Justice League IC

[ChasNicollette]

The Flash

Wally sat there for a moment, trying to heal.

Supes had shown up, offered him a hand, but then he'd gone again, chasing down the nutbag that Wally had let slip through his otherwise nimble fingers.

So Wally sat there for a moment, trying to heal.

After Iris had died and Barry had disappeared, Max had explained to Wally that The Speed Force could be redirected, focused, one need only find the willpower and The Zen to do so. (He'd explained that this was how Johnny Chambers and his daughter Jesse could summon speed in the first place, using mental attunement and that whacky-ass spoken formula.)

Zen made Wally's brain itch. But it was better than grenade wounds to the chest, even Wally had to admit that.

He gritted his teeth, focusing all his easily-distracted attentions on those fragments of shrapnel... that area of his body... damage control...

Nothing. Nothing.

He slumped, and shook his head. Stupid Jedi mind-trick horse-poop. I oughta smack Max Mercury upside the noggin.

He would still heal fast, but this sort of thing could take hours. Hours were a long time to The Flash. Hell, a second to him could be what, a day, day and a half?

On the bright side, I probably won't have to get an artificial heart or wear a metal plate 'round my chest like a certain hotshot billionaire inventor what looks suspiciously like Robert Downey, Junior. That's always a plus.

He sighed dismally, propped himself up on an elbow, and stared down his body at his bare feet. He wiggled his toes.

Shoulda thought of that. Take your boots off. Idiot. 'Uncle' Hal's gonna hear about this and he's going to make Kilowog kick your ass for being a 'stoopid poozer.'

Now I'm sitting here on the road in Gotham City and I've been blown out of my shoes like I've been in a snowball fight from 'Calvin and Hobbes.' So very very Not Cool.

Colours fluttered in front of his eyes.

His head swam and his ears rang.

His costume's wingtip earpieces had been designed by Wally's friend, former baddie Hartley "The Pied Piper" Rathaway. They could pick up all sorts of frequencies and whatever the crap, even Bluetooth sometimes, but their primary function was to scan for emergency broadcasts.

Piper had made 'em to withstand the hypersonic vibrations of Wally's speed, and still function at near-translight velocities. Wally supposed that was how he could still even hear at all. Piper built stuff to last.

I'll have to send Piper a thank-you card. But not flowers. He might take that the wrong way.

But as his head swam, he found himself glancing back at his visual memories of just before disassembling The Joker's ride.

He'd been kind of lost in thought at the time, but looking back at it he'd seen a blurry smudge of green...

A familiar blurry smudge of green.

Everyone's favourite leftist revolutionary, Che 'Green Arrow' Guevara?

Happy 26th of July, ya stoopid poozer.

Among the blurry smudges of other colours, Wally squinted back down the street from whence he'd come looking for that familiar blurry smudge of green. Had he really seen Ollie, or had he imagined it?

 

[NiteCrowe]

I managed to close my eyes just in time to avoid the flashbang. Luckily i was far enough way to not be effected by the noise.

Stupid Clark, Stupid Wally, had they forgotten who they were up against?

Not that it mattered.

I already had the Boxing glove arrow in place, i re-aim slightly, perfect, the back of the joker's head.

I let it fly, and before it even hits the joker, i have another arrow, my 'net' arrow soaring straight after it.

I lower my bow waiting to see what happens next, my hands already in the process of loading another arrow just in case.

 

[Superman1496]

To the eyes of normal human beings, a flash bang grenade can take away sight for a good thirty seconds. But I, however, am not normal, nor human.

My "human" eyesight was gone momentarily, but, my X-ray vision was not. And I do not have lead-lined eyelids.

Looking through my own eyes, I turned to see a skeletal structure running away from me. I didn't need to see his rediculous costume and horrid smile to know who he was.

And he, apparently, forgot who I was. I watched him run. Saw his bones move. I opened my eyes to see the blinding sun, and instantly adjusted to the light.

And then I moved. Into the air, aiming for the Jokers back. But before I could move much further, Ollie left his welcome mat out for the Clown.

 

[Angelus]

Joker knew that he wasn't going to get away from this. He had Superman chasing after him, he could hear him as he flew towards him. All he wanted was to get out of here so that he could join his group in their new hide out but Superman didn't want that to happen. He knew that Superman wouldn't give up after what he had done in the bank and hated him for that fact. In that aspect he was worse that the Bats.

It was then that something smacked into the back of his head and sent him sprawling onto the ground. The smile was wiped from his face when that happened and as he slowly began to turn over he saw the net as it opened up before his eyes.

