Chapter Three:
Final Act of the Atom
Grandmaster Tolliver resumes his spectacle toward the crowd, "This man is a known part of the Human Liberation Movement. He is Bridget Luthor's golden boy and NOW...he is here in front of you to receive justice!"
The crowd once more remains silent. The Jewish refugees know what they are in for. This isn't entertainment to them...this was murder.
Rictus stood up as Tolliver acquiesced to him and began to speak, "As you...Heebs know...I have been alive for many hundreds of years. I am and always have been fascinated with instruments of torture and of death itself...as so many of you have found out over the years."
The people finally began to yell and scream in protest. The guards that were standing by turned their guns away from Adam and pointed them into the crowd. The crowd started to calm down, though in their hearts screamed a rage unfulfilled.
Noticeably annoyed by the commotion, Rictus elevated his voice, "AS I WAS SAYING...I have always been fascinated with certain avenues of death and I felt that today especially our traitor was going to be in for a special treat. Back in the ancient times of this world's history, there were a group of people called the Vikings. And these Vikings had a method of death for their most heinous of criminals called the Blood Eagle. Today...for the first time in an era...this fiend of the Brainchild and of our beloved Impergium will experience this!" Rictus blurted forth as he hardly could contain his apparent bloodlust and glee.
Adam never heard of what a Blood Eagle was, but knew that this didn't look good for him as Victor Creel began to cut away the shirt he was wearing to show his bare back. The scars from his previous encounters as well as his travels with the Blackbirds were a sight to behold as Tolliver began to speak once more.
"Very well, Magistrate Rictus. The Blood Eagle it shall be…" Tolliver then proceeded to pull a blade from one of the guards nearby. He then walked toward Adam and paused. With a smile on his deviant face he whispered to him, "try to die well...give your people a good show."
Adam turned his head toward Tolliver, "Fuck you."
Tolliver chuckled as he slowly injected the blade into Adam's back. He winced in pain as he felt the blade go deep but not too deep to puncture any vital organs. Adam was cut down his spinal area straight to his buttocks as the blood started as a trickle then became a torrent as Tolliver further cut downward into him.
Tolliver then began to speak once more in a whisper in Adam's ear, "Magistrate Rictus told me everything of how this works. You see, Atom, the Blood Eagle starts by cutting the skin and sinew and stuff away from the back to where I have access to your rib cage…"
The crowd gasped and wailed as Tolliver used the blade to pull the flesh and muscle away from the spine and rib cage as Adam Gibson screamed in agonizing pain and horror…
Tolliver then handed the guard back his blade as he nonchalantly wiped the blood from the blade on the arena floor, which was already starting to pool around the platform where the cross was.
Tolliver walks back toward Adam as he sees his head fall forward onto the cross, "This is excruciating enough, but there is more…" Tolliver then grabs a device from his belt. It looks like a portable surgeon's power saw; he turns it on and holds it up to the ear of the Atom. "This comes next…"
Tolliver starts to saw through the bones of his ribs and spine, smelling the cutting bone as he goes through rib after rib. With the sound of the crowd in its horror, Tolliver couldn't hear the wailing of the Atom which he was sure was going on.
He finally finished cutting through the last of his ribs as he looked up into the box where the Magistrate was and shouted up to him, "Magistrate Rictus...would you like to do the honors and finish off our Blood Eagle?"
Rictus looked with anticipation as he stood up in his box and closed his eyes. Telekinetically, his focus went to the severed ribs of Adam Gibson, as he used his power to grip his bones and pull them away from where they were meant to be; splaying them outward as if a clamshell opening up for the first time.
The hero formerly known as the Atom was silent as the monstrous Rictus then telekinetically lifted Adam Gibson's lungs from inside the ribcage and pulled them forward placing them on top of the shoulders of the beleaguered hero. Blood stained the shoulders and dripped down on the front of him.
The people went back to a hush of silence as it looked as though the Atom had perished before suffering the brunt of what just occurred.
