17870/Injustice For All: The Defector

Injustice For All: The Defector
Date of Scene:	11 May 2024
Location:	Abandonned Air Field -- New Jersey
Synopsis:	The Justice League and their allies are drawn to an isolated and deserted airfield by an anonymous member of the Injustice League claiming to want to turn himself in. But is it all just a trap?
Cast of Characters:	Barry Allen, Monet St. Croix, Kyle Rayner, Diana Prince, Oliver Queen, M'gann M'orzz, Simon Williams
Tinyplot:	Injustice For All

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Barry Allen has posed:
Considering the recent events at Gorilla City where one of the founders of the Injustice League -- Grodd -- not only tried to lure the Justice League and their allies into a trap, but also betrayed his own allies in his attempt to turn all of them int subservient gorillas, the fact that the villainous collective would take a little time to lay low is no surprise.

And when they are heard from again, it is in one of the most unlikely ways imaginable. An anonymous message, carefully delivered to the League through a tangle of cutouts and obscured pathways to conceal both the source of the message and it's sender.

Given their perchant for attempting to lure the Justice League into traps it would be understandable to assume that this is just another attempt at the same.

The message was simple. While it did not identify the specific individual making the request, it did give a location -- an abandonned airstrip in New Jersey -- and a note indicating that one member of the Injustice League wanted to surrender for suitable considerations.

Definitely a trap right?

Except that on at least one occasion, someone apparently in the Injustice League has tipped their hand and alerted the Justice League about an impending attack. The attempt to tap into the Internet where the Trans-Atlantic Shunt comes ashore in North America was identified by an anonymous message, again seemingly from someone inside the Injustice League. So there would seem to be at least some reason to believe the request is genuine.

Either way, the League and their allies is not likely to just ignore such a request, even if there might be a greater trap in play.

As is so often the case, the Flash is one of hte first ones on the scene, shortly before the designated meeting time. Doing laps around the deserted airstrip, he finally chimes in over the channel. << Flash here. I've done some outer recon and I'm not seeing any signs of activity. Not that it necessarily means much given their perchant for teleportation and portals, >> he concedes.

As for the airstrip itself? It is the sort of rundown, no longer used airfield that one sometimes finds. A single runway, what passes for a main concourse with a tower rising up out of it maybe thirty feet in height. A refueling area set off to one side at the far end of the runway. And a pair of delapidated hangers that outwardly seem to be devoid of any aircraft or the like.

Monet St. Croix has posed:
It's another trap, Monet St. Croix is sure of it. However,s ometimes the best way to deal with a trap was to spring it. If they could deal enough setbacks to the Injustice League, at some point the villains would go on to other things. The most dangerous part of the enemy group was thier organization and ability to cooperate. Disrupt that enough and the members ould go thier own separate ways. With no real chance of profit,s ome would go elsewhere. That would leave the remaining members weaker, and thus prone to infighting. All they had to do was make them lose enough and the enemy would not be able to keep together.

That was Monet's logic. Villains were ultimately out for themselves in most cases. For personal benefit and profit. For revenge or hatred. If they could have these things to leverage them apart.. WEll, hopefully it would work. So when the group is rallying, Monet is flying along and scanning ahead with her telepathy.

Kyle Rayner has posed:
"'We know this is still a trap, right?'" Kyle comes in over the coms. If the seriouness didn't hang in the moment, he would have tossed his Ackbar voice. He waits a tick, "'How are we approaching this?'" Kyle asks over his comlink. He waits for guidance from people above him. The Green Lantern waits for a response. Right now, it feels like a horrible waiting game to him. No one knows time left on the timer, people just know it's going to go off.

Diana Prince has posed:
One might think that heading to an airfield would surely mean the Invisible Jet was the prefered transport of arrival. One would be mistaken, however. On a nearby hill to the southwestern corner of the airfield's property, Wonder Woman appears on the form of a solid white motorcycle. With two large white wheels, and a sleek design, aerodynamic, and not a shred of Earth-based technology in its design, Wonder woman is leaned forward over its artfully designed frame, her half-gloved hands clutching the steering grips.

From her vantage point atop that hillside, Diana regards the airfield from afar, listening to the communications from those who have already arrived, or are in the process-of.

"Be careful." Wonder Woman says over the shared comm networks. "Come in from different angles, watch out for strange sights. Traps, laser grids, cameras, anything that stands out in your mind's eye as not belonging here..."

Moments after speaking, the cloud-hued cycle comes to life again, its engine a high-pitched sound, refined and powerful, propelling itself forward, and down the hillside with the Amazon rider atop it, guiding it toward the upcoming airstrip...

Oliver Queen has posed:
There is something to be said for missions where one knows in advance where and when they are supposed to be. It negates the need to be carried around at superspeed. Or to bum a ride on an Invisible Jet. One can just arrive in suitable style in the Arrowmobile.

In short it is a nice break for Green Arrow. Even if they are probably walking into a trap. At least it is a pretty clear one for a change.

And so long as the threat of being turned into an animal is not in the offering, Ollie is pretty okay with dealing the whole trap thing.

But c'mon. Pigs and gorillas? Where will the madness stop? For that, even if there was no other reason, clearly the Injustice League needs to be taken down. And this seems as good a place as any to start.

"Arrow here. I've got the southern approach along the road," he offers up as that engine revs in the background.

M'gann M'orzz has posed:
M'gann is inclined to believe the best in people, and to give the benefit of the doubt. So when the notice comes in of a villain wanting to turn themselves in, she's all for going to meet them and bringing them in for debriefing and showing them a warm (if cautious) welcome. That doesn't mean she's all in on the belief, however. So when Flash gives the tentative okay, she's quick to offer..

<<I can go in to greet. I believe of everyone, I have the most options for escape should anything go awry.>>

Still, this isn't the M'gann Show, so she'll wait for confirmation before approaching. Staying a bit back, remaining invisible and intangible as she watches the hangar. Tentatively reaching out mentally to see if she can determine a familiarity in their mental patterns.