"Blasted heroes. Always getting in my way."

He looked up at Superman as he pushed his way through one of the holes in the net.

"Why don't you just help me up and take me back to Arkham. You know that you want to."

He just hoped that Superman wouldn't notice the joy buzzer that was in his hand ready to give him an almighty shock.

 

[Superman1496]

Joker laid on the ground, asking to go back to Arkham. Enough was enough. I grabbed him by the front of his purple jacket and lifted him up into the air.

You'll be lucky to ever see the sun from Arkhams bars again you clown. I said as I started to lift into the air holding him, face to face.

No, not Arkham, I'm not going to send you back to play with your little circus freaks. I added, now about thirty feet into the air and still raising.

I don't see why Batman didn't dump you in the middle of the ocean when he had the chance. Now I was more then a hundred feet off the ground, his face still next to mine. I waited his wise-crack joke that was coming. My eyes began to glow red, taunting the thought of burning him right here.

 

[ChasNicollette]

The Flash

The Flash staggered to his feet. His bare, bootless feet.

He had one hand on his chest injury, and one hand balled into a fist at his side.

Wally nodded respectfully to Green Arrow.

"Nice shot," he murmured. "Two nice shots. That guy from Sherwood couldn't've done it better."

But then Wally looked up.

He saw Superman levitate skyward, lugging the one-man Insane Clown Posse with him.

He saw, mouth falling open with worry, face a twisted mask of disbelief and incredulity, that Superman's eyes were lighting up scarlet and saffron.

Heat vision.

"Supes is going to scorch the grin right off The Joker's face," Wally murmured.

"No," he spoke up, a little louder, fingers digging into the big blast mark on his chest. "No. (And don't pretend you can't hear me, either.) Superman doesn't do this. Superman doesn't kill.

"Low-res scuzzball like The Joker?" Wally pleaded, hauling his cowl back so that his face could breathe easier, exposing his reddish-blond hair to the Gotham atmosphere. "Don't do it. Don't cross the line for him. Because that way he gets the punchline he always wanted. That way he gets The Last Laugh."

Wally West took a deep, shuddery breath, gazing with wide green eyes up at the two figures high in the sky.

"Me personally?" he tried again. "I don't want Barry to come back to a world where Superman has blood on his hands. He is coming back. He is. But I don't think he'd want to stay in a world where Superman kills. Not even The Joker. Not even him.

"(Besides,)" Wally smiled wearily. "(Chuckles there's just jealous because I'm funnier than he is.)"

 

[Superman1496]

Wally's words echoed in my head. 'Don't do it Supes...it's not worth it...'

Time stopped for a moment. Not a sound was made. My eyes looked over the madman in my grasp. His smile made me sick. Even through the red glow of my heat vision, I could still see his grotesque hair.

Then, I was gone. Not hanging in the air, not gripping a killer in my hands. No, I was on the farm. And both my father and mother were there.

Son, there are some people in this world that will always get under your skin. You can't let them control you. Even though you are Kryptonian, you are human at heart. Jonathon Kent said, smiling at me. I looked up at him.

But pa, he's killed several people. He's tried to kill Wally, and Diana, and even Bruce. Everytime he goes to jail, he gets out. The justice system isn't working properly. I said to them, hanging my head low.

And isn't that why you've been asked to do this Justice League, Clark? To show the world that there is true justice, and show them what's right, and to protect them from the corrupt? Martha Kent asked. I looked into her eyes. I knew she was right.

They dissappeared, and I was back, holding the Joker, looking at him through firey eyes. Then the heat subsided.

You can laugh all you want clown. Say whatever sick jokes you want. But I'm not going to put the blood of a sadistic, insane, and perverted clown on my hands. I said. But I will make sure that they lock you up so tight, you'll need guards to breath for you.

 

[Superman1496]

Darkseid's Way

This is Darkseid's way...

The Boom Tube. A device that enables someone to move from one place, to another, far apart. Something that could transport something, or someone from Apokolips to Earth.

Now, my servant. Go and prepare for doom. Take out as many of them as you can. Go. Darkseid said as he stood, towering over a large man in a golden suit with "ram-horns" on the top. He was a killer. Someone who was good at his work.

Yes, Darkseid. The man said as he turned and walked outside of Darkseid's hall. He walked down past the guards. And he began to prepare the Boom Tube.

As he opened up the Boom Tube, he thought to himself: 'Gog's will be done.' Then he walked into the Tube, headed for earth.

