Halt Evil Doer! megaverse thread

[Libra]

Charles, I'm not going to be able to post a full write-up for the Golden Age Merged Universe-627, but I'm hoping ti have something for you by Tuesday and the Golden Age posts should hopefully follow after.

In the meantime I would interested in learning more about the Nautilus Atlantean Royal Family (As well as your version of Atlantis in general), please?

I would also be interested in learning more about the Grayhavens and their Lost World.

[Charles Phipps]

Charles, I'm not going to be able to post a full write-up for the Golden Age Merged Universe-627, but I'm hoping ti have something for you by Tuesday and the Golden Age posts should hopefully follow after.

In the meantime I would interested in learning more about the Nautilus Atlantean Royal Family (As well as your version of Atlantis in general), please?

I would also be interested in learning more about the Grayhavens and their Lost World.

Cool, can't wait. I'll try and post something for you.

[Charles Phipps]

Nemo's Atlantis

The origin of Prince Dakkar's version of Atlantis is rooted in the fact that he considered himself something of a utopian. Thomas Moore and Karl Marx were thinking up their own variants on the central conceit before Nemo but he had his own ideas, that were rooted in the idea of Technocracy mixed with his own strongly divergent beliefs.

Prince Dakkar discovered Atlantis' ruins well before he discovered the actual sea-going peoples themselves. Had Captain Nemo been a normal mind, it would have been a great archaelogical discovery but nothing major. Fortunately, or unfortunately, Captain Nemo was also an extraordinary mind roughly analogous to Albert Einstein with Thomas Edison's knack for engineering.

He was able to drag large amounts of Atlantean devices from the ocean and discover a great deal about how the God King's created their ancient civilization. A few psychic contacts later and they taught him how to reactivate some of the older equipment and repair more than a few devices that the original Atlanteans had given up for hopelessly broken. One of these devices created a Force Field around Atlantis and allowed him to drain away the excess water in the city (for security's sake, he also figured out how to use the Nanite Fabricators to create a bubble dome around each city as well of transparent steel).

Obviously, most of Atlantis was ruined and unfit for human inhabitation (only the Merrow, also known as Deep Ones, and worshipers of Dagon or Great Kaithulhu tended to stand around the Lost Cities). However, Nemo was not interested in resurrecting the lost kingdom of Atlantis but creating his own utopian ideal from the basics outlined in Plato's own writings of the city mixed with whatever he considered to be gloriously better. If you think this undertaking was an insanely ambitious one, well it's Captain Nemo.

The actual project was well underway when 20,000 Leagues under the Sea was written and was more or less finished by the time of The Mysterious Island (four years later). The Mysterious Island, in fact, was actually Captain Nemo's own use of Atlantean Anti-Gravity devices to raise and lower an island base for delivering refugees and supplies as needed. The time errors in the Mysterious Island and 20,000 Leagues under the Sea were honestly just an error on Jules Vernes part and nothing particularly mysterious.

It's listed in Atlantean records that Alexander Timons (the actual inspiration for the Time Traveler of H.G. Wells in one of the funniest bits of serendipity you'll find) and Doctor Aeon both visited Atlantis in its early days and contributed their own aid to the reformed terrorists' vision. The later had significant problems since Doctor Aeon's Fabulous Five was not at all impressed, except for Alex of course. They considered Nemo a rogue and a murderer, rather than a hero.

The inhabitants of Nemo's Atlantis were drawn from all over the world. Effectively, individuals tired of the world above that Nemo respected. A substantial number of mixed race couples attended and Non-White brains that felt stifled in the environment of causally racist 19th century society. Nemo died in 1874 as the Mysterious Island depicted but the project continued without him (some actually suggest that there was a previous Nemo, Prince Dakkar the Elder, who passed it along to his son who is the titular villain of 20,000 leagues of the Sea but this is probably nonsense).

Atlantis' Motto summarizes the land's ideals fine. "All Creeds and Colors united in Science and Respect."

There were over 50,000 inhabitants by the end of the 19th century and they continued their gathering peoples into their ranks until the start of World War 2. Then, the Nazis and Doctor Aeon had both probed for Atlantis and the former were horrified to find it a multi-ethnic society devoted to peaceful co-existence with the world. This event, ironically, lead to Prince Amal Dakkar to become the super hero Aquarius. Atlantean medicine does wonders, really, for one's youth. Nemo Atlanteans aren't immortal but they stay healthy and vigorously alive until the age of 120.

Modern day Nemo Atlantis is a Technocracy ruled by the Royal Family and the Science Council. While Amal was a monarch, his actual position was secondary to his position as the Chief Scientist of Atlantis and Engineer. Much like DC Comics' Krypton, the brain is worshiped in Nemo's land as much as warfare or politics. Currently, the Science Council is in charge and doing a fairly good job despite the fact that Amal is in exile. Their main issue with selecting a new monarch is that they don't want to irritate the United States or its own people after their disastrous defeat in the coup.

The people are firmly loyal to Aquarius and would resent anyone but his heir. Ironically, most of the upper class prefers the villainous Neptune. While the brothers' feud is well known, Neptune's murderous evils are veiled as propaganda and his war against the surface world is considered to be far more consistent than Amal's own policies (that he only recently reversed as far as the peasants are concerned). The reverence he gets from certain segments of society is also tinged with his role as a widely popular religious leader and master scientist. Dagon worship is a god that is officially outlawed by the Science Council but a fanatical branch of the Thuggee (brought by Nemo himself) have converted from Kali worship to Dagon under his control and many pay homage to the Fish God in addition to other Hindu ones.

The most likely candidate for monarch to be accepted by both sides is Ariel the Mermaid. Aquarius' eldest sister and heroine. The biggest issue is that Ariel has lived on the surface fairly continuously since the 1980s and is many things, but a genius at science is not one of them.

One thing to note, while New Atlantis has just over a a million and a half inhabitants. The actual territory settled is far larger with a total population close to 50,000,000. The strong martial tradition of New Atlantis meant that many were taken off guard by the actual number of soldiers it can field (ironically, all of the Nemo Atlanteans inhabit an area of the oceans only slightly larger than Mexico---and thus only a tiny portion of the world's oceans).

***

Fun filled facts.

1. Aquarius is a combination of Aquaman with the Disney version of Captain Nemo.

2. Neptune is a combination of Ocean Master and Doctor No with plenty of Lovecraft thrown in.

3. Ariel is not the inspiration for the Hans Christian Anderson story, she's honestly just named after her.

4. Neptune actually has a number of children. Some hideously deformed ones with Deep Ones and others who are regular Atlanteans. Atlantis' only current super hero is Proteus, Neptune's eldest child. A shape-changer.

