Kaldur was boxing with the punching bag, with Roy holding the bag when his phone rang loudly on the small beat up coffee table. He stopped and asked Roy to untape his hand. He went to his phone to see that the doctor was asking to see him. Roy saw the message and instantly gave his opinion.

"It's a trap Kal once you get there you will not come back."

"They will come back, Roy. I will be okay. I will call you when it's time," he went to the bathroom to clean himself of sweat.

"You're not ready for a fight," he leaned against the wall with his arms crossed.

"I am going to have to be."

"You're an idiot."

"I have been called worse," he cracked the door open and reached the slightly wet arm out, "I need my clothing please."

Roy went to get his clothes and gave them to him. He could see the scars and stitching on his arm.

"Just be careful fish stick. The last thing I need is you dying on me."

"I am not going to die, Roy," he came out dressed.

Roy hugged Kaldur tightly in his muscular arms. Kaldur hugged him back instantly while rubbing his back gently.

"I will come back."

"You better," he patted his back again and let him go.

Kaldur grabbed his barriers, put them in his pocket, and headed to the door. He headed to the zeta beam and beamed himself to the Watchtower. He was greeted by his mother, Team, Garth, Tula, and Mera with open arms. Well, minus Garth. Shalina took Kaldur to the medical bay and sat with him as they waited for him.

"My son, you know I love you."

"Of course."

"You have resumed your training, haven't you?"

"I do no-"

"Do not even think about lying to your mother."

"Please do not tell anyone."

"That was never my intention. I figured you would try and learn again. You have your father's stubbornness."

"And your perseverance, Mother."

"King Arthur will not find out from me. All I ask is that you be careful."

"Yes, ma'am. Annex will send me back to Atlantis does he not."

"From what he has alluded to me, yes, that is his intention."

"I need to find him."

"And you will," she kissed his temple softly while the doctor walked in.

The doctor went through the examination, noting Kaldur has gained weight and muscle mass. The healer came and changed the wraps on his gills, noting they are also healing nicely. This was both positive and negative in Kaldur's mind. Good being he was getting stronger and bad since Aquaman would want to rush him getting him back to Atlantis. He finished applying the ointment to his gills and took his departure. He went to his room and changed into his uniform putting on his usual jacket to cover his shirt. Putting his barriers in his jacket pocket and deciding to leave his water pack behind, he walked to the transporter just to see if he was able to get out undetected. He knew he would only get one chance and leave the Watchtower; he had to make it count. He found his mother in the kitchen as an idea was born in his mind. He went up to her and hugged her from behind, kissing her cheek softly.

"Mother, I am about to do something that you will not approve of."

"You found him," she raised his hand to her lips, giving it a firm kiss.

"Yes, Mother."

"Be swift, be brave my son," she turned around and hugged her son tightly while rubbing his back.

"Mother, I need you to help me get out of the Tower."

"What do you need me to do?" she pulled away and looked her son square in the face.

"Keep Annex distracted while I make my departure."

"I will do my best. I do not wish to lie to our king."

"And I apologize that I am asking you to do this. I do not find joy in asking for such a thing, Mother. Please understand that."

"I will do what I can my son. Only for you. Good luck my son," she kissed his temple softly as if the kiss gave him all of her strength in her body.

"Thank you," he kissed her cheek and left the kitchen.

She looked at the knife several inches away from her on the cutting board. Shalina took the knife firmly in her firm yet delicate hands and made a small cut on her hand. She screamed loud enough for someone passing by to hear her. Fortunately, both Green Lantern and Captain Marvel heard the scream and rushed into the kitchen to see Shalina hold a bloody cloth to her finger.

"Shalina, what happened?" John asked while going to get the first aid kit from under the sink.

"I was reaching for a knife to cut the lemon for my tea and I accidently cut my hand. My gosh I am so clumsy," she lied smoothly while acting embarrassed and ashamed.

"This looks deep. We need to get Aquaman and get this cleaned up," Marvel explained.

They took her to the infirmary while Captain Marvel flew to find Aquaman. It brought Kaldur enough time to get the zeta beam and use Roy's access code to get back down to Earth. The computer announces 'Roy's' departure.

