Tempest: Chapter Forty-Two: Conflict in Taipei
Amara was having a bad day, a very bad day. She'd spent the past few hours wandering around the Bialyan Desert with memory loss for the past six months, and then she came back to Happy Harbor to find out someone had attempted to assassinate her biological father.
All Amara wanted to do was pass out on her bed, but she still took the helmet Roy handed to her before she slid onto the seat behind him.
Roy gave a polite cough that was easy to hear through the speakers inside the helmets as he revved the engine and sped away. "So, how'd the mission go?" he asked lamely.
"I spent most of the past day missing six months of memories," Amara groaned. "Psychosomatic pain is not pleasant."
Roy grimaced. "Did you whack your head or something?"
"No," Amara grumbled, her arms around his waist tightening just slightly. "We ran into Psimon, apparently he's working with the Bialyans."
Psimon was a villain whose abilities lied in telekinesis and telepathy, but the Justice League hadn't heard much from him in the past few months; evidently he'd been lying low in Bialya.
"M'gann tried to sneak up on him when we were all psychically linked, so we all got whammied," Amara said, the memories having been returned to each of them since M'gann defeated him within the depths of her own mind with Superboy at her side. And they'd flown back to the bio-ship with a new companion, a large metallic orb that beeped and whirred that had evidently been the thing that the Bialyans found in their desert; Superboy had taken to calling it Sphere, which Amara thought was a bit redundant.
"Okay," Roy said slowly as they whisked down the streets, heading towards the prison that housed Weather Wizard. "You know you didn't have to drop everything to check on him; you don't owe him anything."
Amara knew that. Mark Mardon might have been the only one besides Merlyn that good to honest terrified her, because she'd seen him at his absolute worst, and she was the one that had paid the price for it. He was the reason that she had trust issues, and it seemed he went out of his way to make her distrustful of the world.
"I'm not doing this for him," Amara said a moment later after her musings had faded off.
"Then why go?" Roy asked, flummoxed, as he rounded the bend carefully, the penitentiary in the distance, just barely visible.
"Because I think it's interesting that someone managed to almost kill a villain within a prison, don't you?" Amara asked him shortly, but Roy knew her too well; there was something in her voice that told him it was something more.
But he didn't question it the rest of the way there, mostly because he doubted she was going to give him a straight answer.
"Storm likes her secrets," Cheshire had said once and his eyes narrowed at the thought of the assassin knowing his partner better than he did. But Amara had always had a curious relationship with Jade Nguyen.
They hardly spoke on the way into the penitentiary until Amara and Roy found themselves standing before Amanda Waller, the warden, a dark-skinned, broad-shouldered woman with a strong personality.
"Amanda Waller," Amara said shrewdly, staring flatly from behind her mask, "I understand Weather Wizard was poisoned earlier today."
Amara's height and size wasn't much compared to the warden, but Roy made up for that.
"You'd be correct," the warden said with a disapproving grunt like she was annoyed that such a thing had occurred under her watch. She crooked her fingers at the pair, indicating them to follow her, and they shared a glance before following after. "The doctor can probably explain his condition better, but—"
"How was he even poisoned in the first place?" Roy probed suddenly, speaking up before Amara could. "There are extensive security checks on things coming in and out of here, aren't there?"
At least, there were the last time either of them had been in Belle Reve.
Amanda Waller glowered like he had personally slighted her. "We're not entirely sure."
Amara arched an eyebrow behind her mask. "You're…not entirely sure?" she repeated, sounding the words out carefully. "You don't know how the poison got in?"
"No," Amanda Waller grated. "There were no computer glitches that allowed someone within who wasn't previously, unless the poison was just walked in by one of the staff, which is rather unlikely."
Amara's brow furrowed.
"How was he poisoned?" Roy asked.
"I can clear that up for you," a new voice said and all three turned to look on a new figure. It was a rather harried looking woman with curly silver hair and wrinkles adorning her face.
"I'm Doctor Parish," the woman said, nodding to the two heroes before focusing on Amara. "I understand you are Mark Mardon's daughter? His emergency contact?"
Amara bristled slightly. "He'd tell you I'm his bastard and I can't really understand why he'd list me as his emergency contact."
Weather Wizard had always made it rather painfully clear his distaste towards her.
Doctor Parish appeared to mull over those words carefully before clearing her throat and extending the clipboard to her. "Mark Mardon is currently in a stable condition. We had to put in a tube through the mouth and into the stomach in order to wash the poison out of the stomach. We only just removed it."
