Disclaimer: Ah, here is the first chapter of 2017. I also got a scathing review from some joker but I won't them the time of day. They don't like my stuff, don't read it then. As always, I own nothing.
Sadly, it comes after I found out that wrestling legend Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka had recently passed away at age 73. Regardless of the controversy of his final days, I have to pay my respect to the legendary grapple and offer my condolences to his family.
Rest in Peace, Superfly.
Chapter XVI
Thor sat on the bed in the infirmary of the Watchtower with Bruce Banner shining a medical flashlight in his eyes, and he was hardly enjoying the gleam. The rest of the Avengers were gathered in the room, including Natasha to whom Thor had apologized for his foolishness. Natasha responded the only appropriate way; by punching Thor in the shoulder. Thor was able to laugh it off but his humor was waned by Dr. Banner's insistence of medical clarity. As such, Thor tried to move his head away, but Bruce was having none of it.
"You know, this would go much easier if you just stopped trying to fight me." Bruce exclaimed.
"I've spent Odin-knows how long in a dungeon, Dr. Banner. One would think you'd excuse my impatience." Thor retorted.
Steve approached Thor and put a hand on his shoulder. He asked, "What was it like over there? On Apokolips?"
Thor looked at the Captain, giving no display of trepidation or worry. "What would be the best means of describing it? Imagine a living, physical interpretation of Hel while the rest of the universe is locked in the final moments of Ragnarok."
"That bad, huh?" Steve said.
Clint was sitting nearby and sharpening one of his arrowheads when he said, "Well, I've imagined it and I'm pretty sure I don't want to sit through it."
"That makes two of us, Clint." Carol said.
"Hey, if it gets really bad, you can always cry on that Lantern guy's shoulder. I mean, you two seemed to hit it off." Clint quipped.
"Shut… up!" Carol snarled at Clint.
Tony ignored the banter between the duo and asked, "What about Von Doom?"
"Doom remains in Apokolips as we speak and apparently, he and Darkseid are not on the best of terms." Thor explained while pushing Bruce's flashlight away.
"That's not all that surprisingly considering how we got off on the wrong foot with the Justice League. Although, Raven does seem like a good kid." Natasha stated.
"Rachel Roth is also the daughter of a demon." Vision pointed out.
"Thank you, Vision, for pointing out the obvious." Natasha sarcastically replied.
"You are welcome, Agent Romanoff."
"So what do we do now? We've got Thor back, so do we call it a mission and head back to our universe?" Carol asked.
"Von Doom is still a fugitive and he's still on Apokolips. Like it or not, we have to apprehend him and bring back to our universe to answer for his crimes." Steve stated.
"Why? If Doom wants a new universe to dictate over, I say we leave him here. That's one less psychopath to deal with back home." Clint said.
"It's not as simply as that, Clint." Bruce said.
"Doom doesn't belong in this universe, Clint. None of us do." Natasha stated.
Tony added, "For all intents and purposes, our very being here in this universe has already done that. It's no different from Thanos using the Infinity Stones or Dormommu hopping between dimensions or Kang messing with the timeline. So as much as I love to hate agreeing with Cap here, we really don't have a choice."
"The mission isn't over until we've captured Von Doom. So, everyone get prepped up." Steve said started to leave before Carol addressed him.
"What about Superman and his friends? They may not agree with this plan."
"I'll take full responsibility." Steve said.
Outside of the infirmary and looking through the window, Superman had been using his super hearing and listening in on the Avengers since Thor came back. He didn't like a single word his super hearing picked up, but that was far from the more pressing issue that was bothering him. Wonder Woman approached him and she took in a glance of the Avengers as they convened. She looked Superman dead in the eyes and knew instantly that something was concerning the Man of Steel to no end. Superman glanced at Wonder Woman briefly before returning his gaze specifically at Thor.
Wonder Woman finally said to him, "The rest of the team is gathered in the conference room. Are you okay?"
Superman shook his head slightly and replied, "Something is very wrong about all this. Darkseid is many things but careless isn't one of them. There's no way Thor could've managed to get out of Apokolips without Darkseid trying to stop him."
Wonder Woman saw through the window that Steve Rogers was on his way out and she quickly asked Superman, "Do you think Darkseid planned it out?"
