Tala held back a sigh. They were having another meeting. A major one that did not truly concerning her or her field of expertise in the ways of magic, it was mandatory that she attend all the same.
The Cadmus High Council Committee consisted of the United States most highest ranked government officials, scientists, financial sponsors, and other "special interest groups" who had something to gain from joining. All such sectors were represented here in this room, sitting in chairs around this circular table at the center with the Cadmus symbol stamped on it. This organization had all started shortly after the events regarding when another version of the Justice League came to this one. Only they were called the Justice Lords, and unlike their League counterparts...had decided to rule over the Earth with an iron fist. No one in this room cared for the reason why the Justice Lords of that reality suddenly decided to do what they did. Nor did they seem to care about the fact that the Justice Lord's version of Lex Luthor was to blame once he become the President of the United State and nearly starting a major war with other countries before the Justice Lord's Superman finally ended him after being pushed into it.
No. None of them cared about that. Each of the members here, who represented Cadmus, in way or another, had something to gain when joining the organization, and it was all connected to the inevitable battle with the Justice League. At first, they had feared the Justice League would follow in the footsteps of the Justice Lords, but so far had yet to do it. But after the failed Thanagarian invasion and the growing expansion of the Justice League members, the more militant parts of Cadmus felt it was only a matter of time before a war happened.
Only instead of just the founding members of the Justice League, they would have to fight an entire army of heroes loyal to the mightiest of them all. Cadmus knew the planet had no chance of opposing the Justice League if a war broke out between the world and the organization. Governments would fall within days, the New World Order brought about by the Justice League would turn things on its axis, and bring about a change the people of the world would be hesitant to fully accept.
Unless of course, Cadmus did something about this, and the Justice League.
Hence the desire to gather any and all technology, magic, and allies they could with the means to combat the Justice League. So they scouted. Recruited. Coerced. Blackmailed. And forced others into submission to do their bidding. For every hero in every city, a villain would be waiting to fight said hero, and Cadmus would bring them over to their side to one day join their ranks for the war that was to come. A war they ultimately had wanted and craved knowing it would also give the chaotic planet they lived on a clean slate when the smoke cleared with them being the victors along with the spoils that came with it.
Among these militant sects within Cadmus was Amanda Waller and General Sam Lane. Of the scientific sect was Dr. Hamilton, who had once been a friend of Superman. For the main financial backer of Cadmus, Lex Luthor was sitting in a chair next to Dr. Hamilton. The one handling the recruiting sect of Cadmus was the late Dr. Hugo Strange. Of course with the man being killed recently at Arkham meant Cadmus was in need of a qualified replacement was needed for his department on mental manipulation of the mind. They were fortunate there were plenty of others left to replace him and would do so shortly through a proper screening process done by Amanda Waller herself.
"The death of Dr. Hugo Strange is a major setback for Cadmus. Arkham is now on lockdown and Batman is sniffing around. He knows about Hugo being there and it is only a matter of time before what fragmented evidence of our involvement is found by him there," said General Sam Lane in his usual grouchy tone.
"How did Hugo die exactly? A rogue villain looking for payback for twisting his mind? Or one of those 'lone wolf' heroes who doesn't play by the Justice League's rules?" asked Amanda Waller knowing such theories were possible.
"Unknown. From what we do know from our own investigation, this 'ninja' from what was described by the inmates spared during the massacre, is not someone we have ever encountered before today. Not only that, but he targeted many of the highly dangerous inmates at Arkham. The ones many in the public eye feel are beyond redemption and should just be given the death penalty for their crimes," replied General Lane while Amanda frowned.
"What about our contacts with various mercenaries? Could this individual be one of their apprentices? Proving his right to be on his own?" questioned Waller knowing that was another possibility.
"No. I checked and double checked the information myself regarding such a possibility to the point where I contacted such individuals. Neither Deathstroke nor Deadshot have taken any recent apprentices. Though they are willing to take up the contract for killing such a person if we are interested. Provided we can match their ridiculously steep price when asked," remarked Lane while hating the idea of Cadmus having such mercenaries on call, but with steep financial tags attached to them when such people should be forced under their employment.
"We will keep that in our back pocket for now. What I want to know is who this person is behind the mask. And I want to know how this person found out about Hugo and what he was doing there for us?" demanded Waller while Dr. Hamilton adjusted his glasses while he looked over some papers.
"I have studied what I could from the event, but there is little in the way of analysis to determine the identity of this ninja. The weapon, which killed Dr. Hugo Strange is called a 'tanto' if I am reading this correctly. It is a sword design, which originates from Japan. It was used by ninja there during the time of the samurai, who in turn used the katana. The metal used for the tanto is nothing special in terms of composition nor is there any special characteristics we could study to narrow down who possesses such a weapon in this day and age," said Dr. Hamilton while Amanda Waller was not pleased.
"Could you use you use your magic to find this person Tala?" asked Amanda Waller while Tala shook her head no.
"I saw the pictures of the sword in question and its current condition. Even if I were to hold it in my hands, the overall damage makes it impossible to trace with my powers," said Tala while knowing her lover had done that to ensure she wouldn't be put in such a situation.
"So we don't know the identity of this ninja, his reasons for attacking Arkham, or how to find him for possible recruitment. I don't see how this requires all of us here," remarked Lex Luthor in a bored tone.
"It concerns all of us Luthor because one of the High Council members in this room was killed! Cadmus was targeted and one of its high ranking members was taken out. For all we know, this could be a preemptive attack by the Justice League's more wild members, and gives their higher-ups plausible deniability. We must plan some kind of attack and retaliate!" exclaimed General Lane while smashing his fist on the table.
