Just the newbie...

Rose shook her head, resting her hands on the table. She leaned in closer so only Dana could hear, her green eyes darting around the room in serch for possiable nosy parkers.
"No, Just...I found something when we were at the docks...It's some sort of computer chip but no one can figure it out, you think you could take a look?" She whispered softly, "It was really odd, none of the other peices of equipment had it..."

A strange feeling hit Rose once she realised how close she was to dana, her eyes widened just a little before she pulled back into her orginal postion. "So whatya' say? you will check it out?

"A chip?" Dana said, nodding slowly as he considered it. "Yeah. I'll have a look. 312 would love to get a crack at it as well. It'll be able to figure out the chip's purpose at the very least."

Dana spotted something out of the corner of his eye as he finished speaking, a group of individuals who had entered the cafeteria at that moment. He recognized every one of them. They were staring at him intently.

"I'll see you next period." he whispered before standing. "Don't follow me."

Dana turned and walked out through the far door and down the hall, ducking through two side passages and an empty lab before finding his way to the north yard doors which led out into the rear courtyard of the school. He couldn't hear the group on his tail, but he knew they were following him. That was the idea. Around the dumpsters and into the dead end alley where 312 was hidden he went. Once he was in the alley, he turned and waited for them to arrive. He didn't have to wait long.

"Derrick doesn't waste time." he said. "I suppose you're here on behalf of the General?"

"We don't have to give you any answers." the leader of the group of three said. "You're not the Senator any more."

"So. We're in a nice quiet place. Why don't you kick my ass and get it over with?"

"That's the idea."

The three moved in on him and started beating him. He didn't raise a single hand in his own defense. There was no point to winning this fight. Derrick wasn't the sort to be threatened by the defeat of a couple of flunkies. And Dana? They would have to be much better at this hired muscle business to actually do lasting damage to him. Using his grandfather's techniques and his own well trained muscles, he was able to minimize the damage. Although, he allowed them to get good trickle of blood running from his nose just to satisfy them. It wasn't long before the three of them backed off, huffing and proud of their work. It had hurt like hell. Getting beaten was never fun. But Dana wasn't nearly as hurt as he was pretending to be.

"That's from the Secretary." the leader of the trio said finally, backing away. "He asked me to deliver a message -- Come back and work for him or get another beating every day from now on."

Clutching his side (the one spot that was actually sore now), Dana looked up at them from the ground, his eye blackened and a stream of crimson running from his nose, just as he'd intended. Chuckling brutishly, the Lieutenant and the Sergeants turned and walked away. The moment they were out of sight, Dana dropped the act. He pushed himself to his feet, wiping the blood off his upper lip, sparing the crimson fluid on the back of his hand half a glance before heading back out of the alley...

Rose had found herself a seat right at the back of the class, it was most likely the safest place in the history room for a newbie. Gazing out the window Rose found herself wondering were Dana had gone to in such a hurry, a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach was yelling that it was a bad sign.

Soon enough, Her eyes drifted over to the classroom door, hoping to see him walk through. The teacher taking the class was Mr. Gorge, and he wasn't even hear yet. So naturally, the class was going wild.

Rose was greatful the back of the room was so quiet compared to the rest of the chatty teens sitting on desks and throughing paper planes. She finally had a chance to think, no person next to her, no interuptions...

"Hello there Rose..."

So much for that.

The auburn haired looked up to see the smug face of Derrick Ellers staring back down at her. He casually leaned on her desk shuffled a little closer.

"What do you want Derrick..." She said as calmly as possiable, but her words still left her mouth full of venom.

"Hey! No need to by so feisty, I just wanted to let you know my invitation is still open." He grinned, turning the chair around and sitting down facing her.

"I'm sorry, But I am not interested..." She said cooling, looking away from him and opening her book.

"Are you sure you want to make that choice babe, because hanging around the wrong crowd at this school and make you're time here...unpleasant."

Rose looked up with her green eyes ablaze "Are you...threatening me?"

He smirked, reaching out and started playing with a strand of her hair.

"No no, just warning you."

Dana flinched as Mr. Gorge grabbed his chin in shock and turned his face from side to side. Part of it was real smarts. The other half was exaggeration. It didn't hurt that bad. The two of them were standing in the hall just outside the classroom.

"Pull up your shirt, Mr. Richter!" Mr. Gorge said.

"Mr. Gorge, I--." Dana began.

"Do it!" Mr. Gorge demanded, his face set and beyond serious. Slowly, Dana lifted his shirt and exposed the bruised on his torso. They may not have hurt that much thanks to his training, but they still left marks. And that's all he needed. Mr. Gorge cursed and leaned in, examining the damage. He was the biology teacher, but he was also a licensed doctor. This sort of thing pissed him off... and Dana knew it. Straightening up, Mr. Gorge clenched his jaw. "Who?"

