(a/n: well here you go. I hope you enjoy this chapter. review!)
Ch.4: Hello Cruel World
Hundreds of miles away from New York and below the sea, the large black submarine cut through the dark ocean like a dagger through paper.
Aboard the intimidating craft was Kaldur, formerly known as Aqualad, a crew of Atlantians and Kaldur's father, the infamous Black Manta.
But something horrible had befallen the ship and crew.
A mysterious disease had infected most of the crew. Even Black Manta himself had fallen ill.
Kaldur marched through the halls of ship passing quarters filled to the brim with sick Atlantians.
He was stumped. This disease came from nowhere, it laid waste to the crew's strong immune systems and it shrugged off medical treatments like nothing.
Kaldur was starting to grow nervous. He had left the team so he could get closer to his father and the Light but with this new disease on the rise, it seems like he might loose his only connection to the Light.
Kaldur reached his father's quarters. He knocked and he heard a wheezy voice answer "Come in".
Kaldur entered his father's quarters and the sight of his weakened father greeted him. Black Manta was a powerful and intimidating man but once the illness struck the ship, he was the first among many to be infected.
Within day's Black Manta became bedridden. Kaldur watched as a simple disease turn the mighty Black Manta into a small, sickly creature.
Black Manta sat up in his bed, sweat dripping down his brow, his body was thinner and his skin became ashen.
Black Manta coughed violently into his hand. Once he managed to stop he spoke "Status…report"
"Quarantine has slowed the spread of the disease a little, but it has not stopped it" said Kaldur.
Black Manta sighed sadly "Damn"
"So far, over eighty three percent of the crew have been confined to quarters. The other twelve percent are trying to keep our ship moving and are treating the ill, at this rate we will run out of medical supplies and everyone aboard will be infected" said Kaldur.
Black Manta frowned "This is most troublesome"
Kaldur placed a hand on his father's shoulder "Father, you know what options we have left-" "No" interrupted Black Manta, shaking his head.
Kaldur sighed, "Father please, it may be our only chance. For all we know, this virus may be striking Atlantis and the Surface. If we don't do something soon, everything on earth may die".
Black Manta was silent. He hated Atlantis and the surface world but so far the virus claimed the lives of several of his crew. Some of them were his closest friends. He watched as they died screaming and thrashing violently in their beds.
Black Manta finally spoke "I will consider your proposal"
Kaldur smiled "Thank you father".
Suddenly there was a loud boom and the ship rocked violently. There were several more booms and the ship rocked violently more, there were muffled screams and the alarms began to blare.
Kaldur told his father "Stay here" he got up and rushed out of his father's quarters.
He sprinted down the hall and he turned a corner and he came face to face with a sight that made his heart sink into his gut "No" breathed Kaldur.
Standing in doorway of one of the crew's quarters was an Infected Hunter.
Its mouth and claws were soaked in the blood of the crew. The Hunter spotted Kaldur and let out a roar that rocked the entire ship.
The hunter got down on all fours and bounded at Kaldur. It raised its claws and it attacked.
Heller began to slip in and out of consciousness. The first thing he saw was blinding white and shapes moving around him speaking in muffled voices.
The second thing he experienced was pain.
He heard loud drills and medical instruments at work he managed to glimpse down and saw his chest being cut open and hands reaching inside. He also saw the face of a man with a white beard and glasses. The man wiped his brow and muttered something and Heller faded into unconsciousness.
When Heller regained consciousness he heard footsteps and voices.
He saw several figures standing over him. Some of them he recognized as soldiers and one of them was Colonel Rooks.
Suddenly Heller's hearing began to return, "No man should've survived this, his system is flooded with the virus" said Colonel Rooks.
The bearded man glanced at a folder in his hand and to the colonel "Which is why you're going to run these experiments Doctor" said Rooks
"And if you don't like the results Colonel Rooks? Then what?" demanded the doctor.
