Reality from illusion
Parenting moment: when your kid gets their first desk, and you see how much it changes the entire look of their room, you feel really old all of a sudden.
LJ, stareyednight and I spent Saturday buying, constructing and installing the kidlet's new desk (as well as hanging picture frames and re-arranging her room). That didn't leave any time for a game but, for a change, I was happy about that. You see, I'm actually behind in chronicling my daughter's boundless imagination and could really do with a chance to catch up.
So let's not wait any longer!
----------
LJ presents:
DESPERATION AND DESPAIR
PART THREE: ANGUISH AND ASSAILANTS
Written and directed by LJ
Novelisation by SF
"Is it just me," Flash asked, "or has the scenery around here really changed?"
Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Green Lantern, Cyborg, Blue Beetle and Firestorm looked out from the emerald sleigh. Flash was right - what had been the dark, dingy recesses of the Pit of Despair had transformed, once again, into a grim illusion. Their strength of will protected by Diana's golden lasso, they nonetheless perceived the depressing fantasy: the red plains of Mars aflame, the debris of a once-great civilisation strewn in all directions. It was more uncomfortably real than any of the Pit's previous creations.
"J'onn must be nearby," Cyborg said quietly. "But I don't get it. The Pit's supposed to create a worst-case-ever illusion around a hero. This stuff actually happened to J'onn, so how..."
He never got to finish the sentence because, beneath them, the ground heaved and shook. Flash leaped back into the sleigh, and Green Lantern wrapped it in a force-field, just as Mars exploded around them! Adrift in space, propelled by the incredible force of an erupting world, the Justice League found itself under attack from an enraged Martian Manhunter. "Villains!" he howled, grief raw and naked in his voice. "Was taking my wife and child not enough? Did you have to destroy my world, too? As H'ronmeer is my witness, I will kill you all!"
People tend to look past the Martian Manhunter, forgetting that his powers - flight, super-strength, shape-shifting, telepathy, invisibility, density control, laser vision - are almost at Superman's levels. The League was ill-equipped to battle such forces in the weightlessness of space. Beetle, Firestorm and Wonder Woman had to tackle J'onn alone while Green Lantern kept their friends safe in an oxygen-filled bouncy castle. The savage Manhunter had all but annihilated the young heroes by the time Diana slipped the lasso around his neck and brought him to heel.
J'onn was embarrassed... and angry. "My mental powers must have increased the Pit's potency and made its dreams more real," he said to the League. "Losing my family has always haunted me. Knowing that Mars still existed, while I lived on Earth, was a source of comfort. To have that taken as well was more than I could bear. You have all borne the brunt of my rage and, for that, I apologise. Those responsible for invading my mind and perceptions will be brought to account."
With J'onn's mind clear, the illusion faded and the heroes continued on. Soon they came to a set of ornate iron gates. They were rusted and in a dilapidated state; beyond them, the League could make out a large manor house in the distance. All of them, save Green Lantern, shifted uncomfortably. "What's up?" Kyle asked, noting their concern. "Who's inside?"
"Who's inside?" Flash fumed. "Don't you... oh, right, you don't know!"
"Know what?"
Wonder Woman put one hand on Kyle's shoulder. "That's the home of millionaire philanthropist Bruce Wayne," she explained. "A nightmarish version, at least. The reason it's here, Kyle, is because Wayne is secretly one of us... a super hero and member of the Justice League."
Green Lantern blinked. "Bruce Wayne is Batman?" he asked, incredulous. "That rich cream-puff is the Dark Knight? You're kidding, right?" He shook his head and looked at the distant mansion. "Crazy. Just crazy. Well, if the caped crusader's hiding somewhere inside Mr Money Bags, it's time I brought him out." Before the others could react, Kyle shot off - the lasso magically extending to keep him tethered - to find his team mate. He blasted through the doors and shone a light from his ring. "Batman," he called, "time to go home!"
"Go away," someone said timidly. "G-g-go away and leave me alone. Please!"
