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“Sensei Agawa?”

The young woman looked like she was still in high school but Wendy was used to that. She’d be far from the first young woman to want to know how to defend herself before heading to college.

“Yes. Wendy Agawa.” She shook the woman’s hand.

“Lisa Wellman. Pleased to meet you.”

“How can I help you, Lisa? Are you looking for a self-defense class?”

“No. Well, maybe. Not for me. But …”

Wendy walked over to the counter and grabbed a schedule.

“This is our –“

“I’m not here for me, Sensei. I’m here for my grampers. And he needs more than a self-defense class.”

“What’s he looking for?”

“Private lessons. With you.”

“Is your grandfather in some kind of trouble?”

Lisa laughed. “I’m … not really sure how to answer that.”

“If he’s being harassed or abused there are –“

“No! It’s nothing like that.”

“Then I don’t understand. And, honestly, I don’t usually give private lessons.”

“I get it. I do. But this is a special situation.” Wendy looked at her. “OK, I wasn’t supposed to show you this unless I needed to.” She reached into her purse and pulled out her phone. “If I show you something, do you promise to keep it a secret? It’s not illegal or anything, just … confidential.”

Wendy was somewhere between curiosity and irritation but this pushed it a little closer to curiosity. “Sure, Lisa. I can keep a secret.”

Lisa smiled and spoke into her phone. “Date night footage, AEGIS feed, do-not-tell-Mom protocol.” Wendy wasn’t sure what all that meant but she knew what AEGIS was. Lisa handed her the phone and she took it.

The screen showed a street with an SUV on its side. Behind it, she recognized two of the new Storm Breakers – Portal and Khione – and an old man in a suit. He was pushing them through a glowing purple … hole, was the only way to describe it. And then the SUV exploded.

Wendy gasped and looked at Lisa. Lisa smiled at her and pointed to the phone.

When the flames subsided. The old man was still there, standing up, but shrugging the burning tatters of his shirt off. Then he turned and looked at someone the camera wasn’t catching and yelled,

“Really?”

Wendy handed the phone back.

“Your grandfather is …?”

“Bulwark. Yes”

“So the old man thing isn’t a shtick?”

“No. He’s eighty-three.”

“And he still wants to … This isn’t a recapture my youth thing, is it?”

“No. Well, I don’t know. Maybe. But he’s got these … abilities now and feels like he needs to do something with them to make a difference and it’s not like he isn’t capable. He’s really, really tough. And he doesn’t need his walker anymore. And his teeth are growing back. I think he might be starting to get younger, which would be great but how do we explain that to Mom?” She took a deep breath and blew it out slowly. “Sorry, I’m rambling.”

“It’s fine. What exactly does he want from lessons with me?”

“Well, Grampers hasn’t thrown a punch since he was in Vietnam …”

Leifandi

Leifandi exists in a parallel reality adjacent to Earth Prime, and though connections to the dimension are rare, they do occur as natural phenomena occasionally, though direct breach of the walls of reality is the usual method of transit between the two. There have been few visitors from other dimensions to Leifandi, and of those the most notable is Dr. Atom from Earth Prime. The planet is a near analogue of Earth, with oceans, forests, lakes, vast plains, and arctic areas, though there are no deserts. The most striking difference between the two, however, is the various array of crystalline formations that lay across the landscapes, sometimes entwined with the local flora itself. These crystalline formations are generally made up of gemstone-like material, with one major difference; these formations have some form of consciousness and sentience, with the ability to lend their innate power to the people of Leifandi most in touch with the planet’s mystical energy.

The People of Leifandi

Those who call Leifandi home are multiple and varied. The most human like are the ones are referred to as Leifandians. Their forms are as varied as other humans, though natural hair colorations can tend to hew towards the colors of gemstones, with dark greens and light blues being the most common. The most striking difference between a Leifandian and a human is their eyes; while a humans iris’ are round, a Leifandian’s are subtly faceted like a cut gemstone, only truly discernable up close. It is speculated that the facets are due to the crystalline structures that dot their planet, a melding of the two dominant life forms of the planet. Though some other theories exist, they are generally not held to have any basis in reality. Not all of the Leifandians are able to connect to the planet’s mystical energy, but those that are create a bond with one crystalline structure, allowing them access to the energy it represents and the ability to manifest it. The ability to wield Gem Magic is seen as a high honor, and those who can are usually destined for great things. It is quite rare for a Leifandian to be able to bond to more than one type of crystal; only certain individuals, like the Master Mage of the dimension, have ever been known to wield more than three, though history does tell of one who had mastery of nearly a half dozen or more. However, an individual capable of that type of control has not been seen on Leifandi in several centuries, if not longer.

