Justice League IC

[TearsoftheWorld]

Wonder Woman couldn't help but smirk as her rhetorical question hit Flash like a mac truck. Yet he recovered quickly, and came back at her in his usual and slightly witty fashion.

"That's a brilliant idea. You're such a genius, Flash." Diana said with a smile. She tightened her grip around the lasso, keeping the two thugs contained within from being able to move a muscle.

(As if they could away anyways)

And though she used his words in a sarcastic tone, the idea had actually struck a cord with the Amazonian. The idea of a collective force to help protect the world did seem to offer quite a bit of benefits. She would be able to work alongside some of the greatest heroes, all fighting for equality and the betterment of mankind.

She could think of quite a few people she would like to see on the roster. There was Superman, of course, and the Green Lantern. Diana was sure he would want to be a part of the core group. Batman, however, might take a bit of convincing. He had a reputation for being a hard-ass and a loner. Spending time with some friends might cut into his brooding.

"So the UN is pushing this idea? Has anyone besides yourself been informed?"

 

[Superman1496]

Bruce offered him and the other two in. J'onn and Kara joined them inside. Kara, not looking excited, tried to avoid eye contact with Clark.

We'll deal with this later. Clark said looking at Kara.

Yeah Bruce, we're here for the Justice League, but, did you say that there was an assasination of the DA? Clark asked as they entered the Mansion. What happened? He asked the Billionare.

 

[MilkManDan007]

Bruce Wayne

The three of them entered and walked past him, standing quietly in the entryway as the large mahogany door swung shut behind them. Wayne simply began walking into the Manor, knowing the trio would follow him towards the large, book-lined study.

Through the years, he and Kal-El had their fair share of run-ins, battling alongside one another on more than one occasion. J’onn was slightly less familiar, but Wayne had seen him from time to time as he aided in the protection of the innocent. However, this new woman, another survivor from Krypton, was entirely unfamiliar to him.

From their banter, he could tell that they were related, perhaps not brother and sister, but related nonetheless. Inwardly, he laughed. He loved to see the elder Kryptonian get disturbed by something as simple as a slightly underdressed woman. He had always been such an old-fashioned man, not willing to adapt to the changes of today’s youth.

Several large screens hung on the walls in the study, placed neatly between the ceiling-height shelves of books. Newscasts from various channels mutedly broadcast images from Metropolis, the image of District Attorney Winters’ final breath appearing more than once.

“Someone doesn’t want Alex Wilcox to go to jail,” Wayne said, sitting behind the large marble-topped desk. “This is the second shooting related to that case. I mistakenly thought that the first shot was a lucky shot, but now that there have been two shootings, and two extremely long-range precision shots for that matter, it has to be him.”

Wayne unmated one of the televisions, the newscaster recounting the events of the shooting and the evidence that had been gathered so far. A rifle had been found matching the caliber of bullet that had killed the District Attorney. No suspects had been caught, no new leads had been discovered.

“It’s too amateur for him, to leave a rifle out like that. He’d be too exposed, too open to prying eyes,” Wayne said, standing and moving out in front of the desk. He spoke to no one, but all listened to what he said. “There are at least two buildings taller within a block that would have given police a vantage point to spot him. It has to be a dummy rifle. There is no way he could have made the shot from there and gotten away without being seen. He had to have taken the shot from farther out. He has to still be out there.”

“Bruce, who are you talking about?” came the measured voice of Kent.

“Someone I thought I put away a long time ago,” Wayne said, moving back behind the desk and dropping heavily in his chair. “Someone I thought I’d stopped. Someone I thought would never be able to kill again. It seems that he’s found his way out and is up to his usual tricks. Deadshot.”

He had put Deadshot away years ago, locking the arms master deep in the bowels of Stonegate Penitentiary. He wasn’t a lunatic and couldn’t be sent to Arkham. He was merely a man with nothing to live for who whored his talents out to the highest bidder. And seeing that he was the best, perhaps the best that ever was, only the wealthiest or most-connected could afford his services. But now he was out, and the guilt that he had been carrying about not being able to stop him sooner was beginning to well within Wayne as he sat in the chair, watching the others as they took in the information from the screens.

It had been nearly six years ago when she had been killed. She was just a reporter, a woman who had probed too deeply and uncovered some information she was not meant to have. As Batman, he had tracked the killer through the city, always finding himself one step behind the master assassin. The night had been cool and damp, and the air hung thick with he mist. Her story was to be turned in for publication the next morning, and he had arrived on the rooftop just as the report from the rifle barrel echoed off the surrounding buildings. He had been one step behind then, and he was already beginning one step behind again.

“We have to stop him, Clark,” came Wayne’s voice coldly over the sound of the newscast. “For now, with this Justice League business, I’m in. But once this is done, we’ll have to see if it stays that way.”

 

[Superman1496]

It was a little easier to get Batman in then Clark had figured, but hey, he was in. And considering the circumstances, Clark couldn't understand it anymore.

Well, I have an idea to help get this Deadshot. You are still good acquaintances with the Commishener, aren't you? Clark said. Then he looked at the young blonde still avoiding eye contact.

Do you want in Kara, because this is the only way I'm letting you. He said sternly.

 

[Angelus]

The Joker strikes again, leaving police officers laughing to their deaths.