Rictus raised his hands in victory, "And THAT, is how we do things in beautiful Eve's Twat!"
As if by taunt, Adam Gibson's body began to shake suddenly. Victor Creel and Grandmaster Tolliver took this as the notion that Adam's nervous system was in the throes of shutting down, but it starting getting violently worse. Victor Creel started to go for the chains of the dead man but a mysterious force threw him back down to the arena floor as the dead man before him began to shake uncontrollably.
The very air in the room seemed to vibrate and pulse with powerful energy as Adam began to levitate from the crossbars and break the chains holding him there as he levitated further up until he stopped dead center in the middle of the arena. A white light started to wash over him as the crowd gasped in curiosity and horror.
BCCNN was picking up all of this on their cameras and feeds, amidst the screams from their producers and directors to cease the feed. The engineers tried to do so, but an unknown force was keeping it on. Even after they cut the power...
From the skybox, Shithead watched in horror as the Impergium raiders came from out of the main doors and surrounded him and Rictus. Some started blocking his vision as Rictus smacked one of them in frustration, "Let me see this, you fools!"
Shithead looked upon his master, "Boss...what in bloody hell is going on?"
As if prompted by Shithead's words, Adam Gibson's mouth began to move, but it wasn't his voice coming out of it.
"This man, whom you have slain, has not felt your devious machinations and was spared. You and your master will not be so lucky. Low and behold I say unto you that a dark vengeance will come to right the wrong upon the Earth! Demons of the realm quiver, as a blade of purity and truth will strike down you and your Masters. Lightning will cover the blackened sky like in a raging tempest. And you will know the time is near by the peals of thunder in the distance."
Then Adam Gibson's corpse returned to normal as it began to fall down and smashed to the ground with a wet splat as Tolliver looked toward Creel and to the guards nearby. "Son of a bitch, check and see if he's alive. Do a thorough search of the premises, whoever did this will pay in blood!" The raider to his left walks to the body of Adam Gibson and feels for any sign of life amidst his bloody carcass. Much like the unknown force spoke of; The Atom's spirit left the torment of what was going to happen. He was as cold as ice.
Rictus slammed his fists onto the armrests of his chair. "Damn it! Find out who is responsible for this at once!"
"Oh shit…The Brainchild isn't gonna like this. Did any of this incident go out on the BCCNN feed?" Shithead said with nervousness.
A production manager who was nearby Rictus' position chimed in, "Affirmative sir...even after our attempts to cut the feed. Whatever force did this…it made it known throughout the world its intention."
The squadron commander of the Impergium raiders that came to the aid of Rictus paused to receive information on his headset. He then motioned toward Rictus, "Magistrate Rictus... His Eminence the Brainchild is not pleased."
Rictus looked at the commander, "No shit! I am not pleased either! What does 'His Eminence' suggest I do next?"
The commander pauses another moment and then responds, "Do what you will...parade him around as if nothing happened. Continue with your original battle plan."
Las Vegas in New Argo, formerly North America
The Brainchild's throne was a pulp of marble dust as Apocalypse walked into the large room.
"Master? What ails you?" asked the large mutant eternal. He dressed himself in pharaoh's robes fit for the position he held as the Magistrate of the continent of Africa.
Brainchild then picks up the remains and screams as he throws it with such strength clear out of the open windows and down to the courtyard below, crushing two migrant workers who was walking by.
"Master Brainchild, you are normally so calm and calculating. This rage is a change, my lord." Apocalypse said as he walked towards the open window.
"The prophecy…I heard it again, Apocalypse!" Brainchild fumed with ferocity.
"You mean the Prophecy of Retribution? From where this time?" Apocalypse asked puzzled.
The Brainchild walked to the window as well and looked downward to see the rush of people who were just crushed by the weight of his throne and then looked toward Apocalypse, "The dead body of Adam Gibson."
"Who?"
"Did you not watch the feed on BCCNN? He was a man the Human Liberation Movement had in their ranks that had the ability to shrink to miniscule sizes out in that continental sewer. He's much like the hero of the twentieth century calling himself the Atom." Brainchild said as he walked toward Apocalypse.
