Part One
The caucasian woman clad in pale blue leotards and navy blue cowl and cape crouched low in the alley. She waved her hand and a small cloud of vapor formed in the air, then slowly water dripped from the cloud into her cupped palm. She bent down and slid her other hand under the head of a young red-haired mulatto girl who lay unconscious on the pavement. The water from the cupped palm was sprinkled in the light brown face of the girl, who wore a red domino mask and red and yellow tights. "Osirus, please wake up. He may be here any minute and..." The crimson-clad girl groaned and her eyes opened. "Ohhh... Mom, what happened?" The lady in blue hugged her daughter and then admonished her. "Kazluck blasted you with a force beam. I warned you to keep your flame shield up. When are you going to learn to be careful!" Osirus sighed. "I'm sorry, Mom. I'm still new at this. You're the heroine who always knows just what to do. I'm trying to do this right, but I just can't always remember all the right things to do." Her mother's answer was cut off as the ground rumbled. Aquaina, famous heroine who battled injustice in the streets of Granite City, stood and waved her arms. She faced the approaching villain, mist and sheets of ice and water swirling in the air around her. Kazluck entered the alley and held aloft the Staff of Power that was multiplying his abilities far beyond the usual levels. Aquaina maintained her fluid shields, and stood between the attacker and her daughter. Firehair had exceptional powers of her own, but she was still training in their use and was not prepared to stand up against Kazluck, even when he wasn't using the Staff. Aquaina blasted columns of boiling steam, rock hard bullets of ice and swirling mist at her old enemy, but her attacks were brushed away by the mage's enhanced shields. Kazluck stepped forward and smashed through the blue-clad woman's defenses. His hand went up and touched her forehead. He spoke a single word, and Aquaina screamed in pain as the mind attack pierced her brain. She stiffened, and her eyes turned glowing blood red. The mage laughed as he pulled the heroine close. She looked up into his eyes and spoke. "What is your wish, master." Kazluck laughed again, then spoke. "Ah, my new slave. We shall travel to a place where there is someone I want you to kill."
The Mage waved the Staff over his head, uttered a phrase, and a shimmering yellow circle appeared in the air nearby. He put his hand on Aquaina's shoulder, and they stepped towards the magic portal. Firehair watched the Mage of Malevolence step into the yellow circle and disappear. And she saw her mother, possessed by their worst enemy, proceed side-by-side with him. Osirus began to panic. The portal could lead anywhere or anywhen. Someone had to go after them and bring her mother back. She put her hand to the small plastic disc that was glued to her head just behind her right ear. She tapped it, but the communicator was dead. A side effect from the blast that hit her before. She had to get ahold of the World Justice Alliance. They would send someone who could take on the mage and rescue her mother. But she couldn't get in touch with them now and... Osirus looked with horror as the portal began to close. Mom would be totally lost if no one... Firehair gritted her teeth and stood up. Someone had to go after them, and she was the only one there. She lept into the portal and vanished.
Part Two
She landed in the same alley. The portal hadn't worked! She had lost her mother... but then she saw at the end of the alley a vehicle zip by. She'd only seen it for an instant, but she could of sworn it was an old internal combustion vehicle, like those she'd seen in the museums. Then she saw more of them! Where was she? She looked up and saw the Atherton building, and realized she was still in Granite City. But large chunks of the skyline were all wrong. A newspaper was on the ground nearby. She snatched it up and looked at it. It was dated 2008! She had traveled almost fifty years into the past. And then she saw the picture on the front page. It was an action pose of Glory Lady! Firehair was stunned to think she was back near the turn of the century, in the early days of the historic Granite City heroine's career.
But it could not be a coincidence that this was where the portal had brought her. If Kazluck had seized Aquaina and traveled back to Granite City of 2008, then Glory Lady was probably his target! Firehair felt a cold lump in the pit of her stomach as she realised her mom had been brought back here, trapped by the mind control of the villain, to perform the murder! The Mage would find something that twisted just to his liking. Osirus now realised that she had to rescue her mother before she was forced to kill... But to do so, she had to reach Glory Lady and warn her of the threat. How could she do that? The heroine could be anywhere. The Mage was probably searching, but he had his magics, augmented by the staff to help him find the woman he wanted to kill. Osiris only had her powers of flame, and was not totally trained to use them. Still in the alley, the young heroine suddenly saw a vehicle with police markings pull up alongside the end of alley. She ducked behind a dumpster. If the lawmen saw her, they might ask questions, and she didn't know what she would tell them. She had been going to World Justice Alliance Headquarters for training with Star Warrior for some time, and several of their sessions had covered the dangers of time travel. Bad things happened if people in the past found out about their future, and she could not just tell the lawmen she was a time traveler. Either they wouldn't believe her, or she would be asked questions she shouldn't answer. She had to think of a story to explain why she was here, and she was a lousy liar.
Then she overheard the communications device in the vehicle bark out a message. "All cars in the vicinity... 415 in progress at First National Bank and Trust... Suspects are six individuals, all wearing Halloween themed masks and costumes... Update: suspects have fled the bank in a gray van..." Osirus had a hunch that this information was important. She glanced back at the newspaper. The tattered front page was dated October 30th. If that meant today was the 31st... Oh my god... The facts all clicked into place as she suddenly knew exactly where Glory Lady was going! Growing up, she had a collection of scrapbooks with clippings of the stories about the heroine and her time in Granite City. She'd read those scrapbooks and the others she had about famous heroines over and over, because she knew that, like Glory Lady had done, she was going to grow up and follow in her Mom's footsteps as a crime-fighter. She remembered one news story very clearly. On the last day of October in 2008, Glory Lady, who was known as Glory Girl back then, had her first encounter with the Holiday Gang. This group of crooks would show off by doing their crimes on holidays with the capers themed to the type of holiday. They dressed as Santa and elves and tried to rob a jewelry exchange on Christmas Eve. Dressed as French aristocrats they broke in to steal a exhibit of French masterpieces on loan at the Granite City Art Pavilion on Bastille Day. Wait, she thought, those were things they would do in the years to come. Time travel was really confusing!
