52 CHAPTER 48

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[David Lance POV

Nov 2009]

14 Months since the events of the League and Rachel.

I leaped from rooftop to rooftop under the dim light of the night, never losing sight of my target, an assassin that had tried to kill an activist during his sleep, probably hired by some corporate overlord, who I was determined to bring to justice, after capturing his accomplice.

Being one step behind him at all times, I managed to cut him in his tracks, cornering him in a dark alley, leaving the assassin nowhere to go, or so would the average person; because the moment we arrived at the alley, multiple individuals stepped from out of the shadows.

"Give up," The assassin ordered, "You're outnumbered and outmatched."

I sighed, giving the assassin a look that conveyed how amused I was at his statement that brimmed with bravado he couldn't back up.

Evidently reading my look, the assassin hissed, drawing a thin blade from their belt. Soon enough, the rest of his party did the same, drawing their weapons in order to fight me.

I stepped forward, smiling under my mask, while calmly pointing behind him. But before anyone could even register what I had done, a soft voice was heard, and the assassins crumpled to the ground like dominos.

"Numbers don't really matter in situations like these," Rachel, or rather Raven while on the job, said softly, hovering a few feet above the ground.

~Most criminals are dumb,~ I replied; I mean, had they attacked me, their blades and weapons would've shattered against my skin, and that was if they managed to reach my skin, to begin with.

Not many could hurt me as I was now, at least not without an excellent strategy and an even better arsenal of weapons at their disposal.

Puberty was a wonder for superpowered beings.

Not only were my powers increasing on their own, day and night, because I was growing into the body of an adult.

But atop of that, I had been training my body and mind to their very limits, and, well, needless to say; the training was paying off. My abilities, in general, were growing at an exponential rate.

I was now able to do things that a year ago I never would've thought even remotely possible. For one, I could now move at subsonic speeds and had the strength to jump over buildings in a single bound with shocking ease.

And it didn't stop there; my reflexes had improved as well; they were quite possibly the thing that had improved the most, to the point that I could now easily dodge bullets or even deflect them with my bare hands depending on the caliber of the weapon itself; as some types of ammunition were still able to hurt me.

But while my overall powers were increasing a lot with no signs of slowing down in their rate, I was not going to let that blind me. On the contrary, now more than ever, I was determined to hone my skills in order to avoid the power I was acquiring from dulling them.

I couldn't afford to become arrogant or overconfident, not in this life, and especially not if I wanted to keep protecting others.

"Done," Raven announced calmly, gaining my attention. To see she had tied every assassin with so much rope, I was honestly quite surprised they were still breathing.

Wait... were they breathing?

"They are..." Raven replied, almost as if reading my mind.

~From where? They are more rope than humans at this point...~ I replied, pointing out the fact the assassins looked like they were caterpillars inside rope-like chrysalises.

"Hm, I see..." Raven nodded, using her magic to fix the situation.

I still remember the day she had approached me with the idea of becoming a hero with me; I remember being elated. Since that fateful day, she had been patrolling with me most nights while learning under Dinah the basics of the job.

She still had a few things to learn, like how to tie a bad guy up properly without suffocating them in the process or how to fight without magic.

Nevertheless, I had no doubts she would overcome these little things in no time.

"What do you want to do with them?" Raven asked, breaking me out of my thoughts.

I thought for a few seconds before coming up with an idea; it was perfect, in fact.

~Follow me,~ I said, grabbing a few of the technically mummified assassins with Raven following close behind. ~Can you open a portal to the commissary?~

Raven nodded before sighing in amusement, realizing what I was about to do. "Won't the police commissioner get angry about this?"

I shook my head. ~He finds it... amusing. Besides, he has given me the green lights to do so.~

Without another word, Raven sighed, smiling ever so lightly as she opened a portal to the police station, where I started to throw and hurl the assassins inside the portal like sacks, one after the other. 

"I'm sure they'll be quite upset when they wake up and find out what happened," Raven commented as I did my thing.

The corners of my mouth quirked up in a slight smirk under my mask. ~I'm sure they will be,~ I replied, hurling the last one in. ~But their ire will only make them easier to capture if they ever escape jail...~

Raven nodded in agreement. "That's true."

"Kid, what in the actual hell!" The police commissioner growled, stepping through the portal without a care for the world, stomping his way towards me. "You just dropped twelve... humans?" at my nod; he continued, "Twelve human criminals in my precinct's cell! One after the other! Hell! At least text next time!"

~To what number?~ I replied, perking an eyebrow up. While it was true, I had his number, and much more, he hadn't given me that information himself, so I was messing with him a bit.

The commissioner narrowed his eyes at me. "You have access to military-grade weapons, magic, and God almighty knows what else, and you tell me you can't find my phone number... telemarketers do that..."

"He won this one," Raven muttered with a soft nod.

I nodded, admitting defeat. ~I concede to your logic commissioner. Next time I will text.~

At this, the commissioner smiled, pleased with my answer. "Good, now, what exactly am I dealing with back there?" he asked, pointing at the portal, referring to the assassins.

~Assassins, nothing too complicated. Here's the evidence I have against them,~ I replied, handing the commissioner a USB with enough information to convict them.

"Twelve assassins... I swear to God they breed like bunnies," He muttered under his breath, taking the USB before walking back into the portal.

I liked the guy. He was easy to deal with.