#17
"The Darkness Revived": Part Three

By Barry Reese

Mon-El walked through the corridors of the Legion's HQ, his heart filled with dread. Only moments before, he'd been in Eclipso's citadel on the moon, engaged in a horrific battle that had nearly resulted in Mon-El's mental and spiritual enslavement. If it hadn't been for Tia Novros' turning against Eclipso, in fact, Mon-El would never have prevailed.

Lar stopped outside the suite he shared with Tasmia, hesitating slightly. The door was ajar, with a thin streak of light coming from the cracked opening. "Shady? You in there?"

The room was empty, though a small box lay opened on the floor. A note lay beside it, allegedly from Lar himself -- only he had never sent this particular gift. Eclipso had.

The black diamonds that Eclipso used were powered by rage and anger. As long as Tasmia didn't succumb to those dark emotions, she should be fine -- unfortunately, she was prone to fits of anger and irritation.

Mon-El crushed the box into a fine powder before streaking through the halls at superspeed. He whisked past Lightning Lass and Wildfire, who were chatting about some bit of Legion business. Both of them were nearly knocked off their feet by the gust of wind, but Lar didn't feel any regret for it -- his mind was awash in the kind of horror that only parents and lovers can feel. The woman who gave his life meaning was in danger and he felt completely helpless.

The Daxamite came to a sudden stop in the team's command center, where Colossal Boy was about to turn over his duty as monitor to the incoming White Witch. The pale sorceress blinked in surprise at Mon-El, though her features quickly displayed her concern as she sensed his distress. "Mon-El! Is something wrong?"

"Have either of you seen Shady? Did she tell anyone where she was going?"

Gim shook his head. "No... But I can try and reach her on her Legion communicator. What's up?"

"Just do it -- hurry!"

Mysa, the White Witch, was already using Computo to try and locate Shadow Lass. "We've got a lock, but she's not responding." She turned to look at her teammate. "Should I put the team on alert?"

Mon-El started to say no, to shoulder this responsibility on his own. But that was the kind of thinking that had led him into Eclipso's clutches twice before -- and this time, Mon-El was going to learn from his mistakes. "Send a strike force to her coordinates. I'll meet them there. And make sure that Dirk is with them."

"Will do," Colossal Boy promised.

With a whoosh of air, Mon-El was gone.

Tasmia Mallor stood atop the Grell Building, staring out at the teeming masses of the city. The weather grid for today allowed for somewhat gusty winds, sending her cloak flapping in the breeze. Almost indiscernible on her face, a crescent half-moon obscured her features. The demonic Eclipso looked out at the world through Tasmia's eyes, feeling the soft beginnings of new life in her womb.

Eclipso, using Tasmia's mouth, smiled eagerly. He was without a physical form now, his own having been long since destroyed -- he existed at the moment only as a bodiless wraith capable of enjoying the fruits of his hosts... but all that could change. All it would take is time, time spent slowly extending the tendrils of his mind down into the unborn child of Tasmia and Lar Gand. When she gave birth, it would not be to a child of two great heroes -- it would be to the dark lord of vengeance, Eclipso!

In a body capable of handling both the shadow-wielding forces of Talok's champion and the sheer might of the Daxamite people, Eclipso would be unstoppable!

But gaining time meant avoiding Mon-El's grasp. That would mean delaying Eclipso's revenge, but that would be a small price to pay for unlimited power.

Using her Legion Flight Ring, Eclipso lifted off into the air and made her way towards the Giffen Spaceport. She didn't make it far, however, as an energy blast suddenly struck her hard in the side. The blow made her dip suddenly, but she was able to regain her momentum quickly enough. With a snarl on her lips, she turned to face a trio of Legionnaires: Wildfire, Dawnstar and Blok.

"Wildfire! Please be careful -- there's no need for such force!"

Drake Burroughs, the energy being known as Wildfire, shook his head. "Can't afford to be gentle, Dawny. That's Eclipso in there, remember?"

The argument between lovers was interrupted as Eclipso used Tasmia's shadow powers to surround both of them in darkness. "You'd do well to remember Dawnstar's warning, Wildfire -- If you harm me, you'll risk hurting your friend... and her baby!"

Blok's rocky features betrayed little, but the surprise was evident in his voice. "Tasmia... is with... child?"

"That's right... and you wouldn't want to do anything to hurt the child, now would you?" Eclipso's rage and fury had transformed Tasmia's beauty into something cold and terrible. Her face was a twisted reflection of the demon buried within her.

"You're even worse than I thought, Eclipso. This is how you defend yourself, by hiding behind a pregnant woman?" Mon-El's voice, tinged with an almost maddening rage, echoed through the air. He rushed past Wildfire and Dawnstar, who were slowly freeing themselves from the shroud of darkness and wrapped one powerful hand around Tasmia's midsection. Being careful not to harm her, he caught her wrists and held her tight.