He sat back looked at the headline then looked at the picture. As soon as he saw the picture he started laughing which echoed throughout the large room. He dropped the newspaper below eye level and smiled at the people that were standing before him, watching as they cringed slightly. He brought the paper back up and when he started to read the rest of the article the smile disappeared from his face. He threw the paper to the ground and looked once more at the people before him.

"What's wrong. Can't these people get the joke. All I try to do is bring laughter and joy into this world and they cannot see it."

He looked at the picture on the front page once more, letting the smile come back onto his face.

"I know what's wrong. I have been here for far to long. Batman is far too used to what I do and he always has no sense of humor. We have to move."

One of the men walked forward and looked at the Joker, "Where to boss."

The Joker just looked at the man before striking him across the side of the face, sending the man sprawling onto the ground, "Don't interrupt me while I'm thinking!"

He picked the man up again before smiling at him which caused the man to cringe more openly. He pulled the man closer before wrapping his arm around the man's neck to hold him in a head lock. He looked down at the man, the smile never leaving his face and said, "Do you know what is wrong with this world?"

"No boss."

"There is not enough laughter in it. All I am trying to do is spread a little joy into this world and everyone is so serious. Why does everyone have to be so serious. What is the point with not laughing once in a while. Look at me. Do I look serious to you?"

The man looked up at the Joker's face, trying to keep the fear from his eyes but he knew that he was failing miserably which was slowly wiping the smile from Joker's face.
"Why are you so serious Manny. Do you want to smell my flower?"

Manny tried to move away quickly but found that he couldn't, the Joker's grip around his throat was so strong. He wanted to start hitting Joker in the back but he feared what the reaction would be and kept still. This caused the smile to reappear on Joker's face and he looked down at Manny a second before a jet of liquid flew from the flower to hit the man in the face. The Joker let Manny go and looked at him for a second but when there was no reaction he walked back to the chair and sat down, watching him.

Manny looked at the Joker who watched him intently and thought that he was just playing a joke on him. It was then that he felt something clawing at his face and when he reached up to his face the Joker sat forward, watching him quickly. Manny fell to the ground and started to shout as he began clawing at his face, hoping that he wasn't going to die but when the Joker walked down with a grin on his face he knew that this would be the last thing that he would see.

The Joker moved forward, kicked Manny in the side and then looked at the others of the group.

"I think that he gets the joke."

He started to laugh loudly then, raising his head to look at the ceiling. He then looked at the rest of the group, the laughter stopping suddenly, "Pack up this stuff. We are going to take this party on the road!"

As everyone ran to the tables around the room Joker walked back to the chair and started to laugh again.

 

[ChasNicollette]

The Flash

The Flash blinked, as if startled that he hadn't realised how widespread the call to arms might have been. He had been pleased as Punch that he had gotten that note, that card with the DVD inside.

He took on a thoughtful posture, his fingertip tapping his cheek.

"Well, now that you mention it?" he mused. "I'm pretty sure soon as they got the blessing of yours truly, they're making themselves busy calling in the rest of the big guns. (Like The Blue Boy Scout, obviously, who's a bigger gun than that?) And maybe they dropped a sonar-gram to The King of Atlantis, and that flyboy hotshot space-cop with the glowy wishing jewelery? I bet you dollars to funky yellow Greek limes that they're asking for the creepy Martian dude. That guy's got more tricks hidden away than a Coluan Swiss Army Knife."

He grunted.

"And Bats. Probably Bats. The Powers That Be would want Bats on the team. Because a) he's scary working solo, and maybe we could keep an eye on him and b) those selfsame Powers That Be would want a 'normal' riding shotgun to keep an eye on us. Though, Princess, confidentially? I think Bats is probably maybe the least normal of us all."

Wally nudged one of the crooks with his toe.

"So what did you want to do with Shemp and Curly Joe, here?" he wondered. "Usually? I leave them tied up to a flagpole by City Hall or something. I've never been 'zactly comprehensive on that end of things."

 

[CuriousKatie]

Supergirl

She slumped in her posture at the sound of Clark’s voice. The -we’ll discuss this later- bit never turned out well for her. It usually meant she was in serious trouble. As soon as they stepped inside, Kara was in awe of the massive mansion. As they walked, she turned this way and that, sometimes even walking backwards, taking in as much as she could at once. This place was so cool!! The ceiling was high enough so that you could practice summersaults in the air and not pump into anything… well, maybe that chandelier… and that gargoyle thingie on the wall… oh, and that bookcase. Okay, so indoor airborne summersaults probably wasn’t the best idea in the world. Especially since every individual piece in here probably cost more than her entire wardrobe! Oh yeah. Better leave the aerial acrobatics for when you’re outside, Kara.

She tried to pay attention to what Bruce was talking about; she really -really- tried… but her attention kept getting diverted elsewhere. This place was massive!! Just the size of the bookshelves proved that! Her attention snapped back to the conversation at the mention of the killer, Deadshot. Whoa! That creep was still at large?! Holy hell! She looked between Clark and Bruce, seeing the determination in both their faces. They were going after him! Oh! Oh! Count her in! She wanted a piece of that creep too! Oh… wait… What was she saying? There was no way in hell Clark would ever let her in on it. Got to protect poor little defenseless Kara! She rolled her eyes and crossed her arms over her chest, scowling. It wasn’t like she didn’t have any superpowers of her own! And she was not a kid! She could take care of herself! But did Clark see that?! Nooooo! He was all up in arms about protecting the little…! Her thought process screeched to a halt at Clark’s words. What did he just say?! She stared up at him like he’d just sprouted horns. Did he just…?!