Proteus is effectively everything his father isn't but hates Amal Dakkar with a passion and privately considers himself the rightful King (admiring his father's passion if hating his deeds). Unfortunately, he's also only 27, which is ridiculously young for a King in Atlantis.

5. Both Neptune and his son, Proteus, are bisexual. It's not a big deal in Atlantis. Rumors also abound about Ariel but she tends to attract controversy anyway as the Surfer Girl heroine.

[Libra]

It began, as so many truly splendid feuds have, with a woman.

In this case the year was 1941 and the woman was Lynn Sidon, the first heroine to bear the name Siren. She had only recently returned to New York after her debut on the Freedom City waterfront – having chosen to debut there in a bid to conceal her secret identity – and was just settling into her routine at the radio station when reports arrived of ‘That coloured aquatic madman tearing up the cops and half the city!’

In all fairness to Aquarius, it had been a bad week. He had arrived on the surface to repatriate a Nautilus Atlantean citizen, hoping to make a peaceful and positive first impression on the surface world. He came alone and unarmed – Although considering his inhuman might this might be somewhat deceptive – preaching a message of peace and fellowship. The authorities took one look at the half-naked coloured guy with the mustachios asking for a white lady – actually a very fair-skinned Anglo-Indian – and told him to take a hike. Aquarius, reining in his formidable temper made a formal diplomatic request that his subject be returned to him. After six days the official response was “No way in H- or High Water, fish-boy.”

At that point Aquarius walked through several policemen, into the hospital ward where his subject was being treated and walked right back out again – To meet a substantial assembly of unfriendly gentlemen in blue.

By that afternoon Aquarius was most of the way back to the harbour, only delayed by the fact that he refused to kill even these pathetic excuses for Officers of the Peace and by the burden, both physical as well as of responsibility for, his subject. The combined frustrations of almost a week of pointless politics and prejudiced obstruction had melded in the heat of action into a truly awe-inspiring display of temper by the time Siren arrived. Attempting to reason with him, she was struck aside for delaying him over-long while the hunt closed on his heels. Receiving little more than a swat from the mighty Mer-Man, Lynn still suffered several fractured ribs and substantial bruising for her pains.

Later that week Lynn met up with Thallor while swimming off the coast of Manhattan, the second of what would become a suspiciously regular series of meetings between the lovely young woman and a rather enthralled young King without a Kingdom. When Thallor discovered her injuries, he merely asked ‘Who has done this?” then fell silent, his face set like stone, eyes aflame with wrath. When he had finished listening he bid her farewell and swan away, a hunter’s purpose in every stroke.

Atlantis’ Royal Family was already less than fond of their pirate-descended neighbours – they were outlanders established upon the most revered and fearsome site in all Atlantis. They had the gall to be more technologically advanced than the true Atlanteans (Although heroic efforts were being made to catch up to them and Atlantis was the larger and wealthier Kingdom) – but Aquarius had earned specific condemnation for his desecration of the Tombs of the Forefather Kings. Unfortunately Thallor had been occupied by the coup of his never-to-be-sufficiently-accursed cousin at the time and Nautilus had at least sufficient manners to refuse to recognise the Usurpers rule.

But now Aquarius had struck the woman Thallor recognised as his future Queen – Although he was to court her for a long time before she actually realised that his intentions towards her were entirely (and somewhat disappointingly) honourable – and if there is one law of Atlantis written in steel then it is this: To lay hands upon a woman in anger is to face pain and a lifelong vendetta from any properly raised Atlantean Male. The length of the aforesaid life seldom extends very far.

For almost a month, no confirmed sightings of Thallor were reported. Previously a shadowy figure reported by the occasional sailor or lifeguard on night watch he became a wraith. Aquarius too disappeared from the sight of surface-men. Then he invaded New York.

[Libra]

It was – and remains – obvious to Temuge that he is Dr Tzin-Sing’s utter superior. That, at least, is what he believes. Dr Sin knows the Iron Khan to be a depraved Megalomaniac, who unfortunately remains the most powerful man in China and must therefore be deferred to.

As far as the Khan is concerned, he is the Immortal Master of Arts Martial and Mystic, of the Terrible Black Hand and the future ruler of the World! As far as Doctor Sin is concerned he is, indeed, sole master of the Black Hand and too great a degree of force to confront or challenge – Openly, at least.

Therefore, in the early years of the first quarter of the 20th Century Tzin-Sing took advantage of one of the Khan’s numerous periods of recuperation – in the aftermath of one of his unsuccessful plots against the British Empire and the Secret Service thereof – to quietly assume control of the Criminal Organisations of China, which the Khan had rejected as unfit to serve him (As well as much else, artefact, conspiracy or cult which the Khan had rejected or ignored) establishing a formidable power base in the shadows of Asia and then presented himself and his services to the Iron Khan, in the very palace where Temuge recovered his vitality. Somewhat surprisingly The Iron Khan let him live – and accepted his services.

Each of them has been playing a very careful game with the other ever since.

Sin is effectively the Khan’s vizier and chief vassal, directing many of the more mundane affairs of the Empire, ruling his own shadowy kingdom and performing such tasks as the Khan requires. The first of these was to explore the United States, which bid fair to become the Khans most formidable future opponent. Dr Sin travelled to Freedom City, incognito and the rest is Pulp Era history.

The ‘Good’ Doctor has even served as the Khan’s regent when Temuge has been forced to enter healing seclusion after particularly spectacular failures of his Great Plans (Each one Colourful, Megalomaniac, Public and very, very loud). Despite this Sin remained (and remains) perennially mistrusted, to the point that he considered it wise to vacation abroad on several occasions – Usually for ‘hunting trips’ where he pursued The Raven in his own city. The Devil Doctor’s failures against the Gothic Knight never failed to amuse the Khan, who often made a point of subtly displaying this in front of Sin. Not being the most subtle of men, The Khan’s amusement merely reinforced Sin’s rage and hatred for the Raven – and the Khan.

For, while Sin promised himself and his service to the Iron Khan, he said nothing of loyalty.

While Sin served and continues to serve the Khan reliably he has, over the course of a long century, taken every opportunity to discretely weaken the Khan and subvert his operatives. More than one of the Khan’s most trusted agents have gone to their deaths, blind to the hand of Sin in their demise. Plans have fallen into enemy hands, artefacts been lost irretrievably and the Khan suffered humiliation at the hands of Daedalus thanks to the unseen manipulations of Sin, although the Khan has long suspected the Doctor and the two men’s organisations have come close to all-out Shadow War on at least one occasion, shortly after the Second World War. (The reason the Communists sit in the seat of power in Beijing. Both Oriental Masterminds had hoped to divide, conquer and rule, but both were distracted by the other and the Communists became too strong too swiftly to contest.)

