SHADOW DIMENSION

JULY 17; 6:37 EST

Robin is zapped by a red beam of magical energy and flies into a solid black wall.

"What's the matter Robin? Getting a little worn out? My shadow creatures really did a number on you didn't they?" taunts Klarion, the Witch Boy.

"Nothing I wasn't trained to handle Witchie." Tim replies with a smirk on his face that would have made Wally West proud.

"Raahhhhhh" Klarion attacks with a force that could destroy armies, yet, the Boy Wonder manages to dodge the attack.

"I will melt the flesh off your bones you little chicken!"

"I believe the correct term is: Robin."

Robin launches himself at Klarion and knocks him on the head with his bo-staff. "What now Witchie?" Klarion looks up, humiliation and rage in his face. "Now, I kill you" Klarion's hands turn bright red as a beam of energy forms around him and blows.

YOUNG JUSTICE: INVASION

"SHADOW MISSION"

3 HOURS EARLIER

MOUNT JUSTICE

JULY 17; 3:16 EST

The Team is assembled in the monitor room as Batman conducts his presentation to the team. "His name is Klarion. Some of you know him, some of you don't. He is one of Savage's secret society only known as "The Light". Klarion is also the Lord of Chaos and a master sorcerer who's powers match even Dr. Fates'. He is extremely dangerous and must be handled with serious caution."

"Batman, you're not suggestion that the Team goes after Klarion?" asks Nightwing, the Teams real leader, who's only not leading this mission because Batman insisted on who should be on Alpha Squad.

"No, that would be way to dangerous. Klarion was on the Watchtower when Vandal Savage took control of the entire Justice League for over 16 hours. He is a League priority. However, I do need the team to take out Klarion's compound in Gotham. I have to be in Japan in the next 10 minutes on a mission with Superman and Green Lantern as Chemo is attacking and I'm the only one who has the tech to disarm him. I want Superboy, Miss Martian, Blue Beetle, Wonder Girl, and Beast Boy on the mission as Alpha Squad. Mal will have his eyes on the mission from here and will act as mission coordinator. Superboy will be field leader. Any questions?"

"I have one, why can't I be on Alpha Squad?" asks Tim Drake, the current Robin. "Gotham is our city Batman. I grew up there, trained there, and we protect it, together, along with Nightwing and Batgirl. I should be on this mission."

Dick Grayson, the first Robin, and current Nightwing smiles and shrugs at Batman, giving him is approval. "You did train him yourself."

"Fine. But if ANYTHING goes wrong on this mission, I'm holding you responsible."

"Does that mean I'm field leader?"

"No. Superboy is still field leader. He has the most experience of the group and he's the most logical choice. You will do as he says, with no exceptions. Understood?"

"Yes sir."

"Good. Good luck Team." Batman walks toward the Zeta platform when Dick stops him. "Bruce, you and I both know that Tim is the logical choice as leader for this mission. He knows his way around Gotham just as well as you and I do, why don't you give the kid a shot?"

"You know to well why Dick. For the same reason that I wouldn't let you reveal to the Team your true identity years ago. I think he's spending to much time with this Team and I don't want it getting to his head. Until he's ready, I won't allow it." Batman walks into the Zeta Tube, leaving Dick and his words.

02 BATMAN, CONFIRMED.

Dick turns back to the Team. "Alright Team, you know the drill, get suited up and let's get this mission done."

GOTHAM CITY

JULY 17; 3:45 EST

The Team surrounds an abandon LexCorp warehouse, one of which Batman evacuated himself during the time period when Lex Luthor wanted to "re-model" Gotham. Obviously, that didn't happen. Superboy tries to X-Ray the building, then tries infrared, but is stumped. "I can see into the building. There must be lead in the walls."

"That's Lex Luthor for you. Greatest criminal mind of our time." Says Robin, with a hint of pride.

"Alright Team, M'gann, go stealth, see if you can get into the building and see if Klarion is there or not. Beast Boy, Robin, you two need to guard each entrance, if anyone tries to get in, take them out quietly. Wonder Girl, Blue, you're with me. Once M'gann checks the warehouse, we'll go in and set the charges. Everyone set? Let's go." After giving his orders, Connor Kent is greeted by his lover M'gann M'orzz aka Miss Martian and kisses her, "Be careful Connor." "You too M'gann." Replies the Superman/Lex Luthor clone.

