The New Ultimate DC RPG

"I want to make up for the corrupt cops in this City. Any means possible. No matter what. I can safely say it's ruined some relationships. That's my story."

I accelerate even faster, just sticking to the speed limit. Eventually we arrive at the entrance, with a large cue already there.

"Need to move fast, so we can get tickets."

I put aside my helmet and rush into the crowd and make my way to the ticket stand.

"Two tickets!"

I slide the money to the seller and he gives me the tickets. I barge my way out of the crowd and into the open, where I spot Rhiannon.

"Here you go," I tell her as I pass her a ticket.

I head off into the Carnival, keeping my eye out for the snitch. I stroll off towards the Big Top, keeping an eye out. Nothing yet.

"The snitch's about medium height, shaved head, broken nose and looks as if he's never seen the light of day. He recognises me in this guise as well, so when he spots us he'll be cautious, and may try to take us out subtlely. Watch yourself."

This'll be the last time I use this guy. The only reason I am is because he's the best. He won't be after this. I turn to Rhiannon to add more information, before stopping myself.

[FONT=Book Antiqua][COLOR=Navy]"You look...great."[/COLOR][/FONT]

 

Rhiannon smiles without even thinking.

She says, "Thank you Sage. You clean up pretty good too."

She stares at him for a moment and then blinks twice.

Rhiannon says, "Anyway back to work."

The two begin wondering through the crowd looking for the snitch.

She says looking around, "This is going to take me a minute. I'm used to wondering around at night in a position where a 2 year old towers over me like Yao Ming, and floating above...wait look at about 10 o'clock."

Rhiannon says looking in the other direction, "There's a guy who looks like he belongs in a Tarantino movie. Green Army Jacket and someone who fits the description of your snitch."

 

"You've found him. Looks like he's got a couple of his thugs with him. Some seem to be missing, so they maybe hunting through the crowd. Let's move," I mutter to her as I move in slowly.

I start to close near him before a huge man smashes into me, knocking me into a crowd of tourists. I lose sight of both Rhiannon and the snitch, and by the time I break out, both are gone. Just great.

 

Rhiannon feels a sharp poke in her back and a voice says, "Yes that is a gun in your back. One word and you won't live long enough to regret it. Move!"

They begin moving as the Snitch pulls out a cell phone and says, "Lucas, slight change of plans we got another party accessory. Get the van to 5th & Phillips we'll be there in 10minutes. Tell everyone to come on home, and if anyone runs into Sage between now and the pickup take him out. If we don't find him then his girlfriend becomes an instant bargaining chip."

Rhiannon squints her eyes when she hears "girlfriend."

Can't let them get me to the van otherwise Sage walks into a trap. I can't change right now either...got to give Sage a clue as to where to start heading.

Just then Rhiannon doubles over and grabs her stomach.

She screams, "OW! Ahhh! It hurts it hurts!!"

The Snitch then pulls out a cholroform rag and stuffs it in Rhiannon's face. She passes out.

He then motions to one of his associates and says, "Carry her!"

A crowd begins to look at The Snitch as he says, "It's all-right she just had one too many."

As the thug carries her over his shoulder she opens her eyes ever so slightly and then closes them.

I love it when a plan comes together.

 

I search through the various crowds, with no sign of either of them. She could be hurt. You dragged her into this. I spun around on the spot, for any sign at all. No Rhiannon. No Snitch. None of his thugs were about. Something must have happened.

"OW! Ahhh! It hurts it hurts!!"

That's her. I sprint off in the general direction of the cry, searching madly. Suddenly I notice her surrounded by the snitch's thugs. I watch as a chloroform rag is shoved to her mouth and she slowly passes out. Need to be careful about this. I slowly move behind one thug who seems to be standing guard. I grab him from behind and pull him down to the ground, behind a crate of candy floss machinery. Don't attract to much attention. He seems to have gone limp. I pull out the thug's gun then move off swiftly.

I move quietly, gun in hand ready to spring on another guard before I spot somebody. The snitch's girlfriend. She was sat on the top of a crate. I slink off, using cover as I went, around the front. Nobody with her, they're all focused on Rhiannon. I sneak on up behind her, and grab her from behind, my hand over her mouth.

"Don't scream."

I take my hand away and hear the familiar cries of a woman screaming. Reverse psychology is too easy.

"You might want to get into cover for this," I whisper to her as I pull out the gun, ready to aim. She hides behind a box of toys to sell as two thugs and the snitch run around the corner, looking around everywhere.

"Let the woman go or you're dead."

"Where's my girlfriend?!"

"Let the one you have go, or I'll kill you."

"You're bluffing!"

I aim the gun at his feet and shoot one of them. He cries out in pain as the blood starts to go through the leather shoes.

"You dragged us to quite a secluded area, Thompson. Nobody will hear. I can do that all I like."

"Go get the girl..."

The two thugs run off back to the group with Rhiannon, panting as they went.

"Night," smiles Thompson.

On instict I spin around to find large wrench smashing into my head. I drop the gun and stagger back, falling to the ground. Thompson's girlfriend ran from hiding to his arms as blood began to pour out of my head. I can make out the blurred figures of the rest of the thugs arriving, holding Rhiannon. Can't think straight. Head spinning. So much for this being easy...

 

Now

In the stygian vastness of space, two specks of light float among a billion others, yet unique. One; a near microscopic bubble of green, shining bright and strong, with determination. The other a shimmering blue, glowing warmly against the threateningly black void.

"Please, sir. Tell me something, anything about the Battle of Ysmault!" the emerald blot pleaded enthusiastically.

"That fight was 15 years ago, Recruit Bzzd. It would serve you well to focus on the now. This is your final test before being accepted into the Green Lantern Corps, after all." the Blue Lantern replied with a reprimanding, yet not scolding, tone. "And call me Saint Walker."

"Sorry mister Walker, sir." the eager recruit excused himself. "It's just that....stories of that battle made me want to become a Lantern. I can hardly believe I'm talking to someone who was actually there."

"That battle..." Saint Walker solemnly shook his head. "...that battle should not even be remembered, much less recounted. We lost many Lanterns that day, and-"

"And then Green Lantern William Hand fought off the invading forces by himself, right? Saved everyone?" Bzzd asked in childish ferver. Saint Walker hovered, slowly bobbing up and down in the emptiness. "It is true that...were it not for Green Lantern William we would most likely not have survived the encounter with the Mongul Battalion. He saved my life alone more than twice that day."

