Issue Number Twenty Two

"Umber"
Part One
Written by Barry Reese

October 30th. 2:30 PM

Max Lord wandered through the castle, trying to ignore the throbbing in his temple. He'd returned just over an hour ago from a meeting with the higher-ups in the European Union and the entire experience had given him a migraine. He knew how to schmooze with the best of them but politicians... politicians were a pain. It had crossed his mind several times that his metagene ability to mentally "push" others might have allowed him to get his points across more easily, but he'd held off on doing that. The time he'd spent as the villainous Lord Havoc still weighed heavily on his spirit and he had no desire to add anything else to his tally of sins.

I shouldn't be so melodramatic, he thought to himself. Must be because it's Halloween. Makes everybody's moods darken.

"Mon ami, don't take it so personally...."

Richard Plante burst from Constance's bedroom, a look of rage on his handsome features. He was dressed in a dark-colored suit and he held a bouquet of flowers in one hand. As he passed Max, he shoved the flowers into the other man's hands. "Here, mate. Maybe you'll find somebody who'll appreciate these."

Max stood there with flowers in hand, staring at Richard's back. A faint smirk materialized on Max's face as he turned back towards Constance's room. Sure enough, the Crimson Fox was standing there with hands on hips. Her hair was pulled back, revealing the high cheek bones and stunning features that had made her famous throughout Europe. She was dressed in her costume, though the oversized headdress that went with it was held in her left hand. "Do these belong to you?" Max asked.

Constance sighed, a look of pure exasperation on her face. She took the flowers from him, smelling them briefly. "Men. You're all impossible!"

"What's going on?"

"Nothing for you to concern yourself with," she replied.

"If it affects the mood of two important members of my team... yeah, it does concern me." Max leaned against the wall, reaching up to loosen his tie. He gave her his best 'you can talk to me' expression. It was one that always used to work on Oberon, making the little guy open up even when he was in his darkest of moods. 

The Fox studied him in silence for a moment, obviously trying to decide if he was being serious. "Richard is upset with me because I'm planning to go out with an old boyfriend. It's nothing serious -- he's just in town for a few days and wanted to reminiscence."

"An old boyfriend, huh? Well, you can't blame him for being jealous. Especially if you told him after he'd gone to the trouble of buying you flowers."

"Richard and I... we are friends and lovers, but I'm not sure which is more. I don't expect him to cut off all ties with his female friends and I don't see why he should be concerned about me having dinner with a man."

"Maybe he's more serious about you than you thought." Max reached out and squeezed her arm. "I'd let him calm down and then talk to him about it." He paused. "Uh... and I wouldn't go out with this other guy."

Constance pursed her lips. "I will think about that, Max." Her expression softened and her eyes took on a playful cast. "You surprise me sometimes... and I mean that in a good way." She leaned forward and kissed him lightly on the cheek.

Max remained where he was for a moment more, even after Constance had returned to her room and shut the door. He could smell her perfume and it made his heart speed up a little. Yeah, he thought to himself. I can see how Mr. Plante could fall hard for you, Constance. Yes, indeed.

"Wake up, my dear."

The Contessa groaned, rolling over onto her back. That voice... it sounded so familiar. And so terribly frustrating. She opened her eyes, staring up into the bright lights of her room. Her hands were bound tightly and a bit of dried blood had caked itself next to her left eye. "What's happening?"

Lex Luthor, dressed in a smart-looking suit, sat on the floor next to her. Like the Contessa, he was bound and showed signs of having been roughed up. "I have no idea. Actually, until you were thrown in here with me, I assumed you might have masterminded all this. I've heard rumors you've hooked with the Ultra-Humanite."

The Contessa sat up. "All true, my former husband. But our alliance met a foul end when the Justice Squadron disrupted our plans. The last thing I remember was being turned over to Interpol...."

"I was kidnapped, as well." Luthor stood up, pacing around the featureless room. The walls and floor were painted a stark white and there didn't appear to be any exits or windows. "So now we have to ask ourselves: who has the capacity to treat the two of us like this?"

"It's probably some scheme of yours, Lex... designed to make you look like the hero for saving me and thus winning my love again."

Lex laughed aloud at that, turning back to the woman who'd once shared his life. "I always loved your sense of humor." He looked down at his bonds, testing them. "These are very hi-tech. The more force you exert on them, the stronger and more rigid they become."

"You sound very familiar with them."

"I should. I invented them. Lexcorp patented them just three weeks ago."

"Three weeks--?" The Contessa struggled to her feet, swaying slightly. "So someone within your company has done this?"

"I'm not sure. The design is slightly different from my own, but very similar. I--"

A brief wisp of ozone filled the air as someone materialized in the center of the room. His appearance made both Luthor and the Contessa gasp in surprise. 