Rooks didn't answer. Instead the Colonel glared at the doctor and said bluntly "Heller is Gentek property now. Things go sour, you burn the room"
"Burn?" sputtered the doctor "No, absolutely not. This specimen is priceless!"
"The Colonel said burn it, that's what you're going to do", growled Riley.
Heller began to become more lucid. He began to regain the feelings in his limbs, his thoughts became much clearer and his eyes began to adjust. Heller watched as the doctor hesitate for a moment then he gave in "It's time to begin" muttered the doctor.
The doctor, Riley and Rooks walked away and Heller felt himself being lifted.
He found himself standing and the restraints holding him released him.
He heard the doctor's voice over the intercom "now, a simple survival stimulus"
"Whuh, where am I?" groaned Heller, shaking off the effects of the drugs that was in his veins "What the hell is this?" suddenly a large, metal gate rose, revealing a room filled with infected Walkers.
The walkers noticed Heller began to flock to Heller, ready to shred him to pieces.
Heller's reflexes kicked in and he threw a punch that tore the head off of one of the Walkers and he kicked another, shattering its body into a pieces.
Heller looked at his hands in shock. How did he do that? He thought to himself.
Heller decided to worry about it later. He clenched his fists and continued fighting the Walkers. Within seconds, he wiped out the swarm of Walkers.
Heller glanced up and saw that Rooks and the doctor were watching from an observation booth "Let me out of here!" bellowed Heller.
Rooks turned to the doctor "You have what you need, Dr. Koenig?"
"Colonel, please, we must learn all we can about the subject" said Dr. Koenig
"I can hear you!" said Heller.
Sirens began to blare and Heller turned and he saw several other gates opened, letting loose more Walkers "My god" murmured Heller.
Heller began to fight off the oncoming swarms of Walkers, thinking about what BlackWatch was doing.
What were they doing with infected? Why were they treating him like some sort of lab rat? Was it something to do with his new found power?
"The new raw data we're collecting here, its like nothing I've ever seen before" breathed Dr. Koenig.
Heller grabbed a Walker and crushed its head in his hands like a grape "I'm going to kill you when I get out of here!" growled Heller "Hey! You hear me!" Heller finished killing the last Walker in the room.
Heller heard Rooks bark at Dr. Koenig "That's enough. He's too dangerous, burn him!"
"Rooks you can't!" argued Dr. Koenig "He's too valuable!"
"You're out of order, Koenig" growled Rooks "Lieutenant Riley, hit the switch!"
"Yes sir!" said Riley.
Heller heard Riley began shouting orders and alarms began to blare.
Heller muttered, "That's not good" suddenly tiles on the floor slid open revealing large flamethrowers and in the blink of an eye, the whole room became engulfed in flames.
Heller opened his eyes and he found himself staring at the ceiling. His body was screaming in pain and smelled horrible "Get clean-up and recovery in there, make sure he's dead" said Rooks
"Damn you Colonel" grunted Koenig "This is no place for your brand of barbarism".
Heller moaned, his body was burnt and his skin was stiff and charred. He tried to move but he felt more pain.
"Don't get sanctimonious with me you damn ghoul" said Rooks "I've read your experiment reports".
Heller heard a gate open and he saw two soldiers in heavy bullet proof armor and gas masks appeared over him. One kicked his arm lightly but Heller made an effort not to move. "He's dead sir" reported one of the soldiers
"Make sure" said Rooks "We don't need another Mercer and we all know how that turned out"
"Yes sir" said one of the men.
The soldiers leveled their weapons and fired a few short bursts into Heller.
Heller's body twitched from the gunshots but after the ceased fire, he didn't move.
Suddenly Heller's body moved on its own. He grabbed the nearest soldier and he threw him to the ground. Heller punched the soldier over and over till he was a bloody pulp. Suddenly the dead soldier's flesh began to melt into Heller's ruined skin. Within seconds the soldier was absorbed into Heller and suddenly Heller's body was completely healed.
Heller looked at his hands in horror "W-what the hell did he do to me?"