Amara flipped through the pages of the report before pausing at the name of the poison which had been sent in for analysis to a local lab. "He was poisoned with Oleander?" she asked in surprise and the doctor nodded.
"Oleander?" Roy prompted beside her, befuddlement clear.
"It's incredibly toxic, it comes from a plant called Nerium oleander, and taking large doses can be fatal."
Roy was quick to notice the contemplative note in her voice and he gave her a questioning nudge.
"I was doing research into plants that had toxic effects for a science project," Amara said, unable to help the defensive tone her voice had taken on, even though Roy wasn't even close to accusing her. "Oleander was at the top of my list of most toxic."
Ella had actually given her the idea for that one.
"You had a school project on toxic plants?" Roy repeated dubiously.
"Well, no," Amara admitted, "I did have one on researching several plants and their effects." She turned her attention back to the doctor. "He's alive, isn't he?"
The bland tone she spoke in betrayed just how little she cared about his condition, but he was still her father.
"Yes, he is," Doctor Parish said carefully, glancing from one hero to the other.
Amara nodded decisively. "I'd like to see him."
Roy sighed beside her, a mixture of exasperation –at her stubbornness–, annoyance –at how she wanted to see him despite all that he'd put her through–, and anger –at the whole matter.
"He's going to get under your skin," he mentioned before Amara could follow after the doctor.
"He's already under my skin," Amara said shortly, brushing grey hair out of her eyes, the color of which she had inherited from the man in question. "He makes up half of my DNA."
"You know that's not what I mean."
"I know," she said, giving him a slight smile that smoothed into a line as she followed after the doctor.
Roy watched her go with a frown before turning towards Amanda Waller. "I want to see his cell."
"You know, I always thought orange suited you best," Amara mentioned mildly as she stood against the wall as Mark Mardon slowly roused himself. "Though I must say you aren't really looking your best."
The color had leeched from his skin, giving him a pallor that was almost grey, sweat making his grey hair stick to his face.
Dark eyes flicked towards her and he smirked. Amara didn't know how he'd managed the look so effortless despite his current condition, but somehow it sent a shiver down her spine.
"Oleander poisoning, Mardon? Someone must not like you," Amara continued, despite not moving any more forward, staying an appropriate distance away.
"Apart from you, you mean?" he croaked through an abused throat.
"I'd be more subtle than Oleander poisoning," Amara said dryly, crossing her arms. "I don't suppose you'd know who'd want to kill you, would you?"
He considered her, but Amara knew he always hated giving her any kind of helpful information.
"You're not here because someone tried to kill me," he said instead, "you're here because I listed you as my emergency contact."
Amara chewed on the inside of her cheek, hating how easily he could read her.
"Why does a man who clearly hates his child name that child his emergency contact?" Amara wondered aloud, her hands tightening over her arms.
"How is it?" Mardon countered instead and Amara gave him an odd look.
"How is what?" she asked.
"Knowing you're more trouble than your worth."
Amara eyes narrowed behind her mask.
"Here's what I think," Mardon sat up slowly in the bed. "I think you're the same weak little girl that was foisted onto me by Cadmus, the one I never wanted in the first place."
"Tough talk from someone who can barely use atmo-kinesis without his Wand," Amara said coolly.
"But you could never manage anything as strong as what I've made," Mardon returned slyly, eyes gleaming when he saw her grit her teeth together. "And you never will."
"I find that hard to believe." Amara was flowering now. "What was the point of it all? Everything you've done? Everything you've done to me? The sharp shocks? The attempted kidnapping?"
"Wasn't it obvious?" Mardon smirked.
"Nothing about what you've done is obvious," she said coldly.
"Trust and love are two things you can never depend on."
That was not a response that Amara was expecting, and she actually took a step back, her eyes wide, visibly startled. She jolted when the door banged open and Roy strode in looking furious as he lifted a picture to show them both.
Amara blanched and Mardon tensed. It was a picture of Amara standing outside the flower shop, attention focused on the key in the lock.
"I'm pretty sure it was written into your sentence," he said coldly, "you not being allowed to have any photographs of your daughter."
Then he grabbed Amara's hand and yanked her out of the room, shutting the door behind him before pulling his arms around her.
"I told you he was going to get into your head," he muttered and Amara wound her arms around his waist, wishing very much that she'd done as Roy had suggested and no gone in in the first place.
