It stands on the moon, a gleaming citadel of alien steel and
glass. It
is the Watchtower, headquarters to a collection of legends. Through
incarnation after incarnation, the Justice League has always been
mankind's last, best hope for survival against threat after threat.
But
as a fiery sphere slowly moves through the thin, almost non-existent
atmosphere of earth's moon, no alarms sound. The sphere's alien
metals
reflect and refract all the Watchtower's sensors. The intruder
has
landed quietly, without warning. The legends go about their business,
unaware that just hundreds of yards from their own base evil lurks...
Of the three people in the main meeting room, none of them were
founding
members of the League. But in the hearts and minds of many, they
were
the mind, body, and soul of the team.
Superman stood tall and majestic, his arms folded. Princess Diana,
known
as Wonder Woman in Patriarch's World, sat at the meeting table,
her face
drawn tight. The Dark Knight Detective, Batman, melded grimly
into the
shadows. Superman broke the silence first.
"What do you think?"
Diana spoke up. "Well, the tryouts were...interesting, to
say the least.
I did appreciate the opportunity to see some of the candidates
from the
last tryouts again*. It's a pity that so many of our best hopes
were
unable to attend."
(The JLA held open tryouts back in JLA # 5.)
Batman nodded. "Yes. Adding some of the more experienced
heroes would
have been nice -- but Black Canary was unable to commit and the
Atom was
still busy with the Titans. The same sorts of things could be
said for
others we would have chosen as well. We have to make do."
Superman heard the tension in Batman's voice. Although always
grim,
Batman was especially unapproachable today -- one of the members
who had
recently left the team was the Huntress*, whom Batman had hoped
would
benefit from her time with the League. It was obvious that Batman
now
considered her addition to have been a mistake and mistakes were
not a
common occurrence in the Batman's life.
(The Huntress, along with Zauriel, Orion,and Barda, left the
JLA during
the already classic _Crisis In Destiny_ limited series)
The meeting room door opened and Aquaman, King of Atlantis and
the Seven
Seas, entered the room. His long blond hair trailed after him
and his
eyes glittered with amusement. "Plastic Man just got into
a fight with
Guy Gardner...and Damage tried to break it up."
Diana's eyes narrowed with concern. "Was anyone hurt?"
"No, but we'll have to make some renovations after Damage
blew his top..."
Diana rolled her eyes. "Blew his top...that's very funny,
Orin. I think
perhaps you've been around Plastic Man too much."
Aquaman sat in his chair and sighed. "Well, given who showed
up to fill
our vacant slots, I think my recommendation is that we induct
Supergirl
immediately. She's the only sensible one out there...and her powers
would be useful."
Superman nodded. "I'd trust Supergirl with my life. I feel
certain that
Flash and Green Lantern would vote yes on her as well -- Kyle
worked
with her in the Titans. J'onn is planetside but he's telepathically
let
me know that he'll support our decisions."
"Who else?" Wonder Woman asked. "We were left
with only 9 slots filled
after the recent crisis...if we want to go back up to 14 we need
more
than just Supergirl."
"I think fourteen was a mistake." Batman got everyone's
attention as
soon as he spoke. "Twelve was a more manageable number --
any more than
that and we run the risk of becoming too large. We need to emphasize
teamwork and deduction as much as raw power. Orion added nothing
to our
dynamic."
Superman pondered the detective's words. He knew the others looked
up to
him, but sometimes he thought Batman was the real leader..."I
think
twelve is a good number. I was personally impressed with Firehawk.
She's
been around for a number of years and her skills are impressive."
Aquaman shook his head. "I'd rather go with Firestorm."
"I think it would be nice to have another woman on the team,"
Wonder
Woman smiled. She enjoyed teasing Orin, who sometimes bristled
when his
decisions were questioned.
"Firestorm has had a very difficult past in recent years."
The Batman
stood. "I'd want to know for sure that his problems with
both cancer and
the fire elemental were behind him."
"Best if we pass on him for now -- besides, he's still rather
shaken
over what happened with the aborted reformation of the JLE*."
Superman
cleared his throat, wondering if maybe the JLA should go to work
bringing in the JLE's killer, the Mist....
(see Starman # 38)
MEANWHILE...
Kyle Rayner shook his head. He'd only been Green Lantern for
a little
over a year but he felt he'd made a lot of progress so far. He
certainly
didn't compare to Hal Jordan in his prime, but there was no doubt
that
defeating the likes of Grayven, Dr. Light, and Major Force had
helped
him earn the right to wear the ring. But sometimes he wondered
if he
would ever get used to all this...
