USA, WA, STARLING CITY - AIRPORT: 17 JUN 2013

Maseo was tired from the long flight from Hong Kong. He slept poorly on the flight after a sleepless night. The flight had been about one-third empty. Maseo had the aisle seat. His other seatmate was a window seat and he had slept the whole way. His hoodie pulled up to shade his face. Only his blonde beard showing.

The quiet time had given him time to think. His last mission in Hong Kong was a failure from the start. The Triad had outnumbered the ARGUS guys four to one. But… Maseo would like to think that ARGUS could hold against those numbers. Yet they were losing. Badly. Then the tide turned. He found that at least half of the Triad guys with sleep darts in them. Darts that he did not deploy. That no one in ARGUS deployed. Those darts had saved ARGUS that night. Minimized casualties. We would have lost without that help. I would have died. Tatsu and Akio would no longer have ARGUS protection.

Who could be behind those darts? Who wanted ARGUS to succeed in getting the Alpha Virus? It was someone who remained hidden. They saved my life that night. They saved the lives of most of the ARGUS agents.

Maseo may not know who would want ARGUS to succeed, but he remembered catching a glimpse of a man. A silhouette more than anything else. He had been at the end of the alley while ARGUS was chasing the courier. The courier that had put them onto the Alpha-Omega Virus.

Had he been shadowing the courier? Was it possible that this man has been shadowing me for that long? Tracking my movements? He gave a resigned sigh. This mission has been one of the worst missions he had been on for ARGUS. I despise working for Waller. My hope for backup has me reaching for shadows. I want to have backup for this mission. Anyone except Waller. I know she won't send any backup. I don't want to fail. I refuse to be written off. Especially by Waller. My family depends on my success.

The overhead announcement beeped with the Seat Belt sign blinking off. "Welcome to Starling City. Passengers are free to move around. You can exit the cabin when the cabin door opens. Thank you for flying Ferris Air," a voice chimed. =Welcome to Starling City. Your freedom in the cabin is assured. Thank you for flying Ferris Air,= the voice repeated in Chinese.

Maseo stretched and stood. He reached up and pulled his bag out of the overhead compartment. He watched his seatmate do the same. Blue eyes met his before the man looked down and away with his face shadowed. The man stood and pulled his own bag out and turned to stand with all the other passengers waiting to exit the plane.

The line started to move and Maseo looked to grab his bag when he noticed a piece of paper resting on top. He grabbed it and his bag and left the plane. Once free in the concourse, he looked at the mysterious note. You're welcome. I have. Thank you. Time to talk. Parking garage, Level C, Spot 43.

Maseo stared at the note for a few minutes before he began to smile. I was right. I have help. The shadows are reaching back. Maseo smiled. He felt confident for the first time since this mission had started.

With a lighter heart, Maseo took his carry-on bag to this mysterious meeting in the parking garage. When Maseo strode to the parking garage. He worked his way to level C. Then he followed the numbers to spot 43. He found the spot in the shadows.

=Hello?= Maseo said Chinese with caution. He kept his hand on his pistol. He had to be cautious with the Triad. It would look bad to walk into a trap. The note had been in English. But even the Triad could create deceptions.

"Maseo Yamashiro," a male voice greeted him from the shadows. American? Maseo thought. A figure took a step out of the shadows. Two more followed silently. "Thank you for meeting with us," he said in English.

Maseo let his eyes adjust to the darkness. Us? He nodded. "You have been following my investigation. You assisted my men in securing the Alpha. I owe you my life," Maseo replied seriously. His instincts were telling him to trust this man and his fellows. He pulled his hand away from his pistol.

"It is our duty to maintain balance," the second male said. He had an accent, but Maseo didn't recognize it. "Once we become aware of your investigation, it became our duty to ensure your success."

"I am still grateful for my life," Maseo said. As his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he could make out a few of the details of their dark outfits. They were a dull black. It absorbed the light around them. They wore hoods and masks that covered their heads and faces. Only their eyes showed. They wore armor. Pretty decent armor at that. I can use real back up. Waller's back up is inadequate at best. Usually, it is non-existent.

