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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2015 2:21:48 GMT
December 4, 2017 He hated being idle. Hunched over the moniter, Bruce went through the data and reports once again. Having already memorized the large details, Bruce was primarily concerned with catching the small ones now. Perhaps if he went over the evidence one more time he would be able to discover some sort of pattern that linked the recent kidnappings together. The evidence was clear. Several kidnappings had taken place over the last few months, and while Bruce was almost certain that The Light had something to do with this recent spike, he still had no idea of what The Light was actually planning. Bruce was suspicious that Lexcorp's new metahuman hospital had something to do with the kidnappings, but the hospital could just be a smokescreen to hide Lex Luthor's true plans. What worried Bruce the most was the thought of what could happen if one of the members of The Team was kidnapped, which is why he had arranged to meet Black Canary in the Watchtower Control Room. Black Canary served as a valuble mentor to The Team, and was especially skilled in training the young heroes. Hopefully he would be able to reach an agreement with her concerning the next phase of The Team's training. Of course Bruce had arrived extremely early for the meeting, which is why he had suddenly found himself with plenty of time to kill. Never one to waste a breath, Bruce had immediately began searching police records and crime reports in hope of finding a new breakthrough. His search had been fruitless thus far, but he would continue his search until Black Canary arrived. |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2015 3:31:05 GMT
Dinah had already been a little worried about the new kidnappings, even when Batman had brought it up. Dinah steeled herself before entering the room, trying to keep her head level when talking about the possibility of one of The Team being captured. She understood the risk of it happening on a textual level, but the actual fact that it might happen was a thought she psychologically didn't want to deal with. But these kids were her's to train and she lead the League so she had to have a hand in coming up with a plan.
Dinah walked into the control room, her hands in her pockets as she did. She saw that, as she expected, Batman was already pouring over a monitor. Good old Batman, always the pragmatic one. He stood there tensed, like he could turn coal into diamonds. "You're here early," Dinah began. "
Before we get started, any new leads?"
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2015 7:28:03 GMT
Batman ignored her comment about how he had arrived early, and cut directly to the point. "No", he replied, shaking his head at the moniter, "Not yet".
Wrenching himself away from the moniter, Batman turned around to look at Black Canary. He could tell by the way her hands were resting in her pockets that she was probably feeling anxious. He knew she truly cared about the safety and well-being of The Team, just as he did, and that had been precisely his reason for arranging to meet with her.
"It may be The Light kidnapping young Metas", Bruce continued, "but we don't have any clear evidence yet". Without looking, his hand reached back to the keyboard and flicked off the moniter. "This can wait. Right now, we need to discuss what's next for The Team's training".
After speaking, Batman lapsed into a stoic silence. Of course he had idess of his own, but he wanted to hear Black Canary's ideas first.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2015 17:08:59 GMT
Good old Bats, jumping straight to the point. Dinah took her hands out of her pockets, trying to pretend she wasn't intimidated. Batman was very good at that. Even when he wasn't trying to look bigger than he was, he pulled it off and no matter how long you worked with him it took a while to get used to his habits. The silence was off-putting whenever you talked to him.
"One good thing to make sure the kids can handle is if they have to fight someone with powers even if they don't or don't have anything useful. You and I know a lot about that. Sometimes the only ones on hand to deal with someone like Live Wire and Captain Cold are Barbara and Artemis" she said, before realizing she and used their first names. "Uh, Batgirl and Tigress. They might be able to handle it, but someone with less experience probably couldn't. Likewise, if someone shows up and can take powers away a couple like Kid Flash or Static would have to know exactly what to do when the only options are to throw a punch or run."
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Post by Deleted on Apr 11, 2015 14:09:32 GMT
He narrowed his gaze when Black Canary accidently mentioned Batgirl and Tigress' full names. While he and Black Canary were discussing the matter in what could be the most safe and secure room in the entire Watchtower, Batman still disliked needlessly risking the identities of The Team's members. Most members of The Team were only teeenagers, and they deserved as normal of a life as they could hope to get.