But today, right now, Osiris knew from what she'd read in her scrapbooks that the Holiday gang was fleeing to their hideout, a warehouse on Canal Street. And they didn't know that Glory Lady, ooops, Glory Girl, had spotted them and was right on their tail. She caught them in the warehouse, took out the lot, and turned the gang in. So all that Firehair had to do was get to that warehouse and tell Rebecca Belham... Oh, geez... what was she going to tell her?
Part Three
Becky Hooper, in her costume as Glory Girl, was at that instant sneaking up to the side entrance of that warehouse. After she happened by when the gang were rushing out of the bank, she had followed the gang's van and watched where they went. She hoped she could round up these guys quickly. She was still sore in a few spots from the pounding she'd gotten when she was miniaturized at the engagement party a few days ago. As she pulled open the door and went into the building, she suddenly felt something heavy crack her on her head and it knocked her out. She didn't think she was out long, but as she came too, she gasped. She was lying face up on a tabletop, with her arms and legs pulled out and securely tied. A man in a Dracula costume looked down at her and chuckled. "Well, if it isn't Granite City's famous hero bitch, Glory Twat. You're gonna regret following us, but we're gonna have a hell of a good time. Boys, let's have a little celebration to mark our first successful caper!" He reached down and grabbed her blouse, pulling and tearing the front away to reveal her chest. Another of the thieves came to the table and began to cup and squeeze Becky's right breast. "Hey boss, she's got a sweet pair of tits." The Dracula grabbed her other breast and similarly mangled it. Becky grimaced, and seethed in anger at her stupidty in stumbling into a trap. She was tied down with six horny bastards staring at her and drooling. She should have called in the cops before she came in here, but she got cocky and thought she could check the place out by herself. Dumb. Now there was nobody who could get her out of this mess.
Except there was somebody. Osiris was outside the building, on a fire escape where she could look in through a grime-streaked window to get a chance to finally to see the famous Glory Lady in action against these thugs. Rebecca looked like she was in a bad way, but the heroine would certainly be able to... Firehair gasped. The head scum, the one dressed as Dracula, had dropped his pants and was climbing up on Rebecca, ripping away at her skirt and panties. Firehair's mouth hung open as she gradually came to understand that her hero was in deep shit. And Glory Lady didn't seem to be able to get out of her mess. As the truth of the situation finally dawned on her, Firehair burst into action. She dove through the window, burst into flame and soared through the warehouse. Low level firebursts spun out and knocked down the crooks, and a couple of tight tendrils of flame slashed out and cut the ropes holding Becky down. Freed, Glory Girl pushed back the man as his cock was about to enter her cunt. Given room, she kicked him in the crotch and sent him crashing back to the floor. The flaming rescuer landed next to her and spoke. "Glory Lady, are you all right?" Becky looked around and tried to pull together the tattered remnants of her outfit. "I am now. Thanks for the rescue. Who are you?"
Osiris paused. What exactly was she going to tell her? After all, she was... Osiris suddenly noticed one of the men had gotten to his feet and was leveling a handgun at the women. "GRANDMA! Duck!" As Becky dove for the floor, a full force flame blast erupted towards the thug as he fired his gun at her. The bullet got halfway to its target before being vaporized. In an instant, the thug was also knocked backwards by the blast of heat. The burst of air sent him crashing into a wall. Rebecca brought up her head and saw what had happened, checked out that the other five men were all still out, and then turned her head to Firehair with a look of puzzled amazement. "Wh... what did you call me?" Her rescuer's shoulders slumped as she knew she'd blown it. "Well... my name is Osiris Kane and I'm your grand-daughter. I come from far in the future in pursuit of the most evil mage of my time who came back here with a magically enslaved minion to... to kill you." Becky's mouth dropped at the story and she she shook her head. "That is the most impossible story I have ever heard. There is no way you can make me believe that load of horse-hockey!" But Osiris did know one way to convince her. The redhead brought her hand to her throat and concentrated. On her neck appeared a delicate chain of silver beads and semi-precious stones, the necklace of Dasaina. It was a certain sign that the young woman was a priestess of the native american diety, just like Rebecca was. And if only women in her family line were priestesses... Osiris spoke. "I am the oldest daughter of your oldest daughter. And... and it gets worse." Becky quizzical expression indicated she wanted to know how it possibly could, and Firehair continued. "Kazluck got his hands on a Staff of Power that increases his magic to a much higher level. He captured and enslaved the mind of a heroine of my time and has brought her here with him. He probably wants her to be the one who kills you. She is Aquaina, the Mistress of Water and Mist. She is a powerful heroine who... who is my mother." Glory Girl staggered back a step and again had her mouth hanging open. "Your mo... she's my daughter? And she's been brought here to kill me? WHY? Why does this guy go to all this trouble to do this?" Firehair replied. "For years you fought against a terrorist called Arakim Daraba, and eventually you finally captured him. In prison, he made enemies, and one of them knifed him in the shower. After he died, his son, Kazluck Daraba swore vengeance and has fought you and Mom over and over ever since. It's a family feud."
