Aquaman:
"...Arrggghhhh!"
I couldn't hold it in any longer. My body is on fire. My head is trying to kill me. I can barely breathe without choking. Grinding my teeth, my muscles feeling like a rope that has been stretched too tight and is on the verge of snapping, I grab the edge of my cot and pull myself over. Falling onto the cold, wet floor, I raise my head and look around.
"Jaime," Harleen yells. "Head-up!"
Blue Beetle, looking to his right, sees one of Superman's betas raising its hand. A sharp grappling hook shoots out of its palm. Blue Beetle steps back, dodging the incoming grappling hook. Transforming his hand, he summons an arm cannon, very similar to Cyborg, and raises it. Placing the barrel of his arm cannon right against the beta's head, Blue Beetle fires. The beta's head flies off. The top of its neck sparks with exposed wires before its whole body falls over.
"Gracias," Blue Beetle says.
"Te amo," Harleen yells back.
"Uhhh," Blue Beetle says, coughing and looking down before looking back up. "Harleen. That means 'I love you' in Spanish. I think you meant to say 'de nada'. "
"I know what I said!"
Harleen laughs before shooting more betas as they enter the room. Beetle and Harleen destroy the last of the betas before Firestorm flies in and slams the doors shut. Using his power, he places his hands on the golden doors and changes them. The doors glow brighter, almost blinding me, before coming to a stop. Now, instead of golden, they're black and shining.
"These iron doors should hold them back," Firestorm says. "Right, Professor?"
Something then hits the iron doors. A loud bang echoes throughout the whole door. Firestorm screams and jumps back. Another loud bang hits the doors. The doors are barely holding themselves together. Firestorm raises both his hands and summons two fireballs. Blue Beetle runs to Firestorm's side and raises both his hands, both of them turning into arm cannons. A third loud bang hits the doors. The large iron doors break off their hinges. They fly toward Firestorm and Blue Beetle, hitting and knocking the two down.
"Firestorm," Harleen shouts. "Beetle!"
Harleen raises her dual guns and aims at the person as he walks into the room, his eyes dark red.
"Oh no," I say.
The Man:
Raising my arms, I block a punch from Batman. Stepping back for only a second, Batman goes for a roundhouse kick. He lifts his leg and almost hits me in the hip, but I raise my knee and block his kick, my bones shaking as they feel the cold metal boot of Batman. Moving fast, I throw a straight punch, hitting and striking Batman in his chest.
Batman gasps for air as he is thrown back. Falling to the floor and sliding across it, Batman finally stops a few feet away. He slams his hand over his chest. Lowering my leg, my feet back on the wet floor, I hear the sound of an arm cannon warming up and jump. Lunging forward, I roll across the floor before landing on both my feet and jumping up and running.
"Stay still," Cyborg shouts, holding his arm cannon as he fires countless blasts at me. Lining up the shot, his one red eye glowing brightly, he then fires at me. Stopping, my feet sliding along the floor, I pull out one of my swords and hold the handle with both my hands. Pulling back my sword, I then swing my sword like a batter at home plate. Hitting and deflecting Cyborg's blast, I throw it back at Cyborg. Both of Cyborg's eyes go wide as his own attack hits and knocks him back.
"Home run," I say. "Thanks for the lesson, George."
Pushing the button, my sword folds in on itself, the blade sliding into the handle. Pocking the handle, I rush toward the exit door, but before I can reach it, a batarang shoots past me and hits the door. Stopping, I turn around and look at Batman. Panting and still holding his hand over his chest, Bruce takes a deep breath, inhaling before pushing himself up. He brings up his fists.
As I look at Bruce and at the batarange sticking to the door, I begin to sense something off.
"Victor wasn't firing at full power," I think, "No. He was firing at only a quarter power. And Bruce? He missed me. I've seen Bruce throw batarangs countless times, almost always hitting his target. Something is wrong. It feels like they're both holding back, but why?"
Before I could think of an explanation, Bruce lunges at me. He starts bombarding me with countless punches and kicks, twisting and turning, jumping and flipping. As Bruce steps back again, he throws another punch. Bruce's armored fist goes straight for me, but not my head or body. Judging from how he is punching, the height of where his hand is, along with its trajectory, Bruce is going for a shoulder punch, but not to just hit my shoulder. Bruce is hoping to strike a nerve bundle and paralyze my left arm.
