BEN 10 DOES NOT BELONG TO ME. YOUNG JUSTICE DOES NOT BELONG TO ME. MY OC'S BELONG TO ME, AND SINCE I'VE FINALLY GIVEN THEM A RAISE, THEY LIKE ME ENOUGH TO STAY.

Hi, guys! Once again, I'm back to continue my Ben 10/DC crossover series. Remember, if you don't recall everything that happened in Part 1, you should go back and read it again, because I don't want to waste a bunch of time describing all of the characters again.

Now, I know that it hasn't been that long since I ended Unlimited Justice, Part 1, but lately, I've been getting plenty of ideas. Be prepared for a ton of original content, as wells as modified stuff, as is my custom.

Let's not delay this any longer; enjoy the story!

Unlimited Justice, Part 2

Chapter 1

Obsession, Part 1

Wayne Manor, January 5, 09:32 EST

Though few knew it, the stately Wayne Manor had some of the most advanced security systems on Earth, far more than even a reclusive billionaire like Bruce Wayne would need. Of course, Bruce Wayne was far more than a billionaire; he was Batman, the Dark Knight.

Most importantly, however, was that he had a family, one that he would spare no expense to protect.

Granted, his wife, Diana Wayne, was more than capable of defending herself; she was Wonder Woman, Princess of the Amazons, and her abilities were only outclassed by a handful of superheroes.

If Bruce were to admit it, he would say that his home's defenses were less to protect his wife, and more to protect the people who didn't have superhuman abilities, or at least, abilities as powerful as Wonder Woman's. There was Barbara Gordon, the former Batgirl, now confined to a wheelchair, along with Alfred, the family's loyal butler. The more capable residents of the house were Jason Todd, the current Robin, and his Tamaranean girlfriend, Koriand'r, also known as Starfire, who had practically moved in a few weeks earlier.

And then there were the children; Damian Wayne, Bruce's only biological child, the one he'd had with Diana, and the newest adopted Wayne, Cassandra Cain. Both had excellent skills, but they had only just turned eleven yesterday—no one knew Cassandra's birthday, so Damian had asked if she wanted to share his, to which she'd nodded—and had almost no crime-fighting experience.

It had been for the sake of those who couldn't defend themselves that Bruce had turned his already impressive security into a system that would make even the Secret Service blush. Bruce could count the number of people who could sneak past his security on one hand, and still have fingers left over.

Unfortunately, one of those people was leading the way for a small team to infiltrate the manor.

…

Talia al Ghul was arguably one of the most dangerous beings on the planet. While her perfect face, long dark-brown hair and hourglass figure that seemed to be poured into a partially-unzipped black bodysuit were all excellent tools with which to distract men—and some women—there were few who knew how to kill someone with just their bare hands in more ways than her.

Today, however, Talia and the four men accompanying her would not be killing anyone if it could be avoided. If someone within the manor died, then Talia's plan would almost certainly fail, and despite being almost immortal, she had waited too many years to fail now.

Half of Talia's plan had required luck to be on her side; she needed an opportunity where there would be as few people within the manor as possible, and Bruce Wayne had to be on a long-term assignment. Fortunately, Batman was helping Green Arrow on a case in Star City, and her people had confirmed that most of the Bat-Clan was elsewhere.

The only people inside the manor were the butler and the primary target. Talia supposed that if the primary target wasn't there and the secondary targets were, she could simply go after them instead, but she wanted the secondary's to come to her willingly.

Besides, Talia's revenge wouldn't be complete without the primary target.

Talia nodded at her men, then pulled out a small device from her belt. It was disk-shaped, with a single button on one side; each of her men held out an identical device, and all five of them pressed the button at the same time. The button began to pulse with a red light.

"We're now invisible to all security devices for fifteen minutes," Talia said quietly, "We have that long to get the target and get out."

The men nodded; with a short running start, Talia clambered over the walls ringing the Wayne property, her team right behind her.

To hell with Father's orders, she thought savagely, I am claiming what is rightfully mine.

…

Diana sighed as she leaned back in her chair; she rarely got time off from her role as Wonder Woman, and now that she had some, she wasn't sure what to do with it.

