(A/N):

I'm so sorry for the delay, life happened and I've been fairly busy.

Thanks for sticking with me over the school year and the slump in uploads, I hope to change that over the summer.

Anyway, I hope you all enjoy the chapter. Thanks for the votes and I appreciate all the comments you guys leave.

This chapter is largely unedited so if you find a spelling mistake, don't hesitate to point it out and I'll get around to fixing it eventually.

Have a good one.

MattFromWii

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3rd Person POV:

*Gotham City*

Rain poured down as lightning flashed in the sky. The red sky had faded and returned to normal as the magical aura around the city faded with the destruction of the Upside Down Man. Alani Kelso and her small army of Division Agents took full advantage of the opportunity and mounted up in their trucks.

The small convoy of delivery trucks rumbled down the abandoned highway leading to Gotham City. Inside the back of the trucks, Division Agents were crammed together, performing their final weapon checks.

ISAC: "Hostile communication intercepted."

Kelso nodded to a nearby agent and tapped a few buttons on her watch, smiling down at the familiar orange ring.

The intercepted radio communication played out for the agents to hear, ISAC's mechanical voice filling the truck.

"Hey boss, we've got several trucks coming towards the city. How do you want us to handle it?"

Punchline: "Our Emperor is getting ready for the games to begin. Kill whoever this is."

"Copy that, we'll take care of them."

Kelso: "Alright, here we go."

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Zatanna, Wally and (Y/n) arrived at the nearest Zeta Tube to Roanoke Island. The magician was flying the group through the air as Wally was still drained of energy.

Zatanna: "Wally, are you sure you're up for this? You still don't look good."

The speedster forced a smile to his lips as he wiped a substantial amount of sweat from his forehead.

Wally: "I'll be okay. Plus, you'll need my help."

(Y/n): "Wally, we can't be looking out for you in there. It'll be us three against every criminal in Gotham, they have our friends as hostages. We can't hold back."

Wally: "Trust me, please."

Silence fell over the alleyway, as the married couple looked at their friend with a concerned gaze. Despite all reason and rationale, the pair relented and gave in to the speedsters wishes.

(Y/n): "Alright, Wally. We trust you, just be ready."

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*Unknown Location*

Artemis groaned as she woke up, her head was spinning and vision clouded. The cool temperature of her cell caused a shiver to run through her body.

Her stomach ached, though her captors had fed her, it was barely enough to get through the day.

She had lost count of the amount of times she'd been moved. Joker and Punchline had been moving around the city, gathering an enormous amount of resources, though she had no idea why.

To her surprise she hadn't been tortured by Joker or Punchline, and to her relief none of the criminals in Joker's crew attempted to sexually abuse her, though many had given her uncomfortable looks.

Artemis had no way to track the time, but she figured it had been several days since she'd been captured. She still had no idea how it happened. One moment she was facing down Joker's gang with her teammates, ready to defend the Clocktower safehouse and the next she awoke in a dark cell.

Without any warning the hall lights activated with a low thumping sound, the buzzing of the old electrical work filled the makeshift prison and allowed the archer to see out of her new cell for the first time since arriving in it.

She pushed herself to her feet as footsteps rapidly approached, the inhibitor collar felt heavy around her neck with it emitting a dull red glow that illuminated her upper body.

The cell door suddenly slid open and Punchline stepped inside, flanked by two large men dressed in all red while wearing clown masks. Each man held a large automatic rifle and had several spare magazines attached to their belts.

Artemis: "All this for little old me?"

The only response Artemis got was a painful jolt of electricity shooting through her body. She collapsed onto the ground and cried out in pain while Punchline smiled down at her sinisterly.

Punchline: "You only speak when we give you permission to speak. Now get up. You're going to fight for your freedom."

The archer pushed herself to her feet once again, sweat dripping off her face as she drew in rapid breaths of air.

Artemis: "What… the hell are you talking… about?"

Punchline: "Emperor Joker has done some renovations to Gotham Stadium. You are going to fight your fellow heroes to the death in a gladiatorial tournament. The winner will get expelled from Gotham. Oh, and before you get any ideas. We've packed the stadium full of hostages. Any sign of resistance or hesitation on your end and we start killing the hostages in your name."

Realizing she couldn't do anything in her current situation, Artemis stood tall and allowed Punchline's guards to take her handcuffs off. The second guard handed Artemis her gear but left the inhibitor collar on. The clown faced criminal smiled once she realized Artemis was going to cooperate.

Punchline: "Good girl, now let's go see which of your friends will be killing you."

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*Gotham City, financial district*

The zeta tube deactivated, allowing the alleyway to fill with darkness once again. Zatanna, Wally and (Y/n) stuck to the shadows, moving as close as they could to the street without risking being spotted.

Much to their confusion the streets were completely empty. Abandoned car were spread randomly across the streets and a cool breeze swept through the city.

Wally: "Where is everyone?"

(Y/n): "Hopefully all the civilians know enough to stay indoors and let us do our jobs. As for almost every criminal in this god forsaken city, I have no idea."

Zatanna: "Where do we start?"

(Y/n): "We need intel. I'm going to reboot ISAC and see if I can contact anyone. Watch the alley entrances."

As Wally and Zatanna moved to opposite ends of the alley, (Y/n) waited patiently for ISAC to reboot.

ISAC: "Local systems online. All subsystems are operational."

(Y/n) smiled and loaded his rifle as the gadgets attached to his backpack came to life once again. The familiar feeling of SHD tech made a small smile form on the agent's face as he had ISAC scan the city for anything useful.

ISAC: "Ongoing Division operation detected. Synchronizing comms with field teams… stand by."

After a few seconds the connection was established and (Y/n) felt adrenaline rush through his body.