He stared around at the twenty or so superhumans assembled in
the JLA's
Watchtower. He could see Damage helping Plastic Man and the Black
Condor clean up the debris from Damage's 'accident.' The kid had
potential but was still wet behind the ears...Steel was chatting
with Warrior over
some old college memories, while Donna Troy and the Flash stood
nearby.
He thought about going up and crashing one of the conversations
but
decided against it. Instead, he created a green duplicate of Captain
Carrot and smiled at it. "Come to join the JLA, Carrot?"
He quipped.
The emerald apparition suddenly parted as a strong wind blew
past. For a
moment, Kyle suspected one of the speedsters present -- Flash,
Impulse,
or Jesse Quick -- of having sped past. But the crimson figure
that stood
in front of him brought him up short.
The Red Tornado stood impassively in front of Green Lantern.
The robot's
face showed no emotion but Kyle could sense his appraisal. "You
are the
current Green Lantern?"
Kyle nodded dumbly. "Uh...yeah. You're an old Leaguer, right?
I've seen
the files with you in them. I thought you were with Primal Force
now or
something?"
The Tornado actually seemed to sigh. "I've parted with the
Ley Men.
Actually, I've been spending some time chaperoning the group known
as
Young Justice."
"Oh, yeah. Those guys." Kyle scratched his chin. "Hey,
have you come to
see some of the others? I could go get them for you..."
"I have come to offer my services to the League. I have
heard of your
need for members and I am attempting to restore much of my life
that was lost."
Green Lantern smiled. He'd argued for Guy to rejoin, but that
hadn't
gone over very well. Maybe he'd score some brownie points by
recommending the Tornado. The guy was a bona fide JLA legend,
having
served with the team during some of its roughest moments. "Okay,
let me
mention it to the others -- but I think you're a shoe-in. Welcome
back!"
Superman stepped forward to the podium, the other members of
the League
behind him. He looked out over the assembled heroes and smiled.
"I want
to thank all of you for coming today. We are very grateful to
you for
answering the call. We've made our decisions based upon who we
thought
would fit in best with our current group dynamic. This is not
a
popularity contest, nor is it a statement of how we feel about
your
ability to perform. We have elected to return to a stable 12-person
lineup and as such there are only a limited number of positions
available. We have decided to invite to active duty the Red Tornado,
Supergirl, and Firehawk."
Lorraine Reilly, Firehawk, gasped. "Me?! The JLA wants me...?"
She
turned to face an equally stunned Firestorm."Firehawk? Over
me...?"
Booster Gold and the Blue Beetle frowned at one another. "They
picked my
ex-girlfriend instead of me, Ted."
The Beetle nodded. "I know...Man, I figured they didn't
need two gadget
guys with Steel around, but I still figured I had a shot..."
"So what do we do now...?"
Ted Kord grinned. "Actually, I think I have an idea...*"
(*For more on this idea, see the Extreme Justice limited series,
coming soon!)
Supergirl winced as she heard Superman's announcement. She was
proud, to
be sure, but her life was in such upheaval that she didn't know
if she
could handle this. She saw Superman glance at her and saw the
confidence
he had in her. She felt herself smiling back.
The sphere cracked open with a hiss. A gaunt figure emerged from
the
smoke, his head aching. He was tired -- so very tired. It felt
like
centuries since he had fed. He could feel the cold stellar light
shining
upon his form and he opened his mouth to enjoy it. Though there
was no
oxygen naturally on the moon, the JLA had set up an artifical
atmosphere
in the immediate vicinity of the Watchtower. The figure took a
deep
breath. He could sense power, energy nearby. He saw the Watchtower,
gleaming before him. His own prison was a wreck, he would need
a vessel
to head to the blue-green world below.
His legs shook as he began the march to the building. His time
on
Almerac had nearly destroyed him -- indeed, the hero known as
the Blue
Beetle had drained all of his energy, leaving the vampire in a
state of
inertness. But slowly he had reformed, only to find that his energy
remains had been stored in a spheroid prison, jettisoned into
space. He
had leeched some small amount of energy from the vessel but it
had not
been enough. But now it had landed, and Starbreaker would feed...
Inside the Watchtower
Steel watched the last of the applicants dissolve into light,
to be
teleported back to earth. The Flash had joined them in leaving,
having
an appointment with a local charity in Keystone City to keep.
