The Titans of Justice Chapter 7 - "Up Against The Wall"
Written by: Power Guy
Co-conspirator: Scotty2Hotty
Editor: Marcus Mebes


Metropolis, USA…….

At the Hall of Justice, a million thoughts were going through Jemstone’s head as Amanda Waller had threatened to take her into custody for the murder of the Toyman.

“I didn’t mean to kill him. It was an accident,” insisted Jemstone as she stood, shaking.

“Oh really?” questioned Waller. “I had a tip that it was intentional… to send a warning-message out to other super-villains.”

“Waller, surely whoever told you this is blowing things our or proportion,” stated Celsius. “We were all there. Jemstone was trying to blast Brainiac, not the Toyman. It was Brainiac who decided to use the Toyman as a human shield.”

“How could you expect me to think about sending a message to other villains?” demanded Jemstone, sputtering in consternation. “It was the heat of battle! I wasn’t thinking of anything other than stopping Brainiac!!”

“So you saw her fire the blast at Brainiac?” demanded Waller, ignoring her defense.

“No,” admitted Celsius. “We walked as the blast hit the Toyman.”

“So, you walked in after the fact?”

“Yes, but Brainiac admitted to us all that he pulled the Toyman in front of him,” argued Celsius.

“And how do I know that you and your little group of Johnny-come-latelies aren’t covering up for your girl here?” growled the woman ominously.

Jemstone just stood there in amazement. She had felt considerable guilt over what had happened to the Toyman but she knew she was not directly responsible. She started shaking uncontrollably. “How dare you accuse me of being so… so… so vicious!” she asserted, clenching her fists. “We’re here to PROTECT people, and you have nothing better to do than stick your nose into dirty cracks and FIND filth? Of course you’ll find filth if you go looking for it! I didn’t do anything wrong!”

“Calm down” assured Junjie Quick, holding her shoulder. “We’ll sort this out.”

“That’s enough!” barked Power Guy. “Jemstone did nothing wrong and I won’t sit here and let you treat here like a criminal. I suggest you and your band of merry little elves pack up and go home before I throw you out.”

“Boys – combat mode!” yelled Waller. The small army from the Department of Metahuman Affairs quickly drew their rifles—but these were not ordinary looking rifles. These were obviously hi-tech Cadmus technology. There was no telling what could come out of them. The army pointed their weapons at the Titans of Justice.

“Stop it!” cried Celsius. “We’re not looking for a fight, but we’re not letting you take Jemstone in without seeing some proof that’s she’s guilty.” He stood protectively in front of his teammate. “This was unintentional, and you know it. Government or not, you cannot treat her like a common criminal.”

“Young man,” snarled the old woman, “Don’t go telling me how to do my job. I’m an employee of the United States Government and if I say she’s coming with us, she’s coming with us. Now hand her over or we’ll take her from you.”

“You witch!” yelled Power Guy. He quickly flew past Waller straight into the army standing behind her. A few of them fired shots at him and hit him dead on. While the beams were powerful enough to have taken down most of the others, Power Guy just shook them off and made his way through the army disarming most of them and destroying half of their guns with his heat vision.

“Now who’s going to do your dirty work you old hag?” smirked Power Guy, panting from the exertion.

“Oh dear, he shouldn’t have done that,” whispered Sargona.

“You really think that I thought my soldiers would stop you?” questioned Waller. “That was just a formality in case you were smart enough to cooperate. I’ve been dealing with your kind for decades and I’m not stupid enough to come without an ace-card.” She quickly pulled out a small square device from her pocket and pressed a button on it. Instantly, the doors on one of the vans that she brought with her opened up and there stood seven individuals that were primed for battle:





The Guardian, Nightshade Thunderstorm(the daughter of Black Lightning and also the former Thunder’s little sister), Shade the Changing Man, Lashina (formerly the Duchess), the Reactron, and… Giganta.

“You wanted to know where I got my info from? Say hello to my girl Giganta here. She filled me in on the whole scoop,” declared Waller triumphantly.

“You would believe a convicted felon over us?” questioned Power Guy.

“I know what I saw!” shouted Giganta. “She killed Toyman to spook the rest of us.”

“I did no such thing!” sputtered Jemstone, crying and shaking visibly. She turned to face Waller. “How DARE you? This is an outrage! An insult!”

“Ridiculous!” yelled Power Guy.

