On a normal night, he would be enjoying the freedom of flying, letting the cosmic rod carry him through the clouds, but tonight, it's just another reminder of his missed chances. Jack remembers a time before he became Starman, when life was a simple mess and he only needed to worry about remembering the name of the girl he woke up next to. All that changed the night that David died, the night that he promised his father that he would give the hero business a shot. * Now, years later, he was stuck in a never-ending cycle of heartache and loss, all brought on by his role as Starman.

* (See Starman #0 for details - Michael)

It should have been different, should have been a hell of a lot better than this. Yes, he had failed to bring Will Payton back to Opal City, but that had been at Will's request because he was still trying to figure out his link to Prince Gavyn. * How was Jack supposed to explain to Sadie that the man she knew as her brother might never have been her brother at all? No, he couldn't do that. Better just to take the heat and let things be as they may.

* ( See Stars, My Destination - Michael)

But she had loved him, or so she had said. He had given of himself to her, starting from the moment that first night they shared dinner and dancing. Jack hadn't known then that she was Will Payton's sister, not until she had told him. At first, it had been a shock to the system, but he had decided that he loved her none-the-less, that she freed parts of him he hadn't known to be locked. He had gone as far as to ask her hand in marriage before going up into the stars. *

* (Too many issues to recap - Michael )

Now, he has cast his intentions back to the skies, searching for a cloud to leave his worries on or perhaps a shooting star to put him out of his misery. Bah, he scoffs, wondering why life couldn't be simpler and why he couldn't get a break sometime. Here, he was, the hero. Weren't the ladies supposed to flock to the heroes?

He guesses that it's just not as easy to come home as the old folks used to make him believe.

He shakes his head, turning his path and gliding in through the opened roof of the observatory. He knows that it's late, but he had promised his father that he would stop by to confirm his return to Opal. But immediately, the world seems amiss, and he decides to keep himself aloft, utilizing the energies of the rod to hover above the floor of the observatory.

There's been a struggle, that much is evident. Broken glass and twisted shards of metal lay about the floor. Jack sparks a heavier glow on the rod, illuminating the observatory brightly, and trying to ascertain some semblance of truth as to what happened between the time he spoke with his father and now.

From the spyglass of the telescope, he sees it, and it draws his attention like a shining beacon. Jack lifts himself back into the air, casting his trajectory to the viewing platform and ripping the piece of burlap cloth from the spyglass. Scrawled on one side of the burlap, he sees the twisted caricature of a ragged doll face.

And immediately, Jack thinks, "Why now?"

Gotham City.

It's not often that he gets back to visit Gotham, the city where he had once built a life for himself. In the years since he left, the years that the business of the Justice Society kept him away, the city has changed, matured and decayed at the same time. And with the recent ravages of the Quakemaster * and the renaissance of the city under the watchful eyes of Lex Luthor and Wayne Enterprises **, Gotham seems so much more alien to him.

And sometimes, it's hard for him to understand if he still has a place in this city. Certainly not as the city's protector. No, Batman and his associates had that under wraps, not to mention the countless other vigilantes parading through the streets. He shakes his head, and wonders where the days went when the heroes didn't need fear to save the day.

Now, standing in front of the Gotham Opera House, Alan Scott ponders the future, ponders his place in a world where the heroes are changing in accordance to the villains, a world where morality is sometimes grayed. But perhaps, that is what has brought him back to the Justice Society, an attempt to bring some decency back to the act of heroism.

Or maybe he's just over-reacting.

"Dad," she says, calling his attentions back to the matter at hand. "The show is going to begin soon. We ought to find out seats."

Alan smiles down at her, wiping the thoughts from his mind and looking into the emerald eyes of his daughter. "Yes, you're right. Lead the way, my lady."

She giggles somewhat, smiling at the dapper attitude her father still exhibits in public. But Jade knows that it's just the way he was raised, in an era that believed that respect begot respect. You know, Dad," She calls back over her shoulder as she climbs the red-carpeted stairs, "I'm glad that we could have this time together. After the whole affair with Todd *, I think it's good for us to re-establish our relationship."

