new spin on Justice League

[SSgt Baloo]

Yet s'more Justice League: Rethunk!

The American Justice Squad
Founding members


Green Lantern of Earth

The Green Lanterns of this particular universe have a variety of powers that vary from one to the next according to disposition and native understanding of the nature of the power source. All green lanterns can fly in space, travelling from planet to planet, however the Green Lantern of Earth is the most powerful Green Lantern in the history of the corps. While he does not have a conscious understanding of the lantern he carries (disguised as a belt buckle) his subconscious mind seems to have an affinity for the eldritch energy provided by the ring. As a result, he is empowered with a comprehensive suite of powers that include super strength, super endurance, super durability, the ability to survive in extreme environments without permanent harm, etc. If someone else didn't already use the name, he might have called himself "Superman".

Batwoman

Barbara Wayne was eight years old when a man tried to lure herself and a friend into his car. Barbara ran away, but her friend didn't. She was the last one to see her. Barbara was overwhelmed with survivor's guilt. With the help of counselling, she was able to recover, but she vowed to become a force against evil when she grew up. It's now twenty-five years later, and Barbara Wayne is "just another air-headed heiress" doing the club circuit, or at least that's what the public believes. In reality she has become the dark avenger of the night: The Batwoman. Using a combination of intelligence, skills, physical prowess, and equipment, Batwoman wages a never-ending battle against the forces of evil.

Biff and Barf: Man's best friend and his pet.

Biff Rhawh'ch-h was a scientist and explorer from a distant Galaxy. His experimental spaceship's hyperwarp drive was operating perfectly when it struck an umapped section of tanglespace, throwing him wildly off course. When he finally managed to drop the vessel back into N-space, he discovered he was so far from home that no navigational beacons could be detected. He set a course for the nearest Galaxy and, using the ship's probability predictors, located the planet most likely to be similar to home in this galaxy. Upon arrival, he discovered, much to his amusement, that the primary sapient species closely resembled the creatures his kind kept for pets. He was less amused to discover that the creatures kept by these "humans" as pets closely resembled his species! Once he landed, he found himself the object of much interest from the humans, who captured his pet Barf and incarcerated it, all the while ignoring the "dog" in their midst. Only Green Lantern and the Batwoman seemed to be able to understand his early attempts at speech. When they realized the "captured alien pilot" was in reality a household pet, and the canine struggling to speak with them was the real pilot, they decided to help him retrieve his pet and recover his craft. Soon after he got Barf back, Biff left Earth to explore this Galaxy.

Months later, he returned to Earth with a warning of impending invasion. Contacting Green Lantern and Batwoman, they gathered Earth's mightiest heroes to defend their planet. Once the battle was won, Biff realized he was kind of fond of these humans, and that he and Barf might as well make their temporary home on this planet as any other -- at least until Biff can find a way to plot a course home.

Biff and Barf are not so much master and slave as owner and pet. Biff is a genius inventor of supra-human ability, having designed and built (with Barf's assistance) his own spacecraft, which some humans have dubbed "the C-57d" due to its resemblance to a fictional craft from some human entertainment or another. Biff is also something of a mentalist, though he's still learning how to affect and connect with human minds. Barf is a second set of eyes and ears for Biff, who maintains a low-level telepathic link with him. Barf seems human, but only possesses animal intelligence. Barfkind were bred to serve Biffkind since they have superior manual dexterity and eyesight (compared to biffkind) plus they are taller and can see over obstructions better.

Mhar-Vann Mhar-Tschian
Pronounced "Marvin Martian"

Earth seemed like a ripe fruit ready to be plucked by the Mhar-Tschian empire, a bluegreen prize ready for assimilation. The people of the planet had only progressed to atomic weaponry, projectile weapons, and primitive rocketry and should have been push-overs. They weren't.

