Present Time - Location Unknown

A bright light shone behind his closed eyelids, snapping Dick awake and he groaned, twisting his neck to escape the unwelcome intrusion to his sleep. Couldn't Alfred let him sleep in for once? He had stayed up late with Bruce the night before, studying files on the latest murder in Gotham. Surely the breakthrough they had warranted him a much needed late morning. He didn't even have school today! "Go 'way, Alfred." He grumbled and went to rub his eyes into wakefulness. His wrist tugged against something and then his shoulder exploded in pain. With a chill that ran straight down his spine, Dick's drew in a sharp breath and opened his eyes. All at once, the pain from his injuries hit and nausea curled in the pit of his stomach.

His head was pounding like somebody had popped it off and used it for a quick game of basketball and Dick closed his eyes again, willing the dizziness to pass. Moments later he managed to squash the urge to puke down to a tolerable level and he blinked his eyes open, assessing the situation. Dick-no, Robin, as he felt the side of his mask press into his sensitive, bruised temple-was lying on a dirt floor, his hands and feet bound behind him and then together, making his back arch and straining his ribs. Where was he? What happened? Fear made him strain against his restraints, but the wiggling only made his breath halter in pain. No, he couldn't panic now, Batman had taught him better than that.

Okay, Robin, he thought, what was the last thing he remembered? Someone had been murdered, a prestigious foreign hotshot, if he remembered correctly. It had been brutal, so brutal that the housekeeper that had found him in his hotel room needed therapy. Batman had been called to help investigate, Robin trailing after him. The Young Justice team had been taking up most of his time as Robin, and he had been content to finally work a case with his mentor again. The murder was definitely a case of revenge, or a hired hit. The money and valuables in the room had been left, ruling out a burglary gone wrong. The coroner had placed the time of death around nine pm, but none of the other guests remembered hearing or seeing anything strange during that time.

A shudder ran through him again and Robin coughed wetly, the motion setting his chest ablaze with agony. So not feeling the aster right now. Robin shuddered again, pausing his train of thought to ride the waves of pain. Breathe. Focus on his breathing. In. Out. In. Out. Right, they had interviewed the witnesses and then Batman and Robin had gone back to the cave to study the pictures and witness reports. They were about to call it a night when Robin had hacked into the murder victim's email and discovered a link to the man's presence and a new drug that had been circling the streets of Gotham. Batman had sent him to bed, noticing that Robin was swaying on his feet from exhaustion, and pursued the lead. The last thing he remembered was collapsing on his bed as Dick Grayson. How did he get from falling asleep in his superman pajamas to being tied up as Robin, beaten and bloody?

Why couldn't he remember? What happened? What the hell had happened? Where was his team, his fath- mentor? Oh god, it hurt so much and he couldn't stop shaking. He needed to calm down. Robin repeated those words in his head over and over again. He had been hurt worse before, at least he was conscious now. That meant he could escape. Escape from where, though? Escape from whom?

Another wave of nausea hit and he wanted to curl up into himself, but his bound limbs prevented him from doing so. Taking another second to collect himself, took a deep breath, ignoring the pain in his chest as his lungs expanded. He had a concussion, though he had no idea how bad. Enough to cause memory loss? Maybe. His ribs felt badly bruised, but not broken. His right shoulder still screamed at him, but he didn't want to lift his head to see what was wrong with it. He could feel blood crusting around his lips and eyes and his side felt wet and sticky. As far as injuries go, he wasn't doing so hot, but he had worse. Thankfully, his mind felt clear and not cloudy.

His head protested as he twisted his neck, first looking at his shoulder. Great, through the torn cloth of his uniform he could see a shallow stab wound. Must be where all the blood was from. It stung, but it was nowhere near life-threatening. . . assuming he could treat it and bind it before it could get infected. Silently, he bit his lip as another dizzy spell rolled over him and then he looked up. The light that had woken him turned out to be a single lightbulb, fixed high above his head on a rocky surface. With a moan, Robin examined his surroundings. He was lying on gravel and dirt in what looked like to be a cave. He was surrounded on three sides by rocky walls. Wire from the lightbulb traveled along the ceiling into inky blackness on the fourth side. The lightbulb was the only thing in the room except for him.