"It's nothing." Dana said, not meeting Mr. Gorge's eyes as he lowered his shirt once more.

"Someone beat the hell out of you, son." Gorge said, brandishing a finger. "That is not nothing. Now who was it?"

"I--." Dana began to argue.

"WHO?!"

"..." Dana averted his eyes. "Dan Tordis, Markus DePaulo, and Frankie Yen."

Mr. Gorge growled. The sixty year old teacher was from a different era and had a famous hatred for cowards. The three who had beaten Dana had fallen into a trap of their own making. This had all worked out perfectly. A few minor bruises that 312 would sort out in a few minutes after school and Derrick was going to lose three more of his little minions.

"You better be willing to talk to Mr. Jennings about this, boy, because whether you like it or not, this is getting filed."

"But Sir, I--!" Dana began.

"NO! NO BUTS!" Mr. Gorge barked angrily. "You better start standing up for yourself, son! There ain't always gunna be someone like me lookin' out for you! Now get into the class room. And use the sink to wash your face."

Mr. Gorge turned and entered the classroom, still fuming. Behind him, Dana couldn't stifle a small, albeit brief grin. Another plan executed to perfection. But he needed move on to stage two soon. Derrick wasn't going to risk any more of his muscle on beating him once the Three Trolls (as they were popularly referred to) were out. However, he didn't linger long. He entered the class and looked around for Rose, finding her quickly. And she wasn't alone...

"Hey, Derrick." he said, making the Secretary look around. The fool could barely contain himself at the sight of Dana's face. It wasn't at all as bad as it should have been, though, and the idiot couldn't even tell.

"Nice face, Richter." he said, brushing past him. "It's a real improvement."

"I'm glad you like it." Dana said. "I made arrangements for you to get something similar."

Derrick snorted and moved off toward his desk, bumping Dana's shoulder as he went. Dana, meanwhile, took his seat next to Rose.

"You okay?" he asked her, pulling out his book. "Didn't bother you too much, did he?"

"Am I okay? Forget him, what happened to you?" Rose asked in return. She could feel her cheeks grow hot from anger as her eyes lingered over his black eye and the cut on his lip.

"You better have a damn good reason for why you took a beating Dana," She muttered in frustration, taking his chin and turning his face gently so she could have a look at the nasty looking bruise. "And if you did swing back, the other guy better look alot worse."

Alright, this is just maddness, she thought to herself.

Rose didn't know much about how the lantern rings worked, but she wondered if they had heeling abilites. If they could make anything the wearer wants appear in mid air, they should be able to heel a few bloody cuts right?

Rose was not the person to let someone get away with harming another person, whether they could defend themselves or not. Seeing anyone raise a hand to anyone just for the sake of proving a point made her blood boil.

Rose quickly wiped away a tiny trickle of blood that Dana might have missed before letting go and crossing her arms stubbornly, one eyebrow raised at him questionably.

"Don't worry about it." Dana said flatly, shaking his head. And he meant it. He wasn't at all bothered by the beating. It had, after all, been part of the plan. He'd had FAR worse. "Things aren't always what they seem. And trust me. I might not have given them a beating, but you can be sure I defeated them."

Derrick and his chief flunky, the Chairman, Andre Vilarro, looked back at him smiling. Apparently, they'd shared a good joke at his expense and were getting a mental snapshot to enhance it. He wasn't terribly concerned. The truth of the matter was the joke was on them. He'd been chipping away at their organization piece by piece since that day he quit. So far, he'd racked up twenty eliminations and not one using his powers. He hadn't thrown a single punch. He hadn't uttered a single curse. And until today, he'd managed to avoid being seen as the direct cause. But it was worth blowing his cover a bit to get a three for one discount. He hadn't been planning on it being that day, but the sooner the better.

"Here's my address." he said, slipping Rose a small piece of paper. "Have James look it up on a map. There's a large woodland area on the back end of the place. Have James take you guys to the small pond marked in the woods as 'Meriam's Pool.' Bring that trinket of yours. Let's say around... 7:30."

The rest of the day passed fairly quickly. He and Rose shared almost every class. Every once and in a while, they'd converse about this and that, but their studies had them fairly busy. At the end of the school day, Dana headed out to get his bike, but yet another familiar face made him pause. A senior was standing a ways down the sidewalk along a row of buildings. They were houses for sale and fairly vacant. Checking that he wasn't being watched, Dana made his way over.

"Hello, Captain." he said, looking up into the burly young man's dark face. Labron was the son of legendary naval captain and self-demoted admiral, Audell Brickton. Nearby stood the Major and the Colonel, Maya Townsley and Jacob West respectively. Dana looked around at them all slowly and then back up at Labron, who towered over him.