"So sorry not to have been a more gracious host," the stranger said with a smile. "But I wanted to make sure you were both awake for what was about to happen. I'm a firm believer in letting your foes know the whys and hows of their deaths."

The Contessa stared at the new arrival before turning her eyes on Lex. "How is this possible?" she whispered.

"I have no idea," Lex replied and for the first time in their entire relationship, the Contessa saw fear in her former lover's eyes.

The stranger laughed sadistically, enjoying his prisoners' confusion. "Both of you are elements of a life that I've chosen to erase. This is my world now."

"I think we can work something out," Luthor said. "You and I together... however you came to be, we'd be so much stronger together. You know that."

"Well played. Exactly the way I would have done it, in fact. A pity for you that I know all your tricks." The stranger raised a gauntleted hand, pointing it directly at Luthor's face. "See you in Hell."

The energy blast that followed was nearly deafening in the tiny room. It carried enough force to completely blow Luthor's head from his body, leaving it smeared in a dozen pieces on the far wall. The Contessa screamed in horror, stumbling backwards. Her life had been so very, very long and she'd escaped death so often that there were times she thought it would never claim her. Now, she knew that she had been very wrong about that. 

"Please, no," she whispered.

The man cocked his head to the side, studying her. "You're attractive enough, I suppose... but good enough to marry? I don't think so."

And then he killed her, too.

Wordenshire Castle, Justice Squadron Headquarters. 3:45 PM

"We're too sloppy," Captain Atom warned. "If we don't get some real teamwork going, we're going to get ourselves killed."

The assembled members of the Justice Squadron shifted uneasily, many of them panting from extertion. They were gathered on the grounds outside Wordenshire Castle, having just participated in a grueling drill led by Nathaniel Adam. 

Ralph Dibny extended his neck across the field, bringing it close to Atom's. "Don't you think you're overreacting, Cap? If a group that's mostly new to one another, I think we're coming together just fine."

The silver coating of Atom's body gleamed in the sun. "That kind of thinking is good for morale, Ralph, but it's not going to fly against some of the villains out there. We were lucky to have survived the battle with the Ultra-Humanite. And luck only goes so far."

"I hate to say it, but I think Captain Atom's right."

Ralph twisted his neck in a knot to see who had spoken up. His face fell when he saw that it was Dr. Light. She was one of the 'old guard' members, the ones who had been around before Max Lord's recent return to the group. Having her side with Ralph's rival for leadership of the team was a bit deflating. "You do?"

"We know too little about each other's abilities in battle," Kimiyo explained. "And there's some undeniable tension amongst some of us." To Ralph's surprise, she didn't accuse him in what she said next. "Constance and Richard, for instance, are barely speaking."

Lionheart flushed as everyone turned to look at him and the Crimson Fox. "That's our bloody affair, isn't it?"

"Not if it puts the rest of us at risk," Captain Atom countered. 

"Bugger this," Jack O'Lantern blurted out. He flew upwards, holding his Power Pumpkin in one hand. "I'm off for a pint. When you lot are done with the soap opera, let me know."

"I'll join you," Lionheart said. He activated the rockets on the bottom of his boots and exploded into the air. 

The Elongated Man sighed, retracting his neck back to its normal size and shape. "Well, that's just great." He cast a glance at Captain Atom. "I'm gonna go check on Sue. But after dinner, you and I need to talk."

"We certainly do," Atom agreed. "Because right now, this group looks like it's falling apart."

"Your little pep talks aren't really helping, Captain Atom." Maya stepped up, a deep frown on her face. She saw the older hero start to say something, but she held up a hand to stop him. "I know you have a lot more experience than I do, but I've been part of this group from the start -- and you haven't." 

Atom crossed his arms over his chest but held his tongue. He knew that Dr. Light and the Crimson Fox were still present, watching the exchange. 

Maya was far from finished. "We're not the military. And we're not the Justice League. We had a chance to become their official European branch and you know what? Ralph told them no. He said we were our own group -- and I think he was right. We have our own way of doing things... and it involves being a family. We look out for one another. We go to football matches and concerts. And when the chips are down, we'd die for each other. Because we're friends. So you can try and drill us as hard as you want, but it's not going to work until you stop being a cad and start acting you're a part of us."

Captain Atom's eyes had widened as the girl was speaking. She pushed past him, stalking her way back inside the castle, and he stayed where he was. There'd been a lot of truth to what she'd been saying... and it stung him. Bette had told him pretty much the same thing last night in bed, but he'd been too worked up planning today's training session to really hear her. "I've been an idiot," he said. "I flew right in and started undermining Ralph's authority."

Kimi moved closer, shrugging. "You're right about some things. Wrong about others."

Quantum energy flashed all around him, transforming him from the silver-skinned Captain Atom to the more sedate-looking Nathaniel Adam. "Maybe I can buy all of you dinner... and start becoming a real part of the family."