Barry Allen has posed:
While there might be advantages to hanging back, letting a single member move in to make the meet there is also advantages in strength in numbers. And if this is all indeed a trap put into place by the Injustice League their array of powers can be formidable indeed. Though time and again the Justice League and their allies has proven up to the task.

<< I'll come in from the north then and sweep the refueling area and the northern hangar along the way, >> the Flash offers over the comm, waiting for some of the others to close in before racing off in a blur of red and yellow that follows the indicated path, sweeping down the runway strip from the north, darting in amongst the fuel cannisters that seem like a natural sort of place to set a trap before moving on to the indicated hanger, disappearing within that crumbling shelter -- the roof half caved in with bits of light peeking in from without. Dust motes hang in the air, glinting in the light. But nothing else stirs.

<< All quiet in the north, >> Barry reports.

Other approaches present a similar tale. The road leading into the airstrip is quiet and clear -- though not particularly well maintained making for a bit of a rough ride. While a fenced in gate does in theory present an obstacle, those same gates hang half askew, not quite blocking the road and certainly not locked.. Nothing stirs in the air above the field, all remaining quiet. If this is an ambush the bag guys aren't giving anything away, not easily at least.

But then, by now, the Justice League and their allies would probably expect nothing less.

When the first sign of life does present itself, it is almost incongruous. As the League begins to converge on the air field, the doors to the main concourse open up, a faint squeal from ill-maintained machinery making it rather obvious -- even if everyone wasn't on edge expecting the worst.

And the figure standing there? Not exactly an imposing one. Dressed in a white dress shirt that hangs open at the collar and a tie loosely draped around his neck, complete with suspenders over the shoulder and pale features that speak to someone who spends a great deal of time indoors is the Calculator. Noah Kuttler. Between all of that and his receeding hairline, not exactly the biggest threat. At least not on the surface. But then appearances can be deceiving. With a laptop tucked under one arm and a faint smirk on his features, the Calculator lets his gaze pan around the nearby environs of the airstrip. "Right on time. I appreciate punctual people. We might not want to linger especially long. I'm not entirely sure that my departure went unnoticed."

Simon Williams has posed:
<<"Prepare for the trap. Be pleasantly surprised when you're wrong,">> Simon Williams, also known as Wonder Man, offers only somewhat helpfully across the shared team comms for today's little outing. Among the clouds he reclines, watching from above while a powerful hand casually swats a few wisps of watery-fog stuff from his face. From his vantage point he watches a great swathe of the Earth below, centered over New Jersey. There are definitely better places to be centered above. Which is besides the point today!

He doesn't report in further, nor does Simon clog up the shared channel with any further remarks of middling helpfulness. He watches and he watches with glowing red eyes concealed behind the red lenses of his equally red sunglasses. Today he's ditched the fine suits, safari jackets, and all the rest. Today Wonder Man's engaged in hero work and that means he's outfitted in his tight-tights. He's there to observe and support as necessary. It's a Justice League operation and he's little more than an affiliate, ready to bring some strength and gusto should the need arise or otherwise be called upon.

Unfortunately for Wonder Man, the ionic energy that composes him didn't grant him binocular vision. Which means from so far up most things - most people - are little more than small dots. Which is likely what necessitates his next question across the group channel, <<"Hey guys? Anything happening down there yet?">>

Monet St. Croix has posed:
She's passably fluent with whom he is - a tactician and a coordinator. One that was mostly a leader and a planner. So the Calculator being the one there caught Monet by surprise. If it was a trap he was both excellent bait and not excellent for it. One wtih no powers was not the type to sit out there and let himself be approached. It put him too vulnerable where he would be better suited hanging back or not being there at all, and instead deploying an intermediary.

Monet would reach forwards to M'Gann <<Can you read his mind and confirm it is him?>> She couldn't effectively scan someone's mind that was resistant - the Martian could. Instead Monet is going to try and sweep the area. With Grodd neutralized the Injustice League would have few, if any telepaths or those that could engage in telepathic countermeasures. Presuming Circe and Morgan Le Faye were no longer lending active support, of course. But they wouldn't be involved in something so petty as a trap.

Monet instead goes to try and sweep the area, using her telepathy to scan as best she could for anything hostile or that stood out. But she's also expecting of something else. She goes to send this to Diana.. <<Never bait a trap with actual bait>>

Kyle Rayner has posed:
Kyle floats down on the North West side. <<"I didn't see anything coming in.">> And then the bad guy appears. The Calculator talks about being punctual.

Thats when Kyle focuses. Appearing in his hands is a two handed weapon. It looks futuristic in appearance. The end has two curved bits. They almost look like a claw. Between them a bit of energy starts to glow. It's clear they're supposed to stabalize the blast. Kyle looks down the barrel. Does it do anything? Sorta. It's not a scope, but it allows him to aim.

"Should I?" he asks. He holds the energy at bay for now.

The constructs aren't exactly needed for this. It just helps him focus.

Diana Prince has posed:
On her cloud-hued cycle, Wonder Woman proceded toward the western side of the airfield's perimeter fencing. The wide wheels of her bike making soft indentations in the tall grass, and soft earth beneath their tread as she rolls along at a rapidly increasing speed. A hard turn to the east, and a sudden dip down the side of a steep slope, the white shaded cycle suddenly ramps up off a collection of fallen trees, covered over in tarps and natural debris from years of being left unattended. The large bike glides through the air, clearing the fence, and landing within the airfield's interior property. Riding several more meters toward the pavement of the field's tarmac, Diana comes to a brief stop. Her armored boots are planted down on either sides of her ride, and her eyes glance skyward toward where Wonder Man was high above. "Seems we have located the one who wished to turn himself in." She tells the man in the sky above.

Her eyes sweep around the property, before she speaks over comms again. "M'gann, approach him and offer him the opportunity to come peacefully, as he desired. Monet, keep your senses peeled. Arrow, and our Lantern friend... check out those old hangars? See what may actually be inside them?" Wonder Woman requests, her hands still gripping the pale handlebars of her sleek vehicle.

