DC Comics Presents: Killing Roy Harper
Chapter 15: Dawnstar and Super-Squirrel
By: Christopher W. Blaine
e-mail: darth_yoshi@yahoo.com
DISCLAIMER: Dawnstar™, Super-Squirrel™ and all other related characters and situations found in this story are ©2002 by DC Comics Inc. and are used herein without permission for fan-related, non-profit entertainment purposes only. This original work of fiction is ©2002 by Christopher W. Blaine and may not be reproduced in part or as a whole without the express permission of the author.
"These readings have me concerned," the Rodent of Steel commented from behind Batmouse. The Darkmite Detective nodded slowly and adjusted some of the controls for the Elephantom Zone viewer.
Wonder Wabbit came in, bringing Super-Squirrel a cup of coffee. The hint of hazelnut in the air caused him to turn and regard her. "You look lovely today, Diana," he said, his buckteeth just catching the light.
She raised an eyebrow and handed him his coffee. "Don't believe everything you here about rabbits and multiplying," she joked. Batmouse rolled his eyes, wishing he had stayed at home instead of coming here to the Just'a Lotta Animals headquarters on the moon.
"If you two could quit acting like its mating season and concentrate on the problem at hand," he said in a dark voice. "Something is eating away at the dimensional barrier that separates the Elephantom Zone from the Phantom Zone!"
"Isn't that related to those funny looking mammals?" Wonder Wabbit asked. She shivered. "I've heard stories about them…"
"Been talking to Captain Carrot via the transdimensional phone again?" Super-Squirrel asked, slightly peeved. The Zoo Crew, headed by Captain Carrot, was located in an adjacent dimension. There, the JLA was nothing more than comic book characters. Carrot and his band were decent enough do-gooders, but the fact that he was a rabbit and therefore a more suitable mate for her…
"Maybe; not that it is any of your business!" she snapped back. "I am princess, I'll talk to whomever I wish."
Batmouse reached into his bowl of cheese and grabbed a few chunks. The mild Swiss calmed his stomach. "Again…can we deal with the problem at hand?"
"I say we launch a strike mission immediately!" Green Lambkin announced as he phased through the headquarters wall. "This is only going to cause disorder and my duty is to bring order to the galaxy! We cannot rest…"
"Shut up," Batmouse groused. "You're late for monitor duty again, flyboy."
The Sheep without Fear blushed and Batmouse noted the lipstick on his wool, just above where his tunic started. While he possessed the most powerful weapon in the galaxy, the Green Lambkin was also a helpless romantic, spending most of his free time wooing his employer, Carol Ferret. "I'm sorry, Batmouse…"
"Don't apologize to me; you were supposed to relieve the Crash an hour ago. He's going through your room right now, looking for something to destroy. You know how he can't abide by tardiness." Batmouse chuckled and reached for some more cheese. He loved it when his teammates argued; it gave him a chance to gauge their weaknesses.
"I guess I better go relieve him," the Emerald Lambinator said, running out of the monitor room.
"You shouldn't do such things to him," Wonder Wabbit said behind a laugh.
"He shouldn't be late, then," Batmouse responded. He then turned around in the chair and Super-Squirrel held up a paw.
"I'll go take a look," he volunteered. "We'll strap a transporter pad to my shoulder so that I can get out of there once I handle the problem." He flexed his upper bicep. "I think right there, don't you, Princess?"
Batmouse reached for even more cheese, watching in fascination the workings of the Kryptonian's ego. Perhaps it was an alien thing, or maybe all squirrels were nuts. Wonder Wabbit, not impressed, went over to a drawer and pulled out a device that she then affixed to the Squirrel of Steel's arm. "The Blue Beetle designed this," she explained, "so expect something disgusting to happen when you activate it."
"We never should have left the Lotta in the hands of second-rate losers," Batmouse said as he turned to adjust the monitor to the transporter's frequency.
"Says the mouse who invited the Hentress, Gotham City's poster child for what not to be when a super-hero," Super-Squirrel shot back.
"Oh, and I suppose nepotism is alright. I seem to remember our illustrious chairman trying to get Super-Squirrel-Girl and Super-Squirrel-Boy into the group on several occasions," Wonder Wabbit said with a smile.
Super-Squirrel slowly picked up his coffee cup and drank it down. "Who wants to shoot me into the Zone?"
Batmouse stood up. "Please, let me," he said, a large grin on his face.