Still, their working relationship persists to this day. Sin serves as the Khan’s agent in the Syndicate, controls his Si-Fan - Most of the Asian underworld, a source of power the Khan still despises – and acts with his authority, while The Khan deals with PHANTOM. Sin is more than wise enough to keep his ties to SHADOW as a secret advantage in their Long Game.

Emerald Dragon has stated on several occasions that she regards Sin as “A second father.”

What this means is that he’s number two on her List.

[Libra]

Charles, I would appreciate any thoughts you may have on my posts.

[Charles Phipps]

Very nicely handled.

1. Perhaps Prince Dakkar is a bit too much like Namor there in his over-expectations of a warm welcome from surface dwellers but its part and parcel of the genre and I like to think a lot of the storylines in the Golden Age of Heroism don't always have to make sense.

Prince Dakkar: Puny mortals.

Okay, maybe expecting much from Aquarius is a bit much given he later joins the P7.

2. Nice job. I definitely agree Doctor Tzin is the superior patient man between the two of them. At heart, Doctor Sin is very Confuscian and very Taoist, never allow yourself to be driven off balance (despite the fact that Raven has the power to do so to him). Simultaneously, The Iron Khan is very Mongolian and Imperialist.

Only a thought, but if you wanted to add something, I might that there's also some irritation between the fact that Doctor Tsin (like Doctor Fu Manchu) was actually a peasant despite suppositions to the contrary while the Iron Khan was very much responsible for much of the worst excesses of Imperialist rule.

I would note that the Iron Khan is actually sharper than he appears. While he DOES love to ham it up, he's actually one of those villains in Heroic Earth that is self-aware of the theatricality of being a super being. Recall, the Emperors were required to play the part of a living god and the Iron Khan knows he's as close to anything as there ever existed but he's also aware he's not (not yet at least).

So, he probably is fully aware that Sin is plotting against him. In fact, there's actually numerous subordinates in the Black Hand that the Book of Villains notes have been promoted to the highest levels of society entirely because they're a bunch of treacherous snakes. Why? Because the Iron Khan is, bluntly, a psychopath and is actually fairly offset by loyalty. He UNDERSTANDS people who are nakedly ambitious above all other things. Self-sacrifice, not so much. The Iron Khan DOES have a male heir (created magically) but has banished him from his Courts for the fact that he was genuinely loyal and trustworthy....which made the Iron Khan sure he was plotting something yet couldn't actually find out what it was.

(He's since become a member of the Foundation for World Harmony. Opposing his father reluctantly---which his father assumes is just a way to eventually supplant him)

[As a note, I can also see Doctor Sin attempting to do a "Zero Sum Game" with the Chinese government to slowly transform it into a society that more closely resembles the China of the past. Preventing it from becoming another Mythical China (Which doesn't fit Doctor Sin's legalist views of the world) as Temugin wants and yet restoring much of the culture/authoritarianism that he favors. He's had actually fairly moderate success and is at the heart of much of China's neo-capitalism. China would love to see Doctor Sin destroyed but far too many Chinese officials [read: corrupt] argue he's a useful asset against the Khan who occupies roughly 10% of what we consider to be modern day China]

[Libra]

Perhaps Prince Dakkar is a bit too much like Namor there in his over-expectations of a warm welcome from surface dwellers but its part and parcel of the genre and I like to think a lot of the storylines in the Golden Age of Heroism don't always have to make sense.

Well, he was more expecting basic diplomatic courtesy, but that's true enough. He thought that an open-and-shut case of repatriation would ease Nautilus into the affairs of the surface world and make life more difficult for the Nazis. Alas. . .

Prince Dakkar: Puny mortals.

More like "Pusillanimous and pestilential slaves of a pettifogging plutocracy, Aside!"

Only a thought, but if you wanted to add something, I might that there's also some irritation between the fact that Doctor Tsin (like Doctor Fu Manchu) was actually a peasant despite suppositions to the contrary while the Iron Khan was very much responsible for much of the worst excesses of Imperialist rule.

True. The Son of upwardly mobile peasants has no reason to love Imperial Repression incarnate.

I would note that the Iron Khan is actually sharper than he appears.

Indeed. Sin is simply far cleverer and probably wiser than the Khan, save in treachery. While the Khan does not know what form Sin's treachery will take he's quite aware the Doctor is plotting. He's also supremely confident he can crush any plots by crushing the Doctor, which may or may not be the correct assumption.

I rather imagine the dynamic between Sin and Temugin as similar to that of Redcloak and Xykon: Sin definately has devotion to his cause and a well thought-out plan for his version of Utopia - Unfortunately he's not had much success, in the short term at least. Still, he plans and works for the long term and is wise enough to recognise - and prize above all other virtues in his servants - true loyalty where he finds it.

The Iron Khan, on the other hand, lives for the short term and while he's seldom in danger of being wiped off the table, his distaste for detailed plans and appreciation of treachary have cost him and will continue to do so.

Each player in the Long Game can win rounds, but neither has any chance of winning the match - Yet.

(Oh, I should mention that your idea of merged Confucian and Chinese Legalist principles make a perfect philosophical groundwork for how Sin views the world Charles! )

[Libra]

Aquarius had decided that if the democratic nations of the surface would not be made to recognise him by use of peaceful diplomatic means, then he would have to make a dramatic example, demonstrating the power his nation wielded to the World.

Emerging from the water surrounding Manhattan, Aquarius and a picked detachment of fully-equipped elite Nautilus Atlantean warriors seized several landmarks, with Aquarius himself spearheading the capture of the Empire State building, broadcasting that “the Conquest of New York is complete. America, we will return your city to you, only asking that you and all other nations recognise us as a sovereign power, equal to any upon Earth or Under Sea. Our intentions are peaceful, yet remember this day. Let it become famous as the day when Atlantis displayed our resolve and our might, which no surface force can match. No resistance can stop it.”

Even as he spoke those words his grip on New York was slipping through his fingers. The National Guard had been pinned down or outright captured by Nautilus Atlantean warriors, along with the largest police precincts, but individual Policemen and ordinary citizens turned out to take back their city, harassing their invaders from the shadows, aided by any members of the Liberty-Men present in the City, lending their great might to the battle aided by Siren. Though few they were turning the tide – But wherever Aquarius leaped into the fray the tide turned against the brave defenders. Stalemate loomed and it became only a matter of time before some hothead on either side began the killing which Aquarius and the Liberty-Men had striven to avoid.

