by Martin Maenza
“Well, to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?” Mirror Master stood up from his desk chair. “I still don’t have any further information to provide you.” He moved around to the front his desk where he could lean against it, and crossed his arms.
Camille Fortier closed the wooden office door behind her. She wasn’t at all comfortable with what she was about to say, but she was determined not to have an audience for it. This was hard enough as it was. “Can we keep this conversation just between you and I, Scudder?”
“Of course, Camille.” Sam Scudder’s face was completely serious, but on the inside he was smiling. “Is there something wrong?”
She hesitated, then said, “No, nothing wrong, really. I…” She swallowed hard and glanced away. “I perhaps acted with a bit of haste the other day.” She turned back to see his reaction, but surprisingly he still looked the same. “You know that I am frustrated about the situation I have found myself in, not having access to the power that I once possessed. It sometimes gets the better of me.”
Mirror Master nodded. “I understand. And…?”
The dark-haired woman stood a bit taller, hoping to keep some of her dignity. “And, I owe you an apology for it. I hope that my words of anger and frustration will not impede our professional relationship.”
Mirror Master turned for a second to face the window. He could still see her reflection in the clear glass, and he allowed a brief smile to cross his lips. He knew that this was as close as she would go to admitting she was wrong, and knew that it was eating her up inside to do even this. After letting her dangle for a few seconds more, he turned back around.
“Fair enough, my dear. We all have bad days sometimes. We’ll just chalk it up to that.” He returned to his chair and pulled it out. “Oh, and can you be a dear and pop down to Gizmo’s lab? I’d like him to come here so he and I can discuss his project’s status.” He sat down in his chair and opened the desk drawer, looking inside for something.
Camille stood there for a moment, then realized that this was Mirror Master’s way of dismissing her for the moment. She started to feel angry once more, but suppressed it. She turned and, through gritted teeth, said, “Of course.” She then left the office rather hastily.
Mirror Master took his time as he retrieved a piece of paper with a phone number from the drawer. Then he placed a call, and a female voice answered. “Yes, Ms. Leno? Hello. This is Mr. M. I was just calling to thank you and your associate personally for a job well done. I’ll be wiring the second half of your fee to your account within the hour.”
On the other end of the line, the dark-haired Carmen Leno replied, “Thank you, Mr. M.” Nearby, the blond Bonnie Hoffman was watching Logan’s Run on the television. “Your assignment was a bit more subdued than our usual ones, but we enjoyed the opportunity to try something new. Should you have need for a professional hit in the future, you know you can always contact the Body Doubles.”
Back in his office, the costumed man smiled. “Yes, I will keep that in mind. Thank you.” He hung up the receiver. With the situation defused, and Star Sapphire back in line, Mirror Master was now able to devote his full attention to the next task at hand.
***
Two days later, a pair of figures stood outside the large glass doors of the Flash Museum. The famed landmark of Central City had just closed, and its curator was about to leave for the evening when he noticed the familiar pair. Dexter Myles opened the doors to allow them entrance.
The gray-haired actor knew the two individuals on sight. He’d had many opportunities over the years to interact with both of these men. One of the men had red hair and wore a red and blue costume over his thin form. The other man wore a crimson costume with yellow boots and lightning trim, a variation on one that could be seen many times over throughout the museum. “Well, well, what causes you two heroes to darken my doorstep at this hour?” Dexter asked.
“Good to see ya again,” Elongated Man said smiling as his hand stretched slightly forward to pat the man on the shoulder. “We’re not here for a social call or anything like that.” The Flash simply nodded silently.
“Is there something amiss? Some ominous threat or catastrophic events brewing?” Dexter asked.
“Yeah, kind of,” Elongated Man continued. “We need some things from one of the exhibits. We’ll bring ’em back.” The two costumed men quickly made their way into the main section of the first floor, then turned toward the exhibit devoted to the Scarlet Speedster’s frequent enemies.
Dexter caught up with them as the two started to remove the handheld weapons from the wax figures of Captain Cold and Heat Wave. “Well, since it ’tis the two of you doing the borrowing, I don’t foresee a problem with that. Flash, can you tell me what all you require and for what these items are needed?”
The Flash and Elongated Man turned to one another briefly and exchanged a silent look. The Flash then turned to the man and shook his head silently no.
“No? I do not understand.” Dexter Myles seemed very concerned that the Flash did not or could not answer his question.
The Flash opened his mouth and gestured to his throat with a red-gloved hand.
Elongated Man finished stuffing weapons from the statues of the Pied Piper and the Weather Wizard into the sack. “Yeah, poor guy’s lost his voice. Can you believe that?”
