Smallville

. . .

The Girl From Themyscira

. . .

"I assume you have the consignment we discussed?"

"Naturally," she confirmed, producing the suit-case and pushing it across the table, "I think you'll find the amount there is exactly what we discussed, though do feel free to check, if you don't trust me."

The suit – he was a man naturally but he blended into the ranks of private security guards that all wore the same jet-black suits, complete with aviators - took a single look at the suitcase and then produced a scanner, running along the surface of the case and then stowing it away in his jacket, he then regarded the woman. She seemed unmoved, she was possibly the opposite side of fifty, fair-haired and with the pale complexion of someone who had grown up indoors…she was probably Alaskan with her skin that pale. The woman smiled, her blood-red lipstick glowing out at him…unsettling him.

"You will have made our partner very happy." The suit reassured, he looked at the woman and then at the suitcase and then removed it from the table, resting against one of the legs and then stood up, "Would you please accompany me Miss…I am sorry what is your name?" She rose at the same moment and came round the table to stand near to him. She was wearing a very over-powering perfume, the kind that middle-aged civil servants always wear to try and effect femininity on those around them without appearing to be feminine, that was something that added to the overall unsettling image.

"Caroline Stewart," she shook hands with him, "now what is it you want to show me?"

The suit recovered some of his confidence now, leading her away from the table in the warehouse and then leading her to a large double door, he keyed in a code at the keypad – she committed the code to memory 0439586C – and the doors split apart, lights flickered into life at there end of the corridor and as if in chain-reaction they flickered into life as he led her down a corridor. They passed several cells and in her peripheral vision she eyed up the persons contained within them.

One of them was a well-built male, fair-haired and with a sun-tanned body, his hands were bound and he was imprisoned in an X-shape, a single tap in the ceiling of the room dribbled drops at irregular periods onto his head – to a fool it might have been implied they were using some kind of water-torture, the aim of this particular device was to keep the prisoner alive, she could discern that much – the majority of the other cells however were unoccupied, one of them contained a girl dressed in a blue jumpsuit, she was not constrained within the cell, merely trapped within it. She looked at the woman as she swept past with the suit.

"This is quite an impressive facility." She murmured.

"It costs close to Four Billion Dollars; it is one of the most high security facilities in the country." She nodded knowingly as she looked around, first to the ceiling and then at the rest of the cells, then back to the suit, he smiled nervously and moved to the console that they had been approaching all the time. He keyed in a few codes in the keypads and instantly two representations came to life on the screen – one of the tanned male, the name Arthur Curry flashed across the screen as an image of his body, complete with a secondary headshot and then a break-down of his abilities joined the image. The second image belonged to the girl – Courtney Whitmore – complete with the same images as the first, although her abilities were not nearly so numerous being limited to a single line that read 'Power-Staff'. She committed those facts to memory.

"I don't doubt," she murmured, grinning and casting her head back around the room, "so how long have you had your two detainees? Presumably you…your…our partner has plans to take in several more of them?"

The suit nodded and returned to the console a moment, entering several more codes and producing numerous more representations of people on the screen, she could barely take in a few of them, some of them contained names and identities, others simply identities such as 'Green Arrow' – a multitude of images flashed up on the screen before her, she recognized the two she had already seen by the red crosses across them – presumably indicating that they had been captured.

"How much did you say it cost to make this facility secure?" she asked, strolling away from the console a little.

"Four Billion Dollars," he murmured disinterestedly, focusing upon the screen, "like I said it's among the most secure – nobody is going to get in here."

"Right," she said, reaching into her jacket and pulling out her pistol, "unless you leave the door open." She raised it and fired a single shot, felling the person clinging to the rooftop. She moved to the side of the body, the girl was still alive – it wasn't a wound shot, merely one that would disable her. She bent down and pulled back the red hood, revealing the flaming red hair and then removed her mask. "Mia Dearden if I'm not mistaken," the girl said something that the woman didn't like to repeat, "you're a liability," she said looking at the suit, "and I'm afraid I just can't work with liabilities." She levelled the pistol at him and before he had time to reach for his own gun she fired a single shot – this was a wound shot, it passed through his heart – she was a good aim – and then she stowed it in her jacket, pulling out her cell-phone in the same motion.

"I'm afraid I had to shoot one of your men, he was a liability I have however brought you Mia Dearden and the kryptonite, the stupid girl though she could follow me and I wouldn't realize."

"You have done well," murmured the voice, "I will join you in a few moments."

. . .

It was his fault. He'd sent her out into Metropolis and given her a mission and he hadn't followed her, he hadn't placed a bug on her in case she got kidnapped…it was all his fault…he'd lost Mia, she didn't have anyone else and she had trusted him implicitly. Now he was gone…and that wasn't even mentioning Courtney and AC…he had lost three people now, three people who had all trusted him, three people he had known could handle themselves…but was it okay for him to say that they had been over-powered so there was nothing he could have done? No it wasn't...you could always do something else or try something new, there was always a solution.

