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Avengers League: The Dark Mirror Saga by Chip Caroon, Bob Young, and Black Condor |
The Key!
The physically unintimidating but brilliant being known as the Key entered and looked at his handiwork with a satisfied grin. The Gang was funded by a criminal organization known as the Council. Long ago, when the Key was just a normal man, he worked as a member of the Council's think tank, building weapons. But the more he learned, the more he realized that there was so much he didn't know. So the brilliant chemist used a formula to utilize the parts of the brain that are usually dormant. He became a super-genius. He called himself the "Key" and became a master criminal. He fought the old Avengers League, and was soundly defeated on each occasion. So he realized that to beat the AL, he needed to be smarter.
Thus, he made his most powerful brain enhancing formula. It was so powerful it put him into a coma for six months. He lay in a hospital as a John Doe until the day his mind had evolved. His whole body had, in fact, changed, into something not quite human. His forehead and eyes were larger. His body was very thin and frail but it functioned perfectly. And his brain was a marvel, using over ninety percent of its capacity. He was the man of the future. He thought things that no one else had ever thought. He moved beyond five senses. He had twelve and more were developing. He knew things no one else knew. He wanted to know everything. After a while, he felt that he knew all the secrets of the universe. How it came together, how it works - Everything! And so, he wanted to challenge himself with the ultimate task - To create a universe.
Upon waking up, the first thing he did was to track down the Council. He killed the rich criminals who comprised the group and looked over their records. He found that they had funded an advanced lab designed by a female scientist and fugitive called the Brain. The Key made a deal with Shakedown to make his takeover of the Gang's HQ easier. And now, he had the materials of the Gang and the money of the Council to support his purpose - To become God!
"So what now?" Shakedown asked.
The Key smiled. "Now, my dear Shakedown, we create!"
"Create what?"
"Everything, my boy, everything. Because a man of my brilliance deserves to have it all. Soon I will be God!"
"That's right, winghead," Gyrich replied. "The government figured that since the Avengers League saves the world quite often and is very well known, it would be a good idea to have a base where you can watch over the entire world."
Cap groaned lightly, enough where Gyrich couldn't hear him. He didn't like being called "winghead." Since Gyrich was their government liaison, however, Cap had to deal with it. "You know the League doesn't like getting involved in politics . . . "
"You aren't."
"This sounds like a basis for a hundred different treaties."
"If something positive comes out of this, then all the better."
Cap sighed. "Well, it would be nice to have several bases. Especially one that's not on Earth. Even superheroes need a break from things every once in a while."
"Whatever. Look, I gotta go. Pressing government issues. We'll talk later."
"I'm sure we will," Cap replied as the screen went blank.
Wonder Woman barely managed to turn the plane just in time. Meanwhile, Iron Man was using a combination of magnetism and armored strength to keep two more from smashing into each other.
How could something like this have happened? he wondered.
In New York City, six supervillains tried to kill the mayor in the same day. Batman was running the facts through his computer. Alfred looked over his shoulder. "What do you make of it?" the butler asked.
"It defies the laws of probabilities," Batman said. "Nothing like this has ever happened before and I don't believe it's happening by accident. Something, or someone, is causing it. But why? What's the purpose?"
"Asteroids?!" Shakedown asked, shocked. "We'll all be killed!"
"Don't panic, my boy," the Key said. "The Avengers League will save us. In the meantime, I'm satisfied with my experiment."
"I don't get the point of any of this," Shakedown said."How does this lead to creating a universe?"
"Then I shall explain," the Key replied. "In recent years, some quantum physicists, who were quite inferior to me, divided a photon, a light particle. They then found that alterations made to one half happened simultaneously to the other. It proved a heretofore unseen interdependence between sub atomic particles. A synchronicity of the building blocks of life. I built upon their discovery. I discovered the Ghost particle."
"Ghost particle?"
"Yes," the Key said. "You assemble an apparatus with two focal points. A particle on one focal point causes a ‘ghost' to appear at the other. If that's true on the micro level of particles, it could be true on the macro level of planets. I just need enough power to boost up my apparatus."
"How much power do you need?" Shakedown asked.
"Quite a formidable amount," the Key answered. "I believe that I shall have to tap into the awesome power of quasars to do this."
"Wow?" Shakedown said, "And you can do that?"
"Not exactly. But I know someone who can."
"Who are you? Where am I?" Quasar asked.
"You are my prisoner," the Key said. "And there's nothing you can do about it."
"We'll see about that," Quasar muttered.
He utilized his incredible power and unleashed it. He didn't realize that he was helping the Key tap into the power of quasars.
"Excellent!" the Key exclaimed.
Eventually, Quasar realized that his energy was being stolen. He stopped his attempt to break free.
"He's on to us," Shakedown said.
"Yes," the Key answered. "But it doesn't matter. He's served his purpose."
Quasar began to feel dizzy. He passed out.
"What happened to him?" Shakedown asked.
"I was letting a gas into the container. He wasn't prepared for it."
"Do we kill him?"
"No, no, no," the Key said. "That's no way to thank the man who has made my ascension possible. I want him to live to see what he has helped bring about. Dump him somewhere. I don't care where. I have a universe to create!"
"It's getting bigger!" one of them said, "Our experts seem to believe that it's some sort of warp between universes. They think that another universe is intruding on our own! The portal is near Jupiter right now! If that planet wasn't so big, the gravitational forces from the rift would have destroyed it. But the rift is getting bigger. Eventually it'll destroy everything in our universe!"
"Thank you," Martian Manhunter replied, as the call was disconnected.
"Call the others," Cap said. "We need the entire league here."
"How will you do that, sir?" Shakedown inquired. "Wouldn't you have to lure them into deep space?"
