134Disclaimer/Summary: See chapter one.
Note: Holy smokes guys!
Happy Reading, Enjoy!
Chapter 15: Pain Consumed Their Senses
An Amazon war cry ripped through the air as Wonder Woman dived towards the man dressed in all black, but mid flight another figure smashed into her sending both of them careening to the earth. When they landed the road dislodged itself and pieces went in every direction. They skidded to a halt twenty yards down the street, tearing apart the asphalt as they went. When they finally stopped Diana struggled to pull herself to her feet. Blood ran down half her face and there were numerous open wounds scattered across her skin.
Swaying on her feet Diana watched as the man who'd hit her stand, their eyes met and he chuckled, "Not exactly a wonder woman are you?"
Diana blinked blood out of her eyes, but was too slow to react as he came at her with a length of twisted rod iron. She could only stagger back, looking down to see the metal sticking out of her stomach. The man laughed as she fell to her knees, "Such a waste." The man brought his leg up hard and fast, his foot connecting with the underside of her chin. Her head snapped back and blood sprayed from her mouth.
– Hours Earlier –
The WatchTower was eerily silent, the scream that had echoed seemed to have cast a spell over the space station.
The med-bay doors opened and Nightwing raced down the metal hallways with Green Lantern following moments after, one just trying to get out as fast as he could while the other trailed behind to keep an eye on the first.
Within the med-bay, behind the darkened windows and a heavily locked the door, twelve heroes watched in horror as a medical team failed yet again to get an EKG reading. They watched as their comrade's body was racked with increasing voltage, his limbs shaking violently as his back arched off the bed before falling back lifelessly.
Wally sat curled into a corner with his mask pulled back and his head buried in his knees as he rocked himself back and forth, his shoulder's shaking with sobs.
Zatanna and Inza were in a similar state to Wally, neither fairing better than the other. Though Zatanna was slumped against the wall in a defeated position staring blankly at the lights, tears streaming down her face, her eyes glowing slightly as she chanted some sort of magical prayer.
J'onn was directing the other medical personnel, trying desperately to save his friend. His commands were harsh and direct, his tone angry and accusing when the personal hesitated in the slightest.
Barbra was wheeling herself to and fro, a blank, wide-eyed expression staring down at her feet as she rolled back and forth in a rhythmic pattern.
After their third attempt the medical team paused; two of the doctors trying to get a read of Batman's vitals. They we're having difficultly hearing anything with their stethoscopes do to Diana's incessant screaming. The Amazon princess was being held back by Superman and Shayera as she yelled at the personnel to "do something other than stand around!" her screams were interrupted by numerous Ancient Grecian swears and curses that she spat with venom. Her entire body was straining to get out of Shayera and Clark's hold, her hair billowing around her in a mess of tresses, tears streaming down her cheeks as she screamed herself hoarse.
Clark too was crying and even though his strength was equal to Diana's he was having a hard time keeping her from ripping apart the medical personnel who continued to switch their attention between the crazed Amazon and the lifeless body before them.
The team tried yet again to restart the Batman's heart, but nothing came from the EKG monitor. One of the doctors turned to the other heroes, his bad news written across his face. "I'm sorry.."
Diana's scream of "No" was echoed by the others, and she went limp against Clark and Shayera and pulled them to the cold floor as she went.
Tim stumbled backwards, his back hitting the doors which slid open upon contract, he fell backwards but turned just in time to catch himself; pushing off the floor he blindly ran, not once looking back. In a similar state Inza hurried out of the room blurry eyed and shaking her head as she went, Kent was quick to follow, worried for his wife's emotional state.
The sobs of heroes echoed in the room and Wally's repeated "No. No. No. No." accompanied the tears that flooded the room.
J'onn leaned over the body of their friend, his eyes glowing orange and his frame shaking. He pushed the medical personnel to the floor when they approached the bed. One assistant was thrown into the crash cart and took two others with him.
The room shook and those still standing looked around, their eyes eventually resting on Diana who was pounding her fists into the metal floor. She brought her fists down again and again, the metal bending and breaking beneath her hands, the screeching of it echoing in the room. She continued to smash into the floor until her hands bled, and once she'd broken through the thick sheet she began to rip it from the framing beneath.
Donna reached for her sister's shoulder, but Diana's left hand grabbed Donna's and flipped her over her head, throwing her into the far wall. "DON'T TOUCH ME!" Diana screamed at the top of her lungs.