Apocalypse sensed the frustration and anger coming from this normally cold individual and responded cautiously, "Your Eminence I was unable to watch the proceedings seeing as I was regrouping with your Four Horsemen on their previous missions to Europe and their success in destroying an uprising that occurred in Zimbabwe, Africa. As for the reason for the Prophecy...was this his famous last words, or something more?"
Brainchild looked toward his balcony and started walking toward it, "More...that same unknown force that mimics itself as a god… Magistrate Rictus is starting to really annoy me with his methods and eccentricities. This situation could have been avoided if he just would have brought him back here to stand trial instead of making a spectacle for the Jews in his continent."
"I totally agree my Lord; I don't see how we can continue to sponsor him if this keeps up." Apocalypse replied almost in a condescending fashion.
Brainchild walked out onto his balcony, "I needed better eyes and ears in his…his…Eve's Twat…so I sent two thousand Impergium raiders to his lands whether he liked it or not. Apparently from my informants inside his inner sanctum he has several lusts that he indulges in daily and his bisexual tendencies and brutality are becoming a hindrance on keeping the Jews in line. It may have worked in the past, but now it's creating a melting situation where there need not be one."
"I see…that's why the Human Liberation Movement is getting a huge boost in that region and its becoming a powder keg of activity. As for this prophecy of thunder and lightning…there is no god on this planet other than YOU. You are the ruler of this planet and have been for four hundred years. Again I say this is unlike you, sire. Normally you are so analytical and calculating. Rage is a trait I am normally unfamiliar with in you. You crush your opposition and have the ultimate power of the Cosmic Cube in your grasp. You are unstoppable." Apocalypse said as he tried to make his master see reason.
"No hero left has the power to defeat me. Anyone with that power level has been destroyed at birth or is one of us. But still the Human Liberation Movement is growing ever so boldly with their attacks and sabotage. Assemble your Horsemen and rally our Impergium to these new events. I want us to remain strong amidst this...tribulation." Brainchild orders Apocalypse as he walks away from the balcony.
Apocalypse grins, "So it shall be done, my Eminence."
Elsewhere…an hour later...
"I don't give a rat's ass if she is busy! I need to speak to that red haired cunt right now!" A large, brawny, and filthy man, dressed in all black and wearing an overcoat barges past three guards as he walks through the checkpoints of the gates to the base of operations for the Human Liberation Movement. Bridget Luthor looks upward toward Carlos Ramirez as she draws a breath in sharply hearing the sounds of the intruder alarm as well as the loud voices from outside.
"I knew this was going to happen. Daytona and Gibson were tight and now he is seething." Bridget says as she stands up in resignation.
Daytona was a good ol' boy from old Baltimore with long red hair and a red Fu Manchu mustache. His face was covered with several scars and he walked with a slight limp. He was a savage warrior and led a band of militiamen also from old Baltimore calling themselves the Blackbirds.
"You know Daytona's always had a short fuse, Chiquita. Even after he started getting on the juice to beef his boys up against the Impergium raiders he takes on. I have my tranquilizer darts strapped to my leg if the hombre gets out of control." Carlos replied as he patted the packs on his thigh.
"Carlos…I do appreciate your caution for my safety and concern for our cause, but I don't think this will be necessary. Daytona is a professional soldier of significant rank, not a militiaman like most of his troops. He understands chain of command in the Army, and that he takes direct orders from us. I'll be fine…"
Both jump suddenly as the metallic doors are busted wide open as Carlos Ramirez pulls his switchblades from his holsters. Bridget Luthor gazed upon the man as he entered the war room.
"General Luthor, we tried to stop him at the checkpoint but he got past the defenses…" A guard responds from behind the burly man as a growl snarls from his lips sending the poor guard cowering backward into the wall.
"General…Ramirez…good afternoon…" Daytona said heavy-laden with contempt and sarcasm.
