Chapter Thirty- Seven
At long last,the storm was over. The skies had cleared and night had turned to day. Across the world, citizens and heroes alike were pulling each other together in the aftermath of this national tragedy. Every major city had been attacked by by super powered individuals simultaneously. Without the Justice League to protect them, the people of Earth were starting to realize the harsh truth. Their saviors were gone. Their Age of Heroes was coming to and end.
Vandal Savage sat at the head of a long table, slowly opening his eyes to those around him. To his right was the calculating ruler of the League of Assassins, Ras al Ghul. His ally sat in a green robe, with a not so concealed blade at his belt. The blade itself was clearly ancient, but handcrafted, probably by the user himself. Ras carried with him many lifetimes of experiences, the great master of killers now over 900 years old. While very impressive, Vandal himself was also a man long ago forgotten by time, longer even than the Demon's Head.
To his left was a man concealed in black metal and armor, his large domed helmet staring back at him through two large red lenses. It was the world renown diver turned mercenary Black Manta, crusader of the seas and mastermind behind one of Vandal's newest plots across the globe. He was an interesting man, always keeping himself armored and prepared for battle. While not as ambitious as the man on Vandal's right, Manta knew when to be a conqueror and when to be a soldier.
Further down the table to Black Manta's left was Deathstroke the Terminator. He had only just returned back from his raid on the Manhattan Titan's Tower, with great success. It seemed the cost of keeping the world's greatest assassin on his payroll was well worth it. It was because of his efforts that they'd recovered every recording of the League's final mission. While not the most devoted of Vandal's inner circle, Deathstroke was far more honorable than either Ras or Manta. If his plans were to succeed, Vandal would need at least one man he could count on.
The final chair at the table was to the other side of Ras, but remained empty, a silent reminder of the stakes at which the remaining four were gambling with. With everyone waiting on him, Savage spoke softly.
"Shall we begin?" They all nodded, as Vandal activated the holo projector in the center of the table. The red light grid gave form to the floor plans for the League's watchtower, their orbital station that was still adrift. "Deathstroke, tell us more of your discovery aboard this installation." The terminator removed his black and orange militant mask, revealing the face of a grizzled man with stark white hair, and a patch over his left eye.
"The place was completely abandoned, just as we'd thought. They have two means of entry and exit. A teleporter room on the Control Room floor, and a set of Javelin class ships in their Hangar."
"I'm unfamiliar with these shuttles," Manta stated out loud, arms crossed.
"That's because the League didn't want anyone to know about them in the first place. They're transport ships, sure, but while I was digging through their archives for Vandal's little project, I found a set of schematics for them too." Vandal, on cue, activated the next image for the projector. The multi-angled portraits of the Javelin ships proved to be very interesting indeed. Rotating engines, a cockpit built to carry teams of six at a time, and even twin ion cannons for disabling robotic adversaries.
"Keep in mind, they used these back when the League had dozens of members in it at a time. They've clearly been forced to downsize, for one reason or another. I only saw three ships down there, and they were all gathering dust."
"So nothing noteworthy?"
"Not unless you're planning on going into deep space." Ras's eyes widened.
"You mean to say-"
"That these girls were probably used to go to different worlds, yeah that's what I mean to say. Their engines are hilariously complex, like nothing on this planet. My best guess is either Superman or those Green Lanterns helped build it, but that's just my two cents." Vandal stroked his chin, several new options suddenly presenting themselves.
"Thank you, Deathstroke. And your mission to Manhattan went just as well, I presume."
"If it hadn't, I wouldn't be here. The recordings you were after are all here." He slid a flashdrive across the glossy table. "Hope it was worth one of your inner circle." There was an edge to the Terminator's voice.
"Bane's death was...an unfortunate loss, but not without its merits. Each of you were given your missions, and his was dismantle what was left of The Batman."
"The man may be gone," Ras started. "But the legacy of The Detective lives on through his heirs. No one, not even Bane could have ended what Batman had spent his lifetime building in Gotham." Savage could not help, but rebuttal.
"As you'll recall, I sent several of best operatives to keep the world off balance. The Fearsome Five and Royal Flush Gang worked as pawns to diverge assets away from the east coast. Clayface served as yet another distraction within the city, and you yourself emptied the cells of Arkham Asylum and Blackgate. Bane had every advantage and I believed he performed admirably." Vandal saw Ras stir to match his gaze, two immortal men trying to see who was the superior. Neither budged, and it was only Black Manta's next question that broke the two from their small confrontation.
"So what then, Savage? Are we all to expect a knife in our backs if it suits you?" Vandal stood softly, not trying to override anyone at the table.