"Retaliate? With what? Galatea isn't ready yet. Our plans to recruit from Arkham's worst to form several Suicide Squads capable of attacking the Watch Tower all at once or at different times in the future when required have been thinned considerably. Our forces are not ready to take the fight to the Justice League," said Amanda Waller with General Lane seething at her.
"She is right General. Our enemy regrettably has the bigger army and the much bigger stick. Fortunately, our Intel has learned Superman along with Wonder Woman, and a former Apokolips Fury named Big Barda are heading out into space to visit an alien civilization on a planet residing in the system. From what I have learned, it is all under the premise of making an alliance with the leader there to help defend Earth should an alien invasion occur," remarked Luthor while the General looked ready to explode with rage.
"It figures! Superman is no doubt going to sell out the Earth to this more advanced race when our guard is down! Of course what would one expect from him. An alien siding with other aliens to manage a planet he has no business living on in the first place! The only good alien is dead and on an operating table for study to advance us to a new level of power," said General Lane angrily.
"Possibly. Though what really concerns me is Wonder Woman going with him for an unknown period of time. Its too fishy. I don't like it," commented Amanda Waller with her eyes narrowing.
"You think there is more to it then just making alliances with other civilizations?" asked Dr. Hamilton with Amanda nodding.
"Yes. For all we know, Wonder Woman is secretly pregnant with Superman's child. This mission could be nothing but a ploy to ensure Wonder Woman is not harmed during the pregnancy in a safe location away from us. Big Barda might be coming along simply to be a possible bodyguard for safety reasons or some female companion to help out with the Amazon's pregnancy," replied Amanda while General Lane slammed his fist on the table again.
"The Kryptonian has clearly decided to breed more of his kind. Big Barda is clearly there to help not only with the pregnancy, but to also get pregnant with his child too. If we do not do something soon, our planet could be invaded by an army of his blood in the future, and we will be powerless to stop it," said General Lane angrily.
"We can't do anything General. First, Cadmus doesn't have anything space worthy like the Justice League currently does. Second, even if we did, it wouldn't catch up to the one taking our three targets to this planet they are heading to right now," said Dr. Hamilton knowing the Justice League currently had superior technology over them and had the preverbal air superiority in this current cold war.
"They already left?! Why didn't you mention this at a previous meeting? Why didn't you do something to stop them from leaving?" demanded Lane with Amanda narrowing her eyes at him.
"And tip our hand? General, you may believe in striking while the iron is hot, but I will not strike before its time to strike regardless of how hot the iron is at the time. Besides, what would we have attacked with at the time? We have nothing to strike back against them. Cadmus is still in its infancy stage in terms of growing and developing a means of fighting the Justice League," said Amanda since she knew for all their advancements of Cadmus, they had a long way to go before their strength matched the Justice League, and had to stay their hand until it could go toe to toe with them.
"Don't think of it as a negative General Lane. Without Superman and Wonder Woman on Earth, the strength of the Justice League is reduced considerably for a good amount of time. Time we can use to our advantage in building up our strength before they return here regardless what happens on their so called mission," said Luthor while the General scowled at him.
"I would rather those two were on the planet where we could monitor and control their actions when the time came to strike should a golden opportunity present itself to us," remarked General Lane with his anger still noticeable.
"So would I General, but we can't do anything at the moment about it. So we have to bite the bullet and move on until they return," said Amanda Waller while General Lane shot her a glare.
"And if they do come back here with a child or children? Born of his alien blood and her own questionable one? I do not like the idea of some Amazon slut from a bygone pagan civilization, which prays to equally blasphemous pagan Gods, giving birth to a child that will one day be stronger then both parents," said General Lane while Amanda smirked at him.
"Neither do I General. But if they do, I'm sure Cadmus can make up some well laid out plans to acquire said child when the time is right. In doing so, we can hold power over both heroes, and even extract necessary samples from the child for our own research to make new super soldier weapons. We already have Galatea and we can do the same for others once we give her a proper test run. Either way, Cadmus will win in the end. It is only fair such offspring from them and how we use such a child born from their blood become spoils of war," said Amanda Waller while the General grumbled since he did not believe aliens or their clones could be controlled like she did.
Humans enhanced and trained to fight while conditioned to be loyal soldiers of Cadmus were the way to go. Born on Earth and thus fight for Earth when called upon. Not aliens with no true ties to the planet. He agreed with Waller that aliens along with everything they possessed were property and tools to be used by them when caught. Since aliens were not human, they didn't get rights, or protection of any kind while on this planet. But at the same time, General Lane believe they should be kept in cells, and be forced to obey orders when given with the punishment for disobedience being death.
"As much as I too wish to drool over the prospect of having Superman's progeny being dissected on a lab table while the alien menace watches while held down in chains made of kryptonite, we have gotten off track here. This meeting was to discuss the situation regarding the mysterious ninja assassin and what he did at Arkham Asylum," said Luthor while Amanda Waller and General Lane turned their attention to him.
"Any suggestions on your end Lex?" asked Amanda while Luthor shrugged.
"As of now without further information? No," replied Luthor in a crisp tone.
"Then this meeting is over. Until a new development arises, continue with your current projects in our assigned departments," commanded Amanda Waller while she saw each person leave the room until only General Sam Lane remained.
"Someone here sold us out! No one knew Hugo was at Arkham or what he was doing but the people who make up Cadmus's High Council Committee!" exclaimed General Lane in a furious tone after the door to the room was shut and only he along with Waller were left.
