Chapter 68: The Last Patrol
Outside the Brotherhood's base, several soldiers were standing guard outside, ready to attack anyone that got close. Just then, something started rustling in the trees, getting their attention. Finally, Wonder Woman busted out, flying toward the soldiers as they opened fire on her. She used her bracelets to block the shots as she approached, plowing into one soldier before grabbing him and throwing him into another. The mountainside turrets suddenly rose up and aimed at Wonder Woman, forcing her to evade. While that was going on, an invisible force grabbed all of the mines buried under the ground, lifting them into the air so the other heroes could move out. This included Elastigirl, who grew to giant size so she could smash the turrets on the mountainside. Negative Man's ion spirit followed behind her, flying through the turrets so they would explode.
On the ground, the other heroes made their way toward the base as more ground turrets rose up, opening fire. Green Lantern shielded them as Beast Boy morphed into a cheetah and rushed forward. He dodged and weaved between the blasts before running between the two of them, causing the two turrets to shoot each other. Cyborg fired his sonic cannon at some soldiers, taking them out as Superman flew at the base, tanking turret blasts as he flew to one of the turrets, tearing it out and throwing it at another. Batman fired a grappling line out, zipping across the field before throwing several batarangs at the soldier's weapons, disarming them instantly so Wonder Woman could take them out.
While that was happening, Mento walked forward, using his mental powers to launch the mines at the base. The second they collided with the base, they exploded, leaving a massive hole in the side of the building. All the while, Robot Man ran over to the last turret, bringing his fists down on top of it as the heroes regrouped.
"Let's make this short and sweet," Superman directed. "We find the Quantum Generator, and shut it down."
"Mento, Cyborg, and I can handle that," Batman added. "The rest of you deal with the Brotherhood."
"Not gonna be a problem," Robot Man commented, pounding his fist. "I'm gonna enjoy laying the hurt on those guys."
"Let's just stay sharp," Mento instructed. "The Brotherhood's not gonna let us just waltz in and-"
"Yeah, yeah," Beast Boy said as he went inside. "Let's just go."
…
Inside the base, the heroes wasted no time moving to intercept their enemies before it was too late. As they kept moving, they came across a corridor that split into three different paths.
"Which way?" Batman asked, turning to Mento.
Mento paused, trying to focus his mental powers to try and find the Brotherhood.
"I don't know. The Brain's employing some sort of psychic shielding. I can't get a lock on him."
"Then we'll have to split up," Superman decided. "We split into groups and each take a path. Whoever finds the Generator first contacts the others."
Everyone nodded as they split into groups, hoping to find the Brotherhood before their nefarious plans could be enacted.
…
"At last," The Brain mused, watching from his control room. "Our guests have arrived," he turned to Mallah, Rouge, and Arsenal. "Make sure they are greeted properly."
The three nodded before heading out, ready to complete their mission.
…
Superman led Elastigirl, Beast Boy, and Robot Man down their hallway, the walls of which were darted with metal pipes.
"Are you able to see anything?" Elastigirl asked, turning to Superman.
"No," Superman lamented. "All the piping in here is lead lined. Blocks my x-ray vision."
"So we're going in blind," Robot Man remarked. "Great."
"Not like it ever stopped us before," Beast Boy replied.
"I thought you quit."
"Doesn't mean I'm gonna abandon my friends. More than Mento can say."
"Don't be too hard on him, Beast Boy," Elastigirl insisted. "I know he can come across as heartless, but he's only strict because he wants what he believes is best for you."
"Yeah, so I've heard."
"I know it must be getting repetitive at this point," Superman chimed in. "but sometimes the people who care the most are the ones that push the-"
Suddenly, Superman stopped, looking around suddenly.
"What is it?" Elastigirl asked.
"... somethings coming," he replied.
"Thought you couldn't see anything," Robot Man wondered.
"I can't, but my hearing is working just fine. Something coming through right…" he pointed to a wall. "There!"
Suddenly, a burst of energy shot out, causing the four of them to duck under the blast. They all looked up, seeing the Arsenal robot lumbering toward them.
