Legion World Forums LEGION OUTPOST Bits o' Legionnaire Business Legion Worlds Two (Fanfic - updated 29 January)

Brek mused to himself.

Lydda was on Khundia Prime, Hadru and Grava had just been asked to assist with some medical stuff by Dr Shakespeare to do with that soldier fella that had a crush on Comet Queen, and Dirk all of a sudden focusing all his attention on Douglas Nolan. The small man from Tharr had to admit to himself he was more than a little bored. He strolled along to the Mission Monitor Board to see if there were any teams away out. In the great chamber with ceiling high holo- screens he found Brainiac 5 and Tellus, neither were his favourites though, he surmised, that he always felt a little uncomfortable around telepaths even Tellus who had joined the Legion on the same day as him and he found the lack of humour in Coluans to almost be an affront to the positivity he practiced every day… Still, not bad people really, in their own right… just not his sort really, they were a bit serious for his taste….hmmm… Brek cleared his thoughts, worried that despite assurances to the contrary Tellus may pick up on them.

Shoulders back, chest out… breathe in deep… and smile!

“Hey guys, anything goin’ on that I can lend an icy hand or two to?” He gave his biggest smile.

“Hello Brek, we’ve just had Mon El and Dawnstar lead teams off the planetoid...Timber Wolf will be leading a team….”

“Dandy! Thanks Tellus, you’re looking good there buddy, see you guys soon.” Brek pictured Brin Londo in his mind and activated the finder function on his flight ring. He flew out into the corridor and whistled happily to himself through his teeth as he went.

Action would help take his mind off this loneliness. It always had before and Brek was certain it always would…

Mission: Investigation of Black Witches flight ring alarm on Xerox.

Strike team members:

Wildfire, Drake Burroughs of Earth, composed of sapient anti-energy, strength, speed, energy blasts – team leader
Ultra Boy, Jo Nah of Rimbor, one at a time Kryptonian power set
Deathstorm, unknown of Khundia Prime, strength, assumes radiation form

Shield team members:
Element Lad, Jan Arrah of Trom, elemental transmutation – team leader
Kid Quantum, Jazmin Cullen of Xanthu, creation of temporal quantum bubbles, flight
Titan, Nasir N’Cube of Titan, telepathy

On Xerox:
Black Witch, Mysa Nal of Naltor, manipulation of magical energies
Blok of Dryad, physical density giving incredible strength and endurance



Element Lad, Titan and Kid Quantum stepped through the warp and quickly flew across to the Black Witch. Before they could reach her though Ultra Boy shouted “Heads up, we got incoming…” and he flew up towards a dark mass approaching at speed from the direction the dark sisters had flew off in with Wildfire and their Khundish ally Deathstorm close behind.

Element Lad approached the fuzzy field that covered the tower and former Legionnaire’s cautiously, he knew how powerful and macabre Mysa’s magicks could be. Jazmin and Nasir picked up on his lead and stayed well behind him.

“Mysa, let us help you….”

As Element Lad spoke Titan crouched at the edge of the shield around the tower staring intently at the old lady Mysa had bound in scarlet magicks. Kid Quantum looked around at the previously pristine island that they had found themselves upon and gasped as she saw the disgusting blood and gore that stretched out across the sea before them.

“Mysa, my name is Nasir N’Cube. I’m one of the new Legionnaires you may have heard about. Could you drop your shield enough to allow me to examine this woman please?” The new Legionnaire’s warm voice held both compassion and authority. His training with the SP’s showed through.

“She will not be allowed to return to her sister’s sides young telepath. You are not to allow her any freedoms, do you understand? That one will face Xeroxi justice before night falls this day.” The raw power and dark charisma that Mysa Nal exuded even in her battered and exhausted state gave the new Legionnaire called Titan a moment’s pause, he thought he had dealt with powerful people but here before him was someone who could command the very firmament of this world if she chose ...and it showed. And with that the fuzzy barrier parted before him and he stepped through.

Tinya Wazzo stood before the Amazonian warrior who had insisted on returning to Sol space with Harmonia Li’s team after their recent visit to Nostos ii.

“Listen, it’s all hands on the deck right now and if you don’t do what you are asked or if you act in any way that’s inappropriate you’ll find yourself out there...” She pointed through a portal towards the inky depth of open space, “...Without the pleasure of a ‘bye it’s been nice to meet you’. Understand?”

