[23rd September 2010]
[SHIELD Facility, Underground Bunker, Island Tropico]
Paula Crock nee Nyugen sat quietly, watching her eldest daughter pace about her cell on the monitor before her. Having cameras in her daughter's cell should bother her more she supposed, but her Jade was too good at what she had become to trust in simple procedures. While this facility on this rather sunny island was well fortified and seemingly secure, with limited access and exit points, it did not change the fact Huntress had escaped from similar in the past. Meta-humans might have their special abilities, but skill and training could be just as dangerous in her own hands at times.
And Cheshire was almost as dangerous as Huntress had been, and was becoming again Paula supposed, as she stood back up along with her escort. Clad in a military uniform, even if a borrowed one, hadn't been her style towards the end of her career, but still a reminder that she was back on the job in some way. It was hard not to smile and practically dance out of the room, even after a few weeks of having her legs healed and the sheer joy of being able to move once again. Down a reinforced corridor, through the mountain put here by the previous owners before falling into the hands of her new employers only a mere two months ago.
So it was best to take precautions with her Jade, even if it hurt inside helping to come up with some of them so as to prevent her escaping, or more likely her killing or getting killed in any such attempt. And to ensure any 'rescue' operation, or more likely assassination mission to deal with Jade's mouth failed like it might have done in Belle Reve mere days ago. Such a convenient time for a prison break attempt to occur she found, coincidentally at the time of her being there with her daughters and finally getting a plea deal on the table with the US government.
"Hello Jade, you can take your hands off the wall and sit down, it's just me today." Paula stated firmly to her daughter as the thick see-through-whatever it was door slid closed behind her and two masked, and armed, soldiers stood waiting on the other side. Her daughter glanced back from her position facing the wall, sighing miserably before pulling her hands away and moving towards Paula to take a chair a little distance away. Just far enough that Paula could react to any assault upon her person, or verbally active the shock collar and cuffs she'd insisted be placed upon Cheshire along with the drab white jumpsuit.
Her baby girl folded her hands across her chest and glared back "Mother."
Paula sighed. So today it was going to be like this now was it?
"Didn't sleep well last night dear?"
Not that it was easy for her daughter to tell it was nigh time outside, as for her, night was when the lights went out, and day was when they were on. Whoever had built this part of the complex had obviously intended these larger, more modern, cells for important prisoners. Or perhaps hostages worth ransoming she expected, based on what she'd seen so far. But it was also incredibly sparse right now thanks to the short term nature of this 'SHIELD's ownership so far. To hold her Jade on short notice it had been done by simply removing anything that could be used as a weapon or tool. Which, truth be told, was everything bar a large yet comfortable mattress, a solid metal toilet in the corner and a simple nozzle in ceiling shower setup in the other one.
"As if you care! You've stuck me in this,... hole!"
Sigh, yes it was going to be teenage rebellion day, even if Jade had already turned nineteen years old, a fully trained international assassin. Paula could only blame Lawrence for this, like with many, many things in her life and someday (hopefully soon!), he would find himself at her feet regretting every goddamned one of them. "Jade, now is not the time for this. Negotiations with the US Government are going to be concluded soon enough, and when they are you'll be in one of their prisons rather than here, and I expect visitations will not be as easy as they are now. When we talk later it will be with your legal team, and by video with US officials, so we won't have much time to talk like mother and daughter."
Jade looked away from her and at the plain white coloured wall as if it were an interesting painting. "It's a bit late to play happy family Mom. I've,... I'm going to get killed for betraying them. They nearly got me in Belle Reve, nowhere is safe and I'm an idiot for throwing and I..." her daughter huffed, looked back at her, and then brought her arms out to wave them in protest at Paula. "What are we supposed to talk about Mom! Cooking tips? Even if they don't get me you're putting me away for years in prison! In solitary, of course, because you never know who they'll pay to come after me for what I've told already!"
"Don't worry dear, I'll visit you at least a little bit more often than you visited me during my own time away." Good to see her daughter flinched at that. She had good control, as always, but at least she wasn't a complete sociopath as she'd feared at times. Paula kept her tone matter of fact. "Jade you choose your path, as I choose mine back then, and you got caught. On television at that, so don't try that poor misguided innocent tactic with me, wait for a jury or sympathetic judge."
Her daughter blinked, "Wha... is... is... this... what's meant to pass for parental advice?"
"Sadly, yes it is dear. I can't give cooking tips I'm afraid, mostly because me and Lawrence were terrible cooks as well as terrible parents, so let's settle for tips for getting away with your criminal actions instead. I'd also suggest a little more subtlety with things like suddenly starting your exercise routine right before the young master arrives with your sister. If you're going for a seduction tactic, or just to irritate your sister by throwing it in her face, well, that drab prison garb doesn't help much. Either go all in, or don't try it at all. We know you're alerted an hour prior to visitations."
Ah good, this was throwing Jade completely off balance as her daughter began to flail about indignantly while remaining seated. "Oh don't be like that. If you're trying to warm yourself up before an attempt to escape, well dear he defeated you soundly twice already as well as healed my injury. With Artemis in tow do you really think you've any chance against him?"
"HE TURNED ME INTO A CAT! TWICE! ARGGHHH! I won't let him get another chance!"
"Jade dear, be thankfull you're still alive. Did you know he killed a blockbuster empowered inmate after we'd gotten you out of the prison? Hmm? Head blown clean off, and that was after his magic weapons killed three others. You really should be glad your sister has some small measure of concern for your well being, and that her teammate, former teammate now in fact, cares for her opinion enough to not just kill you in the line of duty. Honestly Jade your perfectly safe if you behave, why I've even gotten gainful employment again thanks to his employers."
