Spoiler Warnings: This story paraphrases certain plots from Filmation's "Justice League of America" segment in "The Superman/Aquaman Hour of Adventure" (1967), as well as from the following Hanna Barbera cartoon shows: "The Super Friends" (1973), "The All-New Superfriends Hour" (1977), "Challenge of the Superfriends" (1978), "The World's Greatest Superfriends" (1979), "The Superfriends Lost Episodes" (1981-83), and "Superfriends: The Legendary Super Powers Show" (1984). Please don't read the story before watching those serieses, unless you are willing to have plots given away.
Firestorm and the Wonder Twins quickly responded to a Trouble Alert at the Hall of Justice, and flew out to a warehouse, where an alien invasion had been reported. Suddenly the windows were all covered by sliding metal shields, sealing them inside the warehouse. Then a screen lit up with a sinister face gloating.
"Luthor!" said Jayna, "Then it was you who called us out here."
"Yes," said Lex Luthor, "Using my voice simulator and a face mask, I was able to lure you all into my trap. If you look up, you will see that the entire roof is ringed with my new radiation projectors. Soon you will all suffer a fatal dose and die. Then I'll simply call in the rest of the Superfriends to investigate your long overdue return."
The radiation was turned on, and the Superfriends began to feel strange. Soon the screen would no longer function, cutting off Luthor's two-way means of monitoring the demise of his victims.
"There's no form that either of us can change into, which would enable us to stop or even survive these devices," said Zan.
"Concentrate, Ronald," came the otherwise inaudible voice of Professor Martin Stein to the attentive mind of Firestorm's Ronald Raymond persona, "We must try absorbing the radiation."
Although this manoeuvre not only drained but overloaded the radiation projectors, Firestorm's power had not been fated to cope with such a task, and the effect separated him into Ronald Raymond and Martin Stein, releasing a huge wave of radiation at the Wondertwins.
"The projectors have stopped altogether," said Jayna, "You must have been too much for them. I wish I could have changed into a fly and slipped through the wall before all this started."
Suddenly Jayna turned into a fly.
"Jayna, how did you do that without touching me?" asked Zan.
"I don't know," said Jayna.
"We'd better reform Firestorm and get us out of here, Professor," said Ronald.
"Right," said Martin Stein.
They both concentrated, but nothing happened.
"I'm beginning to understand," said Martin Stein, "When we absorbed the radiation, it reacted with our unique fused body chemistry, as well as with the Wondertwins' method of activating their powers. The radiation transferred the fission capability of Firestorm's body into the Wondertwins. However, their Exxorian bodies have been affected differently. We no longer have the power to fuse into Firestorm. Yet the Wondertwins can activate their powers independently of each other."
"Thank goodness something good came out of this," thought Zan, "There's nothing more insipid than having every adventure with your sister."
"Then I'd better change into something more helpful," said Jayna, "With that radiation gone, it should be safe to do this. Stand back everyone. Shape of a dinosaur!"
Jayna turned into a huge beast, crashed through the walls and roof, and freed her friends. Then she turned into a pteradactly, and flew them all back to the Hall of Justice, just in time to join in a conference, which had already started.
Almost all of the Superfriends were attending a highly contentious meeting at the Hall of Justice.
"We weren't original members of the Justice League of America," said El Dorado.
"We were only advised to join this team by your more recent government liason agents Hanna and Barbera in order to put a multicultural subtext into the Superfriends," said Samurai
"But our cases have become more and more focussed on fighting Superman's and Batman's enemies in Metropolis and Gotham City, leaving us no opportunities to protect our own countries," said Apache Chief.
"So we have decided to leave and form our own team based far from Gotham City," said Black Vulcan.
"All of you?" asked Jayna, who felt she'd really miss them.
"I would prefer to stay with the Superfriends in Gotham," said Rima, "I haven't spent very much time as an active team member. In fact, I've only been involved in three cases so far."
"But you can't just abandon the team and set up elsewhere," said the Flash.
"You seem to believe you have decided that for us," said Apache Chief.
"A good Samurai decides for himself," said Samurai.
"And we have all decided," said El Dorado.
"There seems to be an awful lot of deciding go on," said Hawkman.
"You don't even have a name for yourselves," said Green Lantern, "What are you going to call yourselves in the future?"
"That's obvious," said Black Vulcan, "We'll be known as The Deciders."
"I'd like to go with you," said Batman, "With my financial resources, I could set up a new Batcave in one of your countries, except that we'd call it the Deciders Cave. Robin can inherit the Batcave, and remain at Wayne Manor, as I shouldn't need them anymore."
"Batman and the Deciders," said Samurai, "It has a good sound to it."
