Chapter 3: Vanishing Act

by Doc Quantum

In Egypt, the super-speedster known as Savitar was stalking his prey. The Hawkman was nearby -- he could feel it. But despite using his speed to search through the entire country, he could not locate the man in question. He had begun to wonder if the hero was really in Egypt, after all.

And then he saw the Hawkman. He was in flight, of course, and thus beyond Savitar's reach. But the super-speedster with delusions of godhood saw this as a minor challenge. As soon as the hero landed, Savitar would be on him. He smiled as he thought about what an advantage his great speed gave him over a man who merely had mechanical wings and possessed a gravity-defying metal.

Perhaps he would keep the metal for himself. After all, did a god not belong in the sky? With the power of flight added to his speed, would he not have domain over the entire world?

But as the hours began to drag by, the Hawkman did not land. He seemed to be hovering in place, as if waiting for something or someone. As a speedster, Savitar had the ability to alter his senses to make time slow down to a crawl; right now, he wished he had the exact opposite ability, if only to stave off his current boredom. This was no assignment for a god, he had decided. In fact, why was he following the orders of mere mortals, even if they were chosen by Neron himself?

Before another rebellious thought passed through his mind, he disappeared in the blink of an eye. In the skies above, Hawkman suddenly flew off toward the west.

***

On a rooftop at Ivy Town University, Dwarfstar was strongly resisting the urge to kill. It would be so easy; all he had to do was to shrink himself down to the molecular level as he entered a body, then expand to full size, causing the body to burst from within. As the ridiculous joke of a villain called Mouse Man, he had remained for years at the size of a mouse. But with the power to alter his size at will, he was thinking of all sorts of things he could do now. And killing was one of them.

But the ones he wanted to kill most was not his chosen opponent in the Justice League, the Atom, nor the rest of that team of heroes. The ones he wanted to kill so desperately right now, at this very moment, were his fellow teammates in the Legion of Doom -- the Falcon and Lady Falcon -- who were pressing themselves up against each other and making out so voraciously that Dwarfstar wondered how the fillings in their teeth weren't already dislodged.

"For the last time--" yelled Dwarfstar in a deep voice so unlike the high-pitched squeal he'd had as Mouse Man "--will you two please just get a room?!"

The couple in question gave him no reaction to his comment, and Dwarfstar sighed. He really needed to kill someone. He'd never killed anyone before, but ever since he became Dwarfstar, the desire to kill had been building in him. He kind of liked that feeling after being so powerless at a small size for so many hopeless, long years. It would make him feel powerful for once. Yes, he would kill, and he would have to do so soon.

Maybe he could kill this Ray Palmer that they were searching for. Sure, they were just supposed to kidnap the original Atom, but the eventual plan was to off the JLA, anyway, so what harm could it do? He knew that if he didn't kill someone, and very soon, he'd have to kill the Falcon and his lady-friend -- just burst through their stomachs like that scene in Alien. Yes, that would be fitting for a couple of bird-brains.

But before Dwarfstar could make a move -- any move -- he and the Falcons vanished.

***

Similar scenes played out elsewhere around the world.

On the outskirts of Atlantis, the transformed Dagon -- who had now truly become one of the fearsome Deep Ones, emissaries of fabled R'lyeh -- vanished as he approached the city of Poseidonis on a mission only he of all the Legion could accomplish.

In Manhattan, in the Broadway theater district, a power-ring-disguised Lord Malvolio of the Green Flame sought out two members of the Justice League who were attending a musical, awaiting for the appointed time to strike. But that time never came, as he also vanished.

In Metropolis, the Marshal was keeping tabs on a reporter named Lois Lane across from the Daily Planet building as he waited impatiently for Super-Menace to return. His waiting abruptly ended when he disappeared.

In Star City, the Blue Bowman sat uneasily next to Mockingbird -- the former Magpie -- who had thus far resisted all his advances. She was a lot cuter now that she'd given up her punk hairstyle for something a bit more feminine, but she hadn't warmed up to him at all. And as he began wondering if Green Arrow had ever had this much trouble getting Black Canary, he and Mockingbird suddenly vanished.

In Phoenix, Arizona, Kasta the Thrill-Killer was still tracking his enemy's power signature and licking his lips in anticipation of absorbing all that delicious energy from his enemy's corpse. But before he could zero in on the Payton home, Kasta disappeared.

And in a Toledo, Ohio, hotel room, Malleable Man sat in bed watching White Heat on TV. It was an old James Cagney flick, one that Skizzle Shanks had never missed watching when he had the opportunity; kidnapping Ralph and Sue Dibny could damn well wait. But just as Cagney was about to shout his famous line, "Made it, Ma -- top of the world," the green-clad Malleable Man was no more.

Behind all these disappearances was a certain sorceress named Allura, who was glad to finally take some action against the Justice League and specifically her own enemy, Zatanna. Their brief encounter shortly before had not been satisfying enough; instead of trapping Zatanna this time, Allura would be sure that Zatanna would join her father Zatara in the afterworld. Her death would be delicious.

***

It was a little-known fact that the Justice League of America had operated out of two different headquarters on Earth in its early days before finally relocating its operations to the JLA Satellite. The original headquarters, called the Secret Sanctuary, had been a fortress located in the tallest mountain in a far inland area and had been difficult to reach by ordinary means. (*) It was located, coincidentally enough, on the Earth-One counterpart of the same tall mountain peak that served as the Earth-Two Superman's mountain headquarters, the Secret Citadel. As such, it was a fitting home for the modern-day legends of the Justice League in its early days.

[(*) Editor's note: See "Riddle of the Runaway Room," Justice League of America #31 (November, 1964).]

But the fact that it was difficult to access proved to be a barrier for a few of its members. Aquaman had to rely on transport from one of the other Justice Leaguers or otherwise swim inland before hiking up the mountain to access the Secret Sanctuary, which was risky given that he needed exposure to water once every hour. And when Lucas "Snapper" Carr began attending regular meetings as the team mascot, the distance from his home in Happy Harbor, Rhode Island, proved difficult, even with the aid of a gift from the JLA: an anti-gravity propulsion device that made his old jalopy into a flying car. (*)

[(*) Editor's note: See "Journey into the Micro-World," Justice League of America #18 (March, 1963).]

After a few short years, the team took advantage of their first battle with the Key to relocate its Secret Sanctuary to someplace a bit more accessible for Aquaman and Snapper Carr in particular. The Key had used psycho-chemicals to control the members of the JLA, even going so far as to make Green Lantern destroy the Secret Sanctuary, causing the ceiling to melt, the council room to burn, and the floors to explode. But he also made Green Lantern unconsciously restore and conceal the fortress after a delay of one hour, so that the Key could use it as his own headquarters to take over the world with his psycho-chemicals. (*) The team defeated the Key, of course, but also realized through this case how easily the Secret Sanctuary could be moved, and they determined to find a more accessible site for their headquarters.

[(*) Editor's note: See "The Key-Master of the World," Justice League of America #41 (December, 1965).]

The Justice League found a hill in Rhode Island close to Happy Harbor and relocated everything in the original Secret Sanctuary to this new location. (*) Aquaman could easily reach the second Secret Sanctuary through an underground waterway leading to the ocean, while Snapper could make it to meetings even more easily by car. Unfortunately, the relocation also made the headquarters more accessible to the team's enemies, and when Snapper was finally manipulated into betraying the team to a disguised Joker a couple of years later, the JLA abandoned its second headquarters as well. (*)

[(*) Editor's note: See "The Future Ain't What it Used to Be," Justice League of America #240 (July, 1985) and "Snapper Carr, Super-Traitor," Justice League of America #77 (December, 1969).]

But the continued existence of the original Secret Sanctuary located in the Appalachians was still very much a secret, except to a very few. That was why the Justice League of America now gathered there, despite it being barren of any of the equipment, trophies, or creature comforts they'd enjoyed there originally. If the Legion of Doom had been able to crack through the JLA Satellite's security system, they'd surely be able to do the same to the Rhode Island Secret Sanctuary, leaving only the original abandoned headquarters as a viable third option. Hopefully this one still remained a secret to the Legion of Doom.

After several of the Justice Leaguers had met their counterparts in the Legion of Doom, and the disguised Lord Malvolio had openly boasted about Neron's creation of the team, Batman had quickly formulated a plan. He'd had his suspicions about whether the Green Lantern who had visited them was really their Green Lantern, so he'd kept it a secret from him. If he'd been wrong, he would have apologized to him later for keeping him out of the loop. But it turned out that he'd been right, and this Green Lantern was an impostor.