“Wha- uh, Y- wha…!” She stammered in shock. “Me?!” She finally managed to squeak. “You’re actually asking if -I- want in on this?!” She saw Clark open his mouth to say something and quickly cut him off. “Too late!!! I’m in!” She beamed up at him, absolutely thrilled to have been included. She squealed in delight and grabbed Clark in a huge hug, bouncing in place. “Ooooh! Thank you thank you thank you!! This is so gonna rock!!” She was literally vibrating with delight. Then a thought popped into her head, making her stop dead and blink a few times. “Waaait a second…” she pulled out of the hug and looked back up at Clark with a dubious look. “What’s the catch?” Was it just her imagination, or did Clark look just a little too smug? What was he up to? She crossed her arms and shifted her weight as she narrowed her eyes at him. “And don’t you go all -there’s no catch, Kara- on me, Clark. There’s always a catch. What is it?”

 

[TearsoftheWorld]

"I was originally going to wait for the police to arrive. But I'm starting to think they'll be taking their time in getting here." Wonder Woman said, looking at the two miscreants that lay contained within her magical lasso.

"I suppose we could take them to jail ourselves. I really don't want to act as their babysitter for the next five hours." she added.

The Flash had apparently been thinking along the same lines as she had, at least in regards to whom would be getting the Justice League invite. For some strange reason, Diana smiled at the mention of Batman.

"I'm not sure whether Batman will want to join. He doesn't really seem like the type to sign up and go along for the ride." she noted.

There really wasn't any way for them to tell what was going on in his mind. Batman had very few close friends... refusing to let anyone becoming emotionally attached to him.

 

[ChasNicollette]

Fire and Animal Man

The skies above West 47th Street in New York City were chaos on a mythic scale, and the street itself fared not much better.

Killer Frost howled like a banshee, the blue-white frozen sheen on her skin glinting in the sunset light, beautiful in her deathlike chill. She rode a wave of snow and ice through the air, ice bridges lancing up left and right from the rooftops of West 47th buildings, carrying her higher and higher into the air...

Fire hovered, there in the sky, waiting for Frost... her face was grim as her powers raged around her like a verdant sun, like the fabled Starheart. She was beautiful of a whole different kind: she brought life and destruction and laid low the wastelands of the frozen.

Shards of ice, razor-sharp, poured en masse towards the waiting Brazilian metahuman, ripping up the air as they flew.

Fire's lip twitched, and she answered the ice with flame the colour of kryptonite, billowing the pyre and shaping it even as it reduced the ice to water vapour.

Screaming screaming screaming, insensate with rage, Killer Frost pitched herself through the wall of flame and raked clawlike fingernails at Fire's face.

Fire caught Frost's wrist, then the other as Frost followed up with a wild left hook. They wrestled in the sky, bitter cold crackling and turning the air nearly solid even as emerald flame flickered and flashed and surged. Clouds of steam filled the sky, clouds of steam coloured by withering blue-white and searing green.

On the street below, a dozen thugs in winter wear and ski masks ran from jewelry store to jewelry store, bellowing and brandishing weaponry and filling sacks as fast as they could. West 47th Street was a haven for diamond sales, particularly the building at Number 11, which had been the principal target.

Frost had created a massive wall of ice at each end of the street, essentially cordoning it off and preventing any kind of rapid police response. Which left it to Fire, who had become something of a local fixture among the superheroic community since moving here with her best friend.

She had attempted to stop the thieves, but their supervillainess escort had opted to run interference for her hired henchmen, permitting them to at least rob the little places while Killer Frost herself dealt with the threat of Fire.

Elemental versus elemental in the skies over The Big Apple.

Unfortunately for those henchmen, Fire had not been alone.

One straggler thug hesitated, gazing up at the sky, hoping for a glimpse amidst the clouds of steam and smoke of the two beautiful creatures waging war. Just as he did so, a blue-gold blur nipped down from a nearby rooftop, caught him up for an instant, dragged him into the air, and pitched him headlong into the side of a building.

He hit the brickwork and slumped to the sidewalk, moaning faintly.

Animal Man clung to the side of the building, his face grim.

Three of the eleven remaining thugs saw the rapid-fire movement and whirled to greet this newcomer with bitter, furious cries...

"Another long-johns! Gun 'im! Gun 'im down!"

They whipped their handguns up to greet him, but he was already gone from that spot, darting towards them with jaw-dropping speed, defying gravity until he dropped to the ground in a crouch among them.

His fist found a jaw, his boot found another, his gloved hands grabbed the front of the third guy's parka-inspired coat and flipped him, judo style, onto the hood of a parked car.

Four down, Animal Man noted with a dismal sigh, not yet permitting himself a thrill of victory, eight to go.

Three of the remaining thugs had vanished into one jewelry store, the other five had taken one further down.

Buddy could hear weapons-fire, some of it automatic, and he winced and he hurried, sprinting, towards the closer of the two robberies. His feet left the ground and he flew, darting, zip-gun fast, flashing in through the shattered front glass door of the place. People were inside, people were screaming, and Buddy clung upside-down on the ceiling for a moment, drinking in the situation.

Two stood at the back of the place, holding shopgoers at bay with pistols while a third thug held an automatic rifle to a trembling age-old clerk's head while the clerk struggled with the combo to a safe.

