Check
A simple question is asked over a complex game. Everything here is speculation, but certainly possible, no?
"Check," the French-accented voice pronounced, its owners intense eyes gazing across the board at his opponent, whose expression remained ever unreadable behind her catlike mask. When she smoothly countered his move, however, in the process lining herself up to capture at least one of his pieces in the next few turns, Monsieur Mallah paused. His eyes narrowed, and again he found himself studying the enigmatic assassin known only as Cheshire. "Tell me again why you wish to pursue employ with the Brotherhood," he said- in perfect Vietnamese, Cheshire noted- while mulling over his next move.
"The money is good, isn't it?" she replied, gaze never leaving her opponent, while she toyed idly with a captured bishop, walking it between her fingers. With some curiosity she noted that this game had not been set up on the chessboard in the middle of the room- that one held some special importance to the Brain's thought processes, or so Monsieur Mallah had informed her. Rather, they played off to one side, while the Brain watched from nearby, having taken some interest in the young Vietnamese girl.
"Would you a-gree that she plays well, Mon-sieur Mal-lah?" the jar-resident genius inquired in his mechanical voice, sending a small shiver up Cheshire's spine- the synthesized tones were something she simply could not get used to, whether they spoke English or French. The fixed, evil rictus of the skull design and the knobby, mechanical nature of the vessel only unnerved her further, and she repressed her innate desire to be horrified by the mockery of life and death that watched her every move.
"I would, Master," the gorilla answered, before making his own move, taking Cheshire's rook in exchange for his other bishop. Again he found himself in contemplation, studying the board carefully. The young assassin was not merely good- she was very good, possibly an equal even to his Master and consequently slightly superior to himself. It was a thought that unnerved him, as he held a not-insignificant rank in worldwide Correspondence leagues, under the name of Wolfram Shaddix- 3rd place under only his Master, who used the handle 'FranceDalek' and a legendary competitor who called himself Demon's Head. With a small 'hmph' he made his next move, sliding his queen into position to threaten Cheshire's remaining rook and by extension the king positioned two squares diagonally behind it, leaving the rook unable to move. What he had not expected was for her to willingly sacrifice a knight to remove the threat, given her reliance on them earlier in the game, and when his turn came back around he found himself in something of a predicament. He growled as he found himself unable to reach a satisfactory solution and ultimately settling for capturing the offending knight.
"Oh, Monsieur Mallah. If you don't mind my asking, what happened to the Brain's body? I'm curious." Again the gorilla paused, unsure of how to respond. "Surely no one willingly encases their mind in a vessel so restrictive?" That much was an accurate assessment, at least, but still Mallah hesitated to answer, finally turning to his Master and simply asking for a proper response- in French, so that Cheshire could not follow the conversation. After some discussion, he turned back to his opponent, sighing heavily. "It is not a story I enjoy discussing. Some years ago, he was in Vietnam in search of xenothium-infused iron required for one of our machines. A rich vein lay under a village that had been heavily damaged by American forces during the war and never properly restored. While there- shortly after purchasing the land we required, in fact- he had the misfortune of stepping on a buried mine. Were it not for a skilled doctor present at the time, he would not have survived at all. As it was, well… you see how badly he was injured, no?"
"Indeed. Hmmm... do you suppose he knew a woman by the name of Min Nguyen?" As she left the question hanging, she made her next move on the board, her now-free rook sliding across to threaten Mallah's king. "Check, by the way." The gorilla hmphed once again, moving a pawn to intercept, before turning once again to inquire of his Master. Ultimately the response was not the one that Cheshire had wished to hear. "Are there not many in Vietnam who would have such a name, child?" he responded, moving one of his own rooks to threaten Cheshire's king once more. She sighed softly, before moving her own queen to capture the rook and return Mallah's king to check. Again the gorilla made a sound of displeasure, before retreating his king by a rank and a file, noting with dismay that she was clearly moving in for the kill.
"I suppose that is so, yes. But I believe we have gotten off the matter at hand. If you will have me, I would be glad to fulfill any role asked of me for the right price." Again her gaze settled on Mallah, while on the board her remaining knight moved in to put the gorilla's king in check once more. It wouldn't be long now, she mused- two more turns at most. Indeed, Mallah's frustrated grunt indicated the success of her tactics, before his deep voice replied to her statement. "Mercenary through and through, mmm? Very well. If my Master consents, we welcome you, Cheshire."
"In-deed. Wel-come to the Bro-ther-hood, Jade N-gu-yen," the Brain pronounced at last, startling Cheshire both with his knowledge of her true name and his own ability to speak Vietnamese. As she made her final move, she whipped off her mask, her eyes staring into the Brain's optical sensors, gazing curiously at the being residing in the jar. "Just who are you really?" she asked, before putting her mask in place once more and offering both Mallah and Brain a small bow. "I leave you two in peace, then. And Monsieur Mallah… checkmate." With those words, she leapt off without a sound, disappearing into the shadows like her namesake. With some curiosity, Mallah looked down at the game he had been playing and noticed that, indeed, Cheshire had deftly maneuvered his king into her trap.
"Master… do you think she really was…?" he asked, unsure of what he had seen. "She had your…"
"I know, Mon-sieur Mal-lah. An-y-thing is poss-i-ble, non? And she has sure-ly bea-ten you…" Brain laughed harshly without meaning to, not so much to mock Mallah as for a lack of appropriate modulation. "Per-haps my D-N-A be-longs to her as well, but my long-ab-sent heart be-longs to you. Now come. There is much to be done."
With those words, the two left the war room, retreating deeper into their lair to scheme. Soon they would strike, and the Teen Titans would fall. Then there would be all the time in the world for family reunions, and perhaps a match between the Brain and his daughter. It was certainly a contest worth looking forward to.
Fin
Author's Notes: Yea, I know- Brain/Mallah! (Check out Wiki sometime, I'm not making that part up.) And is Cheshire really his daughter? It's never answered for sure- or indeed even brought up- but given her level of skill and the fact of her half-French ancestry, anything is possible. Reviews are like candy and would be appreciated accordingly! Bonus points for knowing each reference made!