"Look Daytona, I know why you're here. Sgt. Gibson's mission wasn't an easy thing to take but…"
"WASN'T AN EASY THING TO TAKE? Luthor, you took my best friend in this entire fucking world as well as the Blackbirds' finest operative and sent him to spy on that faggot Rictus without my knowledge, after you sent us along on our merry way. Then on top of that you knew it was going to basically be a suicide mission and he wasn't going to come back. And to top it all off I had to sit and watch what happened to him on fucking BCCNN! You sent him to his fucking grave…"
"We had no knowledge that…" Bridget tried to explain.
"YOU SENT HIM TO HIS FUCKING GRAVE FOR WHAT? INTELLIGENCE OR THE LACK THEREOF?"
"Brave men and women die for our cause every damn day! He volunteered for this mission. He knew the importance as well as the risks. We only had a small window of time to sneak him on that Impergium vessel, and adding you or the rest of your militiamen to the mix would have compromised our shot. You wouldn't have let him go without you. That's why we went over your head." Bridget spewed as Carlos Ramirez looked on.
"You're absolutely right, Ma'am. I wouldn't have let him go. In fact after I was told of what he was doing after your orders I begged him not to. It was a SUICIDE mission. Even a person of his talent was still no match for Rictus and Shithead over there. He wasn't one of those classic heroes of yore for Christ's sake! Hell they don't even care about what happened with his body, they are still parading his dead fucking carcass as we fucking speak all over BCCNN right now. Turn on the television if you don't believe me…I have been watching since that shit started!" Daytona said as he pointed over to the large screen.
Bridget continued to talk as she walked over to the screen, "we still found out some vital information from the audio journal that Sgt. Gibson sent over. Even looking at the footage of how Adam's demise was screwed up by an unknown force spewing forth the Prophecy of Retribution. Looks the Brainchild is getting spooked over this thing..." Bridget paused as she finally turned on the large screen television. It was a sight to behold and dread.
The screen showed Impergium raiders marched through the Sydney ghetto liked an occupying army as poor Jews and other undesirables looked on. Rictus smiled with glee as the 'parade' went through. Shithead wasn't present to the naked eye, but there was no doubt that he was around somewhere. But that wasn't the worst of insults. On pikes and upside down crosses were either the heads of fallen HLM members or dissidents that defied Rictus. Adam Gibson's blood eagle carcass was strapped to large wooden plank in full gore and death for all eyes to see.
A voice pierced the din of horror, "Yeah…that's what they doing to him. Paraded around like a fucking piñata. And you let it happen. How could you be so fucking cold?" Daytona replied as he leaned against the wall of the war room crossing his arms across his chest.
"Cold? Watch it, bendehol…don't forget who you're fucking speaking to." Carlos finally mustered up, as he couldn't take Daytona's berating of Bridget anymore.
"You shut your goddamn mouth bitch boy! I wasn't even speaking to your beaner ass!" Daytona screamed toward Carlos as he put left hand toward the machete that was strapped to his belt.
"What the fuck you call me, you damn redneck? I'll have you know, you piece of shit that Bridget spent all damn night last night crying over Adam. If that doesn't tell you she has a fucking heart than I guess nothing will." Carlos said on the defense as he pulled his switchblades.
"AT EASE!" Bridget Luthor finally screamed as both men looked at her. She stopped as she looked at both of them with tears in her eyes. "I have seen enough death to last three lifetimes…and it doesn't ever get any easier. Don't you think I know that the Sins of the Father are made manifest through their children? I hate the fact that Lex Luthor, my ancestor is partially to blame for our plight. Don't you think Superman or anyone could help our cause in this situation before it came to this? Now I am just trying to make this right for EVERYONE…not just me or my family!"
Both men sighed and put away their weapons and waited for her to continue as she composed herself, wiping her tears away. Even with all her emotion, there was strength to her that none so far seemed to match in the ranks of the HLM, unless you counted her mentor in that process.
