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Crisis on Infinite Earths
The Villain War

by Martin Maenza
based on Crisis on Infinite Earths no. 9 & 10 by Marv Wolfman and George Perez

---

 

Prologue

The antimatter waves swept across the infinite universes, destroying each one by one. Already fallen were Earth-3, which was the home of the Crime Syndicate, and countless other parallel Earths. The Monitor had gathered an initial group of allies from the myriad of heroes and villains he observed over the previous years, and together they were able to hold back the threat on the universe that housed Earth-1.

But upon the death of the Monitor's body, he was able to leave one final gift. The Monitor's released energies created a netherverse, one which temporarily absorbed the universes that contained Earth-1 and Earth-2, the later world which was now also under attack.

As Earth-6 fell, the heroes and villains of Earths 1 and 2 were called together in the Monitor's satellite. His assistant Lyla, now going by the name of Harbinger, along with Pariah, who had witnessed countless universes already destroyed, and Alexander Luthor, the sole survivor of Earth-3, addressed this large group. The trio pleaded to the assembled beings, insisting that old enemies would have to put aside their differences and work together. Only then could their worlds have a chance of surviving.

The heroes and villains were given time to mull over their decision, but the trio was not able to wait for the answer. The antimatter clouds were moving once more, this time with the final three universes in their path. A small band of heroes were sent to Earth-X, Earth-S and Earth-4 to warn the inhabitants of the coming doom, and to enlist the aid of the champions of those worlds.

The goal, ultimately, was to pull these three worlds into the netherverse with Earth-1 and Earth-2 in hopes of saving them all.

But while all this was occurring, another individual had plans of his own.

Brainiac, the living computer, witnessed the destruction caused by the antimatter first hand. It swept through the universe much swifter than his incredible brain calculated. And as it moved, it destroyed everything it touched.

"I cannot remain here or this entity will be eliminated," Brainiac concluded. "To save myself is my prime directive." This was the closest that the living computer ever came to feeling a true emotion, for he feared for his very existence. "To save myself, I must also save the universe."

The giant silver spaceship shaped in the exact visage of its owner's skull charted a new course, for Earth-1. Brainiac sought the assistance of the one human who's intellect he acknowledged worthy. He required the help of Lex Luthor.

All of this happened within the last twelve days.
 
 

Chapter 1

The weather on Earth-1 had become very unpredictable ever since the world was swept into the netherverse. In some landlocked parts of Europe, an incredible blizzard was gripping the land yet it was the middle of July. On the east coast of the United States, torrential rain storms and lightning filled the darkened morning skies. It was as if Mother Nature herself rebelled at the idea of the worlds being taken from their natural place in the cosmos.

While fleeing from a battle with his archenemy Superman, a brilliant bald scientist turned master-criminal found himself caught up in an intense tornado. "This is insanity!" Lex Luthor cried. "If the readings my battle armor is displaying are to be trusted, this storm is beyond that which has ever been seen!" He kicked in the armor's thrust engines, but even they could not pull him from the whirling funnel of air.

"Damn!" the man shouted at the top of his lungs, hoping to rise above the howl of the winds. "I refuse to let my life end this way! I am Lex Luthor!" He was a man of science, of reason, of logic. The chaotic, unpredictable natural forces seemed to mock him as if to say that he was less significant than he thought. To them, he was but a speck of sand to be tossed around and deposited at their whim. The speed of the tornado increased.

Suddenly, there was a burst of energy that shot down through the atmosphere and directly into the storm. "What the...?" Luthor exclaimed as the beam cut across his path. With little control over his own course, he hit the energy beam dead on and felt his whole body twinge with an odd sensation.

The next moment, Luthor found himself standing on a platform inside a huge structure of components, circuitry and displays. The interior of this place, wherever it was, had a cold sterile feel to it. The machinery hummed ominously. It sent a slight shiver down Luthor's spine.

And yet, and yet, the technology looked incredibly advanced. It was well beyond anything that had been seen on Earth, outside of his own work of course. Wild thoughts raced through his head about the potential for all this. Surely he could find a use for it all, once he managed to make it his own.

Luthor suddenly snapped back into focus, realizing he wasn't brought to this place by chance. "Where am I?" the man asked indignantly.

As he started to take a step, a silvery robot that resembled a skeleton with a large, domed head caught his attention. The robot sat across the way on a chair of sorts that seemed to be directly wired into the structure. The robot did not move at first; the face stared back at him with empty circuitry.

"Who are you?" Luthor asked. "Tell me, robot, or I'll..."

"Silence, Luthor," the machine said coldly. It's voice was devoid of all personality and emotion. "We have met countless times and fought together against the power of Superman."

"You're insane, robot," Luthor said. "I don't know you."

"You are wrong, Lex Luthor," the machine corrected him. "I am the new Brainiac. And I offer you now a plan calculated to make us both rulers of this universe."

Luthor's eyes brightened. "Oh, really? Tell me more of your plan, Brainiac."
 
 

Chapter 2

Brainiac rose to his feet, his robot body standing tall and stiff. As he moved forward, it was with great mechanical precision. He approached one of the plasma screens to the side, and an image began to form upon it as he got closer.

Luthor worked his way slowly over to the robot's side. The image formed that of the space outside, showing what appeared to be two images of the Earth extremely out of focus so that they barely overlapped. The same could be said for the moon in the orbit.

"In simplest of terms, Lex Luthor, my plan is this," Brainiac said. "There is a Crisis at hand, one in which the heroes of this world and others are working to resolve. The readings I have been conducting over the last few hours indicate that there are two universes being held in check at this time. There is a great power keeping them from merging into one." He gestured to the screen.

It showed a montage of familiar figures, dealing with the backlash of the wild weather and helping the innocent people effected by it. "We have both seen the drive and determination of these heroes in the past. There is a high probability that they will find a way to resolve the current dire situation."

"I have to agree with you there, old ally," Luthor nodded. "They do have a tendency to pull off miracles when the odds are stacked against them." The man in the green armor stared at the screen once more. "Two universes, eh? So if we worked together, you and I could each take one as our own, to do with as we saw fit."

"Yes. Even if the heroes are able to stay the Crisis and the universes survive, I calculate they will be in a very weakened state. We would be able to take over easily."

"Kick them when they're down," Luthor said. "I like the way you think, Brainiac. But..."

"But?" Brainiac mimicked the words. "Query: what concerns you, Luthor?"

"I'm thinking we could increase our odds of success by bringing in a few recruits of our own," Luthor proposed. "You know, set up an army or two to take the last of the fight out of the heroes. This way, you and I can keep a watch over everything and avoid all the messy work. When our side wins, we take over. If our side loses, we're not out anything but our time."

Brainiac was silent for a moment as he processed Luthor's suggestion. Finally, his vocal systems came online once more. "Indeed. I calculated that coming to you would be the best strategy. Your mind is a devious one."

Luthor took the compliment. "Let's get to work. We have an army to build."
 
 

Chapter 3

Less than twelve hours later, as Earths 1 and 2 found themselves rapidly merging, Brainiac's space craft continued to hover undetected in orbit. "With all that is occurring below, our location should remain hidden," Brainiac remarked. "We can proceed with little fear of interuption."

"Excellent," Luthor said. "Then, let us fire up that teleportation ray of yours. It's time to bring in our first recruits."

Brainiac eyed the console that Luthor had been working at for most of the night. The device cross referenced known individuals of the criminal persuasion with approximate whereabouts on the planets' surfaces below. "Your first two choices are intriguing ones," the living computer remarked. "Query: why those two first?"

"Think about it," Luthor said. "More than two thirds of the Earths' surfaces are covered with water. Who better to lead an assault from the seas?"

Brainiac nodded. "I concur."

***

Below, not far from the undersea location where the cities of Tritonis and Poseidonis should be situated, a number of water breathing individuals expressed their concerns.

"Great Neptune!" Aqualad exclaimed as he turned to his girlfriend Tula. "What happened?" He glanced at the now barren ocean floor. "Where did the cities go?"

"I don't know, Garth," the purple haired young woman said. "When I returned from the caves, I found they had simply vanished. I couldn't have been gone more than twenty minutes."

Aquaman floated in the cold, turbulent ocean and stared in disbelief. The pained expression on his face showed the anger welling up inside of him. I came from New Venice to find Mera, he thought. I wanted to get back with her, to make our marriage work. But she's gone! Without saying a word, he began to pump his arms and legs to propel himself away at great speed. I'll find her! I swear I'll find her!

Watching the Sea King rocket off, two of Aquaman's mortal enemies hid behind an outcropping of rock and conversed. "It seems, Ocean Master, your brother is troubled," pointed out the darkly garbed Black Manta. A special helmet and tank allowed him to breath underwater and communicate with his associate.

"Not quite so troubled as he soon will be," the purple caped villain replied. "Trust me on that, Black Manta. Yes, trust me on that."

Suddenly, a blinding flash of light appeared in the darker ocean depths, and the two villains were engulfed by it. As the light faded, the two men were gone.

And the only witness to their sudden departure was the platinum blonde swimmer named Dolphin. They... are gone! she thought to herself. But how?
 
 

Chapter 4

Black Manta and Ocean Master echoed that question as they materialized in the cold depths of space, aboard Brainiac's ship.

"What is the meaning of this?" Black Manta asked.

"Who dares abduct me?" Ocean Master exclaimed.

Lex Luthor stepped forth. "Relax, gentlemen," he said. "In times such as this, we must work together against our common enemies."

"You want to help us destroy Aquaman?" Black Manta asked.

"Aquaman, Superman," Luthor said, "the whole damn Justice League and more! By working as one, we shall finally have the revenge we all desire."

Ocean Master smiled. "Yes, that would be sweet indeed." He strode across the room in a regal manner, his cape flowing behind him. "Tell me more of this plan, Luthor."

"All in good time, Ocean Master," Luthor said.

Brainiac watched silently from the sidelines as Luthor won the trust of his fellow humans. They seemed to respect the man, if for nothing more than his determination in trying to destroy Superman. Luthor would make a good mouth piece; he would be able to herd the villainous cattle. Brainiac had chosen wisely.

Suddenly, one of the sensors diverted the computer's attention. Brainiac studied the readings with some concern; he wanted to have all the data analyzed before he announced the findings. His brain quickly crunched the numbers as they fed into his systems. Only when the conclusions were clear did he interrupt the discussion between the three men. "Luthor, an important development has occurred," Brainiac announced.

"Yes?"

"The very fabric of the space around us is altering," Brainiac explained in a matter of fact manner. "The two universes which had already been spared from destruction have been joined by three others. Now there are five Earths, five universes, that are linked together. While their vibrations remain distinct for now, it is a logical conclusion that they might come together as one."

Ocean Master and Black Manta looked at one another and then turned to Lex Luthor who seemed to follow what Brainiac was saying.

"Five Earths, eh?" Luthor pondered aloud. "While that steps up our timetable some, by the same token it provides us with a wider pool of resources and a bigger prize as well."

Luthor turned to Brainiac. "It's time we get to work!" The bald scientist checked his list and located the next targets for transport.
 
 

Chapter 5

Earth-2: As the five Earths slowly began to align with one another, some individuals found it easier to cross over to the others. To wit, Star Sapphire took the opportunity to search this new world for a power gem like her own. "Perhaps I can seize on an opportunity amidst this chaos," she said to herself. Her goal had been to locate all the gems and take the title as rightful queen of Zamaron. It was time to continue pursuing it with a vengeance.

Suddenly, two figures rushed down the ever shifting street towards her. One man had short red hair and wore a dark black military uniform with red boots and gloves. A red D blazed across the uniform's front. The other man was dressed in green with purple boots, gloves and cape. His chest had a black lightning bolt on it. "Out of our way, woman!" the later, Deathbolt, cried.

Star Sapphire took to the air as they started to run past. "We must flee while the Earths remain in contact," Per Degaton explained.

Star Sapphire turned to see three figures swooping in behind them from the air. From their colorful capes and costumes, as well as their determined manner, she quickly deduced these were heroes of this world. In fact, she recognized two of them from when the Wizard had dragged her along on his revenge mission a few years back. This had to be Earth-2, and that would make the two men criminals.

She glanced back and saw another change happen just ahead of them. "You can see it?" Star Sapphire exclaimed. "The Earths are becoming more visible!" She started to follow the men, if nothing else than to keep them as targets. Suddenly, a flash of light enveloped the trio.

The Green Lantern of Earth-2 turned to his comrades. "Great Scott!" the veteran hero in green, red and purple exclaimed. Despite the might of his power ring, he wasn't able to stop the beam that hit the villains.

"They're disappearing?" Power Girl, the Kryptonian born young woman in white, red and blue, was too caught off guard. Johnny Quick raced ahead at super-speed and began to search the spot the villains were standing only seconds a go.

"I don't get it," Green Lantern said. "Only the villains are gone."

"And we're not affected," Power Girl added.

"This isn't the effect of the antimatter cloud," the speedster deduced. "Something else is happening."

Green Lantern scratched his receding blonde hair. "I'm stumped. But whatever is happening, I don't like it. We'd better alert the rest of the Justice Society."
 
 

Chapter 6

Earth-S: Two individuals watched from the edge of a building as a crimson biplane soared across the lightning filled skies. Below, a mix of colonial homes, 20th century skyscrapers and far future towers dotted the landscape. Not only was the space of five universes coming together, but so were the various time periods of the past, present and future.

The taller figure was well built; the muscular man wore only black pants and boots. "Uhh," he grunted, "I, ughh, don't understand. That don't look like Fawcett City to me."

The other man was much shorter in stature and even stood slightly hunched over. The bald man with round glasses wore a white tunic that resembled a medical uniform of sorts. He began to laugh with an overbite grin. "Heh heh heh," he chuckled, "and only I, Sivana, comprehend what is happening." He pointed to the changing landscape before them. "Time is in flux, universes are merging. What a glorious time to plan the conquest of a quintet of Earths!" For what the man lacked in stature and looks, he made up for in ambition and intellect.

"Did you forget about me, Sivana?" a voice boomed from the rooftop above.

Sivana did not even need to turn; he knew that voice all too well. "Curses! You!" The man spun around anyway just as his larger companion took a defensive stance. Sivana had no problem letting the brutish Ibac protect him, for that was the only reason he tolerated having him around anyway.

"Well, well, if it isn't the Big Red Cheese himself," Sivana taunted. "Captain Marvel!" The hero was adorned in red with gold trim and a golden lightning bolt emblazoned upon his barrel chest. His white cape billowed gently in the wind.

Sivana hated him with every ounce in his body. "I thought you'd be out saving all of mankind, or something equally ridiculous!" Sivana's words were spit forth like venom.

"That's just what I intend to do," Captain Marvel said. The dark haired champion reached forward. "Just after I put you two behind bars..."

Suddenly, the two villains began to dissolve in a burst of light.

"Holy Moley!" Captain Marvel exclaimed. "Sivana and Ibac... disappearing?"

"Bye, bye, Cheesey!" Sivana taunted. In his mind, he knew not what was happening, but he wasn't about to let on to his most hated enemy that fact. Sivana and Ibac appeared thousands of miles away, on Brainaic's ship.

A bald man in green battle armor was waiting to greet them. "Welcome aboard, gentlemen," Luthor announced. "Welcome to a very select group who will soon rule the universe!"

Ibac stood dumbfounded. Sivana glanced around the alien ship and noted that a dozen or so costumed individuals were already present. "Bah!" the short scientist cursed. "What need do I, Thaddeus Bodog Sivana, have for any of you? I am the greatest criminal mind ever!"

"You ain't letting thisss ssshrimp get away with that, are you, Luthor?" hissed Copperhead who had been skulking nearby. "He obviousssly doesssn't know geniussss when he'sss looking at it!" Luthor chuckled at that.

"Genius? This guy?" Sivana balked.

"Hold your tongue, Sivana!" a voice squawked. From a small hovering chair that approached, a barely three inch tall green worm with goggles positioned himself between the two men. "This here is Lex Luthor of Earth-1. I've met him before and know of his capabilities." The worm spun around and moved closer to Sivana. He lowered the volume on his voice projection device. "It would be in your best interest to listen to what he has to say."

