Yue

 5th February

14:20 GMT -5

"Laever."

Zatanna continues staring at the Staff of, the runes glowing as she studies their interaction. Miss King's archive was enlightening, and with Mr and Mrs Kent murdered in their Aruba retirement home I may have to reconsider the 'exile' thing. It could have just been one of their criminal rivals, or Doctor Chaos trying to stir things up, but it would be very much in keeping with what I've learned of Slade Wilson's character to have organised the hit himself. The Kents weren't part of the Syndicate, though they were certainly involved in the country's criminal networks. They appear to have supplemented their farming income by being a step along the narcotic and people trafficking route, arranging for their neighbours to get cheap farm labour from Mexico and covertly growing and processing any number of plants that are illegal in the US. They sold the whole thing to their son once the Syndicate expanded into that area, and now almost every person of Mexican extraction in Kansas is in a prison camp for 'Syndicate-related criminal activity'.

Mary Batson's parents died in suspicious circumstances years ago. Charles Vicker's parents died before his rise to power, and his brother died during it. Johnny Quick's parents were blissfully unaware of his activities in America until the Australian Federal Police knocked on their door. Only Miss Batson and Mr Kent had family who were Syndicate members, and unless the Super family somehow survived Fawcett City it's just Ultraboy and Mary Mayhem. A one-and-a-half year old and… Nine year old? Nine years ago is the first time Mary Mayhem showed up, about the time her… Whatever relation to her Mary Batson has, began taking control of Fawcett City.

Both murderers. Both marked for death.

"Are they coming?"

"Probably. But you can hardly blame them for wanting to be sure that we aren't laying a trap."

She nods. "Should I put up some sort of protective spell?"

"No. If anyone is coming, they're almost certainly watching the place now. If they see you-."

"If they see me casting a spell, they'll think it's a trap regardless of what the spell actually does. But that does mean that if they try and trap us, we're going to be less safe."

"Which is sort of the point of this whole thing."

She frowns, then nods in understanding. "Because President Wilson doesn't want to risk the Syndicate getting strong enough to take control of the country again? And talking to us could risk him giving them the opportunity to rebuild."

"Not even that far. Just getting the ability to actually have discussions face to face without one side being tortured for information or killed out of hand." … "Your armour is fully charged, right?"

"Yes, though I don't know if it would stop Medea. Do you think that's the name their Circe took, or do you think she's actually Medea?"

"Our Circe killed our Medea when it looked like she might fulfil the-."

An area on the other side of the warehouse shimmers, vague outlines running into one another for a few moments before solidifying. One resolves into a heavily cyberised woman, another into a large gorilla who's wearing-. I can't immediately tell whether that's actual power armour or if he's just that big. Lady Sonar and General Grodd. Until recently the Syndicate thought that the former was dead and that the latter had returned to Africa. And between them, sitting on a floating sphere…

"Enigma, I presume."

Half of his face is covered by a metal mask and he's wearing a black suit with green trim. In addition to his sphere he has a question mark-topped staff, held in his right hand and resting on his knees.

He's not smiling.

The gorilla raises a heavy projectile weapon and points it directly at me. Empathic vision isn't working on any of them, but that gun isn't much more than it seems. Minimal threat. Scans aren't piercing Lady Sonar's armour, but I've seen records of what her soniguns can do. Some of the exotic effects might be a problem, but I'm not feeling all that worried. Which leaves the sphere. All sorts of weapons could be in there.

"I understand that we have you to thank for the release of Star Sapphire."

I can just about see the burned flesh underneath the half-faceplate. I'm going to assume that was a result of his fights with the Syndicate, though his profile picture still shows him having an unburned face.

"I was able to negotiate her release, yes. If she passed on my message-."

"Yes, you want to talk us into letting you all off."

"That's not quite it, but yes, in effect."

"You're not really selling the idea to me."

"You know what the Syndicate still has in its arsenal?"

"Some of it."

"At present, the policy of the New Management is to close down their strategic weapons programs and avoid confrontation where possible. But if they don't end up with something to show for it, the Made Men will stop listening to them. How many people died at Doctor Chaos's command after President Wilson rejected their last offer?"

"You mean, how many people did he kill?"

I nod. "Yes. And order killed, and were killed in response. I'm not trying to convince you that they're nice people or that they'll reform." Though some might. Or rather, might have done. Given how my alter ego joined, I could well believe that there were other Made Men who were strong armed into it. Like Jade's alter ego, Sai. The reverse morality thing should have made her a hero here. Something odd happened there. "It's just that the consequence of carrying on as you are is lots more death."

"And what would be the death toll in the long term of allowing the Syndicate to survive?"

"I don’t know. Compared to what?" We watch each other for a moment. "How did the President or the Vice President take it?"

"The President declined your offer. I'm only here out of a sense of personal obligation."

"'Declined' as in 'you're going to try and bring us in' or 'declined'-."

"There will be no deals with the Syndicate's Management. No bargains for leniency, no informal understandings, no expectation that we will do anything other than kill all of you."

"Regardless of who else dies in the process?"

"Regardless. The Syndicate is simply too dangerous to be allowed to exist."

I.. nod. That's a problem, but hopefully we can work around them. "Very well." Is there anything else I want to ask him? "What happened to the 'quiz' thing?"

"Ultraman burned off half my face, then murdered my wife, my son and my daughter. I haven't really been in the mood since then."

"So is that it? Slade Wilson can beat a helpless prisoner to death with an iron bar because that prisoner murdered his wife? Should I let Ultraboy know that it's perfectly legitimate for him to kill President Wilson? And that afterwards he has to let Rose kill him?"

"Oh, Ultraman killed far more people than just Lillian Wilson. And we bereaved are perfectly happy with what happened." He leans forward slightly on his floating sphere. "You think that letting them get away is justified by the harm avoided? I think that the harm we'll suffer is worth it to permanently get rid of them."

"And then what?" He jerks his head towards Zatanna. "What happens when everyone in the Syndicate, and.. half the country are dead?"

"Then -assuming that I am not amongst the dead- we rebuild. A society without supervillains."

"A society which has abandoned the rule of law? Where a word from the President and the cries of the mob are enough to sentence a person to indefinite imprisonment or death?"

"No. Once the Syndicate are gone, then things can return to normal."

"And what about the families of the innocent people who the army killed? Why is what happened to your family more important than what's happening-"

He presses something on his staff, as they start to blur again.

"-to theirs?"

And… They're gone.

Zatanna sighs. "I don't think that worked."

"No. But it was a long shot, anyway. Let's see what we can do on the other end