"Don't correct yourself immediately after saying their first names", Batman growled. "That way, anybody listening only gets two forenames, instead of a face to match to the name".
With that matter settled, Bruce returned his focus back to Black Canary's proposed training plan. After a moment of silence, Batman nodded his head. He had been thinking of exactly the same thing.
"I agree. The Team knows how to use their powers and gadgets, but they need to be ready for the day they have nothing available". Batman began pacing towards the right. "The Team has also gotten better at working together, but they still need to be prepared for the day they fight alone".
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Post by Deleted on Apr 13, 2015 12:54:39 GMT
Dinah tried to remain stoic as she said "Apologies." Batman could be really terrifying when he wanted to be, and when you were getting chewed out by him it was horrible. But she knew he was right; it was careless of her to slip into their first names anyway but following it with their codenames? Even worse. She might have been comfortable with saying the names of her fellow Leaguers, but not The Team.
"So, how wouldwe set up this training excercise? Forbid the kids from using their powers during some kind of psychic simulation?" Dinah stopped and shook her head. "I remember how the last one of those worked, so scratch that."
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Post by Deleted on Apr 14, 2015 6:59:16 GMT
"Agreed", was the only word of Batman's reply. He clenched his jaw, remembering. The last psychic simulation The League had put The Team through had been a disaster, and had mentally scarred several of the members. Batman still felt regret for what The Team had been put through, but the experience had helped The Team's development. Just as there will come a day when a hero find himself without allies, there will also come a day where a hero's own hero will fall. Batman had seen too many of his own heroes fall.
You either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become the villain.
The words echoed through Batman's skull, filling him with a sudden sense of dread. If those words rang true, then when would his own day come? What path would he choose?
The questions went unanswered in Batman's head as he turned his concentration back to the problem at hand. There was a solution to every problem, or so he believed.
"Who is a hero nobody from The Team has seen in action", Batman asked, as his own mind ran through the possibilites. "We can put them up against a new training opponent, and instruct them to avoid using their powers or gadgets".
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Post by Deleted on Apr 14, 2015 13:06:49 GMT
Dinah let her mind whirl through the roster as she tried to figure out someone to use against The Team. "I highly doubt that anyone on the team has worked with Icon, with the exception of Rocket - and even then, Rocket is no longer a member of The Team - but he has a similar set of powers to Superman. Doctor Fate is definitely someone they haven't fought but I don't know how readily he will play with kid gloves." Dinah paced around the room so that she could get brain moving faster. She needed someone that they could conceivably take without powers or gadgets, which was a tricky thought for these kids.
"Hal and John could work. Even if one of the kids HAD worked with them before, it's hard to break through their abilities with only your wits. Plastic Man could also work simply because of what he is. We could always have the Plastic Man, either Hal or John, and one other work in shifts to go through the full team. One of the Hawks maybe?"
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2015 6:16:41 GMT
Batman remained silent as Black Canary ran through the list of potential training partners. Some of the names she offered, such as Doctor Fate, who would play too rough, and Plastic Man, who would be very difficult for anyone on the Team to beat without powers. Other names Black Canary listed caused Batman to slowly nod.
"The Lanterns", Batman finally answered, "They would give the heroes a chellenge, but still give them a chance. Possibly Hawkwoman as well, if one of the Lanterns are unwilling".
Batman lapsed into another silence. The best place to offer The Team this breed of training would be the Watchtower. The advanced training room possessed plenty of space for two separate training matches to take place. Plus it would allow the younger heroes an opportunity to spend some time with the more experienced heroes, which was rarely a bad thing.
"The Watchtower would be a good place to begin this training, would it not", he asked.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 15, 2015 15:25:27 GMT
Dinah smiled mentally, glad that she managed to find one that worked out. The Lanterns were tough enough to take effort to defeat but they were not so powerful that the kids would find it hopeless. "I agree", she stated, "It's a location we can control without having to resort to psychic simulations. It would also be a good idea keep the identity of the one they are working with secret until shortly before the exercise - that'll grant them time to think but not enough to come up with a full strategy. This is about thinking on your feet after all."
