Legion World Forums LEGION OUTPOST Bits o' Legionnaire Business "Myriad" -- a fanfic by HWW

He Who Wanders is having some trouble copy text again so I'm posting this for him. It is 11 pages long in Word so I'll break it down into separate posts for convenience. Enjoy.

[Edit Note]

Greg, I tried to keep the feel and flow you created in the story. I broke it up by what I saw as pauses or a change in direction. Hopefully I read you well enough to get it right. If I didn't please let me know.

BTW, great story! And thanks for including Condo.

MYRIAD
A Story of the Preboot Legion of Super-Heroes

By: Greg Gildersleeve
[a.k.a. He Who Wanders]

Myriad and story Copr. 2003 Greg Gildersleeve
All other characters Copr. DC Comics, Inc.

[Note: This story takes place following “The Legionnaire Bride of Starfinger,” Superboy # 200, February 1974]


Invisible Kid’s shift of monitor duty was over. He was now free to spend the evening any way he wished.

“Hey, Lyle,” Matter-Eater Lad called to him from the corridor. Some of us are going to the holoflix to see the new J’onn C’lodd-Dahm holo. Want to join us?”

“No thanks,” Lyle demurred.

“Oh, okay. Another time then.” Tenz was used to such turn-downs from Lyle by now. He knew that the Legion’s ex-leader didn’t mean any slight. It’s just that Lyle Norg was an insular person – all test tubes and labs. The only one more nerdy than Invisible Kid was Brainiac 5, who even now was safely ensconced in his laboratory, trying to figure out some way to isolate the molecular structure of kono juice, or something Tenz found equally inane. Scientists. Why couldn’t they just have a good time like regular folks?

Invisible Kid watched as Matter-Eater Lad and the others – Light Lass, Timber Wolf, and Dream Girl (whose lover, Star Boy, was on a distant mission) – went their way. He then wandered down the corridors of the Legion dorm complex to his own quarters. The Legion had changed much since he had been its leader just a couple of years ago. A new headquarters, new members such as Shadow Lass, Timber Wolf, and even Lyle’s young protege, Chemical King, and dangerous, new enemies such as Tyr. Even older enemies such as the Fatal Five and, most recently, Starfinger, were acting in more ambitious ways. Perhaps the others couldn’t understand why Invisible Kid had started to fell lost – truly invisible – in the Legion he had been part of for so long.

As Legion leader, Lyle Norg had had a purpose, a goal, a sense of respect from the others. A sly smile came to his face as he recalled the time he slugged Ultra Boy for disobeying an order. Jo Nah was one of the Legion’s most powerful members and could easily have mopped the floor of the old Legion Clubhouse with a “second-stringer” like Invisible Kid. But Invisible Kid the leader would not be disobeyed.

He had chosen not to run for reelection, feeling exhausted after one of the most hectic the Legion had ever faced. Little did know that things would only get worse. Now he regretted his decision to step down. He could run for leader again, he supposed, but things had changed. In the most recent election, even the winner, Mon-El, showed doubts about taking on such enormous responsibilities. If Mon, whom Invisible Kid deeply respected for surviving his millenium-long captivity in the Phantom Zone, could feel the pressures of leadership, then what of Invisible Kid?

But since leaving the leadership, Lyle felt unfocussed, purposeless. He had done a lot of good as a Legionnaire. He knew it and was proud of his accomplishments. But, there was a nagging sense deep within him that there was something more, something he was missing. His life as a Legionnaire had been fulfilling ... but what of life outside the Legion? A few years ago, Invisible Kid would never have contemplated such a thing. But now ...

He paused at his quarters’ door. Another night of reading chemistry texts and working on a paper called “Models of Refractive Light Theorems” that he’d been asked to write for the Interstellar Science Institute. But the memory of Tenz’s invitation lingered in his mind. Going to a holoflix didn’t really appeal to him, but what other delights were available in Metropolis? What of life outside the Legion...?

