When Night Comes

Chapter Six

I felt uneasy about this predicament that we had found ourselves in, we were playing too much into Talon's hands. My King felt the same way, but as we had all discussed this was the only way we were going to get him. Additional to the fact that we could not escape, Talon had us firmly trapped.
"Hold, I think I hear something." Hawkman commanded and we all stopped, straining our ears to hear anything that could indicate danger.
"Behind you!" The startled shout came from the throat of Hawkgirl as Hawkman was taken down with a flying kick by Talon.
He looked different, almost like he was a new person, but I knew he was Dick. And I knew because of that, that we will all be holding back.
"Hello there, fancy seeing you here."  He said as he turned around and I was taken aback.
His eyes were golden, his veins black against white skin. It was horrifying to know that was my friend.
"Dick, you don't want to do this." My King said as Talon twirled a small dagger between his fingers, "This isn't you."
"You seem to believe me to be someone I'm not." He said with an amused look on his face, "Allow me to set one thing straight; I am a monster, and it's honestly quite fun." Then he shoved his other hand backwards into Hawkgirl's stomach and turned to face her, "Oh, my dear, you really should have ran away when you had the chance."
And, like smoke in the wind, he was hidden again.
"Shayera!" My King called and ran towards her as she fell to the floor.
It took me a second longer to react but then I was by her side as well. I only took one quick look at her stomach to know she wasn't going to make it. Her organs were hanging out in a grotesque manner. Something I wish I had not seen.
"Tell," She was interrupted by a groan then continued, "Tell Katar I love him." Her breathing hitched again as she let out another groan, "And tell Nightwing. Tell Nightwing that I forgive him." Her chest gave a large final heave and then fell still, her eyes now staring unseeing at the ceiling.
"May you rest in peace." My King said and I muttered the phrase after him, "Kaldur, could you contact someone and get them to collect Katar, keep him safe."
I nodded and reached for my communicator but it was gone. Alright then, option number two.
M'gann, can you hear me?
Kaldur, what is it?
Can you and your team come to the hallway leading away from the gym, south side? Hawkman has been taken down.
On our way down now, stay there and be careful.
I turned back to face my King and nodded to show I had made contact before heading over to Hawkman. He looked in one piece, just knocked out cold. Wait, no he didn't.
M'gann, I urge you to hurry, he has sustained a bad injury.
Of course Kaldur.
I don't know how we didn't notice it, but Talon's shoes must have had spikes on the bottom of them, there were small dotted wounds all down his cheek.
"You know calling for backup is against the rules." I could hear his voice around me again, but I couldn't pinpoint, "Which means you're going to have to take the forfeit."
"What is the forfeit?" I asked as I backed up against my King and we circled, surveying the area as best we could.
"Why don't you find out?" And the lights went completely out.
I brought my Water barears to ready and continued to strain my eyes to see through the blackness, but it was no use because I felt a boot connected with my stomach and it was normal. Just the breathlessness of it as it usually is, no sharp implements. I instantly regained myself and swung out at random, hitting something. So I hit at it again and felt it fighting back.
"My King, I have Talon." I called out.
"Impossible, I am fighting Talon." He responded and the lights flickered back on just as my fist connected with My King's face.
"I think that was rather funny, don't you?" Talon smirked from the other end of the corridor, "Anyway, time to fly. See ya' 'round." And the lights flickered so that he as there one moment and gone the next.
I heard footsteps before M'gann, Martian Manhunter, Zatara and Captian Atom rounded the corner. Instantly M'gann doubled over and hurled as she saw, Zatara turned pale and the other two faltered for a second before coming again.
"I thought you said that he was injured mildly." John said and I followed his gaze back to Katar, or well, the remains of Katar.
It is like decomposition had happened in seconds, his flesh had gone in on itself and was dissolving before our eyes. His muscle was gone and his blood pooling on the floor where it seeped out. I quickly turned away and double checked my stomach that his boots hadn't made any holes in me. It must have been them that carried the poison.
"May you rest in peace." I said and everyone else parroted it.
"We should take them to the medical bay and prepare them for a farewell." My King suggested and we all agreed.
So that's what we did, John lifted them and I supported M'gann back to the medical bay. We lay them on the beds and covered them both, putting them hand in hand.
"We need to contact everyone else." Zatara said, "Could we all be connected?"
"Yes, but with the number of people here it could prove distracting and put us in more danger." Martian Manhunter explained, "It would be safer to only communicate when we need to."
"Alright, we'll get back to as we should be." I said and My King and I departed back to our perimeter and the others went back to theirs. When we got back we continued as we had been, but both of us were on edge now and our emotions were starting to catch up to us. It was only one more turn before I could take it no more and the floodgates opened.
"Kaldur, what is wrong?" My King asked as he turned to see me.
"I am sorry my King, I normally have better control over my emotions." I said, "It's just that I have watched a close friend kill two leaguers with no mercy. It is just quiet frightening to think that someone as golden as him has been doing this for years, doing worse."
"You must remember that the person we are facing is not Nightwing." He explained, "We are doing this to help him."
"Yeah, right." We both turned to see Talon standing there, leaning against the wall like this was the most natural thing in the world, "Anyway, I need to finish off here. You two, I like. So, you can move through to stage two."
And then he moved. I heard my King go down next to me before I had even registered him moving. It was a blur. And then I was falling and on the floor.
"Sweet nightmares Kaldur." And his fist connected with my face.