AN
Hello and welcome to the 18th installment of this story,
Now to pressing matters concerning this story, if at any time you decide you don't like the story anymore, you don't have to keep reading it, I won't take it badly
Secondly, the last few chapters had been fillers so if the quality of them dropped I'm sorry I just wasn't connecting with the source material so I'm going to change things a bit
I will focus heavily on my side of the story instead of the source material from now on, so the story can be more engaging
So without any more delays enjoy the chapter
I want to clear out something, I have been reading, and checking the story over the past few months, and I caved, yeah, it started with Nate being Naruto, but not anymore. I don't know where my headspace was back then but I was adamant about him being Naruto, and I kind of went the other way
So yeah, I agree this MC is not Naruto, so from this point on this is an Oc Story based on Naruto and other characters, so if any of you liked this story because of Naruto, I'm sorry and I'll understand if you decide to leave it.
Anyway, sorry for taking so long, and I appreciate all of your comments. I'll try and finish the first season and then I'll take a little break from this story
Also a minor spoiler and small warning, I'm gonna start putting in more original work than just retelling the chapters, especially since everything I've been setting up is gonna crash sooner rather than later
That's all enjoy the chapter
Chapter 18: The test
Nate's house late at night
In the middle of his study room, Nate sat there looking straight at the board he had about the light, he was staring at the picture of his old master full seriousness plaster on his face
"What's on your mind, young man?" A voice inside Nate's head asked and Nate glanced at where he had put his swords
"Nothing," Nate responded telepathically and the sword of Beowulf chuckled
"We can tell you are lying from miles away, so don't," Beowulf said, and Nate glanced away
"I just can't believe his back," Nate said and glanced back at the picture of Mr. Shaw
"Who?" Red asked
"My old master, I thought he was dead," Nate said and stood from his chair and walked closer to the board
"What do you plan to do when you find him?" Beowulf asked Nate and the blond shrugged his shoulders
"I don't know, that's it if he doesn't find me first," Nate said as he crossed his arms and still stared directly at the photo ahead of him
"You're afraid, aren't you?" Red asked with curiosity in his voice
"Yes, but not of him, I'm afraid of myself," Nate said looking at his hands "Of what I'll become just to take him down," Nate said and then a silence followed that sentence
A silence that was broken by Ciri's barking, Nate glanced at the main door and while putting his swords on his back and headed to the outside
He found Ciri barking at the trees and put a hand on her head petting her "What's wrong girl?" Nate asked as he stared at the trees and saw nothing
"Let's get inside," Nate said as he guided Ciri to the inside of the house before he entered the house he glanced back at the trees and again saw nothing
But there was something there, or rather someone, a group of 10 people wearing black ninja outfits were hiding in the trees, the leader of the group signaled the rest to go ahead, and they did
They ran towards the back entrance, and broke in, they pulled their swords out and headed toward where they heard a sound coming from
They walked into the kitchen and saw Nate with his swords on his back preparing himself a drink and putting it on the main table
"You guys have exactly five seconds to tell me why you are here," Nate said without looking at the ninjas while the group of assassins circled Nate, and the blond started counting on his head
"I guess we are going to do this the difficult way," Nate said taking a sip of his drink when he finished, he whistled, and Ciri launched at one of the assassins and bit his groin out
Nate threw his glass at one of the assassins grabbed the head of the one closest to him and slammed it on the table
He dodged several sword strikes drew both of his swords and started pairing the strikes with his swords
They moved into the living room and Nate kicked an assassin into the living room the assassin stumble onto the couch, and Nate dodged a strike and punched the gut of the assassin with all of his strength making the assassin fall to the ground in pain
Nate then parried several shuriken that were thrown at him and stabbed the leg of an assassin who had jumped at him, he pulled the sword out of the assassin's leg and punched the face of that assassin sending him to the ground
Then a shuriken hit Nate's shoulder and he winced in pain as he glanced back and saw the ninja that had thrown the shuriken he whistled again sending Ciri towards the assassin and she started biting the arm of the assassin
Nate winced as he took out the shuriken from his arm and glanced at the remaining 5 assassins, he twirled his swords and ran forward striking and parring the sword attacks from the assassins
Nate put his sword on top of his head and parried all the strikes from the assassins at the same time and held his position as the assassins tried to push down Nate
The blond pushed forward sending the assassins tumbling away and he quickly slashed the chest of an assassin taking him down
An assassin ran forward and grabbed Nate's waist as another kicked the side of the face of Nate making the blond stumble back and land on the side of a table
Another assassin ran forward and jumped to knee the face of Nate but the blond grabbed the knee of the assassin and threw him down onto the table
Nate made sure he had his swords in his hands and with a tired breath he stared at the remaining 3 assassins
Nate cracked his neck cleaned the blood from his mouth and told them to come forward as the assassins circled him
One of the assassins ran forward and threw a massive slash forward and Nate parried it with his right sword and kicked the gut of the assassin sending him back
The other two assassins attacked together with several attacks and Nate managed to parry them all, he then grabbed the arm of an assassin and broke it with a twist and then jumped and kicked down towards the head of the assassin knocking him out cold
Nate focused on the other assassin as the attacker slashed with his sword Nate went low and grabbed the leg of the assassin and with all his strength, he sent him flying toward the window of the house
The assassin crashed into the window and instantly broke it and stumble into the outside
Nate then quickly had to focus on the remaining assassin as the assassin attacked while the blond was distracted
The assassin kept attacking with his sword and Nate kept dodging and parrying the attacks without anyone gaining the advantage
Finally, Nate had enough and sent a fireball into the face of the assassin making him tumble back
Nate kicked the sword out of the hand of the assassin threw an elbow at the side of the face of the assassin and kicked his gut making the assassin fall to his knees Nate put his sword on the neck of the assassin
Nate gathered his breath and stared at the assassin "Who sent you?" Nate asked while glaring at the assassin
The assassin just started chuckling under Nate's confused stare and the assassin spoke out "Your time has come Uzumaki, you either fall in line or fall," The assassin said as he snapped his fingers and disappeared in a cloud of smoke
Nate stood there speechless as several smoke bombs went off on his house and saw how the bodies of the assassins disappeared from his house
"Dammit!" Nate cursed out loud when he saw the bodies disappearing and then took a seat on the couch of the living room
He took out his cellphone and started checking his contact list and called Batman as he figured he had some explaining to do
"Hi, something occurred, and I need your help," Nate said and he hung up the call knowing that was enough for Batman
