Authors Note
So here's the first chapter to my Alt Universe version of the third season of Young Justice. I'm LOVING what they are doing with Outsiders for the most part, but I've been meaning to get my own version out there since 2013 and... better late than never, right?
Young Justice Metagene
3X1
New Year, New Squad
The Watchtower
January 6th 2017, 11:11 UTC
B-07: Tigress.
B-18: Lagoon Boy.
B-27: Bunker.
B-29: Bombshell.
As their names were listed off by the computerized voice, each member of the Team stepped through the Zeta Beams and into the war room of the Watchtower. Tigress was at the head of the pack, striding confidently towards the briefing area where Aqualad and Batgirl were waiting for them, with Lagoon Boy only a step behind her. The Atlantean Boy's expression was solemn, unlike Bunkers, who had a large, excited smile on the visible lower half of his face. Dressed in various shades of purple, Bunker had an energetic pep in his step, just happy to be there. The final member of the squad, the silver skinned tank named Bombshell, had a calm air about her and kept her eyes forward as they approached the two leaders of the Team.
"Thank you all for coming on such short notice." Aqualad greeted the squad, giving them each a nod in turn. "I understand how frustrating it can be to be called in to carry out a mission on your day off."
"Its fine mi amigo." Bunker was the first to reply, waving his gloved hand dismissively. "I've been itching for some action all week."
"It's not like I've got anything better to do." Bombshell shrugged, folding her arms across her chest as she spoke.
Tigress and Lagoon Boy remained silent, the vigilante standing patiently in silence while the Atlantean just stared at in his predecessors direction, his large red eyes appearing to look straight through the leaders of the Team. Batgirl seemed to noticed this immediately, sharing a look with Aqualad but neither of them said anything on the issue. That was a conversation for later, out of the earshot of the others.
"As you're all aware, Lex Luthor will be holding a press conference in two hours in Metropolis. It has been rumored for several weeks that this conference is to throw his hat into the ring for the presidency and he announced this morning via social media that the conference will be open to the public." Aqualad began, activating several holographic screens behind him that displayed pictures of Lex Luthor, Mercy Graves and the current President.
"Usually, somebody would have already been elected to take over from President Ross last November, but due to the failed Reach invasion and its fallout, it was decided that the elections would take place this November instead." Batgirl continued, displaying two more pictures behind her. "Olivia Marsdin is the Democratic candidate and Senator Dale is who the Republicans have put forward. According to the rumors, Luthor plans to run on an independent platform."
"Why would Luthor do that? Independents rarely win." Tigress questioned with a frown.
"We're not sure yet, but we should have a better idea tonight." Another screen appeared as Aqualad spoke, this one displaying the faces of Robin, Kid Flash, Blue Beetle and Wondergirl. "During Luthors press conference, Gamma will infiltrate LexCorp and hack into Luthors system. At the very least, we should gain some understanding towards his motivations, perhaps even a look into what the Lights next move is."
"Thats all well and good, but what do you need us for, Kaldur?" Everybody looked at Lagoon Boy as he spoke, his tone displaying an edge of irritation.
"The four of you will be attending Luthors conference. Despite the fact that we know of Luthors involvement with the Light, we cannot simply leave the Secretary-General of the United Nations unprotected, considering the amount of enemies he has accrued over the years." Aqualad let out a soft sigh before continuing. "Your task will be to ensure that no harm comes to him, and to also contact Gamma when Luthor leaves the conference."
"How exactly am I supposed to just walk into a gathering of Humans? And what about Amy?" Lagoon Boy's attitude was clearly starting to grate on everybody, Tigress particularly, with the blonde biting her lip to hold back a remark.
"Zatanna has prepared a charm that will disguise your true appearance to everybody, including those who are aware that it's you." Batgirl cut in, stepping forward and offering a small, silver bracelet chain to the Atlantean. "It will activate as soon as you put it on, and deactivate when you take it off."
"Right." Lagoon Boy said, stuffing the chain into the pocket of his shorts as Batgirl stepped over to hand Bombshell a similar chain.
