AN: I have been so busy with school stuff I haven't been able to write this story. But now I'm back! But... with graduation coming up I won't be able to update it that much. BUT, afterwards I am free! Master has given Ibookster a diploma! Ibookster is free!

Uh... This may be annoying but, please go and vote on Tommy's love interest. Thanks, so much!

DISCLAIMER: I need to remember to do these. I do not own anything other than Tommy and the plot in which he is tortured.

|OA

|November 18

Hal couldn't stand it anymore. Before the Guardians were straight ignoring his requests to bring Tommy to Oa, or to return to Earth if nothing else, but now they had just began to ignore him! Well, he wouldn't stand for it anymore! He was marching right up to them and demanding an answer!

"You can't go up there!" Someone that he didn't care about shouted.

"I can, and I am!" Hal huffed. "You think you can do this to me?!" He shouted as he walked up to the guardian's room.

"I am so sorry, Guardians!" The green lantern pleaded.

"It is alright, Larvox." Appa Ali Apsa sighed. "What is it, now, Lantern Jordan?"

"Let me go back to Earth!" He demanded.

"If you wish to return to your sector then you must submit a formal request to the council by way of-"

"You know damn well I have!" He shouted.

"Mr. Jordan, please." Ganthet pleaded.

"You have been ignoring me!" He accused.

"If you have sent in a request then we will get to it as soon as we can." Appa Ali sighed.

"That's not good enough." He demanded. "You are training all of these new rookies, and yet you ignore one of your most promising cadets! Tommy is a green lantern too!"

"Thomas Crane of Earth is none of your concern anymore, Lantern Jordan." Appa Ali stated.

"None of my-" Hal repeated in disbelief. "He's my student!"

"He was." Appa Ali corrected. "Regardless, you are needed here."

"For what?! I am a body guard for no one!" Hal roared.

"You are helping to train the new recruits. Or, you are supposed to be."

"Lantern Crane is being dealt with, do not worry." Ganthet assured. Appa Ali seemed to give him a nasty look.

"I can't accept that!"

"If I may offer another a solution," Someone said. Everyone turned to see that the new-comer was none other than Sinestro.

"Sinestro?" Hal asked.

"I could go and give the boy a visit." Sinestro offered. He smiled, "I've been meaning to meet this boy you speak so highly of, Hal."

"I feel like I should be the one to go." Hal protested.

"As I said, Hal Jordan is needed here." Appa Ali stated firmly.

"I have just finished my last assignment; I don't have anything to do for a while." Sinestro pointed out. "I'll go to Earth and see how he's doing."

"If you must." Appa Ali sighed.

"I guess, if that's the only way." Hal groaned. He turned to face the guardians. "But this isn't over."

"Yes, Hal Jordan. It is." Appa Ali Apsa stated.

|QUEEN MANOR
|November 19, 02:13 PDT

I woke up in the middle of the night. I couldn't sleep very well. I couldn't stop thinking about my ring. It was bugging me. I couldn't tell what was wrong. I hadn't changed anything from how I used to work it. Will power; or in other words, stubbornness, was what powered it. And I can say, with absolute certainty, that I was still pretty damn stubborn. It couldn't be me. I'm sure it couldn't be me. There was no way it was me. Right? Whatever! So where was the weak link? I groaned.

I needed a sandwich!

Being careful to not wake Selena, as she had still not been able to get through a good night's sleep without laying next to me. Which still creeped me out beyond words, but I couldn't do anything about it because the second I try she would start crying. Plus after what happened to Carmen- So I just went with it. I still had so many questions about... everything. How she even existed? What other life did my dad have that I still don't know about? Will I ever find out? I had gone through all of the the files on the drive that we got from his... lab. But there was never anything about any other kids or a secret lover or any double life. It drove me crazy. I thought I knew my dad so well I could tell you how many cavities he had. Now it turns out that I barely knew him at all. I sighed. Selena, being only six, probably wouldn't know an answer to any of these.

