Chapter Ten

JJ walked out of J'onn's office with a grimace on his face. The atmosphere in the DEO was thick with resentment, and his mentor continued to question him about his handling of the cop killer in Freeland. Kara sat outside the door on the floor, and when he walked by her, she hopped up, placed her left hand on his right shoulder, and then asked, "What happened in Freeland? How did twenty something cops die with you in the same damn town? Couldn't you have stopped it with a mere thought?"

He looked at her for a moment with a befuddled look on his face. From the way she placed her hands on her hips, she had an attitude about her that he didn't like. Eventually, he said, "I don't will my powers onto others," he said with a grimace. "Rarely, and let me emphasize that I do not engage in the trivial. I'm more worried about the alien vessel than some cop killer because if the Decayans kill the Dars, then it's going to cause a rift throughout the Dark Corridor. Earth isn't immune."

"Over twenty cops died, JJ,' she snapped, "How did one human teenager kill over twenty cops? What kind of metahuman was this kid that he could run through twenty cops so easily?"

"He's not meta," he said, "He's imbued with an ancient magic passed down from his ancestors."

"You know that, but you didn't stop him," she said matter of factly. "You've obviously been doing a lot of rogue stuff lately, JJ. Don't think I haven't noticed."

"That's bull, Kara," he said, "I know exactly where you're going with this. So, let me make something clear: Lena's Red Raider uniform was designed for one thing and one thing only," he snapped. Kara looked down at the ground for a minute, and then he said, "Look at me." With a frown, she looked up at him for a second, and then he said calmly, "You're my mentor. You're like my big sister. That damn Red Raider uniform was designed to kill you. When I killed her, I did so to protect you. Once I gave her the potion, I quickly brought her back to life, erased her memory, and now she's dating James." He paused for a moment and began walking down the hallway. Without looking at her, he said, "I've always had your back, Kara. Do you have mine?"

Peppermint was on the roof with Orion, Vera, and the car, and when JJ landed on the roof, he said, "Let's go." He walked over to the passenger seat, Vera hopped in the back seat, and the baby was in the car seat next to her. Peppermint was driving, and Orion was mounted on the console. "You're agitated," Orion said.

Peppermint drank a green tea shake, and then set the cup down in the middle console. He picked it up, took a swig, and then said, "J'onn and Kara attacked me over all the deaths in Freeland. They didn't say anything about the cop shooting Thong."

"Well, he is alive," Peppermint said.

"That's not the point," JJ replied, "It's the act of shooting the kid in the back that upsets me."

"I think they're upset with you because you didn't save one cop," Vera said from the backseat. "Oh, and you had those cops racing back and forth across the city all night. When they ran out of gas in their vehicles, they continued running up and down the streets for hours."

"Honest mistake," he said, "I completely forgot I deceived the cops into believing Bay was in the opposite location."

"You put nearly sixty cops in the hospital. I think they all suffered from severe dehydration," Peppermint said, "That's torture."

"Orion, how many cops are still in intensive care?" JJ asked.

"Fifteen," she said, "They're worried two of the cops might lose their legs."

"Okay," JJ said, "I can save those two."

"Officer Davidson is the same cop who shot Thong in the back," Orion said, "He's near death."

"Aaaaarh!" He exclaimed. "Come on, Orion! Why are you making this hard?"

"You need to swallow those feelings," she said, "You're making it personal."

"Peppermint, what should I do?" He asked.

"You did cause this," she said, "You entered into his mind, and made him believe he had to find Bay at all cost. He couldn't stop under his own free will until you stopped him. The news said several cops ran nearly forty miles."

"It's the right thing to do in this case," Orion said, "Fix what you broke."

"What do you think, Vera?" JJ asked.

"I was really trying to stay out of this," she said.

"You just don't like being on the opposite side of JJ," Orion said, "You know he's wrong if he lets that cop lose his legs."

"Okay! Fine. You're wrong, JJ, and you know it," she said.

"That's three to one," Peppermint said, "Burn!"

"I thought Vera would always have my back," he said.

"I do," she said, "That's why you have to do the right thing."

Freeland Regional Medical Center…

JJ walked into the hospital with the black suitcase. The hospital teemed with cops from one end of it to the other, and as soon as he walked over to the elevator, a gaggle of cops blocked him from entering. The largest cop was Officer Ledford, and he had a freshly shaved head. JJ could see the redness from where the razor irritated his kin. When he tried to push the button on the elevator, the large, animal of a cop punched him in the gut, but it broke the cop's hand. The bone in his right forearm stuck through the skin. Blood shot up into the air, and JJ thought, I hope you die. He fell to the ground screaming, but it didn't phase the young man at all. JJ turned around, headed, back to his car, and realized it wasn't his job to help the cops.

"That was fast," Peppermint said with a smile.

"It doesn't take that long," he said. "Hop in the passenger seat. I'm driving."