"But why do you need me in your... what's it called... Suicide Squad?" Tommy asked. His world was still reeling a little from the tranquilizer dart he had been shot with and he was still having trouble comprehending what he was being told. Apparently there was a secret government organization called the Suicide Squad and he was being pressed into service? The whole thing was bizarre.
Of course, it might have been easier to comprehend if he wasn't cuffed to a metal chair in a cold interrogation room while STILL wearing a hospital gown. Tommy's nuts were in his stomach.
"Because you know what we're after, Mr. Naylor," Amanda Waller, Tommy's apparent kidnapper, told him. The frumpy, middle-aged woman was somehow intimidating without really trying to be. Tommy couldn't help but shirk when she set her gaze on him.
"I do?" Tommy asked. How could he know what they were after? He'd spent the past couple weeks in either a parallel dimension or a secluded mountain shack. "There's no way I-" Tommy began.
"Do you remember what Poison Ivy was up to the last time you met?" Amanda Waller asked.
Tommy thought.
"Oh," He said softly.
He had forgotten all about the fact that he had run into Poison Ivy right after she had created a new version of her mind-control compound and had sold it to the highest bidder. Tommy could have pumped Poison Ivy to find out who she had sold it to, but instead he had... well, he had certainly pumped Poison Ivy, at least. In all the commotion, Tommy had forgotten to pursue that little thread.
"Poison Ivy sold her formula to a group called the Science Squad," Waller told Tommy. "With that formula in their hands, who knows what kind of terror they could wreak."
Tommy still had questions. "But why do you need me?" He asked. "I don't know shit about science." And why is everything a squad now, Tommy wanted to ask.
"Because you have a certain immunity to the formula, through your time as... Him," Waller said. She let the word "Batman" remain unsaid. "And besides, we figured you would be inclined to stop this since you failed to stop it once before."
Tommy nodded. She did have a point. He could have stopped this but let his dick get in the way, like he always did. Tommy needed to make amends for his mistakes as Batman; might as well start here.
"Okay," Tommy said. "I'll do it."
"You were always going to do it, Mr. Naylor," Waller said. "But it's good to know you're motivated."
Tommy rolled his eyes.
"So what's next?" Tommy asked. "Might as well get this over with."
"Not so fast," Waller said. "You will be joining a group of hardened villains. They can't know your real identity or your past dalliance into superheroism." Waller held up her hand and a grunt immediately entered the small interrogation room, bringing with him a set of clothes. On top of the clothes was a confusing helmet that Tommy hadn't seen before.
"What's that?" Tommy asked as the grunt placed the clothes on the table and left the room.
"This," Amanda Waller said while holding up the helmet, "Was the helmet of a villain just a little before your time. Criminals in Gotham would often find a patsy to wear it so as to distract Batman from who the real power in the heist was. I thought it would be appropriate to be used as your new alias."
Tommy glanced at the helmet and frowned. It looked heavy and would probably be even hotter on his head than the Bat-cowl was. And he wasn't sure how useful it would be at protecting his head. And the shiny red color on it would only direct shots towards his head...
"So who am I supposed to be, the Red Helmet or something?" Tommy asked.
Amanda Waller got up and uncuffed Tommy. He rubbed his wrists and then picked up the helmet to inspect it.
"Close," Waller said. "You'll go by the Red Hood."
"Red Hood," Tommy repeated. He frowned. "That's dumb."
"You'll get used to it," Waller said without interest. "And now, Mr. Naylor, there's one more thing you have to do for me."
"What's that?" Tommy asked, looking up. He saw Amanda Waller undoing the buttons on her sports coat.
"Nothing big, just a small favor from you," She said, as she finished with the last button. She began to slide the coat off her, exposing her bulbous shoulders. Tommy gulped. Waller folded her coat neatly in half and held it out to Tommy.
"Take this to the 3rd door on the left and hand it to the person inside. They'll take it to my office. Then head to the changing room and put on your new suit."
"Oh," Tommy said. He had been expecting something else and, for some reason, felt a little disappointed.
***
Tommy awoke slowly to the sound of whining engines and a rumbling in his seat. He groggily lifted his head and found it difficult with the extra weight. He came to the realization that he was wearing a helmet around his head. He had a sinking feeling it was red.
'They seriously need to stop tranquilizing me,' Tommy thought. As soon as he had changed into his suit, Tommy had felt a sharp pain in his neck and then nothing. Now, as he woke, he was in a yet another new location, a very noisy one, and one that was randomly bouncing around.
Tommy shook his head and tried to get a sense of himself. At least he was wearing normal clothes this time, he figured. In fact, he was actually impressed with the threads Waller had provided him: jeans, a black tactical shirt with some built-in padding (he suspected it could stop a bullet but wasn't that thrilled to test it) and a sweet black leather jacket that wasn't tactical at all but simply cool.
And the red helmet he had been provided wasn't all bad, either; Tommy found that it contoured to his face pretty well and he could breathe more or less easily enough. If they hadn't tranquilized him twice in the last few hours, Tommy would have actually liked Amanda Waller and her group.