“Excuse me,” sneered Waller, “but all I see here are a bunch of snot-nosed punks playing dress-up in one of the Justice League’s old headquarters. People don’t even know all of your names.”

The Titans realized that Waller had a point. With most of them being relatively new to the hero-scene and the lack of activity for them to attend to, they had not garnered the public’s trust yet as the Justice League, Justice Society, and the Titans had done years ago.

“Look Ms. Waller,” said Celsius. “I understand that we don’t have the reputation of the JLA quite yet but I assure you, Jemstone did not intentionally murder the Toyman.”

“We’ll let the courts decide that,” barked Waller. “Now had her over or my Squad takes you down and we take you all in for abetting a criminal.”

Power Guy glanced at the new Task Force X and said, “Funny, you don’t seem to mind when criminals aid you. Hey Giganta – I’m not sure what you told Ms. Waller here but I promise you, the truth will come out and you’ll pay for this.”

“Bring it on Power Puff,” snickered Reactron. “Your cousin and Celsius’ mother barely stood a chance against me twenty-some years ago. I’ve had time to hone my abilities and I’d love to personally put you in a body-bag.”

“Quiet Reactron!” yelled Guardian. From his posture and tone, they could tell he was the apparent leader of Task Force X. “Power Guy, we’re not here to fight but as Ms. Waller said, we need to take Jemstone into custody so she can be put on trial. If she surrenders to us now, there won’t be any harm done to her.”

Junjie Quick raced up to Nightshade and Shade. “What are you two doing helping out Ms. Waller? I thought you both turned your backs on her years ago.”

Shade answered “My home dimension was destroyed in a great battle. Amanda has offered me a renewed purpose.”

“What about you Nightshade?” asked Junjie.

“It’s really none of your business. I don’t even know you!” she replied curtly.

Celsius turned to face Waller and sighed. “We need a few minutes to discuss this.”

“You’ve got ten minutes – no more!”

The Titans of Justice went back into the Hall. Glumly, they sat at their meeting table, all looking nervous and unsure of what to do.

Jemstone started to cry. “How can this be happening to me? I didn’t mean to kill him!”

Junjie Quick was the next to speak. “This is a very unfortunate situation. Right now it’s Jemstone’s word against Giganta’s plus I’m sure the other four Legion of Doom members that were imprisoned will side with her. Giganta is obviously trying to pay us back for ruining the Legion’s plan.”

“This is the thanks we get for trying to HELP people?” demanded Celsius, shaking his head incredulously. “Is this country’s legal system on the side of wrong? I thought JUSTICE was the force of right!”

“Maybe I should have opened the sky-light after I turned her ankle-bracelets into balloons,” smirked Sargona.

“Now’s not the time for jokes Sargona,” replied Celsius. “We need to make a decision quickly and it’s only the five of us here to decide. Green Lantern is off on a mission in space. Nightvision and Strato Hawk are on a case in St. Roch. And Wonder Man is investigating a murder in Gateway City with...”

“Who was killed?” questioned Power Guy.

“Barbara Minerva… The Cheetah,” answered Celsius. “We’ll discuss that later. Right now we have to figure out what to do. I don’t want to let Giganta get away with this… yet I don’t want to risk a fight with the government especially so quickly after our team has formed.” He shook his head and clenched his eyes shut. “Messing with the government, with this Waller woman in particular, is like opening a can of worms. She’ll be on our backs for the rest of our lives.”

“She’s like a wart that just won’t go away,” commented Quick.

“Tell Power Guy that...” interjected Sargona.

“Sargona – that’s enough!” said Celsius. “The tension in this room is high enough without you making it worse.”

“I’m sorry Cel and PG,” huffed Sargona. “It’s just that this whole situation sucks. Poor Jemstone over here is being made out to be criminal when in fact, what she did was an accident. Brainiac killed the Toyman with Jemstone’s blast just as much as if he’d stabbed him with the pin on my brooch!”

“True” agreed Junjie Quick “But we’re the only ones who know that and as far as Ms. Waller sees, we’re just covering for her.”

“Guys,” said Jemstone as she stood up, wiping the tears from her eyes. “I’m going to turn myself in. I don’t want the rest of you to be caught in the middle of this. Please don’t argue or say a word. Just walk me out.”

The rest of the heroes looked with astonishment, all very impressed with Jemstone’s maturity and selflessness, but all equally aghast at the hypocrisy and immorality of Waller’s interference.

