A/N Okay, apparently me and FF are doing battle today. But this chapter will go up. I demand it cooperate!

Anyhow, I posted this story for two reasons, first off, because I fully agree with Black Friar and APL15 in that the YJ community needs a bit of love right now. It's dying and I am not pleased. Second off, my writing skillz need work, and this was the perfect opportunity to practice. I know, I know. I'm an artist, not an author. But that doesn't mean I can't subject you all to my writing anyway! (cue evil laughter)

Also, the next few chapters are of course finished and will be uploaded at a time and place. Wasn't that helpful~

Thank you guys, and enjoy!

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Chapter 1

Robin snapped his eyes open suddenly as waves of pain washed over him. Unable to think, to even try and grasp his situation, he rolled over and threw up, choking and confused. A hand immediately came to rest on his shoulder and he could feel himself trembling beneath the touch. After a few moments of coughing and gagging, he pushed himself up shakily, finally able to take a full breath. Dizzily, he shook his head hoping to clear it. He immediately regretted the action as the world spun crazily despite being on his hands and knees. The fingers on his shoulder tightened, and sound finally began to register.

"-to take it easy Rob!"

It wasn't so much the owner of that voice that made Robin blink in amazement, but the uncharacteristic scared quiver that his best friend was trying so valiantly to hide that made the world finally right itself. Taking several seconds to steady himself, Robin wiped his mouth with the back of his hand and looked over at Kid Flash. It was dark, and shadows were playing with his friend's features, but Dick could tell that Wally didn't look good. He was pale, his eyes were wide and full of worry, and after a moment in which to take in his friend's full appearance, Dick noticed Wally's leg was covered in blood.

"Wally!" His voice was raspy, so he swallowed and tried again. "Bro, what happened to-" And suddenly despite his pounding headache, memories came rushing back fast.

flashback

Batman was pacing in front of the teenagers, his voice serious as he stared at each one in turn. Other than his echoing steps and stern address, the room was silent.

"You have proven yourself in the past few weeks, so I am expecting a clean mission. In and out in a matter of minutes. I feel it necessary to repeat that this is simply recon. No unnecessary risks."

Kaldur just barely met Batman's eyes before shifting his gaze to the floor. It seemed the team had been taking on unnecessary risk nearly every mission. The only reason they were still allowed to function was because despite their inability to follow orders, they had in fact produced excellent results. But their disregard for the rules couldn't last forever, and Kaldur knew it.

"All we need is evidence of this supposed new drug manufacturer. As previously stated, you will be working off an anonymous tip, meaning we have no idea what you will be up against. Do not take this mission lightly. Keep your minds on the objective at all times, and radio the Watchtower for backup immediately if anything out of the ordinary happens." Batman stopped and turned to face the team, narrowing his eyes in the process. "Is that clear?"

They all nodded in the affirmative.

Upon arrival, Kaldur had split them into two teams. He, Conner and M'gann, Team A, were needed to distract the army of guards who turned out to be surrounding the building. It would destroy the covert part of the mission, but it was necessary. Besides, Team B could still find everything they needed concerning the nature of the operation. While Team A's powers were flashy and would hold the security, Team B consisted of Kid Flash, Artemis Wolf, and Robin, the more stealthy members. They could be in and out with the evidence they needed before these people knew what hit them. Conner hadn't been happy when ordered to split from his new friend, but Kaldur had reasonably pointed out that the canine's super enhanced sense of smell and hearing would provide a much needed alert for unwanted company.

And so the mission progressed. They were on an island off the Canadian coast close to Newfoundland, which was listed as uninhabited. But satellite imagery had debunked that falsehood before the mission even started. The large worn down building hidden between the jagged rocky cliffs and piney forest didn't exactly scream deserted after all. Robin's team snuck its way to its starting position in a matter of minutes and waited for Kaldur to give the mental signal to start. Despite a lack of greenery, they were able to blend in well with the dark, damp rocks as they stood by. As Kaldur had predicted, after a few seconds of tense silence Wolf's head snapped to the right and his nose twitched as he began to growl. Artemis went to investigate, coming back a minute later with a smirk and stating that the guards here were pathetic. Kid Flash scratched the dog gratefully behind the ears.