"General wants to see you." Labron said gruffly. He nodded toward the fence Maya and Jake were flanking. It led into one of the unoccupied house's back yards. Dana looked at the fence, then back to Labron and nodded, turning and walking into the yard through the gate. Labron followed and Maya and Jake fell in behind them. As they rounded the edge of the house, he found a group of six standing on the porch at the rear of the house, looking out at the expansive yard. This far out of the city, the properties tended to be... big.

"I'm glad you came." said the figure leaning standing with her arms folded on the edge of the porch. She looked around at Dana as Labron and the others stopped, blocking his retreat. "The Secretary asked me to speak to you."

"It's nice to see you too, Lauren." Dana said to the senior. He looked around. Alexander Matthews, the Doctor. Sandra Putnam, the Expert. David Cosgrove and Gregory Smith, the Lieutenants. Harry Pelt (AKA The Peltmeister), the Champion. And, of course, Lauren McCrory, the General, daughter of the four star general, Maxwell McCrory. Along with Labron, Jake, Maya, Amanda, Dana, Derrick, and Andre, this was the original Officers' Club.

Silence had fallen between them. Dana broke it.

"So is 'speak' in this case a euphemism for a beat down? Cuz I already had my dose today." he gestured at his face. It was self-explanatory.

"I sent those three because I knew you could handle them one way or another." Lauren said. "But I didn't think you'd do this. When you said we'd be taking Derrick on face first, I didn't think this was what you had in mind."

"Yeah. It's usually best to take me a bit... literally."

Lauren nodded slowly, biting her bottom lip, one hand tightening on the opposing arm, as they remained crossed.

"So what now?" she asked.

"Now I've played that hand." Dana said. "I won't be able to play it again."

"We're running out of moves. And there aren't enough tricks left to get rid of the rest of Derrick's supporters. Not to mention the fact that Andre would never fall for something like that."

"No, I suppose not." Dana said, nodding. "But I'll take care of Andre. As for Derrick... I drew some new cards earlier. A bit of luck, I suppose. And I think I know a way we can deal with Derrick straight off."

"I thought you said we needed to save him for last."

"That's what I thought." Dana said. "We needed him to hand down the orders so we could bust his guys in the act. But I wasn't counting on the Alley contingency to play itself so soon. Now Derrick is going to think twice about sending his guys out to break the rules. We need to cut off the head of the serpent. Andre is clever, but he isn't a planner. With Derrick gone, Andre will make every mistake that Derrick wouldn't have. That is what we need to finish the Officers once and for all."

"So what's this little plan of yours?" Lauren asked.

"Her name is Rose." Dana said. "And I have the sneaking suspicion that she's going to be more than happy to help us deal with Derrick."

Lauren's eyebrows shot up.

Dana stood next to Meriam's Pool, lazily caressing the underside of his ring with a thumb while he waited for Rose and James to arrive, holding his hands behind his back. The pool seemed to glow as the day slipped away...

The day went faster then Rose expected, spending most of it with Dana since they shared most classes. As the school day came to a close She finally met up with James again outside the school gate as they prepared to leave.

"So...I heard your new boytoy got beat up today..." James asked as they walked to a more quiet location.

"Shut it James, and how did you find out?"

"The whole school knows! Apperantly news travels fast around that place."

"Seriously? But speaking of Dana, we are going to met up with him tonight. I want to see if he knows anything about the computer chip."

Blink stopped mid walk and stared at Rose as if she had grown a second head. "WHAT? you have got to be kidding me!?! I'm not going! I have got homework! and better things to waste my time doing!"

Rose sighed, before giving James a sly look. "I will buy you an ice cream..." she said in a sing song voice.

The 15 year old contemplated the offer for a momment before answering. "Fine, I'll come...but that ice cream better my chocolate, and no cheaping out!"

"Deal!"


"Are you sure he said to meet us here?" Blink grumbled, zipping up his oversized jacket.

"Yea, I'm sure! The pool should be aro-" Rose didn't finish her sentance before she spotted the edge of a glimmering pool reflecting the nearly night sky. "See James? just over there," she pionted in the direction she had seen the pool.

The two walked over, and sure enough Dana was waiting there, hand behind his back. Rose felt around in her pocket for the chip, her fingers retracting as soon as she felt the cold metal brush against her hand.

Blink sighed and teleported infront of Dana, almost re appearing in the water. "Hey glowstick! I heard you go prett-"

"Hey Blink, I thought I told you to shut it?" Nox hissed, green eyes flashing.

"Sorry..." he muttered, stepping away.