A few minutes later, the five heroes exited the Hall of Justice.

“You worms are early. I was hoping we’d have to come and get you,” snickered Lashina.

“Well, what have you decided?” demanded Waller.

“I’m turning myself in,” answered Jemstone. “It’s the right thing to do, and I won’t give you the satisfaction of hurting my friends over your stupid need to feel powerful and important.”

“Good. Boys – secure her!” ordered Waller.

A couple of Waller’s soldiers walked up to Jemstone, carrying with them metahuman restraints much like high-tech handcuffs. One of them looked at Jemstone and said, “Ma’am?” hinting to her to put her hands inside the cuffs.

“This isn’t over Waller,” threatened Celsius. “She’s innocent and we’re going to prove it.

“Well see about that,” countered Waller smugly. “Now, let’s discuss you being short-handed.”

“The others are off on various missions,” said Celsius. “Not that it’s any of your business. We don’t need your help.”

“I’m not talking about Green Lantern and the others,” replied Waller. “With Jemstone in custody, you’re running one short and I’m going to help you fill your void.”

The heroes looked on in shock and confusion wondering what Amanda Waller had up her sleeve.

“Why you… you…” sputtered Sargona, the only one able to find her voice. “Celsius told you we don’t need YOUR help! Are you deaf as well as conceited?”

“Thunderstorm. Come here,” ordered Amanda. “Boys and girls, this is Thunderstorm. You may have heard of her father, Black Lightning. She’s an impeccable agent. Girl’s tough as nails. You won’t even know your friend is missing once you see her in action.”

“No way Waller!” yelled Celsius. “You can keep your watch-dog. We’ll start our own membership drive IF and when we need new members.”

“What,” continued Quick, almost laughing in his anger. “You want to plant a spy in our group?”

“This isn’t a request. It’s an order!” countered Waller. “After the incident with Jemstone, I think you children need someone keeping an eye on you so that you don’t get reckless and take any more lives. Now, you either accept Thunderstorm on to your team or we shut you down.”

“You manipulative b_tch.” mumbled Sargona.

“What was that girl? You got something you want to say to me?” demanded the older woman with a glare almost as harsh as Medusa’s.

“Nothing you haven’t heard before, I’m sure,” responded Sargona.

“Look, I don’t care if you kids don’t like my orders. This is the way it’s going to be.” Waller turned with a huff and pointed toward the van, directing her soldiers to load Jemstone into it.

“Fine,” replied Celsius, hissing through his teeth. “We’ll take your watchdog. We have nothing to hide.”

Power Guy quickly pulled Celsius aside and asked “Are you kidding? This girl is going to be breathing down our neck and analyzing our every move. She’ll have that cow on us the instant one of us even looks at her wrong.”

“But maybe if she gets to know us, it will boost our credibility with Waller,” countered Celsius, ever the diplomat. “Plus, while Black Lightning served the government for a while, he was also a prominent member of the JLA. There has to be some decency in this girl.” He looked at the young woman who was glaring back at them through narrowed eyes. “I have to believe that.”

Celsius and Power Guy broke up their mini-meeting and Celsius approached Amanda. “To reiterate, Thunderstorm is welcome to join our team. Keep us posted on the details of Jemstone’s trial. You TRY to have a good day Ms. Waller.”

“Oh, I will,” laughed Waller, waddling away. “You better believe I will.”

Power Guy had a disgruntled look on his face. He clenched his fists. In frustration, he flew upward into the upper atmosphere until he was out of sight.

Junjie Quick and Sargona made their way over to the handcuffed Jemstone as she was being loaded into the van. Sargona put her hands on Jemstone’s shoulders and said “Girl, this is going to work out. Stay strong. We’re all going to support you through this.”

“I know,” responded Jemstone, whispering. “Thanks for not fighting me on this.”

The three remaining Titans of Justice and Thunderstorm watched as Amanda Waller and her team took Jemstone away. Once Amanda’s group was out of sight, the Titans and Thunderstorm proceeded into the Hall of Justice.

“Watchdog?” demanded Thunderstorm angrily, to no one in particular.

Once inside, Sargona fell into her chair. “What a mess. Waller’s a sick, twisted harpy.”

“Watch your tongue girl!” said Thunderstorm angrily. “Ms. Waller has spent many of her years keeping the metahuman population in check.”

“More like keeping them under her thumb,” retorted Sargona. “Like she has with YOU, for instance, Miss Watchdog.”

