Pistolera

No signal. Balls. Guess I shoulda expected as much, considering I set up shop under the foundations for the Grell Street Bridge. Great place for hiding, not so great for connectivity. Setting up Wi-fi would be a bitch. Guess I'm just gonna have to operate blind for now, and hope Rufus has stopped the boys from doing anything too incredibly reckless. Fat chance of that, knowing Sentinel, but a girl can hope.

As I'm struggling with the portable Cell approaches from behind. I do my level best to ignore her, hoping she'll amble off, mostly cause I reckon she was going to bitch about my less than gentle treatment with the team. The last thing I expected was for her to thank me though, and it's fair to say I was more than a touch surprised. I struggle to dismiss it as a hallmark moment, try to work up my usual cynicism about such warm moments, but for once my bile just ain't level to the task. I'm genuinely touched by her earnestness, and while I manage to stifle the grin that threatens to invade my face, I can't do anything about the blush. I try to play it off cool.

“Don't worry about it Band-aid, what are friends for? And between us girls, well I was planning on ditching ya'll. Had the bag's packed and everything. Still more than a little surprised myself at how things are playing out.” And it's true. A little voice inside is still screaming at me to abandon the kids, head for the hills, and bury my head till this whole mess blows over. It's the smart thing to do. And yet, lord knows why, I'm still here. I feel a little better for admitting my character defect to Rhea, like I weight that I didn't know I had been carrying was lifted, and hope she doesn't think less of me for it.

Hell, look at me, worried about what other people think. Just like a real girl. There's hope for us all.

"Got any wine?" Evan. He'd been hitting the sauce pretty hard the last couple days, searching for oblivion and doing a pretty admirable job of finding it. Some people just can't cope with the horrors life throws at them, and it turns out Evan's one of them. Suppose being raised on 'Paradise Isle' doesn't really prepare you for life's tragedies.

I'm about to answer that there's some Old Pultney whiskey somewhere in the back and that he's welcome to it if he can find it, when he begins to sputter some half-sozzled shit about Tartarus, and immortality, and resurrections. Only, once it's all laid out loud and I get a sec to digest what he has to say, I realize that maybe it's not shit. It's actually, dare I admit it, a feasible plan. Though when the only option open to you is the one offered up by the half-cut Godling then you know you're in trouble.

While the others jump aboard the hype train, offering themselves up on the metaphorical chopping block, I get down to making a pot of coffee. Not quite the heroic endeavour you might expect of me, but I need time to think, and if Evan's heading into Greek hell then he's gonna have to sober up, the faster the better. And besides, how heroic do you really think I am?

The more I think on it, the more I'm left with the realization that this is really our only choice. The crimes levelled at us, the accusations being hurled at the team, they're all true. Luthor hasn't manipulated public perception so much as he's directed it. The people are equal parts furious, confused and terrified because they believe the Team slaughtered San Francisco, and like it or not that's exactly what the Team did, regardless of their intentions or reasons. They. . . no, we, committed the crime. There's no two ways about it. We can't clear our names, because our names are rightfully dirty. Instead all we can do is make up for our mistakes, and brining back the population of San Fran would be a massive step in the right direction.

I re-join the others and hand Evan the put of rocket fuel, directing him to drink. If we get time I'll put him through a cold shower. . . Ironic. Usually it's him making me need a cold shower.

I don't argue with JC when he demands to be let in on the Tartarus group, despite Evan explicitly stating he doesn't want either Thermo or myself, for good reason. Not that I think he's going to 'make this all go right' like he claims – everyone knows the stakes here without him keeping us on point - but because there's sure to be a lotta opposition down there, and the versatility of JC's powerset down there is sure to be a major boon.

I don't even poo-poo Stunt Devil's application to the suicide squad, though for his own sake I want to. I'm not as certain he's as suited to it as JC and Evan, unbreakable bones being fun, but maybe not enough to cut it in the underworld. More importantly he was on the verge of breaking down emotionally back in the Tower, and with Wonderboy on a drinking binge then that might be too many flakes on that mission for me to be comfortable. Still, it's his choice to go, and I admire his courage, if not his intelligence. If Evan hadn't taken the decision out of my hands I'm not sure I'd be able to volunteer myself.

I do put my foot down when talk of Sentinel going is breached though.

“No, Sentinel stays here. He's Kryptonian, remember, and Tartarus is mystical in nature. Too much of a risk to take sending him, seeing how fragile they are too magic. Rufus is a better option. Almost as powerful, without the vulnerabilities, and steadier to boot.” If she couldn't go herself then the speedster was the only other member of the team that she halfway trusted to get this delicate operation done. She just hoped he was as unflappable as he made out.

“Besides, we'll need Sentinel more than you will. If Luthor get's wind of our plan you can bet your bottom dollar that he'll try to stop us. Superheroes fucking up as bad as we have? That's the perfect opportunity for him to really drive it to Superman and the League, so he ain't gonna loose that ammo without a fight. As much as I hate to suggest it, those here left behind while Evan is in Tartarus will need to make a lot of noise, distract Lex while you get the job done. No one's better suited to that than Sentinel. He's got the 'S' symbol and everything, and as we all know flashing that in Lex's face is just as potent as saying that we banged his daughter.”

I slump into a camp stool, feeling drained all of a sudden. Without thinking too much about it I palm a ciggie and light up. Not the healthiest option in here, but it's not exactly as if we're talking about going for an organic brunch. Smoking is the least of my health concerns right now. Cell raises her issues about the plan while I puff away. They're good concerns, real concerns. Concerns I don't have answers too, not good ones anyway.

“Classic Greek mythology is filled with tales about heroes delving into Tartarus to save loved ones. This is just the next step up.” I don't add that the old tales usually feature the heroes getting lost in the world below, or failing miserably in their quests. Just doesn't seem like a big morale booster. “Honestly, as cut throat as it sounds, Evan's immortality should be more than enough to buy back the people's lives. They were nothing, not in the grand scheme of things, while he's a demi-god hero, made for great deeds. Hades will jump at that deal. He'd be a fool not to. And even if I'm wrong, and this is all a waste of time, what other option do we have?”

Everything had moved fast, things had spun out of control quicker than even Rufus could catch them. His teammates, despite his direct suggestion, still continued killing the zombified citizens of San Francisco. When Lock and Load were killed Rufus felt the same kind of rage, disgust and regret that all of his peers did. He wanted to kill everyone last one of the zombies, the thought of vibrating his hand into their skulls.. Well, it was tempting. But he didn't. He instead dashed about, maiming and capturing as many as he could, while saving lives, both his allies and his foes.

But then the shots rang out, and the people returned to normal. Rufus was sure that they still could chalk this into a 'win'. there had been 'acceptable' casualties, a few hundred inside of the tower, at worst. Or so he thought when he left the tower for the city to check that out. Finding it being just short of burnt to the ground at the hands of the Kryptonian. His mind went blank. That invincible shit had annihilated the entire city. How was anyone supposed to be able to rely on that guy? How would anyone be able to trust the Titans again?! The rage he, minutes ago wanted to use to kill zombies made him more and more willing to place his hand inside of Isaac's brain. He ran.