"Man." Bzzd said with admiration, staring off into the distance. "I can only hope to be half the Lantern William Hand was."

Before Saint Walker could get out a word, the space around them seemed to darken. Somehow, black became blacker, and it was as if the coldness slithered right through their protective force field and into their very cores.

"Touching."

The voice, if the eerie sound that shattered the silence could indeed be called one, called from nowhere and everywhere at once.

"Wha-- Who's there? Show yourself!" Bzzd shouted out, his ring shining brightly. "Or face the wrath of the Lantern Corps!"

An uncanny laughter sounded throughout the void, sending a shiver down both Lanterns´bodies. The spectral being growled. "In my hand..." it roared.

"...Willpower..."

Suddenly the blackness seemed to come alive. With a deafening screech, a tendril shot out from nowhere, trapping the Lantern Recruit Bzzd within a black sphere. "Help!" Bzzd cried frantically as his emerald beams bounced harmlessly off his prison.

"Bzzd!" Saint Walker called out, summoning the immense power of hope within his soul. But to his horror, nothing happened.

"...is but dust."

Reacting to the ghostly voice, the sphere containing Bzzd immediately constricted into a micorscopic ball. The young Lantern recruit did not even have time to scream.

He called out, but before Saint Walker could do anything a black tentacle wrapped around his ankle, and with a swift, silent yank, shattered his leg.

"GaaAAaaah!"

"Scream all you want, Walker." this time the voice was distinct. Turning his body, the Blue Lantern Saint Walker came face to face with someone he never thought he'd see again. Hoped he'd never see again.

"Willia-aAAAAGgghhhh!!" Saint Walker did not even feel the second tendril grab his other foot, breaking it just as easily.

"No one will hear you."

Slowly, William Hand approached the Blue Lantern. Looking up at his former colleague, Saint Walker raised his hand, aiming his ring at William. But yet again, nothing happened.

"Do you know why? Do you know why your ring is useless?" William asked, a deathly grin on his face. "Because here, with me, there is no hope."

In his tenure as Blue Lantern, Saint Walker took pride in knowing that he would hope. Until his dying day, he would hope. But the words spoken by William Hand sent a shockwave of pain throughout his body. He was not the first one to say the words, but now, for the first time...Saint Walker knew them to be true.

"Now go." the Black Hand commanded, a third tendril snaking around Saint Walker's throat and tightening. "Go back to your Guardians and tell them. Tell them their time has come. Tell them I am back."



"Tell them the blackest night has fallen."

 

The thug looks at Thompson and Thompson says, "She's dead weight literally. Tie her hands up and put her in one of the sacks with a couple of cinder blocks. Then take the boat out about 200 yards and pitch her into the river."

Thompson then shoots the thug Sage shot in the head saying, "Nothing personal just business but you're bleeding and that means you're a loose end now. Put him in the sack with her."

My mom always said that some of the worst moments present us with the greatest opportunities and this one is a golden one for me if I time it just right. The trick is not to give anything away.

They tie her hands and stuff her and the other thug in the sack with two cinder blocks. Once the sack is tied off Rhiannon opens her eyes.

Keep Cool Rhiannon...keep limp...and try to ignore the dead guy

Thompson looks at his girlfriend and says, "Go with them I wanna spend some quality time alone with an old friend and" he pulls out a set of brass kuckles "introduce him to a few more moments of pain and suffering."

The two thugs lift the sack and carry it out to the boat. The Girlfriend starts the engine.

Now just wait for the bag to be lifted up one more time once I'm airborne then I'll change. The timing has to be perfect otherwise if I wait too long to shrink I'll drown within a few seconds I go to soon they'll know something is....

Just then the boat stops. The tow thugs pick up the bag and Rhiannon hears one of them say, "On the count of 3. 1,2,3!"

Rhiannon feels the bag float upward

NOW!

She changes into The Atom and shifts her weight. She Shrinks small enough to fit in-between the fibers of the sack.

All-right now it's my turn!

She floats toward the boat and hovers behind the three criminals. The Atom looks around and grabs a metal rod.

She then proceeds to hit all three quickly on-top of their heads rendering them unconncious.

Now to make sure you three stay out of my way.

The Atom floats over to the engine and pulls several wires then grabs a peice of rope.

That ought to keep you three out of trouble. Now to get back to Sage if...he's still alive.

The Atom floats back to the secluded area and sees Thompson nail Sage with a right cross with the brass knuckles.

Sage is barely awake as Thompson says, "Aww come on now I'm just gettin' warmed-up. Don't worry you will be joining your girlfriend at the bottom of the harbor once the gang gets back."

The Atom floats behind Thompson and quickly changes back into Rhiannon Palmer

She says, "Then you're in for one long wait!"

Thompson turns around stunned as Rhiannon nails him with two roundhouse kicks to the face and a strike to the groin.

Thompson drops like a rock. Rhiannon pulls off his jacket and then proceeds to hog-tie him with the rope she brought back.

She then rushes over to Sage and cradles him while wiping the blood away from his face.

Rhiannon says, "It'll be all-right. Just take it easy for the moment. He's not going anywhere and his friends are stuck in the middle of the harbor."

 

​

Stepping out of the elevator with both arms full of groceries, even I had to fumble around for almost a full minute before fishing the keys to my apartment out of my coat pocket. For the moment, I even found myself wishing that I had Dr. Franklin's duplication powers. That'd make this a lot easier, I thought.

Miraculously managing to unlock the door without dropping anything, get inside, and close the door behind me, I sigh and roll my eyes. "I can't wait until I move to the new place. Having a balcony would certainly come in handy." I put the grocery bags onto the kitchen counter to unpack at superspeed, then toss my jacket onto the table. It's been a long day and I fully intend on relaxing for the rest of the night. Normally I'd skip the grocery shopping after a fight with a supervillain, and come straight home instead. This time, however, I remembered that I told Lois that I'd cook dinner for her tomorrow night. I don't eat food very often compared to everyone else on Earth, but I do find cooking to be a calming exercise, and I happen to be pretty good at it. So what the heck. Candlelit dinner for two here tomorrow.



Maybe she and I are moving too fast. we haven't even--No, knock it off! I'm just thinking this way because of Lana, but that's in the past. Scratching my head in consideration, I can't help but think that maybe I should cut it off with Lois before things get too heavy. "Oh, shaddup Clark. It's just dinner. Hold off on making any drastic decisions for the time being," I tell myself. "Sleep on it for now." Grinding my teeth slightly, I resign myself to bed, grabbing my copy of Ian Fleming's Goldfinger as I float into the bedroom. "Stupid emotional roller coaster," I grumble.