"Anyway...I brought the computer chip," Rose said, taking it out of her pocket as she walked over to Dana and James, holding it out for the green lantern to take. "What do you make of it?"

Dana looked around when they arrived. James started shouting something at him, but Rose cut him off. He absentmindedly felt his face. Every last cut and injury had been healed by 312. He couldn't see it, but the only sign of his beating was a slight darkness tinged with yellow in place of his black eye. It was the last remaining indication. Rose pulled the chip from her coat pocket and offered it to Dana. He took it with mild curiosity until he flipped it over and say the symbol emblazoned on it.

"Oh my god..." he said shallowly.

"You know what it is, Ginger?"

Dana's gaze passed between James and Rose without a word for a moment before he laid the chip flat in his right hand. It glowed green as 312 began scanning it. He closed his eyes. The chip hovered as Dana's hand was engulfed in green energy which fed into the chip. Then, suddenly, the energy dissipated. He snatched it from midair with his other hand as his eyes snapped open.

"You said you found this in the warehouse?" Dana said slowly, looking between them once more. "Please tell me that you did not steal this."

Rose watched as the chip was scanned, one eyebrow rasied in curiousity. After a few seconds of silence before Dana grabbed the chip, his eyes flickering from Rose to Blink.

Rose eyes widened a little when Dana asked if they stole it. A sick feeling bubbled in the pit of Nox's stomach, telling her something was off. Blink's brown eyes turned harsh and he glared at Dana.

"Why? what aren't you telling us Lantern?" The teleporter pressed, crossing his arms over his chest.

"We didn't steal it! Well...in a way I guess we did but, I just thought it might have something to do with the people who hired the thieves..." Rose said, not really liking were this conversation was going. Glowing sparks fell from her fingers as she moved them nervously.

"This symbol, the Raven and Dagger? This belongs to a company called the War Raven. It's a mob-controlled mercenary company. It's owned by Graymane International. Graymane International is owned by the R.B.I. Group. And the R.B.I. Group is owned... by my father." Dana said. "This thing you took from that warehouse... It's a control circuit for a nuclear missile."

His face was set and serious. He couldn't believe this. Aside from the question of why a mercenary company had access to a nuke, there were more than a few heart-stopping implications behind all this. Rose's thieves had taken something from a company that specialized in making thieves pay. And there was no way they weren't going to be looking for this thing.

"This is the wrath of god that just looks like a computer chip." he said, brandishing it. "No one outside of the government is supposed to have anything like this. There is no way they won't kill to protect the secret that they have this." Dana sighed. "Today really sucks."

"To say today sucks is a understatment..." Rose muttered, kicking a random stone. She couldn't believe her bad luck. You had to pick up that god damn chip didn't you Rose? she thought, closing her hands into fists.

"Well...that is heavy." Blink said after a few second of silence. "What do we do with it?"

Rose bit her bottom lip, she had heard of the War raven before...why couldn't she remember...?

"Someone has got to be tracking that thing..." Rose thought out loud, tapping her chin.

"Tracking?" Dana said. "You don't need to track something when someone brings it to your doorstep."

"This way!"

The voices weren't far off. He recognized the cadence. There was no question that these were some of his father's personal bodyguards. At this time of night, the old man was doing everything he would be doing on the Hill but from his office. Dana saw the slight blink of a flashlight shining through a gap in the trees. Dana passed the chip back into his right hand. He closed his eyes. The chip began to glow and then with a crackling sound, a spark dodged off of the outside.

"Wait!" said the voices. "The signal just died."

"It was that direction, though, right?"

"Yeah. Let's go!"

"I've shorted it but I still have the working design stored." Dana said hurriedly, giving Rose the chip. "Keep it as evidence but take it and go. I'll explain this away somehow. Just go! Now!"

Rose eyes widened in alarm as she took the chip and shoved it back in her pocket. Before Rose could say another word Blink grabed her hand and they both vanished in thin air.


Rose was once again in her little appartment with Blink, who had teleported them right smack bang in the middle of the living room. The both jumped off the coffee table and looked at eachother with wide eyes.

"This is bad..." Blink muttered, as he began to pace around the tiny room.

"Very, I just can't put my finger on it..." She thought out loud.

"On what?"

"Where I have heard the War Raven before,"

At that momment, Kai emerged from the shadows by the window. His usually warm face was hard and cold. Walking over, he quickly asked to enter Rose's mind in sign laugauge, and in turn Rose obliged.

Before long, the familiar cold shiver that ran down her spine as Kai connected their thoughts for a few minutes.

The War Raven is just trouble Rose, you better not be getting yourself into anything involving them. Kai's 'voice' echoed gently through her head, his words coated with a slight german accent.

But why? I can look after myself Kai, you know that!

