| Issue #1 | Issue #2 | Issue #3 | Issue #4 |

#1

"Return of the Dragon King?"

By David Marshall

 

Blue Valley, Nebraska

Courtney Whitmore wiped the sleep from her eyes and followed the smell of frying bacon into the kitchen. She was dressed in preparation for another hot Nebraska day - shorts and a halter top that exposed her flat, tan belly. She couldn't wait to get the day started. Mary was home from school too and they were going to find some trouble to get into. Just like old times.

The kitchen was already a noisy din of activity. Patton was barking for his breakfast. Pat was shuffling his morning newspaper and complaining about another hike in the price of gasoline. Ever the gentleman, his disgusted tirade burned both political parties. Mike was giving Courtney's mom tips on handling unruly school brats. Apparently she received the promotion to Guidance Counselor at Blue Valley High that she worked so hard for. She offered grunts of agreement in between yelping between splatters of hot bacon grease.

Breakfast was the one time of the day Courtney's mom insisted on family time. After breakfast everyone was welcome to head off to whatever made them happy, but for better or worse you didn't miss the most important meal of the day. Since tendering her resignation from full-time duty with the JSA, Courtney was able to make her mom happy a lot more often.

So far her resignation left Courtney with mixed feelings. It would be good to spend time with the family, but if the JSA needed her badly enough, she would be there in a heartbeat. After all, they were her second family. But somewhere along the way, Courtney realized she had to make time for her first family as well. With her freshman year out of the way, it gave her plenty of time to hang with Pat, Mike, Patton, and her Mom. Summer had arrived and her time belonged to them for a change.

Courtney shuffled into the kitchen. Her mom was setting the table. As usual the utensils were painstakingly placed to form the neat, descending "Christmas Tree" pattern her mother insisted represented a well-set table. The woman was too Redbook for her own good, but it didn't bug Courtney as much as it did when she was sixteen. "Hey sweetheart, will you be a dear and get the milk and juice out of the fridge?"

Mike held his glass out. "Yes, be a dear and pour some juice for me."

"Get it your own damn self, fuzz-head," Courtney hissed. She wasn't sure why Mike's kidding rubbed her the wrong way. After all she didn't wake up in a bad mood and it had been awhile since she and Mike really went at it.

"Courtney Whitmore! You apologize to your brother! And since when do we use language like that in this house?" her mother asked.

"Since I stopped being a kid. And freak boy is not my brother," Courtney answered. Perhaps an insult or two would bait Mike into an argument and break the perpetual boredom known as Blue Valley, Nebraska. Who would have thought she would miss the endless parade of goons in long underwear so badly? She needed a sparring partner and if she couldn't do it with her fists and cosmic energy as Stargirl, then words would have to suffice. Besides, she and Mike had an unspoken understanding. They knew where the line was drawn with one another and knew not to cross it. He enjoyed it every bit as much as she did.

Barbara Dugan placed a plate of bacon on the table then pointed her finger in Courtney's face. "What is wrong with you?"

Mike grabbed a handful of bacon and threw it on his plate. "Probably the same thing that's always wrong with her this time of month." He grabbed the discarded sports section from his father's newspaper.

Pat Dugan, Courtney's stepfather and Mike's biological father, folded up his newspaper. "That's enough out of you too, young man."

Mike stuffed his mouth full of bacon and washed it down with a gulp of orange juice. "I'm impressed, Dad! I do believe that's a new personal best! Yes, indeed! Congratulations are in order! We have a new speed record in the Stripesy-kissing- Star-Spangled- ass category! Shall we call Guiness now or wait until after breakfast?"

Courtney rolled her eyes. "He doesn't kiss my ass."

"Of course he does," Mike replied. "That's Stripesy's job, right Dad?"

"Can we have the summer's first meal together as a family without the fighting and bickering?" asked Courtney's mom.

"Not quite Brady Bunch enough for you, Mom? Maybe I'll find Buddy Hinton and give him a black eye," Courtney mocked.

"I believe it was the other way around, dear," Barbara answered. "Peter stood up for Cindy."

Courtney took a seat and poured herself some juice. "Like I need Fuzz-Head's help. Hello! I'm the super hero, remember? Not just a dumb kid."

"Your brother is not dumb," her mom shot back.

"And I'm not a kid either," Mike added.

"Enough!" Pat yelled. "I'm damn sick of you two bickering all the time! I know you enjoy it but Barbara and I are the ones who have to listen to it. Mike, I'm much harder on Courtney than I am on you. I have to be. She lays her life on the line every day she crawls out of bed. She never knows when some maniac will try to kill her because of some JSA revenge fantasy. She has to be good or die."

Courtney's mom looked up. She was obviously not pleased with the thought.