 

Imra had been sitting with her arms around her knee's, her plasma gun balanced on her lap, humming and softly singing some obscure song from the early 21st century she'd found in one of the guard's minds.

"Yeah yeah yeah yeah, the doctors say that I'll be getting out real soon. Hmmmm mhhh big break throughs...hmmmmm changed their minds and now I'm here to stay!"


".... Saturn Girl, scan the place. I want to know how many there are, and where they're located."

Imra's mind perked at the sound of her codename, and without acknowledging him she quickly did a search; instantaneously finding what he needed and purposefully taking her time letting him know what she found.

"Sorry baby, I'm not crazzzzyyyy...Pardon a me baby
Yo no soy locoooooo"

She smiled before quickly jumping up and walking towards her team, her face serious, she gave them a mental look inside the building, marking each person she'd found as she spoke.

"There are three immediately inside the door, due to the altercation out here they know we're here but aren't calling for back-up because they think they can take us, down the hall to the left are three, off to the right, 5, 2 and 1...I think he's taking a leak. Down a floor there are around 10 scattered, up a floor around 13. Don't they know that's an unlucky number? There also seems to be a room they've made a shift room, here, five hallway's down from us with no one in it."

She smiled sweetly at Garth,
"Anything else?"

 

Dr. Frankenstein sighs. It’s a deep sigh, from a man who is nearing death. It is unsurprising, really. He’s over eighty years old.

He hadn’t expected it to feel like this, though. He had expected the pain, sure, but not the sorrow. Where was The Soviet Union? Where were his comrades? Where was the reason for living? Dr. Frankenstein pondered the thought for a moment: there was none. Regret seized him like a hawk seizing a crippled mouse. He felt nearly nothing to regret. There was his marriage that went sour, but it had its good times he wouldn’t have given up. There were the kids that turned to America. But who could blame them? It was a better life then here. He had been too deeply ingrained in his work, focusing on little else, but he did that for his country, the worthiest cause of all. So what was it that was tearing him up inside? What was it that he wished he had or hadn’t done?

“Frankenstein‘s creature,“ as they dubbed him. Frankenstein loved that creature with all his heart, more than he could ever love his wife or other children. Why find regret there? Yes. That’s it. He hadn’t seen the creature since the 80’s. How could he? The creature was so hell-bent on his quest against capitalism in America, all the power to him, and Frankenstein found it more difficult to travel every day. Besides, he couldn’t let his creature see him in this state. He was useless to his country. What good was an old, out-of-work mad scientist?

These thoughts comforted him as he edged closer to death. He was an old, isolated man. He belonged in another age, and he would finally leave this god-forsaken one.

But what of his finest work? What of the first creature?

Hopefully it was more capable of free-thought than even Dr. Frankenstein. Hopefully it could adapt to the world so radically changing around it. God know the Doctor couldn’t.

Even then, who would talk to the monster? Who would love the monster, as only his creator had? It’s not as if the Bride of Frankenstein was much of a success. If even beings created for it denied the creature, where could Frankenstein’s work turn to for love?

He couldn’t help but wonder. Would his children take up his mantle? Would his children create a Frankenstein, like he did? He didn’t want to continue the thought, but it snowballed, quickly surpassing its creators intentions. (Why did all his works do that?) They might create a capitalist Frankenstein. They might create an American Frankenstein. Then all of his work would be for naught. Communism would be dead, and its last child, its last advantage, surpassed.

Dr. Frankenstein gasped for air. He couldn’t let that be his last thought. He couldn’t end his life thinking about such an abomination. His children were so detached from him. Why would they create a capitalist Frankenstein?

He forced his thoughts elsewhere. Where was the creature? Here Frankenstein was, almost dead, yet his only true friend was nowhere. Had the Doctor’s message not gotten through? Had the capitalists at the post office been malevolent enough to deny the Doctor one of his last wishes?

No. It was more likely they were incompetent.

Or was his creature so hell-bent on abolishing Capitalism he couldn't see his Creator? Could the Doctor blame him? Would he? Hadn't he done the same thing to his wife?

Yes, yes. Frankenstein's creature was doing the right thing. It should follow the ideals it believed in before visiting a worthless, despicable former acquaintance.

His breathing got even heavier. He felt like he was drowning in air. Staring at the door, he wondered if his last moments would be alone. Would anyone care if a Communistic mad scientist died?

“Hello, old friend.”

The beast entered as few would have expected. He entered with dignity, sorrow, and a lack of anger. He was not savage and he was not vengeful. He was simply a friend, visiting an old friend about to die.

As he sat down next to his creator, a tear flew from the Doctor’s eye. The Doctor tried to hide it in vain.

“Hello.” The Doctor eked out the words. It sounded painful and necessary, yet desired and wonderful.

”How are things, in Russia?”

The Doctor smiled at his creature. It knew how things were in Russia, how sad the Doctor was, and how isolated he felt.

“Good…” a long pause. “And in America?”

It was useless lying, because Doctor Frankenstein knew America would never truly change its ways.

“Good…”

There was another long pause, this time not due to a lack of breath.

“I… love you… like… I should have loved… my children…”

There was another long pause. The creature knew exactly what he wanted to say. He knew what he had to say. But would he have the power to say it?

“I love you like the father you are to me.”

Frankenstein’s face was immobile. He was speaking passionately, yet his features remained mute to his emotions. He always managed to have that look, even at this moment. Even at the moment where he was talking to the closest thing he had to a father, who was dying, who he loved like a father, he seemed removed. In truth, he had never felt so passionately in his life about anything. The Doctor knew that.

“Son… will you take my… name?” The Doctor coughed, slightly embarrassed at the emotion he was showing. He had created the creature, was he not its father? Could he not show it his emotion like a dying father?

“Yes, father. From now on, I will be known as Frankenstein.”

The creature let a tear slip. Like his father, he tried to control it, hide it, suppress it. Like his father, he failed.

The Doctor smiled. There was no repressing it. This moment was one of the few happy ones in his life. It was, in fact, his happiest moment. As Frankenstein's tear hit the Doctor’s cheek, the once-infamous Doctor died.

He died as an old, mad scientist, to be sure. He died as a relic from a past era, most definitely. But he also died as a father, who was loved.

 

the escapist: conclusion

Billy and Tawky had appeared on a small black and white tiled platform. What stood before them was a giant moutain that stretch far into the clouds.

