Mercy swallowed as her chin was lifted forcibly on the point of a beam of concentrated light emanating from Lytner's finger. It was leaving a mild burn on her flesh.
"Mr. Luthor expects total cooperation from now on," he told her.
"He's not - " She winced. "Not usually this obvious."
"You won't tell the police," Luminus pointed out with a sneer. "They'll find out you hired me the first time. I have proof of our arrangement, remember? Your credibility will be shot, and Luthor will look like the victim of a smear campaign."
He was right, and she berated herself for it.
"Hey, I don't like the guy either," Lytner added. "He didn't exactly make this job easy for me. So why don't you just give him his money? If people find out you set him up, he'll win for sure."
"Because it's my fucking company now," she hissed.
"Koriand'r!!"
Luminus swiveled around at the noise behind them. The light snuffed out below Mercy's jawline, and she nearly fell to the floor. "What the - " he murmured as he moved back into the living room where Starfire lay.
Raven looked down at Koriand'r, horrified, her small form nearly hidden by her billowing purple cape. Once the golden Tamaranean's pain had penetrated a planetary atmosphere and the vacuum of space to cry out to Raven. A few hundred miles was nothing when she had been injured so grievously. Her lovely spark was there, but very faint, and Raven had to act right away.
"Where did YOU come from, little girl?"
She spun around. "Who did this?" she said, demanding even as she practically whispered.
Luminus swaggered a few steps closer. "I did," he told her. "She thought she was pretty tough - compared me to something called a xanthine bag, I think - but I took care of her. Why don't you come over here before I have to hurt you too?"
Suddenly it wasn't about neutralizing a threat. Or even healing Koriand'r. It was about retribution.
Her shadow-self poured forth from her body and reached for Luminus with hungry appendages.
Startled, Luminus fired short laser bursts into the inky darkness above Raven, but they vanished into a blackness in which it seemed light could not exist. "Hey, wait a minute," he said nervously.
Raven felt an unfamiliar emotion welling up inside of her, and yet for something so strange, it certainly feltpowerful.
"You - must - suffer."
She didn't notice how her voice had deepened, grown more masculine. She didn't even feel a third eye that appeared on her forehead and glared at Lytner with a baleful red glow.
Lytner did, however, and he would have screamed. But then he caught a glimpse of what was waiting for him in the shadows, and that made himreallyscream.
"You will be the first to suffer on this planet," Raven/Trigon told him, "and so you will suffer the most."
Mercy shrank back from where she had been watching. She pulled her knees against her chest and, in a completely uncharacteristic move, prayed that whatever that creature was, it would not see her.
Superman arrived later than he would have liked, but "Clark Kent" had been trapped in an interview, and it had taken him a long minute to get away with a semi-plausible excuse. As he entered Mercy's condo through glass doors that led onto her balcony, he took one look and realized that minute had been perhaps too long.
A young woman - he was startled to realize it was Raven, the friend of Mercy's bodyguard Starfire who he'd met once at the Watchtower - was holding Starfire with one hand. The Tamaranean was unconscious, and her feet were a few inches above the floor. He couldn't see anything visibly happening to Starfire, but he sensed great powers being expended.
More shocking was the sight of Mercy Graves huddled in a corner, and it was her Superman went to for answers. "Mercy? Mercy!"
She looked up at him with wide eyes. "Superman," she whispered. "Be careful. She's not human."
"Mercy, what happened? Flash called and said he thought you were in trouble."
"I still am," she said. She pointed back toward the living room.
Superman looked at where she was pointing and saw a man's huddled form on the floor. His dark grey outfit had allowed him to blend into the shadows. He hurried over and turned the man to face him.
Then Superman pulled back. It was Edward Lytner, but his face was twisted into an expression of abject terror. His eyes gazed sightlessly over Superman's shoulder. The Kryptonian put two fingers to Edward's neck and found a slight pulse, but he wasn't moving.
"So, one of the heroes has arrived."
