The Watchtower's control room hummed with a palpable tension. The air was thick with frustration and helplessness. Awkgirl, her shoulders trembling, gripped her mace so tightly her knuckles turned white. Suddenly, in a burst of impotent rage, she swung it down onto a command console, shattering it in a shower of sparks.
Awkgirl, her voice cracking with anger and anguish: "What are we waiting for?! We all know it was Queen Bee who took him! He's out there, and we're just standing here doing nothing?!"
Batman, immobile as a statue, his voice low and sharp: "We know. But Bialya is a sovereign nation. An unauthorized intervention is an act of war."
Awkgirl, her eyes glistening with unshed tears: "Authorization? Utopian is one of us! Have you forgotten how many times he had our backs on Thanagar? There, when one of our own is captured, we don't debate, we fly to the rescue! We crush those who took him!"
Superman, his face etched with profound weariness, tried to reason with her: "Shayera... We are not on Thanagar. Here, the rules are different."
Awkgirl, turning on him, wounded: "How dare you say that to me, Clark? Do you even remember that he saved your life against Parasite? And he held your post, without a single complaint, when Lobo had captured you! And today, we abandon him to rules?!"
Green Lantern, trying to soothe tempers, his voice filled with regret: "Awkgirl... we're all sorry. Truly. But these laws... as hard as they are... we have to respect them. It's what sets us apart from them."
Flash stared at his feet, unable to find the words. Martian Manhunter, his gaze lost in the void, maintained a heavy silence, his shame and powerlessness visible in his hunched posture.
Wonder Woman, crossing her arms with cold determination, said in a cutting voice: "Damn it. Men and their endless laws. They paralyze us when we should be acting."
Batman, after a long silence, detached himself from the shadows. His tone was final. "Enough. I'll see what I can do. I have a contact. But for that... I need to be alone."
---
The Gotham cold bit into the stone. In a fine drizzle, Batman, more shadow than man, waited, motionless. An elegant man emerged from the darkness, his sharp silhouette contrasting with the grimy gloom of the alley. Floyd Lawton, dressed in a blood-red leather jacket, black pants, and a blue shirt, his eyepatch giving him the air of a modern-day pirate.
Deadshot, his voice a cynical drawl: "So? What brings you back to my neighborhood, Batman? A little problem too dirty for the Justice League's white gloves?"
Without a word, Batman handed him a thick envelope.
Batman, in a grave murmur: "Take it. Enough money to disappear. A new, clean life. For you and for Zoe."
Floyd opened the envelope, scanned the documents. A glint of surprise, quickly suppressed, crossed his one visible eye.
Deadshot, an eyebrow raised, his voice slightly less detached: "Damn... What do you want in exchange? It must be huge."
Batman, tilting his head slightly, the white lenses of his cowl piercing the gloom: "Infiltrate Queen Bee's main base in Bialya. Find Utopian. And get him out. Whatever it takes."
A slow, dangerous smile spread across Floyd Lawton's lips. He slipped the envelope inside his jacket.
Deadshot, with a dark chuckle: "You're completely insane, you know that? ... Damn, I love it."