"In the midst of all this shit a miracle that I can't explain occurs. You saw what happened to his body, Daytona and now because of Adam's sacrifice the hopeful are now feeling some vindication to our cause. If retribution is coming…it's coming soon. Now…The Brainchild's game plan could be anything at this point so we need to keep our eyes and ears on the prize. We will have a gathering. We will meet in here in our territory. But in the meantime, I need Daytona's Blackbirds for some crucial recon work."
Daytona might not have liked it, but she did make a point. He sighed in resignation and responded, "What do you want me and the boys to do?"
"We need to know what type and what quality of numbers we are working with here and where due to this situation that just presented itself. Most importantly we need to find out what the Brainchild's next plan is. All the details we can get that will give us an edge later on. I mean Sgt. Gibson's audio journal gave us a lot of information but I'm afraid I still don't know what we are up against."
"And what of Rictus?" Asked Daytona.
"I promise you, Daytona. You'll get your chance to deal with Rictus and Shithead, but not just yet. Do you remember the shadow suits that R&D came up with?"
Carlos chimed in, "The ones that exhibit individual cloaking devices? I thought that those suits were still on the books?"
"We're going to issue you and the Blackbirds those suits to help you gain the info we need. Beware of heat sensors, though. You can still show up on them, even though all lights will show that you aren't even in the room."
"If I see that damn bastard Rictus I am gonna take his ass out." Daytona said as he smacked his fists together.
Bridget walks toward Daytona, "I had a feeling you would say and do something like this so you and the Blackbirds aren't going in alone. Carlos is going to take point in this mission…"
Daytona cocked an eyebrow in disbelief, "Like hell he is. You know that my militia and I work alone."
"Not this time. You know that Colonel Ramirez is more than qualified to be in the field with your team. I need him with you. We can't risk a battle that could destroy whatever leverage we have against those bastards. Retaliate against Impergium raiders only if fired upon and if necessary but don't try to attack any bigwigs from the Impergium if you see them either. It is not chicken shit to want to live at this point. Is my orders clear?" Bridget ordered as she sat back into her chair.
Both men remained silent, save for the nods of affirmation.
"Alright gentlemen, Carlos will fill you and the Blackbirds in of the details of the mission, otherwise you both are dismissed…and one more thing, Lieutenant Colonel Daytona, call me a cunt again and I will have your ass LIVING in the brig, you got that soldier?"
Daytona and Carlos Ramirez both walk out of the war room and look back toward the door as they close it. Then they stare uncomfortably at one another.
"You have something you wanna say, man? Say it." Carlos said in a confrontational tone.
"Let's just make two things perfectly clear, jack…one, the Blackbirds my boys. Most are militia and can come and go as they fucking choose. Don't think they won't hesitate to walk out on your sorry ass if you try to upstart us. Two, don't go out there and be a douche bag shouting out orders either. They won't listen to you anyway. If you want something done, go through me."
"Look Daytona, I'm not out to step on your toes or cut off your balls with your boys. I know how tight you are with them and I would do anything to jeopardize that unless you force me to. We have to work as a team for this…We clear on that?"
"Like fucking crystal…sir." Daytona said with a half-hearted salute.
"Alright, let's go and retrieve the Blackbirds and then we can talk over this stuff at chow. We knocked off one of the Brainchild's food trucks last night and a new shipment of grub just came in." Ramirez said as he and Daytona began to walk toward the militia tents that were constructed a little ways from the actual camp.
"Let me ask you something completely off the record man, which means don't mention this to General Luthor but do you think we actually have a chance of finally winning this fucking war?" Daytona asked Carlos in the strictest of confidence.
"If it can be won…it would take a miracle."
The Fortress Europe, the Highlands of Scotland…one day later...
Brenda MacLeod sits up in her bed wincing in pain. This occurrence is not unusual as this once was since she had turned 58, but she was definitely feeling that something was wrong. She tried to stand up to remove her nightshirt, but ended up flopping down to the floor.
She crawled towards her toilet as she heard a sound behind her door. "Bren? Lass, you ok?"
