Jai West (dareyoutorun) wrote in dc_nextgen,
@ 2011-04-17 13:46:00

Entry tags:

inactive - jarrod hall, inactive - keith queen, npc - jai west

How far can you run? (Open)
Jai sat at home, in his room, and looked down at the letters before him with a mixture of excitement and dread. Several of the schools he'd requested information from had written back, asking him to come and view their campuses this summer. Coast City University. Gotham University. Florida State and Loyola. University of Connecticut , Star City University and Butler. All of them wanted to meet him.

Then, he looks over the at the first line of the letter that came for him this morning.

...You have been selected to attend the Ellison Student Journalism Youth Forum in London, England from July 11th-July 15th, with Keynote Speaker, Lois Lane....

Jai was excited to go, if for no other reason than wanting to get away from everything around him for awhile. He wasn't Kid Flash anymore, and he wasn't a member of the Justice League. Both of those were his choice, but neither of them made him feel better. And worse, he still thought about Traya all the time.

"Yeah, I really need to get away." he says, to no one in particular, rising from his bed and changing clothes. He tells his mother he'll be back and later and he's gone before she responds.

Three minutes later, he's in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, skipping rocks in the water along the beach. It's soothing enough that he might get a few minutes of peace.

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dareyoutorun
2011-04-21 06:44 am UTC (link)

Oh crap.

He couldn't imagine what Keith was going through. How do you live with the fact that your brother is not only a killer, but took the blame for something you did? Jai asks himself if he would do the same for Iris, if she killed someone and called him for help.

Yes, he would, without hesitation.

"He's your brother? Which side of your family? Wait...that's not really important." Jai says, still trying to get his brain around this. This was a game-changer.

"You said your family doesn't know. If you don't tell them, and this comes out some other way, how do you think they'll feel?" he asks.

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	sonic_arrow 2011-04-21 05:36 pm UTC (link)
	"I'm not sure," Keith said. "I just don't want Merlyn getting caught up in a family mess. He did a lot more for me than just cover something up. He saved my life, too. Despite him being Merlyn, he is a really cool guy. It's not his fault he was raised to be a certain way. Lian could have ended up the same way, if her mom had raised her." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	dareyoutorun 2011-04-22 03:15 am UTC (link)
	Jai nods, listening to Keith talk. It was obvious he cared about his brother's well-being as well as that of his family. Asking a man to balance one against the other usually mean that both would suffer. "Did he really kill that politician, Keith? If he did...was that to help you, too?" Jai asks. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	dc_misc 2011-04-22 03:15 am UTC (link)
	There is a knock at Keith's door. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sonic_arrow 2011-04-22 05:09 am UTC (link)
	Keith opened his mouth to reply to Jai, but was interrupted by the knock on the door. Who could that have been? Dad was out at a meeting, and Mom was tending to her shop. Sin was... somewhere. "Hold on, Jai," Keith said, going to the door. He opened the door to see who was there. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	dc_misc 2011-04-23 12:52 am UTC (link)
	There is a UPS delivery guy at the door with a box under his arm. "Package for Keith Queen." the man says, holding out an electronic clipboard. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sonic_arrow 2011-04-23 10:40 pm UTC (link)
	"...uh, that's me." Keith signed the clipboard and received the package. "Thanks..." He tried looking to see who this was from. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	dc_misc 2011-04-23 10:47 pm UTC (link)
	The delivery man thanks Keith and leaves. The card is a simple affair with a black embossed "A". The box is fairly light, but there is a dull rattle inside, indicating that the box is not empty. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sonic_arrow 2011-04-23 10:55 pm UTC (link)
	Keith walked back over to Jai with the box in his hands. "Looks like I got mail," he said. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	dareyoutorun 2011-04-23 11:20 pm UTC (link)
	Jai smirks. "Marissa sending you a new watch for your collection or something?" he asks. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sonic_arrow 2011-04-23 11:25 pm UTC (link)
	Keith smirked back, happy to be talking about something positive. "Nah, I don't think so," he replied. "This doesn't have a name on it, so I don't know who it's from. She likes to be really direct." Which was totally sexy. "Can't say for sure what's in this." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	dareyoutorun 2011-04-24 12:01 am UTC (link)
	"Well, if you want to open it, don't let me stop you." Jai says. "Otherwise, I'll get the movie set up while you take a look." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sonic_arrow 2011-04-24 12:43 am UTC (link)
	"That'll do, pig. That'll do." Keith is trying to keep the mood lighthearted and happy. And while he does that, he carefully opens the package to see what's inside. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	dareyoutorun 2011-04-24 01:32 am UTC (link)
	Jai waits to see what's in the box. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

nextgen_misc
2011-04-24 01:46 am UTC (link)

Inside the box, Keith finds an object wrapped in a small, black silk cloth. When he unwraps it, he finds a green arrow, with blood on the arrowhead.

Inside the box, there's a note.

Dearest Keith,

I regret not being able to deliver this gift in person, but I hope it finds you and Marissa in great spirits. Do you recognize this arrow? I'm sure you do. It's the one you put between my eyes that night, a few months ago. I remember the rage in your eyes, the fury as you drew and fired. I couldn't have stopped you if I wanted to. You knew /exactly/ what you were doing, you knew the consequences and you still took the shot.

