The Outsiders (DC Omega)

The Outsiders #2 - "Arkham"

MARKOVBURG

MARKOVIA

It could have been a side effect of the tranquiliser or his hangover coming to the fore but Brion was more than a little confused. Blinking so that his eyes might focus, Brion watched as the scientists in their basic lab coats marched with self-assured importance around the simple equipment that filled the room. He felt the tension around his wrists and ankles as the redhead looked around him, realising that he was held in the upright gurney by brown leather restraints. He tugged at them but, as expected, failed to free himself. Relenting to the situation, the Crowned Prince of Markovia returned his attention to scientists that buzzed around him.

It was then, in a moment of clarity, that his eyes came upon the stern, taut features of Helga Jace, the chief of science for his father in an earlier time. Her skin was creased and aged whilst her wiry grey hair was drawn back into a tight bun. Brion may have done his best to remain detached from the affairs of his father, that was the duty of his brother Gregor, but even he had known of the illegal experimentations his father had uncovered within the kingdom and how they had led to the former renowned Doctor Jace becoming an exile, living on the fringes of the country in disgrace. It seemed that being an outlaw hadn't been done much to improve her countenance. She was as sour as the prince remembered.

Doctor Jace turned to look upon him as a smirk formed across her thin, tensed lips.

"Prince Markov," she said in an affable manner. It was becoming of a time when they'd known one another in passing, yet even her cordiality seemed mocking. "Oh, how times have changed. You've grown so big, so handsome." Her eyes darkened. "It's almost a shame that it's come to this but you, and Tara, provide an eternal shadow over the throne. Gregor is a great man, a deserving man, and if everything is to go to plan then loose ends can't be tolerated."

She cleared her throat.

"Even your brother understands that," she continued. "Or, at least, he has come to understand the necessity. The king won't live forever and when he does finally succumb to his old age, the ascension of Gregor has to be swift and painless." There was a hint of a smile as she moved across the room, pausing in front of him. "To protect Markov control of the country. For Markovia, naturally."

"My brother would never do this," Brion spat. "Not to me, not to Tara." The words came almost automatically but they carried none of the prince's trademark confidence.

Jace laughed. "He had no qualms when this procedure was done to your so-called sister. That bastard of a girl was an easy choice to make. Wily as she was, and quick on her feet too. He was more concerned with you but even then, the sway of power is a powerful motivator. Your choice to become inebriated, like clockwork since Tara's disappearance, may this all the easier. In a way, we should thank you. At the very least we owe our thanks to the breweries of Markovia."

She raised her hand, as if offering a cheer.

"Well done, chaps. How well you've assisted the progress of your country without even being aware."

Brion felt uncomfortable.

There had always been a tension between Gregor and his younger siblings, whom had always relied more heavily on one another, but Brion had always assumed that was due to the general coldness of Gregor's personality, not his ambition. Still, despite everything the aged doctor had just said, the prince couldn't, wouldn't, believe that his brother was capable of what she was saying. Gregor may not have cared for them as anyone would have expected from a familial bond but to torment them, to deliver them to the crazed experimentations of Jace was beyond even his hunger for power. The Markovian throne was already his, Gregor's ascension was assured by birth-right.