Disclaimer: Red Hood and the Outlaws are the intellectual property of DC Comics.

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The Outlaws

Issue #3: Strange Allies

Starfire glanced around the inside of the mosque and blinked. The tile on the wall was a most beautiful arrangement of white and bright blue, while the floor was covered with various rugs and carpets. As Alim entered, he glanced up and nodded to a mark in the domed ceiling, turned toward it, sunk to his knees, and prayed.

She watched the strange local man that had helped her and sat down on a short couch against the wall, her tall frame nearly spilling out of it. As the man finished his prayer, he sat up and stood before letting out a sigh. "We should be safe here, for now at least."

"Is it not tradition for a holy place to be one of sanctuary?" Starfire asked quietly.

He nodded. "It is, but at times those that profess to be guided by Allah defy such traditions."

"Any who says they know the will of any supreme deity is a fool or a liar." She answered cooly. "Even the Gods which the Atlanteans and Amazons worship are not nearly equal to that of a supreme being."

"I have not heard of such deities aside for rumors." Alim said as he sat down on a couch opposite her. "Perhaps you have encountered them?"

"Perhaps." She allowed faintly. "But if one is truly a God, they cannot be killed, can they? But Amazon traditions tell of the death of some Gods. Perhaps they are merely agents of some higher being... acting out the will of X'hal or maybe it is your Allah."

"Perhaps they are one and the same." Alim observed. "Aisha would shoot me if she heard me talking of such things."

"Is she... your sister?" Starfire asked.

He nodded. "She is... I am certain she would be upset with me helping you."

"I see..." She said.

"If you will excuse me, if you intend to stay I must procure proper clothing for you to wear... here women are required to dress... 'modestly'." He chuckled faintly at that.

"Modestly is a rather subjective term." Starfire arched an eyebrow. "I would gather in such a nation it has been taken to an extreme?"

"You have no idea, do you..." He laughed.

Roy Harper groaned as the door creaked open and a woman clad in a burqa stepped inside. After a moment, he felt a bowl of water being forced against his lips and he took a drink from the cool liquid within. Then he opened his eyes and stared into the pale gaze from the woman.

"Roy Harper... well, I guess I am not surprised to see you back here." She said before sitting in the seat across from him.

"Who are you... can't really tell with the whole getup." Roy grumbled.

The woman laughed and leaned forward. "I am no one important, merely an agent of Allah's will. I put your friend through quite the extreme variety of torments, and he did not wish to tell me much of anything about himself. I was so disappointed, I wanted to learn a bit about you... 'heroes'."

Roy cursed. "Like what? You already know my name... that's more than most can say about us heroes."

"Oh, but you gave that up last time you were in our tender care." He could imagine her smile at that. "No... You know more than that, do you not? Who informed you about the exchange?"

"Don't know. Ask Red Hood... he's the one with contacts." Roy answered.

The woman snorted. "Typical, so you're just his lackey?"

"Yep." Roy said.

"Now... if that's so, maybe I can get him to talk by beating you to a pulp in front of him." The woman said. "Or... I know this really painful torment the Israelis conceived off... it works so much better on men too..."

He whimpered at that thought and saw a predatory gleam in her eyes.

"Maybe I should..." She glared at him in the dim light. "I should ask... what's the history between you and Cheshire?"

Roy swallowed. "What's it matter to you?"

"Oh... I was just wondering if she'd like to deliver that last bullet to your brain."

Cheshire clambered out of the old UAZ that she'd procured from the base and walked up to the rather worn looking Mosque at the top of the hill. Already the group had found the body of one of their men, but nothing more.

They weren't the brightest bunch, these terrorists. Therefore, she decided to head for the nearest structure, figuring that if Starfire was alive she'd need shelter and a place to recover from her wounds.

That led her to this mosque. As she approached, she put her hand on her belt and chewed her lip for a moment behind her mask.

Then she slowly pushed open the doors and stepped inside. She winced at the creak which filled the air and swore as a bolt of purple light flashed past her head and sputtered against the tile walls.

Cheshire dove out of the way and slammed against the wall. "STARFIRE!"

"You!" A shout echoed from around the corner. "What do you want?"

"The same thing you do!" Cheshire snapped back as she drew her Sai.

"LIAR!"

A shot blasted past the corner and sputtered against the tile wall. Cheshire thought it was a good thing the mosque used tile, as most anything else would have burst into flame, and fighting in a burning building was never fun. "I am not lying, you dumb alien!" She snapped back, then she rolled around the corner and leapt toward the girl, clad in the distinct blue armor that looked to be on the verge of falling apart.

A bolt of purple light flashed past her and Cheshire slapped away another blazing fist, sending a starbolt into the ceiling. She lashed out with a kick that hurtled the alien into the wall where she slumped to the ground with bits of plaster and tile crumpling down around her.

Those glowing green eyes blazed up at her, and anger flared in Cheshire's veins. She surged forward, grabbed the alien by the throat, and pressed her against the wall. Starfire began to push herself off agains the wall and Cheshire snarled. She pressed her Sai against the alien's throat and Starfire froze. "Stop struggling, you bitch!"

"You... you cannot beat me, Cheshire!"

"I don't intend to... but I think even you can't survive a slit throat." She snarled back before increasing the pressure on her throat. "Now shut up and listen!"

Starfire's glowing green eyes flared and sparked, and Cheshire felt her stomach suddenly tighten in realization. "You tried to kill me!" Starfire snapped and Cheshire smiled beneath her mask.

"Maybe... but it was just a job, now that I'm paid..."

Starfire snarled and Cheshire leapt back as twin lances of purple energy shot from her eyes, just barely missing her as she somersaulted out of the path of the beams. "Starfire!" She yelled and the alien lunged at her.

