(Scenes from Legends of Tomorrow Season 5, Episodes 4 and 5)
While I know Charlie to be mostly fancy-free, her entire backstory is all Greek to me. I can't seem to locate it in the database. Dr. Palmer described what Charlie looked like before she emulated Miss Jiwe's physique. When I used his description to calculate her file, I only secured that of Maira Anand, an actress featured in a toothpaste advertisement. I surmise Charlie has consecutively shapeshifted into millions of humans. It's also safe to presume that Mr. Constantine has moved out of the Waverider. He hasn't reported back yet. All in all, the rest of the week is mundane by the Legends' standards.
The following week, Captain Lance receives a call from Mr. John Diggle. It encompasses details about Mr. Queen's funeral. She's expected to be in Star City for a few days. With her inevitable departure, she must once again select an interim captain. Her latest choice may be partially out of nepotism. I say this as Miss Sharpe is brushing her teeth in the bathroom. The captain sneaks up on her and closes the door. I suspect she is startled. "Sorry, old assassin habits die hard."
The former acknowledges, "Babe, now that you've given me a heart attack, I was just about to jump in. Care to join me?"
"Whoa, co-showering in the communal bathroom—you are getting really comfy, which is a good thing because I'm gonna need you to woman the ship." Outside the door, Miss Tarazi eavesdrops on their conversation.
Miss Sharpe is so disconcerted; I believe I hear her stammering. "C-Captain?"
"Mm-hmm."
"No, no, no, no, no. I was just starting to find my footing as a Legend. Nobody likes the boss, babe."
"They like me."
"Yeah, because you're cool Captain Lance. I'm just a button pusher in a boring pantsuit."
"Nah, babe, just have fun with it. They are going to love you."
"No."
"Yes."
"No, no, no."
I discern the sound of a loud kiss. "I miss you already, Captain Pantsuit." That's a new one. The busybody quickly hastens prior to Captain Lance opening the bathroom door. The latter packs her overnight bag in high spirits, contrary to her significant other's protest. The captain uses a time courier to portal to present-day Star City. Miss Sharpe contemplates how the Legends will respond to her leadership style.
Miss Tarazi waits for her brother in the corridors. He gives her the official tour of the Waverider. She inquires with Mr. Tarazi about the crew's individual pastimes. The totem bearer leads his sister to the Galley. He mentions how I can whip up any kind of food imaginable. I once fabricated squeezable butter for him and Dr. Heywood to have with cheddar biscuits. Miss Tarazi queries if I can fabricate clothes. Yes, I can. She then instructs him to tell "the computer" she'll need a new dress for her perfume launch tonight. Mr. Tarazi is certain that they'll arrive back, adding that I "can do anything". To name a few, I fly the ship, make food for the Legends, clean the toilet, and track the timeline. Yes, that means I can tell the future when predetermined. As Miss Tarazi considers using this detail to identify future fashion trends, Miss Sharpe walks by and catches wind. "No, no." The siblings turn to see her approaching the exposed schemer. She lifts a finger to her face. "Rule #1 of time travel: never look into the future for personal gain."
Miss Tarazi nonchalantly twiddles with her cellphone. "Totally, totally."
"And rule #2: no social media on the ship." The magnate surrenders her most prized possession to Mr. Tarazi. "I thought we were dropping you off."
"My brother, the actual superhero..." She pushes one arm over the other. "...invited me to stay."
"Okay," Miss Sharpe asserts, briefly mimicking her conduct, "let's just remember this is a place of business, okay? We get called on a mission; you need to keep out of the way." You can take her out of the Time Bureau, but you can't take the Bureau out of her.
Miss Tarazi salutes with two fingers, a placid smile, and a wink. "Aye, aye."
"Okay, we'll talk later," the interim captain tells Mr. Tarazi. He lets out a sigh of reprieve after she exits the Galley.
"Sad, what a waste of a good head of hair," his sister scoffs. He hands her back her cellphone, telling her to hide it. She indirectly commands me to make her some cucumber water. She jokes about being "parched from that dry interaction".
In the medbay, Dr. Palmer is on a video call with Miss Darhk. She's helping a young girl who has lived outside of a car with her mother for almost a year. The mother has just earned a final-round job interview, thanks in part to her daughter's Fairy Godmother. The astrophysicist is amazed by his girlfriend. She confesses she misses him, but it feels good to be out there helping others. Mr. Rory interrupts this with his presence. Miss Darhk understands since she must return to work. Dr. Palmer informs her that he'll call her later. He then voices those three little words. Judging by his facial gesture, this is out of impulse. Miss Darhk favorably responds in kind.
