Faux DC Presents (why? we're not sure.): "To the Victor" Issue 6 (of 6) Written by Gary Dreslinski

The ballots were counted. The results announced. Everyone else had left, getting back to whatever they had been up to when The Atom had called the meeting in the first place. He was the only one left. Left to stare at the empty seats, and wonder what his next step should be. They, at least the majority of them, had placed their trust in his hands. He didn't want to let them down... not again, not ever again. Ted Kord, The Blue Beetle, sat in the chair at the head of the table. HIS chair he reminded himself. HIS chair, HIS team. He shook his head with a giggle. It certainly had been a surprise. It certainly had been... "You'll do a wonderful job Ted, I know it," a voice said from the doorway. Ted let out a slight smile. "I know that you wanted this Michael..." he started. But Michael "Booster" Gold held up a hand in protest. "Actually, I know we're not supposed to divulge this information," he countered, "But I voted for YOU." Ted swiveled his chair toward the man who was now one of his oldest friends. "What are you talking about?" Michael shrugged with a boyish smile, "Did you honestly think that I was going to vote for MYSELF? For gods sake man, I know ME. if they wanted me to lead them, great. You and I did a good job bringing together whatever this group is that we've managed to bring together..." he raised an eyebrow, causing Ted to burst out in laughter. Michael joined him, and the two sustained a laugh for several minutes. Every time one of them looked like they were about to break off, the other would raise an eyebrow, and start the process over again. Finally, Michael regained his composure, "Anyway," he said in mid-chuckle, "Since I wasn't going to vote for myself, you were really the only other real choice. WE founded this group... the two of us. It was our money that bought this building. I mean, I like Ray... and I'm glad to have someone with his level of experience on the team..." "Especially," Ted added, "If he's shrank down really small so we can't see him, and hanging out in the room right now..." Michael's jaw dropped," Actually..." he started, "I hadn't thought of that." He started staring intently at the floor, "You don't think he would..." Ted shook his head, "I sincerely doubt it. Ray was the first one to shake my hand and congratulate me on the job. That sort of thing just wouldn't be him.... Great bit to get you paranoid though huh?" "Yeah," Michael agreed with a emphatic nod, he looked around for another moment before continuing, "Ray's a good guy, but he's much too serious to keep up with the lunacy that goes on around here..." "And I'm not serious?" Ted said, with his best straight face. Michael countered with his best deadpan in return, "Why of course Mr. Kord sir. You're the most serious man I have ever had the honor to meet." Ted's face broke into peels of laughter. Michael joined him. "You can't even say that with a straight face can you?" Ted accused. Michael shook his head as he laughed. "I CAN be serious though," Ted pointed out. "Well yeah," Michael agreed, "All of us can... except maybe Gnort... and the Scarlet Skier... and I'm not too sure about Streaky... and... well, so SOME of us can be serious when we need to be. But my point was that you've got a good feel for the group. I really think that you're going to do a good job." "What did Bea say when she left?" Ted asked. "She congratulated you... you were there, remember? She got out of her seat and gave you a peck on the cheek and wished you the best of luck..." "Yeah, but what did she say AFTER she left the room?" Ted asked. Michael shrugged his shoulders, "I'm not really sure. Is that important?" Ted nodded, "VERY important. She really seemed to want the job. As the guy who got it, I want to make sure that she's not upset enough to leave..." "You've given this a lot of thought..." Ted shrugged his shoulders. "Besides all of that, she's a friend. I don't want to see her hurt." "Then maybe you should go after her and find out how she's feeling." Michael pointed out. Ted nodded, "Maybe I'll do that in a bit. I want to give her time and space though. I was wondering if Skeets had seen anything..." Michael took a step back. "You're not suggesting..." Ted shook his head, "Of course not. I'd never ask you to have him spy on a teammate... other than Signal Man that is. Maybe Solomon Grundy. I'm fairly sure by now that those two are on the level... but you can never be too sure. I was just wondering if maybe he happened to come across any information... or if you thought that he might have himself in the position to pick up any information in that vein..." "I can't be sure... but if he WERE to