Amynta of Nostos ii, the Spear of Artemis, smiled broadly and said, “Of course, I shall honour your authority in all matters. Thank you Phantom Girl. ” She nodded her head.

Tinya smiled warmly, “We are not accepting you as a member, not yet anyway Amynta, but thank you for your assistance. I’ve a feeling we’re gonna need it... And please, call me Tinya.”

Gazelle and Lexikon both stepped forward and congratulate the Amazon though it was Harmonia that asked the question they had all considered, “With the mentor scheme we are running, who do you wish to look after Amynta?”

“Hmmm... with Gim only being an adviser here it’s probably inappropriate to ask him... tell you what Harmonia, why don’t you look after Amynta for now and we’ll see what we can come up with once this current crisis is dealt with, thanks.”

The deputy Legion leader gave a thin emotionless smile as the current Legion leader phased through the floor on her way to her next meeting of the day.

Brin sat on the floor opposite Xao and quietly watched the young mage meditating.

In the room Invisible Kid and Shield stood to the side, Polar Boy stood opposite them. For all it appeared that his attention was focussed entirely on the young mystic, Brin Londo was aware of the moody glances that Brek had thrown Laurel’s way. He had sensed an atmosphere between the two ever since he and Laurel had returned from the Phantom Zone but as Laurel had never said anything Brin had kept out of it. If there were any problems she had shown her professionalism, Timber Wolf hoped Polar Boy would do the same.

Xao Jin had sweat across his forehead and his eyes were tightly squinched closed. From his hands sprung streams of tiny emerald dragons that flew in intricate patterns in the air above, circling and diving, silent but for the bee like buzz of their wings as they danced an arcane design. The air started to glow and the hair on Brin’s arms and neck rose as if a thunderstorm were upon him.

Above them the streams of tiny dragons had become lines of force that spelt out arcane symbols of obvious power.

“Henry!” He called out for the holo man who controlled their special warping technology, “I think it’s time…”

Mission: Investigation of Black Witches flight ring alarm on Xerox.


There was a tremendous crash from just beyond the shimmering horizon and they all looked up. Rapidly approaching them from the distant horizon an ominous dark blot boomed through the Xeroxian sky towards them.

Wildfire, Deathstorm and Ultra Boy had already disappeared in a blur of velocity to investigate the dark blot approaching them before the sonic boom had hit the island with the tower that Mysa had so valiantly fought to defend. There were explosions and following sonic booms though the enormous mass continued towards them, darkening more of the sky as it approached.

Even from a thousand meters away it appeared as if a mountain were falling upon them. Element Lad could hear anti-energy explosions rumbling in the distance as their team mate attempted to stop the attack.

Element Lad extended his arms and the pale purple energy signature that showed he was using his awesome transmutation abilities glowed around him. Kid Quantum followed suit. Between the two of them the approaching mass appeared to diminish, though there were still obviously thousands of tons of rock pouring out of the sky.

The Black Witch was distraught, screaming over and over, “The Brahn Seer’s Seat!” as she recognised the Xeroxian landmark mountain that the Daughters of Black Adam had torn out of the ground to throw at the Legionnaires. Around the Legionnaires boulders the size of buildings crashed with a deafening roar and despite Element Lad and Kid Quantum;s best efforts the mountain that had been thrown at then crashed to the ground with an awesome earthquaking boom.

Hey guys, once again apologies for the delay between posts, I had a holiday then came back to an absolute shed load of work. Hopefully these will entice you back in

I hope so! Thanks, more coming soon as things get.. umm.. worse!

So much going on! I love that about your writing B, you weave in and out of various scenes and manage to intersperse epic battles and quieter moments, yet the tension and excitement remains constant. And every single scene tells us a little something new about the featured characters. More, more, more!

Plus, I know I missed it before but the Venegar scene was great. Love the Legionnaires helpingfight corruption and environmental degradation.

Mysa is proving quite the powerhouse, both magically and in terms of will.

Love your new Legionnaires, they already feel like an established part of the team.

“What do you expect me to do with that?” Henry looked aghast as he peered at the dragon writ sigil’s that glowed across the ceiling.

Laurel’s eyes half closed as she noted Brek’s smirking. Brin gave Henry a level stare, no words were said but the message got across that the holo-man was not to criticise.

Xao raised his head, a weak smile on his face, “If you can open a warp please I will over write these onto it and we will see… hopefully that will do the trick.”

“Merci Xao, you ‘ave done a good job ‘ere.” Jacques ignored Henry as he praised the new Legionnaire.

