Dark Titans - Arc 3 - This Ain't A Scene!
Chapter Epilogue
Enjoy if you will, Tolerate if you won't.
Happosai revelled in the sensation of the winds whipping past his wrinkled cheeks. He soared through the air with hardly a care, leaving the speeding (one might say careening) train, and the troublesome Amazon to slip off into the night. Before him, the skeletal frame of the building he'd leapt towards loomed quickly into his field of vision, threatening to smash his frail old bones to pieces with reinforced steel stubbornness.
Not being one to ever let something as simple as leaping from an out of control train and into a dangerous construction site slow him down, he caught his smoking pipe on a conveniently protruding piece of steel pipe (hopefully) securely welded to the skeletal building frame, spinning around it at least a dozen times to kill his momentum from leaping from the runaway train. A little dizzy, but not too much worse for wear, he finally landed on the nice, solid, non-moving earth. He considered kissing the hard packed dirt, but then decided that his affections would be better lavished on one of his recent acquisitions.
With a weary sigh, he sat himself down on a nearby pile of I-beams and pulled out one of his silky darlings.
It was odd, though, seeing Cologne getting so distracted. He'd almost been tempted to stick around to find out the cause; whatever it had been must have been a real doozy. Well, no real loss; it had been a little easier to escape than he'd expected, but . . .
Happi grimaced and smacked himself on the forehead.
Why did he keep jinxing himself?
He sensed her approach a second before she landed. The ancient Amazon wasn't nearly at her best: her hair was a complete mess, her clothes were in disarray and she looked perfectly ridiculous all covered in soot as she was. The old crone was breathing hard, as well, nearly as hard as himself, actually.
"So, what happened to keeping a low profile?" he asked wearily from his seat.
Cologne looked at him oddly for a moment . . . then shrugged and shuffled over to sit down beside him. The two of them gazed up at the blackened sky together, dry, rustling breaths filling the silent void.
"Honestly? I suppose I allowed myself to get caught up in all of the excitement. I can scarcely even remember the last time I'd had a night like this one." She pierced him with a sharp glance, "After all, you never take me anywhere anymore, Happi."
The ancient warrior shook his head and chuckled wryly, "Ahh, I'm sorry, Cologne, Dear. You know how I can get with my work."
Cologne returned his chuckle, rolling her eyes. "Speaking of your work: Jinx? Really? I feel obligated to ask why you would take one such as her to be your student."
Happosai let out a derisive snort, "I could ask you the same concerning that degenerate half-breed you took under your wing."
"Ha! Raven is the perfect pupil. Intelligent, talented, focused, and powerful beyond belief. Not at all like that wastrel trailing along with you."
"Bah, you always did take the easy route with training students. Only picking the best and the brightest pupils, only those practically overflowing with talent."
"Oh, as opposed to choosing any talentless youth desperate enough to stoop to your methods?"
He let out another bark of laughter, "Perhaps you'd like to arrange a battle between your Shampoo and my Genma? Nodoka is remarkably open-minded about manliness, I'm sure she wouldn't mind him having such a young mistress."
Cologne raised a finger to refute his claim . . . only to drop it back down a moment later.
". . . Point taken. Even rooting through the dregs, one is bound to find a diamond eventually. . . . So, you really think that your Jinx is a match for my Raven, then?"
He pondered her question for a moment, "Not . . . yet, no, but in time. True, Raven is more powerful, but even though she hides it well, she possesses the conceit of power as well. She is direct, forceful and used to dealing with situations from a position of strength. However, when you shake that position, introduce something unexpected, she is easily flustered. Though Jinx will sadly never be as powerful as her rival, in time, she will become so unpredictable that not even Raven's demonic power will be a match."
The skeptical look on his companion's face spoke volumes. However, he didn't feel like pressing the issue. Time would show Cologne the error of her ways . . . or him his, but that was where the fun was!
"The real question, Cologne, is what on earth are you doing working with Lex Luthor? That man is a villain on an entirely different level than that Headmaster fool."
