This is the continuation of the storyline from Chapter 1: The Chase Begins of The Fusion Ultimatum.

April 11th 2016
Monday morning

Glen Oak Drive

Something was going on; I could tell.

There was a lot of packing happening, which had started on the Saturday afternoon after Mindy had received a video call from some people in the United Kingdom, actually Scotland – was that part of the United Kingdom?

The day was special for a couple of reasons, as well as for being sad. First the happy things. It was Morgan's birthday; she had just turned sixteen – mind you, my own birthday was only two short weeks hence; I would be fifteen. That morning was to be my first day moving in with Morgan as her younger sister. I would have a home for the first time since... I would also have parents – well guardians – and a family.

..._...

At that moment, I stood in my new bedroom at Glen Oak Drive. I had the corner bedroom on the second floor. Morgan had the next bedroom and we had a shared bathroom between our two bedrooms. Morgan's Aunt and Uncle, they had the bedroom at the far end of the floor. Morgan and Stephanie had helped me to decorate the room – I had been very impressed by what Stephanie had accomplished with her own bedroom.

"Looks good," Stephanie commented.

Then the sad thing; I had noticed that Stephanie had been different, ever since it had been announced that I would be taken in by John and Emily Newton.

"Hey, kid – I'm moving a short walk away; it's barely a third of a mile by road..."

"It's not that . . . well, it is – I'm glad that you have a family; just as I have . . . I'm being silly..."

"No, Steph, you're just being human – maybe that's why you were able to keep your mind through all that conditioning; you're more in touch with your humanity than the rest of us..."

"Thanks – I'll miss you, even it does mean that I have my bed to myself..."

"We can still have sleepovers," I suggested and smiled at Stephanie's reaction.

That night

Glenview

"What's going on, Mindy?"

"Sit down, SD, next to Steph, and then we can talk."

I frowned – Mindy rarely called me 'SD' and only when there was trouble. Stephanie had noticed too... Mindy sat down across from us and beside her, sat Dave. I trusted Dave and I always felt safe in his presence.

"Fusion is going on a trip, well some of it is – to Stephanie's home turf, so to speak..."

"England?" I interrupted.

"Yes – we're headed for the UK; Scotland first and then England... Maybe further afield in Europe, but that depends on where the intel takes us."

"Considering that you're talking to me and Steph, I assume this involves Urban Predator," I stated.

"That would be a 'yes'," Dave replied.

"Are we going?" Stephanie asked.

"You are – but Saoirse is staying..."

"Hey! I have every..." I responded angrily.

"Saoirse – this has nothing to do with you, directly – you just haven't properly trained with us yet and this operation won't be a good place to start..."

"So you and your vigilantes are going to attack Urban Predator and leave me on the fucking side lines?"

I was raging, but I could see how unhappy Dave and Mindy were about what they were telling us, and I could tell that they had expected my outburst.

"We need to keep some forces in reserve, here in Chicago – something could blow up right here while we are gone. I need somebody capable to be here – we will bring you over for the final act, Saoirse, I promise you that."

For a moment, I saw it all as a giant smokescreen, but I had learnt that Mindy did not do that; she said exactly what she meant – even if it was a little insulting at times...

"I trust you, Mindy – I have no reason not to... I apologise for my outburst; it was out of line."

"I want you to keep training Lauren, please, as much as possible. When we get back, I want to get her suited up and out for a trial mission – but only if you say that she is ready. Please keep an eye out for her at school, if possible."

"Marty will be in charge of Fusion, until we get back. You will have Kim, Cathy, Curtis and Sophia to keep you company at the Safehouse," Dave added. "The pups will also need walking, too!"

"Oh great; seven sets of sharp teeth!" Saoirse laughed.

Four days later
Friday night

We were finally there.

It was time to jet off to wherever Mindy had in mind. Was I worried about what lay ahead? Of course, I was... Was I going to let it get to me? No . . . but I was leaving some very special people behind; would I ever see them again? Would I be able to see the mission through to the end? The end . . . the total destruction of the Urban Predator organisation and all those who had built it...

I would not let Mindy down. I would not let myself down. I would not let Saoirse down. I would not let Miranda down – wherever she was...

I looked up at my friend – the girl who had tried three times to kill me – as she spoke.

"Take care – I mean that..."

"You taking a shine to me, SD?"

Saoirse grinned and her cheeks went slightly pink.

"There are not many people who can really appreciate what I have been through – but you are one of them, Stephanie... A few weeks ago, I would have loved nothing less than to see your broken corpse torn to pieces as it lay bleeding in the street..."

"Nice image, thanks!"

Saoirse laughed.

"You have a heart, Steph, and right now I'm glad it's still beating..."

"You're being soppy, Saoirse – I'll survive; I survived the CIA's best, didn't I?"

Saoirse laughed and then she gave me a brief hug.

"Knock 'em dead!"

"Oh, I will – I never miss..."

I felt something inside me. Saoirse was right, we needed each other and now I was leaving my friend before flying thirty-six-hundred-miles across a giant puddle called the Atlantic Ocean.

"I'll keep any eye on her for you, Stephanie – have no fear," Morgan offered, correctly interpreting my expression.

"You do that, Morgan..."

As I looked around the Safehouse, I started to get a funny feeling.

When we had left for Gotham, I had been excited and I had looked forward to what lay before us all – now, I was what . . . scared? Wildcat was never scared . . . but that wasn't exactly true; Gotham had been a big wake-up experience for me and I had learnt that I had limitations – what eleven-year-old did not.

Josh said that that I had 'matured' and at first, I had thought that he was taking the piss out of me, but then I realised that he was speaking the truth. Mom had agreed when I had asked her about it. She said that it had nothing to do with growing boobs and hair in strange places; it was a mental thing and she agreed with Josh that my mind was maturing just as quickly as my body.

That 'maturity', as they put it, it told me that we were all heading into mortal danger and there was every possibility that some of us may never return at worst, or be badly wounded at best. I hoped it was just my inexperienced mind working overtime. Yes, Wildcat was inexperienced; she still had a lot to learn. I watched my new partner constantly; Psyche may have been almost two years younger than me, but she had many more years of experience over me.

I respected her for that, and as I watched her hug Saoirse and Morgan, I hoped that what we did over there would bring some closure to both her and Saoirse. They were both products of the organisation that we were about to destroy and we had to be successful; there was no other option.

..._...

I was rapidly hauled out of my thoughts as two large black hands seized me and dragged me over to my big sister where we were both grabbed and held tightly.

"You two come back alive and in one piece, okay?"

"Yes, Marcus – we promise..." We both replied together.

Marcus' expression was one of concern.

"We need Hit Girl and Wildcat back, you hear – so control your antics and look after each other. Megan, you look after this nut-job of a sister and do what you can to prevent her from doing anything stupid...

"Mindy, you look after this nut-job of a sister and do what you can to prevent her from doing anything stupid..."

We both laughed at that, but the laughter faded quickly. Marcus was very concerned, as was Mom who stood beside him. I hugged her next while Mindy hugged Marcus. Everybody was saying their goodbyes as if they were to be the last. It was like we were going off to war . . . maybe we were.

Would I see my Mom again?

This storyline continues in Chapter 2: Crossing The Pond of The Fusion Ultimatum.