AFTERMATH: RETURN OF THE QUEEN by BillA1
Copyright March 2006
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Aftermath: Return of the Queen
A Justice League Unlimited - R 'Verse Story
by BillA1
Copyright March 2006
Rating: (PG)
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Disclaimer: The characters Batman, Green Lantern, Hawkgirl, Wonder Woman, Martian Manhunter, Superman & Flash and their respective secret identities are all owned by DC Comics. Static is owned by Milestone. This story is intended for my own pleasure and is not for profit. It has been posted to this site for others to read. Places and characters not own by DC Comics are my own creation. This story is based on characters from the animated Justice League series episode: "Destroyer" written Dwayne McDuffie. The AFTERMATH stories are a collection of R 'Verse tales set after "Destroyer" and before the Batman Beyond time period. "The R 'Verse" is copyright 2006. A huge shout out of thanks to Merlin Missy for her beta on this story.
Synopsis: Shayera discovers a pattern to destiny and to her life. A John /Shayera /Rex futurefic. Spoilers up through "Destroyer." A sequel to AFTERMATH: Night of the Paladin.
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Chapter One
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Can you teach me about tomorrow
And all the pain and sorrow running free?
'Cause tomorrow's just another day
And I don't believe in time – (Time - M. Bryan, D. Rucker, D. Felber & J. Sonnefield)
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A warm shower and ten hours of sleep and he'd probably feel human again. From Oa, it was nine hours to Rigel Nine and fourteen hours to Earth. Stewart was tired, but his trip was nearly over. He'd been traveling in space for almost twenty-four hours, stopping only on Oa to recharge his ring.
He'd passed the Green Lantern final test as required by his new trainer, Galtre-Re, who assured Stewart that he could stay on Earth for up to a year before reporting to his new assignment in Sector 2112.
Stewart pressed his communicator earpiece. "Diana, John here. Were you able to do that favor for me?"
There was a short silence before Diana answered. "I did. Where are you?" She sounds angry.
"About an hour from Earth," he answered. "What's up?"
"Listen carefully," she said. Her tone was curt, her speech clipped. "We need to meet in one hour at the last place you saw Mason. Wear civilian clothes and dark glasses. One hour. Diana out!"
What now? The last place he saw Rex Mason was at an abandoned foundry in Metropolis thirty-three years ago. That was where Mace was killed, and where he and Shayera were transported to the future. With everything else going on in his life in the last three days, John hadn't been back to the battle site and he wasn't sure he was prepared to visit the place of Rex's death, not yet.
Still, it must be important if Diana wanted to meet him there. He made his mind up: he'd do the Marine thing and tough it out.
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Stewart had followed Diana's directions and changed into civilian clothes, complete with dark glasses, when he arrived. He was sure he was in the right spot, but there was no foundry here, not anymore. Instead, there a small park with grass, park benches and trees. He was about to leave, convinced that he was in the wrong spot, when he noticed a large rock next to a tree ringed by benches. He went around to the other side of the rock and saw a large, weathered bronze plaque:
On this spot, the Justice League lost three members.
They will be truly missed.
John Stewart (Green Lantern)
Shayera Hol (formerly Hawkgirl)
Rex Mason (Metamorpho) /center
Stewart was stunned. A memorial site? They made this into a memorial. Whatever thoughts he'd tried to gather were interrupted by Diana's voice behind him. "It was a very moving memorial and dedication ceremony."
Stewart turned and stared into the face of a tall, blonde-haired woman, wearing very large dark glasses, a scarf and a tan trenchcoat. Stewart looked behind her and saw parked on the road a small red sports car. What the? "Diana?"
She put a finger to her lips. "Shhhh." It was Diana.
"It's pretty here," she said, rubbing her fingers around the edge of the plaque. "You know, Bruce paid for all of this. He bought the buildings and had them all torn down and had the park put in. Even put in a couple of swing sets at the end of the walkway." She paused. "He was very disturbed about your deaths."
Stewart took a deep breath. He looked at her as she stared at the plaque. "I'll have to thank him for this, thank him for Mace." He was silent for a moment before asking, "What's this all about? Why the hush-hush?"
She continued to stare at the monument and said in a low tone. "All comm is taped and later analyzed to make sure that the signal has not been tampered with. I didn't want there to be an audio record of what I have to say."
"Okay," Stewart said slowly. So why couldn't I just meet you in the Watchtower cafeteria?
She took his arm. "Walk with me."
Stewart's eyes widened as he looked down at her arm interlocked with his. This is Diana? Man, people sure do change after thirty years.
They started walking down the park path. "I'm giving our friend a ship that will be ready in a week," Diana said, almost in a whisper. "She agreed to stay long enough to get it."
Our friend? Oh, Shayera . "Good. At least she's not running off." Not before I talk to her again.