"Shit! Release all specimen groups!" barked Rooks "Do it now!"
"Incredible" breathed Koenig "it healed him!" Heller turned and found more Walkers pouring into the room.
Heller reacted. He tore into them, ripping them apart and absorbing a few "Riley, keep burning him!" ordered Rooks
"Gladly" said Riley.
Heller began tossing bodies around like ragdolls and he continued consuming Walkers "Heller! Eat them! Eat them to survive!" shouted Koenig
"Shut the hell up Koenig!" barked Rooks.
Alarms began to blare and Rooks voice began to echo "All non-essential personnel evacuate! I need a perimeter defense on this building!"
"Roger that Colonel" said a voice.
Heller scowled "That's my cue to leave".
Heller began searching for an opening but he heard Riley laughing cruelly "I'm gonna turn your ass into charcoal!" the temperature in the room rose and Heller felt the flames wash over him, engulfing the entire room.
Once the flames cleared, Heller saw that he was still standing and the pain was not as great.
Heller's skin regenerated. He glared up at the observation room "You're going to pay for this!"
"Shit…Shit! The burn controls are dead!" grunted Riley
"You guard that room lieutenant!" ordered Rooks.
Heller glanced around and saw the operating table they had him on. He grabbed it and pulled it free from the bolts with ease. Heller lifted it above his head and he took aim at the control room window. He could see the shocked face of Lieutenant Riley "Oh shit!" muttered Riley.
Heller hurled the table at the observation room window and it shattered it like a bullet through glass, providing him with an escape point.
Riley scrambled to his feet and roared "Just come up here, come on!" Heller crouched and launched himself high into the air. Heller soared and he landed in the control room.
He spotted the way out and he took off running.
Riley screamed curses and fired a hail of bullets at Heller.
Heller ignored him and he managed to burst through the door and into the night.
Heller sprinted down the alleyway.
BlackWatch choppers flew overhead, searching for him. He glanced back and saw two BlackWatch soldiers following behind.
Heller ducked down another alley and he stopped to catch his breath. Heller's heart hammered against his chest, sweat dripped down his face.
Once he caught his breath, he glanced back at the alley he just came from but found that the two BlackWatch soldiers were gone. Heller frowned but he was knocked to the ground by a dark shape.
He looked up and saw that it was one of the BlackWatch soldiers who were chasing him.
The soldier was unconscious and unmoving. Heller glanced at his hand and muttered, "W-what the hell is this? What the hell is going on?"
"It's what you're meant for. Its why he chose you" said a voice.
Heller looked up and saw slim figure wearing a hoodie and jeans. Heller recognized that the voice was female. He noticed long strands of dark hair poking out of the hood "you" he breathed, "You were the one who took Maya"
"The same" said the woman, doing a theatrical bow.
Thousands of questions popped into Heller's mind but he voiced the most pressing one on his mind "What the hell did your friend do to me?"
"He gave you the 'Mercer Virus' that's what they call it right?" said the woman, tilting her head to one side.
"Why did he do this?" asked Heller
The woman cleared her throat and spoke "Think about this for a moment, the same virus and location, twice in a row, and the same BlackWatch here to save New York, seems quite coincidental, don't you think?" she crouched down and looked Heller in the eyes "Wake up Heller. This is no viral outbreak this is a bioweapons test. Designed by Gentek, controlled by BlackWatch blamed on Mercer and my friend"
she nodded her head over to the unconscious BlackWatch soldier lying beside Heller "This peon here is going to prove it to you" her arm shifted into a claw like form that glowed orange.
She grabbed the BlackWatch officer saying "Mr. Heller, meet BlackWatch Lieutenant Mark Simon".
She reached out and grabbed Heller's arm, her hand shifted into tendrils and the tendrils sank into Heller's flesh.
Heller twitched and groaned, "Let it happen" soothed the woman "Let the truth sink in".
The BlackWatch officer began to scream as the woman's claws dug deeper into his flesh.
