On a blustery October evening in 1945, the autumn rain pattered against the windows of the JSA's brownstone headquarters. Wet leaves plastered the streets and sidewalks, and occasional gusts of wind brought more leaves down from the oak and maple trees in front of the quiet, unassuming residence. Lights shown from within the building, but the light cast faded quickly in the dark night air.

Within the building, seven of America's greatest costumed heroes sat around a massive wooden table.

"I understand that some of us have other commitments this evening, so if there is no further business?" Hawkman paused, a gavel held in his right hand and raised slightly over the table. He glanced around at his comrades, waiting for anyone to raise an objection. Seeing none, he continued. "May I have a motion to adjourn?"

"So moved," said Doctor Mid-Nite.

"Seconded," added Wonder Woman.

"All in favor?"

Seven voices replied 'aye.'

Hawkman banged the gavel on the table. "Meeting adjourned."

"And not a moment too soon!" cried that Atom, rising from his seat. "I talked Mary into going to the Halloween party at the Phi Delta house tonight. I've just got enough time to get home and change into my costume. Umm, that is, if you can give me a hand getting home, Flash?"

"Sure! No problem at all." The JSA's resident speedster looked around. "You guys need any help cleaning up? I can come right back if you-"

"Say, you know that's no problem!" The air behind Johnny Thunder crackled and popped, and a translucent pink thunderbolt with a human face appeared looking over his shoulder. "The coffee cups and plates can be cleaned up in no time, right Thunderbolt?"

"As you wish, Johnny!" The living thunderbolt gestured, and the dishes and cups disappeared, only to reappear, sparkling clean, in their cabinets in the kitchen. "And here I thought you were calling me for something interesting."

Green Lantern gave Hawkman a nudge with his elbow. "You know, sometimes I almost miss the days when Johnny wasn't aware of his control over that thunderbolt of his."

"True, but I'd rather know we can count on him when we need him, wouldn't you?" replied the winged wonder.

"Of course I would, I was just-" Green Lantern was interrupted by a loud ringing from another room. All conversation stopped, and Atom, who was closest to the door, ran to check on the source of the noise.

Moments later, he came back into the room. "That was the mayor of Gotham City. They've got several strange explosions, all in the past half-hour, and he'd like the Justice Society to check it out."

"I'm on my way," said the Flash as he sped out of the room.

"It's your town, Green Lantern." Hawkman picked up his mace from where it lay next to his chair. "Everyone ready to go?"

Atom, Johnny Thunder, and Doctor Mid-Nite all nodded. Green Lantern's ring glowed, and a globe of flickering green energy surrounded them all. "Well, so much for that Halloween party!" said the Atom as they passed through the ceiling of the meeting room.

Gotham Central Park was in a state of chaos as the Flash arrived on the scene. Approaching Gotham, he had spied the unnatural reddish glow that lit up the undersides of the clouds. In the center of the park, a great fire roared 40 feet high, consuming the trees and even the ground itself, but it emitted no smoke. He spotted what looked to be a police command post, and skidded to a stop in front of the senior officer.

"Evening, officers," said the Flash, touching a fingertip to his steel helmet. "The rest of the Justice Society is on the way. What can you tell me about the situation?"

"Five explosions around the city, Flash. None of them very large, but each one threw a column of fire about thirty feet into the air. Fires are still burning, Chief Lacey from the Fire Department says they haven't been able to put any of them out."

"Is this one of them?" asked the Flash, jerking a thumb toward the blaze in the park.

"No, this came about five minutes after the others. Huge explosion from under the ground, followed by the fire."

"Any chance it might be a problem in the gas lines?"

"Too far apart. Some of these areas are serviced by separate gas mains entirely." The officer waved the Flash over to a folding table where a map was spread out, even as Hawkman came in for a landing and Green Lantern lowered the emerald bubble with the other JSA members to the ground.

"I see what you mean." The Flash turned to the other Justice Society members. "Guys, we have six major fires, which aren't responding to the firefighters' efforts."

