NOVEL NEXT Chapter 18: The Fallen
(Watchtower)
(Two Weeks Later)
Batman sat down in the seat that used to be Clark's, and gathered around the table were the founding members of the league that were still able to be deployed. He looked around seeing Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, Cyborg and Martian Manhunter, he breathed in deeply before starting the meeting "J'onn have you got anything to report?" He asked with a slightly defeated tone, he scratched his face feeling the beard that had started to grow unchecked.
J'onn looked positively morose "Arthur is still in a coma, the Atlantians transported him back to Atlantis a few days ago, his Trident managed to slice a gash on his heart it is a miracle he isn't dead" he stated.
"Barry is well but Nolan completely shattered his kneecap, he'll need quite an advanced surgery and lots of rehabilitation to get back into fighting form" J'onn continued.
"Does he not have a healing factor? Should he not be able to heal from that given time" Cyborg asked from across the table, however, J'onn shook his head "There would need to be bones left for Barry to heal, Nolan completely shattered it nearly grinding his bone into powder, the surgery he'll undergo is extremely experimental and involves growing new bone from his DNA and grafting it into his skeleton" he explained and Cyborg nodded in understanding.
Diana turned to Batman "How is Kal doing?" She asked with concern in her voice.
Batman grits his teeth "He is still suffering from the prolonged exposure to Kryptonite, by the time we had taken the piece out he was already experiencing massive organ failure, he is currently hibernating in the solar chamber... I'm not sure when he'll recover"
Diana then turned and looked at Hal "And how have you been Hal?" She asked sincerely. Hal smiled "I'm holding up, at least I don't have to use a prosthetic," he said with a humourless laugh as he showed off his new arm that was created by using his ring but his smile quickly disappeared "You don't need to worry about me... I think I got off easy," he said with a sombre tone.
They were all silent at the meaning of his words, Batman felt them weigh on him most of all "J'onn has Shaz-... Has Billy been buried and his foster family informed?" He asked doing well to hold up his facade of indifference. But in actuality, he took the death of Billy the hardest, not only because he believed all of this to be his fault but because even if he was just a child Shazam was the kind of hero that everyone should've aspired to be and he was a hero till the very end.
"Yes though Miss Marvel has been quite enraged, she's been demanding more information on what happened" J'onn stated
Batman nodded "Tell her everything she wants to know, nothing will make a difference now" he replied in a low tone.
"I believe it's time to address the elephant in the room..." Cyborg said much to the silence of the others "There are a lot of spaces that need to be filled even if only temporarily, Metropolis, Star City and Central have all lost their main protectors, and that's not to mention how the crime will increase with Gotham in its current state, and Arthur was a big part in helping stop Human Trafficking" he continued.
Batman nodded "Connor will handle Metropolis until Superman recovers or Kara can but considering her current condition I don't think that'll be anytime soon, with the rest we will have to rely on members of the junior Justice League and any others that will be able to relocate on short notice" he stated.
He then turned to Hal "Hal do you think you can contact John and see if he can come back, we could use his assistance at the moment" he asked, Hal sighed but nodded "I can try but there's no guarantee he'll be able to" he replied.
Batman then stood up "Things are going to get difficult the next few months, criminals are going to start to realise that something has happened and will get bolder, make sure everyone is on high alert and working overtime I'll pay for any expenses they need," he said to the others who all nodded in affirmation "Then this meeting is adjourned," he said before heading out of the room.
He walked down the corridors silently making his way to the living quarters, he opened the door to his own and walked inside, the room was Spartan and barely lived in you'd think it was unoccupied. Batman walked to the adjoined bathroom and stood in front of the mirror placing his hands on the sink, he took down his cowl and ran the tap to wash his face.
He looked up at his own reflection, the most prominent feature were the bags around his bloodshot eyes "AGHHHH" He shouted as he threw his fist through the mirror again and again until his knuckles were bloody, he then put his cowl back on and left the bathroom.
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Harley found herself waking up in a dry and humid place, she was drowsy and immediately recognised she'd been drugged with something, she tried to stand up but found herself collapsing as she tried. She noticed she wasn't wearing the clothing she had on before and instead was wearing a satin skirt that covered her front and behind but left her thighs open, she also had a bra with beads running off it. She looked like a belly dancer 'Heh I bet Marky would love this one' she thought to herself though she quickly shook those thoughts off as she came to a realisation.
"THAT MOTHERFUCKER LEFT ME Again!!!" She shouted as she tried standing up once again banging her head on the ceiling as she did "Ow!" She moaned as she rubbed her head, she looked up and finally realised that she was in a small cage, not only that but there were numerous numbers of cages and all of them had people in them ranging from adults to children, men and women. She even saw animals that she'd never seen before and some that she was pretty sure were extinct 'Is that a Tasmanian Tiger?' She thought to herself as she saw the animal lying down in a cage of its own "That's so cool!" She said out loud with wide eyes.
"Ugh, Harley can you please shut the fuck up!" A woman in a cage next to her shouted as she threw a pebble that hit her in her forehead.
