Gotham normally gleamed in corruption, being considered one of the worst cities in the United States. However, in this park, none of that was visible.

Steve looked around, with Sharon, Clark, and Lois by his side. This Gotham park felt completely out-of-place in this city. The wind blew at just the right pace, the sun shined brightly, and there was lush snow all around.

The four were walking around the park in their winter clothes, chatting amongst themselves.

"So…Lois…I've been meaning to ask this for a while now," Clark said, adjusting his glasses as he did so. "When did you figure out the, well, you know?"

Lois chuckled and smirked. "It took me longer than it probably should have, but I eventually caught on that you vanished every time 'he' would appear. And the one time you two did appear together, it felt off. Almost as if someone was posing as Clark Kent."

Clark rubbed his neck. "Yeah, that was J'onn helping me out."

Steve had his hands in his pockets, and he smiled at the sheepish look on Clark's face.

"Now I have something to ask you, Rogers," Sharon said, leaning down. "How are you affording these clothes when you don't have a job outside the team?"

"I've been making some bucks off special appearances. That, and the military owed me a lot of money in back pay. Like, a lot."

Sharon nodded, before asking another question. "It's funny. Right before you got frozen in ice, the next year would've been 1946. Now it's going to be 2016. How does that feel?"

Steve looked down at the ground and laughed. That was definitely a thought that had occurred to him before. It was December 31, 2015, and in just a few hours, the new year would come. Steve had hoped to find a place with Peggy partway through 1946, but now that she was gone, and it was the 2010s, his mind blanked at the thought of what the future held for him.

He didn't have much time left to hang out with Sharon, Clark, and Lois. In two hours, he had to use the teleporter to go to Star City and appear at an event for Oliver Queen and his company, Queen Industries.

Then two men began to approach the two. One was a bulky and balding middle-aged man, and the other looked a few years younger and sported long, wavy brown hair.

Clark looked over his shoulder. "Welp, muggers seem to be coming our way."

Lois let out a 'hmm'. "I suppose this is still Gotham."

Steve looked over to Clark. "Shall we take care of them?"

"No, boys. You can leave this to me," Sharon said, shaking her head and raising her head up.

The two men began to approach closer, and Sharon began walking over to them while Steve, Clark, and Lois simply stood there.

Steve watched as Sharon thrust her leg up and struck one of the two men right in the gonads. He winced and moaned. The other man lunged right towards her, but it was not long before Sharon grabbed at the man with her hands, lifted him up in the air, and threw him down to the ground.

Then the first man tried to come at her one more time, but Sharon decked him in the face. The second man got up from the ground, and both looked at each other, then at Sharon. Both seemingly decided to cut their losses, as they fled screaming.

Some onlookers were looking at the whole thing, and only stood there for a moment before going about their daily lives. Steve assumed that stuff like this is common for them to see, this being Gotham and all that.

Sharon took a deep breath before joining the other three. "Alright, that's taken care of. And by the way, that's far from the craziest thing I've ever gone through in Gotham."

Lois clasped her hands. "That would have actually been scary had I not been with a superpowered being, a super solider, and a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent."

Steve nodded. "Yeah, amazing how some things can seem so intimidating at first but mean nothing when you have…our abilities."

The four began walking about. "This day has been fun," Lois began, looking up at Steve and Clark. "But I should get back home. I'm surprised we just ran into some muggers, and not into Batman."

Clark titled his head back and looked up into the sky. "Well, when he's solo, he usually does most of his duties at night, so I highly doubt we'd run into him."

Not even a second later, Clark stopped in his tracks. The other three walked a few more steps before pausing and looking over at Clark.

Steve tilted his. "You alright?"

Just then, Steve heard freezing sounds. At least, that's what he thought they were. The only thing he could think of with these sounds was that an freeze ray was being fired. Just then, the four saw Batman on his motorcycle, throwing a batarang at someone else on a motorcycle. The man had icy pale skin and wore a black-and-blue metallic suit, with a dome around his head. Steve recognized the man immediately. He was 'Mr. Freeze', a foe of Batman's that had sprouted up in the last month or so. Mr. Freeze grunted before he blasted at more ice against Batman, which struck the Batcycle, and caused Batman to crash, and he began plopping onto the ground.

"Enough with your games!" Mr. Freeze shouted, his veins jutting out. "I just want to save Nora! That is all I desire!"

As Steve watched the Dark Knight get up in the distance, he pressed into his ear comm. *You need any help, Batman?*

*No. I can handle Victor Fries on my own*

Clark then tapped into his own earcomm. *With my powers, I could -*

*I. Don't. Need. Help*

Mr. Freeze got off from his motorcycle and began charging towards the Dark Knight. The Caped Crusader got on his feet and threw an object resembling a grenade onto the ground. Smoke emitted from it. As Mr. Freeze tried to peer his eyes through the smoke, Batman then pulled out a tiny Bluetooth-looking device. Steve watched as Batman pressed a button on it, and there was a small blast from that same grenade that sent Mr. Freeze several feet back.