Alfred had just returned from dropping off Damian and Cassandra at their school; it was Cassandra's first day at a public school, but because she couldn't—or wouldn't—speak, Bruce had sent a letter to the principal, asking that the teachers not call on her in class. However, this left Diana all alone, save for Alfred. Bruce was in Star City, Dick and Tim were fighting crime in Blüdhaven, Barbara was spending time with her father, the now-retired Commissioner James Gordon, and Jason and Kory were at their own school, and would head to the Cave as soon as they were done.

Normally, Diana would have headed to the Watchtower, but after the incident with Vandal Savage having control over her—something that made her skin crawl—and the rest of the Justice League, a lot of Leaguers had taken a few days off to come to terms with it. Diana had just wanted to forget about it and get on with her life, but Bruce had convinced her to rest for a while; trying not to think about it would only make the thoughts worse. She had tried to refuse, but then her husband had played dirty and convinced Damian and Cassandra to hit her with those big, watery eyes that children could make appear on their faces, something that Diana could never say no to.

Of course, this now left Diana very alone; she missed having her family around, especially her youngest children. Damian was a wonderful son that Diana couldn't help but hug every time she saw him, and even though Cassandra had only been adopted into the Wayne family for a few months, she'd already become the baby daughter that Diana had always wanted.

Diana didn't know if she was being a loving mother or a clingy one, but Damian and Cassandra had been gone for less than an hour, and she already missed them terribly. The only reason she had even considered letting them go to a public school was that records showed that Vandal Savage hadn't deigned to learn any of the heroes' secret identities when he was controlling them, so Damian and Cassandra weren't in any danger.

With another sigh, she stood up to fetch a book that sat on top of her nightstand; she'd been meaning to finish it for weeks, and it would help put her mind at ease. She picked up the book from where it lay next to her Wonder Woman tiara, then shivered from a sudden chill.

She briefly weighed the option of either turning up the heat, or changing clothes—white slacks and a red blouse—when a thought occurred to her: with a house so well-designed, where was a chill coming from? Diana turned to see that her door had opened without her notice.

There was barely time to become suspicious before a dart hit her in the right shoulder; immediately, she could feel a creeping numbness, and then her arm was immobile seconds later.

Raising her left arm, Diana rushed to the door, determined to meet her attackers, as well as shout for Alfred to raise the alarm. Before she opened her mouth, however, a fist caught her in the throat, the glove around it laced with Nth-Metal. Because her abilities—indeed, her very birth—originated from magic, the blow hurt; more importantly, it stopped her from shouting.

A shadowy figure rolled into the room and raised a tube to its mouth; a moment later, another dart hit Diana in the right leg. She leapt at the figure, but the sedative was already affecting her faculties, and she tripped; her leg was immobilized before she could think about getting up. Though her vision was blurry, she could make out four more people enter her room, three of whom were armed with blowguns. A foot lashed out, knocking Diana onto her back; two more darts hit her, in her other leg and arm.

With Diana completely helpless, she could only watch as the blurry image of a woman walked up to her. That woman reached down and picked Diana up by the hair.

"Weak," she sneered, and Diana thought she was familiar somehow, "How he could choose someone like you is a mystery I shall never solve."

Before Diana could try to speak, the woman jammed another dart into her neck. She felt a brief spike of pain when the woman threw her to the floor, and then there was only darkness.

…

Talia sneered down at the unconscious woman. Taking the oh-so-mighty Wonder Woman down was child's play, all thanks to the element of surprise and enough sedatives to kill two bull elephants.

"Secure her," she ordered two of her men, then glanced at a third, "Stay alert for the butler."

The two men barely had time to place an inhibitor-collar around Diana's neck when the lookout made a warning gesture and silently closed the door. Talia pulled a silver rod from her belt and held it to her lips. A moment later, there was a knock on the door, and a refined British voice could be heard.

"Mistress Diana?" Alfred asked through the door, "Are you all right? I thought I heard something."

