This is a good character building chapter, but things are going to pick up pretty soon. Love all the support this story has gotten and all of you guys have been great. Please, keep it up!

Dick's POV

Saturday, September 25th - 5:40 PM

The Watch Tower

"So, Kori, let's start from the beginning, okay?" I begin, both Kori and I now sitting on the bed of the holding room. I thought it would be far more comfortable and relax than standing the entire time. She nods hesitantly and I continue. "Who attacked your ship?"

"The Gordanians," she answers after a moment of silence and it's clear that she is really struggling with this, but that just seems to make me more curious as to what her story is.

My still maskless eyes study her. I know that blank stare on her face very well. She is reflecting on something horrible, something that rocks her to her very core. I decide to carefully press on. "Okay, who are the Gordanians and why did they attack you?"

Another long pause. "The Gordanians are a monstrous race from the Vegan system. They are slavers and that is the reason they attacked my transportation pod. I escaped them."

"I see," I nod, believing this to be fairly simple now. "So, what I am understanding is that they tried to capture you, you escaped them, some followed you, and tried to shoot down your ship. Is that correct?"

Kori shook her head before dropping her eyes to her interlocked hands. "No, they did try to capture me. ...My father, the Grand Ruler of Tameran gave me to them."

So much for me understanding any of this. "...what?" I question. How could her father do such a thing to his own daughter? I know Bruce hasn't always been the best father figure, but Damn.

Her eyes remain sunken, almost empty looking now as she appears to reflect on the events of her past. "Tameran was at war with the Gordanians. It had lasted for many years, long before my birth , and Tameran's resources were becoming thin. My father knew that we could not hold them off much longer, there were just to many of them, so he met with their leader to find a way to end the conflict and they eventually came to an agreement and signed a treaty. The Gordanians would leave Tameran, never to return, but only in exchange for me. ...That was six years ago," she nearly whispers and I can tell she is trying not cry.

My mouth falls agape. "You were a slave for six years?"

Kori forces herself to look at me, her eyes showing a level of brokenness that I have never seen before and that is certainly saying something. "Yes, and it was... What they did to me... I cannot even begin to describe what I went through during those six years." Her eyes then turn into a vicious glare that could give even Batman a run for his money. "But that is why I killed as many as I possibly could when I escaped."

Oh boy. That was the wrong thing to say. I glance at the two way mirror, just knowing Batman is looking on at her disapprovingly on the other side. "You killed some of them?"

"Not some. I killed many," she seethes, the warrior side of her clearly coming out.

Yeah, that was definitely not the right thing to say. I must have be making a face of astonishment because she almost instantly comments on it. "Judging by the way you are looking at me, I am guessing that killing is not acceptable on this planet, but you must understand that I am not from this planet. I was raised differently than you. To me, killing your enemy was encouraged. Besides, if you knew what tortures I experienced, what I was forced to do, then you would not be looking at me with such judgment."

I am strongly against killing, but if I had been raised the way she had and been through the things she'd been through, my stance would probably be a little different on the matter. "You're right," I respond. "I'm sorry."

"It is okay," she assures me. "I understand that all cultures are different."

Before I can respond, the door to the room swishes open and we both turn to find who I know as Martin Manhunter enter the room, the door closing quickly behind him.

Kori seems to quickly become agitated, which I understand. She's never met him, and knows nothing of his intentions. Before she can do anything she'd regret, I place my hand on her leg, which is clothed in a black and silver suit, as is the rest of her body. She looks at me, studying my eyes. She sees that I am relaxed and therefore she calms herself some.

"Hello, Koriand'r of Tameran," he bows. "I am J'onn of Mars, but I am typically known as Martain Manhunter while in this uniform. I am here as a representative of the Justice League."

"What is this 'Justice League' as you say?" She asks and I believe she is talking to me more than him.

"The Justice League is the defending force against any potential threats against Earth," Manhunter attempts to explain.

"Basically it's a group of heroes who fight together for one common purpose, " I clarify. "You're actually at their headquarters right now."

"The one's I fought earlier were apart of this Justice League, yes?" She continues to question.

I shake my head. " Um no, not exactly. Most of them were really new at this and still in the early stages of their training. The Justice League is much more formidable. "

"Oh, that is good. They were quite disorganized in combat and we're not much of a challenge," she concludes. "I do not believe they could successfully defend Earth if they cannot even defeat a single Tameranian." "She then turns to J'onn. " Please, what does the Justice League want with me? I do apologize for the misunderstanding earlier, and I do not believe I should be held prisoner."

"We have no intentions of holding you prisoner, ," J'onn assures. "However, a decision does have to be made on rather you should be allowed to remain on Earth or not and before we can determine that we must verify you are telling the truth."

Kori doesn't seem surprised in the least others had been listening to our conversation, probably having known that since the beginning, but she did seem a little upset at the Manhunter. "Though I did not share every detail of my past I did not lie about anything!" She retorts. "Besides, I have no way to prove anything. I did not arrive here expecting to have to defend myself."

