Traitor Game L: Existential Crisis

[Jeremi]

Circe stared at the new arrival. "So. I presume you or the orange woman will tell us exactly what we're looking for in this realm."

The woman would turn towards the speaker. "The Monitor told me you were coming. I only agreed to this so I can get you out of my city as fast as possible." She replied brusquely. "I'm the Cat and you're looking for a thing called the Starheart, and that's all you need to know."

[Joe Acro]

The woman would turn towards the speaker. "The Monitor told me you were coming. I only agreed to this so I can get you out of my city as fast as possible." She replied brusquely. "I'm the Cat and you're looking for a thing called the Starheart, and that's all you need to know."

"I do not think so, Ms. Cat," Koriand'r states. "We were told you would give us the information we need to understand this world. We were already aware we needed to obtain the Starheart."

Looking at the city herself, she comments, "It's a lot different from the Gotham Rich used to describe..."

[Jeremi]

"I do not think so, Ms. Cat," Koriand'r states. "We were told you would give us the information we need to understand this world. We were already aware we needed to obtain the Starheart."

Looking at the city herself, she comments, "It's a lot different from the Gotham Rich used to describe..."

She clucked her tongue, if that was what she had to do than she would. "-tt- Fine. This is Gotham, formerly protected by the Batman and his clown queen of comedy Harley Quinn." The perceptive among the group could hear the annoyance in her voice when she said the last part. "How that happened doesn't really matter, but they got together- ."

Suddenly another voice was heard.

"Now now, come on tell all of the juicy details!"

The Cat would turn and face the voice. "What are you doing here."

"And miss an interdimensional visit?" The figure would step out of the shadow.



"The Purple Hood always needs to be the center of attention, sis."

The Hood let that last word hang in the air for a moment before continuing. "What dear Martha left out-"

"We have secret identities!" She snapped at the Hood, but it didn't seem to phase him much, he seemed to be used to it.

"If what I heard when the Monitor contacted you was true stuff like code names are going to mean very little if our guests don't do their job and everything implodes on itself. Besides they need to know some more juicy details. Oh excuse me." He'd bow towards the gathered group. "My name is Bobby Wayne also known as the Purple Hood, scourge of villains and seedy comedy clubs. That's my twin sister Martha Wayne running around like the Cat to probably piss off dad in some way."

"This isn't a joke! You just put our entire family in jeopardy...and it's not to piss off dad!"

"I totally believe you sis, anyway let me tell this story cause you'll probably bore them to death. So yeah! It's 2037, Ted Kord is President of the United States and dad hooked up with mom after saving her from the Joker. I guess opposites attract. We're the result of their night of passion. I'm the funny, smart and attractive one. Martha oh sorry "the Cat" is the brooding, unfunny and smelly one. The Joker's dead, Aunt Ivy has basically gone on the straight and narrow...Justice League World is a thing and they rebooted Seinfeld." They obviously couldn't tell but the Hood had a gigantic grin on his face. "Any more questions?"

"I think we have more pressing matters, like saving the entire multiverse?" The Cat replied annoyed.

[Chris Lang]

"If what I heard when the Monitor contacted you was true stuff like code names are going to mean very little if our guests don't do their job and everything implodes on itself. Besides they need to know some more juicy details. Oh excuse me." He'd bow towards the gathered group. "My name is Bobby Wayne also known as the Purple Hood, scourge of villains and seedy comedy clubs. That's my twin sister Martha Wayne running around like the Cat to probably piss off dad in some way."

"This isn't a joke! You just put our entire family in jeopardy...and it's not to piss off dad!"

"I totally believe you sis, anyway let me tell this story cause you'll probably bore them to death. So yeah! It's 2037, Ted Kord is President of the United States and dad hooked up with mom after saving her from the Joker. I guess opposites attract. We're the result of their night of passion. I'm the funny, smart and attractive one. Martha oh sorry "the Cat" is the brooding, unfunny and smelly one. The Joker's dead, Aunt Ivy has basically gone on the straight and narrow...Justice League World is a thing and they rebooted Seinfeld." They obviously couldn't tell but the Hood had a gigantic grin on his face. "Any more questions?"