Standing once again at the wharves of New York City, Aquarius howled his frustration a terrible rage building. He poised to leap, ready to rend these infuriating foes with his bare hands if needed to get his point across, reason all but gone from him – Then Thallor roared his challenge. Having shadowed Aquarius for days he leaped from the water and demanded, with ancient ceremony, that Aquarius face him and either repent of his grievous crimes, or face him in unarmed combat. For brief moments the two champions glared at each other – Then pounced.

After a series of crashing, smashing and lightning-swift blows the two Oceanic Overlords took to their natural element, seeking greater room to manouver - and any possible advantage in this Titanic contest.

In the immediate aftermath of this double disappearance New York freed itself, the Nautilus Atlanteans - outnumbered and having made their point – disappeared into the Atlantic. While an astonishing event, damage to the city and both sides had been slight. It might still have been remembered – But a week later, on December 7th 1941, the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbour.

Of the duel itself, little is known. What blows were struck, what cunning feints and battle stratagems used, what wounds inflicted, nothing is known. When questioned on the matter Thallor would massage his right shoulder – the site of an old war wound - and smile a small and secret smile. Aquarius will - with awesome dignity - change the subject, all the while stroking his beard, particularly his left moustache, which bristles as if it were a small, hunted creature.

He returned, newly clean-shaven, to the surface after the attack on Pearl Harbour and made his peace. After making a handsome public apology to Siren he said that ‘Fascism is the foe of all free peoples. It is our duty to battle with and destroy it, a League of Nations united against a common, terrible foe‘.

Everyone agreed that it was a fine speech from a noble man, though a few remarked on the rather startling state of his battered body and face, particularly the large - and still raw - area of upper lip where his left mustachio had been. Reached for questioning, he politely prevaricated and withdrew, with kingly dignity and a significant limp.

When Siren met Thallor a few days later, she noted he swam rather less gracefully than was commonly the case and that his face and body looked as if a whale had been using him as a dancing slipper. On asking what had happened Lynn only received this answer: ‘It was a hairy business, but I received his submission in the end. It was merely a matter of finding the correct leverage.”

He smiled a brief gleam of pearly-white in the dark waters. ”I suspect I have a rival for life. Good. A good feud with a noble adversary is like a good wine – or a good woman” that grin again, like sunlight breaking through storm clouds “It will keep you warm in your old age.”

It did.

[Libra]

The Golden Age of Earth-627[/size]

It’s a much observed-upon peculiarity of the era that almost all of the most famous heroic teams used ‘Liberty’ as part of their name. While this leads to some confusion for historians when they examine press records of the time, the various heroes and the public did not share their problem.

As Anthony Atlas put it in an article reporting the foundation of the Liberty League “Given the terrible threats to what small remnant of Liberty remains to the world, given her vulnerability to the horrors of that most Terrible of tyrannies, It should be no surprise that so many heroes have chosen her as their inspiration and their protectorate.”

It should be noted that many scholars from Freedom City tend to follow the convention of the Liberty League’s files and refer to the Liberty-Men as ‘the Mystery Men’ and to the Liberators as ‘The Pacific Patrol.’

(The former was a small joke between the League and the Liberty-Men, each referring to the other so, due to the well-publicized nature of their exploits and referring to the rareness of their meetings. The latter is simply a name picked out of newspaper article by Lady Liberty, reflecting the fact that the Liberators tended to operate most openly in the Pacific theatre, preferring covert and behind-the-lines operations in Europe, where the Allies of Freedom functioned as an overt battlefront team and Axis supermen were more numerous - and powerful.)

The Liberty League: Founded by Dr Tomorrow as a team wholly independent from the US Government, which would act at certain crisis points without the restraints placed on the Liberty-Men.

Dr Tomorrow recruited most heavily in Freedom City due to the fact that what records of the period had survived in his world showed that while the heroes of Freedom City were in many cases just as - if not more - powerful than the Axis supermen on an individual level, they had never united and seldom operated outside of their city, a priceless resource untapped. It did not escape his notice that the Phantom League’s hold on the City was never strong, due to the superabundance of costumed criminals and the chaos they caused in it's underworld, meaning James Moriarty II was far less likely to interfere or take interest in the business of the League, a factor Tom suspected lay behind a number of the Liberty-Men and Liberators' woes.

The team maintained friendly relations with the Liberty-Men, probably closer than their successors ever will be, particularly after the War, but seldom met. They faced much the same problems, although to a lesser degree and it’s a well-known fact that both teams – their more gregarious members, at least – would meet for Thanksgiving dinner every year after 1945 until the retirement of the Liberty-Men.

The unmasking massacre did not directly affect most of the heroes of Freedom City. Given that the team had been at least partially aware of infiltration of the US Government by agents of an alien power since 1951 and its unpleasant experiences with the consequences, it is little surprise that the Liberty League decided that while the American Way was worth fighting and dieing for, there were certain things better kept a secret, even from the American Government.

This discretion – championed by the Centurion and the Liberty League as a whole – had a considerable impact on Freedom City’s cape and cowled community, but was in the main part ignored - or outright dismissed - outside of the city in favour of Anthony Atlas’ openness, with tragic results.

While the massacre itself did not touch Freedom’s heroes physically, it left a lasting impression. When the HUAC demanded to know what connections they had formed which ensured that they had not been touched by the tragedy which had robbed America of its Heroes, the League decided that enough was enough. They disbanded effective immediately.

The Liberty-Men: Founded before the Liberty League and just as renowned during the Golden Age, but handicapped by a lesser degree of Government Approval – given the decidedly non-American origin of many of its members – as well as the malicious scrutiny and treacherous subtleties of the future Death Mask. Lacking Doctor Tomorrows special ‘sources’ this team still managed to serve its country and the World with a record of distinguished success second to no-one. (Although the Liberty League did equal them in terms of power and sheer impact.)

As noted above the two teams were friendly during - and especially after - the War. When fighting side-by-side there was little the Axis could do to stop them. Unfortunately the various commitments of each team and its individual members meant that these occasions would be short lived – but truly Legendary.

The Liberators: While known of in general terms during the Second World War, the Liberators tended to find themselves overlooked in the European and North African Theatres of Operation, dwarfed by the more charismatic veterans of the Allies of Freedom.