Super-Squirrel focused his telescopic vision on the area of disturbance and began flying towards it. Hopefully it was something minor like an interdimensional leech or maybe it was a giant acorn-being, something he could sink his teeth into. Speaking of which, winter was fast approaching and he once again was thinking how nice it would be to settle down. Lois Lynx had been on him to propose, but he couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to live in a rabbit hole instead of a tree.
In minutes, he was at the rift and he scanned the area. None of the foes his father had imprisoned here many years ago assaulted him, but that wasn't unexpected. Criminals were a cowardly lot, just as Batmouse often told him. "Hmmm," he said as he switched to microscopic vision and examined every molecule and photon that made up the rift. "Now that's odd; this area of space seems to be stressed beyond its normal tensile strength. This bears even further examination!"
He took a mighty paw and struck at the rift. It opened suddenly, a great maw appearing in front of him. In a microsecond, it clamped down and swallowed him whole.
"Interesting," Batmouse said, rubbing his furry chin.
"Can we pull him back?" Wonder Wabbit asked.
He glanced down and saw that the status light was still green. "Yes. If the light turns yellow, it means he's in danger. The transporter reads his vitals."
"What if it turns red?"
Batmouse did not bother to reply.
The woman with the wings and the skin kissed by the sun reveled in the joy of flying free again. It had been a blessing, granted to her by the gods of her parents, she was sure. For an unknown period of time she had existed in a world of nothingness, gray clouds that hid the stars from her view. Then magically, that had ended.
A hole had developed in one of the outer dimensions and her senses had guided her to it. Some beings had tried to catch her and she could almost feel their lust as they looked upon her, but she had gotten away. Now she was in the void of space in a new, wonderful galaxy. She could feel the strings of matter and energy that held the universe together and her wings flapped in joy.
She was getting far away from the hole, but she sensed something was wrong. Her keen eyesight picked up brief flashes of light in space over a planet she knew could only be Earth. The alignment of the constellations told her it was the early 21st century, the time of Superman!
Her wings spread out and she sailed back towards the spinning blue-brown ball.
Super-Squirrel recognized the Earth in the distance and headed towards it when his telescopic vision picked up a battle between humans of all creatures! He had been pulled into the horror of horrors, the universe of the damned! It didn't matter, though, because he could tell the good guys from the bad and all that mattered is that a hero was needed.
Dawnstar picked out the flying rodent from several kilometers out and streaked in to investigate. Despite the battle raging, seeing a squirrel wearing a Superman costume was too much for her own curiosity. She closed in and the Squirrel looked back over his shoulder and waved. "Hello, human!" he called out.
Her universal translator, a small device in her ear that had been developed by Brainiac 5, a fellow member of the Legion of Super-Heroes, hummed and then spoke the words to her. At the same time, it sent a telepathic flurry of information to her brain, laying out the entire language of the squirrel for her. It turned out to be 20th century English!
The device had been created specifically for her in her job as a scout for Legion missions. It was a good thing it still worked because the languages of the 20th and 21st centuries contained far too many words with more than one meaning. "Hello," she called back. "I mean no harm; my name is Dawnstar of the Legion of Super-Heroes."
"The name is Super-Squirrel," he offered as they continued to head towards the battle. "I'm afraid we have little time for conversation, though; evil is afoot!"
Dawnstar nodded, comparing the squirrel to the Superboy and Superman she had known. He had the charisma for sure and there were so many questions she wanted to ask, but she could tell by the furrow of his brow and the straightness of his tail that he was intent on the battle ahead.
Sentinel used his internal green flame power to create a giant hand to catch the flying form of Steel. The elder member of the JSA had to concentrate a little harder than usual, as the attacks form the hoard of drooling, screeching super-powered fighters continued like an assembly line of death. The good thing about the battle was that the fighters seemed to be molecularly unstable, exploding into nothingness if hit really hard.
The amount of instability was directly related to how long they had been outside the glowing hole that the JLA had disappeared into earlier that day. The younger heroes of the League had led the assault against the legion of fighters and it called up memories of the many battles the Earth had had with Darkseid of Apokolips.
Steel waved a thank you and ignited his jets, bringing his large hammer up to hit someone who looked like a cross between a Green Lantern Corps member and a clown Sentinel remembered from the early 1970's. Sentinel turned in space to get a good view of the battle. Captain Marvel and the rest of the Marvel family were in pursuit of a couple that had managed to get into the Earth's atmosphere, while Black Adam, a smile on his face, floated back-to-back with Power Girl as the walloped attacker after attacker.
