Cold-Blooded

Luminous

Just as Alias turned around from expressing her timid farewell to Grayson, she immediately frowned as Red Hood was standing parallel to her, arms crossed so tight she felt his jacket would give way any second. A sigh left her lips as she casually walked up towards him and stopped short, staring into his glassy crimson visor. "Still mad?" No answer; she pouted even more and slid her hands up his arms to his smooth cheeks. "Please don't be mad. I didn't mean you any harm, I thought...I thought that―"

He caught her hands before she could finish and she widened her eyes in surprise when he gently pulled them away. "I know. But some things aren't meant to be, Alias, no matter how much you try and fight it. I appreciate the help but I don't need Grayson when I got you and Rex covering my back."

"Wait. So you're trying to say that we're a...team of some sort? Like your other friends, Princess Koriand'r and Harper?"

"How do you know about them?"

"Rex. He had more of a hold of you than I did...one harnesses the power of a star and the other's accuracy is beyond me. He must have amazing sight to never miss his targets."

He sniggered as he placed a hand in his pockets, "Roy's a joke. Guy can't even sit still without saying something stupid and most of the time he's not even trying."

"Yet you speak of him like you miss his stupidity..." She tilted her head, her voice suddenly more sincere and cool that it completely stole Jason's attention. "Why did you leave them behind? Scared to let them see your world?"

"They already know," he spoke dejectedly. "And I'm not finished here in Gotham. This was where I was born, where I was brought up. As much as I really hate this place, there's still something about it that I can't abandon."

"Your history," she answered for him. "It's not something that you can abandon, it's something that won't let you go. It sticks to you like another layer of skin, always there protecting you from future mistakes. I understand it was hard facing Grayson like that, I understand your anger and frustration, but like I said; a ripple in one's history can leave an impact in their world."

"Did you seriously go all philosophical on me?"

"I...think I did." She shook her head. "Sorry about that. Sometimes I don't realise what an idiot I sound like." As she flashed him a coy smile the air around them shuddered upon Rex's arrival, the blonde man looking at Alias then at Red Hood and back at Alias again, and wondered why they were standing so close.

"Alias, your friend Max told me everything. Didn't realise he was a Meta until he told me to give you this." He stepped towards her and cupped her cheek, her face twisting gently as memories exploded within her mind; a name, a place, an objective. "And, no, it's not on any map. It actually exists between realities."

"Morpheus. The City of Light, my memories...why is Max leading me here?"

"He said that you can find your own life there. You can't get lost, there's a gate when you get there." He crossed his arms as he glared down Red Hood, "And why the hell is he here?"

She sighed, "Jason, just tell him. I feel bad enough as it is."

"Talk about the element of surprise...Rex, it's me."

"I know exactly who you are, I'm just pissed off at the fact that you couldn't even tell us anything." Alias looked at Rex in surprise as the words were fuelled with a bitterness enough to even stab her heart. She didn't know that Rex was this affected by Jason leaving. "You just go and leave us, leave everything behind like that? Did you even feel any sort of regret or guilt when you vanished like that? Breaker, he...he barely survived and saving him almost killed Alias. You didn't know that, did you?"