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CONTENTS:
1.
After
- Starring Metron and Darkseid by Curt Fernlund
2.
Moving - Starring Superboy and the Kents by Alex Hayden
3.
Discussion - Starring The Wizard
and... by
Curt
Fernlund
4.
Reform - Starring the Freedom
Fighters by Alex Hayden
5.
Expectation - Starring Aquaman by
Mark Anderson
6.
Rebirth - Starring Steel II &
III by Alex Hayden
7. Evolution
- Starring Lar Gand by Steve Crosby
8.
Kindle - Starring Jordan Scott by Alex Hayden
9.
Fall Out - Starring Birds of Prey
by Matt Hrubey
10.
Visitations - Starring Star-Spangled Kid and Impulse by Alex Hayden
11.
Legacy - Starring Lex Luthor by Mick Edwards
12.
Aftershock - Starring Wonder Woman by Matt
Hrubey
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AFTERMATH:
#2-
August,
Year 4
|
by
Various
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1.
After
The
WALL
Metron shifted in his Mobius Chair,
leaning to his
left and propping
his chin upon the knuckles of his hand. He stared at the
great
barrier
that stretched towards Infinity, in every direction, watching as the
surface rippled and bubbled ever so slightly, over time. A
less
patient man would never have noted any change, they were so minute and
far between, like watching the hands of a clock move slowly in their
circular path. But if anything, Metron was patient.
He had
eternity
once again, to wait and observe and contemplate. It was his
passion.
He noted that the predatory creatures
that lived
upon the Wall had
returned, though their numbers were greatly reduced. Like the
great
herds of Buffalo that had once roamed the Earthen planes of the
northern continent America, he had oft seen them swarming in black mass
across the face of the edifice; growing in number as they moved, eating
anything in their path, surviving in general. Where once
there
were
thousands in a swarm however, now there were perhaps dozens, if
that.
Those primal entities had suffered much in the Negative Waves and
Chronal Storms that had driven them from their natural home and habitat
and into the realms of Man. And Man of course kills what he
fears
or
does not comprehend.
He willed the chair onward, skimming
lightly over
the surface of the
Wall so as not to disturb the poor, dumb brutes. He sped
along,
avoiding the beams of light that blazed from the wide eyes of those
trapped within, forever staring towards…
What?
He had never been able to discern beyond
that they
were staring oddly
at themselves, stretched far and beyond reason in a queer Mobius Strip
towards the Wall again on the far side of infinity. It was
perplexing
at least. Almost annoying if he ever allowed his emotions to
attain
such a peak. But he was patient, and it was his lot in life
to
observe, and to contemplate, and hypothesize, and eventually, hopefully
find the truth to the answers, which he sought.
He paused in his flight, staring at one
spot between
the Promethean
Giants that not only lined but also made up the Great Wall at the End
of Reality. They were gods of a sort, or had been once long
ago.
Beings at least from a time upon time that had been driven over
countless realities and eons to breach the Wall and to learn what lay
beyond, as did he. Were they of a braver mettle?
Perhaps,
for where
Metron had yet to dare to pass beyond the barrier, these poor entities
had given their all in the effort, and paid for it with their eternal
souls. Now grafted to the Wall, merged with that edifice
forever
they
remained splayed and staring towards eternity, their wild eyes blazing
energy from the other side- energy that defied analysis, which was once
again, annoying.
It was not the calcified remains of the
Giants
however, which gave
Metron pause, but rather one of those recently filled
vacancies.
Not
so long ago the spot that he considered had been a fracture in the Wall
where strange negative energy bubbled through in the form of crimson
storm clouds and blackened lightning. The Predators had been
in
frenzy
then, and the Wall itself had trembled for a time.
The universes had been close to
collision he had
deemed. Various
elements had played on the structure of Reality itself. The
Time
Stream had raged in a rushing course of floodtide. The Speed
Force had
been in flux and the entire universe had paused as a thread of the
Grand Design had been plucked and severed. It was
Destiny’s
Gambit of
course.
That First of the Endless had plucked a
moment of
Time from the stream,
like a grain of sand from the riverbed. Still, it was enough
and
that
seemingly simple act of good faith and hope had set the known world on
edge all this time. He was quite mad of course, whatever he
had
seen
and learned pushing him beyond his limits to think that his actions
would not disrupt everything. But, he had been dealt with,
eventually,
and now there were only the ramifications of his actions to set
straight.
Case in point; Metron stared at the
image of
Darkseid set once more
into the face of the Wall. Not so long ago the spot had been
a
fissure
spewing energy, then a place sealed yet blank. Now the Dark
Lord
of
Apokolips had returned to his place in the Wall. Metron knew
though
that there were yet two places still vacant, though the Wall was
healed. To more Giants tread the stars…
“It is depressing.”
Metron’s eyes widened at the
sound of the
cold, deep voice. He almost
jumped, turning quickly to see that gray and brooding form that he knew
so well.
“Darkseid?” It was impossible.
“You seem surprised to see me
Metron,”
Darkseid said with a low
chuckle. “I am hurt, observer.”
