Interludes After the 14th Angel, Part 2
Please Read and Review. I'd like to know what I'm doing right (to keep doing it), and what I am doing wrong (to correct it).
Notes, the parenthesis indicates languages other than Japanese, in this case,English.
There are many annotations this time, but the actual count of the story is over 3k words.
Tokyo-3
Japan
GeoFront
Hospital Wing
Now
Rei Ayanami rested on the bed, still unconscious. Dr. Akagi studied the readings on the instruments, and set down a few notes on her clipboard. "She has entered a state of deep relaxation, almost like sleep, Commander. A few hours of rest and she will wake up by herself."
"Well, thats a relief, Dr. Dyejob." Deadman quipped from the Astral Plane. "I'll check on Red and let Shinji know."
"Good." Commander Ikari exhaled a breath of relief. No need to activate a clone yet. "Keep me informed on her evolution. I want you to examine Units 00 and 02, it's urgent. Check for S2 organs and make sure both are well restrained at the cages. They are inert now, but if they have developed S2 Organs…" he paused, gathering his thoughts, wouldn't do to meet with the Comitee with scrambled wits, "SEELE has scheduled an emergency meeting in five hours, to discuss the preliminary report I sent them. I expect your analysis in four hours." He went out the room without looking back.
"See you later, Commander Badbeard." Deadman smiled coldly."I hate your boring meetings, but maybe you guys will go full Bond villain."
Tokyo-3
Japan
GeoFront
Unit-02's Core
Now
"Good afternoon!" Deadman announced his presence at Unit-02s core, "Um…" He looked at the two redheads glaring daggers at him. "Sorry, I realize I'm interrupting. Uh? Shouldn't there be more of you, Dr. Soryu?"
Annoyed, the adult Soryu scoffed at him, "Who are you, to begin with? I half remember you."
Asuka raised a hand, "Let me handle this, Mama." She walked around Deadman, examining him carefully. "Phantom..?" She raised an eyebrow.
"Stranger. You know him, all mysterious and kinda weird." He bowed ridiculously deep while Asuka relaxed a bit, nodding to her mother.
"He's on our side, Mama. I don't know him, but I think we can trust him."
"Thank you for the vote of confidence, Miss. Allow me to introduce myself. The name is Deadman, wandering ghost, at your service. You two can call me Boston if you want. I'm the emergency back up for the Stranger. Shinji sends his regards, and wants to know if you're okay."
Asuka thought about it, nodded to herself, and said, "Better than ever, can you tell him that? Also that my Mama has reintegrated her soul and is back to how she was before Unit-02 split her. Hmm… can you check on Rei?"
"Certainly! I will pass the message. BTW, Blue is okay, just needs a few hours of sleep. But I'll check again as soon as I make my report to the Stranger." He sat down on the air, Indian style. "Congratulations on your reintegration, Dr. Soryu." He said, shaking her hand. "The Stranger and I were very worried. We had no idea on how to help. I don't want to make any promises, but if we can find a way to get you back in the big, wide world, we will do so. I'll be dropping by with news later on. Now, if you excuse me, I still have some errands to do." Again, he bowed, and flew out the core.
Gotham City, USA
Janus Catering (former Two Face Hideout)
The Past
"(Cheery place, Nemesis. Really cheery.)" Deadshot quipped, as he sat down on a couch, set right at the center of a wall. As every room in the second basement, it had been carefully set up with a double theme. A line divided the room from side to side, the left side tastefully done, with elegant furniture lovingly cared for, everything neatly ordered, down to half of the desk at the end. The other side was a monument to tackiness. Cheap, dilapidated furniture, full of stains and scratches, down to the other half of the desk, with a butterfly knife pinning a bunch of loose papers.
"(It's a safe place, after the Joker did the world a favor taking most of the Rogues Gallery in a one way trip to hell with himself, the place was not found by GCPD, and I secured it for myself (1).)"
"(I feel honored.) Deadshot said acidly. "(Good for me the Wall had me working that day. I got the invitation, RSVP and everything. Never liked the clown.)" He shrugged. "(So, business. What's the word?)"
"(Mrs. Waller has green lighted the op.)"