Part Four
The evil mage from the future stood on a rooftop in downtown Granite City. He stared out at the skyline, fascinated at the differences from the city he knew in his time. By his side stood the heroine he had ensnared with his enhanced magic. She had battled him for years, and he had been nearly captured dozens of times. But now he had her. Totally. "Slave, do you agree to follow any order I give you, no matter what I ask you to?" Aquaina answered, in dull, listless voice that was shallow and empty. "Yes, master." Kazluck smiled. Now for his slave to kill that damned Glory Lady. Then Aquainia would never even be born. All the future would be different. But first... "Slave, remove your costume." Without any hesitation, she peeled off her leotard and cape and dropped them to the rooftop. She peeled off her mask and stood naked in front of her worst enemy. He moved to stand behind her, and his arms wrapped around her body while he squeezed and pinched her breasts. She did not respond to the assault, remaining still. "Unleash your emotions, slave. React to your humiliation!" With this order, Aquaina's body stirred and the red glow in her eyes faded. Barbara Belham Kane's mind cleared slightly, and she gasped at the horror of her situation. She struggled, but the wizard's arms held her tight. Her mind had cleared somewhat, but she still fought to control her body. "Damn you, you bastard! Take your hands off me!" But her stuggles were weak, and the villain pushed at her until she bent forward at the waist and her legs were forced apart. He murmured a mystic chant and although her mind was aware of her surroundings, she felt her unseen bindings pull at her wrists, waist and ankles, holding her in the vulnerable position. One of Kazluck's hands rested on her back as the other hand guided his erect cock into her pussy. She felt the shame and pain of his entry into her body as he started to rape her. He smiled, as this action was something he had wanted to do to her for so long...
In thinking over the strange situation that had come to be, Becky was struggling to find a way to cope with all she had learned. "Alright, Osiris, I guess I believe you. We can contact the Justice League and try to get some magical help to..." Firehiar reacted with a look of shock. "NO! We can't get anyone else involved in this. Star Warrior, my teacher at the WJA instructed me that disturbing the time line can be totally horrible. We can't let more people know what is going on!" Rebecca stared at the young time traveller and began to get angry. "Osiris, SCREW THE TIME LINE! You said this guy and... and your mom are out to kill me, changing all kinds of the history of your world. If we don't do something, problems in the time line will be stacked higher than shit. We need help. If this is big time magic, I'm just a street brawler, how do you think I can handle it?" Firehair waved her arms around above her head. "Grandma, you can handle him, you're Glory Lady, for chrissake!
Rebecca stared at her descendant and fought to calm her anger. The kid was almost her age, but obviously not used to being in a crisis. Becky knew she would have been just as badly panicked if something like this had hit her a year ago. But she had been though a few nasty situations and she'd fought alongside Batgirl and Wonder Woman. They had shown her the value of remaining calm in a crisis and allowing reason to help tackle the problem. She was now better equipped to do this. And she had to support her inexperienced partner, shouting at her wasn't going to help. And help was what they needed. Glory Girl knew she wasn't the heroine her grand-daughter thought she was. At least not yet. But Becky did worry about messing up the course of history if she screwed up. What good would it do stop the Mage only to cause terrible problems for her daughter and grand-daughter? "Alright, Osiris, I'll have to do something, but we will keep this as low-key as possible. And stop calling me grandma. I'm not ready to hear that yet. Just call me Becky." Firehair nodded. Rebecca wondered who she could contact for help. Magic was way out of her normal course of action. At the assembly up in the JLA watchtower after she'd been cleared of murder charges, she had spoken briefly with Zatanna, but she had no idea how to get in touch with her. She didn't think going through J'onn J'onzz would be a good idea. He would want to go into details of what the problem was. She could contact Supergirl... No, that wouldn't work. Kara had mentioned that magic was her worst vulnerability. Becky groaned, wishing she knew what to do. And then it came to her. "Firehair, when you get into trouble and need help, who's the first one you think of?" Osiris, with a puzzled expression, stammered, "Well, I would go to my Mom for help. But we can't do that here. She's the one..." Glory Girl smiled. "You can't, but I can! We're going to my house!"
On the rooftop downtown, Kazluck motioned his fingers and his victim screamed in anguish as she was molested and raped over and over by the sadistic mage. As he plunged his cock into her once again, he let the control of her senses ease back to listen to her cries from the pain and humiliation he was inflicting on her. The door to the rooftop burst open and a pair of police officers came out and stood, their weapons trained. "Get off that woman, buddy! Don't try anything or we'll put a couple of bullets through that sick head of yours." Kazluck ignored them, and pumped a couple more times into Aquaina which resulted in his cock ejaculating deep into her. Then he looked over at the cops and spat a single word at them. Black snake-like tendrils appeared out of the air and wrapped around the arms, legs and torsos of the men and constricted tighter and tighter. The officers died painfully as their chests were crushed. The mage did not even watch, as he went back to raping his mortal enemy once again. Finally satisfied, Kazluck lifted the staff and pictured his family's worst enemy, Glory Lady, in his mind. He spoke enchantments and let magic energy wash out over the city, searching for the person he so wanted to kill. The magical search should be able to find her easily, and then he would change history forever!