Heller froze and suddenly images and voices poured into his mind.
A wrinkled face appeared and spoke to him "Mercer's interference with the detonation was bad enough, his accomplices cannot remain at large"
"Oh, you afraid that his buddies might screw things up even more?" said the voice of Lieutenant Simon.
The old man scowled "I was on the Gentek team that made that virus, Simon, I knew Mercer and his pals. Now that Mercer is dead, his friends will come for revenge and I know what they are capable of. I will not see my life's work ruined!" the visions faded and Heller dropped to his knees.
His head throbbed and ached. "What the hell was that?" groaned Heller
"Every living thing you consume makes you stronger" explained the woman "You take their shape and their memories" Heller looked down at his hands in shock.
The two looked up and saw a BlackWatch helicopter fly over them.
Heller looked at the woman "I heard you talking. I've seen your weird virus shit. But I have seen nothing that will make me believe you, over them" he jabbed a thumb over his shoulder towards BlackWatch headquarters.
The woman tilted her head "No? They cut you Heller. They put you in a cage filled with starving infected and then tried to burn you alive" she stepped closer to Heller till they were almost nose to nose "We didn't release this virus and we didn't kill your wife".
She placed a hand on Heller's shoulder but he just shrugged it off "So what do you want? You want to fight them?" asked Heller
"We want to destroy them" answered the woman "BlackWatch, Gentek, and their virus. And we want your help".
Her tone grew serious "But there's something you need to do first."
"What?" asked Heller
"Gentek has been experimenting with the virus" explained the woman "Making all kinds of infected creatures. You need that DNA"
she turned and walked away "When you're ready, we'll find you"
"Wait! What about my daughter!" said Heller
"She's fine" called the woman "When we meet again, I'll explain everything. You can even bring some of your Justice League pals"
The woman stopped and she glanced back at Heller "And for God's sake man, put some clothes on" she turned and left.
Heller looked down and realized that he was completely naked.
He thought of some clothing and his form shifted and suddenly clothes appeared on his body.
Heller blinked in surprise, he inspected the clothing he got on muttering "this is gonna come in handy".
Dana's eyes fluttered open and she laid on her cot staring at the plain grey ceiling, letting reality sink in.
Part of her had hoped that the day before was just some horrible dream but much to her dismay, it wasn't.
Dana sat up and looked to the cot beside her. It was empty. Amaya was gone.
There was a knock at the door. Dana threw off her blanket and she got out of the cot.
Dana opened the door and saw standing there in the hall was Pariah. He was dressed in a grey hoodie that was similar from the one he wore yesterday but this one looked new and clean.
Pariah waved a little "Good morning, did you sleep well?"
"Yeah" said Dana, nodding a little.
Pariah smiled a little "Good"
"What are you doing here?" asked Dana.
Pariah crossed his arms "Well, today I am taking to level twenty six"
Dana blinked in surprise "Really?"
She really didn't expect Pariah to allow her go. She expected that he'd promise to show her level twenty-six another time and she would have to sneak in and find out what's going on by herself.
Pariah nodded "Yes really, now come on lets go" he turned and started walking down the hall, Dana followed after him.
The two walked together down the hall till they reached an elevator. The two stepped into the elevator. Once inside, doors closed and the elevator slowly descended to level twenty-six.
The doors slid aside, revealing a clean white hallway. The walls, floor and ceiling were spotless.
Dana felt that the temperature was different. She shivered "Air conditioning?"
"Yep, it helps preserve our experiments" said Pariah.
He stepped out of the elevator and Dana followed. The two walked down the white hallway, passing different doors and halls that lead elsewhere on level twenty-six. They came to a stop in front of a pair of metal doors. Pariah punched in a code on the keypad that was beside the door and the doors slid open. Pariah stepped aside and allowed Dana to go in first.
Dana slowly walked through the doorway and she found herself in a lab. The lab was big, big enough to be three classrooms.