***

Having seen the attack on the tower get launched by the military, Rufus had arrived in the tower again, just in time for the heroics to start. Pistolera was in charge instead of Thermo. It was the smarter choice, Pistolera had the second highest IQ after himself, and she had both the mental stabiltiy, skillset and tactical know how to be a Robin, should she ever have wanted to be one. He arrived as Isaac dashed into the military, about to kill even more poeple. He was going to head out and stop him right then and there. But like the saying goes; curiosity caught the speedster.

He listened to what the woman said, having Zane open a portal to a new safehouse was smart, they couldn't stay here. Pistolera put Rufus in charge of sheparding the Kryptonian and the Boy-Bat. Fanfuckingtastic. Putting him in charge of babysitting. Awesome. Microbat was already in the air 'helping' Isaac. Once Zane and Pistolera had entered the portal and it had closed, Rufus dashed out of the tower.
Knowing full well that the psuedo alien had heard the orders Rufus had been given, he still tried to tell Accelerate what to do. He wasn't going to have any of this.
He dashed around the soldiers, picking the clips from their weapons and disarming the tanks without hurting anyone, the exact same thing he knew Sentinel could have done, if he used his brain for anything more than to figure out which way to Smash.

Though, he was taken by surprise by Sentinel's speech. For being a complete idiot, the guy wasn't a moron. He did understand that this was 95% his fault. He had alone taken the most lives by being reckless and gotten out of control. And like anyone would tell a alcoholic, the first step in the right direction is to recognize that there's a problem. Once the megaphone hit the ground, Rufus could see how Isaac was about to move. He wasn't gonna have any of it. He knew the Kryptonian would either jump into the air, leaving a crater behind him. Or he would accidentally break the sound barrier and make all these poor people's eardrums burst.

A black blur was seen for half a second right next to Sentinel before he vanished, being dragged by Rufus to the outskirts of the city, where Rufus tossed the Kryptonian forward, forcing him to skid to a halt.

"Let me be really fucking clear now, Sentinel." Rufus began. "I'm sick and god damn tired of you doing however you well please. You think you're invincible, but you're not. A run of the mill Magni could rock you, not to mention what a certain type of rock could do to you. You don't think before you move, you don't plan ahead. You create collateral damage everywhere you go, and then you have the audacity to claim to be even in the same league as Superman?! For fucks sake, you destroyed the city!" Rufus shouted at the top of his lungs, if the kryptonian even did as much as twitch, Rufus wasn't going to pull any punches.

Taking a moment to regain his composure, Rufus looked him dead in the eye. "Pistolera wanted us to meet her in Star City. And we're going to have to fetch leatherface. We're gonna sort this mess out, we're going to solve this manhunt, shove it up Luthor's ass and clear our names. Once that's done, however. You and me are going to talk. Now move it." He wasn't even angry anymore, that red hot rage he had felt a minute ago had now cooled into a coldblooded void of emotions. He wasn't making a threat, he was making a promise.

Moments before Sentinel took off, he felt someone wrap their arms around him. Then the world contorted as Sentinel was dragged at super speed to the outskirts of the city. The trip took seconds. One moment Sentinel had been standing outside Titan's Tower, and the next he was in the middle of some empty grasslands. The sudden stop caused Isaac's senses to blur as he felt himself leave his assailant's arms and go flying into the dirt a few feet away. "Grrragghhh..." Sentinel muttered, rubbing his eyes. He rarely went that fast. Was this what jet lag felt like?

Sentinel took a moment to gather himself, seeing as how he wasn't under attack from whoever had grabbed him. Must have been an ally. Accelerate, maybe? The speedster had stayed behind despite Isaac's suggestion that he get a move on while Sentinel dealt with the military. Sentinel turned his hand, glancing at the figure clad in black leather. Yep. Definitely Accelerate, alright. Nobody else rocks that kind gear. Before Isaac could question Rufus' actions, the speedster set into Sentinel, chewing him out for all of his recent failings and short comings. Usually, that kind of bullshit would make Sentinel absolutely livid. Sentinel didn't take nothin' from anyone, certainly not an asshole like Rufus. But after everything that happened? After all the fighting and death and tears? Isaac couldn't muster enough strength to be angry. Anger was too hard right now. All he had was exhaustion. Isaac was tired of fighting, tired of arguing. Tired of killing. Tired of everything.

So he let Accelerate vent.

It wasn't like Rufus was wrong, either. He spoke the truth. Sentinel never used his head. At least, not in any way that could be deemed productive. Isaac had made plans, sure. But they weren't long term. Everything Sentinel did, he did for immediate success. Like taking Lobo away from the other Titans. Sentinel didn't want anyone else to get hurt; and yes, he accomplished that goal. But without the other Titans he would have never defeated Lobo. Sentinel had wanted to keep his friends safe, so he killed the zombies. That guy in the armor had even said they couldn't be saved. But that theory proved false when Zuggernaut fell and the people returned to their normal selves. He'd attacked the military because, once again, he wanted to protect the Titans. But that effort once more proved to be unnecessary.

It was like Sentinel's life was a broken record. Always repeating the same patterns of thought and realization. Try to save people, realize he should have done it differently. People yell and scream at Isaac because he should've known better. Then Krypto wanders off and moops for a while, promising to be better. And then? And then it all happens again.

"Are you done?" Sentinel asked, once Rufus had finished his spool. His voice lacked any sort of threat to it, only regret. "How many times do I have to tell you I'm sorry?! I don't mean to screw up! I try to do what's best. I try to protect people. That's all I want to do! I throw myself in front a speeding train to save somebody's life, and all they do is whine and complain that I didn't do it right!" Sentinel stopped. He sighed, placing his hands on his head before turning away from Rufus. "You have no idea what it's like to be me. You're a bonafide genius; I'm just some kid from Gotham. I didn't know anything before I got these powers. Seems like anybody else would'a been a better Sentinel than me." Another moment of silence. "Whatever. Like you care about anyone but yourself. Let's just find Eric, so I can fix this and turn myself in. Maybe I'll fit in better at Bell Rev."

The moment the last titan entered the portal Zane stepped through and it closed. He looked around the dusty old hideout and fanned away some dust particles. He could feel the tension in the air, everyone had a rough day. But his ears perked up at the sound of tartarus. he had only heard stories about the place but never, evil, vile tales, but he had never been there. Plus there was the issue of his magic, Zane did not know whether his would work down there plus it looked like whatever was left of the team needed him up here.

He heard what Pistolera said about leaving them and gave her a short glare. The girl was to stubborn to admit that we had grown on her and that she actually cared...a little. "Well I don't know if I should go, I mean the idea is great but you never know with the gods." In truth he was worried that Hades might ask for more that just Evan's immorality, he might even ask for their lives, plus Zane just did not want to go. He looked around and saw that the team needed some fixing, well the whole situation needed some fixing, but was he the one to do it. It really did not hit him until that moment what had really gone down. Zane had taken down at least fifty of those things before they came back alive and now it sunk in, he started to cry, he killed a few and did not know how to deal. It was not some loud cry but just some stray tears falling from his face. Zane stood up and whipped them from his face.