The Dark Lord
looked to the Wall, and
his image splayed there caught in silent scream.
“Did you think that
I? I am hurt.
That is but a pale shade of the
true glory, New God. Hardly worth my effort in the end,
defeated
by
the Kryptonian and the Daxamite, with a bit of Divine
Intervention.
That such as he set Reality in turmoil is beyond my
comprehension. He
was a coward in the end. A COWARD!”
“I… do not
recall… It
is…”
“And there is the
travesty,” Darkseid
grinned, stepping beside the
chair and running a finger along the top. He rubbed his
fingers,
frowning at whatever he had found there. “You, the
seeker
of truth
were left out of that admittedly inspired scheme, though stolen and
twisted from another’s dreams. That
one…”
Darkseid said, pointing at
his image trapped within the Wall, “He vied for the Ultimate
Power, and
achieved it, to a point. He found the answer to HIS
questions,
and
acquired the Anti-Life Equation through promises that he was not able
to fulfill. He was weak in the end, and Death in her many
guises
deserted him to his final fate, thus.
“His own Equation might have
worked in his own
realm, you see? But the
laws of reality are such that they would not allow his success
here.
That is for me. He recreated Reality for his answers,
granting
Death
from beyond a foothold here with renewed souls to steal. Our
own
entities were naturally annoyed at this and worked against
him.
He
failed, and paid that ultimate price.”
“But
you…” Metron started,
actually confused. What had he missed?
“I was freed. My own
servants did their
job, calling me back. But
too, I was weak and unobservant, apparently, or this travesty would not
have come to pass. I was awakened into Destiny’s
madness,
and too
depleted to realize. I spent a millenium in recovery,
contemplating as
the world beyond shattered and reformed in shadow. It took a
child to
point me towards the light. But now, I have
returned.”
Metron pinched the bridge of his nose,
trying to
fathom all that he had
heard. He had missed much apparently, and he knew that in
these
things
at least, Darkseid did not lie. There was mystery and fable
to
discover then, fable perhaps, and answers to be found.
“What now, Dark One?
If Reality has been
set straight again, then what is there for you?
“I? I shall
consider, traveler. I
shall contemplate that other, and
how to best exploit his failed efforts. No doubt somewhere
within
his
madness, I shall find method. Too, I have a world to rebuild,
and
authority to reestablish. My Elite I fear, has
strayed.”
“I trust you shall keep me
informed?”
“We shall see, observer, just
what the future
brings.”
Metron watched as the image of Darkseid, Lord of Apokolips slowly paled
and faded finally from view. He was left alone again, in the
silence
and the cold of the void. He turned…
Metron shifted in his Mobius Chair,
leaning to his
right and propping his chin upon the knuckles of his hand. He
watched…
Such was his lot.
2.
Moving
Smallville,
Kansas
A small General Store on
the
outskirts of town...
“So what do you
think?” Martha asked as
she showed the inside of the store to Jonothan and Connor.
“Gene
McKregar decided out of the blue to up root and move to Florida and
retire.”
“I think that if you get this
place you should
get insured and then torch the place so you can collect on the
insurance,” Connor replied as he looked the placed over for a
moment and noticed the place needed a lot of fixing up.
“Connor,” Jonathan
said popping Connor
in the chest with the back of his hand. “Be nice. Martha are
you
sure you want to go through with this?”
“Oh yes, Jonathan,”
Martha replied with
wide eyes and a giant smile. “I think this would be a good
investment for us. I can hire a couple helpers to help with running the
place and maybe during the week after school Connor could help
out.”
“But what about....”
Connor was about to
say when he was cut off by Jonathan.
“He’ll do
it.”
“But…”
“You will won’t you
son?”
“But...but....”
“Won’t
you?”
“All right,” Connor
said in a defeated
tone of voice. “But I want a raise in my weekly
allowance.”
“How about the raise you get
comes from the
work you do here?” Jonathan asked. “You could use
it when
you go away on your weekend trips to see your friends.”
Thinking it over for a minute Connor
nodded his head
in agreement. “Deal. Besides with my powers I can get most
the
work done in no time at all.”
“No powers,
Connor,” Martha said
in response to Connor’s comment about using his powers.
“What about just when no one
is around?”
Connor asked as everyone walked outside and stood in front of the store.
“Well think about
it,” Martha replied.
“So what do you think Jonathan?”
“I think we’ll be
signin’ that
lease for the store in the morning,” Jonathan replied placing
his
arm around Martha’s shoulders. “So what are you
going to
call this place?”
“I think I’m going
to call it ‘The
Kent Family General Store’,” Martha replied putting
her arm
around Connor’s waist and pulling him into the family hug.
Connor put his arm around
Martha’s shoulders
and smiled as they all looked at the future business venture of the
Kent family. For the first time in a long time Connor Kent began to
feel like part of a real family, but somewhere deep down he knew that
something evil was looming on the horizon.
To
be continued in Superboy...
3.
Discussion
San
Francisco
“Well, gentlemen?”