Kyle swung his light toward the sound. There was someone cowering behind the plush leather couch. The man was tall and very, very thin. His gaunt features were pale, like he'd not seen the sun in years. His arms and legs looked weak and his fingernails were chewed to the quick. He had dark circles around his eyes - sure signs he slept neither often nor well. Green Lantern puzzled over the sight as the rest of the League entered the room. "I don't get it," he said aloud. "I mean, I get that's Batman, but what is all this?"
"When he was a boy," Aquaman said quietly, "Bruce Wayne's parents were murdered in front of his eyes. That moment galvanised his resolve and put him on the path to becoming the greatest crime-fighter in the history of the world. It drove him to train his body and mind for the pursuit of justice. It made him vow that no one else would suffer as he had, even if it meant sacrificing his life."
"The Pit has twisted Batman's history," Martian Manhunter scowled. "It has created a world in which the murders broke young Bruce's spirit. He gave into his fears and terrors, and so never found the strength to become Batman. As far as he knows, he has hidden inside the manor his entire life, blocking out the world so he can never be hurt again. His will has been turned against him."
Green Lantern frowned. "Will, hey?" He inched closer to the terrified Wayne, knelt down and spoke gently. "I know you don't remember me, Mr Wayne, but I'm a friend," he said soothingly. "You think you're scared; I think you're just lost. And the best thing you can do when you're lost is find a way out." Kyle took off his ring and rolled it toward Bruce's hiding place. "Go on. Put it on. I know it'll light your path."
Wide-eyed, Bruce Wayne picked up the ring and slipped it on his finger. Cleansing green light instantly erupted from the most powerful weapon in the universe, shattering the depression illusion around them. When the dust settled, Batman stood alongside them once more - his costume, body and mind restored to proper order. He nodded as Diana looped the lasso around his wrist, then handed the ring back to Kyle. "Thanks," he said. "I needed that."
The heroes boarded the sleigh once more. Flash was worried. "I thought Robin would be with you," he said to Batman, "on account of your shared history. Where is he, Bats? Where's my best friend?"
"I'm not sure," Batman replied. "But if the memory of my parent's deaths could do that to me, Robin's torture may well be too much for his mind to withstand. We need to find him quickly. Superman, too."
They did not find Superman - Superman found them! The Man of Steel attacked his friends without warning, dropping from the sky with the force of a megaton bomb. The heroes flew in all directions, straining the lasso to its limit. Superman renewed his assault before they could regain their feet and, at super-speed, tangled them in the magic rope without touching it himself. When Superman finally came to rest, the heroes could see how much the Pit had changed him. He wore a dark blue jumpsuit with black boots, gloves and belt. He looked upon them impassively as he spoke into a radio earpiece. "This is Kal-El, Agent of SHIELD," he said. "I've captured the unregistered metahumans."
"Oh no," Firestorm moaned.
Sure enough, the SHIELD Helicarrier soon came into view. Nightmare versions of Nick Fury and Maria Hill congratulated "Agent Kal-El" on his success and ordered he prepare the League for "processing". Not liking the sound of that, J'onn activated the heroes' telepathic link and co-ordinated their counter-attack. Batman and Cyborg fought off the fake Fury and Hill while the others combined their powers to keep Superman still. Wonder Woman only just managed to snare her old friend with the lasso and return him to his senses.
Like the Manhunter, Superman was angry. "I was raised to use my powers the right way and to always use them for the benefit of others," he explained. "This place... it made me believe I was found as a baby by SHIELD, not by my Ma and Pa, and turned into their living weapon. The things I saw, that it made me believe I'd done..." He shook his head to clear it. "Time enough for that later. Right now we need to find Robin and get out of this awful place."
"Agreed," Batman said. "The best way to find Robin is to use the skills we have at hand. If Cyborg uses his tech to boost Martian Manhunter's telepathy, and they channel the results into a screen created by Green Lantern, we can..."
"Don't waste your time, 'heroes'," said an all-too-familiar, smug and regal voice. "Your brat is safely in our care and, if you want him, all you have to do is come get him."