"Well what can we do while they are gone to help clear our names, I just don't want to sit here on my thumbs.

He overheard the others talking about how he may he have rushed off headstrong to fetch.. Sentinel - he'd gone to fetch Sentinel and it was a poor move, but he disagreed. The last son of Krypton's most recent protege had given no clear indication of whether he'd actually heard or not. Piss-tolera was talking like he was assuredly on the same page simply because of his biology placing him in earshot, even though he was focused on making a distraction.

After watching the helicopter fall like a leaf, Eric actually admired Rufus' quick work at disarming the gunmen before running off and snatching Sentinel before going off to have a private conversation.

So maybe I'm not Batman, but I sure do recognize an opportunity to minimize future problems. With Rufus and the Kryptonian a safe way away, Eric spiraled down to the gunmen below at a dazzling speed. No one was armed, a few scrambled for something to shoot with, but the well came up dry. Eric descended upon the helicopter he'd downed, the one claimed for Hell in a ball of fire. Eric leapt into the wreckage and scattered all around it, feeling like he'd crawled through an oven door before he came to the turret he'd worried about earlier. A few feet back there was a package of other belts.

Just outside the door was a metal case roughly the size of a pencil box. Tapping the surface, he made sure it was cool enough. Warm, but acceptable. Unlatching it, he took a peek inside and found exactly what he'd expected, a handgun with a clip of the Kryptonite-tipped bullets. Bingo! Rubbing his eyes, he pondered to himself the morality of taking it before throwing tradition to the wayside for eventuality. It's not that I don't believe in him, it's that I don't believe in anyone else not to manipulate him.

Yeah. That's it.

Clutching the gun, he felt its weight before resealing it and putting it in his backpack. From there, he simply walked past the awkwardly standing guards, aware they'd lose a direct confrontation but unsure others would count that as an excuse for not laying down their lives anyway.

"I think we can all agree that none of this happened," he said to the men on the ground before hearing the faint, yet ever-so-crisp sound of incoming reinforcements. So he took flight, low to the ground and at maximum speed. The combination was murderous on his muscles, but it made him a thousand times harder to find than he'd be in the range of any radar. While above the water, he took the opportunity to drop his communicator in the treacherous waters.

Barely keeping himself off the coast of San Francisco, he cracked his wings a thousand times over. God, they were burning like they'd been hit with a shotgun again. So he took a rest on the coast, at a spot he and Rufus had specifically ran into one another a few weeks before. A little spot behind one particular bar.

It was really hard to remember. Just thinking back to what they did, it actually hurt to think about it. Reminiscing all the people she impaled and killed, it gave her an unforgiving headache. They weren't innocent. They were mindless killers when it happened. It was me or them, Lock and Load is an example. she thought, trying to make her feel better about herself before she realized she couldn't seriously justify what they just did. "What the fuck makes me a Titan then?" Ariel asked herself rather loudly when the Titans were back in the Tower. I looked like a villain, the way I went about killing those people. Ari was surprised at her own conscience, usually she just bottles up her emotions and shuts people out when it comes to more serious things like this.

She could feel water start to tip the bottom of her eyes. If the tears escaped her eyelids they would smear her eyeliner makeup, and the rest of the team couldn't see her in distress. Being a water manipulator, she made the tears disappear with ease. It was quite possibly unhealthy for her to fight back all these feelings and emotions but she did it anyways, for her "reputation and image." She looked around at the rest of the team in the room. What reputation? Come to think about it, she didn't really know any personal stuff about her teammates, nor did they know much about her. Now that they're all wanted for mass murder, it was the perfect time to get to know each other.

Some bickering occurred before Magic Man opened up a portal as per Pistolera's request and she and the rest of the team walked through it and reappeared in what was apparently Simone's safe house.

They settled in, and started discussing plans. Evan boldly stated that he would take a group to Tartarus. Ari was familiar enough with Greek mythology to know the bells and whistles of the Underworld. Despite being slightly curious as to how well her powers would work down there if at all, she didn't think she was best fit to join the four person group. The ferryman for the River Styx definitely would not appreciate her trying to steal the show, either.

She cast a glance over at Pistolera. Something about her made Ari feel safe, and the current squad being assembled to journey through Tartarus seemed as good as any the team could muster. Staying on the surface was for the best.

"I've read enough to know that Hades is a grade A-asshole," she remembered the tale about the God of the Underworld and Persephone she read in high school, and a shiver went down her spine. What a creep that guy was. Another thought formed right after, and it was a paranoid fear of the possibility that Hades could sense when someone was using his name in vain. She gulped, looked Evan in the eye and continued. "But since you're obviously the expert when it comes to this and you believe there's a chance that it'll work, then I support your plan." She felt something drop in her chest, her heart felt like it was going to bounce around inside her body like it was a ricochet bullet. She was worried, worried for her friends.

This was not a good time, and definitely a horrible time for heroes in general. No matter what happened, nothing would be the same. Even if they brought back all the citizens of the city, they would always be under a new, harsh, unprecedented scope of critique from the public eye. "I don't think we should do anything to draw attention to ourselves until we bring back all those souls from the Underworld. The media is going to vilify us as much as they can. Every little thing we do, as long as we are labeled outlaws, can be twisted into a lie that makes us look like criminals."

Rival Son's Great Western Valkyrie blares in the background, loud enough to deafen a small child, but Mal barely noticed it. He put it on to help him stay awake, though now it hardly registered with him. He couldn't even remember putting the album on, so intent was he on his work. This time it will work.

This time it has to work.

A bright emerald light blazes in the armory, making an almost alien landscape of the usually familiar room. The source of the light is a distinctive green stone sitting upon a tall plinth, several mechanical contraptions fixed upon it. Though none of the machines are making an outward show of doing anything productive the look of intense concentration upon Mal's face would key the casual observer into the fact that something quite beyond the norm is going on.

With his eyes still fixed on the stone the young Welshman flicked several switches next to his chair. An almost imperceptible beam of fine light fired from one of the machines directly into the center of the stone, which instantly began to vibrate, softly at first, but growing more energetic by the second. Mal paused to jot a quick scribble upon a data pad before tapping a series of numbers upon his keyboard. As he did that the stones vibrations became more and more severe, the object shaking violently upon it's plinth. Suddenly there was a thunderous crack, audible over even Mal's music, and the stone shattered into brightly colored dust.

With a wordless cry Mal picked up his pen and flung it at the plinth, before slamming his fists upon the workstation. Usually he held himself above such tantrum throwing, but seeing as he'd been awake for almost seventy two hours working on this project without break he felt he was allowed one small indiscretion. The quick surge of adrenaline helped wake him up a touch too, so that was nice. Not as nice as forty winks would have been, but it would have to do for now. He was too busy to sleep.

"Oh don't lose heart yet, you were very close that time. I'd almost be impressed, if I hadn't cracked the secrets to weaponising kryptonite a decade ago." Mal spun in his chair slowly, more than a little surprised to see the President of the United States of America standing behind him. Was he scheduled to be meeting Luthor today? He didn't think so, but who could keep track of things like that.

