LSH: THE EVIL DR REGULUS

By Bruce Wayne

Based on the plot in Adventure Comics 348 "Target: 21 Legionnaires"
by Jim Shooter

Disclaimer: The characters that appear in this story belong to DC Comics.
I am writing this for pleasure, and sharing it with friends. I am, in no
way, getting paid for it.



CHAPTER 3 - THE BIG SHOW


It was what they once called a "big splash" of a charity benefit
show at the Metropolis Arena. About ten-thousand people filled the seats
of the large indoor facility.

Most of those attending were screaming teenagers who came to see
not only members of the Legion of Super-Heroes but some of the biggest
musical acts in the galaxy. Among those groups were the ever popular Herman
and the Headfish from the planet Paro. But the headliners were a group of
nine yellow-skinned humanoids called Lotus Fruit from Rojun.

The music, or what some would call noise, was deafening. It wasn't
just the music that contributed to the noise level but it was the screaming
fans who were in and out of their seats.

Eventually Lotus Fruit finished their last number and they left the
massive stage. Much to the relief of some the older people in the arena whose
ears were ringing.

The crowd quieted down some and suddenly the lights were turned off.
The arena was totally dark. Over the speakers, the pre-recorded music of a
song that was nearly 1,000 years old began to play. Anyone who was
knowledgeable in classical music immediately recognized the song as
2001: A Space Odyssey with its blaring horns and beating drums.

As the song began to hit a high note, the entire arena was bathed
in a blast of brilliant light that caused many in their seats to scream
and cover their eyes. Sun Boy of the Legion of Super-Heroes stood on the
stage with a large smile on his face.

The lights were turned back up and when many of the teenage girls
in the audience saw Dirk Morgna, they began to scream louder. A couple even
fainted. Sun Boy held his two arms out to his sides and his red-gloved hands
turned into flame. He took a deep bow to acknowledge the applause and
screams.

A moment later, Brainiac 5 strode onto the stage, easily recognizable
by being blonde-haired and green-skinned in his customary purple uniform with
the yellow utility belt. "Brainy," as just about everyone called him was from
the planet Colu. The best way to describe Brainiac 5's superior intellect is
to say that on the accepted galactic intelligence scale, the average person
on Earth has a sixth-level intellect. The average Coluan is a ten. Brainiac
5 is rated at twelve.

His real name was Querl Dox and he inherited his intellect from
his well-known family bloodline that dated back a thousand years to the
20th century. The use of the term "Brainiac" is actually an honored title
on Colu in which significant intellectual accomplishment was rewarded.
Querl became only the fifth person to earn the title, and he did so by
the age of twelve, another incredible accomplishment.

Querl traveled to Earth to do research at the Time Institute, where
he invented the famous Time Bubble, which became the primary mode of time
travel in the 30th century. When he encountered the Legion -- he decided
that the club of super-heroes was a suitable place for his talents. Besides,
he also enjoyed adventure. He applied and was accepted for Legion membership
with Supergirl.

Even though he might not have the physical attributes of a Mon-El
or Superboy, nor the fighting skills of a Karate Kid, or the power projection
of a Lightning Lad, Brainiac 5 was known to be one of the most important and
vital members of the group. His brain had gotten them out of countless jams
over the years.

Brainiac 5 invented and improved upon many devices. He invented
a force-field belt. He also later developed the Legion's flight rings that
allowed all the members who wore them to fly.

Right now, Brainy was wired for sound so that everyone in the
audience could hear him as he explained what was going to happen.

"Thank you," he said. "On behalf of the members of the Legion of
Super-Heroes, we are honored to be here at the Metropolis Arena to help
benefit the Inter-Stellar Orphanage. We hope that in the next few minutes
we will be able to entertain you with a demonstration of some of our powers."

"First, I'd like to introduce to you our newly elected leader ...
Invisible Kid." The audience gasped when Lyle Norg appeared suddenly and
mysteriously beside Brainiac 5. The crowd applauded.

"Thanks, Brainy," Lyle said as he took over as master of cermonies.
"Many of you, I'm sure, recognized Sun Boy ..." A few thousand girls
screamed at the mention of his name. Invisible Kid waited until the
noise died down. "... Sun Boy lit up the arena with a demonstration
of his interesting ability to produce brilliant light. Sun Boy is also
able to project great amounts of heat. Suffice it to say, he could, if
he wished, make things pretty hot ..." The girls screamed again.
"... around here. But it seems they already are," he added with
a smile.

Lyle paused and then went on, "For those of you who don't know my
long-time friend beside me, this is Brainiac 5." There was a loud applause
but not quite the hysterical screaming that Sun Boy received from the
females in the audience.

As the applause began to quiet down, a blue and red blur flew in
over the crowd from off-stage. Invisible Kid's voice rose, "Look! Up in
the air! It's not a bird or a racing air-car, its ..." The screams were
drowining out Lyle's voice. "... Superboy!"

The screaming and applause was deafening. A smiling Superboy landed
next to Brainy and raised his hand in hello to acknowledge the tremendous
reception.