Despite this they served with distinction in all Theatres of War, from the Pacific to the Atlantic, generally operating behind the enemy lines or on the battlefronts seldom seen by Capes, including brief stints on the Eastern Front during the desperate days of the Battle for Stalingrad – Although that battle was won by mortal men and the city never saw them, the Liberators helped out by temporarily assuming the commitments of their Soviet counterparts, the People’s Heroes, so that the latter could be concentrated in the City by the Volga.

However, they most famously and successfully operated on the Asian and Pacific front against the Hinomaru and the machinations of the Si-Fan, leading to the sobriquet they were proudest of: The Pacific Patrol. The only Team to operate in the aftermath of the Unmasking Massacre and the HUAC hearings, with The Patriot founding the Atomic Brigade as an unofficial extension of the team.

The Liberators soldiered on, defying the scoffs of critics and the cynical attitude of the times until the treachery of Moriarty sealed their fate.

Jack Simmons still drinks to their memory today.

The Allies of Freedom: Founded chiefly from the experienced superhuman survivors of three years of War, drawn from free nation and resistance movement, the Allies drew their strength from a steady membership, flair for unconventional metahuman tactics, from the treachery of the German Super-Soldiers and the folly of the German High Command, having an impact on the European Front far beyond what simple probability would dictate until the dark day of their deaths.

The team also became famous in certain circles for their close working relationship with Doc Aeon and his Fabulous Five, working with the good Doctor to curtail the unholy activities of the Count Reich and Schloss Blitz, amongst others, somehow able to cope with the occasional eccentricities of the Doctor’s band – Which may have something to do with an encounter with what Spitfire Jones obscurely described as “£!&&$^ pepper pots from hell.’

[Libra]

Charles, as always your thoughts are appreciated. I'll post more on each team's individual members as soon as I find myself able.

[Charles Phipps]

A bit of randomness for you guys.

Time Travel in Earth-627

Time travel is something that has a prominent role in the setting, arguably moreso than in most other costumed settings where the ultimate goal is usually to set history "back to the way it was meant to be." The questions about things like Alternate Realities, Changing the Course of History, and Paradox are things that aren't really too much of a concern. In the words of Doctor Aeon on how time travel works; It depends on what sort of time machine you use. Sometimes its possible to change the past, sometimes its not, and it all depends on what sort of equipment you use.

1. Doctor Tomorrow is the greatest expert on Time Travel that the human race will ever produce according to most (though he's put to shame by many Time Agents on Edenia). Part of this has to do with his absurd levels of education by certain powers. Having experienced the terrifying results of what exactly genuine temporal manipulation can do; he is an absolute linearist. Doctor Tomorrow believes tampering with the way time is MEANT to be is something so fundamentally evil that it can never be tolerated since it robs people of their free will and results in the obliteration of countless future generations (replacing them with different people). This is why he's only interested in affecting his own world in the "present" and refuses to go to the future of his world out of fear of being no longer able to affect it.

2. Doctor Aeon is the first human being to create a functional time machine (magical means of traveling through time existed beforehand). This is confusing given that the Time Traveler created one in the 19th century but this was probably Alexander Timons and thus his construction of it was something that resulted from his access to modernized technological theory. There's a bit of a paradox loop in Doctor Aeon being inspired by H.G. Wells encounters with the Time Traveller and the fact that Alexander used Doctor Aeon's own research with A. Einstein and N. Tesla to produce his crude device.

Doctor Aeon attracted the attention of Doctor Tomorrow almost instantaneously and was suitably chargined by the man's pointing out the dangers of its use. Nevertheless, the pair teamed up and actually thwarted agents of Zeitgeist from Doctor Tomorrow's world that hoped to create a new Reich on Earth-627 (viewing Superior's own world to be a Hellhole that had somehow strayed from Hitler's vision). Doctor Aeon would get a free pass from Doctor Tomorrow from that point on since his time travel experiments only allowed him to move to "holes" in time that were awaiting to be filled (i.e. Time Travel places where Doctor Aeon was 'destined' to be all along).

If Doctor Aeon is still alive, he's probably still in the past or the future somewhere (or in space).

3. Black Wing II: The ultimate scientist hero of the Heroic Earth and Iron Man-Batman equivalent of the lands, Black Wing genuinely *HATES* Doctor Tomorrow. This isn't a Guy Gardener-Hal Jordan dislike but mutual respect either. The two have actually tried to kill the other on occasion and their relationship is not likely to get any less frosty over the years. Fundamentally, Black Wing is a Non-Determinalist and views the world rather religiously (viewing souls as simply going to new vessels). Feeling that changes to the world that benefit humanity in the past are not things that kill anyone or deprive anyone of free will. This reckless attitude is somewhat born out in the fact he's made several changes to the timeline that Doctor Tomorrow was unable to reverse.

The nature of their loathing for one another effectively dates back to an incident involving Death Mask III, Black Wing's father (see 4#) where the villain successfully managed to alter the timeline. The resulting universe created a reality where the British Empire never fell and the American Revolution never occurred, covering the entire world in a Pan-Britainnia. The actual events of the adventure are a bit cryptic but Black Wing proved unwilling to make Kirk's choice (City on the Edge of Forever) after falling in love with a British Princess named Irenya (this reality's descendant of Sherlock Holmes, Irene Addler, and Prince Albert). Doctor Tomorrow made it for him and effectively murdered Black Wing's only actual wife (for a day or two or not).

The two are still fundamentally heroes and have cooperated against larger threats but the seething hatred felt by Black Wing is complimented by no small measure of guilt on the part of Doctor Tomorrow that he used to feel exactly like Alexander Timmons.

(Doctor Tomorrow is also at a bit of a loss at how to deal with Black Wing since the very history he struggles to protect says that Black Wing was a pioneering time traveler and explorer with incidents spread throughout linear history as well as paradoxial)

4. Death Mask III and Ultramind: The universe's most prolific temporal criminals. Death Mask's most evil action is undoubtedly the destruction of an entire world (and every single generation on it) that would eventually have prevented humanity's ascension to become the dominant power in the galaxy. The Chell. The Chell had been refugees from another timeline and Death Mask III made use of a weapon of Orkus to erase them from existence so thoroughly that not even Doctor Tomorrow can find trace of them.

Ultramind and Death Mask III have formed a loose partnership over the years that has benefitted both of them. While Death Mask III could never hope to approach Ultramind's swaths of knowledg; he's actually arguably more intelligent than the Droid since he can make logical leaps of deduction, invent things (as opposed to combine them in new ways), and comprehend human emotion on anything but the most basic levels. Ultramind still considers him little more than a talking monkey but has used Death Mask III's expertise in numerous schemes to dominate the universe and restore Mithran are enough to frighten the galaxy as a whole.