"Do we have to climb it?" Billy asked as they continue forward. Each step a new piece of the platform had emerged.

"Heavens no. It goes on forever."

"Forever?!"

"Yes, hence the Rock of Eternity." They finally got to the end where a stone door slid open.

"What goes there?! Who wishes to enter?!" A spear pops out the front of the door and almost hits the two.

"Sir Hoppy, its been so long. I believe the last time I saw you was when we tackled the Hexapi from deep within the space fold. It took us all the way into 2-D subspace."

"What?"

"Oh, excuse me, this is young Billy Baston. He is here to see the Wizard." A giant rabbit in a Captain Marvel uniform had appeared in the doorway.

"Is it? My, my welcome son. We must make haste and bring him there right away. Follow me there is no time to waste." Hoppy grabbed his arm and pulled him corridors, giant open rooms, small cramp rooms filled with the most wonderous items of science and magic. Creatures from beyond our vision, gadgets that haven't entered human thoughtstream yet, pathways to time/space highways.

"Look at all this stuff. What is it?"

"Later, later. First, you must see the Wizard."

"I would never of thought...."

"Of course you thought. Some of these things came from your head." In seconds they were in a throne room. Sitting in a chair before them was a man in a robe. Billy could only see the giant beard coming out of it. Standing by his side was Tawky with Mite on his shoulder.

"Billy Baston," the Wizard talked in a loud booming voice, "for thousands of years the power of Shazam has fueled a champion to look over the cosmos, to fight the forces of evil, and to protect the forces of good. It is a daunting task and a heavy burden, I could not stress. We have looked over past, future, and alternate selves and have chosen you. Do you accep..."

"Yes!"

"You didn't let me finish." the booming voice was gone. It sounded well it sounded like a normal person.

"Sorry."

"'s'ok. Um," The Wizard clears his throat and back to the loud booming voice, "do you accept Billy Baston...ohhhhhhhhhh."

"Um...yes."

"Very good," the Wizard rose up. He hands came out of the robes. They were old, boney, and shaking. He grabbed the top of the robe and threw it off. The beard came with it and no more did he have the wither boney hands.

"Wait a minute?"

"Yes?"

"I thought Wizards were suppose to be...."

"Old?"



"I've tried it out. Its not my thing. I guess we should start you out with your powers. Oh the wonderful things that you will see. Really, Billy, this is the start of something wonderful."

"But I have so many question."

"Question, question, question. In due time, right now you can ask me one question."

"Ok, who is Qwsp?"

"Qwsp, that rascal. Yes, Qwsp, is a force of the universe. He is in your terms the, not a, the boogeyman. He the thing that goes bump under your bed, the tree branch that looks like a claw, the creeking floors at night. Now, I have a question, you were pretty eager to accept my offer, why?"

"Why? I must answer with another question, how could I say no? Its super powers! What am I going to brood for a day on my new great responsibilty? No way."

"I knew I picked you for a reason. Ok then one word, two syllables, repeat after me."
********
Back at the Orphanage,

Stanley was running down the hall. He just check the hole Baston wasn't there. He opened the door to Mr. Sivana's office.

"Mr. Sivana! Baston gone. He somehow got out. Do you want me to get the boys and find him? Huhhhh?" Mr. Sivana was dead on his desk. His face full of fear. Floating over him was a small odd man.

"Holy crap! I'm calling the cops!"

"NO! I can fix this! Yes, you are going to help me!" Sivana's office room filled with a weird glow.
********
Gotham City,

"My man," a motorcycle pulled up to a group hanging outside a bar, "hey guys I want you to meet my main man, Freddie Freeman. He came all the way from Fawcett."

"So what makes him so special?"

"His dad used to run around with Falcone. Dig?"

"So, I heard his dad was found with a bullet in his head in a pile of mud and his mother ran off with some pimp." Freddie got off his motercycle and walked up to the one man. "What are you going to do about it?" Freddie punched him in the gut. He popped a switchblade.

"You ever talk about my parents again. I'll cut your tongue out."

"freddie...say. my. name. let. me. out." A voice said in his head.
*******
Well he never been in space before. He glanced over the entire Earth. He could see aliens millions of miles away, he could see everyone and everything!

"Holey moley!"

 

"Ur...barely any broken bones...nothing I can't handle..." I grunt as I struggle to sit up. I was lying through my teeth, but there's no need for unnescessary worry, we just need to keep moving.

I hold onto her arm tightly, not even meaning too. She's the only support I have, and breathing was starting to get too hard for worrying about holding myself up. Broken ribs. Hopefully not. Suddenly I remember. The meta.

"The snitch. Inside pocket, left side. He'll have a piece of paper in there, with notes. Maybe multiple, but get all of them," I tell her, poiting to the limp snitch.

Thompson never changed. I've watched him everytime he brought me information. He always had a list of it all in his left inside pocket. He was predictable. I push myself up forcibly, every muscle aching, trying to stop me moving. Eventually I stagger up, trying to think of what to do next.

"We've got the info. Leave him."

 

Rhiannon grunts softly as she lets Sage lean on her. She puts the notes in Sage's pockets.

She says, "We gotta get out of here. Anyone gets a look at you right now there are going to be all kinds of questions that I don't think we want to deal with."

They reach Sage's motorcycle and Rhiannon gets on in the driver's position.

Sage asks in a very groggy voice, "What do you think you're doing?"

Rhiannon replies, "Getting us outta here we stay we're sitting ducks. Sooner or later slimey and his friends are going to be free, and face it this time they won't try to be neat about taking care of us. Not to mention we don't know how many others are here."

Sage says,"You don't have the keys and you don't know how to drive one of these."

Rhiannon flashes the keys and says, "When I gave you the notes I took 'em, secondly it's like riding a big mechanical bicycle, right? You got a better idea I'd like to hear it."

Sage takes deep breathe and winces in pain as he says, "We're gonna die."

He gives her a helmet and he puts on the other one while getting on the back of the motorcycle.

She says, "On the bright side the adrenaline rush should take your mind off of the pain."

Sage just looks at her and says, "Just get going."

Rhiannon starts the motorcycle and says, "Hey off to a good start."

Sage replies, "Great now let's see you drive."

Through a series of jerking stops and starts the two eventually make it back to Rhiannon's apartment.

Rhinannon says, "So not too bad, eh."

Sage responds, ""Next time we walk it'll be safer."