"You again!" Robot Man let out.
He quickly got to his feet and charged at the machine. The Arsenal swung its blade hand at a nearby pipe, unleashing a could of steam that disoriented Robot Man enough for it to blast the heroic machine in the chest plate. Superman stepped forward, clapping his hands together and dispersing the steam. Elastigirl grew in size, watching herself due to the low ceilings. She brought her fist down on the robot, who brought up its blade hand and turned it into a spiked fist as Elastigirl slammed hers down. The impact caused her to cry out in pain as she recoiled. Beast Boy took his turn, transforming into a triceratops and ramming into the Arsenal. The evil robot transformed its weapon hand into a mace slamming it against Beast Boy's head repeatedly. Finally, Beast Boy had enough, collapsing to the ground before reverting back to his human form. Beast Boy held his head in pain, looking up to see the Arsenal standing over him with his gun hand aimed at his head. Before he could fire though, Superman flew over and rammed into Arsenal, tackling him to the ground.
…
Meanwhile, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, and Negative Man made their way down a separate hallway, looking for any sign of the Generator before the Brotherhood got the chance to use it.
"Lantern, can your ring detect the device's energy?" Diana asked.
"Yeah," GL replied. "We should be getting closer. Larry, think your spirit can short out the machine?"
"Sure if you want it to blow up and take us and the whole island with it," Negative Man replied.
" 'Gee, I'd love to Hal, but it might be too dangerous, and people could get hurt'," GL mimicked. "Really? Thanks, Larry. Your concern is very touching."
"Dick."
"Enough, you two," Wonder Woman cut off. "We have a mission to complete. We can't let petty squabbling get in the way of that."
Lantern nodded, while Negative Man just crossed his arms reluctantly. Wonder Woman took the acceptance regardless, turning back so they could move forward. As they rounded the corner, they came face to face with a large metal door.
"I got this," GL volunteered, powering his ring.
He formed a massive fist, using it to knock on the door repeatedly until it fell off its hinges. As the door fell, the three entered the room, only for the lights to come on and reveal several soldiers led by Monsieur Mallah. The gorilla drew his gatling gun, with a big smile gracing his face.
"A noble effort mes amis," Mallah spoke. "But ultimately, you have only come here to die."
Diana and Hal were surprised by his words.
"He can talk," GL let out, turning to Negative Man. "did you know that he could talk?"
"Duh," Negative Man replied.
He released his ion spirit, causing it to fly out and take out several of the soldiers in rapid succession, Mallah opened fire on the heroes, prompting GL to take off into the air and Diana to pull out her shield, deflecting the shots as she pressed forward. GL formed a massive hammer that knocked away several soldiers before looking back at Wonder Woman and Mallah. He formed a blade with his ring and sent it flying to the gatling gun, severing it and allowing Wonder Woman to fly forward, slamming Mallah into the wall.
Mallah growled in response, pressing his hands against the wall so he could shove her off. He then leaped into the air and tried to bring his fists down on her, only for her to leap out of the way. She drew her lasso, slinging it out and wrapping it around the rogue gorilla.
"Where is the Quantum Generator?" Wonder Woman demanded, causing the lasso to glow.
"It is just beyond this room," Mallah answered. "Not that you'll ever see it."
He managed to grab an explosive from his weapon's sash, tossing it at Wonder Woman. It went off right in her face, knocking her back and allowing him to free himself from her lasso. Before he could get far, a green cage suddenly appeared around Mallah, trapping him. He looked up to see Green Lantern floating over him projecting the cage.
"Might want to get comfortable, buddy," he remarked.
Mallah just smirked, pulling out a disk and attaching it to the roof of the cage. It sent a surge of energy that traveled along the green energy trail right to Green Lantern, causing him to cry out in pain. His cage dissipated before he passed out, falling to the ground out cold. With Lantern down, he turned toward Negative Man as his ion spirit returned to his body. Before he could make a move, Mallah aimed a gun at his face, with several more soldiers backing him.