Zard leaned back in his chair with a
conceited smirk
as he watched the five shadowy images being projected from the Eras
Crystal. The facets on the smoky stone were flawed and
scratched
a bit with age, so the images flickered a bit, but even in the darkness
it did not take too much imagination to recognize the silhouettes of
the men on the receiving end. He waited patiently as the
figures
shifted, tapping a cigarette on the edge of his desk before sparking it
to life with the slightest spell.
“An interesting idea,
Zard. Though I
hazard to guess that it has been tried before.”
“Undoubtedly,” Zard
agreed, nodding at
the smooth silhouette as he drew on the butt of his cigarette and sent
smoky rings floating lazily at the shimmering projection.
“But hardly on so grand a scale. And of course, my
goals
are different.”
“Revenge, Wizard?”
Zard smirked at the image that was
speaking.
It was the weakest of the five, the distance of projection the
greatest, and of course the man on the far side had taken steps of his
own against intervention. He was not considered one of the
world’s most dangerous men by being foolish.
“Revenge, yes,” Zard
acceded with a
nod. “Eventually of course, and especially against
the
Justice Society. But that is for later, and long
term. My
more immediate goals are of course geared towards power. We
are
none of us so different in that, I think.”
“I’m in it for the
money, bottom
line.”
The single eye of the third sparkled in
the
image’s flickering light. The assassin did not have
his
mask on by the look, surprisingly, and where ever he was located, he
appeared to have just risen from bed by the jut and wave of his hair.
“You say that as though you
have not been
compensated, my friend. Have I any outstanding
debts?”
“No,” the man said,
and Zard saw a flare
of light as he too lit a cigarette. “Which is why
I’m
here. You’ve dealt on the up and up, Wizard- so
far.
I’m willing to see what you have in mind.”
“You have in fact reassured us
all, I think,
of your overall abilities with your recent endeavors,” the
fourth
said with a deep, timbres voice. The man’s
silhouette was
the least recognizable of the three, though Zard of course knew exactly
the group that he was speaking with in detail. “You
have
managed to unify the underworld- at least somewhat- making it an
enterprising occupation once again. I have heard little but
praise filtering up from the lower orders to those that I actually
associate with. Your ‘Benefit Plans’ seem
to give
most of the underlings a bit of incentive.”
“It only stands to reason,
Mister Blakewell,
that the so-called heroes whom we contend with on such a regular, ad
infinitum basis, must have the resources to accommodate their injuries
and expenses. I believe that most of them manage on their own
for
the most part, but it stands to reason that the League must employ
doctors and some sort of cash flow for their more financially
challenged members; health benefits, room and board in the form of safe
houses if not their embassies, legal help when needed, et
cetera.
It seems only fair to me that we should receive the same, and with only
a bit of effort in the proper areas, it came to
pass.” Zard
shrugged, smiling as he stubbed out his cigarette.
“Which of course was why I
called you fine
gentleman, at least in part. I have fallen on good fortune of
late; however, my means are not without limits. And there are
far
too many of the lesser underlings for one man to coordinate with any
efficiency. I have gathered those about me in the know, so to
speak; gentlemen like the Calculator and my old ally the Thinker, both
of whom are rather adept with computers. That is a magic I am
regrettably unfamiliar with, though they are quite competent in their
abilities to coordinate and collate. I do however wish to
expand,
and the first that I thought of were you five gentlemen.
“I had it in mind to create-
in essence- a
corporate environment. Obviously I have done most of what I
have
through proper legal channels; with the Calculator’s help,
but in
the end I believe that it would behoove us all to be united in
this. With each of your approval, if not backing, the
underlings
would at the very least be of one mind and union. The
benefits of
my enterprise would of course extend to your employees, while they
would come under my society’s partial employee- free lance as
it
were. You five of course would be the Board of Directors,
along
with my second and myself. I feel that together we could
accomplish much in the long run.”
“My employees need no
additional aid,
Zard,” the bald shadow said. “My company
sees to the
utmost benefit of its employees.”
“Nor do mine,
Wizard. My
‘employees’ follow me through devotion, and I give
them all
they need.” Zard stared at the flickering image,
expecting
the weak link to disappear after a moment. After two, he was
pleased to see that it remained. The Demon’s Head
was
intrigued then.
“I have no
employees,” the one-eyed man
said, “but I’m willing to contribute. I
have to admit
that when I do hire mercenaries, if they do their job, I feel obligated
to helping them out if things turn sour. It’d be
nice to
have a little back up on that. Regular lawyers and doctors,
safe
houses… I’m in.”
Zard smiled, turning his attention then
to the other
four, waiting for response.
“I also,” Blakewell
said.
“Since my release from prison overseas, I’ve found
that
all, which I set in motion has crumbled. The underworld is
fickle
and always on the brink of war. Your unifying plans might be
that
final push needed to create a true and collective syndicate, for lack
of a better word. I will have my people go over the files
you’ve sent of course, but I see no problems at the moment,
Zard.”
Two…
The Wizard tapped out another cigarette
and lit it,
glancing between the final three, one of who had thus far remained
silent. He had known the fifth for decades, and he was always
a
wildcard, so he was probably waiting for at least a quorum, if not a
majority.
