Chapter 24: Santa Prisca Mission part 1/2.

More advance chapters on P@treon.com/Saintbarbido.

-Jon's P.O.V-

The entire room was tense, even in the steady silence, with the mission details hanging heavy in the air.

Batman, standing at the center of the holographic table, finished explaining our objective, his tone as sharp as ever.

"Any questions?" he asked, scanning the faces around him.

We were gathered in the briefing room, Robin and the others all staring at the illuminated map of Santa Prisca projected before us.

I shifted slightly, running over everything I knew of the Santa Prisca episode in my head one more time.

Our mission seemed straightforward: investigate why the venom-steroid supply lines had gone dark, even though production at the factory continued as normal.

Batman suspected that the shipment routes had been altered, but he wanted confirmation before making any moves.

Well, his suspicions were right. The Kobra cult had ceased possession of Bane's venom factory to produce a new Enhancing Serum.

One with properties of Venom and Cadmus' Blockbuster serum. The Light, who were behind Kobra hoped venom would stabilize the Blockbuster serum's extreme physical deformities.

Hence the finished product would be called, Kobra-Venom.

'I need to get a sample.'

It wasn't exactly safe, but something told me these serums might come in handy one day.

Especially for Connor.

My thoughts were cut short when Kid Flash blurted out, "So, who's in charge here?"

I blinked and looked up, realizing everyone was staring at me.

"What?" I managed, but Batman didn't give me time to object.

"You, Kent. Don't mess up," he growled, then turned on his heel, disappearing into the shadows.

What just happened?

-0-

Soon, we were strapped into our seats aboard Miss Martian's bio-ship, rocketing toward Santa Prisca.

I stared out the window, watching the blur of the ocean beneath us, and grumbled, "I still don't get why anyone would think I'm the best choice to lead. Robin, Wally, Aqualad—all of you guys have way more experience."

Miss Martian tilted her head, eyes glowing softly as she piloted the ship. "Your mind is… calm. Like the Water Caves back on Mars. Hello Megan! That's what a leader needs."

"Calm, huh? Well, Aqualad's even calmer than I am. And he's actually from a lake. Technically the Ocean but semantics." I gestured to Kaldur, who shook his head with a faint smile.

"True, but there's more to it," Aqualad replied. "A leader also commands respect. You're the strongest among us, Jon. That alone holds weight."

"Not faster than me, though!" Wally cut in with a cocky grin. "We should race sometime-seriously-Prove who's the real powerhouse here."

He'd been asking for one since Cadmus.

I gave him a sly grin. "Fine. Any day, Wally. Then you can finally stop underestimating me."

Robin, who'd been listening with an amused smirk, burst into laughter. "The only thing you can lead, Wally, is the line at a bakery."

Wally put a hand to his chest, feigning offense. "Hey! …Alright, that might be fair."

Connor chuckled, drawing all our eyes to him. "What? It's funny," he said, shrugging at our surprised expressions.

That only leaves...my best friend.

I turned to Robin only to find him staring my way, his gaze steady. "I get where you're coming from, Jon. And I'll step in if leading gets overwhelming. But for this mission, I think you should be in charge."

He called me Jon, not Kent. Heck, that alone shows he's serious.

"I'll be busy gathering intel on the Factory, anyway. You can babysit Kid and the rest of these Amateurs. Besides Kaldur."

He added with a cocky grin.

Kid didn't take the lib lying down and shot back.

Meanwhile, I struggled to accept the role. Leading meant less autonomy to act as freely as I wanted. Especially when I was aiming to get that Kobra-Venom sample.

With a sigh, I caved. It was clear they weren't going to let me off the hook.

"Alright, I'll take the lead… for now."

Kid and Rob stopped arguing and all around I was met with acceptance. No jealousy for the position or anything negative. Wow, and here I'd thought a conflict as everyone clamored to Lead, would erupt. Just like Canon.

'No, it's no longer Canon. My presence made sure of that.'

I adjusted in my seat, glancing around. "Let's go over the plan again. Once we hit Santa Prisca, we'll need a coordinated approach."

The plan quickly came together. And moments later, M'gann's voice pulled me out of my thoughts.

"We're approaching the island," she announced. "I'll activate camouflage mode as we enter the perimeter."

I watched the ocean stretch out beneath us as the ship descended, our forms shielded from any prying eyes below.

"Approaching Drop Zone A in twenty seconds," M'gann added. Aqualad stood up, pressing a button on his suit that shifted its colors to a stealthy gray.

The rest of us followed suit, adapting our gear to suit the mission's covert nature.

My new outfit composed of a black where the blue of my costume was and a leather Jacket in place of my cape. I looked like Prime Earth Superboy. The only thing missing was the pair of sunglasses.

The floor of the bio-ship opened with a hiss, and Aqualad dropped through, his form slipping seamlessly into the ocean below.

His mission was to disable any motion and heat sensors along the beach.

Within moments, his voice came through on the comms.

"Detectors are down. Drop Zone B is clear."