Tommy once again shook his head of cobwebs. As he came to, he managed to take a look around. He soon realized why everything was so noisy and bumpy: he was in the hull of a small military-style airplane. He was up against one wall of the fuselage, in one of the many chairs that lined both sides of the plane's aisle.
And, trying his best to focus through all the turbulence, Tommy noticed that some of the other seats were occupied.
Tommy heard a soft groan to his left and discovered that someone was sitting just a few seats down from him. It was a very pale woman dressed in a dark blue dress that slid tantalizingly up her thigh. She had a large dark blue mask on that was partially obscured by the long black hair falling in front of her face. The woman shook her head and then noticed Tommy staring at her.
"Always an adventure," She said with a small smile on her lips.
"Alright, you apes, listen up!" Came a call from the front of the plane. Tommy glanced up groggily in the direction of the voice and was immediately annoyed. The man who was doing the yelling looked like a cartoon of a military man. He was tall and ridiculously broad-shouldered, with a blonde crew cut and a chin that could cut glass. He had ludicrous muscles all over his person and they were squeezed inside a yellow turtleneck. Tommy instantly disliked the man.
"Now we all know our mission!" The man was yelling. Tommy imagined he would have yelled like that even if the plane hadn't been roaring. "We're here for the reason we're always here: because the US fuckin' A need to stop some SCUM and you lowlifes are the only people expendable enough to get sent in for the job! Now mount up!"
Tommy stifled a laugh. Was this guy serious? He was glad when the guy across from him piped up.
"Oy," The man said, because the man was apparently Australian and that's what Australians say, "Put a fookin' cork in it, Flagg," The man said. He held his head and then reached inside his thick leather duster for something. As he did, Tommy could see that he had a ton of what looked like knives strapped to him. The man pulled out a pack of smokes and lit one up. He took a deep drag and then breathed it out slowly.
The military man glared at the ruffian and then directed his eyes towards the dark-haired woman near Tommy.
"Nightshade," The military man said, "Get our fresh meat ready to go!"
The woman, Nightshade, looked Tommy's direction. "Welcome to Task Force-X!" She yelled over the whine of the engine. "I'm Nightshade and I'll be your attendant on this flight!" She stuck out her hand and Tommy took it uncertainly.
The man across gave Tommy the once over and then spoke towards Nightshade. "I wouldn't bothah, Nighty," He said, "This one ain't gonna last long." He smirked and took a drag on his cigarette.
Nightshade rolled her eyes. "Don't mind him," She said.
The man now spoke to Tommy. "So what's your talent, son?" He asked.
"My what?" Tommy replied, confused.
The man looked at Tommy annoyed. He had a hard face and it was now set in stone. "Your talent, son!" He repeated. "I'm a boomerang man, meself." He held open his coat and Tommy could now see that the knives were actually boomerangs, sharp metal boomerangs. It seemed like an odd talent to Tommy but he wasn't going to say anything. "And Nightshade over here can do things with shadows. What about you?"
"Oh," Tommy said, I'm, uh... really good at fucking."
The boomerang man looked at Tommy for a second and then his mouth split open wide in a disturbing smile.
"You're alright, son," He said, laughing at Tommy's joke. Tommy laughed tentatively, not realizing that he had made a joke.
Nightshade tugged at Tommy's arm, directing him towards the front of the cabin. "That's Rick Flagg," She said as she pointed at the military man. He was cleaning a gun with the vigor Tommy only reserved for something else. "He's in charge." The boomerang man snorted but Nightshade ignored him.
"Over there..." Nightshade pointed towards a demure redhead that was sitting with her back arched and her legs crossed near Rick Flagg. She had a tight pink jumpsuit on and was absent-mindedly flicking her nails. "That's Plastique. She's in charge of explosives."
Nightshade noticed Tommy's eyes looking Plastique up and down. "I wouldn't think about it," She said to Tommy. "Captain Boomerang over there made a pass at her once and she set off a small explosive between his legs."
"Nuthin' small about it," The good captain interjected while rubbing his groin.
The plane suddenly lurched downwards, almost throwing everyone out of their seats. Tommy held onto a strap above him for support. Captain Boomerang lost his cigarette and cursed loudly. And Nightshade looked towards the cabin with a touch of concern. She looked back towards Tommy and tried to smile.
"I'll be right back," She said, "I have to go check on our pilot. I have a feeling he has an unwanted visitor."
Tommy nodded and watched Nightshade as she stumbled down the ramp towards the cabin. Tommy looked to his right and noticed for the first time a rather meek-looking blonde girl sitting a few seats away. She was dressed simply, in a pink sweater and blue jeans. Tommy smiled at her before remembering he was wearing a helmet. He then leaned towards her.
"Hi, I'm To... The Red Hood," Tommy said, extending a hand. The blonde girl reached a hand out and shook Tommy's hand timidly.
