Post by starskyhutch76 on Jun 10, 2017 23:10:40 GMT
Prez Rickard sat back in his chair with his sandaled feet propped up on his desk. He had just gotten off the phone with Prime Minister Donovan of Britain and he was feeling alright about the state of the world.
The teenage president had long blond hair and he wore bell bottom jeans and a red dashiki that bore the state seal: a dove within a circle surrounded by hippie lettering that read “The Groovy States of America.”
The strings of beads hanging in the doorway rattled as several colorful costumed figures entered. They were known as the Love Syndicate of America: Sunshine Superman, Foxy Lady, Magic Lantern, Liberated Woman, Bat-Trip, Groovestar, Dove Man and Dove Woman, Love Arrow and Rainbow Canary, Speed Freak, Starshine, Small Wonder, Plastic Fantastic, the Martian Peacehunter, and the android known as Purple Haze.
“Peace, my brothers and sisters,” Prez said, holding up two fingers in a peace sign.
“Peace, Mr. President,” they replied, holding up their hands in the peace sign.
He hugged each of them before they sat down in the bean bag chairs that surrounded the large state seal in the center of the shag carpet of the oval office floor. He sat facing them, Indian style, on his desk. “So what’s the good word, my amigos?” Prez asked.
“We’ve just gotten back from Russia,” the long haired Sunshine Superman said. He wore a bell sleeved blue top that bore a red sun with a yellow S in the center. Blue pants were tucked into red fringed buccaneer style boots and he wore a large-collared red fringed cape. A red sash was tied around his waist over the untucked shirt. “We let them know, like, this aggression will not stand, man.”
“So they’re hip to our scene now?” Prez asked.
“You know it, baby!” Foxy Lady said. The black woman had an enormous afro, gold loop ear rings, a gold fringed halter top and a gold fringed mini skirt with gold fringed go-go boots. Around her neck, she wore a long string of beads from which hung her tantu totem.
“Far out,” Prez Rickard said, smiling.
“You’re really making the world a better place, leader man,” Bat Trip said. Over his grey long sleeved t-shirt and jeans, he wore a long blue hooded poncho with bat ears and a black bat symbol crocheted on it, black John Lennon style sunglasses, blue suede moccasin boots. Over his shoulder was slung his famous yellow utility man-bag.
“It’s my happening and it freaks me out!” Prez said, slapping his knees.
“It’s a beautiful thing,” Magic Lantern said. He had long, wavy brown hair, green sunglasses, a green tie dyed shirt with a white lantern symbol, black bell bottom jeans, and green sandals.
Next to him sat his best friend, Love Arrow. He had long blond hair and a long full beard. He wore a green fringed vest, green bell bottoms and moccasins.
Leaning against Love Arrow on the same bean-bag chair was his girlfriend, Rainbow Canary. She had waist-length blonde hair that hung down her back. She wore a rainbow colored shirt tied off at her chest, blue hot pants and a fringed vest with matching blue go-go boots and fishnet stockings.
Next to them sat Dove Man and his wife, Dove Woman. Both wore white dove head cowls that covered half their faces, white wings, cut-off jeans, and peace symbol pendants. Dove woman accented her outfit with a white fringed bikini top.
Next to them sat the patriotically clad Heavy Metal wore an American Flag patterned poncho red and white striped bell-bottoms. On his shoulder sat the diminutive Small Wonder. He wore a red and blue dashiki with red bell bottoms.
Beside them sat Speed Freak. He had long red hair with a red headband with yellow wings on the side. He wore a red tank top with a yellow lightning, red bell bottoms and no shoes.
Groovestorm had a wild mane of flames that flowed like shaggy long hair. He wore a yellow and red tie-dyed shirt in a sunburst pattern and red and yellow patched bell bottoms.
Beside him sat the Martian Peace-hunter. The green skinned alien wore a high collared blue cape, yellow beads, blue bell bottoms and boots.
Next to him sat Liberated Woman. The black woman with long dreadlocks wore a red headband and a red halter top trimmed in gold with gold fringe and a gold female sign, blue hot-pants with white stars, and red thigh high boots trimmed in white.
Beside her sat Plastic Fantastic. The elastic hero had a mod style haircut and wore a red and black Nehru jacket and red bellbottoms with black trim and high heeled boots.
Next was the black haired sorceress known as Witchy Woman. She wore a blue and white Cat in the Hat style hat, mirrored John Lennon style sunglasses, a blue and white tie-dyed tuxedo tails jacket, a white buttoned vest, blue hot-pants, and blue boots.
Lastly was the purple android, Purple Haze. He wore a long dashiki of the same color and had a white peace symbol on his forehead. “Is there anything else we can do?” he asked Prez.
“Just keep spreading the love, baby,” Prez Rickard said, spreading his arms in an open gesture. “Just keep spreading the love.”
“Peace, leader man,” Sunshine Superman said, holding his hand up in the peace sign as the Love Syndicate filed out of the beaded doorway.
“Peace, my brothers and sisters,” Prez Rickard said.
“After they left, Prez Rickard stood up and walked to the closet. He opened the door to reveal the device created by the other-worldly beings known as the Controller: the Miracle Machine. He thought about what Bat-Trip had said. They really were making the world a better place.
Steve Dayton, the quadriplegic super hero known as Mento, lay slumped in his chair in his study as he awoke. He realized he must have dosed off while watching television. What he saw made his jaw drop.
On the screen was Tom Brokaw doing the evening. It was a very different Tom Brokaw, however. He had long hair held in place by a headband that bore a peace symbol. He wore a lime green shirt and a brown faux fur vest. Around his neck was a string of beads.
“As flower children across the country continue to flock to Timothy Leary Center,” Tom Brokaw reported, “experts say there’s no reason, like, to be afraid to take the brown acid. It is simply a purer and stronger strain. But if you’ve never been experienced, it could be your ticket to a bad trip.”