The frightened medical personnel were the only ones to notice the med-bay door sliding open and Green Arrow entering the room. His expression changed as he took in the tears, Wally's repetitious "no's," Barbra's blank face, Donna slumped against the dented far wall, Clark and Shayera's struggle to stop Diana's rage, and finally to the body lying still on the bed. The color drained from Green Arrow's face and he had to grab the wall for support. "No.." he croaked.
Shayera was the only hero to take notice of Green Arrow, she turned to him, eyes rimmed in red and swollen skin. "What?" Her voice was low, almost a whisper, so unlike her usually strong, brash tone.
It took a moment for her words to sink in, but Green Arrow finally spoke, "We have a positive I.D. on two of the guys that had been in Sitka."
No one could react in time for Diana's response. The Amazon whipped around so fast it was as though she'd used the Speed Force. Her eyes were ablaze with raw fury, her hair wild around her face. In the split second after she'd turned around she was out of the room with an Amazon war cry falling from her lips and her first three steps denting the floor.
She was followed by Shayera, Jason, Cass, and Zatanna; Shayera tearing after her first, rage fueling every pump of her wings. They found Diana holding a purple clad deck hand by the collar, their noses practically touching as she yelled obscenities at him. Diana threw the man into a control panel and stood on one of the teleportation circles, others came to his aid while Mr. Terrific realized just how blinded by rage the Amazon was; he quickly transported the princess only to turn and find four more heroes standing before him, wrath written across their faces.
Transporting the others only took moments and once they were gone Terrific helped a medical team get Jacob, the man who'd been in Diana's way, onto a gurney. Glancing around Terrific saw the terror in everyone's eyes.
Reseating himself Terrific opened the link between himself and the heroes already on location, "Watchtower 2-Alpha; Light, Hawkman, do you read me?"
"Yes." "Ay."
"You've got two heavy hitters, two magicians, and a bat, transporting in, they've arrived now."
"Goo—hiya!-we need the help, these guys are tough, and more keep showing up." Dr. Light responded, the sounds of a fight echoing in the background.
"It's not as good as you think. Stay out of their way."
"What are you taking about Terrific?" Hawkman questioned. "On you're left Light!"
One of the personnel at the next panel over opened the street cameras onto Terrific's screen and he watched wide eyed as the five heroes entered the fray. "Stay out of their way! I Repeat: Stay Out Of Their Way!"
"What do you—by Ra's Might?!"
"Hawkman?! Hawkman what's happening?!"
"-blast-not responding—going- -serk-"
The line cut to an obnoxious buzzing, and Terrific stood, flipping from street camera to street camera trying to get an idea of what was going on, but very little was visible in regards to the battle that he knew was happening.
The line suddenly cut open again. "-rrific! Send- -elp! -backup-iately!"
"What is going on down there?"
"-reinforcements-dozen- buildings—send backup."
"Repeat, Hawkman repeat."
"They've sent –inforcements, about twelve—count-we need help, these –are metahuman."
"Sending help now." Terrific gave a number of commands to the others at the panels and began contacting the heavy hitters that were still on planet and available. "Where's Superman?!"
"Med-bay sir!" One of the men answered.
"Go get him, and send any other heroes this way, we've got a Class A in New York." Terrific's eyes never left the screens before him as he continued to give commands and communicating with heroes on the ground. It wasn't until he felt the familiar presence of Superman that he tore his eyes away from the monitors. The Man of Steel's eyes were framed in red and he looked weak, but his eyes raged.
"What is happening?"
"The men who hit Stika and Nightwing have been spotted in New York, we've a number of heroes there now, however these men have superhuman abilities." Terrific thought he saw red flash through the Kryptonian's eyes, but said nothing of it.
Superman's jaw popped and the grinding of his teeth echoing off the monitors, "Send me there now."
Terrific nodded.
"Wait!"
Terrific paused as Donna alighted on the platform next to Superman, the Man of Steel gave him a sharp nod and Terrific sent their particles bouncing through space.
The two powerhouses appeared in Times Square to find heroes engaged in combat all over. But it did not look like the Justice League was winning, nor did it look like they'd be winning anytime soon.