Sometime Later Nate's House
"So, what happened here?" Batman said as he and Nate were talking in the living room
"I was attacked, by the shadows if I'm guessing right," Nate said as he scratched his neck
"Why?" Batman asked in curiosity and Nate shrugged his shoulders
"I don't know, maybe it was because of my good looks?" Nate said sarcastically making Batman glare at him
"Please be serious," Batman said, and Nate frowned
"I am, I have no idea why, I think they were trying to recruit me, but I have no real leads," Nate said and Batman nodded
"Well, either way, this location is compromised, we need to move you away," Batman said and Nate sighed
"Again?" Nate said in frustration "Where am I supposed to go now?" Nate asked and Batman sighed
"You're going back to the cave, where is save for the moment," Batman said and Nate sighed and leaned back on the couch
"Fine if you say so," Nate said and then remembered about the mole situation "Actually, there is something I need to show you," Nate said taking out his phone
"What?" Batman asked in curiosity as Nate handed him his phone
"I know who the mole is," Nate said and signaled Batman to play the audio Cheshire had given him
"Where did you get this?" Batman asked and Nate looked at him
"Sorry, my source decided to remain anonymous," Nate said and Batman played the audio once again
"And you sure this is real?" Batman said and Nate nodded "Why would Red Arrow betray us?" Batman asked
"He was never Roy, he's a clone, like Superboy," Nate said "Tasked with the job of getting into the league, for what purposes I don't know," Nate said
"What would you do in this situation?" Batman asked
"You're asking me for my opinion?" Nate asked in curiosity and Batman nodded "Nothing," Nate said, and Batman grew confused
"Nothing?" Batman asked in confusion
"Yes, we do nothing, we don't know what the hell the villains are planning," Nate said "The scariest enemy you can face is the one you don't know anything about," Nate said and Batman crossed his arms frowning in deep thought
"So, we let them do their plan?" Batman asked
"I got a feeling that they're playing a long game, we need to see and study data and then we strike," Nate said and Batman sighed
"I guess you are right, and besides even if that isn't Roy, he still someone needs saving so we won't do anything that could harm him," Batman said and Nate nodded "So, we will keep quiet, don't tell anyone," Batman ordered
"Roger that," Nate said while nodding his head
"Let me make a few calls to the league to help you move out," Batman said and headed out of the house
Nate stood up from the couch and walked to the top floor where the study room was located
Nate took down his whiteboard without messing with the photos and started packing it
Then he heard a knock on the door and Batman walked inside the room "I talked to the cave, we have a room prepared for you," Batman said
"What about my stuff?" Nate asked in curiosity
"Some league members will come to the house to collect and bring your stuff to the cave," Batman said and Nate nodded in understanding
"So, when do we go?" Nate asked
"Right now," Batman said as he started to walk out of the room "Follow me," Batman said, and Nate did so while Ciri walked behind him
After sparing a final glance at the whiteboard he strapped his swords to his back and walked out of the house
Sometime later Mount Justice
"So, I heard you got your ass kicked?" Superboy asked sarcastically as he saw Nate placing his stuff back into his old room while Ciri lay on his bed
"I did not, I delivered the ass-kicking," Nate said as he dropped down on the bed "Shouldn't you be asleep by now?" Nate asked in curiosity
"You coming in woke us up," Conner said and Nate sighed "Don't worry. It mostly concern rather than anger that we are feeling," Conner said
"That doesn't ease up my worry," Nate said rubbing his face and standing from the bed "Where are the girls?" Nate asked
"They're in the kitchen," Conner said "Told 'em I would check on you first so that way this doesn't seem like an ambush," Conner told him, and the blond teenager nodded in understanding
"Alright, I should go and ease their worry," Nate said walking out of the room and Conner followed him closely
"Have you told Artemis yet?" Conner said making Nate freeze and stop walking
"Shit, I forgot," Nate whispered, "She's going to kill me when she finds out," Nate said rubbing his face and sighing
"I can't wait to see it," Conner said chuckling and Nate hit his shoulder
"Shut up," Nate said as they entered the kitchen and Nate had to brace himself as Megan threw herself into a hug
"Nate!" Megan exclaimed while hugging Nate for dear life "I was so scared for you!" Megan said and Nate tapped her back
"Can't breathe," Nate said and Megan separated herself from Nate
"What the hell happened?" Zatanna said as she went for a hug and Nate reciprocated the hug
"What did they tell you?" Nate asked as they walked and sat on the couches, Megan and Conner taking one couch and Zatanna sitting next to Nate
"They told us some bad guys broke into your house," Megan said
"And that they attacked you," Zatanna said finishing for Megan
"But Canary didn't get into details," Conner said and Nate nodded
"Shadows tried to recruit me," Nate said, "Rather forcefully if I might add," Nate said and leaned back on the couch
"Well, we are glad to have you," Megan said and Nate smiled at her
"It's good to be back, I was getting kind of lonely in that house," Nate said and then looked at the hour "We should get back to sleep, Wally's party is tomorrow," Nate said standing up from the couch
"I don't understand," Conner said "Why do we have to make him a surprise party that he asks us to do?" he asked and Nate chuckled
"Because we care for him, we talked about this Conner," Megan said and the dark-haired teen grumbled
"Besides it would be a first birthday experience for some people," Nate said and Conner nodded in understanding "I just hate the fact that league members will be here," Nate said and Conner snorted
"Why?" Zatanna asked
"Because he doesn't get to drink," Conner said and Nate made a face but didn't disagree with that statement
"He's turning sixteen, why would there be drinks at the party?" Megan asked sarcastically and Nate looked at her
"So that I can have fun," Nate said simply gaining a chuckle from Zatanna and a disappointed sigh from Megan
"Let's go to sleep," Megan said pushing the back of the guys "And you better be on your best behavior tomorrow," She said
"Yes mom," Nate drawled, and Megan hit the back of his head while Zatanna chuckled at the scene
Megan and Conner went their separate ways and Nate noticed how they went to the same room, leaving Nate and Zatanna alone
Nate noticed that Zatanna's room was next to him, and he internally chuckled at that "So, how are you?" Nate asked Zatanna remembering her father
"I'm better, Meg has been a great help," Zatanna said
"I have been searching, about Dr, Fate," Nate said leaning on the wall "So far it's nothing but bullshit, but there has to be something," Nate said and Zatanna gave him a small smile
"You know, you don't have to do that do you?" Zatanna said with a small smile on her face
"I know," Nate said "But I made you a promise, and intend to keep it," Nate said making Zatanna's smile grow wider
"Thank you, really thank you," Zatanna said with a big smile on her face "Hey Nate, can you come in for a sec, we need to talk about something," Zatanna said and Nate grew confused
"Is everything okay?" Nate said worried and Zatanna gave him a small reassuring smile
"Yeah, I just want to clear something off," Zatanna said reassuringly and led him into her room, Nate looked around a little uncomfortable and Zatanna noticed it "You're cute, come on take a seat," Zatanna said patting the bed on her left side
Nate sighed mentally and took a seat next to her, she crossed her legs together and she was smirking at Nate "You're enjoying this aren't you?" Nate said looking at Zatanna and she chuckled with her hand over her mouth