The Key laughed. "Surely you jest. It will take but a fraction of the power at my command to create a smaller portal in their mansion. But how shall I proceed . . . oh, yes! A mirror, which shows a dark reflection into another universe . . . "
The Key laughed again. Shakedown tried to find what was so funny, but he failed. So, he found contentment in his employer's amusement.
"Glad to see you," Cap said.
Batman nodded and took his seat. "I assume this has to do with rather strange occurrences?" he asked.
"Like what?"
"Just today, six people tried to kill the mayor of New York."
"That's weird," Wonder Woman said. "Iron Man and I had to stop six planes from converging on the same landing strip."
"And did you hear about the six tsunamis around the world?" Wasp added.
Cap raised his hand for silence. "Well, if my guess is right, you all have figured out part of the reason why we called this meeting." He paused as he looked around the table. "Where's Quasar?"
"You know him, always disappearing in big crises," Flash commented.
Captain America glared at Flash for a second, and then turned back to the League. "He'll have to catch up later, I suppose. Anyway, J'Onn and I were informed of a large rift forming in outer space, causing some sort of disturbance. It's large enough to have its own field of gravity."
"Any idea what is causing it?" Iron Man asked.
Cap shook his head. "No one has been able to figure it out."
Just then, Jarvis came in the room. "Excuse, ladies and gentlemen . . . " He faced Cap. "Sir, there is something rather unusual with the mirror in the main hall."
Flash and Hawkeye looked at each other, wondering why Jarvis would mention something so mundane in light of the latest crisis.
"Um, Jarvis," Hawkeye began, "could it just be dirt?"
"I don't think so," Iron Man said. "Jarvis has been with us long enough. If he feels that it is important enough to inform us, in the middle of a meeting, no less, then I think it's worth checking out."
"I agree," Martian Manhunter added.
"Hey, Jarvis was right!" Hawkeye said.
Iron Man and Batman leaned in for a closer look. "It appears to be fluxuating," the Dark Knight observed.
"It must be magic!" Wonder Woman exclaimed.
"No, I don't think so . . . " Iron Man said.
The mirror flashed, and the Avengers League saw themselves . . . sort of. In the mirror, instead of seeing their reflections, they saw twisted versions of themselves.
"What in the world?" Captain America asked.
Then, without warning, the Leaguers felt themselves being pulled closer to the mirror. Iron Man put his hand up to touch the surface, and all eight of them were pulled in.
The Avengers League stood, looking at the strange new world they had been transported to. Iron Man turned around to look at where they had come from. But, he saw no trace of his world, nothing looked like the mansion they had just left.
"I don't like this," he said.
"I don't either," Cap added. "J'Onn, can you do a mental scan of the area?"
"I will try," J'Onn said, putting his hands to his head. He reached out with his mind, but something was too much for him. He screamed and fell to the ground.
Images flashed before his eyes. He saw familiar figures, but he couldn't identify them clearly. He also saw a lot of red.
"J'Onn, are you okay," Cap asked, getting down on his knees.
Martian Manhunter sat up. "Surprisingly, I feel fine."
"Does this have anything to do with those headaches you've been having?" Wonder Woman asked.
"I . . . don't know. But that is a mystery for another time. Right now, we must learn where we are, and why we are here."
"Not to mention how to get home . . . " Hawkeye muttered.
Before the Avengers League could do anything further, a blindingly fast form raced out of nowhere and whacked Hawkeye across the head.
The force of the below was enough to knock Hawkeye unconscious, and the bewildered Leaguers tended to their teammate and tried to figure out what was going on.
"Who??" Cap asked.
"A speedster, like me . . . " Flash said. "Let me see if I can spot him, he's going at the top speed that I can usually reach . . . "
Wonder Woman stood at the ready, her Amazon reflexes tuned to protect herself and her teammates. J'Onn tried to clear his head long enough to spot their assailant.
The air began to ripple with heat and vibration, as if an invisible supersonic plane was about to smash right into the Leaguers.
"Here he comes!" J'Onn said, spotting the swift attacker with his Martian vision.
Flash put his arm out straight at the right moment, vibrating it at super-speed to absorb the shock of impact.
The Speedster ran right into him and was clotheslined. He kept on speeding right through the side of a building.
"Let's go check him out," said Batman. Wonder Woman and J'Onn stood watch while the other Leaguers walked through the rubble of the building to see their foe.
Flash got there first, of course.
"Whoa . . . " he said, with a look of bafflement on his face. "I know who our enemy is."
"You do?" Batman responded.
"Yeah. He's me."
The group saw before them the fallen shape of what seemed to be the Flash.
"I swear to you, Doctor, that the League was sucked into that mirror!" Jarvis replied excitedly. "That's why I summoned you here."
"I don't doubt your word, Jarvis," Hank said. "I just can't understand how it was done. If there is a doorway or portal here, the micro-tolerances are so finely gauged that any entrance is effectively made invisible." Hank touched the mirror. "It feels like regular glass. Fascinating. Either some freak natural phenomenon occurred, or some high degree if intelligence is involved. I wonder . . . "
Hank Pym pulled some equipment out of the little black bag he had brought with him. He waved one device over the mirror's surface.
"What is that?" Jarvis asked.
"It's a sub-atomic sensor," Hank said. "Hmmm . . . This is interesting."
"What is, sir?"
"Every bit of matter in our universe has the same quantum signature at the sub-atomic level. I'm reading an ambient resonance of a quantum signature I'm unfamiliar with."
"Which means?" Jarvis asked.
"It means that not long ago, this very mirror was a portal to a totally different universe. And the Avengers League are now trapped in that alternate universe."
"Good heavens!" Jarvis cried. "Whatever shall we do?"