"What do you want?"

Chloe stood at the edge of the office looking at him, she was carrying a brown paper bag with her, Oliver eyed the bag suspiciously and realized she was trying to come and snap him out of the damaging self-blame that was continuing, he didn't care what she said – this was his fault, and his mess and he would need to find them. Some coffee wasn't going to get any of them back, only action could do that but without Clark he wasn't sure he could do it, and Clark was remaining aloof from the problem: he wouldn't act without more information…so did he expect them all to just disappear one by one till someone stabbed him with kryptonite again and then took him to the prison?

"I brought coffee," she said, offering the bag to him, "you've been here for four days Ollie…I know you feel guilty about Mia but-"

"It isn't just Mia though is it Chloe – it's Courtney and AC too, they haven't checked in either and they've been gone longer…we should have done something when we lost Court'…and we should have definitely acted on Arthur…now Mia's gone and I don't know how we're gonna get her back Chloe…and it's all my fault." He said, turning away from her to look out across the city from the window in hi office.

"Do you think this is what Arthur wants, or Courtney or Mia? Do you think they want you moping around your office drinking yourself to death," she had eyed the empty bottles of scotch warily when she came in, Oliver didn't smell of booze but that was hardly indicative that he hadn't been drinking, "I don't, you need to shape up Ollie – our friends need you and I can't find them on my own – it isn't all me you know, there's two of us in this…we have to both try."

She turned to leave and then froze, "Like Clark's trying?"

She spun on her heel and crossed the room to be eye-to-eye with him.

"He's under a lot of pressure and maybe you should think about that, he has the whole of Metropolis to protect, the Justice League…it's your baby, Clark always preferred being a lone-wolf…it isn't that he doesn't want to help…you know how much he cares about everyone," she paused and looked deep into his eye for some recognition of that fact in Oliver, some recognition that he knew that Clark did care, that he wasn't without compassion, she thought she saw a flicker in there somewhere, "you just need to help me find information…we don't even know if they were all taken by the same person."

Oliver nodded and regarded Chloe…somehow she knew how to bring him back down, how to snap him out of things…even if he was still unwilling to acknowledge the fact, no matter what she said he knew he was ultimately culpable for them going missing…for them being kidnapped…maybe killed. He shook that thought off instantly – he didn't have time for theorizing about what could have happened to them all…he had a city to search to look for clues.

"And Ollie," Chloe said, she had made to leave once more but swivelled to face him, "call in before you follow a lead, you aren't going alone on this one." He nodded and watched her leave.

. . .

"Any reason you're up here all alone Smallville?" Lois asked, walking onto the roof, folding her arms – not because she felt a need to be defensive around Clark but because it was a comforting way to carry herself, it reassured her when they were discussing…things.

"You knew where to come look for me, you know why I'm up here," he said elusively, he turned to face her and smiled at his girlfriend, Lois was one of the greatest things in his life, and as much as he'd wanted to protect her from who he was, from what he did – having her know things was comforting…they could be completely open now, "I'm thinking about them…about AC and Courtney and Mia…I was trying to listen for them but…there's just too much…interference."

Lois nodded, "I thought you were focusing on you know saving the city…don't beat yourself up about it…Clark you have a whole city to protect…Ollie and Chloe can deal with tracking down the others, besides do you really think that AC will be in that much trouble? Honestly?"

Clark laughed a little at that, "You might have a point…I just feel…helpless…I know I have my powers but if I can't protect my friends then what's the point in having them?" Lois closed the difference till she was close enough to cup her hands around his neck and draw him close to her.

"Listen to me Clark, this isn't your fault and it isn't your job to save everyone, they have powers of their own and they're perfectly capable of defending themselves," she reassured, removing one hand from his neck to place on his chest, "if they got hurt or got captured then whoever did it over-powered them or knew things about them that helped them," she pecked him lightly on the lips, "now come inside, there's someone that you need to meet." She groaned and drew apart from him, and Clark followed her. They ducked inside the building and rode the elevator down to the office and Clark immediately understood why Lois had grown, standing in front of their desks was a very pretty, black-haired girl with piercing blue eyes wearing a pair of jeans, shirt and jacket that was almost an imitation of Lois's trademark except somehow…better.

"Clark would you like to meet Miss Diana Prince; she's one of the new reporters." Lois said in one of her forced-nice voices, the woman extended a hand and Clark shook it, the handshake was tight – almost as tight as one if he'd actually been exerting himself though he'd chose to tone it down, he smiled at her – not revealing that they had shared something between them. She had a pale complexion and was probably about Lois's age.

"It's nice to meet you…Clark was it?" she smiled sweetly at Lois receiving a forced nod.