"Copy that, Aqualad." I replied, adjusting my earpiece- our primary means of Communication. Miss Martian was the back up in case the signal cut off.

"Let us know when you've landed, Robin," Aqualad's voice crackled over the comms.

"Roger that, partner," Robin replied with a grin as we reached Drop Zone B, ready to disembark.

Before jumping out, I turned to face Robin and the team. "Alright, let's go over the plan one last time. Robin, the Bio-ship will drop you near the factory. Get inside, gather any intel you can on their operations. Aqualad, you'll cover his back until we arrive. Miss Martian, you're our eyes in the sky. Watch everything that moves, ground and air. Powerboy, keep her safe—she's our ticket out if things go south. Kid and I will sweep the island for enemies before regrouping with Robin and Aqualad. Everyone clear?"

They nodded in unison.

The Bio-ship would remain cloaked and airborne, ready to provide backup or extraction, since I had a feeling we'd have unexpected visitors soon enough.

"Good luck, team. Let's do this," I said, before jumping and floating down to land softly on the ground, Kid descending beside me on a rope.

Overhead, the Bio-ship shimmered faintly as it moved deeper into the island.

"Wally, we'll split up and sweep the island's perimeter. You take the left, I'll take the right. If you run into anyone, wait for me. Don't engage until we know what we're up against."

Wally grinned, "Sounds good. Race you to the factory?"

I smirked. "You're on, Red."

With a flash, he zoomed off, racing along one side of the jungle while I listened closely, picking up on exactly what I'd hoped to find before dashing off in the opposite direction.

Kid had one advantage over me: his powers let him pick up tiny details with ease, even at high speeds.

I had to watch every step, adjusting to the rush of blurred trees and jungle foliage, careful not to hit anything. And I had to do it quietly—silent and swift enough to arrive between Bane and his men just as they prepared to face off with Kobra's goons.

Thud!

I landed loudly, giving up stealth to catch their attention. They spun around, momentarily frozen in surprise.

"Hey fellas, wasn't expecting to run into anyone here. It's a jungle after all."

I greeted the stunned henchmen, and Bane immediately ordered, "Shoot!"

The gunfire burst through the jungle's stillness as the henchmen opened fire.

I dodged the bullets with quick bursts of speed, weaving between Bane's men and Kobra's goons.

A well-placed punch took out one of Bane's thugs as I spun, then kicked another, sending him flying into a tree with a loud crack.

"Oh, that looks painful."

I winced, switching from physical assault to Freeze breath, and capturing both groups in a prison of ice while rendering their guns unusable.

Unexpectedly, Bane ballooned in size and shattered the ice binding his legs.

"I'll break you in half for that, mijo."

Venom feeding into his body through tubes, the Supervillain growled.

I smirked in response.

It angered him and he stomped toward me, his massive frame nearly blocking out the dim jungle light.

I dodged his first punch, then ducked under his second and threw an uppercut that landed square on his jaw, sending him stumbling back.

He surprised me by only staggering. That punch wasn't my best but I still hit hard.

"Stay down, Bane." I muttered, ducking under another swing.

"Never! This is my Island!"

He came at me again, but this time, I grabbed his arm and used his own momentum to flip him over onto the ground.

His face hit the dirt, and I put my knee on his back, pinning him down with one arm twisted behind him.

"Know who taught me that move?"

"Batman."

Bane spat out.

Reaching up, I tapped my comm. "Hey, Miss Martian," I said, not bothering to hide the amusement in my voice. "I've got an unexpected find here. Swing back around and pick up the former owner of Santa Prisca."

"On my way," she replied.

By the time I arrived at the factory, I spotted Kid leaning smugly against a tree close to the back of the building, arms folded.

"About time, slowpoke," he smirked, raising an eyebrow. "Guess that means I win. Proved I'm faster."

I rolled my eyes, stepping past him, but my grin slipped out. "Sure, but tell me, Wally—did you bring back a present?"

Wally opened his mouth to reply, then his face twisted in confusion as the Bio-ship descended toward us, shimmering into view.

The hatch lowered, and there, standing with a restrained Bane under one arm, was Powerboy, a small smirk on his face as he held up my "gift" for the Speedster.

"Wait… is that Bane?"

Wally muttered, his eyes widening as he took in the Luchador-wearing massive, struggling form.

Before I could answer, Robin's voice cut through our comms. "Hey, Boss, we overheard you. Good job catching Bane. Now Bring him to me. I'm inside the factory and found something interesting in their shipment logs, but I'll need Bane to access it fully. Looks like the new owner, Kobra is planning to move the Venom soon, and we need to find out who the buyer is."

"On it," I replied, giving Bane a nudge forward as Powerboy handed him off. The mercenary snarled but didn't resist.

Kid Flash shook his head, still staring at Bane as we made our way toward the factory entrance. "I'll admit, Superslow, you're full of surprises."

"Guess I had to make up for your so-called 'win,'" I said with a wink, using X-Ray to tag Kobra and the rest of his goons as well as a certain Atlantean lying in wait inside.

I tapped my comms.

"Aqualad, it's time. Let's take the Factory for ourselves."