Kelso: "Kid? Is that you? ISAC just said you're nearby!"

(Y/n): "Yeah it's me alright, what's your situation?"

Kelso: "We're rolling through the city, sit tight, we'll be at your position in a few minutes."

(Y/n): "Copy that, Vanguard out."

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Several blocks away, Kelso was leading the small army of Division agents through Gotham. The various criminal gangs that attempted to resist had no chance against the veterans of the Division.

Agents tore through whatever resistance the criminal gangs of Gotham offered, wiping out any resistance swiftly with overwhelming force.

In under an hour Kelso and the agents had cleared half the city, leaving a massive trail of destruction in their wake despite not having access to significant air support or heavy vehicles.

(Y/n), Zatanna and Wally soon caught up with Kelso several blocks away from City Hall. The senior agent smiled as she saw the young agent but it was instantly washed off her face when she noticed the speedsters presence.

Kelso: "Hold up, you've got some explaining to do."

(Y/n): "I've recruited another member to our dying but coming back to life club."

Without missing a beat, Zatanna slapped the back of (Y/n)'s helmet, knocking it out of place so it covered his eyes and made him look ridiculous.

Wally: "While I'm flattered at the exclusive offer, I never really died. I was just trapped in the future."

The experienced agent really didn't have an answer. The witty remarks that normally came easy to her all evaporated in an instant, leaving her to just shrug her shoulders and mutter out an "okay".

(Y/n): "Yeah I don't really get it either, but science was never my area of expertise. What's the situation here?"

Kelso: "From what we can tell, when Joker took over the city he crowned himself "emperor" and moved his main operation into the entertainment district. He then gave different sections of the city to his Arkham cell mates, we think in an attempt to prevent infighting. Penguin runs the lower east side by the docs from the Iceberg Lounge, Two Face runs the business sector from City Hall, Bane has taken over the slums in the west. Which leaves the city parks as sort of a no man's land between them all. Each "leader" has a small army at their disposal at several hostages from the Justice League and civilian population."

Silence fell over the small group of heroes as they looked on at the City Hall building. The old structure was inspired by Roman and Greek architecture, but had been modernized over the years to create a strange blend of modern and ancient styles.

The lights inside the building were out, leaving it in partial darkness. The surrounding buildings provided some light, allowing the agents to determine the scale of Two Face's perimeter defenses.

(Y/n): "I'm not seeing anyone guarding the perimeter."

Zatanna: "So it's a trap?"

Kelso: "Possibly."

(Y/n): "Two Face wouldn't have had much time to prepare it. It's not like he knew we were going to storm the city."

Wally: "Unless someone told him."

The younger agent hummed in thought as the heroes stared blankly at the dark building from their concealed position.

(Y/n): "Unlikely, but we're not going to take the risk. Batman uses the sewers to navigate the city and gain access to almost every building. We're going to storm in through the sewers and take them by surprise."

Kelso: "I'll have the agents clean up the perimeter and take care of some of the lighter resistance in the surrounding neighborhoods to keep our momentum going."

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Wally: "Wow, this place smells terrible."

Zatanna: "It's a sewer, what did you expect?"

Wally: "For Batman to invest in keeping the place somewhat clean. I mean he uses it all the time."

The two agents rolled their eyes in unison as the group moved single file down the small service path, inches above disgusting sewer water.

Though their walk was short, it felt like an eternity thanks to the smell. Eventually they made it to a small ladder leading into the boiler room of city hall.

(Y/n) was the first up the ladder, his pistol in hand just in case they were walking into a trap. The agent easily pushed the metal cover out of place and slid it to the side just enough to scan the room above.

The main lights were out but the emergency lights had kicked in, covering the massive room in a full red glow.

After a quick survey of the room, (Y/n) decided that it was safe enough to enter the building.

Once everyone climbed into the room, Wally gently pushed the metal cover back into place.

Kelso: "Strange, no sign of any guards. You would think criminals that fight Batman on a regular basis would learn to cover things like sewer drains."

(Y/n): "This could still be a trap, stay on guard. ISAC, scan for any explosive devices."

ISAC: "No explosives detected, no radio broadcasts detected, power lines severely damaged, extreme caution advised."

(Y/n): "Alright, let's move. Stay quiet and keep together."

Over the next several minutes the group made their way through the building, eventually arriving on the top floor where the City Council chambers were located. The building had clearly been occupied by Two Face and his gang, but there was no sign of anyone. It was as if they had all vanished into thin air.

Zatanna: "This is weird, where are they?"

As Kelso slowly pushed open the stairwell door, the question that had been playing the heroes since they laid eyes on the building was abruptly answered.

The small hallway had several bodies scattered about. Blood stained the walls and bullet holes were everywhere. Shell casings littered the floor and blood pooled around the corpses.

All of the dead were members of Two Faces Gang, wearing a wide range of clothes but with a black and white armband on each arm to identify their allegiance.

Kelso: "Looks like someone beat us to the punch."

Wally: "I haven't seen any City Hall staff, I thought they had hostages."

(Y/n): "They must be in the Council Chambers, it's the only place left to search."

Kelso: "Great, a bottleneck entrance into a wide open room. What could possibly go wrong?"

Ignoring his mentor's sarcasm, (Y/n) led the group down the hall. They were careful not to step on any of the bodies and mostly avoid the blood. The large wooden double doors at the end of the hall didn't have any windows, leaving the heroes to guess at what was waiting for them on the other side.

(Y/n): "Kelso, we're knocking."

Kelso: "Copy that kid."

(Y/n) moved up close to the door and Kelso positioned herself just behind him. She quickly opened up his backpack and took out a small breaching charge the size of a laptop. After tearing off two strips of plastic and revealing a sticky substance, the senior agent gently pressed the charge against the doors.

