The World's Greatest Superheroes..... IF I COULD TURN BACK TIME
JLA #21 - October, Year 2	by Curt Fernlund

 

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Plastic Man

The Fortress of Solitude

89°S- The Ellis Mountain Range, Antarctica:
2:47 p.m. EST

He stared at the huge metallic fist in wonder as it slammed into the side of the Man of Steel’s face. The Kryptonian’s skin seemed to stretch and morph not unlike Plastic Man’s pliable flesh under the force of impact. In slow motion and pain-staking detail he saw spittle fly tinted red and laced with blood. The sound of the blow was muffled, but he felt the armor vibrate as an unstoppable force met the prime example of the immovable object. Servos whirred and hummed as the armor strained to compensate for the force of the stress that he was placing on it. The view of the blow came at him from all sides and a myriad of colors as he watched the Metropolis Marvel take flight and fly, up, up and away to smash into the wall of machinery on the far side of the chamber.

Ray Palmer marveled at the strobing, pulsing lights that surrounded him. Wherever he glanced, wherever he shifted his gaze he saw another small display, another miniscule monitor. Most he understood, though the words that accompanied the readings were in Krytonese- he assumed. He was a trained and accredited physicist however, and he could tell the difference between a heart monitor and a power grid.

It had all been a bit overwhelming at first, when he had entered the Krytonian Battle Suit. It had taken some small amount of time just to get the thing sealed up and moving after he had finally found it sequestered away in the Armory of the Fortress of Solitude. It had just been hanging there in the shadows, suspended from sturdy cables hanging down from the ceiling. Almost as though it had been waiting for him. Palmer doubted that, but it had caught his eye.

The Batman had told him to search the complex and find some weapon that they might use against Superman- the bogus Superman- Palmer corrected himself. He doubted that the Gotham Guardian had expected the Mighty Mite to come up with an unstoppable suit of armor however.

The Dark Knight had given him and the others the run-down on his suspicions concerning the Superman imposter before he had explained his plans to deal with the false Kryptonian in that special Batman way. Batman was not the supreme strategist of the Justice League for nothing. He feared that the Superman that had been flying about the world at blinding speeds setting alleged wrongs to right all that morning was in truth a being from another dimension that had somehow escaped the scathing devastation that had been called the Crisis.

As a physicist Palmer knew all the theories of alternate realities and divergent timelines, but as the Atom, he knew of the storms and the red skies that had been brought forth by the Anti-Monitor not so long ago. He remembered the shadow-things that had killed so many; the original Dove, Kole of the Titans, the Green Lantern Tomar Re. He remembered one of his best friends- Barry Allen, the Flash who died to save the world. Maybe the universe! It had taken everyone- everyone to finally defeat the Anti-Monitor, but they had at a great cost.

It was not important how or why this other-dimensional Superman had survived the Crisis. It was not even important how he got here, to the real and proper reality. What was important was that the real Superman was missing. More so, this imposter was trying to change the world- at least according to Batman- alter it into whatever reality he came from regardless of the results. That was not about to happen on the Atom’s watch!

The Batman’s plan had been fairly simple. They all knew the Man of Steel’s weaknesses, as he had not made them secret; magic, kryptonite, the radiations of the red sun. Batman had gathered the JLA members best suited to exploit the Metropolis Marvel’s drawbacks and devised a plan to quickly- hopefully- deal with him.

The Atom’s part of the plan was easy enough. The Batman would confront the bogus Superman fully intending to be beaten. The Superman was cut from the same cloth as the original however- or so Batman surmised- and would not leave his defeated foe to freeze to death in the Antarctic wastes where the Fortress of Solitude was located. Superman would take the Batman inside, through the secret entrance and through any security measures that might be in place. The Atom’s job was simply to ride along at microscopic size and once inside the fortress, find the armory and then a weapon that might be used against the bogus Man of Steel.