“Yeah, thanks, we wouldn’t be able to do this without your dragon magic.” Brin protectively moved to the young sorcerer’s side and offered a hand to help him stand up.

“Okay then, let’s see if this works….” A disc of violet and honey hues appeared, spinning silently in the air before them. The emerald energies drifted through the air, the buzzing sound of tiny wings erupting again as it did, and slowly fitted itself over the swirling circle that marked the edges of the here and there. As the Legionnaire’s watched the honey hues darkened and before them a tunnel to an alien dimension appeared.

“Hey ho, let’s go!” Brin was the first to dive through, Brek the last. Henry stood watching them. After they had all traversed the dimensional gap the holo-man appeared unhappy that he could not join the team as he closed the warp behind them.

“Dawnstar, can’t you sense if there’s anyone is out there?”

Kara Zor-El and her mentor floated effortlessly just outside the earth’s Polyscreen, hoping that between them they would be able to stop any attack on the planet below. They knew that at the Museum of Mystic Arts in Mega-California their comrades Tyroc and Sade waited to hear if an attack was coming, but here in space the two women stood the best chance of success.

“Even here there are so many competing sensations… there are more satellites around Earth than nearly any other planet and they can be most distracting.”

“Sure… I’ll carry on scanning too, hopefully between us…” The former Super Girl lets the sentence drop as they continue concentrating on the job at hand. Both were aware of the presence of two Star Fleet Destroyer class warships and a fleet of smaller attack and support vessels. If the daughters of Black Adam were desperate enough to attempt anything here on Earth they would have more than a team of Legionnaires to deal with, much more.

Mission: protection of Colu's central research facility for Alternate Science, Colu

Team:

Mon El, Lar Gand of Daxam, full Kryptonian power set
M’Windaji, Gahaji of Kiringyaga, super tracker
Chameleon Girl, Yera Allon of Durla, shape changer
Sun Boy, Dirk Morgna of Earth, generates intense light and heat
Ferro, Douglas Nolan of Earth, can assume invulnerable iron isotope form

Science Police Meta Team members:

Gravity Kid, Officer Tel Vole of Earth, manipulation of personal or nearby gravity
Power Boy, Officer Jedidiah of Earth, personal density control


Lar Gand’s views on Colu were mixed.

If asked he would say that his favourite places were the wild, untamed and raw, the unexplored and unknown, yet here on the most overly built-upon planet he felt strangely serene. It had been Jo who had pointed out, years ago as they flew down towards one of the Planetary Centers of Information – a library, for lack of a better word, that was easily the size of a Terran city state! – that the Coluans appeared to be like blood cells flowing along their walkways between their towering artificial organs of intelligence. That image had remained with Lar and came back to him now. Colu had been built up and all traces of the natural environment eliminated as unnecessary to the advancement of intellect over twenty thousand years before, yet somehow, strangely, this cold and sterile, entirely artificial environment had the feeling of being a large pulsing life form in itself. Lar doubted that the Coluans would appreciate such a perspective so kept it to himself. Yet even so, as he stood here at the outer reaches of the planetary atmosphere like a solitary sentinel Lar Gand couldn’t help but smile to himself.

Querl had estimated the sisters would try to raid information from a particular establishment that sat on the Coluan equator. A university campus that specialized in investigating what Brainy described grudgingly as ‘unnatural sciences’ – this include the strange logics of Gil’Dishpan technology and also the magical arts, both were areas of working knowledge that Coluan’s had struggled with for centuries. Yera had left the team to visit the nearby monitoring station that the planetary Council of Population Oversight used to store information on those using any services or visiting their planet. She currently sat in a dimly lit gray room, with several dozen of hard light screens and charts flashing across the walls before her. Thankfully in her current form as an Acturian Opthomalapus she had twelve separate sets of eyes and an incredible skill at processing the visual imagery. If the Coluans learned of the Daughters of Black Adams approach so would she. Before she had left, following a hard light guiding dot of light that the local Councillor had grudgingly given to the team, she had suggested Gahaji might want to search for some tool or resource that could help stop the dark sisters were they to attack. Gahaji looked relieved to be given the task and after a few moments concentrating flew off to the south.

Dirk had arrived shortly afterwards with Douglas and, surprising Lar, Tel and Jed. Mon El liked the two young men from the science Police’s Takron-Galtos meta team. They were trained and disciplined, eager to help. He had a feeling the Legion would need all the help they could get. He hadn’t mentioned it directly but having met Captain Marvel in the 21st Century he knew first-hand how powerful 98 beings with his skill set could be and how difficult it would be to stop them doing anything they wanted to do.