"I'm not quite sure yet, Jarvis," Hank said, "but I swear to you, somehow I'll find a way to get them back! To get Jan back!"
Quasar tried to use the power of his quantum bands to break the shackles. But then he noticed that there were new wrist bands covering his quantum bands. When he tried to use his power, the new bands sucked up the quantum energy.
"What's going on?!"
And then he remembered. That person, the weird looking guy who had captured him. He did something. He had found a way to absorb Quasar's energy and use it to power his devices. Apparently, these new wrist bands were of the same design. When Quasar tried to use his power, the energy was drained and was no doubt being transmitted to those same machines in which his power had previously been stolen. If Quasar used his quantum bands, all he would be doing was serving the needs of his mysterious enemy. The big question was, what to do now? Where was he, and how could he escape?
The door to the cell opened. Quasar tried to made a leap for the door, but the chain on his ankle shackle wasn't long enough. He looked up, angry. A pretty woman in dark glasses came in.
"Welcome, Quasar," she said. "So glad to have you here."
"Who are you?"
"My name is Roulette. I run this place."
"What is this place? This is not the same place I was in when that guy captured me."
"You mean the Key," she said. "Yes, he caught you, but your usefulness to him was finished. So, he had his man Shakedown get rid of you. And Shakedown sold you to me. You're mine now."
"Yours?" Quasar asked, confused.
"Yes, Quasar. You're mine and you'll be a big asset to me and my business."
"Business?" he inquired. "What business? Where am I?"
"You'll find out in just a minute," Roulette replied with a gesture. Three very large men in armored protective clothes entered. They unlocked the ankle shackle, and grabbed Quasar. He struggled, but their combined strength was too much. They dragged him down the hall.
Quasar was dumped into what looked like an old gladiator arena. There were a group of seats overlooking the arena. The seats were filled by super-villains. Quasar recognized some of them. There were looking down at him, laughing and howling in excitement. Roulette appeared.
"Are all the bets in?" she asked. After taking some least minute bets, she declared the betting over. "Are you all ready for some action?" she asked the crowd. They all cheered. "Good. And let me remind you, that this is a battle to the death! Now, let me introduce to you gladiator number one. He's a member of the Avengers League. Ladies and gentlemen . . . Quasar!"
There were a lot of boo's for the young hero. "I have a bad feeling about this . . . " he muttered.
"And now, my friends," Roulette announced, "let us meet his opponent. He is our reigning champion here in the Arena. Undefeated in fifty-seven fights, here is . . . the Vision!"
The crowd cheered. The Vision entered the arena by walking in through the wall. The emotionless android was tall and red, in a green and yellow costume. He had a gem on his forehead and a yellow cloak. He walked towards Quasar.
"Vison?" Quasar repeated, surprised. He had heard about Captain America's encounter with the Vision not long ago. The Vision had once been the Human Torch, a member of the JSA and hero of the second World War. He was rebuilt by the Mad Thinker and made into a super assassin. He'd gotten free of the Thinker's control and had been in hiding ever since. Why was he fighting for Roulette?
"Vision!" Quasar pleaded. "I'm a friend of Captain America. I'm a superhero, just like you were. I'm not your enemy. We don't need to fight."
"Save your breath," Roulette said. "I'm in control of the Vision. He will obey only me. Now Vision, Kill Quasar!"
Vision moved towards Quasar. Quasar backed up, scared. Without his Quantum power, he had no chance against the power of the Vision!
Shakedown entered. "I got rid of Quasar, Mr. Key. And I made a profit on it."
"Fine, fine," the Key muttered, as he studied the monitors.
Shakedown looked at them too. He saw the expanding rift. "Uhhh, that thing's getting pretty big, sir."
"Yes, quite so."
"Is this necessary, boss? It's getting pretty close to Earth."
"Of course it is, you simple minded baboon!" The Key snapped, "There is another universe growing out of ours. Think of it as a tree growing out of the dirt. Our universe is the dirt, and the new universe is the tree. When the tree is just a little twig, it only takes up a small amount of space in the dirt. But as the tree grows, it takes up more room at it's base in the dirt. If we are the dirt, then the tree - which is the new universe - is taking up more room in our universe. The rift you are seeing is the point where the new universe is springing out of ours. The rift is growing because the new universe needs more room at it's base."
"How far will it expand?" Shakedown asked, overwhelmed by all this.
"It will probably swallow this whole solar system. Including this planet. A pity, really. I quite like the pyramids. But you can't make an omelet without breaking some eggs."
Shakedown was shocked. "So, uh, what are you going to do with this new universe once it's grown?"
"Whatever I want," the Key answered. "Rule it. Study it. Experiment on it. Anything! You see, I control the base - you could say, the roots - of this new universe. And don't forget my ability to use ghost particles to alter probabilities. With ghost particles, I can poison the roots, and kill the tree."
"You mean, you can destroy this universe if you want?"
"Exactly!" the Key stated proudly, "And once I supply the proper scientific proof to the inhabitants of this new universe, they will have no choice but to accept me as their leader! Otherwise, I will destroy them!"
"There are people in that other universe?" Shakedown asked.
"Of course. Everything from our universe is duplicated, including the people. They may be very different from their counterparts here, but they exist!"
"So wouldn't they just be a few hours old?" Shakedown asked, "That universe has only been around for a few hours."
"I wouldn't expect you to understand, you small-brained chimp, but time and nature always take care of the necessities. The new universe will fill in it's own past and future. A whole new timestream. All the people in the new universe will have their own history. I don't yet know what their past is, but I know their future. They will be ruled by the Key! And if you behave and obey me, Shakedown, I will allow you to survive and come with me to the new universe where you will remain at my side as I lord it over billions of worlds! I will be the God of that universe! And I will have all the resources and specimens I need to study and do experiments on. That universe will be a giant laboratory for me. And with it, I shall achieve my long-time desire to know everything! To learn all that is learnable! To be totally omnipotent! That is my dream, and will let nothing stop me!"
