Robin: Betrayal # 2

“What are we going to do?” Wonder Girl asked, fear painted on her face.

“I’ve got an idea.” Superman stated. “Kyle, I’m going to tear open a hole in the wall to our left, when I do that, I want you to get everyone out of here and down to earth, got it?”

“Alright, Supes! But what about the crew members on the bridge and medical bay, hell, Nightwing is down there!? We can’t just leave them here to die!”

“Everyone on the bridge knows the safety protocols, and there are emergency transporters in the medical bay, they’ll be fine, now get ready.”

“If you say so. Wait, what about you, what will you be doing while we’re getting to safety?”

“I’m going to try and slow this the towers decent to lessen the impact.”

“Clark, don’t be foolish!” Batman yelled over the still blaring alarm. “You won’t be able to do it alone; Connor, you’re going to stay behind and help him, got it?”

“No, Bruce, it’s too dangerous, I won’t allow him to risk his life unnecessarily!”

“Wake up, Clark! If he doesn’t stay behind to help you, more people will die down there when the Watchtower makes impact, do you really want that on your conscience?”

With time running out and seeing the truth in Batman’s words, Superman conceded.

“Alright. Connor, are you okay with that?”

“You know me, Clark, always ready.” Superboy replied, putting on a smile to reassure his friends.

“Alright then, let’s go!”

“Wait! Just in case I don’t make it back…”

Reaching over and taking Wonder Girls hand, he pulled her close to him.

“Cassie, in case I don’t make it back, just know that I love you, okay?”

He pulled her up against him and pressed his lips against hers. He broke the kiss slowly, not really anxious for it to end. The next thing he felt was her hand slapping him across the face.

“You big jerk!” she screamed at him. “Don’t talk like that! You have to come back.”

She started to choke up.

“You just have to.”

“He will, Cassie, I promise.” Superman broke in. “Connor, we don’t have any more time for this, let’s go.”

“Alright, Clark, let’s do it!”

“Remember to take a deep breath before we get out there.”

“I know.”

Superman wasted no time. In a blink, he was standing in front of the wall, digging his fingers into the thick metal like it was tissue paper. He paused for a brief moment before pulling it free and turned to the group.

“Now, Kyle!”

With that, he tore the large chunk from the wall just as a green globe encompassed the last of the other heroes. Green Lantern, with friends in tow, was the first to go through the opening.

Superman motioned to Superboy to go ahead. The truth was, he wanted to keep an eye on him; he’d made a promise to Cassie, and he intended to keep it.

It was always strange to see that the concept of ‘truth justice and the American way’, an ideal which most Americans had turned their backs on long ago, being embraced so strongly by a man not even native to this world.

As soon as Superboy made his way through the opening, Superman followed right behind him.

Once out side, he motioned to his impromptu partner, pointing to the spot on the tower he wanted him to be. They each took their positions, pushing the huge tower with all their might as flames began to consume it upon reentry into earth’s atmosphere. Neither of them looked back, they knew how long they had to slow this behemoth down, and they didn’t need any distraction.

Still pushing with everything they had, the man and boy of steel fought as if their lives depended on it, their muscles already feeling the strain. Just as they passed through the exosphere and began entering the thermosphere, the unthinkable happened. A single bolt of black energy made its way towards them. Superboy looked back just in time to see it was going to his Superman directly. He panicked, not knowing what to do, his mind racing.

Damn it, he won’t be able to hear me out here in space. How the hell can I reach him? C’mon, Connor, think of something! Wait…I’ve got it!

He began using his heat-vision, aiming directly at Superman’s right hand. As the beam reached him, Superman looked up quickly, shocked as to why Connor would be messing around at a time like this. As he caught sight of Connor, he noticed him motioning violently in earth’s direction but, by the time he turned around, it was too late. The bolt met its mark, slamming Superman into the Watchtower with great force. A half-second later, his vision went black.

Superboy could only watch as Superman was left alone, floating in space, but he couldn't take the time to stop for him now.