Among the Legionnaires, Invisible Kid wasn’t known for acting on whims. He presented himself as thoughtful, deliberate and serious. Yet it was a whim that led Lyle Norg to create the invisibility serum that gave him his powers in the first place. His Legion membership rested entirely on a desire to sneak out of school during a boring (and criminally unchallenging) science class. It had been a long time since he’d acted on a whim. He was, he decided, long overdue. The chemistry texts could wait.

He stopped in his room just long enough to change clothes. Whatever does one wear for a night on the town? He decided that a nice, beige shirt and dark blue astro-blazer would be best. No sense in being too ostentatious. But, he didn’t want to be totally ... invisible, either. The last step was to remove his trademark headband. It wasn’t as if the simple, brown band was grafted to his head, but he knew some thought it was, so rarely in public was he seen without it. But, tonight, Invisible Kid was taking the night off, headband and all. He brushed his curly, brown hair and kidded himself that he looked dashing.

The Crev Café was already crowded when Lyle arrived. It was still early evening, but he was surprised to see so many people there. It wasn’t that he didn’t like to be around people – in fact, one of things he delighted in pointing out to people, was that, unlike Brainy, Lyle didn’t mind being in a crowd. He didn’t have to interact with others, necessarily. But he liked to observe. It occurred to him that even when he wasn’t literally invisible, he still liked the pretend he was: just observing, not participating. Tonight, he decided, that was going to change.

Yet once inside the sprawling, glittering dance club, Invisible Kid reverted true to form. He wandered around a bit, smiling at the odd stranger. Feeling awkward, he sat at the bar.

“What’ll be?” a two-headed bartender asked.

Lyle looked around for a menu. He had no idea.

“Try a Venusian latte,” one of the heads said. “It’ll boil your insides!”

The prospect didn’t sound appealing, so Lyle ordered a Daxamite Mocha, a beverage he’d heard Mon-El talking about.

“Leaded or unleaded?” the other head asked.

Lyle glared. Lead jokes were not funny to Legionnaires.

Lyle sipped his Daxamite Mocha and went about observing people. Then, amid the gyrating bodies on the dance floor, he noticed someone staring at him. It was a girl with long, brown hair and dark eyes. At first, he thought she was Duo Damsel, the Legionnaire who had recently married and retired. But it wasn’t. This girl was younger and very attractive.

Confidently, she walked up to him.

“Want to dance?” she said.

She didn’t waste time. Lyle liked that.

“I don’t know how,” he said.

“Never learned?”

“I’ve been busy,” he replied. Sure, he thought, if battling the Fatal Five and Dr. Regulus isn’t “busy,” then what is?

She smiled a wide smile, bearing her teeth. For a moment, Lyle thought she might be Venusian carnivore, sizing up her prey before eating him. He dismissed that thought quickly.

“Don’t worry,” she said. “I’ll teach you. Unless you’re afraid to try.”

Lyle smiled to himself. Yep, she didn’t waste time.

“What’s your name?” he finally said.

The girl looked away, mysteriously. “Call me ... Myriad.”

“Myriad?” Lyle repeated, raising an eyebrow. “As in multitudes? Tens of thousands?”

“If need be,” she replied, her smile wide and inviting.

Lyle found himself grinning and wondered if he looked as silly as Matter-Eater Lad did when he was about to partake of something only he could eat. Still, he found that flirting agreed with him. “Well, Tens of Thousands,” he said, as he climbed off the barstool, “show me one of your dances.”

An hour later, Lyle thanked her for the dance and left. Any hopes that something more would happen didn’t materialize. Lyle’s habit of observing people was the culprit. There was something about Myriad that didn’t quite add up. After the dance, they sat down at a table, and Lyle ordered drinks – Tequila Sunbursts, this time, something more daring than Daxamite Mochas. She asked him questions about what he did for a living. He was a scientist, he said, not wanting to draw attention to being a Legionnaire. She wanted to know where he worked, and how far from here it was. He answered as best he could without getting into specifics. But she was cagey when he asked her about herself. And one other thing bothered him.