The agents swiftly backed up down the hall, Kelso hitting several buttons on her ISAC watch as (Y/n) turned to his wife and smiled.

(Y/n): "Could you please put up a quick shield for us?"

Zatanna: "Since you asked so nicely and since I wouldn't dream of letting my husband get riddled with bullets before our honeymoon."

The magician held out her hand and whispered a quick spell. A bright blue wall formed between the heroes and the doors a half second later.

The magician's magic illuminated the entire hallway much better than the lone emergency light did. As they waited for Kelso to prime the charge, (Y/n) caught a glimpse of a stunned look on Wally's face and turned to face the speedster.

Wally: "You're already married?! Well I mean... I knew you would get married eventually."

(Y/n): "Yeah, sorry. You missed that as well. But hey, there will be plenty of time to catch up on everything else after we save our friends. How's the fever?"

The speedster forced out a smile and wiped the sweat from his forehead, leaning back on the wall and letting out a deep sigh as the married couple looked at him with concern.

Wally: "It's not a fever I'm just worn out and need some sleep. I feel like I could sleep for a week, once this is over that is."

Zatanna sent (Y/n) concerned glance, her worried eyes telling him she didn't believe a word coming out of Wally's mouth.

For his part (Y/n) didn't believe Wally either, but he knew full well that their present situation was no time to call him out on it. There was simply too much at stake. He let out an exhausted sigh and freed an adrenaline stim from his vest.

(Y/n): "Look, this won't cure your fever, but it will take the edge off if you feel like you're about to collapse."

The redhead forced out another smile and took the high tech injection device, stuffing it into his jacket.

Wally: "Thank you. I'm fine for right now but I'll keep it just in case."

Before Zatanna or (Y/n) could comment further, Kelso racked the charging handle on her rifle and snapped the group back to reality.

Kelso: "Ready?"

(Y/n): "Yep, let's do this."

The blast shattered the thick wooden door and sent the pieces crashing into the Council Chambers

The emergency lights flicked on as the heroes stormed inside, ready to face down Two Face and rescue the hostages.

Instead, they were faced with a small mountain of bodies and a completely destroyed council chamber. Desks were shattered, bullet holes on every wall and all of Two Face's gang laid dead on the floor. But that wasn't the most shocking sight.

Wally: "Are those robots?"

Kelso: "Close, they're Russian soldiers in high tech body armour. They're known as the Rocket Red Brigade in Russia and are their equivalent of the Justice League. The suits are fused to their body similar to what happened to Cyborg."

Sure enough, the entire Rocket Red Brigade laid dead throughout the room. Their metal suits were covered in dents and scratches. In some sections, the red armour was torn completely off, revealing scarred flesh and muscles that were covered in blood.

Wally: "What the hell are Russian special forces doing here?"

Zatanna: "And who could kill them? I saw the recording from Tigress' darkwear when the team first encountered them. Each one of these soldiers has the strength of a small army."

Kelso stared down at the dead Russians, seemingly uninterested in the gruesome sight or simply numb to the level of violence and gore on display before them.

The heroes spread throughout the room, checking for any survivors or clues as to what happened.
(Y/n) navigated through the carnage to the front of the assembly hall, kneeling down beside a mangled corpse wearing a strange suit and laying face down.

The agent carefully rolled the body over and examined the man's face. It wasn't hard to identify him. Harvey Dent, the former district attorney and criminal more commonly known as Two Face was lying dead on the floor, a single gunshot wound to the temple, just off center.

(Y/n) noted the severity of the damaged skin around the entry wound, it was clear he was shot at close range. Most likely executed.

Leaving the dead criminal on the floor, the agent moved behind the main desk where a broken and blood stained American flag was draped over the lone office chair.

The agent's heart skipped a beat when he noticed Two Face's Justice League hostage laying on the ground beside the chair.

Hawkman still had an inhibitor collar around his neck and was seemingly unconscious. His wings were broken in several places and his right arm was cut and clearly broken, showing bone through the deep cut.

(Y/n) reached down and grabbed the collar, swiftly deactivating it with ISAC before removing it. The second the device deactivated, Hawkman's eyes shot out and he gasped for air.

His bloodshot eyes met (Y/n)'s startled ones and the Justice Leaguer grabbed onto the agent's arm with a death grip. His body was shaking as he fought to speak through a blood soaked mouth.

As the other heroes in the room realized what was happening and rushed towards (Y/n), Hawkman used all of his strength to whisper out one word.

"S-Streiten..."

It was barely a whisper. (Y/n)'s eyes widened in shock as Hawkman collapsed, blood dripping from his mouth as his body went limp.

The agent was left wondering if he had heard the heroe correctly. His mind became a haze as Kelso shoved him out of the way and began working to save the critically injured hero.

Zatanna knelt down beside Kelso and tried to help, but it soon became evident that Hawkman's injuries were beyond the capabilities of her healing spells.

Wally: "(Y/n), are you okay? You look like you've seen a ghost."

A few seconds later (Y/n) snapped back to reality. Ignoring the speedster and signaling the all clear to his agents outside.

Kelso: "He needs to get to a hospital. I don't know how long he can last in his condition."

(Y/n): "Call for a medevac and have some agents get him to the roof. We need to move out."

Several minutes later, the heroes were leaving City Hall as a medical helicopter arrived to extract Hawkman. (Y/n) kept his gaze on the helicopter as it slowly disappeared into the night sky, his mind wandering to what Hawkman had whispered to him.

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*1985 Crimean Peninsula, USSR*

Three large Red Army trucks rumbled down a small coastal road swiftly followed by a small staff car. Cool winds blasted water against the rocky beaches, spraying salt water up onto the road in small amounts.