M'gann flies around the warehouse and uses her Martian camouflage to avoid detection. After a minute of waiting, she phases into the building and looks around.

"I think we're good. It doesn't seem like there's anyone here." Miss Martian tells the Team telepathically.

"Alright, sounds good. Mal? Can you read me? We're headed into the compound."

In the Cave, Mal Duncan is working the mission from home base and responds to Superboy's judgment. "Sounds good to me Kon. I got nothing on satellite, you should be good."

"Rodger that, Superboy out."

Superboy then motions to Wonder Girl and Blue Beetle to engage the warehouse with him as they fall down like fire from the sky. Blue Beetle uses his sonic cannon to break apart the ceiling as Wonder Girl starts to set charges on a bunch of empty crates. "We're all good here Superboy!" Wonder Girl Cassie Sandsmark says, keeping the Team on schedule. "Good, let's keep moving, Klarion could appear any minute"

M'gann telekinetically places 5 charges throughout the building as Robin enters the complex. "Robin, I told you to stand guard and make sure no one comes in!" Says an angered Superboy as Robin quickly responds "Relax Supes, no one is coming, we're safe." Just then, a flash of red light appears outside and a boom is heard.

"Team! Come in! There was an explosion and one NOT on schedule!" yells a frantic Mal Duncan.

Just then the door opens and Klarion the Witch Boy appears with his cat Teekl. "Intruders! There are intruders in my room! Get out! Get out! Get out!" Klarion fires bolts of magical energy at each member of the Team. No one is hit, but then Wonder Girl charges at Klarion.

"You think you can stop me Wonder Girl? You're just a cheap imitation of Wonder Woman, who, by the way, is a much better opponent!" taunts the Witch Boy. "I am the daughter of Zeus! I have been trained by the Amazons! I am heir to the Wonder Woman name and you dare attack me with words?" Cassie gets one hit on Klarion before he blasts her out of the building.

"Mal! Call the League, Klarion is here and Wonder Girl is down!" says a desperate Superboy. "No! We can do this Mal! Don't call the League, we can take him!" Robin says, trying to "rally his troupes" while launching himself at the Lord of Chaos. "Oh, the new Robin! Not as good as the original, but then again, what ever is?" mocks Klarion as he dodges Robins pitiful attack. By now, Klarion doesn't realize that Blue Beetle is right behind him as he blasts Klarion with a sonic boom, knocking the pale witch lord into the wall of the already unstable factory.

"That's it! I'm sick of playing with you children!" Klarion screeches, by now, having enough of this "child's play". He opens his coat and takes out a black disc as Robin jumps at Klarion. "Robin, no! Don't!" yells a powerless Superboy, who could do next to nothing due to his Half-Kryptonian side not being able to cope with magic. Robin and Klarion vanish in a burst of light. M'gann lands next to Connor. "Do you think we should call Batman?"

"Yeah, we should," Superboy responds while walking over to the spot where the two vanished and picking up the disc, "but first let's get to the Cave and see what we can get off of this."

SHADOW DIMENSION

JULY 17; 4:20 EST

Robin wakes up. After getting up and looking around, he tries contacting the Team, but is interrupted by Mal, "Robin, can you hear me?"

"Mal? What happened?"

"Klarion pulled you into some sort of pocket dimension," responded Mal, "He's using powerful magic, but I think we can use the Zeta Beams to send team members in for a second or two for help. Hang in there Robin, we're coming for you."

"Copy that, Robin out"

MOMENTS LATER

MOUNT JUSTICE

JULY 17; 4:21 EST

"I've looked into the disc, but the tech here in the Cave is useless against magic, the only thing that will get through is the Zeta Beams." Says Mal, urgently.

"Keep trying Malcolm. Until we can bring Robin home, all we can do is wait." Batman replies.

In another corner of the room, Miss Martian tries to comfort Superboy. "Connor, you couldn't have known that Klarion was coming, you couldn't have known that Robin would jump into the portal like that." "I know M'gann, but I could have made him go back outside! I could have stopped him!" Superman flies down to Kon-El. "She's right brother, there was nothing you could have done. You know this, the Team knows this, and you know this."

"What about Batman? He thinks I failed, doesn't he?"

"No Kon, no. He knows that you couldn't have done anything. He knows that you weren't prepared for Klarion to have shown up." Says the Man of Steel, trying to lift his "brother's" spirits.