***

The grass in Kansas was as green as it could ever get. The blue sky was almost cloudless. The corn and wheat fields sway in the breeze.

A farmer, out checking the fences, stood with his son, talking about the family football game this upcoming Sunday.

Suddenly, a large boom occured, knocking both the father and his son on their backs. A large man in gold armour stepped out of a vortex-looking hole in the middle of field.

"Oh my God, pa, what is it?" the child called.

The man laughed in a low deep voice. No, heh heh, not God. No, I'm am Gog. He said as he stepped in front of the farmer, who put his arms up in front of his face.

This, is Darkseid's way...

 

[rengadeirishman]

J'onn flew up from the deck of the boat when he saw it spouting water.

"Oh almost forgot." he said as he plucked the gun from the guards hand and bent it like a human might bend a straw. He tossed it into the water and grabbed the thug by the collar.

"Im afraid i shall have to take you in."

 

[NiteCrowe]

GA gets pissed.

I let myself lower my bow as Clarks eyes turned back to their usual colour.

I swear, if i had seriously thought he would do it, the kryptonite arrow would ve put an end to it.

Not that Clark, knows i have one...mind you Bruce doesn't even know i have one.

I sigh, and relaise that Wally was talking to me.

The Idiot!

'Flash, How stupid are you! In the time this has taken to happen, you could have grabbed the Joker and had him back in Arkham minutes ago, hell, you could have even had him away in some korean prison.'

I pause for breath, 'But no, you have to dismantle the car, have to get in a few gags. Well newsflash Wally, Being a hero isn't about the punchline, its about getting the job done, about Justice and freedom, not your humour.'

'And get your mask on two, any criminal could see your face, and then its only a simple matter of time before they know who you are and then your family is at stake. Hell for all you know the Joker's probably listened enough to know your name, and so all he needs to do is put two and two togethor, add in your accent and he more or less know the who the hell you are.'

I'm out of it now, i'm even slightly scaring myself, but i mean everyword.

I turn on Superman....I turn on the man of steel.

'And you!,' I'm not even flinching by this point, yet this guy could easily hurt me, 'the fact that you even thought about killing him, i even saw your eyes go red...You should be ashamed. Hell, you even had to use the 'where are you going' and 'missing batman' lines! God Almighty. I'll let the kid off because he's just that, a kid, but you've been doing this as long as me! Did i somehow miss the memo about our careers becoming focused on humour and popularity!.'

I pause, i really do mean everyword of it. What is with the gags? we dont need them, we're here to stop the bad guys...something which would work a lot better and quicker if they didnt make jokes.

Jokes get people killed.

Speaking of which.

'By the way joker, I would waste your buzzer on Superman, it wouldn't even faze him.'

I don't wait, I don't collect my arrows. I'm too appalled.

I simply turn and walk away.

'Do me a favour, don't take him to arkham, he'll only escape again.'

 

[Superman1496]

There is a time in every superheroes life when he must cross that line to get justice. Some call it vigilante work. Batman knows how that is.

But Ollie doesn't realize it now. I know the thoughts that went through his head. He doesn't know the ones that went through mine though.

The K-arrow. Just like Bruce and his ring. The only thing that could really stop me, if needed.

But the Jokers not just some street thug. He's not just your run-of-the-mill criminal. No, he's a cold-hearted, mercless killer. His blood on my hands wouldn't haunt me for long.

Especially after Wally, and Diana, and who else knows.

Arrow, you need to learn that there are times when things need to be done to protect people. I'm going to spare Jokers life right now, but I swear to you right now, if I had to choose between killing him, or risking the lives of several innocent people again, I will not choose the latter. I said as I lower to the ground.

I pull out a small street pole from the ground, and wrap it around the Joker's hands. Take him away, somewhere far away. I tell Wally.

And then I left. Soon, I would have to get ready for a party, and stop, once again, another cold blooded killer.

J'onn would know where to find me.

 

[NiteCrowe]

GA's beginning to have a midlife crisis.

I pause, the bastard.

By the time i turn he's gone, but i yell it anyway, theres always the chance he'll hear me.

'I understand that there are times Clark, but remember that if you kill him, your just as bad as him. I agree with you, steps need to be taken...but not death! If you hate it that badly, then just send the bastard to the Phantom Zone or, and heres an idea Build a prison he couldn't escape from. Your not the Judge or Jury Clark, your simply the guy who gets things done.'

I lower my voice.

'But remember your the boyscout, you're mister america. if you did that you'd fuck everything up, leave the stuff like that to Bruce....or me, just don't damage yourself, you wouldn't be able to love with it.'