Finally Team A was also ready, and the mission began in earnest. Robin lead his friends through the shadows as they approached the building together. They were nearly inside when suddenly-

"No- NO! IT'S A TRAP!" M'gann's voice sounded over the mind link, panicked and urgent.

Robin had froze, his blood running cold with that single frantic statement through the mind link.

"Wait, what do you mean a trap?!" Kid Flashes surprised voice asked telepathically..

Robin looked back in time to see Artemis rolling her eyes. "What do you think she means? A trap is a trap Kid Idiot!" She thought out towards them. "Do you need backup?"

Silence.

They waited anxiously for a response, crouching behind a few scraggly bushes for cover.

Robin was just about to try and contact the others through their comm links when M'ganns voice reverberated frantically in their minds. " Superboy's down! They knew we were coming! Whatever you guys do, don-"

Just like that the mental connection was severed, and the three looked at each other in alarm. Robin put a hand up to his comm and spoke quickly. "M'gann! Do you read me! M'gann! Conner! Aqualad!" A long silence followed, and Robin clenched his fists, his emotions somewhere between panic and frustration.

Just then, a loud explosion rocked the island in the direction of the building's front. Robin and Kid Flash were already pushing themselves to their feet, but Artemis grabbed their wrists.

"What are you doing?!" She hissed. "You heard M'gann. It's a trap! They know we're here. And they might have just taken out all three of our best fighters!"

"Uh, yeah, which means they need our help now!" Kid Flash shot back, shrugging off her hold. "Of course we're going."

"Fine."Artemis snapped, folding her arms and glaring daggers at Kid Flash. "Go in all headstrong as usual and run right into an ambush like the others."

Kid opened his mouth to reply but Robin beat him to it. "Guys, chill. We can't leave our team behind but we can't go running in ignoring what's over there either." He turned to look at Kid Flash, locking eyes with his best friend. "Go do a quick recon around the front of the building, but keep a good distance away from the guards. Don't do anything stupid, just tell us what you see."

KF nodded, clenched his jaw, and then shot away, leaving a slight breeze in his wake. Standing up, Robin started picking his way across the rocky terrain, Artemis following and looking distinctly unhappy. Wolf trotted by Robin's side, smelling the now smoky air. Shouts could be heard in the distance along with the crackle of burning wood.

"I can't see anything!" Kid Flash's slightly panicked voice came through their comms. "There's way too much smoke. I'm gonna clear it away."

"KF, NO!" Robin hissed. Yet from his friend's lack of a reply he knew the speedster was already in the process of forming wind strong enough to clear the smoke and suffocate any lasting flames. Frustrated, Robin broke into a sprint, Artemis and Wolf close behind him. He could already see a huge fairy tornado stretching a good thirty feet into the sky, spiting smoke and flames. Then Wally's voice crackled to life once again.

"I still don't see th- Oh no..." Then, "GUYSSTAYBACKTHEYHAVE-"

In the next moment a gunshot rung out simultaneously in the distance and through their comm links, accompanied with a scream of pain from Kid Flash.

Robin's fear reached a new peak. "KF!" He yelled as he rounded the side of the building at a sprint, all pretense of discretion gone. Even as he saw his friend staggering to the ground as the wind around Kid Flash died away, he began pulling batarangs from his belt. Guards were running towards Kid, all brandishing handguns, though they had stopped firing. Praying they didn't have armour piercing rounds, Robin charged directly at them, taking careful aim and throwing his projectiles. Two guards dropped their guns swearing while the third got a batarang to the shoulder. The remainder immediately turned their sights on the newcomers, whirling around and pointing their guns in Team B's direction. Robin threw a smoke pellet down before they had a chance to decide who to shoot at first, but he couldn't help finding their hesitancy to open fire odd.