The ancient Amazon seemed to digest his words for a moment. ". . . Yes, I have gathered that much myself. It wasn't terribly difficult to divine his true nature. The only thing that I haven't been able to determine yet, is exactly what his game is in all of this."
He peered at her, a little shocked. "You know the kind of man he is, and yet you stay? Are you sure that's wise? I mean, I don't know much about Luthor, just what the students and the Headmaster's files were able to tell me, but even in the dark underworld of villainy, that man is pretty notorious for stabbing his companions in the back when it suits him."
Cologne nodded, agreeing completely. "True enough, the risk is quite apparent to me. However, you know me, Happi: I can't just up and leave without solving this mystery. The fact that he's made it so ridiculously easy to take advantage of the situation for the moment is simply a pleasant perk. Even if I walked away right this moment, the village as a whole will still have prospered immeasurably."
Well, that made sense at least. He could only imagine how much loot the Amazons were getting out of this deal with Cologne at the wheel.
"Just as long as you don't sell out your entire village for a few shiny beads, then."
His companion rolled her eyes. "Please, the board may be larger than I'm used to, but this is a game I've played countless times before. . . . Still, you should reconsider your decision to join us, Happi. Though he hasn't revealed his plan yet, Luthor has been acting supremely confident. I'm certain that he at the very least believes he possesses some grand secret or token that will ultimately win us over to his way of thinking."
Now, that he'd had time to rest, he considered her words more seriously.
"Maybe . . . maybe later. I just got out of an evil relationship, after all. Besides, my disciple is still wavering . . . unsure of herself. I want her to make her own decision on how to lead her life, not drag her into a mess even more convoluted than the one she just escaped from."
Cologne nodded slowly, before letting out a weary sigh. The old woman then lifted her staff up before her-
He lifted a quick hand to cut her off.
"Alright, alright, you win, Cologne. It's obvious how important all of this is to you, and more fighting won't really help anything. I'll leave your little city and stay out of your business, fair enough? Besides, I have a feeling that there might be somewhere, or someone out there that Jinx might want to visit soon, anyway."
Cologne turned to stare at him warily, gazing at him with those huge, owlish eyes of hers. The seconds ticked by, mocking the irregular beat of his own aged heart. Then, finally-
"Very well, Happosai. Collect your disciple and be on your way. I won't hinder you any further. However, if you could, please keep this under you hat for the time being?"
He shrugged easily. "Sure, why not, it's not like it's any of my concern anyway."
A single leap took him from his cold, uncomfortable seat, to the security fence surrounding the construction site. "Well, I'll be off to collect Jinx, then. Hopefully she didn't hurt your precious Great Granddaughter too badly, heheheh!"
And then he leapt off into the night . . .
Totally missing the sly grin that spread across the withered Matriarch's lips.
Jinx winced as Happi liberally sprinkled the livid wound on her arm with a rather pungent smelling whisky, only to wince again as he tied a bandage tightly over it.
"Jeez," she hissed between clenched teeth, "Where'd you learn first aid, Vlad the Impaler?"
The old geezer chuckled weakly, "Oh, don't be such a baby. It's not all that bad, now is it?"
She shrunk in on herself, feeling a bit petulant . . . then gazed down to her feet, suddenly feeling a little bit better.
". . . Well . . . the new shoes do help a little bit . . ."
The pink haired witch clicked her heels together, simply adoring the light shade of purple her brand new shoes were. They were just so cute . . .
Her master just stared at her, shaking his head in wonder.
"Well, now that you're no longer in danger of dying. What on earth did you do to get that girl so riled up? I honestly figured it would be Mousse that would give you trouble, not that he'd end up saving you from Shampoo!"
Jinx rolled her eyes, giggling mischievously.
"Oh, come on, Happi, it wasn't too hard to figure out how to tick her off. After all, I went to school with Ryouga, Mousse, Kunou and Nabiki! I know more bad stuff about Ranma than even actually exists. Honestly, I just grasped at the first straw I could think of; who'd have thought that the violent bimbo actually cared if Ranma liked her back or not?"
Happosai cackled happily.