Pamela knew something was off when Amara came into work with a frown on her lips and hardly a sarcastic quip spoken.
Amara had seven more days before she was done for good, and Barry had made it clear that he wanted Pamela to stay away from her, so Pamela was making good use of her time at work.
They worked in silence for almost a half hour until Pamela put down the rose she was de-thorning. "All right, spill," she said, twisting to the side to look at Amara who jumped in surprise, blinking owlishly at her, so engrossed in her task to cutting some tulips down to their appropriate size.
"You're clearly upset," Pamela pointed, arching an eyebrow and embarrassment flooded Amara's face.
"I am not clearly upset," she muttered in aggravation.
The dry look that Pamela gave her clearly said that she hadn't succeeded in hiding her feelings.
"Spill," Pamela said again and Amara sighed.
"My biological father is in prison," she admitted after a long moment and Pamela schooled her expression to make it seem as though that was news to her. "He's not a good person."
Amara's shirts weren't very low on her chest, but it was still possible to see the dark pink lightning pattern across her skin. The scar always made Pamela irrationally angry, particularly since it was Amara's father that had put it there in the first place.
"But apparently he listed me as his emergency contact at the prison so they called me when he was seriously poisoned."
Pamela went white at that, but, luckily, her daughter's back was to her, sweeping up some leaves and stalks from the floor which had fallen while she'd trimmed the tulips. She'd known in was a foolish endeavor, if a bit vindictive one, when she'd used her pheromones on that member of Belle Reve's kitchen staff and given him the powder to mix into Mark Mardon's milk.
But she hadn't expected that the prison would actually call Amara about it.
"Roy thinks he just did that because he likes getting under my skin," Amara added bitterly, "because he's an asshole that hates me and likes me to suffer."
"Sounds like he's terrible father material," Pamela managed to say, grateful not for the first time that Barry Allen was Amara's adoptive father, no matter their difference of opinion regarding Amara.
"Pretty much," Amara grunted. "I've never even met my biological mother, but I'm sure I'd rather've been raised by her."
Pamela had to turn away at that, emotions clogging her throat, her heart throbbing as she tried not to react to the words, because she so wished the same.
"What were your parents like?" Amara asked her and Pamela had to swipe the trembling emotions from her face to turn back towards Amara.
"They were good people that loved me," Pamela said fondly. She hadn't spoken of her parents in a very long time. "They died shortly before I completed my doctorate."
"From what?" Amara asked curiously, green eyes flashing to meet hers.
"There was a car accident…" Pamela's smile faded as she remembered opening the door to her dorm room at Gotham University to see a police officer standing beyond. "Some lights malfunctioned, I think, and a truck ran headlong into them."
"That's horrible," Amara's lips parted in shock.
"It was," Pamela agreed, a morose expression overtaking her face, "and sometimes horrible things happen to good people. Sometimes a light malfunction causes a truck to run into a small car, sometimes fathers don't live up to our expectations."
Amara hummed in agreement and Pamela's fingers ached to brush those dark curls out of her daughter's eyes.
"Are all things quiet on the BlackNet?" Kaldur inquired of Amara when he saw her on the couch several nights after the Bialyan mission, curled up and fingers tapping over the keyboard.
"Yes, Kaldur," Amara laughed at how he said it like 'The BlackNet'. "Everything's quiet…though there's a lot of chatter about that conference with Rhelasia."
Kaldur gave her a slight frown. "I'm not familiar with that country."
That made Amara smirk. "Then you might be spending too much time in Atlantis or in the Cave, Kelpie. North and South Rhelasia have been at war for awhile. There's a peace summit in Taipei between them right now…hang on…"
She put down her laptop for a moment to gesture him to follow her into the monitor womb as she drew up the holographic computer to show the news-report.
One of the blonde-haired reporters from GBS dominated the screen.
"This is Cat Grant, reporting from Taipei, where the historic peace summit between South Rhelasia and North Rhelasia has completely broken down. As a last resort, Prime Minister Tseng of South Rhelasia and North Rhelasia's General Singh Manh Li have agreed to bring in an independent arbitrator. But who is it? Speculation has run from the Secretary General of the United States to Superman, but the man of steel seems unlikely, as I'm told the arbitrator is due to arrive by car, not cape, at any moment."
"Is that where Roy said he was going?" Kaldur asked, his brow furrowed as he tried to recall.