Just then, Steve heard hovering, and he looked up to see Iron Man arriving at the scene.

As Man-Bat got back on his feet, Iron Man blasted towards Mr. Freeze, sending him down on his knees. With that, Batman grabbed out a rope and began tying up the ice villain.

"….Please…let me save my wife…" Mr. Freeze said, hanging his head down.

"We can help Nora. But not like this," Batman replied.

Police began showed Iron Man landing onto the ground, and a lady asked if she could get a selfie with him. Iron Man obliged, and he raised up a peace sign while the lady grinned ear-to-ear.

Lois bit her lip. "Well, I should get out of here before aliens invade."

Clark nodded. "Don't worry, I'll get you back home just fine."

Meanwhile, Steve looked over to Sharon. "So, what are your plans for New Years?"

Sharon shrugged. "Well, Fury gave us the day off. Of course, there are some situations where we just have to come in no matter what, so we always have to be prepared for that. So I'm gonna just stay in my apartment for the rest of the day. Tomorrow's gonna be very busy for me."

"Alright, well, you have fun with that," Steve replied, before the two hugged it out and said their goodbyes.

An hour later, Steve and Clark were suited up in their superhero outfits, and Batman was also present. Iron Man was elsewhere in the tower, checking up on the Power Stone and other items that they had stowed away in vaults. They were in the Vanguard conference room, right by the roundtable where meetings were conducted.

Batman had his arms crossed, and he looked over at Cap. "In a short while, I want to talk to you about a potential job at Wayne Enterprises

"So, Steve," Superman began as the two stared out at the window in the room. "At the beginning of the last two years we've been active as the Vanguard, we have a big charter meeting where we review everything that happened in the last year and go over our future as a team."

Cap looked over to Superman. "That sounds reasonable enough."

"And I was hoping to introduce the idea of a reserve force."

"And that's where I want to put my foot down, Clark," Batman said, walking over to the two. "Think about it. We have sixteen members already, and the majority of us have enough superpowers. The Vanguard of Justice is large enough as it is."

Superman pursed his lip. "I do understand what you're saying, Bruce, but us sixteen would remain the 'main' members, if you will. These reserve members would be our backups, in the event that anything happens to us."

Then Superman locked his eyes onto Batman's. "You of all people should understand the idea of being prepared."

Batman groaned. "I do, but it seems superfluous. How many times must I state my case without sounding like a broken record?"

"You know I don't like arguing with you."

"I don't enjoy it, either. I truly wish you could have stayed in Gotham longer. But I have to stand by this."

Superman nodded. "We'll save it until the meeting. Sound fair?"

Batman looked down at the ground. "Mmm…Fair enough. Say, Clark, since we have some time until we bring that up again…would you be willing to do me a favor, as a reporter?"

The two began to converse about how the Dark Knight wanted the Man of Steel to show up in his day job at a charity event and be the one to interview Bruce Wayne. The words seemed to grow more distant in the mind of Cap, and then he heard clunking from the ground as Iron Man approached his fellow superheroes.

"Alright, the Power Stone and everything else is still under lock and key. Nothing to worry about there."

Steve raised an eyebrow. "So, what were you doing in Gotham, Stark?"

Iron Man chuckled. "Oh, I was overseeing my company's building we have located there. Some business drama is going on, and I wanted to see it for myself. Then I see Dr. Fries on the loose again, and well, you know the rest."

"Alright, I can see that," Cap said as the two walked away from the Kryptonian and the Gotham hero. Then Cap asked, "So what do you think of the idea of a reserve force?"

"I personally think it would cause us to spend more money then we need to."

Cap scoffed. "You and Bruce are both multi-billionaires, for pete's sake."

Iron Man shook his head. "Yes, we are, but with the Vanguard, things can get pricey even for us."

"You've said that before."

"Because it's true. I think I'll show the expenses at tomorrow's charter meeting. You guys always roll your eyes every time we bring it up -"

Just then, sirens began to go off in the Tower, and the room was beginning to flash red.

The four men all looked up in the air.

"What the hell is going on?!" Iron Man shouted out.

Superman appeared to be using his X-Ray vision to scan the area and see what was going on. "I have no clue!"

Then the Earth began to rumble. All four of them stumbled, and Cap tripped onto the ground.

He clenched his teeth as he got up.

Then the conference room's monitor activated, and it showed Lois Lane and other news reporters from all around the whole. All of the reporters had one thing in common, which is that their faces were pale and their eyes were the size of the dinner plates. Even Ms. Lane, who Cap had seen report the news with a dignified composure, spat from her mouth as she mentioned the very shaking of the Earth.