"Can Gleek and I join too?" asked Jayna, "My powers are no longer linked to Zan's, which makes us free to be in separate teams."
"You are welcome, Jayna," said El Dorado.
Batman and the Deciders packed their bags and headed for Borneo, where the new team would operate.
"If that's the way things are, there's something I'd like to get off my chest too," said Superman, "When the Justice League of America first started, our original liason agents were Scheimer and Prescott. We had six active members: Hawkman, Green Lantern, Flash, Atom, Aquaman and myself."
"I wasn't that active," said Aquaman, "I only remember being involved for around 30 seconds out of every six minutes of work the team put into a case."
"You were usually busy protecting Atlantis," said Superman, "But since we left the Justice League satellite on automatic orbit and formed the Superfriends, I've spent half my time giving safety tips to kids, making up code words to entertain teenagers, and teaching craft lessons to minors. It's hardly the sought of stuff that warrants the attention of six of the most powerful super heroes on earth."
"I kind of like the personal touch," said Robin.
"Well you probably would," said Aquaman, "When Wonder Dog was around, you sounded just like Shaggy on a case with Scooby Doo. It was all part of Hanna and Barbera's one-tracked idea, that every crime fighting team in America should consist of kids and a dog. Back when Superman and I were in the original Justice League, you and Batman would punch out the villains. Now you just rely on every Bat device under the sun. What's happened to the silver age of action and adventure?"
"We've talked enough," said Superman, "I'm going to relocate the original Justice League on the satellite. The other five original core members are welcome to join me, as they had the experience in operating that way. Will you all come?"
"I'll go," said Flash.
"I too will participate," said Aquaman.
"I designed the teleporters, and I'd like to go too," said Hawkman.
"I'd rather stay with the Superfriends, honey," teased Hawkgirl, "That way your boys club will be just as you remembered it."
"Not at bed time though, Shayera," whispered Hawkman, "The Midway City teleporter on our own roof gets my first maintenance check."
Green Lantern also committed himself to the original Justice League of America.
"I'll let you know shortly," said Atom.
"We have to resign as Firestorm," said Ronald Raymond, "The Wondertwins acquired their separation of powers as a side effect of our run-in with Luthor, which negated Firestorm. It was good working with you all though."
"You should still consider yourselves as honourary members of the Superfriends," said Wonder Woman, "Keep your communicators, in case you ever need our emergency assistance."
When the meeting was over, Green Lantern flew the Flash to the satellite. Superman went under his own power, and Hawkman flew up in the Hawkship, to reactivate the teleporters.
Atom went to Wonder Woman's quarters in the Hall of Justice, and flew up onto her shoulder.
"Could I talk to you about whether I should go back to the Justice League or stay with the Superfriends?" asked Atom.
"Yes, but I'm not sure what advice I could give," said Wonder Woman.
"It's not like that," said Atom, and pulled his hood off, so that the face mask hung behind his head, "I worked closely with you on the cable car rescue, and I really liked riding on your shoulder, when we went time travelling in the elevator to nowhere. I think you're very beautiful, Wonder Woman."
Wonder Woman smiled, blushing at his flattery, and brought her relatively huge lips towards his tiny exposed face and gave him a lengthy passionate kiss. It went on for over a minute.
"You're very sweet to approach me with this in such a G rated environment," she said, "But there's someone else."
"Steve Trevor," thought Atom, "I wondered whether they were just work mates or lovers. Now I know for sure."
Atom reported to the Ivy Town teleporter soon afterwards, and rejoined the original Justice League of America.
In the meantime, Hawkgirl, Rima, Wonder Woman, Zan and Robin remained with the Superfriends at the Hall of Justice.
"We really need new members," said Zan.
"Not really," said Robin, "The Justice League of America can still handle the cosmic emergencies, just like they used to. Batman and the Deciders will do their bit. It gives our Superfriends team a chance to concentrate on the smaller more localised cases in Gotham and surrounding areas."
"There are three former members we could approach for such a line-up," said Wonder Woman.
"Who?" asked Rima, "I know of no other Superfriends."
"They weren't so much Superfriends as Super Friends," said Wonder Woman, "They left just before you joined us."
"Wendy, Marvin and Wonderdog!" said Robin, "I'll call them up and see what can be done."
Robin telephoned Marvin and asked if the three original members would like to rejoin the team.
"I'd love to come back," said Marvin, "But Wonder Dog struck up a friendship with another canine super hero who (Would you believe) was actually called Dog Wonder? Wendy got the hots for his owner (who reminded her of Batman, who was never interested in such pursuits with her). There's been merriment at the Falcon's Lair ever since. He's fitted her out with a Falcon Girl costume, and trained her to use her own set of gadgets. So your only returning addition to the Superfriends would have to be me."