A familiar red and blue costume streaked by, nailing a large creature that was ready to strike a blow to the back of Sentinel's head. He gave a cheer. "Alright! Superman is back!" He looked around for the rest of the League and only saw whom he thought was Hawkgirl coming at him. "She can't fly in space…"
When he got a better look at her, he noted that she was definitely not the Hawkgirl of the Justice Society. This woman was older, but not much, of Native American descent and of a beauty that was intoxicating. He noted her wings as well; they were not artificial. "Superman, who's your lovely friend?" he asked.
Super-Squirrel came around to his field of vision. "That's 'Super-Squirrel', sir," he said, his arms folded over his furry chest.
"Oh my God…you're an animal…"
Super-Squirrel raised an eyebrow. "Aren't we all?"
An armored man screamed and without looking, Super-Squirrel brought up a fist. There was a slight sound that his ears picked up and then the man exploded into nothingness. "Tell me where I can be of most use."
Sentinel just looked at the two of them, trying to figure out if they were for real. A winged woman and a talking squirrel. Still, it seemed as if the rodent had at least some of Superman's strength if not his bravery. He pointed to the hole where even more assailants were coming out. "That is where they are coming from. The League went in there a couple of hours ago to try and stop it, but they never came back. They may not be in any position to help."
Super-Squirrel wiggled his nose as he thought. "I don't know the area, I wouldn't know where to go…I have really bad experience with wormholes…"
"I can help," Dawnstar offered. "I came out of there myself, though I had no idea about this attack."
"We would sure appreciate your help young lady," Sentinel said, starting to fly off. "Just make it quick! We're being overwhelmed!"
Super-Squirrel could not help but smile at the graceful way Dawnstar weaved in and out of the swarming troops. She was a born tracker, he thought, probably related to the eagle or the falcon. A hunter, not a gatherer like a squirrel. He had always had some admiration for the predatory types.
Every once in awhile, he would take out a particular foe, usually the larger ones. He had no idea of the capabilities of the humans, but they seemed so weak with their furless bodies.
They passed through the void and it was like going through an electric field. His fur stood on end, but he wasn't harmed. In seconds, they were flying though the gray void that was Limbo. He tried to use his various vision powers to pierce the veil of non-color, but they seemed to be useless. It felt sort of like the Elephantom Zone, but at the same it didn't.
Dawnstar slowed down enough for Super-Squirrel to keep her in sight. She had lived in areas like this long enough to know that the uninitiated would have severe problems finding their way around. She had heard about people who had lived in Limbo for so long that they actually could get around without the aid of heightened senses, but she couldn't imagine it.
Though she did not know exactly what or who they were looking for, she knew enough to follow the trail of rampaging berserkers that were flying by. Some were familiar, but so many others were not. It was almost as if every nightmare ever dreamed was throwing a little piece of itself at the Earth.
The sudden appearance of light and substance shocked Super-Squirrel, but that was replaced by sorrow. Before him lay a plain devoid of trees and any other plant life. It was a gray expanse of sorrow, no color, nothing to give it definition. Below him were what appeared to be several hundred troops, though the encampments indicated that there had been many more here at one time.
The Mammal of Might cam up short as Dawnstar stopped. The human-eagle female was shaking and pointing towards a raised area. His vision caught the sight of several bound and beaten humans (he assumed they were beaten from the way they looked; he couldn't imagine a creature so ugly naturally!), surrounded by some bigger humans. "What is it?" he asked her.
"The one in the center…he is a former teammate of mine. His name is Mon-El…"
"I wonder if he's related to my old friend Mon-Eel?" Super-Squirrel wondered aloud. "It looks like he's the one in charge."
"I can not believe he would be involved in such a thing. He was always such an inspiration…"
Super-Squirrel did not know how to comfort her, since he wasn't sure what inspired such inferior creatures. To him, they were all things that fell off of the evolutionary tree and therefore, by definition, mistakes. "Regardless, we have a duty to defend the weak and if this friend of your is behind the attacks, then we must stop him!"
Dawnstar turned to tell him what she thought of that, but he was already gone.
Roy Harper looked up to see what he thought was a short brown Superman next to a Hawkgirl who he found strangely appealing. She was Native American and he had been raised by them; maybe later on…
"Cool it, loverboy," he said as he wandered through the excited men and women around him. He was looking for anyone with something made of lead, something small that he could throw at Mon-El. His natural abilities, honed by years of training under Oliver Queen, would allow him to throw a projectile faster, harder and more accurate than a major league baseball player. Still, he would have preferred a bow with a lead-tipped arrow.
A light bulb went off in his head and he moved over to the crowd of Native American villains. Approaching the meanest looking one of the bunch, he pointed to his quiver of arrows. "Hey! You got any arrows with lead tips?"