"I told her of the Protocol,"Diana continued. Stewart stopped for a half second, but was pulled along by Diana"Keep walking," Diana said sternly. "She needed to know and said she will start wearing a mask again." Diana paused and then added, "I don't know if she'll stay after she gets the ship. How'd you make out with your reassignment?"
Her question about his assignment surprised him. It wasn't the question, but the actual concern in her tone that caught him off guard. "I'll be here about six weeks, eight at the most," he answered, "then I'm going to the cesspool of the universe, sector 2112."
"I'm sorry about the new assignment." She sounded sincere.
"So am I," he answered. "So why couldn't you tell me all of this at the Metro Tower or the Watchtower?"
"I wanted to see you before you came back to either one of those places, before others saw you and realized that John Stewart was back."
They stopped walking. She frowned as she looked at him. "The medical staff can trusted to keep quiet, but if more people see you, if word gets out about you returning after thirty years, people will soon figure out who she is. I don't think we want that. This is her opportunity to have a clean start."
"What are you saying?" Stewart gasped. "You're not saying that if I stay here, I should wear a mask? That I have to wear a mask?" Not that I'm staying long, but still….
"Well, the glasses only seem to work for Clark, so yes, you'll need a mask," she answered as they started walking again. Stewart glanced at her in time to see a faint smile on her face.
He frowned. "I haven't worn a mask in years. I didn't do well with a secret identity." He knew he sounded bitter, but he didn't care. He was still resentful about being "outed" the way he was.
"And what would I call myself for a secret identity if I can't use John Stewart?" he added.
They'd reached the end of the park walkway, turned around and headed back. "I know this is hard on you," she offered, "but if you don't do it, she'll certainly be compromised sooner rather than later. I know you'll think of something."
"Is that the reason for all of this secret squirrel stuff and the car?" He waved his free arm in a wide arc in front of him.
Diana nodded. "The car is rented under a false name. I wanted to see you, but everything has changed so much in thirty odd years. I needed a place that would be known to you but away from everything so we could talk." She shrugged her shoulders. "The wig? Well, it comes in handy sometimes."
Hmmm. Stewart's frown deepened. "Well, all this spy stuff is no good if she calls herself Sha ... by her old name, is it?"
"She changed her name."
"To what?" he exclaimed. Back to Hawkgirl? Hawkwoman?
Diana stopped and said softly. "She's calling herself 'Warhawk.'"
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"This isn't going to work. The color is all wrong," Shayera said to herself aloud.
She stood in front of a full-length mirror in her room. She was dressed from her neck to her feet in a black bodysuit. No skin was exposed anywhere on her body except her head. She'd retrieved her possessions, such as they were, from the museum. The museum had only kept her Thanagarian items. Any Earth clothing she owned had been given to charity as an anonymous donation years ago.
Fortunately, Paran Dul's locker, complete with her clothing, was also part of the display along with her helmet and armor. Those two items were what Shayera really wanted.
She shook her head. The helmet fit, but its white color against the black body suit and the gold-colored armor made her look horrible she thought. She took the helmet and armor off and tossed them on the bed.
She could change the color of the helmet easily, but the color of the armor was another matter. That golden armor would be too easily recognized as Thanagarian military equipment and she didn't want her new identity to have any obvious links to the military.
If I could only change the armor color without affecting the metal itself.
She pressed her communicator earpiece. "J'onn, this is … Warhawk. I need your assistance. When can you see me?"
J'onn was silent for a moment before finally answering. "I can be there in an hour ... Warhawk."
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Stewart watched Diana drive off. He'd walked this small park with her, but only now had a chance to really take in what a beautiful spot it was. The grape hyacinths were in full bloom, making the park breathtaking. Stewart noted that this spot was very similar to the small garden surrounding the Metro Tower. They couldn't have found a prettier spot for your memorial, Mace.
He sat down on a bench. A mask. He'd have to wear a mask again to avoid compromising Shayera, but what type of mask should it be? He considered and immediately dismissed the mask he'd worn when he'd temporarily been a kid again. Then John smiled to himself. Galtre-Re's mask would be perfect. It was a common practice for Lanterns to adopt the costume of their trainers as well as their oaths. He wouldn't change the oath he got from Katma, but he could change his costume.
He got up and walked to a small cluster of trees. He ringed a uniform on himself, including a mask that looked just like Galtre-Re's. He leaped into the air and headed for the Watchtower.
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Saying 'no' to a founding member was something one didn't do often. So when J'onn J'onzz asked Static to go to the guest quarters and see someone named 'Warhawk,' Virgil agreed without voicing a single question, though several came to mind.
He'd never heard of this Warhawk before and Virgil had been in the League a long time, long enough in fact that he had a permanent seat on the rotating advisory committee and knew all the members and those applying for membership. Just to be sure, he checked the computer records and confirmed for himself: no Warhawk, either as a member or with membership pending.