Eclipso struggled to no avail. "Unhand me! If you don't, I swear I'll destroy this woman. I swear it!"

Mon-El's expression never changed. For the first time in this whole horrible affair, he felt like he held all the cards. "You don't scare me anymore, Eclipso. You're nothing but a second-rate supervillain who screams and cries for attention. But you know what? You don't understand something that's fundamental to why the Legion always wins... We care. We love. And I won't stand by one minute more while my Shady's body is fouled by the likes of you. Are you ready, Sun Boy?"

The fiery hero flew into view, having stayed out of sight until now. Dirk Morgna contained the powers of the sun itself, with all its incredible abilities. Now he flew towards two people he cared about with all his heart. He was sometimes thought of as an unfeeling cad, too busy chasing after women to form close attachments. Those who said such things sold him short, however. For there were few men with as much as courage and determination as Dirk Morgna.

Sun Boy hesitated in the air nearby, ignoring the crowd of onlookers that was forming below. "You sure about this, Mon?"

Mon-El nodded quickly. "Do it!"

Eclipso let out a squeal. "What are you doing? You could kill her! You could kill your own child!"

Mon-El looked into the eyes of his lover, seeing only the hateful glare of his enemy. "I love you with all my heart, Shady. I hope you can hear that... but I know you'd agree with me on this. You wouldn't want to live out your life as a slave for Eclipso. And the same goes for our baby."

The sudden look of fear in Eclipso's features made it quite clear that he believed Mon-El's words. He looked back at Sun Boy, who was glowing brighter and brighter. "No! Noooooooooo!"

LEGION HEADQUARTERS, FOUR HOURS LATER

Tasmia stirred, her entire body aching. Cooling gel-pads covered much of her exposed flesh, including her face. For a moment, she felt sheer panic, wondering where she was and which of the Legion's many enemies had captured her.

But then she placed her surroundings -- the medical bay of the Legion's headquarters -- and heard the sweet voice of Lar Gand. "Shady?"

She looked towards the doorway, seeing the concern in his features. He was handsome, with an innate nobility that had melted her heart from the first. "What happened? The last thing I remember was getting a locket...."

Lar moved across the room quickly, embracing her gently, being careful not to reopen her wounds. "Shh. It doesn't matter. We're going to have a baby."

Tasmia paused for a minute as strange images passed through her mind's eye. She remembered being in Lar's arms... and staring up into the sun. It had been so bright that it had burned her, but it had also freed her -- from what? Slowly, a smile spread over her face as his words sank in. "Yeah, we are, aren't we?"

He held her tighter then, forgetting about her pain. She didn't cry out, however, as he felt something so confusing and worrisome that it pushed thoughts of her discomfort from her mind. Her shoulder felt wet and she realized that Lar was crying. "It'll be okay... Is this about our baby?"

Lar drew back, his eyes shining. "I thought I was going to lose you. And the baby. Grife, I'm going to be a daddy!"

Tasmia laughed softly, the kind of knowing laugh that's shared only between lovers. "You're going to be a great one, Lar. A really, really great one. And our baby's going to do great things... I can feel it."

Mon-El squeezed her hand and nodded. "Me too. Me too."

A GUIDE TO 30TH CENTURY HEROES, CHAPTER 14. PUBLISHED 3050.

"...the actual Eclipso incident was considered relatively minor at the time of its occurence. After all, the Legion routinely handled crises that spanned multiple worlds and even multiple timelines. The resurrection of an old 20th Century supervillain who was defeated rather quickly was hardly the stuff of legend.

Or so they thought.

The tragedy of what would later occur would haunt many of the Legionnaires in the days to come, as their easy victory was revealed to have unforeseen consequences. Eclipso's deceitful hiding place would not be revealed for years to come, but when it came to light the horror nearly destroyed the hero known as Mon-El.

After all, how does one accept that his own son was murdered in the womb and replaced by your arch-enemy?

Next Issue: Derrick Ferguson returns to the title, guiding Mon-El to greater adventures than ever before!

AUTHOR'S NOTES

Well, that wraps it up. It's been a fun three issues, though I'll be the first to say that only Derrick can truly do justice to the character. This last issue in particular was a hard one for me, as I suffered through mental blocks the size of the Great Wall of China.

I want to thank Derrick for trusting me with this storyline and I'd also like to throw some props to Tim Hartin, who continues to green light the sometimes crazy ideas I have. He's either a great friend or someone in great need of mental care -- I'm not sure which. ;-)

[ maybe a bit of both ;-) ---DCL Guy ]

Next issue sees the return of Derrick to the series. If you liked my work here, please check out some of my other DCL writings, including Justice Squadron #1-18, Tales of the Green Lantern Corps #1-3, and scattered issues of The Brave and the Bold.

See you in the funny pages,

Barry Reese