Harley turned around to give this upstart a piece of her mind until she saw who it is "Oh Frosty? I haven't seen you in a minute, I thought you were still getting fucked by Waller" she said with a manic laugh.
Caitlin Snow AKA Killer Frost an Ex-member of the suicide squad, she pushed herself up from the floor to her cage and gave Harley and annoyed look "We don't all have crazy boyfriends that'll break us out unfortunately" she replied.
Harley scowled "I'll have you know buster that me and Jerker are no longer associated!!!" She said as she crossed her arms and stuck out her tongue.
Killer Frost sighed "Whatever," she said before lying back down with her hands behind her head. Harley looked around "So Frosty where are we anyway? This place is a bit of a shithole" she said as she pushed herself up to her knees.
Killer Frost shrugged "Beats me I just know it's someplace warm I barely need to absorb any heat here" she stated.
Harley continued looking around until her gaze drifted to the cell next to hers. Inside of it was a girl who looked to be no older than eighteen, she had shoulder-length black silky hair and was clearly of Asian descent, she was quite short though Harley couldn't tell how short she was as she had her legs tucked too her chest "What's her deal?" Harley asks Killer Frost who shrugs once again "No clue, girl hasn't said a word the entire time I've been here, not even to our captors" she replied.
Harley crawled to the side of her cage, she noticed how the girl's eyes followed her as she did "Heya I'm Harleen Quinzel nice to meetcha!" She said as she held her hand through the bar to shake the girl's hand, though the girl didn't say anything and made no effort to move to return the gesture. Eventually, Harley huffed "Rude!" She said before sitting back down in her cage, she didn't know how much time passed but she was getting incredibly bored 'I can't believe Mark left me... he promised he wouldn't' she thought to herself as she stared at the ceiling.
"Well if he thinks I'll let him off easily he's got another thing coming!!! That's right buster Harley is gonna make your life a nightmare once she's free" She said aloud with a sadistic grin on her face, Killer Frost just rolled her eyes listening to Harley seemingly have a conversation with herself. However they were both snapped out of their thoughts when they heard a door slam, they both sat up and looked ahead to see a group of three people walking towards him.
Harley immediately snarled as she recognised one of them immediately "You better watch out Deadstroke 'cause I'll kill ya once I get out of here!!!" She shouted as she shook the bars to her cage.
Deathstroke had no notable reaction other than to chuckle at her before going back to ignoring her, the other two men she didn't recognise. One was a tanned man with a beard and receding hairline, he wore an army officer's uniform and had a ceremonial sword at his belt. The other one was a large man in a suit with a square haircut "As you can see Colonel Harjavti, we've managed to acquire quite the selection of women, I'm sure a man of your wealth will be looking to the auction" The large man said with a grin on his face.
Colonel Harjavti laughed "Indeed Mr Mannheim, you have brought together quite the collection but if I am honest with you I am more interested in the arms you've managed to collect, there are very few sources where one can acquire extra-terrestrial weaponry" he said as he rubbed his chin. Though he then caught Harley's eye "However you do seem to have quite the lovely specimen right here" he said with a lecherous grin
Harley scoffed "Yeah right! You'll be a cock and balls less if you try and touch these goods" she said as she ran her hands down her body.
Colonel Harjavti frowned "Though her attitude could use an adjustment" he said, Mr Mannheim grinned and took a remote out of his pocket and pressed a button on it.
*Bzzzt*
Harley collapsed to the ground and started shaking as she was being shocked by a device she hadn't realised was around her neck "Fucking assholes!!!" she groaned as Mannheim stopped shocking her and put the remote back in his pocket.
"Not to worry Colonel, all of our products will be suitably trained before we give them to you unless you wish to train them yourself that is" Mannheim stated. Colonel Harjavti nodded as his interest was suddenly renewed "I think I'd like to go and see the weaponry now, as this auction is taking place in my country I'd like to make sure there is nothing too dangerous" he said with a vile look on his face.
The group walked out slamming the door behind them leaving Harley and everyone else in the room with minimal light. Harley lay on the floor of her cage as she struggled to move, her muscles had seized up and she felt numb across her entire body, this wasn't like any electric shock she'd ever felt before and she'd been tasered a lot. She felt herself drifting back off to sleep with her last thoughts being on the absolute asshole that left her, though she found that she still wanted to see him again.
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"You've failed Mark, you are weak and pathetic a complete disappointment" Nolan shouted as he kicked Mark across the street. Mark coughed up blood as he looked around, the members of the Justice League were all dead around him with blood and body parts littered everywhere.
He then looked back up at Nolan who had a bloodthirsty grin on his face, in his left hand he had Mark's mother Debbie and in his right, he had Kara "You can't protect anyone!" He shouted as he crushed his mother's throat with enough power to make her head burst open. Mark started to scream but heard no sound come out of his mouth, he tried to move but his body felt like it weighed a million tons and it seemed all but impossible.