"A little, you're usually very confident, but I like this side of you," Zatanna said and Nate rubbed the back of his neck
"So, what did you want to talk about?" Nate asked with a little curiosity in his voice "Is this about your dad?" Nate asked
"It has to do with it, but not entirely," Zatanna said and then sighed "I was talking to Artemis, and she kind of slipped it out that the two of you are dating, is it true?" Zatanna asked and Nate raised an eyebrow
"Yes, we are, we have for a while now," Nate said and Zatanna nodded her head
"Yeah, I just wanted to be certain, because something strange happened to me after she told me that," Zatanna said and Nate turned to look at her "I'm going to tell you something personal, I'm Bi," Zatanna said and Nate grew confused
"That's great? Sorry I don't know how to react," Nate said and Zatanna grabbed his hand and smiled at him
"Don't worry, I didn't expect you to react a certain way," Zatanna said and looked into his eyes "I'll be honest, when I met you and Artemis, I got an instant crush on both of you," Zatanna said and Nate nodded letting her speak her thoughts
"So when I learned that you were dating, I felt sad, but I figured I would move over like I always do," Zatanna said and Nate frowned in confusion
"But?" Nate said unconsciously squeezing Zatanna's hand a little
"But then, while I was practicing magic, I felt something off with my core, nothing wrong but something was different," Zatanna said looking straight into his eyes "When were you gonna tell me that I'm bonded with you and Art?" Zatanna asked with genuine curiosity and no anger in her voice
Nate looked into her eyes sighed and looked down "Frankly I realized not long ago, the day I met you, it's a complicated story," Nate said and Zatanna squeezed his hand
"Can you tell me anyway?" She asked and he sighed but started talking
"A wizard from another universe, I know it sounds weird," Nate said when he noticed Zatanna frown in confusion "He didn't want to get too into it, but he told me that since his knowledge to me, he accidentally passed his bond also, that being you," Nate explained and Zatanna grew confused
"So, we weren't supposed to be bonded?" Zatanna asked in confusion and slight sadness
"I don't know, fate, bonds, and that sort of stuff, I don't know if I believe it," Nate said and then looked back at her "What I do know, is that my core, which I'm being discovering lately, fluctuate harder whenever I think of you and Artemis," Nate said and Zatanna sighed
"Magic is powered by intention and emotions, and there's no stronger emotion than love," Zatanna explained and Nate nodded in understanding "I searched about it, once in my earlier training, and when dad told me he and mom had one," Zatanna said "And I remember him saying, the more you run from it, the more hurt you both will," Zatanna said
"Yeah, Constantine said the same thing," Nate said and Zatanna looked at him in confusion "The wizard that is teaching me," Nate explained and Zatanna nodded in understanding
"So what do we do? Because I want to date you both but I didn't know how to bring it up," Zatanna said and Nate looked forward
"Well, I talked about it to Artemis, we don't keep anything from each other, and we came to a conclusion," Nate said and Zatanna raised an eyebrow "You said it just now, you date both of us," Nate said and Zatanna grew confused
"Date both of you?" Zatanna asked confused and Nate nodded
"It's called a polyamory relationship, you would date me and Artemis at the same time, same as us, that way the bond remains intact and strong," Nate said and Zatanna looked down in deep thought
"Sounds weird, but at the same time it doesn't?" She said rhetorically and Nate smiled at her
"We live in the age of the impossible, this is no different," Nate said and Zatanna looked at him and smiled
"You're right," Zatanna said and leaned forward to give him a sweet kiss on his cheek "Can you stay the night?" Zatanna said and Nate raised an eyebrow
"Are you sure?" Nate asked and Zatanna nodded as she dropped down on the bed dragging Nate with her
"I've been having sleeping problems, maybe with you here it will help a bit," Zatanna said as Nate dropped down next to her "Just for today, please?" Zatanna said and Nate sighed and rolled over hugging her waist in the process
"Fine, but next time I'll be the little spoon," Nate said and Zatanna chuckled and made herself comfortable
"Thanks for this Nate, I'm looking forward to what's to come," Zatanna said groggily as she slipped into a deep slumber
"Me too," Nate said as he closed his eyes going into a deep slumber
Out of five people, three must pay a price
The next day, Mount Justice
"A little to the right guys," Megan said as Nate and Superboy were hanging a Happy Birthday sign on the ceiling
"Why don't you just use your telepathic powers to place it?" Nate asked in frustration as he tried to move the sign
"This way I make sure you don't miss behave," Megan said and the boys sighed
"This is your fault," Conner said and Nate looked at him in confusion
"My fault? How is this my fault?" Nate asked
"You just have to mention drinking in front of Megan," Conner said
"If I remember right you were the one who mentioned it," Nate said and Conner sighed in frustration
"Guys, that's good," Megan said and Nate and Conner smiled at their job well done
Megan was preparing to give them more orders but she was interrupted by the main computer
"Recognize Artemis B07," The computer said and Nate gulped when he heard that
"Shit," Nate whispered as he climbed down
"Nathaniel!" Artemis shouted walking into the kitchen and everyone stared at her
"Hey," Nate answered nervously and Artemis locked eyes with him
"What's this I heard about the shadows breaking into your house?" Artemis said with a frown on her face as she stared directly at Nate
"So, I got attacked yesterday…" Nate said sheepishly scratching his head and Artemis punched his shoulder
"And you waited all this time to tell me?" Artemis asked the frown on her face not disappearing
"It was late, I didn't want to wake you up," Nate said and Megan coughed bringing the attention to her
"Sorry, we will give you guys your privacy," Megan said as she and Conner went their way and left the two blonds alone
"Sorry I didn't call you last night," Nate said with a tired sigh and Artemis looked up at him
"It's alright, I was just worried about you," Artemis said, and they both shared a long hug "Are you alright? You look kind of tired," Artemis said, and Nate nodded
"Had a bad dream, don't remember much of it… There's something I need to tell you," Nate said while they broke the hug and Artemis looked at him in curiosity "I spoke to Zatanna yesterday, she knows about the bond now," Nate explained and Artemi's eyes winded
"What did she say?" Artemis asked in curiosity and Nate gave her a small smile
"That's a conversation you two should have, it's nothing bad I promise you, but you have a bond with her just as much as I do," Nate said and Artemis frowned jokingly
"You know, you could just have told me to talk to her, instead of using all those fancy words," Artemis said and Nate chuckled
"Go on, she should be in the kitchen," Nate said and she smiled at him, gave him a peck on his right cheek, and went to the kitchen first,
Nate sighed and cracked his neck, a sense of wrongness and wariness invaded him, something didn't feel right to him, but maybe it was just his tiredness speaking, he decided to walk to the kitchen where the team was
The team was silently arranging everything when Kaldur showed up dressed in his hero outfit and walked toward Nate
"Hey Nate, can I talk to you for a second," Kaldur said and Nate glanced at him, he had a sense of what Kaldur wanted to talk about, so he prepared his best lying skills
"Sure," Nate said as he followed Kladur to a secluded hallway "What's on your mind Kladur?"