"Eheheh, attacked her in her most vulnerable place, eh? I would have thought that you of all people would know better than to antagonize a woman scorned."
She shrugged in reply. "Whatever. After what she did, I hope the thought of Ranma never loving her keeps her up in tears for the next week!"
". . . Although," she continued a bit hesitantly, "I do feel a little bad about talking so mean about Ranma. I mean, I'd never tell Ryouga this, but even though I barely had a chance to talk to the guy, I actually thought Ranma was kind of a sweet guy. And if what Mousse said was true, then I owe the pigtailed lunk a big one, too."
"Oh ho ho! Is that remorse I hear in your voice, Disciple?"
Jinx scoffed loudly at that ridiculous notion, "Ha! Yeah right. I'd do it again a million times if I got to see that look on Shampoo's face again! I'll just . . . I dunno . . . meh, you know what? Ranma will never know what I said, so it isn't like he'll care. Besides, I'm sure if anyone would understand, it would be that jerk."
Her mentor nodded, chuckling to himself. Indeed, if anyone knew about smack talking during a fight to mess with people's heads, it was Ranma. And she knew that piece of information was reliable, considering it was pretty much the only thing that Ryouga, Mousse and Kunou all agreed on.
The pink haired sorceress moved her arm gingerly, only to grimace as the pain flared up all over again. She couldn't remember the last time she'd been in this banged up. It definitely put her off of the idea of even thinking about training for at least a week. Which, very conveniently left her with a very open schedule.
"Happi . . . I – I want to see him . . . do you think we can go to see him?"
Talking with Mousse reminded her, vividly, just how much she missed all of her friends, most especially the Lost Boy. She hadn't worked alone in a long, long time, not since she had joined the Academy years ago. People had almost always surrounded her since then, her classmates, her teachers, and, of course, her ever-present teammates.
Not that she'd technically been alone for the past month or more, but Happosai was hardly ideal company. It wasn't too unusual for the old pervert to vanish for hours and hours at a time, either, leaving her truly alone for unbearable stretches of time. No, meeting up with Mousse again had rekindled in her a strong desire to enjoy the subtle joys of human companionship . . . and if she had her choice of any human to be companionable with, well . . .
"Weeellll . . . I suppose a short break wouldn't hurt your training too much, my girl. Of course, it would probably be a good idea to go see Nabiki before we did, though. At the very least she could give us an idea of what's going on with Hibiki and his playmates."
Jinx considered that . . . it wasn't a bad plan, though Happi probably just wanted another shot at the girl's underwear drawer or something equally depraved. However, there was one thing that she knew for certain.
"Can we please take a plane?" she whined petulantly, "I'm so sick of hitchhiking and walking everywhere!"
From out of seemingly nowhere, Happosai suddenly donned a sheepish expression on his withered face.
"Ummm . . . about that . . . You see, I . . . kind of blew all of the cash we stole from that BlockBuster guy on cab a ride . . . kind of . . ."
"You what?"
"Now, now, Jinx, throwing a hissy fit won't change anything. Hey, I bet if we gave Nabiki a call, she'd wire us the money to go visit her."
They stared at each other for a moment.
"BWHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"Oh-oh man." Jinx wiped a tear from her eye, "Man, I needed a good laugh like that after tonight. Well, I guess that mean's we're walking again, right?"
Happi's face lit up at the prospect, and he began to cackle madly. A moment later, he produced a set of familiar manila folders from . . . somewhere. Jinx didn't bother thinking about it too much after all this time; it helped her to avoid unnecessary migraines.
"You know, if we're going to be traveling the conventional way, maybe we can make a few more stops on the way. I'm sure there's someone else we can play with along the way," Happosai chattered excitedly. The old man then quickly lost himself reading through the folder with the green ring on the cover.
So, the two of them sat, side by side on the roof of the Motel Six, right across the road from the strip mall that was now minus one pair of cute pumps. Jinx had to admit, despite her injuries, she actually wasn't feeling nearly as bad as she imagined she would be. Between Happi's ministrations and the few pressure points he'd hit to dull the pain, she felt like she might even be able to sleep that very night, instead of writhing around in pain for the next few hours.