I snuck out of my room, silently. In the hallway, I looked down the hall at Mom and Ollie's room. They were still deliberating about their wedding. The timing, the food, the color arrangement, the place; they couldn't agree on anything. The thought made me smile. Every time they were together they were arguing. But, something in me knew that they'd get it right. And when they do, they're going to love it.

Then I saw Bucky's room. She had only slept in my room the first night. She said her nightmares had gone away for the most part. Of course they never go away for good. She and I both know that. But they do fade, sort of. I had so many questions about her too. How had she survived... that night? Had anyone else? Had-? No. I couldn't let myself think that way. I'd just be getting my hopes up for nothing. But what really worried me was that she still hadn't been willing to talk about it. I sighed and kept walking.

Raph. His room was next. He... he hadn't changed his opinion of me since our encounter in the kitchen. I figure he may actually have some answers to the questions I have, but I couldn't bring myself to ask him. And even if I did, there was no guarantee that he would answer them. If only Carmen was here. She would have the answers, to more than just the mystery of our father. She would know how to help with Raph and Selena. And probably a whole lot more. There were even times when he would sneer at me when Selena was close to me. I could tell he hated every moment that she was anywhere near me. I wished that I could help them. Be what Carmen was. Or at least, somehow replace her. But they wouldn't let me. He wouldn't let me. I was just a fool to him.

I groaned as I walked down the main stairway. The damn house was so big. It was like walking through an eighties sit-com. After seven years of living on the run, in a different place every few months, weeks or sometimes even days, it felt weird to have one place where I stay. A place to call home. OK, too much depressing crap for one moment.

Entering into the kitchen I got out the milk from the fridge. After pouring myself a large glass I grabbed a few of the cookies in the cookie jar. They had little M&M's in them. I got through the first one before I even left the kitchen.

As I walked up the stairs I got about halfway through the second when I heard a moan. I jumped into a fighting stance, ready for anything. I heard it again. Only this time, I could see what it was. It was only Selena. it looked like she had woken up.

I sighed."Selena. You scared me."

"I woke up and you were gone!" She complained.

A smile forced it's way to my face. "I'm sorry, I just needed something to eat."

She noticed the cookies in my hand. "My cookies!" She cheered.

"Your cookies?" I asked.

"Ms. Dinah and I made them!" She said. "Do you like them?"

I smiled, "They're great."

She beamed. I offered her one of the cookies. She took it and held it up, admiring it. "I even took the time to separate out the colors!" She said.

"What?" I asked. Looking at the cookie I saw that all of the M&M's were green. I smiled. "That's cool."

She smiled walking back towards my room. I chuckled to myself, holding it up. But there was one red spot on the cookie. "It seems you missed one!" I teased.

"Uh uh!" She argued, "I was very careful!"

"Well I have proof that you missed one." I said.

"Nuh uh!" She pouted.

"Yeah." I looked at the red M&M on my cookie. Only, it looked a little weird. Almost like it wasn't an M&M. Almost like it was a-

"GET DOWN!" Ollie shouted.

Reflexes kicking in, I tackled Selena to the floor, behind the railing, just as the mirror at the top of the stairs shattered.

"Owie!" Selena complained, rubbing her head.

Immediately Mom, Raph, and Bucky were in the hallway. "What's going on!?" Mom asked.

"Sniper!" I shouted.

They all dropped down, looking for cover. I grabbed the leg of a nearby table with my foot and pulled it so that it landed on it's side, blocking the holes in the banister. Just as we all found a place to hide, the front door, windows, and furniture exploded from gunfire. Semi-automatic gunfire echoed in chorus with glass shattering, wood splintering all topped off by Selena's screams. While trying to remain calm despite the raging adrenaline, a million thoughts raced through my head. Most of which were curses at my ring for not answering my call. But I had to ignore what wasn't there. I needed to focus on what was. Well, first off there was a sniper, along with another shooter with a rifle. Wait. I started listening closer to the firing rate. Ignoring the noise of the impact, wherever it hit, and focused on the firing it's self. The bullets were coming one at a time, not several. Meaning one thing, only one gun! That was it! There was only one other shooter!

