A Brief History of the Universe

Within the greater universe, many characters exist and many things have happened. As history pushes forward, memories have been lost or altered, and things have become unclear. This is an attempt by those most involved with the universe to collect this history of it.

## Dawn of Time - 1938 (Collected by Harbinger)

Since the dawn of time, the universe has been threatened with extinction. At first there was a multiverse, but a cataclysmic crisis caused the worlds to merge into a New Earth. Recently, the multiverse has re-emerged, and another series of crisis both temporal and inter-dimensional caused time to shatter. As it healed, the world was attacked and history was taken. But even more recently, something amazing happened. History was restored. And the universe was reborn.

In the beginning, there was nothing but The Source, from which sprung forth an explosion of incalculable energies that heralded the Dawn of Time. As the cosmos slowly expanded, the hand of Destiny, first of The Endless, recorded all that transpired in his book. This book is said to contain all answers.

Manipulating the newborn Multiverse was Perpetua, who entrusted its three realms of matter, anti-matter and dark matter to her sons; Mar-Novu, the Monitor of life; Mobius, the Anti-Monitor and herald of death; and Alpheus, the forger of worlds. The Monitor sent out scouts into the new world, who would later play a major role in things to come.

Rallying a third of the Angels to his side, Lucifer began a War in Heaven against his brother, the Archangel Michael, who defeated Lucifer's forces and cast them down into Hell, where they were reborn as demons. Lucifer himself replaced the First of the Fallen as the ruler of Hell.

One of the fallen angels, Aztar, begged forgiveness and was transformed into the Wrath of God, the instrument of divine vengeance controlled by the Presence. Elsewhere across this newborn universe, two warring factions of immortals, the Lords of Order & Chaos, began their cosmic struggle for dominance.

Oa wasn’t the first great power, but it was the first to have not been consumed by greed and arrogance. Colonized by the planet Maltus, Oa was a planet of great scientific advances, especially when most races were still first gaining self-awareness. Oa continued their advances learning more about the cosmos, and it remained that way for more than a million years. A scientist, Krona, was not content with space exploration. He delved into the forbidden fruit of all knowledge, the origin of the universe. Instead of simply showing him the origin of the universe, his experiment unleashed an enigmatic Earthman from another universe named Volthoom, who taught the Oans to harness the power of the Emotional Spectrum. Created by all sentient life, this energy was personified by the green willpower (Ion), the yellow fear (Parallax), the red rage (The Butcher), the blue hope (Adara), the orange greed (Ophidian), the indigo compassion (Proselyte) and the violet love (the Predator).

The Oans experimented to create the perfect warrior. Their early experiments on genetically modified lizards (now known as Psions) were an early failure the Oans had abandoned. Volthoom’s insanity wreaked chaos, so the Oans took it upon themselves to become the Guardians of the Universe. After sealing the chaotic magic of the universe within the Starheart, the Oans constructed an android army known as The Manhunters to establish order across the cosmos. The created a corps of android soldiers called the Manhunters. When they malfunctioned and massacred virtually all of Space Sector 666, the Guardians decommissioned The Manhunters, although many fled to operate from the shadows on other worlds to fulfill their oath to the Guardians, "No Man Escapes The Manhunters!" Believing that sentient life would make for a more effective police force, the Guardians formed the Green Lantern Corps, empowered with rings fueled by a Central Power Battery on Oa that channeled the green light of will from all life in the cosmos. The Guardians also imprisoned the fear parasite, Parallax, within the Central Power Battery, which created some degree of a weakness to yellow within the rings.

Meanwhile, the Guardians who believed in destroying evil evolved into a race known as the Controllers. The lizards evolved into psions, and were banished into deep space. Despite the GLC and the Manhunters, evil flourished and came to infest Earth. First in the form of Demons. They weren’t the last.

While the Earth was evolving from it’s primitive beginnings, other planets flourished. On one, a scientist attempted to duplicate Krona’s experiment. In a time where the multiverse was whole, this released a terrible evil that destroyed world after world, but in the current timeline, no such evil was released. The secrets of creation were revealed for this man, who would one day be known as Pariah. He remained in his antimatter chamber for months, until the singularity would let him see no more.

The Old Gods, tired of battle cut off Olympus from all outside contact. From what remained of their real was two molten bodies. One could and gave birth to life, that being New Genesis. These beings would become New Gods. New Gods also existed on another realm. The other molten body didn’t cool. Home of evil was Apokolips. The Highfather of New Genesis, and his brother Darkseid of Apokolips would remain in a war for eons to come.

This was a time of change on lands of Earth. The era of the Neanderthal gave birth to the first boy on Earth, Anthro, who led his people of the Bear Clan towards enlightenment. Anthro was bestowed fire by the gods of the 4th world. The forces of his descendant, Kong the Untamed, against the Neanderthals and Cro-Magnons at war paved the way for a less violent future. The gods experiments upon man created Aurakles, Earth's first superhero. Gnarrk became the last Neanderthal, being magically preserved for millenia by the stone in his chest.

In the coming centuries, civilizations flourished and great empires rose. Magic took hold over Earth, and settled in Atlantis. These were the mystic ages and sorcerers found themselves in battle with scientists. These wars threatened to destroy the island kingdom, and the people, fearing for their lives, fled in ancient swan ships. One such group discovered the underground caverns  which led to Skartaris, a savage land within the bowels of Earth.

On the seemingly insignificant planet Earth, two new species came to prominence, the cave-dwelling Homo Sapiens and the Homo Magi, whose natural gifts to manipulate magic allowed King Atlan to establish the twelve kingdoms of Atlantis. Although the powerful mage Arion, Lord of Atlantis fought valiantly, he was unable to prevent the destruction of most of Atlantis and its majestic capital, the City of the Golden Gate. The survivors of this cataclysm sought refuge in the sole remaining kingdom of Atlantis, Poseidonis. However, they too were swallowed by the Oceans when a meteorite struck, forcing them to adapt to life beneath the seas. All this and more was recorded by their noble king, Orin, and his descendants in their history; The Atlantis Chronicles.

Following the sinking of Atlantis, the survivors had spread throughout the world and helped their primitive human cousins establish new civilizations in Skartaris, Mesopotamia, and Egypt, where the immortal Lord of Order, Nabu The Wise, and the ancient wizard Mamaragan made their home. When the time came to choose a successor, Mamaragan empowered Teth-Adam as his champion. Nabu and Teth-Adam would come to serve the Pharaoh Khufu and his queen Chay-Ara, whose discovery of an alien starship from the planet Thanagar bonded their souls to the Nth Metal found within. Khufu & Chay-Ara were soon murdered by their high priest, Hath-Set, and cursed to be reborn again and again throughout history, while Hath-Set was made into the immortal man, Vandal Savage. Meanwhile, Teth-Adam had become corrupted by his power and was exiled to another dimension by Mamaragan. Aztar and Nabu soon met, and aligned themselves with the souls of Khufu and Chay-Ara. These entities, once referred to as the Infinites would play a major role in the coming centuries.

Following their war with The Titans, the victorious Zeus took dominion over the Heavens, his brother Poseidon ruled the Seas and dark Hades reigned over the Underworld. In time, the people of Greece and Rome began to worship these Gods of Olympus, whose meddling in the affairs of mankind would continue for centuries. To counter the destructive influence of Ares, the God of War, upon mankind, the Goddess of Wisdom, Athena, the Goddess of Love, Aphrodite, the Goddess of the Earth, Demeter, the Goddess of the Hunt, Artemis, and the God of Healing, Hermes, helped create The Amazons to spread the teachings of peace and understanding to humanity. However, cursed with madness by jealous Hera, the mighty Heracles tricked the Queen of the Amazons, Hippolyta, and enslaved her sisters to steal the magic girdle created by Hephaestus. Having failed in their mission of peace and tainted by the savage violence they unleashed during their escape from bondage, The Amazons left Man's World to live forever on the hidden island of Themyscira.

Blackbriar Thorn led the ancient druids, before turning into wood to hide from the Romans. When he touched the Pillar of Life, King Nommo Balewa of Kor became the immortal Dr. Mist. Judas Iscariot, and two other people were found to be guilty of horrendous sins. Judas was sentenced to immortality, being nothing more than a Phantom Stranger. Another man had his face and memory of his name erased, causing him to forever question his identity. Pandora was forced to also live forever, until she defeated all of the evil that she had released.

Golden Gladiator fought in the colosseum before the fall of the Roman Empire.  While Robin Hood stole from the rich and gave to the poor on his crusade for social justice, Mordru the Merciless caused chaos across Camelot. Working for the magician known as Merlin, Sir Justin fought against enemy forces and protected his people as their Shining Knight.

Sir Justin continued to defend his people until he was magically frozen, left to remain for centuries. To compensate, Merlin recruited Nimue, Shining Knight, Horsewoman, Exoristos, and Al Jabr into the Demon Knights. During that time, The Silent Knight championed the people of his kingdom  and was later revealed to be another reincarnation of Khufu (while Chay-Ara was reincarnated as Ystina Penbrook/Shining Knight 2.0) In the tenth century, the Viking Prince sailed across unknown seas in search of high adventure.

In the lands across the oceans that would become known as America, Jon Standing Bear gained powers from a meteorite and became the greatest hero of his people as their Super-Chief. Centuries before Columbus would make his expedition, Vikings rescued Arak Red-Hand, son of Star-of-Dawn and He-No, the Thunder God. He was the last surviving member of the Quintouka tribe. and brought him back to Europe, where he became a swashbuckling adventurer. A tribal warrior named Strong Bow journeyed south where he encountered the Aztec Empire.

As sorcery waned on Earth, the wizard-leaders of the 12 cities of gems focused all their power into the young witch Citrina in order to find them a new homeland. To do so, she forged an alliance with the dark lords and created the realm known as Gemworld.

In the last decade of the fifteenth century, many events occured that altered the course of history: America was “discovered” by Christopher Columbus, the Spider Cult spread their reign of terror in the Vegan system, a simian race evolve to have telepathy and verbal communication, and the Manhunters established a cult on Earth dedicated to destroying all life.

Sixteenth century Europe was filled with toil and wars out of corruption and politics. British nobleman Jon Valor, also known as the Black Pirate, assembled a band of freedom fighters to protect the people against tyranny. Times of violence and horror began, from ironfisted despots, to the grow of vampirism, but one of the undead sought to save the world from others of his kind. As Andrew Bennett spent an eternity making sure this doesn’t happen to you or I… Vampire blood flowed through his own veins. Bennett wasn’t the only man to die and be reborn. Keith Everet, Earl of Strethmere,  was slain by thieves but returned to Earth as the Gay Ghost to avenge all evil. Meanwhile, Fero, Chief of the Caribbean Natives, became Captain Fear to battle his spanish foes.

In the European settlement called Gotham, the families convened as the Court of Owls. When America revolted against tyranny, thousands of men and woman took arms against their mightier foe. It was the courage of fighters such as Miss Liberty, Dan Hunter, Tomahawk and his son that allowed America to gain her independence. Four people gathered with a common goal of justice: Taylor Pike, Eric Strauss, Falk Ander and his wife, Ciara. These four people created the Juris Societas Americae. This society would serve justice for centuries to come.

America was now free, and people making the trek west were protected by Matt Savage, Trail Boss. One of the vast wagon trains was attacked by the Blackfoot tribe and all travelers were slain except for one red-haired infant. The boy called “Firehair” struggled to find a place in the world. Lawmen of the tribes Pow-Wow Smith kept peace between the peoples, and Don Caballero became a champion to the people of Southern California following the war. The 1860s saw a time of turmoil for America as it was ripped up in a Civil War for five years, where brother fought brother, and families would be seperated. But at last, the war ended and the soldiers returned home to rebuild their emotionally shattered lives. Some who knew little more than fighting continued to live by the gun. Jonah Hex was a bounty hunter, among the best and certainly the most dangerous.

More and more Americans moved from to the West. This was a time of home where risks would be taken, and lives would be lost in pursuit of the American Dream. Serving the Texas Rangers, Captain Jim tried to liberate slaves during the turbulent period of the 1860s. Connected to the Speed Force, Maxwell Crandall used his powers to fight criminals across time as Mercury, while Buck Marshall investigated crime in the small towns near his home. Meanwhile, plantation owner Quentin Turnbull quickly became an antagonist to many of the cowboys, who were disgusted over Turnbull’s continued slave deals.

From all over the planet, heroes emerged such as the charming rogue Bat Lash, who looked upon the west as a source of income or Scalphunter, who was not at home amongst native or white man. The masked gunfighter Nighthawk emerged, along with Cinnamon, the first female gun-fighter.

Without law to protect the innocent, men such as the Trigger Twins rose up as their defenders. With each new territory, the law finally followed west. However, law enforcement couldn’t always get the job done, so they relied on professionals such as Johnny Thunder and Madame .44 to help out. Soon, the vigilantes were organized as the Rough Bunch. By the end of the era, Jack Woods was active in the Southwest and would soon see war break out around the world, while a mortally wounded bank teller was active as El Diablo. Meanwhile, Mina Murray was tasked with forming a League of Extraordinary Gentlemen.

When a Great War broke out in Europe, fighter pilots took to the skies. Wars are created by politics, and even such foes as the honorable Hans van Hammer, who is called the Enemy Ace, are no different from you or I.  When America joined the war, an ace named Steve Savage earned the nickname Balloon Buster for his daring exploits. Following the war, a former spy began his adventures in Africa, eventually becoming known as Congo Bill.

 There were six Brother Bloods before him, each one living to their hundredth year, in which they were slain by their own son. The Church of Blood prospered in Zandia, where it was funded by donations from criminals throughout the world.

The world economy tanked after the stock market fell into the Great Depression. As a result, more european countries caught onto Benito Mussolini’s concept of fascism. During this period of uncertainty and violence, a man named Alexei Luthor became involved in business, occasionally working alongside people such as the Ultra-Humanite or Chin-Lung. Occultists in Japan and Nazi Germany began working with the Axis governments directly in order to secure their victory.

For the rest of the world, the end of the first World War marked the start of a new heroic age. Science ruled, and even with the depression, societies advanced at a rate like nobody had ever seen. Yet into this new era, the arcane continued to thrive. One such practitioner, known as Dr. Occult combined his detective skills and the dark magics of the past, and soon opened up a place of work in New York with his lover, Rose Psychic. Meanwhile, Slam Bradley took on his first case in Gotham City with his partner, Shorty Morgan.