"I think we have more pressing matters, like saving the entire multiverse?" The Cat replied annoyed.

Linda just took in all this, still reeling. "I still can't believe that Batman and Harley Quinn could EVER get together." she blurted out aloud.

"But some of the other things I can believe. It's only a matter of time before the Joker ends up being the victim of his own madness one day. And Poison Ivy could probably do a lot of good if she weren't crazy."

"So, what is the Starheart? The name doesn't sound like something you'd expect to find in Gotham City."

[The Purple Skull]

Then...

Some time later, the whole satellite shakes. Everyone comes running to the main control room. "What was that? Are we at the next Earth?" someone asks.

"We have, but that did not cause the quake," replies Harbinger. "The final Hound has struck. Cyborg Sage has been destroyed. It seems as if she exploded."

Roy Lincoln pounds a nearby wall. "No. I refuse to believe that. She can be saved." Without permission, Roy activates the same teleportation mechanism the Monitor used on Lobo. "The Wanderers can rebuild her. They have the technology."

"Lincoln. Don't touch my equipment," The Monitor scolds. "All the same, we have a new Earth to visit. You will be searching for the remnants of a crashed meteor known as the Starheart. Instead of showing you matters of this Earth's history that are relevant, I will simply send you to the surface, to this Earth's Gotham City. I have informed a new member of your team, a native to this world, to expect you and provide you the details you need. You will meet a second replacement there as well."

He turns to Saturn Girl. "Thank you, dear, for your assistance," he says.

"Let us make our departure, then."

However, before Hawkman flies off, a distinct growling sound could be heard. It was Lyrator, the Indominous Rex!



"Faithful Lyrator. You fought well. Inside you flows the heart of a true Thanagarian warrior. Alas, you must remain here. You show every monster, beast, and creature who the true king of this island is. I promise you we will fight side by side again."

As Hawkman leaves with the rest of the group, Lyrator lets out one final roar...



"KA-TAAAAAAAAR!!!!"


Now...

...Koriand'r Thoris, the Star Princess of Tamarsoom.

"X'hal! Hello to all of you! This will be most exciting!" she says in a tone to match her words. Her demeanor quickly shifts, however, when she adds, "Even though we face danger. May we face it together."

"Tamaran, I presume? The orange skin, fiery hair, and lack of any form of decent clothing was a dead giveaway."

Once the group reach planet side they would be met by the dark alleys of Gotham City! A city no doubt familiar to some among the group, but even for them it seemed off somehow...

The gothic architecture still very much in place, but with an added shine to it.

Looking up into the sky the group could see the batsignal shining up the skyline. It too seemed different. Larger and with a slight levity to it, a fixture in the sky to ward off any ne'er do wells. Someone in the group would've found a newspaper and started flipping through it to see if they could find anything of relevancy.

While there didn't seem to be much one article stood out where Bruce Wayne and his wife Dr Harleen Quinzel had been in a fundraiser fo-

Wait...his wife...Dr Harleen...Quinzel? Well I guess you spotted on big difference at least. Batman married to his arch villains squeeze. As the group lulled over this new find, unbeknownst to them someone would be spying on them on top one of the buildings. Was it a friend...or foe?

"I can only hope we are on this backwards planet for a short period of time. The pollution in the air is already making me sick to my stomach."

[Joe Acro]

"Tamaran, I presume? The orange skin, fiery hair, and lack of any form of decent clothing was a dead giveaway."

"Tamarsoom," the princess replies. She adds coldly, "And no clothing is decent."

An entry from Roy Lincoln's satellite journal

This version of Gotham was a little darker, a little crazier somehow than the Gothams I normally encounter. Look no further than the twins we met when we arrived: The Cat and the Purple Hood, the offspring of Batman and Harley Quinn, one of his rogues--not the Harlequin that Alan Scott used to face. (Though it is interesting that we happen to be dealing with an Earth where the Starheart and a Harley Quinn are prominent, yet Alan himself is absent.)