"Wait," Flash interpreted Batman when the announcement was made, "When was Roy in the Watchtower?"

"He said he was working-" Green Arrow started to explain.

"He didn't," Batman pulled up the monitor and saw the video of Kaldur using Roy's access code to leave.

"He found him," Batman said.

"How? How could he possibly-"

"You really don't know your own protege, do you, Arthur?" Canary added while her face was filled with worry over him.

"Check his room. Look everywhere," Batman ordered as Aquaman ran off to look in his protege's room.

"Batman, we found something," Robin said as a video call appeared on the screen.

"What is it?"

"When we came back from our search, we looked at the medal in the alley."

"It was a token piece from the Purple Heart. Kaldur must have chipped it during the struggle."

"Hate to rush you Kid, but we're running out of time. Kaldur left the Tower and found him."

"Right. We did a search on how many people who fit the description and it's still-"

"What Kid Long Winded is trying to say is that we are looking for a connection between the military and Kaldur. It was Ms. Waller the entire time, that's why she was looking for him in the first place. We were able to pull up a list of her 'employees', if you even wanted to call them that, and found a match. General Wade Eiling."

"I remember him. He launched the kryptonite laced missile to San Baquero to try and kill Superman," Manhunter recalled.

"His son, Anthony, fought in the war and died after a trade deal gone wrong. He was held hostage by an independent third party after being captured. They shot him in the head and sent his body in a box to his Captain's quarters."

"That poor man," Wonder Woman gasped.

"Which explains the Purple Heart," Lantern realized.

"But why Aqualad? Why would Amanda hire him to join her?"

"The third party was Black Manta and his foot soldiers. He made some kind of deal to assist them in the kidnapping."

"The young hero's are correct. Look at this," Aquaman came back with the photos and notes found in his room.

"Where is he now?"

"We don't know Bats. But he knows where Eiling is."

"We had cameras in Kal's city looking for any sign of him. We got lucky, twice actually. He meets a man in a cafe. Rob's hacking into the security cameras now. We are sending you the tape...now!" Kid Flash pushed the last button, sending the video footage forward.

Batman played the first video to see Kaldur walking into the cafe and taking a seat near the window. He quickly fasts forward several minutes to see Manta walking in, in full civilian clothing, and they talked for a while. Kaldur placed a piece of paper in front of him and waited for a response. David stood, kissed his temple softly, and made his way to the door. Kaldur turned his head and said something to him. Robin was able to change this angel in this one specific frame and tried to make out what he was saying.

"David, mother never stopped loving you. She simply stopped loving your actions," Batman translated.

"There is no sound, I'm not even able to hear that. How did you-" Superman started to ask.

"Not that hard to read lips. I couldn't pick up the rest of what they were saying; they kept their heads down."

"He helped him. He went to an emery rather than us," Aquaman said in disbelief.

"Can we really be surprised?" Kid Flash asked.

"Hate to say it, but he has a point. We didn't really help him figure it out. We gave him an around about answer to help him figure out who hurt him. I'm not surprised that he went somewhere else for the answer."

"We need to find Kaldur now. He can't take him on by himself."

"I think he can fend for himself. Look at his new medical report," Hawkwoman slides the medical file to Aquaman.

Aquaman opened the file to see Kaldur's updated medical report. He read that Kaldur has gained muscle mass and he is physically improving slowly.

"Why didn't he tell me?"

"Because he knows you would take him away the second he was able to stand without feeling pain," Superman answered.

"I know where he is. Get the Javelin and the Bioship ready," Batman ordered while dismissing the meeting, leaving to make a phone call.

"Yes, Mr. President?"

"Where is he?"

"Hello, Batman. I don't know where he is."

"I know you took him to wherever he needed to go. I know he is on your vessel. I am not going to tell you to stop what he is doing. I would be a hypocrite if I did. I am going to ask you where did you take him."

"Why should I tell you again?"

"I'm asking you as a father. Help me help a father who might lose his son, again. Please Amanda," Batman started to let his guard down.

"You pulled the 'Parent Card' on me, Bruce? You're going soft."

"Wouldn't you want the same for Daisha?"

"Watch it," her voice turned protective and harsh.

