If they arrived in time, they could try to stop the Manhunters.

There would have been more heroes in the Quinjet, but the other half of the Avengers League had to respond to the sudden disappearance of Henry Pym, a former member of the Avengers League.

They knew that they would need his robotics experience desperately during this Manhunter crisis, and for him to go missing was disastrous. So Captain America, Wonder Woman, Wasp, and the Martian Manhunter had headed to Chicago, where the signal from Pym was located. It would have helped to have the four of them along, especially the battle-hardened Captain.

Iron Man spoke up. "I'm getting a message from the robotic Iron Man now . . . he says that the attack is scheduled to begin in an hour . . . "

"You want me to get out and push this thing to make it go faster?" Flash asked.

"We'll get there in time, " Batman responded. "If you raced there, the Manhunters would sense the surge in energy and they'd be on to us. We're going to have to come in at maximum stealth mode as it is."

Even though the four Avengers Leaguers were about all that stood between the Manhunters and total control of the United States' aerial defense systems, Batman's thoughts were somewhere else. If only this crisis hadn't occurred, he would have been able to get down to Virginia and track down the Black Assassin.

Batman knew that even if they handled this Manhunter crisis that the plans of Black Assassin and his cohorts might result in the downfall of the United States. It was always one threat, and then another . . . but until recently it had just been Gotham in danger. Now it was the entire country. But Batman had become like steel inside long ago . . . he didn't often contemplate the risks behind doing things.

"It is time for the plan to go into effect," one cold voice echoed against the darkness.

"Our agents inside will have everything ready for us," another stated.

Dozens of armored feet clambered out of the cavern to the precipice outside. The army stood outlined against the mountain, a sea of red-armored beings.

Amongst them was a figure who looked like Iron Man, but who wore the mask of the Manhunters. Unbeknownst to his fellow Manhunters, it had changed loyalties, and was broadcasting a message to his creator, Tony Stark, on a frequency that it knew they could not monitor.

As the Manhunters ignited their boot jets and flew toward Cheyenne Mountain, the query went through the robot's mind as to whether broadcasting the signal to its creators would do them any good against the seemingly unstoppable forces of the Manhunters.

These were not the stereotypical good-old-boys that one might expect to see at a gathering like this, however. Most of the men were relatively clean-cut types, who looked as if they should be spending this night at home with their families. But here they were, intermingled with a number of muscle-bound, heavily armed malcontents. Behind the party atmosphere, one could sense a deep dissatisfaction amongst the group.

A hooded figure dressed in black looked at the assemblage and grunted as he joined another man dressed in a green costume.

"Our past differences aside, Der Grosshorn Eule, you have managed to gather quite a group here."

"Yes. Similar to an effort I organized back in the Fatherland a few years ago. But this is the real one . . . this is the beginning."

"Der Fuhrer would be proud, Eule."

The green-garbed figure stood on top of a tree stump, and immediately the young men started paying attention.

"Loyal brothers, and newcomers. You all know why we are gathered here tonight. Plasticorp of Virginia has just decided to sell itself to a Japanese company, and has just taken away your jobs," Der Grosshorn Eule stated. "Now there's a whole town full of able-bodied men with nothing to do! All your lives have revolved around that plant, and they go and sell it underneath you! Is that is the thanks you get for a generation of hard work?"

There was a roar of anger from the crowd.

"Well, we're not going to let off that easy. It's time for the men of the community to do a little punishment! Everyone, off to the Plasticorp headquarters!"

Black Assassin, Der Grosshorn Eule, and a number of the local Legion of Hate leaders handed out AK-47's, grenades, and grenade launchers to the crowd. With one of the world's foremost arms dealers backing them, the Legion of Hate had no problem getting access to the best weapons.

The crack of gunfire sounded all around as men fired their weapons into the air. Dozens of truck and car engines revved up, and the assembled men started driving down the road to the Plasticorp factory.

Black Assassin jumped aboard his classic German motorcycle, as Der Grosshorn Eule boarded his own, owl-like cycle.

A civil war was about to begin, and the opening shots would be fired not too far from where the first one began . . .

Lieutenant Jean Sherman had been a computer operator at NORAD for ten years, and was one of the most reliable workers on her shift. Her supervisor was proud of her attention to detail and her knowledge of software and operating systems, as well as her excellent performance during simulations. But Jean served another authority tonight.

She stood up suddenly at her station. Some of the other people in the room took notice, while others kept their eyes glued to their terminals.

"Your attention, please. The Manhunters are taking over this defense complex." She pulled the standard issue Manhunter pistol from behind her back and pointed at the computer operators, who were starting to pay attention. "There are many here in this room who would prove useful to our cause. If anyone wishes to join me, they may do so now."

The bewildered officers did not know what to do. They had been trained as to how to respond to an enemy attack on the facility, but they all trusted Jean implicitly.

"Those who do not join us will be killed. There are others in this facility who are Manhunters, as well, so you can be sure of two things. One, we will take this facility. Two, you will join us, or you will die."

