One Year Later
Disclaimer: All familiar characters belong to DC or Marvel. I Own Leon/Crisis and Farrah/Persiana.
Chapter 8: False Perceptions
Undisclosed location, Howling Commandos Base…
Donna Troy, the Howling Commandos member Troia, was a little nervous as she paced about the base. She was seemingly lost or bored, but her mind wandered back to Farrah. She had left hours ago and had not returned, following a lead on Daken. From the way Crisis talked about him, the younger Amazon princess was actually scared of fighting him.
She seemingly wandered what she thought was a private room, but, when the door opened, Donna found Roy in the room. Without a shirt on.
Donna instantly blushed,
"I…I apologize. I had no idea this was your room."
She wanted to leave, but something made her stay. Donna remembered first meeting Roy, and the two hit it off immediately. There was just an instant attraction between the two of them, and the red-headed archer could see it too. Donna's new costume completely accented her curves.
Arsenal walked over to put on a shirt, and a part of him hoped she would leave. The two had not hashed things out since he got back, admittedly; the two were avoiding each other. It was probably for the best.
Donna and Roy then looked at each other. Their eyes met and something seemed to click inside each one of them, as the younger warrior and the archer collided into each other in a maddened rush of passion…
Meanwhile, at the Pentagon…
General Sam Lane, father to Lois Lane the famous reporter, was furious. He slammed his fist down,
"How could security be breached liked this? We were infiltrated by the Howling Commandos!"
He was standing before a panel of other generals from various other military branches as he was outlying his alleged 'evidence' of what he called global terrorism.
One of the generals rolled his eyes,
"General Lane, are you here to present more evidence of these so-called Howling Commandos?"
General Lane snapped,
"They are real! And a threat to America's security!"
The Air Force general looked down at a piece of paper,
"From what Director Waller told us of this new group, they are actively hunting down terrorists and known drug dealers all over the world, and pose no threat to America's security."
General Lane gruffly remarked,
"Not yet. One day, they will, and we need to take them out now! They've already managed to infiltrate our base in Italy!"
Amanda Waller, the heavy African-American director of Checkmate, stepped out from the shadows,
"We investigated that. I assure you, there were no stolen secrets or serious breach of security. In fact, the man we've come to identify as Crisis was only interested in the medical tent and stayed there to ask the woman he brought in a few questions. Then, he disappeared."
Lane snapped,
"Oh, yeah. I suppose Talia al-Ghul was only a victim in all this! She's in on it too! I want her arrested and interrogated now!"
Amanda shook her head,
"It would be a bad idea to do that, General Lane. She is still in critical condition, but our experts did find out that she had deep wounds, and had given birth. Not recently, as she was delirious and kept talking about Damien. We're assuming that is her son."
The Air Force general asked,
"When did she give birth?"
The director of the Suicide Squad said,
"Unclear. The damage to her abdomen was extensive. It appears Crisis knows who it is. A man by the name of Daken."
She pulled out a file and showed it to Lane,
"This Daken was also responsible for the slaughter of several dozen members of the League of Assassins, which were camped out across the Mediterranean Sea. There was also a U.S. Soldier there, but the odd thing was, he had been dead for months."
General Lane shouted,
"It's a trick! Crisis is behind it all!"
The lead General on the panel asked,
"And, if that were the case, General Lane, how should we go about capturing him?"
General Lane answered triumphantly,
"The Metal Men."
Amanda, continuing to maintain her calm, collected demeanor, said,
"The Metal Men project is not currently ready yet. Doctor Magnus says it will be at least another few months before the robots can begin to be field tested."
General Lane scoffed,
"And what do you suggest? Send in a new Suicide Squad?"
Everyone in the American Intelligence community knew that the first venture of the Suicide Squad was less than successful, particularly when Cheshire and Captain Boomerang escaped. Cheshire was shot dead, but Captain Boomerang was still at large. However, Amanda had another trick up her sleeve,
"No. I suggest we do nothing for the time being."
The generals were all a bit surprised by this, but Lane was furious,
"You want a bunch of terrorists running around? What if they acquire a weapon of mass destruction?"
Amanda said coolly,
"I am not supporting their actions any more than you do, General Lane. However, they have yet to engage in any serious activity that could jeopardize American lives. When I feel as though there is a significant risk to American lives, then, I will intervene. Besides, they are doing our dirty work under the guise of patriotism."
General Lane shook his head,
"It'll be too late by then! We need to attack now!"
Amanda asked,
"And how do you propose we do that, general? We don't know where they are operating out of, or even if they are affiliated with the Justice League, or even how many of them are there. Crisis is good, he is someone with exceptional experience. For now, all we can do is observe and see what happens."
The lead general said,
"We want a moment to consider the options."
The generals quickly discussed the issue amongst themselves and the lead said,
"We have decided to allow Amanda Waller to continue with the observation for the time being."
General Lane was not going to wait. He stormed out of the room, furious. He knew the Howling Commandos were a threat, and he had to stop them at all costs.
The limousine was waiting outside the building. As General Lane entered, he turned to a woman dressed in a military outfit,
"Lieutenant, get Doctor Magnus on the phone. I want to know how close the Metal Men are to completion."
The lieutenant, a woman with short blonde hair, nodded silently and began making the call. General Lane did not want to rely on a failure like the Suicide Squad. He was going to stop the Howling Commandos, for the good of the country.
Next Chapter:
Lives are shaped and reshaped as Troia and Arsenal rekindle their romance. Stay tuned, fellow readers!