A heroic age was soon needed, as a terrible war was about to begin.

## The Golden Age (Collected by John Law)

World War II had infected Europe, but it’s cancerous growth had yet to infect the United States.

Box Offices exploded with the debut of Carver Coleman’s character *Nathaniel Dusk* while famous stage performer Zatara the Magician used his unique talents to fight crime in Manhattan, while young aviator Hop Harrigan began his exploits. Meanwhile, FBI Agent Speed Saunders began investigating Nazi activity in America.

Retired war pilot Kent “Black Eagle” Allard found a new challenge in waging war on criminals. After falsifying his death in the South American jungles, then returns to the United States. Arriving in New York City, he adopts numerous identities to conceal his existence, being nothing more than a Shadow. The Phantom's birth name is Kit Walker, as was the name of many of the Phantoms before him. Kit was born in the Skull Cave, and spent his first years in the jungle of Bangalla. His mother, Maud Thorne McPatrick, who had previously worked as Rita Hayworth's stunt double, was born in Mississippi, where Kit went to study when he was 12 years old, living with his aunt Lucy and uncle Jasper in the town of Clarksville, Missouri. Here he met his wife-to-be, Diana Palmer. Kit was an extremely talented sportsman and was predicted to become the world champion, after knocking out a professional boxer. Despite the opportunity to choose practically any career he wanted, Kit faithfully returned to Bengalla to take over the role of the Phantom when he received word from Guran that his father was dying from a knife-wound. Amateur sleuth Bruce Nelson began working to fight crime in his local area, especially after battling the Claws of the Red Dragon.

The age of the Mystery Man began when crusading Manhattan newspaperman Lee Walter Travis first became The Crimson Avenger to foil evildoers as a masked criminal with his trusted partner and chauffeur, Wing. Meanwhile, his old friend Wesley Dodds, aided by fashionable socialite Dian Belmont, was driven by prophetic nightmares to don a fedora, gas mask and trench coat as The Sandman. Scientist Clark “Doc” Savage Jr. began a new era being the world’s first “super-man.”

Brian O’Brien went undercover, disguising himself as a mobster to take down gangs as the Clock. Raised in a high-gravity chamber, Tomas Hugo Strange used his superhuman strength to fight criminals as Tom Strong. In NYC, radio announcer Dave Clark dressed up as an obscure radio character to fight Nazis and other criminals as Midnight. Able to cast low level spells, photographer James Slade joined the fight as Tor, Magic Master.

Perhaps no other story is as well known as that of Hugh Hazzard, who once defeated and adopted his “Iron Man,” Bozo. After Rip Jagger landed on a pacific island, he rescued the chief’s daughter. Returning the favor, the chief taught Rip how to be a Judomaster. Intern at law Larry Jordan used his skills to to design a suit that allowed him to listen to police reports and travel through telephone lines. As Air Wave, Larry proved crucial in the fight for freedom. After being stung by a bunch of radioactive Yellowjackets in an attempted robbery, Vince Harley dressed up like one to fight crime in his town as the heroic Yellowjacket.

Long before America joined the war, many Americans took the side of their allied nations in their fight for freedom. Steel, the indestructible man was one of those who sacrificed his own welfare to help those oppressed by Nazi tyranny. Many people, both costumed and uncostumed, became heroes in this great war.

Inspired by the example of Crimson Avenger and Sandman, costumed heroes began appearing across America. College student Jay Garrick used his incredible speed as The Flash to save his girlfriend Joan in Keystone City. Train crash survivor Alan Scott was chosen to shed his light over evil with a ring of alien technology as Green Lantern. Upon meeting his soulmate Kendra Munoz, Egyptian Archaeologist Scythian Torvill soared across the skies as Hawkman with his Nth Metal wings. Chosen by Nabu The Wise as his successor, Kent Nelson became the sorcerer Dr. Fate and was bound by destiny with clairvoyant Izna Cramer.

 Chemist Rex Tyler gained incredible strength for 60 minutes a day through the use of the drug Miraclo. Using this drug to his advantage, he became a vigilante as Hourman. Resistant to radiation, and blessed with super-speed, strength, durability, and stamina, pint-sized brawler Al Pratt began a war against crime as the Atom. Working mother Ma Hunkel dressed up to defend her neighborhood from crime as the Red Tornado. Queen Hippolyta of the Amazons came to Man’s World to prevent the war from entering Themyscira as Wonder Woman and murdered police detective Jim Corrigan returned from the dead to enact God’s wrath as the Spectre.

The early 1940s gave birth to many heroes whose fame has lived on throughout time. One by one, heroes appeared and were united by President Roosevelt to partake in a secret mission overseas. This group would become the latest incarnation of the Justice Society of America.

While the war escalated overseas, the JSA extended to new members; Johnny Thunder joined with the magic of the genie Yz, often called the Thunderbolt; Astrophysicist Ted Knight used the cosmic rod in Opal City as the Starman; Blind doctor Charles McNider gained a rare form of night-vision as Dr. Mid-Nite; Terry Sloane joined the society with scientific intentions, while also promoting the Fair Play franchise as Mr. 08; Heavyweight boxer Ted Grant gained the power of resurrection and began to fight crime as Wildcat.

After the original Firebrand was killed, his sister, Danette Reilly took up his mantle, while an author writing a book on the Mystery Men phenomenon became one himself as Tarantula and Olympic champion Will Everett was given extraordinary powers and debuted as Amazing Man, whose tireless activism for civil rights soon eclipsed his accomplishments as a costumed crime-fighter. Gaining powers from an irradiated piece of the liberty bell, Libby Lawrence used her enhanced strength, speed, and stamina to fight Nazis as Liberty Belle.

 As the heroes fought in Europe, villains began to rise. Albrecht Krieger was injected with Super-Aryan Serum which made him stronger, faster, and buffer. As Captain Nazi, he nearly killed the All-Star-Squadron on many occasions. Quack scientist Professor Elba augmented Henry King Sr.’s mental abilities with what is now referred to as the “Insanity Formula.” Murdered in swamp near Gotham, Cyrus Gold was reborn on the Monday after as Solomon Grundy. Linotyper for the Daily Courier Charles Halstead manipulated emotions and became a criminal mastermind, now referred to as the first Psycho Pirate.

Following the attack on Pearl Harbor, President Roosevelt organized America's Mystery Men into Task Force X. This All-Star Squadron would take part in any battles and would ultimately be the saving grace of America during the war. Their ranks included  the time-lost Shining Knight of Camelot, stretchable crook Plastic Man, assassin Dan Richards, the  Manhunter, and a scientist whose brain lived on as Robotman. Adolf Hitler had gained possession of both the Spear of Destiny and the Holy Grail. The Axis Powers used these mystical artifacts to create a sphere of energy around their occupied territory that prevented America's most powerful heroes from fighting on the frontlines. However, many Mystery Men set aside their costumes to fight behind enemy lines as spies and saboteurs, including big game hunter Paul Kirk, Manhunter, and his old friend Tex Thompson, Americommando.

Not all heroes had special powers. Janos Prohaska took the name Blackhawk after his family was killed in the Nazi invasion of Poland. Blackhawk assembled an international team who had been the victims of axis atrocities. The Blackhawk Squadron flew around the world and fought for democracy.

While the war continued, Prince Amentep was mystially resurrected in a history museum. Using his ibistick, he rusurrets his deceased wife Taia, who aids him on his quest for justice as Ibis the Invincible. Proud of his prime physical condition, Jack Weston suited up as the patriotic Minute-Man, the one man army who combats enemy agents. Assistant District Attorney Rick Raleigh learned how to control bees and developed something called a “Stinger Gun.” Using his skills and devices, the Red Bee fought Nazis and gangsters, while trying to save the bees.

The real heroes of the were not the ones dressed in brightly colored costumes. They were the Americans, the British, the French, the Russians, and the Australians, the ordinary people who joined in their nations fight for a free world. People such as Sgt. Rock and his Easy Company battled the Axis powers to the very end.

America entered World War II and hope was high that the conflict would soon come to an end. The allied heroes, costumed or otherwise participated in the fight for freedom and democracy. Judomaster and Tiger were among the first in the Pacific Theatre of War, but others followed on their heels.

Joan Dale was given the ability to transmute elements, after a weird vision involving the Statue of Liberty. Using these new-found abilities, she became Miss America. Lance Gallant merged with the ghost of his brother Michael to become Captain Triumph, while Roy Lincoln became a Human Bomb. After being exposed to a radioactive meteor, Richard Grey Jr. gained the ability to fly. He used this to fight criminals as the Black Condor. Along with the light-powered Ray, the invisible Phantom Lady, the tiny titan Doll Man, and his partner Doll Girl. When all hope seemed lost for the U.S, Uncle Sam and his Freedom Fighters entered the fight for America!

Soon, the heroes were gaining help from youth with similar goals around the world. From the Japanese-American Tsunami to Neptune Perkins, the ocean-locked mutant, the fought alongside the allies to free a world from tyranny. Not long after their debut, Nazis killed T.N.T. & Dyna-Mite, his kid sidekick, joined The Young All-Stars, the All-Star Squadron's youth auxiliary, with fellow teen heroes "Iron" Munroe, Flying Wolf, Fury, Neptune Perkins and Tsunami.

In Fawcett City, Jim and Susan Barr, powered by the “crime cure,” used their gravity regulator helmets to fight crime as Bulletman and Bulletgirl. Meanwhile, Brian and Pinky Butler defended Gotham City as Mr. Scarlet and Whiz Kid. They were soon joined by Captain Midnight, who led them as a Squadron of Justice. While this was occuring, Alan Armstrong used his detective skills and technological prowess as an agent for the U.S Government, the Spy Smasher.

The war was on all continents. Some remained in America to battle enemy agents. Guardian and the Newsboy Legion proved one doesn’t need powers to advance the cause of freedom at home. Jeb Stuart led his Sherman tank crew throughout Europe, aided by his namesake ghost. This Haunted Tank scored impressive victories in battle. Project-M created creatures to battle in the wars most weird campaigns. The Creature Commandos had a stunning level of victory in battle, as did G.I Robot and the Viking Commando. Here it was the ordinary soldier who proved it does not require special powers to become a hero. **There were those men and women who worked with the O.S.S, and those who battled in the underground like Mademoiselle Marie, and the Unknown Soldier or Captain ”Gravedigger” Hazard who fought prejudice at home at the same time they battled the Nazi enemy. Many other heroic combatants were there, such as the Boy Commandos or those who fought in the War that Time Forgot, which claimed the lives of the rag-tag squad called the Losers.**

Their old ally Plastic Man wouldn’t be seen for decades to come. The Nazis were gone and the War soon ended with the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The Law’s Legionnaires formed in the early days of the war and came to an end when one of their own, Wing, sacrificed his life to defeat the being known as Nebula Man. The remainder of these Seven Soldiers of Victory were disbanded throughout time, some not to be seen for decades.

Feeling their time had passed, most of the Mystery Men slowly began to retire in the years following the war, including some of the most prominent members of the Justice Society. Blonde bombshell Dinah Drake debuted as the Black Canary and Merry Pemberton became the Girl of 1,000 Gimmicks. Tex Thompson used his heroic wartime adventures to enter politics, while his allies Dan Richards and Paul Kirk fled for their lives, as the Manhunter Cult would soon return.

With the threat of nuclear war looming over the world, the anxieties and fears of Americans were given form in the terrifying tales of chilling horror told by the squabbling brothers Cain & Abel within the House of Secrets and the neighboring House of Mystery, buildings which existed within the real world, as well as the realm of dreams. Meanwhile, on "Impossible...But True!", Roy Raymond, TV Detective.

Since the end of the war, mysterious forces within the U.S. Government had begun a carefully orchestrated smear campaign to bring about the end of the Golden Age of Heroes, preying upon Americans' fear, paranoia and resentment over their failure to end the war sooner. Disgraced by the manipulations of the Injustice Gang, the brain-swapping Ultra-Humanite and his greatest creation, Dyna-Man, America's beleaguered Mystery Men rallied one last time to thwart their conspiracy to infiltrate the highest levels of American politics. Amid false accusations of communist sympathies, sexual perversions and contributing to juvenile delinquency, the Justice Society were ordered by the House Un-American Activities Committee to reveal their secret identities and swear an oath of loyalty to the United States government. In response, the JSA refused and disappeared without a trace.

And just like that, the Golden Age was over….

## The Atomic Age (Submitted by Perry White)

The few costumed heroes that remained active were systematically hunted down and imprisoned by suave, yet ruthless, super-spy King Faraday and operatives of Task Force X. To fill the void left by the Justice Society and their ilk, Task Force X assigned the Suicide Squad to deal with any superhuman or extraordinary threats. In the South, the horrific racial violence of the Klu Klux Klan was opposed by the heroic efforts of a masked vigilante wielding twin sledge hammers known only as John Henry.

Nuclear physicist Allen Adams miraculously survived an experiment in which he was trapped in a nuclear reactor and stripped of his “intrinsic field”, becoming the quantum powered Captain Atom. Peter Cannon returned from his expedition in the Himalayas, using the maximum potential of his body and mind as Thunderbolt. Objectivist Rex Graine began hunting down criminals as the violent vigilante, Mr. A. Preparing for nuclear annihilation, the U.S Government created the Atomic Knights.

As he aged, Wesley Dodds continued to act as Sandman and even recruited a sidekick, Sanderson Hawkins, the Golden Boy. The 70s also gave rise to new criminals, such as Crusher Crock, a Sportsmaster who uses appropriately themed tools to commit crimes, and his wife Paula Brooks, the villainous Tigress. Finding him to be their most useful weapon, the Soviet Union sent Cameron Mahkent to America under the alias Thomas Snow. Secretly, he used his cryogenic weapons to fight against the American spies and vigilantes as Icicle. Abandoning leadership of hell, Lucifer Morningstar opened a piano bar “Lux” in Los Angeles.

Dan Garret discovered the scarab but was unable to merge with it. Liking the concept, he became the Blue Beetle. Dinah Drake returned as Black Canary, working alongside other vigilantes of the era, also meeting her husband, Quentin Lance. Christopher Smith loved peace so much he’s kill for it as the Peacemaker, and Paul Kirk was cloned and released to be the Manhunter once more. All the while, Dr. Saul Erdel met a detective called “Marco Xavier” and discovered that he was a Martian.