"I know," replied Amanda calmly while General Lane looked at her with narrowed eyes.
"And you didn't mention this possibility during the meeting? Why? The reaction of the people in the room could have given us a clear indication of who we could trust and who we should be monitoring," said General Lane while Amanda raised an eyebrow at him.
"General, if there is one thing you fail to grasp, is that the people who run Cadmus do not have a weak poker face when certain things are brought to their attention. If either of us had revealed there was a possible traitor among us, it would have tipped our hand, and given the traitor a means to keep their secret actions a secret. Hugo was one of us, but out of all our members, he was the most expendable, and was no true loss to Cadmus, despite your own boisterous proclamations earlier here to the contrary. No. What we will do for now is just sit back and do nothing until the traitor leaks out information we know can be traced back to him or her. Once we capture the traitor, we will make this person reveal the identity of the ninja assassin to either bring into Cadmus's ranks, or have the ninja assassin killed for attacking Cadmus itself," said Amanda with General Lane thinking over what she just told him.
"Fine! But after the usefulness of the traitor is over once discovered, I get to kill said traitor myself," said General Lane with Amanda nodding.
"Agreed. We will also make sure the rest of Cadmus knows such treachery isn't tolerated by making s recording of the event to broadcast throughout the base," added Amanda since she needed everyone in Cadmus to understand that when you join this organization, it was for life, and betraying it was not in the best interest of your health.
(Tala's Room)
"So are they suspicious of you yet?" asked a Shadow Clone of Naruto laying lazily on Tala's bed while Tala herself was looking over some spell books on her desk.
"I'm sure they are suspicious, but of who among us they aren't sure. I doubt they would openly mention what the others already suspect, but won't say," said Tala while she saw the Shadow Clone out of the corner of her eye thinking.
"Well they won't suspect you. That's for sure. Hugo's death and exposure to his activities at Arkham gains you nothing. Even if they connect the files you accessed to what I did, it is not enough to convince them it was your fault. Not all the files you had were about the criminals and inmates there. In fact, only a few of the files were about certain people in Gotham, and at the moment none of them are residing in Arkham," said Naruto while he sat up on the bed and saw Tala was trying to hide her worry at being caught with her own job at Cadmus.
"You underestimate their ability to see through your tactics and plans," commented Tala while Naruto's Shadow Clone smirked at her.
"And I think you overestimate them. Not that it matters. Soon, Cadmus will be severely weakened, and so will the Justice League," replied Naruto with Tala still not looking convinced.
"And should the two organizations you are slowly breaking down decide to join forces against you?" asked Tala knowing the enemy of my enemy is my friend.
"By the time any of them consider the idea, it will be too late. Besides, their ideologies on what to do in terms of protecting innocent lives conflicts like oil and water. Even if they did join forces against me, it would soon collapse on itself. Or I would make it collapse on itself and implode violently," answered Naruto with a grin.
"Speaking of things imploding violently, I was wondering when you are going to make your move against Galatea?" questioned Tala knowing Naruto wanted to seduce and turn the clone of Supergirl to his side using his...charms on the woman.
"Soon. Not yet. I want to setup a proper safe house and residence for us when our time living here at Cadmus is no longer necessary," said Naruto while Tala raised an eyebrow at him.
"And how do you plan to do that? Cadmus keeps a strict eye and control over its funds to ensure a single cent isn't wasted on the organization. There is no way you could pilfer any of the accounts and not be detected by the systems in place to safeguard them," remarked Tala curiously.
"Who said I was going to pilfer Cadmus's accounts? I haven't and I won't. At least not yet since the time isn't ready yet to dine and dash from here. The original me took the money I asked if I could borrow from you and decided to hit one of the more expensive casinos in Las Vegas," replied Naruto's Shadow Clone with Tala looking shocked by this.
"You took the money I gave you and went to Las Vegas to gamble?!" questioned Tala in disbelief with Naruto's Shadow Clone shrugging.
"The Boss was always good at gambling. He has the Devil's luck. My old mentor once took all his money from him as a kid when on a training trip and he spent it on hookers at a brothel. The Boss earned it right back, plus interest thanks to wining a contest the very same day. Jiraiya tried to take it from him again, but a kick to his wrinkly old balls, and yelling out for everyone to hear that he was dirty old man made him think twice about taking what didn't belong to him," said Naruto's Shadow Clone while sighing and simply remembering how Jiraiya hated the fact every beautiful woman in the city when looking for Tsunade had stayed clear of him that day.
The man totally deserved it. If you are going to be a Super Pervert around the ladies, you have to be smooth about it. Jiraiya was as smooth as a extremely wrinkled shirt that had yet to be washed after being thrown into some mud.
"That's not very reassuring," commented Tala with a deadpanned look on her face.
"Don't worry. I can tell you right now that he has hit the jackpot at three different casinos and racked up well over 200 million in cash today alone," said Naruto's Shadow Clone confidently while Tala was shocked he could take the money she gave him into that much money.
"That's...impossible!" exclaimed Tala in disbelief.
"No its true. Like I said earlier, the Boss always had the Devil's luck. Right now, he's taking a break from gambling to spend some quality sex time with a certain red haired, orange skin, and not to mention hot tamaran woman with him in his hotel room," said the Shadow Clone while Tala scowled at him.
"You didn't have to mention that last part," remarked Tala while Naruto's Shadow Clone just grinned.
"Why? Jealous? We could have our own little romp right now if you wanted," offered the clone while Tala blushed.
