DEO, Washington DC

Picking his teeth, Jason Todd sat on a chair turned backwards so the body was on his stomach, wearing his trench coat from the time he worked with Hush. Waiting on a briefing from the boss, Eddie Thawne, he was leering at Superboy-Prime in an attempt at scaring him. "You think you're real tough, don't you?" Kal said, breaking eye contact almost as soon as it was made. "Well, yeah I do," Jason smiled, "I also think you're a whiny jerk who could do with a spanking." "I could kick the sass out of you if I wanted," Prime scoffed. "Never said I'd do the spanking," Jason laughed, "I just can't wait to see you go up against Mongul or Doomsday and get totalled." "You're real funny, Red Hood," the false Superman sneered. "Not as funny as you look, kid," the former Robin chortled.

That was when Dawn Allen walked in with her brother, Don and Jason stood up in response. "Well, if it isn't my gorgeous speedster." He walked up to Dawn and gave her a long, steamy kiss. "Jason, I'm married," Dawn blushed as Don stared at them as though he'd just caught them doing drugs. "Yeah and he isn't even born for another millennium," Jason reminded her, turning her chin towards him, after she moved her head away nervously at her brother's stare, "That and you weren't complaining the other day." "Can you stop flirting with my sister, criminal?" Don told the Red Hood quite sternly. "Ooh, I've pissed off the brother," Red Hood held his hands up sarcastically, "Things must be getting serious." "Jason don't mind him," Dawn said, grabbing an arm and pulling him close to her, so that he was moved away from her brother, "We're here to talk to Eddie. I'll see you tonight, okay?" "You better," he said before laying a sweet peck on her lips and releasing his girlfriend. Their relationship had developed during training at the DEO, just as he seemed to have built a fatherly bond with Slade Wilson, albeit the latter was more of a love/hate thing. Scarlet walked in then and he gave her a big hug. "Hey, kid, what's up?" he asked. "I'm fine, Jason," she replied in as noncommital a manner as usuall, "Where are the squad?" Sasha was referring to their comrades on the Suicide Squad. "I'm the one who gets the info at the League meetings," he reminded her, "They get that stuff from me."

"But we haven't gone on a mission yet."

"I know, but they'll trust me. I am the Red Hood after all."

"That doesn't make any sense."

"They will because I'm the boss, okay. Thawne has them on side so they should be fine. Oh, speak of the Devil."

Just as Roy Harper and Donna Troy walked in with Amanda Waller, Simon Hurt and Eddie Thawne arrived with Victor Stone via Boom Tube, yet again startling all present. "Well, with President Eiling writing Mrs Waller a blank cheque to deal with Gotham, we don't need to worry about money when it comes to building our arsenal," Hurt told Thawne with delirious confidence, not yet acknowledging those they had disturbed, "Soon, the Calculator will mass produce Mother Boxes and we'll be able to harvest the remains of Apokolips and New Genesis for any leftover New Gods tech. That way we can send our troops anywhere instantaneously and not just rely on Victor here." "Why did you put a Mother Box in my friend?" Donna asked sincerely, looking with deep worry at Vic, who continued to lack any response. "To help him rebuild, my dear," Thawne said putting his hands on her shoulders, "You know that, Donna. We're fixing him, just like we're going to fix Gotham." "Fix Gotham?" she asked, trying to resist his influence. "Your friend, Nightwing, seems to have seized control of the city undemocratically in response to the recent crisis," Thawne calmly said, exerting as much control as possible, "I'm afraid we're going to have to arrest him." Donna pushed him away then.

"What do you mean, arrest him? Dick's a good man."

"Arrest might be a harsh term, Wonder Woman. We merely wish to restrain him before he does something he regrets. Which is why we can't send the Justice League in."

Superboy-Prime looked disgusted. "What do you mean?" Kal said angrily, disgusted he was going to be left out of a chance to kill. "Because we don't want him murdered by a lout, like you, Kon," Thawne answered with all the disgust he could muster. "My name is—" Kal stopped himself, "I mean I'm not a lout!" "You're a mad dog who we're only going to let out against cosmic threats that need to be destroyed," Thawne replied curtly but honestly, "And it would look fishy to have the League handle this sensitive situation. We already have our allies there involved. No, we shall send Task Force X in."

"The Suicide Squad!" Roy shouted, "Over my dead body! You are not sending those murderers after Dick Grayson." "Mr Harper, compose yourself!" Hurt shouted at him, "Our plan for Mr Todd and his team has not been outlined." "So, what is the plan then?" Jason shrugged, trying to pretend he didn't care what fate befell Nightwing. "It is for you to lead the squad into Gotham and arrest Dick Grayson without using lethal force on any of his vigilante allies or ordinary Gotham civilians," Thawne addressed the Red Hood, "You are permitted to use them against that new gang of his. The Mutants I believe they're called." "You know, Dick and I aren't exactly on speaking terms right now," Jason cockily smiled, trying to get the measure of what this preacher wanted from him. "That's why we need you to bring…insurance," Waller entered the conversation with a commanding tone, "Insurance in the form of this."