But I had to get some weapon if I wanted to do anything to help. I looked down the hall to where Ollie and Mom were hiding around the corner. I leaned closed to Selena and said in her ear, "When I say, I want you to run to Ms. Dinah and Mr. Ollie."

She shook her head vigorously. "I-I can't!" She cried.

"Selena!" I shouted. She looked at me with tears in her eyes. "You need to do this!" She slowly nodded. "Good. Ready?"

"Yeah." She muttered.

"Go!" I shouted.

She ran. Before I followed her, I kicked the table so that it slid along-side her, blocking her from the sniper. She got to the corner, leaping into Mom's arms. She held her close, trying to calm her down. The table however smashed to pieces against the wall.

The wall above the door exploded. A black dot shot out of it, aimed straight at my heart. As I watched it fly at me, time it's self seemed to slow down. Adrenaline like nothing I had ever felt before surged through my veins. My blood became water, roaring in my ears like rapids. The only thing I could think was, "Well, he's got infra-red."

I don't know how, but I moved. My body moved, without me telling it to do so. I leaned so far back that the bullet flew right over me. I didn't have time to process what had just happened. I ran to the corner as the wall behind me was rittled with more gunfire. He was definitely after me.

When I got to the corner, Ollie grabbed a hold of my arm and dragged me the rest of the way.

"How did-" He started.

"One gunner." I shouted quickly. "One sniper."

He nodded, "Right. I got that."

"We need weapons!" I shouted over the gunfire.

"Your ring?" He asked.

"I- I forgot to charge it." I lied. He didn't seem very pleased with my answer, but before he could say anything else, I blurted out, "The Arrow Cave! How do we get there from here?"

"We don't need to." He shook his head. He crouched near the floor. Moving aside a rug, he revealed the wooden floor under neath. After feeling around a bit, he pressed on one of the boards. A large section of the floor popped out. He lifted it up, it was hinged on one side. In the floor there were four pre-strung bows, each with their own fully loaded quiver. Also in the compartment were a couple of masks and some emergency supplies. He pulled out one of the bows and handed it to me. "I may joke a lot, but I'm just as paranoid as the Dark Knight." He smiled.

"Oh, Ollie you're brilliant!" I smiled. "OK, you distract him, I'll flank."

"No, Tommy," Ollie said. "You need to get the kids out of here."

Mom nodded. "Yes."

"But-" I protested.

Ollie put a hand on my shoulder, "I'm leaving it to you to keep them safe. Take them to the Arrow Cave. The safest entrance is probably in the back yard. The shed."

The trust that I saw in his eyes made something in me sting. I nodded.

"Let's go." Ollie said to her.

I nodded and set off down the hall. Mom grabbed my arm, stopping me. "Be careful." She said.

I gave her a quick nod. She followed Ollie, leaving me to deal with the kids. Bucky and Raph were on the other side of the hallway. Slinging a quiver full of arrows over my shoulder, I looked at Selena. She was clearly terrified.

"Selena." I said. She looked at me, tears in her eyes. I held out my arms to her. Rushing to me, she wrapped her arms around my neck. I picked her up, one hand behind her head to steady her. "Get ready." I whispered in her ears. I felt her nod.

I had to continuously run faster so that the sniper couldn't catch up to me with his sight. With a deep breath, I filled my lungs with air. I took my first step, and my mind blanked. All that I knew was that I was running. Time was unable to keep up with me. Before I knew it, I was on the other side of the hallway, looking at Bucky and Raph's shocked faces.

"How-?" Bucky stammered.

"Follow me." I said.

"Yeah right!" Raph snapped. "You just going to get us killed like you did with Carmen!"