Before he could react further to the strange newscast, Cliff Steele, aka Robotman, dashed to his doorway. Have you seen the TV? I just watched a commercial for Marlboro Joints!”
Steve Dayton gathered the rest of the team. They scanned channels to see how the world had changed.
“Wow,” Rainie Blackwell, aka Elemental Girl said as they watched a pony-tailed Lawrence Welk conduct his symphony in a rendition of the Moody Blues’ “Knights in White Satin. Did we all get zapped to Earth-H?”
“Earth-H?” Blossom asked.
“You know.. H for hippie?”
“With all the barriers in place, I doubt we’re on another Earth,” Mento said. “Somehow, this one has been transformed. The question is how do we change it back.”
“I didn’t see anything about any wars or even violent crime on the news channels,” Robotman said “Maybe the world is better off.”
“Whatever happened was without the world’s consent,” Mento said. “So we don’t get to make that choice.”
He turned his sophisticated wheelchair with a telepathic command. “Follow me to my lab.”
Once Steve Dayton was in his lab, two robot arms rose out of hidden compartments in his chair and began to work the dials of the super computer. “I’m establishing a link to the satellite network above earth to see if I can find out more about what is happening.”
All across the western world, it was the same. Buildings and houses were painted in psychedelic colors with round peace sign paned windows. Most signs were written with 60s style hippie lettering. People, no matter what age, were dressed in hippie clothing.
‘Far out,” Cliff Steele joked.
“I’m glad you can see the humor in this,” Mento said. “I, for one, am not amused.
“Well, you always were kind of a square, Steve,” Robotman said. He turned to Carl Stoner, the Odd Man, and said, “You should feel right at home in this.”
“Not by choice,” the Odd Man reminded him. His schizophrenia often warped how he perceived the world.
“Yeah… sorry,” Robotman said, feeling like a first class heel.
“It’s going to take me a while to analyze these readings,” Mento said. “I’ll call you when I have something.”
Realizing they had been dismissed, the rest of the team filed out of the room. When they entered the den, they saw the décor had changed. The carpet was now a magenta shag. Brightly colored couches and egg shaped chairs had replaced the leather couch and recliners. The walls were a bright purple with florescent flowered decals dotting them. The oil paintings had been replaced with black light posters with stylized peace symbols, smiley faces, and pot leaves.
Robotman picked up the television remote and turned on the round TV set. He started flipping channels until he came to a newscast of the British Royal family. The queen wore tie dyed kurta blouse and wrap skirt, beads, and her long straight hair was adorned with a crown of flowers. Next to her sat Prince Philip. He and the members of the royal guard wore uniforms that looked like the ones the Beatles wore on the Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album. Across from them, similarly dressed, sat Prince Charles and Princess Diana. They were being carried in a colorful carriage with peace signs on the side pulled by long maned horses with rainbow reins and carved unicorn horns adorning their harnesses.
The Royal family waved to adoring throngs of British citizens. The royal guard, in their tall purple faux-bearskin helmets, carried baskets to throw flowers and peace-beads to outstretched hands.
The footage of the parade was followed by a report on the members of the UN uniting for a world hippie drum circle. Finally, the station reached the end of its broadcast day. The national anthem, as performed by Jimi Hendrix on electric guitar, began to play as an image came onto the screen of an American Flag that looked as if it were painted with tie dye flew in the breeze.
Once the national anthem was over, the room grew quiet for a moment. The silence was broken by the whirring of the motor to Mento’s electric chair as he entered the room. “I believe I have found the reason this is happening.”
The main feature of Steve Dayton’s lab was the enormous super-computer. It consisted of a large console with a huge mounted monitor surrounded by several smaller monitors. Staring at the giant monitor, the team now stood before the super-computer which showed a large world map. Parts of the land masses were in purple. The others were in green. The side monitors showed scenes from around the world. “As you can see from the map, a large part is marked in purple representing the areas that have been affected, “ Steve Dayton said. “That area is growing in size. Russia is the most recent nation to be absorbed.”
“Absorbed?” Element Girl said. “Absorbed by what?”
“A vibrational wave is moving across the world, transforming everything in its path,” Mento said. “Satellite photos show that a meteor struck in rural Oregon. That soon became the apex of the transitional wave before it moved to Washington DC.”
“So then we need to stop this wave,” Robotman said.
“We need to do more than that,” Steve Dayton said. “We have to find a way to reverse it. Either the wave consumes everything, which is not an option, or we turn it back. Reality cannot remain in a state of flux without being shattered.”
“Isn’t this Justice League territory?” Robotman said. “Wouldn’t they normally be the ones taking care of something like this?”
Mento’s gaze drifted to one of the side monitors. On it was the Love Syndicate of America as they tried to spread their message of peace and love to the Balkan nation of Madora. A line of rifle toting guards stood in front of the capitol with their rifles aimed at them. Bat-trip walked down the row of soldiers, placing a flower in the barrel of each rifle.
“Somehow I don’t see that happening,” Mento said, grimacing.
As he piloted the Doom Patrol’s airship, Cliff Steele shook his head in disbelief as it flew towards Washington. He looked down at the mushroom shaped building for Tofuburger King beneath a billboard for Canabis Cola. “The whole world’s gone crazy!”
“Looks that way,” Carl Stoner said. “And …and.. if anybody knows crazy, it’s me.”
“What I’d like to know is why we weren’t affected along with everyone else,” Robotman said, casting a glance at Stoner.
“Because we’re already a bunch of freaks,” Element Girl said.
The Airship grew quiet until Mento broke the silence. “You might be on to something,” he said. “Each of us feels isolated… apart from society in our own way. Whatever is behind this might have picked up on that and moved on.”
“We can’t be the only ones like that,” Robotman said. “Surely, there must be others.”