There was more to the Batman’s scheme of course. There always was, but the part that concerned the diminutive Ray Palmer had gone off without a hitch. Once inside the fortress proper- after riding along within the Batman at microscopic size- the Atom left the Dark Knight behind and began his search, growing just large enough to make out his surroundings yet too small to be detected unless someone was actively searching for him. Palmer had a few close calls with the maintenance robots that seemed to randomly flit about the complex, but at his miniscule size he remained undetected. Eventually he found the Armory and shifted his size to step between the very molecules of the door to enter the secured room.

After some bit of searching he had found and decided upon the Kryptonian Battle Armor. There were other weapons of course- obvious guns and bombs and devices that were equally as deadly, but they were all untested. It would be a matter of trial and error to test each and hope to find one that might actually effect a Kryptonian. The Battle Armor however was almost a sure thing. Though physicist Ray Palmer did not understand the language, he did recognize the placard in Kryptonese that explained the history and purpose of the armor. At a glance, Palmer could see the strength enhancing exo-skeleton laced throughout the metal frame. He could see the many and various ports that housed hidden weapons and enhancements. A quick inspection of the form-fitting interior showed that it was custom made for the Man of Steel, that it would attach to the wearer’s nervous system and create a self-contained environment that would keep the inhabitant safe and secure in any situation. Palmer had smiled-

The Atom grew, not quite to full height, just enough to fit into the conforming interior of the battle suit. As he settled into the soft padding that lined the weapon he felt the armor’s sensors scan him and almost immediately felt the pinpricks of dozens of tiny needles and leads as they automatically attached to his bare skin, his costume having faded away and his street clothes yet to form in transit of growth. There was a hiss of compressed air and the soft padding of the suit inflated about his body, immobilizing him as the metallic outer plates slammed shut with a harsh finality. Lights flashed to life within the armor’s helm and the Atom was mesmerized by the dozens of grids and displays that immediately began to monitor his being and health, the suit and all of its various capabilities and the area about him.

It took some time to master the movement, but eventually the Atom uncoupled the suit from the ceiling and set out. Internal gyros compensated for the great encumbrance and a field of energy softly glowed about the frame equalizing against gravity. The Atom saw the world in infrared and Ultra Violet as well as normally and in a wide array of radiations that he could not begin to identify. A blast of cool air kept him comfortable as he shambled forward, testing the suit’s capabilities. He cycled through displays that had to represent weapons that he had no concept of. He recognized the signature of Gamma waves, and assumed that the concentric half-circles on another readout represented Sonics or a radio of sorts, but he was not sure. Palmer wished that he had the time to fully investigate the armor, but he was on a timetable. The Batman had given him an hour, and the Atom knew that that was all that he had. He had stumbled forward, learning along the way-

He had found the imposter in a monitor room and had actually taken him unawares. The alien seemed enraptured, reading the history of the death of the real Superman not so long ago at least according to the many monitors displaying video feeds and newsprint stories converted to electronic type. The Atom had found the stealth mode- a small generic icon of a creature plugging its ears- and had crept up on the bogus Man of Steel. A moment later and the battle was joined…

Superman did not feel the heat of the explosion. The electrical discharge was not even enough to set his skin to tingling. The concussive force however had blown him back out of the machinery, sending him spiraling to land sprawling across the slick tiled floor. He groaned, shaking his head as he tried to lever himself up to all fours. He saw a splatter of blood beneath him as he tried to focus his sight and realized that he was bleeding.

Superman staggered to his feet and swayed, the world still spinning slightly. His ears were ringing from the blow that had sent him flying across the room. He wiped at his lip as he tried to focus on the room, string queerly at the red that came away on his thumb. He had seen his own blood before of course, but it was always an unexpected sight. He was no stranger to pain either, but whatever had struck him from behind had left him stunned, reeling and aching.