I didn't have time to feel hurt. "We don't have time for this. I wasn't asking. You are coming with me." I snapped.

He looked like he wanted to complain further but I silenced him with a look. I had never been able to do that before. He sighed gruffly. "Fine. But I'm carrying her." He pointed at Selena.

I quirked my eyebrow at him. "She's more than twice your size." I stated.

He glared at me, before saying, "HSAELNU EHT FLOW!" Red glyphs glowed all around him, his ears grew long and shifted to the top of his head, dark hair grew from all over his body, his nose and mouth extended outward, he grew to be eight feet tall. In a moment there was a giant man-wolf before me.

"I don't know how I forgot about that." I said.

He held out his hands to me. I looked at Selena, but she didn't seem at all concerned with his transformation. She almost lept into his arms.

"Alright." I said. "Let's go."

With them right behind me, I flew down the halls, well, not flew flew, but I was quick. I feel I need to make that distinction. Anyway, we ran as fast as we could to the back of the house. The entire time, I heard gunshots coupled with mom's canary cry. In moments we were in the back yard.

But something was wrong. There was no one in the back yard. No one. Not one assassin. And with the effort they went through to attack the front of the house... No. This was not right. But nevertheless we kept running.

Out of the corner of my eye I saw a something shiny flying at us. With one swift motion, I turned, drew an arrow, and shot it out of the air. It was a ninja star. A freaking ninja star. Everyone stopped.

"Alright, come out!" I called.

A girl stepped out of the bushes. She seemed to be She was small. About five foot. Weapons covered her black and orange light body armor; the most intimidating of which was a pair of short swords in her hands, from head to full face helmet. It was split vertically down the middle, orange on the right, black on the left.

I aimed an arrow at her chest. "Raph, Bucky, go!" I shouted. Raph growled at her. Or me. I couldn't tell. "Do what you promised! Protect Selena!" He calmed down a bit. I could hear them running away.

She started to run after them, but I got in her way.

"You don't need to worry about them." I said. "Worry about me."

She didn't say anything. "So, what are you? Some kind of Deathstroke fangirl?" I asked.

I smirked, "I won't go easy on you, just because you're a girl."

Again nothing. "So serious." I muttered.

She dashed at me, but I shot a couple arrows at her to slow her down. She cut them out of the air. I shot a few more at her, but she just sliced them too. She Was getting really close now, I fired an arrow at her feet. It shot out high-density polyurethane foam, but before she got caught, she flipped into the air. In mid air, she turned and aimed a kick at my chest. I blocked it with my bow. She hit me hard, sending a jarring sensation up my arms. She landed right in front of me, slashing her sword across my chest. I flipped back, drawing another arrow as I did. Before I could fire it, she cut clean through my bow string.

"You're so predictable." She barked through her mask. She didn't sound very old. Not really any older than me.

As she drove her right sword at my heart, I dodged right, grabbing her wrist.

"Did you predict that?!" I snarled.

Taking a step towards her, I elbowed her in her ribs. She grunted in pain, but refused to go down. I twisted her arm, forcing her to drop the sword. She drove her knee into my back, then whacked the back of my head with the pommel of her other sword. My head rocked to the side, stars circling my head. I grabbed her arm and threw her over my shoulder. She landed, rolled, and was back on her feet in a second. She charged me with her sword raised high.

I flicked the sword into my hand with my foot just in time to block her downward strike. Before I could react, she hit me with a kidney shot. A gasp escaped my mouth. I snarled and kicked at her, she simply dodged to to her left. I ran at her trying to catch her off guard. She jumped straight over me, slashing her sword across my back. I recoiled. Spinning, I sliced at her, but she just ducked under my attack. I followed up with a kick at her stomach. Once more, she dodged. She was too fast. I could keep up with her!