“Pro… pro… probably not in our line of work,” Carl Stoner said. He looked down at his nervous fidgety hands and began rocking and muttering to himself. A look of concern passed among the group. He had stopped taking his medication before it had all even started, as if he somehow knew he would have to use his powers. He would have to become the Odd Man again.
“Blossom wonders if friend Alec was changed,” the ethereally beautiful plant elemental said, thinking of the Swamp Thing.
“He’s even more isolated than we are,” Elemental Girl said, laughing ruefully.
The monitors hanging from the ceiling of the airship displayed images from around the country that had been picked up from the satellite network. “Is that Mount Rushmore?” Element Girl exclaimed, staring at the images now carved in the mountainside: Timothy Leary, Abby Freeman, Jack Kerouac and Bob Dylan.
“I hate to think of what the Lincoln Memorial must look like now,” Robotman said.
They rode in silence until they began to approach the nation’s capital. They were surprised to find most of the buildings and monuments unchanged. At least, they appeared that way from the exterior.
As they approached the White House, they felt a sudden jolt. Whatever it was began to take the airship downward, lowering it to the White House lawn.”
“What the…?” Robotman exclaimed.
“It appears someone is here to greet us,” Mento said. “Let’s step outside and say hello.”
When they stepped outside, they found themselves faced with the Justice League of America, albeit a very different Justice League. Normally, they would be severely outclassed. In this case, they had no idea wat to expect.
“Who are you supposed to be?” Robotman said.
“We’re the Love Syndicate of America, man!” Groovestorm said, as if offended that he didn’t recognize them..
“And we hate to be a bummer, man, but we can’t let you pass,” Sunshine Superman said. Magic Lantern generated a giant green hand that did a ‘halt’ gesture.
“Are you responsible for all this?” Mento asked.
“All of what?” Love Arrow said defensively.
“All of this hippie garbage!” Robotman said.
“Hey, not cool, man!” Dove Man snapped. “Prez made the world a better place. Now, everyone can live in peace, love, and harmony!”
“Prez?” Blossom said, looking at them curiously.
“The president,” Purple Haze said.
“Yeah, the president, silly,” Rainbow Canary giggled brightly. “Who do you think?”
“We need to see the president, then,” Mento said.
“No way, man,” Bat Trip said.
“I’m afraid I must insist,” Mento replied.
“Do you think we’re afraid of you?” Liberated Woman said, taking a defensive posture.
“No, Liberated Woman,” Sunshine Superman said to Nubia, gesturing for her to hold back. “We’re here to stop them. But no violence!”
“Well, that should make things easier,” Element Girl said.
Sunshine Superman moved towards Mento with a patient expression, as if he were about to restrain an unruly child. Mento smirked at his overconfidence. He reached out to touch his mind and Sunshine Superman fell to the ground, asleep.
Mento felt his mind reel as he himself was under psychic attack. He lashed out with all he had and the Martian Peacehunter fell to the ground, also unconscious.
Magic Lantern threw up a barrier as Robotman moved towards him. His golden metal form passed through due to the ring’s vulnerability to yellow and the emerald hippie was quickly knocked unconscious.
Alarmed at seeing three of their most powerful members so easily dispatched, Groovestorm gasped and quickly raised his hands towards Mento. Before he could do whatever he had planned, Mento touched his mind and separated the combined being into Professor Martin Stein and Ronnie Raymond. The two ordinary humans were then easily subdued.
Robotman raised his fist and was about to strike Purple Haze when the android threw up his hands and said, “Wait, man, like, I’m just a conscientious objecture!” Robotman gave a shrug and moved onto the patriotically colored cyborg youth, Heavy Metal.
Love Arrow and Rainbow Canary braced themselves for an oncoming attack. Neither was able to take aim, though, when the Odd Man cast his empathic powers towards them and shared his hallucinations, the products of his own schizophrenia. The two fell to the ground, holding their heads.
Small Wonder tried to help his friend by crawling into his ear. He was quickly stunned by the nanites that acted as antibodies for Cliff Steele’s robotic systems. Robotman caught him as he fell out of his ear and handed him to Heavy Metal. As the young man stared down at his fallen friend, Robotman used the distraction to deliver a right cross that knocked him unconscious.
Dove Man and Dove Woman were caught off guard as thick roots shot up from the ground with a wave of Blossom’s hands. They were quickly ensnared.
Witchy Woman began a backwards incantation with the hopes of helping her fallen comrades. She was unable to finish it as she suddenly choked on her own words and fell to the ground. Element Girl, in the form of sleeping gas, left her lungs just in time for Speed Freak to run into her cloud, inhale her, and collide with Plastic Fantastic in a tangled heap.
“I can’t believe we’re beating the Justice League!” Element Girl exclaimed.
“Me neither!” Robotman said.
“We’re not beating the Justice League,” Mento said, correcting them. “We’re beating the Love Syndicate. “If it were the Justice League, we would already be defeated.”
Their attention turned to the three remaining members: Bat Freak, Foxy Lady, and Liberated Woman. All three seemed paralyzed by the internal struggle between their own natural instincts and the pacifist ones of their transformation.
Bat Freak was visibly shaking. A pained look of confusion and turmoil crossed his face. The flowers he had pulled from his utility bag fell to the ground, crushed by the tense grip of his hand.
“So you cats came to see me?” a voice suddenly called out. They all looked to the direction of the voice and saw Prez Rickard walking towards them. “Why don’t we all go inside. Maybe its time we had ourselves a pow wow. I’m sure we’ve got a lot to rap about.”
The members of the Doom Patrol took in the transformed halls of the White House as they walked alongside Prez. The secret service followed closely behind, clad in Nehru suits and round mirrored sunglasses.
“I see you redecorated,” Mento said.
“Yeah. Groovy, huh?” Prez grinned.
The swirling psychedelic patterns seemed to twist and move before the Odd Man. Blossom caught him as he started to lose his balance.
“Don’t worry, friend Carl,” Blossom whispered to him sweetly. “Blossom has you.”