"We do not mean disrespect, Koriand'r, but if you will allow me to, I can verify everything you have said. You see, I have the ability to see into one's mind. As an act of trust building, I will not do so without your consent though"

She looks at me, as if expecting me to guide her. I really think she trusts me... or at the very least, trusts me more than anyone else right now, which I'm sure isn't saying very much at the moment. "You can trust him, Kori." As long as she has been truthful she has nothing to fear from J'onn. Although, even if she has been truthful about everything, I'm still not certain that they will allow her to stay on Earth, especially with the knowledge she has killed so many.

Kori turns to J'onn. "You may see into my mind, but under one condition." She sees J'onn waiting for her to continue, so she does. "You will not share anything I have not already spoken of. Some things I wish to leave in the past. I am sure you can understand that."

"Of course. I promise you, I shall not share anything other that what you allow me to," he agrees.

Kori nods, showing that she is ready before closing her eyes and bowing her head, J'onn doing the same. Things are deathly quiet for a long moment, and I see J'onn begin to shake, obviously reacting whatever he is seeing. Wow, her past really must be full of unimaginable horrors. I hear her whimper and turn to see that she is shaking as well, probably from being forced to relive memories that she has most likely tried to repress a thousand times.

I instinctively grab her hand to attempt to calm her, but instantly realize that is a huge mistake when she squeezes it, causing me to whence in extreme pain. God, she is so strong. If she squeezes any harder every bone in my hand is going to break, but lucky for me her head snaps ups, leaving her panting heavily, and she slowly begins to lower the pressure on my hand before finally releasing it, leaving me to shake it until I can regain feeling.

After seeing that she is okay, I turn back to J'onn, finding him standing there, mouth agape. "Oh my... I truly am sorry for the things you have experienced in your young life, Ms. Kori, but I swear to you, I will vouch for you in front of the league."

Kori offers him the smallest of smiles and nods. "Thank you."

"If you will, can I have you accompany me to the conference room where the rest of the league is waiting?" J'onn asks her. I guess Batman and Green Lantern left as soon as the Manhunter walked in, knowing he would be able to handle her if she for some reason lost control.

"I shall," she agrees. "But I wish for Nightwing to accompany me." I am little surprised by her request, but I don't deny her. She's clearly has had a rough day to put it lightly and I really don't want to make it any worse for her.

The Manhunter glances between us a couple of times before shrugging. "Very well." He then turns and opens the door with his powers before turning back to us. "Please, follow me."

I place my mask over my face, something Kori seems a little confused about, but she doesn't question it, but I'm sure it will come later if she has he opportunity. We then follow behind Martian Manhunter, heading out the door and down the long, curving hallway. As we walk in silence, I pay very close attention to her. She is clearly nervous, but I can tell she is doing her absolute best to hide it. She seems to be sticking very close to me. When I slow down, so does she. When I pick up my pace, she follows. I guess I am some kind of comfort for her, which I don't have a problem with.

We eventually come to the large, metallic double doors that I know is the conference room. The Manhunter opens them and we all walk through, finding Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Aquaman, and Green Arrow all sitting at the long rectangular table. J'onn joins them, sitting in between Green Lantern and Batman, and Kori chooses to sit on the very end of the table, probably so that she can view everyone clearly. I just stand behind her with my arms crossed over my chest, curious what is about to happen.

Superman is the first to speak. "Koriand'r of Tameran I presume," he greets, a friendly smile on his face, which I think relaxes her a little. She nods offering a small smile in return and he continues. "Welcome to Earth. I go by Superman here, this is Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Aquaman, and Green Arrow," he introduces. "Oh, and of course Martian Manhunter, who you should be familiar with by now. We are the core members of the Justice League."

"Both Nightwing and J'onn have told me of you. It is nice to meet you," Kori greets in return.

"So, now that greetings are out of the way, let's get down to the facts," Batman begins, killing the friendly vibe in the room and causing me to roll my eyes under my mask. "You stated, while being interviewed by Nightwing, that your space ship's thruster was shot by a race Known as the Gordanians. You described them as slavers and said your father, Tameran's ruler, gave you to them six years ago as part of a peace treaty. You reported that you had been subjected to many manners of torture and when you escaped you killed, and I quote, "many" of them. Is all of that correct?"

"Yes, but as I told Nightwing, my culture is different than yours and for what they subjected me to, I truly believe that each and every one of them got what they deserved," she retorted growing more confident in herself as she spoke,

"Indeed," Manhunter spoke up. "I looked into Ms. Kori's mind. Her life has been truly tramatic and the things she experienced while captive are... unspeakable is the only way I can think of to describe them. If I were in the same situation I cannot say that I would not have done the same thing."

"If it is truly as Ghastly as Manhunter says it is, than I see no wrong in what she did," Wonder Woman added.

"And it's true. Tameranians are raised to kill your adversary before they can kill you," Green Lantern added.