When the attack came Yera had under twenty seconds to warn the team that three object were approaching at sub light velocities, having appeared out of an FTL warp. Ferro clapped a first into a palm and cheered. Dirk smiled at this though said nothing. Lar was in the outer atmosphere ready to act as the first line of defense, though he accepted that he would probably not be able to stop or even delay more than one or two of the sisters. Pushing those thoughts aside Lar Gand dove towards the approaching objects…

Mission: Investigation of Rock of Eternity

Timber Wolf, Brin London of Zuun, incredible strength, speed, agility, reflexes and senses - team leader
Dragonmage, Xau Jin of Earth, manipulates magical dragon form energies
Invisible Kid, Jacques Foccart of Earth, invisibility
Shield, Laurel Kent of Earth, physical invulnerability, tactile psychometry
Polar Boy, Brek Banin of Tharr, cold control


Brin Londo was increasingly worried that he might vomit.

The team floated in a vacuum unlike anything the Zuunian had ever experienced. There were no colours other than those on their costumes, no sounds except the ones they made themselves, with no horizon to give any visual clues about perspective and only a few gray floating rocks of random sizes to break up the environment Brin suspected he had somehow been delivered into his own personal hell. Without thinking Brek Branin had projected a sheet of ice towards what he thought was a nearby rock only to find that his frozen stream stretched off for almost a klick before snapping onto the stone surface. As he watched the ice stretch ahead of them Brin’s senses rebelled against the apparent alteration of perception that made the floating rock appear so close by and his stomach started to churn.

“Right… umm what exactly are we supposed to be doing here?” Brek sounded rattled as he asked.

“This is the source of the Daughters of Black Adam’s power, I can feel it.” Of them all Xao Jin looked the most comfortable as he gazed into the murky distance.

Laurel Kent ran her finger tips along Brin Londo’s back, a small tactile gesture of support as she saw how uncomfortable he was. Brin shrugged and hunched into himself, obvious now in his discomfort.

“We need to… ah…Jacques, you need to take charge I’m sorry bud but I can’t deal with this florggin’ place…” and with that Brin projectile vomited before him.

“Aah Brin! You okay there sweetie?”

“Degueulasse! Brin zat is tres gross! Are you okay mon ami?”

Brek pointed a finger at the splattering puke and it froze solid as it floated off, “Try not to make too much of a mess, eh Brin?”

“Indeed, that’s no way to treat the final home of the ancient Gods now, is it?”

The voice came from around them, originating, it seemed, from every direction simultaneously.

Dragonmage laughed as the other Legionnaires took a defensive position, stood in a circle looking out for the potential attacker.

“Be calm, it is the ancient mage Shazam, he has found us!” The obvious relief in Xao’s comment made his comrades less jumpy though they remained in their positions.

“Brainy, why did you send Dawnstar with a team to Earth when the Academy, Star Fleet and the SP’s said they could handle it?” Tinya’s question was said in light tones though both knew that there was an agenda as the Legion leader phased through the wall into the room that held the Mission Monitor Board.

“Correlating available information led me to believe that the Daughters of Black Adam would attack the Mega-California Museum of Mysic Arts…”

“We know that Querl, but as I said…”

“I won’t lose Kara again Tinya.” The Coluan genius spoke quietly as he looked up from the hard light displays he had been reading and gave the Legion Leader a hard stare.

“Querl… you know that she shouldn’t even be here so why are you doing this? Why are you making us… yourself suffer again?”

Professor Querl Dox made a brief sad smile towards Tinya Wazzo and returned to the screens before him.

“Oh Brainy…we need them elsewhere. I’m sorry but Soddam Yat’s flight ring has issued an alert and I want Dawnstar to trace it. I don’t believe it’s coincidental, do you?”

“Hmmm… I imagine the Daughters are looking for a power source that will be effective in a potentially magical reincarnation rite, and the Lantern’s ring would certainly fit that bill. You are absolutely correct of course Tinya, we need to utilize the teams resources more efficiently. My apologies for any inconvenience my selfish actions may have brought…”

“Oh stop it already, just get them going to help Soddam. He may be an arrogant pain in the ass but we’ll probably need the raw power he can bring with that Lantern of his. If you want to self-flagellate with guilt you can do it later, okay?”