Maseo gave a nod to himself and passed on the information to the three. They will help. I need the help. "The Triad has an operative who works in a local company. He serves to front all their larger auctions in this city. I am told that this man's name is Peter Kang. He works at Queen Consolidated, in their main headquarters building," Maseo told them. "According to our sources, he routinely maintains the details of his Triad auctions on the servers of Queen Consolidated."

"You don't have that information now?" the first man asked.

"No," Maseo told him. "I will get Kang's laptop first. I will hack into the computer."

"If you cannot?" the second man asked.

"Then, to gain the data, I must infiltrate Queen Consolidated," Maseo replied. "I prefer not to do that. They have excellent security."

"We will infiltrate the company while you try the laptop," the second man told him. "We will bring you the data we acquire."

"How will you find me?" Maseo asked.

"We will know," the second man said. The third figure nodded at the same time.

"Alright," Maseo replied. "I'll see you then." Maseo turned and walked away.

~AU~AU~AU~AU~AU~AU~

USA, WA, STARLING CITY - QUEEN CONSOLIDATED, CEO OFFICE: 17 JUN 2013

Hisan watched Maseo walk away before he gave out his orders. "Dafdae, follow him and make sure he is able to track Peter Kang and acquire the laptop," Hisan told her.

"It will be done," Dafdae replied. She slipped further into darkness and removed her League uniform.

"Sah-him," Hisan turned to him. "We will infiltrate Queen Consolidated. It is near evening now. We will do it tonight. You will wear full gear and ensure you are not captured on any security cameras."

"I… Do we need to study building plans?" Sah-him asked. He was unsure about infiltrating his family company.

"For any other facility, yes," Hisan replied. "But this facility… it is your old life. Use your knowledge. That is why you need the gear."

"To hide my face," Sah-him replied with a nod.

"Yes," Hisan replied. "If we miss a camera, then your face is covered."

"It will be done," Sah-him replied.

They slid back into the darkness and changed out of their League gear. With their gear back in their carry-on bags, they made their way to the car a local League member had left for them. The car had new weapons for them. They would add weapons when they infiltrated the building.

The sun was setting as they pulled into the QC private parking garage. They parked in a secluded area out of sight of the cameras. They dressed into their League gear and were equipped with the short swords, knives, and darts. They had left the bows. They would need their hands for climbing. A bow and quiver would limit their mobility. This mission did not require a ranged weapon besides darts.

They detoured to avoid the cameras. They were able to make it to the main elevator shaft undetected. Hisan deployed a small device. This device disabled the camera on the elevator for a minute. They used that time to enter the elevator and disable that camera. Then they began to climb to the top of the elevator shaft. It was a long, slow climb to the top to the executive suite. Their goal was the CEO's office.

Sah-him led them into the CEO's office from the conference room. This minimized his camera exposure. He sat at his father's desk. Heartache bloomed from his chest. Regret and loss coursed through him. This is harder than I thought it would be, he thought silently. Sorry, Dad. I miss you more than I expected. He took a deep breath and scanned the computer for access. Shit!

"It has a fingerprint scanner," Sah-him relayed to Hisan. "How do we get past that?" he asked.

Hisan's eyes twinkled. "Many companies do not delete access for dead users," he told Sah-him.

Sah-him's eyes widened. "Like me," he replied. He pulled off his glove and applied his finger to the scanner. The computer beeped and allowed him access. "Holy shit!"

"That is why I tasked you for this part of the mission," Hisan told him. "I know Dafdae could do the infiltration, but she would not have computer access. It would require more traditional hacking. You would have access."

Sah-him scanned through the QC directory and found the personal drive for Peter Kang. He copied all the files to a thumb drive. He made a second copy for Hisan. While he was waited, he noticed the personal drives for himself and his father. His personal drive was empty. He had never done anything for the company or stored anything.

His father's drive had two video files. Named for his children. One for him and one for Thea. He copied his file to a third thumb drive. What would dad want to tell me? The pain of his father's loss swamped him once again. I can't watch it yet. It still hurts too much. But I will take it with me. Someday I will be ready. Just… not yet.

"Your copy of Peter Kang's files," Sah-him told Hisan when the drive finished loading. "This is Maseo's copy," he said as he tucked a second drive into his own pocket. He kept his thumb drive into a separate pocket.