Oliver Queen has posed:
As the others start to close in on the scene of the meet, Oliver does much the same, gunning his car's engine before it launches down the road, making a beeline for the airfield ahead. The cracked and pitted pavement isn't really much of an obstacle and he has certainly had rougher rides in his time.

It doesn't take long to cover that distance and even the gated off section ahead that prevents anyone from driving right out onto the field isn't really much of an obstacle. With a tight grin, Green Arrow just accelerates, plowing into the fence.

It's almost disappointing really. No electricity churns through the gate, the thing isn't even locked, just exploding open as he drives through, that car turning sharply as he drives straight out onto the strip that is only slightly less craggy and pitted then the road beyond. Coming to a screeching stop, Ollie pops on out, bow in hand, eyes glinting.

At least until his gaze falls on the Calculator as he emerges from the terminal and a scowl almost immediately slides over his expression. But at Wonder Woman's request he starts to edge aside, moving towards the southern hangar. At first he only backs away so he can keep that scowling gaze locked on the man they have come here to meet. But finally he does turn and start to trot over to the hangar. "On it."

M'gann M'orzz has posed:
Diana's nod on the approach means M'gann will start towards the Calculator at a decent clip. She isn't moving aggressively, or even urgently, but she isn't lollygagging either.

<<I will try.>> M'gann responds to Monet, moving in closer towards Noah Kuttler, coming in from the south to approach him. She flies low to the ground, hovering there just a few feet from the man. She offers a quick smile to him before probing lightly into his mind.

<<Noah Kuttler, I am requesting access to your mind, to verify your identity. We could fight over it, but if you feel that time is of the essence, it is in all of our best interests for you to agree now so we can be on our way.>>

Aloud, she greets him, "Hello, Mr. Kuttler. We are willing to bring you in peacefully, per your request. If you will follow me, I will escort you to the transport." She motions for him to join her so she can escort him across the tarmac, presumably in the direction of the invisible jet. It's inviisble, after all. She also sends a mental ping to their eyes in the sky, Simon. <<Noah Kuttler, the Calculator. So far, everything is progressing smoothly. Remain alert for potential incoming.>>

Barry Allen has posed:
Despite that outward smirk, there is a certain nervous energy about the Calculator and while he might put on a good show of being at ease, his eyes dart about the airstrip constantly. And for all that the emergence of the Justice League and their allies could certainly be an intimidating sight to one who has been on the wrong side of the law so often, his greater concern does not seem to be for them in truth. At least not judging from how his gaze continually slides off of them, flickering instead to the open expanse around the airfield and the skies above.

Almost like he's the one that is expecting to be ambushed.

While it slips for a moment, that smirk quickly reemerges at the hostility tossed his way by Green Arrow and when the other man starts for the hangar he flicks fingers dirisively after him. "That's right, toddle on off. Let the grown ups talk," he calls out.

Not exactly looking to win friends and influence people is he?

But that defensive smirk quickly turns into a grimace as M'gann starts to drift in closer, both speaking to him and projecting those thoughts into his head. Now Kuttler is the one scowling thoguh he doesn't move from his place in front of that old terminal building, the field air control tower serving as a backdrop. << Do what you need to do, >> comes the sullen, mental response even as he retorts back to the verbal offer. "Whatever. Lets just make it quick. I'm not real wild about being out in the open like this. You wouldn't be either if you were in the middle of betraying the sorts of people I'm betraying," he adds.

A quick scan shows that the mental activity of the man in front of them does indeed seem to indicate that he is indeed Noah Kuttler, the Calculator. While the League might be bereft of a magical specialist on this particular outting which might change the equation, all indications are that he is who he says he is.

Even without a deep probe, that emotional energy likewise betrays his anxiety, despite the flippant outward attitude. Even if the constantly flickering gaze didn't give it away.

The Calculator doesn't hesitate to start towards the indicated area -- even if he can't see any sort of transport there -- even as the rest of the team come to gather him up disperses around the airstrip.

Like the others taking on their assignments, Barry works out patrolling the outer edge of the airstrip, keeping his eyes peeled for any signs of approaching threats. And when it comes, it comes from an unexpected direction. The ground seems to rumble slightly underfoot, barely discernable at first. Then more noticable as their is localized shaking.

Which is when the weapon turrets start bursting up from the ground. Dozens of them.

Eyes widening slightly, that anxiety becomes a whole lot more apparent and if anything the Calculator clutches that laptop to his chest like a security blanket. "Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit. I told you to hurry."

Monet St. Croix has posed:
If this is an ambush, it seems a rather limited one. But all it has to do is stall them while reinforcements from the villains arrive. Some of them could survive the weapons fire - Monet was not amongst them. She quickly goes to with those who permit it setup a group battle mind so that they can coordinate amongst themselves. She goes to fly evasive - she's not going to survive a shot from those weapons, and she'd have to fly to close range to smash them and she'd be cut to pieces.

While she goes evasive and trusts the others to extricate the VIP, she goes to share her mental images of the weapons.

Their turrets, how fast they were rotating about on their pylons, their rate of fire - all as best as she could estimate to try and give them some warning to protect themselves while darting around to try and make herself a harder target. She's focused on maintaining the flow of information amongst the group - she has tos top scanning around the area to give it her full focus in a free fire zone.

Kyle Rayner has posed:
Kyle is getting ready to shoot at Calculator. Then those turrets sprout up. He whips around and fires at the nearest one. "VVVVVVVWHTTT!" the blast goes off in that direction. He starts to fire off more rounds if need be.

The energy field goes around him. <"Be careful up there!"> he says to the group over the com.

Right now, he tries to figure out who to go after. Too many targets. And he doesn't want friends blown out of the skies. It reminds him of the Chaos on New Krypton. Kind of.

Oliver Queen has posed:
It is almost surprising how many members of the Injustice League Ollie has a rather personal beef with. Merlyn of course. Deathstroke killed his father. And now Kuttler.