Amanda beckoned Cyborg towards them and opened his chest cavity revealing a small trigger. "Our allies have planted bombs strategically around Gotham, repurposed from Jonathan Crane's bombs he recently utilised to fill the city with dread," the director continued, "This will detonate all of them at once, killing hundreds. Unless Grayson hands himself over along with Jim Gordon and Harvey Bullock to stand trial for their treason." "You think I'm actually going to detonate that thing?" Jason shouted in anger, "Gotham's my home, and I'm not gonna' kill a bunch of innocent people." "You won't have to if your brother is as moral as he seems," Thawne replied. "He's not my fucking brother," Jason bit back through gritted teeth, "And what if you're right and he has gone crazy? He could easily not give a damn and then I'll have to detonate it." "In that event…should you choose not to follow my orders, you're on your own, Todd," Thawne made a motion that implied he would indeed wash his hands of them, "You and all your team. We'll send the League in and let our Superman here loose. Do you want that to happen to Gotham?" Jason looked to Donna and Roy then. "You see what he's willing to do," Red Hood spoke with clear concern to his friends, "I've got nothing against killing bad guys, but for God's sake you're proposing letting that atom bomb with teen angst start a goddamn holocaust in my hometown."

"Miss Troy and Mr Harper are beholden to me, because they know what I can take from them."

"What?"

"Lian and Robbie," Donna said through tears, "He means he might kill them if we…if we defect or help our friends." Roy put his hand on the back of his head. "Well, he didn't actually threaten, but he implied that was what could happen," he said, showing he still had some faith in the villain, "Otherwise…he's doing good things, Jason. He's given us our lives back and given you a purpose. Donna's being hysterical, he won't actually do any of those things." Thawne then smiled slightly. "You see, Mr Harper knows me so well," he oozed satisfaction with every word, "Sometimes it does good to threaten those who don't know you. Miss Troy, I will not harm your children, I just expect gratitude from both you and your partner for all I have given you." Thawne then went up to Donna who reluctantly hugged him. "It is alright, my child, I apologise for any distress," he lied, "But, Mr Todd, you…you are not a good man. I will not kill a child but I can kill you." Thawne sent his eyes into the back of his head and began glowing a white light. Jason started feeling like his brain was collapsing, bleeding from the sheer force of a crowbar colliding with his head so many times. And he felt hot, like he was in an explosion. "Uh-stop!" he struggled in protest. "Swear you will do as I say!" Thawne answered, all his affected care gone, "If not to save your city from Superman, then so you don't die!" "Fuck—you—" Red Hood spat a globule of blood into the prophet's face. "It hasn't been a pleasure, Jason!" Thawne shouted as he wiped the blood from himself. "Stop!" Dawn begged, grabbing Thawne by the arm, breaking his concentration and stopping him from finishing the job, "He'll do what you want. Just don't kill him." "Does your woman speak for you, Todd?" Thawne scoffed. "I—yeah, fine," Jason admitted as he cleared the blood from his throat with another spit on the ground, "I'll get you Dick. Just don't let Psycho-Supes over there anywhere near my city."

"Excellent," Thawne clapped his hands in delight, "You leave tomorrow with Task Force X. Cyborg will send you to Gotham City Centre via Boom Tube. I hope none of you disappoint." Thawne snapped his fingers and Cyborg emotionlessly opened a Boom Tube which he left through with his masters. "That monster—he's insane," Red Hood struggled to say as Dawn helped him to his feet, "What the hell have we signed up for?" "Well, Jason you weren't doing what he said," Roy responded, "He was just scaring you a little." Donna squared up to her boyfriend aggressively for that. "Roy, shut the Hell up!" she told him, "You saw what he was doing, Jason was hacking up blood. He was killing him. We need to get out of here." "No, you can't get out," Don said sadly, with a caring look at Donna to remind her the threat was real, "Or he'll kill your kids." As Don Allen shed a single tear, Superboy-Prime scoffed. "You're all just soft idiots," he told them all, "Thawne's making the world a better place, and he's willing to do shit you fake heroes are too scared to do. No wonder he has to frighten you guys into obedience. Anyway, I've got to get home to my fiancée. It's never a pleasure." 'Kon-El' walked away and flew off into the sky.

"That's not Conner Kent," Donna said with a real fear in her voice, "He wouldn't move on from Cassie just like that...or treat anyone like that beast has." Dawn shook her head to confirm Donna's suspicions. "He told us Conner and Bart are alive," she tried to explain, "but that he can't tell anymore. He won't give Don Bart back." "Look, Superboy-Prime's got a point," Don said, revealing their Kryptonian teammate's identity and shocking Donna and Roy in the process, "If he brought Bart to us, he wouldn't be able to rein him in anyway. We need to wait until things are stable and the brave new world is solidified." "You mean when that fabled seventh seal of his is open?" Jason asked, "My knowledge of the Bible may be limited, but I'm pretty sure that means the end of the world." "Or the birth of a new one," Don retorted, staring Jason down in a confrontational manner, "A better one. A world more like the one Dawn and I grew up in. And your brother's standing in the way of that Jason." "He's not—" "Oh, shut up both of you," Donna screamed, "Jason, just make sure you bring Dick in safely. Or I don't know what Thawne's going to do." Donna and Roy uncomfortably left holding hands. "Coming home, Dawn?" Don asked. "No, I—I think I'll stay with Jason for now," she told her brother as he scowled at them before taking his leave. Scarlet left too without saying a word when Jason started crying and let his new girlfriend hold him. "There, there. It's okay. We're all scared of him." "I'm not letting what happened to Bludhaven happen to Gotham," Red Hood wept. Dawn placed a longing kiss on her new lover. "I have faith in you, Jason," she told him, stroking his cheek with her thumb, "You really are a softie deep down, aren't you?" "Shut up," he broke eye contact in embarassment, "I love you. This isn't just some fling while I'm out of time," she told him with sincerity, "I actually do care about you, Jason. And I'd love for you to meet my daughter when Eddie brings her back."