"Where is he?" He repeated for the final time.

"I sent a ship to retrieve him. I don't know exactly where he is. I only gave him the ride as payment of a debt."

"Where did you track him to?"

"The best place I can imagine, he went to the army base where we found him. I have already sent your children the coordinates. He should be arriving at the base in fifteen minutes."

"Thank you."

"If you bring up my daughter again, you won't be so thankful," she hung up the phone losing all sense of patience while Batman headed to the Javelin.

"Robin, you should be receiving coordinates of Aqualad's location. Get ready to leave, now!" Batman boarded the ship while The Team, Garth, and Tula, who insisted on coming along to help, boarded the Bioship.

They headed to the military base and carefully headed inside. They each took a floor and searched for both Eiling and Kaldur. The League, Team, and their 'tag-alongs' each took a floor. Tula and Garth found him walking down the hall.

"Kaldur'arhm," Garth said causing him to stop walking, not turning around to look.

"Garth, Tula, leave now," he ordered.

"We can not do that my friend."

"What will you two do about that?" Kaldur reached in his pocket for his barriers and armed himself.

"Kaldur, we do not wish to harm you. Just come with us and let The Team and The Justice League handle this."

"My apologize Tula, but no," he turned around to face them.

"Then you know what we have to do," Garth and Tula used their magic to arm themselves.

"He is still recovering, do not hurt him."

"Speak for yourself Tula," Kaldur summoned his katanas.

Garth and Kaldur charged at each other while Tula watched broken heartedly. She never wanted to see her fiance and best friend ever fighting like this. Garth was surprised to see that even in his weakened state, Kaldur was still going strong. Kaldur took the water from them and used it to pin them to the wall, freezing them from the neck down.

"I'm sorry," Kaldur ran, blocking the pain out, down the stairs.

As he walked down the concrete walls, memories of being wheeled on a table to the tank filled his thoughts. He forced the memories to one side as he heard a noise coming from the room at the end of the hall. His anger burst the pipes as he passed by them. He made it to the room, where he stayed in for a year, as he heard the click of a gun being cocked. Eiling, in the room, heard the loud bursting and sounds of fighting and talking coming from the upper level and armed himself. When silence filled the air, a water tentacle came out from around the corner grabbing the gun. Kaldur held the gun in his hand as he came out from the hall. His finger stayed steady on the trigger, ready to fire.

"Hello Eiling," his voice was steady as fear coursed through his cold veins.

"You survived, very stubborn for a metahuman freak."

"I have been called worse," he pointed the gun at him and walked further into the room, "Get against the wall, now!"

________________________________________________________________________________

"He's in the basement and ordered him on his knees," Superman said as they flew and ran downstairs.

"We found Garth and Tula. Kaldur got to them and froze them to a wall. We are heading down to the basement now," Robin explained over the communicator.

"Copy that."

"You really think that Kaldur will kill him?" Kid Flash asked.

"I have to believe the worse for the safety of everyone here," Batman answered.

"You didn't answer the question," Robin said, leaving Batman silent.

"Kaldur! Put the gun down now!" Flash ordered.

"Against the wall, now!" Kaldur ignored him.

Eiling followed the order as Kaldur placed chains on his wrist, leaving him chained to the wall. The League became confused but watched cautiously, ready to spring into action.

"Remember this Eiling? You would leave me chained to the wall and turned the light on," he turned the bright strobe light on as a loud groan escaped Eiling's lips, "and leave me here for hours or even days. This is compared to the same heat as a furnace."

"I did what I had to do to serve my country," Eiling grounded.

"You were honorably discharged after what you did in San Baquero."

"I should have been honored for ridding the world of a metahuman freak," he glared daggers at Superman.

"Killing thousands for one objective. Oh, how the mighty have fallen. Did you honestly believe that this would bring him back?" he froze at his question. "Yes, I know about your son. I am truly sorry for your loss. But the loss of your son is not the reason to inflict pain on others. I am not responsible for my father's crime."

"You met humans bring Jokers and Savages and Mantas into our world. That bastard took my son away from me. Out military needs to focus on harnessing the power that you freaks have and use it against our enemies. Our nation doesn't need you, our nation needs your powers," he raved as his body became soaked in his own sweat.