When Talia spoke, the device in her hand made her sound exactly like the woman she loathed. "I'm fine, Alfred, just knocked over some books by accident. I'm a little tired right now, so I'm going to get some rest, and I'd prefer not to be disturbed; when Damian and Cassandra get home, though, could you send them here please?"

"Of course," Alfred said, and Talia had no trouble imagining the man giving a short bow before he left.

Once they were sure the butler was gone, Talia and her team began the process of leaving with their captive, but not before leaving a message behind.

Talia had waited decades to fulfill her destiny, but twelve years ago, she had decided to take matters into her own hands. Her father would disapprove of her actions, but she was long past caring, as were her followers. Besides, Ra's had betrayed her first.

To hell with the League of Shadows, Talia thought savagely, as she drew a knife to apply the finishing touch to the message, it is time for the League of Assassins to take its rightful place in the world.

…

Wayne Manor, 15:30 EST

"Thanks for the ride, Alfred!" Damian said as he and Cassandra got out of the car; for her part, Cassandra gave the butler a small smile.

Alfred nodded with a smile of his own. "Of course, Master Damian. However, your mother has asked that you and Mistress Cassandra see her in her room. Do be quiet when entering, she said that she was very tired today."

"Sure, no problem!" Damian grabbed Cassandra's hand and pulled her after him, both of them very happy with how their day had ended.

At first, Damian had been nervous about how his new sister would react in school; more importantly, he worried about how the other kids would react to Cassandra. While she had picked up understanding what people were saying quite a bit over the last few weeks, there had been some concern that she would be picked on by the other students for being 'weird'. Damian had anticipated several trips to the principal's office for hitting bullies who messed with Cassandra.

Thankfully, nothing had happened. The teachers had been told that the newest Wayne had had some issues in the past, resulting in extreme shyness; that explained why she wouldn't talk, and it was actually a vague truth. From a medical examination conducted after Damian had found her, Cassandra had been faced with malnourishment and had been restrained for some time; there had also been emotional abuse, if the lack of understanding of speech was anything to go by. Fortunately for Cassandra, she now lived in a home filled with people who cared for her, including a loving mother, friendly older brothers and a sister, and a best friend/foster twin. Even Bruce had affectionately ruffled the girl's hair when she smiled at him.

If the slight bounce in Cassandra's step was anything to go by, she was happy to be back home; she loved being in the family, but there was just a hint of extra enthusiasm whenever she got a hug from Diana. She had gone more than nine hours without one of those hugs, and was looking forward to making up for lost time.

The youngest Waynes ran up to their parents' bedroom, their training allowing them to run almost completely silent. Damian grabbed the doorknob.

"Mom, Alfred said you wanted to see… us…"

Damian trailed off as he opened the door; his instincts had been screaming that something was wrong the second he began turning the knob, but it wasn't until he saw the inside of the room that he knew what.

The knocked-over chair was a clue, as was the askew rug at the foot of the bed. The big giveaway, though, was Wonder Woman's tiara, which hung on the handle of a bloodstained knife that pinned a note to the wall.

Rather than run for the knife, Damian and Cassandra fell back into their training, their eyes, ears, and noses checking for anything that might suggest a trap. When nothing popped, they walked up to the note; Cassandra took the tiara and clutched it in her hands, while Damian ripped the knife from the wall and read the note.

To the children of the Batman,

We have taken Wonder Woman. If you want her to remain alive, you will come to the coordinates on the back of this note. You will come alone. If any sign of Batman or the Justice League is detected, or if you fail to arrive before midnight, the hostage dies.

Damian felt cold sweat on his neck. His mother had been kidnapped? How, and by who? Should he call a member of the Bat-Clan? Could he risk his mother's life by disobeying the terms on the note?

Cassandra took the note and read it; her eyes went wide as she looked at Damian. Both children were shaking; though Gotham was a dangerous city, their home had always felt safe, and their parents had always seemed invincible.

"What do we do?" Damian whispered, "If these guys were good enough to catch Mom…"

Cassandra only shrugged; she was just as unsure as Damian.

"Perhaps I can be of assistance?" Alfred's voice said from behind them; they whirled around to see the butler entering the room, eyeing the scene with a grim calm. He gently took the note from Cassandra and read it; once done, he nodded.