The lab had several metal tables, shelves filled with bottles and jars of materials, Dana noticed some box like objects in the corner but a white sheet covered them, preventing anyone from seeing what they were.
Pariah walked in and he clapped a hand on Dana's shoulder "Welcome to Lab-103, isn't it beautiful?"
"Gotta say, this place is squeaky clean" said Dana, her eyes narrowed "A little too clean"
"We didn't clean anything up to cover up anything nefarious, if that's what your thinking" said Pariah "We have no secrets to hide here" he walked over to one of the tables and sat down on a stool, he waved Dana over.
Dana pulled up a seat beside Pariah, his hands glided around the materials on the table till he found the one he was looking for.
He pulled a small glass vial that contained a clear liquid. Pariah held it up so Dana could see "Do you know what this is?"
"No idea" said Dana
"This is a new variation of the Black Light virus" said Pariah, proudly "A neat little thing that we like to call White Light"
Dana raised an eyebrow "White Light?"
"Yes. A nice name for the virus that will save the world, don't you think?" said Pariah.
He sighed "But, sadly its still only in its testing stage where-" Suddenly there were some rattling sounds from the corner of the lab
"What's that?" asked Dana
"My next little surprise" said Pariah.
He got up and he went over to the box like objects and picked one up. He carried it back to the table "Dana, I want you to meet a friend of mine" said Pariah. Pariah placed the object on the table. He grabbed the sheet and he pulled it away revealing a cage containing a small, alien creature.
Dana's eyes widened in shock, it was one of the aliens she saw on the news.
The creature looked at Dana and it began to growl something and shake the bars on the cage. Pariah slammed his fist on the top of the cage, the creature flinched and it stopped.
Pariah smiled "Dana, meet Steve, our little alien friend"
"That's an alien" said Dana, looking completely flabbergasted
"Yes indeed" said Pariah, tapping his hand lightly on the top of the cage "It's from the same planet as the one who was impersonating that ambassador"
"How…where did you get him?" asked Dana.
Pariah smiled, tapping his nose lightly "The nose knows. I found this little guy and some of his kind in the sewers beneath the city trying to set up some sort of explosive device but luckily I was there to stop them"
Dana blinked in surprise "No way" "Its true" said Pariah.
The alien was muttering something in its language; its eyes darted around in fear.
Dana frowned "What did he say?" Pariah shrugged "Who knows".
Dana crossed her arms "Ok, so you saved New York from being destroyed by aliens, I get that, but why are you keeping him here in a cage? Shouldn't you hand him over to the authorities or the Justice League?"
Pariah snorted "What for? The Justice League will probably just let him go home, the authorities would probably lock him up in a small windowless room for the rest of his days. But me, no not me, no ma'am" he shook his head "I have better plans for him and his kind"
"Which are?" probed Dana.
Pariah smiled "That's a surprise I think you will enjoy the most" there was a beeping sound and Pariah rolled up his sleeve. He looked at the small watch on his wrist "Well I'm on a tight schedule, I got to be somewhere in an hour. So if we're going to see everything else, we must get going" he tossed the sheet back over the cage.
He and Dana left the lab.
As they left, the Krolotean was calling after Dana in his native language. He was trying to warn her to flee for her life and to stay away from the hooded man.
But his warning was swallowed up by silence and darkness.
The elevator's doors slid open revealing a long narrow hall, Pariah stepped out followed by Dana "Here we are, the basement" said Pariah
"What's down here?" asked Dana.
Pariah waved a hand "Just some extra living quarters. The whole building used to be a Gentek lab but after the last outbreak died down, Gentek cleared this place and abandoned the whole building"
"And now you're living here like some sort of squatter" said Dana
Pariah nodded a little "That's one way of putting it".
They reached a set of doors at the end of the hall.
Pariah opened them, revealing a spacious room that stretched on as far as she could see.
Inside that room, Dana saw that there were almost two hundred people. They were all dressed in normal clothes. Some sat on cots reading to young children, some were playing cards. Some were even asleep.