Cheshire dove out of the way and swore. "I..."

She dodged a volley of purple bolts. "Starfire!"

"Stop saying my name!" The alien yelled as she fired another starbolt and Cheshire screeched as she felt a burst of pain. The bolt burned through her mask and the acrid smell of burnt hair filled her senses as she staggered back clutching her cheek.

The mask clattered to the floor and Cheshire swallowed. "You... you... you bitch!"

Starfire set herself. "That was just a graze Cheshire!"

"Do you care anything about Roy?" Cheshire shouted as she felt tears run down from her eyes and sting as they rolled over her red cheek.

Starfire froze her green eyes wide with shock. "Roy..."

"Yes, the boy you've been banging!" Cheshire snapped. "The boy that's sitting in the Base's hands, just waiting for a bullet! THAT BOY!"

"You know nothing!" Starfire snarled.

"I know enough!" Cheshire snapped and straightened up. "I wanted to get him out, but to do that I need you help... you moron."

"Help..." Starfire murmured as if stunned. "But... but..."

"I'm a mercenary, you bitch! It's a job... I don't want to see Roy dead anymore than you do!" Cheshire snapped. "I'd have thought working for Jason you'd understand that already, but no..." She stalked toward Starfire and slapped her.

The alien clasped her cheek in shock and stepped away from her. "You... No one dares touch a princess of Tamaran in such a manner!"

"Please, you deserved it." Cheshire snapped. "Plus... I thought the Citadel did far worse to you."

The alien's face paled at her words and she snarled again, anger bubbling to the surface. "You..."

"If you want to see either of them, you'll help me!" Cheshire roared back at her, freezing her in her tracks. "Jason and Roy are depending on us... and let's not even think about that little bomb I escorted here, hmm?"

"What do you wish for me to do?" She asked as she slowly lowered her fists.

Jason Todd swore as Roy was forced down into a seat across from him and held in place by two guards. The woman slowly stalked around them. A feral and predatory smile slipped onto her lips. "Now... I've heard you hero types can't bear the suffering of others... so lets put it to the test, hmm?"

"What are you going to do to him?" Jason snapped.

The woman dropped a car battery on the table and a set of jumper cables. Slowly Jason's throat went dry as he remembered the torture from earlier. His voice turned hoarse. "You bitch... have you no decency?"

"Not for American infidels." She said with a tone that he could have sworn as gleeful. "I must give the Israelis a bit of credit for such an inventive method." She scraped the jump cables against each other sending out a blizzard of sparks.

Roy's eyes were wide. "What... where are you putting those things?"

"Remove his trousers." The woman said with a demonic smile.

"Jason?" Roy shouted.

Jason shut his eyes. "I'm sorry Roy."

Starfire swallowed as she stared at Cheshire, her heart clenched in her chest. They sat facing each other in the mosque as the sun began to set. "You... you captured them."

"Yes." She said quietly.

"Why? Why do so only to turn around and rescue them?" Starfire asked as she stared at the woman. A lump rose in her throat. "Why did you try to kill me?"

Cheshire's green-grey eyes flashed for a moment. "I had a job, I did it... now that it's over I want to help Roy." She narrowed her eyes and chewed her lip. "As for trying to kill you... You have something I want."

Starfire scowled. "I own nothing on this world... here I am but a nobody."

"No... you're not." Cheshire scoffed. "A lot of people know you Starfire. A lot of people like you. No one likes me..."

"You are an assassin." Starfire said simply. "It is natural."

Cheshire slumped against the wall and shook her head. "You don't understand... I... I want something you have." She shook her head. "No... that's too vague for you to get it. You have someone I want."

"Someone..." Starfire scowled for a moment and then her eyes went wide. Slowly she turned her gaze to Cheshire and for a fleeting moment saw a flicker of sadness slip across the mask of indifference. She gaped at her in surprise.

"Roy." Starfire murmured. "You... want him?"

She bowed her head, her wiry hair hiding her face for a moment before she nodded and closed her eyes. "I messed up with him, we worked together before... before the Outlaws and... we fought. After a while I took some contracts, joined Talia's group again and left." She swallowed and glanced down at the burned mask sitting upon her knee. "I miss him."

"Getting him captured would not help you." Starfire stated as she stood up and began to pace. After a few moments she stopped, her mind made up. "I... I will help you."

Cheshire's grey-green eyes went wide in surprise. "But... I thought, you and Roy... and..."

"We have been intimate, but love had nothing to do with it. We are friends, but I do not love him." She sighed and ran a hand through her hair for a moment. "I have not felt love in some time."

Cheshire looked at her in surprise before shrugging. "So..."

"I have needs." Starfire said quietly. "He satisfied them, that is all... at least from my perspective." She closed her eyes. "He has been very kind to me, and understanding. I have forgotten much of my life on Earth before the Outlaws."

"That's actually rather sad." Cheshire said quietly.

"If you truly wish to... 'win' him, you must join us." Starfire said.

Cheshire scowled. "That wasn't part of my plan... I'm not a team player."

"And Roy and Jason are?" Starfire asked. "We are not so much a team as a group of friends... united in mocking Jason's terrible attempts to pick up women."

"Was that a joke...?" Cheshire asked quietly.

"Perhaps," Starfire said. "Now... since I've seen your face, perhaps your true name would be better... we are all friends after all."

She snorted. "What's yours then?"

"Koriand'r... but they usually just call me Kori." Starfire smiled faintly at her. "I trust you know the name of the others?"

"Yes..." Cheshire took a deep breath. "My name is Jade... Jade Nguyen."

Starfire nodded and smiled faintly. "Then welcome to the Outlaws, friend Jade. I think we have a rescue to plan."