Then Lois placed her hand onto her ear. *I'm just getting word that we have likely discovered the source of what is causing all of this* she said.

Then the monitor cut to what looked like live footage of the savannahs of eastern Africa. The savannahs were shaking, just like the rest of the Earth was. Zebras, wildebeest, lions, and rhinos could all be seeing fleeing and running, seemingly unsure of what to do. What stood out in this area, though, was that the ground was beginning to crack. It almost looked as if an earthquake was occurring, except that there was an orange glow emitting from the cracks as they widened.

Cap, Iron Man, Batman, and Superman all stepped closer to the screen. The glow in the cracks shined brighter, until finally, the cracks came to a stop.

Then, a giant red hand burst out from the ground. Another hand did the same, and the arms worked together to widen the gaps that were now formed in the ground. Massive black horns were visible as this happened.

Then, the figure emerged, and its face was now visible. Its face looked to be made of pure fire and lava, with chunks of red skin sprinkled here and there, and its eyes glowed the same orange that had emitted from the ground moments earlier.

The figure stood higher and higher, until its upper torso was finally visible. It wasn't long before it raised its legs up from the ground, and it finally stood upright. Whatever this creature was, it stood about two hundred feet tall, and wielded a massive sword that was half that length.

The skies of the savannah darkened around the creature, and it let out a deep, powerful roar.

*What on Earth….WHAT on Earth is that thing?!* Lois Lane could be heard saying through the news.

*…Folks, your eyes are not deceiving you. A devil-like being is emerging from the depths of Africa?* another anchorman asked his fellow reporter.

*Dear God…* the other reporter responded.

The four Vanguardians, meanwhile, stood there, their mouths agape.

"Oh shit…" Iron Man uttered under his breath.

Before any of them could contact the other Vanguardians, Thor and Wonder Woman flew into the conference room. The four men turned around to see the god and the demigoddess, and both had sullen looks on their faces.

"That beast there," Thor said, as he ran over to Superman and Cap. "That is Surtur!"

"I thought you took the crown to a secure location after the incident with Loki!" Batman barked back.

"We did. But…something happened. I'm not entirely sure what. But somehow, demons from Muspelheim used dark magic to get into Asgard without Heimdall seeing them. And they got ahold of the crown, unleashing Surtur! We were having a grand feast to celebrate a battle in Jotunheim and did not discover their intrusion until it was too late!"

Wonder Woman then pointed out the window. "Surtur will attempt to bring about Ragnarök, but as he commences his plan to destroy Asgard…Earth will fall along the way!"

Cap looked to his left and saw that the skies outside were beginning to darken.

Thor extended his arms out. "We must act now! Billions will be lost if Surtur is not stopped!"

Superman tapped into his ear comm. *This is Superman, contacting the entire Vanguard of Justice! We have a Code Black! I repeat, we have a Code Black!"

It wasn't long before the teleporter could be heard activating. Cap and Batman ran out of the conference room, and everyone else flew out. They looked down at the ground, and the rest of the Vanguard had all shown up at once. Martian Manhunter, Carol, Wasp, Zatanna, and Hal all flew up in the air, and Hal constructed a giant green bubble that had Barry, Hank, Aquaman, Hulk, and Black Panther inside of it. All of them flew up into until they were at the floor that the conference room was at, and the entire Vanguard stood together.

"So that being clearly isn't friendly," Hal said as the group got closer to one another.

Hank sneered. "Really, Hal?! I couldn't tell!"

Wonder Woman fumed and said, "Not. Now."

"Diana's right," Superman said. "That is Surtur, from the realm of Muspelheim! He will bring about the end of the world if we do not act now! Now that we're all here, we must head to the Serengeti immediately!"

*INTRUDER ALERT* *INTRUDER ALERT* *UNIDENTIFIED PERSONNEL ON VANGUARD PROPERTY* *INTRUDER ALERT* *INTRUDER ALERT*

Cap raised an eyebrow. "Who the hell could that be?"

"Well, according to my scanners….it looks like demons right out of hell are at our doorstep! Looks like Surtur sent his minions to deal with us directly!"

Just then, a rainbow flash emitted from right where all the Vanguardians were standing. The team tried to block the light with their arms. In just a few moments, there stood a tall man with a long white beard, a yellow eyepatch covering his left eye, armor coated in gold-and-black, and a massive helmet atop his head.

Cap tilted his head, and Hal asked, "…Odin? King Odin?"

"Correct, Green Lantern. I am Odin Allfather, Ruler of Asgard. And I have come to aid you in vanquishing Surtur and preventing the end of both our worlds."