Before them stood Kang the Conqueror, the villain who had nearly killed the Avengers. Off to one side lurked Ultron-8, the latest incarnation of the synthezoid who had imprisoned and almost destroyed Earth's Mightiest Heroes. Hovering above them was Magneto, the master of magnetism - a villain so dangerous he'd once been entombed for the safety of the whole world! And near them all - sealed in a magnetic bubble that was time-locked and covered in machinery - was Robin. "Sorry guys," the boy wonder shrugged. "The whole Pit of Despair thing didn't work on me. Guess I'm just too optimistic. I was looking for you when these guys grabbed me from behind."
"Do not look so concerned, humans," Ultron-8 said. "My allies and I are not here to end your useless carbon-based lives. Our mistress wants you incarcerated in this Pit for all time, and we have come to effect her wishes."
"The machine speaks true," Magneto boomed. "Surrender the Amazon's lasso and submit to the Pit's influence, now!"
Through their telepathic link, the members of the League silently conferred. They knew they were facing their greatest challenge to date: three enemies who, on their own, were more than a match for the world's other top super hero team. But as Firestorm said, they'd never given up before and weren't about to give up now. Batman and Martian Manhunter laid out the plan, the others agreed to it, Wonder Woman unspooled the lasso and Superman started the countdown. "Go!" he shouted aloud.
Phase one: free Robin. Cyborg and Beetle's weaponry disrupted the magnetic bubble, an explosive batarang detonated the time-lock and the Flash disassembled the technology at super-speed.
Phase two: Magneto. Robin, Firestorm, Blue Beetle and Flash went toe-to-toe with the mutant supremacist. Straight away, Magneto used his powers to seize Beetle's armour and use the young hero as a bludgeon. When the heroes were down, Magneto pulled Beetle in for the kill... just as the good guys had planned. Beetle blasted his enemy at point-blank range, severing his control. Robin kept Magneto off-balance with explosives, Flash whipped up a whirlwind and Firestorm created a deep, thick, strong wooden box out of thin air to imprison the arrogant elitist.
Phase three: Kang. His arsenal spanned the ages and he could instantly call up any weapon - a yellow beam gun to counter Green Lantern, a red-sun ray to blast Superman. But Kang was still human and had to hold those weapons in his hands... a difficult task when Batman kept knocking them away with batarangs. Infuriated, Kang focused his attention one hundred per cent on the Dark Knight - instantly guaranteeing himself a one-two Oa/Kryptonian beating from his more powerful enemies.
Phase four: Ultron-8. Cyborg had been itching for another crack at the evil synthezoid, and this time he had Wonder Woman, Martian Manhunter and Aquaman as back-up. Vic wirelessly hacked Ultron-8's systems to distract it while Wonder Woman deflected its eye-beams back at it. Staggered and vulnerable, the machine was lifted off its feet by Aquaman's running charge. It flew through the air and came down atop Martian Manhunter... who, with unexpected cruelty, phased through Ultron-8's indestructible body and tore out its brain!
The heroes looked at J'onn with utter shock. Cyborg gave voice to their feelings. "Why?"
"The lasso provides only so much protection for a telepath," J'onn snapped. "The longer I am here, the greater its influence on me becomes. Also it sickens me - using one's mind against them is... was... the greatest of crimes on Mars. I am offended and I am angered by it."
"Then let's get out of here," Green Lantern said. He pointed his ring toward the wall of the pit and created a glowing green escalator. The heroes stepped onto it and, as they rose into the air, felt their spirits lifting. By the time the skies of Villainville came into view, the Pit's influence was so weak that they didn't need the lasso anymore. Wonder Woman untied her friends and they steeled themselves, ready for whatever size force awaited their return.
The Justice League was nonetheless stunned to see the entire population of Villainville standing around the Pit's edge. They stepped off the elevator and dropped into fighting stances... but the bad guys made no move toward them. Grodd and the Leader stood at the head of the evil forces; the gamma-irradiated villain was wearing the helmet that controlled the Pit. In a flash of pink light, Enchantress teleported onto the scene. "Greetings, heroes," she smiled, "or should I say welcome... Mr Wayne, Mr Kent, Mr West and others."
Grodd laughed. "That's right, heroes - thanks to the Pit, we know all your secret identities!"
"And once we've wiped you out," Leader added, "we'll move on to your friends, your families and the rest of the world!"