The Avengers League stood over the fallen form of a being who turned out to be an alternate version of the Flash.
"If he's you . . . " Iron Man started.
"Then we must be in a place that is like our own world," Martian Manhunter added.
"Yeah, but I wouldn't go attacking other heroes like this guy did," Flash responded.
The Wasp grew to full size and examined the fallen speedster. "Maybe he didn't recognize us or something."
Batman scratched his chin. "It's probably more complicated than that . . . it always is."
A laser blast pierced through the rotting ceiling of the building and made its way slowly across the room. All of the Leaguers dodged it expertly, but a section of floor fell out from under Captain America, and he tumbled down to seeming nothingness.
"What the?" Iron Man exclaimed as he warmed up his repulsors.
The roof quickly fell away, and the Leaguers noticed a group of figures hovering overhead. The beams belonged to a massive, magenta-colored alien who looked like the exact reverse of the Martian Manhunter. He was accompanied by a tall, commanding woman who carried a fearsome sword and machine gun. A huge metal figure with glowing eyes observed as his boot jets hissed fire into the air.
"We are the Injustice Syndicate," the woman ordered. "We rule this planet! No other superhumans are allowed here!"
The ironclad villain raised his metal head. "I have already signaled our ground forces for support, Martian Murderer."
"We won't need it against these weaklings, Iron Monger!" the alien one retorted. "Kill them!"
The Syndicate charged down through the roof. Martian Manhunter stopped his evil counterpart with a powerful right hook. Wonder Woman used her lasso to pin the arms of her warrior counterpart, who crashed to the floor of the ruined building.
"Sneaking around our old headquarters, eh?" Iron Monger chuckled as he fired a random repulsor array in Flash and Batman's direction. Flash managed to speed his friend to safety.
"You should always be careful in rotting buildings," Iron Man warned his counterpart as he swooped up behind him. "You never know when the floor will rot out from under you!"
His unibeam cut a hole in the floor beneath his enemy. As the villain fell, Iron Man charged down into the hole he had made, to further engage his counterpart.
The Wasp attempted to blast Martian Murderer as he fought J'Onn J'Onzz, but her opponent's reflexes were too fast. The evil alien dashed the Wasp against the wall like a common insect and went back to fighting the Manhunter.
Batman and Flash paused, figuring out where they could help in the battle.
"If the Injustice Syndicate are our counterparts, then where are the rest of them?" Batman wondered aloud.
"They mentioned ground forces . . . "
"We're right here, scum!!"
A star-shaped shield chopped its way through the walls of the building and managed to chop a good portion of Batman's cape right off. It belonged to a fearsome figure dressed in red, white and blue, but he was wearing a white hood that covered his face. An archer dressed in blood red raised a bow and fired an arrow at Flash. As the fastest man alive raced to grab the arrow out of the air, at the last moment the arrowhead split and released dozens of tiny blades that pierced through his costume. Flash fell to the floor, clutching his many bleeding wounds.
Batman leapt through the air toward the duo, but he was lassoed in mid-air by and unseen figure. A tiny woman grew from microscopic size and blasted him through his eye slits.
A black-garbed figure who looked almost exactly like Batman emerged from the shadows, accompanied by a hulking, quiet figure who seethed with power.
"Neutron Star!" the American flag-garbed villain ordered. "We've had our fun. Now you can do your stuff!"
The powerful villain silently acknowledged. He lifted his arms to the sky and suddenly seemed to be composed of all the darkness in the universe. With a thought beams of solid cosmic darkness reached out from him, blasting Wonder Woman and Martian Manhunter as they fought.
The roar of boot jets was heard as Iron Monger emerged from the hole in the floor with Iron Man's bent and battered helmet in his hands.
"We win, then," he observed in his mechanical voice.
"Yeah, we win again!" the evil counterpart of Batman assented. "I wish you buffoons had left at least one more of them for me. It's not like we get too much superpowered resistance anymore."
"Quiet, Ebonwing! Gather them up, troops!" the evil flag-garbed one ordered.
"All of us are qualified to be field commanders," Ebonwing complained. "It's not like you have to give the orders all the time."
"You'll learn to respect the Real American . . . "
"You just try and make me, you jingoistic piece of -- "
"Boys!" shouted the tiny voice of Hornet Queen, who grew to full size to stand between them. She put one hand seductively upon each of the villains' chins and began to stroke them sensuously. "If you both knock yourselves unconscious, who'll be left to have some fun with me when all the fighting's over?"
Warrior Woman sniffed at the other woman's power over her teammates. "As if your frail form had anything significant to offer them, Hornet Queen." She pulled Wonder Woman's head up from the floor by the hair and held her sword to the flowing tresses, contemplating chopping them off. Then the woman remembered what she wanted to say. "Our foes aren't dead yet. Let's take them back to the Darkest Tower for torture!"
The villains shouted their agreement, and so they gathered up the unconscious Leaguers and stood grouped together. The ironclad villain pressed a button on his gauntlet and the large group was immediately transported away.
Just as the group disappeared, the ruined floor began to shake. A red, white, and blue shield instantly pierced through the rotting wood of the floor . . .
The battle was not over yet!
"Hello, there."
Cap turned and saw a young man standing beside him. He was wearing a white bodysuit.
"Do you need assistance?"
Cap shook his head. "I'm fine. But I don't know where my team is."
"Would that be the team that the Injustice Syndicate just took to the Darkest Tower?"
Cap nodded. "That's them. Where might I find the Darkest Tower?"