After she hangs up, the astrophysicist tends to the impatient arsonist. He complains about having a pain in his stomach and an inability to eat and drink. Mr. Rory believes his ex-girlfriend gave him a sexually transmitted disease at the reunion. Hence the hypoxemic lips. I initiate a scan on him to verify his claim. Dr. Palmer clarifies that the former is exhibiting a crush, not symptoms. He defines it as "biology's way of telling someone they care about someone else". I call it infatuation. My scan shows that Mr. Rory is exhibiting altered levels of norepinephrine, serotonin, testosterone, and dopamine. He does, in fact, like-like Ms. Ali Dunn. Captain Lance would jest about this. He bolts out of the medbay, disturbed by the analysis.
At the same time, I relay Miss Sharpe's announcement from the bridge per her request. "Interim Captain Sharpe here, team meeting in the parlour, over and out." However, she makes some things about it known. "Okay, that was good. It was fun yet to the point. Not too—Gideon, are you broadcasting this?"
"Sorry, Miss Sharpe," I apologize. "I'll shut it down." She wryly grits her teeth.
"Okay, thank you." I switch off the intercom. "We women have to stick together."
"I always thought of you as one of the guys." Miss Sharpe turns to see Dr. Heywood and Mr. Tarazi entering the bridge.
"Okay, I don't know what that means."
"He means that as a compliment," the technician interprets.
The historian affirms, "I do."
"Okay." Miss Sharpe dons a flower lei on each of them. She offers one to Miss Tarazi, who wavers it away. "What did I say about phones?"
"What?" The phone-obsessed magnate exculpates, "I need to tell my boyfriend I'm not dead." This detail doesn't sit well with Dr. Heywood. "Yep, internationally renowned DJ S'more Money."
The interim captain notices the late arrival. "Ah, okay, we've got Ray. Uh, where's Mick?"
"He's sick," the astrophysicist irreverently replies. "Lovesick." Unlike the others, he reacts amenably when she bestows a lei to him.
Miss Sharpe heads to the parlour, where she has four identical binders on the table. "So, while Sara's in Star City, I wanted to introduce you all to something that I developed at the Time Bureau. I know what you're all thinking. 'Time Bureau. #stuffy. What can we learn from those guys?' But we really did have a lot of fun over there." She gives a binder to each Legend. "Do you remember Taco Mondays, Nate?"
"Yeah, those were some wild taco times," the historian recollects.
Dr. Palmer quizzes, "'Aloha'?"
"Yes, A.L.O.H.A," the interim captain ensures, holding up her own copy. The cover is navy with Hawaiian style flowers. The letters A. L. O. H. A. are capitalized and printed in white. "It stands for Assess, Listen, Observe, Hydrate..." She treats the binder as if it's a crocodile's jaws. "Attack!"
A jittery Dr. Heywood exclaims, "What the—"
"Cool," the astrophysicist declares. Since he has history as an Eagle Scout, he adheres to procedures like this.
Miss Sharpe favorably reacts, "See?"
The historian skims through the content. He asks, "Uh, how many pages is this?"
Mr. Tarazi poses his own question. "Ava, you ever heard the proverb 'the fox knows many things, the hedgehog knows one big thing'?"
"I have not," she replies. Me neither.
"Well, Legends, we're a fox kind of organization. Adaptable and off-the-cuff." He signals at his binder. "This—this is very hedgehog, trying to impose one way of doing things onto every situation." Miss Sharpe seems responsive to the totem bearer's words.
"And not to be rude," Dr. Heywood interjects, "is there a mission here?"
"No, I just—" The others begin to leave, and the interim captain hurries to the central console. "Gideon! Gideon, check the timeline."
"It would appear that there is a disturbance in the Palace of Versailles in Paris 1793." My news refractorily convinces them to reconsider. "While the details are still hazy, the aftermath is traumatic. Thousands die and the French Revolution collapses." I display information concerning the revolution on the panels.
"Well, looks like we have a mission," Miss Sharpe asserts, "so, everybody, stop looking so 'Les Misérables' because we are going to France." Way to nail Captain Lance's shtick. I fly the Legends to their destination; they get ready to go undercover. Miss Sharpe and Dr. Heywood are disguised as French peasants. "Behrad, come on," she calls in the corridors. "We need to move."
They are staggered to see Miss Tarazi. Her costume is that of an upper-class woman. She greets them, fluttering her fan. Her brother catches up to them, panting, "I couldn't stop her. She found the fabrication room." Miss Sharpe can't believe this. Dr. Heywood is, for his part, smitten.
"Great," the interim captain dryly tells him. "She's not coming. We don't do ride-alongs in the field, B."