Minutes became hours as the convoy slowly moved inland, taking side roads to avoid being seen. Eventually the convoy arrived at their destination. A large office building surrounded by barbed wire with roaming patrols of guards.

The lead truck stopped at the only entrance just as a guard exited the small hut used to work the barrier.

Without any words being spoken, the driver rolled down his window and handed the guard a small stack of papers. Using a flashlight to check the documents, the guard immediately noted a small KGB stamp in the corner of each page. After clicking the flashlight off he handed the documents back to the driver and waved the entire convoy through.

The three trucks entered the seemingly innocent facility and parked just outside of the building's main entrance. The single staff car came to a stop just behind the trucks and a lone KGB officer stepped out of the back. The young man took a deep breath and lit a cigarette, slowly walking towards the trucks.

One soldier climbed out of the back, a sergeant wearing a typical Red Army combat uniform with a green beret.

"The General has ordered the project be shut down... permanently."

The sergeant looked at the KGB agent with a confused expression as the agent took a deep breath from his cigarette.

"Sir are you saying-"

The KGB agent dropped his cigarette and swiftly stomped on it, his cold gaze meeting the soldiers and causing the man to freeze in place.

"You know what I'm saying. Get it done."

The sergeant swiftly nodded his head and turned to face his soldiers, ordering them out of the truck.

Inside the building, a team of scientists were working on a series of computers connected to a large satellite.

Above them in a small office, the chief scientist was frantically searching through his desk. Papers were flying all over the room as he desperately tore through his desk.

"Mate, could this be it?"

The head scientist spun around to see a man in all black. He wore a turtleneck sweater with jeans and a vest overtop of his shirt. He had a balaclava on and held a small folder in one hand with a suppressed pistol in the other.

"What are you doing here?! You can't be here!"

The scientist began to panic, looking over his shoulder down at the main research lab.

"And it's clear you can't be trusted. You led me to believe that this was just a communications satellite."

The Soviet scientist glared at the western spy, moving back towards his deck.

"I never said what it was, I said what its cover was. You, like the presidium, came to your own conclusion."

The western spy hummed in amusement, not satisfied in the scientist's explanation at all. He casually flipped open the folder, looking over the first page carefully as the scientist stepped towards him.

"No! That is not for your eyes! No government can be trusted with this, I told you it'll be the downfall of nations!"

"And that isn't a part of our deal. You don't get to decide what my government does with this information. You give everything to me, and I get you out of the country."

"American bastard, do you care nothing for the world?!"

The western operative smiled sinisterly and raised his handgun in the blink of an eye. A soft thump sounded out and the Soviet scientist collapsed onto the ground, his life's blood draining from his body.

As gunfire and screams of horror rang out from the laboratory below, the spy disappeared down the office hallway.

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*Present Day, Gotham City*

Artemis groaned in pain as she was flung into a destroyed car before falling down to the turf field. The fake grass was dry and brittle, irritating her skin for the few seconds of contact there was.

When her vision cleared she pushed herself up and got ready for another beating. Her surroundings were strange to say the least. Joker had converted Gotham's main football stadium to a massive gladiatorial ring, with destroyed cars and debris scattered throughout the field to make things more interesting.

Gothams criminal population was scattered throughout the stands, shouting and yelling at the heroes fighting.

Artemis was fighting against the clock, quite literally. Punchline had put her and Green Arrow against Captain Atom. Given all three heroes had inhibitor collars limiting their options, they were forced to play along and pull just enough of their punches to keep their colleagues alive.

In Artemis's case, that just meant staying alive. She knew full well that Joker and Punchline intended for Captain Atom to kill her. A "prelude to the main event" the clowns had called it.

Whatever that main event was, Artemis was certain she didn't want to find out.

Fortunately for the archers, Captain Atom was doing an excellent job of making his attacks incredibly obvious and easy to evade, focusing his blasts on the destroyed cars to give a good show for their captors. Still, Artemis knew they were running out of time and options.

Along the sidelines of the field, the majority of the Justice League sat on their knees, guards patrolling up and down the field to ensure the heroes couldn't escape.

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Radio chatter echoed throughout the empty service tunnel leading into the stadium. The tunnel was often used by vendors and staff to bring in supplies for games, but had since been cleared out to make room for more of Joker's guards.

Dead criminals littered the floor as the agents swiftly cut through the thin defenses that remained, most of the criminals manpower being shifted to the field.

Zatanna: "This feels too easy."

Kelso: "That's because we're good."

(Y/n): "Some would say, we're just better."

The magician rolled her eyes but stayed on guard, not fully trusting the agent's casual dismissal of her concerns.

Wally: "Well, nice to see you two haven't changed a bit."

Kelso: "Why change perfection?"

Wally: "I have a vaguely offensive comment about your idea of perfection, but I'm going to keep that to myself."

Before the banter could continue, the agents arrived at a large parking garage. The massive space was mostly empty with support pillars lining the space, giving off a strange feeling of normality.

Kelso tapped her watch a few times, activating a small holographic map of the stadium. A birds eye view of the stadium appeared before the small group of heroes, Zatanna and Wally holding their breath as Kelso examined the map.

Kelso: "We're currently under the west end of the stadium. Drone reconnaissance has shown that the stands above are mostly empty or filled with Joker's men. Apparently the clown was smart enough to separate his civilian hostages from his less trustworthy gang members."

Zatanna: "So where are the hostages?"

Kelso: "Mostly along the Northeast side of the stadium. Turns out there aren't as many hostages as we thought. Most are city officials or reporters, basically people with influence that are well known."

(Y/n): "The plan is for Agent Ann to take her squad up to the press boxes at the top and set up nests for our snipers. We're going to detonate all the support pillars in this garage and cause a controlled cave in. The explosion and cave in will signal our attack and serve as a moat to protect Ann and her snipers while we storm the field."