His first thought of course was of Luthor. Throughout the years, Lex Luthor’s evil genius had devised a number of unique ways to get past the Man of Steel’s invulnerability and actually cause him grievous harm. Luthor had created everything from kryptonite brass knuckles to a red sun ray that had left the Kryptonian as weak as any normal earthling. What flashed through the Man of Tomorrow’s mind at that moment however was in fact perhaps Luthor’s deadliest weapon; his battle suit!

Luthor had created the battle armor to go toe-to-toe with Superman in a fight. There were ranged weapons like lasers and rockets built into the ultra-powerful garb to negate superman’s own Heat Vision and Cold Breath. The armor enhanced Luthor’s own strength at least a hundred-fold, making more than a match for Superman’s own muscle. With the suit Luthor could fly and go beneath the surface of the water for extended periods of time. He could even venture into outer space- to a point. It was a truly wondrous invention that would have been a boon to mankind had anyone else constructed it. Luthor of course used it as a weapon in his one man vendetta against the Man of Steel.

Superman glanced up hearing the slight, muffled explosions. He saw a fading burst of light and the sudden streams of exhaust as five tiny missiles appeared from the shadows streaking towards him. His Heat Vision flared almost on instinct but he realized his mistake too late as the miniature rockets veered up and aimed right at his head. His Heat Vision had not destroyed the projectiles but had rather given them a more precise target. He tried to duck, but they were flying at an almost blinding speed. The resulting explosions blasted him back into the already demolished machinery…

2:56 p.m. EST

The Batman almost smiled, watching as the Superman doppelganger went flying into the machinery again. The banks of monitors and computer consoles exploded once more, the sudden flash of white and static knocking out the cameras that had been televising and recording the battle. They would compensate within a few moments, but the Batman had seen enough. He moved on…

He hurried down the hallway, surprised that the drone robots that moved about the Fortress of Solitude more or less ignored him. The doppelganger had dropped Batman into one of the guest rooms at the fortress, rather than into a secured cell after his defeat out on the ice sheet of Antarctica. It had been a simple matter to escape then after a pre-programmed stimuli- an electrical surge- had wakened the Batman after a short time of unconsciousness. Surprisingly the robots that flitted about the complex seemed unconcerned by his presence. Either the bogus Superman had told them to leave him alone, or the real Superman had programmed the Batman into their memory banks. Either way, it was a mistake that the Batman could and would exploit.

He had to reach the secured vault and hope that he could open it. If he was right, inside was perhaps the one weapon that would stop the other-dimensional Man of Steel if all of his other contingencies failed. He would probably not need the extra failsafe, but the Batman was always safe- never sorry.

He edged along the wall, watching from the sidelines as another robot sped past. The Batman saw the machine’s head swivel and stood still as he was bathed in a glow of light as the thing scanned him. It did not slow or falter but kept on its course and soon rounded the far corner of the hall going about its business. The Batman had been scanned three times so far with similar results, but every time he still paused just in case something changed.

Batman rounded another corner and saw his destination at the end of the corridor; a huge metallic door with an equally large lock. It was a vault- hopefully the vault that contained some of the few things that the Superman had reason to fear. The metal was of Kryptonian origins, recreated when the Eradicator had first created the Fortress of Solitude many months ago. The lock, the walls and the hinges as well were well beyond the Dark Knight Detective’s ability to force open. The locking mechanism would have to be bypassed, and for that he would need silence. He needed to not be interrupted for a time. He detached the radio from his belt. It was time to contact the others-

“Wonder Woman…” he said into the small transceiver, listening as static cut the eerie silence of the hallway. “Diana?” He was about to give up, surprised that the Thanagarian technology would not pierce the Kryptonian defenses when-

“Batman? I can barely hear you.”

The Batman too could barely hear the Amazonian Princesses’ garbled transmission. He adjusted the gain on his receiver and repositioned his microphone-

“Yes. Batman here. Is everyone in place?”

Static…

“Yes Batman. We’re ready here. Your guest is a little anxious, but I have him well in hand.” Batman smirked-

“Good. Any word from Arthur?”

“Not yet, but he should be on site any time now.”