"Hello?" Robin tentatively called out, wincing at the hoarseness of his own voice. "Is there anybody there?" His voice echoed against the stone walls, bouncing several times before there was quiet again. Panic began to claw in his belly again and he scrunched his eyes tight, taking several deep breaths. From the way his voice traveled, the area past the darkness was huge. His childish fear of monsters lurking in the blackness nipped the back of his mind. No. There was no need to fear the dark. He was trained by Batman for heaven's sake, the prince of the dark. He himself was a child of that blackness. Fear of the dark was something he used as a weapon, not something he let control him. It was hard though, to not be afraid when he was bound head to foot in an unfamiliar place with no memory of how he got there. Okay, first things first: getting out of his restraints. His fingers twitched and suddenly he realised how cold his hands and feet were.

No gloves and no boots. A quick glance informed him that his utility belt was gone too. No communicator in his ear either. "M'gann?" Robin called out with his mind, hoping against hope that his team was close. "Anyone? Are you there? J'onn?" Only silence answered him.

He was completely alone.

Present Time - Mount Justice

The tension was thick as Batman strode into the medical bay of Mount Justice. The five teenagers in the room flinched guiltily as the bat radiated anger. The two other adults stood at his arrival, one stoic and unmoving, the other wary and defensive. "Batman," Black Canary began, her voice full of warning. Red Tornado's posture gave nothing away, but those who knew him knew that he was cautiously waiting to see what the other Justice league member would do. "Take a second to calm down. They're all pretty banged up right now, and don't need you to-"

Batman cut her off with a wave of his hand, his eyes focusing solely on the team that wouldn't meet his unwavering gaze. "What," He ground out, his voice deep and threatening. "Happened?"

Aqualad's hands curled, fisting the white sheet of his bed. He was missing his usual red and black tank, instead there were white bandages wrapped around his chest. As the leader of the team and the one in charge of their latest disastrous mission, he should be the one to explain how things had gone so badly so very fast. But he could not force words up his throat and past his lips. Instead, he turned his light blue eyes onto the black stripes on his arm and wished he could spontaneously combust. This, this was all his fault. What happened to Robin. His fault. Kaldur could still hear the screams.

M'gann hiccuped a small sob and buried her face into her hands, shaking slightly. Her injuries were the lightest of them all-except for Superboy, who had no visible injuries but sat in a chair by M'gann looking absolutely defeated-but she had still been confined to a bed by Black Canary, gauze wrapped around her temples. Kaldur had several cracked ribs and his left leg had been bruised badly. Wally was staring up at the ceiling, his jaw wobbling as he ground his teeth together. He had a broken ankle and a fractured left arm. He had screamed and sobbed the entire flight back to the base and now looked empty. This was their fault too, in a way. Kaldur may have pushed Robin to his doom, but they had stood there and let him do it.

Artemis, the one who had suffered the most injuries out of them-broken arm, broken wrist, broken ribs, a stab wound to her shoulder and thigh, and a concussion-was the only one to look at Batman, her gaze steely, but filled with grief. This was not her fault, and the way she had bitterly ignored them all the flight back reminded Kaldur that she knew that too. "We. . . it-it was a trap, and we fell for it. Robin, he. . . he saved us, but we couldn't save him. I'm so sorry."

Batman stared at her, letting that information sink it, and whirled on Kaldur. "It was a recon mission only," He growled, barely masking the worry in his voice with anger. "Tell me everything that happened after you lost communications with the mountain. Now."

Forget your guilt, Aqualad ordered himself and slipped back into his harden role of leader. Forget your guilt and become a focus on what really matters right now: the mission, Robin. "The Heishe triad had loaded a truck with the last shipment of the drug when Robin contacted M'gann, saying that he had spotted a hostage. . ."

24 Hours Earlier - Mount Justice

"Two nights ago, Liying Hong, a wealthy Chinese business owner was found murdered in his hotel room in Gotham city." Batman addressed the team, a picture of the Merritt Hotel where the foreign business man had stayed up on the holographic screen.

"Are we going to solve a murder case?" Kid Flash fidgeted excitedly. "Because, dude, that would be totally sweet!"