Kaldur switched the light off, his body going limp against the chains. He raised his hand, palm out and fingers spread, causing his body to stiffen.

"Kaldur, how-when-" Aquaman tried to ask.

"The rats were excellent for practice. This power stems from control and rage, everything I had. We are merely cells filled with water," he bent his middle finger, causing Eiling's head to rise, "You really think I am going to kill you?"

Eiling fought for control over his body again, groaning loudly in pain with each struggle. Kaldur slowly lowered his ring finger to make the pain slightly stronger.

"Answer me!"

"If I di-die, I-i die for my c-c-country." he spat at him.

"Remember the question you would ask me every day before torturing me? Refresh my memory for me, General, what was the question?"

Eiling tried to shake his head, only able to release a loud groan of protest. Kaldur made a palm strike, causing a loud scream to echo the room.

"Kaldur please-" Canary started to beg before she was interrupted.

"What was the question?!"

"Are you ready to die today?! That was what I asked you, you devil! You deserved every scar, every bruise, every broken bone in your body you bastard! Watching your body slowly decaying was the most satisfying sight for what happened to my son! I finally proved that you all powerful monsters can be broken!" he shouted, submitting to Kaldur's will.

The League was taken aback by his response. Both Martians sensed his repose had to do with both exhaustion and slight pain. They realized that with each sentence, Kaldur took away the pain. Aquaman was filled with rage and anger toward that man. Silence filled the room while Kaldur released him from his control completely. Eiling body's relaxed and dangled in the chains.

"There is a special place for monster like you in hell. You think I am like my father but believe me, I am nothing like that monster," Kaldur dropped the gun on the ground and stepped on it, crushing it to bits. "Death would be too good for you," he went to unchain him and moved out of the way.

Batman and Superman picked Eiling off the ground and took him away. Aquaman went to his protege and hugged him tightly. Kaldur melted into the arms and broke down in tears, sobbing into his chest. He massaged his shoulders, allowing the tears to be labored into his shirt. Aquaman finally realized why he did everything that he did. It was never about revenge, it was about closure. He wanted to know that none of this was his fault. As any man of his age should want to know.

"It's not your fault. None of this was your fault," was all Arthur could whisper to him.

The tears finally stopped in pair with the sobs. Kaldur pulled away, looking relieved and satisfied. He wiped his face with his trembling fingers.

"Are you ready to return home?"

"Yes my king," he followed behind his mentor.

The pair and The Team went to get Garth and Tula down and headed back to the Watchtower.

________________________________________________________________________________

Eiling was brought to Belle Reve prison and handed over to Amanda Waller. She ordered her men to arrest him, taking him away in chairs. The League returned to the Watchtower, having to deal with Aqualad's punishment

"We're not seriously going to punish Kaldur for what he did are we?" Flash asked.

"Something needs to happen. He chained him to a wall," Green Lantern said.

"He has been chained to a wall for an entire year. What Kaldur did was the least he deserved," Black Canary justified.

"Are you saying what he did was right?"

"No, but I'm saying it's justified and understandable."

"That is why we have to debate on this, Canary. He has information he had no access to, he talked with Black Manta, going behind The League's back, he even pointed a gun at him and nearly internally killed him. He needs to be punished," Superman explained.

"But look at the circumstance. He was tortured, beaten, electrocuted, drowned, shot, and nearly committed suicide. I am surprised that he didn't kill him. He could have killed him anytime he wanted to, but he didn't. If that doesn't mean anything to you then I don't know what will," Batman argued.

"It could have ended differently."

"It didn't. Eiling is still alive and in prison, isn't that enough."

"Why are you of all people defending his actions Bruce? It is because he almost ended up like you, picking up the cowl for the wrong reasons?"

"Clark, don't go there," Wonder Woman warned.

"You wanna know why I'm defending him? It's because he didn't turn out like me. He had ample time and opportunity to kill him, but he didn't. If that says anything to you Smallville, it should say that Kaldur is strong enough to say no to his temptations. We all have temptations to kill our jobs, but we don't. With everything that boy has been through, he still didn't kill him, that should be enough for you. What would you have done if it was Connor or your parents?"