"Well, this is certainly not good," he said.

"Not good?" Damian repeated, "Not good!? Mom was kidnapped, of course that's not good! We need to do something and get her back!"

Alfred held out a hand to stop Damian's tirade. "Of course we do, Master Damian, but as the note said, if Batman or the Justice League interferes, Mistress Diana will die."

"So we'll go alone," Damian snapped, "Come on, Cassandra, we can use those costumes from a couple months ago—"

"You're overlooking something important, young sir," Alfred interrupted, "The note says that the Justice League cannot interfere, and I certainly cannot allow you two to mount a rescue by yourselves. Think for a moment—is there no other team of superheroes that can assist you? A team, perhaps, that is suited for missions such as these, and has a history of going behind the League's back?"

Damian blinked, then looked at Cassandra, who nodded.

"Can you call them?" Damian asked Alfred, "If we're going to do this, we still need to get changed."

Alfred smiled. "Of course. While you're gone, I'll be sure to clean up this mess, as well."

…

Unknown Location

Cheshire kneeled in front of the leader of the League of Shadows. "You summoned me, Great One?"

Ra's al Ghul nodded. "A situation has developed, one that displeases both myself and the Light. You will correct that."

Cheshire normally would have smiled, but there was something in Ra's' tone that suggested more was going on.

"What happened?" she asked.

Ra's scowled. "My daughter, Talia, has betrayed me. She and a group within the League of Shadows have formed their own force, the League of Assassins. They have kidnapped Wonder Woman, thus breaking a promise I made to a man I respect."

Cheshire tilted her head. "Isn't getting rid of Wonder Woman a good thing?"

"Normally, yes," Ra's agreed, "but the Light needs the Justice League—all of the League—unharmed for the time being. Aside from that, Talia has some knowledge of the Light's plans, and that cannot be discovered by the heroes.

"In order to keep our secrets, and restore my honor, your task is to find my daughter… and end her."

Cheshire could feel a cold sweat break out on the back of her neck. "Um, no disrespect, but Talia's not an easy mark. I'm good, but I can't fight her alone."

Now, Ra's smiled. "My dear, I never said that you would. The Light cannot afford to spend many resources on this endeavor, but thankfully, there are others who can.

"How do you feel about a trip home?"

It took only a second for Cheshire to realize what Ra's was implying, and smiled. "Well, I do need to visit Mom. I suppose I can make time."

…

Mount Justice, 15:53 EST

For the group of young covert-ops heroes known simply as the Team, it had been a slow day. Half of them weren't even at their base, the Cave; they were with their mentors, either on patrol or training.

The Team's leader was tapping his foot anxiously as he stood in front of the Cave's teleporters. Ken Tennyson, or Ken 10, had been discussing any ways that the Team could find out more information on Vandal Savage's group, the Light, or what happened to seven Leaguers—including his mother, Supergirl—during a sixteen-hour period where they were unaccounted for, when Robin had gotten an urgent message from the Batcave. Robin had then gone to the Team's leader, and Ken had gathered the members present.

Besides Ken and Robin, the only others available were Starfire, Raven, Artemis and Superboy. With Wonder Woman's life at stake, Ken would have preferred having as many teammates as possible, but if the kidnappers were able to get in and out of Wayne Manor undetected, Ken didn't want to risk the chance that the Cave had already been compromised.

There was a flash of light, and then Damian and Cassandra appeared on the teleporter pad. The former was wearing a black-and-gray bodysuit, along with black gloves and boots, a short cape and a double-diamond mask over his eyes. Cassandra had a completely black outfit, save for the silver eyepieces on her mask, and the gray Bat-symbol on her chest; every inch of skin was covered, including her mouth, so there was no way to tell what she was feeling by facial expressions.

Both of them were tense, that much was obvious; one of Damian's fists was clenched around a piece of paper, while Cassandra was holding Wonder Woman's tiara.

Without a word, Damian shoved the note at Ken, who took it gingerly.

"We'll get her back," Ken said, "I promise."

"Of course you will," Damian said, "Because we're going with you to make sure of it."

