Enter: Oracle

[newoutsiders]

Trouble at the docks again. Steph just phoned in. So much for Damian "settling things there once and for all." There was apparently an explosion. She can handle it, you tell yourself. You've got a lot more pressing things to worry about.

You take another sip of coffee as you trace some shelled bank accounts to Bialya. If you're right, there's a secret European war being funded by some major US corporations, and no one but 12 people on Earth even knows it's happening. You just need a little more-

You doze off for a quarter of a second before perking up. You've been awake for 50 hours now, and you haven't moved an inch. Since the Justice League took off and you took charge, things have been busier than they've ever been. But you can't stop. Everyone is counting on you.

Your main monitor blinks with the notification of an incoming video call. It's the League Watchtower.

Comments

[jlf_oracle]

Babs cuts the power before he can say anything else. The Flash will be fine; he can vibrate through the wall.

That's the thing about the Justice League: they all sign up tp be self-rescuing princesses.

[newoutsiders]

You recall that after the incident where Luthor and Wally swapped brains, Bruce took measures to ensure the satellite was resistant to such vibration. You manage to cut the stored power access, but you can't really turn off solar.

[jlf_oracle]

Okay. Well, that isn't great but the control room isn't exactly small. It's designed to accomodate literal titans, so The Flash has a few hours to figure something out. It's more important to reclaim the Watchtower... and its weapons.

"I'm not the one who claims to be trapped with a pissed off Nightwing," Babas replies.

[newoutsiders]

"Pissed off? Ha!" You're getting real tired of that laugh. A laugh which is starting to sound awfully familiar, in its childlike glee. "No, no, no, Oracle. You misunderstand. Nightwing and me, we're not playing the same game as me and you. You're playing against me. Nightwing's been playing with me! He's so much fun. Do you have any idea how much he trusts you? How much he trusts anyone claiming to be you? It's kind of sweet, really."

[jlf_oracle]

Babs rolls her eyes. If this guy is under the impression that Dick - any Dick - is naive, he's just lucky he's not in traction.

Dick trusts her up to the point where she has a mission he doesn't know about, which given how long they've know each other has happened a lot.

"Do you want the Hickory or not?"

[newoutsiders]

"Of course! Then, whatever routine you last used to access the doors is yours again. BUT ONLY the doors," he added. "Isn't this fun? I get to fire you from the Justice League, twice in two days."

The chuckling gives way to a giggle, and that's all you need to place it. Metropolis's own Winslow Schott- better known as the Toyman.

[jlf_oracle]

Well that's just great. At least he's not a meta, but he's more than capable of mass destruction.

And if Schott somehow got his hands on Tornado... it's not looking good.

[newoutsiders]

"A-hem," Toyman says theatrically. "The co-ordinates?"

[jlf_oracle]

"They're all ready for your underling to pick up, as promised."

[newoutsiders]

"Fantastic! And here are your doors back. Enjoy retirement! I'm sure the League has a great pension plan."

He hangs up on you, and delivers control of the doors, as promised... just as you've managed to untangle that second camera array on the Hickory. On the ship itself, you have footage of some men you identify as part of Riddler's outfit, led, strangely enough, by Pallbearer- a tall, albino metahuman, formerly a Meta-Brawl champion and most recently majordomo to the late, exploded Solomon Grundy.

As for the Batcomputer it links up to, you find a great deal of interesting encrypted content- easy enough to crack open- concerning the daily operations and projected expansion of the Red Hood gang.

Well, that's perfect. On top of everything else, now Jason Todd is involved.

Maybe it's time you give him a call.

[jlf_oracle]

Oracle and Red Hood: http://thenewoutsiders.dreamwidth.org/1809.html?thread=236817#cmt236817