The twins seemed to be at odds as soon as we met them.

The Hood let that last word hang in the air for a moment before continuing. "What dear Martha left out-"

"We have secret identities!" She snapped at the Hood, but it didn't seem to phase him much, he seemed to be used to it.

"If what I heard when the Monitor contacted you was true stuff like code names are going to mean very little if our guests don't do their job and everything implodes on itself. Besides they need to know some more juicy details. Oh excuse me." He'd bow towards the gathered group. "My name is Bobby Wayne also known as the Purple Hood, scourge of villains and seedy comedy clubs. That's my twin sister Martha Wayne running around like the Cat to probably piss off dad in some way."

"This isn't a joke! You just put our entire family in jeopardy...and it's not to piss off dad!"

"I totally believe you sis, anyway let me tell this story cause you'll probably bore them to death. So yeah! It's 2037, Ted Kord is President of the United States and dad hooked up with mom after saving her from the Joker. I guess opposites attract. We're the result of their night of passion. I'm the funny, smart and attractive one. Martha oh sorry "the Cat" is the brooding, unfunny and smelly one. The Joker's dead, Aunt Ivy has basically gone on the straight and narrow...Justice League World is a thing and they rebooted Seinfeld." They obviously couldn't tell but the Hood had a gigantic grin on his face. "Any more questions?"

"I think we have more pressing matters, like saving the entire multiverse?" The Cat replied annoyed.

I tried to assuage The Cat's concern. "Your family has not been jeopardized. No one's identity has really be compromised. We're all on the same team here," I said.

I then had to address a question from Hummingbird.

"So, what is the Starheart? The name doesn't sound like something you'd expect to find in Gotham City."

I responded, "The short version: there's a star out there with an orb inside it--this orb, the Starheart, is full of mystical energy. It sent a piece of itself to Earth in the form of a meteorite. That's the item we are trying to find."

Princess Koriand'r turned to the twins to ask them, "Do either of you know where we will find it?"

[Anodyne]

"Shes in bad shape. Clark you fix her, I kinda owe these bozos for their attempt to ambush us" she said, cracking her knuckles. Dex-Starr would be shocked as his worst fear started to run towards him and Saturn Girl just decked it with a solid right hook, revealing Regan Wyngarde, Mastermind!

Dex-Starr arched his back and hissed at the apparent sight of another Red Lantern: one of those who had betrayed Atrocitus, allied with the Greens, taken Dex-Starr's ring and imprisoned him.

Clark shared a look with his fellow Wanderers, each reassuring him they could handle this while he fixed up Sage. Clark sped back to Sage while Saturn Girl spoke to Dex-Starr.

"From your costume I can tell you're a Red Lantern. These guys are allowing the djinn in Jafar's lamp to run amok, hurting innocent people and animals. That makes you angry, don't it?" she asked the furious feline, then placed a hand to her head so she could channel a focused blast of psionic energy to combat their foes.

Dex-Starr lashed his tale angrily in response to Saturn Girl's words. "Bad djinn! I kill!" he hissed, calling up an image of himself pinning a djinn down with his claws as if it were a rat.

Linda just took in all this, still reeling. "I still can't believe that Batman and Harley Quinn could EVER get together." she blurted out aloud.

"But some of the other things I can believe. It's only a matter of time before the Joker ends up being the victim of his own madness one day. And Poison Ivy could probably do a lot of good if she weren't crazy."

"So, what is the Starheart? The name doesn't sound like something you'd expect to find in Gotham City."

"I agree that seems unlikely, at least for this version of Gotham," said Dr. Thirteen. "But on the other hand, where better to hide something of value than in a place where most people won't reealize its worth?"

I then had to address a question from Hummingbird.