"I've done in three days what took you years Luthor. And I didn't have to break any laws to do it. One more attempt, and I'll have successfully integrated you're anti-kryptonian tech into my armour." Mal retorted, simultaneously turning his music down. Whatever Luthor had to say, he was willing to bet it was important.

"Debatable. After all, you did enter my country uninvited in what is, by your company's very own description, a war-machine. But that's not what I'm here about, or at least not directly. Tell me, why are you attempting to weaponise kryptonite?"

"You know why."

"Yes, but I'd like to hear you say it."

"The Titans." Mal responded with an almost inaudible sigh. "They need to be stopped." San Fransisco proved that. Half a city worth of corpses, a great many due to the Titan's. And Mal was there! He could have stopped them, saved all those people, if only he had known! If only he'd been smarter, if he could have seen through their deceptions! Sentinel had possessed the gall to berate him for killing the diseased people, all while he planned to massacre them in their droves!

When he had first heard of the body count being attributed to the Team Mal had laughed. Surely it was some kind of joke. The Teen Titan's were heroes. They wouldn't kill anybody, least of all normal people suffering a mystical sickness. But then had come the vid's, the reports, the eye witnesses, and Mal had been forced to accept the truth. When those first images of the Titan's Tower had been released, with the bodies piled high, Mal had vomited in his helmet. Vomited so much that after a while there was nothing in his stomach left to give, but he still heaved all the same. He just couldn't stop. He felt dirty, stained, aware in his core that knowingly or not he'd helped them kill all those innocents. Those bodies piled high in the footage? They were on him.

He'd promised himself then and there that no matter what it took, no matter the toll on his body or his mind, he'd take the Titan's in, and make them answer for their crimes. For the last three days he'd been modifying the Paladin, making it ready for the confrontation that was sure to come. Those killers would never come quietly.

He came back to with a jolt, Luthor eyeing him speculatively, like a prospective car buyer eyeing up a second hand motor, and just now realizing how much work was needed to make it road worthy. Mal had forgotten he was here. Lord, he needed to sleep. Instead he sat up straighter, meeting Lex's stare with his own.

"I'm glad to hear you say that," The President finally said. "As you have no doubt heard I have recently revealed a new vigilante registration act, as well as declaring that I intend to make the Titan's answer for their crimes." Mal hadn't heard these things. He'd had no time for tv, or the news, or the outside world at all, really. Or sleep. Lord he needed sleep.

"And you're telling me. . . why?"

"Why, isn't it obvious? We share a common goal. We should pool our resources. At this very moment my army is approaching the Titan's tower, with instructions to take all inhabitants alive for questioning. However if the Titan's run, as I believe they will, then I have a contingency in place. A team, if you will, of responsible operatives, sanctioned and overseen by the American government. They are to eventually replace the Titan's as San Francisco's newest protectors, though if the children do run then my new Team will be giving the mission of chasing them down and taking them in. If it does come to that then I would very much like for you to be a part of this team."

Was he hearing this right? Was Lex Luthor, arguably the most powerful man on the planet, asking for his help? And, even more bizarrely, it was making sense? That can't be right, can it? Luthor was a villain, or at least he was supposed to be. He was said to be Superman's greatest nemesis, the whispered perpetrator of a million crimes, both large and small. There's no way this could all be as above board as he made it sound. Then again, he was the President. Surely they wouldn't let him into office if there was any truth to all those rumors. He sounded so convincing, and the Titan's did need to be stopped.

Urgh, there was something Mal was missing here, some integral piece of this puzzle that he just couldn't get to grips with. If only he wasn't so tired, then he could figure it out.

"So," said Luthor, "What do you say, Paladin?"

Isaac had tried to mend fences with Rufus. The Speedster understood that the Kryptonian was sorry for everything he had done, that he felt overwhelmed with all of the power he was given. Rufus could relate, he had just as well been given more power than he knew what to do with it. He however hadn't acted irrationally that had taken the lives of most of San Francisco. When Isaac finished his speech, Rufus looked him dead in the eyes and spoke.

"I do care. Just not about irresponsible little shits who have everything they ever wanted and then decides to whine about it instead of manning up to their mistakes and improving." Rufus paused, changing his stance, putting his weight on his front foot. "If we do live through this and manage to no longer be fugitives, I'll hold you to turning yourself in. You're too dangerous." Rufus promised Isaac, before he turned away from Isaac. "Anyway. Let's go. We're going to have to get Eric." Rufus ordered, dashing away at a speed he knew Sentinel could match.

JC's idea to bring Sentinel along was shut down by Simone. He didn't think bringing the speedster around would have been that much better even if he didn't have a "weakness" to magic. If you thought about it pretty much all of them had a weakness to magic. Well, all of them except for maybe Evan and Zane. And that was a stretch there too. "He wouldn't be in any more danger than any of us would be. I think Sentinel would be better for the mission than Accelerate." He stopped when Rhea started expressing her worries for the mission as a whole. She had a point about not being sure if they'd be able to leave Tartarus. He wasn't sure if they'd be able to leave himself, but he wasn't going to let them know that.

"This is the last resort for us, Rhea. We have no other way to bring those people back. Heroes have to make sacrifices and this probably won't even be the biggest one that we have to make. We're still young. We'll make it out of there. As long as we don't eat anything down there. And considering the metabolism thing for speedsters Accelerate is definitely not the one we need to have down there." Soon after he gave that miniature speech/backing to his reason for not bringing along Accelerate Ariel started to speak and brought up her opinion.

"Ariel's right. The ones staying here really shouldn't bring more attention to themselves and especially not by making noise with Sentinel at the helm. Luthor's used to dealing with the likes of Superman. A weaker version of him who can't fly shouldn't be a problem. He's more in danger up here than he'd be down there. The four of us will go down to Tartarus and the rest of you will make sure that you don't draw any attention to yourselves. If you need to go outside do so in civilian clothes with hoodies. We don't need facial recognition software easily finding you. Anymore objections?" He was serious now. He figured out in his head that his plan was the best plan and that if they followed it then everything would be alright. The citizens will live again, the Teen Titans wouldn't be seen as total menaces, and they'd return home. As long as any unforeseen circumstances didn't jump out at them like a 4-D horror movie then they'd be fine.

"I do care. Just not about irresponsible little shits who have everything they ever wanted and then decides to whine about it instead of manning up to their mistakes and improving."

Kid Krypto remained silent. There was no point in arguing with Accelerate. The speedster had made up his mind; Sentinel was his scapegoat now, no changing that. Still pissed Isaac off a bit, but he had passed the point of being angry about anything. He just wanted to go home. You just don't understand. Isaac thought. I don't have everything I ever wanted. All I've ever wanted was my life back. That one day I'd walk in the door and my mom would still be alive. That my dad would run into my arms, frantically apologizing for all he'd ever done to me. Then we would all go out and get icecream at the parlor down the street like we used to. That's all I want. Not power. I don't care about being faster than a speeding bullet, or more powerful than a locomotive. Being able to leap a tall building in a single bound is nothing compared to being able to leap into my family's embrace again.