They saw him, the two did-- Buddy's bright blue and gold costume hard to miss --and with near-simultaneous howls they whipped their guns up to fire at him.

Bullets sliced the air and drilled into the ceiling, but not one of those rounds struck Buddy. He dodged, ducked, dipped, dove, and dodged, and still he clung to the ceiling unharmed.

The two villains stared at him, slack-jawed and goggle-eyed.

"That's..." one of them murmured, shaking his head, "...that's?"

"He's got some kinda spider-sense!" bellowed the other.

"Spider-sense is over-rated," Animal Man pointed out.

He flashed down from the ceiling, belted one thug to the floor with a left cross too fast to follow, caught the man's gun out of the air as it fell, and whipped across to crack the gun into the face of the second man. He, too, went down for the count.

"You want effective evasion awareness," Animal Man suggested, "give me a good housefly any day of the week."

The man with the rifle grabbed the poor old clerk and held him tightly, pressing the muzzle of the rifle to the man's temple. "Back off, ya interferin' sumbitch, or I'll fill this guy fulla so many craters he's gonna think he's a damned asteroid."

The old man whimpered softly.

Buddy appeared to consider the man's proposal for a moment, and licked his lips. He rubbed his hands together.

And then he spat. He expectorated.

He regurgitated.

A massive glob of sticky goopy saliva launched from his mouth and coated the rifle.

The gunman blinked, started, cried-out, horrified...

...Buddy's straight right crashed into the middle of his face, meat and potatoes, and put the man out like a light.

The old man shuddered, and leaned against the wall by the safe for support.

Animal Man stood there for a moment, making a face. "That always tastes so gross when I do that. I'm glad I didn't eat anything today."

He turned to the old man, and touched him on the shoulder. "Are you okay, sir?"

The old man nodded, and smiled tremblingly. "I am okay, good sir. I am... I am not an asteroid."

Buddy nodded firmly, relieved. "Good man," he encouraged as he turned and flitted away, back out into the street. More work to do.

Thermal buffeting, roaring down from the sky, waves of freezing and of heat, forced him to the ground, but on he ran, on he ran...

He heard shouting up there, but he couldn't make out the words.

This last jeweler's was a much larger place, much wider open, and the five thugs had each taken a hostage as had the third man from the previous battleground.

One had his gun to a rather curvy, tearful, fashionable blonde woman, and this seemed to be the field leader of the team, the sergeant in Killer Frost's absence.

"I recognise ya," he growled.

"Is that right?" Buddy arched his eyebrows. Not many people did recognise him. Even the cape-spotter tabloids considered him strictly D-list more often than not.

"Yeah," the leader grumped. "You're that tree-hugger."

Animal Man's eye twitched at this particular descriptor. "I think you might actually have me confused with Alec Holland. I actually hug retired greyhounds more often than I do trees."

"Whichever," the thug dismissed. "This ain't yer beat, in any case. This ain't yer deal. This ain't got nothing to do with animals. Ain't no lab-testing here or nothin'. Just a simple exchange of funds, capitalist-style."

"I remember reading about this one time," Buddy reminisced wistfully, his hands in his jacket pockets (while all the while his mind raced regarding the possibilities of saving five hostages simultaneously, his heart pounded in his chest, and he prayed that his voice wouldn't crack), "when Two-Face perpetrated a crime that wasn't dichotomy-related just to throw the authorities and a certain Dark Knight for a loop."

Buddy paused, and shook his head. "And then he went and did it twice and just ruined it."

The man whipped his gun away from the blonde's head and leveled it at Buddy's forehead. "Yer just stalling."

Buddy had impressed himself by not flinching when the man's piece had redirected itself at his noggin, and he managed yet again, by some impossible measure of resolve, to speak without a crack in his voice.

"That's ridiculous," he dismissed. "I was just making the point... I was just making the point that just because it doesn't fit a particular theme in my life doesn't mean I can't be a good citizen and get involved."

He reached out... he reached out with the extrasensory link he possessed to The Red, to the morphogenetic field that linked all animals, that contained the evolutionary history and entelechy for every creature on Earth.

Buddy's range was limited, but he knew that a housefly just wasn't cutting it right now and he needed something tougher, more brutal, if he was going to survive this.

Just at the very edge of his perceptions, slithering away, he caught the tail end of a creature that shouldn't have been there but which Buddy recognised instantly. He blinked, and he latched onto it, replacing the housefly's matrix of abilities with this new beast's.

Well, he reflected, I'll be dipped.

"Ain't no way you can take down alla us," the lead thug opined.

"You might not be wrong about that," Buddy mused.

Not without a distraction, anyhow.

And then the world exploded outside, the battle in the sky having reached fever pitch, critical mass, and green fury and chunks of Arctic rained down along West 47th.

The building quaked, and the men stumbled, and their hostages fell away, and there would be no better chance...

Obregado, Bea.

Buddy powered forward with strides that shook the tile and his first punch nearly took the lead thug's head off. He grabbed the man bodily, and this time instead of a smooth as silk judo toss he hurled the man physically into the next guy along and they crumpled in a heap.

One of the gunmen fired at him, once, twice, three times, and Animal Man shielded the fashionable blonde woman with his body, withstanding the bullets' impacts and saving the woman from death.

They drilled into him, the bullets did. He wasn't bulletproof. But he was tough as nails, right now, and he was immune to pain and he was immune to fear, and the bullets didn't actually go in nearly as far as they would have on a normal human.