"Remember, only reveal yourselves if things go downhill. Luthor has been looking for any excuse to restrict our activity recently, with the rise in Meta-Human related crimes." Aqualad looked around at everybody before speaking once more. "I'll let you all go to prepare yourselves for the conference. La'gann, could you stay behind please?"
Silence immediately fell over the room, Lagoon Boy's shoulders tensing as Artemis and Bombshell immediately headed for the Zeta Tubes. Bunker paused, eyeing his friend in concern but soon followed after the female members of his squad upon catching Aqualads disproving gaze pointed towards him.
B-07. Tigress.
B-29. Bombshell.
B-27. Bunker.
The war room remained silent for several moments, the tension thickening with every second that passed. Aqualad and Batgirl exchanged a long look before the leader of the Team cleared his throat.
"Is everything alright La'gann?" The question was spoken with genuine concern, Aqualads eyes wide and responsive, looking for any change in the males demeanor.
"Why wouldn't it be?" Lagoon Boy countered, his shoulders still tensed and his eyes narrowed. lips curled downwards in a scowl.
"You know we're here to help, right?" Batgirl tried, stepping forward to place a hand on Lagoon Boy's shoulder. "If somethings happened, you can tell us. But if you don't feel comfortable doing that, I'm sure Dinah would be happy to make room in her schedule to have a chat."
"It's nothing." Was Lagoon boys only response, raising a hand to brush Batgirls from his shoulder.
"Queen Mera said you haven't been attending lessons with her for the last few weeks." Aqualad pressed, a contemplative frown crossing his handsome features. "And Garth informed me that you haven't joined him for patrol for over a month. Though, this is the first time I've witnessed a profound change in your temperament."
"I said it's nothing!" La'gann exclaimed, taking several steps backwards, hands clenched into fists. "Neptunes Beard!"
"La'gann, we're only-" Batgirl began, but was cut off as the Atlantean male interrupted her.
"I don't care! When I want to be cross examined, I'll come see you." Turning on his heel, Lagoon Boy stormed towards the Zeta Tubes. "Enough of this. I've got a mission."
B-18. Lagoon Boy.
Aqualad and Batgirl stared at the beams as Lagoon boy disappeared into them, the two Heroes both appearing to be confused, as well as concerned. There was silence while the two digested what had just occurred, before Aqualad turned to the screens and keyed in a specific frequency. After a short wait, the face of Wonder Woman appeared on the screen.
"Watchtower, this is Wonder Woman." She greeted, suddenly jumping backwards and offering a roundhouse kick to the face of a masked thug.
"This is Aqualad." The Atlantean raised an eyebrow as Wonder Woman executed a perfect backflip while dropping her communicator, landing lightly and raising her free arm to deflect a rain of bullets with her gauntlet. Moments later, she picked up the communicator back up, backhanding a thug attempting to blitz her. "I do not wish to disturb you."
"I'm almost finished here." Wonder Woman replied, kicking a sizable piece of rubble in the direction of several more thugs as she drew her sword with her free hand. "Do you need me to come to the Tower?"
"Please." Aqualad nodded as Wonder Woman dispatched a thug with a swing of her blade. "There is a situation with one of the members of the Team that I believe you are best suited to handle."
The Daily Planet
January 6th, 2017. 1250 UTC.
The street before the entrance to the Daily Planet had been converted into a makeshift assembly point, with a stage set up at the bottom of the steps complete with a podium featuring the LexCorp insignia. Much of the surrounding two blocks had been cordoned off and the area was booming with people of all ages, some of them reporters, others rampant Luthor supporters and even the occasional person who just wanted to be involved with what was going on. Well dressed security guards surrounded the perimeter, with Mercy Graves likely somewhere among the crowd. Cameras were set up to cover every angle of the stage.
La'gann waited in line to get through to the conference area, catching a glimpse of his Human form in a nearby window. His skin appeared to be fair, his eyes now the shape of a Humans with light grey irises and he even had blonde hair that was stylized to look wild in order to cover up for the fact that his head actually had fins atop it. He'd gone to the liberty of actually testing how realistic the illusion was earlier, running his hands through the blonde locks to find that he actually felt hair. Whatever magic Zatanna had worked on the charm, it was impressive indeed.