"I wouldn't put it passed him if he did." Superman replied just as Steve arrived on the other side.
"I'll meet you in the conference room." Wonder Woman before leaving. She gave Cap a slight nod as she walked by, which Steve returned.
"How's your friend?" Superman asked.
"He's no worse for the wear. Asgardians have a reputation for being incredibly tough to beat." Steve stated.
"I can attest to that notion," Superman said without taking his eyes off of Thor. "So, what's your next course of action, Captain?"
"Once Thor is fully recovered, we're going to use the Mother Box he stole from Apokolips to go back. We still need to apprehend Doctor Doom and once we've done that, we'll transport ourselves back to our universe. You'll never see us again after that," Steve explained, and that was when he noticed the trouble look in Superman's eyes. "Is there a problem, Superman?"
"Thor escaped from Apokolips with hardly any trouble whatsoever. There's no indication that Darkseid or his minions tried to stop him and he even managed to secure a Mother Box on his way out." Superman stated.
Steve retorted, "Asgardians are tough to beat, just like I said."
"But I know Darkseid better than anyone. Thor somehow managed to escape Apokolips right under his nose with hardly any trouble at all. There are no indications of a struggle." Superman stated further.
Steve drew closer to Superman, holding his shield tightly in case the Man of Steel tried to get physical. "Are you suggesting that Darkseid orchestrated Thor's escape?"
"It's more than just a simple suggestion, Steve." Superman exclaimed.
"Well be that as it may, the Avengers still have a mission to complete and we're going to see it done… with or without the Justice League's aid. Is that acceptable to you, Clark?" Steve forcefully said.
Superman closed the miniscule distance between himself and Steve, going nose to nose with the patriotic Avenger. "You have no idea what you're getting or your team into."
"We'll know when we get there. You can mark my words on that." Steve stated with conviction before stepping back and returning to the infirmary.
Superman narrowed his eyes at Steve. It was painfully obvious that intimidation have no effect at all on him. It irked Superman even more that Captain America was being so dangerous arrogant in thinking things would be simple. Nothing was ever simply with Darkseid. He looked through the window at the Avengers as they appeared to plan their next move, but Thor was the one that bothered him the most. Superman knew something was wrong and his instincts told him that Captain America and the Avengers were going to find out the hard way.
The conference room was a wide-open space with a round table and up to seven or eight seats situated around it. It was akin to the tale of King Arthur and his Knights in appearance, but the Justice League was far removed from the medieval legend. Most of the League members were already present. Batman and Aquaman were already at the seats waiting for the meeting to get started. Raven and Cyborg were standing alone in a corner with Cyborg speaking into a holographic image, likely speaking to the Teen Titans. Green Lantern and the Flash were standing opposite, likely cracking a joke instead to ease the tension.
As for Wonder Woman, she paced slowly and waited for Superman to arrive. When the Man arrived, the rest of League took notice and took their seats. Raven didn't take a seat, considering she was technically not a member of the League. Superman and Wonder Woman took their seats, each one opposite of the other with Batman seated between them. It didn't take long before Wonder Woman noticed that Raven hadn't joined the group.
"Raven, it's okay for you to take a seat at the table with us." Wonder Woman said.
Raven merely looked away slightly and replied, "I'm not a member of Justice League like Cyborg."
"But you are here on this Watchtower same as Cyborg. Like it or not Raven, you're a part of this." Wonder Woman stated, and Raven reluctantly took a seat next to Cyborg.
With everyone settled, Flash asked Superman, "So what's the story, Clark?"
Superman gave everyone a quick glance before he explained, "Well now that his team is apparently back to full strength, Captain America still wants to travel to Apokolips to capture Doctor Doom. After that, Captain America has assured me that he and his team will return to their universe."
There was a silent deliberation between the heroes before Green Lantern asked, "So are we going to let them go to Apokolips, just like that?"
"If it really is their desire to go to the domain of Darkseid and get themselves killed, then who are we to deny them? Personally, Id' prefer not to have the Avengers here any longer than as needed." Aquaman coldly claimed.
"That's pretty harsh, Arthur." Lantern suggested.
"It's not a complete lie, Hal." Aquaman claimed.