"I needed to tell you something," Kladur said "On Halloween, me, Robin, Roy, and Batman met together to discuss the possibility of the mole," Kaldur said and Nate looked at him in fake surprise
He already knew about that gathering but he wanted Kaldur to tell him of his own volition and don't push him for an answer
"So, who do you think it is?" Nate asked
"No one, as we agreed, but they threw some names in the meeting," Kaldur said "And I thought you should ought to know," Kaldur said
"Who are the suspects?" Nate asked in curiosity
"Meg, Conner, Artemis, and…" Kaldur said and Nate finished with a chuckle
"Me, is that right?" Nate asked sarcastically and Kaldur nodded nonetheless "Can I ask who blamed whom? Or did everyone agree on a specific one?" Nate said trying to cover his ground
"Most came from Roy, you, Artemis, and Meg were his prime suspects," Kaldur explained and Nate nodded in understanding
"And Conner?" Nate asked now in genuine curiosity and Kaldur sighed
"It came from Batman, he said Conner may be a sleeper agent, sent by Cadmus," Kaldur said and Nate grumbled a little
"No trust huh?" Nate grumbled under his breath but loud enough for Aqualad to hear
"So what should we do?" Kaldur said and they were interrupted by the computer
"Recognized Kid Flash B04," The computer said and Nate looked at Kaldur with a smile
"Keep it between us, no need to preoccupy the team with nonsense," Nate said as Kaldur nodded and followed Nate into the kitchen to wait for Wally
They heard the redhead coming into the kitchen and as soon he turned the lights on everyone shouted Surprise to Wally
"Guys you shouldn't have," Wally said with a smirk on his face
"Right," Robin said with a smirk of his own "Is not like you haven't been hitting at it all week or anything," he said and received a shive thanks from Nate
"What he means is happy birthday Wally," Nate said, and Wally smiled as he saw the food on the table
Nate then felt his phone vibrating and quickly excused himself from the party "Hello?" he asked while putting his phone to his ear
"Hey dragon, been a while," A feminine voice that Nate recognized as Cheshire said over the line
"Jade, such a pleasure hearing your voice this early in the day," Nate said sarcastically as he leaned on one of the walls of the cave
"You sound so cranky Nathaniel, woke on the wrong foot today?" Jade said and Nake sighed
"More or less, something just feels off today," Nate explained and he heard Jade's soft laugh at the other end of the line
"Well, being attacked by the shadows in the middle of the night can be pretty tiring," Jade said rhetorically, and Nate gave her a small chuckle
"I won't even ask how you know that," Nate said with amusement in his voice, then he sighed again and turned serious "So, what did you need?" Nate asked
"What? Can't a girl call her brother-in-law just to chat?" Jade said sarcastically and Nate smiled
"A girl can, but you're not the type to do that," Nate explained and heard her chuckling lightly
"Fair enough," Jade said and Nate heard her let out a sigh "Guess I got worried, if something happened to you, my ticket is gone," Jade said and Nate snorted
"Glad you care about me, deep down you know," Nate said with a sarcastic tone and then frowned "But I get what you're saying, in this line of work, better get ahead of the curve," Nate said as he looked at his watch
"Gotham, you're sister's school, five p.m.," Nate said simply
"Roger that, anything I should know ahead?" Jade asked in curiosity as Nate looked ahead in full seriousness
"The Jade you are now, will no longer exist after we're finished," Nate said and Jade hummed
"Huh, spooky," Jade said "Well, I'll see you later Nate, take care," Jade said and Nate nodded his head
"Take care of yourself Chesh," Nate said hanging up the call, he put his phone away and cracked his neck while making his way back to the kitchen
He entered silently and smiled to himself at the scene he saw, Wally was devouring the cakes while trying to flirt with Megan, Conner looked at them in jealousness, Kaldur and Robin were talking on the side, while eating a piece of cake, while Artemis and Zatanna were sitting on a couch together talking to each other, with Ciri sleeping between both girls laps
But that beautiful scene was broken soon enough by the cave's alarm
"Attention team, suit up," Batman said over the announcer of the cave and the team went into serious mode "Polar suits, don't be late," Batman said ending the call
The team looked at Nate with confusion and the blond teen sighed "Well you heard the man, get going people," Nate said as the team scrambled to get ready
Nate snapped his fingers and magically changed into his hero outfit knowing it was going to be cold outside, he applied a minor heating spell to him to keep himself warm, and both swords wrapped on his back magically
"Kid," Nate heard Beowulf say in his mind as he stopped walking
"What is it?" Nate responded mentally
"You won't hear from us for a while, we'll be here, but we will be silent for some time," Red said, and Nate grew confused
"Why?" Nate asked in confusion
"The day of you learning our names is upon us," Beowulf said in a warning manner
"And the way till there, won't be easy and pretty," Red said and Nate scoffed a little
"Nothing ever is," Nate said and Red and Beowulf chuckled a little
"Be strong Nate, we will be guarding your back, till the day comes for you to pay the price," Beowulf said
"Remember, out of five people, three must pay a price, and you're one of them," Red said getting Nate confused
But then he heard nothing, no matter how far he tried to reach them, only silence was there, so he decided to focus on the present
He put his hands in his pockets and walked calmly to the debriefing room where once he got there waited for the rest of the team to get there