He glanced towards a building across the street where he knew Artemis was likely set up just in case something went down. While all members of the Arrow family were skilled in close quarters combat, it was important for them to have somebody who could see the bigger picture, especially with so many civilians present. Things could go bad very quickly. Ahead of him, he could see Amy shuffling slowly forward, her silver skin replaced by a slightly darker shade than La'gann's own false human flesh. Miguel was nowhere to be seen, at least until he felt an arm drape completely across his shoulders. Letting out a mildly irritated sigh, La'gann took in his friend. As usual, the boy was wearing purple, this time in the form of a half shirt called a crop top. If Miguel were an Atlantean, there might be some advantage to having his midriff exposed while underwater, but on land, La'gann truly could not understand the tactical advantage of the garment.
"Hola amigo." Miguel said, casually leaning into La'gann. The Atlantean had become accustomed to his friends hands on approach to life, so just shifted slightly to brace for the extra weight of the Human. "How are you feeling?"
"Why is everyone suddenly obsessed with how I am?" La'gann grumbled, stepping forward as the line began to shift.
"Sounds like there's a reason that we should be worried." Miguel countered, causing La'gann to purse his lips and remain silent. Chuckling lightly, Miguel squeezed his friends shoulders. "I've never seen you pout before. Definitely a moment that needs to be saved."
Before La'gann could react, Miguel had taken out his phone and snapped a photo of the moment, causing Miguel to erupt into a short fit of excited laughter as he looked at the picture. Out of curiosity, La'gann looked at the photo, a small smile tugging at his lips as he examined his expression in the picture. Even he had to admit it was a humorous moment. The two of them exchanged in small talk as they moved towards the front of the line, eventually being let into the conference area. Within minutes, they found Amy and the three of them decided to move towards the front of the crowd so that they were as close as possible to the person they were supposed to protect. As they reached the area of the crowd they wanted to be in, all three members of the Team glanced to the left as the crowd suddenly parted and a series of security guards stepped towards them. Out of the midst of the guards, Lex Luthor stepped out, a look of amusement on his face.
"Hello there." Luthor greeted them, eyes darting between their faces before settling on La'ganns, leaning forward to speak in his ear. "Using sorcery to disguise yourselves is a sound play my young friend, however I have developed countermeasures towards those wishing to use the old magicks against me, though I cannot say for certain which members of the Leagues little covert ops team that you are." Luthor paused, placing a hand on La'ganns shoulder. "Why are you here?"
"Your protection, believe it or not." La'gann growled, refraining from tearing Luthors offending hand off.
"It's adorable that you believe that the three of are capable of protecting me better than Mercy can. But I won't look this gift horse in the mouth" Luthor dropped his hand from La'ganns shoulder, rising back to his full height. "I hope you enjoy the conference."
With that Luthor turned around and headed back behind the stage where Mercy awaited him, alongside several other people that La'gann couldn't place. As he watched the billionaire retreat, Miguel shook his head, glaring in the bald mans direction.
"Cabron."
Security Office, LexCorp.
January 6th, 2017. 1312 UTC.
"... All I'm saying is, I don't think the Justice League is that bad."
A debate was going on between three members of the Lexcorp security team, a way for them to distract from the fact that they were stuck on camera duty in one of the most secure buildings on the planet, on a Friday no less. Two of them were seated at a lengthy desk before a series of screens that covered the entire wall, showing each and every room on the upper floors of the tower. As usual, nothing out of the ordinary was happening, so the guards were slacking off a little.
"You can't be serious." One of the guards stated with a scowl, the only one of the three guards to not be seated at the desk. Instead he was leaning against the opposing wall near the only door that allowed for the entrance or exit of the space. "Half of the League are freaking aliens, and the rest of them are Meta-Humans that were created by them!"
"Aquaman and Wonder Woman definitely aren't aliens, and they were around long before the Reach showed up." A second guard countered, shaking his head. "Besides, Meta-Humans are still technically Human."
