I don't know about the rest of you, but the relationship between Hooded Justice and Captain Metropolis had always charmed me completely. I loved them both dearly, and I was sad that their stories had to end so abruptly.
But after reading some outside speculation... Well, this was the result.
Enjoy!
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A Hero's Fate:
The Mystery of Hooded Justice and Captain Metropolis
Hooded Justice: Disappeared.
Captain Metropolis: Decapitated in a car accident.
The headlines were clear. But there was still speculation in the stories of the two heroes. Was Rolf Muller really the Hooded justice? Was the dead body of Captain Metropolis really the dead body of Captain Metropolis?
It was 1985.
As Dan and Laurie caught up on days past, two men sat in the foreground, their hands touching lightly as the younger one looked fondly upon the older. They had been through so much to get to that point, and it was a beautiful life; now that they were there.
A taxi gathered them up and brought them to the older's apartment, where they laid in bed together, happy, content, drifting on a cloud of reality in ways that humans never thought possible. They loved each other.
It was 1974.
News of Captain Metropolis's death never made big news. The city of New York held a memorial service for the superhero whose body was too torn up to make a good enough corpse. Old army buddies showed up to pay their last respects to their old comrade. The day was bright and sunny, the stone angels of the graveyard shimmering with drops of morning dew. Despite the sad gathering, the day was happy.
The dead walked that day. The dead in all his glory, all his splendor, walked on the beaches of Florida, a lemonade in his left hand and his lover in his right. Nothing could be better than that moment for him.
Nothing.
It was 1963.
Captain Metropolis reminds himself that it will all be worth it in the end as he walked down the street, a letter addressed to "Nelson Gardner" in his hand. Despite not being in costume, he still considered himself to be a superhero, no matter the clothing. The superhero's tears had darkened the single page.
"Can't make it to dinner. Back in hiding, don't try to find me. I'll find you when the time is right."
Again, he reminded himself that it would all work out.
It was 1954.
The plan was set. No one could know. Not even the one he cared about most. Nor the one he had feigned to love for so long, that Jupiter woman, now long gone from the crime-fighting scene. It would be another year until he could put it into action, but the plan was set.
He would find the one he cared about most after he had killed the man who was the Hooded Justice.
It was 1945.
None of the Minutemen ever questioned the bruises that Captain Metropolis always sported. They all had their own bruises to worry about. But unlike the others, who were bruised in the heat of battle, Nelson was bruised by another kind of battle, another kind of heat. He held onto those bruises as if they were token roses, going so far as to rub them in, making them deeper, more noticeable, kept longer.
Hooded Justice looked on those bruises and thought something that could have been "Love".
It was 1939.
The first outing of the Minutemen pairings. Silhouette and Silk Specter, Dollar Bill and Nite Owl, Mothman and The Comedian, and Captain Metropolis and Hooded Justice.
The last two had nothing to talk about for the majority of their time out. Captain Metropolis had all but lost his tongue as he walked next to this behemoth of a man, the Hooded Justice, who didn't seem to pay the boy any mind.
But that soon changed.
After tying up a pair of arsonists to a fire hydrant, Hooded Justice told Captain Metropolis that he did a good job, and that he was a decent crime fighter. Under the mask, Nelson's face turned red.
Captain Metropolis smiled, thanking Justice and returning the comment.
And so began the mystery of Hooded Justice and Captain Metropolis.