He spun away from the woman and he lunged-- so fast, so fast his lunge was --and he grabbed the gun that had shot him in his teeth and he crushed it before spitting it out. His next punch broke this thug's jaw.

The last two guys made a run for the door, brandishing their shotguns, and he dove after them and cracked their heads together and they dropped like they'd been decapitated.

He stood over them, breathing hard.

His jaw worked. "Oh, great," he mused detachedly. "Now instead of bug-loogie? My mouth tastes like cordite."

The bullet wounds in his back and shoulders hurt quite a bit, now, but he was very strong.

Alligators in the sewers, he pondered, incredulous.

The blonde woman ran up to him, gushing. "Oh, Lord, thank you sir," she sputtered, "you saved my life! What... what can I do to repay you?"

Animal Man blinked at her. Looked her up and down. In particular, the fur scarf she wore around her shoulders.

"I'm a married man, ma'am," he explained. "But if you really want to do something for me, I'd like you to give me that stole."

She blinked, and backpedaled. "Wait, what?" she protested. "This is... this is mink!"

He held out his hand, insistent. "Fur is murder, ma'am."

She whimpered, and she pressed the scarf into his hand and she scarpered off, sobbing.

Animal Man shook his head at her back, and he walked back out into the street.

He stood, and he gazed upward, and just as he did so Fire dropped from the sky, her hair still on fire, still blazing green, but most of her body was currently flesh. Her outfit, green jacket and pants and a zipper-front strapless midriff-baring top, had survived mostly intact, but there were long thin cuts on the backs of her arms and one along one of her bared shoulders.

Killer Frost dropped to land in front of Fire, blistering with rage. "You had to go and stick your stupid buxom chest in, didn't you?" she howled. "You had to go and ruin the biggest diamond theft of The 21st Century!"

Fire's lip curled as she stood there holding her side, her aforementioned chest heaving from exertion. She spat, and her spit sizzled when it hit the ground.

"Vá para o caralho," she instructed Killer Frost, and hurled a handful of explosive emerald embers with all of her strength...

...it slammed Frost in the center of her chest, shattering her iceform armour and blowing her ass over teakettle. She landed in a heap. She didn't get up again.

Fire sighed, and her hair subsided from conflagration into pretty green tresses.

She glanced over at Animal Man. "You okay?"

"I got shot a little," Animal Man confessed, as the cops finally broke through the ice barriers and poured into the scene, hurriedly assessing the sitch and retrieving weapons and restraining bad guys.

Buddy held up the mink stole. "Could you burn this for me? Spoils of war."

Fire nodded, and took it from him, and she belched green flame from her mouth like the old days and the mink stole vanished into ash.

Buddy arched an eyebrow. "What's it taste like when you do that?"

"I need an Altoid," Bea lamented, making a face, but then she waved dismissively. "Did you say you got shot?"

Animal Man smiled faintly, stuck his hands into his jacket pockets. "Yeah. Come to think of it, Ellen'll kill me if I die of gunshot wounds. Could you give me a lift to the beach?"

Fire nodded and quickly confirmed that The NYPD's Special Crimes Unit had already restrained Killer Frost. She then flew Buddy high into the sky, most of her body once more made of fire, save only her wrists which, thoughtfully, she had left human so that Buddy could grab hold without burning.

They flew to the beach at Coney Island, and Buddy slumped down into the sand, shrugging out of his bullet-riddled coat.

He placed his hands in the edge of the lapping water, and he closed his eyes and probed.

He found what he was looking for after only a moment or two. A starfish.

A simple creature with an interesting digestive system and, more importantly to Buddy, the capacity to regenerate itself very nearly from scraps.

He incorporated this power into himself, forsaking the strength and the short-range speed and the indefatigable endurance of the alligator for the healing factor of the starfish.

He twitched, and he spasmed, and the bullets popped out of him, and he sagged and he laughed faintly as the wounds closed up.

He stood, and he picked up his jacket.

He dusted himself off.

Bea arched a viridian eyebrow at him, her own cuts nowhere to be seen, not even scars. When she had reverted to human from fireform, the cuts had sealed shut again. "Now you okay?"

He grinned wearily. "I'll be okay," he nodded. "(Usually I do that with earthworms, but I couldn't find any.) I can buy you that coffee now, if you want. But then I've really gotta meet Johnny Chambers at The Quickstart Enterprises Building. He's my ride home."

Beatriz smirked softly, and clapped him on the shoulder. "You are something else, Buddy, you know this?"

Buddy's grin became slightly less weary. "Of course I'm something else," he noted. "I'm a Justice Leaguer."

 

[Superman1496]

Kara was always too impatient. I have a plan to catch deadshot. Especially if he's going after people in this Wilcox case. But, we need someone for him to go after. Clark said.

Bruce, you can't talk to Gordan and see if Kara here could act as a witness against Wilcox. Someone who could put him away, could you? Clark asked. He looked at Kara.

He knew she wouldn't want to be used as bait, but as she had already said herself...'too late, I'm in'.

If we can get Deadshot to try and go after Kara, J'onn and I can find him as he shoots. And with Kara being Kryptonian, she doesn't have to worry about simple bullets. Clark said.

She wanted in, she would have to work. Prove that she could do it. And this seemed like good proof to Clark. He smiled.

