[17th December 2010]
[Near Elsner Towers, Liverpool, United Kingdom]
It was cold I noted letting out a steaming breath, but then again it was after midnight on a dark December night, as I drank from the paper cup of coffee brought along by the forensic scene investigator team. Looked like it was going to be a long night all in all, even if most of the rest of the Team had taken off to try grab the murderous sons of the equally murderous Mrs. Wren along with local police. Me of course I'd proceeded to restrain the hedge witch along with Aqualad, Zatanna, and surprisingly enough Black Canary as their supervisor of sorts for those two; all while documenting what I could and taking calls.
Lots of calls, because this was now an important case and they, as in my bosses and the Brits, were taking this very seriously with the arrival of Jason Blood along with two detectives from the local police. There were to be no fuck ups basically, and I'd already typed up draft scene report between the crime scene officers, occulist, and detectives arriving and performing their own inspection of the scene and canvass of the old woman's neighbours. I snorted, we were making quite the show really, half the tower still up at...1:54 it seemed after a glance at my watch...and watching the police cars outside and comings and goings to the tower block, and exiting old lady in straight jacket and warded collar.
"Somewhat more paperwork than I'm used to I'll admit, though all of you seemed very eager to get out into the cold for some reason so escaping that are we?"
I glanced up from my seat on the rim of the rather broken and dirty filled stone fountain at the approaching form of Black Canary "No, just glad to get away from the stink of that place and fresh air to clear the head. Oh..." I held up the store bought cappuccino "...and caffeine too of course. Can't do without that, not when I'll have to trundle on to the police station in a wee bit to file my paperwork"
Taking another sip I nodded at Zatanna on the phone over near the doorway "Is everything alright...and her Da as mad as I think he is?"
Black Canary gave a small snort of amusement, moving to sit down beside me "Zatara is being overprotective, and he's alot more understanding of such things as this than he's letting on to Zatanna in truth. He'd warned myself and Diana about...well, an acceptable threshold for this training as he put it. I think the nature of the criminal was more of surprise for the Team, or the rather...gleeful response from the little old lady on her actions. Not exactly the supervillain they expected after all your protestations against them coming"
I sighed, hours to go and I already felt weary "They rarely are in these cases...just a hedge witch with a tiny bit of power and nasty intent. Is why I argued against, was one of John's cases and those usually ain't pretty most times. No heroic fight, just..." I motioned at the tower block and the cloying, but slowly fading thanks to our efforts, evil that pervade it "...murder and deaths, leaving a taint and blight on the ground around it. Then paperwork to deal with the problem, though that's an improvement over what was I guess, but the others are less interested in that"
She hummed in thought, apparently looking up at the sparkling stars and shining moon up in the night sky above us "Can' say I feel what you, Zatanna, and Kaldur feel but I can tell that despair seems to cover this area, recent enough too as this filth and damage seems recent"
I shrugged "Probably started off small when she moved in and did the first murder, leeching off the happy memories of the victims, and then dumping the darker emotions out like filth into a well. Whole thing were probably unnoticed...hell, it was largely unnoticed by most of the neighbours judging by the 'it were such a nice place once upon a time' comments. But, lucky enough we caught it before it spin out of control even more I suppose"
"Six murders and however many suicides caused would suggest it had spun out of control"
"Thirteen suicides according to estimates of the cases and psych profiles of the victims, so that'll be Manslaughter by an unlawful and dangerous act to add to the murder charges, but this could have dragged on for much longer and poisoned the area before moving on. Mrs. Wren is a junkie, spiritual one but still one, and I reckon they'll be similar down in London before she came here..." I admitted holding the paper cup with both hands "...and she was never going to stop; even trained her sons to help her out grabbing hookers to soul drain. No, worst is she could have kept at it and turned this area into a demon haunt or such, or other bad things. S'why she's got go away for life, put a stop to the likes of this happenin' and like of yer one getting away with it"
"Ah, all your time on the phone since capturing her?" she mused with a smile, of sorts, on her face "...hard not to grasp the effort being applied for such a case as this. Something of surprise, I've seen less from you on missions involving rather more dangerous foes"
Ah, been tested it seemed, but why I wondered idly as I opted for the simple truth "It's test case...well alongside John's one down in London, for the new laws and SHIELDs role in dealing with this sort of thing. Case law and precedent that won't be on the hundreds of years old laws on witches that'd have me and Zatanna marked as bad as crazy old lady. Bosses want everything lined up and a slam dunk"
She gave me a look "This but not threats that have appeared like Wotan, or the battle with the small army of murderous fairies?"
I gave a tired, and perhaps slightly dark, chuckle "Oh yes, this level not big threats. They're...easy to plan maybe? No, it's more...hmm...they are apparent, clear and present danger. Too obvious not to deal with, and generally fudged with metahuman laws till now, big bad either gets dead, or if magical locked into the magical prison under the Tower of London. It's the likes of here that fester, largely because local police don't realise how dangerous even a half-trained hedge mage can be, and things get shunted aside. Here for instance it'd have taken more than this to figure it out for the constables, and even then getting the evidence would have meant trying to get past those wards. Doable, but not without very good reason to want cross them...and that always meant bad outcomes"
"Oh?"