"Good," Hisan replied. "Let us leave."

It took them longer to get down the elevator shaft. Someone had called the elevator to the executive suite. They had to wait until the car went back down to the parking level. Once there, they were able to exit, evaded the cameras, and returned to their car.

~AU~AU~AU~AU~AU~AU~

USA, WA, STARLING CITY - HOTEL: 18 JUN 2013

Maseo stared at the computer in frustration. He had acquired the computer and it was useless. It was heavily encrypted. By the time he or ARGUS could decipher it, the Omega Virus would be sold and used on some poor city. He banged his fist on the table to vent his frustration.

"It does not have the data you need?" Sah-him asked as a shadow at his side.

Maseo snapped his eyes to the shadow. He had not heard anyone enter the hotel room. It's not hostile. These shadows are good at sneaking in the dark. If I guess, I would say it is the first man. The American. The first man had a thicker build than the second man. He was taller. The light in the hotel allowed Maseo to see his gear more clearly. It looks like a uniform. Definitely armor of some kind.

"No," Maseo replied as he voiced his frustration. "It most likely has the data. But I cannot get to it. The computer is heavily encrypted."

"Then this will help," Sah-him replied. He stepped forward and handed Maseo a thumb drive. "These are all the files Peter Kang kept at Queen Consolidated."

"All the files?" Maseo asked in surprise. "How did you…? Never mind." I do not need to know. It is more curiosity than need. He pushed the encrypted laptop away and pulled up his laptop. He plugged in the thumb drive. "There is a lot of information here. The most recently opened files... Kang scheduled an auction. It will be at the Queen Industrial Steel Factory. Where is that exactly?" he asked himself. He had already opened his ARGUS files to find the location.

"In the Glades," Sah-him replied faster than he could look up the information.

"It is?" Maseo asked. "The Glades are in Starling then?" he asked.

Sah-him nodded. "It is a poor section of the city. Near the bay," he replied.

"Then it would be here in Starling City?" he clarified.

"Yes," Sah-him replied.

"Kang scheduled the auction for tomorrow night," Maseo told him. "8 pm."

"Will they try to move the auction forward with the laptop missing?" Sah-him asked him.

"Not likely," Maseo replied. "The encryption on this computer would take days by an expert to crack. The auction would be over by then. They may try to kill Peter Kang after the auction, but not before."

"Then my people will be in place to ensure the success of your ARGUS mission," Sah-him told him.

"I welcome your help," Maseo replied.

"It is our duty," Sah-him replied and started to leave. After a lengthy pause, he turned back to Maseo. "Can I ask you a more personal question?" he asked.

"Of course," Maseo replied.

"I am called Sah-him. You work for Amanda Waller. Why do you submit to a person who is… not quite evil, but close…?" Sah-him asked. How casually ARGUS could demand mercenaries destroy a civilian plane for no obvious cause bothered Sah-him. Having observed Waller at the construction site in Hong Kong, he knew that her people were afraid of her. Some were terrified to have her notice them. Why is that? What hold does she have over them?

"That is a complicated answer, Sah-him," Maseo replied with a sigh. Even a stranger can see that Waller is evil. I am lucky that I am not tarred with the same brush as Waller. "ARGUS was founded with valid reasons. I believe in those reasons. There are some organizations that are too big to fight without some kind of help. Shadowspire, HIVE, the League of Assassins. The evil organizations. ARGUS is sworn to battle these evil organizations. But..." Maseo gave a huff. "Amanda Waller has her own agenda. If her agenda ALSO targets those organizations, then great. If not, they become her allies."

"She would ally with evil for her own ends?" Sah-him said as he digested the information. "This matches what I have learned of Waller and ARGUS. How would you define those who work with you in ARGUS?" Sah-him asked him. Maseo is not evil. He is reluctant to do what Waller demands of him. Was everyone at ARGUS like Waller or like Maseo? Bent towards evil? Or trapped assisting Waller?

"Most of us are slaves of Waller," Maseo said with a laugh. "I was required to figure out why Chien Na Wei was in Hong Kong. I discovered the Alpha-Omega Virus. Until I stop the virus... Waller has trapped my family. She threatened them. She uses them to ensure my compliance. Once Chien Na Wei was stopped... or at least the virus now that she is dead... we are free to return to Japan."