Next are the Crystalloids, creatures of crystal who roam the planets surface and tend to the various flora entwined with the crystalline formations along with those formations who stand apart. Not much is known about these creatures; some speculate that they are some offshoot of the crystalline formations themselves, a sort of progeny, while others believe that they are a younger version of the crystalline formations, experiencing Leifandi before eventually settling in to be one with the planet. They vary greatly in height and color; imposing figures made of greens and blacks or smaller, nimbler figures of orange, yellow or blue. One thing is clear however; these beings share some connection to the crystal formations, and history has various accounts of them being fiercely protective of the crystal formations and any flora they intermingled with. There have been interactions between these beings and those Leifandians who can connect to the planet’s mystical energies, but there is no recorded history of these beings ever speaking in any sense of the word.

And finally, the crystalline formations themselves. As stated, they share some connection to everything that exists within the planet, often intertwined with local flora. However, outside of the knowledge that these formations have some form of sentience and a connection to the mystical energy of the planet, little is truly known about them.

Leifandian History

In the earliest eras of Leifandi, there was conflict, much as it is with other worlds. Conflict between the Leifandians and the Crystalloids, as the Leifandians sought to move beyond their nomadic lifestyles and begin to settle in larger and larger encampments. The early Leifandians may not have known the connection the Crystalloids shared with the crystalline formations, only knowing that the flora that was melded with the formations made for sturdier construction materials for shelters. These early conflicts led to the discovery of Gem Magic, and it was through this discovery that an understanding between the two was founded. The first Leifandian Master Mage (for it is not known if there was a Crystalloid or crystal formation that held that title before it was passed to the Leifandians) oversaw the foundation of cities and villages in harmony with the land itself, able to draw out both the necessary materials and the energy by which these settlements could begin to build around.

Once the cities and villages were established, there was an era of general peace, as the Leifandians grew to understand their connection to the planet’s mystical energy and the crystalline formations themselves. It was not without its periods of upheaval, however, as there are almost always individuals who wish to garner more than what they have. During one of these periods, it was noted that the overuse of crystal magic had a horrible side effect; if a Leifandian mage drew too much energy from their bonded crystal without its consent, the formation would explode into splinters, and if those splinters affixed themselves to any Leifandian or Crystalloid without the force of will to resist they were drained of something, be it life force or something similar, causing them to become devoid of all reason and feeling. For those who could resist the splinter’s effects, they found they could control those who had become Soulless, and used them to attempt to wrest Leifandian society for themselves. It took the Master Mage of this time, a woman by the name of Berea Whitestorm, and a number of her acolytes to put a stop to the use of the Soulless, defeating the tyrant Ademamon and his followers. Berea then founded schools for the teaching of Gem Magic to Leifandians, urging them to live in harmony with the crystals they formed bonds with, as a way to keep the practice of the Soulless from returning to Leifandi.

Since then, with the instruction and guidance of the Master Mages and their acolytes, the denizens of Leifandi have been able to live in relative peace, both with the various communities that gradually continued to grow and with the world itself. Today, most Leifandians settle disagreements with the help of arbiters in each of the settlements, or with more than one if the disagreement happens to be between people of two different settlements.

Leifandian Culture and Spirituality

Leifandians have had an interesting history with the crystal formations of their world. Once the connection they bore to the planet’s mystical energies was discovered, many Leifandians believed the crystals to be extensions of the planets will, and for a time there was a great reverence to the formations and the Crystalloids. As time went on and Gem Magic became less rare among the Leifandians, there came a period where there was much discussion about the nature of the crystals, their bond to elemental powers and their place in society. Since that period, there are various beliefs that have cropped up; along with the idea that they could be extensions of the planets will, there are also schools of thought that purport them to be elemental beings or, perhaps, gods.