Etrigan was wrestling with one man, they were rolling through the street destroying everything in their path. The demon's teeth were sunk deep into the man's neck, but he had a grip on the demon's throat. Cyborg and Booster Gold were being tossed at each other, the men throwing them trying to smash their faces together. Zatanna was sprinting across the sky on glowing steps as two men launched themselves after her, jumping again and again, getting closer and closer with each leap.
A Thanagarian war cry was cut short as Hawkgirl was snatched out of the air. The man who held her dropping back to the earth, not bothering to stop her from slamming into the road. He then adjusted his grip on her ankle and swung her into a building on the other side of the street. Screams of civilians could be heard as her figure disappeared into the building.
Donna moved just in time, but Superman was a moment too late and his shoulder was clipped by a man who was thrown. Both heroes watched as the body uprooted the road, creating a massive trail of debris as he went. Their attention turned to the figure following close behind.
Flying faster than they'd ever seen was Diana, and as she approached she didn't slow, she slammed right into the body of the man and grabbed him by the throat lifting him into the air. "Tell Me Where He Is!" The voice of the Amazon was pure fire, she sounded like Hades himself, ready to deliver the man to hell. The man chuckled, blood dripping from his chin, and before Diana could question him further she vanished.
Out of nowhere a black blur smashed into the side of the Amazon causing her to let go of the man, and disappear, along with her assailant, through a wall in a cloud of dust. And a split second later Superman felt his feet leave the ground and heard, more than felt, the crumbling of brick, his attention now on his attacker he looked over the man who was picking himself up.
He wore all black like the others, was broad shouldered and had an arsenal of artificial superhuman abilities that Clark was waiting to test. The Man of Steel lifted himself from the rubble and gave the man in black no time to react as he repaid the favor of destroying another brick wall.
"Mr. Terrific, sir, you need to look at this."
Terrific turned to the voice and found one of the assistant monitor hands, watching a live feed. "Put it on the main screen."
"-evacuating all of Manhattan and most of Brooklyn. This is getting out of hand and fast. The Justice League are here, but it seems the fight has escalated far more quickly than anyone anticipated. These men, who ever, they are appear to have super strength and are faster than the average man. As you can see from our helicopter the city is being destroyed faster than the people are evacuating-"
Terrific muted the monitor and reached for the intercom, "Silver-4, Yellow-5, and Yellow-9, report to the teleporters immediately! We have a Class-A evac." He only had to wait seconds, but it seemed as though the heroes walked from the opposite end of the WatchTower. Once they were all on the teleporting platforms, Terrific briefed them. "We've got over a dozen meta-humans down there, most of our heavy hitters are there as well, but these guys seem intent on destroy as much as they can, and if not, they just like smashing things. This is one of the most populated areas in the city, you get people out as fast as you can. I don't care how you do it, just get them out. The current safety zone is Riverdale."
Terrific watched the three teams vanish before turning back to the screen to see an ariel of the war zone, six blocks of road and buildings were in the process of being destroyed, and the circle of battle was expanding. The men in black were leaping between battles, trading opponents or smashing them together.
"Sir, we've got calls in from Norway, Japan, and Egypt, they're offering their assistance."
Terrific turned to the tech, "Put them on the screen." Straightening Terrific watched as six faces appeared on the monitors, the three Norwegians were massive, the single Japanese hero had a deadly looking staff, and the two Egyptians appeared to have powers based in magic. "Norway take to the others in the main battle, Japan given any assistance. Egypt can you provide cover for the evacuation?"
Two techs quickly translated for the non-english speaking heroes and they all responded with affirmations. Terrific gave the order for transport and returned his attention to the monitors.
"Sir, another incoming transmission."
"Screen four." Terrific directed. The Atom appeared on the screen, he was breathing heavily and he appeared to be someplace very dark, though a green light illuminated his masked face. "Atom."
"Mr. Terrific," the Atom took a breath, "We figured it out."
"Figured what out?"
"The-" he looked off screen and spoked quickly and quietly to someone, he turned back to Terrific, "The toxin, we also think we know what their plan is." Atom paused, then launched into an explanation, "The toxin is not a toxin at all, it's a bacteria. It parallels Bacillus anthracis, but ratherthan focusing onthe epidermallayers andthealveoli andtakingaffect immediatelyit-"
"Atom!" The scientists paused, "Slow down man!"
"He's saying its similar to anthrax."
Terrific turned to the Barbra who had wheeled up to the monitors, "You're telling me these people are bio terrorists?!"