"And everybody knows Batman and Green Arrow are just normal people." The third guard finished, stifling a yawn. "Do we really have to argue about the League again? Look at all the good they do Andrew."
"Tell that to the people they've left with mountains of property damage, or with enormous medical bills to foot just because some reckless 'hero' didn't look before punching a criminal through a wall." Andrew, the standing guard, snapped back. "The League needs to be kept under the jurisdiction of the U.N so that their threat level can be properly evaluated and dealt with accordingly."
"Do you really think the U.N can 'deal with' somebody like Superman? How about Martian Manhunter? Those hawk people?" The second guard rolled his eyes, briefly checking over the cameras. "We shouldn't be looking to start something with people that could level countries if they wanted to and just be happy they are dedicated to protecting us. You're way too paranoid about this."
As soon as those words left the guards mouth, a vent in the ceiling flew open and several small pellets fell from it. As soon as they hit the ground, the pellets produced enough smoke to instantly blanket the room. The two guards at the desk stood, fumbling for their weapons while Andrew did the same across the room. Something else dropped from the vent, dashing towards Andrew and dispatching him with a swift punch to the face that caused the mans head to snap backwards, hitting the wall. Within seconds, the shape was upon the other two guards, taking them out with a barrage of punches to one and a swift kick to the others temple. As the smoke began to clear, the newcomer moved to the desk, inserting a USB into the system that would force the footage into a loop.
"Cameras are down." Robin said across his teams radio frequency. "We have about fifteen minutes until it becomes obvious that we've hijacked the system."
"They'll be too busy dealing with a power outage." The voice of Blue Beetle came back, followed by the sounds of a struggle. "Should be out soon."
"I'll head up to Luthors office." With the virus in the system, Robin took his USB back and headed for the door. "W.G. You in position?"
"Yup." Wonder Girl replied. "The guards are going to have to get through me before they can even attempt to get up there."
"Remember to keep yourself disguised as one of them. We can't afford to let Luthor get his hands on footage of you throwing some of his men around." Robin warned before cutting the communication and heading out into the hallway, making a beeline for the elevator."
The Daily Planet.
January 6th, 2017. 1320 UTC.
"As many of you know, I have dedicated the last six months of my life towards bringing stability to the world in the wake of the attempted global takeover initiated by the Reach." Luthor had been talking for over twenty minutes, beginning with updates of security updates for the United States, as well as his negotiation of a ceasefire between South and North Rhelasia to end the short lived civil war that had broken out three months ago. "It has been a difficult path for me but a gratifying one."
The audience had an overwhelming positive reaction to his words, bouts of applause and cheering coming from some of the people in attendance. Miguel, La'gann and Amy shared a look of disapproval, with La'gann rolling his eyes. The politics of the Surface World were so frustrating to him and he had noticed that much of their games were fought with silver tongues rather than weapons.
"I am not a humble man. I am not some modest bystander. I am a proud, hardworking citizen of the United States, much like those of you who have come out today." This remark earned louder cheers. "My time working as the Secretary-General of the United Nations has given me the chance to see things from a new perspective. We cannot afford to continue to remain in our current stalemate. The world around us continues to move onward. Visitors from outer space have visited, caused commotion and threatened our entire species. And what has President Ross done in that time?" Luthor paused for effect, giving the crowd long enough to look at one another before leaning in to hear his next words. "I'll tell you what he's done. Absolutely nothing. Where was Peter Ross when the Reach threatened to destroy our entire planet? Where has Peter Ross been while mentally unstable Meta-Humans have risen up to threaten our friends and family?"
The mood of the crowd had changed as they absorbed what Luthor said. Some people had begun to leave, obviously not agreeing with his words, but for the most part, those assembled were getting quite riled up in agreement with Luthor. They were growing progressively louder, leaving the three Team members to tense up.
"I have resigned from my position as Secretary-General." Luthor spoke up once more, earning some boo's. In response, he simply raised a single, calm hand, causing the crowd to near instantly quite down. "I have done this, because I knew that something needed to be done. Somebody had to make a stand in order to ensure the continuing security of our great nation. And that somebody is me." Behind him, several screens suddenly lit up, with a picture of the man and the words 'Vote Luthor' underneath. "Today, I am announcing that I will be running for the position of the President of the United States."