Rhiannon helps Sage off of the motorcycle and into her apartment. She sets him gently on the couch and says, "I'll be back."

She quickly returns with three gallon-sized bags of ice and an ace-wrap.

Rhiannon takes Sage's jacket and shirt off and says, "This is gonna hurt for a moment but we gotta take care of that brusing and swelling around your ribs."

She applies 2 bags to his abdomen area and tapes it up Sage winces in pain but remains in control.

Rhiannon then puts a bag on his face and says, "Defeinetly get you cleaned up before we go back out at least get the swelling around your face to go down so it doesn't look like you made fun of Mike Tyson and his voice."

She gets up and pulls out the notes laying them on the coffee table and says, "Let's see if these notes make any sense."

 

​

"Yeah? That so! Well, you'll understand if I decline such service!"

Oswald 'Ozzie' Cobblepot slammed the receiver of his office's phone back down, visibly enraged as the phone call was abruptly cut off before the individual on the other end of the line could respond. Cobblepot's bodyguards, two russian refugees that could easily break any man in the building, looked at eachother with fear in their eyes. Whenever Ozzie was mad, he usually took it out on them in the most extreme ways imaginable. And tonight, Cobblepot was boiling.

"You alright, boss?", One of them asked in broken english. "Do you vant us to-"

Ozzie stood up immediately, teeth grinding against eachother as he slammed his palms down on the wooden table. "I 'VANT' YOU TO SCREEN MY ****ING CALLS BEFORE YA ANSWER THEM, YA F***!"

The bodyguard said nothing. He only shook, in fright, as his employer finished spitting out that barely audible sentence. The other one looked away, unable to bring himself to speak up either. Cobblepot scoffed, disgusted with their lack of courage. If they hadn't been as good at their jobs as they were, he would have never hesitated to fire them... they were almost embarrassing to keep on his staff.

"So I get this call, right? This ****ing call in the middle of my dinner, the dinner I paid a good grand for!, to tell me that Tony Zucco's moving in on the west territories and wants to bring the club in on his jurisdiction! The nerve of that ****ing piece of...", Cobblepot ranted, ready to take everything in the room and throw it against the wall. "The nerve of that ****ing piece of... can you believe that guy?! The balls of it. Making a play for the only scrap of this town that I got left!"

"Boss, your blood pressure.", One of them coyly mentioned. "You know how it gets when you're like this. You need to take-"

"I DON'T NEED THAT ****ING MEDICINE AND I DON'T NEED YOU!", Cobblepot screamed, before sitting back down, vehemently out of breath. "I just... I gotta think. Gotta get this through my mind before I... I..."

Ozzie rubbed the bridge of his nose, frustrated. His bodyguards only stood, patiently awaiting further instruction as their boss finally forced himself to calm down. For such a short, pudgy man with the bizarre features that he was famous for, he could sometimes yell loud enough to wake the dead. And this wasn't the first time. Cobblepot and his siblings had become synonymous with public bouts of frustration and anger for the past few years... and the way business was going lately, that wasn't going to end anytime soon.

"Who the **** does he think he is, anyway?", Cobblepot asked himself, fumbling to unscrew the cap of his prescribed heart medication. "The guy gets one lucky break when Falcone gets put away, and he thinks he owns Gotham! I oughta..."

The bodyguard furrowed his brow, a bit more urgently in tone than before. "Boss."

"I'm taking them, I'm taking them. Jesus, like having my mother in the room...", Cobblepot mumbled, scarfing down two or three pills of a once a day medication. "Alright, now. Right now. We gotta do something about this Zucco thing before it bites us in the ass. We hear anything from Sal's camp, Anatoli?"

The former russian KGB hitman shook his head. "Not a word since last week, boss."

Cobblepot thought to himself, for a brief second. If Maroni wasn't going to back him in order to get Zucco off of his case, then there weren't very many other people in line to get him out of this situation. He had to play it cool and quietly, and wait for Sal to make the first move. And if there was anything he hated, it was playing patsy to a man like Maroni, who probably valued his own reflection more than that cheap wench he was dating at the moment.

"Alright. Keep your eyes open around town,", Ozzie instructed. "There's that carnival opening across town soon, so make sure to keep extra watch over that place. If Maroni isn't there, someone else from his camp's gotta be."

"Yes, sir."

"And one more thing, goddammit.", Ozzie stated, standing up to compose himself. "Run down to the armani shop on 7th. Get me a tux, maybe a top hat. Something fancy, like nothing I usually wear."

The bodyguards raised their eyebrows, collectively. Cobblepot smirked.

"Hey, if it works for that prick Bruce Wayne, well..."

A pair of eyes watching Cobblepot sneered, realizing he had been wasting his time with the gangster. "It's gotta work damn good for me, too."



From the shadows outside of Cobblepot's office, The Batman hung off of the ledge of the rooftop above, his cloak flowing against the gentle breeze of Gotham's night sky. He had been listening to the entire conversation since Zucco called, using The Oracle to tap into the phone conversation specifically in order to try and pin down a location. But Cobblepot's outburst and abrupt hangup had canceled the trace before it could reach the other end address, rendering the act useless and wasted. Agitated, Batman continued to watch Cobblepot, as he and his bodyguards exited the room. Now's my chance. Better make it quick.

Sliding over to the outside of the window's lock itself, The Dark Knight rummaged through his utility belt and instantly produced a self-charging miniature laser grid, built specifically as a military application for blasting off the locks of enemy hideouts. Though he had something a bit different in mind than a military seige, the principle was largely the same. Watching as the device did it's work in melting the lock, Batman silently crept the window open seconds later, slipping onto the dirty carpet with ease. Cobblepot's car was undoubtedly being prepped for leave to The Iceberg Lounge, the gangster's nightclub just across town. But that didn't mean he shouldn't be cautious.

"Oracle,", He whispered. "Keep a scan ready outside the door. Ten feet to my right."

Request Acknowledged.

Popping open Cobblepot's file cabinet, Batman patiently looked through them, making sure to cover every file's documentation at once. Even though he would never admit it, he actually found use in Cobblepot's unsettling presence within Gotham City - because he owned The Iceberg, Cobblepot kept a record of every one of his loyal customers on the off chance that he'd ever be the target of an extortion scam. That meant that every mob boss dealing in the city was kept on record in these files: Falcone, Maroni, Grissom, Gambol, Chechen, Manheim... it was all here. Except two. The two that Batman had went to the trouble of coming in here to find. Nothing on Black Mask or Zucco. Dammit.

