A Future Sooner than Tomorrow

A Today Sooner Than Yesterday

The Justice League had been in a meeting-

No, that's not completely correct. Some of the Justice League had been in a meeting in the Watchtower; others had been protecting their respective cities whilst the rest were on an off-world mission.

Batman had stood at the front, cape obscuring his body as he spoke about a foiled drug ring. Wonder Woman and Hawkgirl were sat to the right side of the meeting room's table with Martian Manhunter, the Flash and Green Lantern sat opposite of them. Superman had sat at the very end of the table, directly facing Batman. Batman had curtly finished his report and as he was the last one to speak, it had signified the end of the meeting. Green Lartern and Flash had eagerly gotten out of their seats, chatting amicably about something, whilst the Martian Manhunter, Wonder Woman and Hawkgirl leisurely got up.

And Superman? He'd been overcome with a sharp sense of wrongness as though the world had been tilted slightly off its axis. He had held onto the table for support as he got up, ignoring the crumble of quartz beneath his fingers. His legs had felt oddly weightless sa colours had burst across the inside of his eyelids. Existence itself had seemed... Unsteady, as though an acute bout of vertigo had struck.

But that's silly, Superman had thought, I fly over Metropolis and leap off of buildings on a regular basis and I don't get vertigo. Looking back on it, that probably should have clued him onto something being strange...

___________________________________________

"Guys... Does anyone know where we are?" Flash's voice breaks the silence. The Justice League is no longer in the meeting room of the Watchtower. Instead, they're in what looks like Metropolis yet... the buildings aren't right. There are flats where single houses once sat, sky scrappers in place of construction sites, and offices in strange places. Everything has a new sheen to it, brighter than Metropolis on the sunniest of days.

"I'd say it looks a lot like Supes' city, but... Something doesn't feel right. I've only been to Metropolis a few times, so correct me if I'm wrong, but I swear the buildings weren't this large," Green Lantern sceptically looks up at one of the flats. They are pillars of glass and concrete, spiralling into points like fractured crystals. There were several buildings of similar design, as though their sole purpose was to refract light until they formed stars onto the roads and constellations across bright billboards. Superman can imagine it what it would look like at night, as though galaxies had come alive and plastered themselves to the sleeping walls of this city.

"I can get a bird's eye view? Check out any buildings that stand out and come back. That way, we'll have a good starting point to figuring out where we are," Hawkgirl offers. The others unanimously nod. She spreads her wings and pushes herself off of the ground. Relishing the strong beat of her wings against her back, she weaves through towering buildings. Scanning the area from above, she notes its layout is remarkably like that of Metropolis with similar highways and main roads. Looking around, she spots a glimmering golden dome in the distance. She heads toward it, hoping to check it out.

The remaining Justice League sit on nearby dumpsters or lean against walls as they wait for Hawkgirl's return.

"So, Supes, what's your verdict?" Lantern says, back against the wall of a white, glossy building. "Is this your home turf or what?"

"No. It looks similar... but it can't be. There are so many buildings I don't recognise..."

Green Lantern raises an eyebrow, scoffing as he says,"because we all obviously know every building where we live, don't we?"

"That's not what I meant! It's just that..."

"It's just that what?"

"This looks a lot like the centre of Metropolis-" Green Lantern begins to interrupt Superman.