Sentinel took off after Accelerate, his feet digging into the dirt and kicking up clumps of grass as he went. Isaac kept himself below the speed of sound, knowing full well that Luthor would be listening for something like that. Isaac promised himself he'd be better. That he would prove Rufus wrong. He could be a better man; Isaac knew it. You just have to try harder. Sentinel thought quietly. Heh. Who knew Rhea's advise would have such an impact on her teammate? After all, it was just one little line. One little sentence, meant to make a depressed Kryptonian feel better about himself. Now that little line has evolved into a lamp with which to light Sentinel's path. Isaac would be better. He promised himself, and everyone else, that much.

Standing up Evan's face turned into a snarl as he jabbed a super strong finger into Thermo's chest, giving the smaller man a slight push backwards.

"I'm sick of you barking out orders, you know nothing about Tartarus, none of you do. I don't care how much Homer or Wikipedia you've read, you know nothing. You're not going and I'm not taking Sentinel." Turning to address the rest of the group, Evan singled out Simone and JC as he took a sip from the hot black coffee, nearly spitting the bitter concoction out. "Thermo I don't know what Rose said to you and I don't care, I doubt she left you as the leader and even if she did the team doesn't support you, and I sure as Hades don't. Pistolera, you've done a great job getting our butts out of the tower and ending the zombies' reign of terror earlier but like Thermo the team doesn't fully trust you. Either way we're wasting time with you two constantly trying to one up each other. We need to take a vote now for a new team leader and since you two have been the only ones to step up in our time of need I see no point in allowing anyone else the chance to make a power play for the fancy hat."

Looking around, Evan gauged each of the remaining team members for their reactions to his words but truth be told he honestly couldn't care at this point what they thought. This had been drawn out long enough and quite honestly he didn't plan on coming back from Tartarus, he knew it was a suicide mission, a trade, his life for those who they had killed. Whether the others were going to be required to stay or not he didn't know, all he knew is that soon his secrets would all be revealed but first they needed to ensure the rest of the Titans were in good hands.

"I know we're not all here but for all we know Microbat and Accelerate are dead and Luthor is currently harvesting Sentinel's DNA to build himself an army of unstoppable super soldiers so we may as well vote with the mindset we're all that's left of the Titans." Evan said as he sat down again desperately wishing for something other than coffee to drink.

"I'll cast the first vote, my support goes to Pistolera." Evan finished as he looked to the others for their response.

Jeez. At least, now, she had found the new teapot of the team. Evan's mouth was just as runny as Rose's yet his words still carried with them the significance of the situation: they needed a leader... fast. In this case, they had two options who were as viable as the muscles that rippled immensely as Evan would move or make any gestures; they were also as viable as the way his Adam's Apple bobbed up and down as Evan spoke... What? "Fuck." Rhea cursed as she unslung the sword from her shoulder, unsheathing it just enough for the lower portion to be revealed. Her mind was snared by the onslaught of mysterious attractions brought on by damned biology. If only... if only she could destroy her own cells. In a heartbeat, the healer glided her index finger over the sharp blade, causing the skin there to rupture and a slick trail of crimson liquid to flow forth. Her eyes observed the wound which was now healing quickly as was expected. More importantly, her mind had snapped out of the trance that she was in and, now, she could think properly. "Much, much better." Rhea smiled, now looking at the two candidates: JC and Smokey. Honestly, she hated to pick between the two of them. It was a stupid notion, really. She was the only one who harboured any positive emotions towards her team; she knew that they'd leave her in a heartbeat but Rhea couldn't do so to them. She wasn't that much of a monster... not yet. Still, she had to pick. Well, she already knew who she would pick but Rhea hated for any untoward hate that might spiral out of control once everything would be decided. The healer sheathed the sword back and slung it over her shoulder, pulling down her hood in the process. With but a few strides, Rhea went over to JC, softly taking his hand in hers.

"Say, JC." Rhea began as she shut out any glares or stares that might be occurring. In this moment, it was just them. Screw Smokey, screw Teapot 2.0, screw Whirlie, screw Skelly, screw Hatty... screw everyone but JC; the lad had already went through a lot. There's no need to bring any more of them down-- Evan had already done plenty of that. "Disregardin' whatever bull droppings anyone would be sayin' 'bout ya, I be believin' dat ya did good during da attack on our tower. Ya led us to da best of what ye can do and, honestly, I be proud of ya. Ev'ry leader be makin' a mistake but ain't dat part of da journey? No matter how good ye are of a leader, someone will always be hatin' on ya. Ye dun 'ave to be da best leader fer everyone; ye just need to be da best leader fer dos who matter." she breathed in a huff of air before patting JC's hand. "Ye a'ready proved yerself to us and ye didn't disappoint; Rose was right in trustin' ye. Sure, there were mistakes in da plan but just because ye stumbled don't mean dat ye be lost. Ya just have to be tryin' harder. JC, it's time fer someone else to be leadin' us; it's time fer someone to take up da mantle and finish what ye started. Ye a'ready got us dis far, ye deserve to take a break." she let go of his hand, already finished with her subtle inspection if he had any wounds. Not sure if he noticed though. "Never doubt yer leadership fer a moment. Honestly, a lot of us won't be here if it ain't fer ye leadin' us. I wouldn't be 'ere if it wasn't fer ya. You've done beautifully but it be time fer someone to take it from here since dis be a new scenario. After all, a good leader be also a good follower."

Rhea's eyes went over to Smokey, her lips curved in a smile. "Smokey... I be believin' dat Smokey can be helpin' us to surpass dis predicament since she be knowin' evry'thin' der is to know 'bout the real world. She's da only one I be trustin' to be able to dirty her hands yet still be pure at da same time-- the leader we be needin'. I be believin' dat things will be dark and dirty from dis moment forward and we be needin' Smokey's guidance through da dark and into the light. Her strength to be weatherin' everythin' without losin' her composure would be our strength as well. In these dark times, she's da leader we be needin' and da leader we be deservin'. She could have left us to die but she didn't." she grinned at the most headstrong woman in their team. "She's da best one to continue what Rose and JC had started. She's a good person, though, not many, even I, can't see it."

She went back to her old formation with the team, staying at the furthest edge of them all... as was always her role. She was always the most distant to all of them... with all her theatrics and drama-- no one could really stand her. Still, she didn't mind being the black sheep if it meant everyone would be stayin' together. Unlike Sentinel, Tulip, Teapot 2.0, Smokey, JC and the rest, she had nothing to offer but amateur healing and all. If her opinions mattered, then, that would be enough. Rhea was certain that everyone would be scoffing at her long winded speech but it mattered not if she had, at least, helped out a little bit. If only her words could help Sentinel, JC and Smokey... then, everything she had said was all worth it.

The die had been cast; the bones have been thrown. The next few events in the long line of threads would be decided by two names: Smokey and JC. However, whatever would happen in the future, she would never regret the leadership from both of them. They were interesting people and while the two of them weren't really the best candidates for leaders, she'd still be willing to follow both of their banners... regardless of who won.

