Chapter 6- Hide and seek
"Seems like we're late. "
With an old villa of Italian style in sight, Martian Manhunter informed his teammate from high in the sky and invisible.
The villa seems really pretty luxurious and the inside should have been beautiful once, but now it was just a ruin. Windows were wracked, all the furniture's were reduced to pieces, the second floor was torn down.
"I'm going in." Passing through the wall, he started his investigations, still invisible. Faraway, sounds of sirens were nearing.
"Manhunter, I found the family of Mr. Banning, but he should still be inside. They fled the scenes as he was dragged in the upper floors. Did you find him?". Batman informed him mentally.
"Manhunter?"
J'oon was in front of the corpse of an old man, covered in blood.
"I found him. He is dead. Our target seemed to have tortured him, his phalanges were broken, several teethes ripped, and two ribs broken. One of the ribs pierced his lung, he died from asphyxiation. He isn't a skilled torturer. I don't know if it is good or bad."
"Diana, did you find his traces?" Batman's stoic voices echoed in Wonder Woman's mind.
"No. I found no sign of him, and Red Tornado watched the images from the satellite of the watchtower and followed him until the forest at the outskirts of the town. Then he disappeared, but I have a hunch that he is near.
"Could he have hideouts here?" Manhunter asked while flying toward Wonder Woman location.
"No, he is an amateur at it, not someone trained and experimented like Deathstroke or the League of Assassins." Batman responded them while landing his jet near Wonder Woman.
"So, he is fleeing under the cover of the woods."
J'oon landed behind them. They were in a wood outside Coast City. Clouds covered the moon in the sky, the place was dark. Batman was watching for movements with the night vision of his mask.
"Yes. Wonder Woman take off and watch the woods from up there. He came to these woods to hide. He knows we are on his traces. Otherwise he would have taken off the ground and fled the crime scene straight away. He wanted to lure us in these woods and use a guerilla tactic to take us out one by one to flee without being followed."
"How did he know we were here?"
"Last time I saw him, he emitted telekinetic waves around him, seem like his perimeter was larger than I thought. He is often hot-blooded, but this time he chose to hide and act carefully. Seems like he still knows how to calm down and act pragmatically."
Not far away, Aiden watched as Wonder Woman took off the ground and came to a stop in mid-air.
(What a lineup. Just for me, seems like Batman's opinion of me is pretty good. Wonder Woman will be a pain in the ass up there, her vision may be better than one of an eagle. And if I chose to fight, she will immediately come as a backup while I'm fighting one of the two left. I could take Batman out first, him and his fucking intellect, but Wonder Woman is an amazon, trained in the art of war, so she should be a resourceful strategist. Finally, there is Martian Manhunter, his powers are similar to mines, even if my telekinesis overpower his, with his telepathy he could disturb my thought process and prevent me to fight at full power. I have to flee.)
Aiden come down from the tree where he hides, and stop ten centimeters above the ground and started to float toward the east end of the woods, while doing his most to find the best trees to block Wonder Woman view. With his telekinetic field, he could feel Batman and Manhunter, even if he was invisible.
For once, Aiden used his precognition ability in a one-minute time frame, the maximum he could with an hundred percent of likelihood, even if it was tiring, he can't fail here. He has only two advantages, and he knew it, his precognition and the fact that the heroes that were after him weren't in the know that he could become invisible.
"Manhunter you hear something?" Batman asked his partner while watching the ground for footprints, not to avail."
"No, except of the natural sounds in a forest. It's strange. If he was in this forest, I should hear wind on his clothes or his heartbeat." The Martian has a super hearing and several senses unknown to men, it was strange to not find his target.
"He smartened up. There are no footprints, no sounds, odors, and Diana didn't saw him from up there. I think he created a telekinetic bubble around himself to block wind, odors and is surely flying slightly above ground."
It continued still five minutes before Aiden field reached farther in the woods; the trees were thinning, if he continued in this direction, he would be in Wonder Woman's sight.
(Shit! My best chance would be to make a U-turn and disappear in Coast City, but they are behind me.)
Stopping under a tree, he heard the slight sounds of Martian Manhunter nearing. It was unbelievable, of the two it was Manhunter the noisier, Batman was silent as a shadow. He could have been an assassin in another life.
Still unmoving, he saw a shadow just five meters in front of him, and instinctively used his telekinesis to make himself invisible in bending lights. Fortunately, it seems she didn't saw him, it was Wonder Woman, the moon was freed from the clouds and let shown her shadow.