"Was never as bad for me, but that's just my age and Ireland being less bad..." I admitted looking up at those twinkling stars now myself; pretty, but filled with dangers "...but this would have just grown till it got big enough to get someone's attention, like the local magician who brought this up. So they either try sort it themselves, or they reach out - The Tate Club lot, or the likes of Jason Blood, but probably John cuz he's local, and then it'll be a clusterfuck...sorry, mess, because it'll now be a big problem and that meant bigger fallout and deaths as no support. Or they die in the process and murder-granny moves on...hah...and even stopping her would have meant a choice with what to do with her"
"Hand over to the police to lock up is the usual result" she told me softly and I gave a snort of amusement to that.
"Yes now, recent years, but till then? According to most I've talked to the best case is getting them committed to the mental, somewhere that can hold'em for a time. Ravenscar for an example, but that's hard, a not a guarantee they won't get out randomly in a few years or even months, and most ended in deaths when the evil idiots lose control of their evil whatever and it kills them and you have to play containment on the stupid..." I sighed "...sorry venting. Pressures on to get this case sorted, and John's case was just as messed up as usual for Watford to have contacted him directly"
"This case I heard you discuss with him over the phone, down in London?"
"Yeah, some thieves were being chased after a robbery and ran into a building, didn't come out. Two of the Met's robbery squad went in...and didn't come out, because they went bonkers and killed each other. Same as the next two rushed in to save their mates...long story short Inspector Watford and John don't really get on, but it were magical murderer so called in who he knew"
"Ah, and trying to put a stop to such informality it seems to me?"
'Yes, or most likely so' I thought to myself a moment before nodding "Yes...no, not my decision really, but it's why this'll go to court and she'll go away for the rest of her short life. And the nutter John took down in London too course, though he's probably genuinely for the mental from the sounds of it...assuming John can keep him from *accidently* falling down a flight of stairs and breaking his neck while the bobbies see nothing of course"
A sigh "You are rather pessimistic young man sometimes Mr. Fortune"
"He killed cops, friends of the lads arresting him, and people are tense after events. Part of the job is stopping such overreactions when people getting the dark end of the freaky magic stick"
She winced "Yes, I'd heard of, seen actually, similar problems in some parts of the United States and Middle East after the restoring children to the world"
"Ugh, yeah religious zealots who hate magic and magic healing of children can be bad" I admitted before that, nearly, resolved issue from the Childnapping incident aside in my mind "...anyway, how do you think we all performed?"
"Oh my professional opinion?" she chuckled "...the Team? Your friends in SHIELD? The police?"
"Hmm, all of the above I guess" I admitted "...I expect I'll have to add it to my report..."
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[17th December 2010]
[LexCorp Headquarters, Metropolis, United States of America]
The view was spectacular as ever he found, staring out over his city through the hardened glass of his office at the top of the towering building. Oh it had been battered from days past, but Metropolis was secure once again, and the destruction perhaps had allowed a clearing of dead wood from the system, both in terms of infrastructure and the people behind it. Great plans, such as on the model behind him, would allow the damaged city to rise phoenix-like from its suffering while also allowing his own enterprises to expand either directly, or through sponsoring potentially useful small business and scientific initiatives. Soon all would know of the brilliance of Lex Luthor, how he, not the alien, had risen as a saviour to his home city in every way that truly mattered.
"...treaty of friendship between the peoples of Earth and of Mars has been announced..."
He continued to gaze out as behind him the voice of Lois Lane spoke through the great screen there in regards the nature of developments with the alien visitors. Not that he was particular interested in her opinion, and those of her colleagues, for more than a view of the public mood; his own information on all the talks, with the Thanagarians, these so-called Guardians, and the Martians of course, was far superior to the humble minds of the press corps after all. Still...it was a useful distraction from the more troublesome matters, such dealing with the remnants of Al Ghul's like assassin club who were now gunning for him, as well as locating where the Caveman had gotten himself off too. An irritation when more important matters, from the alien delegations through the Justice League's expansion unto the return of various other players to the game across the globe.
'Or merely those arising on the fringes of the US military and intelligence services while President Rickard's administration goes into the terminal stages' he mused idly eyes scanning the horizon for the alien. It appeared that his information was correct; Amanda Waller was up to something, and had managed to gain backers within the military and CIA as well as externally if judged from the funds suddenly been funnelled into a number of new high-tech, and massively funded, new companies. Not only that the mysterious group, with their front man El Presidente of Tropico, who had appeared to have allies, or control more likely, over the British Isles had begun to sink major resources into the wretched island than had been Santa Prisca.
'How to best take advantage of this matter...' he speculated considering economic matters for the moment '...South America is already entering a severe recession thanks to destruction of the cartels and looting of their financial resources, only the actions against the echinoderm has held such decline at bay. With the flow seemingly going into highly focused streams; the UK and Irish economies indirectly through construction, military, and R projects; they are attempting to similar here if the source of these investment is I suspect...hhmm...and into Santa Prisca of course. Whatever is so important there that requires such large investment I wonder?'
Of course the US economy was going to enter a period of major instability, after such destruction how could it now, but with the alien scare investment into several projects were set to skyrocket. It had even allowed him, through LexCorp, to form an official 'Magical Research Group' with shareholder funds based on the hard data of its existence. With his competition having already pondering, publically at that, such measures it had allowed near a billion of an initial investment with shareholder funds and freeing up his own funds to deal with certain security matters. Considering the losses of Cadmus, and of the Abomination's magical skills, it was a drop in the bucket, but it was a start to strengthening his position. Perhaps dealing with the current aliens could deliver something of use...
"Mercy, please schedule an appointment with Mr. Macmillan in the State Department at his earlier convenience, I do believe arranging a meeting on behalf of LexCorp with the Martian delegation, with appropriate mental protections of course, would be appropriate in light of the new diplomatic agreement between our worlds"
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