Slowly Superman raised his head. Raven was looking at him. Or rather, what used to be Raven was looking at him. Her face had also been distorted, but in her case, it was the addition of a third, inhuman eye in the center of her forehead. "Raven, what's going on?" he asked calmly.
Carefully she set Koriand'r down. "She is healed," she said, and now Superman noticed that her voice had changed. There was a second, masculine voice that seemed to be speaking in unison with her own. "She will recover, although she will be very weak for some time."
"Koriand'r was hurt?"
"That pitiful excuse for a human you hold in your hands," Raven told him, gesturing at Luminus. "He attempted to kill her. He nearly succeeded, but I have repaid him. He shall live forever in the hell I have created for him, feeding me - always."
"Feeding you? Raven, I don't understand, what's happened to you?" Superman asked, standing up.
"I am more than Raven," she said. "I am my father, and my father's daughter. He shall live through me, and he shall hold sway over all he wishes."
"Right," Superman said slowly, beginning to re-evaluate the situation. "So your father did this to Luminus?"
"So shall Trigon do to everyone on this small planet," Raven promised him, but Trigon's voice had grown in volume. "To everyone who might cause hurt to the Tamaranean, who has caused hurt to her, I shall unleash an eternity of torment. None on Earth shall escape my reach. Then with the power I obtain from the conquest of Earth, I shall annihilate the Citadel and give Tamaran back to Koriand'r. She will rule again, and her oppressors will die. For I am a grateful father, and I would give my daughter what she wishes."
"Raven is a healer. She works in a hospital, healing the people who come to her," Superman replied. "She would never wish such a fate on the people of Earth. She's a human too, you know." He remembered that Raven had told them once that she was trying to escape from her father. She hadn't mentioned that she was trying to escape from herself at the same time.
Still, he couldn't use physical force yet. Raven was obviously in less than complete control here.
"Raven was born to be my vessel," Trigon replied. "If her mother had not been taken from my followers, she would never have your weak human compunctions about life and death. You see, my daughter? He judges you, like they all do."
"Raven!"
A red whirlwind that entered the ruined remains of Mercy's front door had spoken, and Raven spun around.
"Flash?" Raven asked softly.
"The fool who talks too much," Trigon growled at the same time.
They were still speaking simultaneously, but NOT saying the same thing. Either this meant Trigon wasn't yet in full control of his daughter's body, Superman realized . . . or his power had grown to the point that he could express himself telepathically.
For her well-being, he hoped it was the former.
Flash took in Raven's appearance and his eyes widened. "Raven, what happened?"
"Will your endless prattling never cease?!" Trigon boomed.
"Three words is way below average for me, bub," Flash replied.
"Uh, Flash?" Superman said.
Flash waved at him. "I got this," he said. "So you're the big bad daddy I've heard about. You've done a pretty good job of ruining your daughter's life. I'd say you're out of the running for 'Father of the Year', but I think you've still got a shot at 'Biggest Jerk in the Universe'."
"Impudent fool!"
The devouring shadow reached for him.
"NO!! You can't hurt him!""
Raven's shadow-self pulled back as the glow in her third eye dimmed.
"He must pay, like all others on this planet! Pay for what happened to your friend!"
"Hey, don't go blaming the entire population of Earth for one guy," Flash retorted. "Raven? Is she all right?"
" . . . she's going to be fine, I think. But she is unconscious, and she will probably need to remain in bed for some time. I - I don't think she'll be ready for your party."
"If we even have a party," Flash replied calmly. "The father you've feared all your life wants to destroy us all, remember?"
"But Koriand'r - "
"Is going to be fine. And you were angry, so Trigon made his move while you weren't thinking clearly. You said you're supposed to avoid strong emotions, remember?"
Raven nodded slowly.
"Besides, how do you think she'll feel if she wakes up and Earth's turned into the tenth ring of Hell? Raven?"
Raven didn't respond, as her father's powers waned and she found herself engaging in one of their many internal debates.