“All right, Zard,”
the bald silhouette
said. “I’m a bit… indisposed
at the moment,
but when I am able you will get your backing. I will have my
people call your people. When I’ve approved the
final
proposal, we’ll do lunch.”
“I look forward to
it.”
“I have no need of
this,” the
Demon’s Head said. “My people are my own,
and my
plans are far too beyond your fleeting minds and lives to fully
comprehend. I shall not join your consortium, however, I
shall
neither interfere. Do as you would Zard. Our paths
should
not cross, and none of your plans will be imperiled by any actions I
might take. I shall be observant though.”
“I would expect no
less,” Zard said with
a smirk. He expected at least one of them to decline, and
actually figured that it would be that arrogant ass, Ra’s Al
Ghul. No loss really, with what he had gained. The
Demon’s head had always been a bit over the top for his own
tastes anyway. He turned to the last image.
“And you old friend?”
Zard saw the silhouette nod.
The others would
as well, and he was certain that they could figure out just who the
fifth was, but none said anything. Honor amongst thieves
after
all.
“I thank you all,
gentlemen. Together I
believe we can achieve something that the ‘Heroes of the
World’ never could. I, or one of my staff will be
in touch
soon to hammer out the more minute details….”
The Demon’s Head and the bald
silhouette
winked out even before he had finished. Just as
well. The
assassin waited a bit longer…
“We should talk in private,
Zard, and
soon.”
“I will speak with all of you
in private
before too long. Be patient my friend.”
“Heh!
That’s my middle name,
Wizard.”
Zard turned to Blakewell’s
image.
“I look forward to our
association,
Wizard. It’s high time we all had the upper hand
for
once. I’ll be in touch.”
And then there was one. Zard
took a long drag
from his cigarette, watching that final silhouette as it shifted and
flickered in shadow. The image stared back, finally coming
into
focus.
“We need to talk,
Zard.”
“Oh I agree,” the
Wizard said with a
smile. “Indubitably…”
To
be continued in JSA, Outsiders and
Task Force X...
4.
Reform
The Blue Ridge Mountains
A secret recently
abandoned United States Military base near Front Royal, Virginia houses
one of the government’s newest secret agencies known as Section
One.
Here inside the War Room several
members of the inner council meet to discuss reforming one of
America’s most heroic teams.
“America needs its heroes, my
friends, and I
intend to give it to her,” a young woman in her late twenties
said looking at the people around the table. “I’ve
asked
the team’s leader to start picking the members of his team
right
away.”
“And who did he come up with
so far?” a
man in an expensive Armani suit asked as the doors to the room opened.
“I think I’ll let
him answer that
question, Maxwell,” the woman replied as an older man wearing
stars and stripes clothing and wearing a stove pipe hat walked into the
room. “Sam, thank you for coming.”
“I appreciate the
invitation, Miss
Carver,” the man known as Uncle Sam said as he removed his
hat
and took his place in front of a large view screen. “Most of
you
know who I am, some of you don’t. I’m a simple man
with a
mission and that mission is to protect this great country from people
who would do it harm. So I was asked to put this here team
together.”
“How long is it going to take
you to put the
whole team together Sam?” an older looking gentleman asked
taking
a drink of his tea.
“The team’s already
done, Mr.
Saunders,” Uncle Sam replied giving a nod towards the
entrance
door. “With a little help I’ve put together a team
of some
young heroes I think can step up and do this country proud.”
Walking through the door was a group
consisting of
three men and three women. First up was one of Sam’s oldest
and
closet friends, Roy Lincoln also known as the Human Bomb. Standing next
to him was the young hero, the Ray and next to him was the former
Outsider named Halo. Standing on the other side of Roy was an
African-American woman with blonde hair code named Thunder, and beside
her was the energy powerhouse Damage. Last but not least was the
fashion model and superhero, Vixen.
Walking over to the group the man known
as Uncle Sam
placed his hat back on and stood in the middle of his team.
“Ladies and gentlemen, I would
like to
introduce you to the Freedom Fighters!” Sam said proud of his
new
group.
“Now let’s make
America and Lady Liberty
proud of us people.”
To
be continued in Freedom Fighters...
5. Expectation
Alantis
Aquaman sat staring out at the city
awakening. The
bright light, bright for Atlantis anyway, came over the hills beyond
the city and shined down the main street, lighting the city as it
awakened from the darkness. Both the darkness of the Shark's brief
reign and the, forgotten, darkness of Darkseid's reality, were pushed
away by the rising sun of a new day.
He leaned forward resting his hands on
the banister
of the balcony of the Palace Royal. "Still mine for the time being," he
thought looking about. "Suppose I should surrender it to the government
as the home of whoever gets elected to the seat of First Citizen."
He rested his elbows on the banister and
interlaced
the fingers of his hands, resting his whisker-less chin on them.
"The world feels different today," he
murmured
He flexed one of his hands as an odd
tingling
sensation ran through it.
"Very true, my friend, very true," a
familiar voice
said from behind him.
"Vulko," Orin turned, "how are you
recovering from
your stay in the dungeons?"
