"J-Hell-A" Part Two
Metropolis Superman has just experienced Hell. He's been forced to let his closest friends die. Right now, Perry White is in a stalled elevator clutching his heart while in unbearable pain. Jimmy Olsen is at the bottom of the East River, with only a minute of air left. And Lois Lane only has two minutes before a train runs her over. And the Man of Steel is in very close proximity to pure kryptonite, straight from the bowels of planet Krypton itself. But for Superman, hell is just beginning. The JLA Watchtower "Perhaps you're wondering what I can do with such a toy," the goateed man said. "Perhaps I can arrange it so a statue of an Amazon child is smashed before it can be brought to life." "We must go before he erases the two of you from existence," Metron said as he prepared to take Aquaman and the Flash with him. "We've got to get that rock away from him!" Flash said as he charged forward. "Or perhaps I can fix it so a young Wally West is murdered the morning before he receives his powers," the man said as the rock changed shape again. This time, Flash just disappeared in a burst on light. Before he could do anything, Metron's Mobius Chair disappeared in a surge of power, taking Aquaman with him. "That's right, run. But you're far too late to stop me," the man said as he vanished. Batman woke up and realized he was hanging upside down in a metal restraint. From what he could see, J'onn was trapped in a cage made of fire, and Green Lantern was in a fetal position in a glass case. Superman was on the opposite side of Batman, chained to the wall, weakened from the kryptonite attached to his feet.. "J'onn?" Batman asked. "What the hell's going on?" "You just said it," J'onn said. "Hell is what is happening." "Where are we?" Batman asked. "I am not sure. This fire robs me of my powers, but I still retain a small bit of telepathy. Our host shall return at any moment, and I shall try to learn why we are here," J'onn replied. "What happened to Lantern?" Batman asked. "From what I could pull from his mind, something incredibly intense. His mind is little more than jello now," J'onn said. "I'm trying to help him recover, but he is resisting..." "Who the hell was that?" Aquaman asked. "And where are Wonder Woman and the Flash?" "Wonder Woman and the Flash are dead," Metron said, "and their killer was Asmodel." "Asmodel?" Aquaman replied in disbelief. "He's supposed to be in Hell." "He was," Metron said, "but Neron offered him a deal: his freedom in exchange for tracking down the Whirlogog. Since Asmodel wasn't confined to an earthly plain, he could easily travel to limbo and retrieve the stone, where it was placed so no soul could use its power for good or evil." "And now he's using it for his vengeance against the Justice League," Aquaman finished. "How do we stop him?" "We must wait," Metron said. "Our moment will arrive, the moment where Asmodel will be vulnerable to our attack. But for now we must remain here, where you are safe from the stone's reach." "I hide from no one," Aquaman angrily said as he held out his hook. "I shall face Asmodel head on and make him pay for his crimes." "You saw how easily he took your friends," Metron said. "You must wait for the proper moment." The goateed man entered and J'onn tried to probe his mind. "You," J'onn said. "I see the fire hasn't totally robbed you of your abilities," Asmodel said, smiling. "Asmodel," J'onn said. "Why have you brought us here? Why have you done this to us?" "I want you to experience the hell that you caused me," Asmodel said. "I want you to experience what it means to lose those you care about the most." Asmodel held out the Whirlogog. "And using this, I can make you experience hell a thousand times over." Asmodel looked to Green Lantern, still unconscious in the glass case. "For instance, I can make your Green Lantern experience the torture Effigy put him through in his own mind. Again. And again. And again. For all eternity." Asmodel looked to Batman. "I understand you weren't there when the Joker killed your second apprentice. Let's fix that, shall we?" The rock glowed as Batman found himself in that bunker where Jason Todd was murdered. He saw the Joker swing the crowbar again and again until Jason stopped moving. "There are thousands of ways to torture a Martian. Once I've decided how, I'll break you," Asmodel said. "But for now I must prepare. A special guest will be arriving, and I must see to his comfort." Asmodel has seen to it that I can't interfere with Batman or Green Lantern's torture, J'onn thought, but he didn't think to block my mind from Superman's. Metropolis The elevator doors were opened and Perry White was found, dead from a heart attack. Miles away, a shocked crowd saw the remains of Lois Lane on the train tracks. At the river, Jimmy Olsen's body has floated to the surface, ten minutes too late. New York Even Sentinel and Warrior couldn't stand up to Effigy's new abilities as they lay broken in the rubble of the destroyed apartment building. Something floated gently towards the Earth and landed a few feet away from Sentinel's body. It was Kyle's facemask, burnt and shredded. The Batcave Nightwing entered the Batcave and saw Alfred's body and the bloody Catwoman costume. But it was Spoiler's body that made Nightwing fall to his knees and cry. Meanwhile, earthquakes were shaking the globe. Volcanoes were erupting. Tidal waves were crashing into the coast. Hell was breaking loose. And Earth's heroes were all but powerless to stop the disaster. Effigy was lighting the city ablaze; those who were able to get away looked on in horror as their city was destroyed. "This is my kind of party!" the Joker shouted as he drove a military tank down the streets of Gotham. The people were running as the earthquakes intensified. The Joker took aim and caused more property damage, laughing the entire time. The cries were faint. Superman could hear them. People all over the world were crying out. "Superman, where are you?" Superman could barely hear them above the pain of the kryptonite. "Clark!" J'onn's voice boomed. "You are our last hope! I can help you break free! Listen to my voice, for what I am about to tell you is very important..." Asmodel, still in his flesh suit, was standing outside, letting the Whirlogog's rampage flood the globe. He was unleashing hell. Not for himself, but for the rock's intended master. "That should do for now," Asmodel said. "For now I must see to the torture of the rest of the Justice League." "You have not won yet." J'onn said. "Not so long as the Justice League lives." "I'll just have to make sure you don't, then won't I?" Asmodel said as the flame cage closed in around J'onn. "That's...enough." Superman said. "Oh, really?" Asmodel asked. "And what are you going to do? You're about as powerful as Tom Green right now." "You've made two mistakes," Superman said. "First, You didn't kill me and second...you're still wearing a flesh suit." Before he could react, Superman's heat vision blasted Asmodel clean through the wall, causing the Whirlogog to hit the ground and roll away. Superman used all his strength to pull the chains from the wall and free himself. Asmodel stood up and looked through the hole in the wall to a very pissed off Superman walking towards him, his heat vision barely contained. "It ends here, Asmodel," Superman said. "This time, you die." To Be Concluded... Previous Issue | Next Issue |