Dana noticed that Amaya was there, playing with some of the children.
A woman got up from her cot and approached Dana and Pariah "Pariah, I'm glad that you're here" said the woman "We running low on supplies down here and more are arriving from the tunnels"
"How many?" asked Pariah
"Another twenty just showed up last night" answered the woman "With another ten are on the way".
The woman had short dark hair and pale features. She wore a black suit that looked wrinkled and worn.
Pariah sighed, "Ok, I'll see what I can do. Tell Lindsay and Elwood to report to me when they are free"
the woman nodded "Ok" she glanced to Dana saying "Whose she?"
"This is Dana" said Pariah, patting Dana on her shoulder "I'm just showing her around the place"
the woman nodded then extended a hand "Karen Archer"
"Hi" said Dana, shaking Karen's hand.
Dana glanced around the room "How many people are here?"
"In this room alone, about two hundred and three" said Pariah "In the whole building, close to five hundred twelve"
Dana eyes widened in awe "That's a lot of mouths to feed" "You have no idea" said Karen.
Dana frowned "How do they get here without encountering the infected?" "Tunnels" answered Karen.
Karen crossed her arms "There are tunnels that connect this building to subway and sewer lines. My guess is that Gentek used them as escape routes" Dana's eyes narrowed a little in suspicion.
Pariah frowned "Still don't trust us? Ask anybody here, they are free to come and go as they please. They are not our prisoners"
Dana nodded "Ok I will" she walked past Karen and went to a small group of people in one corner of the room. She sat down with them and they began to talk.
Once she was out of earshot, Karen turned to Pariah "So how goes tour?"
"Pretty well" said Pariah "I sense that she has doubts but they are slowly going away"
Karen nodded then asked, "Is there anything I can do?"
Pariah shook his head "No, we just need some more time" he looked over Karen's shoulder at Dana. She and some of the people she met were laughing about something.
Pariah smiled "When the time comes, she will be ready to trust us. When she finally does, she will finally take her place to play the role she was meant to"
Karen's eyes widened "You think so?"
Pariah nodded "Oh yes" Karen frowned and scratched the back of her neck "I don't know. I mean, are you sure its her?"
Pariah nodded "Yes I am quite sure. She is perfect for the part" Karen turned and the two watched Dana as she talked with a woman and her children.
The corners of Karen's mouth spread a little "I'll be damned, your right. She's perfect" Karen glanced at Pariah "Good call"
"Thank you" said Pariah, modestly.
A man appeared beside Pariah "Hey guys, what's going on?"
"Oh, nothing" said Karen "Just looking at Pariah's new pal. He says she's the one we've been looking for"
"Is she?" asked the man.
Pariah nodded in Dana's direction "See for yourself Roland"
the man followed Pariah's gaze and he spotted Dana. He muttered something then nodded "Yeah, I think so. She could be it".
Pariah glanced to Roland then said in surprise "Roland? What are you doing here?"
"Uh" said Roland. He thought for a moment then said "Oh right, Sabrina's back and she made contact with Heller"
"And?" asked Pariah.
Roland smiled "Went off without a hitch" Pariah smiled.
Everything was falling into place.
The sun had arisen over the Yellow Zone. The smoke and smog gave the sky a greenish, orange color.
Heller was perched on the edge of the highest building he could find, gazing out over the cordoned off section of the city.
It had been hours since he encountered that woman. He spent most of that time avoiding BlackWatch patrols in the Yellow Zone and trying to find breakfast.
So far he managed to stay below radar but he couldn't keep it up for much longer.
BlackWatch was everywhere. They constantly patrolled the streets; they did random searches and harshly punished anyone who they thought was an offender.
The worst part of the Yellow Zone was the living conditions.
Heller heard that the Yellow Zone was supposed to be some sort of quarantine zone where those who have the virus could be treated.