"Try anything and that ion spirit won't have a body to return to," Mallah threatened.
Negative Man sighed, knowing he was right.
…
All the while, Batman, Cyborg, and Mento made their own trek through the base, searching for any signs of the Brotherhood and their insidious device.
"Cyborg, any sign of the Quantum Generator's energy?" Mento asked.
"Checking…" Cyborg replied. "Got a blip. It's down this way."
"Perfect. Let's get moving. Who knows what the Brain intends to use that machine on."
The three quickly made their way down the hall, following Cyborg's instruments toward their prize. After a while, Batman was beginning to suspect something, coming to a stop.
"Wait," he spoke up, getting their attention.
"What are you doing?" Mento asked. "We have to move!"
"This is too easy. We haven't encountered any resistance yet. We should've met with some by now."
"I'm sure it's coming," Mento retorted. "Now let's get moving!
"Batman may have a point," Cyborg replied. "It might just be a matter of time before-"
Before Cyborg could say anything else, a pair of hands shot out of a dark corner and wrapped around him, grabbing his head and turning it. They then swung him toward a nearby wall so that his human side would take the hit. The impact knocked Cyborg out, allowing the arms to release him so he dropped to the ground. The arms retracted, allowing Madame Rouge to step into the light.
"Very perceptive Batman," Rouge commended. "We had hoped that a false sense of security would be enough to catch you off guard."
"Well it's going to take more than that," Mento declared, hoping to hit her with a mental blast.
She quickly dodged it though, stretching out a fist to try and strike him. Mento rolled out of the way as Batman leaped into the air, throwing a Batarang at her. She managed to dodge the projectile before snatching it out of the air and sending it back at him, forcing Batman to duck under it.
"Your little toys are nothing compared to us," she commented.
"I'm more than just a fancy belt," Batman retorted.
He rushed forward, dealing out punches and blows that Madame Rouge. She easily blocked and evaded them all, brandishing spiked fingers that she shot out at Batman. He ducked under them before backflipping away from an oversized fist. Before he could hit the ground though, another hand shot out, pinning him to the wall.
"You cannot truly believe you stand a chance at stopping us, do you?" she taunted.
"The thought crossed my mind," Batman replied.
Rouge scowled before tightening her grip, causing him to grunt in pain. While she was distracted, Mento snuck up from behind and tried using a mental blast on Rouge, only getting a small selection of images as a result. She grunted a little in response, but quickly snapped back and used her free hand to strike Mento in the head. The impact knocked his helmet off as he hit the ground, Rouge standing over him.
"My mind is stronger than most," she retorted. "So sorry to disappoint."
…
Back with Superman, he and the Arsenal continued duking it out with each other. The Arsenal tried bringing its blade hand down on Superman, but he quickly grabbed the hand, using his heat vision to sever the arm so he could hit him with it. He smacked the robot across the face with it repeatedly before the Arsenal fired its heat vision at him, knocking him back. The Arsenal aimed its weapon hand at Superman, but Beast Boy, having turned into a large octopus, wrapped his tentacles around its limbs, restricting its movement. Arsenal continued to thrash around but Beast Boy maintained his grip regardless. At this time, Elastigirl got back to her feet, positioning herself behind the Arsenal and Beast Boy.
"Alright Beast Boy," she spoke up. "Let him go."
Beast Boy reverted to normal just as Elastigirl flicked her finger, knocking the Arsenal into the air. Superman flew into his flight path so he could punch the robot back toward the ground where Robot Man was. He swung his fist out, punching the Arsenal right through the chest plate. This caused the robot's eyes to go out as the body went limp, allowing it to fall to the ground.
"Good riddance," he commented.
"Nice work," Superman commended. "But we still have the rest of the Brotherhood to worry about."
"Then what are we waiting for?" Beast Boy asked enthusiastically. "Let's go kick some bad guy butt!"
"What he said," Robot Man concurred.
"Come on," Elastigirl directed, pointing down where the Arsenal came from. "This way!"