She cried out in anger as well as pain as she tried to pull herself up to the toilet to vomit. The voice was that of a man who had entered the room as she vomited into the toilet. It was a mix of blood and bile as the man began to hold her up.
"I will get the medics, my lady."
An hour later…
A doctor looked over Brenda with a battery of tests to try and find out what was going on. He reads over the readouts being displayed on his electronic tablet. Brenda lay in bed sitting up while the doctor read.
"You know me better than most people. I don't want you to sugar coat this, Malcolm. What's wrong with me?" Brenda MacLeod asked with a worried tone.
The doctor shook his head, "You going to tell your protégé Bridget Luthor or should I?"
Brenda folds her arms, "Tell her what?"
"You aren't going to make it to her gathering next week. You are way too ill for the trek."
"What gathering?"
"From new Intel that has come in while you were...incapacitated...she had the Blackbirds gain some rather disturbing information from the aftermath of the Atom's demise. She has found out the Brainchild is having a Grand Summit…and she is going to send the Blackbirds in to try and get surveillance, and she wants all the leaders of the HLM present with her in New Argo."
Brenda rolled her eyes, "Yeah…if I was going to be flying or sailing on a blasted ship, maybe I should stay home, but…I am using a tesseract portal to fucking transport. I should be fine."
Malcolm tries to reiterate the situation, "Brenda...You have cancerous tumors on your stomach as well as your upper and lower intestines. I can give you some treatments to help dull the pain and slow the effects…"
"But you can't cure me…"
"That's all I can do, Brenda…and you need to talk to your lieutenants to find out a contingency plan." Malcolm sighs and stands up as he places his tablet in a large case.
"I will go to the gathering…And I will tell Bridget personally of my situation. I don't know what the soldiers will think about me getting sick."
Malcolm turns around looking at Brenda, "These are a hearty bunch, you helped train them…tell them the truth. They will understand."
Malcolm left the room as Brenda sat in bed. She was angry, because she knew that she had done this to herself. If she hadn't tried to hunt down the Horseman of Pestilence when he was in European territory, she might not be in this mess. But in her mind, it was better that it happened to her than someone else. She struggled to get out of bed once more, as the man that came in before during her episode comes back into the room.
The man sighs as if he is talking to a toddler who doesn't know better, "Brenda. If you need to get out of bed at least call me to help ya."
Brenda sensed his concern if not apprehension, "I just need you to grab the hover chair, Neal. Then I want you to call a meeting of the troops at the base and recorded for posterity for the other bases in Europe. Anyone who is not in an important assignment, I want here. Understood?"
Neal with a dejected look on his face agreed as he grabbed the hover chair for her and got it close to her bed so she was able to slide onto it. She grabbed her tartan blanket and placed it around her legs to keep warm. Neal looked at her as if in his own world.
"Well…go get the troops together…I will be fine." Brenda said with a feisty fire that her silver hair that was betraying her original auburn shade.
Neal left the room as she hovered over to her nightstand to grab a brush and try and make herself more presentable.
Meanwhile in Rome…The Palisade…the seat of Impergium power in Europe.
Ra's Al Ghul awoke in his bed after a long night of debauchery. Next to him were several women of which he had been sexual with all night long as Impergium raiders entered into the room.
"Magistrate Al Ghul…you have a message from his Eminence, the Brainchild."
Ra's Al Ghul shielded his eyes from the light as he waved his hand out for the message. The raider gave him a tablet to look at as the women next to him were startled out of their sleep.
"Has my beloved been notified?"
"Yes, sir. You're daughter suggested that we come in here to give the news to you personally." The raider replied.
Ra's growled under his breath as he exited the bed to cover his naked body with a green silky robe.
The Impergium raiders saluted as they turned and left the chamber.
Ten minutes later, Talia Al Ghul is lounging on a large sofa dressed in Romanesque clothes and drinking a golden and jewel encrusted goblet of wine. Ra's exits out of the room screaming her name, "Talia! Where are you?"