Regardless of the truth behind the crystal formations, the Leifandians have worked the crystals into their culture. Almost every Leifandian has some sort of necklace or bracelet bearing a piece of crystal infused flora, as this does not form a bond like a pure crystal piece does for a Gem Mage. Most non-gem mages are some sort of artisan, able to successfully work with both normal flora and crystalline flora. These artisans make everything from new housing or other structures, to furniture and clothing. Clothing consists of the colors of the crystalline formations, being gauzy and breathable for the summer seasons and sturdy and layer able for the winter seasons. Gem Mages usually wear clothing in the color of their bonded crystal, and the crystal is either woven into the fabric of the clothing or as an accessory that can be attached, as it must touch the skin for the mage to draw on it’s power.

Gem Magic

Gem Magic is only capable of being utilized by individuals born of Leifandi; there has been no documentation of any Crystalloids being able to bond with a crystal and wield it’s innate power. To be able to utilize a crystal’s power, one must first have an innate ability to sense and connect to the magical energies of Leifandi. In time, there is usually a feeling of being drawn to a specific formation, and upon arriving there a small chunk of the crystal is always awaiting the mage who was called. The crystal can be cut and refined without losing it’s abilities, though some mages choose to use the crystal in the form it was presented to them. A bond is formed between the mage and crystal, and over time the mage develops the ability to use their mystical abilities to draw out the inherent power of the crystal to perform various spells and effects. Most Gem Mages cannot bond with more than one crystal; even the current Master Mage of Leifandi is only bonded to two crystals. Those who have the power to form bonds with more than two crystals are rare, once in a generation beings.

Notable Sites

• Perle: Capital city of Leifandi, oldest and most renowned settlement on Leifandi. The planning of the city allows it to be the dwelling place for thousands of citizens while also being one of the more open and natural settlements on the planet. The city itself is a love letter to the harmony wished for by the early Leifandians.
• The Leifandian Mage Academy: While there are a multitude of branch sites throughout Leifandi, the main one sits in Perle, as both the oldest and grandest of the locations. Many of the Gem Mages who graduate from the Perle academy come from the city itself, however mages from the other cities are always invited to attend as well, to foster good relations between those who grew up in Perle and those who did not.
• Whitestorm Rotunda: This is the hall in Perle where leaders from all over Leifandi meet to discuss matters of importance and work out any issues or disagreements between the settlements themselves. Also usually the seat of the Master Mage, though they generally split their time between the Perle Academny and here.
• Lake Ontovia: The largest inland lake on Leifandi is also home to the most varied group of crystalline formations on the planet. The majority of Crystalloids are seen here, which has led some to designate this site as the settlement of the Crystalloids. While the area can be visited by anyone, there are certain boundaries the Crystalloids enforce, and only the Master Mage and select other Gem Mages have been allowed beyond.

Risen

Phoenix paused before leaving the spot Mortis had left him at when he brought him back to the land of the living, wondering for a moment if he was truly free of Hades’ imprisonment. When no hell hounds arrived to drag him back down, he took a moment to look up at the sky. For the first time in a long, long while, it was blue with white clouds dotting it, rather than grey stone and ever present smoke.

Alighting to a nearby rooftop, Phoenix turned full circle, taking in the view of the city. This wasn’t the first time he’d been in Freedom City, but it had been a while, and he needed to get his bearings. The hustle and bustle of the city surprised him to a small degree; there seemed to be even more people here than before. Life kept on moving, it seemed, regardless of what it left behind.

Phoenix scowled inside his helmet, shaking his head as he felt a memory returning. Anger, hot as his flames, hot as Helios’ fire itself, threatened to consume him. “No, not yet.” he thought to himself, trying to tamp down the emotion. “I need more info first. Plus, I have a promise to keep. Doesn’t do well to flake on a promise to a necromancer.”

He looked down to his right wrist, where the computer was running calculations, parsing through the encrypted communication signal he’d piggybacked on when he shook Mortis’ hand. It pinged, indicating it had finished it’s task, granting him remote access to Freedom Hall and all it’s systems. “Daedalus, you old fool. Still using your old security methods, as though you don’t think ANYONE knows how your mind works.” he thought to himself, using the holographic display to page through the system. His brow furrowed as he read through damage reports and logs from the Freedom League, shocked at how devastating an enemy Una had been even before she’d managed to re-manifest in the physical plane. The Freedom League Dark was going to have it’s hands full trying to keep all of reality from falling apart it seemed, and if he wanted to be around to enact his plan, he’d have to help out in some way.