He knocked on the door of the quarters.
"Just a moment," a woman's voice answered. Warhawk's a woman A few moments later, the door opened and he stood before a winged woman dressed in black and wearing a white helmet.
He tried not to startle or stare, but Virgil hadn't seen a Thanagarian since he was a kid, and the only one he'd known had died before he'd graduated high school. The frowning woman in the doorway looked a bit like Hawkgirl, though he chalked that up to his problem with telling a bunch of people apart who all wore similar masks and identical belligerent expressions.
He cleared his throat. "J'onn asked me to stop by. He said you needed my help with something."
"Won't you come in," the woman said.
Virgil stepped inside and quickly looked around the room. The guest quarters were smaller than those for regular League members, and she had clothing on the bed and on the floor. If his dad were alive, he'd yell at her and tell her to clean her room. He turned and faced Warhawk, who was leaning against the door. "I'm glad to see you," she said.
Virgil's eyes widened for a moment. Okay. Why
"I don't think we've met before," he said offering his hand. "My name is Static."
"Static, we've met before." As she removed her helmet, she added, "My name is Warhawk and I need your help."
Holy Smokes
"Hawkgirl!" Virgil stammered. "Shayera. We thought you were dead! I mean, everyone said, and I watched it all on TV." But that had been years ago, and she looked not a day older.
Warhawk nodded and moved to the middle of the room, facing him. "It's a long story and I'll tell it to you over lunch someday. But Static, I'm trusting you with this secret. Besides the founding members, you're the only one who knows who I am or that I'm back. And we need to keep it like that. Can I count on you?"
Virgil smiled. "You know you can depend on me and you can call me Virgil." He paused, glancing away before looking at her again. "Green Lantern was reported dead at the same time ... did he ... Is he back too?"
Warhawk smiled briefly then frowned. "He's back too, but I haven't seen him for several days. He was supposed to be reassigned, but I don't know where." When he knew her before, he'd been a teenager, and he wouldn't have thought anything about how she'd said that, but he was older now and he noted the sadness in her voice.
Virgil knew he was grinning like an idiot, but he didn't care. John Stewart was his hero when he was growing up and to maybe have a chance to work with him was a dream come true. "Well, I'm just glad you're okay," Virgil said. "Both of you. Now, what can I do for you, Warhawk?"
She pointed to a piece of gold-colored armor on the bed. "Virgil, I need your help plating some Nth metal armor." She paused and added, "And you can call me Shayera."
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The communications room had changed significantly since the last time he was in it. To John, he was in this room only a couple of days ago, but to the rest of the world, thirty-three years had passed since he was last here.
Stewart, in his new costume and mask, had found Flash in the cafeteria. Wally was always in the cafeteria. Wally was all smiles as Stewart explained what he wanted to do and that his access codes didn't work anymore. Wally agreed to help and led Stewart back to the comm room.
"You know, you don't look too bad in that outfit," Wally said as Stewart took a seat in front of the large communications console. "The beard doesn't go with the mask, but you look sharp otherwise."
"Hmmm," Stewart said as he stroked his beard in thought. He watched Wally rapidly press a series of buttons in front of him.
Wally glanced back at Stewart and then to the comm monitor before asking, "Are you ready?"
Stewart nodded. I've re-lived this moment for the last two nights. "I'm as ready as I'm ever going to be," he answered, flashing a quick smile. "Hook me up."
Wally gave the handset to Stewart and pressed a green button. "Push this button when you are ready to disconnect," Wally said as he pointed to a red button of the console. As Stewart put the headset on, Wally turned and walked to the door. "Good luck," he said as he closed it behind him. Stewart sensed the unspoken, i "You'll need it."
He could hear the phone ringing in the earpiece and then a click-over.
A man's voice answered, "Allô?"
Stewart took a deep breath. He silently ran through what he'd mentally rehearsed for days.
"Hello. May I speak to Mari?" So far, so good.
"Ah, English," the man said. "Hold on. Mari, it's for you. They speak English."
He could hear her muffled voice in the background and he sighed loudly as she said, "Hello?" Her voice hadn't changed over the years and he could feel his heart rate increasing.
"Hi, Mari. It's John."
There was silence for a moment before she answered, "John? John who?"
The moment of truth. He tried to put a smile in his voice. "John Stewart." He added as if almost an afterthought, "I'm alive."
In rapid succession, she said, "John Stewart? Boo?" Then he heard a clunk as the phone hit something. The wall? The floor
He could hear a man repeatedly call Mari's name in the background. Suddenly, the man spoke into the phone. "Hello? Hello? Are you there?"
"Yes," John answered. "I'm here. Is everything okay?"
"I don't know," the man answered. "This is Mari's husband and she just fainted. I need you to get off the line so I can call for help."
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