I swear, I'll be uploading more frequently from here on out. I swear XD No seriously, I do.

After the formal celebrations in Atlantis, the Vanguard had a party to celebrate Aquaman and his ascension to the throne. Everyone stayed up long into the night, and Cap had gotten pretty used to staying up late. After all, a life in war during the 40s had not been that long ago to him. By the time he decided to call it a night and retire to his room, the only other two people who had done so beforehand were the two Bruces.

Cap yawned as he got out of his small bed. His bedroom in the Tower was pretty devoid of anything interesting. It was merely the same chrome color as everything else in the Tower, with the addition of a small bed with a green comforter and a single pillow. Cap didn't care that much, as he had nothing to decorate the room with anyway. He walked out of the room, placing his hand on his head as he did so.

He walked around the Tower for a bit, noting how sleek it looked even compared to everything else this century had to offer. It was also clean from the party that had occurred hours before - no doubt Superman cleaned up before he left. He found himself near the teleporter, and it was here that he saw Hal, Carol, and Barry lounging around, all in civilian attire and with Thor's hammer on the floor. Cap raised an eyebrow, as he was pretty sure it was early in the morning.

"What are you guys doing here?" Cap asked, scratching his head.

Hal, Carol, and Barry all turned their heads towards the super soldier.

"Oh, we had to come here because Barry forgot his wallet." Hal replied, with Barry sighing. "We're heading out for brunch in Metropolis."

"Uh-huh…" Cap directed his attention towards Mjlonir. "Aaaand why is Thor's hammer just lying around."

Carol shrugged. "We have no clue."

"But it gives me a great idea." Hal added on with a grin on his face. Hal walked up to the hammer, with green energy emitting from his ring.

"Don't do it, Hal." Barry warned.

Hal let out a 'pfft'. "Just watch me."

Hal created an energy construct of Thor, and the construct began to try and lift the hammer. But even as Hal evidently struggled with all his might, Mjlonir was still laying on the ground. Hal began to groan quite loudly, and Carol and Barry both began to chuckle while Cap just stood there with a raised brow. Hal groaned louder and louder, and cracks were forming out of the Thor construct, but there was still no signs that he could get the hammer lifted.

Finally, a hearty laugh could be heard from above, and everyone looked up to see Thor levitating above. He floated down and walked up towards Hal, still laughing.

"I did that just for you, Hal!" Thor said, slamming his hand onto Hal's back. "I knew you couldn't resist trying to lift Mjlonir. That was priceless! Just priceless!" Thor let out a louder laugh, while Hal let out a fake, angry laugh.

Thor laughed so hard that he just about teared up. "Alright then….I have to go to Asgard. There are some matters that Odin has requested I attend to." And with that, Thor went towards the teleporter and left the Tower.

Hal grumbled under his breath, to which Carol placed her hand on his shoulder, while chuckling a little bit. "Don't take it so hard, Highball."

Barry turned over to Cap. "So, Steve…have you gotten a chance to really explore the world?"

Cap sighed. "Not really, Barry. All I've done is watch my lover die, go to her funeral, stop some HYDRA goons, and help overthrow the ruler of Atlantis. I've had no time to just take a moment and truly let the world sink in."

Barry rubbed his neck. "Well...I got to thinking about that, and considering we're all heading out for brunch anyway…Hal, Carol, maybe we could let Steve come along with us."

"Hmmm…" Hal replied, cupping his chin. "…Yeah, I'd be down for that."

"Well, Steve…" Carol added on. "It's not just that you're decades behind. People also know that you're Captain America. I just wonder how you'll handle that."

If Cap had been wearing a regular t-shirt, he would've been pulling on it in uncertainty. He hadn't really thought about it, if mainly because he didn't have the time to do so. Everyone knew he was an active superhero now, and he had no idea what it would be like.

He could only shrug. "I…I really don't know, if I'm being honest."

Hal walked closer to Cap. "Well, there's only one to find out, Rogers. And really, you're gonna have to come out and see the modern world at one point or another. It might as well be now."

Cap stared at the teleporter at the moment and thought about it. They were right. He had to go out and see the 21st Century world as soon as he could, and this was the perfect opportunity to do so. After a few more seconds, he looked at the three and smiled.

