Time played its tricks again. Kyle woke up on the morning of his trial and wondered how the hell he had gotten this far. The hordes of the media had turned his home into a no man's land. He had spent the past few nights crashing at the home of his friend Terry Berg. Terry's parents didn't believe that Kyle was guilty. He was grateful for that. Terry also looked a lot better these days. He still had a lot of scars from when he was attacked, and he still had to see a physiotherapist. But he had recovered much of his cheerful attitude.

"This is what you do," Terry was saying, "When you get up on the stand you get all tearful, look the Judge in the eye and you…"

"Terry, Matt's a professional. He knows what he's doing" Terry shook his head.

"I don't know, I try to help you and you'd rather listen to a lawyer"

"Of course, all lawyers are evil in your eyes"

"What? Are you saying that you have a lawyer with a soul?"

Kyle laughed at him as he poured out some orange juice. Terry picked up a small box.

"Anyway, you want to look smart in court. So I got you this" he handed it over. Kyle opened the box. He looked at what was inside. He looked at Terry. He looked back at the box. A stupid grin split his face in two. Both Kyle and Terry laughed till they couldn't breathe.

"If I wear that I'll be given the death penalty" Kyle gasped at last

"Aww, and I won't be there to see it!" Terry said

"Why, aren't you coming?"

"Nah, I've got physiotherapy today. I may be gone some time" One of Terry's new favorite pastimes was entertaining anyone who would listen with tales about his physiotherapist, an Amazonian built woman by the name of Yolanda, who he insisted had been born male.

Kyle only half listened as Terry told him the story. He knew it off by heart anyway. Something else was bugging him. Reporters were only part of the reason that Kyle had decided to stay with Terry. The rest of the reason was Bullseye. Since Matt had told him about the hitman he had mentally gone through everyone he knew who lived nearby. Most people were more than capable of looking after themselves but Terry had already been attacked and almost killed once. Kyle didn't think he could bear it if anything else happened. Terry grinned.

"Seriously, you won't need it if Matt is half as good as you say, but good luck. I'll try to get there if I can"

"Thanks Terry. That's all I needed to know"

-

A car was waiting outside. The man inside was watching the building. He picked up his phone.

"This is Gerrins, he's leaving now" Gerrins listened to the other speaker

"No, the kids not going with him"

Gerrins listened to the instructions that he was given.

-

It was a different courtroom than the one where Kyle's preliminary hearing had taken place. Kyle recognised Bruce Wayne watching, as well as Clark Kent, Wally West and several other JLA members incognito. He didn't recognize any faces on the jury, nut he hadn't expected to. Matt had told him about the selection process that the court used. He sat feeling awkward in a suit, between Matt and Foggy. Everyone stood as the Judge entered. She was a stately looking woman who looked to be in her fifties. Not at all what Kyle had been expecting. Had Matt mentioned her? Kyle thought about it; he had. This was Judge Sheridan, why had he not been paying attention? As he sat back down Kyle wondered if there was anything else he had missed. The Prosecution began his statement.

"Ladies and Gentlemen of the Jury, we are all aware that the late Mr. Edward Barret was a pillar of the community. His work for our community will be remembered for a very long time by many people in this and in many other cities. His murder was shocking and terrible. But we are here today to see to it that his murderer does not walk free. It is my intention to prove before you all, beyond any doubt that this man, Mr. Kyle Rayner, is responsible for this appalling crime and that he should be punished accordingly. I have evidence from the scene and eyewitness accounts that will show this to be true. Thank you" He sat down. Now it was Matt's turn

"Members of the Jury, we are here today because a crime has been committed, but it is not the crime that is being judged today. The untimely death of Mr. Barret and the implication of Mr. Rayner are all small parts of a bigger picture. It is my intention to bring this crime to light and to show to you all just how far the persons responsible are willing to go in order to pervert the cause of Justice"

"Objection, your Honour, Mr. Murdock is talking about conspiracy theories that have nothing to do with this trial" the Prosecution called out.

"I am not trying to make light of Mr. Barret's death. My partner and I have discovered evidence that suggests that Mr. Barret's security accepted a bribe prior to the assassination. This evidence has been submitted to the court and is available for inspection"

"Objection is duly noted. Mr. Murdock, you may continue" said Judge Sheridan.

"Thank you, your Honour. Kyle Rayner is guilty of no more than being in the wrong place at the wrong time. And based on nothing more than circumstantial evidence we have put the wrong man on trial" Matt said. A whisper went up from the jury members.

"Alright, I am calling for a short recess while the jury has a look at the evidence that the Defense has brought. We will reconvene shortly" said Judge Sheridan

-

There was a waiting area just outside the courthouse. Kyle had decided that he should probably stay nearby. He was on the third floor and could see the road clearly from the window. There were still a few reporters milling hopefully around but the majority had left pretty soon after everyone had arrived. By the looks of things there were a few TV crews filming in front of the courthouse. It was arrogant to think that they were all here because of him, who knew what other cases were being seen today? So far he had spoken to just about everyone from the JLA who had come to support him. What confused him was that John Stewart was in full Green Lantern uniform. He knew that Foggy had been babbling about getting a superhero to testify, and he had known that John was coming today yet it hadn't occurred to him to put the two together. Foggy had probably said 'Green Lantern' at some point but it was more than likely that Kyle had missed it. God alone knew that he had more than enough to worry about. Major Force had been far too quiet recently, and while Kyle didn't know much about how Bullseye worked he could see that Matt was uncomfortable with the relative quiet since the hospital incident.

-

On the courthouse steps a young news anchor told the cameraman about what she was calling 'The trial of the century'. Bullseye, who was lazing idly by an old car on the corner, wondered just how many trials of the century there were in any given decade. He wasn't wearing his mask today, but he wore a black woolen hat that covered his forehead where he had branded a target into the skin. At the moment the average passer by wouldn't suspect him of anything more suspicious than loitering. He was starting to get impatient. That flake Gerrins was taking his time.

-

The court reconvened. The look on Judge Sheridan's face was not a good one.

"I have reviewed the evidence that Mr. Murdock has submitted and I must say that these are very serious allegations. May I ask as to your source?" she said evenly. Foggy looked up from the papers he was arranging.

"If I may, your Honour, the evidence in question was obtained with the help of Green Lantern of the Justice League. I have asked him here to testify" Kyle glanced at John, then a Matt. He seemed agitated. Something had caught Matt's attention, something like the sound of glass breaking. Something was wrong.

"Very well, I'd like to begin with…" Judge Sheridan stopped suddenly and sagged backwards into her chair. A huge shard of broken glass stuck out of her throat at a hideous angle. A moment later a man in a government suit burst through the door, wielding a gun and dragging a hostage. Kyle jumped out of his chair. The man had Terry.

"All right! Nobody moves and our friend here doesn't get hurt!" he shouted just before an emerald green vice squeezed the barrel of the gun shut and he was lifted off the ground.

"You have got to be one of the stupidest people I have ever met" John said casually to the gunman as he lowered Terry to the ground. The event finally started to register in the minds of the people watching. Some people ran from the room, others stayed because they didn't know what else to do. Matt cornered Kyle.

"Bullseye was behind this. I don't know what his game is but it can't be good"

"Matt, he went after Terry!" Kyle looked pale

"I know, I think he did that to try to lure you out" Matt warned him

"Well it worked" Kyle pulled away and ran from the courthouse, chasing after the assassin.