I went back and revised chapter 255 to add in something that I forgot to include, so if you might want to go back and read that chapter again. Other than that, hope you like it, and please review!
The next morning, Mallory woke up on Alex's couch, his arm still around her shoulder, his head resting on hers. For just a moment, that was all she knew, the man she loved beside her, keeping the weight of the world suspended just above her shoulders. All too soon, though, the spell was broken. All it took was her phone buzzing on the coffee table and everything came back with a sharp pang going through her chest and stomach as she tensed, her mind automatically going to the worst: something had happened to Peter without her there.
The movement startled Alex awake. "What's wrong?" he asked, automatically alert.
She checked her phone and let out a breath when she read the text, resting her forehead on her fist for a moment, relief flooding her body. "Nothing, sorry, it's just work, my boss wants to know if I can run a well check before I come to the office." She rubbed her hand across her forehead for a moment, taking a moment to shove everything back into her box, then she loosened her shoulders and groaned. "Well, I guess I better get going, apparently I have a stop to make on the way."
Alex stared at her for a moment, watching her stretch and check her phone for any other updates that she might have slept through, all with the same blank expression on her face, as if nothing was wrong. "Don't do that," he said finally.
"What?" she asked, genuinely confused.
"Don't bottle it up. It's been a week, and I haven't seen you actually deal with anything."
She shook her head. "I'm fine."
"Mallory, your teammate committed suicide and your brother lost his leg, if you really were fine, I'd be very worried about you."
She sighed, debating letting her walls down, then shook her head. "I have to go to work, I can't do this right now."
"Is that always what happens?" he asked softly. "Something happens, and you have something else to do right after it so you push on? When do any of you actually deal with anything?"
She smiled a little, grabbing her clothes off the chair. "I know it doesn't seem like it, but I promise we do, we just…we do it on our own time. I already have an appointment with Dinah, and Peter's recovering, and Tara…" she couldn't come up with anything positive to say about her feelings towards that, so she just twisted her lips and shrugged, avoiding the topic altogether. "I'm fine, Alex, I promise. I know what happens when you don't deal with things, I've been doing this a long time, and I made a promise. I have to go." He didn't look very happy with her answer, but she smiled and tilted her head. "I'll see you tonight."She leaned over the back of the couch, pressing her lips to his in a quick kiss. He cupped the side of her cheek, holding it longer. "Ok, Honey."
She wrinkled her nose, laughing at the name. "Ew, no."
He chuckled. "I guess we'll need to workshop the pet names."
"Yeah, I guess. We have plenty of time to do that, though." She went to the bathroom to get ready. Fifteen minutes later, she was on the sidewalk, heading to the address that her boss had sent her.
She hadn't made it three blocks when she noticed someone following her. She watched through window reflections as the same girl turned every corner that she did. She couldn't see her face, but it had to be retaliation from Luthor or the Light. She narrowed her eyes as she deliberately turned down an alley, ducking behind a dumpster to wait for her shadow to come to her. She counted the seconds in her head, but nothing happened. She tilted her head, confused. The girl should have caught up by then. She leaned forward, peering around the corner of her hiding place, only to see the empty opening of the alley. She twisted her lips, debating in her head for a moment if she was truly being followed or if she was just being paranoid.
"Inferno?"
Mallory nearly jumped out of her skin at the voice coming from right beside her. She reacted without even thinking, pinning the girl to the wall before she even got a clear look at her. She was wearing a black hoodie and leggings, but the peculiar tint of her skin was vaguely familiar, and when Mallory pushed back the hoodie, the pink hair finished the puzzle. "Jinx. How did you know me?"
The girl shrugged. "I didn't think it was that big of a mystery. Look, I didn't come to fight, I just…I heard about Markovia. Is Vigilante ok?"
Anger surged through her, and she allowed her fire to come too close to the surface, heating her arm more than she intended to. "Oh, yeah, he's great. He lost his leg, Beast Boy's still in shock, oh, and let's not forget about Terra burying herself under a ton of rock, but go ahead and report back to your bosses that everyone's just fine, and we're gong to–"
Jinx's eyes widened and her body went limp. "He lost his…no, oh, God, I'm so…I didn't…"
Mallory stopped her threat, the reaction catching her off guard. "You didn't know?"
She shook her head. "No, I mean, I knew he was hurt, but…" She let out a breath, then looked Mallory in the eye, not even blinking at the flames still dancing around the hero's lashes. "Can I see him?" Mallory opened her mouth, about to say no, but the girl rushed on. "Please? And, if you'll have me, I'd like to help you. You know, taking down the Light." She must have seen the suspicion on Mallory's face because she kept talking. "Tara was a friend of mine, once. Before we got pulled for our separate missions, we were held in the same camp. We shared a cage for six months, and even after she became useful to them, they killed her, they didn't even try to save her. I want to help you get justice for her. I know you know the importance of that."