…
Meanwhile, Mallah and Rouge brought their captured heroes to the Brain. They were all bound in restraints and metal headgear to keep them from using their abilities, Madame Rouge even holding Mento's helmet in her hands.
"How kind of you to grace us with your presence, Mento," The Brain greeted. "I was hoping you would join us before long."
"I'd never miss a chance to stop your insane plans," Mento retorted.
"Unfortunately, you will not be stopping us this time."
As he spoke, the Quantum Generator rose from its platform, much to the horror of the heroes.
"Great Hera…" Wonder Woman let out.
"Trust me," Madame Rouge replied. "This is power even your so-called gods would be jealous of."
"So, what are you gonna do with it?" Negative Man asked.
"We will unleash the power of our Quantum Generator on numerous metropolitan cities worldwide," the Brain responded, several cities appearing on the screens behind them. "Metropolis, London, and Shanghai will be the first to taste our power."
"You're nothing but a delusional madman!" Mento accused.
"Such vigor, Mento. One has to wonder where that spirit was when you led the last Doom Patrol."
That surprised the Leaguers.
"Last Doom Patrol?" Cyborg asked.
"Go ahead, Mento," The Brain taunted. "Tell them how you led your past teammates to their deaths."
Mento glared at the Brain, before letting out a sigh of defeat. "The five of us weren't… the first ones to call themselves the Doom Patrol. There was another… Tempest, Celsius, Loadstone, and me. We were the first to fight against the Brotherhood of Evil. We were responding to a bomb threat the Brain had staged in Paris. I was holding off the Brain's forces, hoping to read his mind on how to disarm it as they moved in. By the time I peered into his mind, I was too late to realize it was a trap. He…"
"I killed them. I set off the bomb early, destroying them all."
Mento looked away in frustration, hating to admit the truth. "I swore I'd stop him… no matter what it takes."
"And yet you have failed again," Brain went on, ignoring Madame Rouge as she tried swatting away a fly. "Once again, you have led your team to death and destruction. At long last, the Doom Patrol is no more."
After having enough, Madame Rouge slammed her hands together, hoping to smash the fly. As she pulled them apart, however, the fly remained unharmed.
"Surprise," the fly let out, flying at her and transforming into a green pufferfish.
The spikes of the fish pierced Madame Rouge's hand, causing her to cry out in pain as she tried to shake it free. This caused her to drop Mento's helmet in the process. Finally, she shook the pufferfish off, allowing it to turn back into Beast Boy.
"How ya like that, suckah!" he cried out.
Just then, one of the walls was blown open, allowing Superman, Elastigirl, and Robot Man to enter. Elastigirl quickly grew giant-sized, kicking some soldiers away as Robot Man plowed through several others. Superman quickly flew over to the others, using his heat vision to cut through their restraints. Once Mento was finally free, he looked up, seeing Beast Boy holding his helmet.
"I came back to save my team," he told him, handing him the helmet. "I hope that's okay."
"I'll allow it," Mento replied, taking the helmet back. "Now, go kick some bad guy butt."
Beast Boy smiled at the prospect. "Yes sir!"
He then transformed into a gorilla, running right at Monsieur Mallah, prompting a fight between the two. Mento unleashed a mental blast that knocked several soldiers away, clearing a path so he could get to the controls of the Generator. Green Lantern meanwhile blasted away at every soldier that came close, not letting up for a second. While he was doing this, Madame Rouge formed her lower body into a spring, hoping to catch him by surprise. Unfortunately for her, Negative Man's ion spirit shot out and nailed her, knocking her out of the air. GL looked back and saw the spirit flying off, giving it a salute before flying back into battle.
Madame Rouge landed on the ground hard, falling into a puddle before pulling herself back together. Superman, however, quickly flew up, wrapping his arms around her. She retaliated quickly, however, spreading her entire body around his in the hope of suffocating him. He tried punching his way out, but she remained unmoved, smirking maliciously as a result. Thinking fast, Superman spun his body around at super speed, finally throwing Rouge off of him. She landed on the ground, prompting Batman to throw several pellets at her, causing them to explode and freeze her entire body.