She never once asked his name.

This was odd, he thought, considering how much else she wanted to know about him. Lyle tried to dismiss his suspicions – being a Legionnaire had taught him to be wary of those who asked too many questions. But the warning signs were too powerful to ignore. Under the light above the table, he looked into her eyes. She had the blackest eyes he had ever seen. They reminded him of black hole. Psychiatry was not one of his specialties, but he had done some reading on the subject; such eyes, certain theorists believed, were the mark of insanity.

There was nothing else about the girl’s demeanor to suggest she was insane, but it was enough for Lyle to be on his guard and lose interest. He made a lame excuse about having to go out of town in the morning (which was true – he was due to leave for a Legion diplomatic mission to the planet Pasnic), and left.

As he passed the alley next to the Crev Café, something caught his eye. It was Myriad.

“How did you – ?” he said. He had only just left her inside the club.

“I know who you are,” she said, forcefully. “You’re Invisible Kid of the Legion.” Lyle wasn’t really surprised that she recognized him – it’s not like Legionnaires wore masks. “The Legion has something I want, and you’re going to help me get it.”

Before Lyle could respond, someone shoved him from behind. He stumbled into the alley and turned – to face another Myriad, accompanied by yet a third.

“A Carggite!” he exclaimed. That’s why she at first reminded him of Duo Damsel. She was from the same world, Cargg, where all natives could replicate two identical bodies at will. Duo Damsel, in fact, had joined the Legion as Triplicate Girl, using each of her three bodies to approach a different Legionnaire, then merging when they reached the clubhouse. Later, one of her three bodies was killed by a Legion enemy. Duo Damsel was a credit to both the Legion and her world. Myriad, obviously, had no intention of being either. “If you expect me to help you, you’re wrong,” he said. His bravado was really intended to stall for time. He sized up all three Myriads – none had any weapons that he could see.

“Oh, you will help us,” one of the Myriads replied. Then all three added, “whether you like it or not,” in a stereo voice that sent chills down his spine.

As the three closed in on him, Lyle turned invisible. As they looked around for some sign of where he was, he would easily walk past them, then notify the nearest sci cop that some Carggite nut was on the loose.

But he never got the chance. Lyle watched in amazement as the three Myriads stretched out their arms, and a fourth Myriad appeared, then a fifth, then a sixth. This was unheard of; Carggites could only split into three bodies. Yet Lyle found himself surrounded by ten identical young women bent on preventing him from leaving.

He had one recourse left – the open sky. He would simply activate his Legion flight ring and take off before the Myriads knew what had happened. But Myriad had anticipated that, too. From a fire escape overhead, an eleventh Myriad leaped into the center of the ring, landing on Lyle’s shoulder. It dazed him just enough that he let out an “Uhh!” Instantly, the Myriads were on top of him, pounding and kicking him. He never stood a chance.

Myriad looked at the bloody and beaten Legionnaire before her. In his unconsciousness, Invisible Kid slowly turned visible again. He was helpless, just as she had been. But no more. She would never be a victim again, and anyone who stood in her way would suffer the same fate as the man before her. She concentrated, and all ten of her replicates merged back into her. Then she bent down to claim her prize: the Legion flight ring.

Legion Headquarters was exceptionally well guarded. That was common knowledge. But Myriad’s underworld contacts had given her some clues of what to expect. They said, for example, that only someone wearing a flight ring could gain entry into the complex. Myriad now had a flight ring, so that problem was solved. Sure enough, when she approached the door of the main entrance and waved the ring in front of the identi-scan, it registered Invisible Kid. The doors opened.

Inside, Myriad split into two bodies. One waited at the entrance while the other walked across the tiled floor toward the inner entrance. The second Myriad walked three feet when she was overcome by gas the spewed forth from the tiles. The first Myriad covered her nose and mouth and replicated again. This time, using her replicated flight ring, the third Myriad flew over the tiles – only to be caught in a metal clamp that emerged from a hidden location in the ceiling.