No catch Kara, none at all. You just have to work, that's all.

 

[ChasNicollette]

The Flash

The Flash nodded, ostensibly contemplatively, and then, in a blur of red and gold, the lasso's noose suddenly fell empty, the thugs were gone...

...and Wally was standing there, leisurely noshing on a chili cheese dog.

"Taken care of," he trumpeted proudly with his mouth full. "I dropped them off at the local hoosegow, filled out the proper paperwork, impounded evidence, and left the shopowners a note to contact the precinct watch commandant in connection with these occurences."

Nothing wrong with being a little more thorough than usual, he noted to himself, if it maybe impresses a beautiful woman. That's probably true of a lot of things in life, and not just crimefighting. (I should think more about that.)

What he chose not to think about was that this particular methodology would have been exactly what Uncle Barry would have done. He chose not to think about that at all.

"Also?" he pointed out, holding up the hot dog. "I stopped for a snack. That hedgehog wasn't kidding; these things are really tasty."

He finished his mouthful, and took another bite.

"I hope Bats does join," he nodded. "There's a certain group dynamic we'd be totally lacking if he didn't hook on. Like I'm the one who's always running off at the mouth and delivering the goofy one-liners? He's gotta be the one who's serious all the time. We'd be lopsided if he didn't join. It's like a yin-yang... uh... thang."

He wiped a blob of chili off of his cheek, though there was a much larger one a little further to the left that he'd completely ignored.

"Is that why you're here visiting Metropolis' Ugly Stepsister?" he wondered. "Looking for Tall, Dark and Gargoyle-esque?"

 

[CuriousKatie]

Supergirl

“Wait, what?!!“ Kara gaped at the suggestion, looking between Clark and Bruce in shock. “You‘re gonna use me as BAIT?!!!“ She could not believe Clark had actually suggested this! “No! Not a chance! Here, lemme rephrase that for you; Hell no!!! Okay?! Not gonna happen!” She crossed her arms and turned her back on Clark. To think he’d actually think of using her, his own cousin, as bait to catch a killer! To hell with whether or not she was practically invulnerable! Yeah, fine, she understood that she had to work to be allowed into this thing. Clark could just as easily pull her out of the whole deal as let her in. and she kinda already told them she was in. But to use her as bait…! She really didn’t like that idea. She bit her lip and tried not to look at all interested. Which was hard, cause, truth be told… she was! “Do I…” She stopped and half turned back toward the guys. “Do I get to hurt him?” She glanced up at them through her lashes. “Y’know, if he tries to get at me? I know he killed a lot of people and ruined entire families. So… Can I hurt him?” Her bright blue eyes darted between Bruce and Clark, really hoping they’d agree. “Please…?” What the hell. She might as well throw that one in there for good measure.

 

[CuriousKatie]

Hawkgirl

Shayera soared over the city, her wings catching the updraft from between the tall buildings. She loved the feel of the wind beneath her wings. She couldn’t imagine being stuck on the ground like the humans and not being able to fly. The freedom it granted was just too sweet to ever make her want to give it up. She’d already stopped a couple of guys from stealing a car on the other side of town and brought them to the police station; literally dropping them on the doorstep. The look the police officers had given her had been a cross between startled shock and trepidation. It was almost like they’d been a little afraid of her.

She banked right, catching a particularly good updraft, and sped up as she soared higher. She’d heard a rumor about something called the Justice League and she had to admit she was a little curious as to what that was exactly. From what she could gather it was a project thought up by the UN to band superheroes together to fight crime on a grander scale. It sounded like a very solid plan from where she was standing. Maybe she’d look into joining. That is, if they were offering. She glanced down and did a double take. Was that the Flash down there? And Wonder Woman? What were they up to? She banked a hard left and did another flyby, diving lower to get a better look. Yup! It was them alright. She grinned and pulled her wings in tight to her body, diving head first toward the ground. The updraft was strong here. She’d have no trouble pulling out of the dive. At the last minute she spread her wings out and caught the updraft, stopping on a dime in the air, a few feet off the ground. Then she landed gracefully and folded her wings. “Flash. Wonder Woman.” She greeted with a small smile and a nod for each of them. "Long time." She'd heard a lot of humans use this term as an ice breaker. But, she never understood why they kept skipping the later half of the phrase, "no see". It kind of didn't make sense to her. Still, when in Rome, and all that.

 

[rengadeirishman]

J'onn watched Kara's theatrics with a bemused smile.

"I do think its only fair she should get a bit of hurting in." He said, munching on an Oreo, he simply couldnt get enough, he was convinced that Double Stuff was the single greatest achievement of human civilization.

 

[Superman1496]

Kara wanted to hurt someone. Clark didn't even hesitate in his reply.

Kara, I don't think that is a good idea. He said. He looked at his blonde cousin. She wanted to do this, he knew she did. He knew Bruce knew it too.

But she couldn't just hurt somebody.

J'onn, would you take Kara for a moment while I talk to Bruce please? He asked his Martain friend eating the Oreos. Clark and Bruce walked down the hall.

Bruce, I don't know about this. We could use her, but at the same time, we could just as easily throw someone else in that spot. Kara's only got the fact that she can't be shot on her side.

Besides, He continued, How is she going to hurt him anyways? A hitman usually is a ways away from his target, and we'll have him before she can get to him.

Clark knew that Kara was listening to him. She was a typical teenager, which meant she would be using her Kryptonian ears to her advantage: eavesdropping in on their conversation.