Batman's plan included making the Legion of Doom think that their guard was down, and this took the form of several Justice Leaguers going their separate ways on personal business, much to the chagrin of the Flash, who hadn't been informed of the plan. Hawkman traveled to Egypt, Martian Manhunter and Wonder Woman supposedly went to a Broadway show, and Starman went home to Arizona to check on his family. But each of these Justice Leaguers went out prepared to act as bait to lure the Legionnaires of Doom to them. Even former member Ray Palmer had been clandestinely warned ahead of time that he might be targeted. But although the anticipated attack never came, a few of the Legion of Doom members on the trail of JLAers were spotted disappearing in much the same way that Batman and Zatanna had earlier observed the Wrath disappear using a black candle, though in these cases no candles were used.

Now Batman was convinced that the Legion of Doom was preparing for an all-out attack on the team. And although the JLA knew that they were being manipulated into fighting the Legion of Doom, they'd have no other choice if innocent lives were involved. But that didn't mean they wouldn't come prepared. Batman always thought five steps ahead of everyone else, or at least he let the others think so, and he had made his preparations for the upcoming battles. All that was left was to wait for the Legion to strike.

***

The Legion of Doom was assembled in its satellite headquarters, the former base of the Injustice Gang, which they'd appropriated for their own purposes earlier that week. There was a buzz of excitement in the air. Finally, the assembled villains would be able to accomplish the task that Neron had given them. But there seemed to be just as much excitement about getting this over and done with so they could move on with their new lives as there was about killing the Justice League itself. After all, except for the unholy trinity and a few others such as the Marshal and Allura, most of the Legionnaires had no personal quarrels with the Leaguers. But killing the JLA was part of their contract with Neron, and it had to be done if they were to be freed.

Gone was the snappy banter that had earlier gone on between the Legionnaires of Doom. They'd had enough of toying with the JLA. Now it was time to get down to business.

Allura, the elemental sorceress, stood away from the others in deep concentration. She could sense that the lost Justice Leaguers were again attempting to return to the universe of Earth-One with that wayward sorceress they had picked up along the way. But Allura now took the time to strengthen the barriers so that she wouldn't be distracted during the upcoming battle. The lost Leaguers would only be allowed to return to meet their fate once the rest of the Justice League was disposed of. With any luck, that post-nuclear world they were on would be inhospitable enough to weaken them drastically before then.

Earlier, when the Legion of Doom had first assembled after Neron's initial gathering, the Wrath had quickly taken up leadership of the team, since he alone of Neron's unholy trinity even wanted to lead. Super-Menace had no interest in leading others, and the Dark Commander -- otherwise a very capable leader herself -- was still too disheartened by her break with the war god Mars to do much more than mope around. Now, though, Neron had commanded the other two to assist the Wrath. Together, the unholy trinity would act as generals in the war against the Justice League.

According to Neron's showdown plan, the Legion of Doom was to be divided into three teams, each led by one of the unholy trinity. The three generals were free to choose their teams' battlefields and strategies.

The Wrath would lead a team with Blue Bowman, Mockingbird, Malleable Man, and Dwarfstar. This team would face the Batman, Green Arrow, Black Canary, the Elongated Man, and the Atom. Since it was still June 26th, the anniversary of his parents' deaths, the Wrath wanted to get this over as swiftly as possible so he would finally have a free hand to act against James W. Gordon, or he'd have to wait another year for the time to be right. That's why he planned to strike in Gotham City itself; if he could wrap this up before midnight, he could achieve his lifelong plan for vengeance this very night.

Super-Menace would lead a team that included the Falcon and Lady Falcon, Lord Malvolio of the Green Flame, and Kasta the Thrill-Killer. They would face Superman, Hawkman, Hawkwoman, and Starman. This team would have an advantage against their counterparts in the JLA, since Green Lantern was already trapped in the pocket dimension within the power ring; Malvolio would have time to dispose of him later on, or perhaps bring him back to die with the other JLAers. Super-Menace was annoyed at having to watch over four others instead of leaving him clear to fight Superman one-on-one, but he planned to find a way to do so nonetheless, even if it meant leaving them to fend for themselves until he was done.

The Dark Commander would lead a team comprising herself, the Marshal, Allura, Dagon, and Savitar, and they would face Wonder Woman, the Martian Manhunter, Zatanna, Aquaman, and the Flash. She had several choices before her about where to lead her team before she finally settled on a site. Given Dagon's powers to manipulate water and the Marshal's weakness to open flames, Dark Commander chose an island not far from Atlantis to strike. She had her concerns, however, about the mental instability of Dagon, Savitar, and Allura, and she wasn't sure how much she could trust the Marshal, whom she was sure hated to have to take orders from a woman. It would prove challenging to keep this team under her control.

Chapter 5: Clash at the River Thermodon

by Libbylawrence

Wonder Woman's expression was grim as she piloted her robot plane toward the Black Sea on the north coast of Turkey. As a trained warrior, the Amazon's mind was naturally on the battle that awaited her. However, to her dismay, her thoughts occasionally wandered back to the stories she had heard from her mother, Queen Hippolyta, about the significance of this rugged land.

"Athena help me discipline my thoughts!" she whispered as she shook her head and looked down at the Terme River as it snaked along below the steep foothills that loomed above it.

Next to Nubia sat her lover and husband, J'onn J'onzz, the Martian Manhunter. The cerebral alien smiled as his gaze met her own. He understood her so well that they didn't need words. Their love had been celebrated in the Martian ceremony of unity earlier that month, and the couple shared a deep rapport that went beyond their roles as heroes or teammates. (*)

[(*) Editor's note: See The Brave and the Bold: Wonder Woman and Martian Manhunter: The Queen of Mars.]

"This land means a great deal to the Amazon nation, doesn't it?" he asked. "Seeing it anew must make you feel as I do when I gaze upon Mars. While Vonn, or Mars II, was a sanctuary of sorts to us after the destruction caused by Commander Blanx and the Blue Flame, it never truly held the sentimental bond that our original home possessed. Perhaps, thanks to the restoration T'omm brought about with his new powers, we may all return to Mars someday!"

Nubia nodded, and she replied, "Long ago, when my mother and her sisters decided to devote themselves to the teachings of Athena and Aphrodite, they rejected the god Mars and left this region in search of what would eventually become Paradise Island. It is an ominous but fitting site for a battle against one who prides herself on being a daughter of dread Mars himself!"

"The Dark Commander is more than just a routine super-criminal," J'onn recalled, as his wife had told him of their first meeting earlier. "She was fashioned by Mars himself to be a twisted reflection of Diana herself. I know beneath her silver helmet she conceals features that naturally give you pause. Remember, she is not your sister, nor is she your equal!"

"She is indeed a mirror to what I once was before Diana freed me from the thrall in which Mars held me," said Nubia. "I suppose she embodies more than one painful memory for me."

"We may be able to save her," said J'onn. "We may turn her from the path of hate."

"You always look for the good in everyone," said Nubia. "For all of your detective prowess, you still cling to the optimism of your happy childhood and your loving family. That is one of the things I love about you."

From the back of the plane, the Flash, a young man in a red and gold costume, smiled. "You newlyweds are giving me an inferiority complex," said Wally West. "Frances and I never say that kind of thing to one another!"

Aquaman was sitting next to the Flash, and he smiled slightly as he thought of his own wife Mera and their daughter Nautica. Wally's just kidding them, but I have to admit their bond makes me miss my own family. Mera and I have lost so much time together due to one crisis or another over the years. I don't want to miss a moment with her or lose precious time seeing Nautica grow up... not after the way we lost poor Arthur Junior.

The champion of Atlantis thought about the way he and Mera had lost their first child years ago, due to the murderous actions of one of his old foes. (*) May my friends never know that kind of pain, he prayed silently.

[(*) Editor's note: See "Dark Destiny, Deadly Dreams," Adventure Comics #452 (July-August, 1977).]

Aloud, Aquaman said, "This mental radio summons you received from the Dark Commander said that, unless you brought us here, innocent people would die! Did you gain any more information from that brief mental contact?"

Nubia shook her head. "Aquaman, the contact was powerful, as if her thoughts had been enhanced by another strong mind. I told J'onn earlier that I had the impression it was a Martian mind, but that could be my own imagination. Now that I am the ruler of a group of Martians, I constantly think of them as my people."