Sivana wrinkled his brow. "Feh! If you say so, Mister Mind. I will at least hear the man out."
 
 

Chapter 7

"We'll be ready to explain it all just as soon as we gather the others," Luthor stated. "Time is of the essence now."

While fifteen heroes of the five Earths began a deadly mission into the antimatter universe to bring the battle to the Anti-Monitor's stronghold, Luthor and Brainiac were filling the later's space craft with the largest assembly of evil any of the five Earths had seen. Over the span of a few hours, they managed to locate all those they felt could serve their cause.

From Earth-X, they retrieved the Silver Ghost.

From Earth-S, they gathered Black Adam, Captain Nazi, Holocaust, King Kull, Mister Atom and the Weeper.

From the far future, they contacted Doctor Regulus, the Lord of Time, the Fatal Five, and members of the Legion of Super-Villains.

From Earth-4 came the Banshee, Doctor Spectro, the Ghost, the Image, the Madmen, Major Force, Punch and Jewelee, and the Squid Men.

From the recent past of Earth-2: Baron Blitzkrieg, the Cheetah, Firefly, Dragon King, the Dummy, Insect Queen, Kung, Alexei Luthor, Night and Fog, the Samurai and Tsunami.

From the reaches of space: Blackstaar, Despero, Evil Star, Hector Hammond, Hyanthis, Kanjar Ro, the Queen Bee, Sinestro and Starro.

From Earth-2's present time: the Fiddler, the Gambler, the Icicle, the Mist, the Monocle, Rag Doll, Solomon Grundy, the Thinker, the Ultra-Humanite, Vandal Savage and the Wizard.

And, because it was the world Luthor was most familiar, from Earth-1 they recruited Bizarro, Black Rock, Black Spider, Blockbuster, Bolt, the Bug-Eyed Bandit, the Calculator, Calendar Man, Captain Boomerang, Captain Cold, Captain Stingaree, Cat-Man, the Cavalier, Cheetah II, Chemo, Cheshire, Chronos, Circe, Clayface II, Clock King, Cluemaster, Count Vertigo, the Crime Doctor, Deadshot, Deathstroke, Doctor Cyber, Doctor Destiny, Doctor Double X, Doctor Phosphorus, Doctor Polaris, Doctor Psycho, Eclipso, the Electrocutioner, the Enforcer, the Eradicator, Felix Faust, Firebug, Floronic Man, Golden Glider, Gorilla Grodd, the Huntress, Hyena, Javelin, the Joker, Killer Frost, Killer Moth, Kobra, Lady Lunar, Lord Satanis, Matter Master, Metallo, Mirror Master, Mister Element, the Molder, Multiplex, the Penguin, Plastique, Pied Piper, Poison Ivy, Quakemaster, Rainbow Raider, the Riddler, Scarecrow, Shadow Thief, the Shaggy Man, the Shark, Silver Swan, the Sportsmaster, Sonar, Syonide, Tokamak, Trickster, Typhoon, Weasel, Weather Wizard and members of the Brotherhood of Evil, the Cadre, the Demolition Team, the Fearsome Five, the Gang, the Masters of Disaster and the Royal Flush Gang.

Once everyone was on board, the next order of business was to select a small group who would provide information on Earth-S, Earth-X and Earth-4. From villains native to these worlds, Luthor and Brainiac could anticipate the opposition and organize the right teams to strike at these first targets. They would also divide up their forces, to insure proper resources for the objectives planned.

And while the leaders schemed, the recruits mingled.
 
 

Chapter 8

"Why that arrogant, insufferable dog!" Kobra cursed at the top of his lungs. "Who does that worm Luthor think he is? How dare he exclude me, the Grand Naga, from his inner circle?"

Vandal Savage stroked his beard silently, listening to the golden-scale costumed conqueror rant. He had his own opinions about the whole situation but kept them to himself. Centuries of life experience taught him that there was a proper time for action and a proper time for patience.

"I tell you this, Savage," Kobra continued. "Lex Luthor will rue the day he crossed Kobra! I will make him pay for his effrontery!" The man spun around to storm off, and his green cape trailed behind him. As he walked across the room, he noticed a figure had his eye on him. Kobra started to pass and then spun back around quickly, getting into his observer's face. "What are you looking at, dog?"

Copperhead's gaze was a firm, unyielding one. He stared into the crimson lenses of Kobra's cowl with a stern look on his face. "Nothing," Copperhead hissed before he slithered off. But there was quite a bit more on the reptilian rogue's mind, more than he was willing to voice. Lost in his own thoughts, he ran right into a large hairy figure.

"Watch it!" growled Gorilla Grodd as he turned around. Then, a smile crossed his jagged grin. "Well, look who crawled out from under a rock? My old playmate, Copperhead!"

Copperhead glared at the super-ape and slithered off in anger. Grodd laughed loudly.

Another gorilla nearly Grodd's height but almost half his mass made an inquiry. "Grodd, what iz that about?" he asked in a French accent.

"Just an old grudge that I refuse to let die out, Monsieur Mallah," Grodd replied. "Sometimes it is fun to mess with the humans. They can be such emotional creatures."

Mallah was about to make a comment when the cylindrical robot form that housed the mind of his partner the Brain started to roll up; Mallah held his tongue.

Copperhead meanwhile tried to find a quiet corner to sulk in. Unfortunately, the main area of the spacecraft that all the villains had been placed was fairly crowded and loud.

"...that's no lady, that's my wife!" the Joker said as he finished the end of a joke. He then began to laugh rather loudly in the maniacal way that was one of his trademarks.

A man in a yellow and orange jester like costume with green tassels with red balls on the end laughed out loud. "That's a good one!" Punch exclaimed as he slapped his knee.

Standing next to Punch was a blonde woman in a short checkered skirt and brown top with gem shaped accessories. Jewelee gave her partner "the look", the one of disapproval which most couples understood. Had Punch not been enjoying the Clown Prince of Crimes jokes, he would have picked up on her vibe.
 
 

Chapter 9

"That costume!" a towering man with white skin and hair exclaimed. "I know that costume! You Superman!" Solomon Grundy wore a gray shirt, a black suit jacket and pants, torn and ravaged. He lunged towards the other figure. "Superman friend of Green Lantern! Grundy hate Green Lantern!"

A yellow energy beam caught the behemoth's huge white fists and held them back. "No, Grundy!" the red skinned Sinestro exclaimed. "That's not Superman!"

"Red man wrong!" said the white skinned being in a costume similar to Superman's; the only difference between the costumes was a backwards 'S' insignia and a carved round rock hanging from his neck. "Me am Bizarro! See?" He held up the rock that had his name carved in it. "Me love Superman! Love him to life! He be a friend!"

Solomon Grundy had a rough time processing Bizarro's backwards logic. "Aaargh!" Grundy growled. "Solomon Grundy smash super-friends!"

Nearby at one of the windows looking out into space, a black haired man in a blue military uniform with orange trim and a red cape glanced down at the partially merged Earths below. "I wonder," he said aloud, "if each of those world's below has my beloved Modora. And if so, I wonder what role of greatness they might play in the world economies."

Standing next to Sonar was a young woman with long blonde hair dressed in a green costume with orange gloves and trim. She had her eye in a different direction, towards the five partial merged moons. "Mmmm," Lady Lunar purred softly. "Five times the power. I can feel the increase within me."

"Ah, such a beautiful sight," a wicked voice said from behind her. "The lovely moon and a lovely young woman." Lady Lunar spun around on her heel to see the source of these words. She saw it was a man in purple and black. His face was a twisted visage with the entire right side and part of the left with an odd bluish tint to it.

"Excuse me?" she asked in indignation.

Eclipso noticed the half shape moon on the villainess' green mask above her goggles and smiled a jagged smile. "Well now," he said licking his lips. "I was right! We have something in common." On his own chest was an image of the full moon, one eclipsing the sun. He reached his purple gloved hand forward and began to caress her exposed cheek.

Lady Lunar slapped his hand away. "How dare you?" she exclaimed. She then stomped off.

Eclipso merely smiled wickedly. "Feisty! Just the way I like them." He watched her go, thinking that things between them was far from over.
 
 

Chapter 10

A heated debate was going on amongst a large group of villains in one corner of the ship. "Why are we even here?" Chameleon Chief asked. The orange skinned Durlan had an angered look on his face. "What difference does any of this have on our timeline?"

The red skinned Tyr and the metallic female called the Silver Slasher agreed with him.

"If you bothered to pick up a holovid every once in awhile," the half-man, half-cyborg Tharok snapped, "you'd know this is a period of uncertain history."

"Right," the green haired Emerald Empress agreed with her fellow member of the Fatal Five. "We have no way of knowing for certain whether our participation was pivotal to these events or not."

Behind her, a huge emerald eye of glowing green energy floated. Radiation Roy and Esper Lass tried to step out of its view as the eye was giving them an uncomfortable feeling.

"I'm with Tharok on this one," the green and red costumed Lightning Lord said. "Besides, if the fabric of time is so frail that we all can be here, it's very possible that our mutual enemies might also be present."

Folks like red haired power house Titania, the matter manipulator Cosmic King, the armored Mano and the cosmic ax wielding Persuader started to talk amongst themselves over this possibility. Nothing would please them more than to see their enemies dead.

The all orange and slightly blaze Sun Emperor nodded. "Yes! Why, if we have a chance to strike at the Legion of Super-Heroes now, in the 20th Century, then we clear the way for our own dominance of the 30th Century!"

"Exactly," Tharok said. The villains of the future began to laugh and cheer.

Nearby, a man dressed in red and yellow futuristic garb overheard the entire discussion thanks to his advanced helmet. The bearded man shook his head. He came from the Earth's future, the year 3786 initially. But he had spent countless years traveling throughout the time stream, from the distant past to as far as one billion A.D. He knew of the time period where these villains came for it was one of many possible futures. He long ago had concluded that the future could be altered greatly by even the smallest of events.

Despite all that, this time period and this particular time of Crisis fascinated him most of all. The details of the Crisis' outcome was a shrouded one, even to one with access to so many advanced tools such as himself. The Lord of Time knew also that this juncture point seemed to spawn more than it's share of possible futures. Anyone of them could include that which he came. And all the rest, well, they were of little consequence to him.

No, he wasn't here to exploit the events. He was here to observe them as well as insure his existence and well-being. And if, by chance, his hated enemies, the Justice League of America, were to somehow suffer severely because of these events, then the Lord of Time would be satisfied.
 
 

Chapter 11

Some time later that day, the Anti-Monitor had suffered a major setback when the Earth-1 heroine named Supergirl succeeded where her other allies had failed. Kara Zor-El destroyed the mighty shell that housed the evil one's true essence, and in doing so she was at the heart of a deadly explosion. Superman's cousin sacrificed herself in hope to save her adopted home world and the other four universes.

But her valiant death was not the end of the war. The Anti-Monitor fled, restored himself in a new improved armor and began to oversee the construction of a mighty weapon. His antimatter cannon would succeed in destroying the remains of the positive matter universe. Feeling so confident, he had little thought that the captured Flash from Earth-1, Barry Allen, would pose any threat to his plans.

Meanwhile, in a ravaged satellite headquarters 22,300 miles above the Earth-1 surface, the Justice League of America had retrieved one of their own enemies in hopes to save another of their fallen teammates. A dark haired man with a pencil thin mustache dressed in a white lab coat was escorted to a laboratory by the green skinned Martian Manhunter.

Thomas Oscar Morrow stared at the figure on the table. The form with the red and yellow costume lay still, it's chest cavity opened with circuitry underneath exposed. Another impressive piece of work, an African-American young man with silver metallic components integrated to a majority of his body stood over the damaged form of Red Tornado. "Hey, who are you?" Morrow asked.

"Name's Cyborg," the man-machine replied. "And I got more than a passing knowledge of things like this." He leaned over the table. "Only this guy's far outta my league. Only hope the Atom can dig up something."

Morrow moved closer. "You said something about an atom?"

"The Atom," Cyborg corrected. "Used to be with the JLA before he took off. Which is why they asked him to come back for this." Cyborg gestured with his metallic left glove to a screen. The image was that of a cutaway of the android's head, and a green blip moved on the screen. "He's inside the Red Tornado's body. There!" The member of the Titans flipped on a switch to communicate with the shrunken hero inside. "See anything strange in there, Atom?"

Amidst the circuitry and conduits, the Atom examined things with a special set of goggles. "Everything's strange, Cyborg. And this is beyond my science too" Ray Palmer was good, but not this good. That's why they called in an unusual source for help.

Outside, T. O. Morrow beamed. "When I build 'em, I build 'em right," he said smugly.

Cyborg didn't turn around. "Wipe off that smirk, Morrow," he threatened, "or I'll do it for you. Atom, go for 'vision-scan'. We wanna see what you're looking at it." The Atom complied, and the picture on the viewing screen changed. The green image showed some kind of metallic egg like item amidst the systems that looked more organic than mechanical.

"No!" Morrow exclaimed. "That's not the insides I constructed. The Red Tornado's been changed. I... I don't understand any of this."
 
 

Chapter 12

Morrow soon got to work on his creation, trying to figure out what had changed. The azure skinned hero known as Blue Devil watched him. "I'm going to remove his head now," the scientist announced.

Blue Devil's eyes grew wide as he watched the monitors. As a stuntman by trade, he really wasn't sure what he was looking at, but he could tell when things looked out of the ordinary. "Doc, something's happening. His inside gizmos are glowing."

"No matter," Morrow said as he pulled the head away from the body. "This will be over soon enough." Before Blue Devil could shout out another warning, the Atom came flying out of the android's chest cavity. This was followed by a large explosion that consumed the lab and the android.

Blue Devil barely had time to grab Morrow and pull the scientist away to safety. While Cyborg, Firestorm and Firehawk tried to contain the explosion, Morrow began to flee for his life down the satellite's corridors. Blue Devil chased after the man, only to see him vanish in a swirl of lights.

Seconds later, T. O. Morrow materialized in Brainiac's living metal spaceship. "Where in blazes am I?" he exclaimed. Before him was a wide array of beings, some of the most powerful who had ever or would ever live. Some he recognized while others he did not. They flew about or stood chatting amongst themselves on the floor. A few even towered like giants over the others.

Morrow turned to a few faces he recognized. "I was aboard the Justice League satellite," he explained. "Then..."

"Great, just what we need," Mirror Master scoffed. "Another jerk!" The frozen female called Killer Frost looked on rather concerned.

"Quiet, all of you," barked the blue and purple armored Doctor Polaris. "I know what happened to our Earth and you don't."

"Listen to Doctor Polaris," a man in a purple robe said. The top of his head was clear with a dome that exposed his massive brain. "He and I have witnessed this Crisis firsthand. Indeed, I was nearly slain by it, my atoms dispersed by our foe. Only my psionic abilities saved me and brought me here to safety."

"Don't believe it, Psimon," another voice said. Lex Luthor stood on a platform slightly above the others. The living computer Brainiac sat behind him. "My science and Brainiac's saved you."
 
 

Chapter 13

"Were it not for us, you would have perished," Brainiac added coldly. "Indeed, our foe has fled or has died. For not even I can detect his presence, either in our universe or his. My calculations must be true, the Crisis the Anti-Monitor created is over."

"But now the Earths are in chaos, seemingly normal yet partially merged. We, although for different reasons, all crave power. Now during this Crisis, it is time for us to strike! Not even the heroes of the five remaining Earths can withstand our combined power." There was a collective cheer from the amassed villains.

"Listen now to Luthor of Earth-1, for he shall be our field commander. We have the worlds within our grasp. It is our time now."

"Wait one bloody second," a red haired man in gray prison garb said. He burst his way to the front of the crowd, pushing past the likes of the Cheetah from his own world, Kanjar Ro, and Doctor Spectro. "Who appointed that second-rate lab rat our spokesman?" The others began to murmur, wondering who this audacious man was. A few of them actually knew him.

"I'm the Luthor of Earth-2!" Alexei Luthor announced. "My genius is far greater than his! You don't need him!" Alexei had met his Earth-1 counterpart once before and developed an intense dislike for Lex with that single meeting.