Indeed her initial joy mixed with concern that Artemis had chosen the path she had, at least over what Paula had feared was Jade 2.0 when she'd first started vanishing at nights, was more concerning the more she heard of said training.
It was all well and good that Artemis was going to live a better life, an honest heroic path at that, compared to what Paula and Lawrence had been as parents. Or what Jade was, and had become, before ever having a life at all. But it was rather another more worrying proposition if she was going to be killed on such a dangerous path without any of the help that Batman and Green Arrow had promised.
Now she had found that even killing in self-defence was frowned upon by her daughter's new mentors, and just yesterday the facility her daughter stayed in had been attacked directly. And the fact that if even one of the Justice League had been present could have led to Artemis being in mortal danger, yet they had wished to discourage her from mentioning this fact to her own mother!
Or fail to place any defences within their team base of operations, according to both her daughter and the young master she had entered the, rather well paying surprisingly, service of. Perhaps the Justice League forgot her daughter did not have superpowers like so many of them possessed?
It was yet another problem to consider unfortunately. Much like convincing Jade here and now that there could be some measure of a future for her by doing what she was doing. After all, Paula herself to her shock was finding out she could. Yes, yes, magically binding oath of service to a teenage boy who liked wearing skull-masks for whatever reason, but she wouldn't trust Huntress any other way either really.
--
[23rd September 2010]
[Wizards Sanctum, Off the Quays, Dublin]
Honestly it was good again to be able to sit back, sleep, rest and most importantly get a good run at doing some magical experimentation to get my mind off recent events. Killing was never fun, and while Karguk's memories were there, it was no great help for a new life beyond knowing how to deal with the stress of certain things in the aftermath.
That, and the word from earlier today from Artemis and Connor that the Mountain had been attacked, well Lantern Stewart and Black Canary being there to help out the Team did not relieve my own regret at not being there to help them. Or momentary anger that they seemingly weren't going to build in any defences since the Red Tornado rip-offs had been evidently defeated.
"Not my problem, not my concern." I reminded myself again as I finished the last markings of the ritual circle on the floor before me. After all, I'd pretty well fucked up the situation with the League. I was on psych leave, and would be soon meeting with lovely people like Amanda Waller in a short few days about revealing top-secret things.
Me trying to get back in touch with the JL members to whine about the Mountains defences, well that seemed inadvisable despite my concerns for Artemis in particular, but Robin as well. Connor and Aqualad could shrug off hits of a certain level, but squishy baseline humans would not be so lucky sadly. Nor account for the Justice League's weird 'it is totes okay to kill sentient robots!' line of reasoning, but wrong to kill humans, because they look like us I guess.
It was bloody infuriating honestly, when the two had told me the details, and then lack of further information afterwards from the two League members. Oh, you killed someone in self-defence, you horrible murderous sociopath wizard you!
What, these robots who were talking and giving the appearance of sentience during our battle with them? No their not alive don't be silly!
I shook my head in mild exasperation. "Red Tornado is right there on the Justice League with them! But herp-derp, nope its okie-dokie to destroy two model robots similar to him, because that's totally not different to what the wizard did! Killing is bad, but only people, and by people I mean humans! Because others don't count even when we've aliens and a sentient fucking robot on our own gods-damned team. Fuck, it'd be feckin' worried if I were Red Tornado with that sort of attitude!"
Growl
I pushed the anger away. It was just poor timing I'll admit, but the nature of the attitude and what had been said and done to me was just bloody grating right now. After all it wasn't like I'd asked the question after my first bloody mission with the gods-damned Team and gotten a non-answer, because fuck you that's why.
It was frustrating of course because I'd gotten close to the Team in the short time i spent with them, and i know i would have made a difference if i was there. But I wasn't, and in truth, it was still better for everyone for me not to be there anyway. Bit late to get worked up over it now after being rather happy about it only a...
The wards hummed slightly and I glanced at my watch, someone was a little early from school. Well that was good, since I'd just finished the prep work for today's lesson. Gemma's voice echoed out from the hallway as I felt her presence of her movement through my Sanctum. "Uhm...John?"
"In here Gemma, you're just in time for a bit of practical spell-casting before I go get something from the takeaway." I shouted out, placing the chalk back into its box and them on the desk with all of the other ritual equipment.
All neat and tidy along with all the ingredients on, and within, the shelving to the sides of it and ready for easy access. Well, for the stuff my English apprentice could safely gain access to at least. In all truth, the room was as much her little study and training room than anything else, as anything important or dangerous was protected inside my own. Her school bag thudded against the wall roughly from the sounds of it and moments later she strode through the doorway with a wave. "Hiya!"
I gave a smile a small wave of my own. "Welcome back, and how was your day?"
Rather dull it seemed from the sounds of it, and she was still complaining about having to wear a uniform compared to her previous one in Liverpool. Still she wasn't complaining anymore about the 'boring' meditation and ritual work, this time we both sat cross-legged within the wards and I began to talk her through what we were about to do. It was nothing dangerous for now, nor overly dramatic appearing. I was very sure her parents and Uncle wouldn't like that, but her abjuration and illusion skills were worth developing from the start.
Hovering in mid air didn't do a whole lot in terms of direct power and spells, but it was good for control in maintaining an active effect for some time. After all control and discipline was something Gemma Master really needed, considering her bloodline and the fact she'd never had any true lessons till she'd met me. Still, she was a fast learner to my surprise and soon, after a few false starts, was hovering just across from me on the other side of the interlocked spell-circles.
"Close your eyes and reach out with your other senses. Feel the energy flowing within the circle..."
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Edit by Dragon's Head