"Molecular reactions cancel out at absolute zero," Batman told her. "Something to think about."
He returned to the battle, leaving his frozen victim behind. Meanwhile, Beast Boy and Mallah continued duking it out, the natural primate quickly wrapping his hands around Beast Boy's neck. Reacting quickly, Beast Boy turned into a snake so he could slip out of Mallah's grip and wrap around his neck. His grip tightened around Mallah, prompting the gorilla to grab hold of him and pulled him off, tossing him aside. Mallah was about to strike, but Wonder Woman's lasso shot out, grabbing his hand. She pulled hard, yanking him toward her so she could punch him in the face. This allowed Beast Boy to turn into a gorilla again and leap into the air so he could bring his fists down on him, knocking him to the ground. He quickly turned back into a human, giving Wonder Woman a thumbs up and making her smile in kind.
Cyborg meanwhile used his sonic cannon to blast away numerous Brotherhood soldiers, even punching out a few that got too close. He then looked up, seeing General Immortus directing his forces from a platform above.
"Time to relieve the general of duty," Cyborg remarked.
He ran toward the platform, actually launching his hand out of his body with a cable attached to it so he could pull himself up. Once up there, he ran toward Immortus, who quickly drew a laser rifle on Cyborg and opened fire. Cyborg rolled out of the way of the shots, firing his own shot and knocking the rifle out of his hands. He then rushed over to Immortus and picked him up.
"Go ahead," Immortus challenged. "I am immortal. You cannot break me!"
"Wanna bet?" Cyborg remarked, tossing him into a wall.
Back on the ground, Mento made his way over to the controls for the Quantum Generator. Hoping to disable it before the Brain could use it for his destructive means. After several attempts at a shutdown command, he could tell that turning off the machine was impossible.
"Can't shut it down…" Mento let out in frustration. "Can't… wait…" he started punching commands into the computer, changing the original coordinates. "Can't shut it down, but I can change where it opens up."
"And where exactly is it going to open up?" Superman inquired, punching a soldier aside.
"Right on top of us. Come on, let's-"
Just then, the computer screen started flashing, and the base of the Generator opened up, revealing a glowing core.
"What's happening?!" Superman asked, flying over to him.
"The core!" Mento let out. "It's destabilizing it! If it keeps growing-"
"The singularity will consume everything in sight," The Brain finished, currently in the hands of Monsieur Mallah. "Including an insignificant fishing island and the surrounding wharf."
"You madman! For all you know, you'll be caught in the black hole too!"
"Then I shall die knowing that my hated enemies are vanquished. Farewell, Mento."
Mallah then picked up the frozen Madame Rouge and made his way to an escape tunnel on the floor. General Immortus quickly followed after, much to Cyborg's frustration.
"Now, what?!"
"Lantern, can your ring shield the explosion?" Wonder Woman inquired.
"I don't think even I can contain a blast that big," GL lamented.
"Maybe I can," Mento mused. "I can use my mental powers to stabilize the core. At the very least it could contain the singularity to this area."
"What?!" Beast Boy let out. "No! You can't! There's no way you'd get away in time!"
"I'm sorry Beast Boy. There's no other way."
Mento got to work focusing his power, working to stabilize the core. When the energy started rising, Negative Man leaped into action, releasing his ion spirit to attach itself to the core, mitigating its power.
"There's no telling how long we can keep this up!" Mento replied.
Just then, a shockwave shot out from the machine, hitting everyone and causing the ceiling to begin cracking. Not wasting a beat, Rita stepped onto the platform in giant form and held the ceiling up, keeping it from crushing the heroes.
"We can't hold this forever!" she called out. "You have to go, now!"
"No!" Beast Boy pleaded. "There has to be another way! There has to-"
Suddenly, a psychic wave from Mento knocked him out, causing him to fall into Robot Man's hands.
"Cliff…" Mento let out. "You know what has to be done."
"Yeah…" Robot Man replied. "Doesn't mean I have to like it though."