"This looks like it might have some other force behind it, something unnatural." Hawkman looked at Green Lantern and Johnny Thunder. "The park here seems to be in the middle of a, for lack of a better word, a ring of fire. Between the two of you, you have the greatest concentration of magical power in our group. You two stay here, and try to put this fire out or figure out what's causing it. We'll spread out and do the same with the other fires."

Atom spoke up. "Hey, Hawk, aren't you forgetting something? That leaves five sites, and only four heroes."

The police officer tapped one of the sites on the map. "There are already a pair of mysterymen here on the scene. One of my men called in to say that Wildcat was at the site near the Gotham Civic Arena, and Mr. Terrific was spotted at Gotham University."

"Excellent. Can you provide cars for Atom and Dr. Mid-Nite? That will let the rest of us get to our sites more quickly." Hawkman pointed to the Flash, and then to a site directly to the north of their current location. The Flash nodded and sped off.

"Of course! Where are they going, I'll give the orders to clear the roads for them." Hawkman pointed out two more locations, to the south east and south west. As the Atom and Dr. Mid-Nite dashed off to where several squad cars were parked, Hawkman took to the sky and headed west.

The Flash

Normally, Northwood Presbyterian Church was a quiet haven from the worries of the world, secluded from the street and neighboring buildings by stands of pine trees. Tonight, the church stood open to the sky, its roof torn away by a gout of flame that stretched up past the bell tower. Jay Garrick shuddered as he came upon the scene, the idea of a church overtaken by such hellish flames just seemed wrong to his Midwestern-bred sensibilities. He made multiple passes through the building, checking for any persons who might have been inside. He was shocked to realize that some sort of Halloween celebration must have been in progress when the flames erupted, for there were dozens of children and their parents in the basement of the building. He found many more on the perimeter of the church property.

"All right, just hold on, and I'll get you out of here," he said, forcing his voice to remain calm as the column of fire roared upward less than ten feet away. The young boy nodded his head and wrapped his arms around Flash's neck. The Flash took hold of the boy's mother and held her against his side, then sped them up the stairs and out the back door of the church.

"I think that's everybody, Flash," said a gray-haired man in a scorched gray suit, black shirt and white collar. Fortunately, we had everyone sign in when they arrived for the Halloween party. Thomas and his mother are the only ones on the sign-in sheet that we hadn't counted out here."

"I'll just go in one last time to make sure, Reverend." Five seconds later, the Flash was back. "All empty. Did anyone happen to see how this started?"

The boy whom he had just rescued raised his hand. "I did. Mother had just gone to get some punch, and I saw somebody in a red robe come in the door. I thought it was someone else for the party, but he just walked over to a spot near the wall, put a candle on the floor, and lit it. As soon as the flame caught, he went back out."

"A candle? Did you get a good look at it? What did it look like?"

The boy's mother protested. "Please, he's just a boy. You can't expect him to remember something like that."

"It's okay, mother. I remember a little of what it looked like. It was red, like his robe. Kind of the color of blood. And I think there was writing on it, but I couldn't tell for sure. It just looked like wavy black lines."

"Thomas, that was very observant of you," remarked the Minister. "You see, Mrs. Wayne, children often remember far more than we give them credit for."

"That's right, Revered. Thomas, thank you. With powers of observation like that, you might make a good member of the Justice Society!" said the Flash with a smile.

"Not me! I'm going to be a doctor when I grow up!"

"A doctor. Well, I'll have to remember that, in case I need to see a doctor when I'm older. Now, let me see if I can put out this fire!" With that, the Flash raced back into the building. As he sped through the doors and took a quick spin around the sanctuary, he noticed that while the flames had burst through the floor from the basement, and up through the roof, nothing else was burning. I'm not sure I like this, he thought. A flame that burns continuously without consuming any sort of fuel? That's no chemical reaction that I'm familiar with.

Changing course, he ran back down to the basement. There, too, there was no sign of additional damage aside from the broken ceiling. Even the debris from the ceiling was unburned. Well, he thought, if nothing is burning, I wonder what would happen if I tried to reach through the flame. He came to a stop by the base of the column of fire, and crouched down. Squinting, he could just make out the shape of a blood-red candle inside the flames.