The crowd roared in excitement, a Luthor chant breaking out as the man himself merely stood there, a smirk appearing on his face. However, the smirk dropped moments later as somebody leaped high into the air above the crowd, electricity bursting at their fingertips. With a bout of laughter among the sudden cries of panic, the figure sent a wave of lightning towards Luthor. Thinking quickly, La'gann jumped into its path, activating his Atlantean runes to lessen the pain as the blast impacted against him. Knocked towards the stage, he corrected himself midair to land on his feet beside Luthor, tearing off his chain and stuffing it into his pocket, revealing his true form to everybody assembled.
"An Atlantean huh?" Livewire cackled, gathering more energy into her palms as both Miguel and Amy revealed themselves as well. "It doesn't matter how many of you there are! You won't save Luthor!"
C.E.O Office, LexCorp.
January 6th, 2017. 1329 UTC.
Robin entered Luthors office without wasting a second, dashing over to the large, mahogany desk situated in the center of the room. Slipping the USB into the hard drive, he waited as the device hacked into the system. It didn't take long and soon he was staring at Luthors desktop. Pressing a button on his gauntlet, Robin caused the drive to begin to download everything from Luthors hard drive, knowing it was best for him to look over everything from a save place later, rather than trying to pour through the documents when he was on a time limit. The power had been down for five minutes, which meant that it was only a matter of time before somebody reached the office, even with Wonder Girl distracting them.
"Robin?" Kid Flashes voice came across the comn, sounding almost breathless. Strange. "We've got a bit of a problem."
"Yea- He's behind you!" Blue Beetle chimed in.
Before Robin could respond to his Team members, the door opened and Robins blood immediately ran cold. With an extremely casual attitude, Deathstroke stepped into the office, closing the door behind him softly before turning his full attention to the young vigilante. An amused gleam shined in the assassins only eye as he studied the younger male.
"Sorry, am I interrupting?" Deathstroke asked sarcastically, tilting his head to the side. "You didn't actually think Luthor would just leave his office unprotected, did you kid?"
"By the looks of things, he probably could have poured a little more money into his security." Robin stated, his fear hidden behind his sass. He glanced at the computer, finding that the download was only at ten percent. He was going to have to stall Deathstroke. "I'm not alone."
"Oh, I know. My associates are dealing with your little friends." Deathstroke replied, eyeing Robin as the young man stepped out from behind the desk. "You're not actually going to try and fight me are you?"
Robin didn't reply, throwing several birdarangs at Deathstroke, who ducked to the side instantly. Dashing towards the much larger male, Robin leaped high into the air, coming down with a solid kick meant for his chest, but Deathstroke caught him. With one hand on Robins angle and the other just below his knee, Deathstroke swung the young man threw the air and tossed him towards the windows, placing himself firmly between the vigilante and Luthors desk. Robin managed to land on his feet, letting out a slightly frustrated breath.
"Using gravity to increase your striking force huh? Not a bad idea when it comes to somebody who hasn't been trained to handle it." Deathstroke cracked his knuckles before raising his hands before himself. "What else ya got?"
With narrowed eyes, Robin closed the distance once more. His first punch towards Deathstrokes chest was batted aside, with his follow up, a roundhouse kick meant for the assassins shoulder, was avoided entirely. Taking a smoke pellet, Robin threw it directly in Deathstrokes face, creating a sudden smokescreen, and threw himself forward in an attempted rising knee towards the mans chin. He found nothing however, instead feeling a hand on his shoulder that spun him to the left and threw off the young mans momentum. Deathstroke slammed his palm into Robins chest, winding the young man, following it up with a solid chop to the throat and finally a backhand to his cheek. Sent hurtling, Robin landed hard on his shoulder, but rolled back up to his feet, ignoring the burning sensations coming from his respiratory system and focusing on getting air in any way he could. His cheek was already swelling and he could taste blood in his mouth.