The men stopped talking and looked at him. The one he had addressed took a deep breath, his barrel chest straining under the pressure. "Why do you want to know…pale little pony? Do you think you can run with this tribe?" He then pointed to the tattoo on Roy's arm. "That don't make you one of us!"
Roy shook his head and punched the man square in the nose.
Mon-El held Wonder Woman's face in his hand. "So lovely…I think I'll keep you fro breeding stock."
Behind him, Aquaman cursed and threatened to place his foot in a very uncomfortable orifice. "Get your filthy hands off of her! Untie me and I'll whip your snotty little butt!"
Mon-El laughed and shoved the Amazon back down. Most of the other League members were unconscious, the result of intensive interrogation by his chosen bodyguards. All of them were Kryptonians of limited intelligence and all of them hated Superman.
By far the Man of Steel had suffered the most abuse, while the Batman had received the least. The Batman was an enigma to the criminals; they didn't know whether he was a misguided friend or the worst kind of foe.
Mon-El moved over to Aquaman and picked the Sea King up. "Is that your woman, fish-man?"
"'Fish-man'? What a disgusting thought!" Super-Squirrel said from above them. Mon-El looked up to see what he thought was a joke. He burst into a fit of laughter that made him drop Aquaman and hold his belly.
The Kryptonian guards started to laugh as well until Super-Squirrel inhaled and then sent them flying off with a blast of super-breath. "You seem to be the person in charge of this villainy," he said in a booming voice. "I offer you the chance to surrender."
Mon-El answered with a blast of heat vision, but Super-Squirrel was already gone, zipping behind the man from Daxam and delivering a two-paw punch. Mon-El went flying off of the dais and into the crowd of troops. A cheer went up and the villains gathered around to watch the slugfest.
Roy brushed himself off and took the offered quiver of arrows. "Lead tips," the warrior said, looking down at his bleeding leader. "If you gonna do what I think you gonna do, you a fool!"
Roy grabbed the warrior's bow. "Yeah, well I've been called worse!"
He started at a run towards the fight between the giant squirrel and Mon-El. As he ran, he passed by a group of Metallo's that were exchanging Kryptonite parts. He head-butted one and grabbed a handful of fingernails. The little green pieces would aid him in taking out the Kryptonians.
The crowds were too much and he knew that there was no way he was going to get through and get a shot off at Mon-El. The fists slamming against the combatants were making the area boom with thunderous claps. Roy anxiously looked around for some answer and saw it in the beautiful woman with the wings.
He whistled for her and then called to her in Navajo. She spun around and looked down to the man who was calling her, suspicious. He yelled to her that she was a friend, but she responded in Apache. Roy rubbed his forehead.
Taking a deep breath, he tried to tell her the same thing, but she burst out laughing. She flew down to him and hovered. "I didn't know that wolves did that in summer time; I'll have to remember that."
"Look, sweet cheeks, I'm one of the good guys and I need you to get me up high," he said, pointing into the air.
She looked at his weapons. "I'm not taking you up so you can kill someone!"
A thunderclap interrupted him and Super-Squirrel went flying through the air, Mon-El hot on his tail. One of the Kryptonian guards came racing by as well and Roy fired an arrow at him. Of course, it bounced off the invulnerable body of the guard, but it was enough to get his attention.
"I'll kill ya!" the guard screamed and Roy, hiding the bow behind his back, pointed at Dawnstar.
Her jaw dropped and he shrugged. "Should have helped me babe."
The Kryptonian came after Dawnstar, who raced towards the hole back into the main universe. The other Kryptonians, not being of much intelligence, followed their comrade into the gray expanse of clouds.
"You have an evil heart, Mon-El," Super-Squirrel said as they grappled in mid-air. They were palm to palm, pushing as hard as they could.
"I am merely taking my place at the top of the food chain," Mon-El sneered. "I'll make a hat out of you!"
"Funny, I was about to say the same thing! Your touch disgusts me!"
Mon-El pushed harder. "I will not be denied!"
Super-Squirrel started to feel himself giving in to the superior strength of the Daxamite human. "You will be stopped!"
"Uh, Batmouse," Green Lambkin said. Batmouse turned away from another set of monitors, eased past Power Squirrel (who was interviewing for a possible spot on the team) and moved over to the status board for Super-Squirrel. Power Squirrel followed, bouncing along much to Wonder Wabbit's chagrin. It was obvious that Power Squirrel considered herself a much better mate for Super-Squirrel.
"What is it?" Batmouse asked. Power Squirrel got right behind him, pressing her ample bosom against his back.