"Here goes nothing!" Vibrating his arms so that it was intangible, he reached into the flame. He felt slightly warm, but no effect otherwise. Carefully, he reached for the candle, and let the vibrations in his arm stop just as he brought his thumb and forefinger together over the wick.

Dr. Mid-Nite

A squad car pulled up in front of the Bannerman Chemical plant on the southwest edge of Gotham City. As Dr. Mid-Nite got out of the car, he was met by a familiar face. "Officer Murphy told me you were coming, Doc. Good to see you again." Rex Tyler, Vice President of Research at Bannerman, came forward from the gate and shook the costumed hero's hand.

"Not so good, from what I'm hearing over the police radio, Rex. These fires are resisting every effort to put them out. Water, carbon-dioxide, even that foam that they are experimenting with at the airport." Together, they quickly strode into the plant. Ahead, a pillar of flame reached up from one of the labs. "Anything you can tell me about it?"

"Only that the security guards spotted someone running out of the testing lab just as it blew through the roof. No people inside, but that's where we do most of our animal testing for new products. Our company fire department has been trying to put it out, same results as the city boys. But they did notice that it doesn't seem to be burning anything, it's just, I don't know, it's just there."

"Did they catch the man he spotted?"

"No. When the lab exploded, he went to make sure the fire department was notified and to re-check the schedule to make sure it was empty." Rex looked at his old friend. "He did the right thing, Doc."

"No argument from me, Rex." Dr. Mid-Nite scanned the ground, the combination of his unusual eyesight and the goggles in his cowl allowing him to see traces of heat and chemicals where others would see only dirt, grass or asphalt. "Odd. Looks like someone was running through here in bare feet. I'm sure that wasn't your guard."

"Can you tell where he ran off to?"

"Toward the fence over there."

Rex waved a couple of uniformed guards over, and directed them to search near the fence. Neither of them remarked on how the company executive, well-known for his long hours in the lab and the office, seemed to know the JSA member so well.

"Any new developments in the lab that might help put out this fire, Rex?"

"As a matter of fact, yeah." Rex led the way to another lab. "I've got a fellow in here, he's afraid of fire, so anything that he comes across in the journals that might help in firefighting, he's all over it. He recently read that some of the reactive, non-metallic elements can react with oxygen. As you know, you remove the oxygen-"

"The fire goes out," finished Dr. Mid-Nite. "Has he had any luck with that line of research?"

"A little, but he hasn't been able to test any of it on a large scale." Inside the lab, Rex found a number of tanks with spray nozzles attached. "What's the worst that could happen?"

"I don't suppose you have any of your pills with you, do you Rex? I'd rather reduce the risk of you getting hurt."

"Afraid not, Doc. You've got the straight, unadulterated Rex Tyler on the job tonight. Let's go see if we can choke off this flame."

The Atom

George Washington High School lay in a working class section of Gotham City, not far from the waterfront. The oldest high school in Gotham, it was built in the 1880's, and was slated to be closed at the end of the current school year. The traditional Halloween dance was to be something special this year, since it would be the last one held in the old gymnasium. It was supposed to be a night to remember.

"Come on, we need some help over here!" The voice was strong, but definitely female. The Atom heard it as he ran into the gymnasium. The remains of the paper Chinese lanterns that had lit the party were still burning, but their light was nothing compared to the pillar of flame that spewed upward from the center of the basketball court. By that light, the Atom was horrified to see that many of the students had been trapped under the remains of the gym roof. The old structure couldn't withstand the impact of the column of fire when it burst through, and the entire roof had fallen. "Can anybody help me?" the voice cried again. This time, Atom was able to pinpoint its owner. An attractive young woman with raven black hair was trying to lift a beam off a pair of husky young men. He picked his way through the rubble and joined her.