"Using a smokescreen against somebody trained by the League of Shadows? C'mon." Letting out a harsh chuckle as the smoke dissipated, Deathstroke shook his head. "At this point, I feel like I'm smacking a newborn puppy around and it's really not satisfying."
Scowling, Robin took a device from his belt and snapped his arm out, the device expanding into a bo staff which he spun twice before leaping forth once more. This time, he swung towards Deathstrokes shoulder, before shifting his momentum and striking out at the mans opposing knee instead, which managed to actually catch the assassin. Immediately, Robin followed up by planting the end of the staff in the floor, swinging himself upwards to catch Deathstroke in the face with a kick, before he spun rapidly and slammed the staff into the assassins own helmeted cheek, leaving a dent in the mask. Not wanting to press his luck, Robin broke off, moving backwards until he felt the desk behind him.
"There we go." Deathstroke chuckled, stretching the injured leg out and shaking his head as if to shake off the damage imparted upon his face. "If you're not strong or fast enough to overwhelm your opponent, grab something that can make up the difference."
Glancing at his gauntlet, Robin seen that the download was at forty percent now and weighed his options. He could continue to press his luck with Deathstroke, who clearly wasn't trying yet, and get more information. Or he could take what he had and escape to nurse his own injuries and fight another day. Apparently, Deathstroke didn't want to wait and drew one of his handguns, firing off several bullets which Robin managed to avoid by flipping backwards over the desk and using it for cover. Grabbing the USB as he found cover, Robin slipped it into a pouch on his belt and winced as he heard several more rounds hit the desk.
"We both know how this is going to go kid. Come out and take it with some dignity." Deathstroke taunted as a bright red light suddenly appeared in front of Robin, a young man dressed in black and a skull shaped mask stepping out.
"I'd listen to Slade if I were you." The unknown young man said, his mask disguising his voice.
Robin threw himself to the side and out of the cover of the desk as the skull tossed a shuriken at where his face had been. This gave Deathstroke opportunity, which he used to shoot Robin in the left shoulder and caused the vigilante to drop his staff as the pain tore through his new wound. Forcing himself up, Robin made a mad dash for the window, ducking out of the way of bullets as best he could, feeling one graze across his cheek. Without hesitating, Robin used his free hand to throw several small explosives at the reinforced windows, the resulting explosion shattering the glass. Robin dove through the now empty space and fell several stories as bullets sailed past him before shooting out his grappling hook and swinging through the window on an opposing building. As he smashed through the glass, the employees of the building let out exclamations, throwing themselves out of the way. Robin impacted a cubicle hard, sliding down to the floor and groaning in pain. Activating his comn, he spoke once more, wincing as pain began to overwhelm him.
"Watchtower, lock onto my location. Need an immediate extraction."
"Extraction is en route Robin. Hold on." Barbara's voice came back. There was a pause. "Are the others with you? Their trackers have gone dark."
"No." Robin gritted his teeth, turning his head to look over at LexCorp. "The mission is a failure."
The Daily Planet.
January 6th, 2017. 1342 UTC.
Lagoon Boy let out a cry of pain as yet another stream of electricity slammed into him, his resistance nearly completely torn apart at this point. The fight had drawn on for far longer than it should have, with Tigress joining them pretty quickly. Unfortunately, Livewire was a Superman level threat, with abilities that were suited to going toe to toe with the Man of Steel himself. She was more than capable of comfortably taking them on. Bombshell flew into the air, unleashing a barrage of plasma blasts at Livewire, who simply phased through them by transforming into pure electricity before sending Bombshell to the ground with a barrage of her own. The crowd had been evacuated, with Bunker using his light constructs to defend civilians from the fallout.
"My, you're not doing very well, are you?" Luthor appeared at Lagoon Boys side, helping the Atlantean to his feet.
"What in Neptunes name are you doing!?" Lagoon boy demanded, stepping in front of Luthor protectively. "Get out of here!"
"I think I'll stay." Luthor replied non-nonchalantly. "Mercy, get the young ladies attention."
