Deadshot

By Richard Hill

"CROSSHAIRS"

“You’re sure this is going to work?” asked Deadshot. Too many times he had been given fool-proof plans that would eventually blow up in his face, and the last time they were alone together in a foreign country this jackass lost Deadshot’s suit.

“Of course I’m sure!” replied Captain Boomerang. “Have I ever led you wrong before mate?” As Boomerang flashed his crooked smile Deadshot thought about shooting him in the head, but he was pretty much over the lost suit thing and he could tolerate Boomerang for this kind of money.

The two villains were high atop the Fujita Tower in Hong Kong. They had traveled half way across the globe to assassinate the financier of AIR CORP, a burgeoning company that supplied its customer’s protection on private jets via metahuman bodyguards. The bodyguards were generally two bit thugs who had their powers awakened during the big Invasion a few years back, right about the same time that Boomerang and Deadshot were enrolled in the Suicide Squad. The days of the Squad were behind them now, and Deadshot was looking for big money and bigger risks. He was about to head to Bludhaven to try for the big bounty on the costumed hero Nightwing, but Boomerang talked him into this easy job first.

“Let me tell you mate, this will be the easiest thing you done all year,” he said as he looked through a pair of night vision binoculars. “We ace this bloody bastard named Hiro Misawa and we get a cool $500,000 each.” As Boomerang looked through his binoculars he couldn’t help thinking about all that money and how nice it would be to keep all $1 million dollars for himself; of course, then he would have to kill Deadshot, and that wasn’t bloody likely.

“There he is,” said Deadshot, his mask included a telescopic infrared sighting system, so the binoculars were pointless to him.

“So bloody well do it and let’s get ourselves back to New York!” yelled Boomerang.

Deadshot placed Misawa in his crosshairs of his wrist cannons, “High velocity load,” he said and the barrels on his wrists whirred into place. As he lined up the shot a red haired woman floated right into his view ruining his shot.

“Bloody Hell!” yelled Boomerang as the red-trussed woman grabbed him by the collar of his tunic and flung him ten feet across the roof, skidding painfully on the surface as he went.

“Good evening gentlemen,” she spoke with a slight English accent. “My name is Masonry, and the man you are attempting to kill is my employer, so I hope you...”

Deadshot wasted no time. He quickly focused his crosshair on Masonry’s nose and fired one round into her face. The woman’s body started to fall ten stories as blood from her forehead nearly hung in the air. Deadshot looked back down at Misawa, he was already in his limousine and the driver was taking off. “Better get up and earn your keep Boomerbutt,” said Deadshot. “The mark is making a run for it.”

“Dag,” yelled Boomerang. He quickly picked one of his specially designed boomerangs from his belt and let it fly. The weapon struck the hood of the limo and detonated, causing the vehicle to flip in the air and land on it’s top. “Don’t just stand there ya bloody wanker! Go finish him! Do I have to do it all myself?”

Deadshot stared at Boomerang for a moment before realizing the man wasn’t worth the cost of the bullet. He spoke to his wrist cannon, “Grappling hook,” and the barrels whirred and Deadshot fired to the next building over. A line spread out from his wrist and he used it swing down to the street. The limo was leaking fluids everywhere, the driver looked to be crushed between the wheel and the top of the car, but the passenger in back was better off, as Deadshot could here him moving inside. He raised both barrels up, “Armor piercing,” he said and fired four shots through the bottom of the car. After hearing a gurgled cry of pain, Deadshot decided he had hit somebody.

“Please…I’ll give you whatever you want!” yelled Misawa from inside. “Name your price!”

“I would, but there’s two of us here, and the other guy is kinda greedy. I would settle for $2 million though.” As Deadshot spoke he fired another two shots through the bottom of the car, once again hearing a muffled cry.

“It’s yours, just please don’t kill me!”

Boomerang arrived, huffing and puffing as he ran. “Do it, damnit! The damn police are on their way.”

“This guy says he will pay bigger money to live.”

“How much bigger?”