“Good. Deal with him when he calls. I’m about to attempt the vault and don’t need the distraction. The party should be coming to you at any moment, so be ready.”

Silence…

“Understood. Don’t worry.”

“I never do. Out!”

The Batman secured his radio back into the confines of his utility belt and slowly approached the vault door. Any normal man would have set up booby traps along the corridor, but the Batman was not worried over that. Superman was hardly a normal man; too trusting and far too powerful to imagine that anyone would make it so deep into his home- his sanctuary.

But, as Superman was hardly normal, the Batman was not just anyone

The Arctic Circle 89° North:
3:08 p.m. EST

The snow bounced and vibrated at first, the only sign that something was amiss. Soon after there was a loud ‘thump’, and then another. A loud cracking sound followed like a gunshot echoing over the vast icy plains. Finally, in an explosion of white as the ice burst through from below. Great plumes of snow billowed up into the sky, icy clouds blowing away on the chill winds. Water spewed forth in a torrent, freezing as it sprayed out of the eruption and fell onto the cold hard ice.

Soola the great Sperm smashed onto the frozen sheet, its vast weight making the ice crack and tilt under the sudden impact. The massive glaciers groaned but held as the mammoth beast slid back into the water, gravity dragging it back into the dark depths. But not before it had deposited its lone passenger onto the bleak, white desert. There was a gasping sound as it drew in air, and then, with a splash it was vanished from sight once again.

Arthur Curry, Orin, Sovereign of the Seven Seas and King of fabled Atlantis stood shivering in the icy winds of the great white north. He could easily withstand the greatest pressures of the ocean’s depths and the near frigid temperatures far below the reach of the sun’s warmth. It was another thing indeed to stand in the unabated icy winds that scoured the North Polar Region of the surface world. The water glistening on his skin quickly hardened and traces of ice and frost formed in his long golden locks. He knew that if he did not continue moving, keep his blood circulating that he would freeze solid. His thick Atlantean hide would protect him from freezing to death, but it would still be unpleasant.

Orin grunted, casually shifting his massive ocean spawned muscles to shatter the thin sheen of ice already coating his skin and turned back to the hole that had been made by his mammalian friend. He knelt down at water’s edge, peering into the black, inky depths-

Soola…

Yes, Arthur?

Aquaman felt the soothing tones of the whale’s voice in his head. The melodious voice was like music, its whistles and moans a symphony in composure-

Retreat back to warmer waters my friend. I won’t need you more. I thank you.

I can wait if you like. It’s not that cold.

No. I’ll have my land-friends get me home later.  Go south.  I sense plankton aplenty.

Water spewed up and out of the ice hole as the great whale surfaced, rolling its length to gather air for its return journey under the ice. Its wide tail flipped up and out of the water, splashing down and was gone…

Good hunting, Lord Orin.

And you, Soola.

Aquaman stood and turned, staring out across the vast expanse of white. The Batman had radioed earlier that morning, explaining briefly- as was the Batman’s way- about the allegedly bogus Superman and his own suspicions as to his motives. Arthur had not truly been interested.

He had his own problems, and had officially distanced himself from the League for a time to deal with them. There was unrest in Atlantis, and the Ocean Master as well as the Fisherman were making his personal, private life hell. He had no time to go gallivanting across the globe to help the JLA with every little crisis that they called him for. He had his own country, his own people to deal with and keep safe. Three-fourths of the world was his domain for Neptune’s sake! Three-fourth’s of the world that they did not care spit for! He would be damned if he would come running every time the Batman called-