Miss Tarazi is slighted by this. "Ava, I can handle myself in the field. I once played 'Capture the Flag' to raise awareness about feline OCD, so..."
"This isn't a PR event, right? We're walking into a deadly situation, facing an Encore with unknown powers." Miss Sharpe crosses her arms. "I do not have time to keep my eye on a party girl."
"I do," Dr. Heywood opines. His sights remain on the woman in the elaborate gown. "I mean, come on, Ava. What's the harm?"
"It's against protocol to bring civilians into the field."
"Tsk."
"Don't 'tsk'." The historian defiantly repeats himself.
Miss Tarazi steps up to Miss Sharpe. "Yeah, but it would be super cool if you just let me come anyway." She has an air of persuasion to her. The latter seems to recognize this as well. Even though she searches for another plausible argument, it's relatively pointless.
"Okay, fine. Just make sure you stay out of our way." Miss Tarazi sprays something misty on the interim captain, making her gag. "What the hell was that?"
"My signature perfume, Dragonesque." She walks between Miss Sharpe and Dr. Heywood. Gesturing at her peasant costume, the megastar comments, "I needed to do something to help that extremely sad outfit." Miss Tarazi sprays her perfume into the space in front of her. "Spray, delay, walk away." She walks straight into it.
"Okay, we're going this way," Mr. Tarazi states, going to the direction he comes from. Dr. Heywood and Miss Sharpe follow him. His sister reveals doing "a runaway turn" as she joins them and Dr. Palmer.
As usual, I am on standby. Mr. Rory has gone to Mexico. I listen in on Miss Sharpe's earpiece. According to her, the 1790s in France was called the Reign of Terror. Executions were a national pastime. The royal palace is most definitely shielded, so entry is restricted. Is she negotiating with a guardsman? I can hear Miss Tarazi's voice carrying. She has attained entry for them. Incredible. The background noise is more celebratory than adverse. "Uh, didn't you say this was an execution?"
"Maybe Gideon got it wrong," Dr. Palmer suggests. I'm not wrong about there being a disturbance.
"Well, if they were misérables, they certainly aren't anymore," Miss Sharpe notes. "Stop with the fan thing."
"This place doesn't seem too evil."
"Yeah, well, appearances can be deceiving. We need to figure out who this Encore is and what powers they may have. We start with the A.L.O.H.A. method, okay? Assess. Lay low and don't engage."
"We know how to party sneak," Mr. Tarazi reminds.
"Listen to me—you see something, you say something." Miss Sharpe is a thorough hedgehog.
Miss Tarazi speaks three seconds later. "Captain."
"Yeah?"
"You're trying too hard. It's really desperate." One more provocation, and Miss Tarazi will likely need a new neck. I rechecked the historical records; during the "Reign of Terror", the executions subjected at the time were among the elite. The most notable of these was that of Marie Antoinette, the late Queen Consort of France. She was notorious for hosting extravagant parties... like the one the Legends are investigating. Dr. Heywood confirms my presumption after he and Dr. Palmer spot her.
"Oh, great, onto Phase Two of A.L.O.H.A," Miss Sharpe says. "It's listening. Now, her powers could be anything—teleportation, pyrokinesis."
"Fatal attractiveness." Honestly, Dr. Heywood...
"I mean, right," the astrophysicist agrees. Et tu, Dr. Palmer?
"Guys," the interim captain utters. "Guys?" They are no longer listening. So much for Phase Two. "They're not usually like this."
"Well, you're not usually the captain," Miss Tarazi insinuates.
"Thank you." Miss Sharpe is resisting the urge to wring her neck. Mr. Tarazi excitedly deems the party the best one ever after swapping crepe recipes with a French cooking legend. "Of course, the perfect revenge, a magical guillotine," I hear the interim captain mutter. "Guys, be careful. I think Marie's about to make her move." However, she uses it to slice into the cake being served. Contrary to media sources, her declaration "Let them eat cake" is purely fictitious. "Legends, we figured it out. Charm is her superpower." Mr. Rory is still absent, and the others are consuming cake. So, Miss Sharpe—albeit reluctantly—enlists Miss Tarazi's help. The latter's subtle influence comes in handy again. "Guys, I have Marie, and we're taking her to the Waverider."
Upon arrival, I see Dr. Heywood holding Marie Antoinette's head. The rest of her is carried by Dr. Palmer, and Miss Sharpe apparently has a costume change. They transport the decapitated Encore to the lab. Everything below her neck is strapped down in a gurney. "This party stinks," she proclaims.
