Chapter 2: A Suicidal Mission
The lumbering Doom Kid eventually left the endless wheat fields behind and traded them for scenes of rolling green hills as he drew closer to Kansas City. His breathing was heavy and guttural, rumbling snarls like any beast of the earth filled the air as his trudging footsteps carried him onward. Primal instincts drove him to get as far away from his facility of birth as possible. He was still mortal, despite his superhuman level of enhancement, and that included certain needs.
He found a small pond nestled between green rises. Dropping down into the gulley, Doom Kid fell to his knees and plunged his head into the cold water, gulping down massive heaving swallows of refreshing hydration. He reared back his head, hair matted to his face while gulping down fresh air. Droplets clung to his slate-gray skin, glistening like diamonds in the light of a cloudless afternoon. Everything was peaceful, quiet, a welcome change from the chaos he'd endured earlier.
The stillness was unfortunately shattered by the dull THUD-THUD-THUD of heavy-duty rotors churning up the air. Doom Kid looked up, spotting in the distant canvas of blue a single twin-rotor helicopter that broke up the monotony of the pristine sky with its flat-gray mechanical bulk. Scarlet eyes watched it closely, questioning its intentions as it droned on by…
The big Chinnok helicopter thundered through the skies over perfect-square patches of farmer's fields. A pair of black-clad pilots, their faces perfectly obscured by ski-masks, goggles, and radio helmets, eased the aircraft towards its destination while a cadre of colorful characters sat three abreast in the rear. Amanda Waller's voice filled the cabin space,
"A government asset has breached containment. We need it corralled and subdued so exfil teams can pack it up for a safe return. We're going to land you northeast of its current position, you have to stop it before it reaches Kansas City. Complete the mission and ten years will be taken off your life-sentences."
"And we're doing this because the military already failed to contain it." A man retorted.
"You're a smart man, Lawton. You'll figure something out." Waller replied before terminating the call. Heaving his automatic rifle with a grumble, the man named Floyd Lawton but better known as 'Deadshot' checked and rechecked the ammunition clip. He was thankful they let him have his heavier ammunition for this, he wasn't about to take any chances with a 'government asset'.
What appeared to be normal 7.62mm bullets were really a deadly modified package. The bullets themselves had been hollowed out and the voids filled with mercury. When the bullet struck flesh and slowed, the momentum would cause the mercury to explode out of the round and shred tissue the way a shaped explosive cuts through a tank's armor. A hit anywhere center mass was fatal, and even a glancing shot to the shoulder or hip would sever a limb. Deadshot saved this particularly limited-quantity ammo for only the most extreme missions and he had yet to use more than a single round of the stuff until now.
"Always cleaning up after this bitch. We're just her janitors." A woman scoffed, crossing her arms. "What I wouldn't give to put her on ice."
"Like it or not, Frost, she holds all the cards for the time being. We just have to play along until a better opportunity presents itself." Deadshot replied. Louise Lincoln, known in this particular circle as 'Killer Frost', exhaled quietly. Her breath was visible even in the temperate climate of the Chinnok's bay.
"Particularly one that includes the removal of these damn bombs." She muttered, touching out the scar on the back of her head where a nanoexplosive had been planted at the base of her skull.
"I'm surprised she wanted us to handle this," Barbara Ann Minerva purred as she sat perched on one of the seats like a cat, "why not put DuBois or Harkness or Copperhead on this?"
"Your guess is as good as mine, cat. Batshit crazy as she is." The gravelly voice of Black Manta replied. Minerva glared and hissed.
"It's 'Cheetah', fish-breath. Get it right."
"Fish? Where fish?" The brutish form of Nanaue, or 'King Shark', wondered.
"Not literally." Deadshot grunted. The marksman and assassin slipped on his tactical helm, bright red cybernetic targeting eye lighting up as he did. "When we touch down, recon the area. Find it, corner it, put it down. Maybe that'll satisfy your appetite, shark boy."
"I ain't eaten yet. They don't feed me good." King Shark grumbled.
Deadshot re-checked his comms. "Pilot, status report."
"ETA one minute. Landing within two-hundred yards of the target."
The Chinnok shifted, sudden turbulence jarring it's occupants. A lurch followed as the helicopter bumped against the ground and then came to a stop. The pilots held in place, opening the rear loading door. "Task Force X has been deployed, repeat, Task Force X has been deployed."
Deadshot led the group to the edge of the boarding ramp. "What happens if we can't stop it?" Cheetah asked.
