The Path to Justice

Speedy

My hat slammed against the floor as I turned away. How could they do this to me! I thought he was reliable. I thought he cared. I peeked through the closing door and saw him staring after me. But he did nothing. He never did anything.

I burst out of the Hall of Justice into a flurry or reporters and fans. And I stormed through them all. A path opened in front of me, and everyone grew silent as I passed. They sensed that all was not right in the world.

I went directly home to pack my things. As I prepared to leave Ollie's mansion, he showed up to stop me.

"Roy," he started.

"No. You've dug this hole yourself, and I'm not going to be caught in it any longer. I trusted you. You said we'd become full members of the Justice Lords! And you couldn't even stand up to Batman for me. You treat me like a child, and I'm tired of it. Goodbye, Ollie."

And I walked out the door. Luckily, I had kept a side bank account with my allowance that Ollie knew nothing about. It was under a fake name, and I had all the identification I needed to go with that name. There was no way that anyone, even Batman, could track me.

So, I decided to try doing the hero thing alone. I couldn't wear the Speedy costume, that was a dead give away, but I didn't know who else I could be. I started going out at night, dressed in tight black clothing with my domino mask. I stopped bank robberies, muggings, drug deals, but I had no identity, no direction.

I thought traveling the world would help, so I went to Africa, helping feed poor children. I kept track of America, though. I heard about Luthor's presidential campaign. How he was elected. How the Flash was killed.

I hopped back over the pond, wanting to help and comfort my little brother. But nothing was the same.

The Lords had taken over everything. The one newsflash I had missed seemed to be the worst. Superman had killed the president and declared martial law.

Everyone moved with an air of urgency. They were scared. Some tried to rebel against the new laws, but they were made examples of or disappeared without a trace.

I traveled the country, trying to find someone, anyone, that would be willing to rebel that the Lords hadn't found already.

Instead, I found the Base.

It was an old underground Army base, which had sat vacant for years. I started living there, setting up new equipment, cleaning out the cobwebs, finding a purpose. I learned that there were individuals wanting to rebel, but there was no order, no communication. I learned the Lords were pressuring Wally to become the Flash. I learned about what they did to the villains.

And I knew that I had to do something. I became the counterpart to the Justice Lords, to my mentor.

I became Red Arrow.

So, I'm working on a slightly different writing style with this one. I'm not sure how it's gonna go, so let me know what you think.

-Shadow