"Artemis, can you hold them off for a second?" He whispered to his friend.

"Probably not, so hurry!" She breathed.

Without a second thought, Robin ran to where he knew Wally was, his training kicking in as he made his way through the thick smoke."KF, can you hear me? Where were you hit?" He whispered, placing a finger to his communicator. A bullet rang through the air and hit the ground very close to Robin's foot, spraying dirt into the air, and making him flinch. That wasn't a shot from a hand gun. There was a sniper!

"M-my leg!" Wally growled, pain evident in his voice. "Damn it! Why couldn't it be my arm or something! I could so be helping you kick all these guys' butts."

Robin exhaled, relieved and almost smiling as he heard his friend's voice. Being hit in the leg was much better then the chest after all.

A giant of a man suddenly lumbered into Robin's path, staggering blindly through the smoke, but Robin dropped to his knees before the guard could react and delivered a hard kick to his knees. Falling with a muffled yell, it was all the guard could do to try and fire his weapon into the air before Robin gave him a final punch which rendered him unconscious. Flipping to his feet, Robin sprinted the rest of the way to his friend. The smoke from the bomb was nearly cleared by now, but a few small fires KF hadn't managed to put out were still sputtering smoke. They made the night air thick and acidic. Kid Flash was trying to stand with little luck as blood seeped from the back of his upper shin. His eyes lit up when he saw Robin, then immediately widened in shock as he pointed behind Dick with a bloody hand.

"Rob, Behind you!"

But it was too late. As he turned, Robin felt something hard sliding along his side. He gasped taking several steps back, and then grit his teeth, grabbing for some batarangs... that weren't there. His belt was gone! Shocked, he came to a stop beside Kid Flash, staring down at his belt which his attacker was now stepping over. He looked at his waist. His Kevlar uniform had taken the brunt of the damage, but it was sliced almost completely through, and his belt was in fact gone. How!? How had the man possibly cut it!? That belt was made of Boron Carbide! Revealing a gun in his other hand, the guard sheathed his knife and knelt down to pick up the belt. Robin froze, not daring to hope. All the belts used by the bats had a security function. If anyone tried to mess with it who wasn't supposed to, they would be met with 50,000 volts. But before Robin could see that particular pleasure, Artemis's voice came through his ear. She was breathing hard and shouting.

"Robin, I had to retreat! Get out of there!"

Regretting having to leave his arsenal of weapons behind, Robin looked pointedly down at his friend who was still trying fruitlessly to stand. The guard's hand reached the belt, and he picked it up slowly, smiling.

"Not so tough without your toys, are you boy?" He jeered.

Robin bristled. Boy? He could knock this pathetic excuse for hired muscle out in a second flat, but he couldn't risk any sudden movements. Not when the man had a gun pointing straight at him and his injured friend.

Robin kept inching backwards, watching the man closely. Please let him try to open it! Come on!

Finally the man's curiosity got the better of him as Robin knew it would, and he absentmindedly fingered one of the batarangs attached the the inside of the belt. Instantly he went rigid and Robin heard the satisfying buzz of electricity as the man staggered back and fell to his side, twitching. Robin grinned darkly, which then turned to a grimace as more gunfire rang out in front of him. Giving the discarded belt a few feet from him a final glance, he knelt down, grabbing Kid Flash's arm. It was either the belt, or Wally, which wasn't a competition.

Wincing in sympathy as his friend moaned when pulled to his feet, Robin stood and turned, beginning to run in the opposite direction of the guards. By now the smoke from the fires was thick enough again to lower visibility, and the two made their way quickly into the thick brush to the right of the building. Concern for Wally flooded Robin as he half supported, half dragged him towards the forest ahead. But his attention immediately turned to the heavy booted footsteps of the men behind him and the rattle of gunfire. He heard the bullets lodge themselves in the ground not far from his and KF's feet, and pushed his friends arm higher up on his shoulders. Thank god for poor visibility!