When they got to the oval office, Prez gestured to a large multi-stemmed hookah and said, “Any of you partake?”
“My body is numb enough as it is,” Mento said.
“Yeah,” Robotman added. “and I’m mostly robot. Element Girl isn’t human. Blossom’s a plant. And the Odd Man here… I guess it would just be redundant.”
“Suit yourself,” Prez said, hopping backwards into the office chair behind his desk. It spun around until he grabbed is desk to stop himself. “It wouldn’t have been cool of me not to offer.”
“I think we have a problem,” Mento said.
“Yeah, we do,” Prez sighed. “That sort of bully behavior outside…. That’s just not right. That’s the sort of thing I’m trying to save the world from.”
“Blossom didn’t hurt anybody,” Blossom said in her high melodious voice.
“No, you didn’t, you beautiful thing you,” Prez said, giving her a look that would have made her blush if she were capable of it.
“You speak of bully behavior, but isn’t that what you’ve done here?” Mento said, getting the conversation back on track.
“What are you talking about?” Prez said, looking as if he had been struck. “I’m making the world a better place. No war! No fighting. No pain or suffering, man!”
“What does it mean if they don’t get there on their own?” Mento said. “By taking away their right to choose, even non-violently… isn’t that in and of itself a form of aggression?”
“They chose wrong!” Prez exclaimed in a voice choked with anguish as slapped his desk top with both hands.
“You know this isn’t right,” Mento said firmly.
Prez’s head slumped forward and he rubbed his eyes with the balls of his hands. “We were supposed to change the world. Instead, I watched as my generation became the same capitalist fat-cats and warmongers we railed against. It had all gone so wrong. Then I found that wonderful machine… How could I not try to set things right? I just…. I just couldn’t.”
“What machine are you talking about?” Mento asked.
Prez raised his head, revealing red, wet eyes, and rose from his desk. He walked over to is closet and opened the door. Inside sat the machine in question.
“It’s called the Miracle Machine,” Prez said. “I don’t know how I know that,” he said sadly. “When I found it sitting in a crater on my farmland, I just knew that was its name. It’s like it spoke to me.”
He passed his hand over it and the room returned to normal, along with the rest of the world. When he turned around, he was no longer the fresh faced teenager he was a moment before. His long blond hair was now much thinner and receding. Beneath his sad, disillusioned eyes were heavy bags. “My name is Alan Rickard and I don’t want to be president anymore,” the weary middle aged man said. “I... I just want to go home. I’m so tired.”
As they watched the back of Alan Rickard as he exited the airship, they couldn’t help but notice how slumped his shoulders were as he walked away. This was not the carefree young man they first encountered. That had simply been an imitation of someone who hadn’t existed in years.
‘Do you think he will be okay?” Element Girl said with concern as the airship rose into the air.
“No,” Mento said bluntly.
“No?!!” Element Girl exclaimed. “You’re not supposed to say no!”
“I’m sorry, but I’ve never been very comfortable with lying.”
“I can’t believe you! You’re a real piece of work, Steve!” Element Girl harrumphed.
“Look,” Mento said sternly. “The man was already depressed at the state of the world to begin with. He had an untenable dream about what the world was supposed to be. When, by a crazy miracle, he managed to get it, he realized the moral implications of imposing his will on the world made him as bad as the ones he used to protest against. So he was forced to change everything back to the way it was. He might learn to live with it, but he’ll never get past it. And that’s the only reason I chose not to hand him over to the Justice League.”
The ride back was one of awkward silence.
The team of heroes stood at the entrance to the warehouse. The miracle machine sat before them in a large open wooden crate. They were flanked by several men in jump suits bearing the logo of Dayton Industries.
“This is your last chance before it is put in storage,” Mento said. “Remember, this is a machine capable of completely altering your reality.”
“Meaning?” Robotman asked.
“You could be normal again,” Mento said.
All eyes turned to Carl Stoner. It had been hard for all of them to watch him during the course of the mission.
Carl grinned sheepishly. He was experiencing one of his brief moments of lucidity, so he was able to read their glances. “ah… my gifts are more curse than blessing most of the time,” he said. “But I’ve made peace with it.”
“But you’re suffering,” Robotman said in a sympathetic whisper. “Your schizophrenia…”
“It’s a small price to pay for the good it allows me to do,” Carl said. “I know you all want to help me. Just keep doing what you’re doing. Being my friend. That’s help enough.”
“Wow,” Robotman said. “You make me feel like a jerk for even thinking about using it.”
“You’re not going to use it?” Element Girl said, surprised.
“It’s like Carl said. I’ve been able to do a lot of good over the years like this. I’ve saved a lot of lives. You can’t do that racing cars. Super hero seems like a higher calling than race car driver,” Cliff Steele said. “So how about you, Rainie?”
“Well, I was pretty miserable when you guys found me,” Element Girl said. “I was in a pretty dark place. But now it feels like old times. Like when I used to hang out with Metamorpho and the gang. I’m content. It feels right again and I wouldn’t want to change that. Plus, I really like that we help people, too.”
All eyes turned to Blossom. “Huh?” Blossom said in her chirpy voice. “Why in the world would Blossom ever want to change?”
Everyone laughed. “No, I guess you wouldn’t,” Robotman said. “I guess that just leaves you, chief.”
“Yes, I suppose it does,” Mento said. “When I first had my accident, I would have given anything to walk again. But the accident opened up so many new perceptions that to go back would be like a blind man being given sight only to have it taken away again. It’s hard to explain, but this broken form is like the weight holding a kite in place so that the winds that let it fly don’t sweep it away. I don’t think it can be contained again or that I would even want it to be.
“Wow,” Robotman said, impressed. “I guess that settles that.”
“I think it does,” Mento agreed. He turned his chair to the workmen who stood waiting. You may take it now.”