Robin smirked and ruffled his foster brother's hair. "Come on, D, let's get to work."

"Robin, Raven, Damian, come with me," Ken said, walking off, "Artemis, Superboy, get Ship and as much gear as you can; I want us to be ready to go five minutes ago."

He glanced at Cassandra, then at Starfire. "Star, can you…?"

Starfire nodded, then gently wrapped an arm around Cassandra's shoulders. "Come, Cassandra, I will make you a smoothie while we wait for the others to find your mother. Then we will punish those responsible."

Cassandra nodded, though it was uncertain which sentence she agreed with; she did allow Starfire to lead her to the Cave's kitchen. While there, Starfire noticed that though Cassandra was petting Wolf, who had woken up when the two girls entered the room, she hadn't let go of the tiara with one hand.

At the other side of the Cave, Ken was looking at a holo-globe with Robin and Damian, examining the coordinates from the note. Cassandra could have helped, but her inability to speak—and lack of Miss Martian to establish a psychic link—made communicating with her difficult.

Raven sat in a corner of the room, her eyes glowing with black light as she stared at the note.

"What's she doing?" Damian asked.

"Seeing if she can read the emotions left behind by the person who left the note," Robin said, not looking up from the computer, "Now, let's see where this is… oh, crud."

The coordinates from the note showed an oil rig, in the water between Florida and Cuba. Ken looked at Robin with a raised eyebrow.

"Do you know that place?"

Robin sighed. "Yeah, Batman and I checked it out a couple years back; it's owned by a shell company that belongs to Ra's al Ghul."

Ken scowled. "So we're dealing with the League of Shadows. Freaking great."

"Maybe not," Raven said, her eyes returning to normal, "The feelings I'm getting from this note… there's anger, despair, jealousy, that doesn't seem like the Shadows. Aren't they professional and stuff?"

Robin nodded. "Yeah, that doesn't seem like their usual attitude. I know that Ra's and Batman don't get along, but I heard that they had some kind of truce going on; they wouldn't attack each other directly, even though Ra's knows Batman's identity, and probably ours, he's got some honor. Going after Wonder Woman to get to Damian and Cassandra, two kids—no offense, D—isn't his style."

"Maybe someone who works for Ra's, but also has a serious hate for Batman?" Ken suggested, "Still, Ra's couldn't have told too many people who Batman is, so how did—"

"Ken!" Artemis shouted as she ran into the room, Superboy right behind her, "We have a situation!"

"Another one?" Ken asked, exasperated, "Okay, we might have to risk getting the rest of the Team. Raven, make a portal—"

"No, this is related," Artemis interrupted, then held up her cell phone. "I just got a call from Cheshire; she says she knows who's behind all this, and that she wants to help."

"No way she just did it out of the goodness of her heart," Ken said, crossing his arms.

Superboy scowled. "I heard the conversation, Ken. Ra's al Ghul proposed a truce between us and the Shadows to stop these guys and save Wonder Woman; apparently, the Shadows were betrayed."

Ken glanced at Robin. "Sense of honor, huh? Okay, this is the only lead we've got, and we'll have to make it quick, time isn't on our side."

Artemis bit her lip. "There's one more thing, Ken. It's Cheshire… she's at my house."

…

Gotham City, 16:16 EST

In a flash of light, the Team, along with Wolf, Ship, Sphere, Damian and Cassandra teleported into Artemis' home, ready to fight if necessary.

It turned out that it wasn't necessary, if the scene of Cheshire and Artemis' mother, Paula, drinking tea at the table was anything to go by. Cheshire had her mask on the table, next to the newspaper, idly sipping her tea, not even looking at the new arrivals.

"Hello, Artemis," Paula said with a bemused smile, "I thought you'd be out later tonight."

While most of the heroes had relaxed minutely when it seemed that they weren't about to be attacked, Artemis still had an arrow aimed at her sister's head.

"Get away from her, Mom," she hissed, "I have a few scores to settle."

"Oh, relax," Paula said, rolling her eyes as she pushed her wheelchair to the sink, "Jade already told me why she's here. It's a ceasefire, and she's already sworn not to start anything while here; don't worry about her planting bugs, I haven't let her out of my sight."