Deadshot chuckled. "(Do I get to blow off that bald head at last? I must have been good this year.)" He adjusted a mechanism in his wrist shooter. It settled down with an ominous "clack".
"(Close. But taking Luthor out would plunge the country into a war.)" Nemesis pushed a button on the desk, and a door opened. One man and a woman entered the room. He was a tall Afro-american guy and had a muscled frame, his hair was almost gone, existing only as a ring around his head, short and stiff, almost military style, he looked like one of those generals who used to prowl around Belle Reve, feeling important. The nose flat and twisted, brobably broken several times and badly set. Deadshot took his measure in a moment, mid-level dangerous. The man would probably be able to clear a bar-room brawl in a few minutes, no worse for wear, but against armed opponents… He stopped as he noted the man looking at him with an identically measuring look. Both nodded respectfully.
The woman was tall and skinny, with thick black hair and a model attitude. She looked at Deadshot and seemingly dismissed his presence. The man shook Nemesis hand with warm familiarity, before sitting down without ceremony. "(Tom. Nice to see you.)" He said.
"(Hello, Chris. I'm glad you accepted my offer.) He looked coldly at the woman. "(You were hard to find.)" And then he turned back to the man.
There was something strange here, Deadshot thought. Nemesis wasn't exactly a maniac about it, but he normally was quite polite towards women.
The man shrugged. "(I couldn't resist, Tom. An invitation from my student to get revenge on Luthor is not something I get every week. Luthor owes me big.)"
Deadshot waved his left hand dismissively, "(Bald guy owes big to a lot of people. I'm in it for money. You get too emotional here and you'll get us killed.)" In a lightning fast move, Deadshot pointed his wrist shooter at the man.
Whomever this Chris was, he didn't flinch. He looked levelly at Deadshot, still leaning back on his chair. "(I am a pro, Lawton. I've been at this business for a long time. I've seen the bad side of so many guns I have lost count.)"
"(Knock it off, you two. Lawton, without him, the plan is shot. We need to get our people on the right places, and he is the linchpin to the whole scheme.)"
"(Really?)" He scoffed, but retracted his weapon. "(And the dame?)"
"(I am the only piece in this game you can't discard, Deadshot. I am the only one on this world who knows the procedure. I'm in it because I don't appreciate Luthor stealing my idea; and even less, him trying to blow me to atoms.)" She pointed upwards.
"(Who are these schmucks, Nemesis?)"
The man raised a hand before Nemesis could say a word. "(I am the Human Target (2). Used to replace people in danger, for a hefty amount. My specialty is impersonation. This is not my face.)"
Nemesis smiled, "(He taugh me the art of disguise, back when I was still a regular agent (3).)" He said. "(Not just the masks and clothes, that's the easy part. He taught me how to become somebody else.)"
"(I did, but that quick change you have was beyond my means.)" He pressed a hidden button, and a cloud of gas surged from his collar and the sleeves of his shirt, hiding his face and hands for a couple of seconds (4). "(Until now.)"
When the gas dissipated, the face had changed completely. Now he looked like a very fit 50 years old white man, with clear blue eyes and graying hair, completely white on the temples. "(Christopher Chance, by the way.)"
Lawton whistled. "(Great, now there are two. What about you, sugar? Any hidden surprises I need to worry about?)"
She chuckled, "(Certainly, I am much older than I look. I used to tango with the JSA, back in the 1940s.)" She had a twisted smile, "(And later on, the JLA.) She polished her nails on her blouse, and examined them with her fingers curled over her palm. "(You can call me Ursula Henderson. Not my real name, of course. He, he, he, would you believe I don't remember my original name? I've been so many people, after all.)"
The coin dropped, "(Hell and brimstone!)" Deadshot gasped, "(I must say you look way better now.)"
"(Much less conspicuous, at the very least. I can go to the movies without somebody asking where will I sit down (5).)" Nemesis rolled his eyes.
"(Enough banter. I need you to pull off the mission. Neutralize Luthor without causing a civil war.)"
"(Honor our agreement, and I will deliver.)"
"(Of course, once Waller is back in her chair, full pardon, new identity, and a high level advisor position in Lexcorp, with a proportionate budget. All above board. A nice retirement, and I mean it, you won't go around changing bodies anymore. We get you a nice robotic body, with full sensorial input, and you get to enjoy all the perks without any hassle.)"