Part Five
Osiris rode on the back of Rebecca's motorcycle, leaning forward to yell in her grandmother's ear. "Wow, these things make a lot of noise! It's sort of like a hoverboard, skimming along the ground." The two roared along and soon arrived in the alley behind Becky's house. She pulled her bike into the garage and they walked into the back door of the house. Becky cried out, "Mom! Are you here?" Donna walked into the kitchen and noticed the red-clad heroine. "Yes, Becky, who's your friend?" Osiris was staring at Donna Hooper with her mouth hanging wide open. She murmured, "Oh wow.... the Shady Lady herself! I read through your scrapbooks over and over, but I never expected to really meet you!" Donna took a step back and turned to look at her daughter. "Becky! Did you tell her my identity? Why would you..." Rebecca sighed. "No, Mom, I didn't tell her. She already knew because... Oh, geez... She's from the future and she's my grand-daughter." Now Donna was reduced to staring back at Firehair, totally astonished by what she'd been told. She finally pulled out a kitchen chair and sat down. "My God, Becky! I fought crime for fifteen years before I retired, and in all that time I never saw half the weird stuff you have been through in your short time in costume!" Becky and Osiris sat down and went over everything that had lead up to this crisis. Donna pondered what they told her, then spoke. "Becky, you are right. We have to keep the time line from getting messed up, but we also have to keep all of history from being changed if you get killed before your daughter is even born. After you and Arnie got married, I guess it would have been my job to pester you about grandkids. It's weird that you have a grandchild before I do! Against magic, you have to use magic. Trouble is that mages are notorious for keeping hidden away, and they are very hard to get in touch with. Doctor Fate, Ibis the Invincible or Doctor Strange would really be handy here, but they aren't in the phone book. And who was that nice young lady we met up on the Watchtower?" Becky replied. "That was Zatanna, Mom. But I don't have any way to get in touch with her without going through the JLA." Donna considered. "If that is your only option, go for it. Get ahold of J'onn J'onzz and explain to him you need to get in touch with one of the mages we mentioned and tell him it is a secret matter that you can't discuss with him. I am sure, after the contacts you have had with him in the past, that he will understand."
Rebecca took the phone and called the contact number she had for the Justice League. As usual, it rang and she at once heard the voice of the Martian. "Hello Rebecca. Is there a problem?" Becky paused before she answered. The Martian Manhunter was most valuable to the JLA as a master planner. He was the one who could evaluate a situation and logically think out the proper response. He could consider the League members available and calculate who was needed. But he would also be the worst person to reveal anything about the time paradox. Anything he found out would be analyzed, and J'onn would postulate future events, giving him dangerous knowledge about events to come. Becky thought she had better avoid telling him anything about the situation. "Ahhh... yes J'onn, I need some help to fight a magician, but I can't tell you the details. It just has to be kept a secret for... for a good reason. Can you get me in touch with Zatanna, Doctor Strange, Ibis or Doctor Fate?" Now the Martian Manhunter paused before speaking. "If you feel this is needed, Glory Girl, I trust your judgement. I only have direct contact with Zatanna. How serious is the problem? If need be I can arrange the transporters to shift her to your location. Or would you like to speak to her first?" Becky replied. "Well, it's pretty bad here. Could you just ask her to help us and if she can, send her here?" J'onn J'onzz agreed, and hung up. Rebecca told the others that help was going to be on the way.
Wearing a black pants suit, Zatanna Zatara was sitting at a table a nice cozy restaurant in Paris with a friend when her cellphone played a little tune. She picked it up and glanced at the caller identification before speaking. "Excuse me, I have to take this. It's J'onn at the Watchtower and may be important." Her friend who was dressed in a crimson dress and short black cape nodded. "Hello John, is there a situation? I see... she didn't give any details? Well that was unusual. If you think it may be important, give me a few minutes to pay the check here and then you can transport me to her location. Wait a minute." The JLA magician spoke to her friend. "I've been asked to help a young lady who says she needs help to oppose a magical threat. Would you like to come along?" The woman in scarlet smiled and nodded. "Sure, Zee, I may as well. Otherwise I'll just sit here wondering what you were doing." Zatanna resumed speaking into the phone. "My friend is willing to go along, so that will be two at this table to be transported." She hung up, counted out enough cash on the table to cover their meal and a generous tip, and waited for the teleportation unit to engage. Soon the two women were wrapped in light, shimmered and vanished. The handsome young Frenchman who had finally gotten up the nerve to approach their table and attempt to hit on the two lovely ladies sighed, and decided he would always regret not moving faster.
On the rooftop in downtown Granite City, Kazluck was unhappy. His mystic search still had not had any success finding the location of Glory Lady. Could she be out of the city right now? The person he pictured in his mind would have been traced down no matter where... Kazluck suddenly realised a mistake he had made in his efforts. He had pictured the mature, older Glory Lady in his mind when he sent out his magical search. The woman was younger, and a different person in this time period. He was searching for a version of her that did not yet exist! He concentrated and remembered her as she was very early in her career. Within moments he knew where she was. He clamped down his control over the mind of Aquaina and ordered her to get dressed. Barbara's teary eyes hardened and again glowed with the red energy.