Dexter Myles looked perplexed. “Laryngitis? It must be a very sudden attack of it. I just saw a news clip this morning, and your voice was fine then.”
The Flash’s eyes widened in panic. Elongated Man struggled for an answer. “Uh… well… yeah, sudden, all right.” He noticed Dexter starting to step backward awkwardly. “Flash, stop him!”
The scarlet-costumed figure touched the inside of his left elbow, and suddenly a whirlwind appeared before him. The swirling mass of air slammed into the curator before he could flee, and caught him up in its spinning motion. The mini-cyclone slammed Dexter Myles into a large display case, sending the various contents to the floor.
Elongated Man hurried over to the case and saw that Dexter Myles was still stirring. He slammed his right fist down hard, knocking the man back down to the floor. “That should keep him! Let’s get these items from the case and scram before anyone else shows up!” The Flash joined him in picking up the scattered tops and boomerangs, stuffing them into the sack with the other items.
The two then made haste to the museum’s exit.
The hidden jet’s engines engaged, and the vehicle and its occupants were on their way back toward San Francisco. After making sure Gizmo was comfortable with the autopilot, Mirror Master exited the cockpit and joined the others in the back area. “Well done, you two,” he said, applauding them.
“Piece of cake, thanks to these babies,” Copperhead said as he removed a watch-like device. “That old guy didn’t know what hit him until it was too late. He actually thought we were the Elongated Man and Flash, the sap!”
Lydia handed the sack to the man in orange and green. “Here are the items you wanted retrieved,” she said.
Mirror Master opened the sack and gazed upon the various weapons that were inside. He did a quick inventory: boomerangs, heat gun, sonic pipes, cold gun, deadly tops, element gun, weather wand, air-walker shoes, a bag of tricks, and even a familiar mirror gun. “Excellent work! The test of the image-makers went very well, and as an added bonus we have the Rogues Gallery weapons to add to our organization’s arsenal.”
“So those are actually working weapons that were on display?” the Greek woman asked.
“For the most part, yes,” Mirror Master explained. “It’s no secret to most of us frequent fighters of the Flash that the museum exhibits were stocked with working versions of our devices. Some might be lacking the right power sources, but I am confident that Gizmo can get those up and going in no time flat. Now sit back and enjoy the flight home. You’ve done well.”
Mirror Master returned to his seat in the cockpit, still glowing with the success of the operation. Not only was there the gain of the weaponry, but the Tattooed Lady had passed her initiation test. Plus, there was the added satisfaction of pulling a successful heist on the Flash’s home court. Things were definitely looking up for this new villain team. Everything was falling right into place.
***
Far across the galaxy and sometime later on a small planet in Space Sector 2813, a single inhabitant walked through the capital city of Zamaron like a ghost in an abandoned western town. This one woman, dressed in a pink costume with a high white collar and a pink headpiece, had kept a lonely vigil for a number of months.
At one time, this dark-haired woman was known by the name of Carol Ferris. On Earth, she had been a talented businesswoman who ran the day-to-day affairs for Ferris Aircraft. She was also the girlfriend of the Earth’s Green Lantern, Hal Jordan.
But currently she did not go by that name. Chosen by the Zamarons, a race of warrior women, she now served as their queen under the name of the Star Sapphire. Ironically, as she was finally coming to terms with her fated role and had willingly immersed herself into her appointed position, the Zamaron race had reunited with their counterparts, the Guardians of the Universe. The two races had come together for a greater purpose and had left the galaxy for parts unknown. (*)
[(*) Editor’s note: See “Five Billion Years,” Green Lantern v2 #200 (May, 1986).]
Star Sapphire was now a queen without a people to rule. At first, she thought this would only be temporary. But as each day passed, it was becoming more and more apparent to her that the Zamarons would not be returning anytime soon. And this angered her greatly.
She swatted a large sculpture with her purple-gloved hand, sending it crashing to the pavement. As she kicked aside the broken pieces, she cursed out loud. “Damn them! Damn those Guardians for using their accursed double-talk to lure away my warriors! I hate them and their ring-wielding foot soldiers!”
She started to cross over a metallic bridge, but stopped halfway to glance at her reflection in the water. Even her own image could not quell the anger she felt. Her own eyes played tricks on her, making her see the image of another in the water, that of the Green Lantern. “Your image taunts me, even across the void of space!” She spat into the water. “It may be quite a while before my people return, but in the meantime I know what I must do! It is time I return to Earth to exact my revenge upon Hal Jordan, and I will kill any Green Lantern who gets in my way!”
Continued in Tales of the Green Lantern Corps: The Green Lantern Corpse
Continued in Secret Society of Super-Villains: Reclamation, Book 3: A Clash of Queens