"Let me lend a hand, miss. We should be able to get them free." The mighty mite crouched down and got both hands under the beam. Under his mask, sweat broke out on his forehead as he strained to lift the wooden beam. Slowly it moved, an inch, then three more. The young woman grabbed one of the victims by the shoulders and slowly pulled. When he didn't react, she pulled harder, and moved him out of the way. She repeated this with the second young man. When they were clear, the Atom eased the beam back down. "Gotta handle it gently, not telling how strong this old floor underneath us is."

"I know. I think the area under the scoreboard has already given way." Atom watched for a second as she quickly ran her hands over the two unconscious youths, checking for injuries. "I think they're both all right, just stunned."

"Looks like you've done this before, Miss, ah..."

"Drake. Dinah Drake. My father's a policeman. He's taught me everything he knows about handling emergencies, like first aid, and not to stand around talking when there's work to be done." Dinah put two fingers to her mouth and gave a loud whistle that cut through the roar of the flames. "Need someone to carry these guys out. Now!"

Quite a set of lungs on that girl, thought the Atom, as they both looked around to see who else needed assistance. There were several others doing the same, going from one victim to the next, doing whatever they could.

It was ten minutes later when the Atom found himself working side by side with Dinah again. By that time, most of the victims had been cleared out of the gymnasium.

"Hey, you seem like the type who keeps your eyes open. Did you see anything suspicious here, before it all went kerblooey?"

"Where the flames shot up, that was the middle of the dance floor. It was pretty crowded at the time. And with everyone in costume and all, I don't think I would have known if there was a stranger in here."

"Yeah, costume parties are kind of rough, that way." Atom shook his head, thinking of the costume party he was supposed to be attending that very minute. "What happened to your costume?"

Dinah looked down at herself. Her legs were clad in fishnet stockings, and her mid-section was draped in black tatters of silk. "Oh my gosh, I didn't even realize it had been torn away."

The Atom spied a police officer nearby. "Hey, buddy, can you give up that jacket for a lady's modesty here?" The officer took one look at Dinah, and quickly doffed his leather uniform jacket and offered it to her. After she put it on, the Atom glanced up and down her body admiringly. "I hope you don't think I'm rude, Miss Drake, but that look, on you, well, ah," he stammered. "It's all right."

"Hey, I might be wearing one of these someday. I plan to go to the police academy next year." She looked over Atom's shoulder at the flaming column. "Ah, I think something's happening."

Turning around, Atom whistled. "Will ya look at that. It's getting smaller, all on its own. Even the firefighters look stumped on that one. Maybe I better get a ride back downtown and meet up with the rest of the Justice Society."

"I've got my Dad's old Plymouth parked out back. I'll drive you down there.

Hawkman

The Gotham Civic Arena was home to college and high school sports in Gotham City. The professional teams played downtown at Jefferson Square Garden, but everyone else played at the GCA. And when they weren't using it, boxing was a popular pastime. As Hawkman flew toward the Civic Arena, he considered himself fortunate that one boxer in particular had been on the card this evening. Ted Grant, heavyweight champion of the world, was already on the scene has Hawkman descended into the parking lot outside the arena. Of course, his famous features were well hidden under the cat-like cowl of Wildcat.

"Hey-a, Hawk, glad you could drop in!" cried the costumed heavyweight boxer. "I don't suppose you got the rest of the JS of A wit ya, do ya?"

"They're working throughout the city, Wildcat. Where do we stand?"

"Beats me. All I know is, just before the feature bout, we hear this big boom out here, and the sky lights up like morning. M, ah, the champ's tour bus was over on that side of the parking lot. I doubt there's much left of it now."

"Was there anybody out there?"

"Not that I was able to find. Just a big ol' circle of fire."

Hawkman paused. "A circle? Not a solid column?"

"Well, I ain't exactly walked in there to find out, but it seemed to me like it was a wall of fire, about a foot or two thick."

"Want to come up with me to check that out?"

"Hey. Why not? Can you carry my weight?"

Hawkman undid a part of the crossbelts that held his wings, and formed a loop with them that attached to the belt at his waist. Wildcat slipped it around his chest. "Not the most comfortable rig, you know?"