"Unfortunately, it's not so simple as that," Superman stated, drawing everyone's attention to him. "We've all battled Darkseid and his legions before. We know he often uses methods of control and manipulation to get what he wants."
"What are you getting at?" Flash asked.
"There's the very real possibility that Thor may be under mind control by Darkseid, in a way that's similar to Superman's own experience but to a lesser extent." Batman clarified.
"A lesser extent?" Cyborg wondered.
"Thor may not be aware that Darkseid has brainwashed him. It's somewhat similar to a sleeper cell, which would require a specific means of activation to be effective." Batman stated further.
Lantern immediately added, "Yeah, something like a trigger word or proximity to a certain area."
"It's no different from the kind of mental manipulation and possession for which Trigon is known. " Raven said about her demonic father.
"Yeah, but you got him trapped in the gemstone on you forehead." Cyborg pointed out.
"You know just as well as I do that's he's always trying to claw his way out, Cyborg." Raven retorted.
"It stands to reason that should Thor lead the Avengers into Apokolips, Darkseid will activate the brainwashing and turn Thor against his allies. The Avengers would essentially be walking into a trap from which there's no escape." Superman stated.
"If that happens, what would be worst-case scenario?" Cyborg asked.
"Darkseid would likely use the same method of brainwashing on the rest of the Avengers." Wonder Woman said.
"Then he'd even more likely turn them loose on Earth. Considering that Superman and I have battled the Hulk before, with mixed results, utter devastation would befall the planet." Aquaman claimed.
"And that's something we can't allow to happen." Superman concluded.
"So what are our options? What do we do; do we help catch Doctor Doom or what?" Flash asked.
Superman and Batman exchanged looks that spoke of a prior talk before the meeting, and Batman declared, "We're sending the Avengers back to their universe, except for Thor."
"What do you mean except for Thor?" Lantern asked.
"We've all seen first have what Thor is capable of, and that kind of raw power and the beck and call of Darkseid is far too dangerous to be left unchecked. Imagine if a brainwashed Thor returned to his own universe and someone of malevolent means inadvertently uttered a trigger word." Batman said with a troubled tone in his voice.
"In order to spare the Avengers the scenario of an out of control Thor, we have no choice but to keep him in the universe while sending them back to theirs." Batman added.
There was a somewhat hushed tension among the group before Cyborg said, "Look, let's say we do this. Let's say we send the Avengers back home but we keep Thor here; where would we keep him?"
"I'm with Cyborg. I mean we can't just throw him into Arkham Asylum or Belle Reve or Iron Heights. I don't think we can even throw him in the pipeline at S.T.A.R. Labs." Flash claimed.
"I hate to even think it, Flash, but there may be only one place where we can put Thor; one where he won't be a danger to anyone else in any universe." Superman stated.
After another tense bout of silence, the thought set in on everyone and Flash said in shock, "Oh no. No, no, no. Clark, Bruce, you guys can't possibly even be considering…"
Green Lantern also determined what Superman and Batman were thinking and he said what everyone was thinking, "The Phantom Zone? Are you kidding me? That's worse than a death sentence at Belle Reve."
"We've all seen what happens when someone uses their abilities for something other than the greater good. The potential misuse of one's abilities is too great to ignore." Wonder Woman stated.
"Maybe, but the Phantom Zone is just too extreme to be a solution." Flash exclaimed in protest.
"It's the only solution that makes sense, Flash. If you can't see potential dangers of a brainwashed hero, or a group of brainwashed heroes, then you're as much a fool as the Avengers." Batman stated.
"Flash, I'm as aware as Batman of the extremes that come with sending anyone to the Phantom Zone. It's something I personally don't take lightly. With that being said, I think it's only fair that we put this to a vote; majority rules." Superman declared.
"Majority rules? Is that it? Are we a democracy now, Clark?" Lantern asked.
"Better a democracy that a group of tyrants. That being said, I vote for sending the Avenger back to the universe and imprisoning Thor in the Phantom Zone." Superman said with an air of regret in his voice.
Wonder Woman said, "Like Clark, I can recognize the danger that unchecked power can pose. So, I vote yes."
Aquaman said, "I also vote yes."
"This is crazy. I vote no on the Phantom Zone, not that it's going to make a difference." Lantern said.
"You guys have already made your minds on this, so I'm not going to bother." Flash snapped.