"I'm in the den…Father…" She said giggling.
He walked to the edge of the den and stood over her. The den was filled with pillows and beautiful shag carpeting as the obvious need of this place was to mirror the Ancient Roman notions of opulence.
"You know our arrangement! That was totally uncalled for!" Ra's spewed forth vitriol at his daughter as he stepped into the den.
"Funny…when you and I got married, the arrangement was that you and I could both have other sexual partners, Father…but it seems that I never seem to get the same pleasure you do. You are so jealous of others looking at me, that you have alienated all my potential fuck toys. However, it seems you last night had no problem satiating your lusts." She stood as she pointed her crimson tipped finger into his masculine chest.
Ra's sighed in frustration, "My beloved…I just can't bear seeing other men or women with you."
"And you don't think that hurts me?" Talia screamed back at him.
Ra's was speechless. He walked further into the room and sat down onto the plush chaise lounge. "Looks like we are taking a trip to New Argo; the Brainchild has ordered a summit thanks to what that asshole Rictus has done to his subjects in Eve's Twat."
"Adam Gibson is dead…I saw the footage this morning and I might tell you it is quite fascinating, as well as horrific. But doesn't his death give you a little twinge of comfort, my beloved?" Talia said as she knelt on the floor across from her father.
Ra's closes his eyes, "It does. But the HLM hasn't been too much of a problem for us recently…the damn Highlander has been quiet. Scourge going through Normandy and the south has made it difficult for her to gain supporters."
Talia put her hands on her father's thighs for comfort, "Maybe the Highlander is dead? Maybe Scourge finally succeeded in killing her."
Ra's looked at her and smirked, "That woman is so tenacious that I believe she would kick Death's ass before she would let him take her."
Talia removed her hands from his thighs and started to open Ra's Al Ghul's robe and gazed lovingly upon her father's member. A wanton look of joy comes over Ra's as she placed it into her wanting mouth to give him pleasure.
"I could never stay mad at you…" Ra's replied in earnest.
Scotland…
Brenda MacLeod surveyed her troops as they stared right back at her. This was harder than everything she had dealt with in her life before this moment. How do you rob the people you care about the hope of having their commander around, without robbing them of the hope for the mission totally?
She sighed and just started speaking, "My troops…You all have suffered a lot for the cause of humanity and I thank you all for your service to the HLM and to me. This is going to be hard for me to say…so I am just going to come out and fucking say it. I have an accelerated stage of cancer…and that bastard Scourge…the Horseman of Pestilence has given it to me. I don't have much time to live."
The troops were shocked and speechless. Then one soldier stood up with disbelief in his eyes, "But…the Highlander doesn't die…she is immortal."
Tears form in her eyes as she smiles looking at the soldier, "I wish…I wish…but in my older age I can't do the awesome things I used to for the cause. And now with this illness I might not be able to do much at all. Ra's Al Ghul and his whore of a daughter will not be defeated unless we can push past the pain and sorrow and just fight. I know that what you saw in the death of Adam Gibson had given you hope for something better…I am sorry that this might undercut that hope."
"But you are now saying that we are going to do this without you…many of us have never had any other commanding officer, except General Luthor. How are we going to do this without you?" said the same soldier, who seemed to get the other troops to agree.
"I need you to fight on without me…the cause needs you to fight without me…because I don't want to have died for nothing. Now…I am going to be attending a gathering next week…I am going to talk to General Luthor about the situation and what she plans on doing here. I want to let you know that I will do all I can to make any transition as smooth as possible. You all are dismissed."
The troops slowly dispersed. In a way, Brenda was able to look within all of them and realize that she had broken their hearts…even the ones that haven't heard the news yet and are waiting to hear the feed in person later, and doing so she broke her own. She maneuvered her hover chair back toward her quarters to rest. She was more tired than she was when she went to bed the night before. "God…give me the strength…and give us a miracle…" she muttered out a small prayer out of her mouth as she closed the door to her quarters.