(Death Mask III has actually been put on trial by the galaxy for war crimes but Ultramind broke him out and most of the universe is just glad he's trapped on a galactic backwater)

So far, Ultramind has been thwarted at restoring Mithran by various factors, not the least being Death Mask III has no care whatsoever about the world but Death Mask III's own acts have achieved mixed results. It's a tense relationship, not the least reason being that Ultramind predicts their chances of success would increase drastically if they just retroactively murdered Black Wing II and/or destroyed humanity as a whole.

5. Temporal Agency: Effectively, a bit like the Star Knights. They are equipped with belts that allow them to travel through time and help guard the timeline. Doctor Tomorrow believes they're good people but would be HORRIFIED to discover they view linear time as a suggestion rather than an absolute rule (and have employed Black Wing several times precisely because of his rampant disregard for it---often dangling the carrot of the restoration of a loved one or other favor in front of him). They see no problem with small alterations in a controlled environment and have made large ones where the results didn't fit their masters view of the galaxy.

They cannot and do not play God with time but they do consider themselves its stewards. Sometimes, that requires a bit of pruning.

[Charles Phipps]

I rather imagine the dynamic between Sin and Temugin as similar to that of Redcloak and Xykon: Sin definately has devotion to his cause and a well thought-out plan for his version of Utopia - Unfortunately he's not had much success, in the short term at least. Still, he plans and works for the long term and is wise enough to recognise - and prize above all other virtues in his servants - true loyalty where he finds it.

A nice little complex problem between the fundamentals of Lawful vs. Chaotic Evil. I've always felt that Temugin was the Shang Tsung meets the Mandarin of the setting while Doctor Sin was your typical Fu Manchu/Doctor Zinn type. The later has a rude sense of honor while the former is glorious in his depravity and ambition.

(I once had an adventure hook that basically did the Mortal Kombat thing where the Iron Khan bowed before Orkus just long enough to try and steal his power)

Aquarius had decided that if the democratic nations of the surface would not be made to recognise him by use of peaceful diplomatic means, then he would have to make a dramatic example, demonstrating the power his nation wielded to the World.

A wonderful and hilarious story that ends with the ripping off of a mustache and makes both Aquaman and Namor's equivalent look good in the end. It's also an excellent homage to Namor's early status as a villain.

Now, regarding the Golden Age write-up, absolutely wonderful bits there. I'll answer them piece by piece out of affection for all you've written.

(The former was a small joke between the League and the Liberty-Men, each referring to the other so, due to the well-publicized nature of their exploits and referring to the rareness of their meetings. The latter is simply a name picked out of newspaper article by Lady Liberty, reflecting the fact that the Liberators tended to operate most openly in the Pacific theatre, preferring covert and behind-the-lines operations in Europe, where the Allies of Freedom functioned as an overt battlefront team and Axis supermen were more numerous - and powerful.)

Nice resolution of the similiarity of their names.

Dr Tomorrow recruited most heavily in Freedom City due to the fact that what records of the period had survived in his world showed that while the heroes of Freedom City were in many cases just as - if not more - powerful than the Axis supermen on an individual level, they had never united and seldom operated outside of their city, a priceless resource untapped. It did not escape his notice that the Phantom League’s hold on the City was never strong, due to the superabundance of costumed criminals and the chaos they caused in it's underworld, meaning James Moriarty II was far less likely to interfere or take interest in the business of the League, a factor Tom suspected lay behind a number of the Liberty-Men and Liberators' woes.

Very true. James Moriarty II was a man who dealt badly with the concept behind Mystery Men. He tended to work against them through intermediaries to prevent himself from being implicated and only allowed himself to be drawn out once (resulting in his death). His son, by that time, had already a respectable career as a military officer. I also have always felt that the Moriarty bloodline got more evil with each generation until the sudden reversal with Alex.

The team maintained friendly relations with the Liberty-Men, probably closer than their successors ever will be, particularly after the War, but seldom met. They faced much the same problems, although to a lesser degree and it’s a well-known fact that both teams – their more gregarious members, at least – would meet for Thanksgiving dinner every year after 1945 until the retirement of the Liberty-Men.

Nice touch here. Very Golden Age treatment of superheroes as a sort of extended family.

The unmasking massacre did not directly affect most of the heroes of Freedom City. Given that the team had been at least partially aware of infiltration of the US Government by agents of an alien power since 1951 and its unpleasant experiences with the consequences, it is little surprise that the Liberty League decided that while the American Way was worth fighting and dieing for, there were certain things better kept a secret, even from the American Government.

In one of my few crossover elements, I used Jack Simmon's testimony at the HUAC as a controversial portion of the man's history. In this respect; its something that worked poorly for the McCarthy-era individuals since he gave the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. It resulted in a lot of problems since even attempts to lead his testimony kept coming back to the fundamental fact "No, I don't actually think any of them are communists."

It's why history often attempts to depict Jack in a bad light (aided by Shadow) while his allies were more forgiving.

The Liberty-Men: Founded before the Liberty League and just as renowned during the Golden Age, but handicapped by a lesser degree of Government Approval – given the decidedly non-American origin of many of its members – as well as the malicious scrutiny and treacherous subtleties of the future Death Mask. Lacking Doctor Tomorrows special ‘sources’ this team still managed to serve its country and the World with a record of distinguished success second to no-one. (Although the Liberty League did equal them in terms of power and sheer impact.)

Excellent analysis of the situation presented. I always had the idea that Doctor Tomorrow's version of the Liberty League was almost uniformly killed off during the war. Doctor Tomorrow's defeat of the bad guys in numerous places, resulted in them managing to survive. Ironically, I also ruled (my Tomorrow being more ambiguous) that he knew of James Moriarty III's treachery and let him go on with it because PHANTOM genuinely contributed to the end of the war. It's something he still bitterly regrets not doing (despite his devotion to linear time)

Despite this they served with distinction in all Theatres of War, from the Pacific to the Atlantic, generally operating behind the enemy lines or on the battlefronts seldom seen by Capes, including brief stints on the Eastern Front during the desperate days of the Battle for Stalingrad – Although that battle was won by mortal men and the city never saw them, the Liberators helped out by temporarily assuming the commitments of their Soviet counterparts, the People’s Heroes, so that the latter could be concentrated in the City by the Volga.