"Manta, your operation is being acted out masterfully. Atlantis is in a complete civil war between Queen Mera and Aquaman's brother Ocean Master. You've rallied several political allies to his cause and have armed Ocean Master's forces with the tech we've been receiving from Black Mask. As to your question, no. Each of the three of you were invited into this because of our similar ideologies. We can all agree, whether we like each other or not, that Humanity as a whole is growing weaker. They're devolving as a race, and it all stems from these so called superheroes. With these protectors, humanity cannot hope to face a new generation of challenges, instead relying on gods to do their work for them. We oppose this because we all believe that only humanity should be allowed to protect itself, else it will never evolve as a species. No Atlanteans, no Amazons, and no Aliens from other worlds. " Vandal began pacing around he table, hands held behind his back.
"We can all sense a great change coming, and only by working together can we make it a reality. You can trust I will not betray you for the same reason I trust you to not do the same to me. Because without all of us working as one, we fail, and humanity will fail with us." The other three seemed contemplative, but overall relaxed.
"Humanity is not as black and white as you may think, Savage." Ras stood to match Vandal's authority. "I do what I must not to preserve the entire race, but to also eliminate those who would cause it harm. Thieves, rapists, murderers- I would see them eradicated from this world. If you cannot promise this alongside your crusade, then we are done doing business." Ras waited, as Vandal smiled, looking to the other side of the table.
"Any other requests?" Manta spoke up first, also standing to make his presence known. The machinery that powered his suit whirred and hummed with his every movement.
"The one they call Aquaman took my father from me, and in response I would see everything precious to the King of Atlantis perish. His home, his country, and most importantly his loved ones. If you can promise me my vengeance, I will follow you."
"An admirable goal. And you?" Deathstroke remained seated, now leaning back in his chair. He couldn't have been bothered to care.
"Honestly, so long as the checks keep coming through, I don't care what it is we do. Overthrowing governments, cleaning up the streets, hell even killing supers is all stuff I've done before. Just throw on some hazard pay. And I don't really care what the mission is, it'll get done." Vandal turned to face the room as a whole, arms outstretched.
"Then gentlemen, we have an arrangement. I will do everything in my power to accomplish your goals, provided you work with me to accomplish mine."
"Which is?" Ras impatiently inquired. Vandal clicked another button for the holo, exposing an image they could all recognize. The insignia for the Advanced Research Group Uniting Superhumans, otherwise known as ARGUS.
"It's simple really. We're going to war."
Many hours later, Vandal had concluded the meeting with the Legion's inner circle, patiently awaiting the next phase of their plan. In the meantime he made his way down to the lower underground levels of their base. While not a new construction site, it had been one he'd managed to pick up for quite the steal.
Right on schedule, two of Savage's lesser allies was prepped for his arrival, a large capsule prison resting behind them. It had been a fortune, but also been taken from an unaware owner.
"Open it, I want to speak with him." The two strongmen did as they were told, and after inputting a few codes, the capsule separated down the middle, and with it expanded the prison within. Locked in place by his now unarmored limbs was the beaten body of Lex Luthor. His bruised head managed to raise itself through what must've been a blinding amount of light compared to the darkness within the cell.
"I did tell you, Luthor. Betraying me is a crime that cannot go unpunished." The bald man spit blood back at Savage's words.
"You're as good as dead. Trapping me in my own containment cell, it's only a matter of time." Vandal chuckled at the poor man's bravado.
"While I admire your spirit, you clearly overestimate your intelligence. You're trapped in here with my Legion. We're going to change the world Lex, and I'm giving you this final opportunity to join us. Come now, I know our beliefs are not so different you want what's best for humanity's growth same as I do. Why won't you help us?" Luthor grinned a bloody toothy grin.
"Didn't you hear? I'm reformed." Vandal gave out a deep sigh, genuinely disappointed.
"Suit yourself." He began to turn, but stopped halfway. "Oh, that just reminded me. We have your suit, Nigma's been looking at it quite thoroughly and what we've already found...Come now Luthor, did you really think you could hide Mother Box technology? The same devices Darkseid used to boom tube his minions to Earth not so long ago. That was just before you created your new suit and became so buddy buddy with the Man of Steel himself. Did he ever know that you were using tech from his greatest enemy? Did you ever think to tell him you were using one of the deadliest objects in the cosmos to power your own project." Lex was frothing with rage. "I'm sure the Legion will find a much better use for such an object." He gave a nod to Metallo, and heard as the capsule doors behind him slowly began to drift closer together.
"I'll kill you, Savage!"
"No," he responded just the doors sealed shut. "You won't."