"Tempting, but no. If I don't produce some work soon, the other members of Cadmus will be suspicious of me. You said it yourself that we aren't ready to leave yet. I need to keep them off our back on my end until we're ready," commented Tala with Naruto's Shadow Clone pouting.
"Fine! Be that way. And here I was going to do that special thing with my tongue you love so much," remarked the Shadow Clone and made Tala clench the book in her hands tightly.
'Bastard! He knows how much I love that move. Probably said it on purpose to upset me. And damn him over the fact that it worked!' thought Tala while eyeing the Shadow Clone behind her book and tried to go back to reading.
Key word being tried.
(Las Vegas-Naruto's Hotel Room)
"YES! YES! OH BY XAAAAL! YES!" screamed Starfire passionately.
Naruto grinned up at tamaran woman, who currently naked like himself, and riding him for the past hour on their bed. Starfire was enjoying herself immensely from the blissful look on her face while she had his manhood impaling within her body. After breaking the bank of three casinos at the exact same time using Shadow Clones while all were henged into random people, Naruto went back to his hotel suite (Emperor's package) at Caesar's Palace, and was tackled by a very horny Starfire who wanted him badly.
Not surprising since he had been gone for awhile and she couldn't exactly leave the hotel unless she wanted to be flagged after being spotted by security cameras. Her presence on camera would reach the Justice League or possibly Cadmus. Both would be wondering what the tamaran woman was doing in Las Vegas of all places when she was suppose to be on an undisclosed island away from any form of human contact for miles.
Of course, they didn't just have hot passionate sex on the bed during their leisurely time here. They also had it on the couch, the carpeted floor, and even the ceiling. But they also talked afterwards while cuddling and he asked her some questions while she asked him some in return. Starfire was surprised at first that the man she had been intimate with was in fact a primordial God like entity beyond measure in terms of power. She also found out that Naruto was building a harem of sorts and that a powerful sorceress named Tala was another female he was bedding. Starfire didn't truly mind it of course given her own planet's culture allowed for sexual intimacy to be quite open-minded. Both in what her people wore and just who her people were intimate with when desiring such close sexual connection.
Starfire silently listened to him explain how he planned to bring some form of balance and stability to the planet by ending the lives of some of the worst criminals around. How he was going to do what the Justice League would not have the courage to do. Starfire had told him how her friends in the Titans would think his actions were wrong and may try to fight him. She didn't want that to happen since it was choosing between her dear friends, including former boyfriend, and her current lover.
Naruto of course told Starfire not to worry about such things since he had no intention of fighting her friends or her former boyfriend if he could help it. In fact, he had explained to his the red haired alien woman that one of the planning running through his head was to ensure various heroes, including her former boyfriend, found that special someone they could settle down with. Starfire was happy to hear that, but was saddened to hear what her friend Raven went through with Beast Boy, and being dumped for Terra so coldly. Raven had always been so understanding, if not tolerable of the tamaran woman's bubbly nature, and super strength hugs she gave to others. Naruto felt Beast Boy needed to be taken down a peg or two. He wanted the green changing to be shamed, disgraced, and humiliated beyond measure. All for what he did to a dear friend of Starfire's and the other Titans too in hurting Raven emotionally on such a deep level.
Do what you feel is right lover Naruto. Such actions by Beast Boy are unbefitting of a Titan and he must be punished.
Those were her words to Naruto while they laid in the bed one day following one of their pleasurable moments being intimate together. He had every intention of carrying it out once his mission here in Las Vegas to acquire funds to live off of when leaving Cadmus was right.
And Naruto would leave soon enough...once he was done satisfying Starfire's need for sex right now.
(Jump City-The Mall-A Week Later)
Rachel Roth A.K.A Raven of the Teen Titans was currently at her local book store in the mall browsing through the gothic section for something she hadn't read yet that would catch her interest. She came here sometimes to find a book to read or to get away from the repeated debate in the tower over what to eat for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. A debate she couldn't tolerate today between Cyborg and...Beast Boy.
She frowned slightly and yanked hard on her emotion that was anger to heel since lashing out at her one place of sanctuary in the Mall was not a good thing. Still, her anger wanted to lash out at something at the mere thought of the green changeling. He had broken her heart with his decision to end their relationship for the revived now depowered Terra. A girl who at first, had no memory of her past being a geomancer, former friend turned enemy of the Titans, and being turned to stone in the process of saving the world at the end.
It wasn't that Raven minded the relationship ending, as she felt it wasn't truly going to go anywhere special, but rather how it ended with Beast Boy. Her teammate had been so well...cold about it. He basically said it was over between them and was now going to be in a relationship with Terra. Like trading something he didn't want anymore for the better deal. As if their own relationship, her own feelings about it didn't matter to him. Like the feelings she felt were a waste of time. A waste of his time. Just garbage that needed to be thrown out of his life before it ruined him
He had been so painfully blunt about it. How she was too "emotionally unstable" for his liking. How he had to be careful not to make her too emotional or else she would make something explode. That Terra didn't have such problems. Her being depowered meant she could live a semi-normal life and he wanted to be part of that life that wasn't normal, yet kept things interesting for her.
In short, Beast Boy had essentially blamed their relationship falling apart on Raven, and Raven only without a hint of regret or remorse on the issue.
It was one of the reasons why Raven couldn't stand to be in the same room as him for more then 5 minutes (barely that much) before needing to leave. Cyborg had been there for her when seeing the depressed look on her face after what happened, but Nightwing had been the most helpful. The two of them talked a lot following the breakup and he had helped Raven slowly rise above her depression. That regardless of what happened with Beast Boy doing what he did, Raven was part of a team, a family, and would not be alone during such hard times if Nightwing himself could help it.