Two characters named after heroes from my Novels (The Machines Unbound series), Thomas Duvalle and James Brody were the only Liberators to ever get any real write-ups. Thomas being a two fisted Pulp Hero/Engineer/Pilot ala Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon (and not at all stupid---he just was dwarfed by his partner) and James being the world's greatest mind after Doctor Aeon and a few others. Neither had powers but contributed greatly to the war's conclusion due to the fact that they were both individuals with incredible heart.

It was also another quirk that James Brody was a pseudonym, given he was Japanese-American. James, of course, never participated in the Pacific Theatre (or rarely did---he was targeted several times by the Imperial Japanese for being a race traitor only to usually thoroughly humiliate them) and the discovery of the internment sent him to Japan to help in the rebuilding and studying Atomic Weaponry (which felt partially responsible for). Thomas ended up a teacher at Princeton but eventually married James' sister and moved to Japan with them.

I ran a short adventure with the two investigating the murder of the Allies of Freedom. It was a running gag that James and Thomas were unwittingly developing mecha the entire time the player characters followed them around ("How about a Tank with Legs?")

In the merged universe, Doctor Otaku is actually the wayward grandson of Doctor Brody's clan of Japanese super heroes (reverted to its original Japanese name of Solo). Responsible for fighting Kajui, building Organic Battle suits, and general wackiness ala the Atom family.

They were the only two Liberators to survive.

So, Bravo.

Looking forward to your write-ups.

[Libra]

I've always felt that Temugin was the Shang Tsung meets the Mandarin of the setting while Doctor Sin was your typical Fu Manchu/Doctor Zinn type.

Add a bit of Ra's Al-Ghul to the latter and that sounds about right.

A wonderful and hilarious story that ends with the ripping off of a mustache and makes both Aquaman and Namor's equivalent look good in the end. It's also an excellent homage to Namor's early status as a villain.

Thank you. After all the pleasure reading your work has given me I'm glad to pay you back a little.

I may post more on the feud later.

Now, regarding the Golden Age write-up, absolutely wonderful bits there.

Thank you. Please see above.

Excellent analysis of the situation presented. I always had the idea that Doctor Tomorrow's version of the Liberty League was almost uniformly killed off during the war. Doctor Tomorrow's defeat of the bad guys in numerous places, resulted in them managing to survive.

I actualy had a slightyl different idea regarding the Liberty-Men on Erde, but I'll get into that when I type up my ideas on 627-Tom.

[Libra]

Allies of Freedom

The Human Tank: Famous for his habit of playing Big Brother to all of the Allies of Freedom and just about every single ally they ever made, Hank got along fairly well with just about every hero they met.

His friendship with the first Steel Commando is the best-known, however, as the two fought together supremely well on several occasions and Hank Griffin – Along with his brother and sidekick Gunner – was Godfather to Jack Washington Jr. (As Hank put it “One Godfather to get you into trouble, little Jack, one to get you out of it”). He often remarked that Jack Washington (snr) reminded him a lot of his late Brother-in-Law, Doctor Michael Maclain.

Gunner: The Firepower Kid became a close friend of Michael Morris during the War, the two bonding over a shared love of Westerns and sharp shooting tricks. He was also fascinated by Alexander Timmons' tales of the future. Cheerfully oblivious of Timmons attempts to maintain a certain emotional distance, the two became friendly acquaintances, Gunner swore that he’d look Alex up when the Time Traveller got back to his own period, if he had to tattoo notes onto his arm to remind himself.

Blackwing II still makes a habit of watching Stagecoach on the day of Tommy’s Birthday, every year.

Lady Celtic: It’s known that Cynthia Van Helsing was fairly friendly with Lady Amanda and the deduction of Adrian Eldrich that if anyone knew where her tattoos had been invested, Cynthia would, given her ‘family connections.’ It was also common knowledge that Lady Celtic and Jet-Boy detested each other, despite – or perhaps because of - some prior acquaintance. Amanda described him as ‘Flying Officer Jones, with the entirety of his ego and half of the grotesque charm.’

Amanda Phipps-Gordon also met Merlin the Magician three times during the War. The first time was in 1938, shortly after she’d been forced to kill her former fiancé. The mage had shown up just after she’d cast the Blackthorn torc into that Scottish Bog. He listened to her tale with only the vaguest interest apparent, laughed at her fondness for the tales of King Arthur – subject of some of her fondest childhood memories and of some comfort in the aftermath of recent events – displayed his magic in various petty ways, dismissed her mystical abilities as ‘pretty petty by comparison’ and attempted to seduce her, in no particular order. He signally failed to live up to her expectations of a great sorcerer, but she kept her peace, a true Lady.

The second time they met was in London, in late 1942. Merlin had arrived in England after a brief sojourn on the continent, raving mad, howling that the English were ‘Just more God- Germans!’ and tearing up just about every part of the city that he could reach. The Allies of Freedom were called in to stop him from causing more mayhem.

Amanda, the newly-wed Mrs Griffin, was with them and utterly out of her depth against the Mad, Ancient wizard. It was only Adrian Eldrich’s intervention, taking the opportunity of Merlin’s ranting challenges to invoke the Judgement of the Modrossus, which threw Merlin down so hard he bounced back into sanity.

Even then the only answer for his conduct Merlin offered was that he’d ‘heard about Auschwitz and had enough of Humanity for a while’. He then disappeared, without pausing to fix the damage he’d caused. As Amanda turned her attention back to helping the wounded she firmly resolved to try knocking some sense into him next time.

Their third meeting occurred in 1945, again in London. Amanda had been attempting to stop the chaos unleashed in the Underground by one of the experimental Nazi V-I66 rockets (An occult weapon designed to open a gateway to the Inferno where it landed, created using hideous rites, thankfully supremely rare and only this one ever functioned even partially as intended.)

Distracted by the need to help those unfortunates who had been stuck in the section of tunnels where the bomb impacted and handicapped by her lack of knowledge of the rocket’s secrets. Then Merlin showed up, racing straight past her with an intent look on his face and a young woman trailing him.

A little under ten minutes later he came back, without the girl, expressionless. He was about to carelessly brush through the field hospital and make his own way out, when Amanda stopped him – and delivered the filibuster she had been aching to deliver for quite a while. She lambasted him for his carelessness, lack of humanity and callous refusal to help those in need, infuriated to the point of slander. Merlin, proud, heedless Merlin, simply stood there and listened meekly, then turned back to assist where he could. He then left without a word. One week later Lady Celtic was dead.

‘Spitfire’ Jones: It surprises no-one that Spitfire Jones and Cody Wilcox were well-acquainted with one another, given that both were contemporaries and flew Spitfires; even less of a surprise – given the egos involved - is the fact that they were near-pathological rivals. Somewhat surprising is the fact that they were actually friends.