Max listened to other give their reasons for wanting to join and even thought he didn't like it he would prefer that JC stayed and didn't put himself in mortal danger by joining them on their quest to the underworld. At first he agreed with him on wanting Sentinel to come since he was Kyrptonian and had the muscle to help fight off any monsters that the dark domain might throw at them, but Pistolera did have a point that being a mystic realm could have lots of magic which could be deadly for the hero. JC also gave a good defense for his plan, Sentinel had a bad habit of bringing too much attention to himself and with things as bad as this, that was the last thing that they needed. Of course Evan had to start an argument with JC even when things were already really bad and they were probably the most wanted fugitives in the country right now. Max angrily walked up Evan and glared at the demigod.

"Now listen here Pretty Boy, JC has done the best that he could with you Super-Jerks screwing up left and right! You, Sentinel and Accelerate are all power with no fucking brains when it comes to being a team. You may be the son of Aphrodite, but you definitely ain't the son of Athena so don't you dare speak for the entire team like a wise ass! I have a normal family and unlike you this whole mess has completely turned my life upside down. So right now I'm sick of you or anyone else wanting to let their bitch ass attitude fuck up the team more! So put an end to this bitching until this shit is resolved" he said in an infuriated voice. Max didn't care how angry he made the demigod, he was too mad to think his words through and just wanted to vent. He then breathed in and out heavily to calm down a bit before casting his vote.

"I am grateful for Pistolera putting an end to the carnage and giving us a place to escape to in this whole horrid business, but I am voting for JC as leader, he was able to keep focused in a horrible crisis and kept my spirit up in the face of death. That's leadership qualities to me because there's more to being a leader than just thinking about the plan, there's also guiding and caring for the team like family. JC has proved this in my opinion" Max said giving JC a nod. In truth he thought this whole leadership squabble was wasting time, but if they were going to vote then he would vote for who he thought was best to lead the way in this terrible crisis.

He was a little bit surprised that Rhea had voted for Pistolera over JC, but it was her decision and he respected that. Now all that was left was for the others to cast their votes and see who would be sitting in the rough leadership chair. The thought of him being leader had crossed his mind, but right now he couldn't see himself putting up with extra drama at a time like this.

Zane was sitting down, he listened as his teammates bickered over one thing or another not really ironing out a single thing. Then when the mention of who should be leader come to discussion Zane perked up.

Zane could lead the pros and cons with each of the two candidates. Pistolera had more experience than JC, but the girl had a mean streak in her and she repeatably stated that she planed to lave them on numerous occasion. The question was posed right there; Did she even want to be on the team? Zane never disliked her, he really did not dislike anyone one on the team, but her skills as a team player were in question.

Then there was JC, he said that Rose left him as the leader. Zane felt that that had to count as something, and he did work with what he had during the whole "zombie" fiasco. If only there was a way that they could keep both of them because if JC does get voted leader then Pistolera would surly leave having no investments in the team anymore. Both of them are assets to the team and if one leaves everything will be incomplete.

"My vote goes to Pistolera, she is the only one who has made any sense in this whole mess." Pistolera had a calculated mind and knew what needed to be done. Although JC had been inspiring, and that might be needed some time, Pistolera really had the mind set to make sure the team would be safe and make good decisions, at least until the Luther threat blew over.

Rufus and Sentinel had been speeding across the country for roughly twenty minutes when they would arrive in Star City, the two blurs would find their way to the secret base, the address Rhea had given them. Rufus had spent a moment looking for Microbat, but he was no where to be seen. He hoped he was still alive, but if he wasn't.. Rufus couldn't say he was going to lose any sleep over it. As he and the Kryptonian were about to approach the hideout, Rufus stopped, putting his hand on Isaac's shoulder to signal him to stop as well. Once the two came to a halt in a alley where they could duck away from public view

"I don't feel right about any of this. Use your super senses and figure out what's going on, both with the team and in the surroundings. I don't wanna risk bringing Luthor right to the team if we can help it. You gotta be our eyes and ears." Accelerate told the Kryptonian, he wasn't angry anymore, and he knew that if he kept reminding Isaac about how shitty he had performed, it would achieve nothing but make the boy snap, and then they would have another citywide genocide on their hands.

While Isaac was listening, Rufus got his phone out of a pocket in his pants, opening the phone up the screen lit black and blue, running a program that made his phone damn near untraceable. A drop of sweat rolled down his forehead as he went through the list of contacts. Starting with A as in Allen, but ending on G for Garrick. As he clicked Jay's name, his hand twitched for a moment as he wrote a text message at super speed. He needed to get something from the league, and he couldn't exactly light a bat signal or press his watch to call the big guns.

JC was pushed back by the Amazon's finger and forced himself not to punch himself in the face in the middle of his speech or even afterwards. It certainly wouldn't have made the others vote for him as their leader. Then the voting began with Evan starting it off with Pistolera. He figured that was the route he was going to go. Evan for some reason didn't like him and seemed to favor Simone despite the two acting the same when it came to trying to lead the team. You'd think he'd owe him the vote after violating him at the tower. JC was unsure as to why the thought even came to his mind right now.

Max immediately came to his defense and told Evan off and gave him his first vote. He wasn't surprised by the vote, but he was surprised by him standing up for him. He seemed to be the type to stand back in silence while everyone yelled at each other. This was a different side of him. Then again he also yelled back at the tower while they were trying to figure everything out before their tower was attacked by the zombies. The next thing that happened was unexpected.

Rhea walked over to him and took his hand in hers. It caused him to lightly blush. This wasn't something he was used to. JC had never experienced a simple sign of affection or closeness from anyone before. That just wasn't how he lived his life or how he was raised. It did explain why he had been emotionally distant before and he was hoping to return to that soon. He was confident that Rhea would be voting for him. She too came to his defense and was talking like she fully supported him fully. When she revealed that she was voting for Simone instead his facial expression changed causing him to form a hint of a frown. The red in his cheeks also started to fade. He was now feeling more surprised and disappointed than anything else at the moment. Things weren't looking good for him as he was now losing this two to one.

Then another vote came for Pistolera. When the majority of those present finished supporting Pistolera he looked around at the others and sighed. "Back at the tower I said that when we voted for leadership I'd gladly step down. That was before shit hit the fan. Now I'm just keeping my pride in tact and proudly stepping down." He now fully turned to Pistolera and assumed that she'd follow Evan's suggestion of keeping the both of them out of Tartarus despite there now no longer being a dispute of leadership. If that was the case then they still needed to figure out who would follow Evan there and who would remain here. "So now that, that's settled, what's the plan now?"

Part of JC was relieved that he no longer had to talk as much again, yell their battle cry, or worry about leading the others. They had their gun slinging vigilante for that now. Another part of him would miss it, but that was a very small part. The rest of him was thinking about... it was nothing.