Or maybe it really isn't that much surprise. Do this kind of thing long enough enemies do tend to pile up. He just has the misfortune to seemingly have more then a few who's grudges pass over from his costumed persona to that of Oliver Queen as well.

So yeah, his feelings on the Calculator being the supposed defector are decidedly mixed.

Still, he has a task and that means putting some personal issues aside for the sake of the mission. So the Green Arrow lets Miss Martian deal with the arrogant S.O.B. while he focuses on checking out that hanger.

At least that was the intent. It changes pretyty quickly when the ground begins to shake beneath them and those weapon emplacements begin to burst up from the ground. "I knew it!" he barks out. "You can't trust any of them. Especially him!" he says, already pulling out an arrow from the quiver on his back, nocking it and firing it off at the closest emerging turret, the sudden electrical discharge from it seeming to short out the emplacement, that rise from the earth coming to an abrupt stop.

But already another one begins to spew out machine gun fire his way sending him diving for cover.

Simon Williams has posed:
The sudden inclusion within Monet's melding of minds for battle seems to be enough of a big, big red flag for Simon. Wonder Man begins to descend from his cloud cover. He halts himself however after flying a dozen or so yards. He drifts to a halt and while the urge is there to hurl himself from the sky, toward the airfield far below; he delays. Wonder Man drifts. Watching, waiting. After a moment of his drifting he keys up within the comm network, <<"Wonder Man, standing by for possible reinforcements. Call me in when you want me">>.

It's not his rodeo and Simon isn't the leading man in this particular metaphorical film. He's the supporting actor and that means he waits until it's time for his cameo. For now he drifts and watches, the energies composing his form roiling beneath the adopted surface. He watches a red world below, through red tinted glasses. Waiting, patiently, for his mark.

M'gann M'orzz has posed:
M'gann is able to get at least a surface level verification of Noah's identification, her probe as soft and gentle as a whisper in the back of his mind as she sifts carefully through his throughts and mental patterns. Offering a gentle, <<Thank you.>> as she withdraws from his mind. It was as unobtrusive and quick as she could make it and still get what she needed from it.

THen the ground shakes and there are turrets popping up through the concrete, and M'gann first throws a telekinetic shield around the Calculator before making herself intangible. "Hold on, Mr. Kuttler." And M'gann takes off, flying fast and true towards the invisible jet. And poor Noah is dragged along with her in his little safety bubble. Oliver can have the satisfaction of the image of Noah Kuttler going ass over teakettle in an opaque 'bubble' as he's yanked along with M'gann's takeoff. You're welcome, Ollie!

<<Coming in hot, let me know if I need to divert.>>

Diana Prince has posed:
When dealing with the collection of enemies that the Justice League have been dealing with here, the idea of a trap is something obviously on the fore-front of everyone's minds. When the ground begins to shake, and the last vestiges of any belief that this could go smoothly fade away, Diana is quick to dismount her motorcycle, and pull her sword and shield from her back!

"Go and get him!" She calls out, but to who? Well, her bike, of course. The cloud-hued vehicle comes to life again, its huge white tires rolling through the dirt, casting up a wave of sodden earth behind it! As the two-wheeled vehicle hits the pavement of the tarmac, its shape begins to change, suddenly fading in to a less focused view... rapidly changing in to a cloud of hazey vapor, before growing exponentially larger in scale! The strange vehicle warps in to the shape of the Invisible Jet, before it does indeed fade out of sight entirely, on a course directly for the Calculator's location!

Covering her own alien-technology transport, Wonder Woman lunges toward the nearest sprung-up turret, her shield held out to intercept weapons fire, sending sparks in all directions as the bullets blossom off of her rounded shield!

She moves in an arch through the sky, ending with her sword coming down to impact in to the barrels of the turret firing upon her!

Barry Allen has posed:
As the turrets finally finish emerging from the ground in strategic places around the airstrip the dozens of tiny earthquakes at least stop. For whatever small mercy that's worth.

Of course that only means that all those weapon emplacements are armed and fully operational. Even if not capable of blowing up a planet.

Those various automatic weapons appear to come in a diverse array and while not necessarily a threat on the scale that many of the members of the Injustice League might prove, one doesn't want to get caught by them either.

Complicating things is certainly the fact that Kuttler is very much a normal, squishy human being. A middle aged man in only passingly good shape, far happier behind a computer screen then out in the open like this. Especially under fire.

The man clutches his laptop a little tighter to his chest -- whether to serve as a shield to him, or to shield it from any damage it might take -- and hunches down, still scuttling in the direction indicated. "Shitshitshitshitshit," he mutters over and over again, flinching every time that telekinetic shield around him stops an incoming bullet or other sort of blast from reaching him, the sweat beginning to pour profusely from his forehead and stain the armpits of that dress shirt.

The smirking exterior is long gone now. "Get me out of here!" he shouts even as he's swept up and off his feet in that bubble of unseen force.

While many of the turrets spew out round after round of machine gun fire, making the airstrip suddenly appear like a war zone, others are apparently equipped with other weapons as well. A trio of emplacements tilt and abruptly start sending up a hailstorm of rockets into the air, the streaking projectiles honing in towards the flying air support that the League has on hand.

Others offer alternative sorts of threats. As M'gann and the Calculator streak towards the approaching and transformed Invisible Jet one of those turrets sends out a great gout of fire their way, the heat of the jet of flame apparent even from a dozen feet away.

Still others begin to send out laser bursts, streaks of light that begin to try and track the various Leaguers and their allies through the skies and across the ground, adding one more obstacle to the fray.

While Barry is fast, having a few dozen threats pop out of the ground, having those turrets blanket the area with bullets and lasers and flame gets and rockets in overlapping fields of fire, it's still a challenge to deal with. But one that the Flash is up for. Hopefully.