"Come on KF, move! We need to get to cover." Robin said, pulling kid along and looking behind his shoulder. They were coming up to a forest filled with rocky alcoves and canyons. It would be easy to get lost in it. Panting Robin shifted Kid Flash's considerable weight and put a finger to his comm unit. "Artemis, where are you?"

"We had to double around the building! Wolf's tracking your sent. We'll meet up with you soon!"

"Are either of you hurt?"

"No, I was fighting mostly long distance. But it was weird. Either these guy have terrible aim, or they weren't actually trying to hit me."

Robin frowned, thinking as he and KF pushed their way through scratchy bushes and further into the trees, slipping and sliding on loose rocks every once in a while. "Yeah, I know what you mean. There were a few times where they could have easily shot me or KF back there, but they hesitated. Almost like..."

"Like they didn't want to kill us." Kid finished for him. "Something's off. Think about it. They got me in the leg with a sniper. That's what I was trying to tell you guys before I got hit. I don't think they were aiming to kill."

"Yeah", Robin sighed frustrated. "I noticed. And they took my belt. They knew how to weaken us. Guys, I think they're trying to capture us alive."

Artemis "hmmed" in agreement. "So the others?"

"It's pretty overstandable," Robin whispered. "But I think they're alive. Alive and held captive."

"Deja vu." Artemis growled. And Robin couldn't help but agree.

"Overstandable?" Wally asked.

"Y'know. It doesn't make sense."

Groaning, Wally opened his mouth to say something when suddenly there was a rustle to their left, and he and Robin whirled around to face the thick trees. They froze. Four men, all armed with semi automatics, and this time Robin got the impression that the owners aiming guns at their chests would be more than happy to pull the trigger.

One of them standing to the left stepped forward, his stance tense and his eyes dark and serious. "We have orders to either bring you in or kill you," he said gruffly. "The choice is yours."

Keeping his voice calm, Robin began stalling for time. "Will you bring us to our teammates? Do you have them?"

The man's face twisted into a nasty grin. "That's classified kiddies. And I wouldn't tell you even if I knew. Now I'd suggest you put your hands where I can see them and get on your knees. Now."

Ice seemed to settle in Robin's veins once again and he glanced at Kid Flash quickly. His friend gave a tired nod, and Robin slowly, painfully helped him to the ground. The two then raised their arms slowly, Kid leaning on Robin's shoulder for support.

"Smart move." The man said, keeping his gun pointed at their chests as he moved forward with the other guards. "Having collateral against the Bat and Superman... we're as much as home free."

Robin was still working on processing that final statement when a slight whistle caught his attention. He and Kid Flash had heard it enough times to react. Robin grabbed KF, and the two dived to the side as an explosion rocked the ground around them. Robin remembered feeling himself being flung through the air, hitting something hard, a sickening painful crack, and then everything going black.

End Flashback

"Wait!" Robin gasped, clutching his head. "The guards! Where are the guards?"

"Easy Boy Wonder," a female voice said quickly, and Robin blinked up to see Artemis now kneeling down in front of him, "those muscle heads are out cold, and gagged for good measure. But we do need to move now that you're awake. That explosion wasn't exactly..." She paused, looking a bit sheepish, "...subtle."

Wally snorted. "More like it was blatantly obvious. And you guys say I suck at being stealthy."

"Hey, it was either that, or be captured. And I don't feel like pulling off another solo rescue mission"

Wally shrugged. "You could have at least used foam or a net or... or I dunno! Something less painful!"

"Yeah, great idea Wally!" Artemis snapped, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "Trapping you two with the four men who wanted to kill you! That's a real brainwave."

"Kinda like the one you had when you shot an explosive arrow at us and nearly killed me and Rob!"

The pain in his head coming to a particularly excruciating spike, Robin held up his hand for quiet, and miraculously, the other two fell silent. He used the blessed calm to think. His head was throbbing, making him feel sick, and he gingerly felt the back of his skull and winced. His hand came away bloody. Probably a concussion. Brilliant. Batman was gonna kill him.