Surviving a plane crash that should have killed them all, brilliant scientist Prof. Haley, fighter pilot “Ace” Morgan, daredevil “Red” Ryan and tough guy “Rocky” Davis believed they were living on borrowed time. Soon joined by archeologist and computer genius June Robbins, these intrepid adventurers banded together as the world famous Challengers of the Unknown.

When the government-sanctioned costumed hero known as Peacemaker was murdered to conceal a conspiracy orchestrated by the brilliant Thunderbolt, his old comrades, Mr. A, Blue Beetle, and Black Canary came out of retirement to uncover the identity of his killer. This led to the superhuman  Captain Atom leaving his reality for parts unknown.

## Secret Origins (Contributed by Stranger)

In a far away star system, the ruling Military Council of the doomed planet Krypton arrogantly ignored the dire warnings of their world's imminent destruction from the greatest mind amongst them, Jor-El (who had discovered plans by the Daxamites to destroy Krypton), which instigated a bloody rebellion by the military (instructed by leader Dru-Zod who was aptly placed in the Phantom Zone). Moments before the planet Krypton exploded, the desperate Jor-El and his wife Lara placed their infant son, Kal-El, into an experimental rocket and launched him into space on a perilous journey across the cosmos to a distant planet orbiting a yellow sun called Earth.

The Last Son of Krypton landed in a farming town in Kansas called Smallville, where he was discovered by Jonathan & Martha Kent. Meanwhile, Bruce Wayne was born in Gotham City, the sole heir of wealthy philanthropists Dr. Thomas & Martha Wayne. Across the seas on the hidden isle of Themyscira, Diana, daughter of Hades, was given birth to by Hippolyta. Lighthouse keeper Tom Curry rescued a frightened woman shipwrecked from a hurricane and nursed her back to health. They later married and had a child, Arthur Curry, whose fame would ring across the seven seas.

Empowered by the yellow sun of the planet Earth, Clark Kent’s alien physiology granted him extraordinary strength, speed, durability and senses that he struggled to control. The Kents raised their son to not use his gifts for personal gain, and to always keep them a secret, even from his best friend Pete Ross and the girl next door Lana Lang. In High School, Clark befriended aspiring reporter Chloe Sullivan, who kept track of strange incidents on her “Wall of Weird.” Clark also met Lex Luthor, who had a troubled relationship with his manipulative father Lionel Luthor. Young Clark also met a group of superpowered teens who traveled from the 31st century to meet him. When a teenage boy from Daxam with amnesia crash landed on Earth, Clark investigated his origins, and became close friends with the boy after he save Clark’s life. Clark soon named the boy Mon-El. However, Mon-El’s deadly weakness to lead forced him to be returned to the Phantom Zone until a cure could be found.

On a dark night in the Crime Alley of Gotham City, a cowardly crook, working for the Talons, took the live of young Bruce Wayne’s parents. Taken in by his family's trusted and loyal butler, Alfred Pennyworth, the traumatized young boy made a solemn vow on his parents' graves to avenge their murders, dedicating himself to train his body and mind towards this single-minded goal. Journeying to every corner of the globe, Bruce Wayne studied and trained to master countless forms of martial arts and ancient mental disciplines, learning to strike from the darkness undetected and to withstand physical and psychological rigors that would destroy lesser men. The brooding boy would grow to become a scourge to all evil.

On Paradise Island, Queen Hippolyta saw in her precocious young daughter the potential to surpass all Amazons, even herself. Furthermore, the Oracles of Themyscira foretold that Diana would soon be as beautiful as Aphrodite, wise as Athena, swift as Hermes and mightier than Hercules. When even the Gods of Olympus took notice of the Princess of the Amazons, Hippolyta feared her daughter's future lay beyond the shores of Paradise Island, far from her mother and sisters.

Four incidents, separate yet all intangibly connected. Together they would forever alter our views of heroes to come.

## Rise of the Heroes (Submitted by Martian and Author X)

Bruce traveled around the world, first training with Ted “Wildcat” Grant. Bruce then met Richard Dragon, the world’s greatest martial artist. Bruce also met Ben Turner during this time. Bruce next traveled to the Himalayas and trained with Henri Ducard. Completing his training, Bruce had to win Ra’s al Ghul's challenge. Bruce failed the challenge because he was unwilling to kill a man, and left. On his way back home, Bruce met Giovanni Zatara, and learned some basic magic tricks.

Returning to Gotham after several years, Bruce Wayne finally returned, only to be met with a rising criminal population in this city. After Bruce’s cousin Phillip was killed in an attack, Bruce debuted as the Batman in order to crack the case of the chemical syndicate. Bruce was soon being hunted by the corrupt police department, mostly on the instruction of Edward Nigma, a computer programmer for the F.B.I gone rogue, who hired the Red Hood Gang to rob Ace Chemicals, so Dr. Death can make more of his bone growth toxin which could be released throughout the city during a blackout, destabilizing the city forever. In order to stop the Nigma’s plot, Batman became allies with one of the few honest cops in Gotham, James Gordon, who would later build the Bat-Signal to shine over Gotham whenever the city needed help from its caped crusader.

Batman’s first year was plagued with such events as the Mystery of the Mad Monk, and the Night of the Monster Men. Bruce also reconnected with his old flame Julie Madison, and later began a relationship with Silver St. Cloud. Meanwhile, actor Basil Karlo was transformed into the being known as Clayface.

With new wars engulfing the world, an American Special Ops officer named Steve Trevor crash landed on Paradise Island, the first man to ever set foot upon the adopted homeland of the Amazons. Intrigued by this strange newcomer, Princess Diana bested her sisters in a contest of skill and valor for the right to fly Trevor back to Man's World in her Invisible Jet.  Gifted with the Lasso of Truth and her Amazonian abilities, she became known as the new Wonder Woman. There, Diana faced the Olympian God of War Ares and the spoiled rich girl, Deborah Domaine, who was inspired by her aunt to become the new Cheetah.

Batman dealt with his newly growing rogues gallery, as Gotham went through a long Halloween. The Joker committed various terrorist attacks, and did whatever was possible to annoy Batman. Harvey Dent was scarred in one of these incidents and began slowly losing his mind, becoming Two-Face. Selina Kyle became a costumed jewel thief and was part of several notable robberies as the Catwoman. Edward Nigma escaped prison and reformed himself as the Riddler. While these villains caused chaos in the city, Batman investigated who was under the Mask of the Phantasm.

Graduating from Smallville Community College, Clark left his hometown and moved to Metropolis to work at the Daily Planet. There he became friends with Jimmy Olsen, and met the love of his life, Lois Lane. While in Metropolis, Clark adopted his old alter-ego and became a Champion of the Oppressed, to fight for truth, justice, and the American way. Faster than a speeding bullet! More powerful than a locomotive! Able the leap tall buildings in a single bound! It’s Superman! Clark’s activities as a vigilante quickly drew criticism from businessman Lex Luthor. Superman proved himself to the people after saving the world from Brainiac.

The mysterious forces that threatened mankind were kept at bay by the Phantom Stranger, while crimes were solved by Detective Chimp. Born a hundred thousand years before his time, young mutant Adam Blake defended the Earth from extraterrestrial threats as Captain Comet before journeying to the stars on a twenty year expedition across the galaxy. As America grew increasingly paranoid and fearful, a shapeshifting Martian trapped on Earth assumed the identity of police detective John Jones.

Countless supernatural hoaxes were exposed by skeptical parapsychologist Dr. Thirteen, while crimes were solved by the Nazi-fighting Rex the Wonder Dog. Stranded on an island, Johnny “Genius” Jones became a superhero, after setting books on fire, thus alerting some form of Coast Guard. Reuniting after many years, childhood friends Sugar and Spike opened up a detective agency.

Batman’s life soon changed after Tony Zucco shot down the Flying Grayson’s at Haly’s Circus. Their surviving son, young Dick Grayson chased after Zucco and was picked up by Batman. Bruce saw a desire for justice in Dick and and trained him to fight. Soon after, Dick joined Batman’s side as Robin, the Boy Wonder.

**Superman soon had a rogues gallery of his own. The fifth dimensional imp Mr. Mxyzptlk became a recurring problem, including an incident where the World’s Finest heroes briefly merged into a Composite-Superman, while the gorilla Titano shot kryptonite out of his eyes. Zor-El arrived on Earth as a Cyborg-Superman, and General Dru-Zod escaped the Phantom Zone and lead an invasion of Earth, only to be warded off by Superman. Meanwhile, Lex Luthor attempted to create a clone of Superman, Subject B-0.**

After years working to clean up and expose Gotham City’s corrupt cops, James Gordon had finally been put in charge of the city’s entire police department. Shortly afterwards, the newly promoted Commissioner Gordon had officially deputized Batman & Robin as recognized agents of Gotham’s law enforcement. No longer operating on the fringes of the law, the Dynamic Duo’s adventures took a lighter turn as even formerly homicidal madmen like The Joker stopped committing murder for a brief time to become a dangerously unhinged trickster.

Superman had another encounter with Brainiac, and he discovered that a part of Krypton still exists, the Bottle City of Kandor. Lex Luthor began targeting Superman using various political maneuvers and metahuman fear-mongering. He also created subject B-1, the second Bizarro, while Winslow Schott Sr. began making his toys of terror as the Toyman. John Corben was given a kryptonite powered heart and semi-robotic boy, and made to fight Superman to live as Metallo.

As their renown spread across the world, the Dynamic Duo also found a new ally in the mysterious Batwoman, an agent of Spyral, Katrina Netz married Nathan Kane and became involved in Gotham’s local politics. In addition, Bruce took in an abused dog named Ace and first encountered a mischievous imp from the 5th Dimension called Bat-Mite, who decided to pester Batman much as Mr. Mxyzptlk had done with Superman. Inspired by Batman's example, new costumed superheroes had begun to appear around the globe; The Knight & Squire in England, The Musketeer of France, The Legionary in Italy, Man of Bats & Little Raven of the Sioux Nations in America, The Wingman in Sweden, The Ranger & Scout of Australia and El Gaucho of Argentina. Eventually, these Batmen of Many Nations would come together as The International Club of Heroes.

Shortly after Superman's first encounter with Mr. Mxyzptlk, a mischievous imp from the 5th Dimension, Clark Kent & Lana Lang formed an uneasy alliance with their old childhood friend and archenemy, Luthor, when Superman unwittingly freed the worst criminals of his homeworld from the Phantom Zone; the infamous mass murderer Jax-Ur, deadly Faora, mindless Non, cruel Ursa and General Zod, the former leader of Krypton’s military. With Luthor’s help, Lana and Clark thwarted the Kryptonians' plot to conquer the Earth and imprisoned them back to the Phantom Zone. Humbled by his disastrous actions and heartbroken by Lana’s return to Smallville, Superman briefly disappeared from the public eye after forming a truce with Lex Luthor, who was instrumental in defeating the Kryptonian invasion.

Lost for decades within a timestorm in deep space, a second rocket arrived on Earth carrying another survivor from the planet Krypton, Supergirl, who turned out to be Clark’s cousin Kara Zor-El. Clark Kent himself began doing real investigative journalism for the Daily Planet, and occasionally appearing on the evening news. While there, he met and fell in love with a mysterious wheelchair-bound woman named Lori Lemaris, whom he soon learned was actually a mermaid from the undersea kingdom of Atlantis.

When the villain known as Killer Moth attacked a Wayne Gala, Barbara Gordon suited up as the Batgirl to stop the insectoid fiend before he could expose Batman’s secret to the world.  Soon after, entertainer Arnold Wesker was controlled by a sentient Ventriloquist's dummy called Scarface, and Mortimer Drake committed several robberies as the Cavalier.

Arthur Curry spent his entire life unaware of his Atlantean heritage. However, as a child he realized that he was able to breath underwater. As he grew older, he swam deeper and deeper, and one day realized that there was a whole other world down there. That world was Atlantis, which was led by the tyrannical King Orm, the Ocean Master. Orm sent David Hyde, a hunter known as Black Manta after Arthur in hopes of quelling his desire to enter Atlantis. To defeat Manta, Arthur battled him on a beach near Happy Harbor, gaining press coverage and the nickname, “Aquaman.”

With Gotham City under the protection of Batman, Robin and Batgirl, the Dynamic Duo had faced a bizarre assortment  of dangerous and insane villains, new and old. Foremost amongst them was the dapper master criminal The Penguin, plant mistress Poison Ivy, deranged former psychiatrist obsessed with fear The Scarecrow, and the icy criminal Mr. Freeze.

Seeing the slowly rising population of costumed superheroes, Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman created the Super-Friends program in order to train these young heroes and keep a watchful eye on their activities. Aquaman and Robin lead the group which initially consisted of El Diablo, Samourai, Longshadow, Paragon, Proxy and the Wonder Twins.

The days of fighting campy villains were over, and the Joker returned to Gotham on his latest killing spree, promptly titled ”the Killing Joke.” The Joker shot Batgirl and raped Commissioner Gordon. Following this, Dick Grayson left Batman over disagreements on how to handle the Joker, and became Nightwing. Batman soon encountered a young boy called Jason Todd, who managed to remove a wheel from the batmobile. With training, Batman decided to have Jason become the new Robin.

While the Dynamic Duo went through turmoil in Gotham, Wonder Woman was busy with her own growing rogues gallery. Dr. Edgar Cizko would use hypnotherapy in bizarre and traumatizing ways on his patients. This would soon give him the nickname Dr. Psycho, which was popularized by the media after he was arrested by Diana. Chemist and spy for the Aryan Brigade Marina “Poison” Maru used her concoctions in a coordinated sequence of terrorist attacks. The weapons she created were also sold to hospitals, where many patients were killed. A victim of one of Dr. Poison’s attacks, Vanessa Kapatelis was given nanites in hope that they would heal her after that horrific incident. The nanites worked, but also created a split personality, the Silver Swan. All these villains were brought together by someone called the “Angle Man.” Following this, Vanessa managed to seek psychiatric help for her condition.