Atom nodded, affirming Terrific's question, "Yes."
"If it's not anthrax then what is it?" Barbra asked pushing up her glasses, "Is it not acting the same way?"
Atom turned to the young woman, "They've forced evolution on the bacteria, falsified evolution; we only discovered this when Alfred was able to hack into the file Batman created. They've created six new spices that attack different parts of the body, each with different temporal behaviors. We've just finished developing an anti-bacteria that breakdowns two of the main proteins within two of these sub-spices."
"Similar to the edema and lethal factor," Barbra asked, Atom nodded. Barbra followed up, "I assume the others cannot function without it?"
"One of the spices relies heavily on the two we've created an anti-bacteria for, but it should be enough to cause two of the other spices to go dormant, hopefully we will be able to develop an anti-bacteria for those before they become active again."
Terrific paused, "What about the sixth sub-spices, you said their were six, but your anti-bacteria will only stop five."
Atom shook his head, "We don't know how to stop it, but we think by delaying the others, we can buy more time for finding an anti-bacteria for that spices. It's all we have right now. Obsidian just requested transport so he can deliver what we've developed to Batman. He should be arriving shortly."
Terrific held his breath and looked to Barbra who had closed her eyes, "He's gone."
"What?"
Barbra took a deep, shuddering breath and Atom looked between her and Terrific, Terrific met his eyes and shook his head. As though he was a balloon, Atom deflated; his shoulders dropped, his breathing became slow, and his spark seemed as though it had been snuffed.
Terrific would have liked to give Atom more time to process the information, but there was a small war tearing apart New York. "You said you knew what their plan was?"
Atom cleared his throat and turned to Terrific, "While we were working the Bat computers were doing facial recognition searches and they were able to pin-point three of the the men who'd been in Sitka."
Terrific nodded, "Yeah, their destroying New York as we speak, we're having a hard time containing them."
"We know," Atom added more hurriedly, "These three men were dressed as civilians, we think they plan on bombing the evacuation zone with this new bio weapon."
Terrific whipped around to the techs, "I need a telepath STAT! And someone find me the Flash." The men and women in purple suits furiously began working.
"Mr. Terrific sir, I have one in Brazil, level three."
"Another two in Russia, and one in South Korea; levels two, three, and one respectively."
"I need a level five!"
"Nearest one I have is a level four in Bolivia."
Terrific looked from tech to tech, but none of them seemed to have any hits.
"Sir, I expanded the parameters, she's a level five but not strictly a telepath, she's in D.C. at the moment."
Terrific stood behind the tech, "Get me comms."
The tech's fingers flew across the keyboard, "This is Watchtower 2-Alpha, go if you can hear me." Static filtered through the speakers, and the tech quickly attempted to find a connection, "This is Watchtower 2-Alpha, go if you can hear me."
"This is Raven, go for Watchtower."
"Raven, it's Terrific, I need you in Riverdale, we need you to search for three men who plan to bomb the evacuation site with a bio weapon."
"How many people are currently at the evacuation site?"
"The majority of Manhattan." There was a long pause on the other end. "Raven?"
"I'm still here Watchtower. For that many people I'll need an amplifier of some sort, or a power source."
"Get me Dr. Fate."
"This is Watchtower 2-Alpha to Dr. Fate, go if you can hear me."
"I read you Watchtower."
"Fate, it's Terrific, I need you in Riverdale assisting Raven, we're scanning for three bio terrorists if not more."
"On my way."
"Raven, Fate is headed your way, do you need transport."
"Yes."
Terrific nodded to another tech, "Go for transport."
"Transport one."
"Has anyone found the Flash?"
"No sir."
"Get me on the intercom."
"Sir!" Again the techs turned back to their screens diligently working. "Sir, you're go for intercoms."
"Flash, we need you on deck, we have a potential terrorists attack-" Terrific cut the intercom when he heard the signature woosh of the Speedster.
The Speedster was hunched over, lacking his characteristic vibrance. "What's up?" The usually lively voice was hoarse and slow.
Terrific turned to the Flash who's skin just below his mask was red, as though it had been continually rubbed. "You're going to Riverdale, I have Raven and Fate currently scanning the evacuation site for the bio terrorists, we need you to take them out and find their bombs."
The Flash nodded and cleared his throat, "I'm on it." The Speedster zipped over to a transporter and vanished in a blue beam.