"Is it Super-Squirrel?" she asked, clapping her hands excitedly.
"That light is starting to turn yellow. Should I pull him back?" Green Lambkin asked.
Batmouse considered the possibilities. It would mean one less alien on his world, one less would-be dictator to be created. Batmouse did not trust anyone who wasn't normal, especially metamammals.
Power Squirrel pressed a little harder. If he didn't bring Super-Squirrel back, that would leave him the Alpha Male of the JLA. That meant he would have to put up with groupies like Power Squirrel.
He reached down and pushed the button to retrieve his teammate.
Mon-El's arms ached with the effort, but he could see he was winning the battle. Slowly he was pushing Super-Squirrel back and once he had him pinned, he would use his heat vision to cut the rodent into sausage!
Super-Squirrel heard the high pitch whine of the transporter and smiled. Just before he disappeared, he kicked Mon-El in the groin. "Take it from a squirrel, human-boy: watch your nuts!"
And then he was gone.
In his place was a gaseous cloud of the most noxious vapors Mon-El had ever had the misfortune to inhale. Little did he know it was all part of the Blue Beetle's transporter device's function. His eyes began to tear not just from the cloud, but also from the pain of having his testicles moved into his abdomen.
Roy saw Mon-El gagging and lined up his shot.
Dawnstar easily evaded the Kryptonians, despite their faster speed. They lacked her experience and mobility and by the time they entered the real world, she was far ahead of them and racing for the assembled members of Earth's defenses.
The arrow entered Mon-El's chest and pierced his heart; there was never any doubt about his accuracy. The Daxamite looked down and tried to find his assailant, but his eyes were simply too filled with tears for him to do so. He plummeted to the ground, never knowing who had betrayed him.
Sentinel saw the winged girl approaching, several men in hot pursuit. He called to Captain Marvel, Power Girl and Black Adam to be ready.
Dawnstar swept in at an incredibly sharp arc, narrowly avoiding the heroes as they lined up. The Kryptonians, unable to perform such a maneuver, slammed into the awaiting defenders and simply exploded into dust.
Dawnstar threw a wave of appreciation and sailed back to the rift. Even from the distance she was at, she could tell something was going on. There were no more troops pouring out and there was a green glow surrounding it.
A bubble popped out and as she sailed by, she saw a battered Green Lantern she did not recognize carrying six other heroes, including Superman. She nodded to the Lantern, who gave her a puzzled look but continued on towards Earth.
Hal Jordan stood at the center of dais, watching as the remaining members of the Order started rounding up the various villains still alive and began returning them to their appropriate dimensions. Next to him, Hawkman was in quiet conversation with Andrew Bennett.
It had been roughly three Earth days since the defeat of Mon-El at the hands of the mysterious Super-Squirrel and Roy Harper and the hole between the universes was now repaired. The Phantom Zone was now empty as it seemed that every person who had been trapped in it was now dead.
"What will happen now, Chief?" Roy asked as he climbed up. Dawnstar was behind him. They had spent the past few days together trying to figure out what was happening and aiding the Order members as best as they could.
Hal scratched his head. "Order has been restored to Limbo and that means you can go to Earth-T to meet up with the Time Wardens."
"And the rest of us?" Hawkman asked. He kept tossing a glace over at Dawnstar, who seemed to blush from the attention.
"Hawkman and Dawnstar will go with you; they don't belong here. I've offered Mr. Bennett here a position within the Order as a 'special agent'. It will give him the purpose he has long sought," Hal said, putting a hand on Andrew's shoulder. "This entire affair has led me to believe that sometimes even a Green Lantern isn't enough!"
Roy nodded. He was very interested in getting to this parallel Earth because it would put him one step closer to finding his daughter. Obviously, she wasn't here and the only explanation he could get was that until he fixed what the Time-Guardian screwed up, his daughter would continue to be missing.
"Interesting story," Batmouse said as he fixed a cheese and cheese sandwich. Super-Squirrel was making a peanut butter and acorn one.
"They are really horrid looking creatures…no hair, no claws," Super-Squirrel responded.
"Like a shaved squirrel."
"Yes!" Super-Squirrel said and then realized he was being insulted. "That isn't funny!"
Batmouse giggled at his teammate's anger. It was an odd, raspy sound. "By the way, Captain Carrot is visiting later."
"I don't care."
"Wonder Wabbit said she's taking him to Paradise Island to show him her rabbit hole…"
The remains of the peanut butter and acorn sandwich slapped hard against the cowl of the Batmouse, it's sound echoing through the halls of the JLA headquarters.