Feeling a strange emotion welling up from some unfamiliar region within her chest, she turned to peek at the old man beside her out of the corner of her eye. He really did look perfectly ridiculous, all covered in soot as he was. Beyond that, though, she could hear the slow, wheezing of his breath; could see the dark bags hanging under his eyes. It was obvious that the old man was utterly exhausted, but hiding it. She wasn't sure why, either. It wasn't like he couldn't just run off and cop a few feels and be back at the top of his game. So why wasn't he?
He wasn't sticking around to make sure she was okay, was he? It seemed like an odd thing for him to do, and she couldn't imagine doing it herself if their situations were reversed, but it was . . . in a strange way, kind of sweet . . .
Damn.
Taking a long, deliberate breath, Jinx steeled herself. Then, with swift, yet controlled motions, she deftly reached out and caught one of Happosai's tiny hands in her own . . .
And placed it gently on her thigh.
Not too high, mind you, but not too low, either. Instantly, Happi turned to stare at her, true confusion in his eyes for the first time that she'd seen. She met his confused stare with a sharp glance of her own.
"Don't get any funny ideas, Gramps. I'm only doing this because I know it's how you get your power back. But you make any sudden moves, or I feel so much as a squeeze, and I won't be the only one wrapped in bandages, got it?"
Happi continued to stare at her for several long moments, a myriad of emotions flying across his face. She couldn't imagine what must be going through the old man's mind at that moment, nor did she really care to . . . but, to her amazement, he actually behaved himself.
And so they resumed their silent reverie, Master and Apprentice, groper and gropee, and . . . and it actually wasn't totally horrible.
"Still, it is too bad we didn't get to fight Superman." Jinx let out a wistful sigh, "It would have been nice to be a legend."
With his right hand still resting perfectly still on her thigh, Happi waved off her comment with his free hand, "Nonsense, Disciple. Compared to the fights we just had,"
"I bet fighting Superman would have been a complete let down."
The figure stared down at the merrily burning wreckage of the unmarked helicopter. While there was nothing unusual about this, since there were quite a lot of people staring at the shattered remains, the fact that this figure was levitating over one hundred yards above the ground was quite unusual indeed . . .
Unless you happened to live in Metropolis, that is.
The red boots, red cape and the expansive red 'S' that was stretched across the figure's expansive chest were as familiar to the residents of this particular city as the red, white and blue of their country's own flag . . .
The hip hugging blue mini-skirt, white tank top and long blonde hair were a different matter; though, none of the males down below seemed to be complaining.
Supergirl absently lifted her right hand, using the massive helicopter rotor assembly to scratch her head in confusion.
"Maaaan! Can't a girl even go to the bathroom for five minutes in this crazy city?"
One minute – one minute everything was just peachy, the next, everything's going to heck in a handbasket! First a massive car pileup because some roof pipe decided to play fountain in the center of a busy intersection, and that was the most normal thing! By the time she'd been able to get into her costume, she'd been running back and forth across the city so fast, that she was starting to feel dizzy.
Car wrecks, noise complaints, helicopter crashes, roof explosions, car chases, runaway trains and then more helicopter crashes! And to top it all off, a flippin helicopter rotor flying across the city like the worlds deadliest Frisbee. By the time she'd chased it down, and stopped the train, and put out the first crashed helicopter, and pulled all of those people out of that multiple car accident . . . well, she hadn't actually had time to find out what the heck actually caused it all.
Her cousin had asked her to look after his city for him for one month – one month, while a bunch of the Leaguers went off to some other galaxy, or something like that, and look what happened, like, three days into her watch?
"Yep –" A resigned groan escaped her crimson lips.
"Clark is sooo gonna kill me . . .".
Cologne let out a tired wheeze as she made the seemingly endless trek down the hallway to her erstwhile partner's office. The hour was later than she preferred, though at least she'd had the opportunity to clean herself up, somewhat. Still, no shower in all of the world could revitalize her after the night she'd just had. And so it was, that she was walking, not hopping, down the long corridor, the tapping of her staff playing counter point to her labored breathing.