A pretty woman with black hair and a brief costume said, "If this summons means we will be encountering our own players on the other side, as Ellery Queen put it, we should be prepared for at least one Martian, plus this Savitar, Allura, and some counterpart of your own, Arthur!"

Aquaman nodded. Zatanna was right. Even though he had encountered undersea defenders from realms like lost Lemuria, he knew exactly who best fit the description of his opposite number.

Orm, or Ocean Master as he prefers to be called, may be my half-brother, but he also sees himself as a man who needs to defeat or kill me in order to avenge what he sees as our father's preference for me, he mused. It would strike me as some kind of Greek tragedy if I didn't feel so many conflicted emotions about him. I told him when we last fought that I was no longer going to hold back because of our connection, but can I really reject my own brother? I just don't think so.

As Nubia landed her plane on a clearing below a rocky bank, Aquaman rejected the idea as he realized, It can't be Orm. Our friends have recently had run-ins with similar opponents, but not with their arch-enemies. After all, Batman mentioned something about the Wrath, not the Joker, and the Flash would more likely be paired with someone from his Rogues Gallery, not this newcomer Savitar. I can't imagine Orm following someone else's lead, either.

As the heroes emerged from the plane, the Flash started to offer to scout the area at super-speed, not that he expected to see anything, since magic or some other force had shielded their foes from aerial view already.

But before he could speak, he gasped as one side of the steep slope to their right seemed to erupt into the air and hovered over them like some giant fist of stone before hurtling downward.

The avalanche would have been a terrible spectacle, but it would also have been viewed through his heightened perceptions as a slow-motion display under normal conditions. It's moving at super-speed! he thought as the rubble cascaded down at them.

Suddenly, Nubia's invisible plane rocketed forward to shield them from the rubble and to deflect most of it before being buried beneath the remnant.

By that time, the heroes had moved to safety. It was not that remarkable, since three of them possessed super-speed, and Aquaman and Zatanna were easily swept in their wake before harm could be done.

"Thank Hera I was able to mentally command the plane before we were buried!" said Nubia.

"Your mind is quick, woman, but your unnatural toys won't save you from us!" declared Savitar as he stood above them on the slope.

"Lending speed to the avalanche was a cute trick! You'll have to brag about it to the other inmates when I put you behind bars!" said the Flash as he raced straight up the slope to challenge the imposing figure.

Savitar laughed harshly, but without malice. He truly did see this battle as merely a necessary evil that stood between him and greater power.

"My Martian senses don't reveal any captives," said J'onn. "If they do have hostages, they are well-concealed."

At that moment, several other colorful figures appeared as a magic spell faded away. Zatanna shivered as she saw Allura. The lovely blonde still looked every inch like the angelic being who had helped reunite her with her lost father in the magical land of Kharma so long ago. Of course, the fact that the evil elemental was wearing the benign woman's very body made this fact logical, if no less unsettling.

Allura laughed with the same silvery tone she had possessed when she was her good self. "This region of your mortal domain sings to my very essence! There is ancient power here! Had I realized this land had such savory elements, I would have long ago claimed it as my own!" She raised one dainty hand and closed her fingers into a fist.

As she did so, the ground erupted around Zatanna and crushed her in a powerful embrace. She is toying with me! She knows this part of Turkey was close to my poor mother's home! she thought. "Well, she may be an elemental, but she won't spoil the purity of the Homo Magi's ancestral land!" she vowed. "Htrae esaeler em!" she cried in her peculiar backwards diction. (*)

[(*) Editor's note: Read what Zatanna says backwards, and you'll understand her spell.]

As the rocky fist began to crumble, Zatanna felt to her knees and whispered another spell, even as she reached into her jacket pocket. This may provide us with perfect ace up my sleeve, so to speak, she thought. The air shimmered around her, and the battle raged on.

The Flash was using his hand to slice the ground in front of him and send the soil sailing toward Savitar. He'll dodge the dirt, but this may buy us some time, he thought.

Nubia had already charged forward to face the Dark Commander as the armored woman met her with drawn sword. "This madness must end! You have to see Mars for the heartless fiend he truly is! There is little of nobility about his butchering ways!" she said, expertly blocking a thrust.

The Dark Commander brought her weapon down with silent fury and forced her foe back a few steps. There was no denying this warrior woman was deadly.

Meanwhile, Aquaman almost smiled with relief as he recognized the weird purple form of an obscure old foe. "Dagon!" he cried. "I thought you had fled with your tail between your legs back to Xebel long ago!"

The inhuman Dagon roared with anger as he charged at the blond hero. "You mock me with your smugness! I know nothing of this Xebel! I have only known hatred, rejection, and isolation! I grew up scorned by others and feared by my mother, who never understood me. For all of my youth, I only knew a sense of longing for something ancient and evil... something that taunted me with a whisper of possibilities my mortal parent could only fear!"

Aquaman dodged the bigger man and realized that Dagon was larger than he had been when last they had fought. His voice also sounded different. The costume had always distorted his speech, but this was something strange. He grabbed Dagon and wrestled him down, only to grit his teeth as his arm was sliced by the razor-sharp spines and ridges that studded Dagon's own body.

Suddenly, Aquaman realized that, while the man he had easily bested in the past might have possessed one human parent and one parent from the other-dimensional realm of Xebel, he was something far more inhuman now. "That's no costume! You've turned into a monster!" he said as he shifted positions to avoid the spines that had lacerated his arm.

"I have always been a monster by your pale, human standards of creation!" cried Dagon. "Now I am Dagon in name and in essence!"

Aquaman was still stronger than Dagon, and he managed to contain him in spite of his new powers. He was also far more experienced as a fighter, but he was slammed to the ground as a tiny tendril of solidified water snaked its way around his body and suddenly yanked him down. Mera never had that kind of precise control of her own solid water powers! he realized.

As the solid strand of water wrapped around his throat and tightened into a deadly hold, Aquaman appreciated the irony. I'm going to choke to death because of water! he thought.

Nearby, Nubia ducked under the Dark Commander's sword and flipped backward out of her reach. The Commander was not trying to avoid her blows; she was completely focused on attacking.

Nubia caught the Commander's sword and flipped it out of her hand. Ignoring her own cuts, she smashed the other woman in the face before sweeping her legs out from under her with a spinning kick.

Wonder Woman brought both heels down on the Dark Commander's arm and bent down to entangle her in a wrestling hold. "Surrender. There is no need for us to fight!" she said.

The Dark Commander rammed her helmet into Nubia's chin and flipped her over her shoulder as the battle resumed.

The Martian Manhunter had been tackled by the larger Martian warlord called the Marshal, and as they fought, the purple-armored killer said, "You and I were destined for such a day as this! My father saw you as the embodiment of all he held dear. He treated you like a son, and yet how pathetic you are in comparison to the perfect Martian! I was genetically altered to become a super-soldier and to lead our people to greatness! You were never more than a skulking scientist!"

J'onn J'onzz shifted his weight and brought his foe crashing to the ground. "You were engineered as a soldier, but I trained as a scientist. I think the way of the mind is superior!"

Flying upward, the Martian Manhunter scanned the battle scene with both his eyes and his mental might. He noted every detail before dropping down to engage the Marshal again.

Nearby, Zatanna cried out in pain as Allura encased her in solid ice. As she fought to breathe, the JLA's enchantress managed to reverse the spell. "Eci sdrahs eb delleper drawot Arulla!" she said in her backwards diction.

Allura yelled in frustration as she was struck by her own icy weapons. She rubbed a bleeding leg, then gestured at her foe and spoke a rhyming spell. A magical wind struck Zatanna like a hammer, and she fell hard to the ground.

The Flash spun around like a human whirlwind as Savitar generated his own counterclockwise wind. They matched each other perfectly, and both men crashed to the ground.

Aquaman managed to break free of Dagon's hold by focusing his own telepathic might on the monster. He could not control his mind, but he could startle him long enough to break his control of the solid-water noose. He punched Dagon again and again, and moved back to face him. "I can help you go to Xebel, and perhaps help you learn if that land is your place of origin!"

Dagon lowered his head and allowed a blinding hatred consume him. He would not listen to his foe's offers of peace.

J'onn J'onzz was intelligent. He was also a detective and a leader. He had long ago trained his mind to notice details, and he was concerned about those around him. These compassionate and intellectual traits enabled him to do something that was totally alien to the Marshal, who only saw others as pawns or victims. J'onn was able to make use of his surroundings and deduce logical patterns of behavior. Thus, having kept in mental touch with his allies, he knew Zatanna had faced attacks of earth, ice, and wind.