Gathering his thoughts, Robin took a long steadying breath. "We need to get away from here before reinforcements come, so we can try and figure out what happened to the others. But first things first, we need to contact the League."

The other two fidgeted, looked at each other, and then back at Robin.

"Uh, we tried." Wally said slowly. "But, for whatever reason, we can't reach them with our comm units."

"What?" Robin said sharply, surprised. "But we were talking to each other just a few minutes ago."

"Yeah." Artemis said. "But they blocked the signal or something. Now all we hear is static."

"Alright." Robin sighed, starting to feel panic eat away at the edges of his composure. "Then we have to stop whatever is blocking the signal."

"But what about the others?" KF asked shakily. "We can't just leave them with those creeps! We need to rescue them first!"

Rubbing his temple and wishing his headache would subside so he could think straight, Robin considered the situation. Normally contacting the League was the top priority. But that was because they could back up the team if they needed help. Right now, Aqualad, Superboy, and M'gann were the ones in the most immediate danger. And the ones who could help them were sitting here in this rocky clearing, debating whether to act or not.

"Yeah, okay fine. Our first objective is to try and rescue the others." Assuming they're still alive. He couldn't help thinking the last part which brought a new wave of nausea back. He worked hard to fight it down. The guards final words before the explosion were hopeful, but being Batman's partner meant you thought through all possible scenarios. No matter how grim the prospects. "But if it's too dangerous or an opportunity comes up where we can shutdown whatever's jamming our comm's signals, we take it. This whole mission has blown way over our heads."

Artemis nodded and Kid Flash scowled, but didn't object. Sitting up a bit straighter, Robin looked around cautiously at the burnt trees and bits of splintered wood and cracked rock scattered across the clearing. "KF, how's your leg?" He asked.

"Well...," Wally shrugged. "It's pretty much stopped bleeding already. That's the good part about super fast healing."

"Let me see." Robin ordered, then flinched. He hadn't meant to sound so demanding.

Shifting his position to lean on his good leg, Wally gingerly moved so that the back of his shin was visible. He had been right, the bleeding had slowed to almost nothing as the injury began to form a scab. But there was only an entrance wound, which meant the injury was still going to be a problem. Robin only hoped any muscle damage or internal bleeding caused by the bullet would heal on its own as well.

"I don't suppose either of you have Iodine or bandages on you?" He asked, Alfred's first aid lectures coming to the forefront of his mind.

"No." They answered in unison.

"Perfect." Robin wished he had his belt for what he was sure would be the first of many times tonight. He pondered if he should use strips from his cape as a makeshift bandage. But the fabric would be nearly impossible to tear, not to mention extremely unhygienic. Besides, if the bleeding was already slowing on its own, there was little need as long as they kept Wally off his leg.

"Oh, wait, I do have this though!" Artemis said, picking something up to her right and handing Robin a sheathed knife and taser. She turned and handed Wally a taser as well. "I got them off two of the guards I was tying up. I noticed you don't have your belt, and Wally is sorta out of action too."

"Yeah, thanks Artemis." Robin managed a grateful half smile, taking his weapons while Wally sat beside him, gazing at his own taser with a weird look on his face. Robin didn't recognize the brand, but a taser was a standard part of his arsenal. The knife on the other hand was a different story. He had been trained to fight using nonlethal methods and from a far distance, neither of which required a blade. But he had still been taught the basics of handling a knife by Batman and it looked like those lessons were about to be put to the test. Still, Robin felt reassured as he held the blade and taser in his hands. At least he wasn't defenseless.

At that moment, something nudged Robin's back, making him jump and turn sharply, but it was only Wolf. The huge white animal nudged him with its muzzle again before turning to look to their left, a low warning of a growl escaping his throat.

