ASH/HCC: LL&DD Special - "Empaneled"

[Dave Van Domelen]

     [The cover shows Lady Lawful and Doctor Developer at a typical fan
convention panel table.  Cosplaying fans look like knockoff versions of
various villains Doctor Developer has double-crossed.]

_____________________________________________________________________________
 Coherent                                                  LL&DD Special
 Comics          | ADY | AWFUL    __        __              "Empaneled"
 Presents an     |__   |__     &  | \ OCTOR | \ EVELOPER   copyright 2013
 ASHistory Tale:                  |_/       |_/            by Andrew Burton
_____________________________________________________________________________


     The following is an excerpt from a video made during the 1996 Chicago
Supracon.  The panel included LADY LAWFUL and DOCTOR DEVELOPER.  This video
is property of DSHA and may not be reproduced without express authorization.
This document is Unclassified.

     [Camera angle: back of the room.  LADY LAWFUL (LL) is sitting on the
left, DOCTOR DEVELOPER (DD) on the right.  Both are in costume.  Both hold
microphones.  There is a line of people asking questions to the left, off
camera.]

PIERCE: Hello, my name's Pierce....

LL: [waving] Hello, Pierce!

PIERCE: I'm a big fan of your comic book, Lady Lawful, and I was wondering if
that's your real origin story or not.  If not, can you tell us what your
origin is?  Thank you.

     [LL looks over at DD and makes a face.  He cocks his head.]

LL: Deedee, you're a fan of my comic too, right?

DD: I, uh, have read it.

LL: [blows raspberry] You write letters to the editors all the time.

DD: They get a lot of their facts wrong.

LL: Which I guess answers Pierce's first question: no, that's not my origin
story.

     [LL looks back to DD.]

LL: Can I tell my origin story? That sort of defeats the purpose of a secret
identity.  Let me think for a second.

DD: You could be vague.

LL: I could be vague, that's true.  Vague.  I'll be vague.  Pretty vague.

     [LL inhales and looks at DD one more time.  He doesn't react.  She turns
to the audience and begins to speak.]

LL: I'm not the first Lady Lawful, the one who was in World War II.  I
inherited the belt from her a few years ago.  I started out small, helping
people.  Then I joined up with The Three Strikes.  Then I got myself an
arch-nemesis.

     [LL holds up one hand to hide her other from DD, the points at him with
the "hidden" hand.  The crowd laughs.  DD leans over to look at her hands.]

LL: I eventually convinced him that being a bad guy was kind of dumb, got a
new teammate, and then I came to Supracon.  The end.

     [Crowd applauds.  LL makes a few bows from her seat.  As the applause
dies down, she looks over at DD.]

LL: What's your origin story, Deedee?  How did you get where you are today?

DD: [smiling] Ah, you convinced me that being a bad guy was kind of dumb.

     [LL laughs out loud.  The crowd follows her lead.]

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Editor's Note:

     Written for High Concept Challenge #36.5, "One Minute Origin Story".
And Andy has cleverly left himself an unused story idea for later, "What is
the origin of Lady Lawful according to the comic book?"

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