Titans West

Leonid Kovar gritted his teeth as Queen stepped (a bit unsteadily) in front of Sonya Romanov and shoved a pistol in her face. "Gimme yer money," she slurred.

"Sounds like someone started a bit early this morning," Jack said from where he was examining a reproduction of a Faberge egg.

"Layoffa me!" Queen yelled, whirling around with the pistol. "You don' know whash goin' on wimme"

"Excuse me," King said, raising a hand and stepping forward. "We are in the middle of a robbery here. Can this wait until we get back to our headquarters?"

From above, Golden Eagle grinned as he opened a channel on the radio built into his helmet. "These guys shouldn't be any problem," he said.

"What are they doing now?" Flamebird asked.

Eagle leaned forward and looked in. "Looks like they're fighting among themselves. The hostages are actually starting to sneak out."

"You're kidding," Flamebird said. "We're moving in now."

Bumblebee grabbed Gangbuster's arm as they exited the T-jet. "Mal," Bumblebee said, "I don't want you going in there."

"Are you kidding?" he asked, smiling. "I've been waiting too long for this."

"Mal, that armor could be dangerous. We haven't had a chance to test how it affects the human body."

Gangbuster leaned forward and kissed his wife on the forehead. "Don't worry. I'll be fine." Leaving a nervous Bumblebee behind, he hurried to catch up to the others.

King sat on the floor, rubbing his head as Jack and Queen continued to yell at each other. He looked up as his earpiece crackled to life. "King, this is Ten!"

"Go ahead," he said.

"We've got superheroes incoming!"

King sighed. "We just can't buy a break today, can we?" He looked around. "Ace, go help her, please." With a grunt, Ace lumbered out of the room.

"You donno what you're talkin' bout!" Queen yelled.

"Is that so?" Jack retaliated. "I'm talking about a lush! Look at you! If you breathed onto a lighter, you could be a flamethrower!"

King closed his eyes and rubbed his head again.

Gangbuster grinned as he jumped onto the roof. "Looks like the servomotors in the suit are working." He took a moment to catch his breath and saw Ace coming forward. "Oh great," he said. "Well, let's go." Gangbuster charged and attacked the mammoth Ace.

Inside the museum, Leonid Kovar cursed in his mind. He couldn't change into Red Star in front of Sonya, and she still clung to him like glue. "Come on!" she whispered, pulling him forward. "We're almost out!" Leonid couldn't do anything as she pulled him to safety.

Flamebird scowled. Ten was armed with a rifle that fired razor-sharp spades, and she was pinned down.

"Time to die, birdie," Ten said. She opened fire again. One of the spades flew past, tearing a hole in Flamebird's cape.

A second later, Ten shook uncontrollably, like she was having a seizure, then fell to the ground. Flamebird stood up from behind the piece of modern art she was hiding behind. Vibe was holding the rifle and gave her a thumbs-up. With a smile, Flamebird ran into the museum.

Gangbuster was breathing hard, but Ace was teetering. Suddenly Ace's eyes went wide and he fell forward with sparks shooting from his back. Golden Eagle had just slashed into the robot's back with his gauntlets and had apparently hit something major.

"Thanks," Gangbuster said, breathing hard. His heart was racing. Suddenly Gangbuster crumpled, grabbing at his chest. His left arm had gone numb.

"Karen!" Golden Eagle yelled. "Get down here!"

Across the street, Deadshot closed one eye and raised his weapon. He knew a cue when he heard one.

"God, Mal!" Bumblebee said as she flew to his side. Tears were streaming down her cheeks from under her cowl. All she could think of was her husband, fallen on the museum's roof.

Deadshot's wrist cannon coughed once. He watched as Bumblebee screamed. She plummeted to the roof, clutching at the gunshot wound. Deadshot took time for a quick smile and he was gone.

"Karen!" Eagle yelled. He switched to a police frequency in his helmet and urgently started yelling for ambulances.

Inside the museum, Flamebird kicked the doors to the display room open. "Hold it!" she yelled.

King stepped forward, his hands raised. "Are you going to take me to jail? I'm ready if you are." He started reaching for her belt. "Do you have handcuffs? I'll put them on myself if you promise to take me away from those two." Flamebird shrugged and snapped the handcuffs on. King actually shed a tear of joy as he left the display gallery.

Vibe stepped into the middle of the argument, where Queen and Jack were still yelling at each other. Vibe just clapped a hand on each of their shoulders and rattled them with his powers. A moment later, they were both on the ground unconscious.

Later…

Bette Kane smiled as she walked into the hospital room. Paco Ramone trailed behind her. "Hey, Mal," She said as she set a small vase of flowers on his bedstand. "Looks like you're doing better."

"I've seen better, I can tell you that," Mal Duncan said. He spoke with some difficulty due to the breathing tube. "I'm just sick of having this thing crammed up my nose."

"`S not so bad," Paco said. "They could've hooked you up to one of those full-face dealies."

"I'd rather have that," Mal said. "This way I really want to blow my nose and can't."

"Good. Maybe that'll remind you of this stupid stunt." Karen walked in, her arm in a sling. "I told you that armor wasn't tested, but you just had to try it anyway. Giving yourself a heart attack like that."

"Just trying to keep up with you," Mal said with a smile. "Besides, I'm not messing with that armor again. Doctor said my heart couldn't take it."

"And you're also not going to because I've sent it back to STAR Metropolis with standing orders not to send it back here." Karen leaned forward and kissed her husband's forehead. "Okay. I've got the yelling at you out of my system."

"Good to hear," Mal said.

"How's the arm?" Bette asked.

Karen shrugged (as well as she could). "The bullet went clean through. I should be fine as soon as the stitches heal up. Apparently I was just lucky."

"Did they ever find out who was shooting at you?" Bette asked.

Karen shook her head. "No. It had to be someone working with the Royal Flush Gang, though. Who else could it be?"

Deadshot dropped into his hotel room. He quickly turned on his computer and typed a message.

Topper. Mission accomplished. One through the arm, as requested. D

He pulled off his uniform and redressed. From there, Floyd Lawton headed for the airport. He just hoped that his luck would hold up and he'd get out of LA without encountering Red Star. He wasn't in the mood right now to deal with him. After all, Deadshot was a certain person Red Star would love to get his hands on.

DEO Director Bones nodded as he studied his email. This "Topper" character didn't need to know why he'd ordered that Bumblebee be shot through the arm. Of course, he hadn't planned on Mal Duncan's heart attack, either, but that was just an added bonus. He leaned back in his chair and lit up a cigar. Everything was going perfectly. Alone, Bones indulged in laughter.

Next Issue: Karen and Mal are gone, too! Weaker than they've ever been, the team must face losing ANOTHER member! And their battle for him can only be helped by a former teammate.

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