They all got there and watched as Batman explained the situation to the team "Since this morning, several cities across the world have been hit with a snowstorm, and we found the culprit," Batman said as he showed the team five devices that were producing snow on the countries
"With the urgency to get rid of those, we're going to need all hands on deck," Batman said as Robin's eyes perked up
"Wait, does that mean what I think it means?" Robin asked excitedly "The league and the team working side by side?" Robin asked excitedly
"Rob, keep it down, let the man explain himself," Nate said as Robin fell back in line
"Back to the topic, Superboy take the Super-Cycle and rendezvous with the bat plane at fortress number one, drop Nate there, then head too," Batman said Nate feeling tired from the attack of yesterday just wanted to get on with the mission so he interrupted Batman
"Sorry for the interruption, but I'm guessing you plan to separate us, into smaller teams?" Nate asked in curiosity and Batman narrowed his eyes at him
"Yes," Batman said simply
"Can you give me the coordinates of my target?" Nate asked simply and Batman looked hard at him but Nate held his ground and then Batman put the coordinates on the hologram "Thank you," Nate said creating a portal behind him and turning back
"Word of advice Bats, trust is a two-way street," Nate said glaring hard at Batman leaving the conference room through the portal
Leaving his team confused, wondering why and where that anger came from, except Aqualad he got a pretty good idea of what exactly annoyed Nate
Fortress number one
Nate arrived at the fortress and looked around, he took out his gun from his right side and pointed it forward, he felt a turret turn on and lock on him, he was preparing to shoot it down but stopped when he saw someone falling hard into it
Once the smoke cleared out he saw Superman there looking down at him, and Nate couldn't help but keep his guard up
"Nathaniel right?" Superman asked in curiosity and Nate nodded "Glad you could join us," Superman said with a smile on his face
"Us?" Nate asked in curiosity and then someone else landed next to them
"This is the young warrior Batman sent?" Wonder Woman, one of the big three of the Justice League said looking down at Nate
"Yes, this is Nathaniel, leader of the youngster's team," Superman said as Diana nodded her head at Nate "Nate, this is Diana, listen to her instructions, I'll offer support if needed," Superman said levitating and flying away
"Good to meet you, young man," Wonder Woman said putting her hand forward as Nate shook it
"Likewise, big fan," Nate said and Wonder Woman smiled at him "So, what do I have to do?" Nate asked in curiosity and Diana turned serious
"We'll go one and two, simple, I'll go forward while you give me support, and if I require it, we switch, we don't stop till all turrets are down, got it?" Wonder Woman said and Nate nodded
"Roger that ma'am," Nate said taking his other gun and putting them both on lethal mode "Wanna make things a little bit more interesting?" Nate said with a smirk on his face as he placed the face mask on
"I'm listening," Wonder Woman said with genuine curiosity
"Let's see who can destroy more turrets," Nate said cheekily and Wonder Woman laughed hard
"I see, and what does the winner get?" Wonder Woman asked in curiosity and Nate smiled
"Bragging rights?" Nate said and Wonder Woman smiled at him
"Fair enough," Wonder Woman said smiling "Let's get going young warrior, keep up," Wonder Woman said as she started running with Nate on her trail
And they worked like old partners, like a well-oiled machine, Wonder Woman drew the attention of the turrets and Nate fired several shots at them making several holes
Back and forth they switched targets, going through all the turrets of the fortress, while Superman gave support here and there with his lasers
It took some time but they took care of all the turrets with 16-14 to Wonder Woman, Nate was out of breath a little as Wonder Woman slapped his back "Good work young Warrior, can you fly?" She said and Nate looked at her
"Not yet, why?" Nate asked and Wonder Woman looked at him
"Superman is going to bring the fortress down, we should clear out, I can carry you if you want," Wonder Woman said and Nate chuckled
"I'm fine, I'd like to preserve my dignity," Nate said and snapped his fingers, creating a circle platform on both of their feet and they started elevating upwards "This should hold us enough," Nate said and Wonder Woman looked down in amazement
"Oh, you're an arcane kid, that's impressive," Wonder Woman said looking at the magic platform
"It's nothing really," Noate said sheepishly and then looked back at the fortress "So what's the plan?" Nate asked and Wonder Woman smiled
"Let's just say that we're lucky this one is just on top of the Atlantic sea," She said cryptically
Then Nate looked closely and saw Superman going at incredible speeds through the fortress breaking it into several pieces in the process, enough small pieces that it wouldn't cause any harm on the way down
Then Superman levitated next to them and looked at both of them with a big smile "Good work guys, I'm going to give a hand to the others," Superman said flying away as quickly as he could
"Ah man, I wanted his autograph," Nate said in fake defeat and Wonder Woman patted his shoulder
"I can give you mine if you'd like," She said with a smirk on her face and he snorted "Come on I'll treat you to lunch young man," Wonder Woman said and Nate was going to refuse but his stomach rumbled
"If isn't any bother ma'am," Nate said sheepishly and she smiled at him
"None at all, I always find myself quite hungry after a job like this," She said as she started walking and then realized where she was "Uh, young man?" She said and Nate's eyes winded
"Ah right, sorry," Nate said opening a portal to the middle of Metropolis.