By now, silent alarms had no doubt alerted the Legionnaires to her presence. She replicated into thirty Myriads; surely, one of them would reach the inner entrance. Twenty of them immediately were caught by the knockout gas, metal clamps, plasti-nets and other security devices. The first to reach the door on the other side grabbed it and received an electric shock. This was going to be harder than Myriad thought.

Next to the inner door, she noticed a display with various symbols, some Interlac, some other languages – a combination keypad, she realized. She replicated several more times, and her new replicates, who, based on her observations, already knew which tiles to step on, made it to the keypad and began punching random symbols. Most were knocked out by electric shocks. But, finally, one succeeded.

The inner door opened. Myriad was inside Legion Headquarters.

Shadow Lass was on monitor duty when the alarm sounded. The incredible was happening – Legion headquarters was being invaded. Worse, it was difficult to tell who was invading. The hidden monitors in the foyer revealed that a shadowy figure had just walked through the front door. Then another figure seemed to appear out of nowhere. When the second figure was overcome by knockout gas, more figures appeared – until the foyer was so full of gas, it was difficult to see what was happening. The Legion’s security devices weren’t supposed to work this way. Most intruders would be nailed instantly.

She alerted all available Legionnaires, but it frustrated her that she couldn’t give them specifics on what to expect. The irony that Shadow Lass, mistress of shadows, was not able to penetrate the shadowy gas in the foyer was not lost on her.

Colossal Boy reached the foyer just as the door was opening. He prepared to expect the worst – the Fatal Five? the LSV? Universo? Would any of them be dumb enough to just waltz through the front door? Instead, he found himself face to face with – a girl.

“Hey you!” he shouted. “You shouldn’t be here” – and immediately chided himself for his assumption that she had just wandered in like a lost tourist. This young woman, whoever she was, had just defeated the Legion’s main door security. There had to be more to her than met the eye.

Much more, Colossal Boy learned instantly, when the girl replicated into twenty selves. Colossal Boy grew to a height of 18 feet, the largest he could grow within the confines of the hallway – but more than enough to deal with most menaces. But it wasn’t enough this time. He was overcome by an army of young women who seemed to grow stronger each time they replicated. His last thought was that he hoped no one would tell Timber Wolf that he got beaten by a girl.

From his laboratory deep within the complex, Brainiac 5 watched all that transpired on series of monitors. Colossal Boy had fallen. In an adjacent corridor, Chemical King and Princess Projectra were being overrun. In the main meeting hall, Element Lad was causing several of the invaders to fall through the floor, which he had turned into nitrogen, but more appeared seemingly out of nowhere. Karate Kid was defending the armory against a horde of invaders; he was holding his own, but for how long? Nearby, Cosmic Boy’s magnetism had proven futile against a sea of opponents with no obvious metal trappings.

All this because of one girl.

The DNA analyzers in the security database had already revealed much of what Brainiac 5 needed to know. The invader was Carggite. And yes, she was replicating herself to an unimaginable degree. He accessed recent news scans from her home world to learn her name. He had deduced what she was after – an object located presently in this very lab – an object of unimaginable power. It was imperative that Myriad be stopped. He reached over to a console and pressed a signal device.

An instant later, Superboy emerged through the time barrier from the 20th century. The “teen of steel” – one day destined to become the greatest hero earth would ever know – found he wasn’t alone. Mon-El and Ultra Boy were also flying toward Legion Headquarters.

“What’s going on?” Superboy said. “It must be something serious for the three of us to be summoned together.”

Mon-El nodded, grimly. They were the three most powerful, active Legionnaires. If all three of them were needed, then something drastic was happening. Mon-El turned to Ultra Boy. “Jo?”

Ultra Boy, who had the same powers as the other two but could use only one at a time, switched from flight to penetra-vision. His flight ring would keep him aloft while he scanned inside the inertron walls of the HQ -- an ability not shared by Superboy or Mon’s x-ray vision. After a moment, Ultra Boy exclaimed, “Sizzling suns! You won’t believe this. We’ve been invaded by an army of ... girls!”