Mallory powered down, studying her brother's friend. He trusted her, as misguided as she'd always believed that to be, and, as he'd pointed out, it wasn't the first time a villain had managed to switch sides. Cameron was the latest proof of that, the newest member of the team. And if this was legitimate, it would be better for her to stick with the team than striking out on her own without a thought for collateral damage or preserving life. She shook her head, already knowing she was going to be getting a month of lectures for this, but finally she said, "fine, but you'll need training first."
Halfway across the galaxy, as the Warworld moved away from its latest victims, Vandal Savage stood in the middle of a blank room, watching as the screens around him started to come on, revealing each member of the Light, each with their own update on the plan. Well, they would all pale in comparison to the news he had. "Now that we are all here," he started, taking charge of the meeting, "let's get down to business."
"Let's start with the elephant in the room," Deathstroke suggested, looking at Luthor's screen. "It seems that you have some things to take care of before we can continue with our plans, what with the kids taking their fight public."
"Yes, not to mention the young Icicle turning on us," Vandal mentioned.
"We never should have trusted him, he was always weak," Klarion whined.
"Yes, I knew we should have shut it down when we found out about his relationship with Inferno," Queen Bee put in, arching an eyebrow at Lex.
The billionaire sighed. "Yes, that did not go quite the way I expected," he admitted. Back then, when the young hero was falling apart, he'd suggested that the Light not interfere with the budding romance. With how fragile she was, and her tendency to violence growing and her pushing the other heroes away, he'd hoped that dating Jr would be the last push she needed to switch to the right side, giving them their key to winning the final battle. Unfortunately, it backfired.
"How serious is your predicament?" Vandal asked, tilting his head slightly. They couldn't afford a major delay, especially not now.
"It's an aggravation, nothing more," Luthor assured them. "The heroes think this is a win for them, but the investigation will only see what I want to show, and in the meantime we will still be free to work from the shadows."
"Speaking of turning against us," Deathstroke interjected, "what about the boy?"
"I had eyes on him the second he disappeared from his post in Gotham," Queen Bee told them. "He traveled to the Middle East and quite violently rescued the young Mr. Harper from a firing squad that I went to great lengths to arrange for him. They left together, and were seen fighting in a neighboring country, freeing some captive women and laying waste to the terrorist group that was holding them."
There was a long pause as the members of the Light let this news sink in, taking a moment to understand the implications of this new partnership between two people who had such reasons to hate the Light, and just enough of a lack of a moral compass to really cause problems for them.
"Perhaps we should send Lady Shiva to handle the problem," Luthor suggested. He in particular had a big target on him for the deadly new team.
"It may not be necessary," Vandal pointed out. "The heroes will not be able to ignore their behavior, they will likely put an end to it before it becomes a real problem for us."
"What of your situation?" Lex asked Ultra Humanite. "Was it as serious as we first thought?"
Vandal pressed his lips together, already knowing the answer to that, but he let the gorilla tell what he knew before he brought up the real reason for calling the meeting.
"Yes, it was," the scientist replied. "Jace had already managed to contact the partner's agent and told them who Inferno is in exchange for the safety of her and the Markovs."
"It was a shame to hear about the girl," Queen Bee purred, mock sympathy dripping from her sickeningly sweet tone as she stared Slade down. "How are you holding up?"
Slade smirked, not answering her, and Vandal brought the topic back to what was important. "And I trust that you took care of things? I shouldn't have to remind you how disastrous it would be if she learned of her part in this too soon."
"Yes, Dr. Helga Jace won't be doing very much talking through four tons of Quracki sand." Savage nodded, satisfied.
"And our partner?" Lex asked. "Surely he'd heard the news by the time you reached him."
Vandal nodded. "He did not like that we kept the information from him, and make no mistake, he will want to make us pay for this when the final battle comes, but we talked for several hours, and I finally convinced him that she is not ready and that is why we didn't say anything to him. That should buy us some time."
"How much?" Queen Bee asked.
"Well, since she refuses to stay hidden," Vandal said, annoyed that she'd fought the rumors they spread so hard, "not very much. We'll have to move up the time table, and somehow keep her from finding out who our partner is, and her part in all this. But make no mistake, Darkseid is coming, and Inferno is our only bargaining chip to win the coming battle."
Ok, this wraps up year 9! If you have any questions, comments, or thoughts about this chapter, let me know in the reviews or pm me! I don't want anything to be unclear, but I also didn't want to spell everything out to the point that it felt stiff and unnatural. I think I did all right, but I don't mind clearing things up, as long as it doesn't spoil upcoming stories. Also, a lot has happened in the last few chapters, so just let me know how y'all feel about all of it.