Robin snorted. "Batman and I already solved the case."

Artemis elbowed Kid Flash in the gut and Aqualad folded his arms. "I apologize for the interruption," The leader said in behalf of his teammate. "Please continue." Interruptions tended to irritate the Batman, and an irritated Batman was not fun and downright scary. Robin sent his friend a proud glance and smugly looked back at his mentor.

Batman waited a second longer before he turned back to the screen, a series of emails replacing the hotel. "The civilians reported no disturbances at the time of death, and there was no evidence of a break in, insinuating that Mr. Hong knew his attacker and let him in. Robin hacked into Mr. Hong's email and discovered cryptic emails Mr. Hong sent to an unknown person about a new drug that has been circling the streets."

"Superesque." Superboy said in surprise, reading the highlighted words in the email. The team looked at him in question. "I heard a couple of kids at school talking about it," He expounded. "Supposed to make you feel like you have superpowers or something."

"I haven't heard of it." M'gann hummed.

"I have." Artemis crossed her arms, mimicking Aqualad's stance. "Real nasty."

"That is right." Batman drew the conversation back to him. "Superesque is a highly addictive substance that is ingested by inhaling a powder through the mouth. For a time, it gives that user a euphoric illusion of having superpowers. However, after several uses the chemicals in the drug start destroying the liver and bone tissue. There have already been deaths caused by long term use and overdose of the drug."

Aqualad felt his insides crawl at the new slide Batman had brought up of several corpses. The bodies belonged to young men and women with shriveled skin and withered limbs.

"So far superesque has only been seen on the east coast, but in the emails that Robin discovered, it seems as if whoever is supplying the drug wishes to see it spread internationally. Mr. Hong, who we are now suspecting of working for the Heishe triad, originally agreed to help with the spread of the drug, but backed out at the last second." Batman flipped the picture again, focusing on a single email.

'I can not go through with this plan. There is no room in China for your cursed product. Keep your money and go to hell.' Aqualad read the bolded portion silently.

"Uh, who are the Heishe triad?" Kid Flash raised his hand.

It was Robin who answered. "The Heishe triad is an international mafia that is run out of China. Nobody knows who runs it, but they have their claws in fifteen different countries. Like the League of Shadows, they train their operatives to become skilled assassins. They mostly deal in hired hits and drugs, but also have been known to dabble in sex trafficking and smuggling. Pretty scary people, and very, very evil."

"So, what do you want us to do?" Artemis voiced the question on the team's mind.

The holoscreen lit up with a map. "It seemed likely that the supplier of superesque had Mr. Hong killed after backing out of their deal," Batman answered Artemis's question indirectly. "However, Robin and I received a tip of transaction going down tonight between the Heishe triad and an unknown organization in New Jersey. The team will stake out the area where the deal will go down to see if you can determine the identity of the unknown organization. It is highly likely that whoever they are, they are the ones pumping out superesque into the streets."

Batman fixed Aqualad with a hard stare and a frown. "The Heishe triad is an incredibly dangerous group of criminals and you are not to engage them at any cost. This mission is strictly recon and none of you are to be spotted by anyone. Is that clear?"

"Yes sir." Aqualad promised. "Team, move out."

21 Hours Earlier - New Jersey

The team had parked the bioship as close to the site they were staking out as they dared, and Aqualad had ordered Miss Martian to maintain a constant link with the ship just in case they needed a quick getaway. The site in question was an old warehouse on the edge of a cliff. In the distance the sparkling waters of the Ocean could be seen. "Well, it looks like we don't have to worry about being too quiet." Superboy had mused, looking down the short cliff face at a festival taking place. A few small amusement rides had been set up, but the majority of the crowd below was wandering through the many stall and shops set up. The sounds of laughing and delighted screams roared, making it hard to focus on anything but the celebration going on. The hustle and bustle of the festival would make it hard for anyone to hear them if they made a careless noise, but Aqualad was not one for taking chances.

"Regardless, maintain constant vigilance." The leader advised. "Robin, Artemis, and Miss Martian, I want you three in the warehouse. Kid Flash, you are going to scope out the surrounding area. Superboy and I will maintain watch from out here. Remember what Batman said; do not engage with these criminals for any reason. Contact me as soon as you have something and check in every ten minutes."