Taking a deep breath, I tried to relax a bit. I needed to focus!The only way I would beat her was to over power her. She stabbed out at me. I blocked it with the sword, and elbowed her shoulder. She stumbled back. I stepped forward, slicing down at her. She tried blocking it, but she wasn't strong enough to stop it with one hand. She was only able to deflect my attack. But it bought her enough time to punch me in the stomach. Ignoring it, I hooked my hand behind her head and dragged it into my knee. The impact sent her reeling. With a great shout, I brought the blade down over her has hard as I could with both hands. In a panic, she held up her sword with both hands. The two blades collided with an earsplitting TANG! Both of the blades shattered, sending painful shock waves down my arms.

We both took a step back in shock. But I couldn't take the time to let her get over it. I immediately stepped forward and punched her in her stomach. She grunted in pain. Following it up with a kick to her side. But she caught my foot. I didn't give her the satisfaction of hopping around like an idiot. Instead, I jumped up with my other foot and kicked her leg. We both dropped.

Rolling onto my shoulders, I launched myself to my feet. She had gotten up by the time I had. She dove at my feet, trying to knock me down. I wasn't having any of that. I jumped clean over her, kicking her head as I did. When I turned back around she was back up again.

"You just don't go down do you?" I asked.

She growled in rage, and I imagine that under her mask she was giving me a pretty nasty look. I sighed. Leaping up with renewed vigor, she ran at me. I dodged her first punch, but I didn't see her second, which caught my chin. I kicked her in the shin, which probably hurt me more considering that she was wearing armor and I was still in my pajamas. I went for a cross to her temple, but she countered with a couple shots to my ribs. Another gasp burst from my lips. I grit my teeth, sending a friendly fist to her shoulder. Following up, I jump-kicked at her face. She threw her arms up to block, but I was still gaining ground. I could feel the adrenaline putting more power behind my attacks. And I loved it. Sending kick into her in the side, I sent her stumbling. Pressing the fight, I gave her a strong uppercut, followed by a knee to her stomach. She kept trying to recover, but I wouldn't let up an inch. Each of my punches began connecting, and connecting hard. Feeling a little over confident, I put all of my power into a right cross. Seeing this, she swiftly dodged to her left at the last second, and kicked high, slamming the front of her boot into my teeth. My head violently rocked back. I could taste the coppery sensation of blood in my mouth. But, ignoring the pain, I jumped and "superman-punched" her in the face. That one clearly hurt her. Her mask broke off of her face, right down the center. She fell flat on her back, unconscious.

"So..." I huffed. "Had enough? Or, if not, I can just-" I faltered.

She was beautiful. Her hair was so bleach blonde that it looked almost silvery. Her nose was really small and cute and... probably broken. Whoops. But she was beautiful. I almost felt bad for beating the crap out of her. Then I heard Selena scream.

"AHHHHH!"

Every nerve in my body froze solid. I ran as fast as I could. Everything around me was a blur. I ran through the woods behind the mansion faster than I think I had ever gone before in my life. Nothing stood in my way. And whatever did, I just jumped straight over. My heart pounded in my chest, imagination fueling me, pushing me forward. After what happened to Carmen, I would not let anything happen to them.

After what felt like an eternity, I arrived at what was apparently a river in our back yard. Well, more a creek. Not important. But what was important was what looked to be an assassin holding Bucky by the neck as Selena tried to wake up an unconscious giant wolf I knew.

"Finally." The assassin spoke. He wore what appeared to be a ninja costume. It looked familiar. Like I had seen it somewhere before. "I was wondering what a guy had to do to get your attention." He joked.

I grit my teeth in anger. Without realizing it, I began calling on my ring. But nothing. Still nothing! I took a step towards him.

"Ah, ah!" He warned. He held his sword to Bucky's chest. My breath caught in my chest. "Now, why don't you just lay down on the ground. All slow like."

"T-Tommy! D-Don't!" Bucky choked.

I didn't know what to do! I was just too damn angry to think straight! After the assassin in the backyard, I didn't have my bow, or anything to defend myself with! The only thing I could think about was how much this guy reminded me of the guy who killed Carmen! And he was holding Bucky hostage.