"Then we live up to the moniker 'Suicide Squad'." Deadshot bluntly replied. It was grim, but he was right. Hardened criminals like them were considered expendable, especially in the hands of Amanda Waller.
The fivesome found themselves in a loping field of wild grass, about half an hour out from Kansas City. The helicopter took off as quickly as it had landed, leaving the five members of the task force amid churning blades long grass. "Northeast…" Deadshot murmured, turning right around to face southwest, the opposite direction of Kansas City.
"How much distance between us and it you think?" Black Manta asked.
"Best guess puts us at maybe a mile or two," the marksman surmised, taking note of the rolling hills as calculations flooded his mind, "Cheetah, take point and stay low. Let us know if you spot him. We'll move from high ground to high ground. We need to get the drop on this thing. Whatever it is." Dropping to all fours, Minerva took off at a run through the grass as the rest of the squad hurried towards the top of the tallest hill around where they paused beneath a lonely tree. Once there, Deadshot lifted his rifle and fine-tuned the scope, sweeping across the grass at a range. It only took a few minutes for Minerva to call out over comms,
"I have a visual! It's a man, sort of. I haven't seen anything like it."
"Lead him back towards us." Deadshot ordered before he looked to the team. "We'll draw him in. Frost, head left and stay out of sight. If we can ice him over that should hold him long enough to satisfy Waller." The cryogenic villainess moved to relocate, sprinting through the knee-high grass while Deadshot led the rest of the task force towards Cheetah's position.
"What if Frost can't hold it?" Manta asked.
"Then we gotta put the hurt on it until she can. Shark," Deadshot looked up at their towering companion, "better get ready to get your hands dirty."
"King Shark bite hard. King Shark bite good!" Nanaue growled, gnashing his dagger-like maw. His enthusiasm was far from professional but it was just what Deadshot needed now. Cheetah came bolting out of the grass, still on all fours. She slowed to a low hunch as she spun around to watch.
"He's coming!" Cheetah growled. Deadshot lifted his rifle and gripped it tightly, Black Manta's helmet optics began to glow.
A dark spot appeared on the grass, charging towards them. Deadshot got his first look at the young man shaped like Doomsday. Several questions filled his mind as concerns about Amanda Waller attempting to grow a new Doomsday for the American government swelled. The bone spikes across his arms and legs called back to news highlights from the day the monster from space brought the monster to heel and killed Superman. Despite his criminality, Floyd Lawton was a man of morality, and everything about this screamed 'Something's not right' and he could not shake it.
"He's coming…" Manta hissed. Floyd put his concerns aside, but not before making a mental note to consult his out-of-jail contacts. He waited until he could see the blackness behind the scarlet of Doom Kid's eyes.
"Frost! Now!"
Thrusting out her arms, Killer Frost unleashed a blast of freezing cold energy that engulfed the Doom Kid, catching him completely off guard. He stood still and strong, holding himself against the barrage of icy wind and frozen particulate. Despite his resilience, ice began to form along the arm attempting to keep his face out of the blast. That ice began to grow and spread across his body, hardening and thickening as it locked his limbs into place and encased him within what resembled a crude ice sculpture.
Said ice grew and grew, transforming into a glacier over a foot thick as the blast from Killer Frost caused the very ground to freeze and the grass to suffer from a sudden wintry onslaught. "One ugly bastard iced and chilled." Frost remarked with a cocky smirk. "Not bad, am I right?"
"Whatever." Deadshot grunted. "I just wanna know what the hell Waller wants with a some baby Doomsday." He lifted his rifle and kept it trained on the giant block of ice. "Manta, any thermal readings?"
"Negative. They're plummeting." Black Manta answered.
King Shark snarled. "I wanna eat it!"
"Tell Waller to feed you in addition to the ten years." Deadshot retorted. "Cheetah, call it in. We'll let Waller pack up her science experiment while we get the hell out of here." Before that could be done, however, the ice began to tremble. Fractures appeared across the surface of the ice, spider-webbing as they increased in frequency. Deadshot realized what was happening and began backing up, as did Black Manta.
With furious strength, the ice shattered and exploded outwards to the tune of a monstrous bellow as Doom Kid freed himself. "Shit." Deadshot grunted. "Manta! Cover fire!" He wasted no time firing, bullets flying down range as they struck Doom Kid and the mercury within exploded outwards to try and shred his skin. The concussive force was enough to force the monster to take a single step back. One step became three as Black Manta's optic lenses blasted Doom Kid with scorching thermal rays. Killer Frost tried again, generating bursts of cryo energy to freeze Doom Kid's legs in place. King Shark and Cheetah took that as their cue to advance, the limber feline female surging through the grass towards Doom Kid as King Shark lumbered up behind.