Ghotam private school
It was almost five p.m. and Nate was waiting at the entrance while flipping a coin over and over again with his right hand, he flipped it once again but it didn't land back on his hand
"Rude," Nate said as he saw Jade's hand catching the coin
"Sorry, I couldn't help myself," Jade said, she was wearing civilian clothes, nothing too much, just enough to not stand out "So, what's next?" Jade asked and Nate looked straight into her eyes
"Are you sure about this? There's no going back after this," Nate said and Jade looked at him and nodded her head, not finding the words "Alright then, put this on your left arm," Nate said giving her a red ribbon
She grabbed it tied it around her upper arm and looked at Nate in confusion "You're a visitor, not a citizen, that's how we tell," Nate explained and Jade nodded in understanding "Did you bring it?" Nate asked in curiosity and she nodded
She lifted a bag that was tied to her waist and opened it revealing her alter ego mask "Why did you ask me to bring it, if I may ask?" Jade asked in curiosity
"Is a part of you, and all of you has to be on board," Nate said seriously and Jade nodded in understanding "This way then," Nate said turning around and leading Jade to the parking lot of the school where his previous exploded bike was parked, now built back again courtesy of the Justice League
"Here," Nate said handing her a helmet and jumping on the bike while putting his helmet on, Jade jumped behind him putting her helmet on
"Try not to kill me red," Jade said and Nate chuckled and started driving fast making Jad quickly grab his waist "Fucker," He heard Jade curse and he chuckled internally and drive towards the common entrance of the underground
Took a while for them to get there, Nate hid his bike just in case and waited for Jade to get off "Nice driving, I'll give it a nine out of ten," Jade said cheekily as Nate got off also
"I'll take it, this way," Nate said as Jade nodded and walked side by side "Are you nervous?" Nate asked in curiosity and Jade looked at him
"A little, can you tell?" Jade asked nervously and Nate smiled at her
"Yeah, is fine, apparently everyone gets that way," Nate said and Jade looked at him in curiosity
"Did you get this way too?" Jade asked and Nate frowned a little
"No, but back then, I didn't feel much," Nate said with a sigh "Perks of being a killer soldier I guess," Nate said and he saw how confused Jade got "Huh, seems they didn't tell you everything," Nate said and Jade snorted
"I was a tool for them to use, always kept on the sidelines," Jade said rhetorically and Nate smirked as they entered a familiar alley
"Seems we have more in common than we thought then," Nate said fondly as they got to a gray door, Nate knock on the door as the visor slid open "The underground doesn't exist so fuck off," Nate said and the visor closed and then the door opened
"Nate," Tony said as he clasped hands with the blond teen as Jade entered slowly
"Tony, this is," Nate said as Jade put a hand forward
"Jade, Jade Nguyen," Jade said shaking Tony's hand as the big, large man smiled at her
"Jade, your mother spoke highly of you, is no surprise you're here," Tony said fondly as she smiled "You're early Nate, her trial doesn't start in half an hour," Tony said pressing the button to the elevator
"Yeah I know, I wanted to give her the chance to see everything," Nate said and Tony nodded in understanding
"Fair enough," Tony said as the elevator arrived "Nice meeting you Jade, hope to see you around more often," Tony said as Nate walked forward
"Likewise Tony," Jade said as she followed Nate into the elevator saying goodbye as the door closed off
"Nguyen?" Nate asked in curiosity his back facing the closed doors as always and Jade mimicked his actions and turned around
"I won't be Crock any longer," Jade said simply and Nate nodded in understanding
"Fair enough," Nate said and looked forward as the elevator moved down, he crossed his arms and Jade wanted to talk more but her words died down as she got her first glance at the Underground
"Woah," Jade said in amazement as the colors and buildings ahead "It's so beautiful," Jade said and Nate smiled at her
"Your sister had the same reaction," Nate said with a chuckle as the elevator dropped down "Come on, I want you to meet my sponsor," Nate said and Jade raised an eyebrow
"Sponsor?" Jade asked in curiosity
"The one who gets you into the underground, if everything goes smoothly, I'll be yours," Nate said as they walked through the main way
"You can find food, and supplies merchants in this alley, Harry sells the best bowls of ramen I had at the end of the road," Nate said with a smile on his face "And at the end of the road is the main building where most things happen," Nate said as Jade looked at the huge bar ahead
"Afterlife?" Jade said reading the sign out loud
"Where all the best mercenaries come to get a job, and where my sponsor works," Nate said as they arrived and the two guards looked at him with curiosity
"Boys," Nate said with a nod of his head as the guards looked at Jade and her ribbon, they stepped away, letting both through as Nate led her to the booth center
"Markus!" Nate shouted as the Bartender, Jade figured, smiled at him and nodded his head
"Kid! You're early," Markus said with a smile on his face "Get you anything?" Markus said and Nate hummed
"Nah I'm good, Markus this is Jade, Paula's daughter," Nate said introducing Jade as Jade nodded her head and Markus's eyes winded "You got thirty minutes Markus," Nate said seriously
Markus gulped and looked at Nate nervously as Nate hardened his eyes at him, he nodded at Nate and then looked back at Jade
"Your test has started Nguyen, I'll be waiting on the second floor," Nate said seriously and Jade looked at him in confusion "I hope to see you up there," Nate said going away
Jade looked back at Markus in confusion as the bartender called another one "Claire, can you take over for me for a sec?" Markus said and the female bartender nodded her head
"Follow me," Markus said as Jade grew confused but followed him nonetheless, he led her to an unoccupied and far away table and told her to take a seat
She did and he took one in front of her "Every sponsor has the right to do the test as they want, as long as the bosses agree, I guess this was part of Nate's plan," Markus said as Jade crossed her arms confused
"I still don't get it," Jade said narrowing her eyes
"You can't join this place fully, if you don't know who you are," Markus said and Jade raised an eyebrow "My name's Markus, no last name, has your Mother talked about me?" Markus asked in curiosity
"No, not really," Jade said and Markus snorted
"Figures, your mother was pretty cold back then, I guess today is no different," Markus said with a sigh "You look a lot like her back in the day," he said
"You knew my mother?" Jade asked in curiosity and Markus nodded
"We were on the same guild, back in Vietnam and China, before jumping to America, every bounty was a competition between us," Markus said as he started telling a story and Jade listened carefully
"Till we were forced to do a job that went sideways, and she saved my life back then, and we ended up falling in love," Markus said as Jade's eyes winded
"It was never supposed to happen, I was betrothed to a daughter of a yakuza branch and she was set to marry Crusher since her family thought it would strengthen the bloodline," Markus said with a sad sigh
"But we didn't care, we were young and even if we knew it wouldn't last, we still decided to be together for the small time we had," Markus said as he leaned back
"So at the end, I was set to marry my ex, so we decided to get away for a weekend, to say goodbye to one another, and I thought that would be the end of that," Markus said as he sighed and looked straight into Jade's eyes "That was nineteen years ago," Markus said slowly
And slowly but surely the info started sinking in, as her eyes winded and her mouth dropped "You don't mean," Jade said in a whisper manner and Markus nodded
"I'm your father, your biological one," Markus said simply, and for Jade time stopped, everything she thought was sure, burned away in an instant and Markus let her process everything
"Are you sure?" Jade asked and Markus nodded
"Nate made a DNA test between yours and mine," Markus explained and Jade's started watering a bit "If I had known," Markus said but was stopped by Jade
"Don't, you didn't know, it's not your fault," Jade said rubbing her eyes "I'm kind of glad actually, this way I can cut ties with that bastard," Jade said with a sarcastic chuckle
"Crusher?" Markus asked in curiosity and Jade nodded
"Yeah," Jade said and looked at him straight into his eyes "I'm not sure if I need a father, to be honest," Jade said and Markus nodded in understanding
"I get it," Markus said "But I'll be here, and I want to be in your life, in any way you want me," Markus said and Jade sighed