(Now, I have an idea!)
Getting up, he started once again and finally put one kilometer between him and his pursuers; It took him more than twenty minutes of tedious hide and seek, but he succeeded.
(Hopes it work.)
Stepping out of the shadow of a tree, he headed toward another, but it was seen by Wonder Woman.
"Guys, he his one kilometer ahead of you. I'm intercepting him, I'll win some time until you arrive."
"Roger, be careful." Speeding up their turtle rhythm, they zoomed toward the location of Aiden.
He instantly felt them, Wonder Woman and Martian Manhunter flying toward him while Batman rushed into a sprint.
It took barely more than a second, and the Amazonian was already on him.
"Listen, we want to tal-" She had her lasso in hand but started talking, which Aiden didn't bat an eyelid. With a harsh telekinetic push, he sends her flying toward the ground and pulled all the trees in a one-hundred-meter radius and made them fall to the ground.
She was sent in the mud, the floor of this sector of the forest was marshy, and with the fall of the trees a huge cloud of dust raised. Aiden faded in the night till transparency and made a U-turn toward Coast city, not at full speed, otherwise the sonic boom would have dissipated his cover. Furthermore, keeping an invisible state for more than a minute was already a challenge for him.
Behind him, he heard a somber voice "Now, I'm angry!"
Seems like the Amazonian warrior, hero and phantasm of countless peoples didn't like to be covered in mud from head to toes.
Manhunter reached the place ten seconds later and saw a cloud of dust he dispersed using his telekinesis ability.
"Diana, where are you?" Asked telepathically the Martian.
"Heading north, he raised a cloud of dust to flee, I'm following him it was where he was going when I spotted him, he should be heading for the highway."
Her answer was logically right, but her tone seems filled with anger.
Batman finally arrived on the scene "Diana, come back. I think he manipulated us, it's been a while that's the number of trees is thinning, North wasn't a viable choice for him. He must have made a half-turn."
"We would have seen him." Was Martian Manhunter response on a tone of disbelief.
"No, like I told you at the cave, his ability seems to grow, at least he diversifies his use of it. So, either he found a way to become invisible, or he has an accomplice able to hide from us, but the latter possibility seems low. From what I learnt of him; he is pretty distrustful."
"I'm coming back." She landed beside them, with traces of mud on her attire. "What do we do now? With his speed, he should have reached Coast City since long and there are hundreds of ways to disappear, even more so for someone with his abilities."
Once at Coast City, Aiden used a basic way to disappear. Basic but efficient, creating an air bubble around him he jumped into the sea, disappearing like a submarine.
He thought to it a long time ago. Considering Batman and all his gadgets, Flash suits, etc. It was evident that heroes were resourceful, either in terms of money or technology. It wouldn't be surprising for them to have a satellite up there or be able to borrow one, with the support of the public. Underwater he was hidden from spying satellites. The only problem was if a magician was tracking him, he didn't have countermeasures against it, after all, he doesn't understand magic the least bit.
"We lost him. I'll launch an investigation about his victim to see what information he could have told him." Batman answered them before pushing a button on his wrist bracelet, seconds later, his jet landed near him.
"I'll go to the Watchtower to see the data collected by the satellite. Maybe I will see where he was heading to." Manhunter started to float above ground before heading into the distance, but they continued to talk via their telepathic link.
"He isn't stupid and I'm sure he knew we spied him from up there. You won't find him." It was Diana who answered as she watched him leave in the starry sky.
"As for me, I'll take a shower, be covered in mud isn't one of my hobbies. Bye Bruce, call me if you find something." The Amazonian and the jet parted way in the sky above Coast City.
Once at the Batcave, Batman started his research. Once again Alfred will say his favorite remark that he has to sleep more.
Elsewhere
Several Days Later
Aiden was in a lost town in Kansas. He emerged from water in the bay of New-York; he hurried to take the first train on the depart. This city was filled with bad memories and it was the base of the new group, the "Titans". He was already exhausted after all that tension in playing to hide and seek with Justice League members, and the overuse of invisibility didn't helped.
"Smallville, huh? Is it on the map?" There were wheat fields as far as one can see, a new scenery for him.
"I'm exhausted, and they froze my bank account. Sigh, the money I have on me will be used in two days max." He found a hotel and paid in cash for a room.