I admire that more than you'll ever know, because now you understand how /I/ feel when I kill someone. You understand what it is to have power over life and death. You understand what it is to be God.

I hope you won't let all this poor press keep you from doing what you do best, Green Arrow, because I can't wait to see more of your work...and I can't wait for you to see more of mine.

We're bonded by blood now, Keith. Mine is on your hands, and we'll always have Gotham. I just wanted to return your trophy to you. You earned it. :)

Signed,

A

P.S.- No hard feelings about that whole trying-to-kill-your-girlfriend-and-killing-your-sister thing, right?

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sonic_arrow
2011-04-25 05:18 am UTC (link)

All of the color drained from Keith's face, and he found himself turning the box away from Jai's line of sight. It was purely reactive. He'd told Jai about the situation already, but seeing the arrow that Keith actually used to kill the man was a different story. And... the guy was alive? There was a mix of emotions that Keith was feeling, and he was suddenly remembering why he had shot that bastard in the first place.

He almost wants to kill the guy again, if this really is him.

After reading the note in full, Keith's anger boils over, and he chucks the box in its entirety at the wall.

"What the fuck?!"

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dareyoutorun
2011-04-25 05:23 am UTC (link)

Jai is across the room and catching the box and arrow before it hits. He looks at the arrow and the expression on Keith's face. He's not certain of what just happened, but he thinks he knows.

Jai reads the letter, to be sure, and his face also goes a little pale.

"This...this is just sick, man. Damn. We should realized that when everyone came back, it didn't just mean the good guys." Jai says, putting the box down.

"Keith...you can't let this guy psych you out. That's what he's trying to do, by doing this. If you hadn't been here, your dad might have gotten this, or your mom. This guy is screwing with you.

You've got to take away his ammo before he can try again." Jai tells him.

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sonic_arrow
2011-04-27 04:16 am UTC (link)

"I need to know if this is really him," Keith said. He turned around, not really talking directly to Jai. It was more like he was talking, and Jai could hear what he was saying. Keith wasn't really sure how to act any other way. This wasn't supposed to be like this.

Then he turned around to face Jai directly.

"You can't tell anybody," he said. "Just... please, Jai. Don't tell anybody."

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	dareyoutorun 2011-04-27 04:20 am UTC (link)
	"Okay, I won't say anything, man. But I have to ask...what are you going to do? You said you had to know if it was really him." Jai says, looking at Keith with some concern, almost as if he's about to start trying to calm Keith down. "How do you plan to do that?" he asks. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	sonic_arrow 2011-04-27 04:26 am UTC (link)
	"Do you think you could follow that guy that delivered the package for awhile?" Keith asked. "He couldn't have gotten too far away by now, and he might have some off-hand information lying around in his truck, or maybe his office." (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

	dareyoutorun 2011-04-27 04:29 am UTC (link)
	"Yeah, I can do that. Just don't do anything crazy in the meantime. I just need to know how many UPS stations are in Star City. It'll help narrow down where I need to look." Jai says. In one heartbeat, he's at Keith's computer. The next, he's already running a search for UPS stations in Star City. Three seconds later, he's out the door, looking for the truck. (Reply to this)(Parent)(Thread)

sonic_arrow
2011-04-27 04:44 am UTC (link)

When Keith is sure Jai is gone, he starts moving. He went into his parents' room and broke the lock on the dresser drawer that his dad kept Keith's Green Arrow outfit and gear. All that got tucked away in a bag, except for the bow and a few trick arrows. Then he went to his room, grabbed his wallet and made sure there was at least a couple hundred dollars cash in it.

The last thing he grabbed was Robin Hood Bear. He needed something to keep his family's hopes up.

Next thing anybody knew, a couple of propane tanks exploded at Keith's house, lighting it on fire. Keith was long gone by the time the timer went off on his bomb. There were a few of his teeth and some raw meat left close to the propane tanks before the explosion. That was meant to throw people off just for a little while.

Until then, though, he made sure to disappear. There were only three people he wanted to make contact with. He just hoped Jai hadn't returned too fast to catch the explosion. Keith had tried to be very quick about it.

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dareyoutorun
2011-04-27 04:53 am UTC (link)

There were about five or six UPS trucks within a 3 block radius of Keith's place that Jai could see. He stopped at the first one, at a Chipotle restaurant. He walked inside and looked around anyone wearing a UPS uniform.

It was then that Jai realized that he didn't ask Keith what the guy looked like. No problem, though. He could go ask and be back before this guy left.

KA-BOOM!

Jai, as well as everyone else heard the noise, and raced back outside, deciding that he could find out what just happened before he asked this guy if he was the one who delivered Keith's package.

Jai dashes in the direction of the explosion, noting now that several cars have stopped and converged...just outside of Keith's building. Jai starts counting floors. The fire is coming from Keith's floor.

"No. NO. NO!" Jai heads into the building as people are heading out and prays that Keith did not just get taken out by some psychopath while he was gone.

By the time the fire crews arrive, however, it's practically a lost cause. Jai can't believe what just happened here. How could he have been so /stupid/?

How could he leave his friend to die?

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