Wally found himself in a crowd of people and immediately zipped to a rooftop. "Watchtower 2-Alpha to Flash, you have comms with Raven and Dr. Fate. Can you confirm?"
"This is Raven to Watchtower, Dr. Fate and I will communicate with the Flash using a telepathic connection, the comm chatter will limit concentration."
"Watchtower to Raven, we read you. Watchtower to Flash, keep us posted."
"Will do Watchtower." The Flash scanned the growing crowds of people as more arrived via the evacuation teams or the rail systems. Wally felt a slight nudge at his subconscious, but as soon as he felt it it was gone. "X-ray vision would be very convenient right now," Wally muttered to himself.
"Watchtower to Flash, check food markets, schools, and stadiums for any potential threats."
"On it." Wally began to race from place to place, searching every small space he could find.
"Wally, there is a woman just outside of the downtown bus station, black coat, jeans, yellow handbag." Raven's voice in his head caused Wally to skid to a halt, but at her words he shot off. Upon reaching the station he found the woman.
"Flash to Watchtower, I have one. What do I do with her?"
"Watchtower to Flash, the evacuation shuttles have tracer supplies, use them to tag the suspects and we'll transport them to the MetroTower."
"Got it," Flash zipped into the nearest shuttle and quickly found the box of tracers, removing one from it's small sleeve, he ran past the woman carefully placing the small device without her notice, a moment later she vanished, and only a few people seemed to question her disappearance.
"Wally, I've located two more." Two visions appeared before Wally's eyes and he quickly tracked down the two suspects.
It seemed like a lifetime before Raven contacted him again, "Flash I've found—no! Stop!"
"Raven!?"
"Wally you hold your breath and tag those people, the man released his dosage."
"Flash to Watchtower I'm tagging affected people, they need quarantine, I'm also tagging the suspect."
"Watchtower to Flash, we read you."
"Raven, Fate, stop as many of them as you can, use any means necessary. And Flash, don't stop."
"On it Terrific." Terrific watched from his monitor as a large group of people vanished near a coffee shop. "Keep the MetroTower updated. And do we have any word on the message to D.C.?"
"They received the message and are sending their anthrax scientists to the MetroTower, we've also alerted Atom, and connected him with them as well."
"Good, get me New York on monitors two, three and four; I want the MetroTower on five and six," Terrific switched his attention back to the footage of New York. He watched through a traffic camera as Vixen charged a man in black.
Glass shattered, bouncing off of Vixen's spiritual armor, but embedding itself into the man. "I've always loved the fight in you colored girls," the man chuckled, pushing himself to his feet.
Vixen roared, charging again, the man reacted and stepped to the right. As Vixen attempted to correct her course a hand clamped down on the back of her neck and she struggled against her own momentum as the man hurled her back into the street. Vixen felt her skin burn as the asphalt tore at it; hissing she rolled over and pushed herself up.
Moving her leg underneath her to stand, Vixen's world went white, spots of all colors danced before her eyes and then sound and pain consumed her senses. Trying to blink away the spots Vixen could see stone crumbling around her, and felt, more than saw, the mass the held her down. Vixen's world quickly faded to black as she realized that even though she'd never been hit by a train, Aquaman was about as heavy as one.
Arthur quickly lifted himself from the stone, and found his soft landing was actually a teammate, lifting the woman the king quickly assessed her state of unconscious. Knowing what his knee had connected with on his plummet to the earth, the fish king hefted the woman over his shoulder and jumped through the nearest window. Screams echoed and Arthur rested his comrade against a desk and sprinted back the way he came, yelling over his shoulder, "Keep an eye on her!"
As he sprinted back down the street Arthur gathered the water beneath the streets, allowing it to flow as he ran. Cutting through a side street he used the gathered sewer water to launch himself to the roof of a nearby building.
Catching his breath behind a billboard Arthur watched as Wonder Woman placed her heeled boots onto a man's back forcing a two footed kick that caused the man to arc in an unnatural way, before slamming face first into the ground. The raged Amazon used a booted foot to lift the man off the ground, and spun around to delivered a round house kick causing the man to crash into a building. A scream emitted from the building and Arthur spotted a young girl, clad in only a pink leotard and tutu, cowering by the opening in the wall. The beam above her creaked and fell, the girl tumbled backwards and Aquaman shot forward, but Diana beat him to the young girl.
"Andrea!"