Nolan then pulled Kara close and put both hands on each side of her head, Mark could see the fear in her eyes as Nolan started to squeeze and pull, and a few seconds later he ripped her head straight off her body with her spine still attached. Mark was still screaming though even now no sound came out, Nolan then approached Mark kicking him onto his back and mounting him, he then hit Mark in the face with Kara's head.
*THUD*
*THUD*
*THUD*
Mark is repeatedly beaten with Kara's decapitated head and he is unable to even raise his arms to defend himself. All he can do is scream.
"AHHHHH" Mark opens his eyes and wakes up breathing heavily, he crushes the handles of the medical bed he is in almost tearing them off as he looks around. His whole body was aching in pain and his throat felt like he'd just swallowed a kilo of sand "Mark! Calm down it's okay" he heard from next to him, he instinctively moved away when he felt someone grab his shoulder but when he saw who it was he relaxed and felt himself almost cry out in relief.
Kara felt tears escape her eyes as Mark woke up and she couldn't help but hug him tightly, something tang he eagerly returned "I thought you were dead..." she whispered as her tears wet Mark's shoulder.
Mark held her tightly as well as this was the first time he'd seen Kara in a long time and he was overjoyed, he was also glad he wasn't dead, though when the memories of what happened started rushing in her couldn't help but feel the situation overwhelm him slightly and he started to cry as well. Kara rubbed his back "It's okay, I'm here now" she whispered as she held him closely before getting into bed with him.
Mark allowed himself to relax as they held each other, though he was slightly disturbed when he felt someone get into bed behind him though relaxed slightly as it seemed Kara knew who it was "Not now Kori!" She whispered loudly but it seemed 'Kori' didn't listen and joined in on the hugging session which confused Mark but a lot of him didn't really care. So he just lay there and enjoyed it.
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Randall just walked back into his apartment building after it was finally opened again after the police investigated the explosion that happened on the top floor "Damn crazy bitch what the fuck is that clown playing at" he said to himself as he got into the elevator and pressed the button for his floor.
Randall lived in the same building as Harley, she was actually his Landlord and so when he got kicked out of his place by the police department as the top of the building had been taken off he wasn't very happy, none of the residents were, it didn't help that a lot of the people who lived here were criminals or had active warrants.
Randall spent the whole journey in the elevator cursing Harley until the door dinged and opened, as he stepped out onto his floor he noticed the hallway was pitch black the only light being the flicking hallway light, at the end of the corridor.
*Splash*
Randall frowned as his foot splashed into something as he walked out into the hallway "You gotta be fucking with me, a fucking flood and our landlord is AWOL" he almost sent his fist into the wall he was so mad. Not just the flood but this entire place stunk badly, If Harley wasn't such a crazy bitch he'd definitely give her a piece of his mind and maybe even his cock too.
As he walked down the hallway to his room he saw a pale thin man standing at the end of the hallway just under the flickering light, he wore a large sombrero and had a stereo in one hand, he lifted it up before pressing the button on it.
*El Jarabe Tapatio*
Randall looked at him in confusion as he started playing the Mexican music, he was just about to tell the guy to fuck off or there would be trouble before the music abruptly stopped. The flickering light then went out and the hallway was left in complete darkness "Hey!!! What the fuck do you think you're playing at!!!" Randall shouted as he started instinctively backing away as he clenched his fists.
"Do you like Jokes HaHaHaHaAhah!" A voice echoed out from the dark along with a crazy sounding laughter.
"I've just come from holiday and heard quite a few good ones, tell me if you've heard this one before" the voice continued as it started to get closer to Randall.
"What has four legs and one arm?" He continued.
"A Pitbull in a play area, HaHAHaHahAhAhhHahH!!!" The stranger laughed manically as he got closer and closer to Randall. Suddenly the footsteps started to pick up and Randall started to back up faster and faster until he fell over and landed on the ground with a splash. The footsteps suddenly stopped and Randall pushed himself up and tried to find his way back to the lift, but he couldn't see anything "Have a nice trip!!!" The voice said from right behind him and he felt himself get shoved.
Randall tumbled down the stairs cracking his head breaking one of his legs and passing out. When Randall woke up again his vision was blurry but when it cleared up he realised he was in his apartment, when he tried to move he felt a shooting pain come from his hands. Randall started to scream when he realised he'd been nailed to the wall, however, his terror only increased as he saw the man wearing the sombrero who he now recognised, he had a purple suit on and a pale face with green hair and red lipstick with a crazy grin on his face.
"Now... Mr Randall, I have a few questions I'd like to ask you about your landlord, though feel free not to answer straight away I love myself a challenge" He said, as he pulled a sharp needle out before impaling it into one of Randall's finger joints.
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"
"HAHAHAAHAHAHAHAHAHAH"
(AN: So it's the start of the next Arc I think I'll just call this the Underground Auction Arc. Lots of stuff I'll be happening. Tbh I don't think it'll be as long as the previous Arc but the intros are usually longer. We shall see how it goes. I'm sure a few of you will recognise the important characters involved and will see where I'm going with this.)
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