Zane's pulse quickened, though his breathing stayed steady. He'd expected Kobra. Guards. Maybe even Bane.
He hadn't expected them.
Don't mistake him—he wasn't afraid. But a fight with this group wasn't something he wanted right now.
Beside him, Artemis's fingers curled around her bowstring, body tensing like a coiled spring. Her sharp eyes flicked to him, the unspoken question clear. Attack or retreat?
Zane lifted a hand, palm down. Wait.
---
'Superboy! M'gann! Use the link!' Robin's voice snapped through their minds, sharp and commanding.
The mental channel M'gann had set up for private team communication thrummed to life.
'That's what it's for. Focus up!' Robin continued, eyes scanning their surroundings with practiced precision. His frustration was obvious, but he moved past it instantly—discipline over temper.
The rest of the team mirrored him, spreading into tighter formation, guarding against hidden threats.
'S-sorry!' M'gann's voice wavered apologetically in their heads. 'I just… forgot!'
Superboy's grunt was short and clipped. 'Tch.'
'Report, M'gann,' Aqualad interjected, his tone steady, practical. 'What do you sense?'
Her eyes glowed faintly as she focused, brushing her mind against the area beyond the crates.
Before she could answer, Robin acted.
Robin's lenses glowed faintly as he toggled his mask's filters. Heat signatures flared into view behind the stacked crates—two figures crouched low, their pulses steady. 'We've got company. Two people. Human, armed.'
'I...yes...' Megan, a little sad at being dismissed so casually.
Kid Flash grinned, rolling his shoulders. 'Two? That's it? Please. I'll have them gift-wrapped in seconds.'
"Wally—" Robin started, but the speedster was already gone, a whoosh cutting the air.
Behind the crates, Artemis's bowstring tensed, instincts screaming. Zane's head snapped up at the same moment, his danger sense sparking like static in his chest. "Move—!"
Too late.
A red blur whipped around them, ropes biting tight before either could properly react. In a heartbeat, both Zane and Artemis were yanked off balance, slammed back-to-back on the ground, arms and legs bound in hasty but snug knots.
Zane exhaled slowly through his mask, his tense houlders relaxed despite the restraints. His pulse was steady, calm.
Artemis, on the other hand, thrashed against the cords with wide eyes. "What the—?! He tied us up in one second!"
Kid Flash skidded to a stop in front of them, hands on his hips, chest puffed with pride. "And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how you neutralize hostiles in a flash." He gave a cocky smirk, practically glowing with satisfaction. "Fastest kid alive. You're welcome."
Zane tilted his head against the ropes, mask catching the moonlight. His voice was calm, even faintly amused. "Impressive speed. Terrible knots though."
Seeing how calm Zane was being, Artemis calmed down as well.
The rest of the team closed in from behind the crates, weapons at the ready, formation tight. Robin led them, mask narrowed in suspicion. M'gann floated just off the ground, eyes glowing faintly as she probed at their surface thoughts.
Speedy and Aqualad guarded their surroundings just in case there were more enemies.
Superboy stopped dead in his tracks as his gaze locked on Zane. His scowl melted into shock. "...You?"
The others glanced his way, startled by the change in tone.
Connor stepped closer, fists lowering slightly as recognition set in. "It's him. The one from Cadmus."
Aqualad's head snapped toward him,"Do you know him?"
Connor gave a single, sharp nod. "Cadmus. He was there. Fought me… then helped me escape. Without him, I'd still be trapped in that pod."
That made the team pause. Even Kid Flash, still standing smugly over the two captives, faltered for a moment. "Wait—hold up. You're saying this guy is the reason we even have you around?"
"Part of it," Connor said, tone firm, almost protective.
Robin's gaze stayed locked on Zane, his mind racing. Of course he knows who Zane is, Batman had shown him the Cadmus footage—Zane had survived a direct clash with Superboy. That wasn't something you ignored.
Not only that, Batman had told him that Zane was kept in a Cadmus base in Bludhaven before he escaped.
Zane, meanwhile, lay bound against Artemis, utterly calm. His masked face tilted slightly. "Didn't expect you to remember me, kid. Guess I made an impression."
Connor's jaw tightened. "Not a good one. But… I don't forget when someone throws me a lifeline, either."
Artemis glanced between them, still straining against the knots. "Great. Glad we're bonding. But how about someone gets these ropes off us?"