Now i know he can't hear me, but i say it anyway, mainly to myself.

'Sometimes Clark, i swear you, carter and the martian are the most human of us all. And what does that say for us.'

My head is now hung in shame.

'Wally, take him, to Arkham, but to a different cell, and change his clothes and search him...and his room too. we can't have him escaping.'

Sometimes, just sometimes i wonder why the hell I did this. Why i became a 'Superhero'. To be honest, i think there was a point where i just did this for kicks, but now.

Now its different, the criminals are worse, and why the hell did we let kids run around with us?

Thats right because once upon a time i only used trick arrows, and the joker's gags were non lethal and the worst that could happen to us was that we get tied to somestupid contraption which would take us longer than 5 minutes to escape from.

God i miss those days. What the hell happened?

God Knows.

I need a drink.

'Fuck this, if anyone asks Wally, I'll be around. oh and tell Bruce that i need to talk to him.'

Suddenly i feel so very old, and tired.

Why the hell am i doing this? I'm no hero, I'm just some rich-kid who likes to play with his bow.

No, Clarks the real hero. I know that if i was in his position then i would have killed the joker without pausing. It takes a real hero to stop themselves from doing this.

God, perhaps it time to hang up the bow, let the new generation take over, god knows that me, dinah, bruce and clark have been doing this for ages, perhaps it is time for Dick, Roy Connor and Wally to take charge.

By this time i've left, and as i realise that i'm in alley, i finally stop, and let my self lean against the wall and slump to the ground.

I'm getting far too old for this shit.

 

[Superman1496]

Still steaming about the Joker and Ollie's remarks, I headed somewhere to cool off for a while;

The Fortress of Solitude. A place of my own. Well, kinda my own. Walking into the Fortress, I recieved a very familiar, and very apprecitiated welcoming.

Krypto, barking, running at me. I bent down and held the dog. My best friend in the whole world. Actually, I'm the only one he likes, set aside Bruce occasionally.

Krypto started to lick my face as I stroked his golden brown coat. He knew I had a rough day. First the Justice League, then Kara being used as bait, and to top it off, Ollie barking at me while I have a sadestic killer in my hands.

I let go of Krypto and he ran off in front of me, hoping to play. I took off my cape and set it on a computer. After today, even I could use the stress relieve of some fetch.

Back outside, I grabbed a ball. A gift from J'onn. A ball that Krypto wouldn't destroy as soon as he bit into it. Krypto sat next to me, being obedient. As I raised my arm to throw the ball, his head tilted, making me smile.

Go get it boy. I said as I threw the ball up into the air. It dissappeared from view just as the dog took off, soaring in the air after the red ball.

A few moments later, Krypto returned, holding the ball in his mouth. Good boy Krypto. Good boy. Want to go again? I asked as I took the ball from his jawls. He barked in agreeance.

 

[Superman1496]

News Broadcast

Good evening. Tonight we start off by bringing you to the United Nations building where John Meyers, the former partner of the legendary Hellboy, has called for a press conference about the rumored Justice League. Scott Thompson has the story. Scott...

Thank you Sheryll. Sheryll, tonight John Meyers is going to put the rumors to rest about the formation of an elite team of heroes, known as the Justice League. Just moments ago, Meyers spoke that he had indeed worked with the UN, and with their support, created a list of superheroes that will be asked to join this team.

And I have just been informed that Meyers speech is about to begin.

Ladies and Gentleman, thank you all for coming. As I'm sure you all have heard, there are plans to bring together the worlds best superheroes together, to fight on one team. Already, with the UN's help, I have created a list of heroes that are being asked to join. I have sent out invitations to all of the heroes, and have spoken to Superman himself on the matter. The list itself contains names such as Wonder Woman, Batman, the Flash, the Green Arrow, Supergirl, the Martain Manhunter, Fire, Aquaman, Animal Man, and the Green Lantern.

Tomorrow night, I have invited all the superheroes to the UN to recieve their answers in person. I ask you all, to join together and support these heroes, as they try to clean this world once again of the terror that walks the streets. Thank you. John Meyers said, standing at the podium.


There you have it Sheryll, the plans for the Justice League. We'll be back tomorrow night to hear the answers of the worlds bravest. Back to you Sheryll. Scott said, looking into the camera.