Brainiac's thought processes kicked in. "You speak logically, Luthor!" he said. "But I assembled this group! The decision for leader is mine." High above the room, a piece of equipment sprang from its position and slowly changed it's focus of attention to the floor below.

"But you are correct," Brainiac continued. "We do not need two Luthors!" The equipment altered its shape, becoming a weapon of sorts. A beam of crimson energy shot from it and nailed the red-haired Luthor squarely. "Farewell!"

In a moment, where the villain once stood was now a smoldering pile of ash. Those immediately around the spot reared back in shock. They and the other villains turned back to Brainiac. The computer continued to sit, no emotion showing on his steel face plate. "Does anyone else wish to question my decisions?" A hush moved across the room.

Lex Luthor smiled. "Good!" He turned to address the assembled ranks. "Okay, boys and girls! Here's the plan!" And Lex Luthor of Earth-1 began to explain the details of their plans of conquest.
 
 

Chapter 14

Earth-4: It was about a half hour ago that Mike Mauser was down at the warehouse district. No, he wasn't doing his usual business of digging for information in criminal investigations. The private investigator whose face reminded most of a rat was seeing off his two good friends as they were about to leave on their honeymoon.

"You sure you guys don't want to go to Vegas?" Mike asked. "I know a guy who knows a guy who can get you a good deal on the trip."

"I don't think so, Mike," the blonde haired male said. He was dressed in an orange costume with a white belt and yellow gloves, boots and trunks. Einstein's formula for relativity was scrawled across his broad chest in yellow. This world knew the hero as E-Man.

Snuggling in E-Man's arms was a voluptuous red haired woman. Her costume, which resembled a one-piece bathing suit, was also in orange with a similar color combination in accessories. A yellow star burst was the logo on her chest. "Alec really has his heart set on a slow exploration of the solar system," Nova replied.

"Maybe you should take a break yourself, Mike," E-Man suggested. "Didn't you say there was an annual detectives convention coming up soon?"

The private eye shrugged his shoulders. "Yeah, I think there is. Maybe I will do just that."

"That's the spirit," E-Man said. Nova nuzzled him once more and whispered in his ear. The blonde hero smiled. "We better be off!" The couple stepped back and used their unique powers to convert themselves from matter to pure energy. Then, in a brilliant burst, the newlyweds shot off into the evening sky and were gone with a twinkle.

Mike Mauser decided to head back to his apartment.

The cab barely pulled away from the curb out front of Mike's dwelling when the man heard a loud explosion! He turned towards midtown Manhattan where the sound had come only to see the New York City skyline light up in a brilliant burst. "What the hell is going on?" he wondered.

Many of the millions of inhabitants of the Big Apple were wondering the same thing. And they weren't going to like the answer.
 
 

Chapter 15

In the headquarters of the Mighty Crusaders, the alert board was lit up like a Christmas tree. A woman in a green costume approached her similarly garbed male counterpart. "What's happening out there?" asked Fly Girl.

The Fly glanced back and forth at the readouts. "This is unreal!" he said. "According to the reports we're getting in from the Web, the city is under attack!"

"By who or what?" she asked.

"That's the interesting part. According to this, dozens of costumed super-beings are attacking the city, causing massive destruction. The thing is, except for Doctor Spectro and the Madmen, most of these people are unknown entities. The Web is scrambling, but their files are turning up zilch."

"I'll call in the Shield, Black Hood and the Jaguar."

"Better call out the reserves too. I'll see if I can raise the Sentinels of Justice as well. If Spectro and the Madmen are involved, Captain Atom and the Blue Beetle will want to know!" The heroic duo quickly scrambled to the communications net to call out the troops. Deep down, they both had a feeling that their heroic allies were already aware of the situation.

As part of the attack forces began to tear through the Wall Street district, Major Force started to lag behind. He watched as two of the villains tore into the landscape with reckless abandon.

"All this raw material!" Cosmic King crowed. "This makes it so much easier!" Using his incredible powers, the man in purple and black made the foundations of these structure quake with the mere wave of his hands. This native of the planet Venus in the 30th Century could easily change the elemental structures of the buildings' materials. In no time at all, he was clearing blocks of buildings.

Meanwhile, his fellow future ally preferred the more direct approach. Sun Emperor was burning red hot, discharging destructive fireballs in all directions. Anything that could catch fire did so thanks to his fiery rampage. "Luthor wanted this city to burn, so it's gonna burn!" He laughed wickedly as the flames ignited natural gas lines, causing explosions.

Major Force watched the pair fly off to join the others in destruction. The native of this Earth was having second thoughts about all this. With all his own personal health problems, his heart just wasn't into it. He ducked back to the shadows, hoping he could return home unseen.
 
 

Chapter 16

The skies began to turn crimson as if they were bleeding. Below, the streets of this once proud city indeed resembled that of a gaping wound. Members of the villain teams known as the Masters of Disaster and the Demolition Team tore into the city with reckless abandon, causing tens of thousands to flee for their lives.

"Wheee-eeeee hhh-aaaaaa!" Jackhammer exclaimed as he worked on another supporting beam with an oversized jackhammer. His clothes looked like that of a construction worker, blue pants and brown boots complete with gold construction helmet. The only thing out of place was the black mask he wore over his eyes and the large red D T letters on his light blue T-shirt. "T-t-this here b-b-building's b-b-been c-c-condemned!"

"Save some for the rest of us, amigo!" Scoopshovel said as he raised his weapon hand. He was dressed similarly to Jackhammer, but on his left hand had a golden scoop attached. The hydrolic motors kicked in as he hurled debris into the air at a high speed and shattered large department store windows with ease. "Bueno! Just like my days of playing Jai Alai!"

A bald man in green plunged his fists towards the ground, letting loose a strong vibration wave. The ground began to tremble and quake as a result. Street lights fell and hydrants along the cracked pavement popped. "We're free and clear," Shakedown said, "'slong as no heroes show up to spoil our fun."

"Quit your worrying!" a shrill female voice said. From the flowing water along the street sprang up a water burst that formed a blue costumed woman with white skin and a blue mohawk. "Ain't no heroes going to oppose us! We've got free reign to ransack this city and any others!"

A golden machine with heavy wheels rolled past, crushing its way over abandoned vehicles. "New-Wave's right!" Steamroller said. "I'm betting the local do-gooders have already been taken out by our friends!"

"Don't count on it!" a voice cried from above. A figure leapt from the rooftops, his red and yellow costume coming into view. He moved with great speed and nailed Steamroller in the side of the head with a flying kick. "As long as one man stands in opposition, the battle is not over!" With a spin side kick, he took out Jackhammer's legs, sending the man crashing to the ground.

"That's telling him, Judomaster!" a second voice called. It was another costumed hero, this one a woman in white with the red Japanese sun symbol in the center of the chest. Despite her size, Tyger was able to takedown Shakedown with a combination of her martial arts skill.

Judomaster struck towards New-Wave, but she slipped past him by turning into a mist. "You're slow, fool!" she taunted. "And that will cost you!"

Tyger spun around just as a man with short white hair and dressed in blue and white shot an icy blast towards Judomaster. "Nooo!" Tyger cried out, but the warning to her husband was in vain. Coldsnap encased the hero in a solid block of ice. "You murderers!" Suddenly, Tyger felt something sting her left shoulder, followed by another shot that pierced her rib cage. The heroine fell with stinging pain.

"You're no match for hot rivets, are ya honey?" laughed the female member of the Demolition Team. The red haired Rosie blew the steam off of her golden rivet gun weapon. "Anyone messes wit' us, and we take 'em out hard!"
 
 

Chapter 17

The silver-white haired hero with the silver sheen over his blue and red costume struggled as he was locked in battle with his foe. In all his years as a hero, Captain Atom encountered very few who could take the full brunt of his nuclear fire-bolts. "Yield, evil one!"

The man he fought stood firm, his golden armor hiding the determined face of the opposition. "You don't get it, do you?" the villain laughed. "My power comes from radioactive sources! The more you give off, the more I can absorb and then turn back on you!" Flames ignited on the surface of the armor. "Like so!" And with that, Doctor Regulus released a powerful surge of energy.

Captain Atom was thrown backwards by his own power, multiplied tenfold. "Ughh!" the hero groaned as he hit the pavement hard. He tried to rise on his own, but the battle had taken so much out of him.

A pair gray boots stepped into his line of sight. "Well, now it's my turn!" the man in the blue costume with the dark blue cowl and cape sneered. His face was shrouded by a dark mask with two red eyes. He started to bend down towards the hero. "One touch and I'll disintegrate his body into nothing but molecules!"

A golden gloved hand grabbed the villain by the shoulder and held him back. "No, Eradicator!" Doctor Regulus said. "Not here, not now! Remember the plan! We're to defeat the champions of this world and then execute them for all the world to see! That will show them that resistance is futile."

The Eradicator pulled back his hand. "Right, sorry!" Together, the two villains grabbed the beaten form of Captain Atom and hauled him through the streets.

From the rooftops nearby, the Cheetah of Earth-1 sat crouched. She watched as the residents of the city fled their homes. Her long brown hair cascaded about her shoulders, and she licked her lips. "Do you smell that?" she said. "That's the smell of fear! They're hopeless and dejected."

The blonde man in the domino mask and colorful costume with a blue cape stood by her. "You're right, Cheetah," agreed the Trickster. "Who knew world domination could be so much fun?"

A large hulking figure of a man stood next to them, his dark suit ragged and frayed over the years since he first "died" in the swamps. Solomon Grundy let out a deep grunt in agreement.
 
 

Chapter 18

The Blue Beetle wrestled with the controls of his flying ship. "Damn!" he cursed. "They nailed the left engine." The gold goggled hero dressed in blue checked the readouts to make sure nothing else was gone. It wasn't looking good. The stabilizers were losing power as well.

A woman with long dark hair in a blue costume with orange trim came up behind his seat. "Anything I can do?" Nightshade asked.

"Yeah," replied the Beetle. "Save yourself."

Double flaming attacks from Heatstroke and the Firebug further rocked the lower hull. The ship was jolted to one side.

"I can't just leave you..." Nightshade started to protest.

"Nightshade, go!" the azure avenger snapped. "No sense in both of us going down with the ship!" He turned back to his teammate. "Sorry. Sorry. I just think it's best I stay with the Bug. Make sure it doesn't go down in a populated area of the city, you know?"

Nightshade nodded. "I understand." She leaned forward and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "See you soon." She stepped back and began to fade into the shadows of the ship. In a moment, she was gone.

"Thanks, lady," he said to himself. "You too." Suddenly the craft jerked once more. Lady Lunar latched onto it with her gravitational powers and pulled it into a nose dive. "Oh boy!"

Nightshade materialized in the shadows of the water front. As she became fully solid once more, she glanced skyward. There she saw the Bug dive nose first into the harbor, it's tale end aflame. "Beetle, no!" In the distance, she could see a towering form moving on Liberty Island.

Suddenly, an energy burst nailed Nightshade from behind. A man in purple with a blue cape and a red star symbol on his mask nailed her with a shot from the starband he wore on his right wrist. "Need to watch your back, my pretty!" Evil Star said.

"Don't know who you are," Nightshade replied as she recovered from the first shot, "but you'll learn how dangerous a shadow can be!" She fired her dark beam at the man who attacked her and then readied to take to the shadows herself.

"Uh uh, my dear!" another male voice said. Suddenly Nightshade was bathed in an intense series of light beams, enough to dispel the shadows around her to cut off her escape. "Can't have you slipping away on us, can we?"

"Right," Evil Star countered. Another shot from his starband was enough to knock the heroine out. "You have a date, with your executioner!"

Doctor Spectro laughed. He was very pleased to see how quickly his enemies were falling. He glanced around at the city's skyline. The place was in chaos as the buildings were burning out of control. It felt good to finally get some revenge. And the icing on the cake would be when his enemies were permanently put out of the picture. He scooped the unconscious Nightshade up in his arms and headed for the rendezvous point.
 
 

Chapter 19

Earth-S: In a small apartment on the second floor of an old brownstone in Brooklyn, New York, an older television screen was the only source of light in the living room. A younger man with brown hair lay on the couch, polishing off a large bag of chips as he flicked through channels on the remote. From his large size, one could conclude this was a typical evening activity for this Billy Batson.

Billy was rather focused on the loud television. He couldn't possibly have noticed the slight shimmering of the full length mirror on the back of the hall closet door.

Billy stopped for a second on one channel. "Nightline News?" he said aloud. "Nah." He clicked the remote a few more times. "Wonder who's on with Johnny tonight?" He stopped on the Late Show. "Ooooh. It's that Joan lady from the San Diego Zoo."

Fascinated by the program, Billy failed to notice something slide across the floor behind the couch. "Oh, c'mon!" the fat man exclaimed as he watched the screen. The zoo woman was handing the show's host a large reptile. "That snake looks so fak..." Billy couldn't finish his sentence. A scaly golden glove had clasped tightly over his mouth. "Mmmmph! Mmphmm phmm!"

Billy's eyes grew wild as he noticed that he was under attack in his own home. The glove belonged to a snake costumed man whose elongated tail was now binding his legs. The man's mask had a larger head with fangs. "Too sssslow, sssonny!" Copperhead hissed. Billy Batson struggled but couldn't free either himself or his mouth. "Sssivana sssaid thisss one'd be easssy!"

"Maybe so," another voice said. Billy turned and saw a man in orange and green. "But, to be on the safe side," Mirror Master said as he held up a small mirrored device, "let's do this!" A beam shot from the device directly into Billy's wide eyes. The fat man then suddenly went stiff and ceased struggling.

"That paralysssisss one worksss great," Copperhead commended.

Mirror Master tossed his partner a coil of rope. "Just in case, let's tie him up now." The reflective rogue then produced a gag and fitted it to Batson's mouth. "Don't want any unwelcome surprises."

Copperhead laughed. "You know, Ssscudder, we work well together. Perhapsss we ssshould get sssomething going after thisss."

"Perhaps," Mirror Master said. "Perhaps."

***

Meanwhile, in Nashville, Tennessee, a red-haired young man was leaving the stage exit of the Blue Bird Cafe with his guitar case slung over his shoulder. This young man, also named Billy Batson, had just finished his evening set. Glancing up at the sky, the clouds were clearing and the stars were shining down. "Shore is a perty night," Billy said aloud. "Been too stormy fer too long now."

As Billy rounded the corner, he noticed a curious man standing there trying to light a cigarette in a long holder. The chunky man wore a black top hat and tails. Billy reached into his pocket and produced a lighter. "Here, let me," he offered as he lit the cigarette.

"Much obliged," the funny dressed man said, taking a drag. "Say, you wouldn't be Billy Batson, the country singer, would you?"

Billy smiled. "Yes, sir," he said. "Though my style's more hill billy than country."

The odd man smiled and reached for his umbrella that was leaning against the wall. "I caught your show," the man said as he raised his umbrella up. "Thought it was a gas." Suddenly, from the point of the umbrella, a red smoke shot out directly into Billy's face.

Billy fell to the ground coughing before passing out unconscious. The other man laughed in an odd "wak wak wak" way. He then activated a small transmitter/receiver in the handle of his umbrella. "Penguin to home nest, Penguin to home nest. Ready for pick up!"
 
 

Chapter 20

Shortly, on a small ranch in Texas outside of Amarillo, a tall young man with black hair carefully walked the edges of the cattle pens. With a flashlight in hand, this Billy Batson looked over the cows carefully, hoping to figure out why they were all unsettled. He shone the light in the eyes of one particular bovine. "Ah, Bessy, I wish ya could talk," he said. "It'd make it easier to figure what's got y'all spooked tonight.."

Suddenly, the cow let out a loud, distressed moo. The others began to moo as well and moved quickly to the other side of the pen. "Now what's gotten inta you?" Billy said. He turned around only for his flashlight beam to bounce off a large, hairy form. It looked like a bear or something rearing up on it's hind legs. "Aaaaah!" Billy screamed out of reflex.