Hawkman was flying the Hawkship on a space patrol near earth, when he got an emergency call from Steve Trevor, who was testing a new shuttle. Hawkman came to the rescue, to find Steve under attack from aliens intent on invading earth. Hawkman and Steve fought bravely, but both died in the attack. Later, the aliens drew closer to earth, bringing the Justice League of America to bear on them.
"Surrender and leave earth, or we will defeat you," said Superman.
"We have already destroyed your Hawkman and the one called Trevor," said the aliens, speaking in a language that Green Lantern had picked up in his travels, "Now we will remove earth's best defence too."
However, the combined might of the remaining Justice Leaguers was too much, and all of their ships were destroyed, and the surviving aliens taken to a prison on another planet.
The Superfriends and Justice League agreed to hold a combined funeral service for both of them.
In the weeks ahead the Atom was reluctant to make any new approaches to Wonder Woman so soon after the death of Steve Trevor, as it would have shown an insensitivity. One day he was visiting Hawkman's grave site, when Hawkgirl showed up too.
"You were closer to Katar than the others, weren't you?" she asked.
"Yes."
"Would you like to come back to my apartment in Midway City?" she said, "We could swap old Hawkman stories."
He accepted. Hawkgirl flew him in through the apartment window unnoticed, and served him a drink.
After the Atom had told her of various Justice League adventures with Hawkman, and Hawkgirl had told him of her adventures with him on Thanagar, and their early courting days and marriage, Atom thought of Wonder Woman again.
"Losing Steve Trevor hasn't put me in the best of positions either," he said, finding that he liked to confide in Hawkgirl.
"I never knew that you and the Colonel were even acquainted," said Hawkgirl.
"We weren't," said the Atom, "But just after the Superfriends split into the three new groups, I briefly tried courting Wonder Woman."
He poured his heart out to her.
"I'm not grieving in the same way as you, but I'm here if you need a shoulder to cry on," said the Atom.
"It might soak you," said Hawkgirl, "But I don't want to grieve forever. We're not in the public eye at the moment. Would you mind if we took off our masks and costumes?"
"I don't have anything fashionable in size small," said Atom, "But I trust you with my identity."
He removed his mask, and most of his costume. Hawkgirl went into another room and came back a dazzling sight. She now stood before him as a tall woman in a long dress, with her lovely red mane of hair down and no wings, boots or mask to hide her beauty.
"Hawkgirl! You were wasted behind that mask!" said the Atom, "Who is Wonder Woman anyway?"
"Call me Shayera," she said.
"I'm Ray, to beautiful widows at least," said the Atom, looking up at her in admiration.
Shayera reached down, picked up Ray and kissed him.
Their courtship was well under way.
Ronald Raymond was on his way out of the high school, when a tall dark haired woman offered him a lift.
"Would you like to stop for a soda on the way?" she invited.
The woman was much older than him and this only made the offer more appealing. He had been infatuated with Wonder Woman for a long time, but had known nothing of the Atom's unsuccessful advances. Ronald had learned of the Amazon's attachment to Steve Trevor some months after Firestorm's pivotal involvement in rescuing Wonder Woman from Darkseid twice in the same adventure that had led to his joining the Superfriends.
They went to a café and enjoyed sodas together, and then the woman drove him again, until she reached her own place, not his.
"Would you like to come inside? It's Friday afternoon," she invited.
Ronald accepted.
"Do you have anyone special in your heart?" she asked.
"There was one woman I've worked with a lot in the past, but I'm no longer qualified to work with her anyway. She was very attached to someone who recently passed away. I think she merely saw me as a youthful friend. In any case, I've learned to live with my unrequited affections. What about yourself?" asked Ronald.
The woman stood in the centre of the room, and removed the hairpiece, which held her hair up at the back. She also took off her glasses, and he saw that the woman wearing the long dark blue dress was in fact Wonder Woman!
"I thought it had been a mere teenage crush that came and went quickly," she said, "But I never forgot the two times you saved my life, and if it weren't for Steve, I'd have responded sooner. Can you appreciate that?"
"Can I? So you really don't mind me being ten years younger than you?" asked Ronald, "I don't even have my super powers anymore."
"I didn't invite them out for sodas, and you didn't respond to my lasso and amazon strength," said Wonder Woman, "And I'm really 20 years older than you, but even away from Paradise Island, I age slower than the people of man's world. I think it could work out quite well in the decades to come."
"I love you, Diana."
Ronald Raymond embraced Wonder Woman and kissed her, feeling her arms around his body, and his own pressed tightly against hers. The loss of his powers, the reduction in the Superfriends membership and the return to his typical teenager's high school life were not disappointments at all now. He was the happiest boy alive.