Zipping back in towards the heart of the airstrip, he begins to tear out circuits from the turrets as he streaks past, , that red and gold streak taking an erratic path to make it more difficult from them to lock in on him, working towards the line that M'gann is taking with their would-be defector to try and start clearing a path. "Well this is fun."

Monet St. Croix has posed:
The best she can do now is give some cover. Those bullets will shred Monet - she's invulnerable, but nto to heavy machine gun fire. She goes evasive, trying to draw fire while going at her highest speed. The best thing about her flight abilities was the strange way that likely telekientically boosted flight abilities worked - the ability to stop and maneuver on a dime. While the turrets could reorient to retarget her quickly, they would still take a few hundredths of a second to adjust thier aim. By which point she would be moving again and have full maneuverability to start and stop.

And that was more time for the others to handle the defenses and get their wouldbe defector to safety. They'll figure things out later. But for now M is just having to dart back and forth to try and make it as hard as it is possible for her to not be shredded!

Kyle Rayner has posed:
Kyle tries to chime in over the coms. "How many more do we have?" and he flies about avoiding bullets. The weapon construct fades. Now it's just standard blasts. Just Kyle focusing and tries to fire with a beam of energy. Very traditional.

"Any idea where the controller is?" Kyle's trying to figure out a way to end this once and for all. Everyone's having trouble by the looks of it. Well, not trouble, but everyones trying toa void it all.

Keeping that shield up, as he starts to move about. His gaze looks about seeing how many more targets are out there. Like Monet, he doesn't want to be shreaded.

Oliver Queen has posed:
It doesn't look like he is going to have a whole lot of need for the ol' boxing glove arrow in this particular fight. It's definitely time to pull out the bigger guns. Especially when there is no worry about collateral damage. To either these abandonned structures or from living and breathing foes.

There are a few good things in dealing with technological threats. No real need to hold back.

Of course, Kuttler isn't the only one who is just flesh and bone with no super powers to protect him. Sure, his uniform might protect him from a bullet or two. But dozens of them? Not to mention the rockets and lasers and flamethrowers. Not so much.

So even as he nocks and fires off another arrow -- this one with an explosive tip that rips through the closest of the turrets -- Ollie is racing towards that hangar. Not so much to scout it any longer, but more to use it for cover.

He does manage to catch a glimpse of Kuttler being bounced around in that telekinetic sheath though as he darts through the gaping entrance. It brings a smile to his face.

But not for long. Even as a flurry of bullets pound against the wall of the hanger, Ollie pushes his back against the wall. And when he does so he finally spots the turret within the recesses of the crumbling hangar, back in the heavy shadows. It whirs, stirs to life and begins to draw a bead on him.

"OH c'mon!"

Diana Prince has posed:
The Lansinarian Jet is capable of moving at tremendous speeds, the tarmac crossed in just a snap of seconds. Of course, it is invisible now, and thus M'gann's efforts to get the Calculator to its safe embrace, might seem challenging, save for a single spot in the sky showcasing to M'gann directly where to fly, and directly where to deposit the man within. The boarding ramp is extended, open, and the interior shine of the Jet's internal illumination shines brightly enough to serve as a beacon of where to go!

In defensive mode now, and while the members of the JLA deal with the turrets, the Jet reacts by releasing a sudden burst of brilliant bright blue energy!

A plasma torpedo! It bursts out of the invisible cloak covering the Lansinarian Morphing Disc, an orb of pure power, glinting brightly with the raw energy contained within it, as it screaches through the sky toward one of the turrets! The sound of a shrieking propulsion heralds the impact of the plasma torpedo against its enemy target, resulting in a burst of destruction! The explosive yield devastates the turret, scattering pieces across the airfield's property.

"Cover each other's backs. Once we have the target, we have to secure this site and mark it for future observations!" Wonder Woman calls out on the team comms, as she lunges across the eastern corner of the tarmac, headed northward toward another emplacement spouting off a funnel of flames and small warheads! Diana slams directly in to its base, using her shield as a bashing tool to rip the turret from its foundations, and send it topping over in to the untamed tall grasses surrounding where it had erupted from the Earth!

Simon Williams has posed:
Rockets shriek through the air and at least some of them seem to be set on a course bound for Wonder Man's own position among the clouds. He doesn't curse, nor does he spout a witty one-liner. Instead Wonder Man twists amid his floating and with a little kick of his feet he's off, hurtling through the air directly toward those rockets. He dips and weaves around the first pair. He twists to take hold of the third as it screams toward his place in the sky. The heave of his arm is accompanied by a grunt - more out of habit, than any true exertion on the behalf of Wonder Man - and he hurls the third rocket toward a trio that may have struck Simon. Amid his aerial acrobatics, Simon has the good sense to slip his sunglasses from his face and even has the time to clip them onto his superhero tights. Then? Then Simon Williams begins to hum and beatbox his own theme song as he begins to roll and sideslip around incoming rocket fire.

He doesn't truly need to breath. Which means that Wonder Man is capable of maintaining his heroic action sounds without pause or interruption, save for the occasional little, "Ope!" as he twists mid-flight, allowing one of the incoming rockets to narrowly avoid impacting with Wonder Man. Once he's cleared the incoming rocket salvo, the humming and beatboxing stops long enough for Simon to broadcast, <<"They've got me spotted up high, so I'm making my way down low. Let me know if I'm needed anywhere in particular?">> He's moving fast enough that it'll only be a few seconds before he breaks from the open sky to the planet's surface.

M'gann M'orzz has posed:
fire... Fire.. FIRE! "FIRE!"

M'gann's hindbrain kicks in with that first gout of green flame, even when it's farther away, causing her to jerk up and out of the range of the fire, taking Kuttler up higher and out of range of more of the weapons before re-orienting on the spot shimmering in the air to give her a spot to aim for.

Refocused, she streaks down towards it with Kuttler in tow, pushing the telekinetic bubble out ahead of her to gently deposit the man within the jet's invisible interior. <<Package delivered, take him to safety!>> Then she turns to face the turrets, eyes narrowing.