"We all knew there'd be a day not all of us would make it out alive…" Mento replied, lowering his head. "I just wish I could've made things right with Garfield…" He looked back up at Robot Man. "when you get to safety… tell him I've always been proud of him… even if I never said it."
"Can do."
"Mento…" Superman spoke up. "It was an honor fighting alongside you and your team. And I promise, the Brotherhood won't get away with this."
"With your team on the case… I'm counting on it."
With that, GL encased them in a bubble and flew them out, Batman looking down and giving a small salute to the group, which Mento returned before returning his focus to the generator as it began powering up.
…
In the neighboring fishing village of Coddsville, the townspeople were going about their usual lives when one of them looked up in astonishment. Several others followed suit as Green Lantern's energy sphere flew toward them. It touched down on the ground, allowing the heroes to disembark as Beast Boy slowly began to wake up. He instantly shot up, wondering where he was.
"W-wait…" he let out. "Where are we? Where are the others?"
"We're at a fishing village near the coast," Superman answered. "We had to get clear."
"No! We have to go back! We have to-!"
Just then, a loud boom rang out, causing the heroes to look back and see a swirling vortex opening over the island. It expanded for a few moments before suddenly collapsing back in on itself, unleashing a shockwave that the residents of the island and the heroes could feel. Once the shockwave died down, Beast Boy ran out toward the water, stopping just at the edge of the shore before dropping to his knees.
"No…" he let out.
The others just lowered their heads as one of the villagers walked up.
"What… what was that?" he asked.
Robot Man perked up, turning to him. "That… was three of my best friends giving their lives to save the world…" He looked out in the distance, his immovable face somehow managing to look completely heartbroken. "That… was the Doom Patrol."
…
Later, Robot Man was putting together a small monument to the Doom Patrol. It was a small statuette of the three he put together resting on a stone. Once finished, he stepped back, looking at his handiwork. Just then, he felt a tapping on his leg, causing him to look down and see a little girl holding some flowers.
"For your friends," she said.
While his face couldn't show it, Robot Man smiled a little as he knelt down to take the flowers.
"Thanks, kid."
"You know, some of the other kids thought you were pretty scary, but I don't. I think you look pretty cool."
"Uh… thanks. And thanks again for the flowers."
The girl nodded before running off, leaving Robot Man to stand up in bewilderment.
"It must be odd for you," Diana surmised, walking over to him. "Not being met with fear."
"It's… different, to be sure. What's up?"
"There's something I wanted you to see. Garfield is there as well."
Robot Man cocked his head in surprise but followed. They went down to the edge of town where the others were, seeing the villagers putting up a new town sign over the old one. This one red "Welcome Three Heroes". Both Robot Man and Beast Boy were surprised by the revelation.
"They… renamed the town… after them," Beast Boy realized.
"It was their way of honoring them," Cyborg replied.
"That's… really cool."
Cyborg placed a hand on Beast Boy's shoulder, hoping to comfort him.
"So… what are you guys gonna do now?"
"For now… I'm gonna find the Chief," Robot Man decided.
"Caulder?" GL asked.
"Yeah. he disappeared a few years back. Never figured out what happened to him… maybe now's the chance to find out. What do you say, kid?"
Beast Boy looked away for a moment before turning back. "No. Sorry Cliff, but… I just don't think the Doom Patrol's for me anymore. I need to figure things out on my own."
"I… I get it. If you ever need me though…"
"Yeah, I know."
"If you're looking for a new start…" Batman spoke up. "Jump City could be a good place to start."
Beast Boy thought about it for a moment, then nodded in response. Batman smiled a little before looking back to the horizon where the Patrol gave their lives, giving his last respects.
"Rest well heroes…"
…
Meanwhile, in a new secret base, the Brotherhood of Evil, minus the Arsenal, all convined to celebrate their triumph.
"We have claimed victory this day," The Brain proclaimed. "The Doom Patrol is no more. However, we have a new enemy. The Justice League will now seek to stand in our way. We will have to take precautions… to destroy them."