But of course the Batman had mentioned that J’onn had disappeared. The Batman knew exactly which buttons to push to get his so-called ‘friends’ to jump through his hoops. There were few true friendships in the League despite its many years as a group. They were all comrades true enough, and friends to a point, but they were all so different and headstrong that few became fast friends. There was that Batman-Superman partnership, though the Batman was hardly Superman’s friend. There was the Green Lantern and the Green Arrow when they had been alive. There was the Atom and Hawkman before the latter had reincarnated again. Then there was Aquaman and the Martian Manhunter. They were an unlikely pair, even Aquaman would admit. He was arrogant and headstrong while the Martian was deeply set in his own ways and traditions. Still, they shared a common bond, though loosely. They both possessed the power of telepathy; the Martian being one of the most powerful telepaths on the surface world while the Atlantean being the single greatest mind in the depths of the Seven Seas. True, his telepathy worked only on the denizens of the deep, the fish and the mammals and the other creatures there, but still their powers were close enough that they were almost linked. They had learned early on, just after the formation of the original League that their powers of the mind complimented one another. They could communicate on a level that the others could only imagine, and as such they became friends on a level that the others might never achieve. They became friends.

Aquaman scanned the surface of the great ice fields of the North Pole, looking physically for anything out of place as he reached out with his mind, probing-

J’onn...

It took some time, stalking through the waist high drifts, homing in on the weak signal being broadcast by the Martian’s radio with his own. He let his mind drift out as he called his friend’s name, his sharp eyes scouring the white, looking for any sign of his friend-

J'onn…

Finally he saw the depression. The snow had been falling steadily, but there in the distance was a wide area that did not seem quite so full of snow. It was relatively flat and circular, like a lake, though it was covered in a thin sheet of snow just a few inches thick. He stopped, sliding the snow aside with his foot to see the clear ice beneath, recently formed-

J’onn… C’mon J’onn! I know you’re down there! Wake up!

Orin thought of fire. He thought of the images he had seen of Viet Nam; the great infernos as napalm was dropped from speeding jets on innocents and soldiers alike. He thought of oil wells, great gouts of churning, burning flame raging into the skies. He thought of H’ronnmeer’s Curse, the fiery demise of J’onn J’onzz’s own people as the telepathic plague wiped out the Martian civilization some fifty years prior. Images that J’onzz himself had first transferred to Orin’s mind-

Aquaman stepped back as a wave of fear and remorse washed over him. He felt dirty suddenly, and saddened that he had had to stir those images in the Martian’s mind to wake him. But it had been the only- quickest way that he could think to stir his friend from the suspended animation slumber that the Man of Steel had apparently placed him in. it had been a devilish death trap. Quick freeze the Martian after knocking him senseless. Submerge him under several tons of ice while his body shut down trying to heal. Odds were that he would never reawaken, at least until the next great climate change, when the glaciers began to thaw and recede. They were so far north however that Arthur suspected it would have taken thousands of years before J’onzz saw the light of day again.

A blast of panic rippled up through the ice and Aquaman cringed expecting an explosion. None came however. Aquaman barely even saw the pale green shadow as it drifted up out of the ice to land just a few feet away from where he stood. It took a few moments for the pale frame to solidify, the greens darkening, shadows taking hold. Arthur saw the body stiffen, then shiver before it shrugged its cloak about its shoulders. J’onn J’onzz turned slowly, breathing deeply, his eyes lost in the deep shadows of his brow-

“How long?”

Aquaman shrugged. “A few hours I think. Not long. Batman had me looking soon enough.”

Aquaman touched his communicator on his belt and looked to the dim, gray sky.

“Watchtower! This is Aquaman…”

A staticky voice crackled over the open Comm link a moment later. Aquaman grimaced, turning down the volume-

“Woo Hoo goldfish! Long time no bubble! How’s it flippin’?”

Aquaman sighed. “I have J’onn. Bring us to the tower.”

“No problemo, A-man! I’ll have you in house faster’n you can say ‘Gentlemen, beam me a-“

Aquaman felt the familiar tingle of the JLA transporter as his molecules started to disassemble. He felt too that odd queasiness in his stomach and wondered why he had rejoined the League just as the world began to dissolve around him…

The Fortress of Solitude

89°S- The Ellis Mountain Range, Antarctica:
3:27 p.m. EST

Superman had had enough.