Zatanna: "Ann? I thought she was expelled from the Division."

Kelso: "Everyone deserves a second chance. And we need all the agents we can get."

Wally: "Storming onto an open field surrounded by heavily armed criminals who want to kill us isn't exactly a good idea."

(Y/n): "It's our only choice, we need to be fast in order to free all the hostages before they have a chance to hurt them. Besides, we're going to be fine. Ortega and his team are on the far side of the stadium. They've borrowed an APC from the national guard. We'll use that firepower to deal with any super powered individuals we come across. They hit from their side at the same time as we rush from ours. With any luck we'll overwhelm them before they know what's happening."

Wally: "When do we ever get lucky."

An awkward and concerning silence fell over the group as the speedster and magician held their gazes on the younger agent, only for him to abruptly leave the group and start walking towards the playing field.

(Y/n): "Spread the charges out! Two per pillar!"

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Artemis was screwed. She knew it. The criminals had enough of the cat and mouse game the heroes were putting on. Joker saw right through their attempts at stalling and ended the fight, only to put Artemis and a powerless Black Canary up against Bane and Man-Bat.

Before the heroes had a chance to come up with a plan, Bane had separated them and was focusing on the younger hero.

Bane: "I should've killed you on my island the first time you set foot on it!"

The archer didn't bother responding, simply choosing to focus on dodging the muscular man's wild attacks.

Across the destroyed football field, Black Canary was struggling to find Man-Bat. A combination of the blinding stadium lights and smoke from the field was obscuring her view of the monster.

Without any warning the creature dove down at her, tackling the hero to the ground and sinking its teeth into her shoulder.

A scream of pain echoed out as Black Canary fought desperately to push the monster off. She was eventually successful, scrambling away from the monster as her life's blood drained from the wound.

Black Canary didn't get far. Man-Bat tackled her to the ground once again and went for the killing blow. Time seemed to slow down for Canary and her friends and colleagues watching in horror. Her head was already beginning to feel heavy as her vision began to blur.

The monster roared in triumph and flashed his fangs to his victim one final time, only for a deafening crack to ring out as a sniper round passed clean through the creature's jaw. Blood shot out as Man-Bat staggered back, large chunks of its head falling away as several rifle rounds tore through its body.

At the closest entrance to the field, (Y/n) and a dozen Division Agents emerged with their weapons firing.

Chaos erupted instantly, all across the stadium, squads of agents were emerging from various entrances, under the cover of a massive explosion that tore through the building.

(Y/n): "Don't move! We've got you, just stay awake! Focus on my voice!"

The agents quickly arrived at Black Canary's side, moving her back behind a destroyed car so the medics could work behind cover as the battle began.

Smoke and dust kicked up, creating a strange fog effect that heavily impacted both the air quality and visibility.

Joker's laughter echoed through the stadium speaker system as nearly two hundred armed criminals stormed the field.

Garbled screams of "Kill Them! Hang them! Make Them Smile!" Rang out in the clowns signature voice.

Medic: "She's stable sir, but we need to get her out of here as soon as possible."

(Y/n): "Understood. Wait until we establish a perimeter and then move for the exit as fast as you can!"

Ortega's team joined the fight from the far side of the stadium, the LAV cutting through a large number of Joker's men before they knew what was happening.

(Y/n): "ISAC, turn those damn collars off!"

ISAC: "All inhibitor collars are now deactivated."

The members of the Justice League that weren't seriously injured jumped up and joined the battle, pulling their injured colleagues to the safety of the Division's lines.

Artemis was feeling her way through the dust and smoke, crawling along the ground to avoid the hailstorm of bullets flying overhead.

When the battle erupted she was in the center of the field, caught between her former captors and what appeared to be the entire Division.

A deafening roar rang out as Killer Croc charged through the smoke and dust, bearing down on Artemis as she crawled to safety.

Laying flat on her stomach and disarmed, she was caught completely off guard and at a severe disadvantage. Fortunately for the archer, she wouldn't have to fight the massive monster.

Kelso emerged through the smoke, shotgun in hand with (Y/n) right behind her. The younger agent had his combat axe in hand and rushed past Artemis as Kelso slammed off several shells into Killer Croc's shoulders.

The incendiary ammunition caused Croc to catch fire immediately, his scales burning off just in time for (Y/n) to lunge forward. The younger agent slammed his axe into Croc's exposed flesh, blood shooting out as the blade dug in.

The monster roared in rage and tried to swing his arms at the agent, only for (Y/n) to duck under the first attack and jump onto Croc's back.

Using his knife and axe, (Y/n) was able to keep himself in place on Killer Croc's back. The monster was roaring in rage and throwing his body around wildly in an attempt to throw the agent off.

Croc charged out of the haze, running towards the Division's end of the field where they were rushing the Justice League and any civilian captives they could get through one of the tunnel exits.

Superboy refused to leave, being one of the heroes that hadn't sustained serious injuries and it simply wasn't in his nature to abandon a fight.

As Superboy was tearing through a large squad of Joker's men when he saw (Y/n) holding onto a rage induced Killer Croc.

Superboy: "Vanguard?! What are you doing?!"

The agent tore his axe out of Croc's shoulder and slammed it into his ribs. Using both his weapons and the fact that they were lodged in Croc's body, (Y/n) attempted to steer the massive beast.

It didn't work as well as he hoped it would.

(Y/n): "I'll let you know when I figure it out!"

A half second later the agent was thrown off, his axe slipping free from its hold and causing (Y/n) to tumble to the ground.

Croc turned around, a bloodthirsty rage in his eyes. The agent cursed under his breath, scrambling to his feet just as the monster began to charge at him.