“Call me that one more time…” growled Thunderstorm. “And I’ll…”

“Ladies – knock it off!” ordered Celsius. “Thunderstorm, if you’re going to be on this team, we’re going to have to give you security clearance for the Hall and a signal device.” He led the new-comer down the Hall to the room where the extra signal devices were kept.

Just then, Power Guy walked in the room. “Sorry guys, I needed to blow off some steam.”

“No problem PG,” said Junjie Quick. “None of us like what happened today but I think Jemstone made the right decision. Why don’t we all go into the gym and work out some aggression?”

“Sounds good to me,” agreed Power Guy, pulling off his top and throwing it angrily at Thunderstorm. The sweaty garment slapped against her face, and she threw it on the floor in disgust.

“Sorry guys, my soap’s on,” said Sargona. “I’ll be in the lounge.” She glared angrily at Thunderstorm, but sheathed her claws. “Nice to meet you, Thunderdog.”

• • •

Once Celsius had completed programming Thunderstorm’s security clearance, he turned to the new member. “Well, you should be all set,” he affirmed.

“Great,” said Thunderstorm, without much enthusiasm. She sarcastically added, “I’m eager to see the team in action.”

“You mean that you’re eager to start cataloguing our activities for your boss,” said Sargona, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Thunderstorm rolled her eyes and was about to say something but Celsius interrupted their catfight before it could start. “So, Thunderstorm, what exactly can you do? Do you have powers similar to Thunder’s or to your father?”

“I can produce and control electricity like my dad,” answered Thunderstorm, snapping her fingers in Sargona’s direction. The spark she generated leapt into the air and landed on Sargona’s cape, singing a hole into it.

Smirking, Sargona waved her hand over the hole and the cloth appeared whole again. “Nothing I can’t handle,” she averred, sticking up her nose at her.

Just then, the Trouble Alert went off. Celsius rushed over and turned on the monitor screen. The Hall of Justice’s computers had picked up a Special Report on national news. On the screen stood Vicki Vale, top news reporter for one of New York’s largest television stations, spoke. “This is Vicki Vale reporting live from Khandaq. With Black Adam, Isis, and Osirus still missing, the villainous group known as The Extremists have taken advantage of the lack of guardianship of the country and have secured three of its nuclear warheads. In a statement issued by them less than thirty minutes ago, the villains have demanded dominion over the earth or the missiles will be fired at North America, Europe, and Asia. The villains indicate that they will give the United Nations twelve hours to make their decision.”

“Oh dear!” exclaimed Sargona.

“Junjie – go ready the Javelin for transport!” ordered Celsius. “We’re going to Khandaq.”

“Got it!” replied the already-vanished voice of Junjie Quick.

“Shoot, they just had to do this when we’re short-staffed,” grumbled Celsius as he recalled that four of his teammates were all on other missions. “I’m going to call up Icemanling and Vibe. We need all of help we can get.”

A few minutes later, Celsius hung up the phone and turned to his teammates. “Power Guy and Sargona, follow me to the Javelin. I’ve asked Icemanling to guard Europe and Vibe is going watch over America in case the Extremists launch the missiles.”

“They can protect an entire nation from a nuclear missile?” laughed Thunderstorm in derision. “Y’all have GOT to be kidding.”

“Shut up,” grunted Sargona.

“What about Asia?” asked Power Guy.

“I haven’t quite got that far yet… I’ll think of something.” assured Celsius.

“And what about me?” asked Thunderstorm, raising an eyebrow. She folder her arms across her chest and stared at the team’s leader.

“You’re on monitor duty,” replied Celsius. “We haven’t had time to test your abilities. You would be a liability out in the field right now.” He blinked, and added, “And it will allow you to report to Waller everything you’ve witnessed. And in case she needs to know, I wear boxer-briefs.”

“Lace panties,” added Sargona, picking up on the sarcasm.

“Commando,” added Power Guy, adding his two cents.

“Fine. I won’t argue with you this time… but this better not be a reoccurring thing or Ms. Waller will get a phone call from me.” Thunderstorm wrinkled her nose and sat down on a nearby chair. “Whatever.”

The three heroes raced to the Javelin to join Junjie Quick.

“Very smooth back there telling Thunderdog to house-sit,” commented Sargona with a smirk on her face.

“You should stop calling her that,” muttered Celsius, but not with much authority.

The heroes boarded the Javelin and headed for Khandaq.