"I'd like that too, Blondie. I'd like that too."

Citadel of the Seven Seas, Orinopolis, New Atlantis

Arthur Curry was stewing in a cell beneath King Orm's personal throne room. He hadn't had any visitors since Mera had stuck him in there. He'd had time to think, at how incensed his father's death had made him. How the people of Atlantis needed to avenge the man's death on the Amazons. But why would he think like that? Why make Diana lose her mother just as he lost his father? Diana was his friend and entirely blameless in this. He still thought these things as his first visitors arrived. Those visitors being Diana, Garth and Mera. "Arthur, can we talk?" Diana said before the bars of his cell. He leapt at the bars angrily and with a passion in his eyes mingled with bloodlust. "I have nothing to say to you. I thought you were my friend, and then your people killed the man who raised me."

"They were not my people. Circe enchanted them somehow. It seems they were constructs of dead Amazons given to her by this Eddie Thawne fellow."

"Lies! You're just trying to save Hippolyta's worthless neck."

"My mother is blameless, Arthur. She's just as much a pawn in this man's game as you and your brother are. And if Orm can see that then you should too. Thawne brought your father back from the dead so he could use his death as a means of twisting you. Turning you into a loyal follower of his."

"I don't know what witchcraft you're weaving, Amazon, but—"

"Do not talk to her like that!" Mera bellowed at him, "Diana is your friend and has been for many years. She is not defined by her people, no more than you are defined by the Atlanteans." "You don't understand, my love," Arthur pleaded. "No, I understand too well is my problem," his queen told him with all the confidence of one, "You are being a fool, Arthur. Your father was obviously resurrected to entice you. To remind you of simpler times and the happiness you had with him. Thawne realised you weren't in power, and that Orm could be swayed by Diana's words. Therefore, he had Tom killed to send you into a rage and maybe kill Diana, thereby harming any peace between us and Themyscira. Thankfully, he underestimated your self-control. Not entirely, but he didn't think a man with your legendary temper would stay his hand against someone he blamed for his father's death."

"You haven't explained one thing. If Thawne is evil, then why aren't you all turning on him?" Arthur pointed towards Garth, "He's been acting strangely. Very strangely. Almost as if he doesn't want to be here. Since Thawne brought him back…if Tom was one of his puppets, why do you trust Garth?" "Arthur, I hate Thawne more than you can know," Garth said bitterly, "I was in Elysium when I died. I was with Dolphin and Cerdian and Tula and so many other people I loved. I was happy. I had an afterlife for myself. A well-earned one after all I had suffered. Next thing I know, I'm awake in a body I remember having the heart ripped from with Ocean Master and some blonde hippie standing over me. I was unsure what had happened, but now I've had time to think about it I was only brought back to use you. Do you know how depressing that is? I got to be with my wife and son again. I got to see Tula once again. The girl I loved who died stupidly when we were saving the multiverse. But now I'm in New Atlantis married to a girl I barely know that Orm prostituted to me and about to be a father again, as if I could cope with the loss when it's killed like Cerdian was. I am broken anew, Arthur, and it's all because of him. Could you not see what your father was like? He looked as if he were a zombie, and he seemed to have no mind of his own. Thankfully, I'm not like that but I could have been. Thawne is using people for his grand plan. I don't really understand what it is, but I don't think that it's good. Now, will you join us in coming to Themyscira and finding a way to stop him with the help of Hippolyta."

"Your words, Garth. They are more sincere than anything I have heard you say in a long time. I did not realise you desire death so much, my lad...before or after your return. Forgive me, I have been selfish. I wanted people I loved such as yourself back in my life without ever thinking what it must be like for them. My father was a puppet of Thawne's, you are right. And I'm not going to let him toy with people's hearts in the same way again. Very well. Diana, my dear, I must offer my heartfelt apologies. I should not treat any friend as I have treated you. Now come on. We're going to visit your mother."

Arkham Asylum

He hadn't laid a finger on him. Not one finger. Only tied him up and stripped his shirt off. It was an old back room in the asylum, covered in white tiles and with the only source of light being a dimming bulb not providing any light to anywhere except Tim's immediate vicinity. The Joker had taken one look at Tim Drake's mangled form and seen the scars covering his arms and part of his torso. "Well, well, seems Ra's beat me to it." "They're not—ha—" Tim struggled through the remaining toxin, "they're not from him." "Who are they from then, kid?" the clown asked, the depth of his curiosity apparent. "Me," was the quiet but earnest reply of the captive vigilante. The Joker stood up and looked at his victim. "You do that to yourself?" he asked with a hint of revulsion, "I'd find it funny if it wasn't so sad. Why do you do it?" "Because-ha-because," Tim breathed shallowly, "because I hate myself." "Hate yourself?" the Joker spoke with genuine perplexity, "Why on Earth would you do that? Good looking kid like you who kicks the ass of some of the baddest gangsta's in this town, hangs around with gods and has a hot ass girlfriend who came back from the dead? You used to be the cocky Robin who wasn't dumb enough to get himself killed. What the hell happened, Timmy? You make no sense."