"So, let me pose a question to you then, Koriand'r," Batman interjected them. "Let's say we decide to let you stay here and live along side of our population. What happens when someone does something wrong to you? Do you kill them because it was how you were raised? Also, how do we know these Gordanians aren't going to track you to Earth and endanger our own people?"

Though he sounds like an absolute asshole, I know he has a solid point, so I remain quiet in the background and wait for Kori's answer.

"I escaped the Gordanian ships following long before I even entered this solar system and though I was raised the way I was, I will obey the laws of this world as long as I remain on it. If I am sent into space, there's a chance the Gordanians may find me, so I have strong incentive to not cause any trouble," she defends.

Batman is silent for a long moment, just staring her down as if attempting to dissect her with his mind. "What do you think, Nightwing?" he eventually inquires, turning to me.

This caught me off guard. "Um, what?"

"You have spent more time with her than anyone else here. Your opinion on the matter would help us come to a decision, so do you think Koriand'r should be allowed to remain on Earth?" Batman clarifies further.

I look down at Kori who has turned her body slightly to look up at me with her gorgeous green eyes that seem to hold a mixture of nervousness and hopfulness in them as if they are pleading for me to vouch for her, but not sure if I will. On one hand, Kori has killed before and her abilites make her a potential danger, but on the other, Martian Manhunter seems to believe she was justified in her actions and would it even be right to force her to leave with the knowledge she would be in grave danger in the vastness of space? Maybe the answer is fairly simple. "Many of the people sitting at this table have at one time killed someone and all of you could be potentially dangerous, but none of you are persecuted for it. She should not be judged off her past or her powers. I believe she should have the right to stay."

Kori smiles up at me, clearly happy that I chose to defend her and I nod back at her, letting her know that I got her back on this. We then both turn our attention to the Justice League. "Well," Superman begins, "if no one has anything else to say on the matter we may go ahead and vote. I cast my vote as yes. I see no reason to not allow you to stay, Koriand'r."

"Yes," Wonder Woman echoed. "I too am from a race of warriors and I shall not cast you out because of you're upbringing."

Another four votes for her to be allowed to stay until it came down to one more person. The Batman. Everyone looked on anxiously waiting for his decision. For her to be allowed to remain on Earth, she needed support from all seven of the core Justice League members and it was no surprise that his would be by far the hardest to earn, especially after he learned she had killed.

Batman stared her down for a long time before finally speaking. "Though I in no way trust you yet, Koriand'r, I do trust Nightwing's judgment, so I will say yes. Don't make me regret it."

I stand shocked. For Batman to actually say something like that in front of everyone is a really big deal for me and I can't help but to smile slightly. I nod in his direction and he returns the gesture, a sign of mutual respect between us, which is a huge leap forward in my opinion.

"I shall not," Kori replies to him with a huge enthusiastic smile on her face.

"Well, if that's it then I guess we can call this meeting to a close," Superman announces and begins to stand, obviously eager to go home.

"Hold up," Green Lantern stops him. "That's it? Where is she going to go? We can't just send her out into the world with no money or anything. I mean she has no concept of how things even work here. We might as well be sending her off into space." He does have a solid point. We can't just leave her to her own devices. That's just setting her up for failure.

"Here's a crazy idea," Green Arrow replies, throwing his arms behind his head and leaning back in his chair. "Why not let her stay at Mount Justice with the trainees? I mean, it'll give her a place to sleep, food, and she will be able to adjust to Earth slowly. Plus, it'll be kind of funny to see all of their expressions when the girl that kicked their ass a few hours ago walks in," he adds with a smirk.

"That's actually a good idea," Superman agrees before turning to me. "Nightwing, would you mind transporting her there and making sure she gets settled in for the night?"

Not exactly the coolest thing the Justice League has ever asked me to do, but why the hell not? At this point I just won't to get all of this over with and go home probably as bad as Superman. "Sure," I agree. "Kori, if you would, follow me please."

She nods before turning back to the league and offering one last big smile before heading out the door after me. Once outside she quickly catches up with me, walking side by side. "Thank you for defending me in there," she says a little nervousness in her voice.

I look over at her and smile. "It's no big deal. I'm glad everything worked out the way it did."

"I am as well... but I am slightly nervous about seeing all of the ones I fought again," she replies, twiddling her thumbs together, something I am noticing she does every time she is on edge about something.

I place my hand on her shoulder and we both come to a stop. "Don't worry, Kori. I'm going to make sure everything is taken care of. I haven't let you down yet, have I?"

She blushes and looks down at the floor. Wow, apparently my charm even works on alien girls. Good to know. "No, you have not," she answers with a slight giggle.

"See. Nothing to worry about then. Now come on," I instruct, moving my hand to the small of her back to guide her to my jet, the Blackwing as I like to call it. On a side not, I am a little interested to see the trainees reactions when we arrive, so I am looking forward to getting there, but we'll see how this goes. It's going to be interesting. That's for sure.

Next chapter Kori meets the team, we learn a bit more about the members, and Nightwing is spending a little more time at Mount Justice, but why? Keep up the reviews guys. You all are my motivation.