Well thank you Scott. We look forward to your broadcast tomorrow. Now, in other news, police are still trying to find the source of a loud boom this afternoon, which caused a stampede in central Kansas. Reports still have not found the cause of the boom, but the police did find the body of a Kansas farmer, who was shot with what has been described as a laser, and his son. His son is alive, but the police say he is in too much shock to make any sense. Horrible for a kid to have to watch his parents die right in front of him. Sheryll says, reading the teleprompter in front of her, before turning to her cohost.

 

[AmenRa]

Aquaman roared through the ruptured hull of the vessel, into the boat itself, riding a wave of water like a jet as he breeched into clear air.

He spouted upwards into the air and seemed to hang there for an instant as he gave the Martian Manhunter a nod and a wave. He then jackknifed again and dove into the harbor, heading back towards the open sea.

Swimming at speeds only he can, it wasn't long before he met a pod of orcas transitioning their way into the colder waters of the North Atlantic. He swam with them for a while, trading stories of adventure and family, until they turned farther North, and he headed East towards home.

Towards Atlantis.

 

[ChasNicollette]

The Flash

Superman and Ollie left.

They walked off in a collective huff, leaving Wally holding the proverbial bag.

Which was to say, The Joker.

"Well," Wally decided, holding the signpost-entwined pantomime by one purple lapel. "This is awkward."

And then, in a rare fit of fury, a spontaneous surge of bitterness, he hauled off and decked The Joker with a blinding-fast punch. Might've broken his jaw, might not have. Either way, it would put a cramp in his smile.

"No, no," Wally snarked, as he pulled his cowl back down over his face. "Don't get up. I'll show yourself out."

In a matter of microseconds, Wally chiseled his boots free of the glue and donned them anew.

And with that, he hauled The Joker with him into the slipstream of one of his fastest velocities...

...and in an instant, in that very selfsame eyeblink of an instant, The Joker would find himself-- stripped, reclothed, and straitjacketed --in one of those glass cages at the very lower reaches of Arkham Asylum. Opposite The Calendar Man, and between Two-Face and The Mad Hatter.

Wally stood there for a moment, leaning hard against the outside of the glass, panting a little. He was all worn out. Plus, there was a grenade injury on his chest and it kind of hurt a lot.

"'It rubs the lotion on its skin,'" Wally snarled softly, bitterly, at The Joker, turning to glare at him, no longer leaning, and poking a red-clad fingertip against the inches-thick Plexiglas, "'or else it gets the hose again.'"

And then he was gone again, as silent alarms would momentarily summon guards to the prison row, guards who would scratch their heads at the presence of The Joker... and his pile of gear in the middle of the prison hallway.

Wally blasted back into Gotham proper, and screeched up beside emo Ollie where he moped in that alley.

He smiled thinly.

"I don't really have a secret identity, anymore," he pointed out. "You didn't hear? Doctor Alchemy turned my Kid Flash uniform into talcum powder on live TV. Everyone in the wide wide world got to see my Constructicons boxer shorts. And my face. I didn't think to vibrate my face like Jay always does.

"'Wally West,'" he explained, "is now a publicly-traded commodity. So if supervillains want to find out who I am and where I live and come get me? They just gotta Google me, or log onto YouTube.

"On the bright side?" he mused. "(If this is a bright side?) All the people I love in the world are either missing, dead, superpowered, or all three. So it's not like I can cause anyone anguish by my public identity being on the grid.

"You'll have to forgive me," he grunted, turning away, "if I'm not as good as my forebears. I never claimed to be. The only thing I was ever any good at was talking. Growing up in Nebraska I had the best show-and-tells ever. So I talk. I talk too much. Sometimes it's humour. Sometimes?

"Sometimes," he grimaced, "it comes in handy. Like when I talked Superman out of lobotomising Mister Punch, back there? You would've just shot him-- I dunno, with a liquid-nitrogen arrow or whatever the crap --but I talked him out of it. You natter on about the moral high ground a lot, G.A., but here I am thinking maybe you've gotten so cynical you've forgotten where that ground even is.

"Now, G.A.," he growled, "if you'll excuse me? I have to go put some Neosporin on my frelling GRENADE WOUND to the frelling CHEST!"

And with a rush of wind, The Flash was gone again, running back towards the scene of the fiery carnage of the bank explosion.

He couldn't punch out yet. There was still work to be done, injuries or no.

Asshat, Wally grumbled inwardly. And here I thought fatherhood would mellow the guy. I hope I'm more chill than that when I'm a dad.

If I'm ever a dad.

 

[rengadeirishman]

J'onn deposited the thug at the local precinct, and then set his mind to key into Kal-el's location.