Danielle Foccart and IZOR of Linsnar were in almost continuous communication.

Brainiac 5 had given them his plans to beef up the defence of Legion World almost seven hours ago and they reckoned it would take them only another hour until they had completed everything on the list.

Deep space sensors had had their range’s increased by almost 43%.
The Impact/Repulse system, used when comets or other asteroids came too close, had been integrated with a force field algorithm Professor Dox had given them. They estimated that it would take a collision of an almost planetary scale to breach those defences, though of course neither really wanted to find out first hand.
The medi-droids were all fully stocked and primed, allocated at even distances through the working and living quarters.
The Communications bays had been double checked and every one appeared to be in full working order.
The internal pressure defences, in case of an atmospheric breach, were checked and double checked before being given the green light.
The internal AI support droids that usually only appeared when an internal engineering system needed examining, had been tested and certified that they were ready to spring into action if needed.
The holo-displays were all on full power.
The alarms were tested – much to the annoyance of the Legionnaires on board.
The armament that the Dark Circle had started to fit before the Legion had discovered and routed them – Hyper kinetic AI controlled missile launchers on the northern and southern poles of the small planetoid, laser pulse cannons, Imskian Dragon nets…

…all given the once over by Danielle’s technopathic abilities and Gear’s nannite substance. If an attack came they were hopeful that Legion World would survive intact.

Mission: Investigation of Rock of Eternity


An old man with a mischievous smile wearing a long white robe materialized at Brin Londo’s side and gently touched is lower back. The other Legionnaires watched carefully, Laurel in particular looked concerned.

“Oh grife… that feels better…” Timber Wolf straightened up and turned. “Thank you, this place is… well, it’s too weird for me. Ah… I’m sorry about the sick.”

The mage laughed quietly.

“Monsieur…. We ‘ave come to ask you for some assistance as we ‘ave had recent trouble with Black Adam’s Daughters. We were told that you may be able to assist, non?”

“I cannot assist you Legionnaires, not directly anyway. With the Rock of Eternity destroyed my power is greatly depleted and those sisters draw their lightning from a darker source.”

“Maybe we can help you then.” Dragonmage, while normally quietly spoken seemed to have a confidence here that surprised the Legionnaires. “The floating rocks, if they are the remnants what if we returned them here for you? Rebuilt the Rock?”

“Xao Jin, your dragon’s heart may be awesome but it is not be that easy. Unfortunately with every passing season the old Gods release their grip on the planes you inhabit and as they fade so does their power. Without them the legacy of Shazam will fade. With the Sister’s arrival in this era they are eating into the ambient energy. I estimate that within a century they will have drained me completely. Even with the one that was stripped of her power I…”

“What?”
“Who did that?”

“… you did not know? The Black Witch of Xerox stripped one of their power and released their lightning back towards me. I do not know if she has the strength to do that again though. If only enough of them were de-powered I would be able to do more.”

“So that’s our plan.”

Brek sounded stupid Laurel thought, did the little ice bucket not understand what he’s just heard? If Mysa Nal only had the power to de-power one of the dark sisters what good could the rest of the team do?

The old mage smiled at her and nodded and Laurel felt as if he had heard her thoughts and agreed.

Mission: protection of Colu's central research facility for Alternate Science, Colu

In a blur Mon El grabbed the nearest woman and spun around, using her momentum to fling her at her approaching sisters. One dodged the attack and crashed mightily into the Daxamite’s chest throwing him kilometers down towards the world below. In the half second it took him to recover two of the sisters had veered off while the third set her sights on dealing with him. They crashed together with a bone shaking bang, clouds around them were blown away by the energy of the impact. The sister’s strength and power was everything Lar expected and he quickly rallied himself to begin attacking again, she though had obviously not been expecting to face an equally strong opponent and floated dazed, shaking her head, her fingers twitching in shock. Mon El took a set of incapacity cuffs from a pouch on his belt that Brainiac 5 had tampered with and given him before they left for this mission and slapped them on his opponent, hoping the technology would be enough to keep her unconscious.

“One down….” Mon El dove into the churning atmosphere below.

Tel Vole hoped the Distorter he wore was working correctly and he was suitably blended into the background. Before him his husband roared his challenge up to the sky, the purple skinned Jedidiah Rikane hoped to attract the attention of the attacking dark sisters. Their plan had been hastily drawn up but it was all they had so they were running with it in the hope that they would both someday laugh about their audacity at attempting to tackle these mighty women from a millennia past. In seconds it was over, one of the Daughters of Black Adam had obviously heard the filth and insults that the usually perfectly respectful Jed had been shouting and came to investigate. She landed several meters away and smiled a malicious grin.