Colonel Thomas Trask, who was out of the visual range of Lieutenant Sherman, attempted to sound the general alarm. He had a hole in his head before he realized he had been shot. His lifeless form slumped to the floor, and the technicians gasped.

"Those who attempt to stop us will also die," Jean said.

The officers tried to think of what to do.

One of the young men watched the door to the server room while the other one did the work of taking control of the facility's networked computers.

"Simpson!" Henry Gyrich ordered from his desk. "Any word from the Avengers League yet?"

"No, sir," the assistant responded.

"Shoot . . . " Gyrich swore. He knew he had only a matter of an hour or so to find out that the Avengers League had stopped the Manhunter attack. Once NORAD was compromised, the country's last hope lay in a project he had been working on for quite some time. But he had not wanted to unveil that project yet.

Still, his country's existence was at stake. For once, this normally selfish bureaucrat put his hopes and prayers behind other people. He honestly wished the Avengers League well, since they were nearly the last hope for the United States.

The phalanx of Manhunters led by the Iron Man robot arrived with a clatter of armored feet.

"No man escapes the Manhunters!" the Manhunter guard shouted.

The Manhunters saluted him, and then walked through the entrance to the facility. A group of soldiers had arrived in response to the scuffle in the guard area. Bullets ricocheted off the Manhunters' armor as they joined in battle with those who were defending NORAD.

Iron Man ignited his boot jets and began to lift off.

"I've just received a message from the Iron Man robot! The attack has already begun!"

Quasar and Flash zoomed toward the entrance to the facility, and Iron Man carried Batman over at a slower pace.

The Flash prepared to vibrate himself through the security entrance, but then stopped.

"It's open," he marveled.

A blaster bolt caught him full in the chest. If he had not instinctively vibrated his form in response to the attack, he would have been shot dead. As it was, the Flash was unconscious.

"Flash!" Quasar yelled. He was more experienced at battle than the fallen speedster, so he knew to armor himself up in a solid light encasing before walking into the entrance.

Quasar saw the guard wearing a military uniform, with a blue Manhunter mask. Without pausing, Quasar lit into the Manhunter with a shattering light blast that sent Manhunter parts flying.

Batman and Iron Man arrived, and examined the fallen hero. Batman was the best at medicine in the small group, and so he began checking the young Flash for vital signs.

"Well . . . he's alive . . . he has a heartbeat faster than a bird's, but I guess that's normal . . . "

"We'll either have to get him out of here or have someone stay with him," Quasar said.

"If we have time, we may have to call in the reserves," Batman noted. "I'll keep an eye on Flash and watch the door. If there are any military personnel left to help us, I'll try to send them your way."

"Hold on . . . " Iron Man said. "Let me access this blueprint of the facility that Oracle found for me out on the Internet . . . "

Iron Man did a quick systems check, and then looked at the other heroes. "Quasar, you head down that corridor toward the War Room. I'm heading for the server farm in the basement.

Batman spoke up. "Quasar, you've never faced these kinds of odds before. Remember, the Manhunters will stop at nothing. You've seen what they are willing to do to achieve their ends."

Quasar glanced at the dead guard with his head smashed into his monitor.

"Remember, if we don't stop them, they'll have full control of the North American air defense. If we . . . if you let them win, our country is lost."

"So don't let up on them, Quasar," Iron Man remarked. "And don't pull any punches. I've told the Iron Man robot that we're here . . . if he starts acting funny, like he's going to rejoin them . . . "

Batman and Quasar awaited Iron Man's response.

"Deactivate him."

Iron Man fired up his boot jets and zoomed down one corridor, while Quasar went the other way.

Batman went to the security station and looked at the view from the cameras in the facility. The Manhunter had not disabled these, since he had been in control of the guard station until just a few minutes ago.

There was fighting going on throughout the entire facility, and some of it was close by. The U.S. military was not going to give into the Manhunters without a fight.

The place was crawling with Manhunters. They knew that if they gained control of NORAD's systems, they effectively had control of the United States. And there, among them, was the Iron Man robot. Iron Man was shocked to see his creation wearing a Manhunter mask. He would have to think about the right way to go about fighting these robots. They wouldn't think twice about launching a nuclear strike at a domestic target . . . because robots could live through a nuclear winter a lot easier than humans.

Iron Man waited for the right moment to strike.

"Report in, Agent 23. Agent 23, report in."

The Manhunters were attempting to contact their comrade who had been at the guard station. Batman knew he could not imitate the guard's robotic voice, so it was just a matter of time before they would come to investigate.

This would be a really good time for the Flash to suddenly come out of his unconsciousness. But the hero just lay there.

Batman readied himself for the Manhunters' arrival. He put some chairs and boxes in front of Flash's body, to help deflect any stray weapons fire. He pulled the deadliest weapons he had on him from his utility belt. Batman stood up.

The five Manhunters walked through the door, and their robotic eyes glowed when they saw Batman.

Batman was clearly outnumbered. It looked like this would be his last stand.