When the order to retreat came, Mhar-Vann's teleporter belt malfunctioned, leaving him stranded on this primitive planet. As a prisoner of war, he learned that although technologically and socially primitive, the Earthlings were a kind and gentle people. When the war was over, Mhar-Vann's people refused to acknowledge that any one of them could have possibly been captured. When the humans offered to repatriate Mhar-Vann, they were told that there must be some sort of mistake as all of the invading forces had been accounted for.

Mhar-Vann was stranded for good. Since he was to remain on Earth, he asked to become a member of the "Earth Defense Force" that had so easily halted the invasion. When told that there was no such group, that an ad-hoc coalition of superbeings had come together spontaneously to help defend Earth, he insisted that he be taken to their leader (which to his dismay seemed to amuse them almost as much as his name had when he had been captured). He explained that it might be a good idea to find these superbeings and form a permanent organization to help defend the planet. Mhar-Vann realized that his new home might be vulnerable to further incursions and he would rather be ready to defend his new home than not. With the assistance of Biff and Barf, Mhar-Vann managed to pull together the core team of the American Justice Squad.

More to come!

[SSgt Baloo]

Yet s'more Justice League: Rethunk!

The American Justice Squad
Other members

Superman

The Greek gods awoke one morning to find that, during their drunken debauch, they had lost track of several millennia. That Bacchus really knew how to throw one! Upon viewing the World of Men from their pocket-dimension of Olympus, they discovered that mankind had largely forgotten them. Not only that, but many humans had luxuries and conveniences that made all the gods wonder if they had become obsolete?

Finally, one god spoke: "Well, I've been right all along! the People have been pursuing knowledge and now they rival us. You all laughed at old Hephaestus when he started building forges and making artifices. Now look at man! They rival all the gods but one: Me!"

Zeus spoke: "Have a care, Hephaestus! You are still the weakest of the gods. I'd hurl a thunderbolt at you but right now I don't think My poor head can take it!"

Ares: "Have you seen their weapons? They shoot thunderbolts tipped with little suns to destroy their enemies! I think Hephaestus is right, at least so far as might is concerned. Any one of us could crush one of these people like a grape but then they might send their thunderbolts against us, and then we'd share the fate of the titans!"

Athena: "I have noticed that they have many champions who right wrongs and mete justice. I propose we send an emmissary among them to let them know we still live and crave their attention."

Zeus: "And I suppose you would suggest yourself for the task? Daughter, If I have learned anything I have learned not to trust an Olympian any farther than I can hurl a thunderbolt!"

Hephaestus: "Might I make a suggestion?"

The other gods remained silent. As much as they teased lame Hephaestus they really did like him, even if he was an old stick-in-the-mud.

"I propose to make an artificial man in my forge who we can send in our stead."

"So he would be your agent?" interjected Hera.

"Hear me out. Each of us could grant this homunculus a portion of our power. Athena her wisdom, Heracles his strength, Hermes' fleetness, Apollo's fierce heat, and so forth."

The gods were boggled by the prospect. Finally Zeus spoke. "All right, we'll do it only under the following condition: we'll get the fates to measure the abilities we give this new being so that no one of us is over-represented. The People will have an avatar of the Olympians once more. Hephaestus? Get on it right now. Meanwhile, has anyone seen Chiron? I need something to settle My stomach."

Shortly thereafter, a lone stranger appeared out of nowhere. Claiming to represent the gods of the ancient Greek Pantheon, this Superman aids humanity and spreads the news that Olympus still lives.

Marathon

Russel "Rusty" Stover was a genetic engineer for a large biotechnology company. He had been assigned the task of designing hypothetical "designer genes" to enhance human performance, "purely for the scientific value". Happy to be given an opportunity to show his skills on such a difficult task, Rusty quickly came up with formulae which would enhance the speed at which nerve impulses could travel, the power and speed of muscle cells, and the efficiency of the metabolism, and the ability to use oxygen and process fatigue poisons.