“We have never met yet you accuse my honoured father of the most terrible actions. Why do you do that boy? Are you particularly tired of breathing?”

“I do it because he was a murdering manipulative squajj with.. with body odor and ugly children. You must be one as you look like a mongrel drugg’s arse!” Tel could see the sweat run down his husband’s neck though was thankful that the insults did the trick. In a blur the woman crashed through Jed’s mighty looking though immaterial frame into the makeshift prison they had assembled from metals and two small force field projectors they had been offered by a scholar. Tel concentrated and pushed the gravitons within box together, effectively pinning the woman in the centre of the space. Despite his best efforts though she struggled and wriggled, and after half a minute or so was able to shrug off the gravity attack.

“Jed, you gotta do something, I’m gonna lose her pretty soon…”

Jedidiah glanced up at his husband and nodded as he increased his body’s density and pounced at her, swinging a blow that sent her crashing through several buildings behind them. Even as the buildings collapsed onto her they heard a sonic boom and a roar as Mon El flew past them and crashed into the debris, materialising out of it seconds later holding an unconscious Daughter of Black Adam wearing specially altered incapacity cuffs.

“Two down guys, let’s go see if Dirk and Doug need any assistance.”

Jed smiled his broadest happy smile though Tel could see the Daxamite Legionnaire looked weary, these dark sisters were not proving to be easy opponents to subdue and so far they had only managed to catch two out of the ninety eight. And there was still one on the loose on Colu that they needed to find… and with that thought they heard a voice behind them.

“Release my sisters now or I’ll kill your allies.”

Jed and Tel both spun around and there in the skies above them the final dark sister stood, floating 100 meters above them, her arms outstretched at her sides and Sun Boy and Ferro held up, both obviously battered and bleeding, unconscious with their throats tightly in her grip.

Thank you again IB, truly appreciate your feedback.

Yup, lots going on and I like showing how the different characters react so the story is going to go to all sorts of places before it finishes. Hopefully it can be followed without too much effort and ultimately makes sense

Thank you also for saying my new Legionnaires are fitting in well as I was really worried that having so many new characters all at once might be too much to handle - either for me to write or you to read!

Anyway, things will not get any better for a while to come so hang on in there folks as it's going to be get a little wild before we get to the end of this arc.

This is great! I love the fights we've seen so far, will be interesting to see how the less powerful Legionnaires fare...really liked Tel and Jed's plan! I really dig the description of Colu and the Legion World defences as well as the journey to what's left of the Rock of Eternity, creates some awesome background setting

Same, Jed and Tel's plan was great and they really softened the daughter up for Mon. Even if the action is taking place on multiple fronts, it's fairly easy to follow and I'm excited to see how everything will converge.

Loved the prep for Legion World, this is something we don't see often enough. And it makes sense, with all these great minds and tech, that LW should be the most secure!

Private Lamment gave a weak smile and thumbs up signal towards the woman on the other end of the holo-screen.

Grava smiled back through the screen and mouthed “You will be alright!” to the injured soldier. Drura Sehpt stood to the side and watched stoically as Comet Queen tried unsuccessfully to stop herself from crying. They both watched the private fall asleep under anaesthetic and the beginning of the operation to rebuild his spinal column and legs from the damage they received when he jumped into a passing meteorite’s tail in a bid to mimic Grava’s meta-transformation. While the operation itself was all done my machines spinning nannites into the necessary forms there were three members of staff within the operating theatre with the young private.

Dr Shakespeare, under e-guidance from Professor Dox, had been joined by Hadru Malik and Nura Nal to oversee the operation. Nura had casually joined them without any fanfare and stood behind a Naltorian console, her manicured fingers flicking gently over the hard light read out as she concentrated on the job at hand. By contrast when Hadru had walked into the theatre he had put his arms into the air and said loudly, “It’s alright everyone, Chemical Kid is here and will save the day.” Grava had clapped her hands like a child and given an excited “Eeek!” as she watched from the Medi-Bay relatives room. She didn’t hear Drura’s disdainful sigh.