"I hate myself…because-ha-because I'm not good enough to be Red Robin."

"Well, that was surprisingly candid. I do love how honest you kids can be with me, when your old man just keeps making excuses. If you're not good enough, why do it?"

"I failed as Robin. Didn't pass Bruce's test. Hahaha. He used my girlfriend against me. Lied to me. I hate him!"

"If you hate him so much, why do you tag around at all?"

"Because I don't hate him. I love him. Hahaha. He's my father. At least he has been since I lost my real one. And he has a good heart, and…I'd be nothing without him. That's part of the reason…I depend on Bruce. Everyone else moved on when they thought he was dead. Everyone. Not me. I dropped my whole life. My education, ha, my relationship, ha, and my family, hahahaha, to find him when he was probably dead. .My best friend came back from the dead and I didn't even bat an eye because I was so determined. I made everyone I love targets of the League of Assassins. Ha. All because I thought Bruce was alive. And I was right. But it cost me everything. I went back to the Titans because I wanted to make amends. I was leader for a while instead of Cassie. Ha. Screwed that up again. Oh well…what's the point of it all anyway. My life's a wreck all because I loved one man too much. It's kind of funny."

The Joker just stood looking altogether perplexed, when he started guffawing slightly. "Now you get it, kid," he said, pinching Tim affectionately on the cheek like a baby, "Nothing matters. It's all a big joke." "No!" Tim shouted back, not giving in to the clown's game, "I ruined my life for something bigger than myself. For Batman!" Joker grabbed him by the face then and brought him closer. "Listen, bucko," he sneered, all pretense of humour gone with only menace remaining, "You know it and I know it. Batman's a nobody. A schmuck. He's even more pathetic than I am. My whole life fell apart one day and I got turned into this. All I could do was laugh. Like you're doing now. Batty Boy's whole life fell apart and he just became a self-loathing rodent with defined biceps. I became a master criminal, changing the face of crime in this city. I am as much a product of this city's society as he is, but unlike him I still find time to smile. You should too, Timmy lad. Your predecessor was far too serious. Aggressive fellow was Jason. But I beat that out of him. Well, I thought I did. Now he's madder than ever and hates all your guts. Kind of funny, isn't it?"

"Nothing is fucking funny about what you did to Jason Todd. To Barbara. About what you do to anyone. You're a sick man!"

"Now that's not fair. It's not me that's sick, Bird Brain, you and Bats know that well. I'm the one who sees how funny it is, that you're all pretending the rest of you aren't completely insane. That mouthy Robin wannabe would have gotten himself killed sooner or later anyway. I do what I do because society would have done it anyway. I think its hilarious you condemn me for having the courtesy to finish off a pain in Bats' ass quicker than fate was allowing. How could Gordon mess around with freaks like me while his daughter wore a costume and not expect retribution? And you've got to admit, I was pretty tame on Babs all things considered. As for Jason…like I just said, not even your boss liked him anymore. Too violent, even by my standards. At least with the first Boy Blunder I wasn't half as…murderous. Things were more innocent back then. I just felt a compulsion to hurt people the darker their beloved Caped Crusader became. It seemed funnier than the screwball antics I got up to when Dickie was in the tights."

"You're a maniac, Joker. Stop trying to justify your actions with complete nonsense for once!"

"Tut tut, language Timothy. You see I want to hurt you. Do to you what I did to Jason…but you've already hurt yourself so much. Anything I do…it's not going to break you, is it? You're tough, kid, I'll give you that. Being with Ra's all those months can't have been exactly easy. So, physical pain isn't going to work then. I'm going to have to improvise. Fair play, Boy Blunder the Third, you're making me up my game. Consider yourself privileged."

Tim didn't see him for nearly three weeks after that. During that period, only some of Ra's' retainers came in to give him food. When he asked why, they would merely reply that the Joker wanted to keep him alive. The whole time the lights were off. Tim desperately wanted one. Once the first fortnight and a half had passed, a door opened revealing the Joker carrying two bodies. "Oof, we need a light in here," his distinctive voice echoed through the dark, "Gimme' a minute." He placed both bodies before the wall and paced towards Tim. "I went to a lot of trouble to find these girls Tim, my lad," he said, "So, a bit of professional appreciation wouldn't go amiss." "What are you talking about, clown?" Tim winced through the darkness, trying to make out what was going on. "Joker, please," the clown reminded him, "Bit of courtesy wouldn't go amiss for such a generous host. Here, let me show you." The Joker then took out a flashlight, stood behind Tim placing it on his shoulder and shined a light onto one of the two bodies. It was a pretty young girl with black hair and blue eyes, bloodied and clearly dead for hours. Tim didn't notice at first but then he realised who it was. "No, Ariana!" he screamed. "Ha ha ha! Oh, it took me a while to find her. Had to get Ra's to find your school records," the clown relished every word, "She screamed a lot when I found her. Her parents ate lead too. Then when she struggled, I just poured gasoline down her throat. Pity. She was very attractive, and the way she begged me to leave her alone in that sexy accent. Ooh, why you left her for that white trash daughter of a fifth-rate hood like the Cluemaster I will never know. Why didn't you try it with Rose Wilson? Damn that eyepatch. You have to admit though, Timothy. It's kinda' funny don't you think that I went to all this trouble for someone so pathetic?"

"You-you—you sick fuck!"

