Chloe

AlMiles have been trying to kill off Chloe since Season One. Failing that, since she has so many fans, they're now trying to push her aside by rewriting their boring pancake-makeup fantasy-cheerleader into the smartest and most perfect girl ever (and replacing Chloe with their latest curly-blond-cheerleader type -- ugh, I hope the actress paying Claire on Heroes SUES them for giving curly-haired-blond cheerleaders a bad name), and downgrade Chloe to orbiting Blana and Clairol-a like everyone else. Which is enough to make anyone except the pimple-faced pre-teens puke. So I'm going to take Chloe away from them, before they can pull another idiot stunt. (Jail? Migawd. Allison, demand superpowers and kick the crap out of everyone for your exit line.)

They may own the rights to Chloe, but I own Special Operations, and Baron John gets first pick.

"I want Chloe Sullivan," head field agent Lake told her (nominal) boss.

The centuries-old Baron gave due consideration to Lake's statement. He harbored no illusions about her ability to take whatever she wanted. Lake was a small, pale, inoffensive-looking woman, highly trained in spy-craft, experienced at blending in, accustomed to manipulating lightly.

She was also the deadliest weapon in his arsenal of last-ditch desperation against the potential world destroyers. Born with violently lethal psycho-telekinetic power, spending a childhood without parents -- for the most part on the streets -- had taught her to have absolutely no reluctance to use it. She did not make demands lightly.

"You, and half the rest of the planet," he said finally. "Oracle wants her as backup, and not just because of her computer skills. Wayne has already set up a cover position for her at the Gotham Gazette. Stargate Command wants her, of course, but that's probably her mother's personal idea -- Hammond swore on his latest grand-daughter that he wouldn't tell Carter, much less O'Neill, that her talent had manifested. If he had, I'd have had to bring both of them inside S.O. anyway. Hopefully Carter just believes that knowing about Krypton would give her a head start on offworld missions.

"The BBC and Al Jazeera both want her as a foreign correspondent, no surprise there, especially after we recommended her for Rhodes. LexCorp, unfortunately, did find out that she'd graduated to operational psi, and of course wants to study her, although at least they have no idea of her full potential. I sent Myriam after THOSE records." Miriam was also psycho-telekinetic, nowhere near Lake's level of power, but with a talent for making machines obey. "And after she tracked down Kyle, of course about a hundred politicians want her on their staff, without even knowing about Kyle. Thankfully, none of them know about her power, or she wouldn't be safe even with us guarding her.

"About the only people who haven't come begging us for her is Project Quantum Leap, and that's only because Tina would probably beat Calavicci to a pulp if he brought in another good-looking computer hacker."

"The point is," Lake said reasonably, "that her mutation HAS activated. She's a healer, and she HAS used her full power now. We're the only ones who understand that kind of capability, and who can train her. If anyone else gets control of her... And she could go flat insane from not knowing how to handle the input. Or she could die from trying to do too much. Cyrus nearly did, and he's far stronger than she is. He's been using his power for decades."

"Apples and oranges. Cyrus is also empathic. As for power, Bill's never brought anyone back from beyond dead."

"And it nearly killed her. She's empathic in a different way, like that Gem on original Star Trek. She has to absorb the injuries using her own life force. She can heal herself instinctively, but she doesn't know how to control it. Imagine if she ever tried to heal Kal-El."

"Cyrus has."

"AFTER he was trained."

Baron John regarded his pale killer for another minute. She did not shift or fidget under his gaze. The two of them were in accord about almost everything in the first place, anyway. Priorities were his forte. Operations were hers.

"Is Nicole free?" he said finally. "She's met the two of you before, she might be easier to persuade if you don't just sneak up on her."

"John." Lake sounded hurt. It was a testament to her acting ability. He couldn't actually have fazed her if he'd accused her of stealing the torch from the Statue of Liberty. "I was planning to enlist Kal-El's help anyway."

"Oh, lordy," John muttered. "NOW you've gone and complicated matters."

"How is that? She already knows about Clark's capabilities."

"Thanks to Wynter frying government computer records, and Kurt frying the spysats that catch him carrying tractors around, however, Idiotland Stupidity still doesn't. But they do have Chloe under surveillance. Reappearing after you've been killed twice tends to show up on even 'national ID' political idiocy. Any approach to her that involves Kal-El will put him on the radar too, unless you can convince him to be very careful."

Lake had not been speechless since she was ten. The idea of convincing Clark to be careful set a new record.