Moving faster, I step and turn. Bruce's fist hits the empty air instead of my shoulder. Grabbing his hand and holding onto it, I lock Bruce in before raising my hand and uppercutting him. My fist hits Bruce's jaw, and he stumbles back before falling onto the floor.
"Again," I think. "Far too easy. Why?"
As I look over Bruce, trying to come up with an explanation as to why he and Cyborg are holding back, I notice something on his utility belt. One of the compartments is marked red, while the others are golden. Dropping to one of my knees, I reach over and open the marked compartment. Pulling out something small, black, and rectangular, very similar to a hard drive, I flip it over. Drawn on the back are two symbols. One is a bat, and the second one is a T.
"Batman? Teen Titans?"
As I look over the hard drive, I hear a familiar sound. Gripping the drive with one hand, I jump, backflipping into the air before landing on one hand and then pushing myself back into the air. Landing on my feet, I look at Cyborg as he walks over to the downed Batman. Looking at me, Cyborg grabs Batman. He shoots out his hand, calling for a boom tube.
"Everyone," Cyborg shouts into his wrist. "Fall back! This is Cyborg, and I repeat. Fall back!"
Lowering his hand, Cyborg looks at me again before disappearing into the Boom Tube with Batman. With Cyborg and Batman gone now, I walk over the glass dome and look out into the sea. One Earth submarines are quickly fleeing Atlantis, with dozens of escape pods following them. As I watch the entire One Earth fleet swim away, I begin to hear a dozen familiar voices.
"They're leaving," Barry shouts through the earpieces.
"Finally," Oliver moans. "I'm down to my last two arrows."
"Is everyone okay?" Kara asks. "Had anyone found The Man?"
I place my finger against my earpiece.
"Don't worry. I'm still alive."
I hear Kara sigh, and feel a smile growing.
"Everyone. Role call. Now!"
"Supergirl here."
"Captain Cold here."
"Red Hood, still here and kicking."
One by one, I listen as everyone starts confirming they are okay. However, after hearing everyone's role call and then rechecking everyone's name in my head, I realize something.
"Harleen. Are you there? Harleen? Beetle? Firestorm? Jason! Professor Stein!"
I listen and wait for their response, but I hear nothing.
"When was the last time anyone saw the three?"
"I talked with them a while ago," Kara answers. "They didn't sound like they were in trouble. At least, not too much trouble."
"So did I," Barry adds, "The last time I heard, Harleen, Jaime, and Firestorm were at sick bay, guarding Arthur and the other sick Atlanteans."
"Everyone, meet up at sick bay immediately."
Lowering my hand and turning around, I run straight toward the tall, golden doors. Without stopping to push them open, I run right into them, the golden doors flying off their hinges. Running fast, I regroup with the others: Cheetah, Reverse Flash, Selina, and everyone else.
Running toward sick bay, we all stop when we see the golden doors off their hinges.
"Harleen!"
Kara screams and runs into sick bay. We follow her and stop again when we see most of the sick Atlanteans on the floor. Breathing heavily, fighting for air, and covered in white rashes, I turn to Flash and Reverse Flash.
"You two, quickly. They get them back up on their cot."
Reverse Flash and Flash look at me.
"Now!"
They jump before snapping out of it and using their speed. They quickly pick up the Atlanteans and gently set them back down on the cots. Meanwhile, Cold calls me.
"Sunglasses! We find Jaime."
Pulling out some seeds from her excell-neno suit, Ivy throws them on the floor. They quickly grow into thick, brown roots that lift the broken door into the air. Cold rushes in before coming back out with Jaime, his helmet broken. I walk up to Jaime and see Professor Stein and Jason Rusch also beneath the door.
"Oliver. You and Slade. Help them."
Oliver and Slade rush to help carry Jason Rusch and Professor Stein out from beneath the door. While Oliver and Slade gently place the two in some extra cots, Barry approaches me from behind.
"Hey," he starts, "While Eobard and I were helping the Atlanteans, I noticed that Aquaman was missing."
"Missing?"
When I speak, I hear a small whisper. Turning, I see Jaime slowly waking up.
"Jaime? Jaime, stay with me."
I turn toward the Junker. Thankfully, despite some damage from who knows what, the Junker is still floating. Placing my fingers against my earpieces, I call the Doc.
"Doc. Get out here. Now! I don't care about your fear. You need to get out of here."
I lower my fingers and look back at Jaime.
"Jaime. What happened here?"
"Golden man," he moans, then whispers. "Attack...Too strong....Took Harleen and...and Aquaman."