The man pointed directly ahead. "Just keep going in that direction until you see a large building with the Injustice Syndicate's logo on it. You can miss it. Go in and you'll find a teleportation device."
"Just where is the Darkest Tower?"
"On the moon."
"Thank you, er . . . what is your name?"
"I go by the moniker of Tidal Wave. Whom do I have the pleasure of addressing?"
"Captain America," Cap replied, extending his hand. Tidal Wave shook it. "Will you be coming along?"
Tidal Wave shook his head. "I'm afraid I can't. I have some pressing matters which I must take care of. But I have a feeling you'll see me again. Farewell."
With that, a gush of water appeared under Tidal Wave, and he slid away. Captain America noticed a change in the air. It felt . . . dry.
Does he have control over the water in the atmosphere? Cap wondered for a second. However, he tucked the thought away and he walked forward on his journey to rescue his teammates.
Quasar's opponent was the android called the Vision, who was apparently under the control of Roulette. The Vision had been fighting here for weeks and had racked up a large body count. Quasar was to be next.
Quasar tried a sudden surprise drop-kick on the Vision, but the android shifted to his intangible form and Quasar went right through him. Then the Vision's gem glowed. indicating that he was about to blast Quasar with his laser blasts. Quasar instinctively put up his hands in a protective gesture. The Vision's beam shot out . . . and hit the restraining bands that covered the Quantum Bands. The restraining bands broke off, and the Quantum bands were free.
Had he done it on purpose? Had the part of the Vision that was once the heroic Human Torch come to the surface for a moment and found the will to resist Roulette's control? The Vision may have freed Quasar intentionally.
But it didn't matter to Quasar. He was free now to use his formidable cosmic powers! He unleashed his power with a vengeful fury. He almost destroyed the whole building. The villains in the stands ran for cover. They came here for an evening of gambling, not to fight with the likes of Quasar!
Quasar flew up to the stands and tried to find Roulette in this chaotic mob, but he had lost her. He decided not to try and apprehend all these felons. There were more important concerns to deal with now. There was the Key to contend with, for one thing. And also, there was the Vision.
Quasar landed in front of the Vision. The android had not moved at all since he freed Quasar. Quasar studied him. He seemed immobile. Quasar poked him. The Vision didn't move. Apparently, he had been deactivated, either by Roulette or by his own design. Either way, that made him easy to deal with. Quasar took the inert android and headed back to the Avengers League HQ, having no idea that his partners were prisoners in another dimension.
Inside the Darkest Tower, the Injustice Syndicate members were figuring out what to do with their counterparts from the Avengers League.
"So we've come to an agreement," said Real American decisively. "We're not just going to kill them, or all of them, at any rate."
Neutron Star frowned at this, but the more intelligent members of the Injustice Syndicate were definitely in agreement.
"Don't you fools see the connection between these people?" Ebonwing asked snidely. "They're not just the usual heroic fools that we end up killing every now and then. Examine their costumes, and think about the names that they call each other."
The Martian Murderer was quick to come to a conclusion. "They are exact opposites . . . of us!"
Iron Monger almost put his fist down, but he realized the damage that this action had done to the last Injustice Syndicate round table that they had. "How could they have escaped our notice up till now? Five years ago, we ensured that all who dared resist us were dead!"
Ebonwing nodded. "Yes . . . I snapped the Jester's neck personally. And I remember pinning the Puffin to a wall by his elbows with a pair of metal Ebon-spikes. It was delicious . . . "
Neutron Star spoke. "They could be from another universe entirely. There could be such a thing as a mirror universe parallel to ours."
Warrior Woman laughed cruelly. "Populated with weaklings such as these? I don't believe it."
Martian Murderer's giant brow furrowed. "Such things are possible. Imagine a world fresh for the taking . . . "
"One of them must know how they got here. There must be a scientist amongst them. We only need to find out how they got here, and we can travel to their world . . . "
"We could build a permanent bridge between the two worlds . . . using the resources of both to our own ends."
"Bring them out, then," Real American ordered. "Start with the smarter-looking ones; they'll know the most about how they arrived here. The others sneered at his order, but they agreed with the plan, so they did it anyway.
There had to be another way to get up there. He could let himself be captured, but he had no confidence that he would be able to escape once he was in the villains' clutches. Cap's strategic mind began to contemplate what the power structure must be on this planet so opposite to his own Earth. If the United States was a free country in his world, it must be a dictatorship in this one, obviously with the Injustice Syndicate in a ruling position. Surely the Injustice Syndicate would not bother with the day-to-day bureaucratic duties needed to rule a world. There had to be underlings...and the higher up they were, the more likely they would have a way of getting up to the Injustice Syndicate's headquarters. Captain America stuck to the shadows and headed into downtown Manhattan . . .
"Bullock, Dent, you have long been two of the toughest secret police officers on the NYSP force. That's why I'm letting you into my confidence on this matter."
"Don't you have a meeting with the Syndicate up on the moon today?"
"Yes. Listen closely, though. If I have my way, and if my colleagues' plans work, we won't have to worry about the Syndicate anymore!"
"Captain Gordon! To speak like that is treason!" Dent was shocked.
"Hush, you worm! You can't tell me you want to live another ten years under the rule of those superhuman monsters. My contacts, at the highest level of the Androcracy's defense forces, have devised a way of equalizing our power with that of the Syndicate. We have technology . . . super-powerful robots . . . that are able to match and defeat the powers of the Syndicate. I've been helping give the information needed to the designers of these robots . . . when we launch the attack, the Syndicate will be defenseless!"
Captain America had managed to hear the entire conversation from where he was. Now all he had to do was follow Gordon to the transporter location and use it to get to the moon.