“Girls?” Superboy said.

“Yes, and they ... wait! There’s more of them than there were a second ago. They seem to be replicating at will.”

“Carggites?” Superboy said.

“Sounds like it,” Mon-El replied. “What are they doing?”

Ultra Boy scanned deeper. “They’ve overrun much of the HQ, but they seem to be heading in the same general direction,” he said. Ultra Boy turned off his penetra-vision and faced the other two, his face pale. “Brainy’s lab!”

“What do you suppose they’re looking for?” Superboy said.

“Who knows?” Mon said. “Brainy was studying the Miracle Machine and Tharok’s computer half-brain, among other things. Whatever they’re after, we’ve got to stop them.”

“Shall we go in from different areas, and try to contain them?” Superboy said.

“No,” Mon replied. “We know where they’re going. Let’s cut them off at the source.”

An instant later, flying at super-speed, the three were inside Legion HQ, blocking the main path to the laboratory.

But even they were not enough. Within seconds, they were overrun by Myriads, who managed to defy even their super-strength and invulnerability.

Superboy breathed deep and exhaled, blowing dozens of Myriads down the hallway. Three dozen more appeared in their place.

Mon-El flew circles around several, cutting off their oxygen and forcing them to pass out. But more jumped him and held on as he zig-zagged through the winding corridors.

Ultra Boy switched from super-speed to flash vision to invulnerability as fast as he could. But he was swamped by legions of young women. Any other time, he might have enjoyed this (though he would never admit it to Phantom Girl), but this was taxing even his ultra powers.

“They seem to be getting stronger,” he shouted, “the more they multiply.”

“Yes, and the more of them there are, the less rational they seem,” Superboy replied, as he encircled several Myriads in his super-stretchable cape. “Look at their eyes!”

But Jo didn’t have time to look in their eyes. It was all he could do to keep pace with the army of young women. Switching powers back and forth was exhausting. If he kept this up, he would make a mistake – switch to super-strength when he needed super-speed, perhaps -- and they would have him. Finally, he decided on a plan: He would switch to invulnerability and let the young women wear themselves out trying to subdue him. When they were exhausted, he would be refreshed and continue the fight. Ultra Boy couldn’t resist smirking at his own cleverness. Even Brainy would have to admit that it was quit a plan.

Instead, it turned out to be fateful mistake. Jo found himself pushed down into a ball-shaped position, as the Myriads huddled over him like players in a moopsball tournament. There must have been hundreds on top of him, he thought. He couldn’t move, not without switching back to super-strength. But if he did, they would crush him instantly. Like it or not, Ultra Boy was out of this fight.

Superboy and Mon-El were holding their own, but they were not pushing the invaders back. Mon-El finally grabbed one of the women and held her face to face. “Who are you?” he demanded. “What do you want?”

The woman’s lips turned up in a crooked smile. Her eyes widened into dark pools. “I want ... to be more,” was all she replied.

“I want to be more,” Brainiac 5 repeated, as he watched the video screen.

“What does that mean?” Phantom Girl asked. She had been summoned to Brainy’s lab to serve as a last line of defense, as had Shrinking Violet and Chameleon Boy. All three had powers that would enable them to hide quickly and take an attacker by surprise, if need be. Not that any of the three believed they would do much good against a mass of enemies who could keep Superboy and Mon-El in check. But if that was part of Brainy’s plan, they were not about to argue.

“Why would she want to be more?” Chameleon Boy echoed. “She can already replicate as many times as she wants.”

“Perhaps,” Brainy said, stroking his chin, “but not without cost. Observe.”

He pointed to another video screen. Karate Kid was now in the sub-basement, far removed from Superboy and Mon-El’s fight. The master of martial arts was judo-flipping one Myriad into several others. They fell and did not replicate further. “She’s growing tired,” Brainy continued. “Her inconsistency in replicating suggests that it’s taking a toll on her.”