You don't understand...

Kai, just tell me!

That's the gang Hood joined Rose...Hood is one of them.


Rose eyes widened in horror as images from her past flickered across her mind.

The fire.

That laugh.

The blood.

The pain.

Oh shit.

Rose felt fear swallow her alive, remembering Hood was like reliving a horriable nightmare.

Unfortunitly the horror was all real.

Kai slowly pulled himself from her head, careful not to hurt her. Rose stared at him for a long time, unshed tears clouding her vision.

"Will...will he...?" Before long, Rose crumbled, bursting into loud sobs. Kai sighed and walked over to Rose, pulling her into a hug the way a father would comfort a child.

No...never again... He mouthed, Never again...

Dana was frog-marched down the corridor toward his father's office, the two bodyguards on either side of him holding his upper arms in a vice-like grip. Dana had tossed 312 into the pond. It would be safe there and he couldn't have his father discovering it in his possession. If there was one thing his father was above all else, it was a scholar of superheroes. It was his hatred and his obsession. He knew everything there was to know short of their inner-most secrets. As a Senator, that volume of knowledge was considerably greater than anything available to the general public. He had direct access to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s mainframe. And they kept track of everyone.

The double doors of his father's office opened automatically at their approach and his escorts all but threw him into the room, stopping in the doorway and doing that typical guard hand hold thing. Dana stumbled a bit as he was pushed, looking back over his shoulder at them.

"Look, Dad, I know these guys are supposed to watch over the family, but this is ridiculous. I was on the grounds."

His father looked up. The man was what would be categorized as 'tall, dark, and handsome.' His dark hair, beard, and mustache were trimmed to perfection. His suit was similarly flawless as it was arranged on him. He wore gold-rim glasses and was scribbling away on a stack of documents with a gold and diamond pen worth millions of dollars. This man was an embodiment of political and monetary power and he acted it.

Placing his pen down, Jimmy Richter stood and walked around his desk slowly, approaching his son without a word. He spotted the traces of Dana's black eye gently turned his face so he could get a better look at it.

"A black eye?" he said slowly, pressing the edge of the mark with a thumb. Dana flinched. It was still tender. His father didn't seem to care. "When did you get it?"

"Recently." Dana said simply.

"It's a black eye, Dana. They're 'recent' by definition." his father hissed. "When recently?"

"Do you care?" Dana asked, blinking.

A snarl flashed across his father's face, but like the politician he was, Jimmy hid it well. He turned and walked over to his private bar. The huge room was a house unto itself. It had everything. He began pouring himself a glass of liquor.

"Mr. Sierro tells me that there were some strange signals being picked up in the grounds by the security grid. He tells me he sent some of his men and those men found you at the source site." Jimmy said, turning with his glass of whiskey. "Want to explain what you were doing out there?"

"Why word it as a question when it's a demand?" Dana asked.

"Fine." Jimmy growled. "What were you doing out there?"

"Contemplating." Dana said.

"What?"

"Merriam-Webster defines it as an act of considering with attention." Dana said smartly.

"Don't get smart with me, boy! You know what I mean."

"I was thinking about how I was going to help mom celebrate her birthday next week." Dana said sharply. This was intended to grind on his father. "But I wouldn't expect you to waste your valuable time with things so trivial, Senator."

His father slammed his drink down onto his desk and marched across the room, grabbing Dana by the neck. Dana's hands flew up to his father's wrist.

"You do not judge me or my actions, boy!" he hissed in Dana's face. "All I have done has been for you! You, your sister, your brother, your mother. My family! You don't get to judge me. You are not qualified to judge me. Do you understand me?"

Dana didn't answer. He had to stand on the tips of his toes. His father's grip was incredible. His mouth worked against his will out of fear, for it was the first time in a long time that he'd genuinely felt fear of this magnitude. He felt the strength in his father's grip to end his life where he stood and it terrified him.

"DO YOU UNDERSTAND, BOY?!" his father demanded.

"Y-yes, father!" Dana croaked. The moment he said it, his father released him and he was left gasping, clutching his throat.

"You will never understand what I have gone through to protect you and this family from the world." his father said after a few moments, making Dana look up. "I won't allow you to inflict your disrespect on me, boy. Whoever you think you are, whoever you'll ever be, that is all because of me. And don't you forget it."

He turned and walked back to his desk, picking up his half-spilled glass of liquor and taking a deep swig out of it as he moved around the fine wooden piece of furniture to retake his seat. As he sat down, he spared Dana one last half a glance.

"Get out." he said.

Dana stood there for a moment and then turned and left. He was back in the hall before the panic hit him. The full weight of the fear ground its way into Dana's heart and he all but ran upstairs past his sister to the safety of his room. He planted himself on his bed. Looking around anxiously, he didn't quite know how to react to it. And then his mind caught up with his emotions and the tears spilled out of his eyes.