"(No need to keep on changing bodies then, for a few decades, anyway. Living the good life.)" Ursula shrugged, "(I'm just curious about how will you get past Luthor's paranoia.)"
Nemesis grinned, "(It's obvious. We won't.)"
Chance rubbed his hands together, like a vaudeville villain, "(We are gonna use it!)"
Tokyo-3
Japan
GeoFront
Recovery Area
Now
"Everything reads okay, Shinji." Lt. Maya Ibuki smiled. Shinji noted it was a bit forced. "You can go."
"Thank you, Lieutenant." He sighed. Shinji noticed Maya had gone rigid for a moment.
"Good news,kid. I'll be quick. Red is having a bit of bonding time with her Mom, and Dr. Soryu's soul is back to factory specs. Rei is asleep and will be up in a few hours. I'll go now to tell the Stranger the news and see what he says. See you in the funny papers!"
Maya relaxed, and continued, "You can go home now, or stay a while to rest. Major Katsuragi will have to stay to coordinate recovery ops of Units 02 and 00."
"I can get him home, Lt. Ibuki." Inspector Kaji leaned into the room, with that awkward smile of his. "I dont have anything else in my hands at the moment."
"Shinji?" Maya turned her head towards the pilot.
"Sure, I would just get in the way here." He shrugged.
"That's arranged, then." Kaji checked he had his keys. "Lets go. See you later, lieutenant."
Kansas, USA
Kent Farm
Now
"(Okay, people.)" Captain Arsala clapped his hands together to demand attention, beyond the amount his eye-watering Hawaiian shirts usually got him, "I think we have enough to keep a small army at bay, if we choose our terrain wisely and are smart about tactics.)" He began to write on a big white board. "(We have some heavy hitters, both adult and teenagers.)"
Maxine Baker, AKA Animal Girl (6), chirped, literally, "(Teen Titans! We talked among ourselves, and want to take the name.)"
"(The last team to take that name…)" Ishido Maad interjected.
Lian Harper, AKA Speedy II (7), answered, "(Got absorbed into the JLU, along with practically all existing teams and independent heroes of the time.)"
"(Well… yes, but…)"
Irey Allen, AKA Kid Flash III (8), stood up, "(It'sthatorYoungJustice!)"
Arsala took a moment to decipher Irey's speed talk. "(Teen Titans then.)" he wrote it on the whiteboard. "(Back to the point, it's time to define our roles. According to the Stranger, things will get heated at Tokyo-3 by the end of the year. NERV Japan will need all the help they can get, and that's us. I've discussed the roles with the Greysons and we have a list.)" He switched to a barely halting Japanese, "Everybody is conversant in Japanese? Anybody who doesn't, raise their hands now."
Nobody did so, not even the Kents, they had learned enough to get the gist, Arsala continued. "Perfect! The rest of this meeting will be in Japanese, just for practice." He ignored the collective groan that followed.
"Okay, Heavy hitters, adults. First line of defense. Operating out of the NERV HQ inside the GeoFront, or out in Tokyo-3. Basically, open terrain."
He began to write names, "If you think you're better suited to a different role, now's the time to say so. This team must have good mobility, resistance to damage, and long range attacks."
Soon, a column of names occupied the left side of the blackboard.
S.T.R.I.P.E (Pat Dugan) (9)
Star (Courtney Whitmore) (10)
Heatwave (Mick Rory) (11)
Steel II (Natasha Irons) (12)
Hex (Joanna Hex) & Grokk (13)
Crimson Avenger II (Jill Carlyle) (14)
Mr. Miracle III (Shilo Norman) (15)
Courtney Whitmore raised her hand, "Uh, Sal? Who are the last three?"