His team nodded. "M'gann" Aqualad called out. "Link us up."

Miss Martian touched her temple, eyes glowing briefly. "Link established. Everyone on?" A chorus of yeses replied.

"Good." Aqualad locked eyes with each of his team members. "Kid Flash, turn on stealth mode. Team, disperse."

Miss Martian went camouflage, Kid Flash pressed a button on his suit and took off running, and Robin vanished with a cackle. Artemis rolled her eyes and drew her bow with a huff, following her eager companions. Superboy left to take position at the back of the warehouse and Aqualad melted into the shadows of the surrounding trees, pressing his belt to change his shirt into molten grays. Batman's source stated that the deal would go down around midnight, and the team had arrived three hours early to get into position before the scouts could get here. Aqualad crouched down and steeled himself for a long wait.

Present Time - Mount Justice

Kaldur'ahm's retelling was cut short by an emergency alarm sounding and then Green Arrow's face appearing on Batman's holoscreen. "You better have a good reason for calling." Batman did not bother to hide his anger at the interruption.

"You're going to want to see this, Batman." The graveness in Green Arrow's voice made everyone in the room zero their attention on the holoscreen. "Another visiting Chinese businessman was found dead an hour ago in Star City."

"I don't have time to worry about the murders anymore, Arrow." Batman spat.

The green vigilante shook his head. "The murdered man was wearing Robin's gloves, Batman. And his boots. He, he was tortured and then choked to death. By Robin's utility belt. Carved into his chest are the words 'come find me'. What the hell happened? Where's Robin?"

The room seemed to freeze and then M'gann let out another strangled sob. Kaldur felt the world spinning and he lurched to the side, vomiting. Robin had been taken by that, that monster, and it was all his fault.

Batman's expression never changed, but when he spoke again his voice had lost the growly hardness he was infamous for. He sounded worried, a terrified father instead of an unmoving hero. "Missing. I'm on my way."

Without a single glance in the team's direction, Batman strode out of the medbay, the snapping of his cape louder than M'gann silent sobs.

Wally rose a hand to his face, covering his eyes. "What have we done?" He whispered. "What have we done?"

Present Time - Classified Location

"You were supposed to kill the boy, not take him! We want him dead, yesterday!"

"Patience my friends. My operative was not authorized to take the boy, but their decision will work out nicely. Everything we want will happen soon enough. The Justice League is already falling apart, thanks to our performance earlier. They will crack once the boy is dead."

"Then why did you give them a five day window to save him?"

"My friend, what is more tragic? A sudden death? Or fighting so desperately for hope only to have it snuffed out in front of your very eyes?"

"Very well. But we will be withholding our product until your task is complete. Did the boy tell you how much the Justice League knows about our plans?"

"I do not think that is a wise decision, Jonathan. Wouldn't it be better to release the drug, now that we know exactly how it works on those with superpowers? The entire word will lose faith in the Justice League in a matter of hours. And no, the boy has been unconscious since my operative took him. I do not know how much Batman has figured out."

"It's my drug, my decision, and my plan. We need to broadcast the gruesome death of Robin, the most well-known figure of Young Justice, and have the entire world see the Justice League mourning the loss of the child. That will give them a plausible cause to go crazy and start destroying cities, giving the public no reason to forgive them once they are inevitably cured. My decision stands; I will withold my product until you have killed the boy."

"Very well. We will do everything we can so that we too may see The Light."

Well that concludes the first chapter. Please review! I would love to know what you guys liked and disliked. I have about four chapters of this fic written already, and will probably update again within the week. And yes, to all those who are wondering, this fic will be heavy on the Robin whump. A quick note, I do speak a little Chinese. Not enough to call myself fluent by any means, but enough that I can read and pronounce pinyin pretty well. I've elected to write the words in Chinese in pinyin and not in characters, and I've left the tones off to make it easier for you guys to read. Heishe is pronounced hey-shuh, and not like the pronoun to describe those of the female gender. It means black snake. Pretty generic, but whatever.

Once again, please review!