"Yup," Amara popped the 'p' obnoxiously. "I probably would've gone with him but he was being stubborn and Dad says I can't leave the country without informing him and Mom and…I've got another shift at the flower shop tomorrow that I can't miss."
"Evidently you have your priorities in order," Kaldur remarked.
Amara grinned. "Like you wouldn't believe, babe."
They were interrupted by a sharp beep echoing through the speakers to indicate someone activating a comm.
"Aqualad," Kaldur said and Roy's voice echoed around them, his voice low, no doubt to keep from arising suspicion from those around him.
"Red Arrow. I need access to the Justice League's database and the exact height of the League of Shadows assassin known as Cheshire."
"Aw, what'd you do? Have a spat?" Amara laughed. "That's cute."
"Storm Warning, one word," Roy warned and Amara sniggered while Kaldur flicked through the data in the JL's archives.
"Checking," Kaldur said before Amara interrupted him.
"She's five foot six…if you're into that kind of height difference." Amara cast Kaldur a wink and Kaldur got the feeling that she liked winding her partner up, given the sharp sigh on the other end.
"And she is exceptionally dangerous," Kaldur added. "Do you require back-up?"
"Please," he scoffed, "the last thing I need is the Junior Justice League."
"Just our computer," Kaldur responded archly while Amara rolled her eyes at Roy's comment. "Good luck, my friend. Aqualad out."
The connection cut off and Amara gave Kaldur a look. "How do you feel about making a trip to Taipei?" she asked with a grin.
The assassination attempt had been foiled, but Roy thought he knew Jade a bit too well, which was saying because he didn't know her very well, to know that she'd given up far too easily.
She was practicing katas when he came to see her in her cell, her mask and sai gone, leaving her face exposed.
"Aren't you going to ask me anything?"
Roy crossed his arms, eyes narrowing behind his mask. "I think you know what I'm after."
Jade's lips curled into a smirk. "I do, actually," she said slyly. "Do you?"
A muscle jumped in Roy's jaw. "Who hired you?"
"Shadows," Jade said simply. That was no lie, but it was also easier to pull him in that way.
"Who hired them?" he asked.
"I don't ask," Jade said with a smirk and a wink, twisting on one leg and remaining balanced by sheer will-power. She had better balance than Amara, and his partner was light on her feet when she wanted to be.
"What's the endgame?" Roy demanded further. "The peace summit or Luther himself?"
Jade spun around, bringing her fingers together to form a gun, pointing towards Roy. "Two birds," she said with a glint in her eye, "one stone."
She was so hard to read that it was like pulling teeth.
"Hey, where are your little sidekick friends? They're always fun to play with…especially Ar-chery girl." Jade barely caught herself at the last moment, internally cursing her fumbling tongue. Artemis could play at being an only child, but Jade didn't need to go around revealing intimate details about her sister, particularly her name. "I like her."
"She –they– aren't in my league," Roy said shortly and Jade turned towards him with a devilish smirk on her lips.
"No?" she inquired. "I'll make sure to mention that to Oracle next time I see her."
Roy almost buried his head in his hand. "What is it with you and her?"
Jade laughed. "What's the matter, Red? Jealous? I know things about your little partner that you have no idea about."
"Like what?" Roy asked flummoxed.
"Like her mother," Jade purred. "Imagine having two parents that dangerous."
Roy didn't have time to make sense of that, because the next thing she'd done was grab the cell bars as the air behind her exploded.
When Red Arrow had owned up to calling in for back-up, Storm Chaser and Aqualad were already half-way to Taipei, so it didn't take long to regroup and go over what they knew separately. The fact that Cheshire and the Shadows were gunning for Lex Luthor, the arbitrator for the differing sides of Rhelasia, was surprising, but it didn't change much; they still had a job to do.
Storm Chaser found herself settled in the rafters of the building, her eyes focused downwards on the proceedings. Red Arrow was standing behind Lex Luthor, a location he clearly wasn't too pleased with given the scowl on his lips, and Aqualad was hidden in the crowd of people watching the two leaders dissolving into yells.
"Gentlemen," Lex Luthor said mildly in a placating tone, "this is mere rhetoric. Despite your differences, you still share an appreciation for many things, such as the exquisite art of the Rhelasian tea ceremony."
Storm Chaser arched an eyebrow at that. Tea ceremony was hardly a basis for reunification. But as he said that a woman in Rhelasian dress and thick obscuring make-up began rolling a cart forward and it was easy to tell it was Cheshire when she'd gotten so good at telling who she was at a distance.