'If I didn't know any better I would have thought he was flirting with me,' thought Raven with a small smile at the memory of her and Nightwing talking following that event.
"You know, if you keep staring at this one book, you might burn a hole through it," said a voice behind Raven while standing slightly to the right so he wasn't entirely behind her.
As for Raven, her eyes widened in shock at someone getting so close without her sensing them like she usually did. Was this person just that good at staying undetected? Or had she walked so far down memory lane that she got sloppy in sensing others?
"Who are you?" asked Raven in a bland emotionless tone, but had her powers on hand to use should this person be a threat.
"You don't want to summon your powers Raven. I'm not your enemy. Quite the opposite in fact," remarked the figure behind her.
"And I should believe you...why?!" asked Raven while trying to get a sense of the person behind her.
And soon felt herself go into near shock at the seemingly endless well of power, which was concealed behind the wall of flesh she had yet to fully see behind her.
"Because if I wanted to harm you my dear, I would have done it long before now in a most violent fashion, and no one would have been able to stop me. Now calm and center yourself before something here blows up. There is a nice little ramen stand in the food court below. Meet me there in five minutes and order some ramen. In my experience, you can't go wrong having a friendly conversation over eating ramen," said the figure before he walked away from the woman.
'By ancient Gods above! What was that?! Who was that?! That person's power made my Father look like a 90 pound weakling soaking wet! Should I call Nightwing and the other Titans? Or do I go down there and talk to him? He didn't attack anyone and wants to talk in an open setting so perhaps he's not an enemy like so many others. Of course it could be the opposite and he just wants to gloat before lashing out in public. Wouldn't be the first time it has happened,' thought Raven depressingly before glancing down at the food court below and saw a figure at a table eating ramen.
Correction, the man was eating what appeared to be his third bowl of ramen without a worry in the world.
With a sigh regarding her current situation, Raven decided to do as the man asked, and soon headed downward toward the food court before walking over to the ramen stand. She ordered the miso ramen and walked over to him before sitting down across from the strange man still eating like there wasn't anything wrong with the Universe while eating ramen.
"How is your ramen? Good?! I like to think so given my own experience with it. Not as good as back home where I am from, but pretty damn close. I think the secret ingredient is...love!" exclaimed the man happily while rubbing the bowl against his face.
"You are weird," said Raven before indulging herself in the food while silently admitting to herself it wasn't half bad.
"Says the woman wearing a black leotard and a cape with a hood to cover her moody face from the world," countered the figure with Raven glowering at him.
"What do you want?" asked Raven with the figure smirking at her.
"I want to help you...daughter of Trigon," answered the man while Raven stopped eating and glared harder.
"And what exactly do you mean by 'help' or do I have to ask?" questioned Raven while the figure wearing dark glasses let out a chuckle.
"Nothing sinister I assure you. I only referenced your Father to be taken seriously and to get your attention. Now that I have it, I can continue on with this conversation. You see, I heard about your...romantic problem with the green changeling up in your giant T-shaped tower on the island not far from here. Tell me, is that fool as big an idiot as he is green?" questioned the figure while Raven's glare lessened somewhat, but wasn't much given how their choice of topic was almost as sour.
"Pretty much. The impulse to slam him into a wall until he becomes green goo has been difficult to clamp down on as of late," answered Raven knowing it was the truth.
"I thought so given how he dumped you so suddenly and coldly for some former friend turned enemy turned normal person. I'm sorry you had to go through that my dear. Given your constant training to control your emotions, I imagine it was quite a task not making the city explode from the pain he invoked in you," replied the figure while Raven just stared at him without any emotions on her face.
Though her eyes told a different story despite Raven's best attempt to hide it.
Beast Boy had hurt her...badly. Only now had the emotional wound begun to heal with the help of the other Titans. But how did this guy know that?
"Why are you here?" asked Raven at last while the figure smirked.
"I want to help you. To be more accurate, I want to help you find that special someone. A someone who won't deny you. Who won't betray you. Who will love you for you and all the emotional baggage you have that comes with it," replied the man while Raven looked unimpressed by his words.
"Thanks, but I don't need anyone playing cupid in my life. I got by without being in such a relationship before I was a Titan. I will do it again long after," replied Raven and now moved to leave.
"Are you sure? If you won't accept my help with your love life, what about controlling those pesky emotions? You know the ones I'm talking about. The ones where the slightest emotional response from them results in a broken glass, a table, the chunk of a building, or a nearby state," commented the man offhand with Raven stopping.
"You know how to control such emotions?" asked Raven curiously.
"Who better then the one person who wears his emotions on his sleeve? I have felt every emotion there is in life. Hate, anger, rage, love, fear, lust, joy, sadness, laziness, courage, and any other you can name off the top of your head. I have felt them all. Seen them all. I even fought some of them within my own mind. You have done that at least once, haven't you?" said the figure with Raven's eyes widening since she had done all of that before.
"And how exactly do you suggest I gain control over my more dangerous emotions? The ones I spent years trying to keep a lid on through the teaching the monks gave me, the mediation techniques I learned, and the hard work in forcing them down?" asked Raven with the figure chuckling now.
"Easy. You let them out. You let them vent," answered the figure to Raven's surprise.
"Let them out?! That is your answer?! If I let them out, they will destroy everything around me!" protested Raven while the figure remained calm as ever.
"When I meant let them out, I meant to let them out in moderation. You keep them all repressed and tightly bound within you. Is it any real surprise when something happens that your powers do something to an object nearby?" countered the figure with Raven frowning.