"Sorry about that. Now, hang on!" Wings of ancient nth metal beat the air, and the two heroes rose into the air. At fifty feet, Hawkman started to circle the column. He took them over the top of the column, and they looked down. Sure enough, the twenty-foot wide column was mostly open space - the flames were only two feet thick, like the walls of a castle tower. "I'm going to take us in, but keep an eye on those flames. If they seem to start getting any closer, let me know and I'll take us back up."

"You bet I will, Hawk!"

They descended slowly. When they were about ten feet from the ground, Wildcat started slapping at Hawkman's leg. "Take us up, buddy! Take us up!"

The wings scooped and beat at the air, lifting the two men up. The flames closed in on them, licking at the edges of Hawkman's wings without burning them. As they cleared the top of the column, it shrank down to the point where it was a solid, five-foot diameter column.

"So much for that idea, eh?"

"Right. I think it's time to meet up with the rest of the Justice Society."

Wonder Woman

Gotham University had certainly not seen anything like this before, thought Wonder Woman as she leaped from building to building with a jumping stride that would put any Olympian to shame. It would in the future, she knew, but for now, the great column of fire leaping upward in front of the library was enough to throw the entire campus into a panic.

"Wonder Woman! Over here!" Hippolyta turned to spy a man in red and green, on his knees at the base of the fiery pillar.

"Great Hera, what is he doing?" Wonder Woman jumped down to the ground, landing alongside Mr. Terrific. He had a length of steel sewer pipe thrust through the flames, and a flashlight in one hand. The other hand struggled to keep the pipe from being knocked up and away by the flames.

"I'm trying to decipher the writing on the candle that is inside here. Take a look, can you make it out?" He moved his head away from the pipe so she could look through.

"It looks like Latin, but something isn't right about it."

"Here, hold the pipe for me, so I can copy it down." She did so, and he pulled a pad and pen from somewhere in his tunic, and started writing down what he could see on the candle. It only took a couple of minutes.

"Got it. Now, take a look at this." Wonder Woman pulled the pipe out of the flames, noting that it was barely warm.

"Still doesn't make any sense. to- wait, try this!" She tore the sheet of paper from the pad, then turned it around and held it so that it was lit from behind by the fire. "Of course. It was written backwards."

"Candle of blood, bring the fires of death. Open the portal from beyond. The dead shall return to rule o'er all. Drawn by bloods sacred bond." Mr. Terrific cocked his head, and rubbed his chin. I think that was from a Celtic scroll that was discovered some sixty years ago."

"Let me guess; witchcraft is a hobby of yours?"

"Not exactly. But anthropology and mythology are among my hobbies," he replied with a grin. "This isn't the focus of the portal. There should be five of these candles, and they can't be extinguished until the portal is closed. Was there a central location to the disturbances tonight?"

"Gotham Central Park."

"Then let's get there. My car is around the block, unless you'd rather run back."

Green Lantern and Johnny Thunder

In the middle of Gotham Central Park, a black pit was opening up as Green Lantern and Johnny Thunder flew toward it. At its center, they saw a 10-foot diameter island of land, apparently floating in the void that was slowly growing around it. On that island, six robed figures stood.

"I love it when they're obvious, don't you Johnny?" Green Lantern smiled as the combination of his will power and his ring carried him through the air.

"Say, you really think they're the ones behind this?" asked Johnny, riding on the back of the thunderbolt. "I mean, it could be someone hiding behind the trees over there."

"I wonder what their game is? It has to be something more than just creating a huge hole in the park, after all."

"Umm, GL, take a look down there. I don't think that's just a hole." Johnny pointed downward. "T-bolt, how about some light down there?"

The humanoid thunderbolt gestured with both hands, and a glowing pink globe appeared down in the pit. In it's light, hundreds of figures could be seen, figures that reared back from the light.

"Great scott! Where did they capture all of those people so quickly?" Green Lantern sent of tendrils of glowing green energy toward the island, wrapping around the persons standing there. "I'll take care of the robed ones, Johnny. See what you can do to get those folks out of there."

