Deviation Actions
Description
A meeting was underway at the Fortress of Solitude, headquarters of the Justice League. Along with Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Green Lantern, The Flash, and Green Arrow, were more-recently inducted members Robin, Steel, Blue Beetle, and Booster Gold. The only ones unaccounted for was Zatanna, who had her own business to attend to, and The Atom, who doesn’t actively work with the JL unless contacted by them. The team had convened here to discuss their findings on The Syndicate, a powerful vigilante group that is willing to kill and torture for their twisted ideals of justice. They had discovered the true identities of all members of the Syndicate with the exception of Owlman, and sought to decipher the message from the future received by Booster Gold’s robot partner Skeets relating to the Syndicate’s plans. Just then, an alarm rang out and Police Captain Gordon, an ally of Batman, contacted the League. There’s a federal mint on the outskirts of Pittsburgh, PA that’s being attacked by the Parasite, who escaped prison and is leading a small army to rob the facility. The League calculated the size of Parasite’s team and moved to take them on in full. To Steel’s dismay, he and Robin were told to remain behind and hold down the fort, as it were. Robin was more compliant with the senior members’ request than Steel was, who was willing and raring to “get into the trenches”. This was especially difficult for Steel, who is secretly Connor Kent, Superman’s son. Robin, who is Batman’s younger cousin Cassie Kane, was calmer and tried to rationalize to Steel that they need to remain behind in case another emergency were to occur. As if on cue, another alarm rang out and Captain Gordon contacted Robin and Steel with another emergency. A force field had enveloped a high school in New York City, and Owlman was seen entering the trapped campus. Fearing for the safety of the students and faculty, Robin and Steel took on the mission, boarding the JL’s secondary Javelin ship. On board, Robin contacted Batman and said told him about Owlman, and Batman told them to simply stand down and wait for the rest of the League to finish up with Parasite and meet them at the school. Steel refused and said that people could die if they wait. At the school, they had no way to penetrate the force field… at first, but Steel used his secret magnetic powers to cause a lapse in the field’s continuation, giving them both a few seconds to bypass it. Inside the school, the halls were empty, but were pock-marked with pictures of two male students in, shall we say, compromising positions. In the gymnasium, Owlman was there with other students and faculty, who were tied up. Robin and Steel hid in the rafters as Owlman interrogated the students, claiming the students in the pictures were outed as gay by one of them, who took the candid photos and posted them to incite homophobic bullying. When the student who took the pictures finally confessed, Owlman let the others go and was about to execute him when Steel flew down and attacked Owlman. Robin freed the last student, but was attacked by a new Syndicate member… The Talon! The fight escalated until Owlman and Talon pinned down the two heroes with gunfire as they hid behind some overturned tables. Steel’s helm was damaged and fell off, revealing to Cassie that he’s Connor; Steel reattached his helmet as quickly as possible and got back into the fight. Out of ammo, the two Syndicate members resorted to melee combat. Robin fought Talon, but in a rage, switched to fighting Owlman when she saw his true face after Steel broke it off. In the end, Owlman and Talon escaped, and there were casualties of their attack on the school; the Syndicate members took the force field with them. As the authorities patched things up, Batman finally arrived. He berated Steel and Robin for ignoring his orders, in spite of none of the people involved in the incident getting injured or killed. Steel told Batman where to stick it and left. Robin then revealed to Batman that she knows who Owlman truly is… At the mysterious headquarters of the Syndicate, Owlman and Talon convened with Ultraman, with the latter pulling off his mask to reveal himself as Ghassan Tamid, formerly The Red Hood. Ultraman said that their plans were half-way to completion, and only then will they “have need of Connor Kent”. Owlman also pulled off his mask, revealing himself to be Thomas Wayne Jr., Batman’s stepbrother!
Notes:
* Ultraman’s true identity is Dr. Eiji Tsuburaya, an elderly Japanese scientist who gained his powers when he was caught in an “intrinsic field separator”.
* Superwoman’s true identity is Maria Torres, a victim of the Cult of Algol and their experimentation on certain women.
* Jonny Quick is really Jonas Longshadow, a Native-American man who once helped the Flash in an investigation.
* Powerhouse is Damon Stewart, an egotistical genius and former Indigo Lantern.
* Onomatopoeia’s true identity is Joseph Skavoc, an autistic serial killer.
* The sorcerer Wotan is Carl Wotan, a transgendered man born female.
* Ghassan Tamid was resurrected by Owlman, using the Lazarus chemical, after he was killed by The Joker.
* Thomas Jr., formerly Hush, now Owlman, was disowned by his father at 13 after coming out as bisexual, according to Batman’s digging into his deceased stepfather’s past.