"Now this isn't my fault. It's your fault, Tim. Remember you hate yourself so much. You failed your family and yourself after all. Especially the big B man. Naughty, naughty. And now because you dated this girl when you started off as the Boy Blunder, she's dead! And so are her mom and dad. Another reason to hate yourself. And she's not the only one."

Joker then moved the flashlight towards the other body, which appeared to be Zoanne Wilkins, Tim's girlfriend at the time Stephanie had come back from the dead. Her face was contorted in a grin like a lot of Joker's victims, and like them it was apparent she was dead from how still her eyes were. "Zo…how," Tim said to himself, a sudden realisation beginning to dawn, "She left Gotham for final year. That's not possible. Why did you do this?" "Why do anything?" the Joker replied, "You're my plaything now, Timmy lad and I don't want to kill you. I just want you to see the funny side of things. Like how your whole mission to infiltrate Ra's al Ghul's operation only led you to me. Not half as clever as you think you are, eh. Still I will give you one thing, you stud. These two were hot. Hope they were good in the sack."

"We were kids…we never…"

"Oh please, let's not get into your personal life, Tim Timothy Tim Timaree. I haven't gone into detail about my sex life, now have I?"

Tim got sick then at the thought of what he had done. "Do you want to kill me, Tim?" the harlequin asked, "Please tell me you do. If you can't see the funny side you might as well be angry. Let killing me be your drive. Become like Jason. Become my masterpiece." Tim raised his head to look the clown in the eye. He now had the flashlight aimed at his own face to accentuate the grimness of his visage. "Shut the hell up!" Tim spat in his face, "I may not believe in myself, but I believe in the people who care about me. That's a faith not even the worst kind of torture could get me to recant, Joker. And it's not one you're going to break by murdering random girls and pretending they're my exes." The former Robin smirked in all his defiance, causing the Joker to frown in anger as he continued, " My family will save me. I know it. I believe in them." The Joker maintained his frown for the better part of a minute. Then he perked up as a tirade of laughter arose from his gut. "Oh, that's even funnier than anything I've ever said. You're still such a hopeful idiot you think they'll come get you. They can't. This place is guarded by the League, and you're at my mercy. Last time Batman came when a Robin was my prisoner didn't turn out so well, now did it? Then again, you'd know that. Ra's told me all about you. Pathetic little boy playing with his hands obsessed with the Caped Crusader. Why would Bats pick an awkward thing like you, who was only good at guessing his identity, to wear shorts and kick ass?"

"You know nothing about me. Bruce loves me. Dick loves me."

"Their love for you isn't going to save you. I just told you. How can you still believe the Batman is going to save you when he couldn't even save Jason? When he wasn't even here to save this town?"

"I don't mean Batman. I mean my brother. Nightwing. He'll never give up on me. None of them will. They love me. I don't know why but they do. And I've got to believe in that. Otherwise…otherwise you win. There's no point in anything. Just a joke."

"Oh, Boy Blunder, you've signed your own death warrant. I'm going to try even harder now. It took me three weeks to find those girls. It's going to be easy breaking your faith in your troglodyte costumed 'family'. Hahahahahaahahahaha!"

Mi'ran

Sitting at a table in the palace of Princess Niviath, Kyle Rayner and Lobo were entering an arm-wrestling match. "Green Lantern or not, I ain't met no biped that can toss this bastiche's arm down!" Kory and Mar'i were laughing at that while Mar'i sat beside Ryand'r with her mother standing behind her. She looked to her mother then. "Tell me another story of you and my dad and the Titans?" Kory blanched a little at the prospect of talking about a time as dark as that could be but remembered the good times when she could. She could hardly tell her child about Terra or the Wildebeest Society yet. "Well, there was the time we went to Tamaran and your father met your grandparents," she said, trying to figure a way to explain the whole problem of their second visit and her arranged marriage. "Where are they, Mom?" Mar'i asked before she could continue, "Gramma never tells me, but Nana was her daughter, wasn't she? Why is she gone but Gramma alive?" For a girl her age Mar'i did act slightly more immature than most. Kory supposed this was the time she needed to tell her little girl about death. "My mother and father went to X'hal when our planet died," she gravely noted, "Your grandfather was a proud man who stood tall on our world as the Gordanians destroyed it. My mother would not leave him. I am sorry." Ryand'r held his niece's hand. "They would have loved you, Mar'i. Know that from me."

"But, no one's ever died here," Mar'i genuinely informed them, "You said that all my grandparents are dead." "Well, no they're not," Kory said with a little apprehension. "The man and woman who gave birth to your father are dead, yes, but he has another father. We've spoken of him. The Batman. That, and your great-grandmother is alive with us here, so you are not wanting for family who love you." "But I want to meet my Dad," Mar'i said a little sadly, "You say he's lovely, but why isn't he with you." "Relationships are complicated, starshine," Kory sadly replied. "But you told me you love him," Mar'i noted, her eyes a little moist. "I do, and he loves me…but we aren't soulmates as the Earth term would be," Kory sadly admitted, "And I have no doubt that he will love you with all his heart once he finds out who you are."

"But why can't I see him?"

"Mar'i, I am to be made queen of these people. I cannot just leave them on a whim. I would happily take you to Earth but…"

"Well, why don't I go on my own."

"No! I've only just got you I'm not letting you get yourself killed."