As the streets of Gotham grew more violent and brutal, giving rise to city-wide massacres by the cult of Deacon Blackfire and others, a weary Caped Crusader struggled to carry on his long war on crime while also dealing with an increasingly rebellious Boy Wonder. While Barbara managed to pull through, reinventing herself as Oracle, the rest of the Bat-Family entered into an even rougher time. Jason died when he went on a quest to find his birth mother, leading him to Lebanon. The Joker was there, and had made a deal with Jason’s birth mother and a local terrorist group, who wired the place to blow up when Batman was detected. By the time Batman had figured out the trap, it was too late and the warehouse exploded, killing Jason. Batman tracked down the Joker and defeated him, before blowing up the terrorist’s base.

Trapped on an island for several years after a terrible shipwreck, Oliver Queen and Sara Lance managed to survive their interactions with Ivo Industries. Oliver met a woman known as Shado, who had previously interacted with his father. They also had an encounter with a sorcerer called the Hellblazer, who helped them hide the Khushu Idol in a place where they thought it wouldn’t be found.

Batman had grown increasingly unstable without a Boy Wonder at his side to keep him grounded until a boy named Tim Drake convinced the Dark Knight to train him as the next Robin. Not long afterwards, Selina Kyle reinvented herself to prowl the rooftops again as Catwoman and The Joker somehow cheated death once again and returned to plague this newest Dynamic Duo, alongside his adoring partner in crime, Harley Quinn, a young psychiatrist who’d fallen in love with her devious patient.

Batman would also face a formidable new adversary known only as Bane, a cunning criminal mastermind whose hulking body was fueled by the steroid Venom. Freeing the inmates of Arkham Asylum to wear his opponent down, Bane broke the exhausted Batman's back and watched Gotham burn. While Bruce Wayne began the slow, painful process of healing his  body, the mentally unstable Azrael of the Order of St. Dumas took advantage of the Knightfall, and took the cowl of Batman for his own. Meanwhile, Selina Kyle resumed prowling the rooftops of Gotham City as the Feline Fatale, Catwoman.

After a cataclysmic explosion triggering an Earthquake-like level of destruction, Gotham became a no man’s land. Poison Ivy tried to protect the environment within Gotham, and the Joker killed Sarah Essen. Helena Bertinelli became the Huntress to take apart the rest of her father’s gang, while Cassandra Cain became the new Batgirl.

After five years lost on an island, Oliver Queen was rescued and finally returned to home. Reading through his father’s list of dirty businessmen. Along with his old flame Laurel Lance, his bodyguard John Diggle and IT expert Felicity Smoak, Oliver began hunting down the men on that list as The Arrow.

The Arrow found his first enemy in the Dark Archer. Being close to Tommy Merlyn, he soon realized Dark Archer was Tommy’s father, Malcolm Merlyn. Werner Zytle started a gang in Star City, primarily specializing in the drug coined “Vertigo.” Being the apparent “Count” of that group, he was often referred to as Count Vertigo. Oliver soon found himself in conflict with the Al Ghuls (specifically Nyssa Rattko) and Floyd Lawton, the assassin known as Deadshot.

When Abin Sur’s vehicular construct crashed into the woods next to a broken-down plane from Ferris Aircrafts, the dying Abin Sur gave his ring to Hal Jordan. The ring soon took Hal to a place called Oa, where the Guardians of the Universe appointed Thaal Sinestro to train Hal on how to be a Green Lantern.

Sinestro’s mentorship of Hal soon ended, as Sinestro went nuts and betrayed the Corps. On Earth, Hal’s girlfriend Carol Ferris was chosen to become the Star Sapphire and a Major Disaster occurred when Paul Booker tried to blow up a bank. Hal also broke up Booker’s gang, lead by the Javelin.

After years of preparation, Harrison Wells launched his particle accelerator at S.T.A.R Labs. Of course, as any good accelerator does, it exploded. Many were injured or killed and at least 2,600 metahumans were created. Amongst these was forensic scientist Barry Allen. Lightning from the accelerator hit him, sending him flying back into a shelf of chemicals. Barry was found in a comatose state soon after.

## The Silver Age (Submitted by FlashyLady)

Back at the dawn of time, Krona’s observation of the universe led to the first incarnation of the multiverse. Following the Crisis, several Earths were merged to create a New Earth, with a history of diverse heroes reflected throughout.

Struck by lightning and doused with electrified chemicals, forensic scientist Barry Allen of the Central City Police Dept. had become The Flash, the Fastest Man Alive and the first of a new generation of brightly costumed superheroes. Joining Barry on his quest to become a hero was his girlfriend Iris West, engineer and metahuman expert Silas Stone, and medical expert Tina McGee.

Before long, the Flash had accumulated a small Rogues gallery. Infamous robber Leonard Snart and his accomplice Mick Rory acquired dangerous weapons from S.T.A.R Labs. Snart’s could generate absolute zero temperatures, while Mick’s could produce heats hotter than the surface temperature of the sun. Together, they fought the Flash as Captain Cold and Heatwave. Sam Scudder used a device that could create mirror like pocket dimensions, eventually becoming the Mirror Master, while his boyfriend Roscoe Dillon gained the ability induce vertigo in people, whilst spinning around like a Top. Mark Mardon used a powerful lightning rod to appear as some sort of Weather Wizard. Resentful of his father, Digger Harkness attacked various civilians, and the Flash as Captain Boomerang, while James Jesse used his various gags to terrorize the citizens of Central City as the Trickster.

Featured on the popular television series “Let’s Take a Look,” Fireman Farrell became a popular figure amongst the hero community, if not only for the fact that he literally left a television interview to save someone’s life, and then came back. An experiment of Lord Byth’s, Ace Arn was combined with the DNA of four other aliens in an attempt to create a slayer of worlds. As Ultra the Multi-Alien, he battled intergalactic threats and later became an ally to Space Ranger. Meanwhile, Superman participated in a charity battle with Muhammed Ali.

Amongst the many victims of the explosion was Laurel Lance, who gained a supersonic scream. Along with her training in martial arts, Laurel became the new Black Canary. Gifted with regenerative abilities and a newfound purpose in life, Vincent Sobel took to the streets with a more violent brand of justice as the Marksman. In an attempt to save her friends life during the explosion, Caitlin Snow was infused with some of the excess cryo-radiation, which gave her some degree of cryo-kinetic ability. Meanwhile, her colleague Cisco Ramon gained the power to travel anywhere by opening small breaches in the space-time continuum. After that incident, Breacher & Frost went on the hunt for the burning man.

Stranded on Earth by a dying scientist centuries earlier, a green-skinned shape-shifter had posed as police detective, using his alien abilities in secret, but J'onn J'onzz, Martian Manhunter finally went public. Captain Mark Compass became a detective, working for the U.S Navy. Carter Hall discovered his origins as Katar-Hol, the “Hawkman”, of Thanagarian lore. He tracked down a woman named Shayara Hall and managed to get her to remember as well. Together, they are Hawkman and Hawkgirl. Ray Palmer used a dwarfstar alloy to create the A.T.O.M suit, and used the suit to fight crime in the Microverse.

While Batman had gained talented young partners in Robin and Nightwing, Oliver Queen took in an orphaned boy named Roy Harper as Green Arrow’s kid sidekick Red Arrow. Likewise, Barry Allen was soon joined by his young protégé, Kid Flash, after a an incident involving Reverse-Flash granted super-speed to Wally West, his girlfriend’s brother. In time, Aquaman would adopt a young Atlantean outcast called Garth as his squire, Aqualad, and Donna Troy, who Wonder Woman had rescued from a fire as an toddler and been adopted by Queen Hippolyta, would earn her Amazonian bracelets to follow in her big sister's footsteps as Wonder Girl.

Just as the Sea Devils explored the depths of the oceans and Cave Carson journeyed into the Earth, so too was history itself by Rip Hunter, Time Master. In Africa, aging explorer Congo Bill gained a magic ring that transformed him into the legendary immortal Congorilla.

Archeologist Adam Strange was transported to a distant solar system by a Zeta Beam and became the greatest champion of the tumultuous planet Rann. Robotics savant Doc Magnus gave birth to his greatest creations, the Metal Men. Meanwhile in Central City, The Flash first encountered and befriended amateur detectives Sue & Ralph Dibny, who solved mysteries big and small as the stretchable sleuth known as The Elongated Man.

Nearly sixty years after the Justice Society of America had disbanded and retired, the Earth had come under constant attack by strange invaders from other worlds. Heeding the call once again, Superman, Batman & Wonder Woman banded together with the World's Greatest Super-Heroes; The Flash, Green Lantern, Black Canary & Martian Manhunter, to form the Justice League. Establishing their Secret Sanctuary inside a mountain near Happy Harbor, the JLA was soon joined by teenage hipster "Snapper" Carr, who became the Justice League's young mascot after helping them defeat the forces of Darkseid. Soon after, they were joined by Aquaman when they had to battle Starro the Conqueror.

Star City’s premier vigilante Green Arrow tried out, but was rejected. However, the JL's role call would soon include other heroes such as the Atom, Hawkman, and Hawkgirl. In Egypt, soldier of fortune Rex Mason was apparently transformed into Metamorpho, the Element Man, by the fabled Orb of Ra. Meanwhile, the young sorceress Zatanna began searching for her long lost father with the help of various members of the Justice League.

Not long after The Scarlet Speedster came face to face with his childhood idol and inspiration; Jay Garrick, the original Flash, the rest of the Justice Society of America came out of retirement to defeat the Injustice Gang formed by the immortal Vandal Savage. The JSA and their successors, the JLA, would subsequently team-up each year, facing off against various adversaries, new and old, including the Crime Syndicate of Amerika, their evil counterparts from the mirror world of Earth 3.

Wheelchair-bound scientific genius Dr. Niles Caulder banded together three superhuman  victims of tragic accidents, race driver Cliff Steele, B-movie actress Rita Farr and test pilot Larry Trainor, into the Doom Patrol to protect the world from the evil. After discovering a black diamond on a remote island, solar scientist Bruce Gordon unwittingly freed the ancient spirit of vengeance, Eclipso, to plague the Earth once again. From the Anti-Matter Universe, the Weaponers of Qward arrived on Earth to battle Green Lantern, partially influenced by the exiled Sinestro. Aquaman claimed his birthright as King of Atlantis with the fierce Mera as his queen.

When Batman and Robin once more battled Poison Ivy, they discovered her origins as Pamela Isley, a scientist working for Wayne Enterprises connected to the green by Jason Woodrue, the Floronic Man. Wonder Woman’s decade-long rivalry with The Cheetah resumed following her failed attempt at rehabilitation on Themyscira. The Flash first battled his deranged opposite number, Professor Zoom from the 25th Century. Kid Flash and his friends discovered that Ronnie Raymond had merged with physicist Martin Stein to become Firestorm, the Nuclear Man.

In a small town called Hatton Corners, many folks worried for their children. Twister had arrived. In order to defeat this madness, Nightwing gathered his friends Kid Flash, Wonder Girl, Aqualad, Red Arrow and Supergirl as the Titans. After defeating Mr. Twister the group decided to stay together. They soon gained some enmity from the corporation known as H.I.V.E, where there leader ordered that their metahumans band together as the Fearsome Five. Soon, their roster grew to contain more heroes, such as Breacher, Frost and the musical Mal Duncan.

The return of soldier Nathaniel Adam as the immensely powerful Captain Atom had inspired a turbulent period of superhero activity in Hub City. Assuming the mantle of his slain mentor, Ted Kord became the new Blue Beetle. Journalist Vic Sage pursued the truth as The Question, while Mitchell Black debuted as the new Peacemaker. Young Eve Eden adopted the code-name Nightshade and became Captain Atom's partner. Private Eye Sarge Steel became a secret agent working for the D.E.O.

**Not long after Barry Allen married his longtime girlfriend Iris West, Hal Jordan was dumped by Carol Ferris and left Coast City to travel around America in a succession of jobs. During this period, he befriended gym teacher Guy Gardner, who could have been chosen to become Green Lantern instead of himself. Meanwhile, Atlantis celebrated the birth of the heir to the throne, the infant son of Aquaman and Mera.**

Some superheroes were more unconventional or even just plain weird, like the detective agency of Angel and Ape, or the misfits of the Inferior Five. In the suburbs, a boy named Stanley and his Monster from Hell became friends. The Hipsters briefly gained their own superhero in the unlikely form of Bro Power, who attempted to spread the message of peace and understanding throughout America until the government shot him into space. The plains of Africa were defended by B'wana Beast.

The super-heroic fantasies of young Robby Reed became reality whenever he'd Dial “H” for Hero. Occult detective Mark Merlin was resurrected as the ancient Egyptian wizard Prince Ra-Man, Mind Master. Granted the powers of any animal, Hollywood stuntman Buddy Baker became Animal Man. As he had since the dawn of mankind, the ancient Iroquois champion, Super Chief was reincarnated in a new body once again.

Rock singer Jim Rook was transported to a mystical realm and fought evil warlocks as the Nightmaster. After decades in retirement, former crook "Eel" O'Brian returned to fight crime as the shape-changing Plastic Man with his sidekick Woozy Winks. Murdered acrobat Boston Brand returned from beyond the grave to find for his killer as Deadman, as did slain police detective Jim Corrigan, who once again returned to punish evildoers as The Spectre.

The enigmatic Mockingbird continued to use the Secret Six to do his bidding, while Talia al Ghul returned to Gotham, to introduce Batman to their son: Damian Wayne. Damian caused chaos for his siblings, but eventually proved his worth, saving Nightwing’s life from Planet Master.

Mysterious forces chose brothers Hank & Don Hall as their avatars on Earth, Hawk & Dove. TV reporter Jack Ryder was transformed into The Creeper, his deranged superhuman alter ego. The Doom Patrol apparently sacrificed their lives to save a small fishing village from the Brotherhood of Evil. Created to be a weapon against the JSA, the elemental-powered android Red Tornado instead turned on his evil creator and joined the heroes.

## The Bronze Age (Contributed by AdamStranger)

With the world now consumed by the ongoing drama and turmoil surrounding the superhuman community, the march of time had almost imperceptibly slowed, during which over a decade would pass with few aging more than a year. However, the forces holding back the tide of history would not hold forever as an ancient and malevolent force was awakened within the Anti-Matter Universe.