Miss Tarazi is again on her phone. "Oh, so true, girl." At that point, Miss Sharpe brought a blanket. She glowers at her for the snarky comment. "But not the point." The interim captain covers the annoying head. Drs. Palmer and Heywood as well as Mr. Tarazi join them after they've received clean bills of health. The technician can't believe he almost drank the champagne. It's against his religious faith. The astrophysicist is flabbergasted about eating gluten-filled cake. The historian is dumbfounded over Marie Antoinette's heavy head.
"Yeah, she really had you under her spell," Miss Sharpe claims. "If it wasn't for our interim Legend here, you guys would've partied to death." Miss Tarazi curtsies upon gaining validation.
Dr. Heywood approaches the queen's head. "Well, just to play it safe, I'm gonna take this into the library." He avoids getting his fingers bitten. His best friend volunteers to help. He is then warned not to get creepy since the Encore looks like his girlfriend. Mr. Tarazi acknowledges his sister, "the superhero", and jokes if he should have me make her a cowl. She remarks those are "for middle-aged women who want to hide their necks". At the same time, she does need a dress for her event.
"Fabricator's all yours," Miss Sharpe allows.
"Yay, thank you." The magnate rushes to the fabrication room. I create the dress based on her designs. Marie Antoinette's uncovered head draws the spiffed-up celebrity to the library with her whooping. She inquires Miss Tarazi if she knows where her body is. The latter claims the previous events are reasonable for not helping her. Marie Antoinette recounts how she was obligated to leave her Viennese family at age 14 to marry King Louis XVI. French society viewed the lonely heiress as a spoiled brat due to her expensive fashion taste. Miss Tarazi emphasizes how she became famous when she was six. She herself can't tell whether the adoration she receives is genuine. Marie Antoinette imparts her secret: "Never let the party stop". Her words give her a mental respite. "Gidget, is there anything I need to worry about?"
"Interim Captain Sharpe instructed you not to look at your future." Also, that's not my name.
"Just a peek, little lady computer." I will break canon, yet there's a 99.9% chance she'll persist if I maintain my refusal.
"As you wish. October 7th, 2045." I show prognostic news coverage of her facing critical repercussion from her patronage. The FDA has prohibited Dragonesque following reports that it causes anosmia. This contributes to Miss Tarazi's decline from fame. She instinctively seeks out an alternative. While I can codify compound data to devise a new fragrance, she resolves to take Marie Antoinette's instead. Her head is hyper-vigilant to this; as implicitly indicated, her superpower is aromatic. Miss Tarazi gags her before taking the perfume vial and leaving for her launch party.
Dr. Palmer, as promised, calls Miss Darhk back via a tablet. He divulges how she and Marie Antoinette look alike, suggesting she does a 23andMe. The astrophysicist shows his girlfriend the silenced head in the library. She points out her disturbance over "looking at a gagged, decapitated woman". When he removes the cloth out of the latter's mouth, she squeals, "Thief!!!"
In the meantime, Miss Sharpe is tasting the crepe recipe Mr. Tarazi has obtained. They are accompanied by Dr. Heywood and Mr. Rory, who returned some time earlier. "Can you taste the cardamom?"
"I can't," the interim captain grimaces. "I can't taste anything because your sister's perfume clogged up my entire olfactory system." Yet, she continues eating. "Everything tastes like—" Just as she's about to finish her sentence, Dr. Palmer rushes into the Galley and notifies Miss Tarazi's theft of Marie Antoinette's perfume. While the guys' reactions are inattentive, Miss Sharpe quickly realizes the underlying severity. "Oh my goodness, the perfume. That's how Marie did it. Zari and I weren't affected 'cause we couldn't smell due to the Dragonesque." I guess Miss Tarazi's perfume was atypically helpful. "Who knows what kind of damage she could do with that?" They head into the corridors.
"It's all my fault," the technician bemoans. "I shouldn't have let her stay."
"I knew it was too early to pat myself on the back."
Dr. Palmer cheerfully declares, "Ah, look, it wouldn't be a true Legends mission unless something goes wrong." A crash suddenly grabs their attention. "Or several things." They go to the lab, where they discover a vacant gurney. When Miss Tarazi stole Marie Antoinette's perfume, the rest of her managed to release itself.
"Ray, get Mick and find the body. Nate, Behrad, you're with me." After the latter group portal to the launch event, the former group delve into the corridors. The missing body is walking in aimless pursuit for the head. Mr. Rory is ready to enflame it with his heat gun. Dr. Palmer tries to dissuade him from doing so. However, the headless body is the opposite of helpless and soon becomes armed and dangerous. It chases the astrophysicist and the arsonist on board. They hide in the Galley. Dr. Palmer considers how the first three steps of the A.L.O.H.A. method was unproductive.