Diana whipped around to see two adults, presumably the girl's parents leaning over the beam trying to find their daughter. Diana turned back to the girl and her heart stopped. Though dirt and dust covered her face, and tears tracked down her cheeks Diana recognized the girl as her daughter from the alleyway, the one who'd died in her and Bruce's arms.
It was only her trained warrior that spotted the man in time to curl her body around the girl to protect her from the impact. The force of the man bulldozing into them caused the two of them to roll, Diana felt her head clip concrete, and twisted to her left to avoid crashing into a burning vehicle. Diana untangled herself from the girl, and pushed off to meet the man head on. Diana brought her hand under the man's elbow and forced his fist into his own face, she continued her movement causing his arm to swing over his shoulder. With her other hand she reached around his back, grabbed his wrist and yanked, flipping the man onto his back whilst dislocating his shoulder.
A sharp scream sounded behind her and she watched as another figure ran towards Andrea with a bloodied crowbar, Diana made to save her but found the man with the dislocated shoulder gripping her ankle. Diana watched in horror as the other man closed in on Andrea.
As the man on the ground gave her ankle a yank flinging her backwards, Diana saw a flash of green and blue, and then Andrea was gone and the other man swung at air.
Arthur twisted the girl in his arms around and ripped a drain from the ground, he dropped her into the hole and ignored her crying as he rejoined the battle.
Nightwing flew past Arthur, with two charged bully sticks raised, the dark protege dropped one arm and landed on a man in black. The shock was delivered to the man's shoulder and pelvis. As the convulsions slowed Nightwing wrapped his legs around the man's neck and gripped a leg with his hands bringing the man to ground in one swift movement.
Arthur paused as Nightwing flew by him again, this time in the opposite direction, he turned to face the man in black but another bat had already engaged the man in combat, and for a third time Nightwing passed Arthur, this time on foot. The dark hero tossed the female bat a long staff.
Cass caught the staff as she received a kick to her side. Using the weapon as a support she was able to reroute her momentum and land on both feet. The man tore an axel off an overturned car and swung it like a sword, Cass spun her staff and meet the attack, she dropped to a knee, spun around while pushing back to her feet and caught the man across the jaw with the staff. Dick followed with a kick, but the man was able to dodge it; continuing Dick threw three punches forcing the man backwards. Cass caught the man's elbow before it smashed into her jaw and pushed against it with all her strength. The older bat knocked the man's legs from underneath him and Cass swung to her left in an almost full circle, smashing his face with the end of her staff.
Dick leapt at his adopted sister, pushing both of them out of the way of the falling debris that buried the man they'd just been fighting. Following the trajectory of the rubble was Diana, locked in combat with two men in black. She held a length of cable in one hand and a katana in the other.
One of the men stood with a length of chain and threw it towards Diana who dodged whilst catching the chain. She reeled the chain in, bringing the man forward; once he was close enough she released her grip and jumped up, only to bring her foot down on the top of his head. Whipping the chain around she caught the man in his own weapon and swung him towards his partner. The other man dodged, and leaped behind Diana, swinging his two fists like a wrecking ball. Diana ducked, but the man still clipped her shoulder, lifting her arm she was able to block the chain that was aimed for her right side.
Diana dove underneath the man's legs and used a vertical split kick to drive her heel into the back of his head. The man stumbled forward, but Diana wasn't fast enough for the other man who kicked her, his foot connected with her spine forcing her forward. The man caught her by her hair before she fell and flung her into a building. Both men leapt after the heroine as she disappeared into the building, but they found she had passed through the entire building and was lying prone on the opposite street. One of the men leapt from the build, aiming to smash her head in with a two footed stomp. Diana rolled out of the way, but the man quickly followed and she could not dodge the kick to her chest. The air was forced from her lungs and the Amazon wheezed. The man stomped his foot again and the asphalt gave beneath her, crumbling at the force exerted onto it.
A flash of grey and the weight disappeared, Diana quickly got to her feet and saw Shayera wrestling with the man who'd nearly crushed her. Diana launched herself into the air, roaring as Shayera vanished into a cloud of dust and debris. Diving towards the man who was stalking towards Shayera, Diana noticed a moment too late as the man with the chain knocked her from the air. Skidding to a halt on the next street over, Diana attempted to shake the spots from her eyes and clear the blood from her vision. Swaying where she stood, the man with the chain stood, a smirk pulling his lips up.