"And Courtney, you could show Mike some respect," Pat continued. "He's earned it many times over after all the times he's fixed S.T.R.I.P.E and with the improvements he's made to the armor! One day the suit will be his and the two of you will have to work together. I want you two to shake hands and say you're sorry!"

Courtney looked across the table at Mike. Pat wasn't supposed to blow up. That wasn't part of their game. At least Mike didn't seem anymore thrilled about Pat's order than she did. Hell would freeze over before she made the first move.

Apparently Mike felt the same way.

"Now!" Pat yelled.

Mike and Courtney snapped their hands together and shook unconvincingly.

"Sorry," Mike mumbled.

"Yeah," Courtney replied.

"Not good enough," said Pat. "Courtney, Mike said he was sorry."

Courtney flung her stepbrother's hand away from her grip and pushed her seat out from under the table. "That's it! I'm out of here!" She made a beeline for the door.

"Young lady! You get back here!" her mom yelled. "No one excused you from this table!"

"I didn't ask," Courtney yelled back.

"Let her go, Barbara," Pat said as she slammed the door.

There was a brief time when everything was right in the Dugan household. Courtney remembered it well. It was just after Per Degaton killed her family. Of course her JSA colleagues helped her repair the time line and her family was restored. She was so thankful to have them around she overlooked their faults, maybe a little too easily.

A thought struck her as she opened the garage door. What if the drama was really her fault? After all she was no longer a kid and neither was Mike. Why did they insist on bickering so? She hopped into the bright yellow Star Rocket Racer that Pat built for her. He gave it to her the same day her biological father showed up out of the blue and stole the locket she carried around for years. He claimed he needed money to help his brother. He didn't have a brother. That day was she first realized Pat was the only true father she'd ever known. It wasn't because of the car either. Sure, it was nice but gave it to her because he understood the disappointment she felt when she realized the man she idolized and waited for years to come back into her life was nothing more than a two-bit lackey. She hated to use the term loser but that's what he was. Pat accomplished many great deeds in his decades of serving justice, but none as heroic in Courtney's eyes as the day he rescued her faith. So why push him to the edge all the time?

Courtney fired up the Racer and headed out on the open road. Thanks to Pat and Mr. Terrific she finally learned to drive, or at least a reasonable facsimile anyway. She enjoyed it because it gave her time to think. Flying around in costume was a trouble magnet. If it wasn't some psycho who wanted to rule the world, it was an old lady with her cat stuck in the tree. Not that she'd every actually met a little old lady with her cat stuck in the tree, but the heroic stereotypes held true. Somehow the costume always meant trouble. But as just plain old Courtney Whitmore driving around in her bright yellow convertible, she could soak up the suns rays and wrap her mind around whatever troubled her.

She dropped by Mary's house and honked the horn. It had been awhile since she saw her best friend. While Courtney opted to attend Blue Valley State, Mary headed off to St. Roch to study antiquities. In her letters she often spoke of having a crush on her professor, Carter Hall. Courtney wanted so badly to tell her that she knew Professor Hall very well indeed. His muscular chest and arms attracted more than one lustful stare from Courtney as well, but as Hawkman he was so aloof she didn't understand how Kendra put up with him.

Mary popped her head out the door of her parents' home. "I'll be there in a minute, Court!"

Courtney watched Mary's bright red hair disappear into her home once more and when she returned she was hopping toward the Racer on one foot and trying to squeeze the other into a shoe. That was so Mary.

Mary finally made it to the Racer and climbed in.

Courtney smiled and shook her head. "It has doors you know."

Mary shrugged her shoulders. "Details, details! Why waste a perfectly good convertible? Where we off to?"

"Anywhere but here," Courtney replied. "I've had enough Blue Valley for one day."

The girls made their way out of town and into the countryside. Row after row of cornfields greeted them every mile.

Mary yawned. "Great idea, Court! Nothing like another corn stalk to break the monotony of Blue Valley. Come on, level with me. What's up?"

Courtney sighed. "I'm lost, Mary."

"Easy to do out here. It all looks the same," Mary replied.

"No, I mean I don't know who I am anymore," Courtney explained.

"You too, huh?"

"I miss the JSA for one thing," said Courtney. "But I promised Mom I'd stick around for awhile unless it was a real emergency."

"I think you're running," said Mary.

"From what?" Courtney asked. "I'm not afraid of anything."

Mary rubbed Courtney's bare shoulder. "Except yourself. You've had a chip on your shoulder ever since I've known you. You always want to push the boundaries and get yourself into trouble."

"You're complaining?" Courtney asked.

"Hell no," Mary replied. "Until you came along my life was as tedious as these cornfields. You got me in trouble your first day of school. You know I'd never been in trouble before?"

Courtney smiled. "I do have a knack. Don't I?"

