Yue

 5th February

10:02 GMT -5

"I'm so sorry for keeping you waiting."

Linda King of the Metropolis Star scurries over to the seats in her newspaper's waiting room and holds out her right hand.

I smile as I stand up and take it. "Not at all, Miss King. Thank you for seeing us."

I don't know whether the Metropolis Star exists back on Earth 16. The Daily Planet exists here, but it's one of those weird 'dog ate my alien' lunacy tabloids that America seems to produce in a bewildering quantity. The Metropolis Star on the other hand has a reputation for unflinching honesty and a fearless determination to find the truth. Which means I guess they change ends when matter changes polarity?

They published stories about Ultraman while he was still an up-and-coming crime boss, resulting in several hospitalisations amongst their staff. They published stories about the Syndicate while they were de facto rulers of the country. And recently they've been publishing stories about the police state President Wilson has been creating, which has resulted in several arrests. Miss King has even published interviews with Syndicate members, including a seventeen year old on death row. She's ideal for our purposes.

"And…" She looks at Zatanna. "You are?"

I destroy the bugs and generate a sound-deadening field, then nod.

Zatanna smiles. "Zatanna Zatara."

"Ohh." Hm. Nervousness, but no fear. She doesn't think that we're going to threaten her. "I… Didn't know there were any other Zataras in America right now."

Zatanna shakes her head. "I just got here."

"I should.. probably warn you that our premises are monitored… Constantly. Usually when Syndicate members want to speak to me they arrange a meeting somewhere else."

"That's not a problem for us."

"I-. No, I don't see, but… Okay, if you're sure." She takes a step away. "Why don't you come into my office."

We follow her through the main desk warren of the Metropolis Star, several reporters and subeditors regarding us with fascination as we pass. Miss King opens the door to a corner office to let us inside, then follows us in and closes the door behind her. Then she closes the blinds facing the main office. Then she crosses the room and closes the exterior blinds, which is a bit of a give-away if anyone actually is watching. Then she motions for us to take a seat on a small armless settee while she pulls over a quilted stool to sit down opposite us.

"Can I record this conversation?"

I shrug. "As far as I'm concerned. But… Some parts… Can't be made public without… Having some fairly negative consequences for a lot of people."

"People being..?"

"The population of America. That's not a threat from me. Just a… Realistic assessment of the likely outcome."

"Okay, warn me when we get to those." She frowns at Zatanna. "You look a lot like Zorina. Are you her… Sister?"

"Parallel universe double."

"Like.. the Justice League." Zatanna nods. "So you're a.. superhero?"

"Ah… Trying to be. But the situation here is… Complicated."

"Normally, we'd work with the government against something like the Syndicate. But… Then I heard about what President Wilson had been up to."

"I, ah…" She laughs nervously. "Have had disagreements with President Wilson, but he's not trying to blow up the entire planet."

"Neither is the Syndicate any longer. At least, as far as I've been able to tell."

Because while Victoria can block me and Mister Scott is filled with yellow, Mister Constantine was wide open.

"You want to help them… Because they're less evil?"

"Because if they're trying to reduce the level of violence considerably I can justify giving them a little help. But if Slade Wilson is turning America into a totalitarian state, I can't justify giving him the level of help he would need in order to secure total victory. But I can't trust what they're telling me." I lean back. "So… Is he?"

"I-. Hm." She thinks for a moment. "I don't… Think so. He reacts like a totalitarian dictator to anything relating to the Syndicate, but no one who questions his foreign policy or healthcare policy gets treated in the same way. And totalitarians are total. It's all about them, their ego. I spent enough time in the Middle East and South America to recognise the psychology. For President Wilson, it's all about the Syndicate."

"How… Bad has he actually got?"

She shrugs. "We've got martial law everywhere there was a Syndicate boss, and a number of other places besides. We've got thousands of people in special detention centers and no sign that they'll be given access to a lawyer, let alone a trial date. The troops pulling law enforcement duty are a lot more willing to shoot than the police used to be-. Police used to be before the Syndicate took over."

I nod.

"But I don't know whether they're going to stay there when President Wilson leaves office. And I don’t know whether or not whoever comes next will keep up his policies."

"Alexander Luthor, right?"

"Like I said, Wilson only acts totalitarian with the Syndicate. I haven't seen any sign he's going to try and fix the election. But.. probably."

"And what happens then?"

She shakes her head. "Your guess is as good as mine. I'd like to think that he'd start some sort of trials process, but we haven't quite gotten to that part of the electoral cycle yet and I don’t think he'd want to undermine the President by openly disagreeing with his policy."

"What's the general opinion in the country like?"

"Mostly, extremely supportive of the President. Due process isn't usually popular until you're the one being denied it." She sighs. "Honestly, I think he could order the summary execution of everyone they're holding and get a round of applause in most places."

"Do you know.. what proportion are actually..? Guilty?"

"You'd know better than me. But… Even if they're all guilty of the things they've been accused of, a lot of it should be.. minor stuff. Instead, they're being housed in a military stockade, with all the problems that creates."

I nod. Armies aren't designed for criminal rehabilitation any more than they are policing. American prisons are pretty unpleasant anyway, and the soldiers are going to be inclined to regard the people they're holding as guilty until ordered otherwise. Now I'm getting Marvel: Civil War flashbacks.

"Now why don't you tell me something?"

I shrug. "After Fawcett City, what was left of the Syndicate began rallying around new.. senior members. Those members then offered President Wilson a conditional surrender. His response was to go on television and give his 'no quarter' speech."

"He did that because they-? And it was genuine?"

"Owlman's bomb was insane. Think about it: what were they going to do if they actually set it off? Most of the Syndicate would die, let alone everyone they rely on for basic goods and services. With the old Management gone, most of the lower level organisers wanted to go back to being normal criminals. The 'threat to the world' thing looked like a bad plan when the ones masterminding it were dead."

"There have been plenty of attacks since then."

"Of course there have. The New Management made the surviving Made Men aware of their position when they tried to convince them it was the best route forwards. After President Wilson publically slapped them down, they lost face and members of the organisation began looking for other leadership."

"I can.. publish this?"

"Sure. Everyone in the Syndicate knows what happened, so you won't be undermining anyone." I make an amused snort. "And if what you're saying about public opinion is true, I doubt that anyone on the President's side will care either. And… You know that at the end of the Second World War, the Japanese offered to surrender before the atomic bombs were dropped?"

She nods.

"The American government refused it because it wasn't unconditional. I've got a worrying suspicion that this is going to go about as well as that did. Only this time, the Japanese have second strike nukes themselves."