These are machines, no living beings, nothing she has to hold back on. Reaching out with both hands, keeping them about shoulder-width apart, her fingers curl into claws as part of the tarmac starts to shudder and tremble again. This time under HER control.

She uses sheer telekinetic will to yank the concrete up, ripping strips of it out of the ground, turrets and all. Her hands clap together, crashing one strip into the other, then slamming both down into the ground, taking out as many as she can all at once.

Of course, she picks sections without her friends and teammates on them. Because that would just be RUDE.

Barry Allen has posed:
It's a good question. In all likelihood the turrets are being controlled in some fashion. It could be remotely of course. But even then it would seem fairly likely there would have to be a signal coming in.

And while Barry's many gifts don't include any real means to track that sort of thing, he is pretty good on the whole general science thing. Even as he zips around the airfield trying to do what he can to open a path for Miss Martian and their erstwhile defector, he glances around the field. "Any signal is probably coming from the high ground," he suggests. "Try the tower Ion," he suggests even as he rips the guts out of another of those mechanical emplacements.

The skies are filled with exploding rockets, periodic bursts of laser fire and tracer fire streaking brightly in lines. And while M might be the most vulnerable of the fliers serving sentry above, that sheer mobility and ability to shift course almost instantly helps keep the turrets from establishing a lock. Their numbers are also slowly being whittled away which helps. Not to mention having a few other distractions up there.

The incoming fire is clearly less of a threat to Wonder Man and Ion, but it still periodically pelts them. A distraction perhaps, but that suggests that it is serving the purpose of delaying them.

Things on the ground are making steady progress as well. Between Diana putting that sword and shield to good use, to M'gann putting the ground itself to use as a projectile, an increasing number of those turrets are being thoroughly ripped to shreads or at least left deactivated. Still, enough remain to be a threat.

Including that one in the depths of the southern hangar where Oliver is currently hiding from that flurry of fire directed towards him. The turret stirs, those barrels starting to come to life, beginning to whirl as they prepare to pump out those high velocity rounds towards the Emerald Archer.

And as for Kuttler? Bounced around as he is, cowering in that telekinetic sheath that carts him along, he lets out an audible gasp of relief as he is carried straight into the waiting confines of that invisible jet. Simply falling on the floor when released from that unseen force around him, he just lays there, still clutching his laptop and staring up at the sky. The sky filled with explosions and bursts of fire around the trio of heroes streaking about up there.

And then his eyes widen as they fix on something else. "That's not good. I damn sure hope you have somewhere safe to stash me," he says, panic beginning to creep into his words once more.

Up in the sky, the inevitable finally seems to happen. Over the northern end of the airstrip a shimmering portal starts to appear and expand. The turrets seem to have served their purpose. Now the real threat is on the verge of making it's appearance.

Monet St. Croix has posed:
Now they're going to have to fight the true threats. And it will have to be a fighting retreat. The turrets did the job of stalling them. She still doesn't remotely trust Calculator - this is all a little too convenient that the place is outfitted with heavy weapons turrets that opened fire on them and they're in the midst of some chaos. But M'Gann's telepathic abilities are vastly superior to her own and M'Gann scanned him.

Pragmatism dictates deal with that later, survive and get out of here first. She goes to try and scan along into the portal, going to try and pick up who is coming through it.. Then she's going to charge down towards one of the dropped turrets. One that was disabled by a smash or a blast but that.. She goes to land down next to it and goes to rapidly pick it up. She goes to push over at the wiring, inspecting it and recalling the manual for these types of things. She goes to hurriedly work at wires, setting up a secondary battery, going to reroute the various mechanisms normally operated by automated systems.. Then she goes to quickly slap together the remaining ammunition magazines into place with some more fiddling. A twitch at the wires gets a spasm in the gun. Adjustment.

Another poke of the wires has the barrels of the gatling gun spinning a bit. Good. Monet goes to brace with the weapon held over her shoulder to stabilize it, other hand going to the improvised controls to work the battery over. Then said turret is lined up over with the portal.

Kyle Rayner has posed:
Kyle focuses for a moment. <"Wonder Woman. Should you have boots on the ground? I can have the skies."> Kyle thinks someone that can bench press buicks should be on the ground.

Another focus as he waits for a blast. Focusing with the ring, Green streaks going through to targets. He's trying to clear a path for someone.

He'll start to streak through the skies trying to get on enough turret radars. Make himself look like the appetizing target. That's what the hope is anywway. Things cna go sideways at any time, and often do.

Oliver Queen has posed:
Well this is great. Juuuuuust great.

Aware of the explosions and chaos around him, very much aware of the rapid *thunk* *thunk* *thunk* of the weapons fire impacting the wall pressed against his back, Ollie is still rather focused on the looming threat in front of him. As those barrels begin to rev up, begin to whirl both visibly and audibly, Green Arrow grimaces but reaches back over his shoulder, one hand fishing in that quiver to retrieve a suitable arrow.

Instead he finds himself sadly deprived of additional explosive or taser arrows, each one marked and readily identifiable by touch alone.

That is decidedly unfortunate.

Left with diminishing options on hand, he instead pulls out a different arrow, nocking it and firing it in one smooth motion. The arrow flies true, the head of it abruptly expanding into that telltale boxing glove that seems so very impractical. Just as the whirling barrels of the weapon emplacement reach critical mass that arrow slams into them, blocking the barrels as they fire. The resulting backlash shreads the weapon emplacement sending metal shards flying as the archer ducks.

Look at that. He found a use for the boxing glove arrow afterall. That's definitely one he'll have to share with Emiko, even given her distaste for some of his more impractical arrows.

"How we doing out there? Time to pull back?"

Diana Prince has posed:
Once Cutler is aboard the Jet, and tucked away inside it, he'll find the interior to be partially translucent, enough to allow him to see through the bulkheads out in to the sky beyond. But when he voices his concern at what he sees, the interior of the jet lowers its opacity from inside. Cutler finds himself in a non-descript room of mostly white hues, with a small chair to seat himself upon, and no exit in to the rest of the Jet's interior.

