JLA #100 (2004)

Clark Kent wakes up from a nightmare involving Manchester Black in his apartment. A foreshadowing of things to come as the Elite make a reappearance on the world stage with a new leader: Sister Superior, Manchester Black's little sister, who is out for revenge against the world. She and the Elite bust into the United States Senate and declare themselves the new landlords of Earth. This decision doesn't sit well with the Justice League of America who rush into action to take out the resurfaced rogue metahumans. Unfortunately the newly reassembled Elite don't go down so easily. A massive battle lays waste to Washington, D.C. and takes several League members with it as Batman, Flash and Manitou are apparently killed. The world convenes at the United Nations to organize a counter offensive. However, they are all deeply afraid of the current situation that they find themselves in and begin bickering and turning on one another. Wonder Woman finds her way to the podium and asks them to band together and face the coming threat as one, to forget borders and old feuds but to look towards preservation of the world. Moved by Wonder Woman's words they agree to do just that. Superman, Wonder Woman and Martian Manhunter use themselves as bait to lure the Elite into a transporter field that teleports them all into a huge military trap set up by the whole world. A massive battle ensues with the world's nations finding common ground against a common enemy. Suddenly the earth moves and takes the shape of a woman, which she states that she is so moved by the actions of her "children" (humanity) to work together that she agrees not to destroy the world herself. It appears as though the planet Earth had decided to destroy all life on her soils as it had come to hate one another and destroy the world on which they exist. Major Disaster was the first to feel this as widespread ecological disasters wrecked havoc over the last few weeks. But it wasn't until Sister Superior contacted the Justice League that anyone really knew the magnitude of the event. The JLA and the Elite had staged the whole battle and war just to trick the people of the world, and the Earth herself, into working together. That gesture convinced Earth to spare the lives of her children. The world will never know this, as it would ruin the reputation of the Justice League and all the heroes in their ranks. The news reports that the Elite have been captured and are imprisoned beneath the Watchtower on the moon. Sister Superior has other plans though. She feels that the Elite's current outlaw status would be a great way for the JLA to get inside the underworld of super-hero crime; that the Elite could be the undercover arm of the JLA working to prevent extinction level events that the JLA contend with only after they have begun. Superman is suspicious of the idea and feels that such a proactive agenda is too dangerous, he shuts down the idea without debate. However some are not so inclined to agree with their fearless leader. As the Elite walk off, back to their world of shadows they take a few JLA members with them.