“Then what do we do?” Violet asked.

“We keep it up,” Brainy replied, toggling another signal device. “We overrun her with our own Legions.”

Within minutes, the call was answered by the Legion’s reserve branch, the Legion of Substitute-Heroes: Polar Boy, Night Girl, Color Kid, Chlorophyll Kid, Stone Boy and Fire Lad. Their powers were not good enough for the regular Legion, but their valor was unquestioned. They had overcome their own limitations and assisted the Legion on many occasions.

“Are you nuts, Brainy?” Chameleon Boy protested, as he watched the Subs wade into the sea of Myriads. “If our buddies can’t overcome her, what makes you think they can?”

“They don’t have to,” Brainy snapped. It always bothered him when the other Legionnaires questioned his sanity, as if having a super-intellect went hand in hand with mental defects. It wasn’t Brainy’s fault if they neither knew nor understood his strategies. Still, he had to be patient with his teammates. They were his friends, after all.

“I think I see,” Phantom Girl said, as she stepped forward to study the viewscreen. On it, Chlorophyll Kid had turned the houseplants in the Green Room into an oversized, thorny maze. But the Myriads attacked it with wild abandon, cutting themselves, yet not seeming to care. It was only a matter of time before the bloodied replicates reached the startled Sub. “She’s becoming careless,” Phantom Girl continued.

Brainy permitted himself a smile of vindication. “Take your places,” he said. “She will be here in seconds.”

One of the Myriads had done the unthinkable. She had slipped past Superboy and Mon-El. While her replicates had kept the two Legion titans busy, she alone had managed to access the corridor leading directly to the main lab. It had been easier than she thought. Blame it on male egos – they probably never thought that a mere Carggite girl would outsmart them.

It was no time to be overconfident, however. The sheer number of replicates had taken a serious toll on Myriad. It was difficult to focus on her mission, or to even remember what her mission was. But such confusion was fleeting. It would all be over in a few minutes, and then no one would stop her ever again.

The door to the main lab was suspiciously unguarded. Surely, the Legionnaires knew where she was heading by now. Why hadn’t they posted more Legionnaires outside, or even automated sentries. Perhaps she had already encountered all the Legionnaires who were available. No Saturn Girl or Lightning Lad? No Sun Boy? Perhaps they were on distant missions. Surely not all of the Legionnaires were hanging around within flight-ring travel of the HQ, waiting for it to get invaded. Had she truly picked the most opportune moment to commit this crime?

No matter. Whatever reasoning she could conjure for the other Legionnaires’ absence would have to suffice. She swiped Invisible Kid’s flight ring in front of the door panel. The door whisked open.

The main lab was huge. It was full of objects she couldn’t begin to comprehend. She could get lost in here for days trying to find what she wanted.

But, suddenly, there it was ...

Starfinger’s psionic analyzer.

She went cold the instant she saw it. Memories she had repressed came flooding back. It was painful to be exposed to it once. Why in the galaxy did she want to step in front of its deadly rays again?

Because it worked, a voice inside her said.

“My deductions were correct,” another voice said. Myriad spun around and came face to face with Brainiac 5, the Legion’s Coluan super-genius. He was standing with his arms folded, looking not the least bit surprised. “It is the Hanscom cellular duplicating ray you are after,” he continued, smugly, as if Myriad herself hadn’t even thought of it.

“H-Hanscom?” Myriad said.

Brainiac 5 remained perfectly still. “Dr. Lars Hanscom,” he said. “Better known to you as Starfinger. You know Starfinger very well, don’t you, Thlekka Careid?”

“You know my name?”

“Once it was obvious that our intruder was Carggite,” Brainy said, walking forward slightly, “it was a simple matter to scan holo-news reports from your world. One item, several months old, told of a young woman who was abducted in broad daylight by a winged creature that teleported out of nowhere. It had to be Warxxi, the winged servant of Starfinger which we recently encountered.”

Let him talk, Myriad thought. As soon as he gets within range, I’ll replicate again and force him to give me what I need.