"It's what makes you good at what you do - the spandex thing, I mean. But you always let your alter ego kick Courtney's ass. It's neat being best friends with a big-time super hero, but I've missed Courtney much more than I've missed the Star-Spangled Kid this last year while I've been away."

"Stargirl," Courtney corrected.

Mary smacked herself in the forehead. "Stargirl, I mean. Stop running from Courtney."

"I'm not sure I know how," Courtney admitted.

Mary ticked items off an imaginary list. "You're incredibly hot, but don't have a boyfriend. You keep your family at arm's length. You always kept to yourself in school. Good thing I was a fellow loner. You hang around with the old folks in the JSA ran than join the Titans or Young Justice a few years back. Do you see a pattern developing?"

Courtney sunk down in her seat. "Maybe."

"You don't let people close to you," said Mary. "Do you know why?"

Courtney shook her head.

"You don't like you," said Mary.

Courtney rolled her eyes. "Now you're my freakin' shrink?"

"No, I'm your friend," Mary answered. "Come on. Let's get back to Blue Valley. We can head over to Nate's and share a banana split."

Courtney put the Racer into gear and whipped it into a U-turn. "Is that an order, Dr. Kramer?"

Mary laughed. "No. Consider it your prescription."

As the Star Rocket Racer approached Blue Valley it was obvious something wasn't right. A tall plume of smoke crept into the always-blue sky with menacing, dark fingers.

"Looks like something's on fire," said Mary.

"Hold on," Courtney warned.

"What you going to...."

Courtney pushed a button on the console of the Racer and the car rose into the air. A sleek, aerodynamic top rose over the passenger compartment and blocked off the afternoon sun. A touch of the gas pedal and the Racer jumped as if shot from a slingshot.

"....do?" Mary finished. "Courtney?"

"You don't think Pat could design anything normal do you?" Courtney explained. "He based the idea on the original Star Rocket Racer he and Sylvester used in the forties."

Mary craned her neck and peered out the window at the cornfields below. "This is, like, the coolest car ever!"

"Thanks," Courtney replied. "The smoke looks like it's coming from Blue Valley High."

The Racer rocketed along and finally made its way over the high school Courtney and Mary attended. On the ground below, one group of emergency officials fought the fire while another wrestled with a lone figure. Behind the solitary figure a small army of minions rounded up the students of Blue Valley. Unfortunately the city's rural police force was woefully unprepared to deal with such threats.

"This looks more like my specialty," said Courtney. "Take the wheel while I get changed."

"Courtney? No, I don't know how to..." Mary protested, but it was too late. Courtney released the wheel and Mary grabbed for it in panicked horror. "Courtney, how do you fly this thing?"

"It's just like driving except the wheel now tilts toward the ground or up into the sky," Courtney explained. She climbed into the backseat of the Racer and quickly changed into her Stargirl costume. "That button that looks like a cigarette lighter. Push it."

Mary pushed the button in question. "This one? What does it..."

A hatch opened in the roof of the Racer and sprung Stargirl into the sky. She heard Mary pleading with her about teaching her to land the Racer but there was no time for a driving lesson. Besides, the Racer wasn't as difficult as one may believe to fly. As smart as Mary was, she'd figure it out soon. Hopefully.

Stargirl surveyed the scene below her. The police were aware of her presence and backed off to give her room to operate. As she dipped closer to the action the source of the town's horror came into her view. Unbelievable!

The Dragon King! Didn't he die in the explosion that first wrecked the school back when Courtney attended?

The Dragon King looked up and locked eyes with Stargirl. There was something about those eyes that disturbed her. They were definitely not the same reptilian eyes she remembered. They were much more human.

"I've waited a long time for this," the Dragon King spat. He lowered a lance, not unlike Stargirls's own Cosmic Rod, given to her by Jack Knight. The King aimed the rod toward her and it released an explosive burst.

The Dragon King's attack exploded against a shield of cosmic energy unleashed by the Cosmic Rod. The feedback was difficult to control but Stargirl managed.

"Haven't I kicked your butt once before?" Stargirl asked. "Must we do this again?"

The Dragon King didn't look pleased with Stargirl's banter. "You ruined everything and will pay for what you've done, Star-Spangled Kid."

"It's Stargirl now and can't you bad guys find better dialogue? The whole you-will-pay thing is so passe after dealing with real heavyweights," Stargirl answered.

The Dragon King averted his eyes for a moment toward the wall of reporters that gathered at the scene like vultures at a kill. "We have an audience, Stargirl. How fitting the whole world will see me slay you. For you see, you're not the only one who's changed her name. My father would be proud!"

"Your father?" Stargirl asked. That sounded more like....

The Dragon King unmasked. It was Stargirl's old nemesis, Shiva. "All hail the Dragon Queen!"