"Good question, Star. Turns out the Stranger will get us some more help. Hex used to be a model, but got mixed up with some weird stuff, and now she speaks like a stereotypical cowboy and has the power to shoot any kind of pistol, with infinite ammo. Grokk is a freaking dragon. Hex treats it as her horse. A word of warning, she has a short fuse. Don't comment on her scar, dont even look at it." He waved at the right side of his face, "She is a crack shot, good enough to shave a guy´s mustache at twenty paces with her guns. Crimson Avenger II is another hard ass. She is compelled to avenge murder victims. She is both blind and blindfolded, but somehow can see you. Her guns also have infinite ammo, if she gives an order, obey her. She won't be in a command position, but if she feels she has to give an order, it will be dire enough to be the one to save your lives. Mr. Miracle III is a master of escape, an agile flyer and has some weird otherworldly gadgets. You want to get in or out an inexpugnable place or a death trap, he's your guy. He works best as a distraction, so let him do his job. His god-daughter, Avia, will come too, she's about your age, kids, so she will be with one of your groups. She is very strong, bulletproof, and has a kind of scepter that doubles as a hand cannon. She prefers to follow, so whomever gets her in their team, be aware she is basically a walking wrecking ball or a tank."
He continued. "Heatwave is the only squishy human in the first line, that's because his weapons and tactics would be terribly dangerous in an enclosed space. No offense, Mick."
A middle aged man in a white heat resistant suit answered, "None taken, Sal. Fire is a cruel mistress." He turned back towards an afro-american woman three rows behind. "Hey, Nat! You have an armor for me?"
"Are you nuts?" She answered. "I got you a small unipersonal tank. Looks like a fat Dalek (16), but has 360/180 degrees fire arc."
"Always wanted one of those!" He rubbed his hands together. "You're the best!"
"Okay, the rest are both flyers and shooters. I expect we will have to face flyers, probably the NERV VTOLs, the big ones pack a punch, they carry a full payload of air to air and air to earth missiles; and may be armed with N2 mines, so don't risk a detonation. Just make them land by force if you can."
"Second line of defense, still adults. Short range attacks, personal armor."
He wrote a new column of names.
Capt. Brian "Sal" Arsala (17)
Ishido Maad (18)
Empress (Anita Fite) (19)
Spoiler (Stephanie Brown) (20)
Wild Dog (Jack Wheeler) (21)
Ralph Dibny (formerly the Elongated Man)
Metal Men (Veridium, Iron, Lead, Mercury)
"We are basically squishy humans, mostly armed with guns and wearing personal armor, reinforced by Nat. Our heavier hitter here is Empress. Also, we have two support teams, medical, and search and rescue." He wrote more names
Medical
Greta Hayes (Formerly Secret) (22)
Bonnie King-Jones (formerly Arrowette I) (23)
Cissie King-Jones (formerly Arrowette II) (24)
Platinum
Search and Rescue
Tin
Animal Girl (Maxine Baker)
Kid Flash III (Irey Allen)
Maxine Hunkel (25) raised her hand. "Hey, why the Metal Men are not all together?"
"They decided to split. Apparently, Tin has a deep set inferiority complex. He is ill at ease fighting. Platinum happens to be an inert metal, so it is well suited to field sutures. And with the kind of fine control all Metal Men have over their bodies, she will make one hell of a field surgeon. Just imagine a doctor able to extract a bullet and suture the wound in seconds. The others are more suited to fight, stealth, ambush and even mobile barricades."
Donnie shouted, "Get to the good part!"
Sal smiled, "Okay, Donnie, you asked for it!"
He began to write another column.
Mr. Weatherbee's Apartment.
Now
"No leads yet, My Queen." Diligently, Mr. Weatherbee worked on a coded message. "My position has allowed me to set a few more of your drones in promising areas. I think I have identified a possible way to access the secret storage where the items are hidden. I may steal a specific clearance badge."
He leaned back on his chair, thinking. "I'll begin to leak information to this person. Depending on circumstances, I'll decide on the proper procedure, according to time and difficulty of the recovery."
He tapped his pen on the desk, satisfied. He sent the coded message, and burnt the original text.
SEELE Holochamber
Now
"This was not a part of the Dead Sea Scrolls." Lorenz Kiehl opened the meeting with those ominous words. "Two Evangelion Units moving without battery power."
Author Notes.
(1) Without Rick Flagg, field command of the Suicide Squad would fall to Nemesis. For obvious reasons, the Squad is not legally sanctioned at the moment, but Amanda Waller is not one for legalities anyway.