“Subsequent reports indicated that the young woman returned to Cargg with no memory of her abduction. However, she soon manifested the ability to split not just into three bodies, but four, then five, then six.”

Myriad found herself backing away as Brainy spoke. The truth of his words formed an invisible barrier that made her uncomfortable.

Brainy continued: “On Cargg, the ability to split into more than three bodies is not unknown, but it is extremely rare. Unfortunately, it is also viewed as a sin. The young woman was shunned by society. So, she vanished again, only to turn up here.” He looked at Myriad squarely. “Didn’t she, Myriad?”

“They hated me,” Myriad said, spewing forth long repressed emotions. “I didn’t even ask for this, but it didn’t matter. No one wanted anything to do with me. All because of Starfinger! He said he wanted the secret of Carggite replication. He wanted to create more of himself. So he subjected me to tests ... endless tests! And then he put me in front of that thing.” She indicated the psionic analyzer. “It didn’t work. Or at least he thought it didn’t. It was only after he let me go that I started to replicate more.”

“I know,” Brainy replied in an unexpectedly soft tone. “After releasing you, he kidnaped a Legionnaire, Duo Damsel, for the same purpose. He failed in that attempt, as well. Although he escaped, we later found his lair and equipment. I have since studied it, Myriad. The process is flawed. The more of you it creates, the more unstable you become.”

“That’s why I need to use it again!” Myriad shouted. “If I can use it to correct the imbalance, I can create even more of myself without straining.”

“And then what will you do?”

“I’ll return to Cargg and overrun it. I’ll make them pay for shunning me!”

“So, that’s what you want, simple revenge?” Brainiac 5 asked, rhetorically. “You are a sick woman, Myriad. The sheer number of replicates is taking its toll on you. Surrender and we can help--”

Before the Coluan could finish, Myriad replicated two more of herself and jumped him. But all three were immediately repelled. As they picked themselves off the floor, Brainiac 5 glowered at them. “Did you truly think that I would put myself at risk without activating my force field belt first?”

“It doesn’t matter!” one of the Myriads shouted. “This is what we want!” All three flew toward the psionic analyzer, and then watched in horror as it changed . The analyzer morphed into Chameleon Boy, the Durlan Legionnaire who could imitate the appearance of anything. Myriad had been tricked.

Chameleon Boy next turned into a Dakledian spider and ensnared one of the Myriads in his 14 arms. The other two Myriads also found themselves busy. Shrinking Violet, who had been hiding in tiny size, resumed her full height and slugged one Myriad, while Phantom Girl phased out from a wall of consoles and, turning solid, grabbed the third Myriad, judo-flipping her (a move Karate Kid had taught her).

“You fools!” the Myriad who was ensnared by Chameleon Boy blurted. “I can replicate more ... as many as it takes ... to defeat you!”

“I doubt it,” Brainiac 5 said, as he activated a console. Giant video screens appeared around them, showing Legionnaires fighting Myriads replicates throughout the headquarters. Myriad watched in horror as her sea of selves started to thin out, then vanish altogether, leaving only perplexed Legionnaires. “The actual psionic analyzer,” Brainiac 5 explained, “is hidden elsewhere in this room. I recalibrated it to affect only Carggite physiology. You have been exposed to its invisible rays from the moment you entered the lab.”

“What Brainy’s trying to tell you,” Chameleon Boy said, “is that what Starfinger gave you, the Legion has taken away.”

“That’s right,” Phantom Girl added. “There are only three of you left.”

“You’re just a normal Carggite, now,” said Shrinking Violet.

Myriad’s scream echoed throughout the lab, reverberating off the walls before she wore herself out.

Invisible Kid’s shift at monitor duty was just beginning. Perhaps this is all he’s good for anymore, he thought. By the time he had woken up in the alley behind the Crev Café and flagged down a Science Police cruiser, the action was all over. He’d missed the whole thing. A Carggite woman had invaded Legion HQ using his flight ring. His flight ring. Fortunately, no real damage was done, and Myriad had been apprehended and turned over to UP authorities. Even Invisible Kid’s injuries were slight, though enough to delay his mission to Pasnic. But the damage to his pride had been severe. Perhaps his days as a Legionnaire were truly over.

