Chapter 55

  2AM

  Deathstroke stepped off the modified Cessna aircraft, he was wearing his armor without the mask, he had cut his hair close and had shaved his beard into a sharp, precise goatee, he had a black eye patch over his missing right eye, as he stepped out a man seemed to materialize from the shadows directly in front of him.

  The man, if 1 could call still call it that, was covered from head to toe in a lightweight body armor, though Slade knew he wasn’t wearing it, but rather it was fused to his decaying flesh, his large, black, glassy eyes stared at Slade past a large, birdlike bronze nose.

  “Lead the way” Slade ordered, he didn’t expect the Talon to answer and it didn’t, instead it turned and led him toward the edge of the nearby cliff, the Talon jerked unnaturally as it walked, Slade followed it until it suddenly fell forward, its hands wrapped around a metal valve that was concealed in the grass, the hatch looked like it belonged on an old submarine but had instead been bolted to a concrete slab hidden under the dirt, the Talon twisted the valve and pulled the hatch up, Slade wasted no time stepping into the vertical tunnel.

  Slade fell 30 feet before slamming his hands and feet to the walls, his steel toes of his boots sparked against the walls, he skidded to a complete stop before letting himself drop the last 10 feet, he landed in a dimly lit cavern, the walls and ceiling were curved into a continuous half circle, it had been built under the pretense that it was to be an outlet for the sewer system but it had never been used for that purpose and had never been intended for it either, instead it was used as a meeting hall and strategy center for 1 of the worlds largest cults, a cult that had built and controlled many of the world's cities and countries for centuries, they weren’t afraid of anyone finding out about it’s true purpose as everyone who knew had died upon the tunnels completion.

  Identical images of an owl had been meticulously carved into stone outsets in the walls, the water channel had been filled in with dark red bricks, Slade down the cavern coming to a set of large, foot thick, double doors, paneled with steel and decorated with bronze, forged into swirls, owls, and trees, on either side of the doors stood a man wearing gray suits and glossy white masks that depicted the features of an owl, as Slade approached each man stepped in and took hold of the bronze door knobs and pulled them open.

  Slade stepped into the large, surprisingly well lit meeting room, it was circular with a large pit in the center, large tiered rings of black benches surrounded the pit, opposite the double doors, near the center of the rings sat a black and bronze throne with a large bronze owl with outstretched wings sat atop the back, overlooking the pit,

  “Welcome Mister Wilson” Slade looked up to see a woman walking towards him around the top ring, she was wearing a black, floor length gown, with a neckline that scooped down between her breasts, she had dark hair that cascaded over her bare shoulders, and framed a mask identical to the guards outside except hers was matte white,

  “I don’t believe we’ve met” Slade said, the woman’s eyes stayed blank behind the slits in her mask,

  Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

  “We have met, though it was before my former being ascended” Slade nodded, the woman offered a gloved hand,

  “Of course, you must be the new voice” He said, kissing her hand, she didn’t correct him.

  “Follow me, we have business to discuss” She led Slade around the room to a narrow hallway cut into the stone wall that had been concealed by the shadows, she pushed open an old, solid wooden door with faded carvings of owls etched into its surface, the room it led to was large and poorly lit, massive maps were stretched over every wall, and intricate 3D maps were set up on large concrete tables, The Voice weaved elegantly between tables and stopped at a 3D map of Metropolis,

  “The court has been attempting to get a hold on Metropolis for over a century, back before Superman showed up we had already planted our seeds, made our deals with the Shadows for the territory, but we could have never predicted his coming, and well we waited he uprooted all the seeds we had by complete accident, we saw his death as our opportunity to weed and replant, we wasted no time putting our pieces in place, and then the Titans show up out of thin air, and our plans are interrupted once again, we sent a team to test them, and the results were disappointing, but valuable, their presence poses very serious concerns for us” She explained,

  “Because of their connection to the Bat?” Slade asked, The Voice began tracing a gloved finger through the streets of Metropolis,

  “Partially, but those 2 are merely a fraction of the issue, they now employ a daughter of a shadow, who herself was trained to be a shadow, and we can’t be certain just how much she knows, Garfield Logan is also a member of their team, honestly we think even he doesn’t know he knows anything, but even the ignorant might prove dangerous, and then there’s Rachel Roth” Slade raised an eyebrow,

  “I would think that that was awfully sloppy for the court” He said, a question in his voice, The Voice shook her head,

  “That is because it wasn’t us, Blood had her, but we keep an eye on such situations, and that situation has gotten to a point where it could become inconvenient for all of us” Slade nodded his agreement,

  “So the Court just wants me to knock 'em all off, get the problem out of your way? It'll be a pretty high price pers head” He said,

  “The court has little concern over payment, in any event the court wants this dealt with more carefully, we want an example made of them, it’s actually far better if 1 or 2 of the weaker ones survive, as a warning to anybody else who may get it in their heads to be heroic, we want you to bring the Titans to the ground for the world to see” The Voice explained, Slade smiled,

  “What’s the timetable?” He asked, The Voice placed a finger on top of the small replica the Titan Tower,

  “I have been waiting over a hundred years for Metropolis, so you have the rest of your life to ensure the Titans destruction is done right” The Voice said calmly,

  “Then it’s time we talk pricing.”

  10 Minutes later Slade was in the Cessna back in the air, he sat silently in the back until the plane was steady,

  “William” He said, William twisted in his chair to look at him,

  “What is it Slade?” He asked, Slade was checking that the first payment had gone through,

  “Where’s my little princess right now?” He asked, William sighed,

  “She’s in Florida at the moment, on a contract” He answered,

  “When’s the job due” Slade asked,

  “It has to be completed by the end of the week, but she plans on executing it tomorrow morning, she said you promised her if she finished all her assignments she could take a week off, so long as she finished correctly, she plans on spending the rest of the week in Florida, she’s quite the brat” William said, his voice had an undertone of disdain,

  “As always, your complaints are noted, I’ll call her in the morning.”