Part Six
Two forms appeared in the Hooper living room as the JLA transporters brought the women to the scene. As soon as they appeared, each of them used an enchantment to transform their clothes into their familiar costumes. Zee suddenly stood in top hat, white bustioer and black coat and tails, and black fishnet stockings. Her companion now wore a red one piece swimsuit over pink tights, a long red cape, and a red cloth tiara that framed her face and her curly red hair. Zatanna reached out her hand to Rebecca and shook it. "Hi, Glory Girl. J'onn didn't pass much backround to us. This is my friend, Wanda Maximoff, also known as the Scarlet Witch. She volunteered to help." Rebecca reached over and shook the hand of the famed sorceress from New York. "Wow, thanks for coming. Well, the reason I asked for help... Ok, what is going on is that this young lady, Firehair, is from the future. She came to warn me that a big powerful warlock from the future has come back in time to attack me. And he has working for him a heroine whose mind he has taken over." Wanda gave off a whistle. "Wow, that sounds pretty intense." Glory Girl coughed. "Ummm. There's more. The mesmerized lacky is my daughter. And Firehair is my grand-daughter." Becky turned to point at Firehair, and when she did she noticed the girl was backing away, fear in her eyes. Becky asked, "Osiris! What's the matter!" The red-haired young woman pointed at Zatanna."Oh no - you should not have brought her here! She hates me!" Zatanna was puzzled. "I... what? How could I hate you, I never met you before." Osiris pondered this. "Oh, that's right. It's not until the problem with Zalane that I..." Becky broke in. "Wait a minute... who the hell is Zalane? What are you talking about?" Osiris hung her head and mumbled. "Well, Zalane was my prom date in high school. He was majoring in mystic arts, and asked me out. But at the prom, somebody spiked the punch and we were both got kind of wasted. In the ride home, we got close, and suddenly all my clothes disappeared. Just then we got to my house and when I got out, Dad and Mom saw me and freaked out. Zalane claimed I took off my clothes and was trying to seduce him. His parents believed him and took his side. So did she... she's his grandmother. And since then our families have been furious at each other." Becky hung her head and sighed. Nobody had ever told her anything about the dangers of time travel, but she knew she would never say stuff this stupid. If the girl had just kept all this to herself, it never would have been a problem. Zatanna was standing there with her mouth agape. "M... my grandson?" Wanda was looking back and forth at everyone and trying to take in the conflict she'd found herself a part of...
Donna Hooper burst forth with an angry cry. "Hey, people! We can't argue amongst ourselves about something that hasn't even happened yet. Osiris! Will you please stop chattering about future events to us? This information about the future is not helping, only making problems with the timeline. Limit your comments to getting us informed about this Kazluck and Aquaina, your mother. We have to stop him and try to incapacitate her without hurting her. Zatanna, don't worry about your decendants. If we don't succeed here, the future will be so different that anything Firehair describes will no longer come to be." Zatanna looked at Donna and nodded. Osiris stared over at the Shady Lady. She recognized that resolve and take-control attitude, she'd seen it in her mother and her grandmother time and again. They always knew what to do, and what to say to inspire the people they were working with. She saw that it was the kind of work ethic that she had to strive for. "Yes, Maa'm. Sorry. Kazluck uses gestures and incantations to throw bolts of magical energy around. Those Mom and Grandma could handle pretty well. But recently he broke into the Justice League Museum and stole a Shaft of Power that was part of a special display. It uses stellar power to focus energy, and with it his power has been enhanced greatly. His attacks are tougher, and he has bolstered his protective shields. He just shrugs off attacks and blasts back with nasty effects. He knocked out my mom's defenses and touched her forehead. With a simple phrase he broke down her will power and made her his puppet. She now is his willing slave." Zatanna whistled. "Sounds like a real problem. If Wanda and I attack him, can you try to hold off your mother?" Osiris nodded. "I... I'll try."
Wanda Maximoff suddenly spoke. "They're coming. I can sense powerful magic approaching." The group dashed out to the back yard, and scanned the sky. Rebecca pointed to the east. "There!" The women looked up and saw the two attackers swooping towards them. From the blue-clad woman, a blast of jagged ice steaked towards Glory Girl. Rebecca gasped as the icicles stabbed at her, but the attack passed straight through her without harm. Donna Hooper had grabbed her daughter's arm, and with concentration, was able to extend her power to become immaterial over to both figures. Zatanna and Scarlet Witch murmured enchantments and sent magic shooting into the sky at the mage, while Firehair's heat and flame were directed at her mother. Kazluck stopped the attacks that were coming at him, but he did stagger back a mite. He was not expecting the opposition of two powerful magic-users. Aquaina also was pushed back by her daughter's attack. Extreme heat had always affected her powers all her life, but she fought back, totally under the influence of the evil mage. She used moisture and mist to block Osiris' attacks and struck out to knock down her daughter. Sensing a telepathic command from Kazluck, she spun and shot a blast of liquid at Zatanna. Concentrating on her attack on the mage, Zee was surrounded by the fluids and dropped to the ground. Kazluck sent enhanced magical bursts at Wanda and she suddenly was being pushed back by pressure and pain.
Zatanna was on the ground, twitching and struggling as Rebecca and Donna reached her. She was gagging and coughing, with liquid dribbling from her throat. Becky was horrified. "Mom, she's drowning! Her lungs must be full of water!" The Shady Lady bent down and wrapped her arms around Zee and concentrated. The two women suddenly became transparent for a few moments and then returned to normal. Zatanna was still coughing, but also taking in air in big gulps. Becky was puzzled. "What happened?" Donna looked up. "I transformed her into gas, except for the fluid in her lungs, then I brought her back after the water had dropped away. She still is suffering from the damage to her throat and lungs." As they did this, Wanda and Kazluck were battling back and forth, and Firehair struggled to hold off her mother. Osiris had seen Zatanna go down when she had failed to fight hard enough against Aquaina's attacks. The young redhead knew she could not allow that to happen again. Her bursts of fire and heat became more intense and hotter. She had been holding back as she faced her own mother. She could not afford to do that anymore. But still, a blast of mist and fluids shot past her at Glory Girl. Rebecca saw the attack coming. But in an instant, she saw that if she ducked to the side, the blast would hit her mom, who was helping Zatanna. So she turned and braced herself, and let the attack hit her. She felt the cold penetrate her body and winced from the pain. Practically any other person might have died from the shock of such an attack, but one thing saved Rebecca. The priestesses of Dasiana were tempered by their diety to resist heat and cold. They could stand up to this kind of attack better than most. So Becky was able to shrug off the deadly attack. But nearby, Wanda Maximoff had an attack slip through her defenses. A bolt of power smashed into her left arm and shredded the flesh, cracked the bones. She screamed as she felt the nerves of her arm suffer. But she stood there, put up her right arm and continued to fight. Then a second attack hit her and knocked her back to the ground. Aquaina tried to swing around and send another attack, but a blast from Firehair knocked her back and sent her smacking to the ground. Kazluck turned and faced Glory Girl. full of hatred towards his long-time foe. He raised his hands and stood ready to blast at Rebecca. Becky looked at the scene and knew she had to resist the attack. Not just for herself, but for her daughter and grand-daughter whose existence depended on her. She looked at the attacker standing across the yard and screamed at him. "NO!" She stamped her foot on the ground and clenched her fists. As she did so, the ground shook and rumbled. A fissure in the earth appeared, running from where she stood directly to where he was. Behind him, a section of the garage collapsed. He staggered back, fell over and the golden shaft flew from his hand. Becky was shocked to see a look of fear in his eyes. Aquaina spun in place and swooped over to the man who controlled her. En route she grabbed up the staff and carried it back to him. As he reached for it, another magic pulse from the Scarlet Witch's right hand blasted him. So the mage and his entranced minion suddenly flew up and sped off to the west.