"I-I'll think about it," Jade said and Markus nodded
"Fair enough," Markus said stepping off his seat "Boys will let you to the second floor, good luck kiddo," Markus said walking off without further actions
Jade sat there looking at the table, trying to fight hard the tears that threatened to fall as she sniffed and rubbed her eyes, she centered herself after a while and moved away from the table
She walked to the second floor, a little tired mentally, the conversation was short, but enough to shatter her a little
She got to the second floor and found Nate at a faraway table with a vial of a green liquid in front of him, Nate looked up and nodded at her
She walked towards him and took a seat in front of him "How are you?" Nate asked in concern and Jade looked at him with watery eyes
"Shaken," Jade said simply and Nate nodded in understanding "How long have you known?" Jade asked and Nate sighed
"A while now, the day the injustice league attacked if I remember correctly," Nate said and Jade wanted to say something "Someone from your family had to tell you first, you wouldn't have believed me if I'd told you," Nate said cutting her off and Jade sighed
"Yeah I get it, so mom knows?" Jade asked and Nate nodded
"Her and Art know, I told them the same day," Nate said and Jade frowned
"I should talk with Mom, or maybe not," Jade said and Nate hummed
"It's your own life, Jade, what you decide to do with it is up to you," Nate said looking to his right side, where the bottom floor was "Take out your mask," Nate said as Jade nodded and took it out and placed it on the table between them
"While I was preparing your test, I figured that I only needed to test one thing, your spirit," Nate said as Jade listened closely "You've been through a lot, and still haven't found your place to fit in, like a cat in the streets, wondering from block to block, this ends here," Nate said seriously
"This," Nate said grabbing the vial "This is a way to cut your ties with the shadows completely, I'm talking about Ra's mental compulsion," Nate said and Jade raised an eyebrow
"Is silent, but is there, Ra programs his shadows to return if they ever decide to leave, if you left sooner or later you'll make your way back, but this will prevent that," Nate said putting it back down
"What's the catch?" Jade asked and Nate smiled
"Pass my test and I'll give it to you, fail, and I'll erase your memory and you'll still be a shadow," Nate said seriously and Jade gulped a little "Ready?" Nate asked and Jade looked straight into his eyes
"Yes," Jade said and Nate nodded, he closed his eyes and breath in, then he opened his eyes and they were purple instead of his usual blue eyes, he exhale and the world around Jade went black
"Sis, where are you going? Mom's coming back," Jade heard her little sister's voice back in the day "Please don't leave me here," Artemis said
"Sorry little mouse, but you'll only slow me down," Jade said from the door and older Jade could only look in confusion from the side "In this family is every girl from themselves,"
Little Artemis turned around to face older Jade and glared hard at her "You left me alone with that monster, you're no better than him, I hate you," Artemis said as Jade's eyes winded as he heard Nate's voice on her head
"You left everything because of your selfishness, even while knowing that all your father's attention would fall on your sister, the one you swore to protect, making you no better than sporty," Nate said as Jade glared hard
"That's not true," Jade whispered and Nate scoffed
"Isn't it, who's worse, the torturer, or the one who decides to keep the victim there?" Nate said and then his voice came in as a whisper "Because that was how she became, a victim of your father's abuse, but I guess like father like daughter huh?" Nate said and Jade grew angry
"Shut up, that's not what happened!" Jade shouted and Nate chuckled
"Are you sure? because your subconscious thinks differently," Nate said with a laugh "Though maybe that's why you came back huh?" Nate said as the scene changed
Jade was eating on the sidewalk of her apartment a bowl of noodles that Artemis had separated for her
"Look at that, your sister, instead of hating you, she still cares for you, shame that it wasn't a two-way street," Nate said as Jade tightened her fist in anger "And everything was going smoothly wasn't it, but nothing ever lasts that way,"
"Well look what the cat dragged in," A deep voice said behind younger Jade as she quickly moved away but it didn't matter as her father managed to slap her "The runaway comes back with her tail between her legs, what streets to though for our own little Cheshire," Sportmaster said and younger Cheshire glared hard
"He's right though," Nate said again "You were weak, but your pride refused to let you come back, till you had to, seems like his teachings weren't good enough, or maybe the student was just trash," Nate said simply and with a bored tone
Jade's anger kept going up as she watched the scene of her father beating her again "So you decided to change, and Cheshire was born, but she wasn't cut for that life, how many jobs did you botched huh?" Nate said and Jade grumbled
"It wasn't my fault," She said grumbling and Nate mocked her
"Not her fault she says, ha," Nate said laughing "Failed heist after failed heist, all with one common denominator, Jade Crock, the failure, the waste, the quitter," Nate said mockingly
"Screw you," Jade said simply and Nate laughed
"Ah little one, finally you have embraced your shortcomings," Nate's voice transformed into her father's as she saw the day she regretted the most "Come, we'll make something out of you, is time you join the shadows," Nate said and Jade eyes winded
"Stop it, I get it," Jade said and the scene went black again as Nate walked slowly toward her
"That's the thing, Jade, you don't," Nate said as he started circling her "You think you know everything, you put this fake confidence around yourself to hide the real you, that little scared girl that used to call for her mother but time and time received no response," Nate said simply and Jade looked at her
"She's weak, and she's a liability," Jade said narrowing her eyes
"And the other one is better?" Nate asked in a sarcastic manner "The one that blindly follows her father's orders even if she knows how weak of a father she has? She's strong?" Nate asked rhetorically
Jade remained silent and Nate stopped in front of her looked down at her and put his hands behind her "The real question is neither and both at the same time," Nate said and Jade looked up with widened and confused eyes
"These moments, the ones you use to torture yourself time and time again, they made you who you are, but why are you so adamant about looking at the bad side of things?" Nate said and Jade was at a loss for words
"Yes, you left your sister, but honestly there's so much a person can take before breaking from child abuse, but still your sister loves you, she doesn't hate you," Nate said
"Yeah, you got shitty jobs at the beginning, but everyone does, you fall and you stand back up, is a part of life," Nate said and Jade looked at her hands
"And why are you so afraid to become like your father and mother? You won't Jade," Nate said and Jade looked at him with teary eyes
"How do you know? How could you possibly know that I won't turn into the monster my father trained me to be?" Jade asked angry and slightly pleading for an answer
"Because I got your back, and the people you'll meet going forward will get your back, is time to let yourself fall, Jade, be strong when you need to, but also learn when is time to let yourself fall," Nate said softly as Jade started tearing up freely
"That's the underground, that's what we offer, and now is up to you," Nate said as the table materialized in front of her, the Cheshire mask on one side while the vial was on the other side
"Choose Jade, is up to you now, grabbed the mask and it will erase your memory," Nate explained "You'll think you did all of this to gain advantage on the underground for the shadows but failed, you'll run away as you always had," Nate said as Jade's eyes went from the mask to the vial
"Or take the vial, and give yourself a break and have faith in what you capable of, believe in yourself, and take the leap," Nate said
"Choice is yours Jade," Nate said as Jade was looking at the table
Many would've thought that this was the easy part, but Nate knew that for Jade it wouldn't be, a girl so used to falling back to what she thought was safe and secure, instead of taking the leap, this was a crucial moment for her
But he couldn't help the smile that formed on his face when Jade chose after a while
"Welcome to the underground Jade Nguyen," Nate said with a smile on his face as he saw Jade lifting the vial
Mount Justice later that day.