Hero he dared to call himself. He couldn't even protect himself. What a laugh!

"Knock, knock!" said a voice. "If you're masturbating, pull up your pants cuz I'm coming in."

Moira opened the door and looked around. The room was dark. There was a lump on the bed covered in a blanket. It had its back to the door.

"Dana?" she said. "Can I come in."

No answer.

"I'll take that as a yes."

"When don't you?"

"Oh, you're alive." she said as though she was disappointed. "Damn. And here I was dead set on being the first one to spit on your corpse. Oh, well."

She laughed a bit, but when Dana didn't join her, she stopped.

"Oh, come on, Dae!"

Still nothing.

With a sigh, Moira walked over and sat on the edge of his bed, leaning back against him.

"Remember that time that you and I went off into the woods and we fell into that cave? Remember?" she looked back at him slightly. "I was so scared. I couldn't even think straight. But you just saw it as another adventure. You figured out a way to use the roots growing down through the ground as material to make a rope. Every time you tried, the rope broke but every time it did, you just tried again. And again. And again.

"You've always been the rock steady one, Dae. I was the fiery emotional one that just loved her half-cocked tangents. Makes me good at what I do. But you? You were patient, methodical. You liked a challenge and you liked solving it even more and no matter how many mistakes, no matter how many setbacks, you always found a way. You didn't let anything stop you."

"Why are you telling me this?" Dana asked. His face, though she couldn't see it, was tear-stained yet dry now. Years of suppressed tears had spilled out. He still felt awful.

"I heard what Dad said to you, Dae." Moira said. "And he's wrong. You are the rock in this family, Dae. Dad's just the guy who pays the bills. What he's been doing all these years has been for him, not for us. And you've been picking up the slack no matter how much he let out. So cheer up, little bro. We still need you."

She looked over her shoulder at him.

"Also. Mom says get your butt downstairs. She saved you some pizza."

"Pizza?" Dana said slowly. "We never have pizza when Dad's here anymore."

"Eh, the square went back to D.C." Moira said. "I'd make a joke about him having a hot date with his secretary, but after Clinton, it's just a cliche."

Dana's lips curled into a small smile. He did love a good politician joke...

It was dark.

Just dark.

All Rose could hear was crashing and yelling in the distance as pain sliced up her body. The horriable burning feeling made it unbearable for her to move.

She was so scared.

More scared then had ever been.

"Wheres your big brother now Rosie posiey? WHERE IS HE NOW!" A voice yelled into her ear, the cruel mocking words echoed around her, teasing her.

Another agonising stab hit Rose in the side, she opened her mouth to cry out, but no noise left her pale lips.

"No one is going to save you Rosie! NO. ONE. CARES. You are a freak Rose, a good for nothing FREAK!"

Rose closed her mouth and nodded in agreement slowly, even moving her head felt like she had ran into an inferno.

A single tear down her cheek as she accepted she was going to die...


Rose shot up from her bed with a gasp, a cold sweat running down her forhead. Her heart was pulsing againt her rips like a caged bird slamming the metal bars of it's prison. Looking around her tiny room, the sunlight crept through the window and lit up the whole space.

It was just a dream Rose, get a grip...

Swinging her long legs onto the egde of her bed, she heaved herself up onto her feet. She yanked open her bedside draw to check if the chip was still there, and sighed with relief when she saw it was.

He can't hurt you anymore...

Rose was still shaken and pale, her eyes wide in fear. Running he fingers through her hair, Rose made her way to the kitchen to begin her day, even though it was already off to a bad start...


"God Rose, you look like HELL!"

"Thanks James, because every girl wants to hear THAT!"

"Sorry... did you get any sleep last night?"

Rose slamed her locker door, number 1223, after getting her books for first period. After hearing about hood again and the missiles, Rose was a mess. She was more defencive than usual and she had jumped at everyone who had walked up beind her.

"No James, I didn't. And PLEASE for the love of all things holy DON'T ask me about it, okay?" She hissed, shuddering. She hated that hood had this sort of power over her. But after what he made her go through, there was no surprize he did.

Rose absent mindedly run her finger up her side where she knew the faded scar was, wincing as if it was a new wound.

never again...

NEVER again...

"I wonder how Dana is..." she muttered to herself.

"Oh come on Rose! he will be fine! He is almost a grown man for godsakes..."

Dana strode down the hall. He had a new sort of energy this morning. He was almost back to his normal self and he was raring to go with a new plan. All he needed was the agreement of all the pieces involved. He found Rose speaking with James at their lockers.

"I need to talk to both of you." he said, his tone upbeat. "This way."

