Anjo

23

| All Odds Against Us |

Pain flared through each of the heroes bodies as they trudged through the cemented halls. "So, this is the Legion of Dooms hideout?" Anjo asked, wincing as he breathed a bit too heavily, causing pain to spike from his ribs.

"Yeah," Aqualad confirmed, his steps slow and patient as he supported the wounded speedster. "To think that we weren't able to even put up a fight.. how frustrating."

"You guys didn't know that Joker was here though." Anjo reminded, flashing the distraught heroes a gentle smile. "You guys are alive and that's all that matters." Each faltered in their steps as a wave of relief washed away their previous emotions. Small smiles tugging at their lips, as a few quickly rubbed away the forming tears of relief. Except one. Anjo glanced towards the Archer, her hand still held closely to her chest as she refused to even spare the acrobats body a single glance. "Artemis-" The other began, but quickly stopped once noticing her clenching jaw and frustrated gaze.

"How can you remain so calm?" She questioned, her posture stiffening. The others only seemed to watch her with pity. "You're probably the most wounded out of all of us, you shouldn't even be conscious, yet you're still able to smile and say such calming words.." She met his eyes head on, preparing to say the words dancing about in her mind, but Anjo beat her to it.

"I don't blame you, Artemis." He stated, a blanket of seriousness eloping his body as he looked at her with hard, determined eyes. She looked away, her own eyes locked with her feet, but he didn't miss the small smile gracing her lips. "Now, let's get out of here."

"Since- since when did you become so. leader-ly?" Kid Flash spoke up, shooting his lover a playful look. Anjo rolled his eyes, continuing on his way ahead of the team.

"Shut up." He huffed. His grin fell quickly as he started refocusing on the task at hand. They were still within the Legions of Doom's base after all, and it definitely wouldn't be long until they were discovered. That's to be expected with Joker coming down continuously to entertain himself. The thought in itself made his stomach twist uncomfortably. None of them were in any condition to fight. Probably Superboy and Aqualad, but the Atlantian looked a bit dehydrated and with those inhibitor collars, Superboy could only do so much. The others were out of the question. Artemis's hand was too fucked up, Miss Martian was too weak to even walk on her own, and Wally and himself is already half-dead as it is. To say they were fucked was an understatement. He just wonders when they will be confronted, and as stated before.. it won't be long.

He didn't even have anything remotely close to contact the League, and it was smart to assume the others didn't either. So.. it was a waiting game from here on out. But the idea of all of them holding out until then was wishful thinking. Hell, it'd be a miracle if it happened. He knew for a fact that Kid Flash shouldn't even be walking in his condition and that his lover was well past his limit. As for himself. Well, it was safe to say he was growing tired of swallowing down blood and just really wanted to give into his droopy eyes. But he refused to until the others were safe from enemy hands.

It's the least he could do right now.

"Stop and be quiet." He whispered, glancing around a corner, the others halting behind him.

Plus it was really bugging him how easily he had taken up the mantle of leader during all of this. But, what was he supposed to do when the others had no clue as to what to do and clung to him like glue? It definitely was unnerving, especially with what happened with his last partnership. He quickly shook the thought away. This was not the time to be thinking about that. He had way more than one life relying on him this time.

"Come on." They continued venturing the maze of hallways until they finally came across a stairway. "Any idea where this leads?" He asked, looking back at the others. They all shook their heads, a few mumbling out a quiet 'no'. He expected such. "Alright, stay close and watch each other's backs." He instructed, taking the lead once again. However, he quickly stopped- Artemis bumping into his back during the process- as he heard a set of voices coming their way. He glanced back at the team with wide alarmed eyes. They all matching his expression. "Hurry back down." He whispered, they not at all missing a beat as he kept his ground. Peering around the corner to see a few of the Legions members coming right this way, excited twisted grins pulling at their lips. "Bane, Star Sapphire, and Cheetah.." He mumbled aloud. Glancing back to see that the others were out of sight.

But what was he going to do? As stated before, none of them could properly fight at the moment, and he definitely didn't want to risk Kid Flash getting further injured than he is now. "Anjo, hurry up," Artemis whispered, her head popping up from behind a wall. He bit his lip in thought, glancing back towards the villains, who were coming alarmingly closer. "Anjo," Artemis called again. But he was too injured to fight properly himself. Even if he did engage them, could he possibly buy them enough time to escape?

His chances of surviving would definitely become increasingly low.. but this wasn't just his life anymore. It'll all work out. He told himself with a sigh, the three villains voices grabbing his attention once more.

"Shit." He cursed, bounding down the stairs and past Artemis to where Kid Flash was. "Wally." He called, grabbing the weak speedsters attention. Before the other could even stutter out a word, his lips were locked with theirs. "Hold on a bit longer, 'kay?" He smiled, cupping Kid Flash's face in his palms as he gave a gentle smile.

"Dick, what-what do you mean- Dick!" Kid Flash called as he charged back up the stairs, ignoring his bodies screams of protest and the blood gradually slipping past his lips. Getting into the view of the three villains, his eyes locked with theirs before he ran, they immediately chasing after him with surprised calls.

- To Be Continued -