Sentinel spent the next twenty minutes in total silence. There was a lot on his mind; mostly all the things that had happened in such a short time frame. The team had only been together for a few weeks. Not even a month. Yet so much had happened. There was the battle with Lobo and the alien mech suit, that ended with Isaac taking matters into his own hands and screwing things up, as per freakin' usual. The city being invaded by an army of what was assumed to be zombies, yet turned out to be normal people who had been transformed into life sucking parasites. These same parasites caused the deaths of Lock and Load. Sentinel hadn't know the girls very well, but...But he had watched them die. They were totally torn apart. Limb from limb, blood flowing like a river of gore. Sia's intestines had been scattered across the floor of the T-Wing when one of the creatures ripped her stomach open. Gem had all of her limbs and her head forcefully pulled from her body, bone snapped and broken by the inhuman strength of the monsters. Oh God... Sentinel thought. He nearly tripped over a rock as his mind wandered to the horrific details of his fellow Titans' deaths. At least the asshole who had started it all was dead. Simone made sure of that; one clean shot, from the safety and comfort of the vents; where she doubtlessly hid, undetected, without telling her teammates where she was. Not telling them they could hide. Maybe...Maybe if Pistolera hadn't run off-

Focus. Remember your mission.

The mission. More like a fool's errand. President Luthor had declared the Teen Titans enemies of the United States once it was revealed that the beings that had attacked San Francisco were humans underneath all of the fangs, claws and blood. The Titans had been attacked, and they defended themselves accordingly. But of course, it's all their fault. A bunch of stupid teenagers should have known the difference between zombies you can save and zombies you can't save! It's so simple! They obviously committed mass murder on purpose. That has to be it. Logically speaking, of course. Sentinel wouldn't have gone berserk at the brutal murder of his friends unless he knew that he was killing a bunch of innocent people. Right? NO! NOT RIGHT! NOT RIGHT AT ALL! I had no idea what I was doing. If I had known- if I had the smallest inkling that they were still aliv-

Who am I kidding?

I'm a murderer.

Sentinel and Accelerate had arrived in Star City. The home of the famous hero, Green Arrow: the world's greatest archer. Maybe we'll run into him while we're here? Sentinel thought, his mind allowing a small, minuscule piece of hope escape into the front of the Kryptonians consciousness. He could help us. If he's anything like Kara describes, Green Arrow wouldn't waste a chance to give Luthor's regime the finger by helping out a bunch of teen fugitives. As the heroes got closer to their destination, Rufus signaled Sentinel to stop. Kid Krypto begrudgingly complied. He'd had a minute to let his depression die down. Now Isaac had the chance to be mad at Rufus again. What a douchebag. Isaac had poured his guts to Accelerate, hoping the speedster would see Isaac's dilemma and offer some kind of inspiring advice. Fat chance. Accelerate seemed to blame Isaac for everything that had happened. Worse, Rufus said that Sentinel had whined. I don't whine. Rufus and Isaac made their way into a nearby alley and hid away from any prying eyes.

"I don't feel right about any of this. Use your super senses and figure out what's going on, both with the team and in the surroundings. I don't wanna risk bringing Luthor right to the team if we can help it. You gotta be our eyes and ears."

So Sentinel focused.

He closed his eyes and opened his ears. Sound distorted for a moment as Isaac's mental blocks allowed Isaac access to his full power. He could hear everything. Ten blocks from where they were standing, a couple was arguing about rent. Eight blocks, a small dog was barking. The houses next to them, though? There wasn't a thing they could hide. Once Isaac filtered through the useless sounds, such as televisions, radios, and footsteps, Isaac began to work. He was listening for specific things. Whispers. Radio communication. If anyone was spying on them, he'd hear the gain from their audio equipment. Across the street, he could hear the other Titans..

"My vote goes to Pistolera, she is the only one who has made any sense in this whole mess." That was Zane. What was he talking about? Votes? "Back at the tower I said that when we voted for leadership I'd gladly step down. That was before shit hit the fan. Now I'm just keeping my pride in tact and proudly stepping down." Ah, now Sentinel understood. Sort of. There's some sort of leadership dispute, and they chose to resolve it by voting. Why didn't they wait until Rufus, Isaac, and Eric got back? Perhaps they underestimated their speed. Eric isn't exactly a speedster himself. That's gotta be it. "So now that, that's settled, what's the plan now?"

Sentinel looked back at Accelerate, placing his mental blocks back up. The tidal wave of sound became little more than a buzzing in Isaac's ear. He'd learned to ignore the buzzing when he was younger. If only it was as easy to control his emotions as it was to control his senses, Isaac could get a handle on his other powers. That's why he struggles with using too much force: emotion. When Sentinel frees himself from the binds of frustration, anger, or even livid rage, everything becomes so much clearer. So much easier to understand. To control. "We're clear." Sentinel told Rufus. He didn't bother with X-ray vision. There was actually a shower running two houses down and he didn't want to impose. "There's nothing weird nearby. Come on." Sentinel looked at all the windows and made sure no one was looking outside before he sped across the street into an alley. He switched to X-Ray vision and gave the building the once-over (although he made sure to avoid looking too far left: the house with the shower was over there) before stepping over to a nearby dumpster. He pushed the dumpster out of the way with the greatest of ease before bending down and looking at the wall. Sentinel placed a hand on one of the bricks and pushed; if he had to guess, the only way to get the brick to move was to deliberately push with all of your might. If you happened to be human, anyway.

A small, square hole opened in the wall. It was just large enough for a grown man to squeeze through. Sentinel glanced back at Accelerate before sliding into the hole. When the Kryptonian stepped out, he found himself in a three-foot tall crawl space under a stairwell. The 'hallway' led down into what appeared to be an actual room. Sentinel ducked down and made his way inside, standing to his full height of 6'1. He was in a room made entirely of metal, with a large reinforced metal door and a camera being the only thing inside. Isaac knocked on the door, stepping into clear view of the camera. "It's us!" He yelled. When someone came to the door, he stepped inside and nodded in their direction before approaching the rest of the group. "You guys heard from Eric yet?" He asked, glancing over at Rhea before quickly averting his gaze.

I promised to do better...Then I go and attack the military. Rao, she must be so disappointed. I promised her and my uncle that I'd straighten myself out.

Well. That was unexpected.

Not the voting as such. Hell, I knew something like that was gonna rear it's head. Can't have more than one boss in a group, not if you don't want everything jumping into shitcreek, sans paddle and canoe. And seeing as we're a group of teenage superheroes our leadership dispute was never gonna be settled by a bloody coup. So there was always gonna be a vote, sooner or later. The surprising thing is that I got any votes at all, never mind enough to God damn win!

Yeah, I reckoned when the kids finally did figure to put the issue at head, I'd end up loosing in a landslide, then maybe getting booted offa the team for good measure.

Instead here I am, the new boss. The wind blows in some real funny directions at times.

Well, I can honestly say I'm speechless. This has thrown me for'a loop, worse than the alien brawls, zombie invasion, or becoming public enemies ever did. I'm half aware of J.C stepping down, and only just aware enough of it to be thankful for it. In his position I'm not sure I'd be half as graceful in defeat.

"So now that, that's settled, what's the plan now?"

Whelp, this is it. Time for me to put my money where my mouth is.

". . .Now," I begin, just to get interrupted by Sentinel as he and Accelerate enter. Despite myself I'm pleased to see him. After all, he's a pillar of my new team.

"We haven't heard from Eric. I had hoped he was with you both. Obviously not the case, and I'm afraid it's not a priority right now." I dive into explaining what's happened to the two latecomers, leaving nothing out.