The old, round man with the gray goatee
smiled. "I'm
better every day that I'm not in that hellhole. Whoever wins the
election, I hope one of the first orders of business is to be filling
those dank passages in and sealing them off from the rest of the
world," he said a shadow crossing his face.
"I agree," Orin responded.
A smile spread across Orin's face.
Standing behind
Vulko were Garth and Dolphin. "How are my favorite married couple?"
"We have news that we wanted to share in
person,"
Garth said shaking Arthur's hand. "Dolphin is..." He stopped and
started again. "We are..."
"We're having a baby," Dolphin
interjected into
Garth's next awkward pause, looking at her still new husband with love.
And all those people around the world
who knew the
grim-faced Aquaman, the member of the Justice League, the King of
Atlantis, would have been surprised at the man who beamed right them.
He gripped Garth in a bearhug, though being Atlanteans perhaps it was a
squid's hug. Then, he lifted Dolphin up and spun her around.
"That is great news. I'll make a
national holiday in
Atlantis in honor of the news," he said.
Vulko frowned.
And Orin laughed. "Old friend, until the
election, I
am still king," he said.
Vulko frown subsided as he bowed his
head to his
monarch. "As you desire, majesty. And I would point out that even after
this election you will always for the entirety of your life be
Atlantis's King in name if not in law," the Royal Advisor said.
"How far along? When should we expect
this addition
to the Royal Family?" Orin asked.
"Since we don't know much about my
physiology,"
Dolphin said, "the doctors can only guess, but they say the baby should
be born sometime in the early to middle summer."
The good news spread through Atlantis.
One more good
thing rising from the ashes of the destruction and darkness that had
swept Atlantis recently. The entire city and country walked with a
lighter step. The gravity of the world seemed less somehow.
They cleared the bricks from the
penultimate battle
between the Shark and Aquaman. They readied for the elections to come.
They turned their eyes to their King and the rising sun. They greeted
the new day dawning.
And all the while, Aquaman's hand
tingled lightly
from time to time…
To
be continued in Aquaman...
6.
Rebirth
Outside Metropolis
“Do you read me Uncle
John?” Natasha
asked as she soared through the skies in the new Steel III armor.
{{Loud and
clear, Nat,}} John Henry
Irons replied through the
helmet’s receiver. {{Read-outs
are clear across the board. Bio and Stress read-outs are normal. When
you’re ready Nat, begin the weapons test.}}
“You got it Uncle
John,” Natasha said as
she landed in a clearing with some large rocks.
“Let’s see
how the strength enhancements work out.”
Lifting a large rock that
weighed over a ton,
Natasha threw it into the air. “Testing the black light
lasers
now,” she said as she fired two black laser beams from her
armor’s gauntlets. The armor recorded the lasers cutting into
the
rock as it fell back to the ground.
{{Lasers
are running a little hot. We may need to adjust the energy output when
you get back. Try the mini bomb launchers Nat.}}
“You got it, Uncle
John.”
Finding a new target Natasha target
locked another
large bolder and launched a couple explosives. Once they impacted with
the stone they exploded and sent shards of stone in all directions.
“Explosives are
working fine. I’m
goin…” Natasha was suddenly cut off by an alarm
coming
from her helmet’s sensor arrays.
{{What is
it Natasha?}} John Henry
asked worriedly.
“I don’t know Uncle
John. Sensors are
picking up something coming in hot and fast,” Natasha said as
the
scanners picked up something falling through the air at an extremely
fast and heated speed. “I think it may be a meteor.”
Following the falling object Natasha
watched as it
came crashing down about forty feet from where she was standing. Taking
to the air she floated near the impact site and began to scan the area
for any signs of danger. When the scanners came up clean she landed and
was shocked to see something other then she thought she would.
“I don’t believe
it.”
{{What is it
Nat? Something’s interfering with the camera feed.}}
“It looks like a
man,” Natasha replied
as the smoke from the impact crater began to clear.
Focusing through the smoke, Natasha
could see an arm
clad in blue and black armor reaching out from the crater. Taking him
by the hand she pulled the body out of the hole.
“Uncle John, I think you may
want to get a Med
Unit ready,” Natasha said picking the man up into her arms.
Natasha looked at the scarab beetle emblem in the middle of the
man’s chest for a moment before taking off back to the
Amertek
testing facility.
To
be continued in Young Justice...
7.Evolution
Daxam
With a sudden start, Lar Gand awoke. He
floated
freely in zero
gravity, held in the warm embrace of the sleep-womb. The quick
resurgence of activity in Lar Gand’s mind and body
deactivated
the
sleep-womb’s features, and the bottom of the small enclosure
spiraled
open as Lar Gand dropped nearly ten feet. Lush blue carpet greeted Lar
Gand’s feet as he expertly landed, and powerful red sunlight
blasted
into his eyes. After a moment’s adjustment, Lar Gand could
see
his
surroundings and immediately recognized it as his home on Daxam.
Nothing about this seemed at all strange to Lar Gand, although he was
mildly troubled by something from his dream, just before he had awoken.
“So much white
light,” Lar Gand muttered.