As the Marshal loomed over him, he phased into intangibility and allowed him to pass through his body directly into the path of Allura's next attack, which happened to be a flaming one. The Marshal groaned as magical flames engulfed him, and Zatanna rolled to safety. The hulking Martian crashed directly into the petite Allura, and she fell beneath his burning body. As the Marshal passed out from the flames, J'onn helped Zatanna to her feet while using his breath to smother the nearest flames with sand from a safe distance.

"I assumed the elemental would try fire, having used ice, wind, and earth as weapons," the Martian Manhunter explained.

Zatanna smiled in approval. Allura was momentarily breathless from the impact, and her hands could not gesture with the alien pinning her to the ground. "Sand and fire merge as glassy tomb!" Zatanna chanted. Allura and the stunned Marshal were instantly encased in a crystal tomb. "Payback for what she did to my father!" said Zatanna.

Nearby, the Dark Commander realized that she was helpless in Wonder Woman's latest hold. "Give up!" demanded Nubia as she held the Commander in a choke hold. The angry woman concentrated, and her own plane surged skyward toward the east.

"She plans to crash the plane into the nearest occupied community!" cried J'onn. "I can sense her thoughts all too easily!" The Martian Manhunter flew upward, but the plane's fiery jet trail drove him back.

Nubia knew her own plane was trapped beneath the rubble from the initial attack. She had one option. Using her own mind, she fought to overpower the mental commands of the Dark Commander. The two women stopped their physical struggle and became still as their minds waged an unseen war.

Resisting her foe, Wonder Woman valiantly struggled to take control of the plane. Drawing on Amazon training and her own indomitable willpower, she slowly managed to divert the speeding plane into the river. She sank down to the ground as the Dark Commander's still form lay across her knees. The other woman was silent, and Nubia detected no thoughts.

"She's in a coma!" gasped Wonder Woman as she realized the angry villainess had preferred to lose all rather than yield.

The Flash had recovered from the matching whirlwind impact before his less-experienced enemy. He caught his breath and stood above the other speedster.

The heroes had all won, as Aquaman also stood over the fallen Dagon. "His mind was so full of hate that he couldn't withstand a telepathic attack."

Dagon shuddered, and then his eyes grew wider. "I will die before I lose to you!"

The Terme or Thermodon River rushed upward and formed a tidal wave that loomed incredibly high above the heroes. Dagon was lifting the whole river with one terrible gesture of malice and self-loathing. Aquaman realized that knocking Dagon cold would still leave them at the mercy of the tidal wave.

Nubia reached for her lasso, even as the Flash and J'onn J'onzz prepared to do their best to drive the wave backward.

Zatanna was slightly more confident, as the spell she had whispered earlier took its time-delayed effect now. My ace in the hole had better work now! she thought. I'm too spent to stop that wave! "Won!" she cried in her backwards diction.

As the mystical energy she had summoned earlier interacted with the camera she had carried in her jacket, an amazing thing occurred.

John Zatara, whose essence had once been trapped in the mirror by Allura, had been mystically transferred into the camera when she'd used it in the other dimension, and whispered a spell before smashing his reflection.

Now she freed her father's spirit, and as the golden age hero stood before them, dynamic and restored to life, he smiled and shouted a spell in his own backwards diction. "Evaw nruter ot revir!" The waters obeyed his command, for he had decades of experience, and in some way, being partially preserved in the mystical glass had revitalized him.

Zatanna rushed into her father's arms as her friends secured the villains. They had won a victory, but the ultimate battle still loomed ahead.

Chapter 7: The Anniversary

by Doc Quantum

By the time the real Justice Leaguers arrived, the Legionnaires of Doom had already removed their disguises and had changed back into their ordinary outfits, at the Wrath's command. He wanted to make sure that the world knew that the real JLA were the ones who would meet their demise on this evening.

The Batman swooped in and attempted to strike the Wrath down, but his criminal counterpart ducked out of the way just as ably. In a moment, the two were in a fierce battle of martial arts.

Green Arrow and Black Canary attacked right away, the emerald archer firing trick arrow after trick arrow at the Blue Bowman, who returned fire with his own trick arrows. And as Black Canary used her canary-cry against Mockingbird, she was hardly surprised to find that the former Magpie had her own form of a canary-cry, her little gift from Neron.

The Elongated Man bounced into the Malleable Man, and the two elastic men got into a fight that left them almost bouncing off the rooftops. Nearby, the Atom met his opponent Dwarfstar, and the battle between the tiny titans was almost impossible to follow, since they switched sizes so rapidly in attempts to outmaneuver the other.

***

In the safe house, James W. Gordon remained tied to the chair, watching Rage rage over the fact that he hadn't been trusted with real bullets. "What the #^@%, man? What the #^@%?" the teenager repeated, shouting into the headset as he paced back and forth. "How the hell am I supposed to kill Gordon without any bullets?" he yelled, waving his arms in the air and letting go of the leash.

At that moment, Spike the Hell-Hound took his chance, lunging toward Gordon and knocking him and the chair over in his attack.

"Holy $#!^!" said Rage as he realized what was happening.

But he wasn't sure just what happened next, as a red-sleeved fist flew up from Gordon's coat and struck the Hell-Hound, followed by another fist with equal power, leaving the dog yelping from pain. It didn't make any sense; Gordon was securely tied to that chair, and besides, he was an old man.

Rage was almost too stunned to react when bare legs connected to feet that had no toes also sprouted out from Gordon's coat and sprung him back up, then raced for the door. One of the red-sleeved hands that had struck the dog now reached for the door handle and flung it open. And Gordon, still bound by his arms and legs to the chair, found himself running down the corridor with a second pair of legs.

"Get after him!" shouted Ducard through the headset.

Rage shook his head and bolted into action, running after the fleeing chair and Gordon atop it. He whistled to Spike the Hell-Hound and yelled, "Sic 'em, boy!"

Police Commissioner James W. Gordon was on the ride of his life; he just hoped that his life wouldn't end this evening.

"Don't worry, Commish," said his protector. "We'll have you out of here and safe and sound in no time, thanks to the NBI!"

Gordon tried to answer, but he was having a bumpy ride. It was hard to talk without biting his tongue, since he was still tied securely to a chair, while a pair of stretched-out legs were running beneath, carrying him out of the lion's den. The commissioner could hear the sound of a barking, growling, snarling dog almost nipping him at his heels, but thankfully that sound was getting farther and farther away as his red-clad savior swiftly ran toward the building's exit. But he knew he wasn't safe yet; the Wrath's answer to Robin, a misguided kid called Rage, was still after him, as was the Wrath's own Gordon figure, whoever that was.

But the pair of legs beneath him belonged to someone who was quite formidable himself, a super-hero whose glory days were in the 1960s and who had retired and come out of retirement more times than any other hero Gordon could think of.

Plastic Man wasn't very active these days, but he always answered a call from the Batman.

***

Elsewhere in Gotham City, a battle was brewing between five members of the Justice League of America and five members of the Legion of Doom. That battle was being captured on a live television news feed for the world to see, even though it had spread out from the top of Gotham City Police Headquarters to nearby rooftops.

Ralph Dibny was having the fight of his life. It had been a long time since he'd squared off with a foe that had the same powers as he did, and more besides. The last time he had fought Malleable Man, Skizzle Shanks had only temporarily gained the ability to stretch his body, much like Elongated Man himself. But now Malleable Man was using his abilities in ways that Ralph had only known Plastic Man to do before, and, like Plastic Man, he was able to turn his body into any shape he wished, not merely stretch himself. Despite his inexperience, Malleable Man's new permanent abilities had not only helped him keep up with the much more experienced Elongated Man in a fight, but had helped turn this fight into a real battle.

"Why don'tcha just give up now, Dibny?" said Skizzle as he made a giant mallet out of his left fist and slammed it down on the edge of the roof where the Elongated Man had just been, then thrust forward his right arm in the shape of a sword toward him. "I don't got nothin' personal 'gainst ya, an' believe it or not, I don't even got nothin' personal 'gainst my old crony, 'Eel' O'Brian. But I'm aimin' ta become the best second-story man in the biz, and ta do that, me and da boys've gotta kill you an' yer gang! So make it easy on yerself and lay down, will ya?"

After Malleable Man changed into the shape of a wrecking ball, the Elongated Man dodged the latest attack and laughed. "Where did you learn to talk like that?" said Ralph. "A James Cagney film festival? Or is Bugs Bunny more your speed?" He was hoping to tire out his foe and find a way to take him out quickly, but Skizzle Shanks showed no signs of slowing down, and he wasn't sure what he could even do that would knock him out.