Superboy jumped at Croc, landing a punch to the side of the monster's head and sending him crashing into the empty seats surrounding the field.

(Y/n): "I'm not going to pretend like I had that under control. Thanks."

Superboy: "You hit your head or something?"

The agent smiled as he attached his axe to his belt and shouldered his rifle. The large sash attached to his rifle had a mix of dust and sweat on it, making it appear gray instead of its usual black.

A short distance across the field, Zatanna was making the division's job incredibly easy. Not only was she maintaining a massive shield that protected the majority of the agents, she was also flying all the hostages behind her shield. Division medics had been rapidly assessing both the civilian hostages and the Justice League before ushering them down the tunnel to safety.

Realizing that their attacks weren't doing anything against Zatanna's shield, the massive mob of criminals, both superpowered and human, stopped their attacks.

It only took a few seconds for the dust to settle. The agents and heroes that weren't behind Zatanna's shield quickly scrambled back to safety, making it just in time to see Joker emerge from the mob of criminals.

The clown was dressed in an expensive purple suit, his signature green flower was replaced with a gold rose and he had on a cheap cardboard crown.

Before Joker could get a word in, (Y/n) activated his radio and called the agents in sniping positions over the field.

(Y/n): "Ann?"

Ann: "I've got him. Say the word and I'll drop this fucker."

With a small smile forming on his face (Y/n) stepped to the edge of Zatanna's magical barrier. The clown however stayed close to his gang, his signature sinister smile on full display.

(Y/n): "Surrender. It's over. This is the only warning you'll get."

The clown broke down into laughter. It was unnerving, witnessing such insanity up close. Almost as quickly as he started, the Joker stopped laughing, locking eyes with the agent and staring at him with hateful eyes.

Joker: "You think you can save the heroes? This has all been a part of our plan."

(Y/n): "Our? Didn't think you were the type of guy to share power."

Joker: "There's a lot Bats doesn't know about me. I keep up a good appearance for our little game, but this is bigger than that."

(Y/n): "Who's your partner?"

The clown simply smiled as the sound of rocket boosters firing rang out. A half second later the Failsafe robot landed right beside the clown, kicking up dust dirt and smoke after impact with the ground.

ANNA: "Hello Vanguard."

The agent silently cursed under his breath. He had been hoping that Batman's team was able to deactivate ANNA before the Upside Down Man appeared.

Now with those hopes dashed, he was left staring at a robot that was a foot taller than him and designed by the Dark Knight himself.

(Y/n): "Well, at least I know who to talk to about deactivating you."

ANNA: "He might not be as helpful as you think. While it's true he and the Amazon managed to destroy my ability to utilize the internet and the ISAC system. This robot was built with the express purpose of killing Batman and neutralizing any member of the Justice League that may attempt to save him. It's the perfect weapon to kill you all."

With only a thin magical barrier separating (Y/n) from ANNA, the agent began running through options in his head, attempting to come up with a plan that kept them alive.

—————————————————————————

As (Y/n) was keeping Joker and ANNA distracted, Kelso began ushering as many people as she could down the tunnel to safety.

When she arrived at the medics treating a small group of wounded heroes and civilians, she was shocked to see Wally sitting on the ground with the civilians. The speedster was covered in sweat and looked like he had a high grade fever.

Kelso: "Hey, get them ready to move. We're getting out of here."

The lead medic nodded in understanding before returning to her work. Just as Kelso knelt down beside Wally, Black Canary woke up and saw the supposedly dead speedster.

Black Canary: "W-Wally?"

Kelso: "Surprise. (Y/n) found another stray."

The red headed speedster shot the middle finger to the senior agent as he struggled to sit up.

Kelso: "There will be time for a formal reunion and explanation later, we've got to get moving before Batman's robot kills us."

Wally: "That's not a sentence I ever expected to hear."

A small smile formed on Kelso's face as she stood up. She was about to rush off to the front line when Wally's voice rang out once more.

Wally: "Where... Where is Artemis?"

Kelso: "She's fine. I won't say safe, because you'll know that's a lie. Stay strong kid, you'll be back with the archer soon."

————————————————————————

Batman arrived at (Y/n)'s side, which only served to anger Joker but as long as Zatanna's shield was up, there wasn't anything the criminals could do. Or so the heroes thought.

(Y/n): "Any idea how to turn off your robot?"

The Dark Knight simply grumbled in response, keeping pressure on a semi open wound he sustained either from the battle or his brief stint in captivity beforehand.

Batman: "It was designed to outsmart me. Anything I come up with will already be anticipated."

(Y/n): "And here I was hoping you'd be useful."

Batman: "Focus on getting everyone out of here. I'll hold Failsafe off."

(Y/n): "Don't be stupid, you're bleeding out. And it's not all Failsafe. It's ANNA."

Batman: "Magic. It's unpredictable by its very nature."

Doubt circled the agent's mind. He stared at the Failsafe robot, focusing on the robot's head. Though the metallic head had no visible facial markings, (Y/n) couldn't help but think that ANNA was smiling at him.

ISAC: "Unknown network detected."

Snapping out of his state of self doubt, (Y/n) glared at ANNA and scoffed.

(Y/n): "Keep your claws off ISAC."

Before the monstrosity could respond, (Y/n) turned and rushed back to his agents as the last of the stragglers were running towards the tunnel.

As he passed Zatanna, he found himself whispering a quick "good luck" to his wife and hoped she'd be alright.

The second he reached the tunnel entrance (Y/n) turned to see Zatanna. She was still standing alone, keeping the shield up and making it look effortless. By now the married couple were the only ones left inside the shield and Zatanna was about to make her attack.

—————————————————————————

Artemis limped through the crowd as they arrived in one of the many large parking garages. The agents established a perimeter and let the medical staff treat the wounded until the National Guard arrived.