Less than a month after he'd been given the assignment, he presented his results to his supervisor, and was surprised to find himself being ordered to turn over his notes and any samples he may have made. The government had gotten wind of his project and it had been classified out of his hands. At least that's what he had been told. In fact, his superior's superior had ordered these formulae as a "side Job" from Intercrime.

Shortly thereafter Rusty was fired for wasting corporate time and money on his "pet project". His former supervisors told a tale of a man who ignored their commands to produce a more nutritious variety of potato in order to pursue his own "crackpot" theories. Rusty knew now that he had been set up. Working at home, he was able to reconstitute his formulae and was preparing to take these new samples to the head of the corporation to insist his former supervisor be fired when his house exploded.

Two mysterious men watched from more than a mile away. "Oh, too bad! It looks like the perfessor had a gas leak!"

"Yeah, maybe he shood'na have lighted a match, huh?"

The two men laughed, got into their car and drove away.

The explosion shattered the containers of formula and made a fine aerosol mist of them, propelling the mist right into Rusty's skin. Time literally froze. At that moment, the trauma of the explosion, the infusion of chemicals, and possibly some other unaccounted-for effect combined to make Rusty Stover stronger, more durable and faster -- much faster, than almost anyone alive. The shockwave had less of an effect on Rusty, with his perception sped up so much. The debris he could not dodge he gently nudged out of his way as he raced the flame front out of his house. When he stopped running, Rusty realized he was in Overton, nearly 300 miles distant from his home. For days of subjective time, Rusty struggled to slow down enough to interact with "realtime", stopping anywhere he could to eat or drink enough to keep away starvation and dehydration. Finally, after seeming months of living in "overtime" as he dubbed it, Rusty was finally able to slow down to normal. Realizing someone had tried to kill him (and probably thought they succeeded) Rusty went underground to discover who had ordered the blast which had "killed" him and bring him (or them) to justice, appearing in public only as "Marathon, the Fastest Man Alive!"

Green Canary

When one of the primitive planets on the border of the Avian Empire was invaded, the Avians were caught off guard. When the primitive natives threw back the assault unaided, the Imperial Defense force was astonished. At their recommendation, the Empress ordered one of the Imperial Diplomat-Police to establish a station on this border world to study the natives and prepare them for eventual induction into the empire as an allied planet. She would, as necessary, assist these primitives against further incursions, and learn of their technology and culture.

Agent Grhein'k Nairrhee is one of the best Agents of the Avian Empire's Police-Diplomacy corps. Like all of her kind, she has a knack for languages, can fly, and carries various devices concealed under her feathers which provide life support, defense (force field), and an offense that consists primarily of modulating her amplified voice to a precise frequency and focussing it in a narrow beam. Several effects are possible, ranging from a sonic stun to an armor-piercing shriek. Green Canary has a soothing, melodious voice and can't understand why humans persist in pronouncing her name wrong.

Wonder Man

Brock Kentman was a frail, sickly child who grew into a frail, sickly teenager. One day in 1937, he was introduced to Joseph L. Greenstein. Taking pity on the boy, Joseph shared his secret regimen of diet and exercise that had rendered him such a remarkable specimin of physical perfection. Brock immediately began training according to Greenstein's regimen, and over the course of several months became as hale and healthy as anyone who had walked the planet. Furthermore, he continued gaining strength. First he could lift an anvil. Next he could lift one end of a car by its bumper. Then he could lift the car.

One day Brock walked into a bank during a stickup. One of the gangsters turned and shot him in the head. To Brock's amazement, the flattened bullet bounced off without leaving a mark. He quickly subdued the gangsters, tying them up with their own guns, then left before anyone could get a good look at him. At eighteen he was already earning his own living as a mechanic but since the bank robberry, he has assumed the identity of Wonder Man, defender of the Meek!

Now in his late eighties, Wonder Man is still going strong. He may be gray and balding but he is still one of the most powerful men alive, and with so many years of experience, one of the wisest.

[bubba smith]

marathon's an interesting take on the FLASH