"The monks who taught me said I had to constantly keep my emotions in check due to my...Father's blood being a bad influence," replied Raven with the figure frowning.
"And they would know how exactly to teach you? These same monks told you to keep every single emotion repressed to the point where you feel little to nothing at all. They might as well as made you into a ticking time bomb that would go off at some point in time so long as it wasn't near them," countered the man while Raven wasn't so sure.
"I don't understand," said Raven in confusion while the man sighed.
"Repressing or suppressing emotions is never healthy. Regardless if they were good or bad ones. I knew a man back where I was from who believed emotions were unnecessary in life. That they made you weak. Blinded your judgment when making hard choices or key decisions. The man trained an elite unit of fighters called Root and he made them all into emotionless drones who obeyed his every command. When the man died for being the crazy war hawk bastard that he was, they couldn't even think for themselves, and were mindless in terms of what to do. By the time they were given any type of means to feel emotions, they had mental breakdowns, and ultimately killed themselves or were locked up because they became a threat to others from the insanity over the things they had done in the past," explained the man while Raven nodded.
"But my situation is different. I'm not suppress or repressing my emotions to the point where I feel nothing at all. But to keep my powers in check, which are influenced by my emotions," said Raven with the figure nodding.
"True, but the method given by those stupid monks is still not healthy. Hence why you have the occasional emotionally induced magic attack based accident. Instead of doing what they told you to do with your emotions, you should let them out in moderation, and let them breathe. Think of it like ventilation for your body. You build up emotional stress everyday and it builds and it builds and it builds without anywhere to go. Eventually it lashes out through your powers over the smallest things until the pressure is low enough to stop. At best, it will be like a geyser shooting water out of the ground like Old Faithful, and cause a small stir. But the worst case scenario would be your powers exploding out of a city destroying volcano...and you would of course be Pompeii. By venting all of your emotions in a healthy manner instead of repressing or suppressing them, you actually do a better job preventing your powers from lashing out. No eruptions. No destruction," said the figure while Raven thought about his words in her mind.
"And the mediation techniques?" asked Raven curiously.
"I will admit, you need those to keep your center. Don't lose the mediation, but don't keep your emotions bottled up either. Also, don't be afraid to express yourself more often. Take up a hobby. Do some paintings, write your own novel, or something that helps keep your center in place. Your true friends will support what you do and those are the only real people who matter in this world," offered the man while Raven thought about it and smiled.
"Thank you for the advice. I think I will try it out," replied Raven with a small smile.
"I help when I can. Sure you don't want advice on your love life?" asked the figure with Raven shaking her head.
"Thanks, but no thanks. I have to figure things out on my own," said Raven before she began to walk away.
"Well, from what I have seen, I think another bird in that tower also needs someone in his life too. Birds of a feather and all of that," remarked the man and made Raven stop for a second.
'Birds of a feather? Could he mean...Nightwing?' thought Raven before she turned around to find him gone.
And saw a note on the table.
Don't be afraid to let people in Raven. You know your true friends won't betray you like a certain green idiot did. Seek out your fellow dark bird in your home. I think the two of you will really hit it off if given the chance. Don't worry about being in the shadow of a certain cheery alien girl in your shared lives. He made peace with her departure long ago and is in need of someone else who can help him know true happiness.
Trust me. I know these things.
Signed
N
P.S. Speaking of that green moron, I plan to prank the crap out of him soon to the point where he won't be able to show his face anymore in public. I might even try to get him kicked off your team. In any case, you have friends Raven. You have a friend in me, the other Titans here, in Titans East, and in Nightwing. Especially Nightwing. You two need to go on a date! Trust me.
Raven blushed at the last part. Her and Nightwing? From what the note suggested, if she read between the lines correctly, her own teammate in the Teen Titans cared about her in a way that was beyond mere friendship. But what if this mysterious N was wrong? She knew Starfire leaving had deeply hurt Nightwing when the young man was still Robin, but surely the alien girl's mark still existed on him, right?
Still...the man had given her an idea on how to deal with the emotions she felt and the way things were going, a little innovation in trying new things couldn't hurt, right?
(Miami-Somewhere on the beach-3 Days Later)
Victor Fries was in heaven. How could he not? One day he was in his own personal Hell with Nora in her cryo tube, his body altered, and forever banned from the warmth that life could create around him. Trapped in a cage of snow, ice, and death.
Now he was walking with his wife Nora on the beach. The warm sun shining down on their faces, the weather comfortable, and the one person he wished to share it with now walking beside him. Her hand intertwined with his own. She held him close and he did in turn. Both of them afraid this was a cruel dream turned nightmare with one being without the other. Yet each day they woke up in the morning together dispelled the fear of it not being real. They had each woken up to see the other's face, the other's touch, the sound of the other's soothing voice.
And it was all thanks to one mysteriously masked ninja wielding mystical powers beyond their comprehension.
The home they were staying in was purchased by their mysterious benefactor, but all of it was under Victor and Nora Fries's name for all legal purposes. The ninja had given them the money to start over again and told them to enjoy their life together.
"What do you want to do for dinner? Take out? Or maybe I should make something for us again?" asked Nora when they walked into the house once their feet were clear of the sand given the walks on the beach were barefoot.
"Whatever you decide, I am content with so long as I share the meal with you my Nora," said Victor lovingly to his wife.
"In that case, I think I'll make something again. I'm going to go change. Be right back," said Nora while heading up stairs.
When she was out of hearing range, Victor Fries's face went from a smile to a frown.