He was tired of being slammed about the room. He was tired of smashing into machinery. He was tired, plain and simple.

The robot- the man in the armor- whatever it was had had the advantage since the beginning. Since it had first attacked it had been on the offensive, keeping the Man of Steel off balance and overpowering him with not only his great strength but a vast array of weaponry powerful enough to knock the Kryptonian off of his feet. It would have almost been humiliating had there been anyone else there to see. As it was, the armored man was making the Man of Tomorrow into a fool, and easily it seemed.

It was not Luthor however. Of that Superman was sure. The armored suit seemed to blend into the shadows somehow, appearing only briefly as it attacked. It was cast in a deep purple metal that seemed impervious to the Superman’s strongest blows. It was proof against his Heat Vision as well, and his Cold Breath was next to useless. It was fast and durable and did not seem to run out of power. Worse, it had the advantage of not caring about destroying the surroundings. Superman was restricted within the confines of his fortress. The walls were thick and solid, keeping him trapped. He could not see into the next room with his enhanced sights, nor for some reason could he see the armor as it seemed constructed of at least a similar metal as was laced into the walls. The Man of Steel had the home court advantage, but it was hindering him more than helping.

He had to get out…

Superman flew, shooting from the room faster than a speeding bullet. He shot down hallway after corridor, his brilliant, photographic memory laying out the path before him like a map. Within the space of a few heartbeats he was back in the great entry chamber, the rippling icy waters of the internal pool before him.

Without a second thought he dove into the icy cold waters. The internal heating units of the fortress kept the pool cool but unfrozen, and a simple burst of Heat Vision would eliminate any ice on the surface of the outer lake as he shifted his flight path angling for the dim glow of sunlight ahead. He veered upwards, holding his breath as he burst forth from the chill waters of the lake. He felt the rejuvenating warmth of the sun as soon as he was free of the icy depths. He reveled in the heat, feeling his strength returning as he basked in the glow of the yellow sun. He soared ever higher-

Something tightened about his waist and he gasped in surprise, glancing down. It was golden, a slim bit of cord wrapped about his middle like a belt, dragging him down. His momentum carried him in a wide arch caught at the limit of the golden glowing rope that had lassoed about his waist. He tried to pull out of the dive, but centrifugal force drug him down. He slammed full force into the snow

3:31 p.m. EST

Wonder Woman saw the blur of violet as it burst forth out of the thinly ice-coated lake. She barely had the opportunity to act, even though she had been prepared and waiting for something to happen. Even if this was not the true Superman, he was fast. Faster than the original.

She cast out her Golden Lasso, forged from the Golden Girdle of Gaea herself and indestructible. Her aim was true, but even so if not for the manipulations of the Red Tornado adding to her toss and guiding the cord on his winds she might have missed- he was so fast! She pulled the line taut as the Man of Steel was ensnared by the loop, digging her heels in as it grew taunt at the edge of his flight. She was drug through the snow and ice as she pulled against the Kryptonian’s might, straining until she finally saw his flight path alter and he began his swift plummet into the cold hard ground. The very earth shook with his impact, and she was certain that he was done. Still…

She saw him rise, shaken but awake. He shook the snow and ice from his broad shoulders. Diana yelled into her communicator-

“Dinah! Now!”

Wonder Woman winced as she heard the ultrasonic whine that her friend was emitting. Her head started spinning, but a moment later her delirium cleared as the sonic tone went beyond her range to hear. She knew that her friend was straining to achieve the desired pitch- her Canary Cry was still weak having only healed to a minimal degree. Still, the Black Canary- hidden behind a drift of snow- sang her heart out, knowing that her own martial art skills would not be enough to defeat the Man of Steel. Her sonic attack however would hopefully be enough to rattle the Kryptonian’s sense enough that he would be slow to think, and slower still to react.

Diana jerked back on her lasso, tugging on the line and pulling the Man of Steel back off of his feet. He sprawled on his butt in the snow, disoriented and dazed-

“Kyle!”