“Hey, Lyle,” Matter-Eater Lad said, bounding into the monitor room. “Here’s the report on the applicants who are trying out next week. Looks like a bunch of losers, if you ask me. One of them looks kind of interesting though, if you’re into mucus.”

Lyle took the report and tossed it over on a console.

“Hey, cheer up,” Matter-Eater Lad said. “It could have happened to anybody. We’re Legionnaires, not gods.”

“How would you know?” Lyle said. “It would probably never happen to you.”

“What? Getting clobbered by a girl?” Tenz replied, wistfully. “Probably not.”

Invisible Kid rolled his eyes.

“But,” Tenz added, “What were you doing in that nightclub by yourself? Don’t you know the Crev is in a rough neighborhood?”

“No,” Lyle admitted, reluctantly, “I didn’t.”

“Well, why don’t you come along with me and Val when you get off duty? We’ll show you where the classy spots are. Then you can pick up some real girls who won’t turn out to be super-villains.”

“Thanks, but I have a paper to finish.”

“Suit yourself,” Tenz replied, shrugging, and started to walk out. “But, I’ll tell you this. You spend way too much time writing research holos, if you ask me. You’re not Brainy, you know.”

Lyle bristled. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“It just means that Coluans may have wet dreams about test tubes, but the rest of us are human. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m officially off-duty, so I’m going to go be human for awhile.”

Lyle pondered this quickly. His career as a Legionnaire had been both rewarding and eventful. But, truly, there was more to life than saving the universe from the Fatal Five and writing research papers. As a Legionnaire, Invisible Kid was expected to be well organized and precise. But without Lyle Norg, the spontaneous brat who wanted to skip school, there would be no Invisible Kid. And, just like that, Lyle made another spontaneous decision.

“Hey, Tenz,” he shouted as his teammate was almost out the door. “Can you wait for a moment?”

“Sure,” Matter-Eater Lad replied.

Lyle hit the intercom, ringing the dorm room of his friend, Chemical King.

“Whassup?” a sleepy Condo Arlik answered.

“Chem,” Lyle began, “something has come up. Can you fill in for me on monitor duty tonight?”

Chemical King perked up, immediately. “Sure. For you, Lyle, anything.”

“Thanks,” Lyle replied. “I’ll make it up to you, I promise.” He then toggled off the intercom, and turned back to an amazed Matter-Eater Lad. “So, while we’re waiting for Chem to get here, tell me more about these classy spots that you and Val and I are going to visit.”

I enjoyed this very, very much. I liked the use of Lyle as well. The story truly felt as if it could seemlessly fit into that era. Like a missing issue of Superboy and the Legion.

Thanks, Danny. And a special thank you to Scott! You can edit my work anytime!

More great stuff HWW. At last we got a Lyle spotlight! Hooray!!

I think it would work as well post as pre-boot.

Just got around to reading this... I liked it a lot!

Thanks, Fats and Eryk.

You're probably right, Fats, that it would work just as well postboot. I chose to do it as a preboot though, partly because that era is near and dear to my heart, but also because it takes place shortly before SUPERBOY # 203, wherein Lyle dies. I thought it added poignance to the story by placing it there.

It does add poignance, *sniff* *sniff* **sob** and it fits in nicely with him falling in love with Myla. So he died happy, I hope. Anyways, I'm just glad to see him back - and I could envision him having the same self-recriminations now as in your story.

More fic, please!

very good HWW, as has been said it has the right feel of the era, most impressive!

Thanks, Sonnie Boy.

Great work. It really felt like the Adventure era. (Like everyone else has been saying. )

Thanks, Arachne.

Don't know how I missed this one before but it's great! As Danny said, it does feel like it "fits".

Great job, HWW. I hope there are other Tales to come.