The creature snarled at him, it's sharp teeth glistening in the moonlight. With a huge clawed hand, the brown furred beast swatted the flashlight clean out of his hands. Then, the beast reared back with its other fist and knocked Billy across the pasture.

Billy tried to shake the clouds from his head as he started to rise from the ground. Whatever that is, he thought, it sure is strong. He knew he best get to the porch where he had his rifle. The quickest way to drive off the beast.

Suddenly, the beast leapt across the lawn and pounced on him. Billy realized that the gun wasn't an option any longer. He had to rely on something he hadn't used in a long time, the power of the ancient wizard. Billy began to invoke his name, "Shaz..."

The beast smacked him across the jaw and interrupted his word. "Can't have any of that, sweetie!" the beast growled. It smacked him around a few more times until he slipped into the unconscious.

Suddenly, a man in a golden costume appeared out of nowhere in a flash. "Was all zee roughness necessary, mademoiselle Hyena?" the bearded man asked in a French accent.

"He was about to change," the Hyena replied. "I did what was needed to keep him quiet." The beast woman leaned towards the other villain. "You just do your job, Warp, and I'll do mine. Got it?"

"Oui," Warp replied. "If we are through here, let us take our prize and go. The Penguin needs transport."

The Hyena scooped up tall Billy Batson from the ground and followed Warp through the hole in space that the villain just created. In a flash of light, they were gone.
 
 

Chapter 21

Mary Bromfield and Freddy Freeman walked down the street in Fawcett City, the later using his crutches to maneuver with ease. "I really enjoyed that movie," the brown haired girl said. "Thanks for suggesting it."

"No problem," replied the dark haired young man. "I figure with all the craziness of the last few weeks, a good romantic comedy would be nice."

"It was," Mary said. They approached one of the buildings. "Well, here's me." She kind of smiled, then gave him a quick peck on the cheek. "I had fun."

"Oh, how sickeningly sweet," a voice snarled from the shadows.

"Who?" Freddy asked. Two figures stepped from the darkness. One was a brown haired young man with round black glasses and an overbite. He wore a white lab smock and black pants. The other was a young girl, also with brown hair, similar glasses and overbite. She wore a white lab smock and a green checked skirt.

Both Freddy and Mary knew them instantly. "Sivana Jr. and Georgia!" they exclaimed.

"Right you are, kiddies," Georgia sneered. She and her brother had their father's unique looks. "Looks like your fun's over." Both of them pulled out gun-like weapons.

"You two should have stayed in hiding," Mary said. "Shazam!"

"Captain Marvel!" Freddy cried out.

Both expected magic lightning to crash down from the heavens to transform them into the World's Mightiest Girl and Boy. Surprisingly, the bolts rumbled in the sky above but were diverted off.

"What the?" Freddy asked. They both cried out the names again with similar results.

The Sivanas began to snicker. "Guess you're out of juice!" junior said. They fired their weapons at Mary and Freddy, striking the both down. The two hit the ground hard but were still breathing.

"Well played, brother dear," Georgia said.

"Of course," Sivana Jr. replied cockily. "You'd expect less?"

"Don't be so full of yourself," Georgia scolded. "After all, we did have help." As her brother bound and gagged their two victims, the girl waved to the rooftops above.

A man in blue robes and an odd blue hat waved back. "Looks like my spell worked," Felix Faust said. "It was more than enough to redirect those magic lightning bolts."

Standing across the way, Lightning Lord shook his head a bit to clear it. "Perhaps, sorcerer," the white haired villain said, "but it was I who absorbed the brunt of them. Without me, your plan would have failed!"

Felix Faust looked at the villain from the future with a critical eye. Obviously he didn't know who it was he was addressing.
 
 

Chapter 22

Young Billy Batson, the radio reporter, had been working rather late at the WHIZ studios in Fawcett City. He was preparing a presentation for a future broadcast. Holy Moley, he thought to himself, finding a way to present details about this Crisis and everything I've seen so far, as Captain Marvel, without tipping off my secret identity is proving harder than I thought. The young man with black hair and dressed in blue pants and a red sweater was about to get some coffee when the door burst open.

A chunky older man with sprigs of white hair and a white mustache burst into the room. "Billy! Thank heavens I found you!" the man exclaimed.

Billy Batson immediately recognized this person. "Uncle Dudley!" he said. "What's wrong?"

Dudley grasped the boy. "Oh, it's terrible. Terrible!" His grip was firm, almost to the point of hurting the boy. "They're coming! They're coming! To here, right here!"

"Uncle Dudley, you aren't making any sense!" Billy said. He broke free of the man's grasp and went to the cooler in the corner. He poured a glass of water and gave it to the man. "Now, let's try this again and take it slow. Who's coming?"

"See for yourself," Dudley replied. He pointed towards the window.

Billy Batson turned and headed towards the office window. He opened it and looked out. Down on the street twenty stories below, he could see a large horde of figures moving towards the WHIZ building. They had weapons of sorts. Billy could make out blasts of energy being fired and saw things like cars and street signs and such being blasted apart or covered with ice. "Holy Moley! What's all this?"

While Billy had been opening the window, Dudley threw aside the cup of water and positioned himself behind the boy. When Billy made his exclamation, Dudley raised his arms over his head and smiled wickedly. "It's the end!" Dudley cried out. His hands transformed into two large mallets which he brought down hard on the back of Billy's skull. The lad slumped to the floor unconscious.

Dudley began to laugh as his form began to shimmer and change. Gone was the appearance of the kindly older man, and it its place was the lumpy brown form of the shape shifting Clayface. The villain produced a rope and gag, and bound the lad up tight. "Time for you to join the others, Billy boy," Clayface said. "But we won't be going too far."

Clayface slung Billy's body over his shoulder and prepared to join the other villains who were about to take the station under siege.
 
 

Chapter 23

Sivana cackled with delight. He loved when a plan came together. The team of villains from various Earths had easily taken up hostage Fawcett City. The cursed Marvel Family had been ambushed and captured before any of them could use their powers.

Already, the likes of T.O. Morrow, Dr. Cyber and Hector Hammond were working with the others to retrofit the WHIZ broadcast tower with an insidious device. Using the knowledge of folks like Captain Cold, Killer Frost, the Icicle and the Weather Wizard, they were almost ready to bring their massive freeze ray online. Soon the entire city, and then the world would be one big ice ball.

The door to the main staging area opened, and a red costumed man with a shiny mask stepped inside. He dragged behind him a large, orange tiger with black stripes. The tiger wore a torn green suit. "Here you go, Sivana," Deadshot announced. "One poached pussycat, tied up and tranquilized."

Sivana smiled. Though Tawky Tawny was no major threat, he couldn't stand the idea of him running around loose. The talking tiger could spoil his plans. "Excellent," said Sivana. "Did he give you any trouble?"

"Nah," Deadshot said. "Night and Fog helped make the chase a bit of a challenge. We had him pretty confused and running scared. I played with him a bit before finally dropping him." The assassin rubbed the gun-like weapon mounted on his right forearm. "Deadshot never misses."

"Fine," Sivana said. "Put him in with the others." He gestured towards the area where the four Billys, Mary, Freddy and the real Uncle Dudley were kept bound and gagged. "Now that they're all together, I'll have Cold put them on ice."

The Golden Glider approached Sivana. "Just got a report in from the field teams," the blonde woman dressed in the golden skater's costume announced. "Count Vertigo and Doctor Polaris had no trouble taking down Bulletman and Bulletgirl. Clock King reports that Minute Man's time has run out, and Circe claims that she's changed Ibis the Invicible into a cuddly bunny rabbit."

Sivana smiled with his nasty teeth. "Excellent," he said. "Have everyone stand by. As soon as we're ready to go, things are going to get rather frigid around here!" And he began to laugh.
 
 

Chapter 24

Earth-X: The seven heroes known as the Freedom Fighters had always faced incredible odds. First by fighting for years to finally liberate their world from Nazi tyranny. Then later, they faced persecution and indifference when they attempted to start a new life on Earth-1. Now, today, they were forced to battle for their very lives, as the fate of their world once more was in their hands.

This time, freedom just may have been an unattainable goal.

"Don't give up!" Uncle Sam cried out. The white haired man dressed in red, white and blue was the embodiment of the American spirit. He never backed down from a fight, and he wasn't about to start now. "We can take these rascals!"

The hero swung his mighty fist hard, connecting to the swastika on the chest of his opponent. The man in green and red with the red cape and the buzz cut blonde hair laughed at the attempt. "Don't be a fool, old man!" Captain Nazi advised. "You can't possibly beat us!"

But Uncle Sam continued to swing his fists, hammering at the villain with little effect. "Son, I was battling your type for a long time! Decades! I beat 'em before, and I can beat 'em again!"

Captain Nazi sneered as he wound back his red gloved fist. "Fine," he said. "I'm going to enjoy mopping the floor with you!" Nazi let the punch fly, sending his opponent back through the air.

"Sam!" the dark haired Phantom Lady exclaimed. She watched as their team leader slammed into a large oak hard.

"Sandy, concentrate on the battle at hand!" the Ray scolded. "We have to take them down hard and fast!" The golden costumed man burst into the air and towards a number of flying opponents.

The woman in yellow and green nodded. She knew she had to keep her head in the game, or it was over before they even started to fight. Phantom Lady readied her black light ray and charged into the fray.
 
 

Chapter 25

The dark haired hero with the blue cape moved at great speed through the air. He targeted a pair of opponents he felt he could easily take out and swooped in for the quick attack. Black Condor was living up to the name of a bird of prey.

"You picked the wrong group to mess with!" the hero exclaimed.

The first man wore a yellow costume with an orange cape and an X harness across his chest. "Interesting choice of words," he said as suddenly an energy version of himself rose up from the body. While Condor attacked his physical body, Doctor Double X responded with energy bolts.

The other villain, a man dressed in dark blue with a purple cape, smiled. "Nice move, Doc!" he praised. "But if fly-boy here wants to see a group, he came to the right place!" Suddenly, the man split into two beings, and then those two split into two more. And so on, and so on, and so on. In no time at all, a small army of men in the same costume were swarming all over Black Condor like bees. Such was the tactics of the villain called Multiplex.

"Get off me!" Black Condor cried. He used his great strength to break free briefly, but more versions of the man rose up to take the place of those fallen.

"No can do," Multiplex said in unison. "Our orders were to wear you down to the point you'd wish you were dead!"

"Right you are," the red haired Mammoth said nearby. "There are just too many of us for you to handle." He along with the brutish King Kull and the dimwitted Bizarro circled one of the Freedom Fighters to take him down.

"Bring it on!" the white costumed Human Bomb said. He removed his right glove and touched it to the ground just as the trio of villains was upon him. His touch released an incredible explosive blast that slammed into his attackers and sent them hurtling backwards. "You'll find we're not going to lie down so easily!"

"No one hurts my brother!" a red haired woman in gold cried out. From Shimmer's hands came two blasts of transmutative energy. They enveloped the Human Bomb's costume, quickly sealing all of the fibro-wax material around the man's body. The Silver Ghost had briefed them on all the heroes, and Shimmer effectively neutralized the Bomb's explosive powers.
 
 

Chapter 26

The Ray dodged and wove through the air with incredible accuracy. His life depended upon it.

From down below, a man in yellow and blue arched back his arm and hurled a deadly shaft towards the hero. "Oh please!" the Ray said as quickly avoided the projectile. "You gotta do better than that!" To emphasize his point, the hero fired a blast of energy downward; Javelin was forced to dive for cover and nearly rolled off the rooftop edge.

A man in blue with white goggles and a lightning bolt trim on his costume materialized suddenly in the hero's path. "Tag!" Bolt yelled as he hurled a lightning barrage at the Ray. The energy crackled about the target's body. "You're it!"

The Ray summoned forth a large burst of energy and thrust it outward. His own power was enough to shatter the villain's attack. He gritted his teeth and hurled his own attack at Bolt. "Now's my turn!" The villain fled via teleportation just before the energy could hit its mark. "I'm guessing with all these costumed folks that they came from the other Earths. God knows our world doesn't have this many."

Suddenly, a woman in white with flowing white hair and large white wings swooped down upon him. "Going somewhere, darling?" the Silver Swan cooed.

The Ray let fire a blast of energy. "When it comes to a fight for our lives, there's no room for chivalry!" he stated. She tried to dodge but it tagged her wing. She lost control of her flight briefly.

"Not nice!" a male voice called from behind the Ray. "She just wanted to sing you a song!" It was a man in a flying suit that had come up on the hero. "I guess I'll have to do it for her!" And with that, the Banshee opened his throat and let forth a sonic blast. The Ray clasped his hands to his ears to block out the sound, but it was of little help. With a scream of pain, the golden costumed hero dropped out of the sky. The Banshee stopped his wailing. "Sweet dreams, pal!"

Down below, the Ray's red costumed teammate had little time to aid his fallen comrade. Firebrand found himself being attacked from all sides as well. I recognize a few of these guys from the news when we were on Earth-1, he thought to himself. What are they doing here?

A blonde man in an orange costume with a matching kerchief over his mouth tossed a few capsules upon the ground. "This should slow him down," Cluemaster said.

Firebrand held his breath as he dove through the cloud of gas. He burst through the other side with his fists flying. A solid punch to the head took Cluemaster out with one shot.

"You won't find me an easy target," a man in black with a band of colors across his chest stated. Firebrand turned at the sound of the voice, only to be hit with a blinding blast from the Rainbow Raider's goggles.

Uh! Can't see! Firebrand thought to himself. But I can't just sit here and be picked off either! Despite the blindness, the hero scurried down the street in a zig-zag movement. Maybe this will buy me some time until my vision clears!

"Spoilsport!" the Rainbow Raider pouted.

"Allow me," said a female voice. A woman with long dark hair and dressed in a green mermaid type costume extended her hands. Suddenly, a number of fire hydrants exploded, sending water forth into the air. The woman concentrated, and the water came together at her command. She brought the mighty wave down hard upon Firebrand, catching him totally by surprise. "He did not count upon the force of Tsunami this far away from an ocean!"

As Firebrand's unconscious body lay on the sidewalk, Rainbow Raider said, "Honey, I like your style!"
 
 

Chapter 27

Another dark haired woman in green stalked Phantom Lady. "Come out, come out, wherever you are!" called Cheshire. "The longer you toy with me, the worse it will be for you!" Her poison tainted claws were just itching to slice into someone.

Cheshire stalked down an alleyway and passed a group of shadows that fell upon the wall.

After the villainess had gotten far enough away, the invisible Phantom Lady could finally take another breath. That was too close, she thought to herself. She thanked the Lord above for her black light ray which allowed her to blend so easily into the shadows. Without it, Cheshire would have easily found her.

But Phantom Lady knew the others would need her help. She started to back up only to run into something. "Oh!" she gasped aloud without thinking.

"Cheshire, come quick!" a male voice called out. "I found her!"

Phantom Lady whirled around but saw no one. "What the...?"

A form materialized out of the shadows, taking on a definite human outline. "Just me, sweetie!" the male voice said. "The one and only Shadow Thief!" The villain made himself solid enough to hit Phantom Lady with a punch.

As she tumbled back out into the street, Phantom Lady became visible once more. Stupid! she thought to herself. I've been teaching too long and thus way out of practice! She then realized a pair of green boots were next to her. Cheshire had returned, and she wasn't here to talk.

The blue and red costumed Doll Man was on the run. Everywhere the diminutive hero looked, another costumed villain appeared. "What is this? Pick on the little guy day?" he exclaimed.

The purple and orange costumed Killer Moth fired his web gun. Doll Man somersaulted through the air to avoid being caught in its gummy discharge. "I ain't your fly, bug man!" the hero called.

"Did someone call for a fly?" a man in purple with wings asked as he swooped down. His chest had a black circle with two "F"s in the center. The Firefly tried to maneuver around to block Doll Man's escape.

Killer Moth came back around. "You can't escape, little man!" He fired his weapon once more.

"Watch me!" Doll Man said. He leapt to one side, and the Firefly did as well.

Doll Man doubled back, letting the sticky discharge ensnare the other villain instead. "Hey!" the Firefly protested as he struggled with the trap.