I responded, "The short version: there's a star out there with an orb inside it--this orb, the Starheart, is full of mystical energy. It sent a piece of itself to Earth in the form of a meteorite. That's the item we are trying to find."

Princess Koriand'r turned to the twins to ask them, "Do either of you know where we will find it?"

Terrence Thirteen spoke up. "I've been learning how to tell real magic from fake. If the Starheart is disguised, maybe I can help detect it."

[Froggy]

Sage would lay motionless before her eyes whirred back to life. "I am conscious."

Clark smiled.

"Good, good! We're currently under attack, see those three?" he said, pointing at Vibe, Pyro and Blob.

"We're here to stop them. You can knock them out because Saturn Girl can take the info we need from their minds" Clark told her.

Dex-Starr arched his back and hissed at the apparent sight of another Red Lantern: one of those who had betrayed Atrocitus, allied with the Greens, taken Dex-Starr's ring and imprisoned him.

Dex-Starr lashed his tale angrily in response to Saturn Girl's words. "Bad djinn! I kill!" he hissed, calling up an image of himself pinning a djinn down with his claws as if it were a rat.

."

"No killing! We need the djinn!" Clark told Dex-Starr as he slapped a fireball away from hitting the cat.

"Like Clark said, we need the djinn okay Mr. Kitty? Just attack the bad guys and knock them out!" Captain Thunder told him, keeping the floor plates together.

[Jeremi]

Princess Koriand'r turned to the twins to ask them, "Do either of you know where we will find it?"

"Exhibit at the museum...'wonders from beyond the stars'." She replied sounding more annoyed than anything else. "They were supposed to unveil some brand new find, I'd assume it's what you're looking for."

[Joe Acro]

"Exhibit at the museum...'wonders from beyond the stars'." She replied sounding more annoyed than anything else. "They were supposed to unveil some brand new find, I'd assume it's what you're looking for."

"Glorious!" Koriand'r exclaims. "We shall make our way there at once!"

The heroes gather together and make their way toward the museum. Those familiar with their own Gotham City continue to notice subtle differences.

[The Purple Skull]

"Glorious!" Koriand'r exclaims. "We shall make our way there at once!"

The heroes gather together and make their way toward the museum. Those familiar with their own Gotham City continue to notice subtle differences.

"Is this city always in perpetual darkness?"

[Chris Lang]

"Glorious!" Koriand'r exclaims. "We shall make our way there at once!"

The heroes gather together and make their way toward the museum. Those familiar with their own Gotham City continue to notice subtle differences.

"So the Starheart is in a museum." Linda said. "So what do we do? Do we convince the curators to give it to us? Or do we ... steal it?"

She wasn't exactly thrilled with the idea of stealing a museum exhibit. But if the fate of the world depended on it, she would do whatever it took.

[Froggy]

The party, and everyone else in the city would feel a wind kick up, harsh and fast as they made it to the museum. It was summer though, and even in a place like Gotham, summer was almost always warm or dry with no cool air kicking in randomly. With a blur, she appears with the Starheart under her arm just as they approach the museum and tells them they're too late!



"Well if you're here for the Starheart, you're too late! ZOOM, The Conqueror has obtained this artifact, and soon you will all join my beloved Eobard in the void of nothingness with the rest of reality!" she said, speeding off. If the faster heroes try to follow her, they'd find portals made throughout the city, littering robots, androids of awesome assignment and DEATH METAL MEN throughout the city of Gotham as she made her getaway.

[Masterbasset]

Before...

"He's a Hound all right," Roy clarifies.

"Most excellent," The Monitor states, before enacting the banishment process. Once more, a flash of light appears, the accused vanishes, and in his place is a Hound. The Monitor adds, "You have all done very well once more."

