I do not own the Legion of Superheroes but I do own all the new characters that appear in this chapter. Enjoy!
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Ensigns
That night they reached the city dome. Even up close it was beautiful. And though they hadn't spoken for a while the awkwardness of the situation had died down.
Phantom Girl looked around. She didn't see any kind of door, gate, or any entrance at all. "How do we get inside?"
"Simple." Trish replied. She walked up to the dome. Her skin changed from the regular pasty white-purple color to a black-green combination. Her white-blond hair darkened to a maroon shade. The black eyes widened so much the lids almost disappeared into her hairline. Which was quite an accomplishment because Trish didn't have any bangs… Then Trish extended her hand and touched the dome at eye level. Her middle finger lifted and she struck the dome with it – hard. Instantly an opening in the dome appeared. Trish removed her hand but didn't move until she had returned to normal colors. She turned around. "Let's go!" She sounded as if she had forgotten the 'incident' and was just happy to finally be home.
Brainy and Phantom Girl didn't even bother to ask what had just happened. It was yet another thing they didn't understand. As they walked through, the opening closed and they got their first view of the city from the inside.
Every person looked like they could have been Trish's relatives. Everyone had some sort of pasty pastel color skin tone that looked like suede, very light hair, and one-color eyes. Every color you could think of was an eye color: purple, grey, and white, yellow, blue… But there was no white surrounding the color and no black dot in the center. The very center of the eyes was slightly darkened but overall it looked like two small oval plastic colored balls from a McDonalds' playpen had been stuck in their faces.
But Trish's eyes were different – mainly because she was the only one with black eyes and a small white dot in the center. But this small difference stood out as if she was a flying lizard painted neon orange. But Trish walked proudly into the crowded city streets. "We're going over there!" she cried over the din. "To that scaly-looking building!"
Brainy and Phantom Girl quickly caught up with Trish. Everyone was wearing the same blue leather-like jeans and brown collared sleeveless tee shirt just like Trish. And they didn't want to get lost. "Why don't we just fly there?" Phantom Girl asked as she was pushed around. "It's way to crowded down here!" She made a grab for Brainy who was very nearly dragged away by the crowd of people. "We're being crushed!"
"It's market day." Trish answered. As if that explained everything. She quickly grabbed Brainy and Phantom Girl from being trampled by a large cart pulled by an even bigger horse. "And there are way too many outsiders here to have the police to worry about flyers. So anyone who flies above that line…" she pointed out a bright green line painted along the buildings, "They get zapped to the prison like that." She snapped her fingers.
"Why on earth would they do that?" Brainy asked.
"I don't know." Trish said as it dawned on her. "I guess they just don't want people flying overhead with bags and spilling them…" She offered. "But come on let's hurry. I'm way overdue."
"For what?" asked Phantom Girl.
"You'll see PG." Trish said. All three of them hurried toward the building.
The building itself was just a round tower. But it was covered in what looked like some sort of skin. Phantom Girl stared at it.
"Don't worry PG!" Trish said as they approached it. "That stuff is just a special kind of rock. It's not really skin."
"Oh good." Phantom Girl let out a sigh of relief.
Brainy looked at the building. Like everything else it seemed to have no door or gate or any means to get in at all. "I'm getting kind of tired of asking this but how do we get in? Doesn't anything around here have an actual door?"
"Nope." Trish said brightly. She examined the wall in front of her. "If they haven't changed the lock – which I doubt they have – then this should work." She laid her left hand on the wall sideways, her fingers pointing right. Then her right hand's pinky and ring fingertips touched the space between her left pointer finger and middle finger and middle finger and ring finger. She then bent her thumb around her wrist and touched the space under it.
Once again a space opened like a mouth. An automated voice greeted them, "General Trish, Welcome back."
"You're a general?" exclaimed Brainy.