"Cyborg, what about you?" Wonder Woman asked.
"Aw man," Cyborg murmured. "Diana, I'm sorry, but I'm Barry and Hal on this. This is unethical, sending somebody we hardly know from another universe into some pocket dimension from which there's no escape. I can't have any part of this."
"How about you, Raven? Like I said, you're part of this." Wonder Woman claimed.
"I'm not much of a voter. This is between all of you." Raven declared before leaving her seat and walking out of the conference room.
"I guess with Raven bowing out, that makes it three to three on the vote." Wonder Woman said to Superman.
Superman sighed and turned to Batman, who had yet to render his vote. "Bruce, the deciding vote is yours."
Batman glanced around the table and said, "Whether or not a deciding vote is rendered at this juncture is ultimately irrelevant. This is something that needs to be done. We're putting Thor in the Phantom Zone and that's the end of it."
Green Lantern stood up and slammed his hands down onto the table. "Bruce, did you even stop to think about what if Thor isn't being controlled by Darkseid? Did that thought ever occur to anyone?"
"It has, Hal. But it's not a chance we should be willing to take. As I said: this needs to be done." Batman claimed, and Lantern stormed out of the conference room.
The Flash stood up and looked directly at Batman and said to him, "You know what, Bruce? You're not always right." Then he bolted out of the conference room after Green Lantern.
"It wasn't exactly a popular decision, Bruce." Wonder Woman said.
"It's not about popularity, Diana. More often than not, someone has to make the hard decisions." Batman stated.
"Even if that means condemning someone to the Phantom Zone?" Wonder Woman asked, but Batman merely glared at her.
"Apparently so." Aquaman claimed.
Superman sighed and said, "Alright, I'll set up the Phantom Projector. Diana and Arthur, you two get Thor and tell him to meet me in the main area."
Unknown to the Justice League, Vision was phased partway through the far wall. He had been listening to the entire exchange between the League members. He took note of all of the most important aspects, from the probability of Thor's possible brainwashing to the Phantom Zone. Vision determined that the rest of the Avengers weren't in any way going to like it. He immediately phased into the wall as Superman was moving toward him. Vision continued on to reach the Avengers, but he was unaware that Superman had stopped in his track. He used his X-Ray sight to spot Vision moving intangibly through the wall. It didn't take long for Superman to realize where Vision was going.
"The Phantom Zone?! What the hell is that?" Clint shouted.
"According to what I've learn, the Phantom Zone is a sort of pocket dimension into which the Justice League sends its most dangerous enemies, and from which there is no escape." Vision explained.
"That's a new level of crazy. We just got Thor back and now these a-holes want to toss him into some interdimensional slammer." Clint snapped.
"Yeah, all the while forcing us to leave him behind because they're scared that Thor is possessed," Carol added with equal anger. "And I was just starting to like it here."
"Look, this doesn't change anything aside from moving up the time table. That's means we have to get Apokolips as soon as possible, capture Doctor Doom and then bolt before the Justice League tries to stop us." Steve explained.
"Yeah, but what about Thor? How do we really know if whether or not he's been changed somehow?" Natasha asked.
"I'm going to assume you are aware of my presence, Widow." Thor snapped.
"I'm just saying it out loud, Thor. But it is something to take into some serious consideration." Natasha said almost defensively.
"I've run every test I could and there's nothing to indicate any possible abnormal behavior in Thor's personality." Bruce explained.
Steve gave Bruce a nod before turning to Tony, who was tinkering with the Mother Box. "Tony, do you think you can get that thing working the right way."
"If Doom could then so can I. I should even be able to stabilize the gravitational pull so we don't wind up in multiple locations like before." Tony claimed, and soon after that there was a low hum coming from the Mother Box.
"Bruce, I hope you're very angry right now." Steve quipped, and the Avengers looked dumbfounded at Steve.
"Presto!" Tony said as the Mother Box opened a stable Boom Tube.
Alright people, we know the mission. It's snatch- we go in, capture Doctor Doom and bail before we encounter opposition. Let's get this done." Steve ordered.
Just then, Superman suddenly appeared and declared, "I can't let you do that, Captain."
"This has to be done, Superman." Captain America stated.