I can give you everything, daughter! Both of you!
And I lose Koriand'r in the process? No, father.
The eye closed and vanished, replaced once more by her smooth brow. Her shadow-self disappeared.
She looked blankly at Flash as the physical exhaustion of healing Koriand'r, as well as the mental exhaustion of briefly sharing a consciousness with Trigon, rammed into her and she collapsed.
Superman was faster than a speeding bullet, but Flash was even faster, and he caught her before she'd fallen more than a few inches.
As he let her sink gently to the floor, Raven looked past Flash at Koriand'r's sleeping form, then at Mercy Graves.She's hiding something, she thought dimly as she passed out.
"Nice job," Superman said quietly. "You may have just saved a lot of people tonight."
"I know I saved one in particular," Flash responded.
"So she was the mystery date?" Superman asked once both Koriand'r and Raven were bedded down in Mercy's bedroom and guest room. Neither woman appeared in need of medical attention, and Superman wasn't sure if an Earth doctor could treat Koriand'r's alien physiology anyway. Not to mention Raven, who was half-demon . . .
"Yeah," Flash said. "Guess the party wasn't such a great idea after all. Big surprise, huh?"
"Actually, it wasn't half-bad," Superman admitted. "Now how about we get some more answers from Mercy?"
They found Mercy still sitting in the living room, drinking coffee that was so strong, Superman could have smelled it in the lobby. "Do I need an exorcist?" she asked nervously.
"Why is Luminus trying to kill you?" Superman asked sternly.
"Why was he, anyway?" Flash added. "He's the same as he was five minutes ago."
Mercy hesitated. "I'd rather not say."
"He almost killed your bodyguard, and now he's the one in a coma. Mercy, I don't think you have a choice here."
"I doubt you want this to come out either."
Superman glared at her. "Want what?"
"It's about Lex."
"Figures," Flash said.
"WhataboutLuthor?"
"Luminus . . . he's trying to ruin Luthor's campaign."
"Excuse me?"
"He found out that my Lexcorp holdings revert back to Luthor upon my death," Mercy said. "He figured if he killed me, people would think Lex did it so he could get his hands on the company. It's common knowledge that he's not happy I haven't supported his campaign financially. Luminus still hates Lex for firing him years ago, and he liked seeing him in prison. In fact Lytner liked seeing him down so much that he didn't want Lex to ever get up again."
Superman nodded cautiously. Both "Clark" and Lois had covered his campaign, and the rumors had been flying thick about Luthor's increasing irritation with Mercy's lack of support. "Why wouldn't I want this to come out?"
Mercy gave him a flat look that suggested she'd made a complete recovery from her harrowing experience. "Because Luthor will look like the victim of a frame-up, and his numbers will go up. It's a three-way race. All he needs is what, ten points? Come on, Superman. Do you really want Luthor in charge of City Hall?"
"Luminus can't exactly deny your story, Mercy," Superman pointed out.
"Do you have abetterexplanation for why he tried Starfire and I?" Mercy shot back.
Flash leaned toward Superman. "Hey, Supes, let's talk over here for a second."
Mercy watched them leave. She was counting on Luminus' forced silence. She just needed to get Koriand'r to corroborate her story once the Tamaranean woke up.
She sighed. Then she'd have to give Luthor what he wanted. Her pride and manipulation had nearly gotten the alien killed. It was just that she be forced to swallow said pride and prostrate herself before Luthor. She'd have to let Koriand'r go, too. Mercy wouldn't need special protection any longer, and she still felt too guilty over her role in the Luminus affair.
Guilt - something she'd never felt while working for Luthor. A couple years in the office and she'd turned soft.
"I realize you have a history with Mercy," Flash was saying meanwhile, "but we've got the police downstairs waiting for our all-clear to come in and take a statement, so do we really think there's another answer to Luminus being here?"
Superman looked doubtful. "I don't like relying on Mercy's word."
"So we ask Koriand'r when she's awake. More importantly, do we really want Luthor to look like a victim because of this?"
