Hub City

Dr. Crane:

"Strange," I think as I pat myself down. "Where's my teleporter? I could have sworn I had it earlier."

I scratch my head as I try to remember where exactly I left it.

"Where could I have placed it? I always keep it in this pocket."

I turn my pocket inside out again but all that comes out are pocket lints. I scratch my head once more, only stopping when I hear the set of doors sliding open and Supergirl walking out.

"Supergirl," I say, stepping forward. I look around but I don't see The Man anywhere. "Uhh, where's The Man?"

"He's, uhh, still in there," Ms. Supergirl answers. She turns and points behind her.

"He's still in that glass box," Mr. Barry asks. "Why?"

"Because apparently," Mr. Leonard says, taking over. "He's a damn coward."

"What are you talking about," I ask.

"Sunglasses had a clear shot to end Raven," Mr. Leonard shouts. "A clear shot to burn that stupid Bird Lady, but does he takes it? No!"

Mr. Leonard screams again before slamming his fist against a wall. When he does, I step back.

"Hey," Professor Stein says after a few seconds. "What about the other thing? About us drawing too much of Superman's attention and he withdrawing patrols from various cities? Did he say anything else about that?"

"Yeah," Ms. Supergirl says. "He said he wants us to patrol the various cities in their places. The first city is Hub City."

"Hub City," Mr. Jason says. "Wow. There's a name I haven't heard in a while."

"There's a name we haven't heard in a while," Professor Stein adds. "I guess the question is now, who's going?"

"Count me out," Mr. Leonard says with a wave. "If Sunglasses isn't doing anything, then neither am I."

He turns around and walks away. My best guess, Mr. Leonard is heading to his room.

"We'll go," Mr. Jason and Professor Stein answer.

"Me too," Ms. Cheetah says. Her reply makes a few of our eyebrows crooked. "What? I could use some fresh air. We cheetahs like to run in the open. Not in the underground."

"Thanks but no thanks," Mr. Jason says.

"I'm not asking," Cheetah says with crossed arms. "Besides, you may need some extra help. You two may be going but you're only one hero."

"She got you there," Harleen says. "Speaking of fresh air, I could use a breather myself. Mind if I tag along?"

Mr. Jason opens his mouth but I interrupt him before he could talk.

"Of course," I shout, pointing up a finger. "Yeah. You can come. In fact, you should go."

I pull Harleen in and whisper in her ear.

"Seriously, you should go. Before Firestorm sets Cheetah on fire. Or Cheetah scratches out Firestorm's eyes."

"Whatever works," Harleen says with a shrug. "Hey, Scarecrow, cracks open a portal, would you?"

"Dr. Crane," I correct. "It is Dr. Cran--Oh, forget it. Just give me a second. I need to find my teleporter."

"You can search for it later," Mr. Barry says. "There's that teleporter built right into a wall. You used it earlier when half of us decided to leave. Just used that."

"Fine," I sigh. "Follow me."

"Oh boy," Harleen says while clapping her hands. "Outside world, here we come!"

Harleen:

"Can we go back now? The outside world sucks."

I stomp my foot against the back of the driver's seat.

"What are you," Jason yells, turning around. "Six?"

"You're one to talk," Cheetah says from beside me. "Don't you still get your underwear from the little boy section at the supermarket?"

Jason turns from me to Cheetah.

"At least I can walk around without looking like a total creep?"

Cheetah snarls and pulls out her claws. I roll my eyes and shoot out my hand.

"Please don't," I beg, holding her back. I turn toward Jason. "And you. Don't make the woman with razor-sharped nails mad."

Jason rolls his eyes as he turns back up front. Meanwhile, Cheetah pulls her claws back in.

"May I remind all of you to please be careful," Professor Stein asks. "This is a rental from The Man with the Sunglasses. I doubt he would be happy to find it in a different state than when he loan it to us."

"Oh forget that rat bastard," Jason cries out. He swings his hands into the air and sighs. "Who cares what he thinks anyway? He trapped himself in a glass box. What can he do now?"

"That's a question I don't want answers to," I whisper. I turn my head to look out the window. "Hub City sure had changed a lot. I mean, I visited the city once or twice so I can't be sure, but still. I imagine most cities don't look like this."

Each and every single building I see is crumbling and covered in graffiti. Whether big or small, lights or no lights, it seems there are at least three windows each that are boarded up. Also, despite the clock on the dashboard saying 2, the sky is black and filled with smog.

"Remind me a lot of Gotham. You know, past Gotham. Before--"

"Yeah, yeah," Jason says. "We got it."

As the four of us drive around a pitch-black, very Gotham-like, Hub City, I can't help but see something.

"Hey, hey, hey," I say, tapping the back of the driver's seat.

"What," Professor Stein asks, finally stepping on the brakes. "What is it, Harleen?"

"Excuse me," I say, opening and running out of the car.

"Where are you going," Jason yells.

"To buy a soda," I reply. I walk toward a convenience store. The sliding doors ring as I enter the store.

"Hey," I say, nodding my head as I approach the masked gunman. The second he hears my voice, he turns around and aims his saw-off shotgun at me. However, my arm is faster than his trigger finger. With a rise of my arm, I hit his shotgun as he fires and blows a hole in the ceiling.

As dust and broken ceiling bits sprinkle onto the gunman, they stun him. While he rubs his eyes and split, I pull back my fist and send it flying into his face. He falls onto the counter before sliding off it.

"Hey you," I say, giving a nod to the cashier with his hands in the air. "Call the police, or the One Earth soldiers, or whoever."

The cashier doesn't answer me. He tries to answer me but all he does is stutter. I shrug my shoulder and walk for the door. However, as I take a step, I step on something and look down.

"Dip," I say, grabbing the saw-off. "I wonder if I could put this into my suit."

Spectre:

I watch from inside an abandoned building as Raven bursts out from beneath a pile of broken bricks. Screaming and yelling as she wakes up, broken bricks shooting everywhere, I have to step back when one goes through the floor and almost hit me.

"Where are you," Ravens shouts as she looks around the empty Gotham street. "Where are you? Show yourself!"

Even the wind doesn't answer her. Even where all the way up here, I can still hear her growling. She sees Felix Faust laying on the ground. She stomps her way over to Felix and slaps him awake. Once awake, she presses a finger to her ear and calls someone. A few seconds later, a boom tube opens, and both Faust and Raven walk in.

As I stare at where the boom tube was, a voice calls out to me.

"Quite a scene," someone says, "Isn't it?"

I don't even have to turn my head. I recognize the voice right away.

"Phantom Stranger," I say, turning around to see a man with a hat and long blue cloak.

Phantom Stranger:

"Spectre," I say, greeting my old ghostly friend in the dark-green cloak. "Long time no see."

"No reasons to see each other," Spectre answers.

"Not until now," I go on. "You sense it too, didn't you? That's why you're here."

"That unbelievably burst of magic," Spectre asks. "Yeah. I sense it, and I saw it too. You should've gotten here sooner. You would have seen a burning man almost kill Raven, and I am not referring to Firestorm."

Spectre turns away from me and back out the window. I give him a few minutes before I talk again.

"Spectre, what is your plan here? You didn't come all the way for a show."

Spectre doesn't answer me. Instead, he asks me something.

"What is your plan, Phantom Stranger? Are you going to watch or are you going to aid? And if you are going to aid, then who? Superman and his One Earth Government, who protect the people but through fear and violence? Or the mystery man and the Insurgency, who desire to bring the world back to when heroes would only slap villains on their wrist?"