We will not be stopped!
Your partners are going down, Dreamslayer, and so are you.
Mari!
- You okay? - Just need to catch my breath.
Save a piece of him for me.
You think you can stop me with a bubble?
It's a really good bubble.
Where's Shayera?
Why do they always think it's going to be so easy?
Because they always underestimate you.
Get back behind the police line.
I can't do that, Shayera.
I've been hoping to talk to you for a very long time.
- And you are? - Carter Hall.
I wanna show you something.
Easy. It's an artifact, not a weapon.
Well, actually, it's both.
Thanagarian.
All the Thanagarian tech that was left behind
after the war was either confiscated or destroyed.
Most, not all.
Thanagarian contraband sells for big bucks
on the black market.
- Where did you get this? - In Egypt.
During an archaeological dig. It's not from the invasion.
It's been on Earth for over 8,000 years.
You're Thanagarian.
With your help, I could translate the glyphs.
Figure out how the technology got there.
We could investigate this together.
Come with me to Egypt.
Cairo's beautiful this time of year.
I can recommend some nice restaurants.
We'll examine the artifact and get back to you
when we know something. Thank you, Mr. Hall.
The Metro Tower has some of the most advanced
scientific equipment on the planet.
Okay, while they run their tests, maybe you and I
can discuss this in more detail... over dinner.
Oh, I don't, um...
Okay. Sure.
I'll see you soon.
- Is that right? - Let me run it again.
Carbon-14 dating confirms that this artifact
is over 8000 years old.
I'm no historian, but that date roughly tracks
with the era of the weapon's design.
And the relative crudity of its Nth metal components.
I've gotta go.
Shayera, I wanted to... Judas Priest!
- Problem? - No, no.
It's just, uh, I've never seen you in a dress before.
- You don't like it? - It's, uh, fetching.
If you want one for Vixen, I can tell you where I got it.
Ahem, listen...
Glad I caught you before you did something stupid.
- Excuse me? - Carter Hall.
- What about him? - I did some research.
His birth name is Joseph Gardner.
- He lied? - No.
Six months ago, he had it legally changed to Carter Hall.
He's an archaeologist.
Currently curator of The Midway City Museum.
Had an excellent reputation until about five years ago
when he started claiming that aliens landed in ancient Egypt.
Aliens? Well, then, he must be a lunatic.
Because we all know that there's no life on other planets.
- There's more. - What?
Our Mr. Hall spends quite a bit of time on the internet.
Dang, lock him up.
He frequents the I-hate-Hawkgirl bulletin boards.
That doesn't mean... Boards?
- How many are there? - Fifty seven web rings.
Unaffiliated sites number in the hundreds...
Forget I asked.
Hall keeps getting banned from them.
For flaming the anti-Shayera posters.
- So he's a fan. - He's a stalker.
There.
So he was in the crowd.
- I don't see what... - Wait.
A coincidence. This-this doesn't mean he's...
I'm gonna have a little talk with this guy.
This isn't any of your business or yours.
- It's League business. - Oh, really?
Do I tell you who to date?
Carter Hall has uncovered a genuine mystery.
And I think it's worth investigating.
You should take backup.
I meant Batman. I...
We don't want you walking into a trap.
I can take care of myself. Thanks.
The point is...
The point is you don't trust me.
Either of you.
Don't wait up.
This isn't right.
- I know, but don't... - No.
I mean, this shouldn't be happening.
When we traveled to the future
we met my son, mine and Shayera's.
We're supposed to be together. It's our destiny.
If you really believe that, why are you still with Vixen?
- What? - I miss the dress.
You didn't miss it last night.
Anyway, it didn't seem like the right outfit
for an archaeological dig.
You're right. The pants are fine.
You'd look beautiful in anything.
It's your dig, Romeo. Lead the way.
Shayera, don't!
Poison. They're mercury-tipped.
Nasty.
The entire tomb is booby-trapped.
It took me months to learn how to avoid them all.
Right. After you, then.
The trick is the raised glyphs.
If you press them in the proper sequence
they disarm the defenses down here.
And if you get it wrong?
Well, we're already in a tomb, so that's handy.
I've made a lot of progress deciphering
some of these glyphs, but this one, for instance...