"You got it, GL!" Johnny let out a loud whoop as the thunderbolt streaked down toward the pit. "Think you can gather up all these people at once, or will we need to take them in shifts?"

"Umm, Master, I'm not sure we can help those people. They look like they're already beyond help." The thunderbolt pointed, and Johnny looked more closely at the "victims." Now that he could see them more closely, he could see that their skin was gray, and in some cases, hanging from the bodies. Their eyes were dull and vacant, and they shuffled up the walls of the pit slowly, as if in a trance.

"This doesn't look good, T-bolt. We better tell Green Lantern!" The thunderbolt arched skyward, even as hands reached out to grab them.

Above, Green Lantern found his attempt to grab the robed figures thwarted by mystical energy that clashed with the magic of his power ring. When he tried to form a globe around them, he could feel something pushing back at his mind. He saw one of the figures below staring at him, a look of intense concentration on his face. A second one joined hands with the first, and Green Lantern felt a surge of power fighting him. The globe broke apart before it was fully formed.

"There must be some powerful magic at work here," said Green Lantern to himself as he tried to think of other ways to affect his opponents. "Time like this, I wish Dr. Fate was still with us."

He saw Johnny and the thunderbolt coming up on the opposite side of the floating island. Johnny pointed his hand, and the thunderbolt raised his arms. Sensing what they were up to, Green Lantern raised his left hand and unleashed a barrage of green lightning just as bolts of pink lightning struck from the other side. They struck simultaneously, exploding together in a shower of multi-colored sparks.

"Give it up, heroes. The Order of Zorn shall triumph tonight. With the gulf between the living and the dead at its weakest, we summon forth an army of the dead to sweep the living from the land!"

"Order of Zorn? What kid of hokey name is -WHOA!" Johnny Thunder pitched backwards on the thunderbolt as sizzling bolts of eldritch energy shot by him.

"Don't underestimate them, Johnny!" called Green Lantern as he dove down below the island and came up on the other side. He came up beside the young man in green riding his pink thunderbolt. "There is some powerful magic at work here. I think we need the rest of the JSA here."

"Say, you aren't kidding about that. Better get all of the JSA in here, T-bolt!"

The Justice Society of America

The thunderbolt paused for a second, as if seeing something the others couldn't perceive. "I can do that, and more, Master Johnny." He spun one lighting bolt-shaped finger in a circle, and a swirling vortex appeared. Through it came the Flash, Dr. Mid-Nite, Rex Tyler, now clad in his Hourman costume, the Atom, young Dinah Lance, Hawkman, Wildcate, Wonder Woman and Mr. Terrific.

"Hey, T-bolt, looks like you picked up a few hitchhikers on this trip."

"No, Master John, you said to gather in the JSA, and I did."

"Then what's she doing here?" Johnny pointed to Dinah Lance, who was standing on a green platform hastily created by Green Lantern, next to the Atom.

"She was working with me, Johnny," replied the Atom. "She's doing all that any of us would do in a crisis, we might as well include her in the wrap up."

"Of course, Atom. But keep an eye out for her. I'd hate to have a, um, civilian meet an untimely end because she's helping us out." Wonder Woman's eyes gleamed with a touch of mirth, as she recognized Dinah from time that were in her past, but in the future of the rest of the JSA.

Green Lantern quickly moved the team back away from the pit and on to solid ground. "Anybody have any ideas?"

"I think I do," replied Mr. Terrific. "The inscription on the candle said that the dead would rule over all. But the dead shouldn't be able to exist in the land of the living."

"But they do! They're coming up through that hole. It's like a gate to hell or something," said Johnny with a gulp.

"You're right, Johnny. Even from here, I can feel the corruption of death about them." Hawkman shuddered, as vague recollections of his previous deaths flitted in his consciousness.

"Those guys said something about the gulf between the living and the dead, and how it was weak. Maybe there's some way to strengthen it again."