-----TO BE CONCLUDED!-----
Greet the Fire as Your Friend,
SF
LJ, stareyednight and I spent Saturday buying, constructing and installing the kidlet's new desk (as well as hanging picture frames and re-arranging her room). That didn't leave any time for a game but, for a change, I was happy about that. You see, I'm actually behind in chronicling my daughter's boundless imagination and could really do with a chance to catch up.
So let's not wait any longer!
----------
LJ presents:
DESPERATION AND DESPAIR
PART THREE: ANGUISH AND ASSAILANTS
Written and directed by LJ
Novelisation by SF
"Is it just me," Flash asked, "or has the scenery around here really changed?"
Wonder Woman, Aquaman, Green Lantern, Cyborg, Blue Beetle and Firestorm looked out from the emerald sleigh. Flash was right - what had been the dark, dingy recesses of the Pit of Despair had transformed, once again, into a grim illusion. Their strength of will protected by Diana's golden lasso, they nonetheless perceived the depressing fantasy: the red plains of Mars aflame, the debris of a once-great civilisation strewn in all directions. It was more uncomfortably real than any of the Pit's previous creations.
"J'onn must be nearby," Cyborg said quietly. "But I don't get it. The Pit's supposed to create a worst-case-ever illusion around a hero. This stuff actually happened to J'onn, so how..."
He never got to finish the sentence because, beneath them, the ground heaved and shook. Flash leaped back into the sleigh, and Green Lantern wrapped it in a force-field, just as Mars exploded around them! Adrift in space, propelled by the incredible force of an erupting world, the Justice League found itself under attack from an enraged Martian Manhunter. "Villains!" he howled, grief raw and naked in his voice. "Was taking my wife and child not enough? Did you have to destroy my world, too? As H'ronmeer is my witness, I will kill you all!"
People tend to look past the Martian Manhunter, forgetting that his powers - flight, super-strength, shape-shifting, telepathy, invisibility, density control, laser vision - are almost at Superman's levels. The League was ill-equipped to battle such forces in the weightlessness of space. Beetle, Firestorm and Wonder Woman had to tackle J'onn alone while Green Lantern kept their friends safe in an oxygen-filled bouncy castle. The savage Manhunter had all but annihilated the young heroes by the time Diana slipped the lasso around his neck and brought him to heel.
J'onn was embarrassed... and angry. "My mental powers must have increased the Pit's potency and made its dreams more real," he said to the League. "Losing my family has always haunted me. Knowing that Mars still existed, while I lived on Earth, was a source of comfort. To have that taken as well was more than I could bear. You have all borne the brunt of my rage and, for that, I apologise. Those responsible for invading my mind and perceptions will be brought to account."
With J'onn's mind clear, the illusion faded and the heroes continued on. Soon they came to a set of ornate iron gates. They were rusted and in a dilapidated state; beyond them, the League could make out a large manor house in the distance. All of them, save Green Lantern, shifted uncomfortably. "What's up?" Kyle asked, noting their concern. "Who's inside?"
"Who's inside?" Flash fumed. "Don't you... oh, right, you don't know!"
"Know what?"
Wonder Woman put one hand on Kyle's shoulder. "That's the home of millionaire philanthropist Bruce Wayne," she explained. "A nightmarish version, at least. The reason it's here, Kyle, is because Wayne is secretly one of us... a super hero and member of the Justice League."
Green Lantern blinked. "Bruce Wayne is Batman?" he asked, incredulous. "That rich cream-puff is the Dark Knight? You're kidding, right?" He shook his head and looked at the distant mansion. "Crazy. Just crazy. Well, if the caped crusader's hiding somewhere inside Mr Money Bags, it's time I brought him out." Before the others could react, Kyle shot off - the lasso magically extending to keep him tethered - to find his team mate. He blasted through the doors and shone a light from his ring. "Batman," he called, "time to go home!"
"Go away," someone said timidly. "G-g-go away and leave me alone. Please!"
Kyle swung his light toward the sound. There was someone cowering behind the plush leather couch. The man was tall and very, very thin. His gaunt features were pale, like he'd not seen the sun in years. His arms and legs looked weak and his fingernails were chewed to the quick. He had dark circles around his eyes - sure signs he slept neither often nor well. Green Lantern puzzled over the sight as the rest of the League entered the room. "I don't get it," he said aloud. "I mean, I get that's Batman, but what is all this?"