The huge glowing green robot suddenly appeared towering some fifty feet over the fallen Metropolis Marvel. Diana saw Superman crane his neck, looking up at his newest assailant in awe… fear… She doubted that.

The robotic image was massive, disproportionate in its gargantuan arms and legs. Its head was little by comparison, and its chest blazed with an internal fire that raged with its inner strength. She watched as it drew a mighty fist back, its knuckles protruding with sharp claws.

“Eat heavy metal!” Kyle shouted as he drove the fist of his power ring construct down and into the prone body of the Man of Steel. The very earth seemed to shake as the robot slammed down on Superman, driving his body into the ice. There was a moment of silence; two, and Kyle- the Earth’s Green Lantern withdrew, waiting to see if they were done.

Diana licked her lips anxiously, sure that the battle must be done. She bit her lip, watching the crater that the robot had created, looking for any sign that the bogus Superman still lived- stirred…

She saw a shadow, a flicker of blue-

“Firestorm! Go!”

The Nuclear man flew out and above the downed Man of Steel, hovering over his prone body in a blaze of orange. His fiery hair crackled as he concentrated, directing the energies of his transmutation powers at the Superman and the entire area in general. He had been studying the elemental chains at the Batman’s direction, memorizing the base components of Kryptonite and the subtle variances above and below their key elemental structure. The Batman had theorized that the Kryptonite that affected the real Superman would be useless against the bogus Man of Steel, but he also hypothesized that the elemental radiations that would affect the doppelganger could not be so far off from the original that they would be impossible to isolate. He set the task to Firestorm to memorize the probable combinations of elements that might affect the bogus Superman.

Diana watched as the Nuclear Man washed the area below him in a wave of elemental radiation. He adjusted the variances at a whim, every heartbeat or so, changing the energies that bathed the Superman with a thought. The snow glistened, sparkling as energies washed over the area, the heat of some wiping away the frost, the icy chill of others freezing all again. The Superman glanced up, shielding his eyes from the glow and tried to stand under the onslaught. He wavered, staggered. Diana saw it-

“Firestorm!” she shouted into her communicator. “There!”

Firestorm concentrated, wiggling his fingers as he adjusted the radiations, the very air to his whim. The sky glowed green and the Superman swayed dizzily-

“Flash! Tornado!”

Twin red blurs spiraled about the already staggering Man of Steel. Diana watched as blasts of cyclonic air drove into the Kryptonian from front and back, the Flash and the Red Tornado assaulting him from opposite sides. He was slammed back and forth between the winds, buffeted about in his weakened state. The assaults of the Green Lantern and herself, as well as the more subtle attack of the Black Canary had taken their toll. Now the gale force winds of the fastest man alive and the Earth’s air elemental were driving him down under the molecular assault of Firestorm’s lacing the very air with Kryptonite.

But still he struggled to his feet…

Diana’s heart broke, the pieces rising into her throat. He was so like Kal-El…

“Zatanna!”

The Mage of Might stepped from behind a snow drift where she had been hidden until needed. The winds whipped at the long fur-lined parka she wore, revealing her long slender legs and her skimpy costume. How she kept that tophat on in the stiff wind Diana did not know. Zatanna, daughter of the Great Zatara struck a pose and pointed a well-manicured finger at the Man of Steel-

“!raeppa selkcahS !namrepuS dniB”

Chains appeared out of thin air, manacles wrapping about the Man of Steel’s wrists and ankles. The weight seemed to drag him down as he dropped to his knees. Still he struggled, his massive muscles bulging as he strained against the magical bonds, even under the weakening conditions of the Kryptonite-laced air.