"Maybe, but until then, I hope that Robin's all right, because if he's not once I get my hands on that Witch kid, he's going to wish that I hadn't been taught hand-to-hand by Batman and Black Canary…"

SHADOW DIMENSION

JULY 17; 4:30 EST

Robin has been running for what seems like days, until he sees a familiar figure. "What's your game, Klarion?" Robin demands. "What's wrong Robin, don't you like my shadow dimension?"

"I'm not impressed" Robin taunts with a small grin.

"Heh! I'm going to take your whole team out one-by-one, starting with you!" Klarion replies, "Have fun playing with my shadow beasts!" Klarion laughs as he disappears.

"Shadow beasts?"

Tim looks at the ground and sees that shadow creatures are sprouting out and headed his way. Like any good "Son of the Bat", Tim charges the shadow creatures and takes them out one-by-one with his bo-staff. "Robin! Report! What just happened?"

"I'm fine Mal, just got a little side-tracked. Don't worry about me, just keep trying to open the portal."

Robin starts exploring this "Shadow Dimension" and finds a tunnel. Robin sprints through the tunnel with little effort although he's pushing himself the hardest he has even pushed himself before. He doesn't want to admit it, but he's scared. He's never been in another dimension alone before, and now he is, and that's not even the scary part. He's not only alone, but he's alone with one of the 8 most dangerous men on planet Earth. Klarions's somewhere in-between Vandal Savage and Black Manta on the worlds most wanted list, which are all members (or agents) of The Light.

As Tim keeps pushing himself harder and harder, jumping off cliff to cliff in this never ending world, he soon deduces that in this dimension, the Newton's laws are different, therefore he can jump higher, run faster, and his attacks are like being hit by Superboy or a super-speeding Kid Flash! Unfortunately, KF has been retired for a while, but Superboy's still pretty fast, he's Half-Kryptonian after all!

MOUNT JUSTICE

JULY 17; 5:00

"Duncan, where are you with the disc?" asks a, slightly, worried Batman.

"I don't know. I've done almost everything I can at this point Batman. The only thing that I could do at this point is to send someone in fast enough to grab Robin out."

"Then we'll need…" Batman says but is interrupted by another blast of red energy.

"You'll need no one Batman!" shouts Klarion fiercely, "Robin is mine, and I will kill anyone else in my way!"

"Klarion, you're dark reign ends here!" Superman commands strongly as he flies into Klarion, sending him into a wall.

"Wrong again Super-Stud! I have more power than ever, and now, be gone!"

Klarion blasts every member of the Justice League present out of the Cave instantly, including Batman, Superman, Martian Manhunter, Wonder Woman, Captain Atom, Black Canary, and Zatanna.

"This isn't good." Proclaims Nightwing.

"No, not for you!" says Klarion about ready to attack, but then is interrupted as he receives a telepathic message telling him that Robin is close to getting out.

"No! He can't get out! I'm the only one who knows about that!" Klarion shouts, disappearing in a puff of red smoke.

"We can either take that as a blessing or…" Beast Boy starts

"Or it means that Robin has his full attention." Says Mal, stating the obvious bad news.

"Be careful Tim." Whispers Dick.

SHADOW DIMENSION

JULY 17, 5:40 EST

Robin has just successfully beaten another squad of shadow creatures, but these ones are on fire. Well, weird white fire, but easier to beat than the annoying shadow bugs that he fought a half hour ago, that is, unless you touch them…

Tim runs on a platform of shadow rock as Klarion appears again.

"You idiot, you don't even have super-powers! Do you really think you're a match for me, Boy Blunder?"

"Why don't we find out?"

"Please, I don't waist time fighting children."

Klarion raises his hands in a fashion that only Luthor's do, and more shadow demons appear and thrust themselves upon the latest Boy Wonder. Tim throws his "Robinangs" at the creatures as they blow up, incinerating every last trace of them. "Batgirl would be jealous of that take down!" Says Robin who jumps at Klarion, about ready to strike.

Klarion waves his hand which shoves Tim back into the ground. "Give it up boy, you'll never beat a Lord of Chaos!"

"Is that all you got?" Rob says, quickly getting up, trying to put on a macho show for his enemy as his mentor would.

"You wish! Have a nice fall." Klarion says as the ground breaks beneath Tim and he falls.

