was curious, the current situation demanded his entire focus !

He glanced at his teammates… And sighed inwardly. He couldn't hope to make them work with him. Perhaps, Bunker would be receptive to taking orders since he'd already proven it in the past. However, succeeding in performing said orders was another matter.

Kid Flash ? Out of the question. He was self-absorbed and impatient. He'd rather run headlong into danger than stay still for one second to listen. And Wonder Girl… Yeah, he'd rather not give her orders : she might rip his tongue out. Maybe he could use Solstice… But the girl seemed petrified ever since the trio arrived.

So, like the battle in Times Square, what Robin should expect was simply several separate solo fights, that sometimes involved more than one opponent. The last time they fought like this, he almost got taken out at least twice by his 'allies', so yeah. It was like fighting someone, and have another person suddenly lunging in your general direction. Not exactly aiming at you, but the results remains the same. Because he was a regular human, he couldn't afford to make mistakes, and teaming up with them would be one.

That was the whole reason he separated from them for the operation in the first place. That, and the possibility to retrieve intel in secret. Robin was still wary about his new friends…

Rose Wilson noted the expressions on the teenagers' faces and pointed out :

« So, you didn't know, huh ? » Rose chuckled wryly. « This Silver Lad and his people… They're pretty ruthless, for heroes. Then again, he doesn't consider himself a hero according to his interview. If they acted on his orders, then he's consistent. »

« Silver Lad ? » Ridge asked.

« Oh, right ! I forgot that you left your cell only recently. And you weren't with us on their last assault on one of our base. Silver Lad's one of them heroes. Or at least, the world sees him as one. He uses an extremely advanced technology even though it's inspired by something from the Middle Ages… »

Grunge scoffed :

« Like you're one to talk, miss Samurai ! »

« What is it ? »

« A suit of… I guess you could call it a Power Armor. It basically enhances his physical abilities, in addition to carrying several weapons and enabling him to fly. »

Kid Flash suddenly interjected :

« Has leader girl taken a blow to the head ? She's kinda chatty, isn't she ? Compared to last time, I mean… »

Robin had also noticed it. He doubted that she would normally speak so much about something unrelated to the current situation. Sure, they had been attacked (shot down) and she should keep paying attention, but she should also start to work on her immediate problem : another team of heroes attacking a N.O.W.H.E.R.E. facility. She should be dealing with them already or, at the very least, start on saving their people.

Might as well use that to his advantage. Robin suddenly threw three batarangs, one after the other in direction of the girl. Even if she was enhanced, she was still the only one that he could reasonably fight. Grunge was a known variable : he wasn't strong enough and none of his tools could help him against him. As for the other… Given his stature, his own, much smaller physique wouldn't be enough to deal with him.

So, he was left with only one potential, and apparently diminished target !

* * * * *

Thousands of feet in the air, hovering in place in spite of the violent and cold winds, or the humidity, Supergirl observed the fight below using her macro-vision. A silly name her cousin had given their zooming abilities.

When she saw the human carry out the body of the clone, she felt awful. After all, she was indirectly responsible for his capture by the despicable people who experimented on children, and turned them into loyal weapons. She had heard it all about N.O.W.H.E.R.E….

Just the name, an acronym really… Although she didn't know its full meaning (she even doubted it really had one), she was sure they chose it on purpose. Was it inspired by the Odysseus story ? When he told the Cyclop his name was Nobody and then pierced his only eye with giant burning stake so that, when asked who did this to him, he would reply : « It was Nobody. »

In this case, if they were asked where the horrors they inflicted on the children happened, they would reply « Nowhere ».

In any case, she returned to questioning herself. Her beliefs, her prejudices and her future moves. Should she help them, or let them fight ? She still wasn't at a hundred percent after she was dozed with Kryptonite and with the white-haired girl there, she was afraid of a repeat performance. Perhaps a lethal one this time. So, Supergirl continued to observe…