The men hammered the wooden lid on the crate and took it deep into the recesses of the warehouse that contained relics from the adventures of the many iterations of the Doom Patrol and stacked it among many similar nondescript crates. It would not surface for many generations to come.
The teenage president had long blond hair and he wore bell bottom jeans and a red dashiki that bore the state seal: a dove within a circle surrounded by hippie lettering that read “The Groovy States of America.”
The strings of beads hanging in the doorway rattled as several colorful costumed figures entered. They were known as the Love Syndicate of America: Sunshine Superman, Foxy Lady, Magic Lantern, Liberated Woman, Bat-Trip, Groovestar, Dove Man and Dove Woman, Love Arrow and Rainbow Canary, Speed Freak, Starshine, Small Wonder, Plastic Fantastic, the Martian Peacehunter, and the android known as Purple Haze.
“Peace, my brothers and sisters,” Prez said, holding up two fingers in a peace sign.
“Peace, Mr. President,” they replied, holding up their hands in the peace sign.
He hugged each of them before they sat down in the bean bag chairs that surrounded the large state seal in the center of the shag carpet of the oval office floor. He sat facing them, Indian style, on his desk. “So what’s the good word, my amigos?” Prez asked.
“We’ve just gotten back from Russia,” the long haired Sunshine Superman said. He wore a bell sleeved blue top that bore a red sun with a yellow S in the center. Blue pants were tucked into red fringed buccaneer style boots and he wore a large-collared red fringed cape. A red sash was tied around his waist over the untucked shirt. “We let them know, like, this aggression will not stand, man.”
“So they’re hip to our scene now?” Prez asked.
“You know it, baby!” Foxy Lady said. The black woman had an enormous afro, gold loop ear rings, a gold fringed halter top and a gold fringed mini skirt with gold fringed go-go boots. Around her neck, she wore a long string of beads from which hung her tantu totem.
“Far out,” Prez Rickard said, smiling.
“You’re really making the world a better place, leader man,” Bat Trip said. Over his grey long sleeved t-shirt and jeans, he wore a long blue hooded poncho with bat ears and a black bat symbol crocheted on it, black John Lennon style sunglasses, blue suede moccasin boots. Over his shoulder was slung his famous yellow utility man-bag.
“It’s my happening and it freaks me out!” Prez said, slapping his knees.
“It’s a beautiful thing,” Magic Lantern said. He had long, wavy brown hair, green sunglasses, a green tie dyed shirt with a white lantern symbol, black bell bottom jeans, and green sandals.
Next to him sat his best friend, Love Arrow. He had long blond hair and a long full beard. He wore a green fringed vest, green bell bottoms and moccasins.
Leaning against Love Arrow on the same bean-bag chair was his girlfriend, Rainbow Canary. She had waist-length blonde hair that hung down her back. She wore a rainbow colored shirt tied off at her chest, blue hot pants and a fringed vest with matching blue go-go boots and fishnet stockings.
Next to them sat Dove Man and his wife, Dove Woman. Both wore white dove head cowls that covered half their faces, white wings, cut-off jeans, and peace symbol pendants. Dove woman accented her outfit with a white fringed bikini top.
Next to them sat the patriotically clad Heavy Metal wore an American Flag patterned poncho red and white striped bell-bottoms. On his shoulder sat the diminutive Small Wonder. He wore a red and blue dashiki with red bell bottoms.
Beside them sat Speed Freak. He had long red hair with a red headband with yellow wings on the side. He wore a red tank top with a yellow lightning, red bell bottoms and no shoes.
Groovestorm had a wild mane of flames that flowed like shaggy long hair. He wore a yellow and red tie-dyed shirt in a sunburst pattern and red and yellow patched bell bottoms.
Beside him sat the Martian Peace-hunter. The green skinned alien wore a high collared blue cape, yellow beads, blue bell bottoms and boots.
Next to him sat Liberated Woman. The black woman with long dreadlocks wore a red headband and a red halter top trimmed in gold with gold fringe and a gold female sign, blue hot-pants with white stars, and red thigh high boots trimmed in white.
Beside her sat Plastic Fantastic. The elastic hero had a mod style haircut and wore a red and black Nehru jacket and red bellbottoms with black trim and high heeled boots.
Next was the black haired sorceress known as Witchy Woman. She wore a blue and white Cat in the Hat style hat, mirrored John Lennon style sunglasses, a blue and white tie-dyed tuxedo tails jacket, a white buttoned vest, blue hot-pants, and blue boots.
Lastly was the purple android, Purple Haze. He wore a long dashiki of the same color and had a white peace symbol on his forehead. “Is there anything else we can do?” he asked Prez.
“Just keep spreading the love, baby,” Prez Rickard said, spreading his arms in an open gesture. “Just keep spreading the love.”
“Peace, leader man,” Sunshine Superman said, holding his hand up in the peace sign as the Love Syndicate filed out of the beaded doorway.
“Peace, my brothers and sisters,” Prez Rickard said.
“After they left, Prez Rickard stood up and walked to the closet. He opened the door to reveal the device created by the other-worldly beings known as the Controller: the Miracle Machine. He thought about what Bat-Trip had said. They really were making the world a better place.
Steve Dayton, the quadriplegic super hero known as Mento, lay slumped in his chair in his study as he awoke. He realized he must have dosed off while watching television. What he saw made his jaw drop.
On the screen was Tom Brokaw doing the evening. It was a very different Tom Brokaw, however. He had long hair held in place by a headband that bore a peace symbol. He wore a lime green shirt and a brown faux fur vest. Around his neck was a string of beads.
“As flower children across the country continue to flock to Timothy Leary Center,” Tom Brokaw reported, “experts say there’s no reason, like, to be afraid to take the brown acid. It is simply a purer and stronger strain. But if you’ve never been experienced, it could be your ticket to a bad trip.”
Before he could react further to the strange newscast, Cliff Steele, aka Robotman, dashed to his doorway. Have you seen the TV? I just watched a commercial for Marlboro Joints!”