"Don't say nuddin' bad about Cagney, you mook!" yelled Skizzle. "Cagney taught me how ta be a man!" Running forward, he tripped over the Elongated Man's stretched-out foot and fell over the edge of the roof. Unfortunately, Malleable Man simply turned himself into a rubber ball and bounced off the roof of a car, crushing it, and onto a lower rooftop. The battle of these stretchable foes would continue over the rooftops of Gotham City.

***

Not all the battles were so prominent and visible as that between Elongated Man and Malleable Man. The fight between the Atom and Dwarfstar, for example, was too difficult for any normal cameras to capture. The reason was that both hero and villain shared the same abilities to shrink to an infinitesimally small size, then return to normal size, at will.

Dwarfstar rarely ever had occasion to use his real name. For most of his adult life, he had been permanently stuck at the general size of a mouse, giving him the name of Mouse Man. And he had been called Mouse Man for years by everyone except his closest family members. Now that he had control over his size once more, he was happy to give up that name and call himself Dwarfstar. Both of those names were better, in his opinion, than the one he had been born with: Sylbert Rundine.

Sylbert had grown up a lonely kid who had been bullied while growing up. His teachers at school had bullied him. His parents had bullied him. Even his overbearing big sister had bullied him. And Sylbert had simply taken it all in stride, instead retreating into a fantasy world of his own making. He became obsessed with a certain cartoon character who was known the world over as a walking, talking mouse, identifying with this cartoon rodent as he watched cartoons and read comics detailing his many adventures. Eventually, he began dressing up year-round in his Halloween costumes, which were always mouse-themed. If he had been born a few years later, perhaps he would have met up with other like-minded people and joined the furry movement. Alas for Sylbert, he was born too soon, and instead he became a D-list super-criminal called Mouse Man.

This diminutive criminal, who had been stuck at the same mouse-sized height for years, had only ever battled one foe consistently in his brief tenure. Mouse Man could be forgiven for his obsession with the original Wonder Woman, that most beautiful of classic super-heroines. It had been that obsession that had made him choose a life of super-villainy; after all, he reasoned, if he wasn't able to make her notice him as an ordinary man, then she would have to notice him as a super-criminal. Never once did Sylbert consider that he could have used his size to become a super-hero like Doll Man instead, and he failed miserably in his half-hearted efforts to woo the amazing Amazon. Many uneventful years of jail and parole followed, with Mouse Man attempting to live as normal a life as possible for a permanently six-inch-tall man, even if that life was completely at the mercy of his older sister, who still bullied little Sylbert.

Then the apparent death of Wonder Woman during the Crisis on Infinite Earths sent Mouse Man on a whirlwind of depression for nearly three years, until Neron stepped into the picture and offered him a chance to restart his life, to alter his size at will, and to be respected by his peers as the man who killed the Atom.

Now, Dwarfstar wasn't sure what he wanted to do after killing the Atom, but he was sure he wanted to get even with all the women who had rejected him over the years. All that resentment he'd held back for so many years now seemed to be oozing out of him, and all he could think about now was the many ways of killing all of his imagined enemies.

Strangely enough, Dwarfstar was about the only member of the Legion of Doom who had more experience using his powers than his opposite number in the Justice League. But this obsession with all his life's resentments was giving him a disadvantage in the fight with the new Atom, Adam Cray.

After a long, drawn-out game of playing cat and mouse, the Atom finally connected with Dwarfstar's jaw and knocked him down. And before Dwarfstar was able to get back up again, the Atom had floored his foe with a roundhouse kick.

***

On the rooftop of Gotham City Police Headquarters, Black Canary and Mockingbird had given up trying to use their canary-cries against each other long ago, since all they'd done was cancel each other out while proving to be an unwelcome distraction for their own allies. So they'd abandoned their super-powers and were now fighting in hand-to-hand combat.

The former Magpie, Margaret Pye, had never been physically intimidating before. Unlike Dinah Lance, she had never spent her youth in training and had not studied martial arts. But Neron had not forsaken her, for he had provided her with learned knowledge as part of the gift he had given her. She now had all the fighting skills she would need to carry on a fight with someone of equal stature. Unfortunately for Mockingbird, Black Canary's experience and athleticism gave her a strong edge, and Mockingbird was just barely holding her own against her foe.

The blue-and-green-clad archers had already moved their fight to another rooftop after Green Arrow chased the Blue Bowman via an arrow-line. But they were still close enough to see the two battles on the GCPD rooftop.

Thus the Blue Bowman had noticed that Mockingbird was getting tired, like an out-of-shape boxer just trying to survive in the ring, and from his perspective she looked like she was about to drop at any moment. So, breaking away from his own hand-to-hand fight with Green Arrow for a moment, he quickly shot a blunt arrow at Black Canary. But Green Arrow, seeing what his foe was up to, shot an arrow of his own a split-second later to deflect the first arrow. Unfortunately, that one still whizzed by Black Canary's head, causing her to lose her concentration for a moment, which was just long enough for Mockingbird to get in a punch of her own.

Mockingbird glanced over at the Blue Bowman, who nodded his head and winked at her, and she briefly smiled back before resuming her fight with Black Canary.

Now maybe the Wrath will put an end to all those jokes about my sexual orientation, thought Herb Vraney, the Blue Bowman.

A moment later, a green-gloved fist knocked him out, cold. "Nobody attacks my woman and gets away with it, pal!" said a furious Green Arrow.

***

None of these battles really mattered compared with the one that was occurring right next to the Bat-Signal on the roof of Police Headquarters. The Batman and the Wrath had been trading blows for several minutes now, but they were so evenly matched in fighting skills that either of them could win this battle. The same could not be said about their chosen teams.

"Your Legion of Doom is poorly matched against us, Wrath," taunted Batman. "You're rank amateurs, all of you, compared with the Justice League."

The Wrath remained silent, focused solely on trying to break through the Batman's defenses.

"But you don't care about that, do you?" said Batman. "All you care about is killing Gordon. That's all you've ever cared about. Well, guess what? You're going to fail at that, too."

If the Wrath flinched at this, however slightly, it was too imperceptible for anyone but Batman to notice.

"Did you really think I'd leave Gordon without protection while you're on the loose?" said Batman as they continued their fight. "You brought in your ringer, so I brought in a ringer of my own. I don't think that kid and his vicious dog will be much of a threat to him. By now, Gordon's already across town and completely out of your hands."

The Wrath did noticeably flinch this time. He was beginning to have his doubts. "You lie," he said finally.

"No need to lie, when truth serves me well enough," replied Batman. "If you doubt me, check for yourself."

As if by silent mutual agreement, the two foes stopped fighting, but remained in battle-stances. The Wrath activated his earpiece and said, "Report. You have Gordon?"

The Wrath's face darkened as he heard the news. "Well, find him!" he said under his breath but urgently, before ending the connection.

The Batman and the Wrath resumed fighting.

"Bad news, Wrath?" taunted Batman. "Let me guess: A certain Plastic Man stole your prize right out from under the kid's nose while you were wasting your time out here trying to fight me?"

The Wrath's eyes glowered, as if he was trying to burn a hole through Batman's face.

"What are you going to do now, Wrath?" said Batman. "If you don't get to Gordon before midnight, you can't kill him on the thirtieth anniversary. Then you'll have to wait a whole year before you can start again. Thirty-first anniversary doesn't quite have the same ring to it, though, does it?"

The Wrath sneered, then said, "You think I'm one of your psychopathic arch-enemies, don't you? One of those themed criminals you fight who have psychological compulsions to leave riddles about their crimes for you to solve, or who commit only hat-related crimes!"

"Yes," said the Batman. "That's exactly what you are."

"I'll teach you to underestimate me," said the Wrath, and he broke off the fight, then ran over the edge of the rooftop and leaped over it. The scene was strikingly similar to the way that the Wrath had died five years earlier, when he had fallen off a roof to his death. But the Wrath had no intention of dying this day; he needed to break away from this futile battle in order to attain his true goal and kill Gordon once and for all.

"Arrow!" shouted Batman, even as he threw a batarang after his fleeing enemy.

Reacting immediately, Green Arrow shot a net-arrow from the nearby rooftop, and as the batarang whipped around the Wrath's feet, the net-arrow enclosed the villain in a net. As Batman pulled on the batarang line and reeled in the bound Wrath, Green Arrow kept his arrow-line taut, thus keeping the net bound around the Wrath.