Shutting the cabinet shut, Batman turned around and rummaged through Cobblepot's data log, foolishly set right ontop of everything else. The gangster made personal notes of his business life every day - appointments, scheduled events, customers and the recorded tabs on their businesses. If Batman were to steal it right now, he'd probably be up to date on everything happening in Gotham City's underworld. But he knew that if it was missing, Cobblepot would become suspicious and be more prone to watch his back. And that was the last thing Batman wanted - he needed Cobblepot to feel safe. To feel untouchable, even by his reach, until the day would finally come that he'd need to bring Oswald down himself. In the mean time, Batman would be more than willing to settle with an oblivious source of information.

Looking through the log, Batman noticed a few peculiar notes on recent phone calls. Maroni had complained to Cobblepot that his ledger had went missing just days ago. The Mayor hadn't taken any calls in the past few days, even though he was consistently working out of his office for weeks at a time. Commissioner Gordon was becoming a more frequent name being thrown around amongst the lower level scum. Arkham's asylum had been on security detail for the past few hours, sighting strange events coming from the newest patients - their names labelled 'T. Dee' and 'T. Dumm'. And despite his lack of a record, Black Mask was definitely a presence in The Narrows island.

"Hhn,", He wondered aloud. Cobblepot's watching more of the city than I realized.

WARNING. Heat signature detected, approaching vicinity.

Closing the log shut, Batman vaulted for the open window, and leaped out as quickly as he could. By the time that Cobblepot's bodyguard had re-entered, he found nothing there and nothing out of place. The Dark Knight had vanished into the night.

 

Zauriel
The Road from Perdition

The first thing that hits me when I enter the gas station is the stench of blood. It's thick and invasive, hanging in the air. I wince slightly, not knowing whether to be fully repulsed by it or feel slightly nostalgic.

The fluorescent lights above my head flicker erratically. I am too late. A shame.

I walk slowly over to the cashier's desk, various kinds of snacks crumbling beneath my feet. The air grows colder with each step I take towards the corpse; slung over the counter is the body of a young girl. Face down in a puddle of her own blood, her throat has been slashed. Blond locks cascade down over her head. Her name was Melissa and she was 19 years old.

"I'm sorry." I offer the poor soul "May you fare well on your journey."

I turn to leave, wading through an aisle of trashed food. I stop for a moment, a new scent. Something...familiar. Something...

"ZAURIEL!"

Several things happen at once. The air grows hot. I recognize the smell as the stench of sulfur. And the gleeful scream coming from behind sends a shiver down my back. I turn.

Melissa´s corpse is standing in front of me. Perhaps not standing, rather, strung up. Her head is slung backwards, the gash on her throat slowly opening even more, torrents of blood pouring down her neck. Her hands dangle lifelessly to her sides; her knees buckled.

"Don't tell me you don't recognize me, old buddy old pal?" the woman shouts, her voice unearthly and hollow.

"I recognize you, Etrigan." I state dryly. "Now leave that poor girl."

"Oh please." Etrigan scoffs. "You've seen worse. Hell, you've done worse."

One of Etrigan´s vessel´s lifeless arms spring up and grab the head, pulling it up to look me in the eye. The poor woman´s mouth has been disfigured, her teeth filed into razor sharp fangs. "Leaving without even so much as a goodbye? Is that any way to treat your friends? Lot of people got upset when we found out you were gone, Zee. Even Big L himself got angry."

I hang my head. "You've seen the man when he's angry, yes?"

"Although I gotta say. This is one sweet-ass deal you got here. Be a good little boy and you're allowed your leash back? How'd you swing that?"

I look up, staring right into those dead eyes. I've practiced this speech for millennia, down there in the Pit. "My God is a good and mercifu--"

"YOU SHUT YOUR ****E MOUTH!!!"

Windows shatter and glass flies like bullets. They whip around my body, cutting my face and skin, digging deep and slicing through tendons and muscle. An invisible force grabs me and hurls me through the air. I fly across the floor, before I slam into a wall. I can feel my vessel´s body break in almost every way.

"You have fun up here while you can, partner." he growls. "Put a flower on a piece of ****, it's still a piece of ****, Zauriel. Believe me, I'll be seeing you around."

As if someone turned a dial, the air goes freezing cold and Melissa´s body snaps back, before collapsing down on the floor in a bloody heap.
​

 

"All right, let's clear this level off", Garth stated after Imra's report.

Lightning Lad moved towards the door and listened. He could almost hear the nervous breathing from the other side as the three Dark Circle members waited patiently for the Legion to show.

Garth gently put his hands on the door and let out a powerful burst of electrical energy. The door blasted off it's hinges, launching like a wild projectile into one of the Dark Circle terrorist and smashing him against the wall.
The other two froze for a split second in shock, and Garth quickly fried them with a blast of energy.

The eight terrorists from down the hall came charging out after hearing the commotion, but are taken out by Garth and the rest of the team in a matter of seconds.

"Now that just leaves a group above and a group below", Garth states as he drops the charred body of a Dark Circle terrorist.

"Saturn Girl, Karate Kid, and Shadow Lass take the upper level and clear it out. Brainiac Five and I will take care of the group below us. Keep communication channels open, and try to leave one alive to interrogate later."

 

"No need to make a fuss. I'm fine," I tell her as I take a look at the notes.

The idiot wrote mostly giberish but towards the end, decent facts began to come out. He managed to find roughly two metas in the Gotham area, with the powers we're after. One of them has been known to use his powers against muggers. The other one has gone off the radar.

"The guy who's most likely hasn't been seen on the streets in a while. He's our most likely suspect. His name's Lester Buchinsky."

I pass the list to her before resting my head down on the sofa, closing my eyes, feeling the wounds on my face stir as I did. Could have gone worst. Last time something like that happened I ended up buried alive. That was a new experience.

"Thanks for the help tonight. I appreciate it," I tell her honestly.

 

Rhiannon watches Sage gradually fade off to sleep and she whishpers, "You're welcome."

She gets out a comforter from her closet and lays it on top of him. She smiles for a moment as he pulls the comforter up.

Rhiannon goes into her bedroom and closes the door.

After a warm shower she turns on her lap-top and tries to access any information on Buchinsky. Rhiannon comes up with nothing on her search.

I think Sage has the right idea.

She climbs into her bed and begins to doze off.

 

OOC: Previously...