Wonder Woman watched, hating herself for what she was forced to do. What the Batman forced her to do. The Superman struggled, lost and helpless. He seemed so real, so human. He screamed, straining to shatter the manacles. Even now…

Diana glanced back at the man tied to the other end of her Golden Lasso. He too seemed weak and helpless, and Diana knew that he was drugged almost to the point of oblivion so that he could not concentrate enough to use his powers. He seemed helpless. He seemed oblivious. Still, Diana had no worries even if he were at full strength. It would take a greater will than he had to override her control of the Magic Golden Lasso of Hestia! Diana reached out, cupping the man’s chin-

“Hey! Are you with me?” She shook him and saw the purple-skinned man’s eyes start to focus. He stared at her, tried to speak-

“Your powers- Can you use them?” Diana glanced the length of her magic lasso, directing the Parasite’s gaze towards the already weakened Man of Steel look-a-like. The Parasite seemed to stare off into space for a moment, then a smile twisted his lips as he focused on the glowing golden line that connected him to the Man of Tomorrow. He nodded-

“It’s like a conduit, ain’t it. Be just like suckin’ him off through a straw. Heh!”

Wonder Woman grimaced, picturing things that the Parasite probably did not. She swallowed, glancing once more at Kal-El.

“Do it!”

The Parasite’s body started to glow as he employed his powers and immediately Diana let go of her rope. There was no chance that the Parasite could over power her in a battle of wills, however his abilities could just as easily work on her as they might on the Metropolis Marvel. She watched as the villain’s leeching abilities seeped down her lasso line, seeking out the unsuspecting Superman. In a flash she saw the Man of Steel start to writhe as his strengths and memories started to strip away, transferring to the greedy form of the Parasite. Superman screamed again, almost whimpering as his identity faded and he crumbled becoming little better than a normal human. He seemed in agony…

Diana turned back to the Parasite and gasped. The Batman had said that she should keep her eyes on the villain once the power transfer started, but Superman seemed so much like the man that she knew. The Parasite now seemed to be growing. He was pumping up with the power that he was stealing from the Superman. He was standing taller. His eyes were clearing of their drug-induced haze.

“Quarrm… Quarrm!” he shouted, but Diana had no idea what that might mean. She saw only that he was getting stronger. Diana reared back and struck, throwing everything into the most powerful blow that she could muster. The resulting explosion of sound echoed across the snowy fields of ice, but the Parasite barely staggered back. He fell though, crumpling to the ground at her feet.

Quickly the Amazonian Princess untied the villain from her Golden Lasso, watching as Zatanna ran forward through the snow, ready for the next part of the plan- and hopefully the last. She had stated flat out that it would not have worked on the real Superman if he were at full strength, and she doubted that it might work now on this weakened doppelganger. Still, she would try. She was a hero.

Zatanna stepped right up to the bogus Superman, shocked to see that he was already trying to rise again. Diana watched as the magician dropped to her knees onto the snowy ground, right beside the Man of Steel. She reached out, touching her fingertips to his forehead-

“…peelS”

Diana sighed as Zatanna waved the all clear. The Superman doppelganger was defeated. It had taken almost all of the League to do it, but they had beaten him. It was incredible that one being could hold so much power. One mortal being. He had almost seemed a god-

“Good job.”

Wonder Woman squeaked in surprise and spun about, her fists raised, ready to fight. She felt foolish for being caught unawares, but relaxed just a little when she saw who she was facing-

“Batman…”

The Dark Knight said nothing as he stared past her at the gathering heroes. He ignored the giant purple robot that loudly strode past them both and on towards the rest of the JLA down the slight embankment. Diana watched for a moment, then turned back to ask-

“The Atom…” was all he said before he started down the short slope towards the fallen Man of Steel in the robot’s- the Atom’s wake. Diana quickly knelt beside the unconscious Parasite and looped the excess of her lasso about the villain then binding him before hoisting him onto her shoulder and following, wondering what would happen next…



 

Next Issue: What is the secret behind the bogus Superman? It might not be what you think. Hope I fooled some of you… Join us next time as the JLA go time trippin’ with a little help from their friends in the next chapter of…

If I Could Turn Back Time!