He’ll be fine, he’s Superman for God’s sake! Besides, every tiny bit I slow this thing down means at least another hundred lives saved. Of course, without Superman here, there’s no guarantee I’ll survive this… Shut up, you moron! You’ve got to make it back! For the Titans, for Robin, for…Cassie. C’mon, just keep pushing!


Next the Watchtower broke through the mesosphere, the pressure becoming harder and harder for Superboy to take.

Still pushing with everything he had, Superboy’s mind raced.

You can do this, Connor, just don’t think about it. You’ve faced everything from inter-dimensional demons to helping little old ladies cross the street, this is nothing! Of course, in those times, I always had my team to back me up… Shut up moron! Are you out of your damn mind? Thinking like that will get you killed!

Still, he pressed on, no matter how bad his muscles ached, he pressed on.

C’mon, Connor, you can do this! But wait, that’s just it, Connor Kent, can’t do this… but I’m something bigger than that. The day I first wore this symbol on my chest, I became I symbol myself, and I’ll be damned if I let this thing beat me! Push harder, Superboy!

He was on his last leg, most of his energy gone. He felt his strength continue to slip away as he pushed with all of his might against the tower that, had at one time, made him sleep easier at night, just knowing it was there with the worlds greatest heroes onboard, watching the earth with sharp eyes. That feeling was now gone as he fought to stop this station that everyone once thought infallible, from killing the very people it was put in place to protect.

He looked down, noticing the earth closing in on him. He was only a few thousand feet from the ground now, but knowing that only made him push harder. It seemed to him like he had been fighting for hours, but the truth was, it had only been minutes.

Closer and closer they fell together, the man and the machine, the hero and the monstrosity; David had finally met his Goliath, and this was his moment of truth, his time to slay the giant or die trying.

The farther he fell, the more force his opponent seemed to gain. Yes, this was his opponent, at least that’s the way he felt. He didn’t know where it was headed, he never looked back to see, but for all he knew, it could be friends or family below, he couldn’t let them die, not on his watch.

C’mon, push… PUSH!

He repeated that last word in his mind over and over as his fall came to its end. With an echoing boom, probably heard for miles, his long journey ended, with a crash.

After touching down, Robin and Wonder Girl immediately rushed over to the downed satellite, which surprisingly, suffered little damage from the crash. Superman beat the both of them there, already lifting the immense Watchtower and putting it aside.

As the giant station hit the ground, yet again, it made a loud thud. But there, where the monstrosity once lay, was Superboy.


Everyone rushed to his side, Flash, of course, getting there first. He knelt down and checked for his pulse, a few moments later, he pulled back his mask and turned to face the rest of the group, tears glistening in his eyes.

“NOOOOOOOO!” Wonder girl screamed, tears already flowing freely from her eyes.

She ran over to Superman and began beating on his chest.

“YOU PROMISED HE'D BE OKAY, YOU BASTARD! Y-YOU PROMISED!”

She fell to her knees, repeating herself.

“You promised. You promised.”

Her voice began to weaken each time.

“You promised.”

Finally, he voice left her, only sobs escaping from her mouth.

Superman knelt down, putting his arms around her, tears streaming down his cheeks. Even the man of steel it seemed, could be broken.

“I’m so sorry, Cassie. I did everything I could, I swear.”

She buried her face in his chest, continuing to cry her eyes out.

“I’m sorry.” He repeated over and over.


Robin, no longer able to hold it in, fell to the ground and screamed, both in sorrow and anguish. Batman, the only person left with dry eyes, stood over him and placed a hand on his shoulder.

“I know it’s hard, Tim.” Wonder Woman said, kneeling in front of him. “But I promise you, we’ll make sure that Connor’s death wasn’t in vain.”

“Somehow, Diana,” Robin said, clenching his fist. “ that’s just not good enough.”

He stood to his feet in a huff, anger overwhelming him.

“I lost my best friend just now, you think avenging him will make everything better? Newsflash, IT WON’T BRING HIM BACK!”