Steve Dayton gathered the rest of the team. They scanned channels to see how the world had changed.
“Wow,” Rainie Blackwell, aka Elemental Girl said as they watched a pony-tailed Lawrence Welk conduct his symphony in a rendition of the Moody Blues’ “Knights in White Satin. Did we all get zapped to Earth-H?”
“Earth-H?” Blossom asked.
“You know.. H for hippie?”
“With all the barriers in place, I doubt we’re on another Earth,” Mento said. “Somehow, this one has been transformed. The question is how do we change it back.”
“I didn’t see anything about any wars or even violent crime on the news channels,” Robotman said “Maybe the world is better off.”
“Whatever happened was without the world’s consent,” Mento said. “So we don’t get to make that choice.”
He turned his sophisticated wheelchair with a telepathic command. “Follow me to my lab.”
Once Steve Dayton was in his lab, two robot arms rose out of hidden compartments in his chair and began to work the dials of the super computer. “I’m establishing a link to the satellite network above earth to see if I can find out more about what is happening.”
All across the western world, it was the same. Buildings and houses were painted in psychedelic colors with round peace sign paned windows. Most signs were written with 60s style hippie lettering. People, no matter what age, were dressed in hippie clothing.
‘Far out,” Cliff Steele joked.
“I’m glad you can see the humor in this,” Mento said. “I, for one, am not amused.
“Well, you always were kind of a square, Steve,” Robotman said. He turned to Carl Stoner, the Odd Man, and said, “You should feel right at home in this.”
“Not by choice,” the Odd Man reminded him. His schizophrenia often warped how he perceived the world.
“Yeah… sorry,” Robotman said, feeling like a first class heel.
“It’s going to take me a while to analyze these readings,” Mento said. “I’ll call you when I have something.”
Realizing they had been dismissed, the rest of the team filed out of the room. When they entered the den, they saw the décor had changed. The carpet was now a magenta shag. Brightly colored couches and egg shaped chairs had replaced the leather couch and recliners. The walls were a bright purple with florescent flowered decals dotting them. The oil paintings had been replaced with black light posters with stylized peace symbols, smiley faces, and pot leaves.
Robotman picked up the television remote and turned on the round TV set. He started flipping channels until he came to a newscast of the British Royal family. The queen wore tie dyed kurta blouse and wrap skirt, beads, and her long straight hair was adorned with a crown of flowers. Next to her sat Prince Philip. He and the members of the royal guard wore uniforms that looked like the ones the Beatles wore on the Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album. Across from them, similarly dressed, sat Prince Charles and Princess Diana. They were being carried in a colorful carriage with peace signs on the side pulled by long maned horses with rainbow reins and carved unicorn horns adorning their harnesses.
The Royal family waved to adoring throngs of British citizens. The royal guard, in their tall purple faux-bearskin helmets, carried baskets to throw flowers and peace-beads to outstretched hands.
The footage of the parade was followed by a report on the members of the UN uniting for a world hippie drum circle. Finally, the station reached the end of its broadcast day. The national anthem, as performed by Jimi Hendrix on electric guitar, began to play as an image came onto the screen of an American Flag that looked as if it were painted with tie dye flew in the breeze.
Once the national anthem was over, the room grew quiet for a moment. The silence was broken by the whirring of the motor to Mento’s electric chair as he entered the room. “I believe I have found the reason this is happening.”
The main feature of Steve Dayton’s lab was the enormous super-computer. It consisted of a large console with a huge mounted monitor surrounded by several smaller monitors. Staring at the giant monitor, the team now stood before the super-computer which showed a large world map. Parts of the land masses were in purple. The others were in green. The side monitors showed scenes from around the world. “As you can see from the map, a large part is marked in purple representing the areas that have been affected, “ Steve Dayton said. “That area is growing in size. Russia is the most recent nation to be absorbed.”
“Absorbed?” Element Girl said. “Absorbed by what?”
“A vibrational wave is moving across the world, transforming everything in its path,” Mento said. “Satellite photos show that a meteor struck in rural Oregon. That soon became the apex of the transitional wave before it moved to Washington DC.”
“So then we need to stop this wave,” Robotman said.
“We need to do more than that,” Steve Dayton said. “We have to find a way to reverse it. Either the wave consumes everything, which is not an option, or we turn it back. Reality cannot remain in a state of flux without being shattered.”
“Isn’t this Justice League territory?” Robotman said. “Wouldn’t they normally be the ones taking care of something like this?”
Mento’s gaze drifted to one of the side monitors. On it was the Love Syndicate of America as they tried to spread their message of peace and love to the Balkan nation of Madora. A line of rifle toting guards stood in front of the capitol with their rifles aimed at them. Bat-trip walked down the row of soldiers, placing a flower in the barrel of each rifle.
“Somehow I don’t see that happening,” Mento said, grimacing.
As he piloted the Doom Patrol’s airship, Cliff Steele shook his head in disbelief as it flew towards Washington. He looked down at the mushroom shaped building for Tofuburger King beneath a billboard for Canabis Cola. “The whole world’s gone crazy!”
“Looks that way,” Carl Stoner said. “And …and.. if anybody knows crazy, it’s me.”
“What I’d like to know is why we weren’t affected along with everyone else,” Robotman said, casting a glance at Stoner.
“Because we’re already a bunch of freaks,” Element Girl said.
The Airship grew quiet until Mento broke the silence. “You might be on to something,” he said. “Each of us feels isolated… apart from society in our own way. Whatever is behind this might have picked up on that and moved on.”
“We can’t be the only ones like that,” Robotman said. “Surely, there must be others.”
“Pro… pro… probably not in our line of work,” Carl Stoner said. He looked down at his nervous fidgety hands and began rocking and muttering to himself. A look of concern passed among the group. He had stopped taking his medication before it had all even started, as if he somehow knew he would have to use his powers. He would have to become the Odd Man again.