The new Dragon Queen whipped her head and throwing stars flung from her long, braided ponytails.

One of the stars sunk into Stargirl's right shoulder, evoking a pained scream.

"First blood," the Dragon Queen gloated.

Stargirl cursed herself for falling prey to such an amateur attack. When she and Shiv tangled before, Stargirl was a beginner and still doing the super hero bit to bug Pat as much as anything else. That was then. In the ensuing years she learned a lot. As a member of the JSA she faced Per Degaton, Extant, and the Ultra-Humanite and lived to tell about it. No way was she going to allow a former classmate, a head cheerleader no less, put the final nail in her coffin. "Hey Cindy! You like stars so much have a few of mine!"

Since accepting the Cosmic Rod from Jack Knight, Stargirl relied more and more on its awesome power. Her often neglected shooting stars were still potent and more effective at steering an opponent to where she wanted them to move.

The new Dragon Queen jumped and ducked to avoid the flurry of cosmic-powered constructs. One slipped through her defenses and sliced clean through one of her braids. The weighted ornamental mace at the end of the braid clunked to the ground and buried its spikes in the soft earth.

"My hair!" Dragon Queen hissed. "You will pay for that, Whitmore!"

It irked Stargirl to hear the Dragon Queen use her real name. It seemed every villain knew her secret identity, which made her wonder why bother with the charade at all. Jay Garrick dropped his ages before with little problem. "I would be pissed too. The one-side-of-your-hair- shorter-than-the-other style is so yesterday."

While taunting her old nemesis was fun, Stargirl had other problems at the moment. The fallen braid of Dragon Queen's mace morphed into a young, mechanical dragon. A plume of fire erupted from its mouth.

Thankfully the cosmic converter belt protected her from the intense burst of heat.

"Meet my little pet," said the Dragon Queen. "I hope you'll forgive him. He likes to play rough."

The dragon slinked toward Stargirl and reared up on its hind legs. Stargirl had seen larger dragons. The thought was both surreal and amusing. She'd seen bigger dragons. Ah, the life of a super hero! Still the mechanical beast before her stood a good twelve feet tall. The key word though was mechanical. Stargirl lowered her cosmic rod and was just about to unleash the power of the stars when the Dragon Queen voluntarily dropped the other mace. It too became a dragon, matching the other.

"Did I forget to mention how much Stripesy hates to play alone?" the Dragon Queen asked. "I hope you don't mind but I named them after you and your geriatric partner. This little beauty is your namesake. I call her the Kid."

The second dragon joined the first and they roared in unison.

No big deal. While they were busy posturing and filling the evening air with their bad breath, Stargirl lifted the Cosmic Rod and took to the skies.

Stripesy unleashed another blast of fire but it was met by an energy shield and dissipated against it. A well-timed blast from the Cosmic Rod blew the robot to pieces.

"No! My beautiful baby!" yelled the Dragon Queen. "What have you done?"

"Sir Justin taught me everything he knew about slaying dragons! One down and one to go!" Stargirl taunted. "Here girl! I've got a special present gift-wrapped just for you!"

The second dragon whirled around to meet Stargirl. It was much faster than it looked. It caught her boot in its mouth.

"Ow! Let go, dammit!" Stargirl cursed. She tried to pull away but the dragon's grip was surprisingly strong.

"I hoped to finish you myself but it looks like the Kid has things well in hand," said the Dragon Queen. "Or should I say mouth?"

"Since yours is rarely closed, I'd go with that one," said Stargirl. She banged the dragon in the head with her Cosmic Rod but knew it was a silly move. In fact it was downright embarrassing. The surprise of being captured by such a monster triggered the primal response. She flung exploding stars into the dragon's eyes.

The beast roared. It was the opening Stargirl hoped for. She took the opportunity to remove her boot from the dragon's mouth and while it's big trap was still open, hurled the same exploding stars into its open maw.

The Dragon Queen laughed. "You'll have to do better than a few sputtering stars to quell the Kid's appetite!"

The dragon exploded into a million pieces.

"Must have been something he ate!" said Stargirl. "Looks like it's you and me, Cindy!"

"Don't call me that!" the Dragon Queen roared.

"What's wrong Cindy? A little too personal?"

"You want personal?" asked the Dragon Queen. "I'll give you personal!"

The ground shook so violently that Stargirl was forced to take to the skies and a third dragon burst free from beneath the earth. This one was neither mechanical nor was it young. It finally broke itself free from its earthen prison and roared for all to hear as it unfurled its impressive wingspan. Around its neck were Pat, Mike, and Courtney's Mom.

"Welcome to the Whitmore-Dugan family barbecue, Stargirl!" Dragon Queen taunted. "You provide the family and I'll provide the barbecue!"