Kid Flash smirked, wagging a finger. "Uh-uh. Nice try. You don't just walk in, spy on us, and get a free pass. Speedster rule number one: I catch you, you stay caught."
Zane's voice was calm, level—like he wasn't the one tied hand and foot. "Cute. But you might want to listen to your friend here." His mask turned toward Connor. "He knows I'm not your enemy."
The silence that followed was heavy, the team glancing at one another. Leadership fell to Robin, and they all knew it.
M'gann floated closer,seeing a chance to be helpful. "Robin… I can help. I can read their minds. It'll tell us if they're lying," she said, voice tight with nerves.
Robin's mask lenses narrowed. "Do it. Carefully. Don't probe more than necessary."
She swallowed, anxious. Seeing a chance to become closer with the team. She focused on Artemis first, reaching out with her mind.
Artemis's fingers curled into a fist, body coiling like a spring. "Stay out of my head!" she hissed, struggling against the ropes. Anger flared, hot and immediate.
But she remembered the mental drills Zane had drilled into her—the ones meant to shield thoughts, to control emotions under extreme pressure. She forced her mind into loops of meaningless static, burying her true thoughts under layers of controlled noise.
'A,b,c,d,e,f,g,h,i,j,k,l,m,n,o,p....'
M'gann frowned, sweat beading on her forehead. "She's… resisting. Really well. I can't get past her."
Robin's masked gaze flicked toward Zane. "Then the other one. He's the priority."
M'gann hesitated. "I'll try—but… he's different. Something's… wrong."
Zane's surface thoughts spiraled chaotically the moment her psychic tendrils brushed him—snippets of numbers, half-formed melodies, flashes of random images, and repetitive loops.
'Huh....whats going on.'
He realized his Chronos Seed was active, warping every probing touch into endless, useless thought loops. Nothing meaningful leaked.
'If I had know you could do this sooner, I wouldn't of been so afraid of telepaths!', he thought, relief beneath the tension. 'I like you more every day.'
Connor's jaw tightened as he watched silently. Conflicted. 'I owe him… he saved me. But M'gann's just trying to help. I can't stop her— '
His fists flexed, knuckles whitening, but he said nothing.
Wally shifted on his feet, fists balled at his sides. He felt the same unease as Connor but didn't speak. Mainly because of his dislike of someones darkest deepest secrets being so easily known.
Realizing that he doesnt have to focus of controlling his thoughts, Zane decided to act.
His hand flicked toward his robotic arm, his movements fluid and precise. A click, a brief whir, and a spray of DM-foam shot out, wrapping around Wally's feet. In seconds, the speedster was glued to the ground, struggling and hopping as the hardened mass encased his legs like a statue.
"Wha—hey! How'd you get lose!" Wally shouted, kicking and wriggling, but the foam held fast.
"Bad knots!"
With a sharp twist, Zane snapped the cords binding him and Artemis, the ropes falling to the ground in tatters. In a blur, he tossed a small smoke bomb toward Speedy's face. The acrid haze erupted instantly, forcing the young archer's arrow off-target and coughing him back several feet.
Artemis didn't waste a second. Her bow was in her hands, fingers steady. She fired two precise shots: one blunt arrow knocked the wind out of M'gann, while the second pinned a batarang mid-flight, deflecting it harmlessly to the dirt. Her voice was low and aggressive. "Never wanted to skewer someone so bad before."
"I totally get it, she propably saw our night time activities?" Zane teased Artemis as they stood side to side.
Artemis almost faltered for a second.
"!!!...Zane! Focus!"
"Hehe...okay..okay...just kidding..." Zane relented, as he had ready calmed her down enough.
Fighting while is usually never a good move.
The tension between the two groups crackled, a taut wire ready to snap. Both sides instinctively backed away, forming distance as they regrouped and reassessed.
Then a guttural, inhuman roar shattered the moment. Crates toppled, the ground trembled, and a pair of glowing red eyes appeared in the darkness beyond the ridge.
Robin's head snapped toward the noise. "…That, what the hell is that...."
Zane's grin widened. "Looks like the universe doesn't want me beating the Young Justice down just yet." He shifted into a guarded stance, eyes sweeping the ridge.
Artemis moved beside him, bow ready, silently nodding. Both teams instinctively retreated, gaining a wide perimeter as the new threat approached, tension coiling like a drawn bowstring.
The standoff was over. The real fight—whatever was coming—was about to begin.
....
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