“Blossom wonders if friend Alec was changed,” the ethereally beautiful plant elemental said, thinking of the Swamp Thing.
“He’s even more isolated than we are,” Elemental Girl said, laughing ruefully.
The monitors hanging from the ceiling of the airship displayed images from around the country that had been picked up from the satellite network. “Is that Mount Rushmore?” Element Girl exclaimed, staring at the images now carved in the mountainside: Timothy Leary, Abby Freeman, Jack Kerouac and Bob Dylan.
“I hate to think of what the Lincoln Memorial must look like now,” Robotman said.
They rode in silence until they began to approach the nation’s capital. They were surprised to find most of the buildings and monuments unchanged. At least, they appeared that way from the exterior.
As they approached the White House, they felt a sudden jolt. Whatever it was began to take the airship downward, lowering it to the White House lawn.”
“What the…?” Robotman exclaimed.
“It appears someone is here to greet us,” Mento said. “Let’s step outside and say hello.”
When they stepped outside, they found themselves faced with the Justice League of America, albeit a very different Justice League. Normally, they would be severely outclassed. In this case, they had no idea wat to expect.
“Who are you supposed to be?” Robotman said.
“We’re the Love Syndicate of America, man!” Groovestorm said, as if offended that he didn’t recognize them..
“And we hate to be a bummer, man, but we can’t let you pass,” Sunshine Superman said. Magic Lantern generated a giant green hand that did a ‘halt’ gesture.
“Are you responsible for all this?” Mento asked.
“All of what?” Love Arrow said defensively.
“All of this hippie garbage!” Robotman said.
“Hey, not cool, man!” Dove Man snapped. “Prez made the world a better place. Now, everyone can live in peace, love, and harmony!”
“Prez?” Blossom said, looking at them curiously.
“The president,” Purple Haze said.
“Yeah, the president, silly,” Rainbow Canary giggled brightly. “Who do you think?”
“We need to see the president, then,” Mento said.
“No way, man,” Bat Trip said.
“I’m afraid I must insist,” Mento replied.
“Do you think we’re afraid of you?” Liberated Woman said, taking a defensive posture.
“No, Liberated Woman,” Sunshine Superman said to Nubia, gesturing for her to hold back. “We’re here to stop them. But no violence!”
“Well, that should make things easier,” Element Girl said.
Sunshine Superman moved towards Mento with a patient expression, as if he were about to restrain an unruly child. Mento smirked at his overconfidence. He reached out to touch his mind and Sunshine Superman fell to the ground, asleep.
Mento felt his mind reel as he himself was under psychic attack. He lashed out with all he had and the Martian Peacehunter fell to the ground, also unconscious.
Magic Lantern threw up a barrier as Robotman moved towards him. His golden metal form passed through due to the ring’s vulnerability to yellow and the emerald hippie was quickly knocked unconscious.
Alarmed at seeing three of their most powerful members so easily dispatched, Groovestorm gasped and quickly raised his hands towards Mento. Before he could do whatever he had planned, Mento touched his mind and separated the combined being into Professor Martin Stein and Ronnie Raymond. The two ordinary humans were then easily subdued.
Robotman raised his fist and was about to strike Purple Haze when the android threw up his hands and said, “Wait, man, like, I’m just a conscientious objecture!” Robotman gave a shrug and moved onto the patriotically colored cyborg youth, Heavy Metal.
Love Arrow and Rainbow Canary braced themselves for an oncoming attack. Neither was able to take aim, though, when the Odd Man cast his empathic powers towards them and shared his hallucinations, the products of his own schizophrenia. The two fell to the ground, holding their heads.
Small Wonder tried to help his friend by crawling into his ear. He was quickly stunned by the nanites that acted as antibodies for Cliff Steele’s robotic systems. Robotman caught him as he fell out of his ear and handed him to Heavy Metal. As the young man stared down at his fallen friend, Robotman used the distraction to deliver a right cross that knocked him unconscious.
Dove Man and Dove Woman were caught off guard as thick roots shot up from the ground with a wave of Blossom’s hands. They were quickly ensnared.
Witchy Woman began a backwards incantation with the hopes of helping her fallen comrades. She was unable to finish it as she suddenly choked on her own words and fell to the ground. Element Girl, in the form of sleeping gas, left her lungs just in time for Speed Freak to run into her cloud, inhale her, and collide with Plastic Fantastic in a tangled heap.
“I can’t believe we’re beating the Justice League!” Element Girl exclaimed.
“Me neither!” Robotman said.
“We’re not beating the Justice League,” Mento said, correcting them. “We’re beating the Love Syndicate. “If it were the Justice League, we would already be defeated.”
Their attention turned to the three remaining members: Bat Freak, Foxy Lady, and Liberated Woman. All three seemed paralyzed by the internal struggle between their own natural instincts and the pacifist ones of their transformation.
Bat Freak was visibly shaking. A pained look of confusion and turmoil crossed his face. The flowers he had pulled from his utility bag fell to the ground, crushed by the tense grip of his hand.
“So you cats came to see me?” a voice suddenly called out. They all looked to the direction of the voice and saw Prez Rickard walking towards them. “Why don’t we all go inside. Maybe its time we had ourselves a pow wow. I’m sure we’ve got a lot to rap about.”
The members of the Doom Patrol took in the transformed halls of the White House as they walked alongside Prez. The secret service followed closely behind, clad in Nehru suits and round mirrored sunglasses.
“I see you redecorated,” Mento said.
“Yeah. Groovy, huh?” Prez grinned.
The swirling psychedelic patterns seemed to twist and move before the Odd Man. Blossom caught him as he started to lose his balance.
“Don’t worry, friend Carl,” Blossom whispered to him sweetly. “Blossom has you.”
When they got to the oval office, Prez gestured to a large multi-stemmed hookah and said, “Any of you partake?”
“My body is numb enough as it is,” Mento said.