"We can't be a party to Mercy giving false statements!"
"Superman, we can't let Luthor win either."
"He's not going to."
"He could."
"He's not! And even if he does, it's not our place to subvert the legal system. If we do that, we're on the road to becoming Justice Lords."
Flash frowned. "Yeah, I guess," he finally said.
"What about Raven?" Superman asked. "You weren't exactly surprised when you came in."
"I knew about her father, if that's what you mean. I know she's spent her own life resisting him. I also know she's denied herself happiness, even love, because she's afraid of doing something like this. Is there anything else?"
"She's dangerous with a monster like Trigon inside of her."
"So are you, speaking of the Justice Lords," Flash said quietly.
Superman scowled. "I won't become him."
"Raven doesn't want to become her father either. Can she guarantee it won't happen some day? No. But after what we saw, neither can you. Or any of us. So if you expect Raven to leave Earth or something . . ."
"That's not what I meant," Superman said sharply. "I just mean that she needs to be watched from now on."
Flash sighed and nodded. "She's my friend. I'll keep an eye on her."
"Good. In the meantime, we let Mercy know that either she tells the police the truth, or I do. The mayoral election is still several months away."
"And if Luthor wins?"
"He's not president yet," Superman said.
"Luthor for President - more ethical than Nixon," Flash muttered.
"Quite the excitement in Metropolis," J'onn said as Shayera entered.
"I just spoke to Superman. He says both Raven and Koriand'r should be all right," she said. "As for Luminus, there's a question as to whether or not he snaps out of it."
"I could enter his mind," J'onn suggested.
"Maybe we should just wait," Hawkgirl replied. "She used that power of hers on a couple of Amazons when we faced Aresia the second time, and they recovered eventually."
J'onn nodded.
"Listen, J'onn," she said hesitantly, "about what you told me the other day? About you and this woman?"
He looked embarrassed. "We - talked for a while. We had dinner. I think we will see each other again. She - she feels things for me as well. Perhaps we both need to spend more time together in order to sort our feelings out."
"That's good, J'onn, really. Look, there's something Flash was going to ask you, but I thought I would be better," she said. "He's planning this - party for the thirteenth. He wants it to be the whole Justice League, including dates. A sort of Valentine's Day party."
J'onn raised one eyebrow. "Really?"
"And he wasn't sure about what you'd say, because he figured you would be the only one without a date."
He waited for her to continue, and then he realized what she was waiting for. "No, you can't mean you think I should bring my friend?"
"Come on, J'onn, it'd be great! You said she already knows who you are, right?"
He nodded reluctantly.
"So you'd get to be with her in a social setting where you could feel comfortable in your own skin, talking about anything," Shayera pointed out. "She could see how much we all consider you a friend. And you know the others will want to meet her when they find out. Why not get it out of the way now?"
J'onn could think of a very good reason - Talia and Batman in the same room. "I'm not sure it's a good idea."
"Why not?"
He paused. He couldn't exactly tell her. "Er . . ."
She smiled. "I understand you're nervous. It's new for you, and you're unsure about introducing her to the others. But at least after she's met the whole League, she can decide if she's ready to become romantically involved with one of its members. Besides, we can all tell you what we think of her."
"I'm sure you will," he thought glumly.
"What do you think?"
J'onn couldn't think of a plausible excuse other than "Her father is Ra's al-Ghul." And really, might it be a good idea? Wasn't there a chance that he and she might be together for a long time? And if that was the case, the Leaguewouldknow sooner or later. They might accuse him of hiding the relationship!
This was not good.
"I - will see what she thinks," J'onn said, resigned.
"Great! I'll tell Flash. He was going to bring Koriand'r, but now she's injured and she might not be in shape for the party. Which is too bad, of course, but won't it be ironic if he's the only one without a date?" Her smile was almost wicked.
"Ironic," he agreed.
Oh, the irony would be rich at the party indeed.
To be continued . . .