Fearless investigative journalist Lois Lane and mild-mannered Clark Kent were hired as TV reporter by the unscrupulous tycoon Morgan Edge of Galaxy Broadcasting. Soon afterwards, all Kryptonite on Earth was destroyed during a freak accident and Superman's powers were temporarily reduced. Following a dispute with Nightwing over leadership of the team, Lilith, along with Hawk, Dove, Flamebird, Golden Eagle, Herald, Gnarrk, and Beast Boy created Titans West. After arresting business tycoon and anti-metahuman activist Veronica Cale, Wonder Woman found herself in the middle of a political debate over superheroes, feminism, and other various things.

Hal Jordan and Oliver Queen embarked on a soul searching road trip to tackle the social issues that superheroes often ignored. Along with Laurel Lance and a lone Guardian called the “Old Timer”, this band of Hard Traveling Heroes fought poverty, pollution, racism, labor unrest, overpopulation, and violent cults. The drug epidemic was made personal when Ollie’s adoptive son Red Arrow was exposed as a junkie. During this time, John Stewart was made Hal Jordan’s auxiliary Green Lantern.

Superman's Pal, Jimmy Olsen, became embroiled in the war between the New Gods of the Fourth World. The ruler of the hellish planet Apokolips, Darkseid, had broken his truce with Highfather and kidnapped one of the Forever People from the peaceful world of New Genesis to seek out the Anti-Life Equation on Earth. Meanwhile, Highfather's son, Scot, fled Apokolips to Earth and assumed the alias of Scott Free, otherwise known as Mister Miracle, the World's Greatest Escape Artist. Heeding the call of war, the warrior Orion and his cheerful companion Lightray joined the fray and learned the terrible secret of Orion's birthright. Allied with neither New Genesis nor Apokolips was the cosmic observer Metron, wandering time & space for greater knowledge in his Mobius Chair.

In the enchanted streets of Fawcett City, homeless newsboy Billy Batson had been led to a hidden subway station by a mysterious stranger and brought to the secret lair of the old wizard Mamaragan, who bestowed upon Billy the ability to transform into Captain Marvel, the World's Mightiest Mortal. Soon, Billy shared his power with others, including his crippled friend Freddie Freeman, who became Commander Marvel and Mary Bromfield, who became Lady Marvel. Together, they foiled the schemes of the mad scientist Sivana and Mamaragan's corrupt former protégé, Black Adam. Before long, Captain Marvel had battled the evil Mr. Mind, and adopted a talking tiger, Tawny.

Cursed during the fall of Camelot more than a millennia ago, Jason Blood was transformed once more into The Demon to battle the forces of Morgaine Le Fey. In the Louisiana Bayou, murdered biologist Alec Holland was reborn as the monstrous Swamp Thing and foiled the evil schemes of mad scientist Anton Arcane. Meanwhile, criminals felt the wrath of The Spectre once again, the mysterious superhero known only as the Black Orchid first appeared, the enigmatic fortune teller Madame Xanadu revealed the unexpected destinies of all those who entered her parlor in Greenwich Village, and Iraq vet Rory Regan first donned the haunted suit of rags of his Jewish ancestors as Ragman.

Kate Spencer, Manhunter, had been resurrected by The Council, but turned against them once she uncovered her benefactor's true motives, and sacrificed her life to stop their plans for world domination. Not long afterwards, the ancient cult of The Manhunters recruited young public defender Mark Shaw into their ranks. Having convinced the deadly Lady Shiva that he wasn't her enemy, Richard Dragon, Kung Fu Fighter, was soon forced to fight his friend, Bronze Tiger, who'd been brainwashed by Sensei of the League of Assassins.

Christopher Chance, master of disguise, became the Human Target to protect his clients. Framed for treason and sentenced to death in his home within the Meta Zone, Shade the Changing Man, fled to Earth in pursuit of fugitives from his dimension. Starman Mikaal Tomas defended the Earth from an invasion by his homeworld. Air Force pilot Travis Morgan entered the Lost World of Skartaris and fought for freedom as The Warlord.

During this time, the multiverse would grow unstable, as many heroes traveled through the bleed to other worlds in an effort to prevent Crisis on Multiple Earths!

Wonder Woman first encountered Nubia, a rival from a tribe of Amazons under the thrall of the War God Mars. The Daily Planet’s two best reporters, Lois Lane & Clark Kent, finally started dating and Captain Comet returned to Earth after decades in space to help foil the evil schemes of the Secret Society. Crusading high school teacher Jefferson Pierce adopted the super-heroic guise of Black Lightning to defend the Suicide Slums of Metropolis. **Teenager Jefferson Jackson and active hero Ronnie Raymond were transformed into the new Firestorm, the Nuclear Man. Meanwhile, super-heroes from across the world were united by the immortal Dr. Mist into the Global Guardians, and model Mari McCabe gained animal powers from her ancestral totem necklace as Vixen.**

Banded together from across the galaxy by Lex Luthor & Brainiac, the most sinister villains of all time were manipulated with shared dreams of an impending apocalypse to form the Legion of Doom and challenge the Justice League of America. This unholy alliance of villains nearly succeeded in their conquest of the planet, but were defeated by the combined might of Earth's superheroes and their allies. However, this victory would be short-lived for some. The Flash's beloved wife, Iris, was attacked by The Reverse-Flash, and Aquaman's infant son was killed by Black Manta. Meanwhile, Wonder Woman's alter ego of Diana Prince became an agent of the American government's D.E.O alongside her boyfriend Steve Trevor. and Superman thwarted the latest schemes of Lex Luthor, whose plot to retrieve oil from the Middle East resulting in bombs being fired that had unleashed General Zod, Faora and Tor-An from their imprisonment within the Phantom Zone.

Martian Manhunter returned to Mars to fight his brother, Ma’alefa’ak. After being locked in a cryo-chamber during the S.T.A.R Labs explosion, Louise Lincoln was given cryokinetic powers and transformed into the frigid Killer Frost to avenge her friend. The Atomic Skull became a known concern, created when Albert Michaels gained radioactive powers that burnt the flesh away. The mercenary known as Bloodsport became involved in white supremacist activities, quickly becoming a pariah amongst the supervillain community.

No longer the Boy Wonder of his youth, nor the flashy vigilante of his adolescence, Dick Grayson reunited with Donna Troy and Wally West to mentor the next generation of teenaged superheroes. Together with the exiled alien princess Starfire, the mysterious sorceress Raven, the wise-cracking Changeling and the half-man/half-machine Cyborg, they became the New Teen Titans and established Titans Tower in New York City. Shortly after, they would be joined by young Jason Hart, a government sponsored superhero, mostly focusing on encouraging kids not to abuse drugs as the Protector.

Tales of The GLC spread throughout the cosmos. Soon after thwarting an invasion of the universe by the Weaponers of Qward, the renegade Oan Krona returned leading the undead armies of Nekron, the dark embodiment of death. Emerging from these cosmic wars victorious, Hal Jordan refused leadership of the Corps to remain on Earth. However, the Guardians soon exiled Jordan to space for neglecting the other worlds of Sector 2814. Across the galaxy in the Vegan System, the Omega Men overthrew the tyrannical rule of The Citadel and began to rebuild while, in another star system, Prince Gavyn was exiled by a usurper and began secretly defending Throneworld as Starman.

Following a brutal attack upon Sue Dibny, a secret pact within the ranks of the Justice League to protect their secret identities using mind-wipes led to a single act of betrayal with far-reaching consequences. With his trust in the League steadily decreasing, Batman formed a group of Outsiders which operated out of the small European nation of Markovia. Meanwhile, Ray Palmer left Ivy Town and began a new life in the Amazon Jungle after his wife Jean Loring divorced him.

With most of his team-mates gone, Aquaman disbanded the old Justice League of America and formed a new incarnation in Detroit with the Martian Manhunter, Zatanna and the Elongated Man and began training young heroes Gypsy, the indestructible Steel, the breakdancing Vibe and animal empowered Vixen. Meanwhile, the teleporting, fourth wall-breaking nuisance known as Ambush Bug first appeared to annoy the living $#!+ out of everyone from Superman to Darkseid. Power Girl and The Star-Spangled Kid joined protégés and offspring of the JSA to form their own team in Los Angeles called Infinity Inc. Their members would include Alan Scott's twin children Jade & Obsidian, Scythian Torvill and Kendra Munoz’s son Silver Scarab, Hippolyta's foster daughter Fury and Al Pratt's godson Nuklon. Meanwhile, Hollywood stuntman and special effects wizard Daniel Cassidy was transformed by a demon from Hell into Blue Devil.

Chief amongst the New Teen Titans' adversaries was cunning mercenary Slade Wilson, who used a 13 year old super-heroine called Terra to infiltrate the Titans. Not long afterwards, Slade's mute son, Jericho and the crystal-spinning Kole joined the Titans. District attorney Adrian Chase avenged his family's murder in the costumed identity of Vigilante in the streets of New York City. While his friends faced the terror of Trigon, Dick Grayson investigated his most person mystery yet: Who is Donna Troy?

Just as Superman faced a dangerous new foe in the diabolical alien tyrant Mongul, his old archenemies, Lex Luthor and Brainiac, returned deadlier than ever to plague the Man of Steel. Meanwhile, the super powers of Earth's heroes and villains were tested when the forces of Apokolips threatened the planet once again.

In Gotham City, Tim Drake got a new costume as he earned the first half of the nightly patrol, thus making things more fair and time effective for the Bat Family. The Flash killed The Reverse-Flash to stop him from murdering the woman he loved and was put on trial for manslaughter in Central City. Upon Hal Jordan's return from space, he gave up his ring for Carol Ferris. In his place, architect John Stewart became the new Green Lantern of Sector 2814 while Hal Jordan watched helplessly as Carol Ferris was transformed by a mysterious stalker, The Predator, into his old enemy--Star Sapphire!

The realm of magic and the occult grew restless as a growing darkness spread across the Earth, seen only by the blind Mister E. To battle these supernatural threats, enigmatic Baron Winters assembled his chosen team, known as Night Force. 13 year old Amy Winston discovered she was actually Amethyst, Princess of Gemworld. Swamp Thing discovered the truth of his origins and met a cynical and manipulative rogue named John Constantine, who began preparing him for an imminent crisis that would shatter the very fabric of reality itself.

The growing temporal instabilities that had plagued Earth's heroes for decades finally culminated in the cataclysmic cosmic event known as the Crisis on Infinite Earths. From his hidden satellite above Earth, The Monitor tasked his protege Harbinger to gather heroes and villains from across history to stop his evil counterpart from the Anti-Matter Universe, The Anti-Monitor.

Amidst the red skies and desperate battles with Shadow Demons, a faction of Guardians on Oa revived and empowered the brash mentally unstable Guy Gardner to act as their Green Lantern, and young prodigy Alexander Luthor of Earth-3 rose up to help save the universe. After an explosion activated her powers, Kimiyo Hoshi joined the heroes battle against the Anti-Monitor as a heroic Dr. Light. Meanwhile, the being known as Pariah was dragged through the multiverse, serving as a herald for the crisis that has come.

Victory in the Crisis would come at a high price. Barry Allen sacrificed his life running around the Anti-Monitor’s cannon, while Supergirl died after a direct assault on the Anti-Monitor. During the battle with the Shadow Demons, Wonder Woman, Giovanni Zatara, Dove, Kole, Tula, Lori Lemaris, Mirror Master and countless others made sacrifices so that their world may continue to exist.

Furthermore, the Justice Society of America had disappeared into Limbo to prevent the coming of Ragnarok. Alexander Luthor also left this plane of existence, taking with him three fellow refugees of extinct parallel timelines, the elder Superman Kal-L, his wife Lois Lane of Earth-2, and the young Superboy-Prime. Meanwhile, the elder Superman's cousin, Kara Zor-L, became stranded on this Earth, her true origins unclear to even herself.

## Post-Crisis: The Dark Age (Entry by Oracle)

Darkseid initiated a plan to eliminate superheroes. He started by sending his minion, Glorious Godfrey to Earth under the alias “G. Gordon Godfrey.” Godfrey spread fake news about the superhero community, causing riots and eventually got the President of the United States to outlaw them. During the course of this, he also arranged for Vibe and Commander Steel of Justice League Detroit to be killed by Professor Ivo and his robot A.M.A.Z.O.

Humbled by his recent losses, the Man of Steel embraced his humanity over his alien heritage as Superman, beginning this new uncertain era. Having received a presidential pardon for his role in protecting America during the Crisis, Lex Luthor left his overtly criminal ways behind him and swiftly established LuthorCorp as one of the world's most powerful conglomerates. Meanwhile, Lois Lane, Clark Kent and Jimmy Olsen returned to print journalism at the Daily Planet, under their cantankerous old editor, Perry White. Following violent Anti-Hero Riots orchestrated by the acolytes of Darkseid, Superman reluctantly agreed to work for the President, a decision that drove a wedge between Batman and himself.

Killed during the crisis, Wonder Woman was restored by the Gods of Olympus and tasked with thwarting a plot by Ares, the God of War, to plunge the world into nuclear war. With little memory of her past, Diana was re-taught the ways of Man's World by Etta Candy. Although his top speed had been reduced by his hyper-charged metabolism, Wally West chose to follow in the footsteps of his late mentor, Barry Allen, and donned the red & gold costume of the Fastest Man Alive, The Flash. When the Guardians of the Universe left this plane of existence to sire the next generation of immortals with their female counterparts, the Zamarons, the surviving members of GLC were left behind to find their own path. Some chose to settle on Earth, including the hulking giant Kilowog, whose technological prowess helped recreate the Soviet Union's armored protectors, the Rocket Red Brigade.

Less than a month after her resurrection, Diana suffered as she watched her friend Barbara Minerva was transformed by the plant god Urkatzga into the new Cheetah. Meanwhile, the Flash had an encounter with the Russian superheroes known as the Blue Trinity, and became rivals with Ivana Molotova, the woman who is known in the states as Lady Flash.

Soon afterwards, Russia’s nuclear-powered superhero Pozar was merged with Firestorm, who soon evolved into Earth’s Fire Elemental. Meanwhile, Artemis Crock, the teenaged daughter of two super-villains, left the family business, becoming an ally to Green Arrow as Artemis. After the death of his brother at the hands of A.M.A.Z.O, Cisco Ramon decided to avenge his brother as the new Vibe. Resurrected through mysterious circumstances, Sara Lance renewed her quest for justice as the White Canary.