Part Seven
Wanda hurried over to the side of her friend. "How is Zee doing? She looked terrible when she went down." Donna was holding Zatanna. "She is still in very bad shape. She can barely get enough air in her lungs, as those and her throat are badly damaged. She can't say anything. We need to get her to a hospital." The Witch replied. "The JLA Watchtower would be best. They have the best emergency care facilities for their members who are hurt, and the transporter can get her there in an instant." Rebecca looked at Wanda's injuries. "Your arm looks pretty bad. We'll get both of you out of here..." The red-clad mage shook her head. "No, just get me some bandages and I'll stay here. He'll be back and you'll need me." Rebecca looked at the blood dripping from the hand of the woman, whose left arm was hanging limp at her side. She wanted to argue with the lady, but she knew that they probably did need her. She wondered if the next attack would be worse.
Firehair suddenly pointed south and yelled, "Someone's coming!" Osiris raised her arms, ready to blast out at the approaching figure. But Becky glanced up and quickly stepped over to put a hand on her grand-daughter's shoulder. "Wait, it's someone to help." Becky felt relief as the man in a red, white and blue costume landed amongst the debris of the yard. Mr. Patriot glanced about and was relieved to see both his wife and daughter appeared unhurt. "Punkin, what the heck is going on here? I was at police headquarters when the reports came in of a major battle in this neighborhood. Who are all these people and what happened?" Before Becky answered her dad, she pulled out a cell phone and called the JLA. "J'onn, this situation has developed into a serious mess. Zatanna is down and badly hurt. Please transport her to your med facility. No, I'm sorry. I can't tell you anyting about what we are up against. Have you been able to contact any of the others I asked about? Ohhh... Please keep trying to get them..." Rebecca thought about asking for more help. But who would they get who... She suddenly knew just who they needed. She mentioned a name to J'onn and begged him to contact her and get her there as soon as possible. The Martian Manhunter paused a few seconds, obviously not pleased that Glory Girl was holding back information. "Very well, I will contact her and transport her to your locality. But I don't see why you would want her in this situation. She is rather young and unfocused in her efforts and I..." Becky broke in on J'onn's words. "Yes, I know, but, I just have to do this." Becky turned to her Dad and tried to fill him in on the situation. She introduced him to Zatanna even as the magician shimmered and vanished, then to the Scarlet Witch and Osiris. Pat Hooper was a little stunned at learning about Firehair and the other pair of travelers from the future, but he concentrated on the problem at hand and put aside understanding all the amazing events for later when there would be time to think. Donna got a bedsheet and tore it into long strips that she wrapped around the damaged arm of the Scarlet Witch. Wanda gasped and winced at the pain but hoped if she kept that arm at her side the pain would not be too distracting for her to function. Rebecca went over to her grand-daughter. "Osiris, we have to stop them. You are going to have to fight your mother and... do whatever you can to stop her. I'm not telling you this to save my life. You have to save your own existence, and save the life you mother has had so far. She would want you to do this. She... damn. I don't know anything about her. I don't even know her name." Osiris looked with amazement at the strain that showed on her grandmother's face. She was shocked to see that the woman who had always intimidated her had started out small and learned to be the great figure she became. "Grandma, her name is Barbara." Rebecca looked up at Firehair's face and smiled. Of course. She would have named her daughter after her dearest friend. Now Glory Girl was determined that they had to succeed. She owed that to her daughter and her grand-daughter. Becky, her parents and Firehair started scanning the skies, watching for the next attack. But Pat did glance to the side for a few seconds at the red haired young heroine. He thought she looked like a really lovely young lady. His great-grand-daughter, ehh? Wow...