(2) The Human Target, as the name implies, he takes the place of clients in danger. Christopher Chance studied the client before replacing him to draw the would-be murderer into the open. He is a master of disguise, using latex masks and body suits to mimic the client, but the really important part was assimilating the client's body language, mannerisms, and voice. His stories were quite down to earth, and could be taken as happening outside the DCU Proper, until he began to interact with characters from the DCU. He debuted as a back-up feature in Action Comics, issue 419 (Dec, 1972). Recently, he was featured in an excelent limited series, having him impersonatin Lex Luthor, being poisoned in the process, and investigating his own murder before he dies. I highly reccomend it, as his interactions with the former JLI members are full of character (The Human Target, issues 1-12, Jan 2022 to Apr 2023).
(3) AFAIK, Nemesus and the Human Target haven't interacted in the DCU canon. But, I like to think Nemesis learned from the master himself.
(4) Nemesis used multiple masks and wigs stacked over his face. A collar hidden under his clothes released a gas that dissolved the exposed mask, revealing the next one. This allowed Nemesus to change completely hus appearance in a matter of seconds.
(5) This is no other than the first recurring supervillain, the Ultra Humanite. A genius level mastermind, he created multiple super weapons and clashed repeatedly with the Golden Age Superman, and later with the JSA. After the Crisis, Superman was retconned out, leaving Ultra as a JSA exclusive villain. One of the most dangerous characteristics of Ultra Humanite was his penchant to transplant his brain into other people's bodies, including both men and women. Eventually, he perfected a way to simply transplant his mind, without need of a surgery. However, his mind tended to consume the bodies, so he resorted to cloned gorilla bodies. This is probably the best known version, as he was featured in the DCAU, as part of the Secret Society. He debuted back in Action Comics issue 13 (Jun, 1939)
(6) Maxine is Animal Man's daughter. She debuted in Animal Man issue 1 (Sept, 1988)
(7) Lian Harper took her deceased father's original name. She debuted in New Teen Titans issue 21 (Jun 1986). Her Kingdom Come version took the name Red Hood, debuting in Kingdom Come issue 2 (Jun, 1996). Her looks as Speedy II will be based on Red Hood, with the addition of a domino mask.
(8) Iris "Irey" West is one of the third Flash's children. She debuted in The Flash, issue 225, along with her twin Jai. However, Jai is not exactly interested in being a superhero. For this story, he ceded his speed power to Irey. He is quite a normal boy here. This mimics a plot point in The Flash: Rebirth miniseries (issues 1-6 , Jun 2009 to Apr 2010). Irey's name and costume are based on her Kingdom Come version (debuting in Kingdom Come issue 3, Jul 1996)
(9) Pat Dugan has the curious distinction of being an adult sidekick to not one, but two teen heroes. He was originally the sidekick of the Star-Spangled Kid, debuting in Star-Spangled Comics, issue 1 (Oct, 1941). After being sent to he future, he married and eventually his step-daughter got into the hero business as Stargirl. Pat created a robotic suit to keep her safe, calling it S.T.R.I.P.E (Special Tactics Robotics Integrated Power Enhancer, the suit debuted in Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E issue 0, Jul 1999)
(10) Courtney Whitmore found the Cosmic Converter Belt originally used by the Star-Spangled Kid, and used it for teenage rebellion against her step-father, Pat Dugan. Eventually she settled into the role, receiving Starman's Cosmic Staff. She debuted in the DCU Heroes Secret Files and Origins one shot (Feb, 1999)
(11) Heatwave used to be one of the second Flash's most persistent villains. He was traumatized as a kid, after being trapped in a freezer for several hours, he developed a crippling cryophobia, and eventually, pyromania. After a long career as a member of the Rogues Gallery, he turned the page and became a law-abiding citizen. He got a job as Chief of Security at Project Cadmus. He debuted in The Flash, issue 140 (Nov, 1963)
(12) Natasha Irons is the niece of John Henry Irons, AKA Steel. She wears a similar suit of power armor and kept her uncle's code name. She debuted in Steel issue 1 (Feb 1994)
(13) Hex and Grokk, the Living Gargoyle debuted in Superboy issue 54 (Aug, 1998). She worked under the single name "Hex", without a given name, I chose Joanna because of its similar sound to Jonah. It's not clear if Jonah Hex's spirit possesses her body in moments of danger, or if she is deluded. In any case, she becomes a no-nonsense crack shot, speaking with a heavy southern accent. Grokk is a DNAlien, and bonded with Hex, Grokk acts almost as a horse when under Hex's control, but can fly and shoot fire just like a dragon.