"Not exactly a wonder woman are you?"
Diana grunted, wishing her lungs didn't burn and the blood would stop dripping into her eyes. There was a flash of black and a small laugh and Diana tried to make sense of the situation. Glancing down she saw a thick piece of rod iron sticking from her gut. Blinking heavily Diana tried to process what had happened, she took an unsteady step backwards and fell to her knees. The man before grew fuzzy and the noise around her became muted. She watched as the man approached her, his face going in and out of focus. Squinting Diana watched his lips move, and then she was looking at the sky, wondering why it was growing so dark, she could have sworn it was mid afternoon.
Obsidian leapt from the docking ramp of the javelin before it was even halfway extended, he hurried passed the men and women in purple his only focus the quickest route to the medical bay from the hanger. Obsidian dare not merge with the shadows to quicken his journey, not wanting to risk the large crate he carried with him, thus he was on foot ignoring all greetings and focused solely on his mission.
The med-bay doors were closed, but Obsidian used his abilities to open the door, within two medical staff stopped when the doors slid open and allowed him to enter.
"No one is aloud in here."
"I am." Obsidian replied pushing past both men.
"Sir!" They called after him.
He continued to ignore them and found the door to Batman's room to be locked, and from the inside no less. Obsidian placed his luggage on the floor and became one with the shadows, only to separate again when he was on the inside, he forced the door open and retrieved the crate once again.
"You are not allowed in here!" a doctor claimed loudly.
"See if I care, you-" Obsidian paused, and for a moment the Shadow Realm threatened to consume him whole. The only bed in the room had a white sheet pulled over it, the shape beneath it very still, but very human. The machines around the bed were being disconnected and three men were working to clean and prepare them for future use. "No!"
"Sir, please, you are not supposed to be here."
Obsidian brushed off the hand that rested on his shoulder and approached the bed, he reached out and curled his fingers around a corner of the sheet near the person's feet.
"Sir."
With the flick of his wrist the occupant was exposed and the white material fluttered to the floor. It was a scene from a horror story that lie upon the bed. The skin was ghost pale; pink, old angry scars contrasted heavily with the colorless skin, and the open wounds were yellow and green and smelled of rotting flesh was putrid, their infection still spreading.
Obsidian felt himself begin to move, he watched as his hands turned back to the crate and opened it, as he began to pull equipment from the box and connect wires and tubes to the machines that were being shutdown. He searched through the room until he found an ultrasound and brought it alongside the bed. Reaching for a large, thick needle, Obsidian turned the ultrasound on and began to run it over one of the limp arms.
"Sir! I must insist you stop, have some respect for the dead!"
Obsidian turned on the man and the shadows in the room grew and began to swallow the light. "Out!" he roared, "If none of you will help I want you out!" When no one move Obsidian plunged the room into darkness and began forcibly removing people from the room.
"Wait! I'll help you!"
The shadows retreated and four people remained in the room with him, "Which of you said that?" A redhead raised her hand. "The rest of you out!"
Two of the men could not leave the room fast enough but one stayed, "I will help as well."
"I'm Francie. What are you doing," The woman asked pushing her sleeves up, and pulling gloves on, she moved toward the ultrasound.
"Batman has a arteriovenous fistula* someplace in his arm, he has it clamped off, I need to remove the clamp." (*an area where a vein and artery have joined and mix blood)
"You're going to use dialysis?" the man asked.
Obsidian nodded.
"I'll help find the AV, Jacob you can prep the dialysis better than I can." The woman said rubbing gel onto the pale arm.
Obsidian moved back to the create and pulled out a tube in a padded sleeve, he carefully handed it to Jacob, "Replace what ever filter system you have with this."
"Uh.. are you sure.."
"Yes!" Obsidian snapped the shadows in the room flaring.
"I think I've found it," Francie said pointing out a rounded object on the screen. Obsidian nodded and assisted her in cleaning the dead arm. Though the iodine was strong, the smell of rotting flesh was still overpowering.
The woman slipped a small prop under the arm to lift it higher, she turned to Obsidian, scalpel poised in her hand. "I've never done something this deep before."
"It doesn't matter, just cut."
Blood oozed beneath the blade as it broke through the epidermis and into the muscle, but since the heart was no longer pumping blood, the flow was minimal. Upon shift a tendon the hand twitched and made the woman jump. She pressed the blade further into the arm and was met by something hard, "I think I've found it."