"Sorry," Killer Moth apologized.

"You're right," Doll Man said as he leapt forward, his small fist connecting with the Moth's chin. The villain tumbled backwards; despite his size, the hero backed a wallop. "You are sorry!"

Suddenly, someone leapt from out of nowhere and scooped the unsuspecting Doll Man up in a jar. As the attacker tumbled forward, he clasped on the lid and thus imprisoned the hero. When Doll Man realized what happened, he tried to pound on the prison walls but with little success.

A man in green with red yarn like hair and a goofy face stared back at him from outside the jar. "Try all you like," taunted Rag Doll, "it won't do you any good! That super-reinforced material is strong enough to keep you locked up tight!" And the flexible felon laughed.
 
 

Chapter 28

The transmitter in his helmet allowed the Silver Ghost to get the news. "The Freedom Fighters are defeated?" he asked. "Great! Bring them to us so we can torture them before they are executed." He ended the transmission and turned to the trio assembled before him.

"So where do we stand?" asked a purple haired alien woman with orange skin. "Is it time for the terra-forming of this world?"

"Be patient, Hyanthis," said a man who looked more like a plant than anything else.

"But, Floronic Man," protested a brown haired woman in a leafy green top and green tights, "this world is so war-torn. It could use a healing touch."

"Indeed it can, Poison Ivy," the silver costumed villain said. He more than any of them knew first hand the effects the extended World Wars had on this planet. If these three could jump start the world's injured ecosystems, all the better. "You three, check in with Mister Mind. I believe he has worked out the logistics to turn this Earth into a botanical paradise."

The trio nodded and headed off. Silver Ghost watched them go before turning on the transmission device in his helmet once more. This time, he was getting in contact with a group he trusted much more than these villains from the other worlds.

"Ja?" the voice on the other end answered in a thick German accent.

"Dieses ist der Silberne Geist, der innen berichtet," Silver Ghost reported in. "Unsere Feinde sind sicher! Mochten Sie an diesen Tatigkeiten teilnehmen?" He wanted to see if they wished to participate in these next actions.

"Nr.! Wir glauben nicht, dab diese Tatigkeiten folgen!"

The Ghost frowned at hearing this. His hidden allies had little confidence that this plan would succeed. "Sind Sie positiv?" He asked for confirmation.

"Ja!" The voice on the other end grew impatient. "Wir fahren mit unseren Planen fort. Sie sind willkommen, uns als vorher zu dienen. Abschied!" The transmission was severed from the other end.

Silver Ghost shook his head. His old Nazis allies planned to continue with their own efforts, on their own timetable. As always, he was welcome to serve them as he had in the past. While working for another was not an option he relished, he knew he had to keep his options opened. Just in case things didn't work out this time.
 
 

Chapter 29

Lex Luthor continued to monitor the reports from the three seized Earths with pride. Life on Earths 4, S and X was savagely altered in the short span of thirty six hours. The people of those worlds found themselves facing a plague of darkness, with their freedom stolen away with startling ease. Their heroes, those who could raise up, were quickly defeated by the other-worlders. Some paid with their lives, while others were beaten and broken.

Luthor turned to his computer colleague. "The three Earths are ours!" he pronounced. "No one can take them from us!" Indeed, the futures of these planets were in the hands of this deadly duo and their forces.

"Query: are the governments willing to surrender to us?" Brainiac asked.

"They have little choice," Luthor crowed. "Any hope of peace lies with us. They will surrender or prepare to die. We both know they have no option but accept our ultimatum!"

"Good," Brainiac said. "Then it is time for our next step. We must deliver our message to the other Earths, and I have calculated the venue that will give us the optimal audience."

***

On Earth-1 at the United Nations building in New York, an historic meeting was taking place that afternoon. Representatives from the many different worlds had come together to report on what the press had been calling the Crisis on Infinite Earths. Alexander Luthor, Pariah and Lyla were speaking to the joint assembly when something threw the meeting into total chaos.

A holographic image of Brainiac's head appeared in the open air above the room. It spoken in the voice of the living computer and delivered this message:

"Earthlings, listen to what I have to say. Your very lives now depend on the decision you are about to make. I am Brainiac. And I have assembled at my side all those you humans call super-villains.

"While some of the five Earth's heroes assembled here, we have used our power to take over the Earths designated 4, X, and S. They are completely and totally under our domination. Our demands for Earths 1 and 2 will be explained by another. Hear him out. It would be wise to do what he says."

The image of Brainiac vanished, only to be replaced by a full body holographic image of Lex Luthor, adorned in his battle armor. Luthor smiled an evil smile before launching into his speech.
 
 

Chapter 30

"Well, well, well," Luthor said. "This is a pleasure!" The super-scientist was enjoying this moment in the spotlight. "The name's Lex Luthor, for those of you unfamiliar with me. And the culmination of everything I've ever worked for is at hand!

"As my computerized compatriot has stated, our forces are now in control of three Earths. But we believe five is a far better number, therefore we demand that your nations surrender to us! Otherwise, we will unleash forces which will destroy the three Earths under our control. And, being linked as you are, your two worlds will be destroyed as well.

"For years you persecuted us villains because we upset your views of conformity. We have been ridiculed, thwarted and imprisoned. But guess whose feet wear those proverbial shoes now?" Luthor laughed. "So, make your decision, my friends. You have, oh, thiry minutes. Long enough to decide between life and complete annihilation!"

And with that, the holographic image of Luthor faded. The entire assembly floor broke out in chaotic discussion, a political debate on whether to give in to these demands or not

Above the Earths in the orbiting space ship, the two villains discussed what was taking place below. "Query: did you intend to abide by your announced time limit?" Brainiac asked.

"Not really," Luthor said. "I don't expect an answer in that amount of time. It'll take that long just to contact all the world leaders to get them talking." Luthor leaned back in his chair. "No, I figure we'll get two results from that. First, a panic among the governments that will yield to dissension and lack of coordination. We benefit from that."

"And the second?" Brainiac asked.

"Second, I expect the cavalry to come charging to the rescue," Luthor said. "And when they do, our boys and girls on the worlds below will take care of the opposition for us. Once we have Superman's head mounted on a pike, the governments will have no option but surrender to our demands." The bald scientist let out a sinister laugh.
 
 

Chapter 31

And true to his expectations, the second of Luthor's results came to pass. After discovering that brute force and mystic means were no match at breaking the barrier between worlds, Lyla realized that the information left to her by the Monitor might be of some use. His studies of the Earths and their vibrational patters would be invaluable at this time of need.

Together with Jay Garrick, the Flash of Earth-2, the blonde woman sought the aid of one young man in Blue Valley, Nebraska. The now retired Wally West was asked to suit up once more as Kid Flash, to assist in an effort that just might be able to break the barriers between worlds.

Modifying a design of the original Cosmic Treadmill that the Earth-1 Flash often used to travel between worlds and through time, the elder Flash and Kid Flash were able to construct a much larger device. It's purpose would be an important one: to propel a large number of heroes including the Titans, the Justice Society, the Metal Men, Infinity Incorporated, the Justice League, the Outsiders, the Doom Patrol, and various other independent heroes through the seemingly impenetrable barriers to the other three Earths.

Their mission: to break the reign of terror that gripped the captive Earths!

Encouraged by the words of the elder Flash, the two speedsters ran upon that giant treadmill faster than they had ever run before. Soon, their feet and in fact their whole bodies became nothing but a blur as their momentum energized the device. Not long after, the seven disk platforms that the other heroes stood valiantly upon were energized as well, and this army of justice was cast forth into the great beyond.

In space, these actions did not go unnoticed. "Luthor, my sensors indicate the heroes have broken through our defenses," Brainiac announced, "as anticipated. I calculate, given sheer volume of participants, that the loss on their side should exceed the loss on our side."

"Final loss numbers don't matter," Luthor said. "If our guys win, we're still in charge. If those heroes win, they won't be in any shape to take us on." He turned from the monitors to his computer ally. "Worst comes to worst, we can always blow up the three Earths. After all, you and I are safe up here in space. And there are thousands of worlds out there equally ripe to be ruled by us."

Luthor glanced at a view of the Earths below. "If it comes to that, I'll miss the old Earth," he said. "Maybe I'll even light a candle for it on the anniversary of its destruction." But that was enough of sentimental thoughts. He turned back to the monitors that watched the events on the worlds below. "No, this doesn't change a thing. Let the heroes try and take the worlds back. They'll soon realize our stronghold is unbreakable!"

Meanwhile, in the shadows, a form continued to listen to the duo undetected. He was ever so pleased that he decided to stay behind. Soon, it would be time for him to make his move.
 
 

Chapter 32

Earth-4: Two domino masked rogues stood atop a tenement roof as the sun was rising in the red hued skies. "So, what's the deal, Trickster?" asked the man in green with question marks all over his costume. "I heard through the grapevine that you'd gone straight." The Riddler elbowed the other man in the chest. "You playing both sides or what?"

"My, aren't you full of questions, Riddler," the blonde Trickster replied. "But ain't that always the way." He laughed but his colleague was not amused. "Okay, seriously, I did hang up the air-shows for awhile. Wanted to head out to Hollywood to try my hand at the special effects industry. Thought it'd be good to have something fall back on, you know?"

"So, you did drop out?"

"Yeah, I did. But lately I've been thinking of dropping back in. Sure the Hollywood scene was fun and all, lots of babes and fringe benefits. But something was missing. The thrill. The suspense. The surprise."

The Riddler nodded.

Suddenly, a loud screeching sound came from the sky above them. Both villains turned quickly at the sound, and their jaws dropped.

An emerald green hawk with a four foot wingspan was diving down at them. What surprised them, besides the color, was that it talked. "Hi, guys!" the bird said in perfectly clear English. Then, in an instant, the green bird changed into a three hundred pound green gorilla. The creature slammed into them hard and sent them flying. "Bet you didn't expect to find me up here, didja? You guards gotta remember: always look for low-flying apes!" Changeling laughed as the two rogues scrambled.

In the air above the smoldering city, an African-American man in red and blue flew next to a red haired young woman with crystal faceted wings. "The Changeling did his job, Kole," the man said.

"From what I gather, Tempest, he usually does," the young girl agreed.

"That's not the rumor I heard in the new Doom Patrol," Tempest replied. "Celsius says she heard..."

Suddenly, something below caught the man's eye. His mood became even more serious. "Wait! There's our target." He pointed towards a group moving along the ground. "They're the ones who set our city afire!" Earth-4's New York was very similar to the city of the same name on Earth-1, so seeing it damaged hit home for these heroes.

On the ground, the four members of the Masters of Disaster had little warning as Tempest's biologically generated energy blast rained down on them from above. The shot hit the wall above where they were standing, sending rubble down upon them.

"Shakedown, protect the others!" New-Wave ordered. But before the bald man could comply, chunks nailed Heatstroke and Coldsnap and took them out of the picture. "Damn!" The water-shifting villainess turned her back on her team, making this now a situation of survival. She did not want to be captured as quickly as the others. She changed into a wave of water and dove for the nearest sewer entry.
 
 

Chapter 33

"Uh, Grodd," a man in orange and yellow said as he tapped the large hairy gorilla on the shoulder.

Grodd continued to look through a pair of binoculars. "Be quiet, human!" the gorilla snapped. "There is some activity on the West side, and I do not believe it is our forces!"

"But..." Cat Man started to protest. Then he let out a large grunt as a metallic fist slammed him against the brick wall. The villain slumped back down, his orange cape spreading out around him.

Grodd felt a tapping once more at his shoulder, this time more insistently. "Human, I warned you!" he growled. "You will pay for ignoring my request." He spun around only to see a half-man / half-machine slam him hard in the chest.

"How much is it gonna cost me, Grodd," Cyborg joked. "My armor ain't got no pockets, but I think I can scrape something together." He nailed the gorilla with a solid right hook. "How's that for a starter payment?"

"Bah!" Grodd said as he shook of the blow. "I've taken down mightier opponents than you!"

Cyborg wound back his fist again and let it fly. The gorilla toppled from the roof's edge due to the punch's force and momentum. "Funny, I was about to say the same thing to you!"

Down on street level a few blocks away, a red and yellow clad archer stood atop the roof of an abandon yellow cab. He notched another arrow and took aim at an approaching form. "Ollie once told me all about you, big fella," Speedy said to the seven and a half foot tall Shaggy Man. "I hear you're tough, but I'm no slouch myself."

Speedy let the arrow fly. As it struck the ground at the behemoth's feet, the arrow head opened and release a large cloud of gas. The young archer hoped that this might slow down the creature's attack. The cloud soon enveloped the beast and for a moment there was no movement. Then, suddenly, Shaggy Man continued to charge forward, ignoring the lack of breathable air.

"Uh oh," Speedy said. "Didn't count on that. Good thing I've got a quiver full of arrows to draw from." He reached for another shaft.
 
 

Chapter 34

Not far away, a green costumed youth with red hair sent a green costumed and caped man flying. "So much for the so called Dragon King," Red Star said. "Your kind never learns."

"We took down the heroes of this world," another male voice said. "We'll do the same to you." Evil Star fired his starband beam at the Russian hero.

"No!" Red Star said as he shook off the blast. "It is you who will fall!" He charged up upon Evil Star and nailed him in the chest with a left cross. The villain dropped to the ground, ill equipt to handle such a powerful, physical assault on his person.

In the air above, Lady Lunar struggled as a black energy form wrapped around her tightly. "Ugh!" the villainess cried. "Release me now!" But the energy form continued to squeeze until she ceased to struggle. Then Lady Lunar dropped down to the pavement next to the prone body of a woman in red with bandages covering her exposed flesh. The black energy slipped back into this second woman's body.

"So, it is true, Colonel Vostok," Red Star said in a moment of rest between struggles. "You did defect to the United States."

Negative Woman slowly rose to her feet. "I did, Kovar," she replied, "and I am pleased with my decision. Do not try to take me back. You would not like what my energy powers can do to you."

Despite the situation, tensions ran strong between the two native born Russians, each with an opposing view from the other.
 
 

Chapter 35

Out on Liberty Island in the New York harbor, the Statue of Liberty welcomed many an immigrant to the American shores. Her face was the first thing they would see arriving at this new world of opportunity.

Today, that was no longer the case. Lady Liberty had been decapitated hours ago along with her torch being shattered off her extended arm. By breaking this symbol of freedom, the villains hoped to break the American spirit as well; it had worked. It was a good thing Lady Liberty could not see what was going on around her.

A twenty five foot tall form stood on the island, its smooth surface clear to reveal churning chemicals inside its body. Chemo looked out upon the water, opened the orifice that would correspond to a mouth and began to spew forth a spray of chemicals. Over seventeen different corrosive acids shot down into the waters, a number of them causing the liquid's surface to burst into flames. The rest would seep into the waters themselves, causing pollution that would take years to clean up.

Just below the water's surface, two pairs of combatants fought.

"My, my," the mutated creature known as the Shark said as it bared its teeth. "What do we have here? A pretty little morsel if ever I saw one." He began to choke the purple haired female swimmer that challenged him.

Aquagirl grabbed at his hands. It took every bit of her strength and her limited telepathic abilities, but she was eventually able to break his grasp. "I didn't come here to be your lunch," she said. "We came to stop you."

"You think you can?" the Shark asked. "I'll..." Suddenly, the creature paused for a moment and turned his head. The natural shark instincts he possessed kicked in. "Even with my protective aura, this place is no longer safe!" And with that he broke off the combat and swam off.

"Come back here," Aquagirl yelled and swam after him.

Nearby, a dark haired young man in a red tunic battled it out with a man in a dark diving suit and helmet. Black Manta laughed, "Well, Aquaman's pups have come to play. Maybe I can add another family kill to the list."

Aqualad grew furious at the remark. He recalled how Black Manta had callously murdered Arthur Jr. a few years ago. "I'm no infant," the Titan said. "And I have more than what it takes to handle the likes of you!" He smashed the villain back with a mighty punch.