Trish didn't answer. It was all she could do to not run inside but she held herself back so Brainy and Phantom Girl wouldn't get lost in the coming maze of hallways inside.
"Wow! It's huge!" Phantom Girl cried out.
Trish smiled and gestured them forward. She stepped briskly down the hallways. Brainy blinked as Trish kept walking forward with Phantom Girl. 'What was that?' he thought. Did he really, just for an instant, see teal wings on Trish's back appear and disappear? 'No way.' He convinced himself. 'It was just a trick of the light.'
They walked down the hallway. Left, right, straight, left, left, right again, through the maze of hallways they went. Turn right, go up a few stairs and finally through a doorway, and left to a silver door.
"Is this where the people are that are waiting for you?" Phantom Girl asked.
"Yep. But they have no idea I'm coming. Hence them not meeting me at the door." Trish replied. "Now shh!" She put a hand to her lips and opened the door.
Inside were more of the skin-like walls but embedded into the walls was thousands of screens and monitors. Every shape, size, and color was there. Brainy stood in the doorway and stared. It was a technological paradise.
"This place is better than your lab Brainy." Declared Phantom Girl.
Brainy didn't even answer. It was. There was everything anyone would ever need or want. There were keyboards spread around the walls for different things. If Brainy was thinking correctly then there were keyboards and computers for launching ships, keeping track of police activity, watching the streets, and even one for watching other planets.
Above their heads was a giant sized keyboard. Tall enough for someone, Brainy measured the distance with his optical computers, 12 feet and 7 inches tall. 'Who could be that tall?' he wondered. 'Maybe Trish flies up there to work. No… it's too large. So who is it for then?'
There was an oval table in the center of the room with chairs around it. The end facing the door where they had come in was open. And around the walls were blue high-backed chairs. Over the top of one of the chairs Brainy could see the top of someone's head.
The head perked up and the chair turned around. Sitting in the chair was a girl with pale green skin. She had bright green eyes and dark navy-blue hair put into pigtails by two large orange bows. She was wearing a green skirt and a yellow shirt with green sleeves. The shirt was slightly lighter at the center and had thin black lines going across it diagonally. Her shoes looked like green cowboy boots.
No longer than Brainy and Phantom Girl had seen her then she was gone. In a flash of green and a loud scream of recognition the girl had Trish pinned to the wall in a giant hug.
"Trish you're back! Don't ever do that again! Next time you leave you have to tell us where you're going and when you'll be back! But why am I lecturing you? I should be thankful something didn't eat you! Oh Trish! If you ever leave us again I'll kill you! No I won't! What am I saying? I guess I'm just so, So, SO, SO, SO, SO, glad you're back at long last! Oh! But I'm so glad to see you! Where were you all this time? Don't ever leave us again! If you weren't a girl I'd kiss you! I'm so glad you're back! Trish why did you leave? Well it really doesn't matter does it now that you're back. I hope–" she was saying all this very fast and just kept talking about absolutely nothing.
While all of this was happening four other figures entered the room through a door to the right. When they realized what was happening the tallest of them came over and slipped a giant finger between the two girls. "Come on Speed, let the rest of us get a word in."
Speed's cheeks went a darker green as she blushed. She let go of Trish and smiled. But, before Trish could say anything she was scooped up into pale yellow arms and being squashed by the giant's hug.
The man squishing Trish was indeed 12 feet and 7 inches tall. He was wearing what looked like a yellow sweatshirt with the sleeves ripped off. The ends of the shirt were stained orange. He was also had orange pants and yellow sandals. He looked sort of slow in the head because he was wearing yellow sunglasses, had a weird brown hair cut with a brown goatee and had a stupid smile on his face. But the black tattoo on his left shoulder made him look slightly smarter.
Trish was squirming in his grasp. "Gantor! Can't breathe! Crushing bones!" Her voice got more strained. "Puncturing organs!"
"Oh! I'm sorry." He put her down. "Look at that. You finally come back and I'm going to end up killing you with a welcome back hug." Speed snickered.