(14) Jill Carlyle found the cursed guns that originally belonged to the first Crimson Avenger, and became a minor spirit of revenge. She is compelled to avenge murders, taking some characteristics of the murder victim. Her guns lack triggers, but have unlimited ammo and never fail. The Crimson Avenger suffers from an ever bleeding gunshot in the center of her chest. She debuted in Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E issue 9 (Apr, 2000)
(15) Mr. Miracle III is wrapping up the world tour, and will be arriving to the Kent farm very soon, along with Oberon and M'Raia.
(16) Daleks are the most classic enemies of Doctor Who. They are small octopus-like aliens, permanently encased into a small tank that looks like a strange robot. The Daleks are basically omnicidal maniacs.
(17) Captain Arsala was in charge of Washington, DC Special Crimes Unit when Hawk and Dove II operated in that city. He became Dove's romantic interest just before the Armageddon 2001 event, and disappeared from continuity. In this story, Second Impact stopped the Armageddon 2001 from happening, so Arsala and Dawn Granger (Dove II) continued their relationship. She died after Second Impact, leaving Arsala to care for their daughter, Renata Arsala. Update: reader Jimu Retroguru reminded me Captain Arsala was killed by Monarch in Armageddon 2001, issue 2 (Oct, 1991). I had apparently blocked that detail, that second issue was a complete mess, somebody leaked Monarch's identity, and DC backpedaled from the original plan. As the Hawk & Dove book had been cancelled, they changed Monarch's identity from Captain Atom to Hawk. That twist made absolutely no sense, as the corresponding H&D Annual had established not only that neither Hawk nor Dove were Monarch, they couldnt be the villain.
(18) Ishido Maad trained the kids in hand-to-hand combat.
(19) Empress has impressive combat skills, plus her own powers, basically Mind Control, Teleportation, and Magic Shields. She debuted in Young Justice issue 16 (Jan 2000).
(20) Spoiler was the daughter of a minor Batman villain, the Cluemaster. Originally, she took the Spoiler identity to mess with her father's plans, but eventually got romantically involved with the third Robin, Tim Drake. She debuted in Detective Comics issue 647 (Aug, 1992).
(21) Wild Dog is the closest analog to the Punisher in the DCU. He is a very well armed vigilante, wearing a hockey mask and jersey. His primary targets are terrorists, but will target other criminals if needed. He is an expert mechanic. He debuted in Wild Dog issue 1 (Sept, 1987)
(22) Secret debuted as an amnesiac girl made of living smoke in Young Justice: The Secret one shot (Jun, 1998). She had been used as a sacrifice by her brother, turning her into a kind of ghost. Eventually, and for his own twisted reasons, Darkseid returned her to life.
(23) Bonnie King-Jones was a former olympic level archer, but after a falling out with her domineering mother, who wasn't pleased with an olympic, she abandoned the sport. This lasted until she decided to start a superhero career as Miss Arrowette, inspired by Green Arrow. However, she was not really good as a superhero, and Green Arrow convinced her to retire. Eventually, she repeated the pattern with her own daughter, pushing her into a superhero career. She debuted in World's Finest issue 113 (Nov 1960)
(24) Despite not being actually interested, Cissie King-Jones turned out to be a much better superhero than her mother, she was a respected member of Young Justice until one of her friends was murdered. She almost killed the murderer, and decided to retire instead of risking becoming a killer herself. She debuted in Impulse issue 28 (Aug, 1997).
(25) Maxine Hunkel is the grand-daughter of Ma Hunkel, the original Red Tornado. Unlike her grandmother (who fought crime wearing long underwear as a custome and a pot as a helmet), Maxine has superpowers of her own, basically a copy of the Android Red Tornado. She is very smart, and tends to talk a lot. She debuted in Justice Society of America issue 1 (Feb, 2007), though a different version debuted in Kingdom Come issue 2 (Jun, 1996) mistakenly called Red Tornado II instead of III.