As Batman secured his foe and held him down on the rooftop, he said, "You'd rather end your life than miss a chance at vengeance? Or was that another attempt to get to Gordon before it's too late?" Before the Wrath could react in any way, Batman struck him a hard blow that knocked him out. "You're right, Wrath. I did underestimate you. But I also pity you."

Nearby, Black Canary was tying up her own unconscious foe, Mockingbird, and the Elongated Man had managed to tie up the now-woozy Malleable Man into a big, tangled green knot. Green Arrow had already secured the Blue Bowman, just as the Atom had secured the now-full-sized Dwarfstar.

Batman activated his radio. "Is Gordon safe?" he asked.

"You betcha!" replied Plastic Man. "In fact, the Commish got what he wanted -- I dropped him off at Arkham Asylum after getting away from the kid and that dog. He's overseeing the containment and repair efforts there. Luckily, the few loonies who managed to escape were relatively harmless, and they've already been recaptured. It was a good night all around, Bats!"

"Thank you, O'Brian," replied Batman. "You might be pleased to hear that Dibny has recaptured your old friend, Skizzle Shanks. Batman out."

After checking in with the other two JLA teams, the Batman was satisfied by the answers he received from them.

It was now 12:03 A.M. on June 27, 1988, the entire Legion of Doom had been defeated, and James W. Gordon was still alive. As far as Batman was concerned, this June 26th had been a good day, and it had been a decent way to mark the occasion of his parents' deaths. But the work was not yet over. A final battle had yet to be won.

Chapter 9: The Green Flame

by Doc Quantum

"Wasn't the Starheart the source of Alan Scott's power?" asked the Flash. "Barry told me about that once, when we were talking about the Earth-Two Green Lantern and the Justice Society."

"Yes, Wally," said Hal Jordan. "And it might begin to explain the superficial similarities between Malvolio and Alan Scott; I'll get to that in a moment. By the early 1800s, Malvolio had read everything he could on the ancient war between science and sorcery, and he had theorized that the Starheart still existed in the present, even after three billion years. And he was right about that. Yes, the Starheart had preserved a small part of itself that eventually made its way to Earth-Two, but the original remained in our universe.

"Though its location had long been hidden, Malvolio figured out where it was. The Empire of Tears had been the last of the forces of magic to fall against the Guardians at the end of the Million-Year War, and the tomb-world of Ysmault had been the site of the last battle between science and magic. It was after that last battle that the Guardians took all the final vestiges of sorcerous energy free-floating in the universe and bound them all together into the shape of an orb, which they hid in the heart of a star. Hence, it was known as the Starheart. Malvolio theorized that, if he could locate Ysmault, he could then deduce where the Starheart was and seize its power.

"It took close to twenty years and several exploratory voyages before Malvolio finally found the planet that had once been Ysmault, former throne-world of the Empire of Tears, located in space sector 666. The planet had been quarantined since the Million-Year War, and travel there was forbidden by the Guardians, but Malvolio was a very determined man, and he managed to get there without being detected. Upon that world Malvolio spoke with a being called Qull of the Five Inversions, and he did not tell me the full details of the conversation. But one of the things he learned from Qull was the location of the Starheart and how to communicate with it. Much time had passed since the Starheart had gained sentience, and it, too, had a limited lifespan. So when Malvolio traveled to that distant star described in legend, he discovered that it had long ago collapsed and was now a neutron star. Was there any trace of the Starheart left, or did it only exist on Earth-Two in the form of a fallen green meteor in China, eventually to be made into a train lantern that Alan Scott would discover in the twentieth century?

"Malvolio found the Starheart, but it was now weak and nearly dead. Most of its magical energies had long ago dispersed back out into the universe, so that magic once more existed alongside science, though it would never hold dominant power in our universe again. The Starheart, a ball of supernatural energy that could think for itself, had grown maddened after so many centuries of being alone with itself. Malvolio found it difficult to find any rational thought in the energy being. But he pressed on and, armed with the information he'd gained from Qull of the Five Inversions, he managed to convince the Starheart to help him. In exchange for giving him the power to subdue the power ring and battery for his own purposes, Malvolio would become the champion of the Starheart, the sole emissary of the Green Flame. But to do so he had to enter the neutron star itself and bathe in the Green Flame of Life, all while wearing the power ring.

"After a couple of decades of traveling, Malvolio returned to Selsia V and was reunited with his father at the temple, where Yalan Gur was being attended to by his priests. His father, overjoyed to see his long-absent son, held a feast for him in his honor, and Malvolio accepted. They drank much wine that night and bonded as father and son once more, but for Malvolio it was all an act. When the time came for his father to recharge his power ring, he was already stinking drunk and unable to walk. So Malvolio offered to do it for him, and indeed he did. But immediately afterward, he stabbed his father to death with a sword. Without the ring, Yalan Gur was defenseless as the ancient, sharp-toothed sword, forged from the hell-fires of Ysmault, slid through the Green Lantern's scaly red skin and pierced his heart, again and again. Malvolio told me he laughed as he slew his father, and all I can think is that something made his mind finally snap during his visit to Ysmault. Something that Qull of the Five Inversions had said to him finally drove him over the edge.

"In any event, Malvolio fled with his father's body and the power ring and battery before dawn and traveled to the neutron star to visit the Starheart once more. Throwing his father's body to be consumed by the heat of the star, Malvolio donned the power ring and followed. Instead of being consumed himself, the Starheart protected him. The power ring, like all Green Lantern power rings, was connected to the Central Power Battery on Oa. But the Green Flame of Life took over the power ring, overriding its programming, and remade it in its image. For all intents and purposes, it is just like any other power ring, but while it draws its power from the Central Power Battery, the Starheart protects it from being taken over by the Guardians. And so, as Malvolio bathed in the Starheart at the center of a neutron star, he dubbed himself Lord Malvolio of the Green Flame.

"When he returned to Selsia V, Lord Malvolio expected to be praised as a god and worshiped in the temple as his father had been, but something had happened in his absence. His father's death had indeed been noted by the Guardians, and they'd already appointed a successor for space sector 1634. The new Green Lantern was not native to Selsia V, but he was from one of the colony worlds that the Selsians had conquered in centuries past, and he had served Yalan Gur as his chief priest for many years. Having given up his true name upon donning his priestly robes, he called himself only Priest.

"The Guardians of the Universe had commanded Priest to retrieve Yalan Gur's power ring and battery, but Malvolio had already taken them over with the help of the Starheart, and he wasn't about to allow a mere priest to stop his rise to godhood. Malvolio and Priest fought for weeks, and the worlds in that sector took the brunt of their battles. Finally, the Guardians told Priest that he must kill Malvolio and seize the corrupted power ring and battery. But Priest was hesitant to go that far; after all, he had helped raise Malvolio in the temple on Selsia V, since Yalan Gur was absent much of the time. The boy was like a son to him. The Guardians explained that Malvolio had opened up a doorway into the dark past of ignorance and superstition that had been shut tight for billions of years. For the sake of the universe, the emissary of the Green Flame had to be put down, just as the Empire of Tears had had to be destroyed billions of years earlier. And the Guardians gave him the added power to do so, temporarily stripping his power ring of its weakness against the color yellow.

"Priest agreed, but inwardly he refused to kill Malvolio, not only for Yalan Gur's sake, but for his own. Returning to Selsia V, he resumed his battle with Malvolio, while pleading with him to surrender his power ring. Malvolio refused, and Priest finally defeated him by using the yellow impurity against him. But no one could strip Malvolio of his power ring any longer, and Priest realized he had only two options left to him. He could slay Malvolio just as the Guardians wanted him to do, or he could find a way to imprison him somewhere that he wouldn't be able to break out of with his power ring or anything else. He opted for the latter, and imprisoned Lord Malvolio of the Green Flame in a starless void in sector 1634, erecting barriers that effectively made it his prison. But it was no mere prison cell; Priest had ensured that it was a vast area in which Malvolio could live out his days, with one-way communications from the outside universe, and endless entertainments to keep him occupied. It was, in fact, like a much larger version of the palatial temple where Malvolio had been raised -- this was mercy on Priest's part, and even Malvolio himself recognized that when he told me.

"Of course, when the Guardians learned that they had been defied, they forced Priest to give up his own power ring and give it to someone more worthy," said Hal. "That much I learned from the Book of Oa, though I didn't know anything about the circumstances at the time; it was ancient history, as far as I was concerned, so I didn't think it was relevant enough to look into beyond the surface details. As for Lord Malvolio of the Green Flame, he languished in his starless prison for over a hundred and fifty years, trying to find a way out and plotting his revenge against the Guardians."