"If you try to leave before then?" Sah-him asked.

"Waller would kill Akio, Tatsu, and then me last… after I watched them suffer a painful death. I believe her threats. If I don't do EVERYTHING she asks, she will kill them," Maseo replied. He sighed. "If I die, I have no doubt that she will kill them to hide my death as well."

"Waller is a source of evil," Sah-him told him with a nod of certainty. "I had wondered if she was working for a source of evil before. Corrupted by it. But perhaps, two sources of evil can work together."

"Waller has not been corrupted. She is evil. She hides it as working for good, but... Is that what you mean by working for balance?" Maseo asked.

"Yes," Sah-him replied. "A source of evil corrupts those around them. Often a source will create branches of evil. Trim each branch off the tree. Then remove the source. With no source of evil, many will turn away from evil. They will return to a neutral position. Balance."

"Like removing Waller," Maseo replied with understanding. "With her gone, most ARGUS agents wouldn't do the horrible things they are forced to do for Waller."

"Precisely," Sah-him replied. He gave Maseo a small nod. "I will be watching over you tomorrow night."

"Until tomorrow," Maseo replied. Then Sah-him slipped into the darkness of the room.

~AU~AU~AU~AU~AU~AU~

USA, WA, STARLING CITY - QUEEN CONSOLIDATED-STEEL FACTORY: 19 JUN 2013

The auction was going to hell quickly. Maseo had coordinated with the local ARGUS team. The ten men who were with him were quickly taken out by the overwhelming Triad presence. Maseo had identified themselves as law enforcement when the action had started. He ordered the Triad and the attendees to surrender. Then everything went to shit.

"Did you think we would not be ready for you?" a short Chinese man shouted at him as his men dragged Maseo out from behind shipping crates. "You will pay for the death of Chien Na Wei."

The Triad members rallied around the man shouting. They united in their anger at Maseo and the ARGUS agents.

=Who will pay first?= the man demanded in Chinese of his Triad followers.

=Him!= they all shouted and pointed at Maseo. Maseo swallowed the bile in his throat. I don't want to die. If I die, my family will soon follow. How do I fix this? But he could see no course of action he could take.

Peter Kang and the rest of the bidders were standing in a tight group off to one side. They looked afraid, but not terrified. Maseo nodded. They are not the target of the violence. They hope to avoid the anger of the Triad by remaining neutral. He scanned for another way out of this mess.

The leader strode forward and raised his gun. Maseo refused to look away from the leader's angry eyes. I will not die without honor. When the leader started to point the gun at Maseo, his chest sprouted three black arrows. He sank to the ground in silence as the Triad started to scan the warehouse for the shooter. The men holding Maseo fell next. Their grip on Maseo relaxed as they died. The Triad shot at the rafters and other shadows in the warehouse.

Maseo smiled. His shadow backup had arrived. He scrambled to a fallen pistol. Then he ducked behind cover from the Triad. Thank you for the save, he thought as hope bloomed in his chest. Maseo targeted the remaining Triad goons. He stole a new gun twice before the numbers of the Triad were thinned with death.

Maseo heard a car door slam. He scanned the warehouse floor. He found the bidders fleeing. Damn it! They are taking Peter Kang and the damn virus. NO! The virus is not leaving.

Maseo jumped up and started to shooting at the car. The rear window of the car shattered. Next the rear tires blew. The car swerved and crashed.

Maseo scanned the warehouse as he left his cover. The gunfire had stopped. The ground was littered with bodies. Each sprouted at least one black arrow. It is as safe as it is going to get.

Maseo approached the car. He found Kang stunned and in shock in the front seat. He dragged him out of the car with the briefcase still handcuffed to his wrist. He opened it. The Omega Virus vial was still there. He drug Kang away from the car. He looked back as the sound of a shattered window broke his thoughts. The bidders now sprouted arrows. They died like the Triad warriors.

"On your knees, Kang," Maseo demanded as they stopped at an open area in the warehouse. It gave him the lines of sight he needed to defend from attackers.

"But…" Kang started.