The crowd finally hushed and Invisible Kid turned to the Boy of
Steel and asked, "Superboy, could you please give us a demonstration of
your strength?"

Teenage girls in the audience squealed in anticipation. Superboy
visibly nodded his head up and down and in a flash flew outside the arena
and returned with a large steel ingot that was square in shape.

Brainy explained, "What Superboy is easily carrying is a solid ingot
made of steel that weighs at least three tons or 6,000 pounds." There was an
audiable gasp heard from the audience.

Superboy held the block of steel over his head and landed on the
stage. At that moment, seemingly out of nowhere, a wraith-like figure all
in white except for her glossy, shoulder-length black hair appeared on the
opposite end of the stage. Another gasp was heard from the amazed crowd.

"Meet Phantom Girl!" Lyle said in introduction. Again, there was
loud applause and even some wolf-whistles from the admiring males in the
audience.

The very attractive Tinya Wazzo was dressed in a body-hugging white
uniform with a black letter "P" on her chest. She also wore white boots,
gloves and long cape.

Invisible Kid told the audience, "Phantom Girl is from the planet
Bgztl, which is a world from Earth's fourth-dimension known as the buffer
zone. Every inhabitant of the planet is able, to some extent, to mentally
shift part of his or her bodily mass into this dimension, enabling that
Bgztlr to pass through solid objects or, in this case, let solid objects
pass through THEM!"

Superboy then heaved the mighty object above his head directly at
Tinya, who never flinched. Suddenly, the people in the audience could barely
see the outline of the girl on stage as her body shifted out of the third
dimension and into the fourth. Three tons of solid steel passed right through
the outline of Phantom Girl on the stage.

The crowd gasped as the ingot continued on its flight across the
stage and suddenly stopped in mid-air with no one touching it. The audience
was bewildered. What could stop a 6,000 pound object in mid-air?

When a dark-haired figure in pink walked out onto the stage
with raised hands that was projecting a super-strong magnetic field
that controlled the block of steel, more applause and screams erupted.

"Cosmic Boy!" was all Lyle had to say. It seemed like there were
invisible strings controlling the three tons of iron. Rokk Krinn had magnetic
ability, like all the people on his home planet of Braal. However, Rokk was a
bit different. He had been the magno-ball champ of Braal, which meant that
not only was his power stronger than most Braalians, but he also had
tremendous skill in the control of his power.

Rokk's uniform was mostly pink, with white and black. Four metallic
disks went across his upper chest in sort of a U-shape.

While Rokk made the block of steel do some amazing stunts in mid-
air, making it do twists and all sorts of other maneuvers, Brainiac 5
explained, "Cosmic Boy is one of the three founding members of the Legion.
He was also our first leader."

Next to walk on stage was a brown-haired figure in green and yellow.
He waved to the crowd as Invisible Kid introduced: "The walking skyscraper,
Colossal Boy!"

Once again the crowd went wild as Gim Allon looked up to see what
manuevers Cosmic Boy was putting the steel block through. As his code-name
implied, Colossal Boy started to grow taller and kept growing to an amazing
thirty feet, about as tall as a three-story building.

With just a few steps, Gim walked across the stage that seemed to
bend under his weight. Along with being taller, Colossal Boy also had the
strength of a being as huge as he was.

As though it was moving in the air with the assistance of an
invisible hand, Cosmic Boy gently passed the 6,000 pound chunk of steel
to the awaiting hands of the teen giant.

Gim grabbed the block from the air and then started tossing it
around as easily as a child would a toy block. First, he tossed it from
his right hand to his left and then back again.

The audience was awed by the size and strength of Colossal Boy.
Everytime Gim tossed the ingot from one hand to the other, a gasp and
laughter was heard from the crowd. They applauded Colossal Boy warmly.

Sun Boy walked back on stage and the girls screamed again. He
was on the opposite side from Gim and they looked at one another. Dirk
just nodded and Colossal Boy heaved the massive block of steel at Sun
Boy.

The girls in the audience screamed in horror! Three tons of
steel were aimed at the boy of their fantasies. As the ingot reached
half way to Dirk, he thrust his arms out and a powerful blast of heat
and fire enveloped the block and in a brilliant, fiery flash the steel
block was gone. Vaporized by the impressive power of Sun Boy.

The prayers of a few thousand females in the audience were
answered as Dirk Morgna was unscathed by what they thought was the
callous toss in jest at the red-headed Sun Boy. How dare Colossal
Boy put their idol in danger!

Dirk and Gim both smiled and started to approach each other
to shake hands. That's when, suddenly, a tremendous jolt knocked them
to the ground.

The screams from the auidence were now really hysterical. Was
this part of the show? The Legionnaires knew it was not. The entire
building shook with violence. The people in their seats swayed back
and forth from the force of the tremor.

Anyone who was standing was knocked to the floor. Sun Boy was
particularly caught off guard. His was swept off his feet as though
someone had sliced through his legs. His feet were uplifted with such
force that he had no time to react and his head struck the concrete
and wooden stage very hard.

As the frightened screams continued, Sun Boy laid on the floor,
unmoving. No one knowing if he was either unconscious or dead.



TO BE CONTINUED ....


***

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