“He says he’ll pay you $750, 000 if we let him live.” Deadshot lied. Hey, Boomerang would steal from him from a second…you can’t trust super villains.

“All right! Let’s pull this mook from the mess and get out of here.” Boomerang pulled open the limo door and was met by a blast of electricity. The jolt sent him flying back nearly twelve feet.

“As if I was in any real danger,” said the voice belonging to Misawa. The being that stepped from the car looked like Misawa, only he glowed with crackling energy around his eyes and hands. Misawa was definitely a Meta. “The vaunted Deadshot and the comical Captain Boomerang come to Hong Kong and think to take me unawares? I own this town you idiots, I know everything that happens here, your presence was known to me the second your airplane landed. Masonry may have failed me, but as you can tell I am capable of defending myself against the likes of you!” He fired his energy blast at Deadshot, striking the pavement in front of him.

Deadshot rolled to the left and took cover behind a parked vehicle. He raised his right wrist cannon and fired it into the gas tank of the limo, causing it to explode. The blast caused Misawa to flinch noticeably, and Deadshot used the opportunity to fire a hollow point into Misawa’s kneecap. Misawa fell to the ground screaming and clutching his leg, the blood flowed out of his leg and now Deadshot could see the spots where two of his earlier shots had struck.

“Bastard!” screamed Misawa. He raised his hand for another blast, but the pain made him shake and the blast missed Deadshot by a good three feet. “You will never get away with this!” he yelled.

“Yes I will,” said Deadshot calmly, “we have a getaway car.” He aimed and fired a bullet into Misawa’s head; the man’s eyes glazed over and the energy faded right before his body slumped to the ground.

“Let me at that sonovabitch!” yelled Boomerang. His hair was standing on end as he ran over and started kicking Misawa’s limp body. Deadshot raced for their vehicle, and Boomerang, hearing the sirens, soon joined him.

“Payday my boy,” yelled out Boomerang as he walked into their hotel room. Deadshot was just finishing packing his suitcase. “I just talked to Topper on my lap top and you’ll be glad to know that both our accounts have been increased by a cool half million each.” He laughed as he flopped on his bed and unwrapped the paper. The headline made him sit up and his eyes nearly busted out of his head. “BLOODY HELL!” he cried. The headline showed a picture of Captain Boomerang leaving the murder scene, proclaiming him the murderer of Misawa. “AIR CORP executives have vowed to hunt down Captain Boomerang and avenge the death of Hiro Misawa!” Boomerang almost cried when as he read the paper. “But you killed the bloke not me, I was on my arse when you shot him!”

Deadshot opened the hotel room door. “Price of fame and fortune is being stuck in the crosshairs full time Digger. Welcome to the big leagues.”

“Where the Hell are you going, you’ve gotta help me get out of Hong Kong!” cried Boomerang.

Deadshot paused at the door. “Sorry, I have to catch a flight to Bludhaven.” Deadshot walked out leaving Captain Boomerang to fend for himself. Have to remember to thank Topper for arranging that photo, it cost me a bit, but if anyone deserves to be hunted down it’s the guy who lost my suit.

Yeah he was ALMOST over the lost suit thing.

To be continued in NIGHTWING #1

TOPPER’S FILES

Keyword: Deadshot

Real Name: Floyd Lawton

Height: 6’1” Weight: 202lbs

Floyd Lawton’s family basically bought and paid for their own town in Missouri, even named it Lawton after Floyd’s grandfather. Floyd’s mother (name unknown) lived a loveless marriage with George Lawton. She arranged for Floyd’s brother Eddie to kill George. Floyd attempted to stop his brother and in the process George Lawton was shot in the back, destroying part of his spine and confining him to a wheelchair for the rest of his life. Eddie was shot between right between the eyes.

Floyd married a girl named Suzanne and together they had a son named Eddie. Floyd left his wife for unknown reasons, but sources say she is still in love with him.

Floyd began hiring himself out as a contract killer. He had always been a gifted marksman with guns so he called himself Deadshot and clashed with the Batman in Gotham City several times.