"You said it yourself, Mom," Mar'i said, maturity seeming to shine through in her new found rebelliousness, "My father doesn't even know I exist. I want to meet him. I want to meet Dick Grayson." Kyle was able to understand what they were saying thanks to the translation software on his power ring and lost his concentration allowing Lobo to best him in their match. "Ha! One nil to the last of the Czarnians!" the large mercenary bellow, "Oh yeah!" Kyle then moved towards Mar'i and put his hand on her shoulder, ignoring Lobo's victory lap. "I can take her to Earth after the ceremony tonight," he told Kory, "I should probably check out home before I get back to Oa. I'll have her back here in no time, Kory. I'll be your designated driver for whenever she wants to see you or her dad." "Kyle, that is wonderful…why do this?" Kory asked. "Because I'm helping out two friends who've just been given the gift of a daughter. That, and I can't wait to see Bruce's face when he finds out he's a grandfather. To a pre-teen. The way Dick and Tim put it that guy is king of the condom talk."

Kory lowered her eyes passive aggressively to remind Kyle of who he was with. "Oh, you mean human methods of preventing conception?" Mar'i bluntly said looking up at the Green Lantern, "Yeah, Gramma said they're really primitive. Hence, why I exist. Uncle Kyle, I believe my mother thinks you should stop talking of such things in my presence. Particularly in reference to my grandfather." Kyle was taken aback, then Lobo started laughing like a hyena. "Oh, that is brilliant. Give your Uncle Lobo a high-five, kid!" Mar'i's palm landed squarely on Lobo's and then they fist bumped. "That's my girl!" "Please, Lobo, you do not need to be nice to me in order to mate with my mother," Mar'i smiled, "While I appreciate your kindness, you should focus on wooing her instead through asking her for copulation rather than becoming my friend."

"Ha! You sure this kid's half-Earth," Lobo awkwardly laughed, "She ain't prudish enough. She's all Tamaranean, except for those eyes. What is it with humans and pupils? So weird." Tousling her hair, Lobo walked away from the situation, dragging Kyle with him. "Come on, arty boy. We've got to get dressed up for this shindig." With the others gone, Mar'i looked at her mother. "Will Uncle Kyle take me tomorrow like he promised?" she asked. "I'm sure he will, starshine," her mother reassured her, "Kyle Rayner is an honourable man."

"Don't call me that."

"Call you what?"

"Starshine. I can't fire starbolts like you and Uncle Ryan."

"Oh…well, I am sure you will grow into them." Kory then kissed Mar'i and her brother on the head. "I suppose I should head back too," she continued, "Get into my robes of state. It's not every day you become a queen." Starfire took leave of her daughter and Ryand'r. In her quarters at the palace, she donned royal robes given to her by her grandmother for coronation as Queen of the Tamaraneans. They were purple, but complimented a regal bearing, with her hair now tied into a large crown similar to the one her father had worn. Hundreds of people were thronged in the centre of the main city to witness her coronation. Lobo and Carter had been named royal guards to serve at Kory's pleasure, since neither planned on leaving Mi'ran anytime soon.

Ascending a large altar with a throne atop it, Kory saw her grandmother, brother and daughter standing beside it with her grandmother holding her father's traditional crown. "Do you, Princess Koriand'r of Tamaran, take on the duty your father, Myand'r held before you to lead your people?" Niviath announced before the crowd as Kory knelt before her. "I do, grandmother," Koriand'r answered. "Then I anoint thee as Queen of the Tamaraneans. The one, true queen." Niviath placed the crown upon her granddaughter's head while Ryand'r handed her a sceptre. Kory lifted up Mar'i to give her a big kiss and whispered in the girl's ear, "Whether you choose Earth or Mi'ran I will always love you my little one. Know that, please." "Of course, Mom," Mar'i kissed her back, "I love you too." Sitting on the throne holding the sceptre, Koriand'r made her maiden speech. "People of Mi'ran, I am your queen, Koriand'r. I have come here to lead you from the disaster which claimed so many lives, including that of my mother and father. I have not been here long, but I know you all accept me as your queen, and that your society was founded upon my grandmother's love for my daughter and me. Because of that, I will always love you, each and every one, as the people who cared for my child when I could not. Thank you. And I shall protect you all from threats as you protected her from them. I swear it on my father's memory, and that of my forebears who led our people over the aeons." The crowd thundered in applause at their new queen. Merand'r, the new Commander of the Royal Guard then stood beside her, placing a hand on her shoulder. "He would be proud, Princess. Far higher he thought of you than of your sister."

The celebrations went on long into the night. Lobo and Carter downed tankard after tankard of grank together, while Mar'i danced with her uncle, and Niviath stood beside her seated granddaughter observing them. "She is delighted to finally have family," the older woman spoke with warmth and admiration, "She cannot have liked it with just me for company." "She seems like a very happy child," Kory told her her grandmother, as if thanking her, "But she is unusually curious about the life she feels she should have had." "What life is that?" Niviath wondered. "On Earth with me and her father," Kory answered taking a large drink from her goblet of wine. "But you are not married to him, my darling," Niviath replied. "No, but we nearly were," Kory reminded the old woman, "And who knows...Mar'i could have had a little brother or sister by now." "She still can," Niviath said, "You should probably take a consort at some point if you are to be our queen. She will always be your heir and the Hybrid Messiah, but that does not mean you should deny yourself happiness with a new partner, my darling." Kory looked across the room at many handsome Tamaranean men as well as the others in the room with her. "The only good men I've known have been human," she shook her head, "We Tamaraneans are far too…open. Men from here remind me too much of Father. I do not want to marry a man who would give his child to slavers." "Your father was a better man than that" Niviath curtly rebutted, "And you know it."