The Scarlet Witch felt them approach a couple of seconds before the quartet spotted the pair swooping towards them. Wanda blasted at Kazluck, but his shields deflected the attack. Firehair sent a plume of flame at Aquaina to slow her and hold her back, and the Maid of Mist staggered back from the heat. Her attack of ice pellets and icicles that went at her mother was vaporized before it reached Glory Girl. The evil mage was stunned a little as Mr. Patriot picked up the riding lawn-mower from the remains of the garage and flung it at the villain. Kazluck's shields had been attuned to repel energy and magic, not large, heavy solid objects. But a blast of magic hit Pat in the chest and threw him back, right through the side of the house. He landed in the living room, not really hurt due to his nearly invulnerable costume, but stunned. Firehair was surrounded by a cloud of vapor, and as she tried to burn it away, she doubled over in the steam she was caught up in, coughing. Wanda was hit by a blast from the mage she only partially blocked, and she went down. Kazluck turned to Glory Girl, and shouted, "At last, you bitch, I have you! Slave, kill her and eliminate the family of heroines who have always foiled my family's plans!" Hovering in the air, Aquaina looked over at her mother with her entranced red eyes and prepared a killing stroke. The Shady Lady tried to run to her daughter's side, to use her abilities to try to save her. But Kazluck cast a spell at her and paralyzed her. He could have killed her, but he prefered that she see her daughter die. An instant before Aquania could react, a blast of yellow energy stuck her from behind and sent her crashing to the ground. Kazluck spun to see another young costumed women who had just arrived on the scene. He brought his Staff of Power up to destroy this new interference. but the girl held an identical golden shaft that repulsed his attack. Star Girl cried out, "I don't know who you are, bud, or how you have a duplicate of my Star Staff, but those are my friends you're beating on!"
Glory looked up and smiled. Courtney had gotten there just in time. Rebecca had recognized the staff that the evil mage was using, having seen it in the hands of Star Girl several times. Glory Girl had fretted over what to do here. She had made friends and contacts in the community of costumed heroes. With just a word, she knew she could have called in a lot of help. But the danger to the time line would have grown with every person who became aware of what was going on here. Could she ask people to save her life only to have the lives of her descendants, and theirs, radically changed? Would some bit of future information change history and do horrible harm? She could not take that chance unless she was sure. And with Courtney Whitmore, she was sure that asking for help was the best course of action. She looked at the evil Mage from the future battling the young woman and smiled. Star Girl circled in the sky above Kazluck, and they exchanged blasts of energy, each trying to take the other out. Kazluck knew magic very well, but he had little experience with the staff of power. As he tried to merge his magic and the power of the staff to blast at Star Girl, she blocked and deflected his attacks easily. She was so used to using her staff that she was able to divert his attacks and still send blasts towards him. He was struck by the energy over and over, and finally one knocked him down and sent the staff he held flying. Star Girl swooped down a grabbed it, then concentrated with both staffs and sent a jolt twice as powerful through the man that totally knocked him out.
But as this was happening, Aquaina had gotten past the guard of her daughter, and a blast of cold sleet had smashed down Firehair, leaving her on the gound, dazed. The Maid of the Mist landed in front of Rebecca and grabbed her mother's arms, holding them tight. Her deep red entranced eyes stared into Rebecca's eyes and she snarled, "My Master has ordered me to kill you!" As this happened, the mage was knocked out by Star Girl's attacks, and the red glow in Aquaina's eyes lessened. She stuggled to concentrate on her task. "I... I have to... kill you..." Glory Girl was held fast and could not pull herself free. So she leaned in towards her attack and shouted. "Barbara Belham! YOU STOP THIS AT ONCE! OR ELSE!" Aquaina's resolve began to melt as the angry voice of her childhood penetrated the mind control that was wearing off. "Mama? I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" Then the two women came together and held each other, both with tears streaming down their faces.
Kazluck was securely tied up, and Mr. Patriot came back out of the house to find the women of his family all exchanging embraces as they rejoiced over the victory. Donna Hooper went over what had happened with Star Girl, who was a little shocked by the details. "Geez, this guy got my staff in the future and came back to kill Glory Girl? Wow... that's really freako!" Then Donna and Pat Hooper spoke with their grand-daughter, pleased to see that Aquaina was such an exceptional woman. Glory Girl turned to Osiris and brought up something she wondered about. "What the heck happened when I knocked Kazluck down? I stamped my foot and the whole back yard shook!" Firehair was puzzled by the question. "You didn't know...? Grandma, it's your powers. Each of us have powers from one of the elements of the Goddess Dasaina. I was given the power of fire, my mom has the power of water. Your mom has powers related to air, and you are capable of controlling and drawing power from the earth. You once brought up an explosion of magma from deep down in the earth's crust to stop an attack by..." Becky put a hand up, palm facing Osiris. "Hold it! You are saying too much again. I shouldn't know about whatever that is." Firehair groaned. "Oh geez. You're right. I just keep chattering on, when I shouldn't. Sorry, Gr... err... Becky." Suddenly a white van pulled up by the partially demolished garage and Arnie jumped out. "Becky, I heard on the news about a big conflict going on in your neighborhood. Are you alright? What happened here?" Before his fiance could answer, Osiris stepped forward and threw her arms around him. "Gramps! It's good to see you!" Arnie was stunned and embarrassed to get this attention from a strange young girl right in front of Rebecca. Becky had to explain to him what was going on, and he stood there and stared, first at his daughter and then at his grand-daughter as he tried to come to grips with the bizarre situation.
Part Eight
Barbara Belham Kane stood in the backyard and smiled. "Osiris, it's time you and I took our prisoner back to our time. I heard the chant he used to open the portal. With his shaft of power, I can duplicate it." Firehair nodded, then went back over to Rebecca. She wrapped her arms around her grandmother tight, and didn't want to stop hugging her. She whispered. "I was always a little terrified around you, Grand... Becky. I never thought I could be the iconic figure you are in my time. I thought anything I did would never match up to what you expected me to do. Thanks for giving me a hand and being my friend. Maybe I can learn to be as big a heroine as my mom and my grandma are." Becky hugged back just as tight. "You bet, kid. And I'll try to live up to what you expect of me." Finally the two young women parted. Becky reached over and shook Barbara's hand. She still could hardly accept that this mature woman was her daughter. She was so grown-up, so fine an individual. Aquaina and Firehair took their prisoner aside, and while holding the staff, the Mistress of Water and Mist spoke the incantation and the transport circle appeared. Barbara nodded a goodbye to Star Girl, Scarlet Witch and her ancestors and the two women dragged their prisoner through the circle and vanished.