"Guys, don't you realize? It's Halloween!" Everyone turned to look at the Atom. "You know, All Hallow's Eve. Tomorrow is the feast of All Saints, or All Hallows. When people are supposed to remember and honor those who have died. Halloween started because people believed the dead came back on the night before All Hallows. Maybe it was really true. In that case, all we've got to do is hold these guys back until midnight."

"Sounds crazy to me, but if nobody else has another idea, we need to hold them to this park for the next three hours." Hourman looked around at the group. "Think we can manage it?"

"We've got the police and fire departments to help us," pointed out the Flash. "I'll relay the plan to them, and keep everyone in touch so we can coordinate our attacks."

"Then let's get to it, people!" cried Wildcat.

The Justice Society members and their friends spread out. Their ranks were filled by the police officers and firefighters, and others who were will in the park joined in as well. For the next three hours, using sticks, rocks, and anything else that came to hand, they fought back against the army of the dead. The spirits of those who had passed before, restored to physical bodies that reflected the corrupted spirits, moved slowly, and displayed no initiative in their attacks. One sharp blow was enough to shatter the shambling forms and send the spirit back to its eternal punishment. A barrier of green energy erected by Green Lantern surround the pit, and expanded even as the pit itself expanded. As midnight approached, the had grown to encompass all of Gotham Central Park. Even with the help of civilians from the surrounding neighborhood, there weren't enough people to fight back the invasion of the dead around the entire perimeter. The Flash made continuous circuits around the park, smashing through the shambling dead that escaped the confines of the pit. Likewise, Johnny Thunder and the thunderbolt circled the park in the opposite direction, seeking out any that escaped. Wonder Woman and Hawkman attempted several times times to attack the figures directing the attack, the so-called Order of Zorn, but to no avail. The spell with which they opened the portal to hell provided them with protection as long as the portal remained open.

"What time is it?" asked Wildcat. "I feel like I've gone 60 rounds here."

"Any minute now. My watch shows midnight coming up in five seconds."

"Leave it to you to have a watch that's right on time, Hourman," replied Wildcat, leveling one of the dead with a sharp uppercut.

"Is that- yes, I hear the bells from Gotham Cathedral. We've made it!" exclaimed Mr. Terrific, entangled in three attacking bodies. "I just pray we were right!"

"We were!" The Atom pointed at the center of the pit, in which a swirling cloud of dirt had formed and was starting to fill in the portal. "It's closing!"

"Damn you all! No!" Up on the floating island above the center of the pit, the robed figures were dropping to their knees. "The candles are spent! We've failed!"

Indeed out in the sites around Gotham where the pillars of flame had burned for hours, there was a great rushing sound as the flames sank in upon themselves. In the place of each of the red and black candles, one of the Order of Zorn members appeared, their faces twisted in torment. And above the pit, the leader of the Order was caught in a whirling tornado of fire. "AAUUUUGGHHH!"

Before the church bells stopped tolling, the pit was gone. Gotham Central Park was restored, and the people who had fought through the evening collapsed in exhaustion.

"We did it." There was a touch of exultation in Hawkman's voice.

"Who were those guys?" asked Johnny.

"Apparently, some people with a little knowledge and less wisdom," replied Mr. Terrific. "Science can't explain everything in the world, at least not yet, and there are some ancient secrets that are best left as just that: secrets."

"Umm, excuse me, now that we've beaten the army of the dead, I really need to get home. My father is going to be worried sick about me." Dinah looked around at the various JSA members. "But that has been something I'll never forget. I mean, how many people will ever get the chance to say they fought alongside the Justice Society of America? This has to be the most incredible thing that will ever happen to me."

"Dinah, trust me," said Wonder Woman in a quiet voice. "You will experience all sorts of incredible events in your lifetime." She wrapped a powerful arm around the high school student's waist. "Here, I'll take you home."

"Guys, it's been great working with you again, but I really need to get back to the plant and make sure everything is under control. But I'll be in touch soon." Hourman ran off toward where several police cars were parked alongside the park.

"I think he has the right idea, gents. What say we call it a night?" asked the Flash.

And throughout the remaining ranks of the Justice Society, all agreed.