"You have no idea what you'll be up against if you go to Apokolips." Superman claimed as Batman, Wonder Woman and Aquaman were joining him.
Iron Man stepped beside Captain America and declared, "It's better than the alternative of trapping one of our friends in a pocket dimension."
Then Captain Marvel stepped up and added, "One thing I've about being an Avenger is you don't leave a man behind.
Without warning, Thor suddenly bolted into the portal and vanished from sight. Hawkeye followed Thor into the portal and he was immediately followed by Black Widow. Vision was the next to enter. When Captain America saw all this happening so quickly, he rushed for the portal. But Superman was faster and obscured Cap's advance. Captain America immediately slammed his shield into Superman's face, but the Man of Steel didn't budge. Superman simply stood with his arms crossed.
"I'm sorry about this, Captain. But if you want to go through this portal, you'll have to go through me." Superman declared.
"I don't have to, Superman. He will." Captain America before ducking, and the Hulk suddenly appeared and tackled Superman into the far wall.
The Watchtower suddenly shuddered and seemed to be tipping forward. Captain America lost his footing and fell into the portal himself before it closed behind. Iron Man and Captain Marvel quickly took flight to avoid dropping to the floor. Superman punched the Hulk back and caused the Watchtower to tip back its original position. Superman then made a move toward the Hulk before Batman and Wonder Woman stepped in his path.
"STOP IT, KENT. YOU'LL KNOCK US OUT OF ORBIT." the Dark Knight shouted.
The Flash, Green Lantern, Cyborg and Raven arrived at the scene, and Flash asked, "What the hell was there?"
"HULK HATE MAN IN RED CAPE! HULK SMASH MAN IN RED CAPE!" The Hulk bellowed before Captain Marvel floated in front of him.
"Take it easy, big guy." she said, easily the Hulk down.
Green Lantern approached Captain Marvel and asked her, "Carol, you okay?"
Captain Marvel swatted Lantern's hand away and shouted, "Don't touch me, Jordan. You knew all about this, didn't you. You knew about this Phantom Zone idea."
"Hey I was against it, okay? I didn't want anything to do with putting Thor in the Phantom Zone." Lantern argued.
"Like Hell, you didn't." Carol argued back.
Meanwhile, Superman snarled at Iron Man, "Do you have any idea what you've done?"
"What we've done? When we got here, it was to rescue one of our people from Apokolips. Now, because of you and your super friends, we have to rescue five of our people." Iron Man snapped.
Batman stepped in between Iron Man and Superman before they came to blows. "That's enough. This isn't the time or place to be at each other's throats."
"I'd say it's the perfect time to be at each other's throats." Captain Marvel claimed while the Hulk snarled at every member of the Justice League.
"There's no need to be fighting amongst ourselves, Captain Marvel." Wonder Woman said, trying to be reasonable.
"Oh, that's comforting after the fact isn't it, you over-masculine swimsuit model." Captain Marvel snapped, and the Hulk chuckled.
"This is getting us nowhere and cooler heads need to prevail. Iron Man, you and your remaining allies meet us in the main area. We'll discuss the situation." Batman said before storming off.
As the rest of the Justice League followed, Captain Marvel murmured in frustration, "Like I said, I was starting to like it here."
"Yeah," Iron Man replied. "But right now, I'm more worried about Cap and the others. The situation seems to be getting worse by the minute, and I don't like it."
Captain Marvel let out a sigh before she asked, "Tony, you think it's true what they said about Thor being brainwashed?"
"We've seen good people get messed up in the head before, Carol," Tony replied solemnly. "I hope to God it's not true."
Author's Note: The first chapter of 2017 is done, and now things are getting complicated. There's not a lot of crazy action superhero action bout there's a lot of talking and arguing about Thor and whether or not Darkseid has corrupted him.
This brought out mention of the dreaded Phantom Zone. No thank you, Superman.
Before you go off on me about it, I want to point that it's already been established that Raven IS NOT a member of the Justice League. That's just to ensure no one is confused.
What's going to happen to Cap and the Avengers that went through the Boom Tube and where do Iron Man, Captain Marvel and the Hulk go from here? Stay tuned for more superhero goodness… and don't forget to review.
In Memory of
Jimmy "Superfly" Snuka
1943-2017