Trish started smiling but a large shadow fell over her. She slowly turned around and was face to furry face with an orange liger. "Oh no Joe!" She covered her face as the liger opened his mouth exposing a long sky blue tongue. It wagged its tail and licked Trish. "Ewww…" Trish groaned.
She started to wipe off the slick coating of slobber left by the liger when she straightened up. "Ahh! Yoom! Get out of my head! Get out of my head!" Trish was banging her hand against her head. A small light blue thing zoomed out of Trish's right ear. "What are you doing?" She asked it.
"Issuing a welcome thought." Yoom replied. Yoom was tiny but seemed to grow steadily taller until she stopped at about 6 inches tall with light blue skin, purple messy hair, and blue eyes. She had full length purple sleeves attached to a toga like shirt on top of purple yoga pants. Her yellow shoes caught Phantom Girl's eyes. They were bright yellow and sparkled as if dipped in starlight.
Trish groaned and held the side of her head. Then she looked sideways at Yoom, and then smashed her against the wall. She lifted her hand to reveal a flat Yoom with bug eyes. "Gee thanks." Yoom said in a high-pitched strained voice. She peeled away from the wall and floated down to the floor.
The only one to still welcome Trish back was the pale red man by the door. He had on brown leather pants with two light brown belts and red shoes. A dark brown shirt with three wooden circles in a straight line down the center and red sleeves with wide ends was topped with red shoulder pads. A giant scythe was strapped to his back. And his long maroon hair was pulled back in to a ponytail. A small lock of white-blond hair was attached to the hair over his left forehead. He had not moved and his mouth was hanging open. "Trish?" whispered the man.
Trish didn't answer because she was still trying to wipe off all the slobber from Joe. The man stretched his arm and grabbed Trish around the waist. His arm then shrank back to normal as he pulled her close. "Don't ever leave me again." He said. And with that he planted a kiss on Trish's lips.
Trish's eyes widened in surprise a split-second before narrowing in disgust. She pushed away the man. "Tor! You weirdo! What are you trying to get at?" she said between bursts of laughter.
"I missed you. What did you expect?" Tor answered with a smile that melted Phantom Girl's heart.
"I think I'm in love." She said folding her hands and putting them up to her cheek. "He's so hot!"
Brainy rolled his eyes. Why did he suddenly feel so outraged? Why did he feel like he should step forward and say something to that man? This feeling that he should protect Trish… something like he was her broth…'I must not be thinking straight.' And he quickly dismissed those thoughts from his mind.
Trish was swaying on the spot. "Great welcome back guys!" she said. She clapped once winced and shook her hands out. "Next time," she fell sideways onto Gantor's thigh, "Thank you Gantor." She pushed herself up. "Try not to kill them."
"Sorry." They all replied.
"We all just missed you so much." Speed said, looking at the floor.
Trish frowned. But the corners of her mouth twitched before she broke into a wide smile. "What do you all look so sad about?" she cried out. "Come on get in here!"
Brainy and Phantom Girl stood in the doorway and watched the joyful reunion. Trish, Gantor, Speed, Tor, and Yoom were all laughing and hugging. It was like a high school reunion with old friends. Joe the liger was jumping up on top of people and licking everyone. They both felt awkward just standing there but they all looked so happy finally being together that they didn't want to ruin the moment.
"Oh! Hey guys! I want you to meet some people." Trish's voice called from the group huddle. The group parted and they were all smiles. Trish ran over to the door where Brainy and Phantom Girl were standing. "Guys," she said addressing Brainy and Phantom Girl, "These are the Ensigns under my command from the Dimensions At War Indimensional Protection Agency or the DAWIPA. (Da-Whip-uh) Speed, the speedy technological genius from Jusc,"
The green girl waved, "Hey!"
"Gantor, our resident giant and strong guy,"
The giant smiled and nodded, "Hello friends!"