“She knows that, Tim.” Batman said calmly. “But are you saying you’d rather let the person responsible for his death go unpunished?”

Robin glared at Batman, hands balled into fists, furious. The hardest part was knowing that Batman was right, and right now, he didn’t want him to be. He wanted this all to be a dream, or nightmare, or whatever, just anything but real. Finally, his tensioned eased, and he unclenched his fists.

“You’re right, Batman. Let’s do what we have to do.”

He turned to his left where Superman and Wonder Girl were just getting to their feet.

He walked over to Wonder Girl, gently embracing her.

“I swear he’ll pay, Cass. I’ll make sure Trigon pays for this.”

“We both will, Tim.” she replied, patting him on the back.

He pulled away and faced the rest of the group.

Looking over at J’onn, he noticed his eyes glowing yellow.

“What is it, J’onn?”

“Good news, Robin. I just spoke with Green Arrow and, there is a message waiting at the Hall of Justice from Donna Troy. He also said that Nightwing, Alfred and the staff of the Watchtower all made it there safely. I already had him transport Best Boy and Ravager to see to their injuries. He is ready to transport us when we’re ready.”

“Let’s go now!” Robin said anxiously.

“Wait!” Batman cautioned. “Look at what happened to the Watchtower after we arrived; being on earth, the Hall will be a much easier target for Raven. If we go there, we can’t stay long.”

“Bruce is right.” Hawkman agreed. “We have to get in and out as quickly as possible or the Hall will be hit just as hard.”

“Wait a minute!” Robin interrupted. “Has anyone noticed where we’re standing?”

Everyone looked around for the first time at the crumbled buildings surrounding them and, with horror, noticed where they were.

“This is Bludhaven!” Robin finished.

Thinking quickly, J’onn contacted Green Arrow telepathically. Shortly after making contact he addressed his comrades.

“At the time the Watchtower began falling, the Halls’ sensors were knocked offline. There was no way to know that the Watchtower was falling, so no evacuation was called for. I’ve swept the entire city for life… no one survived.”

A dark cloud seemed to hang over them, with no sign of leaving in sight.

“An entire city… gone. Just because that bastard demon threw another hissy-fit!” Robin said, enraged.

“Calm down, Tim.” Batman said coolly.

“Y’know, Bruce, I’m really sick of you telling me to ‘calm down’ every five seconds! I’m as calm as I can possibly be right now, so lay off!”

All was silent for a brief moment then, Hawkman continued, picking up right where he'd left off.

“As I was saying, we need to get in and out fast, and only some of us need to continue on, the rest will have to standby in case of an emergency. I’ll go with the group and, once Nightwing’s ready, he can follow along. Clark, Diana, Kyle and J’onn, you’ll need to remain at the hall once we get there.”

“No, Carter, we can’t sit back and let the rest of you risk you’re lives while we do nothing.” Wonder Woman protested.

“Wait, he’s right, Diana.” Superman said, albeit reluctantly. “I may not like it, but he’s right. The rest of us are on damage control, I’m sure a lot of people are already wondering why the Watchtower just leveled a major city; we also have to be ready in case something new comes up.”

Wonder Woman reluctantly gave in.

“I guess you’re right, well, good luck to the rest of you then.”

“Good, then it’s settled.” Hawkman continued. “Batman, Robin, Wonder Girl, Starfire, Flash, Myself, and Nightwing, when he’s ready, will continue on.”

“But wait!” Starfire said, speaking for the first time since before they touched ground. “What about Garfield and Rose, they are a part of this too!”

“She’s right.” Robin agreed. “You can’t just leave them out of this.”

“We have to keep this team as small as possible, and the two of them won’t be of much help on this one.” Hawkman replied. “They each received major concussions from the blast; they have to take it easy for awhile or they’ll never fully heal.”

Robin conceded.

“He’s right, Star; I hate to admit it but he’s right, looks like we’ll have to go on without them. Anyway, can we just get out of here?”

“Yes. And I’ve already made arrangements for Superboy as well.” J’onn replied.

An instant later, they were all covered in a bluish light.