Just then, the male hero looked up. "Oh, my lord!" Aqualad cried as he saw his love struggling. The water Aquagirl was trying to breath was burning her from the inside as evidenced by her clutching her throat with both hands. "Tula! Noooo!" He swam with all his might to her side, pulling her down and away from the deadly chemicals on the surface. In the back of his mind, all he could do was pray that she would be all right. From the way the terror filled her eyes and how she gasped, it already appeared that it might have been too late.
 
 

Chapter 36

Back on the streets of New York, Kobra was furious at the sight of these heroes. "Damn that Luthor!" he yelled. "He assured us that we'd be protected from the heroes of our world! Once more he has betrayed us! He has insulted Kobra with his deception and broken promises!"

"Shut up, Kobra," a villain in purple with an orange mask yelled. The costume had an arachnid theme to it. "And give us a hand here! All you do is complain." The Black Spider then took a red fisted punch to the face.

"To hell with you all!" Kobra spat. "From now on, Kobra looks out only for himself." And with that, he fled the scene.

"Hawk, we got a runner!" a man in a black costume with a purple helmet announced. "Can you get him? I'm busy." Mento was focused on taking down a long white haired man in a green suit. The Fiddler was about to slide his bow across the strings of his instrument when Mento's mental energy blast floored him. The fiddle clattered onto the pavement, followed by the older villain.

"One second!" Hawk replied. The red and white costumed hero took out Black Spider with one final blow. "Now, where'd that snake creep get to?"

Suddenly, there was a loud roar as a white skinned figure in a black suit came crashing around the corner. "Solomon Grundy crush you all!" the seven and a half foot tall creature vowed, a piece of shattered concrete held high above his head..

Mento fired a mental blast from his helmet at the newcomer. Grundy roared out in pain and lost hold of his weapon. It smashed on the street. The villain shook his head and then began to advance once more. "Uh oh," Mento said. "This one's tougher that I thought."

"No problem," Hawk said as he leapt onto Grundy's back and began to pound on the creature's skull. "Between your brain and my brawn, we'll have ugly here stopped in no time!" Grundy tried to grab for the hero upon his back but found it hard to do so.

Mento nodded. His adoptive son had spoken of Hawk's unyielding attitude; the two youths had worked together briefly when Garfield was in California shooting his television series. After today, Mento would never doubt Hawk's reputation again. He let fire another mental blast at Grundy, this time hoping it might have a stronger effect on the target's minimal brain.
 
 

Chapter 37

Earth-S: The planet had become a frozen wasteland thanks to the combined efforts of the villains on Sivana's team. The new ice age emanated out from Fawcett City and soon covered a great portion of the planet. The villains were rather pleased with themselves and were celebrating like it was Christmas in July. The party was about to be over.

"Looks like we've got company," Jewelee said. A blonde woman in a blue and black costume was bearing down on her. "Here, sweetie, you'll like these!" She tossed a number of her gem shaped weapons at the heroine. "Diamonds are a girl's best friend."

Black Canary somersaulted to the side. "Oh, you like music," she said. "Allow me to sing for you!" She opened her throat and great vibrations launched from her larynx. Her sonic cry quickly had Jewelee covering her ears.

The female villain was soon shouting "No more! No more!"

In the air, Jewelee's partner flew with ease thanks to his special boots. "Let's see if I can string you along, Robin Hood," the jester costumed man chuckled. He shot off a few of his sting strings at the emerald archer on the ground below.

"Not fast enough," Green Arrow said as he notched and fired a series of arrows at the man. Before the sting strings could reach the ground, an electro arrow had shocked Punch and then a boxing glove arrow had knocked him for a loop.

Green Arrow turned to his partner. "See, pretty bird, these folks ain't so tough!"

"We're not done yet," Black Canary reminded. "There's plenty more where these two came from."

Not far away, a little gathering of villains was going on. "You serious about a new Secret Society?" Clayface asked. "I always wanted to get in on that action."

"Me too," said the purple and green Bug-Eyed Bandit. "That's really the big time."

"Don't call us," Mirror Master said. "We'll call you." The Cheetah from Earth-2 snickered.

"Uh!" called out the dimwitted Ibac. "Uh, look."

"What?" Mirror Master snapped. Ibac pointed upwards. The villains barely had time to notice before a huge metal sphere crashed into the rooftop upon which they were standing.

The odd part was, the sphere had a face to it and a letter L upon its gray surface. "Ooops," the metallic sphere said in a slow, mechanical voice. "Sorry."

The building roof gave way due to the fast impact by Lead of the Metal Men. The five villains fell downward.
 
 

Chapter 38

Hawkman soared through the air under the power of his antigravity belt and wings. "Do you need a hand, Kal?" the Thanagarian called out to his teammate.

Superman wound back his left fist and slammed it hard into the center of the thirty two foot tall giant starfish. The creature's eye made a perfect target with its concentric red and white circles. "No thanks, Katar," the Man of Steel replied. "Starro's a tough customer normally, but this frozen environment is taking its toll on him. I can handle him just fine alone."

"All right then," Hawkman replied. "I think I see somewhere else my mace can help out."

"By all means," Superman said. And Hawkman flew off.

Not far away, another pair were locked in combat. "Hold still, you stretching sap!" Sinestro said as he swooped down. His power ring pulsed, sending a yellow energy clamp towards the hero below. The energy slammed into the ice and entangled the lower legs of his quarry.

However, Elongated Man's limit was no where nearly reached. "You have to do better than that, Sinestro!" the stretchable sleuth said. While he knew the rogue Green Lantern was a bit out of his league, Elongated Man's plan was to keep the powerful villain detained. That would allow the others their time. Still, he kind of wished either Barry or Hal were here. Sometimes things ran a lot smoother when the Flash and Green Lantern were around. No one on the Justice League really knew where either of them were at the moment.

"Oh, indeed I can," Sinestro sneered. His ring formed a yellow energy sphere that scooped up the hero. "Watch!" Suddenly, the sphere began to shrink, forcing Elongated Man to scrunch himself into a tighter and tighter spot. "I'm betting even your rubbery bones will eventually snap!" The red faced alien laughed wickedly.

"Not before your neck does!" Hawkman said as he swung his mace hard. The spiked metal ball slammed into the side of Sinestro's skull hard, forcing his concentration to be broken. Elongated Man dropped to the ground when the energy sphere dispersed. The winged hero continued his assault with the ancient weapon, taking as much of the fight out of the villain as possible.

Elongated Man could see the determination in Hawkman's actions. It reminded him that the man was a trained warrior, one of Thanagar's finest police officers. In times of war, he fought with an unbridled fury. Elongated Man was glad to have him on his side in lieu of his missing friends.
 
 

Chapter 39

Steel found himself standing in a pool of frigid water up to his knees. The ice in the immediate vicinity was melting at a rapid rate. It was due in part to his playmate, the pink fleshy member of the Brotherhood of Evil named Plasmus. The villain had a touch that burned, and Steel's red and blue costume already looked worse for wear thanks to that. Still, he was thankful for his indestructible body.

"You vill die, dog!" Plasmus said in a thick German accent. "I vill see you burn in hell!"

"I don't think so," Steel struggled to get out of his grasp.

Suddenly, the ground beneath the duo began to shake and convulse. The ice shattered and buckled. Steel was thrown from Plasmus' grip as the villain started to sink into the water below.

"Yeah, pink boy," a young man in green goggles and a colorful costume which included parachute pants replied. "Chu listen to me hermano Steel! No one messes wit' the Justice League, aye?" Vibe did a little victory breakdance as Plasmus' hand was the last of the villain visible as he sank under the water.

Steel, meanwhile, had spotted another spectator to the battle and was upon him quickly. "Going somewhere, mister?" He grabbed the golden tunic of the villain.

"What have you done to Plasmus?" demanded Warp. "Speak, mon ami...now!"

"Frenchie, I don't know where that living furnace took off to," Steel said, "but if you're his friend, I'll..."

Warp smiled. "You'll do nothing, mon ami." His powers flared as he opened a teleportation portal that quickly enveloped the hero holding him. "Allow me to introduce myself. Like my monstrous friend, I belong to the Brotherhood. I am Warp, and I shall teleport you to a place from which you'll never return!"

As Steel vanished in a flash of light, Warp flew off. Vibe called out to his friend in vain. "Steel? Steel???" It would be a few days before the young Justice Leaguers would be reunited, after Steel returned from a wild adventure in the far flung future.
 
 

Chapter 40

And the battle for Earth-S raged on. The Justice League of America and its allies fought hard, but the villains fought equally as hard. They weren't about to give up after all their efforts.

The Creeper learned that taking on Zazzala, the Queen Bee, was no laughing matter. "I shall make you my court jester," the purple haired woman in the orange and black striped costume said as she blasted him with her magno-nuclear scepter.

The green haired hero leapt to the side. "Jester?" he asked. "I thought you took slaves. I'd love to be your slave. Your love slave. Get it?" The Queen Bee growled at him in fury. He laughed anyway, which he often did during times of great stress.

The Penguin, using a souped up umbrella weapon provided to him by Sivana, boldly took on Firestorm. "Back off, nuclear man," he warned. "This bumbershoot blast can blow you into a billion bits. Wak wak wak."

Firestorm turned the air molecules before him into a curved surface, reflecting the blast back at the Penguin. "Not today, bird brain!" The icy perch the villain stood upon gave way, taking the Penguin down in a tumble of ice.

Meanwhile, three fifths of the Fatal Five fought hard against the other champions of justice.

"Back off, beast," the noble Lady Quark said as she fired a nuclear blast at the advancing Validus. The white haired woman in the yellow costume with orange radiation designs had lost her family and entire home world of Earth-6 not that long ago; she was still full of anger and willing to unleash it upon any reasonable target. The silent giant with the domed head was a perfect choice. Validus didn't even have time to get off one of his powerful mental-lightning bolts.

The red skinned Mercury of the Metal Men wrapped himself around the domed Mano. "You're going down, bubble head," the robot taunted.

"I don't think so," Mano replied. With his right hand, he touched Mercury's surface; the villain's disintegrating touch played havoc with the responsometer within the robot.

"Hey, turning up the heat is my thing! No fair!" Mercury exploded into dozens of red bubbles only to reform a short time later.

The Emerald Empress found out that Zatanna's reverse magic could be formidable indeed. "Cigam secrof, laes reh ni. Peek eht eye yawa morf reh."

The green haired woman pounded upon the mystic sphere that surrounded her. "Eye, come to me!" Emerald Empress ordered. "Free me from this trap." The glowing orb responded, blasting at the shield with it's own powerful energies.

Wonder Woman had just used her Amazon strength to defeat both Copperhead and Clock King. "Great Hera," the dark haired heroine said. "This might take us longer than we first thought.

She was not expecting the surprise attack from behind by Eclipso. "Gotta watch your back, my pretty," the villain said as his black diamond blasted her squarely in the back. The Amazon fell with a cry of anguish. The blow had stunned her for a moment, but she was quickly recovering. Eclipso laughed, waiting for a chance to knock her down again.

Same goes for you, Iron of the Metal Men thought to himself as he formed a larger hammer with his right fist. He raised it up fast and brought it down hard on the back of Eclipso's skull.
 
 

Chapter 41

"This ends here, Orm!" the blonde haired King of Seas cried out as he broke through the icy surface. Aquaman and his red haired bride Mera shot forth from the water on spouts she created. The two, it appeared, had patched up their differences and were together once more.

Neither was prepared for the ambush that had been awaiting them. A pair of beams shot out from a duo positioned on the icy walkways. With the Icicle and Captain Cold's help, both heroes were unexpectedly frozen in mid air.

Ocean Master laughed with glee at the sight before him. "Beautiful, beautiful," he said. "Look at their faces! Such anguish on Mera's. Such determination on my accursed step-brother's. Have you ever seen such a sight?"

"I aim to please," the Icicle said as he holstered his cold ray gun.

The blue parka wearing Captain Cold had already wandered off to join his sister, the Golden Glider. From a radio transmitter, they were able to hear the voice of Luthor. "Mothership to Earth-S, report," Luthor instructed.

"Victory, Luthor," Captain Cold crowed. "We've got our act down cold. Earth-S, and all their heroes are on ice."

"You tell him, Len," Golden Glider smiled.

The green costumed Weather Wizard noticed concern on the face of the other woman present. "Killer Frost, you disagree with Captain Cold?"

The frozen beauty nodded her head. "Indeed I do, Weather Wizard," she said. "I know the power the heroes have on their side. We can't let down our guard, not even for a moment." Truth was, in the early days of this Crisis, Frost had been a manipulated ally to the heroes in the Monitor's first wave of defense. Something in her cold, frigid bones told her that things weren't over yet, and that the heroes would find a way to rally against the incredible odds.

Weather Wizard raised his wand. "Then perhaps I should lend a hand, or at least my weather wand!" He thrust the weapon high into the air and discharged a burst. "If the heroes are going to attack us anyway, let's give them an inhospitable welcome."

Suddenly, the skies gave way to a great thunderstorm. Lightning and heavy rains fell from the sky, making the fighting more difficult for both sides.

"I'm getting out of this weather," Kanjar Ro said as he ran across the road.

"Not so fast!" a voice called from nowhere. Suddenly, he was knocked backwards as the invisible Gypsy punched him in the jaw and came into view. The dark haired girl looked more like a street vagrant than a heroine.

The Hyena saw the girl and leapt for her, teeth fully bared and claws a slashing. The beast was suddenly held back by the stretched out arm of the metal man named Gold. "Not so fast there," the robot said.

"Think again," Lightning Lord said as he swooped in from the stormy skies. He began to discharge even more lightning into the atmosphere.

"Thanks," said Gold. "Just what I needed." The robot quickly wrapped the rest of his body around Lightning Lord, allowing the man's energy to shoot down and shock the Hyena. "Gold is a great conductor, you know."
 
 

Chapter 42

Earth-X: Unlike the destructive fires and smothering ice that gripped the other two captive Earths, this one was actually benefiting a little thanks to its attackers. This world was actually becoming a horticulturist's delight, thanks to the increased growth rate of the vegetation.

Inside a botanical garden in one of the city's, the conquering villains had set up their base of operations. Poison Ivy leaned against one of the walls where vines of all types were growing towards the ceiling. "Jason Woodrue, you know something?" she asked of one of her colleagues. "I really love this planet. It's now a veritable garden of delights." She took a deep breath to smell the honeysuckle and aromatic perfumes in the air.

The man who was very much a plant, in part due to his coming from another dimension where creatures such as he were a common place, nodded in agreement. "Can you feel the power of the Green?" the Floronic Man said to her. "I've always wanted to do something like this. It gives me hope, and life."

The white skinned clown with the green hair shook his head. "Bah!" grumbled the Joker. "It gives me the hives. Definitely upsets my delicate constitution."

All around the room, the members of the Freedom Fighters were bound and held fast by massive vines and roots from the hybrid vegetation. The Joker walked past a yellow Venus Flytrap like plant that held the diminutive Doll Man in its jaws and stopped before one particular captive.

"Ahh," the Joker sighed. "My lovely Phantom Lady, perhaps you would like to massage my jangled nerves?" The Clown Prince of Crime looked hungrily at her exposed cleavage and got other thoughts in his mind.

"I'd like to rip them out, Joker!" the heroine snapped. "One by one."

The Joker smiled his crimson smile. "A girl after my own heart, literally." He let out a laugh. "I could learn to like you, P.L."
 
 

Chapter 43

The Joker reached down and plucked a flower with yellow petals. He brought it to his nose and sniffed. "My dear, what say we team together?" he continued his charming seduction, if for no other reason than to amuse himself. "Think of the living we can make selling all these flowers to those religious groups who hang out at airports! No expenses and one hundred percent profit. It would warm J.D. Rockefeller's heart just thinking about it."

Phantom Lady gave him a piercing glance but said nothing. She didn't want to further encourage the fool from rattling on.

Uncle Sam, however, could not hang by idly while the Joker taunted someone he cared for. "Sonny, you may think you hold us here now, but justice has a way of winning in the end." Clearly, the embodiment of America's freedom would not stand for being a prisoner long.

The Silver Ghost stood with his arms crossed. "Stuff a sock in it, old man," he said. "We won by sheer numbers. For every big shot on your side, we've got five more ready to fight for us. You six are the only heroes this world has left, and we've beaten you."