"Recognized Nate, B07," Nate arrived at the cave again rubbing his neck, desperate for a good night's sleep, but that went out the window soon enough
"You're late," Batman said and Nate saw him facing his team Nate sighed and walked forward
"Late? Late for what?" Nate asked a little irritated and Batman narrowed his eyes at him
"Debriefing on today's mission," Batman said and Nate made an ah sound
"Oh right… Diana mentioned something about that, must've slipped my mind," Nate said slashed mumbled as Artemis and Zatanna raised their eyebrows
"Diana?" Both of them asked at the same time
"Wonder Woman, she bought me lunch, is surprising how a skinny lady like her could eat that much," Nate said scratching his neck
"Back on track, you're the last one left, how did it go on your side?" Batman asked and Nate shrugged his shoulders
"Piece of cake, Diana made herself the bait and I shot the turrets while the big man offered support, once it was clear he destroyed it into tiny pieces, it was frightening," Nate explained simply
"That's it?" Batman said and Nate nodded "Where were you all these hours then?" Batman said and Nate narrowed his eyes
"Sorry sir, but that's none of your business," Nate said simply and Batman narrowed his eyes
"Is this how you want to build trust?" Batman said as the team felt the tension between them and felt uneasy
Nate sighed and pinched his nose in annoyance "Not everything is a threat Bats, I was just helping someone find their way, that's all," Nate said and then looked at Batman "Is that all?" Nate asked and Batman nodded "Good, Kaldur, you'll be the leader this next few weeks," Nate said as Kaldur and the rest of the team's eyes winded in surprise
"Uh, sure, but why?" Kaldur said and Nate could have said a response well enough to placate all of them but decided to mess a little with Bats
"Family business, nothing too big," Nate said and let a yawn "I'm tired, you shouldn't keep kids past their bedtime Bats, bad example for the rest of the league," Nate mumbled while going to his room under the concern and watchful eyes of his team
Nate got to his room and found Ciri sleeping soundly at the edge of his bed dropped on the bed and just sighed, trying to let everything that happened since last night fade away, Jade's test took a lot of him
He was ready to go to sleep but someone knocked on his doorway "Who is it?" Nate asked
"It's me Artemis and Z's with me, can we come in?" Nate heard his girlfriend say and Nate opened his eyes and sat up
"Sure, is open," Nate said and Artemi slowly entered the room followed by Zatanna, who closed the door behind her, both girls looked at him with worry in their eyes "Hey," Nate said simply and both girls took a seat on each side om him
"Nate, what happened?" Artemis asked straight away and Nate looked at her
"Nothing happened," Nate asked and Zatanna scoffed a little
"Try again mister, your core is all over the place," Zatanna said and Nate chuckled a little
"Right, sorry," Nate said rubbing his neck again "For context I belong to a secret society of mercenaries in Gotham called the Underground," Nate said and Zatanna nodded
"Sounds dangerous," Zatanna said realizing that Artemis already knew about this
"Not really, is mostly like what we do, but under the eyes of the law, is a safe heaven for people without a place to belong," Nate said looking at his hands as Artemis placed her hand on the back of his neck
"There's a lot behind that isn't it?" Zatanna said and Nate nodded
"Yep, a story for another time darling, I'm already mentally drained as it is," Nate said and Zatanna placed a hand on his cheek gently
"Don't worry, take as long as you need," She said and Nate smiled at her
"Anyway, someone joined in today, and I test her, and it took more than I had foreseen," Nate said as he saw Artemis eyes widen a bit as she figured he was talking about Jade "She passed but it was mentally tiring for both of us, and with what happened last night, and a warning red and Beowulf said, I don't know I just feel, tired I guess," Nate said as Artemis moved her hand on his back
"You are Nate, I saw earlier and I can feel it now," Artemis said and Nate looked at her
"She's right, you need rest love, come on lie down," Zatanna said as Nate let himself be pushed down into the bed feeling tired already
"Can you both stay the night, please?" Nate said and both girls nodded her heads
"Sure," Both of them said
"You're both lovely, I'm so lucky," Nate mumbled as he drifted into slumber as both girls looked down at him in worry
"You think he will be okay?" Zatanna asked and Artemis nodded
"He will be, but I'm still worried," Artemis said and Zatanna raised an eyebrow
"Why?" She asked in curiosity
"Nate's instincts are pretty good, for him to be this preoccupied," Artemis said playing with his hair "It must be big," Artemis aid and Zatanna grabbed her hand and looked at Artemis
"At least he would have us by his side, won't he?" Zatanna asked and Artemis looked at her and smiled
"Yeah, he will," She said
End of chapter 18
So what did you think? Again sorry for the hiatus, please let me know your comments in the reviews and I'll see you later
Adios