"It's true," Cheshire said, "For someone who's been out of the game for so long, Mom's still pretty good at this."

Reluctantly, Artemis lowered her bow. "Fine, we're here, let's get this over with."

Ken tapped her on the shoulder and whispered, "You sure you can handle working with her?"

Artemis shot him a hard look. "Are you sure we can trust her?"

Ken flicked a glance at Raven, who nodded; she'd been monitoring Cheshire's emotions the entire time, and while thoughts could be hidden from a telepath, it was almost impossible to hide intentions from an empath.

"You want to help us rescue Wonder Woman?" Ken asked Artemis' sister.

"No," Cheshire said, looking serious at last, "Ra's al Ghul wants to help you rescue Wonder Woman. My only job is to help you get there and take down the Shadow traitors. They call themselves the League of Assassins, and they're led by Talia al Ghul."

Robin blanched. "Ra's' daughter? I thought she was his biggest supporter!"

Cheshire shrugged. "I'm not sure when it started, or why, but Talia's been pretty distant from most of the Shadows for the last few years. I'd say she's got about a hundred guys, maybe a metahuman or two for extra muscle. We get the rest of your team and mount an assault, then I—"

"Stop right there," Ken said, holding up a hand, "You don't get to give us orders. Here's the deal: Talia will kill Wonder Woman the second she sees a superhero, so an all-out assault is out of the question. We go in quiet, disable their security, rescue Wonder Woman, then call in the League so they can finish the job; our only priority is rescuing the hostage. If Ra's wants to help, you're going to have to do things our way."

The two locked eyes for several seconds, and then Cheshire sighed. "Fine, but we could still use more people on our side."

Ken shook his head. "We can't be sure if the League of Assassins compromised our comms, so we can't risk it. This is all we've got."

Cheshire leaned back in her chair and sighed. "Fine, whatever; who're the munchkins?"

Ken glanced at Damian and Cassandra.

"Call me Shadowbat," Damian said, making up the name on the spot, "This is the new Batgirl."

Cheshire raised an eyebrow. "What, she doesn't talk?"

Something blurred past Cheshire, slicing off a few strands of hair, before it came back to land in Cassandra's hand. She put the batarang back into her belt and crossed her arms. The message was clear: actions spoke louder than words.

"Okay, you've proven your point," Cheshire said, not batting an eye, "We still need to plan, however."

"We'll have to do it on the way," Ken said, "We've got until midnight, and then they execute Wonder Woman."

Cheshire grimaced. "Knowing Talia, she might have already."

…

OceanCorp Oil Rig, 17:58 GMT-5

The first thing Diana felt was the shock of getting woken up with a bucket of ice-cold water dumped onto her. She sputtered and shook the last of her unconsciousness away and examined her surroundings.

She was in a cell, that much was obvious. It was a simple metal box, barely wider than the length of both of her arms; she could tell that because her wrists were chained to the back wall, her fingers almost brushing the sides of her prison. She was forced into a sitting position due to her chained wrists and ankles, which were bound together; she was sitting on a metal cot that, from the look of it, could retract into the wall. Above her was an open grate; from the dripping water, she guessed that someone had woken her by dumping it from a level above.

Diana tried to snap her bonds, but she felt so weak, and the cut on her arm made it painful to even try; it was then that she felt something around her neck.

Probably an inhibitor-collar, she thought, someone really doesn't want me getting out. The question is, 'where do they not want me getting out from?'

On the opposite side of the cell was a door, but without a window or knob on the inside. There was a creaking sound, and the door opened, revealing a woman, the same one who had led the attack on Diana.

"Diana Wayne," the woman said, walking slowly into the cell, "formerly Diana Prince. You have no idea how long I've wanted to meet you in person."

"Since I don't know who you are, I can't say that the feeling is mutual," Diana said, "Now, how about you get this collar off me, and we can discuss your hospitality."

Smack!

Diana reeled from the slap; the collar took away her durability, so the full force of the blow hurt. She felt blood trickle down from the corner of her mouth, but she said nothing, only glaring at her captor.