He's back at the fortress already? I sense doubt and anger in him.

J'onn ate a few oreos, and stopped at a local market to buy more and an apple pie and left for the fortress of solitude.

within a few hours he had arrived and he entered.

"Kal-el? You know i know your here, ive brought you some pie." He gently let his heat vision play on the aluminum tray to warm up the dessert.
"Lets have some pie and talk about what happened earlier. Whatever it was it weighs on you heavily."

 

[NiteCrowe]

I sigh as Wally leaves, he is right, maybe I have got morals all muddled up.

Maybe I am simply too cynical for this, hell i had even forgotten about everything Wally had been through.

God, to think that if Barry, Hal, or Carter had seen me do that...Hell, evcen Bruce would be shocked

I got pissed off and angry, and i've now probably lost 2 close friends i can never replace.

God Almighty, my mind has been messed up since i died...or whatever.

And there i go again, blaiming something else.

What a great example i'm setting for the kids.

Maybe it's time I hung up the bow.

And thats when my phone starts ringing, I look at the Caller ID, Roy.

Oh, great.

'Hey Roy, Whats up.'

Over the next five minutes, what I hear shocks me, and at the same time surprises me. finally i hang up, and stand up.

'A Justice league??? When the hell were they gonna tell me i was invited!'

 

[Superman1496]

J'onn arrived, offering pie. The thought made me smile a little bit. Too bad I wasn't much for pie. Ma used to make it all the time, and it just wasn't my thing.

J'onn, how can we work together if we can't agree on things. Each of us do things our way, and there isn't teamwork involved. If we don't do it the way someone else wants it done, we fight.

And for a team that is supposed to be setting the bar for the rest of the wolrd, we're doing a horrible job so far. I said as I walk up to J'onn. I wave the pie away as Krypto comes running up.

 

[rengadeirishman]

"Well that is a good question Kal-el." J'onn said, putting the pie down.
"I would say that is important for us to get together in one hall, and discuss our differences and our vision for the future. Together we can figure out where each one of us fits in, what we can each contribute, how our individual skills work together to make one force capable of meeting any threat and overcoming it. Today went wrong because we simply said we were together and leapt into action without a thought." J'onn concluded firmly, munching on an oreo.

"Oreo?" he asked the big kryptonian, holding the bag open to him.

 

[Superman1496]

I took the Oreo from J'onn and ate it. He was right. We just kind of jumped into the fight earlier, without knowing what was going on.

Well, tomorrow we're supposed to be meeting with Meyers and the UN to decide on who's in and who's out. I suppose we'll get it situated then. I guess for now we should be getting ready for the party tonight. Bruce and Kara might be wondering where we are. I said, still petting Krypto.

I got up and grabbed my cape. I'm sure Kara would love a pie later, if you don't have anything else to do with it. I suggested before heading towards the entrance.

 

[ChasNicollette]

The Flash

You wouldn't think that you could hear things, past the speed of sound?

Sound can't catch your ears.

But there's a hum. There's a whisper. There's music.

I bet you Chuck Yeager heard it, back in the day.

I bet you that's why he broke the Mach barrier in the first place.

I bet you he could hear it calling him. I bet you he could hear it sing.

I know what it sounds like past the speed of sound.

It's muffled when you ride The Concorde, I noticed, when I sprained my ankle one time when I was fourteen and I had to fly home from Paris instead of running. (Barry could have run home in a heartbeat, but he sat beside me in First Class and did crosswords with me. He took the slow way, so I wouldn't be alone.)

You can't hear it so well on a commercial supersonic transport. But it's there. It's there.

I bet normal people can hear it whispering along the surface of their skin, like shivers down their spine. Subtleties on the fringes of their perceptions.

Ray Palmer, I've been told, can see things when he's down at the subatomic level, down smaller than photons, that he sees things down there where it should all be darkness.

That there's something there, where there should be nothing.

I can hear when it should be silence.

I know the music that plays beyond the speed of sound. I'm one of the only ones who can hear how beautiful that music is.

I'm The Flash: The Fastest Man Alive.

Wally blurred back to stop in front of the bank. The fire was still burning.

He was breathing hard... so very tired. All that shrapnel crapnel in his chest.

Wally West was no starfish, but he could heal pretty fast.

Still, this was hard work. And it was harder to sweat out shrapnel than it was giggly neurotoxins.

The fire was still burning. The fire department was still a ways off.

He ran, and he fetched a couple of buckets...

He began filling them from the water from beside where that boat was sinking and dumping bucketful after bucketful on the fire.

