"Illicit, Part 10"

Disclaimer: The future DCU and its characters as depicted here do not belong to me. They belong to DC Comics, which in turn belongs to Time Warner. I have no decision-making power with either.

Author's note: A shame I couldn't let Mar'i and Rose get that far, wasn't it? For one, it's a T-rated story; for another, Olivia's interruption will prove rather important later on. I can always whip up a special adult-rated scene between Mar'i and Rose for your liking if you wish. In the meantime, just read on.

Rose and Mar'i looked upon the intruder, who was none other than Olivia Queen, the Hypertime-tossed daughter of Oliver Queen and Dinah Lance. The blonde was dressed in a black leather half-jacket over a skintight sleeveless black motorcycle suit with blue siding. The motorcycle suit was partly unzipped, just far enough to reveal her cleavage, and clung to every sensuous curve and line on her body. The irony was that chronologically, Olivia was far too young to be wearing such attire or be such a temptress.

Olivia should have been only eight years old, except being lost in the timestream with time-jaunting vigilantes had made her closer to Rose's age. When she had returned to her native timeline, it had only been days since her disappearance, but she was 18 years old, enhanced by cybernetic implants, and a deadly fighter on the level of either of her parents or her adoptive sister Sin. To the shock of her parents, she had returned solely to kill Deathstroke, as she had been convinced that Deathstroke would be responsible for a crime that would devastate Earth's heroes.

The Arrow and Bat clans had come together to try to stop Olivia, only to discover that Olivia was every bit as tenacious as her parents. Despite their best efforts, Olivia had made her way to Deathstroke, only to find him defended by Jericho and Ravager, who did not want to see their father die despite the crimes he had committed. In the process of that particular battle, Olivia's time-jaunt equipment had been damaged. As a result of that, she had been trapped in this time and reality, leaving her parents to adjust to the fact that their baby girl had become a young woman before her time.

It hadn't been an easy transition. Ollie and Dinah were beside themselves trying to figure out how to deal with a daughter that they didn't quite recognize. Despite that, it wasn't that hard to see elements of themselves in her. She had her father's eyes, a spirited green but customarily highlighted by black eye shadow, and her mother's smile . . . when she did smile, that was.

Olivia Queen, presently Black Queen's Knight of Checkmate, smirked with black lipstick-coated lips at Rose and Mar'i. "Why, Rose, I didn't know you liked them young," she remarked.

"You didn't answer my question," Rose retorted.

"I'm here with information," Olivia said. "On the Cheshire Cat."

"Spill," Mar'i spat.

"The brat went after Sin," Olivia answered. "Nearly killed her, although to be fair, she quite nearly ripped his throat out."

"He went after Sin?" Rose asked.

"Yes," Olivia confirmed. "And she wasn't even the last on his list of targets. He also slashed my mother's vocal cords and sucker-punched my father out a window."

"Are they all right?" Mar'i asked.

"They're both getting treatment from Dr. Mid-Nite as we speak," Olivia replied.

"Damien, Lian, and Cerdian were attacked by a gang of cyborgs working for the Cheshire Cat," Rose supplied.

"He'll eventually make his way to Roy and Dick," Olivia said.

"Then we have to get to them before the Cheshire Cat does," Rose concluded.

At that moment, the other Titans entered the infirmary. "Olivia . . . what are you doing here?" Lian asked.

"Warning you," Olivia replied. "The Cheshire Cat went after Sin and my parents. And he'll eventually go after Roy and Dick."

Lian was beside herself with horror. "Why . . . why is he after me? Why is he going after . . . ?"

"It's his sick little strategy," Olivia replied. "He wants to break you before he kills you. As for why he wants you dead, does the name Thomas Nguyen ring a bell?"

"Thomas Nguyen?" Lian repeated. "He's the Cheshire Cat?"

"Yes," Olivia confirmed. "And guess how you two are connected."

Lian's eyes widened with horror. "Cheshire . . . my mother . . . had another kid?"

"Yes, your half-brother," Olivia supplied. "Raised to be the killer Cheshire wanted you to be."

Lian clenched her fists so tightly blood began to seep out of her palms. "He's not going to get to my father and Uncle Dick. I'll make sure of that, even if I have to put an arrow through that twisted piece of crap he calls a heart."

End Notes: I suppose here is a good place to end this. The next pair of chapters will cover the Titans trying their best to protect Roy and Dick . . . and will Catman make an appearance? After all, he's as responsible for Thomas Nguyen's existence as Cheshire; he supplied the seed, after all. In the meantime, let me know what you think so far.