​

The sight before Orin's eyes is most unpleasing. All these years he has thought to have no mother and no father. All these years he was led to believe that he was simply a child of the Titans, brought to this realm and waters to keep a check in the balance and peace of Atlantis.

Cora...or rather Nuliajuk, speaks once more to her son.

"The Gods brought upon the destruction of Atlantis to our ancestors, and they continued to torment us and our people when Poseidon himself killed your father. I could not stand by and watch as the creatures of the deep swam up to that pillar, and began to eat at his flesh. I turned to the Titan Tethys to watch over you, and watch over you she has. Now the time has come, with mother and son united, to destroy the Gods."

"Destroy the Gods?"

"The Gods of Olympus who Poseidon and his sons and daughters are family with once waged a war against the Titans of this plane of existence referred to as The Titanomachy."

"The War of the Titans."

"When I came to Tethys, the price to save your life and our family was two-fold. She and Oceanus would watch over you and nurture you, into the most powerful hero of the deep, so that we may re-unite and aid the Titans in their revenge against the Gods."

It starts to make sense to Orin. His entire involvement in Atlantis had been planned and orchestrated from the start. That is why the sea monsters we drawn to Atlantis. In a bizarre way Daus was right: Orin was responsible for the recent attacks that had disturbed the waters of Poseidonis. It was all to bring Orin to his mother.

"And how do you plan on doing that, mother?"

"The tides have already flowed into motion. As we speak, the most vile and dangerous creatures of the deep attack Poseidonis. Your...brothers and sisters in a sense given that I had been transformed into Nuliajuk personified as the price for making the deal. With no one to fend for them but the Poseidians themselves, the city will fall. The city that worships the bitter God Poseidon is merely the first as our chaos and destruction ripples to the very corners of the entire Oceanscape. And then..."

Cora stars to shrink and change form. Reverting back to her more pleasant and womanly form she swims towards Orin. Placing her hand upon his cheek, and giving him a motherly smile, she continues.

"...then we can get our life back. Our family will be forever blessed in the new world crafted by the Titans. Once Poseidon and all of the other Gods and Godlings of the Sea are vanquished, our deed will be done. The Titans shall take the War to the rest of Olympus but you my son...and I will be able to be at peace. Your father's name and memory will be restored and honored for generations to come. He will be marked as a martyr...not an example for Poseidon to spread fear into Atlanteans."

 

Carter dropped the magazine he was reading to his desk as he heard the door to the atrium squeak open. He knew who it was before he even saw her. The familiar clicking of smart heels on marble floor echoing into the rafters. Dr. Kendra Saunders. She was always the first one through the doors on a morning and the last one out in the evening. The clock had just ticked over past 10pm as Carter looked up and smiled. "Another late night Dr. Saunders?" he asked.

Dr. Saunders returned the smile as she began fumbling in her handbag for something. "You know me Carter, live for the job".

Carter grinned and picked at an unseen spot on his desk. "You not hitting the town tonight then?"

She found what she was looking for, pulling a set of car keys from her bag triumphantly. "Nope, I don't have the time or any company. A glass of wine and a chick flick for me this evening. Sometimes I think the only two places I ever see are my bed and my lab".

A small chuckle escaped his lips, "Well maybe we'll have to see about changing that!" he exclaimed.

Dr. Saunders looked at him and blushed, "Well umm..." she stammered, pushing a lock of loose hair nervously behind her ear.

Carter looked at her, realising the insinuation in his last words. The shock hit home like a lead weight. "Oh! Dr. Saunders, I'm sorry! I didn't mean... Y'know? I uhh..."

"It's okay Carter" she smiled, "Don't worry about it. Oh, and call me Kendra". She turned from him and made her way to the exit. Carter slapped his forehead in frustration at his blunder. She stopped in the doorway and turned her back to him."Carter, I'm free on sunday night" she called over, before turning and heading out into the night before Carter fully registered her words.

****
​

"Whose the man?" Carter asked his grinning reflection in the bathroom mirror. He fixed his tie straight and smoothed down his security guards uniform. He clicked his fingers and shot an imaginary bullet at his reflection. "You da man, Carter" he replied to his own question. He already had a plan laid out for sunday night. Dinner at the Blue Dolphin, the smartest restaurant in town. It'd cost him most of his meagre security guard wages but the sway of Kendra Saunders hips was bright in his mind and he knew she was worth it.

Carter left the bathroom and collected his flashlight from his desk in the main atrium. As he turned and considered making one last patrol for the night, he heard a whisper behind him. Carter spun on his heel, seeking the source, but the huge atrium was empty. Ninth Corp had invested millions into this building and its state of the art technology. It was so good that Carter often thought he was only there to to turn the lights out in the evening.

He shook his head and clipped his flashlight to his belt. As his own footsteps echoed around him, the lights went out. The whole building being lunged into blackness. Carter froze and unhooked his flashlight, swinging around and trying to see what had happened.

The eerie silence shook him to his core. He was so used to the gentle hum of electricity that powered the massive complex that now it was gone, it seemed... soulless.

Carter made his way to the front doors. There was nothing outside other than a silent street. He turned from the glass and back into the building. A hand grasped his own and twisted it, forcing him to drop the light. Carter struggled but a hard fist rocked his jaw and knocked him for six. Carter fell to the floor, tasting the sweet mettalic taint of his own blood in his mouth. Rough hands dragged him to his feet and across the atrium. Carter, still dazed and confused made out at least four figures surrounding him.

They tied him to his chair, binding and gagging him. All four men were dressed from head to toe in black outfits, like some kind of military black-ops team. All four of them had their back to him. Carter tried to struggle, fumbling at the ropes that held his wrists together. One of them en infront touched a hand to his ear. "Yeah, I'll send two of them up" he grunted to what Carter assumed must have been a radio. He man turned to two of his comrades. "Rico, Bean, get yourself to the labs. The boss thinks he's found Project Thanagar. Me and Koslov will watch the guard".

The two men nodded and disappeared, leaving Carter in the company of just the two. "What the hell is Project Thana-whatever?" the other man, Koslov, asked.

The leader shrugged his shoulders. "I dunno, we don't get paid to know, just to do the job".

Koslov grunted a response and both men fell silent once more.

Behind them, Carter had managed to work free an arm from hs bonds and was feverishly working the other free. With a final tug, he pulled free of the rope and rose silently. Withdrawing his baton and his tazer from his belt Carter swung as hard as he could at the back of the leaders head.

THUNK!