The ever-formidable Amanda Waller orchestrated the creation of a new Suicide Squad to be led by Rick Flag Jr. and comprised of super-villains performing secret missions on behalf of Task Force X. Meanwhile, billionaire Maxwell Lord had manipulated the United Nations into officially sanctioning the Justice League International, whose membership included a disgraced 25th Century athlete who'd journeyed to the past to make his fortune as superhero entrepreneur Booster Gold.

Air Force Captain Nathaniel Adam came out of retirement, using his immense quantum-powered abilities and once more becoming Captain Atom, the official superhero of the United States government, Ted Kord moved to Chicago to resume his adventures as Blue Beetle, and Hub City reporter Vic Sage renewed his search for truth as The Question.

While the Outsiders encountered the People’s Heroes in Russia, the European Union established the Justice League of Europe as a faction of the J.L.I with Wonder Woman as their leader. After being captured by Amanda Waller in the Crisis, Lady Quark, along with Gypsy, Pariah, Phantasm and several others, were freed by the  Justice League of America’s Vibe.

During the Millenium event, the sleeper agents of the Manhunters, the Green Lantern Corps' android predecessors, launched a coordinated attack upon Earth's heroes to prevent the birth of a new race of immortals. However, the entire Corps was decimated soon afterwards by the schemes of Sinestro, who infected the source of their lanterns' light, the Central Power Battery of Oa, awakening the ancient Yellow Impurity within it. After billions of years of protecting the cosmos, the Green Lantern Corps was suddenly reduced to a handful of ring-bearers.

Green Arrow moved back to Seattle with Laurel Lance and became embroiled in the affairs of the Yakuza and the CIA. Meanwhile, in middle America, ex-marine Jack Ramirez donned a hockey-mask as the costumed vigilante Wild Dog to battle homegrown terrorism threatening the Quad Cities. Having gained the ire of Batman himself, Amanda Waller remained undaunted and enlisted bounty hunter Mark Shaw, Manhunter, to recruit new members for her Suicide Squad while also helping create the spy agency Checkmate, with herself as its Queen.

The heroine who survived the Crisis known as Power Girl discovered that she was actually the granddaughter of Arion, the Lord of Atlantis. With the death of Kent Nelson, young Khalid Nassour became the next Doctor Fate to fight the eternal war between the Lords of Order & Chaos, who also brought together the increasingly unstable Hank Hall with his new idealistic partner Dawn Granger as Hawk and Dove. Meanwhile, the JLI expanded its ranks to include Brazilian Fire & Ice of Norway. Ray Palmer returned to Ivy Town from the Amazon Jungle to resume his exploits as The Atom. Arizona college student Will Payton, struck by a bolt of cosmic energy, became the newest Starman.

An uneasy alliance between Darkseid and Metron to unlock the secrets of the Anti-Life Equation unleashed an ancient evil upon the cosmos. Rallying a band of Earth's heroes on a Cosmic Odyssey to thwart this dark entity, they failed to prevent the destruction of the planet Xanshi. Intergalactic bounty hunter Lobo arrived on Earth to hunt down renegade aliens. Linda Lee gained superpowers as part of Max Lord’s Infinity Project and became the first (technically second) Supergirl. Helena Bertinelli faked her death and began working for the agency known as Spyral.

Awakened to his true nature as the latest incarnation of our planet's Earth Elemental, Swamp Thing gained a greater understanding of his abilities as the newest member of the Parliament of Trees and began a cosmic journey through time and space itself. John Constantine, Hellblazer, continued to lie, cheat and steal to stop Heaven and Hell from interfering with the affairs of Mankind. After years of semi-retirement, Buddy Baker decided to resume his strange exploits as Animal Man and uncovered the greatest secret of existence when he met his own creator. Coming out of hiding, Dr. Niles Caulder reformed the Doom Patrol for even stranger adventures than before.

The origins of the mysterious superheroine known only as Black Orchid were finally revealed as a human-plant hybrid created from the consciousness of a murdered woman. Resurrected in the body of a man on death row, Shade the Changing Man returned to battle the forces of insanity on Earth. Destined to become history's most powerful wizard, a young orphaned boy named Timothy Hunter began his education in the Books of Magic by the world's foremost experts in the supernatural world; the "Trenchcoat Brigade" of  Doctor Occult, The Phantom Stranger, John Constantine and Mister E. Meanwhile, the Doom Patrol witnessed the return of Flex Mentallo, Man of Muscle Mystery!

Freed from imprisonment after nearly a century, Morpheus, the Lord of Dreams also known as Sandman, found his realm in chaos and his possessions stolen. Dream was also reunited with his six estranged siblings, The Endless. Each of his brothers and sisters were the immortal personifications of a universal idea believed in by all sentient life in existence; Death, who often appeared as a cheerful young woman in black; Destruction, who'd abandoned his duties altogether; Despair and her twin sister Desire; The youngest, Delirium; And the eldest of them all, Destiny, who had been present at the very creation of all existence to record it in his ancient book containing everything that ever was and ever will be.

Having spent most of his life as Green Lantern, a world-weary Hal Jordan contemplated giving up his ring, only to be thrust back into action when an insane Oan once known as "The Old Timer" kidnapped cities from his travels on Earth and throughout the cosmos. In the aftermath, the Guardians of the Universe returned from their self-imposed retirement and tasked John Stewart with protecting the Mosaic of human and alien cities their mad brother had created on Oa. Kicked out of the Green Lantern Corps after a bare-knuckles brawl with his rival Hal Jordan, Guy Gardner stole Sinestro's yellow ring and became an independent ring-slinger. After decades trapped within the Phantom Zone, Mon-El was temporarily freed thanks to the efforts of Vril Dox and Superman. During his brief time of freedom, he took the name Valor and helped seed the worlds that would one day form the United Planets in the 30th Century. While the ranks of the Green Lantern Corps were slowly being restored, another interstellar peacekeeping force known as Darkstars expanded its jurisdiction when grizzled veteran Ferrin Colos arrived on Earth in pursuit of an intergalactic drug dealer.

Journeying back through the timestream to prevent Armageddon, the time-traveler Waverider investigated the potential futures of Earth's heroes to learn the identity of his era's despotic ruler, Monarch. Shortly afterwards, the cunning sorceress Circe manipulated the rival pantheons of Olympus into declaring War of the Gods. Imprisoned within countless black diamonds, the ancient spirit of vengeance, Eclipso, returned to plague humanity. An uneasy alliance was formed between mercenary Slade Wilson, aka Deathstroke the Terminator, and his old adversaries, the New Titans, when they were targeted for assassination by the deadly Wildebeest Society.

Ray Terrill was told he was hyper-sensitive to sunlight, but discovered he was actually the son of The Ray and had inherited his father's ability to absorb light. In Fawcett City, Billy Batson, Mary Batson and Freddie Freeman once again called upon the Power of Shazam to thwart the schemes of a diabolical alien caterpillar known as Mr. Mind. Shortly after exposing Professor Zoom's attempts to impersonate Barry Allen, Wally West discovered the source of all speedsters' powers; an extra-dimensional energy that exists beyond the speed of light known as the Speed Force.

John Henry Irons, inspired by the exploits of John Henry, created a suit that allows him to fight crime as a man of steel. Freed from Project: Cadmus, Kon-El, a teenage clone of Superman began to act as a vigilante, Superboy. Growing out of the mantle, Tim Drake decided to become Red Robin. In order to keep her safe, Catwoman trained a girl named Holly Robinson on how to fight criminals and occasionally let Holly join her as Catgirl.

Although Superman had thwarted the schemes of the Cyborg Superman and Mongul, the tragedy had cause Hal Jordan to go insane, and steal the power of the Guardians of the Universe to resurrect Coast City. Hal also created another ring, which he entrusted to a young artist named Kyle Rayner as the next Green Lantern.. His ring destroyed during his final battle with the Guardians, Guy Gardner sought out new powers and transformed himself into a half-Vuldarian shape shifter calling himself Warrior. The hero known as Golden Eagle revealed himself to be Andar-Chal of Thanagar.

In the Midwestern city of Dakota, a sudden surge in metahuman activity began with the arrival of the high-tech vigilante Hardware, alien paragon Icon his sidekick Rocket, a feared superhuman street gang called the Blood Syndicate, and a teenage superhero calling himself Static. In time, the secret organization known only as the Shadow Cabinet also revealed themselves, as did the genetically altered Xombi and the ruthless vigilante called Kobalt.

Leaving Gotham, Nightwing made the crime-stricken city of Blüdhaven his new home. Meanwhile, the fierce Amazon named Artemis challenged Wonder Woman for the right to be the Amazons' ambassador to Man's World. The Zen Master of Speed, Max Mercury, became the mentor of Bart Allen, the reckless grandson of Barry Allen from the 30th Century, who became known as Impulse. Following the loss of his hand in battle, Aquaman began his quest to reunite the lost tribes of Atlantis scattered across the oceans.

In Opal City, antique store owner Jack Knight reluctantly assumed the mantle of Starman when his older brother was murdered by his father's archenemy, The Mist, and gained an unexpected ally in the shadowy super-villain known only as The Shade, an immortal with a long and mysterious history stretching back more than a century. During his various exploits spanning time and space, Jack was often joined by Mikaal Tomas, an alien who had come to Earth in the seventies, and others heroes who had carried on the legacy of Starman or protected his home of Opal City in times past.

Soon after Oracle began working with Black Canary as The Birds of Prey, the devilish Neron arose from Hell to offer Earth's villains powerful new abilities in exchange for their souls. The dying Lex Luthor happily accepted the demon's deal so that he could live on in a young new body, thereby escaping prosecution for his countless crimes by assuming the identity of his missing son, Alexander.  A working-class Hitman in Gotham City named Tommy Monaghan gained X-Ray vision after surviving an attack by an alien parasite. Agent Chase joined the Department of Extranormal Operations, Aztek: The Ultimate Man  was sent out into the world by his mysterious benefactors.

When the world was once more threatened by forces too great for a single hero to defeat, Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Green Lantern, Aquaman & Martian Manhunter reformed the JLA and soon rallied all of Earth's Greatest Heroes to defeat an ancient super-weapon from the time of the Old Gods. After a long year, Superman and Lois Lane finally got married. 13 year old Cassie Sandsmark of Gateway City learned her real father was actually Zeus, immortal ruler of the Olympian Gods. In time, this new Wonder Girl joined Arrowette, Empress, Secret, Slobo, Superboy, Robin & Impulse as a member of Young Justice along with many other teenaged heroes, who took up residence in the JLA's old Secret Sanctum in Happy Harbour.

After helping the JLA thwart the schemes of another rebellion in Heaven, the angel Zauriel chose to live among humanity for a time. Although the Martian Manhunter had maintained several identities across the globe, he decided to retire them all to focus on his original alter ego of police detective John Jones. Meanwhile, the time-travelling android Hourman from the 853rd Century befriended former JLA mascot "Snapper" Carr. Fulfilling the prophecy of the Fourth World, Orion battled his father Darkseid in the fire pits of Apokolips and defeated him to become the new ruler of the hellish world and its people.

The spirit of Jim Corrigan finally found peace and was allowed to ascend to Heaven, leaving the Spectre without a host to guide the Wrath of God and punish the wicked. When a Sun-Eater threatened to extinguish Earth's sun, Hal Jordan had sacrificed himself to prevent the final night from falling upon his homeworld. However, his restless soul would eventually return from the depths of Purgatory and became The Spectre's new host when the demonic forces of Hell brought forth the day of judgement upon Earth.

Soon after the debut of Stars & S.T.R.I.P.E, they joined the reformed JSA to help ensure the survival of the child chosen to inherit the mantle of Doctor Fate from the agents of the Dark Lord. Later, they discovered the secret history of Hawkman and his countless resurrections.

Once again, instabilities within the timestream grew, causing history itself to twist and change without warning. During this period, the denizens of a grim and gritty alternate timeline merged into New Earth, including the covert action team WildC.A.T.S., whose members waged a secret war against aliens on their Earth. While the super-powered teenagers of Gen13 became fugitives, the global superhuman agency Stormwatch was betrayed by one of their own. Afterwards, the surviving members became much more proactive in their efforts to save the world as The Authority. The secret history of this dark Earth was uncovered by a team of superhuman archeologists known as Planetary.

When the being known as Imperiex arrived in the galaxy, the heroes united to save it and defeat Imperiex once and for all. Following this, Brainiac 13 trapped Metropolis in a dome, with the goal of bringing them into the future. In the aftermath, a war-torn Superman would wake up to a brand new shitstorm. Lex Luthor was running for President, and his kid was now elementary-school aged, like most of the other infants in Metropolis.

While Oliver Queen mentored his little sister Thea Queen to become a new Speedy, Superman contended with a high-tech Metropolis transformed by the Brainiac 13 virus and the newly-elected President of the United States, Lex Luthor. Soon afterwards, world-wide alien invasions were repelled by the assembled ranks of virtually all of Earth's Greatest Heroes; who banded together as Justice League Unlimited. Moving back to Smallville, Superboy assumed the identity of Clark Kent's "cousin", Conner Kent.

While Batman battled the master criminal known as Hush, Selina Kyle faked her own death, but Catwoman reappeared as the protector of Gotham's East End. Black Canary & Oracle recruited The Huntress into the Birds of Prey and mute ex-assassin Cassandra Cain rejected her upbringing to become the Orphan. Meanwhile, Jason Todd returned from the grave as the new Red Hood  and hard-working Homicide Detectives Renee Montoya and Crispus Allen of Gotham Central solved crimes on the streets of America's most dangerous city.

Damian Wayne debuted as the new Robin, while Stephanie Brown became the Spoiler to ruin her father’s plans. Kate Kane returned to Gotham, after being kicked out of the military, and became the new  Batwoman. After an incident where their families were put in danger, Batman and Superman rekindle their friendship and began teaming up more frequently, as the World’s Finest Heroes.