When the U.S. Government created the Suicide Squad, Deadshot was one of its first and longest running recruits. He went on any mission he could, and psychiatrists determined that he had developed a ‘death wish’.

Floyd’s mother had her own grandson kidnapped in an attempt to have Floyd murder his own father. Floyd blew into town and killed all of those responsible including his own mother. Young Eddie was also killed by one of the kidnappers in the process. Deadshot is now one of the highest paid hitmen on the planet, but he always goes for the high-risk jobs. It seems his death wish is alive and kicking even now.

"TATTOO YOU"

“I’m telling you kid, don’t make me angry, you won’t like me when I’m angry,” Abel Tarrant wiped the blood from his mouth. He was having a nice beer in his favorite bar when this idiot interrupted him.

The Checkmate Knight strode forward decked out in the navy blue and gold armor; he was confident that he could handle anything the so-called Tattooed Man could throw his way. “Abel Tarrant, you are under arrest, you have the right to remain silent, if you…”

Tattoo Man touched his ankle and a huge saber toothed tiger sprang to life and jumped the surprised the Knight. Rolling on the ground, the tiger bit into the Knight’s armor cracking it like a billiard ball hitting glass. The Knight unsheathed his dagger above his wrist and drove it into the head of the tiger, causing it to fade into nothingness. “Is that all you got?” he asked confidently. As he rushed to his feet he saw that Tattooed Man was waiting for him with an M-16 machine gun.

“I bet that fancy armor of yours can stand anything up to a rocket, but now that you got some cracks and holes in it why don’t we put it to a real field test.” He fired the gun causing the Knight to dive for cover behind the bar.

The Knight readied his gun; his orders were to take Tattooed Man in alive for questioning by the DEO, but the way things were going, it would have to be dead instead. He checked the clip and rose up, intent on shooting Tattooed Man full of holes. What he saw turned him pale inside his armor.

Standing on top of the bar was a Velaciraptor straight out of Jurassic Park. The dinosaur roared and fell upon the Knight. “Don’t worry, that sonovabitch Mr. Bones will be joining you in Hell soon enough,” said Tattooed Man as he poured himself another beer and watched the Knight get torn to bits. “And I told you not to make me angry.”

To Be Continued Later…

TOPPER’S FILES

Keyword: Tattooed Man

Real Name: Abel Tarrant

Height: 6’0” Weight: 198 lbs.

Abel Tarrant's career as a sailor had given way to a life as a small-time criminal. Late one night, he broke into a laboratory, planning to steal the payroll. A burglar alarm sounded after Tarrant had cracked open the lab's safe. Startled, he dropped his flashlight. Stumbling in the dark, a night watchman's gunfire made Tarrant jump back, knocking over a shelf of chemicals. Tarrant fired back, emptying his gun.

Tarrant groped in the darkness, looking for an escape. He thought he saw the shape of a bomb on the floor of the lab, but upon touching it realized it was just the spilled chemicals. Tarrant wished it was a real bomb to aid him in escaping the lab. Still touching the chemicals, Tarrant was surprised when the liquid turned solid, becoming a real bomb. He threw it at the wall and concentrated. The bomb exploded, knocking out the lab wall and freeing him from the authorities.

Tarrant returned the next day, posing as a reporter. Using sponges, he soaked up the chemicals to study later.

Back at his boarding house room, Tarrant experimented with his discovery. He learned he needed to draw an object for it to form, and then concentrate to activate it. Tarrant painted a small arsenal of weapons such as axes, dragons, throwing anchors and wheels of fire on his body. As tattoos the objects would always be near at hand.

Since that time, the Tattooed Man has had a run in with nearly every Earth bound Green Lantern there has been with the exception of Kyle Rayner and that new guy in Arizona that just appeared.