...YES YES MOST EXCELLENT AGAIN WE HAVE CHOSEN WELL AS YOU HAVE CHOSEN WELL IN YOUR WEAVERS THIS THREAT GROWS WEAK WANING A SINGLE WOLF LEFT OF THE PACK POOR PITEOUS CREATURE IT SHAKES IN ITS FINAL UNKNOWN HOST QUIVERING AS WE PLUCK THE FINAL DISCORDANT NOTES OF ITS DIRGE THE WORLDWEB WILL BE SAFE AND THE VOID-WAVE WILL DISSIPATE...

And then...

Another was dead among them. But his small attention-span was so consumed by their next teleportation that this was quickly forgotten.

Once the group reach planet side they would be met by the dark alleys of Gotham City! A city no doubt familiar to some among the group, but even for them it seemed off somehow...The gothic architecture still very much in place, but with an added shine to it.

"This world is astounding," Arak said. "These canyons and towers of metal .... is that the man who mentored that ill-mannered child, Bat-Kudos?"

The Weaver fidgeted in place and drank in his new location like a fine wine, savoring what he tasted and then would spake,

...FROM ONE JUNGLE TO ANOTHER WE PLUNGE TO SWING ITS VINES IN SEARCH OF THE SUCCULENT FRUIT FRUIT THAT WILL FORBID WHAT NEEDS BE FORBIDDEN TRAVEL ALONG THIS BLEAK ASPHALT GARDEN MY OH DOES IT BRING A GLEAM TO MY EYES SUCH NUMBERS BUT SUCH ISOLATION THE BOBBINS OF THESE CITY-KIND ARE SO ALONE TOGETHER SO ALONE TOGETHER...

They met new friends The Cat and The Purple Hood, and were led to the Starheart, apparently located in a Museum!

...THIS STARHEART LIES IN A MUSEUM A SHRINE TO THE PAST AN APPRECIATION OF WHAT HAS BEEN SO THAT THE FUTURE CAN PROSPER INDEED THIS PERHAPS-FINAL STOP ON OUR ODYSSEY TO RENDER THE VOID-REAVER OBSOLESCENT AND HELP KEEP THE HEART OF THE STARS FROM BEATING ITS JUICES SLOSHING AWAY PUNCTURE-FREE YES LEAD ON FELINE SLEUTH LET US CATBURGLE IF NEED BE FIGHT IF WE MUST NOTHING WILL STOP US OUR WEAVINGS ALMOST COMPLETE AND A WEAVING WORTHY OF ALL WEAVINGS WILL BE WROUGHT HERE THIS DAY LEAD ON LEAD ON...

With a tourist's head looking high in the air, he continued his Song while rubbed the occasional street lamp and tearing newspapers in half. In one instance, he even bent close an exhaust pipe on a parked car, for reasons known only to him.

"Well if you're here for the Starheart, you're too late! ZOOM, The Conqueror has obtained this artifact, and soon you will all join my beloved Eobard in the void of nothingness with the rest of reality!" she said, speeding off. If the faster heroes try to follow her, they'd find portals made throughout the city, littering robots, androids of awesome assignment and DEATH METAL MEN throughout the city of Gotham as she made her getaway.

...DARN THIS SPEEDSTER THE JUNGLE'S METALMEN BURST FROM THEIR METAPHYSICAL HUTS AND STEEL TREEHOUSES THEY COME TO DEFEND THEIR TERRITORY DO THEY NOT SEE THAT THEIR HIDES WILL NOT LET THEM HIDE FROM THE ANTI-MONITOR'S WAVE...

He would stand ready to face their challenge.

[Wolvie616]

"Glad you think so," she replied, still somewhat uneasy with Thor's continued manner of friendshp, "Now maybe it's just Saturn Gal's mind-link or maybe it's th' shifty looks those two are givin' me, but ah figure Circe an' Gammastorm ain't on your page.

If they have a problem with me, they oughta step up an' say it to my face."

Thor looked at Ultra Rogue in sympathy ""We're all allies in this quest. Should they have a problem with you, I will come to thy aid." The green one, this Gammastorm, is young, but he has a warrior's heart. The two of us worked together to slay dragons and beasts!"