As the remaining people stared at the spot where the transport had occured, their minds reeled with the knowledge of their futures. How could they go on, knowing what they did? It would be maddening, and make it impossible to live their lives as they would be expected to do. Patrick, Donna and Rebecca Hopper, Arnie Belham, Scarlet Witch and Star Girl milled around, looking at each other in silence, worried about the consequences of the recent events. Wanda Maximoff asked Courtney if she would get her to a medical facility to take care of her arm. But a mystical being hovered in the air above them, unseen. The goddess Dasaina had watched as four of her priestesses had been brought together by the activities of that evil man. She had not interferred, as she had resolved not to control the lives of her minions. She wanted loving, resolute followers, not puppets who were controlled by her. She would have destroyed their spirit if she moved to rescue them. What kind of priestess would Rebecca or Osiris be if they always thought that it was up to their diety to handle any trouble? No, Dasiana was determined to have these young women who served her be people she could be proud of. But the problem of the aftermath of their adventure would have long-standing consequences. Would Barbara Belham fall in love with Harold Kane if she knew about this before she even grew up? Would the child be raised any different if her parents knew specifics about her life to come? This problem needed to be resolved. So the Goddess excercised a tiny bit of her power and altered the memories of the people standing below her, as well as the memories of the heroine up in the JLA medical facility.
Donna Hooper, shook her head. She was thinking about... she didn't remember what she was just pondering. Oh, well, it must not have been important. "Becky, your two friends were certainly interesting. It's a shame we learned so little about them." Becky also felt a little light-headed. She replied. "Oh. Yeah, mom. The red-haired one, Firehair, hinted that they were from the future. It would have been interesting to hear about what happens to us in the future. She never did say why that bad guy picked this period to attack." Arnie chuckled. "Maybe he was after you, Beck. In the future, you are probably famous for being a really hot babe! I think that red-haired girl was really cute." Rebecca spun and stared at her fiance. "Hey, you aren't allowed to notice any other beauties, buddy, we're engaged!" But actually, Becky for some reason didn't really mind Arnie speaking a little affectionately about the young heroine, Firehair. But she couldn't figure out why!
In the year 2056, Osiris Kane flew across town and landed in the plaza in front of the headquarters of the World Justice Alliance. She needed to get a replacement for her shorted-out communications disk, but first she wanted to talk to someone. She entered the building and walked up to an office on the third floor. An older woman whose blue costume was covered in white stars looked up and smiled. "Osiris! Your next tutoring session isn't until tomorrow. What brings you in early?" The redclad young woman looked over and showed a puzzled look on her face. "My mom and I just got back from the year 2008, where I met you. The very first time I came up here for tutoring, you lectured me about the perils of time travel. You knew all this time?" Star Warrior shook her head. "After you left back then, we all forgot most of what we knew about you. We recalled you had said you were from the future, but we no longer remembered who you really were. Somehow our memories were altered to protect us. But when I first met you almost a year ago, I recognized you at once and knew what must have happened. I could have warned you, but I felt you had to go through this. If I stopped this from happening, I would be changing the past. Do you think you learned anything?" Firehair was surprised by this information. "It was kind of a nasty ordeal, especially for mom. But I guess I feel much more confidant about myself." The door opened and another woman entered. The gray haired woman in her red, white and blue costume stared over at Firehair. "I'm glad you're back safe. More confidant, eh? Does that mean you are now no longer nervous to be with me, intimidated by the presence of the elected leader of the WJA?" Osiris winced at her grandma's remark, and glanced back at Star Warrior. "You told her about that? You promised to keep my secret!" Courtney laughed. "I never told her. She's smart enough to guess what was holding you back." Firehair looked at her grandmother. "Did you know what was up?" Rebecca Hooper Belham smiled. "A little. Our memories were altered back then, but a year ago when you first showed off the costume that you'd designed for yourself, I recognized the young lady who fought at my side so long ago. I knew what would eventually happen. I could have had the WJA members keep a constant watch on you, stopping Kazluck from kidnapping your mother and stopping you from going back to 2008. But you would have found out you were being coddled and it would have destroyed any self-confidence you had. So I had you tutored by Star Warrior to get you ready for the fight I knew you were going to have. I had to trust you to do what I had seen you do -- become a hero." Osiris jumped over and embraced Glory Lady. "Thanks, Grandma!"
--- --- < Author's Notes > --- ---
In another salute to the interesting plots you would see in stories of the 1960's and 70's, here is my take on the story where the hero encounters time travelers from his or her future. I enjoyed writing Glory Girl's ancestors into her story line, now you get to meet her descendants. I put together a little geneaology for Rebecca, pinning down her ancestry for Episode Seven: Family Ties, and then expanded it to cover her decendants as I worked up this story. I also brought up a confict for her unlike those she has had in previous stories. She is forced to face a new type of menace and tries to fight against an enemy whose power is based on magic.
What's in the planning stage? I have an interesting idea about a story where Glory Girl is invited to visit Themyscira as a guest at a banquet. But at this event she finds herself fighting to save the entire Amazon nation!
I am very interested in hearing from you readers about how you feel about my stories. Please e-mail me at therat4040@yahoo.com and tell me your opinions. Alias the Rat 12/08