find out anything, you would know about it." Ted nodded, relieved, "That's what I figured." he said, wishing that he knew where Skeets was... and what he would be able to tell him. The robot Skeets hovered in mid-air, watching, recording everything that passed his sensors. Throughout the years, he had been everything from Booster Gold's tool to one of his best friend's in the world. After all, there was very little left of the life of Michael Gold from the future he had fled. There was very little connection. Even his suit had been shredded and rebuilt as best as modern technology was able to replicate. All that really existed was his Legion flight ring, Skeets... and his memories. Skeets sighed mentally. During his reboot, many of his original memories had been deleted. There were huge gaps... gaps that had been filled in with more recent, more meaningful to his current duties information, but gaps nonetheless. He wondered what was in those gaps of time, wondered, and worried that there might be something that he would one day have to remember, and wouldn't be able. He pushed his circuits passed that though... he needed to concentrate on what was going on. He needed to keep tabs on the one called the Signal... or the Signal Man... or whatever he was calling himself this week. He was sitting cross-legged on his bed, across from Beatrice DaCosta, the one they called Fire. They were in his room... she was sitting on a chair... they were talking. This had been going on for quite sometime when Signal Man finally broached a subject worth paying attention to... "...like this whole thing with Beetle," he said, "He seems like a nice enough guy. But to lead the team?" Beatrice shook her head, "He IS a nice guy." she said pointedly. "And I think that the Beetle is going to do a fine job of it." "But," Signal Man said, leading, "Not as good as you would have done." Bea tossed her long green hair off to the side with a sweep of her hand, "No," she agreed, "He wasn't my first choice for the job. But I think that he's going to help give this team a sense of direction..." "You mean the way he and Booster have been doing..." Signal Man left his sentence to drift. "That hasn't been their fault... the fake Sue was calling the shots..." "And why," he said, leaning forward meaningfully, "was that? They were the ones who founded the team? Why did they step aside and let someone else do the work for them?" Bea stared at him for a moment before answering, "They're my friends." she said finally. The Signal Man nodded, "Of course they are. And I'm sure that they're very good friends. I just wanted you to know that I voted for you... that I think that you're just what this team needs to get on track... to really make something of ourselves... and that anything I can do to help you, I will." Jonni Thunder paced back and forth. They had welcomed her, given her a room, given her a place on their team - and then they had turned around and elected the one man who had wanted to show her the door as the new team leader. Should she even bother to unpack? Was the first act of the "new administration" to act on his feelings, and remove her? Was that what the others had wanted? She wasn't sure. She wasn't even sure how she could BECOME sure about what was going to happen. From what she had been able to tell from the group dynamics... she wasn't even completely sure what was going on with the group itself. They seemed... well, odd. Infinity Incorporated hadn't been the most stable organization either in composition or structure. But these Extreme Justice folks... they were a category all to themselves. Not that she minded, in fact, in was, in a very strange way, a pleasant change of pace. They seemed... close wasn't really the word. But it was the only one that she could think of. The only word other than: family. She kept pacing, hoping that she wasn't about to be disowned. "I love you too," Buddy Baker told his son over the phone, "Is your mom still there?" He paused for a moment, allowing himself a smile as her voice came over the line. Being a hero was hard enough, being a hero with a family life, that was a challenge that most people were never lucky enough to ever obtain. He had come to Extreme Justice, knowing that it was a test run. He would join up on a limited basis, and see what could be seen. If he thought that he could be useful, if he thought that he was needed... then they would make a further decision from there. "So," she asked, "Are we moving to Detriot?" Buddy hestitated for a moment, "Well, they are talking about getting the old JLI teleport system back online for us." She didn't miss a beat, "I guess we should start packing then?" His smile increased, "Yeah," he said finally, "I really