But what he saw seemed like the opposite. The streets were filthy. People lived in shanties in alley's, parks and in the streets. High walls with guard towers surrounded the entire Yellow Zone, making it impossible for anyone to snoop around inside the walls.
Heller sighed. This wasn't going to be easy.
He glanced at his hands and thought about his newly acquired powers. Heller clenched his fists. He can use his powers to do good. He can help bring down BlackWatch and save Maya and Dana.
Heller noticed something. He blinked a few times then muttered, "Wait a minute. I know this neighborhood".
His eyes were fixed on a small street that looked familiar. It looked like a regular neighborhood but the street was now covered with shanties and makeshift huts.
He noticed a large church a short distance away from the neighborhood "That's my church" muttered Heller.
It was his old neighborhood, where he and Maya lived before the first outbreak.
Heller got up from his perch "Wonder if Father Guerra's in" mused Heller "Could use some spiritual advice right now".
Heller took a few steeps back and he took a running start off the roof. Heller focused on his powers and he felt himself glide across a fair distance and he landed on the roof an apartment building, a few hundred yards away.
Heller glanced around and noticed that no one in the street seemed to panic. They might not have seen him or cared.
Heller sighed in relief and he glided again till he reached an alley across the street from the church.
Heller crossed the street and approached the church.
As Heller approached the large, gothic building, he noticed a man spray painting a wooden board that covered one of the windows.
The man turned and he spotted Heller. The man dropped to his knees and crossed himself, muttering a prayer.
Heller recognized the man and he knelt down "Father, I'm not going to hurt you"
Father Guerra looked up and he breathed "James".
Heller helped the priest to his feet "What are you doing here?" asked Father Guerra
"I've come to talk" said Heller.
Father Guerra glanced around and he muttered, "We must get inside, quickly" he and Heller entered the abandoned church.
Heller noticed that how much had changed since he last visited.
The windows were boarded up, letting in only little slivers of light. The church used to be light and tranquil but now it all seemed dark and grim to Heller.
Father Guerra motioned Heller to sit and the two sat down in one of the pews "Now tell me, what is it you want to talk about?" said the priest.
Heller took a deep breath and he told him everything that has happened so far.
In the middle of his story the doors opened, letting in the cold morning air and the two saw standing there was Miss Martian, Beast Boy and Blue Beetle.
Heller said loudly "about time you show up"
"James!" exclaimed Miss Martian. She ran over and gave him a hug.
Heller frowned in confusion "Ok, what's with the hug?"
"We thought you were dead" said Blue Beetle.
Heller's brows furrowed "Why?"
"Colonel Rooks told us that your transport was attacked and the infected took you" said Beast Boy "He said they tore you to shreds".
Heller nodded "Well that's only part of the truth"
"Part of the truth?" said Miss Martian.
Heller ignored the question and asked "How did you find me?"
"It was an accident really" said Blue Beetle "Rooks wouldn't let us in to see the Yellow Zone, so we decided to have a little field trip in"
"Once we were past the guards, I picked up some of your thoughts" added Miss Martian "So we followed your thoughts here".
Beast boy glanced around the gloomy church "What are you doing here anyway?"
"I used to come to this church before I was shipped off" said Heller "Thought i could find an old friend here".
"Did you?" asked Miss Martian.
Heller nodded and gestured to Father Guerra "This is him, Father Guerra. I was just explaining to him what happened to me"
"Yes and it was getting good too" said Father Guerra.
The priest got up and shook the hands of the three heroes "I heard so much about you three" said the man. He smiled "I'm glad to see you here".
Heller motioned to a pew "Pull up a seat, I was just getting to the good part".
Miss Martian, Blue Beetle and Beast Boy sat down. Heller retold them the beginning and he told them about what happened with Rooks and Riley. He told them about his new powers and he shifted his arm into a blade. Everyone looked at Heller in shock and before anyone could interrupt him with questions, he told them of his encounter with the woman and what she told him.
Once he finished he took a deep breath "and that's how I got here".
