"Cadmus?" Artemis exasperated as her fist met the face of another idiot. "I thought we took care of them!"

"They're the kind of people that just get taken care of, it seems," Kaldur said as a wave washed away the remaining super soldiers. "They will be back. We must hurry."

"What the hell is a Cadmus?" I asked and I striagtened my hair. The dang thing never behaved after a fight.

"Basically, they're evil scientist," Wally said. "Make clones and control aliens."

"Yeah that's kinda how I came about," Superboy chuckled gruffly. "Until these losers saved me."

"Yeah you're welcome for that," Robin teased. He was busy downloading information from one of the computers. I wondered how he did it. Computer genius, athletically inclined, a leader, and a mess of other things. I could barely juggle superhero, home, and school life. Much less than what he goes through.

"I'm going to monitor the hall, make sure no more of those super soldiers are on their way," I strolled past the others.

"Yeah, I'll be done soon." Robin waved his hand like he was swatting at a fly, and returned back to hacking away. He muttered something about firewalls that I caught, but it didn't seem important.

The halls were dark, other than the suspicious flickering of the remaining light bulb. It was almost like a scene from a horror movie. The part where the main character's best friend goes "Oh I'll go check it out!" And then dies. Yeah, I felt like the best friend. A hum filled the dark hall with an eerie tone. I couldn't help but feel that someone, or something, was hidden just beyond the surface of those shadows.

My thoughts we confirmed when I swore I heard the shuffling of feet. Quiet, light footsteps. Someone was here and they were trained. I reached for the sword strapped at my side, ready to grab at a moments notice.

"Man," a voice broke through the hum, "I know they call you Thunderstruck, but I didn't think you'd be that pretty."

"Who's there?" I growled, and unsheathed my sword.

"Whoo there," a boy tread from the shadows. His eyes hidden behind a dark mask. A mop of auburn hair glowed in the yellow flickering light. "I don't want any trouble. I'm just here to talk."

"No one from Cadmus ever just wants to talk," I sneered. He had to be around my age, fifteen-sixteen.

"Who said I was Cadmus?" He laughed, "No I'm not with those losers. I'm apart of a... Much bigger cause."

Someone's in the hallway. I'll deal with him and meet you all back at the Bio-ship.

I thought through Miss Martian's telepathic connection.

"Oh, there's no point in that," he stalked closer. My shoulders and grip on my sword tensed.

"What?"

"Try to talk to your friends through that handy little Martian's telepathy." He tapped his forehead, "You don't have to be an alien to be able to do that." I sneered, launching forward with my sword. But I staggered, feeling like my legs were just attachable parts. They were as heavy as my sword.

"Tsk, tsk. I thought we were going to be friends?" He signed a small, cocky smile on his face. It infuriated me.

"You and me? Oh yeah totally." I rolled my eyes. The weight in my legs lifted, but I knew it would be pointless to go after him again. Not until I knew how to block his telepathy. I would have to ask Miss Martian if tin hats really worked, but I doubted it.

"Oh come on." He got closer, too close for comfort. "You have so much going for you, why would you waste your time with those losers?"

"They're not losers, they're my friends," I sneered.

"Are they? I would've guessed other wise. They're so closely knit together. I would assume-"

"Thunderstruck!" Superboy called, "We're all finished here! Time to go!"

"Alas, our time is cut short. Keep in mind what I said," he smiled.

"Who even are you?"

"Ah, all will be revealed soon enough." He winked and disappeared into the shadows.

Come on! We gotta go we got company! Kaldur's voice rang in my head. I guess the telepathy was working. Sighing, I sheathed my sword and returned to the team.

"You were oddly quiet," Wally said as we sat in the Bio-ship.

"Yeah, patrolling brings out the quiet in me." I lied. I had no reason to lie, but I wasn't sure if I could tell them the truth. What if that man was right? Would they kick me off the team?

"When we get back, I'm making cookies. I think we could all use it," Miss Martian said.

"Yes! I'm starving." Wally fist bumped into the air.

"You're always starving," everyone else but myself said. I had felt strangely, left out. I gave a small smile and returned to looking out the window.