Meanwhile, Kyle Rayner journeyed to Space Sector 3600 and uncovered the truth behind Hal Jordan's mental breakdown a decade ago. The Yellow Impurity had a name--Parallax, a cosmic fear parasite imprisoned within the Central Power Battery billions of years ago by the Guardians. Infected by Parallax, Hal Jordan had unwittingly given it control of The Spectre, one of the most powerful beings in existence. However, with the help of Kyle Rayner, John Stewart, Guy Gardner and Ganthet, Hal Jordan was reborn as Green Lantern to save the world once again and confronted the arch-villain who'd orchestrated it all; Sinestro. Hal Jordan, John Stewart and Guy Gardner became embroiled in the Sinestro Corps War when their fellow ring-slinger Kyle Rayner was infected with Parallax and unleashed all the criminals imprisoned within the Sciencells of Oa. Amassing an army of the most fearsome villains in galaxy, including the Cyborg Superman, Mongul, Sand-Superman and the hulking Arkillo, Sinestro launched a full-scale invasion of Oa to destroy the Green Lantern Corps once and for all, only to be defeated by his hated nemesis, Hal Jordan, and the Green Lanterns of Earth.

Superman freed the bottle citv containing the survivors of Argo City and Kandor from the clutches of Brainiac, but also lost his father, Jonathan Kent, who died of a heart attack. These one hundred thousand Kryptonian refugees created a world nearby Earth called New Krypton, with General Zod as their military commander. Uneasy with the potential threat of such powerful beings so close to Earth, Earth's military, under the command of General Sam Lane, began building a massive stockpile of Kryptonite weaponry. Manipulating both sides into war, Lex Luthor watched as Superman struggled to keep the peace between his adopted homeworld of Earth and the now immensely powerful Kryptonians. However, all his efforts proved futile when Luthor utterly destroyed New Krypton, plunging the enraged Kryptonian survivors and the people of Earth into a full-scale War of the Superman that left millions dead.

In the far reaches of space, Hal Jordan & Kilowog stole an experimental Oan starship to thwart an invasion of Red Lanterns and the Anti-Monitor's army of Manhunters with the help of their naive artificial intelligence Aya and a deeply conflicted young Red Lantern named Razer. Meanwhile, the attempts by the renegade Oan Krona to wrest control of the entities of the Emotional Spectrum resulted in Sinestro being welcomed back into the Green Lantern Corps while Hal Jordan was expelled and sent back to Earth in disgrace. As the increasingly malevolent Guardians unleashed their Third Army, unlikely allies Hal Jordan & Sinestro joined forces and unwittingly recruited a new Green Lanterns named Simon Baz. Alongside Guy Gardner, John Stewart and Kyle Rayner's ragtag band of New Guardians, they faced the wrath of the First Lantern, Volthoom, who'd taught the Oans how to manipulate the Emotional Spectrum eons ago.

For a time, it seemed like Wally West had gotten his life together. He recruited a team at S.T.A.R Labs, including his friends from the Titans, Caitlin Snow and Cisco Ramon. Wally had also started dating Linda Park. However, this would change with the arrival of Hunter Zolomon. Hunter was Wally’s friend who was crippled by Grodd, and then broke into the Flash Museum and gained Speed Force powers, becoming Zoom, with the goal of making the Flash a better hero. Hunter’s schemes would lead to the return of Barry Allen.

Upon his return from the Speed Force, Barry Allen discovered that he is the engine of the Speed Force, the source of energy from which speedsters derive their powers. Barry also discovered that his entire life has been manipulated by his greatest enemy, Eobard Thawne.

While Cassandra Cain went deep undercover in Deathstroke’s Group as Black Bat, a new Azrael arrived in Gotham, who was discovered to be police officer Michael Washington Lane. With Cassandra Cain having seemingly betrayed them, Stephanie Brown assumed the alias of Batgirl.

After discovering that his mother was murdered by Professor Zoom, Barry traveled back in time to stop Thawne from killing his mother. As he did so, he absorbed the entire Speed Force into him, before releasing that energy, shattering time and creating something called a Flashpoint Paradox. In this new timeline, Thomas Wayne became the Batman after his son was shot down by a mugger, while his wife Martha snapped and became the Joker. In the larger world, a war broke out between Wonder Woman and Aquaman.  With the help of American hero Cyborg and his businessman father Silas, Barry was able to work with the resistance, stop the war and fix time, before encountering a being that would forever alter everything.

## The New 52\* (Observed, Recorded and Submitted by the ManofTomorrow)

Reality shifted across the multiverse when Barry Allen journeyed back in time in an attempt to prevent his mother’s murder at the hands of his archenemy, The Reverse-Flash, creating the world of Flashpoint. Upon his return, the memories of his friends and allies had been altered in sometimes subtle and major ways as entire relationships and families were forgotten, while others still were returned to life. As the invading hordes of Darkseid's Parademons threatened the Earth once again, Cyborg was instrumental to helping the Justice League when his cybernetic systems were merged with a Mother Box from the Fourth World. Meanwhile, Zatanna joined John Constantine to recruit Deadman, Swamp Thing, Madame Xanadu, and a motley crew of occult heroes and misfits to battle the dark forces of magic, and the supernatural as Vertigo Society.

In the aftermath of the gruesome war, Superman finally managed to defeat the elaborate schemes of Vyndktvx, the malicious rival of his old foe Mr. Mxyzptlk from the fifth dimension. Meanwhile, Superboy began an investigation into the machinations of Project N.O.W.H.E.R.E, an organization in league with some group called Harvest. As racial tensions began to rise, Superman began a campaign to destroy the KKK.

Kevin Kho was selected to become the first victim of The O.M.A.C Project, while Michael Holt became Mr. Terrific. Ronnie Raymond and Jax Jackson split, now being two individual Firestorm’s that can merge into one nuclear Firestorm, and Barry Allen attempted to move forward dealing with the events of Flashpoint, leading to his retirement.

The Blackhawks were reformed under the leadership of Andrew Lincoln, much to the chagrin of Zinda Blake. After breaking his contract with H.I.V.E, Deathstroke reformed himself as a private mercenary. Meanwhile, Cyborg discovered that Grid program within his software and faced the reality that even he is not immune to malware.

Defeating the Thanagarian forces that came to kill him, Carter Hall continues to fight for Earth as the Savage Hawkman. Exiled from Gotham, Jason Todd created his own team of Outlaws to fight the Black Mask and other psychos lurking in the streets and the underworld. Booster Gold made a new JLI, while Steve Trevor led the new Justice League of America.

While Batman and his allies faced the sinister plot of the Court of Owls, a secret cult that has manipulated Gotham City for centuries, Wonder Woman uncovered lies regarding her origins during her attempts to protect the child of Zeus from the machinations of the cruel and selfish Gods of Olympus. Not long after Aquaman & Mera were reunited with his former allies, The Others, a violent civil over the throne of Atlantis brought bloodshed to the surface world. Meanwhile, the forces of magic once again chose a young boy named Billy Batson as their champion, Shazam, the world’s mightiest mortal.

Thousands of years ago, Pandora opened the box. This caused her to become the final part of the Trinity of Sin alongside Judas Iscariot and Szasz. Years later, the box cause the various different Leagues to go to war with each other, later revealed to be because Atomica had planted a shard of kryptonite inside of Superman’s brain, and was planning on using the box to allow the Crime Syndicate of America to come to Earth.

While the Joker hatched his plan to cause the Death of the Family, Superman unchained himself as he reached a new point in his career and Walter West became the new Kid Flash. Meanwhile, the Young Justice gang met their future selves, the villainous Titans of Tomorrow.

On Earth-2, the heroes are just getting started back up again after the murder of the Justice League. Jay Garrick gained a bonus boost from the Speed Force and became the old/new Flash. Alan Scott continued his quest to defend the Green as Green Lantern. Kendra Munoz-Saunders became the newest Hawkgirl. Val-Zod decided to use Kal-L’s symbol and fight for truth and justice as Superman. Feeling guilt over his son’s death, Thomas Wayne uses Miraclo to fight the criminals of Gotham as the Batman.

The Secret Six was created to do what the Squad can’t. Nightwing died during the CSA invasion. Now there is only Agent 37 AKA Grayson. The Multiversity founded the New Challengers quest to investigate the 52 Earths. Jesse Wells utilized the Speed Force Formula, to fight crime as Jesse Quick, and Nelson Jent would gain powers every time he would Dial H for Hero.

The Justice League soon got embroiled in a war between Darkseid and Mobius, where they temporarily became New Gods. The war concluded with the death of Darkseid and his daughter Grail raising Diana’s baby brother Jason. In the aftermath, Jessica Cruz became a Green Lantern.

Batman engaged in another battle with the Joker, thwarting the Joker’s endgame before the rest of Gotham was killed. After defeating the Joker, Bruce suffered a psychotic break and his “backup personality,” the Batman of Zur en Arrh took over. While the Batman was gone, his sons aided the “We are Robin” movement in protecting Gotham in Batman’s absence. Bruce managed to snap out of it over the course of a couple weeks, and returned to normal for a short while, even briefly becoming the God of Knowledge during the Darkseid War. But this was all a prerequisite to what was about to happen.

Amanda Waller saw the latest reports on metahuman activity and decided it was time to reform the Suicide Squad. Their newest members included the likes of Black Spider and Harley Quinn. Meanwhile, Red Robin and his friends discovered the organization Superboy had been investigating. Project N.O.W.H.E.R.E, the nefarious organization that was responsible for the disappearance of the heroes from Gen13. Along with several of the others freed from N.O.W.H.E.R.E’s clutches, Gen13 became the basis for the group now known as the Ravagers.

Growing increasingly unstable, President Luthor launched an all-out attack upon Superman & Batman and declared them public enemies while the team Formerly Known as the Justice League got the band back together for more misadventures. Across the galaxy, the disappearance of the planet Rann was investigated by its champion Adam Strange, and Nightwing recruited his own team of Outsiders, whose members included Black Lightning’s young daughter, Thunder, and her lover, superhuman bouncer Grace Choi.

The murder of Sue Dibny would lead to the past coming back to haunt the Justice League, and an Identity Crisis for some heroes, such as Batman and the Flash. Unable to deal with the ethics of the League, Wally West and his friends left, which caused some conflict with Barry, and allowed them to be manipulated by Hunter Zolomon once again. In the aftermath, Jason Rusch became the new Firestorm, and Red Hood/Arsenal went on the run after the discovery of the Babel Protocols.

Zatanna took on an apprentice. The newest Mister Miracle escaped the Omega Sanction. The Shining Knight of the First Arthurian Epoch found herself lost in the present. Klarion The Witchboy left his secluded community. The Bulleteer reluctantly joined the superhero community. The Manhattan Guardian defended the streets. Frankenstein, Agent of S.H.A.D.E. battled the forces of the paranormal. Fulfilling a prophecy foretold 100 thousand years earlier, these Seven Soldiers each played their roles to save the world from an invasion by a parasitic race from the distant future that harvest past civilizations.

His true nature revealed, Maxwell Lord murdered Blue Beetle when he discovered his plans to wipe out Earth's superhuman population with the Omac Project, created by Batman's Brother Eye spy satellite. Max Lord was killed by Wonder Woman to end his mental manipulation of Superman. Lex Luthor formed the Secret Six to challenge a new Secret Society of Super-Villains organized by his mysterious doppelganger. In space, the Rann-Thanagar War erupted across the stars. Eclipso manipulated The Spectre into wreaking havoc upon the realm of magic, prompting the formation of the Shadowpact.

Elsewhere, unknown forces manipulated Power Girl, restoring her memories as Kara Zor-L, cousin of the Superman of Earth-2, a long lost parallel timeline last seen during the Crisis on Infinite Earths. Finally, the cause of the increasing temporal instabilities was revealed as the cosmic machinations of Alexander Luthor Jr., the elder Kal-L and the young Superboy-Prime. With all of time and space in chaos, this Infinite Crisis came to its bloody conclusion with combined efforts of all the Earth's heroes and the reformed Green Lantern Corps. However, amongst the casualties were Batman, Conner Kent and Kal-L, who both died at the hands of the insane Superboy-Prime.

## The Platinum Age (Observed, Recorded and Contributed by theResurrectedSuper)

In the year that followed, Superman, Nightwing and Wonder Woman withdrew from the public eye to heal, reflect and retrain themselves so that the mistakes of this most recent crisis would never be repeated. His Kryptonian cells extinguished during his final battle with Superboy-Prime, Clark Kent adjusted to living as a normal man without his extraordinary powers. Dick Grayson travelled the world with Tim Drake, retracing the path Bruce had taken decades ago to forge himself into The Batman. Wonder Woman lived life as a mortal again, assuming the identity of Metahuman Affairs Agent Diana Prince. Meanwhile, Batwoman and Renee Montoya began a relationship, while Kate was investigating the death of her sister some years ago, and teenager Jaime Reyes was thrust into the world of superheroes after being bonded to the ancient scarab that once belonged to the original Blue Beetle. During those 52 weeks, Booster Gold, Steel, Renee Montoya, Ralph Dibny and Black Adam became key figures in the destruction of Khandaq, Lex Luthor's Everyman Project, a Kryptonian Resurrection Cult, and a conspiracy to reshape the timestream.

One year after the Crisis, Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman created a new Justice League of America. This league got involved with a group called the Multiversity, which sought to catalog the worlds of the multiverse, while researching the history of Crisis.

Linda Lee took an extended vacation in the 31st Century, where Supergirl and the Legion challenged the authority of the increasingly stodgy older generation. Tim Drake struggled to keep the Teen Titans together with a variety of new members, including the mysterious “niece” of J’onn J’onzz known as Miss Martian. Inexplicably, a suddenly adult Bart Allen reluctantly took up his grandfather’s mantle as The Flash, the Fastest Man Alive, for a very brief time.

Wonder Woman returned to battle her greatest foes. Dick Grayson and Damian Wayne decided to join forces in Bruce’s absence as Batman and Robin, in the aftermath of a Battle for the Cowl, and the Robin War. Dick also placed Batwoman in charge of the Gotham Knights, and tried to reform Basil Karlo. Tim Drake, now calling himself Timothy Wayne, decided to search for Bruce, believing he wasn’t really dead.

The international spy agency Checkmate was reinstated by the United Nations Security Council to police superhuman activity throughout the world. Physicist Ryan Choi discovered Ray Palmer's size-changing belt at Ivy University and became the All-New Atom. For better or worse, the long courtship of Green Arrow and Black Canary culminated in a wedding ceremony attended by the assembled members of the Justice Society, Justice League, Titans and Birds of Prey. Uncle Sam & The Freedom Fighter defended the spirit of America against all enemies, foreign and domestic.