A bullet had grazed her leg, blood leaking down her leg and staining her uniform. She kept pressure on the wound the best she could, but the bandage wrap was already soaked with her blood.

Then she saw it. Saw him. It was like she traveled back in time.

Wally. Her Wally. He was leaning on a partially destroyed car, wiping sweat and dust from his head with a damp rag. He was wearing a strange futuristic shirt and pants, but it was him. She was sure of it.

Everything seemed to slow down. The noise of the distant battle and the massive crowd in the garage faded in an instant. In that very second they were the only two in the world.

Artemis: "Wally?"

The speedster instantly recognized the archer's voice. His head snapped toward her in an instant and he pushed off the car, limping towards her.

Artemis broke into a sprint, the images of the last second she saw Wally alive flashing in her mind.

Wally opened his arms and a half second later Artemis was in his embrace.

Wally: "I'm sorry. Artemis I'm so sorry."

Artemis couldn't find the words to express herself. Her emotions overwhelmed her, so she did the only other thing she could. She kissed him.

Tears ran down the archer's face as the speedster hugged her, holding onto her for dear life as they shared a long overdue kiss.

—————————————————————————

Manny Ortega was maneuvering through the agents, surveying the damage they sustained and the health of the rescued hostages.

Dust fell from the roof and the building shook each time a massive explosion rang out from the battle in the field.

It was clear that Zatanna was tearing through the remaining criminals and giving ANNA one hell of a fight.

Ann: "The National Guard are a few blocks away. They've finished cleaning up the remaining hostile forces throughout the city."

Manny: "Finally some good news."

Ann: "Not exactly, Waller's leading them."

Manny: "I thought she was dead?"

Ann: "Shot, not killed. I guess she healed up nicely."

Another explosion rang out, dust fell from the ceiling once again as the building shook.

Manny: "What does she want? She wouldn't bother coming here herself unless she was after something."

Ann: "You may be right and I don't have a clue as to what she's after, but we have less than ten minutes to figure something out."

—————————————————————————

On the field above, Zatanna was flying through the air, her body and eyes glowing white. It only took her several seconds to wipe out Joker and his small army.

Sending waves on indiscriminate lightning rendered the entire stadium unconscious, but had nearly drained her of energy.

Despite her best efforts, ANNA proved resistant to her attacks.

The Failsafe robot was designed incredibly well, agile, powerful and with ANNA controlling it, smart.

Zatanna was scanning the field, searching for ANNA through the smoke. The robot found her first.

In the blink of an eye ANNA appeared through dust, smoke and debris, a small fire burning inside the robot's chest.

Zatanna had just enough time to notice the fire before ANNA grabbed her by the throat and tackled her to the ground.

Before ANNA could crush her throat, Zatanna croaked out a final spell.

Zatanna: "Gninthgil!"

In a flash a powerful lightning bolt struck ANNA, causing power to surge through the robot and begin to overload its systems.

The magician easily broke free, rolling away as ANNA staggered back. Sparks flew off the robot as ANNA's broken voice pierced the silence.

ANNA: "S-shut down protocol initiated...Manufacturer ID accepted. W-welcome b-back Vanguard."

The sparks intensified as the robot fell to its knees, the small fire burning in the internal circuits grew into a massive blaze, engulfing most of the robot.

Before Zatanna could comprehend what was happening, several high caliber shots rang out. One of the robots arms was shot clean off while the other two rounds were sent straight through its head.

The magician spun around, expecting to see (Y/n) or one of the other agents that returned to investigate the explosionions from her fight, but found herself alone in a quiet stadium.

As ANNA's body burned, Zatanna surveyed her surroundings, looking for the shooter. But with the dust and smoke filling the air she could barely see across the field and had no idea where the shots came from.

After taking one last look at the burning robot, she wiped the sweat from her head and began walking towards the tunnel.

————————————————————————

Nightwing, Superboy, Miss Martian and Aquaman were rushing to Artemis and Wally once they noticed the speedster. The second they reached his side they pulled the exhausted red head into a massive group hug while Artemis sobbed against his chest.

They each had a million questions but for the moment it didn't matter. Nothing else mattered.

The rest of the heroes looked on in shock, the emotions were overwhelming.

(Y/n) and Kelso arrived at Manny's side, just as the National Guard were beginning to arrive.

(Y/n): "Looks like Zatanna's wrapped up everything on the field."

Kelso: "You married one hell of a woman."

(Y/n) simply smiled in response and let out a sigh of relief as the National Guard troops began rushing towards the field to arrest the unconscious criminals.

Superman and Wonder Woman arrived at the agents side as more vehicles arrived.

Superman: "Vanguard, Ms. Kelso… I'm sorry I don't know your call sign."

Kelso: "White Knight, but Kelso is fine. How's the League holding up?"

Superman: "We're alive and that's all that matters right now. We'll inevitably have to deal with the trauma, but for today… we've survived."

Wonder Woman: "We just wanted to thank you two… as well as all the agents. I know we… the League hasn't exactly been fair or kind to the Division in the past."

Kelso: "Well, I'd like to think that if the situation was reversed, you'd come to our rescue. And as for the past…"

(Y/n): "You're forgiven. As much as I'd like to hold a grudge, I'd be banishing myself to sleeping on the couch for an eternity."

The agent's sarcasm forced a small smile to appear on both Wonder Woman and Superman's faces. Kelso looked at her adopted brother with pride and smiled smugly.

Wonder Woman: "I take it the sarcasm comes from you?"

Kelso: "Just a little bit."

(Y/n) laughed as Kelso playfully elbowed him.

Kelso: "You know, married life looks good on you."

(Y/n): "Does it? You should try it some time. I know a certain doctor that's been waiting very patiently."