* (See the pages of JSA for details - Michael)

He thinks on this for a moment, wishing that thethoughts of his son's estrangement would go away, but he knows that there are memories which are meant to linger on. And he knows that, given the chance, he would change the past between himself and his children, fighting tooth and nail to ensure that they both turned into upstanding people. "I'm glad too. I just wish that it hadn't taken this long for us to realize how distant we are."

"I know you're trying, and that's what counts. It's not like we've ever been the normal kind of family, anyway. You've been wrapped up with the Justice Society , and I've been in-and-out of adventures with Kyle, so it's not like we have an ample amount of time to spend together. Let's make the most of it."

But he doesn't get the chance to respond, as the side-wall of the Opera House explodes inward, knocking them off their feet. He immediately takes the defensive, pulling Jen behind him as he shrugs the tuxedo jacket from his shoulders. A green aura erupts around him, lifting him off the ground as he shouts backward, "Jen, you stay here. I'll see to this."

He doesn't look back as he soars out through the holein the side-wall. Part of him knows that his daughter is more than capable of taking care of herself in a fight, but he also knows that he is her father, and that means that he's going to keep her out of harm's way as much as possible. Concentrating, he commands the remnant energies of the Starheart to weave a lattice against the side of the building, hoping to stabilize the wound in the building and avoid causing any more injuries from the debris.

Coming to a hovering halt, Sentinel surveys the scene, looking for a cause to the explosion. But he doesn't have to look far, as the culprits steps out of the settling dust, their faces shrouded in burlap masks. His heart sinks at the sight, and suddenly he knows what all this is about. It isn't about random violence, and it's certainly not a shot at the Opera House itself. No, these men are here for him.

"Gentlemen, you have just signed yourselves up for a run at Gotham's prison system. This city has never tolerated terrorism, nor will it ever. If the Ragdoll wishes to strike against it, he shall find an adversary to head him off," he shouts confidently, wondering why they just stand there, watching him.

He doesn't have to wait too long for an answer, as two men step forth, raising their weapons toward him. Sentinel acts on instinct, raising an emerald shield in front of him in anticipation of their attack. The triggers are pulled soundlessly, and too late, Alan realizes the nature of the attack, as the wooden crossbow bolts soar through his shield and pierce the soft skin in his shoulders. His concentration falters, and he falls to the ground, blacking out as he strikes the pavement.

Seconds later, Jade emerges from the Opera House, wishing that she still had a power ring and that her father didn't regard her as a child needing protection. And then, she realizes that the street is deserted, and her father is nowhere in sight.

"Joan! No!" He yells out, dashing from room to room as he frantically searches for any sign of his wife. Only moments ago, Jay Garrick came home to find their house disheveled and ransacked, appearing as if a small war had been fought on its premises. "Joan, where are you?!?!?"

He hears the humming rising behind him, wondering how he had missed it originally. His feet cruise to a halt, slowing down from the super-speed movement he had used to search the house. His senses suddenly on fire, he begins flipping over the furniture, searching through the overturned chairs and piles of shredded cloth, searching for the source of the noise.

As the volume reaches deafening heights, Jay looks toward the exit, looking for an escape but knowing that he needs to find Joan. He just has to find her. A trickle of blood begins to flow from his ears, tracing its way down his face and drying immediately in the wind shear as he steps back into super-speed mode.

But it's the climb to super-speed which triggers the final trap, and the loud humming spikes instantaneously in pitch, crashing Jay to his knees and gripping his ears, fighting the black that threatens to seep in from the edges. If he was Wally, he'd speed off into a sonic boom, try to disrupt the supersonic attack somehow, but he doesn't have anywhere near that kind of speed. In the end, he's left to fight against the coming darkness.

But no man can fight forever, even the Flash.

He paces patiently from one side of the room to the next, the shadows streaming behind him as he walks, ebbing and waning from left to right in direct opposition to his footfalls. The cane tap-taps against the ground, not as a means of supporting his steps, but more of a method of pacing his pulse, providing a metronomic beat to time his heart against. It is a method of calming he has used for decades.

Behind him, Matthew O'Dare sits with the young child, trying to get some answers out of the child. However, the patience is quickly waning, and definitely visible on his face. "C'mon kid, you can trust me. I'm a cop. You wanna help your friends, you gotta help me."