"Yeah…so what's your field of expertise?" he asked, swiftly moving past the two women and sinking into his chair, he slurped his mug of cold coffee only to avoid making eye-contact with either Lois or Diana…it was not a position he particularly liked being put in.

She grinned, "Well I know a lot about Ancient History but more generally Foreign Affairs…although I tend to adapt quite well to situations."

Clark nodded, she adapted well…although to his mind it wasn't a question of adapting as a question of her surviving a few rounds with Lois. However if her tight hand-shake was anything to go by this was no ordinary journalist, she was another vigilante like him – hiding super-strength, not that he'd let on he knew, not yet anyway, he could ask Chloe to run a background check on Diana when she wasn't busy looking for the others. He'd tuned out of the conversation for a little over ten seconds but he could see Lois was already approaching boiling point, she might be smiling but that smile was deceptive, it was liable to turn into a feral snarl at any moment.

"We'll be right back," he said grabbing Lois by the arm, "just…make yourself at home." She smiled sweetly again…oh that was going to go down great with Lois. He steered her out of the room to the coffee machines and poured himself a fresh mug, pouring one swiftly for Lois and forcing it into her hands so she had something to do other than think about strangling…or trying to strangle Diana.

"Just make yourself at home," she imitated, "Ancient History is gonna do her a fat lot of good in one of the most technologically-advanced cities in the States, typical newbie," she took a sip of her coffee, "how does she just swing a job as a reporter, Tess does this all the time…I had to work my ass off to get here and work my ass off to get a piece on the front page…then Tess waltzes back into the Planet like she owns the place and just gives this girl a job…she probably just did it to piss me off."

Clark stifled a snigger realizing that Lois would probably end up with a broken hand if she did since he could tell she'd have the urge to punch him, "One thing, Tess probably is behind this since she's a Metahuman and second just give her a chance, she might surprise you." He sipped his own coffee, "Are you ready to go back in there or are you gonna punch her?" Lois shook her head and followed Clark back to the Office.

. . .

"I can't say I'm delighted to have you barge into my office but never the less what can I do for you Chloe?" Tess asked, not even bothering to look up from her computer screen as she ran through the latest Luthorcorp Profit Margins.

"I just thought that we'd evened things out between us Tess," she said calmly, crossing the length of the office to take one of the chairs in front of her desk, "I thought we'd laid the past to rest and that you were okay with me and with Clark and with Ollie – but you aren't are you? You're still obsessed with Metahumans…obsessed with the idea of having them aren't you? They aren't trinkets Tess; they're real people who didn't ask for this and you-"

"-firstly," Tess interjected smoothly, "I have no idea what you're talking about and secondly yes we are okay, that doesn't make us friends, it doesn't make us allies, it makes us not-enemies, for now," she qualified, "though thank you for revealing to me that I'm still your first port of call the moment something goes wrong in Hero-land."

Chloe eyed Tess up and down, she was confident and her face gave away nothing – that was typical Tess, she hadn't really though Tess was responsible, it had merely been an exercise to see if Tess knew anything about it: that was far more likely. So far she wasn't revealing too much and now Chloe had laid her cards on the table she doubted that Tess ever would reveal anything about the subject, at least not willingly. She needed a lead and while Ollie was out this was as close as she could get.

"Sorry," Chloe apologized, "just you do have history with that, and I was wondering if you'd heard anything, you still have contacts within Checkmate – true the hierarchy was wiped out but I find it hard to believe that a government organisation just disintegrates because the Queen dies, that isn't how it works with a hive is it, Tess?"

Tess frowned slightly.

"I'm not sure what you mean Chloe but I think it's best that you left, I have no idea what you're talking about and even if I had contacts who were with Checkmate I wouldn't call them out on this, I don't really want to draw attention to myself, somehow turning traitor doesn't appeal to them too much." Chloe nodded and rose to left, nothing ventured nothing gained was all she could say to herself as she left.

Tess waited a few moments then rose to her feet and moved to look out at the city through the window, she always felt much better knowing that Clark and Oliver and their friends were watching over Metropolis when she couldn't, she didn't know anything about what was happening – beyond that a few of them had disappeared, her PIs had told her that much – and as for Checkmate most of the contacts simply worked in other government departments with special responsibilities. She entered the number in her phone and raised it to her ear, listening as it rang a few times.

"I think I have a job for you."

. . .

The door opened and their quarry was thrown on the floor of the limo. He was still dressed in his red-uniform, quite quaint really.

"I assume that you are the one they call Impulse," the stern glare she received in return told her all she needed to know, she plucked the taser from her pocket and sent a single blast through his body, "driver, take us to the facility."

. . .

My first Smallville fic so hope you like it,

If there are errors sorry but it isn't strictly set in the canon universe,

And also I haven't seen Season 10 so if this conflicts with that, again apologies,

Acrobat

X