Maseo shoved him down to his knees. "I don't want to hear it," Maseo told him. He could hear sirens in the distance. "You move and I shoot you." He walked over to where one of the ARGUS radios was laying in the dirt. He kept his pistol trained on Kang. He keyed the radio blindly. "This is Victor Cleanup requesting immediate backup at my location. Medical, containment, and public interference."

"Victor Cleanup, Home Base, we heard the SCPD calls. We are on the way with medical and public interference. Containment is leaving now."

"Copy," Maseo replied as the SCPD cruisers started to pull up. He pulled out his badge and kept his gun on Kang.

"SCPD!" the first of the officers shouted as they ran onto the scene. Weapons drawn.

"I'm ARGUS," Maseo replied. "This is my prisoner. The majority of the men behind me are Triad. If they are not Triad, they are either downed ARGUS agents or buyers. I want the buyers if they are alive."

More officers arrived and began to cautiously start to check the area. Then the ARGUS guys arrived. Maseo was finally able to turn over Kang to one of the ARGUS agents. He verified the downed ARGUS agents. He owed them for entering this shit show. As it was, too many of them were dead.

Everyone was secured and medical began treating the wounded. ARGUS took their wounded and dead. There were no living attendees. Kang was the only survivor from the car wreck. ARGUS took him. They let SCPD deal with the rest.

~AU~AU~AU~AU~AU~AU~

CHINA, HONG KONG - LEAGUE SAFE HOUSE: 21 JUN 2013

The three members of the League returned to Hong Kong. Maseo secured the Omega Virus before he was sent back to Hong Kong. After sleeping, Hisan called his two students into the common area. They collected in the small common area in the safe house. He expected that the events of the last few days would unsettle his trainees. He was unsettled himself. He was proud of how they had held up. This was why he decided to take a day to help settle their minds.

"Dafdae, you handled yourself well during the attack in the warehouse. What observations did you make?" Hisan asked her.

"I saw the ARGUS men were outnumbered. We reduced the numbers of the Triad to help. But ARGUS was still outnumbered," Dafdae said. "The evil men who had come to bid on the virus turned my stomach. They desired the method to destroy an entire city. A city of innocents. How vile!"

"This is true," Hisan replied in a calm tone. "You must remember that these men may not be the source of their evil. They work for evil, yes. But they are not the source. We have their faces and their names. We will find their source."

"Forgiveness," Dafdae said, stricken.

"You are young," Hisan told her kindly. "This is why you spend the first-year training. To learn."

"Thank you, Teacher," Dafdae replied.

"Sah-him, you also handled yourself well during this attack. What observations did you make?" Hisan asked him.

"I saw much the same as Dafdae. The Triad outnumbered ARGUS. They were certain to lose. Even with the reduced numbers. Then the Triad leader incited his men. He intended to strike Maseo. I could not let that happen. I acted. I have followed Maseo for some time. He is not evil," Sah-him replied. "My actions forced your hand. I apologize. You and Dafdae did everything correctly. But I could not let Maseo die. I would not release the Alpha-Omega Virus to the world."

"I would have acted if you had not. For now, the Alpha-Omega Virus is safe from evil," Hisan replied

"I am not sure that is true," Sah-him replied with some hesitation. He was unsure of his observations. He did not have confidence in them yet.

"What do you mean, Sah-him?" Hisan asked. "You said that Maseo is not evil."

"Maseo is not. At least, I don't think he is. But Maseo claims to be enslaved to Amanda Waller at ARGUS," Sah-him replied. "He used the term enslaved. Not I. He claims that many of his fellow ARGUS Agents are likewise enslaved." Sah-him paused to collect his thoughts. "Amanda Waller has made it appear that she was not a source of evil on the documents we discovered. That she acted because of another. Yet, Maseo feels that Waller is a source of evil herself. His fellow ARGUS Agents are enslaved beside him. If... if Waller is a source of evil, then the Alpha-Omega Virus is not safer in her hands."

"I see," Hisan replied. "I will report your observations to the others. I will discover what else Hong Kong has revealed. We have one more week in Hong Kong. Take today to rest from your travels and reflect on what you have learned."

"It will be done," they said as they bowed to Hisan.

~AU~AU~AU~AU~AU~AU~