She placed the blade to the side and pulled the flesh open and buried beneath the layers a small silver clamp reflected a beam of life, Obsidian used clamps and a pair of medical pliers to removed the cinch. He was not as careful as he should have been but he was focused on doing it quickly. The silver piece dropped into the try with a small clink and the large needle Obsidian had held before took its place, stabbed into the AV. The woman allowed the flesh to fold back into place, careful that it didn't jostle the needle out of the AV.
"Is the dialysis ready?"
"Almost," Jacob said from behind the machine.
The woman changed gloves and moved to assist Jacob while Obsidian pulled two bags of fluid from the crate and hung them, he quickly stabbed the IV lines into veins on the opposite arm. One bag looked to be blood, the other held a clear liquid with an orange-red tint. Next Obsidian pulled a box from the crate, within was what looked like a piece of tire. It was rectangular in shape and moved with the liquid that contained it.
"Are you nearly done?"
"Yes, let me just replug in the internal power cables and put the door back on." A moment later Jacob wheeled the machine towards the right side of the bed, and he and Francie began connecting the machine to the others, and finally to the AV needle that stuck out of the white arm.
"Were ready," the woman said with a curt nod.
"Good, begin."
Jacob flipped three switches and waited for the machine to hum, before lifting a plastic box that covered the final switch. He hit the last one and they watched as blood began to flow from the white arm and into the machine and then back out another IV and into the pale body.
They stood silently watching, but a moment later the doors opened and they turned to see Terrific in the doorway, "What are you doing Obsidian?"
"Saving his life."
"He's gone."
"If you're here to stop me-" the shadows in the room danced and swelled, the light it the room still shining brightly but the darkness absorbing most of it, "-you will find that to be a deedless task."
Obsidian turned back to the two hands, "How long will it take for all of the blood to be filtered?"
"Usually four hours."
Obsidian shook his head, "Increase the speed of the filtration. He's dead, his body won't know the difference."
Jacob looked to Francie who nodded, he turned three of the knobs and the humming of the machine grew louder.
Obsidian grabbed the AED cart and brought it to the other side of the bed, he turned the machine on. Grabbing the bag with the clear, red-orange liquid he removed the clamp allowing the fluid to flow faster. The bag's content level began to visibly decrease. Obsidian looked to the clock on the wall, and glanced at Terrific who still hadn't left the room.
As the last of five minutes passed Obsidian moved his eyes from the wall and took the AED paddles from their resting positions. Before any of the room's other occupants could even question him the pad were on the still chest and releasing a shock to the body. The body arched off the table and the limbs twitched. When the body came to a complete still Obsidian repeated the process. And then again.
Terrific jumped forward and grabbed the man's arms before he could do it a fourth time. "What the hell are you doing? He's gone!"
"I'm ensuring the blood is being pumped."
"..by artificially inducing heart beats and muscle contractions." Terrific questioned.
"Exactly."
Terrific stared between the man and then to the lifeless body.
The woman spoke softly, "What is the harm, if we do not try he will simply remain as dead as he is."
Terrific released Obsidian and swallowed hard, since the face was covered it was easy to not identify the person as Batman, but now the truth sunk in, this time settling in his gut and his heart. Swallowing a again Terrific gave the woman the barest of nods flinching as the paddles met the chest once again.
Terrific counted twenty-three shocks delivered to the body. twenty-three times he flinched and had to look away from the body that moved on its owe accord.
Obsidian tossed the paddles aside, one hanging precariously from the machine it was attached to. He pulled on thick rubber gloves and opened the long box containing the tire looking object, he carefully picked up the thick sheet and allowed some of the excess water to drip back into the box.
"What is that?" the woman asked as he approached the bed.
Obsidian adjusted his grip and just as he made to place the thing on the still chest he answered, "A vesicle of box jellyfish venom."
Three looks of horror mirrored one another "NO!", but it was too late. Obsidian had flattened the sheet against the chest, before removing it moments later and discarding it on the floor. The man gathered the AED paddles, and poised them over the chest, before pressing them down once again. The voltage surged through the body and the limbs quivered..
To be continued…
Note: So I lied, the next chapter will be the last and I am already halfway done with it. Thank you to everyone who has stuck with this, you are a amazing and I'm sorry I suck so much.
-Jopo :)