"Yeah. I'm in."

Carol smiled back. "Excellent." Her smile morphed into a smirk as she looked at Barry. "Just wait for Barry to get his wallet. And Barry, don't keep us waiting for once."

Barry shook his head, muttering "Yeah, yeah." And super-sped off to look for his wallet.

Superman let out an 'mmm' as he, Black Panther, Hank, Wasp, Zatanna, and Aquaman all stood on a stage as journalists and reporters sat eagerly in the crowd. They were beginning a press conference in the city of Metropolis, New York. This press conference had been planned before the invasion from, and subsequent siege of, Atlantis, but Superman had no idea how the conference would go. He figured that the recent events of Atlantis would eclipse the conference, but he hoped to get in some information as HYDRA as well.

"We are sorry about the 338 casualties of Atlantis' attack. We truly are. I will personally make sure to honor every grave and every life lost because of this invasion. I am pleased to announced that Atlantis won't be taking any more human lives. King Attuma was successfully desposed. He had usurped the throne back in 1990, and ruled over the lost city for 25 years, but now, I present to you the newest monarch of Atlantis – Orin, also known as Aquaman!" He moved his hand towards Aquaman, who nodded as murmurs began going about in the crowd.

Superman wanted to sigh, but he knew that cameras were rolling. He didn't necessarily agree with Aquaman's decision to kill Attuma, but he knew how the world was with the Internet. They would eat that stuff up. Instead, he just took a moment and looked down at the ground.

"We will now be taking questions."

A redheaded lady with green eyes and a modelesque face stood up in response. "Hello, I'm Vicki Vale with The Gotham Gazette. Superman, are you aware that Congress is unhappy with you and the Vanguard for going and invading a foreign land and deposing its leader, regardless of how he came to power?"

"Yes, yes I am aware."

"And what is your response to Congress?" Vicki then asked, furrowing an eyebrow.

"We had to. An Atlantean named Mera came by our doorstep and told us that we had to go straight to Atlantis and face Attuma directly, lest he order attacks upon the entire surface world. I realize that we invaded a foreign sovereignty, but we had no window of time to consider anything else."

"Congress still isn't pleased with the Vanguard." Vicki remarked, still holding up her mic.

"We're sorry to have angered Congress. But I want them to understand our short amount of options relative to the suddenness of Atlantis' attack."

Then an African-American man with a partly wrinkled face, a thick pair of glasses, and a beard got up. "Hello, I'm Ben Urich with The New York Gazette. I have a question for Aquaman."

Superman nodded and moved aside, allowing Aquaman to walk towards the podium. "What is your question, Mr. Urich?"

"Your highness, it has been decades since we've heard anything from your underwater kingdom. Will you be working to re-establish relations with the rest of the world."

Aquaman chuckled. "Of course I will. In fact, after this conference, I will be working to get Atlantis a seat in the United Nations HQ. Attuma ran Altantis down to the ground, and international aid should help my kingdom on the road to recovery."

"What is the current state of Altantis, King Orin?" Urich added on.

"It is, essentially, a third world country, courtesy of Attuma. Rebuilding my kingdom will be my top priority. And before you ask, yes, that does mean I will be less active with the Vanguard for a little while."

"Thank you, King Orin. Now, I have been wondering about Captain America and his recent revival and inclusion into the Vanguard. Is there a particular reason he was not able to attend this press conference."

Aquaman moved aside, and Superman returned to the podium. "He's had it pretty busy in the short few days since his revival from the ice. He wasn't originally intended to be here anywhere, and I just figured he could use some time to just relax and try to adjust to the modern world."

"Understandable." And with that, Ben Urich sat back down. And now a dark brown-haired lady with a sharp nose and narrow eyes stood up, and Superman immediately recognized who he was – he worked with her at his dayjob as Clark Kent.

"Hello, I'm Lois Lane from The Daily Planet." She said in a loud tone that showed she meant business. "I want to add on to Vale's concerns about Congress. Congress, and a good chunk of the general public for that matter, is concerned that you guys will let the power get to your head and invade countries whenever you please. That, for example, you could invade North Korea and depose Kim jong-un, or take action in the Middle East. What do you have to say for these concerns."