As expected, the doors opened soundlessly before her, granting her access to Luthor's dimly lit office. She would have much preferred to be in her own room already, sleeping like the dead, but, unfortunately, some things just could not wait.
Her already dismal mood decayed even further when she noticed that Luthor was not alone in his office. Lady Shiva was there as well, trying to simultaneously wear the disparate expressions of anger and smugness.
"So, the great Elder Khu Lon finally returns from battle, fresh from her glorious defeat, I see," sniped the younger woman.
Before Cologne had the chance to remove the snide fool's head from her shoulders, and she had done much worse for much less insolence in her day, Luthor raised his hand.
"Lady Shiva, that's enough." He then turned his attention her way, "Now, Elder, would you please give me your report?"
The aged Matriarch let out an exhausted sigh before nodding. "Very well, Mr. Luthor. However, I am quite tired, as you might imagine, so let me sum things up quickly. Though we met with unexpected resistance and there were some . . . minor slips in judgment on our part, on the whole, the plan succeeded within acceptable tolerances."
Lady Shiva took a heavy step forward, shock written on her face.
"Succeeded? Are you joking? You lost two helicopters, tore up half of the city and still, despite all of your vaunted skills, not one, but both targets escaped, in no small part because of your bungling! The only person that wasn't acting the complete incompetent was your Great Granddaughter!"
Cologne shot the impudent whelp a dark look, causing the would-be-warrior to back off several steps immediately. Lady Shiva recovered quickly, though, and spun back to face Luthor.
"I told you that you should have let us accompany them on this mission, Mr. Luthor. Perhaps then this operation wouldn't have been such a spectacular disaster!"
Luthor looked from Lady Shiva, then back to Cologne, a perfectly neutral expression on his features.
". . . Perhaps she is correct, Elder Khu Lon? Both of your targets did escape, and didn't your Great Granddaughter suggest that Cheshire be included in the hunt for Happosai, as well?"
The Amazon rolled her eyes. She knew exactly why Shampoo had wanted Cheshire to join the hunt for Happosai, and there had been no altruistic intent in her offer at all.
"Mr. Luthor, I do not like to explain myself," she shot a dark look to Lady Shiva, "Especially to witless pups that don't know their place, but, in this one case, I shall indulge you. There was a simple reason I did not include Lady Shiva and her ilk on this hunt."
With slightly more trouble than usual, Cologne hopped up into one of the nice chairs, letting the soft leather sooth her aching muscles.
"The answer is that we did not go to battle with Happosai and Jinx, we went to play with them. Had your murderous toadies joined us, with their guns and their bloodlust, and their intent to kill . . . Well, let me put it this way. For the most part, Happosai is a harmless, if annoying, pest, however, when actually angered, he is truly a force to be reckoned with.
"You have no idea what that male is capable of when he fights seriously. Your so-called martial artists would have tried to terminate him, or heaven forbid, terminate his Disciple, and they would have unleashed a wrath that would have consumed them all."
Luthor stared at her, still wearing his impassive mask.
"You don't think you could defeat him in that state?"
". . . Perhaps, it is hard to say for certain. I can tell you, though, that instead of the minor disturbances that we created, the battle that resulted from that scenario would have brought the attention of your beloved Superman, if not his entire League of heroes down on this city. It would have been a monumentally foolish decision to do things as your minions wished, especially . . ."
She trailed off, smiling smugly at Lady Shiva.
"Especially since our goal was never to actually capture or convert Happosai."
"What?" asked a confused Lady Shiva.
One of Lex's eyebrows rose in curiosity.
"Honestly, I would rather claw my own eyes out than intentionally work with that insufferable man. However, if I actually told him that, well . . . As depraved and unpredictable as Happosai, and even Jinx can be, they are both, sadly, quite simple creatures."
She raised one hand to her side.
"If we tell them that we want them to leave, they would automatically desire to stay. If we told them that we didn't desire to work with them, they would instantly demand to join us. However, by telling them that we did want them to join us, and in fact, telling them that they could not leave, well, the result was sadly predictable."