"Lincoln. Don't touch my equipment," The Monitor scolds. "All the same, we have a new Earth to visit. You will be searching for the remnants of a crashed meteor known as the Starheart. Instead of showing you matters of this Earth's history that are relevant, I will simply send you to the surface, to this Earth's Gotham City. I have informed a new member of your team, a native to this world, to expect you and provide you the details you need. You will meet a second replacement there as well."

A bright beam of light, and Saturn Girl vanishes, to be replaced by...

...Koriand'r Thoris, the Star Princess of Tamarsoom.

"X'hal! Hello to all of you! This will be most exciting!" she says in a tone to match her words. Her demeanor quickly shifts, however, when she adds, "Even though we face danger. May we face it together."

Just then, all of them are sent to the Earth's surface.

"And a another fair lady is to be our guide! Might you be a warrior as well?"

Once the group reach planet side they would be met by the dark alleys of Gotham City! A city no doubt familiar to some among the group, but even for them it seemed off somehow...

The gothic architecture still very much in place, but with an added shine to it.

Truly, Thor and his companions had arrived in an ominous location.

"This metropolis....It's much like New York, but colder somehow. Full of a dark, mirthless laughter..."

Circe pondered on the latest murder, "An explosion? Well if it was done after the duck was taken, that may limit our choices, as this killing seems as if it would be a bit more specific in terms of who could have done it."

As the team arrived in Gotham, Circe shuddered. "... ...the coldest realm thus far. I do not feel... comfortable... here. Nature still is present, but seems more... desperate."

"Fare thee not, fair Circe. We shall not stay for long, should we prevail"

The mysterious shadow that seemed to be stalking the group would make its move and leap off the building and land in the ally in the middle of the group.

She'd stay motionless as if she was a cat stalking a den of mice.

The woman would turn towards the speaker. "The Monitor told me you were coming. I only agreed to this so I can get you out of my city as fast as possible." She replied brusquely. "I'm the Cat and you're looking for a thing called the Starheart, and that's all you need to know."

"The Purple Hood always needs to be the center of attention, sis." [/CENTER]

Thor looked at the siblings with some wistfulness. Their dynamic was reminiscent of his own with his brother, Loki.

""Purple ones, surely you are more effective cooperating than bickering? You are siblings!"

Linda just took in all this, still reeling. "I still can't believe that Batman and Harley Quinn could EVER get together." she blurted out aloud.

"So, what is the Starheart? The name doesn't sound like something you'd expect to find in Gotham City."

"Dost thou have knowledge of what we seek, Hummingbird?"

"Tamarsoom," the princess replies. She adds coldly, "And no clothing is decent."


I responded, "The short version: there's a star out there with an orb inside it--this orb, the Starheart, is full of mystical energy. It sent a piece of itself to Earth in the form of a meteorite. That's the item we are trying to find."

Princess Koriand'r turned to the twins to ask them, "Do either of you know where we will find it?"

The party, and everyone else in the city would feel a wind kick up, harsh and fast as they made it to the museum. It was summer though, and even in a place like Gotham, summer was almost always warm or dry with no cool air kicking in randomly. With a blur, she appears with the Starheart under her arm just as they approach the museum and tells them they're too late!

"Well if you're here for the Starheart, you're too late! ZOOM, The Conqueror has obtained this artifact, and soon you will all join my beloved Eobard in the void of nothingness with the rest of reality!" she said, speeding off. If the faster heroes try to follow her, they'd find portals made throughout the city, littering robots, androids of awesome assignment and DEATH METAL MEN throughout the city of Gotham as she made her getaway.

Thor twirled his hammer, getting ready to smash some robots. There were few things as pleasant as crushing soulless metal objects in the name of justice!

"Hummingbird, Rogue, can either of you give chase? I can provide coverage and assistance for you!"

To begin clearing their path, Thor lifted his hammer into the air, arc lightning shocking multiple Metallos and Daleks, stopping them in their tracks and shutting them down