He led them through the school into the northeast ward. It was an entire block of spare classrooms. They didn't see much use as the northwest ward had enough rooms for most of the school clubs so these were usually just used for storage. He found a small room where there was once held a meeting of the Sudoku Club (it lasted about a week) about seven years ago. It was one of the stories that Amanda told them. She loved Sudoku... a little too much, in fact.

"Okay." he said, closing the door behind them. "So I think I have a plan to get rid of Derrick. Interested?"

Rose nodded and followed Dana sluggishly down the halls until they got to the northeast ward. Rose nodded slowly at Dana's proposal for a plan to give Derrick the boot. Rose shifted awkwardly and glanced over her shoulder quickly just in case someone had followed them.

James noticed Rose's nervous movements and gave her a small nudge. He gave her a tiny smile and she didn't return it, she simply gripped her bag strap a little bit tighter and looked at Dana.

"I'm in, what you got Dana?" she said, her voice pretty flat compared to her usual tone.

"You're going on a date." Dana said simply. "Derrick is the sort who's fool enough to believe that his pathetic come-ons might pay out. I noticed him talking to you. He's not one to be interested in a girl for her opinions, so the only thing he might be after is getting into your pants, as they say. You're gunna let him."

"Are you out of your mind?" James said.

"Listen. The school doesn't allow that kind of fraternization between the students." Dana explained. "If you make Derrick believe that you're giving into him and give him the opportunity, he'll try to go all the way. It's a pretty commonplace story with him."

"In other words, he does it all the time and they haven't booted him. Your plan sucks."

"It would if it weren't for the fact that there's a significant difference in what I want you to do from what Derrick's done in the past." Dana folded his arms. "The school has a policy against sexual relations on school grounds. But Derrick has up until now been smart enough to keep those exploits off school grounds. You're gunna find a way to make him break his little rule."

"So... you want Rose to have sex with this Derrick guy to get him the boot."

"No. I want you to get him caught trying to have sex with you." Dana said. "The fact of the matter is Principal Jennings hasn't had an excuse to get rid of Derrick all this time, but he wants to. We need to give him the ammunition to finish the job. If you can trick Derrick into going at you at the top of the south east stairwell, I'll lure the Principal up there and he'll catch Derrick in the act. All you have to do at that point is pretend he was forcing himself on you and he'll be history and you won't be punished at all. So. Are you still in?"

Rose listened to the plan in silence, trying not to loose her breakfast in the process. After re thinking it over in her head, Rose eventually nodded. "Yea, I'm still in. It is going to be challanging, but worth it."

James eyes widened in stares at her as if she grew a second head. "Are you CRAZY! This is...just nuts! What if the plan back fires and this Derrick guy actually assults you!" He said, anger rising in his voice before he turned to Dana.

"And you! I can't believe you would ask this of her! If anything happens pal, it is on your head!"

Rose sighed and looked at James, "Look, I am greatful you care James, but this is my choice. This guy is making everyone's lives hell, and damn it I want to see he gets what is coming to him." she said calmy, before stretching her arms out and cracking her knuckles.

"Now if you would exuse me boys, I have a fish to bate."


For the first couple of lessons Rose tried her best to 'flirt' with Derrick as much as she possiably could, as well as put up the 'hard to get' act. She would look at him and bite her lip, and she even brought up her skirt just a tiny bit.

Finally, Rose decided it was time to make the big move. In the middle of chemistry, she passed a note to the blond saying:

Hey there Darling, I have decided to take up your invitation. How about you meet me at the top of the south east stairwell at lunch and you can show me a good time?

He looked up and grinned smuggly at Rose as the teacher Ms. Johnson ranted on, moving his eyebrows up and giving her a nod. She sent him a sickly sweet smile in return, batting her eyelashes at him.

I will never EVER speak of this AGAIN. She thought to herself.

Soon enough, the time had come for the plan to swing into action. Quickly grabbing the note and shoving it in her pocket, Rose sent a short text to Dana informing him of whats going down. She walked casually to the south east stair case, careful to stay a few metres away from him, looking over her shoulder playfully and winking every so often.

"So you decided to take up my offer huh? Smart girl..." Derrick said as he cought up to her at the top of the stairs. He moved closer and carressed down her arms. Rose resisted the urge to shudder, she forced a smile and took a small step closer to him.

"I guess I did, I thought about what you said the other day...I really don't want to be in the wrong crowd." She whispered, seeing Derrick smirk before he slammed his lips roughly onto hers, his hand inching under up her shirt...

Come one Dana, get your ass here or I will KILL you.

"Oh, I just find it hard to believe is all." Mr. Jennings said, following Dana. "Students smoking on the roof? Reprehensible!"