Two buckets at a time over and over and over and overandoverandover...

A flood of bucketfuls, a deluge. It wouldn't be enough to quench the flames, but he could at least stop the thing from spreading until someone else could do something, whether that was one of the other Super Buddies or Gotham's FD.

Two buckets at a time over and over and over and overandoverandover...

 

[ChasNicollette]

Animal Man

John Chambers was a good man.

He wasn't as rich as he used to be. But he still had a couple of coin to rub together, and as sceptical as he was about powers that existed outside of the bandwidth of the human mind, powers like The Speed Force or The Green or The Red, as sceptical as he was about philosophies and "hoodoo," he was a good enough man to judge men by their actions. If a hero was a hero, he treated them accordingly, no matter their own personal brand of mumbo-jumbo.

So it was with John Chambers and Buddy Baker.

And Buddy Baker had benefited from thumbing a lift with John Chambers when Johnny had had to fly from his New York Quickstart Enterprises office to the one in San Diego.

From the airport, he'd taken a cab.

And he'd gotten home just in time to miss the nightly network news.

He walked in the front door, and he found Ellen sitting in the dark, with a little bit of moonlight sleeting through a window to illuminate the tears on her cheeks.

Buddy hesitated, and pulled his goggles down his face to dangle 'round his neck. "Ellen?"

She sniffled softly, and shook her head.

Buddy's heart punched its way up into his throat. "What's wrong?" he wondered, as he felt his knees wobble a bit and he felt his face go pale. "Is something the matter-- is something the matter with Cliff or Maxine?"

Ellen sniffled again, and she gestured dismissively. "Nn," she whispered, low and throaty. "They're in bed. They were cranky earlier, they got in a fight. I sent them to bed early. Cliff's not allowed to watch Lon Chaney movies 'till Thursday."

Buddy set his bag down just inside the front door, and he closed the door behind him.

He probed the neighbourhood, letting his morphogenetic "fingers" do the walking... he found the cat next door walking along a fence between their two houses, and he borrowed a bit of nightvision.

Ellen was beautiful. She looked like Donna Reed. She looked like Sue Storm. He didn't deserve her.

Her tears shone all the brighter, and they glittered like his eyes.

He walked towards her slowly. "Then," he started again quietly, as he sank to his knee beside her, "if they're okay? What's the matter?"

She smiled at him, a sadhappyhorrifiedbrilliant smile that shattered and scattered his heart into a million tiny pieces, and she reached out and ran her fingers through his hair.

"I just saw the news," she murmured.

Buddy glanced at the TV, sitting quietly silently off on the little particle-board Wal-Mart TV stand in the middle of the wall that faced the couch, and then he swung his gaze back around to Ellen's face.

"The news?" he blinked, uncomprehending. "Did they do a special on the harp seal hunts up North because yeah, I swear to God, those choke me up so bad..."

Ellen put a finger across Buddy's lips. "Shh," she insisted. "You shut your silly gorgeous face."

She shook her head. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Buddy's eyes widened. "'Tell you?'" he shook his head. "Look, I'm running off cat powers right now and despite what Lillian Jackson Braun might tell you, to my knowledge cats can't read minds."

"They just," Ellen murmured, laughing incredulously as she spoke, incredulously and delightedly, "they just did a thing on the news. The United Nations and old John T. Meyers from The Bureau and and and The Justice League? Why didn't you tell me? The names they listed off, these gods and goddesses... and they put your name right in there, your silly stupid superhero codename... you were right there with them. Why didn't you tell me?"

"It wasn't a sure thing," Buddy grinned faintly. "I was nervous as Hell. But I have some good friends, and they helped me. (I still feel like Eddie Izzard on stage with the guys from Monty Python, I still feel like Jimmy Hendrix playing with The Beatles. I know I can do good, but I don't know if I'll really fit in.)"

Ellen grinned at him, wiping away her tears with flicks of her fingers. "You're my very favourite Beatle, Bernhard Baker."

Buddy arched an eyebrow. "Wait. Even better than Paul?"

Ellen nodded, and cupped his face in both hands, grinning from ear to ear. "Even better than Paul."

Buddy chuckled softly, eyes dancing as they saw in the dark. "Happy ending?"

Ellen shook her head one last time. "Happy beginning."

 

[ChasNicollette]

Fire

Beatriz' apartment was a triplex in The San Remo on Central Park West, and she had a window open.

The noise of the city wafted in with the wind that ran roughshod over her gorgeous green hair. She leaned against the windowsill and she gazed out into the night.