"I won't ask how you tracked me down. I know better," remarked Victor before looking over at he shadows in the room and saw Batman standing there.
"It took me some effort to find you. If it wasn't for the fact both you and your wife were signed as the owners of this house, I wouldn't have been able to locate you," said Batman with Victor nodding.
"I know. I wasn't trying to hide when I did that. Nora and I agreed we were not going to hide when we bought this house," replied Victor before moving over to the couch and sat down while Batman just watched him.
"Does she even know? About what you were? What you did?" asked Batman with Victor nodding.
"I hid nothing from her. I confessed everything. I confessed my sins to the woman I loved and begged her forgiveness. I begged for her mercy. I begged for her love. Even if I was undeserving of it. She gave it to me without hesitation. And everyday I spend with her I cherish as if it is my last," said Victor with Batman narrowing his eyes at him.
"I could take you back into my custody. I could take you back to Arkham to serve out your sentence," warned Batman with Victor nodding.
"I know. I do not possess the means to fight or oppose you should this meeting turn into a hostile one. That part of me you once fought no longer exists in this world," said Victor while he glanced over at the stairs where his wife was no doubt getting changed and she would be down soon.
"I'm willing to overlook you being here in exchange for information. Namely about the one who sprung you from Arkham and if I were to make a guess...cured your wife of her disease and your condition," said Batman with Victor shaking his head.
"You desire answers to questions that I cannot give. I never met our masked savior until the night he freed me. I watched him wield powers beyond science and of the mind. I saw him save the woman I loved and Nora in turn saw him use his power to cure me of my own condition so we could be together. He acquired the funds for us to buy this house and to live a peaceful life like I once told you about long ago I would kill for. That is all I know of him," replied Victor with Batman watching him for any form of deception and finding none.
"What power did he use to cure you and your wife?" asked Batman with Victor looking at him now.
"I do not know. But it is a power not born of science. If this is enough, I must ask you to leave...before she comes down," replied Victor with Batman nodding and left without a word or sound.
"Victor! Is everything all right? I thought I heard you talking to someone," questioned Nora with a hint of worry.
"Its all right Nora. Everything is fine. I was just speaking to myself," said Victor while he smiled at her.
"You don't have to hide the truth from me Victor. I know about your past. It was one of the Justice League members, wasn't it?" The one from Gotham? The Batman?" asked Nora with a hint of worry and holding Victor while he let out a small chuckle and gave a weak nodding.
"Yes. It was Batman. I'm sorry Nora. I didn't want you to worry. He came to see me. No doubt wondering if I am somehow still a threat or the one who freed us from our prisons was a threat," said Victor with Nora holding him tightly now.
"He's not going to take you away?" asked Nora with a hint of worry.
"No my love. He will not. I told him all I knew and in return, he would leave us alone," said Victor while Nora still looked concern.
"Won't this put the ninja at risk?" asked Nora since she didn't want Victor to betray the man who helped them so much at this point.
"No. The ninja expected Batman would one day find us no matter what we did. As far as our benefactor is concerned, Batman will be running around in circles trying to find him," said Victor with Nora nodding.
They could only hope nothing bad was happening to their friend right now.
(With Naruto-At the Moment)
"Very good Starfire. You are starting to get back your muscle memory on how to fight skilled opponents," commented Naruto while watching her spar with a Shadow Clone.
It had taken some convincing (namely the promise of sex later) to get Starfire to spar with his Shadow Clone and get her up to fighting form. He feared her time away from training and fighting villains would make the tamaran woman rusty in the ways of term of combat against a strong opponent. Fortunately, Starfire was able to prove that she could be quite capable of fighting once her own libido was brought under control.
The girl had quite the punch when it wasn't enhanced by her star bolts. Not to mention the view of her legs when she kicked was quite sexy from where Naruto was watching the spar.
So far everything he planned was running smoothly, but Naruto knew for it to continue running smoothly, everything else around him had to work perfectly with his plans. So far, he had the element of being an unknown phantom in the eyes of his enemies. But that could easily change if he wasn't careful with how he played things out.
Stretching out his senses, Naruto focused on Gotham City with his face forming into a form at the negative emotions overflowing from the place. Even with his "intervention" at Arkham, the place still felt like Madara had channeled all his hatred, and literally crapped it out onto the city to fester like a plague on the populace.
Sure, it was a crude way to describe what Gotham felt like, but no less accurate.
Focusing on the various individuals with powers in the city, Naruto easily sensed one Pamela Isley, who was currently hiding in the abandoned Gotham Zoo. One of the few places she could actually hide out until she was ready to lash out at the world for hurting the world's plant life. He had read the extensive file Cadmus had created on the beautiful woman in the hopes that they could somehow duplicate what she had become or to find a way to influence her to join them in their quest to combat the Justice League.
A false promise of land to grow her plants and to help protect nature using the technology gained from winning against the League was something Cadmus thought would help in sweetening the deal. Naruto felt she was getting a bum rap by both Cadmus and Batman in terms of dealing with her ways of doing things. Yes, it was true that nature was in fact suffering, but the way Pamela went about it was all wrong. She attacked the problem in a way that made her out to be the bad super villain the papers and media outlets portrayed the sexy temptress. They called her crazy. A monster. They said she was nuts in wanting to save nature and plants from being wiped out.
Naruto felt she wasn't wrong, but just went about solving the problem itself the wrong way! The media put her in a bad light. Doing what she did up until now? That's a given in terms of how people perceive things. Yet, Naruto felt she should try to turn the light from bad to good! Show the world just how toxic the area around them truly was and show humanity the fruits of their labors in polluting the planet. Make the current generation stinking up the place think about the next generation's future and to make the next generation want to get up off its ass to do something about it so the planet isn't such a crap hole when they are old enough to run things.