“Grava, really, you don’t need to watch the gory details. Dr Shakespeare assured me that they will be completed in twenty five minutes so, please, let me get you some refreshment and we can sit down and relax.” She reached out and gently placed her hand on the Legionnaires shoulder. Without thinking Grava twisted her shoulder away and Drura’s hand fell. For a second Drura started to feel upset. This was the sort of thing she had been telling the nice Counselor, Dr Kabbo about: no-one took her seriously no matter how much she tried to help or say the right thing.

“Starshine! Oh starshine I’m so sorry, but I’m like worried past the event horizon here. Drura, do you think he’ll be okay? Tell me honest like, will he ever be sunshine fit and happy again?”

“oh... Grava, darling with Professor Dox overseeing the procedures and Dr Shakespeare there, and your DNA sample and Hadru catalyzing the re-growth process...” Drura could see that Grava didn’t really care about the actual processes; she just wanted a one word answer.

“Yes. Yes Grava, Private Lamment will be fine in no time.”

Comet Queen hugged Infectious Lass tightly and spun them in the air, all the time repeating
“...thank you starshine, thank you...”

Mission: Investigation of Black Witches flight ring alarm on Xerox.

Shield team members:
Element Lad, Jan Arrah of Trom, elemental transmutation – team leader
Kid Quantum, Jazmin Cullen of Xanthu, creation of temporal quantum bubbles, flight
Titan, Nasir N’Cube of Titan, telepathy

On Xerox:
Black Witch, Mysa Nal of Naltor, manipulation of magical energies
Blok of Dryad, physical density giving incredible strength and endurance

Between them Element Lad and Kid Quantum had created a space large enough so that none of the Legionnaires present or the tower that Mysa had been protecting would be crushed. Jazmin’s quantum bubbles had stopped any further boulders from smashing around them while Jan transmuted the granite into air and a little phosphorous to give some light. Blok had pushed boulders aside to create some room but even his phenomenal strength was not enough to move the mountain that had been thrown at them.

While the three of them continued to ensure the team wouldn’t be crushed Titan and the Black Witch stood over the Daughter of Black Adam that Mysa had de-powered and captured. Titan felt the witch’s presence like a physical pressure, her magicks had held five of the dark sisters at bay and protected the tower. He was very aware that he had probably never met someone as powerful, in every sense, in his life before and the new Legionnaire wanted to make the most of this experience. Telepathically the two Legionnaires spoke, careful as the old woman before them was only a word away from becoming an invulnerable powerhouse again so they did not want her to learn anything they might discuss by accident.

“She has a mind that is full of rage and a violent need for revenge. I’ve never seen anything so dark Mysa. If all her siblings are the same we will not be able to reason or rehabilitate them.”

“They were said to be keepers of the peace until their foul father died, it has been whispered that he cursed them with the over powering need to revenge him. Black Adam was never stable and the Dark Gods used this for their own goals.”

“What is that word she keeps thinking over and over... I can’t quite catch it...”

“She is trying to summon the lightning from the Gods, I tore it from her once but it will be days before I am strong enough to try that spell again... she hurt me badly young telepath...”

“... if I could stop her conscious mind accessing her magic we could take her back to Legion World and interrogate her properly there... her mind is a steel trap... it would take hours to safely make my way through it...”

“... she will face justice at my hands, and I swear she will never leave this planet again... not while I breathe or my Rule of Law is in place here...”

“...wait... there! That is what they are doing here...”

A loud cracking noise erupts above causing both Legionnaires to look upwards. The dark rock above rumbles and they can see thirty meters above the granite has started to crumble and rocks and boulders start to rain down again.

Mission: protection of Colu's central research facility for Alternate Science, Colu

M’Windaji had flown as fast as his flight ring could carry him and would up in a large laboratory being run by a Coluan scientist dressed in an off puce overall that initially did not believe that the young man before him was a Legionnaire. Several long seconds later as the scientist checked on his internal comms system about recent news about the Legion and he volunteered to assist with anything Gahaji asked for. The young man explained that his tracking sense had brought him there and particular was drawing him to a meter square box.

“Oh... that’s an old exhibit... umm picked up on your species home world about ... umm 800 of your years ago I believe. It never produced quantifiable results though.”

“If I may..?” M’Windaji taps the lock and it falls open revealing a smaller wooden box obviously of Terran design. Without asking he picks up the box and gives it a gentle shake. Something else else solid within rattles against the sides of the small chest. The Scientist peers over the young Legionnaire’s shoulder, obviously intrigued. M’Windaji tries to pry open the lock but after several wasted seconds he smashes the chest on the floor with a crash. In amongst the wooden splinters glows a small red circular stone.