"I probably would have killed him but-"

"You are contradicting yourself Clark you can not say but," Canary explained.

"She's right Clark," Hawkgirl agreed.

"This is not about me, this is about him. He put The League's reputation on the line and for what, vengeance?"

"It if was vengeance, we would have a dead body."

"I am sorry Superman, but I agree with Batman. I sense what he was feeling. Vengeance was not one of them. He only wanted relief and for all of this to be over. Aqualad should not be punished for things that we all want, closure. I would have done the same if I experience even a fraction of what he did. Mentally speaking, he is still broken, this is a step towards recovery. A step he needed to take."

"I also agree with Batman and Manhunter," Black Canary added.

"Third," Flash said.

"We can't have a loose canon with powers like his and a mind as messed up as his."

"Changing the wording around I am with Lantern," Superman said.

"We need to vote. I'll call Aquaman, he needs to be here for this," Batman called Aquaman through the comm link.

"Wouldn't the vote be biased?" Wonder Woman asked.

"He's a king, he has to make decisions like this."

Ten minutes later, Aquaman arrived and took a seat next to Black Canary.

"We are voting on Kaldur'ahm being stripped of the title "Aqualad" and returning to Atlantis, permanently. Please note that he obtained classified information, went to Black Manta for assistance and even put a man's life at risk."

"Please also note that the man's life who was at risk is alive and breathing at Belle Reve."

"Thank you, Batman. The site will start with Wonder Woman."

"I have not had the chance to fight alongside with Aqualad in combat. From what I have heard, he is an amazing warrior. But his actions can not be ignored. I vote yes."

"Martian Manhunter?"

"No."

"Black Canary?"

"No."

"Green Lantern, John Stewart."

"Yes."

"Hawkgirl?"

"Yes."

"Flash?"

"No."

"Superman?" Batman took over asking the question.

"Yes. For you Batman?"

"No."

"Aquaman?"

He thought carefully over and his decision. He put into balance how much the title meant to his young protege and what he went through to obtain it. He also put into balance what he has been through in the past two years. One outweighed the other. With a long sigh, praying to Neptune that he was making the correct choice, he responded "Yes."

Several of the founding members stared at him in surprise over his response. Silence filled the room as Canary stared daggers at him.

"He doesn't deserve this Arthur," she growled.

"Canary enough."

"No Clark let her speak. Congratulations, you destroyed his life and The Team's life," Batman scowled.

"The vote is final bruce. Kaldur'ahm will be stripped of his title and will be sent back to Atlantis."

"Are you going to tell him? Cause I promise you this Clark. I will not participate in this."

"It's not my team Bruce," he noticed Batman started typing on the keyboard," What are you doing?"

To his surprise, the screen pulled up to see The Team standing.

"Team, Superman has something to tell you," Batman glared through his cowl and for a spilled-second, Superman thought he saw a smirk on his face.

"Is this about the vote?" Kaldur asked.

"Yes, it is," Superman answered while his heart sank, knowing what he had to do.

"Go ahead Superman, tell him."

"Kaldur, me and several members of The League decided that um-"

"We voted that it would be for the better that-" Wonder Woman started to explain before Hawkgirl took over.

"That you return to Atlantis and retire as Aqualad," she kept her voice firm to kept the guilt out of her voice as the small amount of hope left Kaldur's eyes.

"What! That's not fair! You can't do this!" The Team shouted as Kaldur kept silent.

"I'm sorry, but it was the vote," Superman explained.

"Was it unanimous?" Kaldur asked finding his voice.

"No, it was five to four majority." Green Lantern answered.

"Aquaman voted yes didn't he?" he asked already knowing the answer.

"Yes, I did. It is for the best Kaldur," Aquaman explained.

"I can have my apartment cleaned out and ready to leave by tomorrow."

"You're not even gonna fight?"

"I am not able to fight. I'm sorry Artemis."

"This is bullshit."

"Watch your mouth, Connor," Superman scowled.

"I can have my thing ready by noon," Kaldur said, ending the call.

"That went well," Flash commented.

"This meeting is over," Superman said as The League left the room.

Aquaman stayed in his seat, reflecting on if he made the right call.