"Interesting," said Ralph Dibny. "So he spent all that time imprisoned before Neron finally broke him out?"

"Yep," said Green Lantern. "That happened around the time of the Crisis on Infinite Earths. Neron made him a deal and let him escape that starless void while the Guardians of the Universe were preoccupied with the Crisis. Shortly thereafter, Lord Malvolio met Kasta the Thrill-Killer, and they joined the alien armada that invaded Earth back in January of '86."

"He must've been happy to help invade Earth, since he hated it so much," said the Flash.

"Yes and no, Wally," said Green Lantern. "He did hate the Earth for all the pain he'd endured as a 'demon-child,' but he also remembered the rolling green hills and forests he'd played in as a boy, and thought of it with fondness. He hoped to make England, his birthplace, his own private island and colony of Selsia V, once he'd taken over his father's home world as well."

"One thing I still don't understand," said Ralph, "is why he looks so much like Alan Scott. I know they're both connected to the Starheart in one way or another, but that still doesn't explain it for me."

"Ah, that's something I asked him about as well," said Hal. "Malvolio told me that, while he was unable to break out of his prison or communicate with the outside world, he still had a connection to the Starheart. It was through this connection that he was able to trace the Starheart fragment that had ended up on Earth-Two, and he managed to make a mystical connection to the Green Flame of Life there. He claims -- and I have no reason not to believe him -- that he was responsible for the Earth-Two Starheart being discovered in the first place by the famous explorers Pat Ryan, George Webster Confucius, and Terry Lee in the mid-1930s. He was what nudged them in the right direction to find the ancient lamp that a lamp maker named Chang had fashioned from the flaming green meteor a thousand years earlier. Having brought it back to America, the explorers lost it, but Malvolio claims that was his doing as well.

"The old Chinese lamp was left in a trashcan next to Arkham Asylum in Gotham City, and another nudge from Malvolio brought it into the hands of a mentally unhinged old man named Billings, who was a patient at Arkham. Malvolio was able to remotely influence the crazed man into reshaping the Chinese lamp into the more familiar shape of a train lantern, the only object on Earth that most closely resembles a Green Lantern power battery.

"A few years passed before the green-colored train lantern ended up on the same train that engineer Alan Scott was traveling on in the spring of 1940. When that train was destroyed by a bomb planted by a crooked business rival, Malvolio made sure that the first thing Alan grabbed within reach was the green lantern, for the Green Flame of Life had seen in Alan Scott some of the same qualities that had made Malvolio such an excellent emissary of the original Starheart. And Malvolio had influenced the Starheart to command Alan Scott to fashion a ring of power from it, which he would recharge every twenty-four hours."

"That sounds just like your ring!" said Wally West.

"It does," said Green Lantern. "Alan Scott's power ring operated so much like a Green Lantern Corps power ring that it always struck me how strangely alike our powers were, despite having vastly different origins. Now I know that the Earth-Two Green Lantern's origin was influenced by Lord Malvolio for his own purposes."

"And what was the reason behind all this?" asked Ralph. "Why would he create a hero in another universe?"

"I asked Malvolio that question, too," said Hal. "And he told me something very interesting. Through his connection with the Earth-Two Starheart, Malvolio had been able to view Earth-Two, and he discovered that, just as on our Earth, Earth-Two had its own Lord and Lady Hawke in the seventeenth century. So, with the vast quantities of time at his disposal, he discovered that Lady Hawke was born to the Scott family, and one of the descendants of that family was Alan Scott, who somewhat resembled a younger Malvolio before his hair turned gray, not only physically but also in strength of will and lack of fear. Malvolio knew that this Alan Scott would have been worthy to become a true Green Lantern in our universe, so he engineered things to make him as close to a Green Lantern as possible in the Earth-Two universe, albeit one who was wearing a costume that was based more on Malvolio's outfit than on the Green Lantern Corps uniform."

"But... why?" repeated Ralph.

"I can only assume that he thought of Alan as his only real counterpart in the Earth-Two universe, since there was no 'Malvolio' born on that world," replied Hal. "He must've planned on manipulating him somehow through his connection with the Starheart. But he was wrong. The moment that Alan Scott became Green Lantern, Lord Malvolio lost his connection to the Earth-Two Starheart, and despite spending the next forty years trying to reestablish that connection, he experienced nothing but failure. It's possible that the Earth-Two Starheart had, in the thousands of years since it had broken off from the Starheart of our universe, become too independent. Or perhaps the ancient Starheart of our universe had become too old and decrepit to keep the connection to its other self. It could also be because Alan's willpower was just too strong to be influenced any further by outside forces. Malvolio sure didn't know. In any case, one of Lord Malvolio's goals was already reached -- his own freedom -- so he probably sought to cause the death of the Guardians of the Universe next. He wasn't quite as forthcoming about his ultimate plans."

"Well, I hope he doesn't mind waiting," said the Flash, "because there's no way we're letting him or any of the others go free."

"Agreed," said Green Lantern. "But Malvolio's power does present me with a problem. He can't be imprisoned by conventional means. My only option is to contact Priest, the ex-Green Lantern of space sector 1634, and get his help in imprisoning Malvolio in that starless void once again."

"You don't think the Guardians will ask you to kill Malvolio, do you?" asked Ralph.

"They can always ask," replied Green Lantern grimly. "But heroes don't kill. Period."

"You're a good man, Hal," said Ralph, patting him on the back.

Chapter 11: Temptations

by Doc Quantum

Superman found himself floating in midair, surrounded on all sides by complete darkness. Was this Neron's realm? None of the Justice Leaguers really had any idea what to expect when they had each lit those black candles to transport themselves into the underworld. But he merely found himself in a black, silent void not unlike the empty dimension that had existed between parallel universes when travel between them was still possible.

Reaching out with his super-senses, Superman attempted to look for something, anything, in this dark void. But a scan with his telescopic vision and super-hearing revealed nothing. There wasn't even any light to see his own skin, which would also be invisible to him if not for his super-vision.

Deciding that a change of location was in order, Superman flew off at super-speed in one direction at random. But although he flew at near-light-speed for several minutes, he couldn't tell if he was making any progress at all. Without anything else around, there was nothing to judge his relative speed. It was as if he hadn't moved at all.

Just as he was about to try something else, a voice interrupted him.

"Well, well, well... we meet again, Superman."

The voice was immediately familiar. Superman had met this man before, when he had given him an offer to restore his parents Jor-El and Lara to full health. Superman had accepted the offer, but the blond man who called himself Neron had rejected it, explaining that a noble sacrifice would invalidate the entire contract. (*)

[(*) Editor's note: See Superman: The Unkindest Cut, Chapter 6: A Noble Sacrifice.]

"Show yourself, Neron!" shouted Superman.

A moment later Neron obliged, and he was indeed the same blond figure he'd met on the distant planet Bodace, throne-world of the Scrubb Empire in another galaxy. Only now Neron was wearing a regal-looking green and white outfit more befitting his role as a villain supreme.

"You made your first mistake when you thought you could target the Justice League and get away with it," said Superman, rushing forward to grab the villain. However, despite using his super-speed, he was never able to get any closer to Neron.

"Tut-tut, Kryptonian," said the devilish figure who was known in Kryptonian myth as Shadu. "You don't think I would let you get me that easily, do you? Anyway, I hoped we could take care of a little business first."

"You caught me in a moment of weakness, Neron," said Superman. "But my parents were saved without your help. I don't want to hear anything else from you."

"Don't reject my offer so quickly, Superman. After all, you still haven't heard what I can do for you. For, you see, I know your heart's greatest wish, and I can grant it to you."

"No, you can't," said Superman firmly. "You really can't."

"Kal?"

Superman's voice caught in his throat as he turned around at the soft female voice. There before him, lit with the same unearthly light that Neron had used to reveal himself, was his cousin Kara Zor-El, alias Supergirl. But she had been dead for nearly three years, having sacrificed her life to save him from the Anti-Monitor. (*)

[(*) Editor's note: See "Beyond the Silent Night," Crisis on Infinite Earths #7 (October, 1985).]

"Kara?!" cried Superman. "How is this possible? Is this real, or -- or just another of your tricks, Neron?"

"Oh, she is real," said Neron. "She is most assuredly real. Go on, Superman. Go to her."

Superman tentatively moved forward. This time, he was able to reach his goal. Holding out his hand, he watched as Supergirl placed her hand in his and began to weep at seeing her cousin again.