Kelso: "Careful, I like you but not that much."

The younger agent scoffed and pushed his mentor back, rolling his eyes at her "threat".

The group was ripped out of their conversation when several SUV's stopped in front of them. (Y/n)'s smile faded in an instant when he watched Amanda Waller emerge from one of the vehicles.

The director of Cadmus had her right arm in a sling but still appeared menacing. She had a small army of FBI agents that climbed out of the black SUV's.

Waller immediately marched towards Kelso and (Y/n) as the FBI agents formed up behind her.

(Y/n): "Waller, you're looking good for someone who took a round through the chest a few days ago."

Waller: "I have good doctors. And the shot was through my shoulder."

Superman: "Something tells me you're not here to make sure the hostages are alright."

Waller: "You'd be right. I'm here on direct orders from the president."

Kelso snapped her gaze over to (Y/n), warning him to stay silent and holster the sarcastic comment he undoubtedly had ready to release.

One of the FBI agents handed Waller a tablet and she turned it around to show the heroes.

Waller: "Vanguard, I think you'll find this very interesting."

His curiosity got the better of him and (Y/n) found himself staring at the screen as grainy security footage of Gotham City Hall played out on the tablet.

It was the assembly hall, specifically before the Russians arrived. Hawkman was in the same position that found him in, but Two Face and his men were still alive. Suddenly an explosion rang out off screen and the Russians swarmed in. In less than a minute the Russian Red brigade wiped out Two Face and all his men, sparring no one.

The recording then cut to sometime after the Russian assault. It showed the Russians searching the room for something important and questioning Hawkman, using his injuries to inflict the most pain possible.

They then began smashing holes in the wall, clearly searching for something. Eventually the Russians got what they were looking for, a small black briefcase with the Division logo etched on the front.

Before the Russian's had a chance to open the case, another explosion rang out off screen, followed swiftly by an EMP. In a fraction of a second several Russian's dropped to the ground, armor piercing round punching straight through their now depowered suits.

Kelso then appeared on screen, slamming several shots off with her rifle as she moved like lightning across the room.

Over the course of a minute, Kelso tore through the Russians, screams filled the air and caused the audio to become scuffed. The fight was brutal but quick. Once the Russians were dead, she checked on Hawkman. After injecting him with morphine to ease his pain, she watched as he faded back into unconsciousness.

ISAC: "Identity confirmed, package secured... Agent status...rouge."

The recording ended and Waller handed the tablet back to one of the FBI agents.

Silence filled the air as (Y/n) struggled to comprehend what he just saw.

Waller: "The president and I discussed this… and it isn't a decision we've rushed too. But someone leaked this footage to the Russians and they're out for blood. The president has hereby appointed Manny Ortega as acting Director of the Division while we investigate this matter."

(Y/n): "Excuse me? Last time I checked, the Division was disbanded, we built this on short notice to save this city and its people. The president doesn't get to choose who runs the Division. The agents do."

Waller scoffed as her agents stepped forward, one held two pairs of handcuffs and that caused (Y/n) to immediately go for his gun.

Waller: "Agent Alani Kelso, you are under arrest for the murder of the Russian Red brigade."

One of the FBI agents stepped forward and the situation escalated rapidly.

In the blink of an eye (Y/n) drew his handgun and aimed it at the FBI agent.

Waller: "Flagg!"

Colonel Rick Flagg made his presence known from the far side of Waller's SUV, aiming his weapon at (Y/n).

The National Guard troops around Waller rushed to her defense, aiming their weapons at (Y/n).

The Division agents responded in kind, swiftly drawing their weapons and taking aim at the National Guard.

(Y/n): "Don't be stupid Waller, you know Kelso isn't a murder."

Waller: "We just watched her murder an entire room of Russian operatives. Don't make things worse for yourself. Your association with her has already caused the president to question the Division's reliability and accountability."

(Y/n): "Kelso's not a killer. There's something else going on here. Take a second to think about this!"

Waller: "I doubt it. Flagg."

As Waller's right hand man moved around the vehicles to join his boss, Kelso was staying suspiciously quiet about her situation.

Flagg: "Don't make me do it Vanguard. Don't go out like this."

(Y/n): "You couldn't take me on your best days, and those days are long behind you. DON'T YOU FUCKING MOVE!"

The FBI agent froze in place after trying to approach Kelso once again. Members of the Justice League were now taking notice of the standoff, along with more Division agents who leveled their weapons at Waller's men without question.

Superman and Wonder Woman were trying to position themselves between the two sides without triggering the powder keg that was rapidly expanding.

Waller: "We have to respect the rule of law, it exists for a reason."

(Y/n): "That's hilarious coming from you. Tell me, how long did it take to turn Crimson into that monster that tore through Metropolis? Human experimentation, you better believe that's in violation of the law."

Waller: "Sometimes we do the wrong thing for the right reasons. Now stand down or take your shot and reveal your true colors."

(Y/n): "Burn in hell Waller."

Waller: "Felix Blake, Charles Maxwell and Alani Kelso. Every one of your mentors has turned out to be a traitor and killer. How long before you betray everything you claim to stand for?"

Kelso: "Kid. I'm so sorry."

ISAC: "Vanguard and White Knight, agent status, rouge."

Both Kelso's and (Y/n)'s watches changed to red in an instant, shocking both sides of the standoff.

Before either agent had a chance to comprehend what had happened, a boom tube opened up right beside Kelso.

The senior agent immediately jumped in, her action shocking everyone back to reality.

Acting on instinct (Y/n) threw himself at the portal just as it began to close, Waller's voice yelling at him as the portal snapped shut.

When the boom tube vanished, both agents were gone, leaving everyone stunned and searching for an explanation.