Originally, she didn't want to pay them any attention; she just wanted to reach the destination and complete her mission. But the moment Slade spoke, the others turned to look at Thea. Their eyes held suspicion, and even General Lane was staring at her. Thea knew she had to show off a little skill.
You want to see? Then I'll let you see your fill.
She pulled the Book of Parallax from the void. The appearance of the massive, golden-yellow book immediately attracted everyone's gaze. "What is this..." "My body..."
Few could face their inner fears without their expressions changing. People like Sinestro and Batman had undergone rounds of psychological conditioning; they knew exactly what they feared and had gone through a long mental journey to finally conquer fear.
It wasn't that Thea looked down on the people in front of her, but they were simply miles away from that realm.
In the original timeline, Lyssa Drak, the keeper of the Book of Parallax, had a very flashy quote, which Thea quoted here. She put away the Book of Parallax and stated loudly, "I know fear better than anyone!"
Although the book was only taken out for a flash before being put away, everyone was in terrible shape.
"Huh?" Thea's gaze was involuntarily drawn to Harley Quinn. Not because of her looks, of course, but because this girl actually managed to resist the assault of fear itself. Although her legs were knocking together, she barely managed to remain standing. Keep in mind that beside her, Slade, built like a bear, was gritting his teeth, veins popping all over his body, kneeling on one knee.
Is it because of her madness? That was the only answer Thea could think of. If Harley Quinn could resist, did that mean the Joker was immune to fear?
Aside from Harley and Slade, everyone else was face-down on the ground. The most miserable among them was Katana, who had just lost her son. Her mask had fallen off, and her rather delicate face was covered in snot and tears; she looked like she was in agony.
As a fellow woman, Thea felt some sympathy for her. Knowing her area-of-effect spell had accidentally caught an ally in the crossfire, she felt a bit apologetic. She raised her hand and released an enhanced version of "Resist Fear" over a wide area.
Magic was just that unscientific. The group stood up one after another depending on their condition. The one in the best state turned out to be Slade. The guy was muttering under his breath, "Metahumans... metahumans again... I hate these damn metahumans!"
Ignoring his grumbling, Thea's gaze was drawn to Harley Quinn again. Her "Resist Fear" spell had no effect on her. She was exactly the same as before.
Is she really that formidable? Such high magic resistance! No debuffs, no buffs, nothing sticks. Indeed, the world of the mentally ill is full of unknowns...
"Baka! I'm going to kill you!" Katana climbed up from the ground, ignoring her mask. She drew her sword and slashed at Thea.
Thea felt guilty, but that didn't mean she would stand there and take a beating. The distance between them closed visibly. She pressed her left hand against the empty air, using mana to compress and oscillate the atmosphere. The others only heard a muffled sound. From five or six meters away, they saw Thea wave her left hand lightly, sending Katana—sword and all—flying backward.
"I didn't mean to. My apologies." Thea softened her tone slightly. Whether Katana forgave her or not was none of her business.
Katana looked like she was knocked back several meters, but there wasn't much actual force behind it. She stood up quickly. Hearing Thea's apology, she was still very unhappy inside, but she couldn't beat her! She could only fall back on the time-honored tradition of her ancestors: put on the mask and endure.
"You all should depart immediately. Amanda will be in charge of command en route." General Lane, who seemingly saw some terrifying vision himself, gave a few standard remarks and waved for them to set off.
Sitting on the military transport plane, Amanda, dressed in military fatigues, began to brief them on the operation.
"The most powerful enemies are Enchantress and El Diablo. These two will be handled by Yellow Lantern." Amanda laid out the enemy situation. "Yellow Lantern" was a name Thea had casually picked.
"The remaining three are Rick Flag, Captain Boomerang, and Killer Croc." Speaking of Rick Flag, Amanda felt it was a pity. Such a good subordinate—tactically brilliant, mentally flexible. Regardless of whether he was bewitched by Enchantress's magic, the order from the higher-ups was simple: eliminate them all. She knew she didn't have the leverage to overrule them. She wanted to plead for leniency several times, but held back the words. In the eyes of the brass, the life or death of a grunt wasn't worth their time discussing.
Amanda emphasized her tone, seeming to speak to herself as well: "Kill all of them. Leave no survivors. Their abilities are as follows..."
Thea was too lazy to listen to this nonsense. Those small fry were just a matter of a single spell for her. If she drew their attention beforehand, taking out the Book of Parallax could even wipe them out instantly. She needed to steady herself and focus to deal with Enchantress, who had regained her body.
The military transport plane was fast. Amanda took a call, then spoke anxiously to the group. "The enemy has occupied the city square and is emitting a high-power military EMP. The transport plane can't get close. The citizens are in extreme panic. You must start the operation immediately! Operation start! Jump now and engage."
The group began grabbing parachute packs. Acting with them were over a dozen A.R.G.U.S. agents, all fully armed. Except for Harley Quinn, who kept laughing, the rest were a bit nervous.
"I'll go down first and wait for you." Thea said indifferently. With that, she floated out of the cabin lightly. Her yellow figure turned into a meteor, descending toward the ground.
"Damn metahumans!" Slade, built like a grizzly bear, was exceptionally annoyed. Without greeting the others, he strapped on his parachute pack and jumped down first.
The enemy's EMP disrupted Amanda's assault plan, forcing the squad to enter the city scattered. Needless to say, this was definitely a method devised by Rick Flag, who was familiar with A.R.G.U.S. combat styles. Her favorite subordinate had likely walked this path because of Dr. June Moone. Amanda no longer believed her subordinate could turn back; being killed might be his only choice.
Leaving Amanda to fret uselessly on the outskirts, Thea landed alone at the edge of the city. Originally, she wanted to wait for her teammates to group up before charging, but seeing them scattered all over the place during the jump, she abandoned the idea and walked slowly into the city alone.
"Kid, you really aren't in a hurry, are you?" A deep, low voice sounded in her ear. Slade was there, wearing his signature combat suit and the two-toned red and black mask. He carried dual swords on his back and an arsenal of weapons strapped to his body—daggers hidden in his wrists, a pistol strapped to his leg, and a pouch at his waist bulging, likely with grenades.
Slade's landing point wasn't far from Thea's. He had procured a motorcycle in a corner of the city and only caught up after seeing Thea from afar.
"If you call me 'kid' again, I'll kill you. Believe it?" Thea said terrifying words with a beaming smile.