The boy remains quiet, even as a smirk curls across the Shade's cheeks. His smooth tone opens up and addresses Matthew, "My friend, there is a fine line between the demonstration of good will and the acceptance of it in good faith. This poor child has been traumatized, and his fear is only exacerbated by a hostile approach. Have faith, he will tell us in time."

"We ain't..." Matt begins to reply, then hushes his tone and takes steps away from the child. "We ain't got time. Somewhere out there, some bastard's gettin' his jollies by smearing the blood of children across our streets. He almost got this one, 'cept for you nabbin' in time. But we can't be everywhere. Not now, not ever."

"This is not a fact that escapes me. However, if the child remains silent, we are no further along than when we first set foot upon this endeavor. Believe me when I say that the blood of innocents will be washed from our streets in due course, and that I will not abide while my city is defiled as such. But this is the work of a player who has not been seen in Opal in a great while, An evil that has become something more than ever it was conceived. "

"That best be the case," Matt says, striking a match against the wall and lighting up a cigarette. "I ain't got the luxury of keepin this kid from the cops for too long. Sooner or later, there's gonna be a line drawn between protection and withholding evidence."

There is silence between them, and somehow, Matt O'Dare wonders how long it will be before they catch the killer responsible for this. How many more children will Opal lose to this monster?

His eyes shoot wide with worry, as the newest scene unfolds before him. Slowly, the lights rise on two more rings of the circus, each holding another of his former camarades. Ted stares in shock, wondering how it is possible that the Ragdoll could be overcoming the most powerful that the Justice Society has to offer, but then, he thinks, perhaps time has finally caught up with them after all.

"Oh my God!" He yells out, watching the pool of red spread slowly beneath Alan. "Somebody help that man! Can't you see that he is bleeding?! Jay, please, anyone!"

The shadows twist and turn before him, bending and contorting in impossible manners, "I'm afraid no one will hear your pleas, Starman. No, no, no. Nobody to hear or care. The Flash is predisposed with a sonic scrambler...keeping his equilibrium off-balance just enough to shatter his concentration. And Green Lantern, well, let's just say someone gave him the shaft."

"You're a monster! There are those who will stand against you, just as we stood against you years ago!"

"Yes, years ago when you stole my life from me. Which brings us to today. I promised my return, promised that I would destroy the precious lives you had built for yourselves. Imagine my sadness to hear of Dr. Mid-Nite and Hourman's deaths. To hear of the passing of your wife and the murder of your first son. How sad it is to be denied part of my life's one true desire, the pleasure I so looked forward to. Now I must be content with your deaths." Ragdoll replies, his face once again looming in front of Ted's. He moves wildly and erratically, shifting from one direction to the next as he paces in front of the elder Knight. "But wait, there was something else I promised you...oh yes. I promised the torture and slow deaths of those you loved. Miranda, can you show our audience what lies behind curtain number one?"

A spotlight flashes from atop the bleachers, as a lithe, womanly figure pulls back a curtain. Between the bars of the cage, through squinted eyes, Ted spies Joan Garrick. His heart drops, remembering how much Joan and Jay mean to one another. His eyes shift to Jay, disoriented and reeling from the sonic attack. Whipping his head back, Ted screams, "Let her go! She has nothing to do with this!"

"Everything that you cherish most, Mr. Knight. Everything that you cherish most." The Ragdoll chides, releasing Joan Garrick from her cage. The woman stumbles out, falling immediately to her knees and crying as she looks toward her husband. Her eyes glazed over with tears, she fails to notice the descent of aluminum before it crashes into her left shoulder, and she collapses to the  ground. Smiling and giggling, the Ragdoll advances upon the woman, singing, "Take me out to the ballgame, take me out to the crowd..."

She cries out in agony, as a second attack splinters her ribcage from the backside, sending a scream flying from her lips. She struggles to mouth the Lord's Prayer, but find the energy to move her lips is taken from her by the third fall of the bat, this time against the base of her neck.

But it is not the last stroke.

And it is the joyous laughter that makes it all the worse.

Next Issue: The troops begin to rally together, but how can they find the Ragdoll in time to prevent Ted, Jay, and Alan from meeting their end? Also, the chilling secret behind the resurrection of the Ragdoll is at last revealed as a second player joins the frey. All in Sins Revisited Part Three.