"Who was that?" Gordon asked the teleporter technician. "Can you disrupt the beam before it reaches the moon?"
"It's too late! He's already there!"
Gordon rushed back to his office. He had to let the Injustice Syndicate know about their incoming intruder.
"Perhaps he knows something of how to reach their world," Martian Murderer responded. "Bring him to me."
War Woman threw Batman to the floor in front of Martian Murderer. The act served to awaken the Masked Manhunter. He sprang into action surprisingly fast, but he could do nothing, since his hands were bound behind him in vibranium shackles.
Martian Murderer picked Batman up, placed his hands on his forehead, and prepared for a deep mental probe. The surge of mental energy that came out of the Murderer served to awaken J'Onn J'Onzz.
J'Onn was trapped in a tube that kept a wall of flame in between him and the tube surface. He wished that he could break through the tube and save his friend, but the fire effectively made him powerless.
Martian Murderer grimaced along with Batman as the villain attempted to extract information from his mind.
"This one . . . has had some kind of training against mental . . . domination . . . But I will break his will by and by . . . "
"Man, these diplomatic visits bore me . . . " Speedster said almost too quickly for Killshot to understand. "I want to just get down there and run around the Earth a few times . . . "
"Gordon won't be staying long," Killshot said. He was one of the most notorious members of the Injustice Syndicate. He had posed as a hero for a long time, infiltrating the most secret bases of the anti-Syndicate resistance. At the resistance's weakest moment, he betrayed their leader, Alexander Luthor - the cries of his former comrades as the Injustice Syndicate tortured and slaughtered them were still strong and treasured memories.
The transporter energized . . . but it was not Gordon who emerged.
"What?" Killshot said.
Captain America had slammed him in the stomach with his shield before Killshot could say anything else.
"Who are you?" Speedster asked. "One of Real American's allies come to test us?"
"Afraid not, son." Cap threw a punch at Speedster, but missed.
"You have to do better than that!" Speedster made his hand twirl around at an almost unbelievable velocity. He was going to put his hand right through Cap's chest and tear his heart out.
But Cap didn't let him. He moved his shield into the field that Speedster's hand was generating. Speedster's hand hit the solid shield and Cap could hear his foe's bones shatter.
As Speedster began to scream, Cap knocked him out with one punch.
Cap looked at the two fallen villains, and then began to examine his surroundings. He shuddered at the presence of true evil of the Darkest Tower. Not even when he had helped liberate some of the prison camps during the Second World War did he have such a sense of pain and torture everywhere.
But it was up to him to rescue his teammates and get them out of the Tower and out of this dimension. He moved stealthily down the hallway.
"This is going better than I expected," the Key said, smiling. "Come along, Shakedown, my boy, let's get ready to travel to our new home. The universe I shall rule!"
Shakedown followed the evil genius, but shuttered at the magnitude of the evil he was seeing. The destruction of his native solar system and the enslavement of an entire universe!
He thought about the other members of the Injustice Syndicate and what they would be doing now. Most likely they would be torturing his teammates. Cap knew, however, that he had to put the thought of their torture out of his mind and concentrate on what he had to do.
And his concentration allowed him to hear the soldierly footfalls of someone walking his way.
Cap readied himself.
Maybe it was time to think of putting the last few unallied countries to the Confederate States under the Syndicate's control. Conquering Canada, Japan, and Siberia would not be all that difficult for the Syndicate. And after the world, then it would be the other planets in the solar system . . . and after that . . .
Real American was thinking so hard he did not see Captain America until the hero was leaping toward him. He instinctively pulled his star-shaped shield forward and ripped the first layer of red and white chain mail from his opponent's chest.
Cap rolled with the blow and struck out with a kick that pulled his opponent to the floor. He rolled over quickly and pinned Real American so that the villain's arms were almost immobilized.
One of Real American's arms was still holding the sharp vibranium shield, and was ready to cut Cap's head off at the first opportunity.
"You . . . cheap . . . copycat . . . " Real American spat out. "You . . . Communist!"
That was too much for Cap to bear. He head-butted his opponent, and used the distraction to grab the star-shield and throw it at the wall, where it landed and embedded itself halfway.
There had been few times when Cap had wanted to kill an opponent. But here, faced with his very antithesis, one who had probably committed all kinds of racially-motivated crimes, the temptation in Cap to use his shield to behead this fallen villain was very strong.
But Cap was already late in completing his mission. Any more time spent dealing with Real American would allow the Injustice Syndicate to torture them further. Instead he took the blunt portion of his shield and walloped Real American just hard enough on the skull to knock him out.
"You disgust me," Cap said as he walked away.
Cap worked to figure out the complex system of traps that the Injustice Syndicate had placed his teammates in. It was strange . . . the traps were cruel, but designed with the same technology that the Avengers League had used for their own prisons. He had absorbed enough of the training in how to use them over his months with the current incarnation of the League to figure out how to disarm them. As long as he had enough time to do it.
"Master Quasar, you have returned," Jarvis said, coming into the main hall.
"Jarvis, where is everyone?"
Jarvis turned and directed Quasar's attention to Hank Pym's impromptu workstation in front of the mirror.
"If I hadn't just been kidnapped by a being trying to take over our world by means of another, I would probably say how crazy that suggestion is," Quasar commented. "As it is, I have an android draped over my shoulder. Perhaps I could go put him down somewhere, and then help in this crisis?"
"An excellent suggestion," Jarvis replied.
Suddenly, the mansion jolted.
"What in the world?!" Pym exclaimed.
Jarvis and Quasar ran to the door and opened it.
"Oh my word . . . " Jarvis muttered.
"What's wrong?" Pym asked.
"The sky is being ripped open!"
"Come, Shakedown, my boy," the Key said. "This is where we get off."
