Chapter 85: 85

| Gotham Academy - August 3 Artemis had spent her childhood learning the brutal lessons her father had beaten into her—skills meant for a life she never wanted. But when she saw her next-door neighbor, Joseph, being harassed by thugs working for a man named Anton Karoselle, she put those skills to use. She tracked Karoselle down and sabotaged his illegal operations, only stopping when Two-Face took him out for good. After that, she tried to leave it all behind. Her mother had returned, and for the first time in years, Artemis thought she could live a normal life. But that illusion shattered when her father came back. Lawrence Crock had no love for Paula, and the feeling was mutual. The two argued constantly, old wounds and regrets resurfacing with every word. Paula still carried the weight of her past—going to prison, ending up in a wheelchair—but she refused to let Artemis follow the same path. Her older daughter had already left during her time away, and she was determined not to lose Artemis, too. She had given up her old life, and she demanded Lawrence do the same. If not, he could leave. He laughed at the idea. And he walked out. Overhearing their argument, Artemis made a decision of her own. She wouldn't be like her father. She wouldn't be like her sister. Then, as if fate approved of her choice, "daddy" got himself arrested. With nothing holding her back anymore, Artemis put on her costume. For the past few days, she had been hitting the streets of Gotham, stopping a robbery at a small store, catching a jewel thief, and taking down even more criminals. It felt good to do good. That's how she found herself patrolling that night—when she spotted a boy being hurled through the sky. She followed him to Gotham Academy, where a group of young heroes were locked in battle against towering, muscular green robot gorillas. She recognized Nova. Kid Flash. Even Professor Ivo, a name she knew from her father's past. But before she could get a closer look, she was discovered. Small, monkey-like robots—dark metallic gray with glowing green joints, eyes, and mouths—emerged from the shadows, closing in fast. ** Nova shook off the sting from the green beams that had struck his eyes. At first, all he could see was blinding green light, but he quickly countered, firing a beam of yellow Nova Force straight from his own eyes. He'd experimented with Nova force and determined he could release energy from any part of his body but this was the first time he tried during it from his eyes as he was scared that it would render him blind. Seeing as he took the green beams just fine, he lost his hesitation. Green met yellow in a violent clash. Nova's beam overpowered the robot's, pushing into its optical sensors as he pulled it closer with his anti-gravity control. The gorilla bot fought back, its arms extending to land a punch—barely a tickle against Nova's enhanced durability. He kept up the pressure until his beam burned through the robot's head. The glow in its body flickered out as it powered down, lifeless. Across the gym, Kid Flash blurred between energy blasts from another gorilla bot. The gym floor, bleachers, and walls took the hits instead, leaving behind destruction the school definitely would not be happy about. Meanwhile, Ivo was already making his escape, carried by the third robot gorilla. Nova hesitated for a second. Wally had the Speed Force formula now—his speed had doubled. He could handle himself. Superboy was there too. They had this. Nova shot after Ivo. The green gorilla had already exited the building, swinging through Gotham like Tarzan, using its extendable arms to latch onto buildings. The sight reminded Nova of when he had first taken Black Spider's suit as Flux, swinging through the city on red webs. Dozens of MONQIs flew out to intercept him. Nova barely slowed, taking them down mid-flight with pinpoint-accurate energy beams from his eyes. He closed in. His fist flared with yellow Nova Force. With a burst of speed, he punched clean through the gorilla's torso. The robot lost power instantly. Ivo turned, fear flashing across his face. "You wouldn't hurt an old man, would you?" He said with a forced smile. "Wrong," Nova said before knocking him out cold. Carrying Ivo, Nova flew back to Gotham Academy. He noticed another person in the building with his Nova sense. Superboy and Kid Flash had finished off the last gorilla bot—one of its eyes pierced by an arrow, its torso caved in by a Kryptonian fist. The hidden person who was now moving away must've fired the arrow. Since they had clearly aided, there was no point chasing them down if they didn't want to appear. Both of Kid Flash and Superboy were on the floor, exhausted. "You guys alright?" Nova asked. "I'm fine. Feeling the aster," Superboy muttered, catching his breath. "I guess Canary was right about channeling my anger." Robin's lingo must've been rubbing off on him. Nova smirked. "Good to hear. The rest of the team should be wrapping up soon. We'll let them know we've secured Ivo." He nodded. "Good work, team." ** | Mount Justice - August 4 The Team stood before Batman, giving their report. Black Canary, Martian Manhunter, Green Arrow, and Red Tornado were also present. "The Amazo android has been safely delivered to both STAR Labs locations, and Professor Ivo is in custody," Kori stated. "Ivo will be transferred to Belle Reve," Black Canary confirmed. "But we understand your mission encountered additional complications," Martian Manhunter added, prompting the entire team to glance at Superboy. "Complications come with the job," Batman said, stepping forward. "Your ability to handle them has impressed the League." Joseph nearly snorted. Complications usually meant unpredictable enemies or mission setbacks—not a teammate storming off in anger. Still, Superboy was only a few months old. He barely had a grip on his emotions, let alone teamwork. Annoying as it was, Joseph supposed he could cut him some slack. "You all did well," Batman continued. "The League is impressed." "The whole League?" Superboy asked, clearly still hoping for Superman's approval. "Given time," Batman said. "Kryptonians, as you know, have very hard heads." Superboy smirked, but Joseph raised an eyebrow. Wasn't that an insult to him, too? "Of course, there's no shame in asking for help," Batman added. "That's why the League exists—some problems are too big for any one of us to handle alone." Robin scoffed. "Please. If we needed help, we wouldn't get the chance to ask. Look familiar?" He held up an arrow—the same one that had been lodged in the gorilla bot's eye. "You were following us. Babysitting. You still don't trust us," Robin accused. Before anyone could argue, Green Arrow stepped forward, taking the arrow from Robin's hand. He examined it closely, then shook his head. "Not mine." He said, exchanging a meaningful look with Batman. That shut Robin up. Wally, Robin, and Kaldur exchanged knowing looks. There was only one other person they knew who could have fired it. "Speedy," Wally muttered before speeding up and taking the arrow from Green Arrow's hand. "Souvenir." With the meeting wrapping up and the clock reading past 1 a.m., Joseph decided to head out. After saying goodbye to Kori, he overheard Superboy speaking to Black Canary, apologizing and promising to resume training. Good on him.