"Oh, I quite agree, Mr. Jennings." Dana said. There were times his perfect student rep came in handy. This was one of them. He led the way up the stairs with Mr. Jennings close behind. The Principal was still muttering about how unbelievable he found it. At the last landing before the top, Dana turned and uttered a small intake of surprise. It was perfect. Mr. Jennings looked up curiously and, low and behold! Derrick Ellers caught literally with his pants down. Thankfully... he hadn't gotten to his underwear yet.

"MR. ELLERS!" Principal Jennings barked incredulously. "STEP AWAY THIS INSTANT!"

Derrick looked around, surprised. His face drained of color at an alarming speed as he ripped his pants back up.

"No, no, no, no, no, no, no!" he said so fast the separate words could hardly be told apart. "No, this isn't what it looks like!"

"Really?" Mr. Jennings said, raising an eyebrow. "Because it looks like the two of you were about to have sex inside my school."

"Oh my gosh!" Rose forced Derrick's hand off her and flees down the stairsto where Jennings and Dana were standing, tears in her eyes. "M-Mr. Jennings! I..I.. was just walking u-up stars and he...Attacked me!" She said, whimpering. Rose rebuttoned her shirt and wept a little more, hoping the principal was buying it.

"I was so frightened..I.." Rose sobbed into her hands as she stood inbetween the head master and Dana, trying not to move so the rip in her skirt wouldn't expand.

Mr. Jennings eyes drifted from Rose's torn clothing to Derrick with a look of complete and utter disgust.

"S-She's lying, Mr. Jennings!" Derrick said. "S-She came on to me! I--!"

"Mr. Jennings." Dana said, leaning over slightly so he could whisper what he had to say next in the principal's ear. He still said it loud enough for Derrick to hear. "I think I should mention that I saw Derrick hitting on Rose yesterday on several occasions and he even threw a note at her during chemistry class yesterday that contained some very inappropriate material..."

"You!" Mr. Jennings said, pointing at Derrick. "Come with me!"

"But!" Derrick argued. "It wasn't me! It was that whore! She came onto me!!!"

"ENOUGH!" Jennings roared. "Mr. Richter, take Ms. Marsh to the nurse's office immediately while I deal with this."

He spat out the last word in disgust, gesturing to Derrick. Dana nodded and helped Rose down the stairs. They weren't even down to the next landing before Jennings' shouts filled the stairwell. They followed them all the way down into the ground floor corridor and around the corner into the main hall, though by then they were quite faint. He took her to the nurse's office as instructed and explained the situation to the nurse. She offered Rose one of the beds and told her to calm down.

"Well done." Dana muttered when the nurse headed off into her office, shaking her head at the tale still. "By the end of the day, Derrick will be out. With him gone, we'll be able to make the rest of the organization topple like dominos..."

A smile crawled onto Rose's lips as Derrick was dragged away, Jennings shouts ringing through the halls was music to her ears. As the two walked to the nurses office, Rose rubbed her lips as if she was trying to get something off them.

Apon entering the office Dana explained the event and the nurse insisted on Rose lying down on a near by bed. As the kind old nurse scurried into the room next door, The two had a chance to speak in private.

"Thank GOD. That had to be one of the worset momments of my life." she said, her nose scrunching up in diguest. "You owe me big time, you know that? He tasted gross! It was..." Her eyes widened and she shuddered, but dispite al;l she smiled.

"Next time you want someone kiss him, do it yourself!" She said in a hushed voice, nudging Dana slightly.

"Well, I would have, but I doubt I'd have been able to convince the principal that Derrick was forcing himself on me." Dana smiled. "Still. I do owe you, as you say. With the way our afternoons tend to go, I'm willing to bet I'll be paying it all back soon enough. And now a major obstacle is out of our way."

Dana folded his arms.

"There are some people I'd like you to meet." he said finally. "I haven't been in this fight against the Officers alone. There are still people inside the group who oppose Derrick. They'll be opposed to his successor, Andre. With their help, we should be able to get rid of the rest of the bad apples fairly quickly. If you're still interested, I can set up a meet tonight."

Rose nodded, shifting and sitting up striaghter on the little bit to soft bed. Dana crossed his arms and explained how a few officers wanted Derrick out, and his successor Andre too.

Rose thought about the offer of meeting with the officers, but Kai told her quite firmly he didn't want herself and James staying out late ever since he found out the chip had once belonged to the War Raven. Images of hood flooded her mind once again and she winced ever so slightly, before turning and looking at Dana.

"Alright, tonight. I want to here what these good officers have to say about cleaning up Derrick's mess." She said reluctantly. She knew it was going against Kai, but this school was just as badly currupt as the world. The only difference is here you could fix it.