think you guys are going to like it here." "From what you tell me," she said, a smile coming through the line to touch his, "I think that we will. You haven't sounded this happy in awhile." Buddy shrugged. Not that she could tell, but knowing his wife, maybe she could. He still wasn't completely sure what this new team was all about, or what they were going to do with themselves. He wasn't even sure where the money that they were being paid was coming from, or what would happen if it were to dry up. What he did know though, was that despite everything, he was enjoying himself in a way he had never been able to do during his time in the Justice League Europe. Maybe it was the people... maybe it was him. Maybe it was because life was finally settling down for him, and that he was more able to sit back and relax when he had a moment to do so. Maybe... maybe it was something else. He wasn't sure. But maybe, once his family was at his side again, maybe they could figure it out together. "I think I am," he said finally, "I think I just might be happy here." The Scarlet Skier sat in front of the Bunker on the sidewalk, staring up at the sky, with Streaky the Supercat at his side. Not actually at his side as much as nearby pretending that they didn't know each other as Streaky tried to maintain his composure while lying in a patch of sunlight. "Do you think that they know?" The Scarlet Skier asked the cat. Streaky didn't reply. "I mean, on one hand - they have all these really sophisticated machines, which should mean that they do know. Of course, if they know, why haven't we been called inside to help plan how to fend it off? Unless they forgot about us..." The Scarlet Skier glanced at where Streaky was sunning himself and shook his head, "Nah, with something like this, they NEED us. They'd be calling us inside if they knew. Unless there's some big plan that involves it appearing that they don't know. Which would be rather cunning actually... so maybe Beetle is just playing the cards close to his blue clad chest..." Streaky didn't appear to have the subtly to appreciate his joke. So he looked back to the sky, and continued talking to himself. "But then again, they might not know. They might not even know what to look for. I mean, how many times does this sort of thing happen? They might be thinking that everything is just going great and all of a sudden... BAM... it hits. Not the greatest wake-up call. But if that's true... and they don't know... maybe I should go tell them. They should know after all. Right?" Streaky yawned and stretched out his paws, carefree. The Scarlet Skier shrugged, "Well, if YOU think that everything's going to be fine, I guess I shouldn't argue. You have far more experience at this sort of thing after all..." Ray Palmer sat in his room, wondering what his next step should be. The group choosing the Blue Beetle to lead the team had been a surprise, but was it really a bad thing? He had been willing to take up the slack if no one was going to step forward, but when just about everyone on the team had done it, he had been taken aback. It was no wonder, he realized, why very little had been done. There were simply too many chiefs and not enough indians. The Beetle, Ted he reminded himself, although it was difficult. The Beetle had been in the League - just not HIS League. So there was a sense of family there, a sense of being in it together... but more like people who had graduated years apart from the same high school. Ted was going to need his help - the help of everyone on the team, to make things work. Ray pulled himself up straight and stared at his image in the mirror. He had been through quite a bit over the years. He'd been forced to make over his life time and time again. One more time wouldn't kill him. He was going to try to be the best indian he could be. Gnort flew over the city of Detroit, keeping an eye out for trouble. Well, not exactly keeping an eye out, since that would involve tearing his eye out of the socket, which several of the other Green Lantern's had once suggested to him as an option, but Kyle had been nice enough to let him know that it wouldn't work as advertised. Gnort was glad for the advice. After all, 99% of advertising was true. He'd learned that watching TV... and TV never lied. Somewhere in the city, he figured, there had to be some sort of major menace waiting to face the wrath of a Green Lantern. Not that he had anything to be wrathful about, but he noticed that it always sounded pretty neat on TV. "Facing the boredom of a Green Lantern" just didn't have the same flair. He watched the cowardly and superstious far below, looking for a sign of wrong doing. But he didn't see anything... sure, there were a couple bank