Six Teens Walk into a Bank (a young justice fanfiction)

Current Objective: Survive

Artemis' lips parted slightly as she took a steady step backwards. "Don't." She warned, fear shaking her voice.

"Hey!" Wally shouted, drawing the team's attention to Danial, who took a duo bobble head off his desk top.

"Penn and Teller." M'gann realized.

"Two of the greatest slight-of-hand artist of our time." The man popped the head off one of the figures and shook the hollow vinyl torso over his palm until the tiny tube slid into his hand.

"Slight of hand." Artemis spat. "Like amature magic tricks."

"Or passing notes in class." Wally added.

"What are you saying?" Conner asked.

"These two were working in tandem!" Artemis replied. "Notice how whenever one of them was called up for some kind of search they'd grab hands, or bump into each other? They were trading the vile back and forth, that way, no one would be caught with it!"

"Then all they had to do was hide the sample before we called them up to be searched." Kaldur agreed.

"So? Who do you think hired them?" Wally asked. "Because I don't know about you, but this doesn't feel like a worker's strike."

"Is This the time?" Artemis hissed.

"You Held Up a Bank!" Wally shot back.

"I'm thinking League of Shadows." Robin commented casually. "Kid's right, no one would take this virus unless they had the means to deal with it."

"And they hired two random bank employees to do it?"

Dick shrugged. "Well they strike me as normal bank employees, Arty. They have guns and a hydrogen cooler." 

"Very clever." Daniel acknowledged. "Put it doesn't take being trained my batman to realize someone's identity." 

The kids glanced at each other, trying to keep the concern from their faces. "Oh come on!" Mateo scoffed. "You aren't as quiet as you think. You should never assume the hostages aren't listening! You're the Justice league's little sidekick team."

"I noticed that that Boyland Lady I served mysteriously vanished the same time she appeared." Daniel gestured at M'gann. "Not to mention this one looks exactly like Superman."

"HE HAS GILLS." Mateo shook his gun at Kaldur.

No one said anything for a minute.

"We really should've done something about that..." Wally muttered.

"Stupid kids." Daniel chuckled.

"That sample is seconds away from shattering." Kaldur told them cautiously. "Please, put it in the cooler."

"Oh, it's too late for that now." Daniel said casually. "It takes at least seven minutes to chill to a sustainable temperature, and we don't have that kind of time."

"To simplify," His companion agreed. "It would break inside the cooler anyways."

"So what?" Artemis asked. "You don't get the sample and all of us die. Including you."

Mateo shook his head. "You seem to forget, you've been releasing hostages all day."

"You're wanted by the FBI, who are surrounding this building. Who will surely storm in as soon as you let the two remaining hostages out."

Artemis' breath quickened. "But what's the gain. You might be able to gun it out of town and escape the virus, but you still lost the sample."

"Yes, but we'll have accomplished a different goal." Mateo cocked the gun. "Getting rid of the biggest thorn in our employer's side."