"Mal! You there? I need air support now!"

Just then, Miss Martian is Zeta Beamed in to fly Robin out of the trench. When they arrive back on the cliff, Klarion is gone. Robin turns to thank M'gann, but she's already gone.

"Mal? What happened? Where's Miss M?"

"Back here, safe and sound Rob. I told you I could only send someone in for a second or two, and even that is hard."

"No worries Mal, Klarion wouldn't attack me unless he knew that I was close to getting out. I'll get out of here soon. Robin out."

Robin jumps through the air, almost as if he's flying on his own power, before descending back to the ground from which he came. Robin gets his staff ready in case Klarion shows again. Good thing to, because as soon as a red puff of smoke appears and the path in front of him dissolves, Robin hears,

"Not so fast." The Witch Boy says, trying to intimidate Robin into giving up, not realizing that he's the son of Batman.

"Seriously? You think that's gonna stop me?"

A little angered by the new Boy Wonder's sarcastic remark, Klarion walks away, leaving the boy to his doom. Luckily for Tim, he likes a challenge and uses his grappling hook as he jumps. Falling halfway down the pit, getting closer and closer to the spikes beneath, Robin pulls himself out, this time, not needing help from another hero to fly out.

"What's the matter Klarion? Run out of shadow beasts?" Robin exclaims after catching up to the Lord of Chaos.

"You annoying brat!" he sneered, "I guess I'll just have to deal with you myself!"

Klarion launches himself at Robin with giant energy daggers flying out of his finger tips. Robin jumps right over Klarion and ducks him with his bo-staff. Klarion, who has been caught unaware, is not furious. "I will have my revenge child!" He screams forming a ball of light in his hands. Robin starts to run, but is to late, it blows and Robin is thrown through the air. As Robin gets up, he sees what Klarion is fighting to protect… The way out! A person-sized white worm-whole that will take him home, but not before he finishes Klarion.

"Mal, I need everything you guys got, now!"

Robin charges at Klarion as Klarion charges at Robin, but just then, Superboy appears and knocks Klarion through the air. Right into Miss Martian, who telekinetically throws him to Wonder Girl, already ticked at the Chaos master, who punches him down into the ground. Beast Boy transforms into a gorilla and smashes the witch just far enough so Blue Beetle can use a sonic blast from above on Klarion to keep him down.

"You hadn't taken into account that this dimension may give you more power, but it gives all of us just as much as you. Even Superboy was given a boost, and he's already raw power."

"Fine Boy Wonder, you won. But, just remember, the Light will get their revenge. We will succeed in our ultimate goal, and we have agents closer than you think."

"Oh well, it was fun while it lasted" replies the Boy Wonder, who is wondering what Klarion's cryptic message means.

"Come on Teekl, we're out of here!" Klarion says, opening his own portal, taking him far away from the Justice League, and the Team.

Robin does the same as he walks to his portal, taking him home.

MOUNT JUSTICE

JULY 18; 3:24 EST

"You deliberately put the Team at risk!" yells Batman at his latest protégé. "You left your post, disobeyed an order, and tried to take down one of the most dangerous men in the galaxy."

"I only did what I thought was right. I'm sorry Bruce… Batman."

Batman pauses, seeing the hurt in his adopted son's face. He knows how much this hurts him. He knows that he would have don't the exact same thing if it were the League on the mission instead of the Team. He knows.

"Tim," says Bruce Wayne, putting his hand on Tim Drakes shoulder, "I understand. You are more like me that Dick ever was when he was Robin. He used to keep me in check as you do now. The point of Robin is to be an example to other heroes your age, to show them that good can come from a dark shadow like me. Tim. One day, you may be the next Batman. I hope I live long enough to see that day, but most of all, I hope you live long enough to have a life. Look at Wally West and Artemis Crock. They were just like you at one time. Always having to prove their worth, their skill, their value to the Team. And they did, over and over again, but now they're normal civilians, like you once were. Tim, you need to live. I don't want you to become me. I didn't want Dick to and I couldn't bare it if you did. You need to set your own path, not try and prove yourself to me."

Bruce gets up, puts his cowl back on and walks toward the Zeta platform.

"Now, are you coming? Gotham still needs a Batman, and Batman still needs a Robin."

Tim grabs his bo-staff and gets up. "I'm ready."

THE END