robberies... and some sort of mad robot rampaging in the middle of the city... but nothing with any real meat to them. He guessed that all of the criminals were now living in fear with a real live super hero team living in their midst. He couldn't blame them. He would have been impressed too. He just wished that one of them would pop their heads out of the holes they had crawled into so he could give them a good whack. He watched the streets... but heard something that caught his attention... back at one of the bank robberies. Someone was trying to stop it. Not just anyone though. He heard shouting. He heard the sound of a struggle. More to the point, his doggy ears picked up on the sound of notes being played... being played with an accuracy and style that could only belong to one person. Gnort's ears pricked up, as he spun in mid-air, changing direction to join the fray at the side of SAX GIRL! He flew to be at her side again... never noticing the alien vessels that descended above him, to deliver their deadly load of vemon among the unsuspecting masses. Solomon Grundy sat in the middle of the floor of his room, with his eyes closed, meditating, lost in his private inner thoughts. Jonni Thunder took a sharp intake of breath before she pushed open the door. When Booster Gold had come to her to let her know that the Blue Beetle wanted to speak to her... she had known what was coming. She sighed and walked in confidently. Perhaps, if he didn't see the fear of rejection, maybe he would see how she could be useful to the team, even without powers. "Have a seat," The Beetle offered, motioning for her to sit in the seat across from his own. "Before you begin," Jonni said, the words escaping her before she could start, "I just want to say that I really think that I could be a benefit to this team. I think that..." "I agree," The Beetle said, "Booster and I were talking and he convinced me that..." "I don't think that I should be denied membership just because of who invited me and..." she stopped for a moment, his words finally reaching her ears, "Did you just say that I could stay?" Beetle nodded with a smile, "If you would still like to of course. I may have been a bit harsh in my original assessment... but given the circumstances..." "Perfectly understandable," she replied with a smile of her own, "After all, you don't know what purpose that fake Sue had for me. Or if I was in on it... which I'm not by the way..." "I don't think that you are..." he said, adding the carefully chosen, "At least not now." "I appreciate that," she said, fighting down sarcasm. "I was wondering if you might be able to work with the Atom. There's a fifth dimensional being in a vial somewhere in the city..." Her jaw dropped, "You're joking!" The Beetle shook his head, "I'm afraid not... its somewhere..." "Who would put a genie in a vial?" "You'd be surprised what they end up in. I wouldn't be surprised to see someone walking around with one in a ball point pen some days." Beetle grinned from ear to ear. Jonni returned his wide smile, "Still..." she replied with a shake of her head, "You've come to the right girl... I've had some experience with this sort of thing." "So I hear." Beetle replied, neglecting to mention the phone calls he had just had with several former members of Infinity Inc. "I think that you'll make a fine addition to the team." he said, without a hint of irony in his voice. The fact was that he still wasn't completely sure about it. But Booster had asked him to give her a chance... Jonni Thunder was smiling as she walked out of the room, heading to go talk to the Atom about how she could help. Ted Kord leaned back in his chair with a grin on his face. "Maybe this leader thing isn't as hard as I thought," he said with satisfaction. His chair back gave way, throwing him uncermoniously to the floor with a loud of thunk... that echoed through the chambers... until the emergency alarm went off. NEXT: The Extreme Justice team experiences COLD ARMAGEDDON and nothing will be the same again! EXTREME VIEWS The votes are in, and our new team leader as seen in this issue is none other than Ted Kord - the Blue Beetle. Thank you to everyone who took the time to vote - especially the rather rabid Blue Beetle fans both on the FDC list and off it. I received more votes for the Beetle from more people than I did for anyone else. Quite frankly, it was surprising. I had thought that there was going to be more support for others - but the Beetle tends to be the guy who sneaks up on you, so life imitates art. Let me know what you thought of this issue, and hopefully I can start answering your letters in this forum. Also, keep an eye out for some major league changes for this title and our cast. Keep smiling.