The Key started to walk into the portal. Shakedown didn't move.
"I suggest you hurry along, you fool," the Key said. "The offer to come and serve me expires in seconds."
"I refuse," Shakedown said. "This is my world. I have to do something to try and save it."
"I see. So you actually think you can betray me and be allowed to live, do you? You're more of an idiot than I thought, you simple minded cretin!"
"I'm not afraid of you, Key!"
The Key laughed. He pulled out a tiny remote control device from his shirt. It activated a secret door in the ground. Out came a huge robot. Shakedown backed away, nervous.
"Shakedown," the Key said, "meet Mr. Atom. Mr. Atom, kill Shakedown!"
The huge robot lumbered toward Shakedown.
"Goodbye, my boy," the Key said. "Have a good life. All two seconds of it." The Key vanished into the portal which faded after he was gone.
Shakedown used his vibrational powers to rock the ground, hoping to trip up the robot, but it's internal stabilizers kept it from toppling. The Shade pulled out a small whistle and blew it. It was a contingency plan that he hoped would work.
Mr. Atom unleashed a laser burst from it's eyes. But before the beam hit Shakedown, it was blocked by a force field.
"What the . . . " Shakedown asked, surprised.
He noticed that another portal had appeared. The Key stepped out of it again. He was wearing a different outfit. "Are you all right?" He asked Shakedown.
Shakedown had no idea what he was up to. "I'm . . . I'm fine."
"Good. Now let's get away from here. My force field will cover our retreat. Where is the exit?"
"You don't know where it is?" Shakedown asked, confused.
"I'm not who you think I am. Just head to the door and I shall explain."
Shakedown saw the robot coming and decided not to argue. He ran for the rear escape exit, with his companion close behind. Once outside, they ran for cover behind some bushes. Mr. Atom broke through the wall of the Key's lab. It used it's scanners to locate it's prey.
"It's found us!"
Mr. Atom focused it's destructive ray on them. But it never got a chance to fire. A black shadow covered the two men . . . And they vanished. Mr. Atom continued to search for them.
"I got your message," the Shade said, smiling.
Quasar found the robot. It was big and seemed to be getting bigger. It's laser tore through buildings. It had to be stopped. Quasar let loose with a blast of quantum energy. Mr. Atom was rocked by the young hero's power. He tried to blast Quasar but the Avengers Leaguer blew out his eye lasers. Mr. Atom tried to swat Quasar but couldn't connect. Quasar continued to blast Mr. Atom with his formidable power.
The Shade grinned. "I've been waiting for you to call."
Shakedown looked at the man he knew as the Key.
"What's the game, Key?"
"I'm not the Key," he said. "I'm the Teacher. And I'm here to save your world."
Quasar surrounded them with quantum energy. "Don't even think about trying to escape! Because I'm in a bad mood and I won't be gentle about stopping you."
"We have no intention of trying to escape," the Teacher said. "We were going to look for you after we stopped the robot. You just saved us a lot of time."
"I don't know what you're trying to pull, Key, but It's not going to work!"
"I'm not the Key. I am the Teacher. I am from the other universe. The one that is threatening your own. I came here to save your world."
"And I should believe you because . . . ?"
The Shade stepped forward. "Excuse me young man. I am the Shade. You may have heard of me."
"I've heard of you. You're another criminal."
"A criminal who is owed a favor," the Shade said. "Perhaps your leader Captain America told you about the recent events concerning the murder of several World War Two heroes?"
Quasar nodded. "He told me."
"Did he tell you that he and the Sub-Mariner came to me for help? Did he tell you that I helped him solve the case? Did he tell you that this was not the first time I helped him? The man owes me. So take me to him! He'll listen to me."
Quasar sighed. "Cap is busy. But tell me what's on your mind and I'll be the judge."
The Teacher nodded. "Very well. As I said, I am the counterpart of the Key from the other dimension. I was the last of a dying breed. The breed you would call 'superheroes.' All of my peers were killed by your counterparts in my dimension. Only I survived. I faked my own death and used my technology to hide myself. I planned for years, trying to find a way to overthrow the villains who kept my world in fear. Recently, I found out about visitors from another universe - a parallel universe. Yours.
"I saw an opportunity to get help. But I decided first to monitor your world and see if you and the other beings on this Earth were trustworthy. I realized that the portal between the two universes was endangering this solar system. It finally occurred to me what had happened. We were created. Someone in your universe created my universe. And the portal that is feeding energy to my dimension, is expanding and threatening to swallow up this world. Shakedown here filled me in on the details. That your Quantum energy was used to begin the process."
Quasar fidgeted, feeling embarrassed and a little guilty.
"Anyway," the Teacher continued, "once the Key from your world opened a doorway to mine, I had a route to follow. A dimensional roadmap. I was able to find my way to the source of the trouble. I appeared in the Key's laboratory."
Quasar looked at the Shade. "How do you fit into this?"
"That was my doing," Shakedown said. "I'd been having second thoughts about what the Key was up to. I needed someone's help. Someone smart. And every underworld hood knows that the Shade is the guy to turn to when you need a wise man."
"It's nice to have a reputation," the Shade said. "I'm like the Godfather. Anyway, once I heard what the Key's plan was, I knew it had to be stopped. After all, If the world is destroyed, where would I live?"
Quasar considered. "Assuming I believe all of this, what can we do to stop it."
"I have a plan," the Teacher said. "Quasar's quantum energy can be used to close the portal."
"Whatever I need to do, I'll do!" Quasar said.
"Here, maybe this will help," War Woman said. She placed her Chains of Compulsion on Batman. The magic chains would force Batman to do what she said, no matter how strong his will was.
"You will tell us where you came from, hero. You will tell us how to get there," War Woman snarled.