Tomorrow, she wondered, what will you bring?

She tilted her head back and gazed up into the night sky. She couldn't really see any stars, not with the smog and the light pollution from The City of New York. This was not to say that The City of New York was without its beauty.

Rio was loud and bright and noisy, too, and it was its own whole definition of beauty.

But when Beatriz DaCosta had grown from a small girl on the docks of Óbidos in Brazil, she had been able to look up and see the stars.

She wondered how big the satellite would be. The headquarters.

She wondered if she would be able to see it from her 25th-floor apartment overlooking Central Park. Maybe she would have to stand under clearer skies, like the ones she'd known as a girl.

Bea reached up and slid the window shut, and she tightened her green robe around her curves and skin. Silently, silently, she padded through to the bedroom on barefooted tip-toes.

Tora lay sleeping on her side in the queen-sized bed, her crystal-white bob puffing a little bit with each exhalation.

Bea smiled at her, softly, delighted, eyes half-lidded.

She really was so very beautiful.

Tora Olafsdotter had met Beatriz DaCosta a few years previously, on one of Beatriz' last missions as an agent of Brazilian intelligence. She was the daughter of a king, herself a princess, and had been afforded a special escort as per her station as a foreign dignitary. According to legend, the people of her tribe had had magickal inborn powers over ice and snow... but for Tora, this had apparently skipped a generation.

Thus, instead of Tora protecting herself with ice, Beatriz would protect her with fire.

And that first meeting...

...had led to such an interesting friendship.

Bea slid out of her robe and under the covers, and she draped an arm across Tora's waist, cuddling gently and tenderly up to her back.

Tora mumbled faintly, something unintelligibly Norwegian, and smiled happily in her sleep. She didn't awaken any more fully than that.

Bea smiled brightly, and kissed Tora on the back of her neck, and then closed her own eyes and waited for Dream to take her away.

She wondered what tomorrow would bring. Tomorrow would be a big day.

But tonight had gentle wonders of its own, and it would be okay with her if tonight lingered for a little while longer.

 

[Superman1496]

Just as I was about to take off from my fortress of the North with J'onn, I heard something that I knew I couldn't ignore.

Ma.

J'onn, you meet up with Bruce and Kara. I'm sure they won't need me there. But just incase, I would like you to be there. I have to go tend to something. Sorry to you leave you here. I said to my green friend.

And I took off. In seconds I reached the Smallville farm, just as the sun was setting.

I missed the sunset. Watching it from the barn with my telescope as a kid was my favorite past time. I used to look up at the stars and feel more at home up there. Wishing there was someone out there like me.

And I have someone, Kara. Thankfully. Not that Ma and Pa weren't my family. But, it seemed that Kara would understand me more. Unfortunatly, it's harder for a teenage girl to understand an adult.

I quickly changed behind the barn before walking up to the house. I didn't bother putting on my glasses. I found Ma sitting in the rocking chair on the porch.

Oh Clark, I'm so glad you came. Did you hear about that boy and his father who were killed outside of Grandville? Poor family must be shocked. Ma said as she stood up. She was a lot shorter now. I've grown a lot since I was in high school.

No, sorry Ma. I've been a little busy today. I said as I sat down.

Oh yes, I heard about the Joker guy. To bad you couldn't save the bank. But, at least you got that clown taken care of. Ma said. She paused for a moment. Clark, what's bothering you son? You look as if you have something on your mind.

I'm fine Ma, it's just...well. I remember when I told Pa about the first time I saved somebody. When I decided to start this whole thing. He told me that I would have to make decisions that people I knew would never have to make. And he was right, and it's just hard. I said, looking down at my hands.

Look Clark. You are an amazing person. You have amazing abilities. And of course you're going to have to make hard decisions. That's just a part of the job. She replied. She put her hand on my face, making me smile. But I know that whatever choice you make, it will be the right one. She finished.

I smiled. She always had a way with making me feel better. Now, the reason I called you. She said, getting up. Jonathon hit a hole in the field. Luckily he wasn't hurt. But the tractor is on its side. I was wondering, before your father hurts himself anymore, if you could get it up and put it in the barn. She said as she led me to the corn field.

No problem.

I found the tractor on it's side, just like she said. But the hole, was more like a crater. It didn't have a meteor or anything inside of it, just the crater. Blowing it off for now, I picked up the tractor, and carried it off to the barn.

Ma was back on the porch, arms folded, just watching me. She called for me to come in and eat, before I caught a cold out there. I smiled. Same ol' Ma.