Journey, I think.
And the mark on the side means Conclusion.
The end of a long journey?
I have a confession to make.
I haven't been completely honest with you.
I brought you here under false pretenses.
Or should I say... destiny brought you.
What do you think you're...
You and I are the reincarnation of lovers who died here.
Thousands of years ago.
My real name is Katar Hol.
But you can call me Hawkman.
I'm sorry.
I'm not laughing at you... exactly.
I just, I've got the worst taste in men.
- I'm serious, Shayera. - I know you are.
And I'm in a lost Egyptian tomb with my stalker.
The worst part is, I'm going to have to listen to John
and Batman saying, "I told you so."
I know it sounds crazy, but hear me out.
Our souls have been bound together
for thousands of years.
This device, it's called an Absorbacron.
I unearthed it three years ago.
And when I touched it...
After I woke up, I understood everything.
Almost everything.
The machine restored the memory of my life here
thousands of years ago.
In 6600 BC, two Thanagarian law hawks were sucked
through a worm hole into an uncharted sector of space.
They landed here when their ship ran out of fuel.
They were stranded with no way to get home.
They decided to use their technology to improve the lives
of the locals, and they succeeded...
beyond their wildest dreams.
They turned this arid waste into a paradise.
We ruled this land with fairness and compassion
and the people loved us.
But there were factions that resented
these two Gods from another world.
A jealous priest poisoned us.
Poisoned you and me. Do you understand now?
We died, Shayera.
The extraordinary society we created fell
in less than a generation, its technological secrets lost...
until I rediscovered them.
Look, an Absorbacron is just a database
that you interface with telepathically.
What you saw was probably just the ship's log.
It's old, probably damaged.
It filled your mind with thoughts, feelings
memories that weren't your own.
We're not reincarnated lovers.
Come with me.
Once you touch it, you'll understand.
Hands off.
Hah!
Shayera, please.
Let the Absorbacron speak to you as it's spoken to me and...
Rise and shine, my delusional friend.
Who are you?
He calls himself the Shadow Thief.
He's a talker.
Unfortunately, she isn't.
At least not so far.
Stop!
What do you want from her?
Nothing.
That was just for fun.
I've been following you for weeks.
Waiting to be led to this treasure trove.
These Thanagarian artifacts will go for millions
on the black market. And I do so like money.
But I need your archaeological expertise in order to disarm
the tomb's final line of defense and enter the burial chamber
where, of course, the most valuable pieces lie.
Not going to happen.
Really?
I think we've got room to negotiate.
I understand that Thanagarians are stronger than humans.
I wonder how long will you last under my tender care.
Knock yourself out, jerkhole.
A little rude, darling, don't you think?
Stop! I'll help you!
Carter, no!
You again.
I've never been afraid of shadows.
Now is an excellent time to start.
This chamber's unstable. If we don't end this fast...
The whole tunnel could come down on us.
I'll take one of those.
And one of those.
Hah!
Haven't you figured it out yet, darling?
I'm only solid when I want to be.
Who said I want you solid?
Filthy witch!
The Absorbacron!
Carter, it doesn't matter. It...
No! I've got to save it!
- It's lost forever. - It nearly killed you.
That machine was designed to telepathically
communicate with Thanagarians.
It was too powerful for an unshielded human mind.
J'onn Jonzz is a telepath.
Perhaps he can help you sort through the information...
I don't need any help.
I know the truth.
We're the reincarnations of Katar and Shayera Hol.
And I love you.
Oh, you can't love me, Carter.
You don't even know me.
Your favorite color is teal.
You could eat Croatians oysters everyday
even though they give you heartburn.
You get up early because you love the sunrise
and nothing's more important to you than fighting for those
who can't fight for themselves.
You'll see the truth... eventually.
- It's destiny. - It's not.
It's just the Absorbacron.
I've waited thousands of years for us to find each other.
I can wait a little longer.
- How stupid do you think I am? - Scale of one to ten?
Funny. I meant this.
Hall was the one I didn't trust.
Right, that's why you planted this bug.
How much did you hear?
A bunch of nonsense about reincarnation and destiny.
Maybe it isn't nonsense.
If you really believe that.