In an instant, Robin's senses were on full alert. "We've taken to long!" He stood up and swayed dangerously, but blinked several times and put a hand on Wolf's back for balance... Wolf!

"KF, come climb on Wolf's back!"

"What! Why!?"

"Because he can carry you a lot easier then me or Artemis!"

Wally opened his mouth to argue but Robin cut him off. "They're coming KF, just do it!"

Looking a bit nervous, Wally took Robin's outstretched arm, limping the few steps to stand by the animal. Kneeling down, Robin gave his friend a boost up by his good leg, and the next second Kid Flash was sitting on top of an indignant looking Wolf.

"Let's move!" Artemis whispered, and the four disappeared deeper into the shadows.

It was all Wally could do to grab fistfuls of hair and hold on for dear life. True, they weren't going particularly fast, but Wolf was heading deeper into the trees at a confident trot that was already making him sore. Grudgingly Wally had to admit that this idea wasn't as sucky as he originally imagined. With his leg as busted up as it was, the alternative was being dragged through this rough rocky terrain, which would pretty much mean immanent capture. Still, Wally hated relying on an oversized dog for transport. He was one of the fastest people alive for heavens sake! And here he was, stuck with a bullet lodged in his leg and no help to anyone.

Robin stumbled and Wally quickly looked down. His friend had one hand entangled in the Wolf's thick white hair for support as they made their way through the unsteady rocks and prickly pine branches. "You okay?" He asked.

"Fine. Just a bit dizzy. It'll pass."

Wally sort of doubted that. Robin had been out for a good minute after that explosion, and he could see dried blood in his friend's hair.

"Okay, here's as good a place as any." Artemis whispered from the front of their procession, and the group stopped.

"So?" The archer asked, walking over to stand by Wolf's head and staring at Robin. "What's our plan?"

Leaning heavily against Wolf, Robin looked up at Wally, then over at Artemis. "I still have my wrist computer. If we get near the building I should be able to download its schematics and figure out likely places the others are being held at, and the best way to get there.

"And how about the army of guards that are sure to be patrolling the building's perimeter?" Artemis asked, hands on her hips.

Robbin shrugged. "Aqualad chose us because he thought we would be the best at not getting caught. Let's prove he was right."

Wally's stomach plummeted. He'd been put on this team because he was fast. Fast enough to grab the gun out of an unsuspecting baddies hand before they could blink. Without his speed he was just a teenager with a big mouth.

"Uh, Rob." He said uncertainly. "There's no way I can run on this leg."

"Obviously." His friend said rolling his eyes.

Folding his arms, Wally glared down at him. Robin wasn't making admitting this any easier. And the throbbing pain radiating through his leg might have been making Wally a bit touchy to begin with. "Yeah! So I'm pretty much the worst person to bring on a stealth mission right now!"

"Don't be an idiot." Artemis sighed exasperatedly. But Robin cocked his head to one side and looked up at his friend.

"KF, just because you can't run, doesn't mean you can't be helpful."

Kid Flash snorted. "Uh, yeah actually, that's exactly what it means. Think dude. Without my speed I'll just slow you guys down."

"Yeah right," Robin said annoyed. "I might be a great hacker and stuff, but I have no clue what I'm looking for in terms of whatever is jamming our comm units. That science stuff is totally your expertise, not mine. Besides, another person on the mission means you can help keep a look out. You can tell us if Wolf's sensed anything unusual. And that taser you're carrying isn't just for show."

Wally feel silent, taken off guard. He had just complained to Robin of all people because he couldn't use his powers. Smooth Wally. And yet his friend had found a way to make him feel better anyway. "Uh, okay yeah!" He said, pulling himself together. Robin was right, of course he could still help. Where had that self pity party come from? "Sorry, I was being stupid."

Robin grinned up at his friend. "That's nothing out of the ordinary."

KF scowled and tried to kick Robin with his good leg, but the younger boy laughed and ducked out of the way.

Artemis stepped between the two. "As much as I hate to interrupt this little bromance, I'd like to remind you that our friends are in serious danger here!"