". . . So now we just figure out who goes with Evan, and who stays here." I've already repeated to Sentinel why I think he should stay here, and hope he doesn't argue against it, knowing how much he wants to do right by those he 'killed'. "Ideally I'd send Accelerate, Stunt-Devil and Cell with Amazon. Rhea and Max have both already volunteered, but considering the gravity of the situation I wont order you to go with them Rufus. It might be a one way trip."

I wait to see if the speedster will bite.

Rhea closed her eyes as JC stepped down as leader and Smokey took up the banner to continue leading them in the near future. Indeed, it was unfathomable how mature their decisions were as of the moment; they were mere teens, they had no obligation to wade through this river of pressure. Still, as her eyes surveyed the remains of their team, Rhea, from the back, couldn't help but smile at the blessing of it all. With the trip to the underworld inevitable, this might be the last time she'd see this many familiar faces in a single room-- at least, for this lifetime. She was about to congratulate Smokey when, suddenly, a voice called out from the hideout's door. Normally, it would have been a cause for alarm, but the voice that echoed came from someone she knew quite so dearly-- even if it was just for a single night. Rhea ventured over to the door, softly opening it as Sentinel and Tulip came into view. These two were one of the most powerful in their team, so, it didn't come as a surprise to see them uninjured or unsullied. However, one look at Sentinel gave Rhea the idea that, perhaps, his injuries weren't so much physical; he had a lot of incisions and wounds... in his heart and mind. The pained look he gave her, which he hastily averted, was a clear sign of such a damage, and while she was no mind reader, it didn't take much to notice that Sentinel was blaming himself more than Luthor.

Nimbly, she approached the penitent guardian. Rhea stood before the man who towered over her quite so easily, however, instead of feeling intimidated, she felt at ease. However, as she saw his face, the horrors and terrors of the clashes at the tower resurfaced in her mind: the twins' death, their tower being bombarded with loaded shells, and many more nightmares that left her mind in shambles. The heads that she had severed, the children she had killed, and all the blood that she swam through-- she wanted to blame it all on him. It was human nature to always put the blame on someone; to cleanse oneself from the guilt of having done something terrible. This sickening nature was teeming inside her heart, threatening Rhea to release her loathing and frustration. Anger and bitterness boiled within her, but, when she saw him-- his vulnerability and true remorse-- she found it impossible to be angry at someone who just wanted to help. It wasn't his fault that the world was too fragile for him. It was nigh on impractical to resent someone who genuinely cared. In all honesty, the only person that could be blamed for the ones she killed was the one who wielded the sword.

With a smile, Rhea got on her toes and held her fingers near Sentinel's forehead. Then, she softly flicked the teen's forehead-- probably not even enough to make him feel what she just did. They were kindred souls, or so Rhea liked to believe. They had made thousands upon thousands of mistakes in their lives. In all probability, Sentinel could have been traumatized with all the people he had killed. It was sad to watch him bleed inside. "Welcome back to the team, Sentinel." Rhea chuckled, caressing the lad's face with her right hand. Instantly, the memory of her seeing him that night resurfaced, reminding Rhea of why she was his friend in the first place. "Ya tried so hard today, din't ya, Sentinel?" Rhea grinned before patting his shoulder. "Thanks fer nev'r givin' up." They were both damaged one way or another. Rhea stepped back, her bloodstained robe fluttering softly. "Just 'cus ye stumbled dun mean dat yer lost... right? I be glad dat ye didn't lose yer way." Her eyes went over to Tulip, a look of relief forming on her face. "I'm glad to be seein' dat yer both fine and dandy, Tulip." she grinned. "Ye might be gettin' slow, Tulip. It took ya a while to be reachin' 'ere." The healer teasingly added. It's been a while since she had seen the speedster and though the same anger wanted to blame him for leaving them, again, she couldn't blame those who just wanted to help. "I'm happy. I really am."

Suddenly, Smokey began to relay the plan to the rest of the group, reminding Rhea that she wasn't long for this team. True, she was going with Skelly and Teapot 2.0 into the underworld-- Tulip if given. More or less, the underworld won't be too kind to them. Sentinel and Tulip didn't know yet where they were going, but by the way that Smokey said it, it was quite obvious that it wouldn't be a walk in the park. Most probably, she wasn't coming back home. This was probably the last time she would talk to them; this was probably the last time she would talk to him. Well, what was she supposed to say? See you soon? See you in the future? Without a word, she took his hands in hers, sighing softly in the process. "'till we be meetin' again." Rhea beamed.

I never even got the chance to know your real name. But, I guess, that's what makes life interesting. The thrill of when I can know the name of a friend. I can't wait for the next lifetime!

With that, Rhea took her place beside Teapot 2.0, her sword hoisted slightly on her shoulder. "I guess we dun 'ave much of a choice, now do we? I be believin' dat wid Smokey's leadership, we be redeemin' ourselves from our mistake." she spoke with a gentle tone. "This is what we trained for. We'll make this right as rain."

Good. Her grammar book helped a lot!

You know, I never knew how fun flying was until I could do it myself. That feeling of freedom as you soar through the air, the wind rushing past so fast that your eyes start to water; I never could have imagined it if not for my powers. Man, do I love them. I speed towards Star City, a stream of fire trailing behind me, and I shout in elation, a loud “WOO-HOO!”, heard by nothing but the flock of birds that glide alongside me.

The city’s silent as I land on a building, among the tallest there, and cast my gaze over skyline, searching. My suit’s HUD system springs to life, the orange display like something out of a Halo game, showing me my location and vitals, as well as something much more important: my music library.

“Play 'the Bomb',” I command, and the system obliges, blaring Pigeon John’s voice into my ears. Commencing obligatory head bobbing, I scan the cityscape again, taking in the lights and the ever changing noise. As I pass over the Grell Street Bridge, an urgent beep sounds, momentarily interrupting the song. I growl in annoyance, before noticing that the HUD’s highlighted something-- underneath the bridge. In the top right corner of the display, eight magic words appear; EIGHT HEAT SIGNATURES DETECTED. SEVEN METAHUMANS. ONE HUMAN. The Teen Titans. Bingo.

I’m willing to bet that if anyone has answers, it’s them.

“Volume up,” I say, and tip over the edge of the rooftop, once again in flight. I reach the Grell Street Bridge in under thirty seconds. I conclude that I’m awesome. I then conclude that I’m kind of stupid. What would've happened if Luthor’s guys spotted me?

I find the entrance to the Titans’ hideout in an alley, next to a dumpster that, by the looks of it, had been pushed out of the way. Where it had been was an opening, just large enough to fit through, a gaping hole of black among brick and mortar. “Well,” I say to myself, “This makes things easier. Music off.” Pigeon John shuts up, and I plunge into the darkness, walking and crawling, eventually emerging in a cosy metal room, complete with a camera and a door, reinforced. It heartens me to see that they remembered to shut this one.

Knock, knock, knock.

“I hope I’m not interrupting,” I announce, “But I need some help.”

My eyes find the security camera. “It's about Luke Nelson. Sandstorm. He’s gone missing, and I need your help. Help me find my friend.”