"What does the 'H' stand for," Mr. Rory quizzes. The astrophysicist grabs two bottles of water for them to hydrate. Concurrently, the rest of the Legends portal through the parlour. Misses Tarazi and Sharpe are soaked from head to toe. "Wait, what does the last 'A' stand for," Mr. Tarazi inquires.
"Attack!" They watch as Dr. Palmer and Mr. Rory tackle Marie Antoinette's body to the ground. Miss Sharpe's approach worked at the end of the day. Miss Tarazi changes into drier clothing. As she rests in the lounge, she checks her social media regarding the inaugural event. She reads the headline on one of the articles: "Lady in Cheap Pantsuit Ruins Party". It's a clear reference to Miss Sharpe, though "cheap" isn't the word I'd use. She reconsiders the interim captain's "no phones on the ship" policy. Her brother gives her a red flannel shirt I fabricated. The megastar apologizes for her selfishness in taking Marie Antoinette's perfume. Instead of upbraiding her, Mr. Tarazi surprisingly offers her a doughnut. She hasn't eaten one in four years, 9 months, and a week. They ignore a recapitated Marie Antoinette in the brig as they walk out.
Drs. Heywood and Palmer as well as Miss Sharpe are snacking on doughnuts in the Galley. The Tarazi siblings join them; the historian is fixated on Miss Tarazi in the clothes she's wearing. She grabs a doughnut for herself, quipping his attraction to "lumberjack chic".
"There's an incoming hologram from Captain Lance," I inform them. I transferred the call there. She broadly grins upon appearing.
"Captain. How'd the mission go?"
"Oh, um..." Miss Sharpe stands up, confessing, "Well, I..."
"Killed it," Dr. Heywood interjects, joining her side.
Mr. Tarazi affirms, "She was a foxy hedgehog out there." Yes, she has exhibited her "fox" side.
The offhand response puzzles the captain. "Okay."
"We got our Encore, Captain," Dr. Palmer clarifies.
"Oh, good. I'm glad to hear it." Her eyes move to Miss Sharpe, who is lauded by the glowing remarks. "Ava, call me later so I can thank you properly." She certainly will. With that, she hangs up. The guys tease her over the flirtation. Miss Tarazi quietly absconds to the parlour and sits on its steps. She bites into the sprinkle-coated doughnut. Something must've affected her because she didn't notice Miss—or should I say, Captain—Sharpe entering. She regains her focus when the latter snaps her fingers. "Zari! Hey, are you okay?"
"Yeah, I was—I was just, uh, enjoying this doughnut and thinking. You locked Marie Antoinette up, but you let me off the hook."
The new captain sits next to her. "I mean, she killed people, Zari. You screwed up. You know, everybody screws up."
"Not you."
"Me?" Captain Sharpe laughs, "I feel like I'm screwing up all the time."
"You were so on the mission. You crashed an A-list party in a pantsuit and threw yourself into a fountain."
"Ugh, see, it's a perfect example."
"No, it was amazing. You didn't care what anyone thought. You were just being you." She fidgets with her ring. "I've been trying to get people to like me for so long that... I've forgotten who I really am. I have millions of followers, but... zero friends."
Captain Sharpe challenges this with a smirk. "You got one." Miss Tarazi returns her gaze and accepts her friendship. "Come on." The two make their way back to the Galley.
"Well, as your friend, I have to tell you... no more pantsuits." The captain amusingly brushes it off. We'll have to wait and see if her new friend succeeds in changing her mind.
It was maddening when Miss Tarazi called me variations of "computer" for 10 days. Due to her self-involved mondegreen, the celebrity keeps addressing me as Gidget. I've repeatedly corrected her to no effect. Devoid of alternative choices, I accredit my new "name". It would've been worse if she started calling me "gadget". Furthermore, there's a bigger problem. Charlie and Mr. Green enter the Waverider via the jumpship, requesting assistance for Mr. Constantine. Dr. Palmer provides them the gurney and asks what happened. The sorcerer evidently collapsed after coughing up a bucket of blood. Upon arriving in the medbay, the astrophysicist entreats, "Gideon, we'll need to run a scan."
"Right away, Dr. Palmer." He lifts the pale soothsayer into one of the chairs. I proceed to run a medical scan on him. Mr. Constantine begins coughing again, prompting Dr. Palmer to request an oxygen mask. Charlie retrieves it, but the sorcerer stops her and lowly demands the location of a loom. The shapeshifter doesn't answer him; she tells him to rest. The astrophysicist questions Mr. Green about this interaction. The fretful apprentice begins muttering about Miss Logue's "ghost mom". Dr. Heywood and Captain Sharpe's sudden appearances sidetrack him. He begs his former boss to hold him, which she does. The captain's eyes are stuck on Mr. Constantine.