A piercing, high-pitched note echoed
through the
apartment. A
message had arrived through the comm-systems, and it was a priority.
Quickly Lar Gand walked to the small intercom and monitor on the wall
and pressed a button below these. Immediately the voice of his brother,
Del Gand, could be heard.
“Lar! Lar, are you
there?”
The face of Del Gand appeared on the
monitor. He
appeared very shaken.
“Del, what is it?”
“Mom’s been hurt.
Something crashed near
us, and-”
Lar Gand had already released the button
and sped
away. Somehow, he
knew what had crashed onto Daxam, and what exactly was wrong with his
mother. Not suspected, Lar Gand knew,
and if he did not hurry then things would go horribly wrong again.
For the briefest of instants, Lar Gand
paused in
confusion. It
unsettled him to be so certain about what was going on. But with the
matter at hand he did not dwell on this. Nor did Lar Gand wonder at why
the large window looking out over the city was always open. It
couldn’t
have been because Lar Gand enjoyed the sights of square buildings of
the silence of efficiency. With only a thought for the time, Lar Gand
vaulted out the window, with arms spread wide to maintain balance as he
fell.
Everything ran with precision on Daxam.
The public
railway ran
under Lar Gand’s apartment at the exact same times every day,
just
before a turn. Timed perfectly, Lar Gand succeeded in landing on the
tail end while the head was making its turn, when the whole rail-car
was at its slowest. Quickly, Lar Gand went flat against the roof and
acquired a grip before the rail car could speed up. Even with minimum
resistance and this tight grip, Lar Gand barely managed to hang on long
enough until the rail car reached his destination. The city’s
rail
system went in a spiral pattern, and so when Lar Gand could see he was
at the city’s edge he let go and flew out unsupported into
the
open air.
Velocity carried Lar Gand over fifty
feet, well
clearing any
buildings and he was to land on bare natural ground. A short distance
away he could see the crash site, twisted metal half-buried in the
ground and already encased in a bubble. A few vehicles rested nearby,
with former occupants and others having formed a small crowd. Lar Gand
recognized many of the uniforms – health and safety officials
– and his
brother Del Gand was easy to spot. At seeing Lar Gand he took several
steps in the direction.
“Lar, I’m glad you
made it so-”
The brother was pushed aside along
with the others in Lar Gand’s way. At the edge of the crowd
he
made it
to her, his mother. She was lying face-up, still breathing but in long
and shallow bursts. Already her skin color was fading. Lar Gand
recognized the symptoms immediately and hoped there was time.
“Lead poisoning,” an
official tried to
explain to Lar Gand. “We got
to the crash as quickly as we could and isolated most of the particles,
but a few got to your mother.”
“You talk too much,”
Lar muttered as he
turned to address another
official. “You, keep quiet and get to a chemical lab as
quickly
as you
can.” He listed off the compounds he required, and handed
over
his
account. “I’ll pay. Just bring them here
immediately.”
Without question the official ran to her
vehicle and
set off. The
Gand name still carried some weight on Daxam. If Lar Gand’s
father had
not issued that warning, more Daxamites would have been deployed to the
leaden planet Earth to die. A scientist and explorer much like his
father had been, Lar Gand recalled that his requests were rarely ever
denied. If he had ever asked for a ship with which to leave Daxam, it
would have been provided.
As he waited for the materials, Lar Gand
knelt down
beside his
mother. “You’re going to be all right,”
he reassured
her. Gently he
placed a hand over her chest, identified where the heart was. She would
need to be injected there for immediately effect. Del Gand stepped
forward and grabbed his brother angrily.
“What do you think
you’re-”
Again, Lar Gand interrupted his brother
with force.
A single punch
to the face sent the younger Daxamite to the ground. When he got up, an
official took hold of him to prevent any retaliation. Not long after,
the woman returned from fulfilling Lar Gand’s errand. He
guessed
that
she’d called the facility ahead, met in the middle to cut
down
time,
and silently commended it.
“Thank you,” were
the only words he
said, however. Quickly and
silently, Lar Gand combined the compounds in a manner never before seen
and loaded the results into a syringe. His mother’s breathing
was
extremely faint. “Be strong, mom,” Lar Gand said
the
instant before he
jabbed the syringe into her chest and pressed down on the plunger.
Effects were immediate. Marisa Gand
arched her back
in reflexive
shock. A pained and shocked cry escaped her translucent lips. A slight
seizure was in effect, one that was not entirely unexpected. Lar Gand
had a hold on one of his mother’s arms, and had signaled an
official to
take the other. Soon this passed, and when he was certain that his
mother would suffer no ill effects from the injection itself, Lar Gand
yanked the syringe out of his mother’s chest. The plunger
hadn’t been
pressed down all the way. Half a dose of the serum still remained.
Officials rushed to tend to Marisa Gand.
Released,
Del Gand moved
towards his brother with malicious intent, but a backhand sent him back
to the ground. Lar Gand had neither the time nor the patience for
hysterical family. “Check her vitals,” he told the
medial
officials.
Scanners were run over Marisa
Gand’s body. All
the right sounds
came out of it. “She’s…she’s
better,”
was the incredulous response.