“Yeah,” Robotman added. “and I’m mostly robot. Element Girl isn’t human. Blossom’s a plant. And the Odd Man here… I guess it would just be redundant.”
“Suit yourself,” Prez said, hopping backwards into the office chair behind his desk. It spun around until he grabbed is desk to stop himself. “It wouldn’t have been cool of me not to offer.”
“I think we have a problem,” Mento said.
“Yeah, we do,” Prez sighed. “That sort of bully behavior outside…. That’s just not right. That’s the sort of thing I’m trying to save the world from.”
“Blossom didn’t hurt anybody,” Blossom said in her high melodious voice.
“No, you didn’t, you beautiful thing you,” Prez said, giving her a look that would have made her blush if she were capable of it.
“You speak of bully behavior, but isn’t that what you’ve done here?” Mento said, getting the conversation back on track.
“What are you talking about?” Prez said, looking as if he had been struck. “I’m making the world a better place. No war! No fighting. No pain or suffering, man!”
“What does it mean if they don’t get there on their own?” Mento said. “By taking away their right to choose, even non-violently… isn’t that in and of itself a form of aggression?”
“They chose wrong!” Prez exclaimed in a voice choked with anguish as slapped his desk top with both hands.
“You know this isn’t right,” Mento said firmly.
Prez’s head slumped forward and he rubbed his eyes with the balls of his hands. “We were supposed to change the world. Instead, I watched as my generation became the same capitalist fat-cats and warmongers we railed against. It had all gone so wrong. Then I found that wonderful machine… How could I not try to set things right? I just…. I just couldn’t.”
“What machine are you talking about?” Mento asked.
Prez raised his head, revealing red, wet eyes, and rose from his desk. He walked over to is closet and opened the door. Inside sat the machine in question.
“It’s called the Miracle Machine,” Prez said. “I don’t know how I know that,” he said sadly. “When I found it sitting in a crater on my farmland, I just knew that was its name. It’s like it spoke to me.”
He passed his hand over it and the room returned to normal, along with the rest of the world. When he turned around, he was no longer the fresh faced teenager he was a moment before. His long blond hair was now much thinner and receding. Beneath his sad, disillusioned eyes were heavy bags. “My name is Alan Rickard and I don’t want to be president anymore,” the weary middle aged man said. “I... I just want to go home. I’m so tired.”
As they watched the back of Alan Rickard as he exited the airship, they couldn’t help but notice how slumped his shoulders were as he walked away. This was not the carefree young man they first encountered. That had simply been an imitation of someone who hadn’t existed in years.
‘Do you think he will be okay?” Element Girl said with concern as the airship rose into the air.
“No,” Mento said bluntly.
“No?!!” Element Girl exclaimed. “You’re not supposed to say no!”
“I’m sorry, but I’ve never been very comfortable with lying.”
“I can’t believe you! You’re a real piece of work, Steve!” Element Girl harrumphed.
“Look,” Mento said sternly. “The man was already depressed at the state of the world to begin with. He had an untenable dream about what the world was supposed to be. When, by a crazy miracle, he managed to get it, he realized the moral implications of imposing his will on the world made him as bad as the ones he used to protest against. So he was forced to change everything back to the way it was. He might learn to live with it, but he’ll never get past it. And that’s the only reason I chose not to hand him over to the Justice League.”
The ride back was one of awkward silence.
The team of heroes stood at the entrance to the warehouse. The miracle machine sat before them in a large open wooden crate. They were flanked by several men in jump suits bearing the logo of Dayton Industries.
“This is your last chance before it is put in storage,” Mento said. “Remember, this is a machine capable of completely altering your reality.”
“Meaning?” Robotman asked.
“You could be normal again,” Mento said.
All eyes turned to Carl Stoner. It had been hard for all of them to watch him during the course of the mission.
Carl grinned sheepishly. He was experiencing one of his brief moments of lucidity, so he was able to read their glances. “ah… my gifts are more curse than blessing most of the time,” he said. “But I’ve made peace with it.”
“But you’re suffering,” Robotman said in a sympathetic whisper. “Your schizophrenia…”
“It’s a small price to pay for the good it allows me to do,” Carl said. “I know you all want to help me. Just keep doing what you’re doing. Being my friend. That’s help enough.”
“Wow,” Robotman said. “You make me feel like a jerk for even thinking about using it.”
“You’re not going to use it?” Element Girl said, surprised.
“It’s like Carl said. I’ve been able to do a lot of good over the years like this. I’ve saved a lot of lives. You can’t do that racing cars. Super hero seems like a higher calling than race car driver,” Cliff Steele said. “So how about you, Rainie?”
“Well, I was pretty miserable when you guys found me,” Element Girl said. “I was in a pretty dark place. But now it feels like old times. Like when I used to hang out with Metamorpho and the gang. I’m content. It feels right again and I wouldn’t want to change that. Plus, I really like that we help people, too.”
All eyes turned to Blossom. “Huh?” Blossom said in her chirpy voice. “Why in the world would Blossom ever want to change?”
Everyone laughed. “No, I guess you wouldn’t,” Robotman said. “I guess that just leaves you, chief.”
“Yes, I suppose it does,” Mento said. “When I first had my accident, I would have given anything to walk again. But the accident opened up so many new perceptions that to go back would be like a blind man being given sight only to have it taken away again. It’s hard to explain, but this broken form is like the weight holding a kite in place so that the winds that let it fly don’t sweep it away. I don’t think it can be contained again or that I would even want it to be.
“Wow,” Robotman said, impressed. “I guess that settles that.”
“I think it does,” Mento agreed. He turned his chair to the workmen who stood waiting. You may take it now.”
The men hammered the wooden lid on the crate and took it deep into the recesses of the warehouse that contained relics from the adventures of the many iterations of the Doom Patrol and stacked it among many similar nondescript crates. It would not surface for many generations to come.