Watching the stars by the window, he was thinking. (Nothing, he gave me absolutely nothing, and he died on me. You killed an innocent Aiden, congratulations, you're officially everything you hated.)
That night he was unable to sleep, every time he was on the brink to fall asleep, the image of the old man coughing blood and calling the name of his wife appeared in his mind.
Eating up his lunch in the hotel's lobby, he was reviewing his options. (I'm broke, lacking sleep, all my leads are worthless and the Justice League is chasing me. I can't imagine a worst scenario.)
Leaving the hotel, he entered a clothes shop and bought a new jean, a shirt, and a leather jacket. His clothes were filthy and stink after his little trip in the forest.
After this, he bought a coffee at a bar and took the photo of the Bialyan camps from his bag, one of the few things he took out of his apartment after his talk with the Dr.Fate. Left in his bag was twenty dollars and the few items his parents left him.
The television was on and it talked about him. It was always the same thing, news about the Tormentor killing a retired General of US Air Force in Coast City, several speeches condemning his actions and a speech from Wonder Woman for the Justice League.
Heading outside, his bag on the shoulder, he heard someone yell. "Clark good to see you again after all this time in Metropolis. I'm reading all your articles. You're talented kid."
Looking toward the sound he saw a man around sixty or seventy talking to a black-haired man seemingly in his thirties, wearing old fashion glasses and shirt, beside him was a gorgeous blond woman around twenty.
When his gaze went on them, his blood grew cold, as when he fought against Nocturna an instinct kicked in warning him that these two individuals were dangerous, he hurriedly left the place heading toward the end of the street.
"I'm not so young anymore, Carl. I'm not a little kid. I have to say that it's pleasing to come back home and see all these old acquaintances." While walking, he continued to hear their conversation.
"Yeah, it's good to see you too, and who is that beautiful woman beside you?"
"Ah, yes sorry. Carl, this Kara, my cousin. She just came back from abroad. I wanted to show her where I grew up. Kara, this is Carl an old friend who had to bear with all the mess I made when I was a kid."
"Please to meet you." The voice of the gorgeous blonde was finally heard, with one last glance at the two of them, Aiden turn at the corner of the street and headed toward the train station.
"My pleasure, you can come to my home later. I'll tell all the mayhem your cousin made when he was a kid. I'm sure we will laugh all night." With a laugh, the old man climbed up in his pickup truck.
Watching him leave, Clark found his cousin behavior strange.
"What is it, Kara? You seem strange?" His tone was a bit worried, the big blue boy was really protector toward his newfound cousin, even if she had the strength to reduce a car into a can.
"I just saw a human. He seemed strange." There was a tinge of question as she talked to her cousin.
"You will find many people strange, don't worry, you arrived barely four months ago, and sometimes some human are strange, but don't worry it don't mean they are bad. Now, follow me, I have to show you the best restaurant of Smallville."
(What was that? When I faced Nocturna, the reaction wasn't this strong!) Sitting on a bench at the train station, his back was covered in cold sweet. That man, I saw him somewhere…. Clark Kent, the reporter of the Daily Planet. Seems like the reporter who denounce the secrets of everyone has a secret too. In normal times, I would play Sherlock Holmes and find what it is, but I don't have the time.)
Suddenly he heard voices from the people near him as they watched their phones
"You see that, unbelievable."
Coming behind them, he watches the screen of their phone from above their shoulder. It was a news channel A black woman apparently in her forties was talking.
"Arthur Reed AKA Aiden Sharp, AKA Gotham Tormentor, son of Arnold Rickmer and Susan Lyd criminals who did inhuman experiments on prisoners in Bialya during the end of the cold war. They hide in New York during years after changing identities. He is continuing their legacy, this monster has to be put down, and I assure you that the US Army will act to neutralize him. It was our mistake to let them escape all those years ago, and we will put an end to this."
(Bitch! Liar! You want to catch me so you spit on the name of my parents! Even if it's a trap, I swear you'll die fucking bitch! I have pictures of Rickmer he didn't even look like my father.)
A gale of wind was blowing on the train station, it took peoples aback who to run after their baggage's that rolled away and some girls were holding their skirts.
It took him a long time to calm down; it was obviously a trap, maybe orchestrated by Batman, her name was on the banner, even the location of the filming. The trap couldn't be more obvious. He couldn't let his temper get the better of him.
Weekly Power Status
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Ranking 
-- Power
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