Continuing to absent mindedly scroll through the system records, something caught his eye. Blueprints, schematics for something big, another of Daedalus’ grand creations. But it didn’t seem like it was going to be a part of Freedom City. Phoenix began looking over everything more in depth, studying the plans and notes, smiling to himself as he did.

“Well, it looks like I know where to go to find him after all of this gets sorted out.” He though to himself, before unlocking the helmet and removing it from his head, his curly brown hair blowing in the wind. Looking up at the sky, he pointed a finger towards the heavens. “Just wait, Daedalus. You’ve got a little surprise coming, one you would never have expected.”

Ticking Clocks

I’m getting too old for this… Callie Summers thought to herself as she reached for the controls of the Pegasus, flying away from where she had dropped Metropolis, Bowman, Centuria, Mortis and Resonant off in the sky. She knew that all five were among the most competent heroes on the planet, and she was unworried about their confrontation with Maximillian Mars. The man was dangerous, to be sure, but he had worked hard in the past few decades to put his life as a super criminal behind him. Why would he risk all of that now, and in such a public way? It didn’t add up.

The past few decades…

That was the crux of the problem, wasn’t it? She’d been at this for decades now. And where some of her teammates had inhuman physiques, she was all too aware of her mortality. She was still fast, and strong, and nimble. Her morning workout routine would put several Olympians to shame. But when she looked in the mirror, underneath Raven’s mask, there were the beginnings of wrinkles and crow’s feet.

She thought about the rest of the team – both present day and from when she had started. Captain Thunder was retired since losing his powers. Daedalus was mostly off at Starhaven these days. Johnny Rocket had been active until he lost his speed just a few weeks ago. Beth had passed the Lady Liberty mantle on to Sonia. Siren was back to reserve status, spending most of her time on the Gulf Coast instead of in Freedom City. So, for all intents and purposes, the only members of “her” version of the League anymore was herself and Doctor Metropolis.

“And he’s a living embodiment of the city,” she muttered to herself as she put the Pegasus into hover mode a half mile away from the MarsTech campus. She put the VTOL craft into hover mode and activated it’s cloaking device as she descended and doubled back using her swinglines. She was going to do some investigation, but it was going to be in the MarsTech building. Her teammates would serve as a distraction while she looked into Mars’ servers and labs.

The Raven didn’t think for a moment that the Silver Storm had anything to do with Una. The possibility that it might be required that it be investigated, but something about it felt far too… mundane. As if anything capable of bestowing superhuman powers could be considered mundane. She hated to pull the Freedom League Dark away from their mission, but she wanted to get to Emerald undetected – and there were other motivations as well.

As she landed off her swingline and effortlessly picked a lock on the rooftop access, allowing her into the MarsTech buildings, she thought about the new members of the League. Along with the new Lady Liberty and Doctor Metropolis, Bowman, Centuria, Mortis and Resonant were essentially the core of the Freedom League. Thunderbolt was too unstable, and Star Knight was off-planet as often as she was on, so they were it. She wanted to see how they conducted themselves when confronting Mars.

Then there was the matter of Portal. Peter Washington was a good kid who had a rough start, which is why she had him turned over to her father for training after briefly serving his sentence. As Portal, he had joined up with some of these new supers in Emerald City, and it looked like they might be positioning themselves to be the heroes of the city. Raven wanted to check in on that as well.

She made her way to Mars’ lab and popped the lock when she heard the sound of combat over the comms. Metropolis had just attacked Mars, unprovoked? That’s not like him… she thought as she listened more intently. It sounded like Freedom League Dark picked up on that and were wisely choosing to contain the situation instead of attacking Mars. Oh… and Portal and his allies were there as well.

Raven grimly smiled to herself. She hadn’t gotten as far as she had in this role by jumping into things thoughtlessly. This might be the best way to investigate Mars’ involvement in the storm, and also see how Portal and his teammates handled themself, while also seeing if the Freedom League Dark showed the signs of being ready and able to take the reigns as the core of the Freedom League.

After all, she wasn’t getting any younger. Eventually, her reflexes would slow to the point that she wouldn’t avoid the next bullet. Being a hero was a younger person’s game. And as Beth had shown her, there were other ways to serve the city than in wearing a costume and a cape. Since Mayor Grant was gone, there was soon going to be a special election. Perhaps Callie Summers should throw her hat into the ring…