If you think she can do this, then I'm ok with it. But only if you agree.

 

[rengadeirishman]

J'onn nodded and kept his eye on Kara.

"Would you like an Oreo Kara Zor-el?"

 

[MilkManDan007]

Another Path

As they walked down the hall and Clark laid out his plan, Wayne’s mind shifted gears with each word, weighing the benefits and consequences of each action. It was an interesting idea, to use someone as bait, but who knew if Deadshot would take another contract. Plus, getting the police involved, the time devoted to introducing her as a witness, and all of the unknowns led Bruce to disagree with his plan.

“Sorry, Clark. He’s already taken two contracts on this case. There’s no way he’d expose himself like that by taking a third. Plus, there are too many other variables. We’d have to let the police know what we’re doing, and with the number of cops on the take, he may be alerted to what we’re doing and call off the hit.”

His head swiveled and went to the younger Kryptonian, her eyes darting about the room as J’onn continued to munch on his cookies.

“And don’t forget this, Clark, I’m not the only one who knows where to find Kryptonite. If he caught wind that it was a setup, he might just work himself up a Kryptonite-tipped shell. I’m not willing to put her on the line like that.”

He paused for a second, a wry grin spreading across his face as another possibility came to him. I suited her style, her age, and it just might be a way to kill two birds with one stone.

“There is another way we could get to him. We know both of the previous contracts trace back to Alex Wilcox. I know that Deadshot is going to look to get paid. He always does, just like clockwork. Instead of trying to draw Deadshot out again, we use Kara as bait to get close to Wilcox, to watch him from the inside, and alert us when Deadshot comes to collect. It’s more suited to her personality and she’d be much more apt at playing an overeager admirer than a collected witness. Plus, I’m not sure she’d be able to keep composure knowing there’s someone out there trying to kill her.”

 

[CuriousKatie]

Supergirl

Kara spluttered in indignation at Clark asking J'onn to watch her. She gaped as the two men walked down the hall.

"Hey!! I don't need a babysitter, Clark!!" She yelled after them. "And I know you're gonna be talking about me so you might as well do it to my face!!" They just kept walking, paying her no mind. Huffing, Kara crossed her arms and scowled. They were going to be talking about her; she just knew it! And she'd love to hear what they were saying! In fact... A grin spread across her lips and she leaned a bit sideways, tilting her head and kicking her Kryptonian hearing into gear. She could hear every word they said! She jumped at the sound of J’onn’s voice. She’d completely forgotten he was there.

“Uh, what?” She stammered, looking a little confused. “Oh…” She looked down at the packet of Oreos and grinned. “You know those’ll go straight to your hips, right?” She accepted one with a wink. “Thanks.” She said sweetly and bit into the sweet cookie.

 

[ChasNicollette]

The Flash

She hurtled down, and her wings flared, and she alighted nimbly, and The Flash stood there with masked eyes way wide and left cheek bulging with an overlarge mouthful of chili cheese dog.

And then, in a blur and a blink, the chili cheese dog was gone, and The Flash was making an overloud swallowing noise. He still, however, had that big blob on his cheek, and he seemed utterly oblivious to its presence. He looked... stricken.

He took a deep breath, drinking in the sight of the Thanagarian warrior-woman with repeated twitches of muscles around the rightmost of his eyes.

"Officer," he greeted her, and his voice cracked like a china plate dropped onto a concrete floor. Be cool. Be cool. Be cool. Say something suave!

She was... gorgeous.

Of course, Wonder Woman was no slouch in the OMFGoddess department, either, but didn't Amazons... y'know... play for The Other Team? He had nothing but respect for The Other Team. He wasn't going to ask Wonder Woman to become a free agent on his account. Not more than, you know, playfully.

But Hawkgirl, on the other hand?

Say something suave, you fleetfooted nimrod!

"Nice, uh," he complimented, his voice again cracking all over the place. "Nice pinions."

He spun around to face Wonder Woman, looking a little panicked. He ran a hand over the top of his red cowl.

"Does my hair look okay?" he pleaded in a harsh hush. "I don't have anything in my teeth, do I?"

 

[Superman1496]

And for this very reason here, is why I did not decide to become a detective. Bruce, on the other hand, had wanted to. And he was very good at what he did.

So, how are we going to get Kara in? And what happens if she gets caught? I asked. If he was worried about a K-tipped bullet, what if Deadshot got wind of who she was, and decided to end things?

Throwing my cousin close to the lions' den was one thing, but Bruce wanted to throw her completly into the damn thing.

 

[TearsoftheWorld]

Wonder Woman couldn't help but shake her head at the Flash's antics. He was such a guy it wasn't funny.

Actually... it was rather hysterical.

Wonder Woman turned and smiled at Hawkgirl as she landed down next to them. Diana had just finished wrapping up her lasso, the Flash having already deposited the would-be criminals at a station. There was something about Hawkgirl that gave her both a sense of comfort and caution... it was an odd feeling, and one she would need to pay close attention to.

Raising an eyebrow, Wonder Woman looked at Flash as he seemed to practically melt in front of her. Did Hawkgirl really have that sort of effect on humans?

"For one, you're wearing a mask. I don't think you need to worry about your hair." she said.

She turned aside a little, moving to face their new friend.

"How've you been, Hawkgirl? Well, I hope?"