"When he was a boy," Aquaman said quietly, "Bruce Wayne's parents were murdered in front of his eyes. That moment galvanised his resolve and put him on the path to becoming the greatest crime-fighter in the history of the world. It drove him to train his body and mind for the pursuit of justice. It made him vow that no one else would suffer as he had, even if it meant sacrificing his life."
"The Pit has twisted Batman's history," Martian Manhunter scowled. "It has created a world in which the murders broke young Bruce's spirit. He gave into his fears and terrors, and so never found the strength to become Batman. As far as he knows, he has hidden inside the manor his entire life, blocking out the world so he can never be hurt again. His will has been turned against him."
Green Lantern frowned. "Will, hey?" He inched closer to the terrified Wayne, knelt down and spoke gently. "I know you don't remember me, Mr Wayne, but I'm a friend," he said soothingly. "You think you're scared; I think you're just lost. And the best thing you can do when you're lost is find a way out." Kyle took off his ring and rolled it toward Bruce's hiding place. "Go on. Put it on. I know it'll light your path."
Wide-eyed, Bruce Wayne picked up the ring and slipped it on his finger. Cleansing green light instantly erupted from the most powerful weapon in the universe, shattering the depression illusion around them. When the dust settled, Batman stood alongside them once more - his costume, body and mind restored to proper order. He nodded as Diana looped the lasso around his wrist, then handed the ring back to Kyle. "Thanks," he said. "I needed that."
The heroes boarded the sleigh once more. Flash was worried. "I thought Robin would be with you," he said to Batman, "on account of your shared history. Where is he, Bats? Where's my best friend?"
"I'm not sure," Batman replied. "But if the memory of my parent's deaths could do that to me, Robin's torture may well be too much for his mind to withstand. We need to find him quickly. Superman, too."
They did not find Superman - Superman found them! The Man of Steel attacked his friends without warning, dropping from the sky with the force of a megaton bomb. The heroes flew in all directions, straining the lasso to its limit. Superman renewed his assault before they could regain their feet and, at super-speed, tangled them in the magic rope without touching it himself. When Superman finally came to rest, the heroes could see how much the Pit had changed him. He wore a dark blue jumpsuit with black boots, gloves and belt. He looked upon them impassively as he spoke into a radio earpiece. "This is Kal-El, Agent of SHIELD," he said. "I've captured the unregistered metahumans."
"Oh no," Firestorm moaned.
Sure enough, the SHIELD Helicarrier soon came into view. Nightmare versions of Nick Fury and Maria Hill congratulated "Agent Kal-El" on his success and ordered he prepare the League for "processing". Not liking the sound of that, J'onn activated the heroes' telepathic link and co-ordinated their counter-attack. Batman and Cyborg fought off the fake Fury and Hill while the others combined their powers to keep Superman still. Wonder Woman only just managed to snare her old friend with the lasso and return him to his senses.
Like the Manhunter, Superman was angry. "I was raised to use my powers the right way and to always use them for the benefit of others," he explained. "This place... it made me believe I was found as a baby by SHIELD, not by my Ma and Pa, and turned into their living weapon. The things I saw, that it made me believe I'd done..." He shook his head to clear it. "Time enough for that later. Right now we need to find Robin and get out of this awful place."
"Agreed," Batman said. "The best way to find Robin is to use the skills we have at hand. If Cyborg uses his tech to boost Martian Manhunter's telepathy, and they channel the results into a screen created by Green Lantern, we can..."
"Don't waste your time, 'heroes'," said an all-too-familiar, smug and regal voice. "Your brat is safely in our care and, if you want him, all you have to do is come get him."
Before them stood Kang the Conqueror, the villain who had nearly killed the Avengers. Off to one side lurked Ultron-8, the latest incarnation of the synthezoid who had imprisoned and almost destroyed Earth's Mightiest Heroes. Hovering above them was Magneto, the master of magnetism - a villain so dangerous he'd once been entombed for the safety of the whole world! And near them all - sealed in a magnetic bubble that was time-locked and covered in machinery - was Robin. "Sorry guys," the boy wonder shrugged. "The whole Pit of Despair thing didn't work on me. Guess I'm just too optimistic. I was looking for you when these guys grabbed me from behind."