"Yoom, the thought sprite,"
Yoom zoomed around. "It's a pleasure!"
"Joe, the liger our resident licker, both literally and figuratively," Joe jumped up and barked like a dog.
"And Tor, the weirdo and other Eastlandian." Finished Trish.
Tor bent his left leg up to his knee and his right arm to his waist and bowed deeply. "The pleasure is yours I'm sure." He straightened up and winked at Phantom Girl. She blushed and giggled.
"And everybody this is Phantom Girl," Phantom Girl smiled and blushed deeper as Tor's eyes rested on her. "And–"
"ALEX!!!!" screamed Tor. He ran over to Brainy and picked him up in a giant hug. "Man I thought you were dead! They didn't hurt you too badly did they? I'm so glad you're back! Try not to leave again ok?"
"Tor." Trish sighed. Brainy squirmed but he couldn't get out of Tor's grip.
"I mean did it hurt? Did anyone else come back with you?"
"TOR." Trish said.
"Is she one of them too? She sure looks different than you do."
"TOR!" Trish yelled. He looked at her. "That's not Alex." She said.
"But he looks just like him." Tor pointed out.
"But he's not Alex." Trish said. Tor pointed at Brainy who was still clutched in his arms. "Yep that's who I'm talking about."
"Would you mind letting me go?" asked Brainy.
Tor squeaked. He looked at Brainy. Tor put him down gently and backed away to stand behind Gantor. "Sorry." He called.
If Brainy could have shot daggers or fire from his eyes Tor would have been pinned to the wall and burned to a crisp.
"Sorry about that." Trish said.
Phantom Girl didn't want another awkward silence to begin. The first one was bad enough. "So what was the DAWIPA thing?"
"Dimensions At War Interdimensional Protection Agency is what grouped us together." Yoom said into her ear.
"Ahh!" Phantom Girl screamed and flung her hand at Yoom who was squished to the wall.
"It's a good thing you're one of those old cartoons right Yoom?" Gantor laughed.
"Old cartoons?" Brainy asked.
"Yeah. Old cartoons had anvils dropped on them all the time, and got squished flat, electrocuted, and a whole bunch of other things. But they were always just fine in a couple minutes. They couldn't die unless everyone forgot about them." Gantor replied. He looked over at Phantom Girl. "When the Dimensions are at war any of them could collapse."
"And if that happened all of the other dimensions involved or not could be in danger of an Armageddon." Speed said.
"So we were all called together to help out in case of emergency." Yoom finished.
"Sorry about squishing you." Phantom Girl said.
"It's fine." Yoom said brightly.
"All of you? Where did you all come from?" Brainy asked.
"Gantor is from Intermat. That's the 8th dimension version of your Pluto. Speed is from Jusc. That's a small planet outside of the Coluan space in the 20th dimension. Yoom is from the minds of animators who made her up and then let her run wild in the minds of everyone who saw her. Unfortunately, since the 6th dimension was destroyed, that's where she was created, she's not as well known as others. And Joe is just your average Liger who got dipped in the chemical 'Remitin' (Rem-ing-ton) better known as 'Chemical Romance'." Tor summed up. Counting off the members on his fingers. "And of course there are a couple of people who are part of the group but work in the other planetary groups so we don't see them much."
"What about you and Trish?" Phantom Girl asked.
"Well, that's a long story. And I bet you two want to get home." Trish said.
"We've got time." Phantom Girl said. Brainy looked at her. "What? We can figure out why they keep calling you Alex."
"If you really want to know…" Trish said reluctantly. And she and Tor started to tell their tale.
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There you go Chapter 3. Sorry if it was kind of boring. I will try to add more action in the next chapter. The next one will be about what the Legion is doing! I know I'm not letting you know why Brainy is being called Alex. I'm mean, I know, but I will get it written ASAP!!! Please Read and Review! Thanks!