"That sounds like a wonderful plan," Constance said. "But first you will fly off after Liam and Richard... and tell them both that they're invited. Yes?"

Nathaniel nodded. "Definitely."

"Sue? You okay?" Ralph Dibny stepped inside his private quarters, his head hanging low. He'd tried to do the best job possible as leader of the Squadron but ever since Atom's arrival, he'd felt like he was pressing. "I'm thinking that maybe the time's right for me to go ahead and step down as-- Sue!"

Ralph elongated his arms and neck towards his wife's body, which lay unmoving near the television set. He cradled her head in his arms and quickly checked for a pulse. He'd had nightmares like this, of coming back from an adventure to find that some villain had come upon her, seeking revenge. "Sue, baby, are you okay?"

Sue's eyes fluttered open, but they looked glassy and unable to focus. "Ralph... Something's not right. With the baby... Something's not right...."

Highgate Cemetery, 8:15 PM

With almost 167,000 people buried within its confines, Highgate City had achieved a near-legendary stature. Originally one of a group of seven burial grounds built around London when the "old town cemeteries" could no long cope with the vast numbers of English dead, it had become the final resting place for a number of famous beings, including philosopher Karl Marx.

Over the years, the sleeping "residents" of Highgate had borne witness to a number of unusual events.

But it had never seen anything quite like this.

The shambling corpses of the dead slowly rose from their graves, their bony fingers shoving the earth aside. There were nearly a dozen of them now, with several more on the way. Each of them emitting low, unearthly groans, they staggered towards the woman who had summoned them.

Morgan Le Fey held out her arms, beckoning her servants forwards. In an ancient tongue, long forgotten by all but the most devout of her followers, she whispered "Nios vere mackunum."

Find the Umber.

With one mind, they did as they were told.

The Home of Dorcas Leigh. 9:30 PM

"I can't believe you turned Robbie Williams down like that. The guy's gorgeous!"

Dorcas, her long blonde hair wrapped seductively about her shoulders, shrugged her indifference. The superheroine more commonly known as Godiva was surrounded by a small horde of female admirers and hangers-on, each hoping to win the favor of her friendship. It was a strange thing the way other women responded to her -- some despised her on sight, seeing her as a potential rival. Others coveted her attentions, perhaps desiring to increase their own visibility by being near her.

For her part, Dorcas found all of them shallow and vain.

She sipped her wine, feeling out of place in her own home, at her own masquerade. She felt like a stranger in her own life these days, a sensation that had grown ever since the betrayal which had forced her out of the Justice Squadron*. She had been played like a fool, then, her life splashed across all the tabloids of London. It had been a humiliating experience and she had not forgotten her shame.

(*Godiva left the group in issue 13)

"I'm sorry, ladies, but I can't continue this discussion. I see an old friend has arrived. Please excuse me." Dorcas pushed past them, ignoring their tittering comments about all the 'important' people in attendance. Everyone who was anyone in Britain's pop scene was there, many of them decked out in outlandish costumes. Dorcas herself wore her Godiva costume, which many of the partygoers had chosen to emulate. Kylie Minogue, in full diva form, had even suggested that her Godiva costume looked better than the original.

Pushing aside the petty jealousies in her head, Dorcas greeted Sigrid Nansen warmly, hugging her old friend tightly. "Sigrid! You made it... I'm so glad."

Sigrid, her ice blue skin accentuated by the Icemaiden costume she wore, smiled back and nodded. The two women had been teammates in the Global Guardians before Sigrid had turned over her costumed identity to Tora Olafsdotter, who had gone on to serve with distinction in the Justice League. "I was really surprised to be invited. It's been so long."

Dorcas turned away sheepishly. "I'm sorry, luv. I did give the rest of the Guardians short-thrift the past few years. But after all the problems we had with the Dome, Dr. Mist and the Queen Bee... Well, it's all in the past now."

Sigrid nodded, glancing around the crowded penthouse. She didn't recognize everyone there, but she saw enough superstars to make her heart skip a few beats. Turning her gaze away from the party, she said "Where are the others?"

"You're the only one who came. I heard from Tuatara and the Olympian, but both of them are busy working on a metahuman crime in Rome." Dorcas took her friend's hand and led her towards the punch bowl. "I was hoping to see more of the Guardians because... Well, I've had a rough spot of late and I thought...."

"That seeing your old friends would lift you out of the doldrums?" Sigrid laughed merrily. "I know what you mean. Since the League I was a part of broke apart, I've been on my own for the most part. I really miss Bea and Albert and all the rest."

"I heard about the ill-fated JLE incident*," Dorcas whispered.

(*In the notorious Starman # 38)

Sigrid's face fell. "The mist impersonated me. It was terrible. I couldn't believe it when I heard that she'd used my identity to betray all those heroes. At least the Fox managed to survive, and both Amazing Man and Blue Devil were resurrected."