"What the hell's going on," the historian inquires.
I finalize the results of his body scan. "As you can see from his chest x-ray," I notify, "Mr. Constantine has a very aggressive form of lung cancer. I'm afraid it's terminal." This is why the Waverider is a smoke-free aircraft. They stare at my diagnosis in silent dismay. The sorcerer, however, is undaunted by his inevitable demise. He jokes about being too late to abandon his habit.
Before he can light his cigarette, Captain Sharpe snatches it out of his mouth. "There's nothing funny about lung cancer, John." She discards the cancer stick into the trash.
Mr. Constantine snickers, "Who's laughing?" Despite finding levity, it doesn't hinder his coughs.
Mr. Green rushes to his side. "If you lose your hair, I'm shaving my head in solidarity."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa." He props up in defiance. "Hold on a minute. No saucy A.I. is butchering me and pumping me full of—" I interrupt him by administering sedatives in his system. Saucy, eh?
"Mr. Constantine needs to rest," I reason.
Charlie sneaks out of the medbay without anyone noticing. I watch her fleeing through the corridors. She implores me to prepare the jumpship. The shapeshifter stops in her tracks and looks around her. She denies her current state and proceeds to the garage. Making a left turn, Charlie runs into a mildly surprised Mr. Tarazi. He queries her about her whereabouts and utters his disbelief when he hears Mr. Constantine is dying. She assures that the sorcerer will survive. Just then, Miss Tarazi emerges and tells her brother that she may be hallucinating due to the doughnut he offered her. She thus is on a juice cleanse. Mr. Tarazi introduces her to Charlie, whom he refers to as his friend. With temporary benefits. His sister compliments the shapeshifter's fashion.
Captain Sharpe announces via the intercom, "Team meeting on the bridge."
"Does that mean me," the magnate ponders in a whisper.
"That means you too, Zari."
"Hmm, cool." Miss Tarazi heads to the bridge with a genuine smile. She did miraculously persuade the captain to forego the pantsuits. Her brother asks Charlie if she's coming. She wants to say no; however, she relents to prevent arousing suspicion.
"Oh, Charlie," Captain Sharpe exhales as she observes them joining the other Legends. "We could really use your help right now. With Sara in Star City and Mick in a mood, we are short-staffed."
"What's Mick in a mood about?"
"Ali," Dr. Palmer giddily replies, "his girlfriend."
"Ray, they only had sex once," Dr. Heywood reminds.
"Well, when you know, you know. You know?" Mr. Tarazi uneasily clears his throat. Charlie perceives this and says nothing.
"Listen," Captain Sharpe addresses. "I know we're all worried about John, okay? And we could just sit back and wait for a miracle. But does Marie Kondo rest just because she built an empire? No." Miss Tarazi only answers alongside her. "No, she tidies up. And that is exactly what we're gonna continue to do. We are gonna tidy up the timeline, yeah?" Her speech is impassioned for another different reason. "Gideon, show them what we've been working on." Yes, Captain. I display a holographic view of a speckled Earth. "Each point represents a potential Encore, which means we can catch them before we change history. I call her 'The Prognosticator'." We designed the algorithm and executed it using the data I collected. It was a remarkable collaboration. Only Dr. Palmer applauds the unveiling of our software application. The others are mutely disinterested. "Okay, anyway." She accesses one of the localities prior to disabling the hologram. "There is a Category 5 in 1997 Hong Kong. A mysterious gangster is moving in on the Triad's territory. Ray, I want you and Zari to QB."
"Oh, you don't have to tell me to 'queen bee'," Miss Tarazi opines. "It'll look her naturally."
"Oh, you know what. Hong Kong traffic is notoriously bad," Dr. Heywood informs. He briefly exits the bridge to obtain something. "So, why don't we take my... scooter!" The historian returns, riding on a small, wheeled board. "I call her 'Scoots McGoots'." The irony is that his presentation intrigues the other Legends.
"You're all impressed by the scooter," Captain Sharpe inquires. I too can't fathom it. We try to help appeal the Prognosticator's usefulness. Nonetheless, the others are indifferent. Dr. Heywood takes Miss Tarazi for a spin. Dr. Palmer follows them, saying he gets the next ride. "Wait, careful." The captain's warning falls on deaf ears. Mr. Tarazi and Charlie remain distant from each other.
"I believe the Prognosticator is more advantageous, Captain." Call it partiality if you will.