Unbeknownst to the villains, someone had been working on the holding cells for the Avengers Leaguers. As the Injustice Syndicate delighted in Batman's torture, Captain America was stealthily releasing his comrades from their prisons.
The Avengers League regrouped, ready to stop their evil counterparts.
J'Onn J'Onzz telepathically blasted the Martian Murderer, forcing him to release Batman. War Woman saw the Avengers League coming and retreated into the corner of the room to prepare her next move.
The Wasp flew forth, shrank to microscopic size, and flew inside Ebonwing's cowl. She blasted him with bio-stings until he writhed with agony and fell unconscious.
Neutron Star prepared to blast the Leaguers. Flash zoomed around and around the villain, preventing him from concentrating. Martian Manhunter then found Neutron Star's consciousness with his telepathic powers, and mind-blasted the villain.
Hornet Queen attempted to fly out of the room at microscopic size, but the Wasp caught up to her and punched her out.
Now it was three members of the Injustice Syndicate versus six very angry Avengers Leaguers.
Something happened then that no one in the room was expecting.
The Key appeared in a flash of trans-dimensional light.
"Aha! I'm in my Dark Mirror world at last!" He gestured toward the Syndicate members. "Come, my friends, let's join our power to stop these heroes! If you do your job well, I may let you share some of the rule of this dimension!"
"Who are you?" War Woman asked.
"His weapon has great power, according to my sensors," Iron Monger said.
"Maybe it would be useful," the Martian Murderer said as he got to his feet.
"No! Don't you understand the power that we could share?" the Key protested.
"Who says we have to share power with you?" Iron Monger replied. He motioned to Martian Murderer and War Woman. "Let's kill him, and take his Key."
"Good idea, Iron Monger," the Murderer responded. "Maybe it can get us back to our universe."
"You idiots! You make me wish I never created you!"
As the Injustice Syndicate members readied themselves to kill the Key, the Teacher, Quasar, and the Shade appeared.
"In a bit of trouble, are you, Key?" the Teacher asked sarcastically.
"Don't let them kill me!" the Key said. The Syndicate members closed on him, preparing to take his weapon and murder him.
The heroes felt some sympathy, even for this evil genius.
"What will you do for us if we help you?" asked Batman.
"I'll help you get back where you belong!!!"
"Not good enough, Key!" Cap replied. "You've put us through a lot, and we deserve more than just a trip back home!"
"I'll make sure that this universe is put away forever!!!"
"I don't think he's lying," Wonder Woman said. "We should help him."
A repulsor blast from Iron Monger nearly took the Key's head off.
"Please!"
The Avengers League sprang into action against the three Injustice Syndicate members.
Wonder Woman threw her lasso around War Woman, then pummeled her senseless. Martian Manhunter turned intangible and floated toward Iron Monger. Before the villain could react, he turned his fingers tangible and undid the latches on the metal-clad villain's helmet. Once the helmet flew off, J'Onzz punched him in the face.
The Martian Murderer went after J'Onzz, but he was stopped by simultaneous attacks from Iron Man, Wasp, and Captain America. He was so preoccupied with fighting that J'Onn J'Onzz easily disabled him with a telepathic attack.
"Thank you," the Key said. But, villain as he was, he was planning to strike against the Avengers League and the Teacher right at that moment.
"I'll take that," Martian Manhunter said. His arms stretched out and snatched the Key's weapon away.
"Now it's your turn to keep your part of the bargain," Captain America reminded the villain.
Gotta get out of here! he thought. I'm tired of being the only good guy. Maybe, if I could get to where Captain America came from . . .
"Get him!" one of the Young Injustice members shouted. A dark figure leapt up, and tackled Tidal Wave.
Instead, he found himself slammed into the ground. A shrinking white hole lay where Tidal Wave had been.
Quasar was hooked up to the device to provide the cosmic power needed for its massive task. Hank Pym supervised the process of powering up the device and starting the compression process.
But first there was the matter of getting the Teacher home. Using a combination of his and the Key's weapons, the heroes were able to generate a portal for the Teacher to return back to his home universe.
The Teacher prepared to leave. "Keep a good eye on my opposite number the Key, there, Leaguers!"
"Will do," Cap answered.
"Thank you for your help."
"Goodbye, my friends. Wish me luck!" The Teacher stepped into the portal to the Dark Mirror Universe. Fueled by Quasar's power and the device that the Teacher had made, the portal shrank, and then the heroes observed a marvelous sight. The Dark Mirror Universe began to compress itself, warping its shape until it turned into a cube not more than six inches in total size.
"The Dark Mirror universe is now locked away," Iron Man reported from his console.
"Whew!" said Quasar. "I gotta sit down for a while, guys. Nega-bands or not, my batteries need recharging!"
The Shade readied for his departure. "Remember what you promised me, Captain America! I shall return to visit you if you forget!"
He disappeared into one of the shadows on the wall, leaving everyone a bit uneasy.
"I guess they have the right to live, even though they are evil," Batman commented.
"Yes, I'm glad we didn't just destroy the Dark Mirror universe," J'Onn J'Onzz replied. "Here and there in that evil place, there may be other good souls like the Teacher."
Iron Man looked at the cube thoughtfully. "It makes you wonder what will happen in that universe, with evil being so predominant. Will justice ever prevail over the evil there? If justice wins out in the Dark Mirror universe, what does that mean for our universe?"
Captain America put a hand on his friend's shoulder. "Let's take a break from that stuff for a while, Iron Man. The Dark Mirror universe is in safe keeping for now."
The Avengers League walked off to the dining area of the Hall of Justice, to grab some much-needed snacks. Jarvis was so happy to see them all back that he whipped up a marvelous dinner for them that all enjoyed enormously.