Outside, back down on the ground, Diana is running at a fast clip across the yard, a laser beam suddenly slamming down in to the ground behind her, tracking her as it burns a trench across the grassy field! Just as it reaches her tail, Wonder Woman lunges upward in to a backward flip that carries her in a backward tumble just as the beam raises up to swipe at the air where she had previously been! Her shield is raised up, and sent twirling out behind her toward the laser burret's projection cannon! The shield impacts with a resonating crushing attack, smashing the nozzle of the beam weapon's emitter. With a single huff of an exhale, Diana's eyes raise up toward the sky.

"Cutler is aboard the Jet, it is proceding off-site to deliver him to a safe haven." She announces to the team.

"Prepare yourselves... the controller of the turrets may be about to express their unhappiness toward us, even more so than they already have."

Simon Williams has posed:
A sharp twist results in Wonder Man arresting his downward progress. He twists and rolls, as his form seems to briefly ripple with a momentary cascade of purplish energy. The adopted form that Simon Williams wears appears to momentarily bleed away as the ionic energy which composes his being seems to assert itself for a second. He slows his flight speed, though his powerful hands remain balled into tight fists as his arms stretch out before himself. He watches that northern portal as it begins to material and ripple within the air, threatening to disgorge some potential threat.

For the moment Wonder Man seems to keep his distance, yet his position aimed directly toward the rippling portal. The plan is a simple one: wait, observe, rush. He stands ready to streak through the sky and toward the portal at the first sign of danger spilling from it. His fingers and arms flex, veins standing out against his flesh as his hands become suffused with dancing energy. The purplish glow of his hands allows the alert and watchful to spot Wonder Man in the sky. He watches, he waits, he is prepared.

Simon does not drift now. His position in the New Jersey sky is fixed and Wonder Man's good humor seems to have bled away for the time being. Now it's time for serious business and serious heroics. He checks in with a glance toward the ground to determine the status of others, before his attention turns back to the growing portal, <<"Whatever comes through, I'm heading straight for it or them. Let's hope they stay nice and distracted">>.

M'gann M'orzz has posed:
With Kuttler safely tucked away in the invisible jet, and the jet zooming off to whatever secured location is being guarded by the other Leaguers not here, M'gann is able to stop splitting her focus. Looking around at the remaining turrets, she helps to free up everyone's attention for the incoming enemy.

One after another, the turrets start to crackle, fizz, then pop and the scream of crunching metal can be heard across the area as she starts crushing them into so much scrap with that telekinesis. She doesn't bother with the ones being actively dismantled or repurposed by the others, focusing on those stray turrets still spitting out bullets or lasers.

<<Not quite, Arrow.>> And Ollie will get a mental image of the portal opening in the sky above them. <<Think you could work with Bioship and handle the weapons systems? You have the best aim of anyone here.>> It would be a temporary upgrade for the Emerald Archer, and might be helpful if he's running low on arrows!

Barry Allen has posed:
There are fewer and fewer operable turrets on the ground as the efforts of the Leaguers and their allies reduces their number to just a handful. And with Ion making himself such a visible and tempting target, the few that are still pumping out machine gun fire or the one still firing rockets hone in on him.

And with their attention entirely directed skyward they leave themselves much easier targets to be cleared out on the ground side.

The last of the laser emplacements is smashed by Diana's shield and Barry races in amongst the others, continuing that superspeed barrage that leaves the disabled turrets sparking and lifeless as critical components are ripped aside as he races past. With Miss Martian reaching out to crush the metallic emplacements with the power of her mind.

Which of course leaves the threat of that portal in the sky. Though it would seem that they are ready for what will come, with M gripping that improvised gatling gun, levelling it towards the emerging anomaly in the sky and Wonder Man right htere to face down whatever threat might slip through that portal.

But that glowing circular disk continues to grow, larger and larger, looking increasingly ominous.

Then, abruptly, figures finally begin to emerge. It's no real surprise that the always annoying purple-haired sorceress Tala is one of the first, alongside the woman who's features are concealed by a golden mask. Morgan Le Fay. They are almost immediately preceeded by another figure hovering with ease in mid-air. Wrapped in armor of blue and purple, a crackling shield of electro-magnetic energy surrounds him and the others, projected forth by Dr. Polaris as that bubble of force catches the initial flurry of fire directed their way by M as they emerge.

Others begin to emerge as well, the strength of the Injustice League seemingly brought to bear as their two sorceresses chant in unison.

And the results of their spell? A sudden explosion of bright, golden energy that ripples out in a wave of sheer force that slams into anyone nearby, that shockwave continuing to flash across the sky in pursuit of the departing Invisible Jet. Closer and closer it races after that plane... before coming up just short, dying a way in a shower of falling sparkles.

"Don't think that you have accomplished anything here today," comes a voice from above as another figure, held aloft by unseen force looks down on those below, the green mantle draped around his shoulders rippling in the breeze. "The Injustice League will not tolerate betrayal," Ra's al Ghul states coldly. "If Kuttler thought Grodd's fate unfortunate, that is nothing compared to what we will do to him. And anyone that stands in our way."

Then, with that warning delivered, the assorted members of the criminal association that has proven to be quite the thorn in the Justice League's side slip back into that portal before it winks out of existence.

Monet St. Croix has posed:
Monet has to drop her improvised weapon to dodge and evade, then she goes to flat out stare as the group of villains file out of the portal for just a moment to.. And then depart and..

"Did.. They just open that portal for a moment so they could gloat and threaten us?" She goes to just flat out stare and hover in place, as if something had gone off in her brain and set her to twitching.

Slowly forcing herself to look in the direction of M'Gann. <<We're sure we weren't hallucinating this, or are under some form of entrapment?>> This didn't seem to be an illusion, but ti never hurt to ask someone that was better in detecting this sort of thing.

Presuming it was, i nfact, confirmed to be real Monet would keep on twitching.

