All around her, the death was about the field.  Friends, allies, loved ones, enemies.  All were united in a single defeat at the hands of something far more evil.  They were all gone, except for her somehow.  She was not in the river, yet felt wet as if she had been there.  Her name is Guinevere Camille-Pendragon.  She is the lone survivor of the doomed realm of Camelot.

Amidst the destruction and death, Guinevere remembers two faces.  One face that was pure evil.  A face uncaring.  A face of fair skin like her own, but with short black hair and what two her were bizarre red, maddening eyes.  Then there was the other face.  Her skin was the water.  Her smile was nurturing.  Her embrace was comforting.

She can feel the water calling to her.   There is hope and escape from all of this.  There is a place where others may help her.  There is nothing here, but death.  She sees the sword of her slain husband as she gets to her feet.  She is tired to weep as she picks the sword up.  She feels a sense of power.  She feels a sense of responsibility.  She feels Excalibur in her hands.  She feels the water calling to her.  The Lady of the Lake awaits her in the river.  It may be Guinevere’s only hope for survival.

In The Black

LexCorp, Metropolis.

She is Emily Jane, a proud employee for Lex Luthor.  Like her new colleague, Joan Stanley she is part of the research and development team.  She designs blueprints for others to follow.  At the moment, she is on her lunch break.  She texts from her cellphone from a café near work.

“WHAT’S THE LATEST”

Emily waits for a response.  Moments later, she receives one.

“SQ.”

Emily knows the “SQ” as short for “status quo.”  A lot has been happening lately and she knows at some point, she is going to wind up being utilized.  She just does not know how.

Elsewhere.

The checks her text messager and types in “SQ” before putting the item away.  She knows that is all that needs to be said for now.  She is the Lady In Black and even with the black mask covering much of her face, a look of concern in her eyes would still be noticeable for anyone else in the room.  She quietly opens a bedroom door and sees Sally Norris asleep on a bed.  She is covering and clutching her sleeping daughter, Sara Lou.

A soft knock is heard on the door, but it is in a specific rhythm.  She reads it as Morse Code for “L.I.B.”  The Lady In Black looks up at one of the monitors and sees two females, one adult and one anxious adolescent.  She has been expecting them.