Hank groaned and got up. "I'll handle this."

Superman didn't want Hank making a scene. "Hank –"

"Come on, Supes. I'll set the record straight."

Superman let out a small sigh and moved aside, giving Hank the podium. "Alright, look, the Man of Steel here made it very clear why we had to go to Atlantis. We didn't learn of Atlantis' attack until a minute before they invaded New York. Had we learned of Atlantis' plans sooner, we would've planned accordingly. But we didn't! And that Mera chick, she made it very clear that going straight to Atlantis was the best option we had! You all need to accept that!"

Wasp walked up towards the podium, and covered the microphone with her hand. Now she was the one sighing. "Babe, please calm down."

"Well, come on now! I just want to make sure we don't ramble on and on and on about this! We had no other choice, and we're sorry for angering the government! There! Simple as that!"

"You realize getting all mad about it won't make us look good in the eyes of the public, right?" Zatanna replied, adjusting her hat.

"Well, sometimes people can be so stupid and it makes me want to –"

"Alright, not here, guys." Superman said, and the three moved so that Superman could take the podium back. "To go back to your original question, Miss Lane…no, we will not be going to North Korea or the Middle East anytime soon. As Ant-Man said, Atlantis was a special circumstance."

It was just then that a bunch of reporters stood up.

"So you're just going to let the people of North Korea suffer?!"

"You Vanguardians have the power to topple governments!"

"Will the Vanguard take action if or when World War III commences?!"

"What will you do if a law is passed that you don't like? Reign down your power onto Washington?"

"Have you felt any desire to go and end the War on Terror?"

"What will the Vanguard do if an ally of the US is invaded?"

As the questions kept pouring on, Hank placed his hand on the microphone and groaned. "I really want to handle this, Kal. We gotta hammer this point into their heads."

Superman shook his head. "No, Ant-Man. We have to deal with this carefully. I'll handle this."

Hank took his hand off the mic and Superman began to speak. "Alright, everyone, that's enough questions."

The crowd silenced, and Superman cleared this throat.

"No, we will not reign down our power onto Washington if a bill is passed that we don't like. We do not at all condone the atrocities committed by North Korea or the losses that have emerged from the War on Terror. However, it is outside of our jurisdiction to go and intervene. Some of you might have the Liberty Brigade in mind, but keep in mind how that group was created. The Liberty Brigade was specifically created and sent by President Roosevelt to fight in World War II, and even then, they only fought HYDRA – they never fought against the regular Axis forces. We do not have the condolence from the US government, or any government, to intervene like this. The Vanguard of Justice tries to protect the world, not decide how it should be run."

"Pretty good for a speech he's pulling out of his ass." Hank whispered to Wasp.

Superman, of course, easily heard of Hank's remark, but decided that now was not the time to deal with it.

"Good speech. Now, if it's alright, I have a question for King T'Challa." Lois said.

Superman moved aside and Black Panther took the podium. "What is your question, Miss Lane?"

"So what Superman just said makes sense. That as superheroes, you can't decide how what the governments should do and how the world should go round. That's all dandy, but now I wonder about you. Why can you, as a King and not just a superhero, provide aid to Africa? Wakandans live lives of luxury and prosperity while the rest of Africa is trapped under the iron boot of poverty and war. You have more than enough resources to aid your home continent, yet there has been no action even after Wakanda was revealed to the rest of the world."

Black Panther just paused, and Superman could practically feel his awkwardness.

It was a moment or two before Panther broke the silence. "…Miss Lane, I am aware that Africa has the majority of the third-world nations out there, and I want to do something. I really do. But the Elders of Wakanda refuse to give any aid to the rest of the world. I have been trying to get through to them, but they are…difficult, so to speak."

Lois furrowed her eyebrow. "And you don't have it in you to stand up to these Elders?"

The crowd went up in an uproar, and Superman sighed as his co-worker put his teammate in an even more awkward situation. As the reporters and the journalists talked over each there, there were cries of 'shit' from Hank and Zatanna, and Superman himself had no idea where things would go from here.