“Ah... that was it. It was supposed to allow the user to magically transform or manipulate anything they touched, though we have proven beyond any reasonable doubt that like most of your magical artifacts it’s nothing but a charlatans trick to distract those...”

“You won’t mind if I borrow it then.” And without a further word M’Windaji flew out of the laboratory and back towards his colleagues, clutching the surprisingly warm stone tightly. With the flight ring eco-protection technology enabled the tracker from the fringes of the United Planets was able to speed through the moist Coluan atmosphere and ahead of him he saw one of the dark sisters holding Sun Boy and Ferro by the throats while his other comrades stood guard over two of her sisters, unconscious at their feet. Holding the red stone in front of him and willing every thought he could into it to stop her M’Windaji set himself on a collision course.

“... or I’ll kill your allies.”

Below, the three Legionnaires could only stare in shock as the young tracker barrelled into the back of the dark sister with a mighty crash.

Legion flight rings were programmed that if their wearers were to become unconscious while not safely on terra firma they would automatically keep them afloat. The three Legionnaires watched in amazement as above them Sun Boy and Ferro still hung in mid air, though it was their flight rings that kept the Daughter of Black Adam in the air. The Daughter of Black Adam that looked as if she had been turned to stone!

M'Windaji floated beside them laughing, "It worked! I found this and it stopped her, it worked!"

Mon El zoomed up beside the young tracker and examined the red stone in his grasp.

"The Ruby of Life! That's great Gahaji, now we just need to get Dirk and Douglas out of her petrified grip..."

Mission: Investigation of Black Witches flight ring alarm on Xerox.

Strike team members:

Wildfire, Drake Burroughs of Earth, composed of sapient anti-energy, strength, speed, energy blasts – team leader
Ultra Boy, Jo Nah of Rimbor, one at a time Kryptonian power set
Deathstorm, unknown of Khundia Prime, strength, assumes radiation form

Wildfire’s anti-energy blasts obviously affected the dark sisters, they ducked and spun out of their way with furious intent. Ultra Boy was not having as much luck fighting the Daughters of Black Adam though as he found he was unable to switch powers quickly enough – they struck at supersonic speeds that were many dozens of times quicker than his reactions. Both Legionnaires knew that their allies were buried underneath a mountain on the small island and the longer it took for them to free themselves the greater the risk, though they could not take their eyes off the Daughters of Black Adam for a second as the sisters speed was a match for anything the Legionnaires could produce.

It was their Khundian ally who was most affect on their opponents. In a hard radiation form Deathstorm would merge with one of the dark sisters, leaving them writhing in pain for several seconds before he streaked his energy form into the next one.

The five sisters were not stupid and they drew the Legionnaires away from each other and attacked at incredible speeds. Three flung themselves at Wildfire from different directions and despite managing to strike two with his incredible energy bursts one still caught him firmly on the face panel, ripping it open. The resulting explosion knocked the attacking Daughters of Black Adam clear out of the sky even as his containment suit refilled itself as he pulled his anti-energy form together and poured himself back in, grateful that they had not smashed the visor.

“Take that you skanks! Geez, we could have done that at the start...” and with that Wildfire dove towards the three sisters as the fell towards the blood soaked ocean below them. Even as they fell he could see that they were regaining consciousness.

“Grife! What will it take to keep them down?”

Deathstorm had the dark sister on the run. While he could cause them pain the Khundian realized if he wanted to keep his opponent from escaping he may have to remain inside her for longer, possibly killing her. The Legion may not like it, he thought, but he was a Khundian of Warrior Caste and as such it was his right to slay enemies... and in under ten days the secondment was supposed to be over, the Dead Brain would recall him and Gazelle, and their little visit to the United Pathetic would be over... and with that he dove into the fleeing dark sister and allowed his hard radiation form to burn her internal organs as she writhed and screamed in agony.

Jo Nah risked turning on his ultra-strength and swung wildly. He struck his attacker clearly under the chin with a thunderous thud... at the same instant as her blow caught him in the chest rupturing his sternum and piercing a lung with fragments of shattered rib.

Thank again Raz (and IB), plenty of fighting to come as the Daughters of Black Adam get themselves a bit more organized as they realize they may have an enemy in the Legion that they should take seriously.

Wow, the stakes are getting higher and higher! Smart of Mwindaji to find the Ruby of Life. Having Deathstorm, Ultra Boy and Wildfire face off against the Daughters like that is brilliant, shows just how dire the situation is.