Eyes were raised towards Lar Gand. “You’ve cured
her.”
For the first time since he’d
awoken, Lar Gand
allowed himself the
luxury of a smile. “That wasn’t all I
did.” Arm
muscles flexed. The
needle was poised over the crook of the elbow. Somebody took a step
towards Lar Gand.
“No! Trace amounts will be on
that
needle!”
Yes, Lar Gand felt it immediately after
the pinch
and as the
plunger went all the way down. Lead and entered his bloodstream, and in
the seconds before the serum took effect it felt as though his entire
body was being leeched of its energy. That soon passed. More, however,
Lar Gand could feel the energy of the red sun fill him.
Yes, somehow he knew it, and it was
true. The serum
he’d just
created, not only did it counter the effects of lead poisoning, it
altered the body’s cells to absorb solar energy.
Effortlessly,
subconsciously, Lar Gand rose into the air.
“I have also given her the
sky.”
Something was wrong. Though Lar Gand had
just saved
his mother’s
life, and was overjoyed by it, in the back of his mind he could not
help that think that he had done the wrong thing. That nothing good
would come from his deeds.
To
be continued in Mon-El...
8.
Kindle
Gotham
City
He doesn’t
know how he got here, or why for that matter. He woke up in the gutter
with no memory of who he was, or where he came from. He’s sat
in
the alley for who knows how long now trying to figure things out. No
one has bothered him so far, at least until now...
“Yo man, why
don’tcha hand over your
money with out any trouble,” a street thug said as he and a
couple of his buddies approached the homeless young man. “Yo,
you
hear me dreg? I said hand over any money you got.”
“Go away,” the young
man said sitting in
the shadows.
“Man, you hear this crazy
loony toon?” a
large black man asked walking closer to the young man.
“Hey, Big Moe, why
don’t you teach him a
lesson in respect?” a short, white man said kicking the young
man’s foot.
Grabbing him by his tattered jacket, the
large black
man threw the young man through the air with ease. Using the momentum
the young man landed on the ground, rolled, and popped back up to his
feet.
“Big mistake,” the
young man said as
green flames appeared from his hands. The flame seemed to have some
sort of black ooze running and writhing through it almost like a lava
lamp of sorts.
The group before him became frightened
as the flame
seemed to come alive and move downward and then spread across the
ground. They tried to move but found they couldn’t as the
flame
covered their feet and made its way up their bodies. They tried and
wanted to scream but nothing escaped their lips as the young
man’s powers encased them in flames that did not burn them.
Within the flame, the black ooze-like substance began to move,
tightening around the thugs, almost like a boa constrictor. The ooze
suddenly tightened and constricted. Sounds of muffled screaming and
bones cracking could be heard coming from within.
“You should have walked away
when you had the
chance,” the young man said as he watched the field begin to
look
smaller than it should be.
Suddenly, the flame that had encased the
thugs began
to retreat back into the man’s hands. All three gang members
were
left standing, their bones splintered from head to toe, their mangled
faces a mask of pain and fear. Then like a group of puppets with their
strings cut, they all fell to the ground lifeless.
To
be continued...
9.
Fall
Out
Gotham
City
The white light died away…
Zatanna looked around her surroundings,
recognizing
the setting as her apartment. She didn’t know what
had just
happened to her. It was unexplainable. It felt like
she had
been taken some place else before once again being deposited in her
home. She could vaguely recall a wicked vision of herself.
It stunk of death!
That’s when the memories came
back. The
past few months hit her like a train, playing out before her
eyes. The white light forgotten, Zatanna remembered taking
the
Ruby of Revival and becoming one with it. It was the tool
that
she had been waiting for. Being in the company of Doctor Fate
and
others, including the Scarlet Witch from that other world, had made
Zatanna feel inferior in her skills. She had been seeking a
way
to increase her magicks to the point that she was the greatest mage on
the planet.
And now her wish had come true!
She had had everything she wanted when
the Black
Canary came to see her. They had met in this apartment, in
the
same spot that she was standing now. Dinah had tried to steal
the
power for herself. She was jealous! The battle had
been
swift, ending when Dinah trapped in the power that the ruby had
rewarded to Zatanna. She was beaten. She
was—
Zatanna looked down and her look of
triumph
vanished. At her feet, Dinah Laurel Lance was laying, turned
over
on her side. It was fairly obvious that the blonde bombshell
was
not breathing. Her skin had taken on a bluish tint.
Zatanna
fell to her knees, feeling along the supple throat of Dinah Lance for
anything that would resemble a pulse.
Nothing.
A gasp escaped the lips of a
sorceress—
The Black Canary was dead!
To
be continued in Birds of Prey...
10.Visitations
Keystone
City
The house of Jay
and Joan Garrick has become home to another member of the Flash Family
in the form of Bart Allen. After the disappearance of his former mentor
Max Mercury, Bart was adopted by Jay and Joan. Over the months since
the original team of Young Justice was disbanded Bart has had plenty of
time to think about how his life has been turning out since coming to
this era.