Kyle Rayner has posed:
Kyle's streaking through the skies. The bullets whizz by. For a split seconed it's hard not to feel the panic. Bullets flying by a human is still scary. Then new noises cut through the air. Kyle looks down, "Mmmm?" "Fssshhhhoooww," the sound of missles coming at him. Pushing down panic, Kyle creates a construct that looks like a slightly overside Captain America shield, albeit washed in green. Oh, he's bracing himself to get pushed in new directions just from the force of the blasts. Oh, this is not going to be fun.

Diana Prince has posed:
With her sword pointed down at the battered yard of the abandoned airfield, and her free hand balled up in to a fist at her side, Diana stares up at the sky, and the InJustice League members who show themselves from within their portal. She glares at them, her brow furrowed, her dark eyebrows positioned in such a way that does nothing to hide her feelings toward these menaces. When the explosive power cascades out from the duel spells of the witches, Diana raises her arms up, sans a shield, she still possesses her bracers to block some of the incoming gail of energy!

Wonder Woman grits her teeth through the gust of the force, dropping down to one knee upon the earth, as she is pushed back across it, until her boot touches the pavement of the landing strip behind her.

The Invisible Jet was well out of range at this point, its speed a boon to the craft's ability to avoid any dangers in this moment.

When the chaos subsides, and the sinister group slips back in to their portal, Wonder Woman looks up toward where they had previously been, as her free hand reaches up to swipe a strand of her dark locks from her eyes.

"Well done, team." Diana tells those still on the comm network. "Secure the site, and lets prepare to head out."

She states, as she sheaths her sword behind her back, stands up, and begins to head toward where her shield was sticking partially out of the ground beside the ruined laser turret...

She lets out a soft sigh, both of her hands now freed to deal with the mess of the hair-storm around her face and shoulders...

Oliver Queen has posed:
With the imminent threat seemingly dealt with, with that turrent left shreaded from the blowback of it's out bullets, Ollie pokes his head out of the hangar entrance, watching as the remaining turrets are increasingly dealt with as well, ripped from the ground, smashed, or left sparking, useless husks.

<<Are you kidding? That sounds great. I shall make whoosing sounds and pewpew as I blow those Injustice types back to wherever they come from,>> the Emerald Archer enthuses. Starting to trot out of cover to take advantage of the offer and get ready for the showdown, he is instead confronted with the villainous spokesmen issueing threats and then pulling a disappearing act when the effort to knock the Invisible jet from the air fails.

"Ugh, magic. Teleportation. Illusions. It all sucks," Ollie grumbles.

On the bright side though, they did manage to get their hands on the Calculator. Maybe he won't want to talk afterall. Maybe he can offer to help 'persuade' him.

With that happy thought, he turns towards the Arrowmobile.

Simon Williams has posed:
The portal opens, a figure figures appear from it, and make their proclamation. Then they're drifting back into the portal and a moment later it closes behind them. There are no shouts or exclamations out of Wonder Man, but Simon's disappointment is apparent. He'd finally gotten into the fight properly and the frown that he wears is heavy. The energy suffusing his hands dissipates as it is consumed and contained once again within the very essence of himself. It doesn't last for long however, as soon enough he's reaching to collect his sunglasses. A flick of his wrist unfolds each of the temples upon their hinges. It's with practiced precision that Simon Williams dons his customary red tinted sunglasses.

He huffs out a quiet breath before he twists in the air and begins to descend toward the ground, touching down upon booted feet. A smile is quick to shine forth and the celebrated actor's eyebrows dance higher, his glowing red eyes still hidden away behind the tint of his sunglasses, "The Justice League saves the day yet again!" The words are spoken with good cheer and wholesome enthusiasm, while Simon's bright, Hollywood-approved smile never seems to falter, "We'll get'em next time though! I'll be having a party soon, my place in New York. All of you are invited for a little socializing!"

Sure, there are a great many important matters to discuss. As an ally and vaguely shaped backup of the Justice League, those important discussions are above his paygrade. Which is precisely why Wonder Man seems ready to turn and take to the sky once more and leave matters behind.

M'gann M'orzz has posed:
M'gann is gearing up for a fight and readies Bioshop to pick up Oliver so he can pew-pew, the portal opening to show the Injustice League starting to appear through it. This was expected. You don't get a defector without drawing the attention of the group the defector came from.

She's looking between the visible members, debating on who to take on... and then they give the ultimatum. Her eyes narrow, the telekinetic shield flashing and flaring as the shockwaves breaks against it in its outward path. There's the idea that they might still attack.

But now, they've monologued and left. Laaaaaaaaaame.

Sighing as she stands down, M'gann looks to Diana, "I think I'll go meet up with the Jet and see just what sort of damage or triggers they might have done to him. We don't want him to start talking only to have a sudden aneurysm or have a blood vessel burst. He won't like it, but I think he would like death or drooling into his shirt even less." She motions towards Diana, "With your leave?"

Barry Allen has posed:
While the Injustice League has come and gun, all thunder and wind and very little sotmr, the last remenants of the barrage of turret fire from the ground streaks upward, those few remaining rockets exploding all around Ion. And while it is questionable whether any of those explosives can get through the protective green sheath around the Lantern, the resulting turbulence probably means something of a rough ride.

From the ground, all Barry can really do is peer up as some of the Injustice League's powerhouses make their brief appearance, iossuing their threats and put on an impressive, if unproductive light show.

Then they are gone, that glowing portal starting to fade away. "That's a good question M. Perhaps Zatanna or Dr. Fate can sweep the area and pick up some residual traces of just what they were up to here," the Flash suggests with a small frown.

"We should probably arrange to have Kuttler debriefed as soon as possible. And we will probably won't to hold him close at hand, especially if this isn't just a scheme and the Injustice League is really going to come after him. The Hall or the Watchtower perhaps," he muses.

At Simon's offer, the Scarlet Speedster grins briefly. "I make a habit of never turning down free food."