Suddenly a streak of red light shot through the woods and appeared right in front of me. It was my ring! I reached out to it. It settled on my right middle finger. Power rushed through my body. I was exhilarated! All of my anger was amplified ten fold. The feeling was incredible. It was as if I had been drenched in oil and set on fire!

The ring wouldn't stop glowing red. But... my suit wouldn't appear. I was just glowing. The assassin seemed to be uneasy about it. In fact, he was pretty scared. He dropped Bucky as if he forgot why he was holding her up. Like I would just give up because of that. He pointed his sword at me, terrified.

"No! No! They would've told me if they sent me after you!" He shouted.

"What?" I asked confused.

He turned and ran as fast as he could. "No!"

"Hay! Wait!" I growled.

"Rojo muerto!" He shouted.

I caught up to him in seconds. I tackled him to the ground. Grabbing him by the shirt, I ripped off his mask and forced him to look at me.

"What are you talking about?! What are you doing here?" I shouted.

"You can't stop us now. We almost have the last piece!" He said.

"What?" I demanded. "Talk, damn you!"

"It's too late, Red Demon! I won't let you end me too." He pushed a tooth loose with his tongue and crushed it in his teeth.

"No!" I shouted. "What are you talking about?! Who sent you?"

Bubbles foamed up in his mouth. "They will send someone to replace me." He gurgled. "The hidden fist, strikes the strongest..."

He stopped breathing. I felt so shaken as I stood up. I looked at my ring. It had stopped glowing. Why had it worked now? What was going on? Why had the Hidden Fist sent an assassin after me? They had never been so bold before. And who was the beautiful Deathstroke-girl? Damn it I only had more questions!

"Tommy?" I heard Bucky call.

Just then, I snapped to my senses. I ran back to them. Weirdly, it took me a while. Like, I could've sworn that I had only taken a few steps into the woods, but I had to trudge back to them. They all seemed OK. Even Raph-wolf was getting up.

"Are you OK?" I asked.

Bucky nodded. "He just caught us by surprise. Knocked out Raphael." She said.

"Let's get to the Arrow Ca-" I was cut off as an explosion rocked the ground, coming from the front of the house. I whirled around. "Mom... Ollie..." I muttered.

Bucky looked at me. "Go."

"I-" I stuttered.

"Tommy, we're right here." She pointed to the shed, less than ten feet away.

"I don't-" I faltered. Raph barked at me, I guess is the right word. I looked at him. Just by looking in his eyes, I could tell what he was saying. I nodded. "Keep them safe." He nodded. I turned to Bucky. "Stay down there."

"We will. Now go. Help them." She said.

I turned and ran as fast as I could to the front of the house. I noticed that the weird Deathstroke girl was gone. No doubt meeting up with the sniper, which had to be Deathstroke. I ran to the back of the house and looked under the back door mat.

"Please be that paranoid, please be that paranoid!" I muttered to myself. I threw aside the mat and pressed the stone underneath. It felt uneven, and wobbled a bit. Reaching around the edge, I lifted the stone. It slid to the side on railways, revealing another weapons cashe. "Yes!" I shouted.

I grabbed another bow and quiver. As soon as I was armed again, I ran to the front of the house.

It looked like the explosion had been caused by a car. I couldn't tell which. But what I saw was Mom and Ollie fighting Deathstroke. And they looked to be barely holding their ground. So I was right. I drew an arrow, trying to offer an opportunity for them. But before I could even fire one shot, a throwing knife cut through my bow string. It snapped back and hit my hand, making my hand split open and forcing me to drop the bow.

"Ah!" I grumbled.

"You broke my nose!" Fan-girl Deathstroke shouted.

"Really? Twice in one night?" I asked. "These bows aren't cheap!"

"You bastard!" She shouted. She ran at me with a knife.

I swooped my arm down to her leg, flipping her over me. She hit the ground hard. I looked down at her, a smirk on my face.