"Do not look so concerned, humans," Ultron-8 said. "My allies and I are not here to end your useless carbon-based lives. Our mistress wants you incarcerated in this Pit for all time, and we have come to effect her wishes."
"The machine speaks true," Magneto boomed. "Surrender the Amazon's lasso and submit to the Pit's influence, now!"
Through their telepathic link, the members of the League silently conferred. They knew they were facing their greatest challenge to date: three enemies who, on their own, were more than a match for the world's other top super hero team. But as Firestorm said, they'd never given up before and weren't about to give up now. Batman and Martian Manhunter laid out the plan, the others agreed to it, Wonder Woman unspooled the lasso and Superman started the countdown. "Go!" he shouted aloud.
Phase one: free Robin. Cyborg and Beetle's weaponry disrupted the magnetic bubble, an explosive batarang detonated the time-lock and the Flash disassembled the technology at super-speed.
Phase two: Magneto. Robin, Firestorm, Blue Beetle and Flash went toe-to-toe with the mutant supremacist. Straight away, Magneto used his powers to seize Beetle's armour and use the young hero as a bludgeon. When the heroes were down, Magneto pulled Beetle in for the kill... just as the good guys had planned. Beetle blasted his enemy at point-blank range, severing his control. Robin kept Magneto off-balance with explosives, Flash whipped up a whirlwind and Firestorm created a deep, thick, strong wooden box out of thin air to imprison the arrogant elitist.
Phase three: Kang. His arsenal spanned the ages and he could instantly call up any weapon - a yellow beam gun to counter Green Lantern, a red-sun ray to blast Superman. But Kang was still human and had to hold those weapons in his hands... a difficult task when Batman kept knocking them away with batarangs. Infuriated, Kang focused his attention one hundred per cent on the Dark Knight - instantly guaranteeing himself a one-two Oa/Kryptonian beating from his more powerful enemies.
Phase four: Ultron-8. Cyborg had been itching for another crack at the evil synthezoid, and this time he had Wonder Woman, Martian Manhunter and Aquaman as back-up. Vic wirelessly hacked Ultron-8's systems to distract it while Wonder Woman deflected its eye-beams back at it. Staggered and vulnerable, the machine was lifted off its feet by Aquaman's running charge. It flew through the air and came down atop Martian Manhunter... who, with unexpected cruelty, phased through Ultron-8's indestructible body and tore out its brain!
The heroes looked at J'onn with utter shock. Cyborg gave voice to their feelings. "Why?"
"The lasso provides only so much protection for a telepath," J'onn snapped. "The longer I am here, the greater its influence on me becomes. Also it sickens me - using one's mind against them is... was... the greatest of crimes on Mars. I am offended and I am angered by it."
"Then let's get out of here," Green Lantern said. He pointed his ring toward the wall of the pit and created a glowing green escalator. The heroes stepped onto it and, as they rose into the air, felt their spirits lifting. By the time the skies of Villainville came into view, the Pit's influence was so weak that they didn't need the lasso anymore. Wonder Woman untied her friends and they steeled themselves, ready for whatever size force awaited their return.
The Justice League was nonetheless stunned to see the entire population of Villainville standing around the Pit's edge. They stepped off the elevator and dropped into fighting stances... but the bad guys made no move toward them. Grodd and the Leader stood at the head of the evil forces; the gamma-irradiated villain was wearing the helmet that controlled the Pit. In a flash of pink light, Enchantress teleported onto the scene. "Greetings, heroes," she smiled, "or should I say welcome... Mr Wayne, Mr Kent, Mr West and others."
Grodd laughed. "That's right, heroes - thanks to the Pit, we know all your secret identities!"
"And once we've wiped you out," Leader added, "we'll move on to your friends, your families and the rest of the world!"
-----TO BE CONCLUDED!-----
Greet the Fire as Your Friend,
SF