"You do not get to speak to me that way," the woman snarled, "I am Talia al Ghul, and you are nothing!"

Talia? That was a name that Diana hadn't heard in a long time. Bruce had told her the story of how Ra's al Ghul had tried to make him his successor, cemented by the union of Bruce and Talia. While Bruce and the assassin had become… involved for a time, their differing lifestyles had torn them apart.

That had been before Bruce and Diana had even met, and other than a brief description of her, Bruce hadn't spoken of Talia. When Bruce and Diana married, Bruce had received a note from Ra's al Ghul, saying that he had accepted Bruce's choice, and that he would no longer pursue him as a successor.

If the enraged look on Talia's face was anything to go by, she hadn't taken the news well, and had been nursing a grudge all this time.

"Bruce was to be mine," Talia hissed, grabbing Diana by the collar and bringing their faces level, "but you stole him from me!"

Diana only smirked. "I guess he just has better taste."

With a shriek, Talia pulled out a needle and jabbed it into Diana's neck; within moments, Diana went limp, her chains the only thing keeping her upright, and barely conscious. Talia pulled a remote control from her belt and pressed a button; the cot Diana sat on withdrew into the wall, leaving her suspended.

Talia put on a pair of spiked gauntlets and drew a fist back. "We'll see how well you fit his taste when I am done…"

…

Half an hour later, Talia stepped out of the cell and wiped the blood from her knuckles. As much as she wanted to end Diana's miserable life, she still needed her alive for now. Though Talia had amazing control over her actions, thanks to her decades of intensive training, she couldn't risk giving in to her rage during Diana's beating; as such, she had modified the inhibitor-collar to allow Diana to keep her ability to heal faster. It wasn't as effective at purging the sedative coursing through her, but it ensured that she wouldn't die from her injuries.

"Mistress," one of her Assassins said, approaching her and bowing before handing her a tablet that was linked to the rig's security systems, "Our scanners have detected a vessel heading towards us. A signal is being transmitted, claiming that the passengers are your guests."

Talia nodded. "Let them board, but prepare a force to ambush them. Kill all but the children; they must be brought to me alive."

The Assassin bowed again before leaving. Once she was alone, Talia smiled.

You may have your father's heart, Damian, but not his intellect, it seems. I'm sure that you are expecting a trap or a double-cross, and you would be right. However, the only thing better than a trap is two traps—one that you can see, and one that you cannot.

Come to me, Damian, Cassandra… Mother is waiting.

So… yeah. That was kinda dark. Umm, sorry? But at least it's an interesting way to start this story, right?

As is my custom, I shall address some points that might be brought up.

Wonder Woman losing so easily: There were a lot of factors that weren't in Diana's favor. She was lost in thought, she thought she was safe in her home, and was taken by surprise. If anyone knows Talia, you know that she goes in prepared. Considering her grudge with Diana spans more than a decade, she's had a long time to plan this.

Cheshire teaming up with the Team as if it's not a big deal: The simple fact is that the Team were on the clock. They couldn't afford to waste time debating whether or not they could trust her, and though having the empathic Raven helps, she can be fooled, but they didn't have time to wait; the longer they waited, the less chance Diana had. Speaking of which…

Diana's torture: First of all, I'm not going to go into detail for that, as I want to keep this story rated T. Second, it's a crazy Talia, she wouldn't hold back.

Damian's code-name: He's not keeping Shadowbat. Just saying. This is a one-time thing.

Lack of Ken: For those who have read Part 1 (and if this story is going to make any sense, you should), you will remember that Ken was the main focus of most of that story. In this chapter, he barely had any focus on him at all. Don't worry, he'll return to the spotlight in other chapters, but I thought I'd focus on other characters for this arc, specifically the Bat-Clan. I like this version of the Bat-Clan.

I know that this chapter seemed short, but then again, all of my first chapters are short. Next chapter, however, is when things get good.

Next time, on Unlimited Justice: The Team goes after Wonder Woman with the help of Cheshire, but will they succeed? Plus, the secret of Cassandra Cain is revealed!

Muffins maketh Man.