Robin and Kid Flash mellowed immediately. "Right." Robin whispered. "Come on, let's double back. And this time we take out any guards we find."

The other two nodded, with grim determination.

Conner shifted slowly, his consciousness swimming with foggy memories he couldn't quite grasp. He was laying on something cold and hard, and he felt...funny. No, not funny, something hurt. The realization that he was actually in pain shocked Superboy so much that he snapped into full alertness, shifting into a sitting position with a groan. Immediately, and to his amazed shock, his arms buckled the moment they tried to support his wait and he fell pathetically back to the ground.

What the hell?

"Superboy?" A small scared familiar voice ventured, and he blinked and looked over to see relieved amber eyes staring at him. It was M'gann. She was about ten feet away, her hands cuffed together and attached to a short chain. Her small huddled form was illuminated brilliantly by a bright flickering light.

It only took Conner a second to pull the puzzle pieces in front of him into a vivid and terrifying scene. Wotan sat cross-legged across the room from Conner, while flames danced in front of him in mid air. The Wizard rested unconcernedly between a weak M'gann and unconscious Aqualad, both of who Conner knew were extremely vulnerable to heat. Kaldur lay unmoving upon the floor, his breaths laboured, while M'gann tried fruitlessly to pull further back from the source of the fire. But the restraints ensured she was too close to escape its effects.

Something dark and instinctive boiled up inside Conner, and, forgetting his pain and weakness, he snarled and threw himself forward. Immediately he was snapped backwards by a chain attached to his wrists and once again fell in a heap to the ground, outraged. He was Superboy! Since when couldn't he break a few flimsy bands of metal?

"Stop Superboy." Magann whispered. "Look."

She glanced to a spot above Conner and he followed her gaze to see a shining green rock floating in mid air above him. He had to close his eyes and take several breaths after glancing up at it. That stone was the culprit making him feel so weak. Even with it being feet from him it still rendered his powers useless.

"Get this stuff away from us or I'll tear you apart!" Conner threatened darkly, staring at the wizard. The man merely smiled wickedly before muttering a single word.

"Nrub."

Instantly the fire dancing on the other side of the room intensified, and M'gann whimpered and tried once again to draw away from the flames. Her restraints clinked together pitifully. Even Conner could feel waves of heat radiating from the wizard's spell and could only imagine how M'gann or Kaldur were taking it.

"STOP IT!" He yelled uselessly before blinding anger made speech beyond his current thought processes. He simply envisioned how hard his fist would smash into this guy's face once he was free. But it was all he could do to thrash around in his restraints and mutter incomprehensibly.

It could only have been a few seconds before he was lying still on the grimy cement floor again, panting hard and cursing the existence of Kryptonite.

"Superboy!" M'gann cried out weakly. "Are you okay?"

A soft click and the eerie creek of a rusty door being opened pronounced a new arrival. The stupid rock must have been messing with more then Conner's strength because he should have heard someone approaching far before now. Pain and exhaustion were rather rare sensations for Superboy, but he fought through them to push himself up slightly and look to his left where footsteps were now echoing.

A low amused laugh made Conner clench his fists in fury. He knew that voice.

"How's it feel to be weak Superboy? Vulnerable. At my mercy." Sportsmaster stopped to stare down at Conner like a vulture contemplating its next meal.

"What do you want?" Conner spat, frayed nerves making his anger spike even higher.

"Right to the point I see. Good. I don't feel like wasting time" Sportsmaster crouched down in front of Conner who attempted to leverage a fist at the man's masked face. But Sportsmaster caught Conner's wrist in mid swing and squeezed hard. Pain made him snarl once again and Conner tried to force his hand from the villains grasp, but it was no use. The Kryptonite was doing its job. Conner had never felt so helpless before and it scared him, which in turn made him even angrier.

"I want information about your mentors. And you're going to give it to me." Sportsmaster purred.

"Go to hell!"