"You could have fooled me, grandmother."

As the celebrations lingered, Kyle Rayner ended up severely drunk, going to bed slightly before dawn. He wished he'd invited Soranik to this, but he needed to catalogue everything he could about this world before informing the Guardians. Placing his power ring on his bedside mantle, Kyle began thinking about his love life through his inebriation. Donna had been great. I mean how could she not be. Such an amazing person had to be a spectacular girlfriend. They both struggled through hard times in their lives. And then, of course, his first relationship had ended up with a dead girl in a fridge. Not a high time for anyone, let alone women. Jennie was probably his best girlfriend. Like Alex, he'd lost her to violence, but unlike Alex she was alive again. But he had moved on with Soranik, a lovely girl from Korugar who was the first of her species since Sinestro to become a Green Lantern, as his actions had instilled a hatred of the Corps amongst the populace. Then it turned out she was his daughter. Go figure. They were happy, but Kyle still had thoughts about Donna and Jennie.

He was even having dreams of sleeping with Donna again. It was weird. He should be thinking at least about Soranik, let alone the mad situation on Mi'ran. Weird, he thought as he nodded off to sleep, only for less than an hour later to be awoken shaking and falling out of the bed. There seemed to be some sort of earthquake. He reached for his ring on the mantlepiece only to find it gone. Rubbing his eyes, he looked up and saw a blonde man with a scraggly beard standing beside of all people, Krona, holding the ring in his hand. "Looking for this, Kyle Rayner son of Maura Marz. I don't think you'll be needing it. But we will. How else are we going to destroy Oa and your precious corps?"

Central City

Harry Lampert was just an ordinary kid. At least he assumed he was. He must have been at some point. He had parents, went to school and was about to do his first communion. Sure, they were poor, but life was good and ordinary. Then one day he started realising he could hurt people. A bully at school had ended up in hospital the moment Harry thought of him bleeding. The family cat had ended up in the middle of the kitchen dead because Harry had seen on television a car running over a family pet. His guidance counsellor had mentioned something to someone about a boy in her school having extraordinary powers. It eventually filtered to Amanda Waller and the DEO. Next thing Harry knew, his mother and father were killed and he had a collar around his neck to prevent him from imagining their killers dead. Now his head was shaved and he was being put on the back of a bus. He didn't know where they were going, though he suspected it was nowhere good. "A kid who can imagine things happening to people into reality?" a guard asked another with disbelief, "How's that gonna' be useful as a slave?" "Well, you never know," his colleague replied, "Condition him right, he might make a good assassin. This one's probably going to be valuable." "Yeah, but you or I aren't gonna' get a larger paycheck 'cuz of him, are we Gil?"

The truck was driving quickly through the streets of Central City and Harry had seen it was marked DEO, but the guards speaking had sounded like two-bit thugs. Likely mercenaries hired to handle the transportation. He had heard stories about this. His mom and dad had been reading the Daily Planet, and some guy named Kent had written an article on how Intergang were doing this sort of thing in Metropolis. Harry shivered slightly wondering would this happen to him. He kept imagining the two assholes who killed his parents having aneurysms. But nothing. This collar held back all his power. And now if what they were saying was true, he was going to be a slave. But that was illegal, wasn't it? Then again, there could be an argument to say he wasn't human because of what he could do. And because of that he was fair game to be bought and sold. The truck ground to a sudden halt. "Gil, what's up?" the first guard snapped, "You made me spill coffee all over my top!" "The tyre must be flat" Gil responded with annoyance, "Go and get the pump from the back." "And why the Hell should I do that?"

"Because I'm driving this rig and you're just sitting there reading the fucking paper. Now get back out there unless you're scared of a few subhuman kids."

"Fine, fine."

The other guard walked out of the door and then immediately started screaming. It sounded like someone was setting him on fire. "Larry, oh Hell!" Some bullets were fired to the right of the vehicle, and Gil's voice echoed as the other door opened. "Back off, Heatwave! This ain't got jack to do with you. Go piss off the Flash or some crap." A whirring sound which seemed to resemble the noise a gun made when cocked then went off to the left, and a slow voice said, "Get out of the car, or you're going to be in the hospital with him." The doors at the back then opened and a man in a weird outfit that looked like it had lightning symbols opened the door. It was Weather Wizard. "Snart, Rory, we've got 'em. They're fine. What were they doing with all these kids?"

"Maybe the Archbishop was running out of kids," Heatwave said as he walked in to join him. "Don't think those priests like 'em shaved, Mick," Captain Cold answered as he walked around to join them, "Both the guards are down. We'll take this thing back to HQ and try and look after these poor mites. Do you kids know what these assholes wanted with you?" Harry saw Snart was looking at him through his blue sunglasses. "They…they wanted to sell us," a taller child replied. "Sell you?" Harry asked. "Yeah…as slaves," the same child added. "Fuck, that's warped," Snart said, rubbing a hand over his mouth in some disbelief, "The DEO are selling kids. This is bigger than Intergang." Snart then activated a walkie talkie he had on hand. "Black Lightning, this is Captain Cold. Yeah, we got that truck you hired us to get. You still haven't told us why the Flashes can't be used?" A red gloved hand then grabbed the walkie talkie and smashed it. "Because, Snart, we don't tolerate criminal behaviour," the male Flash said to him while the female grabbed Heatwave and Weather Wizard. The man pushed Captain Cold against the side of the van.