The half android bodyguard unveiled her arm canon, firing several precise shots at Livewire, who dodged each one before tearing towards them in a rage. Taking his phone from his pocket, Luthor waited until Livewire was mere feet in front of him before pressing a button. Instantly, two small canons emerged from the ground and fired powerful streams of water at Livewire, catching her off guard. The villain screamed out in pain as she began to short circuit, before falling to the ground defeated as the water ceased its streams. Drawing an inhibator collar from his jacket, Luthor offered it to Lagoon Boy who simply glared at him. With a shrug, Luthor carefully moved to stand over Livewire and placed the collar on her, the device activating instantly.
"The poor, deluded girl had been sending threats to my office for weeks. I cannot believe she'd actually think I'd come here unprepared." Luthor remarked, glancing at Lagoon Boy, Bombshell, Bunker and Tigress as they all grouped up nearby. "My thanks for your little show. I'm sure it will go a long way towards showing the public what a threat to their safety Meta-Humans actually are."
"They'll see us saving you." Tigress glared, only to receive a smug look from the billionaire.
"My dear, tonight news will show the Atlantean boy leaping into the air to start a fight with Livewire immediately after I announced my candidacy." Straightening his jacket, Luthor continued. "The wider public will also see me bravely evacuating civilians and putting a stop to the threat once everybody was clear. Your little team has no official connection to the League and therefore will be depicted as nothing more than undocumented Meta-Humans causing a scene." Sirens began to close in and Luthor offered them all a meaningful look. "I would suggest you all run along now. As I understand it, the respectable Metropolis Police Force will be well within their rights to detain you, should they find you here when they arrive."
C.E.O. Office, Lexcorp.
January 6th, 2017. 1342 UTC.
Deathstroke pressed a button on the underside of Luthors desk, activating shutters to fall from the ceilings to block the windows, and the recently vacated windowsill, while also causing the door to lock. Moments later, six holographic screens appeared above the desk, though only four of them were occupied. Vandal Savage and Klarion the Witch Boy were notably absent, having been so since the failed Reach Invasion of 2016. Of those, two present were founding members in Ras Al Ghul and Queen Bee, while the other two were relatively new additions to the organization.
"I take it things went well?" Ras was the first to speak.
"As well as they could have. Robin has about half of the information, but also the little gift Luthor left for him." Deathstroke replied, pulling his mask off and rubbing his cheek. "The kid is pretty good, nothing special though. He'll be on the bench for a while"
"And what of his companions?" Queen Bee said, raising an expectant eyebrow.
"Boxed up and about to be shipped off to the Smallville facility." The male with the skull mask said, leaning against the wall with his arms folded. "Want me to stick around and help with the transit?"
"Your services are required elsewhere, Red X." One of the newcomers said, a male with a profoundly intense voice. "We need you to collect a pair of specimens in Markovia."
"Markovia?" Queen Bee frowned. "I could send a member of Onslaught to retrieve them."
"This operation will require a little more subtly than your brutes can offer." The male chuckled.
"I'll be off then." Red X cut in, clearly not wanting to deal with the rising tension between the two members of the Light. Without waiting for a response, he disappeared in a flash of red light.
"It's very dangerous letting him run around with that tech." Deathstroke said once the younger costumed male was gone. "He essentially has unrestricted access to any location on the planet, including the places you four call home."
"The boy has his uses, but make no mistake Wilson, he is expendable." Ras explained. "At the end of the day, he's a means to an end."
"Though at the very least, he's quite the trial run for our project." The male with the intense voice added, glancing towards the final screen where a fair skinned, handsome young man was depicted. "You're awfully quiet."
"I have nothing to add at this very moment." The young man stated blandly.
"Indeed." Queen Bee smirked, pausing for a moment before turning her full attention to Deathstroke. "We'll leave the transport of those Meta-Humans to you. The League will likely send another Team to rescue their little sidekick. The hunt should keep them sufficiently distracted while we prepare for the initiation of phase one."
"As you wish." Deathstroke nodded. "Do you want me to capture any more of them while we're playing?"
"There is no need." Ras waved his hand dismissively. "We have everything we require for now. Those so called heroes will be utterly helpless to stop what is to come."