The leader went down in a heap. Before Koslov could move, Carter had jabbed his tazer into the mans neck, drooping him to the ground too. Carter searched them for weapons and their radios, before tying their arms together. He hit the emergency button under his desk that would alert the Police before heading towards the stairs himself. No one was going to be stealing anything, especially on his watch.

****
​

Cater reached the top floor of the building with little resistance. He'd taken three guards by surprise, taking down each of them with his baton and tazer. Their guns had been siezed and he hid all five weapons in an old air conditioning vent. Project Thanagar was something that Kendra Saunders had been working on for the past eighteen months and so Carter made a bee-line for her labs. When he got there he could see the doors had been blown through and the remaining intruders were stood with their backs to him, their attention focused on something laid out in front of them.

Carter crept in and skirted around the lab, keeping low behind work surfaces and units. As he moved into position, he saw another man in dark robes and a black mask with his hands over what appeared to be a golden casket. The casket was laid with intricate patterns, shining jewels all centered on a shinng circle of black jewels in the middle of the casket. "Hmm, the locks upon this are strong indeed. Soon, I will not only be in the grace of Osiris but will also control the power of Horus. Then the Gods themselves will bow to me!" the dark shape growled.

Carter watched as thick black smoke billowed from the mans hands and covered the casket. Carter had seen enough. Leaping from his hiding place, Carter tackled the man to the ground. Before he could react, bodies had piled onto him and were dragging him to his feet. "Hold him!" the smoke man barked. "He'll be the first to spill his blood for me when I ascend to God-hood!"

The soldiers held him tight. "You are an idiot coming and thinking you can take us on", one of the soldiers growled. "Hath-Set will eat your heart".

Carter watched as the man, Hath-Set began to work once more on the casket, his white eyes gleaming. The black jewels began to pop and slide on the surface of the casket, moving into a new shape. The lid popped and hissed, and slid open. Hath-Set grinned, black smoky tendrils slid under the lid and lifted it free. As the lid moved white light screamed from the casket, pouring into the labs. Men fell back and cried. Carter couldn't see for the white brilliance. The light burned his flesh, piercing his flesh like sharp needles. His mind screamed in agony as the light washed through him. Carter fell to his knees, his fingers clawing at burning temples. Images flashed in front of his blinded eyes. Warriors doing battle, sand and blood kicking up into the air. Horses screaming and weapons ringing, steel on steel. Carter cried out in agony as he saw wings, huge and thick and feathered. A mace crashed down on a skull splintering it. Blood sprayed across a golden helm. He saw sky and clouds and the darkness of death.

Carter collapsed and everything went black.

When he awoke, he was stood. In the distance he could hear police sirens. He blinked, his blurred vision regaining focus. As Carter looked around, he saw blood everywhere. Up the walls and on the floor across his bare arms and chest. Dead bodies were strewn around him, those of the men who had held him. The dark man, Hath-Set was nowhere to be seen.

Carter staggered back, his eyes wide with horror. His back felt heavy and sore. Carter glanced across, a glass partition showing him a fractured image of himself, huge feathered wings sprouted from his back. Carter screamed and reached around, grasping at feathers.

The door to the labs burst open and a platoon of SWAT officers burst in, levelling their weapons at him. "FREEZE! GET DOWN ON THE GROUND!" they bellowed, as they moved foraward. Carter took a step back, his mind reeling, unable to even speak. Instinctively he turned and ran, bursting through a large window and into the night sky.

 

I stir from my sleep, an ache coming from my chest I pushed the ice packs slightly harder before leaping up. I pull on my overcoat and take another look at the notes before stuffing them into my pocket. I knock on the bedroom door quickly.

"Come on, we need to keep moving. We've got tickets to a Carnival and there's people with sources everywhere..."

I touch my face hesitantly. It's going down. About time.

 

Rhiannon stirs and says, "I'll be out in a minute."

She gets dressed and again puts on a touch of make-up.

Why not?

She opens the door looks at Sage's face and says, "Well it's not too bad. We have to be careful though. For all we know Thompson and his cronies are back to being a workable crew again."

Rhiannon starts towards the door and turns to Sage.

She asks, "This is going to uglier isn't it?"

He nods very slowly.

Rhiannon replies, "Okay I'm not used to this kind of stuff...yet, but I promise you this I got your back. we've come too far to blow this thing now."

She tosses Sage the keys and says, "I think you're well enough now."

 

Val nodded and called the lift down from the upper floor. He stepped in, followed by Imra and Tasmia. Some diconcertingly cheery music played in the lift as it started moving.

"So Imra, I've got to say, loving the new figure hugging uniform," he said with a wink.

"Although it isn't half as revealing as Tasmia's which is a shame," he leered at the blue skinned woman, who turned her nose up in disgust.

"Stop drooling you empty headed thug," Tasmia said.

"That hurts," Val said, adopting a look of mock pain "That really hurts,"

The Karate Kid looked at the pair of women behind him.

"Y'know it'd distract the bad guys if you two started making out when the doors open,"

 

I take the keys and open the door, heading back down to the street. I leapt onto the bike and waited till Rhiannon got on before driving off again into the street, trying to ignore any pain.

"Thompson left some notes on Buchinsky. It's well known that his brain's the size of a hamster's and is normally used for hired work. There's a chance there's something bigger behind this, so this is going to get real bad," I tell her as we near our destination.

 

Rhiannon holds on to Sage as they steer through the streets.

She feels changes in his breathing paterns.

He's holding it in but Sage is in no shape to fight right now. He is hurtin' badly I should've gotten him to the hospital...but but there would've been too many questions. Welcome to the double-edged sword of a dual life.

Rhiannon says, "So what exactly are we..."

Just then a cat darts out. causing Sage to hit the breaks hard. Rhiannon grips on a little tighter and Sage lets a scream through gritted teeth.

She yells, "Pull this thing over right now!"

Sage complies and Rhiannon gets off and looks at Sage.

She says, "Face it this whole playing through pain mentality isn't going to work for us right now. I held on to you but not that hard and you were in obvious pain. I gripped tighter and you were about to double-over. If we get into a bad situation with the bad guys and they discover you're hurt; Sage they aren't going to hesitate to kill you first. The sharks will smell the blood in the water."

Sage just stares at Rhiannon and she says, "I'm not wild on the idea of you getting killed. Do you have some kind of two-way communication system we can use that will allow me to to the leg-work will you do some recovery in the shadows?"

Sage continues to just stare at her and Rhiannon says, "Look we're working together on this I've trusted you with everything, how about you trust me on this one?"