Everyone sat in silence, absorbing what Heller had told them. Father Guerra was the first to speak "That is quite a story James but I don't understand why you've come to me?"
"I've come to you because you know things father" said Heller "You hear things. I came because I need your help".
Father Guerra nodded "Yeah, I heard a lot of things. Most of its bad"
Miss Martian asked, "What happened?"
Father Guerra said grimly "The infection…it just swept everyone away. I tried to help…I did everything…then there was BlackWatch…"
Father Guerra shook his head and his body began to tremble.
Heller placed a hand on the man's shoulder "It's ok father".
Beast boy spoke up "What about BlackWatch?"
"What did they do?" asked Heller.
The priest looked up, his eyes were full of fear and sorrow "They rounded up the healthy. Put 'em in camps. Gave them the disease" his voice faltered a little but he continued "Put them in cages with the monsters…some old friends and I, we…tried to get them out but they caught us and…"
Father Guerra grabbed his crucifix and mumbled something. He looked up at the ceiling then to Heller "You don't screw with BlackWatch".
Heller shook his head "Damn"
"T-that doesn't make sense" said Blue Beetle "They work for the government, they're supposed to help people" "They're supposed to cure people" added Beast Boy.
Heller glanced to the two young Meta humans "You weren't there, the first time. You don't know what BlackWatch is capable of…the last time BlackWatch was brought in to help…they nearly wiped Manhattan off the map"
"The nuke" said Miss Martian "The nuke that destroyed the Reagan, it was meant for New York, not for Alex".
"What?" exclaimed the two in shock.
In the days following the first outbreak, BlackWatch told the media that Alex was too powerful for any weapon they had, so they claimed to have lured Alex to the Reagan and used the nuke to kill would explain the use of a nuclear weapon on a united states warship.
Blue Beetle shook his head "This doesn't make sense, why would they do this"
"I don't know" said Heller "But all I know is that BlackWatch is up to something and it ain't good".
Miss Martian glanced at Heller "The woman. Do you think she's telling the truth?"
Heller nodded a little "Right now, what she's saying is starting to make sense, we're going to need to look a little deeper into Gentek and BlackWatch".
Father Guerra spoke up "If you're going to bring them down, you can count on me".
Heller smiled "Thanks father" he scratched his chin and thought for a moment.
Heller turned to the priest "Do you know who's in charge of the Yellow Zone"
Father Guerra shook his head "I don't know any names but I know that there are two commanders at the hospital, they turned it into a command post".
He gave Heller a worried look "James, if you are going to look into this, please try not to cause too much trouble"
"Father, if what that woman said was true, than BlackWatch is responsible for the outbreak" said Heller "They're responsible for the deaths of many civilians and soldiers. What would you do?"
Father Guerra sighed, "Just be careful, Ok?"
Heller got up and headed for the exit, Miss Martian, Beast boy and Blue Beetle followed after him.
Father Guerra looked up at the sky through a small hole in the ceiling. He crossed himself and prayed for luck for Heller.
Heaven knows he's going to need it to bring down BlackWatch, thought the priest.
Several miles off the coast of Manhattan, a small, black submarine surfaced.
Inside, two Atlantian technicians reported, "Sir, we have reached Manhattan, we're out of their radar range as requested"
Kaldur rose from his seat "When shall we arrive?"
"By nightfall" answered one of the technicians.
Kaldur nodded "Good. Assemble the strike force, we shall go ashore and find the cause of this disease"
"Yes sir" said the technicians.
The technician's ran off to work, leaving Kaldur alone with his thoughts.
He managed to slay the Hunter but it had badly damaged most of the ship and wounded more of the crew before it was stopped.
Kaldur recognized the Black Light virus's handy work but he could've sworn that it was finally eradicated in the last outbreak.
Something didn't sit right with Kaldur. Something about this virus was different. He was not sure what it was, but he will find out.
End of Chapter.
(a/n: well here you go. i hoped you enjoyed that. Have a happy Thanksgiving! Please review!)