Luthor leaned back, finally cracking a small smile.
"So, all of the fighting, the chasing, the property destruction . . ."
"Was just make them believe we were serious. If we told them that we were going to capture them, then just let them walk free, unmolested, it would become quite apparent, even to them, that something wasn't right."
A light chuckle.
"So, from the start, you just wanted to get Happosai out of the city so that he couldn't interfere with our work. Quite devious, I must say. However . . . why did Xian Pu take things so seriously, then? She even authorized the use of lethal force in her target's pursuit."
Cologne glowered at that. "Yes, and I will speak to her on her lack of judgment. Unfortunately, I couldn't risk telling Shampoo and Mousse about the true nature of the plan, lest they unintentionally betray it to Happosai. The old fool isn't as blind as he appears to be. Honestly, I anticipated Mousse's reluctance to harm his old classmate, and believed that he would precipitate her escape. What I didn't anticipate was Shampoo's loss of control. True, Jinx did intentionally antagonize her several times, but such a loss of focus over something as trivial as words is an unforgivable mistake for a true warrior to make."
"Well, then," Luthor finally replied, "It seems that everything is in order then. The mission was a success in that your goal was satisfied, and honestly, the amount of destruction caused amounted to a slow day for our resident Man of Steel, so I highly doubt anyone will look into it too deeply."
The man turned to face Lady Shiva, "You are dismissed, Miss Wu San."
"But, Mr. Lut-"
"You are dismissed."
Without another word, the assassin strode stiffly to the door and then out of the office completely. Luthor then turned back to face the Matriarch.
"Is there anything else you wish to discuss?"
Cologne considered this . . . then. "Actually, yes – yes there is. I believe that it is well past time that you elucidated meon this grand plan of yours."
Luthor leaned further back into his chair, steepling his fingers before him. That same smirk still adorned his lips.
". . . Very well, then, Elder Khu Lon. I believe you've more than demonstrated your dedication to our cause tonight. However, before I get to the heart of my design, let me tell you about the latest addition to the plan. It was quite inspired, if I do say so myself."
She just stared at him, prompting him to continue.
"Tell me, Elder, have you ever heard the saying: 'Know your enemy as you know yourself, and your victory will be assured'?"
A harsh bark of laughter was his response.
"You presume to misquote Chinese military Dogma to me, boy?"
"Heh, I apologize. I just wanted to help you understand my decision. But, I won't beat around the bush anymore. You see, I have asked your Great Granddaughter, and her companion Mu Tzu . . . to infiltrate the Justice League."
". . . What?"
The man's insufferable smile only widened. "The situation is perfect, Elder. With your son-in-law's explosive entrance on to the world stage just days ago, a better setup could not have been manufactured by myself personally. I have no doubts that the Justice League was watching that battle just as closely as we were. Your Ranma has just made himself a celebrity, and a hero, in the eyes of the world. Add to that, his ties to the Titans, improving that further."
Lex chuckled in amusement at his own thoughts.
"Now, if Saotome is seen in such a grand light, does it not follow that his friends might be viewed in much the same light? After all, no one of consequence knows that we are working together, so, with several good references and a glowing testimonial or two from Saotome and the Titans, do you think anyone would question two highly skilled warriors desiring to join such a prestigious organization?"
Cologne considered his words, long and hard, her eyes widening slightly in surprise. It did make sense, perfect sense. Not one, but three of Ranma's friends had already joined with the Titans, setting a precedence for 'meta-martial artists' to be predisposed to upholding justice. From what she had heard through her sources, Ranma himself had gone on to join the Tokyo Police Force, further proving the point. The Justice League would have no reason to question two more of Ranma's friends seeking to join them. The darkest conclusion they could logically come to would be that Shampoo and Mousse wanted to 'one-up' their various friends by joining such a vaunted gathering of heroes.
. . . It was deliciously devious; she was almost disappointed that she hadn't thought of it herself, except that she had no real desire to spy on the aforementioned gathering of heroes. Still, as wonderfully clever as the plan was . . .
