Chapter Sixteen
AND JUSTICE FOR ALL
Speeding over the Pacific Ocean, halfway to the island closest to the one they had just escaped, Annette Rosenberg started to scream.
It was so loud, Warden initially thought it was audible, but it wasn’t. It was a hopeless, weary, ceaseless wail that vibrated in the center of his brain, and neither wavered nor stopped, having no need to pause for breath. It just continued to resonate and build.
Warden still reflexively covered his ears. He knew Mentalon could block it out, but he could not.
What was wrong? Had he failed? Had she suddenly relapsed? Why was she screaming? Then Warden noticed that Archie, still carrying them both, was not stirring in the slightest. How was that possible in the face of this mental onslaught? How...?
Warden leaned his head against the Red Knight’s chest and closed his eyes. The scream eventually faded. He didn’t care.
A few minutes later, the Red Knight with its precious cargo touched down on an empty beach, waves crashing nearby under a bright afternoon sun. As soon as it landed, the Red Knight’s arms released Annette and Warden, who both slid down limply to the warm, white sand. Its last mission completed, the Red Knight armor--New Genesis technology melded with human magic--fell backward onto the beach and resumed its age-old slumber.
Warden sat in the sand and stared at the unmoving armor. Annette crawled over to the Red Knight’s side.
Annette reached down and uncoupled the releases at the base of the Red Knight’s helmet. Its linkages hissed and Annette carefully lifted the helmet off, its normal crimson shine now scorched and blackened and dulled. She looked down at Archie’s face and Warden heard her sharp intake of breath.
Eyes shining, Annette gently stroked the thin strands of gray hair that were nowhere to be found in her clear memories of Archie, now nearly a decade out of date. His hair was matted with blood. The right side of his faced was bruised, cracked and burned; his green eyes stared up at the sky and floated in whites that were now a deep red.
Annette bent forward and buried her head near Archie’s still face for several long, quiet moments. Warden could feel the grief radiating from the woman; it cut like a blade in his stomach. It was also familiar, very much like the despair he’d found in her mind.
Warden worried for the spark of hope he had recently, only so very recently, helped Annette to rekindle.
A single, sharp sob broke the silence. Annette then sat up. She took a deep breath. Her eyes were red and tears ran down her cheeks, but her expression was tightly composed and impassive. Her breathing was still ragged. Suddenly she tilted her head to the left, as if hearing or sensing something. She looked back down at Archie and her lip trembled briefly before again turning to stone. She slowly swept her hand down over his face, closing Archie’s eyes. She then replaced the Red Knight’s helmet and locked it back into place. Annette continued to sit by him, completely motionless, staring straight ahead.
A few moments later, Warden heard the distinct hum of JLA flight cycles over the surf. They must have heard Annette’s scream. Soon, all of them--Blue Beetle, Zero Man, Genni-Cide, Titan, The Joker, Harley Quinn, and The Amazing Ghost Fighter--were standing in sullen, stunned silence beside Warden. They had all come as fast as they could, fighting almost every step of the way. Legion had declared martial law and deployed squadrons of Sentinels all over America just to keep the rest of the JLA busy during the assault on the island. There was nothing more they could have done. In the days that followed, some of them would realize this and accept it.
Some of them would not.
Annette stood up and turned to them. The tears were gone now. Her face showed only stark determination, her dark eyes piercing. Aside from Blue Beetle, these people were unknown to her, but that didn’t matter. Just from their expressions and their bearing, she knew who they were. She wondered if they still called themselves the JSA.
“Annette?” Blue Beetle started, concerned.
She walked towards them. Searing flashes of the recent battle suddenly appeared in each of their minds--moments that had been caught by Annette from the scattering embers of Archie’s final thoughts: The implacable Sentinels firing again and again.... the cackling of the American Knight as he dove in for the kill.... the black smoke rising.... After this painful montage came Annette’s wordless voice. The members of the JLA didn’t hear it; they felt it. It was steel: Sharp, powerful and terribly cold.
Whoever did this is going to suffer for it.
And as the chill of those words faded from Warden’s mind, he thought he could make out--just for a second--the faint echo of a deep, guttural chuckle.
Chapter Seventeen: “Give Me Liberty”
The Sentinel
rocketed into the heart of the Washington. The impact was like a bomb going
off. The entire city shook.