Peace of the Jedi [Sequel to Sword of the Lanterns]

Chapter Twenty- Cornered

"Copy that, BC, they're on their way." Nightwing cut the transmission. "You heard the lady. Blue, Impulse, Power Ring, Lagoon Boy, Beast Boy, take the bioship and head for Taos. The rest of you, come with me. I've got something I want to show you."

-------

Jaina lived to fly, but her numerous head injuries sustained in the past month made the flight in Sphere not as enjoyable as she was accustomed to. She was grateful when Sphere landed at a smelly harbor in a city called Bludhaven, where Nightwing now operated.

Mal was ecstatic at the appearance of the building. "Perfect cover for our new digs!" He complimented Nightwing, while helping Jaina steady herself and helping Bee down and out of Sphere. "I mean, on the outside, it's downright nasty!"

Sadly, it wasn't much better on the inside.

"April fools, right? I mean, this is the team's new HQ" Where's the secret trapdoor to our real base?" He asked. For someone who'd just come from a high-tech hidden cave, moving to an old warehouse filled with rotted crates, old cots, second-hand couches, and barrels half-full of who-knows-what was definitely a step down.

"No joke, and this isn't the team's new HQ," Nightwing assured him. "For now, the team will operate out of the Hall of Justice. This is just a place to crash-" Jaina and Mal both made to protest "-a very temporary stop-gap place to crash- for those of you who were actually living at the cave!" Nightwing added.

"It's fine." Connor told him. Wolf had already settled in, claiming the couch as his own, and Sphere was attempting to blend in with the barrels. Bee, ever the curious droid, was analyzing and scanning everything in sight, even starting a sort of hide-and-seek game with Sphere between all the barrels and containers.

Nightwing led Jaina over to the curtained-off corner M'gann had already discovered. 

"Sorry about the lack of privacy girls, but this curtain'll have to do for the two of you and Jessica." He apologized. Jaina followed Connor's suspicious glance, right to M'gann. Something odd was up with her, and between her and Connor too. But neither of them were talking.

"Nuh-uh! No way!" Mal exclaimed. "I'm headed for the Hall and making my own arrangements."

Jaina looked at the thin white curtain Nightwing had provided for "privacy", rubbing it between her fingers before dropping to dangle again.

"No offense, 'Wing, I've had to stay in a lot of crappy places, but this takes the cake." She sighed. "Even if the cramped conditions wouldn't make Jess claustrophobic, Carol's been texting me non-stop since we got back inviting the two of us to stay at her apartment."

"Lucky," Mal huffed.

"It's fine, Jay. I understand."

"And what happened to Batman's resources? Couldn't you use some of his dinero to get us a better base? Or at least fix up this place?" She asked.

Nightwing scowled, staring at the floor. "I'm not Batman, Jay." He pushed past her, plugging the flash drive into the zeta-tubes on the other end of the room. Now they were ready for business

Jaina scowled at Nightwing in return, glaring at his back as he concerned himself with busy work about the crash pad. "Well you're sure acting like him," she muttered under her breath. Shaking her head. She followed Mal, M'gann, and Connor through the zeta-tubes and back to the Hall of Justice.

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Captain Marvel was a little kid. Literally, Zatanna revealed to Jaina. Poor fifteen-year-old Billy Batson's hopes of looking "cool" in front of Earth's last Green Lantern were dashed in a second as the two women laughed, helping M'gann and Connor sort through the sparse boxes of belongings. Karen had arrived to help calibrate the computers, since Batgirl and Robin were answering an alert in Gotham, and was in the middle of a conversation with Mal. By the looks on both their faces, the conversation wasn't going well for either of them.

M'gann stared off into space, flipping through a cookbook for the fifth time, almost looking like she was about to cry. Connor avoided looking at her.

"What is up with those two?" Jaina hissed to Zee.

Zatanna glanced at Superboy and Miss Martain, then shook her head. "Those two? Nobody knows. One day they were the strongest, cutest couple in the League, the next they were nothing. And they won't tell anyone why. The next thing we all know, she's dating La'gaan, who...is nice, I guess, but he's...." Zee couldn't think of the right word.

"La'gaan?" Jaina completed.

Their laughter was interrupted by Jaina's ring beeping again. 

"Extraterrestrial activity detected." It announced. 

A series of loud, robotic beeps filled the hall, turning into amateurishly translated basic.

"Greetings and salutationisms, Earth champions!" An unseen being decreed.

"Stay here," Zatanna said, following Captain Marvel out the library and out of the Hall. Of course, Jaina and her friends were covert. They didn't get to be seen. Even on the few times she'd stepped up to protect Coast City in Hal's absence, she avoided reporters and journalists. With everyone seeing her from a distance, they all though she was Hal, who had managed to grow a mullet.

Karen pulled up security feed, showing Zatanna and Captain Marvel, greeting their strange guest- a floating robot- on the front steps of the Hall of Justice.

"I am L-Ron, major-domo to the great master." The robot declared, as if they were supposed to know who his "master" was. "And you are my prisoners."

"This is Plastic Man's April Fools day joke, right?" Marvel was saying to Zatanna. "Okay Plas! You got us!" He laughed lamely. Connor facepalmed as Karen and Mal groaned.

"No," The alien robot corrected. "I have you." L-Ron depressed a button in the remote on his arm, and a red pyramidal shield settled over the Hall, trapping everyone inside.

Karen slammed her hand down on the comm button. "Bumblebee to Justice League, The Hall of Justice is under attack! Bumblebee to Watchtower, requesting backup!"

All they got in return was static, so Jaina tried next.

"Green Lantern to Justice League, Lantern to Star Sapphire, come in!" 

Nothing.

"Behold!" L-Ron raised his arms in the air as a form flickered into existence behind him like someone stepping out of a zeta-tube, a purple humanoid, with fins atop his head, almost like La'gaan's, His two eyes were a golden brown, and there was something on his forehead that Jaina couldn't quite make out.

"The Warlord Despero! Gladitorial champion of Ninety-Two star systems! (working on ninety-three now)," L-Ron whispered an aside to Marvel, then flew out of the way just in time for this "Gladitorial Champion" to punch Billy in the sucker, sending him flying through the front door and into the Hall.

L-Ron waved his arms in a theatrical display. "Let the cage match begin!"