"Kara! It's really you!" Superman shouted, pulling Supergirl into an embrace. "I can't believe this! I thought I would never see you again!"

"What a touching reunion," said Neron. "But I'm afraid it must be brief." At the snap of his finger, Kara's solid body quickly faded into nothingness before she could say another word.

"Nooo-ooo-ooo!" cried Superman. "I had so much to tell you! You have a daughter, Kara-- a daughter named Jasma!"

But the only answer Superman received was complete silence. "Bring her back!" demanded Superman. "Bring back my cousin immediately."

"I would be only too happy to do so, Superman," said Neron with a grin. "You already know I have the power to bring people back from the dead. You've already met your old foe Super-Menace, after all, and the Batman must have assured you that the man he fought was really the Wrath come back from the dead. Reuniting you with the ghost of Supergirl is one thing -- to bring her back into the realm of the living is another. Don't worry -- I can give you what you wish, Superman. But only for a price. You wouldn't want little Jasma to go through life without ever knowing her mother, would you?"

***

The man known as Super-Menace languished in his holding cell at the maximum-security, floating prison known as Superman's Island. His hands and feet had been bound to the ground using a chain made of Supermanium itself, the hardest substance known to exist. But that was just a precaution, because he wouldn't have been able to escape, anyway. The green kryptonite radiation made sure of that. There was just enough of it to keep him weakened without killing him through radiation poisoning.

It was ironic. Super-Menace had wanted to be a real, flesh and blood man, rather than a mere energy-duplicate of Superman, but his wish had come true at the worst time possible. He had thought himself to have none of Superman's weaknesses, so when he had used kryptonite against the Man of Steel, the Menace of Steel was startled to find that the same weapon worked equally well against him.

Clyde Derek was done. Neron could go back to Hell, as far as he was concerned. All this business about being part of his Unholy Trinity was nothing but a pack of lies. And the Legion of Doom had been an utter joke. If he ever got out of this prison again, all he wanted to do was be alone.

Super-Menace closed his eyes and tried to rest, but he found it difficult. He'd been feeling so lethargic after his initial exposure to kryptonite, but now he found himself brimming with energy. And that was very strange.

Opening his eyes, he looked over to see that the tiny kryptonite fragment was still glowing green a few feet from him. It should have been keeping him weak as it had been for several hours previously. But now he felt his strength coming back to him. Had Neron changed the composition of his body yet again?

But no matter what he did, Clyde couldn't change his body back into energy once more. He was flesh and blood, for good or ill. But had he been given an immunity to kryptonite?

As he began to slowly pull against his bonds, he heard a voice whisper in his ear.

"Don't move, Super-Menace. Don't even reply to my voice. Just nod your head to show me that you can hear what I'm saying."

Clyde nodded his head slightly as he recognized the voice of Lord Malvolio of the Green Flame.

"I've removed the kryptonite and replaced it with a power ring-created simulation. To the sensors, it emits the same amount of radiation as green kryptonite, but the radiation wavelength has been changed to that of the blue spectrum, which I understand is harmful only to Bizarro-Supermen."

Clyde nodded once more.

"Neron has abandoned us, Super-Menace," continued Lord Malvolio's voice. "It's evident now that he never really intended for us to be an equal match for the Justice League. I don't know what his true purpose is, and at this point I don't really care. But I think the surviving members of the Legion of Doom need to remain together, at least until I've managed to get us out of here. I have a plan, but it requires everyone to break free at the same time."

***

Batman found himself in a dimly lit cave not unlike the one beneath Wayne Manor that he had transformed into his own Bat-Cave many years earlier. Looking around, he could see none of the other Justice Leaguers. He could only see shadows on the cave wall that were evidently coming from a light source far above.

He recognized the scene immediately from classic philosophy.

"Plato's cave, Neron?" said Batman. "Is this allusion to junior-grade philosophy supposed to impress me?"

"I was hoping you'd catch on quickly, Batman," said Neron, stepping out of the shadows to make himself known. "I'm so glad we could finally meet face to face."

Batman moved quickly, but the explosive batarang he'd hurled at Neron was stopped in midair by a mere hand gesture.

"I just came here to talk, Batman," replied Neron. "There's no need to be rude."

"What do you want with us? Your Legion of Doom was never meant to be a serious threat to the Justice League, was it? So tell me, Neron, what was your true goal all along?"

"I'm a businessman," said Neron. "You should be able to appreciate that, Bruce. Ah, but I don't mean to offend. I know how annoying you find it when personal names are used while in costume. I am merely here to offer you your heart's desire. You fought the Wrath in close hand-to-hand combat, so you already know that I've brought a dead man back to life. What I did for him, I can do for someone that you've lost."

"If you're about to offer me the lives of my parents in exchange for my soul, you can forget it. I came to peace with their deaths long ago. They are my inspiration for continuing my work."

"Far be it from me to do anything to discourage you from continuing your work as the Batman," replied Neron smugly. "Believe me, I'm a fan. But I wasn't referring to the esteemed Dr. and Mrs. Wayne. No, I was talking about Kathy."

Neron began walking down steps that appeared along the cave wall. "Kathy Kane -- such a shame how she died. Killed by a brainwashed hero, and for what? It was a senseless killing in the end. She was one of the great loves of your life, was she not? Bruce Wayne and Kathy Kane certainly made a mark on the social scene all those years ago, but not nearly as much as Batman and Batwoman. Why, I'd venture to say that, if it hadn't been for the fact that you'd already taken on a youthful partner, the team of Batman and Batwoman would have certainly been a sight to see. But Dick always was a jealous boy wonder, wasn't he?"

"I don't make deals with the devil," replied Batman.

"Don't be so hasty, Batman," said Neron. "I'm in the process of making similar offers to your fellow Justice Leaguers, and they've each proven to be much more open-minded than you. Just think about it for a moment. Think about how that young woman, still in her prime, was stolen from us before she was able to really affect a return to crime-fighting, not to mention the fact that she's never been able to have a family of her own. I would have thought you'd like for Kathy to finally have that happy ending she deserves. And all I ask in return is--"

"My soul?"

"Nothing so trite. Only a favor."

***

The Wrath wasn't surprised when he was contacted by one of the Legionnaires of Doom from within his cell. But he hadn't been able to decide whether it was the Marshal or Lord Malvolio who would be the first to initiate a prison break. The Martian had disappointed him in the end. He was pleased, however, to find that the wielder of the Green Flame had stepped up his game.

"Kasta and the Falcon are dead," Lord Malvolio replied to the Wrath's unspoken question. "Neron has betrayed us. Lady Falcon should have been completely loyal to Beakman, but Neron was deceptive in his dealings with him, as he was with us all. Only time will tell what other hidden clauses there are in our contracts with him. In any event, the Legion of Doom must work together to escape this place before it's too late to do so. The rest of the team are kept in cells throughout the prison. But they didn't have enough time to customize each cell for us. If we're going to break out, we'll have to do it soon."

The Wrath nodded his assent, and Lord Malvolio began to explain his plans in greater detail, even as he concentrated on freeing and contacting the other members of the Legion of Doom imprisoned at Superman's Island.

***

"The world only sees you as a second-rate Wonder Woman, does it not?"

Nubia refused to answer. Her usual tactics of attacking first and asking questions later had been completely ineffective against an apparition. She knew that Neron was trying to goad her into anger, and he was succeeding.

"It's such a shame, too. After all, you and Diana were twins, formed from two different shades of clay. So why did Diana become the greatest heroine the world has ever known, while you, her equal in every way, remain in her shadow?"

Nubia wasn't sure how much longer she could hold out without lashing out at her enemy once more, even though she knew that would be playing right into his hands. If only J'onn had been there; he would know how to keep her calm and help her collect her thoughts.

"What if I told you, beautiful Nubia, that you could be greater than Diana ever was?"

Despite herself, Nubia couldn't help but to listen as Neron made his offer.

***

The Dark Commander had failed once more. She had fought a good fight given what little she had to work with, but the odds were stacked against her. Neron had offered her a chance to live so that one day she could die in battle, but she had never really considered what she would do from now until then, beyond getting revenge on her foe.

And now Lord Malvolio was communicating with her and telling her of a plan to break out of prison. But she could hear the disdain in his voice as he spoke to her. Like many men, he held women in little regard, and she could tell that he had contacted her only as a courtesy. She didn't care; the god Mars had been much the same way with her, especially at first, and that had only helped harden her against such men. The Dark Commander knew she could only rely on herself if she was to be free once more.