"You kiss your mother with that mouth?" I asked.

She growled. Spinning on her hands, she knocked me on my back. We both rolled to our stomachs. I smiled at her, she sneered in return.

"You're too pretty to glare all the time." I said.

Her scowl deepened. We simultaneously lept to our feet. She was the first to respond though, throwing out her fist. I caught her hand, before she could hit me. She stabbed her knife at me, but I was able to dodge it. I responded with a knee to her stomach. Taking a step in, I flipped her over my head again.

"Oof!" She grunted. "Stop doing that!"

"Stop trying to stab me!" I countered.

"No!" She stated flatly.

She lunged at me with the knife outstretched. I stepped in, taking her hands into mine. I twisted the hand holding the knife so that she dropped it.

"Care to dance?" I asked sarcastically.

"You talk too much." She muttered.

"Oh, come on, beautiful." I said.

She kneed me in the side, but I held her hands firm so that she couldn't escape. She struggled, but I held her strongly in place.

"Ready to give up?" I asked.

"Your breath is terrible." Was her reply.

That shocked me. I suddenly realized that we were face to face. Like, our faces were only inches apart. She must've noticed too because she was actually blushing. She looked really cute when she blushed. It almost made me forget how she had tried to kill me.

"Thomas Crane." I heard a deep voice shout. I looked to see Deathstroke standing above an unconscious Mom and Ollie. "Let her go." He said.

In one fluent move, I spun her around, flicked the knife from the ground into my hand, and held it to her neck. I could feel her body tense in my arms. It made me feel pretty weird.

"You're in no position to make demands!" I shouted.

"Oh no?" He asked. "You're not going to kill her."

I mentally swore at him calling my bluff. But maybe... with what happened with the other assassin... Memories blurred in my mind. I felt as if a heavy mist in my head was starting to clear.

"No? You must've heard about what happened in the mountains. The Red Demon?" I asked. Once more I felt the girl tense more.

He visibly straitened his posture, although it was hard to read why. "Fine. Kill her." He said.

"Dad!" She shouted.

"Dad?" I asked.

"Rose!" Deathstroke shouted at her. She flinched a bit at his voice. As if she was scared of him.

I glared at Deathstroke. "What?"

"I said, 'Kill her.'" He repeated.

"She's your daughter!" I shouted.

"Yes. And?" He asked.

My grip on the knife tightened. "Why?" I asked.

"'Why' what?" He asked.

"Why are you here?!" I shouted.

He cocked his head up at me. "Isn't it obvious? You said it yourself."

"I-" I stuttered. "What happened?"My mind was so fuzzy about that night. I could only remember that Carmen died. After that...

"You slaughtered a hundred and fourteen dark magicians in cold blood." Deathstroke stated flatly.

I felt like I had been hit with a ton of bricks had hit me in the chest. Something akin to a sob escaped Rose. It was a lie. It had to be a lie.

"I-I..." I stuttered.

"Dad, please." Rose pleaded.

BANG!

Everything was a daze.

I registered the sound before anything else.

Then I realized that I had dropped the knife. In fact, I lost control of both my arms.

I couldn't feel anything. Anything but a sharp pain in my back.

My legs gave out next.

I fell straight down.

I barely felt myself hit the ground.

Next I saw Deathstroke, Rose, and a third guy appear over me. Rose looked scared out of her mind. Deathstroke pulled off his helmet. He was smirking. The new guy had on a silver mask with black around the eyes. The edges of my vision began to fade. Darkness was surrounding me. I couldn't breathe. I could just make out what they were saying.

"Took you long enough, Grant." Rose complained.

"I just love watching you squirm." The new guy commented.

"Well, better make sure we get payed." Deathstroke said.

He took a pistol from his belt and aimed it at my chest. BANG! BANG!

Everything went black.

AN: Well, I'm going to go and find a bunker to hide in. At least until I finish the next chapter. And as always, thank you for reading!