A thought entered Dinah's mind as she tried to plan out the scenario in her head. "What if one of the metahumans slips up and subconsciously uses their powers? You could easily take Batgirl and Robin's belts away, but how would we make sure that Kid Flash didn't move at super speed?"
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Post by Deleted on Apr 16, 2015 17:40:39 GMT
Batman considered Black Canary's question for a moment. The members of The Team were competitive, perhaps he could present the training sessions as some sort of competition, and deduct points every time one of the young heroes used his/her powers. He shook his head. That would only cause the heroes to hold back, instead of feeling the true desperation that came with losing one's powers.
Another idea entered Batman's mind. "We can put a mental block in their mind, something to prevent them from accessing their powers".
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Post by Deleted on Apr 18, 2015 3:27:59 GMT
Dinah considered the thought for a moment. She did not like the thought of messing with the kids' minds of she could help it. The cleanup that stemmed from the last attempt was difficult and after the fact at least one member let slip that they had nightmares for longer than they originally let on. But what if it was the only way to accurately portray what would happen, then they didn't have many options.
"How extensive and specific would the block be?"
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Post by Deleted on Apr 20, 2015 6:46:58 GMT
"Not as deep as it was last time", Batman answered almost at once, "We need to be careful with the young heroes' minds. I don't want a repeat of last time". It went without saying, that the Justice League would have to take extra care to avoid permanently removing the young heroes' powers.
He shook his head once again. It was simply too risky. The mental trauma and possible permanent power negation that came with a psychic block were too big of risks to implement this idea. A new approach to the entire idea would have to be neccessary.
"We need to rethink this", was all Batman said before drifting into a long silence. After several minutes of not speaking, he suddenly burst into speech again, hoping his new approach would be less risky.
"Instead of completely wiping away their powers, let's put them in a situation where their powers will be of no help. An enemy The Flash cannot run away from. An opponent armed with Krytonian for Superboy and Supergirl".
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Post by Deleted on Apr 20, 2015 17:31:56 GMT
Dinah was visibly relieved when Bruce saw her point about the psychic block. Even if it was done by someone as sublte as Martian Manhunter, there was a serious risk of removing these kids' powers. Not only would it seriously deplete their membership, she would have to deal with the psychological aftermath of their powers being gone. Some of the younger members could get over it, but some of them had those powers since birth or required them to live in some fashion. Dinah didn't respond to his statements for several long, awkward moments as she mentally played through the horror of what could happen to these kids.
It took a second for her to register that he was talking again, let alone what he was saying. After a moment she realized and she focused on the ideas he was suggesting. "So, we play to the kids weaknesses then? That would work pretty well actually. Kid Flash can run as fast as he likes, but as long as the enemy is flying there's not much he could do, Supergirl can't do much against magic, Static against someone like Plastic Man..."
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Post by Deleted on Apr 21, 2015 6:12:53 GMT
Batman nodded. "Exactly. I'll leave it to you to figure how to attack each of the young heroes' weaknesses. If you need any help, either with ideas or with resources, don't hesitate to call me".
Of course Batman was not delegating the responsiblity because he lacked the knowledge needed in designing a training session meant to target The Team's specific weaknesses. He was giving Black Canary the responsiblity because she was The Team's primary training instructor, and he doubted she wanted him stepping on her toes.
Batamn had already studied the members of The Team at length, and had already created a list of their weaknesses and ways to effectively eliminate one of thek should the moment arrive. He had done the same with every member of The League as well, just in case. Batman had seen the incorruptible become corrupted before, and he was not going to take amy chances. His files detailig how to defeat The League were all stored securely on the Bat Computer. He even had a file for himself. He could send his personal file to the JLA Watchtower server in ten seconds if need be, in case he came under the effects of some breed of mind control.
"We can still do this training here, in the Watchtower", Bruce continued, "And use the members of The League to give the young heroes training partners".
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