My words stifle her dissatisfaction. "Thanks, Gideon." I fly the Waverider to 1997 China. It's nighttime when our destination is discernable. Before the Legends disembarked, Captain Sharpe sought a syringe of the sedative I injected into Mr. Constantine. She, Charlie, and Mr. Tarazi are at a Triad-owned tea shop. Dr. Heywood capitalizes on his scooter with a perimeter sweep. Miss Tarazi reads from a 1997 newspaper that Great Britain was on the verge of returning control of Hong Kong to China at the time. While Dr. Palmer doesn't consider the information pertinent, he commends her help.
The astrophysicist unexpectedly gets alarmed by Mr. Green, who warns that Mr. Constantine is attempting to discharge himself. The two men catch the staggering sorcerer in the corridors. He appreciates in his own way that they were helping him, but he has figured someone is using magic to accelerate his condition. Mr. Constantine has a long list of people who would do this. His goal is to get home to concoct a solution. Dr. Palmer vehemently disallows letting him escape without medical supervision. After a tense confrontation, the astrophysicist relents under the pretense that he accompanies them.
The other Legends haven't spotted the Encore yet. Charlie impatiently recommends they should ditch the tea shop. Dr. Heywood, on the other hand, uncovers the imminent gangster's identity: Genghis Khan, the first emperor of the Mongol Empire. "How the hell did Genghis Khan get to 1997 and learn how to ride a motorbike," Captain Sharpe queries.
The historian infers, "He used horses to revolutionize warfare. A motorbike's a modern-day horse."
"Looks like he's meeting with the Triad." Mr. Tarazi advises they should abort and regroup on the ship. An opposing Charlie persuades Captain Sharpe to give her the syringe, not caring about the looming danger. The risk factor increases with a shootout. A group of undercover officers are involved. Against the totem-wielder's wishes, the shapeshifter goes after the fleeing Encore. The turmoil is obstructed when Dr. Heywood weaponizes his new scooter as well as his steel powers.
The Legends reembark on the Waverider. Upon entering the bridge, Miss Tarazi is painting her nails on the central console. She regards her "queen-beeing" went well. "You four almost got yourselves killed," the celebrity notes. I concur.
Charlie claims she had fun. Mr. Tarazi disagrees, faulting her for getting them stuck in the middle of a shootout. He points out that he favors Bruce Lee because "he never uses guns". The shapeshifter tells her "mate" to "keep [his] knickers on". She theorizes he could've used his wind powers to stop the bullets. He then calls her crazy, which offends her. "Look, this is all my fault," Captain Sharpe attests. "We should've been gathering intel, not doping the Encore. Gideon?"
"I'm currently tracking Genghis Khan's whereabouts via his license plate."
"Great, 'cause we need to figure out how and why Genghis just showed up in 1997 Hong Kong. Charlie, you up for some undercover work?"
She doesn't take this well. "Oh, I get it; just because I'm the shapeshifter, I have to be the one to infiltrate the criminal gang."
"Sorry, pause," Miss Tarazi interposes. "You're a shapeshifter?"
"Yeah, I am actually." Charlie smirkingly approaches her. "I can shift into anyone you like."
The magnate is rather interested. "Anyone?"
"Yeah, anyone." Mr. Tarazi is fed up with the semi-flirty interaction. The shapeshifter moves on joining Mr. Rory for a drink. The totem-bearer opts for a smoke. Ugh.
The captain notes, "I don't get it. They used to be best buds."
"Oh, there's only one explanation," Dr. Heywood deduces. "B and Charlie went to Pound Town." Miss Tarazi almost throws up her juice.
"Wait, what?"
"Moan zone? Smash City?"The captain still doesn't comprehend. Her friend gives a telling look.
The realization soon hits her. "They had sex?" Precisely a month following HeyWorld. The historian convinces the former "fun buddies" to go undercover. Minutes after Charlie has infiltrated Genghis Khan's gang, she seeks Captain Sharpe in a male voice. "Yeah, Charlie. You found something?"
"Genghis kidnapped your cop friend." The captain sighs in disappointment. She and Miss Tarazi overhear the ensuing conversation. The information the latter read before is pertinent after all. Genghis Khan is plotting for Prince Charles to surrender Hong Kong to him instead.
"An authoritarian power wants to control Hong Kong," Captain Sharpe abstracts. "That sounds familiar." Charlie then discloses that Genghis Khan killed the cop with a hell sword. "Son of a *itch! Okay, you got what we needed. Charlie, get the hell out of there."