 

[CuriousKatie]

Hawkgirl

Hawkgirl tilted her head a tiny bit as she watched the Flash struggle for something to say. Her small smile widened a bit in amusement. He was kind of cute like that; all stammering and spluttering.

“Thank you.“ She ran a finger gently along the tip of her left wing. His compliment was sweet. “I just preened them this morning.” He turned to Wonder Woman… and asked about his hair. That confused her a bit. Why would he be asking about his hair? Apparently, Wonder Woman found this question to be odd herself.

“I’m fine, thank you.” She replied to the woman’s question. Wonder Woman was a very formidable warrior. Hawkgirl respected her greatly for that. She just hoped they’d never have to clash. That could be… unpleasant. For both parties involved. “And… yourself…?” She got distracted mid question when she spotted something on the Flash’s cheek. It looked like a patch of… was that chili dog?

“Uhm… you have a little something…” She indicated her own cheek and then his, hoping he’d get the hint. Then again, most people never got it. “Here…” She decided against trying for another hint and moved toward him. “Let me get that for you.” She smiled, brushing her finger gently along his cheek, and getting the glob off of his cheek. “There we go. All better.” Her green eyes twinkled with mirth under her helmet as she smirked at him. She then stepped back, opting to put a little space between them.

“So have either of you heard anything about this Justice League business from the UN?” She looked between the Flash and the statuesque Wonder Woman, her demeanor all business again. “I just got wind of it today. What’s it all about?”

 

[MilkManDan007]

Bruce Wayne

“I don’t think getting her in is going to be the problem, Clark,” Wayne said as he looked down he hallway at the younger Kryptonian. It was a risk to put her in, but it certainly was safer than trying to use her as a target. “An old family friend of mine is hosting a fundraiser dinner tonight for the Metropolis Symphony that I was going to attend. I’ll give him a call and arrange for Wilcox to be invited. With the amount of media coverage and the number of high-profile people who are going to be there, it’s highly unlikely he’ll refuse. And Kara can simply come as my guest. Once we’re inside, she can mingle and meet him. After that, it’s up to her to get inside. Winters was shot earlier today, so Deadshot will want to collect his fee quickly so he can disappear. Tonight, after the party, they will have to meet.”

He turned slightly away from Kent, his body now facing back down the hallway towards the study.

“And I wasn’t born yesterday, Kara, so I know you’ve been listening. It’s your ass on the line, so I’d like to know what you have to say about it.”

 

[Superman1496]

I thought about it for a moment. Bruce was right. I think J'onn and I should be there. I'll talk to Perry, and see if I can take it. If not, well, who's going to stop me anyhow? I said. Perry would let me. Lois would probably be covering the assasination case, and I could take the easy way out.

It seemed to work out perfectly with the Planet. Besides, this way, if things went sour, all of them would be there. All of the Justice League anyways.

Look, you guys get things situated, I'm going to go and see if I can find Diana or Wally, see what's going on with them. I hope they are interested in this League. They would be great assets. I said.

I walked down the hallway past Kara and J'onn. Stay with Bruce, and get ready for tonight. I'll meet you guys there. Right now, I am going to go find more of the Justice League nominees. See what's going on with them. I said as I headed towards the door.

Alfred let me out, and I walked straight over to the shrubs in the yard. In the blink of an eye, I changed into my uniform, and took to the sky.

I flew over Gotham quickly. My cape flapping in the wind draft. I searched down below for anyone. Finally, I hit the jack-pot.

The Flash, Wonder Woman, and Hawkgirl, all together. I quickly descended, and stopped a few feet above them.

Wonderful day for a walk, isn't it. I said smiling.

 

[ChasNicollette]

The Flash

Wonder Woman gave him a quick once-over, very kind of her, reminded him that he really didn't have to worry about bad hair days given that he'd recently changed costumes... from the classically-cool gold-shirt/red-lightning motif of his second Kid Flash uniform, back to the all-over red of the grown-up Flash.

His hair was no longer showing. He'd known that. Stupid!

And then... and then... he'd watched Hawkgirl run her fingertip over her wing, and he'd practically felt his pupils dilating. He'd watched it in super-slow-motion just to drag it out, accelerating his senses.

Someday, eventually, he realised, he would have to get over his hormones. (He wondered if his superfast metabolism wreaked havoc on his glandular outputs. The same way he was hungry all the time, maybe that was why he was girl-crazy all the time.)

But then again? Girls were pretty. Did he need an excuse to like them so much? Wally doubted it.

He blinked, and he came back to normal speed just in time for Hawkgirl to scrape a blob of chili dog off of his cheek. Wonder Woman couldn't've warned him? He supposed he hadn't asked her about his cheek, just his teeth, just his hair.

And maybe it was a win-win situation because he had a pretty winged chica touching his cheek.

"Homina," he explained, succinctly, not-quite-calmly, "homina. Homina. Hominahominahomina."

Dude. Hawkgirl just preened me.

But then things got serious again, and Wally was about to bust into the same sort of explanation he'd offered Wonder Woman when...

When he showed up.

Levitating, like a creature of glory. Like a big blue boy-scouty god.

With a ten-hut sort of noise in his throat, The Flash saluted sharply.

"Too right," he declared in agreement, feigning an Australian accent for some inexplicable reason. "Fine night for a constitutional! I m'self have been Walkabout, breaking in me new pair o' strides. How 'bout y'self? Looking after Country, eh?"