Over in the corner, the worm Mister Mind had set up a monitor, the only piece of technology in this organic base of operations. "If that's the case, Silver Ghost," the genius worm said, "better call in reinforcements. We've got company calling: the Justice Society, Infinity Incorporated and the Outsiders." He shook his head. "Thank heaven they didn't call in the blamed Marvel Family too."

From the image on the monitor to where the heroes were, the young blonde Halo flew along side some of Earth-2's greatest heroes. "Where do we begin?" the girl asked.

"We have to find the Freedom Fighters," Starman said. "The JSA has met them before."

"Right," Hawkman replied. "If they're still alive, we have to free them. We can always use extra hands in taking back this world."

"What's next, Dad?" the armored Silver Scarab asked. "One of those rallying cries you all used back in World War II?"

"Whatever it takes, Hector," the winged wonder replied.
 
 

Chapter 44

Down below, the battle lines were drawn. "Who do you think you are, old geezer?" laughed Captain Nazi as he dove at a man in blue and red. The caped hero dodged the attack.

"Son, you better learn to respect your elders," the gray-templed Superman replied with a solid right punch. "And take a lesson from history too. The Nazis lost the war, so that old swastika on your chest is out of date."

Captain Nazi's jaw smarted from the punch. "Whoever you are, gramps, I have to say you're pretty tough," the villain admitted. "Maybe as tough as Captain Marvel, but not as tough as me."

"Well just see about that," the elder Superman said as he laid into the villain once more.

Below, a large warrior with Japan's red sun on his tunic raised his sword in battle. "I have no problem striking a woman," the Samurai said in Japanese. "There is always honor in battle, no matter the gender of your opponent." He brought the weapon down hard.

"Is that so?" the red and yellow costumed woman replied in Japanese as she blocked with her own blade. The two swords clanged loudly, and Katana was able to hold her own against her enemy's great strength. "I'm surprised to see enlightened thinking from one such as you."

From the side, the Scarecrow watched the two in heated battle. "Maybe I can help out a bit," the villain said as he pulled forth one of his fear bombs. "A little phobia and paranoia should tip the scales of the battle."

Katana saw his movement out of the corner of her eye. She dodged the next cut by Samurai. As the warrior's blade struck the ground to her left, she performed a spin sidekick to the right and knocked the weapon from the Scarecrow's hand. She then followed with a quick front snap kick, connecting her yellow booted foot squarely against the villain's chest. The Scarecrow tumbled backwards into the overgrown brush.
 
 

Chapter 45

Doctor Mid-Nite tumbled backwards as the savage Cheshire advanced her attack. Her claws had already torn his red tunic but failed to pierce the skin. I need to beware, the elder hero thought to himself. She's a deadly opponent, and my blackout bombs haven't slowed her down.

Cheshire landed on the ground before him with a pounce. "There you are, my prey," the dark haired assassin said. "I think play time is over!" She raised her claw-like nails to strike.

"Not so fast!" a female voice called from the fence top behind Mid-Nite.

Cheshire looked up at the sound just as a pair of blue costumed feet kicked her squarely in the jaw. "If you want to play with claws, let's even up the sides some!" The reddish brown haired Wildcat landed on all fours. The young heroine, despite being a rookie to the game, was more than willing to fight for her friends. After all, Doctor Mid-Nite was a good friend to her Uncle Ted, the first Wildcat.

Cheshire rubbed her jaw. "If that's the way you want to play, kitty, fine by me! Let's get it on!" And the cat fight between the two women was on.

Hawkman had broken away from the group he arrived with, having spotted the brutish Blockbuster below. He swung his mighty mace, connecting squarely with the villain. Blockbuster fell back.

From space, Luthor had been monitoring the progress and broadcasted to the troops below via special radios. "Mothership to Earth-X, pay attention, you fools! There heroes are desperate now. Work together, not alone! Attack with force!"

Shut up, Luthor, Doctor Phosphorus thought as he leapt from the rooftops. The man whose appearance was that of a flaming skeleton had one of the heroes in sight and was about to score a victory. I know what I'm doing! As he fell, he stretched out his arms. Stay where you are, Hawkman, and let my touch burn you as you fight.

Phosphorus landed squarely on the winged hero's back, driving his flaming fists directly into Hawkman's exposed skin. The hero screamed out in pain as flames began to char the flesh and burn through his wings.

In the sky above, the winged young man from Feithera watched in horror as his godfather was attacked. "Good Lord!" Northwind exclaimed. "Doctor Phosphorus is killing Hawkman!" The hero swooped down like a bat out of hell to try to save the man who meant so much to him.
 
 

Chapter 46

"You cannot stop me," laughed the Shadow Thief as he remained in his intangible form. "When I'm in this mode, I am untouchable."

"Yeah," said the blue and gray costumed young man with the darkened face. "I guess you don't know the deal, buddy!" Obsidian thrust his fist into the Shadow Thief's body, and the villain cried out in pain. "Where I come, I'm the master of all things shadowy. You're going down!"

Carl Sands had little choice. He reached for his belt and turned the shadow field off, making himself solid once more.

Obsidian smiled, hauled back his fist and nailed the villain in the face. "Lights out, pal!"

In the air, another intangible villain was having second thoughts about his security as well. "Leave me be," the Mist demanded. He floated through the air, trying to escape his pursuer.

"No can do," said a pink bolt of electricity. "Master Johnny told me to take you down, and the Thunderbolt does as he is commanded." The bolt used its mystic powers to blast the phantom like villain. When he could endure no more, the Mist became solid once more and dropped from the sky.

Below, a blonde man in a green suit watched the action. "Say you, Thunderbolt," Johnny Thunder said, "don't let him hit the ground. We want him jailed, not dead."

"Whatever you say, master," the pink Thunderbolt replied. In a flash, it streaked down and caught the weakened older villain in his arms, placing him gently to the ground below.

"Argh!" screamed the Star Sapphire as a yellow burst blinded her. "As soon as my vision clears, I will rip the pretty blonde hair from your head!"

"I don't think so," said Halo. She switched her beam colors from yellow to green and shot at the villainess once more. "This should hold you." The stasis beam held Star Sapphire fast, certainly long enough until one of her teammates could suggest what to do with the woman.
 
 

Chapter 47

In Brainiac's space craft, Luthor watched the monitors of the battles below and shook his head. "Despite our control, the battle is still weighed evenly on both sides," he said. "But that's fine with us, isn't it, Brainiac? Sure, we'd like our side to win, but it's hardly essential to our goals. Let them all kill off each other, that's what I say.

"And don't worry your capacitors. I haven't forgotten why we teamed up. No matter which side wins, the two of us will do in Superman. Then we'll worry what to do with those who refuse to accept us as their leader!

"I don't know about you, Brainiac, but I don't want to be the one to go up against things like Chemo or Validus. Got any ideas?" Luthor turned to his metallic partner who had been standing silent and motionless for quite awhile now. Perhaps he was in some kind of odd mode, crunching numbers of something.

"Brainiac?" Luthor asked. "You listening?" The man grew a bit concerned. "Pal, you haven't said a..."

Suddenly, Brainiac's entire body began to shake violently Sparks flew out from his chest cavity, and energy began to envelope the super-computer's form.

"What in blazes?" Luthor exclaimed. "Brainiac!" He didn't need his great intellect to realize what would happen next. "My God! Brainiac's going to...!" And indeed, the super-computer shattered in a loud, violent force of energy. Shards of metal and circuitry showered about the room.

Lex Luthor was thrown to the ground, his battle armor taking the major brunt of the blast. "Unhhh," he said as he rose to his knees. He grasped his head, his ears were still ringing. "Sneak attack. But the sensors never indicated anyone approaching."

The scientist picked up a few pieces of cable and chips that were in front of him. "Brainiac...", he called out desperately, not expecting any answer. "Brainiac?" The only sound was the hum of the space ship. "This is all that's left of him?" Luthor looked up. "Who did this?"

Suddenly, Luthor realized he was not alone after all. He looked up to see the purple robed form of a familiar figure before him. "Look no further, Luthor," a sinister voice cackled. "I blew Brainiac's body into so many pieces, not even my old partner Gizmo could put him back together again."

The newcomer's brain, visible under a clear dome at the top of his head, began to glow. "You assembled our group hoping they'd kill the heroes for you, and then you would march in to claim victory." The man smiled. "A good thing I'm a rather suspicious sort, isn't it? Well, Luthor, I killed Brainiac so now: Psimon says Luthor must die as well!"
 
 

Chapter 48

Luthor cried out in pain as the first blast from Psimon hit him.

"You two really had a scheme going there, didn't you?" Psimon scolded. "Not nice, Luthor, not nice at all! Recruiting all of us super-villains, sending us to take over three of the Earths and to battle their mightiest heroes. And no matter which side won, you intended to pick up the pieces and rule by yourselves!" Another burst came from the villain's expanded brain.

"Fortunately, I stayed behind and overheard you," Psimon continued as his enemy writhed on the ground, suffering. This one would be a slow, painful death. "So now, you will die while I let your plan continue, only with me in charge. Such a good plan, Luthor. Psimon thanks you for it! What a shame you won't live long enough to enjoy it!" The energy crackled about his domed brain.

"Nor shall you, Psimon," a mechanical voice said as a blast of energy shot the man's skull from behind. Psimon's brain was completely obliterated by the forceful beam of energy, and his dome skull shattered like a window pane. The villain's body fell lifeless to the floor. Psimon was dead.

Luthor gasped for air, slowly recovering. He looked up to see Brainiac with a smoldering laser weapon for a right arm. "Brainiac? Is that really you?"

"This ship is part of me," the computer said. "Each circuit interfaces with one of mine. I monitored his presence from the moment he came aboard. He could not hide from me. Psimon was a fool to think he could."

Luthor stood. "Brainiac? But I saw him destroy you."

"No," the machine replied. "I transferred my data into my ship's computers. Only my outer shell was destroyed. I was able to command the living metal of this vessel to form a new shell for me." Brainiac turned back to the monitors. "Psimon is eliminated. Our plan continues."

"It sure does, pal," Luthor said. "You and me, against the heroes of five worlds. We can't lose!" And though his face hid it well, Lex Luthor was a bit concerned. If Brainiac could so easily eliminate Psimon, what would stop the machine for doing the same to Luthor? Could a machine be loyal and honorable? The bald man was starting to have his doubts.
 
 

Chapter 49

Earth-4: The world continued to burn in chaos despite the arrival of the Titans and the Doom Patrol. Chemo continued to stand at its post on the small island in the harbor. Before him, the water continued to burn due to the chemicals that were deposited there. The life-giving ocean had become a poisonous sea. If an automaton could feel satisfaction, Chemo surely did at this moment.

That would not last. As the giant continued to stand there, a lone form of energy shot through the air. The black outline was that of a woman, Negative Woman, and she was full of rage. "Fiend! How many lives have you destroyed?"

Chemo merely gurgled loudly, the chemicals inside him sloshing around.

The heroine stretched her energy form about the automaton a number of times, binding its arms to its side. "Do you even care what you have done?" Negative Woman screamed. She got no answer. Chemo merely moved, acted and killed; it was without a mind and incapable of communication. "You cannot be allowed to survive!"

Negative Woman fled her home in Russia because she longed for freedom. She would not allow this Earth or any Earth to be held in the iron grip of tyranny. She contracted her energy trail together, squeezing around Chemo's body. Eventually, the force of her power was greater than the creature's shell, and Chemo exploded apart violently. The contents of its very being showered out into the already polluted harbor. Maybe some of these raw chemicals could help the situation rather than feed it.

Still, further away in the oceans, far from the pollutants, Aqualad swam desperately. In all the excitement, he forgot he was on Earth-4 and not on his own world. He headed for where Atlantis would be, but it did not matter. Please, Tula, don't die, he thought. You can't die! I love you.

He looked into her face, her eyes barely able to stay open and her breathing so shallow and growing silent by the second. Lord, she won't make it, Aqualad thought. It's not fair! It's not at all fair! The woman would soon die in his arms.

On the streets of the city, the other heroes still fought desperately. Cyborg rounded the corner to see one of his allies about to be ambushed. "Celsius, behind you!" he cried out in warning.

The dark skinned woman dressed in red and blue raised her left arm and hurled a blast of fire. "No problem, Cyborg," she said as the flames struck the black and orange costumed Electrocutioner before he could finish charging up. "I can handle both of them."

The female leader of the new Doom Patrol shot an ice blast with her right hand, freezing the hands and arms of the green and purple costumed Quakemaster to his giant jackhammer weapon. The ice quickly spread to cover the whole device. "Press me, and I can also chew gum at the same time," Celsius joked.

"Not bad," Cyborg said. "Not bad at all! Sure you don't want to join the Titans?"

"No thanks," the woman replied. "I can only stand so much of Dayton's adopted son as it is. I'll stick to my own team, thank you."
 
 

Chapter 50

Not far away, the dark garbed Black Adam laughed sinisterly. "You two are no match for me!" he scoffed. With his mighty fist, he swatted back the attacking Dove and Robotman as if they were mere flies. "I have all the powers of Captain Marvel and more."

Kole flew in from above. I don't know who he is, she thought to herself, but I know he's hurting my friends. Well, its time for me to do my thing. The young girl began to gesture with her hands, causing her unique powers to go into action.

Black Hand raised back his right fist and stopped suddenly. "What?" he exclaimed. "Who dares attack Black Adam?" He looked to his arm and his jaw dropped. "My arm! It's turning to crystal?"

Dove and Robotman had recovered from the first blows. "Look!" Dove exclaimed. "Now he's all crystal." Indeed, the mighty villain was frozen in his stance like an intricately carved statue. "How did Kole do that?"

"Who cares?" grumbled Robotman. "She's given us the chance to get rid of this bozo once and for all!" The metallic member of the Doom Patrol wound back his left fist.

"No!" screamed Dove as he grabbed the arm and held it back. "You can't! It's not right to hurt someone else, no matter what he did to us." Dove was a pacifist at heart, and a firm believer in turning the other cheek.

"Kid, are you for real?" Robotman asked. He put down his arm after realizing Dove would not stop holding him back. "Well, okay. If you feel so strongly about it..."

Dove nodded. "I do. We must remember that we cannot stoop to their level, else we are no better than they."

Not far away, the some of the villains were guarding the captured heroes. Captain Atom, Blue Beetle, Nightshade and many more were held fast by the villains' special bonds. "The time has come!" Doctor Spectro announced. "Time to kill these fools before they can be rescued."

"Who's first?" asked the armored reactor called Tokamak. He looked down the row. "How about this patriot puss?" He pointed to Liberty Belle, a woman astronaut turned hero on this world of Earth-4. She wore a costume of red, white and blue.

"A fair place to start," Spectro agreed. "Cavalier, do the honors!"

The mustached man dressed like a French musketeer hesitated. "Start with her?" he asked. "I don't know." His own personal code of honor prevented him from seriously injuring a woman, no matter who she was.

"Back off, you pantywaist poof!" sneered a bald man dressed as a pirate. "If ye can't kill the wench, allow me!" With his large cutlass, Captain Stingaree ran the blade right into the platinum blonde haired woman's chest. She cried out in anguish before collapsing. The villain withdrew his bloody blade. "See? Easy as can be. Who's next?"

"No one is!" a voice boomed from above. The collective villains turned to see Hawk and the other Titans and Doom Patrolers bearing down upon them.
 
 

Chapter 51

Earth-S: In the frozen WHIZ broadcasting building, the villains here were gloating. "It appears we have our foes on ice, Sivana," the metal masked Doctor Cyber said.

"Hee hee hee," cackled Sivana, now wearing a purple parka. "You know it." He glanced at the captive Marvel Family in their civilian identities. "Oh, I've been awaiting this day for so long. Billy Batson bound and gagged, along with the rest of his accursed friends!"

Working at a console next to Hector Hammond, T.O. Morrow was not convinced. "Don't gloat yet, shorty," he said. "The heroes are heading our way even as we speak."

"We are prepared for them," Doctor Cyber said with assurance.

