Reach Work Facility Number 43
December 27 5:00 MST
"Wake up slaves!" The voice drones over an intercom. It's The Reach's version of an alarm clock, except there's no snooze button.
Billy groans, it is way too early for him to be up.
"Get used to it kid." Says the man that shares the bunk bed with him, Patrick he thought his name was, "This is gonna be the time you wake up every day for the rest of your life."
He tries not to show amusement by this, he's only gonna have to do this for a few days, not the rest of his life, assuming everything works out.
What was he thinking? Of course this will work.
He's told the only time he'll be able to see Milagro (aka Ana Maria) will be during meals. They won't be doing the same work, which makes sense since he's a grown man and she's a teenage girl, but he's still not keen on the idea of them being separated. He sure she feels the same way.
"Ready for a grueling day of work?" Milagro asks with an obviously fake sugary tone as she sits on the bench across from him.
"Uggh… don't remind me. I just want to crawl back into bed and sleep until noon."
She laughs, "I'm right there with you."
Billy coughs as he tries to stomach the oatmeal they're being served, "This stuff tastes disgusting."
A Reach worker smacks the back of his head, hard, "The taste doesn't matter. This oatmeal is enriched with the vitamins and minerals the human body needs to perform the necessary tasks."
"So there's Reach poison in this oatmeal?" Milagro questions.
"It's not poison girl. Simply additives, so you can perform at your best."
She crosses her arms, unamused, "Same thing."
"We're not eating this stuff." Billy says, pushing his bowl away.
The worker shrugs, "Fine then starve, there's more than enough meat around to take your place."
"They'll eat the gruel." Wally says, as he makes his way towards their table. Apparently their argument had garnered some attention, as all the eyes in the room seemed to be fixed on them.
"What business do you have with these slaves?"
"It's my business if my workers aren't eating."
"They're not your workers West. They're slaves, and property of the Reach." He shouts at Wally. Billy and Milagro get the impression that his involvement isn't appreciated by the workers.
"We're not anyone's property." Billy says defiantly. "And we're not eating anything with Reach additives."
Wally narrows his eyes and grits his teeth, "Eat you're gruel and stop drawing attention to yourselves." It sounds harmless enough, but they get the message. If they continue to act out, their covers might be compromised. Scowling, they pick up their spoons and eat.
-o-
Carson City, Nevada
January 5 20:52 MST
One year previous
Billy stares out the peephole, not sure how to process the face he sees staring back at him. How did he even find them anyway? They'd moved and made sure not to tell him their new location.
"I know you're there open up!" Wally shouts, banging loudly on the door.
"What the hell do you want?" He shouts, keeping the door shut and tightly locked. Nobody's getting in, and especially not a traitor like Wally West. Two days ago, he told the Reach their exact location, among other important things, resulting in the murders of both Conner and Zatara.
"I was hoping I could talk to Artemis."
"She doesn't want to talk to you."
"I don't think that's up to you to decide."
"I didn't decide she doesn't want to talk to you, I know she doesn't. She's furious at you. We're all furious at you. You're lucky I'm the one who answered the door, anyone else on the Team would've beaten your sorry ass just for showing up here."
"And here I am at your door, completely vulnerable. Go on, hit me with all the strength of Hercules or whatever. I deserve it."
"I don't want to hit you Wally. I just want to understand. Why'd you do it?"
"You think I wanted to betray you guys? I didn't have a choice Billy."
"Well then, explain how they found our location, or that Milagro was the new Green Lantern, or that J'onn was still alive, or all of our identities, secrets, and plans? Did you tell them our birthdays, favorite colors, and most embarrassing moments too? Years of work down the drain, because you don't seem to know the definition of 'secret'!"
"No, I literally didn't have a choice. They invaded my brain probes and machines and forced the information from me. I would never willingly sell you out! You should know that!" He shouts.
"I'm sorry, I shouldn't have snapped at you. I want to believe you wouldn't willingly cave, but they came, and they killed Conner and Zatara, and would've killed all of us if they didn't sacrifice their lives."
"I know and I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry about everything. I got cocky, and didn't cover my tracks, it's all my fault I got caught. You guys didn't deserve any of this. I wish they had just punished me. Instead they sucked me dry for information, and left me empty and alive because 'he might still be useful'. I wish they would've just finished me, so I didn't have to live with this guilt." He sounds pitiful. Billy can tell he's being sincere, but he's just not ready to hear it.
"Look, Wally, I believe you, but I think we all need time to cool our heads, and recover from our losses. We don't want your apologizes, at least not yet."
"When should I come back?"
"I dunno. A few weeks, maybe months, hell maybe years. Do you want an exact date or something?"
"No, I just really want to make things right."
"Wally, unless you know a way to bring people back from the dead, I don't think you can do that."