"I am not certain that I can consent to such a plan, Lex. I have nothing but respect for those that would endanger their own lives to save the lives of others. Not to mention the fact that several of the Titans are my students and I have grown quite fond of them. I do not like the idea of trying to subvert such noble people, and can't imagine anything you could say that could convince me otherwise."
Lex never lost his smile, obviously he had foreseen the conversation going in this direction. The fact that he was so good at the Game already, at such a young age, irked her slightly.
"Actually, the Titans stand to benefit from this operation as much as I do . . . and as much as your entire village does. However, before I go further with that, I believe it is only fair for me to reveal to you the next stage of my plan, so that you may make all of your objections first."
She glared at him, but her damnable curiosity wouldn't allow her to walk away. She knew that he was not a man of noble purpose, in any sense of the word, and that it appeared his goal was to simply take advantage of the Amazon people in his well documented grudge against that Superman fellow, but he was just too damn cocky. She had to know what his secret was.
"You see, Elder, you and the young Mr. Mu Tzu were correct, to a point. I am after the secrets of what we've come to term 'meta-martial artists.' However, it is not exactly what you think. I have, regrettably, done several things to foster this . . . misunderstanding. Hiring on Lady Shiva, David Cain and those other martial artists was just window dressing, really."
His smile widened once more.
"I do wish to possess an army of meta-martial artists, Elder. That much is true. However, why go to the considerable trouble and expense of training, or heaven forbid, cloning one army . . ."
Lex let his interrogative linger in the air dramatically.
"When there are at least five armies of powerful and skilled warriors already in existence?
Cologne stared, her eyes going wide.
"You – you can't possibly be serious. How could you possibly even know . . ."
That same, damn smile.
"Don't look so shocked, Elder. After all, Mu Tzu was in quite a sorry state when he trained under Mr. Cain. He did little else but speak of his precious Xian Pu, of their many adventures, of their ancestral village . . . of the village's allies and enemies . . ."
She shook her head, still lost in disbelief.
"Now I know that you are insane! If undermining an institution which has done nothing but help and protect this planet wasn't horrendous enough, there is nothing – nothing which you could say that could ever even make me consider joining forces with the likes of those . . . of those . . ."
Words failed her, and she actually degenerated into indignant sputtering for a moment. She leapt from the chair and began to make her way for the door-
"Nothing?"
Damnit! The tone in his voice just screamed that he believed that he knew something that very well would convince her otherwise. Against all of her better judgment . . . the ancient Amazon turned to glance at the man over her shoulder.
"Nothing . . . conceivable . . ."
Luthor smiled all the wider, then gestured for her to retake her seat. As she did, he idly flipped up a computer screen from his desk and began to type something lazily onto the keyboard imbedded into the wooden surface.
"Tell me, Elder Khu Lon-"
He then put a hand on top of the ridiculously thin monitor and spun it around to face her. Cologne's eyes narrowed as she stared at the six familiar . . . yet not familiar figures that it depicted.
"What do you know . . ."
"About the Justice Lords?"
"And so, it is with great honor," began the caped crusader.
He gestured to the young individuals standing beside him. The black expanse of the starry sky made the two figures stand out all the more as they stood before the massive bay window of the space station.
The first was a young woman with lavender hair. She wore colorful silk clothing, with a traditional Chinese breastplate of hard leather over her chest and a small black mask over her eyes.
The second figure was a young man with long black hair. He wore a long, white robe bearing an odd design embroidered on the chest. He also wore eye coverings, though his were a pair of highly advanced glasses made of white titanium and gleaming blue composite materials.
Both warriors were heavily armed, the young woman with a pair of heavy looking, yet very colorful maces. The man wore an assortment of weaponry all across his body. Three pole arms strapped to his back, two swords on his hips, lengths of chain wrapped around his arms and a pair of wicked looking claws strapped to his hands.
"That we formally induct our newest members, Nujiézú and Weapon Master, into the Justice League of America."
And lo, the heroes did cheer.