Today he is being
paid a visit by an old friend he hasn’t seen in a while. As
he
does a multitude of things he still finds time to have a conversation
with Courtney Whitmore better known as the Star Spangled Kid…
“So what did you want to talk
about
Courtney?” Bart asked as he finished typing up a history
paper on
his computer.
“I came to see...”
Bart zipped out of the room and then
back in less
then a second with a couple sodas for him and Courtney.
“Drink?” he asks handing her the soda.
“Sure,” Courtney
replied taking the
soda. After popping the top she continued where she left off.
“As
I was saying I came to see how you were doing? I heard about Max
disappearing and you coming here to live. So you know, I wanted to
check up on you.”
“Max has joined the Speed
Force,” Bart
replied as he ran around the room doing numerous things. “No
one
knows what happened to him besides Wally, Jay, and myself. When he left
Jay and Joan took me in on Wally’s behalf. Now why
don’t
you get on to what you really came here about?”
“Okay, bottom line is I want
you to come back
to Young Justice,” Courtney said looking at Bart with a
serious
look on her face.
“Courtney that song has been
played and the
band retired,” Bart commented. “The team went their
separate ways months ago, Courtney. When that happened, Young Justice
became just another memory.”
“Maybe you’re right,
Bart, but we
can’t let that stop us from doing what we know is
right,”
Courtney said taking a seat on the edge of Bart’s bed.
“We
were just a bunch of kids getting together and having fun. We never had
any direction what so ever.”
“And that’s changed
how?”
“I was approached with an
offer of reforming
the team. This time we’ll have a purpose. We’ll be
funded,
and make the name Young Justice mean something other then a bunch of
kids wasting their time.”
“What about Robin, Superboy,
and
Secret?” Bart asked as he speed read through his biology book.
“No one can find Secret right
now. Robin has
become more distant since the whole thing with Batman went down, and
Superboy said he would be there when we needed him, but for now he is
still trying to adjust to his new life,” Courtney explained.
“So right now it’s just you and me
partner.”
“So what are we going to do?
Build the team up
from scratch?”
“If we have to,”
Courtney replied
standing up. “So what do you say?”
“I say…”
Bart began as he
disappeared in a blur and then reappeared back in his Impulse costume.
“Let’s get
started.”
To
be continued in Young Justice...
11.
Legacy
Metropolis
Blackgate Prison...
As the door to his cell opened, Hope and Mercy greeted him with a
change of apparel.
"You two ladies," Luthor said as he took their hands, "take good of
care of me. Now, give me a report on how my company is doing."
"Everything is going exactly as you predicted, Mister Luthor."
"Uh huh, I knew those fools in Midway Investments would cave in. How
are the operations in Lexburg proceeding?"
"Everything is operational and your expected guest moved in not too
long ago. Just like you expected"
Luthor smiled as he stuck a Cuban cigar in his mouth. "And this
ladies, is why the Bat, that League of costumed clowns, and the alien
will never take me down. My mind is constantly thinking twenty steps
ahead of them. Let us take our leave of this place as it reeks of
unwashed and impoverished trash."
To be
continued in Superman: Legacy...
12.
Aftershock
Themyscira
The iron
gates
beneath the island opened once more. They creaked,
throwing dust into the air. The groaning sounded like a
foghorn
in the
steady silence that had fallen over Paradise Island. The
shift
from
the lights of Olympus to the darkness of underground caused Diana to
pause momentarily to adjust her vision.
Hestia had been
very vague refusing to say what her apology had
been for. She would not reveal vital details and for that
Diana
had
become nervous. The princess had gotten away with a simple
“we’re just
trying to lessen the shock. We’re sorry.”
Traveling up the
pathway to the light, Diana knew immediately that
something was wrong. She could see large plumes of smoke
rising
off
the island, heading out to sea. Taking to the sky, Diana flew
upward
as fast as possible.
The sight that
greeted her brought tears to her eyes. Everywhere
she looked, the architecture of the island had been destroyed, broken
to pieces that littered the ground. Bodies graced the ground
and
there
seemed to be a carpet of red flowing through the royal city.
Closer
inspection revealed the red to be the blood of the Amazons that had
been slain inside their homeland.
Diana moved
quickly through the city, heading immediately for the
palace. Her heart broke for all her sisters, but there was
only
one
person on her mind—
Hippolyta, the
Amazon Queen.
Diana’s
mother…
It didn’t
take much effort to find Hippolyta. She was lying face
down on the stairs of the Royal Plaza surrounded on all sides by the
denizens of Themyscira. Diana took her mother in her arms and
turned
her over so they were face to face.
There was no
pulse. There was no air streaming in and out of her body.
The Queen’s
skin was cold to the touch.
Hippolyta was
dead.
Diana looked
upward toward the sky, tears streaming down her face—
“WHAT HAPPENED
HERE?!”
To be continued in Wonder Woman...
Next
Issue: These stories and
more continue at JLU:
2001 in all the titles...
Stay tuned...
Curt F
EIC
JLU: 2001
Send
Reviews, Comments, and Other Mail to Curtis
Fernlund
Story © 2006 Curt
Fernlund and may not be reproduced without permission.