"Honey, I like the way you think," Sivana said.

On a platform of ice overlooking the main floor, a green costumed woman stood next to the alien Despero. "Indeed, let them come," said Phobia, "and let them experience their greatest fears." She eyed the captives and released her mental allusions upon them. Billy and Mary saw demonic figures, clawing at the icy cage; their eyes grew with terror. "None can resist the power of my mind."

Phobia's dark skinned teammate from the Brotherhood of Evil agreed. "And those who do resist, my friend," Houngan said, "will suffer the voodoo pain as only I can give it."

"Quiet!" Hector Hammond broadcasted a mental message to them all. "We've been found! Prepare yourselves!"

Through one of the icy walls, a figure appeared as if passing through like a ghost. "No, Hector Hammond," the Martian Manhunter said. "Nothing can help you now. I am tired of you humans! Tired of your evil! Tired of your lust for power!" J'Onn was even more angry than any of these villains had seen him before.

"Stop where you are!" warned Deathbolt. He prepared to fire upon the intruder.

"Out of my way!" His eyes flared, and the Martian Manhunter blasted the villain in his path with heat vision. "Surrender to us now. Let us return order and justice to this Earth!"

Burrowing out of the icy floor, a shimmering female sprang into the room. The villainess called the Enforcer dove for cover. "Look at them, J'Onn," the newcomer woman said "They're not interested in giving up. Let's show them what we can do!"

Phobia was unconvinced. "What is your greatest fear, girl?" she asked. "What will cause your mind to become numb with horror?"

Despero shook his head in panic. "Phobia, it won't work with her," he warned. "That's Platinum of the Metal Men! She's a robot!"

"Red-head's right!" the determined creation said. "And I'm a mighty angry robot at that!" Platinum sent a punch flying, stretching out her robotic arm so she could nail Despero, Phobia and Per Degaton in one fell swoop.
 
 

Chapter 52

While the battle raged in the main room of the frozen lair, inside the icy prison that held seven people and one talking tiger a rescue was in progress. The blue and red garbed Atom materialized within the cold storage, his sword drawn.

"Luckily the villains didn't think to post a guard inside," he said softly. The Atom glanced at the prisoners. "Okay, J'Onn told me to free a certain one first, one of the boys." He flipped through the air, and the heavier set one with a red cap on his head caught sight of the moving form. Fat Billy Batson's eyes grew wide as the tiny figure landed on the red sweatered shoulder of his friend.

The Atom moved closer towards the dark haired young man's ear. "Pssst," he said, getting the youth's attention. "You, kid, shake your head if you're Batson."

The gagged young man nodded and said, "mmfffmmm." His voice was muffled by the material tied tightly around his lower face.

"I'll take that as a yes," the Atom said. "Don't worry, pal. I'm called the Atom. I'm one of the good guys." The Tiny Titan raised his sword. "Now hold still, don't wiggle. I was told to cut off your gag. Only nobody told me why!"

With a swift swing, the tiny weapon began to cut through the cloth as if it were butter. "Still don't know what a kid can do that the rest of us can't," the Atom said.

The white material snapped and fell to the floor. "Thanks, Atom," Billy Batson said. "But I'm more than just a kid! Shazam!" And with that magic word, a bolt of lightning for out of nowhere struck the youth.

"Whoa!" the Atom cried as he jumped away in time. When he looked back, the boy was gone and in his place stood a man in a red costume with a yellow bolt on his chest. "What the...?"

"Now you can call me Captain Marvel!" the hero proclaimed. "Quick, Atom, help the others with their gags!" He wound back his fist. "We'll need everybody for this!" With the strength of Hercules, Captain Marvel punched the icy walls and caused them to crack. A second blow, and the walls came down.

"What the...?" T.O. Morrow exclaimed.

"Curses!" Sivana said. "Someone freed the Big Red Cheese!"

There was the sound of five more lightning bolts behind Captain Marvel. The hero smiled. "Wrong, Sivana!" he said. "We're all free now!" The hero took to the air, followed by the similarly costumed Mary Marvel and the three Lieutenant Marvels.

Captain Marvel Jr., adorned in blue and red, entered the battle as well. "It's time for a little payback Marvel Family style, Cap!" he said as he punched the horrific Doctor Destiny.
 
 

Chapter 53

Earth-X: There was a rumbling of the south wall of the botanical gardens, and the vines and other materials sprayed outward as a giant red gloved fist punched an opening. Then another hand joined in and made it wider. "Knock knock," said the red mohawked hero named Nuklon, who currently stood fifteen feet tall. "Who ordered the weed control?"

"Good one, Nuklon," the blue costumed hero with white stars said as he flew into the opening, followed by the Silver Scarab. "You tear this place apart while we go free the Freedom Fighters." And Star Spangled-Kid shot a barrage of energy blasts from his converter belt at the vines that held the heroes hostage.

"No, my pretty plants!" Poison Ivy exclaimed.

"You'll pay for harming the Green!" the Floronic Man vowed.

Suddenly, the earth beneath their feet began to shake. The two villains dove for cover as the ground erupted up. "Play times over!" a red haired man in green and yellow announced. "We're taking this Earth back from you fiends!" Geo-Force propelled himself at the two villains with his lava blasts, smacking them down as he passed them by.

"No!" yelled the Silver Ghost. "I won't have it! I'll turn you all to silver!" He lunged forward with his left hand to touch the nearest hero.

"Uh uh," said the Silver Scarab as he blocked the attack by letting the villain's hand hit his armor. "I'm betting my ninth metal armor can counter your touch." He wound back his fist. "Or at least long enough to do this!" He let his punch fly, knocking the Silver Ghost backwards across the room and into a thicket of thorns.

As Star-Spangled Kid cut Black Condor down from the vines, the Joker slipped behind a large tree. "This isn't fun any more," he said softly to himself with a frown. "Time for me to run away, so I can laugh another day!" The villain spun around to slink off and stopped suddenly. "Uh oh."

Standing before him was a white haired man in red, white and blue. His fists were clenched and his face looked angry. "Now, where you think you're gettin' off to?" Uncle Sam asked. The Joker tried to flee, but Sam snagged him with his right arm and held him fast. "I reckon you owe a certain little lady an apology, son!"
 
 

Chapter 54

Earth-4: A green eagle flew over head as Mento was hard at work battling a group of multicolored maniacs. "Damn!" the hero cursed. "Why don't you fools get the point?" Ever time he knocked one down with a mental blast, another would get back up and begin bouncing all around him.

"Face it, daddy-o!" Fleeter, a man with a red face and yellow hair, said. "You'll never take us all down!"

"Yeah!" agreed one of the other Mad Men. They began to circle the hero like flies. A couple pulled out switchblades. "Sooner or later, one of us'll get ya! And one is all it takes!" They laughed crazily.

The eagle swooped down and in a flash changed forms. Suddenly, a thirty foot winged dragon was on the street with a loud thud. The Mad Men turned at the sound and were shocked by the mythical creature. "Aaaaaah!" one of the villains shouted. "Run away!"

And the five Mad Men ran off screaming like idiots, waving their hands in the air.

"Losers," said the green dragon.

"Gar, what is it?" Mento asked. "I thought you were checking on the others."

"I was, Dad," he said. "That's why I'm here. Speedy needs some help with a rather hairy problem. Hop on." Mento did as his adopted son asked, and Changeling took to the air. They soon landed about twelve blocks away.

Mento dismounted, and the dragon returned to Changeling's human form in a red and white costume. "See?" Speedy continued to lob arrows at the Shaggy Man but nothing slowed him down.

"Any ideas?" the archer asked.

"Let me try," said Mento. A mental blast shot from his helmet. The beast shook it off with a mighty roar. "I can't stop him. That Shaggy Man's not even alive."

A light bulb flashed in Speedy's head. "Great!" he exclaimed. "Then I don't mind using my explosive arrow!" The archer let fly a new shaft, and the arrowhead exploded on contact. The creature blew apart into dozens of large, hairy chunks. "Scratch one, Shaggy Man! Over and out!"

Changeling let out a cheer. "Way to go, Speedy!"
 
 

Chapter 55

Earth-S: The rainstorms that the Weather Wizard summoned continued to beat down upon the city, making the fight a more difficult one. One of the Metal Men, the least heroic of the team of robots, tried his best to help. "S-s-stop!" Tin stuttered.

"N-n-no!" mocked a man in yellow and green. The Molder thrust out his arms and fired a blast of energy at the robot. Tin tried to make a reflective surface with his body to block the shot.

Just then, a winged female swooped in. "You okay, Tin?" she asked.

"Hawkwoman!" the robot exclaimed as the villain's blast shattered part of his shield. "I-I th-think I've been b-better!" He knew he could easily reform himself after taking the damage, but his ego was the most frail part of him.

"Allow me!" Hawkwoman said as she aimed the crossbow she held in her arms. She let the bolt fly, and it lodged with great speed in one of the Molder's shoulders.

"Owwww!" the villain screamed in pain. He stopped firing so he could check the damage to his arm. Blood poured out of the wound underneath his ripped costume. "Hey, that hurt!"

"So will this!" Hawkwoman said as she flew right up on him. She swung the crossbow like a club and smacked him in the head with the hilt of the weapon.

Not far away, a couple more of the Justice League members were taking on the source of the foul weather. Firestorm blasted the air around Captain Cold, turning it into an ooey gooey marshmallow. "Eat your way out of that one, Cold!" the Nuclear Man quipped. Then he saw something. "Vixen, watch out!"

The model turned heroine sprang onto her hands, bringing her feet around to kick the Icicle squarely in the chest. "Thanks, Firestorm," Vixen said, "but I smelled this creep coming a mile away!" She then glanced around and caught sight of another villain in the air. "Firestorm, behind you!"

The Nuclear Man whipped around to see his old sparring partner Typhoon approaching on a funnel of swirling air. "Hey, finally someone I've battled before," Firestorm said. "No problem."

In his head, Firestorm heard the voice of his ever present ally. "Take him out quickly, Ronald," Professor Martin Stein suggested. "We have much work left to do."

Right, Professor, Firestorm replied with a thought. And he went to the task of stopping the human storm generator.
 
 

Chapter 56

Earth-X: While Star-Spangled Kid and his squad liberated the Freedom Fighters, outside the other heroes continued to take down the villainous army in the lush greenery.

"C'mon, together!" Batman continued to rally the team. With a left punch, he nailed the red and white garbed Calendar Man in the jaw. "Just keep pushing forward! We'll take them down yet!"

"The Outsiders are doing the best we can, Batman," Halo said as she nailed the Ghost with her orange force blasts.

"He knows," Robin said as he swooped down on a line. With a flying kick, he nailed the diminutive Dummy who was about to shoot one of their teammates. "Hey, you're too young to play with guns, shorty!"

In the air, the heroine called Fury had her hands full. She wrestled with the villainous Silver Slasher. "Yow," the blonde heroine said. "I need to be careful with this one."

Across the way, her teammate Jade just finished nailing Bolt with her emerald energy. "Need a hand with that one, Fury?" the daughter of Green Lantern asked.

"Gladly, Jade," the daughter of Wonder Woman replied.

Down below, the small but powerful Atom from Earth-2 had just taken out the villain known as the Rainbow Raider. He looked up at the two heroines from his world and smiled. Those two kids work great together, he thought. Maybe we should have let them into the JSA after all. Perhaps that was something he could propose at a future team meeting.
 
 

Chapter 57

Up above in Brainiac's ship, Luthor continued to monitor the situation with growing concern. "Unbelievable, Brainiac!" he exclaimed. "Despite our overwhelming power, the scales seem to be tipping out of our favor."

Brainiac stood calmly by. "Not unexpected, Luthor," the computer said. "The humans on our side are overly suspicious, highly uncooperative. They fight alone, disdaining the aid of others. Our foes work in teams; only in unity is there strength."

"I know, I know," Luthor said as he pounded on the monitor's surface. "But I expected a better showing. I wanted those heroes dead and buried!"

Just then, the monitor's view surged and began to fluctuate as if refocusing itself elsewhere. "Hold on," Luthor said. "Something's happening! Good Lord! I've never seen an energy influx like that before!" He checked the readings as best he could, but they were off the chart.

Suddenly, the space above all five interconnected Earths began to shimmer. Among the twinkling stars, an image appeared and instantly came into focus. It was that of a green cowled head and two huge, green gloved hands. All across the five Earths, the image could be seen in the sky like a great vision. For indeed, the one responsible for it had power often immeasurable and mysterious.

"Stop!" yelled the Spectre, his words reverberating in the soundless space and somehow carrying loud and clear in the atmosphere of the five worlds below. "You must cease this mindless battle! For while you fight, the end of all the universes is at hand!

"Hear the word of the Spectre and learn what you must do! The Anti-Monitor still lives! And now he seeks the destruction of all life! He has fled from this era, retreated to the past, before life evolved, before the Earths were formed.

"He has traveled to the very dawn of time itself! From there he will change the course of all time! No longer will there be positive matter. Only antimatter will prevail! All Earths, all universes, all life will be eliminated.

"The Monitor recruited all people, heroes and villains, not to fight amongst themselves but to combine their awesome power! There must be cooperation or all life is doomed to nonexistence. Decide now! There will be no second chances."
 
 

Chapter 58

Earth-4: The members of the Titans and Doom Patrol were freeing the captive heroes of this world when the Spectre's voice got their attention.

"Whoa! Who's that?" Tempest asked as he stood protecting the still manacled Captain Atom.

"My teammate Nightwing mentioned him once," Cyborg said, stopping his battle with Tokamak. "That guys the Spectre, and he's supposedly the avenging hand of God."

"You serious, Cyborg?" asked Hawk. "Someone actually has that gig?"

"That's what I heard," the half-man/half-machine replied. "I think we better listen to what he has to say."
 
 

Chapter 59

Earth-S: A crowd of both heroes and villains ceased their fighting when the Spectre appeared. Instead, they looked up in awe through the stormy skies at the one who appeared above it all.

"Wow, he's huge," said the slow talking Lead.

"And he looks like he means business," said the Creeper. He then realized he still held Deadshot in a headlock. "Whoa, sorry, man." He released the villain.

"He does mean business," said the demonic looking Lord Satanis. "Take it from someone who knows about mystical powers. He exudes it beyond comprehension."

Insect Queen from Earth-2 nodded in agreement. "Definitely," she said. "Even he makes Superman appear like a mere mortal."
 
 

Chapter 60

Earth-X: The fighting ceased when the Spectre appeared in the sky. Both the Justice Society and Infinity Incorporated members knew that the spectral hero only involved himself in truly major circumstances these days.

"If the Spectre is here," the gray haired Superman said as he stood proudly and listened, "then we have a serious situation on our hands."

"We have a serious one here too," Northwind said as he held his godfather gently in his arms. Hawkman's eyes were closed and his breathing shallow. "Hawkman needs medical attention."

"Yes, Northwind," the graying Wonder Woman said. "And we will insure he gets the best available before we go into battle. He has fought hard and deserves that much."

Shimmer stood by and watched the display of concern. "They care...", she started to say under her breath.

"They sure do," said Metamorpho. "They care for one another just like you care about your brother. Sort of gives you some perspective to consider, don't it?"

The villainess said nothing, but she did silently ponder the element man's words.
 
 

Chapter 61

And back aboard the space ship where this whole villain war began, the two masterminds considered the Spectre's words as well.

"We can still have some leverage," Luthor schemed. "A world or two for our participation."

"Perhaps, Luthor," Brainiac replied. "But should they refuse, we will all be eliminated." The machine paused for a moment, processing. Luthor looked at him, waiting for some other response.

Finally, Brainiac spoke again. "This organism can not accept that possibility. Call in our warriors. For now there must be cooperation! But only for now."

Luthor hated to admit it, but the computer was right. When faced with the alternative, living and having to work hard to get what they wanted seemed like the best choice.

"You're right," Luthor agreed. Then he smiled. "But who says we can't try again sometime, right?" In his eye, there was a gleam of hope, a gleam of possibility, a gleam of the future. As long as there were dreams and hopes, there would still be a chance to turn the tide of the Crisis.
 
 

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