Known Tattoos:
Eagle, Large Sailing Ship, 12 different kinds of firearms, 2 Lions, Monkey with Wings, Stick of Dynamite, Pegasus, Tyrannosaurus Rex, Catcher’s Mitt, Unicorn, Pamela Anderson, Sword, 2 Tigers, Chain, Rose Bush with Thorny Vines, A Deck of Cards, Dolphin, Time Bomb, Velaciraptor, Saber Toothed Tiger, Anaconda.

Many others cover his body, but are as yet unidentified.

"COPYCAT"

Catman stood over the fabled Cat’s Eye Diamond. “God your beautiful,” he said out loud to no one in particular. He reached into the display case the diamond rested in at the Gotham Museum of Art and picked it up. The diamond had been on display as part of the wonders of Australia. It guarded by some of the latest anti-theft equipment on the market. Catman easily bypassed security systems and pocketed the diamond for himself.

“It seems as if I wasn’t the only one who couldn’t pass up such a beautiful bauble,” purred a female voice behind Catman. He turned quickly, unsheathing his claws ready for a fight with Black Canary, Wonder Woman or Batgirl. Instead he saw the beautiful Catwoman.

“Well my dear, we meet again. I hope that this time you can see the benefits of teaming with a criminal genius like myself.” Catman was sure that his charm had attracted Catwoman to his side, and he had to ask her where she got those marvelous boots.

“Actually,” Catwoman said, “I was wondering how many times I was going to have to kick you in the head before you handed over the diamond, you idiotic copycat.” She pulled her whip off her hip and snapped it at Catman’s hand. He flinched from the whip and dropped the diamond to the floor.

Simultaneously Catman and Catwoman lunged for the diamond.

“It’s mine! Give it to me! Stop doing that! Quit copying me! I’ll kill you!” they screamed in unison.

Catman sliced the air before Catwoman’s face with his claws, “Bitch!” he yelled.

Catwoman sliced the air before Catman’s face with her claws, ”Bitch!” she yelled.

They rolled on the floor, and the diamond slipped from both of their grasps and skidded into the hallway. Catman kicked Catwoman in the stomach and as she doubled over in pain he ran to the diamond. Grabbing it in his hand he raised it up and yelled, “It’s mine at last!” That was when the alarms went off. Guards raced at him from all sides, and Catman was trapped. He raced back inside the Australian Wonders section and grabbed his rope that led to the skylight above. The guards were far too slow to catch him as he pulled himself to the roof.

Reaching the roof, he found Catwoman waiting for him. Approximately eighteen kicks and punches later, Catman found himself feeling quite happy that he possessed nine lives. That was when Catwoman wrapped her whip around his throat.

“I think you have something that belongs to me,” she said.

Tired, out of breath and quite frankly sick of getting his ass beat by Catwoman, Catman handed over the diamond. “Take it, but just remember, I stole it first.” But Catwoman was already gone. With police sirens screaming in the night, Catman made his escape using his Cat-line. He pulled his keys from his utility belt and jumped inside the Catmobile. “She thinks I’m a copycat! She must be crazy.” And the Catmobile raced through the night to the Cathouse.

TOPPER’S FILES

Keyword: Catman

Real Name: Thomas Blake

Height: 5’9” Weight: 175 lbs.

Thomas Blake was incredibly wealthy but lacked adventure in his life. He became famous as a big game hunter, specializing in the big cats, lions, tigers, etc. After hearing of the exploits of the costumed hero Batman he decided to try hunting something a little tougher. Fashioning his own costume and using special equipment he called himself Catman. And Batman defeated him more times than I care to count.

Blake has patterned his whole Catman identity around Batman, copying his vehicles, weapons and moves whenever possible. Catman started to mirror Batman so well that it would not surprise me if Batman turned out to be some bored rich guy too. Anyway, after being defeated so many times by Batman, Blake decided enough was enough and he retired from the game. His fortune has been dwindling and he has contacted me for jobs recently, I suggested that he instead find himself a nice girl and settle down. He didn’t seem to like that idea for some reason.

WARNING! Catman, while claiming to somehow have an extra nine lives, is clueless. I don’t think I should send him any jobs if I want to keep my clients. This guy is a buffoon!

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