Service legend in the RAF maintains that this friendship began with an incident that involved Jones, Wilcox, a lit cigar, an unbelievable drink made from apples – well, mostly apples – the toupee of an unfortunate Group Captain who happened to be passing, two spitfires and the daughters of at least three senior personnel, but the particulars remain obscure. Or perhaps due merely to the fact that they served in the same squadron and tended to frequent the same pubs, boxing matches and bedrooms – although seldom at the same time in the latter.

It is known that Jones did Wilfrith Codrington Wilcox the service of rechristening him ‘Wild Will Cody’ and that 'Cody' – who refused to answer to any other name thereafter – dubbed Jones ‘Spitfire.’

This close friendship and intense rivalry was temporarily interrupted when, as Lady Amanda Phipps-Gordon put it “Codrington was removed from the Royal Air Force when it was discovered that service could accommodate either Jones or Wilcox with some effort, but that they were woefully under-equipped to service both egos and their attached persons’ but resumed during World War II with some rather unbelievable feats of daring-do and daring-don’t-if-you-value-your-life, in addition to feats of spectacular amatory dexterity.

Jones' recounting of the duos trip to Paris with Gunner on the occasion of his seventeenth birthday was known to reduce the Human Tank to apoplexy and lesser lotharios to speechlessness. Only read the account in their biographies if there are no women or non-pregnant women in the room (or unless you wish to change the status of the latter.)

It’s interesting to note that the only woman Spitfire Jones never attempted to seduce was Jenny Sprockets. As Jones put it “I’m worried she may say ‘Yes.’ A superhumanly strong overenthusiastic innocent might do me irreparable harm. I think I’ll try Milady Athena. I like ‘em haughty and she looks as if she’ll give me a chase. I do hope she catches me.”

La Reynard: Amelie Dutemps tended to get along fairly well with most costumed superhumans on the Allied side, due to a well-hidden love of theatricality and spectacle, although she tended to give short shrift to more pacifistic individuals. As far as she was concerned Les Loups Boche deserved only one fate. Her relations with Doctor Aeon were somewhat strained as a result, but she was very friendly with Cynthia Van Helsing and – joined by White Rose – actually allowed herself to relax, slightly. She even got on tolerably well with Alex Timmons – Once she persuaded him of her disinterest in his amatory prowess.

As two of the most famous leaders of French Resistance cells and costumed heroes, it’s no surprise that Amelie and Jolly Roger were aware of each other and on particularly cordial terms, although due to their different areas of operation (As Jolly Roger put it: “We have the Nazis beaten between us on Land and Under Sea. If only we could find Robur the Conqueror we would win the War in a day”) the two rarely met before La Reynard joined the Allies of Freedom.

The two got on quite well and Amelie was even rather charmed by his swashbuckling – As she put it he was “The charming Spitfire Jones.” Jolly Roger’s Nautilus was the Allies' usual transport for discrete coastal missions behind-the-lines and could generally be relied upon to do rather more than merely transport.

Indeed Jolly Roger was the only other costumed hero present in or near Normandy when the Allies of Freedom arrived (after their distraction raids on German holding near Calais) to aid Allied forces in the Battle of the Hedgerows.

(It should be noted that due to circumstance and official policy no super humans were present on D-Day itself since High Command’s efforts at misdirection would have suffered a body-blow if highly-visible and brightly-garbed super humans were spotted in the wrong area of Southern England. The Allies of Freedom and other super humans had therefore been sent on a series of raids intended to distract and harass the enemy.)

A persistent and colourful legend that the dashing “Chevalier of the Crashing Waves” proposed to, and was refused by, Madamoiselle DuTemps at least three times are entirely untrue. He proposed six times – not seven. That one was at least half a joke.

After the War, he visited her grave just once, taking all his children. He said that he wanted them to meet the greatest French Superhero of the Second World War.

White Rose and White Thorn: It’s well-known that Wolgang was almost pathologically suspicious and that Sophie Shaal was the more gregarious of the twins by far. There's small surprise then, in the fact that Sophie was happy to work with Doc Aeon’s band, despite the curmudgeonly nature of Boxer and Cody Wilcox’s Attitude.

Wolfgang was, as always less than cordial. Jet Boy’s excessive efforts to bed his sister infuriated him and when Wilcox made several remarks about the habits of ‘Huns’ Wolfgang decided that enough was enough. Neither enjoyed the result and remained as far from each other as possible for the remainder of the War.

Despite this ‘disagreement’ both twins got on well with the remaining members of the Fabulous Five, particularly Cynthia Van Helsing, since they had worked with the Van Helsing family before – and during – the War, the powers of the Light Bearers complimenting the very human skills of the famous Vampire-Slayers, resulting in considerable casualties amongst the Nosferatu. Another, more prosaic, reason for their close working relationship was that both Shaal twins missed being able to converse with friends in German, rather than merely interrogate or deceive enemies.

On the rare occasions that the Allies of Freedom worked with the Liberty-Men relatively few of the latter were more than courteous to the twins. Somewhat surprisingly the major exception to the rule was Ink Spot.

While initially suspicious of the man, due to his shadow-manipulating abilities Wolfgang took to him with astonishing speed, not least because he greeted them in accented but courteous German and refrained from attempting to seduce his sister – a monotonously regular occurrence.

Sophie herself felt somewhat uncomfortable with Ink Spot's shadow-manipulation abilities, but became quite close to Jenny Sprockets, each recognising each other as surprisingly like-minded, despite their differences. The Twins became quite close to the young couple, with White Rose invited by Jenny - semi-humerously - to act as bridesmaid at any future wedding of hers.

This friendship was sadly brief, given the well-known tragedy of the Allies’ Last Day, but close, none-the-less. George remembered them fondly to his dieing day, living proof that the Nazi Party ruled Germany it could not rule the hearts of the truly Good. Jenny insists that her Grandchildren accompany her to Lourdes, to the memorial of the Allies of Freedom, so that they can hear the tale of the greatest German superheroes.

Sergeant Shrapnel: The first encounter between Monk and Tony Gorman began with a fistfight – ‘ta sort out what was what’ - and ended with a discussion of the varying merits of the Rolls-Royce Merlin engine, motervehicles and the explosive properties of the kinetically-charged common watch amongst other, less prosaic, topics. This was to be the first of several meetings between the two, each appreciating the others no-bull attitude, fondness for real beer and fascination with mechanics, meetings which generally ended in evenings of light discussion, serious spirits (usually in a tall glass) and serious drinking.