She dropped from the rafters to land beside Aqualad as he turned around to face Cheshire.
"That is far enough, Cheshire," he said, drawing his water-bearers while Storm Chaser flicked her bo-staff to fully extend it and Red Arrow drew an arrow behind them. Her eyes flickered between the three of them, trying to ascertain which on would be the most trouble, then she smirked and clicked a button on the cart before pushing it forward.
It took mere seconds for a reaction to occur.
Aqualad drew the water from the drinks on all the tables to form into a protective dome of water and Red Arrow's arrow just managed to make it under the done before it was completed, detonating the bomb early and causing Cheshire to race for cover as the explosion blew out the windows of the entire level of the building.
Storm Chaser didn't stop moving, leaping over the water wall as it descended, swinging her bo-staff down on Cheshire, a move that was easily blocked by Cheshire's own sais.
"Oh, Storm," she purred as they pushed one another back and Storm Chaser split her staff into two batons, "you wound me."
"I've heard that one before," Storm Chaser quipped back with a grin. "And here I thought you were going to kick my ass, babe."
"Oh, I'm getting around to it," Cheshire assured her, meeting a strike of her baton with her sai before aiming a kick at her throat that made Storm Chaser cart-wheel back to avoid.
You wouldn't have thought they were close in any kind of capacity with how they fought with one another. Aqualad and Red Arrow had to hover back, waiting for the pair to stop moving so they could attack, but that only seemed to make them move faster until Storm Chaser fumbled and Cheshire sent the baton flying, using her weight to slam Storm Chaser into a nearby pillar.
"I think you dislocated my arm," Storm Chaser grunted, having felt something pop out of place at the aggressive move.
"I could have broken your leg again," Cheshire offered with a laugh, before glancing towards Red Arrow. "Aw, I don't think Red likes me being so close to you."
"Well, I have a habit of getting into trouble," Storm Chaser conceded helpfully and Cheshire cast a sly glance towards Red Arrow, and, without giving Storm Chaser a chance to prepare, pressed her lips against hers.
Storm Chaser's eyes flew wide open behind her mask and she barely had a moment to comprehend what had happened when Cheshire cracked her head against the pillar and Storm Chaser crumpled to the ground.
When she finally roused, with a throbbing pain in the back of her skull, it was to Red Arrow popping her arm back into place and Aqualad leaning over her in worry.
"Are you all right?" he asked her.
Storm Chaser groaned loudly. "Just my pride," she muttered, "just my pride."
She was sure that Red Arrow was rolling his eyes behind his mark as he helped her lean against the pillar.
"What happened?" she groaned.
"Cheshire knocked you out and Sportmaster showed up to help, but they both got away," Red Arrow said, and Storm Chaser was too busy, rubbing at her shoulder to notice the look shared between the two.
"Is that all?" she asked dryly.
"Well, there was a bit of offensive attacks on both sides," Aqualad offered helpfully. "And I think one of the journalists got a picture of your kiss with Cheshire."
"That's nice," Storm Chaser said blandly before throwing a wink Red Arrow's way that just made him press a hand over where his eyes were covered by his mask.
It didn't take a genius to tell what that wink meant.
Iris kissed her cheek as she moved past her to mount groceries on the counter. "Hey, sweetie, how was your day?"
Amara grinned into her cup of tea while keeping a pack of ice to the back of her head. Her shoulder was sore, but it was still better than her head. "I got my first kiss today," she said while Barry choked on his own tongue before zipping around the kitchen to put the food away.
"How was it?" Iris asked, surprised and interested, because Amara hadn't shown really an interest in anyone romantically…though she might've had a minor crush on Wonder Woman.
"It wasn't bad," Amara admitted, "pretty good for an assassin, I think."
"I'm not going to like who it is, am I?" Barry asked dryly.
"Probably not," Amara sniggered. "It was Cheshire."
Iris arched an eyebrow and Barry groaned. "Why did you kiss an assassin, Amy?"
"I didn't kiss her," Amara retorted in affront, "she kissed me, and it was to distract me…or maybe to make Roy jealous, it's hard to tell with her."
"Why would Cheshire want to make Roy jealous?" Iris asked rather patiently.
"Well, because she's got a huge crush on him," Amara said in a tone that said it should have been rather obvious.
"Cheshire has a crush on Roy," Barry said the words slowly like he couldn't fully comprehend them. "Of course, what other explanation would there be?"
Amara sniggered again.