"Tell us why the Rogues are working with Black Lightning!"

"I ain't talking shit, Flash. Take a look at what we're doing and you'll see for yourself this isn't to do evil."

"You attacked the van of an extra-governmental organisation."

"One trying to sell kids as slaves!"

"I don't believe you!"

"The kids said so themselves. They're metahumans, Flash. The government is trying to sell them. If you don't believe me, ask them."

Harry walked outside and towards the Flash. Don was stunned to see the young lad had his head shaved like one of the inmates in a Nazi concentration camp. "I…believe you," Don stumbled, "But we still can't let you do this." "Can't let me free slaves?" Snart asked in disbelief, "Are you for fucking real?" "It's…it's the President," the Flash continued his stammering, "He won't allow it. This is his baby." "The President? You're telling me the government are behind this, Flash," Captain Cold laughed, "Oh, that is rich. You, working for the government and helping them traffic metahumans. Imma' let that slide, so long as you let us slide. You're not a bad person, Flash. So, let us go and take these kids someplace safe."

"They're not going to be safe with you, Snart!"

"They'll be a darn sight safer than they are out on the streets with these child catchers about. I'm asking you to trust me, Flash."

"I—Fine. Just get them out quickly. And don't tell me where you're taking them."

"Why?"

"Because the man trying to sell them is our boss. And he's worse than the President."

The Waverider

Pouring his old friend some whiskey, Oliver Queen saw Hal Jordan shake as he took it in. "Medicinal stuff, Hal," he said through a smile. Hal just looked up and downed the drink before gesturing for another. "So anyway, Hal…you feeling alright?" Ollie asked, pouring the second drink. "Alright? Alright?" the ace pilot shouted back, "I'm everything I thought I was. I thought I did all those terrible things as Parallax, but then I found out it was just a bug. A bug older than time itself. Now it's not even that. Parallax and I are one and the same." "It's a bit more complicated than that, Hal," Dinah Lance said, holding her friend's hand, "Dream said you might become Parallax in the future." "No, he was fairly certain that that thing and I are one and the same. There's nothing I can do."

"Yeah there is, Hal," Ollie said with a strong degree of judgement towards his best friend, "You can be the friend I had years ago. The man who took care of Roy when I was being an ass to him for a habit he couldn't control. When you became Parallax, I lost all hope. I freaking died for Christ's sake, because the three people I love the most, you, Dinah and Roy were either dead or forsook me. I hated myself for what I'd done. I don't care what Dream says or anyone else. There's no such thing as pre-destination. Look at Rip and Booster. Their timeline is nothing like ours. According to them, Dinah and I should have a daughter by now. And you should still be dead. Whatever we do is never certain. Don't listen to him, okay?"

"Fine, Ollie, fine. I get that we can't be certain about the future. But there's still potential."

"So then, you're going to do your damnedest to make sure that potential never comes to be. I'm not giving up in Hal Jordan like I did during the Zero Hour."

Hal pursed his lips and rubbed his mouth. "You're annoyingly right," he conceded, "Who do you think this Entity is though?" "Well," Dinah pointed out, "they're someone we know. He said they were a friend. And I remember you told us that the Emotional Spectrum started on Earth. We know Earth wasn't the first planet with life. This isn't over. We need to find out who or what he is?" "But Dream said we couldn't stop Thawne then," Ollie pointed out. "Like you said," Hal acknowledged, "he probably didn't get me right. What's to say he got that right too?"

Metropolis

Donna Troy and Roy Harper were both exhausted after a long evening playing Twister with their kids. It was the first time since Robbie had been alive that their children had got to play together. Things were amazing. They were together again. But as they went to bed that night, Donna felt so discomfited. "What's up?" her boyfriend asked out of genuine concern. "Roy, we can't stay in the Justice League…not with that thing as our leader," Donna frowned, "And I don't care if Thawne has good intentions, we can't let him burn Gotham." "We won't," Roy reassured her, "What's that look for? You really think I'd put Robbie and Lian over all those innocent people. I do in many ways, but I'm not letting the world die for them. We've both lost them once, if they die again it means their deaths will have meaning. And if he does kill them, I'll put an arrow right through Thawne's eye myself."

"Roy?"

"Yeah."

"I love you."

"The feeling is more than mutual."

Lying together after being intimate again, Donna and Roy felt happy knowing they were together once more, just as they had been when they were teenagers and more than once since then. And they were happy. They were both so asleep and so happy that neither heard Slade Wilson enter their apartment through the window. "Sleeping beauties, eh?" he whispered, "Well, Father Thawne needs loyalty from you lot. Especially with the next League mission he has planned." Slade removed a little jar containing two worms. The same worm he had used on Power Girl, but without the explosive since he didn't want Thawne to have as much power as he had. The quick wit of Deathstroke the Terminator in action once again. Slipping one into Donna's ear and another into Roy's, Slade snapped his fingers and watched them rise up with blank stares. "Whom do you serve?" he asked the prone superheroes. "Eobard Thawne," the couple said in unison. "Good," their assailant smirked, "And what is your purpose?"

"Aid the Queen of Tamaran in attacking Mi'ran and capturing Starfire and her daughter."

"Excellent."