He would no doubt have to make contact with her soon. Even more so due to the very emotionally distressed woman living with her in said hideout right now.
A ringing of his cell phone got his attention, seeing it was only the only person who had his number, he put it to his ear.
"We have a problem," said Tala with Naruto frowning.
"I'm listening," said Naruto while focusing on the conversation with Tala over seeing Starfire train with the Shadow Clone.
"Cadmus is on to me. One of their agents was in my room. Unauthorized. He was sent to snoop around and look for incriminating evidence of me being the traitor," said Tala from her location outside of the Cadmus base with the burnable cell phone he had given her.
"And they know or suspect you are a traitor, how exactly?" questioned Naruto since he knew they didn't leave a trace of his presence in the main spell room.
"He was in the bedroom scanning for something with some kind of device I have never seen before. I got worried. I knocked him out and destroyed the device. When he wakes up, the incident will be reported to the others!" exclaimed Tala worriedly.
"Yeah. That does prove to be a problem. Even if you could justify beating the crap out of the infiltrator over him sneaking around, it doesn't explain why you suddenly destroyed his technological toy given to him by the others. Especially since we don't know what said toy does in the first place. Definitely a problem," commented Naruto with a grimace.
"How do we handle this? Isn't it too soon to make a move to leave Cadmus?" asked Tala while worried they might tip their hand too soon.
"Not necessarily. I have a lot of cash now thanks to my trip to Vegas. I already setup a nice little penthouse for home where we can to live in," said Naruto while knowing Tala would be worried and amused by his choice of residence.
"Where?" asked Tala while sensing she wasn't going to like it.
"Metropolis," answered Naruto.
"WHAT?! Metropolis?! Are you insane?! Lex Luthor resides in Metropolis. He has eyes and ears everywhere in the city. Technological or otherwise. He built over half of the city with just his money and his genius!" exclaimed Tala into the phone.
"You overestimate the man's actual brilliance Tala. Besides, if he were truly brilliant, Lex would have learned Superman's identity years ago. He would have killed Superman years ago. Not to mention Lex wouldn't have gotten cancer from the radiation produced from the shard of kryptonite he would always carried around. Seriously, you would think the man would have put it in a lead container. If it hurts Superman, who is impervious to almost everything, imagine what it does to normal human beings? The man is an idiot, who is slightly smarter then most, and has an ego that it also bigger then most," replied Naruto with Tala growling into the phone.
"This isn't funny Naruto! You are playing a dangerous game and clearly find it funny like some sick joke. Well I don't find it funny! I will not be put in harms way just for your own amusement!" exclaimed Tala while Naruto frowned.
"First, I don't think of this as some sick joke Tala. Second, I won't put you in harms way should things go bad. I have never put you in harms way up until now and I won't allow it to happen either. So calm down. As for Lex, you leave him to me when the time comes, and trust me when I say I can fix this issue in my own way," replied Naruto with Tala on the end calming down.
"All right. But hurry! I don't know when the Cadmus agent was suppose to report in and the moment he doesn't, I will be hunted down for questioning," said Tala knowing she was as good as marked down as a traitor by Cadmus when their suspicion of her grew.
"Okay. Don't worry. I'm going to finish up my spar with Starfire and head back to pick you up. My plans for Cadmus are going to be altered a bit, but it will get them off your back in terms of what to classify you as in the future," replied Naruto while he began to grin evilly even if Tala couldn't see it.
But she could sense it.
"And what are you planning to do exactly?" asked Tala while dreading the answer to the question.
"They are looking for a deadly killer and ninja assassin, right? One they wish to kill or to recruit into their ranks? I'll simply make a grand appearance and shake things up for them in a way they will never recover. Also, don't worry about Galatea, I'll be picking her up when I get you too," explained Naruto calmly.
"Are you sure? Galatea is very strong and has combat training. Unlike Supergirl, she knows how to hurt people when fighting...and enjoys it from what I have heard," warned Tala with Naruto smirking on his end.
"True, but compared to me, Galatea is a novice. In any case, I know of a place where I can keep her contained long enough to convince her to side with me. You just get all the things you want from your room and be ready to leave within the hour. I'll take care of the rest," replied Naruto knowing he would have to get Tala out of there in a hurry and wanted her packed before he arrived.
"Okay. I'll be ready. Just...hurry," whispered Tala knowing she could defend herself against some of the troops Cadmus had on hand.
But some of the others in the lower sections of the base? Not a chance!
"I will. Now move that incredibly hot ass and I'll be there right away. See you soon," said Naruto before he ended the call.
"Who was that lover Naruto?" asked Starfire since her sparring partner had dispelled earlier and saw him talking to someone on his cell phone.
"That was Tala. She ran into some trouble with Cadmus. I need to get you back to our penthouse home before I go pick her up. I need to divert and misdirect Cadmus away from suspecting her of betraying them so no one knows of her actual involvement in my actions," said Naruto with Starfire nodding.
"I see. I hope shared lover Tala does not mind my presence in our new home. I do not wish their be the 'friction' that comes from being around another female who is sexually interested in the same male as myself," said Starfire with Naruto grinned.
"Just be respectful of her space and when she wants such moments with me Starfire and you won't cause said friction. Now let's get to our home," said Naruto before he grabbed her by the waist held her close and used Kamui to head to their intended destination.
It was time to shake up Cadmus and see what dirty secrets fall out for all to see and the Justice League to clean up.