John Henry
Irons was tired -- he'd enjoyed seeing so many of his allies again
but
he had been up late in the lab the night before. Now thoughts
of
returning home and crawling into bed filled his mind. He turned
to see
Firehawk walking towards him.
"How's it feel to be in the big leagues? I know my first
day was kind of
overwhelming."
"Weird. I never thought I'd be here. I mean, I grew up a
senator's
daughter, so I'm used to the spotlight but...well, the JLA saves
the
universe on a daily basis!" Firehawk's form shone for a moment
as her
powers deactivated. A moment later she stood in her human identity
--
red-haired and attractive, with intelligent eyes.
Steel placed a hand on her shoulder. "You'll fit in, don't
worry. You've
got orientation in the morning?"
Lorraine nodded. "Yeah. Supergirl and I are supposed to
meet the Tornado
here at 7 a.m. Then the Martian Manhunter is going to show us
around the
Watchtower.""You'll like J'onn. He's --" An alarm
cut him off. He glanced at a monitor readout. "Well, well.
Unauthorized personnel has just entered
one of the hangars -- must have forced open the doors."
Lorraine nodded, her face grim. "Should we investigate?"
"Not alone. Let me signal the others first. The JLA is about
teamwork --
we don't look for glory." Steel tapped his communicator.
"Attention, all
members. Unauthorized individual in Hangar Bay C. I'm investigating
with
Firehawk."Lorraine flared brilliantly and a second later
Firehawk was back.
The energy vampire Starbreaker eyed the variety of shuttles and
smiled.
He knew where he was now. He recognized the gaudy symbols -- the
Justice
League. This was too rich, too appropriate. He would bring the
planet
earth to its knees.
"Hold it right there!" Firehawk blazed into the room,
her fiery wings
trailing flame. Steel entered behind her, his hammer in his hand.
Steel frowned. He'd studied the JLA files extensively and recognize
the
black costumed figure before him. Star-something. A real heavy
hitter.
He pressed the all-alert signal.
Firehawk sprayed flame in a circle around the vampire, who recoiled.
"The rest of the team's on their way -- you're gonna have
to answer some
questions."Starbreaker smiled. He was weak but still potent
enough to deal with
these two. He recognized neither. Where were his TRUE foes? He
focused
his energy..."Firehawk! Drop back!" Steel yelled a warning
but it was too late.
Starbreaker's energy blast struck her, sending her flying. She
banged
off the wall, groaning.
Starbreaker smiled, standing taller. "Such pitiful creatures
you are. Is
this what the Justice League has come to?"
Steel hurled his hammer. "The League's stopped you before,
vampire, and
it will again." The hammer hit Starbreaker hard, sending
him to the floor.
Starbreaker coughed. He was too weak for a prolonged fight. He
eyed an
open cruiser and jumped to his feet, running for it.
Steel frowned as his hammer returned to him. He'd assumed that
the
villain was there to attack them, but he looked like he was fleeing...
Starbreaker lunged inside. He detested fleeing, but he would
have to
make it to earth. There he could begin leeching the planet's very
energy. Once replenished, no one could stand against him.
He felt the ship rattle as the metal Leaguer pounded on its side
with
his mallet. The vampire scanned the controls. He had seen many
in his
infinite lifespan and recognized most of them. He activated the
engines.
Firehawk opened her eyes in time to see the ship lurch out of
the
hanger, leaving a dazed Steel behind. She could give chase, but
she knew
it was too late.
"He got away." The voice made Lorraine jump. She turned
back to see the
Batman, crouching in the shadows."Yes. I'm sorry..."
"Don't be. Starbreaker is a dangerous individual. He was
stopped the
first time by the League with the help of the Guardians.
The next time the JLA fought him, he ravaged Almerac. The fight
will be
closer to home, this time."
Lorraine Reilly swallowed. She couldn't but wonder if she wasn't
in over
her head...
NEXT ISSUE : The Starbreaker is on
earth and only the Justice League can
stop him! Titanic action from the faux-DC line!
AUTHOR'S NOTES
Welcome to the first faux-dc issue of Justice League of America.
It
picks up at some point following the Adam Strange storyline in
JLA and
after the Crisis of Destiny mini-series here in faux-dc.
The Justice League should always live up the tagline "The
World's
Greatest Superheroes". We hope that the two of us will manage
to
continue upholding a very fine tradition. You'll see some bits
of
nostalgia creep in, I'm sure, but we're also looking towards the
future.
If you have comments, suggestions, criticisms, etc. please feel
free to
contact either of us. Thanks for reading.
Barry Reese and Steve Blair