A sudden scream made both women jump. They responded quickly, however, as Icemaiden whirled about and prepared to encase whatever would-be foe had emerged in a block of ice. 

Godiva, for her part, untwisted her hair and set her prehensile locks into the form of a fist.

Icemaiden, cold air billowing out in a cloud from her mouth, mouthed a small expletive. Floating above the crowd of pop stars was a young Asian man, dressed in red robes. He looked like death itself, his skin pasty-white with splotches of something (ectoplasm?) staining his robes.

Godiva stepped around her friend, extending a hand to the strangely-dressed man. "Revenant?"

The Asian visitor stared at her in seeming surprise. Then, as if remembering why he was there, he fell to the floor. His partially solidified form struck the carpet with a thud, sending more ectoplasm flying from his body.

Godiva managed to push her former Justice Squadron teammate over on his back, eliciting a gasp from the crowd. They seemed both frightened and titillated. "What happened to you?"

Revenant, a former killer condemned to wander the Earth until his sins had been atoned for, stared at her with a haunted expression. "Death walks the streets of London," he whispered. "The Umber... They're looking for the Umber."

With those words, he lapsed into something like a coma, his lips moving soundlessly as his eyes stared at everything and nothing.

"What does that mean?" Icemaiden asked.

A man moved out of the crowd, looking with narrowed eyes at the fallen form of Revenant. He had reddish-brown hair, streaked with white. Sans costume, he wore a tweed jacket over a black turtleneck and slacks. "I think it means we're all in trouble, Ms. Nansen. Terrible, terrible trouble."

Godiva saw confusion written all over her friends face and she said "Sigrid, I'd like to introduce you to another of my old friends: Jason Blood."

Wordenshire Castle, 9:45 PM

"Is she going to be okay?"

"First off, Ralph. You need to relax. Sue's okay. And so is the baby." Kimi took her friend's hands in her own. Now, sit down."

Ralph did as she said, running a hand through his hair. The two of them were in the castle's spacious laboratory, while Sue rested in one of the testing chambers. The other members of the team had come through several times to offer their support, but at Ralph's urging, they had finally gone out on the town with Nathaniel picking up the tab.

"So... what happened?"

"I'm not a OB/GYN. I'm a scientist who specializes in light-based technology. That's why I'm not going to be more specific in this... but I can tell you that there seems to be some oddities with your unborn child. Its shape appears to be... fluid."

"Oh, god. The gingold. It's caused some sort of birth defect, hasn't it?"

"Ralph... I don't know. Sue needs to see a specialist. I've gotten together some names for you if you--"

"No. Sue had a doctor back in the States. I'm sure she'll want to see him again. And maybe I'll call in a superhero doc, too. Midnight, maybe."

Kimi nodded, feeling guilty that she wasn't able to do more. "I'm so sorry, Ralph. But they're both okay right now... so you have to stay positive."

"I'm positive about one thing," Ralph whispered. "I'm done with the Squadron."

11:25 PM

The Umber.

The words echoed in his mind, sounding foreign and strange... and yet enticing, as well. 

There was a race afoot, one between him and Morgan Le Fey. Whomever found the Umber first... might control the fate of the world.

"And that has to be me," he whispered aloud. He stepped out of the penthouse apartment he'd rented, the dead bodies of the Contessa and her ex-husband within, locked away in a hidden holographic chamber he'd put together. 

This world was so like his own and yet so different... It was exhilarating to be here, to know that his quest for power now held no bounds.

The one, true Lex Luthor would bring this world to its proverbial knees.

Next Issue: The Umber storyline continues as Merlin pays a visit to the Justice Squadron. Plus: Morgan and Luthor come face-to-face while Godiva's group of heroes learns the awful truth about the Umber.

EUROPINIONS

Years ago, I purchased Action Comics # 541and was completely blown away. Here was Luthor and Brainiac, two of Superman's best villains, completely reimagined. Brainiac went from being a green skinned scientist to a robotic mastermind with a horrific skull-shaped spaceship. And Lex Luthor ditched his green and purple tights for a battlesuit that made him Superman's equal in battle. I bought up every appearance the two of them made for the next couple of years... and was really, really disappointed when they lost their 'cool' after Crisis on Infinite Earths. In recent years, DC has played with restoring both of them to their pre-Crisis glory, but they've never quite captured it.

Now, though, I'm about to bring back the Luthor I remember and loved as a kid. Brilliant, yes. But not a tubby guy in a business suit, doing a bad Kingpin impression. Nah, this guy's a battlesuit-wearing sadist, out to conquer the world.

And he's about to become a major villain in the Justice Squadron's rogues gallery.

Keep in touch,

Barry Reese