Focused on the ranged assault plaguing him, Doom Kid was unprepared for Cheetah and her claws as they raked across his skin. He snarled in pain as thick red bled from the trio of slash marks cutting across his ribs. The scent of spilt blood filled Cheetah's primal senses, so strong that even King Shark was able to catch a whiff… and true to his beastial side, he reacted as any other shark would when blood filled his senses. With a mighty roar, he set upon Doom Kid with his fists, pummeling the monstrous man over and over again until he lunged forward with his mouth agape and sank his teeth into Doom Kid's neck.
Or, more accurately, he tried to.
His teeth not enhanced by magic, they promptly shattered as they came in contact with the skin of Doom Kid.
King Shark recoiled with a look of horror, met by Doom Kid's fearsome snarl. A punch flung him off and sent Nanaue careening through the air, sailing over the heads of Deadshot and Black Manta. The marks from Cheetah's claws had already healed over, his skin dark with dried blood but not longer actively bleeding. Minerva pounced on him again, her claws cutting deep scars across his back while her teeth successfully sank into his neck. Known to slice through the skin of superhumans generally thought to be invincible, she was the best choice for attacking someone with the properties of Doomsday. "Frost!" She roared, using her claws to cut open Doom Kid's side before she was thrown off. The villainess reacted by shooting a trio of dagger-like icicles that impaled deep in the monster's flesh, Doom Kid roaring in thunderous agony. More bullets from Deadshot struck him, optic beams from Black Manta seared him. His rage grew, a billowing primal fury that could not be restrained.
He drove his foot into Cheetah, shattering her ribs as she was sent tumbling across the ground. With a mighty leap he crossed the distance between him and Killer Frost, his fist slamming into her midsection and knocking the wind from her lungs in an icy exhale. A left hook half-buried the villainess in the dirt. Half the squad was down for the count and both Deadshot and Black Manta knew they were in trouble. The consummate terrorist took the initiative, Manta drawing his Atlantean steel knives as he fired a steady stream of searing optic lasers from his helm. Deadshot covered him, emptying the clip of his rifle before he cast it aside and switched out for his wrist guns, each fully loaded with incendiary rounds.
Doom Kid reacted to the steady stream of fire by raising his arms, hardened bone plates shattering bullets and warding off the intense heat from Manta's beams. He moved towards them, meeting Black Manta head-on as the villain ducked under his punch and drove both knives into his gut. Blood spilled out, Doom Kid roared and was silenced when Manta triggered his jump jets and rammed his knee into his chin. The villain vaulted overhead and swung his knives down Doom Kid's back, tearing fresh red scars that healed over with alarming efficiency. Suddenly, the spikes across his back erupted outward, showering Black Manta and forcing him to back off. Doom Kid used the sudden gap to whirl around and land a punch that left a sizeable dent in Black Manta's oblong helm as he was pitched across the ground.
Deadshot's bullets riddled his back, attempting to catch fire where they could. Doom Kid withstood the barrage, scorched skin healing within seconds as he turned on the criminal marksman. He charged and Deadshot rolled out of the way, taking aim at a distant tree and firing. His aim was impeccable and the bullet ricocheted off to explode in Doom Kid's face, blinding him just long enough to Deadshot to put some distance between them. "Frost? Cheetah?" The icy villainess answered with a groan as she forced herself up.
"Bastard hits hard."
"He's tearing through us." Floyd grunted in agreement. "Try to ice him again. Manta, we need an edge."
"I got just the thing for his ass." Black Manta growled as he shot past, propelled by his jump jets. Concealed launchers on his pack unfolded to unleash their warheads that exploded in Doom Kid's face. From his hand, a tube unfolded and revealed a collapsible trident made from Orichalcum. The tri-pronged tip plunged into Doom Kid's chest and pinned him to the ground, the monstrosity howling as Black Manta channeled the charge of his shock gauntlets through his trident. Doom Kid convulsed on the ground as Deadshot blasted his hands with intermittent rounds from his wrist guns while Killer Frost began icing him over again.
Black Manta unleashed his optic blasts right in Doom Kid's face, planting him against the ground as the trio of convicts finally pinned him. He removed his trident and stepped back as Killer Frost finished encasing Doom Kid in ice. The solid mound remained, sustained by Killer Frost's powers. "This damn thing better stay down." Black Manta grunted as his trident retracted and he attached it back to his belt. Deadshot concurred and he wasn't taking any chances.