She does; on board, the first room she goes to is the lab. Her behavior seems to validate my notion of her having a reason for her joyride. The shapeshifter notices Marie Antoinette in the brig. "Just when the ship couldn't get any barmier," she expresses. Charlie rifles the cabinets for a time courier. Mr. Tarazi beats her to it and queries why she's so urgent to flee. The shapeshifter avers she's "always looking for the next party", but he doesn't buy it after a truck almost ran her over. The totem-wielder confesses he liked her more than friends and was hurt by her departure. It's why he felt "weird" when she came back. He suspects she wants to avoid whatever's nettling her. Charlie harshly defers this, calling their coition "mediocre". A stung Mr. Tarazi mentions that the battle is occurring within the next 20 hours. She nevertheless asks for the courier. He then defeatedly watches her go. "Mediocre is no bad," Marie Antoinette asserts, eating a sandwich.
The totem-wielder informs the others in the bridge. "Charlie's gone," Captain Sharpe interrogates. "How could you let her leave?"
"I didn't. It was her choice."
"Okay, hey," Dr. Heywood advances, "how about we focus on Genghis Khan?"
"You're right," the captain yields. "We need to stop him from attacking Prince Charles' motorcade." According to Miss Tarazi, he's en route to a ceremony officiating the end of the 156-year colonialist rule. The historian is mesmerized that she knows this. Captain Sharpe nips the exchange in the bud. "Okay, hey, okay. Moving on, right? Turns out the person Charlie impersonated is an engineer. There's a shipment coming in tonight. I'll bet you that's the fleet Genghis is gonna use for his attack."
"What kind of fleet," Mr. Tarazi quizzes.
"Whatever it is," Dr. Heywood surmises, "it's the next step of modern warfare. I'll go to the docks. I'll try to figure it out."
"Okay." Following the historian's exit, the captain directs the totem-wielder. "Zari and I will monitor the airspace above the motorcade, and you'll be on the street. I know it's a lot of ground to cover. If Charlie was here—"
"I get it. I'm on my own." He walks out successively. Night turns to daytime; I circulate surveillance footage of the ongoing traffic. The royal motorcade is being overseen. "Behrad, what's your status," Captain Sharpe queries.
"It's complete gridlock."
"No one's getting through on the ground. The fleet must be in the air." If that's the case, I would've detected any sign of aerial movement.
"Nate, did you find the shipment," Miss Tarazi inquires.
"Oh, no. We're too late," he replies. "Whatever there was, there's a lot of them."
"Nate, get downtown and help Behrad," the captain orders.
"Hold on. I think they might have left something." At the same time, I divert their attentions to a photo taken a few hours earlier. Genghis Khan's fleet is a multitude of weaponized scooters! They bypass the gridlock without a hassle. Mr. Tarazi exclaims his need for some assistance. Captain Sharpe beseeches, "Nate, tell me you're close, please."
"I'd be lying. B, it's your time. You got this." The totem-wielder catches up to Genghis Khan's gang. They have apprehended Prince Charles, who is actually Charlie. Our shapeshifter took the courier to swap places with the real prince. He's currently in the lounge with Mr. Rory, who was supposed to notify the other Legends of this prior. The arsonist says he will after his beer break. Since he was on his fifth, I told Captain Sharpe.
Charle and Mr. Tarazi team up in vanquishing Genghis Khan. They attain his sword and mend their friendship. The present Legends reconvene in the parlour, where the shapeshifter has something to tell them. She efforts to find the right words. Following moments of hesitation, Charlie verbalizes, "I am a Fate." In Greek mythology, the Fates (or Moirai) are a trio of women who personify destiny. Their names are Lachesis (the Allotter), Atropos (the Inflexible), and Clotho (the Spinner). Charlie is the last mentioned. They spun people's futures on their loom—the one Mr. Constantine asked about. Charlie/Clotho destroyed it thousands of years ago due to her belief in free will. She cannot expose her true form; anyone who looks at it will be irreversibly sightless and deafened. Her sisters have been after her ever since she destroyed their loom. "Wait," Captain Sharpe asks, "you've been running for thousands of years?"
"Yes, and I've always stayed one step ahead." Charlie had originally scattered pieces of the loom across the multiverse. It consequently deprived her sisters of their powers. However, since Captain Lance and the other Paragons restarted the multiverse, the loom pieces can be easily located on one Earth. The other Fates are emboldened to continue their hunt for the pieces and their nonconformist sister.
"And when they do find you?"
"They'll kill me and anyone I am with." She glances at the totem-wielder, softly admitting, "Which is why I left." The obstinate Fate intends to do it again to protect the Legends. On the other hand, they aren't the kind to let a teammate face a threat alone. Charlie is moved that they want to help her. They swiftly hear a crash in the corridors. A narked Captain Lance enters the bridge. "What is with all these damn scooters," she yells. "They're a menace." Her temper cools as she spots the other Legends. "Oh, hey, guys. What did I miss?" They begin simultaneously answering. You missed a lot, Captain.