The War of Light foretold by the ancient Book of Oa came to pass as armies of ring-bearers empowered by the light of the Emotional Spectrum began appearing throughout the cosmos; The green light of Will which empowered the Green Lantern Corps of Oa; The yellow light of Fear harnessed by the Sinestro Corps on Qward; The glowing violet of Love that drove the Star Sapphires of Zamaron; the red plasma of Rage that burned within the Red Lanterns from Ysmault; The orange-tinged Avarice that consumed Larfleeze within Okaara, the blue ray of Hope inspired the peaceful Blue Lanterns on Odym; And the mysterious Indigo Tribe, whose members were compelled by the light of Compassion. The undead forces of darkness returned to wipe out all life from the cosmos. Led by their herald Black Hand, the rotting corpses of dead heroes, villains and loved ones would rise again as Black Lanterns to menace the heroes of Earth during this Blackest Night, heralding the return of their master, Nekron. However, the White Lantern of Life hidden beneath the Earth awoke, bringing about the Brightest Day and the mysterious resurrection of several heroes and villains for reasons unknown.

Following their resurrection, Maxwell Lord escaped, as did Professor Zoom. Captain Boomerang returned to the Suicide Squad, while Jade investigated the mystery of her own existence. Martin Stein met his successors, and Aquaman reunited with his loving wife, Mera. Martian Manhunter returned to the Justice League, Osiris joined the Titans, Deadman tried to kill himself once again, while Hawkman and Hawkgirl dealt with their confusing resurrections and countless lives.

While Green Arrow defended the mysterious forest in the center of Star City, the resurrected Max Lord erased the world's memory of him and Booster Gold formed a ragtag band of his former Justice League teammates to thwart his evil schemes. Meanwhile, Aquaman, J'onn J'onzz, Firestorm, Hawkman & Hawkgirl were transformed by the White Lantern entity into Elemental forces to combat the giant undead husk of Swamp Thing. In the aftermath, mystical rogue and scoundrel John Constantine began the search for Alec Holland, who'd disappeared without a trace following his sudden resurrection. Following the death of their brother Ares by her hand,  the Gods of Olympus began manipulating the history of Wonder Woman and the Amazons according to their own selfish agenda.

A consequence of the many crises, Brainiac exploited his captured worlds and a being known as  Telos in order to cause a Convergence of worlds. In the fight against Brainiac, the Crisis was re-enforced, thus destroying Brainiac’s collection. Telos was revealed to be a brainwashed Arak, the son of thunder.

After the tumultuous events of the previous year, Black Canary retired from law and formed a band, while Starfire encountered the woman known as Atlee. The Justice League United to save the world from evil once again, concluding with the unfortunate Death of Hawkman.

After all the suffering the heroes had been through, Green Lantern and Green Arrow decided to finally answer the Cry for Justice. Of course, their goals were foiled by Prometheus, who destroyed Star City and killed Lian Harper. This tragedy ultimately led to Roy Harper and Jason Todd expanding the Outlaws to make sure nothing like this ever happens again.

In the aftermath of the past year, people wanted justice. Ryan Choi was looking for Ray Palmer as Micron. Oliver Queen went after Prometheus, looking to avenge the people who died on Lian Yu, along with Roy’s daughter. Caitlin Snow began hunting down Shadow Thief and the other members of the Society involved in Firestorm’s death as Snowstorm. Donna Troy assumed the alias of Troia, and attacked the faction of the Society involved in Veronica Cale’s Godwatch conspiracy theory. Cyborg continued his battle with Grid, and created contingency plans in case the Crime Syndicate returns. Jenny Lynn-Hayden was lost after the events of Superboy-Prime’s attack. As Jade, Jenny investigated the mysteries of the Starheart, and why it merged with her. Seeing all these people in need, including his best friend, Green Lantern decided to recruit these people into a new Justice League.

After the events of Superboy-Prime’s attack, Batman was lost through time. Fighting cavemen, witches, pirates, cowboys, and gangsters, Batman eventually made his way back to the present with help of the Time Masters.

Following Bruce Wayne’s return, he announced the funding and formation of Batman Incorporated. The purpose of all this was to defeat Talia al Ghul and the forces of Leviathan. Batman sent two of his agents, Red Hood and Scarlet on a mission to defeat the Victim Syndicate.

While Kon-El was resurrected by the forces of of N.O.W.H.E.R.E, Superman was severely weakened after a fight with Vandal Savage. Cadmus released a nuclear clone of Superman named Denny Swan, who attacked Superman for whatever reason. Kenan Kong gained Kryptonian-esque powers after he became a metahuman.

Superman’s kryptonite poisoning worsened, and the public could tell that these were the Final Days of Superman. This came to a head with arrival of Doomsday. Superman and the Justice League fought valiantly against the monster, but the fight ended with Doomsday knocked out, and the Death of Superman.

Years ago, there was a group called the Titans. Recently, Lilith was contacted by their old enemy Mr. Twister. In order to stop him, Lilith had to reunite her old friends and restore their memories. In the aftermath, there was still one forgotten Titan.

## Rebirth (Contributed by thatwhomonitoz)

When forgotten kryptonian Kara Zor-El returned from Hypertime, she revealed that the events of Crisis and Flashpoint were attacks upon all of history. A decade of their lives had been stolen from the heroes of Earth, weakening the friendships and love that had allowed them to overcome their challenges and trials, but for what purpose remained a mystery to be unravelled. The only clue was a single blood-stained smiley-face button that appeared in Kara’s temporal wake.  Discovered by Batman in his cave, he began an investigation with Barry Allen and Clark Kent that attracted the attention of Eobard Thawne and revealed to them that the alternate reality of Flashpoint had been preserved. This culminated in an emotional reunion between Bruce Wayne and his late father Thomas, who pleaded with him to stop being Batman.

Following the Death of Superman, many new heroes rose up in his place. Lex Luthor used his tech from Apokolips to become a new Superman, while the Eradicator activated as part of a protocol from the Fortress of Solitude, and Hank Henshaw turned himself into a Cyborg-Superman. A boy from the Phantom Zone named Lor-Zod arrived on Earth and quickly aged into adulthood. While growing, he was adopted by Lois and given the name “Christopher Kent.” Soon after, Superman himself returned from the dead.

Unable to tell truth from lies, Wonder Woman uncovered that the Themyscira she had been returning to since the events of Flashpoint were illusions created by the children of Ares. Hal Jordan chose Simon Baz & Jessica Cruz as the joint Green Lanterns of Sector 2814. Harley Quinn finally ended her toxic relationship with The Joker. Having survived her most recent temporal upheavals, Kara Zor-El, now calling herself Kara Danvers, moved to National City to continue her cousin’s battle for Truth and Justice as Supergirl. The young children of Superman & Batman began teaming-up as the Super-Sons.

Batman investigated the mystery of new vigilantes Gotham and Gotham Girl. Oliver Queen returned to Seattle and continued his quest for social justice as Green Arrow. Superman and his family continued to adjust to this twisted reality, and the Justice League fought the Suicide Squad due to the manipulations of Maxwell Lord.

Nightwing moved back to Bludhaven, and Damian Wayne started his own group of Teen Titans. In order to prevent the world from being taken over by Vandal Savage, Rip Hunter recruited a group of b-list heroes such as White Canary, Firestorm, Hawkgirl, Hawkman, Atom, Captain Cold, and Heatwave. These Legends of Tomorrow would essentially become the guardians of the timestream and self-declared “continuity cops.” Aquaman and Black Manta fought once again, this time pertaining to a boy named Jackson Hyde.

Niles Caulder and his Doom Patrol for more bizarre misadventures, heroes new and old uncovered the mystery of why Cave Carson. The fight against madness was taken up by Shade the Changing Girl. Secrets of existence were plumbed by the long-dead Forager the Bug! Gotham City gained a new protector in Mother Night.

Red Hood recruited a new group of Outlaws including the botched clone Bizarro, and the Wonder Woman wannabe Artemis. The Trinity, Aquaman, Flash, Cyborg, and the Green Lanterns formed a new Justice League. The Titans reunited to uncover what happened to the timeline after their friend Kara Danvers returned from the timeline. Meanwhile, Superman and his family faced H’el on Earth and soon discovered a disturbing secret.

When their old foe Mr. Mxyzptlk returned to warn of the secret machinations of the mysterious Mr. Oz, Superman & Lois Lane learned they had been split into two halves during the theft upon history during Flashpoint. While Superman was reeling at the revelation that Oz was actually a man from the dreaming called Garrett Sanford, displaced in space and time by powerful forces, Batman’s investigations into the ancient Metal that had recently resurrected him and The Joker unleashed an invasion from the Dark Multiverse. Afterwards, child prodigy Duke Thomas became Gotham’s protector during the daytime as The Signal.

The bloody past of Deathstroke caught up with him. Aquaman was dethroned by Atlantean zealots led by the tyrannical Corum Rath. The romance of Ollie Queen and Dinah Lance was reignited during the insidious transformation of Seattle into the new Star City. Kenan Kong learned to be a hero as New Super-Man and the Justice League formed under his leadership.

A new age of heroes began across the world. The rampaging Damage wreaked destruction wherever he was. Silencer struggled to balance being an assassin and mother. Sideways explored various dimensions of the Multiverse while The Terrifics explored the mysteries of the Dark Multiverse. The Immortal Men continued their secret mission to save the world.

Following the Dark Knights and the Crisis of Metals, the Omega Titans were freed from their imprisonment within the Source Wall, leading to the Justice League, JLA and Teen Titans uniting to save the universe from destruction.

The courtship of Batman & Catwoman finally culminated in Bruce Wayne’s wedding proposal to Selina Kyle. Superman learned the alleged truth behind Krypton’s demise from Rogal Zorr. Wonder Woman battled Ares once more, while Hal Jordan used the power of the Green Lantern to serve and protect sector 2814

The past of the Titans cought up with them as they faced their history with Deathstroke, who wanted revenge for the murder of his son, Grant Wilson, years ago, and now had the justification that the Lazarus Contract had been violated. In the aftermath, major changes were made to the Titans roster.

Catwoman battled Dr. Destiny and Scarecrow, preventing their “Gothtopia” scheme from coming to life, while Static finally joined the Titans. The Hellblazer found himself indebted to Papa Midnite, who was sending trouble his way, while Deathstroke created his own vigilante group, Defiance.

Tim Drake reunited his long-lost friends Conner Kent, Bart Allen and Cassie Sandsmark to reform their old team, Young Justice, and soon joined forces with new teen heroes.  A long prodigy named Naomi began her adventures, the shape-changing Wonder Twins struggled with high school and another boy was empowered to Dial “H” for Hero.

After years of courtship, Batman and Catwoman finally tied the knot, with one of the biggest weddings in history (No, seriously, like, they spent millions on this.) Bane and the rest of the villains tried to interrupt the wedding, but were quickly stopped by the guests.

David Zimbavi joined Batman Incorporated as the new Batwing. Oliver Queen’s son, Connor “Hawke” Clayton introduced himself, being the vigilante called Sureshot. After a fight with Manchester Black and the Elite, Superman was forced to ponder “What’s so Funny About Truth, Justice, and the American Way?” Meanwhile, in Central City, Don and Nora West-Allen were born, being the children of Iris and Barry.

Don and Nora suffered from accelerated aging, until that was fixed by S.T.A.R Labs. Physically teenagers, Don and Nora used their speed to fight crime as the Tornado Twins. While Green Arrow battled Ricardo Diaz and the Longbow Hunters, the Flash Family dealt with one of their own being framed for murder after a tragedy occured at the Sanctuary, a place for villains and heroes in Crisis.

The World’s Greatest Escape Artist, Mister Miracle was faced with a terrible choice to end the war between New Genesis and Apokolips. In the realms of The Dreaming, the inhabitants searched for their missing ruler, Lucifer gained his humanity, and Tim Hunter resumed his studies of The Books of Magic. Batman charged Black Lightning with leading his latest team of Outsiders.

Seeing a need for something larger than the League, Black Canary recruited some of her friends and colleagues, along with younger heroes into the Justice Foundation. After Aquaman dealt with the drowned earth, he and his wife Mera went on a quest to uncover the real history of Atlantis.

The Chinese government, paranoid about the metahuman population, established their own “Great 10” heroes as a defence against them. Apparently resurrected from the dead, William McIntyre tried to re-join the Justice League but was rejected. Damaged by the betrayal, Triumph traveled back in time after stealing Skeets and killed the heroes at the sanctuary. As he has for nearly a century, the immortal Kit Freeman called upon the spirits of the dead as Kid Eternity.

Even with all of time and space unravelling, the newly-expanding Multiverse full of superheroes had flourished. The variety and temperament of these costumed adventurers reflected the diversity of humanity itself. Each carried within them the spirit that began decades ago when Superman, Batman, and Wonder Woman first inspired the generations of superheroes that followed them.

The Justice League reformed to explore the mysteries beyond the Source Wall and protect the Earth from the forces once held within it. The realms of magic were explored by Wonder Woman’s new Vertigo Society while Cyborg led the Justice League Odyssey into the unknown worlds of the Ghost Sector. Soon enough, the Leagues united to battle the Legion of Doom.

Hawkman’s investigation of the Metal revealed the existence of the Deathbringers, who had been plaguing humanity for eons, while Agent Liberty soon came into conflict with his old organization, the Sons of Liberty. After becoming a metahuman through magical means and attempting to resurrect his wife, David Hersch used his lightning bolt dagger to slowly kill all metahumans as the villainous Cicada. Empowered by the Khushu Idol, Damien Darhk proved to be a serious problem for the Titans.

After the Speed Force storm hit Central City, August Heart gained super-speed and was trained by Barry Allen. Blessed with power and purpose, Godspeed tried to rid Central City of crime once and for all. Repairs to the Source Wall were made by Hal Jordan and the Green Lantern Corps, while the Rogues reloaded themselves with new weapons. The Legends of Tomorrow found themselves in a battle with the demon Mallus.

While the world reels from the so-called “Superman Theory”. the last survivors of the annihlated cities have fled to Superman’s world in a desperate race against the Doomsday Clock that threatened all existence. The godlike Allen Adams has seen his final fate in future and it is the image of an enraged Superman attacking him. The fate of all existence depends on what happens next…