"Waller. Your science project is on ice. Get an exfil team over here before it breaks out again." He snapped into his comms. Cheetah stumbled over, clutching her wounded side. Somehow her leather bikini-like clothes managed to remain intact during the melee, something she was thankful for. But it would take a couple of hours before her ribs were fully healed.
"Anyone seen the shark?" She asked, grunting in pain with each movement. No one could say that they had.
But they had bigger problems to worry about.
The ice began to crack and fracture. "Shit! Frost, ice it!" Deadshot demanded. Killer Frost poured on her power, unleashing freezing cryogenic blasts to try and reinforce her icy prison. But try as she might, the cracks continued to spider-web across the sparkling surface, growing and spreading until the ice shattered and rained hail down upon the Suicide Squad. Doom Kid rose up, snarling and growling, his body fully healed as if he had never been wounded.
Black Manta and Deadshot opened fire as Doom Kid roared. The monstrosity slammed into the squad, backhanding Cheetah and sending her spinning. He picked up Killer Frost with one hand and slammed her into Black Manta before planting a kick that Deadshot felt in every fibre of his being. The marksman tumbled through the dirt and forced himself up, feeling a significant bruise forming across his chest. He looked up just in time to see Doom Kid grab Black Manta by the arm and slam him into Killer Frost and then Cheetah before beating the villain into the ground with his hands and feet.
Deadshot wasted no time firing his wrist guns, emptying each clip as Doom Kid approached. Powering through his bullets, the monster punched him with enough force to break his arm and send him tumbling again. Despite the searing pain, like fire beneath his skin, Deadshot managed to hold still where he fell, feigning unconsciousness to make Doom Kid think he was down for the count. The monster bellowed victoriously and Deadshot relied on his cybernetic eye to keep track of the beast.
Doom Kid's gaze suddenly turned up towards the sky and he sniffed the air. His gaze landed on something and he turned to run, breaking into a sprint that propelled him across the plains and out of sight within a matter of seconds. Deadshot rolled, grunting as pain flared from his arm. He looked upwards, attempting to track what Doom Kid had seen. His targeting reticle picked out a dark shape against the pure blue of the sky, moving quickly.
"Waller, we've got a super en route. Airborne, maybe twenty or so klicks out."
"What's the status of the asset?" Amanda demanded.
"Alive and kicking. What the hell did you expect sending us against a baby Doomsday?"
"Dammit, Lawton! Pull out! I want no evidence of any involvement with that thing." Waller screeched.
Deadshot forced himself to stand. "Gladly. You're paying our medical bills." He growled in retort.
Pounding across the plains, Doom Kid refused to fight again. He'd endured enough and now he just wanted to avoid another conflict. He wanted peace, quiet, something other than the cacophony of battle. Now there was something else in the sky pursuing him and he had no idea what it was but just wanted to be left alone. His instincts told him it was time to flee, time to stop fighting and just escape.
A rush of wind blew right past him, forcing Doom Kid to stop. "Are you Doomsday? I think my cousin was overreacting about how big you were." Said a feminine voice. Doom Kid looked up to see a young woman hovering before him. She was dressed in a blue bodysuit that reached from neck to feet, broken up only by a golden belt around her hips and red trim along her toes and shins. Overtop she wore an unzipped red leather jacket that revealed the red 'S' on a golden shield on her chest. The blue of her eyes was framed by her neck-length blonde hair. "And running away? Not very 'kill everything in sight' is it?" Supergirl remarked with a smirk.
Doom Kid said nothing, just turning and running away from her in a different direction. "Huh. I'm gonna have to ask Kal what was so hard about Doomsday." Kara remarked, cracking her knuckles and rolling her neck. She took flight at breakneck speed, plowing into Doom Kid from behind and flattening him against the ground. Rolling him over, she reared back her fist. "Giving up already?" She wondered. "You're making this way too easy."
It was then that something overcame Doom Kid. The ferocity in his eyes lessened until the red was little more than a flat dull shade. The spikes across his back retracted into his body, as did the plates along his arms and legs. His expression seemed… almost human in a way and Kara cocked her head at the sudden change in his demeanor. His breathing came heavily as though he were panicked by or exhausted from his ordeal. He opened his mouth,
"Please…" he whispered between breaths, "…help me…" Kara blinked and shook her head, not knowing what to say or do. Suddenly, he went limp against the ground, eyes closing shut as he passed out cold. Now Supergirl was truly lost for words. Strapped for a response, she reached for the earpiece embedded in her right ear,
"Hey, Kal? I, uh, need your help with something."